Chapter 19 - It's Never Easy

Ziggy knocked on the door, which was propped halfway open, and shyly peeked his head in. "Hello?"

Kandice looked up from her desk and smiled when she saw who it was at the door to her office. "Good morning, Ziggy. Come on in."

"Good morning," Ziggy replied as he entered the nurse's office. He closed the door behind him and then made his way over to a seat nearby. He sat down in it and waited patiently while Kandice retrieved a clipboard from under the pile of stuff on her desk.

"So nice to see you," Kandice greeted cheerfully, "Thank you for coming to see me."

"Oh, it's fine," Ziggy replied, "No big deal…"

The Audino nodded and then sat down in her own wheeled chair nearby. It was slightly higher than the one Ziggy was in, so her paws didn't touch the ground. She held her clipboard up and studied it for a moment. "So," she said after a few seconds, "How are you?"

Ziggy started twiddling his paws. Kandice always started out by asking him this question, and he never knew how to answer it. His instinct was to just say 'fine' and move on, but he knew that things weren't exactly 'fine' with him. They hadn't been since as long as he could remember. "Uh…Okay, I guess…" he eventually settled on answering.

"Oh gosh…What day is it?" Kandice murmured, glancing over the calendar on the wall. "February 4th…"

Ziggy looked over at the calendar as well, and then glanced out the one window that was in Kandice's office. It was sunny outside, but there were still remnants of the most recent snowfall on the ground and clinging to the trees.

"How have things been going, then? Tell me about what you've been up to this last week," Kandice said. Ziggy knew from experience that she expected him to tell her what had happened, even if it was something she already knew about.

"Well…" Ziggy started, "Sparks gave me a history book and he wants me to read it."

"Oh, that's interesting. What sort of history? Just history of Pokémon in general?"

"Yeah," Ziggy nodded, "It's…a bit more challenging than the books I've read so far, but it's interesting."

Kandice nodded approvingly. "It is nice to see that you are still working to improve your literacy skills. Are you still learning math with Sparks?"

"Yeah, sometimes, but we're mostly doing other stuff."

"Okay…" Kandice said as she scribbled something down.

"And, uh…" Ziggy continued, "I went on a short mission this Monday."

Kandice looked up at him brightly. "Wow! Good for you!" she praised.

"It was just a little thing. Just helping set up the stuff for a big party at the rec centre."

"Now, don't you belittle your own accomplishments. I'm really proud to hear that you're still going out and helping the team with the missions, especially after recent events. That's very brave for a Pokémon like you."

Ziggy bashfully glanced away.

"How many does that make now?" Kandice asked.

"…Five, I think?"

Kandice smiled sweetly. "You know, you've already come a long way, Ziggy. I still remember the Buizel who first walked in here last autumn. You've definitely improved so much, especially since you started coming to see me regularly."

"Y-yeah…" Ziggy said, "I…like talking to you."

"I like talking to you too, sweetie." She wrote something else down and then asked, "Did it go well?"

"Pretty much…"

"Were you terribly worried while you were out on the job?"

Ziggy half-frowned and said, "Well…I'm always worried… I guess, yeah, I was- I am still worried about the Nihigo thing…"

"Nihilego," Kandice corrected.

"R-right… I dunno, though… Maybe I thought back to the day in the market. That day sucked too, but I…kept going after that."

Kandice nodded. "You sure did, sweetie."

Ziggy shrugged and said, "Sparks just said Javier and the others would appreciate my help if I went, so…I went."

For a moment, Kandice paused and just looked quietly at Ziggy. "You have a wonderful heart," she said.

"Huh?"

"I think it's wonderful that you ended up here, Ziggy. There are lots of places out there that could've given you the help you needed, but…you fit in around here really well."

"Ah…Y-yeah, I kinda noticed that too…"

"Mhm," Kandice nodded, "At the Rescue Society we don't just help Pokémon, we love helping Pokémon. You like helping Pokémon too, don't you?"

Ziggy nodded softly. "I remember…" he started saying, but trailed off.

"Hm? Remember what?" Kandice gently pressed.

"I remember way back at the beginning…Sparks took me into his room, and he showed me all these pictures he took of Pokémon he had helped out when he was on the active team. I was too scared to go out of the room, so we spent time just talking about each one of those pictures… and I still remember being amazed by what he had done…by what he did for a living. I had barely known him at that point, but already I knew I had never met any Pokémon like him before…"

"He certainly is one of a kind…" Kandice commented quietly.

"I…I wish I wasn't so scared all the time," Ziggy said sadly, "I wish I wasn't terrified of so many things… 'cus I want to help more. Ever since I started doing chores here, I've felt a lot better about being here."

"What do you mean by that?"

"Well…When I first came here, even though everyone was so nice to me, I couldn't shake this feeling that I wasn't s'posed to be here. Like I was getting stuff…I didn't…deserve…"

"Oh," Kandice nodded, "Oh, I see."

"I like doing the chores, though," Ziggy said, "And I like coming along and helping on missions…e-even though I'm still kinda scared to go outside, I like the actual 'helping' part, y'know…It feels…nice…"

Kandice tapped the pen she was holding to her chin thoughtfully for a moment. "What do you think is the next step for you?" she eventually asked.

"Huh? I dunno what Sparks is-"

"I don't mean Sparks, I mean you," she interjected, "What do you think your next step is?"

Ziggy blinked and considered the question. "Well, uh…" he murmured, "I guess…I don't really know…"

"You were working on relying less on your hoodie, weren't you?"

"Ah yeah, sort of…" Ziggy murmured, "But, uh…I kinda, just, y'know…like it."

"I know it makes you feel safer, but you can't hide under a hoodie your whole life."

"No, I mean I just like it. I like how it looks…"

Kandice gave him a bemused smile. "Ziggy, honey, it doesn't fit."

Ziggy blushed a little. "I-I know…"

The Audino nurse shook her head and let out a little lighthearted laugh. "Just hood off, then."

"Yeah…I guess…"

Kandice scribbled some more stuff down, leading Ziggy to wonder exactly what it was she was writing. "You seem more comfortable around the building now, so that's good."

"Mhm…I guess I finally convinced myself that nobody who works here has…a problem with me…"

"I know you've met with Angelo a few times."

Ziggy hesitated slightly, thinking of the guild's combat instructor. "He's nice, but…he kinda scares me."

Kandice giggled. "He's really not a scary Pokémon..."

"We kinda talked about Pokémon moves, but it didn't really go anywhere. I think he just wanted me to do exercise… Although, I think he was impressed by how fast I could run."

"You are quite speedy," Kandice said. She then put down her clipboard and simply looked at Ziggy. "You seem to be in a better place, just overall. You're talking more, you're making more eye contact, you're not stuttering as much… I really do think staying with us for this long has done wonders for you, and I couldn't be happier for you. I think there's a bright future for you that might not be as far away as we once thought."

"Yeah…?" Ziggy murmured uncertainly.

"There will always be setbacks, of course. We've already been through a few, like that time you got lost, but I think you're a stronger Pokémon than you were before, Ziggy. My only advice to you at this point is to just keep doing what you're doing, cherish the friendships you've made here, and don't let dark days get you down."

Ziggy looked down at the floor for a moment and then eventually nodded. "Okay, Kandice…" he said softly, "I…just wish everybody else wasn't so mean to me…"

Kandice frowned sympathetically. "Unfortunately, there's nothing we can do about that. You'll just have to work on your own defenses there…"

"Okay." Ziggy nodded again. "Thanks, Kandice."

"Thanks for coming to see me, sweetie," Kandice said with a pleasant smile, "It was wonderful talking to you. Same time next week, then?"

"All right."

"Good." Kandice then stood up and opened the door for Ziggy, who stood up and nodded in thanks to her. She was a very patient and understanding Pokémon, and Ziggy had come to appreciate his talks with her. He had definitely cried a few times while in her office, but Kandice never minded. Ziggy then walked out of her office, and back into the main hall of the guild.

The place where his life had taken him. His weird, weird life had tumbled him around until he finally landed here. Ziggy still looked back on his recent past in fascination. How had the fates aligned and allowed him to meet Sparks on that historic day? The day that had changed his life forever. The saddening thought was that Ziggy had probably made more memories in his short few months at this place than in the years he had spent out on the streets.

He did agree with Kandice, though, about how he was in a better place now than ever before. Still, the same question plagued his mind that had plagued him when he had first shown up in the hallowed halls of this building.

What now?


"Ziggy! Lupe's asked me to join her on a job out in the suburbs! You wanna come with?"

Those were the words that had started off Ziggy's morning. He had finished eating breakfast and was just sitting quietly alone with his thoughts, when Sparks had appeared out of nowhere with the invitation.

Hearing those words had set off the internal battle that always raged in his head every time he was invited along. Did he want to help? Absolutely. Did he want to go outside? Absolutely not. The latter argument was still quite strong, and the thought of the outside world still gave him shivers. However, he always made himself think back to wise words that others had spoken to him, such as Rico, Dante and Kandice. The desire to help was bolstered by his desire to improve himself.

There were still tons of times he found himself asking, 'What the hell have you gotten yourself into!?'

Ziggy was on a residential street, not dissimilar from the one he had gotten lost on, with the Raichu and Vulpix that he was accompanying. Lupe had a large basket strapped to her back. They were still walking to their destination. Ziggy was wearing his hoodie, though the hood was pulled down. Sparks had admitted that it was probably still too soon to try walking around outside with nothing covering him up, but Ziggy was still encouraged to keep the hood down. It was agreed that he could pull it back up if somebody started acting mean to him, or if he really started to feel uncomfortable, and nobody would think any lesser of him.

It was a crisp, chilly morning. A heavy rainfall had come and gone during the night which had washed away most of the remaining snow, leaving everything wet, damp, and covered in the wonderful scent of rainfall that Ziggy just adored. What's more, he could actually enjoy it thanks to the relative newfound freedom he had with Sparks alongside him.

Ziggy glanced around as they walked, just slightly wary of passing Pokémon, but the chilly weather meant there were fewer out on the streets. He caught sight of a small back lane tucked away between some houses, where shadows were cast even in the middle of the day. Ziggy was reminded of the life he had left behind. The life that would feature him spending almost all of his time in an alleyway like that.

Sometimes, Ziggy thought about how easy it would be to just go back to that life. It wasn't a glamourous life, but it was all he had known for most of his years on this earth. To say nothing else, he had gotten fairly good at it. Maybe not in Radiant City, but in a smaller town. If he wanted, it would be hardly any trouble to just go back to the life of a thief, hiding from the public and stealing food to survive.

It was hard to believe that he hadn't been a thief in at least four months.

Ziggy looked up at Sparks, who smiled back down at him. In his heart, Ziggy knew he didn't need that life anymore. He didn't want it either. In a few small ways it was easier than what he was doing now; living as a thief meant he didn't need to force himself to get comfortable under the eyes of strangers, for example. However he was sure, without a shadow of a doubt, that his life was better since he had met Sparks. Sometimes he was scared about taking the next step forward. Oftentimes he was very scared about it, and sometimes he was even afraid of what kind of life he would live in the future.

But Sparks was there to help. Sparks and all of his friends in the guild.

Ziggy's friends.

"Well, we're here!" Sparks proclaimed, slightly startling Ziggy. He looked up from after being lost in thought, and saw that the trio had arrived at a blue-coloured house. There was a wagon out front, like the one that a Rapidash had pulled to take the group to the Mystery Dungeon, only this one didn't have a Pokémon attached.

Sparks had filled him in earlier on what this particular job was. The Pokémon living in the house was moving out of the city and had to pack all of her belongings onto the wagon. Most of her furniture had already been taken away, leaving everything smaller to be packed up. This she had been planning to do herself, until she had unexpectedly broken one of her paws.

Lupe led the others through the open gate and walked up to the front door. She knocked on it and waited patiently for someone to shout, "It's open!" Lupe then opened the door and peered inside.

"Hello? Rescue Society workers are here!" Lupe announced.

Ziggy peeked around Sparks' larger frame and through the doorway. He saw a Medicham sitting in a chair in the foyer, with one of her forelimbs in a cast and sling. She was looking at Lupe and Sparks with a welcoming and grateful smile.

"Hi there," she greeted them, "Thank you so much for coming. I'm Gabriela. I'm so glad you could do this, because this just happened yesterday and I couldn't make other plans." She lifted up her broken limb slightly to emphasise.

"Oh, it's no problem at all. Happy to help," Lupe replied, "My name's Lupe, and this is Sparks and Ziggy!"

"Good morning, miss," Sparks greeted her.

Then, the moment Ziggy knew was approaching finally arrived, as Sparks fully stepped aside so that he could present and introduce himself to the homeowner, a stranger. Before he even said or did anything, Ziggy locked eyes with the Medicham and watched what her reaction was to seeing him.

First came the initial friendly smile, then the narrowed eyes as she got a better look at him. Her eyes widened and her smile disappeared. Ziggy tried to offer a friendly wave, but her expression didn't change. She also didn't wave back. A typical response.

Ziggy cast his gaze downwards. At the very least, she wasn't one of the angry ones who shouted stuff the moment she saw him. Ever since Ziggy had started accompanying Sparks on jobs, only one of their clients had done this. Sparks had given him a stern warning about the treatment of those who were working for him, and in the end the job was cancelled.

Still, it didn't make Ziggy feel very good to see that his very presence caused this Pokémon's smile to vanish.

"So anyway," Lupe said, "Just let us know what needs to be loaded onto the wagon and we'll get it there.

Ziggy looked up, and winced when he saw the Medicham was still staring at him. It took a few seconds before she tore her gaze away and responded to Lupe. The two started talking about the specifics of the job, leaving Ziggy and Sparks to wait off to the side.

The Buizel sighed and scuffed his paws on the dirt. It was the same every time. No matter who it was, or where they went, anybody who saw him had the same kind of reactions. Ziggy still hadn't met anybody who wasn't associated with the guild who had treated him nicely right from the get go. He would say he was used to it at this point, but even he knew that was a lie.

Before long, the work had begun and Ziggy found himself entering the house and carrying out a bunch of small items to load onto the wagon. Since he was being allowed into the house, Ziggy figured that the Medicham must not have raised a stink over him being there.

At first, Ziggy just focused on the job. Like many other jobs and chores he had been given in recent times, he found the work to be somewhat enjoyable and he relished in the fact that it took his mind off of things. Every time Sparks said 'thanks' when Ziggy handed him something, or when one of the guildmembers said 'good job', Ziggy knew that he was helping and it was a good feeling. It was a feeling that he had never experienced while out on the streets; not even once. The feeling of being wanted, of being valued for something. Even so, it was still a bit of a foreign sensation to him and he wasn't quite sure how to process it.

However, Ziggy could tell he was being watched. He knew there was a pair of Medicham eyes on him, even if he couldn't see them. He could just feel it in the air. Whenever he passed by the Medicham or looked in her direction she was looking elsewhere, but Ziggy knew. He knew she was watching him, staring at him, judging him.

About an hour passed by as the wagon slowly filled up with personal possessions and other knickknacks. Ziggy had realized that, at some point, the Medicham had given up on hiding her staring and was now doing it unashamedly. Every time he walked past her to get more items from inside the house, she watched him with those slightly-wide, condemning eyes. Ziggy could tell what she was thinking and it wasn't anything pleasant.

He thought back to a previous session he'd had with Kandice. She had said something along the lines of, 'If they get mad at you, then that's one thing. In that case of course be on guard, put up your hood, go find Sparks, y'know do whatever you need to do. But if they don't get mad…If they're just staring or giving you weird looks, then why does that bother you just as much?' Ziggy knew then and he still knew now that logically it shouldn't upset him just as much. A Pokémon getting mad is much worse than one who isn't getting mad, but they all make him feel the same way. He had tried to describe to her how it felt.

"I know it's not as bad, Kandice. I definitely know. I can tell it to myself, and I believe myself, that it really isn't as bad. But…I still feel the same way. When I see them looking at me, it's like my whole body gets colder. If I'm not shivering, I feel like I need to. For a split second, it feels like I'm gonna throw up; like, it feels like there's stuff coming up my throat. My mouth feels weird, my chest feels weird, my hind legs don't quite feel normal. I…I feel like I need to watch them back. Keep my eyes on them. Just in case…they do something worse."

Ziggy sighed as he put a few more items onto the wagon. Did Sparks and Lupe even notice her staring? He turned around and saw Lupe coming out of the house as well. Since she couldn't walk on her hind legs, she was putting items into a basket and then dragging it out of the house with her mouth. It looked like tedious work, but Lupe did it so smoothly that it sometimes looked like she was dragging the basket along ice. Maybe she had been doing this for most of her life and was used to it.

He considered saying something to her, maybe to ask her if she had noticed, or what to do about it. She gave him a smile and a nod as she passed by him and loaded in her items, while Ziggy stood and hesitated. He wanted to say something, but what would he say? And what would be the point? Mostly, he just wanted to put his hood back up. He felt this desire, even though the Medicham already knew what he looked like.

Ziggy simply trudged back into the house, trying and failing to avoid eye contact with the homeowner. His mind was starting to muddle up, like it usually did when he thought about these kinds of things. A lot had changed recently, especially since his trip into the Mystery Dungeon from before Christmas. Truth be told, he was starting to feel a little braver. He felt bolder, less afraid of some things, and maybe even a little optimistic. Such things had been almost alien to him before now. It was surprising to him how much of a changed Pokémon he was already, but he also knew that he wasn't 'cured' yet.

Going outside, at least while in the presence of his guild friends, was honestly becoming less and less frightening. The idea of being seen by others was losing its terrifying edge. But, at the same time, Ziggy still hated meeting strangers and was afraid of what certain Pokémon might do when they saw his weird fur colour. Ziggy shook his head. He had been trying his best to stop referring to himself as 'weird' or 'freaky', but it was an uphill battle.

Sparks was constantly praising him for his advances, especially after every time he helped out with a mission or a chore that took him outside of the guild walls. Ziggy didn't exactly share the enthusiasm, but he was cautiously impressed from time to time. Sometimes at night, he thought back on the day and wondered how in the hell he had managed to get himself to do something, and pessimistically wondered if he'd ever be able to manage it again.

After Ziggy grabbed a few more items and headed back to the front door, he locked eyes with the Medicham again. She was still staring. Just sitting there and staring. Ziggy frowned and furrowed his brow. She wasn't even doing anything. She was literally just sitting there, staring. Watching. Observing. She hadn't said anything or done anything, but she was still being really weird about him being there.

"Here I am, trying to help this Pokémon with something, and they're upset with me," he muttered under his breath. Why did she have to be like this? After more than an hour of working, hadn't she noticed the hard work he was doing to help her? Hadn't she realized that he was more than just a weird freak and could actually do something nice for her?

Of course not. Why would she?


Eventually, the job was completed and everything was loaded onto the wagon. The Medicham was quite thankful for their hard work, going up to Lupe and thanking her and then going to Sparks and thanking him as well. She seemed especially impressed by how much work Lupe had gotten done despite her being a quadruped.

So now, Sparks was settling a few things with her before they headed off. Like most clients, she insisted on paying them a gratuity, and Sparks was doing his damnedest to make sure she didn't break the bank in doing so.

"Hey! How's it going?"

Ziggy jumped slightly as Lupe snuck up behind him. He was sitting out on the sidewalk next to the wagon, trying to remain inconspicuous. "I dunno…" he replied.

"You did a good job today. You were a big help!" Lupe said with a wide smile.

"Sure…" Ziggy said softly, rolling his eyes, "Nice of someone to tell me that…"

Lupe's smile morphed into a frown. "Are you okay?" she asked.

"I'm fine."

"You don't sound very fine…"

Ziggy sighed and pulled up his hood to cover his face. "Whatever…"

Lupe took a few steps so she was standing right in front of him, making sure he could still see her with his peripheral vision cut off. "Ziggy, talk to me. Did something happen?"

"Not really," he mumbled, "She just stared at me the whole time…"

"Oh… Yeah, I noticed her doing that a couple of times. I was mostly focused on my work, though. As long as she didn't do anything else, though. Right?"

Ziggy just shrugged.

"C'mon, Ziggy. Don't let that ruin your day," she said in a sympathetic tone, "You did a good job today and you should be proud. We all know how tough it is for you to go outside…"

"Whatever," Ziggy said, "I don't care…"

Lupe continued to frown at him. "Are you sure nothing else happened? Nothing else is wrong?"

"No. Why?"

"You just seem upset…"

Ziggy gave her an odd look. "That's weird to you…?"

"Well yeah, kind of," she replied, "You're usually scared, not upset."

"…I suppose so…"

Lupe smiled sympathetically at him. "Don't let it bug you," she said, "You didn't let it keep you from helping us with this job, right? And we're very thankful for your help, Ziggy. It made the task a lot easier with three sets of paws instead of just two."

Ziggy looked down at the ground, his frown returning.

Lupe leaned in a little to try and stay in his field of vision, albeit unsuccessfully. "Ziggy?" she gently prodded.

"It's not fair…" Ziggy muttered.

There was a noticeable pause. "…I know it's not," Lupe said afterwards.

"I was helping this Pokémon…"

"I know, Ziggy, I know. It's not. You're right. It's not fair." There was another pause, and Ziggy saw Lupe shuffle her paws awkwardly. "Well…" she then spoke up, "Even though she might've made it uncomfortable, you didn't quit halfway through or anything. Thanks for coming out to help us today, Ziggy. We appreciate it."

"Mhm…" Ziggy murmured gloomily. He did appreciate her kind words, but his mood had slowly been souring ever since he had arrived at this Pokémon's property. He was a little proud of himself for sticking with the job, but honestly he just wanted to go back to the guild now.

"All right, gang!" a familiar third voice cut in, "That's all settled up, and I do believe we have missed lunch. Shall we go somewhere for a bite to eat?'

Ziggy lifted his head and saw Sparks approaching the two of them. Behind him, the front door of the house was closed and the Medicham was nowhere to be seen. He looked up at Sparks' smiling face and his spirits did lift a little.

"You okay, Ziggy?" Sparks asked in concern once he saw that Ziggy was wearing his hood.

"I'm…" Ziggy answered hesitantly, "It's fine. I'm okay."

Sparks smiled again and gave him a pat on the shoulder. "Let me know if you want to talk," was all he said. Sparks had learned over time that Ziggy didn't like to be pushed towards talking or explaining if he was feeling upset, so this simple statement was enough to say that Sparks would be there, ready to listen when he was ready to talk.

"It doesn't matter. It's no big deal," Ziggy said, and then asked, "Did somebody mention food?"


A few days later brought about another adventure for the young Buizel.

Ziggy was out on the streets again, wearing his hoodie with the hood pulled up. There was a good reason that he had the hood up, which was also why this was another new step forward for him. Unlike all of his previous outings, Sparks wasn't with him.

Today he was walking behind Shay and Javier. It was the Quilava who had picked up the job, which required three Pokémon to do properly. Most of the active team, besides Shay, were busy. So Javier had asked if Ziggy would like to come along. It had been a bit surprising, since the Quilava had barely spoken more than a few words to him in the past. Sparks had always said it was because he just preferred to be quiet and alone.

Indeed, though his voice was quiet, Javier had seemed friendly and inviting when asking Ziggy for help. The job was to set up a new playground at a daycare centre. More specifically, to help with the pulley systems to lift up the apparatuses and hold them in place. Ziggy had been rather intrigued by the prospect. Of all the Pokémon strangers out there in the world, cubs were the least frightening to him, and he still remembered his good experience with the Nidoran cub. So, he had agreed to come along.

He was dismayed to learn that Sparks couldn't come on this particular day, as he had a medical appointment elsewhere in the city. It was a specialist's appointment, something Kandice couldn't do, that he wouldn't be able to rebook.

Ziggy was dismayed and truly believed he would have to tell Javier that he was cancelling. But, to his surprise, Sparks encouraged him to go anyway. Sparks said that he knew Ziggy felt most secure with him, but he had also grown to feel quite secure among the rest of the active team.

After Sparks assured him that he would still try to accompany the Buizel whenever possible, for now at least, Ziggy eventually agreed to this minor deviation. Ziggy had been doing his best to try new things as of late, and this would be no different.

"Ziggy, Ziggy!" Shay yapped, "Great job today! Good job! Awesome! Awesome job!"

"Heh…Yeah, thanks…"

It was late afternoon, and Ziggy was walking back to the guild along with the two others. He was relieved, and maybe even a bit pleased, to know that the job had gone off without a hitch. It had been hard but enjoyable work, and nothing bad had happened. The Pangoro they had been working for had been staring at him, but definitely not as badly as the Medicham.

Ziggy had been admittedly nervous for about the first half of the day. His mind kept focusing on the fact that Sparks wasn't there. Sparks wasn't around, and Sparks wouldn't be there to save him if things went bad. Eventually, though, he remembered the time he got lost and found his way back to the guild by himself without Sparks' help. Sparks' presence was very beneficial to him, but Ziggy could manage to get by without.

"That was a lot of fun! Yuppers! So much fun!" Shay continued to yammer on, practically bouncing with each step. The Yamper could be a bit much for Ziggy at times, but he was slowly getting used to his antics.

Ziggy then glanced over at Javier. The Quilava was taking point, leading the group in silence. Ziggy sometimes didn't realize just how little Javier spoke to others. He himself probably talked more than the Quilava did. Despite Sparks' words, Javier didn't really seem 'shy'. Ziggy was never quite sure what to make of him, and yet Ziggy somehow got a good vibe off of him. Others trusted him, so Ziggy knew he could as well. And, even though he usually wore a neutral, expressionless look on his face, the Quilava did occasionally smile.

"Ziggy?" Javier asked quietly. He must have noticed Ziggy looking at him.

"Ah, uh…It's nothing. I'm fine," he replied, flushing slightly in embarrassment.

"I think it is supposed to rain again later today," he observed.

Ziggy glanced up at the sky, seeing a few dark clouds hovering just outside of the city. It had been raining intermittently over the past few days, and it had washed away the rest of the snow remnants. The newspapers said they were pretty sure it was the last they would see of snow this season. For the first time in his life, Ziggy was sad to see it go.

A brief gust of wind unexpectedly assaulted him, blowing his hood off of his head before he even knew what had happened. He reached up fruitlessly to try and catch it as a brief panic spike shot through him. At first Ziggy scrambled to quickly pull it back up over his head, but this caused Javier to look back at him in concern.

His movements slowed and he flitted his eyes about furtively. The street they were on was fairly empty and nobody was really looking at him. It took a moment of internal conflict, but he eventually decided to just leave the hood down. At least, for the moment. It was nice to see Javier's look of concern, though. Sparks always told him that everybody on the active team liked him and cared about him, but to see it for himself was something else.

Ziggy's stomach growled. As was usually the case after a day's outing, he was looking forward to getting food in his belly. Even now, getting food to eat was a spectacular event that he savoured and cherished. Years and years of living on the streets and surviving off of table scraps had truly given him an appreciation for a good, full meal that would likely last for the rest of his life. What would Liz be serving tonight?

The trio came to the bottom of an incline in the street. It was a somewhat steep grade. Nothing that would be difficult to climb, but enough to require a little more effort. There were still plenty of houses lining the sides of the street despite the incline.

"Hey!" Shay piped up, looking over at Javier, "Race ya to the top!" Before Javier could even reply, the Yamper was already speeding off and running up the hill.

"Shay!" Javier called out, "Don't run off!"

Ziggy watched bemusedly as Shay scampered up the hill, not even looking back as he had his sights set on the top. Javier wasn't bothering to race him, but Shay either didn't notice or didn't care. Javier simply continued along at his usual pace, and Ziggy followed behind him.

It didn't take long for Shay to reach the top of the hill and let out a triumphant bark. He then proceeded to trip and nearly fall on his face.

Javier sighed in frustration. "See?" he said to no-one in particular, "That's what happens…" Now, Javier started running, though instead to get up to Shay in case he needed help.

Ziggy continued up the hill at a brisk pace, not running but not walking either. He could hear Shay giggling at the top of the hill, so it didn't seem like he had gotten hurt. Javier was the more dependable one anyway, so he could handle things and Ziggy would just follow behind him.

As he walked up the hill, Ziggy continued to look at his surroundings. No matter how comfortable he got with being outside, he still felt compelled to do this. He had developed survival instincts over a long period of time that encouraged him to always be on the lookout for danger.

One thing he took notice of was a group of young cubs who were playing basketball. They had a basketball hoop set up on the curb, situated on a flatter part of the street. His immediate question was why anyone would set up a basketball hoop on a hill in the first place, but perhaps that was the best they could do considering where they lived. The slight grade that they were playing on didn't seem to affect the game too much anyway.

As Ziggy drew closer, thinking about how he would have to walk past them soon enough, one of the cubs made a shot for the hoop. The ball missed the hoop entirely, hit the backboard, bounced up and then dropped straight downwards. It landed on the base of the basketball hoop, a rectangular structure that weighed the pole down, and ricocheted off the side of it which caused it to immediately start rolling down the hill very rapidly.

"Crap!" one of them shouted.

"Get it!" another exclaimed.

The ball was rolling much too fast for them to get it, which meant that their only option would be to chase it all the way to the bottom of the hill to retrieve it. The disappointment could already be seen in their faces as the ball rolled away.

Ziggy swiftly took a few steps to the side and just barely managed to catch the ball before it rolled past him. He picked it up and nervously looked up towards the group of cubs. He saw them all let out a sigh of relief, and one of them shouted, "Nice catch!"

There were three cubs, two males and a female. The two boys were a Pansage, who looked to be the youngest one there, and a Smeargle. It was the third Pokémon that Ziggy took particular notice of, because she was a Buizel like he was. As she was a young cub she was about half his size and, obviously, coloured the proper orange.

Ziggy started walking towards them, carrying the ball. They all stayed still near the hoop, and he could see that they were starting to stare. Like anyone else who stared at him, it stung. However, when it was little cubs doing it, Ziggy didn't seem to mind as much. Ever since rescuing the Nidoran, he found that he was certainly more comfortable in their presence than in an adult's. He reasoned that their staring wasn't unexpected, since the three of them had probably never even seen a shiny Pokémon before. With a real life 'normal' Buizel there to draw comparisons from, it was inevitable that their eyes would be drawn.

When he got closer, he held out the ball in front of him to invite them to take it from him. He had never held a basketball before in his life and didn't trust himself to throw it to them. He stopped a respectful distance away, but for a moment none of the cubs moved. Eventually the Smeargle gave the Buizel a nudge from behind. She briefly glared at him, and then slowly walked over towards Ziggy to take the ball from him.

"Here you go," Ziggy said as he gave her the ball.

"Uh…Thanks," she said, sounding a little unsure but definitely not ungrateful.

Ziggy nodded, and then looked over at the hoop. "Not the best spot for a hoop, I guess?"

There was a brief pause, but then the younger Buizel answered, "Yeah, kinda. We like to play, though, so…"

"That was pretty fast," the Smeargle observed, which drew Ziggy's attention. He had been the one who had said 'nice catch' earlier.

"Heh… Thanks…" Ziggy replied.

The Buizel cub looked back at her friends, and the three all shared a look. It was so strange for Ziggy to be the tallest one in a group. Certainly something he hadn't experienced before. When the trio turned to look at him again, still none of them were smiling. Although, it seemed more like they were curious about him rather than being unnerved or upset by him.

"I guess, uh, just try to be a bit more careful with the ball," Ziggy said after some silence had passed.

They nodded and all said, "We will." The Pansage then added, "Thanks for catching our ball, mister."

Ziggy was slightly taken aback at being addressed as 'mister'. "Ah, um…Y-yeah, it was no problem."

"Hey!"

The three cubs and Ziggy all looked over upon hearing the angry shout. A tall, female Simisage was coming out of the house that was directly behind the hoop. Ziggy tensed up when he saw that she was glaring daggers at him.

"Get out of here!" she shouted angrily.

"Mom?" the Pansage said curiously, a hint of unease in his voice.

"Sorry…" Ziggy said softly, backing away slightly.

"Get off of our property!" the Simisage exclaimed.

Ziggy's brain skipped a gear for a second. "…I'm in the street."

"I said get off of our property!" she retorted, and then addressed the cubs by saying, "Kids, stand back."

For a tense couple of moments, Ziggy just stood there. He stared at this enraged Simisage, glaring at him like he was some sort of nuisance. That was a look he was innately familiar with, but this time he hadn't even done anything. The only thing he had done is that he had tried to help. He glanced down at the three cubs, who had followed the adult's order and had taken a step back. Ziggy felt an ache in his heart when he noticed that their expressions had all changed. They were looking up at him in fear and confusion now, all of them wondering what was so dangerous about the freaky Buizel that made the mother so defensive.

And all he had done was try to help.

His forepaws balled up tightly. His mouth twisted into a sour scowl, tears welling in his eyes that he wished weren't there. Deep in the pit of his stomach, he could feel it. Bubbling and boiling, painting his thoughts with a thick coat of harsh red paint. Ziggy felt something inside that he hadn't felt for a long time. He wasn't sure he had ever felt it before, in truth.

Anger.

Before he even knew what he was doing, Ziggy found himself shouting. "I was just giving back their runaway basketball! I didn't do anything, and I'm not even on your property!"

The Simisage took his rage in stride, and ended up looking even angrier herself. "Get! Out! Of! Here!" she shouted.

Ziggy growled, his fists quivering as he tried to contain this unfamiliar emotion. For the first time in dealing with an upset Pokémon like this, Ziggy wasn't afraid. He couldn't; there was no room left for fear. He was just mad from head to tail. "I was just trying to help," he said, loudly but not shouting, "and this is the thanks I get?"

In response, the Simisage stood up taller and took a step towards him, clearly not satisfied that he wasn't leaving. "You think you can just waltz into our neighbourhood and threaten our kids?!" she exclaimed. Some of Ziggy's rage finally shifted back to fear as he took notice of just how much bigger than him she was.

Ziggy realized he may have just made a huge mistake as the Simisage lifted one of her hands, preparing to strike him. "You are not welcome here!" she shouted before swiftly swinging her forearm down. Ziggy could only wince and brace himself against the attack.

Her strike never hit him. At the last possible second she was interrupted, her forearm and hand held at bay halfway between the two. Ziggy let out the breath he hadn't realized he'd been holding in and saw the outstretched yellow paw that had stopped the attack. He gasped when he realized who it belonged to.

Javier stared coldly at the Simisage, who had turned to look at him in surprise. Ziggy stared in shock. Javier had so effortlessly stopped her in her tracks, displaying a strength that Ziggy hadn't been aware of. It was like she had struck a stone wall.

There was a brief stalemate, and then the Simisage backed off. Javier lowered his paw once she had done so, and then proceeded to sit on his posterior in a rather dignified upright position. With his typical quietness, he used the same forepaw to actually unclip his guild badge from his fur and held it up so she could get a better look at it.

"Would you like to be arrested?" he asked calmly.

The Simisage stared evenly at him for a moment, still seeming quite angry at the situation. Ziggy honestly couldn't tell whether or not she would try something else and turn this whole thing into a big fight. Eventually, though, she glanced away and let out a huff of frustration.

Javier pinned his badge back on. "You do not have jurisdiction over the street in front of your house," he explained simply, "And even if you did, that would not entitle you to commit physical violence."

"I don't want him near my son and his friends," she growled lowly.

"And we will respect those wishes," Javier replied, "though in the future, you might consider asking politely." He then promptly turned to Ziggy and said, "Let's go."

Ziggy continued to glare at the Simisage for a few tense moments, his paws still clenched into fists. He then glanced over at the group of cubs, who still looked frightened and were all huddled together. His expression softened and he gave them a sympathetic look. Then, with a heavy sigh, he turned and started walking up the hill. As he pulled his hood up over his head once again, he forced himself to not look back. Only the quiet sounds of Javier's pawsteps told him that the Quilava was following.

Once they got out of earshot from the family, Javier stepped in front of Ziggy. "Are you okay, Ziggy?" he asked.

Ziggy looked down at the Quilava. Now that the incident had passed, Ziggy began to realize just what the Quilava had done for him. Even ignoring his unbelievable display of strength, Javier had rushed in to defend him from the angry mother without a moment's hesitation. "…I'm not hurt," he answered.

"I must apologize," Javier said, and Ziggy could hear a truly apologetic tone in the Quilava's quiet voice.

"For what?"

"I am…unused to traveling with you," he admitted, "I was distracted by Shay's antics and I was not giving my full attentiveness to you. I am just relieved that you are unharmed."

For a moment, Ziggy didn't quite know what to say. Javier was such a lonesome, quiet character that he and Ziggy had probably barely spoken twenty words to each other in total before today. He was the one on the active team that Ziggy knew the least about. Yet, Javier was still showing a genuine concern for his wellbeing. It was touching to see that even Javier cared about him.

Sadly, though, this didn't do much for the anger and resentment that was still bubbling in the Buizel's belly. All he could think about was that Simisage and the way she had acted. He could hear the basketball bouncing on the ground, so he knew the cubs had gotten back to their game. Maybe they too were staring at him, even as they played, waiting until the dangerous freak disappeared over the top of the hill. After all, their mom said he was bad.

Shay was waiting at the top of the hill, wearing a rather uncharacteristic worried frown. Ziggy realized belatedly that he had started walking up the hill again without answering Javier, but he was too miffed to care. "Ziggy?" Shay asked in a quiet, concerned voice that Ziggy had never heard before, "Is everything all right?"

"No."

Ziggy stormed right past him. He had his paws jammed into the pockets on the front of his hoodie, his head leaned forward to cast as much shadow as possible over his face. The further away he got from that incident, the angrier he seemed to be getting. He silently thanked Javier to getting him out of there before he did something he might regret. He still had no idea why he felt so angry, and why this particular event had made him angry instead of afraid.

The only thing he was afraid of now…was how he felt inside.


Sparks was sitting in the common room, relaxing and reading the newspaper.

His medical appointment hadn't taken as long as he had expected, so he was back at the guild already. He would have gone out to join Ziggy on the expedition he'd had to skip out on, but unfortunately he didn't know where it was taking place and he didn't want to bother Javier if he was still working. It had started raining heavily all of a sudden just minutes before he had stepped in the door. It had given him a chuckle to know that he had been out all day, but the last two minutes of his outing were what had required him to spend five minutes towelling off in the entry hall.

It was still about an hour and a half before dinnertime, so there was nobody but him in the common room. Everyone was either still working or attending to business elsewhere. Since it was so quiet in the room, he could hear the very muffled din of the rain as it pelted the large guild building. Ziggy was probably having a good time out there. Perhaps that was something he could look into; giving Ziggy jobs in the rain that others wouldn't want to do.

Sparks was alerted by the sudden sound of a door slamming. He glanced up from his paper towards the doorway to the main hall, noticing that he had left it open when he had first come in. Oops. Alumni were supposed to close that door behind them. Either way, it wasn't the door that had been slammed, but rather the much larger front door.

A few seconds later, Sparks saw Ziggy through the open doorway. The Buizel stomped past the doorway without giving it a glance, immediately disappearing out of view. A second door slam followed soon after. Then, a moment later, a very concerned looking Shay scampered past in the same direction.

Sparks was left stunned for a few seconds before he quickly scrambled to his paws. "Ziggy?" he called out as he rushed over to the doorway.

He was met at the door itself by Javier, nearly causing the two to run into one another. Javier, unperturbed as always, glanced over in the direction Ziggy had gone for a moment in silence.

"Javier, what-?"

"He is going out to sit in the rain," the Quilava commented.

"…Huh? Why?"

Javier turned and looked up at him with a neutral expression. "Leave him be for now," he said, before politely budging his way past Sparks and into the common room.

Sparks looked after Javier for a moment in bafflement. "…What?" he blurted, "What're you talking about? What happened?"

"He is working through some things mentally at the moment," Javier commented as he picked up the newspaper Sparks had discarded and turned the page, "I believe he wants to be alone right now. He'll be ready to talk later."

For a few seconds, Sparks just looked helplessly back and forth between Javier and where Ziggy had disappeared to. "But…What happened, Javier? Did he get hurt? Can't you tell me?"

"He'd probably prefer to tell you himself."

"Javier-!"

"Sparks," Javier interjected, interrupting Sparks without ever raising his voice, "He and I have already discussed it."

"…You have?"

Javier nodded.

Sparks frowned and glanced back at the hall once more. "But he looked…mad about something. Ziggy doesn't get mad…"

"Which is why he would appreciate being alone for a little bit."

"…Oh…" Sparks murmured, his ears drooping a little, "Well, I mean, if you're sure… I really feel like I should go talk to him, but…" Sparks took a few steps over towards where the Quilava was sitting. Javier was still simply reading the newspaper. "It…didn't go well out there?"

After a brief pause, Javier raised and wiggled his paw in a 'so-so' motion.

Sparks sighed. "Sorry, I'll stop bothering you," he said, "But if he's not back inside by the time dinner's finished, I'm going out to talk to him."

"That sounds fair."

With his mind still conflicted, Sparks wandered away from the table. He stood around for a moment while deep in thought. The room was silent, almost frustratingly so. Sparks very nearly started pacing, but he stopped himself. Eventually, he sighed in resignation and walked out the door.

Sparks made his way through the corridors towards the conservatory. He wasn't going to bother Ziggy, but he just needed to actually see the Buizel out there. If nothing else, but to confirm that's where he actually was. He expected to run into Shay along the way, but the Yamper was nowhere to be seen.

When Sparks finally made it to the conservatory, he stayed back from the glass doorway. He looked out and saw that the rain was still coming down steadily. It looked like the downpour had gotten more intense since he had last been outside.

There, sitting on the same rock as he usually did, was Ziggy. As Javier had said, the Buizel was sitting quietly in the rain. It was anything but unusual at this point, as Ziggy went out into the conservatory at least once almost every single time it had rained. It always did seem to have a positive effect on his mood once he came back inside, even if just a little bit.

The difference was that Ziggy didn't have his head and muzzle pointed upwards, like he usually did. Instead he was sitting on his haunches, head down and shoulders hunched forward. He looked withdrawn, like he often did when Sparks had first met him. In a way, he kind of looked like those monk Pokémon who sat underneath waterfalls to meditate. Sparks didn't have a good view of Ziggy's face, but it didn't seem peaceful like he usually looked while out here. He definitely looked upset.

Sparks fought the urge to rush out there and comfort him, and instead retreated back to one of the hallways. What had happened? Why was this so different? Sparks knew he could probably ask Javier or Shay about it, but he figured it might be better to hear it right from Ziggy once he felt ready. Sparks didn't have the closest relationship with Javier, mostly due to how little the Quilava talked to others, but Sparks still trusted him. If Javier said he would be fine out here, Sparks had to trust his judgement.

"I'll be here for you, bud," Sparks said softly, even though Ziggy couldn't hear him, "I'll be here whenever you want to talk…"

Sparks then made his way back up to the common room and laid down on the couch. He simply reclined there, staring up at the ceiling and being alone with his thoughts. Time passed, at least an hour, and nobody else came into the room. It was still early and everybody was out doing jobs. Javier eventually retired to his room, and Shay never showed up.

Eventually, Sparks' ears twitched as he heard the common room door click open. He looked up to see if it was Ziggy, but was slightly disappointed to see that it wasn't. Still, though, who it was instead piqued his interest anyway and made him sit up.

"Hey, you two," Sparks greeted as the pair walked in.

Terry and Rico walked into the common room together, and they both smiled when they saw Sparks. "Hey, Sparks!" they greeted in unison.

"Welcome back," Sparks said.

"Thanks!" Terry answered with a grin, "Good to be back!"

Sparks then asked, "So, you two have fun?" Terry and Rico had both gotten the day off today, and Sparks knew that they had gone out on a date. It was about the third or fourth date they'd had since Rico's incident. Sparks was happy to see them reconnecting. He knew that he certainly didn't want to see the guild's perfect pair of Pokémon split up.

"It was great!" Terry chirped, "Lots of fun! Good time all around. We went for a walk at the lake and had dinner at a restaurant."

"Well, that's good to hear," Sparks said with a nod, "I'm glad you had a good time."

Terry giggled and danced on his paws for a second. Sparks wondered if he was fighting the urge to kiss Rico on the cheek, knowing that the pair weren't quite back to that point just yet. Still, though, he seemed to be in a very chipper mood.

"Well, Rico," Terry then said, addressing the Riolu directly, "I had a wonderful time. Thanks for coming out with me."

"Hey, no problem," Rico replied, "I had fun."

"Lookin' forward to next time!"

"Yeah, me too."

Terry then turned and started walking across the room. "All right, then. I'll talk to you guys after dinner."

"Hm? Where're you going?" Sparks asked.

"To my room to do some studying," he answered.

"Ah, okay. Well, good to see you. Talk to you later."

The Eevee nodded in thanks to both Pokémon, and then made his way over to the dorms. He closed the door behind him, leaving Sparks and Rico alone in the common room.

Sparks turned to look at Rico once Terry was gone. "So how'd it really go?" he asked.

Rico winced a little before answering. "It was…good. It was fine, Sparks. Don't get me wrong. He's a nice guy and I did have a nice time."

"Mm…" Sparks nodded sagely. "But…?" he then prompted.

"It's…" Rico averted his eyes and started wringing his wrists. "It's kind of…awkward."

This time, Sparks winced. "How awkward?"

"I mean, not too awkward. Like, not enough to make me say, like, 'This is weird, get me out of here.'" He paused once more to collect his thoughts and then said, "It's just a strange thing, y'know? He already knows everything about me, but I know nothing about him. Sometimes it feels a little…one-sided."

"Hmm…Yeah, I guess that makes sense," Sparks said, nodding in thought.

"He is really nice and friendly, though," Rico said, "That much I know about him already."

"I guess it's just bound to be a little tough," Sparks admitted, "Kinda gotta expect that. What happened to you is beyond weird and nobody has any frame of reference."

"Hey, don't call me weird," Rico retorted cheekily.

Sparks chuckled, and then he fell silent for a moment. "Hey, Rico?" he eventually spoke up.

"Yeah?"

"…Thanks for trying your best with him…"

Rico took a few seconds to respond. "It'll be tough," he said, "but…clearly I was very happy with him. I owe it to both him and myself to try and bring that happiness back."

"I would just hate to see his little heart break."

"Me too. Definitely."

Rico retreated to his room soon after as well, and Sparks went back to laying on the couch. Eventually, other members of the active team began showing up one by one. As his thoughts clouded his head once more, he wasn't really in the mood to talk to anybody else. It was the smell of Liz's cooking that finally drew him over to the long table.

Dinner was a pleasant event, as it always was. Sparks couldn't help but feel better as he ate a delicious meal surrounded by all of his closest friends. The seat next to him was empty, though. It was where Ziggy usually sat, and the Buizel still hadn't come in.

Eventually, dinner was finished and everybody there was full and happy. Liz was showered in appreciation, as she always was after a meal, and everybody began to disperse. Sparks stood up, and made his way over to the door. He was feeling concerned. Ziggy still hadn't come back inside. He could see out the window that it was still raining.

It was after dinner and Ziggy was still outside. He'd been out there for hours at this point, so Sparks knew there was something that was really bugging him. Sparks was determined to find out what it was, even if Ziggy was too upset to talk to him.

Sparks stepped through the door leading into the entry hall. He was about to head directly towards the conservatory, but he slowed down and came to a stop when something caught his eye. The large front doors of the guild were being pushed open by someone. This was unusual for this time in the evening, as clients wouldn't be likely to come at this hour and anyone working here would likely use an employee entrance. Sparks waited to see who it was, his professional side taking over for a moment.

The door opened just a little ways and an inquisitive head popped in, looking around before spotting Sparks. The Pokémon, a distinctly familiar Lucario, smiled and waved at him.

"Surprise!" Dante exclaimed.