xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx Alolan Ocean, 6:59 p.m. xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
As nighttime came and the crescent moon was overhead, Bevin was riding on his jet ski, crossing the ocean as he stopped in front of a dark grey boathouse that was on the water intersecting the islands of Melemele and Ula'Ula. Shifting himself off of his aquatic vehicle and carrying a sack in his hand, Bevin stepped onto the houseboat and knocked on the door.
"Password." A female voice said from the other side of the door.
"Hola." Bevin said as he heard a click.
Opening the door, Bevin walked into the small livable ship that had a comfortable couch, a large bookshelf filled to the brink with reading material, a fireplace connecting to the ceiling and a bed on the far end of the room. Laying on the couch was a fair skinned teenage girl with long, straight and shiny grey hair with a single blue highlight in the front and dressed in a purple sleeveless jersey, black shorts, flip-flops and a Mega Stone ring on her index finger, reading a book.
"I'm short today..." Bevin with a tone that was a combination of aggravation and regret.
"And I'm not a fan of hearing that." The woman said as she looked away from her book towards Bevin.
"My apologies, Imani..." Bevin said as he bit his lip. "That obnoxious dork threw me off my game." He thought with frustration.
Walking over with the sack in hand, Bevin opened it up on a coffee table in front of the couch as Imani turned over to see the contents. Falling out of the bag was piles of dollar bills that were rolled into bundles with rubber bands and a series of watches that looked expensive.
"Ooooh." Imani said with mild interest as she put her book down and grabbed one of the watches, placing it around her wrist. "Now that's a nice little addition." She said with a smirk as she admired the accessory.
"Glad someone's happy." Bevin thought as he looked on.
"Oh Sableye." Imani said as she looked at the watch as a small imp-like shadow creature appeared with sharp teeth, gemstone-like eyes and wearing an armband with a stone attached to it. "Be a dear and take the money to my safe." She ordered as Sableye walked over to a side of the room and picked up a platter before walking back and grabbing Bevin's haul to place on it.
"You know... I haven't heard your Sableye speak since I met you. Is he sick or some-" Bevin said until Imani interrupted.
"That's classified information that is way above your cut." Imani said with a critical tone as she continued to just look at the watch she received. "And you're definitely not getting your answer to that question any time soon with how small your kick up was." She said as she finally shifted her eyes towards Bevin as she sat back on the couch.
"Okay, okay..." Bevin said as he put his hands up.
"Care to explain yourself?" Imani said.
"Well... It's..." Bevin said as he rubbed the back of his neck.
"Remember who picked you up on the sidewalk and got you this sweet gig that used your flute playing skills for something other than tiny coins in your instrument case?" Imani said with a condescending tone. "So, speak." She said with her arms folded.
"There was some moron bugging me." Bevin said as he put his hands in his pockets.
"...Overweight and bearded?" Imani questioned with a raised eyebrow.
"Ye-yeah? You know him?" Bevin said with surprise.
"That would happen to be the dumbass who beat my former "brother."' Imani said as she grabbed her book and opened it back up to the point she was reading before.
"Your "brother?"' Bevin said, confused.
"My idiot "younger brother" had a Lopunny. I got a Sableye. We received these "gifts" for a job well done before we all went our separate ways. I haven't seen my family since, and I decided to come to Alola. He went to Unova because he couldn't shut up about wanting to win tournaments and junk." Imani said as she looked at the pages. "As for the others, they got their own "gifts" from a "job well done."' She continued as she pointed at her Mega Stone ring.
"Lopunny can Mega Evolve... So can Sableye?" Bevin said as he pointed at the Ghost and Dark type, walking away while holding a platter with loot on it over his head.
"I wouldn't have him if he didn't Mega Evolve." Imani said as she continued to read. "That big guy who bothered you today is probably at the bottom of the ocean so next time, focus up." She said as Bevin looked at Imani.
"About that..." Bevin said as he spoke up.
"...What?" Imani said with annoyed look on her face as she shifted her gaze towards Bevin.
"He made it to Ula'Ula Island." Bevin said with a bothered expression.
"Urgh... Bruxish!" Imani said as she slammed her book on the coffee table and stood up, walking out of the door onto the deck of the boathouse. "Bruxish!" She shouted out into the ocean as a red, green and white fish-like Pokémon had emerged from the water.
"Bruxish." Bruxish said as it looked up at Imani.
"Did you or did you not get rid of that big guy on that boat that was blocked by Bevin's Wailord?" Imani questioned to her Bruxish.
"...Bru-bruxish..." Bruxish said with a regretful tone.
"Take that as a "no."' Bevin said as Imani made an agitated expression as she slowly turned towards the flutist. "So-sorry... I chased after him but lost him somewhere in the woods near Route 10." He said, apologetically.
"Perfect... Just perfect..." Imani thought with a twitch in her eye. "And now my vacation is hitting a snag..." She said as she looked at her Shiny Bruxish.
"You said you came from the Orre Region?" Bevin asked.
"Orre is horrendously known as one of the worst places in the world. I should know, I grew up there." Imani said as she turned towards Bevin. "I grew up in a very crime ridden place called Pyrite Town and my one dream was one day leaving that place. And go to a beautiful region where the sun was always shining, and I could tan to my heart's content." She said as she walked along the deck and then looked in the direction of Ula'Ula Island. "But it seems, I can't relax until I get rid of a problem before it gets any bigger." Imani thought.
"Bruxish!" Bruxish said as Bevin looked at the Psychic and Water type.
"Want us to find the guy and get rid of him?" Bevin asked as he turned towards Imani.
"...As much as I would like you to handle it, you have more important things to do. Head to Akala Island tomorrow and see if you can block a road or two." Imani said as she turned around and looked at the flutist. "And you, find some more Bruxish to rally in case the big guy decides to head out on the ocean." She said towards her Shiny Bruxish.
"Bruxish." Bruxish said with a nod.
"Works for me." Bevin said. "What a relief... She probably was going to expect me to give her a payload and get rid of that Keats dude in the same span of time." He thought with a sense of self-comfort as Imani reached into her pocket and pulled out a Pokéball that was all black with a red and gold line around the top half and a golden seal.
"Think I'll leave this up to you." Imani said to herself as she opened the ball.
Emerging from the light was an odd brown creature with an oblong head with depressions on both sides, floating above the water. It had a humanoid shape with stubby legs, arms that ended in three fingers that were red, green and yellow and glowing green eyes.
"Beheeyem." Imani said to the floating creature. "I want you to find a fat man with a beard. He'll be in the woods along Route 10 on that island over there. Use your psychic energy to find him... Then get rid of him." She said as she pointed towards Ula'Ula Island.
"Behehehehe." Beheeyem said with a nod as it proceeded to hover towards Ula'Ula Island.
"Get to work..." Imani thought as she looked on.
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx Route 10, Ula'Ula Island, 7:06 p.m. xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
On a hotplate on the ground was a cooking pot filled with soup that consisted only of Oran Berries and in a small sauce pan next to it was a ton of macaroni noodles with half-melted cheese over it. As Keats set up a tent, Anik was sitting on the ground with a plate of mac and cheese as her Oricorio, Kingler and Cleffa were eating the Berry soup from small bowls. Eating type specific Pokémon food and small bowls of the soup were Keats' team, consisting of: Pineco, Druddigon, Raichu, Cloyster, Diglett and Dragalge, the latter of whom was away from everybody and sitting under a tree.
"The cheese is barely melted but the noodles are very good, Keats." Anik said in a grateful tone as she looked over at Keats, fixing her tent.
"Ha!" Keats said towards Rotom as the phone Pokémon floated over to him. "I told you the macaroni needed more time with the cheese on it!" He said with a smug look in his eyes.
"What are you talking about?! I literally zzzzaid nothing the entire time you were making the food!" Rotom exclaimed in annoyance.
"Yeah, but you were thinking it." Keats said as he finished the tent as he walked back over to the picnic blanket, Rotom following behind him. "Now let's see here." He said as he took a spoon out of one of his messenger bags and took a sip of the Berry stew. "How's it tasting?" Keats questioned as he looked at his Pokémon.
"Cloyster!" Cloyster said happily as Raichu helped feed the limbless bivalve mollusk-like Pokémon by psychically floating the soup into her mouth.
"Rai-rai!" Raichu said in a similar happy tone as he held an energy drink in his paws.
"Druddigon." Druddigon said with a nod as Keats looked over at his Diglett.
Stretching her neck into her bowl was Keats' Alolan variant Diglett, making a massive mess as she wildly ate the soup. Looking on with surprise, Anik and her Pokémon stared as Diglett lifted up her head with a content expression.
"Diglettedigg!" Diglett said with a delightful tone as soup was dripping off her nose.
"The lack of hands really makes eating stuff out of dishes a hassle, huh?" Keats said with surprise as he stared at his Diglett. "How about your Pokémon?" He asked towards Anik.
"They haven't spat out any of it so definitely enjoying it." Anik said with a smile.
"Cleffa! Cleffa!" Cleffa said as she jumped up and down while holding her small bowl, the contents splashing everywhere.
"Ori!" Oricorio said as she held up her wing to block the broth.
"Kikiki!" Kingler said as he put up his big claw for cover as well.
"Cleffa! Stop!" Anik said sternly as Cleffa stopped jumping and put her bowl down as Pineco approached the Fairy type Pokémon.
"Cleeefff..." Cleffa said with an upset expression.
"Pinecococo." Pineco said in a reassuring tone towards Cleffa as Cleffa made a more cheerful face.
"Cleff!" Cleffa said happily as Pineco nodded at her before looking over at Dragalge, sitting under a tree that was several feet away from the group.
Using his fins to hold up a container of Poison type Pokémon food, Dragalge was sticking his thin mouth into the container and licking up food. Seeing how far away he was, Pineco proceeded to hop over to the sea dragon-like Pokémon to check on him.
"Pineco?" Pineco said with a concerned tone as Keats and Anik looked over at them.
"Draga..." Dragalge said with a shake of his head.
"What's wrong with your Dragalge?" Anik asked towards Keats as he scratched the back of head.
"He was attacked by wild Bruxish in the ocean when I caught him and forced his own evolution. He's a bit reclusive." Keats said as he got up from the ground and walked over to Pineco and Dragalge.
"Draag..." Dragalge said as he looked up at his trainer.
"You're welcome to join us." Keats said as he pointed at the group.
"Dragalge..." Dragalge said with a headshake, once again.
"Pinecoco-pine." Pineco said towards Dragalge as he looked away.
"It's probably not good to force it." Keats thought as he scratched his beard. "Come on, Pineco." He said as his Bug type Pokémon looked up at him. "When he feels like joining the group, he'll join. No rush." Keats said as he looked at Dragalge, the Poison and Dragon type locking eyes with his trainer as Pineco hopped back to the picnic blanket.
"Must be pretty serious..." Anik thought while eating as Keats walked back to the group, sitting down.
"So, once again, why were you in the woods?" Keats said towards Anik as she swallowed her meal.
"That, my newfound friend..." Anik said with a confidant expression and an adjustment of her glasses as she stood up from the ground. "Is because I am hunting the stars!" She exclaimed with a pose as she pointed her finger up into the sky.
Following the direction of her finger, Keats turned around and tried to spot what she was looking at. Unable to see anything of substance, he turned around and noticed Oricorio and Kingler were looking at Anik with unimpressed looks in their eyes.
"What does that mean?" Keats thought with a raised eyebrow.
"Can you elaborate, zzzzt?" Rotom asked as all the Pokémon ate as Anik stopped pointing.
"Behold!" Anik said with a self-impressed tone as she pulled out a pile of papers from her lab coat. "What you see here is documents for my soon to be published work!" She said with a cocky look on her face.
"You writing a novel?" Keats asked with curiosity as Rotom floated behind Anik and read off her papers.
"Better! I am writing a compendium!" Anik gloated as Rotom scanned her work.
'"The structural formation of the lines combine to create the image of a creature with a claw in the shape of the letter "C." Upon examination, it reveals what appears to be a Kingler."' Rotom said as it read Anik's notes.
"Fascinating, right?" Anik said with a smug tone.
"I could barely make out any of that." Keats said with a blunt tone as Anik glared at him.
"How could not understand that?!" Anik shouted.
"She's writing a book about the conzzzztellationzzzz." Rotom said as Keats looked at the phone.
"Ahhh so you're looking at the stars and seeing what the images are." Keats said, simplifying what Anik said.
"Ye-yeah, that's exactly what my work is..." Anik said with a cautious tone. "Okay, might have stepped a boundary in thinking he would or wouldn't understand." She thought.
"That explains the telescope." Keats said as he pointed at the telescope on the tripod.
"I'm still examining the stars to see if I can find all eighty-eight constellations." Anik said as she put away her papers and then walked over to the telescope. "I just wish I could see better out this thing though." She said as she looked into the lens and everything through it appearing blurry.
"Give me a sec." Keats said as he stood up and walked over to Anik and the telescope with Rotom behind him.
"Whoa." Anik said as she put her hand up to keep Keats away from the telescope. "I rented this from my boss at my internship and if this goes back broke, I doubt I'm going to be able to pay for it." She said with a worried look in her eyes.
"Just let me look at it." Keats said as Anik moved to the side.
"This is probably going to go poorly..." Rotom thought with skepticism.
Looking around at the lenses, Keats proceeded to reach into his pocket and pulled out a tissue to clean the lens before putting away the tissue and pulling out a coin. Using it as a makeshift screwdriver, Keats tightened some of the bolts that held the parts together before recalibrating the mirrors to make a clearer image.
"Lookie-loo." Keats said confidently as Anik looked down at the lens.
"Oh my gosh!" Anik said with a smile forming on her face. "It's actually usable now! There's a great view of the Meowstic constellation- oh! Oh! There's the Rapidash constellation!" She said with excitement as she moved the telescope around. "Meowstic is page seventeen and Rapidash is page forty-six, by the way." Anik said with a smile as she turned towards Keats for a moment before looking back into the lens.
"How'd you know how to fix a telezzzzcope?" Rotom asked towards Keats. "And without me needing to look it up." The phone Pokémon thought.
"When you are really bored on a Friday night with nothing better to do, you read a book on how telescopes work... And then you tear out the pages to make a pirate hat out of." Keats said with a smug smile as Rotom made a disturbed expression at Keats' explanation.
"Oh! Oh! Come over here and check this out! You can see the Kingler constellation from this angle!" Anik said as she waved her hand.
"Someone's fangirling." Keats said with his arms folding towards Rotom.
"Zzzzhe'zzzz passionate." Rotom said. "You could learn something from her." The phone Pokémon said.
"Like what? I already know how to calibrate a telescope." Keats replied.
"Look! Look!" Anik said as Keats and Rotom approached, the phone Pokémon looking through the lens. "Can you see it?" She asked with a giddy smile.
"Ahhh, yeah, I see the structure of the stars forming the zzzzhape." Rotom said with an impressed tone as Keats moved over and looked through the telescope.
"That's definitely a Kingler..." Keats thought, slightly disinterested as Anik pulled out her notes again.
"So far, I have about nine total examinations of the eighty-eight I plan to get." Anik said as she handed her notes to Keats. "I already have the Oricorio, Kingler, Rapidash, Meowstic and Milcery ones down, I just need to double check the other four and-" She said as she adjusted her glasses before suddenly getting cut off by Keats as he looked at a photograph of a series of stars.
"That's a Slowking." Keats muttered as Anik suddenly made a shocked expression as she took the photograph out of his hands.
"No, it's not!" Anik exclaimed loudly as her and Keats' Pokémon watched on from the picnic blanket. "See, the shape of the constellation is like that of a crown. A Galar region Pokémon called Milcery is the most likely representation." She explained with a critical tone as she got extremely close to Keats.
"Then what's this star below here?" Keats questioned as Rotom and Anik looked at where he pointed.
"Huh?" Anik said as she flipped the photo over to look. "What star-... Uh?" She said until spotting a star she didn't recognize. "Huuuuuuuuh?!" Anik screamed in her head before grabbing the telescope and lifting it slightly, carrying it over to another spot and then looking through the lens.
Staring through the telescope, Anik made a serious face as she tried to spot the crown-like constellation that she had down as a Milcery in her notes. Finally finding it, she managed to examine the structure of the stars and then spotted another star underneath the crown-like constellation, a look of disbelief forming on her face.
"You-you're right... There's an additional series of stars connecting underneath it..." Anik said in shock as she quickly pulled out a notebook and pen. "My notes on that constellation are completely wrong, I have to swap them out with new ones on the Slowking constellation! What was I thinking! Stupid! Stupid! Stupid!" She exclaimed as she began to write while lightly hitting herself in the forehead with the end of the pen.
"Woo!" Keats exclaimed as he raised both arms in a celebratory gesture as Anik stopped to look at Keats.
"Hate to admit it, but thanks for that. Accuracy is king with the compendium I'm making." Anik said with a grateful tone.
"I didn't really do much." Keats said as he rubbed the back of his head as Rotom looked at Keats and then back at Anik.
"Last thing I want is to publish my works and then immediately get debunked by someone in the astronomy community." Anik said as she glanced through the lens again.
"Why do you like astronomy so much?" Keats asked as Rotom looked on with interest.
"When I was growing up in Lumiose City, in the Kalos Region, my father and mother used to take me up the Prism Tower. It's this big landmark in the center of the city." Anik said as she looked through the lens. "One night, we went up with a telescope and I saw the stars on a night with no clouds. After that, I knew what I wanted to do one day and that was find them all. The constellations." She continued as she looked over at Keats. "Astronomers have always said that there's eighty-eight constellations in the night sky but no one is completely confidant in what they are, individually speaking. So, I want to find all of them and be one hundred percent sure. Heck, maybe even get lucky and capture what they represent too. Imagine that." Anik said with a smile as Keats blushed slightly.
"That sounds cool." Keats said as Anik scratched her face. "But what happened to make you fall in the river earlier?" He asked as Anik's expression turned to one of embarrassment.
"I really don't want to say..." Anik said. "I mean, he's been really helpful, so I don't think it'd be so bad if I told him what I am doing." She thought. "Well... If you want to know, I was looking for something." Anik said as Keats and Rotom made intrigued expressions.
"What, zzzzt?" Rotom asked.
"A few nights ago, a shooting star came by and landed somewhere around here. I think it might have been a Minior." Anik said as she looked at pair as Keats turned towards Rotom.
"Only because she asked, what's a Minior?" Keats said as Rotom looked up the Pokémon in the PokéDex.
'"Minior, the Meteor Pokémon, a Rock and Flying type. Strong impacts can knock it out of its shell. This Pokémon lives in the ozone layer and was born from mutated nanoparticles."' Rotom said, reading off the Dex as Keats looked at an image of a star shaped dark brown rock with a pair of black eyes and grey-ish white tips.
"It lives in space?" Keats questioned as he pointed up into the sky.
"Correct." Anik said as she caught Keats' attention. "And I want to catch one so it can help me with my astronomy research." She continued.
"Hmmmmm... Minior..." Rotom thought with a contemplative expression.
"How?" Keats asked.
"It's a Pokémon from space! Who better to ask about the structure of the stars than an actual star!" Anik said with a chipper tone and her eyes lighting up.
"And she's fangirling again." Keats thought with an embarrassed expression as he looked at Anik, smiling with excitement.
"So, I set out to find the Minior but I've been roaming around these past few days with no luck." Anik said as her face softened. "When I was walking along the side of that river with Kingler, I tripped on a rock... Then fell in." She said, embarrassingly.
"What kind of rock? Thunder? Dusk? Shiny?" Keats asked as Anik was unsure of what he meant.
"...Plain old gravel?" Anik said, confused.
"Ahhh okay." Keats replied. "Would have been funny if she tripped on a Water Stone into water. Heh, irony." He thought, laughing internally.
"Kingler went in after me and then, here we are." Anik explained.
"If you needed a space Pokémon for help, don't you already have one?" Keats asked as he pointed at Anik's Cleffa, all the Pokémon on the picnic blanket having finished eating.
"Oh, so you know about the Clefairy myth too, huh?" Anik said with a smile as she looked at her Fairy type.
"There'zzzz a surprise. Keats knowing things." Rotom said towards Keats.
"What do you mean "a surprise!?"' Keats exclaimed in an offended tone. "That's a rumor as old as I am!" He said angrily.
"That rumor izzzz twenty-three years old?" Rotom questioned as Keats shook his head in annoyance.
"Wait... You're twenty-three?" Anik said with wide eyes.
"Yeah?" Keats replied.
"...He's younger than me..." Anik thought, surprised. "Well... Anyway, my Cleffa had been given to me as an egg so she's not a reliable source of help for specific star formations because she wasn't directly from outer space." She said as she adjusted her glasses.
"Ahhhh... Haaaaa..." Keats muttered until yawning. "God, I'm sleepy..." He thought as he looked over at his bags on the ground. "You planning to go to bed soon?" Keats asked.
"Soon, I just want to look around and see the stars since you got my telescope working beautifully." Anik said as she turned back to the telescope and went back to examining the stars. "Oh, before I do. Everyone, return." She said as she turned towards her Pokémon and recalled them into their balls.
"Should probably do that too." Keats said as he took out his Pokéballs and recalled his team as well. "Today was a long day..." He thought as he walked over to his messenger bags and then pulled out Rotom's power bank to charge the phone Pokémon. "Come on Rotom." Keats said towards the floating phone.
"Got it, zzzzt. I could use some sleep." Rotom said as Keats hooked the floating phone up to a wire and then it shut off, landing on the blanket.
"Ahhhh..." Keats sighed as he laid down on the blanket and resting his head on one of his messenger bags as a makeshift pillow.
"No sleeping bag?" Anik asked as she looked at Keats.
"Too lazy to pull it out. Wouldn't be the first time I've slept on just a tarp on the ground." Keats said as he looked up at the astronomy enthusiast. "Course, the last time was because I got conked out and some Pokémon tried to steal my food and an Oranguru saved my ass." He continued as Anik smirked.
"Hehe." Anik laughed. "That's a heck of a story." She said as she turned back towards the telescope. "Oh! I don't recognize that one!" Anik said as she wrote down in her notebook.
"She's a bizarre fangirl for the stars. But seems nice." Keats thought as he laid down on the ground.
"He's an oddball with no filter. Got a good heart, at least." Anik thought as she looked through the lens.
'"Kinda cute, too."' Keats and Anik thought, simultaneously.
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx Route 10, Ula'Ula Island, 5:10 a.m. xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
The following morning at Anik's campsite, Rotom was beginning to turn on and floated slightly into the air with the wire connecting the phone Pokémon to the power bank still attached. Looking around, Rotom noticed Keats and Anik standing next to each other, facing away from Rotom.
"Why are you two up zzzzo early?" Rotom asked as Anik and Keats turned around.
"Okay, Rotom, answer this for us." Anik said towards Rotom.
"What, zzzzt?" Rotom questioned.
"If a Dodrio had a conversation with a Dugtrio, is it a conversation between all three heads at once or is it each individual head having an individual conversation?" Keats asked with a serious face as Anik looked at Rotom with a similar sense of significance on her face.
"...Thizzzz is a conversation you both woke up to have...?" Rotom said as Anik and Keats looked on. "...How long have you been awake?" The phone Pokémon asked as Keats and Anik looked at each other.
"I got three hours of sleep." Keats said.
"I was just about to go to sleep when he woke up and asked me that question." Anik said.
"...So, you instigated this line of thought, zzzzt?" Rotom said with an annoyed face towards Keats as the phone Pokémon disconnected from the power bank and floated closer to the pair of humans.
"I just caught a Diglett yesterday, it just came into my head!" Keats exclaimed as Anik looked at Rotom.
"And I couldn't sleep because it was weighing on me." Anik said, admitting that she was thinking about it. "Besides, it's not the first time I've had a sleepless night." She said as she took her glasses off and rubbed her eyes.
"You should sleep more." Keats said towards Anik. "Last time I had a night where I didn't sleep was that night, I thought my trailer was haunted." He said casually.
"...What?" Anik said with confusion.
'"Haunted," zzzzt?" Rotom asked.
"Yeah, my trailer was haunted one time and then it wasn't." Keats said with a smile as Anik and Rotom looked at each other, curious.
"Explain..." Anik said as she was very intrigued.
"I went to a diner one night that was having a chowder eating contest in Ecruteak City and got runner-up. Was bummed out by my loss and went home, stumbling slightly from a gut full of white chowder. I prefer red, by the way." Keats said as he reminisced. "Really had to go to the bathroom but I was already in the suburban area on the way to the bus stop so there was nothing around. I looked over and saw a door to a house open up out of nowhere. Didn't think twice and went in to find a toilet." He said as Anik looked at Keats.
"Kids, don't go inside the homes of strangers." Rotom thought.
"Place was freezing cold, like there was a glacier in the house or something. So, I looked around for a bathroom and found some kids room on accident. There was a closet covered in tape that I opened up and inside I found..." He said, with an ominous voice.
'"You found...?"' Anik and Rotom said, partially scared by the direction the story was headed.
"A half-eaten snack cake. Still good!" Keats said with a thumbs up.
"Oh come on!" Anik said with a jaw drop as Keats' tale brought up something pointless.
"All that build up for a zzzznack cake?!" Rotom screamed.
"And then something crawled out of the attic the closet was connected to." Keats said, continuing his story as Anik and Rotom went from looks of annoyance back to ones of uncomfortableness. "I looked in the closet and found a passageway into the attic and stuck my head up. All of a sudden, I saw something with yellow eyes and a white body with no legs." He said.
'"Yellow eyes...?"' Anik said, mildly disturbed.
'"White body with no legzzzz?"' Rotom said in a similar tone.
"When I locked eyes with it, it started crawling after me from the attic out into the closet. I ran to hide in another room and then I saw some old couple frozen in a block of ice." Keats said as he scratched his face, with a tone that didn't seem the least horrified by what he was saying.
"Wha-what happened next, zzzzt...?" Rotom said, nervously asking for the story to continue.
"And then..." Keats said with a serious expression.
'"And then?"' Anik and Rotom said, anxiously.
"I found the bathroom." Keats stated as Anik and Rotoms faces turned into one of pure agitation.
'"What?!"' Rotom and Anik screamed in frustration.
"It was right there, so I went in and did "number two."' Keats said with a nonchalant tone.
"But what about that creepy white thing that was chasing you?" Anik asked.
"It opened the door on me with my pants down. It screamed really loudly, like it was disgusted by me and crawled away." Keats said with a shrug. "After that, I went home. Slept in my bed, things were normal... Then something crawled in through my open window." He continued as Rotom glared at Keats.
"Zzzzeriouzzzzly, stop leaving your windows open." Rotom said with an angry tone in its voice.
"I didn't notice it at first when I woke up in the middle of the night and walked over to my bathroom... Then whatever it was screamed in shock at me because I went to the bathroom in front of it and forgot to shut the door. Thought my house was haunted, didn't sleep all night." Keats said apathetically.
"That's why you thought your house was haunted?" Anik questioned.
"Yeah." Keats said bluntly. "And like I said, everything was fine afterwards." He continued.
'"Anticlimactic and stupid..."' Anik and Rotom thought, simultaneously.
"Well... Strange story aside and unanswered question notwithstanding, I'm going to take down my tent that I didn't use..." Anik said as she walked away towards the campsite as Keats stood with Rotom.
"That was probably a Pokémon that crawled at you, zzzzt." Rotom said with an unimpressed look in its eyes.
"Didn't think too hard about it." Keats said with a shrug. "But hey, at least one suspicion I had is gone." He said as he pointed at Anik, who was disassembling her tent.
"You mean Anik? Zzzzuzzzzpicouzzzz of what?" Rotom said, confused as Keats motioned for Rotom to get closer.
"I thought she might've been Imani, so I slept with an eye open until I had that thought about the Dodrio and Dugtrio and we started chatting. We still don't know what she looks like." Keats whispered.
"So that weird train of thought you two were talking about was just a random thing you came up with?" Rotom thought, still struggling to fathom Keats' mind.
"Yeah, she's alright now that I had some time to chat with her." Keats said as he looked at Rotom.
"Well, at least you found one perzzzzon in Alola to get along with." Rotom said as Keats scratched his face.
"Tropics still suck but I at least found one person worth talking to." Keats replied. "We also worked out a deal." He continued.
"...Zzzzhould you really be working out deals with people while you're in the middle of a manhunt for a Pokémon thief?" Rotom questioned with skepticism of Keats' actions.
"It's not that difficult." Keats said as he looked at Rotom. "She said she needed help finding the Minior that crashed down here in the woods. We're still in hiding from the flute man. So, I offered." He said with a shrug towards Rotom.
"Well... It's not like it's a bad thing to be polite and help others..." Rotom thought. "Another detour on the hunt for Imani?" The phone Pokémon said as Keats winced.
"Look, we have almost no leads aside from searching this whole island with Raichu's psychic powers. The least we can do for the cute star girl in the lab coat is give her a hand with just finding a Pokémon. And besides, it can cover ground." Keats explained.
"...I can hear you, you know...? And I'm hardly that cute with my hair in all directions and wearing a track suit of all things..." Anik thought as she put her away her stuff into her handbag as she looked over at Keats, blushing from the husky framed trainers' compliment that he didn't think she could hear him say. "I'm sorry, did you say "leads?"' She said as she approached Keats and Rotom talking. "You guys looking for that Pokémon thief who has a Sableye, right?" Anik asked as Rotom looked at Keats.
"Already filled her in too, zzzzt?" Rotom said towards Keats as he nodded.
"Yeah, he told me all about this girl named Imani who has his sister's Pokémon. I said I'd help out in any way I can if he could assist me with finding Minior first." Anik said as she looked at Keats.
"I mizzzzzzzzed quite a bit, didn't I?" Rotom said, bewildered at the events that transpired while the phone Pokémon was in sleep mode.
"Where should we start looking?" Keats asked as he pulled out his Pokéball containing Raichu.
"Anywhere works. I've got no clue except for the fact that Minior fell somewhere in these woods, but this forest is huge." Anik said with an unsure tone.
"Then I guess here works." Keats said as he opened up Raichu's ball, out popping his floating mouse-like Pokémon.
"Raichu!" Raichu said happily as he floated on his flat tail and proceeded to do a handstand.
"No skating stunts right now, I need your help with something." Keats said as he talked to Raichu as the Electric and Psychic type stood back up on his tail.
"Hey, zzzzt." Rotom said as it floated over to Anik.
"What's up?" Anik replied.
"You two said you worked out a deal of zzzzortzzzz while searching for Minior, correct?" Rotom asked.
"Yeah?" Anik replied bluntly.
"Out of curiosity, what did you offer Keatzzzz?" Rotom asked as Anik clutched tightly at the strap of her bag.
"That's... Something I can tell you when if we can find Minior." Anik said with red cheeks as Rotom raised a digitized eyebrow.
"Well... Okay then, zzzzt." Rotom said as it floated over to Keats. "Minior, Minior... Hmmmmm... Something doesn't sound right." The phone Pokémon thought.
"If we can find Minior... Then I'll tell you he asked me out..." Anik thought as she followed after Rotom and Keats.
Happy Pokémon Day folks! Everyone's favorite character, ME, the announcer, is here to- oh crap, we have a new chapter again? Wait this is the fourth or fifth chapter this month?! That's a record! What the hell? And Keats got a party member now?! Ah damn it, now I have to catch up because I didn't read this one yet. Okay, give me a minute... Or eighteen...
Keats' Pokémon (on-hand):
1. Pineco. Gender: Female. Ability: Sturdy. Moves: "Spikes," "Explosion," "Bide," "Protect."
2. Druddigon. Gender: Male. Ability: Rough Skin. Moves: "Slash," "Dig," "Roar," "Dragon Tail."
3. Cloyster. Gender: Female. Ability: Shell Armor. Moves: "Tackle," "Water Gun," "Ice Shard," "Withdraw."
4. Dragalge. Gender: Male. Ability: Poison Point. Moves: "Poison Tail," "Toxic," "Double Team," "Water Pulse."
5. Raichu - Alolan Form. Gender: Male. Ability: Surge Surfer. Moves: "Psychic," "Nuzzle," "Light Screen," "Quick Attack."
6. Diglett - Alolan Form. Gender: Female. Ability: Tangling Hair. Moves: "Growl," "Iron Head," "Sucker Punch," "Bulldoze."
Keats' Pokémon (in rotation):
1. Stunky. Gender: Male. Ability: Aftermath. Moves: "Fury Swipes," "Poison Gas," "Smokescreen," "Focus Energy."
2. Venonat. Gender: Female. Ability: Tinted Lens. Moves: "Tackle," "Poison Powder," "Bug Buzz," "Sleep Powder."
3. Swalot. Gender: Male. Ability: Liquid Ooze. Moves: "Sludge Bomb," "Stockpile," "Swallow," "Bodyslam."
4. Porygon. Genderless. Ability: Download. Moves: "Tackle," "Thunder Shock," "Psybeam," "Recycle."
5. Timburr. Gender: Male. Ability: Guts. Moves: "Poison Jab," "Smack Down," "Focus Energy," "Scary Face."
6. Surskit. Gender: Female. Ability: Swift Swim. Moves: "Quick Attack," "Leech Life," "Sweet Scent," "Bubblebeam."
Anik's Pokémon:
1. Kingler. Gender: Male. Ability: Hyper Cutter. Moves: "Vise Grip," "Harden," "Water Gun," "Crabhammer."
2. Cleffa. Gender: Female. Ability: Magic Guard. Moves: "Splash," "Pound."
3. Oricorio - Baile Style. Gender: Female. Ability: Dancer. Moves: "Air Cutter," "Feather Dance," "Calm Mind," "Helping Hand."
Authors Note: (Let it be known... That if Brock from the series ever met Anik, he'd do the usual Brock thing... And then get his ear pulled or jabbed in the ass by his Croagunk. And I am sorry for the take down and reposting of this chapter, I've noticed that the site isn't posting it for some odd reason.)