Like I said before, Gold needs to be shown using his ability more often. (He used it twice, guys. Even Silver's ability has had more attention than his.) This could be with the Pichus, as you said (JOHTO PICHU TRIO!!! <3 *Shot) or with Manaphy, which is what I predict.
Geez...It's exactly the same? Why'd the game creators do that? Well, the BF shouldn't be used, now, seeing as how Platinum is where it takes place...And yeah, I think the Underground Market, for one. That and they could show us who the new Gym Leader is to replace Pryce (Come on, it's been more than 3 years since that incident, I THINK that they ought to have found someone else by now.)
What do you mean? Sird (I am going to assume we're still discussing Sird) can't go to Hoenn, with the BF incident, nor Kanto, with the Sevii incident. Johto is next to Kanto, and would no doubt be an unwise area to hide in if she's a wanted criminal. If Sird really is Jupiter (this is still speculation, but I think the possibility is high) then she can't hide in Sinnoh because of her activity there. True, Johto is probably the best place to run to, but it's still not a smart decision on her part.