Ross laid in bed in a room that didn't smell like him in an apartment that felt like someone else's. He stared at the ceiling and sighed. It is over, right? When he closed his eyes, he was unwillingly transported elsewhere, to a dingy place in Shalour, or an extensive underground facility, both used for the same purpose. Unfamiliar scents clinging to the sheets. Feet shuffling nearby. The bustle of a real city of people who had no clue what was happening just on the other side of the wall.

This is home now, I guess. There was a lazy ceiling fan that made its rounds and Ross allowed himself to be mesmerized by it for a while. The others really do consider this home. He glanced to Manectric, curled up comfortably on a plush pokémon bed next to Ross' own. Which makes sense. It actually was their home before we left.

He heard footsteps and shuffling outside the door before it opened. Ross flinched. The bed shifted. Lucario sat attentive, close enough for their legs to touch even though he was focused on the doorway.

"Jo-" Arthur Keaton cleared his throat. "Ross? I just came to check on you before bed. You need anything?"

He sat up and shook his head. His skin crawled. It didn't sit right, though he wasn't totally sure what exactly it was.

"Hmm, well, let me know if you do." Arthur seemed hesitant to close the door. After a long and awkward pause, he said, "I'm so happy you're back."

The door clicked shut, and Ross sighed. I wish I could echo the sentiment. With a small huff, he rose completely and went to the window and looked out at the glittering city of light.

The view was familiar but taboo. He knew it intimately from the time Joshua had spent there, but as Ross it felt inappropriate in a way few other things did. He didn't like it at all, but the alternative was the room and that was worse.

Lucario touched his arm gently. "Are you alright?"

Ross chuckled weakly. "You know what's weird?" He asked.

"What?"

"When we fought the aerodactyl, I wasn't scared at all. When we found Gabriel, I couldn't care less – except through proxy with Adrien, of course. I wasn't even really scared when I was with Talbot. Not for the most part. But… this room terrifies me."

"Why? I think it's wonderful."

Ross shook his head. "I know. That's why you should stay." He started to fiddle with the latch on the window. "Don't worry, I'll be back. I just need to go out for a while."

"It's the middle of the night!" Lucario exclaimed. "Aren't you tired? After all we just did?"

Ross opened the window fully and stuck his head out, seeing the fire escape he could use to get down. "Yeah." He admitted. "Just trust me."

"I do." Lucario said. "But I'm not letting you go around alone. I'm not ever leaving you alone. I'm coming, too."

Ross climbed out onto the fire escape and helped Lucario through the window as well. I couldn't ask for anything more. "Hey, can you tell if someone's sleeping? From a distance, I mean. From their aura."

Lucario tilted his head quizzically. "Usually. Why?"

"Just giving us some direction." He knew where his friends lived, though they were admittedly scattered all across the central city. I can't stop by them all in one night, but if Lucario is up for it, I can at least check on a few.

Lucario frowned. "Oh, I see. But you need sleep, too."

Ross shook his head. "Maybe later. Tonight… I wouldn't sleep much, anyway. You can still go back up if you want to get some sleep yourself."

Lucario vehemently shook his head. "No way! I'm with you."

He fought off a small smile. "It's your decision." And then he turned towards Hibernal Avenue.

They walked together in the quiet, balmy summer air for a while until Lucario broke the silence. "So, you never answered me. Why is home scary?"

Ross bit his lip. He didn't look over at his companion, and instead trained his eyes ahead of them. "I…" He started, then sighed. "I kind of told you, before. Back before Geosenge Town. I feel like…" He shook his head. "It's stupid."

"What is?"

"Just that… I feel like an imposter." Ross ran his hand through his hair. "It's not even just that room, it's everything. Josh's pokémon, Josh's crush, even. Josh's family. Rocco's friends. None of it is really mine, they're just remnants of the people who were fused. It was one thing when we were in Shalour, but I can't just come to Josh's home and live Josh's life."

Lucario mumbled when he spoke. "It's not stupid." But, louder, he said, "So, what are you going to do?"

"I don't know, yet."

Another long silence. "That's why we're out here, then, right? Because you don't want to be in that apartment?"

Ross worried his lip and nodded.

"…Okay." Ross looked up at Lucario and followed his gaze to the apartment building they were approaching. "This is Juleka's place, right? Which room is it?" They ventured together into the complex and found the correct apartment and, standing outside the door, Lucario furrowed his brow but neither of them made any move to knock. "I don't think anyone is here."

"No?"

"No. This one is empty. I'm pretty sure."

"Hmm."

"What does that mean?"

Juleka lives here, but if I remember right, her family doesn't. She might be spending the night with them. Actually, I'd expect her to. "Either she's out like we are," he said, "or she's with her family."

"Where do they live?"

"A houseboat on the river."

"A boat? Can we go?" Lucario bounced cutely at the thought. "Please? Let's find their boat!"

Ross chuckled and put his hand on Lucario's head. "We'll look for them. But Marinette and Adrien live between here and there. Want to check on them on the way?"

"Definitely!"

Leaving Juleka's apartment behind, the duo made their way through the alleys and back streets to Jaune Plaza, and the nearby bakery that Marinette lived in. Ross closed his eyes and breathed in deeply through his nose. "I thought Marinette's parents smelled good when they met us at the station." He said, earning a yip of agreement from Lucario. "But Mew, that's mouthwatering."

"Do you think they'll let us try something?" Lucario asked.

Ross shook his head and laughed. "If we come by during the day, absolutely. Can you tell if Marinette is here?"

Lucario focused on the building. "Pretty sure. She doesn't have a sibling, does she? There's definitely three people in there."

"Can you not distinguish between individuals without seeing them?"

"If I know them well enough. I'm fairly certain which one is Marinette, but I wouldn't rule out the possibility of being mistaken from this distance."

"Huh. Makes sense. Is she asleep?"

"I don't thin- oh. No."

"What was that?"

"She's coming out. Well, up there." Lucario pointed to the balcony. "Are we going to talk to her?"

"Should we?"

Marinette approached the end of the balcony anyway but didn't notice Ross and Lucario below her. They weren't exactly obvious, since both of them were darkly colored and they were off to the side since they approached from a dirty alley, so Ross assumed that without any prompting she probably wouldn't see them at all.

"Marinette?" A cool, sturdy voice – quiet enough that if Ross hadn't had pokémon ears he would never have heard it clearly enough to understand. "Are you alright?"

Ross realized that the speaker was himself a pokémon. Bisharp, as was evident when Bisharp joined her at the railing. Yet Marinette didn't seem to have any trouble interpreting him. How long have those two been together? "Just can't sleep." Marinette said. "You don't need to worry."

"Getting no sleep is a reason to worry, you know." The blithe tone of the response made Ross share a look with Lucario.

"I know; you don't need to say it." Marinette said. "But it's not my fault. I just couldn't sleep." She sighed loudly. "I'm just glad I didn't wake up Ralts."

"Ralts has gotten a lot stronger."

"You're right. I probably don't need to worry so much about him anymore. But he'll always be the baby, you know?"

Bisharp laughed. "Yeah. Why couldn't you sleep?"

Another sigh from Marinette. "I just keep thinking."

"About Adrien?"

"About everything. I'm still having a hard time believing it's over. Everything is over. We don't need mega evolution anymore, or I hope so, at least. Adrien has Ross, so that's over for me, too. I thought Ladybug was gone back when I got hurt but this really is the end and I'm not sure what to do." Marinette hummed a little, quietly. "What do heroes do when the world doesn't need them anymore?"

"You live, of course." Ross closed his eyes, shutting out Lucario's concerned reactions to focus on the conversation. "And as long as you live, every ending starts something new, too."

Ross heard Marinette let out a single quiet burst of a laugh. "I guess you're right. With Adrien, at least, it's a start of a new kind of relationship. I think I can be content with that." You can? "With everything else, though… it feels more like an interruption."

"Well, the interruption is over now."

"Yeah, but I'm not sure I know anymore how to live like I did before it."

Ross opened his eyes. Lucario was looking at him, wide-eyed and concerned, and Ross just shook his head. No, her experience is nothing like mine. I can't understand what she means at all. Being created in the middle of this adventure means there is no before to go back to, even if I could. Certainly not Josh's before, and not Rocco's either.

"Then clearly it wasn't an interruption," Bisharp said, "so much as another chapter entirely. Your life wasn't put on hold if it's not the same afterwards, so stop trying to pretend like it was."

Marinette was, for a while, as quiet as Ross. I suppose that applies to me, too. Even if it's the same setting, it's not the same as it was. We have an entirely new chapter in our story ahead of us, whether it's as dramatic as our last or not. Eventually, Marinette echoed Ross' thoughts, and he thought he was satisfied.

He gestured to Lucario, letting him know that he intended on leaving, and the two continued on their way, retreating back into the alleys and circumventing Jaune Plaza for a while until they were free from the danger of being spotted. "You don't want to talk to her?" Lucario asked.

Ross smiled and shook his head. "She's got someone better to talk to. And I'm sure she'll be okay. Let's just go check on Adrien instead, alright? He lives right next to the river, so we can head from there to Juleka."

Lucario brightened at the mention of Juleka. "If you're sure!" He said. "I hope she's there. I really want to go on a boat."

"Have you never been on a boat before?"

"Once." Lucario admitted sheepishly. "But I was in a pokéball for most of it."

It occurred to Ross, then, that he didn't know much about Lucario's life before Talbot. He mentioned a trainer once, but I don't know what might have happened to them. Why were they separated and how long ago was that? I don't even know how long he was really with Talbot. I was able to catch him so either his trainer is gone, or they'd given up on ever seeing him again.

It's none of my business, though. If he wants to share, he will. For now, I'll just do what I can for him.

Their next stop, Adrien's house, was much less eventful than their previous one. They approached the large building from the back and here Ross knew perfectly well where Adrien would be. There were no other people in the massive place, so there was no mistaking it either way, but it was a very quick check for Lucario to look up at the large windows and confirm that Adrien was sound asleep. Good. He deserves it. I hope you sleep all through the night, love. We both know enough of night terrors. Tonight, at least, just sleep.

And with that thought lingering in his head, Ross smiled and pulled Lucario away with the promise that when they visited later, during daylight hours, he could explore the extravagant mansion. It's really cute how excited he is about it. Boats and big houses… I suppose it's been a long time since he's been able to enjoy something simple like that. I better make sure to help him experience everything he can.

I do hope Adrien is okay in that big house alone, though. It may be novel to someone like Lucario, but to him it must feel so cold.

Ross shook his head. "Come on." He said, "Let's follow the river. Juleka's family should be nearby."

Lucario nodded, not questioning him. Truthfully, he didn't have any reason to think Juleka would be near. She could be anywhere along the river. But his gut told him she wouldn't be far from Adrien just yet, especially as – aside from her small family of course, which she was technically imposing on as she had her own apartment – those two were the only ones living alone.

And Ross' gut was right, and the Couffaine houseboat was just down the street, no more than a fifteen-minute walk away from Adrien's house. They passed Chloé's hotel along the way, calling thoughts to Ross' mind about Joshua's little rivalry with her – both of them were perfectly aware of the other's crush on Adrien – and wondered at what she really thought of his tentative relationship with Adrien. They hadn't yet had time to talk about it since Gabriel was beaten – to further it or to take a step back, but Ross was hopeful and optimistic that Adrien wouldn't push him away no matter what happened. And she must be jealous, at least a little. I'm sure she'd heard about it before we came back but… she's not as mature as Marinette. Or she wasn't. I may not be giving her enough credit. She did fight with the others when it came down to it.

The excited chanting of "boat, boat, boat" when Lucario caught sight of the Couffaine houseboat brought Ross out of his thoughts. He couldn't help but grin at him. "Anyone there?" He asked.

Lucario stilled long enough to focus. "Three people. One's on deck, I think, so they must be awake."

"Juleka?"

"No clue! Let's get closer!" Lucario didn't leave Ross any choice in the matter when he grabbed him by the hand and pulled him along the river to where the houseboat was moored. Not that he minded. Lucario's excitement was infectious and adorable and Ross was more than willing to play along.

They hadn't even reached the boat before someone had leaned on the railing of the boat, looking out at the city street Ross and Lucario were heading down. Ross recognized him from their homecoming, a young man, no more than a few years older than Juleka, who resembled her in more than just genetics. Ross smiled at the dyed hair and the edgy clothes – though Ross couldn't help but chuckle a little at the oversized band t-shirt that must have been his pajamas.

He had no clue what the man's name was, though. Wasn't even sure if he'd ever heard it. But unlike with Marinette, there was no avoiding catching his eye. Mostly because Lucario was still bouncing down the street howling about a real live boat.

The boy on the boat smiled at him. "Hey." He said. His voice was gentle and warm, just like Juleka's. That similarity, along with the visual ones, endeared Ross to him, and Ross smiled back. The man hesitated for a moment, then raised his hands to sign as he talked. "Ross, right? You're Juleka's friend."

Ross chuckled and signed in response. "Hard to mistake for anyone else." The clear, ringing laugh that pulled out of the man only drew further similarities between him and Juleka. Even that was gentle and kind. "You're Juleka's brother?"

"Mhmm. Luka. It's nice to meet you."

"You too."

Lucario was still bouncing, leaning over the river wall to look closer at the boat. Luka laughed at the sight. "What brought you all the way out here?"

Ross smiled a little less smoothly than he meant to. "Just showing Lucario around town."

"In the middle of the night?"

"What better time?"

Luka laughed again. He looked over to Lucario. "Is he alright?"

"He's never been on a boat before. Kind of excited."

"Do you two want to come aboard?"

Lucario gasped, too amazed to speak loudly when he said. "Yes, please."

Ross chuckled and asked Luka if it was really okay. "Of course." Luka said. "Any friend of my sister's is always welcome here. Even at ridiculous hours."

Lucario hopped on his toes at the edge of the plank and looked to Ross for permission. "Go on." Ross said verbally. Lucario didn't wait to be told twice, and he was already giggling at the helm before Ross had managed to step foot on deck. Though, as Ross had hesitated a little too long because he had to fight past every alarm his mind was screaming about this man he didn't know, it wasn't altogether that surprising.

"He's cute." Luka observed, watching Lucario. Yeah, he is. Lucario being there was what ultimately drew Ross past his wariness. Even if something did go wrong, if Luka ended up showing once more the cruelty of humans that Ross knew too well, it was better he was there than he left Lucario alone. "Ross… can I, uh…" When Ross looked back at Luka, Luka was watching the deck rather than him. "I know it might be hard for you to talk about, but I really want to know what happened while you all were gone."

Ross bit his lip. "I don't mind." He signed, though Luka didn't look up, so Ross wasn't sure if he actually saw.

"It's just…" Luka continued. "Juleka's staying here tonight, and even then, she only just fell asleep. I want to be able to help her."

Ross sighed. He waited until Luka looked up at him, rather than waving to him for his attention, and once he got it he signed slowly and carefully. "How can I help?"

"I just thought that maybe if I understood better what happened, I might be able to support her better."

"I'm not sure." Ross worried his lip and hummed. "And I'm probably not the best to ask, since most of their time in Shalour was looking for me. But I'll tell you whatever I can, if it'll help Juleka."

"Do you know what keeps her up?"

"No." Ross signed honestly. "I have a few guesses but that's not something she's shared with me."

Luka hummed for a moment then furrowed his brow. "Are all of you having trouble sleeping? Is that why you're out at this time?"

"I can't say" Ross took a moment to run a hand through his hair and consider his next statement. "Most of us have the problem, at least. I wouldn't say that trouble sleeping is why I'm outside, but it didn't help. I thought the others would do better now that we're back, though I haven't had the chance to check. Adrien's sleeping. Marinette wasn't, but I'm not overly worried about her."

Luka chuckled. "Have you just been going around to everyone's places to see if they're awake?"

"Yep."

Luka stared at him for a moment. "Oh."

Ross shrugged. "I was really just checking on Adrien. All alone in that huge house, just after his father was arrested, not to mention everything with his mom." He sighed. "But Marinette and Juleka's places were on the way, and once we saw that Juleka wasn't home and I mentioned this boat Lucario was too excited for me to say no."

Luka shifted his gaze to Lucario and Ross smiled at how it softened. "You got him while you were in Shalour, right?"

"I met him while we were both Talbot's captives." Ross thought for a moment, then signed, "Thanks for letting him run around here."

"It's not a problem." Luka waved his hand nonchalantly before hesitating and continuing to sign along with his words. "I'm glad he's having fun."

"Yeah. Me too. He deserves it."

Luka worried his lip for a moment. "I heard about what Talbot did." Ross only inclined his head in answer. "Lucario was in the same position?"

"Oh, yeah. Except for a few… bouts of anger," Ross flinched a little, still feeling the stinging of his back (Recent events weren't kind to it, but thankfully that kind of activity was over with), "I didn't go through anything Lucario hadn't. In fact, Lucario made himself a target, trying to spare myself and other pokémon down there by taking all of Talbot's attention."

"He didn't…" Luka's weak breath was interrupted by his own hand covering his mouth. Ross nodded.

"But that's enough about us." Ross smiled and shook his head. "The point is, wherever he gets some enjoyment, I'm glad for it."

Luka nodded. "Yeah. And he's welcome here anytime. I'm sure Mom'll let him play pirate if he wants to, too."

Ross snickered and eyed Lucario, still eagerly examining all the little novelties that the boat offered. "I'm sure he'd love that." Another sigh. "How did you get Juleka to sleep?"

"I sang to her." Luka said. "Just a little lullaby." I'll have to keep that in mind, though I can't exactly sing by human standards. I wonder if there's any equivalent. I know for a fact I can't use the move Sing – even if I had that kind of power, Zoroark can't learn it so it wouldn't make any sense for me to. "You were having trouble sleeping too, right? Would you like me to sing?"

Ross shook his head. "No, thank you." He signed. "Not right now."

"Maybe another time." Luka said. "Any way I can help."

"Speaking of – we got off the topic of Juleka."

"Oh, right. You said you had guesses."

"I do, but I don't know how you would help her with them."

"What are they?"

"It might be the same as it's always been. You know, the near-death experiences and all that. We had a run-in with a mega aerodactyl that was pretty frightening."

"What happened?"

"We took it down fairly swiftly, but before we had the chance it Hyper Beamed us."

Luka physically took a step back. "Hyper Beam?"

Ross nodded. "All our pokémon together using Protect only barely stopped it. If Aerodactyl had sustained it longer or was just a little stronger, we'd all be dead."

"Holy shit."

Ross shrugged. "That's option one. There's also the Reflection Cave business."

Luka shook off the stupor of the first option and inquired as to what Ross was talking about. "She mentioned there was a mega when you passed through there, but I didn't know it was any different than any other."

If she never said anything after all this time… it's probably not my business to share it. We never did talk about it. Or, I didn't. They might've while I was imprisoned. After a moment, he signed, "It was a mega alakazam. Really, the only thing it did was set up a Trick Room. It made us experience the things we feared."

"And… Juleka?"

Ross smiled. "If she hasn't told you, then I can't either. I'll tell you that when Josh went through there, he was excluded. He felt like since he was a newcomer to the group, no one really liked him as much as the others and he ended up being abandoned by them – both things he was terrified of. That should give you an idea. I'm kind of lucky from that experience. I'm not Josh anymore, and I don't really fear the same things. So, it doesn't bother me too much. The others… I can't say. Never really talked to them about it. Haven't even had the opportunity." He shrugged. "But that's the summary, anyway. Each of them faced a similar challenge in the Trick Room. I can easily see that haunting them."

Luka nodded solemnly. "I think I might have an idea of what she went through."

"Good." Ross signed. "Past that, there might be what Mightyena and her did."

"There's more? What did she do?"

Ross actually chuckled a little. "Oh, that's not all. I still have one more after this." Luka furrowed his brow and frowned. "Though, actually, you might understand better if I say that one first."

"Okay." Luka nodded firmly. "Tell me, please."

"Now, both of these happened while I was recovering from the fusion, so I didn't actually see them." He clarified. "But I know she saw what remained after Lailah fused me."

"What remained?"

"Like, actual remains. Josh's body became the host for the fusion – me – and so Rocco's body was just dead. She saw it." Luka covered his mouth again. "I can't say what it looked like, since no one will show me a picture, but as I understand it, it was desiccated and kind of weathered? But you don't want me to describe the bones of one of your sisters' friends."

"Wait. No one will show you a picture of it? You want to see it?"

He shrugged. "Rocco was one of the models for me, too. Honestly, though, it was probably smart of them not to show me. I was already pissed at Lailah for killing me. That might've made me do something stupid."

Luka pursed his lips and shifted on his feet. "How are so casual about it?"

"I have a strange relationship with Rocco. Honestly, seeing his bones, or knowing they're there at least, mostly just validates me as an individual person. I'm constantly fighting the 'he's a mix' thing. But I've said all along, Rocco and Josh both are dead. I'm someone else who just happened to be made from them. Whether I resemble them or not."

"Oh. That makes sense, I guess."

Ross nodded. "So, that's one thing. I can't imagine seeing that was easy for her. But the other thing, what she did, was later, when they all captured Lailah and found Adrien."

"What did she do?"

Ross laughed. "She got pissed. Truth be told, I'm kind of proud of her. But she's a gentle person, so I can see what she did bothering her in hindsight." He tapped his foot for a moment, trying to think of how to phrase it. "Mightyena evolved, and she had him attack Gabriel directly."

"What?! Juleka wouldn't-"

Ross grabbed Luka's hands to stop him, and he trailed off verbally just like Adrien always did. "I'm just telling you how I heard it." He signed when he released Luka's hands. "But I believe the consensus from everyone who was there." Luka shook his head in disbelief. Ross waited until he was watching again so he could sign, "Gabriel's lurantis protected him, of course. Juleka knew it would. And Mightyena…" Ross just chuckled a little awkwardly and used his hand to mime the thrashing jaws throwing Lurantis around. "Grr." He growled gently to emphasize his point.

Luka covered his face. "I had no idea…"

"This whole adventure wasn't easy for anyone." Ross signed. "But those are the things I know of that might hurt Juleka in particular. It could be one or all of them, I don't know. Just make sure you help her out, alright?"

"Yes, of course. I'll do everything I can for her."

"You better." Ross looked once more to Lucario. It's probably about time we head back. He, at least, needs sleep. "We should get going." He signed for Luka. Then, he called verbally. "Lucario! Come on. We can come back another time."

"Okay!" Lucario said happily.

"Wait." Luka's protest was accompanied by an unexpected hand on Ross' arm that sent a jolt through him. He jumped, wrenching away from Luka. "Sorry. I'm so sorry." Luka said, wide-eyed. "I shouldn't have… I'm sorry. Just… you're alone, aren't you?"

Ross exchanged a look with Lucario, who asked, "Are you okay?"

"Fine." Ross growled. "He just surprised me." To Luka, with his hands so that he could understand, Ross said, "No. I have Lucario." After a moment, thinking about the situation, he tacked on, "And Arthur."

"But," Luka said, "you left home for a reason."

Ross chuckled bitterly. "Home?" He signed. "Josh's home."

The sadness in Luka's eyes pinned Ross uncomfortably to the spot. "If you want," Luka said carefully, "you can stay here tonight. It's already really late, it'd be practically morning by the time you got back, wouldn't it? I can sing and help you sleep. And you'll be with Juleka."

Ross furrowed his brow. "Why?"

Luka shuffled a little. "I don't want to leave you all alone, that's all. I know I don't really know you, but you're Juleka's friend. And I want all of you to be okay." He smiled. "I wasn't there during the attacks or your recovery mission, but I can do this for you guys."

Ross was about to tell him no straight out, but Lucario smiled and asked him if they could stay and when Ross looked into Lucario's eyes and saw how much fun he had on the boat he just couldn't take him away just yet. "Okay." He eventually signed, echoing it verbally for Lucario. "We can stay just for tonight."

Lucario cheered and Luka smiled and Ross crossed his arms as they were led into the boat proper and given an area to camp out and with the promise of exploring the inside of the boat in the morning, Ross and Lucario settled down to sleep.

Only a few minutes later, Ross heard the door open and shut and Luka sat next to him with a guitar and he played a quiet tune and sang with that gentle and calming voice just close enough to Juleka's to be familiar and despite himself Ross really was lulled to sleep.

When Ross awoke and saw Adrien he was pleasantly surprised, but the sentiment that tried to announce itself through the purring rumble in his throat died away when he noticed just how perturbed Adrien looked. He sat up, tilting his head to subtly ask Adrien what was up.

Adrien scowled and crossed his arms. "What were you thinking?" He asked. Ross flinched back. "Arceus, did you not think at all?"

Ross raised his hands to sign. "What are you talking about?"

"You ran away!" Adrien said. "Do you have any idea how worried we all were? Until we texted Juleka, we had no clue where you'd gone!"

Ross furrowed his brow. "Did it really take that long before you texted Juleka?"

"That's not the point, Ross!" Adrien gasped. "You scared us. Your dad was about to have a heart attack. I was about to."

"To be fair," Ross retorted. "I was invited."

"Luka didn't know you hadn't told anyone you left. Because, you know, most people would tell someone when they go out in the middle of the night."

"Would they?"

Adrien threw his hands up in exasperation. "Do you even care?! All of us were terrified that something happened to you! Can you just try to pretend you give a shit?!"

Ross sighed and clambered to his feet. In truth, he didn't really care. Not much. For everyone except Adrien, he could live with his oversight (And it was an oversight. He'd meant to go back before Arthur noticed, and had simply forgotten to send a message before he fell asleep.). But he couldn't stand seeing Adrien that broken up about it, on the verge of tears because of him.

He approached, then reached out and took Adrien's shoulders in his hands. He gently rubbed them for a moment before stepping even closer and wrapping his arms around Adrien completely. "I'm sorry." He murmured, knowing Adrien wouldn't understand him. "I didn't mean to scare you."

When Ross slackened his hold so that he could back up and tell Adrien in a way he'd understand, he found himself trapped. Adrien had a vice grip on him and wasn't showing any intention of letting go.

Juleka appeared in the doorway. Ross looked at her over Adrien's shoulder, but she just shook her head and sighed. "You are always welcome," She said with a hint of humor in her voice. "But next time, tell your dad when you leave. Please?"

Hands occupied with Adrien, Ross could only nod to answer her.

Alya popped out from behind Juleka, joining them in the room. "Why'd you leave, anyway?" Adrien let go of him when he heard Alya's question and looked at him for an answer. Ross shared a look with Lucario, who had been sitting quietly out of the way, and focused on Adrien when he told them.

Adrien seemed concerned, Juleka contemplative, and Alya just nodded her head. "Yeah, that makes sense." She said casually. "If you don't want to live with Arthur, you could think about getting your own place. Have you thought about your job?"

"Can't exactly model." He signed. "And even if I could, that's just another Josh thing I'd be taking."

Adrien waved for his attention. "You could stay with me."

Juleka scoffed. "Then who's going to tell you to keep the doors open?"

"Juleka! I wouldn't- he was- that's just inappropriate."

Alya snickered. Juleka shook her head. "You can stay here if you don't want to stay there. Mom already said it's okay. And anyway, Adrien, have you even decided to stay in your place?"

He blushed and rubbed his neck. "Well, no…"

"Exactly. I need to go talk to my landlord too." She worried her lip. "Since us three are the ones all alone, want to get an apartment together?"

"Can we do that?" Adrien asked.

"Well, we can." Juleka answered. "I don't know how old Ross technically is with zoroark age shenanigans, but since he's legally Josh at the moment he should be able to, as well."

Alya tapped her chin. "Actually, Ross, how does that work?"

Ross had to think about it for a moment. "To be sure would require machinery that I don't have, but… Rocco was, by years, younger than you guys." He paused. "The physical aging process is weird but as Josh was the foundation of this body, I at least started from there at the same place. I don't know enough about human growth to say if my own process has sped up at all."

Juleka waved it off. "Either way, Ross, do you think that would work? You might need to find a new job, but if you don't mind mooching off your boyfriend's fortune he could get you started."

Ross shook his head. "Josh had enough money saved for me to share an apartment with y'all while I go job hunting. I'm down if you guys are."

"Hey," Adrien said, "I'd gladly help you out. You don't need to dig into your savings."

"I love you, Adrien, but no. I'll survive. Trust me." Ross smirked. "If I really can't find a job, then I'll let you pay, alright? At least let me try to do this myself."

"If you're sure."

Juleka chuckled. "Well, Adrien? Want to live with us, or stay in the mansion?"

"With you, please." He said without hesitation. "Of course, with you."

Alya nodded along. "That's great and all." She said. "What are you going to tell Mr. Keaton?"

Everyone looked to Ross. He shrugged. "The truth." He signed.

And the truth was exactly what he told Arthur Keaton. It was actually really convenient, since once Arthur had gotten over the whole "Oh, thank Arceus you're okay I was so worried" thing, fussing over him, he was able to tell Arthur exactly why he left in the first place. The truth. And that was a perfect segue to the idea of getting an apartment with his friends who even Arthur would admit knew what Ross was feeling much better than he did.

"It's good for all of us." Juleka said. "To be with other people who were there. That's what I think. And we've basically been living together for months anyway, right boys?"

Ross knew it was stretching the truth a bit. Them three in particular hadn't been living together very long at all, since their journey was split into parts where either he or Adrien was missing, but it was still a reasonable argument. "I'm not just leaving." He signed, with Adrien translating. "I still want to have a relationship with you – I'm not walking out or anything. I just want my own life, not Josh's."

Arthur sniffed, overcome. He shook his head. "Okay. I know you're not asking for permission – you wouldn't listen either way. I know you that well, at least."

Ross had to resist chuckling. To Juleka and Adrien, he signed, "He's not wrong."

"Just please keep in touch. And visit, when you can."

Adrien didn't even wait for Ross to sign when he answered for him. "Of course."