A Certain Unfortunate Trainer

by NeoShadows

Kamijou Touma was your average Pokemon Trainer in Academy City. Except he had no Ability or Pokemon as a lowly Level-0 with a weird right hand that brought him misfortune. But upon meeting Index, a girl who memorized a library of forbidden books on Pokemon myths and legends, that normal school life would change. When Science, Magic, and Pokemon meet, a story is told.

7. Gold Painted Brain

Late Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays from your internet pal, NeoShadows!

Hope everyone had a good holiday despite the pandemic still raging all over the world. Holy hell, its almost been an entire year since all this craziness began. Pretty sure we can all agree that 2020 was a rather hectic and strange year, especially if you live in the states. I mean, damn! We have to deal with a certain someone attacking his own political party and demanding he won despite the obvious loess. Thank god its almost over.

A New Year stands ahead of us. New challenges, new stories, new experiences, and new chances to make a change, be it for the better or the worse. Whatever may come in these new times we face, know I'll do my to continue writing and updating as best I can!

Let's close up the year with some reviews!

DNWorks: Might get caught up in it? There's no mights, maybes, or ifs when it comes to Kamijou Touma! So long as they lead to further misfortune that is. As for Yumiya-chan...well I'll have her answer that when the time comes.

Mr. X: Thankfully, I haven't had to deal with the spammer for quite a while now. And yes, Rakko-chan's here for the fun to come! Whoo!

Mr. Self-Depracation: This a Pokemon story, albeit a crossover. Of course, there was bound to be puns galore! Wynaut?! Yumiya was a fun addition to add, one I felt people would definitely love and would help to separate this story from the original and cement it as a timeline in the Pokemon world rather than this being a story of ToAru with Pokemon elements glued on. You know, I can't seem to remember whether Yumiya's school was based in middle or high school. Eh, may as well take some creative liberties; this is a crossover, after all.

AngelFauz: Yuri is definitely a picture-perfect example of a Dorm Manager Onee-san and far above this simple Kamijou-san level. Such misfortune. The Battle Facilities are neat replacements for Gyms and we've yet to see them all. To answer your Zubat question, I'm sure this chapter will answer it for ya. When I think about the Elite Four, and even the champion, I highly doubt such Trainers, who are said to stand above all others, would crumble to a simple type advantage. People who've achieved such titles would surely be able to overcome the weaknesses of their preferred Type against challengers. Unlike the games, they wouldn't be so easy to take out by simply swapping out Pokemon who have the type advantage over their entire team. Real world animals don't exist in the Pokemon world, so they wouldn't exist here either. As morbid as it seems, humans here do eat Pokemon, no different than how we have dogs and cats as pets but eat pigs and cows.

MrQuestionMark: Am I a madman? How dare you! I am highly offended you would dare ask such a thing. I am mad lad, good sir! Of course, I would throw a curveball like Yumiya Rakko into the story. I felt adding her character would help to further separate this story from the original timeline and show that by being centered in the Pokemon world, there would be some noticeable changes to the story we all know. I have plans, big plans! You know naught of the madness swirling, raging, ERECTING(!) in my mind! I was actually curious to see how many people would recognize her before I made it clear who she was; I didn't think her uniform would give her away. Out of all the fics I'm working on in ToAru, I really do feel that I can stretch my creative wings out with this story to create some unique pieces and lore. I honestly didn't know that the Elite Four were also known as the Four Heavenly Kings until I began researching them; it was a cool fact to learn. There's literally a ton to work with when it comes to a series like Pokemon that I'm actually overwhelmed at times. I'm glad I've ticked off plenty of boxes to keep you caught in this net of mine design, ya gasping guppy! I'll fry you yet! Even if you are a man of cultures, a brother in arms, I will make you squirm in that net for as long as I am able.

0Jordinio0: I like to keep things interesting, ya know? I see your best girl is Misaka; best girl is obviously 1032, ya bastard. I like your guesses; no telling. Touma being an actually skilled Trainer would make sense since he's actually rather adept in fighting in his own unique way. Sadly, misfortune has gotten in the way of what this boy could be if he had been born normally. But will it remain as such?

ConnivingG: I was going for a certain Raikou vibe, ya know? She's truly my favorite OC of the bunch that I've created.

BlueJack22: While Touma may seem to come off as a gentleman, he's no different than any other hormonal teenage boy. He wouldn't be a part of the Delta Force if he wasn't a pervert on par with Aogami and Tsuchimikado. Put him next to either one of those idiots, and his true colors will shine!

WSarcasm: Yeah, you get it. I love writing, I truly do, but I got to take care of far more important matters before I can get to typing. I'm a supervising manager to a small chain of restaurants and sometimes have to travel to another state(thank god it's only an hour and a half away to cross the border) to help out with setting things up or training new employees. Couple my work responsibilities with my family responsibilities, and it's a wonder I'm able to even churn out anything! If I have to take care of myself than so do you. I hope your end of things remains good throughout all this mess.

Now, to your review. The story is based on a combination of the games, some manga elements, and my own personal interpretation as well. The timeline itself is a bit screwy, so I've decided to take elements of everything to make my own timeline to better fit the existence of Academy City and allow certain characters and events to interact with the story about to unfold and centered on Touma. I already know that the Gym Leaders don't show their true strength and base their Pokemon on the challengers level, something which will be seen later in the story. Concernig Touma's Pokemon battling experience, it's fairly negative. I can honestly say, he has never battled with any Pokemon he has owned due to the events of his childhood; which will be explained later. He may be a brilliant Trainer, he may be average, he may be weak; we won't know until he gathers the courage to accept a Pokemon into his life again. Bits and pieces of what happened to him and his Starter Pokemon will be found through ought this arc, but we won't truly know until later in the story.

It was honestly far too perfect that the regions in the Pokemon world could be used to represent the major nations connected to important figures like Roberto Katze. I swear, a good majority of the ideas I had in mind just fit so well. More clues to Touma's original Pokemon will be revealed; who will come to the truth?! Academy City doesn't really have a Pokedex since they're ahead of the world by thirty years; information on countless Pokemon can be found as easily as an app on their phone. ASRL is a fun system we won't see fully played out just yet but we will see a lot of it being used once the story fires off on all cylinders. Say, if we have a tournament arc? Eh, eh? I'm a fan of Pokemon going as far back as having no other way to enjoy it as a kid than watching other kids play Red and Blue on their Gameboys and watching every episode of the anime as it aired every Saturday. Of course, I have my favorites! Cynthia, Erika, fucking Sabrina, Flannery, and Skyla! I could go on, honest, I could. I can freely say that Touma is from Johto. Yumiya's a treat to add; who knows who else will cross paths with misfortune in this new story? And we'll see other factions of Skill-Out during their own arc.

Doomqwer: For all its faults, I still enjoyed my time in Galar as I did with other regions; I still do. One of the things I'm having fun writing are the slice of life pieces for sure. And yes, Zenchou is an asshole but a lovable asshole.

TazalTerminals: Zenchou is simply a bad luck amplifier who loves causing mischief. Those two together just work perfectly, you know?

Cheesecake244351: Touma basically has the Ability Cute Charm, only due to its 80% success rate it has evolved to be known as Kami-yan Disease; an exclusive ability to Kamijou Touma! Eh, if I ever have the time to read any of the Pokemon manga, I'll take a look. Especially when I'm finishing up on creating the lore. Ah, it's those small moments of peace that keep Touma pushing on through whatever kind of suffering, malice, despair, and cruelty is pulzering his body and heart. The boy truly does need more people like Yuri and Komoe to support him. Especially when he himself can't seem to overcome his own self-loathing. If Touma could truly be activated more efficiently through cooking, then Academy City would have molded itself after Food Wars, huh? ...Why hasn't anyone written a crossover about it yet?! Due to Index's love for her homeland, she would definitely see her own Gym Leaders and Champion as far above the other regions; Galar pride! Ayu's story is different than it was in the original story and may even tie more closely to a certain Level-5 than before. I wouldn't say all of SCHOOL would be dragged in later down the line. Kaiba and Touma, huh. The history between them is certainly...different than before as well. Who knows just what will happen now that Yumiya's be found by Touma and Index. And holy shit, was GT3 a hell of a way to go out on Christmas. That fucking ending! A new year's coming up and I can't wait to see what Kamachii's got in store for us!

TheNotSoFantitique: I certainly do having something different written up when it comes to the missing memory of our beloved honey blonde Mental-Out. A history much more intertwine with the fate of Ayu's.

GGVegito: Glad to have ya on board! Yes, Touma vs. Kanzaki is going to be a fun one at the end of all this chaos to come.

Reviews are out of the way, so let's get to eating up this chapter, eh?

---

Disclaimer: I do not own the rights to A Certain Magical Index or Pokemon. Both rights are reserved to Kazuma Kamachii and Gamefreak.

Been a weird week. You don't really realize just how old the very siblings, the very ones you had to watch over and once ate cereal with as you all watched cartoons with, are until you're going out to buy beers while talking about archetypes.

Seriously, where did I go wrong for me to end up talking about MILFS, Soccer Moms, Cougars, and DILFS(Blegh) with my twenty-four-year-old younger sister who loves anime and partying and my twenty-one-year-old younger brother who's not even fucking straight! It's not normal to be talking about tits and assess with my own siblings while discussing what makes said women the archetype they are! I think I might need to have us all see a family therapist.

---

Chapter 7: Gold Painted Brain.

Budding_POISON_And_Burdened_Hearts.

The meeting spot was held on Floor 13-A.

Out of all 31 floors within the Battle Facility Mall, it was the floor solely focused on greasy fast-food booths, easy-to-make meals for home, specially made bentos, cooking ware, Pokemon food, and a few restaurants. Though it was considered the 13th floor it actually consisted of two floor levels to accommodate the fast-food vendors and restaurants on the first floor and the culinary related shops above. The food court where the patrons could sit down, relax, and enjoy a nice meal alongside their friends and Pokemon was found on the first floor, Floor-A, among the food vending stands fit for over two hundred patrons.

It was a very crowded area full of students and adults chatting, eating, relaxing without much need for security. Stamped below the ceramic tiles was the image of a Luxury Ball seen beautifully above from a Pidgee's eye view only. Center of the Pokeball's release button was an artistically sculpted white marble water fountain depicting two intertwining Milotics seemingly conjuring water to twirl around their majestic bodies with several artisanal benches circling the fountain. Potted plants said to originate from several regions were spread about the lunch floor to give a splash of color to the setting amid the many tables littered with various meals from chain fast-food restaurants. At the very edge of the floor, the many vendors selling greasy meals could be found drawing in starving or peckish students, adults, and Pokemon alike.

One could easily get lost in the sea of activity acting as a sort of camouflage.

So long as said Keckleons knew the proper colors to throw on.

"Kami, I hate this fucking shirt! It's so restraining! I can't so much as move without the fabric threatening to rip!"

"Probably has to do with the fact you're a size too small, lard-ass."

"What did you expect? I couldn't find anyone with a uniform my size on such short notice. I was lucky to find some otaku wandering the streets when I did and beat him up for his clothes. Just what the hell is Buneary Girls Extreme Fighting Force Ultra? It's plastered all over my damn shirt in pink and fluffy bold letters for Arceus sakes!"

"Calm down, you idiot! We haven't been given the word to move yet. Until we've got the signal, we have to act naturally like everyone else. If grunts can keep their cool then you should too."

Byoki ignored the ugly pout of the large heave-set Toxic Hazard chemist as they sat on a sixteen seated lunch table among other members of their organization. In order to avoid curious eyes, they were all dressed in various school uniforms instead of their normal sickly green and purple wear. Many complained about the pride of their organization but Byoki shut each one of them up with smacks upside the head of the boys and girls.

Pride was a good thing to possess but these damn brats needed to learn to conceal their violent and sickly colors when needed. Last thing he needed was having to break out his lovable grunts from a detainment cell in District 2.

At the moment they were all on stand-by. Due to the nature of the Battle Facility being open to the public other than its floors that were solely meant for Level-3 Espers to grow their power, it had been easy to sneak in. All of their members were scattered about the tower, each one having entered separately or in small groups during different intervals. All fifty members of their organization now roamed about the luxurious tower, armed with hidden weapons that couldn't be detected by security and Pokemon that could do more damage than a firearm ever could, waiting patiently for the signal to move into the next phase of their plan.

Crispy nugget in hand, Byoki popped the deep-fried chicken mesh into his mouth as he casually tapped away on his phone.

"Still can't believe you broke out. I thought we all agreed that if any one of us was ever caught that we wouldn't risk breaking out and drawing attention to us. Or did that go over that bald head of yours?" Byoki grumbled between bites of his greasy meal.

Gomi grinned smugly from his seat next to the unhappy cool faced 'Judgment' officer, "Did you really expect me to sit around doing nothing when we're so close to the fruition of our plans? Learn to respect your senior, brat. As the second founding member of this party, you got to understand that I've always got contingency plans set up in the background of any troubles."

Byoki grunted. Of course, the second-highest among the Admins had some in play just in case he was caught with his pants down by Anti-Skill or Judgment. It shouldn't have come as a surprise to find the fat bastard freed by a team of their grunts behind the backs of the other Admins and the boss.

Loyalists could be found in every organization no matter how small or frail the party was. Toxic Hazard was no different. There were a few members of Toxic Hazard that were loyal to Gomi more than the Admins that were Sauia and himself. The dimwitted idiots he cared for saw Gomi as a charismatic figure of power who had been responsible for giving them a place to unite after being tossed aside by Academy City. Byoki understood why seeing as Gomi was the original half of creating Toxic Hazard.

Among all of Toxic Hazard, only Byoki and Saiua had been invited into the gang by the boss who had come to their rescue when they were on the brink of utter self-destruction. Everyone else below their rank had been rounded up by Gomi himself to build up what was once a small-time group of teens who had been fighting against the adults who had a hand in their shitty situations.

Sleazy the fat-ass may be but he was a crucial gear to their operations with his vast knowledge of chemical reactions, creating new strains of toxins, and his leadership role over the more rambunctious recruits. Fact was their organization would have been nothing more than a small club of troubled children in their heydays if it wasn't for Gomi stepping in to expand their influence enough to separate from the main body of Skill-Out. Personal feelings aside, Gomi was basically the second head of Toxic Hazard who made the major decisions concerning their movements alongside the other Admins.

Byoki had hoped to replace said crucial gear in the organization now that they were so close to accomplishing their plans now that there was no need for such a cruel piece. But said piece was a lot more stubborn than Byoki believed. Not to mention their leader wasn't one to abandon others no matter how toxic they may be.

Knowing how clever the senior member was, it wouldn't surprise Byoki to find out that the twenty-year-old had a small group of hardcore faithful Toxic Hazard grunts planning his escape if he was ever locked up.

"Just don't go fucking us over because you found yourself a tempting treat you wanted to get your hands on." Byoki sneered in disgust.

Gomi grinned with a lick of his lips, "Don't worry, I'll hold off on dessert until we've gone through our main course. I've already gotten word that a few of our grunts have set the packages at the selected points in the mall. When the time's right, I'll set off the charges. You discover our target yet?"

"My squad of Zubats are searching high and low for her. From the intel Saiua-san's dug up with her hacker skills, the target's been known to regularly leave the Battle Facility floors at this time for her break. One of my little brats ought to pick them out before Saiua-san's finish breaking into the loudspeaker system. Why the hell did you even ask her for such a last-minute chore anyway? We only needed to speak with the Brain; Saiua-san could have easily gotten us a direct line to her personal phone."

"Heh, just wait and see. I promise you one hell of a show~! Even the boss will appreciate it when they see it."

"The boss? You saying they're here?! What the shit, Gomi!"

Byoki nearly shot up from his seat in anger, his face painted a furious beet red.

That damn fat son of a bitch! What the hell was he thinking in dragging their boss into their operations? As far as Anti-Skill and Judgment were aware of, Toxic Hazard had no leader. Academy City believed that Toxic Hazard was a cluster of Skill-Outs who favored using Poison-type Pokemon and poison weapons to hassle higher level Espers. They had no idea that their organization actually had structure and a boss leading them. In the eyes of those lousy excuses for law enforcement, they were just a large group of trouble makers riding off the coattails of bigger gangs well known in Skill-Out.

A bunch of idiots starting fights, harassing students, and robbing Bank Cards was to be seen as a threat. But without any structure to them, they were just a bunch of Skill-Outs that were no different than the small groups that could be easily dealt with. It was how Toxic Hazard was able to evade complete decimation all these years. As long as they were seen as a small threat to be dealt with at a later time, they could continue moving in the shadows without any light being cast on their activities.

Revealing the head of their organization would ruin their threat level and bump them up. Now was not the time to be hunted down by the dogs of Judgment and Anti-Skills trash.

Gome didn't show any concern for Byoki's anger, focused more on the XL bacon cheeseburger in his hands.

"I didn't plan to involve them. It was a happy coincidence that they were visiting the Battle Facility is all. I'd warn the boss but they wouldn't be able to escape in time before the doors are sealed in by our little diversion about to play. Knowing them, they'll realize what we're up to and leave us be. So long as they're not interested in jumping into the action. Which they won't, so long as I don't prick a nerve." Gomi mumbled between large bites of his greasy burger.

Byoki's fist hit the table with a rattle that nearly toppled the several shakes on the surface, "Don't bullshit me, you greasy faced Emboar! You of all people know more about our boss than anyone else! Their habits, their quirks, their everyday schedule, practically everything since the two of you go as far back as high school! You would have known if they were visiting the Battle Facility at this hour and warned them to retreat!"

"The hell you talking about? I did just get out of District 2's holding cells. How would I have known?"

"How would you have known that the boss was here then?"

"...Teehee?"

"Swear to Arceus, if you're up to something as foul as your Garbodour-!"

"Calm down, you damn Mankey. As I said, the boss would know better than to draw attention to themselves when we make our move. I even had a grunt slip them the antidote so they're not harmed. Just stick to the plan and everything will be alright."

Stick to the plan? Byoki wasn't even sure if their plan had been changed with the introduction of the shifty Gomi! He clicked his teeth at the self-absorbed smirk on the heavyweight thug senior, knowing he couldn't even argue with the bastard in public.

Screw it, he'd deal with Gomi once all this was over. It was about time they disposed of a toxic figure in their family anyway. He was done allowing that smug bastard to continue to corrupt his young brothers and sisters who were family in all but blood.

Biting the last of his crispy nuggets alongside a handful of fries, Byoki was stopped mid-chew by the flap of wings he was all too familiar with. A Zubat with a Judgment band on its left wing settled on his shoulder with a mischievous grin.

"Did you find our target?"

Humans could not understand Pokemon, so an answer from that bat Pokemon wouldn't have been understood. Depending on how close Trainer and Pokemon were, nothing more than a few barks, yips, chirps, buzzes, were needed for simple answers. But this was Academy City, a world separate from the rest of the Pokemon world that's technology was ahead of the times by thirty years at least. Even the recent smartphone technology allowing Rotom's to aid Trainer's in their everyday life was an old fad from twelve years ago.

By clicking a certain experimental app on his phone, Byoki could gesture it to his Pokemon's mouth as it spoke through cries only its brethren could ever understand. The text to speech function wasn't enough to convey words as complex as detailed information but it was just enough to translate a few keywords.

'No. Target not found.'

Byoki's scowl was puzzled.

"If you hadn't found her, why did you come back?"

The bat cries were translated simply.

'Target Two Found.'

Byoki grew silent, his face unreadable for several moments until he fully registered the simple translation.

He couldn't help but grin cruelly.

[-]

Yumiya Rakko was content. No, content wasn't the right word to describe the intense emotions gushing through every vein in her body like caffeinated dark coffee.

She was stupidly happy. She was in utter bliss. She was overflowing with joy! If you were to poke her, a constant stream of ecstasy would run off from her quivering mess! That sounded wrong on second thought but none the less true.

Why was she so unnaturally happy and gleeful right now, you may ask? Especially if one were to know of her hidden personality and background, which was a complete opposite of the normal easily flustered, and shy demeanor girl one saw now? The answer was simple.

Yumiya had made a friend today. An actual human friend! Not a Pokemon who listened to her ever command because she had been provided them for her Esper development studies but an actual friend that she had made by chance!

By coincidence! Sheer luck no different than happening upon a Bank Card full of 10,000PY! And not just one but two. At the same time!

Could this be it? Could this be Yumiya-chan's Popular Phase appearing to grant her heart's most sought after wish after all these years of being alone?! Did her wish to Jirachi actually come true last New Year's Eve? In this city that defied her childish prayers with logic and reason, did some miracle fall upon this lonely Yumiya-chan!?

"Hey, hey, Rakko-chan! What do you think about these? They're rather modest, they're pure white, and the edges have a little frill to them that make them cute! Do you think that even a nun-in-training could wear such panties without offending our Lord in heaven, Arceus?"

The satin red curtain to the dressing room cubicle was pulled back to reveal the holy Sister, Index, wearing a matching set of undergarments as pure and innocent as one could find in such a store offering a wide selection of scantily. When they had asked for a reference in the style of bras and panties they were searching for, Index had asked for anything that was modest, cute, and ill-offensive to god. Her criteria had definitely caused some brows to raise skeptically even among the Pokemon staff. Either way, they were able to find a few items that would match the naive girl's taste as they were led to a private dressing room.

The dressing room in question was as large as your average office cubicle, giving the patron just enough room to stretch around and get a good look at what they looked like in the room while also providing a full-body mirror. Since this was Academy City, the dressing room also provided various features to better get a feel of their clothing. The walls of the dressing room were built with special effects that changed the walls to unique backgrounds ranging from the sunny beach, a snowy winter field, the modern cityscape of Academy City, and even provided holograms to create the images of falling snow, a bright sun, gusts of wind, falling leaves, and more. The mirror could even connect to the students' phone to allow them to save a picture into their drive or create holograms of the Pokemon registered to their devices. With so many features, it could be mistaken for an advanced photo booth found in an arcade.

Believe it or not, the photo booth found in the arcade on the 8th floor was far more impressive.

As this was Index's first time, and having realized the foreign girl had no familiarity at all with technology, Yumiya had opted out of the extra cost for the special features package. Though, if she was lucky, they could come back some other day and mess around as normal girls would.

Upon Index stepping out, Yumiya clapped her hands with a grin.

"It's totally adorable, Index-chan! I'm sure even Kamijou-san would agree with a stupid grin on his face." Yumiya giggled much to Index's embarrassment.

"As if I would allow that heathen to glimpse at my panties! ….Even though he's seen far more since we've met."

"Eh? You say something, Index-chan?"

Index shook her head, fighting to bury the red on her face at the memory of being stripped naked upon her first meeting with a certain Level-0.

"A-Anyways! I think I've decided to buy these ones. They're cute and modest, plus you say that they're at a fair price that won't make Touma have a heart attack. I've come to understand he's a bit of a Pokeyen pincher and I don't want to him to grumble about prices while we're eating later."

The bra and pantie set came in five and came with a special price for two. What a lucky find! Was it sad to think that they wouldn't have found such a great deal if Touma was around? With how much they were saving, Touma had nothing to complain about if Index went and ate out at the restaurant they would be visiting later. Surely he wouldn't object to her stuffing her mouth until they were as full and plenty as a Skwovet!

For whatever reason, a certain spiky-haired boy that was being ridden on by two pranksters as if he was a Rider Pokemon and chased by a group of Magnemite felt a foreboding chill in his wallet.

Having come to a decision, Index returned to the dressing room to change back into her habit. At the memory of the dress that was torn and only held together by safety pins, Yumiya spoke up.

"Index-chan, are you sure that's all you're buying? Don't you think you should buy some new clothes to replace your habit? It's cute and really authentic, but wouldn't it be better if I helped you find something as equally nice that's not being held together by safety pins that could fall apart?"

Behind the satin curtain, Index responded back with a hum in her voice.

"No, that's fine, Rakko-chan! As a nun of the holy puritan Galar Church, I am to always be wearing my habit and headdress. Think of it as your school uniforms; even if you're not attending school right now, you're still required to wear it. Plus it's a sign of my affiliation and faith. Only on special occasions am I to change out of my habit, like, say I'm going to the beach! Even a nun would have change into a bathing suit. It be weird otherwise."

Yumiya tilted her head at what she was hearing from her new friend. So, the nun outfit wasn't for cosplay? She couldn't help but believe that Index was apart of some kind of event in the mall or that she had bought at it one of the cosplay shops on the eighth floor. She really was a foreign nun from the Galar Region then? What was such an abnormal girl doing in a man-made region like Academy City?

This was a metal landscape that denied the occult and religion. Figures such as priests and nuns would never step foot in such a world that thought of them as nothing more than entertainment material. Closest thing this city had that could be regarded as religious would be a temple found in District 6 or prayer rooms in certain hospitals for the terminally ill. To find such a pure and naive nun in Academy City was like finding a Shiny Pokemon in the fields of District 21.

She made friends with a Sister. She giggled at the odd notion that an Esper, who was purely scientific, was helping a Sister, who was purely religious, pick out panties. What were the odds of such an event happening?

"What about you, Rakko-chan? Did you want help finding some clothes for yourself? You did say you were on your way over here?"

Yumiya froze up. Nervously, she looked away from the curious green eyes falling on her.

Truth was, her meeting with Index and Touma had happened out of the blue when she was mindlessly wandering District 15 in her free time away from both school and SCHOOL for something to kill time until her underground work had need of her. Summer was the loneliest period of the year for the dark pig-tailed-haired girl due to her responsibilities as a SCHOOL agent having her abandon any chance of becoming popular by hanging out with anyone in school. There was always a chance that she would need to be called in, forcing her to cancel any plans with those classmates who were always inviting her out. It had occurred enough times that she was always hesitating to make any promises that would help her attain a semblance of favorable opinion from those who could be her friend.

She had a rather childish dream she should have been abandoned long ago. But due to the events of her childhood involving the creation of Esper candidates who could attain status as Level-5, she couldn't ever toss such a dream aside and only clung to it fervently.

Yumiya wanted to be popular. She wanted to be well-liked by everyone, to make friends with everyone, to shatter that cold loneliness she had fallen into by that crybaby little girl who had always failed to be of any worth to anyone. To attain such a wish, she needed to be popular enough that such loneliness would never seep into her life again.

What she wanted more than anything else was to gain the ever bright light of popularity to devour the lonely darkness ever threatening to swallow her into despair ever again.

It was why she was so eager to make friends. Surrounded by countless lights gathered all around her, she would never see a hint of the cold darkness tied to loneliness creep up to drag her down. The more friends she could make, the more her popularity would rise and make that little girl's tears nothing but a faint memory.

Despite her looks though, and her impressive figure, said goal was difficult to attain.

Out in the field when she was working for SCHOOL alongside her Pokemon, her personality was a far cry from now. She was confident, smug, and loved the thrill of a hunt. She was similar to her partner, the Pokemon who had been selected to be the most compatible to her by Academy City, in regards to her work. But outside of such deadly matters, she was easily flustered, shy, and nervous when approaching people. It made it hard for her to connect with even her classmates when they were the ones to reach out to her.

In short, she always failed to be the one to spark a friendship. She had always failed to take the first step leading her to happiness.

But today, a chance had fallen into her hands in the form of two strangers who had come to her rescue when she had been overwhelmed by some pushy boys who were only interested in her chest. If it hadn't been for those two, she may have had to resort to drastic measures and need to call in a favor from SCHOOL's grunts to take care of a few bodies.

At the memory of how she met Index, Yumiya had to ask a question that had been bugging her since she had met them.

"I-I was just on my way here for a few...items for my Pokemon that I can't find anywhere else! And I can grab those later. But...I did want to ask you something, Index-chan." Nervously, Rakko wrung her hands, afraid that prying would ruin this once in a lifetime chance at the first step of becoming popular, "W-Why did you...rescue me earlier? I didn't a-ask for anyone to h-help. I didn't even scream. Everyone else who was nearby simply ignored me and thought I could just walk away or someone else would save me. But you didn't. Why?"

Two complete strangers had put themselves between Yumiya and the arrogant boys, taking her away without resorting to violence or needing her to ask for their help. They had no reason to do so. Like everyone else, they could have simply walked away and put the matter behind them, believing it would be resolved by someone else. Yet they didn't.

But why?

Index answered brightly, sweeping the curtain back as she finished changing. She stepped up to Rakko with a tilt of her head, looking upon her like she would a lost sheep.

"To be honest, I hadn't noticed your dilemma. I was blissfully unaware that some poor soul was struggling to maintain her smile because of those who cared little for her own feelings. For that sinful negligence, I apologize." she spoke honestly. Her green eyes reflected a hint of melancholy that would only be banished by the next works she said that brought her smile back, "But it was actually Touma who had brought my attention to you! In that crowd of people, he was somehow able to pick you out. Knowing him, he probably couldn't stand the sight of you being bothered or ignored by everyone else, so he acted. He told me to follow his lead and I did, noticing you by simply following the displeased frown on his face that was centered on your face."

"Kamijou-san...n-noticed me?"

Yumiya's grew silent as the faintest rush of heat came to her cheeks.

To be perfectly frank, Yumiya wasn't sure what to make of the boy known as Kamijou Touma at first. Compared to Index herself, he didn't make much of an impact other than being the first one to come to her rescue. He was rather plain-faced, lackluster, unassuming, and average in every sense of the world. Other than his spiky hair, she wasn't sure she would have been able to pick him out of the crowd due to him blending in so well, it would make a Kecleon envious.

When it came to making friends in order to make her as popular as idols, he would have been the last person she would have gone out of her way with befriending. He was more of an extra piece once she got familiar with Index, who was much more bright, happy, cute, and seemed to be the kind of girl who could easily make friends with anyone. Basically, he was just a cheap trinket she didn't mind compared to the main prize she had scored. Like a random hundred Pokeyen worth toy which had been stuck to the main 50,000PY prize someone would snag in a claw machine game.

In fact, she had agreed to be the one to hang out with Index in her search for undergarments to better worm her way into the girl's spotlight. She wanted to be the center of attention to that silver-haired Sister's world to better capture her like a Pokemon. Even if that meant ignoring that ordinary boy who had been the first one to reach her, she wanted to ensure she had gained Index's favor at the cost of alienating the spiky nobody.

Only now, she was discovering that the kind and friendly beacon that was Index coming into her life was because of said boy who she had disregarded so casually. The sudden realization had her tighten her fist and become confused, an action that Index hadn't noticed as she went on.

"Probably because you're a girl. Lately, I've noticed that if you're a girl, he has this odd magnetic sense to point him to your direction, especially if you're in trouble. And that's my opinion after knowing him for a few days." Index sighed like a mother dealing with a troublesome child. Her smile did grow softer and kinder as she continued, "But it's also because he has a very gentle heart to him too. The kind to push him into risking his own self to come to the need of anyone who's smile was on the verge of collapsing. Even if...you were on the verge of death, cornered by the flames of hell that would reduce him to a charcoal corpse, he wouldn't abandon you despite what harm would come. He'd simply put on a brave face and fight for you. Kinda makes him out as a hero, huh?"

The way Index had been speaking in regards to Touma made it sound as if it came from experience. Which was hard to believe as she mentioned being on the verge of death and surrounded by flames. The Sister painted him off as a trustworthy companion, one who's heart couldn't ignore those in need, and would never think twice to abandon whoever was crying behind him. It was a very flattering opinion by only one girl but it was spoken with such honesty that it was hard to argue with.

Kamijou Touma, a delinquent like boy, was someone Yumiya didn't put any face value as a friend. He lacked anything special about him to aid her in attracting more people to her circle. If anything, he would only drag down her capture rate due to his bland appearance. Just like a Level-0 was viewed by the city of science, she felt he was rather useless.

Yet...

A friend who would never abandon you. Had she really ever thought about such a seemingly simple quality until now? All she had been interested in when it came to gaining friends was how they would raise her stature in the eyes of everyone else. She wanted to be seen as an idol, to gain the same adoration and light as those ever-popular figures who were always surrounded by loyal fans who would never abandon her. Friends were seen no differently than Pokemon in how she captured them and seen as prizes she could show off.

Value was determined by the people she wished to associate with and how they would benefit her in becoming brighter.

She had never bothered to think of anything else in regards to said prey but superficial factors such as appearance, talents, personality, status, and connections. She never thought of much else but the hunt.

It wasn't until she had gained her first legit friend did she come to find, perhaps, she may have forgotten something crucial to the kind of people she wished to capture for her own selfish and childish desires.

Just the very thought of such a friend, of someone who would stay by her side even if she was meek and worthless, made the dark pig-tailed girl's cheeks burn hotly as she pressed her fingers together.

Kamijou Touma noticed her, found her like a needle lost in a haystack, and reached out to her when no one would. The normal plain face belonging to those dark spiky locks suddenly caused her heart to beat just a bit faster.

Maybe having such a boring boy as a friend was worth thinking twice about?

[-]

"D-Did we lose them?"

Over the edge of the 9th-floor railing of Kokyu Tower, Touma was gasping as beads of sweat fell to the floors below. Knowing his luck, his sweat had splashed over a poor shopper's face who was now seeking to find lash out with a vengeance.

Aogami was in a similar state but grinning like an idiot as he laid beside Touma against the railing.

"We were lucky, Kami-yan! If it wasn't for those suspicious delinquents hanging out near the elevators that were scaring off others from going in, we'd have the entire mall force on our asses! I am a little sad we missed out on a quality chance for some skinship action from a college-level security guard girl though. I can just imagine her lovely thighs sitting on my throat~! I bet I could smell her perfume and even catch a whiff of her panties!"

"Your extreme for your infinite pool of fetishes never ceases to amaze me, oh, glorious Fetish King."

"Says the guy waiting outside a lingerie shop. I'm honestly disappointed in your rather vanilla perversions, Kami-yan. I expected more from the devious demon lord threatening all of mankind with his conquest to capture all girls on the planet."

"Stop making up such Taurus shit excuses for why you can't catch yourself a girlfriend. You don't think I'm having any easier of a time trying to find a girl willing to go out with this unfortunate Kamijou-san?! Believe me, if I stumbled into an Event that granted me the chance to have a beautiful, curvy, big breasted Dorm Manager Onee-san to wrap my arms around lovingly, I'd take it!"

Aogami's blew his tongue out at the ridiculous notion. Normally, he would have attacked the ignorant spiky idiot who already had the majority of the female populace of their school secretly crushing on him, but the very idea that Touma would land the very ideal woman of his dreams was laughable. His playboy of a best friend would sooner find himself buried under a mountain of every other female archetype than a busty Onee-san. That put Aogami in a strange predicament of either dream coming true. On one hand, if Touma found a girlfriend, the dreaded nightmare of all the world's woman falling under his spell would be broken but would also mean that the bastard now had a busty, curvy, probably kinky older girlfriend. But on the other hand, if Touma was denied his dream of a lovely Onee-san, he'd be unhappy but free to spread his disease to every helpless girl who would fall for his spamming attacks of Charm.

Either way, Aogami wished nothing more than for his best friend to suffer the lonely bachelor life alongside the rest of the Delta Force. If one of them couldn't have a girlfriend then none of them could.

The Murkrow nestled on Touma's spiky hair cawed in what sounded like a mocking scoff. Seems even the ever unfortunate boy's own Pokemon was in agreement with Aogami's thoughts.

Speaking of Pokemon…

"That reminds me, Kami-yan; when did you get yourself a Pokemon? I thought you were adamant about getting one, no matter how many times our adorably pouting loli sensei has tried to help you pick one." Aogami asked with a curious gaze at the dark feathered Pokemon lazily stretching his right wing.

Touma grunted, "Zenchou-san isn't my Pokemon. He's more of a lousy stalker who gets his kicks from watching the ever unfortunate strokes of bad luck I have to deal with. Events of misfortune that he has a hand in creating, I bet?"

His accusatory question went ignored by the Dark-Type who pecked at his own feathers. It was a being of misfortune; of course he was responsible for certain events that further made his life shit. If you asked the Misfortune Pokemon about why he did what he did, he would have responded back that he was a comedian with fine tastes for physical comedy.

Everyone loved to laugh. What was wrong with laughing at a teenage boy being chased around several blocks by Anti-Skill for theft when it was Zenchou who stole the shiny watch and dropped it in the boy's hand?

"The only reason he's with me right now is that we're dealing with a bit of a situation right now."

"A situation? What, you get caught up in another fight that's going to result in another day of absence?"

"Stop speaking as if it's a sure thing that I'm going to be visiting the hospital again! Have faith that this Kamijou-san will make it out of this mess with nothing more than a few bruises!"

"You even going to tell me what's wrong this time?" Aogami said flatly, careening his head to stare at the delinquent of bad luck magnet. Somehow his expression came off as serious despite his eyes remaining shut like a Vulpix, "Last I heard, you were stuck in the hospital with a broken set of ribs for two days. From what I heard of the Neko-girl working in those cosplay cafes a month ago, she said that the same day you disappeared from class again, an Esper's Makuhita was going on a rampage due to some illegal drugs being pumped into its system. Not much was known outside of the damage but she said she had seen a spiky-haired boy fighting both the Esper and his Pokemon before Anti-Skill arrived at the scene to force her to leave. Weird how much of a coincidence it is that you were absent the next day because of an accident you were caught in."

Touma said nothing to the accusatory tone his friend was giving him. He knew very well of what event the blue-haired piercing's boy was alluding to.

A month before summer vacation, Touma had been roaming the streets in search of a coupon for a free pudding with the purchase of a cheap bento set even this poor student could afford. He had been saving it for a special occasion for half a year in celebration of the school year coming to end. But when he took it out from his wallet, a strong breeze had snatched it from his hands and taken it for a ride in the wind. So, of course, he went running after it with tears in his eyes.

Per his ever-present bad luck, he had been caught up in an incident involving an Esper Trainer buying Stat raising drugs for his Pokemon that had been deemed by Academy City to be illegal due to the nasty side effects. The dealer and buyer had been using a guise of the buyer borrowing a book that had been hollowed to hide the drugs within the thick pages while paying with the excuse of paying for his next meal at the outdoor eatery they were conducting business. Their deal would have gone without a hitch if it wasn't for Touma lunging after his coupon, knocking the Esper's book out of his hand to spill the illegal substance for everyone to see.

A fight had broken out, the Esper called out his Pokemon for back up, who was suffering from a drug-induced berserk state, and Touma had no choice in the matter but to put up his fists for the fight to come.

Despite the property damage left behind in the wake of the fight between a Fighting-Type Pokemon and its muscle-enhancing Trainer, Touma had walked away without having to pay for the damage. He did end up losing his coupon, sadly, and had to be taken to the hospital to deal with the three ribs and fractured shoulder he had suffered in his victory.

Such events were far too common for Touma and had to do with his shit attendance, resulting in having to attend remedial classes this summer. Only now he knew that said events were due to his right arm negating his fortune to zero.

No one in school knew that Touma was involved with such an incident. Or any of the other incidents that would randomly pop up in Academy City involving violent fights against Espers, Trainers, Pokemon, and thugs that he was a part of because of his need to save others. A few had their suspicions when it just so happened that the always misfortune moaning boy wouldn't be seen for days after hearing about such incidents. It wasn't that difficult to put two and two together.

And due to Touma's refusal to involve others in his troubles, he never spoke of such events that would normally scare a person's mental state. He would just return to school once he was released from the hospital with the same simple smile on his face and get into another brawl with the rest of the Delta Force as if nothing happened.

Said members were aware of the usual fights their unfortunate friend was caught up in. And occasionally, if they were close by, they would even jump in to help. A cry for help was never needed, nor was it ever asked by Touma, as Aogami and Tsuchimikado knew better than to wait for their stubborn comrade's plea. They knew their friend well enough to know he would rather they run away so they wouldn't be harmed.

Aogami didn't even need a rundown of what had lead Touma to the Tower of Luxury, or why his friend was waiting outside a girl's lingerie shop with a Wild Pokemon; he already knew that it had something to do with saving another random stranger.

There was a very strong 95% chance that said stranger was a girl.

Touma pushed off the guard rail with a sigh. He wasn't going to involve Aogami Pierce in this particular mess even if the Fetish King jumped in. This wasn't anything like what they had normally faced in the past. Aogami was strong, far stronger than a pervert who drooled over every known and unknown fetish should be. He'd even believed that the blue-haired slacker could keep up with a certain human Pikachu that was always stalking him for a match.

Put together the slacker's own Pokemon and adept skills as a Trainer that might make him the strongest Trainer in their school, and Aogami's was a rather surprising threat on his own.

But the trouble revolving around Index was far out of their usual radar of trouble. This was a matter that involved over 103,000 magical grimoires that threatened to twist reality, Magicians who fought with spells that defied science; who knows what else that slumbered in the world of Magic that set its eyes on Index. The first battle had resulted in Touma and Tsuchimikado's dorm nearly being burned down. Imagine Breaker had failed to completely destroy a supernatural power and he had nearly been burned to cinders. Like hell he would involve one of his classmates in the flames of hell he was preparing to dive into again.

It was better for his friend to continue on with his normal life than join Touma in a fight resulting in putting them both in the hospital.

"It's nothing, Aogami. I was just helping a friend buy some clothes out of a favor." Touma smiled simply.

Aogami quirked his brow, "A friend? Wait, you were standing outside a shop found only on a floor catered to girls of all ages! A lingerie shop too! You bastard, don't tell me you were on a date?!"

"Didn't I just say she was a friend? As if I'd be so lucky as to be on a summer date! Even if I was, shouldn't you be happy that your friend finally found someone instead of flying into a jealous rage!?"

"Screw that! As if I'd act like an overjoyed Blissey if you ever found a cute girl to spend a summer afternoon with! I'd rather give you a Mach Punch to your face instead! You know the Delta Force rules: if neither of us can find girlfriends together then none of us can be happy!"

Zenchou snickered at the two humans who were now glaring at each other like Growlithe's over territory. His sense of foreboding told him a fight wasn't far off.

"I never agreed to such a shitty contract! Why the hell do we all have to be lonely when one of us can be happy?! Besides, it's not a date! As if either one of those two girls would go out with his miserable high schooler!"

"Two?! So, the Kami-yan Disease has grown powerful enough for two girls to knowingly go out with you without flying into a catfight? This is bad, very, very bad! This means its begun to evolve into a stronger strain that allows for the diseased to not see each other as threats but sisters willing to try such a kinky idea as dating the same guy! A full-bodied harem of eight girls is surely not far off as we believed! No, I must put an end to this before it's too late! For the sake of mankind's dwindling population, I will defeat youuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu!"

"Get your hands off me, you lousy pervert! Stop blaming your failure to find a willing girl to go out with you on this equally unfortunate high schooler! It's not my fault you immediately go into a tirade of fetishes you'd like to try out with every girl that shows the slightest of interest in you, only to run away in fear of your groping hands! Learn to save that shit for the fifth date, you dumb-ass! And stop speaking of that make-believe disease as if it's actually a threat! My life isn't some To LoveRu ecchi level manga, damn it!"

It didn't take much for two members of the Delta Force to throw fists and end up in a public brawl. It was how they usually resolved their intellectual debates involving archetypes in school. To not see any one of them break out into a fight would be the real abnormality in this city of science.

Zenchou moved to stand on the railing as Touma and Aogami began wrestling on the floor, watching the idiotic brawl with a feather pointing at the boys amid laughter. Now if only he had some of that yummy, buttery, fluffy but crunchy kernel humans invented.

Shoppers ignored the arguing boys and laughing dark feathered bird of misfortune in lieu of their own shopping, knowing the mall's security would deal with them instead. Said security though was busy with other matters that caught their attention. Which meant no one was brave, or stupid enough, to stand between the two delinquent boys punching the others face.

Said brawl about a far too real disease that would charm every woman on the planet and the denial of said spreader would have continued on for who knows how long if it weren't for the clacking of heels coming to a pause in front of them. Touma paused his right fist from giving Aogami another slugging(who was currently trying to choke out the spiky-haired boy sitting on top of him) as he noticed the tan legs from the corner of his vision.

"My, what's this rather arousing scene? Ohoho?"

Further up those legs revealed thighs cut off by a hip-hugging skirt that revealed the woman's slim curvy figure with a white long sleeve researcher's coat tied around her waist to fall behind her Zebrastrika patterned short skirt, a Sandile stripped spaghetti shirt fitting her lithe gymnast body and designed to push up and accent her breasts, and designer sunglasses adorned over her eyes. The mature woman's blond hair was styled in what Touma believed was called a waterfall mermaid braid that fell to her mid-back along with two large loops of hair falling by her ears, reminding him of gold earrings. Said woman appeared to have undergone a tan to attain such a skin color found in Unova, grinning sultry as both Touma and Aogami stopped to stare at her.

"Ohohohohoho! Two young, strapping, rough-faced boys fighting in the middle of my precious tower without any shame? How brutish. How uncouth! How brutish! ...You know, I have a much better idea of how you could put such waste of energy to good, fun use."

"..."

"..."

"...Goddamn it, Aogami! That better be a fucking-"

"You know it's not, Kami-yan."

"DIIIIIIIIIIIIIEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!"

Fists once again raged

[-]

Bruised, clothes scuffed, and each now sporting hefty shopping bags containing items far out of a Level-0s pay grade, the delinquent pair known as Kamijou Touma and Aogami Pierce found themselves following the glitzy blonde-haired woman who had broken up their fight.

Yes, this was entirely against their will. Or it was for one groaning spiky-haired boy. The blue-haired boy with piercings was all the more ecstatic to be the woman's slave for the day.

Touma's face twitched as he was forced to stand by as said blonde woman, who was obviously of foreign descent like Index, busied herself with grabbing whatever clothes caught her dazzling blue eyes as they wandered in another high-end department store. This had been going on for a good hour! By now, Index and Yumiya were probably out looking for him because he was kidnapped by some shopaholic!

As for how Touma found himself following said woman to be her shopping mule, it all went back to when he was punching Aogami's lights out.

Apparently, public violence was not to be taken lightly. And Magnemite did not forget so easily. Another party of the magnetic Pokemon responded to the public disturbance with sparks prepared to subdue the familiar suspects. There would be no mercy this time. After they evaded capture once, they were given strict instructions to swiftly stun their targets for capture; safety be damned.

Upon noticing the glaring one-eyed Electric/Steel-type ready to shock them into piles of twitching muscles, both Touma and Aogami froze up, sweating in terror of their demise. With so many Thundershock's ready to rain down upon them, not even Touma was sure he'd escape with the help of Imagine Breaker.

Before the Pokemon security force acted on their orders from a very annoyed mall guard, they were stopped by the interruption of the rich blonde woman getting in their line of fire. What she had said next to the Magnemite had killed their sparks.

"Stand down, Magnet Force #11; cease all restraining actions against my guests. I'll handle things from here, so go run along and continue monitoring the situations found in our ventilation system and speaker system. Report any bugs found when you've gotten word of the glitch."

The mall security that was in charge of ordering the Magnemite and speaking in their place didn't say a word, following the mysterious shopper's orders without missing a beat. In just moments, the Magnemite scattered to return to their previous routine. Touma and Aogami had been saved by a flashy ganguro beauty.

Said brightly grinning woman then spun around and said three words before they could ask who she was.

"You owe me~! Ohohohohohoho!"

Just who was this woman, you may ask? And why would Touma agree to pay such a mischievous woman back with forced labor? Well, he really didn't have a choice in the matter once she introduced herself.

"My name is Mabushii Hoseki, Head Researcher of Academy City's Level-3 Battle Facility, Brain of Kokyu Tower! But you, my naughty little trouble makers, may call me Brittany! So, how about you listen to your savior, who's the only reason you haven't been kicked out and banned from my glorious domain of glamour, and be my obedient muscles for as long as I demand?"

Mabushii 'Brittany' Hoseki, the woman in charge of every nook and cranny of the Battle Facility shaped like a mall tower. On his first visit to the research facility, Touma had found himself meeting the brains of the glitzy tower, who had been busying herself with buying whatever caught her flitting interest as if everything was going out of sale.

How and Why?

Just what kind of event had he triggered when he stepped into this expensive realm of luxuries he couldn't afford when he was only here to help Index buy a few panties and bras?

"Is that an exclusive Unova top designed by the Electric Gym Leader Elise?! I HAVE TO HAVE IT!"

Another pricey top joined the large bundle of clothing hanging off of Brittany's arm as the researcher squealed in delight. This had been a repeated action he had grown accustomed to by now. Having basically been forced to comply with the literal boss of the building, and not wanting to be kicked out or banned from another store, Touma had no choice but to follow the grown young woman around as she went on a shopping spree. Tops, jeans, skirts, turtle necks, heels, accessories, if it was pricey or made by a famous brand outside of Academy City, it would find itself in the arms of the wealthy ganguro. Soon it would be bagged along with everything else bought today and lugged by either Touma or Aogami.

One of which was more than happy for the extra weight from his newfound love.

"Isn't this great, Kami-yan?" Aogami sighed blissfully as they followed after the star-eyed woman through racks of men's and woman's clothing, not minding as a pair of white jeans were tossed at his face, "Serving to the needs of such an exotic woman? I mean, look at her! A ganguro with tasteful makeup who loves to shop, refers to herself as Brittany as if she was a girl from Unova, treats boys as nothing more than beings born to serve her every need, and has the intellect to be this Battle Facility's Head Researcher?! She's like five archetypes in one! ...Do you think she'll step on me if I ask?"

"Unlike you, Aogami, my desires aren't associated with being a manservant to an 'Ohohohoho!' who has barely spoken to me. How long are we even supposed to follow this jumble of archetypes? I really need to get back to Index and Yumiya-san before the Sister decides that she's having Kamijou-san's head for lunch today."

"Head for lunch?! What kind of despicable, dirty, sexy plans are you up to with a Sister of all archetypes?! You son of a bitch! While I'm here hoping to have a heeled foot of an 'Ohohohohoh!' plowing my face for a chance to see her rich panties worth a lifetime of a Level-0s salary, you're enjoying yourself with two girls willing to go that far on a first date?! Tell me, does she use her teeth?"

"More than I'd lik-Wait a minute! It's not like that, you dirty-minded blue bastard! If that's seriously what you think I'm up to then allow me to shatter those perverted illusions!"

Before the two high school boys could return to their earlier battle, the glitzy Head Researcher interrupted them as they reared back her shopping bags to smash into the others face.

Whatever stares the shoppers around them were giving them for their loud talking and their threats to the other didn't seem to bother her as she smiled seductively at the two idiots.

"Now boys, don't go further dirtying those handsome faces of yours again. The only time I want to see you two rolling around, sweaty, grunting and panting is in a tasteful bed with yours truly watching with quivering thighs! Ohohohohoho!"

Touma blanched at the descriptive image Brittany said with an upset pout and backed away from the conflicted Aogami. Great, she was one of those girls. The kind who grew hot and bothered when two boys stared into the eyes of each other.

It was a good thing he had sent Zenchou back to wait for Index and Yumiya. The bad luck magnet would be having a field day right about now.

Aogami was similarly disturbed but not to the degree Touma was affected.

"I mean if she's into threesomes, and we'd agree to the standard rule of never touching ti-"

"I will risk whatever punishment 'Ohohohohoho!' is willing to deliver if you dare to finish that sentence, Fetish King."

Aogami clapped his mouth shut. He knew better than to instigate another fight.

Brittany made her way over to the register, having taken all the items that had caught her fancy she could possibly carry as Touma and Aogami followed closely behind the shopaholic. Being the Head Research of the Battle Facility/Mall, she had everything paid for on a tab of sorts that charged everything she bought to the building itself. It was as if she wasn't spending anything at all since she ran the entire facility including the mall itself.

And with the items paid for, more bags, were of course, looped in the two high school boy's arms. At this point, it was hard to even see their own faces due to all the colorful shopping bags they were carrying for the finely dressed researcher. They were being crushed under the weight of the upper class!

Showing some mercy, Brittany led the boys out of the glitzy store as she spoke to them casually, "I suppose that's enough punishment for you two delinquents. Normally I don't care to associate myself with low leveled boys like yourselves but I was in the need of a strong set of arms to help me carry my things while I'm on break and I didn't wish to force my own Pokemon to such menial labor. Level-0s are the most common bunch to cause my beautiful facility trouble, so I'd usually make your type pay back your nuisance with a little labor here and there instead of outright banning possible test subjects."

"Instead of kicking us out or banning us, you made us your slaves?" Touma said accusingly.

"Well of course! After all, I can never turn down the chance to dominate young boys beneath my naked feet. Ohohohohohoh!" Brittany licked her lips.

Red flag, red flag!

"I do appreciate the lack of a fuss made. Normally I have to assert my superiority to such rowdy Nidorinos but you two have been very pleasant throughout our time together. For a couple of delinquents, you carry yourselves as a proper gentleman should when in company with a lady."

Touma quirked a brow in disbelief, "Have you even been paying attention to half the things Aogami and I have been saying?"

"Like I said; like a proper gentleman should." she purred.

"Kami-yan, I think I'm in love."

"Don't care, don't involve me in your sick fantasies."

"Sorry, Blue-Boy~! You're a little too desperate for my taste. I like them stubborn, strong, and hard to capture. Like a Pokemon in the wild that's caught my fancy, I want them to fight back and make me work for it, all the more making the fun worth it and satisfying in our climatic finish. Ohohohoho!"

"...Please, keep those ill-meaning leering eyes away from this simple-minded Kamijou-san. He dreams of being spirited away by a busty Onee-san, not a mesh of archetypes that all lack the maturity and nurturing nature of a Dorm Manager."

A jealous foot kicked the back of Touma's ass.

Before the two kettle bombs of teenager hormones could erupt into another brawl, Brittany pushed them both into one of the elevators fit for 8 people, nearly sending them falling over another as she stepped in. A button press later and they all felt the elevator raise them higher.

"As thanks for behaving and entertaining me thus far, how about I treat you horn butting Nidorinos to some lunch? My break is coming to end, so I am peckish. I'd love it if you could accompany me on the last leg of our rendezvous before we part with a warning to better behave yourselves while you're roaming under my lovely roof."

Lunch? Touma frowned slightly. Index had been hoping to go out with her new friend, Yumiya Rakko, after they had finished with her shopping. If she knew he had eaten beforehand, she'd probably go on the attack. On the other hand, Brittany was going out of her way to pay for both Aogami and his meal. While they had been forced into the position of carrying her shopping bags for causing a disruption in her facility, she was the reason why they hadn't been shocked by a pack of Magnemite or kicked out of the mall. Besides the strain on his arm from the heavy lifting, it wasn't that bad of a punishment.

"I guess I can stick around for a small bite if you're offering." Touma shrugged.

Aogami grinned as he slung his left arm around Touma's shoulders, "That's the spirit, Kami-yan! It's not every day we're taken out on a lunch date by a powerful domineering woman! I mean, I'd love it even more if you weren't apart of it but it's still not much of a big deal as long as we remember the ancient and sacred bro code of threesomes!"

"You're just begging on hands and knees for me to slug you again, aren't you!?"

"Ohohohohoh? Hands and knees, you say? Count me very interested."

[-]

With a bag of newly bought modest and cute panties and bras in hand, Index walked out of the lingerie store with a bright smile beside her new friend, Yumiya Rakko. The busty dark brown haired girl wore an equally bright smile with her own items bagged up as Index helped to pick out a few things for her. And both were eager to meet their friend who stood waiting outside the store for them.

"Touma! We're all done shopping now! Now let's go out to eat! My stomach's growling like crazy and I'm in the mood for something deep-fried!"

The feast of cheap and oil fried fast food would have to wait. To Index's confusion, she didn't find the delinquent figured boy with spiky black hair awaiting her against the bar ledge. Instead, it was Zenchou, the bad luck charm who accompanied them, standing in for her caretaker with a yawn. Zenchou smacked his beak with a teary eye brought by dozing off before finally noticing the white habit and golden embroiled girl who reminded the dark feather bird of the cups a Sinistea would possess.

"Caw!"

"Zenchou? Where's Touma?"

"Caw, caw, caw!"

Index puffed her cheeks angrily as she walked up to the Wild Pokemon, demanding an explanation.

"Did he ditch me?! I thought he promised that he'd be waiting for me. Did he...did he lie to me?"

Underneath Zenchou's feathers, the Misfortune Pokemon found himself sweating anxiously at the vulnerable tremble in the Sister's voice. He felt that the wrong word could easily cause the slight crack that had formed in that precious girl's visage to spread and shatter her to pieces.

Murkrows were beings of misfortune. Superstition or not, they were Pokemon commonly discovered on the scene of tragedy and strokes of bad luck as often as litter could be found on the streets of impoverished cities. Wherever they flocked, it was rumored that nothing but misfortune would follow their flight.

It did not mean they were necessarily cruel beings.

They were the kind of jerks who enjoyed a good dark joke, would make fun of you the second you turned your back, trip you up as you walked back with hot food, stick a 'Please Kick Me' note on your back, and pretend to open a seat for you only to pull it far back and die of laughter as you fell. They were in every sense of the word assholes but they weren't evil. By no means could you mistake their ruthless and ill-nature humor as something as close to a child's mischief.

Scientifically speaking, they were generally, without a hint of a doubt, assholes who enjoyed pranks, mischief, and trouble in the name of amusement.

A crying child tugged at the heart of that jinxed bird who didn't wish to see the girl he had come to know with a single tear on her adorable face.

Evil could no be the most proper or factual word to label those dark attuned beings with wings spreading jinxes and mischief. Even the water gathering in those green eyes was nothing to laugh about.

It was a good thing the spiky-haired boy with a cursed aura had thought ahead to this and written a note courtesy of Aogami.

Zenchou quickly grabbed the note he had hidden in his feathers and handed it to the sniffling Index, hoping it would be enough to dry her tears and save him the trouble of having to deal the annoying prick to his heart.

"Caw, Caw!"

Before Index came to the idea of being abandoned by the boy who saved her life, she read the simple note Zenchou handed her, blinking away the wetness in her green eyes.

'Got caught up in misfortune, be back soon.'

For as little time as Index had known the cursed boy by the name of Kamijou Touma, she couldn't help but feel that those few words were enough to explain his disappearance.

Simple as those eastern characters were, they were enough o quell the building despair stockpiling in her frail chest.

She was relieved, smiling softly at the note written by her first real friend.

"That right hand of his can be a real inconvenience. But does he really believe that I'm just going to stand around and wait for him? I'm hungry and the sooner we find Touma, the sooner we can get him to buy us lunch! I want burgers, fries, chicken nugget, crispy chicken wings-"

Zenchou balked at the dangerous starving gleam in the Sister's gentle eyes that now reminded him of a wild Snorlax preparing to gorge on mountains of food.

"Tempura, Karaage, Kushiage, and pork cutlet! I want the roof of my mouth to feel as if I breathed a Flamethrower after eating all the deep-fried food I can stuff in my mouth as quickly as I can!"

Yumiya found herself marveling at the silver-haired Sister who could eat such greasy and fattening meals without concern for her slim figure.

"Just what kind of Ability can allow her to stay so thin? Does it have something to do with her body's ability to digest food and burn away the calories with hyper-speed metabolism?"

"Zenchou, can you help us find Touma? I don't want to wait around another second. My stomach's already chewing itself and demanding I eat something deep fried!"

Zenchou swallowed beneath those hungry green eyes, gentle green orbs which would sooner or later imagine him plucked, seasoned, battered, and dipped into bubbling hot oil until he came out a golden mouth-watering crisp.

"C-Caw!"

Where was that hungry-hungry Hippowdon like Sister's keeper!? Zenchou didn't want to go out as some adorable girl's snack!

'Attention all patrons of Kokyu Tower. Due to a break-in by Wild Pokemon, all front entrances will be temporarily sealed until maintenance has been complete and the Wild Pokemon have been captured. We apologize for the inconvenience and promise to quickly resolve the issues. In the meantime, please enjoy 10% off any meals and beverages offered at Floor 13. Estimated time until repairs are complete: 20-30 Minutes. Have a good day and thank you for shopping at The Level-3 Battle Facility, Luxury Tower!'

The sweet artificial voice from the speakers above caused several students to frown slightly before shrugging and continuing on with their shopping. There was very little reason for those students to panic or grew uneasy. Wild Pokemon had a habit of sneaking into buildings since Academy City allowed certain Pokemon to inhabit the man-made region of steel for research purposes and capture in certain Districts. Biodomes were a well researched and maintained pockets created for 'Wild' Pokemon to wander in small worlds of their own. The most famous and well known of biodomes would be District 21's Geo-Zones and Wild Mountain.

While Academy City was a region built by humans, composed of steel trees, concrete dirt, and false stars, it was still a place where Pokemon found themselves inhabiting and even living alongside those odd humans.

A lockdown like this was common and never caused anyone much trouble other than annoyance.

Zenchou decided it would be better if he flew over to rest on Index's habit, wary of any security that would force him out. He was a Wild Pokemon after all.

"We should probably start searching for Kamijou-san." Yumiya suggested, "He's probably not that far from us. And we can use Zenchou-san to search for him from above."

Index nodded happily as the party of three began moving, paying little attention to the sealed steel doors on the first floor that would temporarily lock them in.

[-]

Salty crisp golden fries, bathed in light brown gravy and cheese curds, were a unique side dish Touma had never tried before. It was strange to see fries normally drizzled in ketchup or mustard, glazed in a condiment made of meat drippings, flour, and cornstarch fit for mash potatoes and fried chicken.

Stingy he may be but even this tight money boy couldn't help but drool slightly at the aroma slipping into his nose like some seductive Dorm Manager Onee-san.

"It's called Poutine; a French cuisine found in a certain cold city in Kalos. I would have never thought to add gravy to french fries but it tastes as good as it sounds. As you can see, the fries are shaped like Honedge potato cuts that were grown from fields cultivated by Pokemon shipped all the way from Kalos, the gravy is made from Piloswine meat drippings from Sinnoh, and the cheese curds are imported from a Miltank farm from Johto that I've visited myself, so I know that the cheese is the best around!"

Touma lifted one of those Honedge shaped fries up with an uneasy stare despite his appetite demanding he chow down without a second thought.

The fries with cheese and gravy cost 3,230PY.

'I'm keeping Index as far from these monstrous beasts as possible.'

Not wanting to be rude to the tanned skinned blonde researcher who bought him the fries, Touma bit the fry, smiling as the rich dish exploded in his mouth. At least it was worth the taste.

Right now the small party of two high school boys and a Battle Facility Head Researcher were seated in a restaurant called Un Gout de Kalos[A Taste of Kalos] found on Floor 13-B; the gourmet level of the researcher's Battle Facility found on the second half above the floor known as Floor-A. Floor-13-B housed restaurants and culinary-focused stores instead of fast-food vendors, vending machines, and bentos to go. It was the kind of restaurant that would set back this poor Kamijou-san for months if he ordered the smallest main dish, Poele Slowpoke Queue[Pan Seared Slowpoke Tail, which cost 13,850PY. Hell the Poutine fries cost 3,230PY and it was an item from the kid's menu!

Beside him, Aogami busied himself with a deep dish of french pizza topped off with mushrooms and sausage with a wide grin and moans born from the stretch of cheese he slurped up. As a Level-0 himself, he must have rarely enjoyed a meal like this. Or he never bothered as he spent most of his money on otaku items, hentai galge, and ecchi items like the Gardevoir chest mousepad he had been showing off last week before Fukiyose knocked him out with her special attack; Iron Forehead Smash. Often times Touma wondered how a Level-0 like Aogami could spend so much on mindless perverted things on the same city stipend they both received.

Brittany sat next to Touma's left as she lifted a piece of heavenly aroma pan-seared duck to her lips and squealed with every little bite. She said it was called Confit de Farfetch'd, a Kalos delicacy made using every part of the leek wielding duck to produce the rich dish.

Her meal cost 24,717PY. The very sight of it made this Kamijou-san clench his heart and his wallet.

Instead of collapsing from the totaled 32,902PY meal, Touma decided to instead enjoy the gravy and cheese coated fries shaped like the sword Pokemon with bitter tears.

This would be the only time in his life of misfortune that he would be able to freely enjoy such an expensive meal without worrying about money. After this, he could worry about the fight to come that involved taking out Index for lunch.

"Thanks again for the meal, Mabushii-"

"Brittany."

"Brittany-san." Touma corrected himself after a stern warning from the Head Researcher, "You didn't have to after all the trouble we caused your Battle Facility."

Mabushii grinned without a care at the delinquent.

"Don't worry about it, Kamijou-kun! I know your type isn't as bad as you make yourself to be. Plus, I can't help but feel a certain...magnetic pull to delinquents who love nothing more than to stir up trouble and get physical with even educated and rich woman like myself." she glossed her lips hungrily.

"Kami-yan, punch me in the face, and let's start a fight, here and now! I now know how to properly walk down this 'Ohohohohoho's' route to reach the ending that will make us both experienced men! The only key items we're missing are shaved heads, tattoos, more piercings, and leather jackets to succeed in capturing Ohohohohoho's heart! Help me clear this route, damn it!"

"Get your hands off me, Fetish King! Like hell, I want to end up getting kicked out of such a high-class restaurant just because you think you can get laid for acting like a bigger idiot! How many times do I have to tell you; I refuse to be part of an MxMxF threesome!"

"Why you got to shatter my dreams!? I thought we were best friends!"

"Your friendship isn't worth seeing your di-"

"Now, now, boys. There's no need to get so feisty in public! At least until we've got some privacy first and I've gotten out the collars, Ohohohohohoho!"

"Remember that you're the Head Researcher of this building; The Brain! Shouldn't that mean you have to keep up appearances and not act like some slutty Ojou who's far too eager to see boys wrestling!? I'm not some hot piece of meat for you to enslave! I have feelings! Feeling for a kind and warm Onee-san to take my firsttttttttttttttttttttt!"

Mabushii 'Brittany' pouted at the high school boy with black spiky hair pushing back the hands on his face courtesy of his blue-haired and pierced friend. A roomful of judgmental and haughty stares fell on them from the higher-level students who were Level-3 and the adults. The noise they were making grew to the point they were drawing attention from a well-dressed man in charge of the waiting staff and seating of guests. What was he called again? The maitre'd?

"Pardon me, but is there a problem?" The maitre'd asked with a thin smile directed at the noisy table.

Touma grew nervous, afraid that they were now going to be kicked out. All because he and Aogami couldn't act civil around one another for even five minutes.

"No, no, it's fine, Matsu-san. We're just having a nice little lunch between friends is all. Just ignore us and continue doing your thing. If anyone wants to complain if we're a bit too loud, just tell them to mind their business." Mabushii lazily waved her hand at the displeased man.

"Ma'am, I'm afraid that I'm going to have to politely ask you t-!"

"Oops, I almost forgot to show you my ID, didn't I? You just recently started working here, correct? It's no wonder you don't recognize me. Hold on a sec, 'kay?"

Before Matsu, the maitre'd of the high-class restaurant could call for security to escort the loud and disrespectful guests whose very appearance and aura made him wrinkle his nose distastefully, he found the tanned skin blonde woman flash him her ID. He was puzzled why it would matter if she showed him her ID until he got a good look at the profile picture, did a double-take of the woman on the laminated card and the bored faced woman causing trouble before gulping anxiously.

For some reason, his face paled and gained a hint of fear.

"Y-You're Mabushii-sama, the Head Researcher, The Brain, and owner of this building?" he asked as if he couldn't believe what he was seeing.

Mabushii 'Brittany' nodded with her own thin smile that cut at the sweating haughty man who indirectly worked under. She didn't even correct him to address her as Brittany.

"Correct! I know it's a bit jarring to see me outside of my normal wear but it's me!" she said brightly with her thin smile still in place as she tapped her nail polished index finger on the table, "So, please leave us be and allow us to enjoy our lunch in peace, 'kay? If there are any complaints, let them go and eat elsewhere; I'll happily pay for their meals. Understood?"

"Y-Yes, Mabushii-sama! Please forgive me for my impudence!"

The maitre'd bowed deeply, his voice shaking before offering bows to the two confused high school boys dining with the wealthy and powerful woman far above his standing. With not another word, he left back to his post, ready to deal with any guests that were unhappy with any trouble the three very important people would cause.

Touma was understandably unsure of what happened. Mabushii was the Head Researcher/Owner of the Battle Facility/Mall. He would have thought everyone who worked here knew who she was. But even when the maitre'd was speaking to Mabushii and looking her in the eye, he didn't recognize her. Recognition wasn't found in the eyes of the man who must have at least seen the face of the Brain of the Level-3 Battle Facility in official documents or a simple search online.

Instead, he had only seen some glitzy tanned woman flirting and making loud inappropriate innuendos with rowdy high school boys. She was nothing special and seen unworthy of dining in the high-class restaurant fit for those of high standing.

"Why didn't he know who you are?" Touma asked as he sipped his water.

Mabushii giggled and decided to explain by showing off the very key item to instill such fear and respect to the haughty maitre'd.

Upon staring at the laminated plastic card, he understood why the maitre'd didn't recognize the Head Researcher.

The woman known as Mabushi 'Brittany' Hoseki was a plain-faced woman with dark raven haired perfectly straightened and two flat bangs on each side of her face, creamy white skin, wearing a simple white lab coat that hid her moderate breasts stuck between B to C. Nothing stood out about the rather flat and boring faced woman who appeared average; no different than your average NPC in an RPG who only ever delivered a few unimportant sentences. In Touma's eyes, the plain-faced woman had a certain normal charm about her. She wasn't overly pretty and she wasn't ugly; she was simply an average faced woman with a thin body that made him think that she could participate in gymnastics if she ever had the drive.

Clearly, there was a difference to the ganguro who was dining with them with a flirty smile.

The woman known as Mabushii 'Brittany' Hoseki was an exotic faced woman with blond mermaid braided hair with two large loops on each side of her face that resembled large earrings, tanned skin bronzed by the sun(clearly darkened by a tanning bed or tanning spray), wearing a spaghetti Sandile striped shirt which pushed up her breasts to appear larger, short Zebstrika striped skirt, and lab coat tied around her waist like a sweater knot. In an RPG, she was obviously a recruit-able character or at least an important character to the main story. In Touma's eyes, the tanned woman's appearance was the definition of exotic, the very type of sexy woman all high school boys would fantasize about, and wouldn't be caught dead doing any kind of labor that would threaten to scratch a nail.

The two women known as Mabushii 'Brittany' Hoseki contradicted another. Plain vs. exotic. It was as if one was borrowing the other's name without the other knowing to live their own life opposite of the other. In the Pokemon world, it was as if one represented the plain Normal-Type Linoone from Hoen to the Dark/Normal-Type Linoone found in Galar.

"How can she be you? You two don't look anything alike. Are you one of those rumored Espers who can manipulate their body's structure to change their appearance?"

"Of course not. I'm just a regular adult who hasn't undergone the Power Curriculum like you students. But it is true. The woman on the ID known as Mabushii Hoseki is me or at least me when I'm at work." Mabushii explained as she put away her ID and continued her meal with a squeal of delight, "Due to my status as Head Researcher, I can't be caught wandering around my own facility due to fear of being attacked or questioned by certain individuals in the city. Not to mention, if I was found by a student who desperately wishes to Level Up, they would question me endlessly on how to do so, wishing to gain some kind of cheat to advance instead of working hard. As one of the four known Battle Facility Brains, I am understandably knowledgeable in my own field of study; Level-3s, One's With Strong Power. We Brains are ones who understand the yield of growth, proper stimulus, required experience, Pokemon stimulus, level of training, and many other requirements needed for certain leveled Espers to reach the next level. After a few months of study, tests, exams, and injections, I could make an educated guess on how long a Level-3 Esper would need to become a Level-4."

The juicy white duck meat stabbed by Mabushii's fork was slowly slathered in sauce and mash potatoes before brought to her hungry lips. She moaned happily with a roll of her eyes that made both Touma and Aogami gulp with blushes.

"Truthfully, the higher the level the more difficult it becomes for us Brains to discover the wall an Esper needs to break to enter a new domain of possibilities. Not to say the Brains for Level-1s and Level-2s have it any easy in coming to understand what is needed for their Espers to reach the next level either. I am different though due to having attained both the status of Brain and Head Researcher; there are differences between the two titles. It's all complicated mathematics, trial and error, and the creation of unique trials with the help of Pokemon that go over most heads, so I doubt you Level-0s would understand. Talking to you about such matters is utterly and totally useless to weaklings."

In the eyes of an adult tasked with helping students grow, simple and weak Level-0s unable to discover their Personal Realities with the aid of Pokemon weren't worthy of their regard. Even as kind and bright as Mabushii was, she still talked to both Touma and Aogami as if they were beneath her, treating them as pets who knew no better.

It didn't sit well for Touma to be treated lower than anyone else but he held back his temper.

"And it's because of all that I know that I have to leave my office and facility in disguise. I can't be bothered by the students who seek out cheat codes instead of working hard and I can't even go out and enjoy a nice shopping spree in my own mall without those who wish to abuse my knowledge for their own means. Plus I never cared for my plain looks." Mabushii said with her tongue stuck out like some Shellder.

"I'm impressed. I didn't even recognize you from the ID photo or even think that you could be related to the real Mabushii-san. I honestly thought you used some kind of mutating ability."

"Metamorphosis; an ability born through an Esper's rare connection with the Pokemon Ditto that grants them a Personal Reality inspired by their special Move Transform to alter the body's cells, body's makeup, fat, bone structure, and even organs to change into the exact copy of the person of their choosing." Mabushii mumbled between bites of green beans, "Good theory but no. I simply use an instant hair dye that washes out with a special solution of water, suntan lotion that creates a tan appearance as a second layer of skin that can be removed, or a high-quality tanning bed if I have the time for such a pleasant treat, some makeup, and a hairstylist. A change of clothes later and wallah! Brittany is born! It takes a good half hour of preparation to undergo my beautiful and pretty disguise but it's worth it."

"All that to relax? I suppose it would be boring playing the role of a researcher all day who's always being bothered by people who would use her the second they had."

Touma could understand to some extent. After all, he was protecting a Sister who memorized over hundred-thousand books of forbidden magic created after the godly legends and stories of Mythical Pokemon. Index fell under the same boat, chased by those who only saw her as a cheat code to achieve their own goals whoever possible. He had seen how such a person who contained a treasure trove of knowledge could be hunted down and left to wander the streets all alone.

To escape such people who abuse her knowledge and expertise, she saw no other choice than to perform her own style of Transform. To avoid those cheaters and lazy students who wanted an easy path devoid of difficulties, she underwent an arduous process to become a completely different person separate from her life of constant research. She was someone who wanted a measly afternoon to relax and be a woman who enjoyed shopping and flirting with delinquents but found herself being sought after like some all-knowing cheatbook by gamers who were struggling to beat a game.

Attitude aside, her slutty demeanor aside, her haughtiness aside, her arrogance aside; she truly was just a normal woman who simply wanted to have fun like any other adult who clocked out at the end of a long workday.

Possessing vast amounts of knowledge worthy of their own library, neatly crammed inside their skull, wasn't without its faults.

It wasn't a kind life.

It was lonely.

The average high school boy Touma felt something in his heart sympathize with the glitzy adult. Did Index feel the same to some extent? Could you replace Mabushii 'Brittany' Hoseki's quirks involving shopping and flirting with Index Librorum Prohibitorum's faith and innocence to get the same flavor of loneliness? His gaze gained a touch of soft blue as he gazed at the ganguro happily eating her meal without a care in the world.

"But why tell us?" Confused, Touma asked the double-faced researcher the reason for her long explanation, "You could have just said that you used makeup or some advanced beauty techniques for fun instead. You really didn't have to bother yourself with why you go through all the trouble to not be recognized."

It was strange. Mabushii 'Brittany' had no reason to explain herself to two random high school boys. They weren't friends. They weren't connected in any way. What reason could she have to even treat them to lunch?

"Eh, I'm fine either way." Aogami shrugged indifferently before grinning, "But you did just add a sixth archetype to your character! I feel like I just discovered some rare legendary Pokemon that shouldn't exist!"

Mabushi frowned as if she wasn't sure of the answer to Touma's question herself. Her meal finished, she pushed it aside as she leaned her head on her hand and stared at the wine glass in her hand.

Something in the ruby red pools was reflected in blue contact mirrors. An emotion Touma couldn't place his finger on.

"I'm not sure myself. I suppose I wanted to vent is all." Mabushii shrugged with a twirl of her dyed blond locks, "Originally, I just wanted to use you for manpower instead of tiring my Pokemon with carrying all my things. You two were nuisances that I could simply command to do my bidding in lieu of the threat of banishing you from my territory. When I had no more use for your muscle, I was going to cast you aside. But unlike the many rowdy delinquents who've submitted beneath my heel or were crushed for putting up a fight, you two went along without ever really submitting to my will. I found it fascinating how instead of groveling or snapping back, you followed me while continuing on as if you were in the company of a friend who used to your bickering and fighting. You did everything I said but never cursed me or spoke ill of me beneath your breathe. You two simply carried on without ever compromising who you were."

During the entire time Kamijou Touma and Aogami Pierce had followed along to Mabushii's demands of playing the part of Mudsdales, not once did they ever snap back at her. Sure, they may have caved in when she revealed her status as both the Brain and Head Researcher of Kokyu Tower, but they never once groveled obediently like faithful Pokemon or growl like unruly Wild Pokemon. Instead, they had continued on where they had left off when she had interrupted them, bickering and throwing punches at one another as they carried her things.

Their personalities, their hearts, hadn't been changed to please the woman who may as well have absolute tower within the mighty and expensive steel tower. So many other troublemakers had. Easily, they had given in and been obedient shopping Mudsdales. Other times, the more rambunctious and naughty were beaten and cast out of her establishment like they were Pidgeys. Yet those two boys had been something else.

Normal was the most label she could find to define them.

"I found myself actually talking back to you instead of giving orders or making threats, slipping into a comfortable little aura I hadn't felt since my school days in Unova. I suppose I was reminded of the girl who had once, at some point, been only worried about her plain and boring appearance instead of the dangerous and...frowned upon research that would lead me to a region like this."

She spoke wistfully to memories that could no longer be experienced as an adult in charge of vital research to a city focused on growth and discovery in the name of science and Pokemon. To have caught a bit of those old times where she was a wallflower with little friends yet still happy and carefree made an innocent smile evolve on that adult's face.

If possible, her glitzy and golden appearance had shone brighter.

"Ohohohohoho! It seems that I got carried away and let loose some classified info without even knowing it. You boys are even more devilish than you appear to break through the wall of a young lonely woman who's now vulnerable to any attempts you may take to her slim and easily groppable body!"

"You heard her, Kami-yan! She's given clear and honest permission to be felt up however I want to grab her tits and ass! I'd have to be as dumb as a Slowpoke to ignore such an innocent plea to be felt up shamelessly in public! Just look at the way she's arching her back to emphasize her chest for the fondling!"

"Calm down, Fetish King! Don't mistake a mature woman's playful teasing as lawful consent!"

"What if it is though? I may be completely serious."

"Don't toy with a healthy teenage boy's libido 'Ohohohohoho!'! I'm warning you right now if, given the full consenting permission to grope a woman's body without facing any sort of consequence, I will do so without any shame! Don't overestimate this Kamijou-san's will power!"

Touma was no saint, let's be perfectly clear about that. Yes, he oftentimes did fight with members of the Delta Force due to their perversions dragging him into the chaos but he wasn't a none guilty party. Most of those times he was spouting his own perversions centered on a busty older woman that would manage a dorm like a second mother. He was only human! If given the chance to grope a woman's chest and not suffer a slap, he would take it without a second of hesitation.

What more could you expect from your average high school teenager?

Before the scene would fall into something straight out of your everyday hentai, Touma was stopped by a sudden hand landing on his shoulders.

"Kamijou Touma, correct?"

The voice was professional and curt, revealing no desire to mess around or treat him kindly. It was the voice belonging to a boy who would be labeled as the cool and popular type girls gushed over.

Turning his head back, Touma found a Judgment member standing behind him.

The Judgment boy appeared a few years older than Touma, his clean and pressed school uniform and neatly combed blue hair speaking of being a model student who diligently followed the rules. His face could be called handsome, belonging to the son of a rich executive, and was blessed with perfect genes. From his perfectly laced shoes, his straight tie, his formal posture, and his very aura, you could tell he was a proper and strict college student who had once been called the classroom representative.

That law-abiding figure seemed to have business with him and only focused on him.

"Yeah, that' s me. Is something wrong, Judgment-san?"

A worrying smirk grew on the blue-haired Judgment officer. Like a beautiful white canvas, a speck of black stained the perfect image.

"Kamijou-san, I'm afraid that I need you to come with me concerning some complaints about disturbances. It shouldn't take long, I promise you. So, if you could just-"

"There's no need for that, Judgment-san. I've already cleared all that up." Mabushii interjected with a lazy smile at the stiffened Judgment officer, "Kamijou-kun's my special guest today. If he causes any trouble again, I'll deal with him personally, 'kay?"

The Judgment officer scowled in frustration at the nosy woman, his grip on Touma's shoulders growing tense enough to draw a wince from the high school boy.

"I'm sorry, ma'am, but this is strictly Judgment business that doesn't concern you." The Judgment boy said smoothly with a polite smile, "It's nothing more than a little talk we must have with Kamijou-san concerning the Wild Pokemon that have broken in. We won't be long and he'll be back soon. This is an order from the security team in charge of protecting the peace of the Battle Facility and mall."

"Really? Well as the Brain of this entire facility, I say that Kamijou-kun is innocent of any suspicion since he's been with me this entire time." Mabushii argued.

The Judgment officer's eyes grew wide in surprise.

"Brain? Are you saying that you're Mabushii Hoseki, Head Researcher and Brain of the Level-3 Battle Facility?"

Exasperated, Mabushii sighed as she pinched the bridge of her nose. Clearly, she was not in a good mood due to her fun and relaxation being interrupted once again.

"Yes, yes, I am she who is in charge of every nook and cranny of this building. I already know about the simple security breach and know it was the fault of some rowdy boys who thought it would be funny to let a few Wild street Pokemon in for laughs. Believe me when I say that Kamijou-kun isn't responsible for the trouble, 'kay? I rather not flash my authentication again, so just take my word for it before I kick you out of my lovely tower."

The Judgment officer grew silent at the realization of who she was as if he had expected someone else. He let go of Touma, much to his relief before frowning at the diligent boy's face.

An odd grin speaking of glee and violence showed itself on the face of the figure of justice.

A clear brushstroke of malice had completely corrupted the law-abiding portrait.

"You appear far different than what we were told, Mabushii-san. It's no wonder we were struggling to pick you out during your scheduled every day break. I almost thought that you might have been tipped off. Lucky me though! I get to strike two Tailows with one Rock Blast!"

Touma grew on edge, rising up from his seat to stand in the way of Mabushii as Aogami stared at them in confusion.

"What are you talking about? It almost sounds as if you were purposely searching us both out for your own means. Who are you?"

The Judgment officer didn't answer, instead choosing to take out his cellphone and make a call.

"Oi, Fat-wad! Alert Saiua-san to start prepping. I've found Mabushii eating literally above us on Floor 13-B in the only Kalos restaurant here! Send a few boys up for retrieval and proceed with Step-2! As for me,"

The Judgment officer grinned viciously at Touma as he held a Pokeball in his right hand.

"I'll be busy for a bit taking care of some personal business! So, just hit the lights and start giving the people a rocking good show!"

Before anyone could properly react to the escalating situation, the Judgment boy released his Pokemon from its capsule, revealing a single-horned green spider with beady black eyes, red pincers, six black and yellow strip legs, and a solemn expression face on its abdomen. The Pokemon was known as Spinarak, a Bug/Poison-Type that firmly clamped itself over the Judgment boy's forearm like a brace.

"Spinarak, String Shot!"

The String Spit Pokemon obeyed its order and fired a powerful stream of sticky webs. Taught sticky threads struck Touma on the chest with a dull impact.

Byoki threw away his act as a law-abiding member of Academy City's justice standing figures to bare his toxic fangs at the high school boy who had taken out one of his beloved little brothers and tugged the boy towards him with the aid of his Pokemon.

"Come here, ya fucking little bitch! It's time you learned what happens when you take out one of Toxic Hazard's own!"

Two fists flew between the two boys. The string of web created by supernatural means was shattered to fading pieces that served its purpose in rushing the high school boy to the fake Judgment officer with his own attack already in motion.

Taken completely by surprise, the high school boy who was forcefully reeled in like a Feebas by a fisherman, grit his teeth and reacted in kind to the act of violence.

Touma and Byoki struck each other in the face with solid blows. Both felt the dull impact travel through their wrists with an unpleasant throb. Splitting aches assaulted their minds as they staggered back with busted lips. The high schooler's waist hit the dining table, knocking down their drinks as he cleaned the blood on his lips with the back of his fist. He spat a bloody wad to the side as the patrons of the Kalos restaurant finally reacted.

Screams were heard as the dining students and adults went as far as throwing their tables aside as they ran out. Chaos and panic infected the scene no differently than a toxin.

A volley of thin purple bright needles as long as your average school pencil was fired.

Before Touma could raise his hand to negate the Poison Sting, he felt a hand grab his wrist and pull him back. He found himself crouching behind the overturned dining table acting as a rampart. The impact of toxic thin needles against the expensive wood was heard like numerous darts against a board.

"Kamijou-san, are you alright?!"

Touma winced but nodded to Mabushii's concerns as pulled him closer. Her hand tightly held his wrist, revealing she was the one to drag him behind cover.

"Just a bit of a bloody lip. Not the first time I've been hit that hard."

"I'd like to add that I've busted Touma's lip far more than that paper cut. I've also given him a paper cut on his lip." Aogami helpfully added.

A punch was sent his way.

The blue-haired boy with piercings pouted as he rubbed his sore arm.

"Mind telling us why we're being attacked by a Toxic Hazard thug, Kami-yan? Does this have to do with the two girls you were messing around with a while ago before I got in the way of your threesome?"

"Stop talking about threesomes, you Fetish King! And no, I don't think this has anything to do with Index and Yumiya-san. If this guy really is from Toxic Hazard then it's just my usual bad luck at play." Touma cursed as another round of Poison Sting hammered into their wooden shield. It wasn't looking like they would be able to stay behind cover for long. A few of the glowing purple needles were beginning to poke through at an alarming rate.

"Ya pissed off an entire gang again, didn't you?"

"It's beginning to seem that way, yes."

Aogami immediately grabbed the collar of Touma's shirt and began to shake him like a rag doll.

"Why couldn't you piss off an all-female gang, you bastard!? I would have gladly accepted an ass-kicking from a bunch of female thugs in skimpy leather jackets that showed off their slim midriffs instead!"

"It's not just Kamijou-san they're looking for."

Touma stopped short of ramming his fist into Aogami's face as both teen's turned to the frowning and sweating Mabushii.

"What do you mean? Obviously, they're after this playboy. Fifty-fifty, Kami-yan stole the leader of the gang's woman from under the guy's nose with nothing more than a smile. Seriously, did you learn Attract or Charm from some random Pokemon?!"

"But I'm innocent." Touma pointed a finger to his obviously not guilty face, "...I did beat up two of their members because they were molesting a few girls though. I regret nothing. I'd honestly do it again and make sure all their teeth were broken."

Mabushii quirked her brow at the two boys, finding it strange how neither boy was panicking while under Poison Sting fire. Were they used to this sort of thing?

"The bad-boy falsely playing as a good-boy-"

"Why are you moaning like that?"

"Let her speak!"

"Mentioned both Kamijou-san's and I's names as targets. That means he wasn't only after him but myself in his hunt. Which means we can't stay here any longer. Thug-kun mentioned calling in for reinforcements. Not to mention enacting an operation of sorts in my Battle Facility." Mabushii scowled worryingly.

Aogami blinked simply before raising his right hand, a common Pokeball enlarging to fit in his palm.

"If it's an escape you need, leave it to me. You got your own Pokemon with you, right?"

Seeing Mabushii nod, Aogami grinned.

"Then when we give you the opening you need, run out of here! Kami-yan and I can handle things here."

"No, I can handle things here." Touma said sternly with a clenched fist, "He said he has reinforcements coming, so we can't leave Brittany by herself to escape. Leave this guy with me, he seems to have a personal grudge against me and won't follow when you escape. I'll keep him distracted but you'll have to protect Brittany from here, Aogami!"

Aogami didn't appear happy with the plan but sighed in defeat. As Touma's friend, he knew that there was no talking to him when he made his mind up. Even if the sight of his friend brandishing his violent fist caused a certain gleam of distaste to his expression.

"Alright, Kami-yan. Just don't get yourself beat up. The last thing I need is you getting looks of sympathy and pity from a gang of nurses."

"Wait, we can't just leave K-!"

"Hoippu, Knock Off!"

From the beam of scarlet light released from Aogami's Pokeball an adult-sized Grass-type completely wrapped by a mass of blue vines that only revealed the white saucer eyes of its black body. Its arms were made out of its thick and jumbled blue vines with three digits resembling fingers tipped with red. It stood on short stubby legs, blinking as it was freed before its eyes grew narrow.

Its left hand gained a malevolent aura of energy that struck the protective hardy dining table, propelling it forward like a ramming board at the Toxic Hazard thug. Everything in the way of the rushing rampart was knocked away with ease. A clear and straight line of blunt trauma crashed in the direction of the surprised false Judgment boy.

Toxic Hazard thug had no other choice but to dive out of the way before he was run over, dodging the blunt shovel breaking every bone in his body as it broke into pieces once it struck the end of the room.

"Alright, now Bind and take us out of here, buddy!"

Before Mabushii could protest, the thick blue vines from Hoippu wrapped around her waist as Aogami held onto his Pokemon. Another rope of vines was fired, heading out the open door of the Kalos restaurant and tangling itself on the guardrail outside with a snap. Mabushii grew alarmed as she was held tightly by the Tangrowth that began to reel them out with the force of a bungee cord that was released.

"Kamijou-san!"

"I'll call you and let you know where we're hiding, Kami-yan! So, hurry up and beat that simp!"

With Aogami and Mabushii gone, Touma was free to stand up and face the frustrating poison themed thug.

Byoki smirked as he cleaned off the pasta on his shoulder. Reaching into his pocket, he brought out several black rings he slipped onto his right hand's fingers. One of which was armed with a red six-inch spine on his middle finger.

"Do you really think you saved that chick from us? Do you even know what's about to happen to this entire Battle Facility? Beating your ass is nothing more than a detour before I get to the real show at hand! If I were you, I'd accept your lumps like a man now before you have to suffer anymore."

The Spinarak on Byoki's forearm was gestured like a gun, aimed for the face of the normal high schoolboy as he clawed his right hand.

"You guys just don't ever learn, do you?! How many of you bastards do I have to beat up before you leave me alone?! And what the hell are you planning on doing here? Why are you after Brittany?"

"Brittany? Is that what the Brain/Head Researcher likes to be called? Pfft, what is that, a pet name between fuck buddies?" Byoki scoffed before taking a threatening step forward, "As for what we're planning, don't worry too much about it. You certainly won't be awake to see what we're doing once I'm through with you."

Touma grit his teeth as he didn't receive what he was wishing for.

An unpleasant chill jolted down his spine as if he had been struck by Thunder during a Rainy Day. Hair on his forearm stood up and goosebumps warned him of some invisible cruelty bubbling below his foot. At the moment, he felt what many Absols were said to feel.

Disaster was about to fall upon them.

Something unfortunate was about to befall innocent lives who were happily smiling without a care in the world.

A right hand clenched in frustration...and loathing.

There wasn't any time to wonder about the stroke of bad luck he had attracted naturally.

The Toxic Thug member disguised as a justice serving Judgment officer charged ahead with a vicious grin.

Within the confines of a shopping tower that housed the research secrets of Level-3s and other unknown projects, budding violence stirred with the crack of knuckles.

[-]

Between The Lines-6.

Let us hear a story.

A story between a Trubbish and a Toxel.

Long ago, a rather talented and brilliant minded Trubbish had stumbled upon a sniffling Toxel in the forest.

This forest was one inhabited by various rare and gifted Pokemon from fearsome Garchomps to elegant Milotics, beings who were highly sought after for both their strengths and rarity. Many powerful Pokemon lived peacefully in the forest, a forest created by humans who wished to grow their gifts to higher levels not naturally found outside their small world. Food was provided to them, games were provided to them, love had been provided to them, and knowledge had been provided to them. Every need was met to those overjoyed beasts stuck between the lines of magic and science.

But there was a catch to said free gifts.

So long as those Pokemon provided progress, growth, and new and unseen tricks not naturally found outside their human-made world, all they would ever wish for would be handed out.

Vice versa, if nothing was shown for all those humans had given them, then nothing would be given back.

If evolution wasn't reached, what worth were they?

Even if a few Pokemon who had yet to evolve possessed high Stats in either Attack, Special Attack, Defense, Special Defense, or Speed, what was the point if said talented Pokemon didn't level up? Their true potential and strength would forever be blocked if they failed to advance onto the next stage of their evolution and remain to be seen as weak.

Take a certain Trubbish, a Garbage Pokemon with a higher than normal Special Attack.

He was stronger in said field, far stranger than your average Trubbish, and believed he was destined for far greater because of his talent. A name of true promise to his desire was given to him at birth, promising him the life of luxury.

Because of his name, he felt a righteous belief in being handed what he desired despite being born as a Trash Pokemon commonly seen in disgust. Like a king, his very name was a crown signify his status as far above everyone else.

Despite the crown he wore, Trubbish had discovered all his wishes and expectations had failed to be handed to him.

In this man-made forest built by intelligent humans, Trubbish had failed to show anything noteworthy other than his higher than normal Special Attack. His one gift hadn't been anything worthwhile and had been useless in helping him evolve. He had been denied living up to his given name despite how hard he worked to be seen as special.

Naturally, Trubbish had grown angry.

He was not trash. He was not garbage. He was not something to be thrown away.

He had lashed out, abused his talents for his own desires, and took what he believed was due to him.

But amid his anger, Trubbish had found a friend.

A certain Toxel.

A Baby Pokemon who lacked courage or drive.

That day, a bond had been born between Trubbish and Toxel. Friendship had been found by those two weak Pokemon who failed to evolve to the expectations of those scientific humans who created a forest around them. A Crown Prince of Trash and an Unmotivated Spark of Toxins.

Later in the years to follow, they would create a hazard to the man-made forest prioritizing and valuing those who evolved while poisoning those who couldn't with a deadly toxin.

The toxin known as worthlessness.

---

Nothing has changed.

When there is peace, laughter, smiles, and light surrounding you...

Misfortune will always arrive to swallow it all whole.

You've experienced the very poison you inject into the normal life you seek enough times to know of what is to come. Like an Absol, you are already attuned to disaster to sense it creeping up.

Tragedy can only be found at the very end of this path.

Face the music and charge forward.

Apologies for now updating sooner. I had planned to update the newest chapter last month but I wanted to reach the end of this arc before I felt comfortable enough to continue. I've already reached the final fight to come and have all the pieces placed to reach the ending. Not to mention, I wanted to complete gathering the Pokemon teams for those involved. It's going to be a rocking good show, let me tell ya!

I want to start talking more about each chapter at the end, so let's give this a go!

I wanted to show off a bit of Kokyu Tower in this chapter with the food court and the clothing stores. I wanted to make this setting seem as normal as any mall you would visit. There's so much I wanted to show off, so many other stores but knew I couldn't without good reason. We will see more of this strange Battle Facility as we move along though. It has thirty levels, twenty of which are open to the public while the rest is closed off to the staff, researchers, and Level-3s who have clearance to the floors which house facilities for the Battle Facility. I think the real trouble with this setting was trying to describe the elevator; I know absolutely nothing about those things. I guess the closest thing I could say to describe it would be liking it to those pens with multiple clips to change colors? It's a big cylinder with about eight-nine shafts(?) that switch around to arrive at different floors.

This is only one of four Battle Facilities in Academy City. And each one is ruled over by the Brain, not the Head Researcher. Those two titles are different and will be explained later. Just like a Gym, each Battle Facility is controlled by a unique Brain who manages not only the esper facilities and their training but the second half of the facility that is in charge of bringing in the money to further maintain their research...among other matters. As for what each Battle Facility uses as their means to create profit, it all depends on the taste of each Brain and how it could also help espers develop.

How do you like Mabushii 'Brittany-chan'? The Brains are certainly unique. Despite her looks, she is actually highly intelligent in her field of study concerning not only Level-3s and their Personal Realities but the accessories which allow for greater power to be exuded from Pokemon. Creating our lovely 'Ohohohohohoh!' was one of my favorite things about this arc.

When it comes to Toxic Hazard, their leadership is rather unorthodox. When it comes to all the decisions made for their organization, it comes down to the Admins and whether or not their silent Boss agrees to what they say. But out of all of them, Gomi is definitely the one who could be said to have more power and influence than either Byoki or 'Sauia'. Gebi holds his title as their Enforcer; more of a disciplinary figure who involves himself in attacks rather than planning. Out of all those in Toxic Hazard, only the Admins have ever seen the Boss, who hides in the shadows to avoid being captured or having their normal life threatened.

The Between The Lines this time will be a story explaining those two who are considered Boss of Toxic Hazard in the eyes of the poisoned family. This is only the first part.

What's to follow will be a hell of an event for our dear Kamijou-san.

Hope to see you all there next year!

Remember to Read and Review. It's common courtesy.

NeoShadows fading in and out.