"Here you go, Your Pokemon are fine and healthy," A Pink haired woman said as she returned me the Pokeball holding Fanny, Gothorita and Rabsca following after her on foot.
"Thank you very much," I smiled before opening back the Pokeball, A Shiny Salandit popped out of her ball in a flash of red light.
"Let's go girl, The nurse says you're good," I told her as she climbed back to her spot, wrapping her tail around my waist.
"Sal," Fanny hissed tiredly, closing her eyes as she rested against my body like a Fanny Pack, soft breaths leaving her nose as she slept.
"Goth," The Psychic type said as she levitated back onto my shoulders once we all exited the Alfronda Pokemon Center.
This world is amazing! It has Free Healthcare for everyone, Pokemon and Humans, and it doesn't suck!
"Gah, I needed that," The Bug/Psychic said with his Telepathy as he bounced up to my shoulder, "So, Kid, Back to the Hotel we go, Chop chop." He tapped me on the back of the head with one of his legs as we all went back to the hotel.
............
"There's no sign of the Scientist?"
Outside the Alfronda Ruins, Champion Geeta stood over the many captured Team Flare Members as she talked with one of her Elite 4 members.
"Nothing that we could find with the time we had," A blonde man shook his head at the question, His Noivern mimicking him as it too shook its head.
Geeta thought for a moment before she too shook her head, "It doesn't matter at this point, We have enough evidence and witnesses to convict those here and request an arrest from Kalos."
"We'll see what we can do," The blonde Dragon trainer nodded at his boss, "In other news, I heard Lorenz's replacement was with you here, how was she?"
"She was fine," Geeta turned to look at the city of Alfronda, a short distance of twenty or so minutes of walking between her and the nearest building, "I'm sure once she has all 6 members for her Elite team, she'd be ready to take Alfronda's Gym," She turned to look at Hassel of the E4, "However that is still months away, And we have more pressing matters to concern ourselves with,"
"Yes, Grapa is retiring at the end of the circuit, with his Son scheduled to replace him as the Gym Leader of Glaseado, and if the way things are going, I'd give it three or four more years before Thyme also steps down from the Montenevera Gym. With you only becoming Champion last year, and with Rika joining our ranks just a few months ago, The coming few years seem to be a headache and a half," He said tiredly, the look on the usually emotional Trainer reminding Geeta of the Gym Leader of Medali.
"That only means we must stay strong," Geeta told Hassel, ignoring the pained groans coming from the Team Flare grunts underneath her, "Once we get passed this tumultuous time, it shall be a smooth ride,"
"You're right, Oh how mistaken could I have been?!" Hassel suddenly yelled, "To be so worried about our future, the Present is what matters most! Oh Geeta! Thank you so much! I have an Idea for a wonderful symphony that I must compose post haste! I leave the rest to you!" And with a flourish of his coat, The Dragon Specialist of the Elite Four turned around and hopped onto his Noivern, flying away at the speed of sound.
Geeta stared at his retreating back with a calm expression on her face, her eyes moving to the only Team Flare member who dressed differently.
The Bald man shook as he tried to hug his Swoobat closer to himself, trying his best to avoid the cold stare in the Champion's eyes.
"Now, Where were we?" She asked as she stepped closer to the Team Flare Admin, who could do nothing but shriek in fright.
"Swoobat help me!!!" He cried into his partner's blue fur, The Psychic/Flying type's tail wrapping around his arm as it too shivered in fear.
They were Prey, And she was the Predator.
..............
Once we got back to the Hotel, One of the Gothorita gave me a bag filled with my clothes and laptop.
"Thank you," I nodded to the Psychic-type as I took the bag from her hands, already seeing what she prepared the bag for.
All around the city, groups of construction workers started fixing the streets and buildings that were damaged in the earthquake.
"Dishon, There you are," With a wide smile on her face, Orchid walked up to me and pulled me into a hug, Rabsca jumping off of my shoulder and landing on hers.
"Miss Orchid," I say as I stand there awkwardly, the older woman letting go of the one-sided hug before she puts a hand on her cheek.
"I'm glad you're all fine, But I have some bad news," She sighed as Rabsca started styling her long purple hair, "The Hotel will be going through renovations to make sure that nothing integral was broken, So the place is going to be closed for at least three weeks," I nodded in understanding, It made sense.
The workers would need to go through each room to find everything that must have broke, and if it was a gas pipe it could be disastrous if we keep sleeping here.
"The Goth's already packed your things, I'll send a bonus to your bank account in a day or two, but until the Hotel is back up and running, you're going to need to find another place to sleep," She said sadly before she pulled me into another hug, rubbing my hair as if I was a little kid, and not a young man a head taller than her.
"I know you don't have a place to sleep, But you're a smart boy, You'll find a small hotel to spend the night at I'm sure, I called an old friend of mine in Cascarrafa and she's willing to let you stay in one of her guest rooms if you help her restaurant, I'll pass you her number soon, Good luck sweetie, I'll give you a call when everything is cleared and its fine to come back. LORENZ!-" And with those quick words, My Boss let go of me and turned to yell at her husband.
I took a moment to let those words sink in, before I felt a small smile grow on my face.
This is what I wanted, A Chance to go explore the world! It might not be an actual journey, but a trip to Cascarrafa for a few days will let me see more sights, I might even spot another Shiny Pokemon!
I quickly bid Orchid and Lorenz farewell as I walked into Alfronda Proper, hoping to find an open store that sells camping equipment.
I wonder how much those Silph-Co Space Bending Tents cost...
.........
With a new set of equipment on hand and a few thousand bucks poorer, I stood at the Edge of Alfronda, Staring at the cave on the other side of the dirt road. The path I took when I first came here.
"Tomorrow we're leaving on foot, Fanny," I say out loud, talking to myself more than anything, "We'll walk through the Alfronda Cavern, taking the cliffside path overlooking the Sea, Then we'll pass through the Wind Turbine path and once we're through, the rest of the path is downhill from there," I smile as I imagine how many wonderful sights I'd see on the way there.
I stocked up on enough food ingredients that should last us a week, Tomorrow morning I'll make food for the road before we leave, and I'll restock again once we're in Cascarrafa.
"We might need to spend a night on the road, depending on how tired we are, but this shouldn't take more than two days." I scratch Fanny on the back of the neck before I start hearing quick steps heading towards me.
"WAIT FOR ME!!!" I turn around quickly, eyes widening as I feel myself get tackled to the ground by a black-haired muscle-head.
"Don't go yet, I needed time to prepare!" Dendra yells into my face as she sits on my waist, Her face centimeters from my own as she breathes heavily onto me, sweat covering her face, causing the setting sun to reflect off her skin. Her black tracksuit was open, showing her sweat-covered abs beneath, her arms each at the sides of my head, holding her above me as her Fiery brown eyes stared into my own Bluish-Grey.
I felt my brain fizzle for a moment as the sight fully registered in my mind, My face engulfed in a fierce red Blush, Fanny crawling from around the Fighting Specialist as she hissed in annoyance at the girl who took her favorite spot.
"Dendra," I squeaked, cursing the voice crack as I looked away from the woman in front of me, "Please get off of me," I wanted to shove my face into my arms, I was so embarrassed.
Dendra blinked at that before she looked at me again, noticing the position she was in and how it might look to someone from afar.
"Oh..." She said dully, before a cheeky smile crossed her face, "You never had a strong girl sit on top of you?" She smirked as her face moved closer to my own, the teasing smile on her face only growing as my face turned as red as an Occa berry.
I was too embarrassed to respond, my brain turning on and off again and again as the sight of Dendra's cute face- and wonderful abs -filled my vision.
"I'm just joshing ya'!" She laughed as she stood up and let go of me, Not understanding that now standing, the back of her head was highlighted by the setting sun, causing her to look even better.
Forgive me, God, for I am down horrendous.
"But I couldn't just let you leave without me, If You're going to Cascarrafa, then I'm going with you!" She gave me a thumbs-up and a toothy grin, and I took that moment to clear my thoughts and stand up as well.
"Dendra, I'm not going to Cascarrafa yet, I still need to spend the night here," I told her as I wiped the dirt and dust off my shirt, Fanny quickly climbing back up to her spot now that the intruder was gone.
"...What?" Dendra asked.
"The sun is already setting, I can't start my travel only to set up camp for the night an hour later," I tell her as I pat my new Silph-Co Bag, "I'm going to spend a night here on this bench before leaving in the morning," I point over my shoulder to a bench behind me, An old Cyclizar waving his tail in greeting.
"Oh..." Now it was Dendra's turn to be embarrassed, "Wait, Why not just spend the night at my place? I'm sure Dad wouldn't mind letting you stay," Her cheeks slowly turned red as she looked away from me.
And I was reminded, that While technically we were both adults via the standards of the Pokemon world, We were also still Teenagers, Two Young adults who haven't had much luck with social situations. Me especially seeing as I am reliving my late teens.
"Landit Sal!" Fanny slaps my back with her tail to snap me back to reality.
"Sure," I tell Dendra, "If you'll have me," I smile at her.
"Yosh! Let me show you the way," And without further wait, Dendra, with a wide smile on her face, grabbed me by the hand and dragged me back into Alfronda.
And even though the Hotel was under renovation, I might be Homeless for another few days, A Long trek was ahead of me, and I might have earned the ire of a Crazy Team Flare leader, Life was good.
I looked down at my hand, seeing the rough yet thin fingers of this beautiful girl wrapped around my own, I gave it a gentle squeeze.
With my other hand, I started scratching Fanny's neck, hearing her hiss like a Cat's purr, her body melting into my touch, and I smiled.
Yes, Life was good.
"Salandit..."