“Hoooooah… Why we gotta wake up so early? It’s pitch black!”

In a dark alley somewhere in downtown Hau’oli City, the Team Skull trio gathered together around some trash cans. The pink-haired girl was still half sleep, which made her doubly angrier than usual. Next to her, her “bros” as they usually referred to each other, were waiting as well, the one in charge resting on the wall while the other one stood still, trying not to fall asleep.

“You forgot the plan?”, complained the leader grunt. “When the first tourists come out, we jump on them and take their Pokémon! It’s brilliant!”

“Oh, yeah, big bro! I… I forgot… but I wanna sleep”, complained the pink-haired grunt.

“Ain’t we here for the Exclusive Malasada sales before they run out?”, asked the short grunt while dozing off.

“Y… Yeah, well, that too!”, exclaimed the leader grunt nervously. “We steal Pokémon and then we get the Malasadas! There’s time, ya know? Wait a sec… I think I heard something.”

The whole group stared at the far end of the alley, from where a repeating sound could be heard: footsteps. Then, a small figure appeared, but given how dark it was, it was hard to see who could be, although the grunts didn’t seem to care about that.

“Hey, big bro, look! Someone’s coming!”, exclaimed the short grunt.

“Great! I knew it was worth waking up so early! Now we gotta…”, began saying the leader grunt.

“Wait, big bro… I think I know that gal”, interrupted the pink-haired grunt.

As the figure approached them slowly, the grunts could see clearly: a beige shirt, green shorts and a red hat. The young Selene walked alone through the ally, dragging her feet on the ground, her eyes full of sadness staring at the path she was walking through. Even though their previous encounters, the grunts seemed happy.

“Look, it’s one of the brats! And she’s alone! Easy prey!”, exclaimed the leader grunt. “Get ready!”

Selene kept walking, unaware of the Team Skull presence far ahead. Too many thoughts running in her head, she couldn’t stop thinking about everything she was leaving behind, and at the same time, she told herself that there was no other option but to keep walking. Suddenly, some steps in front of her made her raise her head, finding out the whole Team Skull group in front of her.

“Yo yo yo! What we got here?”, exclaimed the leader grunt out loud. “If it ain’t one of those brats from the School! Sorry, but you ain’t going through here ‘til you give us all your Pokémon!”

The grunts stood proudly, feeling themselves like a big menace as they looked down on Selene. However, nothing happened except silence. The girl stared at the grunts in front of them. From all the people that she could have seen in her runaway, she didn’t expect to see them. In other circumstances, she would have said something, maybe even accepted their challenge. But that time, all Selene did was stare at them scornfully and let out a “Tch!”. After that, the girl kept walking, with no other option but going through the group. Astonished at that reaction, the grunts didn’t move at all as Selene walked through them as if they were mere trash. It took a while for the grunts to process the situation, but when that happened, the leader grunt got really mad.

“Yo, whatcha think you’re doing, brat?”, exclaimed the leader grunt angrily as the whole group turned around to look at Selene. “Show us some respect! We are Team Skull! The hated band that beats you down and beats you down and never lets up!”.

“Yeah, what big bro said!”, added the shorter grunt mockingly. “Don’t get too cocky, we are 3 on 1 right now! You don’t have any chance against us all alone! By the way, where are your brat friends, eh? Studying at the School like losers?”.

Selene heard that. And she also heard the laughing that came from behind her, Team Skull laughing at their own joke. She felt it: an intense pain in her heart. Those words brought memories back to her mind. Scenes of all the moments she shared with her friends. Friends that she was then leaving behind. And that was even more painful. Since Selene ran away that morning, she tried to keep her composure, focusing on her goals. But at that moment, she reached her limit.

“...alone”, murmured Selene so lowly that the Skull grunts barely heard it.

“Uh? Whaddya said?”, asked the leader grunt.

“I said…”, said Selene as she turned around, her face only showing the purest rage in her heart, to face the grunts, while a red light came out from her Poké Ball on her waist, Komi taking form behind her Trainer while guarding her with her claw. Then, Selene screamed: “LEAVE ME ALONE!”.

At the same time she pronounced those words, Komi roared with all her might, both their voices echoing through the back alley, pushing back the grunts a few steps. They remained speechless, staring at the young girl with wide eyes. Selene stood silent, staring at the grunts and panting, refraining her crying as much as she could, although she couldn’t stop one tear from falling down her cheek. In their minds, the grunts tried to remember when was the last time someone looked at them that way… and they just found one memory: Guzma. Only their boss was scarier that the girl.

“W… wow, big bro… I think we pissed her off”, said the shorter grunt. “Why don’t we leave?”.

“Aaaah… Are you nuts?”, asked the leader grunt angrily. “She can scream all she want, she’s alone! We are gonna beating her down…”

However, the leader grunt couldn’t finish his words as a hand stood right in front of his face: it was his sis’ hand. The female grunt remained silent all that time, but unlike her bros, she stared at Selene’s eyes with seriousness. A few seconds later, she told her two bros:

“Scram!”.

Since they were not used to that behavior coming out from their sis, the two male grunts were shocked for a moment, until the leader grunt reacted:

“Whatcha talking about? The three of us can beat her! Why…”

“Can it!”, interrupted the female grunt with frustration. “Just… leave us alone, got it? I’ll catch up to you later. I’ll be fine, really.”

Both the leader and the shorter grunt couldn’t understand what was going on, and they even felt compelled to stay there and fight along their sis. But they could feel it, an aura coming out from their sis that said “Only I can do this”. They both resigned themselves to leave the alley, not without looking back at Selene one last time, seeing that the girl was still incredibly mad at them. A few seconds later, only Selene and the female grunt remained in that solitary place, staring at each other. The grunt could feel that the girl was still on guard and raised her hands.

“Yo, slow down! I don’t wanna pick a fight”, said the female grunt casually. “I just wanna talk.”

“About what?”, asked Selene with a sore voice.

“Dunno. ‘bout stuff. Some girl talk if you prefer”, answered the female grunt.

Feeling completely calmed, the female grunt walked towards one side of the alley and sat on top of a trash can. Then, she removed her black face mask with the Team Skull logo. It was the first time that Selene could see one of them fully showing their faces. The grunt looked young, just a few years older than her, and her mouth area was paler, not affected by the Alolan sunlight, leaving a very evident mark on her cheeks that showed where the mask was at all times. The grunt took out a lipstick and a small mirror from her pocket and proceeded to paint her lips.

“Sorry. Woke up super early, those two didn’t give me time to do my makeup”, explained the female grunt.

As Selene contemplated the soon-to-be woman dedicating her full attention to her makeup, she understood she wasn’t any threat. Knowing that, she murmured “Go back” and made Komi return to her Poké Ball with the typical red flash. The girl was getting ready to leave, but noticing that, the female grunt asked:

“So… watcha doing ‘ere? And where’re your friends?”.

Contrary to her mates, Selene didn’t feel any malice from that question. She looked at the pink-haired girl's eyes: her curiosity was genuine, and the girl found that the most confusing.

“Why do you care?”, asked Selene in low voice.

“Dunno, all alone, in a dark street, trash ‘round… Looks to me you’re running away”, casually mentioned the female grunt.

“So what?”, asked Selene sharply.

The grunt didn’t answer that question, simply letting a giggle out. She was not used to seeing any of the brats acting in such a way. Instead, the grunt stretched her arms up and sighed.

“Ya know? I get it. Everybody in Alola thinks Team Skull are just a bunch of losers, no-brainers who only riot and steal Pokémon”, began saying the female grunt. “And hey, we ARE a bunch of losers, no-brainers, but we do more than just riot and steal Pokémon. Believe it or not, I was so lucky joining ‘em.”

Both girls stared at each other. The grunt could see how confused Selene was by hearing those things, her eyes showing how hard it was for her to believe that. Seeing that, the grunt smiled.

“Well, a couple years ago, I lived with pa and ma in another isle”, began explaining the female grunt. “My family was very odd, very old-fashioned, I couldn’t even have my own Pokémon, being a Trainer was a big no there. But for me, it was fashion. I just loved how the other girls dressed, all those trends and styles. My parents forced me old plain dresses, and hey, that’s okay for a while, but I wanted variety, I wanted more. Between you and me? I think you all girls look super cute! I couldn’t even dress up like you, casual but cute. And that shorty brat? Baggy pants and changing to swim style in a sec? That’s style! That was my dream: getting into fashion. But I saw there was no way back there. Truth is, I never felt we were a family, there was no feeling. And I left. No paths, no goals, just… whatever happened, happened. Anything would be better than staying there.”

“Didn’t know where to go, so I just got my way out into ‘nother isle. And I met ‘em: Team Skull. For sure, I was hella scared! Had no Pokémon, but if they took my money, that was my end. And then, he popped out: Guzma. Big, strong, a beast. But just… one sec. He looked onto my eyes one sec, and then, he smiled, lent his hand and said: ‘Have no home? Why not trying with us?’. So I did, and damn, I found something I never had: freedom.

Sure, we are a bunch of losers, no-brainers, we riot, we steal Pokémon… but we do much more. We are open. We share our interests. We support each other. Big bro? He closes himself in a room and slams that guitar ‘til his fingers bleed. And the other one? Recently got a liking for taking care of Pokémon. And me… I found other girls who loved fashion as much as I did. You always see me like this, but there, we try lotsa stuff, and I learn a lot. Together, we are… a family. I knew then that I found my home”.

After finishing her story, the female grunt let her back rest on the wall while nodding happily at her own story. On her part, still confused, Selene let out a sarcastic laugh.

“So what? Are you trying to make me join your gang?”, asked Selene with an ironic smile, but instead of taking it badly, the female grunt laughed aloud as if she just heard a joke.

“Hella no!”, answered the female grunt with conviction. “No place for a goody-two-shoes over there. What Imma trying saying is… just like my home is with Team Skull, your home is with that bunch of brats!”.

Upon hearing those words, Selene opened her eyes in shock. At that moment, memories of her friends came back to her mind, at the class, at Kiawe’s farm, exploring the islands or just at the beach… However, those happy memories felt painful at that moment, when she was trying to leave that behind, or more like, she knew those moments would never happen even if she stayed. Feeling overwhelmed with that sadness, she stared onto the floor.

“No, you’re… wrong”, said Selene with sadness. “I… don’t belong there.”

“Yeah, sure. I can tell after seeing you together so many times: you are as much of a brat as them, and you sure enjoyed it”, said the female grunt. “Look, dunno what happened, but if you talk to them, you can patch things up.”

“No… If I tell them, everything will be over”, added Selene. “This is… for the better.”

“Better for who?”, asked the female grunt.

“For them… for me… for everybody…”, said Selene.

An uncomfortable silence filled the air. The female grunt could see it, the pain in Selene’s eyes. It didn’t matter how many times she could say that kind of thing, the grunt wouldn’t believe it. Instead of insisting, the grunt said:

“Let me tell ya one last thing… When I left my place, sure, I was nervous and scared about the future. But you know what? I was happy to leave such a crappy place. I think a runaway should make you happy, that’s why you do it, you look for something better. But… when I look at your face… that’s not the face of someone who’s happy for leaving. That’s the face of someone who found her home and regrets leavin’ it.”

Selene looked back at the grunt, contemplating a scene that, even if she described it with details to others, nobody would believe her. The female grunt looked at her with half-closed eyes and a gentle smile. For an instant, she forgot that girl was just another Team Skull grunt, the one she fought sometimes in the past. At that dark alley, with no one seeing them, she was just as normal as her. After that, the grunt jumped from the trash can and put her mask on her face.

“But what do I know, right?”, asked the female grunt with a joking voice. “I’m just a no-brainer! But maybe that’s the key. You hafta stop using that little head that much and begin using your heart. Better results guaranteed. Whatev’... If we don’t meet again, I wish you luck. And you better not tell anybody ‘bout this!”.

With those final words, the female grunt turned around and walked away slowly, the shadows of the street covering her with every step she took, until she vanished at the end of the alley. Selene stood there in silence, those last words repeating in her head. Could that be possible? Could it be that the small hope in her heart could be right? That her friends could understand who she was? But again, her fears engulfed her head, imagining the worst possible outcome… and she wanted to avoid that as much as possible.

“No, this… this is what I have to do…”

Murmuring those sad words, Selene returned to her planned path onto her own shadows, onto her unknown future.