Patricia Greenwood

  —

  I'm not sure what I expected to see when my daughters called me that night. Not that I really expected anything, not really… They just had a habit of giving me new headaches, that or delighting me when they called. Maybe a new outfit they had 'forced' Erin into? After she had finally stopped resisting something she so obviously wanted?

  After she had grown hopeful? Actually, it wasn't even hope! She was convinced she was 'advancing', even if I thought it was more like adjusting. We all were. She could taste more! She had specifically tested it with those Pidgey wraps that were uniformly okay. She knew it was working, and judging from Leaf's texts? She was enjoying food now, even if she wasn't tasting everything yet, and it made me so happy, not to mention relieved!

  It had been an idle thought I'd had, as I stared down my Tauros-headed daughter that night. The one stubbornly refusing to accept that she might be wrong. The one sliding into being a bully, towards the kind of person she hated. An idle thought, and a fitting, not to mention funny, punishment.

  'What if she just needs to act her age?'

  It was a very simple idea, really. She may have accepted her age, but she hadn't been her age. There had been a disconnect between her body, that of a fourteen year old child, and her mind… That of a depressed, lonely, thirty year old adult. One who hadn't had a good childhood. So what had she acted like? Like an immature adult in a child's body, one who resented it, resented her situation. One who didn't want to allow herself to enjoy it, because she didn't think she deserved to be happy…

  Now? Now that she'd been 'forced' into it? Now that she had stopped fighting herself? Stopped fighting any happiness she might have gotten out of being a teenager, a child again? Because that made her weak in her mind, because she thought she didn't deserve to be happy after what she had done in her previous life?

  Now she was just my teenage daughter, simple as that. I knew she would never be a normal fourteen year old, and would still have memories of being an adult, but for now at least? She had a chance to have a childhood she could enjoy. She had a loving family and friends. She had a powerful team, and her other mother was terrifying to a degree few comprehended until Leto stared at them.

  So honestly? I think I was possibly expecting to see Erin in a new outfit, blush almost nonexistent. Probably Alex, too. Leaf? Well… It was probably a good thing she stuck with one style… Erin lamented how bad her fashion sense was, but Leaf? The thought of Leaf having to dress herself as an adult worried me.

  Erin's new light purple sundress looked very nice on her, actually, and she looked happy in it… I had been prepared for that, though.

  I was not prepared for the six foot anchor standing next to Erin! The alive- or rather, undead- anchor! The one with its kelp wrapped around my daughter's hand! It was… They didn't have mouths, and their 'eye' wasn't very expressive, but it looked happy! Leaf and Alex were giving it slightly wary looks, but of course Erin had her arm thrown around it! It was… small, for a Dhelmise? I thought they were huge…

  "Hey mom! What's with that look, huh?" She was grinning at me, a happy grin… Happy, and a bit vicious, but considering the Pokemon she was practically hanging off of? It made sense.

  "Erin… Hello, everyone… Hello, Dhelmise." It released her briefly to wave at me, then went right back to holding her hand… Which was worrying, that's how they fed. She smiled at me so widely.

  "Mom, meet my eighth Pokemon! The first Pokemon I actually caught! Literally, it took me over half an hour to drag them in!" It glared a little at her, ghostly energies briefly radiating from its compass eye, but she just giggled.

  "So, they're staying here while we're near so much water, at least until we beat Janine, but after that? I was thinking the pond could use a dedicated defender. More specifically, that tunnel I heard Midir and Gyarados talk about." Its eye got a hungry look in it, and she glanced at it briefly before looking at me again.

  "Well, that, and I promised to help them grow, buy them some better materials to possess, since they're strong enough to control them but haven't found any. Speaking of, do you think Midir or Gyarados would enjoy doing a bombing run on a Wailmer pod with a large steel anchor filled with ghostly hunger? One that leaves them a meal, even when it's full?" I couldn't help the laugh that forced its way out of my mouth at the mental image… Because, of course, they would be more than delighted to do that…

  "I think you know the answer to that, dear. In fact…" I looked over my PokeNav at Midir. He was obviously listening in, him and the entire backyard, and he gave me a huge, amused smile as he nodded. I looked back into the screen with my own wide smile.

  "Midir will, and I have to imagine Gyarados would be more than delighted to as well. In fact, Dhelmise might get tired of being tossed at Wailmer pods!" Midir laughed and nodded at me. Dhelmise?

  Dhelmise weren't expressive Pokemon, considering they were seaweed possessing inanimate objects. The way it lifted my daughter's hand up and rocked back and forth, though? It was happy! I laughed at the sight, but I knew it was a ghost… Not one that ate something as innocent as electricity like Dexter, either.

  "Will Dhelmise behave themselves here?" It didn't glare at me, but its stare focused on me. Erin laughed and patted it on the… wheel head?

  "Dhelmise here agreed to only feed when I give them permission while with me, and only while hunting at the Ranch. Well, they promised to not attack the Ranches residents, and to follow Gyarados or Midir's instructions. Oh, and they would really enjoy some land-based prey, too. They taste better." I frowned at her.

  "They've eaten one before? I thought they were usually found at the bottom of the ocean?" Her grin grew wide, even as Leaf and Alex looked uncomfortable… Oh Arceus…

  "They ate a little bit of mine! It's not bad at all! It only took half an hour to recover, too, and such a small amount doesn't impact me in the slightest!" I was glaring at her now. Not Dhelmise, they were a Pokemon! They were doing what they did!

  "Erin, you know better than to do that! Life force is not aura! I mean… I don't think we actually know exactly what it is?" Erin nodded at me through the screen, even as she… winced slightly?!

  "I know! My life force isn't huge, strange, or unique, like my aura… It didn't take anything from them, but it did test that out with Alex and Leaf. I'm normal! I get the feeling you never thought you'd hear me say that, huh?" I couldn't stop the minor chuckle that managed to break through my unending scowl.

  "Erin, you know better than to mess with that! I saw you wince, too! They just took more!" She smiled at the undead eye, and it almost looked like it smiled back? With just the eye?

  "Nah, they're fine, mom! Think of it like Hope and her whole 'I rip my own mind out to make bindings' thing! It's fine! Now, if they took about… What do you think would be dangerous?" She looked at it, and its eye closed briefly. She could tell when a Pokemon lied, usually… Its eye popped open, and its gaze shifted to me even as Erin chuckled.

  "So, they could take about twenty times more before it could possibly be dangerous, but they won't. Yeah, we just met, so they don't love me, but they still like me, because I'm going to help them grow. I know you noticed how small they are right now. Why would they ever bite the hand that feeds them? Literally, in this case!" She lifted her wrapped hand with a giggle.

  "Dear, that may be- Okay, they aren't lying. Minds can change, though." She nodded at me, face serious.

  "Absolutely, they can. They won't, though. Now, you know what they really want to try?" Her smile grew wide, even as Leto grinned in the background.

  "They're really interested in what Tauros taste like, actually. I get the feeling human life force probably tastes the best, like candy to us, but Tauros is probably nutritious… Does life force vary in… fillingness by species?" It bent some of its kelp in a nod, and I couldn't help but smile a little at the sight.

  "What are you going to feed them for now, though? I can't imagine that taking little… nibbles from you is enough to sustain them?" She giggled, even as Alex and Leaf went pale.

  "They don't require 'food' to stay healthy all that often, just to grow and replace the life force that they burn through. Well, the second Pokemon I ever fished up here was a Sharpedo! It was kind of… murdery? Like, a lot? Dhelmise is full for tonight, and so is-" She shut her mouth rapidly, and Alex smiled before she came a little closer to the camera, Dexter angling to center on her.

  "Have you watched my Gym Battle yet, Ms. Greenwood?" I smiled warmly at her. Her and the happy, hopeful look in her eyes. I knew most of her family situation, if not all. I wouldn't be adopting any more daughters, sure, but Alex was prime niece material.

  "I did, dear! Jangmo-o did great!" I saw him perk up in the background and wave at me. "So did Dragonair!" She slid into the screen, twenty feet of stunningly beautiful dragon, and smiled at me. Alex continued with her own smile, stroking Dragonair's head as she headbutted her.

  "Well, she ate the, ah… leftovers, I guess?" She turned to Dhelmise, and it nodded. "I mean, they tasted exactly the same, so it works out really well for us! While they're here we can share all the kills with Dhelmise, including the Tauros tomorrow! Leto agreed to let them try to surf her snout…" I laughed at the look on Dhelmise's face. Well, the slight look of nervousness in its eye, and how its kelp seemed to stiffen momentarily.

  "Well, it's nice to meet you, Dhelmise! Enjoy it there with my daughter, and when you get here be ready to… air bomb Wailmer pods." It perked up a little at that, before Dexter slid onto the screen. With a smile.

  "Sooo, Ms. Greenwood…" I grew nervous immediately. I liked Dexter, but he was a ghost, too! He may not drain life force, but it sometimes felt like it!

  "Dexter, I don't like the look in your little eyes." He giggled before he slipped away, the camera centering on Leaf. My daughter was ecstatic at the moment.

  "Mom! So, you know how I had four Pokemon?" I blinked at her for an instant, then I fully registered her words. I was… conflicted about a baby fae, honestly, but if Alex wasn't throwing random fearful looks around, they couldn't be that bad.

  "I assume the Egg hatched?" Her smile couldn't get wider, but she certainly seemed to try!

  "It did! When we were out in the plains helping Maxx move some stuff, actually! Leto pulled a huge wagon filled with furniture out there for him and Rosie!" I smiled at the thought of that young man.

  He was far too brave for his own good, but these days? He had a Kangaskhan to help him stay safe. He was also a gifted photographer, and I had half a wall already full of some of his best shots. The one with Leto almost presiding over every Kanghaskhan herd was amazing! It really looked like she was ruling over them, but I knew they had just been chatting. The one with almost a hundred baby Kangaskhan? Well, the professional photo hung up there as well, sure, and it was beautiful too. I got far more happiness out of looking at the one with my daughters and Alex, and almost their entire teams, just playing with the adorable babies.

  The photo of Leto throwing a blazing Rapidash into a river was hilarious, if mean… Like Leto herself, most of the time.

  "Well, they hatched out there, and we had to cut our planned stay out there a little short…" I didn't frown, because she was obviously working up to something.

  "We needed to buy them supplies!" She bent down and lifted up a bright pink… baby? Wait…

  "Meet Tinkatink! She's already promised to not take from anyone unless I give her permission, like Team Rocket!" Worrying, but expected. "She's also discovered one of her desires! Hope likes bringing hope, and Stabby likes to defend, with stabbing of course. Tinkatink here likes to give gifts!" My stunned expression only grew as the baby fae babbled cheerfully, nodding her head at me. What?

  "She what?" I was kind of stunned, actually. I knew about the metal worker Pokemon, but not much… Leaf smiled widely, but there was some awkwardness there.

  "Well, I've only extracted some limited promises for now, to make sure she can interact with humans safely." Okay, good! "She decided to push at my request to not eat utensils, especially those in restaurants-" Tinkatink winced, but only slightly. "-and she wasn't very happy when I made her replace their fork out of her own stash of metal I bought her." I smiled widely at that.

  My daughter had a gift with Pokemon, that was certain. Professor Oak had noticed it, Raihan had noticed it, Erin had noticed it. I liked to think that she would have had that even without the whole 'protagonist' thing, but truly? I didn't care. My daughter took a baby fae, extracted promises from them, and taught them a lesson? I didn't even need to hear the rest to know what had happened.

  I still eagerly listened as she continued.

  "Well, I've looked up other Tinkatink since then, and while they are all skilled from birth, this little girl here? She is an artist! She made them the most intricate fork I have ever heard of! It was literally a work of art!" Dexter slid a photo into the feed, displaying a fork. Just a fork. A fork that was more decoration than plain steel, with what looked like woven strands of copper the width of hair inlaid in the tines! The handle had intricate patterns in bronze inlaid into it!

  My daughter's smile couldn't get bigger, and I don't think Tinkatink's could, either.

  "They loved it! It stunned the owner, the employees, and even some customers who saw it! They took a picture of Tinkatink holding it, too, and hung both on the wall! They're actually buying a small case to put it in, too!" Tinkatink looked like she would explode from pride.

  "Well, she liked the feeling of giving gifts! She felt good from the look in the owner's eyes when she received it, and even better from the honest praise! She tried to give everyone a fork… Well, me, Alex, and Erin all have very nice, plain forks now. For everyone else, she's going to work on bracelets and necklaces! Fancy ones, too!" My own smile was very large now.

  Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

  "So for now? Tinkatink wants to give everyone something! Not to mention eat her own forks, ones that she makes, the next time she eats some regular food." Oh good job, Leaf!

  I smiled through the camera, then theatrically turned my head… as though I could look past the edges of a video feed.

  "So, where's the next one? Honestly, I wouldn't be surprised if you girls pulled out an Alpha Starmie or some other insanity. Maybe a water fae?" I truly enjoyed the look on Leafs face as she blushed furiously. Erin blushed a little bit, too, but not much. She knew that might happen! Look at Maddy! Look at Petals!

  Luckily there were no more Pokemon to introduce this time.

  I kind of got the feeling the next time might include another…

  —

  Erin

  —

  I couldn't stop the huge smile that threatened to break my face in half as I watched my newest Pokemon try to balance on Leto's snout the next morning. I mean, they could just wrap their chain around her snout… that would involve the chain going through her mouth, however, because mom wouldn't let someone hold her jaws closed, even if she could have snapped its chain like thread. It was the principle of the matter.

  They still managed to find a sturdy position, and mom gave me a grin as she turned around, Kallen latched onto her head. He would help re-hydrate Dhelmise if they got too dry… They might not? Or at least, not as fast as I worried, but there wasn't much information on the PokeNet.

  Dhelmise were rare Pokemon to catch. Most lived in Dragalge infested waters where ships feared to go, for good reason. Smaller ones were almost rarer, because nobody knew how they reproduced. Most ghost types were literally ghosts. The prevailing theory was that they were the souls of seaweed, somehow? Either way, while they certainly weren't the rarest Pokemon in the world, they were rare to catch! Most people encountered them during a Dragalge attack, and those people were more worried about surviving than capturing the steel anchor tearing their ship open. Divers didn't dare get too close, either. They might not be hostile to humans specifically, but they were hostile to life in general. Getting smashed by an anchor, no matter the size, would hurt. Or, you know, just kill.

  Still, Dhelmise had been fine out of water so far, and it had been an hour in the hot plains! That was encouraging, and if Kallen didn't need to help them re-hydrate after their hunt, I would ask if they would prefer to come along, see the world. I got the feeling they would, actually. They liked the taste of human life force, and land-based creatures in general probably. They still wanted to be dropped onto a Wailmer, which was hilarious, so we would see. They were surprisingly friendly for ghostly seaweed.

  Mostly.

  They had not been friendly when they were caught, obviously. More like murderously enraged. Not that I blamed them, I had dragged them to me with sharp hooks that had luckily gotten stuck in their wooden wheel. Also luckily, I had been using the heaviest rod and line combination I could rent, not to mention a long woven steel leader. Now, though? They looked ecstatic as Leto glanced around, trying to determine the best direction to go from Maxx's house.

  I almost felt bad for using Maxx's house like a base out here, but he hadn't minded. Not that he was here anymore, he was wandering with Rosie… Well, they had just left, actually… They had also left behind Rosie's baby, who was currently inside the house playing with Tinkatink, Hope, and Indeedee. The rest of us?

  We were training! Nothing excessive, just general exercise and Move practice. Everyone understood Dhelmise couldn't just eat the storage containers full of meat, and Leto would bring back what she didn't eat… She could easily eat two Tauros, or three, so it would be deliberate if it happened. I doubted it, though… This wasn't a survival situation, or one where we had no stores of food and many mouths to feed. This was Leto… about to toss my newest Pokemon, all of its hundred pounds of steel, at a Tauros. Because not only was that expedient, and overcame Dhelmise's lack of speed, but it would be hilarious! Dexter was actually tagging along just to record it! I knew most of the Ranch would find it hilarious, too.

  Before they ran off, though, I called out, voice light and happy. I had finally caught a Pokemon! Not one that just decided to come with me, or been given to me by their parents! I caught and captured it! Even if it was willing, still a capture!

  "Dhelmise, listen to mom, but have fun! If one doesn't fill you up, see how many it takes!" I extended my aura to better catch their response.

  'Gratitude. Hunger. Take. Fear!' 'Buddy, trust me, while they will fear mom more, sure… they will fear you too, especially when she throws you in their faces!'

  They actually… Well, not laughed, they didn't have voices, and didn't make noises, really. They did, however, spin their wheel a little, letting their algae fronds slap against it. That was the equivalent of either a joyous laugh, or a sinister one. Both? Probably both. Surprisingly chill under the whole 'ghost seaweed' thing, but still a ghost that killed by draining its victims' life force away.

  Mom grinned at me before she started trotting away, picking up speed as she began to sniff out a herd of Tauros… Hopefully not the one she decimated. Quadruple decimated? I think decimation was one tenth? Ehh, ten percent, two fifths, who cares. I'd still prefer she leave that herd alone for… a long time.

  I turned back towards Alex and Leaf, my smile faltering a bit at the look in their eyes. Alex spoke up before I could even open my mouth.

  "We are not sparring with you, Erin. Pretty sure it wouldn't do any of us any good, especially this far away from town. Yes, we have healers, but… I mean…" She was faltering now, and I leapt to exploit it.

  Leaf was faster, unfortunately.

  "No, Erin! It wasn't that bad, kind of fun actually, and we'll spar in the future, but today we are sore!" Oh, yeah…

  I mean, me too, but they weren't used to these kinds of aches and pains. Exercising didn't make them badly sore anymore, of course… Being punched did, because while Indeedee may be able to heal any true injury, muscles still got fatigued. They remembered the damage done to them.

  I sighed theatrically, then threw my head back, talking plaintively towards the sky.

  "Why, Arceus? Why must you surround me with the weak willed? Why must I continue to be the voice of-"

  I was apparently the voice of 'getting a tiny Clefable in the face', as Stabby took that moment to make himself known. I glared at him, of course… With amusement, but my glare might have become a little harsh as he pulled out… one of the ninja's training daggers from behind his back. Now I really glared at him. Wait, where did he pull that out from? Did he store crap under his wings somehow?

  "Did you steal that?" He shook his head at me, smiling widely.

  "Teacher. Gave. Purpose. Stab! Erin!" I let out a laugh as he hopped backwards, the practice knife held steady.

  "Well, it's a good thing I'm wearing my stupid Misty outfit then! Less holes!" He nodded at me, smiled, both his mask and true self, then he flashed towards me in a display of speed that left me momentarily stunned.

  Momentarily.

  I lashed out with my aura, wielding it almost like a huge club. I had done this instinctively before, and gotten good at it in Saffron. Terrifying Stabby would be a hard task for me, though, probably impossible. He was my best friend, he knew me. All of me. He had evaluated me that first night, out in the darkness as we hunted together.

  He knew I could be terrifying, but he would never feel it.

  I could still attempt to knock him out of the air. Aura wasn't physical. I couldn't move so much as a grain of rice with it, not unless I used a Move… Which I could, yes, but I was honestly terrified to. The first Move I ever used was actually Fury Attack, back when I fled the Ranch in distress and was ambushed by that Arbok. It had damn near torn my arm off. Well, not even close, but it had scared me, badly. The Roar? I knew what would happen, I just hadn't cared! I wanted to send a message to that thing. Torture me for your own pleasure? Look what you gave me, dumbass!

  So how did I manage to knock Stabby out of the air? My aura slammed into his, and almost like an electrical grid, or a blood network, I paused the entire thing momentarily, which also paused his movements. He still flew through the air, having already been in motion, but I was ready with a foot to his face.

  He still managed to poke a tiny hole in my leg, even as he bounced away. It didn't hurt badly, kind of like being shot by a BB gun, honestly. His grin probably matched mine when he hopped back to his feet.

  "Sis, you're insane!" Yes, yes I was! I was an insane kid, though, and kids were allowed to be insane! Expected, in fact!

  Wait, they weren't? Nah, you just led a boring life, imaginary audience listening to my thoughts…

  —

  —

  Dhelmise looked ecstatic when they came back. Well… They looked energetic, perky? This was a learning experience for me, and it was no wonder most Dhelmise were regarded as hard Pokemon to raise, often unresponsive if content. Not that they were easy for me, but most people couldn't just reach their aura out and…

  'Full! Good! GROW!' I looked at it in confusion, because its 'kelp' was still the same size. It noticed, then extended its kelp, dozens of feet, in fact!

  'Grow! Require! Material!'

  "Whoa, buddy, I kind of got that one. You need more material already? Like, an anchor?" It shook its head… well, it shook its whole body at me, right before Leto tipped them off of her snout.

  "Oh, you need more kelp to grow your actual body before you can possess a new anchor?" It sent me a positive impression, because it was currently pulling its anchor out of the ground with a squinted compass-eye. I smiled at the sight.

  "Well, we were only out here to top you off, get as strong as possible before buying a new anchor, so we could drop by the ocean this afternoon. That work for you?" Another positive impression, even as it managed to pull itself out of the earth. I looked at mom, who was watching Dhelmise with amusement.

  'He was good, I assume?' 'Yes. Smash! Funny!' 'I can't wait to watch the video! Are you full, too?' She nodded at me, ignoring the little glare Dhelmise was throwing her way.

  I turned to the others with a smile. Training had been done for a few minutes before they returned, so we were all just waiting on Maxx now.

  "Who wants to go swimming?" The thunderous growl from behind me barely registered these days.

  —

  —

  I had seen beautiful seas in my old world. I had only been to a few of them in person, but they had been tropical seas, warm, shallow seas. Kanto's southern coast was not shallow, not warm, and not beautiful. It was still interesting down here, though, and the rented wetsuits were doing a good job of keeping me 'warm'. Kallen and Dragonair were having the time of their lives right now, darting around the three of us as we swam down towards Dhelmise's old haunting grounds.

  Dhelmise was actually in their ball still, but when we got closer to the bottom they would emerge. They couldn't actually swim, even if they could make themself neutrally buoyant and use their anchor and kelp like a giant fin. We were faster underwater with swim fins, though. Still, it was fascinating going this deep! It would also be time consuming, considering we weren't going to mess with the bends and would return to the surface slowly, but we had hours of air left, not to mention sunlight. The diving certifications had been surprisingly easy to obtain, actually.

  It wasn't nice crystal clear water, though, not at all. Visibility was only about thirty feet in any direction before the sea did that terrifying thing where it became an indistinct haze. A haze that anything could be swimming behind…

  I shook myself a little as I finally saw the bottom. We were roughly in Dhelmise's old haunt, so I poked it with aura. It came out in front of me, and I could tell it was happy, even without the eye. Its kelp fluttered in the slight currents, and it patted me on the shoulder before it dropped all buoyancy it had. I almost laughed at the sight of its kelp billowing as it fell, which would have been a bad idea… Not deadly, but saltwater was… salty.

  We swam down to meet them, Leaf and Alex looking uneasy and nervous, eyes darting around uncomfortably in the gloom… I kind of was, too? Not really, though, I trusted Kallen and Dragonair to defend us, and I also trusted Dhelmise. Not because they loved me like Kallen did, but because I was their ticket to an easy life of growth. They were interested in battles as well, obviously, but Dhelmise knew it had a small anchor despite its strength. They wanted to be powerful! Me?

  I loved the fact that I had a huge, and soon to be huge-er, ghostly anchor of doom! Maybe Davy for a name? Nah, that was too cheesy. That sounded like one of moms names, honestly… They were great, though! Sure, they might be a little different than the rest of my team, they were family, but Dhelmise would get there. If not? They would still make a great defender for that tunnel. I got the feeling they would warm up easily enough, though. They wouldn't be going to the Ranch for a while, either.

  They had been relatively fine in the plains, so travel wasn't going to be a huge issue for them. Getting to see more of the world than the ocean floor was appealing to them, not to mention the food. Now that we knew they could travel with mom on her hunts? That mom was enthusiastic about having them along, even if it was to throw them at targets? Well, Leaf and Alex were still slightly nervous, but I wasn't. Not in the least!

  We finally reached the seafloor, which was mostly rocky sand and small kelp forests. We weren't that deep, probably only a hundred feet down, but it was dark down here. Not like night-time dark, of course. Light still penetrated down here, but not much red light, so it was dim. Dim, blue, and cold! Even through the wetsuit it was cold down here, not to mention the pressure! It was… slightly terrifying, if only because it reminded me of the last time I had felt pressure on all sides…

  Dhelmise was already at work, seemingly stripping the surrounding area of kelp with its own kelp… which was being incorporated into its own, more faded kelp. It was fascinating, honestly, and I lost myself in the sight for a long moment before we got started. We were going to gather a lot of kelp for Dhelmise, a Storage Ball's worth, actually. They were trying to get as much as possible… Well, they were actually trying to get too much for themselves, stressing their control over it before I bought them a new anchor to possess, so combined with the Storage Ball, they wouldn't have to return just for materials for a long time.

  Roughly ten minutes later I felt myself get wrapped up by a long noodle-dragon and dragged over to Leaf and Alex, and I may have regretted my current location. Not to mention decision making processes.

  The pack of Sharpedo were of course ridiculous looking. They really were! Almost like some madman took a shark and squashed it, then let it swallow and fart out water… They were also terrifying. The pack was circling at the edges of our vision, and I couldn't stop the comparison that came to mind.

  When I was a child and came face to face with a Lemon shark, I had been far more scared, because the only thing I had to fight with had been my tiny little arms, despite knowing it would probably leave me alone. Now? Well, my arms were still kind of tiny, sure. I also had my kelp buddy on my head, ready to defend us, not to mention Dragonair. A Dragonair that growled at them, the vibrations jarring me a little underwater. The Sharpedo didn't like that, and grouped up before moving in to attack.

  Of course, I had been restraining my aura, so they didn't know the kind of insanity they were about to swim into. I mean, just me? Sure, I could maybe pull out a Move that wouldn't break me, but I didn't need to take that kind of risk.

  The large net of kelp that flung out at them as they passed a little too close to Dhelmise was more than enough on its own. Two managed to escape the net before they were restrained, and I watched in amusement as they jetted away as fast as possible. The others?

  Well, they didn't die immediately, of course. They all managed to orient themselves and jet off, which worked! They just took Dhelmise with them for the ride. A short ride, as they started to slow down almost immediately. Dhelmise was… happy? It was hard to tell from a distance, and underwater, but it certainly seemed that way.

  The Sharpedo weren't as they thrashed in wide-eyed terror, but screw them. I mean… I didn't blame them, really. They were predators. So was most of my team. Hell, I was a killer, and I was an apex predator to many Pokemon, as well. Still not going to show them mercy, of course. The one I caught was different. I had dragged it away from its home, it had just refused to leave in peace. Not only could I not ask these through their panic and terror, they were just… living their life. As predators.

  They just ran into better predators. Tough luck.

  A couple minutes later Dhelmise launched their anchor towards us and pulled their wheel after it, eye practically shining with ghostly energy as they dragged the corpses along.

  'You full, bud?' 'Full! Good! Fun!' 'It looked like it! Need any more kelp for now? This probably won't happen again any time soon, or at least not till you go to the Ranch.'

  The negative impression told me all I needed to know. They had plenty.

  'Grow?' It was a request, and I wasn't going to stop them, of course! I smiled at them… Well, the corners of my mouth quirked up slightly around the rebreather.

  'Sure! We can go check the docks, I'm sure there's an old, or new, anchor there for sale, not to mention chains. Will you need a different wheel and compass any time soon?' 'Maybe? Next.' 'Maybe, but certainly next time? Cool then! Ready to go?'

  They returned themselves instead of answering, and I chuckled a little.

  Then I poked them, because I kind of needed them to drag those carcasses up to the surface for us… I wasn't going to let the meat go to waste, of course…

  —

  —

  Indeedee was not happy we had taken so long… Even if it had been relatively fast. Why? Because Tinkatink was playing with Hazard!

  We all did a double take at the sight as we climbed onto the pier. He was just… playing with her normally? Well, he was actually letting her bash his blades with her rattle, which she was enthusiastic about! I mean, he had finally strengthened them, sure… Still…

  He got very embarrassed when he looked up from the baby fae and saw us watching him with disbelief. Not that we were upset, of course, it was just… That was Hazard!

  "Maybe Hazard is hazardous to himself in more ways than physically?" Everyone burst into laughter at Alex's words. Not Hazard, and he glared at her… but he didn't stop playing with Tinkatink!

  Until she accidentally bashed his eye, that was.