*waves* Hi there, and welcome back to 'All I Want For Christmas is a Pokémon'! Many apologies for being fairly late with this chapter...I've had a fair amount of family stuff to deal with lately, so hopefully, I'll be able to be a bit quicker with updates now.
So, to recap what happened last time: AJ told Kaitlyn that she found the ever-elusive stowaway that had been following them for so long, ...only to get news that her new little buddy may have been the cause of some property damage after Paige and Emma had a battle earlier that night. Switch over to Layla, she found herself joined by Naomi and Zack, along with their Pokémon, who want to meet "Kaitlyn's" Pikachu (what a meeting that'll be). Going back to the Chickbusters, AJ manages to make her case to Kaitlyn about not letting Stephanie know about the true identity of Pikachu as she makes quite the case for why she should keep it a secret. Feeling hesitant about this, Kaitlyn reluctantly agrees, that makes AJ happy. Now, to see if she can keep the possibly former stowaway's behavior under control.
Longish recap done, onto the chapter! And I hope you all enjoy. =)
"OK, you two. Thanks for an update on your search," Stephanie told the two crew members. Getting nods from the pair, the brunette turned and began to make her way to her office. It had been a bit of a long night searching, and unfortunately, there didn't seem to be much in the way of results in the search for the stowaway. 'I just don't get it. We've been searching for this pest for some time now, so why haven't we found it yet? Did it just leave on its own? Or has someone already done what we've been trying to do for weeks? ...This may be something I'll have to meet with the roster about before we all leave tonight.' Feeling sure about this, Stephanie pulled out her phone and sent mass text to the wrestlers that were present that night.
...
"Finally, we made it to Doctor Andrew's office," AJ said in relief as she saw the room for one of the medical personnel.
"You make it sound like you've been walking all over the place trying to find your way here," Kaitlyn laughed a bit in response to what the shorter woman said.
"Well, to be fair, I had to deal with some stuff before I could even think about coming here."
"Stuff like what?"
"Well, first, there was me finding our new little buddy here in our locker room. Then, I gave him some snacks, which seemed to help with earning his trust. Then I got stopped by Maryse just as I was walking out of our locker room, and then I ran into you and Lay…. Just a lot of stuff kept popping up in my way."
"Understandable," the two-toned woman nodded. "So, what makes you want to pay a visit to our good pal Doc Andrew?"
"I was going to see if he could maybe give Pikachu an exam. Y'know, help check him out, make sure he's not hurt or anything like that."
"Aww, that's pretty nice of you to want to do. Makes you sound like quite the responsible Trainer."
She almost stopped in place when she heard her friend say that, but AJ continued on with her walk. She was just doing what most people would probably do if they had encountered a Pokémon. She didn't really think wanting to help care for a Pokémon was a Trainer-specific behavior. So, hearing Kaitlyn say that had AJ feeling a bit more confident about a possible future where Pikachu may become her first Pokémon.
"Responsible Trainer". Pikachu hadn't been expecting to hear the human named Kaitlyn say something like that about the human named AJ. ...But, he had to admit that she was right. From what he had seen of how some other humans were with their own Pokémon, he could agree with that statement. The way the human named AJ had fed him, had talked to him, had helped calm him down, it all reminded him of what he had seen. And, if he could be honest, ...he wouldn't mind staying with the human named AJ.
"Here we are," AJ said as the trio finally reached Doctor Andrew's office. Looking down to Pikachu, she asked "Are you ready to see the doctor? Don't forget what I said. I'll be right there with you while Doctor Andrew gives you your check-up."
While there were still parts of him that wanted to try to run and hide, Pikachu instead looked up at the human named AJ and nodded as he said "Pika."
A light laugh escaping her, AJ said "That's the spirit." Turning to look over to her two-toned friend, AJ whispered "Do you think maybe I can go in here with Pikachu by myself? It's just so that I can explain everything about him to Doctor Andrew."
"Sure, I understand," Kaitlyn nodded. "Besides, chances are Layla's probably made her way back to where we were with Bulby by now. So I should probably head back that way to tell her ...some kind of lie about where you are. ...I know, I'll tell her you met up with Alex and you two had to go see Steph about something."
"That could work," AJ nodded in agreement to that. Taking a breath in before letting it out, the brunette said "Well, wish us luck."
"Good luck in there, AJ. You too, Sparky," Kaitlyn said with a smile as she used the nickname the brunette had used and ruffled the Pokémon's fur a bit, something that surprisingly got a giggle and an amused "Kaaaaa" from him.
Another light laugh escaping her, AJ reached out and grabbed hold of the doorknob before giving it a turn and slowly pushing the door open. Looking inside and seeing just the person she was coming to see, AJ said "Hey there, Doctor Andrew. How've you been this evening?"
The doctor, a man in his late 20s named Andrew Carrington, had just put what looked like a roll of gauze back into his first aid kit when he turned to look at the new arrivals to his office. "AJ, good evening! I've been doing well, just making sure I have everything packed and ready for when we finally head out again. What brings you my way this evening?"
"Well, I was wondering if you could help give a check to this Pikachu here," AJ said as she held the Pokémon in question up for Doctor Andrew to see.
"I see you've finally caught a Pokémon of your own, AJ. Congratulations!" Doctor Andrew smiled. "Bring it over here, and I'll start my examination."
"Well," AJ began as she made her way over to the doctor after she closed the door behind her. "Actually. There's a bit of a funny story here."
So, it looks like AJ finally made her way to Doctor Andrew's office. And along the way, it seems like her chat with Kaitlyn has both her and Pikachu thinking about a possible future together. Quick jump back to Stephanie, it would that another roster-wide meeting may be coming soon after another search that turned up nothing. Now back to AJ! After having made the needed introductions, now it looks like she has another hurdle in front of her, said hurdle being telling Doctor Andrew about Pikachu. And just how will this go? That shall be revealed...next time! Until then, don't forget to RR please. =)
(Stay safe, cool, and healthy out there, lovelies. *sends love and good vibes out to you all*)
