PokeSync (Pokemon Fanfiction)

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7:02 p.m. August 12th, Wednesday, 106 PH (Post Hoopa Event).  Day 64.

Events:  Rhea won her Silver-tier Encrusted Badge after a tough battle!  Now, our girls are on their way to getting their four Encrusted Badges for the League.  Onward!  Our girl started her journey on the 9th of June, and the end of registration for the Winter Indigo Cup is December 5th (114 days away).

 

Amira waited patiently for Lucian to talk to her, letting him squirm in silence with several people in the Center discreetly taking pictures of them; she was used to the attention in Kanto, and usually, she saw it as annoying, but at this moment, it only added to the entertainment.

I’m not going to make it easy on you; what story will the gossip outlets tell?

Lucian cleared his throat and glanced down at her, trying to act casual.  “Should we walk, or do you want to talk here?”

“Hmm.”  Holding her elbow behind her back, Amira leaned to the side, observing the whispering groups in the large space.  Sunny’s evolution had drawn everyone’s attention, but that had swiftly shifted to them.  “Up to you.”

She snickered inside at his tight smile; he was not enjoying her sudden meekness.  Amira had guessed right that he would expect her to come off strong and cold, yet here she was, casual, on her lonesome, dressed up, and letting him lead.

Phase One: Disorientation, complete.  What next, Kalos boy?  Don’t make me take control.

Taking one last glance around the area, he nudged his head toward the door.  “Have you eaten?”

Predictable.

She shook her head amiably, knowing it would throw him off.  “Only lunch.  I’m not particularly hungry right now, though.”

“Okay…  I know a decent spot, then.  Follow me.”

Amira was a tad impressed as he walked toward the doors; she’d expected him to stumble and start getting frustrated.  Unsure what move he’d make next, she caught up to his slow pace.  Entering the loud festive streets, she grew even more curious when he took her to a jinrikisha.

Amused, she climbed on the two-seater transport.

“It’s at the edge of the city—the South Grove district.”

“Yes, sir,” the driver chimed, pulling them out into the slow-moving crowd of wagons.  “It would be faster to reroute to some of the side roads.  Will that be okay?”

Lucian nodded.  “That would be excellent.”

She focused on his pocket as he took out what looked to be a mint can and popped it open; they certainly weren’t mints, though, by their size and label.  He swallowed one as Amira smirked and went for the throat.

“A jinrikisha ride during a festival; are you trying to make people think we’re dating?  This is more of a couple thing.”

“Ack!” he choked, face going red.  “A couple?  No.  Jason and I—ahem, traveled this way all week.”

“Mmh!”  Amira giggled and gave him a side-long look that made their runner glance back with lifted eyebrows before trying to ignore them; he was probably wearing a grin, though.  “So, you and Jason are dating then, huh?  What will your boyfriend think, taking a girl out like this?”

“Cut it out,” Lucian grumbled, crossing his arms and scooting further into the side of the jinrikisha as she inched a bit closer, giving him an impish look.  “Ugh.  I’m not like that, okay?  Not that there’s—ugh.  You’re impossible!”

He looked away, cheeks turning pink from her soft laughter.  It was so easy to tease him.  Although, his behavior really was odd.  He was being rather fidgety and defensive.  Amira wanted to strike at the chest and confirm a few things after what Rhea had told her about her time with Diane, yet she could be patient.  It was his job to entertain her since he’d called her out.

A few minutes passed in silence as she waited, watching the other jinrikisha with their couples, laughing and enjoying each other’s company.  The shimmering lilac petals of the trees around them were placed in a pattern mixed with the three other tree types that bloomed during the other seasons.

She hadn’t been on a jinrikisha since she’d been eight, visiting Fuchsia with her grandmother.  Not a lot had changed, but it had certainly grown since the time just after the Ultra War.  Parts of the city showed more modernization, yet the majority still conformed to the city’s traditional architectural style.

Amira’s focus drifted to the water channels they passed over, spotting a bridal boat with the brides carried toward the ocean for their wedding; Fuchsia was a popular site for the momentous occasion.

Cheers came from those observing above, Pokemon, friends, and family of the union following their path.  The boats took the canals to the sea to their south, where large vessels were set to welcome the brides to meet the grooms for the ceremony.  After which, the couples would be taken on a cruise to the Sevii Islands.

Lucian’s gaze lingered on the brides, dressed up and trying to look dignified as photographers took photos of their journey.  When they entered a more quiet part of the city, he took a deep breath and finally broke the silence.

“I’m sorry…”

“Hmm?”  Amira lifted an eyebrow; there wasn’t any heat, agitation, or conflict in his voice.  “You’re going to have to be specific.  I don’t know what you’re apologizing about.  Honestly, I wasn’t sure the word was even in your vocabulary.”

Instead of fighting her, he sighed and sat back, hands dropping limply into his lap.  Lucian still refused to look at her, keeping his focus on the lanterns and local decorations the city occupants had hung up.

“That’s fair…  I am a bit of a Pinsir, as Len likes to say.  I don’t mean to be rude, but I don’t even know why I say what I do sometimes.  It just… comes out.  Kanto’s so… different.”

“How so?”  Amira asked, scooting away to give him a bit more wiggle room; his relieved sigh made her smile as he tried to loosen up.  “Do other cultures make you hot and bothered?  I thought people from Kalos are supposed to be very open about their emotions.”

A lump dropped down Lucian’s throat, shifting at her statement, his Kalos accent thickened.  “You’re not wrong.  Unfortunately, it has been rather… challenging for me to, ahem, open up to people.  It is a bit different for those in the royal courts.  My mother is the Grand Duchess… and I can’t put a negative light on her.”

“Heh…  Hehehe.”

Lucian’s face scrunched up as he looked down at her gentle laughter.  “What is so funny?  Jason said you would understand.  I don’t know what to do…”

Amira couldn’t help herself; she’d considered every angle and anticipated his every action, yet she could not have seen this coming.  It was so bizarre.  He must have hit his head somewhere because she could see his heart on his sleeve.

“Pardon me,” she wheezed, taking a deep breath and wiping at the corners of her eyes.  “I’m just a little surprised.  Haaa.  If you wanted to make a positive impression on your mother, then why did you call out Rhea, the Muking niece of one of the few women that eclipses your mother, not to mention call one of the biggest social media stars, and I quote, ‘club trash.’ ”

Their runner hissed, glancing back with a, ‘no, he didn’t’ look on his face.

“And, if that wasn’t enough, you basically called every redhead in the room ugly… in front of everyone.  That’s Isabella, turning Hoenn against you, Kale, turning Alola against you, and Victor, turning Galar’s members against you.  Probably your largest failing was pissing off Lori, who is so protective of Casey, petty, and vengeful that she turned the entire Starter roster against you.

“I mean, one strike?  Sure,” Amira grunted.  “But four, and back-to-back while doubling down every time?  No.  The smart move would have been to sit back and figure out everyone’s personalities like I did.  What was the goal?”

Lucian drew in his lips, closed his eyes, and he shook his head, seemingly at a loss; he sounded exhausted and beaten.  “No, you’re right.  I don’t know what I expected…  Teh.  No.  I wasn’t thinking at all, I guess.  Looking back, what I saw was…  I saw Rhea there, surrounded by people trying to kiss her feet, and I just acted.”

He shivered and scratched his arms, goosebumps running down their length.  “Casey challenged me.  I don’t even remember what I said to her; I just didn’t want to battle her.  And then I saw you, acting like royalty, sitting at the back, above everyone else, scowl on your face, and acting cool…”

Amira’s smirk vanished as she looked away, arms folding under her bust.  “I wasn’t trying to act better than anyone…  I was nervous.  I didn’t know any of you.  And what do you mean?  Isn’t your mother the golden icon in Kalos?  My family are infamous mobsters, well, excluding my sparkling Butterfree of a mother, that, by the way, you called my ‘only redeeming quality.’  Heh, except I didn’t get anything from her.  Humph.  Just admit it, you singled me out because I was supposed to be hated and an easy target to redirect the charged emotion to.”

She settled in, looking over at him.  “You made the miscalculation of targeting and focusing on my looks instead of my attitude or family ties.  Obviously, the other girls would have drawn their own comparisons and put themselves in my place, but the real nail in the coffin was insulting Casey, thereby making Lori get in the ring to make every other girl feel insulted as if personally attacked.”

“Teh-heh.  Wow.  I really am stupid, huh?”  Lucian snorted and laughed.  “Yeah, that’s the scowl I remember…  Why are you the prettiest girl I’ve ever seen?  Ugh.”

Amira’s body tingled as cold water was dumped over her head.  “Excuse you?  Do you, heh, really think that simple redirect is going to work?  You, what, targeted me because I was pretty?”

Lucian’s chest puffed up and eased out while staring at some crowds of locals dressed up and making their way to the main festival area.  “Not necessarily,” he meekly said.  “It wasn’t just that you were gorgeous…  You’re intimidating.  I first targeted Rhea, but she was like a baby Kangaskhan with an army around her.  You were alone, yet didn’t back down.  Also, there’s a difference between pretty, beautiful, cute, and gorgeous.”

“Hehe.  Okay.”  Amira crossed her legs, shifted slightly to look at him, and folded her hands on her lap.  “I’ll bite.  What is your game?  I didn’t anticipate being at a complete loss, but bravo.  I’m practically speechless.

“First, I am nothing but an ugly mobster thug.  Next, you try to beat me with wits and strategy, saying I’m weak.  Then you ghost me and spend… at least two weeks here in Fuchsia doing what, self-reflection?  Now, I’m suddenly the prettiest girl you’ve ever seen.  Conclusion.  Mmh-hmm-hmm.  You’re high.”

Lucian sucked on his bottom lip as he shifted to fish around in his pocket to take out the can of mints; he hesitated before handing them to her to examine.

“Do I take drugs?  Yes.  I have high anxiety; I have since I was a kid.  I hate it, but sometimes I just… get so wound up that I act out, and I can’t stop.  Haaa.  It’s the worst.  Len and Jason are pretty patient, but yeah, I know I’ve been a total Muk.  I’m sorry.”

Amira scrutinized him, searching his face as the sun dipped lower in the sky.  “I’m not amused anymore.  Everyone does something for some kind of gain.  Did your mother make you do this as some kind of attitude over-correction because I’m a little uncomfortable?  Jason, Len?  What do you even want from me?  Someone has put you up to this, and my gut is telling me it’s all a ploy.”

“Maybe,” Lucian mumbled, running his fingers through his blond hair and looking up at the sky filled with Flying Pokemon.  “About a month ago, I talked with my mom…”

He swallowed, taking a deep breath and choking a bit, seemingly trying to hold back his emotions.  “She, umm, she told me that she was pregnant again, and she’s retiring from acting to be home more…”

“That’s… nice?”  Amira whispered, thinking back to everything Rhea said about the Kalos Champion feeling somewhat like a failure of a mother.  “You’re not happy about that?”

Lucian bit his lower lip, and Amira gave him back the pill box as he took another one out to swallow it; his face was red, and he wiped back a tear that Amira had never expected to see.

“Eh-hehe.  Ahem!  I don’t know…  I don’t know.  Hey, here’s fine for us to stop.”

“Yes, sir.  Thank you for the business, sir,” the man bowed, showing a sympathetic and encouraging smile as Lucian held up his phone to the man’s to pay for the ride.  “Have a good evening, sir, ma’am.”

He bowed and left as Lucian walked toward a small shack a little down the way that led to a paved walkway; there was a shack near the end of what seemed to be a biking trail.  They’d arrived at the edge of town, where a massive berry farm was located, showing a wealth of colors from the various fruit trees.

Hands back in his kimono, Lucian sniffed back his emotions.  “My mom asked me to be more honest with my feelings…  It’s taken me a month to work up to it, role-playing with Jason and Len.  It’s humiliating… embarrassing.”

Amira held her right wrist as she walked beside him, traditional wooden geta clicking against the sidewalk as wild Pokemon watched them.  She was beginning to realize this wasn’t a huge gotcha moment; it was too real.

“So… this is you being honest?  Why are you telling me all of this instead of your mother if you’re trying to be more open about it?”

Another shiver ran down Lucian’s frame, elbows tucking in as she looked up at him, unsure what he expected of her.  “Again, I don’t know…  I can’t talk about this with Len and Jason.  Maybe it’s because you already hate me.  Ugh.”

Left hand coming out to scratch his forehead, he groaned.  “I don’t know.  I want to be happy for my mom—to have another sibling, even if I’ll be eighteen years older than them…  It’s just…”

“Why didn’t she change and stay home for you?”  Amira finished.

“Yeah!  I just…  Why wasn’t I worth it?”  he choked, nose going red and trying to fight back tears again.  “It’s stupid.  I know it’s not like that, but…”

“It still hurts?”

“…It does,” he breathed.  “And I don’t want to make my mom feel more guilty than she already does… but I also want to be honest with my feelings…”

He opened his mouth, yet no words came out, so he shut them, likely unable to form what was on his heart as he rubbed his red eyes.  It said a lot to Amira that he’d be willing to talk to her, someone he saw as hating his guts and would ridicule him for weakness over his mother.

Then again, maybe he knew she wouldn’t attack him like Lori certainly would.  Silence came over them as they walked, Lucian trying to reign his emotions in as the shack grew closer.

All the stories she’d heard from Rhea started to bubble up, and, for some reason, a level of guilt ebbed its way into her heart.

Her mother had given up everything to be with her; the Championship, traveling with friends, and all of her Pokemon supported the life of nurturing her.  The only time she’d been left alone was during specific and brief moments in the Ultra War, and she still had her other family members; family was everything to the Rockets.

On the other hand, it did make her feel sad whenever she’d hear Rhea worry about her mother being away, and then to learn the guilt Christie had toward her daughter, causing a mess between them.  All the trouble Rhea went through to get her mother’s attention, from running away to hunger strikes while growing up in her tiny village.

Amira had been surrounded by a completely stable lifestyle that fostered her to be responsible, loved, and given a broad view of the world through travel and higher education.  She truly did have a blessed life, despite the slight annoyances that came with her overprotective and cuddly mother; she really tried her best, though.

“Amira?”  Lucian’s concerned, watery blue eyes stared down at her as she sniffed and rubbed her nose; fire shot up her throat while recalling the time she’d spent with her weeping mother and friends just after the Plasma incident.

“I apologize.  No, I can see why you’re conflicted.  It’s not fair, but she’s trying, and that’s what is causing you the most trouble.  It’s too late, and your mother probably realizes that, too.  It’s hard not to feel like you’re being replaced.  It must feel like your heart is ripping in two.”

He looked ahead at the shack, throat constricting and lips drawn in.  “Mmg-hmm.  Yeah… something like that…  Do you want a snow cone?  I never had one until Len showed me this place.  He’s somewhat of our local restaurant guru, while Jason’s our cook.  I feel kind of useless since I should know more…”

Lucian trailed off, and Amira didn’t pursue the topic.  “Sure.”

Letting silence embrace them again, Amira glanced left at the taller man; it was as if she were talking to a completely different person without his fancy suit or his uptight personality.  Yet, with the sudden transparency—well, it had taken him a month to build up to it—she could see there were a lot more layers to him than she initially thought.

He was almost the exact opposite of Kekipi.  The Alolan Trainer was cool-headed, reliable, caring, fearless, self-confident, and easygoing.  Lucian had an inferiority complex, intense anxiety, self-worth issues, and felt lost; he put up a shell to defend himself and feared disappointing his parents or making them look bad.

She resonated with that last part, and though she had a solid foundation of self-worth, her recent part in her team had caused a fracture to appear in that rock.  Amira could devastate Lucian; she could deliver a blow at this point that would destroy him.

Yet, she was guarded and feared letting people too close, as well, but in the face of Lucian’s honesty and vulnerability, it felt wrong to reject him.  Her morality deflated all that ire and hate she’d developed for him.

He purchased a snow cone, and the woman behind the counter glanced between Lucian’s red and slightly puffy cheeks and her down-cast eyes; the woman’s expression asking what she’d done to the poor boy.  Not a word passed between them, simply pointing at the flavors they wanted; Amira chose Iapapa and Lucian, Mago.

Proceeding onto the upper-cliff trail, Amira glanced at Lucian and forced a smile.  “So, you were intimidated by me and called me ugly when I’m really gorgeous.  Hehe.  What’s the boy’s definition of all these types of girls?  I’m curious.  And is this universal between Jason and Len?  Is that what boys do when on the route—rate which girl is the hottest?”

“Right,” Lucian said with a strained laugh, scratching his head and taking a bite of his snow cone to buy himself time.  “I really stuck my foot in my mouth with that one.  Umm…  Well, if we’re talking about girls, in general, Rhea’s this mix between cute and beautiful.  She’s kind of in that in-between phase, I guess, as Jason pointed out.”

Amira snickered.  “Ooh.  Giving me all the juicy secrets, hmm?  Does Jason have a thing for his childhood best friend?  That’s a storybook romance waiting to be written.”

Lucian winced.  “Yikes.  Uh-heh.  Hey, can we keep this between us?  I didn’t mean to say that; I’m just nervous.”

“Hehe.  Wow.  I’m that intimidating, huh?”  Amira asked, giving him a side-long smirk while hoping a step closer to make the much larger man jump away.  “Haha!”

“Tch.  C’mon!”

“Sorry!  Sorry!  I’m just a little surprised.  You’ve got like eighty pounds on me, but you’re terrified.  Mom said beauty is the deadliest blade, but I didn’t quite get it until now.  My lips are sealed,” she said, drawing his gaze to them as she zipped them shut.  “Go on!  So, Rhea’s the sweet blooming beauty.  I can see it.  What makes her beautiful, though?  Definition!”

“Ugh.  I didn’t think you’d be so interested in this topic,” he mumbled, rubbing his arm and keeping at least a meter between them as if she were a Sharpedo ready to take a bite out of him.

Amira gave him a look.  “You’re stalling.”

“Umm.  Okay.  Okay.  Muk.  Uh.  Cute is like… pretty or endearing—like an Eevee.  Umm.  Beautiful is just a lovely person to be around, who’s happy all the time, is kind, thoughtful, and fun.  She’s trustworthy and can brighten your day…

“And very attractive?”  Amira pressed with lifted eyebrows.

“Eh-heh.  Yes, and very attractive, like a Ninetales.”

“What about Lori?”

“Eegh…  Jinx?”

Amira’s stomach rolled with laughter at Lucian’s grunt and twisted nose as he looked away.  “What’s with that?  Lori’s very pretty!  Sure, she’s super forward and outspoken, but you can’t deny she’s hot.”

Lucian lifted his eyebrows.  “A good word, I suppose…  A hot mess.  No, Casey is ten times Lori when it comes to a hot mess, but they’re both more on the sexy side of things.  Outspoken, overly opinionated, gets a ton of attention from dudes online, and spiteful little Jinxes.”

“Hey, everyone has their opinion,” Amira mused.  “Personally, it sounds like someone else is just spiteful and intimidated, but I will admit that Lori does have a hard personality.  Plus, that part about dudes online may apply to Casey, but Lori is never affected by the opinions of her followers.  She’s a little Murkrow.”

“I guess that’s one way to describe her…  No, but it doesn’t matter.  I just don’t like her.”

Amira shrugged, taking a bite of her cone and savoring the sour flavor while studying a rather fun-looking ramp down the cliff that allowed riders to do tricks on an ocean rail system.

“The feeling is mutual, I’m sure.  Okay, no more stalling.  Gorgeous.  Actually, let’s see what others say about the word,” she mused, pulling out her phone from a fold in her hanbok.

“Gorgeous… ‘splendidly or showily bright or magnificent…’ ‘amazing-looking, stunning, lovely…’ ‘provoke a strong positive, emotional reaction…’  Basically, everything opposite of what you said about me.  ‘Time stops around the girl, and you think she’s illegally hot.’  Hmm.”

Amira gave him a dubious look.  “Okay, I know I’m beautiful, but I’m not ‘time-stop’ beautiful,” she said, putting her phone away with a light chuckle.

“Hahaha!”  Lucian’s laugh caught her a little off-guard.  “That is so funny!  I mean, isn’t beauty in the eyes of the beholder anyway?”

“Beauty in the…”  Amira’s cheeks darkened, and she looked away.  “Shut up.  I can’t take you seriously.  In any case, this honest you is… off-putting.  I think I liked it better when you were plotting my downfall every chance we met.  I heard you were going to get your first Silver Encrusted badge to keep pace with us?”

Lucian settled down and looked across the cliff-side ocean, spotting several large parties on the beach in the distance.  “…I’m probably going home to Kalos.”

“What?!”  Amira’s hair whipped to the right as she turned to stare at him.  “You’re giving up?”

He worked around his jaw, but there was a smile on his face.  “No.  I do want to spend a bit of time with my mom, though, and I’ll probably work toward Gold in Kalos my own way.  Len and Jason agreed to join me.”

Unsure how to take the sudden shift in dynamics and plans from the boy group, Amira ran her fingers through her hair to straighten it out in the slight ocean breeze.  “Wow, umm, that’s actually pretty shocking.”

“Hehe.  Yeah, who in their right mind would want to hang with me.”

Amira gave him a scowl.

“I know.  Haha.  I get what you meant.  No, I, umm, just had to work things out with myself and, well, tell you I’m sorry for what I did and how I acted.  I was blown away by your voice in Cerulean, and I hate how perfect you are…  That first time I saw you, do you know the word that came to my mind?”

He stopped by the rail to lean against it and stare down at the beach along the crescent ridge.  Amira stood next to him, following his gaze to the falling sun, the wind pressing her skirt against her shins.

“She’s perfect?”  Amira asked with a soft smile.  “It’s not true.  I am very flawed.”

“No…  She’s loved.”

Amira’s eyebrows drew together as she looked over at Lucian’s tight mouth, a sad tilt to it.

“The, umm, the first time I saw you was actually in Kalos when your mother and father were there on some Rocket venture.  I was in Coumarine City, and you were there in a cute sailor outfit, probably fourteen, wearing this, heh, adorable little hat that you didn’t want to keep on, but your mother kept wanting pictures with it.  The annoyed look on your face, yet I could tell you were enjoying your time together…

“That’s what made me lash out, I think…  I wanted that—to be annoyed about being loved.  Heh.  Stupid?”

Amira shook her head.  “No.  I don’t think it’s stupid…”

“Right…  Haaa.  Well, I don’t expect you to forgive me, feel bad for me, or anything of the like.  I’m just grateful you let me get all of it off my chest…  Ever since I came to Kanto, I’ve been trying to get my mom to pay attention to me, and now that I have it…  I don’t know.

“I’m mad at her.  I love and admire her more than anyone, probably followed closely by your example.  It’s just that picture of you, and the way you carry yourself.  It’s not really what you say… it’s more about the actions—it’s hard to explain.

“I’m terrified I’ll be a screwup as a big brother.  I’m scared about our age difference.  I’m scared of so many things, but this… conflict between us, I guess you could call it, has really helped me learn a lot more about myself.”

Drawing in his lips, sucking a deep breath, and turning to smile at her, he nodded.  “I just wanted to say thank you, Amira.  I’m not the guy I want to be…  I’m not proud of myself.  I’m scared to go home.  But I’ve found a reason to pull myself up and step past it.  Thanks, Amira.  Maybe we’ll see each other in Gold-tier.”

He turned away and nodded.  “Yeah, that’s all I wanted to say.  So…  Yeah.”

Amira didn’t know how she felt about the confession; she’d probably be sorting through the convoluted emotions for weeks, but that was then, and this was now.

Giving him an incredulous smile as he shifted to walk away, she barked, “Hold up.”

“Hmm?”  Half-turning, his hands in his pockets, confusion swimming in his light blue eyes; it wasn’t the hopeful look for more or an expectation of something ‘extra,’ but genuine bewilderment.

“Let me get this straight.  You took me on a ride all the way from the center of town to these boonies, and what… you’re just going to leave me here stranded?  That’s rather selfish.”

“Huh?  Wha…  What do you want?”

Amira walked forward with a soft glare.  “What I was promised.  A night of fun.  So, what’s next, Kalos boy?”

“Eh-haha.  Ugh.  Not going to just let me walk into the sunset, huh?”

“It’s a lot less cool from this side of the screen,” Amira whispered with a pained grin.  “If you’re going back to Kalos, then show me what you’ve learned about Fuchsia and impress me.  You’re on the clock.  Tick-tock.  We only have a few more hours before I need to head back before Lori thinks you’ve pushed me off a cliff.”

“Haha.  She wouldn’t…  No, you’re right.  Haaa… she definitely would,” he admitted.  “Have you… biked before?”

Amira gestured at her hanbok with a lifted eyebrow, making him hiss.

“Right…”

She walked past him toward the bike station further down the road.

“Where are you going?”

Amira turned and winked at him.  “There’s a clothing shop next door.  You wanted to bike, and I need something to bike in, so… I need something else to wear.”

“Uh, right.  Umm…  I can, uh,” Lucian stumbled over his words, but Amira wasn’t going to help him as she put a hand on her hip, waiting for him to work through his words.  “I can buy you something s-since I wanted to bike—is that too creepy?”

“Mmh.  Creepy?  No.  Thoughtful?  Yes.  Thank you!” she chimed.  “Now, we’re burning daylight, and I still need to show you how Kanto girls bike.  Snap, snap.  We only have an hour before the sun goes down, and we have to move to an actual park with lights or the back streets.”

Lucian seemed totally taken aback and somewhat in a daze, making her stomach hurt with laughter; she was even feeling a little frisky from the sudden shift in tone.

“Actually, why not break into the local animal zoo after?  I haven’t seen the tiger exhibit since I was a kid, and I heard they have new cubs.  Endangered species are so interesting to learn about.  Did you know most of them were extinct before the Ultra Wormholes?”

Forcing a laugh, he jogged after her.  “I don’t know what a tiger is…  I’m not sure if you’re joking or not.  Wait, what?!”

Her hair whipped to the side as she smirked at him.  “You do remember I am the granddaughter of a mob boss?  Just try not to get left behind.  Let’s have some fun!”

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