Flights and a somber homecoming

Ash whooped and hollered as Celina soared through the sky. The cries of joy ringing through the air showed that Gary was having just as much fun. Vali kept a firm hold on Ash making sure he didn't fall as Celina twirled and danced through the air. While flying alone was something she loved, she didn't mind flying with Ash as it was quite a lot of fun. Despite not being used to flying with Ash's added weight, the Pidgeot didn't seem to show any sign of being burdened. But even with the thick clothes that the slightly chilly spring air called for, she was beginning to get cold. Raising her hand, she signaled to Steven before directing Celina into a controlled dive.

The Pidgeot landed not too long later and Ash practically tumbled out of the saddle pulling up the goggles he'd borrowed from the lab. Dismounting far more gracefully despite the slight numbness caused by legs that had nearly fallen asleep, Vali unsaddled Celina while praising her pokemon for such a nice flight. Celina puffed up her chest and absorbed the compliments. She fed Celina some berries and promised that they'd go on a solo flight sometimes soon. Glancing at Ash, she couldn't tell if his trembling was from the cold that had seeped through his clothes or because of the excitement of flying.

Steven landed not too far away with Skarmory and Gary repeated Ash's landing. Steven dismounted and unsaddled his pokemon with practiced ease. Gary and Ash immediately began chattering about their flights. Skarmory and Celina took off to the flying-type part of the Corral. Steven walked over to her, "Nice flight?"

"Mhmm. I might prefer flying alone, but I don't actually mind flying with Ash," Vali took off her thick coat, "It was fun and gave me a good idea of where Celina stands with her flight capabilities,"

"Gary wasn't a bad companion though I don't think Skarmory enjoyed having a second rider," Steven ran a hand through his windswept hair and checked his watch, "We should head back to your house, it's almost lunch,"

"Right," Vali nodded as she focused on the boys, "Ash! Gary!" The two paused to look at her, "We're going home. Get your butts moving, Delia will have lunch ready by the time we get there,"

The two beamed and quickly took off running towards the lab to ditch their borrowed gear. Steven chuckled as they followed after the boys, "That was easy."

"If for nothing else, they'll behave if food is involved especially when Delia cooks," Vali glanced at Steven's watch, "Hey, Steven? Why do you have a watch? You have a perfectly good pokenav,"

"Once you get deep enough in a mountain, the signal of a pokenav breaks up rather horribly. Seeing as my father's company has yet to figure out how to stop that, I'm going to use this," Steven lifted up his watch, "A watch like this doesn't have that problem and will always tell me the right time," He smiled slightly, "It's also a gift from my father. Back when I started my journey,"

"That was really nice of him," Vali commented earning a light nod.

Sirius was there when they arrived for lunch which ended up turning into a small welcome home party complete with some cake. The day afterward until Gary went home and Ash went to bed was filled with light hearted fun. They played around with Vali and Steven getting time to relax with their pokemon while Sirius took over watching the two boys who were happily badgering him for stories. Ash went to bed an hour after Professor Oak took Gary home giving the other occupants the ability to discuss things the boy wasn't ready to hear about. Vali was settled against Balto's side with Smaug's head in her lap. Vulpix was wedged between Balto and Vali's sides. Empress was settled against Smaug's stomach. Pele and Pippin were settled down together. Eevee and Elrond were settled on the couch behind her. Elrond spoke in her mind, "Ash is asleep."

Vali noticed everyone stiffen a bit meaning Elrond had projected that thought to those in the room with them. She looked at Sirius with a slight frown having noticed how tense he was all day, "What's going on, Padfoot? You've been tense since coming home."

Sirius visibly winced much to Vali's shock and concern. Delia placed a hand on his arm, "Siri?"

"Normally, I wouldn't say anything given that this is technically classified, but you two," Sirius nodded to Vali and Steven, "Are part of why we managed to find things out,"

"Find out what?" Steven asked with a frown looking tense.

Sirius' jaw tensed and his eyes darkened as he said, "You two have likely found out from someone high up enough to know things that a Team might become active, correct?"

Vali jerked a bit and tensed as her hand stopped rubbing Smaug's scales. She stared at Sirius with wide eyes as dread pooled in her stomach. Delia let out a sharp gasp clutching Sirius' arm harder. Steven's mouth twisted into a deep frown as he said, "Yes."

Sirius sighed deeply looking older than his years, "I am not surprised and won't ask who told you."

"But you're going to confirm it," Steven practically hissed out.

Sirius nodded slowly, "Yes, we have confirmation that a Team has been formed. While we're still in the early phases of our investigation, we have been able to confirm it."

"Who?" Vali murmured earning Sirius' attention, "Which Team is it? You wouldn't make such a big deal if it weren't bad,"

"Team Rocket," Sirius answered as he gave her a measured look.

Delia let out a loud gasp looking far paler than she should have been. Steven's eyes went wide and his jaw dropped a bit. Vali knew she was likely a mixture of the two and probably looking a bit horrified as well. Team Rocket, one of the few Teams to earn an immortalized name that would go down into history as the most powerful and inhumane organization to plague Kanto, had been confirmed to have returned. Looking at Delia who'd lived through the last appearance of that organization, the normally sunny woman looking pale with multiple emotions running across her face showed just how deep the scars caused by Team Rocket were.

Vali swallowed heavily, "Padfoot, are you sure?"

"All the markers are there according to the higher ups and those that had been around last time," Sirius answered with a frown, "We don't think it's another copy cat,"

Vali hoped it was, but regardless the news that a Team would once more be plaguing Kanto sent chills down her spine. Which Region would follow next? Johto? Hoenn? Sinnoh? Alola? It was up in the air, but everyone knew that another Team wouldn't be that far off from appearing. Steven spoke as he set his hand on one of Metagross' legs, "Have the other Regions been informed? Will the public be informed?"

"At the current moment, Kanto's government has decided to keep the information on a need to know basis until we know just how bad things are," Sirius answered earning a frown from Steven, "Both the Kanto branch of the Ranger Union and the League agree that it is for the best,"

"How is that for the best?" Steven demanded looking angry, "If Kanto is going to be under siege by another Team, it won't be long until the other Regions follow,"

"They do not want to cause a panic," Sirius replied as he wrapped an arm around Delia, "Which while I don't agree with it, it's the best thing they can do right now especially since they're trying to keep quiet about it," The Grimm animagus grimaced, "Trust me, I don't agree with it, but the higher ups aren't willing to listen,"

Steven let out a low growl radiating displeasure, "This isn't right."

"A majority of my Branch agree with you," Sirius looked at Vali, "Now more than ever, we need to keep our magic a secret. If a Team, regardless of whether it truly is Rocket reborn, learns of our abilities-"

"We'll be hunted for the rest of our lives," Vali cut him off, "I know, Siri. Trust me when I say that I know, you don't need to say anything," Vulpix nuzzled into her with a low whine, "What's going to happen now?"

"A thorough investigation will be done on multiple fronts," Sirius answered looking tired, "The news will be kept silent until either they commit an act that warrants the public being informed or they're taken down,"

Without speaking, Steven got up and headed out of the house after returning Metagross.