Dissociate

Hey everybody! It’s been a while since I’ve done something Pokespe related, but I’m feeling the itch to get back to it, so here we are! For those who remember my previous fic, Pokespe Legacy, I’ve decided to reboot the continuity, and I’m starting with this fic here. Think of this as the prequel to an eventual Pokespe Legacy rewrite. For the unfamiliar, don’t worry about going back and reading my old stuff, just know that this fic will take place in a Pokespe AU with a different continuity of events and that it includes 5 OCs.


For this chapter, 4 of 5 OCs will be mentioned but none of my OCs will take center stage till I get to the reimagining of Pokespe Legacy. Think of their mentions as a brief introduction to the characters and what they do.


I mention the OCs up front as I’m familiar with the bad rep that a lot of OCs have gotten, and don’t want to waste your time if you dislike them.With all this explanation out of the way, let’s get the chapter going!

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Yellow stared into the night sky from her favorite tree stump in Viridian Forest. It was a cold night, well into October. While no snow had fallen yet, the branches of the trees were bare, standing rigid and spindly in the night sky. They rattled as the wind blew through. Winter was coming to Kanto. Yellow knew that full well. Not that she cared.

Well, she did care somewhat. Most of her friends had gone into hibernation. All of the Beedrill hives had battened down the hatches for winter, as had most of the other Pokemon in the forest that hadn’t migrated south earlier in the fall. There were still a few, like the local Kanghaskhan, and a few Growlithe that lived to the south.

But such was the course of nature. Which just left her, sitting alone in the middle of the forest, save for Ratty perched on her shoulder. The others were back at her house, where they’d be safe from the winter’s coming cold. It was lonely there, after all. Ever since her uncle had gone out to sea and never returned. Apparently, his ship capsized in a storm. Nobody was rescued from the wreck.

Yellow sighed as she fiddled with a familiar red device in her hands, its batteries long dead and its vacant screen glinting in the moonlight. It had been years since her dexholder days and months since she’d talked to any of her old friends. She didn’t even know why she kept her old pokedex. She’d thrown away almost everything else. Perhaps she was too weak to cut off her last tie to her old life. Maybe she’d have the strength someday. But that day wasn’t today.

She’d changed so much since her days as a Dexholder. She’d admittedly been an optimistic and naïve girl back then. Now that Yellow had truly seen what people did to Pokemon….well, it didn’t sit right with her anymore to associate with people very much. This went even for her friends. They were still part of the system. Not that all people in the system were bad. Red in particular seemed to hold out a lot of hope for them. But she didn’t. Not anymore. Not after she’d heard the screams. Not after she’d heard the pleas for help. Not after she’d seen the suffering. From pollution, from truly disgusting trainers, from people who just didn’t care.

Idly, Yellow wondered if this was why Lance had tried to destroy Kanto. Maybe she should have let him. There really wasn’t much worth saving. All of the big factories, churning out pollution. All of the big boats, spewing out unhealthy fumes. All of the progress of “industry”. Kanto in particular was considered to be one of the most heavily industrialized regions in the world. Even Johto had more restrictions to protect the wild areas.

Maybe Lance had been right. Maybe humans and Pokemon couldn’t coexist happily. Maybe she’d just been a naive little girl when she’d fought him on Cerise Isle all those years ago. Honestly it had been a miracle that she’d made it out alive, let alone with a victory.

But no… she was different then Lance. It was a bit of a strange thought, one that hadn’t crossed her mind for some time. But it was something that Yellow knew that at least for sure. She retained at least a little hope. At least she hadn’t become so jaded that she’d lost faith in humanity totally. Whatever that was worth. Her friends weren’t lost causes, as were most people. The bad people were few, but unfortunately, they often had either power or anonymity on their side. And they were impossible to deal with. Yellow had found that out the hard way. She simply didn’t have enough power on her own to move them.  

Now, she spent her days in the forest, guiding lost souls back to the beaten paths or driving away the more aggressive passers through who ventured too far into the forest. They weren’t allowed to touch her forest. To steal away her friends. No…even if it were the last piece of wild land in all of Kanto, she wouldn’t let them in. She might not be the most powerful trainer in the world, but she wasn’t weak either. She could guard this beautiful place. She could guard her home. She had enough power to do that at least.  

But at the same time, she felt…unfulfilled? Like she was missing something. But what could there be? She was surrounded by her Pokémon friends and her beloved forest. It was all she had left.

It wasn’t like the other Dexholders were around very much anymore, even if she wanted to see them. All of them had gone their own way. She only got to see Red, Green and Crystal on a regular-ish basis. Red was perpetually busy with his Champion duties. He and Misty came to visit Yellow on occasion, when his schedule allowed. It was nice. He usually brought pastries with him too, which was always a bonus. Green was always stuck in his Gym. It could not be said that he didn’t do his best to be the best gym leader possible. What could be said was that he was a workaholic who was always on the job. Usually it was Yellow doing the visiting, mostly for business purposes. Sometimes she was returning a scared lost soul to civilization, sometimes she dragging a wanted fugitive back to the waiting handcuffs of a law enforcement officer. It was a working relationship, and she respected Green greatly. Did she have much of a friendship anymore? Not at all. And then there was Crystal. She now worked for Professor Oak as an assistant in the lab. She often accompanied Crystal when going to release Pokemon back into the wild and sometimes got called into the lab itself to calm an inconsolable Pokemon. She was always nice to talk to. Busy to be sure, but a friend none the less who made time to meet with her on a regular basis. Which was more then she could say for the rest of the dexholders.

Sure, she’d seen most of them at least once in the last few years, but that didn’t constitute a proper friendship at all. Violet had once been her sister in arms against those who would do Pokemon harm. But when Yellow found she couldn’t carry on, Violet had gone on without her, her fire still burning brightly in that endless battle. Perhaps her ability to actually transform into a Pokémon gave her some insight or power that Yellow didn’t have, with only her ability to understand Pokémon. Something that kept her going, when Yellow could not. Not that Yellow had the slightest idea of what that something was.

Blue had outright just disappeared. The last that Yellow had heard was that Blue’s acting career hadn’t been going so well and that she was going to redouble her efforts to get a role. Considering that she hadn’t heard anything in months, Yellow could only assume that it didn’t go well. She wasn’t concerned for Blue’s safety, the woman had proven time and time again that she was more than capable of handling herself against any number of dangers, but Yellow did wonder what she was doing now. Her parents had even stopped by to ask if she had heard anything. They were really nice people and it pained Yellow deeply to have no information for them.

Then there was Orange, ever off on another adventure. While her adventurous spirit had cooled somewhat over time, she was still off on the road for another freelance filming or photography job more often than not and loving every minute of it. Between her freelance business, her brutal travel schedule and her perpetually short budget, Orange was always busy and only ever turned up in Yellow’s neck of the woods by sheer accident and nothing more. Not that Yellow minded when she turned up, but their interactions were always cut short by whatever other errand Orange had to run off and attend to. Yellow had no idea why Orange would do that to herself, but it wasn’t like she was one to talk. By the system’s terminology, she was “unemployed” and “not doing anything with her life”. The simple thought of that made her eyes roll. She was taking care of her forest and her Pokémon friends and doing a far better job of it then those so called “Rangers”. What a lot of city slickers they were. Probably couldn’t tell north from south without a GPS.

Indigo was also not frequently around, though for different reasons. The former Shadow Trainer had taken a more academic path and was now currently doing his PhD in computer sciences. Or so Crystal had told her. The last time she’d seen him was during the World Tourney when he’d been competing for Kanto-Johto after the big steroids scandal had gotten almost all of the professional competitive battlers on the continent suspended, and many of the top collegiate battlers had been called in as replacements. Indigo was hard to watch battle, though. While he’d changed a lot in the years Yellow had known him, he was a Shadow Trainer at heart and the high risk, high reward and high recoil battling style he defaulted to when cornered was hard for her to watch. It also reminded her of what Indigo had told her about the Shadow Pokemon project. Sometimes, Yellow wondered if Shadow Humans existed. And sometimes, she wondered if Indigo walked the line in between.

Silver visited on very rare occasion, often swinging by while on business trips to Viridian City. Between his wife, two kids and his job, he was quite the busy guy. It was almost astonishing to see the transformation of the young man from the shadowy, sneaky trainer bent on destroying the Masked Man to the quiet salary worker who worked an 9-5 job and had a wife and two kids. Silver’s wedding had been the last time Yellow had seen all the dexholders together in one place. It had been a joyous occasion and Yellow couldn’t be happier for him. It still saddened her that she didn’t get to see him very often.

Lyra was the only other dexholder she cared to see after Gold’s…..fall from grace. The former rock star had gotten himself into the party life, shortly before blowing all his money and disgracing himself on live tv. Not that she’d had much in common with the boisterous dexholder to begin with. Lyra was far better conversation. She would visit every time she was in Viridian, though unfortunately, the lack of rich people in need of a move tutor in the area limited her visits. Lyra always had the funniest stories of trainers who hired her to teach their Pokémon new moves, and Yellow very much enjoyed her outrageous tales and cheerful company.  

But alas, the result was the same. All of them were off doing their own things. Off living their lives. Off doing what they wanted to do. While she sat here on a stump in the middle of a cold, empty forest.  

No. She wanted to be here. She was here for a reason. For the Pokemon. For the forest she called home. She couldn’t forget.

The wind picked up into a strong gust. Yellow instinctively reached for her head, before stopping herself and sighing. She was still trying to stop her hat from blowing away, even though she’d stopped wearing it years ago. Ratty perked his head up as Yellow’s ponytail whipped around and lightly whacked his tail.

“Sorry Ratty. Maybe I need a haircut,” said Yellow apologetically.

Ratty just squeaked and gave her a concerned look.

“Yeah, I guess I was brooding again,” said Yellow. “Sorry about that. I know you don’t like it.”

Ratty perked up and squeaked a few more times before rubbing his head against her arm.

Yellow’s face twisted into a small, sad smile.

“Thank you.”

Ratty chattered again, pawing at her hand.  

“I know. It’s just…. I don’t know….” sighed Yellow. “None of the others see it the way I do. I can’t change the course of history. I can’t stop all of the factories. I can’t catch all the bad trainers. I know I beat Lance, but that was with everybody else helping. I would never have stood a chance on my own.”

Ratty squeaked again. Yellow shook her head.

“No, I’m just some sort of crazy woman to them now. I don’t think they’d listen to me just because we fought Lance. I don’t even know if the title of Pokedex holder goes for anything anymore. I mean, it only went for so much back in the day.”

That being said, maybe Ratty was on to something? According to Crystal, Yellow had become a local legend. The “Lady of the Forest” or something like that. Protector of the Trees. Guardian of the Pokemon. She sighed in frustration. They probably wouldn’t listen to her. They probably wouldn’t get it. And at this point, she wasn’t sure if they ever would. They didn’t understand Pokemon the way she did.  

Was it fair to be so hard on them if they couldn’t see things the way she did because of her powers? Probably. You didn’t need her gift to know that Pokemon were suffering. It was right in front of everybody. No, it wasn’t all Pokemon and yes, there were a lot of really good and kindhearted trainers out there, but it didn’t change the fact that there were still hurting Pokemon out there who needed help. And she could only do so much on her own.

She had tried. She had gone out into the wilds and city dumps. She’d marched with the protestors and given dozens of speeches. She’d almost worked herself into a serious mental breakdown. It had taken nearly all of the people she knew to convince her to stop. And when she stopped, she came to a realization.

What was she accomplishing by doing all of this?

It was only then that she realized that her efforts weren’t enough. That no matter what she did, there would never be able to make a dent in the overwhelming face of all of the suffering.

At this point, she’d need to have significant political sway. Even Red, the popular champion, had tried to push legislation to help curb some of the pollution and put better policies in place, but was still pushing against stiff political resistance. It disgusted Yellow beyond words. It made her usually dormant rage boil with a frenzy unmatched by any other emotion she’d ever felt. And to be honest, it scared her that she was even capable of such anger. In the end, she decided that she needed to get away from it all. Away from the politicians, away the people and away from the filthy, broken, despicable world that they all lived in. Away to the only forest she’d ever called home.

Yellow felt a small nip at her hand, bringing her straight back to reality. She looked down at Ratty, who peered up at her, concerned.  She hadn’t realized that she’d gotten so worked up.

“Don’t worry, Ratty. I’m fine. Just….got worked up thinking about some things. That’s all!”

She gave Ratty a smile. He chattered concernedly and nuzzled against her arm.

“Really, I’m fine! You don’t have to worry about me. You know me. I can handle this!”

Ratty shook his head.

“Ugh, you’re right, Ratty. But who am I going to call?”

Ratty chattered again.

“They’re all busy. I don’t even have a phone to call them anymore.”

Ratty chattered again, more animated this time.

“I don’t think that will work.”

Ratty squeaked animatedly.

“I…have a hunch. It’s not going to happen, all right?”

Yellow sighed as the wind gusted again. She glanced up at the rattling branches above her.

“They…I don’t know that most of them care about me anymore, Ratty. It’s been forever since I’ve seen them. I….ugh….I don’t know.”

Ratty nuzzled against Yellow comfortingly.

“Thanks, Ratty. I know I can always count on you.”

Ratty squeaked happily and settled down on her lap.

Yellow gazed out over the forest, absentmindedly stroking Ratty’s fur. Nothing had changed in the forest. Just as always. That’s what she loved so much about the place. No matter how much things seemed to change, no matter if the leaves were blown away and the plants shriveled, no matter if branches fell and trees toppled, the forest always seemed to stay the same. She would always have friends here. She would always be safe here. She would always be at home here.

She took a deep breath through her nose and exhaled through her mouth. Maybe things weren’t as bad as she had thought. Or maybe they were. It didn’t matter. She had her forest. And her forest had her. And that was all she needed.

Yellow stood up from her tree stump, Ratty still in her arms. He perked up and clambered onto her shoulder, squeaking curiously.

“Come on Ratty. Let’s go home.”

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Just a heads up, while I rolled the Kanto and Johto dexholders together for this chapter, there will be chapters that focus on the dexholders from the rest of the regions. Yes, I’m actually going to be focusing on the other dexholders this go around. I ended up cutting a lot of ideas from the original Pokespe Legacy that I’d like to properly use this go around, and a lot of them involve the Junior dexholders.

I’ll see you all next time!

Ok, so I realized that I didn’t mention something important which is relevant to this chapter – my AU has no legendary or mythical pokemon in it. I wanted to try and challenge myself without having such powerful pokemon at my disposal for my plot. This is relevant because this is Ruby’s chapter and events from an alternate RS chapter are going to be very important here. For those of you who remember a certain few lines scattered across the original Pokespe Legacy, you might have an idea what’s coming – this was one of the biggest cut parts from the original, and I’m super excited for this to make this to actually make it to release!

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Ruby wished he could change the past. Oh, how he wished he could change the past.
 
It was the only thought passing through Ruby’s mind as he sat atop the caldera rim of Sootopolis City. It was a steep, rocky climb in the ever-present humidity of the city to get up to where he was, but the view was beyond worth it. In one direction, the entire city of Sootopolis stretched out for the entire length of the caldera. And surrounding the rocky slopes of the caldera, nothing but sea and sky.
 
The sun hung low in the sky as it inched its way to the horizon, painting the sky brilliant shades of orange and red, tinting the clouds pink and dying the sea shades of yellow mixed with orange. It was a brilliant, breathtaking view.
 
But it was not enough to shake Ruby out of his sorrows. For it was just this time of day that reminded him of…. those events, so many years ago….
 
He’d been an insufferable little brat back then. Desperate to get away from his father and become the greatest coordinator the world had ever seen.
 
Oh, how he wished he could change all that.
 
It had all started when his father had forced him to join some project his friend Professor Birch had been working on. They gave him a red device called a Pokedex and then taken him on a number of expeditions to catch and scan as many Pokemon as he could. If only he’d actually realized the significance of his inclusion at the time.
 
He’d worked with three others. He’d gotten along best with Wally. He was a kind if somewhat sickly boy who was the glue that held the entire group together. Ruby sighed. He was glad that Wally had become the head gym trainer in his Dad’s gym. His passion was to be a trainer, and he’d worked absurdly hard to get to where he was. At least Wally deserved his credentials.
 
Emerald was an oddball to be sure. Sure, sometimes they argued, but sometimes the short guy pulled through. A strange but solid ally, Emerald’s fascination with gadgets had practically defined him in his younger years. As he’d grown older, his mastery of battling had won over and he’d become the Backup Brain of the Battle Frontier. Whenever a Brain got sick or had to take a leave of absence, Emerald was there to fill their position. Ruby didn’t see the appeal, but Emerald appeared happy there, which was more then Ruby could say about his position.
 
And then…. there was Sapphire. The lone female of the group, she and Ruby had immediately rubbed each other the wrong way. They fought and bickered nearly incessantly. Ruby remembered acutely how exhausting it was. He’d set up his tent at the end of the day and crawl into his sleeping bag, sometimes falling asleep before dinner was cooked. But Sapphire was a different case then the others. She represented everything….everything that Ruby wished had gone differently.
 
Everything had been going….well, passably for a while. And then Professor Birch had taken them back to the lab to download the data they’d collected off their Pokedexes. He was having trouble with the data corrupting, so he’d had to call in tech support. Due to their more remote location in Littleroot Town and a major wave of PC problems in the region, they were told to take a week off to give the tech guy time to come by. What a world of difference that one PC issue had made.
 
He’d gone off in a frustrated rage after arguing with Sapphire, ranting as he went. If only he could just control this situation. If only he could make her stop arguing with him. To realize that her barbaric ways were wrong and ugly. That’s what contests were about. To control every variable and forge beauty through one’s imagination and will.
 
That had been the day he’d met a kindred spirit. Her name was Marge, and she was part of an organization that helped give people the power to control their lives. To wrest control away from others who were out for their own greedy ends and use that control to achieve their own dreams. That organization was Team Magma.
 
To Ruby’s everlasting shame, he’d practically inhaled the pitch, hook, line and sinker. And probably at least half of the line too. It had been everything he’d ever wanted. With the cool older sister figure who liked contests and beautiful things to boot. He had been accepted with open arms by a group of accepting people, each with their own goals. Mitch wanted to get rich and pull his family out of poverty. Blaise wanted to take revenge on the schemers that had gotten his father, a successful businessman, killed. The boss, Maxie wanted the control to make the Hoenn region a better place. Warmed by the bonfire of hope that had been lit in his heart, Ruby had followed Marge headlong down the path they were on, believing it would take him to his dreams. Oh, how wrong he’d been.
 
No less then 10 days in, he and Marge had been sent out on their first mission. An easy one, to help get him into the swing of things. All they had to do was go to the shipyard and steal some fancy piece of equipment from some sailor. They’d barged in and got it, only to turn around to see two people dressed in similar, but equally hideous pirate outfits. Complete with an atrocity of a striped shirt and a disaster of a bandanna. One of them was a woman with a nightmarish plume of hair. And the other was Sapphire. She’d stood there, with a fierce look of determination like nothing he’d ever seen in her eyes. He steeled himself. Ruby had been training with Courtney those last 10 days and he was not about to let a literal barbarian defeat him.
 
She’d put up more of a fight then he cared to admit, her fury and determination making up most of the skill gap between the two of them. But not all of it. He’d managed to knock her down, before Marge disengaged with big hair lady and the two fled the scene. Marge had been impressed and had showered him with compliments as they flew back to the base.
 
When they returned, they were greeted with the sight of a badly wounded Mitch limping through the door. He too had run into another one of those pirates. It was there that Ruby learned about Team Aqua. A disheveled collection of ridiculous vagabonds who resorted to piracy and thieving to support their freedom. It sounded like a group of bullies that had to be put down out of sheer principle. And Maxie agreed.
 
Maxie had recalled all available members and had given a speech as they went to war. Ruby shuddered internally at how inspired and fired up he’d been when the speech was given. It had been a whole lot of nonsense about control and power and not letting some vagrants have it. But he’d cheered just as loud as everybody else when the speech ended.
 
It had been a tense few months after that. Maxie had quickened the pace of acquiring the machinery that he needed to grant every single member of Team Magma the power they so richly deserved – the Magma Stone. It was a synthetic crystal made by a machine that boosted the power of a trainer’s fire, ground and rock Pokemon. And apparently Team Aqua was after this machine too, doubtless for some nefarious purpose. Ruby remembered when the machine had been completed. He’d cheered alongside the other grunts as the first Magma Stone clanked out of the side of that machine. It had been run day and night, making the stones as quickly as possible. Soon, every member of the team had one to call their own.
 
Emboldened by this victory, Maxie had focused on his plans to remove the weak and corrupt Pokemon League. Ruby had been sent on several raids of League Compounds. They totally overwhelmed the trainers before torching the facilities and disappearing. It was upon returning from one of these raids that the impossible happened.
 
They returned to their base as usual to discover it ransacked. The few grunts who had been left behind had been badly beaten and their precious artificial stone making machine had been stolen. Maxie had been beside himself with fury. One of the grunts had been able to successfully play dead and had been in good enough condition to relay the news. It had been Team Aqua. A few days later, the news broke that Team Aqua had been seen massing in Slateport City.
 
Maxie ordered an immediate assault. Enraged by the injuries of their colleagues, the Magmas had descended on Slateport like a flock of angry Skarmory. It had quickly turned into an all-out melee. It had been brutal. But it was where Ruby finally had the curtain in front of his eyes burned away.
 
Ruby remembered that battle like it was yesterday. The shouts of battle and the screams of civilians. There was one image that Ruby would never be able to forget. The sight of a shopkeeper and her daughter hiding underneath their doll stand as an all out battle raged around them. It was when Ruby finally stopped and asked himself what he was doing.
 
Thankfully, he’d been able to keep his wits about him. Throwing off his now repugnant magma hoodie, he dashed into a store and grabbed the least terrible looking jacket he could find along with a hat and a pair of sunglasses. Chucking at least double the payment on the abandoned counter, Ruby donned his new getup and fled into the forest.
 
When he finally stopped running he was far from any roads or civilization, completely lost and completely without supplies. It had been a long and cold night by himself, shivering alone in the middle of nowhere. Ruby remembered how thankful he’d been to see the sun rise over the horizon.
 
He’d barely been able to think all day, he was so overwhelmed. Thankfully, he’d been able to forage a few berries for himself and his Pokemon and relocate to a stream of water that seemed to be safe to drink. But the weight of what he’d been doing was hitting him like a runaway dump truck. How could he possibly return home? What future was there left for him? Should he just stay here in the woods and never come out? Those thoughts tormented him till he fell asleep that night.
 
When he awoke, it was to a campfire and something soft underneath him. And Sapphire of all people staring down at him. She’d lost the bandanna and she was wearing the striped shirt inside out so that it was harder to see the stripes.
 
What followed ranked as the single most awkward conversation of his life.
 
Eventually, they stopped stuttering and beating around the bush long enough to convey what they meant to say. It seemed like Sapphire had the exact same idea that he had. When she eventually found her words, she explained to Ruby why she had sided with the privateering vagabonds. They had promised her the power to achieve total freedom. No more would she be stuck helping her dad with endless research or confined to Littleroot Town when she wanted to explore the world. And to accomplish all this, they fabricated the Aqua Stone, similar to the Magma Stone, but boosting instead the powers of Water, Ice and Fighting types. It was when Ruby realized that Sapphire’s story….was not unlike his own. It had taken nearly all of his power to swallow his pride and tell her his story. Eventually they came to an agreement that they were on the same side.
 
After a few days of foraging, Ruby spoke up about something on his mind. They needed to warn the League that Team Magma was trying to take them down. Sapphire then informed him that Team Aqua was after the same goal, in the name of freedom. It then became clear what they needed to do.
 
It took them some time to get out of the forest. When Sapphire offered to call Professor Birch, Ruby had quickly shot her down and then called his dad. He wasn’t surprised when Norman showed up, backed by Brawly, Roxanne and several police officers.
 
The next 48 hours were filled with shame, regret, and well deserved justice. After telling several officers everything he knew, he and Sapphire were eventually taken to a large meeting, filled with a number of the most powerful people in Hoenn. The gym leaders, the elite four, league officials, and a number of other influential figures. He, along with Sapphire told them everything they knew, and answered a firestorm of questions. What did the Magma Stone do, how many were there, what were Maxie’s plans, etc. Professor Birch, Wally, Emerald and even Professor Oak’s assistant Ms. Crystal were there to watch Ruby eat crow pie.
 
The meeting quickly devolved into a fight, the officials, gym leaders and others split nearly down the middle of what should be done. And then a messenger had run in, stating that Team Magma and Team Aqua were attacking Lilycove City, this time together. That had really got the arguing going. In the chaos, Ruby had felt a strong hand grab his shoulder and turn him and Sapphire around in their chairs. It was his dad. He looked both him and Sapphire in the eye and told them how very disappointed he was. And after a deep breath, he unlocked their handcuffs and told them to follow him. Striding to his quarters, he handed them their Pokeballs, offered them a change of clothes sent from home, and told them that they were going to redeem themselves by helping him stop both Team Magma and Team Aqua.
 
After changing his attire the tiny bathroom attached to his father’s office, Ruby had waited as Sapphire had taken her turn. He had sat in a chair next to his dad and waited in complete silence. Eventually his dad broke the silence. And he told him that despite his failings, he still loved him. And he was proud of him for at least coming forward with the information that they had. And then he’d given him a bone crushing hug. Ruby couldn’t stop the tears that were falling from his eyes. Thankfully, he managed to dry them by the time Sapphire got out.
 
 As they exited the room, they ran into Miss Crystal, Wally and Emerald. Who apparently had the exact same idea, since the league members were still fighting. Together, the six of them had flown direct from Sootopolis to Lilycove and landed straight into complete chaos. It had been an epic battle, as they joined the fray. Ruby watched in awe as his dad’s Slaking roared into action, thrashing the enemy and sending scores of grunts, both Magma and Aqua alike flying into the air with no distinction. And then he’d run into Marge. The look she gave him almost killed his will to fight. But he stood up to her. And in the end, she couldn’t bring herself to fight him. As the rest of the Gym Leaders and league trainers and the Elite Four arrived, she slipped off into the melee. Ruby never heard from her again. They never ended up catching her or finding a body. Hopefully she’d made it somewhere far away.
 
Which left Ruby with one person that he needed to confront. With Zuzu at his side he squared off against Maxie, one vs one. And by some miracle, he’d come out on top. Ruby still shuddered to think of the look of pure hatred that Maxie had given to him while being dragged away by League officials. He’d been exhausted by the fight, and hadn’t been too surprised to see Sapphire in a similar condition, having just vanquished Archie in similar fashion.
 
It had been two weeks before they decided what to do with Ruby and Sapphire. For their heroic efforts and the crucial information that they had been provided, they were allowed to walk free. However, they were to be under the supervision of gym leaders, for rehabilitation purposes. Sapphire had been assigned to Winona and Ruby had been assigned to Wallace.
 
Which led him to where he was today.
 
Ruby sighed again as he stared off the side of the caldera. The sun had partially dipped below the horizon, dying the sea a brilliant shade of red.
 
Nearly a decade had passed and he was still in nearly the same position that he was then. Still working at Sootopolis gym, only now as the head of Gym Trainers. While he’d been “rehabilitated”, whatever that meant, his job prospects as a former Magma grunt weren’t great. So, he stayed on. Every now and again, he participated in a contest. Currently, he was ranked 5^th regionally and 28^th in the world. Life wasn’t so bad. But at the same time….Ruby wondered could have been. Were his prospects sinking like the sun in front of him into the ocean?
 
Maybe he could have been that Contest Master, a full time Contest participant. With a billowing cape behind him and an air of mystique, a sparkle at his fingertips and an unreadable smile on his face. Surrounded by adoring fans, shelling out autographs as quickly as he could write his name. Maybe even the face of his own brand of fashion clothes. But all of that was now crushed. Now all he could do was sit here, in the mangled remains of his hopes and dreams. What a complete idiot he’d been as a teenager.
Ruby took a deep breath of the salty, humid air, and cast his gaze to the other side of the sky, where purples and dark blues had begun to gather and a few bright silver stars begun to twinkle faintly.
 
It was beautiful. So beautiful. The kind of thing that warranted a photo, or a painting, or something. It could have inspired a thousand masterful contest performances. But…his heart still ached. For there was still one thing…no person….who surpassed the scene around him.
 
As usual, he’d realized this far too late. As a former Magma grunt trying to make an honest living, he’d realized that he saw the world differently then most people. And that people looked at him differently for the asterisks on his record. Sure, there were many attractive young women around Sootopolis. But he’d given up the dating scene some time ago. It would take somebody with a similar story to understand him at this point. And there was only one other person who he knew of with a similar story. Except that she lived in Fortree City, not Sootopolis. It had hit him one sleepless night like a pile of bricks out of thin air. It hadn’t been the last time he’d cursed his younger self’s stupidity.
 
The next time he’d seen her was at a League Meeting. Standing behind Wallace, he’d barely heard any of the proceedings. Because standing behind Winona was Sapphire. And Ruby had been wondering the whole time how he’d missed such a beautiful woman. Unfortunately, Wallace had noticed and had spent a lot of time teasing him about it after the fact.
 
Which then made him wonder. What would have happened between the two of them if anything had gone differently?
 
What if they had stayed in the woods? Eventually somebody would have found them. They had only been about 10 miles from civilization. They would have needed to hide deeper if they didn’t want to be found. And they probably would have needed to sneak back into civilization every now and again for something. They eventually would have been caught, but never been offered a chance for redemption.
 
What if they had stayed with the teams? It was unlikely that they alone could have tipped the scales. Ruby would most likely have battled his father, and even with the Magma Stone, he wasn’t sure if he could have won, let alone pull a victory against the likes of Steven or Wallace. He would have been sent to jail with the rest of them or been forced into a life on the run. And there was no guarantee that he’d be able to flee with Sapphire. Most likely, he would have fled with Marge, never to see Sapphire, his family or any of the other dexholders again.
 
Or what if he’d lost to Sapphire back in Slateport? Would she have beaten him up after she’d won, just like Blaise? Would Marge have been able to escape without him?
 
And of course, the kicker. What would have happened if they had been able to solve their differences before joining their respective teams? To be totally honest, he’d probably go on to have a normal life. The Pokedex project would have just rolled along and there wouldn’t have been any problems. Sure, maybe they wouldn’t have responded to Team Magma or Team Aqua as quickly, but at least he wouldn’t have ruined his life.
 
The worst part of it all was that the sequence of events that had occurred had actually been one of the better outcomes. Not optimal to be sure, but it could had gone so much worse. Ruby couldn’t fathom how he’d been that lucky, to have chosen so poorly and then to have escaped without the worst of the consequences. It had even served to help repair his relationship with his dad, as he had come to visit him in Sootopolis on a weekly basis.
 
He didn’t deserve this. After all he’d done, after all the bad decisions he’d made, after all the warning signs he’d missed, he did NOT deserve anything remotely resembling a happy ending. And yet here he was.
 
Ruby supposed he should make something of it, but he just didn’t feel like he should. It wasn’t fair. It wasn’t right. There were a whole lot of other Magma grunts still serving time for their actions, why wasn’t he?
 
He kicked the ground in frustration, watching the displaced gravel tumble down the edge of the caldera’s steep sides.
 
Why couldn’t he do anything right? Everybody said that he’d redeemed himself, so why couldn’t he convince himself of that? Everybody said he was a hero, but why couldn’t he see himself as anything other than a villain to be arrested and punished? What was wrong with him?
 
A traitorous thought that Sapphire might be feeling the same way slipped into his mind. There was no way that she was going through the same thing as him. She was beautiful and strong….and everything he wished he could be. There was no way she would ever return his affections or even want anything to do with him.
 
Ruby sighed as he looked up to see the sun dipping below the horizon. He slowly got to his feet and began taking the trail back down the mountainside, back down to Sootopolis City.
 
Ruby wished he could change the past. Oh, how he wished he could change the past.
 
In Fortree City.....
 
Sapphire sighed as she stared up at the stars from the roof of her house in Fortree City.
 
Sapphire wished she could change the past. Oh, how she wished she could change the past.

---

I have plans for Ruby and Sapphire when I get to my Legacy rewrite…..oh yes, do I have plans…..

Just as a quick note before we start, this chapter contains 1 last OC. For a brief explanation, I had the idea to have the dexholders adventures happen in waves. So the first wave was the Kanto dexholders, and the second wave was the Johto dexholders. However, the third wave consisted of the Hoenn, Sinnoh and Unova dexholders having their adventures simultaneously and the fourth and most recent wave consisted of the Kalos, Alola and Galar dexholders having their adventures simultaneously. And I thought since I was including Wally to give Hoenn 4 dexholders and Unova straight up having 4 dexholders, I thought it would be only fitting to give the Sinnoh team a fourth member.

This character is Topaz. She is based off of the Sinnnoh Underground, comes from a family of miners and is a specialist in fossil pokemon. Hopefully her presence isn’t too jarring here.

---

Platinum sat on a bench near the train station. While her demeanor remained calm, she was excited. She’d been planning this day for some time. The weather could scarcely be better for it too. It was a rare cloudless summer day in Sinnoh, and a brisk breeze blew through the station, wafting the scents of wild grass and flowers. A fine day indeed for a reunion that Platinum had been looking forward to for months.
 
Plantinum turned her head as Rapidash snorted next to her. Idly, she swatted some flies off of his back. Rapidash neighed gratefully. Platinum smiled. Her oldest and first Pokemon was as loyal a companion as any. He watched her back and she watched his. And sometimes, that meant brushing flies off of Rapidash’s back.
 
But it was not enough to distract her from her excitement. It wasn’t very often that she and her fellow Sinnoh dexholders had the opportunity to reconvene and reconnect. Which was why she savored the moment all the more when it arrived. Her Poketch buzzed, and she quickly checked it. It was her butler, Sebastian. A smile found its way to Platinum’s face. They’d managed to get the lobsters in time after all. Just a few years ago, she would have been fretting endlessly about having any visitors at all. Now, she would have gotten on her yacht and gone fishing for the lobsters herself if she had the time. Oh, how things had changed.
 
Idly, Platinum wondered how cousin Alabaster would have reacted to that. Though related by blood, the two were cut from completely different cloth. Alabaster had started her own luxury fashion brand while Platinum poured her time into science and research. She would have wrinkled her nose at the idea of doing “commoner” work. But Platinum had different experiences. Experiences that included three “commoners” that she had become quite fond of.
 
“Hiya Platinum! We’re here!” shouted a voice from down the path. Platinum looked up to see Diamond, Pearl and Topaz walking towards her. Platinum smiled as they drew close. Diamond and Pearl were in their usual attire, while Topaz was wearing a thankfully dirt-free yellow long sleeve shirt, overalls and boots. Looked like she hadn’t come straight from the mines. The maids were going to be feeling relieved.
 
Platinum stood up. “Hello! How have you all been doing?”
 
“We’re doing great!” said Pearl excitedly. “How have you been?”
 
“Not bad myself,” said Platinum. “Assisting Professor Rowan with Pokedex Project research in the new regions has been quite the eventful matter.”
 
Diamond smiled. “You’re going to have to tell us about the new guys!”
 
Topaz said, “Let me guess, they’ve already defeated evil teams already, just like we did?”
 
Platinum sighed. “A good guess.”
 
“How many of the newbies have been following our footsteps?” asked Topaz.
 
“All of them,” said Platinum as they began to walk back to her mansion while Rapidash trotted alongside them.
 
“All three?!” asked Pearl.
 
“All three,” confirmed Platinum. “The Kalos team was instrumental for taking down Lysandre and Team Flare, and the Galar team was responsible for stopping Chairman Rose and his plans. Actually, the Alola team did the most. They fought both the Aether Corporation and Team Skull. They even went into Hyperspace during the Ultra Beast Crisis. So yes, all three of them.”
 
“Hyperspace?” asked Pearl curiously.
 
“I’ll tell you about it when we sit down to eat,” said Platinum. “Its…a long story. Well, actually, three long stories.”
 
“Sounds like it!” said Diamond. “You’ve sure kept yourself busy!”
 
“Ah, one could say that,” said Platinum. “What have you all been doing?”
 
“Just got back from tour!” said Pearl. “Diamond and I have a lot of stories to tell from it, so we’ll let Topaz go first.”
 
Topaz shrugged. “Working with Professor Cosmo has been pretty interesting, let me tell you. We’ve excavated several major fossils though, and apparently, it’s been groundbreaking for his research. Did you know that Bastiodon and Rampardos would butt heads in battle sometimes, just like Rampardos would against mating rivals?”
 
“They did?” asked Platinum.
 
“They did. We found a Bastiodon skeleton with similar neck fractures to Rampardos who had been in mating duels. Dr. Cosmo is actually off to some symposium in Hoenn to talk about it right now.”
 
“How many gems have you been finding as you excavate?” asked Pearl.
 
“Not many,” said Topaz. “But he pays well enough that I don’t need them. Working for rich people is great. Say, Platinum, you need any digging done around your area?”
 
They all burst out laughing.
 
“When you think of Pokémon,” said Pearl suddenly.
 
“When you think of Pokémon,” said Diamond, right on cue.
 
“Don’t you know that Rampardos used to butt heads in mating duels?” said Pearl.
 
“Really now?” said Diamond.
 
“It’s a dangerous game though,” said Pearl. “Some Rampardos were known to break their necks in these duels.”
 
“Really?” said Diamond. “That sounds dangerous!”
 
“I bet it was! But it’s all to impress the ladies!” said Pearl.
 
“No kidding! Seems like an impactful way to make a good impression!” said Diamond.
 
Platinum giggled as Topaz sniggered. “That was pretty good!”
 
“Your improv has gotten better since last time,” said Platinum with a smile.
 
“Aw thanks Platinum,” said Diamond bashfully. “We’re always trying to improve, so I’m glad its showing.”
 
“And we’re still going to improve even more till we’re the best!” said Pearl.
 
Platinum smiled. “Of course, you’ll improve! I’m sure you’ll be the best comedians in all of Sinnoh soon enough!”
 
Pearl grinned. “That’s the spirit!”
 
Diamond smiled. “Of course! It’s our dream after all!”
 
Platinum nodded as they made their way to the front door.
 
“Well, since we’re at the house, let’s eat. We can talk further on the patio after we’re done,” said Platinum.
 
“All right! I’m starving!” said Pearl.
 
“Calm down, chow hound,” said Topaz. “We’re not even inside yet.”
 
Platinum just smiled as they began to bicker. Yup. These were her friends all right.
 

---

 
Almost an hour later, Platinum and her friends found themselves seated around the firepit as a large fire crackled into the gathering twilight.
 
“And so, this doctor professor botanist lady, after slipping in the mud, bumping her head multiple times on low parts of the cave and accidentally falling in one of the underground lakes and getting soaked from head to toe, has just had it. She’s caked in mud, her hair’s all messed up, and she’s got this look on her face like a cat being forced to take a bath, and she looks like she’s just walked 100 miles. So finally, we get out of the cave, and she runs out and immediately hugs the nearest tree she sees. I don’t think I’ve ever seen somebody so relieved to see daylight! And all that just to study some cave moss!”
 
Platinum giggled as Diamond and Pearl howled with laughter.
 
As Topaz continued her story of the unfortunate botanist, Platinum zoned out of the conversation, staring up at the stars. She wished this moment could last. Just the four of them, without a care in the world. But she knew that it couldn’t. The night would end. Everybody would have to go back to their jobs and lives. Time would pass. Who even knew how long they’d be able to hang out like this? Especially with Diamond and Pearl, they were already getting a few offers for larger events around Sinnoh. And it wasn’t like Topaz had a ton of free time either. Of course, things had begun getting busy for her friends just as Professor Oak and the Pokedex project had gotten bogged down by League interference yet again, leaving her schedule freer than it had been in months.
 
She almost felt guilty. She wanted her friends to stay. She wanted them to be around. And yet….she wanted them to succeed too. So why did one have to come at the cost of the other? For all of her life, she’d been able to get everything she’d ever wanted. And now…. she wanted something that no amount of money could buy.
 
It was strange, now that she thought about it. When had she been so invested in people? As a child, she’d been the consummate bookworm, reading every book imaginable day in and day out. Her library was one of the most complete in Sinnoh, and she took the time to reread large sections of it on a regular basis. Even now with her busy schedule, she still read as much as she could.
 
Now that she thought about it more, Platinum realized how much she had truly changed and grown. She’d pursued her interest in research and had gotten herself a spot working on the cutting edge of new discoveries. She’d even been able to acquire something of a taste for danger and battle. Her 15 year old self from three years ago would have shrunk away from all of that faster than a bolt of lightning.
 
But since when had she wanted to be around people? Platinum still hadn’t forgotten the day her father had attempted to bribe her to go outside with ice cream and pony riding lessons to no avail. The outdoors were simply less interesting then her books. And anyway, she’d only been at home for five weeks. Real shut ins were defined in the literature as somebody who did not leave their residence for 8 weeks or longer. She wasn’t a shut in, she had planned an outing into the garden mid-way through the 7^th week.
 
“Oh, Diamond, that new one, the one we came up with last night!” said Pearl excitedly. “We gotta do that one for Platinum and Topaz!”
 
“Oh yeah!” said Diamond. “All right, let’s go!”
 
“When you think of Pokemon!” started Pearl.
 
“When you think of Pokemon!” said Diamond.
 
“It’s said that Rapidash are faster than the wind!” said Pearl.
 
“Really?” asked Diamond.
 
“Yeah!” said Pearl. “They’re so fast, that they can interrupt wind currents!”
 
“Wait, isn’t that dangerous?” asked Diamond.
 
“Why’s that?” asked Pearl.
 
Diamond shrugged. “Well, if you have a flaming horse that breaks wind, don’t you think that’s a recipe for disaster?!”
 
Platinum broke out into giggles.
 
Topaz let out a chuckle. “All right, all right. That one’s not bad!”
 
Pearl grinned. “All right! One more for Volume 5!”
 
“Volume 5?” asked Topaz.
 
“We say volume to refer to different comedy acts!” said Diamond. “We’re working on putting enough jokes together for a 5^th act! We’re about halfway through filling it, since it’s gotta be about an hour long.”
 
“Yeah, we gotta be careful to not reuse the same routines too often,” said Pearl. “It’s a good way to bore your audience.”
 
Platinum smiled. Of course, her reason was in front of her. Well, reasons.
 
She hadn’t had any friends before. That was the price she paid for being a bookworm, and she remembered her father having to drag her to social gatherings. Oh, how she hated those social events. None of the girls or boys her age had anything interesting to talk about. All of them were so absorbed into their own worlds. Though perhaps she was guilty of that as well, but at least she was into something more interesting and useful then dresses, dolls and sports. It was a complete chore until the ball when she had bumped into a kindly old professor with whom she had been able to form a friendship. Platinum smiled fondly, remembering how long she had talked with Professor Rowan that night, learning new information and throwing around ideas. He had been the first true friend she’d made. It was also how she’d gotten on the professor’s radar for the Pokedex project and how she eventually became the first recruit of the Sinnoh team.
 
Of course, her father had been all for it. He was more than happy to support his daughter’s interests, especially those that would help her contribute to society. And anything that got his little bookworm out of the house probably didn’t hurt either.
 
It was what had started the chain of events that had brought her so much happiness. She loved being part of the Pokedex Project and she had made so many friends. But it was also what had started the chain of events that led her to her current dilemma. She supposed that it always had been coming, and she’d known that it had been a possibility, but the idea of having to split up the group hurt just the same now that it was here.
 
“Say, Platinum, what’s with the sad look?” asked Diamond.
 
“Oh, it’s nothing,” said Platinum, jumping out of her thoughts. She hadn’t looked that dour, had she?
 
“You looked pretty down there,” said Topaz. “You know, you can tell us what’s going on. We’re your friends after all.”
 
Platinum sighed. “All right. Does it seem to you that we’re…. drifting apart?”
 
The others went silent for a moment.
 
“I mean…. I didn’t think we were….” said Pearl.
 
“What makes you say that?” asked Diamond.
 
“Well…. we’ve all seemed to have gone in our own directions. Diamond and Pearl are off doing their comedy routine. Topaz is doing research with Dr. Cosmo on top of her mining job, and I’m doing research with Professor Rowan. We’re all doing our own thing. And we’re seeing each other less because of it.”
 
“I didn’t think of that,” said Pearl.
 
“I’m not saying it’s a bad thing, I love that you’re all succeeding at things you love! But at the same time…it gets lonely. I miss you all,” said Platinum. “And I know that as time goes on, the more and more we’ll probably not see each other. Does that mean…. we won’t truly be friends anymore?”
 
The others went silent.
 
“Because you are all my valuable friends and I…I don’t want….”
 
Diamond spoke up. “You’re right. It isn’t the same without you guys when it’s just me and Pearl on the road. I totally understand how you feel.”
 
“But we aren’t drifting that much are we?” asked Topaz. “We still meet every now and again, even if it’s tough for our schedules to all line up.”
 
“Yeah…. we’re definitely still friends, right?” said Pearl. “I’m still excited to hang out with you! And we’ve planned these hangouts as often as our schedules line up….”
 
“So, then I think the question is what does it mean to be a friend?” said Diamond.
 
All eyes fell to Diamond.
 
“Because, let’s say I don’t see Pearl for a few months, and then bump into him at the store, and I’m still happy to see him, does that mean I’m not his friend because I haven’t seen him in a few months? No, not at all!”
 
“Ok, that makes sense,” said Topaz.
 
“So, even if I don’t see Pearl for a long time, maybe a few years, but then I see him again, and we’re glad to see each other and want to hang out, that means we’re still friends, right?”
 
“Ok, that makes sense too,” said Pearl.
 
“So then apply that to us all. Sure, we might not see each other for long periods of time. But as long as we’re glad to see each other when our paths cross again, we’re still friends, I think,” concluded Diamond.
 
Platinum smiled. “Thank you. Because….I would hate to lose your friendship. That goes for all of you.”
 
“Aw shucks,” said Topaz, rubbing the back of her head.
 
A grin found its way to Pearl’s face. “Aw thanks!”
 
Diamond just smiled widely. “We feel the same about you too, Platinum!”
 
“Though what if we got some sort of deal that lets us all work together again? That could happen, right?” said Pearl.
 
“What kind of deal would that be?” asked Topaz.
 
“Probably something to do with the Pokedex project, honestly,” said Platinum. “That’s the only thing I could think of.”
 
“I mean… the Pokedex project was worth putting our comedy skits on hold for,” said Diamond. “And I think we made for a really solid team! I remember hearing that the Unova team had some personality conflicts. And uh… there’s also the Hoenn team….”
 
“Oh, yeah…. that was pretty awkward….” said Pearl.
 
“We would be a good choice if they needed a veteran team,” said Topaz. “We have a really well-rounded group. I have brawn, Platinum has brains, Diamond gets along with everybody and Pearl is the guy who knows how to make things happen. We have a lot of potential.”
 
Platinum smiled as Diamond and Pearl chorused their assent. She didn’t know how likely that opportunity was, to be perfectly honest it was probably a longshot at best. But it was the thought that counted. She was grinning like a madwoman just thinking about it. If only…..
 
“Anyway, who has the bag of marshmallows?” asked Topaz.  “I could go for some more!”
 
“When you think of S’mores!” said Pearl jokingly.
 
“When you think of S’mores!” said Diamond, right on cue.
 
“Oh, come on, seriously?” groused Topaz. “Now we’re making s’more jokes?”
 
“You know, S’mores are really easy to make! You just need graham crackers, chocolate and marshmallows!” said Pearl.
 
“Sure thing!” said Diamond. “It’s a sweet treat for sure!”
 
“But what happens when you deny your local miner her rightfully deserved marshmallows?” said Topaz.
 
“You give her some more S’mores!” said Diamond.
 
“Hey! No generic puns!” said Pearl.
 
“Why? You mean you don’t want some more? All right, no marshmallows or chocolate for you!” joked Diamond.
 
“Hey!” yelped Pearl.
 
Everybody burst into laughter.
 
Platinum blinked for a moment. She could see the sparkles in her friend’s eyes as Diamond tossed Topaz the bag of marshmallows in a game of keep away from Pearl.
 
She smiled warmly. This was what memories were made of, wasn’t it? She was lucky to have her friends. Their bond had stood the test of time. And now she was sure that it would continue to stand. And that was a wonderful feeling.
 

---

It was fun to write something a little more hopeful for this chapter! I don’t want quite everything to have completely fallen apart for everybody, and the Sinnoh team honestly seemed like the best candidate to have fared relatively well, since they have some of the best synergy of all dexholder groups.


The Unova crew will be up next time!