Crystal hopped off the living room couch and ran to the door upon hearing it unlock, sitting before it with a grin. It opened to a tired Ray, who broke a smile after seeing her.
"Hey, sweetheart," he said while reaching down with a light grunt to pick her up. He'd just gotten off his late afternoon shift at the Poké Mart in Canalave as a cashier. He wasn't paid much, but it was only a short walk from Sandgem, and he needed to keep it more than ever because his mother had recently lost her job as a result of SRC. "I missed you all day." Ray kissed her head before setting her down.
"Pi." Crystal did too. Every day. More than he could ever know. She followed him to the restroom, where he washed off, then to the kitchen and sat while he grabbed a can of broth from a cabinet and prepared soup. He'd been doing so for three days now for his mother, who'd fallen sick and could barely function on her own. The hospitals were overrun and weren't taking any patients as of late, so she'd been on bedrest taking meds to suppress the aches and pains.
Ray put the plastic bowl in the microwave and set it to one minute, walking back to the living room and picking up the remote off the couch to turn on the TV on a stand, which was set to the news channel. He kept up with current events daily, hoping the government would detain SRC soon. It hadn't hit Sandgem or its surrounding towns and cities nearly as hard as it was Eterna and other major cities, but it wouldn't stay that way forever. It had been a week since this virus was publicized by health officials and had already spread rapidly with the possibility of it having a high fatality rate.
Crystal hopped onto the couch next to Ray as he sat, where she spent her days now since her mother wasn't well enough to let her outside. It's not like Ray wanted her out there anyway. Not while sickness was in the air that pokémon could catch. However, she was getting bored of it, sitting alone in a silent house with nothing to do for hours on end, but it wouldn't be forever, and Crystal still had Ray coming home to her daily to look forward to.
She watched the screen at shots of nurses treating patients in packed hospitals, reporters talking about increases in infection rates, and them recommending people that could help it to stay inside.
"Doesn't look any brighter..." he sighed. However, the economy was still afloat. It was just taking repeated hits that it couldn't afford to for very long. This wasn't the first pandemic to ever hit Sinnoh or any other region, so things would likely get better as they had many times over throughout history. Ray wasn't too worried, but he was about his mother, and at this point, it would be safer to stay home.
She'd told him many times already that she wanted him inside too. It was getting dangerous, with a steady increase in theft and violent crimes that had started in low-income areas, but they were spreading regionwide. Someone had to bring money home, though. Ray had to take care of his mother.
Crystal perked her ears, hearing the microwave beep and getting down as he did and following him back to the kitchen. She watched him open the microwave to let the steam out while getting a glass of water using the filter on the refrigerator, then taking it and the bowl down the hall to a closed door.
"I'll be out in a little," he said.
Crystal opened her eyes to sunlight hitting the curtains. She woke up under the blanket and saw Ray nowhere in sight upon lifting her head, yawning.
This was the first time she didn't have to worry about whether he was okay. Still, she was curious. Crystal got down and stretched while walking to the living room, figuring Ray was out in the base upon looking around the house and seeing no sign of him.
While she was checking the restroom, she heard the front door open and looked in the direction with erect ears, trotting over. She must have woken up at the right time.
"Hey. I didn't want to wake you. Seemed like you needed sleep." Ray pushed the door closed with his boot since a box was in his hands. "The cafeteria gave me waters and stuff we can put in the fridge I had to wait in line for. I got two new outfits too. They're generic, but I'm not complaining. I'll shower and put one on." He found out from an employee he talked to that the base gets its water from rain and lakes around the region and filtered it, ensuring to test multiple times to ensure no traces of the virus were present.
Crystal sat and watched him set the box on the kitchen counter, the items in their refrigerator, then walk toward the restroom. "Espeh!" But she didn't want to sit inside all day. It's what half their current life had been, and civilization was right outside the door.
"What?" Ray turned and saw Crystal sitting by the front door. He wasn't sure how he felt about her exploring on her own, but it could be his protectiveness from when they were out in the open. If there was a time to loosen up and let her experience a sense of normalcy and old life, now would be perfect. Ray walked and opened the door. "Just… don't go too far, alright? I'll be with you after I shower."
Crystal nodded and stepped onto the porch. It felt so refreshing to see people and scattered pokémon traverse the sidewalks. However, she didn't have much of an urge to interact with them. She'd have difficulty after months spent without any and wouldn't be given enough time to get over it.
Crystal walked down the steps and onto the pavement. All she had to do was not wander far as Ray told her, which she'd keep in mind. She looked from left to right multiple times and decided to go west, beginning her short journey. She had to leave this residential street to see the base in action but saw heartwarming sights around her already.
A vulpix walked beside her young female teen owner down the sidewalk while she held a snowcone bought from a stand a block away, a small group of children played tag in a house's yard while adults sat in chairs around a porch laughing, and people took morning jogs around the neighborhood.
It made her grin. This brought her back to a functioning society. As long as she didn't think of what it was like everywhere else in Sinnoh, Crystal could adequately enjoy this. Her journey took her south as she blindly followed what caught her eyes and nose upon leaving the street.
There were so many more people and pokémon active and roaming when compared to when they first got here at night. It felt like a genuine and living city. Shake and ice cream stands sold to short lines of children and teens. People still conducted business with pokédollars that one could earn by working around the base. Supplies and ingredients were limited and had to be gathered from around Sinnoh during runs, however, so merchants fought to stay afloat and had to close early often.
A young boy unaware of his surroundings shouted at and chased his playful eevee that zigzagged and weaved through crowds to try and catch it and bring it back home since it had gotten loose, forcing people to stop abruptly for them both, with a few adults nearly tripping over the pokémon.
A ralts holding a mini poffin from a bakery nearby held its owner's tee so it wouldn't get separated among crowds while they maneuvered. It would definitely get lost the moment it let go, as its eyes were on every stand, shout, and pokémon.
Defenders stood idly at corners of the sidewalk or talked with each other, watching over all the activity with their rifles on standby. A few had a man apprehended and held against a wall that passersby glanced at but kept walking. It was likely the only aspect that took from this world feeling too real, but the threat of forceful order was necessary to keep so many people in check.
After several minutes of walking and sightseeing, Crystal noticed something in her peripheral vision and looked to her far left. She saw a familiar face leaving a building with a luxray and two others. She recalled Ray walking with that person to that very structure when they were done being tested. Could that be Jenna? She was in a white tee and pants.
Crystal walked closer out of curiosity but stopped after the luxray noticed her. Its gaze was intimidating, and she didn't want to get into an avoidable situation Ray would have to deal with anyway, so she turned around and sniffed the air, smelling more food. That had to be meat, something she hadn't had for as long as she could remember. Crystal swayed her tail, following the scent within the base.
It didn't take long to reach the source. She stopped after almost a minute of trotting and wore a smug expression. Crystal took pride in her sense of smell.
Now for the hard part.
It was coming from inside the building ahead of her, which was likely a restaurant. She approached the open front door and saw a young brunette woman in a formal blue and white outfit talking to a couple behind a stanchion belt, seeing the woman glance at her before taking the couple to seat them.
Crystal may as well leave. She couldn't order for herself— well, she could in theory, but it'd be weird and challenging even so. It wasn't like she could pay either. As Crystal began turning around, she heard a voice.
"Hey, you."
Crystal looked up at the hostess she'd just seen as she knelt in front of her. Oh no. She'd just avoided a situation that could involve Ray and now threw herself into another.
"Are you lost?" she asked. The woman hadn't seen an espeon on these grounds. Had it sneaked into the base by chance?
She stared at her. Not as far as she knew, but Crystal may have wandered a bit farther than she was supposed to. Maybe her excitement carried her away.
"Crystal?"
"Pi..." Crystal flattened her ears and looked back to see Ray walking toward her. She noticed that he was in new jeans and a gray shirt at a glance. Crystal hoped she wasn't in trouble.
"Oh, is this your pokémon?" The hostess stood.
"Yeah, I'm guessing she sniffed this out. What is this?" Ray asked while eyeing the building.
"It's the base's restaurant, our only one."
It wouldn't hurt to relive that experience with Crystal. They'd gone to plenty of diners when they visited cities. "How much would it cost to eat here?"
She smiled, "I could tell you two were new. We still use pokédollars on the base for most markets and stands, but to dine here is free of charge. The catch is that we aren't open that often. We have enough uncontaminated resources to stay open for almost a week straight, surprisingly. Usually, you wouldn't be able to get a seat and sign a waiting list. There's only an hour wait as of now."
Their luck hadn't run out yet, it seemed. The money Ray had carried was in his backpack. "We'll wait."
He gave her his name to put down and walked away with Crystal for now. She'd grab him when it was time as long as he stayed in the vicinity. "Eager to explore, huh?"
She nodded sheepishly. Crystal didn't notice until now and didn't intend to disobey.
"I get it, and you found a nice spot." Ray had assumed Crystal would lose herself here, which is why he'd taken the quickest shower he ever had. It warmed him that he could give her a taste of what she knew, as it may be the last time he could.
Crystal perked and swayed her tail. Ray rarely chewed her out and hadn't since last year when she knocked over and broke the TV on his dresser. She'd heard something outside and wanted to get a closer look out the window, but she deserved that scolding and never went near the dresser again afterward.
"We'll be out here for a while, so why don't we see what else is around close by to pass the time?" Ray would make sure they stayed in the general area so they didn't miss their call.
"Pi!" Crystal was on board. That'd be wonderful. Today was the best she had in a long time already, and she couldn't wait for it to improve further.