Pokémon: The Seeker's Tale (new)

[This is the new, revised version of this story. For posterity, the old version can be found here: https://pastebin.com/A8rpZQg7]


The Seeker’s Tale
Or, Fortune Favors the Bold


	Evening came to Faluspar Town, and the small settlement began to shine as it did every time the sun set. Points of light flickered to life in the town and held off the dark while the vast surrounding fields fell into shadow. A calm stillness overtook the plains, but it was soon broken when a patch of tall green grass north of Faluspar gently rustled. From it stepped a Purrloin, who sat on her haunches and looked at the town straight ahead, beyond a long flat stretch of grass and dirt. A pair of Liepard emerged after the Purrloin, and lay down on either side of the young cat to join her in watching the town.

	“It’s a beautiful place,” said one Liepard, a male. “Like a bunch of stars, right here on the ground. But it’s not as peaceful as the stars.”

	“That’s right,” said the other, a female. She looked down at the Purrloin beside her. “I know we’ve asked you this before, but I want to ask you again: are you sure you want to do this, Lavender?”

	The Purrloin lowered her ears and bowed her head, unable to respond immediately. The Liepard was right: she had indeed asked that question before, and they had discussed it extensively. In all their conversations, the Purrloin had always felt quite confident in her choice, but now that the time had come, doubt made her hesitate.

	“You can turn back if you want,” the female Liepard continued. “You don’t need to go there.”

	“I know, Mom,” said Lavender. “But I want to. I’m not really sure if it’s the best idea, but I can’t turn back now. I don’t want to stay here forever—it’s too boring. Every day here is the same: we just wander around, look for stuff to eat, maybe fight some Pokémon. Every once in a while, a human comes by, but they never stay for long. Sometimes they don’t even bother to fight us. I just feel like there’s nothing for me here.”

	She looked over at the shining town. “That place is different. All that noise, all that activity, all those humans and Pokémon gathered together... there must be more to see and do. I want to see it for myself. I know it can be dangerous there, and it’s a lot different than living in the fields, but something’s pulling me there. Maybe I won’t find what I want there, but I at least want to try.”

	The two Liepard looked at each other, then at their daughter. They were both smiling at her. The Purrloin’s ears perked up.

	“I was hoping you’d say that,” said the male Liepard. “I know you’re no weakling. You can handle the town. And I think it will do you good to experience it.”

	“I agree,” said Lavender’s mother. “But please be careful, and stay safe. Use the dark to your advantage. The night is your friend. Speaking of which, don’t forget what I’ve always said: the night is full of opportunity, but only for those bold enough to seek it. So don’t be afraid.”

	“I won’t,” said Lavender, and she meant it. Her uncertainty passed, and confidence replaced it. “I’ll be fine. And I’ll come back one day. I’ll bring stories of what it’s like there—maybe I’ll even get some treasure, too!”

	“I’d be content even if you came back without anything,” the female Liepard said. “I’ll just be happy to see you again.”

	“So will I,” Lavender’s father said. “Remember, we’ll always be here for you. You can return anytime. But until you do: good luck, Lavender. I hope you find what you’re seeking.”

	The two Liepard nuzzled their daughter, and she returned the gesture with a purr. When they stopped, Lavender rose and faced the town. After only a brief pause, the Seeker set off, and did not look back.


***


	“Sure was different then,” Lavender said to herself. “I was so optimistic.”

	Deep in Faluspar, the Purrloin sat alone on a sidewalk, her back to the dull stone wall of a building as she watched humans walk about under the midday sun. She did not mind that none of them acknowledged her; they all kept their distance, and she had no desire to interact with them anyway, lost as she was in her own thoughts and memories.

	“Yeah, I thought this place would be overflowing with excitement. Definitely is livelier than the field, but as for treasure... could be better. Still, I haven’t seen the whole town yet. There’s probably plenty of adventure and treasure waiting to be found.”

	Lavender stretched and stood upright, then walked northward down the sidewalk, skirting the edge of the building to her side. She soon came to a large gap on her right and paused to look in when she reached it. As soon as she realized it was an alleyway, she considered hurrying by without a second glance. Almost every alley she had found thus far was inhabited by surly or hostile Pokémon, and offered only disappointment or stress; the sole exception was an uninhabited alley she discovered shortly after arriving in the town. She quickly claimed a section for herself so she could live in a box she found there, using it as a safe place to stay. Other than that, her experience with alleys had not been positive.

	However, as she looked closer at this alley, she thought it seemed quiet and peaceful. She saw nothing out of the ordinary, and there were no Pokémon in sight.

	“Can’t hurt to take a look inside,” she said. “Maybe it’ll have something good in it.”

	She took a step into the alley.

	“Intruder alert! Intruder alert!”

	A high and singsong warning cry rang out the instant her paw touched the grey pavement. She winced. No more could she hope for a peaceful and unopposed entrance.

	“Just once,” the Purrloin grumbled, “I’d like to visit an alley and get a warm welcome for a change. Is that too much to ask?”

	 She sighed and dropped her stance to all fours, then tensed up in preparation of some sort of attack. She waited as the warning cry ceased and the alley fell silent, but no attack came. Instead, all she saw was a Pidove, who hopped off a rooftop near the other end of the alley and swooped towards her. Before reaching her, the bird swerved upward and began to circle overhead, repeating the same cry she had heard before. She realized that he must have been the source of the first announcement. Annoyed though she was, she resisted the urge to leap up and swat him out of the air for ruining her plans. First impressions were important, after all, and harming the denizens of this alley seemed like a bad idea.

	Even so, she made sure to voice her irritation. Looking up at the bird, she hissed, “Keep it down. No reason to freak out. I’m just taking a walk.”

	The Pidove stopped circling her and hovered in place above her head, remaining well out of reach of her claws. “That may be,” he said, “but it’s my job to let everyone know when somebody new comes into the alley. We can’t let anyone dangerous sneak up on us.”

	“I’m not dangerous,” said Lavender. “At least, not when I’m in a good mood, which I was until you started yelling.”

	At that, the Pidove flapped his wings harder and moved up a few inches away from the Purrloin, making her smirk. “But that’s not to say I’m looking for a fight,” she added. “I’m just exploring.”

	“Tell that to the Southpaws,” said the bird. “Which reminds me, they really should be here by now. What’s taking them so—oh, there they are! Stay put, cat, and keep your claws in.”

	The bird and the cat looked to see a trio of Pokémon rush around a corner of a building more than halfway down the alley. As they drew nearer, the Purrloin saw they were a Poochyena, a Rockruff, and a Shinx.

	“They’re not here to hurt you,” the Pidove told the Purrloin. “Unless you hurt them, of course. They guard this place, and they just want to make sure you’re not trouble.”

	Lavender sat back on her haunches and relaxed as she watched the trio approach. Once they drew near, the Pidove flew over their heads and soared back up to the rooftop he had come from. The Purrloin watched him go before turning her attention back to the trio. She was just in time to see them reach her and stop several paces away. Now that they were closer, she could see that they all seemed to be rather well-groomed, albeit a bit shaggy, and they wore serious expressions. The trio quickly looked Lavender over, then the Poochyena took a few steps forward.

	“This is Dyad Alley,” he said in a scratchy male voice. “State your name, if you’ve got one, and your business here, if you’ve got any.”

	“I’m Lavender,” the Purrloin answered, “and I’m exploring. I only came to this town recently, and I want to see as much of it as I can. I’m not looking to cause any problems—I just wanted to check this alley out.”

	“Just checking it out, huh?” the Poochyena said. He began to circle the Purrloin, while the other two Southpaws continued to stand back. “Not the first time someone’s said that, then turned out to be trouble.”

	“Well, I won’t be like that,” Lavender said, turning her head just enough to keep an eye on the Poochyena as he moved around. “Trust me.”

	“Trust you? Why should we trust you? We’ve never seen you before. We don’t know anything about you.”

	“So? That doesn’t mean I’m not trustworthy.”

	“It does if you ask us.”

	Suddenly, the Rockruff took a step forward. “It does if she asks you, Fang,” she said to the Poochyena. “But not if she asks me and Glow.”

	The Shinx moved forward as well. “Sharp’s right,” he said. “We don’t know this cat, but we can’t kick her out just because of that.”

	“Not this again,” Fang muttered. He stopped circling the Purrloin and stood at her side, looking at his fellow guards. “I’ve already told you two, I’m tired of letting Pokémon wander through our turf whenever they want. One of these days, it’s gonna come back to bite us hard. We need to stop sometime.”

	“Not without the bosses’ permission,” said Sharp. “And I know they’re still not keen on giving us that permission, no matter how much you want them to. You’re not going to disobey them, are you?”

	“Of course not,” said Fang quickly. “But I still think we’re making a mistake.”

	“You’re not,” Lavender interjected. “Look, I’m not even planning to stay here very long. I just want to pass through and check this place out.”

	“Yeah, so you can find something good to steal,” said Fang, baring his teeth at Lavender. She did not react. After a few seconds of silence, Fang hid his teeth again and sighed. “But I guess I don’t know that for sure, huh? And besides, rules are rules. Much as I hate to say it, we have to let you in.”

	“Thanks,” said Lavender. She began to get to her feet, but stopped when Fang growled at her.

	“Hang on,” he said. “You can enter the alley, but remember this: if you cause any trouble at all, you’ll be lucky if you live to regret it. So be good.”

	With that, he turned and trotted away to the place he and his fellow guards had come from. However, the Rockruff and the Shinx did not follow him. Instead, they stayed behind and watched the Purrloin. After a few moments, the Rockruff stepped closer to her.

	“Don’t mistake our lenience for weakness,” Sharp said to Lavender. “If anything, take it as a sign of strength. It means we’re confident enough in our abilities that we let you come in here as you please, knowing we can stop you or punish you if you do anything bad.”

	“So, for all our sakes, please do no harm,” Glow added. “Fang’s got a point, though he could probably phrase it in a gentler way. We really are taking a risk by opening our turf like this, and I really hope you don’t make us regret it.”

	“Don’t worry about it,” said Lavender. “But since you brought up that risk, can I ask you something?”

	“Make it quick,” said Sharp. “Fang doesn’t like us being away from him. Whenever we talk behind his back, he usually thinks we’re planning a coup or something.”

	“I heard you saying something about rules,” Lavender said, “and you said your bosses told you not to turn Pokémon away. Why is that? Usually when I find an alley that someone’s claimed, they don’t let me in. Why the lenience here?”

	“Bosses’ orders,” said Glow. “For some reason, they want to present this alley as a friendly and welcoming place, where Pokémon can come and go as they please. From what I understand, they hope this will let us make good friends and good connections.”

	Sharp nodded, and added, “That’s pretty much it. But to make up for that leniency, we’re also really strict about following the rules here. If you cause a problem, the punishment is much harsher than what you’ll find elsewhere. So don’t do anything bad.”

	With that, the two Pokémon turned and ran after Fang, who was standing further down the alley, waiting for them. Lavender watched them reunite and return to where they had come from. As they did, she reflected on what they had said.

	“That was close,” she said to herself. “I wonder if they believed all those lies I said about not wanting to cause any trouble. Seems like they did. Why do they care so much, though? If you can’t protect the things you claim, you deserve to have them stolen. Still, if they’re so serious about this kind of thing, I probably shouldn’t steal anything while I’m here. But then I could be missing out on a lot of stuff.”

	Lavender growled and shook her head. “Up until now, I would’ve been fine with stealing things here, but now I’m not so sure. Any missteps could be dangerous with those guards around. Hopefully I’ll have a chance to get away with stealing something later.”

	The Purrloin held on to that hope as she resumed her walk into the alley, examining the area as she went. She looked first at the buildings lining the way. They were all either two or three stories tall, average-sized for the town, but still impressively tall to her. They were certainly bigger than anything she had known in the fields. Still, she had grown accustomed to these huge structures in the time she had spent in the town, so they no longer amazed her.

	Unfortunately, nothing else in the alley offered a sense of amazement either. A few dumpsters and boxes were set against the walls, along with scattered rubbish, but for the most part the alley seemed rather clean and orderly. With the Southpaws gone, no Pokémon were in the open other than the Pidove, who still sat perched on the roof he had flown to when the Southpaws confronted her. The only thing of note was a three-story building ahead and to the left of her. It was made of dull red bricks, and had a pair of large and complex black metal structures—fire escapes, she had heard them called—attached to its side. She thought they could serve as a useful way to reach the building’s various windows and see what they led to, but she decided not to get ahead of herself. Although they might lead to treasure, the Southpaw’s warnings held her back.

	Lavender looked away from the fire escape and continued down the alley. It still offered nothing that caught her attention, but she had to admit that being bored was better than getting kicked out of the alley or attacked by its residents.

	“Still,” she said to herself, “at least that kind of thing offers some excitement. I didn’t come here to walk around forever without finding anything interesting. I almost wish someone would attack me, just to give me something to do. Or at least, I wish someone would show up and talk.”

	“Is that so? You’re quite lucky, then.”

	Lavender jumped. From somewhere nearby had come a feminine, mature, and smooth voice she did not recognize. The Purrloin looked for the source and found it quickly. Standing in plain view on the bottom landing of the nearest fire escape, next to a retractable ladder, was a Meowth with a grey coat and white markings on her paws and the tip of her tail. Lavender looked up at the cat in confusion, partially for her coloration—the likes of which the Purrloin had never seen on a Meowth—and partially because she had no idea how the Meowth had managed to get onto the fire escape in the short time she had looked away from it.

	“Alola,” the grey Meowth said, seemingly in greeting. “You’re a new face around here, are you not?”

	“Yeah, I’m new here,” said Lavender. “Just exploring the alley.”

	“I see. Say, if it’s not too much trouble, would you mind coming up here, ke ‘olu‘olu? I’d like to speak with you. I would send down this ladder to help you, but alas, it is not exactly designed for a Meowth to operate.”

	“I can find another way up,” said Lavender, and indeed, she already had one in mind. The brick wall to which the fire escape was attached looked promising. She approached the wall and examined it closely. From what she could tell, it seemed like the bricks and the gaps between them could afford ample handholds and footholds for someone to scale the wall, though it would require skill and caution. Luckily for Lavender, she possessed both of those in abundance. So she thought.

	Lavender backed away from the wall, took a deep breath, then jumped at the wall and reached out. She caught hold of the tops of two bricks, and her feet found purchase atop two others. Though all the bricks were mostly flush with the mortar between them, they stood out enough to let her maintain her hold. She wasted no time in clambering up the wall until she was almost level with the bottom platform of the fire escape, and only a foot or two off to the side. After another deep breath, she pushed off from the wall at an angle and reached for the fire escape. She grabbed the edge less firmly than she had hoped, and she almost lost her grip as momentum swung her back and forth, but she held on with only a slight grimace as she waited for her swinging to cease.

	“Akahele!” said the Meowth, taking a step towards her. “Don’t fall! Do you need assistance?”

	“I’ve got it,” the Purrloin replied through clenched teeth. Once her swinging came to a stop, she pulled herself up with a grunt and got onto the landing at last. She sat still and took a few deep breaths before standing up. When she did, the Meowth walked over to her and crossed her arms.

	“That was close,” she said. “Do you do that sort of thing often?”

	“It looked closer than it really was,” said the Purrloin. “And yeah, I climb like that a lot.”

	“Impressive,” the Meowth said. Then, with a smirk, she added: “But rather pupule, as well.”

	Lavender cocked her head and frowned. “I have no idea what that means.”

	The Meowth shrugged. “Maybe it is best you don’t. However, it certainly would be best for you to know why I called you up here. First, I overheard you saying you’d like to talk with someone, and I have free time, so I figured I would help you out. Second, we do not get malihini, or newcomers, in Dyad Alley very often, but I enjoy meeting such Pokémon and hearing their stories. Especially if they hail from the wilds, which you do, based on your scent.”

	Lavender began to say something, then paused. “Wait, was that an insult?” she asked.

	“Not at all,” the Meowth said quickly. “It’s actually a good thing that you come from the wilds. That means talking with you will be interesting for me, in addition to being what you wanted in the first place. What say you?”

	“Well, I’m not sure how interesting it’ll be to talk to me. I don’t think I have anything good to talk about.”

	“Oh, no need to act so modest. Just talk about anything. I’m always willing to listen to malihini. And besides, it would not be only you talking. I was planning to repay you by explaining more about this town of Faluspar, and especially Dyad Alley below. I live with my trainer on the uppermost floor of this building, you see, and he’s so busy that I often have time to myself to come out here and spark the alley. I know much about it and its residents.”

	Lavender sat down. “I guess I didn’t really have any other plans,” she said. “Besides exploring, of course, but if you’re going to tell me about this place, I guess I could just hear what you have to say instead. Let’s get talking.”

	The grey Meowth leaned against a pole of the fire escape’s railing and smiled at the Purrloin. “Maika‘i—good! By the way, I realize I never told you my name. ʻO Duchess koʻu inoa.”

	Lavender frowned. “Long name.”

	The Meowth paused in confusion, then gave a chuckle. “No, my name is simply Duchess. What I said means ‘my name is Duchess’.”

	“You should’ve just said that, then.”

	“E kala mai ia‘u,” said Duchess with a shrug. She quickly added, “I mean, sorry. If you are born and raised in Alola, you pick up on the language that the humans use there. Hearing them left its mark on me. I sometimes emulate their language on accident, so I apologize in advance for any confusion you may suffer as a result.”

	“Apology accepted, I guess,” said Lavender.

	“Mahalo.”

	“And right away, I’m back to being confused.”

	Duchess sighed. “That meant ‘thank you’,” she said. “Now, let’s get back on track, as the humans say. First, what is your name?”

	Lavender revealed it, and so began their chat. The Purrloin went on to speak of her time in the wilds, where she lived an uneventful life with her parents, and always desired something more. When she told Duchess about her decision to move to the town so she could seek adventure and anything else of interest, the Meowth seemed impressed. She praised Lavender’s courage in leaving her home and coming to the town, but she also echoed the warnings of the Purrloin’s parents.

	“Though I rarely spend time away from this building and Dyad,” Duchess said, “even I know Faluspar can be dangerous. You must be akahele, or cautious, if you wish to remain unscathed. Fortunately, this alley is a much more peaceful place than most. Provided you act peaceful as well, of course.”

	“It seems that way,” Lavender said, thinking back to the words of the Southpaws.

	Once Lavender finished talking about her past, Duchess returned the favor and spoke at length about her own history. She began by clearing up Lavender’s confusion about her coat color, and explained that she was actually an Alolan Meowth, born in Paniola Ranch in the island region of Alola, which lay far off in the western ocean. Humans had bred her there with the intent to raise her as a show Pokémon, though she never succeeded in that role. One day, a human visited the ranch to find a Pokémon he could adopt as a companion. He took a liking to Duchess, as she did to him, so the breeders let him take her back to his home in Faluspar. They lived happily together, but he frequently had to leave the apartment on business, so Duchess had a lot of time to herself. She spent most of it sleeping, but whenever she was awake, she liked to go to the windowsill or the fire escape outside the apartment, where she could watch over the alley and speak with its residents.

	“Believe me, it completely negates the boredom,” the Meowth added.

	Lavender listened with interest, for she enjoyed the opportunity to talk with someone casually. Yet, as they spoke, she could not shake the feeling that something about it was wrong. Duchess was acting very friendly and open, and did not hesitate to reveal all this information about her past and encourage Lavender to do the same regarding her own history. Though this friendliness was in keeping with what the Southpaws said before about the alley residents’ welcoming demeanor, Lavender still found it off-putting. She had yet to meet a Pokémon so kind and candid in the town; most of them acted rather cold, if not outright hostile, towards her. She felt ill at ease, and half-believed Duchess was either hiding something or plotting something.

	As they spoke, Lavender nonchalantly observed their surroundings. She glanced down at the alley and towards the windows of the building to which the fire escape was attached, trying to see if anything was amiss. But despite her lingering paranoia that the Meowth may be attempting to distract her from something, she saw nothing suspicious. The only interesting thing she noticed was the Pidove, who generally stayed on the same rooftop she had seen him on before, and occasionally took flight and circled above the alley. At one point, he dove down and entered the alley, then took to flying back and forth, apparently keeping watch for any newcomers or trouble. Lavender kept an eye on him as he flew, but he ignored the two cats talking on the fire escape. He passed them by and returned to his perch without a word. Once he landed, Lavender looked back to Duchess, who wore a smile.

	“That was Birds Eye,” Duchess explained, having noticed Lavender’s attention turn to the bird. “He keeps watch for intruders and alerts the Southpaws, the alley’s guards, if he sees anyone suspicious enter the alley. But I believe you are well acquainted with such a process, considering what happened to you when you came here.”

	“You saw that?” asked Lavender.

	“Of course,” Duchess said, and her smile widened, turning slightly unsettling. “I see everything.”

	The cats stared at each other for a few moments, before Duchess assumed a straight face once more. Lavender hesitated before speaking up again. “It was kind of annoying to hear him yelling and stuff.”

	“Indeed. He learned a move the humans fittingly call ‘Uproar’ from his father, a Noctowl, so his voice can be loud and carry well when he wishes it. But I admit he can be a little too loud sometimes.”

	“Apparently. Hey, out of curiosity: what would happen if I ate him?”

	Duchess opened her mouth to reply, took a moment to register what Lavender had just said, then promptly recoiled in horror. Meanwhile, Lavender kept a straight face. “Maybe you trained Pokémon don’t know this,” she said, “but in the wild, we’ve got to eat each other to live. That’s just how it is.”

	The Meowth quickly recovered from her shock, and said, “My surprise is not because I never heard of that sort of thing before. I have met other wild Pokémon before, and they have told me that they must eat their fellow Pokémon to survive. I understand that it is a fact of life for you.”

	“Then what was with that reaction?”

	“Because eating, or even just attacking, a resident of this alley is lolo. That means stupid or crazy, by the way.”

	“How’s it stupid or crazy? He looks pretty plump—he’d make a great meal, even though getting through all his feathers would be annoying.”

	Lavender grinned mischievously, but Duchess only glared back. It was harsher than any look Lavender had received in a while, an effect emphasized by the way Duchess had only acted kind to her thus far. It was enough to make the Purrloin stop smiling and lower her ears nervously.

	“The reason why it is stupid,” Duchess said slowly, “is because you wouldn’t make it out of here alive if you killed him. Let me tell you something important: the residents of this alley are like a big ʻohana.”

	“I don’t know what that—”

	Duchess held up a paw to silence Lavender. “Let me finish: ‘ohana means family, and family means nobody gets left behind. Everyone in this alley is part of a family, even though we are not related by blood. We are a pack, and we all help each other, especially when one of us is in danger. You’d best remember that before you cause trouble here in Dyad Alley. We accept malihini, but if you harm one pack member, you will answer to us all. Including me.”

	The cats stared at one another again. Lavender slowly raised her ears and calmed down, and Duchess’ gaze seemed to soften as she did.

	“Seriously, though,” said the Meowth. “Remember that.”

	“I will, okay?” Lavender said quickly. “Sorry I asked if I could eat him. I didn’t really mean it, believe me. The guards told me not to do anything bad, and I didn’t forget that. I just wanted to see how you’d react. I’ll leave him alone, promise.”

	“Good. Now, what else shall we talk about?”

	As it happened, they still had a wide variety of things to discuss, now that the brief tension between them had ended. The two cats continued to chat about their lives and experiences, losing track of time as they drifted between various topics. Eventually, Duchess began to speak of the people in her apartment building. Lavender felt uninterested for the most part, though she deigned to let Duchess keep talking. Eventually, the Meowth began speaking about the uppermost floor of the building.

	“That window leads to my apartment,” said Duchess, pointing up at the rightmost window that could be accessed from the fire escape the cats stood on. “Actually, I should call it my trainer’s apartment, as it’s technically his territory. But the one to the left is inhabited by a female human and her Pokémon companions, and I’ve heard some interesting rumors about them.”

	“What do you mean?” asked Lavender, trying to hide her disinterest.

	“Some Pokémon around town have seen the human going to Mount Lonesome, northwest of here, with her team of Pokémon. Have you heard of that mountain?”

	“If I have, I don’t remember much about it.”

	“Then allow me to explain why it’s special. Among the humans and Pokémon of this town, there are rumors that tell of many treasures hidden deep within the treacherous caverns of Mount Lonesome. Apparently, that human has been delving into the caves and gathering some of those valuables. What’s more, it would appear as though she has been successful, and brought back waiwai nui to her apartment there.”

	“What does—”

	“‘Waiwai nui’ means ‘great wealth’.”

	Lavender gasped and perked up her ears, but immediately settled down and tried to act nonchalant. “Really? Interesting,” she said quietly, though her heart still beat much quicker than usual.

	“You seem excited about it,” said Duchess with a frown.

	“Hey, wouldn’t you get excited after hearing about a big bunch of treasure nearby?”

	“You have a point. Indeed, it is interesting. Even more interesting, and perhaps foolish, is how she leaves her window slightly open each night. I assume she does it to keep her apartment cool, but it might allow for a particularly bold thief to invade her room. If I were her, I would keep it closed to prevent anyone from getting inside.”

	Lavender kept her mouth shut. Her mind was already at work processing this information, evaluating risks, forming a plan.

	“And yet,” Duchess continued, “for some reason, nobody has tried to cockroach the treasure yet.”

	Lavender snapped out of her thoughts and looked at Duchess with confusion. “Wait, ‘cockroach’? What does that mean?”

	The Meowth shrugged. “The humans in Paniola Ranch used it as a synonym for ‘steal’, but I don’t know where it came from. Come to think of it, they would also say they get ‘chicken skin’ when they feel scared, but don’t ask me what ‘chicken’ means. I’ve always believed it to be a Pokémon of some kind, perhaps related to a Combusken or a Blaziken.”

	“Never heard of those,” Lavender said.

	“Really? Perhaps they are not native to this area. But I remember seeing a breeder raising some of those Pokémon in Paniola, in small kid time. That is how I know of them.”

	“Can you tell me what they’re like?” Lavender asked, eager to change the subject and hide her excitement over the treasure.

	Duchess nodded and began to talk about the Torchic family, along with other kinds of Pokémon that were more commonly raised at Paniola. The Purrloin welcomed the change of topics, if only to take her mind off the treasure in the apartment so that she would not get too excited over it. Even so, she still thought about it, and she barely heard anything of what Duchess said beyond that point. None of it mattered to her anymore.

	Lavender knew what she was going to do that night.


***


	The moon rose and so did Lavender. With equal parts speed and caution, she repeated the steps she had taken that morning to reach the fire escape, and had no more trouble scaling the brick wall than she had last time. Once she stood on the chilly metal grating, she took a few deep breaths of cold night air to calm down and steel herself.

	She had returned to Dyad Alley and found it almost in darkness save for the light of the half-moon coming from the eastern sky. Streetlights only threw a fraction of their light into the alleyway and all windows facing it were dark. There were no Pokémon around, as far as she could tell. Birds Eye was not on his perch, Duchess was not on the fire escape, and the Southpaws were nowhere to be seen. Dark and empty. It was a perfect setting for a burglary.

	And yet, she wondered if she should commit one. The things she had been seeking were within her grasp: treasure lay at the top of this building, and she felt mostly confident that she could steal it without getting caught. Furthermore, she had no qualms about taking things from others. In the wilds, possession and ownership were foreign concepts. If one was too weak to protect the things one claimed, one did not deserve to claim them. So she had been taught, and so she had believed all her life.

	Therefore, what held her back was not doubt or morals, but rather, a chilling fear. She knew that if she took one step further, she entered dangerous territory. She shuddered as she recalled the words of the Southpaws. If she proceeded with her plan, she ran the very real risk of getting caught and punished by the guards of the alley.

	But did this count as the alley? Though the apartment abutted it, it was not a part of it. If she did something within, she believed it would not be under the Southpaws’ jurisdiction. She was not harming a denizen of the alley, or even any Pokémon. She was simply taking something from a human who happened to live nearby. Would they punish her for that? If not, she had nothing to fear. But if so, she had everything to fear.

	It would be safer to leave. If she resisted the temptation and turned back now, nobody would know that she was here, or that she was planning to steal anything. However, it would make her miss out on what she had been seeking all this time. This could be the perfect chance to fulfill her mission and get what she came here for.

	Filled with indecision, Lavender could not move for some time, no matter how much she tried, and how often she reminded herself that every second spent without acting increased the risk of someone spotting her. Still, though she listened carefully for any Pokémon that may have stirred, she heard nothing. The night was silent, as if waiting anxiously for her to make a choice.

	And then it was not silent. A voice came to her, but she did not hear it with her ears. It was inside her head, and she recognized it as the voice of her mother.

	“The night is full of opportunity, but only for those bold enough to seek it.”

	The words with which she and her parents had parted returned to her, and they rang as true now as they did when she last heard them several days ago. She would only acquire what she was seeking if she was bold. She would only succeed if she pushed on despite her fears.

	“I have to do this,” Lavender whispered. “This kind of thing is what I came here for. I’m no coward. I’ll prove it. I won’t turn back.”

	With these words, she began to move again.

	Slowly and silently, Lavender made her way up the fire escape. Her footsteps did not dare to break the tranquil silence that lingered over Dyad Alley. Only her heartbeat made any noise, and she wondered if she should worry about anyone hearing it. Nonetheless, she kept climbing, though she shuddered slightly as a cold breeze blew against her, for her short fur did little to block its chill. She looked forward to when she could return to her shelter, where she could at least be out of the cold wind, but that would have to wait. She could not back down now.

	The Purrloin eventually reached the top landing of the fire escape. There, she eyed the two windows, one above the right side of the landing and the other above the left side. They were both bisected by a horizontal metal bar, and she saw that the bottom half of each could open by swinging inward, using the bar as a pivot. The right one, which led to Duchess’ apartment, was closed, but the left window was opened very slightly, just as Duchess had said would be the case earlier. Lavender could easily push it open farther and sneak inside.

	 She took a moment to ready herself, then jumped up and grabbed the windowsill with both paws. She pulled herself up and balanced on the edge of the sill as she pushed the window open more, careful not to make any noise. Once it was ajar enough for her to slip through the opening, she did so and silently landed on the carpeted floor of the apartment. Now came the hard part: looking for treasure without getting caught.

	Lavender’s eyes glowed bright green as they roved over the dim room in which she found herself. The first thing she noticed was that the room had one thing in common with the alley: an initial lack of anything notable. She had peeked into many human dwellings (but never entered any) during her travels around the town over the last few days, and this room did not stand out compared to those she had seen before. It was plainly furnished, and it certainly did not appear to have any treasure out in the open. Then again, she had never expected treasure to be easy to obtain. She would have to look harder.

	Lavender dropped down on all fours, perked up her ears, and noiselessly walked onward. She looked all around for anything valuable—or dangerous—as she prowled, but she did not understand most of what she saw. She always felt confused by the various objects humans liked to cram into their territories, and she had given up on understanding what purpose they served. Besides, none of the objects in this room looked like treasure, so she had no reason to care about them. Even if they were valuable, they mostly seemed to be too large or heavy to take with her, so she thought it best to ignore them.

	As she explored the room, she made note of two things in particular: straight ahead was a closed door, and diagonally forward and to the left was another door, though this one was ajar. As she approached, something made her stop and stare at it. Her ears twitched as they detected the sound of breathing, and it took her a moment to notice it did not come from herself. Instead, it came from the open door. Lavender took some time to listen. It was quiet and slow, and sounded like the breath of someone who was asleep. That gave her confidence enough to creep over to the doorway and peer inside.

	The doorway led to another room, lit only by faint moonlight coming in from a window in the wall to the left. This new room was just as plainly furnished as the previous one, though there were different types of furniture here. Most notable was a large wooden object with a big blue cloth on top placed against the wall on the other side of the room. The Purrloin could detect a human’s scent from the object, along with the same breathing she had heard outside the room. She guessed there was a human, probably the same human Duchess had spoken of earlier, sleeping atop the object. However, the piece of furniture was tall enough, and Lavender was so low to the ground, that she could not see the top and confirm her suspicions.

	Nonetheless, she knew that she had to be even more careful now. Any noise could awaken the sleeping human, and that was the last thing Lavender wanted. Keeping the human in mind, she scanned the room to determine if entering it was worth the risk. Her glowing eyes soon fell upon an item, slightly larger than her, made of black fabric and lying against the side of the large wooden object. She recognized its purpose immediately. In her various encounters with humans, she had seen some wearing packs like this on their backs in order to carry small items. She had a feeling it might have something good inside, though that hope might have only been born out of disappointment from the fact that she had yet to find any sign of treasure. Nonetheless, that hope drove her on, and she dashed noiselessly across the room to the pack in order to examine it. To her surprise, she found the main pouch open wide.

	“Guess the human never got around to closing it up,” she thought. “All the better for me. Let’s see what’s inside.”

	At first, it seemed as though the backpack held nothing good. It contained an array of items that a trainer might utilize, like potions and repellent—useful for a trainer, but a Purrloin could not care less for them. Granted, Lavender knew that healing items like potions could be good for a Pokémon, but she never could figure out how to use them, so she decided against taking them. Besides, it felt wrong to steal healing items from someone. Treasure had no immediate use, while potions could save lives, so she could not bring herself to take the potions. However, treasure was fair game, so she kept digging through the pouch in search of valuables, gently placing each piece of non-treasure she found on the floor beside her.

	Soon, something glinted in the tiny bit of moonlight that entered the open pouch of the backpack. Lavender’s glowing eyes went wide, and she kept emptying the backpack until the glinting object was revealed. Her heart skipped a beat. There lay a small, round, and smooth nugget of gold. And below it sat even more treasures: pure white pearls and roughly-shaped gems of various colors. It was more treasure in one place than she had seen in a long time.

	“Waiwai nui, indeed,” she said with a grin.


***


	A still-grinning Lavender left the room and returned to the windowsill, carrying her spoils with her. In her left paw she held a small pearl, and in her right a gold nugget, while her tail coiled around a large purple gem and held it tight. To her dismay, she could only carry a portion of her findings, and had to leave most of the treasure behind, but she felt marginally better about not robbing the human blind. She even made sure to replace all the other items in the backpack nice and neat.

	“I’m such a courteous burglar,” she thought.

	As she stood on the windowsill, she moved the nugget to her mouth and clenched it with her jaws. With her now-freed paw, she closed the window most of the way until it looked just like it had before she first opened it. Once that was done, she dropped to the top platform of the fire escape, then took the nugget from her mouth and prepared to make her getaway.

	She took one step and froze. Something had changed since she entered the human’s room. The window to Duchess’ apartment was open now.

	An instant later, Duchess herself appeared on the windowsill, leaping up from inside the apartment. Lavender jumped and almost lost her grip on all her treasure, but she kept holding them and lowered her stance instinctively while her breath and heartbeat sped up. She expected Duchess to attack or call for help, having caught her in the act of stealing, but the Meowth only stared down at the Purrloin, forehead coin glowing gold and eyes gleaming white just as Lavender’s own eyes shone green. They stayed motionless and held each other’s luminous gaze as time dragged on, neither Pokémon willing to make a move.

	As their staring contest continued, Lavender felt herself slowly relax. She thought over her situation and concluded that things were not as bleak as they seemed. She had not stolen anything from the alley residents, so she considered it unlikely that Duchess, or any other Pokémon of Dyad Alley, would punish her. Furthermore, she remembered how friendly and kind Duchess had been before. Even when Lavender joked about eating Birds Eye to see her reaction, the Meowth did not attack or shun her. She simply accepted the Purrloin’s apology and let her off with a warning instead. With that in mind, she decided that the Meowth posed no immediate threat, and calmly waited to see what she would do.

	Duchess blinked for the first time, then hopped down from the windowsill to land silently on the fire escape. She stood up and crossed her arms, keeping her eyes on the Purrloin.

	“Alola,” said Duchess flatly. It was only a whisper, but in the silence of the night, it seemed like a shout. “I did not expect to see you out and about so late at night, Lavender. And not only that, but also carrying some fine treasure. Stolen, I presume?”

	The Purrloin narrowed her eyes. “Stolen?” she said through clenched teeth, keeping her voice low. “What makes you think they’re stolen? That’s just because I’m a Purrloin, isn’t it? You just assume everything my kind has must be stolen! We’re totally incapable of earning things honestly, right? We’re all just a bunch of no-good thieves who—”

	“That’s enough!” snapped Duchess. “Pa‘a ka waha, stop complaining and listen to me.”

	Lavender did so. Satisfied, Duchess kept talking. “You cockroached that treasure from the human in that apartment. Do not try to hide it. Remember what I told you earlier: I see everything.”

	“Do you now?”

	“I do. But let me ask you: why did you take that treasure?”

	“Because it’s what I came to this place to do. Adventure, excitement, treasure... I came here to find all that stuff.”

	“‘Ae, you said as much earlier. But I hoped you would not stoop to thievery to acquire any of it. Pray tell, what do you do with treasure when you acquire it?”

	“I keep it. What else are you supposed to do with treasure?”

	Duchess threw up her paws. “Sell it, trade it, gift it, anything! Waiwai does no good if you keep it to yourself.”

	“But keeping it to myself makes me happy.”

	To Lavender’s surprise, Duchess smirked. “Aue!” she said. “Does it now? In that case, prick up your ears and listen even more carefully, because I’m about to teach you something.”

	“This can’t be good,” Lavender muttered.

	Duchess chose to ignore her. She approached Lavender, and began: “You see, stealing is wrong, and—”

	Lavender groaned and rolled her eyes. “Oh, here we go. Look, I don’t have time for you to tell me what you think is right and wrong. Keep all that morality stuff to yourself.”

	“Don’t get an attitude with me,” said Duchess.

	“Don’t act all high and mighty with me,” said Lavender. “You say stealing’s wrong like it’s a fact, but where I come from, it’s fine. Nobody owns anything if they can’t protect it. If you ask me, or anyone else out there, I did nothing wrong. Besides, I didn’t take everything from that human. I’m sure she can live with a couple treasures missing.”

	“That’s not the point. No matter how much you took, or what you’ve been raised to believe, it simply is not right to take things from others, be they human or Pokémon.”

	“Again, you should keep it to yourself.”

	“I can’t do that, Lavender. I need to teach you a lesson. And you need to listen to me.”

	As much as she hated to admit it, Lavender agreed. She was trapped for the moment, for Duchess stood between her and the stairs of the fire escape, the only safe way down. Besides, Duchess still did not seem to be hostile, so Lavender thought no harm could come from humoring her.

	“I’m listening,” she said.

	“Mahalo,” said Duchess. “Now, I had a feeling you would try to cockroach that apartment as soon as I told you about the waiwai inside. I saw your excitement. I could see what was going on in your head. I knew you would try something pupule, so I made a plan. I told Birds Eye that I would take his shift watching the alley tonight—an offer he accepted immediately, eager as he was to get more sleep—and when the time came, I waited and watched for you.”

	“Guess that explains why you were ready to pounce on me as soon as I came out of there,” said Lavender. “But why go to all that trouble?”

	“So that I could catch you in the act and try to talk some sense into you. You need to realize that stealing is wrong. And before you act apathetic and say ‘ainokea’ again, let me warn you that such a mindset is very dangerous to hold here. Perhaps it is acceptable to steal and rob in the lands beyond the town, but things are different in Faluspar. Let me ask you: do you remember when I told you that the denizens of this alley form an ‘ohana together?”

	“I think so. You mentioned something like that after I said I wanted to eat Birds Eye—which I don’t really want to do, honest!”

	“No need to worry. I believe you. Now, like I said before, the Pokémon of Dyad Alley are all part of a group, a family, a pack. In fact, many Pokémon in this town are part of a pack of some kind. They organize like this in order to maintain some semblance of order here. We value order and peace, because Faluspar is a place where such things are fragile.”

	“I can imagine. I’ve heard this place can be rough.”

	“Indeed. Here, a great many Pokémon live in close proximity, and as such, they are bound to come into conflict. Sometimes they dispute over food or territory, or over petty differences... or perhaps tension may arise when one Pokémon tries to eat another.”

	“Okay, I get it!” Lavender hissed. “It was wrong of me to say I wanted to eat Birds Eye! Can we drop it now?”

	 “E kala mai ia‘u,” Duchess said with a grin. “Sorry. I could not resist. But I won’t bring it up again.”

	“Glad to hear it.”

	“Now, as I was saying: in order to prevent the chaos that we all abhor so, the Pokémon of Faluspar gather into packs. Each pack is an ‘ohana where everyone supports one another. Slights against one member are slights against the entire pack, and they thusly result in ponopono, or retribution, from them all. This deters Pokémon from attacking, robbing, or otherwise harming one another, for if the victim is part of a pack, the rest of the pack will band together to punish the culprit.”

	“That sounds a bit like what the Southpaws told me before. They said if I did anything bad in their territory, they’d get their revenge on me.”

	“Exactly. Perhaps they did not specifically cite the packs—they are a fact of life here, so everyone assumes they are common knowledge and therefore not necessary to bring up—but they were talking about that nonetheless. This pack mentality maintains peace here, but it also drives Pokémon to seek ponopono and set things right when harm is done, like the Southpaws warned you. And that is why it is wrong to steal here: not only will it undo our attempts to maintain peace and order, it will also drive packs of Pokémon to turn on you.”

	Lavender stepped back in surprise at this prospect, but quickly furrowed her brow and narrowed her eyes incredulously at Duchess. “Seriously? Am I really in that kind of danger just for taking a few little pieces of treasure from some random human?”

	“More than you can know. What you’ve done could very well be your death.”

	The last word was enough to make the Purrloin step back once more, and this time, she did not look doubtfully at Duchess. Something told her the Meowth spoke the truth.

	The grey cat grinned, showing some fangs, as Lavender recoiled. “My, that got a reaction out of you. I figured if you would not listen to morality, perhaps you would if I changed tactics and called attention to the fact that you’re in mortal danger. I was right.”

	Lavender recovered from her initial shock and took a step towards Duchess. “Okay, hang on,” she began. “What kind of danger do you mean? I can’t imagine what I did was all that bad. It didn’t even harm anyone in the alley. And besides, nobody knows I did this, except you, and I trust you. You wouldn’t attack me, or tell on me, right?”

	The Meowth stepped towards the Purrloin. They stood inches apart now. “You trust me?” asked Duchess quietly.

	“Yeah. I mean, you’ve been really friendly to me so far. We had a good talk earlier, and even now, you’ve been content to just talk and debate, trying to get me to change my mind peacefully, instead of attacking me. I believe you won’t turn on me.”

	Duchess frowned. “Are you sure?” she asked.

	Lavender froze. It lasted an instant before her heart began to race once more. Those three simple words from Duchess hit hard. They were enough to make her fret even more than when she had first been caught, for they carried the weight of the knowledge that her hope was false, and her friendship with Duchess meant nothing now.

	“No,” she murmured. “You wouldn’t. Would you?”

	The Meowth sighed and hung her head. “Lavender, I already explained to you that you have done wrong. You took what someone else acquired through hard work. You stole. You caused disorder. Something must be done in retaliation, for the good of all Pokémon in this town. And especially for the Pokémon of Dyad Alley. My ‘ohana.”

	She gestured towards the alley below and continued. “Although the human you stole from is not part of the pack, her territory abuts that of the pack, and so she is under their guard. Your robbery happened right under their noses. This reflects poorly on them, because they failed to notice it. They did not stop you from undoing everyone’s attempts to maintain order, even though you did it so close to them. That dishonors them and makes them look weak. Surely you can see where I’m going with this.”

	“They’ll want to get back at me,” said Lavender. Her voice sped up as she spoke, and she struggled to keep quiet. “The Southpaws said not to cause trouble, or else they’d really let me have it. But I thought robbing this human wouldn’t affect them!”

	“It does affect them. Not only does it go against what we hold dear, it dishonors the Southpaws outright, so I’m sure they would love to do some ponopono and punish you.”

	“But they’d only do that if they found out,” said Lavender. “And they’d only find out if you told them. You’re the only one who knows what happened.”

	“Precisely,” said Duchess. “Now you understand. Your fate depends on what I do right now. An interesting development.”

	Lavender shuddered, though not from the chilly night air. Not even the fact that she could very well die within moments made her shiver. What bothered her most was how nonchalant Duchess was acting. The grey Meowth seemed unperturbed by the fact that she potentially held Lavender’s life in her paws.

	“You wouldn’t really sic them on me, would you?” Lavender asked Duchess, taking on her most convincingly pleading tone. “I thought we were friends! We really got to know each other when we talked earlier today. You’re the first Pokémon I’ve met in Faluspar that’s actually been friendly to me. Don’t do this to me.”

	Duchess let out a long sigh. “Hilinaʻi iaʻu—believe me—I was hoping it wouldn’t come to this. I was hoping you would agree with me from the beginning and realize that returning the treasure is the right thing to do. But you refused, and now it has come to this.”

	Lavender grit her teeth and glared at Duchess. Pleading was useless. For a brief moment, she considered attacking the Meowth. One swift strike could knock her off the fire escape to her doom and let Lavender escape safely. The thought passed as quickly as it came. She could not bring herself to harm the only Pokémon she had considered a friend in the town, even if that friendship seemed to no longer exist. Especially because there was still a chance that Duchess would choose to spare her.

	No amount of boldness could help the Purrloin. She had to await the grey cat’s verdict.

	It came sooner than she expected. “Perhaps,” Duchess said slowly, “all hope for you is not lost. I believe anyone can change, even a thief such as yourself. You can change your ways, and I see one way you could start doing so. Can you?”

	Lavender could not at first, but an idea soon came to her as she thought. “What if I returned the treasure?” she asked. “Would you let me go then?”

	Duchess nodded. “If you perform the ponopono yourself, and set right what you did wrong, I’ll keep what happened here secret. But only if you forfeit your stolen goods and return them to the human.”

	Lavender hesitated. She looked away from Duchess, unable to make eye contact with the Meowth. She gazed at the treasures in her paws and glanced back at the gem held in her coiled tail. For the first time, she looked at them with fear and worry instead of hope and joy. They no longer held happiness for her. Instead, they held danger, and only by getting rid of them could she evade that danger. That seemed to be the only way. It was out of the question to ignore Duchess and take the treasure for herself, because if word got out that she had stolen from a human, every Pokémon in the town would turn on her in revenge for causing disorder and harming a human, judging by what Duchess had said.

	The Purrloin hesitated and wavered. The Meowth did not take her eyes off her fellow cat. Duchess wanted Lavender to come to her own decision. Eventually, she did.

	“I guess you have a point,” Lavender said, slowly, at last. “I don’t have much of a choice. Things will get ugly if I take this treasure, so I’d better just put it back.”

	“I’m happy to hear you say that,” said Duchess, with a relieved sigh. “You’re doing the right thing here. For everyone.”

	“Everyone except me,” Lavender muttered.

	“Are you sure?” asked Duchess. “Doing this will save your life. I’m letting you go instead of killing you or turning you in to the Southpaws. I’d say you’re doing the right thing for yourself.”

	Lavender wanted to say something to refute Duchess, but she did not know how. She gave up and sighed. “I guess you’re right,” said Lavender.

	“Don’t guess. It’s true. But now you are committed. Don’t turn back now. Hemu and return the waiwai to the human, quickly. Birds Eye is asleep now, but he may awaken at any time. I shall stay here and explain things to him if he awakens and sees us.”

	The Purrloin nodded and turned to the window of the apartment, but the Meowth spoke once more and made her stop.

	“Wait,” Duchess said. “There’s one more thing I want to say.”

	“What now?” Lavender groaned, looking over at her fellow cat.

	“You’re just doing this to save your own hide, right?”

	“Of course. I don’t care about that human. I just want to get out of here alive.”

	“I understand. But I don’t want you to do this only to save yourself. I want you to do this out of the goodness of your heart. Stealing will cause disorder, harm the human, and dishonor the residents of Dyad Alley. My ‘ohana. By refusing to take the human’s treasure, you are preventing that harm from coming to them. I want you to understand that you’re doing the right thing here, and I want that knowledge to be what drives you, not a selfish desire to save yourself.”

	Lavender turned to face Duchess. “Who’re you calling self—”

	Duchess narrowed her eyes. Lavender paused and sighed. “Okay, maybe it is selfish. But I still don’t feel like helping others is more important than saving myself. I’ve never seen things that way, and you really can’t expect me to change my way of thinking so quickly.”

	Duchess added a frown to her expression. Lavender winced and continued, “Then again, that may change after what we’ve talked about. Next time I’m about to steal something here, I’ll probably decide against it. Not just to avoid getting punished for it, but also to avoid hurting others. Maybe.”

	The Meowth gave a smile. “Sounds like we’re making some progress, at least. Maika‘i. I admit, changing your viewpoint may take time, but I hope you will come to agree with me that it is important to be akahele—careful—and avoid bringing disorder and dishonor to the denizens of this town. I know you said before that you’ve been raised thinking differently, and I accept that. But your way of thinking is dangerous and harmful in this place, and while you’re here, it’s best for everyone if you realize this, and make a change for the better.”

	“I’ll keep that all in mind,” said Lavender as she turned to the window of the apartment again. She leaped up to the windowsill, carefully pushed the window open, and entered the darkness of the room once more.

	Duchess watched her go, then turned her glowing eyes to the other darkness below. The alley was just as silent and motionless as it usually was at night. Nobody was awake, and nobody save Duchess and Lavender would know what had happened that night. And yet, the Meowth grinned as she thought about how her efforts and words may help Faluspar Town. It could take time for the Purrloin to change her ways, but Duchess had a feeling she would change eventually.

	“I just wish helping this town did not involve staying up so late,” Duchess murmured amidst a long yawn. “Aue. The things I do for this—”

	A noise made her freeze. Her ears twitched and angled about. Barely audible, a sustained growl rose up from the alley below. Duchess quickly scanned the area and found the sound’s source with ease. Far below stood a shadow, its eyes and fangs glinting in the moonlight.

	Duchess narrowed her eyes. “Things were going so well up until now,” she muttered. “It seems this is not over yet.”


***


	Lavender emerged from the apartment in confusion. Duchess was nowhere to be found, and a quick glance showed no sign of where she had gone. Curious, Lavender dropped to the fire escape and looked down into the alley. She regretted it immediately as she caught sight of two dark forms staring up at her from the ground. One possessed the shining white eyes and gold forehead coin of Duchess, while the other was unrecognizable.

	“She told someone,” Lavender whispered, too stunned to be angry. “I can’t believe it... she betrayed me.”

	Duchess motioned for Lavender to descend. Lavender instead chose to return to the human’s apartment and hide away forever, but she knew she could not go through with her choice. She had been caught and discovered. The only way she could go was down, so down she went until she landed on the cold grey pavement of the alley. By the time she made it there, she confirmed that the shadowy figure beside Duchess was a very angry version of Fang the Poochyena.

	“We meet again, cat,” he growled. “Duchess told me all about your little visit to that human.”

	Lavender looked at Duchess. “So, you really did?” she asked, hissing her words. “How could you?”

	“He caught me,” the Meowth explained with a shrug. “Apparently, he woke up a short while ago and decided to spark the alley before going back to sleep. As he was looking around, he saw us on the fire escape, and watched us talk until you went into the apartment again. That’s when I saw him, and he made me come down, where he demanded I tell him what happened. Hilinaʻi iaʻu—believe me—I didn’t want to tell anyone, but he’s not to be denied.”

	Fang nodded without taking his eyes off Lavender. “Yeah, she told me she planned to keep what you did a secret. She was content to let you slink away with a warning. I’m not.”

	Lavender stayed in place and tried to hide how she was quickly growing tense and preparing to flee. “Why? Why not let me go? I put the treasure back. I undid what I did wrong, and I won’t do it again. If Duchess told you what happened up there, she must’ve told you about that too.”

	“She did, but that doesn’t matter. We warned you what would happen if you took advantage of us. You abused our kindness to come through our turf and steal from someone right under our noses, and now you think you can get away with it? You’re not leaving here—not in one piece, you filthy thief!”

	Fang lunged, mouth wide open and fangs gleaming in the moonlight. Lavender dove to the side the instant he attacked. His jaws snapped shut on air as the Purrloin landed in a roll and got to all fours several feet to his side. She arched her back and shot a sharp hiss at the Poochyena, which he met with a low growl. Neither moved.

	“Uoki, Fang!” Duchess hissed from the sidelines. “Leave her alone. No need to fight her. We can settle this without violence.”

	“Shut up,” Fang snapped at her. “This is between me and the thief. Get out of here.”

	“I’m not going anywhere. I’m telling you, you should let Lavender go. She learned her lesson. I can see she won’t steal again.”

	“Seriously? Whose side are you on? She’s a menace and a thief. She needs to be punished, and I won’t let you stop me!”

	The Poochyena turned on the Purrloin and pounced, his fangs aglow with a burst of dark purple energy. Lavender jumped aside and narrowly avoided the attack. The Poochyena immediately tried again. He spun to face his target and lunged, without taking the time to summon any more energy into his attack. Lavender attempted to dodge once more, but Fang adjusted his aim in midair and craned his neck to the side to reach for her trailing tail. Vicelike jaws clamped down hard around her tail before she could get clear, or even land.

	At first, Lavender did not know what to think. She felt an intense pressure around her tail, and she heard a sickening crunch as something within broke. After that, the shock wore off, and excruciating pain replaced it. She howled as agony shot out from where Fang had bitten her, and she hit the ground and collapsed in a heap as her legs gave out. The pressure around her tail thankfully vanished in moments as Fang released her, but the pain remained.

	She could not tell how long she lay there, unable to focus on anything but her injury, which made her clamp her eyes shut as she cried out and shuddered uncontrollably. Had she not been so distracted, she would have noticed Duchess shout as she rushed over and punched Fang in the face. She also would have heard the Poochyena yelp and growl at Duchess, all while the Meowth hissed and scolded him for being so aggressive. As it happened, Lavender knew nothing but her own pain. She had never felt anything like it before. It was as if her tail had been set alight, and would never be extinguished.

	In the midst of the burning, something soft cut through the pain and touched her shoulder. She opened her eyes and looked up meekly at Duchess. The Meowth stood over Lavender with furrowed brow, and a paw resting gently on the Purrloin’s shoulder.

	“Lavender, can you hear me?” asked Duchess. For the first time, she sounded truly concerned. “Stay with me. You’ll be fine. We’ll heal you.”

	Lavender tried to say something, but only a pained gasp came out. She shut her mouth and eyes and started to purr shakily in a vain attempt to soothe herself. She heard Duchess and Fang talk quietly.

	“Fang, you have some berries at your branch of the alley, right?”

	“Yeah, but I won’t give them to a dirty thief like her. She doesn’t deserve them. She deserves to have it worse than she does now, if anything. Now get out of my way and let me finish her off.”

	“Fang, if you—wait, who’s there?”

	They fell silent. Lavender heard quiet steps approaching. She opened her eyes partway and struggled to look in their direction, where she spotted Sharp and Glow, the other two Southpaws, running rapidly towards her.

	“What happened?” asked Sharp. “We heard a lot of screaming. It woke us up.”

	“Hey, it’s that Purrloin from earlier!” Glow said. “What’s wrong? Is she okay?”

	“She needs healing,” said Duchess. “Go get something to help her. I think her tail is broken.”

	The Rockruff immediately turned and ran back the way she came, but Glow stayed behind. He winced and curled his tail between his legs as he looked at Lavender. “Really? That’s not good.”

	“Don’t be such a baby,” Fang said. “And go stop Sharp. This Purrloin’s a thief. We shouldn’t help her.”

	“Yes, we should,” said Duchess. “Do you even realize how badly you hurt her? You may not know this, but we cats value our tails. They help us balance and even communicate. They’re vital to us.”

	“She’s right,” the Shinx said to Fang. “We need them. And if you broke hers, that’s really bad.”

	“Really good, you mean,” said Fang. “She deserves it. That’s just how it is. She breaks the rules, I break her. End of story.”

	While Fang spoke, Duchess lifted her paw from Lavender’s shoulder and left her side. The Purrloin tried not to whimper. She followed the Meowth with her eyes as she approached Fang. Once he finished talking, Duchess’ paws abruptly ignited with dark purple energy, and she swiftly punched him in the snout with a feint attack. The Poochyena yelped and stumbled back, rubbing his nose with a paw.

	“Stop doing that!” he shouted. “That’s the second time—”

	“Silence,” hissed Duchess as she dispersed the energy around her paws. “Listen. You’re correct that Lavender was a thief, but she did not know better at the time. Now she does, and she even undid the crime she committed. She is a good Pokémon, I can tell. When we spoke, she told me she would make an effort to change her ways. I believe in her, and I trust her.”

	Fang stopped rubbing his snout and stamped his paw on the ground. “How can you trust her after what she did?” he growled at Duchess.

	“Because that’s the right thing to do: believing in the good in others. After all, is that not the very same value we try to promote in this alley? We let malihini come through because we trust them, and we want to form friendships with them. It’s true that Lavender abused that trust at first, but she repented and did ponopono herself. She’s changed.”

	“Once a thief, always a thief.”

	“No. If we don’t believe that others can change their ways and become good, we’ll grow ever more hostile and divided. Disorder... that is the bane of this town, and all of us want to oppose it. And if you want to oppose it too, you will forgive this Purrloin.”

	Glow moved closer to Duchess and further from Fang. “She’s suffered enough,” the Shinx said. “Please, Fang. I know you really like to enforce the rules, but you don’t need to hurt her anymore. Let’s just stop here and heal her.”

	“Not you too,” the Poochyena growled. He looked back and forth between Duchess, Glow, and Lavender. The Purrloin felt too weak to join in the debate, so she merely continued to purr quietly and wait to see what would happen next.

	“We clearly made a mistake letting her come in here,” Fang said at last. “I don’t want to make another one by letting her leave.”

	Fang stared at Lavender. The Purrloin held her breath. She feared the worst.

	Finally, Fang looked away from her, towards Duchess. “But you make a good point, Duchess—even though the way you put it was way too sappy for me. If she’d done something really bad, like killing one of us, there’d be no question here. But because she undid what she did wrong, it may be best to let her go. If you’re absolutely sure it’s a better idea to spare her than kill her, maybe I’ll consider siding with you.”

	The Meowth hesitated. “I will admit, I’m not completely certain she’s changed. But she sounded sincere when we spoke, and my words seemed to affect her. I’m more confident that she will change than I am she will not.”

	Fang closed his eyes and sighed. “Tough choice,” he said. “End her now, and we’ll make sure she causes no more trouble. Let her go, and we take a risk, but she may end up being a good Pokémon from here on out, one who deserves to live.”

	After some long moments of pondering, he looked up and slowly approached Lavender. Duchess rushed to the Purrloin’s side, but Fang told her not to worry. “I won’t hurt her,” he said. Looking down at Lavender, he continued, “Duchess talked to you. I broke your tail. After all that, let me ask you one thing: have you changed?”

	Lavender choked out two words: “I have.”

	Fang sighed again. Slowly, he spoke. “I’m taking a risk here, but if you’re really honest, I’ll let you live.”

	Lavender started. She had not expected that response. “Really?” she asked. “Thank you so much...”

	“But don’t cause any more trouble in our territory,” Fang snapped. “And don’t come back here once you leave. Speaking of which, you need to leave here before sunrise. I’d rather kick you out right now, but it’s dangerous during the night, and you’re weakened enough that you probably won’t be able to make it to your home—assuming you have one—without getting killed. That would undo what I’m trying to do here by sparing you, so I’ll let you stay here tonight. Get healed, get some rest, and get out of my sight before day comes. Understood?”

	“Understood,” Lavender said. “Understood.”

	“Speaking of healing,” said Glow, motioning with a paw down the alley. All four Pokémon looked to see Sharp fast approaching. The Rockruff went to Lavender, opened her mouth, and let fall a group of bulbous yellow berries between the Purrloin and the Meowth.

	Duchess thanked Sharp, then picked up a berry and gave it to Lavender. The Purrloin craned her neck to bite the berry and ate it greedily, ignoring how it was covered in Sharp’s drool. She recognized these berries as the best kind around for healing, and she did not want any to go to waste. With each berry she ate, she felt her pain subside and energy return to her, albeit slowly.

	While Duchess fed the rest of the berries to her fellow cat, the three Southpaws gathered and talked quietly. By the time Lavender ate the last berry, they had stopped, and stood watching the two cats.

	“I told Sharp the plan,” Fang explained.

	“I was glad to hear it,” the Rockruff said. “I hate having to hurt Pokémon that come through here, even if it is to keep the peace. I really hope you won’t cause more trouble, cat. It’s best for all of us, even you.”

	“So I’m told,” Lavender said, glancing up at Duchess. As she spoke, she realized she could do so without difficulty. Cautiously, she pushed herself off the ground and rose to a sitting position on her haunches. She felt no pain at the movement, though a dull pain still throbbed at the midpoint of her tail.

	“It seems the berries healed you,” said Duchess. “But your tail still is wounded. Can you move it?”

	Lavender looked back at her tail for the first time. She grimaced. Halfway down, its fur was caked with blood, and it was bent in a bad way. She tried to move it, but she winced at the spike of pain that the effort caused. “No,” she said sadly. “It’s broken.”

	“Well, berries can’t heal everything,” said Duchess with a shrug. “But at least you’re alive.”

	“And if you want to stay that way,” Fang interrupted, “you’ll leave at sunrise. Remember that. I don’t feel good about letting you go, but I’m doing it. Don’t make me regret this. Southpaws, let’s get back to sleep. That’s enough excitement for one night.”

	The three guards of the alley left and walked back to their territory. Duchess and Lavender watched them go down the silent moonlit alleyway until they vanished around the corner of a building. The Meowth sighed and crossed her arms, then turned to Lavender.

	“This was an eventful night,” she said. “More interesting than I’ve had in a while. And it’s all thanks to you and your greed. Mahalo.”

	“Whatever,” said Lavender. She looked at her tail again and frowned at the sight. “Will this heal? I’ve never had an injury like this before.”

	“It depends on how badly it’s injured. Poochyena are powerful biters, so the damage may be serious, and it may never heal.” Seeing Lavender’s horrified expression, she quickly added, “But it’s possible that it will return to normal eventually. Alternatively, you could try to have a human fix it for you, but I would understand if you want to avoid them. They’re not for everyone.”

	“Not for me, that’s for sure. I’ll manage on my own. I can do this.”

	“That’s the spirit.”

	“Still, I’m not happy with how this turned out. This day went pretty badly, all things considered. I got kicked out of the only alley that’s actually nice, I got my tail all busted up, and I lost the treasure I risked everything for.”

	“But you get to keep your life,” said Duchess. “And that is the most valuable treasure of all.”

	Lavender stared at Duchess. Duchess stared back. Try as she might, Lavender could not keep a straight face. She scoffed and shook her head at Duchess’ remark.

	“Do you disagree?” the Meowth asked. “I think what I said is true, though it may sound silly to you.”

	“It sure does sound silly,” said the Purrloin. She wanted to say more, but something held her back. How silly was Duchess’ sentiment, really?

	“On second thought,” she said at last, “maybe you’re right. My life’s definitely not something I’d want to lose. And keeping it means I get more chances to find other treasure, and that’s nice. So, I don’t think I disagree with you.”

	“Maika‘i loa,” said Duchess. “That’s nice to hear. And if you keep what you learned here in mind, I think your life will improve in this town.”

	“I hope so,” said Lavender. “I’ll remember what you said. I won’t let you down, not after what you did for me. Trying to help me instead of punishing me right away, standing up for me against Fang... thanks. Or should I say ‘mahalo’?”

	Duchess chuckled. “That would be accurate too. But you don’t need to thank me. Helping one another is what friends do.”

	“We’re really friends, huh?” Lavender said quietly. “That’s nice to hear.”

	“I should hope so. But unfortunately, it’s not nice to hear that you’ll have to leave the alley by sunrise, and you can’t come back.”

	“I know. I’ll miss you.”

	Duchess smiled and put a paw on Lavender’s shoulder. “I will miss you as well. But I know you can handle yourself without me in the town. Even with a broken tail. I wish you luck in all you do.”

	Lavender nodded slowly. “You know, that makes me wonder: what will I do from now on? I came here to find treasure and excitement. I was willing to do that by any means, even by stealing, but that clearly isn’t a good idea. What should I do instead, then?”

	“What do you think?” asked Duchess.

	“Well, all this time, I’ve been driven by what my mom said to me before I left the field: ‘the night is full of opportunity, but only for those bold enough to seek it’.”

	“That is not bad advice. Come to think of it, it reminds me of something the humans, including my trainer, say: ‘fortune favors the bold’. In other words, good things come to those who are brave.”

	“Yeah, that’s pretty much what my mom said, and I agreed with her. But when she said that, I thought she was talking about being brave enough to go out and take whatever you want for yourself, no matter the obstacles or consequences.”

	“That’s what led you to steal from the human, I presume?”

	“Exactly. I thought it would be bold to just take whatever I wanted without caring about others, and doing that kind of thing would give me new opportunities. But now I’m not so sure that’s what my mom’s advice meant. Maybe opportunity and boldness mean something else, something besides taking whatever I want. Maybe I’ll have to find other ways to get what I came here for. What those ways are, I don’t know. And I also don’t know if this town can offer me anything if I limit myself and avoid stealing anything. But I’ll be sure to seek those answers out.”

	Lavender fell silent and looked up at the moon. Duchess gazed at it too. A cold night wind blew against them, but they did not feel its chill.

	The Seeker closed her eyes. “When the sun rises, that’s when I’ll start.”


[the end]