"Could you stop doing push-ups for… maybe a little bit?" Jasmine shielded her eyes with a hand, hiding her face.

The officers of Azalea town only had a single holding cell. Crime was usually non-existent in the quaint little forest town, so having actual people needing to be incarcerated due to property destruction was a rare occurrence. Jasmine paced around on the tips of her toes, bouncing around like a Spoink with ADHD. Thad handled it like every situation: flexing.

"But, Jazzy! Think of the gains!" Thad lowered himself again, perfect form as he raised himself back up. His breathing was slightly labored and a thin veneer of sweat had graced his brow. "You do realize prison is one of the best places to get jacked, right? We need to take advantage. Now, drop down and join me."

Jasmine's lips became a thin line, holding back a silent scream. "But I don't want to get in shape! I want to not go to prison!"

"We'll be fine," Thad said nonchalantly. "Don't you have connections being a gym leader and all? Not to mention isn't your family hot shit?"

"It's, uh, complicated." Jasmine dug her hands into the shallow pockets of her yellow and silver summer romper. "But, I'd rather not rely on favors. Especially from my family. I'll just have to deal with whatever repercussions come. It was my fault for not being more specific with Rusty and Shuca."

Thad paused mid push-up and looked over, raising an eyebrow. "Shuca?"

"My Excadrill," Jasmine said. "He's kind of a sucker for those berries, so I named him after them."

Thad nodded and scooted his hands together to begin his set of diamond push-ups. "I gotcha. Once knew a powerlifter bro at my local gym named Dorito. That dude was an absolute unit."

Jasmine squinted her eyes. "What's a Dorito?"

"Don't worry about it. It's just carbs, Jazzy," Thad heartily chuckled.

Jasmine groaned and slumped to the floor. She bundled her legs up to her chest and wrapped her arms around her shins. Content to be on the ground, Thad looked onward past the bars at the narrow walkway and doors flanking the containment room. He gave the bars a brief strength test, then let out a sigh and sat down. He'd caused enough mayhem for one day.

They sat for another hour in uncomfortable silence. Without their Pokemon, only the faint hum of the air conditioning filled the room as Jasmine kept herself wide-eyed and tense, awaiting whatever judgment to pass, while Thad decided to get in a power nap; the optimal 45 minutes of downtime followed by some meditation to clear his unhurried mind.

The door to the rest of the station opened, and Jasmine clumsily bounded to her feet. Thad slowly opened his eyes and stood up whilst brushing himself off. Flanked by one of the officers they met earlier, and a teenager with messy lavender hair, a pale green bug catcher's outfit with a yellow tie, and a net slung over his shoulder.

"Alright, you can release them now. I'll take it from here," the teenager instructed, and the police officer hastily pulls out his keys and unlocks the barred door.

"Bugsy!" Jasmine shouted. "I can't thank you enough for this. I'll be sure to pay for the damages!"

The thin gym leader nodded and gestured for the two to follow him. "I, uh, yeah I figured as much. But that's not why you're getting out early. Come get your stuff then we can talk outside the building."

Thad leaned over to Jasmine, nudging her gently in the side with his elbow. "Alternative motives. Saw this on a TV show once."

"Bugsy is a good person, I doubt he's doing anything nefarious," Jasmine replied, her nose pitched in the air. "Besides, it's 'ulterior motives' not 'alternative motives'."

"Watch a lot of crime dramas?"

"...Maybe." Jasmine let out a huff and gently fixed her hair. "Let's just go hear Bugsy out and get our Pokemon back. It feels wrong to be without them."

"True dat, Jazzy," Thad complied, opening the door to the evidence division.

Thad squinted his eyes as he stepped out into the evening light. The rays pierced through the thick canopy that surrounded Azalea town and withheld an exotic aroma of flowers and herbs. He inhaled deeply, his hand patting the Pokeballs on his belt as he walked to create more distance between him and the police department.

He'd paid the 10,000 Pokedollars in damages to the department upon departure, splitting the cost with Jasmine despite her insistence that she pay the whole sum. The earnings from Thadmania now felt like a fever dream as his wallet was considerably lighter.

It didn't take long for Thad to spot Jasmine, who had run out before him, talking with the younger Bug-type trainer. He had his arms crossed and his lips formed a thin line as Jasmine seemed ready to pull her hair out. Thad chuckled and hustled forth, curious about the action.

"Whoa there, what's shaking folks?"

Jasmine whirled around, her face scrunched up in frustration. "Bugsy has a mission for us. He's blackmailing us."

"It's not blackmail. You're being overdramatic," Bugsy said, massaging his temples. "I just need someone to go into the Slowpoke Well and see why our water flow has been reduced."

"That doesn't seem too bad," Thad rubbed his chin and hummed. "You don't have a plumber?"

Bugsy waved for them to follow him down the main drag of Azalea town. "Follow me, I'll show you."

Jasmine saddled up beside Thad, her eyes narrowed on her fellow gym leader. "Bugsy is trying to get us to go do the dirty sewer work. Johto doesn't have a water specialist, and he's notoriously scared of the dark. I hear he didn't help when Team Rocket invaded it months ago."

"Yeesh," Thad muttered. "And this lil dude is the guy in charge?"

"He's a good trainer and helps keep the forests intact," Jasmine rattled off. "His family is largely into nature conservation, and Azalea town isn't a large port or metro to keep steady, unlike Goldenrod, Olivine, or even Blackthorn. It's a rather...comfortable post."

The pavement underneath their feet gave way to fertile grass as they followed Bugsy, keeping their voices low enough to not carry. Thad nodded at Jasmine's dismay, but thought, It's still a rather sweet deal we gotta outta jail for some handyman work. Also, what town doesn't have a plumber?

"We're nearly there," Bugsy said, pointing toward a large trench off to the left side of the path. "Just be careful going down. The ladder should still be intact. I'm sure you two can figure out the problem."

"And what will you be doing...?" Jasmine asked, raising an eyebrow.

Bugsy blinked, almost caught off guard by Jasmine's tone. "Uh, fixing all the damage you did in the Ilex Forest? I'm just dividing up our skill sets. No need to get confrontational."

Jazzy is pissed about something. Thad pulled Jasmine along by her elbow and waved at the Bug-type specialist. "We'll be in and out quick as heck, bro!"

Thad continued to drag Jasmine along until Bugsy was well out of earshot. They stood near the top of the ladder until Jasmine wrenched herself free.

"What was that?" Jasmine asked, massaging her reddened elbow. "You don't need to pull too hard."

"I called an audible, Jazzy," Thad breathed out, sounding a bit exhausted. "We just showed up, and you're trying to rile up the one dude that got us outta prison."

Jasmine raised a finger. "To get us to do their dirty work! And-"

"And what?" Thad crossed his arms, towering over the smaller trainer. "Look, I can see you two've got some beef. That's chill. Whatever. I'd figured you'd be happy to be out of jail, cause I am."

"Well, it's, uh, complicated." Jasmine bit her lip, casting a quick glance back toward town. "Our families don't get along, to put it simply. Conflict of interests, and this is going to have ripples."

"So let's do the job, I'll dunk on that long-haired nerd at the gym, collect a badge, and we continue on our merry way, yeah?"

"Sure," Jasmine said, her voice clipped. "I'll go down the ladder first."

Jasmine began to descend and Thad quickly followed after double-checking and strapping their travel bags to his back, sliding down the metal bars like a firefighter. He nearly landed on top of Jasmine as she hobbled out of the way for the hulking trainer. He flashed her a smile and then dug into his travel pack, pulling out a flashlight.

"Well, well, well, isn't this place huge," Thad whistled out in a low tone. "Could get lost in here pretty easily, oh," Thad pointed the flashlight down a craggy path, "I see a hole! Cave time!"

"We'll have to be careful with what Pokemon we release," Jasmine warned. "Anything too destructive and we'll collapse the tunnel on us as well as cripple Azalea's source of water."

"Right," Thad drawled, picking a Pokeball from his belt. He released the ball, revealing the rock with arms: Dwayne.

"Geo!" Dwayne bellowed, pumping his arms in the air.

"Sup, bro. We got some stuff to do here, and you're gonna help us clear the path." Thad crouched down, offering a fist bump to the sapient boulder. "Think you can handle it?"

Dwayne punched Thad's fist with his own before turning around and hopping on the ground, tossing extra rocks out of the way. They quickly cleared a path to the cave entrance, the chittering of animals and flying creatures began to swirl as Thad maneuvered the flashlight into the cavern.

"Zubats tend to nest in caves like this," Jasmine noted. She placed her hand on the flashlight, lightly pressing it downward. "Don't try to rattle them or the Golbats. Keep the light low and speak softly."

"Right," Thad whispered, tiptoeing into the cavern. Dwayne continued to roll small boulders out of the way. "Gotta say though Jazzy, it's kinda cool doing this."

"What do you mean?"

"Exploring some cave for a mystery Pokemon. Very adventure-y," Thad said in a soft voice. He covered his mouth, muting a laugh. "It's like we're straight outta Scooby-Doo or something."

Jasmine tilted her head and narrowed her eyes. "What in Arceus' name are you talking about?"

Thad waved her off. "TV show from back in the day. Good stuff, ya know? Even had a talking dog."

"Talking...dog? Like a Herdier or Growlithe?"

"No, a mutt," Thad sighed. "Wow, that's still weird to hear ya'll don't have normal animals. Damn," he scratched at the stubble on his chiseled jaw, "I didn't think I'd be missing normal dudes."

"Well, there are Normal-type Pokemon," Jasmine added in a kind tone. "But...you haven't spoken much about where you are from. Do you miss it a lot?"

Dwayne made a grunt as he moved another boulder, rolling it to the side as Thad and Jasmine trailed behind, maneuvering around the cavern. Thad kept a straight face, pondering the question.

"I'm not really sure, Jazzy," Thad said, his voice uncharacteristically unsteady. "Working out and having goals has been a distraction, but I'm having more of a blast here than I ever did back in LA."

"What about your parents? Any siblings?"

Thad grinned. "You know I won't answer that unless you're game too?" He gestured to the winding tunnel before them. "As long as we're quiet, I think we can spit some hot facts at each other."

"Sure," Jasmine said. She cleared her throat and stood as tall as she could next to Thad, her head coming up to his shoulder. "So, what was family life for you?"

"Dad was an Olympic gymnast. Mom was nationals in women's soccer," Thad replied in a lofty tone. "My sister became a physical therapist. I was wrapping up college, but had lots of external offers for sports and stuff."

Jasmine nudged Thad playfully in the ribs, shooting the towering jock a sly look. "You said what they were, not how it was for you."

"Oh, right. Well, uh, busy?" Thad said, almost as a question to himself. "Yeah...busy. Always on the run. Hell, a lot of dinners were held in the training room or the bleachers."

"Was it lonely?"

Thad shrugged. "I mean, there were always people around. Just kinda the runnin' and gunnin' life, I guess. I dug it, for what it's worth. Didn't really do my own thing until college, which was more of the same since I knew what I liked." He stretched his arms out and then steadied the flashlight. "Alright, 'nough about me. It's your turn. Why don't you like your fam?"

"I come from a large steel shipping family." Jasmine kept her eyes on the ground as they walked, almost mumbling under her breath. "Came to Johto as part of a trade deal with Olivine, since I'd always been around Pokemon since I was a kid. Ended up having a knack for it, since they were around when my parents weren't. Luckily, Johto is just far enough from Sinnoh to where I have my own space. Been a nice couple of years so far."

Thad raised an eyebrow. "Your folks ever talk with you. Any siblings?"

"No." Jasmine shook her head; her shoulders slightly slumped. "Just me. That's it."

Well, that's kinda a major bummer. Thad ducked underneath a few stalactites and then paused as he noticed a lumpy pink creature on the path. And I just found a weird dog thing. Noice.

"Ahh, it's a Slowpoke," Jasmine elated, strength returning to her downtrodden voice. "It's a pretty docile Pokemon. We should just be able to—"

A torrent of water buffeted Thad and Jasmine, soaking their outfits. Thad quickly wiped away the water from his eyes, hearing the shouts of Dwayne and the crashing of rocks around them. He instinctively gripped Jasmine by the arm and pulled her in close to his chest.

"The heck was that? I thought you said they were docile?" Thad then lowered his voice. "Wait, is that super mean and annoying? Did I have that one backward?"

Jasmine shook her soaked head of hair, her light foundation and mascara beginning to look a bit muddied. She blinked rapidly and wiped some of the sludge from her face. The rattling from the Zubats had increased and the Slowpoke from earlier had disappeared, though the likely source was from Dwayne's smoldering fist.

"Lucky the water hit us and not Dwayne," Jasmine noted, wringing out her hair. "Strange for a Slowpoke to be on the offensive."

Thad peeled off his soaked compression shirt and wrung it out quickly. "We just find the little dude and, uh, have one of our Pokemon ask 'em questions?" He tapped his chin thoughtfully. "Then again, maybe we're invading or something?"

"Let's keep going. Maybe why that Slowpoke is upset stems from the water issue?" Jasmine offered.

"Right," Thad snatched up Jasmine, tossing her over his shoulder. He tossed up the flashlight, catching it in his mouth. Dwayne turned around to see the look in his trainer's eyes and then latched onto one of Thad's muscular calves. "Eessh time to get stuff done!"

"Please don't talk with your mouth full," Jasmine sighed, not bothering to fight back. "Just make it quick and mind the rocks."

Thad bent his knees down into a squat and then rocketed forth. Using his training of track and field expertise, Thad barreled around corners and shouldered his way through rocks and rubble that lined that path. He even hurdled up a craggy cliff face, using his free hand to latch onto the edge and do a one-armed pull-up, catapulting him and his companions to the top of the small overlook.

Now we're cruising. Thad spotted a descending ladder on the flattened part of the cave, and after a glance downward with the flashlight held in his jaws, he grabbed onto one of the metal bars and slid down it with the grace of a gigolo down a stripper pole.

The second sublayer of the Slowpoke Well was even darker and smelled earthy and musty. The ground was damp and squelched a bit as he picked up his feet. Jasmine sighed but patiently kept her comments in as Thad scanned the area, his free hand hovering over his brow. Dwayne mimicked his trainer in the same fashion, looking out at any ground-level threats.

The first thing Thad noted was the sheer amount of water on this sublevel. He was standing on a small island, with a few other outcroppings of land within jumping distance. The other thing of note was the sheer amount of Slowpoke he noticed in the shallow water that dotted the cavern. There were several dozen of the bidepal Pokemon, their blank expressions all facing South.

Jasmine clambered down from Thad's shoulder, taking a moment to assess the situation. "It looks like...wow, that is a lot of Slowpoke."

"I'll say," Thad noted with his hands on his hips. He looked down at Dwayne. "Any idea what these guys are doing?"

"Geo," Dwayne grunted, his eyes squinted and arms balled up into fists. "Duuuude?"

Thad turned to Jasmine. "Yeah, I think he's confused as we are."

Jasmine began to climb down from the rocky platform and landed in the knee-deep water with a gentle splash. She saw a few Goldeen swimming around in the shallows but minding their own business.

"Let's find the source, they're all pointed this way," Jasmine pointed. "And it seems they don't mind us walking around them."

Thad carefully climbed down, suppressing the urge to yeet himself into the water. Dwayne clambered up Thad's body, gripping around his left bicep, wanting to avoid the water at all costs. "Aye, you got it, boss. Also, do these pinky dudes bite?"

"Not unless you stick your hand in their mouth or smell like cheese," Jasmine replied. She snickered as she saw Thad give himself a brief sniff. "I think you're fine."

"Just double-checking, Jazzy," Thad quietly replied. He crept forward, keeping the flashlight low, though the reflection of light off the water didn't seem to perturb the Slowpoke.

The trio trudged onward through the water, avoiding the bobbing sea of Slowpoke and Jasmine keeping Thad on track when he'd spot a Goldeen flitting by. They made it to the South end of the cavern where the group of Slowpoke was facing, and both trainers tilted their heads in confusion as they saw the pipeline and what was wedged inside of it.

"Well, he looks cozy," Thad noted, unable to hide a smile.

Jasmine found herself at a loss for words. Inside the drainage pipe to Azalea Town, wedged inside of it was the largest Quagsire she'd ever seen in her life. Nearly double the size of what they normally grew to, it filled the confines of the pipe with only its head sticking out. Mounds of berries were stockpiled in front of it. It smiled at the two humans, opening its large maw.

"Well, we found the problem," Jasmine said, her voice tense like an overly tuned harp. "It seems these Slowpoke are...watching the Quagsire be stuck in the pipe and bringing it food."

"It is more than that," A gruff and rumbly voice came from behind the group.

Thad and Jasmine whirled around, and Dwayne summoned a rock into its open palm. The creature stood roughly about six feet tall with pink skin, stubby limbs, with a spiked shell with jewels adorning its head. Jasmine blinked, a bit taken back, but Thad strode forward confidently to the Pokemon.

"Alright, first off, you can talk?" Thad asked.

The Pokemon nodded. "Yes. Are you here on behalf of the humans from above? We've been waiting for an envoy."

Thad squinted his eyes and exchanged a confused glance with Jasmine. He looked back to the talking Pokemon. "...Yes, we're the ambassadors. Come to talk about...water stuff. Like why it ain't working that well in Azalea Town."

"Ahhhh," the Pokemon hummed, closing his eyes and relishing the words. "Makes sense. We await tribute for our water priest."

"Water priest?" Jasmine quipped. She pulled Thad aside, whispering into his ear, "I think the Pokemon here have made a religion!"

"Is that normal?" Thad asked quietly back.

"No! Slowking are super rare in the wild! Even weirder that we've found a, uh, Slowpoke Cult!" Thad pressed a finger to his lips, and Jasmine cleared her throat and lowered her voice. "It's weird, Thad."

"Weird is kinda this whole world, Jazzy," Thad chuckled. He patted her on the shoulder and turned around. "Don't worry. I think I've got this."

Thad walked back to the Slowking and bowed. "Uh, hello my fellow Pokedude. So as a dude from Azalea town, we need the pipes to be clear for the water to flow, so if we could—"

"Tribute," the Slowking slowly hummed, gesturing toward the pile of food before the Quagsire. "If it pleases the water priest, he will feast and leave the pipe. I'm merely the voice for this wonderous specimen and my kin."

"Right," Thad drawled. He unslung his and Jasmine's travel sacks from his back and began rifling through the contents.

Jasmine hustled over and knelt beside Thad. "What are you looking for?"

"Something worthy of an offering—ah, here we go," Thad plucked out a container of protein, holding it up triumphantly. "I will sacrifice the greatest thing I possess to help the town. And, uh, us of course."

"Geeee!" Dwayne squealed, tugging on his trainer's shoulder. "Duu!"

Thad wiped a single tear away from his cheek. "If it keeps Jazzy out of jail and gets us out of this hole, I'll give up my protein." He looked up to the Slowking, giving the creature a determined look. "So the dude's a hungry fella?"

Slowking shrugged. "He is voracious. Our pious river lord has only left the pipe once for food since arrival. He is a fickle one."

Thad gave the Slowking one last nod and then marched toward the looming Quagsire with a canister of protein in hand. The creature's beady, vacant eyes met Thad's focused brown ones as he squared up before the behemoth and presented the canister.

A silence fell over the cavern as the Quagsire took note of the food. It leaned its rounded head forward, sniffing the contents. Thad bit his lower lip as the Pokemon extended its tongue, stealing a little bit of the powdery goodness from the container. He took a step back, trying to lure the beast further out of the pipeline.

The Quagsire wiggled forward, and with a great splash, it squeezed its body from the pipe like someone would the last bit of toothpaste from the tube. Water began to flood forth into the pipe. The rippling wave displaced many of the Slowpoke, sending them bobbing and floating on the water throughout the cavern. Thad whistled loudly as he got a full view of the large Quagsire; it stood on its flat hind feet, matching Thad's height as it lumbered forward.

"Uh, here ya go?" Thad said, handing over the protein can. The Quagsire took the can into its stubby flipper arms, and ate the protein—can and all. It then extended its tongue out, dropping the empty can.

"Sire," The Pokemon croaked in a deep, booming voice.

"Our river priest is pleased," The Slowking noted, a hint of approval lathered in the Pokemon's rough accent. "He desires more."

Jasmine watched with rapt attention as Thad carefully pulled out another can of protein. He shook the protein, getting the Quagsire's attention. "You want more of this? Come and get it." he began to creep backward and looked at Jasmine. "Let's start going back. I'mma lure this big guy with some delicious protein."

Without more explanation, Jasmine snatched the flashlight and served as a guide through the rest of the well. The Quagsire lumbered forth at a comfortable pace, with Thad keeping the protein just out of reach from the Pokemon's long, dextrous tongue. Dwayne eyed the hungry Water-type with a rock-solid stare, though it did little to intimidate the Quagsire.

Even the Zubat seemed to give the large Quagsire a wide berth as it slid across the dampened floor and crawled forth. It even used a combination of its flippers and tongue to help pull itself up the metal ladders.

When the team breached the surface, Thad let the Quagsire have its reward, tossing it the protein canister. He wiped a bead of sweat from his forehead and gave a high-five to Dwayne.

"Well, there goes a lot of money and protein," Thad grumbled lightly. "Guess we can always buy more, but damn he's a chonker."

"Wow," Jasmine said, her voice filled with awe. "I can't believe there is a Slowking in the well. That's...amazing. It must be new. I've never seen one outside of a tournament before. Do you think we should tell the town?"

"Nah, leave the Slowpoke cult to their biz. They seem chill, but," Thad said, holding back the mammoth Quagsire as far as his arms could reach, "I think this dude is still hungry. I'm all fine for sacrificing a bottle of protein, but if this dude wants my whole stash it's going to be war."

Jasmine walked over to the struggling duo, but looked at Dwayne and smiled. "Think you can help out?"

The Geodude grinned. "Geo geo!" The Rock-type unhitched himself from Thad and began to gesture and babble at the Quagsire.

"Quaaag?" The Pokemon spurted out, looking at the Geodude bouncing on the ground. It released the grapple with Thad and focused its beady eyes on the new conversation.

Thad and Jasmine watched in mild confusion as the two Pokemon bantered for a minute, going back and forth between grunts, chirps, and gestures.

Thad crossed his arms and watched the negotiations. "So...what are they saying?"

"Something along the lines of a deal," Jasmine answered, mouthing a few words under her breath. "It's...difficult to decipher, but at least the Quagsire is listening."

"How do you do that? I could only understand the Pokemon with the funny hat."

"Years and years of training," Jasmine replied. "Understanding the pitch, specific gestures, and tone of a Pokemon is important. It's being able to understand what a Pokemon means on an empathetic level."

"Like how I talk with Chad?" Thad pondered. "I always kinda know what he's thinking, though he just says 'chop' a lot."

Jasmine smirked. "Probably because you two think about very similar things, or maybe you're just more attuned to Fighting-types. I'm not a professor, but it probably is because of the bond you two share."

Good to know, Thad thought as he watched Dwayne bounce back toward him. The Quagsire watched him motionlessly, the vacant expression unsettling the jock a bit.

"Dude!" Dwayne triumphantly chirped, pumping his arms. "Duuuude!"

"Translation?" Thad asked, looking at Jasmine.

"I think he's worked out some sort of deal," Jasmine listened to more of the Geodude's babbling, nodding along. "Right. So...I think the Quagsire wants more protein powder," Dwayne nodded, "...and it'll agree to help you out in exchange."

"D-did you just recruit this absolute unit?" Thad sized up the Quagsire again. "Sheesh, that guy must eat a lot."

Jasmine nodded. "Usually Quagsire aren't that hungry, or picky, but I guess because of its unusual size it needs more food."

"Well, if he wants to get swole, he came to the right place," Thad dug an empty Pokeball from his pack and walked up to the Quagsire. He stared directly into the Pokemon's eyes with razor-sharp focus; the Pokemon didn't even flinch or blink. He held up the Pokeball. "Alright, bud, here's the deal—"

The Quagsire's tongue flew forth, coiling around the Pokeball, and ingesting it. Thad's jaw dropped as the slimy Water-type let out a small burp, and then a faint click echoed out from inside the Quagsire's gut, and it transformed into a red beam of light. The slimy Pokeball fell to the ground, jiggled once, and then remained dormant.

Thad wiped some of the slime off on the grass before putting the Pokeball on his belt. "Well, I guess we've got a new dude on Team Beefcake." He gave Dwayne a thumbs up and then returned him to his respective Pokeball. Thad's lips became a thin line as he scratched his head. "Still, protein is hella expensive and that chungus might bankrupt me."

"But we've completed our deal with Bugsy," Jasmine added, smiling. "We've still got some Pokedollars, and you've got a new Pokemon. Quagsire is a unique type, and can be quite versatile."

"Huh, neat." Thad looked up at the treeline, taking note of the vibrant rays of orange and pinkish light. "Looks like it's dusk. Get a room at the Pokemon center and take on the bug man tomorrow?"

Jasmine gave Thad a broad grin. "Sounds like a plan. But, you might want to do one last thing before we get into town," she gestured toward his Pokeballs, "What's their name going to be? Did you have one in mind?"

Thad rubbed his chin, humming lightly. "How about… Keto. Cause he's a protein junkie. Yup. That's the one."

"Well, it's certainly unique," Jasmine said, though her voice faltered a bit. "Back to town then?"

"For sure, Jazzy," Thad replied. He double-checked their bags, resecured them on his back, and then strode beside Jasmine. The backs of their hands brushed against each other as they walked back into the lamplight town, but neither made the move to grasp the other's hand.

But neither moved or brushed the other's hand away, either. Both smiled, content with a day filled with misadventures.

A/N: Wow, I have been busy. Works been ramping up more, other projects keep stealing my time, and it's been increasingly difficult to wedge in the time to write. Finally happened though, granted a little later than intended as Thad and co. get wrapped up in more shenanigans. Gym battle is next on the docket, and then some other fun stuff. Again, not trying to take the story too seriously and just have fun with it.

Oh, and Thad has Pokemon #4. whether he uses them or boxes them? Who knows :) The next one won't be for a while, so strap in. I've looked at many of the suggestions in the comments, and ya'll are onto something...

For more quality fics from tons of other talented fanfiction authors, writing advice, memes, or if you want a place to chill and/or bug me, come stop by the Fanfiction Treehouse at discord . gg / 9XG3U7a

Lastly, the fic now has a cover image that I hope accurately reflects the story, haha.

Until next time, and thanks for reading!