Akari Wishes For The Cloths Of Heaven (Volokari/Volo x Akari/Volo x Reader)

Four Years Later

"I am actually going to kill you Rei!"

Rei was laughing so hard it brought tears to his eyes. Akari glared at him as she stepped forward, pokeball in hand. She twitched her wrist as if to actually throw it and Rei stepped back, hands in the air.

"Okay, okay, I'm sorry!" the boy said, recalling the Swinub and retreating back a few more steps. "I thought you'd be impressed I finally caught an alpha. I guess that wasn't the best way to introduce him though," Rei sighed, patting the pokeball before clipping it to his belt.

"I didn't think it would scare you of all people though,"

Akari shocked her head, rubbing her face and breathing deeply.

"It's fine. Just-just warn me next time, okay? I thought a wild alpha had broken into the village,"

A wild alpha. A reasonable excuse for her fear, even if Swinub were not native to the section of the region Jubilife Village was built on. Much better than what she initially thought of. No matter how many years had passed, there was always a lingering fear in the back of her mind that Giratina would crack open the ground and allow the Distortion World to suck her in, never to return. The alpha Swinub's low, blazing red gaze in the dark was not similar at all to Giratina, and yet the unexpectedness of it all had caught her off guard. It had been nearly four years since she had fought Giratina and Volo at the Temple of Sinnoh and while the nightmares were all but gone, she would occasionally be caught off guard by strange sounds and shadows. She still hadn't found Giratina, the last Pokemon for her Pokédex. How Volo had managed to find him, she did not know.

Volo.

The name cut across her heart like a Gallade's slash. Her once-friend's betrayal still hurt to think about. Though a part of her was relieved she hadn't seen him since that fateful day, another part of her wished he would stumble across her path whenever she went out surveying, or maybe when she took a detour to look at some ancient ruins. Her heart still ached from the betrayal but despite it, she couldn't bring herself to completely hate the man. He had ceded the win to her fairly after she beat Giratina, not attempting to persuade her of his cause nor attacking her physically (which he was more than capable of due to his size, though Akari had never been intimidated by it until that moment). Perhaps it was because he realized he couldn't defeat Akari, or perhaps it was because he truly couldn't bring himself to harm her, but after giving her the Spooky Plate, he had left the region, only stopping to give the professor his notes on Giratina.

"I'm really sorry buddy," Rei said again, bringing her back to earth. "Potato mochi on me tomorrow?"

Akari forced a grin. "Double servings or I'm sending MY alphas after you,"

Rei grimaced at the thought before laughing. "Guess that settles it then,"

Akari laughed, grateful as always for her first friend in Hisui despite his prank as they began walking towards the rooms. "Tomorrow before sunset then! Unless the Captain insists on a report first,"

"Oh please, she won't demand the Savior of Hisui to report at the end of a normal day unless YOU want to,"

Akari laughed off the absurd nickname. Sure, she may have saved everyone in Hisui from whatever horrible end Volo had planned for them, but if he had never opened the rift in the first place she wouldn't be here, and there would be no need for her in the first place.

Akari pulled open the door and stepped into her modest living apartment, kicking her shoes off with more force than she intended. That was a thought that plagued her often. What if the rift had never opened and she was back wherever she had come from? Would her life have been as exciting, as genuinely fulfilling as it was in Hisui?

Remembering her life before becoming Arceus's chosen was hard, usually just glimpses of tall grass or bicycles upon busy roads as she hunted down Pokemon between classes. She knew she had a family somewhere, probably friends and possibly even a lover, but if her unknown relations' memories were as vague as hers, she doubted they missed her. She didn't miss them, or more accurately, she couldn't miss them because she didn't really know them. She had her family here, her parents in the professor and Captain, even the Commander, her siblings in Rei and Adaman and Iridia. Her friends in the Galaxy Team and the Clans, even in the new immigrants to Hisui who arrived on Prelude Beach and the all-business Gingko Guild merchants who had made their cart a permanent fixture in Jubilife Village. Her lover? Well maybe she hadn't had one in her previous life. She certainly didn't here but you can't miss what you never had. She had never thought too seriously about romantic relationships. Sure she had the occasional crush, she definitely had with both clan leaders when she met them, though those had quickly evolved into much more familial bonds as she was wont to do. Romance was messier than a Tangela's vines, and she was willing to wait for the right moment to avoid getting caught up in that tangle.

Yawning, Akari changed out of her kimono into a loose tee shirt and shorts, the clothes she had arrived in. They were impractical for Hisui and faded and worn, but she couldn't bear to part with them. Whatever significance they may have had in her old life, she wanted to hold onto it as a reminder of history. A sudden loneliness gripped her. Maybe it was her scare with Rei, or the thought that he would inevitably be asking her for "woman advice" at tomorrow's dinner after he spent the day showing Wanda how to use a Nosepass to navigate in the Highlands, but her cozy home felt much emptier than usual. She set her pokeballs to the side, staring at them for a moment before releasing her Decidueye. The Pokemon trilled at her happily, giving her an affectionate nibble on the arm before staring at her expectantly.

"I'm sorry girl, I don't have anything for you. Do you want to come out of your ball for the night?"

Decidueye blinked and then trilled again, beating her wings rapidly before settling herself down on the mat. Akari laughed. Her first Pokemon had always been easy to please, perhaps because she was the first to truly understand the then-Rowlet's joy and fear at being partnered with a human. Sighing, Akari rolled herself over in her blankets, her Pokémon's warmth a welcome presence as she drifted off to sleep.

• •

Morning came too soon, and Akari found herself yawning even as she waved at the guard by the gate as she set out. Ever since nearly finishing the Pokédex, Professor Laventon had been much less pushy about survey work (though she knew that was in part due to his new Starly correspondence with Cogita and their notes on the Forces of Hisui keeping him occupied). Even Kamado had loosened up, though she expected it was his own standoffish way of saying he trusted her and her judgement ever since the events at the top of Mount Coronet. This had resulted in the unfortunate routine in which she now found herself, sleeping in late on mornings that she should be surveying. There were still many notes to take, and still one more known Pokémon to capture. Giratina's presence had been noticed in the Cobalt Coastlands once more, and despite her extensive searching, had remained elusive. Akari didn't even know if she wanted to capture Giratina. The Pokémon's entry in her worn notebook was nearly complete thanks to Volo's conversation with Laventon, and, though she hated to admit it, she was scared of the Pokemon. Surely a creature who had allied itself with someone as twisted as Volo would only allow itself to be captured by someone with a similar mind, and though Akari knew she could defeat it once more in battle, she did not want to subject her Pokemon to that monstrosity again.

"Be careful out there," the guard said as she held the Azure Flute to her lips. "There's been a reported mass outbreak near Aipom Hill,"

Oh Arceus. Iscan was probably shaking in his boots.

"Thanks for the heads-up,"

Akari made a mental note to check in on Iscan before investigating the Giratina lead. The poor man was still scared of Pokemon, even after his marriage to Palina and her Growlithe moving in with them. She smiled despite herself. Even with all that had happened the past few years, it wa nice to see some things never changed. Summoning Wyrdeer, Akari climbed onto his back and pointed towards the Coastlands.

"Let's go, friend," Akari said firmly. "We've got business to take care of,"