Chapter 26
Another One That Doesn’t Exist
Ravina’s Travel Journal — Day 26
Ito has a baby, apparently.
Her name is Luci.
What is Luci? Excellent question.
The Pokédex does not know.
Again.
That makes TWO provisional unknown-species entries in as many days.
Professor Elm is going to die.
Luci is:
Small, black and gold, constantly floating and slightly cold,
capable of making cutlery levitate, apparently able to move through solid furniture,
obsessed with reflections and capable of making the inside of my backpack larger than the outside.
Ito says Star gave her an Egg.
When I asked how, Ito said: “There were ruins.” Then: “The universe happened.”
Then she looked like she had remembered something she would prefer not to remember.
I decided not to push.
For now.
Luci and Toni have decided they are friends.
This is probably dangerous.
Ito also gave me supplies for Union Cave.
Berries and packaged game meat.
She refuses to say exactly where she has been storing fresh berries.
She claims she grew them “elsewhere.”
I am adding this to the growing list titled:
THINGS ITO IS CLEARLY NOT TELLING ME.
The meat is apparently wild Pokémon.
Nothing trained or belonging to anyone, Ito seemed genuinely offended that I asked.
I’m still not sure how I feel about eating it.
Cinder and Owlbert have no such concerns.
Of course.
The actual important part: Ito gave me food for the road.
She did not steal it from me first and She did not demand anything in return.
Next:
Shopping.
Need some Repels, Cave supplies
Flash training for Nikola.
Then, eventually:
Union Cave… Assuming nobody produces a third mystery baby.
- - - - -
Chapter 26.1
Awareness returned first as pressure against her ribs—not crushing, but definite. The kind of weight that demanded recognition even before sleep had fully released its hold.
One eyelid peeled back with the reluctance of someone already cataloging the day's first inconvenience.
Toni. Sitting on her chest with the unmoving certainty of small creatures everywhere, her spotted shell absorbing morning light through the thin inn curtains.
"Morning."
The word emerged scratchy with sleep, barely disturbing the air between them.
Toni's gaze remained fixed, her concentration absolute.
THERE.
"Yes."
Ravina's eyelid slid shut again, seeking a few more seconds of darkness before the day demanded full participation. The attempt lasted approximately three seconds before Toni's decisive movement changed the parameters.
A tiny hand made contact with her cheek, the touch light but inescapable.
PINK.
"Yes."
A second hand joined the first, fingers closing around the pale white fringe hanging across Ravina's face with uncoordinated determination.
WHITE.
"Yes."
The sound that left Toni's throat fell somewhere between chirp and triumph, the kind of noise small creatures make when they have successfully cataloged their world into its constituent parts.
Ravina expelled air, the sound carrying exactly the right amount of resignation.
"I see we're doing inventory."
Beside her, her Quilava stirred as awareness bled into the room. One orange eye opened, the color of embers just before they catch, registering the morning with practiced lethargy.
Toni immediately shifted her attention from Ravina to the new heat source, her head turning with the mechanical determination of a creature whose interests had just been recategorized.
WARM.
Cinder's eye slid closed again, the movement conveying acceptance without enthusiasm.
"Morning to you too, Fireball," Ravina murmured, the words barely disturbing the air between them.
Nikola remained on the floor, a cream-colored sphere of fleece that had somehow managed to take up twice her normal volume during the night. Her tail bulb pulsed with dim, rhythmic light, a silent confirmation that at least one member of their chaotic household maintained proper rest cycles.
Owlbert, of course, was already awake. From his designated perch, he watched the room's gradual awakening with the quiet judgment of someone who had been awake precisely when he should have been and considered everyone else's delayed consciousness a personal affront to proper scheduling.
Hoot.
The sound arrived with the clean, unceremonious precision of a clock striking the hour. Not greeting. Not request. Statement.
HOOT.
Toni's response arrived simultaneously in Ravina's mind, creating an odd stereo effect as both auditory and telepathic versions of the same concept landed. The small Togepi looked toward the perch with unblinking fascination, as if witnessing magic rather than routine.
Victor remained near the ceiling, a purple smudge against the painted surface. Ravina had not yet determined whether his current state of absolute stillness counted as sleep, meditation, or merely dramatic punctuation between performances.
Toni began her ascent of Ravina's chest, small hands finding purchase in the fabric of her pajama shirt with determined purpose. Ravina intercepted the trajectory with careful reflex, cupping the tiny body in her palm before it could achieve face-plant velocity.
"Okay. Fine."
The words arrived with the resignation of someone already tallying the day's compromises.
She sat up, the movement sending Toni into a delicate adjustment of balance that involved waving her small arms with theatrical flair.
"Breakfast."
Toni's shell brightened with sudden animation, the word translating directly across the species barrier.
GOOD.
Ravina's mouth curved upward despite her best efforts at morning stoicism.
"That word you learned immediately."
- - - - -
Chapter 26.2
The Ranger Station common room had already achieved that particular chaos unique to places where paths diverge—a controlled motion of bodies and supplies that suggested organization while simultaneously denying it entirely.
Travelers preparing for Union Cave occupied several tables in various states of readiness. Rangers moved in and out with mugs, maps, and clipped conversations about trail conditions delivered in the shorthand of those who spent more time outside than in. Pokémon rested beside benches or ate from bowls along one wall, their presence as natural as the morning light slanting through dusty windows.
Ravina entered with Toni secured in the sling against her chest, the small creature's head peeking out with the intense curiosity of someone experiencing the world for approximately the second time. Cinder glided at her side, dark teal body moving with practiced efficiency through the navigational challenges of furniture and other trainers. Nikola followed close behind, her fleece crackling softly with contained energy as she assessed the room with practical efficiency.
Owlbert had elected to remain outside until there was something worth eating, his presence indicated by the periodic hoot that arrived with temporal precision from somewhere beyond the doorway. Victor, of course, ignored doors on principle and was already drifting near the ceiling as he absorbed the ambient energy of so many bodies in motion.
Ravina was halfway toward the breakfast counter when the familiar silhouette near the windows arrested her forward momentum with the efficiency of a well-placed obstacle.
Ito.
She was sitting at a table that had somehow become her territory despite the transient nature of the space, that alone was not unusual.
She was eating something fried, also not unusual.
What arrested Ravina's movement was the configuration of companions arranged around her: Hibi, now a Bayleef, lay beside the table with her leaf angled into a deliberate stripe of morning sunlight with the precision of someone who had learned to optimize comfort in any environment. Webby occupied the back of an empty chair, her blue form almost visible against the wood particularly when she shifted slightly, her eyes catching the light with sudden glitter.
And draped loosely around Ito's shoulders... Ravina stared.
Something dark shifted, a shadow against purple fabric that resolved into distinct limbs and a head as it adjusted to her attention. One tiny violet eye opened, the color deep enough to suggest dimensions beyond mere pigment.
Ravina continued staring, the motion of travelers around her fading to background noise as the small creature settled against Ito's shoulders. Ito's upper eyes remained closed, preserving the illusion of a small girl with unusual eyebrow markings and an exceptionally committed Espeon-inspired costume.
One upper eye cracked open, then the other, the violet pairs appearing in succession as Ito's mouth curved into that familiar, troublemaking smile.
"Morning."
Ravina pointed, the gesture carried more urgency than precision.
"What is that?"
Ito took another bite of whatever fried thing occupied her plate, the motion transferring to the creature around her neck. Its head lifted with the adjustment, revealing gold points that seemed to absorb light rather than reflect it. Nebula-bright tendrils drifted from its small body, their movement independent of air currents. The shape was long and serpentine but compact enough to rest around Ito's shoulders like a strange living scarf, a piece of shadow caught mid-movement.
"Luci," Ito said.
"That is a name."
"Yes."
"I asked what she is."
Ito looked down, the motion bringing her face close to the creature's head, which tilted upward to meet her gaze. Then Ito looked back at Ravina, the deliberate shift of attention carrying theatrical weight.
"Complicated."
Ravina closed her eyes.
Of course.