Did Nora let him sleep the whole night through? Regardless, Ren is not a morning person by any means—which, of course, given the comfiness of the Slakoth, has pretty much rendered him unconscious even into late morning. Maggie’s actually getting a bit concerned, patting at his face like that.

And in his dreams he’s wandering through a forest—much like this one—searching for his companions, for the rest of Team JNPR, when out of the shadows bursts a Grimm, fangs and claws outstretched, lunging straight at him…

“Wah!” Ren’s startled awake, sitting immediately bolt upright. The force of the movement knocks his Pokémon aside and he has to take a moment to breathe, to remember where they’ve been.

It’s a forest much like the one in his dreams, albeit…brighter, friendlier. Vaguely, as he shakes off the morning grogginess, his Aura begins to pick up movement within their vicinity. Animals scurry beneath the dense canopies of the trees, hiding in shadows…a pair of eyes open in the dimness, before it’s met with surprise…a trainer, in a straw hat and carrying a bug net, whoops with joy at the find…

The revelation wrenches his mind into focus, and the next thing he does is look around in a panic. “Nora?”