Instead of the wizened, bearded sage Spark was expecting, when the duo entered the Loremaster's temple, after taking off their shoes and ritualistically washing their hands at the entrance, they were greeted by a tall, slender, brown-haired young man holding a tablet computer. He wore a traditional robe covered in ornate fiery patterns and stylized dragon silhouettes over a plain black button up shirt and slacks. When Spark and Arlo entered, the youth got up and bowed to greet them, which Arlo returned, awkwardly yanking Spark with him. Then Arlo and the Loremaster started talking to each other in Kantonian. Arlo was a bit rusty on pronunciation, having not really used it in years, but Spark didn't really catch anything except pronouns even having spent the flight playing through "language learning RPG" units.
<<Hail, Loremaster. My name is Arlo, son of Hanako. I'm here because I have questions about my ancestry.>>
The Loremaster briefly gaped in surprise, nearly dropping his tablet in the process.
<<Oh, hello! You're the first person I've had specifically seek a consultation, actually -- I just became Loremaster 2 months ago after Loremaster Koutarou died. So, forgive me if I'm not quite up on the full rituals...>>
<<That's fine. I haven't been here since a funeral when I was 6, so I wouldn't be able to tell if you did something wrong.>>
<<Wait, I think I recognize you... did you go by Carmine, before? We all watched your Pokémon League tournaments and were overjoyed to see you make it as far as you did. Your mother might have moved to Kanto, but you're still the first Draconid to make it into the Indigo Conference finals. I thought you were so cool when I was younger. You're, uh, actually what inspired me to go on a journey. Then I went to university, and I just graduated and then got the news that the last Loremaster died and I was the most experienced youth from the House Of Fire, so...>>
<<Wait, you're younger than me? Gods, this is weird. Well, I trust you know what you're doing. I mean, I picked up the research position I'm in now when I was 18 and really, what you do here is basically a traditional form of animum research and harnessing, right?>>
<<Heh, I actually majored in animum studies. I heard about the research on it when I was on my journey, and realized how much of it aligns with the old lore. I just convinced the council to let me use animum scanners; that's why I got this tablet. We still use psychic Pokemon to track auras, but scanning makes it easier to explain to people who come for consults if they can see it....oh, yeah! You're here for a consult! What were you looking for?>>
Arlo rolled up his sleeve to reveal the patch of scales.
<<I want to reconnect with my family history, and my dragon spirit, since, well, I don't think it's giving me much of a choice. I've exhausted what I can find about phenomena like this in the sources I have access to, so I'm hoping that the Draconid geneaological histories have something to say. I know I'm descended from a Loremaster and the warrior who turned into a dragon after fighting the Sinnohites, so surely there's something in there?>>
Sitoh jumped back in shock before awkwardly smiling and wiping his hands down his robe in an effort to recompose himself.
<<Uh, woah. That's... we can definitely get you in contact with your ancestor spirits. I can send you copies of what we have in the histories, but if we're dealing with dragon stuff, it's best if you confront the spirit directly. I've...I've heard the stories, of course, of Masato and the twins, but I've never seen anyone be transformed by their dragon in person. That's so cool -- I mean, truly, this is a great and auspicious honor for you and our people. If you'll follow me back through the curtain here, I can get everything set up for the ancestral connection ritual. Now, it will likely take a full day. Do you have any plans? If you do, we can set a later date for it.>>
Arlo looked back towards Spark.
"Spark? Uh, I don't know if you're allowed to be here during the ritual, but I want you here if you can be. Do you object if we spend the night here?"
"No, darling. This is why we're in Hoenn and the whole reason we're on this trip is for you, after all."
Loremaster Sitoh turned to face Spark, seemingly having recognized that he wasn't part of the scenery for the first time since they'd arrived.
"My apologies. I should have introduced myself before. Do you not speak Kantonian?"
"...you speak English? And, uh, yeah. I didn't want to interfere, since, you know, I'm about as far from Draconid as you can get and I didn't want to get in your way. I trust that you know all the traditional practices and such... but, I'm Spark. Arlo's husband. We live in Vayera, so this was a pretty long trip, but I hope it'll get him the answers he wants. I'm here for moral support, mostly."
"That's lovely. I'm glad that you're here. Would you like an explanation of what I'm going to do? Arlo, this goes for you too."
"Yes, please."
"Once I lead Arlo back through that curtain -- and Spark, you can come back and sit by him so you're there when he wakes up if you want; you won't interfere with the ritual since he'll be unconscious for most of it -- anyway, once I do that, we'll start with some meditation to get Arlo in touch with his spiritual aspect as much as possible while I get everything prepared. Then he'll drink a ceremonial tea -- I'm not allowed to tell outsiders what's in it, but we've been using it for thousands of years for this without any issues. Arlo, do you have any allergies to plants or medication?"
"No, but whenever I get drunk or high, it doesn't do much and I usually just fall asleep."
"That's fine, since the purpose of the tea is that it'll knock you out and separate your spirit from your body, kind of. Not fully, but you'll be able to interact with the spirits of your ancestors and your dragon patron so you can get your questions answered, and it'll draw more, uh, animum out of you so it'll be easier for me and my partner Pokemon to track and interpret. Oh, I should introduce you!"
Loremaster Sitoh whistled and clicked his tongue a few times, prompting an Absol to come bounding through the curtain at the back of the room, stopping at the Loremaster side for pets. The dark Pokemon wore an ornate gold collar with a Mega Stone in its center.
"This is Kuro. He's been working with the Loremaster for 15 years now. I inherited him when Koutarou died, so we're still getting to know each other. He's going to help me detect and interpret your aura, so we can better understand what kind of dragon spirit you have and how you can best draw them out, and what you can expect from them reshaping your body."
The Absol started whining and pawing at the base of Sitoh's robe, so the Loremaster pulled out a treat pellet from an internal pocket for the creature to eat.
"Like I said, he's still not totally sure about me, but he's excellent at his work. So, Arlo will be in a trance-like state while his spirit's on its journey. He won't be able to hear or see anything in the outside world. Kuro will keep track of his health. We'll stop the ritual immediately and get him to Rustboro for medical attention if something goes wrong, but I've been observing these rituals for 20 years except the one I took off for my journey and the histories document them going back to the great twins, and no one's had a medical emergency during one in decades."
Arlo raised his hand to speak. "So, this is basically some kind of sedative or hallucinogen and I'm going to have a vivid dream, with the spiritual prompting and meditating to make sure I dream about something relevant?"
"You could think about it that way, yes. Only the House of the Loremaster is allowed to know what specifically is in the traditional blend, but I can tell you that it's mostly herbs with some compounds non-harmfully derived from Pokemon and meteorite dust. Don't be afraid. Every time I've observed one of these rituals, the journeyer feels satisfied and whole afterwards. It's not like the nightmares you might have had under sedation before. You'll be unconscious for somewhere between 8 and 12 hours, but the peak effects of the tea will be much shorter. Once you wake up, I'll go over my interpretation of your aura readings with you and can answer any questions you have. You need to stay here for 2 hours after you wake up anyway to make sure there aren't any unexpected aftereffects. Again, never had this happen in the lifetime of anyone we've ever known, but just in case."
Spark raised his hand, unsure if that was proper protocol, but he felt odd about interrupting. "And I can come with him, right? Is there anything I should know about making sure I don't disrupt the ritual?"
"Nothing that wouldn't be obvious, I think. Don't interrupt the meditation, and don't touch him while he's journeying or send out any Pokemon because it interferes with aura readings. People have their loved ones here for these all the time and it doesn't hurt anything, but usually makes the journeyer feel more comfortable. Feel free to read a book, play games, listen to music, or take a nap while he's out. I won't be offended. By the way, Arlo, what kind of music do you like? There are traditional songs I can use for the meditation, but this is all about getting you in contact with your personal dragon spirit, so what makes you feel most like yourself?"
Arlo's face flushed. He skuttled over to Loremaster Sitoh's side holding his phone and scrolling through the playlist on there. Spark couldn't hear what he was saying, but could immediately fill in the gaps -- he was talking about Ronnie's role in his Pokemon and gender transition journey, and apologizing for the annoying nature of the artist and questionable quality of the music he was about to subject the Loremaster to. Sitoh placed a hand on Arlo's shoulder, smiled at him, and whispered in his ear.
<<Hey, man, don't worry about it. If it makes you feel connected to your spiritual calling or your Pokemon, it's sacred enough. When I did my initiation, I had to explain to old Koutarou what visual kei was.>>
With a wave, Loremaster Sitoh led Spark and Arlo through the curtain, Kuro trotting behind him. The Absol seemed very interested in Arlo, like it was trying to get close enough to his scales to take a sniff.

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Pub: 14 May 2026 18:40 UTC

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