Chapter 49: The Way Home (The North Wind)

    The spinning in Arven's head returned. He sat on the bank's rocks and buried it in his palms.

    Penny and Miraidon came within reach of him. "What's wrong, Ven?" Penny asked.

    "My head," he complained. He couldn't remember if he hit it when Miraidon tossed him into Casseroya. What he felt was most likely the Poison Powder.

    Penny hesitated, but she patted Arven's back. "Why don't we rest a bit?"

    "No!" Arven instantly looked up. "We can't, Pen-Pen. Sada cannot hold Dad off for long. Celebi said so. We need to get back to Nemona and Scarlet, too. We have to find Celebi's friend right now." He put his weight on Penny's hands and used them to help him stand.

    Arven swayed. Luckily, Penny caught him. "Here, let me help you to Miraidon." On their way to him, she included, "Do you think Celebi's friend is a Pokémon?" Her hips danced because she tried avoiding Tatsugiri, who bounced between her legs.

    They drew Arven in, those perfect, round hips, and he blushed. Arven put his heels together and shuddered, but he wiggled his head. He stopped next to Miraidon, back in his ride form, and rubbed his shoulder. "It has to be a Pokémon. Celebi said that it can purify dirty memories through water."

    He found the path that took people up to the main Islet. Cliffs, leafy trees, and grass-filled hills dotted every inch of it. Arven kicked a few of the beach's pebbles and pointed at the uneven trail. "Let's try that way."

    "Arven, please." As if on instinct, Penny touched his chest next. She kneaded it like a Purrloin and stared into his eyes. "Let me lead the way so you can rest." Occasionally, she fisted his sternum.

    Arven shivered again. It was strange. Shouldn't he have pushed Penny away? After all, they were just friends. He didn't, though. Arven let her massage his chest. It felt good on his aching heart.

    "Oh, I'm sorry!" To Arven's disappointment, Penny removed her hands. "I don't know what came over me." She turned away. "Let's see if we can find Celebi's friend."

***

    Riding Miraidon across the main Islet allowed Arven to think about what happened between him and Penny on the beach. Was what he felt raging hormones or his fever?

    Arven swore Penny said she loved him in the future. While he didn't know if he felt the same toward her, Arven did know that he liked her and wanted to go on a date with her. Penny was three years younger, though. Would that even work?

    Arven was confused, but he couldn't let his feelings for Penny get in the way of their task. First, he would save his dad and sister and then consider love.

    "Arven, something's coming," Penny, out of the blue, said.

    Wait, what? How long had Arven's thoughts trapped him? He and Penny were already on the other side of the Islet.

    Miraidon hopped over a stream and landed on a grassy point that overlooked Glaseado's waterfalls. He hiked up and down hills and weaved through trees to the point's edge.

    As Penny said, something had appeared on Casseroya Lake in front of the roaring waterfalls. The Terastallized Pokémon shimmered light blue, and the setting sun's rays passed through its crystals, giving it the appearance of a god/goddess.

    Casseroya's inhabitants moved aside to let it through.

    The mysterious Pokémon left a glowing trail like fairy dust behind it while it trekked toward Arven and his friends.

    Arven's heart pounded. A Pokémon walking on water was not something he saw every day. He dismounted Miraidon and pulled Penny behind him. Tatsugiri hopped into his free hand, and Arven set it on his shoulder.

    On edge, too, Miraidon stayed close to Arven and Penny.

    Penny tucked the Scarlet Book under her arm and grasped Arven's.

    The last Pokémon species to open the path for the mysterious being was Gyarados, a dragon-like Pokémon known for its aggressive nature. If Gyarados refused to pick a fight with the mysterious Pokémon, it meant that it was likely the ruler of Casseroya. But was it Celebi's friend?

    The Pokémon reached Arven and Penny but remained on the water. Right when its front paws touched the bank's edge, the Terastal energy surrounding it vanished and revealed its true form: a large, blue and white Pokémon with a purple mane that resembled the aurora borealis.

    Suicune.

"Water has memories, even dirty ones, which purify with the next rain."

- Viktoria Fyodorova