Author's Note: Been thinking about Gates to Infinity a lot lately. This is another thing that stems from the fact that I always play as a Tepig in Gates. I guess similar things could happen to any PMD Hero you choose to play as a quadrupedal Pokémon, but I find Tepig in particular interesting since it goes from lacking hands to gaining hands after evolution. Also, I guess this is kinda-sorta a companion piece to Adjusting, but this can definitely stand on its own, too.
Hands
Evolution was weird, Casey decided.
Honestly, she'd been curious to see what it felt like. Casey knew plenty of people back home who had Pokémon, so she'd seen them evolve before. Still, it wasn't something she'd seen a huge number of times, and it wasn't like she thought she'd ever do it herself.
And even then, after becoming a Tepig, it was just something that had been in the back of her head. She and Taylor had been so busy with running Paradise, going out on missions, and dealing with Kyurem that neither of them had prioritized evolution. But now that they had more time, Casey decided she wanted to try it.
It was…strange, she thought. Mostly in a good way, but it was hard to describe. The process had been fairly quick, with a lot of different feelings at once. She was larger now, and the rapid growth had felt exciting but slightly painful at the same time. Casey already felt stronger, too, but she knew it would take some time to adjust to the new form. She'd felt awkward for weeks after turning into a Tepig, after all. But—
Casey glanced down at her arms for several seconds. She had arms again! And hands!
After spending so long wishing for hands, it felt weird to actually have them again. Casey had gotten so used to not being able to pick things up the being able to do so felt foreign. And yet, she certainly wasn't complaining; now she wouldn't be so dependent on Taylor doing all of that for her.
To be honest, the first time she'd gone back to her own world, she'd spent several minutes picking up random things just because she could. It had felt ridiculous but also amazing, and Casey had decided that was the best part of being human again. Despite how much she'd missed Taylor, that was an undisputed plus.
But now…now she could do that on her own.
"Casey?"
Taylor glanced over his shoulder at her. The now-Servine had a curious yet amused look on his face. They'd gone out on a mostly-casual exploration, and both of them had evolved while they were in the dungeon. He hadn't thought much of it at all, despite looking forward to it, too. Or at least, he hadn't thought of it in quite the same way she had.
"It's nothing," she finally replied, grinning. "Let's go."
He nodded, and they rounded a few corners in the twisting hallway they'd entered. Finally, they entered another large room. Up ahead, there were several items on the ground, and—almost automatically—Casey barreled towards them.
(Admittedly, given the shape of her new Pignite body, there was little else she could do besides barrel when she moved at a quick pace. However, the surprised look Taylor gave her was amusing.)
Finally, Casey reached out and grabbed everything before Taylor had the chance to catch up with her. An Oran Berry, a Blast Seed, and a small pile of Poké; Casey held all of it, looking at everything with an oddly-pleased feeling in the back of her mind.
"…Casey? Oh." Taylor caught up with her, and he grinned and shook his head when he realized what had happened. "Honestly, I'm almost disappointed."
"…What? Why?"
He paused. "Well, it's just, you know…I…liked doing that for you? It just got to being a routine, so it's gonna be hard to shake, is all."
"For you, maybe." Casey laughed as she tucked everything into her bag. "But for me? I don't think you're going to be able to stop me from picking up everything I can, dungeon or no."
Taylor gave her a mock-dramatic sigh. "Fair enough, I suppose."
"Well, you better get used to it! Quickly, too."
He nodded, though Casey couldn't help noticing that Taylor automatically tried to pick things up for her once or twice before they left Desolate Canyon. Then, he realized what he was doing and grinned sheepishly at her. Well, she'd let him have this, she supposed; despite her own excitement, she'd gotten used to their little routine, too.
…Though Casey also thought that this was one less reason to go back to being a human full time. She should probably feel guilty for that, but she couldn't help it.
Getting to see her best friend and having hands made this world even better, after all, and Casey decided that evolution had very much been a good thing.