Chapter 42 – The Cave of Mirrors – Part One

Serena's Sister

A Fanfiction by Allison Illuminated

Chapter Publish Date: 6/11/19

Erin's Perspective – Reflection Cave

"DIANTHA STEPS DOWN! MALVA CROWNED NEW CHAMPION OF THE KALOS LEAGUE!"

The newspaper headline was printed in all bold font, a picture of Malva and Diantha spanning the page below. Ash, Serena, Clemont, and Paul all crowded around to look as Erin clutched the paper tightly. "It actually happened," she said numbly. "Diantha isn't champion anymore."

"What does it mean?" Serena asked.

Clemont pushed his glasses up the bridge of his nose. "Diantha would have been under enormous pressure to resign even if she had beaten Malva," he said. "It makes sense that she wouldn't have wanted to battle, really."

"I don't like it," Paul muttered, crossing his arms. "Champions don't step down when regions need them the most. There's got to be more to the story than this."

"You think?" Ash asked, stepping away from the group and sitting back down at his place at the table, Pikachu jumping onto his shoulder. The group was eating their last meal at summer camp; not even an official one, just a breakfast for everybody who hadn't decided to head out the night before. Elle, Shauna, Trevor, Tierno, and Mairin had all headed out to Shalour together, leaving just the five of them and Bonnie behind.

Erin set the paper down on the table and groaned in disgust. Everything's gone so wrong. Nothing in this timeline makes sense anymore. Was this the Syndicate's fault? Dialga Institute's? Was Diantha just getting the worst of the negative TE disaster after-effects? She didn't know the answer.

Serena noticed her distress. "This didn't happen in, y'know..." Her voice dropped, and she leaned closer. "Your timeline, did it?" Erin just shook her head.

Clemont followed Ash's lead, throwing his head back with a big sigh. "I still can't wrap my head around it," he said. "I mean, there are Pokemon who can use time, sure. Dialga, Celebi, probably Arceus, I mean, even most Psychic types can use future sight. But a human seeing the future is unheard of! Besides, a future that doesn't even exist..."

"Well, I think it's cool!" Bonnie exclaimed, Dedenne nodding on her head.

Everyone smiled at Bonnie. Her energy seemed to have lifted the spirits of the group up so much from where it was when she had been semi-catatonic. The young girl simply brought a vibrancy to everything around her.

"Let's not dwell on it," Paul said, resting a comforting hand on Erin's shoulder. "We can't change the Kalos League, and we have more important things to do today."

Serena frowned doubtfully for a moment, then her eyes lit up. "Oh, yeah, the Reflection Cave! It's supposed to be one of the prettiest places in all of Kalos! I've never been..."

"Well, that's where we're going, then!" Ash declared. "To the reflection cave!"

Everybody cheered, the bad news of the day slipping to the backs of their minds. In her chair, Erin concealed her anticipation and unease, Xerneas' words ringing in her mind.

"To the south of this place, the Reflection Cave lies deep within of a mountain. Press the stone to the mirror. Seek out what you wish to know above all else there, and you will find the answers you are looking for. You will know when the time is right."

The stone in question was warm in her pocket when she wrapped her hand around it, burning with energy she needed to discover. I need to know why I'm here. I need to know who the Dialga Institute really is. If now isn't the right time, then what is?

Giving the group a false grin, Erin exclaimed, "I can't wait!"

Alain's Perspective – Ninja Village

"Fury cutter!"

His blade glowing bright green, Pawniard shot forwards and sliced the rock five times in quick succession. Each time, the attack sunk deeper into the pourous sandstone until it sliced in two with the last blow. Satisfied, Pawniard stepped back and raised his arms into the air, smiling triumphantly at Alain.

Alain smiled back at his only Pokemon. "That was excellent, Pawniard. I'm glad you've really mastered fury cutter. We should be able to move onto torment soon." Pawniard gave him a playful salute, and he chuckled.

The savannah stretched out peacefully around them, Ninja Village hidden in the craggy mountain at their backs. In the distance, a pack of Blitzle and Zebstrika were clustered around a waterhole; a lone Girafarig wandered to their right. Aside from his glove and bracelet – a "keystone," according to Ippei, whatever that meant – Alain had completely discarded his ruined clothing for a simple green shirt and gray comfortable pants worn by most villagers. He didn't mind the loss of his black wardrobe. With so few of his memories intact, blending in for a bit was more than welcome.

Living in the village was nice, really. Ippei was turning into a fast friend. The two of them had immediately bonded over Alain's instinctive love for Pokemon training, and his first battle since waking up had been a training match with Ippei's Greninja. Ippei had suggested the theory that he had been a Pokemon trainer before his amnesia, one that the villagers seemed to have broadly accepted based on his bracelet and instincts. Personally, Alain wasn't sure, but it was nice to think that he had been traveling across Kalos with Mairin and… well, presumably other Pokemon. Yuka, on the other hand-

"You and Pawniard are improving."

Alain spun around to see Yuka standing on a rock behind him, her purple and red hair blowing in the gentle wind. "Yuka!" he exclaimed in surprise. I thought she wasn't speaking to me…

Jumping off the rock, Yuka landed before him and crossed her arms. "Look, let's get one thing straight," she said, dragging Alain towards her. "I don't like you and I don't trust you. You've got the evil symbol on your hand, which means that you're nothing but bad news."

"O...kay?" Alain said cautiously.

"Still..." Yuka scrutinized him for a moment, then let go of his shirt. She stood back and crossed her arms with a humph. "I am unfortunately still in charge of making sure you don't kill yourself, so I'm sorry I kicked you out of my house. Ippei says I have to be nice to you anyways. But, if you ever go to my back room again, I will cut your balls off and ship you to Hoenn."

Alain shivered at the image, thanking Ippei for intervening. Why can't he be in charge of me? She's a total psychopath! "Was that all?"

"Yes. You can go back to hitting rocks with sharp things now." Turning on her heel, she strutted back towards the village. Alain sweatdropped as she went. Honestly, isn't she supposed to be protecting me? Seems like she shouldn't leave me alone outside the village…

Not that I came out with her in the first place…

In any case, he wasn't about to waste Yuka suddenly deciding he was worthy of her attention again. "Yuka, wait!"

Yuka spun around on her heel and gave him a death glare. "What?"

"Battle me!"

She gave Alain a look as he held up his fist and tugged his glove down. Pawniard perked up at his side, taking a combat stance. "You're kidding, right? You have an infant Pawniard and I have a highly trained Decidueye. I might as well be Yveltal compared to you."

"I know," Alain responded, narrowing his eyes. "Pawniard and I want to get strong, though, and we can't do it if we never fight. Ippei's too busy to fight us most of the time, and everyone else in the village avoids us like we're cursed.

"For good reason," Yuka muttered.

He decided to tactfully ignore the last comment. "Come on, it'll just be a practice match."

"Fine, but when I send your Pokemon to the healers you better not blame me!" Pawniard chittered angrily at the insult, but she was already tossing her pokeball into the air. "From shadows, Decidueye!"

Decidueye burst out of the dusk ball with a triumphant shriek, landing intimidatingly before Pawniard with its wings fully outstretched. Pawniard, to his credit, just crossed his blades and stared up at the grass starter with a skeptical expression. Truth be told, Alain felt the same. It certainly has its trainer's dramatic flair. "Battle until one of us wants to stop?" he called past the Pokemon, and Yuka rolled her eyes. "Yeah, sure. Try not to kill it, Decidueye."

I'll show her. Clenching his fist, Alain threw his other arm wide and yelled, "Alright, we'll start. Pawniard, use pursuit!"

"Spirit shackle!"

As Pawniard rushed towards Decidueye, it lazily drew its bow and pulled an arrow back. The arrow shot past Pawniard then crashed into the ground in front of him. Alain's Pokemon blinked when nothing happened, then launched himself at Decidueye and landed a solid slash against the grass type's flank. Decidueye screeched in pain, staggering back a few steps as Pawniard triumphantly returned to Alain's side.

Alain raised an eyebrow at Yuka. "Really? A ghost type move against a dark type? Are you sure I'm the one in trouble?"

"Shut up, I'm trying!" Yuka yelled. "Use leaf blade!"

Decidueye's wing glowed green, and it took to the sky. Tracking it, Alain countered, "Block it with fury cutter!"

The two attacks met with crashing force – Pawniard's steely body was the only reason it was able to hold out from Decidueye's superior strength. "Fury cutter again!" Pawniard's other arm glowed green as well, and he struck forward, aiming for the same spot he had hit earlier. Decidueye jerked out of reach before he could make contact, and Pawniard drew both of his arms back in disappointment. That's a dark type for you, Alain thought in amusement. Already playing dirty.

Yuka seemed to be thinking the same thing with far more anger. "Alright, this has gone on long enough. Leaf storm!"

Alain's eyes widened. "Quick dodge."

Pawniard couldn't get out of the way in time, and the barrage of sharp leaves hit him straight on. Before Yuka could call another attack, Alain had darted forwards and scooped his Pokemon up into his arms. "Hey, what are you doing?!" she yelled.

"You hurt Pawniard," Alain said sternly, frowning from Yuka to Decidueye. "I asked for a practice match."

"I mean, I did say I was going to hurt him," Yuka muttered. "Besides, it's not like you didn't hurt Decidueye too!" Her Pokemon waved at its stomach with a wing.

He sighed. "Yes, but leaf storm is a far more powerful move than fury cutter. You should know that." Turning his attention to Pawniard, he asked, "Are you hurt badly?" Pawniard glared at him, but shook his head and curled up in his arms. Gently setting him down, Alain pulled his pokeball out and returned him. "Get some rest."

Pawniard disappeared into the pokeball with a red flash, and so did Decidueye. "Are you satisfied?" Yuka asked impatiently.

Alain considered her for a long moment, then turned away. "I'm going to go heal Pawniard."

"Hey! Where are you going?"

Walking away from Yuka, Alain frowned as he stuck his hands back in his pocket. Of all people, why did Hanzo assign Yuka to me? No, wait, he probably thought it would be good for her, or maybe it's a punishment? Either way, I dislike her. She didn't seem to care about the Pokemon at all. I understand her boyfriend disappeared, but still…

Pondering the question, he disappeared into the crags of the village, leaving one very annoyed ninja behind him.

Serena's Perspective – Reflection Cave

She can see the future.

That was what Serena was thinking. That was the only thing Serena had been thinking about, the entire walk from summer camp to the reflection cave. Fennekin yawned in her arms, reaching up to lick her cheek. Serena smiled distantly, repositioning her bad arm under her starter.

On one hand, Erin being able to see the future made so much sense. Ash's first gym battle, her stopping Team Rocket outside of Sycamore's lab, her inexplicable looks of surprise and fear every time something really strange happened. Serena could almost believe that it was the whole truth.

Almost.

Ash and Bonnie were happily chatting about the best electric type moves, Pikachu and Dedenne taunting each other on their respective trainer's head. Erin and Paul were walking side-by-side, having an intense conversation about Diantha's resignation. Clemont was trailing behind the couple, watching Erin distrustfully. I think I've made him hate Erin, Serena thought anxiously, frowning.

It's not like he doesn't have a good reason for it. Here was where Serena couldn't get over the actions of her "sister" - the unexplained disappearances, how catastrophe seemed to follow her wherever they went. I mean, time travel doesn't explain why she freaked out at the Battle Chateau or why she appeared in my room in the first place!

"Whatcha sulking about, princess?"

Serena was jolted out of her thoughts by Rotom, who was hovering above her with his usual expression. "I am not sulking!" she protested gloomily. "I just have a lot on my mind."

"That's what sulking is!" the animated Pokedex said gleefully, then rolled to avoid a burst of flame from Fennekin. "Oh, come on, cheer up! It's a bright and beautiful day, you're with all of your lame friends, and nobody's tried to kill us yet!"

"Gee, thanks, that makes me feel so much better," Serena shot back, rolling her eyes. "Couldn't you at least try to pretend to be like the rest of the Pokemon and not an obnoxious perverted rust bucket?" To prove her point (and definitely not because she wanted to walk closer to Ash), she marched up to Ash and Bonnie and grabbed Pikachu off Ash's head. "See? This is what electric types are supposed to be like. Why can't you be more like Pikachu?"

"Pika?" Pikachu said in confusion as she mushed his cheeks around.

Rotom made a face. "I'll have you know I'm far more sophisticated than the wire rat- woah!"

Ash laughed as Pikachu ripped himself from Serena's arms with a battle cry and tried to iron tail Rotom. "Bad move, insulting Pikachu."

"Eh, Rotom deserves it." Falling in line with Ash, she rested her chin on top of Fennekin's head.

He gave her a far-too-knowing glance. "You're brooding."

"Am not!"

"You definitely are! See, you've got that distant look in your eyes, and you won't let go of Fennekin."

Serena dropped Fennekin, who landed on all fours with an annoyed yip. "I don't know what you're talking about," she huffed, and Ash just rolled his eyes.

"This is about Erin, isn't it?"

Sometimes, Ash Ketchum could be far too perceptive for his own good. Sighing, Serena admitted, "Okay, maybe a little bit, but there's no way you can tell me you aren't thinking too about last night.

Bonnie and Fennekin ran off towards Clemont together, leaving Ash and Serena alone. They both blushed at the realization, but neither of them made any move to break apart. "I mean, of course I'm thinking about last night!" Ash exclaimed in a hushed tone, speeding up to put distance in between them and Erin. "I've done a lot of crazy things, but this seems weird even by those standards, if you know what I mean?"

"I don't think Erin's told us everything," Serena confessed. "None of what she said last night explains how she appeared in my life in the first place, or why Mom and the professor think we're sisters." The confession was freeing. In a way, Erin's 'confession' had allowed Serena to open up as well. Talking to Ash, her best friend, about something that had been so integral to their journey made her feel content in a way she hadn't felt since leaving Vainville.

"And you and Erin are really the only people who remember not being sisters?" Ash asked, and Serena nodded. "How would that even work? Uxie could probably change memories like that, but there's no way anybody's gotten anywhere near Uxie without me knowing about it..."

"Huh?"

"When we stopped the Galactic Crisis, me and my friends Brock and Dawn sorta bonded with the lake trio," Ash explained, looking up at the sky thoughtfully. "They mostly sleep, but I still talk to Azelf, sometimes. My point is, if Uxie was in trouble, Brock would tell me instantly."

Serena exhaled, thoughts swirling through her mind. How many legendaries does Ash have connections to? "There's gotta be some other Pokemon that could change memories like that, though."

Ash pressed a finger to his cheek, his usual deep thinking pose. "Any psychic type could probably do it, if they were powerful enough, but that doesn't explain the scale," he mused. "It's probably a legendary or a mythical Pokemon, honestly, but that doesn't narrow it down much. There are more legendaries that people even know exist. For all we know, whoever did it dug up some obscure Pokemon we don't know, and we'll have to figure it out for ourselves."

"Whoever?"

"Huh?"

"You said whoever," Serena said, crossing her arms. "You think it's a person?"

Ash stopped, turning around to block her path. "Isn't it? That's how you've been talking about it this whole time. You and Erin didn't just wake up insane, so something must have changed everybody's memories, and I have a hard time believing any Pokemon would be able to or want to completely rearrange both of your lives and the lives of everyone around you. It's gotta be people!"

The faint sounds of Erin and Paul's conversation came into earshot, and Ash and Serena started walking again. "You think it could be the Syndicate?" Serena asked, the forest around them suddenly seeming far less welcoming.

Ash's frown deepened even further. "Why would they be trying so hard to kill you and Erin if they went to all that trouble? I just don't get how it could be the Syndicate."

"But if it isn't the Syndicate, then who? Who would possibly want to mess our lives up so badly?" Serena asked.

Ash shook his head. "I don't know, but if they keep messing with our lives, they're in trouble when I find out."

Erin's Perspective – Reflection Cave

The back of Erin's hand tingled as the group walked up towards the craggy entrance to the cave. She fought the urge to look down or to contemplate what it might mean. The mark isn't there. There's no hidden power, chill out. Cerys isn't here… I hope.

Arceus, did she hope the Dialga Institute had nothing to do with Xerneas' message.

"We made it! Hooray!" Bonnie cheered, running up the rocky slope with her arms outstretched then spinning at the top. Dedenne, Pikachu, and Fennekin chased each other in circles at her feet.

"Ah, the Reflection Cave. I've never been, it's supposed to be incredible!" Clemont hitched his backpack up on his shoulders, looking at the massive crystals around the edge in wonder. "They say the crystal here and the Sundial in Anistar City are made out of the same material. These caves supposedly stretch under all of Kalos and are home to unique Pokemon found nowhere else called Carbink."

Ash's eyes sparkled at Clemont's description. "Woah, so cool! I wanna meet one! C'mon, let's go!"

"Ash, wait!" Serena sprinted after Ash and Bonnie as they ran inside. Clemont groaned, then followed him in.

Erin hesitated, though. Paul turned back to look at her. "Do you need me?"

She shook her head. "No, I'm okay. I'll catch up, promise." Paul gave her a long look, then followed the others into the cave.

Standing outside, Erin could feel the first crisp hints of fall at the edge of the breeze. She reached for her belt and grabbed her luxury ball, letting Deerling come out. Her Pokemon cried out happily when she appeared, and Erin knelt down to pet Deerling's green summer coat. "Fall's coming soon, huh?" she said to Deerling, who headbutted her gently in agreement.

"You're afraid of what we might find in the cave," Kirlia said through their mental bond, walking up to rest one hand on Erin's shoulder and the other on Deerling's flank.

"I am," Erin freely admitted, reaching into her pocket with her invisibly marked hand to withdraw the keystone. The helix glistened in the sun, shining through the multicolored haze. "What do I wish to know above all else? It's why I'm here, or how to get home, right?" she asked.

Kirlia cocked her head at her. "That's two things."

"Well, it's the first one then!" Erin concluded, shoving the stone in her pocket as if to end the line of questioning.

"If you don't know, then it might not be the 'right time' Xerneas was talking about yet," Kirlia said gently. Deerling whinnied in quiet agreement.

Erin wavered for a second, then stood up. "I might not know," she said quietly, "but we're here, so we might as well find out.

"Yeah."

Deerling nodded as well, bouncing away excitedly. "You want to stay out?" Erin asked, and her Pokemon enthusiastically nodded.

"You should let Druddigon out too," Kirlia suggested. "He is the cave Pokemon, after all."

"Oh, good idea."

Druddigon burst out of his pokeball with a roar, extending his wings and claws. Erin burst out laughing, and Kirlia raised an eyebrow at him. "Was that really necessary?" Druddigon growled, walking towards Erin and sweeping her away from Kirlia with a wing. "I will not have you compare my sparkles to your brutishness!" Kirlia retorted to the untranslated comment. "Besides, stop hogging Erin!"

"Guys, come on, this isn't the time to have your Fairy and Dragon rivalry," Erin interrupted, trying to hold back her laughter. "You can take it out on Team Rocket when they show up and try to do something stupid. Come on, let's go!"

Druddigon and Kirlia both humphed at each other, sticking close to Erin's side. Deerling, deciding the entire trio was a lost cause, threw her head back and walked into the cave ahead of them. Everybody else followed her in.

The cave was better lit than most, with luminous crystals and lichen sending the crags into perpetual twilight. To Druddigon's ire, Kirlia began to glow, showing their path better. Even with a head start, Erin could still hear Ash and Serena yelling about something or another, so their path into the mountain was decently easy. The keystone felt hot in her pocket, but she couldn't decide which of the thousands of mirrors to press it against.

Wait a second…

Erin paused, let the rest of the group pass her by. Serena shot her a lingering look, but stuck by Ash's side, Deerling oblivious to her trainer at the front. Paul just nodded to her and kept walking. When they had passed, Druddigon growled, a question, and Kirlia pressed a hand to Erin's arm. "You know something."

"I have a theory." Using her Poketch to snap a quick photo of the intersection, Erin gestured down a nearby path and started walking. "This cave has all sorts of weird dimensional stuff, right? Clearly Xerneas knows something about me – that I'm not from Kalos. So, I figure, maybe if we get away from the rest of the group..."

"A portal might open up," Kirlia concluded. "Do you know how this all works?"

Erin scratched her head. "Kinda? My memory of what I watched is really hazy at this point, y'know? I think Ash found another Ash because they both went looking at the same time. So, if I go looking, maybe there's another me looking too?"

"That's not really what you need to know the most, though."

"Nope."

They walked in silence for a few moments.

Druddigon growled as he walked, head held high. Erin absentmindedly rubbed his jaw. "At least you're happy, Druddigon."

Suddenly, from a mirror to Erin's left, a flash of light burst from one of the glass-like crystals. Erin and her Pokemon spun around to come face to face with a blonde girl with blue eyes and a white hoodie who was certainly, undeniably, also Erin. They stared at each other for a long moment, then Mirror Erin's face fell. "You're not on Earth, are you?"

Oh. Erin frowned, exchanging a long glance with Kirlia. "Maybe I better come through."

And with that, Erin stepped into the mirror and another other dimension.

[A/N] Hey there, it's been a hot second!

Not gonna lie, I though this story was truly dead for a while. Plot holes, baby Allie writing, the whole jazz. But, Sword and Shield hype brought me right back and I realized I had 3k of this chapter already sitting on my hard drive from months ago, so I figured let's give it a shot. Shorter chapters are easier on the sparse schedule, in any case.

If you haven't been following my since I stepped back from Pokemon, most of my energy has gone toward a big RWBY AU – 290k, 38 chapters, getting close to complete, ~1000 followers between FFN and AO3 – plus some original novel work. QUALITY CONTROLLED AMOUR has grown a lot too! This chapter isn't wholy indicative of how much I've grown, but if you want a real idea, please please feel free to check out re:Bound or one of my other newer fics, or follow me on Tumblr at Allison Illuminated.

This story already gives me mad nostalgia, yo. I don't know how my fourteen year old self came up with Druddigon as a starter, but I still dig it (to be fair, my Pokemon tastes are still eclectic – I ground for ~5 hours in my Moon playthrough just to get a Happiny). Also, I kinda love the whole Alain subplot in retrospect.

~a moment of hype~ WOOLOO! CORVIKNIGHT! GYMS! WILD AREA! OPEN WORLD POKEMON! I lowkey really like that they're finally limiting the pokedex, gives me big Unova vibes. Also Leon is Bae change my mind ~end hype~

Man, Pokemon's such a big part of my life. No matter how done I think I am, there's always something there to pull me back in.

Love you guys. Love this community. Amourshipping is still OTP. Peace.

Signing out, Allie

(oh, and remember to go follow Quality Controlled Amour! Bye!)