Landing in the middle of Glimwood Tangle, Fuse got off Washington's back to observe his surroundings.

His team was lacking a grass type, so he decided that getting someone to fill that slot was necessary.

But who should that grass type Pokemon be? And what weed state is he going to call it? California was already out…

As Fuse was pondering the question, a new notification suddenly appeared in front of him.

You have gained a Fortune Cookie!

Not very invested in what his fortune stated at the current moment, he decided to just open it without much fanfare.

This universe was not the first victim, nor will it be the last.

…Yeah, he really hopes that whatever fortune is coming his way, it won't be his problem. Is it possible to get a fortune about someone else? Because he sure would love for that to happen.

Because seriously, why is the universe facing some impending doom his problem? All he really wants to do is go back home.

Putting the fortune away and eating the cookie, Fuse decides to just cut his losses and go explore Glimwood Tangle.

It was getting darker, but he didn't actually need to sleep. So, he was going to stay up a bit late and find a good grass type Pokemon. Then he'll go to sleep.

Also, he needs to get his newer Pokemon some more experience. Because Florida literally running behind him was… Very Florida, admittedly, but also what the fuck.

So, Fuse took all six of his Pokemon and threw them out of their Pokeballs.

"Oy, listen up," Fuse grabbed all of their attention, "I'm trying to catch a grass type Pokemon here. So, if you find one of those, let me know. Otherwise, it's open season in this forest."

His Pokemon all cheered as they all decided to group up to help the smaller and weaker members gain experience. They didn't even need Fuse to tell them to do that. They were just that united.

Truly, it brings a tear to his eye.

Well, he should probably figure out how to set up a tent, considering that he hasn't actually slept in a foreign world other than Teyvat.

Considering he was on a camping trip in Yosemite one time, this shouldn't be complicated…


Sitting on top of Corvy, Lily faced off against gym leader Opal for her 5th gym badge. The crowds in Ballonlea weren't as big as the other cities, but Lily still enjoyed the enthusiasm people had for her.

She hasn't had much challenge since she left the Crown Tundra. But she was still enjoying meeting new people every day, and being able to solve any conflict that she came across was fulfilling.

But of course, she still had the gym challenge to complete at the behest of her quest. So although Lily wanted to take the journey much slower, she had to keep up pace with the other challengers to ensure that she made it to Wyndon on time.

So, a few of her other Pokemon needed the training to make sure they got the spotlight they wanted. Some of her Pokemon, like Cally and Specty, don't enjoy the spotlight. So they let Obsty and Corvy take all of the spotlight.

But sometimes, her shy Pokemon want to fight too.

Mimmy, Lily's shiny Mimikyu, was standing on top of the Mawile that seemed to be so confident just a moment ago. Of course, the Mawile was no longer conscious.

Her opponent, Opal, put a hand to her cheek as she remarked, "My, my, child. Your Pokemon sure are dangerous. Don't you know Mimikyus are known for scaring grown adults to death?"

Frowning, Lily replied, "Mimmy won't do that to me! I trust him!"

Mimmy hopped around happily at the admission. Then Mimmy jumped off the Mawile so Opal could return Mawile to her Pokeball.

Opal sighed, "Well, if you think it's safe, then I will trust the bond between a trainer and her Pokemon… But you should know that bond is also the most dangerous to fight!"

As Alcremie landed on the battlefield, waiting to be dynamaxed, Mimmy returned to Lily's side.

Tilting her head, Lily asked her Pokemon, "Oh, you don't want to fight anymore?"

Chirping in agreement, Mimmy nodded her fake head up and down.

Kindly smiling, Lily told her, "Okay! Corvy or Obsty can take care of this! You can go rest!"

As she returned Mimmy to her Pokeball, Lily looked down to check if Corvy wanted to dynamax.

Corvy returned a simple tilt of her head, telling her that she wasn't very enthused about it but would if she had to.

A quick check on Obsty's Pokeball showed that she was sleeping. How cute! But it did mean that Corvy had to dynamax.

Patting Corvy on the head, Lily told her, "Okay Corvy! You're up!"

Jumping off of her steed, Lily returned Corvy to her Pokemon, her dynamax band glowing in anticipation.

At the same time, Opal was already throwing her Pokeball, so she was a bit late.

"Alright! Help me win this battle!" Lily shouted out as the Pokeball grew to be her size, managing to throw it behind her with great difficulty.

In fact, she may have had the most difficult task on her team. For the actual battle was of no concern.


After an unjustifiable amount of time, Fuse finally finished setting up the tent he had in his inventory.

Wiping off fake sweat from his forehead, he congratulated himself on a job well done.

Turning to the nearest living creature, a wild Shiinotic, Fuse asked for a seal of approval, "Say, I really did a good job, didn't I?"

The wild Shiinotic readily agreed, emitting some sort of weird synth beeping sounds. Fuse didn't know it could do that.

…Actually, why was there a level 39 Shiinotic standing right next to him?

The Shiinotic was obviously not as unaware as he was, because it simply beeped happily once realization dawned upon Fuse's body.

Yeah, he was being played for a fool.

With a resigned sigh, Fuse admitted, "Alright, you caught me off guard. I really didn't expect a random Shiinotic to be here."

At least, it didn't seem very aggressive. Maybe it wanted to join his team?

Holding out his hand, Fuse offered, "So, uh, wanna join my team?"

Hopping up and down, Shiinotic eagerly pressed its hands into Fuse's Pokeball-less hands.

Ah, right, he should've just gotten out the Pokeball first…

…Hm, his thoughts were slowing down.

Then, Fuse remembered a rather important detail about this particular Pokemon.

"Ah, you're the one that puts people to sleep…" Fuse slowly mumbled before unceremoniously dropping to the floor.

Well, his Pokemon can handle it from here.


Fuse knew that he was dreaming. It wasn't even a question. He remembered what happened to him, but that wasn't even necessary.

No, rather, the reason why Fuse knew that he was dreaming was because he was sitting on his couch.

His couch back home.

Looking to his left, he saw the hallway leading to his front door. To his right was the windows overlooking the backyard. Behind him was the kitchen.

In front of him was a TV and a remote, just like he left it.

But… His dad was absent. And he was still half slime.

It was just a dream. Logically, Fuse knew that. Even so, to dream as though he had made it home and was now simply waiting for his dad to come back home…

Yes, this would be a good ending for him.

Seeing no other choice, Fuse decided to pick up the remote and turn the television on.

Surprisingly, it was nothing about politics. Instead, it was just the weather.

"-Clear skies for the week. Not to mention it's not too hot or cold either, this may be the best week to go take your family out somewhere good this month," The weather reporter said, eliciting a small amount of interest in Fuse.

When he returned home, what would he do first? Obviously, he had to save his country from civil war. But America would live another thousand years regardless of what he did. As long as there were still patriots in this country, Fuse could rest assured that he would return home to a country still standing.

So, what if the first thing Fuse did when he returned home wasn't for his country? What if it was a purely selfish action?

Maybe he could introduce his father to all the worlds he's visited on the way home. Maybe Dori and the others wanted to see the country he spoke so highly of before he went to save it. Maybe…

Maybe Fuse wanted to try something other than fighting for his country, for just a short while.

A nation of free men would mean nothing if its citizens could not choose their own destiny.

Perhaps Fuse wanted to choose something of his own design, in the end. And that though he may revere his country and its flag, he loves its ideals more.

Yet, even with such lofty ideals, he was still bound by some sort of ominous future. His fortune cookies kept reminding him about it.

But could it not be said that many of the conflicts that the United States participated in were known to them before they fought? What makes fate any different?

Yes, that was a good ideal to have. Fuse will gladly take it to its final destination. Because he was an American fighting for the ideals of the nation. And one day, he will fight for his own dreams because that is what it means to be an American.

Huffing at the conclusion his dream-addled mind came up with, Fuse good-heartedly told the empty room, "I'll see this view again, so I hope you don't mind waiting for our real reunion. But it's time for me to wake up from my dream. See you later… America."


A moment later, Fuse found himself lying down on the grassy floor next to the tent he constructed. It was nighttime now, which was mildly inconvenient for him because he just slept.

Sitting up, he found all six of his Pokemon wandering around the tent site, the Shiinotic from earlier being beaten up and put next to the fire.

…Fire? Ah, Hawaii. It looks like they managed to set up a fire for themselves.

…Though, they do look dangerously close to burning the Shiinotic.

Getting up, California noticed his presence immediately and started hopping towards his location.

Calming him down, Fuse told California, "I'm good, Cali. Just let me catch this Shiinotic, alright? This is the grass type we were looking for."

California resignedly beeped, hopping aside.

Huffing at its annoyed attitude, Fuse reassured it, "Don't worry. He's fine, the dream I got out of it was very… Nice. You don't have to worry about me."

With that slight issue put down, Fuse approached the Shiinotic, who was still conscious, miraculously.

It looks like his Pokemon weren't too cruel to it. But the Shiinotic obviously regretted being here.

Once the Shiinotic spotted him, it started creating more odd noise. But Fuse simply responded, "So, last chance. Do you want to join my team?"

Holding out a Pokeball, the Shiinotic deliberated its choice for a few moments. But seeing as how the Shiinotic just knew that Fuse would fall for the dumb trick it played earlier, he had a good feeling it would make the correct decision.

His thoughts were proven correct as Shiinotic quickly grabbed for his Pokeball, allowing itself to be captured.

With 3 clicks, Shiinotic was now his 7th Pokemon, quickly fulfilling his goal to get 12 Pokemon for the fight with Lily.

Holding the Pokeball to his face, Fuse deliberated on what to call Shiinotic, "Hm, the mushroom Pokemon… Ah, I'll be honest, I don't have a decent name for you. But you did send me to a dreamscape. So for that, how about I call you Ohio?"

Of course, Ohio could not respond because it was inside the Pokeball, but Fuse knew that it accepted the name.

Considering all his other Pokemon were roaming about, though, Fuse decided to let Ohio roam free for the rest of the night to mingle with his new teammates.

As for himself, Fuse decided that he would go to bed in the tent he set up. He could figure what would be his next course of action when he woke up.

Maybe if he's lucky enough, he'll dream of home again.


AN:

Hm, I think I'm too used to writing 1st person for Fuse that it just feels weird to not be in 1st person.

Yeah, we'll switch back to first person next chapter.

Also, half this chapter was written at like 5 AM with relaxing music playing in the background. That half of the chapter was the dream sequence.

Truly, the 5 AM writing experience.

[Also you'll get an extra upload of August 13th since that's the day I first uploaded my first fic on . A 3 year anniversary, can you believe it? I should not have been writing for this long.]