xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx Rarest Level Ranch, Ecruteak City, 11:12 p.m. xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Standing at the front desk counter was the Cleaner, preparing to leave following his final day of cleaning up Keats' trailer as the husky framed trainer had returned the day prior. Standing behind the counter was Adam and Marie with Marie's Sableye perched on her shoulder in a playful manner as she lifted her arm to pet her newly returned Ghost and Dark type.
"And that should do it." Adam said as he was writing out a check to the Cleaner for payment.
"Good." The Cleaner said as Adam handed him the check. "Hmmmm..." He said as he looked down at the countertop.
"Sab?" Sableye muttered as Marie and Adam looked at the Cleaner with confusion.
"Something the matter?" Marie asked towards the Cleaner.
Putting the check into his inside pocket, the Cleaner proceeded to lift his right gloved finger and wiped it in a straight line along the countertop. Looking at the stain that was left on his glove, the Cleaner made a judgmental expression towards the ranch owners as they just made half-closed eyes of annoyance.
"Dirty." The Cleaner muttered.
"Please, leave..." Marie said as the Cleaner turned around and walked out of the ranch, finally leaving.
"...Longest week and a half of my life..." Adam complained towards his wife.
"Thought he'd never leave..." Marie said as her Sableye hopped off her shoulder and landed on the counter.
"Sababababa!" Sableye laughed, cheerfully.
"At least one of us is happy." Adam grumbled as he walked over to a stool and lifted up a container.
In Adam's arms was a small and compact case with a clear glass center, inside of said case was a large Pokémon Egg that was bright red. Putting it down on the front desk, Adam pushed over the stool and sat down on it as Marie shook her head.
"You seriously just gonna sit here all day?" Marie questioned as Sableye walked over to the Pokémon Egg, looking at it with curiosity.
"I swear... If this is another "leave behind" scenario, I'm going to find the guy who left this Pokémon Egg here and stick a Shell Bell down their throat and see if that can cure their clogged windpipe." Adam said with a disgruntled tone. "I will always hate a trainer who leaves behind a Pokémon Egg at a daycare." He thought.
"With a threat like that, you're starting to sound like my brother." Marie joked as her Sableye smirked.
"The trainer said they'd be back within four days from when they picked up their Pokémon, I'm going to hold them to it." Adam said as he folded his arms and started to stare at the door.
"And when was that?" Marie said as she picked up her Sableye and carried him in her arms.
"...Four days ago..." Adam replied while rolling his eyes in annoyance.
"Riiiight. Good luck with that." Marie said towards her annoyed husband as he stared at the front door. "At least it's a slow day today. Only got a few clients Pokémon in." She continued as Adam turned towards her.
"You can take care of that. I want to make sure this Pokémon Egg gets to its trainer." Adam said with a stern tone.
"Maybe you could look up their trainer card, zzzzt." The voice of Rotom said as Adam made a surprised expression as he and Marie shifted their attention towards the nearby computer.
With the face of Rotom appearing on the monitor, the artificial Pokémon looked at the couple of daycare workers as Adam tilted his head in the direction of his wife, Marie shaking her head as she turned to look at her husband.
"Uhhhh..." Adam mumbled. "Marie, why is there a Rotom in our computer?" He questioned towards Marie.
"It's not just "a" Rotom, it's Keats' Rotom that's normally in his phone." Marie said as she put down her Sableye and walked over to the chair in front of the computer, sitting down.
"Hello, zzzzt." Rotom said.
"Why are you here?" Adam said towards Rotom, confused as to why it's possessing the computer and not in Keats' phone like usual.
"Because he zzzzaid for me to leave him alone for a while with the phone." Rotom said with a bothered expression.
"Remember how he got home yesterday? And said he was "so aggravated, he wanted to take all the lamps in the house and smash them."' Marie said towards Adam.
"Uh-huh?" Adam muttered.
"Well, Rotom told me earlier that Keats hasn't been his normal self since he got back from Alola with Sableye..." Marie said as Sableye looked up at her.
"Sableyeyeye." Sableye said.
"Didn't really give us the full story either. Rotom?" Adam said as Rotom looked at the pair.
"To put it zzzzimply, the night he fought Imani Snagem was mired in problems because of his inexperience." Rotom explained. "Oranguru gave him a very specific and foolproof plan to follow, and he couldn't do it. Then mixed in with a misunderstanding with a friend he made and a failure to catch a Pokemon he wanted, he pretty much felt like a lot of the trip was a failure for him perzzzzonally." The Pokémon in the computer continued.
"You think it's a confidence issue?" Adam asked towards his wife.
"Knowing my brother... Nah." Marie said.
"How do you figure, zzzzt?" Rotom questioned.
"Keats being depressed is a very weird time period for him." Marie replied.
'"Weirder than usual?"' Adam and Rotom said in unison.
"I've never seen him get depressed with a "lack of confidence" being the reason behind it." Marie said. "He can be so attention deficit sometimes; he never lacks in confidence because he might not think about whether or not he can pull something off." She thought.
"I've never seen Keatzzzz get as upset as he was in Alola." Rotom said.
"Keats is weird when it comes to how he goes about things when he's depressed. Sometimes, he sulks by sitting in a chair and puts jelly on toast and spends a few minutes throwing the bread at the ceiling to see if it sticks until he feels better." Marie said, describing her brother's actions. "One time, he got upset for losing his bus pass and having to pay the fare, he started taking all of our paper towel rolls and made castles out of them until he was fine." She continued as Rotom and Adam just made bewildered expressions. "It's... As if he tries to do something to keep his mind off of it because he doesn't want to deal with it. And more often than not, it's something that only makes sense to him, at the moment." Marie said.
'"So obtuse..."' Adam and Rotom thought, simultaneously.
"I'm going to go check on him. You both can pal around here." Marie said as she walked away towards the backyard ranch where the Pokémon were, leaving behind Rotom and Adam.
"...Zzzzoooo... What Pokémon bred that egg?" Rotom said towards Adam as he looked over at the container on the counter.
"...I don't remember actually..." Adam said as he stared at the red Pokémon Egg.
Meanwhile, inside his newly cleaned and tidy living space, Keats was using the phone that normally housed Rotom. Laying on the couch with his head on a pillow, he sported a purple and yellow T-shirt that said "Ekans Backwards," brown pajama bottoms and black socks.
"Well yeah, why don't you come over here?" Keats said into the phone. "We'll put on some music... I'll give you a backrub. Then we'll see what happens." He said with a smirk forming on his face. "No... Oh... That's too bad. Oh well... Oh and how are the "Crabrawler Claws?"' Keats said as he sat up.
Reaching over to a nearby nightstand, Keats picked up a menu for a local seafood restaurant in Ecruteak called "The Claws of Flavor." Looking over the menu, he grew interested in a dish that consisted of four Crabrawler claws that was served with an orange sweet and sour sauce with celery and corn.
"Is it possible to substitute the corn?" Keats asked into the phone. "No?... Ehhh, screw it. I'm feeling adventurous and miserable, throw that on there with the "Sharpedo Quesadilla." Thank you, you have my address." He said with a shrug as he clicked on the phone, hanging up. "Haaaa..." Keats sighed as he looked over at the wall mounted table in his trailer, his open laptop and several non-descript books scattered on top of it.
A moment after putting down the phone, Keats turned towards the door as he suddenly heard a knocking. Thinking that his order of food came in at an unrealistically short amount of time, Keats walked over to check the front door as he opened it slightly to see his sister standing there as Keats quickly tried to shut the door.
"Keats, what's wrong?" Marie said before Keats could close the door as he just glared at his sister.
"Nothing..." Keats muttered in a sheepish tone.
"...Your Pokémon are begging to differ." Marie said as she looked over at Keats' nearby Pokémon.
A few steps away from the group was all of Keats' Pokémon as he winced as he caught the sight of them. In front was Pineco, Stunky, Venonat and Timburr as Swalot and Druddigon were standing behind them, Porygon and Raichu floating above everyone as Cloyster and Dragalge watched on from the nearby pond, all having varying degrees of concerned expressions.
"No Surskit though..." Marie thought with a raised eyebrow as she turned back to look at her brother.
"Pineco-coco." Pineco said in a concerned tone towards her trainer as Keats bit his lip as the smaller Pokémon approached to where Marie was.
"I'm not in the mood... Okay?" Keats said towards his sister as she looked down at Keats' Pokémon before turning around to look at the others.
"Timburr." Timburr said as he raised his log over his right shoulder.
"Stunk-tunk." Stunky said.
"Natnat." Venonat muttered as the other Pokémon, minus the ones in the pond, advanced forward as well.
"Don't look at me like that..." Keats thought as he looked down at his Pokémon before turning towards his sister. "If you must know... My life is like a video game with multiple objectives." He explained as he opened the door but still not allowing anyone in.
"Huh?" Marie muttered, not understanding his analogy.
"I went to Alola with one main goal and then a bunch of other goals stacked on top of each other with that main goal that I wanted to accomplish... I succeeded in getting the primary objective done and failed the second, third, fourth and fifth ones." Keats said with a disgruntled tone. "Don't got a cute "sciencey" girlfriend, don't got a neat organ spewing Pokémon, didn't prove to that super genius Pokémon I'm more competent than it thought of me, didn't get to try malasada... I already know I suck hard at this but I didn't need the acknowledgement to be so brutally obvious." He thought, complaining.
"He was trying his best and it wasn't good enough it sounds." Marie thought as she looked at her brother before looking at Pineco, Stunky, Venonat and Timburr. "Mind if I tell you something?" She said as Keats looked at her.
"We're getting a Miltank?!" Keats exclaimed with an excited tone.
"No..." Marie said, visibly confused. "When I was in my teens on my journey to be a good trainer, I didn't have travelling companions like you do with Rotom. My only companions on my journey were my thoughts and my Pokémon, so I didn't really have anyone to talk with to help me hash things out when I was feeling certain ways." She said as Keats listened. "Want to know what I did?" Marie questioned.
"...You got a Miltank?" Keats replied with a slightly interested tone.
"No!" Marie exclaimed in annoyance. "What I did was talk to my Pokémon because even if I couldn't fully understand them, they can be great listeners." She said as she pointed towards Pineco. "And when I was coming up, Rotom PokéDexs weren't a thing to translate Pokémon speech yet." Marie thought.
"Pineco. Pineco." Pineco said as Keats looked at his Bug type Pokémon, noticing she was eager to come inside as she tried to hop forward.
"Pineco, don't." Keats said with a bothered tone. "...I just want to be left alone, alright. I just want some time to think about things." He said towards the pinecone-shaped Pokémon as Marie sighed.
"Fine then..." Marie said while folding her arms. "If you need something, I'll be inside the main house. We're not that jam packed today so if anything, it'll give me some time to work on some other things." She said as Keats looked at her.
"So, it's settled, we're getting a Miltank!" Keats muttered yet again to the confusion of his sister and his Pokémon.
"...Why do you want a Miltank?" Marie questioned with bewilderment at Keats' suggestion.
"Because Miltanks make delicious." Keats said with a dopey smile on his face as everyone looked at him, expecting him to continue talking as he stopped at an oddly particular point.
'"Make delicious" what?" Marie said as Keats' face slowly turned from a dopey smile to a disoriented expression.
"...What?" Keats said, now not even sure where he was originally going in the conversation.
"...I'm going to go inside..." Marie said, wanting to end the conversation with her younger brother as he stared at the ground. "Either everything in Alola got to him worse than he is letting on or he's gotten crazier... Either way, I don't even know if I can help him. He might just have to wait to help himself or let his Pokémon handle it." She thought as she turned and walked away, Keats' Pokémon still standing outside their trainer's trailer as Keats shut the door on them.
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx Rarest Level Ranch, Ecruteak City, 2:15 p.m. xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
A few hours later, Keats' Pokémon were still standing outside the trailer as Porygon and Raichu were floating towards the window, looking at Keats as he laid on the inside couch, attempting to read a book. As he looked at the pages, Keats suddenly dropped the book on the floor, the noise startling some of his worried Pokémon outside as Druddigon and Swalot inched themselves upwards to look at Keats through the nearby window with the afore mentioned floating creatures.
"Ugghhh..." Keats grumbled as he reached into his pocket and pulled out a blue marker that read "Smeargle Scents" on the side. "I can barely think." He thought as he took off the cap, held the marker to his nostril and sniffed it for a brief moment. "Oh god!" Keats exclaimed as the scent from the marker was so overwhelming that it caused him to cringe and fall off the couch onto the floor.
Looking at the "Smeargle Scent" marker with annoyance, Keats prepared to chuck it at the nearby window until he saw the familiar faces of Druddigon, Swalot, Raichu and Porygon looking at him. Standing up, the husky framed trainer walked over to the window and proceeded to close the blinds on them as he walked back towards the couch.
"Jeez... What chapter was I on again?" Keats mentally groaned as he picked up the book he was reading off the floor and realized he might have lost his place, flipping through pages to find anything familiar. "Hmmm?" He muttered as he heard the knocking on his door again. "Didn't I tell them I wanted to be left alone?" Keats thought in frustration as he threw the book on the couch.
Walking over to the door, Keats opened it with a disgruntled expression, expecting his Pokémon to be there once again until he noticed no one was at the door. Shrugging, Keats attempted to the close the door but as he went to shut it, he was noticed something was keeping the door from closing.
"Huh?" Keats muttered as he looked downward and spot a familiar wooden log wedged in the door.
"Pineco!" Pineco exclaimed as Keats made a surprised expression.
Coming from both sides of the trailer, the entirety of Keats' Pokémon rushed at the entryway and forcibly tackled Keats to the floor. Inside, Keats was downed and clutching at his stomach as Venonat, Stunky, Pineco and Timburr, who just picked up his log, were cornering Keats against the bottom cupboards near the sink.
"What the- ow?!" Keats exclaimed as he was recoiling from the sudden knock down.
Entering behind the four smaller Pokémon was Druddigon and Swalot, who partially struggled to fit through the door without damaging the corners. Over by the nearby pond, Raichu used "Psychic" to lift Cloyster and Dragalge out of the water as Porygon entered in next.
"Hey! Hey! Hey!" Keats grumbled as Stunky and Timburr held down Keats by his legs as Pineco and Venonat pressed against Keats to keep him from forcing them out. "Get off- wait!" He complained until he noticed Raichu was telekinetically carrying Dragalge and Cloyster towards the entryway.
While Dragalge and Raichu fit through the door, the sea dragon-like Pokémon being placed on the couch, Cloyster, however, crashed into the door, not able to fit because of how wide she was, causing everyone to look at her.
"Cloy?" Cloyster muttered. "Cloy! Ster!" She continued as she couldn't get inside by nudging against the entry point.
"Rai-rai!" Raichu muttered in annoyance as he tried to psychically pull in Cloyster to no avail, the bivalve mollusk repeatedly slamming into the front doorway.
"Whoa! Whoa!" Keats said as he got up from the floor, his smaller Pokémon getting off him as he grabbed Raichu with his hands. "Stop!" He shouted in protest.
"Sterster-cloy!" Cloyster said as she was outside the trailer.
"Druddigon-drudd!" Druddigon said towards the Water and Ice type.
"Tiiimb." Timburr muttered as Cloyster looked at everyone inside.
"What the hell are you all talking about?" Keats said as he let go of Raichu, the skateboarding mouse-like creature floating in the air once again.
"Timburr. Timtim." Timburr said towards Keats as he pointed at Cloyster.
"Cloyster..." Cloyster muttered in a tone that seemed frustrated.
"I can't understand what you're all saying... And there's an occupancy limit in here!" Keats thought as he looked at all the Pokémon in his trailer before putting his hands on his face and pulling down on his face in an exasperated manner before shifting his eyes towards the book on the floor. "Alright... Alright fine. What do you all want?" He said as all of his Pokémon looked at him.
"Pineco." Pineco said as she tried to catch Keats' attention, him looking down at his Bug type Pokémon.
"I'm going to go out on a limb and say you want me to bring in Cloyster somehow, so she won't be left out?" Keats said towards Pineco as she nodded with her body shifting.
"Cloyster..." Cloyster said as she wanted to join everyone inside the trailer.
"Okay... Gotta think here." Keats thought as he proceeded to put his hands over his face and hunched over.
"Venonat?" Venonat said towards Pineco.
"Swaaaa?" Swalot said in a similar tone as he shifted back towards its usual living space, the trailer bathroom.
"Stunk-tunk." Stunky said towards his fellow Poison type Pokémon.
"Cococo-pine." Pineco said as Keats stood up straight and took his hands off his face.
"Okay, I'm going to assume that Pineco and Stunky were explaining my thinking pose to the ones who haven't ever seen it." Keats thought, trying to interpret the conversation between his Pokémon. "Cloyster, get back a little." He said as Cloyster looked at her trainer.
"Cloy." Cloyster said as she hopped back slightly as Keats walked outside, shifting behind the large Water and Ice type.
"Druddigon, give me a hand." Keats said as Druddigon followed his order, joining him outside. "Cloyster, close your shell." He said towards Cloyster as she proceeded to clam up. "Put your hands down under her and then heave ho." Keats said as he and Druddigon worked together to try and lift up Cloyster into the trailer.
"Drudd-drudd!" Druddigon said with a strained tone.
"Oh boy! Urgh!" Keats grunted from how heavy Cloyster was.
"Tiimb!" Timburr said as he put down his log and joined in the effort to try and carry Cloyster, going underneath her.
"No! No! No!" Keats exclaimed to stop Timburr. "If we drop her, she'll crush you!" He continued as Timburr got back slightly.
"Cococo!" Pineco said towards Raichu as Raichu floated outside on his tail.
"Raaaii!" Raichu said as he glowed with a blue aura, once again using "Psychic" to envelop Cloyster with telekinetic energy again.
"Huh? Did you just lose weight?" Keats said as Cloyster got lighter all of a sudden.
"Drudd!" Druddigon said as he pointed at Raichu.
"Oh, that makes more sense." Keats said as he looked at his Electric and Psychic type Pokémon. "Okay, one foot in front of the other." He said as he and Druddigon now lifted Cloyster into the trailer, joining the rest of Keats' Pokémon as they all tried to get comfortable as Keats looked at Dragalge and Raichu.
"Pooooor." Porygon said as it landed on the table with Stunky hopping up onto it as well.
As Keats looked around at his Pokémon, he looked at Druddigon and Swalot standing near the way to his bedroom and the bathroom. Raichu was sitting on his tail as he floated in the air as Dragalge was laying his long body across Keats' couch with Cloyster opening herself up slightly to see everyone.
"Sooo... I wouldn't say my trailer is too homey for all of you." Keats commented as he stood between everyone.
"Stunky-tunk." Stunky said as he pointed one of his front claws towards the bedroom.
"Yeah, I know you like to sleep under the bed." Keats said towards his skunk-like Pokémon before looking down at Venonat, Timburr and Pineco on the floor. "So, everyone's in... What do you guys want?" He questioned as he knelt down towards the Pokémon in front of him.
"Pinecococo-pinepine." Pineco said towards Keats in a worried tone as he put a finger on his chin in a contemplative manner.
"Timb." Timburr said as Keats shifted his gaze towards the Fighting type Pokémon.
"Keep an eye on actions..." Keats thought. "So, you got worried about me, huh?" He said towards Pineco, Timburr and Venonat before turning towards Swalot and Druddigon.
"Swaaaalla." Swalot said as Druddigon folded his arms.
"Druddigongon." Druddigon said as Keats stood up and looked over at Raichu and Dragalge.
"...You two." Keats said as Raichu looked down at Keats and Dragalge shifted his head in his trainer's direction. "Mind if I ask you something?" He said.
"Raichu?" Raichu said.
"You guys are fine being here and everything, right?" Keats asked towards Raichu as Raichu raised an eyebrow.
"Rai?" Raichu said in a questioning tone. "Chu-rairai." He said as he stood up on his tail and waved his arms with a smile.
"I guess that's a yes..." Keats thought as he looked over at Dragalge. "How about you?" He asked towards his Poison and Dragon type.
"Draga..." Dragalge muttered.
"Well... He's reclusive so I'll never truly get an accurate answer out of him... But if he's been able to just stay in the pond with no trouble. He might be okay." Keats thought as he locked eyes with Dragalge.
"Pineco?" Pineco said towards Keats in a concerned tone.
"I'm guessing you're wondering why I asked that?" Keats said as he put his hands in his pockets. "After Diglett left the other day, it got me a bit... On edge." He said as he looked at Dragalge and Raichu. "Didn't like being here and didn't bond with me enough to want to put up with it either..." Keats thought.
"Timb-timb." Timburr said as he rubbed his chin as he looked towards the direction of the ranch outside.
"Venonat." Venonat said.
"Yeah, you probably noticed you haven't seen Diglett outside. She left." Keats said towards everyone as a few members made surprised expressions. "She got a decent meal out of me and helped us when we needed it but I guess we weren't compatible." He continued as he proceeded to sit on the floor.
"Venonatnat?" Venonat said towards Keats.
"I'm guessing you're wondering how I am coping with getting rejected this hard?" Keats questioned. "Yeah, not too badly. Not too smoothly either." He said as he leaned back against the cupboard. "Mind if I gauge the room? How do you guys feel about me as a trainer?" Keats asked towards his Pokémon.
"Druddigon-drudddrudd." Druddigon said, speaking first.
"Swalot." Swalot said next.
"Cloyster-sterster." Cloyster said third.
"Pooooor." Porygon said as it shifted its head in the direction of Keats laptop, the polygonal Pokémon shifting its head to look.
"...Probably should've brought Rotom back here so I can get their opinions translated... Well, I'm guessing none of them particularly hate me if they were willing to force themselves in here out of worry." Keats thought.
"Timburr-urr." Timburr said towards Keats as he turned his head towards him as the others were also shifting their heads.
"Drudd?" Druddigon said towards Swalot as the large blob-like creature shook his head.
"Huh?" Keats muttered. "What's up?" He said towards everyone.
"Stunky-tunk?" Stunky said from the dinner towards Keats.
"...Uhhh- oh, wait. I think I got it; you guys are wondering about the other one?" Keats said as he started to realize what the others were trying to say. "Surskit?" He continued as he stood up.
Opening up a cabinet over his microwave, Keats reached inside and pulled out a white mug that read "Gliscor Man" across a winged scorpion-like creature design. Inside the cup was a familiar Timer Ball that housed Keats' ultra-violent Surskit as he took it out of the mug and placed it on the counter next to the microwave.
"I put her in here because of her behavioral issues." Keats said with a frustrated tone as Pineco hopped over and nudged against Keats' leg.
"Coco." Pineco said as Keats looked at her.
"With everything that happened with Diglett... I've gotten a bit skittish when it comes her." Keats said, unbeknownst to him that a small and round orange creature covered in electricity had phased through the window and headed in the direction of Keats' phone on the table.
"Druddigon." Druddigon said while punching his fist into the other claw.
"Something tells me if you fought Surskit, she'd win." Keats said with an unimpressed tone as Druddigon made a surprised face of anguish.
"Druud-" Druddigon exclaimed with tears welling up on his face before attempting to reach down towards the floor until Keats stepped forward to stop him.
"Do not rip through my floor just to stick your head in a hole!" Keats muttered in agitation as he pointed at his Dragon type Pokémon.
"Zzzzt! Zzzzt!" The phone muttered as the static noises caught the attention of everyone as Rotom had repossessed the phone.
"Now you show up..." Keats thought as he looked in the direction of the floating phone Pokémon.
"I am back, zzzzt. What did I miss?" Rotom said as it looked at everyone.
"Just casual conversation." Keats said as he rolled his eyes.
"Gon." Porygon said towards Rotom as the floating phone hovered over in the direction of Keats' laptop.
"Something important, zzzzt?" Rotom said. '"How to Raise Dragon Types." "Functional Bug Type Strategies." "Keeping your Home Clean with Poison Types."' The phone Pokémon thought as it noticed that Keats several trainer related articles open on his laptop.
"Well now that you're here, maybe I can finally get some questions answered." Keats commented towards Rotom as the floating phone shifted his attention towards the book Keats was reading before, on a random page on the floor. "I asked Raichu and Dragalge how they felt about me as their trainer." He said towards Rotom, who was looking at the book still.
'"When raw power doesn't work to defeat an opponent, you might have to resort to what your gut tells you as opposed to just being reliant on the power of your Pokémon. Even a Rock type or an Electric type has the potentiality to defeat a Water or Ground type, respectively."' Rotom thought as it read the book that Keats was reading previously. "Have you been reading strategy guidezzzz?" The phone Pokémon asked as Keats made a bashful expression and quickly picked up the book off the floor.
"Uh! No, I was just- uhhh..." Keats said as he closed the book and proceeded to throw it into his bedroom, over Swalot and Druddigon's heads.
"You're studying, zzzzt?" Rotom questioned as Keats sighed.
"...Yeah... I was hoping to keep it a surprise for next time I had to battle..." Keats replied in frustration as Rotom turned around to the books and the laptop. "And Marie wasn't using these old things..." He thought.
"Finally, zzzzt!" Rotom exclaimed loudly to the surprise of Keats and all of his Pokémon in the trailer. "You are wanting to learn how to be a better trainer on your own without me forcing you! Finally, some initiative!" The phone Pokémon said in a relieved tone as Keats looked at the phone with half-closed eyes.
"...Inadequacy is an issue I feel like I know I'm aware of having. Comments like that are what hurt me, you know...?" Keats said in annoyance.
"Zzzzorry, I'm just not used to you actually trying to better yourself." Rotom said as Keats rolled his eyes.
"As I was saying... I asked Dragalge and Raichu how they felt about me. Raichu seems fine with me... Dragalge though..." Keats said as he turned his head towards the Poison and Dragon type laid out across his couch.
"Dragalge-dragage." Dragalge said as he looked at Keats.
"Dragalge zzzzaid that he appreciates what you've done for him." Rotom translated.
"You don't mind being in the pond with Cloyster and all those strangers Pokémon?" Keats asked towards Dragalge.
"Dragaga..." Dragalge said.
"He just goezzzz to the bottom of the pond and hides in the mock kelp down there until he feels like coming up." Rotom said.
"Still a loner..." Keats thought. "Well... Do what you want. No need to force anything." He continued as Dragalge laid on the couch. "How about you? Fine with the Johto air and climate?" Keats asked towards Raichu.
"Raichu-chu. Chu-chuchu." Raichu said towards Keats with a nod.
"Raichu zzzzayzzzz he's fine with the area." Rotom said as Raichu proceeded to glow with energy again.
Telekinetically opening Keats' fridge, Raichu proceeded to lift a soda can off one of the racks and made it float over to the hovering mouse-like creature. Grabbing it with his tiny paws, he opened up the tab with his teeth and started to chug the contents as everyone watched.
"Hey, that was mine!" Keats grumbled in annoyance.
"Rai-chuh!" Raichu said until suddenly burping.
"Stunk-unk!" Stunky said until suddenly farting, the gas causing all of the non-Poison type Pokémon and non-artificial Pokémon, as well as Keats, to wince and clutch at their nostrils.
"Oh god! I'm cracking a window..." Keats said as he shifted over to a nearby window to let loose the air as Porygon stared at Stunky. "I'm glad to know Raichu and Dragalge are fine with being here..." He thought as he stuck his head out.
"Tunk..." Stunky muttered in embarrassment.
"I'm glad I don't have zzzzmell receptors." Rotom commented as Keats pulled himself back into the trailer.
"So, while I've been studying, I've also been contemplating about what to do with Surskit." Keats said as everyone looked at him.
"Oh, zzzzt?" Rotom mumbled.
"Either I figure out some way to make it so she doesn't kill everything when she comes out of her ball, or I let her loose like I did Diglett... But both options aren't ideal in hindsight." Keats said as he scratched the back of his head.
"Both options would still rezzzzult in her attacking everything around her. Either us or the Pokémon out in the wild." Rotom said.
"Bingo..." Keats replied. "I also looked into her evolution online... Something called "Masquerain."' He said as Rotom flipped over to show the PokéDex for it.
'"Masquerain, the Eyeball Pokémon, a Bug and Flying type. Masquerain's antennas have eyelike patterns that usually give it an angry look. If the "eyes" are droopy and appear sad, it is said to be a sign that a heavy rainfall is on its way."' Rotom said reading off the Dex while also displaying an image of a whitish-blue creature with two pairs of rhombus-shaped wings on both sides of its body, a teardrop shaped skull and two large antennas that resembled angry eyes.
"Its ability is "Intimidate," yeah? It makes it so any Pokémon she would face would have their offensive strength lowered." Keats said.
"Correct, zzzzt." Rotom said. "Wow, he did study... Those losses against Bevin and Imani he suffered towards the end of his time in Alola must have really been a tipping point for him." The phone Pokémon thought, impressed by Keats knowing something related to Pokémon without looking it up at this exact moment.
"So, we got a violent little miscreant here... And when she eventually evolves from all the battling she's been doing, she'll still be violent but only now, she'll also get an ability that will make everyone trying to stop her even weaker... How much you wanna bet she would do that to everyone here and then start battering everything just because she knew it was weakened?" Keats said with a heavy sigh as he pointed at the Timer Ball.
"...Right... That'zzzz not an ideal combination." Rotom said as all of Keats' Pokémon had become worried about that potential scenario happening.
"And if I let her go out into the wild... Who's to say she won't just come back and try to murder us." Keats said with a shrug. "Maybe I should've just let the thing get knocked out when she was fighting Kingler back on Ula'Ula Island..." He thought.
"Hmmmmm... Well... There'zzzz one more option." Rotom said, coming up with another idea.
"Go to the bus station, leave it on a seat on the way to Viridian City in the Kanto region and see if it won't destroy that place on the news next week?" Keats said as everyone turned toward him with funny looks.
"Uhhhh... No... Zzzzt." Rotom replied. "He's studying but he's still acting like a weirdo..." The phone Pokémon thought. "What about trading?" The phone Pokémon suggested as Keats raised an eyebrow.
'"Trading" what? A sacrifice to Surskit in exchange for quelling her bloodlust like a "limited time offer?"' Keats said.
"No, I mean, why don't you trade Zzzzurzzzzkit to another trainer in exchange for one of their Pokémon?" Rotom questioned as Keats raised an eyebrow.
"...I can do that?" Keats replied in confusion.
"I guess you mizzzzzzzzed that part in your studies." Rotom said with an unimpressed look on its screen. "You offer to trade Surskit for someone else's Pokémon and if they agree, they will take Surskit off your hands. Surely someone has to be able to handle her." The phone Pokémon explained.
"...That simple?" Keats said with a raised eyebrow.
"More often than not, zzzzt." Rotom replied.
"...Sooooo... What do we do for this "Pokémon Trade" thing?" Keats questioned.
"Best chance of uzzzz finding someone is at the local Pokémon Center." Rotom said.
"...Ehhhhh..." Keats muttered in an unenthusiastic tone.
"...Okay, what'zzzz wrong with going to the Ecruteak Pokémon Center?" Rotom said.
"It's not like I did anything to the building like in Alola or Unova but a lot of the townsfolk who are trainers are there usually and I'm... Not exactly a popular guy." Keats said to Rotom as his Pokémon looked at him.
"Izzzz there anyone in this town you haven't bothered at some point?" Rotom questioned.
"...Tourists?" Keats said with an embarrassed smile as the phone Pokémon just made an exasperated expression on its screen.
"Grab the ball, change your clothes and then we'll- gah!" Rotom said until something suddenly fell onto the phone Pokémon, knocking it to the floor.
On top of Rotom was a piece of burnt toast covered in strawberry jam, all of Keats' Pokémon making surprised expressions until they all started to tilt their heads upward. Attached the ceiling was multiple pieces of toast as another one, this time with raspberry jelly, fell to the floor, prompting Venonat to walk over to pick it up with her small hands and happily begin munching on it.
"...What the heck, zzzzt?!" Rotom complained as it floated back into the air, its screen covered in strawberry as Stunky hopped off the table and proceeded to eat the toast that was on the floor.
"I've had a very rough day." Keats said plainly towards Rotom as he grabbed a paper towel and motioned for the floating phone to come over as Swalot licked his puckered lips, interested in wanting to eat some of the jelly that was on Rotom. "Really am hoping I can find someone who would want a sadistic Bug and Water type Pokémon." He thought as he wiped down Rotom.
Times are tough. Unemployment is rising, banks are closing, gasoline prices are skyrocketing. Now more than ever, we need dependability... Grape jelly on toast. Always there for you when you're depressed. Anyway, back home and it looks like Sableye is all good. But it looks like Adam is preoccupied with a Pokémon Egg and Keats locked himself in his newly cleaned trailer doing... Things. Contemplating what happened in Alola had gotten under his skin and has led to him wanting to reevaluate how he works as a trainer. Now, he has a new goal; get rid of Surskit... But can Keats find someone to trade with him? And if he does, what will he get in exchange? The excitement is gnawing at my Achilles tendons, damn it!
Keats' Pokémon:
1. Pineco.
2. Stunky.
3. Raichu - Alolan Form.
4. Druddigon.
5. Surskit.
6. Porygon.
7. Venonat.
8. Dragalge.
9. Cloyster.
10. Timburr.
11. Swalot.
Released:
1. Diglett - Alolan Form.
Author's Note: (Go ahead, guess... lol)