"And my 1000-win streak has come to an end..." my opponent, an elderly man, admitted. He sounded downtrodden by his defeat, despite his calm front.

"If it's any consolation," I proposed, attempting to cheer him up, "I don't think anyone has ever gotten that far, Mister Stonewall. I'm serious, I have never heard of anyone with such a streak." He straightened up and smiled, taking out a sizable amount of money and handing it to me.

"Thank you, young man. I shall not forget your sportsmanship. I bid you and your samurott a good night." He walked past us and entered one of the homes that dotted the bridge. I looked at his retreating figure for a moment before looking at Hilt. Once again I couldn't help but think about how all the training he put himself through as a dewott had paid off. Evolution sure had been kind to him, granting him impressive and dense muscles, hard armor, a large helmet, and two seamitars that he perfected his technique with on a daily basis.

"Wow," I said in admiration. The giant otter looked at me and smirked. He stood on two legs and flexed his muscles. I never thought I'd feel so attracted to anyone before, and to a pokémon, no, my best friend, at that. Hilt took great pride in his strength, and it showed.

"Samu," he said cheekily, coaxing me into feeling his arms. As soon as I did, he pulled me into a strong hug that I weakly returned, too stunned to do anything else except breathe. The samurott carried me into the cottage I bought with the money earned from battling trainers and discovering treasure. He walked into the bedroom all three of us shared and placed me on the bed, smiling as he exited the dark room. Once he was out of the house, I finally recovered. I frowned as I stared at the ceiling, listening to the sound of him practicing Razor Shell.

"Why does he make me feel that way?" I mumbled. A year earlier (has it been that long already?), when we first met, he was a sad little oshawott who I thought could really use a friend. Our first night together was awkward but overall innocent, and bathing together was an experience we shared once a week. Hilt was a shy but friendly yet feisty little guy, and I would never understand why no one took a chance with him. He was affectionate, too, and spent most of his time cuddling up to me.

"Was this all because Hilt got curious that night?" I wondered. When he became a dewott, he also became distant and serious, and our relationship became strained. I rarely saw a smile on his cute face, and to be honest, I was sure that I had been cast aside. He became dedicated to his strength and trained nearly every day, sometimes exhausting himself sick. I remembered nearly yelling at the pokémon to take a break, and he responded by hitting me with a Water Gun. That dusk we spent at the hot spring reminded me that Hilt was still the friendly little guy I knew, though he was focused on being his best.

"I shouldn't feel this way about him, but I...I do," I admitted. Somewhere down the line, perhaps after he evolved into a samurott, I started thinking of him as more than just a friend. Perhaps the same could be said of Trick; the now-sleeping zorua always comforted me during our strained relationship and became someone I could trust with my secrets. Hilt made a habit of displaying his strength to me only, and whenever we were in a battle, he would occasionally wink at me with those red eyes of his. I sat up as I finally realized what was going on, face-palming for not seeing it sooner.

"You crazy samurott," I said, stealing a glance at him swinging his swords. All this time he's been trying to steal my heart, and it looks like he succeeded. He stopped and wiped his brow, turning around to head back inside. I smiled and headed into the bathroom, closing the door behind me. I turned on the warm water, undressed, and stepped inside the tub, careful to close the curtains. No more than three minutes passed before I felt two strong, blue-furred arms wrap around my chest. Hilt rubbed me gently with his claws as he rested his head on mine. I noticed that his helmet and swords were gone, and as I turned around and faced him, I saw two triangular ears atop his head.

"Rott, samurott," he said, taking a long look at my naked form. I blushed from his compliment and hugged him, feeling the firm, well-developed pectorals and abs. Hilt returned the hug and licked me.

"Hilt, I love you, with all my heart," I stated bluntly, nearly melting into his powerful arms as I finally submitted to his advances. "Will you stay with me forever?" I kissed him underneath his muzzle as an afterthought and sighed. His grip on me loosened, and for a short moment I feared I had gravely misinterpreted the situation. Hilt would probably-

"Sa! Samur rott!" he cried, interrupting my thoughts and proving me wrong. The giant otter pulled me down with him and grinned, and for the first time, tears of joy flowed out of his eyes, uninterrupted by the shower.

"I'll get you a Slowpoke tail in the morning, okay?" I promised.

We spent the rest of the night in the bathroom.