Dawn was taking a lot longer than normal to come back out of the prep tent and I felt an amused grin spread across my face as I recalled her spiky, glittering hair. As soon as I had gotten to her she'd already pulled it into a braid but seeing it up close in its glittering glory had been too much for me to handle. Her obvious misery made me want to mess with her a little bit, but in the back of my mind, I was really just relieved that she hadn't suffered any permanent damage from being on Arcanine when he used Wild Charge.

Traavi walked out of the prep tent and was immediately surrounded by a crowd of girls. I was about to look away when Traavi raised his head and glared over at me. Furrowing my brow I felt myself return his glare, wondering what had gotten into him. A brief feeling of jealousy gripped me as I realized that Traavi had probably been talking to Dawn inside the tent. He turned his back on me and walked away, trailing girls behind him like a Swanna with her Ducklett's and I shoved aside the ridiculous jealousy.

When Dawn finally came out her makeup was gone and she had tamed her hair, but it was still sparkling as if a star had exploded and gotten trapped in every strand. It's actually kind of pretty, I thought, and then immediately pinched myself. Those kinds of thoughts are not welcome, I told myself firmly as she scanned the crowd and smiled when she saw me. Most of the crowd had already left by now so she made her way over to me with relative ease.

"Lana is going to give us our petals at the PokeCenter in a little bit," Dawn said as a greeting.

I nodded, relieved that we wouldn't have to go back to Brooklet Hill to find the thieving midget. We walked to the Pokemon Center together and as we got close a familiar girl with blue hair burst out of the doors and waved exuberantly at us.

"Daaaawwnnnnn! Paaauuuullll! Over heeerrreee!" she called as if we were miles away and I felt my jaw tighten with annoyance. 

This girl is crazy, I thought as she rushed over to us and began to rock on her feet.

"Hey Lana. Thank you for getting the petals so quickly," Dawn said and Lana grinned in a self-satisfied way.

"You're welcome! Here they are." Lana held up two small glass vials with a long blue petal in the center. I took mine cautiously, watching her with narrowed eyes to make sure she didn't try to attach herself to my arm again.

"How has your island challenge been going?" she asked happily and Dawn explained some of the highlights. Before they could get too into it I nudged Dawn's arm with my elbow and she looked up at me with surprise.

"We need to get going now," I said and then frowned as Lana gave me a knowing smile.

"You two are a 'we' now? I thought you said you weren't dating?" she said teasingly and I glared down at the infuriating midget, wondering if I had ever disliked someone more.

"Paul is teaching me how to be a better trainer," Dawn explained and I told myself that there was no way I was feeling anything even close to disappointment as she said that.

"Well, then you two have fun being a we," Lana said with obvious pleasure and she skipped away before I could growl at her.

Dawn and I made good time to Lush Jungle, spending the whole day traveling and foregoing training and lessons so that we could get the petals and return to our island challenge as quickly as possible. Luckily when we visited Mallow in the Lush Jungle Kiawe was there too and we were able to get both of their petals. 

The trip to Melemele island was uneventful and we also found Ilima without any issue. It took some fast talking to convince Dawn that we should move on to Ula'ula without seeing Hau and Mrs. Jun, but she eventually agreed. We had been traveling between islands for nearly a week when we left the Hokulani Observatory with Sophocles's small yellow petal in our possession.

Wanting to avoid any memory of the night where Dawn had slept in my room and then the day after when I snapped at her, I convinced Dawn to start out for the mountain pass without stopping at the Pokemon Center. As the sun began to set and we hadn't even made it to the Hana Desert yet, Dawn suggested we make camp and I agreed. I guided my mudsdale off the path in search of some kind of water. We had just started setting up camp when Dawn paused and looked up with a concerned expression on her face.

"Did you hear that?" Dawn asked.

I stopped and listened, but I didn't hear anything besides the burbling of the small stream we had found.

"No. What did you hear?" I asked and Dawn rose up to her feet, looking around her.

"I thought I heard something crying," she said with obvious concern and I rolled my eyes.

"If it's a pokemon they'll be fine," I said easily and Dawn frowned at me.

"Just because they have moves that they can use doesn't mean they can take care of themselves in every situation," she scolded me sternly before walking away.

"Where are you going?" I called after her.

"I'm going to see what the sound was, obviously," she called over her shoulder.

I sighed, quickly returning my sleeping bag and fire starter kit to their storage capsule before I followed after her. I was just about to say she was overreacting when the sound of a child's cry floated towards me in the wind. Dawn looked up at me with concern and this time I didn't question her as we quickly made our way towards the sound. As we jogged through the rocky mountain plain Dawn spotted a small path that led downhill and onto a small stretch of beach. The sound of crying was getting louder and Dawn hurriedly jogged down the small hill and onto the beach where we both looked up and down the small area.

The cry came again. Turning I frowned as I saw a group of Staryu all standing in a circle. Dawn took off towards the staryu and I was quick to follow behind her. As we got closer I could see a small girl, who didn't look any older than 2 or 3, sitting on the beach and crying her eyes out as the staryu surrounded her. Without pausing for a moment Dawn leaped over one of the Staryu and knelt down in the middle of their circle, reaching out and stroking the little island girl's black hair while murmuring softly to the crying child.

"Hey, little one. Shhh, it's okay." 

To my relief the staryu backed up, seeming to be glad that someone had come to comfort the little intruder. I watched as they began waddling away, some to bury themselves in the sand of the beach and others to go swimming in the ocean.

The little one was still crying and I watched awkwardly as Dawn reached out and gathered her into her arms. Almost instantly the little girl wrapped her arms tightly around Dawn's neck but she continued to cry as Dawn rubbed her back and murmured soothingly to her.

"Where do you think she came from?" I asked, glancing around the small beach.

"She couldn't have wandered all the way from Tapu Village, could she?" Dawn asked with obvious worry and I shook my head.

"No way, that's almost a two-day walk from here," I said dismissively and looked over at the setting sun.

"Paul, could you get a mago berry out of my bag?" Dawn asked.

I walked over to where she had just stood up and was rocking the small crying girl softly. Gingerly I moved her hair that was spilled over the top of her backpack and tried not to think of how soft it was. After rummaging a little bit I saw the storage capsule she used for her berries and called the image of a mago berry into my mind. Pressing the button quickly, I was happy to see a single berry appear in the palm of my hand and I showed it to Dawn. She smiled at me and then gently pried the little girl's hands from around her neck and wiped her little cheeks before pointing at the berry in my hands.

"Are you hungry?" she asked softly.

The little girl's lip trembled as she looked at me and the berry in my hand. She shrunk away pressing her little body closer to Dawn. Is she scared of me? I wondered.

Dawn reached out and took the berry from my hand and then waved it in front of the little girl's tearstained face. She sniffled but took the curved pink berry with a yellow tip and took a small bite.

"Wasn't there a small settlement outside of the Haina Desert?" Dawn asked me as the little girl curled up against her and nibbled on the berry.

"The trailer park?" I asked and Dawn nodded.

"Maybe this little one is from there. That's not too far of a walk," Dawn reasoned and I nodded.

"It's worth a try. Should we go back for the mudsdale?" I asked and Dawn bit her bottom lip.

"I'm not sure I would feel safe riding a mudsdale with her in my arms," she said and I nodded.

"We didn't tie them up, so if we leave them there they'll eventually go back to the stable," I said and Dawn nodded so we began walking. 

The little girl ended up eating three more mago berries before she fell asleep, her head snuggled against Dawn's neck.

"Is she getting heavy?" I asked, slightly concerned. 

Dawn smiled up at me in the moonlight and I blinked. Looking at Dawn with a small child curled up in her arms for some reason made me feel... peaceful.

"A little, but I don't want to wake her up," Dawn whispered and I nodded. "We've been walking for almost an hour, I wonder how she got all the way out here."

"Who knows," I replied softly. 

As we walked along the rocky path I heard a distant yell. Dawn looked up at me and I nodded, confirming that I had heard it. We picked up our pace and followed the sound of the voice. As it got closer it became obvious that it was a male voice and it seemed to be calling out the word "Nani" repeatedly.

"Hello!" Dawn yelled while covering the little girl's ear. "Over here!" 

The rocky path ahead of us had a sharp bend and as the little girl began to stir a man ran around the bend. He stopped, looking at me, Dawn, and the little girl in Dawn's arms, before sprinting over to us. He scooped the little girl from Dawn's arms and pulled her into a fierce hug, tears streaming down his face as the groggy girl blinked and patted his cheeks.

"Thank you so much for finding her!" the man said shakily after he had kissed his daughter multiple times.

"We found her at the beach almost an hour from here," I said with a hard edge to my tone. Dawn frowned at me but the man looked truly repentant.

"I was supposed to be watching her today. My wife wanted to go shopping without Nani causing trouble and after I put her down for her nap I got distracted by a project I was working on. The next thing I knew my wife was home and Nani was nowhere to be seen."

"I'm glad we were able to help," Dawn said gently and he smiled gratefully at her and then at me.

"Would you two like to stay the night with my wife and me? It's the least we could do to thank you," he said sincerely and I frowned.

"There's no need for that..." I started to say when little Nani peeked up from where she had been hugging her dad and stretched a hand out to Dawn, squealing happily at her. Glancing down I saw Dawn smile gently and reach a hand out to the little girl so she could hold onto two of her fingers.

"Please come. It looks like Nani likes you," the man said with a smile.

After glancing at me for only a second Dawn agreed. Sighing I followed Dawn and the man, who introduced himself as Makani, to the small trailer park that was set up just a little ways from Haina Desert. Makani's wife was pacing outside of their trailer home and when she saw Makani walking up she also sprinted over and threw herself into her husband's arms, kissing her daughter and crying tears of relief.

The scene made me feel strange as I thought of my own parents. Mom had always been affectionate, but I didn't have many memories of my dad since he only visited once or twice a year after he became Champion. Would Papa have helped my mom look for me if I was lost? I found myself wondering but I was pulled out of my thoughts as a gentle hand brushed against mine.

Looking down I saw that Dawn was loosely holding the back of my wrist as she watched the reunited family hug each other. Her expression seemed happy and content, and I wondered if she even realized that she was touching me. A large part of me wanted to turn my hand around and hold her smaller one in mine, but as I mentally battled myself over the wisdom of that action Dawn glanced down and moved her hand away from me, mumbling an apology.

Makani's wife, Nalani, also insisted that we stay the night with them and I soon found myself sitting way too close to Dawn around a tiny table and eating a creamy soup for dinner. Now that Nani was home she had transformed into a happy child and she was constantly slipping off her mother's lap to come to tap Dawn's leg until she lifted her up and let her sit with her. I watched Dawn interact with the small human being and was surprised that her expression when she looked at Nani was almost identical to how she used to look at Eevee when she was recently hatched.

She really does treat her pokemon like they are her family, I thought. 

My attention was diverted from my strange thoughts as Makani explained that he worked at the Geothermal Power Plant. The project he had been working on when he lost track of Nani used alolan geodudes that were part electric type and I found myself asking him for more details about them and their capabilities. 

Makani actually owned a geodude so he took me outside and released it, showing me how they were able to generate electricity with the spikes on their heads. I took mental notes so that if I ever had to battle one I would have a plan of action, but as we discussed the geodude my eyes would raise to the window where I could glimpse Dawn's smiling face as she chased Nani around the small trailer.

"Is Dawn your girlfriend?" Makani suddenly asked and I jerked back, turning to look at Makani and his open smile.

"No," I said simply and Makani nodded.

"I just asked because Nalani and I used to travel around when we were younger too," Makani said with a wistful smile.

"How did you two start dating?" I heard myself ask and I instantly regretted it. What did I care about someone else's love story?

"I've always been in love with Nalani," he admitted with a foolish grin. "We grew up together in Konikoni city and she always said that she wanted to become a pokemon researcher. She was always reading these complicated articles about pokemon fossils and I tagged along with her as she traveled around trying to discover a new fossil pokemon."

"Did she find one?" I asked, interested despite myself and Makani looked away

"No. When we were sixteen I confessed my feelings for her and she said that if I thought she let me travel with her because we were just friends then I was an idiot. We traveled for a few more years as a couple and I found my passion for electricity and its manipulation and she said that it was her turn to follow me. We got married, settled down here close to the power plant, and we had Nani." 

Makani looked up at the lit window of the trailer where Nalani was spinning Nani around in a circle.

"Sometimes I feel like I robbed Nalani of her chance to make her dream come true," Makani said sadly.

I felt my heart clench as my thoughts instantly went to my mom. She had fanatically supported my dad in his dream of becoming a champion, but when it had finally happened things hadn't been the way she expected. An image of my mother crying by herself came to my mind and I closed my eyes, wishing that would make the memory go away.

"But I couldn't imagine my life without her," Makani continued, pulling me from my thoughts. He looked up at me and smiled happily. "I'm a really lucky guy."

"Darling, it's almost bedtime!" Nalani's clear voice called from the doorway of the trailer home and Makani waved at her, returning his geodude and giving me a conspiratorial smile.

"There's nothing better than having your best friend around you every day. Just... food for thought," Makani said before turning to head into the trailer home. 

I trailed after him, thinking deeply about his story and what he was trying to hint at. As I walked through the door my eyes immediately went to Dawn, who seemed to be teaching Nani a clapping game of some kind. The girl giggled ecstatically as Dawn tapped her larger hands against Nani's small ones and sang a silly song to go with the rhythm. I turned away from the scene and instantly felt the blood drain from my face as I saw Nalani pulling in two cushy futons towards the living room.

"Unfortunately we don't have another room to offer you, but whenever my parents come to visit they sleep on these futons so we keep them aired out and nice," Nalani assured us with a grin.

"You really don't have to go to that trouble, we're used to camping," Dawn said graciously and Nalani laughed.

"Don't worry about it! This is the least I could do after you found Nani for us," Nalani said, giving me a bright smile. 

I opened my mouth but Dawn walked past me and took one of the futons from Nalani to help her set them out and my arguments fluttered away from me. It's just one night. I sleep next to Dawn every day when we're camping, I told myself and it was almost as if my inner voice was laughing at me. Yah, she sleeps in her tent and you sleep several yards away from her. Totally the same, it said sarcastically and I grimaced as Makani came into the room with two light blankets and some small pillows.

Before I knew it, the two futons were set up side by side on the small open space of the living room floor and everyone was saying goodnight to everyone. I watched as Nani hugged Dawn's neck tightly and she wrapped her arms around her little body, rocking her back and forth as they hugged. Once she was done wishing her goodnight Nalani picked up her daughter and walked past me, touching my arm once and giving me a grateful look before walking past. Makani also walked past me but instead of a grateful look, he quirked one eyebrow up in an amused/inquisitive expression and I glared at him. He chuckled and followed his wife and daughter into their room.

"I'm going to get changed," Dawn said, and as she pulled her pajamas from her backpack I was grateful they were her normal blue shirt and pants pair. 

I nodded and walked over to my backpack to remove my own pair of sweatpants. As the door closed behind Dawn I sat down on the couch and sighed heavily, running a hand through my bangs.

Makani may have thought that he was trying to help, but his experience was actually just another reason why I needed to keep my distance from Dawn. Being the pokemon champion of a region meant I wouldn't have time to visit home if I had a girlfriend waiting for me, which would mean that Dawn would be doomed to the same fate as my own mom. Being alone and crying every day because the love of her life didn't have time to even video call her. 

Dawn isn't in love with me though, I told myself firmly. I have to keep my promise to Mom and become the strongest champion. That means I need to say goodbye to Dawn and let her live her dreams. I won't put her through what Mom experienced.

"Your turn." 

I flinched as Dawn's smooth voice interrupted my thoughts and I tried not to stare as she walked out of the bathroom in bare feet, holding her shoes in one hand and her backpack in the other.

"Thanks," I mumbled, standing and ducking into the bathroom as she carefully walked around the futons. 

After brushing my teeth and changing into my pajamas I took a deep breath and looked myself in the eye in the mirror.

"Dawn is your friend. You will not touch her. You will not encourage her to see you as anything but a teacher and a friend," I whispered to myself as my mother's crying face hovered in the back of my mind. 

Letting out a deep breath I turned off the light and walked out of the bathroom. Dawn had apparently turned off the living room light as well because the only light that illuminated the room was coming from the moonlight streaming through the blinds over the window.

"I'm on the futon closest to the couch," Dawn whispered and I swallowed past a lump in my throat. 

Cautiously I made my way to the futon near the window and dropped my clothes into my backpack before painstakingly lowering myself onto the futon. It was a little thin, but way more comfortable than sleeping on the ground. I left the blanket Makani had brought off since the night was warm, and tried to not breathe too deeply as the scent of vanilla and honeysuckle wafted towards me.

"Nalani and Makani are really nice aren't they?" Dawn whispered and I heard the sound of her shifting on her futon. Looking over I saw her turn over so she could look at me and I quickly looked up at the ceiling.

"You should go to sleep," I said gruffly and Dawn giggled.

"Does it make you nervous to sleep like this?" she asked teasingly and I narrowed my eyes and turned so that I could glare at her. 

She was mere inches away from me and in the moonlight, her midnight blue hair looked almost black, but my eyes were drawn to her gently smiling lips. I abandoned my idea of glaring at her and looked up at the ceiling once more.

"Why would I be nervous?" I scoffed, trying to keep my voice steady and not give away how right she was.

"I guess it's just me then." 

My eyes widened as the barely audible words entered the space between us and I closed my eyes, doing my best to convince myself that I had not just heard that.

"Goodnight then, Paul," Dawn whispered.

I nearly sighed in relief when she turned to face the other direction. Following her example, I turned to face the window and before I knew it I felt my eyes closing to welcome me into the safety of sleep.

A bright ray of sunlight nearly blinded me as I blinked open my eyes the next morning. Rubbing my eyes with one hand it took me about three seconds to realize that something was very different about this morning. Slowly I lowered my arm from my eyes and I felt my heart begin to hammer in my chest as I looked down. I was laying on my back and Dawn was pressed up to my left side with her arms wrapped around my arm and her soft cheek leaning against my shoulder. Her breathing was peaceful and deep and the sunlight gleamed off her dark blue hair.

Slowly I moved so that I was looking up at the ceiling of the trailer home and I closed and opened my eyes a few times, just to make sure I really was awake. Dawn mumbled something inaudible and shivers went through me as one of her hands glided up my arm before she tucked it under her cheek and held onto my shoulder lightly. 

She normally sleeps with her pokemon. Don't lose your head, Paul, I told myself sternly as her other arm snaked tighter around mine.

Letting out a long breath I turned my body slightly so I was facing Dawn and gingerly reached over and shook her shoulder. She mumbled incoherently but remained firmly attached to my arm. I am NOT enjoying this, I am not enjoying this... I told myself repeatedly as I once again shook Dawn's shoulder. 

She blinked her sapphire blue eyes sleepily and groggily tilted her head up until we were looking at each other. As she gazed at me, her eyes unfocused, I felt myself slowly losing track of why I was in such a rush to wake her up in the first place. A small smile was tugging at the corners of her lips as she continued to stare at me.

"Your eyes are really pretty," Dawn whispered, her voice a little scratchy. 

As soon as the words slipped from her lips though her eyes widened and she looked down to where she was cuddling against my arm. She immediately let go, sitting up straight and scooting backwards from me with her face as red as a tomato.

"Oh my goodness, I am so sorry!" she gasped, rubbing her hands against her eyes as if she was trying to wake herself up faster. 

Schooling my face into my normal mask of slight annoyance I sat up and rubbed my arm, trying to get the tingling sensation to go away.

"I'm glad you don't drool," I commented flatly and Dawn blushed.

"Sorry," she muttered again and I stood up and headed towards the bathroom with my backpack slung over my shoulder.

"It's not a big deal," I said over my shoulder, telling myself firmly to not give in to the temptation to tease her. If I teased her I might go back next to her, and if I sat next to her then I might not be able to calm the growing urge in me to hold her. 

Remember your goal, Paul. I told myself as I walked into the bathroom. I'm going to be a Pokemon Champion, and champions don't have time to devote to personal relationships.

A/N Thanks for reading! And a special thanks to those who comment! I love reading your reactions :D :D