Indeedees will always remember this day

"Hahaha!"

Seeing the usually serious, little-adult-like Indeedee brother nod in agreement, old man Sato chuckled heartily.

The two Indeedees turned to look at him.

Old man Sato said, "Alright, alright, looks like I don't need to worry anymore. In that case, I'll leave them in your care from now on."

Naoki nodded confidently, "Don't worry, I will take good care of them."

Old man Sato addressed the two Indeedees, "Go ahead!"

The sister Indeedee happily walked over to Naoki, and the brother followed silently behind her.

Seeing this, Naoki smiled and gently reached out to pat the sister's head.

"Ai ah~" (Happy!)

When Naoki put his hand on the brother Indeedee's head, he felt the Pokémon's body stiffen slightly.

"You look so serious, why don't you smile?" Naoki teased with a grin.

Hearing this, the brother Indeedee seemed startled and looked up.

Despite his expressionless face earlier, the Indeedee brother had been carefully listening to Naoki's introduction of the ranch, using his psychic abilities to sense Naoki's emotions.

When Naoki spoke about the ranch, the Indeedee sensed his pride.

"He must be proud of managing such a big ranch so well," the brother Indeedee thought.

And when Naoki spoke of the Pokémon on the ranch, the brother felt a deep, genuine joy.

Naoki's love for his Pokémon was pure and unrelated to their strength. Under the warm autumn sun, the smile on Naoki's face was like a gentle breeze, filling the air with warmth.

Although the brother Indeedee didn't show any expression, he quietly observed Naoki.

He felt that this was a day he and his sister would remember forever.

They had met a human who truly cared.

After a moment, the brother Indeedee quietly responded, "Aiya..."

Unfortunately, the translation seed crisps Naoki had eaten earlier had worn off, so he could no longer understand what the Indeedee said.

But from the gentle tone, Naoki guessed it wasn't anything like, "I'm born not to smile."

Seeing how well they were getting along, old man Sato felt reassured.

He took out a piece of paper from his suit pocket and handed it over. "Here's the phone number for the manor. If you ever need help, don't hesitate to call."

Naoki, thinking of the Indeedees and how they might miss their old home, accepted the number. "Thank you! I appreciate that."

Old man Sato smiled, leaned on his cane, and waved to the two Indeedees. "See you later, little ones!"

Naoki stood with them, watching as old man Sato got into the car and drove off into the distance.

He expected the Indeedees to be sad or need comforting, but when he turned around, he saw the sister Indeedee looking at him with bright, happy eyes. Even the brother Indeedee, who usually looked so serious, was watching him calmly.

There was no sadness or reluctance in their gaze.

Naoki paused, his words of comfort stuck in his throat. Then he smiled warmly and said, "I thought you'd be sad and need cheering up."

"Ai ah~" (Not at all!)

"Ai ah..." (Not really...)

The sister Indeedee beamed, while the brother Indeedee sighed lightly as if to say, "Well, how should I explain this?"

They had known since they were young that they would eventually have new human families, so they had been looking forward to it for a long time.

Naoki ate another piece of translation seeds and chatted with the two Indeedees on this topic for a while.

He roughly understood what they meant. Just like the Pokémons, the Pokémon League prepares for new trainers, the Indeedees had also been excitedly awaiting their new trainer, imagining what they would be like.

The two Pokémon were surprised that Naoki could understand their speech.

For the first time, the older brother Indeedee showed a look of panic, quickly thinking back to see if he had said anything he shouldn't have. It seemed the only thing he had mentioned was that they shouldn't invest too much emotion in humans when they first meet them...

The brother Indeedee anxiously asked, "Ai Ai?" (Master, did you hear us talking just now?)

He worried that Naoki might dislike him because of what he said.

Naoki blinked and gently corrected him, "Don't use 'Master' as a formal title. We're equals here."

The sister Indeedee chimed in, "Ai eh?" (But isn't that what Mom and Dad taught us? They said the human who takes care of us will be our new master, and we should help him well.)

Naoki listened patiently, organized his thoughts, and then replied, "Instead of 'master,' I think it's more appropriate to say we're like family. Just like a normal human family, where the care and support go both ways. You help me with the house, and I take care of you in return."

"Ae Ai?" (Is that so?) The younger sister Indeedee looked a bit confused.

"Yes," Naoki said. He then turned to the older brother Indeedee, who was waiting for reassurance, and asked, "Do you think I'm the kind of person who would abandon a Pokémon just because they're weak?"

The brother Indeedee was caught off guard but shook his head honestly. From what he had observed, it didn't seem like Naoki was that kind of person.

Naoki smiled. "Then isn't that good?"

As he spoke, he noticed from the corner of his eye that Butterfree, Glaceon, Cyclizar, Koraidon, and Dragonite were all hiding and peeking around the corner, watching the conversation curiously.

Naoki waved them over. "Come on, you don't need to hide."

"This Dragonite," Naoki began, patting the Pokémon on the back, "was very clumsy when it was younger. It only knew a few moves even though, at its age, other Dragonites could use many more."

He paused and looked at the Indeedees. "By that standard, Dragonite would have been considered weak, right?"

Dragonite blinked and tilted its head with a little sigh as if to say, "Hey, I'm not that weak!"

Hearing this, the two Indeedees looked at the chubby Dragonite.

Naoki continued, "But after coming to this ranch, Dragonite slowly grew and has now learned many, many moves."

"Oooooh!" Dragonite puffed out its chest proudly.

"And this little Pawmo here," Naoki gestured towards the small Pokémon wearing a bright red cape. "It used to be so weak that it couldn't even stand up to a hen."

Pawmo nodded enthusiastically and, eager to support Naoki's story, began to tell the two Indeedees about its past:

"Pawmo Pawmo!" (That's right! I came to the ranch to steal food and was caught by Naoki. I was so scared, but Naoki didn't hurt me. Instead, he adopted me and let me stay here! Naoki is the best human ever!)

Naoki smiled, continuing, "And now, the once-weak Pawmo has transformed into a powerful Pokémon that can control lightning at will—even using it to fly."

"Pawmo!" Pawmo agreed, eyes shining with determination, as it performed a little superhero takeoff for the two Indeedees.

The red cape, which Naoki had washed and kept spotless, fluttered dramatically behind it.

'Fly? It can fly?!'

The two Indeedees' eyes widened in disbelief.

They exchanged glances, finally starting to understand what Naoki was trying to convey.

Naoki smiled warmly, then glanced at the other Pokémon around them, playfully poking the nose of the Dratini that had snuck up next to him. 

"If you want to know more, you can talk to the others later," he said with a grin.

In this way, Naoki hoped the two Indeedees would feel comfortable and quickly become part of life on the ranch, just like all the other Pokémon.