After being led to what appeared to be Floaroma Town’s local government building, which was one of the largest buildings he’d seen so far in his little adventure away from his ranch, Ethan flowed past numerous busy-bodied officials who were frayed and frantic in their movements as he followed his assigned suit to his meeting with Cynthia.

  He drew many curious glances as he made his way deeper into the building, passing jury halls, offices, and meeting rooms filled with people doing their duty. Eyes flicked to him out of instinct, probably because of his appearance as a humble rancher, which stood out starkly against the pressed suits and tasteful business attire of the ladies… or maybe because of who he was following.

  Eventually they arrived at a sturdy, large, and frankly imposing set of double doors. Without fanfare, the agent leading him opened one of them slightly ajar and motioned for him to enter with a jerk of the head. Entering inside revealed the room to be a nice and furnished meeting room, similar to ones he’d been in previously back on Earth as a part of his former job. Yet instead of his bosses and higher-ups, here sat the Champion of the region, an older, stern, slightly wrinkled looking Jenny in what must have been her fifties dressed in her uniform, and a man in his mid thirties dressed like a rugged and experienced trainer.

  Their three heads turned towards him as he entered, and Ethan nearly paused in his steps at the very unhappy look etched upon Cynthia’s face.

  It was at this point that Ethan began to suspect why he had been asked to meet.

  “Ralts, why don’t you wait outside for this.” Ethan grabbed the small fairy off his shoulder and placed her down on the ground.

  With suspicious eyes, Ralts scanned the three people in the room before sending him a squinted glare. “Very well… but know this: this is a courtesy, not obedience to your commands. Keep your secrets.”

  Ethan waved her off lazily as she picked up her toga-like skirt-ish legs and strode out of the room to wait outside.

  “Sit.” Cynthia commanded once the door snapped close, a heavy clunk droned through the room as she pointed a finger at the nearby chair—the one right beside the Jenny.

  Ethan made his way over and sat in the seat while giving a polite nod to the other two members of the meeting as Cynthia practically thrust a tiny slip of paper across the table towards him. “Do you want to explain to me what this is?”

  Ethan spared the slip of paper a glance and confirmed his suspicions. He met Cynthia’s angry and aggravated eyes calmly as he spoke. “That is a note.”

  “Yes. It is a note—one written in your handwriting.” Cynthia placed her elbows on the table—very unprofessional in a business setting, in Ethan's opinion—and leaned forward as her voice leveled out. “We apprehended Butch and Cassidy. Would you like to explain to me why this was on their persons?”

  The silence that descended upon the meeting room was tense, but Ethan was resolute in his little decision. When he’d had breakfast this morning in the flower fields with his pokemon, he had left behind a small slip of paper in case he was being followed by an agent of Team Rocket. While his memory wasn’t what he hoped it to be for the lore of pokemon and the characters, he did remember that either Butch or Cassidy had a Sableye. As a Dark and Ghost pokemon, Sableye seemed the type to be good at following a target beneath notice—something he had bet on Team Rocket doing. He hadn’t truly expected anything to come from leaving the note, but he was damn glad that it was found. Hopefully, the information was relayed back to Giovanni.

  “You should come clean. Explain the meaning of your cryptic message and how you got it to them. Aiding and abetting criminals is bad enough. Aiding Team Rocket?” The Jenny shook her head. “You’re in over your head.” She finished with her voice being oddly neutral.

  Ethan looked at the note and scanned the words.

  I prefer peace.

  Call your agents and hunters home before your treasure is found.

  I know about your Silver. Keep your distance and no one else will.

  Short, clean, and to the point. Anyone else who read this note might not understand what Ethan was saying, but Giovanni would. To his knowledge, Silver—Giovanni’s son—wasn’t a terrible person, definitely not Team Rocket levels of bad. He even hated Team Rocket if he remembered correctly. For all that Ethan was afraid for his safety, he wasn’t at the level of throwing Giovanni’s ‘innocent’ son to the wolves.

  “Aiding and abetting?” Ethan questioned, raising a brow toward the Jenny beside him. “Is that what you think this is? This is de-escalation for my own safety.”

  Ethan then locked eyes with Cynthia, who was still angry at him for who knows what—probably for not being informed. “Everything I do, say, or want is not for you to know. I am my own person and have done more for this region, and for you, by sharing my information than ninety-nine percent of others.”

  You could be reading stolen content. Head to the original site for the genuine story.

  Cynthia’s angry frown evened out, but Ethan continued. “My first priority—which will always be first, no matter what you ever do or say—is my pokemon’s and my safety. I am not going to sit here and let you, interpol, and whoever else you have work on this on your own, keeping me out of it. I will take steps to protect myself and my interests with or without your permission.”

  Ethan jabbed a finger into the sturdy wooden table they sat at. The sound punctuating his statement. “If Team Rocket’s leader is interested in me, whose fault is that?” He jabbed again. “Who asked, as the Champion of Sinnoh, for me to take in Jessie and James? Who are both the most likely reasons that I am now in the crosshairs?”

  Ethan’s voice rose, not in anger, but in incredulousness. “And you’re angry with me for sending a message to protect myself?” He shook his head. “You’re lucky I even allowed all these goons and the absurd level of government oversight in the first place. I truly hope,” Ethan paused and raised his hands to air quote, “‘their leader’” He lowered his hands, slightly mocking as he was hiding information of Giovanni’s name. “got my message.”

  The man who was in the room cleared his throat before he spoke. “Can you explain what this message is?”

  Ethan gave him a once over. “And you are?”

  “Ace Ranger Clide. I do believe one of my rangers saved you from the forest awhile back. Ranger Elise.” The man introduced himself with a nod of acknowledgement.

  “It’s nice to meet you, but I wish the circumstances were better.” Ethan responded in kind. Clide hadn’t done anything towards him, and it wasn’t like Ethan was actually angry. He was mostly just frustrated and worried. “But no. I will not be sharing what I wrote down unless Team Rocket decides to continue their little games. If they continue to look into me and my own, then I will tell you three what you need to know.”

  Cynthia’s frown returned, but Ethan spoke before she could question his decision. “This information will not help you take down Team Rocket. This information is personal information which nobody should know about their leader. I am threatening them by saying I will tell you about it if they don’t stop sticking their nose where it doesn’t belong. If it was dire or helpful, I would have already informed you.”

  Ethan waited as Cynthia’s face went through a range of emotions. It was clear that she didn’t quite know how to feel about being left out. He decided to end his statement with something neutral. “Just like you want to protect everyone in Sinnoh, I have the same responsibilities, but smaller. I will protect my ranch and my pokemon. This is what I felt was the best way to de-escalate. If they get my message, and they’re smart or paranoid, then they will leave.”

  “Paranoid?” The Jenny questioned.

  “Ethan has information that he shouldn’t have.” Cynthia jumped in. “They will question how he got it I assume.”

  Ethan nodded as he picked up his note. “That’s correct… For what it’s worth, I am sorry that I had to go behind your back, but I think you would have done the same in my position. I do not regret it.” He folded the note and stuck it into his vest, causing the Jenny to sigh. “What are you doing with Butch and Cassidy? How did you even apprehend them?”

  Cynthia’s mannerisms mellowed out and Ethan thought that she began to understand his position. She was still frustrated, but wasn’t angry anymore. “They were escaping towards Valley Windworks. Agent Simmons intercepted and a battle ensued.” A flash of pain crossed her face. “She lost one of her partners in the battle and is roughed up herself.”

  The image of Agent Simmons using his phone to talk to Looker appeared in his mind. He didn’t know the agent well—Actually, he had never really talked to her beyond a sentence or two—but she had been helping him indirectly. The fact that she ‘lost one of her partners’ felt like a heavy blow to his chest. “Oh…” Ethan said numbly.

  The three gave him a moment to process that, but quickly moved onto other topics by themselves. Ethan didn’t really have any input, as they talked about plans of searching for any accomplices and interrogating their captives, but he did add that if they found any captured pokemon from Team Rocket’s activities that he’d help look after them. It didn’t seem like Team Rocket was in business here in Sinnoh, but he felt like it was the only thing he could really offer.

  Soon, both Ace Ranger Clide and the older Jenny left to go about their duties. They both seemed accustomed to one another’s responsibilities and more than likely have worked with each other before. Ethan stood to leave as well, but a look from the still sitting Cynthia made him sigh and sit back down. It was obvious that she had something to say to him.

  “I am sorry for my temperament when you arrived.” Cynthia exhaled with her eyes closed, some tension leaving her. “This is a mess and your note sent suspicion onto you—not only from myself, but others who don’t know about what you’ve done for Sinnoh. I should have known that you wouldn’t collude with them, but—”

  Ethan quickly cut her off and sent her a slight comforting smile and a quick snort. “I understand. Just remember, I am not strong or capable like you and the others. I’m just a dude. This is out of my league and I want nothing to do with it…. Although, I might need to take training more seriously in case the worst happens.”

  The look of relief crossing Cynthia’s visage couldn’t be missed. “That sounds like an excellent plan. I think maybe it would be best for you to return to your ranch, Ethan. We’ll be here for a few more days making sure nothing escapes our notice, but I am sad to say there’s not much you can offer for help.”

  That was something he easily agreed with. Ethan nodded. “I am missing home just a bit. I think we’ll leave tomorrow and start our trek on foot back to the ranch.”

  Ethan stood and moved towards the door, pausing only at the exit. “Don’t be a stranger and visit sometimes. Remember, Shuckle has a present for Garchomp. Friends check in on one another.”

  Cynthia gave him a lazy wave saying, ‘get out of here’. So, Ethan left with a slight grin, glad to know that this little plan had been taken care of with so little effort or hassle. While he still didn’t know if Butch and Cassidy got his message sent, he’d assume that they hadn’t.

  He did need to get to training his pokemon for the eventuality of a serious battle…

  But maybe some little battles were the best place to start.

  https://discord.gg/T6AD3E2qVR Feel free to join!