Boundaries

by Choice Brogan

When your Pokémon can talk, it can bring more complications than you might imagine. Particularly when she acts more human than Pokémon, and doesn't see the boundaries between you that everyone else does... This is a M/F human x Pokémon fic, that ol' weird chestnut. Rating is for language at the moment, and other things later on. More detailed summary inside.

14. Chapter 14

A/N: Oh hey guys. Long time no see, huh? I'm finally back from the store with the milk and cigs, and its only been like, what, five years? Pssh, It's like I never even left in the first place, I'm sure. Anyways, I'll leave the big meaty brunt of my rambling for the post chapter notes, as I'm sure you've all been waiting long enough for the next chapter as it is. Well, enjoy, as much as you can enjoy 15,000 more words of mostly inconsequential dialogue that probably does little to further the plot in any real meaningful way!

---

"I can't fucking believe you, Stone. I knew we shouldn't have trusted you two."

"Shit, no, dad, I can explain-"

"Oh, Stone… Don't you realize what you've done? Do you have any idea what the ramifications of you doing this are going to be?"

"N-No, I know, ma, I-"

"What the FUCK, bro?! God, I knew you were a fucking weirdo, but this… God damn, dude… I don't know if I can even associate myself with you anymore…"

"Yeah… I've taken your side on a lot of things, bro, but… This is just… Gross… I didn't think you would ever actually… Do something like that to your own Pokémon…"

"Flint, Jade, not you guys too! Please, if you would just let me explain, I-"

"The hell is there to explain, kid?! You fucked a damn Pokémon, there ain't no ifs, ands, or buts about it! And I don't care how close you and her are, it just ain't right, and you damn well knew better than to do something so disgusting! I sure as hell didn't risk my life for this country so sick degenerate freaks like you could fuck your damn Pokémon and act like there's nothin' wrong with it! You disgust me, Stone."

"B-But… Uncle Bob… I thought…"

"God… Maybe it would've been better if you had just stayed in my past, Stone. It's obvious to see you've changed for the worst and gone off the deep end. And acting like you're not doing anything wrong… You, Mr. Jesus-Is-My-Boy? You really think 'your boy' is okay with this in any way?"

"Clary…"

"Yeah… I think I'd rather have no friends here besides Mew than hang around with a… Weirdo like you, Stone… Sorry."

"And, Mr. Hardacre, this rousing condemnation of your shameful, deplorable actions have not escaped my eye, either. Certainly, there is no place at LeMaster's for such an appallingly reprehensible disgrace as you. Nor society itself, for that matter…"

"…Fuck… This… This can't be happening…"

"…Stone… I'm so sorry… I… I should've just… Kept it all inside… I… I knew this would happen… Please… Forgive me, master…"

"Fifi, n-no! D-Don't say that! This… This isn't your fault! None of this is your fault!"

"…I'm sorry, master."

"Fifi! S-Stop! W-We can still-!"

"It's too late for you, Mr. Hardacre. It's obvious that you and your Braixen cannot be allowed to remain in each other's presence. You have tainted and corrupted the sacred bond between man and Pokémon, and that cannot go unpunished. I mean, really, what'd you THINK was going to happen, you twit?"

"N-No, you can't-!"

"Say goodbye to Fifi, Stone. I told you we would deal with this if we had to, I just didn't think it would ever come to this. I can't describe how disappointed I am in you, son."

"N-NO! FIFI! G-GET AWAY FROM HER!"

"Master… It's too late…"

"NO! NO IT'S NOT! D-DON'T LET THEM DO THIS, FIFI! I LOVE YOU! I LOVE YOU SO MUCH! PLEASE, DON'T-!"

"Stone… I'm sorry, Master… I'm so, so sorry…"

"NOOO! FIFI! C-COME BACK! I CAN'T-!"

"You can't WHAT, Tardacre? You can't live without your precious little fox waifu? I fucking KNEW you were a freak! You're a worthless, self-centered creep who doesn't give a shit about anyone but himself, least of all those who you say you care about the most! If you had really ever given a shit about your stupid little fox, you never would have done something like that to her! You're her fucking trainer, you disgusting piece of shit! You really think you can justify this by saying you both love each other? You don't fucking love her, you're just taking advantage of her for your sick degenerate desires! And she sure as fuck doesn't love you, she just doesn't know any better because she's a fucking Pokémon! You think just because she can talk makes that any different? Because it doesn't. She's still a Pokémon, whether you and her like it or not, and there's no changing that fact. And even if she did truly love you with all of her stupid little heart, it still doesn't make any of this right. You can't love your Pokémon like that, Stone."

"You don't even have anything to say to that, do you, Stone? Huh, Stone? Why don't you speak up, Stone?"

"You're no son of ours, Stone."

"You're a fucking freak, Stone!"

"I can't believe I ever called you my friend, Stone!"

"You're a piece of shit, Stone!"

"You're pathetic, Stone!"

"We hate you, Stone!"

"Fuck you, Stone!"

"Die, Stone!"

"Stone!"

"STONE!"

"STO-"

GAH, JUST FUCKING STOP IT ALREADY, I-

"S-Stone…?"

"F-Fuck, no, p-please, I…!"

My words stuck in my throat as I jolted up, my consciousness flooding back to me along with my actual surroundings as I stared wide-eyed in terror straight ahead. My heart seemed ready to escape from my chest at any moment, and every inch of my exposed, uncovered torso felt drenched in a cold sweat, causing violent shivers to rack my already shaking body. All the while my head continued to reel, as the all too real cacophony of voices persisted to stab at my mind and at my soul, only fading away once my sight fell upon the one and only thing that could possibly set those two things at ease. "…Fi? You… You're not…"

Fifi's face was fraught with concern, which only deepened as I stuttered at her incoherently. She was still right beside me in our bed, and she seemed just as tense as I was, her arm having wrapped itself tightly around my own in the short time since I had awoken. Our lower halves were still hidden beneath the bunched up, haphazardly strewn covers, obscuring the pool of sin that we had created and layed in the night before. While my thoughts continued to linger, Fifi's composure returned to her quickly, her death grip relaxing as her hand reached down to meet mine and give it a gentle squeeze, her expression softening into a weary smile. "Bad dreams again, huh?"

As I stared back into those bright blue eyes, understanding and knowing as ever, words escaped me. I lifted my free arm, shakily bringing it up to her face, and brushed my hand against her velvety soft cheek, holding it there for a good moment, before pulling her into a full embrace.

"Oh, Fi…" I muttered into her neck, breathing her scent in deeply. "Thank God, you're still here…"

Fifi let out a small laugh, speaking softly into my ear. "Of course I am, silly, where else would I be?"

I shook my head into her shoulder, unable and unwilling to explain my wretched nightmare in any detail, and merely squeezed her tighter. "…I love you…"

Fifi thankfully didn't press the issue, and as I finally let go of her and leaned back into my pillow, she was quick to follow me, giving me a brief kiss, before nuzzling herself against me, sending more shivers down my spine as her soft and warm fur pushed up against my cold, naked body. She soon settled her head against my chest, looking up at me with her usual, beautiful look of adoration, and cooed softly.

"I'm right here, Stone, right where I want to be, and where I'll never leave. I love you too, you know just how much I do, and I won't let any stupid nightmares convince either of us otherwise. So don't worry." Fifi let out a soft, dreamy little giggle, falling silent soon after, our synchronized breathing becoming the only audible noise.

…This… This is… Real. I… I had sex with Fifi…

Hell yeah, you did! Holy shit, that was fucking incredible! You see why you should listen to me more often? Don't you even think of telling me that was anything less than the absolute best night of your entire miserable life. Because I'm you. So I know when you're lying.

…Great.

You know, if I were you, and, again, I am, I would be so happy right now that I'd be jumping up and down with Fifi in my arms singing my very favorite song about being in love on a Friday. So uh, why aren't you?

…Really? You don't know what possible reason I could have to be stressed out enough to be shitting my non-existent pants right now?

Jeez, how many times do I have to remind you that I'm you? I mean, duh, OF COURSE I know why you're letting yourself freak the fuck out right now, what I don't understand is why you are bothering to do so in the first place. You do realize that if anyone were to have heard you last night, that you wouldn't still be laying peacefully in bed this morning, right? The only two people who know what happened last night are you and Fifi. No one else, not your family, not your friends, NOBODY else knows a damn thing. 'Oh, but the dream!', I already hear you saying. Bruh, that's all it was, just a dream, and like Fifi just said, you can't let something as stupid and imaginary as a nightmare keep you from being happy. I want to be happy, damn it! Don't you think you've earned a break from stressing out over everything? If nothing else, don't you owe it to Fifi? If you let her see you stressing out over this, she's going to start stressing out too, and she's going to blame herself for nothing and start second guessing herself and-

Alright. I get the point.

Good. Fifi deserves to be happy, and so do you. Stop letting your negativity sabotage you and just embrace the joy that you've found in her arms. Please. For her sake and yours.

…Yeah.

You better actually mean that 'yeah', you mopey ass motherfucker.

Wow, rude.

"…Mmn… This still doesn't feel real, y'know…?" Fifi said, finally breaking the silence, her fingers still lazily caressing my collarbone as she spoke. "But waking up, still safely and comfortably in your loving embrace… A mere fantasy could never hope to match the feeling of ecstasy you've brought me… I can't put into words just how happy I am right now. To be able to share an experience as incredible as what happened last night with you, the man that I've loved for so long, my one, true soulmate, something that I never truly believed could or would ever happen in reality, it's… It's almost too much for me to handle. I have to keep pinching myself to remind me that I'm awake, and that this is… Real."

She slowly shifted back over to her side of the bed, sitting up and clasping her hands to her chest as her gaze continued to linger on me.

"Stone… I… There's so much that I want to say, so many things that I've wanted to tell you for so long, but everything is so jumbled up in my head right now… Even now, my heart is racing, and I can't stomach the thought of moving from this spot. I don't want to be so clingy… I'm trying so hard not to be… But now, more than ever, I can't bear the thought of leaving your side. I want to be with you forever, Stone. I want to show the world my love for you, I don't want to have to hide it… I'm proud to be your… Your woman."

"I'm… Pretty stoked to be your man too, Fi." I said with a lazy grin, sitting up myself to put my arm back around her. "I would be lying if I said I wasn't still clingy towards you, too. I thought I was better at hiding it, but uh, whoops, guess not… But you know, I like doting on you. It feels really good to make other people smile, and with you, that feeling intensifies more than I can ever possibly describe. It finally makes sense to me why making you happy makes me feel so… Fulfilled."

Fifi had lodged her head comfortably into the crook of my neck, and I found myself subconsciously nuzzling her ear fur as it pushed itself into my face. For the first time, I wasn't really bothered by its intrusion in the slightest…

"...I think I've probably been in love with you for longer than I ever even realized. And even then, I could never admit it to myself that I actually felt that way about you. But… How could I not have fallen for you, Fi? So many people go their whole lives wishing they could find someone who looks at them the way you look at me. I fed myself lies for so long, but the truth is, I can't resist you, Fifi. I've never been able to. I've never wanted to. I just… I… I thought I… Had to..."

Fifi let out an audible sigh, her head shifting away from me as she looked away awkwardly. "...I… Um..."

I quickly cut her off before she got the wrong idea. "Oh, Fi, please, don't apologize, for any reason. There's no going back now, for either of us, and that's a good thing. That means neither of us has to hide anything from each other anymore, and it feels like a weight has been lifted off of my chest, one that's been weighing me down for far, far too long. It sucks that we have to hide this from literally everybody else, but hey, pretty much everyone has some sort of dirty little secret that they wouldn't want anyone else to ever find out about, and that includes any dipshit that would judge us over ours. Besides, ain't nothing dirty about our secret in the first place, our love is as pure and clean as a germophobe's asscrack, baby!"

Fifi's reactionary snort was like music to my ears.

"...You're lucky I know you enough to realize how incredibly sweet that sentiment was rather than just being weird as fuck."

"You know I always save my sweetest words for you, Feefs."

"Good. Please, don't ever change, Stone. Others may think you're a weirdo, but you're my weirdo, and I like you just the way you are."

"Ooh, that's another great BJ song."

Fifi's innocently sweet expression turned lascivious in an instant, something she was becoming worryingly skilled at doing. "Hehe… A BJ song, you say? I'd imagine any song would sound great accompanying something like that...~"

"I… Don't think we're talking about the same BJs here…" I said, doing little more than eliciting another giggle from Fifi, and certainly doing nothing to put out the sudden fire that was smoldering in her eyes. "But also, I can think of a fair few songs that would be less than ideal to be playing while doing… That."

Fifi seemed to take that as both a challenge and an invitation, as she slunk herself on top of me, slowly disappearing beneath the covers, staring up at me the whole time with that infuriatingly impossible to resist half-lidded gaze of hers. "Hmmhmm…~ Well, why don't you pull one of them up on your phone and we can find out how true that is...~"

"...I think I could go for listening to the rest of my ring tone, now that you mention it."

Never in my life had I grabbed my phone with such speed and precision, and never had I blatantly ignored so many unread messages from so many people. Sorry peeps, but I know where my degenerate ass priorities lie.

---

Turns out Fifi was right, as usual. Also turns out that when I forget to set my alarm, I tend to oversleep. Badly. Though, I'd say I had a pretty valid excuse this time. Not that I would be able to use it, mind you, but valid nonetheless. All of Clary and mom's texts of screeching anger and worry would have to wait just a little bit longer to be replied to, however, as Fifi and I were in desperate need of purging after laying in copious amounts of our own body fluids all night, doubly so after adding to the shmegpile due to Fifi's insistence on proving her theory. Prooooobably gonna have to 'accidentally' burn all that bedding later, too, but first thing's first.

Luckily, the common room was empty, though there were some distressingly loud snores coming from the room adjacent to mine that I couldn't tell were being made by person or Pokemon. Didn't have time to worry about that, though, as Fifi and I were far more concerned with copping an actual shower, as the store brand body spray ghetto shower I hastily applied to the both of us before leaving our room did nothing in the way of actual cleaning. Thankfully, it did its job in masking our horrendous B.O. long enough for us to make it to the bathroom without getting any looks of pure disgust from anyone on the way there, though to be fair, there was hardly anyone still hanging around the dormitory this late in the morning anyways, and those that were all seemed to be in a hurry to be elsewhere. Heading into the shower room with Fifi, however… Well, probably going to get some weird looks there, but oh well, public showers are awkward enough already, hopefully no one will be looking or paying any attention in the first place…

"Okay Fi, if anyone asks, you're a dude." I mumbled to Fifi as we shuffled into the dormitory's expansive bathroom, causing her to stop dead in her tracks and look up at me with a… Less than ideal reaction.

"Stone, I'll lie about a lot of things for you, but I draw the line at pretending to have a penis." Fi muttered back, narrowing her eyes at me. "Besides, I'm pretty sure anyone that's going to be weirded out by me showering with you isn't going to notice or care about whether I'm supposed to be in the men's room or not."

"...Fair point."

"Besides, I'm less worried about that and moreso about walking around with sopping wet fur for God knows how long afterwards..."

"I mean, I brought your blow dryer, you know, if anything I can just recall you to your Pokeball until we-"

"Haha, no."

"Right, well, have fun being a towel mummy, then."

Fifi grumbled, but seemingly also seeing no other alternative, followed me into the bathroom. Fortunately, it was even more sparsely occupied than the hallways were, and I quickly led Fifi towards the showers while the few dudes that were there were all preoccupied with their own business. I breathed a sigh of relief as we stepped into the shower room and found it nearly deserted, save for a couple of in-use stalls near the back. I shuffled us into the nearest stall, and did my best to strip in the cramped changing area that was clearly never meant to house more than one occupant at a time. That was to say nothing about how cramped the shower itself was once we were in it proper. Fifi couldn't complain about not having her own shower shoes anymore since she pretty much had to stand on my feet the whole time anyways. It was a good thing she liked my junk so much too, since she was pretty much required to clean it and every other part of my lower half for me since I couldn't bend over at all lest I smoosh her against the wall. Thankfully, her natural aversion to water as a fire-type meant she was determined to get clean and get out as quickly as possible, so there were no futile attempts from her to attempt sexy time in a space that was roughly the size of a cardboard toilet paper tube.

"...We're taking turns next time." I said, once we were finished and back in the changing area.

"Agreed." Fifi muttered back, nearly unrecognizable with her fur all matted down to her body, as she struggled in vain to dry herself off while I did the same, both of us bumping into each other numerous times in the process. "...That was not at all how I pictured showering together would be like."

I rolled my eyes as I narrowly avoided an elbow. "Yeah, well, I doubt the designers had debaucherous fantasies in mind when they built these things."

"Debaucherous? Really?" Fifi repeated, stopping long enough to roll her eyes back at me. "I think lewd would have sufficed."

"Pretty sure that's the same thing."

"Yeah, but it's ninety-nine percent less pretentious sounding."

"...Ugh. That's your fault for making me literally read dictionaries with you."

"Hey, I read them too, but you don't hear me throwing around words like debaucherous..."

Fifi's cheeky smirk was daring me to return her playful jabs, but I realized where we were and quickly shut up, lest anyone hear multiple voices coming from a single shower stall and get curious. And what do you know, as if to spite me, someone let out a cough from the other side of the flimsy privacy curtain, as if they were standing right outside of it. My armhair bristled as both myself and Fifi stopped what we were doing in an instant.

"...O-Oh, uh, hahaha, did I have my phone on speaker this whole time? Boy, how stupid can I get?" I said, loud enough so that anyone who happened to be eavesdropping could hear it clearly.

"...Stone? Is that you?"

…I poked my head out of the curtain to place a face to the distressingly familiar voice that had just unexpectedly spoken my name.

"Oh! 'Sup, Coby! Fancy meeting you here!" I said, grinning like an asshole.

"...Um… Y-Yeah..." he responded, somehow looking even more ill-at-ease than usual. "I was just… Uh… W-Well… I, uh, I don't really like the idea of… Public showers, so… I was waiting until the dorm was mostly empty… E-Er, I should, uh, let you get back to what you were doing, though, s-sorry for… Er, intruding, don't know why I felt the need to ask if that was you..."

I let out a laugh and shook my head. "No worries dude, I'm done anyways, just putting my stuff away before I help Fifi try and… U-Uh..." My words hit a brick wall once my mouth caught up to my brain. Shit, too late now… "…Dry herself. I… Don't know how else for her to clean herself while we're here at LeMasters so… Yeah."

"...Oh, okay." Coby replied, nodding back casually with a strange look of relief on his face. "I… Actually had to do the same with Mew… That's another reason why I was waiting for this place to be empty… B-But, I guess it feels a little less embarrassing to know I'm not the only one who showers with their Pokemon… Um, n-not that you should feel embarrassed to, u-um… Uh… I-I'm… I'm just gonna stop talking now."

...I think Coby's the only person I've ever met who is even better than I am at making every conversation he's involved in as awkward as humanly possible. Poor guy.

"...Don't worry about it." I said, before any sort of uncomfortable silence could fall and make things even more unbearably awkward. "Uh, why don't we continue this conversation… Not here, though?"

"Yes, please." Fifi chimed in, her tone impatient but still as unfalteringly polite as ever. "I'd really, really like to not be dripping with wetness any longer than I have to, thanks."

Great phrasing, Fi…

"R-Right, um, I need to get Fifi to her blowdryer, stat, and then I have to make a few phone calls, but after that, I'm… Well, I'm not really free, I'm going to be meeting up with Clary and I'm assuming her delightful friends as well to… Do stuff, I guess. But uh, you and Mew are more than welcome to come along with us if you want, Coby! Uh, assuming you don't already have plans, of course."

Coby quickly shook his head. "Oh, n-no, I already… Took care of… My… Business… Uh, um, I-I mean… Y-Yeah, no, I don't have any plans, we can… We can definitely come with you guys, if, uh, if you're sure you really want us to tag along..."

"Great!" I said, giving Coby a thumbs up before ducking back into the changing room. "Let me just, uh, finish up here, and I'll meet you at your room when I'm done with my shit. Clary said you were going to text your room number to me last night, right? I haven't really checked my phone since I got to my room last night, I kind of passed out the moment I got there."

"Y-Yeah, that's right." Coby called back. "I'll, um, I'll let you finish up, then, I guess call me whenever you're ready to go."

"Sounds good, seeya then!"

"Yup, seeya. Come on, Mew, let's get back to our room, hopefully the snoring has..."

Coby's voice faded as he left the showers, and I quickly turned my attention back towards Fifi, who definitely didn't look ridiculous at all with the several mismatching towels that she had haphazardly wrapped herself in.

Wait no I'm lying she looked INCREDIBLY ridiculous ahahaha holy fucking shit.

"Gotta say Fi, I'm really diggin' the pride month Michelin Man look you have going, very stylish."

"Every minute more that I spend soaking wet is another pair of your pants I'm tearing a hole in the ass of."

"Yeesh, so touchy..."

---

I decided it would be best to just carry Fifi back to our room to ensure the safety of my pants, and since she was wrapped in towels anyways, I could just pass it off like I was just messy and carrying several wet towels with my gym bag on top of them and also with a tail and ears sticking out and holy shit what a monumentally stupid idea this was. But hey, at least my pants were safe. Hopefully.

Regardless, we got back to the dorm without incident, and I didn't wait around for Edgy or either of my other mystery roommates to greet me before I was already back in our room with the door safely shut and locked. I promptly dropped my armful of freshly laundered fox onto the bed, completely forgetting that it was still soaked with our lovesauce until after the fact.

"Shit, whoops." I said, immediately realizing my error, as Fifi squeaked in horror at the contact and desperately scrambled to escape from her towel cocoon, falling out of it and catching me with one of her errantly flailing limbs in the process, bringing me to the floor with her as I foolishly attempted to help her escape from its damp, damp grasp.

"You are damn lucky I love you." Fifi growled under her breath, her voice muffled as she had, of course, somehow managed to land face first into my crotch, and ass first into my face, and didn't seem to be in any real hurry to get up. She did eventually move, though only to wave her ass in front of me and turn her head to give me a sly little smirk rather than actually attempt to get off me in any capacity. "...Because you know I wouldn't let anyone else enjoy this view~..."

"You better not fucking fart, Fi."

"...Ugh. Way to ruin the moment, Stone."

I was only too keen to return Fifi's overexaggerated pout with one of my own, as I gently pushed her forward off of me. "So sorry, princess. Don't worry, I'm sure we'll have plenty of time to fulfill the rest of your filthy fantasies later, it's not like we won't have the opportunities."

Fifi's lecherous grin returned to her face quickly as she got to her feet. "Definitely gonna be holding you to that, master~."

"I know you are." I muttered, doing my best to brush Fifi's stray wet hairs off of what was very briefly a clean shirt. As I moved to stand back up myself, my hand recoiled instantly as it made contact with the cold, damp carpet I had been sitting on. "Ew, what the fuck?" I said, instinctively bringing my hand to my nose and breathing in Fifi's discarded scent. "...How and why, Fifi?"

Fifi's stark white cheeks took on a pink tint as she shyly pushed her fingers together and looked from the carpet to me, letting out a nervous little laugh as she caught my gaze. "U-Uh… Well… I was kind of… Pent up… Before you helped me relieve myself, ehehe..."

"...Jeez. I'm going to end up spending all the money mom and dad gave me on cleaning supplies alone..." I muttered. "...Oh, shit, speaking of mom and dad..." I let out a groan as I went over to take my phone off of its charger and saw seven more missed calls just since I left to despunk myself and Fifi.

"I wouldn't worry too much, I'm sure they're more than used to your usual excuses by now." Fifi said, reading my tweaked expression as she began to dig through (and drip on) our luggage.

"...That's a good point, actually." I said, as I began absentmindedly scrolling through the combined forty-one unread messages that I had from mom, dad, Clary, Jade, Flint, uncle Bob, and Coby, the vast majority of them from mom and Clary yelling at me to wake up and answer my phone already. I exhaled deeply as I stood back up from the one clean corner of the bed, looking over at Fifi, who had wasted no time in finding her blow dryer and getting it ready to use. "I doubt you want to wait any longer to dry off, so I'm gonna head out to the common room and try to make these phone calls quick. Uh, maybe try and dry the carpet and bedding and whatever else we've tainted as much as you can while you've got that thing out..."

Fifi gave a quick nod, though her gaze lingered. "Alright, just… Don't take too long, okay?" she said softly, walking over to give my hand a squeeze, tugging on it gently to get me to lean in so she could plant a quick kiss on my lips. "...Love you, Stone."

"Love you more, Fi." I said, returning her adoring smile with… My best approximation of one.

"Love you most~!" she chirped back, wrapping her arms around my neck and squeezing me tightly, all too aware that she was still sopping wet, before giggling and scurrying back over to her dryer. "Hope they don't ream you too many new assholes~!"

"...Me too."

---

"I just don't know how you can sleep through so many phone calls, Stone, honestly..."

Mom's voice thankfully was more exasperated than anything, only yelling about how worried she was that I might have suffocated in my sleep once before I managed to eke out my aforementioned usual excuses.

"I mean… I've slept through a tornado before, ma. This really shouldn't surprise you anymore."

Mom let out a particularly heavy sounding sigh, and I could just see her pinching her forehead and shaking her head. "...Just don't forget to set your alarm again, I don't want you to be late for any of your classes!"

"I won't ma, don't worry. I'm sure Fifi will wake me up next time if I do, she probably would've this time if she wasn't even more exhausted than I was."

"Right, I'm sure she was. She probably hasn't been around so many people since… Well, ever, I'd imagine. She gets so stressed out around strangers, I'm sure it took all her energy to… Well… Nevermind, I don't know if she's listening in again, I don't want to upset her."

"She's not. She in our room right now drying herself off, we just got back from getting cleaned up, and no, don't worry, I didn't shower with her, we took turns, obviously."

Mom remained unsettlingly silent for a moment before finally responding. "...I'm going to choose to believe that, Stone."

"Why would I-"

"Regardless, you know you really shouldn't be letting her shower in the stalls in the first place. If her fur clogs up the drains, they'll probably charge you for the repairs. Plus, what are your classmates going to think if they see you bringing her into the shower with you? And why do you and her insist on her showering in the first place, anyways? Her Pokeball has all the necessary cleaning and sanitizing capabilities that she could ever need, why would she as a fire type want to get needlessly soaked?"

"She doesn't like her Pokeball, ma, you know that."

"Which is utterly, utterly ridiculous, Stone. She can't..." I could hear mom move the phone away from her face as she let out another heavy sigh. "...Don't get mad at me, Stone."

"About what?" I said innocently, feigning ignorance.

"You're supposed to be trying to get her to act less like a person, Stone. I know you don't want to upset her in any way, but you have to take the kid gloves off and start being firm with her. It doesn't matter that she doesn't like her Pokeball, she can't expect to follow you everywhere for the rest of your life. Either she's going to have to start staying in her Pokeball when you're in public, or she's just going to have to stay home when you start going out."

"The whole point of being a Pokemon trainer is to have your Pokemon with you wherever you go, ma. You and dad were both trainers, are you telling me neither of you let your Pokemon out of their balls if they weren't at home or battling?"

"Stop moving the goalposts, Stone. You know what I mean."

It was my turn to let out a disgruntled sigh. "...What do you want me to do exactly, ma? I can't just force her to go into her Pokeball."

"Yes you can. You're her trainer, Stone, she's obligated to follow your commands, that's the whole point of Pokeballs in the first place."

"Yeah, well… That's kinda f… Messed up."

Mom remained silent for another long, uncomfortable moment.

"...I thought you and dad said you weren't going to push this anymore." I continued, before she had a chance to break her own silence.

"...We did. You're right." mom finally said, her voice as terse and pointed as I had ever heard it. "But you said you would do your part to get Fifi to act more like a Pokemon, and letting her shower, and use a God damn blow dryer unsupervised is absolutely not that, Stone. And neither is letting her sleep in the same bed with you. Or eat at the same table as you. She's never going to change if you keep enabling her."

My chest was beginning to tighten again, though the anger and distress that was rising in my heart was… Different than before. I steadied myself before speaking, not wanting to let anything else slip that mom could use as ammo against me.

"So do you… Just not like Fifi anymore, mom? Or have you, like, just been pretending to tolerate her all along? Does dad hate her as much as you do…?"

"Of course I like Fifi, Stone, don't be absurd. If your father and I didn't love her, we never would have let you keep her, and we certainly wouldn't have let her act the way she has for so long. It's just..."

"Just what, mom?"

"...I don't know how to say this, Stone. You're going to get upset at me no matter what I say, and… I don't want to upset you, sweetie… I really, really don't. I don't want to upset you or Fifi. I do love her, she is part of our family. I know everything you're going to say, I see it very clearly, and I have for years. She doesn't think like a Pokemon, and she doesn't act like one, either. You are right, your uncle is right, she… She is intelligent enough to be able to make her own decisions and be treated as an individual. But… That… That's… She can't… Be that, and also be your Pokemon."

I could hear mom's voice beginning to break down, the harshness falling away to… Something else.

"It… Hurts me to say these things, sweetie, because I realize more than anyone how much it hurts you and Fifi. I don't want to have to be so firm and direct about this. I don't want to have to talk about this at all… I shouldn't have to. But… Pokemon… Aren't supposed to act like she does. They're… Supposed to be pets, or… I don't know, just… Not something that can communicate with and act on an equal level with humans. When they can talk and walk and act just like a person, then things like Pokeballs… Well, it's as you said, it's… Messed up. I… I apologize for even implying you should try and force Fifi into hers, I wasn't expecting you to respond to that in any way other than how you did. I'm trying too hard to try and convince you of something that I know you don't believe. It's so hard for me to try and be a hard ass towards you, Stoney. I don't want to ruin your life, or hers. I don't want to end up making you hate and resent me and your father, and… Oh… I'm… I'm sorry, sweetie..."

"...You don't have to apologize, mom."

"...I do. Because I can't back down from this. I can't let you… I can't let Fifi… Ugh… She… She's in love with you, Stone. Don't… Don't deny it. There is absolutely nothing platonic or familial about the way she treats you. I'm still not sure if she even fully understands it or not. But whether it's just simple infatuation, or actual, honest-to-God love, it doesn't matter either way. You are going to end up completely breaking her heart no matter what happens at this point. She's not going to think there's anything wrong with feeling that way towards you, because she doesn't think she's a Pokemon. You don't treat her like one, so why should she? But… She's not a human, Stone. No matter how hard she tries, she can't change what she is. And you… Cannot let her think that she can. There are boundaries that cannot be broken, under any circumstances. She is pushing so hard against those boundaries, and you're letting her. And… I don't know if you're doing that on purpose, or not. But I shouldn't have to tell you this. No matter how much she wants it, no matter how much it'll hurt her to deny it, you can't let her break those boundaries."

...Oops.

"...Are you still there, Stone?"

"...Oh. Yeah. Just… Just thinking, mom."

"You don't know how difficult this is for me to talk about, sweetie… This whole situation is just… So unfortunate… Fifi's made you so happy since she came into your life… And you are her life. I don't want to take that relationship away from either of you… I just… Don't know what else to do."

"...Well, let me know if you find out." I said, exhaling through my teeth, glad that this was only a regular phone call so mom couldn't see how badly I was shaking.

"Stone… Promise me you won't do anything with her that you shouldn't. You can't get any closer to her than you already are."

"Oh, believe me, I know I can't." I said, technically not lying. "And I won't. Obviously. I know I have to talk to her sooner or later. I just… Don't want to yet."

"You're going to have to sooner rather than later, sweetie. The longer you let her feelings for you linger and grow, the worse you're going to hurt her. You have to just rip off the band-aid and let it sting for a bit, waiting any more will just make things stickier and more painful in the end."

"...I hate ripping off band-aids."

"If you can't, then we really will have to, Stone. And we absolutely don't want it to have to come to that. But it has to get done, one way or the other. I wish there was a way for this situation to have a happy ending, but… That's just life, honey. Life is never fair, and sometimes you just have to do things you don't want to because it's what has to be done."

"...Right."

"...It'll get better, sweetie. She'll understand, eventually. Even if she gets upset at first, as long as you stay by her side, I'm sure she'll be happy and comfortable again once she's over it."

"...Sure, mom. Uh, was there anything else you wanted to talk about? I kind of… Got some things to do. Have to get ready to pick my classes and all that, I'm already going to be getting a late start from oversleeping for so long."

"Well, I was hoping to talk to you more about your first day and how it went, but I understand, I don't want to keep you from your future. Just promise me you'll actually remember to call me back whenever you get some free time today, alright?"

"...Yeah. Will do."

"...Cheer up, Stoney. Things will be okay. I love you, and I love Fifi, too. I'll talk to you later, dear, bye-bye!"

"Love you too, bye."

...

...Welp.

So, obviously, it's going to take a bit of effort to get mom and dad to see things from your and Fifi's perspective. No biggie though, they'll understand, eventually.

...I think I'm going to be getting disowned soon.

Well, at least you'll always have Fifi.

...True. Guess I'll just let that band-aid fester until I can't anymore. Sorry, mom.

...Hey, so, still gotta call Clary too, right?

Oh, right. Can't wait to completely alienate her too when I can't get along with her new and improved friends.

Right, nothing I can say to stop you from suppressing me, so I guess have fun being the most pessimistic asshole in the world! I'll be back whenever you have your next mental breakdown and need to be kicked in the ass again, but until then, toodles~!

...Jesus, I need help.

---

"Ugh, I guess I shouldn't be surprised that the dude that slept through a tornado still can't wake up at a reasonable time, but still, Stone. Seventeen calls."

Clary's voice was only slightly less tinged in annoyance than mom's was, but hey, slightly less is better than slightly more!

"I was really tired. And I forgot to turn my alarm on. And my phone was on the floor. And-"

"Good lord, you just live to make excuses, don't you?"

"It's my true calling, I can't help it."

"...You're insufferable, Stone."

"But in a good way, right?"

"...Just be glad that I've missed you as much as I have, even the most incorrigible parts of you. Really, though, you need to hurry up and get down here to meet up with us, I don't know how much longer I can stall for, the others are all worried that all the good classes and clubs are going to be filled if we wait too long to sign up for them, so you'd better get a move on if you don't want us to start without you!"

"Alright, alright, let me go get Fifi and meet up with Coby, I'll call you when we're on the way."

"You'd better!"

"I will!"

"And don't get lost on the way here!"

"I won't!"

"Good, talk to you soon then! Byeeeee~!"

"Yeah, seeya in a few, Clare."

Clary's byeeeeeee continued to ring in my ear for several seconds after I hung up, only barely drowned out by the dull hum of Fifi's hairdryer from behind our door. I wasn't looking to keep Clary waiting any longer, so I headed back in to see if Fifi was at least almost done drying.

"Done getting yelled at?" Fifi snickered, turning her dryer off as she saw me enter, and coming over to embrace me as soon as the door was shut.

"Hopefully." I said, returning her hug, though not nearly with as much torque as she was using. "Jeez, Fi, you act as if you haven't seen me in weeks."

She looked up at me and smiled that special smile of hers, her arms still wrapped firmly around me. "What can I say? Absence makes the heart grow fonder."

"I was one room away for like, ten minutes."

"Ten minutes without you feels like three years to me, my love."

As much as I wanted to roll my eyes at her ridiculously over-dramatic declaration, I knew her hammy ass words were one-hundred percent genuine and sincere, so I couldn't do much more than let out a sigh and smile back at her as she continued to melt my heart with her gaze.

"...Are you sure you don't want to just stay like this for the rest of the day, master~?" she cooed, batting her eyelashes at me, and it took everything in my power to break myself away from her grasp and not do just as she suggested.

"If I didn't mind getting yelled at anymore, sure." I said, ruffling Fifi's just fixed hair to distract her from her pout. "Clary did bring up a good point though, we should get a move on before all the good classes are filled up. Though mainly I just don't want to miss my chance to sign up for the baseball team."

Fifi nodded in compliance, though not without giving me a little smirk along with it. "Okay, but I doubt you have to worry too much about a baseball team being filled up at a school for Pokemon trainers and their ilk. If the student base is anything like what it looked like on the website, then you're probably one of the most athletic people here."

"...That's a scary thought." I said, unsure of whether to see that as a good thing or a bad thing in the long run. "...Well, regardless, we need to meet up with Coby and get a move on, I don't want Clary to get pissed at me quite so early in our reunion."

Fifi looked at me as if she wanted to say something, but simply nodded, though an airy little snicker escaped from her lips soon after.

"Oh, I don't like that Muttleyesque laughing you're doing, what is that about, Fi?" I asked, eyeing her with mild suspicion.

"Just thinking about how I won." she replied, an unmistakable and uncharacteristically smug air to her tone.

"...Won what?"

"You."

...

"...You don't get to let her know that."

"I know. Doesn't matter. Still won."

I let out a sigh. "Thanks, Fi. I love being equated to a carnival prize."

"But you're the best carnival prize!" she replied cheekily, not missing a beat. "You're worth like a hundred billion tickets~!"

I couldn't keep myself from snorting at her… Highly flattering description of me. "That would make me unattainable, Fi."

"Yeah, to Clary and everyone else!" Fi replied, her smug grin only growing wider as she wrapped her arms back around me like a vicegrip, nuzzling her face against me and waggling her butt and tail back and forth. "But I've been saving up every single ticket from every single day since I met you, and it all paid off, because you're finally mine~!"

...How can she turn my own words against me so effortlessly…?

"...I promise I won't gloat, though." Fifi added quietly, after seeing my exasperated look. "...Not outside of this room, at least."

…I suppose that's the most I can ask for with Fifi.

"...Well? We gonna stand here cuddling all day, then? Don't worry, I definitely won't complain!" Fifi said, snapping my focus back. I sighed, shaking my head and separating myself from her for what was surely not going to be anywhere close to the last time today, knowing her.

"Alright, let's get going." I said, before Fifi had any other chance or excuse to magnetize herself to me again, grabbing my bag and leading Fifi out into the common room.

"We should see if Edgy and Pikachu want to come too!" Fifi said, glancing over at Edgy's door before letting out a snort at her own bad joke.

"I'm sure he'll just say he'd rather floss his ass with barbwire or something equally delightful." I said, rolling my eyes, not even bothering to look his room's way, instead fishing my key out of my pocket to lock our door behind us before heading out into the hallway to search for Coby's room.

"Hey, you know what'd be funny, Stone?" Fifi asked, as we stood in the hallway outside of our dorm. I absentmindedly shook my head at her, before quickly going back to searching for Coby's text in the forest of messages that had sprouted up in my phone overnight. "What if Coby was one of your other two mystery roommates?"

"Don't be stupid, Fi." I said with a scoff. "Do you know what the odds are of…" …I suddenly got a distinct sense of deja vu.

"...He's one of your mystery roommates, isn't he?" Fifi said, once she saw me staring blankly at my phone screen.

...

"Oh gosh, he really IS, isn't he?" Fifi repeated, her voice and expression containing only the dullest hint of shock over such a 'coincidence' at this point. As I mumbled and shook my head back at her, she seemed equally amused and bemused by my reaction. "...You don't look very happy about it..."

"...Fucking professor." I seethed, unable to elaborate any further as the gears turned in my mind as to how and why I could possibly have lucked out and gotten Coby out of LITERALLY ANYONE ELSE in the entire school as one of my roommates.

"Hmm?" Fifi… Hmmed, the bemusement in her voice rising in equal measure as the amusement was leaving it.

"...Fucking… Professor…!" I hissed, my mind still too gripped with utter contempt to form any further words.

"...Oh dear. You look… Extra not very happy about this..." Fifi said, the amusement in her voice quickly returning and surpassing the bemusement, positively dwarfing it, as she no doubt was enjoying seeing me let myself get what she would call 'comically bent out of shape over something that's almost certainly inconsequential', because she just doesn't understand. Finally, with far more effort than it should have taken, I managed to put into words the dread that had suddenly began to permeate and taint my mind.

"...Coby being one of my roommates can only mean one thing, Fi. This is… No coincidence. This was planned. And that means… Fucking..."

"...Stop stopping midsentence, Stone, that's so annoying. Why are you so butthurt over this?"

"This is the professor's doing. I know it is. And knowing his ass, that means that, without a shadow of a doubt, our other fucking roommate is… Is… Fffffuck..."

"...Who is Fffffuck, Stone? That's… Not a name. Not even by your standards."

"Fucking Assy."

"...Oh. So?"

I blinked blankly at Fifi, shaking my head in utter bewilderment at her casual non-reaction to such horrific news. "...'So'? What do you mean 'so', Fi? Do you not… How can you not realize what this means, Fifi? This means that, for every single waking day that we're here at LeMaster's, we are going to be forced to have to see, and hear, and SMELL that shitpiece, we aren't going to be able to have any time to relax or unwind after a hard or stressful day because every time we come back here that moron is going to be lurking around, screeching and shitting himself over every little last thing that happens to him like the brainless fucking troglodytic nematode he is!"

"You uh… Done frothing at the mouth?" Fifi said after a moment's beat, barely giving me enough time to grunt out a single syllable in response before cutting me off and continuing. "Master, I… Don't mean to sound rude, and you know I'm saying this with nothing but love and respect for you, but… For Christ's sake, you're not acting any better than him, you realize that, don't you? You are, as usual, letting yourself get comically bent out of shape over something that's almost certainly going to be completely and utterly inconsequential in the long run. Even if that idiot ends up happening to be one of your roommates, so what? Do you really think he's going to manage to make it through the entire school year with that shitty attitude of his? He's either going to get kicked out immediately, or he's going to be forced to act less like a, ahem, 'troglodytic nematode'. So please, if you care for my mental well-being at all, even if you do end up having to interact with that manchild anymore, STOP getting into meaningless, childish 'I know you are but what am I' pissing contests with him every single time either one of you opens your mouths in the same room as one another! You are BETTER than him, Stone, stop letting him live rent-free in your head, especially when he isn't even present in the first place! That whole stupid thing you said about 'not letting him win'? Well, that's exactly what you're doing by letting him piss you off and ruin your mood just by existing, so fucking STOP IT!"

"...Ooh. That was… Extra spicy, Fi." I said quietly, not at all used to Fifi sounding quite so… Forceful. And, judging by her expression, neither was she.

"Ah, u-um, s-sorry, Master, I… Didn't mean for that come out quite so… Harshly…" Fifi said softly, her ears falling flat as her eyes darted to the side. "It's just… It's so hard to get you to listen when you get all worked up like that, and usually I'll just roll my eyes and chuckle about it, but… I can tell your anger is on a different level towards him, and I don't like seeing you get that genuinely upset over anything, especially something so pointless…"

"No, don't apologize, Fi, it's okay. I… Needed to hear that." I said, my eyes meeting the same side wall as hers. "I don't know why I let that asshole piss me off so much… I mean, more than assholes usually piss me off. Something about him just sets me off in a bad, bad way. Or I guess like, multiple somethings. Like, he's just so many awful things that piss me off individually, all wrapped up and combined into one atrocious package, just the thought of even having to see him makes my skin crawl… But… You're right, Fi, I'm being childish, so… I'll stop. Well, I'll… Try to stop. You're probably gonna have to like, work with me a bit, though, you know how hard it is for me to bite my tongue around dickfucks like him..."

"That's fine, if you can't bite your tongue, I'll gladly bite it for you, Master~." Fifi replied, giggling to herself for a moment before stopping abruptly. "Egh… That actually sounded a lot funnier and cuter in my head…"

"Don't worry Fi, that's what I think every time I open my mouth." I said. "Well, maybe not the cuter part, but you know what I mean. I get what you're saying though, thanks. Unless… You actually plan on physically biting my tongue, in which case, uh… Please don't."

Fifi let out a snicker as I just dug myself deeper and deeper into awkwardblivion. "Trying to prove your own point there, Master? A little on the nose, don't you think?"

"No, that didn't even sound funny in my head, I just chose to say it anyways because… Man, I don't even know, I'm just a fuckin' goober I guess. Uh, but, we should really get a move on, Clary's gonna disembowel me if I keep her waiting any longer. Let me just give Coby a call real quick..."

Pulling out my phone, I temporarily ignored the ten texts I had gotten from Clary just since the last time I had it out and called Coby's number.

"Hello? Stone?" came Coby's voice after half a ring. "Are you, uh, ready? D-Do you need me to meet you anywhere in particular, or are you, um, close by?"
"I dunno, why don't you open your door and tell me."

"H-Huh? What do you-" Coby began, his voice stopping with a small squeak of shock as he opened his room's door and saw me standing on the other side of it. "A-Ah, did one of my roommates let you in, Stone?" he asked after a moment with a nervous chuckle, glancing around me, clearly expecting to see someone else besides myself or Fifi, and obviously finding no one. As Mew floated out behind him and plopped herself on his head, I dug into my pocket and pulled out my key, dangling it in front of me and giving him a shit eating grin.

"You could say that."

---

"My God, Stone, do you even realize what time it is?"

Stone gave Clary a solemn nod as he casually strolled up to her, as she shot up out of her cafeteria seat to meet him. "Sure do! It's-" Stone glanced down at his wrist for a moment at his non-existent watch, before pulling his phone out with his other hand and casting his gaze towards it before meeting Clary's scowling glare with a grin. "-quarter past noon. I think we made some good time, all things considered. We didn't even get lost once on the way here, tell her, Feefs!"

"Yeah, because you had Coby lead the way." I muttered, casting a sideways glance behind us to Coby and Mew as I milled about beside Stone, doing the best I could to ignore the itchy, uncomfortable urge that I always felt in crowded public spaces to cling to Stone's side. Of course Clary would choose what was probably the noisiest and most disgustingly packed area of the entire school to meet up at…

"Huh? But… It was… Pretty much a straight line from our dorm to here, it would be almost impossible to get lost taking such a simple and clear-cut path." Coby said with a small laugh, one that quickly faded once he saw the embarrassed grimace on Stone's face.

"Hate to break it to you Coby, but my master's greatest skill is losing his way." I said, Stone letting out a preemptive groan as he already knew what I was about to say next. "This is a guy who managed to walk twenty miles in the wrong direction to the next town over on his was home from baseball practice the one and only time his parents made the mistake of letting him walk home, and he would've kept walking the wrong way had his parents not called the cops to search for him and escort us home."

"Wait, that happened a second time after I moved away?" Clary said incredulously. "What the actual fuck, Stone?"

"...Uh, it was already dark out, so I couldn't follow the sun, and that was back when I only had a flip phone, so I couldn't really look up any maps, also my phone's battery was dead, so-"

"And his second greatest skill is coming up with excuses." I said as forcefully as I could muster given the circumstances and location, cutting Stone off before he had a chance to get to the part of his excuse where the alien mind muddling and the hitchhiking doppelgangers show up.

"Right, well, none of that is important right now anyways!" Clary said, shaking her head in impatient exasperation. "It's already after noon, we've gotta get a move on if we wanna get signed up for any of the good stuff!"

"Seems to me we wouldn't have to worry about this if you wouldn't have made us wait for your unreliable friend to join us, Clary." said… Uh… Uh… Shit, I forgot her name, that little nerdy girl that was part of Axel's fanclub alongside Clary and… That other dumb guy that I also forgot the name of. Ehh… Hard to remember the names of people that Stone can't even be bothered to give one of his dumb little nicknames to. But uh, no, absolutely fuck her, and fuck the snide look she was giving Stone.

"Oh, sorry, girl who is so inconsequential that I can't even remember your name, but my master's not unreliable, he had an exhaustingly long day yesterday, I'd like to see you try to wake up at a reasonable time after dealing with as much contrived and ridiculous stuff as he had to." I said to whatever her name was, giving her a saccharinely sweet smile and making my voice sound obnoxiously cute to match.

"Fiiii..." Stone muttered through clenched teeth, shaking his head slightly at me, to which I just giggled in the same overly bubbly tone. Oh, master, if only you would just stand up for yourself, I wouldn't have to, and then you wouldn't have to get upset about it.

"You know, Stone, with the way your Braixen speaks to people, it kinda makes me glad that most Pokemon can't talk." Axel interjected sharply before whatshername could respond, his obnoxious attempt at a disarming grin doing little to hide the all-too-real venom behind his words. "Maybe you should work a little more with her on, you know, being polite. But then again, I guess most Pokemon do take after their trainers, so I probably shouldn't blame her."

"Fifi's very polite, usually to a painful degree." Stone replied, his voice tense as I could tell he was trying to bite his own tongue. "Like I said before, she's just very overprotective of me, so you'll have to excuse anything she says that might come off as rude in any way, it's just her instincts." Stone gave my shoulder a small squeeze, with just enough force to let me know it was a 'please don't say anything else' squeeze. "I am sorry for being late though, that's my bad, and I apologize for keeping you guys waiting, I didn't realize you were all waiting for me before starting on anything."

"We weren't planning on it, until Clary insisted." Axel said, glancing over at her for a moment before directing another barely-disguised look of scorn Stone's way. "If nothing else, you've got some really loyal friends."

"Yes, well, with the way he embarrassed himself last night, I'd have to say that's about all he's got." the dumbshit idiot noname fuckwit girl added with even more derision, drawing a snort from her fellow nameless meathead brother/boyfriend. Clary very hastily scrambled in between Stone and I and the others before I had a chance to demonstrate just how fucking impolite I could be, laughing nervously and looking at them in distress.

"C-Come on guys, you promised you wouldn't act this way, please..." she muttered to them, out of earshot of Stone but not me.

"...You're right, Clare." Axel responded after a moment, glancing from her to Stone and back and letting out an annoyed sigh. "...Our bad."

"But Axel-" Noname McFuckface began, Axel quickly shutting her down.

"Our. Bad." he repeated, giving his bootlickers a stern look to keep them silent, before nodding to Clary and brushing past her to stand face to face with Stone. "...We got off on the wrong foot last night, Stone. Everyone's emotions were running high due to the circumstances and setting, and in the heat of the moment, things got kind of… Tense. Let's just… Put that stuff behind us, alright?"

Axel stuck his hand out and gave Stone another one of his patented fake smiles, Stone hesitating for a moment before awkwardly accepting and returning his handshake.

"Yep, that's… Good with me..." Stone replied even more awkwardly, glancing down at me for a brief instant and allowing me to see the doubt in his eyes before returning his gaze to Axel. "Er… Good with us, rather, r-right, Fi?"

"...If it's good with you, it's good with me, master." I said softly.

"Good, good, everything is great!" Clary said, pulling Stone and Axel into a forced hug that neither of them looked happy to be a part of, releasing them mercifully quickly before speaking back up, her voice going a mile a minute. "So, so, so! What do you guys all wanna do first?"

"Uh, e-eat?" Coby said, seeming to instantly regret it as all eyes turned towards him. "U-Um, I-I mean, it's just, w-we're here in the cafeteria, I just, I a-assumed that was to… U-Uh… Get breakfast before… Doing anything else..."

"O-Oh, um, we, ah, kinda all ate already..." Clary said after a moment, giving Coby and Stone an apologetic glance. "S-Sorry! I um, assumed it was going to… Take longer for you guys to get here because of Stone's sense of direction, a-and everyone was really hungry… A-Ah, I'm really sorry… B-But um, if you guys wanna take the time to eat, that's totally fine, we can totally just talk over our plans and see what all we wanna do together, right guys?"

Clary's friends all looked… Varying degrees of displeased with Clary's suggestion, to put in mildly.

"Clary, we really don't have the time for this..." Nameless O'Bitchtaint whispered to her. "It's already nearly one, I think we've wasted enough time as it is..."

"Yeah, I don't wanna miss out on all the choice clubs and shit, Clare!" the lunkhead added in distress, only adding to the look of stress on Clary's face. Stone noticed as well, and quickly shook his head and spoke up.

"A-Ah, they're right, Clary. I've caused you guys too much of a delay already, but I… Kinda need to eat something too." Stone said. "I know you want us all to stick together and stuff, but why don't you all go on ahead for a bit and just like, get started? Fifi and Coby and I will meet back up and join you guys once we've finished eating, alright? That'll give me time to figure out what I want to try to sign up for anyways, I haven't really… Uh, w-well, just, why don't you guys get going? I promise, we won't take long, and we'll join back up with you peeps before you even know we're gone."

"Stone..." Clary whinged, Axel clapping her on the shoulder and talking over her before she could do much more.

"Hey, that sounds like a solid idea to me, I think you should trust your buddy's judgment on this one, Clare."

"Ohh… B-But..."

"It's fine Clare, really." Stone said with a smile and a nod of encouragement. "Go on, no one's fault but my own for starting so late, don't let me drag you guys down with me."

"...You better promise you're actually going to meet right back up, Stone."

I will."

"And make sure Coby is the one in the lead!"

"I will!"

Clary gave Stone another stern look before sighing and nodding. "Alright, if you're both sure you're alright with this..."

"Totally." Stone said firmly, Coby nodding along with him and kind of sort of almost smiling. "Don't worry Clare, you have my word, as soon as we're done eating, I will call you, and we'll meet back up with you guys wherever you are."

"...Alright." Clary said with another small sigh as she got up from the table and began to follow after her friends, who were already halfway out of the cafeteria, turning back to Stone and pointing at him with a serious look as she did. "DON'T FORGET!"

"Yes, mother." Stone replied, rolling his eyes and smirking at her as she left.

"...Sorry, Stone. I… Maybe shouldn't have suggested eating." Coby said after a moment, his voice barely above a murmur, though Stone was quick to wave him off.

"Nah, stop that. Me and Fi haven't eaten anything either, we're both starving, I was absolutely planning on eating first anyways." Stone said, glancing from Coby to the now empty cafeteria table that was still littered in empty dishes from Clary and her friends. "Clary means well, but her planning and organization skills really… Ain't the best. Really wish she would've mentioned something yesterday that she was planning on us all doing everything as one big group… Ehck. I don't really want to spend most of the day hanging around with Axel and… Uh… Whatever the fuck those other two's names were."

"Tippi and Bort, I think?" Coby offered up with a small shrug. "...At least that's what they called each other yesterday."

"Oh right, their names are even dumber than ours." Stone replied with a snort, before quickly catching himself and giving Coby a look of regret. "Er, n-no offense, Coby."

"I-It's fine." Coby said with a small chuckle. "I've noticed that a lot of people in this region tend to have… Uh… Unique names."

"...Really? Huh, I thought it was just this school..." Stone mumbled back, scratching his head before shrugging. "...Eh. Could be worse, I guess, my cousin Pumice lives in Orre down in the southwest and she said everyone there all have names like Lorvid and Cromstag and shit, so uh, at least we're normal compared to that… But uh, anyway, heh, should probably stop dawdling. Fi, do you think you could hold this table for us while we grab some grub? It'll only be a minute, promise."

"...Do I have to?" I muttered, glancing warily at the throngs of people that surrounded us on every side, my grip on Stone's jacket tightening at the mere thought of being alone for any amount of time with this many strangers around. "...S-Sorry, master, I know you want me to get better at… Separating myself from you, but, it's just… Th-This is a lot of people..."

Stone let out a small sigh, but thankfully nodded quickly. "...Yeah, that's fine Fi, don't worry about it."

"Um, actually, I got this, Stone." Coby said, as he walked over to one of the empty seats and placed Mew down on it, before glancing around us to see if anyone was watching. "Mew, use, um, disguise number four for a few minutes, w-would you please?"

Mew giggled softly as she began to glow a pale blue for a moment, her entire form growing and morphing before our very eyes, and before I could blink, she had changed from looking like a plush doll version of herself to what looked like a feminine version of Coby, only with pink everything instead of blue everything. She giggled again, her voice still the same, as she winked at Coby and made herself comfortable in the seat. Y-Yeesh… She makes being more human look so easy… Augh… If only it were so simple for me...

"Shit, that's..." Stone began, letting out a low whistle of astonishment at Mew's transformation. "...Hella impressive."

"Oh, Mew's pretty good at transforming into… Well, pretty much anything." Coby replied with a nonchalant shrug, in the same manner that Stone did whenever someone heard me speak. "This is the form she uses when we have to go somewhere that doesn't allow Pokemon, I usually just tell people she's my sister. Of course, she still can't really talk like Fifi can, so her human disguises can only really go so far, but she should be fine just sitting here and holding our seats for a few minutes, right, Mew?"

Mew nodded and giggled again, giving Coby a thumbs up, which he returned in kind.

"Thanks as always, Mew." Coby said, before turning back to Stone. "Um, ah, r-ready when you are, Stone."

"Aw hell yeah, let's get our nom on, dawg." Stone replied without a hint of irony behind any of his words, reaching out and slapping Coby's hand in some sort of awkward handshake/highfive thing that Coby was only barely prepared to receive, an action that like most of the things Stone did probably played out completely differently in his head.

"Eheh, y-yeah, let's, uh, l-let's do... That." Coby responded as best he could, shaking the feeling back into his hand once Stone had released it. As I moved to Stone's side to follow him to the food line, I felt a fuzzy, itching sensation in my head, and I quickly turned my attention back towards Mew as I heard her strange, wispy voice begin to permeate within my skull.

"Fifi, pardon the intrusion, but I was thinking, this is a nice time for us to have a chat, wouldn't you agree? A little girl talk, as it were."

"H-Huh? B-But, uh, a-ah, I..." I began, somehow managing to stutter in my own mind as I stopped moving to look back at Mew, accidentally yanking Stone's jacket and inadvertently pulling him back along with it.

"Jeez, what's the deal, Fi?" Stone asked me in mild annoyance as he got his footing back.

"I, ah, s-sorry, master, I..."

"You want to make your master proud of you, don't you, Fifi? Just think of how pleased he'll be if you tell him you don't mind staying behind after all. It's not like you'll actually be alone, after all!"

...Hngh… I… I do want to… Make Stone happy… Ah… Um… A-Ahh…

"...You okay, Fi?" Stone asked after a moment, the annoyance in his voice replaced with concern as he began to fret over me at the slightest hint of distress as always. Nngh…

"I'm… I'm okay, master… S-Sorry about that..." I replied quickly, before Stone could fret any further. "I was just… I… S-Since Mew is staying here, I… I-I… I w-want to try… A-Also staying here while you guys… G-G-Get the food..."

"W-Wait, really…?" Stone asked in surprise. "Are you… Sure, Fi? Like, I understand that you're still really nervous about these kinds of situations, and I know it's gonna take time for you to get used to leaving my side around strangers, so you're totally fine staying with me, Fi, I'm not disappointed or anything like that, really. You don't have to force yourself to do something that makes you so uncomfortable."

...I… I…

"You've got this, Fifi. Just relax~!"

"T-That's easy for you to say…!"

...Ngh… Ohh… I'm gonna hate this…

"...N-No, really, it's fine, master. I… I need to… D-D-Do this… You'll only b-be gone for… A few minutes, and Mew is here, s-so… This is fine. I'm fine. I'm… T-Totally okay, master! B-But, um, just g-go quickly, before I lose my nerve, p-please…!"

My nervous stammering almost certainly took away any conviction I might have forced behind my words, but I quickly scrambled back over to the table where Mew was sitting and parked my ass right next to her before either Stone or my debilitating anxiety could object. I grinned and gave Stone a shaky thumbs up despite myself, something Mew mimicked beside me with another airy giggle.

"...Ah, shit, alright Fi, if you're sure. I'm proud as fuck, fam." Stone said, smiling widely back at me before turning and walking with Coby towards where the food was being served.

"Teehee, see~? Your guy was beaming with pride~!" Mew broadcast into my mind once we were alone… Well, comparatively alone. "That wasn't so hard, was it? You're welcome, by the way~!"

"...Thanks." I replied tersely, not bothering to meet Mew's gaze since she was inside my head anyways, my attention instead focused on the table and making sure my claws were embedded in it, only taking my eyes off of it to shoot glances behind me to make sure no one was getting too close for comfort.

"I get the impression that crowds make you nervous." Mew said, her eyes narrowing in a teasing manner as I turned my head towards her to ensure she could see me rolling my eyes at her.

"You don't say."

"Would you like to talk about it?" she asked, cocking her head slightly, her expression still whimsical and carefree even as a human.

"Nope."

"Alrighty. I won't force you to do anything. But you know, a good way to get over fears is by talking to someone about them! And I would have to assume you don't particularly have the opportunity to really ever talk to anyone in a meaningful way other than your dearest master, so I just figured you might want to have another ear to bend. That's all!"

My ears fell flat as I gave Mew a wary look, slinking down and shaking my head at her. "I, um… Would rather not, if it's all the same to you. Maybe some other time, and… Some other subject… But I don't know why you're so interested in talking to me in the first place..."

"Because you're interesting, Fifi!" Mew said, giggling like she was so wont to do. "You and your master are both so very intriguing to me!"

"H-Huh…? Why…?" I replied, only feeling more unnerved by the enthusiasm behind Mew's words.

"Haha, why not~?" Mew responded, her usual smile of whimsy spreading into an all-out ear-to-ear grin. "What a silly question, 'why', teehee~. The way you two act, both towards one another and towards others is so fascinating! Not many would have taken the time or put forth the effort to do what you both did for my master yesterday when he was being harassed, you know. I'd like to thank you for that, actually, since I didn't get the chance to do so in the moment."

"I… Y-You're welcome..." I mumbled back to her.

"Teehee~. I truly do appreciate it. My master hasn't had very many people in his life show him that kind of kindness, and usually when people are nice towards him its because they want or expect something from him. But I can sense that you and your master are both genuine in your friendliness towards him, so… Thank you, for Coby's sake."

I squirmed a bit in my seat, as uncomfortable as ever to receive thanks from anyone other than Stone, but managed a nod of acknowledgment.

"...Don't worry about it. Stone taught me the day I met him that I should always stand up for others when they aren't willing or able to do so themselves… Do for others what you'd want done for yourself, as he says. Even if he's started getting reluctant to do so himself without a little prodding..." I explained, shrugging. "But I mean, we couldn't just… Not do anything, y'know? My master may not make a very good case for himself with the way he talks, especially around people he um, finds disagreeable, but he really does care about others a lot, and that's… One of the reasons I admire him so much. I just try to emulate him and follow his example as best as I can, y'know?"

"Hmhmm, yup~! Just as that delightful friend of your master's other friend demonstrated a few moments ago, humans do like to say that we Pokemon tend to take after our partners after being with them for a while, and that certainly seems to ring true with you and Stone~!"

"I suppose so..." I said softly, before giving Mew a small grin. "That doesn't really seem to apply to you and Coby, though, so I don't know how accurate that really is."

"Well, as humans also like to say, opposites attract! But actually, my master and I are super similar to each other in a lot of ways, we just don't show it as openly as others do." Mew proclaimed, though I had a bit of trouble believing her words. The thought of Coby being as bubbly and carefree as Mew, or Mew being as morose and awkward as Coby seemed… Unnatural. I waited for a moment, as it seemed like Mew was going to continue by explaining the ways that she and Coby were similar, but she seemed content to instead just leave it at that.

"Hmm… I guess if you say so, Mew." I said with a shrug and a small chuckle, desperate to break the suddenly awkward silence that had fallen over… Uh… My mind, I guess… Ugh, telepathy is so weird… "Um, if you don't mind me asking, what's your story anyways, Mew? Aren't you supposed to be some sort of mythical, legendary Pokemon that is only ever seen once in a blue moon? I'm sure there must be quite a tale behind how you ended up as the partner of a seemingly inexperienced, unlicensed trainer in midwest America, right?"

"Ooh, do you wanna swap origin stories, Fifi~?" Mew said with a glint in her eye as she turned to me in excitement and leaned in closer towards me, causing me to recoil slightly on instinct. "I'll tell you more about me if you tell me more about you, deal?"

"Hngh… L-Like what…?" I murmured, suddenly regretting my desire to fill the empty silence of my mind.

"Anything! Like how you learned to speak English, or how you and Stone met, or why you're afraid of crowds!" Mew responded with enthusiasm, her arms moving up and down in excitement as she gave me a slightly manic look. "The first step to making new friends is getting to know them better, after all~!"

"F-Friends…?" I repeated back to her, causing her to nod and widen her smile again.

"That's right~! I just know we're going to be fast friends, Fifi, and I can't wait to have another Pokemon to talk to and hang around with, even if it is only for the short time our masters are here at the academy!" Mew said, her excitement only seeming to rise.

Friends, though… I… I hadn't even… Thought about anything like that… I… Haven't had a friend besides Stone since… Nngh… N-No. Nobody besides Stone… I-I suppose his siblings' Pokemon, and his friends' Pokemon, but… They were more acquaintances than anything…

"Ooh, that was a sharp jolt that just went through your mind just now, did I say something to make you uncomfortable, Fifi?" Mew said suddenly, her excitement halted as she looked at me with concern.

"N-No, you didn't, Mew." I said quickly, not wanting Mew to feel guilty over something that wasn't her fault. "J-Just… I haven't really had any real friends besides Stone my whole life, so… I'm not used to being, um, considered one, if that makes any sense… And wow, that sounded waaaaay more pathetic than I thought it would, y-yeesh..."

"Aw, don't worry about that, Fifi, I understand, I'm in the same boat as you, y'know!" Mew said with a reassuring nod, resting her hand on my shoulder. "I don't really interact with anyone besides Coby, either, so that's why I'm so excited to be able to talk to you and be your friend, assuming you're okay with that!"

I smiled back at Mew and gave her a nod, feeling my apprehension fade, if only slightly. "Y-Yeah, of course, that… I-I'd like that too, Mew."

"Yay~!" Mew giggled happily. "That's the spirit, Fifi! Well, I suppose I'll start then, to get the ball rolling. I'm sorry to say, but the story of how Coby and I met isn't as fun or interesting as you're probably imagining. I'm well aware of how exceedingly rare members of my species are, but I'm definitely not the only Mew in this world, in case you were thinking that. I'm not some centuries old creature filled with wisdom and experience like you'd probably expect a Mew to be, I'm actually quite young as far as members of my species go, and most of my time has been spent by Coby's side. As for how I met him and became his partner… Well… That's probably a level seven social link story at minimum, so I don't know if I can tell you until we've reached that level of friendship."

"...What?"

"Teehee, just joking~. I met my master back when he lived in Kanto, at this small island town called Cinnabar. It's not there anymore because the island's volcano erupted, but it used to be a lab town, pretty much, almost nothing but scientists and doctors and stuff studying and researching all kinds of things, and that's why Coby was there in the first place, because his parents are both super smart scientists that were studying the local wildlife on the island and its coasts. One day, I just felt… Compelled to visit the island, not sure why, and that's where I met Coby! He was super nice, and he fed me and played with me, and he told me he didn't have any friends of his own on the island, and so I decided I would be his friend, and we've been together ever since~!"

"...Ah. Yeah, that is a lot less… Dramatic than what I was imagining." I said with a small giggle of my own, the ridiculous origin stories I had concocted for Mew in my mind only seeming all the more silly in retrospect. Though… It did seem as if she had told me a heavily condensed version, similar to how I usually told people how I met Stone whenever someone insisted on knowing. Which, speaking of… Augh… "B-But, um… I-I guess it's my turn now, h-huh…?"

"Yup! That's right~! So long as you're comfortable with it!" Mew responded with an eager nod. "Remember, this conversation is technically all in your head, so you don't have to worry about anyone else hearing if it's something embarrassing, and I promise I won't judge anything you have to say!"

I looked back at Mew warily, letting out a sigh as my gaze fell to my feet. Ugh… It's not that I was worried about Mew judging me in any way… Or being embarrassed at all… More just having to dredge up memories that I had no desire whatsoever to do anything with but leave buried and forgotten for the rest of my life. Or alternatively just tell her the same old 'blatantly missing ninety-nine percent of the story' condensed version I had trained myself to repeat ad nauseum any time Stone or I were asked. But… Mew was… Being so nice… She wanted me to open up, and… And be a… Friend… It wouldn't be right to tell her any version but the full one…

"...It's okay if you don't want to talk about it, Fifi, truly." Mew said softly as I struggled with myself in silence for a moment, though I quickly shook my head in response.

"N-No, no, I… I'll tell you." I replied, thankful I was speaking in my own mind as I was so quiet I could barely even hear myself. "I… U-Um… I just… I-It's hard to only tell the story of how I met Stone without… Explaining how I got to be in the situation that I was in when I met him in the first place, and… A-And… I… Th-That… That's something I haven't even told Stone about… My… M-My life before I… Met him..."

"Hmm… Are you quite certain this is something you're ready to talk about, Fifi?"

...No, not really.

...But…

How many years has it been…?

How long have I kept these memories suppressed…?

Maybe… Maybe Mew is right… And talking about this with someone will help me… D-Deal with them… And the repercussions they've had on my life… Maybe I should've talked about them with Stone at some point, but… He's never going to ask, because he knows it'll only hurt me to bring them up, and he doesn't want me to have to deal with that… But… In the long run… M-Maybe bottling it all up inside is hurting me more… I may never get over my irrational fears if I don't confront them head on…

...Why do I feel so uncomfortable around crowds?

...Why am I so clingy and dependent on Stone and Stone alone?

...I know why… I remember. I just… Don't want to.

...That… That place...

...All those people…

...And…

...All those… Th-Those… Th-Th-The…

...Nngh. No. N-No. I… I don't want to… I-I can't…

"Fifi…? Are you okay? I can hardly stay anchored to your mind, your wavelength is spiking and peaking like crazy! I think maybe you should wait to tell me that story, I don't think you're ready to yet, I didn't mean to cause you such turmoil! Why don't you tell me about something you like, instead?"

...No… I… I need to… If… If I can… Confess my deepest feelings to Stone, then I can… I can definitely…

...Just breathe…

I can handle this...

"...When Stone met me… I was… At death's door."

---

Aw yeah, that's definitely a good end spot to leave this chapter off on. And I'm definitely, definitely not going to open the next chapter up with a scene transition to Stone and Coby so that you guys don't get to actually hear Fifi's tale, that would be almost as fucked up as not updating for five years.

So, yeah, elephant in the room, where the fuck have I been? Well, not here. I've had no free time, no motivation, no drive to write anything for a long, long time now. I've had this Frankenstein's monster of a chapter partially written for the past five years or so, and I've only just now gotten the motivation and focus needed to finish it in an even semi-satisfactory way. Gotta say, the only reason I've come back to this story or writing at all is because so many people have been so incredibly supportive and have sent me so many kind words, even still to this day. I'll be honest, when I first started writing this story, I figured it wouldn't get much more reaction that to just annoy and piss off people who get all up in arms about things like human x Pokemon fanfiction and I didn't think it'd get much traction, but holy shit so many people love this story and have nothing but nice and flattering things to tell me about it even to this day, and I feel really bad that so many people have been waiting so patiently for me to update this for so long. So, here's the deal, peeps. I know you guys don't want to hear this, but I still don't really have much passion or motivation to write anymore. It takes me fucking forever to write even a thousand words, and then I nitpick and edit and suddenly its four in the morning and I have work in five hours and I've gotten two hundred words written down after sitting and staring at my computer screen for four hours straight. I have other things that I have to devote my time towards, and writing just doesn't make me happy anymore, because nothing really does these days. But, but. I figured I owed it to you guys for being so supportive to at least attempt to continue Boundaries, if only futilely. I don't have any realistic expectations that my lazy and unmotivated ass will ever finish this, but damned if I won't give it at least one more try. Updates, if and when they ever come, are going to be sporadic as ever, if I'm lucky I'll be able to pump out a chapter a month but that's being VERY generous, so don't count on it. I'm sorry if I'm coming off as a dick, I just want to be realistic and honest with you guys, I don't want to string anyone along into thinking that I'm going to be able to finish this anytime soon, if at all. My vision and scope for this story are still far beyond what my, in my opinion, mid-tier at best writing abilities are capable of actually producing, but for you guys, I will try my best.

But I will err on the side of caution and just say, expect the quality to slip. I write with all the subtlety and nuance of a bad Saturday morning cartoon, and if you think all the horribly contrived coincidences and impossible time frames that have already happened have been bad, well, it's only gonna get worse from here, homies, because I'm utterly lazy and can't outline my stories at all beyond the grand outline, and so I write as I go which I only seem to regress at. So, in an effort to at least try to ensure this doesn't completely die again, I'm just going to write what comes to mind as it comes to mind and keep it in unless it's really derailing in some way, so the flow is probably going to become even more janky and incohesive, basically an unpolished first draft, but, well, it's better than nothing at all. And well, to give you a hint as to what I consider entertaining, my favorite superhero movie completely unironically is Batman & Robin, so that should tell you all you need to know about how shit my taste in quality is. But hey, if you instead like that kind of schlock as well, then good news, there's plenty more in store for you!

If I had any artistic talent, I would have made this into a visual novel, as I feel it'd be much easier for me to continue this in that medium than with merely words, but I can't draw worth a shiiiiiiit and I doubt I'd have the time to figure out any VN programs either so you will have to just settle for my shitty repetitive tell don't show descriptions instead, I'm so sorry.

In closing, though, I just wanna say again, thank you so, so much to all of you who have sent me well wishes and art and everything else over these past few years that I've been gone here, make no mistake, y'all are the reason Boundaries is continuing. And to those of you who have asked me if you can help me out in any way, I really do appreciate the offers, but if I can ask for anything, it's just to treat everyone else with that kind of kindness as best you can, this world is a shitty and awful hellhole, and a little bit of kindness and compassion, even if you might not think so, can go a long way towards making someone's day just a little less miserable. And I'm a hypocritical asshole, so you'd already be bringing more goodness into the world than I ever have!

Anyways, I'mma shut up for now. Hopefully I'll have the next chapter up sometime next month, but no promises. Feel free to PM me if you ever have any questions and or concerns, I do my best to respond when I can, but I don't really log in here very often so I might not respond right away. But yeah, hope y'all have a nice day.