"Speak! Why do you still have the scent of Arceus on you? Otherwise, Hoopa will let Baraz deal with you!"
Confined Hoopa acted tough to hide its fear. It used a cute, child-like voice to threaten him.
But because of its voice and its current actions, it looked more like it was trying to act cute.
In fact, its whole body was hiding behind Baraz, showing only half of its head.
Arceus?!
Baraz was stunned when he heard this, but he reacted quickly.
"Hoopa, you must not be so rude. These people are our guests."
Baraz sighed as he lectured Confined Hoopa. To Baraz, Confined Hoopa was a friend, but also like a child.
This was because Hoopa had been their friend since they were young. Now that they were grown up, their minds were slowly maturing, but Confined Hoopa was still the same naughty prankster from their childhood. It had not changed at all.
"But he really has a very strong scent of Arceus."
Confined Hoopa still refused to show its body. It grabbed Baraz's clothes and would not let go.
It wasn't that it was a coward, it was just truly afraid!
One hundred years ago, it was still the carefree Demon God Hoopa. Its power and its natural spatial gold rings made it completely unstoppable. It had no rivals.
It went wherever it wanted and played however it liked.
Then, one day, a human came and sealed its power. That human also placed a punishment on it.
Even Dialga, Palkia, and Giratina could not do such a thing, but a human actually did it.
Was that really a human???
But Hoopa understood later. That human named Gulist was indeed a human, but he was also not a normal human anymore. He was basically a superhuman!
The reason he had such amazing power was that he believed in Arceus. Everyone in this place called Arche Valley was like that. They had been practicing amazing abilities since they were young.
And Gulist was the most incredible person in Arche Valley.
"Damian, have you really met the Great One?"
Seeing Confined Hoopa in such a rare, cowardly state, Baraz had to believe it now.
"Yes, I was lucky enough to meet Arceus once. It gave me a special ability."
Damian smiled and nodded. He slightly raised his palm, and a bright but gentle golden light shone from it.
Confined Hoopa swallowed hard. It hid its body even further behind Baraz.
It could feel that this energy was very similar to the energy of Gulist and Baraz, but it was clearly much purer.
Oh my god! Another superhuman!
And this guy was personally given power by Arceus. He was probably even scarier than Gulist!
"It really is the power of the Great One!" Baraz was a bit excited. He also raised his hand, and the golden light turned into a circle that looked like a magic pattern.
"Oh? Baraz, you can do that too?"
Platinum was a little surprised.
"Yes, this is an ability passed down through our family for generations. We have been practicing it since we were young."
The golden light in Baraz's hand faded. He had a mature personality, and he had already calmed down by now.
"My great-grandfather told us that our ancestors once received a gift from the Great One. Therefore, this power flows in our blood. As long as we practice hard, we can master it."
Wow!
Platinum could not help but gasp. It was actually an ability that could be inherited through blood??
Caitlin's beautiful eyes blinked slightly. If that was the case, if she and Damian had a child in the future, would the child also inherit this power given by Arceus?
Hmm, that sounded very good.
Caitlin had seen Damian show this power before. It was very useful in many ways. It was much more practical than her psychic powers.
"Because of this, we have always believed in the Great One. However, it is a shame that we have never seen the Great One show a miracle again," Baraz said with regret.
"Arceus was sleeping before. It only woke up a short time ago. However, it always lives in a different dimension, so it is indeed very difficult to see it," Damian said.
"As for the scent of Arceus that Hoopa mentioned, it should be this. Arceus gave this to me."
Damian took the Azure Flute out of his backpack. As soon as the Azure Flute appeared, Confined Hoopa immediately pulled its head back.
"Don't be afraid. This is just an item. It won't hurt you."
Damian couldn't help but laugh. But he could see that Hoopa had a very deep psychological trauma regarding Arceus.
"Hoopa isn't afraid!" Confined Hoopa felt it was being looked down upon. It puffed out its cheeks, looking very unhappy.
"Is that so?"
Damian raised an eyebrow with a half-smile.
"It... even if Hoopa is a little afraid of Arceus, that is very normal."
Confined Hoopa felt a bit guilty. It did not dare to look Damian in the eyes. Its eyes wandered around as it added that sentence.
But Confined Hoopa felt there was nothing wrong with its behavior. Was there a problem with being afraid of Arceus?
Arceus was the Creator God!
And most importantly...
Arceus didn't even need to do anything itself. Just a human who had been given power by Arceus was enough to beat it and seal its power. Boohoo...
It was a very sad memory.
"Haha, I'm just teasing you. I know, Hoopa, you are very powerful."
Damian smiled and put away the Azure Flute. He praised Confined Hoopa.
"Really?"
Hoopa's eyes lit up.
"You could smell the presence of those Pokémon on me. That makes you very amazing already," Damian said with a smile.
"That's right. Hoopa, you know so many Legendary Pokémon," Platinum agreed.
"Hehe, Hoopa used to be super strong! Hoopa could 'ale-ale' many opponents here and then beat them!"
Confined Hoopa put its hands on its waist and raised its head again. It was very proud.
Damian smiled but said nothing. Confined Hoopa was indeed very cute. It was innocent and loved being praised. It had been like this for a hundred years.
One could only say that in its Confined Form, not only was its body smaller and its power sealed, but its personality had also become much more child-like.
After learning that Damian had received a gift from Arceus, Baraz's attitude became much more enthusiastic.
He very sincerely invited Damian's group of three to his home for a visit. Damian did not refuse.
"Hoopa!! You actually dared to come back!"
As soon as they entered the door, a frying pan flew through the air. It flew straight toward Confined Hoopa.
Confined Hoopa hurriedly took out its golden ring. It "swallowed" the frying pan into the ring. Only then did it breathe a sigh of relief.
A young woman in white clothes walked over angrily.
Platinum and Caitlin were stunned by the sight.
"Ahem, Meray, we have guests."
Baraz put his hand to his forehead, feeling very helpless. He spoke to his younger sister, Meray.
"Ah?"
Meray's expression froze. Only then did she see Damian and the others behind Baraz and Hoopa. Her face turned red instantly, and she stood there awkwardly, not knowing what to do with her hands.
"Um... Meray isn't usually like this."
Baraz tried to explain for his sister, attempting to save her image a little.
"Yes, yes. Meray usually throws chairs. This is the first time she used a pan," Confined Hoopa said, nodding in agreement. It explained the situation very seriously.
Creeeeeak—
That was the sound of Meray clenching her fist so hard her joints made noise.
"It's fine. Miss Meray is very expressive," Damian laughed gently. He said this to make the situation less awkward.
"Miss Meray, are you cooking?"
"Ah, yes! Please stay and eat something together. My cooking skills are actually quite good," Meray said quickly.
"Eating together~ Damian is also eating together." Confined Hoopa was no longer afraid of Damian. It even had a good impression of him because Damian had praised it.
"Then we will accept your kind offer."
Damian acted very polite.
"Also, Hoopa, it's Damian, not 'Dam-yon'."
Even though he knew Confined Hoopa had a bit of a lisp, that name sounded a bit too much like a girl's name.
"Hoopa, come in with me."
Meray grabbed the very unwilling Confined Hoopa and turned to go into the kitchen.
Damian then released Jirachi, Victini, Mesprit, and the others. He sat in the yard and chatted with Baraz.
Before long, Meray called them to eat. It was worth mentioning that Confined Hoopa looked like a wilted eggplant, as if it had gone through something terrible.
But after seeing Jirachi and the others, Confined Hoopa instantly came back to life. It rushed into the group of Pokémon and had a great time with them.
At the dinner table, the group naturally started talking about Confined Hoopa.
Baraz and Meray naturally told the story of what happened in Dahara City a hundred years ago.
"So Hoopa wasn't always like this in the past?"
"Of course! Hoopa used to be very big!"
Confined Hoopa immediately floated over. It spoke with great pride.
"Ehh..."
Looking at the playful and cute Confined Hoopa, Platinum found it hard to imagine.
"Hoopa used to be super powerful! Reshiram and Kyogre couldn't beat Hoopa!"
Seeing that Platinum didn't seem to believe it, Confined Hoopa got a bit worried.
"If you don't believe me, let Dam-yon release Reshiram and Kyogre. Hoopa fought them a hundred years ago!"
"It's Damian, not Dam-yon," Damian corrected it.
"Hoopa really was very strong. It was recognized as a Demon God back then. Um~ nobody liked Hoopa, but it was indeed very strong."
Mesprit joined the conversation. It also knew about Hoopa.
As one of the Legendary Pokémon tied to creation, Mesprit was not strong, but its knowledge was something other Pokémon could not match.
When Mesprit said "nobody," it was referring to the other Legendary Pokémon.
"No way, everyone liked Hoopa very much," Confined Hoopa continued to argue stubbornly.
"But even Regigigas didn't like you very much, Hoopa," Mesprit tilted its head, acting like it was just being natural.
"Hmph~" Confined Hoopa puffed out its cheeks.
"So many Legendary Pokémon know Hoopa?" Platinum blinked her eyes.
"Because Hoopa's golden rings have spatial abilities. It can even force Palkia and Dialga out of their different dimensions and pull them over. And this forced spatial transport happens without any warning," Mesprit explained.
It has that kind of ability?!!
Platinum looked at Confined Hoopa in shock.
"And the old Hoopa had a very bossy, mean, and aggressive personality. It often used its advantage in ability to summon other Legendary Pokémon and bully them. That is why nobody liked Hoopa," Mesprit continued.
No wonder Kyogre and Groudon attacked Unbound Hoopa as soon as they were summoned in the movie. It turned out that was not the first time.
Damian could not help but laugh.
Having its dark history revealed by Mesprit and feeling the strange looks from Baraz and the others, even with Hoopa's thick skin, it couldn't help but scratch its head in embarrassment.
"Hoopa stopped doing that a long time ago. Hoopa hasn't summoned them in a hundred years!"