It was a chilly and breezy mid-October day. The air was still damp from the rain yesterday and this morning, with little puddles scattered across the ground. Yumi was somewhat astounded that Nori had run out without a jacket, especially given he didn't seem to be cold at all.

His strides were long and powerful. Yumi was struggling to keep up with him even though she was jogging. Between the strenuous exercise and the way she felt, she was about to run out of breath. Instead, she mustered her courage and called to him.

"Hey, wait up!"

She flinched as Nori whirled around and took a step towards her with a raised fist. His sneer instantly softened into a blank, empty expression when he saw it was her. He dropped his hand. They stared at each other for what felt like minutes until his lips curled into a frown and he shut his eyes tightly. They were at the far end of the school's field, just the two of them. Though her legs felt like a Ditto, she approached.

They were a little over two meters apart. Nori didn't say or do anything. He only stood there with a similar to the one he wore when standing in the doorway of the club. Only his eyebrows were lower and his frown was deeper. It was like he was just fed up with it all. She'd never seen him like this before!

Yumi chanced taking a step closer, just a tiny one. She said to him, "I'm sorry."

Nori's shoulders slumped and he shook his head. "You don't have anything to apologize for," he replied. He looked her square in the eye, but it was with a warm and reassuring glint. That was more like the Nori she knew.

"I know," she replied, taking another half step near him. They were about a meter apart, probably less. "I'm just sorry that you have to put up with this."

What Yumi wanted to do was reach out and give him a big hug. He needed one, and…she wanted to hug him anyway. But she wasn't sure how he would respond. What if he hated it? What if it made him hate her? What if she messed it up? Why did things have to be this way?

It was because of everyone else! Why couldn't they see Nori even half the way she saw him? She clenched her fists. "I can't believe everyone!" she complained, clenching her fists. "Especially those two, Louis and Mariko. Why did they think it was right to show up and make things worse for you?" She knew them. This was petty, plain and simple! They never would have gone through with this otherwise!

Nori answered. "I think they're still pissed off at me about the Demon," he remarked somewhat hollowly, maybe even resignedly. He came to the same conclusion, then. His feet bounced, his brow wrinkled, and he put his hands in his pockets. "But who cares what they think? I'm more bothered by our club."

Yumi bit her lips and she felt a heat in her face. He should care what they think. This was a serious issue. If Louis and Mariko had their way, Nori might not be able to be a Pokemon Rehabilitator anymore. Either way, seeing Nori so worried made her stomach twist into more knots than it already was. The teenager cleared her throat before trying to ease his concerns, "I talked to the others about it before I came to find you. I think they just need some time to cool off." She looked over her shoulder and glowered. "Especially Reiko."

"I hope they do," her friend droned.

At that, Yumi could no longer help herself. She involuntarily reached out. When her arm was halfway to him, it locked up in realization. Her eyes darted between it and him. Nori's eyebrows went up and he twitched. Yumi could only cringe. Stupid! Yet, it remained up, maybe just because she was too stunned to even move. She shut her eyes and started to consciously move her arm. She was shaking, yet she managed to bring it up to pat his shoulder for just a second.

His gaze met hers. Yumi shut her eyes, then she asked the question. "Are you all right? You've been acting weird."

When she looked at him again, he was smiling. Yumi couldn't help but stare.

"As good as I can be," he softly assured. "There just wasn't anything I think I could've done in those situations that wouldn't have made it worse."

Then he reached out. Yumi felt a prickle as his arm drew near, and completely locked up as he returned the physical contact. He was patting her shoulder! Close to holding her! What should she do?! She wanted this, but what now?!

"It's fine!" he insisted, giving a hearty nod. "I was ready for a lot of people to hate me over this."

Yumi pulled back. It was reflexive, not voluntary. "You don't sound like you're fine, though!" she cried.

Nori turned away. Busted. She knew him way better than he thought! He wasn't acting fully like himself! He rubbed the nape of his neck like he usually did. "I just thought…" He chuckled as he trailed off. "Or rather, I hoped it wouldn't be like this."

"Maybe that was expecting too much of people." It pained her to say that. If there was one thing she knew from being in YAMS, or even from her family, it was that there were a lot of people who just wanted to follow the easy train of thought. "People see this Pokemon that killed a celebrity. They don't care how or why. So of course a lot of them would think you're a bad person for giving her a chance."

"She's not even a bad Pokemon!" Nori threw up his arms. "I'm sure if they got to know her, they'd see her for who she really is." He abruptly paused and blinked.

"I only have your word to go on, but I believe you." That was one of the many things she loved about Nori. He was honest and straightforward. Which meant he wouldn't shy away from speaking his mind. But he'd also know how to put it nicely if appropriate.

Nori rubbed the nape of his neck again. He did that a lot when sheepish, but also when he was about to ask an awkward question. "Well, do you want to meet her?"

Yumi took another reflexive step back. "Wait, what?!" Okay, she was not expecting him to ask THAT. Thoughts of his previous assignment flashed through her mind. Especially what she and what felt like half the school saw him do right in front of them! "But your Qwilfish…no! I really don't…not here!" She wildly waved it off. "Sorry, I mean. What I meant to say…!" What should she say in this situation?!

"I thought you trusted my judgment?" he asked, tilting his head. "Yumi, I know you're scared for me. But she's not like Pawniard."

His frown, his limp arms, how he slumped. Nori was earnest even in his body language. He was hurt. And he was right. She said that even though she shouldn't have.

She did believe Nori when he said he thought Qwilfish wasn't bad. But that didn't mean she wasn't dangerous! What if something triggered her and she attacked him? She didn't want him to end up like Pete Stephens. Yet…his pressed hands. His quivering mouth. His pleading eyes. She couldn't say no. She couldn't. And maybe he really was right. Maybe seeing his assignment would be a peace of mind.

Yumi took a deep breath and answered, "Okay."

Nori was glad that he had a friend like Yumi Takao. To think that at one point she was trying to stop him from taming the Demon with the rest of them. And look at them now! Okay, the part hadn't changed, but the context had. It was always nice to know she cared about him that much. He supposed it was justified too. Normally, any Pokemon that kills a human unprovoked would be subject to an intensive evaluation. The more he thought about what people were saying about the situation being odd, the more he was inclined to agree.

Then there was what happened with those two jerks. The worst part was he couldn't think of a way to refute their logic. How did the guy who thought up his position put it? It was a touchy subject. Maybe it was more true than he thought, especially if this ended up gaining traction. At least, maybe, possibly, the Officials would do something about it?

He really would've been worried if she refused this, though. He wouldn't know whether she was just saying things to make him feel better. Actually, this whole idea was spur of the moment, one that had struck him out of the blue while he was talking. If people saw Qwilfish, what would they think? Maybe it really wouldn't change minds. After all, he heard on the news that some people around the world had been insane enough to go around killing Qwilfish. But what if it did change people's minds if they actually met the culprit? Yumi would be a good test.

First things first, to find a puddle. He didn't want to chance what happened with Prema happening again. If a creek worked, any shallow body of water would do just fine too, right?

He ran a couple steps away. As he twisted his body and moved his head, rapidly trying to find a good spot, he caught sight of Yumi. She was staring at her feet, hunched over with her arms dangling listlessly.

"Er, are you all right?" he inquired and hurried back over to her. Was this asking too much? Did it have to do with that bandage? No, wait. A moment to actually think it through, and he knew what was up.

"Oh!" she said as she snapped upright, as if she were a soldier called to attention. "Yes, just a little, you know." She shifted lightly.

He nodded at her. "I get it," he said with a grin. "You believe me about Qwilfish, but you also wanna see for yourself to figure out what's what your own way, right?" Also, she wasn't going to agree with Louis and Mariko. She just wanted to pat his back in comfort.

For a second, Yumi's eyes widened as she put up her palms. She forced a smile a second after. "That's pretty much it," she admitted.

Okay, so mostly on the mark, she was still afraid. Reasonably so. But that was good enough for him if she was trying! He raised and lowered both fists, resting at chest level. "Well, you will know in a few!"

The beige-haired teenager tried to hold back her smile, but when a soft chuckle broke through her twitching lips, she broke into a wide grin. Her shoulders dropped to a neutral position. "Okay, but are you looking for something?" It was a valid question.

"Just a deep enough puddle for her to sit in," he informed before checking around some more. There wasn't much to see but grass, the soccer posts, and a few other students hanging out closer to the school. Any deeper spots were likely to be hidden. "She needs to get used to being out of water, but I found that even a little helps. It's going to take some time and practice."

"She was abandoned, wasn't she?" Yumi did some idle looking around of her own. "I wonder if her old trainer didn't have the patience to properly train her."

He shrugged. "Maybe, I'm sure we'll find out if they ever find who did this." Their motives might be important for understanding Qwilfish's behavior. He had some ideas about the kind of person they were. He voiced one of them aloud. "But whoever it was sure didn't have the…niceness."

The stupid nonsensical word slipped out of his mouth! Yumi giggled. "Or the smartness!" she added.

While he winced at first, Nori couldn't help but laugh too. Yumi could make some biting remarks, but only when sticking up for someone or joking around. He liked that about her. Her using a silly non-word too uplifted him; he felt a spring in his shoes as he started to walk around. He swore there was a spot where the water pooled somewhere around this field…

Yumi gestured beyond the chain link fence. "Would that one in the parking lot work?"

He wasn't thinking of going that far. But she was right, there was a big one right there between some of the parking stalls. "Let's see."

The boy scampered over the chain-link fence to get there quicker, and also because he felt a surge of energy and excitement flowing through him. The boy quite literally tested the waters by tapping them with a foot. It wasn't even toe deep! The puddle was wide, but that was about it. Maybe it was deeper somewhere in it? He placed a finger on the side of his lips. What to do…

He caught Yumi hurrying over from the side, having gone around the proper way. Nori wondered for a moment if she was bothered by that, but she was smiling vaguely.

"So will it work?" she inquired.

The young official glanced back at the puddle. His left hand slipped into his pocket. He idly felt around for the capsules within, pinching the correct one and carefully extracting it.

"I guess there's only one way to find out," he admitted. "If there's any trouble, I'll bring her back right away. Don't worry."

"Okay." At least she trusted him there. Yumi knew how good he was at aiming; he'd even demonstrated it before. Heck, he was supposed to get a suppression tool eventually, which is what it was mainly for.

Without further hesitation, Nori gave the ball a toss toward the center of the puddle. He snatched it as it boomeranged back after releasing the occupant. His grip was firm to begin with, but it tightened as she materialized.

The reaction of the pufferfish would have been comical had it not nearly turned dire the last time. She started flailing and wheezing right away. Rolling on her side in the process and seeing what was beneath did little to alleviate her fears, as she was still very immobile. Her eyes rapidly darted around. He knew it, there wasn't enough water!

Yumi let out a shriek as his assignment began to inflate. "Nori, quick! Get her back!"

No, he couldn't! Without even thinking, he stepped towards her and shouted, "Qwilfish, relax! It's just me and my friend here!"

When she turned towards him and showed no signs of stopping, Nori bent his knees and thrust his arm out, Dive Ball in hand. Qwilfish contracted slightly…then stopped. She let out a distressed, maybe annoyed noise at him as she returned to normal size.

He could only stifle a laugh. It sounded funny. "You can breathe," he assured her. All aquatic Pokemon could breathe oxygen just fine, whether it was on land, in saltwater, or in freshwater. It was mobility that made them uncomfortable.

He ignored her continued fussing and stepped to the side. He gestured with an arm. "This is Yumi. She's a good friend of mine who wanted to say hi to you."

The beige-haired teenager vaguely moved her wrist. Qwilfish hummed for several seconds before wagging her tail fin. It meant hello.

"Sorry, this was unplanned," he addressed her. "I thought you should know that I want to do some training with you in a bit. Is that okay?"

She shook her form and puffed up again. Before she could even start to get into it, Nori cut in.

"It's to help you! I know you're a nice Pokemon, and we need to show other people that. And um, maybe fight that jerk if she keeps insisting like she did now." Knowing her, it was going to be in a pool or at a lake. But that was more reason to get used to battling together. "Do you get that at least?"

With a huff, she slapped her tail fin against the ground, splashing up a bit of water. But that was all she did or said.

Something occurred at that moment. "Don't worry, I'll feed you when I get back home!" He hadn't actually done that at all! Thank goodness for lowered metabolism in Poke Balls. Wait, that's right. He felt a cramp in his neck that he had to massage. "Um, there's no water there. But you'll have to get used to it. I'll teach you, it's fine!"

She tilted down and half closed her eyes. No response besides. Nori pressed his palms together and stared. Under this and after about ten seconds, she exhaled twice.

The positive response made him feel like he was standing on air. "Thanks. See you in a bit." He recalled her and pocketed the capsule once more. Yes! Progress!

He made a small jump for joy in which he whirled to face Yumi. She had been quiet for their whole conversation. He had taken her silence to mean that she was too nervous or uneasy to say or do anything. Or maybe she was worried about messing stuff up? But instead, she had a furrowed brow with lips pouted upward. She met his eyes, her own holding a concerned gleam.

His friend was silent for a second too long before speaking. "Nori, she looked terrified."

"She was like this when I got her!" he hastily and impulsively clarified. "Actually, she's improved a little since then, but not too much," he added.

"Sorry, I didn't mean anything by it." She bowed slightly in apology. "What I meant to say, she looked guarded and uneasy. Maybe worse than that."

Nori tapped his lips. "Paranoia?" She was distrustful to an excessive degree.

"Something like that," she solemnly spoke. "I visited some Pokemon shelters back when I was with YAMS. She had the same sort of look in her eye as I saw in a few of the Pokemon there who had suffered abuse. It's like…" She shook her head. "No, never mind."

Nori rolled his ankle before stretching. "I don't know if she was abused. But she was abandoned. That and what happened after would affect most normal Pokemon badly."

"I know that Pokemon usually go to care facilities for mental trauma. Lance the Dragon Master's Dragonite is the most famous example of a Pokemon that did."

The words made something click. "That's it." He clapped his hands. It made sense now! "That's what Volkner and Priestess Satomi meant. They said this was odd. She should've gotten sent to one of those, not to me!"

Yumi's lip curled inward a little. "I was thinking that too, but it sounded too silly. So why didn't they send her to one?" she sharply exclaimed, putting a hand on her hip. "Why did they give her for you to handle?"

That was the part that made no sense. "That's a very good question. I'll need to get some answers. For now, I'm just going to do my best for her. Thanks, Yumi!"

"Oh, you're welcome," she said, sheepishly rubbing the hair on the back of her head. "Are you sure you're going to be okay? I mean, she has to be in…her environment sometimes, and you…" She turned away, fiddling with her jacket. "Your phobia."

Nori shut his eyes. Anyone who knew him well would have realized. "I don't know," he slowly confessed, fully honest with her. "I knew it'd be a problem right away."

He jumped a little when he looked and saw Yumi had walked right in front of him. "If you need any support…" she sputtered. The beige-haired teenager averted eye contact by keeping her gaze locked on his shoes. "If you need me to be there if you have to go somewhere to train her…well." Her head snapped up and she leaned in suddenly. "Just tell me, and I'll be there!"

Her declaration to help bordered on a plea to accept it. Her wide eyes said as such, and her lips remained slightly open.

Nori smoothly nodded. "I'll keep that in mind," he replied. "Thanks, Yumi."

He closed his eyes. It was really nice knowing someone cared this much about him. He gave it a few seconds before opening them. Yumi was fidgeting again.

"Well," he said, mentally shrugging to himself. "I should get going if I'm gonna do this." There was a little pond a few blocks to the south that would work.

Yumi nodded. "Are you going to be okay?"

"Yup!" he assured with a little salute. "Don't worry, I can handle that much."

"That's good. But, I meant, are you cold?" She pulled her right hand slightly into the sleeves of her white and pink jacket.

"Oh!" He pumped his fists low. Sure, it was chilly, but nothing he couldn't handle. "Yeah, this is fine. Don't worry about that either!"

"Okay." She put her hand back through. He knew it, she would've offered him her jacket. That was sweet of her. "I'll talk to the others about what happened."

"Thanks." He figured she was going to anyway if she hadn't already. But there was something else on his mind. "By the way, what happened with your face?" The boy gestured to the bandage.

Yumi completely froze for a second. No, actually, she froze as he was leaning in, not when he asked the question. But it had the effect of pulling her out of her reverie. "Oh, don't mind that," she said, taking an unsteady step back while chuckling nervously.

"If you say so?" She was hiding something, and he had a feeling what it might be given the facts and her evasiveness. Did something happen at her family gathering? But this was not the time or place to prod about that. So he shrugged. "See you later, Yumi."

"Good luck, Nori."

He spun around and set out, strutting powerfully down the pavement. As he looked over his shoulder, he saw Yumi watching him. She stood on her toes and gave him a wave, which he reciprocated. He was lucky to have someone like her watching his back. He made it a block away when a sudden thought made him slow to a walk.

Training was going to involve working with his other Pokemon. And there was all of one Pokemon that would now work. Between how the conversation with Pachi ended and Pawniard being…well, himself. That left one Pokemon he was certain might not be a problem with her. The keyword being might. The Demon and this Qwilfish. How would they receive each other?