I stumbled out of the crew room, rubbing the sleep from my eyes as I gazed upon the lowest floor of the guild, a strange contented drowsiness lingering in my head. The place looked exactly the same as the last time I saw it, what felt like only a few days ago: Croagunk's little shop near the ladder, the door to the guildmaster's quarters hanging wide open. The entrance to the sentry lookout was even off. Loudred was even still asleep in his room, despite the bright sunlight pouring in through the windows; I was a little surprised he hadn't bothered to wake Rose and I up like he always did. It was as if everyone had decided to slack off on their duties today. And yet I couldn't help but feel happier just taking it all in.

Then again, being kind of erased from - and rewritten into, I guess - existence probably would have that sort of effect.

I ambled over to the ladder, taking my sweet time as I scrabbled up, rung after rung, and I attempted, fruitlessly, to suppress a yawn. I felt my head bump up against something at the top of the climb, and a loud squawk broke the placid silence.

"Awk!" Chatot blustered, flapping a bit to regain his composure. "Who's... oh, it's you, Bill!"

I sighed happily at the familiar voice, not even caring that it was, of all Pokemon, Chatot. "Good morning, Chatot. Can I get through?"

"I, uh-" The bird trailed off, unsure, and I brushed past him, not entirely caring whether he answered or not. I hadn't gotten this much sleep in... well, ever. I recoiled at the brightness of the midmorning sun, finally waking up, and I stood firm, breathing deeply. I noticed a chill in the air, and small puddles were liberally strewn across the ground. Had it rained the night before? I sat down on the spot, mesmerized by the everything.

"B-Bill?" A quiet voice called out, and I turned my head to look at my partner. Rose flicked her tails, shaking a bit as she padded towards me, and I smiled.

"Hey," I replied, and she suddenly collapsed to the ground. I dashed over to her, laying a paw on her back as I helped her back up, and I looked at her with concern, her eyes wobbly. "Woah, you alright? You didn't get yourself hurt while I was gone, right?"

She only seemed to tear up more at this sentiment, and she stepped forward, hopping up to nuzzle as much of my cheek as Pokemon-ly possible. "I... I thought I was... you're really..."

I wrapped my arms around her, slowly rocking back and forth, and I smiled, relieved. "Well, it wasn't, huh?"

She sniffled, leaning into me as she let out a weak chuckle, finally letting the waterworks flow freely. "Y-you're exactly as I remember you... hehe..."

"Wait..." I ruffled her headfur before breaking the hug. "What does that mean? How long was I... gone?"

"It's..." Rose looked up, thinking hard on the question. "A-almost five months... I think."

I blinked, trying hard to hide my surprise. "Five months... that's... wow."

"Yeah," Rose replied, smiling through her tears, and she stood back on her feet, attempting to clean her fur with her Pecha Scarf as best she could. I reached out to wipe at the soaked fur, feeling her flinch for a fraction of a second. "I... thank you, Bill."

"Shh... just smile. Smiles go for miles, right?" I held out my arm, paw drawn into a gentle fist. Rose gave me a small smile as the guild tenet rolled off my tongue, bumping her paw against mine.

"Right... but just..." She shyly nosed my muzzle, and I felt my face go as hot as a bonfire. Rose herself seemed to curl into the smallest ball of fur ever, trying to be as inconspicuous as she could. "Promise you won't leave me again..."

Before I could answer her question, my attention was drawn to a strange noise coming from nearby, and I looked past Rose at the doorway, composure crumpling as I saw the entire guild crammed into the entryway, watching the both of us intently. Loudred feigned ignorance, while Chimecho, Bidoof and Corphish were clapping as if watching a play (a gesture to which I felt myself began to stammer uncontrollably). Chatot and Wigglytuff simply gave us warm smiles, while Sunflora seemed to be wiping at her face even more that Rose had been. Croagunk simply stood stock still, emotionless as always. Rose swiveled around when she saw my reaction, and her jaw dropped, stomping her paws irritably.

"You guys!" She complained, though a faint trace of a smile remained throughout, and the ground rumbled violently as everyone trampled their way outside, piling us into a multi-armed hug. I felt myself lifted from the ground, and my breath caught in my throat as I was squeezed into submission. Rose fared no better, her hind legs flailing about as one of Loudred's large purple arms held fast.

"Oh my gosh oh my gosh oh my gosh!" Sunflora bellowed out, her voice raspy. "You're finally back together again! Eek!"

"It's great to see you two together again," Chimecho added fondly.

"Yup yup! I'm glad that you two are safe and sound," Bidoof thirded. The rest of the guild seemed content to nodded their approval, and I felt air rush back into my lungs as I touched back on solid ground. I looked at Rose as I gasped for breath, her warm brown eyes twinkling as they met my own.

"Yeah... you guys are right... I'm back, finally," I said, drawing strength from somewhere. All eyes were on me as I spoke, but my vision only showed me my partner. "I've been gone for a while, but... I'm back."

"It's good to have you back, friendly-friend," The guildmaster blurted out, hopping from one foot to the other, still bouncing a Perfect Apple on top of his head. Chatot flew up, taking business into his own feathers.

"Do you think you're still fit to lead your team, Bill?"

I looked at Rose, who smiled and nodded. I plastered a grin on my face.

"I'm still walking, aren't I?"

A resounding cheer of hoorays could be heard from all around, and the guild began to file their way back down the ladder to prepare for the day. I took a brief moment to look down at the valley below the hill the guild sat on - Treasure Town awaited, and I hoped they wouldn't make as much of a fuss as the guild did about my return. I had had enough mass attention for one day. Rose looked back at me as I stood there, and she whistled to get my attention.

"Bill? Are you coming?" Her loneliness seemed to have completely disappeared, replaced by determination and happiness. "There's lots of jobs to do!"

I nodded, confident filling my heart. "Yeah... I'm with you, partner. And I promise."

Her face broke into a mischievous smile. "Promise what?"

"I promise..." I knelt, pecking her nose before nuzzling the side of her head. She froze in shock, and I chuckled lightheartedly.

I felt happy and carefree. Her fur tickled and her scarf smelled of berries.

I was home.

"I'll never leave you again."

A/N: Something short. Thought about making it my Christmas upload, but it's not very Christmas-y.