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"Were those two taken care of?"
"We traded a few attacks. Then they ran."
Steven vaulted the railing with an easy motion and landed beside Cynthia, his gaze settling on Diancie. Up close, she really was something — he found himself looking a moment longer than intended.
"Steven! It's a pleasure to meet you!"
Diancie gave a small, graceful bow. "Thank you — both you and Cynthia — for your help."
"The pleasure is mine, Diancie." Steven smiled warmly. Then, with a tilt of his head: "So — what brings you out here on your own?"
"I need to find Xerneas," Diancie said. "Only Xerneas's Fairy Aura can fully awaken my abilities."
"I see..."
Steven's hand moved to his chin. He was quiet for a moment, working through what that meant.
If Diancie had come out specifically to seek Xerneas — then the events surrounding Diancie's journey were already in motion. And if that was true, then Yveltal's awakening was a real possibility. A Pokémon spoken of in Kalos legend as the bringer of destruction, capable of draining the life from everything around it — not something to be taken lightly.
He glanced at Cynthia beside him.
He didn't want her anywhere near that.
"Steven." Cynthia tugged lightly at his sleeve, looking up at him with quiet, clear eyes. "Should we help Diancie?"
Steven's brow furrowed. He didn't answer immediately.
"Please — don't feel obligated," Diancie said, with another small bow toward the two of them. "This is my own journey. I wouldn't want to cause you trouble."
She turned to leave.
"Diancie — wait."
Diancie paused and looked back, head tilted in question.
"We'll escort you." Steven's voice was calm but decided. "Until you find Xerneas."
If he was remembering correctly, Yveltal should still be dormant — sealed away in its Cocoon of Destruction. As long as nothing disturbed it, there was a reasonable margin of safety. He couldn't say he relished the thought of coming face to face with a Legendary Pokémon under hostile circumstances — least of all one associated with destruction on a scale that made even the legendary birds and beasts seem modest by comparison. Those Pokémon were powerful. Yveltal was something else entirely.
But leaving Diancie to manage alone wasn't something he could walk away from, either.
"Are you certain? I don't want to impose..." Diancie hesitated.
"It's truly no imposition," Steven said, his expression easing into something lighter. "But before any of that — have you eaten?"
Diancie blinked.
"Even if we're setting off somewhere, we should at least eat first." He smiled. "We can work out the details over a meal."
"That... does make sense!" Diancie nodded, her earlier hesitation melting away. She bowed again, hands clasped together. "Thank you very much!"
Cynthia stepped forward, clasping her hands behind her back and bending slightly toward Diancie with a bright smile.
"Shall we go, then?"
"Yes, Cynthia~"
Steven watched the two of them fall into step together, Cynthia chatting easily and Diancie answering with growing enthusiasm. He let out a slow breath and followed.
Sleep a little longer, Yveltal.
They had reserved a table at a restaurant in the quieter part of the city. The afternoon crowd was thin, and the table was generous — steak, and an assortment of pastries and confections that the staff had arranged in neat rows across the centre of the table.
"Thank you for your hospitality~" Diancie looked at the spread of unfamiliar sweets and baked goods before her, and expressed her gratitude with her characteristic poise.
She really was, Steven thought, the most courteous Pokémon he had ever met.
"I hope these are to your liking," he said.
"Go on, try one!" Cynthia encouraged, gesturing toward the pastries.
Diancie looked between their two expectant faces, then carefully selected a small pastry and lifted it with both hands. She took a delicate bite.
Her eyes lit up.
"It's delicious!"
Even the way she ate — dabbing the corner of her mouth with a napkin afterward — carried a natural elegance that felt entirely effortless.
"As long as you enjoy it~" Cynthia said warmly.
Steven set down his fork. "Diancie — may I ask something? Why did you come out on your own?"
It hadn't sat right with him since they'd found her in the alley. Diancie was the princess of the Diamond Domain — there was no version of that where she simply wandered off without an escort.
"Well..." Diancie picked up her napkin again, looking mildly embarrassed. "I may have... slipped away."
A pause.
"My companion Merrick and I have been traveling for some time, searching for any sign of Xerneas. While we were resting, I noticed the city from a distance and thought it looked interesting, so I..." She trailed off and pressed her lips together.
Cynthia set down her knife and fork and looked at Diancie with a gentle but serious expression.
"Diancie — next time, please tell your companions before you go anywhere. What happened today could have gone much worse."
"She's right," Steven added. "Those two who attacked you — they're not the type to give up easily. You need to be careful."
"Those two...?" Diancie repeated, uncertain.
"The woman with the Delphox and the ninja," Cynthia clarified, holding up a finger. "They're after you. Which means you need to stay on your guard."
Diancie absorbed this, then gave a slow, solemn nod.
"I understand. I'll be more careful." She paused. "I'm sorry for worrying everyone."
"Don't apologise — just stay safe." Cynthia smiled.
Steven leaned back in his chair. "One more thing — Xerneas is said to wander constantly. How do you intend to track it down?"
"I can sense Xerneas's Fairy Aura," Diancie said simply. "I always know which direction it's in."
"Direction only, though," Steven murmured. Even with that — across the full breadth of Kalos — it was still an enormous search. Finding something that didn't stay still was a different problem from finding something that did.
"After we've eaten," he said, "we should find your companion first. Then we'll work out the route to Xerneas from there."
Diancie nodded readily. "Okay!"
High above Anse City, a large aircraft drifted in silence — its hull coated in stealth plating, invisible to all but the most sensitive equipment.
Inside, two men sat across from each other at a low table. Between them, a screen played back footage captured earlier that day: a battle in one of the lower alleyways, brief but decisive. A silver Metagross. A Flash Cannon that swallowed two attacks simultaneously without slowing.
The man with the slicked-back blond hair tossed a piece of chocolate into his mouth and leaned back in his seat.
"Z — I'll be honest. I didn't expect you to take this job." Argus studied the masked man sitting opposite him. "But this Trainer who turned up... Lylat and Malamar together couldn't do anything with him."
Behind the mask, Hunter Z's expression had gone flat.
He recognised the Metagross. He didn't need to see the Trainer's face clearly to know who it was.
Of all the jobs to agree to.
"I'll support you from the shadows," Hunter Z said, his tone even. "I won't engage directly."
"That's not what we agreed to, Z." Argus's brow creased.
"Then I'll refund half the commission," Hunter Z replied, without inflection. "Or the full amount — your choice. We can consider the arrangement void."
"What—!"
"I'm being straightforward."
Hunter Z didn't look at Argus. He pointed at the footage on the screen.
"That Trainer is the Hoenn Champion. I'd put it at ninety-nine percent certainty." A pause. "I have no interest in throwing myself in front of that."