They cleaned up their things when they finished and Red took the backpack this time, although it was lighter now he still insisted on Blue taking it easy.

They left the garden and Blue told Red they'd be heading down to Tapu Village at the bottom of the island.

"There's a beach near the village there that's pretty unique" Blue explained as they headed out of Malie City and onto Route 11.

Red's interest peaked, "Oh, how so?" Red asked,

"You'll find out when we get there" Blue replied with a grin.

Red let out a gentle laugh "That's what I thought" he responded while following behind Blue closely.

They passed several trainers and soon were on Route 12. The landscape was a dramatic change to the previous route, from soft grass and a variety of plants to a rather dry and rugged seaside road.

They were brought to a halt a little way along the route as jagged rocks covered the path.

"Probably not a good idea to try and walk over them," Red said while looking to see if there was a way around them.

"No worries, we could probably just use Pidgeot or Charizard to fly over them" Blue replied while reaching into his pocket for Pidgeot's Poke Ball.

"There's no need for that," a feminine voice said interrupting.

The two looked over to see a large horse-like Pokemon that stood taller than even Red approaching them with a much smaller female with long black hair worn in braids riding it, a smile on her face.

"We can help you out, we're heading in the same direction, hop on!" she said and she brought the Pokémon to a stop and gestured to the back of the animal.
"Don't worry, Mudsdale here is a tough Pokemon" she said confidently.

"Thanks a lot... uh..." Red replied, he realised she hadn't introduced herself,

"Apologies, I'm Hapu," she said.

"Nice to meet you, I'm Red and this here is Blue. Of course Pikachu and Eevee too" Red responded,

"Likewise, where are you two heading?" she asked them,

Blue jumped into the conversation since he knew where they were going "We're going to Tapu Village" he said.

"Great, I can take you to Route 13. I have a few things to do there but it's just before the village" she responded, still smiling.

Red thanked her again then lifted Pikachu onto Mudsdales back, Blue doing the same with Eevee. Blue then tried to lift himself on, swinging his leg up but failed.

"Do you want me to he-" Red said but Blue quickly interrupted,

"No no, I can do it," he said stubbornly as he proceeded to try it a couple more times as Red and Hapu both watched on at Blue's feeble performance.
Blue gave up, turning to Red defeated "Y-yes please" he almost whispered out of embarrassment, a pout on his face.

Red chuckled and cupped his hands together letting Blue use them as a boost up to get onto Mudsdale.

When Blue was up Red held out his hand so Blue could help pull him up. When they were both comfortably on Mudsdale Hapu commanded the Pokemon to start moving.

"Hold on boys, it's going to be a bumpy ride!" she exclaimed, laughing as she did so.

Blue held on to Mudsdale the best he could while Pikachu and Eevee were behind him but in front of Red. Red brought his arms around either side of the Pokemon and held onto Blue's waist.

They held on while Mudsdale carried them over the rocky path while Hapu steered the Pokemon Red and Blue holding on the best they could.

After a mix of rugged paths and dry grass, they pulled into Route 13, there was a small oasis in the middle with some vegetation surrounding and a few camper vans circled the area.

Hapu brought Mudsdale to a halt and hopped down, Red followed and helped Blue down.

"Haina Desert is just up that way," Hapu said pointing north, "And Tapu Village is that way" she continued and moved her hand so it pointed west.

"Thanks a lot for the help" Red replied,

"Anytime" Hapu responded, waving as she leads Musdale in the direction of the desert.

The two waved back and continued their journey into Tapu Village, upon arriving they could the ruins of a building and a lone Pokemon Centre just in the distance.

"I wonder what happened here?" Red said while studying the ruins net to them,

"I'm not actually sure" Blue said, he pulled out his phone and brought up some information about the area. "This says 'The remains of a village said to have been destroyed by the island's tapu when the people roused its anger due to a Thrifty Megamart being built on its sacred grounds nearby'" Blue read.

"That's crazy" Red replied, "Oh look over there, it looks like the sign for the mart is still there" he continued as he pointed to a dulled sign.

They made their way over but Red stopped in his tracks as Mount Lanakila caught his eye, he stood for a few moments staring at the snow-capped mountain that pierced the sky above.

Blue had carried on without realising that Red had stopped, "It look's like the main path is blocked" he said. When Red didn't reply he turned around to see he was further behind, enthralled by the mountain. Blue felt a small sense of anxiety in himself as it brought up memories of him being alone while Red was away on Mount Silver.

"No, that's stupid," he thought as he tried to shake off the recollection. He walked over to Red and tugged on the sleeve of his shirt,

"Red..." he said a little downheartedly.

"Look at it, it's just stunning" Red replied not picking up on Blue's tone,

Blue's grip loosened a little "Yeah, it is..." he said then let go of Red completely, Red felt him let go and turned to see Blue with his head turned away from him slightly, an unsettled expression on his face.

Red reached out to Blue but he turned away,

"Hey... What's wrong?" Red asked in a perplexed tone.

"Nothing, it's fine" Blue replied seeming almost frustrated,

Red suddenly clicked onto why Blue was being the way he was and laughed gently. He came up behind Blue and pulled him in close, wrapping his arms around him. Before Blue knew it he was locked into a hug.

Red brought his lips close to Blue's ear "Don't worry, I'm not going to leave you again" he whispered tenderly.

Blue felt like an idiot "I-I know... I just can't help but overthink and now I look stupid... I'm sorry" Blue said with a heavy sigh,

Red turned Blue to him "You don't have to apologise for anything" he said sternly but softly. Before Blue could respond Red took his hand and guided his attention to the sign,
"We need to go this way right?" Red said rather enthusiastically while pointing to a path just off to the side of the blocked one.

Blue knew what Red was doing and he was grateful for it, if he were by himself he'd let his emotions eat him up.
Blue looked at the path and then at their hands,

"Yeah" he responded tightening his grip on Red's hand, looking up he caught Red's comforting gaze as he smiled at Blue.

They walked down the smaller side path hand in hand that opened up to a breathtaking beach. The sand was an interesting black colour rather than the typical golden, the calm blue waves contrasted against the sand as they gently rolled onto the shore.

Despite the beach being famous for being rather unique no one else seemed to be around.

The two walked along the shoreline, their shoes gently sinking into the sand. Each step created a trail of footprints behind them but was quickly swallowed by the rolling waves.

To their left was an old road that looked unstable, it had started to break down and crumble onto the beach just below.

As they continued to walk along the beach a building came into view.

"That must be the old mart, Let's check it out!" Blue said rather enthusiastically, he sped up while still holding onto Red's hand pulling him along with him.

"Whoa, slow down" Red replied with a laugh while he kept up with Blue. Pikachu and Eevee were following closely behind.

They came to an old staircase, moss and other plants had started to grow through the cracks. They walked up the steps approaching the mart, as they got to the top a small group of Murkrow took flight.

The atmosphere was eerie that made the two feel a little uneasy, despite this Blue let go of Red's hand and approached the worn-down building.

Blue went up to the windows and tried to see inside but the layer of dirt and moss that covered them made it difficult to see anything.

Red was just as curious although a little more cautious than Blue was.
While Blue was trying to see through the windows Red went over to what was the main door and placed his hand on the handle. He took a breath in and gently pushed on the door, it opened slightly but something was blocking it.

"Hey, this door's unlocked" he called over to Blue.

Blue came over and helped Red push the door open. The door opened pushing an old cart out of the way that was obstructing it.

They took a few careful steps inside, the room was musty and stale and smelled like mildew.

Red took out his phone and turned on its torch, he pointed it around the room revealing old shelves and boxes that had been left.

"Wanna take a look around?" Red asked,

Blue was a little apprehensive but wasn't about to tell Red he was scared.
"Yeah, but you can go first, you do have the torch," he said appearing to be perfectly poised.

Pikachu and Eevee let out little noises of agreement but stuck close to Blue as Red started to walk ahead.

As they passed the old registers near the store entrance, something fell onto the floor which startled both of them, Blue grabbed onto the back of Red's shirt as a result.

"Are you okay?" Red asked Blue,

"Y-yeah of course I am, I just don't want to lose you in here" Blue replied a little nervously.

Red let out a soft chuckle "Of course not" he said as they carried on through the old building, although admittedly he was a little on edge himself.

They reached the back of the mart, there wasn't too much aside from some old fridges and a couple of Poké dolls.

Suddenly Blue was startled by something that seemed to move, he flinched and bumped backward into Red.

Red ended up tripping over an old box that that was still full of unused stock, Pikachu ran over and nudged Red with his nose.

Red groaned and let out a winded chuckle, "Don't worry, I'm okay" he said.

Blue helped Red back onto his feet and held onto his hand for a little while.
"I'm sorry, I swear I saw something move," Blue said alarmed.

"Hey hey, don't worry about it, I'll be just fine," Red said, calming Blue down.

But blue stopped, in the dim light he saw a mark on Red's cheek, using his thumb he wiped it away. He looked down at his thumb and then back at Red's cheek and realised he was bleeding.

Blue started apologising profusely, he felt guilty. "This is my fault, it's my fault you're hurt," he said in dismay as panic started to set in.

Red touched his cheek and realised what Blue meant, he grabbed Blue's hand "This is not your fault, it was my dumb idea to come in here, c'mon, I'll be okay" he said trying to reassure Blue the best he could and directed him out of the dank building.

Unbeknownst to them, Blue wasn't lying, a mysterious creature watched as they left,

"Mimi-?".

They made their way back into Tapu Village and headed to the Pokémon Centre.

Although they didn't typically treat humans the Nurse Joy in charge agreed to clean up Red's wound.

"It doesn't look too serious" Nurse Joy explained as she examined the cut "Now this might sting a little" she continued to say as she poured a small amount of liquid onto cotton wool.

Red winced as the liquid made contact with his skin.

Blue looked down, he couldn't knock the guilt out of himself 'It's all your fault' he thought to himself.

Red could see Blue out of the corner of his eye and took Blue's hand in his own to comfort him.

Nurse joy finished by applying a small dressing to the wound "All done, everything should heal up just fine, be sure to keep it clean" She said cheerfully.

Red thanked Nurse Joy for the help and the two were ready to leave Tapu Village.

"Please don't beat yourself up about it," Red said softly to Blue,

"Wha- I'm no-" Blue started to reply but he was quickly cut off as Red's lips met his own, Blue felt a sudden sense of ease.

Red broke away and smiled warmly at Blue,

"I'm getting a little hungry, do you have anything planned for dinner?" he asked softly, still smiling.

Red was again trying to keep Blue's mind off the negative and it at least worked for now.

Blue was able to smile back in response, he called for Pidgeot to come out.
"Actually I do, let's go," Blue said, gesturing that they were going to fly on Pidgeot.

They got onto Pidgeot and Red held onto Blue around his waist and rested his head in the crook of Blue's neck to further comfort Blue.

Blue smiled contently then gently pat the side of Pidgeot neck, "Let's go Pidgeot",

And with that Pidgeot took to the sky.