Two chapters in a week? No one is more surprised than me! XD I kind of cheated though as I had plenty of time to rest between the last two chapters. Aw well, time to find out if our favorite protagonist is getting booted fromthe guild and I'll have to end the story early! Regadless, enjoy and please feel free to review! :D

Chapter 10

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The silence in the room was intense. Erin had been prepared for tough battles, pain, sweat, hell, even death.

But nothing could ease her fears from the Bisharp sitting across from her. Currently, they were in Guildmaster Finnegan's office which was a tight little cozy space with walls filled with multiple bounty photos, medals and other trophies. A small fridge also sat next to Guildmaster, presumably with his "juice".

On the far-right side was another entrance for the giant water pool for Kameron. When Erin wasn't in deep trouble, she made a mental note to ask how exactly that worked.

A desk separated the two Pokemon with Guildmaster Finnegan silently rapping his fingers together as he rested his elbows on the table. His eyes remained closed as though he was trying to comprehend the situation a very upset Mrs. McHorn yelled at him.

Erin, meanwhile, kept her hands in between a space in her legs, not summoning the courage to be able to look at him. Even the angry Onix thirty times her size didn't make her as nervous as Guildmaster Finnegan. Even worse, the anticipation of what was to come as every passing second seemed to swell her heart even worse with anxiety.

He finally broke it with a heavy sigh. "Lass…." Forming his hands in almost a prayer, he used both to point at the Snivy who had straightened up almost immediatly. "I have seem some very s'upid thin's in this guild. Bu' I don' even know where 'o begin' here.

"Well, what happened-" Erin began, but shut up as Guildmaster Finnegan held up a hand as though to silence her.

"Shu' i'." He cut her off, his eyes still closed. "I already heard i' all from Mrs. McHorn. Ye lucky I was close enough 'o grab him, ye don' even wan' 'o know wha' I caugh' a couple of Spinarak doin' up there." Erin cringed inwardly as the Guildmaster silently leaned back into his seat.

"I'm really, really sorry, sir." Erin started earning a scoff from the Guildmaster.

"Weren' in'elliegence supposed 'o be yer s'rong sui' as well?" He asked sternly, making Erin flinch in shame. He huffed, quieting his tone while keeping the same stern undertone. "Wha' am I 'o do with ye, lass?"

Erin didn't think there was worse pain than from his disappointment.

"Maybe yer no' cu' ou' for this."

Never mind.

Erin wanted to instantly beg him to reconsider as fear now began to well in her, but logic kept her pinned to her seat as she realized she had no place to. She messed up badly and deserved no less. She settled from gripping her hands harder on the chair.

"Well, lass? Are ye goin' 'o speak?" He asked.

Erin flinched again but found the nerve to look him in the eye."Guildmaster…. I'm sorry. I got too excited." She began weakly. "I should've read the poster and known the assignment. I know it was the stupidest-"

"One of de s'upides', ye forge' tha' Odd and Duncan are also in this guild." He interjected, a glint of humor in his eye. Erin was surprised but let him continue. "I'm non' kickin' ye ou', lass. Kind of have 'o 'ake wha' I can ge' righ' now."

Erin's heart skipped a beat."Really?"

"Bu'!" He continued. "If somethin' this dumb happens again, I will kick ye ou' with no though'. I have enough with Thorn on my hands, I can' handle a third moron. Clear?"

Erin's enthusiasm dropped. "Yes, sir." She thanked, bowing in gratitude.

Guildmaster Finnegan chuckled. "Ye lucky I see SOME po'ential in ye." He told her, making her heart flutter. "I think 'raining with Liza will work wonders with ye." He praised her, much to Erin's shock.

She almost wanted to cry in how grateful she was. "T-thank you, Guildmaster." She told him. "I promise, I won't screw up that bad again."

"Like I said, lass. Ye jus' lucky ye in de same guild as those 'wo knuckleheads." He said humorously. He reached into the fridge and pulled out a light brown bottle, opening it on the desk. "Fer know, go fix wha' ever damage they probably caused 'oday and we'll call i' even. I've had a long day of ge'in yelled a' by women, I wan' 'o relax for a sec."

As he finished saying this, Kameron popped up from the pool. "Guildmaster, there's a very upset mother here to see you." He reported.

Guildmaster Finnegan chucked his beer back in the fridge. "Bloody Arceus on de cross, send her in." He shouted angrily.

A Snorlax opened the door and entered, distressed. A large gemstone shaped mark, rested above her eye, giving Erin the sense of familiarity and dread.

She sounded breathless. "Fillip, I need your help. Please." Her voice sounded desperate.

The Guildmaster looked at her with calm, concerned eyes. "Gemma, is everything good?" He asked, standing up to walk up to her.

She shook her head. "My son, Fillip, he didn't return home last night. I've looked for him all over the town and can't find him anywhere. I need your help, please." She pleaded.

Erin's heart dropped. "Your son doesn't happen to be a Munchlax named Karl, is he?"

Gemma's eyes darted towards Erin, and instantly got close. "Did you see my son?" She asked, hope daring its way into her voice.

Erin had backed up a foot, taken aback from the intensity and size of the Snorlax.. "Yeah, I met him with a friend of his named Axl yesterday. They were just down the road from here."

A furious look spread across her face. "Axl." She snarled, making Erin inwardly sweat drop.

Seriously, does he just piss off EVERYBODY in this city?"

To her surprise, Guildmaster Finnegan also raised a brow. "Axl? He didn' happen 'o be an Oshawo', had he?"

Erin was caught off guard. "Er, uh, yeah."

Guildmaster Finnegan cast a look away. "Huh, I heard he moved here." Erin was intrigued and concerned with the unusually worried tone in his voice.

Gemma didn't seem to pick up on this. "Fillip, please. I need your help. The police won't do anything for two days." She pressed, her voice becoming bitter. "Not that they are ever inclined to help us Hazaranmon."

Guildmaster Finnegan gently put his hand on her arm. "I unders'and yer worry, Gemma. I can' do much unless we have a physical threa' is de issue, even we have 'o follow rules."

However, Gemma didn't relent. "But you do have a target, don't you? That hooligan Axl. I always knew he was nothing but trouble for my son. Arceus knows what he's got my son into."

"Wait, ma'am, I know Axl isn't the easiest to get along with, but he seemed anything but malicious with your son. If anything, it seemed like they were brothers." She interjected, keeping her tone level as she understood the mother's worries.

She shook her head stubbornly. "You don't know that delinquent like I do. Always causing some mayhem wherever he goes and has the friendliness of a rock." She snapped.

Erin put a hand on her chin. "If anything, it's more likely Thorn got to him than anything." she thought out loud.

"MY BABY HAS BEEN TAKEN BY THORN." Gemma was inconsolable now as she picked up Guildmaster Finnegan by the shoulders and shook the much smaller Pokemon.

"Lass, please, wai' ou'side." He told her, his eyes swirling.

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Erin sat at the table that was right outside the office, waiting patiently for the Guildmaster to return. It was empty on the inside, with everyone focused on their own task at the moment. She slowly ate an oran berry that was left out on the table, waving her legs just for something to do.

Crash

Guildmaster Finnegan was thrown comedically from the door and crashed into the table, making Erin's eyes go wide in shock.

He sat up looking settled, smushed oran berry sliding down his face. "I was unable 'o calm her." He stated, staring straight ahead.

"YEAH, I CAN SEE THAT!" Erin face vaulted.

"Anyways," He continued as though nothing had just happened. "We go' a criminal, now, so we will be accep'in this mission." He stood up, dusting himself off from debris and berries.

"Guildmaster…I know she's scared, but I really don't think Axl is guilty. It just doesn't make sense."

"I know lass, I don' think Axl is guil'y either. Tha's no' de 'ype of Pokemon I know him 'o be."

"Wait, what do you mean by that?" Seriously, who was Axl and how did everyone know him?

Guildmaster Finnegan waved her off. "Don' worry abou' i' lass. I wouldn' be able 'o accep' this mission withou' a Pokemon to place a boun'y on. I jus' need him found and brough' here so we can ask him ourselves. If he was de las' Pokemon with him, we will need his help." He pointed out. "And I wan' you 'o ge' him."

"Me?"

Guildmaster Finnegan nodded. "Aye…I fear you may be de only one capable of bringin' him here withou' killin him." He said, sweat dropping.

Erin shared the Guildmaster's exasperation. "Enough said." Gemma's sobs began to become gentler and as did Guildmaster Finnegan's eyes once more. He sighed in sympathy, understanding the worried mother's despair.

Deciding to go console her, he turned back to Erin. "And lass… ye are jus' 'o brin' him here, and tha' is all. Nothin' else."

Erin gulped, nodding. "Y-yes sir." She responded, bowing her head. The Guildmaster returned her nod and made his way back into the office to continue consoling Gemma.

Erin's eyes flickered nervously as the Guildmaster had gone back in, stepping over the shards of what was left of his office door. She stood up quickly to start her mission, but paused when she realized she had no clue where to start looking.

Crap…I got -lucky?-To run into him twice yesterday. The odds of me finding him in this city are slim, I could be stuck looking for weeks.

A voice protruded into her thoughts. "Uh…I totally wasn't eavesdropping on literally everything…" Kameron had poked his head out of the water, looking at her sympathetically. "But I may be able to help you with your current dilemma."

Erin snapped her attention towards him. "What do you mean?" She asked.

Kameron grinned sheepishly. "Finding our little blue otter of course, silly." He told her.

Erin blinked stupidly. Seriously, who is this guy? Wondering how everyone apparently knew of the cynical otter.

She kept her mouth shut though, not that she would have received an answer anyway. She instead looked for Kameron to continue.

He spun around, happy he was helping. "Well, Axl works at one of the best grub spots in Peridot City. Him and I play cards together every week when he gets out." He told her.

Erin couldn't help but ponder at the odd set of friends but shook her head in understanding.

"Kameron," Erin said. "Where can I find Axl?"

She watched Kameron visibly think for a moment. "Well, I don't know exactly where he lives, but he works at Misty's on Green Street. They don't close until six, so if you go now, you'll make it." He finished.

Relief spread through her. "Thank you, Kameron. I really owe you one." She told him gratefully, turning and walking out as Kameron gave her a wave of farewell.

It was four at the moment, so Erin felt confident about getting to the restaurant on time. Funny, for living in Peridot City most of her life, she never heard of Misty's. Especially for a place that was apparently so nice according to Kameron.

She didn't let it bother her though as thoughts about Axl started to cloud her head. Was the Oshawott a headache and a half? Yes. Was he single handedly the most infuriating Pokemon she ever met? Also, yes.

Even then, Erin couldn't convince herself that Axl was the one responsible for this.

Upstairs now, she opened the front doors of the building, looking up at the gray clouds that had covered the sky and began to stalk quickly to her destination, every sense alert.

Could he be?