"Mr. Lin Hao, I'm Cynthia, the Sinnoh Champion. We need to talk."
The text message glowed on the screen for half the night, until morning light turned the curtains of the Rustboro City hotel pale.
Lin Hao was woken by the vibration beside his pillow. With his eyes closed, he fumbled around on the sheets for a while before finally answering the phone that would not stop ringing.
An unlisted number flashed on the screen. When he answered, a woman's low voice came through, carrying a composure that left no room for interruption. "Good morning, Mr. Lin Hao. I assume you saw last night's message."
Lin Hao rubbed the corner of his eye with the back of his hand, his voice still rough with sleep. "I did."
"Why didn't you reply?"
"It was too late. I fell asleep."
The other end went quiet for a moment, as though she had not expected that answer. "The Global League Survey Corps will arrive in Hoenn at three this afternoon, but I took an early flight. I'm at the Open-Air Café downstairs right now."
Lin Hao pushed himself upright on the bed, walked to the window, and pulled back the curtains to look down.
Beneath a parasol on the street corner, a woman with long blonde hair and a black trench coat held a white porcelain cup. She gave him a slight nod through the window.
Twenty minutes later, Lin Hao shuffled out of the elevator in slippers. Pikachu lay on his shoulder, the tip of its tail brushing the back of his neck now and then.
A cup of unsweetened black coffee was already waiting in the seat opposite Cynthia, steam still rising from it. "Sit."
She pushed the cup toward Lin Hao, her gaze lingering on Pikachu for about three seconds.