[attr="class","ninety"]

"Go, Bufo!"

Xiura tossed a Pokéball at the oncoming wave, her Poliwrath appearing amidst the shallows. "Let's save the Splashfest!"

Poliwrath rumbled dutifully, aiming a mighty HYDROPUMP attack at a raging Gyarados nearby. But just as the water lanced across the open air, a Magikarp leapt up, incidentally taking all the damage meant for the other Pokémon.

Xiura clapped a hand to her mouth in shock. "Oh, dear. That was unlucky." Poliwrath rubbed his head sheepishly.

Then came a flash of blazing white light, and an apparently newly-evolved Gyarados launched upward from the water in the same place the Magikarp fell. Its maw gaped open, aiming a HYPER BEAM at Bufo.



"Oh, no! Very unlucky!" Xiura shouted. "Bufo, watch out!"

---

[attr="class","ninety"]

Xiura laughed agreeably in response to Aurelie's toast. She said, after taking a long sip of the strawberry milk tea, "I truly am grateful for another small business owner's support. I couldn't have done this without you."

Aurelie's reaction to the milk tea was none other than perfect for a bubble tea enthusiast and entrepreneur such as Xiura. "I'm glad you enjoyed it! And yes, while I'd love the consistent business from patrons, I do agree our tea is a treat to be had once in a while. Except of course, if you prefer the fruity teas and request less sugar. I do like having iced lychee oolong tea once in a while."

The sense of pride welling up in Xiura at her small success didn't make Aurelie's offer any less jarring, however! "Aurelie, I cannot thank you enough. I mean, I simply made you tea, but you saved me hours on hours of work restoring the baked goods for the bake-off. And on top of that, a discount on your marvelous wares?" She thought for a moment, quieting her protest in the wake of Aurelie's firm tone. Coincidentally, Xiura's gaze alighted on the parasol in the wicker basket she kept in the corner, for the errant rainy day. "I may take you up on that offer later on. I'll have to think about it some more."

Turning her attention back to the task at hand, Xiura smiled, pulling the rack of pastry shells closer to them both. "I agree, let's start piping the custard."

Handing Aurelie a second piping bag, Xiura scooped custard into both bags and demonstrated how to apply even pressure to the bag, sweeping the custard into the tart with a singular, slow circular motion. This resulted in an even layer of custard so that the fruit could sit atop, secure in their aesthetic arrangements.

With the full assortment of fruit at their fingertips, they could apply them in endless patterns of jewel-toned sweetness. Kiwi, clementine, strawberry, and blueberry made for a lovely rainbow palette on their tarts. A melted apricot glaze finished off the tarts with a tempting glossy sheen.



Before long, all the pastry shells were filled and decorated, securely set in a tiered, compartmentalized vessel for ease of delivery. Placing the finished products in the refrigerator, Xiura said, "And that's that." She grinned at Aurelie in satisfaction.

"Clefairy!"

Xiura turned to see the pink Pokemon holding aloft a large pastry tart messily filled with leftover vanilla custard and a smiley face made of strawberries and blueberries.

"Is this for us to share?" Xiura laughed, taking the proffered tart and placing it on the counter.

Clefairy nodded in the affirmative, waving her stubby arms in the air.

"Thank you for planning ahead! It's only fair that we enjoy the fruits of our labors." With a wink at Aurelie, Xiura set to cutting the fruit tart in sections, handing a piece to each of their Pokemon companions and, of course, cutting an especially generous slice for Aurelie, too.

---

[attr="class","ninety"]

"Indeed, Aurelie, that sounds like more than a reasonable request to me!" Xiura laughed, raising her cup of cider to toast Aurelie Lefevre, Zev Harcourt, and jack wainwright.

Taking a sip, Xiura smiled at an approaching pair of individuals, waving a friendly hello. "Nice to meet you, Cygne, Isaac!"

She said as a small aside to Clefairy, who was gently clawing at the marshmallow bag to make a small opening, "Everyone's so friendly around here. I hope that we get to have many more bonfire gatherings and celebrations to come in Hoenn."

Xiura's attention was caught again by the arrival of the pink-haired woman and her Sylveon, the latter approaching Clefairy curiously. Clefairy offered the Sylveon a marshmallow. "Fairy!" her Pokemon said happily in greeting, easily recognizing the other up close.

Xiura's own recollection of the newcomer was slowly taking shape as she introduced herself.

"Oh! Nomi! Is that you? And Valerian? I can't believe it!" Xiura beamed. "How are you? How's your grandmother? It's been ages. We do need to catch up."

Xiura did wonder what brought Naomi Sato to Hoenn too from their hometown. "You're more than welcome to stop by my own tea shop in Lilycove, Nomi. It's new, and while it's not quite as traditional—"

Xiura could not help the slight swell of guilt in her stomach, which she tamped down with easy familiarity.

"—It's tea all the same! Just with more flavors and tapioca pearls." She ended with a cheerful laugh. "Anyway, I want to hear all about what you're doing in Hoenn!"

---

[attr="class","ninety"]

A better fate than most other Pokemon could ask for.

Xiura thought about it some. "I suppose that's true. Though, I wonder if some of them see it for what that fate is: a gilded cage."

She smiled a little and did not know why, her lips curving up at the corners as her thoughts turned for a moment to a memory:

The discomfort in her leg muscles waxed and waned through hours spent kneeling for a tea ceremony, perfectly still as a statue. She was meant to be lovely and inanimate, a flower vase ornamenting a picturesque scene in traditional Ecruteak.

Her posture was still not yet perfected. Hattrem, not yet Hatterene, applies a touch of psychic energy to adjust her back just so, just enough that her mother's discerning eye would pass over her without comment.

A sudden violent bump in the road, and Xiura adjusted her position in the car seat, unable to hold back an uncomfortable wince at the truck's ineffective shock absorbers as they turned onto the main route, which was less properly paved and maintained than the city of Lilycove.

She took the folded paper from Zev and opened it up, folding it back on itself so the awkwardly wide map didn't obstruct Zev's view. "Um." She bit her lip, squinting since she could barely trust her eyes at night. She pulled out a small flashlight from her satchel and clicked it on. Oh, now she could see where Lilycove was. And Fortree... The drop-off point was in Fortree...

"Aha!" She activated her phone's GPS and entered the address as requested, noting the turn directions aloud where needed.

As the roads they traversed grew darker and bumpier, illuminated only by the headlights of the truck, Xiura noticed more and more Pokemon scampering out of the way of the headlights.

"So, you may have guessed my livelihood from the meeting point. Café owner, boba enthusiast." She grins, neatly folding the map closed and tucking it back into the glove department. "You should stop by sometime and have some tea. We have lots of flavors, and sweets like macarons too." She smiled at Zev, whose eyes were focused on the road. "What do you do outside of these errands?"

---

[attr="class","ninety"]

It quickly becomes routine: walking, watching their step, catching her balance as her tired legs trip on roots, asking Hatterene to mark a tree.

Inwardly, Xiura finds it incredibly unusual that someone would camp so far off the path in such dense, wild terrain. But still, Jack's knowledge that Arin is an "extreme" hiker keeps her believing that they are on the right path to finding the missing person.

Suddenly, Jack starts running towards an unknown destination ahead, and Xiura struggles to keep pace, Hatterene levitating effortlessly as always beside her.

Breathlessly, she yells out, "Jack, slow down a little please, I—"

It's him.

Xiura abruptly cuts off as Jack stops stock-still, standing over a body at the base of the cliff.

A dead body, at that. Xiura raises a hand to cover her mouth, shocked at the condition of the fallen man. The pus-engorged wounds and fang marks are surely the cause of his demise, from a significantly venomous Pokemon, no doubt. Arin had no time to return to the path or seek help on a communication device. And even if he had, he was surely too far from any marked path for emergency medical aid.

What an unnecessary tragedy, Xiura thinks sadly. Hatterene stays silent at her side.

After a minute, Xiura says, her voice dropping in pitch, "We should call the others." She lays a careful hand on Jack's shoulder. "I'm sorry."

She takes out her communication device, quickly dialing the number taped to the side. With a strange but familiar sense of calm, she says, "Hi, this Xiura and Jack. We're the team that went up to zone 105 in the search area. We've found Arin. He's at the base of a cliff beneath some dense tropical trees. He... We were too late."

She reflexively nods at the ranger's response, before catching herself and saying, "Yes, I understand." She presses the button to end the call.

"They're coming, Jack. Why don't we sit down?" She touches his arm, very lightly.

---

[attr="class","ninety"]

The ominous harbinger of a terrible storm, lightning cracked in the near distance, suddenly turning the once-bright and sunny picnic day into a frenetic escape from the tempestuous skies. As the clouds loomed overhead in black and grey, threatening to empty their rainy contents, Xiura and her Clefairy found themselves seeking shelter in a large, nearby cave.

"Goodness!" Xiura exclaimed, wiping rainwater from her brow. Her hair draped in wet ringlets, soaking through her already-damp clothing. "That was sudden, wasn't it?" Clefairy trilled in upset agreement, shaking her body to try and dry off.

Deeper into the cavern, a shimmering purple barrier separated the mouth from the remainder of the sprawling cave network.

"Oh, what is that?" Xiura said, at a loss. Clefairy, ever the curious one, poked her arm through the barrier and then went through. "Clefairy, wait for me!"

Xiura followed through, and immediately found herself reaching for her Pokeballs, calling forth Incineroar and Hatterene in turns to fight off aggressively violent wild Pokemon. Her face damp with more than rainwater now, Xiura patted her forehead with a handkerchief to remove some of the sweat that had collected from the intensity of running away with Clefairy to avoid Pokemon attacks while her other two companions fended off the worst of it.

Behind a rock, Xiura noted the glinting presence of a YELLOW SHARD. Curiously, she picked it up and tucked it away in her picnic basket, thinking it might come in handy in the future.

---

[attr="class","ninety"]

Jack's hopeful words steady Xiura's resolve, though he looks worried about the fate of Arin, too. Calmly chewing and swallowing the last of her protein bite, Xiura peers at the map and then tucks it back into her backpack's side pocket. She follows Jack's lead up through the trees, Poliwrath and Watts close behind them. "RIght, once it gets dark, it'll be more difficult to see, even with flashlights."

As Jack slashes into the tree to mark their path, Xiura nods in understanding. "That's a great idea, Jack. Poliwrath, come back! Hatterene, let's go!" Poliwrath obediently returns to his home. At the same time, Xiura taps one of the Pokeballs at her waist, the psychic Pokemon appearing beside her. "Psycho cut!" A purple crescent of psychic power blasts forward, leaving a decently-sized laceration across the trunk of a nearby tree.

With somber purpose, Xiura keeps pace with the others, pointing at regular intervals to ask Hatterene to score marks into the trees they pass.

The twilight dimness occasionally interrupted by the purple glow of Hatterene's power, Xiura soon finds herself grasping for her flashlight to illuminate the roots at their feet. They all step carefully over the tangles of roots and erratically growing shrubs.

"Arin!" she calls out. "Arin! If you hear us, let us know!"

She pauses briefly to listen for any shouted response. Silence. A concerned furrow to her brow, she plods on, hiking boots leaving footprints in the damp soil.

"Jack, any idea of clues we can look for? Do you think he would've come this deep into the forest?"

---

[attr="class","ninety"]

Xiura padded over to the gathering of Hoennians settled and mingling around a large, unlit bonfire. Her sandals sank into the sand a little with each step. Her beach dress swirled around her with the gentle caress of the sea breeze. It was truly a beautiful evening to celebrate around a bonfire!

In one hand she carried a clear tote full of s'mores ingredients: newly-bought boxes of graham crackers, soft marshmallows, and decadent milk chocolate bars. Although the fire had not yet been set alight, Xiura anticipated a s'mores feast with any friends she was able to find here. And for any passersby who happened to ask nicely, of course! Beside her, Clefairy carried another smaller bag full of bamboo skewers for roasting marshmallows.



A few well-known faces stood out from the crowd: jack wainwright, Aurelie Lefevre, and Zev Harcourt. However, as she passed a smaller gathering of people near the fire to approach the trio, she felt an odd sense of déjà vu, her gaze briefly landing on the visage of a pink-haired woman (Naomi Sato). Xiura offered a friendly smile as their eyes met, though she couldn't quite place how she knew this woman. Perhaps an old customer from the boba café...? But that didn't seem quite right.

The moment of strange familiarity passed as she collected a couple of slips of paper from a table nearby. She would have to return to these fleeting thoughts in a little while, for her mind suddenly found itself turning to older, cobwebbed places in her memory.

Painful things from her past? How serious did she have to be about this?

Xiura stared for too long a time at the smooth slip of paper in her hand. Clefairy leaned against Xiura's leg, peering into the tote that she had briefly set down, but also breaking her out of her momentary trance. Xiura smiled fondly at her companion's curiosity.

Finally, she wrote: Failing my mother's expectations.

She fought against the urge to crumple the paper, instead slipping it into her dress pocket. It mattered less to her now, but the filial guilt still lingered. "Clefairy, I think we're going to do really well with the boba café." Clefairy trilled in encouragement, patting Xiura's leg. "And we'll make lots of new memories with our new friends, too."

And with that, she picked up her bag and ushered Clefairy along. "Aurelie! Zev! Jack! I'm so happy to see you here! I've got exciting news: we have s'mores for when the fire starts going!" She and Clefairy both raised their bags with unfettered pride.

---

[attr="class","ninety"]

The pastry shells were perfectly baked and formed, ready for their custard filling. Xiura checked on the egg mixture that Clefairy was working on and found that it was quite done. "Great job, Clefairy," she said, helping Clefairy fold the egg into the heated milk mixture in the saucepan until it slowly thickened into the final vanilla custard.

"Oh, just pour out the beads into this bowl, please." Xiura pulled out a metal bowl from a low cupboard, setting it close to Aurelie and the shells filled with baking beads. "Be careful! The beads are very, very hot, and they can roll everywhere if dropped," she cautioned. "Isn't that right, Clefairy?"

Xiura grinned teasingly at the little pink Pokemon, who shouted a little in protest. "Clefaaairy!"

"Sorry, sorry, but it's fun to laugh about now, right?" She patted Clefairy and offered a strawberry slice in apology. "Now, we can let the pastry shells cool off for a bit before we pipe in the custard. And then we can decorate the tops of them with fruit."

As Clefairy enjoyed her own piece of fruit, Xiura turned to Aurelie and said, "In any case, taro black milk tea it is! And since boba is best enjoyed together, I'll heed your suggestion of a strawberry black milk tea for myself." Wiping her hands on the dish towel at her waist, she set aside two canisters with the flavored milk powder, then turned to check on the boba. Incineroar had already turned off the stove and stepped away, collecting a couple of clear glasses—perfect receptacles for him to spoon in the slippery boba mixed with simple syrup. Next to him, a kettle of black tea steeped, ready to pour.

Xiura gratefully accepted the cups from Incineroar, then added ice cubes and the black tea. She stirred in a few heaping spoonfuls of each canister into their respective cups, making sure each was well-incorporated. As a final touch, she added a wide straw into the glasses, perfect for imbibing the tapioca along with the sweet, milky liquid.

"There we are! One taro black milk tea for you, and a strawberry black milk tea for me." She handed Aurelie the glass with the lilac-tinted concoction and kept the pink one for herself, each one cradling a host of black pearls, settled at the bottom. "A toast to teamwork for this bake off!"

---

[attr="class","ninety"]

Incineroar growled in annoyance as Xiura urged him on towards Slateport's beach. Xiura understood that they always saw the beach in Lilycove CIty, but this was a whole new city with new sights to see! "Come on, Incineroar, you don't have to go in the water. I just want to see the ocean from here."

Incineroar made a long series of punctuated growls emphasized by fierce punches into empty air and kicking up sprays of sand.

Incineroar might as well have been stating, "I’m H2O intolerant. Achoo!"

Xiura shook her head, then made a double-take as they finally rounded an obstructive sand dune. Xiura looked around with shock and horror at the numbers of Wailord on the beach. Even Incineroar was at a loss for words.

Well, there was no time to hesitate with so many Pokémon in trouble. Xiura strode forward with a Pokéball in hand, urging Incineroar to come along.

---