Patricia Greenwood

  —

  I had made many mistakes in my life. The mere sight of my daughter's dragon was one of my most glaring. I had made mistakes during my Journey, not even making it to the Conference. I had made mistakes in my professional career, resulting in my current living situation. Even if I loved Pallet Town fiercely now, I hadn't planned to move there.

  I had made a very, very grave mistake when I ignored Erin's warnings and insisted I come, and I knew that the instant the lights went out.

  I tried to panic, of course. To reach out, grab my daughter and my ward. To pull them closer, futile as my protection would be. To scream at the fear, of the glimpse I had caught of something that shouldn't exist in the light, that false light, before it had gone out.

  Instead I stood there, utterly… calm was not the right word. I was terrified, but my pulse was actually calm and restful. I wanted to scream, to cry, to run, but at the same time, I felt… at peace.

  Disconnected.

  "Know this, fae. Should you attempt to, or worse, succeed in harming, binding, or influencing the one known as Patricia Greenwood, I will tear this very mountain down around your head. I would bring your entire evolutionary line in this region to a fucking standstill. I know you can recognize true words." Her voice was so calm as she spoke. It was a promise, not a threat.

  "That is the only warning you will receive from me. Pray that every single one of your species takes that threat as seriously as I made it."

  I could feel the pressure around us increase, and I heard Erin scream briefly in agony, then sniff wetly.

  "Fuuuck! GAH! You! Why can't you just talk, you ass!... Leaf? She has her own agreements with the fae. You will leave her out of our bargain. She isn't even a witness, I know you've got her mind-blanked or something right now. She doesn't even know time is passing." Well, that was still worrying, Erin! What kind of bargain are you about to make!?

  Why could I hear, then?

  "You know what I want, fae. I want contracts. I know you quite literally can't care about the difference, but these are contracts that save instead of destroy. I want Leaf's Clefairy to be able to construct one by hersel- ahhhh! Fuck you!" I really wish I didn't feel so calm, hearing my ward scream in frenzied agony. Even that idle thought itself was calm, however.

  Placid.

  "That's too much, and you know it! Literally, I can feel that you know, you fuck! GAAAAH-!" I truly hoped she was right, and that my daughter couldn't hear this, because she just didn't stop. She just kept… wetly whining this time. I hoped her Pokemon couldn't either, but considering Leto wasn't already out, I don't think they could.

  "What?" There was no pain in her voice at that moment. She sounded like a lost, confused child. A scared one.

  "I-I… What the fuuuck…" There was disbelief, horror, and wonder in her voice, and that worried me.

  "H-How? D-Dialga should have b-bitch slapped you." The disbelief was gone now. Now there was horrified wonder in her voice.

  "Oh… I see, then… Well… I'm not sure if that makes me a worse monster, or a better one… Or which I'd prefer…" Erin, why do you sound furious yet relieved?

  "Well, fine then. Fuck it. Guess that deals done. You'll help me with this first wave of contracts, then give us all safe and swift passage outside your territory." I heard a scuff on the ground before the hair on the back of my neck stood up.

  "Fae! Why. Is. My. Guardian. Crying?!" I was? I would certainly hope that I was, but I still felt… placid.

  Then I was in control of myself, in control of my thoughts, my emotions, my senses. It was bright. It felt blindingly bright in what I now knew for certain was a lightless abyss. Erin stood before me.

  She looked dead, face corpse-pale in the harsh, shadow-less lighting. It made the trails of blood from her eyes, nose, and ears all the more vivid as she looked at me, eyes glowing and flickering between horror and rage.

  "You made her listen!?" She tried to turn around, but I had grasped her hands at this point, desperate to know it was her.

  "I swore, fae! I- fuuuuu-" I let go in shock as she groaned, grabbing her head as a new wave of blood poured from her nose. She gasped once.

  "Fine! You did that before. Fuck your shenanigans! Touch one more hair on her head and I will bring this mountain down to the magma sea! I'll go capture fucking Groudon if I need to! I know where to find it! I know how to DO IT! Tell me I'm lying, fae! Do it! I DARE you to speak an untruth!"

  I finally managed to tear my eyes from Erin and I felt my legs wobble and almost fold at the sight in front of me. There were only two Pokemon in sight now in this harsh white cavern. Leaf's Clefairy, shaking and trying desperately to make herself look small next to my stiff, frozen daughter, and one more.

  A Clefable.

  One of the more adorable Pokemon in existence, right? A four-foot pink cutie with an adorably awkward-looking smile, right? Even an Alpha Clefable, something never even heard of, would be cute. Right? Eight feet of pink, winged, fluffy adorableness?

  The Clefable that rose before us towered over the giant Moon Stone, its hands resting on it casually. Down on the stone. It was slightly bigger than Leto! Its beady little eyes were still the size of my torso, and as my gaze rose upwards its eyes met mine.

  Nothing happened. At all. It startled me badly, still.

  "Release Leaf, fae. Now!" The giant horror squinted its eyes at Erin, and suddenly my daughter was hugging me from behind. Trying to squeeze me in half, actually.

  "Mom, wha-" Erin's harsh voice cut her off.

  "QUIET!" I heard Leaf gasp in shock, but honestly? I agreed with Erin right now. Erin's gaze never left the huge horrors, and I felt my daughter begin to tremble as she noticed the completely-still monstrosity.

  "I'm going to release all of my Pokemon now, as agreed! You know who and what is in these Pokeballs, so let's get our business done and be done with each other." The gargantuan Clefable finally moved its head in a slight nod.

  Erin's Pokemon came out in a silent blob that huddled into Leto, Hecate held by Seraphina as she shook. Not even Kallen tried to get close to Erin right now, holding tightly to Artemis.

  "Rotom, can you unlock the sensors on the rescues Pokeballs?" A voice like water bubbling shakily answered 'yes' from inside her jacket. Please, not that voice, dear. Ever again.

  "We're here, uhh… Rescues? I need to think of a name… We're here. I'm going to release you, but just sit still, okay? This is a one by one process, but I want you all to witness the entire thing. I'm not trying to hide anything from you. Be brave, please."

  Then she released the rescues, all but the Koffing.

  They seemed almost catatonic, honestly. They were all so tense that several were actually being shaken around as they clumped together. A few initially started to move closer to Erin, but one look at her face was enough to stop them in their tracks. The sight of the titanic fae was more than enough to lock them into place entirely.

  I itched to hug them all, but the collection of scars, burns, and… missing pieces told me that would be a bad idea. At least for now.

  "Sweetheart? We're going to do the more… restrictive contracts now, okay?" Her voice was soft as she crouched, but I didn't blame the Pokemon for their reluctance to go near the girl. She looked ghoulish right now.

  Finally, hesitantly, that poor little Rattata crept closer and closer until she stood before Erin. She trembled, but so did Erin, I realized.

  "Do you, of your free and willing volition, pledge to do no harm to any person, Pokemon or human? To never utilize type energy except at your trainers direct instruction? To never…" Her voice caught. "To… Do you agree to bind your ability to control your own body for a period of time no greater than ten seconds, aside from automatic processes such as breathing, should you begin to act in direct or instinctive opposition to these terms?"

  Her voice was breaking, and I knew it tore her up to impose such a contract on someone. They would never be able to defend themselves. To defend their trainer. They would be fit only as house Pokemon, just like she had promised. Totally, utterly harmless.

  Like this poor thing had wanted.

  The tiny purple rodent nodded, before she seized momentarily, falling to the ground. Before I could even begin to move, however, she was back upright. She stared up at the Clefable looming overhead before her gaze turned towards Erin, hope in her eyes.

  Erin smiled sadly, then extended her hand.

  "Try to hurt me, little mouse. I know you want to check." The little Pokemon seemed so sad, but she eventually launched herself at Erin's hand. Or rather, she barely sat back on her hind legs before she locked up, toppling to her side once more, eyes wide in shock. Erin stroked her, and after a bit she stood back up. The little Rattatas eyes were closed, and she began to shake. Erin turned and looked at me. She covered her lips with a finger, but she still gestured me forward.

  I didn't bother moving too far from her, so I just sat down behind Erin and carefully took the Rattata from her. The rodent was crying in relief, and I felt my own tears well up as I began to lightly stroke her back. I tried to ignore the snarls of scars and the feeling of ribs directly on skin.

  It wasn't easy.

  "O-Okay, does… Does anyone else want to be so… bound? You would… It's your decision, not mine." She was sniffling again.

  The silence hung heavy, but eventually there was movement. The little Houndour limped lightly, and I tried not to see the scars. The marks. The missing ear. One of the Ekans followed it uncertainly, looking back at the other snakes even as it struggled to keep up with the canine, movements jerky.

  "Do you two want the same bindings?" They nodded, then looked at me with hope in their eyes. It grew hard to see, at that point. I just nodded in Erin's general direction as I wiped my eyes.

  "The same bindings, and you want to go with Miss Patricia?" Her voice was so gentle, even as it continued to break. They nodded again, eyes wide in stunned disbelief. The Houndour was staring at me like…

  Erin let out a hiss of pain, and I saw fresh blood trickle out of her nose over the already-dried blood there. Her gaze was horrified as she stared at the Houndour. More horrified than I had seen except for the poor rodent in my lap, and I suddenly didn't want to know-

  "Your name is NOT Victoria, you hear me! That was so wrong- No! It's getting changed!" I heard a slow, deep chuckle, and my eyes rose to meet the amused eyes of the monstrosity I had somehow managed to forget about. I turned my eyes away quickly. I didn't want to know why it found that funny.

  The contracts were soon formed, and the two Pokemon limped and squirmed their way towards me. Houndour leaned up against my leg, and the Ekans curled around my waist, head in my lap. I smiled, happy that I could do something, but so sad. There were layers of dead scales in places, and the very tip of the Ekans tail just wasn't there…

  "The rest of you can't or won't accept such strict bindings?" Hesitant head shakes. "I don't blame you. How can you trust my word? How can you trust that Patricia is a good, kind person? How could you put yourself so utterly at someone else's mercy after the lives you've led?" She sighed.

  "I understand, I do. I'd probably be the same way, in your situations. Unfortunately, even if I trusted you with my life, you're all well aware why this is happening." Sad nods.

  "Okay, then. Let's… do this." She sounded like she was butchering her own soul as she crouched in front of a shaking Ekans.

  "Do you, of your free and willing volition, pledge to do no harm to any person, Pokemon or human, without the express permission of your trainer, or in true defense of self or others? To never utilize type energy except at your trainers direct instruction? Do you agree to bind your ability to control your own body for a period of time no greater than ten seconds, aside from automatic processes such as breathing, should you begin to act in direct or instinctive opposition to these terms?" That wasn't much better, honestly, but they would be able to defend themselves somewhat.

  It took almost an hour, but eventually there was only one left. The Koffing.

  Erin cleared a space for herself before she released the poor thing. Its eyes got wide, but before it could even begin to explode it was utterly frozen. I actually saw a tiny bit of gas just… hover there, and I realized that I was right! It was somehow frozen in time.

  "If you weren't a fae I'd have had something to say right there. They can hear me, righ-aagh! Fuck! You could just nod, asshole!" The giant grinned at her, and I didn't like how sharp those huge teeth looked. Erin shook her head, sending a spray of blood flying, before she walked over unsteadily to put her hand on the Koffing, looking into its wide eyes.

  "I know you can't really l-listen, little girl. I know. Can you please try? I want to help you, but I know your… stuck in a loop. I'll help unstick you, I swear, but you have to stay conscious for it. I know it's easier for you in the darkness, but it can be so beautiful in the l-light, I swear it on my soul." She was fully crying now, and to my utter astonishment Leaf's Clefairy had wet eyes. My daughter had noticed, too, bewildered even through her own tears.

  The Koffing couldn't respond, not really, but with a groan Erin nodded. Then she Exploded.

  The sound was devastating in the cavern, and it felt like I was punched in the chest from the force. Aside from the feeling of being punched in the gut as I saw my ward explode! I almost cried out, but Leaf's hand slammed over my open mouth. Then I saw through the rapidly-clearing cloud of dust.

  Erin was surrounded by a Protect that was somehow clear after taking a point blank Explosion, but the Koffing wasn't unconscious. Barely. She lay there on her side, eyes barely held open as she smoked lightly. There was blood running from her… everywhere. Erin crouched down and almost stumbled through the words of the contract, trying to get them out as fast as possible. The Koffing opened its eyes fully for a moment, staring at Erin, before she nodded. She froze for a second, then Erin was there, spraying what looked suspiciously like a Full Heal on the Pokemon. Not that the poor thing deserved to be in pain, of course, but that was… a lot of money.

  "You did good, little girl. The next time I let you out, you can just enjoy the sun, I swear it. Okay?" The Pokemon weakly nodded before Erin returned her. She sat there for a long moment, hunched over in this cave of horrors.

  She stumbled as she stood, hands on her knees, and to my alarm I saw that blood was dripping from her nose between her knees, like a leaky faucet. I almost stood up, but Leaf used my shoulder to stand up first. She didn't say anything, but she lifted Erin by the shoulder, and when she turned I gasped.

  I had been exaggerating a little when I thought Erin looked like a corpse earlier, but now it was accurate. The blood from everywhere else had stopped, but her nose still ran freely. I began to frantically stand, barely catching the Rattata before I dumped her on the floor.

  Kallen lightly bumped into my arm, and I saw him pointing at Erin's jacket. In quick order I had returned the rescue Pokemon and Erin's, my daughter forcing Erin to squeeze her nose, head back. Erin spoke, voice a whisper.

  "I know you did this on purpose, to savor my misery, but I want out now. You agreed to give us all 'safe and swift passage outside your territory' when done, so let's go. The price was paid. You've had your fun..." Her voice was weak, frail, and Leaf was struggling to support her full weight alone.

  The gargantuan horror above us laughed, the sound echoing off every surface as it just kept laughing. I saw dust rise from the floor, and I realized the entire cavern was vibrating from the sound! Leaf's Clefairy went pale before returning herself, and just as the vibration seemed to reach its peak, it paused its laughter and I glanced upwards in the vibrating atmosphere.

  It was smiling at us. At Erin. With pure, utterly satisfied glee.

  Then we were in the front lobby of the Pewter City Pokemon Center, a Nurse Joy already frantically calling for a stretcher as Erin finished collapsing, my daughter going down with her unconscious weight.

  —

  "A week?" I tried to keep the shock out of my voice, but I failed. Miserably. Leaf gasped from beside me, hands going to her mouth.

  Nurse Joy nodded seriously from behind her desk.

  "I'm not entirely sure how she was alive when she got here, Ms. Greenwood. She should have been unconscious at the very least from blood loss, or just dead, but she was still almost coherent when you appeared. Frankly, if we didn't keep a Hypno on staff to confirm she doesn't, I'd be certain she had brain damage. Her heart should have stopped long before you showed up. Multiple times." My chest felt tight as she continued.

  "As it is, she will make a full recovery, no doubt about that, but she probably won't wake up for a week, no. It may be sooner, but it will probably take much longer. When she does, she's going to need to stay as still as possible for at least another week. You're sure you can't give me any idea how this happened to her?" I shook my head sadly as her frown deepened. Her eyes were hard as she stared me down.

  "Ms. Greenwood, your ward somehow has microfractures in every bone we've checked so far. Most of her muscles look like they've been tenderized. She cracked five teeth from gritting her jaw so hard, and you can't give me any answers?" Her voice was scathing, and I didn't blame her in the least. I would be highly suspicious of me in this situation, too, but… I caught my daughter's eye, then looked at her belt questioningly. She gave it some thought before she spoke.

  "A Clefable." The instant my daughter said that I knew the Nurse didn't know which one, there was no overwhelming horror in her eyes, but the way she went pale and frowned was telling. She looked down at Erin's file, refusing to meet my eyes.

  "After a week or so of bed rest, she can start moving around again. If I were you, I would lock her in her room for two weeks after she wakes up, then in the house for another two." Her eyes rose to meet mine briefly, but she couldn't maintain eye contact.

  "I would also… skip Mt. Moon next time. Take the long way around."

  —

  "So she told you, huh? I kind of figured it would happen eventually, to be honest." Looker didn't look surprised to be receiving a call from me right now. Not one bit.

  Reading on Amazon or a pirate site? This novel is from Royal Road. Support the author by reading it there.

  "She has this fucked up idea shes invincible, like shes the main character of this world because she was a little special once. We all know that isn't true, including her, but she still acts like it!" He got heated for a second, but met my eyes.

  "This stays between me and you, but she has money. I'll send you some of it, to use for her. And for an air ambulance, to get her to your house." My eyebrows rose.

  "Erin has money she doesn't know about?" He grinned at me. It was a happy, satisfied grin, but wicked all the same. He seemed to enjoy poking at Erin, although considering what I did know… It might be mutual?

  They'd likely deny it.

  "Erin potentially saved hundreds of thousands of lives, Patricia. When I look at how much of her information turned out to be even somewhat accurate, even in the smallest of ways, I get this weird feeling in my organization's bank accounts. It feels like they add a zero to her personal account every now and then. She'll get it when she's finally a legal adult again. Or really, just an adult again, period..."

  His tone was light, but I think he easily realized he had messed up about halfway through. I turned around theatrically, just to 'make sure' I was alone up here on a cliff above Pewter. Aside from Maddy, obviously. The darling stood guard behind me, acting like she wasn't listening in. Poorly.

  "We seem to have gotten different stories, Looker." He looked pained before groaning.

  "No, Patricia." I opened my mouth but he barreled right over me.

  "I don't have time to do this over the phone. Ask Leaf. She knows everything, anyways. Your daughters a sneaky one, you know that, right?"

  I could feel the huge frown growing. I wasn't mad! I mean… Just a little? It wasn't her secret to tell, whatever it was, but… Still!

  "Looker, what about her carry limit? I never actually got an answer on what happened with that, other than they let her take the rescues." He frowned, looking uneasy.

  "I managed to get her the maximum carrying capacity of thirty, but only six can be registered for battles, and the others have to be either hatched from Eggs, or marked as rescues." He grimaced. "I had to add her as an option for rescues, too. She'll never be called on for groups of Rockets, but a single Pokemon? She might be." I felt my fury ignite.

  "Looker! She almost died contracting sixteen of them! How is-" He cut me off with a pained frown.

  "Patricia, from what I've heard from you and Leaf, that happened because she did so many at once, and because of what mediated it. It was… tormenting her right to her limits, and then forcing her past them. It had its fun with her. Clefairy will never be able to do more than maybe three in a day. My guess is she'll have trouble doing two. And she wont torture Erin." Why had he stressed Leaf? He was silent for a long moment.

  "You never told me what she paid. For Clefairy to gain that ability, I mean. It's normally an exclusive power of leaders in a fae community." I stared blankly at him.

  "No, I didn't." He stared at me for a second before his face split in an honest smile.

  "She's yours now, huh?" I scowled at the man.

  "She already was, Looker! I was just waiting on her! Arceus, I would be a monster if I didn't care, Looker, even before today! After? She threatened that thing for my safety. She… she broke herself for strangers! Those poor Pokemon have a chance now. Three of them have a home already. Four if you count the Ekans Officer Jenny took." I sniffled. He smiled tiredly.

  "I can't say I'm surprised, honestly. Good luck with her though, she's… Erin." I barked out a wet laugh.

  —

  "A week? Not hours after I left?" The look of shock on Raihans face was clear, and I felt bad having to tell him.

  "Don't even start, young man. She will survive, that's what's important. She… She succeeded, though. Those poor Pokemon are safe now. I got three rescue Pokemon in one day, Raihan, because Erin bargained with a Clefable larger than Leto. Your presence would have just made things worse, from what Leaf told me." He was frowning.

  "What did she trade?" His voice shook, and so did my head, sadly.

  "Raihan, I really don't know. I think she somehow… already had a bargain?" His eyes shot open, a hiss coming from his lips. I frowned at him through the camera.

  "Tell me, Raihan." He wasn't looking at the camera anymore. He was covering his eyes with one huge hand, head hanging.

  "Raihan, you're going to tell me what she did." It wasn't a request.

  His hand dropped and his head rose, but his teal eyes were dull and tired.

  "I don't know, Ms. Greenwood! She…" He swallowed heavily.

  "She told… She told Clefairy that she, and through her, her whole tribe, would be doing Erin a favor if she did her honest best to become Leaf's friend." I felt the blood drain from my face in horror. No, she wouldn't have. Not voluntarily. He wasn't lying, though.

  "I don't remember exactly what she said, but when we confronted her about it, she said that she knew she would pay a price in the future, and that it would be 'natural', somehow, like sweat from exercise. Inevitable. That it was something she would have done anyways." Erin, where was your good judgement with fae, there? What had… happened?

  "Raihan…" His eyes met my terrified ones.

  "What's a 'Dialga'?" I knew from the way he paled that I wouldn't like the answer.

  "Dialga is… classified. It would take me a lot of time to declassify that, and I have to take care of my Pokemon, Ms. Greenwood." Time Pokemon?

  "-let's not even get started on using the Pokemon gods of time and space themselves!"

  Dialga should have been mad, but wasn't. Erin already had a contract… My horrified eyes met Raihans worried, confused ones.

  By the time we entered that cave, Erin had somehow already made the bargain. Clefairy could have mediated those contracts, even if it would have taken days! The cost had already been paid!

  "What would she have paid, though?" His voice was quiet, and I tried not to have the thought. I tried to ignore it, but I failed.

  Erin had been quite upset about her lack of something, recently…

  —

  "I am her legal guardian, correct?" The Nurse Joy across from me looked so done with this, but I wasn't. It was the same one from earlier with Erin, and she looked even worse than before, but I didn't care.

  "Yes, as her legal guardian, you technically have authority over her Pokemon. That doesn't give you authority to release dangerous rescues in my Center." She was frowning at me, and before I realized it my finger was in her face.

  "You know what we met up there! They are safe! Make this a big issue, I DARE YOU, JOY!" My voice was thundering now in the lobby as trainers heads turned, Leaf looking on with approval.

  "Do I need to call my daughter's sponsor, Professor Oak? Someone who vouches for these Pokemon?" She paled as I mentioned the Professor, and she looked bloodless when I mentioned that last part.

  He couldn't legally take them at his Ranch with just an ephemeral fae contract, no matter how effective, but Professor Oak had been more than willing to back me up on this if I swore to him they were controlled. He knew fae contracts.

  I knew for a fact that they were, would never be able to forget that fact, so he would come down on them like the former Champion he was if need be.

  "If you don't want this incident to get any larger than it already is you will get out of my way while I get weak, abused victims help. What's your choice, Joy?" I felt the rescue's Pokeballs rattle a little as I held Erins still-bloody jacket. They knew what had happened to Erin. They had heard everything that had happened after she collapsed. Rotom had never dimmed the sensors again.

  I hadn't let go of them once the whole time.

  She was shaking a little as she lifted the arm on the counter, beckoning me to follow her. I glanced back at Leaf, and she nodded at me. She wore Erin's bandoleer, and would keep an eye on her for me. An eye on Erin's Pokemon, too.

  They were still so furious.

  —

  I used to hate waking up before dawn. That was something that old people with those horrible jobs did, not me! These days, it was one of my greatest pleasures to watch the sun rise.

  As I rolled out of bed I was careful to avoid disturbing Lily. The little Houndour was already snuggling into the spot my body used to occupy, following the heat. Noodles sleepily dragged herself closer, the Ekans wrapping herself around her friend with difficulty. I smiled at the sight, dragging the comforter over them before I crept out of my room.

  A quick peek into my daughters room showed Erin sleeping in bed, still. Right now Hecate was 'standing guard' next to her, snoring. I smiled at the Pokemon, still troubled by my ward's refusal to wake up.

  It had already been more than a week.

  I turned on my coffee maker, but I didn't step outside yet. Instead, I turned the oven on, grabbing a pre-made pan from the refrigerator and popping it in. I should have a delicious breakfast ready in an hour, and I smiled as I looked out back.

  Leaf had recreated the tarp system, and looked to still be asleep on top of Leto's stomach, surrounded by Erins team in their corner of the yard. Her Fraxure slept near the Tyrantrums tail, and I had noticed him gradually moving closer and closer every night. It may have been jealousy, actually. I mean, I doubted it, but…

  Leaf was cuddling Clefairy as she slept on Leto.

  I had some complicated feelings on that matter, but if I had to choose one fae horror to deal with, it would certainly be the one who I had seen demonstrate empathy!

  Maddy had made herself a nest in the other corner of the yard, also covered by a tarp, and was already awake. Her head scanned around, and I saw her vicious beak part as she noticed me. I smiled back at her.

  I poured two cups of coffee and stepped outside quietly, watching Maddy slowly stretch her limbs out as she made her way across the yard towards me. I placed her cup of coffee on the other side of the table and sat down, smiling as the purple sky began to almost visibly recede.

  Maddy settled down in her spot, nodding a greeting at me as she sniffed her coffee. She liked the smell more than the actual taste, but she would still take occasional sips. I tensed momentarily as small claws dung into my pajamas and skin unexpectedly, but smiled warmly as Lucy crawled into my lap for strokes.

  After I had raised hell and threatened the Pewter City Pokemon Center with legal action and Professor Oak's wrath, I had finally been able to get the rescues full, proper treatment. Most of the scars would never fully heal, and poor Noodles would always be slightly impaired, but they were finally in as good a condition as possible. Especially poor Koffing.

  She still didn't want to talk or interact with anyone, and she spent most of her time just… floating in the sun. Most Koffing naturally had a goofy grin when at rest, but not her. Still, smile or frown, her face was serene as she floated in the dim pre-dawn light, eyes watching the horizon brighten. Thankfully Koffing didn't require fumes from rotting food or trash and could eat solid foods, because she was also a big fan of my muffins.

  The rest of the rescues had claimed a small part of my deck that was covered, and preferred to sleep outside in a huge pile of blankets even after I had offered them the inside. Even Lucy preferred to sleep out here with the rest of her friends.

  Leto was giving me her normal stare from the corner, and I returned it with an easy smile. She pointedly glanced at my daughter sprawled on her stomach and I shrugged at her. Leto hadn't demanded she sleep with her like before, much less on her. Leaf had chosen to sleep there instead of the couch, or just dragging one of their futons inside. She hadn't said it, but I knew she was worried about Leto.

  I think Leto appreciated the gesture, but at the moment, it looked like she wanted to get up. So she did, carefully, gently, but heedless of disrupted sleep as she slid the group right off her.

  Me and Maddy chuckled as she darted off into the woods. Either nature called, or she wanted to do some dawn-time hunting. Leaf didn't chuckle, she just groaned, rolled herself up tighter, and dug her head into Cerberus' stomach. I smiled at the sight, Cerberus as usual so deeply asleep he seemed dead other than his breathing, tongue hanging out.

  Clefairy forced her way out of the headlock my child had her in, making her way over. I tensed a little, but I had been serious earlier. Leaf had noticed it too. Clefairy had felt bad for someone else! Such a normal thing, but such a big deal for a fae. I could handle Clefairy. I might even like her a bit.

  I stood, placing Lucy on the table briefly, and grabbed the pot of coffee and another cup from inside. Clefairy liked coffee, too. Surprisingly enough it seemed to act more like a sedative for her, but at this point I wouldn't judge the fae for relaxing. She hadn't had a fun time, either.

  It felt like I was still there, sometimes.

  Still standing in that lightless void that shone so brightly, as my ward broke herself for strangers in front of my eyes. Still standing in that dark abyss, the reality, listening to Erin scream her throat raw as my body refused to cooperate, as I felt serene about the entire situation.

  Looker needed to hurry up with that therapist…

  We all just sat there for a long while, enjoying the calm morning breeze, coffee, and quiet company as the sun rose. Lucy had fallen asleep in my lap by the time my daughter was forced from her slumber by Cerberus waking up.

  The Alpha Deino roared his greeting to the sun he couldn't see, and I knew without checking that it was exactly 7:43. Cerberus always woke up at the exact same time no matter how deeply he had been asleep, somehow. Thankfully I was always up by this point, but not everyone was.

  The calm, peaceful morning air was broken by the chittering of Rattata, the low hisses of Ekans, and the roars of dragons. Right on time, as if she had planned it, Leto returned carrying three drained Ponyta corpses in her mouth and arms, her stomach already bulging. I had finally gotten her to bleed them, at least. She refused to gut them, though.

  Sometimes she liked the guts, so they had to come back every time. Of course, of course, that made sense. The Tyrant Queen of Galar wished to dine on the finest offal. Possibly. Her royal self would think on it.

  I already loved Leto, but she was a storm you had to weather, even if she was surprisingly friendly.

  I groaned at the sight. I hadn't fully gotten over my squeamishness butchering Pokemon yet, but considering all of my meat deliveries now came wrapped in fur, scales, or feathers, it wasn't exactly a choice I had. Pallet Town didn't have a butcher.

  I mean, I could continue to buy expensive farmed and shipped meat. Or I could eat the much better tasting, free-range, free-cost variety of Pokemon that Leto or Maddy brought back. I just ended up doing a lot of extra butchering, though thankfully nothing detailed. Mainly just segmenting limbs and dividing the torsos, really. The dragons loved their meat spit.

  We might need to buy a second, actually, if the current trend continued.

  "Leaf!" My sleepy daughter looked my way, hair an absolute mess as she grumbled her way awake. My tone was light and breezy as I smiled at her.

  "You have ten minutes to get ready to help me butcher all these!" She just mumbled as she stumbled past me towards the house, and I couldn't help but smile wryly at how much my life had changed recently.

  I had only a few days of a nice quiet, empty house after Leaf left on her Journey, and I had worked each day, too. Then Erin shows up in the middle of the night. Then I went from having zero Pokemon to four in a single day. A month ago I hated the very idea of eating wild Pokemon.

  Now me and my daughter were about to butcher three absolutely adorable looking Ponyta while over twenty Pokemon watched, most with hungry eyes. Lily came walking outside, Noodles draped over her friend. Both of them were sniffing and/or tasting the air, and I saw their eyes go wide.

  I stared thoughtfully at the corpses as Clefairy cheerfully began to set up Erin's tools and equipment with Seraphina's help. I would need to buy my own, now that I thought about it… I had more than enough money, though. Not Erin's, obviously, but I had checked my bank account the other night and found three more zeros than there used to be, courtesy of Looker. It was kind of a hush money bribe mixed with paying me for 'assisting in the welfare of a known asset', as he had put it. I wouldn't complain, honestly.

  It had been more than enough to quit my dead-end remote sales job, and I could take a few years off if I wanted to with no worries. Not that I hated working, but that job wasn't for me, never had been. Plus, I had a few new plans for my future career I was already working on…

  Doing some quick calculations, I realized there was more than enough, so I picked up my PokeNav. It only rang a few times before he picked up. He was already wide awake and working, obviously.

  "Morning, Patricia! I think I can guess what this is about." I smiled at him through the camera.

  "Professor, she brought in three Ponyta! She ate something already, I can see her stomach bulging, so there's going to be too much. I really need to order some things, like a huge freezer…" He chuckled.

  "I'll probably be over at some point, but don't hold off on my account. Charizard might come earlier, if that's okay?" I waved my hand.

  "Of course, she's a delight! She's always welcome to come over. Even Leto likes her!" I heard a huge growl from behind me and laughed. Professor Oak wasn't phased, either. At this point we knew what that particular growl meant.

  It roughly meant 'you little shit', as far as we could tell.

  "That actually reminds me, Patricia, I'm getting a few things shipped here from overseas, so if you do want to do some shopping, you can get them to deliver it to my Lab. Like one of those nice Devon walk-in refrigeration units?" His grin was wide and I couldn't help but laugh.

  "That sounds lovely, Professor. I'll have to talk to you about that later tonight. I won't keep you, tell Charizard to come over whenever she wants! Me and Leaf are about to get… started." He laughed as I grimaced and I felt my face grow hot.

  "Honestly, I was never good with butchering." I looked at him, mildly stunned. Him? The Pokemon Professor? "I could get a breast or a wing off an avian easily enough, but quadrupeds? I usually just drained a limb and cooked it up whole, honestly, if it wasn't just chunks for a stew." Now I was laughing.

  "Professor, are you telling me that the top Pokemon Professor in the world cooked like Erin cooked in the Lowlands? Wait, she only did that once! She still cut most of them into pieces!" He was chuckling too, now.

  "We all have our weaknesses, Patricia. I'll see you later!" I waved at him as he ended the call.

  I got up to go put on my newly-designated set of 'bloody clothes' as the sun shone down. Koffing was actually floating near the open, screened window, sniffing. She could tell I was baking, but she never asked for anything. She never initiated anything, but… I think she preferred it that way, so I didn't push her. She still got her baked treats, either way.

  We all made sure of that.

  I was almost knocked over as Seraphina rode Cerberus upstairs to relieve Hecate, giving them light frowns. Only very light, they were adorable, rushing to relieve their sister, but still! I was walking here, children!

  —

  That evening I started my new nightly before-dinner ritual as most of a Ponyta slowly roasted on the spit for the dragons, Ponyta tenderloin with veggies already in the oven. Well, it was at least something visually similar to a Tauros tenderloin? They were surprisingly different internally for all that they were both four-hoofed mammalians.

  I should probably get some actual instruction on butchering Pokemon beyond looking up tutorials occasionally, but honestly, I barely ate much of each Pokemon, just the best cuts I could easily find. When you have this many Pokemon, almost all at least omnivorous or just flat out apex predators, there was a constant selection to choose from.

  It had been one of the greatest surprises in my life (even still, somehow) when I had received a call from a Pokemon Ranger casually asking for Leto's whereabouts. Thankfully, she had been behind me as we watched Pokemon Contests on the projector (she really liked them, and while I was going to hope for the best, I was unsure about her chances of actually participating), so I hadn't even had to get worried. She had growled and the Ranger recognized the sound. Apparently, Leto hadn't checked in recently, and they got worried. Erin wouldn't pick up, so I was called.

  I would freely admit I had thought Erin was just letting her mother go out and hunt down random Pokemon, but no, she usually checked in daily to see where Leto could freely hunt, and what she could or couldn't. Carnivorous Pokemon of Leto's size and appetite weren't exactly common, and other than Tauros there weren't many species in Kanto that could fill her by themselves, much less her family and team. It had taken a good bit of pantomime and eventually Rotom's assistance, but we figured out that without instructions from Erin she had just cycled through her previous locations and targets. The Ranger had sighed in relief, so I guess that was good?

  Luckily Leto was fast when she wanted to be, as I had seen, so running to the plains area and back was possible in a reasonable amount of time. There was no current worry about her appetite, thankfully. The wilds off-Route practically teemed with Pokemon, especially the plains and Tauros, which she could always hunt, so I thankfully didn't gain any new worries from the surprise call.

  I had also put in a request for one of the large bovines with a hopeful look in my eyes and a growl from my stomach, but she hated carrying back one large corpse like that, so I could only hope she was in a good mood the next time she was out in the plains.

  As my mostly-free, probably-delicious meal slowly cooked inside, I brought a nice thick, comfortable blanket to lay down on the deck and gently groomed my new Pokemon in the evening light. Maddy sometimes accepted a bit of help with her neck or head, but it was mostly Lily, Noodles, and Lucy for the first few days. Then one of the Ekans had come to talk to his friend as I groomed Noodles, and hadn't pulled away when I slowly began to polish his scales as well. Next was Poochyena with Lily, and soon they all lined up when I brought the blanket out.

  Not Koffing, but I had let her know the offer was always open. She hadn't responded, but her frown had lessened a bit momentarily. That was progress, and I was patient.

  Leaf had taken to joining me with Clefairy, but although Fraxure had been oddly compliant with her lately, and everyone else too now that I thought about it, he still didn't want attention like that from Leaf. Clefairy loved it, though, and I swore I saw actual affection for my daughter in her face. In the glint as well.

  The thought terrified me, but I remembered Raihans parting words to Leaf. She might actually do better with fae than dragons. She seemed to have a knack for them.

  Or had that just been Erin's bargain?

  The one she had accepted already, somehow. The one that allowed Clefairy to mediate true contracts. The one that I harbored horrible suspicions about.

  Fae took.

  What did they take from Erin? What had she seemed to be missing? What had she been so distraught about not experiencing?

  It wasn't her empathy, her loving nature, the things that made her so good, so kind, no. I had the horrible thought that for the rest of her life, when things got serious, got deadly for Erin, she wouldn't feel. Anything. That sounded like a good thing, right? Why feel the trauma of killing someone? Of ordering your Pokemon to destroy humans, to maim and kill? Why feel bad about doing bad things to bad people? About doing what was necessary to survive?

  Why feel fear?

  Remorse?

  I knew what Erin's perspective would be on this, unfortunately. I shared it.

  People had those responses for very good reasons.

  She had turned herself into a weapon without even knowing it. Only in actual battles, fights where it mattered and not random Pokemon Battles, but she would always… need Rotom, probably. As an alibi, and to hold her back when she got… started. To stop her clinical, ruthless actions in removing a threat if the threat turned out not to be one.

  My newest ward, who I was quickly growing far, far too attached to, was one of the kindest, bravest people I had ever met. Her heart full of love shone through in her actions, but if I was right, now she would forever be an unsheathed blade.

  What happened to the starving man who tried to steal from her? What happened to the brash young man who thought he could intimidate her? What about the foolish kid who ambushes her in a childish display of fun, startling what might as well have been a Tyrantrum in human flesh into a headspace where fear was removed the same as threats? Was that an overreaction? Hopefully! I didn't know her price, I was guessing!

  What happened when Team Rocket pushed her next? Would they cut themselves to pieces on her? I wasn't naive enough to assume she would never run into them again. She was a huge target.

  Who would travel with my daughter.

  I was surprisingly fine with the whole thing, honestly. I cared for both of them, Leto was basically a Mythical Pokemon in strength, if not species, and I had a surprising amount of trust in Clefairy and her desire to keep Leaf safe. Not that I would ever tell Clefairy that, because I wasn't stupid, Erin!

  I finished polishing the last Ekans, and Leaf brushed Cerberus while one of the Ekans happily took over spit-turning duty with help from Poochyena. Those who helped got extra portions, even if nobody ever went even close to hungry. They still liked having extra, liked helping, and they shared the extras among themselves, anyway. She had gotten to Erin's other Pokemon already, except Leto of course, because we didn't have hours and hours, but Cerberus was always filthy. It probably came from the blindness, honestly. He just crashed into almost everything he hadn't memorized.

  My daughter looked calm. Peaceful, other than the licking face she had locked under one arm. Vulnerable.

  Unprepared.

  "So, what is Pokemon Red, Leaf?" Raihan had told me those two words and nothing more when I had demanded answers.

  She froze so completely that Cerberus could easily have gotten free to lick her. Except he was frozen too, tongue extended motionlessly. All of Erin's Pokemon had frozen, even Leto from her corner. I narrowed my eyes at the giant Pokemon and she looked away. I turned my glare back to my daughter and found her back receding into the distance, gate still swinging.

  Well then. I could play that game, too, daughter of mine.

  "Maddy, sweetheart, one of my chicks just fell out of the nest. Would you be a dear and go catch her for me before she hurts herself?"

  She cackled and rose up. It was a slightly tight fit for her to lift off from my backyard, even as large as it was, but soon she was off, and moments later I heard the sounds of my lovely daughter's screams, the clacking of Maddy's beak clearly audible under them.

  I had let us all relax after that horrific day, but I was going to get some answers now.