551. boor: someone who is impolite and rude

Umbreon was excited to be out in the dark; while Green was running, she ran circles around him, said hello to noctowls, chased down oddish on the side of the road, and played tag with stray meowth. Green knew she wasn't trying to be boorish and that she was just having the time of her life, but each time she disappeared for more than a minute he would start to freak out and call out loudly for her (luckily it was pretty late and not many people were still out). Pokenappers were not unheard of, and Umbreon was a real beauty for her species.

They made a loop around the city; Green probably ran the equivalent of two laps though, as he was always running back and forth to look for Umbreon, who'd be happily wandering the trees and bushes right outside the road.

552. dogma: a specific set of ideas or beliefs, especially religious or asserted to be absolutely true

For the last stretch, Green scooped up Umbreon in his arms, hugged her tightly, and then ran home. She mewled her protest, rubbing her nose on Green's neck and tickling him to let her go, but he controlled the tickle spasm and ran faster.

When he got back to his apartment, he let Umbreon down to unlock the door. He immediately walked to the bathroom, his shirt sweaty and a touch dirty from the dirt Umbreon had on her coat.

"Hey girl, how about I give you a bath?"

Umbreon nodded and jumped in the tub and turned on the spout to blast hot water. She pulled back rapidly when the water first came out icy cold, but tested the stream with a paw as it slowly heated to the desired temperature. Green pulled out special shampoo for her (her coat was special - normal stuff would dry it out and leave her itchy and irritated for days) and massaged it into her coat, watching the bubbles foam into a slightly brownish color from all the dirt she'd accumulated while running around. In Green's opinion, cleanliness was an important dogma, but he usually let pokemon clean themselves off; he wondered how much of the dirt he was washing out was old stuff.

553. secluded: hidden; removed; sheltered

After washing Umbreon, he pulled out a hairdryer and turned it on. Umbreon paced back and forth in the hot wind, purring at the warmth. Beads of water skipped off her fur, and she let the dryer blow her short hair until she was a warm, puffed up fluffball. Green switched the hairdryer off and then shooed her out of the bathroom before she got wet again while he was showering.

There was a window in the bathroom, presumably to let out steam; if the apartment was any less secluded, Green might have permanently set up blinds to cover it. He sighed as the warm water ran down his back. The shower head was becoming a little blocked up with accumulated sediment and the water kind of half-heartedly shot out. He made a mental note to poke out the sediment from the nozzles, and rubbed his scalp with his normal shampoo.

554. trifle: something that lacks significance or worth

Finding the same brand of shampoo was a trifle, but Green made it a point to always buy this one brand with a kind of citrus smell. He'd used it for a long, long time; there was a pretty creepy story to it though. At the peak of his fame, around five years ago, he'd started getting the weirdest fanmail. One girl had sent him recommendations for shampoo... Her card had said something like, "Hi Green! I work at the Celadon Department Store and you're hot and I think you'd smell really nice with this shampoo!" Green had grimaced at the creepiness, but kept the brand name in mind and tried it out the next time he dropped by. He'd actually really liked it, and had kept using it ever since.

555. preclude: to make impossible; to prevent the occurrence of

Of course, washing his hair off precluded keeping the smell of Red, but hygiene was more important than creepy fetishes. He finished washing up and wrapped a towel around himself and stepped out of the shower, trying not to drip puddles across the floor. The mirror was fogged up, an he could faintly see his own outline. He turned so he could see his side, and looking closely he might have lost some flab. He stepped on the scale - it seemed as though he hadn't lost anything, but attributing some weight to his wet hair and damp towel, he'd probably lost around two or three pounds from the last time he'd checked, which was... three weeks ago?

556. limpid: perfectly clear; transparent

He opened the bathroom door and let the steam blow out, and the mirror gradually became limpid. His stomach was definitely not beer belly level (ugh gross) but it wasn't exactly toned or muscular (like Red's...) either. He tried tensing, saw nothing, and then covered his face and wondered why he was even trying to compare with the mountain main.

557. purse: to contract into wrinkles or folds; to pucker

He tossed on clothes and walked into the kitchen, rubbing his hair furiously to extract the moisture (he thought it was so annoying when his hair dripped on his shirt). He poured himself a glass of orange juice (he tasted it and then pursed his lips; the stuff was probably close to pure sugar) and then trudged back to his bedroom and flopped down in front of the desktop to get back to work. Umbreon was curled up on his bed, a fuzzy back lump, her rings glowing.

558. stricture: a restraint or limit

Green had read plenty of articles which recommended setting strictures to regulate sleep hours - most recommended sleeping at eleven, and mentioned that sleeping any later was unhealthy. However, procrastination on school projects and insomnia in his youth had given Green the ability to stay up until three before wondering whether he should turn in for the night. During the night, he lost track of time especially easily, and when he shut off his desktop because his eyes were blurring, he glanced at the clock as he went to the bathroom to brush his teeth. 2:48 AM.

559. retire: to retreat, as if from battle

After retiring for the night, he gently relocated Umbreon to the side of the bed so he wouldn't accidentally roll over and squish her. She whimpered as she was moved to a cold section of bed sheet (she's made that one spot so warm), and Green passed out shortly.

560. pact: an agreement between persons, groups, or nations

Green had a lot more memories as dreams than actual fantastical dreams. That night, the scene that came to mind was him and Red and Leaf sitting in a circle in someone's room (he'd forgotten exactly whose). He heard his younger self happily agreeing to the pact: to always be together.