Chapter Text
Sonia was preparing to head out when Hop came in. "Hop! What are you doing here?" She asked, surprised to see him in. "Oh, I just wanted to check in. See if you needed any help." Sonia took in his features; he looked absolutely exhausted, and his eyes were a bit puffy and red. Sonia cast him a sympathetic look. "No worries Hop, I'm all good here. You should get back to your brother, I'm sure he needs you more than I do." Hop nodded in acknowledgment, but didn't respond, glancing past her. Sonia could see his eyes scanning over all of her notes that she had knocked around while hastily packing her things. "Where are you headed?" He asked. Sonia continued preparing her research as she answered. "I got a call from one of the Hammerlocke gym trainers. You know Sebastian?" Hop nodded, and she continued, "he told me he found a Dreepy with unusual colors strangely close to Hammerlocke, and he wants me to see if I can find anything out about it."
"Did he send any pictures?" She turned and saw Hop looking at her expectantly, leaning forward slightly. "I'm sorry Hop, I can't let you come with. It wouldn't feel right if I let you leave Leon alone after…" She trailed off, rubbing her arm and looking away. Hop sighed. "Yeah, you're right. We both know how important Raihan was to him." Sonia smiled and put a hand on his shoulder. "No worries Hop. I know it was a really big loss for all of us. It's going to hurt for a while, for some people longer than others. But it will go away, and I want you to be there for Leon until it does." She gave him a reassuring smile, though both of their eyes were glistening. He returned a smile, genuine if a bit sad. "Besides," she straightened, "I'll make sure to share everything I find out with you when I get back! You know I take a lot of notes, so you'll have plenty to look through!" Hop gave her another small smile. "Thanks Sonia. It really means a lot." She turned back to him and gave him a pat on his shoulder. "Of course! Wouldn't want to disappoint my favorite assistant! Since I'm heading out, I'll walk you home."
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After she dropped Hop off, Sonia called a flying taxi to Hammerlocke. On the way, she went over her current notes about Dreepy. They tended to travel in groups, considering that alone they are very weak. Sebastian said he had found the Dreepy all alone, which is abnormal, but explains the condition he found it in. He described it as a deep blue color with orange accents, which sounded to Sonia like some sort of variant of Dreepy, but he had also mentioned that there were some features that weren't like Dreepy at all. She would have to investigate when she arrived. She tried to stay focused, but her mind began to wander. She was really worried about Leon, he hadn't left his house since he had gotten the news. The public had begun spreading rumors around, and she really didn't want him to have to deal with that while he was grieving. She was so lost in thought that she didn't notice when they landed.
"Excuse me, Professor Sonia, we're here." Sonia startled, not quite used to being called professor. "Ah, I'm sorry, thank you!" She quickly gathered her things and stepped out of the taxi. They had landed in front of the Pokemon Center. Sebastian said he was in the vault with the Dreepy, as it had seemed very interested in wandering around there. As she made her way there, she brought out her notes on Dreepy as well as a pencil. There wasn't a whole lot known about Dreepy, so she was excited to learn more about them. She was always welcome in the vault, being the professor, so she slipped inside without much trouble. "Sebastian?" She called out. She heard him coming quickly down the stairs. "Sonia! I'm glad you could make it! He's very curious, so I've been having to chase him down a bit, so if we could hurry..?" Sonia nodded and they quickly went back up the stairs.
Thankfully, they managed to get back up before the Dreepy hid himself somewhere or got lost. As soon as she actually caught sight of the Dreepy, she paused. The Dreepy looked towards her, and she took in his appearance. His head was navy blue, with his body being a similar color, if a bit lighter. The tips of his horns were a bright orange, the same color as the band near the end of his tail. The spikes on the band were pure white, and she noticed that they were a bit more rounded than a usual Dreepy's. He had a small fang on each side of his face, his eyes were a dark, stormy teal, and were softer than the piercing yellow gaze usually associated with the ghostly dragon. On the back of his head, instead of the normal red accents, were white threads, almost like the whiskers of a Drapion. "Fascinating," Sonia whispered, taking a few steps closer to the Pokemon. He instinctively backed away, and Sonia held up her hands in an unthreatening manner. "Hey, hey little guy, it's okay. I'm not here to hurt you. I'm your friend, alright?" She crouched down and scooted closer. The Dreepy still had a tense posture and was leaning away, but she could see him studying her. Seemingly satisfied, his tension subsided and he settled into a comfortable pose and looked up at her.
As he relaxed, she thought about what exactly she wanted to learn from this Dreepy. Sebastian had mentioned how curious he was about the vault, and it made her wonder what he would do in Hammerlocke Stadium. That would be her first plan of action. The Dreepy cocked his head as she stood. "Hey little guy, do you wanna go on a walk?"
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Sonia was leading the way on the short walk to the stadium, with the Dreepy and Sebastian behind her. Absentmindedly, Sebastian said, "We should probably come up with a nickname for you huh? I figure you're gonna be hanging out with us for a while." The Dreepy looked up and smiled at him. "How about… Wisp?" Wisp gave him a small smile and a little nod. "Great! Wisp it is!" Sebastian smiled at the small dragon. "How cute." He looked up to see Sonia looking over her shoulder at them as she walked. She smiled before turning back to walking. Before they knew it they were standing in front of the stadium. Sonia turned around and spread her arms, presenting the castle to the little ghost. "Well Wisp? Wanna go inside?" Wisp looked very excited quickly moving towards the entrance, Sonia following closely.
Wisp was very interested in everything he saw, and the other gym trainers were happy to meet him and show him around. They went on a very informative tour of the castle, with Sonia taking little notes on things she didn't know before. They probably spent half an hour exploring, and when they left it was around lunchtime. "What do you think of getting something to eat real quick?" Sebastian suggested, looking over to Wisp and Sonia. As he looked, however, he noticed that Wisp was staring at something in Sonia's pocket.
"Hey uh, Sonia? I think you got something that Wisp wants." Sonia hummed in questioning, turning to look at Wisp. "Huh? The only thing I have here is my phone." She pulled her phone out of her pocket, and Wisp floated over to investigate. The screen flashed on to reveal a text from Hop, "Leon's taking a nap, how are things going for you so far?" Sebastian swore he saw a flash in the little dragon's eyes as he looked at the text, before Sonia opened her phone and showed the screen to Wisp. "Is this what you wanted to look at?" Wisp scooted closer to the screen, almost studying his own reflection in the glass screen. "Do you .. want to take a selfie?" Sebastian asked. Wisp perked up at the word and looked at him. "I see no reason not to," Sonia said, opening the camera app, "I bet it would make Hop happy to see as well." Sonia and Sebastian crouched down by Wisp and snapped a few photos together.
After getting lunch, Sonia decided to head back to Wedgehurst to study what info she had so far so she knew what to look for next time she visited. As her taxi flew along, she looked through the photos they had taken earlier. The first one she found was her, Wisp, and Sebastian smiling at the camera. Wisp had his mouth open and his eyes were closed in glee. She smiled to herself. "What a curious little guy.." The next few photos were of a similar fashion, but one picture made her stop. She was closest to the camera, her eyes open and a small smile on her face, and Sebastian was on the other side, winking with a big grin on his face. But what really caught her attention was Wisp. He was nearly dead center, a little to the left, but the pose and expression were somehow.. familiar. He had both claws raised as if to attack, positioned right under his head. His mouth was open, baring his fangs in a threatening way, his eyes cocky and confident. It almost looked like.. Raihan's signature pose. She shook her head and scrolled to the next picture, which looked similar to the previous pictures. She must've been seeing things. She closed her phone. She could investigate more when she got home.