Watching the group in front of him crowd into a circle and stare at the box with bright, expectant faces, he grew a little shy. His cheeks flushed as he pried up two of Auron Vale's fingers and hid his face behind them.
Auron supported Victini with one hand and freed the other to rub the little Pokémon's head. "It's okay. We're all friends here."
Then he shot the others a mildly exasperated look. "Why are you staring at the box? He's in my hand right now."
No one looked embarrassed; they simply shifted their gazes to Auron's face.
Serena Elm asked, a little crestfallen, "Does he not like us? Is that why he won't let us see him?"
Auron glanced down at Victini. Victini blinked, a bit dazed.
When he'd been eating his little macarons just now, he'd had his back to Auron, so he'd seen the whole crowd in front of him laughing and teasing one another. It had been a long time since he'd seen anything so pure and lively—and there were even his favorite macarons in the middle of it all.
Victini turned toward Auron. In Auron's eyes he saw encouragement and warmth. "It's fine. Do what you want," Auron said gently. "Don't worry about them."
Seeing Victini waver, Auron smiled and picked up another macaron, offering it to him.
Victini took it on instinct. He was just about to pop it into his mouth when he suddenly shook his head. (No. I'm Victini. I can't let them think I'm a little glutton.)
With that thought, he started to put the macaron down and cancel his invisibility.
But just as he was about to set it aside, he hesitated. (Well… one piece shouldn't be a big deal, right?)
With that decided, Victini relaxed and let his invisibility drop.
In the others' stunned silence, he hovered in the air with a macaron in one hand, lifted his other little hand, and waved hello. "…"
The courtyard went quiet. Auron had already prepared himself for the possibility that Victini wouldn't show himself, but he still hadn't expected Victini to agree. Was the pull of macarons really that strong?
Snorlax reacted first, squinting as it raised a paw and waved to Victini.
Victini waved back. He didn't know why, but there was something about that chubby fellow that felt so comforting.
On Victini's second wave, Jace Rowan finally processed what he was seeing and shouted, "Victini?!"
The shout didn't just snap everyone out of their shock—
—it also startled Victini midair. With a jolt of alarm, he spun and darted behind Auron, leaving only his tiny head peeking out from behind Auron's shoulder.
Auron scowled and marched over. "Smack." He flicked Jace on the forehead. "Can you not yell like that? You scared off Suicune last time, and now this? Do you know how hard it is for me to run into one?"
Knowing he was in the wrong, Jace didn't dare talk back.
And with Victini looking so spooked, the whole group rounded on Jace with glares. Auron scooped Victini up. "Alright, alright—don't be scared. That's just how he is. He's actually a good guy, just… a bit slow on the uptake."
Victini snuck a peek at Jace.
"Heehee." He couldn't help a suppressed giggle.
That made Jace wilt. He turned to Tim Wynn, who was staring at Victini with unblinking fascination. "Do I look that dopey to you?"
Tim, being very obliging, turned to consider Jace, examined him for a few seconds, then nodded. "Mm. Dopey."
"Hahahahahahaha—"
Laughter rolled through the group. Hearing it, Victini started laughing too in Auron's arms.
The commotion also drew the attention of the Pokémon who'd been eating nearby. They turned, and at last noticed the unfamiliar Pokémon nestled against Auron.
They'd already eaten their fill for the most part. Setting down their Pokémon food, they drifted over, curiosity bright in their eyes.
Among the Pokémon, Victini didn't seem nearly so shy. He wriggled free of Auron's hold and zipped into the middle of them, darting about in quick, lively arcs. The newly hatched youngsters and the likes of Arcanine and Haunter flitted around with him, flying and playing along.
With a whole crowd of Pokémon keeping him company, Victini's laughter soon spilled across the entire courtyard.
Auron, meanwhile, wasn't having it so easy. Under Tim Wynn's lead, the others pressed him from all sides until he could stall no longer.
"Ugh—didn't I say we'd wait till we got in the car and let Jace explain? What's the rush?"
Auron spread his hands helplessly. This really wasn't the best place to explain his abilities.
Tim's smile turned sly. "Rotom, show him the thing."
"Roto-okay~!"
Rotom zipped away from Victini's side and, being extremely perceptive, projected a photo for Auron: him and Serena leaning against each other, fast asleep.
Auron's face flared red on sight. He lunged for Rotom, but Rotom dodged nimbly and zipped back to hover beside Tim.
"Fine, fine—I'll talk. I'll explain it slowly."
Auron sat down on the ground in defeat and gestured that he would begin. "There we go. That's more like it," Tim said, beaming as he sat down too.
The others were baffled—what had Rotom shown Auron to make him so obedient? But now wasn't the time to press. Whatever Auron was about to explain was far more tantalizing.
"Okay, I'm starting. Don't interrupt me, and don't ask questions yet. I'll keep it as short as I can, alright?"
Everyone, already seated, agreed readily.
"Actually, my family has a lineage. People in my family can awaken the power of Aura, and I… was lucky enough to awaken it myself…"
…
"…That's the gist of it. If you want to ask anything, save it for the car—we'll talk on the way. For now, can we just keep him company and play for a bit?"
Victini made a running leap and burrowed back into Auron's arms. Auron caught him and turned to the others, asking to table the questions until later.
They all nodded their agreement. For now, they'd focus on keeping Victini happy.
Thankfully it wasn't peak season, nor the best time of year to view the ginkgo trees, so the courtyard was empty of staff—only Auron's group was here. Otherwise, Auron would never have agreed to let Victini drop his invisibility.
Victini nestled against Auron's chest. Auron quickly took out a cup of warm water, stuck in a straw, and held it to Victini's mouth.
After flying and laughing for so long, Victini was parched. He pressed his mouth to the straw and drank in big gulps—"glug, glug"—then zipped off again to tumble and play with the other Pokémon, laughing, utterly delighted.
…
A few hours passed in a blink, and Auron and the others had already overshot their planned departure time.
Even so, reluctant as they were, they had to find a place to stay for the night.
They hadn't intended to camp out on this trip, so they hadn't brought tents.
Victini dove once more into Auron's arms. As always, Auron uncapped the water, let him take a few sips, then said, reluctant, "Victini, we have to go now, okay? We need to head to the next stop."
Victini's smile faded. He was quiet for a moment, then gave the tiniest nod.
Seeing him like that made everyone a little heartsore. Serena Elm stepped up, patted Victini's head, and asked softly, "We're going someplace else to have fun. Do you want to come with us?"
Victini froze. He lifted his gaze to Auron.
Suddenly, a young voice echoed in Auron's mind. "I… I still have to wait here for someone…"
(End of Chapter)