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roxannarambles · 2 years ago

Text

Title: Picnic in Paradise

Ship: Nemona x Juliana

Tags: Pokemon battles, fluff, flirting, pre-romance, action/adventure, 2nd Person POV/Present Tense

Warning Tags: some cursing (english and spanish), blood/injury

Wordcount: 17k

Notes: Set during postgame/has major spoilers for the main story

You're busy making sandwiches and packing a picnic basket in your dorm. Nemona is sitting on your bed watching because the last time she tried to make something in the kitchen, she baked a cake with 2 cups of vanilla extract instead of 2 teaspoons, so she's a bit wary of cooking now.

It doesn't matter, of course; you're happy to pack a picnic. You've promised Nemona you're going to take her on a very special trip somewhere this afternoon to catch pokemon. She's very excited and can hardly sit still, asking you questions about where you're going, but you keep insisting it's a surprise. However, you can only repeat that it's a surprise for so long.

"Gimme a hint at least??"

"Hmmm . . . there are very, very strong pokemon there."

She swings her feet with glee and it's the cutest thing you've ever seen.

"Aw, right! Is it Colonnade Hollow? I hear there's a lot of dragons there."

"Nope."

"Hmm. . . Casseroya Lake?"

"Nope!"

"Huh. Well . . . I know there are some pretty tough water types if you swim far enough out to sea . . ."

You giggle and say she's never going to guess.

"Okay, give me another clue then!"

You think a moment, then say,

"It's absolutely gorgeous there."

She clasps her hands together.

"Oh, it's gotta be one of the Ten Sights of Paldea then! The Leaking Tower? No, Fury Falls!"

Grinning, you finish bagging up the fruit and tucking it into the basket.

"Nope! You should just give up and let it be a surprise, Nemona."

She balls her hands into fists and stamps the floor lightly,

"Arghhh! C'mon, you just wanna torture me! Pleeeease, Jules? What if I need to pack something special, you know, like a jacket or something? You gotta tell me where it is, it's just practical!"

You decide to put Nemona out of her misery, because it was clear she wasn't going to let up anytime soon.

"All right, all right. If I tell you, you gotta promise to stay cool, though, okay? This is our little secret."

She seems confused about what exactly you mean, but she quickly and loudly agrees,

"Our secret, yeah, of course!" You hold a finger to your mouth.

"Shhh!"

She nods and repeats quietly,

"Our secret."

You glance around a moment, as if expecting there to be someone else lurking in your dorm room-- though with Penny's penchant for spy equipment, it's not an entirely unfounded concern--then come closer to Nemona.

"Okay, so the place we're going to is . . ."

You hesitate, and she watches you with intense expectation. You lean in close to her, just for dramatic effect, and whisper,

"Area Zero."

Nemona gasps, her eyes gone wide. Quickly, she asks,

"R-really? Can we do that? Isn't it still off-limits to everyone unless you have official business there?"

"Well that's where the secret part comes in," you say, amused. Nemona grins, looking both thrilled and uncertain at once.

"Oh my gosh Juliana I had no idea you were such a rebel."

You giggle. The truth is you aren't, not normally, but you know exactly how badly Nemona wants to return to the place, as she talks about it pretty much all the time with such a wistful gleam in her eye. And you were willing to do just about anything to make it happen for her.

Even if it meant bending a few rules.

"Well, the whole place wouldn't even still be there if we hadn't gone down and stopped the Time Machine, right? The shields would have eventually failed and Paldea would have been completely overrun with a massive population of ancient pokemon. So, I mean, we kinda earned a little extra trip down there, don't you think?"

Nervously, she drums her fingers on her knees.

"I . . . guess so?"

You decide to stop pussyfooting around and just be blunt about it with her.

"Okay, look. The truth is I don't think they want us down there because we're students, so they're technically responsible for our safety, yadda yadda, but the place isn't exactly well-watched. Like, at all. Nobody's gonna see us if we sneak in for a few hours. And I get the sense that Clavell and everyone else wouldn't exactly be that ticked off even if they did somehow find out. We are two of the very select few of people in Paldea who are actually more than capable of handling ourselves down there."

You clearly were winning Nemona over, not that you'd expected it to be particularly difficult. She nods and says,

"Yeah, that's true." You go back to the kitchen to finish up packing the picnic basket. As you do, you add on,

"Anyhow, we'll have Koraidon with us and can always bail if we run into any problems. Though with the Time Machine shut down, I expect the population down there has stabilized, since no new pokes are being pulled in."

Honestly, you were almost as eager as Nemona was to see Area Zero again. The time you spent down there had been incredibly rushed and tinged with anxiety over what Arven was going through. But even then, the glimpses you had caught of that hidden garden paradise were spellbinding. You knew Penny had no desire to return, and Arven understandably didn't want to go anywhere near it again. But to you and Nemona, the thrill of adventure was such an alluring siren song.

When you glance up again, Nemona has that familiar gleam in her eye, and she looks as amped up as a Pawmot mid-battle. She doesn't have to say anything more-- you already know-- but she says it all the same.

"All right, I'm in. Let's do it!"

Once you finish carefully packing the picnic and your backpack for the trip, the two of you walk to the outskirts of Mesagoza. It's a beautiful spring day, sunny and warm, with just a few fluffy clouds in the sky and a slight breeze. It's going to be perfect, you realize. You give your Koraidon the picnic basket and he grabs it by the handle in his mouth, like the bestest boy he is, and then you both hop onboard, with you in front and Nemona tucked behind you. You encourage Koraidon to hit the throttle, and then you're off, galloping through Paldea like a couple of trainers on a mission. The thrill of dashing along at top speed on Koraidon honestly never gets old; you love the press of speed against your body, the blur of scenery flying by, the way Nemona cackles in glee and holds onto you so tightly.

When you take an unexpected turn and veer away from the main path, Nemona asks you about it, but you say that you know a shortcut. Koraidon crosses the river in one mighty bound, then goes straight for the curve of the mountainside. You grin, excited and nervous at once, hoping your shortcut would work out all right. Koraidon kind of had a heavier load than usual, but he was pretty good at adapting.

"Hold on tight!" you shout, before the pokemon leaps and digs his claws into the earth, clambering straight up the mountainside. Nemona yelps in surprise and clings tightly to you as you both go vertical, bouncing roughly back and forth as Koraidon bounds and climbs. It was honestly a pretty rough ride whenever you took a mountain like this, and that's why you normally didn't; but you were far too eager to spend a solid hour following the flat paths before reaching your destination. You had plans today, darn it.

Luckily, Koraidon is an absolute beast and he scales the mountain like it's almost nothing. He doesn't even drop your picnic basket. (You make a mental note to give him extra treats later on)

As you reach the summit, you don't even slow down, instead shouting to Koraidon,

"Let's fly, Scarlet! Yip yip!"

He leaps, straight into the vast, foggy void below, unfurling his mighty wings; and as you glide peacefully over the Great Crater of Paldea, Nemona laughs and squeezes you against her.

"The best shortcut ever! You're amazing, Jules."

Your heart skips at the praise; you always get such a fuzzy feeling and a stupid smile when she says nice things about you, but you try to ignore it so you can focus on not flying straight into a wall or anything. You carefully aim Koraidon, squinting at the land below, trying to recall the landing spot you'd used the last time. The strange fog that shrouded the crater is dense and impossible to see through at first, but as you descend, the world below snaps back into focus. You're able to recognize things before too long, and you guide Koraidon to a nice, wide stretch of land to touch down on.

And then you're here again. You dismount from Scarlet and Nemona scrambles down as well, positively beaming. The two of you just take it in for a moment.

There's such a strange feeling to this place. It isn't something you can easily put to words. It feels . . . eerie, almost; the air sort of has this heavy feeling to it. Maybe because it's more humid down here? No, that isn't it. Yes, it's definitely more humid down here, but that isn't the cause of the strange feeling. The whole place, it feels so . . . foreign. The way the sun shines down so brightly from the dense fog above you, perhaps. The way the air almost seems to shimmer with some sort of power. The feeling of . . . some kind of energy, buzzing, like it's at a frequency tickling just below your ability to hear.

Something like that. Maybe it has something to do with all the weird crystals down here. Or all the ancient pokemon, perhaps.

You realize Nemona had sprinted ahead of you and you rush to catch up to her, not wanting to lose sight of her. You find her at the edge of the cliff you landed on, pressed right up against the old, rusted chain link fence as she looked out at the magnificent vista below. You come up beside and join her.

"I can't believe we're back," she says, her voice low and hushed, as if speaking too loud would disturb the peace of this place. She turns and looks to you, and you feel your heart stutter in your chest; it must be something about the lighting here, the way the air sparkles or something, because you've never seen her eyes look so stunning before, like honeyed gold. She's smiling like you've given her the best gift in the universe by bringing her back here.

You cough, desperately trying to ignore your mushy internal thoughts.

"Y-yeah! I mean, that view, it's, it's crazy!"

You aren't wrong, of course. The place is gorgeous. The land here seems to curve and twist downwards into a huge spiral, perhaps due to how the meteor disturbed the earth long ago. It's incredibly lush and green, thick with meadows speckled in wildflowers and trees, and huge waterfalls dropping down into the earth like lacy, sparkling curtains of water and light.

Despite all that, your focus isn't really drawn to the amazing scenery, but rather, your best friend overflowing with excitement.

Nemona grabs your hand and exclaims,

"C'mon, I can't wait any longer! Let's go exploring."

You laugh as she pulls you along, and you head down the grassy path, deeper into Area Zero, with Scarlet following close behind you.

For a while, the three of you just enjoy some hiking through the verdant landscape. Unlike your previous trip here, you're free to take your time now, and you can investigate whatever tickles your fancy. You pass by herds of curious Girafirag and some Raichus, and then find a swarm of Venomoth and Frosmoth enjoying the wildflowers. Further into the field is a whole group of Jumpluff and some Floettes, drifting along on the warm spring breeze. The path curves downward and past a small waterfall, which Scarlet happily stomps through, and then just past that, you run into your first ancient pokemon of the day.

They are several of the strange-looking Jigglypuff. For the most part, they look like the blobby fairy you are already familiar with, but they have long, flowing manes of pink hair that look a lot like ponytails; they also have larger, wilder-looking eyes and little fangs. When they catch sight of you, they bristle and let loose some ear-piercing shrieks.

"Hello again!" Nemona calls, waving at them, as if their shrieks were just a friendly greeting. Outloud, she muses,

"Y'know, they kind of freaked me out the last time, but they don't seem so bad now. I think they actually might be way cuter than normal Jigglypuff!"

You laugh.

"You have interesting ideas on what's cute."

Nemona snorts and nudges you with her shoulder, teasing,

"Says the girl who gushes over every weird bug she finds."

"Bug types are adorable!" you protest, hurrying to keep pace with Nemona and out of the path of the angry fairies. Nemona grins back at you, saying,

"They are. And I love that you made me realize that, 'cause I didn't used to think so, but I do now. Oh! There's more of them. Wow, there's so many!"

You pass by more of the ancient Jigglypuff, which are gathered under some trees, their huge, yellow eyes glaring at you as you walk by. You try to remember what Arven had called them, before. He said he'd gotten the names out of his mom's old Scarlet book.

"Scream Tails, I think Arven called them? It's definitely descriptive, I guess."

"Yeah, it suits them. Oh, Jules, look!"

Just a little further up the path, Nemona spots one of the strange, enormous Volcaronas. You perk up in excitement.

"Ooh! Let's get a closer look!"

Of course, you don't need to tell Nemona twice. You both hurry ahead and draw closer to the huge insect, watching it crawl onto a rock.

It holds its pair of wings closed up tight, which seems so strange to you, compared to a normal Volcarona. You aren't sure if it can even fly with them, to be honest. It's possible the creature is too heavy to be supported by its wings; it certainly looks far bulkier than modern Volcarona.

Of course, even stranger than its wings is the fact that the bug has a spiky green tail and almost lizardlike feet. It goes against everything you know about bug types.

Nemona asks,

"What did Arven call these?"

You pause a moment to recall.

"Slither Wing, I think."

She nods.

"Right. I never had the chance to fight one the last time, but I remember you said the Sada AI had one? Was it strong?"

You think back to your battle that day and wince.

"Well, at the time, I thought it was a Bug/Fire type, so I sent my Klawf in, but it packed quite a punch with Low Sweep. And my Rock moves didn't seem to be doing supereffective damage, so I suspect it's a Fighting type, weirdly enough."

Nemona's eyes widen.

"Whoa. A Fighting/Bug? That's so cool!"

"Yeah, I know, it's really rare."

Nemona groans.

"Urggh! Coming here is so much fun but it also kind of sucks. I want to catch one so bad!"

You glance to her.

"So why don't we?"

She frowns.

"Because we'd get found out! I'm pretty sure people would notice if we started using super funky pokemon from the stone ages."

You cross your arms and give her a sneaky smile, saying,

"Yeah, but if we caught them and only used them to battle each other down here . . ."

Nemona thinks about this for a second. Then she grabs you by the shoulders, gushing,

"Oh my gosh you're a genius Jules! We can have our own private Paradox Tier down here!"

You laugh and tell her fondly,

"I wasn't gonna bring you here and not let you catch anything. I promised last time I'd help you improve your pokeball throws, right? I'm keeping that promise."

Delighted, she turns back to the Slither Wing.

"Perfect! I wanna start with this guy. I wanna see what he can do!"

You consider things a moment. "Hmm. Let's start with something a little easier, for practice. Then we'll work our way up to him."

She gives a self-conscious grin.

"Ah, yeah, you're probably right. Okay, lead the way, sensei!"

You both hike a bit further into Area Zero, locating a nice, wide open space with a herd of Girafirag. They seem like the best species to practice on down here; pokemon that are too small would be tricky to catch, and so would anything flying, but you also don't want a pokemon that is too dangerous or too skittish. Girafirag seem to fit the bill.

Next, you ask Nemona to throw a pokeball just to show you how she normally does it. After she demonstrates for you several times, you hum,

"Mmmhm. Okay, yeah. I can see the issue. Well, it looks like several things at once. Right, let's start with the basics, then."

"The basics?" she asks, a little bit of anxiety in her eyes. As confident as Nemona normally is, you know she tends to feel a little self-conscious about her throwing skills.

You nod.

"Yeah. Don't worry, I'm sure you'll pick things up fast. A lot of people end up struggling a bit with throwing pokeballs. It's just because their throwing habits from when they were kids tend to stick with 'em, you know?"

She nods, looking a little more at ease with your reassurance.

"Yeah, that does sorta sound like me."

You come close to her and pull out a pokeball, getting into throwing position.

"Ok, so, start by standing like this. Your feet should be this far apart, the same width as your shoulders, see? And your hips and shoulders should be aligned."

Nemona studies you and then imitates your position.

"Ok, check!"

You tell her,

"Good. Stay relaxed, though, bend your knees a little. Yeah. Just a natural stance, good."

You hold your pokeball up and say,

"Next, let's make sure you're holding the ball correctly. You need to hold it with these three fingers."

Nemona laughs a little, asking,

"Wait, really? I can't just hold it like this?"

You check how she's holding her pokeball and shake your head.

"Nah, that's not as effective. I know it seems kinda weird and it might feel a bit funny at first, but this'll make it so much easier once you get used to it."

She gazes intently at your hand and tries to imitate your grip.

"Okay, like this?"

You turn your wrist and show her,

"These two curled behind. Middle finger here, index here. Hold it out here in your fingertips."

She frowns, shifting the ball in her hand.

"It doesn't feel very stable that way, though?"

You pocket your own pokeball and reach out, taking the ball from her.

"Sorry, it's kind of hard to explain verbally. Here."

You take her right hand in both your own hands; she's wearing the black and pink fingerless glove that she usually does, but from the way it feels, you can tell it shouldn't interfere with her throwing. You gingerly turn her hand palm-up and move her fingers into position.

"These two, they're going to stabilize the ball, that's what it rests against. And you want to hold it here, all along here. It's not in your palm at all."

Absent-mindedly, you let your thumb stroke along her long fingers, idly thinking how pretty her hands were. Trying to shake off the brief distraction, you tip your chin up a bit to look her in the eye and ask,

"Um, make sense?"

It's only then you realize just how close you're standing together, hardly a breath apart. Nemona looks at you, but her gaze, which is usually so perfectly steadfast, suddenly seems strangely hesitant. You can't help but notice that her cheeks seem a bit pinker than usual. After a pause, she answers,

"O-oh. Yeah. I, y-yeah, I get it now."

Still holding her hand, you realize you're feeling a tad warm, all of a sudden. You give a nervous laugh and fumble to grab the pokeball back from your pocket.

"R-right, so. Um. Here. Give it a try."

You shift a half-step back to put a bit more space between you two and watch as she slots the ball into position in her hand. She asks,

"Is that okay?"

She turns her wrist for you to inspect her grip, and you beam at her, saying,

"Yeah! That's perfect! Just like that, you got it."

She grins, buoyed by your enthusiasm.

"Great! Do I get to actually throw the darn thing now?"

You laugh.

"Yeah, I think you're ready. Okay, so here's how you throw."

You back off a few paces to make space and swing your arm in a neat arc, demonstrating a few times.

"Here's the wind up, and then, zoom!"

She imitates the motion, and you have her repeat it several more times.

"Good, but you don't want your arm to go too straight. Your elbow should bend a little."

She adapts quickly to your feedback and soon has the basic motion down. You next spend some time directing her on how to step forward during the throw and move her hips, then you work on improving her wrist motion. It takes a little while, since there's a lot of things to focus on simultaneously when they're all put together. But Nemona is attentive and patient, not to mention highly motivated.

After she's done enough practice and seems to have the motions mostly down, you say,

"Okay! I think we're ready to give it a try on some actual pokemon."

Nemona snatches up a pokeball and eagerly follows you back over to the herd of Girafirag. She looks so excited, almost like a kid who is about to catch her very first pokemon, and you find it terribly endearing.

"So we're not gonna try and weaken them, right? Since I'm just practicing my throws."

You nod.

"Yep. Just choose a target and give it a shot."

"Heheheh, okay. Let's see . . ."

You watch as she seems to pick out one of the stragglers in the herd, then cautiously approaches. The tail of the Girafirag perks up and gazes at her warily, before the Girafirag's main head turns to look at her too. Nemona settles into position and aims. Then, she winds up and takes a shot--

The ball sails cleanly through the air and bops the Girafirag on the forehead, pulling into the ball. Nemona immediately leaps into the air and cheers,

"YEAH!! Did you see, Jules? How was that? That looked so much better than my usual throws!"

You laugh as she bounds back to you and you tell her,

"That was fantastic! Great work, my dear student."

She giggles,

"Thanks!"

You hand her another pokeball.

"Here, let's keep going. We should practice until you get used to it."

She goes to throw another ball at the Girafirag while you study her form.

"Good, good. But remember to keep your wrist loose."

"Yeah, okay."

She throws another, this time the ball sailing way past her target. She mutters,

"Whoops, heh heh, kinda overshot there."

Even though it had missed her target, it had been an awfully impressive throw otherwise.

"Dang, Nemona! You've got a heck of an arm on you. You're definitely gonna be great at long-distance catches."

She glances back at you, looking quite pleased with the praise. She asks,

"You really think so?"

You nod,

"Yeah, here, back up a bit, let's see how far you can go."

You have her practice hitting the Girafirag from further and further away, and it doesn't take Nemona long to start hitting her targets consistently. Once she gets used to flicking her wrist at the apex of the throw, she's able to put even more power behind it. You're proud at how quickly she's picking it up, although you're not surprised. Once Nemona put her mind to something, she usually excelled at it.

It seems like she's really enjoying pushing the limits of how far she can throw and eventually asks you to join in, so you both start hucking balls at the Girafirag, turning it into a contest. Although you have more experience and your aim is sharper, she absolutely bests you on throwing distance when compared to your noodly arm.

You watch as she squints, going for another long throw, narrating it as she does so;

"Aaaand . . . there's the windup . . . and the pitch . . . BAM!"

The ball rockets through the air with almost frightening velocity, striking the ground and missing a fleeing Girafirag, but not by very much.

"Yeah! Okay, that missed, but came pretty darn close. This is so much more fun now that I know what I'm doing!"

You laugh, pleased to see her so happy and doing so well.

"You really are improving so fast. Once you're used to aiming you're gonna be a monster."

Nemona flashes you a grin, answering,

"Well, it helps that I have an amazing teacher."

She tosses another ball; you both should probably stop soon, since the herd of Girafirag are starting to grow rather annoyed with your practice session, but you suppose a few more minutes won't hurt.

"Your stance is getting a bit sloppy. Make sure to move with the throw."

"Yeah! Okay."

She tries again, but her motion is still a bit stiff. You come up behind her and tap her hips with your fingertips, saying,

"Here, move from here. We start like this and then swing with the throw, right?"

"O-oh. Haha. Right."

You settle your palms on her hips and gently coax her body with your hands, showing the motion,

"Here, like this, straight, and then swing! Twist the hips."

She giggles as you twist her hips, twisting your own body along with her; her ponytail flutters into your face and you think she smells slightly of vanilla.

"Okay," she says, her tone light and amused. You suddenly feel startled at your own boldness, like your brain has only just now kicked in-- oh god you needed to stop doingthings like this-- and you quickly pull your hands away from her.

"Uh, y-yeah. So. Yeah! Um. Try that out."

You back off to give her enough space. She pauses for a bit, positioning herself, and then steps into the throw very nicely, the pokeball gliding through the air and striking a dawdling Girafirag, before popping back open again to release the cranky creature. You praise,

"Yeah! Just like that, exactly!"

She turns to you with a pleased little smile.

"I think I'm getting the hang of it, sensei."

There's something so playful in her eyes. Ignoring the little flutter in your chest, you nod and say,

"I, ah, I agree! In fact, I think we can call this lesson complete. You've passed the exam with flying colors!"

She pumps a fist, looking as thrilled as if she'd passed an actual exam at school.

"Yeah! Thanks for all the help, Juliana. Seriously, this is gonna make things so much easier for me."

You smile at her fondly.

"Of course, Nemona. Anytime."

You hear irritated noises from the nearby Girafirag and your focus is reluctantly drawn away from Nemona.

"Ah. We . . . might wanna give these guys some space now. I think if we annoy them any longer they might try to trample us to death."

Nemona frowns, answering,

"Oh, right. Hm, I hope they're okay."

As you two leave the herd behind, you say,

"I'm sure they'll be okay now that they have a chance to rest from our onslaught."

She chuckles, saying,

"Yeah, it's the ancient pokemon that gotta worry about us now."

You notice she's rubbing her right wrist with one hand, an unconscious movement you've seen her do before a lot, so normally you'd think nothing of it; however, in the moment it brings a concern to mind. Reluctantly, you ask,

"Hey, um . . . Nemona? We didn't practice for too long, did we? I don't want you to get hurt or anything."

She looks confused for a moment and you gesture awkwardly to her gloved hand.

"Oh! That. No, I'm fine. Just a habit of mine to rub it like that, heh. I'm good, though, it's, it's usually only an issue when it's flaring up."

"Oh," you say, relieved to hear it. Honestly, you've been curious about it before, but it had always seemed sort of rude to pry. She doesn't seem too uncomfortable, though, and after a moment, she volunteers more information, probably sensing your curiosity.

"It's an autoimmune joint problem. Y'know, when your body gets confused and attacks itself? It makes me tired sometimes, too."

You think back to the times she spoke of Naranja Academy's stairs with such trepidation, and then to all those other little moments she needed to rest when you were out and about, and suddenly you feel a bit stupid.

"Oh. Man. I . . . dunno why I didn't realize that was a chronic issue. Jeez. I'm sorry."

She laughs and shrugs it off,

"Nah, don't worry about it. I don't ever talk about it, there's no reason you'd know."

You reply,

"Yeah, but still . . ."

You pause, both of you quiet a moment. You venture to ask,

"How bad does it get?"

She glances away. It seems like the topic is not her favorite to dwell on, but after a bit, she answers lightly with a shrug.

"It's a pretty mild case, compared to other people. I'm on medication that helps. Doesn't cure it or anything, but it helps control it."

"I see."

You think for a moment, digesting this new information. Quite frankly, you've always admired Nemona's raw enthusiasm and energy, and now knowing she maintained that while also having health issues just made you admire her even more. But you don't want to say it, because you're worried it might come off sounding condescending somehow.

Eventually, while the two of you hike along, you tell her,

"Well, if you're ever having a flare-up and need a break or anything, you can always tell me, ok? Your health's your own business of course, but. You don't have to push yourself for me, is what I mean. You never need to."

It's a bit awkward and hard to explain, but she seems to understand your intent just fine. Smiling gently, she says,

"Sure. Thanks, Jules."

You feel another spike of affection, honored that she's comfortable enough to share this kind of stuff with you. Then something gleams in Nemona's eye, and you glance ahead to see what she's spotted. It's a small group of Slither Wings, crawling among the wildflowers.

You grin, turning to ask,

"Ready to put our lesson to good use?"

She nods, as eager as ever.

Over the next hour, the two of you hunt down and capture ancient Pokemon for your collection. The Slither Wings and Scream Tails are abundant and are the easiest to find and subdue. You have to travel a bit more to find the ancient forms of Amoongus and Magneton, but it doesn't take too long. The last ones are the hardest, and you must venture all the way into the beginnings of the cave system before you can find Great Tusks and Flutter Manes, but once you do locate them, the feeling is quite victorious. The only ancient Pokemon you're aware of that you're missing is the terrifying version of Salamence that the Sada AI had referred to as "Roaring Moon." However, since you both have collected a team of six Paradox Pokemon, you decide to stop your catching session for now. You could spend some other day hunting down the illusive Dragon; for now, you both were eager to spend time with your new partners and see what they could do.

Despite the fact that the ancient pokemon are undeniably very aggressive and harder to tame when compared to a typical wild-caught pokemon, they warm up to you faster than you expect. It seems food is a common language that any pokemon understands, and after some treats and coaxing, you both are able to win over your new friends. For the most part. There are still some occasional hiccups, and you're bitten a few times by the Brute Bonnet (it seems meaner than the others), but for the most part they behave surprisingly well. Well enough for a practice battle, in fact.

Nemona is absolutely pumped for your first battle together with the ancient pokemon, and you both settle on some basic rules beforehand. First, no training past a level cap; you both should be on equal footing here. Second, no items during battle or held items. It would take too long to sort those out, everything would just be simpler and quicker without them for now.

Third, you agree to no move limits. Any TMs you happen to have on hand are fair game, if you manage to teach them in time. You both have thirty minutes to go off somewhere and prepare, and then you'll meet up for the fight.

Those thirty minutes are sheer chaos as you rush to consider the move sets of all your team members and your strategy. The thing about this fight is you know Nemona's exact team-makeup and all its weak points, but so does she. It's kind of weird trying to prepare for that, because in a way it's almost too much information. You scribble notes on a pad of paper (you always had it in your bag; Nemona teased you for being a "boomer" and not using a Notepad on your phone instead, but your typing was always kinda slow and pencils were just easier). Your notes are pretty messy but at least you have a rough outline on your strategies.

Then it's time to battle. Nemona wants the battle to take place somewhere cool, so you guys wander around for a bit before finding a truly aesthetic location: a shallow pool of water that eventually meets up with the cliff face, dropping into a magnificent waterfall that flows down into the deep pit of the cave system. It's gorgeous to look at, and surrounded by soft grasses and trees, Gogoats grazing placidly and Buizel frolicking in the water.

The water is so shallow and tranquil here that you can easily walk into it without even getting your shoes too wet, so you both walk out into the middle of the water pool to stage your fight. The Gogoats and other nearby Pokemon all seem to pause and watch in curiosity; it feels like there's an audience for this unique occasion in Pokemon battling history.

"All set?" Nemona asks, grinning at you from the other side of the water pool. Behind her, the water roars into a waterfall that dips into the shimmering void of the caverns.

You smile and nod.

She reaches down to her pockets to grab her first pokeball, and with a fling, sends out her lead. You do the same, and your pokemon drops to the ground with a small splash.

You've both sent out your Slither Wings, and laugh at the coincidence.

"All right, battle of the bugs, let's go!" You point and shout your command to your new partner,

"Okay, Spike, Flare Blitz!"

Nemona's eyes widen and she issues a command to her own pokemon.

"Slither Wing, use--"

She doesn't get a chance to even finish, as your new pokemon is especially feisty. It cloaks itself in a shroud of flames and goes barreling after its opponent immediately, just breaking into a dead run and charging. Nemona yelps in surprise and her pokemon tries to dodge, but it hardly has the time to even blink before your pokemon crashes into it in a furious fireball. Not that bugs actually blinked.

Nemona crosses her arms, commenting mildly,

"Starting off strong, eh?"

You grin proudly. Her Slither Wing is a dazed mess on the watery ground, and you call for your pokemon to return to your side of the battlefield.

"Good job, Spike! Let's get ready for the next one."

However, you make a mistake. You shouldn't have been so confidant.

Because Nemona's pokemon, despite looking absolutely crushed, still hasn't fainted. You see it struggle on its fluffy little legs, and Nemona helps it back up to its feet. She pets its head, cooing to it,

"Good boy, there you go! Such a good boy. You took that like a champ."

"How . . . how is it still going?" you ask, in disbelief. You hit it with a Flare Blitz, for pete's sake.

Nemona points, ordering her pokemon.

"Slither Wing. Acrobatics!"

You watch as it twitches its tail and then charges, splashing through the water, running faster and faster, until it's only a blur.

"Oh--"

It strikes your pokemon like a bolt from the blue, crashing into it, then turning faster than the eye could detect and smacking into it, again and again. The attack is devastating. But of course, Slither Wing was four times weak to Flying. Not to mention the Flare Blitz recoil.

"Damn," you say as Spike faints and you return it to its ball.

"I wish I had an Acrobatics TM on hand."

You really thought the Flare Blitz would have been enough, but oh well.

"They definitely built these pokes to be tough," she says, as her Slither Wing waddles back over to her, looking quite exhausted. You consider your options a moment, then smile. Choosing a ball, you toss it.

"ChompyMcBiteyFace, go!"

Your Brute Bonnet materializes and Nemona chokes on a laugh.

"Jules, what kind of name is that?"

You stick a tongue out.

"Hey, at least I named mine!"

She huffed,

"I was busy thinking of strategy, not names!"

Well, that was a valid point, you supposed. You sigh, "All right, well. Whatever."

You lean down and whisper your command to the vicious-looking mushroom creature.

"Ok McBitey, Sucker Punch!"

The pokemon readies itself. You look to your opponent eagerly.

Nemona raises a brow, then holds up a pokeball.

"C'mon Slither Wing, that's enough."

You watch as her pokemon returns and say,

"Aaaw . . ."

"Jules, that Sucker Punch was totally obvious, it's not like Brute Bonnet is gonna outspeed."

You sigh,

"Okay, I guess that's true. Can't blame a girl for trying."

You watch as Nemona ponders for a moment, then selects another pokeball.

"Great Tusk, go!" The purple and pink elephant appears on the battlefield, and quickly turns to glare in the direction of your pokemon with its beady, yellow eyes. Nemona mutters an order to her pokemon, and then she gazes across the field at you, looking eager and expectant.

You consider what Nemona's likely next move is. Brute Bonnet has very decent defenses, so she'll have to hit it pretty hard. Of the available options to Great Tusk, it seems most likely it will use its supereffective STAB, so a fighting move. The best it has at this level naturally is Brick Break, but you're betting she taught it Close Combat.

You realize you have the opportunity for a great prediction. Grabbing the empty pokeball, you order your McBiteyFace to return. Then you toss another ball.

"Okay, Fluttershy!" The strange, ethereal ghost materializes, ready to face its opponent. You wait, hoping you've guessed right. From across the battlefield, Nemona nods, telling her pokemon,

"Go!"

The creature charges, crashing through the pool of water and swinging its tusks at your Flutter Mane violently, back and forth, again and again, whipping itself into a frenzy. But its efforts are entirely fruitless. The attacks simply phase straight through the ghost, harmlessly.

You're feeling pretty smug about your successful prediction as Great Tusk meekly returns to its master's side, looking very frustrated about its futile attacks. You call out lightly,

"Okay, so the Sucker Punch was obvious, but you didn't see that one coming, eh?"

She doesn't respond to your teasing the way you expect; oddly, she doesn't seem bothered in the least by it. In an even tone, she answers simply,

"Yeah, guess not!"

There's a funny feeling prickling at your neck. Nemona isn't smiling or anything; her expression is neutral, but you can sense something is off. She's holding something back, at least, that much is for sure.

Ugh, since when did Nemona start learning how to keep a poker face?

You turn to your Flutter Mane. Well, regardless, Nemona's next course of action is pretty clear. She'll have to switch out now; she knows Flutter Mane can outspeed and wipe out Great Tusk with a single Dazzling Gleam. But that's also what gives you the perfect opportunity, and a chance to possibly sweep the entire game.

You lean in and quietly murmur your command to the wispy purple ghost;

"Calm Mind."

Then you look to see what your opponent will do. You know even if Nemona does have Tusk stay in and attack for some weird reason, your Flutter Mane can survive one hit from most of the moves in its arsenal. Maybe not a steel move, but you're pretty sure Nemona doesn't have any Steel TMs in her bag. You're feeling pretty confidant.

But when you catch Nemona's gaze, your confidence quickly wavers. There's something gleaming in her eye, something terribly excited, and all her efforts to keep a straight face are quickly melting away as you watch.

Oh, no, what have you missed?

Nemona points and shouts her orders to her Great Tusk:

"Stomping Tantrum!"

Your Flutter Mane closes her eyes and begins to glow from the effects of Calm Mind, and you struggle to recall which move Stomping Tantrum is. It isn't as bad as Earthquake, but wasn't there something weird about it? Something to do with--

The enraged pokemon tears into your Flutter Mane, trumpeting and stamping so hard into the ground that chunks of earth go flying in its wake. The ghost crumples like a wet paper towel.

Ah. Right. The power of Stomping Tantrum doubles if the pokemon's previous move failed. You remember now.

You sigh, realizing your mistake. You should be annoyed, but Nemona is bouncing in glee and it's impossible to be annoyed with a sight like that.

"How'd you know I'd Calm Mind, though?" you call. You had to teach that move with a TM.

Nemona just crosses her arms, grinning, and says, "You always go for the setup, Jules."

You grumble at that. Guess you needed to switch things up a little.

Honestly, after losing such an important pokemon-- you consider Flutter Mane to be the crux of your team-- you don't feel like your chances are great, but you're still going to give it your best shot. You send out your Scream Tail next to try and handle the Great Tusk. Lucky for you, you get an attack drop with your first Play Rough. Scream Tail can tank the Earthquakes long enough to take the Great Tusk out, which is a good start.

However, your Scream Tail's weakened after all that, and Nemona switches her Flutter Mane in to easily finish it off. You decide to send out your Sandy Shocks next; you know its Heavy Slam can destroy Flutter Mane. Of course, Nemona knows as well, and she switches to her own Sandy Shocks. It's the second time you both have the same species facing off against each other, and once again, you get lucky and outspeed, destroying her Sandy Shocks with an Earth Power. Nemona demands to know why the heck your pokemon are always outspeeding hers, and you joke it's because she can only catch the slow pokemon.

"Oh, I'm getting youfor that," she threatens, grabbing up her next pokeball.

She sends out Brute Bonnet. You tease her she's gonna get you with literally the slowest Paradox Pokemon there is. As fun as it is to joke around, though, it's actually kind of an awkward pokemon for your team to take on. Your own Brute Bonnet doesn't have the coverage moves for it, and you don't fancy the thought of sending your Great Tusk out to take the incoming grass move. But if you leave Sandy Shocks in, it will be toast too. Not to mention Sandy Shocks doesn't have any decent moves for touching Brute. As many weaknesses as the Grass/Dark type has, Sandy Shocks has quite a shallow move pool for coverage and can't exploit those weaknesses.

You spend several minutes puzzling over it, until a possible solution finally occurs to you. You aren't sure if it will work, but maybe, just maybe . . .

Screw it, it's worth a try.

You reach into your bag, pulling out the charged Tera Orb. You and Nemona had already stepped away a bit further from the battle than usual, the moment you'd decided to send Sandy Shocks out, for safety reasons. It really wasn't a good plan to stand in a pool of water while electric pokemon were on the field, after all. However, after considering things, you call out to Nemona.

"Um, we might wanna step even further back. This might get a bit intense."

You both get a little more distance, and then, you fling your Tera Orb as hard as you can.

Watching the Terastilization process is always a treat, but down here in Area Zero, it seems even more dramatic than usual, the energy flowing not just from your Tera Orb but from the air all around you. Your Sandy Shocks crystallizes into an Electric Tera type, and its power seems to pulse from within, glittering and bright. The incoming Giga Drain does minimal damage, thanks to its now pure Electric typing. Of course, you still don't have any moves that are stellar against Brute Bonnet, but it no longer had any moves that were great against your poke, either. It was a war of attrition, now.

To give yourself the best chances, you start off with Electric Terrain. Nemona orders her Bonnet to Thrash, and you wince as the hit connects with your pokemon. You hope Sandy Shocks can last long enough. You issue your order-- Thunder. When the sparkly, Terastallize-powered bolt of lightning comes crashing down on the Bonnet, the resisted attack still doesn't seem to hit anywhere near hard as you'd like, despite all the buffs. This is gonna take a while.

However, lady luck is smiling upon you, it seems, because during the next turn, the Brute Bonnet lets out a shrill cry and struggles to move. It seems the Thunder has immediately struck it with paralysis. Yes!

And then you find even greater luck; when the Bonnet manages to move the next turn, it stumbles and falls, exhausted from the confusing effects of Thrash and the paralysis combined. You're able to clear it out with three Thunders. The method is a bit crude, but it gets the job done in the end.

And then, Nemonafinally makes a major mistake. She sends out her Flutter Mane. It's obvious she expects to clear out your injured Sandy Shocks with just one hit. And it very nearly does.

. . . but it doesn't quite. Your Sandy Shocks is able to hit her Flutter Mane with a Thunder before going down the next turn. It does a huge amount of damage. Suddenly, you're full of hope. You might actually be able to win this one. You send out your own Brute Bonnet.

Nemona switches to her Scream Tail, taking a hit from your Bonnet's Payback. The next turn, her Scream Tail uses Play Rough and Nemona gets a little of her own luck-- a critical hit. Well, at least the luck had evened out, you suppose. Your second Payback weakens the Scream Tail a fair bit, and at this point, both pokemon are looking pretty worn down.

You have to keep Bonnet alive. It's your win condition. It can finish off the rest of Nemona's team with its Sucker Punch. She of course knows that, though. And you only have four Sucker Punches left to use. She might try to stall you out.

You think for a bit, then decide to switch to Great Tusk. On the same turn, she switches to her Slither Wing. She goes for Acrobatics, but afterward, her Slither Wing falls to your Earthquake. She brings her Flutter Mane in next, and can easily finish off your Great Tusk.

You bring your final pokemon back in, your weakened Brute Bonnet. You have to Sucker Punch.

She swaps out to her Scream Tail, wasting one of your Sucker Punches. You're down to three. The next turn, she must try to attack, because your Bonnet finishes her Scream Tail off.

Two.

She lets her final pokemon back out onto the field. You think you have this in the bag. You tell your Bonnet to Sucker Punch again.

She reveals she has a setup move. She has her Flutter Mane use Calm Mind.

One.

The battle has ended up being ridiculously close. And now, you both are staring each other down fiercely, trying to read the others' mind. Now that electric pokemon moves are no longer a risk, you've both returned to standing in the shallow pool of water your pokemon were using as a battle arena; it made for a rather aesthetically-pleasing backdrop for such an intense moment.

You have two choices; Sucker Punch, or a non-priority attack. If she tries to Calm Mind again and stall out your Sucker Punch, you can use Payback and win. If she tries to attack you, you can use Sucker Punch and win.

It's an absurdly difficult mind game. You aren't exactly a huge fan of really deep mind games-- they feel like they twist your brain into knots-- but Nemona looks like she's having the time of her life. Her eyes are fiery and her grin looks practically giddy; she can't even hold still, bouncing on the balls of her feet.

"What's it gonna be, Jules? Sucker or no Sucker?"

You groan. Maybe if you can get her to talk, it'll help.

"I dunno, mi tesoro. What move do you want me to do?"

She laughs. Outloud, she muses,

"Hmmm, you're probably thinking I'll switch it up and just attack this turn, so you'll Sucker Punch. But I've probably already decided that's what you'd wanna do. So maybe I'll Calm Mind again, and you should Payback. But then again, maybe I've predicted that you've predicted my prediction and--"

"NEMONA, STOP."

She giggles, and you decide to just pick something because it isn't worth this headache. You lean down to your Brute Bonnet, who is looking rather impatient with all this waiting. Quietly, you mutter to him,

"Okay, ChompyMcBiteyFace. It's all up to you now. I want you to use . . . Payback."

When you lean back up, Nemona asks,

"You ready?!"

You nod, trying to look confidant. It's important, because pokemon can pick up on a trainer's nervousness. You give McBitey a trusting smile.

Nemona gestures dramatically and shouts to her Flutter Mane,

"Okay Flutter Mane, GO!"

You shout for your Brute Bonnet to do the same. The little grass pokemon charges with a scream, splashing across the battlefield, leaping at the ghost with all its primal might. Your heart is in your throat as you watch, holding your breath.

There's a bright, almost blinding flash, as Flutter Mane uses its Dazzling Gleam, striking the Brute Bonnet down instantly. He collapses into the pool of water with a splash and a tiny groan. Your heart aches at the sight for a moment, disappointed at your loss and his.

But then, Nemona gives a delighted squeal of joy, and she jumps up and down, splashing in the water, shouting,

"Yeah yeah yeah yeah!!! Flutter Mane, great job! Oh my god Jules, my heart was racing so fast, I had no idea which move you were gonna use, I thought for sure I'd picked wrong!"

And you can't possibly remain feeling disappointed, because that fight was actually superfun and it came right down to the wire and also, good god, as much as you loved how excited Nemona got when she lost to you, when she won sometimes it felt even better. She rushes up to you and grabs you by the shoulders and you laugh; she's splashing water on you but you don't even care.

With her dorky big smile, she tells you,

"Good game, girl!"

You grin and tell her,

"Yeah, thought I had you for a second there, but you're getting better at that poker face. Or just confusing me too much to predict you."

She taps her head with a finger and intones,

"Never let 'em know your next move."

"Pshhh. Getting tips from Arven's playstyle."

Nemona guffaws.

"Aw, now c'mon, he's gotten a lot better lately, actually!"

"Yeah you're right, that was a low blow. Don't tell him I said it."

Nemona takes her pokeball and returns her Flutter Mane to its ball, and you do the same with your fainted Brute Bonnet. After you finish healing up your team, she eyes you excitedly and asks,

"So, ready for round two?"

You laugh. Of course that's the first thing she asks. You blurt out,

"Anyone ever tell you that you're like a Mudsdale?"

She tilts her head, smiling but confused.

"Uh?"

You point finger guns at her, saying,

"'Cos damn girl, you got stamina."

Before it even finishes leaving your mouth you already hate yourself, dear god, somebody shove you into a pokeball so you can hide. It doesn't matter, Nemona laughs at your stupid joke, she is such a merciful friend. You awkwardly add on,

". . . but seriously, I'm kinda starved, I think we should break for lunch."

You glance around to try and spot your giant lizard motorbike friend, which usually isn't too hard to do. He is pretty huge and bright red. You quickly see that he's snoozing under the shade of a nearby tree, having grown bored of watching the battle, it seemed.

Nemona nods, saying,

"Hm, yeah actually that's a good call. I didn't even notice how hungry I was."

Lucky for you two, you packed a very nice picnic lunch. You both retreat to the shade of the tree with Scarlet and settle down on the nice, soft grass. It's such a scenic location that it almost feels ridiculous, like out of a storybook. You can watch the huge waterfall flowing down into the inky blackness of the sparkling caves deep below, and the Gogoats are still grazing nearby in the fields. The trunk of the tree you're sitting under is encrusted in beautiful crystals, which have dozens of shiny faucets that sparkle a rainbow of colors. It's perfect.

You set out all your picnic goodies onto the grass, but Scarlet keeps shoving his face into everything, so you give him a few treats to snack on and then return him to his ball. Then you and Nemona enjoy the bocadillos you packed, soon ending up in conversation about various things; how classes are going, the hijinks that Team Star has been up to lately, the gym leader gossip you've heard about from your art professor, etc. Nemona tells you about these videos online she's been watching of the gym leader battles from Galar and gushes over how their battle format is truly the best one of all the regions, and then she speaks longingly of how she wants to visit there. You both spend some time scheming over when you might make a trip out there together. Then the conversation drifts to various other topics.

". . . okay, and get this. I ran into Professor Raifort in the library the other day, y'know, and she was telling me more about those stories of the Treasures of Ruin she was so obsessed with. And how these ancient treasures were cursed with the collective total of humanity's sins or whatever, and they became these terrifying pokemon that brought destruction and misery in their wake, wherever they roamed, right? She said they were sealed away in some shrines across Paldea with really powerful magic or something."

"Dang. Is it just a legend or . . .?"

You shrug.

"I dunno, you know how myths are, people make the wildest crap up but half the time they end up being right 'cos pokemon are just that weird."

"True."

"Anyway, after she told me all this, she was talking about how she found the supposed locations of these shrines, and these magical stake thingies that need to be located and pulled outta the ground, and then she just . . . flat out told me to go see if I could find them all and pull the stakes out and unleash these ancient, uber powerful cursed pokemon of evil on modern Paldea. Just for funsies and because she thought it'd be cool, and like, what do you even say to that? I mean, holy crap, dude. Talk about unhinged."

"Whoa."

"Yeah. I thought about maybe telling somebody? Like Director Clavell or something? I mean, encouraging students to unleash ancient evils is probably against some rule, right? But I wasn't sure if she was serious or not. It's always hard to tell with her."

"Yeah, that's . . . that's pretty crazy Jules. I knew she was pretty passionate about the history of the Paldean Empire, but that does seem to be taking things a bit far."

"Right?"

Nemona looks thoughtful for a moment, and then adds on quietly,

"Although . . ."

You raise a brow.

"Although what?"

A sneaky little smile overcomes her features, and she admits,

"I mean . . . it would be kiiiinda cool . . ."

"Oh my god Nemona."

"What? You can't deny it, you have to feel at least the tiniest bit curious, right?"

"Nemona, I'm not opening Pandora's Box and destroying modern civilization because seeing a super strong legendary pokemon would be cool!!"

She laughs, pointing out,

"You don't know it would destroy civilization though, you said yourself how much people make stuff up and exaggerate! They might just be really strong pokemon that are perfectly catchable!"

"Yeah, maybe! But also maybe they will kill all the crops, boil the seas, bring about the ten plagues, curse my family and my entire lineage for the next twenty generations or whatever."

Nemona sighs, looking much like a child being told they can't eat ice cream for dinner.

"Yeahhhh . . . I guess you're right."

You finish up your sandwich and grab a section of sliced orange from your bag while Nemona looks lost in thought, dreaming of terrifying legendary pokemon. After a pause, she says,

"Although you do still have that Master Ball Director Clavell gave you, right?"

You hesitate, thinking about the supremely expensive pokeball that was currently stashed in your dresser drawer back at your dorm. She kinda did have a point . . .

You quickly shake your head, sputtering,

"Gah! No! C'mon, Nemona, stop, we shouldn't tempt fate!"

Nemona laughs again.

"All right, all right."

Trying to change the subject, you carry on,

"Anyway, I've been talking too much. I don't think you've even told me yet how your classes are going right now."

You two share several classes but you know she has a few that are different from yours. She answers your question breezily.

"Oh, pffft, well there's not much to report there. Other than my French midterm, there's nothing I'm worried about. It's not like Mr. Jacq's paper has me worried, haha. It's the same exact material as last semester."

You frown, confused.

"Wait . . . you had his class last semester?"

Nemona looks briefly caught out, as if she let slip something she didn't mean to. Reluctantly she answers,

"Uh, heh, well, y-yeah."

Whoa. It's hard to imagine Nemona actually flunking a class, especially if it has anything to do with pokemon. She must have had a rough semester.

You tell her,

"Eh, I've had a class I had to repeat before, there's no need to feel bad or anything."

Nemona smiles sheepishly at you.

"Well, I uh, I didn't really . . . need to repeat it, I got top marks and everything, I just . . . wanted to?"

Your confusion only deepens.

"But if it's the same exact material, then . . . why?"

Her eyes shift away. She answers cryptically,

"Well, I needed to fill out my credits for this semester to remain a student full-time."

You're still not getting it. Maybe Naranja Academy had some weird rules? You came from Unova, so you weren't super familiar with Universities here.

"Okay, but shouldn't there be enough classes for that without you repeating any?"

Nemona fiddles with an orange skin from the slice she's already eaten. With a self-conscious smile, she admits quietly,

"There's not many classes left I haven't had at least once by now."

You stare at her. "Uh??"

She sighs, briefly burying her face in her hands, then looks back up at you.

"Okay, so. I only have like two core required classes left to graduate. I could finish up anytime I want, really. I've been intentionally taking things really slow, padding out my semesters with a bunch of electives and sometimes even repeating classes."

"Okay . . . but why?"

She leans back against the crystal-encrusted trunk of the tree you're sitting under. Heaving another sigh, she says,

"Mmm. I dunno. I guess mostly because . . . I had no idea what I wanted to actually do once I finished school, you know? When I became a Champion a few semesters back, things felt . . . kinda empty after that. My professors and La Primera, they all encouraged me to pursue a career as a Gym Leader or an Elite or whatever, of course. Sounds perfect, right? But I wasn't actually sure if I'd enjoy it. Gym Leaders have to deal with a ton of inexperienced trainers, you know? And while I do enjoy mentoring trainers, it's maybe not what I want to spend all my time doing?"

She pauses, before continuing,

"I really craved a challenge. Like, a really, truly good challenge. I wanted somebody who would push me to my absolute limits and make me strive to be even better. I knew there had to be someone or something out there who'd do that for me. Or at least . . . I hoped so? So. I . . . was kinda just spinning my wheels for a while at school, trying to find something that would satisfy that wish, I guess."

You ponder that. It's definitely something you can relate to. You also struggle with knowing exactly what you want to do with your life after you finish school. But it's honestly surprising to hear Nemona had felt the same. To you, it always seemed like she had everything figured out in her life.

Your friend nudges your shoulder and gives you a little smile.

"And after I met you, well. I finally got to fulfill that wish. I'd found my best friend and rival for life, someone who could meet me at exactly where I was and push me to be even greater. And I made other amazing friends this semester, too, and had so many incredible experiences. God, it makes me so glad I waited. It feels like the pieces are starting to come together, finally. I'm still not exactly sure yet what I wanna do in the future, but . . ."

She trails off. Glancing around at the idyllic scenery, she grins and jokes,

"Well in this exact moment, I kinda just wanna stay forever down here in super cool ancient pokemon paradise with you."

"Oh," you say, your face heating up. Returning to her train of thought, she concludes,

"But, yeah, I decided I'm going to pad out my remaining semesters long enough so I can graduate at the same time you do. And then we can finish together."

She says it so simply, like it's a logical, easy thing to do, but you're overwhelmed with emotion. She wants to wait for you. She's this incredibly talented trainer and person who could probably go anywhere and do anything in life, because she has the drive and the skill, but she doesn't want to do it unless you're there with her.

You emit a little squeaky noise, trying to push through the thoughts tangling up in your brain.

"N-nemona that's . . . I don't know what to say, that's . . . th-thank you? That's so incredibly sweet and. You don't have to do that--"

She takes your hand and gives it a squeeze, her smile dazzling as she tells you softly,

"Of course I don't have to. I want to."

You're certain that you're bright red by now, and you desperately try to get the language centers of your brain working again.

"I-I-I, uhh, I-- t-thank you, Nemona."

She giggles, clearly endeared by how flustered you are.

"No, thank you. Seriously. You've done so much for me. You've been such an incredible friend and rival. And you're always so sweet and so generous. Like, look at all this! You brought me out here and arranged all this, too. Taught me how to throw pokeballs, packed this amazing lunch-- I don't think I've mentioned yet, those bocadillos were phenomenal? You been taking lessons from Arven or something?"

You glance away, confessing,

"W-well, I, kinda asked him to let me borrow some Herba Mystica from him for today . . ."

Nemona gives a little gasp.

"Really? That explains it. But jeez, Jules, why'd you go through all that much trouble? I would have been fine with just some plain 'ol ham sandwiches or whatever!"

"I wanted today to be special," you say, firmly. She deserves something special. She deserves super amazing trips and all the fun stuff. That's why.

You . . . also possibly have a few ulterior motives tucked away in the back of your mind that have to do with making it feel sorta kinda possibly like a date, but you aren't gonna say that part outloud.

"Well, you definitely succeeded there," she say, and oh, the expression she has was going to melt your heart to goop, a blobby little happy puddle of Goomy. Your thoughts stop working for a bit, but you have a vague sense that you're forgetting something. Something . . . to do with today's plans?

"Dessert!" you suddenly blurt. At Nemona's startled expression, you add,

"Sorry, heh, I, I got something special from Cortondo's pastry shop!"

She looks immediately eager.

"Ooh, really?"

You dip into the picnic basket and pull out the paper-wrapped goodies that had been tucked in the far back.

"Bizcocho de Limón," you say, handing her one.

"Made with their special olive oil. I haven't tried it yet but Katy was going on and on about how much better the olive oil was when compared to using butter."

Nemona unwraps the paper, not wasting any time and biting into the soft lemon cake.

"Nmmmhhh," she groans, not leaving any ambiguity about whether it was a hit or not.

"I'm going to assume that means you like it," you chuckle. She swallows the bite and gives you a grin.

"This really is the perfect day."

Her nose is dusted with the powdered sugar from the cake and you can't keep a straight face, sniggering.

"What?"

"You got a 'lil somethin' . . ."

You reach out and gingerly try to brush the sugar off, but it's only smudging it around, and halfway through the act you end up getting lost in her eyes. All those sappy thoughts you'd been trying so hard to suppress are back, and your heart kicks up speed.

She's gazing at you, with the sweetest of smiles, and she's not looking away. You think perhaps you've stopped breathing. Almost imperceptibly, you start lean closer; or perhaps she leans closer to you? Time seems to slow down to a crawl.

There's a strange sort of growling noise from behind you. You notice it, but only vaguely, and in the moment you don't really stop to think about it.

The next moment, all is chaos.

Something enormous erupts, almost as if it was from the very ground you were sitting on, crashing between you and Nemona-- you hear a loud, splintering crunch that you only later realized was the sound of your picnic basket being crushed-- and your arm is caught up in the motion, a sharp, white-hot pain of your skin being torn. You barely have enough time to gasp for breath and try to process what was right beside you: the body of some kind of creature, bright green and purple, four limbs that are long and sinewy, and claws. Big, curved, purple claws.

At this point you have processed your most imperative task:

Run.

You struggle to clamber to your feet, Nemona doing the same, and start to run. A quick glance back and you see enough to realize the pokemon looks like some kind of giant cat, like a lion or something. It's briefly hampered, apparently struggling to shake the shredded remains of the picnic basket off its face--

Oh. Its teeth. Those massive, curved purple thorns on its face are teeth. Like some kind of saber tooth tiger.

You utter a curse and keep running. The pokemon spits out the last bits of picnic basket and starts to pursue you, quickly picking up a loping run. Its strides are long and you know it will catch up to you soon. You needed your pokemon.

You glance back again, trying to spot where your bag ended up in all the chaos. You can't see it anywhere, but you see Nemona's bag, sprawled open in the dirt near the tree you'd been under, its contents spilled all over. You couldn't get to it, the tiger was closing in on you.

You trip during your frantic search for your bag, tumbling painfully to the ground. Your heart drops to your stomach. You twist and try to get up, but it's too late. The pokemon is a mere few feet away now, snarling, approaching you in a stalk. Its eyes are hot pink, its pupils narrowed into slits; its ears are flattened and it's bearing wickedly-curved purple teeth.

Your pulse is pounding in your ears, and once again, time seems to slow to a crawl.

"¡Oye! Get away from her, you tonto del culo!"

You glance up. Nemona isn't far away, but it's clear she didn't have the time to recover her pokeballs and she looks terrified for you. You realize you're probably going to die. You try to think of something meaningful to say in the moment, but your mind is utterly blank.

Nemona reaches down and picks up a rock, before shouting again and chucking it with all her might at the creature. The rock beans the tiger right across the head, hard. It gives an outraged scream, quickly turning to face her.

"Yeah, that's right! Leave her alone, come get me, cabrón!"

You're horrified. You cry out,

"Nemona, it's going to kill you!"

She ignores you, still taunting the tiger and sidling slowly to the right, trying to lead it away. It's stalking up to her and you don't know what to do, all you know is you can't stand by and watch your best friend get disemboweled right before your eyes. You're about to charge forward, but in the split-second before you do, Nemona suddenly dives to the ground. You think it's just a last-ditch effort to evade the beast, but then you see her throw something she's recovered from the ground.

There's a familiar sound, and a pokeball bursts open. Her Great Tusk materializes.

You want to sob in relief. Nemona shouts,

"Tusk, Close Combat!"

The precious moments when the tiger is distracted with Great Tusk do not go to waste. Your friend immediately climbs to her feet and darts away, going through the mess of her bag to locate where her other pokeballs had rolled away to. You want to rush to help, but first you need to give the pokemon a wide berth to avoid getting caught in the crossfire.

As you run, the Great Tusk charges into the saber tooth tiger with all its might, trying to tear into it with its tusks. The tiger is surprisingly resilient, though, and strangely doesn't seem to take much damage from such a powerful move. It retaliates, biting down on Great Tusk's soft underside, sinking its purple fangs deep. The elephant gives a pained shriek.

Fortunately, Nemona has recovered another pokeball, because Tusk faints almost immediately after that. She shouts, "Uh, go!" and flings it, obviously not sure which pokemon it is.

Her Scream Tail immerges, and you think to yourself that it's a stroke of luck. Scream Tail was pretty bulky, so it should last at least a little while. Nemona orders it to use Play Rough. By now, you've been able to move around the battling pokemon and reach Nemona. You want to hug her, but you know now was Not The Time, so you just call out tersely to her.

"Nemona."

She looks up, then rushes to you. She pushes a few pokeballs into your shaking hands.

"H-here. I'll look for the rest. I don't know where your bag went, I think it might have gone over the cliff, so hopefully my team'll be enough."

As she runs off your attention is drawn back to the battle; it seemed Scream Tail's Play Rough hardly did anything. The tiger swipes at the puffy pink fairy with its long claws, and Scream Tail seems to deflate like a balloon. You realize the clawmarks embedded deep into Scream Tail are oozing with a purple liquid. You mutter,

"Oh, shit, right. It's a poison type."

Grass/Poison, from the looks of it; its limbs, which had seemed so muscular and sinewy, seemed to in fact be made of entwined vines, and its fluffy fur is embedded with dark leaf patterns. Its ears are large and triangular and they extend down to its face almost like a mask, in a way that reminded you a little of Meowscarada.

In fact . . . as it narrowed its pink eyes and glared at you, you realized it looked a lot like Meowscarada. A really jacked, beastly, saber-tooth tiger version of one, at least.

Scream Tail's fainted form returned to its pokeball, and you threw another. Flutter Mane appeared, graceful and serene even during such a terrible situation. You tried to think of what moves it might have that would be useful. You weren't gonna mess around with any Calm Minds, you needed to get some damage off.

"Uh, Mystical Fire?" you try, and Nemona's Flutter Mane responds to the command. It turns and descends upon the tiger, creating a huge curtain of flames to crash down upon it. You watch in relief as the tiger flinches from the attack, the flames singing its leafy fur and limbs-- finally, some actual damage. You shout for Flutter Mane to use Mystical Fire again, but the tiger leaps into the air and slashes the ghost with its claws before it can react. There's a crisp, sharp noise, the familiar sound of a pokemon landing a critical hit, and Flutter Mane goes down.

Damn. This thing was tearing through Nemona's team like it was nothing. You throw your other pokeball, sending Brute Bonnet out to face its fearsome opponent. You're not sure of its full moveset, and you shout,

"Brute Bonnet, just hit it as hard as you can, give everything you've got!"

The feisty mushroom pokemon turns and rushes headlong into battle. As fast as it can, anyway. The top running speed on its little legs wasn't exactly the greatest. The tiger chomps down on Brute Bonnet before it can do anything, and you cringe in sympathy. Bonnet counterattacks as hard as it can, flailing back and forth as it uses Thrash. The tiger roars in anger and slashes at it, and then down it goes, as fast as all the others.

What level was this beast? You feel a cold sense of dread creep in, pondering that question. All you'd been able to do so far was buy a little time. You flinch in pain and rub your arm, feeling a sticky wetness, and glance down. Oh right, you'd been injured in the initial attack; your arm was still a bit torn up and bleeding, although at least the cuts didn't seem to be too deep.

You look back up when you hear the tiger growl, and, oh crap, you're out of pokemon to throw at it. That's not good.

Fortunately, Nemona returns once more to rescue you, right on time. It seems she had to wander all over to recover her supplies, because she's on the opposite side of the angry tiger as you are. She has her bag, though, and a pokeball in hand. Brightly, she calls,

"All right Sandy Shocks, let's go!"

The weird, primitive form of Magneton lands on the ground, its parts spinning and whirring. It's hard to believe your lives might depend on this goofy-looking pile of magnets. You call out to Nemona,

"I think it's Grass/Poison, it has some kind of biting move and a poison move-- Cross Poison? Poison Jab? Not sure, that's all I really know! It's KOing most things in just one hit!"

"All right," she calls back, not looking discouraged by this report. Pointing to her pokemon, she orders,

"Let's even things out a bit. Sandy Shocks, hit 'em with Thunder Wave!" The little collective of metallic creatures spin and point their magnets, building up energy, walking along the ground in a strange wiggly gait; then they fire a weak beam of electricity, zapping the growling tiger. You feel relieved that the beast finally has a status condition on it. Hopefully it would slow it down.

"Now, Earth Power!" Nemona commanded, as the tiger turned to face its new opponent. You could see Sandy Shocks building up energy for the special attack, the power building between its three heads; before it can get the attack off, though, the tiger lunges, and it bites down hard on the primary head. It certainly doesn't seem like biting is something that would work on a creature made of metal, but the metal of Sandy Shocks must be different, somehow-- it was a Ground type, after all, not Steel. There's a gross crunching sound and the three heads vibrate and shriek, their eyes rolling around wildly, and it seems to take massive damage. Your brain struggles to figure out why-- what move was it using? Ice Fang? Surely you'd see the ice, then?

Despite the damage, Sandy Shocks does not perish immediately, and it manages to finish powering up its move; the ground around it and the tiger distorts and shifts and shakes violently, before bursting open with the attack, lava boiling out. The tiger seems to take a really solid hit, but Sandy Shocks does faint from the aftermath.

Nervously, you call to Nemona,

"Uh, how many pokes do you have left?

Like you, she had brought some of her usual partners on this trip as well, not just her new Paradox team. You hoped she had managed to recover those too. Nemona pulled out a pokeball from her pocket and gave you a weak smile. She said,

"Um . . ."

You curse under your breath.

"Seriously?"

She shouts back, "I think some rolled off the cliff along with yours. Look, it's fine, we can make this work!"

You're not so sure about that, from the looks of things. But Nemona throws the ball, sending out her last pokemon-- Slither Wing. Sounding full of confidence, she commands,

"Okay, Slither Wing! If this is Grass/Poison, let's go for an Acrobatics!" The ancient bug pokemon flaps its wings and dashes towards the tiger, preparing to strike. Before it can hit, though, the tiger slashes at it viciously, ugly purple streaks of poison marring its fuzzy body. Fortunately, this doesn't bring the bug to a stop; Slither Wing counterattacks, slamming into the tiger again and again at intense speeds, ruthlessly. You watch with hope gleaming in your eyes.

When Slither Wing is finished with its assault, the tiger looks very bruised and worn down. Giving a strangled cry, it bites into Slither Wing's hide, trying to stop its attacker. Slither Wing flaps its wings furiously and struggles in the tiger's grip. It looks as though the bite isn't doing too much damage, but the poison is slowing Slither Wing down by now.

"I don't suppose you have any heals left?" you tensely call to your friend.

She shakes her head. Ah. That's . . . not the best. Nemona hasn't given up, though.

"Let's give him a taste of his own medicine, Slither Wing! Leech Life!"

You watch as Slither Wing battles to wriggle free from the tiger, stirred by Nemona's commands. It somehow manages to slip free from its jaws, then it turns and latches its buggy mandibles onto the tiger's neck. The tiger roars and jerks, but it seems paralysis is finally slowing the monster down. Slither Wing drains some of its lifeforce, feeding itself. It's obvious Nemona hopes to preserve the longevity of her last pokemon this way, in lieu of any potions.

"Good work, Slither Wing! Let's go for another Acrobatics now!"

The ancient moth releases its foe, looking a little rejuvenated, despite all the poisoned scratches on its body. You start to think Slither Wing may actually have a chance of winning this. It seemed it was a very stubborn bug.

The moth prepares its next attack, backing up a little so it can get a running start against its foe. Judging by how tired the tiger looks, you're guessing this could very well be the finishing blow of the match.

Slither Wing charges, emitting its strange, gurgling cry, wings flapping furiously. You can't look away, and hope this will finally be it . . .

. . . but it isn't. Despite the paralysis, the tiger is able to rouse itself once more. And before Slither Wing can strike, the tiger lashes out with an attack. But this time, it was a new attack. There's a dusty white cloud of smoke that's whipped up from the action, and the tiger leaps up and smacks Slither Wing around with its paws, over and over, without even using its claws in the process. The move looks very familiar.

Oh, no. Play Rough.

After the tiger is finished batting the moth around, it's clear the poor thing has fainted. The pokemon dissolves into energy, returning once more to Nemona's pokeball. You can't believe it.

"Son of a-- this thing is nigh invincible!" you shout, disgusted. Even after all that, it was still going!

The tiger's magenta eyes dart to you when you shout. The pupils narrow to slits and it growls.

"Oh, for fuck's sake--"

Battered, beaten, and paralyzed, the saber tooth tiger from hell is stalking towards you, still with pure malice and rage shining in its beady eyes.

Trying to keep your voice calm, you call out,

"Uhhhh, Nemona? You sure you don't have any pokemon left?"

You can see she's digging through her bag, but she looks frantic. You can hear her muttering,

"No, no, no, no!"

You start to back away, wondering if there's anything nearby you could run to. Some rocks, some trees. This thing could probably climb trees twice as fast as you. It was no use.

The tiger is bearing its purple fangs at you, and they're dripping in poison. You suppose they'll soon be clamping down on your neck.

You hear Nemona suddenly cry out.

"Wait! Wait, yes! Oh my god, Jules, hold on! I'll save you, I've been training for this moment!"

You're confused at first, because she pulls out a pokeball, and you thought she'd run out of pokemon. But then it hit you; she has an empty pokeball. Oh, of course. Why didn't you think of that sooner?

You watch as she carefully takes aim at the distracted tiger. She has a perfect back shot from her position. She takes a calming breath, then swings her arm, stepping smoothly into the throw, and sends the ball soaring. You watch the nice, clean arc of the ball sailing towards the tiger, flying, and then--

The ball thwacks a rock right behind the tiger with a loud crack, shooting off into a random direction. You hear your friend's high-pitched shout,

"Oh, jodete! Oh, shit!"

If the situation wasn't so dire, it would have been funny, honestly. But as it was, the tiger quickly turns around, angered at having things flung at it, apparently. It snarls and begins stalking towards Nemona instead.

"Nemona, look out!"

She was busy grabbing a second ball. To your horror, the tiger is stalking faster. Much faster.

"It's OK I got it, hold on--"

She's taking aim with the ball. The tiger crouches, performing a little butt wiggle that looked remarkably similar to when your Purrloin was about to pounce on its toy. Oh, oh no. No, no, no!

You break into a dead run towards them, not sure what to do, but you have to do something.

The tiger roars, leaping, paws outstretched, at the same time Nemona stumbles and falls backwards, flinging her pokeball, screaming,

"AAAAAAA!!" A bright flash of light and the tiger dissolves into a puddle of energy, which is sucked into the pokeball. The ball drops to the ground, its center button lit red.

You both stop perfectly still and stare, breathlessly, as the ball wiggles.

Once. Twice.

Thrice.

You wait. The seconds feel like ages.

And then, in the stillness of the air, there's a tiny but unmistakable 'click.'

For a short while, neither of you speak, and instead just stare dumbly at the pokeball on the ground. Nemona had landed on her butt on the ground, and so she sat there, eyes wide, catching her breath, staring. Eventually, her eyes lift up to yours.

You take a shuddering breath when she meets your eyes, suddenly overwhelmed, your throat tightening as you rasp out,

"Oh my god Nemona I was gonna be so mad if you got yourself killed for me."

You rush up to her, helping to pull her to her feet, and she's smiling and laughing, what was wrong with her, how could she be laughing? You pull her into a fierce hug, the unshed tears stinging your eyes. Nemona's voice is muffled against you as she says,

"I'm so sorry, I thought that was gonna be heroic as heck, with me swinging in to save you and I just end up being a total dweeb and missing!"

You quickly pull back so you can face her and demand,

"Why are you apologizing?! That was heroic, that was the most heroic crap I've ever seen! You ran up to a beast like that and threw a freaking rock at it like it was nothing! And then everything else? I didn't even think to try and catch it because my brain had blanked out so much! I would have been dead without you!" After your outburst, Nemona smiles a bit bashfully and answers,

"Heh, well I guess it wasn't bad. I'd do it again, y'know."

You stare at her. Your heart's still pounding from almost having a tiger maul you to death-- or almost mauling Nemona to death instead. You feel a little sick.

"This is all my fault," you realize aloud. Sounding concerned, Nemona asks,

"What do you mean?"

You look at her and say emphatically,

"All of this. Oh, god. I was such an idiot. I just wanted this to be a perfect day for us. Planned it all out so carefully. But I should have taken the risks more seriously. You could have died. I-I . . . I'm so sorry. N-nemona, I . . ."

The tears are running down your face as you speak, and she reaches for you, saying,

"Hey, hey, hold on now, Jules."

When she touches you, you give a tiny sob, and she pulls you into a hug.

"Shh-shh, hey . . . take it easy, okay?"

You break down, crying into her shoulder while she soothes you, soft words of comfort as she rubs little circles into your back. You always thought Nemona was like an electric-type, so bubbly and energetic; but now you think she must be made of pure steel, to walk away from all that still smiling.

Her voice is gentle as she tells you,

"We're okay, it all worked out. Don't be so hard on yourself, all right?"

You try and utter a protest, but it comes out all whimpered and nonsensical against her. She continues,

"Look, I can't say that was my favorite encounter with a pokemon just now, but I certainly don't blame you for it. Every trainer knows there are risks to going outside and seeking out pokemon. That's just part of the deal."

You suck in a breath and finally get out,

"Y-yeah but-- I-- I was the one who convinced you to come down here--"

She interrupts gently and says,

"I wanted to. I'm gonna be real honest with you, Juliana, if you hadn't invited me down here, I would have snuck in alone sooner or later. I had been planning to for a while now."

You choke a laugh and say,

"Nemona!"

"I know, I know. I don't always make the best decisions. But I'm telling the truth. It's actually pretty good that you came down here with me, because I probably would have ended up as cat food without your help. Okay, more like definitely. I wouldn't have nailed that second pokeball throw, at any rate."

You pull back from the hug and try to wipe your face on your sleeve without it getting too gross. You tell her,

"Please promise me you won't do that anymore, just go off on your own like that. I care about you too much. Tell someone, tell me at least."

At first it looks like she might object to your request, but then she seems to consider it more seriously. After a moment, she smiles softly, answering,

"Okay. Okay, I promise. If I get the itch to go do something stupid, we can do it together. Or reconsider the plan, if it's way too wild."

You hug her again, saying,

"Okay. Thank you. I promise I'll do the same. And we'll be a little more careful next time about trips to forbidden zones full of ancient unseen horrors."

Nemona laughs.

"Okay. Fair enough."

After a few moments, you add quietly,

"I'm still sorry our day got ruined like that, though."

She answers you breezily.

"Pffft! Are you kidding me? This was still the best day I've ever had."

You lean back a little from the hug, still holding onto her, and say in exasperation,

"Nemona--"

But when you see her eyes, you realize she isn't kidding. She isn't kidding in the slightest.

"What? Everything was amazing. The trip out here, the gorgeous views, the hiking, teaching me to catch like a pro, the battling? Just hanging out and talking? And that picnic, oh, man! It was perfect, Jules."

You laugh, completely at a loss for words, at first. Eventually, you shake your head, saying in a fond tone,

"You really are something else, Nemona."

She chuckles and answers confidently,

"As if you don't feel the same. I know you had just as much fun today."

You snort another laugh, but then pause to consider it. Now that the imminent danger is over with, and Nemona is safe and sound in your arms, well. The terrifying ordeal doesn't seem so bad, anymore. You think back over the entire course of your day with her.

Quietly, thoughtfully, you muse,

"Yeah. I guess you're right. It really was perfect."

Nemona grins, saying,

"Yeah! Exactly."

After a beat, her smile turns into something playful. You both have still been in a half-embrace, and she slides her hands down your arms a little more, tugging you just a bit closer to her.

"My only regret is that mean tiger didn't let us finish dessert."

You blink and it feels like your insides turn in a dizzy little flip-flop. After a nervous giggle, you manage to reply,

"Don't worry. I'll buy you more next time we're in Cortondo."

Looking very pleased, she says,

"I'm gonna hold you to that."

You nod,

"Please do."

There's a few moments of silence, and Nemona still has not let you go, and your thoughts are just buzzing happy static, and you begin to wonder if perhaps you should try to--

"Oh! Uh, gosh, let me get my first aid kit out for your arm. Jeez, I forgot about that," Nemona says, and you're so confused at first, until your lagging brain finally remembers that yes, your arm did kind of get a bit torn up and bloody. You feel briefly and irrationally angry about your stupid arm being distracting. Stupid tiger.

"Also I guess we'd better get to work finding the rest of our pokeballs," Nemona adds as she digs through her bag. You blink.

"Oh. Yeah. Ooof."

You're not looking forward to it. If your bag really did drop off the cliff, it could be . . . damn near anywhere down there in the massive cave system below you.

"Hey," Nemona says, pulling you from your thoughts. You look to her. Gently, she tells you,

"Don't worry. We'll find them. We've got the scariest tiger around to help us out, right?"

You chuckle weakly, then reach down to pick up the pokeball from the ground.

"Yeah, that's true."

Nemona helps you clean off the dried blood and disinfect your wounds and then dress them properly. Fortunately, it seems you just scraped your arm up on the ground in the madness, and the tiger hadn't actually gotten its claws into you. If it had, you'd probably be much worse off, considering how toxic that beast was. When you're finished, you two begin your search for your lost items. First, though, you hand Nemona the tiger's pokeball. When she gives you a curious look, you say,

"Well, you caught it, right? He's technically yours. Or she."

She laughs.

"I guess so! I'll have to think of a proper name."

"Hmm. Maybe something like 'Hellcat?'"

Nemona agrees the name sounds perfect.

After a quick confirmation that your supplies are nowhere nearby, you both begin your descent to the Area Zero caves. It's definitely unnerving to be traveling around without a proper pokemon team as backup, but Nemona did find a single revive buried in the recesses of her bag, and you spotted and gathered a good pile of berries along the way. So you weren't completely and totally helpless. Obviously, if your searches end up being fruitless, you'll need to hail a taxi (Nemona still had her cell phone) and get help. An unappealing scenario, since you're pretty sure Director Clavell was going to be pretty upset.

However, something amazing happens. Maybe it was to balance out all your foul luck with the tiger attack. You and Nemona have barely even entered the mouth of the cave when you hear a familiar draconic trill echoing through the space. Then Scarlet is bounding right up to you, your bag hanging from his mouth by the strap. You're stunned at first. Scarlet drops your bag in front of you and starts licking your face, looking extremely happy that he found you.

"Didn't you return him to his pokeball? I don't understand," Nemona says, petting the giant dragon. You pick up your bag. It looks a bit beat up, but otherwise is intact. You look through it, and find all of your pokeballs and stuff are in there.

"Well. He knows how to come out of his pokeball on his own," you think outloud.

"He does?"

"Yeah. He used to do it all the time when Arven made sandwiches. He must have sensed something was wrong, when my bag fell off the cliff."

"Wow. What a smart boy!" Nemona praised, rubbing under the dragon's chin as he cooed happily.

"When it fell, my stuff probably went all over, I had my bag zipped open. It looks like he went around and put all my stuff back into the bag," you say, noticing how some of the potion bottles looked as though they'd burst open and a few other things were roughed up. It must have taken him a while. Dang, Scarlet really was the bestest boy in the world.

"And I have no idea where the bag fell, but it could have been anywhere in these caves-- Scarlet probably had to wander for a while to find his way out! He probably remembered how to get around from before. Oh, man, Nemona, look!"

There were extra pokeballs in your bag. A quick check near the button showed that they had Nemona's engraving on them.

"He found your pokeballs too! Oh, my god, I was so worried, and he did everything for us."

You immediately hug the feathery dragon, giving him a kiss.

"You're a hero, Scarlet! Man, you are getting so many treats for this."

You and Nemona check all your pokeballs to confirm that everyone is accounted for and safe.

And then, it's surprisingly easy after that. You both decide it's probably enough adventure for one day, climb aboard your dragon, and stroll your way out of there without a care in the world.

By the time you've made it back to Mesagoza, the sun is setting on the horizon, and you're starting to feel a little worn down from the day's activities. You and Nemona decide to stop at a food vendor and grab some badly-needed dinner. You eat at a table in the main plaza (Scarlet with his own kebab as well), inhaling the food and talking about ancient pokemon, mostly just your wild speculations about the past and what the Professor Sada AI had found there. When you're finished, you two ride Scarlet up the rest of the stairs and then return to Naranja Academy.

It's really only when you start walking through the halls of the school that exhaustion truly starts to catch up to you, and when it hits you, it hits hard. You had run around a ridiculous amount today and had some pretty intense moments, so it only made sense, really. You can see Nemona's as tired as you are. No longer running on pure adrenaline and now after a heavy meal, it was a pleasant but full-bodied sort of exhaustion. You both chatter about silly subjects as you pass through the halls of the dorm building. Nemona tells you about last year when the school had Slowpoke Races, and from her dramatic re-enactments, it sounded like it had been an amazing thing to witness. Or Nemona was just really good at telling a story. You suspected the latter.

And before you know it, you've reached Nemona's dorm room. You have both already agreed it was time to just get some rest, but there still is a disappointed pang in your chest when realizing you now had to part. Nemona gets the key from her bag and then turns to you, hugging you and moaning dramatically,

"Juliaaaanaaa . . . I'll miss yoooou . . ."

You giggle and say,

"I'm going to see you again tomorrow."

Muffled against you, she says,

"Oh. Right. Well. Okay then."

You laugh again. She releases you and grins.

"Still. This . . . this was literally the best adventure I've ever had. So . . . thank you for inviting me."

"Of course," you say. She looks so happy, and your heart feels light as air.

"And I . . . hope we get to have another adventure like that really soon. Maybe minus the scary pokemon trying to eat us thing, but you know what I mean," she says. You nod your head.

"Absolutely."

Nemona continues to hang there, looking reluctant to actually enter her room. She's gazing at you in a way that makes your knees feel weak. Which is pretty much just always. For the thousandth time, you think about telling her, finally telling her about your massive crush on her. Just say it. Just ask her if . . .

"Well," she finally states, awkwardly,

"Um . . . goodnight!"

You feel like you've just missed your chance at something really important, and your heart lurches in your chest as she unlocks her door.

"W-wait, Nemona."

She turns.

"Hm?"

She looks at you, and your thoughts are screaming. Say it. Say it. Just say it.

"N-nevermind," you mumble, like the world's biggest coward.

She chuckles and squeezes your shoulder.

"Get some rest, Jules. We're both pretty out of it by now, I think."

You nod, rasping,

"Yeah."

When you get back to your dorm, you don't really feel like thinking anymore. You take a long shower and make some chamomile tea and climb into bed, to scroll mindlessly through social media for a while and give yourself a chance to wind down for the evening. It doesn't take long for the drowsiness to settle in, but you delay actually shutting your lights off. Despite all your efforts, your thoughts are still churning, keeping you awake. Time gets away from you. Eventually you realize it's getting really late, so you plug your phone in with a sigh and turn out your lights.

A few minutes later, your phone buzzes with a text. You check it.

It's from Nemona.

hey I've been thinking, I'd like to give you Hellcat

Your brow furrows and you gaze at the text for a second before typing out a reply.

Why?

You watch the little elipses flash as she composes her message.

well I never would have caught them without your help! it could be my thank-you gift :) for everything.

You sit there, thinking. Or trying to think, anyway. Exhaustion has started to erode your ability to do so. And you're still feeling pretty disappinted at yourself from chickening out earlier when talking to her.

Suddenly struck with inspiration, you type out,

how about we share them? we both worked together to catch them, so it makes sense.

After a brief pause she responds quickly.

omg jules

you're so smart. that's perfect.

we can raise them together <3 <3

well mayne not 'raise'

more like 'tame' haha but you know whati mean

it's probably a two-person job anyway tbh lol

Deciding you need to be a little more honest about your feelings, you respond to her,

yeah, exactly.

plus its a good excuse to spend more time w you

After a few beats, her message pops up.

haha what?? you dont need any excuses jules, you know you're always welcome at zona nemona

You type out your response quickly.

yeah. well. yeah thats true.

guess i still look for excuses

my mind's kinda been in the nemona zone 24/7 lately

ahaha

You stop and stare at what you just sent, and the regret is instantanoues. Not that honest, not that honest! Oh, god.Maybe she wouldn't notice?

Nemoma's reply is short:

24/7?

You want to scream. You try to compose a reply. How do you backpeddle on something like that? Maybe you should just come clean? No, this was a terrible way to do it. But, it's better then nothing. Still, maybe you should--

You're still trying to compose a reply when Nemona texts,

that's a lot!

Your fingers hover over the keyboard, your sentence only half-complete: I was just

Thirty seconds or so later, she texts,

i don't think even my mind is in the nemona zone 24/7 and im nemona, haha

You feel like it's getting harder to breathe.

jules

are you still there

Okay, for god's sake, just say something! Anything! You erase your old message and start again.

sorry

sorry I

I just mean I've been really enjoying spending time with you and I think about you a lot and. sorry if that came out sounding weird.

Ok, that salvaged it. Possibly. You hoped.

A minute later, your friend replies,

no, dont worry, it wasnt weird

I've been really enjoying our time together too

and

I think about you a lot too!

almost as much as pokemon battling, haha

Your heart skips at her final message. It was possible she was just joking around, but it didn't seem like it. It . . . really didn't seem like it.

You type out:

wow. that's like probably the biggest compliment I think you could give me

Nemona replies right away.

asfhgk

cmon jules

if that's what you think, well

be prepared, cos I'm gonna give even bigger ones in the future ;)

Okay, you weren't sure before, but now it seemed pretty clear, this was not a drill, Nemona was genuinely flirting with you. Right? Yes??

Your heart picking up speed, you tell yourself: okay, okay, don't mess this up. be cool. You carefully compose your next messages.

oh? I'll be sure to prepare myself

but I also gotta be sure to live up to the hype

I could start by taking you back to Cortondo for more Bizcocho de Limón

so there aren't any more rude interruptions

we could sit at the watchtower nearby

it's kinda crowded in town, but it's nice and peaceful at the tower

You sit and wait in tense anticipation.

sounds good to me

i look forward to it <3

..and I'm sure you'll live up to the hype :3c

You get a big stupid grin, feeling triumphant. She continues,

g'night for now, jules

see you tomorrow

Laying there in bed, with the glow of the phone lighting up your smile, you answer her.

gnight, mi tesoro

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