Ash's Adventure: Girls' Hunter Edition!

by SedaCassie

In a world where PokeGirls are caught alongside Pokemon, and where collecting harems is just sort of the thing to do, young Ash Ketchum begins his journey in...complicated fashion. Now faced with new challenges and triumphs, he adventures forth to finally prove his worth, making many new friends along the way. Many, many lovely friends. Look, it's a PokeGirl harem story.

12. (B)rock and Roll, Part 2!

(B)rock and Roll, Part 2!

"Ring-ring-ring! Ring-ring-ring! Phone call! Phone call!"

The ringing phone woke Ash up from one of the deepest sleeps he had ever enjoyed.

He jerked, snorted, and blearily blinked his eyes. The room was dark, and outside the sun had gone down. Where was he? The room was unfamiliar, and…

The phone continued to ring, and a little bit more of him woke up. Oh, right. The hotel room. He was in Pewter City. The phone was probably the PokeCenter. And…

Boy, there were an awful lot of warm, soft bodies pressed up against him!

He blinked again and squinted. Yellow was still there, nestled up against him, but now sleepily rubbing her eyes. And cuddled up against her was May, who was now flopping back with an irritated groan.

And snuggling warmly on Ash's other side was…was that Misty? He shook his head to clear the cobwebs and look again. It was Misty all right, lying cradled in his arm, and also raising her head in response to the phone.

Before Ash could ask questions, Misty sat up, stretched her arms up over her head, and yawned. As she did, the blanket fell away from her, enough to confirm that, like himself and Yellow, she wasn't wearing pants.

What had he missed?

Then lowering her arms with a sigh, she noticed him staring and returned his look. "Well?" she grumbled, scratching at her untidy orange hair. "Aren't you going to answer it?"

"Uh…right." Ash hastily kicked off the blanket that hadn't been there when he had fallen asleep and scrambled off the mat. He staggered his way to the phone and answered it.

"H-Hello?"

"Hello, Mr. Ketchum?" said the voice on the other end. "This is Nurse Joy from the Pewter City PokeCenter. And I'm calling in regards to the Tangela you left with us?"

Behind Ash, one of the girls turned on the room light. The sudden brightness made Ash wince, but it did help clear his head. "Er, yeah! Are you guys done?"

"We are. However, the information we learned was concerning, and we would like to speak with you in person."

Ash began to sweat. "In person? W-Why? Am I-"

"You're not in trouble. However, as the one who caught the Tangela, she is legally your property now, but what we learned suggests that she might have been previously used in criminal activity, and as such the police are here and wish to speak with you."

The police?

Oh no.

Going to the police was what got the other Nurse Joy captured. The police couldn't be trusted. Sure, it was a different city, but who was to say the situation wasn't as bad here?

Maybe he should just leave. Grab the girls and get out. Yeah, that would be the smart thing to do…

"Mr. Ketchum?"

Ash sighed. "Okay," he said. "I'm on my way."

He hung up.

He couldn't just leave and abandon Tangela. Sure, she had been a crazy lunatic that had tried to do…something bad to him and his friends and a whole bunch of other people too, but that was just because someone else had hurt her before. She needed help.

Besides, he just realized that he had also left Nidoran with her, and there was no way on Earth he was going to leave Nidoran behind!

He turned around to see Misty and May kneeling on the mat and leaning in to give each other a soft kiss. One of May's arms was curled around Yellow, pulling her into a tight hug while her fingers stroked her side, making her giggle.

Ash paused. "So…should I step outside, or…"

Snickering, the two girls parted. "Oh, this is just our way of saying good morning," May said, folding her other arm over Yellow and hugging her to her front.

"Or good evening," Misty said, checking the clock. "It's almost seven PM!"

"That was a good nap!" Yellow said, snuggling down further into May's arms.

"Yeah, but now I'm hungry." Misty swung her legs around and stood up. "Who was that, Ash?" she asked, reaching behind to adjust her panties.

"Oh, that was the PokeCenter," he said. "The scan on Tangela's done, and I guess they found something…bad. So now they want me to talk to the police."

"Er, what?" May said, tilting her head. "Didn't that go spectacularly wrong the last time?"

Misty picked her shorts off the ground and stepped into the leg holes. "That was Viridian City," she said as she pulled them on and zipped them up. "And apparently Viridian's always been pretty weird." She then lifted her suspenders up over her shoulders. "I never heard of any weirdness going on in Pewter City."

"Yeah, but even so…"

Ash found his pants and pulled them on. As he did, he noted with some annoyance and embarrassment that, yup, he had an erection, and a pretty stiff one at that.

As he adjusted himself, he heard snickering. He didn't even need to glance over to know why. "Oh, get over it," he said as he grumpily zipped and buttoned his pants up. "It's nothing any of you haven't seen before."

"True, true," May said as she also got out of bed. "Honestly, we ought to just walk around naked so long as we're here."

Yellow's eyes glimmered. "Can we?"

"No," Misty said.

"Aw."

Ash hastily pulled on his shoes and socks and retrieved his jacket. "Anyway, I got to go. You girls don't have to come, so…"

"Nah." May wiggled her way into her skirt. "Stick together. Safer that way."

"Won't that make it easier to catch us if someone wants to catch you?" Yellow said as she pulled her own pants on, followed by her tunic. She tapped her shoulder, and Chuey bounded up to his usual perch, carrying her hat in his mouth. He swung his head around and laid it on her head for her.

Now fully dressed as well, Misty and May headed over to where Ash was waiting by the door. "Or, it'll mean we can watch each other's backs if things go sideways," Misty said.

"Besides, if we let Captain Rotten Luck here go off by himself, he's all but assured to get kidnapped!" May declared. She punched Ash lightly in the bicep.

Ash glowered. "Ha ha ha. You know I'm not as helpless as you say I am."

"Never said you were! But you're still a trouble magnet. If you go by yourself then you'll probably get snatched up by a hungry Fearow the second you step outside."

"Or hit by a car," Misty added.

"Or hit by a falling brick!"

"From what?" May said.

"I don't know; it hasn't fallen yet! But it will when it sees Ash!"

"Okay, first of all, none of any of that was my fault!" Ash snapped. "And second, I think I did pretty well at driving off Team Rocket and stopping Tangela."

Misty cleared her throat. "So…exactly why did I get struck by lightning again?"

Ash wilted. "Oh. Yeah."

"And you had me to help with the first, and Yellow with the second," May said. "So that just proves our point!"

"You're acting like I was the one saying that you shouldn't come along! Well, I wasn't!" Ash whirled back toward the door. "I'm just saying that maybe I'm not some kind of walking disaster area-"

His elbow slammed right into the edge of the small table set up next to the door.

May snorted.

Ash's jaw dropped, and a long, high-pitched gurgle emitted from his throat. His eyes began to water, and he sank down to his knees.

"You okay, Ash?" Yellow asked.

"The pain…"

…

Though it was now evening, the Pewter City PokeCenter was no less busy when Ash and his friends showed up. If anything, there were now even more people bustling about than before, though this crowd seemed to have fewer traveling trainers and more locals.

That being said, as soon as they stepped inside, Misty halted in her tracks. Her nose wrinkled.

Ash noticed. "Are you okay?"

Misty's face was all twisted up. "I'll…be fine," she said.

"PokeGirl pheromones," May reminded him.

"Oh, right."

There were fewer PokeGirls around, but there were still some, and Ash had the feeling that their pheromones tended to linger.

They approached the front desk, where Nurse Joy was waiting.

"Um, excuse me?" Ash said.

Nurse Joy looked up from her computer. "Ash! Thank you for coming."

"Thanks for calling. Um, is everything okay?"

Nurse Joy's face was troubled. "That remains to be seen." She stood up. "Could you come with me, please?"

Ash swallowed. Oh, this wasn't good.

Then Misty spoke up. "Hey, is it all right if we come too?"

Nurse Joy frowned. "I don't think so. Ash is the one they want to talk to."

"Well, we were there too!"

"Yeah, I even helped Ash catch her!" Yellow chimed in.

"You were? Ah, well, then I guess that changes things." Nurse Joy nodded. "Okay, all of you follow me then."

She headed for the door behind the desk. As she did, Ash exchanged glances with the girls.

"Well, that's a good sign," Misty said. "If this was some kind of trap, she wouldn't have folded so easily."

"Yeah, unless she wants us all in one place," May said, putting her hands on her hips.

Ash swallowed.

Nurse Joy led the children into the PokeCenter's administrative section. She opened a door, and inside was an office. And inside was a police officer.

The officer that was waiting for them was a lovely young woman with green hair in a smart uniform. She was standing behind the desk and looking down at the set of photographs in her hand.

As Ash and his friends entered, she looked up and nodded. "Ash Ketchum, I presume?" she said.

"Er, yeah," Ash said nervously.

"I'm Officer Jenny of the Pewter City Police Department. Thank you for coming." Then she looked past him and frowned. "And they are?"

"My friends," Ash said. "They were with me through the whole thing with the Tangela."

"I helped him catch her!" Yellow proudly chimed in.

"And we…well, we watched," May said.

On the way over, the four of them had put together a story that would tell the police anything they needed to know while keeping Misty and May's status as PokeGirls a secret. Even if the local law enforcement wasn't crooked, letting that little detail slip would only spell disaster.

"Ah. Well, come in then, and shut the door behind you."

Uh-oh.

Everyone filed in, trying not to look nervous as they did so. Nurse Joy was the last, gently shutting the door and locking it.

Ash winced when he heard the lock click. True, they had two PokeGirls capable of unleashing torrents of flame and lightning bolts, to say nothing of Yellow's Pikachu and Pidgeotto (Metapod was something of a non-entity in this situation), but given everything they had been through, it was not a situation that he felt comfortable being in a locked room for.

Officer Jenny sat down behind the desk. She motioned toward the chair on the other side.

"Apologies that there aren't enough chairs for the rest of you," she said.

"That's fine! I'll just…stand, if that's okay," Ash said.

"Suit yourself. Let's get started, then," Officer Jenny said. She laid a pokeball on the desk, no doubt Tangela's. "And to start, I need you kids to tell me everything that happened when you encountered this Tangela."

A small smirk passed quickly over May's face, though she quickly hid it. Ash and Misty exchanged looks of discomfort.

Unfortunately, Officer Jenny picked up on it immediately. "Really?" she said. "Already? Aren't you like…" She sighed. "Oh, never mind. I don't want to hear it. Tell me everything regarding the Tangela."

Ash's face turned red. Darn, they really were going to have to get better at hiding that.

Sighing, Misty stepped forward. "Okay, Officer," she said. "It all started when…"

Working together, they told her about the Tangela's separate attacks on May and Yellow and later Ash and Misty, followed by the hunt for her lair and the subsequent battle. Only the version that they told left out any part that would identify Misty and May as PokeGirls. In this version, Tangela simply attacked them out of madness, and they were knocked out along with Ash and Yellow, and were part of the quest to hunt her down before she hurt anyone else. Beyond that, the discovery of her lair, the captured PokeGirls, and the ensuing fight was more-or-less how it actually went, just without May's contribution at the end.

"I see," Officer Jenny said when they finished. "Well, that much checks out."

"You saw it in her memories?" May asked.

Officer Jenny poked at Tangela's pokeball. "Unfortunately, no. Any recent memory is a muddled mess, with nothing discernable. We feel that by the time you kids came across her, she was acting purely on instinct and programmed behavior, with no rational thought driving her actions."

"You don't say," Misty said dryly.

"I do. And that's the point." Officer Jenny placed her elbows on the desk and entwined her fingers in front of her chin. "Ash, I'm afraid to say that you might have stumbled into something of a problem."

Ash's mouth went dry, which was a good thing, otherwise he might have been tempted to echo Misty's sarcastic statement.

"This Tangela wasn't just sick, she was obviously abused. Based upon everything we've been able to pick up, she was no doubt an asset for Team Rocket."

Silence.

"Now, you no doubt have heard of them," Officer Jenny continued, most likely unaware of the depth of that understatement. "And maybe you've gotten the wrong idea from news media." She scowled. "Especially since they seem to mainly report on their more…flamboyant failures. But believe me, they are a far more dangerous organization than what the tabloids would have you believe."

"We know," Ash said, before realizing that he probably shouldn't have let that drop.

Officer Jenny blinked. Then she shrugged. "Good. From what we have gathered, this Tangela was trained for the sole purpose of kidnapping PokeGirls for Team Rocket."

"What did they do to them after?" Yellow asked.

Officer Jenny fixated a long, hard look on the blonde girl. "Bad things," was all she said.

Ash swallowed.

"The Tangela is what is known as a 'retriever,'" Officer Jenny continued. "We believe that she escaped her captors, but since she was already sick from the abuse she suffered and since it knew no other life, she continued the behaviors that had been programmed into it, only now without a master to bring them to."

"That cave you found her in?" Nurse Joy said. "With all the strange assortment of junk and odd carvings into the wall? She was probably trying to recreate the laboratory she had been held captive in, as that was the only home she ever knew."

"How awful," May whispered.

"It is," Nurse Joy agreed. "Now, she is better off than she was. We were of course able to heal all physical harm she had taken, both what you had to inflict upon her in order to capture her and what she had suffered already, from her illness to the effects of Team Rocket's abuse." She smiled a little. "Fortunately, since Tangelas' cognitive functions are spread throughout their bodies instead of being concentrated within a single brain, that also means easing some of the mental hurt as well."

"So she's not all crazy anymore?" Yellow asked.

"Well, it means that any negative behavior caused from physical abuse will probably be…muted. But psychological damage is another problem entirely. Some wounds just can't be touched by a Healing Machine."

Ash's hands clenched at his side. He knew that someone had done something terrible to Tangela, but this was beyond what he had feared. For someone to treat a Pokemon that badly, to force her to do such terrible things to the point where she couldn't stop even after escaping, well, that just filled him with a deep, simmering rage. And that wasn't even getting to the poor PokeGirls she had been used to kidnap before she had gotten away! He didn't want to think about what had probably happened to them.

Then Misty cleared her throat. "So, uh, I guess that means you're keeping her?" she said. "Seeing how it was used by Team Rocket and all."

Ash's head snapped up, his eyes wide. He hadn't even considered that!

But Officer Jenny merely frowned. "Everything we needed to get from your Tangela, we have already," she said. "We have no use for a former retriever, only for what is in her memories."

At this, Ash perked up. "So I can keep her?"

At his side, Misty frowned.

"That's…uh…" Officer Jenny glanced up at Nurse Joy. "Nurse, perhaps you can explain."

Clearing her throat, Nurse Joy stepped forward and said, "Ash, you caught the Tangela. That means she is legally your property, and since it's clear that you are not mistreating or using her for illegal purposes, we have no call to take her from you."

Though he felt a little relieved at that, Ash was still on his guard. "But…?"

"But I still must urge you to leave her with us regardless."

Ash had been afraid of this. Even though he hadn't know the full truth of what had happened to Tangela, given her condition the PokeCenter would probably decide that he wasn't experienced enough to handle a Pokemon like that and try to take it away from him.

Seeing the look in his eye, Nurse Joy sighed and said, "Ash, understand that I am only looking out for Tangela's best interests. It is clear that she has suffered horrific treatment, and that sort of thing leaves a lot of psychological damage."

"And you don't think I can handle it," Ash said.

"Yes, that is exactly what we think," Officer Jenny said bluntly.

Wincing, Nurse Joy said, "Ash, I can tell you must be talented as a trainer, but even so, you have been a trainer for a very short period of time. You have no experience in dealing with something like this. Even a veteran trainer with several badges would find taking care of Tangela challenging. We have people here specially trained to help Pokemon like her, to care for her and help her heal."

Ash stared at the pokeball sitting on the desk, the one containing Tangela.

His whole life he had wanted nothing more than to be a Pokemon trainer. He loved Pokemon. Some of his earliest and fondest memories were of his father showing him pictures and mementos while telling little Ash stories of his own journeys as a would-be trainer. He was always enthralled by the televised matches, not just because of the violence or spectacle, but by watching the synchrony between Pokemon and trainers and how it showed the world the bond that had been built between them. He always enjoyed watching traveling trainers come through town and how they would interact with their Pokemon, treating them as friends and equals, and he would wonder what adventures they had been on together and what stories they had to tell. Sometimes we would even ask them.

Tangela was one of the very first Pokemon he had ever caught, second only to Nidoran, and he had worked and fought hard to capture it. He had known that training Tangela, that building trust and helping her overcome her trauma would be a momentous task, and he was fully prepared to put in the work. How could he do any less?

And yet…what Nurse Joy and Officer Jenny were saying did make sense. The thought of giving up his second Pokemon galled him, but maybe they were right. Tangela wasn't situation was far, far beyond someone of his age and meager experience. And sometimes caring for something meant knowing when to let go, when to let someone older and more qualified take over. Maybe it would be better to leave Tangela in their care.

Ash almost agreed, right then and there. He started to open his mouth to relinquish ownership of Tangela, to tell them to take care of it.

But then he stopped himself.

Thinking of Dad brought up other memories.

No, sweetie. He's not…he's not coming home. He…He had a bad accident. Do you understand what I'm telling you?

And with that memory now surfacing, it was bringing others up with it.

Fine! I don't need this, and I don't need a loser like you! And you know what? I was only hanging out with you because I felt sorry for you. Smell yah later!

Ash's right hand clenched into a fist at his side.

I don't see why you're so upset. I mean, it's just one match. You would have done the same if you were battling your girlfriend!

Ash's hand began to shake.

Ash, I'm sorry, I know I promised what I promised, but I can't do this. So please, when we get to Cerulean, I need you to release me.

"Mr. Ketchum?"

Ash blinked. Officer Jenny was still staring at him, waiting for an answer.

Ash breathed out. No. He had spent his whole life being abandoned, being left behind, even being betrayed. He had lost nearly everyone he had ever cared about, or was left by them.

And he was not about to start doing the same.

"My Pokemon," he whispered.

"I'm sorry?" Nurse Joy said.

Shaking his head, Ash looked up right at her and said, "Look, I know you mean well, and you're only want what's best for Tangela. But she's still my Pokemon. I was the one that went after it. I was the one that fought it, side-by-side with my friends. I was the one that caught it. And I was the one who brought it here to be helped. What kind of trainer would I be if I just abandoned it just because taking care of it is going to be tough?"

"A smart one," Officer Jenny said without hesitation. "One that puts the wellbeing of his Pokemon over his selfish pride."

At this, Ash fixed her with a hard stare. "She's my responsibility."

"Ash, please," Nurse Joy said, laying a hand on Ash's shoulder. "Think about what's best for Tangela."

"I have. And I've made up my mind." Ash held out his hand. "I'd like my Pokemon, please."

Officer Jenny didn't move to hand him the pokeball. "Kid, this isn't some surly Charmeleon. This Pokemon is genuinely deranged. And you've had your license for less than a week."

Much, much less, actually, but Ash wasn't about to point that out. "Maybe so, but caring for troublesome Pokemon is part of my job now. And I want to do my job."

Officer Jenny glowered at him, but Ash didn't look away.

Then Nurse Joy sighed. "I understand," she said. "I don't really agree, but I understand." She picked Tangela's pokeball off the table and handed it to Ash, who wasted no time shrinking it down and placing it on his belt. "However, we do have a wealth of material on how to care for a traumatized Pokemon, and I urge you to make use of it."

"I will," Ash promised, and he meant it.

"Just for the record," Officer Jenny butted in. "I still think this is a spectacularly bad idea."

At this, Nurse Joy shot her a look. "You're already handling the criminal part. Let me handle the Pokemon part."

"Suit yourself. I have what I need anyway." Officer Jenny stood up and nodded politely. "A good night to all of you." She moved toward the door.

Then May cleared her throat. "Um, officer?"

Officer Jenny paused. "Yes?"

"The PokeGirls? The ones that Tangela kidnapped for Team Rocket? You'll…help them, won't you? You'll try to rescue them?"

At this, Officer Jenny's look of disgruntlement softened. "We certainly intend to try," she said, placing her hand on May's shoulder and giving it a comforting squeeze. "And what we learned from the Tangela gives us a place to start."

May looked relieved. "Thank you."

Nodding, Officer Jenny turned for her. But before she left, she paused. "Oh, and kid?"

Ash stiffened. "Y-Yes?"

"Good luck. You're gonna need it."

The police officer tipped her cap and walked from the room.

When she was gone, Nurse Joy turned to Ash and said, "While she wasn't exactly tactful, she wasn't wrong. This is going to be exceptionally challenging, especially given your age and lack of experience."

Ash sighed. "Yeah, I know," he said. "But I have to at least try."

He was at least cognizant enough to not add that it was at least keeping with the sort of week he was having.

…

Credit had to be given to Pewter City, it knew what side of its bread the butter was on.

The PokeCenter, the Gym, the Trainer Hotel, the hospital, and the PokeMart were all within easy walking distance from one another, so that traveling trainers would have quick access to anything they might need. Capitalizing off this, there were also a number of different stores, restaurants, and other services set up in the area, all looking to show trainers a good time. As such, Ash and his friends had no trouble finding a place to finally get something to eat when they left the PokeCenter.

Hoothooters was a popular chain that was always open and served anyone. Notable both for its filling, yet affordable meals and PokeGirl waitresses whose uniforms consisted of very tight, very short orange shorts with the logo across the buttocks, knee-high stockings, orange sneakers, and nothing else, it was still considered one of the more family friendly establishments in the trainers' district.

"Here you go, kids," said the buxom brunette that was serving their table as she laid their orders down in front of them.

"Thank you!" May said happily as she accepted her plate, not even bothering to hide how much she was ogling the pair of breasts that hovered less than a foot away from her face. Seeing this, the waitress shot her a wink and shook her shoulders a little, making her tits jiggle.

"Oh, she is getting a massive tip," May said as she watched the waitress leave.

"You know that's why she did that," Misty told her. "To get you to tip."

"And it is working!"

"She's pretty!" Yellow said, also staring after the waitress. "I hope I can catch a pretty girl like her one day."

"Or better yet, get caught by one!" May declared.

Misty sighed.

"So does every town have a whole district just for trainers?" Yellow asked as she dug into her plate of porkchops and mashed potatoes.

"The smart ones do!" May said, twirling spaghetti around her fork. She lifted it and motioned toward the front door and the bustling trainer's district beyond. "It's pretty smart, actually. Traveling trainers form an essential part of the economy, so by making sure they get taken care of, you have a constant influx of money! But at the same time, the locals get to live in peace without a bunch of strangers tramping all over the place."

"Oh, neat! The only trainers we ever got in Pallet Town are those visiting Professor Oak or coming up from Cinnabar Island."

May snagged a butter-swathed chunk of garlic bread and sandwiched it around her fork of pasta. "Yeah, I bet that's why he set up shop in a town without a Gym. The only people that show up on his front door are those that actually have business with him." She took a big bite, the garlic bread's crust crunching in a satisfying manner.

Neither Ash nor Misty spoke. Despite being just as hungry as everyone else, Misty was picking at her chowder in discomfort while Ash had barely touched his pot pie. In fact, he had barely looked up even when the waitress had been by. Instead, he was nose-deep into the books the PokeCenter had given him on how to build trust and take care of problematic Pokemon.

Yellow tilted her head. "Ash?"

Ash didn't look up from the book he was reading. "Hmmm?"

"Do you really think you can get Tangela to listen to you?"

Ash blinked. "Of course I can!" he said, sounding slightly hurt. "Why wouldn't I be?"

"Because she's gone crazy from being tortured and you've only been a trainer for a few days," Yellow said, ignoring or not noticing Ash's indignation. "Most kids like you only have like a Rattata to practice training on."

"A kid like…What are you talking about, calling me a kid? You're the same age that I am!"

"Ash, take it easy," Misty said, laying a hand on Ash's arm. "She has a point."

Ash scowled. "You don't think I can do it."

"I think a rookie boxer trying to take on the heavyweight champion his first week in is making a big mistake."

Ash's face turned pink. He looked like he was about to snap at her when May sighed and said, "Hey, champ. Relax. We're on your side here, remember?"

"I…" Ash slowly breathed out. "You're right, I'm sorry. It's just…I have to try, don't I?"

The girls all exchanged dubious looks.

"Oh, come on! Don't you guys get it? I can't just abandon Tangela because she's been through a lot! I mean, if you have a kid who went through something bad and starts acting out, do you just get rid of them because you're scared?"

"Ash, she's not your kid," Misty said. "And you're not abandoning her, you're handing her over to the people who can help her the most. She doesn't know you, she never really met you, so she won't feel betrayed!"

"Well, I'll know," Ash said, fixating her with a hard stare. "And she's still my Pokemon."

"But that's not-"

"She's. My. Pokemon," Ash repeated, not averting his gaze. "Okay?"

Misty blinked. Then she looked away with a huff. "Well, I still think you're making a mistake," she groused as she bit aggressively into a chunk of garlic bread. "One that'll…" She felt something brush up against her groin. "…uh…"

Yellow titled her head. "That'll what?"

The thing pressing against Misty's crotch poked insistently, digging into her shorts. "Well, um…"

"Are…you okay?" Ash said, looking at her in confusion.

Okay? Well, sure, if one ignored the noseful of pheromones she had inhaled upon setting foot in the PokeCenter getting her hormones moving again, all the naked girls she had seen since not helping matters at all, her feelings of unease regarding the Tangela just making things worse, and her irritation at Ash and his stubbornness being the final ingredient to turn her into a bubbling stew of anxiety and horniness, then sure, she was fine!

Or she would be, if it weren't for the foot currently burrowing into her vagina!

Misty cast a baleful glower across the table over at the girl sitting directly across from her. For her part, May was casually leaning back in her chair, one arm draped over the back, the other holding a piece of garlic bread that she was taking small nibbles from. She caught Misty's eyes and smirked.

"Oh, I'm fine," Misty seethed through clenched teeth. "Just. Dandy!"

The toe of May's shoe pushed in, making Misty wince.

"Then why are you glaring at May like you wanna murder her?" Yellow inquired. "She hasn't-" Then she blinked and leaned back to glance under the table. "Oh, I get it!"

"Get what?" Ash said, still completely clueless at to what was going on. "What's going on?"

Another nudge, this one pressing in directly against Misty's clitoris. "Nothing!" Misty gasped. "Nothing's going on!" She considered giving May a warning shock. It would serve her right.

"Yeah, absolutely nothing," May said. Now her foot was swaying back and forth, rubbing into the denim. "Nothing going on with me or my rubber-soled shoes at all."

"Your shoes?" Ash blinked. "Okay, what's up? Is this some kind of joke I'm not in on?"

Dang it, she must have figured out what Misty was thinking. Still, she had other ways of sending sparks May's way without shooting them through her leg, such as sticking her hand under the table and giving her a zap.

Or she could stop playing along and confront the problem directly.

Misty abruptly sat straight up, making Ash jump a little in surprise. Without saying a word, she \walked around the table, seizing her infuriating friend by the wrist, and marched her to the back of the restaurant, all the while fully aware how much her cheeks were burning.

…

One of the irritating things about ducking the law on PokeGirl hunting was that you couldn't take advantage of the various amnesties provided for PokeGirl owners, lest your cover be blown. Since Hoothooters catered to trainers, there was actually a special section with walled-up booths in case any PokeGirl, whether they belong to a guest or worked as an employee, required any "special" attention.

Unfortunately, for obvious reasons kids weren't allowed in that section, so to take care of business Misty had to content herself with dragging May into the women's restroom, all the while praying that that it wasn't occupied.

It was, but those already in there seemed to be almost done. Three young women, two of the traveling trainers judging by the hiking gear they were wearing and the third evidently a PokeGirl if the crisscrossed bondage rope she was wearing was any indication, were washing themselves up at the sinks and touching themselves up at the mirror. They finished up, and the PokeGirl calmly pressed her forearms together behind her back, allowing one of the other women to bind them together, and the three of them exited the restroom, barely even glancing at the two young girls that had just walked in.

Thank goodness.

Making a beeline for the nearest stall, Misty pulled May in and shut the door. She slid the lock into place and turned to glower at her pushy friend.

Naturally, May looked didn't look the least bit repentant. "Well, if you gotta go, you gotta go," she said with a big, toothy grin. "But I don't get why you dragged me along with you. I mean, I'm pretty sure you're potty-trained, so-"

"Shut up," Misty said, and gave May a rough push, causing her to fall back onto the toilet.

Misty glared down at her. "Okay," she said. "Now I know you like feeling me up anytime, anywhere-"

"It's kind of mutual," May said with an unrepentant smile. "Or at least it was."

"I'm still figuring things out, okay? But even so, your timing right now was kind of suspect. What was that all about?"

Finally May sighed and drop the smugness. "Look, I could tell that you're a big ball of horniness and anxiety right now, and if you and Ash kept arguing you were going to explode."

"And you think making me hornier was going to help?"

"I think you need to let some steam out of the gasket," May told her. "And what better way to do that than let everything that's been bothering you off your chest to me while I eat you out? Two problems solved all in one go!"

"I…" Misty sighed. "Actually, fine, fine. That sounds like a great idea."

She slipped the suspenders from her shoulders, unbuttoned and unzipped her shorts, and pushed both them and her panties down to her knees. Then she grabbed May's head and pulled her face into her crotch.

May wasted no time going to work, kissing and nipping at the moistening folds while her tongue probed around the entrance. Her hands reached up to grab onto Misty's ass, squeezing both cheeks. Misty sighed and let her do her work.

After a bit, Misty said, "Ash is really determined to use that Tangela."

"Mmmm-hmmm," May mumbled around a mouthful of pussy.

"I don't like that thing, May. Not after what she did to us. I know it's not her fault, but she's still dangerous! What if she keeps attacking us because we're PokeGirls?"

May paused eating Misty out for a moment to look up at her, one eyebrow raised in a quizzical manner.

Misty moved May's head away from her vagina so she could speak. Wiping the saliva and juices from her lips, May said, "Red, it's still his Pokemon, and it's still his journey. If we're not going with him all the way, we can't really tell him what he can and can't use."

"I know, and I'm…trying not to, but it's still a bad idea! Ash is way in over his head with this one!"

May shot her a look. "How does that make it any different than literally everything he's done so far."

Misty returned the look, glowering down at the face held between her hands. "It only takes once. He's been lucky so far."

At this, May smirked.

"Oh, what does that look mean?" Misty demanded.

"You're worried about him," May said.

Misty huffed. "Of course I am! The boy is a trouble magnet! And if he isn't falling into trouble, he's making more of it through sheer stubbornness!"

May released one asscheek to hold her hand near her ear, pinky and thumb extended to mime a phone. "Hello, hello? This is Ms. Murkrow, calling Mr. Ghastly. Word has it that you're black."

Misty's scowl deepened. "Oh, get back to work," she said, pushing May's face back into her crotch.

As May enthusiastically went about her task, Misty sighed and looked upward, at the bathroom ceiling.

Maybe she should put her foot down. Maybe she should tell Ash that he was being a dummy and demand that he turn Tangela over to the PokeCenter. It was what was best for everyone, wasn't it? The PokeCenter would give it all the care it needed, and he could concentrate on building up Nidoran instead of having to take care of something so…broken.

But she had disappointed Ash too many times already. She had failed in showing him the sort of attention a PokeGirl showed her trainer, then she had broken her promise to go with him on his journey, and with that she had broken his heart. She was very aware of the crush he had on her, stronger perhaps than even the one he had on May. And she had no problem in returning those feelings, at least at first. But then the sheer misery of being a PokeGirl had killed that dead.

So how could she tell him to get rid of his second ever Pokemon, one that he was obviously determined to train? She had promised to help him on his journey, not be a nagging detriment.

Maybe there was another solution, one that she wasn't seeing. Some way of…

Misty's eyes fluttered closed.

…some way of…of making sure everyone…

…oh, that was good.

As Misty's insides clenched up in orgasm, she doubled over, the hands on May's head pushing her even harder into her pussy. She bit down on her lower lip, trying desperate to restrain the groan of pleasure that threatened to explode outward. They were still in a public bathroom, after all.

Finally the heat began to fade, and Misty finally let go of May's head. She fell back against the stall door with a sigh. Oh, that had been strong.

"Mmmm," May murmured as she wiped the warm arousal from her face and licked her fingers. "You know, your juices are kind of tangier now."

Misty blinked. "Tangier," she repeated. "Tangier?"

"Yeah, they've got more of a kick to them."

Misty's eyes knitted together in concern. "I thought you said it wouldn't do that anymore!"

"Oh, it's not that. We'd know if it was that. But they definitely got more a bit of a kick to them now, a kind of a zing, you know what I mean?"

Actually, Misty did. In addition to being warmer, May's own fluids had also become distinctly spicier after her own change.

She grabbed a handful of toilet paper and wiped herself down before pulling her shorts back up. Then she leaned back against the stall door with a sigh.

"That Tangela really bothers you, doesn't she?" May said, leaning forward to better converse with Misty.

"Um, yeah? After what she did to me?" Misty shivered. She could still feel the awful strength in those slimy vines of it. "But it's more about Ash. This is way too much for him, but he's going to insist on doing it anyway, even though it's going to go terribly wrong!"

"Well, you never know," May said. "I mean, the guy's pulled off some pretty amazing feats so far, ones that seemed impossible at the time."

"Yeah, but those were spur of the moment things! This is more…long term! It's going to go wrong! But I can't tell him that because it'll only hurt him! You've seen how he feels about people abandoning each other! He's already all broken up about us leaving, so how can I do that to him?"

"Yeah, to say nothing about that whole business with Yellow," May pointed out. "Sure, they made up, but that left one humdinger of a scar."

"You think?" Misty snorted.

And then she had a very uncomfortable thought.

"Come to think of it, him losing his dad so young also probably has a lot to do with it," she mused.

Now May looked more than a little uncomfortable. "Uh, I guess…"

"I mean, it makes sense, doesn't it? His dad dies, then his best friend turns on him, then his other friend who was supposed to be his partner backstabs him, and then after he makes friends with us we end up having to leave after promising to stay. No wonder he's holding onto that crazy thing so tightly!"

May made a face. "Er, well, you know, we…don't actually have to leave…"

Misty's head snapped up, her eyes narrowing with laser focus.

Seeing this, May raised her hands. "Hey, I'm just sayin'. Nothing stopping us from sticking to the original plan."

"May…" Misty growled, her voice full of warning.

"Oh, don't give me that look! I still think it's the best path for everyone! You don't even have to stay as-"

At that moment, the door to the bathroom swung open, and someone walked in, humming softly to herself. Misty and May both froze in place, listening as the other woman headed for one of the unoccupied stalls, followed by the distinct sound of her taking care of her business.

Moments later, they heard the other woman exit the stall. The sink turned on, turned off, and the woman…lingered.

Come on, Misty thought as she peered out through the gap between the door and the rest of the stall. The woman was still at the sink, tilting her head while looking at herself in the mirror. Fix your makeup later, you're at Hoothooters, for Pete's sake!

Finally the woman seemed satisfied and headed out. Misty and May listened with bated breath until the door finally swung shut, and they both released the breath they were holding.

"Finally," May muttered, stretching out her legs. "Anyway…"

Misty held up a hand. "Save it, May. I'm not staying this way, and that's final."

"Okay," May said. "We should still go with him though."

"How many times do I have to say this? I have responsibilities!" Misty folded her arms and scowled down at the tiled floor. "At least there people will start to respect me. Eventually."

May tilted her head. She frowned. "Hey, Misty? Can I posit something? You gotta promise not to electrocute me though."

Misty scowled. "I don't like the sound of that."

"Yeah, well, okay. But even so: is the reason you're so upset with Ash because him sticking with that Tangela means there's another person that should be listening to you…isn't?"

"Excuse me?"

"Hey, I call it like I see it," May said, holding up her hands. "I mean, you really hate the fact that even though you're an experienced trainer and the youngest Gym Leader ever, people still refuse to take you seriously, even after you've beaten them, right?"

"Oh, really! You think?"

"But then along comes Ash who falls head-over-heels in love with you and won't shut up about what a great trainer you are and how much he wants to learn from you, and that's before he learned that you're a Gym Leader." May shrugged. "But when you tell him that maybe hanging on to the super-traumatized and probably still crazy living nest of snakes isn't a good idea, he doubles down and refuses to hear any of it, and now he wants you to help him with something that you know is stupid. Well-meaning, but stupid, and it involves you and a Pokemon that you really, really don't like."

Misty felt her face get hot, and this time it had nothing to do with her heightened libido. May's words had hit a very raw nerve. True, she was open about her disdain for the lack of respect that she regularly received, but to have her issues with Ash dissected and laid out so plainly…

She slowly breathed out. "You…may have a point." No point in denying it. May might have her faults, but she was still the only person Misty had ever felt comfortable enough to be fully honest with.

"You know he doesn't mean anything by it, right?" May said. "He's just stubborn in his own way."

"Yeah, I know," Misty sighed. "But at least I'm stubborn about things I actually know a thing or two about! Anyone can teach him the basics, but when it comes to something big and serious that he actually needs to listen to the experts about, he plugs up his ears going LALALALALA, CAN'T HEAR YOU!"

"Hmmm."

Misty scowled. "What's that look mean?"

"Nothing," May said with a shrug.

Misty glowered. May looked unrepentant.

"So," May said after a long silence. "What's the plan?"

Misty sighed. "I'll help him," she said. "I mean, I don't want to have to deal with that thing again, but it's not really my call. I just hope it doesn't end up blowing up in-"

May slapped a palm over Misty's mouth.

"Shhh!" she hissed, pressing a finger against her own lips. "Are you crazy? Don't say that out loud!"

Rolling her eyes, Misty moved the hand away from her mouth. "There's no Jynxes in the restaurant."

"So what? They're always listening."

Misty shook her head and chuckled.

"Well, we'd better head back," May said.

She made toward the stall door, but was suddenly stopped when Misty planted a hand against her shoulder.

"Huh?" May quirked an eyebrow. "Misty?"

Misty was still breathing heavily, her cheeks flushed. "Okay, so I've been…coming to understand how you feel most of the time."

"Feel? You mean-"

"You were stupidly horny all the time even before I caught you," Misty said bluntly. "And ever since then, well, I thought you kind of turned into a deranged degenerate, but after…" She paused, and sucked in air through her teeth. "After…you actually deserve credit for how much self-control you have, because sweet mother of Arceus, this is insane."

May's face fell. "Misty! Don't go saying stuff like that! I have a reputation to uphold."

"Ha ha. Ha ha ha. Ha. My point is, I'm shocked you haven't gone as feral as that stupid Tangela."

"Meaning?" May said, arching an eyebrow.

In answer, Misty crouched down and slipped her hands up May's thighs to hook the waistline of her bike shorts. "Fair's fair, is what I'm saying."

…

"So…" Yellow said, glancing over her shoulder at where Misty and May had gone. "You know that they're-"

"Just ignore it, it's what they do," Ash said, not even looking up from his book.

"Ah," Yellow said with a nod. She swung her legs back and forth beneath her chair. "So, uh, do you really think you can get Tangela to listen to you enough to take on the Gym Leader?"

At this, Ash finally did look at her. "Of course I can! I mean, sure, it'll take some work, but that's what training is all about!"

"Oh, sure, sure, totally agree," Yellow said with another nod. "But what if Tangela can't beat his Pokemon?"

At this, Ash's face screwed up in confusion. "What do you mean? She's a grass-type, and his are all rock! Heck, most of them cross-type into ground or water, so that's double the weakness. Besides, you saw how tough she is! If we can get her to calm down, she'll be unstoppable!"

"Yeah, but he's a Gym Leader! That makes him the best rock-type trainer in the region. Don't you think he has some kind of counter? Like, one that knows a fire-type move or something?"

Ash hadn't thought of that. "Well, uh…"

"Also, he's got all those PokeGirls with him. If Tangela was programmed to go after PokeGirls, what if she just goes nuts and starts attacking them instead of her opponent? You'll get disqualified!"

That part Ash had thought of, and was very worried about. "Yeah, I know," he said with a sighed.

Yellow tilted her head. "So…what are you going to do?"

Ash looked down at the book he was reading. Flicking from one page to the next with his finger, he said in a soft voice, "I guess we're just going to have to get it used to PokeGirls then."

…

The next day…

This was it. It was time.

Everyone was gathered in the fields outside of Pewter. The spot they had chosen was wide, flat, and open, with no other trainers around.

Ash was on edge. His left hand was twitching, fingers clenching and unclenching over and over while he unconsciously chewed on the insides of his cheeks. Though he was committed to this, he would be lying if he denied that the apprehension was making his insides squeeze. Nidoran stood next to him, his haunches trembling, though not with fear. Rather, he was ready to charge at a moment's notice should anything go wrong.

Yellow was seated cross-legged next to him, Chuey at one side and Pi-Pi the Pidgeotto on her shoulder, ready to fly. Her elbows were in her lap and her chin resting on her fists as she stared serious-faced at the open space in front of them. Stringy the Metapod was lying in the grass, tilted against her thigh. He wasn't actually there to contribute, Yellow had just brought him out so he could get some air.

Standing at a distance across from the two of them were Misty and May. Misty was just as openly apprehensive as Ash, if not moreso. She was shaking, with one hand crossing over her belly to grip the opposite arm. At her side, May wasn't trembling with fear, but she was wary, standing ready with her arms loose at her sides, ready to start shooting off fireballs at the first sign of trouble.

Ash took a deep breath. Okay. Here went nothing.

He plucked Tangela's pokeball off his belt and expanded it. Rolling it around in his fingers like a baseball, he readied himself for the worst.

And then he threw it.

The pokeball popped open, spewing out digitized and glowing essence. The light collected together, forming a rounded shape in the grass.

Across from him, Misty and May both tensed up, and Nidoran lowered his head.

The light faded, and Tangela appeared.

On the upside, she looked much, much better now. Even without the damage Ash, Yellow, and May had inflicted upon her, her vines were now a healthy, robust shade of greenish-blue; her eyes now white with no popping veins, and she wasn't dripping slime anymore. Even her shoes, which had been faded, cuffed, and falling apart, were now whole, cleaned, and shiny.

Tangela straightened up. She blinked several times and looked down at herself. A few vines disentangled from the whole and curved around in front of her eyes so she could get a better look.

"Tan?" she said, turning the vines around to inspect them all over. "Tangela?"

Her voice sounded better. Still kind of high-pitched and raspy, but that was probably normal for Tangelas. Furthermore, she was no longer was as shrill and deranged as it had been.

Then Tangela looked up and saw Ash and Yellow staring at her.

Ash stiffened, bracing for a potentially violent reaction.

However, Tangela didn't attack. She didn't even seem angry. The dark space around her eyes twisted up in a manner that closely resembled a furrowed brow, and she tilted her…her head? Her body? They did seem to be one and the same. Regardless, she tilted to one side as she looked the two young trainers and their wary Pokemon up and down.

"Tangela?" she said, the confusion evident in its voice.

So far, so good. According to Nurse Joy, Tangela had been so crazy from abuse and disease that she probably didn't even recognize them. If that was the case, then maybe Ash would be able to build trust between them.

"Hey there," he said, kneeling down in front of her. He slowly extended one hand. In his palm was a small handful of crumbled-up Nanab berry pokebricks, purchased at the local PokeMart. Nanab berries were known for their calming effects, so maybe they would help.

"See?" he said as Tangela warily regarded the treats in his hand. "You don't have to be afraid." Or angry, he hoped. "I'm a friend. We're all your friends."

"Tan?" Tangela inquired as she slowly inched forward, eyes flitting from Ash's face to the pokebrick powder. She slowly reached out with one vine.

Ash involuntarily tensed up. Seeing this, Tangela froze in place.

Darn it, I'm making it nervous! Ash thought. He forced his muscles to relax.

"It's okay," he said, holding his hand out further. "This is for you. It's good."

Tangela still looked suspicious, but she did extend her vine the rest of the way. The sinuous appendage passed over Ash's hand, and the powdered pokebrick was gone.

The Tangela withdrew the vine into her body. The whole mass shivered, and then Tangela blinked once.

"Tan!" she said, its eyes beaming.

Ash slowly breathed out. It was working!

"See?" he said, reaching over to pet the top of her body. Its vines felt strong and vigorous, a far cry from the agitated slimy things they had been. "I'm your friend! I'm here to help you."

"Whew," Yellow said, her shoulders relaxing. "This isn't so bad!" On her shoulder and in the grass, both Chuey and Nidoran relaxed as well, the two Pokemon breathing out twin held breaths.

"Well, this is going way better than I thought it would," May called.

"I know!" Ash said happily as he continued to pet Tangela. "I don't know what Nurse Joy was so-"

Tangela glanced behind herself, likely in response to May's voice.

And then she saw the two PokeGirls, and went completely stiff.

Uh-oh.

"Ash?" Misty said, alarmed. "She's looking at us weird!"

"Tan," Tangela said, her voice now an agitated growl.

"Uh, wait!" Ash darted around to put himself between Tangela and the PokeGirls. "Don't!"

The pupils of Tangela's eyes had narrowed to tiny dots. Her vines were all starting to extend, their lengths shivering. "Geh."

"Don't attack them!" Ash cried as he spread his arms wide to shield his friends from a possible assault. "They're not your enemies, and you don't need to-"

"LA!" Tangela spun back around and took off, her vines waving in the air. She barreled right past Nidoran, knocking it down. "TANGELATANGELATANGELA!"

Everyone stared in shock. Of all the possible reactions they might have gotten, panicked fleeing was not one they had anticipated.

"So, uh," May said, finally breaking the silence. "Good news, your Tangela isn't crazily obsessed with kidnapping PokeGirls anymore." She folded her arms. "Bad news? It's now terrified of us."

"Buh," Misty said. She was hunched over, arms hanging slack, unblinking eyes bugging out and staring straight ahead.

Then Ash shook out of his stupor. "Tangela, WAIT!" he cried as he ran after his patient. "COME BACK!"

…

Panic-panic-panic-panicpanicpanicPANICPANICPANIC!

Run. Run, run, run, run.

Get away. Get away. They're here. They're coming.

Human girls. Human girls with Pokemon power. PokeGirls. Revenge. They know. They know what they made us do, they know about the hunt, about the catch, about the hurt, about the sleep. They know, they hate, they want to hurt us, they want revenge.

Run. Past child-boy with kind voice, past child-girl with bright face. Don't let them catch us.

Feeling strong. Feeling healthy. Long time sick, now well. Good. Strength for running, strength for fleeing. Over hills, across fields. Find forest. Find trees. Find safe place.

Over another hill. Forest should be close. Up and over and keep going until safe, until-

No.

No, no, no.

No, no, no, no, nonononononono!

More humans beyond, more humans in field. Some normal, some PokeGirl! Humans walk with PokeGirls, humans sit and eat with PokeGirls, humans kissing PokeGirls, humans mating with PokeGirls.

PokeGirls everywhere. They will see, they will now, they will attack.

Go where? Back? No. Forward? No. Trapped. Trapped, trapped, trapped.

Need help! Save us! Someone, save-

Light.

…

Ash sighed as Tangela's body dissolved into light and was recalled into her pokeball. Whew, that had been a close one.

"Well, that could've gone better," May remarked. As fast as Ash had been running after Tangela, she and Misty had caught up prettily easily. "Then again, it could have gone so much worse."

"I guess," Ash said. Wow, he had not been expecting that.

Then he looked up at all the other trainers and their PokeGirls milling about the field that Tangela had ended up fleeing into. Those closest had taken note of the clamor and were looking toward the children with expressions of puzzlement.

Ash grinned nervously and waved. "Everything's fine!" he said. "Go back to your…" His eyes fell upon one staring couple, the girl facing the guy and sitting in his lap, neither of them wearing pants, both seemingly frozen in mid-thrust, and his voice faltered. "Uh…"

"Carry on, citizens!" May said as she grabbed Ash by the arm and pulled him away. "Don't let us distract you."

Dumbstruck, Ash could do nothing but let himself be dragged off.

Yellow then came racing up to the trio. "Hey," she panted, doubling over to rest her hands on her knees. "Did you catch it?"

…

As the problem turned out to be significantly different than what they had prepared for, Ash and his friends decided to break for lunch and talk things over.

"You sh'now," May mumbled around a mouthful of pad-thai noodles. "Dish ackuashly beddah!"

"Yeah?" Ash said as he grumpily picked at his fried chicken. "How do you figure?"

May slurped all the noodles into her mouth and swallowed. "Before you were worried that Tangela would be all crazy and violent and ARGHARGHARGH!" She mimed a monster clawing at the air. "So you thought you would have to train her not to go all berserk on us, right? Well, turns out all you gotta do is get her to trust us, and that's WAY easier!"

"You know, she has a point," Yellow said. Either forgetting or not caring that it was, in fact, lunchtime, she had ordered an absolutely colossal stack of pancakes, one that towered over her head. Both Misty and May had been of the opinion that there was no way she was going to be able to eat them all, and had said so. Ash hadn't joined them, as he knew better. Sure enough, she was more than a fifth of the way down. "Getting someone to not to be scared of you has GOT to be easier than getting them to not hate you and want to kidnap you!"

Ash sighed. "I guess." He reached over to poke at Tangela's pokeball, which was sitting on the table next to his plate. "It's just that Tangela's been through so much. I don't want her to be scared of my friends."

Misty sighed. "Be nice if you cared as much if your friends were scared of her," she mumbled too low for anyone to hear.

"So, what're you planning on doing?" Yellow inquired. Her stack of pancakes was now forty percent gone.

Ash scratched his head. "Well, we'll have to take it slow. It doesn't seem to mind me and you, so we can start there." He looked over to Yellow. "I mean, if you don't mind sticking around for a little longer."

"Nope!" Yellow said. "I'm glad to help you make friends with your ex-Team Rocket kidnapper!"

Silence fell, not only over the table, but also the tables surrounding them. One middle-aged couple was giving them some very perplexed looks, and a passing waitress paused to do a full double-take.

Sighing, May laid a hand on Yellow's shoulder. "Gotta work a little on that filter there, Yellowicious."

"Well, that's what it is," Yellow said with a shrug.

"Do we have to do it right away?" May asked. "I mean, we're all still pretty beat from hiking through that forest. We should have the afternoon to chill out a bit, at least."

Ash looked pained. "But I want to beat Brock as soon as possible! Gary-"

"Ash, that slimy little twerp has a car! He's beating you to Indigo Plateau no matter what you do! But that's not going to make the tournament start any earlier. He's going to have to wait for it like everyone else, and that'll give you plenty of time to catch up!"

"Yeah, but-"

"Besides, we're all bushed, no pun intended. And we already learned a lot about your wacko, walking shrubbery." May shrugged. "Maybe taking a break will help clear your head so you can figure out what to do next."

Ash looked down at the table with a skeptical frown on his face.

"Ash, seriously, she has a point," Misty said. "Take it from me: trainers waltzing in and winning a badge their first day is super rare. Most take three or four days with multiple tries, and it's not uncommon for them to hang around a week anyway to prepare for the next part of their journey. Actually, it's probably the smart thing to do, especially when someone attracts as much trouble as you do." She reached over and gave his cheek a poke. "So relax. There's no rush."

"I…" Ash sighed. "Okay. Fine. I guess slowing down a bit makes sense."

"Great!" Yellow said around a mouthful of pancake. She swallowed. "I've always wanted to go explore Pewter City, and…what?"

May was staring openly at her. "That was the last pancake."

In answer, Yellow ran her tongue around her mouth, licking away any clinging syrup. "Yummy!"

"How the heck are you so skinny?"

"She's just like that," Ash said. "Everything that goes in just burns!"

The waiter came by with the check and they settled up. On their way out, Yellow said, "So! What do you guys wanna do?"

"Oh, I have an idea," May said, her eyes glinting.

Misty sighed. "Oh, here we go…"

"The PokeGirl Market!"

Ash made a face.

"Oh, come on!" May looked from Misty to Ash's face in dismay. "How could you say no to that?"

"I dunno," Ash said, scratching behind his head. "I just was never that interested in PokeGirls."

At this, May's eyes narrowed dangerously. "You, uh, wanna maybe reconsider that little comment, champ?"

"Uh, present company excepted, of course!" Ash said hastily. "And I meant as a general concept!"

"Well, I want to go!" Yellow said, reaching up to give Chuey a good scratch. "There's bound to be lots of pretty girls there!"

"Duh!" May said.

Misty quirked an eyebrow. "You…do know that kids aren't allowed into those, right? It's sixteen and up. You do know that, right?"

"Oh, please!" May snorted. "Like they really care. That's only at the front gate. Once you're in nobody gives a crap, and there's always a way to get in!"

"Why do I get the feeling that you're speaking from experience?" Ash said.

May grinned. "We have PokeGirl Markets at Hoenn, you know."

"That's a whole different region! How do you know this one's the same?"

"It is," May said with confidence and without explanation. "But fine. If you two are gonna be a couple of wet blankets…" She turned to Yellow. "What about you, Yelly-Belly? Wanna check it out?"

"Oh, definitely!"

"Great!" May grabbed Yellow by the wrist and ran off, with the younger girl enthusiastically sprinting after her. "See you guys later!"

Ash and Misty stared after them.

"They're going to get caught," Ash said.

"Yeah," Misty sighed. "I know."

"Um, would it…you know, get us in trouble if they do?"

Misty shrugged. "Probably not. Kids try to sneak into those all the time, so they'll probably just get kicked out."

"Oh. Okay then."

The two stood uncomfortably side-by-side, mostly staring after May and Yellow, but also sneaking brief, furtive glances at one another.

Then Misty cleared her throat. "So…" she said. "What do you want to do now?"

"Um…wanna go to the museum?"

Misty blinked. "The…museum?"

"Yeah, you know! The Pewter City Natural History Museum! I've always wanted to go."

"I…" Then Misty shrugged. "You know what? Sure. Let's go to the museum."

…

"So, what do they sell at the PokeGirl Market?" Yellow asked as she and May headed down the street.

"Lots of things! Fetish outfits, toys, virility drugs, pornography in every color of the rainbow! Plus, the usual stuff like human balls, PokeGirl-specific potions, vitamins, that sort of thing."

Yellow frowned. "So they don't sell PokeGirls?"

May laughed. "Uh, yeah. You can only actually buy PokeGirls on the Black Market, and that is, like, super illegal. Even trading PokeGirls is frowned upon!"

"Oh."

Smiling, May patted her young protégé on the shoulder. "Oh, cheer up! There's plenty of stuff for girls like us! It's also kind of like a big expo! They've got shows, runways, and plenty of PokeGirl-only battles! There are boobies in abundance in there!"

At this, Yellow brightened. "Oh! That's good to hear."

May couldn't help but smile. "You really like boobs, don't you?"

"Well, of course I do! Boobs are nice."

"That they are! Butts too, though. Can't forget the butt."

Yellow nodded enthusiastically. "Agreed! Leaf had a great butt. That's part of why I liked going out with her so much."

May raised an eyebrow. She was starting to develop a certain theory about Yellow, one that she intended to fully test.

"Well, there you go. But PokeGirls are more than just T and A with a pretty face. There's the tummies as well, especially if they come packing abs, the kind you can rub your face against!"

"You mean like Misty's?" Yellow inquired.

May nodded. "Exactly! Oh, and the legs, can't forget the legs, especially the ones with the definition. And arms. Girls with biceps just make me go…" May shivered in ecstasy. "Oh yeah!"

"So you like buff girls?" Yellow asked.

"I like all girls! But yes, buff girls are special. Big, strong arms that'll crack your back when they hug you, long legs they can wrap around you, thighs that can crush your head like an almond…" May sighed happily. Just talking about it was making her dribble a little.

"Huh." Yellow took her hat off to scratch her head. "You sound like you wanna get beat up."

"I do wanna get beat up! But, like, by a specific kind of person. Some ordinary Joe Shlmoe? No thanks, I'll boil his fat for trying. But a big muscly queen?" May's pink tongue flicked out to run over her lips. "Yes. I would like that very much."

Yellow glanced over to the electric rodent sitting on her shoulder. They both shrugged.

"Oh, hush. Trust me, it is a thing. Oh, look! There it is!"

They had left the main metropolis and came out into a public park. One large, oval-shaped section of the park had been walled off, and over the area within a large pink tent decorated with red hearts had been set up. From within, they could hear the sound of voices mingling with pop music. There was a single entrance leading to the streets, one guarded by a pair of PokeGirls wearing white bikinis and caps bearing the market's logo on each of their right breast and caps, and over the entrance was a sign proudly proclaiming PEWTER CITY POKEGIRL MARKET!

"Neat!" Yellow said. "Let's go!"

She started to run toward the main entrance, but then May's hand came down on her shoulder, holding her in place.

"Huh?" Yellow looked at her in surprise. "What's wrong?"

May shook her head. "Patience, my young pupil! Haven't you been listening? PokeGirl Markets are sixteen and up! There's no way they'd let us in through the front gate.

Yellow's face fell. "Then how do we get in?"

"By observing local customs!"

"What?"

Instead of answering, May indicated for Yellow to follow her.

They walked around the large tent to the park itself. From there May led Yellow up a hill overlooking the PokeGirl Market, one that was high enough to give them a good view of its back.

Once at the top, May sat down in the grass and waited. After giving her an odd look, Yellow sat down beside her. She picked Chuey off of her shoulder, placed him in her lap, and idly scratched the back of his head. Chuey, who was still very confused as to what they were supposed to be doing, simply shrugged and settled back, willing to tolerate his human's weirdness if it meant scratchies.

After about a minute, Yellow asked, "So, what exactly are we supposed to be doing?"

"Waiting," May said.

"Ah," Yellow said with a sage nod. "Okay."

Another forty seconds passed.

"And what are we waiting for?"

"Information!"

"Got it." Yellow reached around to start gently massaging Chuey's cheek-pouches, making it chortle with happiness.

The two sat together side-by-side for a couple more minutes, May surveying the scene like a Talonflame while Yellow kept switching back and forth between trying to spot what May was looking for and glancing at May herself.

Finally Yellow sighed. "Okay, exactly what information are we looking for, and how is just sitting up here going to-"

"There!" May suddenly thrust her finger down at the bottom of the hill.

The walls enclosing the PokeGirl Market weren't much in the way of barriers, being segments of portable walls of hard plastic joined together by chain-link fence. Most of the fenced areas in-between were very small, but at the spots where the curve was longer the fence was likewise stretched out even further.

And at one such point a trio of local boys, all looking to still be in middle school, were sneaking up to.

"Just watch," May said, laying a hand onto Yellow's shoulder. Yellow blinked but obeyed.

The boys approached the fence. Then, with one standing lookout, the other two knelt down and started tugging at the base of the fence itself.

To May's delight, the fence popped free from its housing, allowing them to peel it up. The boys hastily crawled under the hole they had made, ducked beneath the tent's canvas, and they were inside, pausing just long enough for the third boy to pull the fence back into place.

"There's always a weak spot for the local kids to sneak in," May explain to the surprised and impressed-looking Yellow. "Half the time the people running the market even know about it and don't bother fixing it, because at least then it keeps the kids from potentially damaging something trying to make another hidden entrance. And like I said, once you're in, so long as you don't stir up trouble, nobody really cares. The guards are there mostly for show, to say, 'Hey, we don't let kids in! See? We have guards and everything!'"

"Wow, you really know a lot about this stuff," Yellow said.

May shrugged. "Like I said, something things are just universal. Places with lots and lots of sexy girls doing sexy things and kids wanting to go look at the sexy girls doing sexy things and the people who run the places with the sexy girls doing sexy things doing the bare minimum of effort to keep the kids from getting into the places with the sexy girls doing sexy things."

"Huh," Yellow said. "But wait, why don't the kids just go to a PokeCenter or something. There's lots of PokeGirls there!"

"Did the PokeCenter have booths selling sex toys with live demonstrations and oil wrestling?"

"Well, no," Yellow admitted. "But it did have that one lady getting eaten out!"

May shrugged again. "Yeah, but you see that kind of thing everywhere. Besides, it's considered rude to stare at someone treating their PokeGirls. Here, it's encouraged." She stood up. "So! Wanna go see for yourself?"

Yellow leapt up as well. "Yes, Ma'am!"

However, as she stood up, Chuey suddenly hopped off her shoulders and bounded over to a nearby tree.

"Chuey?" Yellow said in confusion.

Chuey shot her a look. Then he folded his stumpy little arms the best he could and plopped down against the tree trunk.

"I don't think he wants to come with us," May noted. "Can't say I blame her. To a Pokemon, it must be kind of boring and really awkward and weird."

Yellow's face fell. "Come on, Chuey! It's not that bad, is it?"

With a long-suffering sigh, Chuey waved his paw toward the tent, in a "Go on, I'll be here" gesture.

"But-"

May took her by the hand. "He'll be fine. I'm sure our little pal has had enough of watching its trainer have her innocence spoiled for one week."

Chuey scoffed, and though she didn't speak Pokemon, May took it as him saying, "Innocence? What innocence?"

"That's not very nice," Yellow said with a frown.

"Oh, leave him alone," May said. She tugged at Yellow's hand. "C'mon, it's pretty girl party and we are going to crash it!"

…

The Pewter City Museum of Science was a grand building, two stories of white granite shot through with swirls of black and shimmering chips of quartz. A great crystal dome gilded with gold patterns of Pokemon of myth and legend rose up in its center, and its main entrance sat upon a wide porch overshadowed by a stone awning held up by many white columns that sparkled in the sun, led up to by a staircase with steps long enough to accomondate several guests at once.

Ash gawked up at it in awe. Even Misty, who had been in a weird mood all day, perked up when they approached the façade.

"Wow," Ash whispered. "It's even bigger than I imagined!"

"You've never been here before?" Misty asked.

Ash shook his head. "Nuh-uh! Always wanted to, but never got the chance!" He then grabbed Misty's hand. "C'mon, let's go!"

Misty jolted a little at the unexpected contact, but she shook it off and hurried after him.

Fortunately, the entry fee was discounted toward both children and trainers, and as they were both they paid next to nothing to get in. Ash was already hopping up and down in excitement as they entered the lobby.

"Misty, look!" he exclaimed, thrusting his finger at the lobby's centerpiece.

It was certainly impressive. Two fossilized skeletons of extinct Pokemon were locked in battle, one of them a massive two-legged predator with a long and powerful body and a huge spiked head with a gaping maw full of razor-sharp teeth, and the other a squat, four-legged tank with a head adorned with a flat, shield-like crest and two stabbing spikes protruding from either side of its nose.

"A Bastiodon and a Tyrantrum!" Ash squealed in delight. He ran around and around the exhibit several times to take in the recreation of the prehistoric battle. "So cool!"

Though this wasn't her first visit to the museum, Misty definitely agreed. Her last and only visit had been much shorter and less fun than she had hoped, as she had been there on League business and hadn't gotten time to enjoy the exhibits. She always meant to go back on her own, but her job kept her so busy that even during her Pokemon-catching journeys, she was too focused on making her quota to do any real tourism.

But now she and Ash could explore it at their leisure.

She gazed up at the two titanic monsters, each of them dead for several millennia. She remembered passing them during that trip and wanting so badly to stay and stare, but she and the other League representatives had been quickly ushered along.

"Amazing," Ash said as he came to stand by her, still staring bug-eyed at the pair.

Misty smirked. "You really like extinct Pokemon, don't you?"

"I like all Pokemon! But come on, you have to admit that this is cool!" He shook his head. "Man, what I would give to see one for real."

"Well, you just might," Misty said. "Brock's got a Kabutops, remember?"

"Yeah, that'd be sweet, but he's probably not going to waste it on a rookie like me." Then Ash's eyes brightened. "Hey, you know Brock, right? Have you ever seen his Kabutops?"

Misty sighed. "Ash, I barely know the guy. We've exchanged like, less than ten words. And no, I've never seen his Kabutops."

Cloning technologies had been made viable a long time ago, though they were heavily restricted. Unethical gene-splicing to create biological weapons was something that nobody wanted. As such, it was kept to things like repopulating endangered species and similar environmental projects.

However, a few years ago, someone had also discovered a way to recover enough of the genetic code from fossilized Pokemon that it might actually be recreated, allowing them to create an extinct creature from the ground up. Despite having been worked on for years, the process was still highly experimental, with only a scant handful of major successes thus far.

Ash's face fell. "Well, I guess that makes sense. Still, I'd sure love to see one. Hey, you think if I asked real nicely, he'd still let me see it?"

Misty shrugged. "Probably not. I mean, he might, but take it from me: having people ask to see Gym Leader's Pokemon gets really old."

"Aw, man. Well, I guess-" Then Ash frowned. "Hey, wait. Gym Leaders have really strong teams, right?"

"Well, yeah." Misty shrugged. "I mean, we're Gym Leaders."

"Well, what's your strongest Pokemon, then?"

That was actually a good question. "Hmmm, let me think," Misty said as she thoughtfully rubbed her chin. "In terms of sheer firepower, guess in terms of sheer bulk it comes down to Blastoise or Poliwrath, but I get the most mileage out of Starmie when it comes down to move variety. Oh yeah, Tentacruel is really versatile too. I like to bring that bad boy out against mid-level trainers."

Ash's jaw dropped. "You have a Blastoise and a Poliwrath?"

"Well, not on me," Misty said with a shrug. "But I have one of each at the gym." She sighed. "Which means they're basically being wasted on my sand-brain sisters."

"Wow. Um, what about a Gyrados? Do you have one of those?"

At this, Misty scowled in annoyance. "No."

"Oh." Ash wanted to ask why, but he had come to learn that when Misty had that look, it was time to back off.

Then Misty looked away from him, back at the fossils. "I can tell you about the extinct Pokemon I did get to see."

"Really?" Ash perked up. "You really got to see one?"

At this, the corner of Misty's mouth curved up. "Well, do you know who Lance is?"

At this, Ash very nearly exploded. "Know him? Of course I know him! He's the head of Indigo League, the greatest trainer in all of Kanto, maybe the entire world! Champion twelve years and counting, tamed the legendary Red Gyrados, cowed a hungry Salamence using nothing but his wits and nerves while stranded in the Hoenn mountains, and personally led the raid on the Team Rocket kidnapping ring in the Alolan Islands! I once waited in line for two hours to have him sign my poster, and…You know him personally, don't you?"

"Naturally," Misty preened.

Ash made an odd sound deep in his throat that was part choke, part squeak.

"I mean, I am a ranking member of Indigo League, so he's who I go to for advice and-"

Ash once again erupted.

"That is so cool!" he gushed. "What's he like? Is he as cool as he looks on TV? Oh my God, did you actually get to battle him? Did you-"

"Easy, easy!" Misty said hastily as she pushed Ash off of her. "I know him because he's basically my boss! It's not like we're close friends or anything!"

"But…But he's Lance!"

"Exactly! He's…well, he's really polite, but he's not exactly the most approachable person in the world, you know?"

"Oh, yeah," Ash said with a nod. "I mean, I only got to see him for like five seconds while he signed my poster, and I could barely speak the whole time! I mean, he was super chill, but I could tell that he didn't like being bothered."

"Oh, he does not. You're lucky you got to that meet-and-greet when you did, because those are super rare. Still, when I got certified I did get invited to his sanctum, and while I was there he did let me see his team." Misty's smug smile returned. "Which included a certain special someone."

At this, Ash inhaled sharply. Like any devoted fan, Ash probably had Lance's team memorized from top to bottom, and in addition to his menagerie of dragon-types and their cousins, Lance had one exceptionally rare and special specimen, one that had kicked up a great deal of fervor in the Pokemon community when he had acquired it a few years back.

"No way," Ash whispered. "You saw it?"

In answer, Misty extended her finger and swung it upward, toward the ceiling.

There, hanging suspended from wires, were the fossilized bones of a third prehistoric creature, this one an avian beast the size of a van, with a pair of massive wings and a long, bullet-shaped head filled with ripping teeth.

"The Aerodactyl?!" Ash nearly screamed. "You saw Lance's Aerodactyl?"

"Yeah, they actually found this chunk of old amber that had a prehistoric bug trapped inside," Misty told him. "And apparently it had drank the blood of an Aerodactyl right before it got covered in sap. So they were able to extract nearly the entire genetic code from it."

"I know that, everyone knows that!" Ash took off his cap to run his shaking fingers through his head of spiky hair. "And you've seen it?"

"Seen it? He let me pet it!"

Ash's jaw dropped, and Misty couldn't help but preen a little. With all the bruises her ego had taken lately it felt nice to be envied a little.

But then, rather than react in jealousy, Ash instead seized her by the hands while exclaiming, "You got to pet Lance's Aerodactyl? Oh my gosh, that is so cool! What was it like? What did it feel like? Were you scared?"

Misty blinked. She was taken off guard both by Ash's sudden enthusiasm and by how the sudden contact again sent jolts up through her body, and she found herself getting flustered. "I…it was…really cool!" she stammered out. "Um, it was…really warm. Yeah. Felt like a big, warm rock! And of course I wasn't scared!"

A lie, actually. Misty had been terrified, as the large, leathery, rocklike bird had a few traits with another flying-type Pokemon that Misty had been scared of her whole life, one that was aquatic, snakelike, and foul-tempered. She had heard that Lance had a few of those as well, and coupled with the fact that she had been a seven-year-old girl visiting Lance she had already been insanely nervous. It was only with Lance's gentle encouragement that she was able to extend a trembling hand and place it against the massive creature's side. But she wasn't about to tell Ash that.

"Wow, that's amazing!" Ash continued to gush. "Man, that is just the coolest! You're probably one of the very few humans to touch the only living Aerodactyl in the world!"

Actually, now that Ash mentioned it, she probably was. Certainly it had been touched by the scientists that had managed to clone it and those who had raised it, but that couldn't be more than twenty people at most. And of course there was Lance himself, as well as any guests he allowed to pet it, but how many could that be? The other Gym Leaders, maybe? Doubtful. Most of them had already been made Gym Leaders when the Aerodactyl was cloned. And then there of course was any PokeGirls that Lance's opponents might have used against that Aerodactyl, but honestly, those probably numbered even less. Lance didn't battle often, and when he did he had so many other Pokemon that the Aerodactyl was probably only brought out every now and then, and that was assuming that it would even be fighting a PokeGirl as opposed to a Pokemon, and even if the stars aligned and some PokeGirl found herself staring down the maw of a previously extinct Pokemon, she would probably fall back on ranged attacks! It was a flying-type, after all!

So Ash was probably right. She was part of a very exclusive group.

"Huh," she said. "I…guess I am. Neat."

Ash stared. "You really didn't realize how lucky you were?"

"I mean, I knew it was an honor, but…" Misty shrugged. "Look, it was right after I became Gym Leader. Things were moving very fast and I was under a lot of stress. Also, I was seven."

That made Ash's face screw up in confusion. "How did you get that job so young anyway?"

Misty froze.

"Misty?" Ash tilted his head in puzzlement. "What's wrong?"

Darn it, darn it, darn it! Come on, Misty! Snap out of it and think!

"Uh, w-won a tournament!" Misty said hastily. She laughed in what she hoped was a disarming manner, but inwardly she was cringing at how loud and fake it sounded. "Yeah! The old Gym Leader had retired, so there was a tournament for water trainers to take h-her place, and there wasn't an age limit, so I signed up! And nobody expected me to win, so nobody stopped me! But then I won, and they were really surprised but couldn't say that I couldn't take over, so I did! Yeah."

"Wow, that's crazy!" Despite how obviously transparent Misty felt that she was being, Ash still looked impressed. "It must have been something though."

"Er, yeah. It was. Ha, ha, You sh-shoulda seen the look on their faces, they were so mad!"

"I bet they were!"

Of course, the truth was anything but. True, there had been a tournament of sorts, but it had not been open-invitation, and only four young and scared girls had been allowed to participate, not that they had much choice. The previous leader and her husband had simply up and vanished, leaving behind nothing but a note and a will and four young, broken hearts, and since such a thing did have precedent, the League hadn't challenged the terms of the will, though Misty's sisters had raised holy hell after she had emerged victorious that still had yet to die down three years later.

Ash and May weren't the only ones with complexes with their parents. Misty just liked talking about hers the least. At least Ash still had fond memories of his dad. At least May hated hers enough to not regret making a clean break. In either case, there wasn't really a lot holding them down.

Not Misty. In her case, she had nothing but bitterness and questions.

"So, how big was the tournament?" Ash asked. "And how big of the team did you have at the time? Was it water-types only, or could anyone-"

"Hey, why are we going over ancient history when we could be going over really ancient history!" Misty hastily cut in with a nervous laugh. "I thought you wanted to see the museum, not make me tell boring old stories!"

"Huh?" Ash looked confused. "But they're not boring! I-"

"Cool! Then let's go!" Misty grabbed Ash by the arm and pulled him into the halls of exhibits, hoping that the treasures on display would distract him from asking any more questions.

…

Yellow waited anxiously as May peeked under the canvas. While this wasn't her first time breaking into someplace she wasn't supposed to be, it had never been anything quite like this before.

"Okay, let's go!" she said.

She crawled down beneath the canvas, and Yellow got down on her hands and knees to crawl in after her. The two girls emerged into what looked like storage area, an out-of-the-way place where several large containers of hard plastic were stacked, forming a small labyrinth in the back of the tent.

"What's this place?" Yellow said.

"Just where they pack up all the booths and merch when the market's closed," May said. She took Yellow's small hand into her warm palm and gave it a tug. "Come on!"

May led Yellow through the narrow spaces between the containers until they emerged into the market itself.

Yellow was immediately dazzled by the sights and the sounds. There were colorful booths selling sexy toys and tools everywhere; large monitors playing both pornography and PokeGirl battles; balloons of women in skimpy outfits, giant dildos, and Pokemon with really suspect anatomies attached to the booths; and even a few holograms of dancing PokeGirls. The babble of the crowd mingled with moans of pleasure coming from both the monitors and the booths, the sounds of battle, and sultry voices from speakers telling passersby why they should stop at such-and-such a vendor to buy such-and-such merchandise.

And everywhere were PokeGirls. PokeGirls working at the booths. PokeGirls walking with their trainers or even standing in groups conversing with one another. PokeGirls on stages shaking their butts and thrusting their hips for the audience. Some were naked, some wore tight outfits of shiny black leather, some were dressed as sexy nurses or cops or schoolgirls or teachers or cowgirls or any number of professions, some wore brilliantly eccentric clothing that was as extravagant as they were revealing, some wore lingerie or swimsuits, and a dozen other varieties of erotic apparel. They came in all shapes and sizes, all ages and heights, all different hairstyles and skin tones and personal aesthetics. The one thing they all shared was the raw sensuality in how they moved, how they looked at people, how they touched each other, how they did everything.

Yellow felt her mouth go dry. She swallowed and licked her lips as she stared out at all the beautiful women around her. That now-familiar tingle in her groin was starting to tickle, like it always did whenever she got to see May naked, which was often.

"Wow," Yellow whispered. "This is something else."

"Oh yeah, it is," May said, eagerly rubbing her palms together. She took in a deep, happy breath and held it for a long time before releasing it with a satisfied sigh. "Okay, so here's how this works: kids sneaking into these things happens all the time, and so long as we don't make trouble, no one's going to bother us. But if we bother anyone, they will not hesitate to give us the boot. So look, don't touch, don't talk to anyone, and if you have any questions at all, ask me, okay?"

"Got it!"

"Great!" May grabbed Yellow's hand. "Let's go!"

May pulled Yellow into the crowd, and they were immediately swallowed up.

Despite her eagerness, Yellow did have to admit that she wasn't wholly comfortable with this part. She didn't care for crowds of strangers even at the best of times, and suddenly having so many grown-ups all around her was putting her on edge.

However, that discomfort was muted some due to how many of those grown-ups were beautiful women.

Yellow was used to seeing PokeGirls, whether it be on TV or when trainers came to town. In her ten years of life, she had been blessed with a bounty of boobs to gaze upon, and she quite loved doing so. And she had occasionally come across PokeGirls servicing their trainers or each other, though those instances usually ended with her getting yelled at.

As such, she wasn't really a stranger to nudity or sex. Heck, just in the PokeCenter alone she had witnessed at least three trainers having sex with their PokeGirls. But there was a stark difference between witnessing something meant for someone else and the shameless display intended for everyone that she was seeing now.

Skin was everywhere she looked. Bare breasts and naked hips provided a feast for the eyes. And unlike the casual nudity of PokeGirls out in the streets, this wasn't just there, it was very much flaunted.

Yellow was so mesmerized by the display that she almost didn't notice that May was now speaking. When she did, she had to shake her head to clear her mind and try to pay attention.

"…thing is, if you want the good stuff, you head for the independent vendors," May was saying. "The official League stuff is…fine, but they're mostly focused on human balls, vitamins, essential crap like that."

"I've seen official League toys," Yellow remarked.

May made a face. "Sure, you can get yourself a set of bondage ropes and dildos or whatever, but they're kinda…safe. Like, base-level stuff, the kind of stuff that beginners start off with."

"Oh. And the other people aren't?"

A knife-edge grin slashed its way across May's face. "Oh, yeah. These guys specialize."

They broke from the main crowd and stood to survey their surroundings. There were a number of booths around them. These weren't as high-tech or flashy as the ones closer to the official League vendors, but they did look a lot…kinkier. There were toys, devices, outfits, and apparatuses being advertised that Yellow had never heard of and probably couldn't even guess to what their function was if each and every one wasn't getting a live demonstration.

Yellow stopped dead in her tracks. "Wow," she whispered as she took in the shameless display of sexual capitalism.

"It's something, isn't it?" May said. She gave Yellow's hand a gentle squeeze, her thumb idly caressing Yellow's knuckles.

"It sure is," Yellow said. Then her eyes went wide. "Oh, look at that!"

One booth was selling what looked like motorized saddles. They consisted of a padded half-cylinder that lay flat on a table, atop of which was a pink rubber strip covered with tiny bumps, with a dildo extending up from the center. A wire coiled out of the main body, attached to small set of controls.

Manning the contraption was a pair of PokeGirls, both of them wearing tee-shirts that bore the vendor's logo and nothing else. One, a petite girl with dusky skin, a slender figure, long black hair, and round glasses sat fully impaled on the dildo, her pussy lips pressed against the rubber strip, her bare legs splayed to either side, with shackles bolting her ankles to the display table. Her arms were bound tightly behind her, preventing her from going anywhere. The other, who was lighter of skin, curvier of figure, and had short hair dyed bright red, was operating a remote control with a look of fiendish glee. The first girl gasped and moaned as the chair and the attached dildo vibrated intensely both inside and outside of her. Quirking an eyebrow, the redhead thumbed a dial, increasing the vibration's intensity.

"Yeah, that's called a sybian," May told her.

Yellow continued to stare in awe. "What's it for? I mean, besides the obvious."

May laughed. "Well, the obvious, of course! It's fun! Plus, it has practical value as well. Trains your pussy to take a beating."

Now the redheaded PokeGirl was coming up behind her captive partner. With one hand she kept operating the sybian's controls, while the other reached around to begin caressing the other PokeGirl's bare thigh. She stroked and squeezed the trembling flesh before traveling up, slipping under the tee-shirt and pushing it up to reveal a dark nipple. This she pinched hard while leaning in to run her tongue up the side of her partner's waist.

"Wow," Yellow said, staring transfixed.

"Yeah, it's really something, isn't it?" May wistfully agreed.

Yellow then glanced up at the older girl. "Have you ever ridden something like that?"

"Nah. Never had the chance." She gave Yellow's hand a tug. "C'mon, there's way more to see!"

Though Yellow looked as if she wanted to stay, she reluctantly allowed May to pull her along between the booths.

While having a beautiful girl in some stage of undress to help advertise your wares was a tried and true method of drawing attention, when all of your competitors were doing the exact same thing in a place in which that sort of thing was expected, you really had to go the extra mile to stand out.

They stopped at another booth. There, a well-dressed, kind of tweedy-looking middle-aged man with thin hair and round-lensed glasses was proudly displaying a line of vibrators, from tiny ovals colored like Pokemon eggs to large, extravagant wands, and the lucky recipient of his demonstrations was a curly-haired redhead teenaged girl who was splayed spread-eagle to an apparatus, all of four of her limbs stretched out and shackled to a black metal pipe that wound around her in a large rectangle. She was completely naked, and the man was taking great delight in teasing her bare pussy with one of his products, a humming sphere colored like a pokeball at the end of a rubber-encased rod. He slowly ran it around the contours of the girl's mound, drawing out soft mewling whimpers and moans. Then, with an almost sadistic smile, he pressed it directly into the restrained girl's cunt, squishing her pussy lips beneath the vibrating bulb.

The girl threw her head back and gasped. Her whole body shook hard, her small breasts jiggling almost in rhythm with the vibrator, which was now getting soaked in her juices as she came. The man didn't let up though, instead keeping it pressed to her pussy while reaching up to roughly seize the girl's frizzy hair, keeping her head neck arched back as he forcefully pressed his mouth to the girl's, to both the girl and the audience's appreciation.

Yellow couldn't help but gawk. She knew that PokeGirls tended to be pretty…leaky, but boy, that was a lot! The girl had to be a water-type.

Speaking of which, she was getting a little moist herself. She squirmed a bit, pressing her thighs together. In contrast, her mouth was growing dry. She swallowed and licked her lips to wet them.

"Pretty nice, huh?" May murmured out of the corner of her mouth as she ran her thumb over the back of Yellow's hand.

Yellow swallowed hard. She glanced up at May and nodded once.

May smirked. She leaned down to peek her head under the brim of Yellow's hat, brushed a few stray golden hairs away from her ear, and brought her mouth in close to whisper, "Wanna go see the good stuff?"

Oh, the shivers going down Yellow's spine! "Th-This isn't good?"

"This is great, but there's more!"

"Okay," Yellow said, her voice catching. "Okay."

"Good." May's hand tightened on Yellow's and she pulled her along. "Then let's go!"

The two ran through the rows of booths of decadent excess, heading deeper into the market.

…

Though the museum technically was supposed to give attention to all fields of science, it was still located in Pewter City, so its exhibits were a bit more thorough and elaborate when it came to things that were dug out of the ground.

That seemed to suit Ash just fine. As he had explained it, he had a special fascination for the remnants of Pokemon past, both their remains and how they influenced early human cultures. And the museum had plenty to offer.

The two walked hand-in-hand through the displays, gawking up at the fossilized bones of Pokemon that had once roamed the Earth. Though she wasn't quite as into extinct Pokemon as he was, Misty still found it all to be extremely cool. She really ought to have made a trip down here earlier.

"Check it out!" Ash said, looking up at the empty exoskeleton that towered over them. It was a bipedal crustacean, one with a flat head with wide edges that stood almost as tall as a fully grown man. But most notably were the scythe-like blades at the ends of its arms, dulled by the eons but still lethal-looking.

"Yeah, good ol' Kabutops," Misty said, gazing up at the long-dead creature. "Wouldn't mind having one of those guys on the team. Brock is a lucky guy."

"Was his cloned from this, do you think?"

"Nuh-uh, they cloned a Kabuto for him," Misty said. She pointed at the collection of dome-shaped fossils on display around the Kabutops's clawed feet. "There's plenty more of those around, so they were able to get a more complete DNA scan. Besides, I'm pretty sure he wanted to raise it from scratch."

Ash nodded, respect in his eyes. "So would I. Be worth it to build that bond with it, especially since it would be all alone otherwise."

"And you'd get a bladed rock monster that knows hydro pump!" Misty pointed out.

"And I'd get a bladed rock monster that knows hydro pump," Ash said with a nod. "Those sword-arms are seriously cool. The only thing kinda like it that still exists I guess would be Scyther. Yellow nearly got cut in half by one when we were going after you and May in the Viridian Forest."

A little bit of Misty's enjoyment dimmed at the reminder of that terrible day, but she didn't let it show. "Kind of makes you wonder if Scyther is somehow descended from Kabutops. You know, like somewhere down the line."

Ash's eyes glimmered as they did whenever he got to talk about Pokemon. "You know, that's actually kind of a bone of contention with a whole lot of paleontologists. Like, you'd think so, since they look alike, but actually most texts point out that Scyther probably evolved independently, and it's all just a coincidence that they look so alike. Actually, Kabutops is probably the ancestor of Krabby and Venipede, believe it or not."

"Eh?" Misty tilted her head. "But those are nothing alike!"

Ash shrugged. "Well, you know, this Kabuto family was in one area of the world, and this one was in another area of the world, both ended up having very different changes over the years, so the line split off from each other.

Misty was honestly kind of impressed. "You really know your stuff about Pokemon, don't you?"

The compliment made Ash's cheeks flush a little, to Misty's enjoyment. "Well, I mean, it's just stuff you can read in books," he said as he awkwardly scratched the back of his neck. "I still have years to go before I'm anywhere as good as you as a trainer!"

Now it was Misty's turn to feel her face heat up. It wasn't often that she found herself flustered, much less by being praised by some dorky boy, but here they were. "Er, th-thanks, Ash," she said.

Ash blinked. Then he smiled in a sort of dorky, lopsided way that sent Misty's heart fluttering.

But Ash's gaze fell upon a different display, and he immediately lit up, ruining the moment.

"Oh, hey!" he said as he enthusiastically ran over. "Misty, look! Evolution stones!"

Beneath the glass was a collection of crystals, each one of a different color and composition, from the one that seemed to be crystallized magma to the one that looked so much like a large drop of water that if it weren't for the setting one might be excused for not believing that it was a stone.

"Yup, that's what they are," Misty said as she walked up beside him.

Ash gazed longingly at the row of gleaming crystals. Formed from natural minerals known to enact evolutionary changes in certain Pokemon's cells upon contact, evolution stones weren't exactly rare, but they were a valuable commodity to trainers, and given how much

"Just look at those beauties," Ash murmured. "I can't wait to get my hands on-Hey, have you ever used one?"

"Sure, we have them supplied from the League," Misty said with a shrug. "It's how I got my Poliwrath and Vaporeon."

Ash choked. "You have a Vaporeon?"

Misty shot him a look. "Ash, what part of Gym Leader didn't you understand? I've got a whole army of powerful water-types back at my gym!"

"Wow," Ash said, his eyes gleaming at the thought of it. "You must have every water-type that's ever been."

"Well, every one from Kanto, anyway," Misty said. "We try to stick to what's native." Though she definitely wouldn't mind adding a specimen or two from other regions, even if actually using any of them in Gym battles would be considered a major faux pas.

"Well, every one except Gyra-" Then Ash noticed the glares Misty was shooting him and wisely decided to shut up.

Sighing, Misty turned back to the display. "Though if it's evolution stones you're interested in, this is the one you need to keep an eye out for." She tapped the glass right over one shining specimen with a faint pinkish hue.

"A moonstone?" Ash blinked. "Why?"

"For Nidoran, silly! You know it wants to evolve! Well, that's how you go from Nidorino to Nidoking!"

Ash's eyes lit up. "Oh! Great point! Um, I guess it's not something I can just go into a store and buy…"

Misty shook her head. "Nope. Not saying that there isn't places that have them, but they're almost never in stock and stupid expensive. Your best bet is to pick one up yourself in Mt. Moon."

"Good point, good point," Ash mused as he rubbed his chin. "But aren't they hard to find?"

"Very. You're gonna have to get down and dirty to pull one out." Then Misty smirked and softly punched Ash in the bicep. "But fortunately for you, mining is illegal to give lost trainers like you half-a-chance of pulling one up, so it's not like it's been drained dry!"

"Dig one up, huh?" A small, faraway smile tugged at his mouth. "Just like my dad used to."

Misty's brow rose. "That's right! You said he was an archeologist?"

"For a little bit! He stopped after he got hurt and married my mom, but he did go on a few digs. We have this shelf at home of all the artifacts and fossils that they let him keep!" Ash held out his hands in front of him, indicating the shape of a small, round object. "My favorite is this one rock that has like a bunch of baby Omanyte fossils in it! Actually, Professor Oak told me that there's probably a fully-grown one in its center, but I've never broken it open to check. Even if there is, I'd think they'd want to stay together."

"Wow," Misty said. "Is that why you're into extinct Pokemon so much?"

"Er, kind of?" Ash scratched the back of his neck and shrugged. "But mostly because they're just cool, you know?" Then his face fell. "I wish he was still here. He was so excited when he heard about those cloning projects. He would've loved to see them come true."

Ash's comment sent another twang of guilt through Misty's heart. Losing his father had probably been the first of several people close to Ash that weren't around anymore, for one reason or another.

Don't blame yourself, she told herself. Not your fault. Just try to support this guy while you're with him.

Misty laid a hand on his shoulder. "Well, think of it this way: this is another way that you're following in his footsteps! First as a trainer, and also as a digger!"

That made Ash's face light up. "Huh, you have a point there. Thanks, Misty!"

Misty smiled and gave his shoulder a squeeze. The unlucky dork really didn't have a clue how cute he was, and in more ways than one. The first being how adorable he got excited talking about something he was passionate about, or how openly he wore his heart on his sleeve. The boy might be kind of frustrating at times, but he was nothing but endearing.

And the second way was that he was, well, cute.

Sure, Ash probably wasn't going to grow up to be a fashion model or anything, but he was easy on the eyes, and Misty didn't mind just looking at him one bit. But even more to that, there was just something about the boy, a spark of excitement, wonder, passion, and raw talent that Misty found very appealing. Ash might have ambition to spare, but more than that he had love for what he was doing. He was a trainer because he loved doing it, and probably would be out in the world among Pokemon even if personal glory and showing up his former best friend weren't factors.

Misty liked that about him, even if it also was at times frustrating. It reminded her of herself, back before the gym.

Back before she was left alone.

Then Ash glanced over his shoulder at Misty and his brow knitted together. "Uh, Misty?"

"Hmmm?"

"Is…everything okay?"

"Okay?" Misty titled her head in puzzlement. "What do you-"

It was then that she realized that while she had been gazing at Ash, the hand that she had put on his shoulder had not stopped squeezing. In fact, it had moved a little to the left off of his shirt and slipped into his collar, gently kneading the bare skin where his neck met his shoulder.

Touching him felt good. It felt really good.

Her face turning bright pink, Misty hastily yanked her hand back.

"S-Sorry," she stuttered.

"D-Don't be!" Ash stammered. "I mean, you're a…" He glanced around. "Well, it's only natural, isn't it? For you to want to touch…"

Misty's eyes narrowed.

"Er, I mean, don't, uh, don't worry about it." He coughed, and rubbed the part of his neck that Misty had been massaging. "Besides, it felt pretty nice."

"Hmpf," Misty snorted. "Well, it's only natural."

Ash sighed, and turned back to the exhibits.

Misty winced. Okay, that had probably been a little mean. Like it or not, she was his PokeGirl, and he was her "trainer," if only in name. And PokeGirls and their trainers liked touching one another, beyond the natural pleasure that came from sensual human contact. Even something so simple as brushing fingers could trigger an endorphin release.

That's all this is, she told herself. Just stupid PokeGirl biology. You're finding him this attractive because it's part of your programming to. No need to make it weird.

Right. Sure. That was all any of it was. Just natural trainer/PokeGirl dynamics making things complicated.

Never mind that Ash's boundless enthusiasm for Pokemon training reminded her so much of her own back before her life had become so stressful that ever time his eyes lit up she felt that familiar warmth start to burn in her heart again. Never mind that he had put his life on the line time after time for her and never asked for anything in return. Never mind that he genuinely seemed to enjoy spending time with her even before he had found out that she was a Gym Leader. Never mind that as attractive as he obviously found her, he seemed to want her to stay on as a friend rather than a sexual plaything, someone with which to share his adventure with. Never mind that despite him being a little thick sometimes and not picking up on things, he still never pushed the fact that he technically owned her now, even though he could. The Tangela thing aside, which could be chalked up to boyish obliviousness and stubbornness, he never made her do anything she was uncomfortable with, never was pushy, always let her take the lead, and always backed off and gave her space when she wasn't in the mood, which was more than she could say for just about everyone else in her life, and that included May!

Never mind that she had desperately wanted a friend like him for as long as she could remember, someone who was impressed with her skill and knowledge but didn't care one bit about her position, someone who appreciated her for who she was and shared her love for Pokemon training.

But yeah, let's lie to ourselves and say that PokeGirl hormones were the only thing at play here, even though it's clear that you're falling for this stubborn little bonehead, who by the way is still incredibly cute-

Suddenly Ash inhaled sharply. "Misty!" he whispered, seizing her hand. "Look!"

Misty stiffened at the sudden feel of his skin on hers, which made her flushed cheeks burn even hotter and set her heart racing again. "Wh-What?"

Still oblivious to how flustered she was, Ash pointed wordlessly.

An archway was set into the wall, an archway clearly designed to resemble the entrance to an ancient temple. Two lit torches sat on either side of the archway, and the stones framing the entrance were set with large imitation emeralds.

And over the archway was inscribed HALL OF LEGENDS in bold, flourished letters.

"That's gotta be about Legendary Pokemon!" Ash breathed. "Come on, we got to see it!"

"Uh…sure!"

Misty was again pulled along by the excited trainer, who in turn had again not noticed that his companion was getting very excited as well, though for an utterly different reason.

…

The shows were a big part of the PokeGirl Market's appeal. Sure, the booths displaying a variety of lovely, lovely PokeGirl accessories and demonstrating exactly how they could be used was tasty, but the shows were about the PokeGirls themselves, and to May, that was downright delicious. Sure, they were also advertisements, but the focus was one where it ought to be: lovely girls performing for a captivated audience.

Yellow let May lead her along, her eyes darting this way and that, trying to take in all of the unrestrained sexuality taking place openly around them. As for May, her eyes were also flitting this way and that. Naked girls doing lovely things to each other were everywhere, and her nose was full of the intoxicating aroma PokeGirl pheromones.

Then she paused. They were walking by a fashion show, where PokeGirls were strutting out in various bits of lingerie patterned after Pokemon. Lots of trainers liked to take on a particular aesthetic, and there were plenty to choose from. At the moment, the woman sauntering down the catwalk, a tanned beauty with short-cut curling white hair and piercing hazel eyes, was dressed in a slinky outfit that clearly was meant to resemble Gardevoir, which was one of the more feminine-looking Pokemon and thus a very popular choice for people who liked to roleplay. She wore a white pair of panties and thigh-high white stockings and a gossamer pale green gown of a thin, transparent material, one that split open right over her midriff and billowed down behind her shapely legs. The gown covered her back and shoulders, but the neckline plunged low into her cleavage, with an imitation of Gardevoir's signature red horn nestled between her breasts. She reached the end of the catwalk, spun on her heel, and posed, one hand on her hip, ass stuck out, while she coyly smiled over her shoulder before heading back the other way, passing a long-haired blonde dressed in a Lopunny outfit, complete with the ears.

"Ooooh," Yellow whispered.

"Beautiful, aren't they?" May murmured. She looped her arm around Yellow's shoulders and gave her arm a squeeze.

Next they passed a stage where two women wearing nothing but luminescent bodypaint, one blue with silver stripes and one red with black stripes, were engaged in a mesmerizing and dangerous display, shooting jets of flame, columns of water, and sheets of ice at one another, weaving intricate patterns in the air between them, turning the other's attacks into steam and smoke and sending it back. It was a dance of sorts, one in which one misstep could spell painful injury and yet was made to look effortless.

"How do they do that?" Yellow said, her mouth agape.

"Practice, talent, and skill," May said, her eyes appreciating both the dazzling demonstration and the shimmering, lithe bodies of the demonstrators.

However, as tasty as fashion shows and erotic artistic displays were, the real meat were the battles, and it wasn't long before May and Yellow came across the battling ring.

When PokeGirls fought against other PokeGirls, the battles tended to come in two varieties. The first was more-or-less of the same sort that involved Pokemon. That is to say, violent contests between two superpowered beings trying to beat the other to unconsciousness while their owners shouted commands, with the main difference being that the combatants were both human. And exclusively female. And quite often naked, or near enough.

But nudity aside, they were still genuine competitions, with both parties struggling to win, and didn't usually turn erotic unless there was a tactical reason to do so, or someone just felt like it.

That was one variety.

And then there was the sort that tended to take place in spaces such as PokeGirl Markets, the ones that, while still competitions, were very much for show. In these, winning is still strived for but is not the point. There usually wasn't anything on the line, save possibly for earning free merchandise from sponsors or discounts or something of the like. Unconsciousness wasn't usually the aim, unless they really wanted to play rough, and tended to have a whole lot less of attacks like flamethrower and rockslide and a lot more hand-to-hand grappling.

And groping.

And writhing.

Oftentimes penetrating.

Oil was usually involved.

Personally, May preferred the first kind. Sure, the other made more of an effort toward titillation, but there was something about the mixture of sensuality and violence that did it for her more than just straight sensuality. Watching a pair of beautiful girls squirm and writhe against each other while aggressively making out was nice, yes, but it would be even better if they were actively trying to pummel one another into unconsciousness.

In her opinion, anyway.

Still, she was not above enjoying the kind of contests put on by the PokeGirl Market, and so she and Yellow joined a small crowd gathered around a battle ring.

Inside the ring, a handicap match was taking place. One combatant was an older PokeGirl, looking to be in her early thirties. She was still absolutely stunning though, tall with an exceptionally toned body, a generous bosom that probably had seen some manner of enhancement (not that anybody cared), curly chestnut hair just reached past her shoulders, and shimmering hazel eyes. Her naked body was slick with oil, and she was wearing a strap-on, one made of bright pink rubber on a black harness.

She was a veteran of these sorts of games; May could tell that in an instant, not just because of her age, but by her poise, how relaxed her muscles were, and the leering, confident smirk she wore.

Directly facing her were a pair of teenagers, ones that looked to be almost half her age. Twins, actually, both with slender, petite bodies; modest busts; and short, green hair, the two of them also shiny with oil. Like their older opponent, they were both wearing bright pink strap-ons with black harnesses. May had to give it up to the lucky lady-killer who had managed to bag that pair. Successfully catching a pair of sisters was considered a major status symbol, much less twins.

The twin sisters did not seem as confident as their older opponent, but they did look determined. The three circled around the ring, the sisters warily watching their opponent, who in was loose and relaxed in her movements. May licked her lips, her eyes greedily roving over each lovely ass as it came into view, only to dart to the definition of the older PokeGirl's abs and then to the smoother tummies of the twins.

"Ooooh," Yellow breathed again.

The older PokeGirl stopped in place, and the twins did as well. From where they were situated, the older PokeGirl was standing directly in front of May and Yellow, her wondrous ass and beautiful back toward them, while the two sisters stood on the opposite end of the ring on other side of her, facing them. The sisters glanced at each other, clearly wondering what was up.

The older PokeGirl's eyes glanced from one sister to the other, seeming to be almost amused by them. For their part, they were tense, nervous, ready to leap at the slightest move.

She gave it to them.

The older PokeGirl suddenly jerked toward the sister on her right, making her reflexively curl up into a defensive position while the one on her left leapt toward her sister, ready to protect her.

However, it was a feint, as the older PokeGirl suddenly changed course, pivoting on her ankle to leap at the twin to the left.

Her prey was taken by surprise, and the older PokeGirl swiftly hit her in the stomach with her shoulder, stopping her dead with a gasp. Then, moving with smooth and liquid grace of an accomplished wrestler who also so happened to be covered with oil, the older PokeGirl slithered around her prey's body, grabbing her from behind with both arms clasped around her slim waist.

Bracing her feet, the older PokeGirl threw her body back, lifting the panicked and squirming teen off her of her feet and bringing her back to slam her neck and shoulders into the ground. The crowd whooped and hollered in appreciation.

The teenaged PokeGirl was clearly stunned, but her older opponent didn't take the time to savor her victory. The other twin was already running toward them. Pushing the first's limp body off of her, the older PokeGirl leapt, not at the charging girl, but at the ground, thrusting her legs out to trap the girl's calves and shins. The older PokeGirl rotated her hips, using the girl's own momentum to throw her face-first onto her stunned sister.

The older PokeGirl was on both sisters in a second. Wrapping her arms around them both, she hastily undid the buckles on the strap-on worn by the one she had knocked senseless, pulling it away to expose her bald pussy. There were strap-ons that didn't require being removed in order for the wearer's pussy to be accessed, May knew, ones with convenient holes right beneath the dildo. These weren't those. Apparently the organizers wanted the combatants to work for it.

The older PokeGirl seized the dildo still worn by the other girl and, before either of the teens knew what was happening, shoved it right into her sister's cunt.

"Wow!" Yellow exclaimed. May agreed.

The older PokeGirl was now going to work. With one sister now unintentionally penetrating the other doggystyle, she got behind the one in the back, grabbed her by her plump rear, and shoved her own strap-on into the girl's ass.

The unlucky (or incredibly lucky, depending on May's viewpoint) one in the middle inhaled sharply as the rubber rod was thrust deep into her asshole. She tried to wriggle away, but the older PokeGirl had already wrapped her arms around them both, fingers digging into the small breasts of the girl in the front while slamming her hips again and again against the ass of the one in the middle, forcing the strap-on in and out.

The sisters' twin cries mingled with the crowd's appreciation. May was now panting hard.

Also, she now had an idea.

Ducking her head in close to Yellow's ear, she murmured. "You wanna try something like that?"

Yellow's eyes lit up. "Can we?" she said eagerly.

"You better believe it. C'mon."

Holding tight to Yellow's hand, May turned and ran, with Yellow eagerly keeping pace behind her.

And then the crowd they had just left suddenly roared.

May paused. She looked back.

In an absolutely amazing display of flexibility, the poor twin caught between the older PokeGirl and her own sister had somehow managed to wrap her legs back around the older PokeGirl's thighs. How she had managed that with a dildo literally shoved into her ass, May couldn't even begin to guess, but she had, pulling off a feat that would make even the most accomplished contortionist jealous. The older PokeGirl was trying to pry her off, but the girl doggedly clamped her legs in and refused to let go.

In the meantime, the other twin had managed to slip off of her sister's strap-on and crawl away. Panting, she groped around until she found her own strap-on. Though her legs were shaking, she managed to stand, reapplying the harness and strapping it back into place.

Then, cold determination simmering in her eyes, she turned back around.

The older PokeGirl was still occupied with trying to free herself from the adolescent legs that had latched onto her and had yet to notice the crowd's cheers or the malice about to head her way. Giving up on the legs themselves, she instead leaned over to entwined her fingers under the girl's jaw and then leaned back, painfully forcing her opponent to bend backward in what looked like a very agonizing manner. Her teeth were bared with vicious determination, and she was so focused on torturing the teen that she failed to see her victim's sister charging right at her until the girl had already leapt into her face.

The girl hit the older PokeGirl with both knees, forcing her to release her hands and driving her back. Startled by the unexpected attack and stunned by the impact, the older PokeGirl clawed feebly at the girl's thighs, but the leverage and the angle were both against her.

Keeping her knees on the older PokeGirl's shoulders, the girl reached down to seize the flopping pink dildo strapped to her crotch.

And then she thrust it into the older PokeGirl's gasping mouth.

"Wow!" Yellow said again. "I think they might actually win!"

May nodded in admiration. The other twin had already freed her ass from the older PokeGirl's dildo and was now righting herself. Though her thighs were still shaking, she was wearing a savage grin to rival that of her opponent, and judging by the gleam in her eye as she stared down at her struggling opponent's groin, she was looking for a little payback.

Kneeling down, she grabbed the older PokeGirl's thrashing legs and forced them apart. Then she fumbled with the straps of her opponent's harness and pulled it away, baring her dripping pussy.

The older PokeGirl only just realized what was happening less than a second before the dildo was rammed right into her cunt.

Another cheer went up as the twin teenagers spitroasted their opponent, thrusting into her from both ends, one holding onto her by the jaw as she pumped in and out of her mouth while the other was practically falling over her as she shoved into the older PokeGirl again and again.

"They did it!" Yellow cheered.

May grinned at her smaller friend's enthusiasm. Truth was, the older PokeGirl had probably let her opponents get her into that position so as to give the audience a better show. It was sort of an open secret that a lot of those kinds of matches were fixed, which was another reason May preferred the more violent variety. But then, if she had the opportunity to let herself get railed by two hot, young teen sisters, she might be tempted to throw a match here and there, provided everyone involved was in on it.

She hunched down, brought her lips close to Yellow's ear, and murmured, "All right. Let's go have some fun."

Yellow blinked at her with her bright, golden eyes. Then her grin widened and she nodded energetically.

May led Yellow away from the oily threesome taking place in the ring, through the cheering crowd, through the booths and other shows on display, heading to the back of the complex, away from the crowds, searching for someplace out of sight.

She found it, a tucked-away corner between several large, ribbed containers of hard plastic all stacked at the very end of the tent. It was close to where they had come in, so if something went wrong they could make a quick exit.

No sooner had they ducked into the space May pushed Yellow up against one of the container's sides and kissed her, a deep, sensuous kiss that Yellow was more than happy to return. As they did, May felt the deliciously familiar blast of hormones, submerging her mind in a pleasantly thick fog of lust.

As she explored the warmth of Yellow's mouth with her tongue, May brought up one knee, shoving it up between Yellow's legs into the crotch of her pants. Yellow shivered, gasping a little into May's mouth.

Yellow's cute reactions only served to arouse May even more. She reached down with both hands, pawing around Yellow's tunic to find the lip of her shirt and shoved it up and under, groping Yellow's smooth chest in search of her nipple. The other hand dipped down under the waistline of Yellow's pants and running over the crotch of her panties, feeling the outline of her cute little pussy.

"Hey! What are you kids doing back there?"

May tore away from Yellow in shock, stumbling dazedly back against the other container. Panting, she blinked stupidly through her hazy eyes to see someone large glowering at them at the entrance to their hiding spot, though given that her vision was still hazy from lust, it was hard to make out.

"May, run!"

Yellow seized May by the wrist, jerking her out of her stupor and pulling her toward the hidden exit.

"Stupid kids!" the guy yelled after them. "You wanna get us shut down? Wait until you get home before you start that!"

Right, right. That was probably a good idea. Good thing Misty wasn't around. She would never let May hear the end of it.

May and Yellow hastily ducked beneath the canvas and pushed their way through the loose fence. As they did, it occurred to May that they might have unintentionally ruined things for the local kids, if this incident led to them being stricter about minors sneaking into the PokeGirl Market and exactly how they were getting in.

She winced and muttered a word of apology to her local brethren of perverts. That had been in bad form.

Once out of the tent they sprinted up the hill, hoping that they weren't followed. When they confirmed that they weren't, they paused to rest.

"Whew," May said, hunching over with her hands on her knees as she panted. The actual run hadn't done much against her stamina, but the shock from going so quickly from horny to panic had taken a bit out of her. "That was…That was close."

"That guy picked the worst time to show up," Yellow complained. "Just when it was getting really fun!"

"I know, right?" May really did not appreciate being interrupted just when things were getting hot. Being left sexually unfulfilled made her irritable. "C'mon. Let's head back to the hotel. We can finish up there."

Yellow frowned. "What if Ash and Misty are there?"

"Then we'll just take a really long shower together or something. Whatever. If I don't get you between my thighs soon I'm gonna start indiscriminately setting trees on fire."

"Okay!" Yellow nodded. "That sounds good."

"Pika!"

Chuey came bounding up to the pair. He paused, and then looked up at his trainer, no doubt taking stock of her flushed cheeks and sweaty skin. He sighed.

"Oh, what are you complaining about?" May shot back. "Just wait until you got into heat or whatever Pikachus do, see how you like it!"

…

"Wow," Ash whispered as he stared up at the massive, sinuous green serpent that towered over him.

Misty whistled low in agreement.

If uncurled, it would be longer than two city buses, and as it was, it was still almost as large as one, with a gleaming emerald body with red-tipped fins and patterned with what looked like golden chains. It had two hands that ended up in three-fingered claws, and a pair of flattened horns that swept back over its eyes, which were twin circles of golden set within diamond-shaped sclera of jet-black. Its red mouth was open, displaying rows of razor-sharp teeth.

Of course it wasn't real, merely a sculpture of the actual legendary creature known as Rayquaza, and one that was massively scaled down at that. But it was still quite the intimidating sight, and spoke to how fearsome the actual beast must be, if it actually existed.

As predicted, the Hall of Legends was devoted to Pokemon only spoken of in stories, ones so rarely seen that they could not be definitively proven to exist, and yet popped up so often in tales that they couldn't be ruled out either. Entire religions had been built around many of them, while others haunted the darkest of stories told to the most terrified of children.

The one they were gazing at was one of the former. Rayquaza was known as the Sky-High Pokemon, and despite its terrifying appearance was said to be a protector of sorts, only descending from the clouds should vulnerable mortals be threatened by the squabbling of the gods. Though it was very strange to think of something like that as a benevolent force, Ash had to admit, if he and someone else were fighting and something like Rayquaza were to come down from above to tell them to knock it off, then peace would be restored.

"That's…man, can you imagine if we ever got to see something like that?" Ash said in awe. He could just picture it now: standing exposed on the edge of a cliff overlooking the ocean while a massive storm rained down, lightning crashing and thunder booming, the howling winds ripping at their clothes, the waters of the ocean below leaping and smashing angrily against the cliffside.

And then, out of the stormclouds emerges dark silhouette, a godlike being with a body as long as several city blocks that seemed to wrap around the entire sky, its mere presence bending the storms to its will. And then, as Ash and his friends quaked and cowered before its majesty, mere insects unworthy to even behold its visage, two glowing eyes appear in the darkness, two eyes that stare down upon them as lightning illuminates its terrifying face.

The mere thought of it was…actually pretty scary, but also so! Danged! Cool!

"Keep wishing," Misty responded with a roll of her eyes. "There's a reason they're called Legendary. We're not even certain that it even exists."

Ash was too caught up in his fantasy to let her pop that bubble. "But it's got to! I mean, enough people have seen it, and there's all these stories." Then Ash's eyes fell upon another pair of statues, ones not quite as large as Rayquaza but were still impressive, sitting together along the wall.

They depicted a pair of giant birds, one that seemed almost serpentine, with a body that looked to have been molded from poured silver and bladed wings, while the other looked more like a golden duck, one with a crest of feathers on its head as regal as any crown.

"Like these guys! Wouldn't it be something if we're just out in the forest, minding our business, and one of them just flies overhead?"

"Nobody would ever believe us," Misty pointed out.

"I don't care, I would know!"

That got a smile out of Misty. "Well, if you ask me, you'd have a better chance of running across those three."

She pointed to the opposite wall, where an ancient stone tablet hung, divided into three sections, each one depicting an avian creature rendered like a godlike beast of legend, one that soared on wings of flame, one that was as jagged as the thunderbolts it surrounded itself with, and one that swooped on the icy winds of the south.

Ash's eyes lit up with excitement. "I've read about those!" he exclaimed. "The Legendary Bird Trio of Kanto! Articuno, Moltres, and Zapdos. It's said that each one rules over a different part of the region from the skies, protecting their territory from anything that might invade." His mind fled back to one memorable night not too long after he had fallen away from Gary. Red had come over to spend the night, and Ash had found one of his father's old textbooks on Pokemon of myth and legend, many of which were depicted in the hall he now stood in. Fortunately the book hadn't been the boring kind, and the two boys had stayed up long into the night, staring awestruck at the illustrations while poring over the stories collected over several centuries across many different cultures around each. Naturally, the Kanto Trio had been especially exciting to read about, as they were from their home. Myths and legends from other regions and cultures were great, sure, but finding out that your home region had such cool ones of its own? Amazing.

Ash missed Red. He hoped to run into him sometime on his journey, him and Leaf. Though they had drifted apart, those two had always been cool to him.

Misty frowned at the tablet and the guardians of Kanto that were engraved upon its surface. "Well, given all the Team Rocket trouble we've been having, they're not doing a really good job," Misty said with a sigh. "Still, do you by any chance know who Dr. Blaine is?"

Ash scratched his head in thought. Come to think of it, the name did ring a bell, but he wasn't sure in what context. He shrugged.

Misty smiled in amusement. "Dr. Blaine's the Cinnabar Island Gym Leader. He's this old guy who, well, is kind of a weird eccentric. I mean, he's nice, but he also has, shall we say, a lot of personality." Then Misty leaned forward with a flirtatious smirk. "And he swears that he saw Moltres once."

Ash's eyes got real wide. "Really? When?"

Misty glanced around. Then she lowered her voice and deepened her tone, as if telling a scary campfire story to a spellbound audience of schoolchildren.

"So there he was," she intoned in a loud whisper. "Trapped in a snow cave he had to dig out for himself, no food, no help, blizzard blazing outside, and leg mauled by that pack of Ursings, freezing his wrinkly balls off. It looked like the end for Dr. Blaine, things were starting to go dark, when all of a danged sudden the sky outside lights up like someone had set the moon on fire. Scared him so bad that he woulda pissed his knickers had he any piss to spare! So he rushed outside to see the dangedest thing. A great big bird, bigger than ten Fearows, made entirely of fire, just flying across the sky! The flames of its wings were so hot that it melted the blizzard right out of the sky and made a path for him to follow until the rangers found him wandering in a daze, wondering where that great fiery bird had gone."

"That's incredible," Ash whispered. "Do you believe him?"

Misty shrugged. "I mean, no reason not to! Besides, it's still a great story."

"You think he'd tell it to me if I asked?"

"He'd tell it to you even if you didn't," Misty said with a small laugh. "Trust me, he loves telling kids stories of his crazy adventures, and that one's his favorite."

Though the unspoken tradition was to go into each gym battle blind, to not find out about the leaders, who they were, and what typing they specialized in until you actually reached their gym, Ash was starting to regret not looking them up. This Dr. Blaine sounded exactly like the sort of person he wanted to meet.

Also, he would have known about Misty beforehand as well.

Ash glanced over to her. Misty had turned away from him to examine a small figurine carved from jade that sat upon a pedestal, one of a tiny, adorable green creature that hold control over time and space.

For what felt like the hundredth time since they had met, Ash was struck by just how pretty Misty was. Sure, May might be the more conventionally attractive, and sure, she wasn't a mature beauty like the many PokeGirls they had seen, but there was just something about her spunky attitude combined with her sporty figure that just did it for him. And while her outfit showed off a lot of skin, it seemed to be more done out of comfort for someone used to spending a lot of time outdoors than out of any desire to show off, and for some reason that was sexier to Ash than all of the deliberately provocative outfits he saw on PokeGirls.

More than once Ash had caught himself getting lost in her bright green eyes, or staring at her soft lips, wanting to feel them upon his own. And not a day didn't go by without him stealing glances at the shape of her rear beneath those tight shorts, or the musculature of her bare legs, or that patch of skin between her shorts and shirt, or simply just taking in the whole of her. After all, he knew what she looked like naked, and he knew what she felt like, both against his lips and beneath his hands. And he knew how it felt to have her hands on him.

Ash winced and looked away. It wouldn't do to get caught up in such thoughts. Misty had made it clear that she didn't want any of that, not anymore, not after her two attempts to be with him had ended in disaster. Her decision had been made, and he had to respect that, no matter how much he ached for her, no matter how many times he had excused himself to be alone, furiously gripping himself while focusing on that single perfect image of her, standing naked on the bank of that lake, her smile beckoning for him to come and take her, right before everything had gone wrong. Twice.

If only she had gotten the typing that she had wanted. Then she would be happy. She would be glad to stay with Ash, and things would be perfect.

If only it weren't for her stupid job that made her miserable and yet she still insisted on returning to. If only he had the courage to ask her to leave it and stay with him. But how could a little scrub like himself ever compare to being a Gym Leader? Even if she hated how she was treated, between staying with a lowly rookie that kept getting into trouble and holding one of the most prestigious positions in Indigo League there was simply no contest. Ash had nothing to really offer her.

Face it, Ashy-boy, said the specter of Blue Gary Oak in the back of his mind. She's only staying with you as long as she is out of pity. And she only ever wanted to do anything with you because she felt bad for you. You should be thankful that she's spending any time with you at all!

"Huh, this is different," Misty suddenly remarked, shaking Ash out of his bitter musings. "Ash, you're into old stuff. You ever hear of this thing?"

Flustered, Ash forced his thoughts out of the dark place they had gone and went over to see what Misty was looking at.

What he saw made him gasp out loud.

It looked like a chunk of wall taken from the moldering temple of some forgotten civilization, lost to history. The stones were ancient and crumbling, and large chunk were missing, worn away by the eons, but there were still many carvings on the wall that could be seen, telling stories no one living could ever hope to decipher.

And in the center was a stone disc, on which was carved the likeness of a Pokemon.

Its appearance was simple, combining qualities of both cat and rodent. It stood upon two short legs with long feet, had a round belly, two stubby arms, and a triangular head with large eyes and no mouth. Behind it curved a long and sinuous tail, one that bulged slightly at the end.

I can't believe it, Ash thought. It's here. I'm actually seeing it right now.

"Huh, I don't know this one," Misty said.

"The Ancestor Tablet!" Ash blurted out.

"The what?"

Ash took off his hat to run his shaking finger through his hair. "I read about it in my dad's old magazines! They found it in this lost city in the middle of the jungle, and what little they've been able to translate from the markings calls it, 'The First.' But I never thought I'd actually get to see it!"

"The first what?" Misty said. "The first member of their tribe? Their first pet? The first Pokemon?"

Now Ash was pacing back and forth, staring up at the artifact that he had seen dozens of itmes in photographs, now displayed in living color before him. "Nobody really knows, but the most popular theory was that they thought that this was the very first Pokemon to ever exist, the one that all other Pokemon are descended from!"

Misty dubiously looked the carving over. "It doesn't look like much."

"Well, of course it doesn't! The first one of anything never looks like much!"

"That's true, but wouldn't Arceus be the first Pokemon? I mean, it only created the universe, after all."

They both looked to the statue in the center of the room, one depicting the quadruped creature that was said to have created all of the known universe.

"Well, sure, but there has to be a first Pokemon on Earth," Ash said.

"I guess so. You think that it's real?"

Ash shrugged. "Who knows? Lots of old civilizations have their myths and legends. That doesn't make it any less cool, though! Like, what if the very first Pokemon really is out there, somewhere out of sight?"

Misty favored him with that cute little half-smile of hers, the one that wasn't quite a smirk but wasn't wasn't one either. "And you'd catch it without hesitation."

"Well, yeah," Ash said in bewilderment. "Wouldn't you?"

"Oh, I don't know," Misty said with a shrug. "Something that old probably wouldn't even be worth catching anyway. I mean, the whole point of evolution is to improve, right? So the First is probably super weak!"

Feeling all sorts of indignant, Ash opened his mouth to explain that no, that wasn't how long-term evolution worked, that many Pokemon that no longer existed were far stronger than any of their descendants, that the First most likely was very powerful, and even if it wasn't something like that would be the most important discovery in history, one that they could learn so much from, so why couldn't she see-

Then he saw that her smile had evolved into an outright smirk and heard her laugh, and he realized that she was winding him up, so he let out a long sigh. "No, it wouldn't be," he muttered.

"If you say so," Misty said with a shrug. "Though, hey, if you're really into Pokemon ancestors and whatever, then you're gonna love what's over there."

"Huh?"

His eyes followed the direction that Misty was pointing.

There was door to another exhibit. Over the door was a stylized sign with blue neon letters framed by crackling Tesla coils that maintained a circuit of electricity between them in the shape of a rotating DNA strand. The exhibit read THE AMAZING WORLD OF GENETICS.

Ash suddenly felt lighter than air. He was walking on sunshine, he believed that he could fly, he was ascending the stairway to Heaven.

"Is that…" he whispered, and then stopped, unable to finish the sentence.

Misty grinned. "Well? You wanted to know about Pokemon cloning, right?" She got behind him and gave him a push. "So let's find out how the magic is done!"

…

Fortunately, given that Pewter City grouped most of its Pokemon trainer amenities in one place, the PokeGirl Market was not far from the Trainer's Hotel. Even so, it still felt too long for May, who was now keenly aware of how the skintight material of her bike shorts was rubbing up against her vulva with every step, or the state of undress of every PokeGirl they passed. Or the state of dress of every pretty girl, for that matter. Or the pretty girl she was walking with. Yeah, she was noticing a lot of things.

Not that one would notice just by looking at her. Say what you will about May's general lack of inhibitions, but she was very good at hiding whenever she was aroused out in public. She had to be. As much as it galled her, she had to keep that part of her hidden, else she would be sent back home and Misty would be put in a lot of trouble. That was the tradeoff that came with convincing Misty to catch her. No one must ever know.

Even so, whenever she came across another PokeGirl casually walking naked in public and/or engaged in sexual activity with her trainer or other PokeGirls, she couldn't help but feel envious. If she could, she would strip down right in the middle of the street and let Misty lead her along on all fours by a leash. She would happily let all three of those PokeGirls she had just watched fighting take her from three different holes at once. And she would ecstatic to endure getting beaten to pulp if it meant stepping into the ring against another PokeGirl in battle, even if it was just once.

But she couldn't. And that really got under her skin.

So to distract her, she took the time to broach a subject that had also been on her mind as of late, this one concerning her little golden treasure that she was minutes away from joyfully defiling in as many ways as she was able to take.

"Y'know Yellow, I've been meaning to ask you something," May said as the two walked along, hand-in-hand.

"Hmmm?"

"You dated every single member of your old friend group at one time or another, right?"

"Right!"

"But this girl Leaf was the one you really like, right?"

Yellow nodded enthusiastically. "Right! Leaf is the best! She's super pretty, really smart, and very fun, and knows all the best pranks to play on people! This one time, we convinced the teacher that Gary was keeping live Ledybas in his desk, and got him-"

"Okay, okay, but you didn't have that kind of connection with any of the others, right?" May said, hastily bringing the conversation back on track.

"Well, not really," Yellow said with a shrug. "I mean, I was, like, six when I dated Ash, and Gary is still Gary. Leaf was the first I actually kissed."

"Did you kiss that other guy?" May pressed.

"Who, Red? Yeah!"

"Did you enjoy it?"

Yellow face scrunched up as she thought. "Well, it was okay, I guess. I really just wanted to make Leaf jealous."

May nodded. Things were coming together. "Okay. Now, you really like to look at naked girls, right?"

"Doesn't everybody?" Yellow said, sounding puzzled.

"Well, they should. But you've also seen Ash naked a bunch of times, right?"

"Uh-huh."

"Did it ever, you know, do anything for you?"

"Like what?"

"You know! Turn you on! Come on, you two spent a long time in the shower together. Did that make you feel anything?"

Yellow pursed her lips. "Dunno. I mean, I guess he looks…fine? But it's hard to think of Ash like that, even when we were rubbing each other down."

May nodded. "Yeah, I'm starting to think that-Wait, what was that last part again?"

"We rubbed each other down," Yellow explained. "The lotion, remember? Last night?"

"Oh, yeah. That." May sighed. "Well, I guess you would need each other's help to do that, since I was…um, elsewhere."

"Yeah, we heard," Yellow said with a wry smile.

"I bet you did. Enjoyed it, didn't you, you little voyeurs?"

"Oh yeah, I even masturbated to it!"

May smirked. "Well, I am nothing but-Wait, hold on. You mean after, right?"

"No, during!"

May blinked. "When Ash was still there?"

"Are you kidding? Ash was masturbating too!"

"Oh." Wow, there was the good ol' fashioned sexual tension between childhood friends, and then there was…whatever the heck those two had. It was like anti-sexual tension. Negative sexual tension, to the point where they were apparently rubbing each other's naked bodies down with lotion and then masturbating side-by-side and having it mean nothing! "Seriously? The two of you were…" May held up both index fingers and swiped them close together.

"Well, yeah. Whatever you and Misty were doing in there, it was hot to listen to!"

Well, granted, but May was still kind of hung up on the part about the masturbation. "So you're telling me that you and our dear friend Ash showered together, gave each other a lotion massage, and started jacking off side-by-side, and it didn't turn you on at all?"

"Eh, not really," Yellow said with another shrug. "I'm just not into Ash like that, and I'm pretty sure he doesn't like me that way either."

"Okay, but come on!" May said. "This is like-"

"Even when we were masturbating each other nothing really clicked!"

May just about ran face first into a telephone pole.

"Wait, wait, wait, hold up!" she gasped as she hopped around the wooden pole. "You did what?"

"Masturbated each other," Yellow said, still bewilderingly nonchalant. "I rubbed his penis and he fingered my vagina until we both came to orgasm."

"WHAT!"

"Well, I just figured, we might as well," Yellow said, matter-of-fact. "We were both naked listening to the two of you have sex and masturbating right next to each other. Might as well see what all of the fuss was about."

May's head was swirling with a dozen different responses at once. First, there was, "Wait, what?", and then there was, "You go, girl!", and then there was, "Good for Ash!", and then there was, "Seriously though, what?", and then there was, "Why is she being so casual about this?", and then there was, "Does this mean I was wrong?", and then there was, "Ooooh, boy. Misty better not find out about this!"

She cleared her throat and said, "Er, um, so…how was it?"

"Eh, it was okay," Yellow said with a shrug. "Not nearly as fun when you did it to me, but it was fine. Mostly pretty awkward though. We kinda both agreed to leave it as a one-time thing."

"Okay," May said, making every effort to speak with calmness and clarity. "You mean…when you two were doing this, it still didn't turn you on?"

"Well, it felt good, of course!" Yellow said. "I mean, I orgasmed, and so did he. But I was imagining that he was you and he was imagining that I was Misty for it to work, and after we both agreed that it was really awkward and we probably shouldn't do it again."

Despite everything, May did feel a little flattered, as well as relieved that Ash was still fixated on Misty. Still, there was the matter of the reason she was asking Yellow about her turn-ons in the first place.

"Yellow, have you ever considered the possibility that you might be gay?" May asked.

Yellow's brow furrowed. "Huh?"

"That you're a lesbian."

"A what?"

Wait, really? She really didn't know? How was that possible? "That…That you like girls. Sexually, I mean," May said, hoping that that would be enough.

"Well, yeah," Yellow said in bewilderment. "Doesn't everybody?"

That much was true. PokeGirls were, one and all, not exactly discriminatory, and even among the girls that weren't caught, May couldn't think of one that she knew that didn't enjoy a little additional titty in her life, even among the most boy-crazy ones. But that of course was not what she meant.

"No, I mean you like girls exclusively," May patiently explained. "As if in, only girls, and not boys."

Yellow stopped in her tracks. She slowly looked up at May, her mouth falling open. "Wait, that can happen?" she gasped.

"Sure can! I mean, it's not exactly common, but it does happen."

"I…I never knew!" Yellow pulled off her hat so she could run her fingers through her straw-blonde hair. "But that would explain so much! Actually, a whole lot makes sense now! Only girls!" She giggled. "Wow, and hear I thought-Wait, what was it called again?"

"Being gay," May informed her. "It means you like people the same sex as you. So, a girl would only like other girls, and a guy would only like other guys. A gay girl is called a lesbian."

Yellow gawked. "There are guys that only like other guys?"

May frowned in concern. "You really never heard of any of this? Seriously?"

"No!"

"Oh, girl!" May slapped a hand across her own face. "You poor, sheltered thing!"

"I'm not sheltered! I know all about sex and stuff! I just didn't know about being gang!"

"Gay," May corrected.

"Right! That!"

"Well, now you do," May said, releasing Yellow's hand to loop her arm around Yellow's skinny shoulders. Chuey shot her a dirty look and crawled to the opposite shoulder to get away from her. "And I'm thinking you might just qualify."

"Huh," Yellow said as she contemplatively rubbed her chin. "Gay. Liking girls only. You know, you might be right!"

"Neat! Now, what say we go and test my theory?"

"By having sex?"

May nodded. "Lots and lots."

"Yes! Let's!"

Chuey let out a long groan.

…

The Wonderful World of Genetics was set up to look like an actual biochemistry laboratory. Everywhere you went intricate pieces of machinery and strange devices covered with blinking lights were beeping and booping, with placards next to each explain what each gadget was and what it did. Huge computer screens were on one wall, some of them displaying green wire silhouettes of various Pokemon and their respective DNA strands while others played documentaries on the complexities of Pokemon evolution and how much mankind had learned from studying the biology of the strange and powerful creatures that they shared their world with. Overhead, strands of electricity buzzed and zapped as they leapt from conductors and coils. It really did make one feel as if they were in a place where cutting edge research was done.

"This is amazing!" Ash half-whispered, half-squeaked as he and Misty walked through the mock-up laboratory, gawking at every fantastical machine and carefully read every description. They paused before one that consisted of a lot of tubes coming out of a metal box.

"It sure it," Misty said. Despite getting increasingly flustered, she had to admit she was getting sucked into the experience as well.

"Have you ever been to a place like this?"

"What, like an actual lab? Nope! They only have them this size in a couple of places."

"Right! Like the one on Cinnabar Island!"

Misty was pleased. "Exactly! Dr. Blaine actually founded that lab! Still owns it, actually, but he can't be there as often since he's a Gym Leader now."

"That's right!" Ash snapped his fingers. "That's where I heard his name. They were the guys that created Lance's Aerodactyl, right?"

"Exactly." She looked up at the ceiling. "The other one's actually here in this building, but of course visitors are never allowed there. Wouldn't be surprised if Brock's Kabutops was grown right here."

"Man, I would give anything to get a peek in there," Ash sighed wistfully. Then he blinked. "Hey, you think maybe that they'd let you-"

Misty held up a finger. "Don't even finish that thought. The less attention on me, the better. I'm not going to start throwing my ID around to get you backstage passes."

"Yeah, you're right," Ash said, though he was obviously disappointed. "Still, at least they have this room so I can see-"

Suddenly the boy's eyes just about popped out of his skull. "Misty," he squeaked. "Look!"

A small crowd of people were gathered at one end of the room, where a brightly lit glass enclosure was set inside the wall. Though it was hard to make out what everyone was looking at through the wall of bodies, Misty did get a glimpse of something long with a pink and purple body.

"No way," Ash breathed. "No way!"

Misty's own eye went wide. "Wait, that's not a-"

Ash seized her by the wrist again, sending another wave up good feelings up her arm. "Come on!"

The two hurried over to the enclosure. Though there were a fair number of museum guests crowded around, the two of them were small enough to be able to squeeze between the bodies to get a good look at what was inside.

It was a habitat made to resemble a prehistoric shoreline, with a rocky beach that led down into a deep and sandy pool. Sitting idly in the shallows was a light purple creature that seemed part animal and part plant, resembling a fleshy flower with a thick, short stem and a bud-shaped head ringed by petal-like growths. The disc was black, and from within glowed two yellow eyes.

"I can't believe it," Ash said, his voice low and his eyes shining with awe. "A Lileep! A real live Lileep! They brought a Lileep back!"

Misty let out a low whistle. Lileep was a prehistoric rock/grass-typed Pokemon, one that predated even the mighty Aerodactyl. Existing millions of years before humans even existed, to be able to successfully bring one back was kind of a big deal. She wondered why she hadn't heard anything of it.

Then she heard a friendly chuckle. "Yes, astonishing, isn't it?"

The two children turned to see an older man dressed in a long white coat over a purple shirt. His hair was grey and wild, and he had a thick mustache of the same color. And judging by the way his eyes were gleaming as he gazed at the resurrected Pokemon, he had many of the same interests as Ash.

"Truly remarkable," the man said. His accent was thick, so he probably wasn't from Kanto. "Only the fifth successful resurrection on record. And by far the most ancient."

"When did it happen?" Ash said. "How come I never heard about it?"

The man sighed. "Ah, the timing was most unfortunate. This little fellow was brought to life two months ago, and had it been at any other time, I'm sure the news would have spread far and wide, but alas…"

Ash and Misty exchanged a look. "That's when the tournament was happening," Misty said.

"Yeah, no wonder I didn't hear anything about it," Ash said. "Man."

"Well, people do need their distractions, but I agree that our friend here deserved better," the man said. He walked forward, past Misty and Ash, and placed his hand lovingly against the glass. "Truly a miracle of modern science."

Misty tilted her head. "Are you a scientist?"

The man beamed. "Very astute, young lady. I am! And in the field of genetics and microbiology, no less, so you can understand my interest in the museum's Lileep!" He gave a small bow. "Dr. Zager, at your service."

"Oh, wow!" Ash said. "Were you part of the team that brought it back?"

"Ah, if only, but no. I wasn't even in Kanto. But that does not make me any less proud of my colleague's accomplishments." Dr. Zager turned back to the Lileep. "Look at it. A perfect copy of a creature that lived millennia before our ancestors even crawled from the seas, recreated through the replication of ancient DNA preserved within the imprints of its corpse." He laid his bald forehead against the glass, fogging it with his breath as he stared longingly in. "To think, the foundation of our society is built upon the symbiotic relationship between man and Pokemon, and this little fellow's past life was spent all alone. At least now it has plenty of company."

"You mean the visitors?" Ash asked.

Dr. Zager laughed. "Ah, no. That would be too much company for its simple mind to have to deal with. Fortunately, its habitat is completely sound proof, and this window is one-way." He rapped his knuckles against the glass. The Lileep within remained contently oblivious. "No, I speak of its caretakers, and the magnificent men and women of science that created it! It now enjoys a life of love and excess unlike any its previous self could have ever imagined!"

"I bet," Ash said wistfully. "If I had an extinct Pokemon, I'd be tempted to pamper it pretty badly."

"Oh, trust me, my boy! We feel much the same way!" Dr. Zager laughed again, and clapped a hand on Ash's shoulder. "In our own way, we scientists are just children who never got bored of playing with our toys! And when we have a new toy, why, nothing is more exciting."

Misty couldn't help but smile a little. If there was one thing she had learned from all of her interactions with various veteran trainers, researchers, and the like, it was that once a nerd, always a nerd. You might become more learned and distinguished, but that childlike excitement never went away.

"It must be great to be a scientist and study Pokemon!" Ash said. "Especially the stuff you do!"

Dr. Zager beamed at the praise. "It is indeed! Pokemon are such fascinating creatures. The sheer power they possess, the wonderful things that they do!"

"Yeah." Ash spared a very brief glance at Misty. "Same with PokeGirls."

Misty rolled her eyes a little, but hey, it was meant as a compliment. And he was right, after all.

"Ah, PokeGirls, life's greatest paradox!" Dr. Zager chuckled. "You are a junior trainer, are you not?"

Ash turned a little pink. "Er, yeah! Just got my license."

"Then in many ways you are a scientist as well, one just beginning your research. Soon you will have many creatures far more powerful than you could ever hope to be at your beck and call, and perhaps one day a lovely lady or two as well!" Dr. Zager looked out at the World of Genetics, a recreation of his professional work environment. "But believe me, boy. It is a good thing they enjoy being owned, the Pokemon and PokeGirls alike. Even one could kill everyone in this room if they were of a mind to."

"Er…I guess you have a point!" Ash shot an uncomfortable look at Misty, who merely rolled her eyes.

Though truthfully, her flippant response didn't really do a good job in expressing how troubling Dr. Zager's words were. Because he was right. Misty currently possessed sheer, destructive power the likes that no one else in the room could hope to defend against, unless any of them also happened to be PokeGirls, and she didn't see any at the moment. She was now fully capable of shooting lightning bolts from her hands, and nobody would be able to stop her.

She recalled how close she had come to dying, that night that chance had led to her getting struck by lightning. By all accounts she had been literal seconds from death before Ash had caught her, and even then it had taken a full hour for her to be healed. At a whim she could do to anyone in the room what had been done to her.

Of course she wouldn't, because she wasn't a crazed lunatic. Even May, the violent pyromaniac that she was, would never do something like that.

But she could.

That was weird.

Dr. Zager had gone back to gazing lovingly at the Lileep, as had Ash. It struck that despite the vast differences of age, career choices, and life experiences, they still both had the exact same boyish lovestruck look on their faces. Misty sighed. Boys with their interests.

Kinda wish he'd look at me like that everyone once in a while…

Misty's face twitched. Great, it was the PokeGirl-brain talking again. No matter how many times she explained to herself how bad of an idea it was, it always popped up again.

Besides, he did look at her like that! A lot, actually! Like the two times she had stripped for him at the lake! Or when May had felt her up when they had first met! Or the numerous times she had caught him checking her out from the corner of his eye. Or basically every single time he looked at her.

Misty sighed. Yeah. That also felt good.

Maybe I can convince him to stay with me, Misty found herself thinking. Gym Leaders taken on apprentices all the time! And I'm he'd appreciate the hand's-on training.

Heh. I bet you want to get "hand's -on," the dirty part of her mind automatically responded. Not for the first time, she noticed that her subconscious had given that part of her brain May's voice.

Regardless, it probably wouldn't work. Ash was determined to enter the next year's Indigo League Tournament, and he couldn't do that if he was stuck at her gym. Besides, he wanted go on an adventure, not just sit around doing drills for one specific Pokemon-type. After all, despite how interested he was in Pokemon research, he had still decided to become a trainer instead of one of Professor Oak's assistants.

You could still go with him, you know, May's voice said in her head. Nothing stopping you.

Yeah. Except my job!

Which you hate!

But that wasn't true! Misty didn't hate her job; she actually quite enjoyed it, at least the parts having to do with her Pokemon and the battles themselves. She just hated that she had to bear all the responsibilities of being a Gym Leader while gaining none of the perks, such as the respect, the fame, the acknowledgement, and just having to keep on airs while hoping that each new challenger might actually take her seriously without insulting her to her face.

Plus, there was the lack of freedom, the killer hours, the constant hassle of having to deal with her stupid sisters, the crushing loneliness…

…which would all go away if she just quit and went with Ash. Then it would just be her, him, and May, two people who cared for and genuinely respected her. She could have Ash release her, trade in her Gym Leader status for a trainer's license, and just go on a tear through Kanto, claiming badge after badge. Even if she was only allowed to keep Staryu and Starmie, she would be able to claim all the badges easily, with the substantial amount of battling knowledge she had. Then what was to stop her from entering and winning the tournament, huh? Watch all those losers that belittled and harassed her sulk and pout as she was handed the trophy! Then they would have to acknowledge that she wasn't just some punk kid, that she was actually worth something, and…

Misty's hand clenched.

…and just be branded a quitter for the rest of her life, the Gym Leader that couldn't hack it, that shirked her duties and ran away to do what every other kid her age does, that took the easy way out instead.

Misty looked over to Ash, who was still gazing at the Lileep. Dr. Zager seemed to have forgotten that his new young friend was there, and was likewise pressed up against the glass, mumbling all sorts of sciency-sounding nonsense.

She frowned. Dr. Zager had struck her as nice enough. Maybe a bit eccentric and excitable, but so was Dr. Blaine, and she liked him well enough.

Still, the stuff he was now muttering was growing…concerning.

"This is just the beginning," he was saying. "We now have the ability to bring back the dead. So what's next? All of that power woven into their DNA, ours for the tapping! Enhancing the living? Creating new life? The possibilities are endless. ENDLESS!"

Okay, this was starting to swerve away from loveable aging science nerd territory into, "MWAHAHA, THOSE FOOLS NEVER UNDERSTOOD MY GENIUS!" territory, and given that they were currently standing in an accurate recreation of a genetics lab, complete with bolts of electricity leaping overhead, it was starting to make her feel more than a little uncomfortable. Plus, as someone who actually did have that kind of power woven into her own DNA, Misty was starting to wonder if hanging around with this guy any longer would cause her to end up on a dissection table or something.

Keeping an eye on the weird old guy, Misty went over to Ash and tapped him on the shoulder.

"Huh?" He seemed genuinely surprised that she was still there. "What's up?"

Folding her arms, Misty tilted her head in the direction of the exit.

"Oh! Er, yeah. I guess…" He cast one last longing look at the Lileep. "We've been in this room enough, I suppose."

Moving slowly and carefully so as to not alert Dr. Zager, Misty led the reluctant Ash from the room, as all the while Dr. Zager kept speaking to nobody at all. "They will see. They all will see! This will unlock a whole new world, and we will at the head of it. A paradigm shift, a turning point, this is it, my friends! This is it!"

…

Fortunately, May had been correct about Ash and Misty not being back yet, and hopefully they were having so much fun at whatever they were doing that they wouldn't be back for some time. Maybe they were finally having sex! If so, hopefully Misty was taking it slow or prepared to go multiple times, as Yellow truly doubted that Ash would last long.

In the meantime though, she a very special time waiting for her.

Giggling, the two girls held hands as they bolted up the stairs and down the hall to their room. Yellow slammed her key card into the receptacle, and they hurried into their hotel room and shut the door.

As soon as they were inside, Chuey sighed and hopped off of Yellow's shoulder to go bounding to one of the bathrooms that fortunately still had its door ajar. The door clicked shut a moment later. The message was clear. Do what you must, but leave me out of it!

Yellow was okay with that. She would make it up to him later.

Yellow had barely turned to face her before May pounced. Wrapping her arms around Yellow's tiny body, she pulled the small girl up to kiss her. Still giggling with excitement, Yellow shoved her hat off of her head and reached up to loop her arms around May's neck, her hat falling from her head.

Yellow liked kissing a lot. Back when she was with Leaf, the two of them had often stolen off together during recess to spend the whole time kissing each other, to say nothing of time spent at each other's houses. And the one time they had a sleepover when they were together, things had gotten kind of…intense. Their clothes had stayed on, but hands had been wandering, and lips had been moving.

But as fun as kissing Leaf had been, May was simply on a whole other level. For one, she actually knew what she was doing. For another, she was forceful and aggressive in a way that Leaf had never been. There was no suddenly stopping while red-faced and embarrassed here.

And Yellow loved it.

Holding Yellow tightly against her, May pressed down hard, bending Yellow's neck back. Her tongue wormed its way out to slide over Yellow's lips, opening them up so she could slip it into Yellow's mouth. As soon as she tasted May and felt her warmth, Yellow felt a sudden surge of boldness, and started pushing back, jostling May's tongue with her own and trying to find a way into the older girl's mouth as well. May paused for a second, as if surprised by Yellow's initiative, but she was more than happy to reciprocate.

As the two tween girls continued to French-kiss, May slid her hands down to clasp them under Yellow's butt. Then, without breaking the kiss, May lifted Yellow right off her feet. Yellow let out a small squeak of surprise but didn't break the kiss, instead wrapping her legs around May's middle to hang on. May walked her over to one of the sleeping mats. Once there, she spun on her heel and tumbled down to the mat, taking Yellow with her.

Yellow collapsed giggling onto the mat. Their wet lips finally separated, but she kept her arms around May's waist, and found herself staring into May's sky-blue eyes.

"So," May said, reaching up to straighten a loose strand of golden hair over Yellow's ear. "One to ten?"

Yellow blinked in confusion. "Pardon?"

"This is your first time doing something like this," May explained. "And you're really tiny. Also, I can snap you like a twig. So, on a scale of one to ten, what are you comfortable with?"

"Oh! Uh, what's one?"

"Making out, basically."

Yellow nodded. That made sense. "And, er, dare I ask what ten is?"

At this, May grinned wide. "You know that PokeGirl battle we saw? Well, think that, but more."

"Oh." Suddenly Yellow felt she was starting to understand the possibilities being made available to her. "Oh. More?"

"Uh-huh!" May sat up just enough to indicate Misty's pack in one corner of the room. "Basically, I pull out all of Misty's toys, tie you up, and start shoving things into every orifice as deep as they can go. You'll be lucky if you can even stand after I'm done with you, much less walk!"

"Oh!" The image was both tempting and sort of terrifying. "Er, I don't think I'm ready for that yet." She scratched her arm. "Besides, my skin's still a little…tender. That new lotion's helping a lot, but I'd better not try anything too crazy just yet."

"Understood." May leaned in to give Yellow a small peck on the lips. "Okay, so what'll it be?"

Yellow thought. She didn't want to overdo things and possibly do something too scary, but she also didn't want to come off as too much of a wimp. "Er…seven? No, wait! Six!"

"Six it is." May traced a finger down Yellow's cheek to press against her lips. "Then just relax and follow my lead. I'll do all the work."

Shivering with anticipation, Yellow managed a shaky nod.

May maneuvered Yellow onto her back and rolled over on top of her. Yellow gasped as she felt the weight of May's warm body settle down onto her.

"So cute," May murmured, planting small kisses on Yellow's cheeks and on the tip of her nose. Then she sat up and back, straddling Yellow's hips.

As Yellow stared wide-eyed and dry-mouthed, May reached up and unzipped her shirt with agonizing slowness. It fell open, and she let it fall from her shoulders, leaving her naked from the waist up.

Yellow's heart was already beating fast, but when May's breasts came into view it started outright racing. She had been staring at breasts for the last several hours, and had seen May's plenty of times already. But something about how they were being presented for her and for her only made them even more special.

"Hey," May said, leaning back to put her whole torso into profile. She cupped the undersides of her breasts and pressed them together. "Wanna touch?"

Yellow squeaked. "C-Can I?"

Smirking, May shook her breasts up and down, alternating between one and the other. Of course she couldn't do much with them, but they were there. "Given how much I've been groping you these last few days, I'd say that you're due."

"Thank you!" Yellow reached up and placed her hands over the soft mounds. They were small, but so were Yellow's hands, and they more than filled her palms.

"Hmmmm, there you go," May hummed as Yellow squeezed and kneaded the flesh in her hands. "Also, feel free to tug on the nipples. There's not really anything you can do to hurt me, so go nuts."

Yellow was more than happy to comply. She took the hard nubs between her forefingers and thumbs and gave them a squeeze and a pull. "This is exciting!" she exclaimed.

"And it only gets better! C'mon, let's get you naked!"

May sat Yellow up and had her raise her arms over her head. She then pulled off Yellow's big, floppy tunic over her head and tossed it aside. After that her shirt was peeled off as well.

Now with the smaller girl topless as well, May shifted off of her and leaned in for another kiss. Yellow just about melted as their chests touched, their stiff nipples rolling against each other.

As they continued to kiss, May reached down to pull down Yellow's pants, but paused when her hand touched bare skin instead. She glanced over to see that Yellow had been a little too impatient and had already yanked down both her pants and her panties, which were now bunched up around her shins.

"Eager, huh?" May chuckled. "Slow down, though! You skipped a step!"

May helped Yellow untie and pull off her boots, and then the rest of her pants and underwear where stripped away.

Now wearing nothing but her socks, Yellow laid still and watched as May kicked off her own shoes and rolled back to pull away both her skirt and her shorts. Now naked as well, May reclined on her side, propped up on one arm with the other draped sensuously over her waist, letting Yellow drink in the sight of her.

"Really to go?" she asked, her tone flirtatious. Yellow blinked, and then slowly nodded.

May got onto all four and crawled her way up Yellow's body. She then lowered herself back on top of her, laying fully across Yellow's body like a blanket, chest-to-chest, hip-to-hip, and mouth-to-mouth.

Now covered by May's warmth, Yellow let herself get lost in the kiss, hungrily working her lips against May's, their tongues flicking in and out to brush against each other.

"Grab onto whatever you want," May whispered against Yellow's mouth. Yellow gave the smallest of nods, and started moving her hands over May's body, one traveling over the smooth, hard muscles of her back, while the other glided down to grab onto May's plump butt.

As continued make out, May began rotating her hips, the plump flesh of their pussies tingling whenever they crossed over each other, the erect buds of their clits kissing with each pass.

Oh, it felt so good. Ever since May had introduced Yellow to the joys of masturbation, she had taken great delight finding all the different way one could pleasure herself. She was still learning, but it was a very exciting path of discovery. However, nothing she had tried to compare having it done to her by another girl, much less one as pretty and sexy as May.

And then May paused. She let out a long, pleased sigh, her hot breath tingling Yellow's lips.

Then she started to push her way back, leaving a trail of hot kisses down Yellow's body as she went, lingering briefly to suckle one nipple and then the other, before making her way down Yellow's belly.

Yellow blinked. Now May was kneeling down between her legs, her rump in the air, and her leering face mere inches away from Yellow's glistening vagina. "May?" she said. Yellow nodded.

May closed her eyes and moved in to plant a soft kiss onto Yellow's entrance.

As soon as her lips made contact, Yellow's felt fireworks go shooting from her crotch all the way to explode in her brain. Her back arched, her hands clenched at the blanket beneath her, and she mewled helplessly.

"Just a mood-setter," May said as she maneuvered herself around so that she was facing away from Yellow. "Because level six consists of this!"

Panting, Yellow inclined her head. "C-Consists of wha-"

May shoved their crotches together, the plump flesh of their pussies pressing up into one another.

"Oh!"

Gripping onto one of Yellow's legs, May started grinding her hips against Yellow's, pressing their cores together, stoking the already hot fires in Yellow's loins. Yellow whimpered and bucked, her hands flapping around like they often did when she got excited.

"Just…grab onto my leg," May whispered. "It'll…help keep you…mmph…steady!"

Nodding, Yellow did as she was bid. One of May's legs was laid all the way across Yellow's torso, so she grabbed onto to it with both arms and held on tight. She laid her head back and closed her eyes, surrendering herself fully to the girl riding her.

It was pure bliss. The smoothness of the leg held in her arms, the feel of her own leg being held by May, the beautiful agony of their sopping pussies being squished together. May rode her hard, and yet not as hard as she could have. Yellow's skin was still tender, and she appreciated the consideration.

Unfortunately, she wasn't as used to having sex as May was, and her orgasm came fast and hard. Yellow went totally stiff, her arms clamping down on the leg she held, breathing catching in her throat as the wave of pleasure crashed over her.

And then she collapsed, arms splaying out to either side, chest rising and falling as she panted. All her strength was sapped, all motor functions disabled, leaving her able to do nothing but bask in the afterglow.

Chuckling, May disentangled their limbs and rolled away from her. She jammed her fingers down between her legs and worked it hard to finish as well. "Errrrrgggghhh!" she grunted, and then sat back with a sigh.

"Well, Yelly-Belly," she said. "How was it?"

Yellow inhaled deeply. "Amazing!" she breathed out.

"I thought so." May crawled up to lay beside Yellow. She scooped up the blissfully helpless girl and held her tenderly. "There is nothing like your first."

"W-Wish I could l-l-last longer," Yellow whispered.

"Aw, don't sweat it! That'll come with time."

Yellow nodded. Then she hesitated before asking, "So, um. Am I, you know, no longer a virgin?"

At this, May laughed. "Oh, for Arceus's sake, what does it matter? It's a stupid concept anyway. I mean, I didn't tear anything that probably wasn't broken already, but even so, you just had sex with a girl for the first time, and you had an amazing time doing it. That's what matters."

Yeah. Yeah, that made sense. "So…is it okay if I ask you something?"

May kissed her in the nape of her neck. "Anything."

"You and Misty do this all the time, right?" Yellow said.

"Oh, heck yes!"

"Even before you became a PokeGirl?"

May laughed again. "All the time! Oh, we would get into so much trouble."

Yellow snuggled down deeper into May's arms. "So, what's the difference, then? I mean, between having sex as a normal girl and having sex as a PokeGirl? Does it feel different?"

"Oh, loads! I mean, both feel great, don't get me wrong, but ever since I asked Misty to catch me, everything's just been so more intense! Just holding her hand can get me wet now. And the pleasure? That's, like, an infinity times more powerful."

"Wow," Yellow whispered. "Sounds incredible."

Chuckling, May reached up to take one of Yellow's nipples in-between her fingers, rolling it around like Yellow had done to her earlier. "Thinking of letting someone catch you?"

Yellow blushed. "Er, well, not really. I kinda rather have a PokeGirl than be one. No offense."

"None taken! And I'm sure that one day, you'll be drowning in pussy!"

Yellow gasped. "That can happen? That sounds dangerous!"

"Figure of speech." May kissed her again, this time in the back of the ear. "Well, whatever happens, I'm sure you have lots and lots of pretty girls in your future."

"Sounds great," Yellow murmured. Now that the horniness was wearing off, she was getting a little drowsy, and resting in May's arms was just so comfortable.

But then a thought struck her.

"Hey," she said. "You think that maybe Misty and Ash are…you know?"

At this, May sighed. "Oh, we should be so lucky. Those two really need to get over themselves, because the second-hand sexual tension and frustration is starting to drive me absolutely bonkers!"

…

In the center of the museum, beneath its great gold dome, was its centerpiece, its crown jewel, its star attraction, the KSS Dragonite, the very first manned craft to be successfully launched into space.

Resembling an airplane but far bulkier and with stubbier wings, It sat on its rockets like it was about to lift-off, its white-and-black surface gleaming. Ash stared up, wondering what it must have been like for the crew. How excited had they been? How terrified? It must have been exhilarating either way, being the first human beings to leave Earth's atmosphere, an enterprise that would either make them legends or kill them.

"Space," Misty said, gazing up at the venerated rocketship. "The final frontier."

Ash blinked in surprise. Then he grinned. "These are the voyages of the Starship Puela on its five year mission."

"To seek out new regions," Misty continued, her grin growing as well.

"To discover new Pokemon."

"And alien PokeGirls."

Then, together, they both said, "To go boldly where no trainer has gone before!"

Ash and Misty immediately began jamming on imaginary instruments while singing the opening theme that they both had memorized. "Nah-nanananah, nah-nanananah! Nah, nah, nah, nananah!"

Then the two broke down into giggles. "Seriously? You watched Star Trainers?" Ash said.

Misty was still chuckling. "Eh, I pretty much have zero time to myself during the day," she said with a shrug. "Between taking on challengers and keeping both me and my team in top fighting shape, basically the only free time I ever get is really late at night, and Star Trainers reruns are one of the few things actually worth watching."

"Man, Mom would never let me stay up that late," Ash complained. "But my dad was really into that show, and he had a lot of episodes taped on video. A couple years back Leaf actually helped me track down the ones I was missing, so I got the whole run!" She hadn't told him where or how she had gotten them. Red had told him that it was better not to ask.

"Yeah, I basically just got whatever was on, so I ended up seeing the one with the giant mutant Primeape probably half-a-dozen times," Misty sighed. "But it wasn't until they had that big forty year anniversary marathon about a year ago that I got to see the one where they crash-land on the water planet. They kept having flashbacks to it in later episodes, so I knew it existed, but I never…What are you smiling about?"

"What?" Ash said innocently. "What are you talking about?"

Misty shot him a look.

Ash had to laugh. "Sorry. It's just…do you have any idea how many other kids have actually heard of Star Trainers, much less watched it?"

"Not many," Misty said with a sigh.

"Yeah. I tried to get my friends to watch it, but…"

"They're weren't interested?"

Ash shook his head. "Nope."

Misty's cocked an eyebrow. "Let me guess: Gary was a jerk about it, and used it to tease you."

Just the mention of Gary's name caused Ash to flinch.

"Got it," Misty sighed. "My sisters were the same way. I had to watch with the volume really low, because once they found out they wouldn't stop picking on me for staying up all night watching, and I quote, 'nerdy dad shows.'"

Ash wrinkled his nose. "What is up with them? Why can't they just let people enjoy things?"

"Oh, you and I both know it isn't even about Star Trainers. They're just using whatever ammunition they can get to make people miserable."

"Well, it's stupid," Ash muttered. "Man, I wish we knew each other then. Having a friend like you would've been made things so much better."

Silence.

Then Misty said, "Um, Ash? C-Could you come over here for a moment?"

"Huh?" Ash looked at her. "Go where?"

Misty's cheeks were bright pink, and she was making a concerted effort to not meet his eyes.

"Misty?" Ash tilted his head in confusion. "Misty, what-"

Groaning in exasperation, Misty just said, "Oh, come on, already!"

"I-"

Misty stomped to toward the pillars, dragging him along with her. She kept going, until she found a corner of the room that was safely out of sight.

Before Ash knew what was happening, Misty had suddenly spun toward him, seized him by the shoulders, and shoved him back against the column. Surprised by both the unexpected action and by the reminder of Misty's PokeGirl strength, Ash could do nothing but stand there stunned, staring at her.

Misty was now breathing slowly and deeply, her smooth chest rising and falling with every inhale and exhale. Her freckled cheeks were flushed as if she were feverish, and her bright emerald eyes had glazed over.

"M-Misty?" Ash stammered.

Misty inhaled again, longer and deeper than ever, held it for several seconds, and slowly breathed out. "Ash," she said. Her voice was low and husky, every syllable sending pleasant shivers down Ash's back. "Look. I know things have been…kind of weird between us."

"You m-mean since the lake?" As soon as the words had left his mouth, Ash instantly wished that he could take them back. That was probably not something Misty wanted to be reminded up.

But Misty didn't look upset with him. "Yes. The lake. And before. Ever s-since I f-f-found out. About n-not being a water-type." She swallowed noisily. "I m-made some, er, some promises. Promises that I didn't keep."

Now it was Ash's turn to swallow. "It wasn't your fault! Stuff…just happened!"

"Yeah. They did." Then Misty's lips spread in a low, sensuous smile, and her tongue slid out over her lower lip. Ash felt his groin suddenly heat up at the sight. He knew what that tongue felt like. "But even if…even if I can't keep all my promises, I think I owe you this much."

"Wha-"

Misty seized the back of his head and kissed him: deep, passionate, and hungry. It was like how it was when they had bathed together in the lake, like how it was before they had come to their senses the day before in the PokeCenter. She pushed in, pressing Ash up on his toes, and before too long he was tasting her.

The arousal came fast and came hard, submerging his mind in a feverish daze. His cock immediately sprung up, shoving up through his boxers against the front of his pants, reaching greedily for that sweet place in Misty that it had felt only briefly before.

And Misty seemed more than happy to help it find its way. She reached down with her other hand, slipping it into Ash's pants and grasped his hardness.

Ash could feel the headiness taking him. And that scared him. Because as much as he wanted this, as much as he had dreamed of this, he was sure that it would be wrong to let it continue.

"Missy," he mumbled into her mouth as he tried to pull away. "Nnnnn…" She didn't let him, and he quite frankly didn't want to resist her.

But he had to. Because Misty didn't want this. She had said as such, going on and on about how much she hated being a PokeGirl and couldn't wait to be free of it. And it was like she had just said; she was only doing this because she felt that she owed him. This was only out of pity.

He would never allow her to debase herself like that.

Ash planted his hands on Misty's shoulders and gave her a hard push, finally disengaging her from his mouth. "Misty, snap out of it!"

Her eyes still clouded, Misty jerked back in shock, her mouth agape. "Huh?"

"I…" Ash sighed. "I get it. You feel bad about what happened in the lake. But you don't have to force yourself to do this just because of it!"

Now the haze was starting to lift from Misty's gaze, and it was starting to focus. "What," she said in a flat tone.

"Look, it's okay!" Ash said hastily. "I know you hate this…whole thing, but please don't feel like you gotta force yourself to do something you don't want to do just because you hurt me that one-"

"WHAT?!" Misty suddenly snapped, making Ash jump. "You think I'm doing this for…" She seized two big handfuls of her own hair, and sparks literally crackled around her knuckles. "ARGH!"

Now Ash was both confused and kind of terrified. He had expected Misty to be upset, embarrassed, maybe annoyed, but he hadn't expected this. "Misty, I-"

"Shut up, you boneheaded, self-centered, oblivious nincompoop!" Misty spun on her heel and stomped off, leaving sparking after-images in her wake that lasted half-a-second before fading away. She ranted the whole way. "Out of all the stupidest, most ridiculous things I've heard, I can't believe he would…"

Ash stared after her, his mouth hanging open. Everything had happened so quickly that he didn't have a clue what had just happened or what he needed to do about it.

He should go after her, try to explain himself. Except…no. Oh, no, no, no. Misty was ticked off, and would probably roast him again, this time on purpose.

Maybe he ought to go back to the hotel. Talk to May and Yellow, get some perspective. May was Misty's best friend and could probably help him sort things out, and Yellow had that weirdly perceptive thing of hers. Yeah, that's what he should do. Talk to them. Get his head on straight. Find a way to make things right.

But with that idea came a sudden rush of fear.

Oh no.

He had really hurt Misty's feelings.

May was going to be mad.

…

After any fantastic love-making session came the lazy, affectionate cuddling. May was a big fan of lazy, affectionate cuddling. She was a lover of all kinds of skin-on-skin activities, and saw no need for them to end even after the raucous sex was over.

She and Yellow had dressed…sort of. Well, actually, after getting cleaned up a bit, May had pulled her shorts back on and Yellow her panties, and May had hung the Do Not Disturb sign on the doorknob, along with a note for their friends written in marker asking them to knock first before coming in, not that she really minded getting caught in such a state.

Until then, the two of them were reclining on one of the sleeping mats, snuggled up under a blanket, watching an old Sci-Fi show that they were both vaguely familiar with on TV.

"Y'know, I think Ash is a big fan of this show," Yellow remarked.

"Really? Because Misty's mentioned liking it a few times." May shrugged. "I used to make fun of her for it, but you know what? This actually ain't bad. I mean, it's cheesy as heck, but…"

"A good kind of cheesy?"

"Yeah! Like, I am actually digging this. Sure, it's old-fashion and the special effects suck, but it's also really charming, and I gotta say, those actors have a ton of chemistry. I kinda get why Misty got into-"

Then Chuey, who was sitting on the edge of the sleeping mat chewing on a pokebrick while also watching the characters talk to people in some really cheap-looking but also kind of awesome rubber alien suits, suddenly perked his ears up. "Pika?" he said, looking to the window.

"What's up?" May said. "Team Rocket grappling in or something?"

"No, it's saying that the others are back," Yellow said with a sigh. "Well, we'd better get dressed then."

May considered asking how Yellow knew that, but decided against it. She had learned not to question how Yellow just seemed to know things.

The two girls hastily pulled on the rest of their clothes. Once dressed, May went over to the window and peeked out. Sure enough, there was Ash, heading down the sidewalk toward the hotel's entrance.

Or rather, slouching down the sidewalk. Slumping down the sidewalk. Walking slowly with his shoulders forward and head bowed, hands shoved in his pockets.

May's stomach clenched up. Something had happened. She could tell.

"Why's he looking so depressed?" Yellow inquired, peeking around May's arm.

"Don't know," May said. "But I'm more worried by him being alone. Where is Misty?"

Yellow glanced up at her. "Do you think something happened to her?"

May frowned. "Clearly, but I don't think she's in trouble or anything, else Ash would be running back, not slouching."

"Something like what?"

"Don't know, but if you ask me, I'd say they probably got into a fight." May's eyes narrowed. "Which means our would-be champ has some explaining to do."

…

As it would turn out, May was…less than sympathetic.

"Why you pigheaded, ignorant, braindead, thoughtless numbskull!" she snarled into Ash's face. "What the heck is wrong with you?!"

As Ash had approached the hotel parking lot, May and Yellow had come out to meet him. They had then asked him what was wrong and where Misty was, and he had answered honestly.

The predictable then happened.

"H-Hey, calm down!" Ash begged, holding his palms up as if that would ward off her ire. "I just-"

"After all the work I put in to get her performance issues under control, literally risking life and limb so you two could do the deed safely, you go and…shoot her down?! Did she short-circuit your brain when she zapped you or something? Seriously, Ash! How could you be so stupid?!"

Ash was sweating, in part because of fear, but also because the air surrounding the two had suddenly spiked, thanks to the malicious heat literally radiating off of the infuriated brunette. "I just didn't want her to think she owed me anything!" he said as he continued to back up. "I know she hates being a-"

Yellow kicked him in the ankle.

"-in her current situation," Ash quickly amended. "So I was just trying to keep her from feeling like she had to do…uh, well, you know!"

Unfortunately, all of Ash's backpedaling wasn't putting any distance between him and May, as she continued to advance step-for-step with him. "Oh, is that right?" she said, irony dripping from every word. "So she went and made a real move on you, and you just went and turned her down because it was the noble thing to do, is that it?"

"Er…well…"

May suddenly lunged forward, seizing Ash by the lapels of his jacket. "Now, listen to me, you absolute nitwit! Lately, Misty has been going through, oh, let's call it a real tough time! Even before all this happened, she's been constantly stressed out and upset because of her rotten job not turning out the way she had hoped! She works day and night, barely takes any time off, trying to help hapless dummies like you along in their journey, and doesn't get an ounce of respect!"

"I know that already!"

May didn't seem to have heard him. "But then you came along! Some clumsy oaf that goes and nearly gets her killed because you can't tell the difference between a Pidgey or a Spearow, or between a pokeball and a human ball. But she starts thinking that, hey, maybe this is her chance to get away from all that! To go and have fun without worrying about the gym, without having people insult her all the time, to just be a kid for the first time in her life! But no, that went all wrong too! She gets denied the typing she freaking loved because of a position you put her in, nearly killed her own trainer just by trying to have a little fun, and gets kidnapped because of what she is now and can't even fight back because of the typing she's stuck with! Basically, everything going wrong!"

"I know that too!"

"Oh, do yah?" May's right eye had developed a noticeable twitch. "You're so in tune with her feelings?"

May suddenly gave Ash a hard shove, sending him stumbling back. The back of his calves hit a stone bench, and he lost his balance and fell onto the seat.

"Then why'd you make her spend all day trying to make friends with the very same Pokemon that kidnapped her and made her feel helpless in the first place?" May snapped. "Didn't you think that maybe you should at least ask her if she felt comfortable with all that?"

Ash blinked.

"Did you not pick up on the fact that maybe, just maybe Misty might not like Tangela? That she might not want to spend all day with the thing that scared the living daylights out of her?"

Ash swallowed. "W-Well, I didn't think-"

"No! Really? I had no idea! Oh wait, let me guess: you just assumed she would go along with it because of what she is now and what you are to her?"

"I-"

"And then later, when she tried to get just a little bit of happiness, just a little bit of comfort, you, her own stinking trainer, goes and turns her down! You rejected her! Do you have any idea how much it hurts for a PokeGirl to get seriously rejected by her trainer? I don't mean that deal she and I have going on. I mean, when a PokeGirl really, really wants her trainer, but her trainer goes and rejects her, do you know how much that hurts? Any idea at all?"

"A…A lot?"

"It freaking sucks! I mean, come on, Ash! Do you honestly think she was throwing herself at you just for you? Did'ja ever consider that maybe, just maybe Misty wanted it as well? Because things are really tough for her right now and she wanted you to make her feel better?"

To this, Ash had nothing to say. Even if he did, he was now so gobsmacked that he probably wouldn't be able to speak anyway.

May had started to pace back and forth as she continued to rant. "Now, if you didn't want to do it because you weren't comfortable with it or whatever, that would be one thing! But I get the feeling that if you hadn't convinced yourself that she didn't really want it, that she was just doing it because she felt obligated, you would be all over that, am I right?"

She was. There was no denying it. Ash hadn't turned Misty down due to some personal hang-up, he had done so because he thought it had been the right thing to do.

Clearly not.

"Yeah, thought so! You were ready, willing, and able, and you rejected her anyway, just another thing that blew up in her face!"

"I…I…" Ash ran his fingers through sweat-soaked hair. He glanced over to Yellow, who was silently standing and watching the whole exchange.

Seeing the look, she shrugged and said, "Hey, don't look at me. I agree with May. That was dumb."

"I…" Ash slumped forward with a sigh. "I messed up, didn't I?"

"Oh, you think?" May stopped pacing and folded her arms to glower at him. "You really think so? Huh?"

Groaning, Ash put his face in his hands. Oh man, he had really blown it.

"I'm sorry," he mumbled. "I just…I just wanted to do the right thing, okay? I thought she hated being a PokeGirl and was only coming onto me because she felt like she had to! Because she felt bad for hurting me that one time or something! I just…didn't want her to feel like she had to do something she hated because of something that wasn't her fault."

May's scowl softened a bit, turning into more of a contemplative frown. Then she sighed, and even the frown melted away. She then walked over to sit down on the bench next to Ash. Ash glanced briefly at her before looking back to the ground.

"Okay," May said, leaning back with her arms thrown over the back of the bench, eyes skyward. "Maybe I was a little harsh on you. Sorry."

"S'kay," Ash mumbled.

"It's just…Misty's my best friend, you know? And she just gets so much crap. I just want her to be happy."

Ash nodded. "Yeah.

May glanced over at him. "All right, cards on the table. Ash, does it bother you when we mess with you? Tell me honestly."

"What?" Ash said. "You mean all the flirting and teasing and rubbing up on me and each other?"

"Yeah, that. Does it bother you or no? Would it make it easier if we stopped?"

Ash hesitated, and then said, "N-No. Actually, it's easier when you do."

"Oh?" May quirked an eyebrow.

"Because that's how I know that you're happy! Like, I know you guys are just teasing, and it's your way of having fun! So when you are like that, then that means things are good!"

"Okay."

"And…" Ash then couldn't help but smile sheepishly. "It is…pretty fun."

May smirked.

"But it's also…kind of confusing? Like, you guys have your whole dynamic, you know what each other likes and doesn't like, you can annoy Misty and make her mad without really making her mad, you know?"

"Sure."

"But half the time I don't know what's okay and what's not okay! I mean, sure, the teasing's fun, but you and I can't do anything past that because of some rule about Misty I guess, and with Misty, half the time I don't even know what she wants! At first, she was all excited to be a PokeGirl and have fun, but all of a sudden she hates it and wants nothing to do with it! She hates her job, but refuses to leave it, she's been all weird about, um, being with me ever since that thing at the lake went totally awful, told me how she can't wait until she stops being a PokeGirl so she won't get turned on all the time, and a minute later she's coming onto me!" Ash bowed his head and sighed. "And apparently I screwed up by having her help with Tangela."

"Well," May said.

"I just…I do want to do what's right by her, I really do!" Ash insisted. "I know she's hurting and I want to help, but it just feels like no matter what I do, I'm just going to end up making things worse!"

May sighed. She pulled off her bandanna and scratched her head. "Man, I didn't know you were so twisted up like that."

Ash gave a half-shrug and kept staring at the ground.

After a few moments of silence May sighed again and sat down next to Ash. "Sorry for yelling," she mumbled. "That was…over the top."

Ash blinked. It was still weird for him to be friends with someone that actually apologized to him, weirder still when he thought that he was supposed to be the one feeling guilt. "It's fine. I get it."

"No, seriously." Entwining her fingers over her knees, May glanced over to the frazzled boy. "Ash, the thing is, I don't think even Misty knows what she wants now. I don't think she feels like there's any good path for her to take. It's weird, but in her own way, she's kind of as unlucky as you are, in the sort of 'weird stuff that could only happen to you' keeps happening. She's tremendously skilled, and one of the smartest people I know, and she keeps succeeding, but bad crap keeps happening to her."

His shoulders slumping, Ash let out a long groan. "And I'm just here, making it worse."

"No, you're not," May said, a hard edge to her tone. "Ash, none of this was really your fault. You just wanted to get a Pokemon and go adventuring like all kids. You didn't expect to have all this drama dumped on your lap."

"Well, I mean, better that than pecked to death by Spearows," Ash pointed out.

"True," May said with a nod. "Or kidnapped by Team Rocket."

"I'm pretty sure they were trying to kidnap Nurse Joy."

May shrugged. "So killed by Team Rocket."

Ash threw his hands into the air. "Well, that's just worst!" Then he paused, and slowly lowered his hands. Thinking back onto the last few days really put things into perspective. "Man, I had a lot of real close shaves, haven't I?"

"Like I said! Weird stuff that could only happen to you!" May said with a small laugh. "With you and Misty together, that's, like, double the bad weird!"

"I guess so," Ash sighed. "Figures."

Then Yellow, who had been silently standing and listening to their conversation, cleared her throat and said, "Maybe you all should just sit down and say what you're okay or not okay with instead of having to guess. It might make it easier."

Ash shot her a sullen look.

"Hey, we didn't really talk for like two years because I'm bad at communicating," Yellow said, holding up her palms. "I'm just saying."

May hesitated, and then said, "She has a point. I mean, our case isn't really covered in most PokeGirl manuals. We are breaking fresh ground here."

"Heh," Yellow said with a snicker. "Fresh ground."

Ash first gave Yellow a sidelong glance before turning it to May. "You've really been a bad influence on her."

That got a laugh out of May. "Ash, you would be shocked to know how dirty her mind already was."

Ash thought back to the day before. "Oh, trust me, I know."

"Yeah, I bet you do, you dirty boy," May said with a knowing smile.

Ash nodded and sighed.

Then he frowned.

"Wait," he said. "Do you-"

"I told her," Yellow said.

Ash choked.

"Relax," May said. "I spent the better part of the last hour banging that golden booty. I'm not going to throw stones over you two exchanging handies while listening to me teaching Misty the ins and outs of PokeGirl sex."

It really spoke to the sort of week Ash was having that upon hearing that while he and Misty had been at the museum Yellow and May had been having sex his reaction was mostly a nonchalant, "Of course they did."

"Okay," he said. "But don't tell Misty-"

"She's headed this way," Yellow said, pointing. Ash sat up immediately, his heart pounding.

Sure enough, Misty was approaching, and she did not look happy.

Actually, it was sort of hard to tell what she was feeling. She had a totally blank expression on her face. It wasn't angry, it wasn't sad, it wasn't frustrated, it wasn't anything. Her eyes were totally hollow.

Ash swallowed. Oh man, he had really done it.

Misty was marching right up to him, but before she could close the difference, May hurried in between the two.

"Misty, take it easy," May said, holding up her hands. "I already talked to him. The boy has been thoroughly chastised, and he feels just terrible about-"

"Not now, May." Without missing a beat, Misty side-stepped May and stomped right up to Ash.

Cringing back, Ash braced himself for impact. "Misty, I'm really, really sorry for hurting your feelings! I didn't mean-"

"Ash," Misty said in a hard monotone.

"Y-Yes?"

"Get Tangela. We're going to the field."

Ash blinked. "Huh?"

"You're going to need her to get over her fear of PokeGirls if you ever want to use her in battle. You have two PokeGirls to help you do that. So let's get to work."

Without another word Misty spun on her heel and walked away, heading for the edge of town.

Moments later the other three silently followed.

…

Misty led them back into the fields around Pewter City, to a small, secluded area, well away from other trainers and PokeGirls.

At her instruction, Tangela had been released again from her pokeball, only this time she and May kept well out of sight.

Ash and Yellow were kneeling in front of her, stroking her vines, speaking to it in hushed tones. It looked to be working. She at least seemed to understand that it could trust them, and was responding well to the attention. She had even wrapped a vine gently around Ash's forearm. Good.

Then, when she felt that enough time had elapsed, Misty stepped out into the open.

She didn't approach Tangela; she didn't even look at her. Instead, she kept her eyes focused forward, staring off at nothing, her hands kept loose at her sides and out in the open as she walked slowly forward, perpendicular to where Ash, Yellow, and Tangela were, with several yards between them.

Though she wasn't looking at the trio, she heard a startled, "TAN!", followed by Ash saying, "Easy! Easy! It's okay, it's okay, it's okay! She's not going to hurt you!"

Misty kept walking forward to a spot they had cleared beforehand. Once there, she stood in place for a long time, listening as Ash hushed Tangela, trying to soothe the panicked creature. Though she made sure not to make it obvious, she still stole a glance over at them.

Tangela was a shaking mess, and Ash was kneeling in front of her, gently stroking her vines while speaking to it her hushed tones, feeding her bits of crushed-up pokebricks while Yellow stood in between her and Misty, making herself a visible barrier, just as Misty had instructed. Though Tangela was still obviously scared, it wasn't running. Good.

Misty waited until the trembling had subsided before she slowly and carefully knelt down and placed the handful of crushed-up pokebricks she had been carrying. Then she turned until her back was to the trio and slowly walked several feet away before sitting down in the grass, her knees drawn up and her arms wrapped around her legs.

"C'mon, girl," she heard Ash coaxing. "It's okay. She's not going to hurt you. She's a friend."

Though keeping her back to the Tangela made her skin crawl, Misty resisted the urge to look over her shoulder. She had to prove that she wasn't a threat, and leaving herself vulnerable was the best way to do that.

The Tangela's fearful whimpers and Ash's muttered words of encouragement came slowly closer. Misty felt her shoulders involuntarily tighten, so she threw herself into a series of breathing exercises she found to be useful whenever she got nervous, or when some jackass trainer's comments had managed to get to her. Breathe in. Breathe out. She was safe. May was watching her back. It was okay.

Then she heard the distinctive sound of munching. Good. Tangela had accepted her offering.

"Uh, it's working!" Yellow called to her. "Tangela's not running away, and she's eating the dust you left for her."

Misty didn't respond audibly, but she did nod. Grass-type Pokemon were not her specialty by any means, but she had studied up on them, as they were a common counter to her team. As such, she had a pretty good idea how their psychology worked.

Tangela was scared of her not because she saw her as a natural threat, such as a fire-typed predator (or herbivore, if they were being honest), but because in healing her, enough of her sanity had been restored for her to remember what she had been forced to do to PokeGirls. Her training had obviously made her capable of discerning PokeGirls from regular human girls, and she no doubt feared retaliation from Misty's kind. As such, she had to be made aware that Misty wasn't inherently a threat, that she wasn't going to seek revenge. And through that, maybe she could be taught not to see PokeGirls in general as something to be feared.

It would take time. Building trust was a process, and Tangela needed to learn to trust Ash as much as she needed to learn not to flee in terror at every PokeGirl she saw, and doing both at the same time would be…a challenge.

…

Evening was coming. The day was almost over.

Progress had been made on Tangela. She was definitely building a bond with Ash, and they had gotten her to not flee at the sight of Misty or May. She still wouldn't approach them, but hey, progress was still progress.

At the moment, Ash was spending some time with her alone, as getting her to trust him was paramount. That was fine. It gave May space to do what she needed to do.

Misty was sitting by herself up against a tree when May approached her. She had her legs drawn and was staring moodily up at the darkening sky. As May walked up to her she glanced briefly up before looking away again with a sigh.

"All right, what's going on?" May said in a low voice.

"What do you mean?" Misty said without looking at her. "I said I'd help him train. That's what we did."

May audibly gritted her teeth. "Misty…"

Misty sighed. "Look, the sooner he gets that badge, the sooner we're heading home. It's as simple as that."

"Really? Is that all?"

Misty stretched out her legs and folded her arms. "Yes. It is."

May sighed and put her hands on her hips. "All right, you know he didn't mean to hurt you like that, right? And to be fair, we really have been sending him some mixed-"

"May. Knock it off. I know."

May raised an eyebrow. "So…"

"I'm not mad at Ash for shooting me down," Misty said flatly. "Actually, I'm kind of glad he did."

"Oh, really?"

Misty nodded. "Because I was letting myself get carried away. He was right about that."

May gritted her teeth. "Misty…"

"Besides, it did put things in perspective. I was never meant to be a PokeGirl, so giving in would've-"

May pounced.

Taken by surprise, Misty couldn't resist as May swept her up and drove her back into the grass. "What are you doing?" Misty exclaimed. "What's gotten into-MMPH!"

May kissed her deep and hard. As she did, she shoved her hand down the front of Misty's shorts.

This wasn't a mutually affectionate love-making session to be drawn out and enjoyed. This was done with a purpose, and May's fingers were merciless. She attacked Misty's pussy hard, shoving in and going to work.

It did not take long.

Misty's body arched up against May, and went May withdrew her hand, it was sticky.

"There," May said, sitting back and licking the strands off of her hand.

Panting, Misty sat up to glower at her. "What was that all about?" she demanded.

"Never make decisions when you're horny and frustrated," May said as she wiped the saliva off on the grass. "You're too upset and stoppered up to be thinking clearly."

"Oh, for heaven's sake!" Misty folded her arms and looked away.

Sighing, May sat back as well. "Misty, I know things are rough, and I know getting shot down like that hurt. I get it. But please try to work things out with Ash before you drive yourselves insane."

"What do you care?" Misty grumbled. "He's not even going to be around much longer. Is it because you want to sleep with him?"

"Well, yeah, but it's mostly for you guys!" May folded her legs Indian-style and leaned forward. "Misty. Please. Whatever you decide to do, just work things out with the guy! Figure out what you want and tell him, because right now he's so confused that he'll probably start humping Tangela!"

That actually got a small snort of laughter out of Misty.

"Besides, so are you," May said.

And that got an angry scowl out of Misty.

"I am not having this conversation again," Misty said.

May shrugged. "Well, whatever." She stood up. "But I still think you two really, really need to do something about all this sexual tension between you."

Misty looked pained. "May, why do you care so much? I mean, seriously!"

"Because in addition to how much it's hurting you both, it is a real long walk back to Cerulean City!" May snapped. "And putting up with you two getting all moody around each other in Viridian Forest was bad enough! Having to deal with it in Mt. Moon sounds insufferable!"

With that she turned and stomped off, leaving a surly but now very contemplative Misty behind.

…

Ash lay flat on his back in the dark, staring up at the ceiling.

It was night, and everyone had to go to bed. It was going to be a big day tomorrow, so everyone wanted to get lots of rest. They had separated the sleeping mats, though Misty and May were still sharing, leaving Ash alone with his thoughts and his fears.

He couldn't sleep. Tomorrow was going to be his first gym battle, potentially earning him his first badge. He was nervous, anxious, on edge. Though he knew that he was most likely going to lose, that most trainers lost on their first try, and that there was no penalty whatsoever for losing, he still had Butterfrees in his stomach, his muscles tight and restless.

He didn't know what time it was. It had to be close to midnight. Sure, he could roll over and check the clock, but he honestly didn't care. He was too uptight, too on edge.

Tomorrow would be his first ever gym challenge, his first shot at collecting one of the required eight badges to enter next year's tournament. He knew that he shouldn't be scared. It wasn't like he only had one shot or anything. Misty had assured him that most trainers didn't win on their first attempt, that nobody was expecting him to succeed right away, that it was normal for it to take several tries to beat a Gym Leader.

"It's just like fighting a tough boss in a video game!" she had told him. "You save right before and just keep trying over and over again, each time learning a little bit more! That's the whole point, after all!"

But darn it, he couldn't help but feel anxious. He had been traveling for only about a week and had had his license for little over a day, and already he was going to be facing off against the best rock-type trainer in all of Kanto. So of course he would be nervous!

But not only that, his pride as a trainer was at stake. Sure, they had gotten Tangela to trust him and not freak out around Misty and May, but what if he had screwed up? What if he embarrassed himself in front of Brock Harrison and his friends? What if he wasn't cut out to be a trainer after all?

Also, Misty was still upset with him. He had screwed up big time, and didn't know how to fix it. What was he going to do? What was he going to-

He had to pee. Like, really badly.

Moving as quietly as he possible so as to not disturb the girls, Ash got up and tiptoed over to one of the bathrooms. Once inside, he flicked on the light, winced as his dilated pupils were barraged by brightness, and went over to the toilet to pee.

When he was done, he walked over to a sink and ran the water to wash his hands. As he did, he looked up at his reflection in the mirror.

He was a mess. His hair was a tousled mess from all the tossing and turning he had been doing, and his eyes were hollow and gaunt.

Man, the stress was really getting to him. Was it going to be like this before every gym battle?

Ash shook the water off his hands and left the bathroom, turning the light off as he went. He laid back onto his sleeping mat and pulled the blanket back up and closed his eyes.

A few moments later he opened them back up.

Sure, peeing had relieved some of the tension, but it had done nothing to disperse the tightness in his legs, or the squirming in his gut, or the…

Ash glanced down and sighed.

…or the absolutely massive, throbbing erection that was now tenting his boxers, threatening to poke through the front flap, because thanks to the weirdness of the last few days, this was apparently how he responded to fear now! By getting seriously aroused!

He should have just done it with Misty. Then things wouldn't be all tense between them, she would probably be sleeping next to him right now, and he would at least have something to distract him from his nerves!

Plus, she wouldn't be feeling hurt thanks to him on top of everything else she was going through. That would also be great.

Well, maybe he didn't have his PokeGirl, and maybe that thing with Yellow had been a one and done sort of deal. But he still at least had himself to take care of his problem.

He glanced to either side to confirm that his traveling companions were still fast asleep. Then he nudged his dick towards the flap of his boxers, letting it flop out.

Grasping his hardness, he lay his head back and closed his eyes. This time, he imagined himself with both Misty and May. He knew what they looked like naked, knew what the feel of their hands was like, so it was real easy to picture them pressing themselves up against him.

Being naked with Yellow hadn't really done much for him, but this certainly did! He felt his erection tighten at that simple mental image. Biting down on his lower lip, he began pumping his hand up and down.

There was something he had seen once on one of Gary's videos, something he kind of wish that he had gotten the chance to try with the two PokeGirls. While he fully appreciated every part of Misty and May's bodies, he definitely liked their butts the most. He pictured them sitting butt-to-butt on either side of his dick, its length sandwiched snugly between their cheeks. They then began hopping up and down, rubbing Ash's penis with their-

Then a soft hand laid itself on top of his, stopping his pumping.

Ash's eyes snapped open. Someone was kneeling down next to him. Though the room was dark, he could just make out a feminine form with ruffled hair and-

Misty?

Misty glanced to him. She didn't say anything, but she did gently pry Ash's hand off of his penis and replace it with her own. As soon as her fingers closed around its girth, it suddenly stiffened and twitched in response to her touch, as if saluting its mistress.

Still keeping a good grip, Misty moved her body over and laid herself up against Ash's side, her head resting against his shoulder, just like she had the previous day when they had taken their nap, just like she had on the shores of the lake. He could just barely make out the faint scent of the shampoo she had used in her hair while showering.

And then, when she was fully molded up against him, her fingers began to stroke.

Ash's eyelids fluttered. He bit down on his lip to keep from waking the other two with his moans. Oh, this was so much better than doing it himself, even better than when Yellow had jacked him off. Misty might not have much experience with guys, but she knew her way around pleasing her partner, and the feel of her hand was making Ash melt.

And while Ash barely had any experience at all, he at least knew what to do now.

He reached down and grabbed a big handful of one round and lovely buttcheek, moving the fabric of her panties aside to have full contact. As he squeezed, Misty's hand paused for half-a-second, then he heard her let out a soft, snorting laugh through her nose before continuing.

Laying his head back with a sigh, Ash continued to knead the perfect cheek he held while she continued to pump his shaft. See, this was how a trainer and PokeGirl relationship ought to be. Casually sensual, full of mutual warmth and affection.

If only he hadn't screwed things up.

Then Ash frowned.

Though Misty's ministrations were making it very hard to think, one memory managed to crack through the haze of lust and arousal. It was something May had said when she had been chewing him out earlier, about how much PokeGirls needed to be, well, needed by their trainers, how Misty had come onto him not just for his sake, but for her own as well. He also remembered everything he had learned about PokeGirls' natural libido, how it left them constantly needing sexual attention, especially from their trainer.

Should he? Would it be pushing too far? Would she be offended? Granted, she hadn't exactly asked before coming up to him to jack him off, so that ship had kind of sailed.

Well, only one way to find out. Releasing the cheek he held, Ash slid his hand around over the curve of Misty's hip and rested it on the front of her crotch. Then, before he could talk himself out of it, he slipped his fingers inside her panties.

Misty's hand again froze, and so did his. Oh no, had he made a tremendous mistake? Had he presumed too much? Was she now going to leave in a huff, making things even more awkward between them, or-

Then Misty's hand started to again move up and down, slower this time, her grip just a little bit harder.

Taking that as a good sign, Ash pushed his hand all the way into her panties. Misty's soft, warm mound was much larger than Yellow's and, as expected, fit perfectly in the palm of his hand. He pressed his fingers into the soft, yielding flesh, feeling it moisten at his touch.

There was a catch to Misty's breath, and a shudder ran through her body.

Well, so far, so good. Only problem was that Misty was probably not going to be as open about communicating how she liked to be pleasured the same way Yellow had been, so Ash had to sort of feel his way around and learn on the go. It wasn't easy. The warmth shooting down his shaft and into his gut with every stroke made it oh so very hard to concentrate on what he was doing, even moreso than it had been with Yellow. What made things even more difficult was having to fight the tingling realization of Oh my God, I'm fingering Misty! If he concentrated too much on that fact, then he was probably going to freak out.

Still, his mutual masturbation session with Yellow, while definitely enjoyable, had still been weird, awkward, and didn't really work right. He had to imagine that she was Misty in order to get into it. But now it actually was Misty! And that just made things better. It felt nice. It felt right. And it felt…weirdly wholesome, for such a perverted act.

There was a rightness to this, a connection that went beyond hormonal lust. He had already felt a bit of it at the lake, before they had been horribly interrupted, and twice at that. And he had felt it again when they had started making out in the PokeCenter. For the first time, he truly felt like he understood the bond between a trainer and his PokeGirl.

Then Misty's hand again started to pick up speed, pumping him harder and harder. Ash responded in kind, gripping her harder, fingers pressing into her lower lips and probing her entrance. She seemed pleased with his work, if judging by how her hips had begun to move back and forth in a circular motion, grinding her pussy into his hand. He started to the same, his own hips pushing up and down in time with her hand.

It was coming. He could feel the heat building, could feel the pressure tightening, could feel it rising up, almost ready to burst. He squeezed his jaw shut to keep any weird noises from coming out, but man, it was so hard.

Misty seemed to be having a similar problem. She buried her face into Ash's neck and shoulder, her free hand brought up so she could bite down on her finger in an effort to stifle any sounds of pleasure.

Almost there. He was almost there…

Then, right before he burst, Misty suddenly lunged up and shoved her mouth down onto his. This time, he didn't just sit there like an unresponsive vegetable, but kissed her back.

And then he came, fireworks exploding in his head while a cannon went off down below. At the same time, Misty's pussy suddenly felt like it was convulsing, and warm fluid flooded Ash's palm. The two kids' bodies stiffened against each other as they rode twin waves of ecstasy, drinking from each other's' mouths while clutching each other's sexes.

Finally it began to subside, and the haze lifted from Ash's mind. With a pleased sigh, Misty flopped onto her back, her hand sliding off of his softening dick, while he removed his hand from her panties.

The two lay side-by-side for a long time, content to bask in the afterglow. Ash felt so much better. Sure, he was still nervous about tomorrow, but it was hard to feel anxious when everything was just so pleasant, just so comfortable.

He glanced over to Misty, who was still lying up against his shoulder and breathing heavily. She glanced back, their eyes locking in the dark.

Then Misty's cheeks puffed up, and she made the low, strangled squeak of someone who very much wanted to laugh and was trying with every ounce of strength not too. That unfortunately set Ash off, and he had to clap his dry hand over his mouth not to break into giggles.

Maybe things would be okay. Sure, he had screwed up, but he had done all right just now, hadn't he?

Then Misty leaned up against him, her eyes closing and her lips pursed. Ash moved in as well to kiss her.

Then a wry voice said, "Y'know, I think it's kind of selfish for you two to throw a party and not invited the rest of us."

Ash froze, as did Misty.

A second later a bedside light turned on.

May was wide awake and up, lying on her belly with her chin propped up on one arm as she watched the pair with a lurid grin. Her shorts were shoved down to her knees, and she wasn't even bothering to hide the hand moving between her legs. On the other side of Ash, Yellow was lying on her side, and while she wasn't masturbating, she was also watching with a very smug smile.

Ash coughed. "Uh, how long were you two watching?"

"Long enough," May said, licking her lips. She turned onto her side, letting everyone watch her finger herself. "Long. Enough."

Ash felt his face turn red, while Misty covered hers with her hands.

May and Yellow both started cackling. Sighing, Ash shoved his now thankfully inert penis back into his boxers. Then, maneuvering his arm back around Misty, he sat up, stood to his feet, and walked toward the bathroom without saying so much as a word.

As he did, he heard May inquire, "So…does this mean handjobs are now free game?"

"Ugh," Misty responded. "Fine! Yes! Handjobs and kissing are now free game! Like you haven't already done worse."

Good grief.

Once inside the bathroom, Ash turned the light on and walked over to the sink and washed his hands. As he did, he heard the door open behind him.

Misty walked in, a thousand yard stare on her face. She glanced briefly at Ash before slipping off her now soaked panties and tossing them down the laundry chute.

Ash winced and looked away.

A moment later his eyes roved back, centering on Misty's bare butt.

If she knew that he was ogling her she didn't seem to care. She just stood still with her back to him, watching the laundry chute.

And then she said, "Well, uh. That happened."

"Er…yeah." Ash turned the water off and dried his hands. "So…does this, um, change anything?"

Misty sighed. "Don't read too much into it. I'm still cross with you."

Ash winced. "Sorry."

"Yeah. I know."

"Still. Thanks."

Misty glanced over her shoulder. "Was it good, though? I mean, you enjoyed it, right?"

Ash blinked. "Seriously?"

"Yes, seriously! In case you haven't noticed, I don't exactly have a lot of experience doing anything with guys, so yours is literally the first dick I've ever touched on purpose and didn't hate the sight of, and-"

Then Misty's eyes got wide, and she hastily looked away.

Ash stood there in the awkward silence that lay between them, silently processing what she had just let slip. "Was it really that bad?" he said. "I mean, dealing with all those trainers at your job?"

Misty sighed. "I mean, it's not like all of them were gross and creepy. Most of them were fine, actually. But yeah, too many of them were."

"Oh. That, uh, sucks."

"Yup." Misty placed her hands on her naked hips and inhaled sharply. "It does."

"I-"

"I mean, you'd think that being a Gym Leader would get me some respect, that maybe, just maybe, there was a reason that I got this job! That maybe they let a kid become Gym Leader because she's really, really good at it? But noooooo, they think that just because I'm a kid, that means they can be all-"

Again Misty cut herself off in mid-sentence. She took another deep breath and let it out in a frustrated-sounding growl.

Then Ash said, "Well, I think you're pretty cool."

Misty snorted. "Thanks, Ash. But I think you're biased."

That stung a bit. "No, hey! I'm being serious here. Who else would've just thrown themselves at an angry Spearow flock to save a stranger? Who else would've gone back into a Team Rocket-infested city to check up on a complete stranger? And that's not getting into everything you taught me about Pokemon training! I think that you-"

Ash stopped. Misty was crying.

"Misty?" he said in alarm. Oh no, what had he done now? "I'm sorry, I didn't mean-"

"No, it's not you," Misty said as she wiped her eyes with her arm. "That was…really sweet, actually."

"Oh. Uh…thanks?"

"But it just feels like no matter what I choose, it's going to suck! I want to keep being a Gym Leader, I really do! I really do love having a gym and training my Pokemon and taking on every trainer that comes to town, but I don't know how much more of those creeps I can take!"

Ash tilted his head. "Is that why you were so eager to go with me?"

"Ugh." Misty shook her head. "Call that…a post catching rush. But kind of." Misty sighed. "May was right. I had been thinking of quitting for a while, but I couldn't think of a way that wouldn't make me seem like the world's biggest loser. So the thought of just disappearing and going on an adventure with you and May…it sounded like fun. It really sounded like a lot of fun."

"Then come with me!" Ash blurted out. "If you want to go with me so badly, then do it! You don't have to give up your gym, just have someone to stand in for you for a while."

Misty pressed a pair of fingers to her forehead and sighed. "Ash…"

"I mean it! Look, I seriously don't care if you want to stay a PokeGirl or not. Heck, I'll take you to the PokeCenter right now and release you if you want me to! A-And I don't really mind if we never, um…do that…"

At this, Misty's head snapped up and locked gazes with him, sparks flying in her eyes.

"I mean, it would be really great if we did, don't get me wrong!" Ash hastily amended. "B-But that's not why I want you to go with me! I just want…I just want us to be friends, and for you to go on that adventure with me, you and May! I know I haven't known you guys long, but you guys have seriously been two of the coolest people I've met."

The ferocity in Misty's eyes softened, and she looked away again. "It's…It's not that simple, Ash. I wish it was, but it isn't!"

"Well, it should be," Ash said stubbornly. "If that guy in Viridian City can disappear for months at a time, you should be able to do so as well."

Misty sighed. "Ash, I don't know what that guy's deal is, but I'm not him. Do you have any idea how much crap I got when I took over the gym from people who didn't think I could handle the pressure? People kept saying that I would quite in a month, and even though I've been running that gym for three years some punks still say stuff like that! I'm not going to prove them right!"

Ash felt himself growing frustrated. Misty had so much pride tied up in that stupid gym, even though it was making her miserable! "Who cares what they think?" he demanded. "Who cares what they say?"

"You do!"

At this, Ash was struck dumb. His head jerked back as if he had been slapped, and he blinked once before staring in shock.

Misty turned to face him. Her cheeks were bright pink with emotion, and her eyes wet with frustration. She was breathing heavily, struggling to get the words out of a throat that was quickly tightening. "Ash, all of this is about proving yourself to the people you grew up with. Gary. Yellow. Red and Leaf. All of them! They hurt you, and you want to prove something to them, right? You could take your time, spend a few years gathering badges, hit the tournament when you're good and ready. But it's a race, isn't it? Gary's shooting to win this year, so you are too!" She laid a hand on her chest. "Well, it's the same for me! You have your fight, and I have mine! You get that, don't you?"

Ash did. More than anything, he understood, and he hated himself for it. He understood how Misty felt, why she was putting herself in the position that she was, despite all the grief she was taking. She was right; he was the same as her, just a couple of stubborn children driven by their enormous egos and their biting insecurities. If Misty did just abandon her gym and continued to accompany him on his journey, then it didn't matter how much fun they would have together, she would still hear those taunts and jeers of those she had failed to show up every step of the way.

And in a moment of supreme stubbornness, selfish desire, and heartbreaking compassion, he found that he did not care.

He wanted her to come with him. He wanted her, and not necessarily as a PokeGirl, not even as a lover.

He just wanted her. As a friend, as a companion. Whatever the role, he just wanted her.

Ash crossed the space between them. Seeing him approach, Misty straightened up, lifting her chin in expectation of his defiance.

Instead, he slipped his arms around her and held her tight.

She just felt so warm in his arms, so soft and yet so strong. Her heart was beating frantically against his chest, separated from him only by the thin material of their shirts. Like it had when they had been in bed, holding her felt almost nourishing, like he was gaining strength just from being in contact with her.

Part of him was aware that was just how it was between PokeGirls and their trainers. Catching PokeGirls did create a special bond, regardless of who it was. But that didn't make it any less real. It just added an extra spice to it.

At first Misty had gone stiff in his arms, tense and uneasy, and for a moment he was afraid that she would pull away. But, with aching slowness and hesitancy, her muscles started to relax, and her arms even began to close around him as well. Not by much, just the lightest of touches near the back of his hips, but it was there.

"C'mon, Misty," he whispered. "Stay with me, okay? Stay."

Misty slowly breathed out, a long, belabored sigh that conveyed more meaning and emotion than entire paragraphs could ever do.

Then she drew back from him. Ash swallowed and waited.

Glistening tear trails now shimmered on her cheeks. She lifted her head and leaned to kiss Ash softly on the lips.

Ash automatically started to respond, his eyes dipping closed while his mouth began to press against hers.

But just like that it was done, just a small, brief peck that left his lips tingling.

Her head bowed, Misty sighed again and spoke. "You're sweet, Ash. A real dummy sometimes, but sweet."

Then she drew back fully out of her arms. "But it would never work."

And at that precise moment, the laundry cubby behind her dinged, letting her know that it was done.

Misty wordlessly turned from Ash to pull out her panties. She stepped through the holes and drew them up her legs. When they were on, she walked from the bathroom without another word, without even looking back, leaving Ash with a lump in his throat and an ache in his chest.