#Y'KNOW SOMETIMES IT REALLY IS GOOD TO QUIT WHILE YOU'RE AHEAD HUH

[wereh0gz]

Y'know I think I'm starting to truly understand the kids who just didn't do anything in class during middle and high school. As someone who used to be a gifted kid and never really got it. Fucking hell

[hamofjustice]

Julinemo Week, Day 1: First Meeting "So uh… is he always like that?"

"Ugh, no. Well… I mean, he's usually a prick-- Uh, prickly guy, but… pero bueno, he's not usually not quite that--"

Nemona rattled her head, sending her ponytail swinging, and dismissively pawed at the air between her and her new neighbor as if tossing the unfinished thought out of her mind.

"Ah, whatever! Don't you worry about those weird vibes, Juliana! You've got enough on your plate, signing up to a new school in a new place with your new Pokemon-- You don't need to get sucked into whatever dumb drama the rest of us have goin' on. This is your big day! Sorry about all that."

"Nah, nah, it's fine, you didn't do anything wrong. It's, uh... definitely been an exciting day so far, that's for sure! Hehehe..."

"Ah, haha, yeah, for sure! Heh… man..."

Juliana turned to Nemona with a reassuring smile... and noticed her friend's hand seemed to be hovering over her shoulder. Nemona glanced away and quickly jerked her arm away to scratch her own scalp instead.

"… You okay?"

Nemona froze mid-scratch, eyes wide. "Huh?"

"I, uh… I guess I'm not the only one feeling kinda jittery this morning, huh? I promise I won't fall off any more cliffs for a while." Juliana said with a slightly forced-looking smile.

The taller girl remained frozen for a second as they walked, before snorting and visibly releasing a bit of her own tension. "Ha! Haha! Yeah, you better not, 'cause you know what happens when you scare somebody half to death twice?"

"They… get scared three-quarters to death?"

"… Heh! You've got a quick wit to go with that sharp eye, bud! No wonder you've been such a fast learner!"

"Hehehe. Thanks."

There was a pleasant lull in the conversation as they both grinned down at the road...

Soon, though, Nemona cleared her throat and stopped in her tracks. Juliana stopped too and turned to face her curiously.

"Speaking of fast learning, I should probably get out of your hair and let you have fun doing, uh, Trainer-y stuff without me hovering over your shoulder." Nemona suddenly decided. "Do what you want for a bit and I'll see you up ahead at the Pokemon Center, all right?" she proposed, pointing her thumb at the red-roofed, ad-covered outpost off in the distance.

"Oh, um… wait…" Juliana softly protested when Nemona started to leave, raising a limp hand as if she had a question in class and wished she didn't.

"Huh? What's up? Think you'll need more Poke Balls? I've got a bunch..." Nemona began, already digging noisily through her bag.

"No… well, I mean, maybe later, but, I just, um-- You're not bugging me, you can stay."

Once again, Nemona seemed to not expect that. "Oh... really? You'd... rather I stick around and keep an eye on ya, huh? All right then! You got it, boss!"

Juliana smiled brightly up at her. The morning light seemed to sparkle in the new student's eyes. "Well, yeah. We're friends now, right?"

Nemona smiled back as she zipped her bag shut, then rubbed the back of her neck and suddenly seemed very interested in the grassy field nearby. "… Yeah, but, y'know, sometimes friends might need… a little space and quiet and stuff. Gotta be considerate."

"No, I'm glad you're here! I mean... if you have some business you need to get to right now, that's fine..."

"Nope! No, all my attention's on you, bud! Well, I mean, unless you don't want--"

"Okay, okay! Just making sure." Juliana mercifully interrupted. "So uhhh… you said Normal Pokemon are pretty good against everything, yeah?" she asked casually, starting to walk down the road again.

Nemona's eyes brightened with renewed energy at the topic change. "Oh, uh, yeah! I mean, they've got a FEW issues, there's a few types that-- Uh, I'll warn ya if you're gonna run into 'em, but that Lechonk should be consistently solid against mooost things with some training, which is good if you're not sure what to expect yet! Now, you might end up not keeping it on your team forever, though, 'cause it's not really gonna have the advantage against much of anything, either. Well, unless you give it--" she rambled, then glanced down at her companion's attentive gaze. "Uh, never mind, I can nerd out about all that later. Yeah, Normal-types are nice and reliable, yep!"

Juliana nodded a few times. "Hmm… I dunno… I don't think I'd replace the first Pokemon we caught together. That's gonna be a great memory someday, right?"

Nemona blinked. "Wh-- Oh, yeah, true, can't be, uh, what's the word… too pragmatic about it, heh. Stuff like that matters for sure! Sorry, there's that competitive brain again…" she responded, looking away once more. "I'll make sure to train up that Pawmi I caught with you too, then."

"Nice! More little rivals, just like the Pokemon the Director gave us, hehehe!"

"Heh! Yeah… little rivals…"

"… Ooh, what's that?" Juliana soon asked, pointing ahead at what appeared to be a green-haired baby plodding around in a long white dress that would be a better fit for a green-haired toddler.

Nemona rattled her head again like she'd been caught zoning out. "Huh, wha-- Oh, that's a Ralts! They're pretty rare! Psychic and Fairy type, pretty good with special moves. It's a little flimsy at first and takes a while to train, but it's totally worth it in the end."

"Whoa, Psychic? And Fairy?"

"Yeah, there's a buncha Fairies around here, actually..."

"Well, I'm already sold on this one from how cute it is! I'm definitely gonna try and catch it."

The little Ralts seemed to immediately take notice of Juliana when she said that, and turned to face her.

"Oh, uh, Ralts can sense folks' feelings! It probably knows what you're thinkin' right now. Heh, wish I had that power…"

Juliana, meanwhile, was grinning confidently with a Poke Ball in hand. "Well, I've got nothing to hide from it. Let's make another new friend, Lechonk!"

Nemona beamed as she watched Juliana's battle unfold. The new Trainer was having too much fun in the wide world she'd been welcomed into, despite the bumpty start, to notice that the unrivaled Champion watching over her was wiping something out of her eye.

[kitsunes-multiverse]

Got You in My Sights

Chapter 3: Smart at Everyone, Except for Flirting

The following weekend, Jesse waited at the local park by the pond. Kitsune and him had agreed to meet up there. He had gotten there a little early, so he was just taking in the scenery. It wasn't very often that he went out and admired nature like this. It was nice, quiet. There weren't many other people here, just a few children playing in the distance.

"Hi Jesse! Hope you didn't wait too long!" He heard Kitsune call to him. Turning around, he saw the young woman walking with a bike. She gave a friendly smile, setting the bike down and walking over to him.

"Good afternoon, Kitsune. And no, I didn't wait long at all." Jesse responded, smiling softly. "How are you today?" He asked.

"Can't complain! And yourself?" Kitsune replied.

"I'm doing quite well, thank you. Oh, and my daughters said 'hi'. I told them about you when I got home." Jesse replied.

"Awww, how sweet. Perhaps they got it from you." Kitsune smirked, giggling to herself. "Anyways, tell em I said hi later on." She responded.

The taller male blinked at the first half of her statement, rather caught off guard. "Sweet?" He echoed.

"Yeah! I mean, you're really nice, and it's fun talking to you." Kitsune chirped, looking at the pond ahead of them. "You know, I'm glad we agreed to come here. It's a perfect spot for a first official date, don't you think~?" She teased.

Huh, she's never actively flirted with anyone. That's new.

To her surprise, Jesse didn't seem to bat an eye at what she said. "Yes, I can see that. It is rather beautiful." He responded, not thinking too much about her comment.

This time it was Kitsune's turn to be surprised. She wasn't exactly being subtle. 'Did he- really not catch that? Wait, why am I even trying to flirt with him? That's typically not what I do.' She thought, shaking her head.

"Heh, yeah it is. I've always liked places like these. Nice and tranquil." She commented. "Anyways, the scenery aside, I wanna know- what do you do for a living? I forgot to ask at the bar, so I figured I'd ask now." She questioned, looking up at him.

For some unknown reason, Jesse seemed to hesitate a little. "Ah, I work at the clinic in town. I used to be a surgeon, but... Well, it isn't important. At least I'm still in the medical field." He responded.

"A surgeon? That's pretty cool! You must have more patience than I do- I don't believe I'd have the patience to go through so many years of medical school, heh!" Kitsune chuckled. "But hey, patience is an attractive trait. I'll say that."

"I can understand your feelings on both of those things. And thank you. Sometimes I miss it, but... Well, I really can't complain." The male remarked. "What about you?"

Kitsune tilted her head a bit, smiling. "Oh, y'know... Aerial dancer." She responded.

"You're an aerial dancer?" Jesse repeated, surprised. "That takes a lot of skill and practice! What type do you do?" He asked.

"The one with the ribbons. And yeah, it does. You gotta be really flexible and not afraid of heights. Fortunately I'm both of those things!" Kitsune chirped, proudly. "I actually have a studio back at home if you ever wanna see it at some point. Perhaps I could show you some moves I know, if you'd like." She offered.

"That'd be interesting! I'm curious to see what you can do." Jesse responded.

For the next few hours, the two of them continued to talk about whatever came to mind. They even made a plan for Jesse to come over- which would happen sometime next week. Of course, they had to return home eventually. After a while, they finally said their goodbyes and returned to their homes.

And honestly? They were both really starting to enjoy each other's company.