[Author note: Thank you all for reading especially to the reviewers ^_^ I have a few more parts written out, so I'm planning on posting them every other day. With the next chapter some more twists are coming along. I think this may extend out to around 10 or so chapters. It's fairly lengthy! Anyway, enjoy chapter 3 ~ Sakka, March 03]
You, My Love
3 - Entrance
She was back home again. She didn't know how she had gotten there, as there was no memory of a train or an airplane, but there Hanako sat, in front of her cheery faced mother and father. Everything seemed very cloudy, very foggy and hazy.
Her father leaned over and spoke to her, in a very quiet and soft voice. His words were distorted and slurry, but the girl found herself nodding. As soon as she knew it, she was at a fair, which was a blur of red and pink colors; holding hands with her mother and father. She was young again, and her parents were still together. Everything was perfect. Her mother smiled at her, and then said:
"WE GOT IN, HANAKO!! WE'RE IN!!"
Hanako awoke with a start, her green-haired friend scrambling into the living room; where Hanako had spent the night on the couch. Midori held papers in her shaking hands, a look of excitement written all over her face.
"Wh-what?" Hanako asked wearily, rubbing her eyes as she
propped herself up on the couch. "I thought we had to go back to get the results.."
"We're in! You and I made it past the form!" Midori thrust the paper into her friend's face. "Read it!!"
Hanako stifled a yawn and pushed the paper away; then turned over and snuggled deeper into her blanket. "That's great..."
"Awww, come on Hanako! You made it in!" Midori grinned as she sat down on the edge of the couch, leafing through the papers and tossing the ripped envelopes onto the coffee table. "They want us there at the same place," she read carefully. "at one." Midori checked her watch. "Geez, Hanako, it's almost lunch time! Get up!"
Hanako protested but finally arose. "All right, all right," she grumbled and went to the bathroom to take a shower.
After they left the small apartment, they ate lunch and then headed down the street to the familiar alley. Once they stepped in the doors, Hanako realized how selective the executives must have been. About one-fourth of the milling crowd was there, standing in little groups all around the sparse room. All the folding tables were gone except one, which had a large paper box placed in the center of it.
Suddenly the doors shut and down the steps walked the petite woman from before, as Midori knew very well. She nodded at the little group and descended the short stairs, then paused. "Hello everyone, I can see that all of you are here. I'm glad that you have officially decided to join the Roketto-dan. Today will be mostly a series of tests to see if you are officially fit for this most excellent group. If you fail any of the tests you will be sent out, but I would encourage you to continue building up you and your pokemon's skills."
Hanako's face paled as soon as she heard the word "pokemon". She nudged Midori, "I don't have a Pokemon!"
Midori made a motion to stop talking and continued to watch the instructor.
"I will be observing you during these tests, and some other members will be leading the tests themselves. Each one of you who do not have a pokemon may choose a Pokeball out of this box, then all should proceed to the back through the door. If there are any questions, please talk to me. My name is Yuri." She stood next to the box and watched as each hopeful person picked out a ball from the paper box.
Midori waited as Hanako dug her hand into the box full of little red and white balls; she finally chose one and smiled as she increased it to full-size by pressing the button the front.
"I told you not to worry," the green-haired girl said as the two walked towards the back where the door was propped open, letting in a stream of light into the bare room.
"You didn't say ANYTHING," Hanako laughed. "I wonder what I got. Is there any way to find out?"
"Only if you open the ball," Midori said, fishing in her belt's pocket for a Pokeball. "I've got a Staryu."
"Wow, really?" Hanako asked. She looked at the little red and white ball. "Hmm... I think I'll keep myself in suspense."
"Yeah, she might get mad at you for opening it that soon," Midori groaned. "I know she did the first time I was here."
They were led to a large grassy field which seemed to be hidden from the rest of the world, but wasn't underground as the sun was visible. A couple trainers dressed in black Roketto-dan uniforms waited for them to cross the field.
Yuri was standing to the right of the Roketto-dan members, holding a clipboard and pencil in her arm. "Each of you should choose a trainer to battle using a one-on-one technique. The trainers are using lower-level Pokemon, so each should be fairly easy to beat. Anyone who looses, please exit. Start!"
Hanako stood in front of a trainer, who looked rather sinister. He threw out a pokeball that snapped open and revealed a Bellsprout, which didn't look very difficult at all.
Her stomach flipped into nervousness once again. 'I need to have the type difference,' she thought descisivly, as she tossed out her ball, and waited for it to spring open. Out came Ponyta, leaving Hanako relieved.
"Ponyta, use stomp!" She shouted aggressively.
The horse-like pokemon stormed over to the Bellsprout, stamping all over it and leaving it well-crumpled. But the Roketto-dan trainer retaliated.
"Bellsprout, vine whip. And aim for the legs." .
The grass Pokemon unfurled vines from its' thin body and snapped them around Ponyta, sending the Pokemon nearly toppling over.
"Ponyta!" Hanako cried, but immediately began to go back into thinking... "Okay, we can do it! Use ember!"
The white horse shot flames from it's mouth, cutting the vines and defeating the grass Pokemon.
"Hey! We won!" Hanako cried. Across the way, she could see Midori finishing up her tough battle as well. The two friends spotted each other, and Hanako gave her a thumbs-up sign.
After the battle about one third of the Roketto-dan hopefuls were excluded from continuation, due to their loss. Hanako went up to Midori during their break.
"You won, right?!" She said excitedly.
"Of course!" The green-haired girl smiled. "I have a good feeling about this time. I'm certain I'll get in."
"That's great!" Hanako took a cup full of water. "So do you know what test is next?"
"Some quiz, I think," Midori responded. "I'm not certain, they change the pattern every time."
"A quiz?" Hanako paled at the word, "I .... I wasn't very good in school.."
"Don't worry, the questions are fairly easy... and just go with your gut reaction. If you think it's false, it's false." Midori nodded knowledgeably.
---
"What color is a Pikachu's eyes..." Hanako stared down at her paper, tapping her pencil against the folding table. She rolled her eyes. 'What a stupid question,' she thought.
Suddenly, out of the blue, Yuri came up behind her. "Are you almost finished?" She stuck her wristwatch in Hanako's face, so close the student could hear the hands ticking.
"Y-yes," Hanako nodded.
"Hmmm, keep it up," Yuri nodded, then continued to walk around the room.
Hanako frantically marked 'brown' and continued on.
---
"Another match?!" The auburn-haired girl cried, looking worn out. "We just had one, a test, then two more!"
"I guess it's to strengthen your Pokemon," Midori replied. "Hey, we've gotten this far. I'm proud of you!" She patted Hanako's shoulder. "My first time; I was bombed on the test. That stupid Pikachu eye-color question." She shrugged her shoulders. "Who knows!"
Hanako laughed nervously. "I'm sorry about my complaining. You were right! Even trying out for the Roketto-dan gives me... a feeling of freedom, I guess. I'm out on my own!"
Midori smiled, then turned to look on the sheet that told who they would be battling against. "OH -! Hanako-chan, we're going against some Rocket executives-!" Her features took on a dreamy look. "I wonder if that guy from before will be there..."
---
Six tests. Two more to go. Hanako kept repeating those two sentences in her head, until they echoed endlessly. The next test was a sprint. All people who finished before a certain time limit would go on.
"What?!" Hanako exclaimed. "This isn't a field day, it's..."
"One of their tests," Midori finished up. "It's pretty easy, I wonder why they have a running
race though!"
After the sprint, which had left only about ten people still in (including Midori and Hanako), there was an announcement made by Yuri. She stood up on a podium and cleared her throat.
"After you complete your final test, you will be officially allowed into the Roketto-dan. After that, the inauguration ceremony will be held on that night, with all the new members specially selected from around the region being congratulated by Madame Boss herself."
A slight murmur of excitement arose within the small crowd.
"If by some chance you do not make it," Yuri continued on, peering down at Hanako and Midori specifically, "You are ALWAYS welcome to try out again. We will notify you through mail. You may have a half-hour break." She stepped down from the podium with a bittersweet smile.
"I'm so excited." Hanako whispered. "And so nervous."
Midori sat down on the grass, pulling her single Pokeball from her belt. "What did you get?"
Hanako knelt onto the green, opening her Pokeball, letting the Ponyta out. "I'm so happy I got Ponyta... she was exactly what I needed to go into the Roketto-dan."
Midori grinned. "Ohh, I love fire types!" She opened hers, showing a Staryu. "But water types are what I like best. I got Staryu the first time I tried out."
Hanako looked in awe at the pokemon, "I've actually never been this close to any sort of Pokemon. My.. my father had a few, but they weren't anything exciting, just to protect the family."
"Oh, well in this sort of business, you'll -have- to get up close with Pokemon." Midori commented.
They talked for some time; until they heard over a loudspeaker that the final test would be coming up. "Your test will be to successfully steal a Pokemon from a major company with your partner, and turn it in by six o clock. That is all."
Hanako nodded to Midori. "That's it," she said. "So where should we start?"
---
It was nearing sunset, as the fall days grew shorter and shorter. Hanako and Midori leaned out from behind a building, then withdrew back into the alley.
"Looks good. We're going to go grab that guard Pokemon at the bank..." Midori scribbled it on a sheet of paper. "I wish they didn't make us take this all down," she grumbled.
Hanako stretched. "I'm really nervous... what if we mess up and end up getting arrested?"
"I dunno... it's happened, though," Midori said, not realizing how nervous her friend was. "Okay, let's go."
The two girls walked to the bank, trying to look unsuspicious, and then entered. The bank was very busy, which was good for the two. Down the hall beside the main desk was a door, which opened to a long hall; leading down to corner that turned to the vault, where a Machamp stood guard.
"It's only a Machamp?" Hanako whispered to her green-haired friend.
"I guess they didn't need that much protection. This should be fairly easy," Midori added her comment to the paper.
They slid by the desk, thankfully unnoticed, shutting the door silently behind them. But all of a sudden Midori stopped dead in her tracks. "Wait," she muttered. She flicked off a lightswitch and pointed down the hall into the darkness. Tiny, thin streaks of red beams were scattered across the hall.
"Great," the green-haired girl whispered sarcastically, as she flipped the lights back on, "Wait. Here's a keypad... let's try smashing it and hopefully that'll kill the system!" She lifted her leg and slammed her foot into the pad; it sparked and sputtered before dying. The lights flickered slightly, but as Midori turned them off again, the reddish pink beams still were running.
"Someone's going to have to unplug the security system," she muttered.
Hanako nodded. "Okay, I'll do it." She winked at her friend and left the hall, darting through a crowd of people. She discovered another door which was in the far back, near the bathrooms and break room, but this one was locked with a card slider. Hanako groaned.
"Hey! What are you doing back there?"
The auburn-haired girl whirled around, to see a ticked-off bank worker staring at the younger girl.
"You aren't supposed to be here, especially tampering with that door!" Her red lips thinned into a line. "I'm calling the guards," she shot at Hanako, picking up the receiver of a conveniently placed phone, that was mounted on the wall.
Hanako frantically looked around. Her worst nightmare was coming true - being caught by guards. Suddenly, she lunged at the bank girl and hit her on the head with the phone receiver. The lady fell unconscious.
Hanako winced. "I hope she'll be okay... err, oh well," she dragged the girl into the bathroom and swiped her uniform, leaving the unconscious woman only in her underwear in a stall. Hanako changed quickly and was thankful to find the keycard laying right in her pocket.
She stepped out, then slid the card and entered the number that was on the side of the card. She was in. The room was damp and dimly lit by a single lightbulb, it seemed to be the 'storage shed' of the bank. At the far end she saw the wire box, and opened it, then snapped the wire that read "Security system" running down it's sides. The lights flickered once again, but Hanako was on her way out.
The auburn-haired girl arrived breathlessly to the back door. Midori stared at Hanako. "What happened to you?!"
"I.. ran into some trouble," Hanako said breathing heavily.
"Well fine, let's get this job over with. I've been having weird visions that the door opens and it's not you," Midori shook her head. The two headed down the hallway, finally arriving only to see a sleeping Machamp.
"Wha-?! We did ALL that for this?!" Midori exclaimed quietly, hoping not to wake the asleep pokemon.
Hanako groaned. "Great.. ugh, well, let's just capture him and get it over with." They tapped the Machamp with a pokeball, capturing it without any struggle.
They ran down the hall, and Hanako opened the door only to find the manager standing with his back turned, talking to a customer. He turned around. "Oh Misao!" He said, thinking Hanako was the bank worker she had knocked out, "I'm glad you are here, is it your break?"
"Y-yes sir," she stuttered, her face trying not to reveal her panicking.
"Okay. Oh hello, you must be her friend," the man nodded to Midori. "Enjoy looking around!"
The two ran out the doors, letting out a sigh of relief.
"I feel a little guilty now," Hanako groaned.
"Well don't! It's just a bank! Besides, they can always get a replacement Pokemon, right?" Midori nodded to Hanako. "It's all for the glory of Roketto-dan!" She said triumphantly.
---
You, My Love
3 - Entrance
She was back home again. She didn't know how she had gotten there, as there was no memory of a train or an airplane, but there Hanako sat, in front of her cheery faced mother and father. Everything seemed very cloudy, very foggy and hazy.
Her father leaned over and spoke to her, in a very quiet and soft voice. His words were distorted and slurry, but the girl found herself nodding. As soon as she knew it, she was at a fair, which was a blur of red and pink colors; holding hands with her mother and father. She was young again, and her parents were still together. Everything was perfect. Her mother smiled at her, and then said:
"WE GOT IN, HANAKO!! WE'RE IN!!"
Hanako awoke with a start, her green-haired friend scrambling into the living room; where Hanako had spent the night on the couch. Midori held papers in her shaking hands, a look of excitement written all over her face.
"Wh-what?" Hanako asked wearily, rubbing her eyes as she
propped herself up on the couch. "I thought we had to go back to get the results.."
"We're in! You and I made it past the form!" Midori thrust the paper into her friend's face. "Read it!!"
Hanako stifled a yawn and pushed the paper away; then turned over and snuggled deeper into her blanket. "That's great..."
"Awww, come on Hanako! You made it in!" Midori grinned as she sat down on the edge of the couch, leafing through the papers and tossing the ripped envelopes onto the coffee table. "They want us there at the same place," she read carefully. "at one." Midori checked her watch. "Geez, Hanako, it's almost lunch time! Get up!"
Hanako protested but finally arose. "All right, all right," she grumbled and went to the bathroom to take a shower.
After they left the small apartment, they ate lunch and then headed down the street to the familiar alley. Once they stepped in the doors, Hanako realized how selective the executives must have been. About one-fourth of the milling crowd was there, standing in little groups all around the sparse room. All the folding tables were gone except one, which had a large paper box placed in the center of it.
Suddenly the doors shut and down the steps walked the petite woman from before, as Midori knew very well. She nodded at the little group and descended the short stairs, then paused. "Hello everyone, I can see that all of you are here. I'm glad that you have officially decided to join the Roketto-dan. Today will be mostly a series of tests to see if you are officially fit for this most excellent group. If you fail any of the tests you will be sent out, but I would encourage you to continue building up you and your pokemon's skills."
Hanako's face paled as soon as she heard the word "pokemon". She nudged Midori, "I don't have a Pokemon!"
Midori made a motion to stop talking and continued to watch the instructor.
"I will be observing you during these tests, and some other members will be leading the tests themselves. Each one of you who do not have a pokemon may choose a Pokeball out of this box, then all should proceed to the back through the door. If there are any questions, please talk to me. My name is Yuri." She stood next to the box and watched as each hopeful person picked out a ball from the paper box.
Midori waited as Hanako dug her hand into the box full of little red and white balls; she finally chose one and smiled as she increased it to full-size by pressing the button the front.
"I told you not to worry," the green-haired girl said as the two walked towards the back where the door was propped open, letting in a stream of light into the bare room.
"You didn't say ANYTHING," Hanako laughed. "I wonder what I got. Is there any way to find out?"
"Only if you open the ball," Midori said, fishing in her belt's pocket for a Pokeball. "I've got a Staryu."
"Wow, really?" Hanako asked. She looked at the little red and white ball. "Hmm... I think I'll keep myself in suspense."
"Yeah, she might get mad at you for opening it that soon," Midori groaned. "I know she did the first time I was here."
They were led to a large grassy field which seemed to be hidden from the rest of the world, but wasn't underground as the sun was visible. A couple trainers dressed in black Roketto-dan uniforms waited for them to cross the field.
Yuri was standing to the right of the Roketto-dan members, holding a clipboard and pencil in her arm. "Each of you should choose a trainer to battle using a one-on-one technique. The trainers are using lower-level Pokemon, so each should be fairly easy to beat. Anyone who looses, please exit. Start!"
Hanako stood in front of a trainer, who looked rather sinister. He threw out a pokeball that snapped open and revealed a Bellsprout, which didn't look very difficult at all.
Her stomach flipped into nervousness once again. 'I need to have the type difference,' she thought descisivly, as she tossed out her ball, and waited for it to spring open. Out came Ponyta, leaving Hanako relieved.
"Ponyta, use stomp!" She shouted aggressively.
The horse-like pokemon stormed over to the Bellsprout, stamping all over it and leaving it well-crumpled. But the Roketto-dan trainer retaliated.
"Bellsprout, vine whip. And aim for the legs." .
The grass Pokemon unfurled vines from its' thin body and snapped them around Ponyta, sending the Pokemon nearly toppling over.
"Ponyta!" Hanako cried, but immediately began to go back into thinking... "Okay, we can do it! Use ember!"
The white horse shot flames from it's mouth, cutting the vines and defeating the grass Pokemon.
"Hey! We won!" Hanako cried. Across the way, she could see Midori finishing up her tough battle as well. The two friends spotted each other, and Hanako gave her a thumbs-up sign.
After the battle about one third of the Roketto-dan hopefuls were excluded from continuation, due to their loss. Hanako went up to Midori during their break.
"You won, right?!" She said excitedly.
"Of course!" The green-haired girl smiled. "I have a good feeling about this time. I'm certain I'll get in."
"That's great!" Hanako took a cup full of water. "So do you know what test is next?"
"Some quiz, I think," Midori responded. "I'm not certain, they change the pattern every time."
"A quiz?" Hanako paled at the word, "I .... I wasn't very good in school.."
"Don't worry, the questions are fairly easy... and just go with your gut reaction. If you think it's false, it's false." Midori nodded knowledgeably.
---
"What color is a Pikachu's eyes..." Hanako stared down at her paper, tapping her pencil against the folding table. She rolled her eyes. 'What a stupid question,' she thought.
Suddenly, out of the blue, Yuri came up behind her. "Are you almost finished?" She stuck her wristwatch in Hanako's face, so close the student could hear the hands ticking.
"Y-yes," Hanako nodded.
"Hmmm, keep it up," Yuri nodded, then continued to walk around the room.
Hanako frantically marked 'brown' and continued on.
---
"Another match?!" The auburn-haired girl cried, looking worn out. "We just had one, a test, then two more!"
"I guess it's to strengthen your Pokemon," Midori replied. "Hey, we've gotten this far. I'm proud of you!" She patted Hanako's shoulder. "My first time; I was bombed on the test. That stupid Pikachu eye-color question." She shrugged her shoulders. "Who knows!"
Hanako laughed nervously. "I'm sorry about my complaining. You were right! Even trying out for the Roketto-dan gives me... a feeling of freedom, I guess. I'm out on my own!"
Midori smiled, then turned to look on the sheet that told who they would be battling against. "OH -! Hanako-chan, we're going against some Rocket executives-!" Her features took on a dreamy look. "I wonder if that guy from before will be there..."
---
Six tests. Two more to go. Hanako kept repeating those two sentences in her head, until they echoed endlessly. The next test was a sprint. All people who finished before a certain time limit would go on.
"What?!" Hanako exclaimed. "This isn't a field day, it's..."
"One of their tests," Midori finished up. "It's pretty easy, I wonder why they have a running
race though!"
After the sprint, which had left only about ten people still in (including Midori and Hanako), there was an announcement made by Yuri. She stood up on a podium and cleared her throat.
"After you complete your final test, you will be officially allowed into the Roketto-dan. After that, the inauguration ceremony will be held on that night, with all the new members specially selected from around the region being congratulated by Madame Boss herself."
A slight murmur of excitement arose within the small crowd.
"If by some chance you do not make it," Yuri continued on, peering down at Hanako and Midori specifically, "You are ALWAYS welcome to try out again. We will notify you through mail. You may have a half-hour break." She stepped down from the podium with a bittersweet smile.
"I'm so excited." Hanako whispered. "And so nervous."
Midori sat down on the grass, pulling her single Pokeball from her belt. "What did you get?"
Hanako knelt onto the green, opening her Pokeball, letting the Ponyta out. "I'm so happy I got Ponyta... she was exactly what I needed to go into the Roketto-dan."
Midori grinned. "Ohh, I love fire types!" She opened hers, showing a Staryu. "But water types are what I like best. I got Staryu the first time I tried out."
Hanako looked in awe at the pokemon, "I've actually never been this close to any sort of Pokemon. My.. my father had a few, but they weren't anything exciting, just to protect the family."
"Oh, well in this sort of business, you'll -have- to get up close with Pokemon." Midori commented.
They talked for some time; until they heard over a loudspeaker that the final test would be coming up. "Your test will be to successfully steal a Pokemon from a major company with your partner, and turn it in by six o clock. That is all."
Hanako nodded to Midori. "That's it," she said. "So where should we start?"
---
It was nearing sunset, as the fall days grew shorter and shorter. Hanako and Midori leaned out from behind a building, then withdrew back into the alley.
"Looks good. We're going to go grab that guard Pokemon at the bank..." Midori scribbled it on a sheet of paper. "I wish they didn't make us take this all down," she grumbled.
Hanako stretched. "I'm really nervous... what if we mess up and end up getting arrested?"
"I dunno... it's happened, though," Midori said, not realizing how nervous her friend was. "Okay, let's go."
The two girls walked to the bank, trying to look unsuspicious, and then entered. The bank was very busy, which was good for the two. Down the hall beside the main desk was a door, which opened to a long hall; leading down to corner that turned to the vault, where a Machamp stood guard.
"It's only a Machamp?" Hanako whispered to her green-haired friend.
"I guess they didn't need that much protection. This should be fairly easy," Midori added her comment to the paper.
They slid by the desk, thankfully unnoticed, shutting the door silently behind them. But all of a sudden Midori stopped dead in her tracks. "Wait," she muttered. She flicked off a lightswitch and pointed down the hall into the darkness. Tiny, thin streaks of red beams were scattered across the hall.
"Great," the green-haired girl whispered sarcastically, as she flipped the lights back on, "Wait. Here's a keypad... let's try smashing it and hopefully that'll kill the system!" She lifted her leg and slammed her foot into the pad; it sparked and sputtered before dying. The lights flickered slightly, but as Midori turned them off again, the reddish pink beams still were running.
"Someone's going to have to unplug the security system," she muttered.
Hanako nodded. "Okay, I'll do it." She winked at her friend and left the hall, darting through a crowd of people. She discovered another door which was in the far back, near the bathrooms and break room, but this one was locked with a card slider. Hanako groaned.
"Hey! What are you doing back there?"
The auburn-haired girl whirled around, to see a ticked-off bank worker staring at the younger girl.
"You aren't supposed to be here, especially tampering with that door!" Her red lips thinned into a line. "I'm calling the guards," she shot at Hanako, picking up the receiver of a conveniently placed phone, that was mounted on the wall.
Hanako frantically looked around. Her worst nightmare was coming true - being caught by guards. Suddenly, she lunged at the bank girl and hit her on the head with the phone receiver. The lady fell unconscious.
Hanako winced. "I hope she'll be okay... err, oh well," she dragged the girl into the bathroom and swiped her uniform, leaving the unconscious woman only in her underwear in a stall. Hanako changed quickly and was thankful to find the keycard laying right in her pocket.
She stepped out, then slid the card and entered the number that was on the side of the card. She was in. The room was damp and dimly lit by a single lightbulb, it seemed to be the 'storage shed' of the bank. At the far end she saw the wire box, and opened it, then snapped the wire that read "Security system" running down it's sides. The lights flickered once again, but Hanako was on her way out.
The auburn-haired girl arrived breathlessly to the back door. Midori stared at Hanako. "What happened to you?!"
"I.. ran into some trouble," Hanako said breathing heavily.
"Well fine, let's get this job over with. I've been having weird visions that the door opens and it's not you," Midori shook her head. The two headed down the hallway, finally arriving only to see a sleeping Machamp.
"Wha-?! We did ALL that for this?!" Midori exclaimed quietly, hoping not to wake the asleep pokemon.
Hanako groaned. "Great.. ugh, well, let's just capture him and get it over with." They tapped the Machamp with a pokeball, capturing it without any struggle.
They ran down the hall, and Hanako opened the door only to find the manager standing with his back turned, talking to a customer. He turned around. "Oh Misao!" He said, thinking Hanako was the bank worker she had knocked out, "I'm glad you are here, is it your break?"
"Y-yes sir," she stuttered, her face trying not to reveal her panicking.
"Okay. Oh hello, you must be her friend," the man nodded to Midori. "Enjoy looking around!"
The two ran out the doors, letting out a sigh of relief.
"I feel a little guilty now," Hanako groaned.
"Well don't! It's just a bank! Besides, they can always get a replacement Pokemon, right?" Midori nodded to Hanako. "It's all for the glory of Roketto-dan!" She said triumphantly.
---