Chapter One
"Stupid damn Maxine and her stupid damn rules." I muttered darkly, fidgeting with the damn dress that Max made me wear while I was working. "Why the hell do I have to wear something so inconvenient for all this fieldwork?!"
Arcanine looked back at me worriedly from where I sat on his back. He could tell I was stressed and likely to cause trouble.
My purple headset buzzed to life, and Max's annoying, unusually high-pitched voice crackled, "Oh, my dear Henrietta, darling! We have a situation in Sector 6. Code Green."
He giggled in a very girlish manner. Maximus Break, my boss. He was a year older than me, but he acted like a preteen girl. Sometimes looked like one, too. I never knew what was wrong with his head, but he took out his damn beliefs on me.
"Fine, but when I get back, your head is gonna roll, Maxine!" I snapped at him through my headset. Cutting the connection before he/she started to lecture me AGAIN, I called to Arcanine, "Sector 6. Code Green."
He nodded and veered off the path to head to Sector 6. We live on a small island in the Pokémon world, separate from the others. Having no gyms or contests, we don't get a lot of trainers visiting. The ones that do don't even try to understand our customs. Like, for example, Code Green. It means an outside trainer stumbled upon a wild Pokémon and was trying to catch it. The Pokémon here aren't supposed to be caught by outside trainers and taken with them, save for the ones used by Diamonds in the Rough, or DR, but they never leave the island. I'm a DR Officer, the DR Vice-President to be exact.
Arcanine stopped at the top of the steep hill just over Sector 6 as I surveyed the area. Damn that Maxine, it wasn't a Code Green. It was a Code Blue! Pokémon attacking an outside trainer.
"Hey, you! Move it!" I shouted down at the boy as Arcanine raced down the slope. The attacking Pokémon, a Tauros, was getting ready to charge.
The boy just stared at me dumbfounded, his mouth hanging open like a fish. Why the hell wasn't he moving?
"Move your ass before you're in a full body cast, dumbass!" I yelled at him, pulling out a Pokéball. "Go, Gallade! Stop Tauros!"
The dude still hadn't moved. The Skitty at his feet was hissing and spitting at the Tauros, who had started charging.
Gallade popped out of his Pokéball and slowed down Tauros, holding it back. I jumped off Arcanine's back and ran over to the trainer, getting in his face. I snapped at him angrily, "What the hell are you doing? Do you have a death wish? Move your fucking ass now!"
"I-I just wanted to catch that Tauros!" He whimpered pathetically.
"You're not allowed to, dumbass. Even if you did, you'd never be able to take it off the island. Read the damn pamphlet you're given when you come here!" I growled. Gallade had tossed Tauros and ran over to us. He lifted the boy and his Skitty onto Arcanine's back as I jumped back on in front of him.
"Thank you, Gallade. Rest now." I said, putting Gallade back in his Pokéball. I looked back at the boy and advised, "Hold on tight."
He hugged his Skitty between us, wrapping his arms tightly around my middle. I nodded to Arcanine, and he immediately raced off back to HQ. I remained silent, ignoring him, as the trainer asked a million questions.
"Why did that Tauros attack me? Why did you say you don't catch Pokémon when you have them in Pokéballs? Where are we going? Who are you? How did you know I was getting attacked? How come there are no gyms?" He wouldn't shut up. Maybe there was an off switch to his mouth.
Finally, I snapped, "You're going to fill out the paperwork for the mess you caused today, and I'm taking you to see my boss. If you don't shut up now, I will tape your mouth shut."
I heard my headset crackling and a very familiar tsking coming from the other end. Max scolded me, "Henrietta, you are horrid at customer service. Be nicer to people for once."
"Oh, shut up, Maxine." I snapped at him. "Just have the damned paperwork ready for both Codes Blue and Green. I don't have time to deal with this."
"It's your job to deal with this, Henrietta." Max reminded me.
"Quit reminding me, and stop calling me Henrietta! How many times do I have to tell you my name's Henry?" I grumbled annoyedly. My name's Henrietta Michaels, but no one but Max calls me Henrietta.
"That's a very pretty name, Henrietta. Why is such a beautiful girl with a pretty name so angry all the time?" The boy said softly into my ear, trying to be smooth.
"Keep trying to make a pass at me, and I'll have Arcanine burn your balls off." I glared at him.
"Henrietta Alice Michaels! When you get back, you are grounded!" Max shrieked into his mic, hurting my ears.
"You're not my mother, Max! So fucking shut your damn mouth and leave me alone!" I yelled at him crossly, shutting off my headset completely.
This was supposed to be my day off, and I was working with a shemale I can't stand and dumbass outside trainers. It's because of the damned dress Max makes me wear that guys are always hitting on me while I'm working. People usually think I am a guy when I'm not working because of my boyish clothes.
The boy behind me didn't say a single thing for the rest of the trip. Arcanine finally stopped in front of the five-story building that served as our headquarters. The bottom two floors served as offices while the middle floor was a part Pokémon Center and Pokémon Daycare and the top two floors were living quarters for the few employees.
I hopped off, and the trainer followed with his Skitty. I stormed into the building and up to the front desk to Georgette (Georgie), our receptionist. She gave me one look and pointed behind her where Max was cowering behind his office door.
"Max, get your lazy, frilly ass out here and take care of this idiot." I ordered, jabbing my thumb angrily at the guy behind me.
"Fine, fine. Don't get your boxers in a bunch." He sighed, coming out from his office and flipping his spiky light turquoise bangs out of his dark magenta eyes. Putting on his best "customer service" smile, he turned to the boy and began warmly. "Welcome to Diamonds in the Rough, the keepers of peace for Gemstone Island."
Before I had to listen to his entire spiel for the millionth time, I went upstairs and changed into my over-sized purple and maroon hoodie, baggy black shorts with hanging maroon suspenders/belt, and maroon high-tops with purple laces. I combed out my short gray hair and pulled on my maroon and purple ball cap backwards.
"Henry's home!" Plusle called, climbing onto my desk in front of me. Yes, I can understand them. It's a requirement to work at Diamonds in the Rough.
"Welcome home!" Minun added, climbing up next to his sister. I smiled at them.
"Hi, you two. Let's go relax outside and get some fresh air." I said, extending my arms to them. Plusle jumped into my arms, and Minun ran up my arm to sit on my head. I carried my two little friends outside to Arcanine, who was resting in the shade of the trees.
I walked over and set the two little Electric-types down as I started to brush out Arcanine's coat. I hated how messy he always got when we worked, so I started cleaning him after every mission.
When I was done cleaning Arcanine, I let out the rest of my Pokémon. "C'mon out, everyone! Time to eat!"
I set out bowls of Pokéfood for them. Plusle and Minun immediately ran to their bowl and started eating. Dragonair stretched for a little while before coming down to eat. Gallade waited for Gardevoir to get done eating before he ate. Arcanine rested his head on his paws and flicked his ear, ignoring the food bowl I'd set before him.
"Oh, c'mon, Arcanine. You're so picky." I scolded playfully, pulling out a Cheri berry and setting it on top of his food. "Happy now?"
He opened one eye and started eating, grunting a thanks. I laughed softly and scratched behind his ear. "Good job today as always, Ari."
"Why wouldn't it be any different? I'm awesome." He continued eating.
I turned to Gallade and held out and Oran Berry. He took it and ate half of it, handing the other half to Gardevoir, who ate it happily. They were always so sweet to each other, as siblings. Plusle and Minun, too. I hated separating any of my Pokémon from their family, so I ended up taking in their siblings with them. Gallade was Gardevoir's older brother and was very protective of her. Plusle and Minun were twins, hatched at the exact same time from the same parents, and never left each other's side for longer than a few minutes.
Dragonair coiled herself around my body, interrupting my thoughts. She gently rubbed her head on my cheek. I stroked her long body and held out a Razz berry to her, and she delicately ate it out of my hand. She's my most regal Pokémon, and she acted like royalty. Not snobby or like she's better than everyone else. She just acted delicate, gentle, and very lady-like.
"Hey!" "What about us?" Plusle and Minun protested when Dragonair unwrapped herself from me.
"Don't worry, you two. I haven't forgotten about you." I laughed and cut a Citrus berry in half for them. They each snatched a half out of my outstretched hand and gobbled them down. I laughed and curled up against Arcanine's side, relaxing back against him. Arcanine nuzzled my face, and I scratched his ears.
Dragonair settled down and curled herself up on the ground, ready for a nap. Gardevoir dug into my bag and pulled out her ball, starting to play catch with Gallade. She practiced using her Psychic move with the ball as I'd taught her. She hadn't started helping me with missions yet because Gallade insisted she wasn't ready, so she was still in training.
Plusle and Minun started chasing each other up into the trees and jumping from branch to branch, playing with each other with little squeaks of joy when they caught the other. They sparked in a sort of game of Marco Polo.
The tranquility was slowly putting me to sleep, and I felt my eyelids droop. I had almost fallen asleep when Max's shrill voice called out my name. I grumpily rubbed my eyes and glared up at him.
"It's my fucking day off, Maxine. I am not going to work anymore today." I yawned, rolling over to go back to sleep.
"I wanted you to take our guest back to the Welcome Center and pick up a special someone. He's supposed to be our new rookie." Max huffed, crossing his arms and pouting in a girlish manner.
I glared at Max through half-lidded eyes, and he gave me his signature look that simply said "I'm gonna pout until I get my way". I ignored him; I was a pro at it. Arcanine growled at him, telling him to leave me alone.
"Oh, c'mon, Henrietta. I think you'll like the new guy. He's quite the looker." Max tried to bait me, but I would never bite at that. I've never been interested in dating, never had a boyfriend or went on a date. I was too busy traveling and training with my brother to have a boyfriend when I was younger, and I'm too busy with work now.
"Oh, you finally recruited your boyfriend, Max? About time your gay ass got some." I snapped as Plusle and Minun ran down to see the commotion.
"Wait, your boss is a dude? And gay?" The idiot trainer from earlier exclaimed.
"Yes, I'm gay, but Henrietta doesn't have to make fun of me for it!" Max stamped his foot in frustration.
"Don't blame me. You're the one that told me you don't like being bored. You're not bored right now, are you?" I smirked triumphantly, sitting up.
"Henrietta, do your job now!" Max screamed at me. I seem to have been the only one to be able to annoy him to this level.
"I'm off the damn clock! Go get Frankie to do it!" I snapped back. Frankie was our official transporter, and he was working that day, too.
"Franklin's busy. You're not. You're going to do this, or you'll be stuck inside for a month doing Georgette's job." Max threatened, pretty weakly, I should add.
"Up yours, M-" I got interrupted by Gardevoir putting her hand over my mouth. "P-please don't, Hen-Henry… D-don't make us go back into the office!" She stammered.
Last time I got stuck with Georgie's job, Gardevoir got harassed by Georgie's Machamp. Apparently, he's not used to being around beautiful female Pokémon. He shut up after Gallade kicked his ass, but I guess Gardevoir would rather not go through that again.
"Fine. I'll take this dumbass to the Welcome Center and pick up your boyfriend." I snapped, standing up and brushing myself off. I turned to my Pokémon and apologized, "Sorry, guys, but you know the drill."
Arcanine stood up and stretched as I put Gardevoir, Gallade, and Dragonair back in their Pokéballs. Plusle and Minun were just going to ride along, since they have this whole aversion to Pokéballs thing. They can lecture me for an hour about it, and they've done it before.
The twins scrambled up Arcanine's back as I "helped" the stupid trainer up there. I hopped on in front of him, and Arcanine sped off without a warning, causing our uninvited guest to nearly fall off. I grabbed his arm to hold him on and roughly pulled him back up.
"Next time, I'm letting you fall." I growled at him, going back to watching our direction.
"Retti, you are horrible at socializing." Arcanine looked back at me briefly, partially smiling. He always called me Retti; it was his favorite nickname for me.
"Now, you sound like Max, Ari." I muttered darkly. Sometimes, I called him Ari as a nickname. I had stopped giving my Pokémon official nicknames a long time ago.
He growled out a chuckle as we pulled up in front of the Welcome Center. The trainer jumped off right before I did.
"Well, it was great meeting you, Henrietta. I hope maybe you would like to go on a d-" He said, taking my hands in his and smiling in what I think was supposed to be a charming way.
"No. I wouldn't ever go on a date with you, dumbass, so get your ugly mug out of my face." I interrupted annoyedly. Very few of the trainers I've helped have had the balls to hit on me, let alone try to date me.
"Fine, fine, but my offer still stands. Here's my number." He smirked and slipped a piece of paper into my pocket. I pulled it out and tossed it to Arcanine, who set it aflame quickly.
I led Arcanine and the twins inside to see if we could find our rookie, leaving the dumbass trainer to stare dumbfounded at the ashes. We looked around and only saw the usual newcomers.
"Hey, dude! You look pretty knowledgeable. You know anything about Diamonds in the Rough?" A guy asked from my left.
"Yeah. I know a thing or two." I replied, turning to face him.
"Do you know who they send to pick up newbies? I was just told by their boss, some chick named Max, that I'm supposed to be picked up by a really hot, single girl with pretty lavender eyes and short gray hair. I guess she'd kinda look like you if you had a sister…" He explained, looking me over.
"That dumbass. I swear I'm going to beat him when I get back." I clenched my fist, getting the urge to punch my absent boss.
"What?" The rookie asked, confused.
"Henry! Can we meet him yet?" Minun tugged my sleeve.
"He looks funny!" Plusle jumped on my hat and stared at him curiously.
"Easy, you two." I sighed, calming down. I looked back at the rookie. "Well, that would be because I'm the girl that Max sent to get you. I'm Henrietta Michaels, the second in command of Diamonds in the Rough and, apparently, your mentor. Yes, I'm a girl, and Max is actually a guy. A gay, sparkly, real girly ass guy, but still a guy."
"Wait. You're the really hot chick that's supposed to pick me up?" The rookie repeated, looking me over again more carefully.
I rolled my eyes, turning to leave. "Fine. I'll leave you here, and you can explain to Max why you never showed up."
"I'm sorry, I'm sorry! Yeesh." He said quickly. He stuck out his hand. "I'm Tristan Ark. It's nice to meet you, Henry."
I ignored his hand. "Since you're a rookie, you will call me ma'am. Cross me once, and you'll be punished severely. Step out of line, and you'll be a desk jockey for the rest of your time with Diamonds in the Rough. Are we clear, Ark?"
"Yes, ma'am." Tristan saluted, seeming to take me seriously. I looked him over for the first time. He had dark blue-tipped silver hair that spiked up a bit in the back and fell over his left eye with coal black eyes, and he wore a button-up white and gray plaid T-shirt unbuttoned with a black undershirt and baggy pale blue jeans with a chain belt.
"Do you have a Pokémon that you can ride?" I questioned, returning my eyes to his.
He thought for a few seconds before answering, "No, ma'am."
I turned to Arcanine. "Is it okay if he rides with us back, Ari?"
"As long as he doesn't tear out my fur or something." Arcanine growled, eyeing Tristan suspiciously as I turned back to the rookie.
"Then, hop on." I climbed onto Arcanine's back. "And hold on tight. If you fall off, I won't turn around to get you."
Plusle and Minun ran under my sweatshirt to hide as Tristan clumsily climbed on behind me. He finally made it up right as Arcanine sped off back towards HQ, and he quickly adapted a death grip around my middle, making the twins crawl out of the neck of my sweater and onto Arcanine's back. I grimaced but allowed it, seeing no harm in letting him keep his hold.
Out of nowhere, a Hydro Pump hit us, knocking Arcanine off of his feet. Plusle and Minun were flung into the air and were snatched up by a Vine Whip. I quickly recovered and turned to face a young female trainer.
"Whee! I caught them! I caught them! They are so cute!" She was prancing around a Bulbasaur, who was holding my two little Electric-type Pokémon, and a Squirtle.
"Hey, you wretch! Those are my Pokémon, and I suggest you give them back before I shove my foot up your mini-skirt clad ass." I threatened, getting ready to charge her myself. I tossed my headset to Tristan and quickly told him, "Call Max. Tell him it's Code Red, Stage 3."
We have to have different stages for Code Red. There can be just the misunderstanding that an outside trainer captures a Pokémon from Gemstone Island without knowing our rules or Stage 1, a trainer deliberately trying to capture a Gemstone Pokémon and knows our rules or Stage 2, or a trainer trying to capture a DR Pokémon or Stage 3.
"They aren't in Pokéballs, so they're free game. So, nah!" She retorted, making a face. Bulbasaur lowered Plusle and Minun down to the girl, and she hugged their struggling forms smiling
"Henry! Help us!" Minun called.
"We don't like this scary girl! We wanna go home!" Plusle added, starting to cry. Minun quickly joined his sister.
I snapped. This girl had made my babies, my sweet, innocent little Pokémon cry. I would not hold back on this bitch.
"Dragonair, Gallade! Get them!" I ordered, releasing those two Pokémon. They charged, quickly taking down the Bulbasaur and Squirtle. Arcanine cornered the girl, who was still holding stubbornly onto Plusle and Minun.
"No! They're mine! You can't have them, you big bully!" She shouted angrily.
I stated coldly, "Plusle, Minun, use Thundershock."
They put their tails together and quickly used Thundershock on the girl, putting all they had into it. The girl screamed and dropped them, falling unconscious onto the ground. I swiftly scooped up Plusle and Minun and hugged them tightly.
"I'm so sorry, you two. I promise I'll take better care of you." I whispered as they tiredly rubbed their cheeks on mine, hugging me back.
"We love you, Henry. Don't leave us." They begged, tears still glistening in their eyes.
"I won't. I'll never leave you or anyone else." I promised as my other Pokémon came over. I cradled the twins and hugged the others.
This wasn't just a job this time. It had gotten very personal, striking the unhealed hole in my heart. I swore to myself that I'd never lose another one of my friends ever again.
Tristan cleared his throat, "Uh, Hen- I mean, ma'am?"
I hadn't even noticed it when Max had shown up. He was standing next to Tristan, respecting my space for once. Despite being a pain in my ass, Max is the one that understands me best at DR. After all, he's also lost those important to him while on the job.
"Ark, tie up this girl and her Pokémon. I'll see to it that she's properly disciplined and immediately expelled from Gemstone Island. I'll give you a ride back to headquarters as well." Max stated, acting the part of the DR President. His tone softened as he turned to me. "Henry, you can have the rest of today and as much time off as you need. Just let me know."
I simply nodded and climbed onto Arcanine's back, not bothering to return my Pokémon to their Pokéballs. I couldn't bear to have them out of sight again today. Arcanine raced off somewhere without my paying attention, and I watched my babies sleep. They had only hatched six months ago, so they were still my babies.
I snapped back to attention when Gallade rested his hand on my shoulder. I knew he wanted to see his sister without him having to say a word, so I let Gardevoir out. She went over to play with Gallade as I looked around. Arcanine had brought us to the DR's private beach.
Slowly climbing down, I went over into the closed up DR beach "office". We never used it as an office even though that's what we called it. It was more like a beach house that any member of DR could use at any time, unless another member was already using it. It was the perfect place to get away from everyone else.
Flipping the switch to let HQ know the beach house was in use, I changed into my pale blue bikini top and trunks and carried out a blanket into the shade. I laid down Plusle and Minun, who had fallen asleep, and sat down to watch Dragonair, Gallade, and Gardevoir play in the waves. Arcanine, true to his Fire-type nature, curled up on the blanket around the twins and me.
"Henry! Henry!" Gardevoir called happily. "Brother said he'd teach me some new moves!"
"That's nice of him, Gem. Gallant, make sure you don't go too hard on her." I smiled at them. If the twins were my babies, Gardevoir (sometimes called the nickname Gem) was my little girl. Gallade (I sometimes used the nickname Gallant) was my big boy. I raised both her and her brother from Raltzes.
"I won't, Henry. You know I never do." Gallade said, nodding. He led Gardevoir into the water and started teaching her something.
"I'll watch them, Henry." Dragonair hummed, gently nuzzling my face before going to play in the waves.
"Thank you, Lady." I yawned, hugging the twins closer.
"Rest, Retti. I've got this." Arcanine growled softly, pressing his nose to my cheek.
"Ari, you're in charge…" I mumbled, falling asleep.
He chuckled, "When aren't I?"
Then, I finally fell into a deep, dreamless sleep, comforted by the thought that my family was safe and happy. That they were all with me, in body or in spirit.