Wallace had loved Melemele Island. He had been fascinated by the Pokémon, dazzled by the beautiful surroundings, and charmed by the friendliness of everyone they had encountered. Steven, Phoebe, and Sidney had enjoyed themselves as much as he had, and knowing that his friends were able to finally relax properly had only added to his own happiness.

Still, he had been excited to move on to Akala Island. Hau had been only too eager to tell him about the other islands, and his tales of the cascading waterfalls to the north of Akala had quite captured Wallace's imagination. He had no doubt that his Pokémon would enjoy themselves there, and he had been looking forward to the chance to meet new Water types and trainers.

Then he had met Lana.

"You caught what?"

Lana's clear blue eyes widened in complete innocence. "A Shiny Gyarados," she repeated. "It was so huge it nearly broke my rod, but I did it."

Under normal circumstances, Wallace might have believed her. Shiny Pokémon were rare, but certainly not unheard of. However...

"Was this before or after you fished up the giant Omastar?" Steven inquired politely.

He was the only one keeping a straight face. Phoebe had had to leave the room after a suspiciously timed coughing fit, and Sidney had hurried after her muttering something about needing fresh air. Lana beamed at Steven, but her friend just rolled her eyes.

"Don't mind her," Mallow said. "She just really loves her Water Pokémon. How's the food?"

Steven was quick to take the subject change, and he and Mallow were soon engaged in conversation, but Wallace wasn't quite ready to leave the subject of his beloved Water types.

"And you're the Trial Captain of Brooklet Hill?"

Lana nodded and gave him another bright smile. "Would you like to see it? I know it better than anyone."

That Wallace was slightly more willing to believe. He briefly weighed the benefits of her clearly considerable local knowledge against her...interesting stories, but there was never really a choice. Steven caught his eye and smiled.

"Remember that we're meeting at the Tide Song Hotel at six."

Wallace raised an eyebrow. "When have I ever forgotten such a thing?"

"When you got into a debate with that diver over the relative merits of Huntail and Gorebyss, when you and Luvdisc got distracted by the types of shells that best matched your eyes, when-"

"You of all people have no right to complain about me getting distracted!"

Steven was getting a lot of practice at keeping a straight face today. "I have absolutely no idea what you're talking about."

Mallow laughed, and Steven's eyes twinkled. "Go on. I'll see you later."

Wallace took an inordinate amount of pleasure of pushing his friend's hat down over his eyes as he left.

Lana was surprisingly quiet on the short walk to Brooklet Hill. Wallace was too interested in the new island to pay much attention, but after the fourth time he caught her watching him out of the corner of his eye he had enough.

"Why yes, I would be delighted to help your hair achieve the same lustre as mine! Unless there was something else on your mind?"

Lana blinked twice, then gave him a rather sheepish smile. "I'm not being a very good host, am I? Sorry. I was just thinking.

"About Legendary Pokémon?" Wallace asked dryly.

To his surprise, Lana coughed and looked away, but not before Wallace caught the flush spreading across her cheeks. Wallace came to a halt and folded his arms.

"Lana?"

Lana hesitated, but then set her jaw and looked up at him. "You are from Sootopolis?"

"I am," said Wallace slowly. "What of it?"

Lana shifted slightly, but didn't reply. Wallace stared at her, then everything clicked into place and he smiled. "The Cave of Origin truly is an incredible place."

Lana's eyes widened. "Then…the legends are true? You've seen…" Her voice trailed off, but there was no hiding the longing in her eyes.

Wallace understood, but he said nothing. Memories of that day filled his mind, the day he had been confirmed as the Guardian of the Legends of Sootopolis. It was an honour bestowed only once a generation, and only on those who had the strength of will to guard their city's secrets with their life. For a single unforgettable moment he had stood before the Leviathan of the Sea in all its power and sworn to serve.

It had been like a speck of dust facing a tsunami.

"Wallace?"

Wallace tore himself from the memory and turned to find Lana watching him hopefully. Wallace let out a deep breath, and tilted his head back to soak in the afternoon sun.

"Words cannot describe it," he said simply. He wouldn't know where to begin. Lana's face fell, and he offered her a slight smile. "But perhaps you might experience it for yourself one day."

Lana smiled back, a very different smile to her earlier innocent grins. "I would like that very much," she said softly.

Then her blue eyes gleamed with mischief. "Did you know that the Guardian of Poni Island is a Water type?"

Wallace's eyebrows shot up, but before he could decide how to reply his attention was diverted by a shout of laughter from up ahead.

"Make it do it again!"

Wallace glanced at Lana in time to see her grin fade into a frown. They shared a look, then headed as one in the direction of the ruckus.

Turning the corner brought a sparkling blue lake into view, but for once Wallace spared no attention on the water. Instead he focused on the group of youths at the water's edge, and the small blue shape that could just be seen past them. Next to him, Lana drew in a sharp breath.

"That's a Brionne."

Wallace's memory supplied an image to match the name, and he shaded his eyes to get a better view. It was impossible to tell if the Pokémon's trainer was in the group, or if it even had a trainer, but something about the laughter ringing in the air rubbed him up the wrong way. Even as they watched, one of the trainers yelled something at the Brionne, which promptly blew a brilliant stream of multicoloured bubbles. Wallace's jaw dropped, but Lana frowned.

"What's going on down there?"

Wallace shook his head, focusing on the Brionne. The species might be new to him, but Wallace knew Water Pokémon, knew their innate grace and beauty, and something about the performance made his stomach churn uncomfortably.

"I think we need a closer look," he said.

The nearer they got, the more Wallace's unease grew. Up close, the laughter sounded suspiciously like mockery, with Brionne performing trick after trick to an audience that had no appreciation of the effort it was expending.

Then one of the trainers threw something that was definitely not a Pokéball at the poor Pokémon, and Wallace lost all sense of self-control.

"What do you think you're doing?"

The trainers spun round, and the laughter shifted to panicked shouting. Wallace took a step forward, Milotic's Pokéball in his hand, but Lana blocked his path with an outstretched arm.

"No. I will deal with them."

Wallace hesitated, keen to offer his help, but something in her voice stopped him. The quiet, mischievous girl he had met had been replaced with a cold-eyed Trial Captain who was more than capable of dealing with a few thugs, so Wallace forced his anger back and just nodded.

"I'll see to Brionne."

Lana gave a curt nod, and set off after the teenagers, a Pokéball clutched tightly in her hand. Feeling no doubt whatsoever about her ability to handle the situation, Wallace crouched down a safe distance from the still trembling Brionne and offered a gentle smile.

"I apologise for my species," he said softly. "We can be a rather despicable lot."

He was relieved when Brionne let out an amused huff, but before he could say anything else the Water type visibly pulled herself together. The shaking vanished, and she went up on her tail and offered him a beaming smile. She seemed none the worse for her ordeal. Even as he watched, she blew a stream of brilliantly coloured bubbles into the air, and looked at him as if for approval.

Wallace just sighed. His smile faded, but he held her gaze.

"You remind me of a friend of mine," he said gently. "He is also very good at smiling while breaking apart on the inside."

Brionne's eyes widened, the smile fading abruptly. She shot a quick glance at the water, and Wallace swallowed. The last thing he wanted was to scare her away. He waited, but although she continued to watch him warily, she made no move to leave. Wallace didn't waste the opportunity. He shuffled a little closer and sat down just out of reach, giving her a small smile at the same time.

"It's okay to be upset, you know. They had no right to treat you like that."

Brionne gave a slight shrug, but otherwise didn't respond. Wallace chewed on his lip for a moment, then dug into his bag and placed a Sitrus berry on the rocks between them. He leaned back against the rocks, trying to keep his body language as open and non-threatening as possible.

"Here. You must be hungry."

Brionne hesitated a long moment, but just when Wallace thought she was going to retreat, she darted forward and snatched the berry up. She promptly slipped back to her former position, one flipper wrapped protectively around her prize, all the while keeping her eyes on Wallace.

Wallace just smiled, and pointedly closed his eyes and rested his head back. The gentle sounds of the streams soothed his troubled heart, and he let himself concentrate on the warmth of the sun, and the soft sand under his fingers. The people of Alola could be cruel, just as they could in Hoenn and Sinnoh and everywhere else Wallace had ever been, but he breathed out his frustration and let it go. Lana would see that they paid.

Then something cool and damp touched his hand, and Wallace opened his eyes to find Brionne looking up at him. Her eyes were still wary, but she touched his arm very lightly with a flipper, and Wallace gave her a warm smile.

Together they sat and watched the water.

Thanks for reading! Any feedback would be very much appreciated.