An Unforgettable Journey! (Gladion x OC Amelia)

Aether Infiltration

I popped in the Aether House and left after Acerola insisted I should stay for dinner.

It was now the next morning, and I returned to the Aether House after breakfast.

As soon as I entered, I heard Acerola shout, "Lillie's missing?!"

"I was leaving the bedroom in the middle of the night because I was hearing things, and I saw that Plumeria lady with a Team Skull grunt! Before I could do anything, they left and took Lillie!" Hau looked horrified.

No, no, no! Who knows what they'll do to Lillie! She can't protect herself and they'll just take Nebby from her! This is bad...

"Did you chase after them?" I questioned.

"I tried, but... There were so many Team Skull grunts outside! They were blocking me from following Plumeria... They had their Pokémon out and by the time I cleared through them, Plumeria and Lillie were long gone..."

Gladion suddenly rushed in.

"Did I hear that right? Was Hau seriously the one that had to stay here and not Amelia?!" Gladion shouted.

"...He's right. If Amelia was here, she would've been able to stop them... I'm pathetic."

I widened my eyes. "Don't say that! Lillie wouldn't want that." I tried to comfort Hau. "Gladion, I understand you're upset, but even if I was here, there's no guarantee I would've even heard the commotion and woken up! I was dead tired after what happened yesterday. Don't take your anger out on Hau! Be glad he was awake to even know the situation. Without him, we wouldn't know a single thing!" I looked into Gladion's rage filled eyes. They turned back to normal.

"I...I guess that was wrong of me," he admitted.

"But still, I told you both! Cosmog will bring disaster to all of Alola if in the wrong hands. I have to get it back from them... We'll leave from the Ula'ula ferry terminal. You're coming with me whether you like it or not. The question is, are you ready to leave?" Gladion asked.

"Yeah, I am," I replied.

I left the Aether House with only Gladion, as Hau said he needed time to think.

It was mostly quiet on the way to Malie city. Not much needed to be said that wasn't already said. When we arrived at the ferry terminal, however...

"I'm...glad you did decide to come. You could've just left at any point, but you didn't... It means a lot. If you weren't here I wouldn't have handled the situation well... I mean, I didn't take it well, but... It could've been a lot worse. Ever since you've showed up, it's been...different. In a good way, I think," Gladion stated.

"I hope you can figure out how it is for sure," I replied.

Gladion smiled. "And you're really considerate. Even though I ridiculed you when we first met."

I laughed sheepishly. "Yeah... I thought you were a jerk, but I got to know more about you. I know that you're actually a very caring person. Though, you're always rude to Hau."

"I don't get why the freak kid is involved in this operation. He has a soft spot for the girl, apparently."

My cheeks felt warm. "Hey, are you okay?" Gladion asked. He placed his hand on my forehead. "Is yesterday catching up to you? You're really warm."

"I-it might just be that," I stammered.

"I hope you rested well... Maybe you can still fight the sickness." Now, my entire body was hot and my heart was beating loudly.

"Amelia, you're really red..." Gladion expressed deep concern.

"I-it's just that y-yesterday, a-and a Team Skull grunt, and..."