The beach outside of Professor Kukui's lab was always beautiful in the sunset, but what Lillie liked most was the fact that it offered solitude. The beach by the city was more convenient for everyone who lived there, and a good portion of the people who had decided to take the time to come here had been pulled in to one of the Professor's experiments. He was always enthusiastic, and they were always winning, but there was only so much fun to be had in watching a shirtless man tank Pokemon moves for hour after hour.
She could only assume that this was what moon was here for. She'd gone to visit her girlfriend like usual, only to find her room empty and her mom pointing out that she'd left for the beach with Pokemon in tow. It had been odd, because she usually didn't take her Pokemon with her unless she was planning to battle or train.
But then, she was always planning to battle or train, so perhaps it wasn't so strange.
It didn't take long for Lillie to spot Moon, with her bright red had standing out even in the light of the setting sun, although she didn't understand quite what she saw. The girl was laid on her stomach in the sand, her shoes off to the side, and her Tsareena was patrolling the beach in front of her.
Tsareena strutted this way and that, turned on her heel, then repeated the process. Sometimes she went from rock to rock, other times across the length of the beach, sometimes on sand and sometimes with her… Equivalent to feet in the water. And Moon just laid there, watching her, without apparent purpose.
Lillie didn't speak as she shuffled through the sand. She just crouched beside Moon and waved her hand in front of her face.
"Hey," Moon said, her eyes flicking to Lillie. Her pouting face flickered into a smile for just a second, before it was swallowed by a sigh.
"What's wrong?" Lillie felt a weight in her stomach. There was barely anything that ever got to Moon, whether it was the sheer terror of a town occupied by Team Skull or the bone-chilling dread of facing beasts from other dimensions. Something serious had to have happened, and so she took Moon's hand in hers and squeezed it. "You can tell me anything! I promise I won't get mad or anything!"
"No..." Moon squeezed her hand back, and Lillie smiled. That was something. "I can't. You'll think it's dumb. And you won't get it, with your… You."
"With my me?" Lillie tilted her head. "What does that mean?"
"Urghhhhh," Moon groaned.
"Moon, please..."
Moon sighed again and let her tongue hang out of her mouth.
"Moon! Talk to me right now!" Lillie snapped. Moon startled enough to make her hat wobble. "I-I mean, I'm worried about you..."
"Mrrm," Moon grumbled. "Fine. But only 'cause it's you." She lifted her other hand, balanced herself on her elbow, and pointed at the strutting Tsareena. "Look at her."
"That's Bouncee," Lillie said. "You traded for her on Akala Island."
"I know that. I mean… Look at her legs." Moon jabbed her finger at the Pokemon.
Lillie narrowed her eyes. They looked like perfectly ordinary Tsareena legs to her, in that they were bright purple and took up about half the length of her body.
"I'm looking as hard as I can. Is it a Pokemon Trainer thing?" Lillie asked.
"They're so long!" Moon said, then glared at the sand. "They're really, really long."
"I know." Lillie furrowed her brow. "What does that mean?"
"It's..." Moon suddenly lurched into a sitting position and splayed her legs out in front of her. "Look at my legs! They're all short and stubby and it makes me look stupid!"
"Wh-" Lillie gaped as she looked between Moon and her Pokemon. "Moon, are you saying that you're jealous of Tsareena?"
"No!" Moon huffed. "… I mean, a little. I want to have long legs!"
Lillie bit her lip. How was she meant to handle something like this? She'd never raised any Pokemon but Nebby, and that was hardly normal circumstances. And she didn't exactly have a lot of experience to draw from.
"Moon..." Lillie pulled her girlfriend's hand into her lap and cradled it there. "You don't need long legs to be very pretty. You're strong and smart and you have a cute face." She was blushing a little, but there was no way she could get through without heaping on the compliments.
"Says you..." Moon muttered. "You've got long legs, too, and I've seen your mom. She's like a human Tsareena!" She shot another look at her strolling Pokemon. "So you're going to grow up to have long legs and I'm going to be like a Bouncee at your side. You'll have to bend right down to kiss me and everyone will think I'm your kid!"
"I… Oh." Lillie glanced down at her legs. She hadn't really though about them that much, but she was already taller than Moon. "I'm… You don't know that for certain! I've never seen your mom and my mom in the same room, so maybe they're the same height! Or maybe you'll grow up and get long legs, too."
"No, I won't." Moon pushed her lips together to create the most intense pout possible for anyone not known as Jynx. "I'm going to be tiny forever, with my stubby little boy legs."
"But you don't know that! There are all kinds of things that happen that most people wouldn't even think possible until they saw it! We saw Nebby turn into a Legendary Pokemon right in front of our eyes, and went to a different dimension, and, and things like that! How do you know that you're not going to grow into the longest legged lady in the world?"
"I won't," Moon said stubbornly.
"Well… I..." Lillie put a hand on her hip. "That's not very much of an argument, you know. I can't argue with you if you don't argue back."
"So I win," Moon said.
"But you shouldn't win!" Lillie said. "Because being jealous of Bouncee is a silly way to be. And I'm going to love you whether you have long legs or short legs or one leg!"
"E-Eh?" Moon's head snapped to Lillie, her eyes wide open.
"I know what I said! You're the most beautiful person I know and that's true no matter what! I don't care if I have to get on my hands and knees to give you a kiss, you're going to be my girlfriend and I'm going to like it and you're going to like it and I'm going to give you cuddles and kisses to make you feel better, no matter how upset you get!"
Moon stared at Lillie, with her puffed-up cheeks and her clenched fists her panting chest.
"… You mean it?" Moon asked, her voice as soft as the lapping waves.
"Yes!" Lillie reached forward to snatch Moon's other hand and brought them together. "You're my Moon. And you're always going to be my Moon. And if you think that your legs are going to put a stop to that, then you have another thing coming!"
"But..." Moon tried to look away, but Lillie's bright green eyes kept drawing her back in. "What if people say that I'm not good enough for you? You're going to get really beautiful and you are really pretty now and we don't know if I'm going to get pretty, or if I'll get spotty and ugly and gross."
"Those people don't matter! Not even a little!" Lillie's voice was steel. "I get to decide who I spend my time with! And besides, they're not very smart if they don't think that you should be with me. You're the first Champion of Alola and you're only eleven. You're so sweet and kind and you helped me get my Z-powered form. You're the most wonderful girl I know and that's that."
Despite all of her frustration, despite how shed been pouting at the sea for however long, a smile came to Moon's lips. Tears came to her eyes, which made them come to Lillie's eyes, and then Moon lunged forward to seize her slender shoulders in a hug. Lillie squeezed her back, for all she was worth, until it became too difficult for either of them to breathe properly and they leaned back to gaze into each other's eyes.
"Are you feeling better now?" Lillie asked, beaming at her girlfriend.
"Yeah," Moon nodded. "And even if I have stubby legs, I can just buy thigh highs or something."