Chapter Text
Her hands hadn’t stopped shaking.
It was strange, really. The warmth of the sun didn’t quite reach her, making her shiver slightly as she tried clearing the plaza from all the rubble that Ange had left them with. The deep sense of exhaustion that had carried her throughout the last few weeks became ever more present, weighing her down. It felt like one of these mornings when she was awoken entirely too soon because one of her pokémon had made themselves comfortable on her chest, although the feeling was not accompanied by a soothing purr and the flutter of another creature’s heartbeat. It just felt heavy. Hard to breathe.
Harmony stood up straight and lifted her arms in the air, hoping it would relieve some of the pressure in her chest. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath - she distantly noted that something in her spine cracked slightly and it did manage to relieve some of the pressure she had been feeling, but not enough to put her mind at ease. She was just tired, she told herself. A good nights’ sleep could do wonders, and after everything that had happened, she was quite certain she had earned it.
Not far from her, she heard Lida’s voice, cheerful and loud as always, then Naveen’s tired grumble, followed by Urbain’s bellowing laughter, and a warm smile crept upon her face - at least their sparkle wasn’t dulled by everything that had happened these past few hours. Still, she made a mental note to look after them once they’d gone back to Hotel Z. Harmony was quite sure that she was still running on adrenaline herself and once the rush was gone, people tended to crash. She’d seen it before, with family and friends, and she didn’t want her comrades to fall into a hole with no ability to make it out on their own.
When she felt something nudge her leg, she blinked in surprise and watched her Sableye give her a questioning look. The sun reflected in his big, blue gems, that she still had no idea how he could see out of. His little head was tilted to the side, his tiny, claw-like hands rested carefully on her bare leg so as to not scratch her accidentally. Tiny stone crumbs were sticking to his face, which made her smile gently. Harmony crouched down to lightly rub the creature’s head. The rough texture of Sableye’s skin scratched against the palm of her hand.
»Must be a feast for you here, hm?« A happy chirp escaped his mouth. Harmony remembered her first encounter with her Sableye in Wild Zone Four, the Dormez Bien Cemetery. A ghost that stole a precious ring. She remembered getting her butt handed to her by a myriad of Ghastly’s and Ekans’s, until reaching the very top spot of the cemetery where she encountered the Sableye. Battered and bruised, she’d returned the ring to its rightful owner, with Sableye safe and sound in a pokeball. What a journey they had been on.
The rest of her pokémon were mostly resting inside their respective balls, safely stashed in her satchel. They had fought well, especially her Gardevoir who had fainted all of three times during Ange’s rampage. Harmony would make sure to buy a stash of Lumiose Galettes as a reward for everyone - maybe even some extra crispy ones like those Canari’s Eelektross was so fond of. She bet Garchomp would love them as well.
After another chirp, Sableye wandered off again, probably in search of gemstones, which Harmony was sure he wouldn’t find in this rubble, but she knew her pokémon would also be satisfied with some other rubble. At least it was somewhat helpful to cleaning the city, although she was sure he would rather munch on some mega shards.
Slowly, Harmony rose from the ground. The muscles in her calves were burning, her knees buckling. She braced herself against the remains of some Racine scaffolding and pushed herself upright again. She felt her heart race in her chest, the beating against her ribcage almost painful. Black dots appeared in her vision and she briefly closed her eyes. Would it be rude to ask for some time to go back to the hotel and sleep for a few hours? She decided it would be. Everyone was currently pulling their weight, even Jacinthe - or, well, the members of her Society of Battle Connoisseurs, at least. She saw some of the Rust Syndicate Grunts running around like wild Budew, while Tarragon’s men as well as their poke-partners functioned like a well-maintained machine. Somewhere in the distance, she could hear Ivor’s loud commands, even Grisella and Grisham were helping by offering their coffee specialties to the tired workers.
Harmony decided to join Team MZ in their efforts, to keep her mind off wandering. There would be enough time to think about the events that had just unfolded, but she didn’t have the mental capacity this very moment. Carefully, she made her way through all the chaos, forcing herself to climb some of the larger obstacles. An Excadrill, which she was pretty sure belonged to Tarragon, kindly opened up a path as she jumped from some concrete platform, landing quite unsteady on her feet. She started feeling a little dizzy. Maybe she could ask Grisham for some water, figuring coffee would do her no good at this point.
»Ah, there she is, hero of the day!« Lida waved at her, cheerful as always. She was standing close to Naveen and Urbain, AZ’s Floette floating softly in the background, looking just as exhausted as Harmony was feeling. »You okay? Anything hurt?«
Harmony opened her mouth to speak, but was interrupted by Urbain. »Hey, you didn’t ask me if I was alright! I was in that damn tower the whole time! I could’ve died, too, y’know?« Urbain pouted, arms crossed behind his head. He, indeed, looked a little dishevelled, his hair was all messed up, there was dirt on his clothes but Harmony thankfully didn’t spot any scratches.
Lida shook her head, then jabbed a finger into Urbain’s chest. »You didn’t have to dodge these devil flowers and that death beam the tower was trying to wipe us all out with. We better count ourselves lucky that Harmony made it out without a scratch!« She sighed heavily. »But I guess you’re right. You both could’ve died, but you didn’t and I’m … like so-,« there was a pause, then a silent sniffle, »so glad you’re both okay.« And then the floodgates opened.
Harmony put one of her hands on Lida’s back, offering her a warm smile. »Don’t think about what could’ve been,« she said softly, a slight crack in her voice that thankfully went unnoticed by the others, »we’re all here now. It’s all over. Lumiose is safe.« And that’s when it hit her: Was it over? Harmony stopped in her tracks, her hand stilling mid-air as Lida sobbed one last time, while Urbain was patting her shoulder. Harmony turned slightly, hoping to catch a glimpse of the pokémon that had just saved her life. Where was Zygarde? And where was L? Were they both okay? Or - did they plan their next visit already?
Her eyes felt incredibly heavy. When was the last time she’d had a good night’s sleep? Probably before she’d arrived in Lumiose City. Everything had happened so incredibly fast. From stepping off the train, to getting her bag stolen, being roped into pokémon battles, wild alphas chasing her, nearly tumbling off the rooftops, working for Corbeau, calming rouge mega pokémon, battle zones and the whole mess with Ange … Last spring felt like a lifetime ago. Like she was an entirely different person then than she was now. Maybe she was. She certainly was more tired now, exhausted even. The longer she stood there motionless, the more she felt every bone in her body ache. A dull pounding in the back of her head. Her legs started to feel like giving out.
»Harmony.« A warm hand gripped her upper arm cautiously. She looked up, meeting Naveen’s deeply unsettled gaze. She’d never seen this expression before. »You're, like, really pale. You should probably go back to the hotel and lie down. In fact, we all should. We’re not gonna rebuild this city within a day.« The grip on her arm tightened. Was he scared? Or was this just worry? Maybe she wasn’t the best judge at the moment. She wanted to be strong until the end but her body betrayed her. The guilt gnawing at her wanted to tell him she was alright. That she could handle a little bit of sleepiness, that she couldn’t let others clean the mess she felt responsible for. Yet her body refused to cooperate, forcing her to admit defeat.
»Y-yeah.« If they all went as a group, it would be fine. That way, she wouldn’t seem so selfish.
She met Urbain’s gaze and something in his expression shifted. His smile began to fade, his gaze hardening slightly. He took two steps, stopping right in front of her. A timid hand brushed a stray lock out of her face. »You look tired,« he said softly, a hint of guilt noticeable in his voice. »I’m sorry, Harmony. For roping you into this mess and everything else. But we literally couldn’t have done it without you.« The sadness in his ocean blue eyes washed a wave of nausea over her. Harmony bit her lower lip in an effort not to double over and press a hand against her mouth. Her eyes started to burn.
Lightly, she shook her head. »Don’t apologize,« she managed to get out, »that’s what you do to help a friend, right?« She offered him a forced smile, as the world around her began to shut down. The dizziness got worse. She wanted to sit down and breathe, or lie down, something so she wouldn’t-
»Oi, Harmony!«
The world turned upside down - and then, it went black.
✿✿✿
It was the sound of raindrops against glass that brought her slowly back to the world of the living. The first thing she noticed was that dull pounding in her head, the second the everlasting weight on her chest. How long had she been unconscious? For her, it had been an instant, from looking at the light blue morning sky, to never ending darkness, and now looking at a ceiling that was entirely unfamiliar to her. With all the strength she could muster, she pushed herself up, her arms nearly buckling under her weight. Harmony almost sobbed at the realisation that she was still entirely exhausted. That she’d passed out for nothing.
She bit back the tears that threatened to spill, instead focusing on her surroundings, trying to figure out where she was. The absence of a light source wasn’t helping her case, dark silhouettes blending into the shadows of the room. The bed was spacious, a dark and soft duvet covering her lower half, an array of cushions framing the headboard. At least she could tell with certainty that this was not Hotel Z - if she was unsettled by that, she didn’t know yet.
Slowly, she tried climbing out of the bed. Soft carpet tickled her bare toes and she caught a glimpse of her satchel on the nightstand to her right. Who had brought her here? The last thing she remembered was talking to Lida, Naveen and Urbain, but they would’ve taken her back to their hotel, wouldn’t they? Or was the path blocked? Sure, Hotel Z was quite far from Prism Tower, but still-
Harmony hissed as she rose from the mattress, her hips, knees and all the muscles in her legs begging her to lie back down and rest some more. But instead of listening to the clear signals her body was sending her, she wobbled over to the window, in hopes of gathering at least some hints as to where she currently was.
The sky was tinted gray, raindrops still softly running down the surprisingly well-polished glass. It fogged up as soon as she stood in front of it. A soft, green glow reached her sight, her tired brain lacking the ability to comprehend the situation any faster. Even through the rain, the remnants of Prism Tower were visible from here. A sharp stabbing pain cursed through her chest, making her double over and cough, hard. Pictures flashed in front of her eyes - the tower collapsing, the city exploding, the fight against masses of rogue mega-evolved pokémon, Corbeau’s face while dramatically falling off the rooftop, making her scream in horror and almost toppling back down herself, the devil flowers shooting laserbeams at and barely missing her, the anxiety she had felt every time she took shelter under Zygarde’s shield, Zygarde mega-evolving …
Was this Wild Zone Five beneath her feet? The map of Lumiose City was all but burnt into her memory, given her extensive expeditions, the errands she did for Emma and the Rust Syndicate - and all of that in the matter of six months. The timespan felt ridiculously short. She couldn’t tell the time - there were no red glows, at least not that she could see, so either it wasn’t night just yet or Quasartico hadn’t activated the battle zones in light of the recent events - with the latter seeming more likely, given the glowing streetlights that she could see from up above.
Harmony concluded that she must be in the penthouse adjacent to the Rust Syndicate. It was the only building she could think of that would let her look down at Wild Zone Five from this height, and also the closest to Central Plaza, considering the people who had helped her along the way - leaving her with the question of who brought her here.
The sound of footsteps mixed with aggravated whispers approached the door. Harmony had half a mind to jump back into bed, but decided against it given the state of her still-aching legs. Her hands were on the windowsill, trying to keep herself upright, almost scared to breathe to figure out who was approaching the room - her heart rate went up, making her throat feel tighter all of a sudden.
A stern shushing noise echoed through the door as the footsteps stopped. Why was she holding her breath all of a sudden? No one who would put her in a room like that had any bad intentions, did they? No one would come to hurt her, that thought was absurd anyway. So why was she so - anxious? And then it hit her; she was scared of what was coming next. More rogue pokémon who needed rescuing. More battles. More sleepless nights. Harmony lacked the energy for any of that at this very moment. She didn’t even have the energy to say no to anything Urbain would ask of her next. Because that’s how she was. Reckless in regards to her own personal safety, a more noble method of self-destruction. At least that’s what she’s been told all her life. But what was she supposed to do? She-
The door handle made a soft clicking noise and Harmony braced herself harder against the windowsill, knuckles turning white from the grip she had on the polished wood. She looked over her shoulder - and was met with Corbeau. She exhaled shakily, almost laughing at her own stupidity. A pathetic sound escaped her lips before she could’ve had the chance to stop it. The trembling started all over again.
»You’re up.« His voice sounded as stern as always. It was almost comforting - at least he hadn’t changed. »How are you feeling?« There was shuffling behind him and before Harmony could answer his question, Lida pushed herself into the room, disregarding Corbeau’s angry protest and almost sprinting up to her. She gripped her shoulders and Harmony almost buckled under the sudden weight.
»I was s-so worried!« she sobbed, lower lip trembling, tears threatening to fall from her eyes. »Are you okay? Are you hurt? Why didn’t you tell me when I asked you earlier? We were about to go back to the hotel and then you just slipped out of Naveen’s grasp and you almost hit the floor! And you didn’t wake up! You almost gave me a heart attack!« Harmony felt Lida’s nails digging into her shoulders.
She’d been effectively turned around by this point, windowsill abandoned and only held up by the sheer force of Lida’s grip. Harmony put her hands on top of Lida’s arms, which finally seemed to stop her rambling. »I’m fine, Lida,« she heard herself say, »thanks for looking out for me.«
»You kinda have to thank these guys for that,« she admitted sheepishly, glancing back at a very pissed off Corbeau , who had his arms crossed before his chest, foot tapping impatiently on the ground, and Philippe with his usual poker face - at least she guessed that part, since she couldn’t really tell from the lack of better lighting.
Corbeau’s gaze crossed hers, and for a split second, it seemed like his gaze softened slightly, but returned the very instant she noticed it. Harmony felt her face grow hot and her hands tingle. »T-thank you,« she told him, »sorry to burden you with Team MZs problems yet again.«
She saw him roll his eyes, then make a dismissive hand gesture. »It’s fine, taking you back to your hotel would’ve been too far anyways, given your condition. You’ve done your part, now it’s our turn to service the city. Let the grown-ups handle this now, kid, you go and rest.«
»I am a grown-up, Corbeau.« And he was only five years older than her, tops. She could not for the life of her figure out why he treated her like she was still a teenager. Then, she looked around. »Are Urbain and Naveen also resting? They should be.«
All of a sudden, the room got quiet. Harmony felt her stomach drop; Lida was avoiding her gaze. Harmony felt yet another wave of unbearable nausea wash over her and her heart rate picked up in fear. »Lida,« she whispered, desperately holding onto her, staring, first at her friend, then at Corbeau, and lastly Philippe. No one said another word. »What happened?« Her eyes were burning, her breathing shallow and quick. »Please don’t tell me-«
»AZ died,« Lida’s voice barely reached her, »he’s gone.«
And for the second time that day, the world seemed to be turning upside down.