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The Rising Volt Tacklers, alongside Liko's grandmother Diana, were walking on the path back towards the Brave Olivine. They were coming back from the Crystal Pool after hearing Rystal's story of, well, everything. Who Lucius was, how the explorers came to be, what was Laqua and Laquium, and so much more. The story took the whole night to tell as the early sun was beginning to rise, tinting the sky a warm orange. It was a long and tiring day, so now they all just want to relax.
"I still can't believe that the whole story is real. It was awesome." Dot stated. Perhaps calling it 'awesome' was a bit plain but it was the only way she could describe it.
"Yeah. It was. But…it is also quite sad." Liko said with a slightly somber tone.
The fact that Lucius spent so long to find Laqua only to perish away alongside Gibeon is tragic. Then Rystal had to live alone alongside her and Lucius' child, only to perish herself not long after the baby was born. And to top it all off she never really got to see Pagogo again. It was all just…depressing.
"Life is filled with immense tragedies but also with endless joy and happiness. That's why it's important to look at the bright side of things while also confronting the challenges we face. Even if Rystal's story did have an unfortunate ending it didn't mean it all was bad. They had fun exploring and turning their dream into a reality. It's why we need to honor the wish of bringing Pagogo and the Six Heroes back to Laqua so that Lucius's legacy can finally lay to rest." Friede said wisely, trying to bring some sort of comfort to Liko.
Hearing Friede's words brought a small smile to Liko's face. "You're right." She said, "And besides if it weren't for that then I wouldn't be here having my own adventures with Pagogo." Liko added on.
Liko took her sight down towards the ground where Pagogo was. The crystallized turtle turned around and let out a cry of happiness as it continued to walk forward.
"I, for one, can't believe that we're related to Lucius and Rystal! It explains so much!" Exclaimed Diana. The veteran adventurer was excited by the information.
Liko nodded at her grandmother's exclamation. "It really does."
"I guess that makes sense as to why you and Pagogo bonded so quickly together then. It's like fate or something." Dot stated.
Fate? Huh. That's…something. Liko doesn't really know how much she really believes in fate but it is a bit of coincidence how much things have aligned for her. Like how the pendant she was given was actually Pagogo all along, or how Roy's ancient pokeball carried the Black Rayquaza.
"Well I don't believe things are set in stone as they seem." Friede added his two cents in.
"Perhaps not. But the world works in mysterious ways." Diana added on.
Liko continued to think about the idea of fate. It was an interesting concept. Liko then turned her head to the left to ask Roy what he thinks, since he's been uncharacteristically quiet, but as she did she saw how deep in thought he was.
"Roy? What are you thinking about?" Liko asked.
The sudden question took Roy out of his thought process.
"Hm? Oh uh I just had a random thought, nothing important really." Roy said while scratching the back of his head.
"Well it must be somewhat important if it had you in deep thought." Liko stated. "Why not tell us what it is?"
Roy contemplated for a bit if he really should tell them, but he saw how everyone was looking at him so he decided to just might as well say it.
"Well it's sorta related to what you guys were talking about." He started. "So if Lucius had the Black Rayquaza and Crystal had Pagogo…and they fell in love." Roy paused for a bit before finishing his thought. "And if Liko has Pagogo now and I plan to catch the Black Rayquaza…what does that mean for us?"
Liko raised her eyebrows in confusion. What was Roy trying to get at here? Just before she was about to ask for clarification. Dot spoke up.
"Wait, are you saying that you and Liko are going to fall in love with each other??" Dot asked.
The realization then hit Liko hard. Her face began to turn bright red like a tomato berry. "KYAAAA!!!!" Liko shrieked in pure embarrassment causing everyone to shield their ears. Pagogo turned around, its face filled with confusion at why Liko shrieked loudly.
After Liko was done with her screaming. Roy, who was now also blushing, turned his head to the left side of the road trying to hide his face. "W-well it was j-just a random thought…" he sheepishly said.
"Why would that be a thought that crosses your mind!?!" Liko shrieked out again.
Roy jumped at Liko's shrieking and fully turned around towards her. "I-I don't know it just did o-ok!" Roy stammered out.
"So just because you plan to catch the Black Rayquaza and Liko already caught Pagogo means that you two will just magically fall in love, because Lucius and Rystal did??" Dot asked bewildered.
"Uhm…well…I guess?" Roy said a bit shyly, scratching his left cheek, his blush increasing.
"That's not how that works Roy!" Liko cried out. Her face, still very red.
"Don't be so sure Liko." Diana chimed in. "Like I said before, fate works in mysterious ways. If you were fated to have Pagogo just because you are a descendant of Rystal, then perhaps you and Roy would-"
"GRANDMA!!!" Liko shrieked out again, cutting her grandmother off before she could finish whatever she was going to say.
"Well I mean I could kinda see it. You two have always been pretty close with each other. So it would make some sense." Dot stated.
"I don't think we'll have to worry about anyone falling in love anytime soon." Friede said, trying to put an end to the conversation for both Liko and Roy's sake. Though he did make a mental note to keep an eye on those two.
Liko hid her blushing face in her hands, trying to save whatever dignity she had left. Roy meanwhile was just dead silent. Using his hat to hide the embarrassment in his face. His blush now almost matching the magenta-tuft bit on his hair. Pagogo turned it's head again in confusion as to why Liko and Roy were so red in the face.
The Rising Volt Tacklers have just arrived at the Brave Olivine. Well except for Diana who went back to exploring the world, which wasn't much of a surprise. The old woman always did have a knack for exploring and now that she knew that she was related to Lucius and Rystal, well it just made her want to explore more.
Meanwhile, everyone else was either relaxing or eating breakfast. Liko, however, was getting ready for bed. It was still pretty early in the morning, and she did not get ANY sleep last night. So she put on her sleep clothes, put her blanket on, cuddled with her Pokemon, and went to sleep.
Or at least she tried to.
Her brain kept replaying that same question that Roy had said over and over again. She doesn't know why, it's not like she thought about Roy in that way. But even still her mind began to ponder. Was it even possible for them to…be like that? In love? Did fate even work like that? When Roy catches the Black Rayquaza would they just suddenly be together like that? It was all just so confusing and honestly kinda dumb. But Liko still continued to mull over it.
Lucius and Rystal first met when Lucius saved Rystal from some poachers, then the two went adventuring together in order to find Laqua. It was similar to how Liko and Roy first met. Roy had saved her from some wild Pokemon, albeit temporarily, and then after a run in from the explorers the two began their adventures together. Now they're looking for Laqua as well. There were quite a few similarities, even down to personalities and what Pokemon they would carry. Liko had Pagogo just like Rystal and Roy would eventually catch the Black Rayquaza like Lucius. Maybe Liko was fated to have Pagogo at her side. Maybe Roy was fated for the ancient pokeball to wash up on his island. Then maybe it would be fate that drove the two to fall in-
No.
Liko shook her head. She wasn't going to go down this rabbit hole now. She needed to sleep. She closed her eyes and turned on her sides, and after a while her brain finally succumbed to her tiredness. But even then a small subconscious thought formed at the back of Liko's mind. If fate really was dictating her adventures and she and Roy were supposed to fall in love sometime in the future…
…Then Liko would be more than happy with that.