Acknowledgements

I’d like to extend my heartfelt thanks to:

My family and friends, both IRL and online. You eagerly awaited this behemoth of a project for so many years, even when it seemed like it would never reach completion. Thank you for your unyielding patience, which kept me motivated to push through all the challenges and see this through to the end.

My professors at my MFA program. You were excited and proud of this project even though you were focusing on my thesis, which was an entirely separate work. Thank you for your support—I wouldn’t be the writer I am today without your guidance.

The writers and editors at PokéCommunity Daily. Your feedback and support were an immense help in shaping this piece, and bobandbill’s formatting prowess helped bring it to life. Thank you for sticking with this project from its proposal to its publication, and giving it the chance to reach readers the world over.

And you. Whether you read part of a chapter or the entire thing, thank you for giving this series a chance.