Archive of Our Own ^beta

“Warden Ingo?” A familiar voice called up the hill to his tent, the tone alarmed and sharp.

Ingo turned his head to the entrance of his yurt, seeing the flap opened wide and a slightly out-of-breath clan leader standing there, her hair band slightly askew.

“Ah, lady Irida? What brings you here, if I may ask?” He requested, turning to face her fully, noting her body language

“Oh, thank Sinnoh! You’re here!!” The Clan leader startled the warden by rushing forward and grabbing his arms “Do you have any Pecha syrup??” She asked, a certain tenseness to her voice

Pecha syrup? “Uhm, I believe so” Ingo answered, confusion clear on his face. 

“Good! Where?” She abruptly let go of him, looking around his yurt quite quickly, overturning the blanket on his cot, baffling the man. 

“Lady-lady Irida - What might you need it for-” 

“It’s for Akari - Where is it??” She looked back at him, opening one of his storage chests that was full of dried foods. 

Oh.

Concerned by the insinuation, Ingo walked to and reached into his leather case a few feet away from Irida, pulling out the purified Pecha syrup in a dim glass bottle, placing it on his belt securely, and grabbing his coat and hat, easily getting them on as he walked towards the front and announced to her in his typical booming voice:  

“Then let us depart, post haste, Lady Irida!” 

Irida seemed to already be ahead of him, bursting out of the warden’s yurt and down the hillside, taking strides and staying at least ten paces ahead of him as he briskly followed her behind - trusting her to know the way. 

“She was - surveying Paras. She was being so careful!!” Irida started without any prompting questions. Ingo speed-walked to catch up with her briskly, but she kept picking up speed, nearly starting to jog

“Was she attacked?” Ingo tried to get a little clarification

“No, but the paras were startled by a Stantler nearby, and released their toxin in the air right where she’d been hiding” Irida huffed. 

Ah. That explained it. 

“How is she?” Ingo asked, continuing with more questions “Is she alone? Did you leave her with someone?” 

“She’s… not great, but not dire.” Irida answered, eyes staying forward as if she could already see Akari beyond the hills “She’s with her Quilava, who's protecting her while I went to get you…. It is worrying though, I don’t think she’s ever been poisoned before” 

Ah. That probably meant she wasn’t having a great time. Ingo nodded “Then let us hurry to assist!” 

Irida nodded, leading their way throughout the highlands on light feet over rocks and crags and thick grasses as they made quick work of the path towards what seemed like an rando clearing near a pond

Ingo was led quite a ways away to where Akari was, which was over by Electrode’s seat, her Quilava wrapped around her torso seemingly keeping her in a sitting position. Ingo suddenly realized why Irida made the journey to him, rather than attempt to get help from the Diamond clan warden - given his … constitution … Melli would have been no help with how Akari was currently looking

To put it frankly, the poor girl looked extremely out of it. Eyes a bit glazed over, face practically turning purple from the inhaled toxin, and while she looked like she was sitting up, it was clear as he got closer that her quilava was struggling a bit at keeping her upright. She was swaying just slightly, arms over the pokemon, but not grabbing at anything.  

“Akari?” He called out her name, cautiously. 

The girl looked up at her name being called, thankfully, though the purple hue of her face showed just how much of the toxin she’d clearly inhaled, breathing surprisingly shallow. It took her a few moments to actually “see” what was in front of her. She seemed surprised to see Ingo there, eyes squinting as if to focus

“...Huh?” 

Irida rushed to the girl's side as Ingo came up, getting on her knees and putting a hand on Akari’s shoulder to get her attention a little more directly. Akari’s gaze flittered to the clan leader as she spoke “Hey, Warden Ingo has pecha syrup for you, okay?” 

“Wha... Ingo..?” Akari managed, sounding almost confused “Syrup…?”

“Hello, Miss Akari” He greeted her again, kneeling down to look more directly at her face. She seemed to spot him, not turning her head, but certainly looking at him with more attention than before. 

Her eyes lit up with awareness despite looking nauseous. “Oh… uh.. H-hi.” She managed - even just sounding sick in her tone. 

“You don’t look so good” He pointed out. 

After a moment of thinking, Akari responded in that same, unwell tone, “.. I don’ feel so good…” She admitted.

Irida frowned further at her vague answers and replies coming from the poor girl, turning her attention back to Ingo while still stabilizing Akari. “Warden, the syrup?” 

Ingo sat himself down in front of Irida and Akari, taking the syrup from its place on his belt, holding it in one hand while the other was on his knee “Shall she take it raw?” He questioned, a bit concerned at the prospect

“I don't have any water. It’ll have to be taken on it’s own” Irida grimaced as she answered, seeing that Akari had once again zoned out 

Ingo internally grimaced as well. Pecha syrup was… thick and very coarse due to how the sugar crystalized. It was, quite obviously, not very pleasant to take as a plain medicine without aids, which is why typically it was served with a fragrant and flavorful tea or simply mixed with hot water to make it go down easier. That was simply not an option here. 

“Okay” Ingo nodded, thinking mostly to himself as he uncapped the syrup bottle. He reached for the girl, giving her cheek a little pat to get her attention “Akari?” 

Akari looked back at him, eyes taking a moment to focus “Nuh?” 

“We have to give you the syrup to help you recover, post haste” Ingo explained, holding up the bottle so she could see it. She stared at it for a moment, confused and trying to figure out what it was. Was her vision too fuzzy?

“.. ‘sit gross?” she weakly asked

“Its taste is currently irrelevant” Ingo answered “It is a medicine you need, so its taste does not matter” 

Akari’s expression soured at that - despite her state, she knew what that answer meant. 

“Akari” Irida admonished lightly, hand still firm on her shoulder, barely shaking her to get her attention on the clan leader. “Don’t you want to feel better? You need to take the medicine if you want to stop feeling so awful.” 

The girl groaned, her head lolling a bit in its nausea, but the unpleasant expression remained.

Irida reached with her free hand, lifting the girl’s head back up straight “Sweet Sinnoh.... This poison is really knocking you out…” She muttered in concern. “I’ve never seen anyone get like this before…”  

Ingo shared in the worry, eyes flitting from the girl's eyes to Irida’s concerned gaze. Most people only sounded slightly ill and maybe got a bit delirious for no more than a half hour, but Akari seemed completely out of it- absolutely sick, even! It was a bizarre reaction. She sounded as if she had a nasty head cold

“I will administer the syrup, please hold her steady, Lady Irida” Ingo instructed “She has to stay upright” 

“Right!” the clan leader nodded, clearly determined to help

Irida gently pulled Akari into a slightly more upright position, lifting her head right under the girl's chin to keep it tilted up. 

“Akari?” Ingo called out once more for her attention

The girl groaned, but managed to look at him. 

“Stay as still as you can,” Ingo warned. She seemed to hear him and understand him, but the vague haze over her eyes was continuing to be concerning. 

“I’ve got her still, Warden. Give her the medicine” Irida practically ordered, looking oddly nervous - though Ingo understood the worry. 

Ingo stopped his hesitation at her instruction, tipping the small glassware that housed the bitter syrup into Akari’s mouth. 

She - quite valiantly - didn’t gag at the unpleasant taste and texture, and leaned her weight against Irida once she’d swallowed the medicinal syrup. Irida held her up with little effort.

“There. You’ll be better in no time” Irida gently cooed to the girl in an attempt to comfort her. Akari only responded by letting out a distressed whine and making a rather disgusted face. 

“What is the nearest encampment?” Ingo looked to Irida as he continued speaking, though one hand remained on Akari’s chin to keep her head tilted up - just in case. “She needs to rest comfortably. The nights are well below acceptable temperature this time of year - I will admit that I do not think the field camp is a safe place for her to recuperate.” 

“Hm…. that camp is too far from her.” She responded “I suppose I could try to get her to the settlement…” Irida contemplated “But the closest place is either your Warden quarters… or the one at Lord Electrodes seat.” 

“...That settles it then.” Ingo reached his arms under Akari to lift her quite suddenly, startling Irida, who nearly fell over on her side. 

“Huh?” Irida stood up, a bit lost “Warden?” 

“She can rest in my quarters. I have a spare cot” Ingo summed up. “I would not trust Warden Melli with her, and the Settlement is too far to move someone who is so distressed.” Ingo explained his reasoning to the clan leader.  

“Ah yes, good idea!” Irida eagerly agreed, nodding “I will go back to the settlement and let everyone know that she is well before coming to see you, perhaps with some more pecha syrup - She’s endeared quite a bit of the village to her! I’m sure they are worried that both of us have not yet returned!” 

Ingo nodded in approval at the instruction and comment. It was good to hear, yes, but he remained focused. “I will await your return to my yurt” he assured. 

“Please do, Warden. Thank you”

And with not much more than a nod, Ingo and Irida went their separate ways, With Ingo carrying the still delirious teenager through the highlands and back to his wardenstead on swift feet - his mind preoccupied with ways to make her comfortable once they got there. 

When Akari finally, fully came around and felt aware enough to take stock of her situation, she realized that all she could really feel was that she felt like shit . Well, more accurately, her stomach and head felt like shit. But those were kind of the only parts that mattered presently, didn’t they?

Her stomach felt as if it was curled up in knots, churning and twisting despite her not moving, and her head was fuzzy and throbbing with a dull pain - as if she was congested to the nth degree. These symptoms all seemed to be one of a stomach flu - she distantly realized The stomachache, the congestion, the headache… 

What had even happened ? 

Akari grumbled as she came more and more into awareness, and turned on her side to get a bearing on where she was - the ceiling was a common yurt ceiling, so real help there on her current location other than not at a base camp. 

“Ah! You’re awake!” announced a familiar voice, making her start to glance around - whoever it was had to be out of sight - whatever blurriness she had notwithstanding, she could see enough to know she was in a home, not a community space. Was it a familiar home?

“Huh?” 

Ingo suddenly came into view, jacket and hat off, hair in a rather loose ponytail - an odd look for him, at least to Akari and her fuzzy vision - eugh, why were her eyes so watery, none of her symptoms were making any sense. 

“Good, you don’t have that colored haze in your eyes, bravo!” Ingo had a rather bright, relieved look in his eyes despite his straight face, but that only confused the girl more. 

Haze…?

“Huh?” was all she managed to respond with - a repeated syllable, unfortunately. 

“Ah, yes, I imagine your memory is a bit fuzzy. One moment” he held up his pointer finger as if to hold her off - And the blurry thing that had been Ingo left her vision. 

Okay then… 

Akari laid there for a while in her mild misery, grumbling and trying not to feel to sick by not moving an inch, but she started to feel a little sore on her arm she was leaning so heavily against while laying on her side- She rolled onto her back 

“Ah! Do be slow about that!” 

She turned her head, confused at the warning.

“Laying on your back too quickly might make your head more upset, so to speak!” Ingo explained “That is, if your headache is caused by what I assume that it is caused by!”

Oh, yeah, no. 

She didn’t want that. 

Forcing herself, she slowly - slowly - turned onto her back, sighing in relief when no further nausea came

“Good, thank you very much for taking my advice, Akari” 

All Akari did was grumble. 

Ingo sighed at the ‘response’ “I know that you are not feeling well.” his tone showed his concern “Please bear through it for a little while longer?” 

“... Do I have to?” she manages to say, the nausea clear in her tone as she shuts her eyes and whines.

“Indeed you must, Miss Akari” 

The girl whimpered pitifully at the very idea of it, eyes remaining closed, and she mumbled “... m’head hurts a lot…” 

Ingo looked back to her as she complained, that worry rising up in his mind once again - why was she so affected by the paras poison? And in such an unusual way? He decided - as she seemed aware enough - to pry, just a little, turning his attention more to her. 

“Akari.. Have you ever been in a situation with Paras before?” Ingo asked, finishing up at the hearth. 

The girl thought about it as Ingo returned to her bedside, holding something in one hand. A bowl? A cup? She couldn’t tell, her vision was just a touch too fuzzy - not as fuzzy as before, but fuzzy enough that specific details were lost on her sight. 

“Uh… I don’t… know?” She admitted, “ Maybe… I just.. Know that when I saw them get startled…  I felt like I had to run… but I stayed cause I had to do research .. i think?” She tried to recall what happened “… bad idea…” 

“Hm… it seems your instincts know that you should not be around them. I wonder why… ” Ingo contemplated. Coming over to her and sitting down at the edge of the cot. She glanced at him, still looking exhausted and oddly sick.  

“Urhg… hell if I know… “ she tried to take a deep breath, but the headache made it difficult to hold. “Just… eugh…” 

“I know, Akari.” He acknowledged “Please hold on. I have made you something that will help.” Ingo assuaged her, free hand rubbing her shoulder. It felt nice.  

“... s’it tea?” She questioned

“It is, yes” Ingo confirmed - “Regular Tea with added Pecha syrup and some honey”

“Oh…. uh, does it have.. Uhm… leaves?” She strangely questioned

Ingo raised an eyebrow at that. “Most teas do” 

She pouted. 

Ah. that hadn’t been what she meant. 

“Hm…” Ingo thought on the question “Do you mean a certain type of leaves?” Ingo asked, attempting to get some clarification.

She thought about it “... mhm, y-yeah.. Certain… kinds… ”

“Ah… well, I can share the recipe with you later - it is quite a relaxing blend” Ingo reassured.”If you would like”  

She didn’t respond to the statement-slash-offer, and Ingo sighed. Seemed she’d used all her energy for talking. He let his mind return to its thought process as silence came over his home again. 

He managed to sit her up and give her some of the tea, but didn’t linger, letting her slowly lay back down and fell into that light sleep.

It was for the better, he needed to think, and she needed to rest. Win-win 

A few hours later, there was a familiar face at the opening of Ingo’s yurt, looking much less haggard than before, but somehow still as nervous. 

“Warden?” 

Ingo turned around from his seat by the hearth, holding up a finger to his lips as he saw Irida enter. She gave him a confused look, head tilt and all. 

“Hm?” 

He pointed to his right, not speaking in reply. 

Irida’s eyes followed the direction of his finger, and spotted Akari, fast asleep on her side - her breaths visually a bit shallow, but otherwise fine - though from this distance she couldn’t see how much better Akari was faring.

Ah. That's why. 

Irida nodded in understanding, but walked in regardless, getting close but not too close to the warden, so that she could talk without raising her voice.. 

“How is she?” The clan leader asked in a hushed tone. 

“Better” Ingo assured, his tone quieter than Irida had ever heard. It nearly gave her pause - her surprise was obvious “... What?” 

“You are… very quiet. It's unlike you” Irida pointed out

Ingo made his own confused face at her observation, then shrugged “I have not needed to be quiet until now.” 

Irida seemed skeptical at the statement - but she wasn’t about to start any sort of argument with him about appropriate volumes at this juncture “Well…. Okay then” She let that thread of conversation die right then and there, and turned her attention back to Akari. 

She approached the sleeping teenager, and gave her a better once-over than she could have from the yurt entrance. Akari’s face was still slightly flushed, but it looked loads better than it had several hours ago - lighter and less blotchy. She was also carefully sleeping on her side, and her breaths - while not great - were steady. That was good.

“Goodness… She’s really wiped out” Irida sighed, carefully taking a seat at the edge of the bed “How did she get so sick from the paras toxin? Its very unusual, even children don’t get this bad…” 

“... I think that she might be allergic to it” 

Irida turned her head to face Ingo at his voiced suspicion. His eyes did not leave the fire he was tending to

“What?”  

“She seemed to.. Almost have a memory, for a moment.” Ingo clarified “Recalling something from her past. An aversion. Most people do not have aversions to certain pokemon without cause.” 

Ohhh, that piqued Irida’s interest. 

“A memory?? She remembered something??” Irida practically jumped at the news, startling Ingo, who raised his finger to his lips

“Shhhhhh! ” 

Irida shut her mouth with a little embarrassment, suddenly remembering her volume and the reason they were speaking quietly

My, how the tables have turned. 

“Sorry...” she lowered her tone yet again, trying to temper her excitement beside herself. “But. really?” 

Ingo nodded, his eyes showing how serious he was being “... She seemed.. Upset, that she couldn’t recall anything more. We must be gentle” 

Irida nodded, taking that warning quite seriously. Irida had been there the last time Akari had remembered something important, and the way it had gone, she hadn’t talked to anyone for days… At least, according to Palina - who had been there at the time while Akari was surveying at the coastlands right after she left the Pearl Clan Settlement. 

It was because she’d remembered her mother.

Irida could understand why she was so upset at the revelation. 

“Is she improving well? Or is it slow-going?” Irida changed the subject

“She is much better, but I feel the allergy - if that is what it is - is making it worse than it otherwise would have been. We are lucky that this theoretical allergy is mild” Ingo answered, adding more fuel to his hearth. 

Irida simply nodded, then looked back at Akari’s sleeping face “Does she need more medicine? Do you have enough Pecha syrup? I can get you more” 

“She will need some more of it very soon… Could you perhaps wake her up while I get the pecha syrup ready? I’ve been brewing it in tea, and she took it well last time.” 

Ah, he does that to make it easier to take. Smart. 

“Got it, you get it ready, I’ll get her upright” Irida assured with a nod. 

Ingo just gave her a reciprocated nod before he returned his attention to the tea he was making, and Irida took a deep breath. She just had to be calm, gentle, and wake her up without startling her - she could definitely do it! Just wake her up, and help her sit up. Why was she nervous about this?

Raising her hand and placing a hand on Akari’s shoulder, Irida began very gently shaking her, not wanting to shake her too much. 

“Akari..? Can you wake up, please?” Irida tried not to raise her voice too loud “We want to help you get better… Can you please open your eyes?” 

Though it took a few seconds of shaking, Akari let out a soft groan, shifting slightly. Irida didn’t take her hand off of her shoulder as the girl started to wake up. “Akari…?” 

The girl shifted again with a small grumble, before grabbing Irida’s hand, startling the clan leader “Ah?!” Irida squeaked

That startled shout pulled the poor girl out of her sleep with some bleary blinking “buh? Huh? Ir’da?” 

Ingo called from the other side of his yurt, his tone showing a bit of concern “Irida, are you alright?” 

“Her hand was freezing!” Irida stuttered, staring down at the girl with some alarm

“Freezing? Akari? That’s a touch odd, but not unheard of. Though I am surprised that you noticed considering your tolerance” He pointed out

Irida contemplated that as Ingo addressed Akari directly. “It is good to see you waking up, Akari. Please, take your time waking up. You need to be more aware to take more medicine” 

At that sentence, she made a disgusted face

“It is in a tea” He reminded.

Her pout didn’t go away. 

Irida sighed at the expression “Akari, please, sit up. The sooner you get the medicine, the sooner you can keep resting, okay?” 

Akari - who was still waking up- just huffed in response, but followed instructions. Irida gave the girl a look-over now that she was sitting up. She did in fact look better, even if her eyes looked irritated and red, and her face was still a bit flush - though perhaps that was an allergic reaction Ingo was theorizing about

Poor thing

“Hey, Akari, did you uhm… remember that you’re allergic to paras?” Irida attempted to ask delicately 

Though it took her a moment to respond - the girl clearly thinking it over - Akari nodded. 

“Oh… that uh… really sucks” Irida managed in response. 

Akari took in her words for a moment, before snorting out a weak laugh. “Uh huh” 

“Quite succinct of you, Lady Irida” Ingo commented, a bit of mirth in his voice. “It does seem to suck quite a bit” 

She almost felt embarrassed, if not for Akari’s light giggles. That had been the most positive emotion she’d seen from Akari in… more than a good while. It was nice to hear, even if she still sounded a little ill. 

“Do you think you can drink a little water? It might make you feel a little better before you take the tea.” Irida reasoned, reaching for her water skin. 

The girl seemed to contemplate it, and nodded. “Please…” 

Irida stayed right next to Akari as she took a drink of water from the clan leaders water skin, and then she yawned, looking much more awake, but still rather tired.. 

“How are you still sleepy after sleeping so much?” Irida lightly teased. 

The sick-looking girl grumbled in response intelligibly, leaning against Irida, who laughed a little at the action, taking the weight in stride

“Lay down, Akari. It’s okay” Irida encouraged

“She can’t lay down yet, she needs her medicinal tea first” Ingo reminded

“Oh, right” Irida huffed. “Why are you leaning on me, Akari? Still feeling dizzy?” 

“Warm” Was all Akari responded with 

“Hm? I'm warm?” 

“Mhm… m’cold” 

“To be honest, I think it's a little hot in here.” Irida admitted

“Lady Irida, with all due respect, you are hot unless you are quite literally on top of the Legacy” Ingo commented, getting a chuckle out of the clan leader

“I suppose that’s right. Goes to show Gaeric and I really are cousins” 

“Cuz’in’s?” The leaning teenager questioned 

“Mhm. Our fathers were brothers” Irida explained “We grew up together! Do you think you had any cousins, Akari?” 

“Hm.. not that i ‘member.. No siblin’s neither” She attempted to recall. 

“Hm… Well, I am also an only child, so that’s not a bad thing” Irida assured, then looked to Ingo “Warden! Do you think you had any cousins or siblings?” 

The warden gave a contemplative expression - at least, from what Irida could see in his eyes - and he hummed “Hm… I think so. There is this …this feeling .. telling me that I had a sibling, more than anything else, even if my memory eludes me” He admitted “it is certainly not a cousin, I think”

“Hm.. was he older or younger, do you think?” Irida questioned.

Ingo tilted his head just a bit “He?” 

“Oh, sorry! I didn’t mean to assume!” Irida nervously backtracked

Ingo furrowed his brow “No, it’s alright... I think…that you are right ” 

“... What ?” That seemed to get Akari’s attention, her voice raising a tad in surprise. 

“I think that you are right, Irida” Ingo repeated “I think that.. I had a brother… yes… yes, he wore white, and loved winning more than anything else.” 

“You mentioned some’a that…” Akari pointed out “in the cave… when you.. Talked so I wasn’t scared…” 

Oh?? Irida hadn’t known that he’d remembered that. She looked from Akari to Ingo, giving her warden a surprised grin “What - really? Amazing! Ingo, that’s amazing, you remembered more!” 

“Ah - Lady Irida-” 

Before Ingo could remind her, Akari whined at the raised voice.

Right. Volume. 

“Ah…. Sorry Akari” Irida lowered her voice yet again. 

Akari grumbled a bit, but responded with an “‘s fine” 

It clearly wasn’t, but (luckily?) Irida could tell that she was starting to overstay her welcome - Akari needed the pecha tea, and she needed to continue to sleep off the poison’s effects. At least, thats how everyone else recovered.

“Okay.. I’ll leave you two be.” Irida gently pushed Akari upright, and stood up.

“You are welcome in my home anytime, lady Irida” Ingo nodded to her. “Take care. Mind your space”

“Thank you, Warden - you as well.” She gave a smile to the sick survey corps member “Feel better, Akari” 

Akari gave her a thumbs up, making Irida chuckle before she left the warden’s yurt, just as Ingo came over to her bedside with the prepared tea. 

Eugh. 

Akari started feeling much, much better when she woke up from her second nap, the wake up slow but without any of the bleariness of before. 

So much so that when she sat up she didn’t feel nauseous. 

…. Good!

Looking around the yurt, she saw that Ingo wasn’t inside, and saw that the tent was still open. 

“... Hello?” 

It took a few seconds, but Ingo responded from outside “Ah, Miss Akari!” The man leaned into the tent to look at her “Good to see you awake! How do you feel?” 

“Uh, better! Like, way, way, waaaaaaaaay better!” She responded honestly. 

“Wonderful to hear! That means that you are over the poison - least, for the most part! Would you like to get up?” 

“Uh, yeah, I do.” She stretched, letting out a yawn before moving her legs off the cot, giving them a kick or two to get the blood flowing. 

Ingo walked fully inside of his home, giving the girl a rather pleasant expression despite his cautious words “Do be careful. Getting up too quickly might make you dizzy” 

Akari nodded, and took a deep breath, before slowly standing up. After a few seconds of standing with no dizziness, she looked to Ingo with a grin “All better!” 

Ingo chuckled a bit at her triumph “Indeed! Do come outside, I am cooking some food, if you are hungry” 

“Oooh, yes please!” She grinned at the prospect of real food. 

Once she was outside, and offered some substantial food (A stew! Ingo made really good stew), Ingo spoke more substantially “Akari, I do have a question” 

“Hm?” 

“.. How exactly were you affected by the paras’ pollen?” he asked “Irida claims it was a startled stantler, But I am… skeptical” 

“Hm? What did she say?” Akari tilted her head, pausing in her eating. 

“That you were observing the paras, and a stantler startled them right near your hiding place” 

Akari furrowed her brow “.. That's not what happened - not exactly, at least” 

“Ah… I suspected such. Can you please inform me?” Ingo requested. 

Akari seemed to contemplate if she should, before shrugging, deeming it not too big of a deal. An interesting reaction, certainly. 

“To say it pretty bluntly, it's Irida’s fault,” She admitted. “Well, kinda. I don’t really blame her, but she did cause it”

Ingo blinked “... Care to elaborate further?” 

“Well, it's pretty simple” Akari shrugged again “She scared the stantler, who scared the paras.”

Ah… that was pretty simple. 

“Was she with you, or was she out by herself?” 

“She was with me. I was in the settlement, she wanted to see what it was like to survey in the highlands” Akari explained, before sighing deeply “It wasn’t really her fault. Stantler are easy to scare! But I think she felt guilty and nervous” 

That.. added up quite quickly. Irida was a good leader, but she was a new one, and that led her to freak out whenever something went wrong, from mild to serious. He could see what happened scene for scene in his mind's eye: 

Irida wishes to join Akari out in the field for a day - if only because she is curious, and wants to learn more about Akari. They go out, everything is fine and dandy, until Irida gets nervous concerning the studying of the paras. She perhaps jolts when one of them moves wrong, startling a nearby stantler, and causing the dispersal of poisonous pollen.

She panicked, and left Akari with her pokemon to go get him, because despite being a leader, sometimes you need an adult. 

“.. Well… How do you feel about that?” 

The young survey corps member thought about it for a while as she ate her stew, only answering once she was done with the bite “Well… I know she didn’t mean it. She was scared. I just - Eh, just admit it? I don’t even care about an apology or anything, but I don’t like that she lied to you about it.. Like, by omission” 

“She should take responsibility, yes,” Ingo agreed with a rather serious nod “I will see about talking to her. She might be nervous about it” 

“Nervous? About what?” 

“To admit that she was wrong.” Ingo clarified, getting a knowing nod from Akari as she thought about it. 

“Hm, I guess that makes sense. Being wrong can be dangerous around here…” 

“That is sometimes true, but one cannot become better if mistakes are not made. I wish that she was not so insecure” Ingo pondered, taking a sip of his stew broth

Akari just shrugged in response “It’s over now. I’m not gonna dwell on it. Can’t really afford to. Got too much work” 

The bitterness in her tone was telling, but Ingo thought better than to address it - at least, for right now. 

“More?” He motioned to the pot, still over the fire, which perked the girl right up

“Ooh, yes please!” 

It was nearly a week before Ingo was back at the Pearl Clan settlement for his typical supply run. Despite that being quite some time, Ingo thought it was ideal. It meant that the event was behind all of them - which also meant that, just maybe, Irida would not be too defensive when he attempted to bring it up with her. 

Sweet Sinnoh, he prayed she wouldn’t get too defensive. 

“Warden Gaeric!” Ingo called out “Hello there!”

The blue-haired warden looked up from the snorunt he was assisting “Ah, Hello! Here for some supplies?” Gaeric asked “Haven’t seen you in a while!”

“Indeed I am. I am out of Pecha syrup after an… incident, several days ago” Ingo explained. “As well as being low on some other supplies”

“Ah yes, Irida told me about-” 

“ Wardens !” 

Both of them turned their heads as Irida approached them, her expression showing some surprise at seeing them.

“Quite rare for so many wardens to be here at the same time” She pointed out with a pleasant smile.

“Hm? It's only the two of us” Ingo pointed out 

“Actually, Lian is also here, he’s with his mother” Irida pointed out - her finger aimed at Lian’s family tent.

“Ah, that is unusual!” Gaeric nodded, picking up the snorunt. “It is nice to hear he is visiting, however!”

“Indeed it is.” Ingo agreed “But it is quite fortuitous that you approached! I wish to speak with you privately, Lady Irida” 

“Oh? What for?” 

Something in her tone told Ingo she knew exactly ‘What for’, but he played along. 

“It is about Akari and the incident from last week” He clarified, getting a curious look from Gaeric

“Ah.. come along then” Irida looked to Gaeric, giving him a nod before turning back around and motioning for Ingo to follow.

Irida led Ingo over to her tent, which was luckily empty at this hour of the day. Irida walked all the way in - over to her bed- and Ingo did the courtesy of closing the tent for privacy behind him before walking over, continuing to stand as she sat down, facing him. 

Ingo took a breath “I do not believe that I need to tell you that Akari told me what really happened that day with the paras” 

Irida sighed “.. Yes, I know. I’m not surprised - you seemed suspicious from the very start of my retellings.” 

“Would you like to tell me your perspective?” Ingo asked the leading question with a tilt of his head.

The clan leader looked at him with what seemed like a suspicious expression. “Why do you need that since Akari told you what happened?” 

“Because I want to know how you felt about it, Lady Irida” 

Her skepticism towards his intention with asking was still clear, but the hardness in her gaze softened. 

“... I wanted to understand her” Irida started, hands in her lap, eyes down as she recalled the day “I had a talk with Kamado, he seems to be suspicious of her.. And I am too. People do not just fall from the sky with no memories…” 

Ingo didn’t bother to point out his own situation, but he did level an inquisitive look at her for that last sentence, though she didn’t notice. 

“But I knew that she was good. Even with my suspicion, I could see that she was good.. I just wanted to see what her surveying entailed to understand what she loved about it so much. I wanted to come along, and she let me” She looked back up at him

Ingo nodded, encouraging her to continue. 

“She was so calm around the pokemon. She snuck around as if she was a ghost type, getting so close to them… I watched from a little further away. I got so nervous that she was getting too close to them, that she might get hurt…” 

“Did she try to calm you?” 

“Not much, actually?” Irida admitted with an awkward laugh “She just said “no need to worry!” and got right back to getting far too close to some poison types… she didn’t seem very bothered at all.” 

Ingo snorted in amusement “That does sound like her” he admitted with a rather light shrug “Where did the Stantler come from, though?”

“It had wandered near her and the paras, but seemed… focused on her” Irida explained “I’m.. starting to think that it just recognized her, that it didn’t.. Have any ill intent.” She admitted. “At the time, I thought it might have been assessing her as a threat?” 

“So you began to panic, because a wild pokemon was getting too close” Ingo reasoned. 

Irida nodded “and there was a chain reaction once I started acting on my panic… I should have trusted her” 

“.. And yet when you came to me for help, you told me nothing” 

There was a moment of silence between them. And Irida looked away from him, towards the dirt floor

“.... Is it enough to say I was just ashamed?” 

“.. It is, but it is not an apology to Akari for what happened” Ingo reasoned

The young leader let out a huff “.. I will. I will apologize.” She promised. 

“That is all I ask, Lady Irida” Ingo tipped his worn hat to her

Irida sighed, but gave him a smile - looking a little relieved “Thank you for your kindness, Warden. You have always been very perceptive and understanding” 

“You are very welcome, Lady Irida. I understand how this might happen. You are a good person, I couldn’t imagine you doing anything like this on purpose.” He reassured. 

“I would never. Akari will be returning to the settlement to quell Lord Avalugg soon. I will speak with her then.” 

“Ah, That is a good idea. Might you need me here to assist with anything that day?” Ingo offered 

“We should be fine, thank you Warden” Irida assured him “I do not think that necessary” 

Ingo nodded “Then I shall take my leave once I have restocked on pecha syrup - and a few other things…” 

“Please do. Keep your space sacred” 

“You as well, Lady Irida” 

When the warden left the tent, Irida felt a certain level of relief come to her, and she leaned back and fell into her cot. 

Just apologize , that’s all. She can do that. She’s a leader - sometimes leaders are wrong, and sometimes you need to apologize.

If even Adaman can apologize, she can definitely do the same! 

“When I see her again” Irida confirmed with herself “When I see her again” 

The quelling of Lord Avalugg had been chaotic 

And that was the nice way to put it. It was like an earthquake and a pokemon battle had a terrifyingly destructive child.

Irida hated staying at the sidelines, but after the incident in the highlands, she knew she would be more helpful afterwards - or at the very least ready to assist should something go sideways. She had to trust Akari. Akari knew what she was doing - if she needed help, she would say so.

That didn’t mean she wasn’t scared though - Irida could see it in her eyes briefly before she turned around. It felt like she’d done that on purpose, but when Irida attempted to bring it up, the girl just gave her a grin and told her she “didn’t need to worry” - seemed to be a catch phrase at this point.

But oh, Irida did worry. She worried quite a bit. 

Gaeric wasn’t nearly as concerned with the girls ability and safety, at least not on the surface. Then again he didn’t know Akari as well as Irida did - he had no skin in the game, so to speak…

And so Irida watched, heart in her throat, as Akari dodged and weaved and worked together with her pokemon to quell the frenzy of the lord of the legacy.

Despite Gaeric’s initially perceived nonchalance, even he flinched when Akari was nearly stepped on. 

By the time that Avalug’s frenzy was, at last, quelled, the survey corps member looked just about ready to collapse then and there, breath so heavy it looked like her whole body was fighting that desire to fall over. 

“Akari!!” Irida called out, and the girl turned her head, managing a triumphant smile for the clan leader despite her obvious exhaustion

“What did I tell you? No need to worry!” Akari gave a comical thumbs up with her bruised hand.

Irida couldn’t hold back a slightly indignant scoff at her attitude “Akari” 

The girl's expression turned confused. “What?” 

“Excellent work!!” Gaeric interrupted - approaching with a wide, almost proud grin “I’ll admit I was skeptical! But Lord Avalugg truly looks at peace - I cannot thank you enough, despite my .. initial reticence” 

“You’re welcome” Akari gave him a wide grin. 

Irida gently put a hand on Akari’s upper arm “Let’s get you back to the settlement. I want to see if Calaba is available to look you over. If not, There is another medicine person I can ask - you need to be treated for your injuries as soon as possibe”

“Oh uh… okay” 

Irida was surprised at her surprise. But she didn’t react to it too strongly (She hoped) and led Akari back into the settlement camp for treatment, gently pulling her forward with the leader’s hand in the survey corps members. Akari felt colder than a person’s hand really should be, making Irida’s concern spike mildly. 

Calaba was - unfortunately - not in the settlement at the time, but the other medical specialist - Mari -  was available, and was quite happy to assist with Akari, taking her inside of Irida’s tent at the clan leader's request and giving the girl a once over, along with some pain-relieving salve. 

“Well, other than being beaten to the mountain and back, you seem to be quite okay!” Mari concluded optimistically, giving the teenager a sweet but concerned look “but your thigh in particular looks rather bruised. Did you fall on it?” 

Many times. Irida thought a little bitterly. 

“Uh, yeah, I did,” Akari confirmed. “But like, It doesn’t really hur-URT!” 

Just a light hand on the leg made the girl yelp. 

“Don’t lie to my face, honey.” Mari lightly scolded, removing her hand with a stern expression “I'm a mother. I can tell” 

Akari huffed. “.. Sorry, Miss Mari” 

“Thank you, dear.” Mari turned her head back to the clan leader “Irida, sweetheart, could I ask of you to grab one of the pads in the snowmelt?” 

“Gladly” Irida got up, headed out of the tent for just a moment 

The pads - which were simply pokemon hide filled with rice from the mirelands used to alleviate pain - were cold to the touch, and Irida brought one inside for Akari’s leg, holding it without feeling the sting of that cold. She approached just as Mari was continuing her motherly scolding (something everyone younger than 20 was used to in the Pearl Clan, frankly) 

“- and you need to stay off of the leg at least until the sun is four paces from setting!” 

“What - but - I have to get back to Jubilife tonight!” 

“Not with a bruise lookin’ like that you’re not!” 

Oh no. Mari was using the stern mom voice. 

“Mari! I have the pad” Irida interrupted

That immediately got the woman’s attention - stopping her practically mid-sentence.

“Ah, thank you, My lady” Mari took the pack, before turning back to the survey corps member “Now! Stay still, little Akari” 

The girl huffed, but did as she was told. 

Irida watched carefully, somewhat relieved that Mari had that effect on anyone under the age of 30. Being a mother of five would do that to you, Irida imagined. 

“It's okay, Akari, I’ll have someone send word to Jubilife for you so they know where you are.” Irida assured. “You need to rest. You must be aching - that cannot be safe to travel with.”

Akari pouted, but seemed to relent, shoulders slumped slightly “Okay…” 

The clan leader smiled a little nervously, realizing that now - right now - was the perfect time. “Mari? Can I speak to Akari alone now that you've treated her?”

The mother gave Irida an interested look, but nodded “Alright. I’ll be back later to replace the pack, okay?” 

Akari nodded, watching Mari leave the tent before her eyes fell on Irida with a particular expression. 

Why was she nervous?

“So, Akari…” Irida started “I wanted to talk to you about what happened several days ago.” 

“.. What thing? What happened?” 

“The… Paras incident” Irida clarified

“Oh…” Akari squirmed a little, holding the pad in place on her leg. 

Irida sighed, taking a seat next to - but not too close to - Akari “I wanted to… I wanted to apologize” 

Now she looked confused “...For what?” 

“.. What do you mean for what??” 

“I mean what I mean - what are you apologizing to me for?”

“... For getting scared and getting you poisoned?? By something you’re allergic to?? That we only learned about *because I scared the pokemon and got you poisoned??” 

Akari gave a slight head tilt - and asked, “Did you do it on purpose?” 

“Wh - no! But I didn’t trust you” Irida pressed “I panicked because I didn’t listen to you. It was my fault” 

“But you didn’t mean it” Akari pressed right back, still looking confused “I don’t care that you did it. Bad things happen sometimes” 

Irida huffed - she was going to have to admit to lying to Ingo, right? She had to, for Akari to understand. She wanted Akari to understand. 

“No I just…. I’m sorry because when I initially got Ingo to help you, I lied to him. I said it was caused by the stantler.. Not by me” 

Akari’s expression gave way, showing a bit of surprise, but not nearly as much as Irida had been expecting 

“... Okay?” 

Now it was Irida’s turn to look confused. “.. Okay? What do you mean “okay”?” 

“... It’s okay” Akari shrugged. “I forgive you. It's not a big deal” 

“Really... That’s it?” 

“.. Yup. That's it” Akari nodded with a rather nonchalant shrug “You look… mad about it, for some reason?” 

.. Did she?

“.. Do I?” 

“Yeah. Like, really angry… Did I do something?” Akari’s tone seemed unsure

Irida suddenly felt.. Nervous? “No! No, you didn’t do anything, I'm just..” 

Akari furrowed her brow “Just what?” 

Oh, god this was getting too difficult to parse out without feeling like a buffoon. 

Mari popped her head in “Excuse me, you two!”

Irida thanked Sinnoh for the distraction “Yes! Yes, Mari?” 

“Oh, supper is ready. I thought both of you might want to eat - been quite a day, hm?” the woman encouraged with a wave of her arm

Yes. Food. Perfect.

“I could eat! I’m starved!!” Irida announced rather loudly. “Akari?” 

Akari paused in thought before asking “Will there be dumplings?” 

“Of course!” Mari answered, seeing Akari’s face light up - Pearl Clan dumplings were her favorite! (other than Diamond Clan noodles, but shh, Irida didn’t need to know that) 

“Let's go then!” Irida encouraged “Can you get up, Akari? We’ll get you some help if you need it, of course!!” 

Akari thought for a moment, and took a deep breath. nodding. “Yeah, I can do it,” She stated. The girl then stood up to make a point, and gave a thumbs up “Let’s eat!” 

Irida was relieved that she had some time to think about Akari’s reaction to her apology thanks to the supper meal. 

As she watched the girl mingle with the visiting wardens (Palina and Lian) while getting her share of the food, Irida took a deep breath, eating some of the stew she’d been craving. Her eyes staring beyond her people to allow herself to think more clearly.

Was this… something that even needed addressing anymore? The incident was over and done with now?

They’d spoken about it at length, and sure, Irida hadn’t understood how quickly Akari was willing to forgive her transgression, but what good was lingering on something like this? There really was nothing else to talk about on the matter now that they’d gone over the main, concerning detail. 

Not to borrow the words of the lesser clan leader, but time was being wasted thinking like that. 

Irida was going to let herself think on it a little more just to make sure she’d thought everything one more time, then bring it up again with Akari if needed. She had time. 

When the survey corp member’s eyes met hers, Akari gave her a pleasant grin before she dug into more of her dumplings, getting a chuckle from Irida, who took a sip of her stew in response and let the warmth settle. 

Yeah, they had plenty of time, now that all the nobles were quelled. 

She’d close up that empty space soon enough.