Repeat after me, Zoru, the now familiar voice of Zorua rang in Felix's head. The human and fox sat together with Cascade on the floor of Felix's guest bedroom, a simply furnished room with a queen size bed with cream-colored sheets along with a dark wooden headboard and nightstand. The delicious smell of baking wafted from the provided kitchen as Mal prepared another experimental batch of cookies for Felix to test. But for the moment, Zorua cleared her throat dramatically and said "Zoru zor zorua azo rua!"
Cascade shook his head. "We're not going to get anywhere by teaching Felix insults towards himself," the Buizel said. "You know I won't let you trip Felix into saying it; why not just cooperate?"
You two are no fun, Zoru. Why not let a poor fox laugh a little, eh, Zoru?
"Tell you what, Zorua," Felix said in Buizel, "at the end of your lessons, I'll repeat anything you like for, say, five minutes?"
Anything, zoru? The fox's deep red eyes twinkled with mischief, her vulpine jaw curling into a smile.
"I guess, sure! What's the worse that could happen?" Felix knew he wouldn't care if Zorua made him insult himself; after all, he was learning to speak Zorua. The language had, as always, come remarkably fast to him. After just a couple hours he was starting to pick up on some common words and a few conjugations.
Cascade frowned. "What if she has you insult me or Teddi and Su Lin? I don't think they would take too kindly to hearing insults thrown at them, and… to be honest, I don't want to hear you verbally attack me either." The Buizel looked hurt by the very thought of his lifelong trainer insulting him, and Felix picked up on this immediately.
"Not anything, then, but almost anything," Felix stipulated.
Argh, you stupid otter! Zorua mentally exclaimed. Are you that scared of words like a little baby, Zoru?
"I don't think you'd take too kindly to having Sonia explain how terrible you are, genuinely or not!" Cascade shouted.
I… Zorua growled for a second. Fine! Say this, Zoru! She shouted another incomprehensible phrase, but once Cascade nodded his approval Felix repeated it.
It always felt strange how quickly Felix's own voice adjusted, the way his throat and tongue and teeth smoothly and effortlessly transitioned from English to a language he had barely heard before today. On nothing but instinct Felix repeated what Zorua had said, matching her intonation, syllable pattern, accent, and even pitch.
Yikes! That's creepy, Zoru. You sound like the Pokedex!
"My trainer is quite gifted," Cascade said with a prideful air.
As if! This breeder boy is nothing compared to Sonia! She'd squash him like an Oran Berry!
"What did you say, you insolent little canine?!"
Felix only smiled and rubbed Cascade's floatation collar. He didn't care whether she was a better trainer; he excelled in breeding, not battling. "Before you continue, could you please say out loud what you're saying telepathically?" Felix interrupted.
Not until your stupid otter apologizes, Zorua huffed.
"Apologize?!" Cascade exclaimed. "Why on earth should I apologize?"
"Am I interrupting something?" the quiet voice of Mal cut through the tension like a knife.
"Zorua and Cascade are just helping me learn-hey, those look amazing!" Felix noticed the plate of cookies Mal was carrying. There were at least a dozen of the white sugar cookies, each meticulously frosted to resemble a different kind of berry. Even a casual glance at the frosting immediately reminded Felix of each berry's nutritional and medicinal properties. "They're so detailed; how did you do that?"
Mal smiled and set the plate on the floor. "They're Pokémon safe as well; why don't you have Cascade and Zorua try one, too?"
"They're really good!" a small voice squeaked. Teddi, Mal's Teddiursa, cowered back behind her trainer's leg after his sudden bout of bravery. Beside his other leg, Mal's Pancham Su Lin nodded emphatically.
Felix smiled kindly at the little bear as he took an Oran Cookie and bit into it. Immediately his eyes widened with delight. The soft, sugary cookie perfectly complimented the sweet berry flavor of the frosting. There were other flavors mixed in, he was sure, but it was impossible to tell where one ended and the other began. Instead, he was left with what tasted like a mouthful of heaven.
"Holy—this is the best cookie I've ever had!" Felix exclaimed with a full mouth. He swallowed and continued, "Didn't you say you were just experimenting with ingredients? Where on Earth did you learn to cook this well?!"
Mal seemed to relax. "I've had some training over the years and in general I just like to cook. Glad to see the Pokémon are enjoying them too." He gestured at Teddi, Su Lin, Cascade, and Zorua, all of whom were gleefully devouring their own cookies.
Felix sat cross-legged on the ground beside Cascade and rubbed the Buizel's head. Looking to Mal, he said, "For as long as you're here, Mal, why don't we tell a little about ourselves? I know Raphael well enough from, well, studying him," Felix laughed unconvincingly, "but you and Sonia are mysteries to me."
Mal sat beside his own Pokémon with perfect posture. With a little huff, Zorua grabbed three more cookies with her jaws and said, If you two are just going to talk, Zoru, I'm out! But you owe me those five minutes, Zoru, don't forget!
Felix laughed as the little fox skipped out of the room with her treats. "I won't, Zoru!" Felix paused in surprise as Zorua's laughter rang out through the guest area. He chuckled, embarrassed. "Guess she's got me doing it too."
"She's cute," Mal nodded. "So would you like me to start?"
"If you like." Felix rubbed Cascade's side as he leaned against his trainer and reached for a second cookie.
"Well, as you know, my name is Malcolm Thrones. I was born to a well-off family in Celadon City and I've been a close friend of Raph since we were kids. I've had Teddi for as long as I can remember, and Su Lin more or less adopted me when I took a trip to Kalos." He smiled fondly at the bears, rubbing their heads. "I enjoy… making things, mechanical and culinary."
"Like these amazing cookies," Felix lauded, then finished his Pecha Cookie.
"Yes, like those." Mal continued, "I'm hoping to grow stronger on this journey alongside Raph, earn gym badges, meet Pokémon, and maybe even challenge the league. Hopefully I don't slow Raph down too much," he joked.
"You'll be fine, I'm sure," Felix insisted.
"And like I said earlier I'm trained in field medicine, so I'm sure we'll have things to talk about there."
"That's awesome," Felix replied. "To be honest, I'm kind of relieved you're a Pokémon caretaker as well, because…" He sighed. "Well, I'm not too good with blood. Just… something about it always freaks me out, makes me slow and shaky." He knew exactly why blood scared him, but there was no reason to tell Mal that. "Broken bones I can set in a heartbeat, sickness I can diagnose with almost perfect accuracy, but once a Pokémon gets a nasty cut, I'm basically worthless."
Mal nodded in understanding. "I noticed that, during your battle with Raph. I'll be sure to help out whenever it gets hard for you."
Felix smiled. "I like you already. Well, it's kind of hard not to like someone who brings along a plate of impossibly good cookies, but you just seem like a great guy all around: smart, creative, helpful, and very polite."
Mal smiled back. "You flatter me, Felix, but thank you."
Felix pointed at him emphatically. "See? Polite! Right there!"
Mal chuckled, shaking his head. "Yes, thank you, I get it. So do you have any questions for me?"
Felix thought for a moment. "Say, are Su Lin and Teddi male or female?"
Mal seemed somewhere between surprised and confused. "Er, Teddi's male, Su Lin is female. Why do you ask?"
Felix's expression brightened and he rubbed his hands together in satisfaction. "Oh, perfect!" he exclaimed. "I definitely ship it now!"
Mal blinked. "Umm… pardon?"
"I ship them!" Felix said matter-of-factly. When Mal continued to stare, Felix elaborated, "You know, ship as in 'relationship'? Where you romantically pair two characters in a TV show you like because you think they belong together?"
"I know what shipping is, but… you're shipping my Pokémon? My real life Pokemon?" Mal asked.
"Come on, all breeders do it!" Felix replied with a casual air. "It's basically our jobs, you know! Besides, they're a perfect combination! Teddiursa from Pangoro fathers tend to have biting problems, but nothing's cuter than a Pancham with Teddiursa genes!"
Mal nodded stiffly, unsure of what to say. "I... see. So, uh, do you ship Cascade with anyone…?"
"Him? No, not yet; so far I haven't found anyone good enough for him. Briefly thought about Zorua, but no, there's definitely no romantic tension between them-just regular tension."
Mal nodded again. "I… see. You're a strange one, Felix."
"Ah, you just need to lighten up," Felix insisted. Beneath the boy's arm, Cascade looked to Mal and nodded in agreement.
Mal shrugged. "Anything else you'd like to know about me, or would you like to tell me about yourself now?"
"I'm sure I'll get to know you better with time, so I'll just go ahead with my own summary," Felix said. "So my name is Felix Verity. I come from Sinnoh where I'm already a fully recognized breeder; I'm a bit of a prodigy, you could say." He smiled, attempting to seem casual. "It helps a lot that I can speak to Pokémon, either by using their own tongue or by using the Buizel or Floatzel language as a proxy."
"If you don't mind me asking, how do you do that?" Mal interrupted.
"Speak to Pokémon?" Felix considered hinting at the truth, but reasoned against it. "I guess I'm just lucky and was born with it. They just… make sense to me, like cookie flavors make sense to you."
"Fair enough," Mal replied.
Without warning Sonia burst into the room, looking extremely annoyed. "Okay…" she seethed, "who would be so unimaginably stupid as to give Zorua sugar?!"
Mal raised a nervous hand. "That, uh, would be my doing." In the living room behind Sonia, Zorua sped by in an instant, laughing and squealing.
"Then you're just going to have to pray that she doesn't break anything important before the sugar wears off," Sonia growled. "How much did she eat, by the way?"
"I think she had one sugar cookie here and ran off with three," Felix commented.
Sonia became still. "Four cookies," she said icily. "She had four sugar cookies in five minutes."
Felix grew concerned with her tone. "Is… that a problem?"
"Do you have any idea how hyperactive Zorua gets when she has sugar?!" Sonia exploded. "She'll be up all night at this rate, and she'll keep the rest of us up too! I swear to Arceus, I am this close to breaking someone's arm!"
"I-I'm sorry, Sonia!" Mal replied. "I wouldn't have given her any if I had known—"
"Let me handle this," Felix offered, getting to his feet. Cascade followed suit.
Sonia snorted. "Let you handle this? That's a laugh. What could you do that I haven't already tried? She won't listen to anyone, much less a person she just met."
"Oh, she listens, all right," Felix insisted. "It's how she responds to what you say and do that really matters. If she won't speak your language, speak hers."
"We communicate with telepathy," Sonia rebutted, "and you said yourself that you can't speak Zorua. Just get off your high horse already."
"Well… just watch." Felix winked and led Cascade out of the guest room. "Spray her when she comes by," Felix muttered to the Buizel in his own language. "Then taunt her and run outside. Sonia and I will be right behind you."
The clacking of claws against tile signalled Zorua's dash through the kitchen. With careful aim, Cascade spat out a stream of water directly at the little fox, thoroughly soaking her dark pelt. She squeaked in surprise as she was sprayed, then glared at the Buizel.
You… stupid otter! Zorua mentally shouted. Why did you get my fur wet, huh, Zoru?!
"It was funny!" Cascade laughed. "Totally worth that expression!"
Why, you...! I'll scratch that smug smile right off your face, Zoru!
"First you have to catch me!" Cascade challenged. As Zorua leaped at him, he quickly sidestepped and bolted for the glass back door, whose handle he could just reach. Zorua quickly switched directions and launched herself at the fleeing Cascade, but he had already gotten outside and closed the door. Zorua bounced off the door to the carpet as Cascade stuck his tongue out from behind the glass.
Sonia, open the door, Zoru! Zorua demanded, trying to jump up and grab the handle herself.
Sonia glanced at Felix, surprised. The young breeder only wore a self-satisfied smile. "When you say 'Get back here!', she hears 'Keep going, it's funny!'" But if you say 'You'll never catch me!", she'll hear 'Come outside and play with me!' You have to know what the words mean to her, not just what they mean to you. Come on, let's go outside."
Sonia and Felix walked to the back door. The moment the girl turned the handle on the door, Zorua forced herself through and after Cascade, who had taken off across the grass. "I don't know how much stamina Zorua has, but hopefully this will tire her out before Cascade," Felix said, sitting on a metal bench on the patio.
"You clearly don't know Zorua," Sonia replied cynically, sitting on the far end of the bench.
"Nope!" Felix agreed cheerfully. "But over the course of this journey I will get to know her and the rest of our teams, and that makes me very, very excited. It's half the reason I signed up for this anyway."
"And the other half?" Sonia asked. She seemed less icy than before, which encouraged Felix.
"It's… actually, a lot of things, honestly," Felix said with a short laugh. "A lot of the higher ups in the Kanto League and the National Breeder's Association think having their two prodigies seen together will help PR, I've always wanted to see Kanto and meet new people and Pokémon and… well, I need more than just Cascade for breeding!"
Sonia seemed perturbed. "You want to catch Pokémon… just to have them breed with each other."
"Not just for breeding! They're my friends and partners first… but yeah, I'll look for good opportunities to breed them. And besides, I'm actually hoping to get as many different egg groups as I can, so they won't be making too many Eggs together. ...What?" Felix could not figure out why Sonia looked so unnerved.
"Uhh… nothing. It's nothing."
Felix shrugged. "You can always tell me." After a moment of silence, broken only by the banter between Cascade and Zorua, he moved on, saying, "Do you mind telling me a little about yourself?"
Sonia sighed. "Fine. I'm Sonia Darkin, a psychic from the Unova region. I moved to Kanto a few years ago and trained with Sabrina in her gym. I have Zorua and a Sawk named Kai. Will that suffice?"
Felix smiled patiently. Mal was so much easier than this. "Well, maybe a little more would be nice? Like, uh… what sort of powers do you have?"
Sonia twitched at the request, but nevertheless listed, "Teleportation, telepathy, telekinesis."
Felix grew wide-eyed. "All that? Can you do a lot with those powers? Like, teleport miles away or lift an Hippowdon?"
"In some ways, yes. In other ways, no," Sonia replied vaguely. Felix decided not to press the issue.
But still, that much power for such a little girl? Something didn't feel right about that, Felix thought. But he reasoned it would be best to befriend the girl who could probably kill him with a thought rather than shun or hate her. Emotions are infectious, after all
…Then again, she seemed to display no hint of emotion, unless you counted cynicism or irritation. Maybe she just needs a friend?
"I don't need your friendship, Felix, and I'm not going to kill you," Sonia suddenly said. "Just because I can doesn't mean I will."
Felix chuckled, trying to calm his nerves. "To be honest you are kind of scary. But that's okay; I'm sure we can be friends! 'Zelo float-ze zel zelo flo-el', after all."
Sonia blinked. "What was that?"
"Oh, now you stop reading my mind? Sure, fine—I said 'Being happier is better than being sad'. It's kind of my motto."
"No, it was… never mind. Whatever. Cool motto, it's not for me."
"Aww, come on, Sonia!" Felix nearly wrapped his arm around her, but caught himself. "Who doesn't want to be happy?"
"I don't. And I especially don't need you to make me happy."
"Felix!" Cascade called. "I can't do this anymore... but Zorua just won't get tired!" The Buizel narrowly dodged Zorua as she sprang at him again, then took off running across the grass once again.
Conversation forgotten, Felix immediately stood and ran for Cascade. As Zorua neared her target and jumped, Felix threw himself in the way, deftly catching the fox in a gentle embrace. Sharp claws enthusiastically dug into Felix's hands as Zorua finally managed to grab something, but years of handling young Pokémon meant that Felix hardly noticed. Instead, he pinned Zorua against the ground, scratching and tickling her pelt all over.
As Zorua squealed with laughter, she telepathically complained, Hey, what's the meaning of this, Zoru? You're not that stupid otter!
Said otter collapsed against the side of the lab as Felix continued his assault on Zorua's nerves. "Nah, he cheated and had me double-team you."
Hey, no fair, Zoru!
"It was the only way we stood a chance of winning, you know!" Felix explained. "With all that sugar you've got in you there was no way either of us stood a chance alone."
Zorua stopped wriggling so energetically, and Felix responded with more gentle stroking. With a canine grin, she called out, Yeah, hear that, Buizel? If your trainer didn't help you, Zoru… I'd have torn you to pieces… Zorua yawned, prompting Felix to inwardly cheer. With deliberate, slow movement, he lifted the fox into his arms. Just as he suspected, Zorua crashed hard once her sugar rush ended and she had immediately fallen asleep.
He offered Zorua to Sonia, who took her Pokémon into her own arms with telekinesis. "I'll admit, you're pretty good with Pokémon," she said quietly, mindful of the sleeping Zorua. "I think you'll be nice to have along."
Felix laughed softly. "'Nice to have along'? Well, it's a start; I'll take it!" Turning to the exhausted Cascade, Felix lifted and embraced his Buizel, rubbing his floatation collar. "And you did so well today," Felix praised. "You're the real hero tonight!"
"Thanks, Felix," Cascade replied. "But I'd like to go to bed now…"
"'Course you can! You can fall asleep now, actually; I'll carry you inside. How's that sound?"
The Buizel was already sound asleep.