After being chased out by Mew, Elias found himself more than happy to enjoy some peace and quiet. He had no intention of going back in.
Mew wanted to play, and Latios didn't look like he had any objections either, so Elias decided to let the two of them have their fun.
Besides, when he glanced at the time, he figured if he delayed much longer, Gardevoir would probably be getting anxious from waiting.
With that in mind, he made his way quickly back to his room.
Reaching the door, Elias reached out and slowly pushed open the wooden door. A cool breeze greeted him, gently brushing against his face.
Carried on the breeze was a sweet, honeyed scent—pleasantly intoxicating.
Elias quickly identified the source of the fragrance.
He turned his head, and sure enough, saw Gardevoir half-kneeling by the bookshelf, delicately fussing with something inside it.
"Gardevoir."
Elias called her name softly and stepped inside.
"Take a break. The room's already tidy—no need to stress over cleaning it right now."
He crouched beside her, his tone gentle and warm.
But even as he expressed concern, Elias couldn't help his growing curiosity.
Thanks to Sabrina's regular cleaning, the room was already spotless.
Even the long-unused desk and doorknobs were free of dust.
And Gardevoir… well, she'd grown a lot, sure—but honestly, she was still pretty lazy.
Maybe it was just a Psychic-type thing—if there was a way to slack off, they'd never choose to be diligent.
So rather than believe she was cleaning the bookshelf, Elias was more inclined to think something inside had caught her attention.
Sure enough, as he got closer—
Gardevoir pulled out a thick stack of books from the shelf with some effort and plopped them down by her feet, glaring at Elias as she bit out:
"Gardevoir! (Tell Sabrina to throw all of these out. I don't want to see them in this room again!)"
Startled, Elias looked over—and when he saw the book titles, the corner of his mouth twitched involuntarily.
"A Hundred Ways to Get Rid of a Gardevoir", "What Gardevoir Fears", "Nightmares of Psychic-type Pokémon"…
…
A solid stack of seven or eight books, all targeting Psychic-types—or Gardevoir specifically—was piled on the floor. Elias couldn't help but wonder where Sabrina even found these.
And then he saw Gardevoir pull out another bundle of books from the other side, carefully sliding them into the empty spaces on the shelf.
These new books were clearly more… educational in nature.
The titles Elias caught sight of included:
"Are Gardevoir and Humans Reproductively Isolated?", "Five Foods Gardevoir Love", "Sensitivity Levels Across Gardevoir's Body"
Watching Gardevoir calmly reorganize the shelf without batting an eye, Elias rubbed at his temples.
He was starting to dread what his bookshelf might turn into once Latias arrived.
Once Gardevoir triumphantly shut the bookshelf, Elias timely handed her a glass of water he'd prepared.
She took a sip, then suddenly remembered what she'd wanted to ask.
Narrowing her eyes, her big, watery gaze locked straight onto Elias as she demanded:
"Gardevoir garde! (How do you know those two fighter jets?)"
Just thinking about that blue jet who'd ambushed her, Gardevoir felt like she could laugh from sheer disbelief.
If he dared pull a stunt like that now, what would Latios be capable of in the future? She didn't even want to imagine!
Even that dumb cat didn't have the guts to pull something like this!
Seeing how riled up she was, Elias gently rubbed her back to calm her down.
But as for how he met them…
Elias fell into thought, wondering how best to explain it to Gardevoir.
She, noticing his hesitation, also quickly settled down.
Truthfully, even if he didn't explain, she had already begun to form some guesses.
Gardevoir had known for a long time that Elias was… special.
She and that dumb cat had both once sought out legendary Pokémon said to possess the power to bring the dead back to life—Celebi, Ho-Oh, and the like.
But every time, the answer had been the same: It can't be done.
And yet, Elias had somehow come back to life. He'd reappeared.
Even just recently, he'd vanished right in front of her eyes.
All of it pointed to the fact that he was no ordinary human.
She'd once tried to discuss it with Mew.
They hadn't gotten anywhere concrete—but that dumb cat had said it might have been the work of the creator god.
At first, Gardevoir hadn't believed it. After all, what could Elias possibly have that would attract Arceus' attention?
But now, with Latios appearing out of nowhere, she was being forced to reconsider the possibility.
Thinking this, Gardevoir frowned slightly.
Then her gaze sharpened, and she turned to Elias.
"Gardevoir garde. (If you don't know how to explain it, then let me ask a few key questions.)"
"Gardevoir? (Alright?)"
Hearing that, Elias blinked.
He had more or less figured out how to explain things—but seeing her determined look, he nodded anyway.
"…Okay."
...
Ten minutes later—
Gardevoir suddenly tackled Elias to the ground.
Caught completely off guard, he stared up at her in shock—just in time for her to bite down on his neck.
"Gardevoir! (How dare you risk your life for other Pokémon behind my back!)"
She was not okay with this.
Her questions had all been carefully phrased—none of them too aggressive, not the kind that would back Elias into a corner even if he really was tied to Arceus.
And yet, even within those boundaries, she'd learned something that infuriated her:
—Elias had once saved those two fighter jets. Just like he'd saved her. He'd even sacrificed his life for them.
She had kind of guessed it already.
After all, Latios' reaction upon seeing Elias for the first time—it was exactly like her own.
But knowing it and hearing it were two different things.
The fact that Elias had risked himself again to save other Pokémon…
It filled her with rage and frustration.
What if something had happened? What if he never came back?
To think he'd leave her behind for those two fighter jets—unforgivable!
He deserved to be bitten!
"Gardevoir!"
With that thought, Gardevoir tightened her arms around his waist and bit down even harder.
"Ah—!"
Elias let out a sharp hiss of pain.
"G-Gardevoir, easy!" he whispered, not daring to raise his voice.
Because he could tell—she was genuinely angry this time.
But still, he hadn't expected her to be this sharp. That she'd be able to piece everything together like this…
---
...
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