Chapter no.464 Yellow's Help part 1

Yellow was enveloped in confusion and concern.
They had emerged victorious against Team Rocket, saved Kanto, and even avenged Raticate, but a heavy question loomed in her heart—why wasn't Austin moving on?
Why did he not seek to rekindle friendships with Misty and Brock?
The answer was as painful as it was silent—Austin was still suffering.
Every day, Yellow felt the growing shadows of pain within Austin, a silent storm brewing beneath his calm exterior.
Her attempts to reach out, to bridge the gap with conversation, were met with evasions or excuses.
"Let's wait," he would say, or "Now's not the time," deflecting her concerns with a smile that never reached his eyes.
It was clear to Yellow that Austin wasn't just avoiding a return to the past; he was running from it.
Defeating Team Rocket had not been the salve to his wounds he had hoped for. Instead, the victory only dampened the flames of his anger and despair temporarily, with those very flames threatening to reignite at any moment.
The battle may have been won, but the war within Austin raged on, his heart a battlefield marked by scars unseen.
Austin's response to his inner turmoil was to throw himself into a frenzy of activity.
He buried himself in projects, business ventures, and technological acquisitions, innovations just on the horizon.
Yet, this relentless pursuit of progress and control was not about ambition; it was a mask for his pain.
Despite possessing wealth that could last several lifetimes, Austin was driven by a relentless need to do more, to own more. It wasn't the lack of funds that troubled him; it was the absence of peace within.
Yellow, with her gentle heart and healing powers, wanted nothing more than to help Austin find solace.
Yet, her abilities, as vast as they were, could mend only the physical. The wounds Austin bore were of the mind, the spirit—wounds hidden deep within, beyond the reach of her powers.
Night after night, Yellow wept, her tears a silent testament to her helplessness.
How could she aid Austin in his healing journey when the battle was against shadows only he could see?
....

Yellow woke up to a room that felt like a warm embrace, surrounded by plushies of Pokémon, her own Pokémon companions nestled in their cozy beds. Rubbing sleep from her eyes, she stretched and made her way downstairs, seeking the comfort of a glass of water to shake off the remnants of sleep.

What she stumbled upon in the lounge, however, was far from the quiet morning she expected. Austin, surrounded by his Pokémon, was engaged in a heated discussion over a whiteboard, upon which the words "Pikachu Logo" were freshly written. The room was filled with the sounds of groans and grunts of disagreement from his Pokémon, each vying for their chance to be the emblem of Austin's new venture.

Alfred, ever the attentive butler, handed Yellow a glass of water, anticipating her routine.

"Miss Yellow, here you go," he said, a small smile on his face.

"What's going on?" Yellow asked, her confusion clear as day.

"Master Austin is in the midst of choosing a logo for his new entertainment company," Alfred explained, gesturing towards the chaotic scene. "As you can see, everyone has their own opinions about it. It's... not going particularly smoothly."

"Hmm," Yellow murmured as she sipped her water, her gaze lingering on Austin. Alfred, ever attentive, took her empty glass, trying to inject a note of positivity into the air. "At least Master Austin seems happy," he remarked, glancing towards Austin with a hopeful look.

Yellow, however, knew better.

"He isn't happy, he's just distracted," she whispered under her breath, her eyes narrowing in concern.

She could feel it—the lingering shadows in Austin's heart, a darkness that refused to be dispelled by mere distractions.

The conversation took a sudden, heavy turn when Lucario, oblivious to the delicate balance of the moment, brought up Raticate to be the logo for the company.
The room fell silent, the air thick with unspoken emotions.
Yellow instinctively stepped back, the oppressive weight of Austin's heart growing heavier, anger seeping into the very edges of his aura.

Yet, on the outside, Austin's reaction belied the turmoil within. He smiled, a façade so convincing it might have fooled anyone who didn't know him as well as Yellow did. "That's a great idea," he said, his voice steady, betraying none of the storm raging inside him.

Unable to bear the disparity between Austin's outward calm and his inner chaos, Yellow excused herself, rushing towards the bathroom.
....
Inside the bathroom, Yellow stood alone, leaning heavily against the sink. The cool splash of water on her face did little to calm the storm within her heart. As she looked up into the mirror, the reflection staring back at her was one of turmoil and helplessness.

"Austin is always the one with a plan, the leader who knows what to do next. What could I possibly do to help him?" she questioned herself, her voice a mere whisper in the solitude of the room. "He's the one who's always saving everyone... But who's there to save him? I—I—I can't save him." The realization hit her like a wave, threatening to pull her under into a sea of doubt and fear.

Yellow felt the weight of her own powerlessness, crushing her with the heavy burden of wanting to help but not knowing how. She had always seen Austin as invincible, the rock that everyone could lean on. Now, seeing the cracks in that facade, realizing that he too was vulnerable and in pain, was almost too much to bear.
"He's always been the hero, but even heroes need saving," she thought, her heart aching with the desire to be the one to offer that salvation.

Just as she felt herself teetering on the edge of a mental breakdown, a sudden, familiar energy filled the room. Yellow's head snapped up, her eyes wide as she sensed the presence she hadn't felt in far too long.

Green was back.
...

Yellow was lost in her thoughts, her gaze distant as Austin and Green engaged in conversation. The sounds around her faded into a blur until her name pierced the fog.

"Yellow!"

Jolted back to reality, she noticed everyone's eyes on her, filled with concern. "Something wrong?" Austin's voice carried a note of worry, pulling at her heartstrings.
"Worry about yourself for once," she thought bitterly but couldn't bring herself to voice the words. Instead, she diverted her attention to her food, aimlessly pushing it around on her plate.

"Can I get dessert early?" she asked, seeking any excuse to break the tension.

Austin's face lit up with a gentle smile. "Of course, Al—" he began but was quickly interrupted.

"Can you bring it?" Yellow interjected, her request halting Austin in his tracks.

"Of course."

With Austin gone, Yellow turned to Green and the others, the weight of her concern heavy in her voice.

"Austin isn't fine," she declared.

Pikachu, busy with his ketchup-covered mashed potatoes, paused to nod in agreement.

"He's just a kid inside, not knowing how to deal with his pain," Lucario added thoughtfully. "He saved everyone, but that didn't heal the wound. Maybe time will heal him."

Kadabra, ever the source of unconventional ideas, suggested, "I say we hire a hooker." The room fell silent, Green's death glare silencing Kadabra before confusion ensued.

"What's a hooker?" Yellow asked innocently.

Musharna, sensing the need to preserve Yellow's innocence, telepathically replied, "It's someone who plays with hooks."

"Is that right?" Yellow pressed, still unsure.

"Yes," Green quickly confirmed, steering the conversation away from dangerous waters.

"How are hooks going to help him?" Yellow's frustration bubbled over, her fork slamming down as she took everyone by surprise. The usually gentle and sleepy girl was now taking charge, her concern for Austin morphing into action.

"Do you have a plan?" Green asked, sensing the shift in Yellow's demeanor.

Yellow paused, her expression clearly showing her discomfort with the idea. With a heavy sigh, as if the words were being pulled from her against her will, she finally said, "Cynthia."

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[ Omake Paragraph]
A Loudred's earsplitting cry is so loud that even the sturdiest of poke balls can do little to block the noise. Most Loudred trainers wear earplugs when in the presence of their pokemon to avoid going deaf, but this does nothing to reduce their impact on others. Even towns which give wide tolerance for loud noises often ban Loudred from entering the municipal limits, and those which allow them to enter typically have strict restriction of how long they can stay. Although large cities, more accustomed to loud noises, typically allow passing trainers to seek medical attention or a gym match, Loudred are still usually forbidden for residents and their trainers only allowed to stay for a few days.

Taken together, these restrictions mean that the most difficult thing about training Loudred is finding somewhere to put them. Trainers currently on a League challenge face less difficulty than most, especially if they travel without human companions who would complain about the noise. This is why many Loudred trainers become perpetual wanderers, calling nowhere home and challenging region after region with their pokemon. A few leave their Loudred in forests or tall grass far from civilization, often with some identifying mark to show it is a domestic pokemon. But most refuse this option, fearing both predators and that their Loudred would be mistaken for wild and caught by another trainer; either a well-meaning one making a genuine mistake, or an unscrupulous thief searching for a powerful pokemon.

Others try more inventive solutions. Many of the greats in the field of architectural acoustics were known to have trained Loudred, and they learned and discovered much about how sound worked in buildings in order to soften their pokemon's call and let their neighbors sleep in peace!