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The wind howled softly, gently blowing Saki's hair aside. These walks through the forests had been comfortable, though not exciting. For her, a literal memory lane to take trips down, a place for her thoughts to wander throughout space and time. An excellent way to balance out all the excitement in the region.

Or not, today. She stopped in her tracks, staring in silent awe at the Pokemon before her. Without a word and without a motion, Saki watched, observing the behaviour of this ever-familiar creature.

"...snap out of it," she whispered, to herself. "It's just a random wild. Don't get your head lost in daydreams just because of the other ghosts around here..." Saki winced. "Yeah, fine, but don't you think it's fate? We've been looking to round things out, isn't it just perfect...? ...I'll deal with it myself then, huh..."

Clicking her tongue, she sent out Iroha. Although Touka was consumed by hate and Marisa was a cold machine, the Paradox Pokemon before her had even less risk of being swayed by her emotions. Despite this, Saki approached cautiously by herself, rummaging around in her pockets for suitable food. Iroha stepped in front of her and held out an arm to bar Saki's path for her own good, though.

Well, she couldn't bring herself to just order Close Combat. Numb to death as she was, having the dead stare her in the face - speaking on an emotional and metaphorical level - was a subtly different matter. She didn't want to choose violence, and didn't even know if Iroha could hold back... wait, on second thought, she didn't need to. The Iron Valiant instead employed Hypnosis: a tool which, as everyone is aware, solves every issue. After hesitantly creeping closer, Saki carefully threw her Pokeball.

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The air flowed feebly past Saki's pursed lips, creeping and crawling into her lungs like a line of ants. She held her index and middle fingers together against her mouth, restricting her intake further still. She didn't smoke, but the gesture was calming. It forced her to breathe more slowly, more calmly, more deliberately. By having something to focus on, it helped her mind go quiet, in similar fashion to meditation.

"...Haaaaaaaa..."

Pulling her hand away, she exhaled heavily, forcing out all the air she'd painstakingly accumulated, casting aside the results of her efforts as though they were trash. At least, that's what she felt it was, in her heart.

"Why are we here? Do you remember?"

She continued staring up at the cloudy sky, and took another deep breath, a normal one this time. She stretched her arms out to her sides, closed her eyes, and focused on the world, spinning beneath her.

"You should. It's nice, that's why." She giggled, turning her head to the side and playing with the grass beneath her fingers. "Lonely, are you? Does a play just need its actors?"

With a quiet huff, she turned her head the other way, opening her eyes with a dull frown. "Impatient, fickle, and flighty... you're your own worst enemy. Put in some more effort and wait it all out."

Her expression softened, and she turned to look back up at the sky. On her back like this, with it all sprawled out in front of her, it felt like she could just suddenly fall right in...

"...Maybe later, hehehehe."

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