Work Text:
Cyllene glanced over at the clock, rubbing at her eyes as she set down her pen and stretched. Hours of processing paperwork and looking over the commander’s plans for the next quarter had gone by, and only then was she close to finishing a fraction of it all. She glanced down at Abra curled snugly in her lap, tracing her thumb over her pokémon’s cheek. Hmm. Already well past sundown, isn’t it? She nodded along to the ticking of the clock, peeking open one eye only to notice the warm slant of light shining from underneath the door to Professor Laventon’s study. Strange. He usually retires before it gets this late.
With a well-earned break already in motion, Cyllene carefully opened the door to the professor's study and poked her head in, catching a glimpse of the man in question picking up a box of scattered, empty pokéballs off the floor. “Professor Laventon. I thought you might still be here. What are you doing on the floor?”
“Cyllene!” Laventon glanced back at her before erupting into a wide smile. “What a surprise to see you here in my study! Already finished your paperwork?”
“Not quite. Answer my question.”
“Just knocked over a few new specimens, don’t you worry,” Laventon teased. He quickly gathered the pokéballs together into their crate before sliding them back neatly onto a shelf near the furnace, gesturing Cyllene over. “I only jest, of course. Checking in on my work, then?”
Cyllene nodded and took a seat on the sofa that Laventon kept in his office. As his superior, it was her job to look over the research Laventon and his team of survey scouts scraped together. And sometimes, if she were privy enough, she would get to read the less fine-tuned reports. She reached for an unwrapped set of papers and straightened them against the table. “It is my job to do so. Which would these happen to be? Hopefully, the reports from the scouts regarding the new trail leading into the Coronet Highlands? Were the scouts successful in warding off the roaming Luxrays there?”
“They quite certainly were… not,” Laventon admitted. “My ‘researchers’ as you put it- they are talented, captain, but invincible, they are not.” He let out a sigh as he took a heavy seat on the other end of the same sofa, reaching behind him to slide over a bead on an abacus. He crossed one leg over the other, his feet moving to the sound of the ticking clock in his own office. “Biscuit? Tea?”
“I will accept tea. Continue.”
“Of course. Eh, and that reminds me. I was going to have a word with you earlier. Thank you for stopping by.”
“You were, were you?”
“Yes, yes. The scouts do tell me things- and I do read through the notes they leave in the margins of their research.” Laventon’s eyes crinkled and he sighed, gathering up another stack of papers and setting them in his lap. “Nevermind the amount of times I’ve asked them to leave non-scientific notations out of the dex… But nevermind that,” he muttered. “I’ve half a mind to make a formal complaint to the captain regarding the use of metal sabers by our survey team.”
The metal sabers? Cyllene took a sip of her tea and leaned in. “Elaborate.”
“There’s no definitive way to evade lightning strikes,” Laventon mumbled. “Not yet, anyhow.”
“And what is that supposed to mean? What are you not telling me?”
“Enough, that much is clear. Hmm.” Laventon moved yet another bead on his abacus. “Two of our scouts were nearly paralyzed this week due to their sabers conducting electrical attacks from wayward pokémon.”
“And they’re alive?”
Laventon gave her a weak chuckle. “Of course. You’d have my head if they’d died! And the path was finished if you must know! Actually, it was Warden Ingo of the Pearl Clan who met the surveying team halfway and helped them finish the trail. If not for him, well… Nurse Pesselle would certainly not be happy with our combined efforts.”
“I see.” Warden Ingo of the Pearl Clan. I have not met him before. The commander will more than certainly request for me to look further into the matter. Cyllene’s gaze landed on the other messy stacks of paper organized haphazardly on the professor’s desk. She picked up one in particular with the scribbled visage of a Luxray and carded through the papers in its file. “And these? Did you just finish inking these?”
“I did, as a matter of fact. The sketches are Akari’s, by the way,” Laventon told her, grinning with pride as he took off his cap to scratch at an itch. “They’re getting better by the day, I dare say! I’m ever so glad I had the idea to have the scouts draw references of their subjects, and Akari’s are the most detailed by far.”
Upon hearing that particular scout’s name, Cyllene had realized up until that point that the relative peace and quiet within the headquarters building had been unnatural. Unlikely, even. Even during the odd hours of the night, it was usual to hear the other captains deep in conversation or perhaps a group of scouts tinkering away in the unused rooms. The pounding of boots. Idle chit-chat. Moving chalkboards and maybe the scratching sounds of chalk to accompany it. And perhaps laughter and certain footsteps sneaking about. And the culprit of those noises is usually Akari. Cyllene thought back to when she’d last seen the girl and paused, coming up with nothing. “And… where is Akari? She is supposed to be here, is she not? She reports to you at the end of the workday.”
Whatever tea Laventon had been drinking went flying as the man coughed, hastily covering his mouth as he whipped around to stare at the clock. “...Ah- G-good heavens, would you look at the time!” he choked. “It’s nearly curfew! And I haven’t seen Akari since… since… O-oh dear.” Laventon got to his feet and shrugged on his winter coat, stepping toward the doors. “My apologies, captain! I wasn’t keeping track of the minutes! I’ll ask the guards and- “
The hallway door to Laventon’s study was pushed open and in stumbled Akari. “Sorry, I’m late!” The young girl squeezed through the narrow opening just inches away from Laventon, wincing as the thick door squeaked shut and pinched her arm and scarf. “I got- caught- in something- ow- and had to- ow, ow, ow- wrap up a… a few things. Phew!” Akari closed the door behind her and shambled over to Laventon’s desk, setting down a bedraggled pokédex, pushing aside a few stacks of papers. “But I’m back now!”
Cyllene stared at the Galaxy Team’s protege and felt bile rise in her throat at the teenager’s bedraggled appearance. Bandages. Lots and lots of bandages covered Akari from head-to-toe just barely obscured underneath the girl’s tattered tunic. Holes resembling burn marks dotted the fabric, exposing frostbitten skin and unpatched wounds likely from the long trip back to Jubilife from the wilderness beyond. And most concerningly, the skin around Akari’s eyes was red and puffy. As if she had been crying. As if something had happened.
“Don’t mind me.” Akari set down yet another stack of water-stained papers only to sneeze, hugging at her chest with a quiet groan of pain afterwards. She rubbed at her swollen eyes and after catching Cyllene’s stare, she immediately hid her bandaged hands behind her back. “O-or my bandages! Hehe! Nothing’s wrong! I’m fine! I’m back from the mirelands and- ”
“Scout Akari.”
Akari swallowed and took a careful step backwards. “C-captain Cyllene? Is something wrong?”
Cyllene set down her tea and crossed her arms. “Do you know what time it is?”
“Uhh… I uh, I missed dinner, didn’t I? It’s past dinner time, right?”
“I have some food to spare,” Laventon immediately offered. A sharper glint in the man’s eyes asked Cyllene not to pry, and he frowned when Cyllene shook her head. Still in his coat, he muttered, “Don’t be too harsh on her. She’s still young.”
“I’m not being harsh,” Cyllene retorted under her breath. I’m getting to the bottom of things. She instead stood and approached Akari, gently taking the girl’s hand as she performed a minute inspection. Fingers to palm to wrist to forearm. A quick pluck of Akari’s tunic sleeve revealed yet more bandages on her forearms. More on her cheek. Still more hidden beneath her tunic. Bruises. Big, ugly bruises as well, and when Cyllene went to place her hand on Akari’s side to check her shoulder, she felt her ward flinch and recoil under her touch. How far do these go? Where did they come from? Why are you lying to me? “Those bandages… Why do you have them, scout?”
“I uh, I got snuck up on by a Carnivine, haha!” Akari coughed and winced again, nervously tugging at the neck of her tunic, exposing even more bandages underneath. She’d seemed to recognize her mistake and obscured the hidden wounds with yet another bandaged hand. “You know- standard Akari a-activities! I’m just clumsy, captain! It’s really nothing!”
Laventon took one look at the bandages placed eerily close to Akari’s neck and then sighed, seemingly defeated. He shot Cyllene an apologetic glance. Cleared his throat. “You’re quite sure, my girl? I don’t want to pressure you… And since you say that you’re well, did you procure the notes I asked you to obtain regarding the Tangrowth lineage?”
“Oh! Yeah, I did, actually!” Akari gently eased out of Cyllene’s grasp and reached behind her only for her hands to close around nothing. She paused for a long moment, long enough for Cyllene to notice that the girl’s hands were trembling. “...Uh-oh.”
Uh-oh? “Akari. What is the meaning of this?”
Akari immediately began to backpeddle only to bump up against the edge of the coffee table. “N-now, don’t freak out- ”
“Where is your satchel?” Cyllene demanded, feeling as though she already knew the answer. She knew that Akari wasn’t clumsy- overly-confident, sure, and sometimes a bit foolhardy when dealing with wild pokémon, of course. That was to be expected from a stranger from a different time and place. But Cyllene could only remember two other instances where her charge had been tight-lipped about getting injured. Cyllene’s brows furrowed. “Where is your saber? Why are you missing half of your standard-issued equipment?” Only a handful of culprits came to mind: three petty thieves and miscreants known as the Miss Fortune Sisters. Akari hadn’t been the first to be pillaged by them- their main target was the Gingko Guild- but Cyllene also knew that her particular charge had a bad habit of going alone on missions and lying to save face. Best to get the truth out of her without Laventon interrupting. “Professor, check with Nurse Pesselle for another first aid kit.”
Akari bristled. “I already- “
“O-of course, captain!” Laventon responded, already halfway out of his office. He’d gotten the undertone in Cyllene’s brusque command. “I’ll be right back!”
And that just leaves us two. Cyllene motioned for Akari to sit. She took in the mud stains caking Akari’s shoes and socks, reaching all the way up her trousers. The handfuls of thorns embedded in the neckline of Akari’s tunic. And to Cyllene’s concern, she’d also sighted fresh bruises on Akari’s collar and neck. She cleared her throat. “Now, what really happened?” When Akari continued to stare at her sullied shoes, Cyllene crossed her arms. “Akari.”
“...”
“No amount of prolonged silence will keep me from interrogating you.” When she received no answer still, Cyllene inwardly sighed. “And it would behoove you not to lie to your captain. Do not forget that you must still report to me whether you like it or not. It would be wise to tell the truth to me instead of the commander- ”
“Don’t tell him!” Akari burst out, gripping Cyllene’s arms as tears beaded up in her eyes. She blinked and then wiped them away with her filthy sleeves, coughing. “Okay, okay! I lied,” she admitted. “I didn’t get attacked by a Carnivine. I got… Well, I- okay, okay! It was the Miss Fortune Sisters.”
“The bandit trio? The ones causing a rather large logistical error within the Gingko Guild?”
Akari nodded. “Yeah, them,” she sniffled. “I got the notes for the professor for that alpha Tangrowth in the mirelands, but then the baby Tangelas got angry and they swarmed me! My pokémon managed fine, but there were so many of them! We’d just gotten done, and I was putting my things away and heading south to study the Goomys when they snuck up on me!”
Of course. The bandits. Why would I think anything else? Adults picking on children. What kind of world are we coming to? Cyllene pinched the bridge of her nose between her fingers, almost enticed to abuse her power and assign herself as Akari’s personal guard until further notice- herself or Captain Zisu. Granted, she knew she’d be no use in a pokémon battle, but with Akari being so young and so vulnerable, Cyllene despised the idea of her charge- her reckless and yet thoughtful, kind-hearted charge- being attacked so far away. And then returning only to lie about the matter to save face… And why lie? What purpose would that serve? Cyllene tempered her nerves and recollected herself. It would be dealt with. She’d make sure of it. “Which one?” she asked quietly, still holding one of Akari’s hands in her own. “Do not lie to me.”
“Uh… Just one, I think. It was the one with short hair a-and the scary makeup? She had a Gengar, I know that,” Akari replied, her voice trailing off at the end, leaning further into the sofa cushions. “My pokémon were still injured and I… I don’t really remember what happened,” she confessed, “but I’m fine, really! I woke up a little battered, but that was due to the Tangela a-and not the uh, the bandit! I promise!”
“Akari. Do not lie to me. You are covered in bandages and bruises. Has Nurse Peselle taken a look at you?”
“...No.”
“Where are your things?”
“...My things?” Akari immediately looked steadfastly at the wall, combing her tangled hair out of her face. “I, uh… I don’t… have them… anymore. The bandit, they took my satchel… a-and my saber… and my rations… and- “
Cyllene held up a hand to stop her. “Is there anything they didn’t take from you?”
At that, Akari chuckled and gave her a wobbly smile. “My clothes? Does that count?”
Cyllene let out an even louder sigh and shook her head disapprovingly. “...Scout Akari. Now is not the time for jokes.”
“I promise it’s not as bad as it looks!”
“A promise from you of something of this caliber?” Cyllene was already drafting stricter rules to force Akari to take a guard escort only to pause. Akari was the Galaxy Team’s most gifted scout as well as its most invaluable asset. There was a right way to discipline subordinates for lying and a right way to discipline for a lack thereof, and Cyllene would ensure that her prized scout would never return home with injuries of her caliber ever again. “Nevermind that. Tomorrow morning, you will be at my office no later than sunrise,” Cyllene instructed her. “You will fill out a form of which items you are missing, and we will get a new set reissued to you. Then, you will meet me on the training grounds.”
“...The arena? Why?”
“You will find out tomorrow.” Cyllene then heard the door to Laventon’s study creak open. “Laventon?”
The man strode into the office carrying a tray of food, gently setting it down on the table in front of Akari. “I return at long last! And not a moment too soon! I picked up some food on the way back. Careful! It’s still hot!”
Captain Zisu strode up the stone steps to the training dojo, still feeling a knot between her shoulder blades from the long hours salting the roads and plowing snow off the village streets almost every day of that month. Winter storms had repeatedly covered Jubilife in inches- nearly feet- of powdery, white snow and ice. She reached for the handles to the dojo doors only to pause, hearing shouting and heavy footfalls from within.
“Get back here and hit me! Hah!” Somebody laughed. “Blocked you! How’s tha- ack!”
“I see you haven’t mastered parrying blows,” came another monotone voice.
“Nope! But! I can do this!” There came a long pause. Somebody squeaked. “D-darn! How are you so good at this?”
“Through years of practice.”
Scouts, maybe. Zisu sucked in a breath and shoved open the doors, dusting the clumps of snow from her tunic. It’s far too early in the morning for anybody to be here except for me. “Hello? Who’s in here?”
“Just us- woah, woah, woah!”
“Pay attention now.”
“I am paying attention!”
Zisu watched as Akari- with a wooden dummy blade- took up a defensive stance in the center of the dojo, Captain Cyllene marching forward with her own dummy blade crashing down upon Akari’s right on time. “What’s going on in here? Mutiny, perhaps? A surprise spar?”
“Sword fighting!” Akari called back.
“Ooh! Cyllene’s teaching you how to fight? Sounds exciting! Can I watch?”
“Of course you can! Hehe! You can watch me win!” Akari had turned her head to wink at Zisu only for her hair to fall directly into her face. As she swept it back under her headscarf, Cyllene took a step forward and attempted to sweep Akari’s legs out from underneath her only for Akari to step back at the last moment. “Ack! Too close! Too close!”
Cyllene only rolled her eyes and continued to steer and drive Akari back using the tip of her own dummy sword, parrying each of Akari’s strikes with ease. “Pay attention.”
“I am paying attention!” Akari huffed. She blocked yet another of Cyllene’s swings, turning her blade on its side to throw off Cyllene’s striking angle. “There! See? I’ve been practicing! I’ll show you!" Akari then ducked underneath Cyllene’s outstretched blade and thrust her own saber forward, the blunt tip catching the captain squarely in the chest before the other could react. Akari paused and then beamed. “I actually did it! I beat you! I won!”
Cyllene sheathed her dummy sword and nodded, sending a spry glance at Zisu as she watched her younger ward cheer and hop around the dojo. “...So you have. Well done.” And then, Cyllene unsheathed her sword once more and cleanly knocked Akari off her feet, sending the young girl sprawling onto her back. “You still have much to learn.”
“Wha- Really? While I was celebrating? Rude!”
“Celebrating too early, might I add.”
“Aw, c’mon! That’s not fair!”
Cyllene sent yet another humored glance in Zisu’s direction before retreating behind a large wooden screen. When she returned, she held aloft a real sword. Not a standard-issue saber- a small, delicate, metallic sword that nearly glowed in the morning sunlight when the captain presented it to Akari. “I do believe you are now ready to wield a real sword.”
“...This… This is for me?” Akari asked meekly. With wide eyes, she studied the small shortsword, tracing the blunt face with her fingertips.
“For you,” Cyllene told her. “The training I have given you is more accustomed to swords than sabers. You know the difference by now, I’m sure.”
“I-I do! Thank you!”
Zisu whistled and moved closer to inspect the new blade, giving Akari a friendly pat on the back. “Don’t go using it for mischief now, kid!” She clapped her other hand down on Cyllene’s shoulder. “And you… Are you teaching the recruits how to fence or something?”
“Just this one.”
“Should I be concerned?”
“Of course not, Captain Zisu. Pay no heed to it.”
Yeah, sure, okay. Pick your favorites then. Zisu only rolled her eyes. “Of course… Well then. I’m going to the back to get some more supplies for the farmhands. You two can get back to your sparring.” Zisu then edged around the pair and disappeared into the back hallways, pausing halfway to backtrack and eavesdrop. Cyllene’s training Akari to fight? What’s with that? What am I missing here? She leaned against the wall and listened, crossing her arms.
“Captain Zisu is right,” Cyllene murmured. “Wield it with caution, Akari. And if I hear any mention of bandits again- ”
“You won’t! I’ll be fine, mo- Uhhh… uh, um, well- let’s not- sorry, I didn’t- ”
“Scout?”
“N-nevermind! Thanks mom- mo- cap- ”
“Scout.”
“Hold on- sorry- “
“Akari.”
“Hehe… You know what I’m trying to say.”
“Indeed, I do. And you are welcome.”