Ear-splitting yowls, vicious spitting, and the clink of claw on coin was all the lure Gio needed. He wasn't supposed to go off the main roads when he wandered, but why should he follow the rules if there was nobody around to make him?

Viridian was dark this hour, thick with the chittering of Rattata and Raticate rummaging through garbage, occasionally chased off by a howling Mankey eager to swoop in and take the fruits of their labor. Only a handful of people still walked the dim streets, and most were too lost in their own heads or busy rushing home to pay the serious little boy with the dark hair and dark eyes much attention.

It didn't bother Gio. If he wanted their attention, he'd get it.

He stuck his hands in his pockets and looked around, just like Papa taught him. To his left was a well-dressed woman looking down her nose at a filthy, legless beggar laid out on a mat stained with soot and grime, three swaying men full of drunken laughter as they tottered down the brick road, and a Drowzee trailing fifteen feet behind its future prey.

Far, far down the road to his right was the familiar shape of a police officer wandering lazily down the road with a flashlight in hand and panting Arcanine beside. The glow traced windows and washed the street. Arcanine occasionally sniffed the air or gave a little yip.

Gio ducked into the alley before the light could land on him. Better not risk it. The police knew to bring him back kicking and screaming (as if he'd ever lower himself to that) if they found him after curfew.

Mamma was probably furious he hadn't come back yet. Just the thought sent a shiver down his spine, the sight of cold eyes and sound of shattering glass filling his ears, but more than it filled him with a steely determination.

He did what he wanted, when he wanted.

And right now, Gio wanted to investigate the alley. The snarls and yowls were louder as he snuck into the dark corridor - they came from a turn up ahead. He stuck his hands in his pockets and strode through the dark as confident as could be.

Nobody needed to see the tremble of his hands or hear the pounding of his heart. Mamma had taught him that.

Gio wished he had a starter of his own, but none of the ones Mamma and Papa had brought him were right. The Nidoran was too meek, the Machop too gentle. Pidgeot was beautiful, but too common. That Rhyhorn had potential, but it was too dull. His partner needed to match him, and a dumb brute never could. It could be useful one day, though.

He shook his mindless pondering aside. Time to focus.

His curiosity pushed him deeper. It wasn't uncommon to hear challenges for territory or posturing for food and mates in the wilder parts of Viridian, but this was something else. This was a fight. The shrieks spoke to something deep and hungry in him, and his footsteps picked up into a run.

When he turned the corner, it was to a tiny little courtyard full of dumpsters with trash packed to the brim with greasy, overstuffed trashbags. His nose wrinkled and his shiny black shoes trod through filth and mud that would get him an earful later, but his eyes lit up.

He'd found his fighters.

Eight Meowth prowled about, a few snacking on some of the scraps the restaurants had pushed out. Most licked at their paws or cleaned their coins, with one or two squabbling over a bit of loose change that glinted beneath the starlight. A lithe Persian, corded with such dense muscle that even the dark couldn't hide it, reclined like a king atop a stack of clean bricks.

The Meowth would bring it little offerings of food or shiny knicknacks, but the Persian didn't seem to think much of them. It would bat them away with a plate-sized paw or hiss, sometimes leaving its minions bloody if their tribute wasn't up to standard. They'd scurry away in search of something better to offer the regal feline.

Its whiskers twitched, and Persian's cold eyes glanced to Gio. His nerves screamed, but his legs didn't whisk him away. The Persian huffed as it looked down at him from its throne. Its fickle gaze looked at him as a king would its lowest subject. Persian's tail flicked, and in that moment Gio knew it would think nothing of opening his belly up with a single swipe of its claws.

Persian captivated him.

At last it grew bored and looked away to the clash that attracted him in the first place.

His eyes widened.

A lone Meowth, smaller than the rest with a chipped, dull coin, wrestled with a larger one that had bullied it to the ground. Behind the runt laid a tiny stack of gleaming coins (a few stolen from other Meowth, it looked like), and other assorted treasures: two bags of chips, a half-empty bowl of old ramen, one polished Earth Badge stolen from some unwitting trainer, and nine shiny police badges at the center of the little hoard.

The last made Gio smile.

It faded as the bigger Meowth hissed and latched its teeth onto the runt's neck - not enough to kill, but enough to put it out of the fight. The other Meowth watched eagerly, licking their lips. Some had already begun to angle behind the brawlers to pick at the treasures, although a few were too leery of the scrappy runt to get close to its swiping claws and gnashing fangs.

That caution was well-placed. The runt's back claws kicked and tore into the other Meowth. It scattered away, the fur on its belly stained red from where the runt's sharp claws punctured. A flesh wound, but enough to make the Meowth realize this wasn't worth the fight.

And more than that, Gio realized the runt had somehow managed to pry off its opponent's prized coin in the melee and fling it onto its pile. The trophy wasn't even that bloody since Meowth shed the coins regularly, but it was a pointed insult.

The other Meowth scattered, and the runt rushed back to its pile. It sat its haunches atop the stolen badges, resting just like Persian did on its brick throne, and hissed. Most of the Meowth that had ambushed it limped away, the majority already sporting little red scratches that dripped down their cream coats.

He couldn't help but smile at the runt. It had so little, but it fought so fiercely for every scrap.

Most of the other Meowth were content to ignore him so long as Persian did, but the runt jerked at the sight of him… and a sneaky Meowth fell from the roof a story above, clinging to the runt as it tried to sling the bigger feline off.

Gio grit his teeth. His fists clenched, but without a partner of his own to help him fight…

The scrap continued for just a few seconds, but it was already lost. By the time the bigger Meowth was thrown off, the rest of the colony had already dashed forward to filch the runt's treasures into their greedy little paws. Most dashed over to Persian with their offerings, who still watched the spectacle with only the faintest bit of interest.

First, the food. Persian's velvet nose twitched as the ramen bowl and chip bags were presented. Its paw raised and the Meowth before it flinched away, but after a tense moment the Persian dragged the offering closer. The Meowth ran away with no reward other than a dismissive glance from Persian (and an absence of claw marks).

The little silver coins that the runt had pillaged somewhere were offered next. Persian wasted no time pulling them closer, eyes bright as its red gem shone and light danced across the metal, and it even allowed the Meowth who'd stolen the coins from the runt's pile to take one of the chip bags.

Last came the several Meowth that clutched to the police badges (and the one with the Earth Badge). Persian actually bothered to raise its head at those offerings, and the Meowth chirped at each other delightedly. Their tails stood straight up as Persian deigned to rise from its throne to inspect the glimmering badges -

Until a cream rocket shot forward in a blur. Its claws flashed, and Persian's head pulled back.

Blood dripped thick and red down its muzzle.

Gio's breath hitched. The other Meowth fled into the night with their stolen badges.

Even the runt backed away, eyes wide and tail low. Its head swept to and fro, obviously seeking an escape, and the Persian rose to its full height.

Its tail flicked, terrible fangs were unveiled, and its red gem blazed as a terrible rumble emerged from its throat.

Death filled Persian's eyes, and Meowth hissed right back.

Something clicked in Gio's head at that moment.

This was his equal.

He needed to prove himself worthy of it.

Persian's muscles tensed and prepared to land a blow strong enough to knock Meowth's head from its shoulders, claws hooked and deadly. The feline's tail pointed straight up. It reared one mighty paw up -

Only to go slack as Gio's smooth hands clenched around its whiskers. Persian sagged as if all its strength had been sucked out, and teetered like those drunks he'd seen earlier. Its eyes were cloudy as Gio clutched tighter, and he held on with an iron grip.

If he let go, he would die.

"Run! To the street!" Gio shouted. That police officer should just be getting to the alley entrance by now - if the officer heard the commotion then they'd be nearby. If they could just get out of here, they might make it!

The runt didn't need to be told twice. It dashed off on all fours, its tail raised high, and soon enough it had escaped from the alley.

His hands dripped with sweat. Persian's eyes began to sharpen, and that was his cue.

Gio gave Persian's whiskers one last spiteful yank to send it back into a trance, then ran back the way he'd entered.

He took off through the grimy alley. His heart pounded like a drum and fear and nerve and elation pushed him faster and faster as he forced his legs to go faster than he'd ever gone before. Muck and mud splashed up to the coat the walls, his nice pants, and fancy shoes, but who cared?

Persian was right on his tail. The few seconds head start didn't help much, and he could feel its weight shuddering the pavement behind him. It was silent as the night itself, but its hot breath and the hate rolling off it was enough to push him to the limits.

Then they spilled out onto the streets, and the Persian was greeted with the roar of an Arcanine and the shouts of the police officer.

Arcanine chased Persian back, ablaze with fire and raw power that Gio could only dream of now, but which he'd been born to surpass. The Persian retreated back into the shadows of the alley, but its scarlet eyes caught sight of them both.

They dripped with hatred.

Then Persian was gone, but he knew it would be watching. The alleys wouldn't be safe anymore.

The city wouldn't be safe anymore.

Not until he was strong enough to beat it.

With the immediate threat gone, Gio gulped in air and hunched over beside the runt, which was doing about the same as it laid on the cool pavement. The light given off by Arcanine's fire-filled maw allowed Gio to see the awful shape the little Meowth was in.

More gaunt than lean, more scarred than not. It had been through awful things, and fought its way out. His Mamma would be furious to see the scrawny alley Meowth tracking dirt across her expensive carpets, and that made it even better.

He fell down beside it and stared the Meowth in the eyes.

"Do you want to be friends?"

To its credit, the Meowth didn't just nod or leap at a chance for safety. No, Gio spotted a cunning in its gaze. It weighed the options, measured him, and offered a little swipe at him.

He didn't flinch at the claws - how could he after seeing the hooked blades long as knives on Persian's paws?

After a moment, the Meowth finally nodded.

Gio finally smiled, then began to pull himself up on shaking limbs. His heart still pounded and the realization that he could have died (should have died, honestly) began to sink in.

It didn't bother him as much as he thought it would.

"My name is Giovanni," he wheezed and offered a hand to the exhausted Meowth. It stared with narrowed eyes, and eventually sheathed its claws to lay a bloody paw in his hand. "But you can call me Gio."

The first rumbles of a purr emerged from Meowth's throat, and Gio smiled.

He thought this might be the beginnings of a beautiful partnership.

A/N: This chapter is in memory of my cat Selene.

She was the best cat I've ever had and I had to put her down today. I found her wandering on the side of the road while I was on a run one day - it was in 2013, probably before Traveler was even a year old. She was bright white, but so dirty that she looked grey and so, so skinny. She came right up to me to be pet. I brought her home, she slept for about a week straight, and the rest is history. I'll miss her, but I'm glad to have given her some extra years of happiness. She paid it back with interest.

Thanks so much for reading, and I hope you enjoyed the chapter. This wasn't what I had planned, but it felt like the right project to work on tonight. I don't think I could have written anything else.

If you have pets, please show them extra love tonight.

I'll see you all again when Chapter 58 is released later this month.