Dawn-POV:
It's the next day. The next day relative to what? Relative to the previous day, of course. And no, I'm not a story device whose purpose is to give a recap or a summary.
Because today, that role belongs to Zoey! "He's still asleep, huh?" She asks while petting Glameow on her lap.
But I don't mind doing my part for the sake of an epic story about my life that may or may not be told one day. "Should we wake him up when we arrive at Veilstone City? He seemed really tired yesterday."
"We... I dunno." Zoey sighs. "Did you buy his excuse?"
"Not one bit. Lopunny was not carrying him around just because he wanted to make a joke about riding her."
"And he was out like a light, sleeping in the bathtub right after that. Ursula, did you do something to him?"
"Me?!" She has a suspiciously strong reaction. "I told you already, we battled, and that's all I know."
"You're hiding something."
She recoils at my accusatory glare. "We did not do what you're insinuating we have done."
Insinuating? Oh, drat! I didn't even think about that! What if he was being unfaithful the whole night and snuck back into the wagon in the morning?!
But what if he wasn't?
Ursula meets my gaze without revealing anything about her true thoughts. Maybe it simply is the truth? Good grief. "Anyway, I don't think we have congratulated you for evolving Gabite yet. Congratulations."
Her mouth gapes open as if overwhelmed by the sudden change of topic. "Ah. Thanks."
She returned to the train wagon early in the morning, Gabite, Eevee, and Eevee happily bouncing in her wake as they enjoyed the sunrise's rays on their scales, fur, and fur.
Since then, Mars notified us that the engineering crew fixed the train tracks ahead, and then our journey resumed, leaving the Kingdom of Lucario far behind us.
It's just one or two more hours until we arrive at Veilstone City. Sprawling fields of golden wheat surround us on both sides with the crowns of verdant trees in the far distance.
"A pretty sight, isn't it?" Zoey has her chin braced on her stump while staring out the window; Glameow lies curled up in her lap, sleeping. "I have a few memories of Solaceon Town, before we had to move. Everywhere around it looked just like this. I loved it."
"Before you moved? How old were you?"
"Like two. Maybe three. It's just really vague memories of golden fields."
It's missing a little color, to be honest. "I prefer the gardens in Twinleaf Town. Everywhere you look are dozens of colors. Here, it's just two. Three if you count the trees on the horizon."
"Haha, but golden and bright blue are so pretty."
"They are, haha."
"Uuuuurgh." The sound of a dying animal interrupts our fun. Then a book snaps shut. Jupiter places it down on top of her crossed legs before sneering - as she always does. "Mars, I'm not allowing you to take a bunch of children with us again."
Children?! "We're all adults."
"Yes, children." Outside of Jupiter's field of view, Mars lifts a hand, opening and closing her fist with Jupiter's words. "You're loud, you're obnoxious, your problems all originate from simple miscommunication, and the fact that the view turns you into giggling teenagers just proves my point-- MARS! Stop doing that!"
"Stop doing what? I didn't do anything, you grumpy Grumpig."
"Do. Not. Call. Me. That." Jupiter inches closer to Mars' face with every word, almost pushing her out of her seat with sheer intimidation. "I saw you doing that shit with your hand!"
"What shit? This shit?" She does it again.
"Yes, this-- STOP IT!"
"Well, you should stop being such a grumpy Grumpig-- woah!"
Jupiter pushed her the rest of the way out of her seat, and Mars - "Oof!" - smacks her back and head into the floor.
Mars stops moving immediately. Her legs are still inside the legroom of her seat, while she lies motionless in the path. "Mars?"
She doesn't respond.
"Don't bother. She does that sometimes." Jupiter returns her attention to the book in her lap. The cover features a minotaur - a half-Tauros, half-man - and a petite woman spilling milk all over herself... it's 18+ smut.
But Mars really doesn't look fine... Oh no, "Is that blood?" There's blood pooling underneath her head.
"She always has fake blood packs ready. Just ignore her. She'll stop pretending once nobody pays her any attention."
"But--"
"Shush. I am reading."
I share a glance with Zoey. She looks me in the eyes and shrugs. She points a finger at Mars. She spots the concern in my eyes and then nods.
Alright. I shimmy across the seats, away from the window towards Mars. Jupiter flips to the next page of her book - unbothered.
My hand touches something wet on the armrest. I look down and gasp. A clump of red hair and blood sticks to a screw. "She's really hurt!"
The next moment I'm at her side, gently lifting her head and feeling for--
"Out of the way." Jupiter slaps my hand away before opening Mars' mouth and pulling her tongue out.
Then, she grabs her arm and places her hand underneath her cheek before turning Mars onto her side. "Hold here." Jupiter points at Mars' shoulder, and I follow her order.
We're placing her into a stable recovery position. Basic first aid. Finally, Jupiter pulls at her left knee so Mars won't roll onto her stomach. "Keep holding." She orders. "The train ride might become bumpy, and I don't want her airways to block."
I nod. The head injury might not be deadly - because technically, it was just a fall, and falls aren't deadly - but choking is... What a messed up set of rules. I really hope nobody gets too used to this and ends up hurting themselves when the universe gets fixed.
In the meantime, Jupiter reaches for her suitcase inside the baggage area overhead, pulling it free and taking out various items.
She sprays a... Hyper Potion? Woah. Those are expensive. She sprays it right against the wound before taking the next item; her motions are smooth and precise, like a surgeon.
A string and needle move on their own through the air, stitching closed the hole in the back of Mars' scalp, and a root-like herb is swiftly crushed between her hand and fist - she punched it to mush like a brute. She presses some leaves into the pulp before the mix is stuffed deep into Mars' mouth. Jupiter uses two fingers to push it all the way back; she tilts Mars' head while massaging her throat until Mars swallows on instinct.
All of a sudden, her eyes snap open. Jupiter pulls her fingers free just in time before - "Huak--" Mars retches and heaves, trying to puke out her guts without success. "What the fuck?!" She coughs and repeats the unsuccessful gut wrenching. "Huak-- Argh! Drink! I need something to drink!"
I quickly dig through my bag and pull free the only drink I carry. Mars just looks at my outstretched hand with the bottled water.
"Are you fucking kidding me?! I need something sweet! Yuck! Yyyyuck!" She spits on the floor before raking her fingers across her tongue. But it doesn't help; she writhes on the floor, tearing at the carpet with her nails. "Give me soda! Or just sugar! It's so gross!"
This seems like torture. I look to Jupiter... I regret looking to Jupiter for help. The sadistic grin is just too cruel.
I look to Zoey for mental support... She stares wide-eyed at the scene. When her sister returned from the Space-Time Convergence, she had been treated with a similar-looking pulp. She too had passed out from a head injury.
Lastly, Ursula. We share a few glances. Our womanly telepathy is doing its job. She will soon understand that I need her help.
She nods. She understands. "Alright. I'll go and get Swole." She rushes off.
... That's not what I wanted!!! "Good... I'll... uhh... figure something out here." I need help right here and now!!!
What can I do? I just have water-- I have Poffins! Ah! And I have berries to make Poffins! And sugar too! It's all in the cooking compartment of my bag - on the left side.
I tear open the zipper before grabbing my berry case - from it, I take out a Pecha Berry and-- and Mars snatches it from my hands, scarfing it down like a starving man at a buffet.
Next is my bag of sugar - half full - and she tears it from my grasp. She takes a fistful and stuffs it in her mouth, sprinkling grains everywhere.
She chews on the sugar - it crunches between her teeth - she chokes on it but keeps going until her body stops spasming. Her fingers, jaw, and muscles relax.
No more thrashing. She holds still, and finally, she just lies on her back, arms and legs spread out like a Staryu.
She opens her mouth, and a gross, viscous, whitish mix of sugar and spittle flows freely down the sides of her cheeks. Mars coughs up a fountain of gross crumbs and chunks. "Jupi..." She chokes through clenched jaws. I can still hear the sugar crunching between her teeth. "I hate you so much."
"I love you too, Mars." Jupiter has the brightest, creepiest, and most deranged smile I have ever seen on any human. It's the type where you would think: 'that woman is evil, and she's just barely trying to hide it.'
Her grin somehow grows even wider. "You could have died without my help, you know? You should show a little gratitude, Mars."
"What?"
"I said you could have--"
"Yeah, yeah, not you. I meant Bronzong." Mars points over my shoulder.
"Ahh!" He-- it has been hovering right behind me the whole time. It makes a few gongs that might have been laughter before returning its attention to its trainer.
"Dawn was already saving me? Why, thank you very much, Dawn. And Jupiter would have let me bleed out without ever even checking if I was alright? That's what I guessed. Thanks for getting me up to speed, Bronzong."
Jupiter crosses her arms in front of her chest. "You still got the best possible health care outside of a pokemon center thanks to me."
"Yeah, yeah; thank you for saving my life."
Gee. Are these two actually friends or not? I really can't tell.
"And thank you, Dawn, for the sweet, sweet relief from that absolutely horrendous taste." Mars shudders, her shoulders and back twitching as the hairs on her neck rise up.
"What was that stuff?" Zoey asks. "Whatever it was, it looked like you might have chosen bleeding out over it."
Mars slowly lumbers up from the floor while Jupiter explains. "It was Energy Root, mixed with Revival Herb and a personal blend of Heal and Energy Powder - before you ask, yes, these are their actual names."
I didn't even see her add any powder to the mix. She was so quick with it.
"Maybe add some sugar into your blend. It tastes awful."
"It's not meant to taste nice. It's medicine."
"Well, rumors say a well-meaning trainer got turned into a shish kebab on the horn of their pokemon, after feeding a perfectly tame Rhydon some medicine."
Woah. Just how bad does that stuff taste? ... I hope I never have to find out.
"Don't be so melodramatic, Mars. You're still decently sane. It all worked out, haha."
"Decently..." Mars snaps her head to the left. "Speaking of decent, look who decided to wake up! How's it hanging, Swole?"
Jupiter looks as well but then quickly snaps her head the other way.
"Yaaawn." Swole stands in the entrance to the bathroom with Ursula standing just behind him, blushing profusely and covering her face. "Pretty good, I guess. Man, I've had some really nice sleep."
Ursula peeks through the fingers in front of her face - I can spot her doing this, because I also glimpse through my fingers while shielding myself from the view.
"Swole!" I shout. "What the fuck is wrong with you?!"
"Not so loud, Dawn. You girls were making such a ruckus; how's anyone supposed to sleep like that?"
Zoey clears her throat. "Swole, you're naked."
Super naked.
"No, I'm wearing my PJs, like always. See?" He pinches the skin on his arm and pulls. "... Oh."
Sluggishly, he rubs his eyes, moving slowly while everything is out on display. Then he looks down at his body before realization slowly sets in. Suddenly, he turns around. "Sorry, Jupiter. I'll get dressed."
Woah. It can flop around so much?
He marches back into the bathroom, snapping the door shut. Just a few moments later, it slams back open, and Ursula dashes out. She rushes back to her seat, where she sits stiff as a board.
She glances left and right, seeing Mars busy laughing, Jupiter busy sighing, and Zoey busy chuckling; she only finds me as the only other sane individual.
Ursula startles for some reason but then leans across the center aisle, motioning for me to get closer.
... I'll regret this, won't I?
"Psst, Dawn. Did you know it could flop around so much?"
The laughter stops. Mars approaches. "Hey girls." She smiles like a villainess. "Was that your first time seeing something flop around like that?" Our nodding only makes her smile grow wider. "Well, you're in luck. Aunty Mars is here to give you a crash course on the Pidgey and the Beedrill!"
Oh no...
---
"And that's another creative way to make babies." We're long past simple Pidgey and Beedrill. Mars finished her explanation of the 'prone bone' with Swole listening intently and nodding along. He's even written down notes!
At some point he finished getting dressed and joined us. He didn't ask why Mars was telling us about the differences in male and female anatomy, but he chose to stay and listen.
Ursula, Zoey, and I would really rather not hear that stuff - although Ursula occasionally perks up when something interesting is being said. Zoey blushes up a storm. I would have thought she knew all of that already from her sister, but apparently half of this is still news to her.
"Now, the Full Nelson is an advanced form. It's yet another position named after a wrestling move - except in this context, the female is held in a locking hold, making her entirely immobile, while the male inserts his organ--"
The train's brakes squeal loudly before the train steadily and silently decelerates. Outside the windows are some branching train tracks, and beyond those are the high-rise buildings of Veilstone City.
"Oh. Looks like class is over. Swole, your homework is to practice wrestling."
Swole salutes. "I will. And I promise, I won't disappoint when it comes to it!"
"Aweee, that's so cute!" Is it? "Get over here, my motivated little big shota!" Despite saying that, Mars goes to him before pressing his face into her boobs. Her lips briefly twist into a scowl - just for a moment before she puts a smile back on.
"Now." She pets his head. "If you'll excuse me, I have a vacation; that means I need to go to work to prepare all the grunts to continue their work without me for... holy shit, nearly two weeks... Haha..."
Mars fidgets. She looks like she's trying to bolt away. Fleeing from work, perhaps?
Jupiter snaps her book shut before groaning. "Fuuuck! Two whole weeks! The grunts won't get anything done without us."
"Right. That's why we threaten them now; if we find out they've slacked off, they'll become target practice."
"Good idea, Mars. Let's-- go?"
Mars is already at the exit.
"Let's go!" Mars peeks back inside, a smile on her lips that feels... like a blatant lie. "Oh, and kiddos, feel free to stay in the wagon until the train conductor kicks you out in like a day or two for cleaning."
"No thanks." I shake the strange feelings off and speak up. "We'll just look for a hotel now."
"Oh, and by the way, hit me up about the tournament you're organizing. I can help out with the location, the referee, and the prizes. You have my number, right?"
"Yep. Thanks for the offer." At first, she accidentally gave me the number to the Team Galactic recruitment hotline. I only found out because I sent her a meme about old people. Only after that did she give me her real number... She swore she mixed it up on accident. "Don't forget to relax on your vacation."
She seems like she needs the rest.
"Ha! Thanks, and bye everyone!" - Jupiter is already long gone - "Wait for me, Grumpy Grumpig!" Mars hurries out of the wagon to catch up.
With those two gone, a moment of calm spreads throughout the train. It's strange, but the oldest people in the group brought the most chaos with them. I think it's all on Mars, though. Wherever she goes, she raises the energy.
I guess that just means that I like her.
Without her, we're suddenly lethargic. Swole yawns, reaching his arms overhead and stretching his clothes to their limit. Buttons threaten to pop as his muscles shift, and seams seem to be ready to tear at any moment.
Ursula watches the process just as intently as I do.
Zoey raises her concern. "You're going to need new clothes soon, Swole."
"Do I?" He inspects his collar, spotting the tightly stretched cloth. "Oh. Hold on--" Suddenly, he strikes a pose and flexes his arms as best as he can. His face turns red as he holds his breath, his sleeves threaten to burst... but nothing happens.
He exhales, and a vein on his forehead relaxes. "Good grief. Soon." He mutters. "I guess I can get new pants, though. Torn suit pants just aren't stylish at all, wouldn't you agree, Dawn?"
"Huh?" I wipe the saliva from the corners of my mouth. "Oh, right. Yeah. You should keep the shirt a little longer; I believe in you!"
"That's not what I asked."
I wasn't listening.
"But I understand the sentiment. Is everyone ready and pumped to head out?"
"Pumped?"
"One moment; I need to gather my stuff." Ursula answers, heading to the end of the wagon. "Someone had blocked the bathroom until now."
"You're coming with us, Ursula?"
She stops and turns around at my words - an expression crosses her face that I can't quite place. "Ahhh, sorry. I didn't mean to impose. I can do my stuff alone, don't worry!"
Oh. I get it. I put my foot in my mouth again. "No, we want you to tag along, right, guys-- I mean, Swole and Zoey?" And now I've called Zoey one of the guys, ahhhh!
Zoey chuckles. "Of course you can tag along. We're all trainers, so we all need to visit the same places anyways, right?"
"Right. Exactly." Thank you, Zoey!!!
"Ohhh... I don't know... Gabite, what do you think?"
Gabite looks between his trainer and the bathroom, where Swole's pokemon still linger, his eyes tightening in a glare, but he nods. "Ga. Gabite!"
"Alright. I'll tag along. So, where are we heading first?" She asks while heading into the bathroom. She raises her voice. "I need to visit the mall for pokeball seals, I haven't been to the hairdresser in a while, and I have to visit the local branch location of the GTS; I need to buy Water and Fire Stones."
Swole looks between Ursula, Zoey, and me, watching us get ready for the day while an expression of quiet acceptance settles on his face.
He realizes: today will be a shopping day!
Putting all my stuff into the bag is a quick affair. I'm already dressed, but I still have to put on some makeup, so I join Ursula in the bathroom. When I enter, she's highlighting her eyes with eyeliner but makes some space in front of the mirror for me.
I follow suit, highlighting my eyelids, then adding some dark rouge to cover up my eye bags. It helps the eyes to pop out visually without looking tired or unhealthy.
Finally, I put on some lip gloss that makes my lips shine invitingly. When cleaning up, the eyeliner brush didn't want to screw onto the bottle, and Ursula and I share a laugh when we realize what's going on. We trade the bottles so they match their brushes and leave the bathroom behind.
Zoey took the opportunity and jumped onto Swole's lap while we were busy. Now they're cuddling while she hides her blush. Sneaky.
"Are you girls ready to go on a nice, long shopping trip?" Swole asks, showing no sign of yesterday's troubled mood.
I look around one last time but find nothing out of place. "Yep. We can leave now."
---
Salazzle-POV:
Dawn and Ur... Ur-something exit the bathroom, and shortly after, master enters, heading straight for-- for my egg! I swoop down the wall and snatch her away before he can get his grubby fingers on her.
He simply shrugs and taps his shoulder. "Hop on, Salazzle."
Nodding, I maneuver my egg into the secure hold of my tail-- ouch! The egg bit me!
"Watch where you grab me!" The egg shouts.
Oh. Right. The egg is Swadloon. I readjust my tail's hold on her to keep her breathing hole free before climbing up Swole's back and settling in place right over the markings I left behind.
He reaches up and rubs the side of my neck, and I repeat the motion, gently - careful not to scratch him - tracing his neck where my claws left behind a scar that he can't quite hide with his collared shirt.
Nice.
Lopunny slides up to master, guarding his right, while Lucario covers his left. They each glare at me as we leave the trainer wagon behind. "Jealousssy doesn't sssuit either of you."
Lopunny punches my shoulder hard enough for Swole to nearly topple. "Hissssss his his." I can't stop myself from hissing in pain but totally manage to play it off as laughter.
"I am not jealous." Lucario is coping. "It is merely natural that I shan't remain a burden to Swole forever. I prefer walking beside him."
Shan't... What's that other human's name who talks like that? A... A-something. Close enough-- What's that?!
Oh. Just a Pidgey sitting on the backrest of a park bench. I watch the little morsel intently, making sure it doesn't attack us or flutter off. If it flees, I might have to kill and eat it.
It is imperative that the little morsel understands its role to serve as my food... Speaking of food, "Hey, Ssswole, what'ss for lunch?"
He checks his wristwatch. "We've missed breakfast and lunch already... How about an extra-large dinner in the evening?"
"Extra-large?" Lopunny repeats it, as if she didn't hear that with her enormous, gigantic, obnoxiously large ears. "I like the sound of that!"
She's right. Extra-large is always the best. I lean into Swole's neck and lick it. "Can I have sssome of your extra-large d--"
His hand clamps around my mouth, but my tongue is already out. I snake it past my nostrils and in between his slightly salty fingers.
He releases my maw to slap my tongue. "Stop messing around."
Strange. Usually he would have been more grossed out. He barely even wipes my saliva off his fingers. A glistening sheen remains on his neck where I licked earlier, but he simply ignores that.
Overall he is in a very strange and unusual mood. Something, or rather a certain someone, must be the cause for this change!
I call out the first suspect. "Banette? Are you there?" No response. "I sssaw you do sssomething to him last night; what wasss it?"
... Is she ignoring me? Is she even here? It pisses me off so much that she doesn't have a scent! Stupid ghost.
After a while, Lopunny grows curious and asks, "What did you see?"
"Not much. They were talking, and all of a ssudden, masster just went to bed naked. She did ssome dastardly ssstuff to him."
"It was Hypnosis." Master clarifies. "She helped me get some good dreams, and I slept like a log because of her."
Dawn's voice sounds out with a few syllables. It didn't sound urgent enough, so I didn't listen.
"Oh, I was just talking to my pokemon." He enters a large building.
A wide area opens before us. Pillars line the sides with windows stretching from the floor to the ceiling. The glass surfaces along the walls won't prevent me from climbing them in an emergency, but I should stick to the pillars instead. My claws could dig into the material for better grip.
The center of the arena-shaped hall features a set of escalators leading up to a second and third story. Wait! Where would I put my egg if a fight breaks out!?
Master approaches one big window and pushes on it, opening a door that was hidden in plain sight. To our left and right are clothes on top of clothes, some hanging from the walls, others heaped into neat stacks.
The female humans group up and leave for one section of the clothing store, while Swole approaches a bunch of black pants in another section. They hang from a rack, and he looks at one pair of identical pants after another, inspecting a little piece of paper attached to them before dismissing it as useless and moving on.
Humans sure have strange habits. The males, and especially the females, seem to enjoy interacting with these useless items. Just one in a dozen seems to garner a second look by Swole, but even that is returned immediately afterwards.
Racks upon racks of useless fabric.
Perhaps they serve a purpose? Perhaps it's part of human mating rituals? They do seem to dress themselves up in clothes a lot. And master always seems a little happier whenever he spots his mates removing or putting on their clothes.
Hm. Hm. Yes. Clothes are like the shiny pebbles that my mom used to collect and decorate her nest with.
"Girls, what do you think?" Master holds up a pair of black pants that look exactly like all the others.
Lopunny shrugs. "Uhh, I am thinking of the food?"
"Idiot." I roll my eyes at her before sending master a wink. "I'm sure you're going to attract lotss of mates with those clothes, masster! Even though they aren't shiny or sparkly enough."
"Stupid lizard! That's not what they're for!"
"Yess, they are!"
"No, they're not. Just think about it; clothes hide the sex parts. No way they're for attracting mates."
Hmm... maybe she does have a point--
"Actually, Salazzle is correct."
"Huh?!"
Master pats Lopunny's head to calm her down. "Yeah. We must wear clothes, but the ones we do wear can look good or bad to guys or girls. Or potential mates, I guess."
"Ssso you do want to attract more femaless into the group. Nice."
He rolls his eyes. "Dawn, Zoey, Akari, and Mars are going to appreciate me dressing nicely too. I'm doing it for them."
Hmmmm... I think I get it. It's like how Mom sometimes treated the males she trapped nicely so they wouldn't run away or disappear in our bathtub. "Sssmart." I reward my smart trainer by gently brushing across his cheek... with my tongue.
He wipes away the saliva. "Lucario, Swadloon - what do you think?"
Lucario just shrugs, and my egg-- I mean, Swadloon - complains about seeing nothing.
"Good grief. Alright. I'll just try it out and compare it with the other options myself."
He does exactly that, carrying or leading us around the store until he's satisfied. After paying the gross-looking, stranger human at the 'cash register', he walked to the other section, where he quickly found and startled the other familiar humans.
The new one - Ursaring, I think - is currently prancing around in a blue and white dress, while Gabite strikes a pose and wears a suit similar to Swole's.
"Hey loser!" Lopunny calls him out the moment she spots him. "Maybe try winning a fight for once before acting like a winner!"
That takes the wind out of his sails. His shoulders sag and his pose collapses. "Gabite? Come on, big guy, we need to impress the judges. Show us your teeth!" Ur-something's encouragement fails to stir him, and the judges - Dawn and Zoey - giggle as they cover their mouths.
"Heh. You're ssstill mad at him? He tried challenging you once, and you're ssstill mad about it? Sssounds pretty pathetic, to be honessst."
Lopunny's smug gloat turns into a sharp glare aimed at me. "Yeah? You think I should change my focus to someone else who tried challenging me? A certain lizard in this very room? Are you forgetting your place?"
That rabbit bitch. So high and mighty. But the higher they rise, the further they'll fall. "Pleassse remind me, what isss my place? I ssseem to recall a certain fact that you're not going to like: you've never beaten me in a fight."
"Because you always had some cowardly excuse! First you got master to bail you out, then you tucked your tail between your legs when I evolved! You're always being such a disgusting, sneaky... lizard!"
"Well, you're jussst lucky he found you firssst! You bitchy, bimbo rabbit--" My voice cuts off as Swole's fingers tighten around my maw.
"Girls, fight later." He demands. "You can have your battle after dinner. But we're shopping right now. Behave yourselves."
I send that smugly gloating Lopunny one last glare before hissing through my teeth. "Yesss, sssir."
"And Lopunny, don't bully other people's pokemon." Haha! Suck it, bunny! "Especially not the pokemon whose trainers you're traveling with. Get along with him and apologize."
"What?! No way! I'm not apologizing to him!"
Buahahaha! This is only getting better!
Wait... Or not? She's not listening... Or yes! That's perfect! With Lucario's help, we can definitely dethrone her, and then I'll take her place!
I climb down master's back and put my egg away for safety before readying myself and tapping Lucario's leg. It takes her a few moments and a couple of my strongest glances before she gets the hint, but in the end, she prepares herself to fight as well.
"Do it, Lopunny." Swole squares up against her, closing right into her face. He's so close; if she rebelled right now, there's nothing we could do to protect him!
She glares straight into his eyes. "I don't want to."
"But I want you to."
Dawn giggles, not realizing the seriousness of the moment.
Lopunny scowls, a low growl rumbling from her throat, but Swole's words cut her off. "And I trust you will do it, even though you don't want to." Their face-off continues.
Lips curling, teeth baring, Lopunny resumes her growl. She watches his face, searching for a weakness in his eyes, but all of a sudden just stops.
"You can't intimidate me." He says. "I'm not afraid of you."
Lopunny bares her teeth again. "I am so much stronger than you. I could break your bones before the others could intervene."
"I don't care that you are. I trust you will follow this order instead. Apologize to Gabite for your bullying."
Another couple of seconds pass in tense silence, while a nearby store clerk abandons his work with the clothes to hide behind the money-eating machine. The 'cash register'.
Finally, Lopunny twirls on the spot, slapping Swole's side with her ears before looking down at Gabite. "Sorry, Gabite."
"Ahem."
"Sorry, Gabite, for the bullying."
"Good job. Thank you." Swole pats her shoulder, but she just keeps her back turned to him, crossing her arms while muttering to herself. "And Ursula, I'm also sorry for the way I treated you yesterday. I was mean, and I hope you'll forgive me."
Put on the spot like that, Ursula just squirms and wrings her hands. She startles when Dawn touches her shoulder. "Was this about her ending up in the pokemon center? You kept dodging the question of why you had to stay the night."
"Yeah..." Ursula admits. "It was his fault."
Dawn shoots deadly daggers from her eyes straight at master.
"But I get why he did it! I... I forgive you."
Why did he do it? I thought he wanted to give Lopunny a challenge by fighting three enemies at once. Perhaps... Was it yet another one of his strange mating rituals? Perhaps it was? She does seem to be more vulnerable now and far less reserved while around him.
"Salazzle?" Master tears me from my thoughts. They've moved on without me, so I hurry to catch up, leaving one or two scratches in the floor before climbing up his back. "Salazzle, you forgot Swadloon."
I twist my neck and stare along my spine at the tip of my tail. I flex and turn it over, but the egg is nowhere to be seen. "Oh no! I lost the egg ssssomewhere!"