Chapter 15 – Buried Smiles, Part 1

“Please, there has to be another way, they couldn’t know what they were doing!”

“Kyle, you know I can’t just bend the rules at your will. They violated the laws and they have to pay for it, that’s how it works.”

The Scrafty stared with an unreadable expression, trying not to snap at his shiny father. He knew he would be grounded at the first sign of defiance, but… It just wasn’t fair! Why did they have to be so annoyingly strict?

“Mother, say something… They’re my classmates, this is just going to make me look bad,” he said to the other Scrafty watching the conversation. She stood there with crossed arms, in the middle of the living room, certainly unconvinced.

“I’m sorry, but your father is right. And I can’t overlook something like this, especially since I’m a judge myself. It’s my responsibility to ensure that laws are enforced, otherwise I risk losing my job.”

Kyle slumped on the couch, frowning more than he usually does, and he let out a deep sigh. “I can’t believe this…”

“Don’t make a fuss out of this, and stop looking like a lost child,” his father said, and Kyle quickly forced a neutral expression. “You’re being overly emotional, I barely recognize you. What the hell are your classmates doing to you? You weren’t like this before.”

“They… did nothing.”

Kyle’s mother shook her head disapprovingly. “I do not believe that. You’ve been doing investigations with them and the other day you spent time with them even after class! It’s a matter of time that you start acting like them.”

‘You don’t even know them’ was what he wanted to say. Instead, he just looked away and said nothing. He wasn’t going to win this argument, wasn’t he? It was pointless, as always.

There was a moment of silence until Kyle’s father went back to pack his stuff and headed for the door.

“I’m going to be late at this rate. You better listen to your mother, alright?” He said to his son, who just nodded slowly. “Good. Take care, you two.”

Kyle and his mother waved their goodbyes, and he just stood lost in thought for another couple of minutes while his mom kept doing her own things, not minding him. He was so tired of everything, and this was the last thing he needed. Was he okay with just… staying like that forever?

He stood up and went to his room to take his bag, making sure he wasn’t forgetting anything. His bracelet was there, with the academy’s insignia that somehow felt like it was laughing at him. Investigators always found a way to solve every kind of situation no matter how difficult it was, and he was an investigator. He just wished this was one of those cases, but this wasn’t something you could just ‘investigate’.

Unless…?

Even if it was stupid, he really needed to escape that life, no matter how risky it was. It might be completely unrelated, but Kyle was desperate at this point, so he might as well take his chance.

It was time for action.

 

---

 

The Police Station, huh? It was the first time Kyle went in there, despite the obvious relationship it had with investigators. Being that early in the morning, there weren’t too many pokémon around, so it was quite easy to spot a certain duo in front of one of the desks.

“Morning.”

Ari and Nimb turned to the source of the voice, smiling at the sight of their classmate. “Oh hey, Kyle! What are you doing here?” Ari asked.

“Hmmm, I could ask you the same,” Kyle responded with a tilt of his head as he stood by their side. “Is it related to…?

Ari’s eyes widened as he waved his paws rapidly. “Oh, no no! It’s something else, don’t worry.”

Still, that response didn’t make the Scrafty feel better. “I’m… sorry about that.”

“That’s not your fault,” Nimb said, but his frown seemed more about his own concerns than Kyle blaming himself.

“Yeah… And to be fair, we did break the law,” the Riolu added before he turned around as a certain Floragato returned to her desk with a folder under her arm.

“Oh, we got another investigator here, huh? Heya,” Melly said, and she handed the folder to Ari. “Here, make it count.”

Ari thanked her and took the folder, taking a quick glance at its contents until he noticed the curious look from his classmate.

“So what’s in there?” Kyle asked.

“Oh, um…” Ari hesitated for a moment, but then he sighed and pulled the folder to his chest. “Last night… I dreamt about Ren again. It wasn’t a nightmare, but it reminded me that I want to find him and… Ask him why.”

Nimb frowned and wrapped a wing around his shoulder to offer his comfort. Ari leaned into it. At least it reminded him that he wasn’t alone anymore.

“I understand. And that folder is…?” The Scrafty pressed on.

“The files regarding the investigation of that criminal gang Ren was in. I’m gonna ask Maia to let us take this case.”

Kyle didn’t say anything, and instead just nodded slowly, looking pensive. Melly probably noticed this, since she immediately addressed him.

“What about you, edgy boy?”

Kyle frowned slightly but chose not to call her out. “Actually, I came for something similar. I wanna request a specific file about an incident in the graveyard.”

Everyone blinked at that, Nimb being the only one that winced slightly at the mention of that spooky place. They stared for a longer moment as if they expected him to give any explanation on that, but as he didn’t say anything Melly turned around to head for the archive.

“Okay, uh, I’ll go search for that. An incident in the graveyard… That doesn’t sound familiar. When did that happen?”

Kyle didn’t have to think too much about it. “Seven years ago.”

 

---

 

It took a while to find those files, so Ari, Nimb and Kyle were a bit late to class that morning. Kyle insisted that they didn’t have to wait for him, but the Riolu was too stubborn and kind, as always. Once they entered the class, the first thing they noticed was the tension in the air.

Kyle figured that Maia had been talking about something with the class, especially with Cora and Sanah, who looked the most upset. He could guess what it was about.

“Uh… Did we miss something?” Ari spoke, tensing his shoulders. “Maia, were you…?”

The Decidueye shook her head and gestured for them to go to their seats. “I know it was your idea, but I still had a word with them. You all really should be more careful next time.”

“We know…” Nimb muttered.

Everyone involved nodded as well, except for Sanah, who just looked away as a scowl overtook her face. Ari cast a glance at her but decided it wasn’t a good moment to address her. Once they were seated, he spoke again.

“I’m sorry…”

Maia sighed and looked at him sternly. “I know you are, you said it many times, and I told you I’m not going to be mad at you forever. But that’s not going to change the fact that I have to pay that fine for you two since you don’t have enough money.”

Ari and Nimb winced, but there was a more noticeable reaction coming from the Zangoose behind them, who let out a quiet snarl. “At least you can afford it. I don’t even know what to do…” She whispered.

That was just perfect, Ari wasn’t feeling like garbage enough already. He noticed Maia didn’t hear that comment, but he kinda wished she did, so she would offer to pay Sanah’s part as well. At the same time, though, he feared Maia would completely hate him if she had to pay even more.

No matter what he did, it would upset someone. He had already screwed up a lot, like the nightmare incident wasn’t enough already. The feeling of being a burden to everyone around him didn’t quite go away after that incident, but at least it was manageable. But this? This was just another reason to bury himself under several blankets and never go outside again.

So it was even harder for him to make such a request in a moment like that.

“You want to take this case?” Maia said, reading over the files Ari gave her. “I mean, usually I’m the one to assign your jobs, but I suppose this is still adequate to your current rank…”

“It’s just this time. We haven’t got any news on those criminals for a while, so I thought that maybe we could…” Ari then stopped and turned around, trying to get his teammates’ attention. “B-but we don’t have to if you guys don’t wanna.”

Nimb was already giving his thumbs up with a smile, as they already discussed it before. Sanah, however, wasn’t in her best mood, and Ari couldn’t blame her. She just shrugged and looked away, muttering a single “whatever”.

Ari frowned. Was he making Sanah hate him again? He was probably jumping to conclusions and Sanah was just mad in general and not at him, but seeing her in that mood again brought him really bad memories. However, what snapped him out of those thoughts was Mylo.

He could swear he saw the Toxtricity giving Sanah a nasty glare for a moment, but he was quickly back to his usual serene expression, and then he spoke.

“I say we do it.”

Ari perked up a bit, knowing that at least he wasn’t hated by two of his teammates. “Thanks, guys…”

Before he could say anything else, Kyle stood up and approached Maia, the Riolu moving aside to let him pass while giving him a knowing look.

“I’d like to request a specific case as well,” he said, offering the folder to a puzzled Decidueye. “I… haven’t asked my teammates yet, though.”

Cora raised her flipper energetically while Maia studied the document. “Of course, I’m fine with any case you want us to take!”

“This case was left unsolved seven years ago, are you sure you can do this?” Maia said.

The Brionne suddenly expelled two torrents of water through her nostrils, drenching her desk and beyond, and her eyes went wide. “SEVEN YEARS?”

Velia, however, didn’t look intimidated. “That’s a mandatory obstacle to overcome if we want to become the best investigators. We should accept this challenge!”

Cora pouted. “Do we?”

“W-well, we should first hear what this is about, right?” Asher suggested with a sheepish smile.

Kyle nodded. “It all happened at the graveyard, outside town.”

It was subtle, but Kyle could see the Brionne tensing for a moment when he said that. Somehow, she quickly went back to her usual smile, like nothing happened. She didn’t even look surprised anymore about the case being from seven years ago. Just what was that reaction…?

Kyle continued. “The gravedigger was doing patrol around the place until the wall of the biggest mausoleum there suddenly collapsed on top of her, ending her life.” There were a few gasps as they listened, but he ignored them and continued. “It was really strange for that to happen when there were no signs of damage on the walls prior to that, but they couldn’t find anything, so it was presumed to be an accident in the end.”

Maia noticed how Cora stiffened for a moment while Kyle explained, but she was too concerned about the main issue to address that. She tilted her head and frowned. “But if they agreed on that, why are you interested on investigating this now?”

“Because… I’m convinced that wasn’t it.” Kyle took a deep breath and looked away. “And after the incident, my father changed.”

That caught everyone’s attention. The mention of his dad brought both anger and curiosity to those involved in the lake event.

“Your dad?” Asher asked. “What does he have to do with that case?”

“He was -and still is- the landlord of the graveyard, as well as many other places, as you might have guessed by now. And well, it’s not just him, my mom changed as well because of him. I’m not going to explain further, I just know that wasn’t a coincidence.”

Maia wasn’t stupid, she knew what he was planning to do. Kyle wouldn’t have asked to take a job involving his dad now of all times, out of nowhere. She felt proud for her student, even if she chose not to say anything to avoid embarrassing him. Though he wasn’t the only one who noticed, as she saw some curious looks from the rest.

And so, it was decided. Today, both teams were going to take on their self-chosen investigations, even if they seemed to be harder than what they were used to. For Ari and Kyle, it didn’t matter. They needed this, now more than ever.

Both teams left to their own businesses, but not before having a brief chat in the academy’s corridor. Everyone was rushing ahead to not waste any time, but Ari approached Kyle once no one else seemed to be around.

“Um, Kyle?” The Scrafty just looked at him expectantly, which Ari took as a sign to keep talking. “I’m a bit concerned for what you said about your dad… I hope this isn’t going to cause any problems to you.”

“Hmmm, it probably will,” Kyle said, and Ari could only wince. “But that’s not going to be any worse than… Well, never mind. I just don’t care.”

Ari frowned, trying to find the words to encourage him or at least cheer him up. He knew Kyle was about to mention how it wouldn’t be as bad as his life up to this point, or something like that. It’s not like he didn’t know that feeling pretty well, and that’s why he empathized with him.

“And yet, you want to do it… That’s really nice of you, Kyle. Thank you.”

Kyle stopped and took a deep breath. “No… Don’t take me wrong. I’m also doing this for myself.”

Ari blinked at him. “… What do you mean?”

“It’s just… I need to find out why they changed like that. What made them-“

There was a moment of silence that Ari recognized as Kyle trying to hide his problems again. He didn’t want that to happen, not after what he went through. He knew better than anyone how bad it could get if you bottle things up.

“What about your parents?” Ari asked but chose not to be too intrusive from the start. Instead, he offered a sympathetic smile. “Do you… wanna talk about it?”

Kyle hesitated. For a moment, he almost spilled the beans to him. He wanted it so bad, but… “I’d rather not. Ari, you already have too much going on, and you know it.”

“What? But… You do too! Are you sure about this?” Ari asked with a conflicted expression.

“Exactly, we both have our own mess to take care of, that’s why I’m not going to intrude on your problems right now. We’re not at our best moment to go acting like therapists, but once all of this is over, we can talk all you want.”

Ari was perplexed at the maturity of the Scrafty’s words, so much so that he couldn’t think of any response before a sudden force of nature in the form of Cora crashed into both of them from behind, wrapping her flippers around their necks.

“Heyyy don’t worry Ari, I’ll take care of helping him this time!” Both Ari and Kyle jumped, quickly turning to the Brionne with eyes wide.

“What the hell? Where did you come from?” Ari asked.

“Were you listening this whole time?” Kyle pressed, and for the first time, he looked a teensy bit angry.

“Yup! You guys sure have a lot in common, you know?” Cora said with a wide smile and released the duo as she moved in front of them. However, her smile faded once she noticed something about her teammate. “Wait, where’s the leather belt I gave you, Kyle? Did you not like it?”

Ah. Of course, she was going to ask about that. She couldn’t tell her ‘My mother won’t let me wear it’, that would sound so pathetic. But he didn’t want to break Cora’s heart into pieces, so…

“I, uh… Forgot it. I think I left it on my bed.”

Cora nodded slowly, analyzing his words. “I see….. But anyway!” Her smile returned, and Kyle silently sighed in relief. Cora continued. “I’ll be the ‘Ari’ this time, so you don’t have to worry about helping Kyle, alright Ari?”

The Riolu deadpanned. “Be the… ‘Ari’?”

“Okay let’s race to the entrance, byeeeee!” And with that, Cora ran ahead, at a surprising speed for a pokémon with no legs. Ari and Kyle watched her leave while their minds tried to process that.

“… She scares me sometimes,” Kyle eventually said.

Ari nodded. “Same.”

“This is gonna be quite the day, isn’t it?”

Kyle shook his head and took a step forward, but was quickly stopped by Ari once again.

“Wait.”

Kyle turned around and found the Riolu extending his paw to go for a handshake. He looked at it for a moment until his gaze met Ari’s softened eyes. “Huh?”

“We’ll make it through.”

That was all the Riolu said, a genuine smile on his face. Not one of pity, just understanding. Like he was saying that, despite everything, they at least have each other’s support and friendship.

Kyle might have gotten the message, since he eventually took his paw and, for the first time ever, Ari could see him emote a subtle smile.

“We will.”

 

---

 

“So this is your house? I wasn’t expecting it to be one of those modern ones, it’s so cool!” Asher beamed. “Is it okay for us to go inside without asking your parents first?”

“Actually, are they even here? They might be at work now,” Velia suggested.

“My mother is, but my father has a day off today, and that’s enough.” Kyle opened the door in front of him and gestured forward. “It will be fine. Let’s go.”

Team Riding Star went inside, admiring every piece of furniture that they would only see in the police station, the academy, or certain shops. It was getting more common to see those, actually. The mirror in the entrance and the little case with the house keys were only an example of everything they would have to get used to eventually.

“Father, I’m home!” Kyle called, going further inside, and the rest followed behind. “I… came with my team.”

From a room at the end of the corridor, the shiny Scrafty peeked out, carrying a box. He stared for a moment, debating on what to ask first.

“… Welcome home. What is this about?”

Asher and Cora awkwardly smiled and waved, while Velia nodded expressionless. Kyle took a deep breath and decided to get to the point.

“We’re investigating the graveyard incident from seven years ago.”

Kyle’s dad stopped, his serious facade breaking into a scowl for a moment, and he stared for a long moment. Asher coughed and looked away, he wasn’t expecting it to be so uncomfortable all of a sudden. Eventually, the adult spoke.

“Why are you taking that case now?”

Kyle twitched. “I just wanted to do my job, that’s all.”

Father and son stared at each other like there was a mental battle going on. Both knew what the other was thinking and for once, Kyle knew he was going to win this one. He knew how his dad’s mind worked.

The father sighed. “Alright, I can’t stop you from doing your job. Ask away.” He said as he went back inside the room. They exchanged glances and followed him.

As they entered, they noticed a messy room with many boxes scattered around, some items on the floor, and a couple of emptied closets.

“Uh… You have a nice house, sir!” Asher said with a sheepish smile. The shiny Scrafty didn’t say anything and just gave him an unimpressed look.

“Did we interrupt something important, Mr. Scrafty?” Cora asked.

“You can call me Ebert. And no, I’m just organizing the storeroom, nothing I can’t do while talking,” Ebert the Scrafty said, taking some items from one of the boxes and tossing them into another, bigger, box.

Cora took a glance at some of the scattered items, and a certain open box caught her eye. “Are those scarves? They look pretty! Oh, and there are other accessories as well!”

Ebert quickly closed the box. “I’m going to throw those away, we aren’t using them anymore.”

Cora frowned. Why would they throw away something so nice? They could at least give her one of those! Not like she dared to ask, though…

Kyle’s father took the box and went to the other side of the room, stacking it on top of another box and checking its contents, with a marker pen in hand. Before Kyle could approach him to actually start with the questions, Asher nudged him.

“Hey Kyle, what’s that box over there?” Asher pointed at a different-looking box that was behind a pile of items. It had a strange icon with the shape of some kind of flame on the side, and it was empty. Inside, there were many cavities with the same shape as the flame icon.

“Oh, that…” Kyle hummed in thought, resting a hand on his chin. “I’m not sure, my parents used to have many of those years ago, but they gave them away to other pokémon. I don’t even know what it used to contain.”

Kyle’s dad interrupted the conversation by taking the box and removing it from their sight. “You want me to talk about the accident or not?”

“Oh, right… Father, we’d like to hear what happened that day, with all the details,” Kyle said.

Ebert sighed and started his tale. “Well, let’s see… It was seven years ago, as you know. Tamora, the gravedigger, died after that mausoleum collapsed and one of its walls fell on top of her. It all happened at night, and there were a couple of pokémon around, but nobody saw anything. It was terrifying to hear something like that happened in one of the places I had to safeguard.”

Velia tilted her head. “Safeguard?”

Ebert nodded. “I’m a keeper, that’s my job. The same that I did with Deepsoul Lake before you and your friends came messing around,” he said to Cora with a scowl, and she just cringed.

“Well you did a bad job if you weren’t there to prevent that before it happened,” Velia said. Her teammates tensed at that, fearing the confrontation, but she continued. “And why would you safeguard more than one place? That makes it impossible for you to keep an eye on all of them.”

Ebert stood up and pierced with his eyes at her. After a few tense seconds, he shrugged. “I only go to take a look every now and then, see if there’s something out of place, and report it. But good observation.”

Velia nodded, satisfied. Meanwhile, Cora and Asher just sagged in relief.

“Back to the incident,” Kyle continued. “What other pokémon were there that night?”

Ebert scratched his chin in thought. “Hmmmmmm, I can’t exactly remember every detail, but once I arrived at the scene later, I remember seeing Tamora’s son, a Morgrem. I also saw a ghost pokémon and… some blue pokémon. That’s all I remember.”

“So you weren’t there when the accident happened?” Asher asked, to which Ebert shook his head. He supposed it made sense if it was at night, but it’s not like that guy was always doing a good job as a keeper…

“Then, we know that it was nighttime and there were three pokémon there, but that’s only when you arrived later…” Cora recapped. “Something more that you could tell us?”

“It was a long time ago, this is a bit useless…” Ebert shook his head, returning to his boxes. Everyone frowned, unsure of what to do with so little information. However, Ebert turned to them once more. “… Ask Cole.”

Everyone perked up, intrigued, and Kyle was the one to ask. “Who?”

“He’s the Morgrem I mentioned. He took his mother’s place as a gravedigger when she passed away.”

Team Riding Star exchanged glances. So the victim’s son was the new gravedigger? That meant he might be at the graveyard at that moment! They all nodded, thinking the same, even if Cora winced slightly at the idea. They had to go there now.

“Alright, thanks, Father. We’ll go see him now,” and with that, Kyle turned around and started to leave, followed by his teammates.

Just as they went to the corridor, Cora peeked towards one of the rooms, finding a modern bedroom with just one bed, so he assumed that was Kyle’s room. She also noticed a certain belt lying on top of the desk.

“Wait, Kyle!” Cora stopped the Scrafty with a nudge. “Now that we’re here, you can take the belt with you!”

Kyle tensed. He didn’t have time to think of an excuse now. “I uh… We don’t have time, let’s just go.”

“What? We have all the time in the world, why don’t you just-“

“NO!”

Everyone turned to Kyle with astonished expressions. Nobody expected the serene Scrafty to yell like that out of nowhere. Kyle winced and tried to calm down, taking a deep breath.

“It’s just… I’m sorry, I can’t…” He said, immediately walking ahead and opening the main door. He went outside and waited for the rest without looking at them.

Cora watched him leave with a pained expression. “He could just say he doesn’t like it…”

Asher gave her a gentle stroke on the shoulder and smiled sadly. “I’m sure there’s more to it than that, don’t take it personally…”

She also thought about that possibility. If only Kyle would actually explain things…

 

---

 

The graveyard was as unsettling as Cora remembered. They weren’t the protagonists of any kind of horror story, but that doesn’t mean it wasn’t a scary place to investigate. The sky was dark with thick clouds, giving the place a depressing vibe, which only added to the Brionne’s concerns.

It was a really big place, filled with tombstones aligned in various rows and a whole section of private mausoleums that made it look like a small town. The only difference was the unnerving feeling they got from knowing there was not a single living soul in there.

Kyle couldn’t quite remember the gravedigger cabin’s location, so they were a bit lost at first until they saw someone they could ask for directions. It was a Castform, who seemed to be talking to one of the tombstones. Kyle chose not to judge them.

“Excuse us,” Kyle said, getting the Castform’s attention. “We’re looking for the gravedigger’s cabin. Do you happen to know where that is?”

Castform responded with a high-pitched voice. “You mean Cole’s? He’s over there, behind those mausoleums,” she pointed out.

“Wait, you know Cole?” Asher asked.

“Mhm. I come here often to bring some flowers to my sister, so I see him a lot. His mother and I were pretty close.”

The team perked up, and Velia took a step forward to press into the matter. “If you knew his mother, that means you’ve been coming here for years and you know about the incident that caused her death, right?”

Castform slowly nodded with old eyes. “I could never forget something like that… We were devastated. Her son didn’t want to admit it, but he was quite affected, especially knowing the last thing he said to her weren’t precisely the nicest words.”

That sounded like useful information. “They were on bad terms?” Cora asked.

“Yes, that was around the time they had a certain disagreement regarding her fortune,” Castform said, and immediately after she looked like she had talked too much. “It was nothing important, though.”

Kyle nodded but wasn’t too convinced. “You see, we’re Team Riding Star, investigators. We’re currently investigating that incident since it never reached a satisfactory conclusion, so any information you can give us will be really helpful.”

The cloud-shaped pokémon tilted her body as if she had misheard that. “Wait, investigating? Now?” She only got nods from the whole team, so she took a moment to recompose and opened her mouth reluctantly. “Okay, let’s see… I know there was a ghost-type pokémon around when the accident occurred, I don’t know if that’s of any help.”

Kyle frowned. They already knew that from what his father had told them, so it seemed it would be better to directly talk to the Morgrem and see what he had to say. He turned to his teammates, expecting them to say something more.

“I think we can move on now, let’s just talk to Cole and get this over with,” Cora said. She was clearly in a hurry, for some reason, but no one had any objection, so it was decided.

Asher, the polite one, spoke. “Thank you, miss…?”

“You can call me Elena,” she responded with a warm smile.

“Alright, thanks! See ya later,” Cora said before she moved towards the direction Elena pointed at. Asher, Velia and Kyle could only say goodbye as the Brionne was quite fast, so there were no more questions they could ask.

The Cyclizar quickly joined her side and cast a concerned look. “Hey Cora, you seem… strange today.”

“Probably more than usual,” Velia added from behind, and Kyle could only blink at the hypocrisy of that statement, coming from her.

Cora forced a smile. “I’m just a bit creeped out by this place, that’s all.”

“But you never fear anything… Why are you scared of a graveyard of all places?” Asher asked.

“It’s scary, and that’s it. Don’t worry, really.” She quickened her pace, leaving Asher frowning behind her.

Nobody questioned it further as they reached a wooden cabin at the end of the graveyard. It was quite small, but Kyle figured Cole didn’t actually live there and it was just a place to store whatever materials he used in his work and to relax whenever he didn’t have to take care of any graveyard stuff but still was in work hours.

Cora knocked at the door eagerly, eventually being stopped by Asher before she broke the door down. They waited in silence until some footsteps were heard approaching from the inside. The door opened, revealing a young-looking Morgrem who eyed them warily.

“What do you guys want?” The Morgrem said.

“Are you by any chance Cole, the gravedigger?” Asher asked, shyly.

Cole arched an eyebrow. “Look at this place. Why would I be here if I wasn’t the gravedigger?”

“Uhhhhhhhh…”

He sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose in annoyance. “Yes, I’m Cole. So?”

Kyle cleared his throat and asked. “We’re investigators, and we’re looking into your mother’s death from seven years ago. Hmm, we thought you could tell us all you know about it.”

Cole’s frown deepened. “Why… are you guys investigating that now? It’s been so long!”

“Reasons,” Kyle simply responded.

The Morgrem eyed them for a long moment while Asher and Cora shrugged, and eventually let out a deep sigh. “Alright, I guess. Come inside.”

Cole moved aside and let them pass, closing the door behind them and going straight to the couch he had on the main room. The place was just a living room fused with a small kitchen, and there was a door that led to a washroom. Aside from that, there wasn’t anything special besides a few shelves on the walls that had some strange looking rocks and minerals, and a green box with a cone-shaped icon.

Asher couldn’t help his curiosity and asked. “Woaah, what are all these things?”

“Ah, I like collecting things with weird shapes. I don’t even follow any criteria, I just like how they look.”

“I see, that’s pretty cool!… And this weird box over here?”

Cole scratched his head, unamused. “I don’t know why you’re asking about those… But they’re just seeds. My mom got that box before she died, and once I inherited it I just used it to store my seed collection.”

Asher peeked inside. There were plain seeds, quick seeds, decoy seeds and even a couple of heal seeds that were embedded in two of the conveniently shaped cavities inside. Such an interesting collection, Asher thought.

“So, can you tell us about the incident?” Cora eventually asked. “We already know that she died when a wall fell on top of her and there were a couple of other pokémon there.”

Cole sighed. “Well, you pretty much summarized all of it. I don’t know what else I can say… There was full moon that night, and when I arrived there later, Ebert was there, as well as that Castform and a Gengar that I haven’t seen for a long time now.”

Kyle reviewed the information. He wasn’t surprised by the mention of his father’s name; he already mentioned himself that he had come to see what happened as soon as he knew. “Well, I suppose that makes sense.”

Velia, however, didn’t believe him. “We’ve been told that you didn’t have a good relationship with your mother.”

Cole the Morgrem winced, averting her eyes. “What do you know about that?”

Asher extended his arms trying to prevent Velia from being too blunt, but she went on. “It was a money dispute, right?”

“… So what if it was?” Cole growled, standing up from the couch. “Yeah, she had a lot of money that she wasn’t willing to share with anyone in the family, and I was pissed at her for hiding it. I wasn’t exactly happy to be forced to work at an early age just because my mom refused to cover for me. I was twelve, for Arceus’ sake!”

“Oh… That’s rough, buddy,” Asher said, but he only got a deadpan from the Morgrem.

“Still, that doesn’t mean I’d kill my mom for it! I’m not a monster, and if I had taken that money I wouldn’t be working here. She liked this place so much that she wanted to work here even despite having all that money, but I would pretty much prefer something different.”

Velia nodded, satisfied. “We’re not saying you killed her, but we have to ponder all possibilities. That at least helped us have a bigger picture of how Tamora used to be.”

Right, the victim had a name. Kyle had completely forgotten about it at this point, even if it was his own father who mentioned it. He also wondered where that money went, if Cole didn’t inherit it after Tamora died. Still, they didn’t have much more to do there, so he chose to move on.

“Anyway. Could you take us to where the accident took place?” Kyle asked with a tilt of his head.

Cole nodded and went to get the door. “Follow me.”

Everyone went outside and walked for a few minutes, going through the mausoleum area again. Each building hosted a whole family within, resting in coffins or niches, as it had become a tradition in the last century. Even graveyards were upgraded in those modern times.

There was absolute silence as they walked, almost becoming oppressive. The air felt tense and depressing, but nobody thought too much of it, being in a place like that. Nobody except Cora.

Luckily, they finally reached the place, and it felt like the accident had happened just a few days ago. A huge mausoleum lay there, with only two walls and part of the roof still intact, as the rest had collapsed. One of the walls was destroyed, while the other one was almost in one piece while lying on the ground, except for a fragmented part at the end of it.

“Huh? How is this doing here after all these years? Nobody picked up this mess?” Asher asked, leaning closer to inspect the fallen wall.

“No, they didn’t care about it,” Cole explained. “This was supposed to be the resting place for one of the most influential families out there, but it had been recently built and there wasn’t a single corpse or whatever in there yet, so they decided to build again in a different place, thinking this one was cursed or something.”

“Cursed?” Asher flinched. Cora, however, even looked slightly amused at the idea.

“People really believe that nonsense?” Velia said and shook her head in disappointment.

Asher narrowed his eyes at her. “Weren’t you the one that thought we were being watched by aliens?”

“We’re talking about feasible facts. A curse isn’t even remotely realistic.”

“What about ghost-type pokémon?”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“Hello? We were going to investigate?” Cora interrupted, getting their attention. She definitely was desperate to leave that place, they all noticed.

“Right… This one was the wall that fell on top of her, right?” Asher said, pointing at the almost intact wall fallen on the ground. Velia took a picture of it with her Gholdevice before they got a response.

Cole nodded. “They could remove her body because the part of the wall that fell on her was this one,” he said as he pointed at the fragmented end. “But they couldn’t move the rest, and they didn’t even bother. After seven years, no one has even tried to move this, they just didn’t care.” He looked away, frustrated.

“I’m sorry, dude… Your mom didn’t deserve that treatment” Asher reassured. Cole just shrugged.

“I don’t understand… Why would they leave it like this when there could be decisive evidence hiding below?” Kyle said, and then approached the wall and turned to his teammates. “Let’s try and lift this up.”

“Huh? You really think we can?” Cora asked with a confused look.

“Well, we can try! I’m pretty strong, heh,” Asher said with a chuckle and grabbed the wall’s end along with Kyle. “Girls, come help us!”

Velia and Cora did the same, the former using her psychic grip along with her arms, and the four of them used all of their power to… not lift the wall. It was too heavy for them, as it was expected. Cole snorted at their antics.

“What’s so funny?” Velia asked, glaring at the Morgrem.

“There’s no way you guys can just lift that by yourselves, otherwise that wall wouldn’t be there after so long. You’d need something else.”

“Then you could help as well, instead of staring.”

He shrugged. “Not going to change much.”

Kyle hummed in thought. They could just ask for help, but it’s not like he wanted to draw too much attention from many different pokémon, and this didn’t seem like something they could lift with just one more helping hand. They barely moved it with four pokémon, after all.

“Should we ask some teacher? Maybe they can help…” Asher proposed.

“Maybe my parents can help,” Cora suggested as well.

“Are we really going to drag everyone into this?” Kyle said, crossing his arms. “If we can just ask one or two really strong pokémon, the better.”

At that, Velia hummed loudly, making everyone look at her. “You know someone, Velia?” Kyle asked.

“Oh… No, well, yes, but I’m not sure if it’s a good idea. He’s really difficult…”

Asher perked up. “We don’t know until we try! Who is it?”

Velia turned to her teammates with an unreadable expression. She didn’t look neutral as always, but it wasn’t exactly a frown. “It’s the pokémon I know with the greatest psychic power. My brother Terrel.”

 

---

 

“Come on, you’re the greatest psychic pokémon I know, you’re perfect for this task!”

Terrel stirred slightly, his sister’s words reverberating in his mind. He was at least considering it, but that would mean leaving his room. And there’s no way he was going to do that.

“Are you even listening?” Velia insisted, her arms closed as she stared at her lazy brother lying on his bed.

“I am, but I don’t know what to tell you. Go find someone else that can help, I guess,” the male Meowstic said.

Velia sighed in defeat. She thought he had been getting better lately, he even looked at her when she talked, but apparently, things weren’t that easy. She turned around and went for the door, stopping to say one last thing.

“Is there something that could change your mind?”

He just shrugged. There wasn’t much she could do for him right now. He couldn’t even understand his own thoughts, so why bother?

With that, Velia gave up and left the room, meeting with the rest of the team who waited in the hallway. They perked up and stared expectantly, to which Velia shook her head.

“He’s so stubborn, there’s no way to get him away from that stinky bed…”

“Really? I didn’t know it was so bad…” Asher said with a concerned look.

“I thought he was interested in our investigations, judging from what you said,” Cora said.

Velia sighed. “Not enough, apparently. His depression is stronger than that. He just doesn’t want to leave his room…” Velia turned around and went for the stairs. “Let’s just find someone else to ask.”

“Wait.” Everyone turned to Kyle, who looked pensive. He took a moment to make up his mind and spoke. “Let me talk to him.”

Velia blinked twice. “You? But he doesn’t even know you, I don’t think that’s a good idea.”

Kyle knew that pretty well, but he steeled his expression anyway. “At least I want to try. I know it’s a bit intrusive for a stranger to go in his room, but I think I understand how he feels.”

“… Well, he’s probably going to get mad at me, but go ahead. We have nothing to lose, and neither does he.”

Kyle nodded, giving Asher and Cora one last look before he went inside. He was met with a dark room that was somehow tidier than he expected. Probably because of Velia, who might have been taking care of the room whenever her brother didn’t.

Velia had actually wanted to clean his room many times, but Terrel asked her not to do so. It was a miracle that he recently gave in and let her or the rest of his family do whatever they wanted in there.

“What do you want? I already told you-” Terrel stopped as he saw who had entered his room this time, staring in surprise.

“Oh, sorry, I’m Kyle. Hmmm you know, Velia’s teammate.”

Terrel turned around, avoiding his gaze. “… Ah. She could have warned me, but whatever. What is it now?” He asked a bit annoyed, but still spiritless.

Kyle walked further inside, getting the chair in front of Terrel’s desk and taking it a bit closer to the Meowstic, but not too much. Terrel was clearly uncomfortable with him, but Kyle sat down and faced him.

“… Why are you like this?”

Terrel frowned from where he was trying to hide his face, under the sheets. “What? What question is that?”

“Hmmm I mean, what made you feel the way you do? Why don’t you want to leave your room?” Kyle asked, his hand fidgeting with his skin-pants while he thought about his own answer.

“What are you, a therapist?” Terrel answered weakly. “Everything sucks. There’s not much to explain in there, and I don’t wanna tell you either way. I don’t even know you.”

“Fair,” Kyle simply said. He fell silent for a long moment, tracing his fingers along the chair wood, until he continued. “I get it. No one can bother you in your room, and you’re not expected to do anything here. It feels safe.”

“… What do you know?” Terrel questioned, still hiding under the sheets.

“Because if it were for me, I wouldn’t be here.” Kyle stopped for a moment, trying to hear or see any reaction from the Meowstic, but could only hear his breathing. “If I could, I’d just stay in my room. When I’m in there, I don’t have to talk to anyone, like my teammates or even you.”

Terrel stirred slightly, an eye being visible poking out of the sheets. “So you’re saying you don’t wanna talk to me?” He asked, sounding slightly offended, but he didn’t actually mind.

“Don’t you feel the same?” Kyle asked, his expression unreadable under the darkness of the room.

Somehow, that hit home. Terrel pulled out his bed covers and looked at him a bit shyly, studying him for a moment. “Then why are you here?”

“Because I’m forced to do so.”

Kyle let out a deep sigh, leaning back on the chair as if he was already exhausted from that conversation. Terrel watched, their eyes still not meeting. He didn’t know where this was going, but at least it seemed the Scrafty wasn’t judging him, unlike everyone else.

Eventually, Kyle kept talking. “I just want to lie on my bed and not have to deal with anyone. But my parents expected so much from me, so they made sure I studied a lot. I never wanted to become an investigator in the first place, but they seemed so excited about it and I couldn’t say no. Not that I don’t like this job, but…”

“Why are you telling me this?”

Kyle opened his mouth, unsure of what to say. At first, he wanted to empathize with Terrel in order to gain his trust and somehow convince him to help, but now he just…

“I don’t know.”

Terrel could probably groan in annoyance, but there was something that felt familiar about that, and he was getting close.

“Are you depressed too?” Terrel asked bluntly.

Depressed? No, there’s no way he was that bad. Life was a little tiring at times, but that’s normal. He went outside, he studied, and he functioned as a pokémon. He wasn’t depressed… right?

“I… don’t know.”

Both of them noticed how scared Kyle’s voice sounded when he said that. Their eyes met for the first time, and there was understanding, even if it didn’t look like it. Terrel turned his gaze at the curtains blocking the light from the outside world and sighed.

“If you came to cheer me up, well, you’re not precisely the most fitting to do that.”

“Maybe you’re right… But I guess I still wanted to talk to you anyway.” Kyle wasn’t sure why he said that out loud.

Terrel just chose to ignore that. “Huh… I can’t believe you’re the same as me, and somehow you manage to go outside and work to build a future for yourself. Meanwhile, I’m just here.”

“It’s not like I wanted to, but I guess it’s a good point to start. I have to admit that I wouldn’t get anywhere if I stayed in my room,” Kyle said reluctantly.

The Meowstic turned to him and gave him a questioning look. “You don’t look like going out helped you at all. You still said you’d rather not be here.”

“I know, but…” Kyle thought about his classmates. His mind went back to the other day when he almost felt something when he went to get ice cream with Ari, Nimb, Cora and Asher. “I think I just hadn’t found the right environment until now. Maybe things can actually change…”

“I see…” Terrel said, now listening more attentively. Maybe he could tell him in the end, and who knows… “I just liked the world better when it was as exciting and full of fantasy as in the stories I used to read.”

Kyle perked up. “Huh?”

He continued. “But there’s no room for something like that in my life, not in the modern world. I’ll probably have to work as a teacher, an economist or a salesmon. That’s why I gave up.”

So that was it, huh? Terrel thought his life was going to be boring and stationary, and that made him lose all hope. They had different reasons to be like that, but Kyle could empathize with him.

“Maybe you’re right, you might have to settle with that kind of job… if you stay in Bismuth Town,” Kyle said.

Terrel’s ears twitched, and he gave him a confused look. “What do you mean?”

“There’s plenty of options out there. For example, even if Bismuth Town doesn’t have those, there are explorer guilds out there. Maybe that’s the excitement you need, who knows.”

Terrel blinked. He had thought about it at some point, but always immediately pushed that thought aside, thinking his family wouldn’t want him going that far, or doing something so dangerous. But he was tired. Maybe he didn’t have the energy to even think about it now, but… Maybe someday?

“And in the meantime,” Kyle continued. “There’s a lot more you can do. Like joining us in our investigation, even if it’s just this once, and you’d be surprised with the kind of stuff we might find.”

“Was this all a strategy so I would help you with that?” Terrel asked.

The Scrafty shook his head, standing up and leaving the chair aside. “I was being genuine. Knowing you’re like me, I’d like for both of us to be able to move forward, even if I just met you. I don’t mind if you don’t wanna come, but at least I want you to know that we’ll always be willing to have you come with us.”

Kyle turned around, satisfied with the conversation, and walked towards the door. He didn’t get what the team needed, but it didn’t feel like he wasted his time. He felt… a bit better. And Terrel too, apparently, as he was watching Kyle leave with eyes wide and trying to say something, even if he couldn’t find the words.

In the end, they were in a similar situation, even if the outcome was different, and knowing there was someone who could understand helped a bit. Maybe that’s all he needed now. Maybe that’s the push Terrel needed to actually try.

“Wait.”

Kyle stopped, surprised to hear the sharper tone of the Meowstic. He turned around, only to find Terrel standing closer to him, with a bit of a pleading look.

“I think… I wanna go with you.”

Meanwhile, Cora, Asher and Velia were getting bored to the point of having finished two rounds of word chain, both of which Velia won. As the door opened, they perked up at the sight of both Kyle and Terrel.

“Terrel? But how…?” Velia stammered. She couldn’t believe her eyes; after all her attempts to convince his brother to come outside, it was Kyle the one who managed to do so, and all in just a few minutes.

“Hey…” Terrel said, a bit shy. He looked away, already regretting his decision, but he couldn’t back down now. “I guess I can help you guys.”

Cora beamed. “We’re so happy to have you with us!”

“Yeah, thank you so much!” Asher said.

Velia took a bit longer to accept what had just happened but eventually recomposed herself. “I’m glad you finally decided, but… Will you be okay?”

“I, um… I suppose so.”

She stared at her brother for a longer moment, as if she was studying him, and then nodded. “Let’s not waste any more time, then.”

Both Kyle and Terrel nodded as well, exchanging glances for a moment until Terrel spoke. “Alright… Take me to that wall you mentioned.”