Teddy woke to the sound of wind-chimes.

  He stretched slowly, stifling a yawn. Still slumbering, his baby Munchlax snored peacefully, his tiny mouth open and drooling.

  Definitely thinking of food, Teddy smiled to himself. Gastly lay on his other side — a surprise, as he had never before seen her sleep.

  Did ghosts even need to sleep? He mused. Glancing back at Munchlax, he saw the Egg nestled safely in its usual place — under his arm. As always, Teddy was mesmerized by its beauty; by the shifting colors that seemed to shimmer and cascade across its surface. While he had no idea what the Pokemon would be, he felt it safe to assume it would be very special.

  He chuckled as he watched Munchlax roll over, reflexively adjusting his arm so the Egg stayed safe. He was excited — and a little nervous — to meet the newest member of his team. MunchMunch cooed and patted the Egg.

  Yes, he was excited — but his food gremlin? He was dreaming of it.

  He stretched once more, then froze.

  He… did not remember setting up camp.

  Nor did he remember going to sleep.

  In fact, the last thing he remembered…

  Helping cure Munchlax of his paralysis.

  The hairs on his arms prickled in alarm. Warily, he turned to study his surroundings.

  They were in a small clearing, the grass short, soft, and green — barely reaching his ankles. At its center stood the largest tree he had ever seen, towering above the rest of the forest and casting the glade in perpetual twilight.

  Stirred by a passing breeze, the leaves rustled and danced, the grass bowing and blowing in concentric circles radiating from its base. The chiming rang out once, drawing his eyes to the base of the tree.

  There, nestled in its shadow and illuminated by the warmth of countless candles, was a small pagoda — the source of the chiming he heard. Painted on the wood was a mural — the same one he’d seen in the stained glass depiction on the Ranger Station door before entering the forest.

  Teddy inhaled sharply, the cold breath catching in his throat.

  The mural. The tree. The chimes.

  He knew now where they were.

  The Shrine of the Legendary Pokemon, Celebi.

  Teddy startled slightly as his Gastly joined him, so quiet he hadn’t heard her move.

  “Gaaaaaaas,” she breathed, eyes fixed on the Pagoda.

  “Yea… you said it, Shadow,” Teddy replied. “Wow.”

  As one, they both turned to stare at Munchlax, who was now giggling in his sleep and chewing on some imaginary food dish. Judging by his expression, probably chocolate cake.

  The two shared a look.

  There was no need to say it, they both knew it.

  How they knew it — they had no idea.

  But they did.

  Celebi had allowed them here because of Munchlax.

  ——

  Teddy stepped softly through the clearing, the grass brushing his ankles with every careful stride. Beside him, his Gastly — his Shadow — floated in silence, her eyes gentle.

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  Behind them, soft, happy coos drifted through the air.

  MunchMunch was still dreaming.

  The two of them stopped before the small pagoda, and Teddy dropped to his knees, lost for words. He knelt instead in gratitude as Shadow kept him silent company.

  Time passed. How much, he knew not.

  “I… I am so scared,” he eventually whispered.

  How had he, a failed trainer, been so blessed to be here. Years. Years, he had been without a Pokemon, the laughing stock of his peers. He would never forget the shame and humiliation as that Gym Leader looked down him, calling him weak. A coward too afraid to start.

  Still, he had waited. He had hoped. And Gastly had chosen him.

  And he had begun his journey. Starting after most had finished.

  And now? Now he was here. Surrounded by a growing team he could never have dreamed he would have. Blessed to kneel in a place few would ever see. Hot tears fell. Tears not of gratitude, but of release. Years of silent suffering… and finally it was worth it.

  “I have nothing worthy to give you,” he whispered. The breeze blew and the chimes echoed, and somehow Teddy knew he was heard. He felt his Gastly float back, giving him room. He was beyond lucky to have her, and a new tear echoed the sentiment in his heart.

  “Am I here because of Munchlax? What changed in my destiny when I met him?”

  His thoughts continued to spiral, landing upon Team Rocket. Then again upon his new responsibilities. Catching and training Pokemon for battle was one thing — raising them was something entirely different.

  Then his thoughts turned to the future. Of the responsibility the League had given him to investigate Team Rocket. Of what might be in store for his team. How could he possibly keep them safe? How could protect his Munchlax’s innocence in a world that was not kind?

  “Should I leave the Egg with you?” He whispered.

  The candles flickered softly, mesmerizing in the twilight of the glade. Then the wind blew once more, and Teddy knew.

  His offer had been considered. Then rejected — the Egg was to remain with him.

  His heart beat once, then twice. That knowledge did something to him — a deepness in his chest, something he’d never known.

  As the wind continued to build, so did the fire in his heart.

  Celebi entrusted the Egg to him.

  He trusted him to do right.

  Celebi believed in him.

  That trust — it crashed against the walls in his soul, breaking down barriers he had not known existed.

  “Thank you,” he whispered.

  Replacing his indecision was fire. Fire and desire.

  Strength.

  “I will become the strongest,” he whispered, not weakly, but quietly — filled with new purpose.

  The wind grew.

  “I will become strong enough to face anything that might cross our path,” he continued, louder.

  The wind crescendoed around him.

  “I will become strong enough to repay this favor to you, Lord Celebi,” he shouted into the gale.

  And the Gale responded.

  ___

  Gastly watched as her Trainer grew.

  This moment in time — this privilege of the shrine, it was for the rest of her team. She knew this as surely as she knew Teddy was the Trainer she was meant to choose.

  And she watched as he grew to become that Trainer.

  She watched as Munchlax curled around the Egg instinctively, keeping it safe from the gale, even as he slumbered.

  She witnessed as her Trainer screamed his strength into the wind. His choice.

  His Desire.

  And she smiled.

  Reveled in the thought of what was to come.

  What she and her Team would have the strength to face together.

  All those years she had watched Teddy.

  Waiting.

  Judging.

  Choosing.

  She had never once imagined another Pokemon except her. If she chose him, it would be him and her.

  How wrong she had been.

  How glad she was to have been wrong.

  “And this one thanks you, too,” she cackled into the wind.

  She gasped as a weight settled into her shadow. She didn’t know what it was, nor what it was for.

  But one thing she knew — it was a gift from the Lord of Time.

  And if it wasn’t meant for the past, then it was meant for the future.

  The future of her team.

  And then, for the second time in her life, Gastly faded to sleep.