Epilogue

Quinn knew where he would end up, eventually. Not right away—but a time traveler did not need to rush. He could wait until his daughter was grown a little older, and he'd befriended enough of the local Mythicals to leave her in their care. Cedrin had already moved on, though he still visited often. The young Celebi had his own life to live.

With Sinnoh brought safely to its new home, Team Infinity made rapid progress. It didn’t need someone like him to share what bits and pieces he’d gathered from the past when it had someone with a perfect memory to teach them. Quinn had a little more free time to relax, and finally enjoy the safety of a world he’d helped create.

A Victini named Shiloh volunteered to babysit Rose for the afternoon, and she seemed to know what was happening without Quinn explaining.

"I know you might have to be away for longer than it seems," she said. "Just remember the date you leave. If you abandon us, my boyfriend will hunt you down. Doesn't matter how far you go."

"I'll be back on time," he said. "Hopefully not alone. If Dialga lets me."

He knew where to go, because of course there was only one place to look. Avery would leave her message in the same place they used last time, tucked away in the caldera of one of Alola's largest volcanoes.

Quinn needed no shield for his visit this time. The barren rock now had a thick layer of living rainforest, with no trace of the suffocating toxic gases. Enough time had finally come and gone that the volcano was no longer active.

He took a day or two to find what he was looking for, buried and overgrown in layers of rich soil. But Quinn's power over plants meant he could encourage them to move out of the way, easing their roots off from ancient stone blocks. One by one, he levitated them from the ground. His own message was still scrawled on all of them, though dirt and weathering were beginning to erase it. With enough time, these blocks would be smooth again.

He found the message he was looking for written on several stone blocks, letters scorched slightly deeper than the ones he left. A small Mew glyph, in the style of the ancient illustrations. Along with a date in firstborn digits: 2.444.680.

Perfect.

An earlier date than he might've expected—before either he or Avery were born. And without a location, he could only assume she meant to find him here. I hope this is what you wanted.

Such a short distance compared to the vast centuries he had previously traveled made such a brief jaunt feel downright simple. A few seconds of focus, and the familiar melody filled his mind; the music returned. He felt it through the jungle, strengthening his plant-like body to endure the travel. The caldera blurred backward, trees retreated into the soil, others rose from rotten husks and returned to vibrant, swaying trunks. Time stretched through dimensions his old self could not observe—a space even other Mythicals could not comprehend.

Then he was back in the rainforest. Still more or less the way he expected to find it. A few decades wasn't long enough for the volcano to be active again.

But he hadn't expected the young woman reclining on a blanket in the grass. A cat rested in a basket next to her, with little tufts of pink fur emerging from the edge.

She'd picked a nice sunny spot away from the thickest trees, and her pale skin had a thick layer of sunscreen to keep off the burns. Even so, she'd missed a spot near the edges of the swimsuit, and another behind her ears, which had both started slowly turning red.

"Avery?" Quinn dropped into the brush, hiding from direct view. "Avery, are you there?"

He reached out for the basket, but sensed very little of the Pokémon inside. They were a young Mew, and quite good at hiding their emotions. Not a skill he had seen much of in Starfall.

"You're early again," came the reply. "That's cheating. You shouldn't be here until tomorrow."

Quinn couldn't feel anything beyond the words she sent. But this was his mate; he knew her in ways that not even mental discipline could shield.

Yet when he peered over the leaves, it wasn't the little ball of fluff hidden in the basket that moved. Instead, the woman had rolled over, and now sat up, looking at him.

She did look familiar—vaguely like the one he'd grown up with, then followed to Blueberry. Academically, he recognized this version of her was also prettier than before. Her proportions were perfect, sunscreen glittering from flawless skin. But even sunbathing in a bikini, Quinn just couldn't feel those things anymore. He was a Pokémon now.

"Avery?" he asked, out loud now. Maybe the little Pokémon resting in the basket was playing some elaborate trick on him. But even a cooperative human wouldn't be able to understand his words. "The hair is natural, I guess?"

The Pokémon resting in the basket didn't respond right away, but the woman did. She smiled, then reached up to run a few fingers through it. "Not a cheap wig this time, no.” She held out one hand, flat. "But don't call me that. There are quite a few Legendary Pokémon who remember that name. I'm Valerie now. They'd probably go into a rage if they heard it, and not know why. Just Valerie."

“Valerie," he repeated. "Lane could transform like that. First time I saw her, I was jealous. Now…" He stretched in the air, lifting himself closer. "Not sure I see the point."

Avery bent down, scooping the basket into her arms. "Not as necessary when there aren't half-feral demigods that still want you dead," she said. "Most can't see what I really am. The few who can don't guess who I… was."

She tilted the basket closer, showing him its contents. Quinn's eyes went wide. Yes, the cat inside was hiding her thoughts and emotions with Avery's own expert technique. He’d never seen them before, yet there was something instantly familiar about the Pokémon. She looked like her mom, just like Rose did. So she had been pregnant when he left.

“What’s her name?”

“Metis,” Avery answered. “Want to hold her? You’ll get more time together eventually. Soon? Or… maybe not soon, I don’t know. Even after all these years, I have trouble reading your timeline.”

She ran one hand through her hair, where Quinn's antennae would've been. "I like the way I am. If that means only jumping once a decade or so, I can live with that. And less than that for her." She lifted the cat from her basket, offering her to Quinn.

Metis let her do it, apparently enjoying the attention.

Quinn took her, and the kitten curled up like she’d known him her whole life. She brushed against his chest, and purred. Her telepathic voice was weaker than Rose, distinct. “Daddy.”

"You can't bring her with you. But you’ll be with her again soon.” Avery tilted her head sideways, in one of her more familiar, Pokémon expressions. "You never told me why you wanted to live back here."

Quinn could imagine a few answers, though one was more likely. Before Team Infinity, people viewed Mythical Pokémon as exactly as rare as their name implied. Barely real, probably extinct. The world had plenty of remote places to live. "Not this year exactly. Forward, when there are more of us. They need help from Pokémon who understand.” He ran his paws through the cat’s fur a few seconds longer, then floated her back to her mother.

Avery caught the kitten, and ran her hands through her soft fur. “What about Sinnoh? Did you manage the rescue?”

He nodded proudly. “The Persona is much happier now he has a purpose. He’s helping us rebuild.”

Metis rolled over on Avery's arm, then stood up, stretching along her skin and purring quietly. "She doesn't get big very often."

"Had to be small to stay hidden," Avery answered. "It's not big, but when you're our size, it feels like enough. Nicer than anywhere I lived in college."

Quinn floated closer to his daughter, watching her. She was growing up well. "Why'd you bring me to today?" Quinn asked. "If I was already here, I mean."

"For a pickup," Avery answered. She reached her free hand into her swimsuit, and held out a little slip of paper. A single date was written there, much farther than 30 years back. "I didn't get to the future on my own. Was hoping you could give me a ride. Might need to stage a murder while you’re at it."

He took the paper, levitating it in front of him. "I recognize this date. Should be… about when Azelf said you disappeared."

"Good." Avery patted him gently. "I won't spoil the ending, but I'm pretty sure you find me."

The End