When Violet's father opened the door, he found her lounging on her bed, head propped up on a pillow, and deeply engrossed in a book on protists. She had just reached the cell wall composition of diatoms when he burst into her room.

"Violet?"

Violet reluctantly allowed the book to slide slowly down to her chest so that she could see him over the pages. Her father was tall, not very muscular or skinny, just a normal Average Joe. She was pleased to note that heredity had taken pity on her and had given her her mother's looks. She was pretty and lean- same as Violet. Well, Violet might not always have believed she was a pretty as her mother. She had also inherited her mother's light, wavy brown hair. It was quite the contrast against her father's messy black mop.

"Yes, Father?"

"Were you planning on going with me to the county fair?"

Violet frowned. The county fair was for people who enjoyed eating overpriced, greasy food, going on dizzying rides, and the proceeding on vomiting their food on unfortunate passerbys. And there was always the promise of screeching children and the foul rank from the Taurus and Ponyta stables.

Her hesitation to give an answer was making her father impatient. "Well?"

She put on my best poker face smile. "I'm sure it'll be fun."

"I can tell you don't mean it."

"Well..."

"Violet." He said her name in a sigh. This meant that a lecture was sure to follow. Violet made herself comfortable. "Believe me when I say that I love that you spend so much time for your education, but... perhaps it's time for a break from the books, sweetie. Summer vacation's almost over, and all you've done is read and work in the garden. Doctor said your lungs are getting stronger. You don't have to stay inside so much anymore."

"Yeah, I know."

"There's a world outside this house, you know."

"I'll go out and do stuff next week."

"That's what you say every week."

"But Father, I've already seen the world; it's on that map on my wall. In fact, I have an entire atlas with-"

"Violet!"

"Slloooooooww…"

Violet sat up on my bed in time to see her father's Slowpoke drag itself into the room. It plopped onto her father's feet and let its mouth open so that it made a dumb little expression. Violet raised my eyebrow; it was odd seeing Slowpoke move around. It mostly lounged on the rug in the living room, yawning and moaning quietly. She often wondered if the poor thing was capable of any sort of thought process.

Her father sighed again. "I understand that this is going to be a transition, but if you're getting better then I'd love to see you start going out and having fun."

"I have plenty to entertain me in here."

"I know, but at least tonight, could you please go out and do something? Besides, it's been ages since you and I did something together outside of the garden."

When Violet was born, the doctor had reported that she had been born with damaged lungs. No one could pinpoint what had happened, but parts of her lungs were replaced with scar tissue that contracted her wind pipes. All her life she had taken prescription drugs to keep them open. The doctor had advised Violet from taking part in too much activity, so most of Violet's life was spent inside the house, particularly her room, where she was either doing chores or reading. She hardly ever read fictional books. Most of her library consisted of books about the botany and the microscopic world, something that fascinated her to no end. However, when Violet turned eleven, the doctor said that she needed more fresh air. So he suggested that she and her father start a vegetable garden. She used it to study how plants react in different soil types, and what conditions were best for the most satisfying crop. Soon flowers were added around the house, as well as an apple tree in the back yard.

She loved those times in the garden with my father, but... the country fair was never the most exciting thing for her. Besides, she was sure her father would want to—

"Come on, we can go later tonight to watch the Pokémon battles."

There it was. To Violet, Pokémon battles were a bore. She could see why there was such a huge hype over them, but she just didn't see the point.

"Father, you know how I feel about those."

"I know, but could you at least humor me for just one night? Please, Violet."

She sighed. He'd pulled out the big guns. Violet may be an asocial Beedrill who would rather associate herself with plants than human beings, but there's hardly a thing she wouldn't do for her father. Something he knew only too well.

"Fine. I'll go, but only if we record that documentary about cell mitosis. It's supposed to be on tonight."

He chuckled. "We can watch it during breakfast. Don't forget to take your medicine before we leave." With that, he scooped up Slowpoke and left his daughter's room, closing the door quietly behind him. A few seconds later Violet heard Slowpoke's dopey groan as it dawned on him that he had just been carried away.

Violet didn't return to her book, but instead swung her legs over the side of the bed and took a bottle of pills off of her dresser. As she swallowed one, she heard the springs on her bed creak. Her Teddiursa had jumped onto it.

"Hey, Teddi." She scratched the little Pokémon's ear. She may not have had an interest in Pokémon battles, but that didn't mean she didn't like Pokémon. Her father had given Teddi to her as a present for her tenth birthday. She guessed that he had hoped she would become a trainer like he used to be, but Teddi had become a pet more than anything.

Violet sat down on her bed, and Teddi snuggled up next to her. A necklace dangled from Teddi's neck- a black cord with a seashell for a charm. It had come from a small collection of seashells that Violet had compiled during a short vacation to Seaform Islands.

"Did you hear we're going to the fair?" Violet asked.

Teddi let out an excited "Ursa!"

"What do you think, Teddi? You think it sounds fun?"

"Ursa!"

Violet smiled. She walked over to her door and leaned out, calling to her father. "Hey, can we take Teddi with us?"

"Only if you keep a close eye on her!"

"Ursa! Teddiursa!" Teddi jumped excitedly on the bed. Violet couldn't help but giggle. At least one of them would have fun there.

The fair was just as Violet imagined it would be- crowded with people and Pokemon, all talking loudly and bumping into each other. Children filled themselves up with sugary death-food and let out their hyper dispositions on the rides, only to endure an energy crash an hour later.

Violet ran into a few people from her school that she talked with for a while. Kids came up to her asking if they could pet Teddi. But for the most part she was fine just sticking with her father. However, there was one character that she was pleased to run into. She found him in line at the concessions, ordering a Donphan Ear, and her father immediately walked up to greet him.

"Professor Elm!" Her father's voice can really boom when it wanted to. The professor jumped at the sound of it and whipped around to see him advancing with a hand outstretched. "Good to see you here!"

"Oh, Val!" Elm relaxed and shook Val's hand. "Always a pleasure. And Violet, nice to see you as well. Looking forward to the monthly report."

There was one other thing Violet did outside of the house besides school and gardening. Once a month, she would pack up what soil samples and cell slides she had gathered and take them to Professor Elm's laboratory in order to better examine them with his equipment. He'd been helpful in her plant research. He had given her tips and hints on how to better her garden and often pointed her in the right direction when she was stumped. On more than one occasion he'd offered Violet a job as his assistant, which she would have accepted if not for two reasons. The first being that he's a Pokémon professor, and she knew she would have been more exposed to that instead of plants. The second...

"I've only come to watch a couple Pokémon battles. After that, I want to head back to my work. See, I found an egg in the nest of two Sentrets a couple weeks ago, and I've brought it to my lab for research. I'm currently studying the embryo in order to distinguish Pokémon development from one species to another. It's really quite fascinating- more so than I dare say anything Professor Oak has worked on. I'm sure those money baggers at the university are sure to be more interested in my work than his new development on the Pokédex, which, surely, is a great accomplishment on his part, but considering that no research has been done previously on Pokémon embryos, my findings are sure to blow them away."

He never knows when to shut up.

"By the way, Violet, did I ever tell you about how I made the discovery that Pokémon hatch from eggs? Well, technically it was Mr. Pokémon who... well, he developed the theory, but surely I was the one who-"

"Professor, I believe your Donphan Ear is getting cold."

"Huh?" I think he had completely forgotten he was even holding the pastry in his hands. "Oh! Yes, well, I'd better go and get a good seat for the Pokémon battles. Excuse me, Violet, Val."

"Enjoy yourself, Professor." My father waved happily after Elm as he left, then peered over at me. "See, that's what happens when you stay inside all day."

"Don't worry. I still have some grasp of proper social interaction."

"Yeah, now you do. But just wait until you're hunchbacked and pale, and working for those 'money baggers at the university.'" He imitated Professor Elm's voice for the last part.

"Shut up! That's not funny."

"You're smiling, though."

"Whatever."

Just then the loudspeaker squealed and cracked. A voice came out of the speakers. "Ladies and gentlemen, at this time the stadium doors are opening! So take your seats to enjoy New Back Town's annual Pokémon Battle Tournament!"

Val turned to Violet. "Hey sweetie, could you go save us a couple seats? I'm gonna get us something. You want anything? Popcorn? Candy apple?"

"Just get me a thing of fries."

"Alright."

Violet watched as Val went over to the concession stand. Despite what she said before, she was glad she had come to the fair with him. At that moment she decided to do more things with him. Maybe she'd ask if he wanted to start going on walks with her.

"Okay Teddi, let's go ...Teddi?" Violet's heart stopped for a moment. Teddi had been standing right next to her a moment ago... hadn't she?

"Teddi!" Violet whipped her head around and searched the crowd. She moved past people, pushing her way through the throng of people heading for the stadium. "Teddi!"

"Teddi-Ursa!"

Violet gasped. She turned her head towards the sound and saw Teddi taking a piece of cotton candy from a man. He must have been in his mid twenties with dark red hair that stuck out on either side of his head. He wore all black except for the red T-shirt that peaked out from beneath his jacket. A pair of goggles rested above his forehead.

"Oh thank God." Violet rushed over to the man and her Pokémon. Teddi beamed when she saw her owner and swallowed the cotton candy whole.

"Does this Teddiursa belong to you?" The man asked. His voice was smooth and collected.

"Yes, sir." Violet picked up Teddi and held her close to her chest. "Thank you for finding her."

"Don't mention it." He popped a piece of cotton candy in his mouth. He looked as though he was ready to walk away, but he did a double take when he looked at Violet's face.

"My apologies," he said coolly. "Do you happen to wear contacts?"

"Oh, no." Violet chuckled slightly. "My eyes were born this color."

"Interesting. I've never seen anyone with purple eyes before." He stared intently at her irises with his own dark eyes. To Violet, it seemed as though he was calculating something in his head. It unnerved her.

"I... I get that a lot." She gave another courtesy laugh, but this time with an involuntary hint of unease.

"Hm." He ate another piece of cotton candy and turned to leave. As he did so, he gave her a little wave. "Enjoy the fair."

"Um..." Violet lowered her voice to a whisper. "Okay..." A rush of goose bumps tickled her back. Something about that man and the way he spoke had been... odd. It wasn't in the usual small-town manner. Maybe he was from the city?

"Oh crap! We have to get seats!" She pushed the man to the back of her mind and headed over to the stadium.

As usual, Violet found the battles boring, but she tried to get invested. While a Murkrow was battling a Kadabra, she asked her father why the Kadabra wasn't using any psychic moves. He said that Murkrow as a dark type and thus impervious to psychic attacks. When she asked why, he said he didn't know. This didn't satisfy her.

She turned her attention to Teddi, who was sitting on her lap, enjoying the crowd and occasionally paying attention to the battles. Violet fed her some fries.

"You're going to make her fat," said Val.

"She's not a battling Pokémon. She's allowed to be spoiled." She poked her father's extended stomach. "Besides, it's not like you can talk!"

"Hey now, my belly is solid as a rock."

"Correction: your beer belly is as solid as a rock."

Val chuckled. "Guess I can't argue with that one."

The tournament continued, and with every round of battles Violet's attention became more and more divided. Her mind drifted from the small stadium to her garden back home and to the context of that book she had been reading. She almost wished she had brought it, but doing so would have disappointed Val. Still, she couldn't wait to get home and finish that chapter on the characteristics of diatoms.

"URRRRR!"

Teddi's cry jolted Violet from her thoughts. The little Pokémon was holding her stomach, moaning and squirming.

"What's wrong, Teddi?"

"I told you she would get a stomachache."

"I'll take her to the bathroom."

"Give her some water, see if that helps."

Teddi clung to Violet's shirt as she was carried down the steps of the bleachers. Had Violet been paying the slightest bit of attention, she wouldn't have run into the man walking up the stairs in front of her. Their collision threw her off balance, but he caught her arm in time before she fell.

"Thank you! I'm so sorry, I wasn't paying attention..." Then she saw who it was- the red headed man from earlier. "Oh!"

"It looks like your Teddiursa's having a bad time." His voice awakened the same unease in Violet that it had before. He had spoken a little too calmly.

"Y-yeah, she's not feeling good. I'm taking her to the bathroom."

"By all means, do. Looks like bringing her to the fair was a bad idea."

"Yeah, guess so." Violet brushed passed the man as quickly as she could. She couldn't put her finger on why, but he was really beginning to bother her. He wasn't dressed like a local at all. Was he visiting anyone, possibly? He didn't seem to be with anyone. A groan from Teddi made her push the red-headed man to the back of her mind.

There was no one in the ladies' room when she reached it. She set Teddi, still moaning but quieter than before, on the counter. She turned on the sink and Teddi began to drink her fill.

Suddenly, the air in the bathroom became very cold. It was as though someone had opened up a giant freezer and didn't close the door. In the next instance, Violet felt a... precense. Someone else was in the bathroom. But that was impossible. All the stalls were empty. It was just her and Teddi, wasn't it?

The voice. It came from nowhere and yet everywhere. Violet heard it from all sides of her, as well as in her head.

Run!