Pretzels and Pineapples

Taron ran through the more thickly gathered trees toward the nearest Pokémon Center, which happened to only be another football field away. Bentley was forced to slow down to his speed to keep an eye on him; the trees were too dense for him to swoop down. If he could, Katy would have commanded it. She didn't care about not scaring him anymore. Or not hurting him for that matter.

The thief ran inside the Pokémon Center, still as fast as he could go. How stupid was he? Katy jumped off when they were close enough to the ground and darted for the door. She bumped harshly into a man who was coming out and offered a rushed "'Scuse me!" as she kept going.

The Pokémon Center was fairly busy, even out in this location that was a good ways off from the nearest road or trail. She quickly scanned over the people inside before shouting to acquire the attention of everyone inside. "A boy just ran in here, just now. Where did he go? He stole from me."

Some trainer's Quagsire stared at her with a dumb open mouth and a Staraptor ruffled its feathers unpleasantly. Thankfully a police officer stepped toward her. "Was he tall? Young?"

"Yes! Teenager, gangly—we had a battle, I won, and the Points transaction failed and he took off."

"I saw him make a beeline straight for the bathroom," she said, unsheathing her nightstick. "I'll take care of it, ma'am."

"Thank you, thank you so much," Katy said as the police officer made her way to the bathrooms. Now the trainer stood there awkwardly among the other patrons, who had mostly gone on about their business, with the exception of a couple Pokémon still concerned about her, like the Sligoo who watched her, frozen like a statue. "Sorry," Katy whispered to the sticky thing. It just blinked at her and made some kind of trilling sound.

Soon enough, the police officer returned with the boy in tow by the arm. She didn't have him in cuffs, but she sure had a firm grip. "Do you owe this young lady Trainer Points?" she asked him.

"I guess," he said defensively, as if he had only a small idea of what he did wrong.

"I'm going to need to see some identification." She let go of his arm to allow him to reach into his back pocket and pull out his wallet. He handed over his license, driver's or keeper's, Katy couldn't tell. "Your parents know where you are, Michael?"

"Michael?" Katy said, "His trainer's brace said his name was Taron."

The kid grimaced. Now he knew exactly how much trouble he was in.

"Let's see your brace."

Begrudgingly, the kid tapped the screen of the device on his arm to show his profile to the officer.

The woman looked over it vacantly before she said, "Did you steal this from Taron McCallister?"

"No!" said Michael, "I just found it!"

"Do you understand how serious it is to take and use someone else's trainer's brace as if it's your own?" she asked.

"I didn't take anything! I told you I found it—it was in the garbage!"

"Sir, do you have a keeper's license," the officer went on. The license he showed her must have been his driver's then.

"No," he admitted. Oh hell. Double whammy. Now they had all visitors and staff of the Pokémon Center's attention.

"Do you carry a Pokémon with you right now?"

"Yes," he caved. He must have figured he was past the point of being able to get away with lies. The first smart thing he'd done. He drew the Poké Ball out of his pocket when the officer held her hand out for it. She proceeded to ask to whom the Pokémon belonged, and Michael admitted it was his older brother's. When she announced that she would need to confiscate the creature until it could be returned, Katy spoke up.

"It needs treatment first. Please."

The officer actually smiled at her. "I'll make sure of it. All right, Michael. I say we better head home to Mom and Dad. And, ma'am, what was your name?"

"Katy, officer."

"Katy. Let me register you so I can make sure you get your Points."

The trainer smiled. "Thank you," She stuck her arm out and tapped the screen on her brace. She scrolled through all the trainers in her proximity to the picture that looked like this officer. When "REGISTER" showed up, they both pressed it on their respective screens. Katy thanked her once again before the officer escorted the thief out to her Pokémon that had to be garbed in police department wear. She must have missed it. Honestly, there could have been a shiny Pokémon standing in the middle of the walkway and she would have missed it, so set on catching this guy. Which reminded her of the man she nearly Bulldozed on the way in. Katy went outside, being careful to step around a Sentret that scurried past her feet into the building.

When she saw him, she knew right away he was the man she bumped. He was sitting at a picnic table with an open Tupperware container in front of him, picking at a piece of something in his fingers. Katy noted for a moment that this was a guy that she really didn't want to miss. It might have been the fuzzy Volcarona that was attached to his back, or it might have been his broad shouldered, burly, rugged appearance complete with delightful shaggy dark hair, clean and layered. Katy wasn't the only one that noticed him, apparently, because when she saw him tear a piece off of whatever it was he had in his fingers, he stretched his arm out beside him to her very own Raichu who took it carefully in her tiny clawed paws and began to nibble. At least now Katy had another reason to approach him. "Banksy, don't be filching food off of people!" Katy scolded not too seriously.

"It's okay. I offered," said the man. Now Katy could see he held dried pineapple in his fingers, his container full of it. He held one over his shoulder and his Volcarona's creepy little mouth-fingers took hold and pushed it into its mouth.

"Well, thank you, that was very kind of you." Katy beckoned Bentley over. "That was you I ran into a while ago, wasn't it?"

The man looked up, as if he would actually have to confirm her features to answer her question. "Guess so." He looked back down to his container and found a pretzel for himself.

"I'm really sorry about that," she said, "A kid had just took off after losing a battle and his Points didn't transfer over to me. I was in a hurry to catch him and I wasn't paying attention."

"'S all right."

Katy shifted her weight a little. She wasn't ready to end the conversation. He was older, but he was still very handsome. "Thanks… Yeah, turns out he stole that trainer's brace. Found it in a garbage can somewhere, says him. Taron McCallister is who it really belongs to."

The man looked up. "Taron McCallister?"

"Yeah. Do you know him?"

He didn't answer right away. Instead, he scratched the back of his neck where his Volcarona had been lightly tickling with its mouth. "He found it in a garbage can?"

"Well, that's what he said, but I don't know. Don't think you can trust the kid as far as you could throw him—"

"Where."

Katy blinked. "I don't know. He didn't say, I didn't ask. I just wanted my Points."

The guy rubbed the short scruff on his jaw. "… What's the kid's name who found it?"

"Michael."

"Michael what," he said almost irritably.

Katy became irritable back. Now he wasn't as attractive as he was a moment ago. "I don't know, I didn't ask. I just wanted my Points."

He sighed and looked around her. He nodded down the part in the grass where the officer must have taken the boy. "They just leave on that Togekiss?"

"I guess," Katy replied, now answering like he did when the conversation began. But he rubbed his mouth again. She wanted to ask him why he cared so much, but it was apparent that wasn't a question he was going to answer. Instead, she offered the best she could. "Listen: I registered the officer in my brace. I'm sure she'll be trying to find the rightful owner of the trainer's brace and she will know where he found it after she questions him."

He watched her, the Volcarona on his shoulder now pulling tufts of his dark hair into its mouth.

"If you want, I can register you and when she lets me know, I'll let you know."

The man seemed like he really had to consider this for a moment. But finally nodded. "All right. Thank you." When he went to tap his brace's screen, so did Katy. Since he was the closest in proximity to her, his profile was at the top. She tapped his picture, in which he was expectedly not smiling, and pressed "REGISTER." He did the same.

"Okay. Well, I'll be sending you a message later."

"Thanks. I appreciate it." He went back to his pretzels and pineapples.

Katy was going to wave goodbye, but then decided against it. Instead, she mounted Bentley's saddle and waited for Banksy to jump up in front of her, then took to the sky. Along the way to their next destination, she checked the newest profile on her registry list.

William Milord.