13-14

Chapter 13: Back to the Grind

Jasmine awoke with stiffness in her neck, cottonmouth, and groggy. The deconstruction of Thadmania in Goldenrod gym was plentiful work for her and Sparky, but a pit of foolishness had settled into her stomach shortly after leaving Thad. That feeling only deepened as she didn't see him come back to the Pokemon center.

And I still don't have an answer. I need to say something, Jasmine thought, rubbing her temples. She heard some shuffling in the room, and decided to peek past the blankets that covered her bedraggled hair.

Thad was dressed in the attire he'd bought from the department store and at the small little coffee table in the rental room. He already had a large protein shake in front of him and a half-eaten large root in front of him. He held a semi-reflective array of sheets in his hands, idly flipping through the folder and whispering something under his breath. Jasmine shifted once again, and Thad peeked past the glossy sheets and flashed a smile in her direction.

"Ey, morning sleepy head!"

Jasmine yawned and stretched her arms toward the sky. "You didn't wake me up. You usually do that."

"We had an exciting night, so I figured you earned sleeping in until at least 7 am, plus," he waved the sheet in his hands excitedly, "I managed to run some errands!"

Jasmine returned a weak smile. Oh no, that can't be good.

"Check this out, Jazzy," Thad opened up the folder of sheets for Jasmine to see, and she squinted her eyes.

"It's… a list of Pokemon types and graphics?"

"Bingo!" Thad immediately furrowed his brow and held a hand underneath his chin. "Wait, do you have Bingo? Nevermind. Anyway, I managed to use that PC downstairs with the nurse's help to print off some charts from the internet. Printed out a playbook and then used the laminating and printing station at the department store."

"The department store doesn't open until...8 in the morning I thought?" Jasmine tilted her head and let out a single, mirthless giggle. Still, it's not a bad idea to keep track of type relations like that. Surprised more trainers don't do that.

"Right, but after one Pokemon battle later with the security guard, they escorted me to the printer," Thad replied. "It was a good way to start the morning with Chad karate-chopping a fire doggo."

Jasmine fully sat up and strained out her nightclothes: a silverite colored pair of shorts and a matching tank top. She rubbed her eyes once again and then looked at Thad with a slight frown. "Can we talk about last night?"

"Ah, yeah. Was trying to figure out a way to transition to that." Thad took a swig from his protein shake and wiped his lips. "Alright, Jazzy. Here's the dealio. You're attractive, plain and simple. Thems the facts. But I don't want you to want some of Thad just cause you to feel bad for me, ya know?" He raised up two fingers. "So, we have two options. Either we both agree it happened in a dream, or we revisit things later when we're both thinking better. At least that's what I got."

At least he's being very forward about all of this, Jasmine pondered as she idly let her legs swing, unable to touch the floor. Not to mention he does think I'm attractive, and there's no doubt he is too… but is it right? Did we just get caught up in the moment?

"Let's… go with the second option. I'd like time to sort out my feelings and keep things normal, well, relatively normal," Jasmine breathed out. Thad gave her a curt nod, and she returned a warm smile. "But, thank you. It's odd to hear someone so," she parted her lips and paused for a moment, "uh, forthcoming with their intentions. I'd say blunt, but it's a bit more thoughtful than that. I think."

"Coolio, I can dig it," Thad said, and then immediately pulled out a large map from his travel sack. He spread it over the coffee table, careful to not spill his protein shake or bump the nutritious root. "Now, the other thing I needed to talk to you about. I want in on this gym challenge thing. Bruno ain't going anywhere, I think, and I mapped out a path, come take a look."

Jasmine hefted herself off the bed and walked over to the large map of Johto. Crude drawing in red marker littered the map with little doodles of an over-muscled man and a poorly drawn Machop, both flexing. She quickly narrowed in on Goldenrod city, tracing the line with her fingertip that led South out of Goldenrod, eventually looping back to Ecruteak and then a straight shot to Blackthorn City.

"You've got a good route, considering we don't have a Flying-type," Jasmine noted with a hint of approval. "Not to mention, seeing the rest of the region isn't necessarily a bad thing. We only miss out on Cherrygrove, and not much is there anyway." She leaned back and looked at Thad. "But you're serious? We could take the magnet train out of Goldenrod to Saffron and then get a flying courier to the Pokemon League. Maybe a week tops to get there."

"Nah, fam," Thad adamantly replied. He slapped his hand on the table, pointing at Azalea Town. "I was made a fool of, and it's my own fault. I shoulda known better, but like I said, I know two things: muscles and money. I had a fire idea, but when it came to legal stuff I flopped. If that red-haired punk is some hotshot trainer, I wanna have a chance to dunk on him properly."

Jasmine raised an eyebrow. "So, this is about revenge?"

"I'm a baller, Jazzy," Thad thumped his chest with a fist, "and I gotta represent my Pokemon, not to mention Chuck for helping me out. If there's a sport out there, I wanna win. Plain and simple."

I did want an adventure, didn't I? Jasmine hummed under her breath and swallowed hard. She gave the excitable man a cursory look as he rolled up the map with a silly grin plastered on his well-sculpted face. Well, with him it's never boring. I've never actually seen someone go through the gym challenge either. Might be able to train myself up for the World tournament a bit too.

"Alright, I'm on board," Jasmine softly said. "I'll help you out, besides, traveling with you has been quite fun. Minus all the squats, of course."

Thad flashed a predatory grin. "Oh, there's more where that came from, girlie. I'm gonna pump you up. Hell, we might just squat and jump over the entire region!" He laughed, wiping a tear from his eye. "Nah, I'm playin'. But we will workout."

"I had no doubts about that," Jasmine murmured. "Well," she clapped her hands together, "I'd like to take a shower, and then we should probably visit Whitney at the gym. You probably made some Pokedollars regardless of that Seviper of a person taking some of the earnings."

"Dope, I'll be here chillin' and working on my playbook," Thad said, giving Jasmine a brief salute. "I've got you some breakfast when you're done."

"Is it a protein shake?"

Thad chuckled. "Read me like a book. But, yeah, it's something I managed to make. Got Payapa berries and stuff. Stuff is zingy."

Jasmine shook her head, trying to resist a smile from forcing its way onto her face. Despite all the excitement, things with Thad were once again more or less the same. He'd continue to be a protein-obsessed jock, and she'd be the soft-spoken gym leader.

A deep pit knotted in her stomach told her it may not be the only option.

Thad barged through the door to Whitney's office, poking his head through first. Jasmine trailed behind him, apologizing profusely to the gym trainers about Thad's single-minded path. He wanted to get paid for his feats and sought the woman in change.

Whitney, dressed back in her softball outfit, was leaning over her table looking up at her computer while trying to gobble down a bowl of white rice and meat with a spoon. She swallowed down a helping and wiped a few loose grains of rice from the corners of her mouth.

"Oh! I was wondering when you'd get here. It's rather early too." Whitney quickly pulled out her PokeNav, glancing at the front screen blinking with the time. "Just a hair past 8 am. Dang, you two don't mess around."

"More like Thad doesn't mess around," Jasmine mumbled. Her hair, pulled back into a ponytail, was still slightly damp and she'd chosen a striking yellow and silver summer romper. "Anyways, we're here for Thad's winnings."

"What she said," Thad affirmed, nodding. "How'd we do?"

Whitney gobbled down another bite of her breakfast, holding a finger up. She leaned over in her chair, opening one of the lower drawers to her desk and pulling out a file folder. She slung it over to Thad like a frisbee, which he caught with ease.

"The expense report is in there," Whitney replied, her mouth still partially full. She raised an eyebrow toward Jasmine. "Forgive me for asking, but is everything between you two-"

"It's fine, Whitney," Jasmine said through a tightlipped smile. "And I don't recall that being your business."

Thad browsed through the expense report, whispering out silent words as Whitney let out a sigh. "You don't have to get all huffy, Jasmine. You can talk about it," she smirked and raised an eyebrow, "unless you don't want to kiss and-"

"They're called boundaries, Whitney." Jasmine pinched the bridge of her nose and sighed. "Besides, we shouldn't bicker with Thad here. We're better than that."

"Huh?" Thad's face peered over the stack of papers. "I heard my name. Sorry, I was busy trying to do math."

Jasmine patted Thad on the forearm. "It's fine. Just some girl talk. Nothing to worry about."

Thad looked between the two women with a curious gaze and then shrugged. "Fair enough. I'll keep trying to go through this ledger." He frowned and leaned closer to the form, and then shot a worried glance toward Whitney. "Why does 'hole renovation' cost over a hundred thousand Pokedollars?"

Whitney kept her focus on Jasmine, holding a polite smile. "It's because an Onix wrecked the foundation of my gym. Normally my Miltank can cause some damage, but to make sure the floor doesn't fall into the sewer system of Goldenrod, I have to call in an expensive maintenance crew."

"Right, gyms that don't specialize in subterranean Pokemon usually don't account for it," Jasmine muttered. "I'm sorry, Thad. I really should have looked over that contract for you."

Thad barked out a laugh. "What's done is done, plus you got to enjoy taking your team out for a couple of days in the National Park. It's on me. Live and Learn, and all that good stuff."

"Mhmmm, which brings us to your overall winnings after all the deductions, payment for my staff, and renovations," Whitney dug into her shallow shorts pocket and held out a small plastic card. "Everything leftover for you is loaded on that card."

Thad flipped through the expense report one last time and then grabbed the card. It was a bit thicker than he expected, and she shook the slightly opaque yellow card against his ear.

"Neat. How much is on this?"

"About 30,000 Pokedollars," Whitney said. Jasmine let out a small groan, though Thad let out a victory howl. Whitney bit her lower lip, trying to keep a straight face. "Not bad, considering everything."

"Hey, I'll take it because-'' Thad's enthusiasm was abruptly snuffed out like a candle to a hurricane, and he glanced at the card with renewed apprehension. "Wait. I forgot this is the place that has lemonade that costs like five hundred and protein is nearly ten thousand. Shit. This is pocket change."

"Better than what you'd earn in a Pokemon battle," Whitney said. " Considering you managed to also gain some notoriety, I'd say you came out pretty good. The radio people are still talking about Chuck's protege that took out an Onix by himself. Oh," she reached inside her other pants pocket but kept her fist enclosed over whatever object she grabbed. "Hold out your hand."

Thad held out his palm, and Whitney dropped a small yellow, rectangular metallic object. Thad pinched it between his fingers, inspecting it closely.

"You're giving him the Plain Badge?" Jasmine said, breathless.

Whitney crossed her arms underneath her bust and nodded. "Oh yeah. Thad helped me get out of the red. I finally have a little stability, plus the city council won't hound me for a bit. That's definitely worth a badge, I'd say." Whitney leaned in and grimaced. "Plus, just between us, I don't want to risk my record until the new season against a guy who can tackle a Tauros at full charge."

Jasmine placed her hands on her hips. "Point taken. So, Thad? How do you feel about your first badge?"

"Second actually," Thad replied, taking off his travel sack from his shoulder. He dug through the contents until he revealed a small, black rectangular box. "Chuck gave me this just in case. Now I've got the fist one and the square one."

"Wait." Jasmine waved her hands in front of her and lowered her head, frowning. " Chuck gave you the Storm Badge? I thought you said he just took you in as one of his gym trainers."

"Well, that too. But we made a bet during our training montage, and I managed to pin him," Thad said, grinning. "It was a simple gentleman's agreement."

"Huh. Nice. Anyway," Whitney whirled toward Jasmine, "what's both of your plans?"

"Thad plans on taking on the gym challenge, so we'll be going to Azalea Town next," Jasmine said, nudging Thad in the side. He looked over and then nodded to Whitney, and Jasmine took a deep breath. "So, we'll be on our way, Whitney. Considering I'll see you at the meeting at the League in a few weeks."

Whitney spun in her office chair, waving dismissively at Jasmine's words. "Yeah... I'll be there. Until next time, Jasmine."

"Noice, so we outta here?" Thad asked Jasmine, and she gave him a nod. He pumped his fist in the air. "Heck yeah, time for some cardio! Let's go!"

Thad ducked down and scooped Jasmine up onto his shoulder, slinging his travel pack over his shoulder. Jasmine yelped and Whitney let out a hearty giggle as the Steel-type specialist flailed in the air.

"Let me down! I can walk!"

"We're faster this way, Jazzy. Just hold on tight and we'll go get your bag from the Pokemon Center, and we're off!" Thad dashed out of the office, bounding gracefully as a Stantler with his long strides and soft landings.

Jasmine's protests cut off shortly after, seeing that she was stuck along for the ride. She curled around his bulky shoulders and practiced her sulking face. If she couldn't get him to stop, she'd at least work on getting the overactive athlete to feel a bit guilty for his brash actions, despite how fun it was to feel the wind whipping through her hair.

The path through Route 34 was overcast and sprinkled with showers. From a few trainer matches where Jasmine sat back and watched Thad work with his newly formed 'playbook', insisting that he hold it over his face to mask his mouth while play calling. Despite her insistence that trainers wouldn't read his lips, let alone grasp his obscure names for traditional Pokemon moves.

"And don't come back!"

The door to the small one-story building slammed shut, nearly clipping Thad in the nose. Jasmine stood a few feet away with her arms crossed, and a slight frown on her face. Chad stood beside her, once again on pack mule duty. He smiled and continued to mimic his trainer by doing squats, despite being tasked with lugging around Jasmine's large camping backpack.

Jasmine shook her head and lightly clicked her tongue. "I told you the daycare wouldn't take kindly to asking them for eggs."

Thad rubbed the side of his head; a faint red mark began to form under his ear. "I only asked if I could have a few for an omelet." Thad gestured toward Chad, who immediately dug through Jasmine's travel sack, fetching out a cloth and a small chunk of ice. The trusty Machop handed the two items to Thad, who accepted them with a thankful nod. "Aye, that's the good stuff. This never-melting ice stuff is dope, Jazzy."

"Considering it is supposed to synergize with Ice-type Pokemon's aura, yes it's quite potent," Jasmine said with a slight edge to her voice. "Yet you insist on using it as an ice pack."

"Not my fault the old lady got the broom out." Thad shrugged and applied the ice to his head. "But you gotta admit, this thing works well. How's it doing the whole not melting thing."

Jasmine opened her mouth, and then tilted her head and paused. She rolled her tongue around in her mouth, and finally let out a deep exhale from her nostrils. "It...just works, Thad. I'd rather not explain it."

"Fair enough," Thad said. He looked down the dirt path of Route 34, spotting a few trainers and small Grass-type Pokemon. "So, we're gonna keep going South? What's ahead?"

Jasmine gestured for Thad to follow her as she turned, walking with Chad hot on her heels. She pointed out toward the horizon, where the foliage grew densely thick. The weather was fair and warm, but as they encroached further, the grass that tickled their ankles now brushed up against their knees and the looming canopy slowly swallowed up the sunshine.

After Chad chased off a few overly curious Snubbulls, Team Beefcake had arrived at a small check-in station made of old stone. The light inside seeped through the door's window with a dim yellow hue, and the surrounding area smelt of sweet floral scents.

"So, where is this again?" Thad asked.

"Ilex Forest," Jasmine affirmed, opening the door to the check-in station. "It's the natural barrier between Goldenrod and Azalea. The town is at the other end of the forest, which if we keep a good pace, we'll be there by the evening. Considering we don't get lost or encounter too many Pokemon."

Thad nodded. "Right. So, lotta bug dudes be chillin in here?" He gave a wave to the bored-looking male check-in attendant. They didn't return the gesture and continued to read a magazine in front of them. "Huh, alright. Anyway! So, what's in here? Is it dangerous?"

"Not particularly." Jasmine shrugged. "Ilex is known to get quite overgrown, so having a Pokemon with cutting abilities is usually helpful. But," she gave Thad a knowing glance, "I figure you'll probably have that handled."

Thad struck a pose, dropping into a lunge and pointing his hands up in a warrior pose, and then lowering them slowly to point forward. "Oh yeah. It's all coming together. With my muscles and your brain, we'll get through this forest, no sweat."

Jasmine smiled at her accomplice and opened the large double doors to Ilex Forest. The sounds of the distant city were completely null and void, and only the chittering of Pokemon echoed through the air. Large swathes of tall grass and trees surrounded the roughshod path, the clippings of the branches either snipped away with a machete or something else resembling a large, precise knife.

Out past a vibrant meadow, a small lake laid before the group with sparkling water. Thad squinted his eyes as he gazed toward the water, muttering a bit under his breath. He brushed past Jasmine and his posture strained up.

"Hey, Jazzy, can I borrow your Nav?" Thad asked, still fixated on the distant lake. "I gotta make a call-scratch that, here, take this." he dug into his pants pocket and pulled out a scrap of paper, thrusting it into Jasmine's hands. She bobbled it and looked where Thad was focused, but she merely furrowed her brow in confusion.

"What do you see?"

"You don't see that?" Thad said, pointing outward.

"No…" Jasmine replied, her voice unsteady. The shimmer of the lake from the sunbeams dripping through the canopy made it difficult to see anything on the surface. "What is it?"

"That paper I gave you has a number on it. Call it and tell the dude I found his water doggo." Thad stripped off his shirt and tossed it to Chad, who expertly snatched it from the air. "Cover me, team. I'm going in."

"Wait! Can't we talk about-" a large splash erupted from the edge of the lake as Thad dove into the water. Jasmine held a quiet scream in her throat as the jock began swimming at a furious pace, almost as if his abs were surfing on top of the waves.

A strange howl filled the forest; high pitch like a muddied chime yet clear as crystal. Jasmine noticed the water flicker and shift as Thad swam further out, and then a huge wake erupted from the center of the lake, knocking Thad upward despite his best efforts to tread water. Then a low hum began to fill the air.

The muscled trainer washed up on the opposite shore, coughing out water. Jasmine rushed around to the other bank, feeling a burning sensation in her legs as she willed them to carry her as fast as possible.

As Jasmine skidded to a stop in front of Thad, the jock sat on the ground looking a bit dazed. "We gotta get that dude's dog."

"Thad."

"Shouldn't be too hard if we hustle," Thad continued, pounding some water out of his ears. "Doubt some water dog can seriously outrun-"

"Thad!" Jasmine whispered in a panicked tone.

Thad perked up as Jasmine pointed upward. His expression fell from optimistic and settled into an eye-squinted frown. "Ah, those are some large ass bees."

"Beedrill, to be specific," Jasmine said, trying her best to help Thad to his feet with Chad's assistance. "We need to find cover. We might be able to make it back to the check-in station if we hurry."

"Yeah, or we could dip for that." Thad pointed toward a little wooden treehouse to the South of them through the brush. "We could hole up in there if we hustle. It's a bit closer."

Jasmine bit her lip, looking back toward the checkpoint station across the lake, and then to the treehouse. She looked at Chad, who had his hands up in a guarded position, ready to take on the hovering swarm. A proud display of courage, but any young Pokemon left against a swarm of Beedrill quickly learned to run after a few stings. Jasmine wouldn't let him get that chance, so she grabbed the Machop's wrist and gently tugged him along.

"Chop?" Machop blurted out, nodding toward the group of Beedrill. "Chop chop!"

"I'm sorry, but we need to move," Jasmine pleaded.

"Jazzy's right, little man," Thad affirmed, rolling his neck out a bit. His shorts and shoes were drenched, though his hair seemed relatively unshaken by the exchange. "Plus, and this might be a bad time, but I'm allergic to bees."

Jasmine blinked and her mouth opened. Chad pushed her chin upward, closing her mouth with one finger. "Wait, now you tell me?" Jasmine yelped, beginning to quicken her pace toward the treehouse.

Thad led the charge, knocking down the brush and barreling through the smaller trees and twigs. All the other Pokemon of the forest seemed to have vanished as they reached the wooden structure. Thad immediately clambered up the small rickety ladder and pulled on the handle of the small door. With a grunt, he unstuck the little door and then let out a sigh.

"Shit. It's not a treehouse. It's some kind of little shrine thingy," Thad rattled off. He looked back down at Jasmine with a worried glance. "Plan B, Jazzy?"

Jasmine dug through the backpack on Chad's shoulders, revealing two Pokeball. She gripped each tightly in her hands and gave Thad a stern nod. "Stand back. It's going to be a bumpy ride. Time for you to see how a Steel-type specialist handles problems."

With a gentle toss, Jasmine released her two Pokemon as the horde of Beedrill slowly enclosed on their location. The bugs' buzzing was nearly deafening as the red light of each Pokeball quickly formed into a large metallic snake that Thad recognized, though the large mole creature with red spots on its belly and drill-like appendage eluded him.

"That's one deadly gopher," Thad said with a low whistle.

"It's an Excadrill, but we can talk later!" Jasmine shouted. "Get Chad on Steelix. Excadrill!" The mole-like Pokemon reared its head toward Jasmine. "Carve us a path out of here South toward civilization! Steelix and the rest of us will follow. Go!"

"Dri!" The Excadrill replied and quickly burrowed into the ground in a fast, spiral motion.

Thad hopped up onto the Steelix with his Machop on his shoulder, which he placed in front of him. He leaned over the edge of the large metallic behemoth and helped swing Jasmine aboard, holding her tightly on his lap.

"Go!" Jasmine slapped the Steelix's body, and the creature let out a deep rumbly groan and then carefully began to follow the tunnel that the Excadrill had paved out.

Thad looked back to see the Steelix's large pronged tail swatting away Beedrilll left and right. They quickly descended into darkness; earth crumbling around them and only the warmth of each other and the sound of rocks grinding as the buzzing dissipated. The three clung together tightly around one of the Steelix's smaller segments, anchored by Thad's clenching thighs that gripped the beast snuggly.

After a couple of minutes of silent tunneling, light began to peek through to the surface. The Steelix barreled forth, and the group took in a deep breath of fresh air. The sounds of shouting and city chatter filled the air, and Thad let out a triumphant shout. Jasmine was less enthused as she took scope of her surroundings, immediately recoiling into Thad's chest.

"We're alive! Haha! Oh man, we've got to do that again, that was amazing!" He gave Chad a high five, and let out a victorious war cry. "Hell yeah!"

"Thad," Jasmine meekly whispered. "I think we messed up. Look."

Thad raised an eyebrow, but lowered his arms and took scope of his surroundings. They had made it to Azalea town, but more specifically in someone's backyard and partially through their house. An older, very grumpy man in a sweat-stained white shirt stood a few feet away scowling up at the group. The Excadrill stood beside the Steelix, looking to Jasmine, eager for more orders as they made more digging motions.

"Nearly came up through my crapper, damnit!" The old man shouted, waggling his finger at the group. "Damn hooligans, you'll pay for this!"

A pair of men dressed in blue walked up to the property, holding flashlights and with a Growlith at each of their sides. One of the men coughed into his fist, eyeing the menacing Steelix, and then back up to Team Beefcake.

"Uh, kindly dismount from the Pokemon, sir and miss."

"Why?" Thad asked. "Are we under arrest or something?"

The other officer stepped forward; a strained smile on his face. "Yes, sir. That's exactly what this is. Please recall your Pokemon and follow us to our station."

"Shit. And I was doing so well in this place too with my squeaky clean record," Thad said with a half-hearted laugh. He hopped down from the Steelix and helped Jasmine and Chad down, before returning Chad to his Pokeball.

Jasmine shot Thad a skeptical glance. "Wait, you've been arrested before?" She whispered. She quickly returned her Pokemon to their respective Pokeballs, hiding behind Thad as much as possible from the officers. "You didn't tell me that!?"

"Yeah, but not for anything serious," he replied in a casual tone. "Just some small-time stuff. Some partying and mayhem here. Some public nudity there. Ya know. Normal college stuff. Guess I'll add property damage to the list. "

Jasmine shook her head, at a loss for words. The two officers stepped forward, cuffs in hand. Thad graciously presented his wrists, while Jasmine did with dramatically less enthusiasm.

"I'm sorry," Jasmine bemoaned, hanging her head low. "This is my fault."

"Nah," Thad said, still smiling. He playfully bumped her with his hip as the officers gestured for them to follow, both Growliths' on edge and fire sparking from their mouths. "You probably saved my booty back there, Jazzy. A giant swarm of fuck-off bees? We probably should have gone back to the station." He gave her a wink as one of the officers nudged him to walk forward. "But don't you worry, I'll figure out a way out of this for us."

"I sure hope so." Jasmine looked up at the cloudy sky and sighed. "And just when I thought it couldn't get worse. "And now I fully regret asking Arceus to grant me an adventure…"

Chapter 14: Lair of the Protein King

"Could you stop doing push-ups for… maybe a little bit?" Jasmine shielded her eyes with a hand, hiding her face.

The officers of Azalea town only had a single holding cell. Crime was usually non-existent in the quaint little forest town, so having actual people needing to be incarcerated due to property destruction was a rare occurrence. Jasmine paced around on the tips of her toes, bouncing around like a Spoink with ADHD. Thad handled it like every situation: flexing.

"But, Jazzy! Think of the gains!" Thad lowered himself again, perfect form as he raised himself back up. His breathing was slightly labored and a thin veneer of sweat had graced his brow. "You do realize prison is one of the best places to get jacked, right? We need to take advantage. Now, drop down and join me."

Jasmine's lips became a thin line, holding back a silent scream. "But I don't want to get in shape! I want to not go to prison!"

"We'll be fine," Thad said nonchalantly. "Don't you have connections being a gym leader and all? Not to mention isn't your family hot shit?"

"It's, uh, complicated." Jasmine dug her hands into the shallow pockets of her yellow and silver summer romper. "But, I'd rather not rely on favors. Especially from my family. I'll just have to deal with whatever repercussions come. It was my fault for not being more specific with Rusty and Shuca."

Thad paused mid push-up and looked over, raising an eyebrow. "Shuca?"

"My Excadrill," Jasmine said. "He's kind of a sucker for those berries, so I named him after them."

Thad nodded and scooted his hands together to begin his set of diamond push-ups. "I gotcha. Once knew a powerlifter bro at my local gym named Dorito. That dude was an absolute unit."

Jasmine squinted her eyes. "What's a Dorito?"

"Don't worry about it. It's just carbs, Jazzy," Thad heartily chuckled.

Jasmine groaned and slumped to the floor. She bundled her legs up to her chest and wrapped her arms around her shins. Content to be on the ground, Thad looked onward past the bars at the narrow walkway and doors flanking the containment room. He gave the bars a brief strength test, then let out a sigh and sat down. He'd caused enough mayhem for one day.

They sat for another hour in uncomfortable silence. Without their Pokemon, only the faint hum of the air conditioning filled the room as Jasmine kept herself wide-eyed and tense, awaiting whatever judgment to pass, while Thad decided to get in a power nap; the optimal 45 minutes of downtime followed by some meditation to clear his unhurried mind.

The door to the rest of the station opened, and Jasmine clumsily bounded to her feet. Thad slowly opened his eyes and stood up whilst brushing himself off. Flanked by one of the officers they met earlier, and a teenager with messy lavender hair, a pale green bug catcher's outfit with a yellow tie, and a net slung over his shoulder.

"Alright, you can release them now. I'll take it from here," the teenager instructed, and the police officer hastily pulls out his keys and unlocks the barred door.

"Bugsy!" Jasmine shouted. "I can't thank you enough for this. I'll be sure to pay for the damages!"

The thin gym leader nodded and gestured for the two to follow him. "I, uh, yeah I figured as much. But that's not why you're getting out early. Come get your stuff then we can talk outside the building."

Thad leaned over to Jasmine, nudging her gently in the side with his elbow. "Alternative motives. Saw this on a TV show once."

"Bugsy is a good person, I doubt he's doing anything nefarious," Jasmine replied, her nose pitched in the air. "Besides, it's 'ulterior motives' not 'alternative motives'."

"Watch a lot of crime dramas?"

"...Maybe." Jasmine let out a huff and gently fixed her hair. "Let's just go hear Bugsy out and get our Pokemon back. It feels wrong to be without them."

"True dat, Jazzy," Thad complied, opening the door to the evidence division.

Thad squinted his eyes as he stepped out into the evening light. The rays pierced through the thick canopy that surrounded Azalea town and withheld an exotic aroma of flowers and herbs. He inhaled deeply, his hand patting the Pokeballs on his belt as he walked to create more distance between him and the police department.

He'd paid the 10,000 Pokedollars in damages to the department upon departure, splitting the cost with Jasmine despite her insistence that she pay the whole sum. The earnings from Thadmania now felt like a fever dream as his wallet was considerably lighter.

It didn't take long for Thad to spot Jasmine, who had run out before him, talking with the younger Bug-type trainer. He had his arms crossed and his lips formed a thin line as Jasmine seemed ready to pull her hair out. Thad chuckled and hustled forth, curious about the action.

"Whoa there, what's shaking folks?"

Jasmine whirled around, her face scrunched up in frustration. "Bugsy has a mission for us. He's blackmailing us."

"It's not blackmail. You're being overdramatic," Bugsy said, massaging his temples. "I just need someone to go into the Slowpoke Well and see why our water flow has been reduced."

"That doesn't seem too bad," Thad rubbed his chin and hummed. "You don't have a plumber?"

Bugsy waved for them to follow him down the main drag of Azalea town. "Follow me, I'll show you."

Jasmine saddled up beside Thad, her eyes narrowed on her fellow gym leader. "Bugsy is trying to get us to go do the dirty sewer work. Johto doesn't have a water specialist, and he's notoriously scared of the dark. I hear he didn't help when Team Rocket invaded it months ago."

"Yeesh," Thad muttered. "And this lil dude is the guy in charge?"

"He's a good trainer and helps keep the forests intact," Jasmine rattled off. "His family is largely into nature conservation, and Azalea town isn't a large port or metro to keep steady, unlike Goldenrod, Olivine, or even Blackthorn. It's a rather...comfortable post."

The pavement underneath their feet gave way to fertile grass as they followed Bugsy, keeping their voices low enough to not carry. Thad nodded at Jasmine's dismay, but thought, It's still a rather sweet deal we gotta outta jail for some handyman work. Also, what town doesn't have a plumber?

"We're nearly there," Bugsy said, pointing toward a large trench off to the left side of the path. "Just be careful going down. The ladder should still be intact. I'm sure you two can figure out the problem."

"And what will you be doing...?" Jasmine asked, raising an eyebrow.

Bugsy blinked, almost caught off guard by Jasmine's tone. "Uh, fixing all the damage you did in the Ilex Forest? I'm just dividing up our skill sets. No need to get confrontational."

Jazzy is pissed about something. Thad pulled Jasmine along by her elbow and waved at the Bug-type specialist. "We'll be in and out quick as heck, bro!"

Thad continued to drag Jasmine along until Bugsy was well out of earshot. They stood near the top of the ladder until Jasmine wrenched herself free.

"What was that?" Jasmine asked, massaging her reddened elbow. "You don't need to pull too hard."

"I called an audible, Jazzy," Thad breathed out, sounding a bit exhausted. "We just showed up, and you're trying to rile up the one dude that got us outta prison."

Jasmine raised a finger. "To get us to do their dirty work! And-"

"And what?" Thad crossed his arms, towering over the smaller trainer. "Look, I can see you two've got some beef. That's chill. Whatever. I'd figured you'd be happy to be out of jail, cause I am."

"Well, it's, uh, complicated." Jasmine bit her lip, casting a quick glance back toward town. "Our families don't get along, to put it simply. Conflict of interests, and this is going to have ripples."

"So let's do the job, I'll dunk on that long-haired nerd at the gym, collect a badge, and we continue on our merry way, yeah?"

"Sure," Jasmine said, her voice clipped. "I'll go down the ladder first."

Jasmine began to descend and Thad quickly followed after double-checking and strapping their travel bags to his back, sliding down the metal bars like a firefighter. He nearly landed on top of Jasmine as she hobbled out of the way for the hulking trainer. He flashed her a smile and then dug into his travel pack, pulling out a flashlight.

"Well, well, well, isn't this place huge," Thad whistled out in a low tone. "Could get lost in here pretty easily, oh," Thad pointed the flashlight down a craggy path, "I see a hole! Cave time!"

"We'll have to be careful with what Pokemon we release," Jasmine warned. "Anything too destructive and we'll collapse the tunnel on us as well as cripple Azalea's source of water."

"Right," Thad drawled, picking a Pokeball from his belt. He released the ball, revealing the rock with arms: Dwayne.

"Geo!" Dwayne bellowed, pumping his arms in the air.

"Sup, bro. We got some stuff to do here, and you're gonna help us clear the path." Thad crouched down, offering a fist bump to the sapient boulder. "Think you can handle it?"

Dwayne punched Thad's fist with his own before turning around and hopping on the ground, tossing extra rocks out of the way. They quickly cleared a path to the cave entrance, the chittering of animals and flying creatures began to swirl as Thad maneuvered the flashlight into the cavern.

"Zubats tend to nest in caves like this," Jasmine noted. She placed her hand on the flashlight, lightly pressing it downward. "Don't try to rattle them or the Golbats. Keep the light low and speak softly."

"Right," Thad whispered, tiptoeing into the cavern. Dwayne continued to roll small boulders out of the way. "Gotta say though Jazzy, it's kinda cool doing this."

"What do you mean?"

"Exploring some cave for a mystery Pokemon. Very adventure-y," Thad said in a soft voice. He covered his mouth, muting a laugh. "It's like we're straight outta Scooby-Doo or something."

Jasmine tilted her head and narrowed her eyes. "What in Arceus' name are you talking about?"

Thad waved her off. "TV show from back in the day. Good stuff, ya know? Even had a talking dog."

"Talking...dog? Like a Herdier or Growlithe?"

"No, a mutt," Thad sighed. "Wow, that's still weird to hear ya'll don't have normal animals. Damn," he scratched at the stubble on his chiseled jaw, "I didn't think I'd be missing normal dudes."

"Well, there are Normal-type Pokemon," Jasmine added in a kind tone. "But...you haven't spoken much about where you are from. Do you miss it a lot?"

Dwayne made a grunt as he moved another boulder, rolling it to the side as Thad and Jasmine trailed behind, maneuvering around the cavern. Thad kept a straight face, pondering the question.

"I'm not really sure, Jazzy," Thad said, his voice uncharacteristically unsteady. "Working out and having goals has been a distraction, but I'm having more of a blast here than I ever did back in LA."

"What about your parents? Any siblings?"

Thad grinned. "You know I won't answer that unless you're game too?" He gestured to the winding tunnel before them. "As long as we're quiet, I think we can spit some hot facts at each other."

"Sure," Jasmine said. She cleared her throat and stood as tall as she could next to Thad, her head coming up to his shoulder. "So, what was family life for you?"

"Dad was an Olympic gymnast. Mom was nationals in women's soccer," Thad replied in a lofty tone. "My sister became a physical therapist. I was wrapping up college, but had lots of external offers for sports and stuff."

Jasmine nudged Thad playfully in the ribs, shooting the towering jock a sly look. "You said what they were, not how it was for you."

"Oh, right. Well, uh, busy?" Thad said, almost as a question to himself. "Yeah...busy. Always on the run. Hell, a lot of dinners were held in the training room or the bleachers."

"Was it lonely?"

Thad shrugged. "I mean, there were always people around. Just kinda the runnin' and gunnin' life, I guess. I dug it, for what it's worth. Didn't really do my own thing until college, which was more of the same since I knew what I liked." He stretched his arms out and then steadied the flashlight. "Alright, 'nough about me. It's your turn. Why don't you like your fam?"

"I come from a large steel shipping family." Jasmine kept her eyes on the ground as they walked, almost mumbling under her breath. "Came to Johto as part of a trade deal with Olivine, since I'd always been around Pokemon since I was a kid. Ended up having a knack for it, since they were around when my parents weren't. Luckily, Johto is just far enough from Sinnoh to where I have my own space. Been a nice couple of years so far."

Thad raised an eyebrow. "Your folks ever talk with you. Any siblings?"

"No." Jasmine shook her head; her shoulders slightly slumped. "Just me. That's it."

Well, that's kinda a major bummer. Thad ducked underneath a few stalactites and then paused as he noticed a lumpy pink creature on the path. And I just found a weird dog thing. Noice.

"Ahh, it's a Slowpoke," Jasmine elated, strength returning to her downtrodden voice. "It's a pretty docile Pokemon. We should just be able to—"

A torrent of water buffeted Thad and Jasmine, soaking their outfits. Thad quickly wiped away the water from his eyes, hearing the shouts of Dwayne and the crashing of rocks around them. He instinctively gripped Jasmine by the arm and pulled her in close to his chest.

"The heck was that? I thought you said they were docile?" Thad then lowered his voice. "Wait, is that super mean and annoying? Did I have that one backward?"

Jasmine shook her soaked head of hair, her light foundation and mascara beginning to look a bit muddied. She blinked rapidly and wiped some of the sludge from her face. The rattling from the Zubats had increased and the Slowpoke from earlier had disappeared, though the likely source was from Dwayne's smoldering fist.

"Lucky the water hit us and not Dwayne," Jasmine noted, wringing out her hair. "Strange for a Slowpoke to be on the offensive."

Thad peeled off his soaked compression shirt and wrung it out quickly. "We just find the little dude and, uh, have one of our Pokemon ask 'em questions?" He tapped his chin thoughtfully. "Then again, maybe we're invading or something?"

"Let's keep going. Maybe why that Slowpoke is upset stems from the water issue?" Jasmine offered.

"Right," Thad snatched up Jasmine, tossing her over his shoulder. He tossed up the flashlight, catching it in his mouth. Dwayne turned around to see the look in his trainer's eyes and then latched onto one of Thad's muscular calves. "Eessh time to get stuff done!"

"Please don't talk with your mouth full," Jasmine sighed, not bothering to fight back. "Just make it quick and mind the rocks."

Thad bent his knees down into a squat and then rocketed forth. Using his training of track and field expertise, Thad barreled around corners and shouldered his way through rocks and rubble that lined that path. He even hurdled up a craggy cliff face, using his free hand to latch onto the edge and do a one-armed pull-up, catapulting him and his companions to the top of the small overlook.

Now we're cruising. Thad spotted a descending ladder on the flattened part of the cave, and after a glance downward with the flashlight held in his jaws, he grabbed onto one of the metal bars and slid down it with the grace of a gigolo down a stripper pole.

The second sublayer of the Slowpoke Well was even darker and smelled earthy and musty. The ground was damp and squelched a bit as he picked up his feet. Jasmine sighed but patiently kept her comments in as Thad scanned the area, his free hand hovering over his brow. Dwayne mimicked his trainer in the same fashion, looking out at any ground-level threats.

The first thing Thad noted was the sheer amount of water on this sublevel. He was standing on a small island, with a few other outcroppings of land within jumping distance. The other thing of note was the sheer amount of Slowpoke he noticed in the shallow water that dotted the cavern. There were several dozen of the bidepal Pokemon, their blank expressions all facing South.

Jasmine clambered down from Thad's shoulder, taking a moment to assess the situation. "It looks like...wow, that is a lot of Slowpoke."

"I'll say," Thad noted with his hands on his hips. He looked down at Dwayne. "Any idea what these guys are doing?"

"Geo," Dwayne grunted, his eyes squinted and arms balled up into fists. "Duuuude?"

Thad turned to Jasmine. "Yeah, I think he's confused as we are."

Jasmine began to climb down from the rocky platform and landed in the knee-deep water with a gentle splash. She saw a few Goldeen swimming around in the shallows but minding their own business.

"Let's find the source, they're all pointed this way," Jasmine pointed. "And it seems they don't mind us walking around them."

Thad carefully climbed down, suppressing the urge to yeet himself into the water. Dwayne clambered up Thad's body, gripping around his left bicep, wanting to avoid the water at all costs. "Aye, you got it, boss. Also, do these pinky dudes bite?"

"Not unless you stick your hand in their mouth or smell like cheese," Jasmine replied. She snickered as she saw Thad give himself a brief sniff. "I think you're fine."

"Just double-checking, Jazzy," Thad quietly replied. He crept forward, keeping the flashlight low, though the reflection of light off the water didn't seem to perturb the Slowpoke.

The trio trudged onward through the water, avoiding the bobbing sea of Slowpoke and Jasmine keeping Thad on track when he'd spot a Goldeen flitting by. They made it to the South end of the cavern where the group of Slowpoke was facing, and both trainers tilted their heads in confusion as they saw the pipeline and what was wedged inside of it.

"Well, he looks cozy," Thad noted, unable to hide a smile.

Jasmine found herself at a loss for words. Inside the drainage pipe to Azalea Town, wedged inside of it was the largest Quagsire she'd ever seen in her life. Nearly double the size of what they normally grew to, it filled the confines of the pipe with only its head sticking out. Mounds of berries were stockpiled in front of it. It smiled at the two humans, opening its large maw.

"Well, we found the problem," Jasmine said, her voice tense like an overly tuned harp. "It seems these Slowpoke are...watching the Quagsire be stuck in the pipe and bringing it food."

"It is more than that," A gruff and rumbly voice came from behind the group.

Thad and Jasmine whirled around, and Dwayne summoned a rock into its open palm. The creature stood roughly about six feet tall with pink skin, stubby limbs, with a spiked shell with jewels adorning its head. Jasmine blinked, a bit taken back, but Thad strode forward confidently to the Pokemon.

"Alright, first off, you can talk?" Thad asked.

The Pokemon nodded. "Yes. Are you here on behalf of the humans from above? We've been waiting for an envoy."

Thad squinted his eyes and exchanged a confused glance with Jasmine. He looked back to the talking Pokemon. "...Yes, we're the ambassadors. Come to talk about...water stuff. Like why it ain't working that well in Azalea Town."

"Ahhhh," the Pokemon hummed, closing his eyes and relishing the words. "Makes sense. We await tribute for our water priest."

"Water priest?" Jasmine quipped. She pulled Thad aside, whispering into his ear, "I think the Pokemon here have made a religion!"

"Is that normal?" Thad asked quietly back.

"No! Slowking are super rare in the wild! Even weirder that we've found a, uh, Slowpoke Cult!" Thad pressed a finger to his lips, and Jasmine cleared her throat and lowered her voice. "It's weird, Thad."

"Weird is kinda this whole world, Jazzy," Thad chuckled. He patted her on the shoulder and turned around. "Don't worry. I think I've got this."

Thad walked back to the Slowking and bowed. "Uh, hello my fellow Pokedude. So as a dude from Azalea town, we need the pipes to be clear for the water to flow, so if we could—"

"Tribute," the Slowking slowly hummed, gesturing toward the pile of food before the Quagsire. "If it pleases the water priest, he will feast and leave the pipe. I'm merely the voice for this wonderous specimen and my kin."

"Right," Thad drawled. He unslung his and Jasmine's travel sacks from his back and began rifling through the contents.

Jasmine hustled over and knelt beside Thad. "What are you looking for?"

"Something worthy of an offering—ah, here we go," Thad plucked out a container of protein, holding it up triumphantly. "I will sacrifice the greatest thing I possess to help the town. And, uh, us of course."

"Geeee!" Dwayne squealed, tugging on his trainer's shoulder. "Duu!"

Thad wiped a single tear away from his cheek. "If it keeps Jazzy out of jail and gets us out of this hole, I'll give up my protein." He looked up to the Slowking, giving the creature a determined look. "So the dude's a hungry fella?"

Slowking shrugged. "He is voracious. Our pious river lord has only left the pipe once for food since arrival. He is a fickle one."

Thad gave the Slowking one last nod and then marched toward the looming Quagsire with a canister of protein in hand. The creature's beady, vacant eyes met Thad's focused brown ones as he squared up before the behemoth and presented the canister.

A silence fell over the cavern as the Quagsire took note of the food. It leaned its rounded head forward, sniffing the contents. Thad bit his lower lip as the Pokemon extended its tongue, stealing a little bit of the powdery goodness from the container. He took a step back, trying to lure the beast further out of the pipeline.

The Quagsire wiggled forward, and with a great splash, it squeezed its body from the pipe like someone would the last bit of toothpaste from the tube. Water began to flood forth into the pipe. The rippling wave displaced many of the Slowpoke, sending them bobbing and floating on the water throughout the cavern. Thad whistled loudly as he got a full view of the large Quagsire; it stood on its flat hind feet, matching Thad's height as it lumbered forward.

"Uh, here ya go?" Thad said, handing over the protein can. The Quagsire took the can into its stubby flipper arms, and ate the protein—can and all. It then extended its tongue out, dropping the empty can.

"Sire," The Pokemon croaked in a deep, booming voice.

"Our river priest is pleased," The Slowking noted, a hint of approval lathered in the Pokemon's rough accent. "He desires more."

Jasmine watched with rapt attention as Thad carefully pulled out another can of protein. He shook the protein, getting the Quagsire's attention. "You want more of this? Come and get it." he began to creep backward and looked at Jasmine. "Let's start going back. I'mma lure this big guy with some delicious protein."

Without more explanation, Jasmine snatched the flashlight and served as a guide through the rest of the well. The Quagsire lumbered forth at a comfortable pace, with Thad keeping the protein just out of reach from the Pokemon's long, dextrous tongue. Dwayne eyed the hungry Water-type with a rock-solid stare, though it did little to intimidate the Quagsire.

Even the Zubat seemed to give the large Quagsire a wide berth as it slid across the dampened floor and crawled forth. It even used a combination of its flippers and tongue to help pull itself up the metal ladders.

When the team breached the surface, Thad let the Quagsire have its reward, tossing it the protein canister. He wiped a bead of sweat from his forehead and gave a high-five to Dwayne.

"Well, there goes a lot of money and protein," Thad grumbled lightly. "Guess we can always buy more, but damn he's a chonker."

"Wow," Jasmine said, her voice filled with awe. "I can't believe there is a Slowking in the well. That's...amazing. It must be new. I've never seen one outside of a tournament before. Do you think we should tell the town?"

"Nah, leave the Slowpoke cult to their biz. They seem chill, but," Thad said, holding back the mammoth Quagsire as far as his arms could reach, "I think this dude is still hungry. I'm all fine for sacrificing a bottle of protein, but if this dude wants my whole stash it's going to be war."

Jasmine walked over to the struggling duo, but looked at Dwayne and smiled. "Think you can help out?"

The Geodude grinned. "Geo geo!" The Rock-type unhitched himself from Thad and began to gesture and babble at the Quagsire.

"Quaaag?" The Pokemon spurted out, looking at the Geodude bouncing on the ground. It released the grapple with Thad and focused its beady eyes on the new conversation.

Thad and Jasmine watched in mild confusion as the two Pokemon bantered for a minute, going back and forth between grunts, chirps, and gestures.

Thad crossed his arms and watched the negotiations. "So...what are they saying?"

"Something along the lines of a deal," Jasmine answered, mouthing a few words under her breath. "It's...difficult to decipher, but at least the Quagsire is listening."

"How do you do that? I could only understand the Pokemon with the funny hat."

"Years and years of training," Jasmine replied. "Understanding the pitch, specific gestures, and tone of a Pokemon is important. It's being able to understand what a Pokemon means on an empathetic level."

"Like how I talk with Chad?" Thad pondered. "I always kinda know what he's thinking, though he just says 'chop' a lot."

Jasmine smirked. "Probably because you two think about very similar things, or maybe you're just more attuned to Fighting-types. I'm not a professor, but it probably is because of the bond you two share."

Good to know, Thad thought as he watched Dwayne bounce back toward him. The Quagsire watched him motionlessly, the vacant expression unsettling the jock a bit.

"Dude!" Dwayne triumphantly chirped, pumping his arms. "Duuuude!"

"Translation?" Thad asked, looking at Jasmine.

"I think he's worked out some sort of deal," Jasmine listened to more of the Geodude's babbling, nodding along. "Right. So...I think the Quagsire wants more protein powder," Dwayne nodded, "...and it'll agree to help you out in exchange."

"D-did you just recruit this absolute unit?" Thad sized up the Quagsire again. "Sheesh, that guy must eat a lot."

Jasmine nodded. "Usually Quagsire aren't that hungry, or picky, but I guess because of its unusual size it needs more food."

"Well, if he wants to get swole, he came to the right place," Thad dug an empty Pokeball from his pack and walked up to the Quagsire. He stared directly into the Pokemon's eyes with razor-sharp focus; the Pokemon didn't even flinch or blink. He held up the Pokeball. "Alright, bud, here's the deal—"

The Quagsire's tongue flew forth, coiling around the Pokeball, and ingesting it. Thad's jaw dropped as the slimy Water-type let out a small burp, and then a faint click echoed out from inside the Quagsire's gut, and it transformed into a red beam of light. The slimy Pokeball fell to the ground, jiggled once, and then remained dormant.

Thad wiped some of the slime off on the grass before putting the Pokeball on his belt. "Well, I guess we've got a new dude on Team Beefcake." He gave Dwayne a thumbs up and then returned him to his respective Pokeball. Thad's lips became a thin line as he scratched his head. "Still, protein is hella expensive and that chungus might bankrupt me."

"But we've completed our deal with Bugsy," Jasmine added, smiling. "We've still got some Pokedollars, and you've got a new Pokemon. Quagsire is a unique type, and can be quite versatile."

"Huh, neat." Thad looked up at the treeline, taking note of the vibrant rays of orange and pinkish light. "Looks like it's dusk. Get a room at the Pokemon center and take on the bug man tomorrow?"

Jasmine gave Thad a broad grin. "Sounds like a plan. But, you might want to do one last thing before we get into town," she gestured toward his Pokeballs, "What's their name going to be? Did you have one in mind?"

Thad rubbed his chin, humming lightly. "How about… Keto. Cause he's a protein junkie. Yup. That's the one."

"Well, it's certainly unique," Jasmine said, though her voice faltered a bit. "Back to town then?"

"For sure, Jazzy," Thad replied. He double-checked their bags, resecured them on his back, and then strode beside Jasmine. The backs of their hands brushed against each other as they walked back into the lamplight town, but neither made the move to grasp the other's hand.

But neither moved or brushed the other's hand away, either. Both smiled, content with a day filled with misadventures.