That evening you and the professor had talked about many things, and specifically about the kind of work you would be doing there. Professor Sycamore was definitely glad to see that you were just the kind of person he had been searching for. Because aside fulfilling your internship and gaining experience, he could really use the information you would discover and gather in the process to support his research.

Sycamore informed you that tomorrow would be your true introduction to the internship and the Pokemon Laboratory, and that this little meeting beforehand was just to get to know each other a little bit before the real job.

You would be under less stress that way, he had explained with a honest smile. And that he preferred his workers to be as comfortable as possible.

You weren't really sure what Sycamore was actually researching in that lab of his. Just that it would be the surprise of tomorrow, he had said- or joked. Mentioning that even if you did an internet research on his name, you wouldn't encounter much in the first place about it because he preferred his research to be limited to his labs only.

It made sense.

You weren't sure why he didn't do it yet, but who were you to complain and demand he shared it with you?

Too be honest, you were too exhausted to even bother. And when you and the professor had decided that it was time to depart, it was pretty much around ten in the evening.

Quite the perfect time to be getting some good shut eyes.

And thanks to Laari's wonderful sense of smell, you two got back to your apartment rather quickly because she was just too good at locating that bakery in the same street.

Seriously, you would be completely lost without her. But you did realize that you would have to start maneuvering your way around the city at some point, otherwise you'd get lost the first moment Laari was ill or gone. And that thought wasn't a pleasant one. You wanted to be able to take care of yourself, after all.

The exhaustion made it all the easier to fall asleep and just barely moments after you hit the mattress you were sound asleep.

The morning arrived so quickly that you were checking your clock to see if it wasn't acting up or anything. But it wasn't, and that snapped your brain awake even more and you quickly showered, got dressed and gathered everything you thought you would be needing today.

„Luxio?" Laari asked down at your feet, pawing at your leg.

„Yeah, yeah, here you go." You bent down to put the food bowl on the ground and her gluttonous-self dived right in. Devouring every little piece in such a short time that just thirty seconds later, her bowl was sparkling clean.

„Glutton," You remarked at her when you threw on your coat and got your bag. All set and ready to get down to the Pokemon Laboratory to start your first day of the internship.

„The professor said that I could even bring you along, Laari." You said, putting some own made sandwiches in your bag along with the map of the city, incase you got lost. „You must have left an impression on him, or something."

„Luxio!" She barked, standing strong on her four legs and wagging her little slender tail around. Liking the idea of being able to go with you rather than to stay cropped up into her pokeball.

You have her a strict stare. „But no more green lights like yesterday, alright? We're on the job from now on, so I don't think the professor would appreciate you disturbing people by climbing their shoulders."

She tilted her head like a nod, „Lux, Luxio!" Was her agreement that she would definitely not do it anymore unless you told her it was okay. She wasn't really the brightest one at realizing when the situation allowed her and when not.

So with that, you and Laari left your apartment and went back on the streets.

The early morning streets of Lumoise were so much different than in the afternoon and evening. It almost gave off an peaceful atmosphere, because not everyone was awake and walking already. You appreciated it, because walking around avoiding people while trying to find your way wasn't the most joyous thing to do.

The traffic was still as chaotic as ever, but that barely bothered you because you weren't crossing or walking on any roads. Instead, you were just gazing around. Watching how people started waking up, throwing their windows open. Or walk with their Pokemon for an early morning exercise.

Back in Sinnoh, you lived in a rather humble town. It was peaceful and quiet and never really the center of attention for anything big. Really the opposite of Lumiose city. And because of that you really needed the time to get used to it. From what you heard, Lumiose was the center of attention when it came to big events, mayor discoveries, culture and many other amazing things.

Too be honest, it wasn't as bad as you thought it would be.

Rather than being pushed back into your worries, you were instead taking in the city in a positive way. There were just so many things here that you had never seen or dared to see before! You were looking your eyes out at every little thing here. It was just so different compared to Sinnoh!

And yet, you had been thrown into a haze of confusion. Surely there had been doubt at the start and worry about managing here in a completely different place without anything you could depend on. But last evening's talk with Professor Sycamore had managed to loosen you up. Things didn't appear to be as bad, but you weren't going to count on that luck during your first day of work today!

When you rounded the corner of a massive building, a street musician playing on a guitar greeted you. You and Laari greeted him back and when you got out a small coin out of your purse, the man took his little hat off and held it up for you to dump it in there.

„You play lovely, sir." You waved briefly as you and Luxio continued on your way to the labs.

In response to your compliment, the tone of his song seemed to heighten and the tune followed you and quickly managed to reach deep within you. Stirring up something within you and making you beam with joy as you walked through the streets with a big grin on your face.

Oh this was just wonderful, you couldn't wait to get started!

You were really curious of the research professor Sycamore and his people were working on. Not to mention your mind constantly kept wondering what kind of Pokemon the man had in his labs. This was a different region, after all. Imagine what kind of new Pokemon could be present there?

The Pokemon Labs must be a very popular place for tourists to view because on every little sign was a little description of which direction to go in order to reach it. Well, you weren't going to complain because it only made finding the place a lot easier. You didn't wanted to go through the same routine as yesterday with your apartment, or take the cab to your destination. Sure, it was convenient... but your wallet wasn't too happy with it.

If it was possible, you would prioritize the leg wagon more than anything.

Laari stopped curiously at a group of tourists who were listening to their travel guide explain some history of how Lumiose city had come to exist. You would've stopped to pick up on a few cultural things, but you really wanted to be on time at the Pokemon labs.

Laari suddenly froze and turned around, her ears twitching and began looking around, as if in search for something. „Lux?" She said, looking up at you with a wondering look.

„What is it, Laari?" You asked, looking around the street for something that seemed off, „Oh wait, have you picked up on the scent of another bakery?" You guessed with a chuckle.

Laari had tried to keep you standing in front of the bakery's window display yesterday eve on your way back from the Lysandre Cafe. Really silly, because the bakery was closed, but knowing Laari she was just trying to plant some ideas into your head.

Laari's eyes narrowed in a dangerous glare and her mane stood straight up in fury. Almost unnoticeably, a low growl began to rumble deep in her throat as her tail whisked spastically behind her. Her bright yellow eyes glaring intensely at something.

You blinked in confusion, feeling her emotions stir up some anxiety. Whoa, something was really wrong. Laari only growled when there was danger around.

But what could it be? You took another good look around, but other than the usual Lumiose traffic, the large groups of people and tourists and their guides, there really didn't seem to be anything wrong...

Suddenly, there was a a loud crash that sounded like an explosion and Laari whelped and jumped to turn her body into the direction it came from. You and the crowd of tourists close next to you all gasped and turned as well.

That response spread like a disease and soon enough every single person on the street was standing surprised and spooked, all staring into the direction the sound seemed to come from. Groups of people shouting in confusion, demanding for an answer what was going on.

You were frozen in your tracks and could only stare with wide eyes into the distance. Your thoughts racing with the speed of light. Was it an explosion? Or what if it was an assault of some sorts?

„What was that?..." Rather than being loud in surprise and scream around in panic, you were rather silent. Laari's mane and the rest of her black fur stood up right as she jumped defensively in front of you in just a matter of seconds. „Lux!"

You screamed when the ground underneath your feet began shaking violently and being unable to keep your balance, the ground shocks threw you onto the ground. Landing almost on Laari, who had tried to catch you with her body, but couldn't because she was being tossed around as well. Her four paws proved in her favor, because it appeared she was the only creature who had managed to keep standing.

Laari was immediately by your side and whimpered worriedly, „Luxio, Lux?" You could barely hear her worried whisper over the panicked screams of the other people in the street. They all tried to get away, resulting in a chaos of panic.

Your rational sense of thinking kicked in; „Laari, we need to get out of here!"

„Lux!" She agreed and you tried to get back on your feet. Still shaky and wobbly from the fall from before. Laari tried to help by pushing under your chest with her head.

But when you were almost standing and glad that you actually managed to do so- another shock in the ground threw you and Laari off guard. Rather than falling once again, you rushed in a few big steps towards the wall of a random building. To balance yourself there with Laari helping you to keep standing by positioning herself behind you.

Many other people weren't as lucky and you saw them toppling over and falling hard and painfully to the ground all around you. You were now given the chance to investigate the damage the earth shocks caused:

Cars had stopped due a crash against one another or buildings. Some were starting to catch on fire and people had abandoned their vehicles for their own safety.

You looked up at the gigantic buildings, but it didn't seem that they had suffered any damage yet so far. With that, you uttered a relieved sigh. Once buildings would start coming down, it was going to be hell.

Screams of help were heard all over and you had to try your best to not allow them to bring yourself into a state of panic. It was just a series of earth shocks, you kept repeating in your head as you held onto the building until the rumbling of the second earth shock finally eased down.

Once you were certain that the ground wasn't shaking anymore, you opened your eyes cautiously, afraid to see what had happened around you, but it seemed just the way as before.

„Luxio?" Laari pawed at your leg, wondering how you were doing alright.

Your body was shaking and trembling in shock, but other than that you were fine. With how ravaged the street appeared to be, you realized you could've ended up much worse. Luckily you weren't around any cars, or you might have been hit by one.

You nodded, still feeling a bit out of the world. „I-I'm fine, Laari." You whispered, lowering yourself through your knees. You almost toppled backwards, but managed to keep your balance and reached out to hold Laari's big head between your hands. „But what about you, are you hurt?"

She shook her head confidentially, „Lux, Luxio!"

„Good." You smiled, releasing her head and petting her mane. „You really helped me out there, Laari. Thank you."

She didn't linger in your gratitude for very long and began circling around, turning to look at a certain spot on the street with a determined look. „Lux, Luxio!" She called out, signaling you over.

You did as she said and cautiously walked over, „What is it?" You asked, wiping the sweat of your forehead with the back of your hand.

But as soon as you had squeezed yourself through the crowd, the sight in front of you caused you to freeze once again, along with all the other people who had joined around the location in a circle and gazed upon the same thing.

There was a gigantic crack that had split the street open, but rather than it being a hole into the earth, some kind of material was sticking out of it. A huge chunk of bright green crystallization was covering the rock. Upon closer look it appeared that the green chunk had circled patterns from within and some of them seemed to be glowing with a faint white light.

You squinted your eyes at the unknown sight. Did this cause the earth shocks from just now?

„What's going on?"

„Use caution!"

„What in the world is this?"

All kinds of these worrying and wondering murmurs passed among the audience all around you. They were the same questions roaming your mind at this very moment. You had never seen something like it before. How had it ended up here?

In the distance the sirens of approaching police cars were heard and other people began to throw commands to the people around the weird artifact to back off before someone got hurt. A man dressed in some kind of security outfit also forced you away from the weird rock formation, but you never took your eyes of it.

Within just a moment of time, the audience had been forced to back off from the giant crack in the street and security people were marking the small area around it as off limits.

Still somewhat in a shock, you watched the men do their work. Police soon arrived, along with news reporters and many other specialists you didn't recognize.

„_!" You faintly heard someone calling your name from behind the crowd. Turning around to see who it was, you saw Professor Sycamore trying to squirm himself through the stubborn group who refused to allow him pass easily because everyone wanted to have a good shot at seeing the thing that split the road open.

Laari rushed towards the group of people and growled menacingly, showing some electric sparks coming out of her mane. Which causing some people to gasp and move out of the way to give Sycamore the space he needed to reach you.

„Professor Sycamore!" You called out, walking up to him halfway. What he was he doing here?

„What happened over here?!" he asked completely dumbfounded. His eyes roaming around. „I was reading over some paperwork when the entire building suddenly began to shake... As soon as I discovered what happened, I rushed over here, but I fear I'm too late..." he lingered off, signaling towards the security people who made sure nobody could get close to the street.

You saw his dark eyebrows furrow together once his eyes landed on the odd rock formation that stuck out of the crack. „What in the world is that?"

„I don't know for certain, but I think that's what caused the earth shakes." You informed him of your own conclusion. „Me and Laari were on our way to get to your lab when the earth began shaking, twice in a row. When the shocks subdued, we noticed that the part of this street had been split open and that unknown rock formation was sticking out."

Sycamore suddenly turned around and grabbed your shoulders. „You were here when it happened?" he asked with worry displayed in his eyes. „Goodness, _. Are you alright? Did you get hurt?"

You shook your head, although you felt a bit taken back by his big display of worry for your wellbeing. You appreciated it nonetheless, but you still needed to get used to it.

„I'm doing fine, professor. Thank you." You looked down at Laari, who was just sitting around until something needed to be done. „Laari really helped me out back there."

Sycamore's lips tucked into a smile. „I'm relieved to hear that."

He released your shoulders and turned, wondering to himself. „How about we take a closer look for ourselves?"

„But the security marked the area off limits." you explained, „Before you arrived, they told me and everyone else to back off. I don't think we will be able to get close..."

„We can always try." Sycamore said, „I'm a Pokemon professor, who knows?"

Yeah, he could always try in that case. And he definitely did. Without any hesitation he walked up to the group of police and security, whom seemed very occupied with discussing facts and other things with one another. What got your attention was that absolutely nobody appeared to be remotely interested in investigating the rock formation from up close.

That, or they were scared of the thing. You guessed it was the latter. Who knew what it was?

„Gentlemen," Sycamore dropped into their conversation as casual as he could.

They however, decided to act irritated and non-interested in the eccentric professor and they flashed him some very angry glares that managed to make you change your mind. Maybe this wasn't such a good idea after all.

„What'd we tell you lot? this area is off limits!" One of the officers almost roared, pointing into a different direction. „Now get lost! So we can do our investigation!"

Unlike you, Sycamore actually managed to keep his face straight and appeared as neutral and positive as usual. He dug his hand into one of his pockets and pulled out some kind of card and held it up for the officer to see.

The man peeked at the content of the card between half closed eyes and suddenly looked even more irritated than before. So much that his face became even more red.

„Professor or not, this place is off limits." He grumbled, „And your card so ever clearly states that you research Mega Evolution, not rocks. So nice try, but no cigar."

You raised a confused eyebrow at what he said. Mega evolution? That was what Sycamore was researching in that lab of his? You had never heard of it before.

Despite the warning, Sycamore still tried. „Actually Mega Evolution is partly related to certain special types of rocks that contain particles that have a high chance of activating Mega Evolution. The Mega Evolution stones we currently have are extracted from rock formations such as this one, and together with-„

„Get outta here before I lose my patience and arrest you and that woman on the spot!" The man exploded in a scream, causing everyone around to direct their attention to you.

You sighed and touched Sycamore's arm, „Let's just leave, professor. This man appears to be incapable of thinking straight of all the commotion that has taken place. We're wasting our time."

„Luxio!" Laari chimed in agreement.

By the look on his face, you could see that Sycamore wanted to continue. Because this could very well be a worthy opportunity to discover something about his research. Despite that, he took you and Laari's words and decided to stop, but not without dropping the last word.

„Tell you supervisor I will contact him soon to keep up with the progress of investigation." And with that, you three turned around and walked down and away from the ravaged street, on your way to the Pokemon lab.

And it was about time too. You glanced at the time on your cellphone and discovered with horror that you should've been at the lab almost two hours ago!

Sycamore caught you looking at the time, „Don't worry about the delay, _. This was an unexpected situation and you could've done nothing to prevent it."

„Does stuff like this happen frequently in Kalos?" You couldn't help but ask.

Sure, back in Sinnoh there had been some really weird and dangerous stuff going on with the three legendary Pokemon of Space, Time and Distortion. But that had been many years ago, and everything was back to normal now.

But to expect something like this happening on your second day in Kalos? Just your luck, really. Earth shocks were bad enough, but at least they were explainable. The weird rock formation however, was not.

And the event was a nasty sting in the back of your head and something told you it wasn't just an ordinary earth shock.

Sycamore chuckled at your question, „No, not really. This is the first time that Lumiose actually had an earth shock. But judging by how all the buildings are still standing, it was not a very strong one. Otherwise you would have spent your internship rebuilding my lab rather than working in it."

You raised your hands and shook your head. Finding the situation creepy, yet amusing at the same time. „I'm not even here for two full days yet and the city is already suffering."

„Hey, that means you're making Lumiose a bit more exciting than usual." The professor remarked, stepping aside to let a man with many dog-like Pokemon pass without bumping into him.

You huffed in denial, „Exciting? Terrifying is more like it." You held up your hands and watched how the adrenaline still made your hands tremble in shock.

At seeing your condition, the professor's teasing mood seemed to change drastically. „Hold on, _."

You stopped in your tracks, „Yes?"

„I don't want to force you into things if you're not ready for them, are you sure you can or want to start today after experiencing the event of today?"

Yes, you were convinced that you could. „I want to start today, professor Sycamore. Like said, I am not injured... and I don't want to delay another day to be introduced to my work." You explained, looking up at him and smiling. „Thank you for your concern, but I'm convinced that I can work just fine."

„Are you sure?" He gestured at your shaking hands. „You seem a little shook up."

„I actually think I've never been so convinced of something." You assured him.

He looked at you with an investigating stare, wondering if you were really speaking the truth, or that you were just telling it because you didn't dare to say no to him, your boss. But the positive look in your eyes managed to convince him soon enough and a smirk crept on his lips.

„See? This is what I've been saying." He said, although you didn't understand what he was getting at.

„What?"

He held out his hands to gesture at you, „You, _! This is what I meant when I discussed with Sophie of accepting you as an intern. You've got experience and the right mind for the job, and this proves it. A series of earth shocks take place and the street splits open right next to you. And afterwards, like nothing ever happened, you still walk to work with the same determination!"

„Oh, professor." You whispered embarrassedly, feeling so overwhelmed by his praise that you had to look away from his gray eyes. „Really, you're praising me too much. I haven't even worked yet, so..."

„Hey, I'm not saying this for show. I really mean it." He placed his hand on your shoulder reassuringly, „Nonetheless, you have a point. So how about you just prove yourself in the lab?"

That seemed like a great idea. That way you could at least accept his praising if you've done a job well done. Which was really hard at the moment, because it felt like you had done nothing worthwhile yet.

Within the next ten minutes, you and Sycamore arrived in front of the Pokemon Laboratory. And quite honestly, it was SO much bigger than you imagined. The place was as big as a mansion!

Sycamore walked up to the front doors, opened them and held them open for you. „Welcome to the Lumiose Pokemon Laboratory. Ladies first, _." he said with a small signal of his hand.s

„Thank you," Again, nothing short of being a gentleman. And you felt it was good to inform him of your... inexperience with it.

„Professor Sycamore," You started, waiting for him to close the door behind him. „You will have to excuse me, but back where I come from, most people... aren't acting so proper mannered as you do. Perhaps that's also why I'm not used to receiving your praising."

You had expected him to stare at you oddly, but the man merely smiled and continued on. „I don't see any reason why you be excusing yourself for that, mademoiselle."

„Well..." You trailed off, realizing that you were apologizing for nothing in general. „I guess because it feels weird that I can't always respond the way most people here do?"

Sycamore stopped next to you and shook his head, „Please, don't worry. You are from abroad, it's understandable. I can only ask you to inform me when it becomes uncomfortable for you." He narrowed his eyes, „Can you do that for me? The last thing I want is that any of my words or gestures are misunderstood."

Still feeling silly for apologizing for nothing in general, you just nodded weakly.

He must've picked up on the sudden change in your mood, because he bent down to get his face in your vision, „So how about I introduce you to the Pokemon I have in the lab and get things started?"

Your head immediately snapped up, all doubts forgotten at the mention of seeing new Pokemon. „Oh! Yes, I'd love to meet them!"

„Lux, Luxio!" Laari began to bounce on her paws in shared excitement and circled around the professor's leg, meowing non-stopping.

Professor Sycamore released a full heartedly laugh at witnessing the sudden cheerfulness and excitement. „Alright then, follow me."

And so the professor led you out of the large main hall of the lab and through a few other hallways. You were looking around while keeping up with him, wanting to see as much as possible.

First thing to be said about this place: It wasn't boring. This man knew his way with colors and most of the walls were a nice shade of royal blue. Along with some variating ones to not cause anyone a blue-seizure.

The floor was decorated with soft green plates. Scratch less and with no piece of dirt on them and on the places where people probably walked the most, the ground was covered by crimson carpets with what appeared to be golden lining.

And the place was completely spot-clean, by the looks of it. Everything that could shine and glister was doing so. And everything just seemed properly taken care off.

To sum it up, this building seemed more like a cultural piece or art rather than a Pokemon laboratory. It was absolutely outstanding and wonderful to look at and you couldn't get enough of it.

Professor Sycamore opened yet another large door and before you knew it, you were standing in what you could only describe as a gigantic indoor ecosystem for Pokemon. You and Laari's mouths dropped open in awe at how beautiful, big and wonderful this place looked.

Just when you thought that Sycamore had no more things up his sleeve, he showed you this. The man had an entire ecosystem in his laboratory! What other lab had this?

Sycamore watched with slight amusement how your expression changed to completely dumbfounded. „I was going to tell you what this is, but I can tell by your expression that you figured it out already."

You couldn't help yourself anymore and together with Laari, you walked to a small brook of water where several small Pokemon were located. Some of them were playing, others were sleeping and several water Pokemon were swimming along.

Some of them you recognized, some of them were completely unknown.

You started to feel emotional. This was such a beautiful place for these Pokemon! You really couldn't imagine where they would be better off. It seemed like they had everything here their hearts could possible want. Food, water, other Pokemon to befriend and play with. Space and foliage to move around in. Really anything they also had in the wild.

„Luxiooo!" Laari barked in joy and dashed past you and directly at a small yellow and black colored reptile Pokemon.

Before you could stop her, the lizard had already taken notice of Laari's and they began to sniff each other's faces. It all seemed nice and good, until they began throwing sparks of electricity at one another.

Of course, Laari had to be the one to ruin the peaceful atmosphere.

„Laari! Stop-" You wanted to rush over but Sycamore stopped you by grabbing you arm.

„It's alright," He assured you, raising his hand and pointing at the two Pokemon exchanging electric sparks. „That's just how electric Pokemon like to communicate with one another. See?"

You watched how the reptile and Laari kept sparking, until they finally stopped and began circling around each other playfully.

„Your Luxio is just trying to make new friends," Sycamore explained, guiding you closer to the Pokemon at the brook. „Rest assured that no Pokemon here is out for a fight with any other Pokemon whatsoever."

„Well, that's a relief." You admitted. Another idea soon came to you. „So is it possible that I can just leave Laari here while I'm off working in the lab?"

„I don't see why not." You and Sycamore had now closed in on the small group of Pokemon and they all uttered joyous cries when they saw their owner, Sycamore, and all approached at once.

You couldn't help but giggle as the small reptile Pokemon Laari had been playing with was trying to get your attention by hopping up and down in front of you. It must have smelled your scent on Laari and felt comfortable enough to approach you.

You lowered yourself on your knees and petted the little lizard on his head. Kinda surprised at how rough his skin felt underneath your fingertips. Nonetheless, the Pokemon loved your soft touches and leaned up into your hand even more. Craving more of your attention.

„Helioptile!" it said, nudging your palm.

You laughed softly, „Well, aren't you a cute little guy." and you hoisted him on your lap, only to have Laari immediately appear at your side because beware if you gave a Pokemon that didn't even belong to you more attention than her. Laari got easily jealous sometimes, but it made this experience even better.

But as you glanced over the professor, who was literally almost completely covered by Pokemon who wanted his attention- you realized what these Pokemon lacked, despite having all this that Sycamore offered them.

They were missing the attention of a trainer, and somewhere... that got to you and convinced you to try and visit this paddock at least once a day to have some fun with them.

„However, there is one thing you should keep in mind when you decide to leave Laari here," Professor Sycamore said as he pulled a Caterpie off his face and put it on his arm instead.

You hugged the Helioptile closer to your chest, who didn't seem to mind it at all and just kept nuzzling there. „Which is?""

„To put it simple, if you leave her here without any supervision you might have an egg on your hands sometime soon." He got a few pieces of Pokemon snacks out of the pocket of his lab coat and fed it to the Pokemon surrounding him.

You almost chocked in your own spit and just barely managed to not make an unattractive sound. The Helioptile looked oddly up at your face and you stared down at him.

„It better not be you plotting that, Helioptile." You joked to the Pokemon and laughed at how the poor thing's face turned all confused, but once he understood he began shaking his head wildly in denial.

Next to you, Luxio just tilted her head. Not understanding. „Lux?"

Sycamore couldn't help but laugh and kneeled down next to you, stroking the Helioptile's head. Whom decided he had his share of affection today and squeezed himself from your hold and went off to play with Laari.

Sycamore raised his head to look at you, „But do keep it in mind, _. I'm sure you're wonderful at the part of raising baby Pokemon, but an unexpected expansion of your team might not be in your schedule just yet."

You just furrowed your eyebrows in thought. Trying to remember which Pokemon could actually mate with Luxios. If none of those were present here, then you wouldn't have to worry about it.

But you were awfully distracted by the fact that Sycamore was sitting really close to you. In fact, it was so close that his arm was almost brushing against your own. Not to mention with both of you kneeling like this and him next to you, his face was much closer than you were comfortable with and that threw your sense of rational thinking completely off track.

And with the way he was looking at you, you had the suspicion that his gaze was more than just normal and actually out to link themselves to yours in some way. Having discovered that, you experienced a weird feeling stirring in your gut and the heat crept up to your cheeks.

Good God, you could even faintly pick up the sweet scent of his cologne.

Okay seriously, _. Cut it out! You mentally screamed at yourself.

He probably didn't intended it, nor did he realize it, but you decided to get back on your feet and continue on the subject in a professional manner.

„I can do a search of which Pokemon are able to reproduce with Laari, but can I get a list from you of which Pokemon are in here?" You asked, „That would make it a lot easier and the sooner I know, the better."

„Of course, I'll make sure to print out a sheet and hand it to you perhaps at the end of the day, or tomorrow. I'm not certain if I have the spare time to do it today, but consider it done."

The rest of the day consisted out of Professor Sycamore giving you a tour through the laboratory. You met a couple of his colleagues, whom were occupied with researching and documenting some important things, so you didn't get the chance to be properly introduced to them yet.

Sycamore also made sure to show you the archives. Because according to him, with your part as Biologist you would definitely need to come here often to gather information exclusive to the Pokemon in this lab and his research. And that it could also be your task to properly sort and archive them, as well as making and typing out your own addition to it.

The fact that you actually had access to everything in the building and also had the power to add your own input to it shook you awake. Making you realize how serious this was.

And how much Professor Sycamore actually trusted you, a woman he hadn't even known personally for two days yet, with the research he had build up for most of his life.

And then finally, almost three hours later after your arrival. The tour had ended and Sycamore suggested to have a break in the team room, where colleagues could spend their time eating their lunch or dinner, take short naps and read books or watch television. Or it they just wanted some peace and quiet.

And all this time, Laari was just happily strolling along. Listening to the both of you without every asking for something.

„I'm really not that strict with what people do in the team room," he continued to explain while you two progressed through the hallways. „As long as everything is left behind in proper shape I could care less if you do... whatever possible can come to your mind."

After this tour and spending some one on one time with Sycamore, you had gotten more confident in your way of acting around him. He really didn't mind much and seemed to appreciate a joke or two at it's time.

In other words, you could just act like your true self and he would be fine with it. Completely different than the other bosses you had in the past, where you really had to mind your words or else you would face the threat of being kicked out for being unprofessional towards your supervisor.

„Oh, so you wouldn't mind it if I hoard all the eggs and Shinxes in here that Laari gets thanks to your Pokemon?" You asked, teasingly. „Because it may appear that I want to avoid it from happening, but secretly..."

He sent you a sharp look, „If you're planning to use your Pokemon for a Shinx baby-boom, then forget it. We might not supervise everything all the time, but we do avoid it from running out of hand."

You and Sycamore reached the Team room and he allowed you to enter first. And from the inside, it looked pretty much like any living room. Just simple as that. There were two couches spread in the room in such a way that they were surrounding the big screen television by the wall.

There were a few book shelves against the other walls, making this faintly look like a room from a library and to your surprise, there were also a few paintings of various Pokemon. Probably painted by famous Kalos painters here in Lumiose.

Sycamore took off his lab coat and wandered to a small kitchen counter, „What can I offer mademoiselle to drink?"

You sat down on couch and looked at him. „What does that even mean?"

He smirked in amusement, „What offer means? Goodness, _. I assumed you were the kind of giving person, but if you don't even know what-"

You waved your hand at him and huffed loudly. The man was trying to throw you off track with his teasing jokes. He probably thought you were the perfect victim for those. Too bad for him, you weren't the kind of person who allowed jokes to run over you without throwing one in return.

„No, I know what an offer is! I meant mademoiselle, I've never heard it before until I got here." you explained, „I assume it's French?"

„Oui." He purposely replied in French, casting you a sneaky glance from the corner of his eye and smirked. „I'll tell you, but first you tell me what you would like to drink?"

„Any kind of tea will do, thank you." You were pretty simple when it came to drinks. Water, tea, whatever there was to offer, really.

He got some hot water out of a nifty machine and the tea was ready in no time. After he prepared some coffee for himself, he finally came over to where you sat and put down the cup of tea on the table in front of the television. „For mademoiselle,"

You sent him a glare. He answered it with a cheesy smile.

„Are you still going to tell me?" You asked and watched how he took a seat on the opposite side of the couch. First taking a sip of his coffee before answering you.

„Mademoiselle is a common word that men use here in Kalos, but especially in Lumoise." he blew at his steaming coffee. „Simply said, it is a title to refer to girls and young women, but also to unmarried women."

„Then I'm afraid you're using it on the wrong person," You said. He was going to get it for saying the teasing things he said. „That title does not apply to me."

You literally saw the sudden change in his expression and he lowered his cup just barely. „You're married?"

„No, but I'm not as young as you might think." You went with that instead. Letting the man believe you were married just to get back at him was a bit over the top and just a straight lie.

He concentrated, trying to remember something. „I've read your CV and resume... and I think you're just trying to trick me into thinking you're old."

Wait, you didn't even know how old Sycamore was. And quite honestly, you had been wondering from the first moment you saw him. He had something youthful around him, but also something very mature... so it was hard to guess.

„How old are you actually, Professor Sycamore?"

Sycamore leaned back into the cushions, „How old do you think I am?"

Oh so he was going to play the guessing game. Well, that only made it more fun for you. It was almost like he wanted you to play along as long as you could. Well, you weren't going to object against that.

Like he said himself, he didn't care what people did in the team room. So you could probably tease him in a similarly way.

Raising a cautious eyebrow, you asked; „Are you sure you want to know?"

„Yes, I'm really curious to how old I appear to be to young women such as yourself." he explained rather seriously. Making you believe that it really was a question that kept his mind occupied.

„I think you're forty."

He almost chocked in his coffee and his feature changed to something completely horrifying, as if he had witnessed a brutal murder. You almost felt bad for wanting to laugh and tried to contain your laughter as much as you could.

„Y-You are a sneaky liar, _." He held his hand by his mouth and coughed a couple of times. „Lying to your supervisor isn't going to improve the score I eventually have to grade you with."

„But I really think you're forty!" You kept going, trying to keep up the act. But you were starting to fail when you saw the doubtful flicker in his eyes. You could practically see him wondering if he really did look that old, and not as young as he always thought.

„You want me to lie?" Your voice was now high pitched thanks to the suppressed laughter wrecking in your chest.

Sycamore just raised his hand, signaling it was quite enough. „Alright, never mind. I get the message. Mademoiselle is getting back at me."

You chuckled and got your cup of tea, took a sip before putting it back and sunk back into the cushions of the couch. „Sorry Professor, but I just couldn't resist." you admitted, hoping you hadn't gone too far.

His eyes softened at your confession and he completely relaxed. „Ah, don't worry about it, _. Because you know what they say, those who laugh last laugh the best."

„Yeah..." But then you realized what he had actually said and raised an eyebrow in your confusion, „Wait what?"

And the next moment there was something rough and hard pressed against the back of your neck. You screamed and turned in place, getting face in face with the big intimidating round snouted face of a Garchomp. Who stared down at you with his big yellow eyes and showing his large pointy teeth.

„Gar, Garchomp!"

A low grumbling started in its throat and the only thing that came to mind was to get away from him! And you didn't know how quickly to do it!

You wanted to call out for Laari, but you spotted her sitting on the other couch, snickering along and not seeming to care for your safety at all.

TRAITOR.

You scrambled backwards on the couch, trying to create distance between you and the dragon type Pokemon. Who only leaned forward the more you took distance from him. The couch however, had limited space and soon enough you were close enough for Sycamore to put his hands on your shoulders to keep you in place.

Chuckling, he leaned to your ear. „What was that again?" He asked mischievously, „I look like a forty year old man?"

Sycamore had turned everything upside down. He had made you believe that you had won and that he surrendered. And now you were literally trapped between him and admitting that he looked like a young French god and whatever- or to have this Garchomp rub his rough draconic skin against your delicate face.

Or even worse.

His grip on your shoulders tightened, „Well?" His breath brushed past your ear, causing some unpleasant shivers while you kept a locked gaze with the Garchomp just inches away from your face.

„No! D-Did I say that?" You laughed sheepishly, „You're the youngest gentleman I've ever casted my eyes upon! A mademoiselle male version, yes, quite like that. No doubt about it!"

„Then I misheard. My apologies." He released you like nothing had happened and signaled the Garchomp to take its distance from you.

Leaving you in complete disarray and with wide eyes in shock on the couch, he got up to bring his cup back to the kitchen counter and to pet the Garchomp on its head. But not before he flashed you one final grin in victory,

„Also, thank you for the compliment, but you really didn't have to."

You slowly looked at the Garchomp from the corner of your eye, and then back to the French man you currently wished you had never met. Curse him. curse his mannerisms, curse his oui and mademoiselles, curse his everything for the time being.

Of course you didn't really mean it.

Despite those cursing thoughts, your heart was flowing with joy and excitement.

This was going to be one hell of an internship.