It was quite some time in the morning when they met Flint again in the marketplace. The shops were opening now and were attending to customers.
"Good morning, Flint!"
"Good morning to you as well, kid. Where are you going? To the hospital, I presume."
"Yup. I am visiting her as she might get lonely. What are you doing with that burrow?"
With a dry voice, Flint replied, "What do you think I am doing?"
"Umm..."
Warily eyeing the pile of garbage in the burrow and its wobbly front wheel, Ash, Pikachu, and Eevee, who were covering their noses, stepped back a few paces more.
"A walking disaster?"
Snorting, Flint continued, "Sounds about right."
"Don't you have a shop? Why are you doing this?"
"I have a shop that sells rocks as souvenirs. Where do you think all of the money I make comes from? I still have to make some money to feed myself. With how the economy has been, it's a miracle that I can still feed myself."
"Is it that bad?"
"Yes. Yes, it is."
"Well, it was nice meeting you, Flint. I have to go now. I still have to report to the police about what happened in the Viridian Forest."
"About that, you see, as you were clearly tired yesterday, I had reported to the police about the attack on the girl. I even gave them descriptions of you two. It all went well except for that one bit where the officer started asking questions, but it is fine now."
"Thanks a lot, Flint!"
"Yeah, yeah, now get going and let me do my work. See you around, kid."
"Bye!"
With them talking to Flint, Ash, Pikachu, and Eevee started going towards the hospital to visit Yellow.
--------------------------------------------
The hospital stood like an old soldier — sturdy, but worn. Its stone walls bore faint cracks that had been patched over the years, and the red cross above the entrance was sun-faded, the paint peeling at the edges.
Inside, the air was cool, tinged with the faint scent of antiseptic and something older — the smell of a building that had seen too much. The reception desk was manned by a nurse whose uniform was neatly pressed but threadbare at the cuffs. A Chansey shuffled past with a tray of bandages, the cloth wraps carefully rolled but clearly reused.
Ash signed in, the pen scratching faintly against a clipboard that had been repaired with tape. Pikachu and Eevee padded close to his legs, their paws tapping softly on the scuffed linoleum. The hallway lights flickered once before steadying, casting a pale glow over the narrow corridor.
Yellow's room was near the end. The door's paint was chipped, and the curtain inside was patched with mismatched fabric. She sat propped up in bed, sunlight spilling through the window and pooling across her blanket. A small vase on the bedside table held a single wildflower — its stem bent, but still alive.
She turned her head at the sound of the door, her eyes brightening just a little. Ash stepped in quietly, pulling the chair closer to her bed. Pikachu hopped up beside her, while Eevee curled at her feet.
"Thought you might get lonely," he said softly.
Yellow didn't speak, but her gaze softened. She reached out to stroke Pikachu's fur, her fingers lingering as if grounding herself in the familiar warmth.
For a while, they sat in silence. Outside, a cart rattled past on the street. Inside, the steady beep of the heart monitor and the faint rustle of the patched curtain filled the room.
Ash gently pulled the chair closer to her bed, the legs scraping softly against the worn floor. Pikachu hopped up beside her pillow, while Eevee curled at her feet.
She shook her head slowly. "Not… lonely. Quiet."
He glanced around the room — the patched curtain, the chipped paint, the heart monitor that looked older than he was. "This place… it's been through a lot."
Yellow's gaze followed his, then she pointed at the curtain. "Old… but… still."
"Still standing?" Ash guessed.
She nodded once, lips twitching in the hint of a smile.
For a moment, they just listened to the faint hum of the machines and the muffled sounds of the street outside.
"I saw Flint on the way here," Ash said. "Pushing a cart of junk."
Yellow tilted her head.
Ash chuckled. "He calls it work."
She looked at him for a long moment, then said, haltingly, "You… tired."
"I'm fine," he said automatically.
Her eyes narrowed slightly — not in anger, but in quiet disbelief.
Ash leaned back in the chair. "Maybe a little. The city feels… different. Like it's carrying something I can't see."
Leaning back in his chair, Ash glanced towards the window where the sunlight spilled across the patched window.
"I should tell you… I'm going to the Gym later. Need to get an appointment for our match."
Yellow blinked, her brow furrowing. "Gym…?" she repeated, the word slow and uncertain.
"It's… a place where trainers battle," Ash explained gently. "You challenge the leader, and if you win, you get a badge. It's… kind of like a test."
Her eyes darkened. She looked away, fingers curling into the blanket. The steady tap of her hand against the fabric stopped.
"Battle…" she murmured, the word catching in her throat. Her breathing hitched, and for a moment her gaze went distant — past the patched curtain, past the hospital walls, back to somewhere she didn't want to be.
Ash leaned forward. "Hey… it's not like that. Not like what happened."
Yellow's lips pressed into a thin line. "Hurt… still hurt," she said, voice low.
Sighing, Ash said, "But you never said anything when I battled Ronin. Why now?"
Narrowing her eyes, Yellow said, "No...choice."
'Ash, don't.'
Ignoring Roshi's voice in his head, Ash stood, the chair scraping sharply against the floor this time. Pikachu flinched. Eevee's ears flattened.
"You know what?" he said, voice tight. "Maybe the problem isn't the battles. Maybe the problem is you."
Yellow's eyes widened, and her breath caught.
Ash didn't stop. "Maybe they attacked you because it wasn't random. Maybe it was something about you."
Yellow's hand trembled. "Ash…" she whispered.
"I'm going," he said, turning toward the door. "I need to fight. And if that scares you, maybe you don't understand me at all. Heal yourself. Don't look for me."
She reached out, fingers barely lifting from the blanket towards them. "No… don't…"
But he was already walking. Pikachu hesitated, looking back at her, then followed. Eevee lingered a moment longer, ears drooping, before trailing after them.
The door clicked shut behind him.
"Wait..."
Yellow stared at the empty space where he'd been. Her hand dropped to her lap. The heart monitor flickered with unsteady heartbeats, and the room felt colder now. The sunlight still spilled across the blanket, but it no longer felt warm.
Outside, the cart rattled past again. But this time, she didn't hear it as tears slowly streamed down her face on the blanket, reflecting her guilt.