Cha. 38

Their eyes connected for a second.

The next thing Ash knew was a blur flashing across his vision. Only slightly after his sense of security began to scream, the girl had snatched up his collar with her left hand. In her right hand was a black tulip staff posed next to his neck.

A coldness radiated off the petals of the tulip, which were sharpened to imitate blades. Ash froze.

The girl gave him a look of disappointment as her cheek squeezed to one side. "Come on! I don't see anything special about you. You already failed the reflex test."

Ash blinked rapidly as he tried to comprehend. The girl was… testing him?

She tossed her staff on her left hand and used the newly spared hand to placed a lock of blonde hair behind her ear. Then, she extended it with careless mannerism. "I'm Domino."

"Ash." The boy, out of habit, held his own hand out to shake. But, his eyes suddenly caught the symbol on her chest.

He just realized, she was dressed in a uniform, and sprawled across was a giant R.

R… oh, how familiar it was. How DAMN FAMILIAR!

Without his control, a scarlet glow flashed onto the palm of his hand as he clasped it over Domino's.

The blonde's eyes sparkled as a burning agony seared up her hand. But her face muscles barely squirmed to the pain. Her left arm swung through the air, the blade of her staff aiming for Ash's carotid artery.

"WHAT are you two DOING!?" A psychic voice shouted. A pink aura flooded the clearing of the forest and restrained the tulip staff in place. Simultaneously, Ash's hand was ripped out of Domino's.

Mew flashed next to Domino and took a look at her palm. Frowning, she pulsed a cloud of Yang on her injuries, which were paved with scarlet streaks.

She scowled at Ash. "I'm not surprised Giratina taught you to always be so aggressive."

Ash's eyes straightened at seeing Mew, but he quickly adjusted his attitude, recalling what his teacher had said. His persona was the Ambassador of Giratina, and he must act arrogant and proud, just like how the collector of death should be.

Ash took a unnoticeable breath and cleared his throat. "Don't point your fingers. Your Chosen attacked me first."

"Dom… I told you to be nice." Mew facepalmed. "And for you, Ash, that was a test."

"Who is she to test me!?" Ash blurted and addressed Domino directly. "And what is your relationship with Team Rocket!?"

The blonde blinked at the question as she pieced together an explanation for the boy's hostile reaction. Sneering, she replied. "Let me guess. Another victim at the hands of Team Rocket?"

"I would say unbelievable, granting you're Giratina's apprentice." Domino took a look at Ash's skinny arms. "But now, I'm being convinced more and more of the otherwise ever since I found you lying like a dead dog last night."

"I defeated three of the Rockets all by myself." Ash's eyes snapped open with defiance. "They had to manipulate the Celadon police to attack me to cause the slightest injuries."

"Let me see you trying to tear your way through a circle of police and battle their sergeant, AND successfully escaping!" The boy added. His speech was more because of pride than of rage.

He was beginning to sort a few things out. This girl… Domino… was the Chosen of Mew whom his teacher was talking about, and it seemed she was the one who rescued him. But… why was she wearing a Rocket's uniform?

Actually… was it? Ash wasn't completely sure. It was very different than the clothes he had seen on the Rocket Trios the night before. His stomach churned. If he had mistakenly attacked her…

"First of all, don't exaggerate. You escaped from the Celadon River, not battling through the crowd." Domino rolled her eyes. "Second, I've done all that you said, actually legitimately, when I was eight."

"Third, you ended up nearly dead with your battle with the sergeant. I could squish her without even using Pokémon." The blonde paused. "Not that I have any…"

"The only thing negligibly impressive was you holding your breath for that long through the river." She snorted.

Ash's jaw dropped. "How did you know!?"

"I was there when you poke your head out from the water, you airhead!" Domino exclaimed. "Seriously, how inattentive are you!? I mean, your finishing blow with Arcanine was a tiny bit above average, but your combat skills really suck!"

"It took only a bullet to make you faint!"

Ash stared at her. He couldn't believe his ears. She was talking about enduring bullets like some sort of everyday activity. "Like you can do much better?"

"Okay, stop. Mew finally interrupted and dispensed a Light Screen between the two. "She actually can. Domino's Team Rocket's Eastern Commander of Kanto."

Eastern… Commander… Team Rocket…

Ash's eyes were wide open. "You ARE Team Rocket!"

Domino shrugged. "I'm also pretty. Get used to it."

Mew's eyes twitched, and so did Ash's. The boy coughed. "Commander!? That's why your outfit is different!"

"Yeah, I customized it myself." Domino smirked and twirled. Her cute nose tipped slightly upwards in pride.

Ash sniffed. "You look like a turkey."

Domino stopped flashing and looked at him plainly. Mew sweatdropped.

Shaking her head, the blonde blew into the air. "You know what, I'm not even going to be pissed, because that pitiful attempt to offend made no sense at all."

Ash diverted his gaze away. Of course he had better insults, but… he needed to have manners, unlike her!

Domino raised her eyebrows, half expecting a retort. "You're actually taking it a lot better than I thought. Most people would be frightened to death at learning about my identity."

"What's there to be frightened about? You saved my life, after all." Ash scratched his head. "And I DON'T get scared because of a girl."

Domino was thoroughly surprised. She ignored the obtuse comment about her gender stereotype. "I thought you know about how bad Team Rocket is."

"Team Rocket is bad?" Ash tilted his head. "I only knew it from the Rocket Trios who attacked me."

"No matter what, the damn Celadon City is much worse, even though everyone called the League to be the government of the people. You know what I did to end up nearly dead? NOTHING!" A look of harsh hatred appeared on the boy's face. "A city of justice!? More like corruption!"

"Also, I'm sorry for reacting so rashly before." Ash continued. "I hope you'll believe me when I say that I didn't intend for it to happen… my teacher had said before that I still need to learn to control my Qi."

"Wow." An unconscious, tiny smile floated on Domino's cheek. "Wow."

Mew coughed. Somehow, she felt being excluded from the conversation. She wasn't used to being the one whom the attention wasn't on. "Anyways…"

"Anyways, Giratina's shadow appeared when you were blacked out, Ash. I promised him to guard you until you're able to fend for yourself." The cat purred. "With that being said…"

"I'm offering you a deal. You can travel with us until you decide you're confident. You can be training partners with Domino, and you can ask me anything you're confused about with your training."

"I've hung around Giratina for eons. Besides his central training Method, I know all of his other tricks. Chances are, I'll be able to answer your questions as good as he." Mew flipped in the air. "So, what do you say?"

Just as the Light expected… Ash thought. Mew wanted him to stay. "What's the other side of the deal?"

"Well, in return, you have to help us maintain order in the world." Seeing his confused face, Mew added. "You know the Chosen Heroes that are glorified in your civilization's mythology?"

Mew continued. "Yep, that's going to be our job."

"REALLY?" The boy hopped into the air from the ground. "I'm in!"

The pink cat stared at him. "You… you shouldn't be this happy about…"

"I'm not happy! I'm exhilarated!" Ash rushed up and hugged the puzzled Mew. "Thank you for giving me a chance!"

Domino looked at him with complete bewilderment. "Why the HELL do you want this job!?"

"Why won't you!?" The chūnibyō boy was dreaming of fame already.

The Elite chucked a strip of bacon in his face. "Start eating and stop talking."

A/N: The two's first exchanges. How compatible are they!?

Now, for the readers who want another pairing, let me give you a challenge. Don't put my book in your blacklist just because the female protagonist isn't whom you expect/want. Keep reading. The fic will mostly be adventure. The romance is only a small part of the dessert.