#so yeah. I already HAD those Ideas TM despite never seeing or hearing them at all | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

gotboredwrote · 5 years

Text

Etymology of Us // TM!JFM

Pairing: Tim Murphy x Fem!Reader Word Count: 4K Style: One-Shot Warnings: (16+) Fluff, explicit-ish talk about sexual themes – no smut (implied), swearing Summary: Everyone who knows Tim knows he’s a smart guy, but they think it’s all about the dinosaurs. For the most part, that’s true. He does have a few other passions, though, and he always unconsciously demonstrates that for you, even in the most personal of situations. Permanent Author’s Note: To clarify, I write because I get bored. Nothing is meant to be professional in any way, nor is meant to offend, cause anxiety, cause anger, cause sadness, or promote disagreement among readers in any sort of (semi)permanent way. A/N: I have a lot of confidence in the fact that Tim would be educated on more than dinosaurs, and this just happened to be something I felt really strong Tim vibe from. So, yeah. I’m not proud of the introductory part of this story, but whatever lol.

Masterlist

You know Tim is smart. So does everyone who knows him. Except you know him a lot more intimately than most. Considering you have been together for almost six months, after having met him at the museum during a tour, there is not a lot you have not done together. You have gone on every kind of date imaginable, and gone almost all the way romantically when you would stay the night at each other’s apartments. It was the best relationship either of you had been in for a number of reasons, and it felt like you were soulmates. Tim never ceased to amaze you every single day, part of the reason your relationship was so strong. You felt like you learned more about love, life, random knowledge, and dinosaurs than you ever did in all your years of formal education. He was a bookworm and always had new information to willingly share with you, something he would never do with past girlfriends. They did not care like you do, something else that made your relationship so strong. There was mutual pining and mutual adoration and acceptance of the other’s personality – key for a healthy relationship. Tim started teaching you things even back on your first date, and even then, you knew that this boy would make a large impact on you.

The first date you went on was extremely traditional, which was classic Tim, as you would come to find out. It was not a super fancy restaurant, but one of those places where you did not feel you could just wear a raggedy tee shirt and jeans or leggings. You elected for something a little nicer, and once the two of you were at the restaurant, you fell into conversation easily. Like two friends who have not seen each other in years and have tons of catching up to do. No awkwardness, no nerves – just two people having a pleasant dinner who also happen to be on a date. The conversation spread across all topics from family to friends to hobbies, and eventually it settled on work. Ever since the two of you met, you had so many one-on-one questions you wanted to ask Tim about his work. You prefaced with one specific memory that flooded your mind.

[flashback start]

You met because you had attended a tour he was hosting on the Mesozoic era, generally aimed at children aged six to fifteen. He had been given a roster of how many people to expect, which was quite a few, and he noticed that you had walked in not bringing a child like most of the adults on the tour. At first, he thought maybe you were looking for a sister that brought your niece or nephew and you just happened to be tagging along, but then you made no effort to find anyone. When he realized you had come alone, he worked up the courage to come over to you and ask if you were in the right spot.

“Ma’am?”

“Oh! You’re Dr. Murphy, aren’t you?”

“Yes, um, are you in the right place? This is a tour for a younger audience.”

“Well, unless I read my ticket wrong,” you held your ticket out in front of his eyes so he could read it, “I believe this says ‘Dr. Timothy Murphy’s Presentation on the Mesozoic Era, Thursday, August 14 at 1:00pm.’ Did I read it wrong?”

Tim simply looked at the ticket, and then back to you in a stunned silence. You had really bought a ticket to see his presentation, despite knowing that almost all the tours he does in the museum are for younger kids.

“No, uh, you… you didn’t read it wrong.”

“You seem a little shocked that I have a ticket, Doctor.”

“Well, it’s just that I don’t really get people my age on these tours, and everyone who comes to the lectures are old coots.”

You laughed at his vernacular, loving how professor-like and old man-like such a young, cute guy could be. When he heard you laugh, his eyes went wide and he felt his heart skip a beat, because a young, cute girl loved his jokes, which never happened.

“Sorry for how bold I just was – that’s not how I usually am. Basically, I have tried attending your lectures in the past, but whenever I get the money to buy a ticket, they’re usually gone or the only seats left are one’s I can’t afford. I’ve read all of your books, some of them more than once, and you just never cease to amaze me. You’re really smart and I admire that.”

Tim felt dizzy. He was hearing the words coming out of your mouth, barely being able to process how kind they were. Never had anyone spoken to him in such a way, not even his colleagues or past girlfriends, of which there were not many because he was always so busy or they hated how involved in his work he could get. But to hear you say them just changed his whole perspective on life. He did not even know your name but he was enamored with you. One could call him desperate, and he would just scoff and look down at his feet. Not denying it, however.

“Well, um… listen. Normally with the kids, I have to dumb down my word choices because the younger ones won’t know everything, so I apologize in advance for how childlike I may present myself.” You smiled sweetly at him, acknowledging him and showing him that you did not mind. “I also would love to have you attend my lectures every time we have them, so let me see what I can do about arranging a sort of ‘seasonal pass’ for you, that way you never have to worry about a seat.”

“Dr. Murphy, you do not—”

“I’m serious. Like I said, it’s always older men who are always judgmental about the way I hold myself up on stage. I’m… not a bold person. I’m shy, and they don’t like that. It would be really nice to have a face like yours in the crowd each night. One that I know is appreciating everything I say, wholeheartedly.”

“‘A face like mine?”’

“…” You could see Tim visibly swallow and his Adam’s apple bob out of sheer panic. “A cute one?”

You felt your lips part slightly at the compliment, somewhat shocked that someone as clearly shy as him paid you one. You knew that coming from someone like him, it had to be genuine. Dr. Tim Murphy thought you were cute, and wanted to see you again. Even if it was only for a lecture.

“Then… this cute face would love to attend all your lectures, Dr. Murphy.”

You saw the toothy grin spread across his face, pushing his cheeks up to high heaven. It made you airily laugh a little, seeing him like that.

“If you keep smiling like that, I’m going to have to start calling you cute, too, Dr. Murphy.”

“I wouldn’t mind that. But there is one thing you have to do for me.”

“What’s that?”

“Call me Tim. Not Dr. Anything. Just Tim.” You nodded your head at him, and he asked you one last thing. “And what should I call you?”

“Y/N.”

[flashback end]

“You remember how we met?”

“Of course, I do – you came to that tour for children and I wanted to make sure you were in the right place.”

“Always the gentleman, Tim.” You and Tim had been finishing up dinner on your first official date, reminiscing about that day. It seemed like you already crammed a lifetime’s worth of memories into that first meeting you had, because you had managed to talk about it for the last fifteen minutes. “I remember being amazed at how you talked to those kids. I mean, you clearly know tons of bigger words that younger children wouldn’t know, yet you know how to explain it to them really well. It made me very impressed with you, seeing that you really were as smart as your books made you out to be.”

“Yeah, I had to explain everything like that because they weren’t going to understand what Mesozoic meant or anything like that. They’re children, and they just like the idea of dinosaurs, not the actual history of them. Back when I was in college, there were certain root words or stems that we needed to know in order to understand the classification of dinosaurs. For some reason, learning about the way the classification worked sparked something in my brain. I love learning about whatever I can, and I guess that was my body’s way of telling me etymology was something for me. I started researching where words came from, going through the dictionary word by word. Seems boring, I know, but… it made me happy.”

You could see Tim start to feel as if he was talking too much, like all his past dates went, except that when he looked up at you, he could tell that was not the case. You had leaned your body in and over the table, propping your head up on your fist, intently staring at him. Taking in every word that slipped past his lips as if your life depended on it. This encouraged him, while also making him really giddy inside. He reached over to the small candle that was burning faintly between you two, and lifted it up, carefully so as not to burn himself. He watched you as your eyes moved to the candle, and back to his own, waiting to hear what he was going to say.

“Like… candle, for instance. Originally, it was candere in Latin, which means ‘be white or glisten.’ Eventually, that became candela, still Latin, and then old English turned it into candel. Then, when modern English came around, we switched the ‘l’ and the ‘e,’ probably because it just looks less ugly.” He let out a chuckle at his own humor. “But, that’s kind of what I did with the dictionary. Learning about where words come from, and what they originally meant intrigues me.”

His eyes had not really left the candle once he started to speak. Once he finished talking, however, his eyes nervously looked back into yours. Your facial expression had changed, ever so slightly. Your eyes had gone a little wider than usual, and they were sparkling, more than usual. Then he noticed that your cheeks were a dusty pink and that you had pulled a small part of your bottom lip into your mouth with your teeth. Tim was not the most experienced, considering how girls would treat him in the past, but he could practically feel the tension radiating from you. Something about him knowing those things made you feel… good?

“You’re amazing, Tim. Really.”

“Thanks. I know plenty more where that came from.”

“I’d love to hear more.”

Every day since your first date, Tim would always make it a point to showcase his smarts to you in the way that seemed to make you feel a certain way, because he liked seeing that he could have an effect on a woman that way. Especially considering that woman was you. One night, you and Tim were hanging out at his apartment after a date night. The two of you had created a small tradition where if your date ends quicker than expected and you end up back at one of the apartments, you will watch Jeopardy. Tim quickly found out, since you suggested watching the show in the first place, that you loved to learn too, and even though he could typically get about half of the show’s questions right, he loved seeing how proud you got with yourself when you would get three total. Tonight was no exception. You made it back just in time for the show to start, and the two of you were patiently waiting to see what the categories would be for the first round. The first five were announced, each earning a groan from one or both of you at the fact that they were not really subjects you know. Then the sixth one came up.

“And finally, you will be dealing with etymology. [First contestant’s name], you begin the round. Let’s begin.”

You turn to Tim and see a huge smile across his face, and you could not help but reciprocate. You two had seen so many episodes and not once had the category that practically formed your relationship come up. Now, on a night where you two are snuggled into each other, your head on his chest, enjoying the warmth radiating from the other person, that was just the icing on the cake. The contestants seemed to be avoiding the etymology category, moving all around the board in no semblance of order except for skipping that one, and you could hear Tim groan above you.

“Why are they skipping it? It’s the best one up there!”

“I know, babe, but the anticipation makes it worth the wait, right?”

“I guess.”

You could just imagine the small pout Tim had plastered onto his face, knowing that he would have to sit and wait for a commercial break now, as well. It made you smile to yourself, because you had seen that face before when he would work on something and he got intensely focused. It was an adorable face that he only made around you – he never let anyone else see him like that. It made you feel really loved. Eventually, the show came back on and the contestants really did do everything else and left the entire etymology category last. When the final question popped up before the etymology category would start, you turned up to Tim and smiled, as if to say ‘ready to show off your smarts, brainiac?’and he knew exactly what you meant. His eyes were beaming widely, ready to shout out the answers before anyone on the screen could.

“…cable.”

“Neighborhood!”

“Manure. Ew.”

“Aerosol.”

“…Hourglass?”

So far, Tim had gotten every single one correct, and the contestants only managed to get the neighborhood one correct. Then it was time for the final question, and you were waiting to see if Tim was going to make it a clean sweep. Then the question popped up and you waited patiently.

“From Ancient Greek, a diminutive of uncertain origin and probably in reference to its location on the female body, it means ‘I sheathe or shut.’”

“Clitoris!”

Tim was one hundred percent correct, and for some reason, despite the energetic and completely innocent nature in which he said it, it lit a fire in you that only Tim could put out. But you did not want to make it obvious, because he was clearly so happy with himself that he got the entire category right. So, you simply decide to ‘award him’ with a small kiss, but you moved your body upward a little bit so your head could reach the crevasse of his neck and shoulders. The kiss was small, swift, and chaste, but the location is what mattered. Tim had been smiling and celebrating himself, but the feeling of your lips on the small but small amount of exposed skin from his tee shirt stopped him in his tracks, and it made him blink rapidly and swallow a little roughly. You felt as though this was his way of encouraging you to keep going, since he never told you to stop. You lifted your head a little bit, so your mouth was lined up right with the side of his neck, where you placed a breathy, open-mouthed kiss. Still teasingly short, too short for Tim’s liking. You could hear your boy moan quietly, clearly having some kind of effect on him. You wanted him to feel the way you did as he innocently shouted out a part of your body you wished was getting attention from him now.

“Do you know where the word ‘kiss’ comes from?

You hum lightly against his neck where you were still peppering wet kisses to. You squeaked out a ‘no,’ waiting for him to continue with his thought, if he could.

“It has Germanic o-origin, and comes from the old English cyssan… shit. I… I think you know what it means.”

“Mhm.” He could feel the vibrations of your response against his neck, and he groaned louder this time, not wanting to hold back anymore. He could feel you start to pull away and stand up, practically whining at the lack of contact. He did not want you to leave, and you could tell. But you had absolutely no idea what gave him the idea that you were going to be leaving his side anytime soon.

As you stood, you lightly took his hand in your own, and pulled on it to signal him to stand with you. You made sure your back was facing him, though, because you did not want him to see how desperate for him you had become. Now that both of you were standing, you begin to walk as slow as a tortoise toward his bedroom, hoping that he would get the picture and start pampering you and worshiping you on the way there. You felt like you were in a movie, considering how cliché this whole thing is. But neither of you cared, you just needed to get the cliché’s out of the way. Eventually, it clicks in his brain that he should be following you, and he makes up the distance by walking directly behind you, lightly running his fingers up and down your spine. One particular stroke down your spine went further than the others, and you could feel Tim lightly tug on the hem of your shirt. Indicating that he wants it gone. He spoke in a whisper so quiet you could barely hear him.

“How about the word shirt? It’s from the Old English scyrte, which is Germanic. It kind of means short.”

With every new word Tim chose to tell you, he gained confidence in what he was doing, indicated by the non-shakiness of his voice. You were proud underneath it all. While Tim is speaking, you could slowly feel the fabric inch up your torso with every word. You could begin to feel the cold air of his apartment on your skin, and your body tells you that you need some kind of warmth. You fight off every reflex in your body telling you to latch onto Tim or at least steal your shirt back, not wanting to ruin the moment both of you had been waiting for six months to happen. You never saw it, but you could hear the light noise his shirt made when it hit the floor, Tim always wanting to make sure the two of you were even in all aspects. Even something as intimate as this. You both continue your ascension to his bedroom, and eventually you reach it. What should have taken about ten seconds for any normal person took the two of you practically three minutes, Tim adoring the look and feel of your back and spine, you relishing in the feeling of being appreciated in such an intimate way, something no one has ever done for you before Tim. You reach for the doorknob and simultaneously turn around to see what kind of effect you were having on your boyfriend, and it was clearly the one you wanted. He already looked fucked out, and neither of you had really touched each other. Not the way you both needed to be. Once completely facing him, you turn your hand on the doorknob to let yourselves in, and his hand comes up to your face to lightly stroke and pull on your hair. The strokes to show you he loves you, the tugging to let you know he wants and needs you.

“Hair’s a funny word originally. Hær. Old English, again.”

As he was speaking, you had lost all ability to move your legs anymore, feeling like they would collapse under you simply from the fact that Tim was being the way he was. Most people would have found him annoying for bringing up things like he was during a time like this. For you, though, it made him hotter because he was not afraid to be himself, even in the most intimate of situations. He was smart, and he liked showing you. You also loved the fact that letting him continue to talk was making him more and more confident in the things he was doing to your body, which was a win-win for both of you. Eventually, you were snapped out of your thoughts by the feeling of Tim’s body pushing against yours to get you into his bedroom, fast, based on the force of the push. He does not even need to look behind him as he locks the door, and wraps his arms around your waist and pulls you into his body. It was killing both of you that there still had not been any mouth to mouth contact in this whole situation, but you were both holding out in order to let Tim continue to speak, and to build up the anticipation for later. He did, however, pull you close enough to his body where you could feel each other’s breathing on your lips, desperate and needy, if breaths could feel such a way. You had not even realized Tim had gotten you to move again, so entranced by his breathing and his facial features, until you hit the side of his bed and your knees buckled underneath you. Your bum hit the bed and you bounced lightly, which normally would have made you laugh. This time, feelings were different. More serious. More lust-driven. Once you realized Tim was done taking initiative and wanted to trade off with you, you reached forward to hook your hands into the pockets of his jeans, and you not-so-gently yanked his body to yours. Your face was flush against his chest, chin practically resting on it, and you could feel the front of his jeans where you wanted him against your stomach. You were gazing up at him, face flush pink and eyes blown out black and half-shut. Waiting to hear him speak again. You saw him reach his arms toward your body, lightly resting his hands on your waist and then proceeding to find the waistline of your pants. Just as you began to reach for the buckle on his belt, you heard his angelic voice again.

“How about hips, wanna know where that word came from?”

You never said a word, and neither did he. All that was exchanged was a small pause and silent stares. You were both waiting for the other to make the next move, because both of you knew deep in your cores that if the other took another step forward, the night would end up being far from over. Tim could not take waiting anymore, so he crashed his mouth down onto yours like his life depended on it, and that he would never get to kiss you again at the same time. It was deep, passionate, full of love, and driven by lust. It was never a small kiss to begin with, so much so that it was practically impossible for either of you to deepen the kiss in any way. Tim thought of one more word that he wanted to teach you, so he slowly pulled away from your mouth, the tiniest string of saliva still connecting the two of you. Normally, that would be something you found disgusting, but in that moment, the part of you from the final Jeopardy question started throbbing at the site, indicating your desperation and just how passionate the kiss really was.

“What about the word sex?”

Tim had still been pressed flush against you, and at this point, you could clearly feel what effect you were having on him through his jeans. He caught you off guard with the question he asked, and your motions stopped just as you reached the button of his jeans.

“Instead of telling me, why don’t you just show me… Doctor?

Tim taught you a lot that night. And you taught him a thing or two, as well.

Permanent Taglist: n/a

Specific Story/Character Taglist: @gardnerlangway @dr-tim-murphy

#tim murphy #tim murphy x reader #tim murphy hammond #tim murphy hammond x reader #joe mazzello #joseph mazzello #joe mazello x reader #joseph mazzello x reader #fanfiction #fanfic #jurassic park #dinosaur #etymology #jeopardy

100 notes · View notes

nelvana · 5 years

Text

In which they travel to the cave of the earth

First: In which the human is transformed Next: In which they explore the cave of the earth Previous: In which they volunteer for a rescue

“I’m really proud of you, Nel,” Keahi hummed, leaning into zir partner’s side.

“Proud of me? Why? Just because I volunteered our team to go to Magma Cavern?” Nelvana questioned, but smiled regardless and ruffled Keahi’s head feathers.

“There’s more to it than that, you silly!” Keahi giggled, “you went and spoke up in a crowd for us! You don’t like doing that!”

“It was certainly quite bold of you,” Tsuki added.

“Oh guys…” Nelvana’s face heated up underneath her headgear. “…it isn’t a big deal…”

“Well, I can’t speak for Tsuki, but I wouldn’t have done it. I figured Keahi would be the one to announce… anything, really,” Alex told her, “you’ve grown a lot here.”

“Stop it…” Nelvana whined, burying her muzzle in her scarf.

Keahi laughed at zir partner’s fluster, “fine, fine… Let’s get preparing then!”

“How far away is Magma Cavern then? We’ll need to bring enough supplies for the travel and the dungeon,” Tsuki asked.

“Looks like another expedition on our hands here. Team Recovery were gone for days, but they are slow… We’ll be traveling for about a day, at least,” Alex answered, “do you think there will be a storage statue too? We can optimize our bag space if we just have to prepare for the travel.”

“I’m not sure… I guess we can ask Kangaskhan about that! Let’s go check, we should have extra apples, oran berries, and seeds there anyway that might come in handy,” Keahi replied.

“Sounds like a good start,” Nelvana said through her scarf, having not lifted her head yet.

Making their way to Kangaskhan’s stand, the motherly normal-type looked up at the quartet arriving and warmly greeted them as usual.

“Hello there! I figure you’re here to prepare for that mission of your’s?” Kangaskhan greeted, leaning over the counter to properly look down at the group.

“Yes! But also, do you have a statue out by Magma Cavern?” Keahi responded, hopping over.

“Ah, I believe I do… Team Recovery used it, now that I think about it, it’s right outside the dungeon, I presume,” Kangaskhan answered, glancing back at something hidden in the shadows behind the stand.

“Alright, good… we can use that then, and just prepare for the journey itself now,” Alex murmured, shifting the weight of the bag so he could hold it up and look inside.

“We don’t have to deal with the extreme climates like last time, plus our estimation is just a day’s travel… so hopefully we will have everything we’ll need already stored up,” Nelvana commented.

“Ah, we still have flamethrower in here, we should store that,” Alex blurted out, pulling out the cracked disc from the bag. “Oh, and brick break too.”

“I don’t usually store TMs, but I’ll make an exception for you. Just know that the storage system can’t support them properly, it just damages them to the point that even recycle can’t save them. So, if you leave these with me, you’ll have to come back here to get them,” Kangaskhan told them, placing a hand on the two discs.

“That’s alright, we shouldn’t need them right now. Just takes up space in the bag,” Alex replied, sliding the discs closer to the normal-type.

“How much food will you two need?” Nelvana asked, looking back over at Keahi and Tsuki.

“Oh, I… I’m not sure, some apples, I guess?” Keahi murmured, “wait, why are you asking just us two?”

“Because Nel and I could go the entire trip without eating, if we had to,” Alex answered in a low tone. “We won’t do that, it’s foolish when we have the supplies to be able to eat, but you two will need to eat more than we will because your bodies are used to having to eat more.”

“Well… we have lots of space in our bag, why don’t we just pack like we did last time?” Keahi questioned, hesitantly skipping past what the grovyle had said.

“Last time we had different times, more statues, and one less traveler with us,” Alex responded.

“Look, let’s not complicate things here.” Nelvana stiffened, raising her hands slightly. “I was just asking, so we could have an idea of how much food to bring out. I know what I need, and Alex has the bag so I assumed he would pack for himself. We’ll be travelling and then fighting, not terribly unlike last expedition, but still… I guess what I’m saying, is that this time we’ll want to take more snacks instead of full meals with us.”

“Oh, that makes sense!” Keahi exclaimed, “you know I like fruits, and plain seeds. That should do me for snacks. We’ll be going for a day… so a few apples? Would prefer bananas, to be honest, but we still haven’t found any during missions yet…”

“You have mostly apples for food in storage, correct? I shall be fine with those as well, I suppose just give me the same amount as Keahi then,” Tsuki hummed.

“Let’s just carry ten with us, total, and call it good, okay?” Nelvana suggested.

Everyone nodded in agreement, seeing no problems with this estimation, and Kangaskhan passed him the fruit, which he carefully stuffed into the satchel.

“If I may give you a suggestion,” Kangaskhan began, “taking trail mix with you is always a good idea.”

“Trail mix?” Tsuki repeated, looking to her teammates to see if this was just another local thing.

Kangaskhan nodded, “if you’d like, I could prepare a few sacks for you four, my treat. It’s just nuts, seeds, and chocolate mixed together in a small bag for snacking on.”

“You’d do that for us?” Nelvana questioned, “we really owe you a lot at this point…” she chuckled nervously.

“You owe me nothing,” Kangaskhan assured her, “I am more than willing to do favors for free, especially for such a kind group such as you,” she continued, “if it sets your mind as ease though, consider how you’re about to risk yourselves to save the rest of us from the disasters. Consider your aide payment enough for me.”

“I… okay, thanks,” Nelvana sighed.

Tsuki smiled, “yes, thank you very much, mom-“

The absol froze in place, registering what she had called Kangaskhan just too late to take it back. Her mouth gaped open and shut, trying to gather up a way to save face. However, Kangaskhan didn’t look nearly as stressed by this as Tsuki did, in fact, she looked rather touched, her smile growing and her eyes welling up with a short of joy only the parentally sort could have.

“You… do you see me as, as a motherly figure to you?” Kangaskhan asked gently.

Tsuki looked down to the ground, but nodded slightly.

Kangaskhan chuckled softly, reaching out to the absol to rest a hand atop her head, “don’t look so ashamed about it, I’m not upset. In fact, this is happy news to me, to hear someone else seeing me in this light. You may call me mom, if that will make you happy too.”

Tsuki stayed silent for a few more moments, her expression morphing into one of surprise, and then of an emotional joyfulness.

“That… that would make me happy. Thank you, mom…” Tsuki gasped, nuzzling her head into the large pokemon’s palm. “I’ve never had a mom before…” she whispered, closing her eyes to take in this friendly touch.

Nelvana smiled at this interaction, but an ache she couldn’t pinpoint found its way into her chest. She swallowed, doing her best to push away this strange feeling. Glancing over at Alex, she observed an odd gleam in his eyes. His mouth was open ever so slightly, and his gaze held a sort of longing that Nelvana recognized but couldn’t remember. The grovyle finally turned away, looking back towards the center of town. Nelvana let out a sigh, gingerly placing her hand on his arm to support him, like she had done back when they had visited Keahi’s family.

“Aw, that’s so sweet!” Keahi squealed.

“Indeed…” Alex whispered, his voice sounding far-away. “However, we should get back to work.”

Kangaskhan sat back again, “yes, I suppose you should. There is much for you to do, isn’t there? Is there anything else you’d like to store or take out?”

“I don’t think so… if we forgot something, we’ll just have to do that when we come back for the mix!” Keahi chirped.

Kangaskhan nodded, “it’s a very brave thing of you to choose to do this, especially after seeing how well it went before… I wish you all the best,” she said, “also, if you’d like more advice, I believe the kecleons have been down to Magma Cavern before. They should have more tips for you.”

“Okay, thanks again, we’ll see you later,” Nelvana hummed, turning to leave with a wave.

“You two alright?” Keahi asked, bounding over to Nelvana and Alex. “I noticed you looked a bit distant there…”

“Just… just missing family, I guess,” Nelvana murmured, “it’s weird, I can’t even remember them, but I miss them.”

Alex said nothing, simply watching the others, expressionless. Nelvana left her hand on his arm, and gently rubbed it with her thumb to try and translate more meaning than she could think to say right now. Despite not saying anything to him, he let his coldness melt and gave her a small smile to assure her that he would be alright. She lowered her hand, hoping her efforts had been enough for now.

“Oh… alright, you’ll be okay though, right?” Keahi replied, approaching more. “Both of you,” zie added.

Alex let out a sigh, “yeah, don’t worry about it.”

They continued back up to the Kecleon Shop, Tsuki walking with more bounce than ever. The brothers were cleaning up after accidentally messing up their organization during the rush, but they noticed the quartet approach and waved them over.

“Good to see you again, Galaxy. Thank you for your help before, there’s only so much the two of us can do,” Green-Kecleon greeted, bowing slightly to the group.

“Thank you too! I doubt our supplies would have been enough for this… incident,” Keahi replied.

“Speaking of, do we need to pay you for those…?” Nelvana asked.

Both brothers shook their heads hurriedly, Green-Kecleon even waving away the idea with his hands.

“No, no, not at all. This was a service to the community, and to other teams,” he insisted, “we donated our supplies to assist Team Recovery. No payment needed for that.”

“If there’s anything we value above business in this shop, it’s the lives of others,” Purple-Kecleon added, “no one should have to die if there is the remedy sitting a few feet away.”

“But, uh, if you find anything valuable in Magma Cavern, feel free to keep us in mind. We haven’t been there in a very long time, but there are some nice items laying about if you know where to look…” Green-Kecleon chuckled, leaning onto the counter.

Keahi laughed, “okay then, we’ll keep that in mind. We always come back from missions with something anyway that we don’t need.”

“On that subject though, do you have any advice for Magma Cavern? You two seem to be the only ones around here who have been there. And completed the dungeon, at least,” Alex said.

“Ah, knew you’d get to that. While you were talking to Kangaskhan, we went and found our old map…” Purple-Kecleon paused to bring out the mentioned map, which, similarly to the map Blaziken had given them in their last expedition, was marked with notes for the areas. “You may borrow it if you’d like, but we’d like to have it back afterwards, if nothing but for the memories.”

“Thank you, this should at least help us get there,” Alex responded, accepting the map and studying it for a few moments before passing it off to Nelvana to hold and look over as well.

“And, despite the name, there are only two fire-type species we’ve seen in that dungeon. Magmar and magcargo. That doesn’t mean that there aren’t many, because they show up quite frequently. Just letting you know that rock and grounders will be perhaps more so,” Purple-Kecleon added.

“Works better for us anyway, Nel’s our only real fire counter right now,” Alex replied.

“You have dig,” Keahi pointed out.

“Yes, but if I get hit with that typing, I’m going to take it harsher than any of you,” Alex countered.

“Anyway,” Nelvana interrupted, “thank you for your help, is there anything else we should know that would be useful?”

“Hm… let’s see,” Green-Kecleon muttered, tapping his chin. “The journey is straightforward, and seeing as you’re a bunch of young, fast individuals, it should be around a day’s travel, depending on how often you rest up,” he began.

“That matches our estimation,” Tsuki commented.

“Good estimation there then,” Purple-Kecleon replied.

Green-Kecleon cleared his throat, “despite the name, Magma Cavern doesn’t have much magma around it. You’ll see some outside the dungeon, I believe, and in some pits, but nothing extreme. You’ll be thankful to hear that that makes it cooler than Mt Blaze. However, it does make it terribly dark down there. You’d be best taking a light with you.”

“Or a lighter!” Keahi chirped, puffing out zir chest proudly and letting a flicker of flame escape zir beak.

Green-Kecleon laughed, “or that! You’re enjoying that flamethrower TM then, hm? My brother’s great with those.”

His brother smirked at the compliment, “why thank you, I do my best, of course. Orbs too, you know.”

“Yes, we know,” Alex sighed, “is that it, then?”

“I think so, yes. I’m afraid Groudon wasn’t awake the last time we were there, so we have no advice for that,” Purple-Kecleon said.

Tsuki nodded, “so we’ve heard, but we’ll do our best regardless,” she replied, “thank you for the advice, should we head off then?”

“Well, we should wait for Kangaskhan to get that trail mix ready. Then… maybe? Are we ready?” Keahi responded, shaking zir feathers and tilting zir head to the side.

Nelvana paused to think, and her teammates, recognizing the expression, waited patiently for her to give her opinion on this, “I think so. We should head out as soon as possible then, right?” She looked up to the sky. “It’s nearly noon, so it would be good to make some ground before the end of the day.”

Alex nodded in agreement, “right… Hey, Tsuki, you sensing anything about this mission?”

Tsuki paused, not expecting the question, “I… no, I’m sorry. It’s been getting harder to pick out dangers when the big disaster, the meteor, is so strong, so close… That’s likely why it took so long for me to realize about this morning, until a few minutes before, and we had to rush.”

Alex blinked, something seeming to click in his mind, “what day is it today?”

“What… day? Hm… I’m not actually sure! I know we’re close to my birthday, but I think that’s still about two weeks away,” Keahi responded, “why’d you ask?”

“I need to know,” Alex insisted, ignoring Keahi’s question.

Nelvana felt her stomach flop at this turn of events, anxiety jumping at the uneasiness of her partner, and at memories she still didn’t have back. They were nearing the end of summer, weren’t they? Did that mean…

“I believe we’re nearly two moons after the summer solstice,” Tsuki answered.

Nelvana exchanged a look with Alex, the both of them looking more than simply uneasy.

“In calendar days?” Alex hissed.

“If the summer solstice is June twenty-first, and we’re nearly two months after it…” Nelvana whispered.

“Calendar days?” Keahi repeated, “guys, what’s wrong?”

“The meteor hits at eleven pm on the twenty-first of August! We need to know the date today!” Alex snapped.

Keahi stepped back, startled by the sudden harshness, but didn’t reply, understanding the seriousness of this subject. Tsuki was staring at the ground, but now looked up, meeting Alex’s gaze.

“By your calendar days, it’s the nineteenthtoday,” she told them.

Alex swallowed his breath, his eyes wide as he took in this information. Finally, he turned away from Pokemon Square, and the rest of the team.

“We’ve wasted too much time. We have to leave, now,” Alex ordered.

Keahi jumped, “but what about-“

“Grab it, and then catch up with the rest of us. But we have to get hurrying. The sooner we rescue Team A.C.T., the sooner the teleport gem can be made,” Alex responded, and then left town without another word.

Nelvana stepped towards where Alex went, but hesitated and glanced back at her confused teammates.

“Go with him, we’ll catch up soon,” Tsuki told her.

Nelvana nodded, wanting to say more but feeling rushed by her partner, and hurried off. Keahi watched her leave before heading back to Kangaskhan Storage with Tsuki to collect the last snacks.

Alex slowed down after being reminded to keep pace, but was noticeably still high-strung after remembering that question and receiving that answer. While waiting for the other two to catch up, they discussed the mission, and where to go from here. Both of them were nervous at the idea of failing just because of not getting the teleport gem in time, but talking about it seemed to help for the time being. However, Alex changed topics when Keahi and Tsuki returned, and Nelvana decided respect that for the time being and join into the next conversation point. Deep down, she knew that the subject would return and she didn’t want to keep the others in the dark about this.

Their journey brought them up the path that took them to Mt. Blaze and the Frosty Forest, however they went off more west than that direction, and never caught sight of those dungeons from their last expedition on this trip.

Conversation quickly shifted to battle and dungeon tactics for this mission. The map they had been given had some notes about the Magma Cavern dungeon, namely the floors and what pokemon could be found on them. It had 26 dungeons, the longest dungeon they had been in by far. Like the kecleons had told them before, the notes told them about the residential dungeon pokemon, which lacked as many fire-types as one might expect with a dungeon named like this. As well, it was written that there were monster houses from floors eight to twenty.

Alex, who could recall more about the fight against the illusion of Groudon that he and Nelvana had apparently gone up against in the future, gave tips about the legendry’s moves and strategies, repeating how it wasn’t the actual Groudon, but was likely very close. It was stressed that the ability drought would be useful for Keahi, and himself to a smaller degree. They also brought up the move ancient power, which had a small chance to grant Groudon an advantage. If that were to happen… No one liked the sound of that, but there was nothing much they would be able to do to prevent that chance from succeeding. They were just to be warned, like with the monster houses.

The walk was an easy one, the ground, while not terribly walked on, wasn’t harmful to one’s feet, and the path itself didn’t go up any steep hills. However, it was also a long one. Like they had done before, they didn’t stop to eat lunch, and continued right through the afternoon. Nelvana’s prediction about having to just snack was strengthened as Alex’s haste pushed the group forward.

After hours of hiking and chatting amongst each other, the sun began setting. They did not stop, however. In fact, even after the sun set, no one seemed to have expressed the idea of stopping to rest. The quartet had gone quiet after some comments about the stars, but everyone could tell there was still more for everyone to say.

Finally, Keahi spoke.

“Shouldn’t we rest for the night? We’ll need the energy for the dungeon tomorrow.”

Alex shook his head, sparing the torchic a glance over his shoulder, “no, we need to keep going. We can’t spare that kind of time. We should be able to make it to Magma Cavern,” he told zim, “besides, you’re the only one that can’t keep going throughout the night.”

“But… resting is important Alex, and did you actually ask if the others are okay with this? You aren’t the leader here,” Keahi responded.

Alex finally paused, turning around to look at the others, his face hardened but otherwise expressionless. Keahi met his gaze with zir own, giving him a tired glare. Nelvana watched them carefully, mentally trying to predict how the grovyle would respond, and how she should. Tsuki sat on her haunches, taking advantage of this break, still eyeing the situation carefully should she need to step in.

“I know I’m not the leader,” Alex sighed, “but we can keep going, and we should. We-“

The ground rumbled beneath them, the entire world seeming to be shaken back and forth like a maraca. This force nearly sending Keahi to the dirt, but zie caught themselves before falling over. Team Galaxy had frozen in the path as the earthquake roared around them.

Tsuki crouched low to the ground, trying to cover her head with her forepaws, as if that would stop this natural disaster. Nelvana dug her claws into the ground, holding her arms out stiffly out to the side for balance, her tail only moved to help support Keahi behind her. Alex crouched as well, however not nearly as low as the absol.

This earthquake continued longer than any that any of them could remember, it almost felt like anticipation for the world to simply crumble apart around them.

They weren’t that far off from the truth.

“Fissure!” Keahi shrieked, spinning to look in the distance behind them, before turning back to the team. “Run!”

While no one could see the fissure that Keahi had called out, they weren’t taking any chances and ran further down the path, trying not to stumble from the unstable ground. Even after the earthquake settled down, they kept running on adrenaline for another good minute to ensure their safety from the possible fissure.

Finally slowing back down to a more reasonable pace for travelling, Alex only acknowledged the earlier conversation for one more comment.

“If we don’t defeat Groudon soon enough, they will tear this world apart before the meteor even gets a chance,” he said without looking back at the others.

Keahi blinked, and looked down at the path that had turned rockier during the sprint. Tsuki, beside zim, shook of her fur and leaned her head down to the torchic.

“If you get tired, you may ride on my back for a bit,” she offered.

Keahi ended up taking Tsuki up on this offer a few hours later, when zir shorter legs paired with exhaustion from simply walking for hours on end caught up to zim. The torchic nestled into the absol’s thick neck fur and rested there for much of the remaining journey.

Silence seemed to suit the nighttime well, conversation drying out quickly after the earthquake.

Another half hour after Keahi had had to take a break, sitting on Tsuki’s back instead of walking, conversation picked up again, finally hitting the topic of the meteor.

Alex expressed distaste on the topic, repeating the plan to stop the impact of the disaster, and the dangerous consequences of failure. He would blame something or another for the tight squeeze for time, changing from it being Alakazam’s fault for not getting the teleport gem done sooner, or being their own fault for spending so much time on the house, or even his own fault for not keeping track of the date.

Nelvana did her best to stay rational about this, trying to convince the others and herself that this could still be done with time to spare, however her partner’s pessimistic attitude along with her own tiredness seemed to be weighing her down, so she didn’t speak that much.

Tsuki remained patient and calm, asking questions about plans and the timing of this all. She stayed strong with her questioning until they were answered, and then let the topic simmer away to silence again.

Keahi hadn’t slept yet, zie might have given up walking but zie was determined to stay up with the others. Regardless, zie didn’t have much input aside from a few short comments here and there.

Scenery changed from open plains to empty dirt land to warm rocks under their feet. Larger rocks were stacked around the trail, colors ranging from a dusty rust to a sun-baked orange, their warmer shades warped in from the shadows of the night. Above, the sky was a cold contrast to the ground they walked on, the only light from the stars glittering in a sea of dark space.

“How much farther do you think we have to go…?” Keahi asked after the topic of the dark future dwindled away again and was replaced by silence.

“We should be nearly there,” Nelvana assured zim, despite not truly knowing the answer to the question. “We’ve covered a lot of ground today… and yesterday, I guess. We’ve certainly passed midnight by now…” she added.

To provide a more exact answer for Keahi, Alex pulled out the map again and examined it. Even with it being the dead of night, he still seemed to hold next to no trouble studying it. After a few moments, he stuffed the map away again, doing all this without pausing from walking.

“We still will have a few hours to go,” he told them.

Keahi let out an exaggerated sigh, “do we still have some trail mix? I’m hungry.”

“You haven’t even been walking,” Alex commented, but brought out their last baggie of trail mix and tossed it over his shoulder for the torchic.

“I still have a stomach,” Keahi hissed back, already opening up the baggie and eating the healthy mix inside.

“Was that our last trail mix bag?” Nelvana asked.

“Yeah, it was,” Alex answered.

“I can share with you, if you want!” Keahi offered.

Nelvana hesitated, about to politely deny the offer, but she changed her mind and ended up taking out a pinch of nuts and seeds anyway. Tsuki also took some of this share, but Alex did not. He had eaten an apple a couple hours back, and seemed to be calling that good for awhile.

Finally, finally, they spotted a cave in the distance, down the hill they had walked up. The path clearly lead down to the mouth of this natural structure. This cave seemed to glow in the night, its namesake finally showing by the lava that oozed down the sides of the walls, pooling slowly out of the way of the entrance. About a meter or so away, stood a stone statue, the Kangaskhan Statue.

Keahi hopped down from Tsuki, scurrying over to get a closer look at the outside of the dungeon. Tsuki stepped closer as well, and Team Galaxy took a long pause to watch Magma Cavern and its warm appearance standing out in the dark night.

“We made it!” Keahi exclaimed, “and the sun hasn’t even risen yet! How’s that for good time?”

“Huh, it looks awfully small from out here. Obviously, it’s bigger on the inside and goes underground, but still…” Nelvana commented, “that lava looks… kinda slow, it must be cooler than average. At least that means it won’t be a problem when we go in. And it looks pretty from here.”

Tsuki nodded in agreement, “indeed…”

“Either way, we shouldn’t camp too close to it, just in case. Should we rest here then?” Keahi hummed, shaking zir feathers.

“We should head in,” Alex responded.

Keahi stiffened, “what? We can’t go in! We need to rest first! We’ve been walking all day and night, in case you forgot.”

“I didn’t forget. I also didn’t forget that we’re pressed for time right now,” Alex hissed, turning to face Keahi. “We don’t have time for breaks.”

“We also don’t have time for recklessly running into danger unprepared physically!” Keahi countered.

“We can handle this,” Alex insisted, “if you don’t want to go now, I’m still going.”

“Are you insane?” Keahi snapped, “that’s basically asking for a death wish! It might not have many different fire-types there, but there will feel like a lot if you go in alone! What happens when you run into a monster house, huh?”

“We’ll all be dead if we don’t keep going!” Alex yelled.

“Stop!”

Nelvana felt like caving into herself, she clutched her club tightly in her right hand, and having reached up to tensely grab one of the spikes at the side of her skull with her left. She was digging her claws into the ground, and her face was scrunched up in a stressed expression. Tsuki had stepped back beside the cubone, and she stood stiffly with her fur bristled.

“Stop fighting… please,” Nelvana pleaded.

Keahi’s angered expression melted away, “oh, Nel, we’re sorry-“

“No, don’t… don’t make this about me, okay?” Nelvana sighed, “let’s just try to think about this rationally, okay?” When no one else said anything, she continued. “It’s early morning on the twentieth, and the meteor will hit late at night on the twenty-first. We nearly have two days left, and we need to beat Groudon, rescue Team A.C.T., let Alakazam finish the teleport gem, and then get Rayquaza to get rid of the meteor before then,” she stated, “A complete rest should be about eight hours… This is a twenty-six-floor dungeon, so based on how long it took us to complete other dungeons… we’ll be in there for a few hours. We teleport back, rest again, and by then it would be…” She paused to think, relaxing her limbs slightly and rubbing her forehead. “Morning on the twenty-first. We would still have plenty of time to complete another dungeon and possibly fight another legendary.”

“Oh, thank Arceus,” Keahi sighed.

“That’s… good to hear, thank you,” Alex murmured, visibly relaxing.

“However,” Nelvana added, “if we get defeated, there is no coming back from that. It’s too much lost time.”

Alex chuckled drily, “alright, I get it. We’ll rest up.”

“Thank you,” Nelvana replied.

“Okay, now you two should apologize to each other,” Tsuki responded, and when she was met by confused glances by both the torchic and the grovyle, she decided to elaborate. “From my experience, even if both parties of an argument think they have settled things, they could still feel tense with one another. Apologizing helps clear the air,” she told them, “and try not to tack on excuses to your apologies, hm?”

“Oh… that makes sense,” Keahi agreed, and then looked up at Alex again. “I’m sorry for yelling, this is obviously really stressful for you.”

“I’m… I’m sorry too. I shouldn’t have tried to push everyone so much,” Alex apologized.

“Are we good now…?” Nelvana asked, “I really hate to see you argue…”

Keahi smiled, “yeah, and sorry for stressing you. We’re all tired… and we forced you, and Tsuki, to put on a strong face to power through the tension,” zie said, “let’s get some rest.”

The surrounding area was empty aside from the stones, so Team Galaxy ended up finding a comfortable spot off the path in the rocks to curl up together in.

“I’ll keep an eye on the time, I still shouldn’t have to need to sleep yet,” Tsuki informed them quietly.

Keahi fell asleep quickly, exhaustion overtaking zim. However, as usual, despite her tiredness, Nelvana found trouble going to sleep right away.

“¿xǝl∀ 'ʎǝH” Nelvana whispered.

Alex blinked, but rolled over to make eye contact with the cubone, silently prompting her to go on.

“¿noʎ ʇ,uǝɹɐ 'pǝɹɐɔs ǝɹ,noʎ ˙˙˙ǝɹ,no⅄” Nelvana asked, still speaking in her native tongue.

Alex chuckled softly, “˙˙˙ɥɐǝ⅄” he admitted.

“˙sıɥʇ op uɐɔ ǝʍ ʞuıɥʇ ʎllɐǝɹ I ˙˙˙ʇnᙠ ˙ʍou ǝlıɥʍɐ ɹoɟ pǝɹɐɔs uǝǝq ǝʌ,I ˙ooʇ ǝW” Nelvana continued.

“˙˙˙ɥɐǝ⅄” Alex repeated in agreement.

“˙noʎ ɟo pnoɹd ǝq plnoʍ sʇuǝɹɐd ɹno⅄ ¿xǝl∀ pu∀” Nelvana said.

Alex blinked, and then exhaled, “thanks. Let’s try sleeping now, okay?”

“Okay. Goodnight,” Nelvana replied.

14 notes · View notes

nelvana · 5 years

Text

In which they go around town

First: In which the human is transformed Next: In which they get back to work Previous: In which they return to the town

Keahi let out a sigh, “and there they go. We really need to hang out more often,” he hummed, watching the rest of their team depart to do missions.

“Yeah, we should invite them over again sometime. Let you two get to know them better too,” Nelvana agreed, stretching idly, and then smiling. “It’s nice to be back here,” she commented, glancing around town.

“Yup, where the climate doesn’t want you dead,” Alex chuckled.

“There are a lot of pokemon here…” Tsuki murmured, standing up again.

“It’s not that big of a town… guess it’s more than what you’re used to though, huh? That’s okay!” Keahi replied.

“Felt pretty big to me when I first came in,” Nelvana mentioned.

“We weren’t used to it either though,” Alex pointed out, “guess you don’t remember though…”

“Anyway!” Keahi began loudly, “let’s go around and check in on everyone! I bet we were missed! And we can introduce everyone to you, Tsuki!” he exclaimed.

“Oh… alright, lead the way then,” Tsuki responded, pawing the ground nervously.

Keahi cheerfully lead the group straight over to the Kecleon stand, “hello Kecleons!” he greeted.

“Ah Keahi, good to see that you all made it back safely,” Green-Kecleon hummed.

“You too,” Nelvana replied, “thanks again for coming out to the Frosty Forest for us.”

Green-Kecleon waved her away with a hand, “ah, don’t worry about it at all. Been awhile since I had gotten out, and you’re a good team.”

“Say, did you end up using that TM I left you?” Purple-Kecleon asked, leaning across the counter.

Nelvana nodded, “yeah, I got it. It really helped in the Frosty Forest area, thanks!” she responded, “do you want to be paid back now?”

“Don’t worry about it,” Purple-Kecleon hummed, “but if you’re interested, I have another TM that could help you all out in the future…”

“Ooh!” Keahi hopped closer to the counter. “What is it?”

“Flamethrower,” Purple-Kecleon told them proudly, “I believe most of you can learn it too.”

“Everyone except the grass-type, of course,” Alex chuckled.

“I bet we can afford it right now actually, since we haven’t had access to the bank for a few days,” Keahi said.

Alex dug through the bag to pull out the small sac of coins they had collected, as well as some loose change that hadn’t gotten put in the money pouch properly. After adding everything up, they did have enough for the TM, and made the purchase.

“Thanks!” Purple-Kecleon cheered, putting away his received money into a drawer under the counter. “Make sure to check in again later to see if I have anything new!”

“We will!” Keahi chirped, “oh, we almost forgot, this is Tsuki! She’s with us now, as you might have gathered from the recent commotion.”

“Yup, and I believe I actually saw her the last time I was at Frosty Forest, or am I mistaken?” Green-Kecleon replied.

“Oh, yeah, we did see each other a long time ago. I bought some berries from you,” Tsuki murmured.

“Ah yes! It’s good to know that despite my age, I never forget a customer!” Green-Kecleon hummed, “it’s nice to see you down here in Pokemon Square, hope you enjoy your stay.”

Tsuki blinked in surprise at the cheerful businessman, “…thank you.”

“Well, I guess we should stop by the others now, thanks for your time brothers!” Keahi exclaimed, turning to leave.

“Oh, actually one more thing,” Nelvana blurted out, “uh, thanks for helping out our other teammates that were staying here while we were gone. We really appreciate it.”

“Oh yeah! Good thing you remembered, Nel. Thanks, Kecleons!” Keahi added, and Alex nodded.

“You’re very welcome Team Galaxy, it was no trouble at all. Let us know if someone starts trying to cause unnecessary conflict again, and we can take care of it.”

The team waved bye to the two brothers, and wandered down to visit Kangaskhan next, who seemed to be waiting for them, sporting a welcoming smile from behind her counter at the Kangaskhan Storage shop.

“Hello dearies! I’m so happy to see that you made it back safely!” Kangaskhan greeted as they approached. “I got so worried when you didn’t pick up the snack I left you this morning, what happened?”

“The storage statue got buried in the snow and we couldn’t find it. It had been a stormy night,” Alex answered.

“Oh my! Were you all warm enough out there?” Kangaskhan asked.

Keahi nodded, “yeah! Tsuki let us stay at her place and we had a nice campfire.”

Kangaskhan looked over at the absol, who ducked her head slightly at the attention, not meeting the larger pokemon’s gaze. However, Kangaskhan smiled warmly at Tsuki.

“Well then, thank you for doing that. And thanks for helping them out earlier as well,” Kangaskhan said softly, “Tsuki, right? You’re quite a long way from your home, aren’t you? You’re quite brave for coming out here, I hope you enjoy our humble town.”

Tsuki lifted her head again, cracking a small smile, “thank you.”

“Thank you for helping us out too. Having extra items before each dungeon was pretty handy,” Nelvana said.

“No problem! I’m glad you found use of them in the end,” Kangaskhan hummed, giving Nelvana a gentle pat on the head, which startled the cubone for a moment, but then she relaxed again.

Alex stepped closer to Nelvana, and the counter, “yeah, the clothes were especially nice,” he commented, “you wrote that you made those yourself?”

Kangaskhan nodded, “knitting is an old hobby of mine. Luckily, I had some spare clothes around to donate to you guys.”

“Speaking of, will you want those back?” Nelvana asked.

“Not at all, you can keep those. They most certainly don’t fit me anymore, and Junior has quite enough of their own stuff. I may have spoiled them a bit,” Kangaskhan replied.

“Junior? You have a kid? How come I haven’t heard of him?” Keahi asked excitedly.

“Ah, yes, yes I do… he used to stay here with me while I worked, but it got boring for him, so he insisted that I leave him at home when he was old enough. And he doesn’t like me talking about him when he can’t hear, so I do my best to respect his wishes, even though I’ve love to talk about him more. He’s such a good son,” Kangaskhan explained.

“Well, you’re a good parent, so that isn’t surprising!” Keahi hummed, “hopefully we can meet him sometime. How old is he?”

“He turned thirteen this past spring,” Kangaskhan answered, “I asked him if he wants to join a team, but I believe he has his mind set on something else,” she added, “I’ve mentioned you guys to him before though, and I believe that he’d enjoy meeting you sometime too.” She shook her head. “Anyway, is there something you need or did you just want to chat? I’m alright with it either way.”

“Oh! We just wanted to talk to you, I don’t think we need to store anything or take anything out… right?” Keahi replied, glancing back at his teammates.

“I don’t think so… oh wait! We could give our black gummis to Tsuki,” Nelvana suggested.

“Yeah! Good idea! We can make them into a smoothie at Spinda and Gulpin’s Café! Give you a real taste of the area,” Keahi exclaimed.

“Do we still have those red gummis from Mt. Blaze? You could have a smoothie too,” Alex commented.

“No… I ate them all already as snacks…” Keahi admitted, “I got pretty hungry…”

Nelvana giggled, “of course you did. We can always just get some smoothies for ourselves without the gummis,” she said.

“All the black gummis then? You have six stored here,” Kangaskhan said after digging through the back of her store for a moment.

“Yup!” Keahi chirped, then turned to Tsuki. “You’re going to love this! Spinda and Gulpin make the best smoothies!”

“I’ll trust your judgement on that,” Tsuki replied, “I haven’t ever had a smoothie before, so I suppose it’s instantly the best, isn’t it?” she added.

“You haven’t had a smoothie before? Oh right… too cold for that…” Keahi responded, “welp, looks like this café gets to be a first for someone again.”

As Keahi chattered with Tsuki, Kangaskhan passed the half of a dozen black gummis to Alex, who dropped them into the bag for the moment. Nelvana glanced at the storekeeper and her partner, before turning to her other teammates.

“You guys ready to head off then?” she asked.

“Oh! Yeah, see you later Kangaskhan!” Keahi exclaimed, turning to bound away.

“Goodbye kids! Hope to see you again soon! Have a nice afternoon,” Kangaskhan replied.

“She wants to adopt you,” Keahi told Nelvana the moment Kangaskhan was out of earshot.

“Would you stop that?” Nelvana hissed, kicking a pebble on the ground.

“So… to the café next?” Alex asked, glancing over to the location in question.

“Nah, we should probably make that one of our last spots so we can just sit around and relax. I’m thinking we should check in on Makuhita next,” Keahi answered, turning towards the south.

“Makuhita… the others mentioned him. He runs the dojo?” Tsuki commented, continuing to follow.

Keahi nodded, “yup! You’re getting the hang of the area quickly!” he chirped, “c’mon, it’s right down here!”

Arriving down by the dojo, they spotted Makuhita outside, changing the sign by the window to say “open” instead of “closed”. He didn’t seem to notice them at first, too absorbed into this menial task to overhear the quartet. Finally, finished with the simple job, he turned around, spotting the team’s arrival.

“Oh! Hello there Team Galaxy! You’re back! It’s good to see you,” Makuhita greeted, brushing his hands off on his thighs idly.

“It’s good to see you too Makuhita. How are you? We heard these recent days were rough for you,” Keahi responded.

“Surely worse for you kids,” Makuhita sighed, shaking his head. “But yes, I dislike that sort of conflict, and I have to admit that my coping skills… aren’t the best. But some others from your team came by to visit, and I’m very thankful for their company,” he continued, “I’d love to stay and chat with you kids as well, but I have a lot of catching up to do. Hope you have a nice day!”

“Uh, you too! Good luck catching up!” Keahi replied.

“Well that was quick,” Nelvana commented quietly as Makuhita entered his dojo.

“Yeah… maybe we should’ve offered to help him?” Keahi agreed.

“We’ve got some catching up to do ourselves. Maybe if we’re less busy tomorrow we can offer to help out,” Alex said, “where to next?”

“Hm… how about Whiscash Pond? We don’t really know him much, but I get the feeling he might want to talk to us,” Nelvana suggested.

“Alright! After that, let’s go to the Pelipper Post Office!” Keahi chirped.

“I have no idea what any of these places are so I’m just going to keep following…” Tsuki murmured, chuckling to herself.

“Would you rather I give more details on each spot?” Keahi offered, beginning to walk up to the pond.

Tsuki shrugged, “I think I can manage. But thank you.”

Whiscash Pond was filled with laughter that they could hear even before the area was in sight. Caterpie, Metapod, and Diglett were all playing at the sides of the pond, with Whiscash watching peacefully to the cheerful children.

“Team Galaxy!” Caterpie called, crawling over to the group. “I’m so glad you made it back!”

“Yeah! And the way you guys stood up to Gengar in the square was so cool,” Metapod added.

“Thanks, and it’s good to see you guys too!” Keahi chirped.

“Kecleon told us you fought Moltres and Articuno, is that true?” Diglett asked.

Keahi puffed up his feathers proudly, “you bet we did!” he proclaimed, but then paused. “Well, actually, Articuno… we-“

“You guys are so cool! I wanna be on your team when I get older! We’ve even been training! Wanna see?” Caterpie interrupted excitedly.

Without waiting for a response, Caterpie turned to Metapod and spat a wad of string at his friend.

“Ah! Caterpie! Come on…” Metapod whined, wriggling on the ground in a futile attempt to get the string off his shell.

“Hey Absol… my dad says that your kind are scary… but I don’t think so! You look really cool!” Diglett said, “you live in the Frosty Forest, right? You must be really strong to stay up there! Do you know Articuno? Did you beat them singlehandedly?”

Tsuki blinked for a moment, caught off guard by this child’s enthusiasm, “uh… thanks, and I do know Articuno, but I haven’t really fought them before…”

“Hey kids, it’s good to see you again, but we were hoping to talk to Whiscash for a moment, is that alright?” Alex butted in.

“Sure! We’ll go back to training. Come on guys! We have to be strong to join a rescue team!” Caterpie rattled off before crawling off again, his friends following hastily.

“They’re… really energetic,” Tsuki commented.

Nelvana laughed, “we should take you to meet Keahi’s family sometime.”

The quartet walked across the stone path over the pond to get to the center, where Whiscash was waiting, his head just barely poking out of the surface of the water.

“You have a very pretty pond,” Tsuki complimented, staring down the sparkling clear water reflecting off the sunlight.

“Thank you,” Whiscash hummed, “I do my best to keep it nice and clean.”

“Yeah, I forgot to mention it last time, but it’s really nice!” Nelvana agreed, sitting down on the edge of the largest stone to peer down at the water as well.

Whiscash’s gaze fell, “ah yes… last time. I’m terribly sorry for what happened to you kids. I’d hate that just a simple story could cause so many problems,” he murmured.

“Ah, it isn’t your fault old man. Just doing what was asked of you,” Alex replied.

“Old man? Ohohoho,” Whiscash laughed, “I guess I am an old man now, aren’t I? That’s what I get for calling everyone a kid.” He smiled. “I’m just happy that things turned out all right. All’s well that ends well, as I like to say. Ohohoho.”

“We’re glad too,” Nelvana replied, But this isn’t the end yet, lingered at the back of her mind.

Keahi noticed the somber look appear on his friend’s expression, “well, it was good to talk to you again Whiscash, but I think we still need to get around to seeing everyone else,” he said.

Whiscash nodded, “of course. Come back anytime Team Galaxy, maybe I’ll have another story for you some time soon. Have a nice afternoon!”

Waving goodbye, Team Galaxy headed to their next stop, the Pelipper Post office. The message board outside looking the same as usual, the help of the B Squadron kept it from overflowing while the A Squadron was gone. Entering the brought them into a flurry of pelippers and other flying-type pokemon hurrying about, preparing more copies of their most recent newspaper.

“Maybe we should come back another time…” Nelvana murmured, slowly stepping back.

“Agreed,” Alex mumbled, closing the door.

“Wait! Team Galaxy!” a familiar voice called.

The door opened again it its own, revealing Peaky as the one who had called for them. The spearow exited the office to join the team outside, closing the door behind them again.

“Hey guys! Sorry it’s a bit chaotic in there, we’re trying to get the news out as soon as possible!” Peaky chirped, “there’s only so many photocopies you can make at a time, but so many pokemon that haven’t heard about this update.”

“This is still pretty fast though! How’d you guys pull it off? You had some copies for town only a few minutes after we got here,” Keahi replied.

“Oh! Team A.C.T. dropped in! They let us have a quick interview before they went to go fight Groudon,” Peaky explained briefly, “it was really cool… I had never been so close to them before. You guys are lucky to have actually met them properly! I only got to watch Pidgeotto interview them…”

“Er, yeah… lucky,” Nelvana coughed, “how have you guys been holding up while we were gone?”

“Pretty good, all things considered,” Peaky replied, “actually! Team Meanies stopped by! They wanted us to put up wanted posters of you guys,” they giggled, “they made them themselves. I’d show you guys… but, you know.”

Alex snickered, “you kept them?”

“Yeah! We didn’t want to put them up, but throwing them off the cliff would be a waste. They’re worth a good laugh, and some good fire fuel when it gets colder,” Peaky replied.

“Are they that bad?” Tsuki asked, tilting her head to the side slightly.

“Well… I’m no artist myself, but they were pretty bad… I don’t think any of them have had to draw before,” Peaky answered.

“I guess we’ll have to visit again when it’s less busy and take a look!” Keahi said, “Nel is pretty good at drawing, so maybe she can offer critique!” he added, wrapping a wing around his mentioned partner, who buried her face in her scarf.

“Nel, you can draw? That’s really neat!” Peaky chirped, then paused, “I, uh, would love to keep talking, but I think I should go back to work now… see ya! Come back soon!” they said, hurrying back inside just as a pelipper opened the door, looking for the spearow.

“Heh, they’ve got a sixth sense for when they’re in trouble, nice,” Alex chuckled.

“So, they just… make newspapers?” Tsuki asked.

“And deliver letters, yup! That’s what a post office is for, after all,” Keahi answered.

“Ah, right. Almost forgot for a moment there,” Tsuki murmured, flexing her large claws in the dirt and sparing a glance at the cliffside. “Anyway, is that it? Where are we heading next?”

“Hm… I think the bank, and then we can finally go to the café!” Keahi exclaimed, “c’mon!”

Leading the group away again, the torchic bounded down the path over to Persian’s stand, where the feline was casually counting some coins. At the sound of footsteps, Persian swept all the coins off the counter with a paw, letting them fall into a drawer with the satisfying clinking noise.

“Ahh, hello Team Galaxy, it’s good to have you around again,” Persian purred, her tail slowly swishing behind her.

“It’s good to hear you think that way, Kecleon told us you thought otherwise,” Alex replied, leaning on the counter, meeting Persian’s gaze.

Persian’s fur bristled slightly, and her ears pinned back against her head sheepishly, “er, yes… I reacted irrationally, my apologies,” she admitted, “but don’t fear, all of your money is still safe with me, and I’ve learned not to trust that lard of poison gas and his friends,” she said, her voice ending in a growl. “I hope that you’ll continue to trust me to guard your cash despite that slip-up on my part,” she added, calmer.

“Yeah! Don’t worry!” Keahi hummed, “and we have some money to deposit after that trip…” he paused, “we gotta save some for the café afterwards, and four smoothies would cost… uh…”

“Just… we’ll hold on to a couple hundred to be safe, no big deal if we have extra change,” Nelvana said, looking to each of her teammates.

Alex nodded, handing over most of the coins that had collected, only saving enough for their planned treat. There wasn’t much chatter to be had with the banker otherwise, and the group headed down to the café. Inside, it was oddly quiet, but still held the warm and welcoming feel that it always had. Nelvana found herself relaxing in the familiar surroundings in this friendly atmosphere. Spinda was sitting behind the counter, leaning his elbow up on it and his head in his hand, boredom painted on his expression. Suddenly, he sprung up, grinning wildly at the group, before hopping behind the curtains.

“Gulpin! Team Galaxy is here! Get your sludgy butt out here so you can talk to them!” Spinda yelled.

Spinda presented himself at the counter again just as Team Galaxy had walked up to it. A few moments later, he reached down to pull up his partner, Gulpin, who was looking quite ashamed, and set him down on top of the counter.

Spinda cleared his throat before anyone else could speak, “welcome back Team Galaxy! It’s so nice to see your faces here again, and even a new one! What’s your name again?”

“Tsuki,” Tsuki introduced herself courtly.

“That’s a nice name you’ve got there. Means ‘moon’, right? Very nice… I’ve never seen an absol before, just heard rumors, but if this career choice has taught me anything, you can’t always trust rumors,” Spinda replied, and then clapped his paws together and spun around in place suddenly. “Which brings me to let Gulpin here speak. I think only Nel and Keahi have met him, actually. Anyway, anyway, he has something to say to you all, isn’t that right?”

Gulpin furrowed his brows, “yes…” he sighed, “I’m sorry, Team Galaxy. I truly believed Gengar, and it was wrong of me to judge you like that,” he mumbled.

“There! That wasn’t so hard, now was it, Toxic Lips?” Spinda exclaimed, patting Gulpin on the back, who only gave more incoherent mumbles in response. “Now then, what can I get for you guys today?”

“Usual magost for me, and-“ Alex began, only to get cut off by Nelvana.

“You’re the one that likes magost?” Nelvana blurted out.

“Uh… yeah?” Alex replied, raising a brow at this comment.

“Augh! Every time I come here, I think about getting a magost smoothie for someone! But I couldn’t remember who! It’s you!” Nelvana yelled, pointing at Alex accusingly.

Alex looked surprised for a moment, before bursting into laughter, “of course that’s what you remember! Dear Arceus…”

Nelvana buried her face in her hands, “dammit…”

Spinda cleared his throat again, regaining the team’s attention. Nelvana lifted up her head, rubbing her forehead and sighing, while Alex calmed down from laughing and gave his partner a gentle pat.

“As I was saying, magost smoothie, and a, uh, black gummi smoothie?” Alex continued, rummaging through the bag and pulling out the six gummis.

“And two pecha smoothies please!” Keahi chimed in.

“Alright! Coming right up!” Spinda hummed.

Gulpin grabbed the gummis and flopped off the counter, heading back to the kitchen to prepare the drinks. Spinda bounced in place impatiently, with no sense of balance, almost falling on his back a couple times.

“Hello there! You’re Team Galaxy, right?” an unfamiliar voice asked.

Just entering, were a chikorita and a machop, who walked up behind the quartet. The machop had some odd markings on his skin, a pink splotch on his chest, and dark grey dots on his arms and legs. The chikorita looked fairly average, and she sported a determined grin on her face.

“Yes, we are! Hello!” Keahi greeted.

“Hi! Nice to meet you guys face to face!” the machop, now recognizable as the one that had just called out to them, hummed. “I’m Everett, and this is my partner, Melanie!” he introduced himself and the chikorita.

“Yeah! And we’re Team New Blooms!” Melanie proclaimed proudly, “better watch out, ‘cause we’re the next big team!”

Keahi let out a friendly chuckle, “wow! It’s nice to meet you guys too! Good to meet some other rescue teams,” he replied.

“Mhmm!” Everett agreed, “we just started, but we’ve been doing good so far! You guys are really neat!”

“Smoothies are ready!” Spinda interrupted, placing the orders on the counter.

“Oh, well, thanks you two, but we, uh, are going to enjoy our drinks now. See ya!” Nelvana said.

“Okay! See you around then!” Everett hummed.

Team Galaxy collected their drinks and sat themselves down at a table not too far right from the counter itself. They had just sat down, when Nelvana jumped up again and gathered some bendy straws for everyone. Tsuki didn’t use her’s, opting to just lick out the liquid from the cup, but thanked the cubone for the effort regardless. Alex took a sip out of his, and then reached into the bag again and pulled out their recently bought TM.

“Alright, who wants this?” Alex asked, placing the disc down in the center of the table.

“I don’t need it. It’s a special attack anyway, and I’d like to have the least of those as possible,” Tsuki replied, and then took a drink of her smoothie. “Oh, this is really good!” she commented.

“Keahi can have it, I think he’ll find more use out of it anyway. It’ll make a good upgrade from ember,” Nelvana said, sliding the disc over to the mentioned torchic.

“Oh, alright! Thanks guys!” Keahi hummed.

Before anyone could offer to help Keahi with using the item, the torchic slammed his head down on the TM, causing the table to erupt in a mixture of laughter and concern.

“Shush! I’m fine, but I need to concentrate!” Keahi hushed, not bothering to move his head.

After a few quiet moments of attempting to retain more laughter, there was a crack sounding from the disc, and Keahi lifted up his head again.

“Ta-da!” Keahi chirped, way too proud of himself for how he used that item.

“You know, if you wanted, I could have helped with that,” Nelvana giggled.

“Well, it worked like this too!” Keahi huffed, “but thanks anyway,” he added.

Team Galaxy lingered in the café for well over an hour, chatting amongst themselves, and generally having a good time, even after the smoothies were long gone, and Keahi had blown all the bubbles he could in his drink. They found it nice to relax and let loose after the recent events, really enjoying the rest of the afternoon. Alex decided to hold off on explaining to Tsuki about where he and Nelvana had come from and the whole time travel issue for until they got home, and everyone agreed. It just wasn’t right conversation to have in this location. However, they did take the time to explain to the absol in more detail about the incidents with Team Meanies, and Nelvana ended up mentioning her dreams with Gardevoir, including the encounter in the Frosty Forest, which she had neglected doing before.

Finally, they left Spinda and Gulpin’s Café, finding themselves back home. It had been left in the same state as before, likely that the B Squadron hadn’t actually done much inside, or at least had taken the time to clean up before leaving. Once realizing that Tsuki didn’t have a bed, or even a seat in general like Alex, they had to hurry back off to the Kecleon Shop, despite her insisting she was fine on the floor, and that she didn’t really sleep much as a dark-type anyway. In the end, Tsuki convinced them to get her a mat to sleep on instead of a nest or another bean bag couch, since she was accustomed to sleeping on hard surfaces from her time resting in caves around the Frosty Forest, and they returned home again. Which left the evening free to play board games and continue taking it easy before they would have to go to work the next day.

Cameo: Team New Blooms (Melanie/chikorita & Everett/machop) belongs to @kaidacreator / @kaidacreatorart

11 notes · View notes