InuYasha Fan Fiction / Crossover Fan Fiction / Slayers Fan Fiction ❯ *What* Insertion? ❯ A Mazoku Out of Water ( Chapter 9 )

[ A - All Readers ]

*WHAT* INSERTION?
by Curtis Wildcat


Chapter Nine --- A Mazoku Out of Water

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(Cue theme)

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Location: Cerulean City
Time: Ten minutes after Chapter Eight's conclusion

A little orange creature with a white mane of fur scanned both ends of the street before deciding it had never been so lost.

Flareon had once been a valued member of a trainer's team. It had stumbled upon a lone human traveling somewhere six months ago and had wound up getting caught. It had done well in battling for a while after that, but that soon changed; after a rash of losses against stronger opponents, the trainer (who apparently didn't know the first thing about taking care of Pokémon) got mad and set it loose. Today, it was wandering around the city, trying to find a Pokémon Center---it knew good people when it saw them---when it caught a whiff of smoke. It had followed the scent this far, but it seemed to have vanished.

Shaking its head, Flareon continued on, taking care to avoid any pedestrians. Gazing down the road, it sighted a familiar landmark: the Cerulean City gym. It knew this place; its trainer had made the mistake of using it against the leader's water-types, and it had gotten wiped out rather handily.

Something tickled its nose, getting it twitching. What's that---hey, it's smoke! Must be the same scent! And where there's smoke...there's fire! Without another second's thought, it ducked around and behind several people between him and the gym doors. Wonder what it is?

Grunting, Flareon tried to open the doors with all its strength. Not succeeding, it wandered around the gym until it found a window open a slight crack. Aften about fifteen seconds, it managed to nudge it open wider and squeeze through.

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A kid with black hair (it seemed to reflect light, oddly enough) and a large towel wrapped around him glared across the table. A woman with lengthy sea-blue hair glared back, unfazed; her hand hovered over a pen and notepad. Caught between them, Richie and Misty couldn't do much else but blink nervously.

Phibrizzo turned to Misty. "Let me see if I have this straight. A few weeks ago after you took the reins here at the gym---pun not intended---you woke up in the middle of the night and found her lying unconscious in the pool."

"Yes, that's right."

"When she woke up, she tried to talk but couldn't. You wanted someone to help take care of the water-types here, so after some one-sided conversation she agreed to help---she attracts those things like I attract idiocy anyway, so it worked out to everyone's advantage in the end."

"I don't know about the idiocy part, but that's the gist of it," Misty said, unsure of where this was going. In her arms, Togepi squealed his agreement.

"And since she couldn't talk, you went to a local library and checked out a book on sign language. You used whatever spare time you had to get the hang of everything in there, and helped her out with that."

"Yes."

Phibrizzo threw one of his hands up in irritation; Misty noticed that he still had his bracelet on his wrist (he'd said it used to be a whole bracelet, but he'd accidentally broken it). "I'm convinced. If she wasn't a nut before, she was now."

"What do you mean, 'nut'?" Richie asked, impatient.

"I'm curious, too," Misty added, a trifle suspicious. "How do you know Lauren, anyway?"

"Her name's not Lauren," Phibrizzo stated, irritable. "Her name's Deep Sea Dolphin, and she's my sister. Whatever name she gave you is nothing more than a fake to help her blend in with society. If she wants to keep going by that name, fine. I've known her a lot longer than you have, though, so don't discourage me any."

That reaction shook Misty a little, but she didn't show it; Richie seemed both annoyed and interested in what he'd said. In the meantime 'Dolphin' wrote something down and passed the notepad to Phibrizzo, who read it aloud: "'How long has it been since you got here?' Around three weeks, give or take a few days. Why?"

Dolphin's expression changed totally. Her eyes bugged out and she pretended to yell, then stretched out her hands towards Phibrizzo and pulled them in. She then relaxed and pretended to doze off on the table, then perked up and waited for her brother's response.

Her brother just looked puzzled as he tossed the notepad back. "I don't do charades very well, but I think you're saying you fell asleep while playing tug-of-war with a deranged gargoyle."

Misty and Richie struggled to stay standing as Dolphin smacked Phibrizzo with the notepad. Shaking her head, the woman closed her eyes for a second and smiled. After tapping her chin with the pen thoughtfully, she scrawled a lengthier message beneath the first one before dishing off the notepad.

Richie grabbed another chair and sat down next to Phibrizzo, leaning over to read the message. "I was out of my mind a couple weeks ago, but something calmed me...can't explain it. Felt completely exhausted and fell asleep. Before I knew it, she was pulling me out of the water. Didn't know where I was...felt stressed and confused. Water creatures were wondering who I was, the Vaporeon in particular. Accepted that I wouldn't be home for a while, decided to be with them."

This statement interested Misty. "You mean you were insane? How come?"

Dolphin just shook her head, while Phibrizzo stared at them unreadably. "Excuse me. How long do you think it will be before my stuff is done drying off?" he asked. "I do have a bit of a curfew."

"What time?"

"Six o'clock. I was adopted not too long ago, and my foster mom's pretty strict as far as getting-home-time goes."

Misty checked a clock that hung near the bathroom door. "Well, it's 5:05 now...they should be done drying off in about twenty minutes, I think."

"Alright; great. Be back in a few seconds," Phibrizzo said, getting up and heading into the bathroom.

Misty glanced concernedly at him for a few seconds. "He seems rather odd," she said quietly. As Dolphin rolled her eyes, the gym leader turned away and greeted Richie with a smile. "So, Richie, what brings you to Cerulean City?"

Richie sat down in the chair that Phibrizzo had just vacated. "Well, after I finished up at the Whirl Islands, I caught a ferry to the Hoenn region. I went around for a bit before I heard an advertisement for---"

The conversation proved to be short-lived as Phibrizzo suddenly backpedaled out of the bathroom, not stopping until he hit the far wall. "Miss," he nearly shouted, alarmed, "I thought you only trained water-types here!"

Everyone, Togepi included, blinked. "I do," Misty confirmed. "Not counting Togepi, of course, but---"

"Well, there's a fire-type sitting on my clothes in front of the heater!" the angry kid snapped, looking seriously ticked.

By now, both Misty and Richie were getting fed up with his attitude. When both of them hesitated to check what he meant, Dolphin took her notepad and pen and got up to see for herself. After peeking inside, she leaned back in and waved them in, smirking.

Of all the things that Misty expected to see as she followed the direction of Dolphin's hand, she certainly wasn't expecting this. Where Phibrizzo's pants and shirt were neatly folded in front of the heater, a Flareon was curled up on them. Its eyes seemed to be locked on the boy standing behind them; it barely even acknowledged the others' arrival.

"I don't get it. What's a Flareon doing in here?" Richie asked, confused.

Dolphin snapped her fingers, and the Vaporeon that had taken a liking to her sauntered into the room. She mouthed something inaudible, then gestured towards the Flareon. Getting the hint, the Vaporeon entered the bathroom and began conversing with the fire-type in its own language.

"No offense, Deep Sea, but how's a one-way conversation going to help?" Phibrizzo asked, still sounding nervous.

Dolphin just smirked and tapped her forehead. Phibrizzo calmed down, emitting an "Ohhh. Almost forgot" in understanding.

"Sounds like you know about it, too," Misty told him. "She's somehow able to understand how water Pokémon communicate with each other."

"Understandable," Phibrizzo murmured. "Caught her talking to a goldfish once. I can only imagine what your own reaction must've been."

The Vaporeon turned back to Dolphin and crooned something to her. Nodding, the long-haired woman jotted something down in the notepad and turned to show it to everyone. Phibrizzo inched closer to see what it said, as did everyone else.

Richie's Pikachu, Sparky, was the first to blink at the statements scrawled on the notepad; his trainer followed suit seconds later. "'The window was open'? 'That green-eyed boy smells like fire'? What does that mean?"

Everyone turned to Phibrizzo, who shook his head repeatedly. "I didn't do it!"

"We're not accusing you of anything," Richie said, sounding a bit put off at the kid's attitude. "Have you noticed anything strange at all recently?"

"Beats me," Phibrizzo growled, his young face stern; the others took note that his eye color seemed to hover between yellow and green. "Whole lots of crazy stuff has been happening to me recently. I've been hitting my head on stuff at least once a day. There's this kleptomanic girl that started chasing me and calling me 'Julien'." Dolphin was grinning widely when he said this, but he kept going. "My best friend is a pint-sized detective. An agent of Team Rocket hates me. My new aunt is a lawyer---"

Misty cut him off, surprised. "Hold on a second. You've met up with Team Rocket before? When was this?"

Dolphin scribbled something and held it up for them to see. 'Your new aunt is a lawyer?'

"Talk about a small world." Phibrizzo folded his arms the best he could. "Richie, you remember what I said earlier about getting that Water Show ticket from a criminal? I'm gonna explain, so you people might as well sit down."

Curious, the trio sat down in their original chairs. Dolphin's Vaporeon leapt onto the table and sat against the woman's arm.

"It started with my school principal...sort of. She'd gotten a pamphlet describing Cerulean City from her nephew, who takes a lot of accidental tours of Japan and the like. She'd asked an associate of mine to give it back to him, and the two of us went to where he'd most likely turn up. While I was there, I..." Phibrizzo's sour look faded, to be replaced by apprehension and nervousness. "Um...how should I put this..." He sighed. "Well, lets just say I took on an Arcanine and leave it at that."

"Took it on, how?" Richie asked. "It didn't look like you had any Pokémon with you."

"I don't have any."

"Well, then how did you manage to fight an Arcanine? This doesn't make any sense!" Misty protested.

Dolphin jotted something else down. 'Get to the part about the lawyer!'

Phibrizzo sighed again. "You do realize I'm not from Cerulean City, do you?"

Everyone nodded yes. "I figured as much, since you said you didn't like water a lot," Richie remarked.

"Would you believe that of all the places in the world I could've moved to, I had to wind up in Tokyo, Japan?" Phibrizzo asked, averting his eyes. "At the very least, that'll explain why I don't have any Pokémon." As an aside, he added: "Although if I had to choose, I kind of like the fire-types I've seen so far..."

"Well, we don't get visitors from mainland Japan too often," Misty said, interested. "So, how did you manage to fight the Arcanine?"

"I'd give a demonstration for you, but I'd need more room for that, and I'm not exactly in a condition to go elsewhere right now," Phibrizzo explained. "And chances are that Dolphin's the only one who'd believe me if I said it aloud." He turned to her. "Right?"

Dolphin held up the notepad. 'What about the lawyer?'

"You and your lawyers," Phibrizzo groaned disbelievingly. "Just answer my question!"

His sister raised her left hand to show that Phibrizzo wasn't right.

"What, you don't think you'd believe me either? Fine," the boy grumbled. He reached as far across the table as he could without leaning over. "Dolphin, grab my hand."

The woman shrugged before doing so.

Phibrizzo braced himself. "Now, pull my hand as hard as you can."

Dolphin arched an eyebrow...then grabbed the pen and scribbled something on his arm.

There was a little shriek of surprise. "Ack! Hey! Stop that!" Phibrizzo shouted, trying to pry his hand loose but failing. Gritting his teeth, he stepped backward...and kept going. Strange thing was, so did his arm. His hand stayed where it was, but...

Richie's mouth fell open. "Wha...!"

Misty's reaction was much the same. "What!? Impossible! No way!"

"Yes way...Dolphin, stop writing on my arm!" Phibrizzo protested. "What---hey, that's blue ink! Mom's gonna have a conniption! Blast it, fish face---let me go!"

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Hearing the commotion, the Flareon reluctantly left the place where it had been sitting (leaving behind a substantially drier set of clothes, thanks to its abnormally high body temperature). After being startled out of its wits by seeing a long-armed kid---the same one he'd tracked down---trying unsuccessfully to free his hand, he leaped onto the table to speak with the Vaporeon.

With many Pokémon, what trainers hear is their own name being repeated. Hidden there, though, is a rather complexing and confusing language; this is what they use to communicate. Right now, the two were taking advantage of that.

The Flareon spoke first. 'Excuse me, but what's going on here?'

'I think my trainer was right about her being insane,' the Vaporeon replied sadly, still staring at the blue-haired woman. 'She's drawing on the kid's arm, and she's not letting go. I'd help, but there are a lot of things she likes to do by herself.'

'Do I have permission to distract her, then?'

'If you really want to risk her fury, go on ahead. I want nothing to do with this.'

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A disgruntled Phibrizzo heard the two of them chattering. What are they going on about? he asked as he tried to get loose.

"I don't speak Pokémonese," Curtis replied, covering his smile with one hand. "I guess we'll find out, though."

Curtis was right. Once the two were done talking, Flareon turned to face Dolphin and spat out a Flamethrower attack without hesitation.

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Oddly enough, Dolphin was unharmed from the Flareon's attack. Her face was turned a dark gray, however, and she had finally decided to let go of Phibrizzo's hand. She also looked mildly annoyed, but that didn't register with anyone; they were too surprised with the impromptu demonstration to notice.

Phibrizzo's arm *snapped* back to its normal length. He examined his wrist and hand to see what Dolphin had written, moving his bracelet out of the way as he did so. Abruptly, the air around him seemed to heat up. "Sister," he said very calmly, "what's the meaning of this?"

Sparky's ears twitched rapidly, and he took a few steps back nervously. "Pi-kaaa," he moaned, not liking what he was seeing.

"Excuse me, but what was she writing on your arm?" Misty asked, looking somewhat apprehensive herself as she stood up.

"'Writing', nothing," Phibrizzo growled, turning to face her and Richie. Several veins were standing out on his head as he snarled, "She was doodling a picture of a minnow with a happy face on it!"

Sweatdrops all around, except for Dolphin; the woman just sat in her chair, smiling gently and looking as innocent as possible. The Flareon that had been on the table jumped onto the floor and rubbed against Phibrizzo's ankles, whining softly.

With all his might, Phibrizzo managed to get his temper under control. Releasing all his anger in one deep sigh, he stared down at the Flareon. "So I can understand you...tack that on to the list of crazy stuff that's been happening to me. I guess it's not just Nerima after all."

The others didn't know what that meant, but they did set it aside for future reference. Finally getting over their surprise, they calmed themselves enough to sit back down. "I don't know if I get it, but it's a pretty neat trick," Richie commented. "Was there anything else about the fight?"

"Come to think of it, yeah," Phibrizzo said, making sure to stand as far away from Dolphin as possible. "That Arcanine was wearing some type of weird collar around its neck. It was supposed to augment all its abilities---speed, its attack and defensive powers...the works. Unfortunately, there was something in the collar itself that was making it extremely irritable and upset. I was able to make it mad enough to blast me, but I grabbed the collar as it did so and got out of the way. I pulled the device off and punched it until it stopped working, and after that the fire dog calmed down and stopped attacking me."

Phibrizzo's face darkened. "Then she appeared."

"She?" Richie and Misty inquired. The Vaporeon and Flareon both asked the question in their own language, as well.

"Real unethical lady. She had the nerve to try to get me to join Team Rocket." He scowled. "I don't like flowers. Don't like them at all."

"Flowers?"

"Yeah. Flowers. Especially Black Tulips. Does the name 'Domino' ring a bell at all, miss?"

Misty knew that name, alright; the blonde-haired woman had been a major thorn to deal with during a certain incident in the Johto region. Her eyes widened as she realized who Phibrizzo had faced. "I know who you're talking about. Curly blonde hair, carries a sharpened flower, has a red and white cap?"

"The one and only. As far as I know, she's one of Team Rocket's best agents. Anyhow, after I flat-out told her to stick a sock in it, I accused her of being crazy just for showing up where she did..."

Phibrizzo took a few minutes to explain what happened, briefly describing the fight between Domino and another woman called 'The Black Rose', how he got the Water Show ticket, and the events that took place afterwards. He also mentioned that the Arcanine that had attacked him was safely delivered back home and released.

"Anyhow, I'm not sure why Domino had that ticket to begin with," Phibrizzo confessed. "I don't know whether she just wanted to see the Water Show herself or if she had some sort of plan to steal the gym's Pokémon."

Dolphin folded her arms and shot Phibrizzo a look that meant one thing to Misty: if anyone was going to steal the Pokémon here, they'd have to deal with her first.

"If I know Team Rocket, probably the latter," Misty decided.

Richie agreed. "I don't think they'd pick up a ticket just for the entertainment value, unless they'd be able to get just as much back. This Domino person is likely no exception."

Dolphin arched an eyebrow at the two, then scribbled something down and showed it to them. 'Brother, when are you going to tell me about the lawyer?'

"You ever try red herring before?" Phibrizzo deadpanned, sweatdropping. "I hear it's delicious."

More scribbling. 'In that case, could I have your home address? I'd like to visit you sometime.'

Phibrizzo shrugged, reaching for the pen and notepad. "Sure, if you don't mind the trip," he said, writing down his address. "Just stay out of the Nerima district unless you want to go insane again."

Dolphin arched an eyebrow.

"Yeah, it's that bad...on the other hand---"

There was a knock at the door.

"Come in! Who is it?" Misty called.

The door from the hallway to the kitchen opened, allowing everyone to see who it was. A blonde-haired young woman in tourist attire stepped through. "I don't mean to be a bother, but can I use your restroom?"

Misty smiled. "Sure. Go on ahea---"

"YOU!"

Misty and Richie's heads spun towards Phibrizzo, whose face looked much more piercing than before. There was something that seemed off about him...

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The woman's eyes widened. He was here! Why couldn't he just settle for staying at home? "What are you doing here?"

"Talking to my sister, you dolt," Phibrizzo snarled. "I don't know why you're here, Domino, but you're not wanted. Scram!"

Domino's left eye twitched minutely as two of the others gasped; she took note that the blue-haired woman didn't make any noise. "How'd you know it was me?"

Phibrizzo's angry look didn't change. "So you changed your hairstyle. Who cares? Your face and voice haven't changed; and quite frankly, I don't like your voice at all! Take a hike so that I don't have to listen to it!"

"I'm staying right here, kid," Domino replied calmly, not letting the others know how upset she was. "I still owe you for that stunt you pulled earlier. I may not entirely understand how you bested me, but I plan on taking full advantage of it this time!" She unhooked a Great Ball from inside her sleeve and activated it. "Feraligatr, come on out!"

With a red flare of light, the massive blue alligator Pokémon materialized. It growled deeply, then prepared itself for battle.

Phibrizzo didn't quite have the reaction Domino was expecting, however. "Get that thing out of here!" he screamed. The statement's absolute force blasted back the gym leader's hair and sent the other kid's hat flying, as well as startling the Feraligatr into jumping up several feet. Three other Pokémon in the room scurried for cover, and the girl's Togepi began crying. The older woman, Domino saw, seemed unfazed.

"Why should I?" Domino asked, sneering.

"Because, brainless, I'm not about to fight you in the state I am now! You mean it's not obvious?" Phibrizzo griped. "Your revenge is just going to have to wait until my stuff dries off!"

"What did you just call me!?"

"You heard every word I said! Whoever tries to recruit a kid into a criminal organization must've donated their brain to rocket science without asking for a refund! It's not just unethical---it's asinine!" the kid argued, backing towards the bathroom. "Now stay there, and don't leave the building!"

Phibrizzo backed into the bathroom and slammed the door, finalizing his statement. "Smart-aleck, loud-mouthed brat," Domino growled as the girl tried to calm the Togepi she held. "That kid's got quite the attitude."

The nearby woman just shrugged, her smile giving away her embarrassment.

Richie straightened out his hair and retrieved his hat. "So, now what? Should we make her leave?" he asked his Pikachu, who nodded and began sparking with electricity.

Before the Pikachu could fire off its attack, the blue-haired woman got up and jumped over the table. Upon her landing, the Vaporeon scampered from beneath the table and took a ready position at her feet. The woman then proceeded to say something silently. Thank goodness for lip reading.

Let's see...'Leave my brother be. Instead, let us see whose Pokémon deserves to have a trainer: yours, or mine.' She's quite confident in her abilities, isn't she? "You against me? Fine. This isn't the place for a battle, though. We'll settle this in the auditorium."

Domino wasn't sure what to think when the woman's expression became vaguely sinister. For that matter, the others probably felt the same way too.

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So we aren't going to bring the subject up again. Right?

"Right," Curtis said, nodding. "Since we can't let anyone know that your digestive system ends at the stomach, we have to make sure that everyone thinks you're human, special abilities notwithstanding. I think we can agree on that, no problem."

Phibrizzo finished getting ready. Alright. Besides that, I still find humans downright embarrassing. Anyway, it looks like that Flareon helped out more than I thought; my stuff's almost completely dry. So, what's this thing you've been working on since Monday?

Curtis smiled knowingly. "At some point, you may need to become versed in Pokémon battling. It took a few tries, but I think I've managed to come up with something that'll help you out a bit. If that Flareon's still around, I'll be able to demonstrate it for you."

A quiet sigh issued forth. Man, I hate it when you start acting like that.

"Acting like what?"

This isn't reality for you; it's just a dream, right? Well, I hate it when you obtain knowledge while you're awake and then use it while you're asleep. Case in point: those attacks you showed me the last few days that take advantage of my new stretching ability. I think you're acting like you're above it all, knowing more about things than I do! I don't like that!

Curtis remained silent for a minute, looking thoughtful. "Well," he finally spoke, "I'll pass the ball to you, then."

"Huh?" Inuyasha and Phibrizzo inquired at the same time.

"Basketball terminology. The ball's in your court now, Phibrizzo," Curtis clarified, causing a glass of water to materialize. "Think about what you would do in this situation and act on it. Your sister's battling one of Team Rocket's best agents; Domino's bound to be an extremely tough opponent, despite Dolphin's 'proficiency at Pokémon battling'. Since I've never seen Domino battle, none of us knows what kind of strategy she uses. If Dolphin loses, it'll be up to you to back her up. However, you don't know more than the first thing about battling; and even if you did, the only Pokémon you could possibly use would be that Flareon that's lurking around. What would you do in this situation?" He gulped down some of the water.

Hmmm...good question. I probably have an answer, but why are you telling me this?

Curtis coughed a few times. "I don't like being accused of being a know-it-all just because I know a few things or can figure a few things out. There's a whole lot of stuff I don't know..."

"Like why that ice skater girl was smitten with him?" Inuyasha asked. "Like that?"

"Exactly."

Phibrizzo narrowed his eyes, reining in his temper. Get to the point!

"My point is that there's always going to be stuff you don't know, things you can't figure out. If I'd just disclosed the details of what I'd been working on without warning you first, I wouldn't have any way of knowing what's to follow if I hadn't." He shrugged. "And even though I gave you the gist of what I'd made, I'm not going to know what's going to happen if I use it now. Like I said: the ball's in your court. I've given you the situation at hand. What are you going to do?"

Phibrizzo leaned against the wall, one hand on his chin. I wonder...

----------

Flareon watched apprehensively as the Cerulean gym leader, the criminal, the trainer, and their respective Pokémon left the kitchen en route to the main auditorium. He thought for a second about following them, but ultimately decided not to. The fire-scented boy he'd followed was still around, and something had happened that the Pokémon hadn't expected:

The boy had understood him. It didn't know why, but he did. Until it figured out what was going on, it was staying right here.

After a few more moments the bathroom door opened, and the boy re-entered the kitchen and sat down. Flareon let its eyes stare into his. 'You seem uncertain. Is something bothering you?' it asked in its own language.

The boy swallowed nervously. "Well, yeah. I need to intercept that criminal somehow. You think you could help me?"

Flareon hesitated. 'Promise not to yell at me? My last trainer had this thing with yelling. I didn't like it at all.'

"Well, I've never done any of this...Pokémon battling before," the boy said, "so we're both in the same boat, so to speak. That's really what I need your help with."

'Really?'

More hesitation, this time on the boy's part. It seemed to Flareon as if he was reluctant to admit what he was about to say. "Yes. I don't know the first thing about Pokémon attacks other than what I've faced firsthand, for instance. There's a lot more to it, right?"

Flareon nodded. 'You bet. If I tell you what I know, will you tell me why you smell like fire?'

The boy blinked. "Do I smell like fire to you? I haven't even noticed."

'You haven't? You smell like you've been to a bonfire, but none of the others in the room seem to have noticed, not even the Vaporeon.'

"Okay, that's something else I don't get." The boy got off the chair, choosing instead to sit on the floor near the Flareon. "But I'll worry about my confusion later." He smiled brightly. "Glad to meet you. I'm Phibrizzo Kaden. Now, let's get down to business, shall we?"

---------

At the far end of the gym, the blue-haired woman freed the ponytails in her hair and gave the signal that she was ready. It wasn't until now that Domino realized how long the woman's hair was; the whole lot of it spilled into the water. Why'd she do that, though? It's not like it'll help her any. Is she just overly proud of her own beauty?

The T.R. agent took a second to reanalyze the situation. Her Feraligatr---retrieved before she left on her vacation---was one of the strongest Pokémon she had. By comparison, her opponent's Vaporeon seemed insignificant; but the Black Tulip hadn't gotten as far as she did by underestimating her foes.

She made the mistake of doing that once, and had gotten into a fight she hadn't wanted. She wasn't about to do that again.

In the stands, the gym leader and the kid trainer kept a close eye on everything that went on. For some reason, the leader looked strangely familiar; but each time she tried to remember who she was, the memory kept slipping out of her reach.

She shook her head. Focus, Domino. "Let's cut to the chase! Feraligatr, dive in!"

As the giant water lizard obeyed, Domino watched as the woman smiled and pointed towards the water. On cue, her opponent's Vaporeon followed Feraligatr into the water and closed in on it. It was then that the blue-haired woman did something completely unexpected:

She hopped backwards off her platform and into the water.

Okay, that's new. I didn't see a breathing apparatus anywhere within reach. Why's she going underwater too? Frowning, Domino decided what to do. "Alright, then! Brick Break!"

The Feraligatr darted forward with the intention of landing strategic punches on its enemy. At its speed, it didn't look like the Vaporeon was going to be able to dodge in time...

A young yet powerful, feminine voice cut through the water: "Jetsam, Double Water Pulse."

Vaporeon disappeared, leaving behind a flurry of afterimages and allowing it to dodge Feraligatr's attack entirely. After waiting a few seconds for the alligator to become sufficiently confused, all the afterimages opened their mouths and released what could be called an 'ultrasonic water wave'.

Domino gasped. That move...! It's able to fire off its attacks while maintaining the illusion of a Double Team! At that speed, there's no way to tell exactly where the real attack is coming from! That shouldn't even be possible, since even high-level Pokémon have to shift their concentration from one move to the other!

All the afterimages vanished as the real Water Pulse hit its mark, doing some damage but confusing the Feraligatr at the same time. The real Vaporeon reappeared off to the Feraligatr's left side, panting a little but still able to fight. The woman spoke again: "I know it's hard, Jetsam, but by the time a few weeks have gone by...these combination moves will seem like child's play to you."

Wait! She couldn't talk before, so I'd assumed she was mute! Why's she talking now? "What's going on here!?" Domino yelled. "Can you talk, or can't you!?"

The woman floated off to the side so that Domino could see her. Her hair, which was nearly a meter longer than she was tall, almost seemed to blend with her as she swam. "That's the funny thing with my voice," she said. "When I came to Cerulean City just over two weeks ago, I thought I'd lost it; you have no idea how devestating that was to me. I later found out that I wasn't mute, at least not entirely."

"Not entirely?" Domino heard the kid trainer ask disbelievingly. "What's she talking about?"

"I discovered that my voice is at a frequency that humans can't hear. It instead falls into a range that water-type Pokémon---and some others, too---can pick up. When I'm beneath the waves, my voice's frequency is somehow changed. Don't ask me why---I fancy myself a great swimmer, but I can't tell a phone jack from an electrical outlet."

Domino ignored the woman's little attempt at humor. I'll admit to being curious about the physics involved, but Feraligatr should've shaken off its confusion by now. Questions can wait! "Feraligatr, Hydro Pump!"

Proving Domino's guess correct, the alligator turned towards Vaporeon and assailed it with a massive blast of water.

The woman folded her arms. "Take the blast, Jetsam."

Obeying her, the Vaporeon let itself get hit by the high-pressure Hydro Pump. The attack's momentum pushed it all the way back against the wall, but the Pokémon braced itself and waited for the Feraligatr's attack to subside. Five seconds later, subside it did; blinking its eyes, it flipped a few times with renewed vigor.

Before anyone could question what just happened, the woman clarified it for them. "Just by way of explanation, Jetsam is immune to attacks of her own type. Instead, they only make her stronger, as you'll soon see. Hidden Power!"

Glowing a bright yellow, the Vaporeon released multiple orbs of energy in all directions. Some of them fizzled out harmlessly when they came into contact with the pool's walls, but the rest of them sizzled as they came into contact with the Feraligatr. The alligator grimaced as it floated backwards, traces of electricity running up and down its hide.

Domino's eyes narrowed. This woman's tough. I need to do something to turn the match in my favor, but what?

-----------

Phibrizzo stared at the Flareon from over his shoulder, one eyebrow raised. "So, you're saying that's all there really is to it?"

A nod. 'Exactly. Some basic knowledge of your Pokémon's skills is needed, but for the most part it's all mental. I can't say that it's done me a lot of good, but I've seen it work for others.'

As the Flareon explained the basic facts of Pokémon battling, Phibrizzo had decided to find something to drink. Seeing a nearby coffee machine and finding a packet of coffee beans, he'd decided to try some coffee---he'd heard it tasted bland, but it was a better alternative to a sugar-induced energy rush. Before long, and with help from the Flareon's Ember attack to heat the water, the coffee was almost done.

"Sounds neat and all," Phibrizzo said, "but I suspect it's probably going to be a one-time thing. Where I live I haven't seen any Pokémon, so either they aren't allowed there or the citizens don't know about their existence. In short, I won't be able to take you with me when I go home." He eyed a nearby clock. "Almost half past...I'll need to be home by six," he groused, turning back to the pot that was steadily filling itself with coffee. "Talk about a tight schedule."

'So, what's your plan going to be?' the Flareon piped up.

"Huh? Plan?"

'You want to stop that woman, right? This is the first time I've ever seen a Team Rocket person, but they sound mean. I want to help, too.'

Phibrizzo waited a minute as the pot finished filling itself, then grabbed a nearby cup and helped himself to the coffee. As he took a taste, both eyebrows went up. Say, this isn't half bad. I thought it was going to be worse. "Well, alright. You can understand that I'm not human, right?"

'You mean that little stretching trick you did earlier? Can't imagine a human doing that.'

"Well, I'm not human...not fully, anyhow." Phibrizzo smiled smugly. "Along that line, there's a neat little combo that the two of us can do in conjunction."

'What kind of combo?'

"Let's just say it involves you shooting your Flamethrower at me instead of the opposing Pokémon..."

Flareon's mouth fell open as he sat there, dumbfounded.

--------

The woman didn't allow Domino to think of any weak points in her strategy. "Jetsam...Frozen Lake!"

Frozen Lake? That's not good! "Feraligatr, get out of the water, now!"

Recovering from the electrical Hidden Power, Feraligatr swam back up and resurfaced---just as the opposing Vaporeon released a torrent of water, layered with dozens of ice shards for good measure. The lizard dodged most of the blast, although the water in the pool severely dropped in temperature.

"You're not the only one who can strike hard around here," Domino warned. Time to put the freeze on her! "Ice the water with Blizzard!"

Feraligatr hauled itself out of the pool and onto one of the platforms, then readied itself to attack.

"Not fast enough, foolish girl. Torpedo, straight up!"

The instant Feraligatr fired a steady stream of ice particles into the water, the Vaporeon lived up to its attack's name by propelling itself at maximum speed straight out of the pool, scattering water everywhere and forcing everyone to dodge the effects. On its way down, the dog-like water Pokémon made a perfect landing...right on Feraligatr's head, halting the Blizzard before the pool itself could completely freeze over.

Domino's eyes widened. "Feraligatr! Shake it off and attack with Ancient Power!"

"You'll never have the time to. You know what to do, Jetsam," the woman said coldly.

What 'Jetsam' did was lean forward far enough to be in Feraligatr's field of view and immediately disgorge a Hydro Pump of its own, knocking the alligator out from under it and doing some additional damage at the same time. The Vaporeon flipped in mid-air and landed to face the Feraligatr, which was having trouble keeping itself balanced near the edge of the platform.

In its present condition, Feraligatr won't be able to dodge again. I'm only going to have one shot at this! Steeling herself, Domino shouted: "Crunch attack, and fast!"

Feraligatr growled and opened its mouth wide, revealing a massive set of gleaming jaws. The alligator didn't waste any time, immediately plunging down and grasping the Vaporeon between its teeth.

The woman wasn't worried, though. "That was a doltish thing to do. Jetsam, Toxic."

A sickly violet haze surrounded the Vaporeon---and by extension, Feraligatr. The lizard maintained its grip as long as it could, but soon had no choice but to release its enemy. As the poison's effect took its toll, it staggered backwards a few steps before finally collapsing with a thud.

-----------

Misty smiled, more than pleased at the outcome. "See, Richie? That's why I said earlier that she was proficient at battling. Her style actually reminds me a lot of Prima's."

"From the Elite Four? Say, maybe she could join them!" Richie added, chuckling.

"I'm happy right where I am, thank you," Dolphin remarked snidely, floating towards the pool's surface. "Just hanging around right here in Cerulea---" The rest of her statement was cut off as she resurfaced, no longer able to be heard by anyone other than the water-types in the gym.

The four them---counting Sparky and Togepi---turned their eyes to Domino. The Team Rocket agent numbly recalled the defeated Feraligatr and stared at the Great Ball in disbelief. She then glared up at Dolphin, who was joined by her Vaporeon. "There are two things I want to know," she uttered icily. "Did you come up with those tactics yourself? I refuse to believe that Feraligatr had been defeated so easily."

Dolphin smiled and went through another round of sign language. "What's she saying?" Richie asked Misty quietly.

"Well, if I remember right, she's saying: 'Fish are my friends. If you don't like them, too bad.'"

"Wow. Those sign language lessons must've helped a lot," Richie commented.

"Well, I did have a childhood friend who was deaf, so it helped to know how to talk to her. I just needed to brush up, that's all."

"Oh. Well, that works too."

Domino sniggered quietly. "Fish are your friends? What kind of nonsense is that?"

More gesturing. 'If you don't have anything nice to say, shut up.'

"Fine, but I still want to know how you were able to talk underwater," Domino insisted. "You shouldn't have been able to breathe, let alone talk."

Grinning smugly, Dolphin pulled up one of her blouse sleeves and pointed at a discolored mark on her shoulder. "Oookay. That's another impossibility," Domino complained, her eyes halfway closed. "You're not human, are you?"

Dolphin laughed silently. 'How long did it take you to figure that out?'

"Why?" Richie asked. "What do they mean by Dolphin not being human?"

"Well, I didn't say this before," Misty explained, sweatdropping, "but Dolphin actually has gills on her shoulders. She told me what they were shortly after I first met her. A few others have seen them, but they thought they were just birthmarks. That agent's actually the first to recognize them for what they are."

"Figures that your explanation would be something bizarre," Domino said, smirking haughtily. She took out a sharpened tulip... "Figures that one bad freak deserves..." ...and hurled it straight at Dolphin. "...another!"

Richie was quick to react. "Sparky, Thunderbolt!"

A precisely-aimed Thunderbolt from Sparky reduced the flower to dust. Snarling, Domino responded with a hailstorm of the things. A blurred figure appeared in front of Dolphin----

"Dark Harsh!"

--------

Alerted by the cry and the person's sudden appearance, Dolphin quickly distracted herself from the flying flowers to see who it was. What she saw was a young boy---her sibling, she realized---disintegrating the storm of tulips with a black and purple fire beam. So he hasn't lost his past strength after all...interesting.

When the blast was over, Phibrizzo stumbled a bit but was able to stay on his feet. "You don't insult my family, flower girl!" he snapped. "Leave that sort of thing to me!"

Dolphin sweatdropped a little, then took note of Misty and Richie's expressions. As she guessed, they were shocked at Phibrizzo sudden appearance and attack; but there was also some exasparation at the pseudo-boy's remark.

"I see. So the brat's decided to come out and play as well," Domino said, snide. "The two of us never did get to fight due to that insane gymnast's interference. Since I was traveling to Tokyo and not to a local city, I was unprepared for such an occasion; but this time, I'm ready. Let's see what the rest of my team has to say to your fireworks and elasticity!" She reached behind her back and retrieved a variety of Poké Balls, three held in one hand and two in the other. "You're not human, you can shoot fire, and your limbs are rubber...for all I know, you're older than you look. You're perfect for Team Rocket as far as I'm concerned!" she added.

"What part of 'I don't work with criminals' don't you understand, schmuck?" Phibrizzo snapped. "I have commitments of my own to follow through on! I have friends, as unlikely as that sounds; they're looking forward to seeing me in school again next Monday. I have family members that are expecting me to be home for dinner in half an hour. Do you think I would pass that stuff up just to be used as part of an experiment?"

Dolphin stared at him in wonder. He's changed...I don't know whether to be pleased or upset. We're mazoku...there's no changing that; normally, I'd be angry for even considering having friends or family to turn to. But there's something about this place that's affecting me, and likely affecting Phibrizzo too. It's as if our goals and ambitions have been pushed aside in favor of something else. She drew in a breath and stared down at her brother in wonder. What humans are causing him to act like this?

Multiple flashes of red light re-directed Dolphin's gaze at Domino. The criminal woman had released five more Pokémon, only one of which she recognized---a Crawdaunt. The second looked like a bat with four wings; the third was a four-armed, muscular brute; the fourth was a large black and gray dog; and the fifth looked like a bizarre, metallic bug. "Looks like we'll have to do this the hard way, then!"

Any tiredness that was present in Phibrizzo disappeared. "Alright, you demented florist. You barged in when I wasn't ready, insulted my sister, and worst of all is that you're trying to recruit me! You want fireworks? I'll give you fireworks! Flareon, now!"

Dolphin knew a warning when she heard it. Without hesitation, she and Jetsam jumped back into the water...just in time as a blazing flame assaulted Phibrizzo from the sidelines. When the flame stopped, she reemerged to see him standing upright, fully recovered from his earlier attack. Haven't seen that in a while! the mazoku thought to herself, delighted.

The Flareon that had assisted Phibrizzo---the same one that had gotten him riled up earlier---gazed warily at Domino's team. Domino had her attention focused on Phibrizzo, the same wariness present in her. It had all the makings of a classic staredown.

"Sister," Phibrizzo hissed quietly, "you're out of Domino's line of sight at the moment. Signal to Misty and Richie that you need them to send out a Pokémon for each of them. It'll be those two, plus Vaporeon and Flareon against four of Domino's team. I'll take the fifth guy and Domino herself. Go!"

Nodding, Dolphin turned to the others and told them what Phibrizzo wanted. Getting the message, Richie released a small blue bird---whom he introduced as Rose---while Misty called out her Starmie, and the two Pokémon readied themselves for action. Jetsam and Flareon took places on the opposite ends of the pool.

"It's hardly going to be fair, you know," Domino said dryly. "You're still outnumbered."

Phibrizzo just folded his arms. "Try me."

Domino shrugged. "You asked for it. Scizor, use Swords Dance and then go straight into Metal Claw. Target the kid! The rest of you, decide on your targets and go!"

Hovering over the pool, the bug-like Scizor crossed its arms and repeatedly spun in circles. Dolphin wasn't sure what this was supposed to do, but it apparently helped out the Pokémon; it looked a lot more determined to finish the fight quickly. As its claws began to shine brightly, Scizor shot forward at high speed straight towards Phibrizzo; the other Pokémon launched their own attacks at the same time.

Phibrizzo, though, had other plans. Waiting until the bug was a few feet away, he suddenly brought one leg up in a tremendous vertical kick, sending Scizor skyward several meters. Dolphin arched an eyebrow as the leg, which was aligned vertically with Phibrizzo's body, stretched until his shoe touched the ceiling. "Here goes nothing!" he shouted. "Gum Gum Axe!"

As the last word left his mouth, Phibrizzo brought his foot down with tremendous force on the Scizor he'd just knocked up. The steel bug went through the platform straight to the depths of the pool; the intensity of the attack split the rest of the platform in half. Phibrizzo's leg snapped back to its proper length, and he watched as the Scizor floated up to the pool's surface, KO'd.

All action in the gym stopped. The humans stared at Phibrizzo, their eyes bulging. Most of the Pokémon turned their heads, wondering what the crash was about and looking nervous when the Scizor resurfaced. Flareon and Jetsam took advantage of this lull by launching sneak attacks against their respective targets, the dog and the bat. Dolphin herself was wondering when her sibling had picked up this ability.

As for Phibrizzo, he winced and stared down at his foot. "Yeah, it worked all right," he murmured as he moved to another piece of the platform. "Curtis, warn me the next time I fight a steel-type." Facing Domino, he began rotating his arm.

Dolphin blinked. Curtis? What's he talking about there? Shaking her head, she viewed the matches that were going on. Richie's bird, Rose, was faring pretty well against the musclebound brute; it was pretty difficult for the thing to aim its attacks at a bird so small and agile, and it was beginning to look frustrated. The gym leader's Starmie was keeping the Crawdaunt busy with repeated Bubblebeam bursts, although it occasionally had to dodge a Crabhammer or two. Both Flareon and Jetsam were pretty close to winning their own fights, so she focused almost exclusively on the fight that was to follow.

She was about to be sorely disappointed.

----------

"I have rubber-like limbs, I can shoot fire, and can do various other things," Phibrizzo said, smiling as he prepared himself. "You have what, a flower?"

Domino didn't say anything, instead frowning as she prepared herself for what would likely be a one-sided match.

"Doesn't look too happy to be here," Inuyasha observed. "Of course, I'd be unhappy too if I was in this situation."

"Let's make this fast," Curtis reminded them. "We only have about twenty-five minutes to get back to Beika."

Something flickered in Domino's eyes; Phibrizzo couldn't tell if it was nervousness or indecision. Finally, just as he was about to grab one of the other platforms and launch himself forward, Domino held up two of the Poké Balls and activated them. "Return," she called out, bringing back the Machamp and the defeated Scizor. This move came just in time, as Richie's Taillow was coming in to finish off its opponent.

The action threw Phibrizzo's aim off by several meters, causing him to miss the platform entirely. "What's she doing?" he asked himself as his arm returned to its original length.

Domino repeated her action with the Mightyena, the Crobat---which Dolphin's Vaporeon had already defeated---and the Crawdaunt. Putting the Poké Balls away, she folded her arms and let her gaze wander the gym. "I appreciate the chance to battle you, kid---as much as I'd wanted to---but I still have something I need to do here," she said, more than a tinge regretfully.

"What are you talking about, miss?" Phibrizzo asked suspiciously. "I thought you came here to take the gym's Pokémon away."

"Why would I? I could've easily had a group of the lower T.R. agents take care of a job like that," Domino scoffed. "Besides, I'm on vacation."

"Vacation?" everyone, including Inuyasha and Curtis, chorused.

"I actually have you to thank for that," Domino said sardonically. "That disasterous showdown in Nerima left me in bad condition, and that led the boss to give me a week's vacation to sort things out. I'd thought to get another Water Show ticket, seeing how you ruined mine...and probably used it anyway---" Phibrizzo smiled mirthfully as she said this. "---and see the show, but it was sold out by the time it officially started."

"Well, then what did you really come here to do?" Misty inquired.

Domino glanced briefly at one of the doors. "I'll just say the same thing to you that I said when I first came in. I don't mean to be a bother, but can I use your restroom?"

Phibrizzo, Richie, and Misty all stumbled upon hearing this. The remaining Pokémon in the room, except for Togepi, sweatdropped. Dolphin glared alternately at Domino and Phibrizzo, not sure who to be annoyed with.

---------

Well, this is just great! Phibrizzo hissed. For some reason that no one could figure out, the chamber walls were glowing a mixture of red and pink.

"See?" Curtis said, smiling helplessly. "She just proved my point!"

"Yeah," Inuyasha added, his reluctance evident. "I guess we only have ourselves to blame this time around for jumping to conclusions."

"You know," Curtis told him wonderingly, "you're the last person I would've thought to say that."

"You don't need to get on my case about it," Inuyasha growled as the chambers lost the red coloring. "I was just stating a fact."

Guys, be quiet.

--------

"Well?" Domino asked impatiently, bringing them back to their senses.

"Go on ahead," Phibrizzo groaned, turning his back to her. "If it's alright with the gym leader, it's okay with me. Can't believe I overreacted for nothing..."

Dolphin went through one of her signed statements, and Misty translated for everyone else. "She said, 'That's okay, brother. I imagine anyone else could've made such a stupid mistake.'"

The half-mazoku sweatdropped. "Sister, you're not helping!" he whined. "My stuff was drying in the bathroom at the time, no thanks to that little sojourn you sent me on! Instead of doing that when I got your attention, you could've just glared at me or something..." He looked over his shoulder at Domino, swallowing nervously. "Like I said, I overreacted, and I'm sorry. One thing gets me, though; I told you before that I wasn't interested in joining Team Rocket. Why'd you repeat the offer earlier?"

Domino shrugged. "No reason, really. Being perfect for Team Rocket doesn't neccessarily mean you had to accept the offer, anyway. Just a personal opinion." She retreated onto the tiled floor. "Since you apologized to me, I'll let you off the hook. Something I'm going to have to warn you about, though."

Phibrizzo turned around. "What's that?"

"Once my vacation ends in a few days, I'll have to turn in a detailed report regarding the incident in Nerima. That report's going to include the tactics you used against that Arcanine. The next time you set foot in Kanto or Johto, our agents are going to be after you. It won't be on my recommendation, but my boss's. If he deems it, everyone in the organization is going to keep an eye out for a person matching your description. No holds barred."

"Me against a criminal organization...fun," Phibrizzo growled. "Why are you clueing me in on this? It's not like I was respectable to you or anything."

"Simple," Domino explained. "I'm motivating you. I'm not known for my sweet disposition, but I do enjoy an occasional challenge; Nerima was my first failure since I joined Team Rocket. I'm going to absolve that, preferably through a Pokémon battle since your talent for being unfair matches mine. I suggest you prepare yourself."

"Problem," Phibrizzo told her. "I live somewhere in Tokyo, and I only came down here for the Water Show...speaking of which, I'll have to fly soon if I want to get home in time. Any ideas, Miss Domino?"

Domino sighed, annoyed. She waved him off, heading for the door. "I don't know. You think of something. Now, if you'll excuse me..."

----------

Misty stared at the door as Domino left the main part of the gym. "For someone who lives so far out, it'll be a hassle just to get any training in," she said to herself.

"Hey, wait a second!" Richie blurted at Phibrizzo, getting everyone's attention. "It's about a quarter to six right now, and you said you lived in Tokyo! How are you possibly going to get back before curfew?"

Phibrizzo slowly turned his head. It was amazing how quickly this kid changed attitudes; one minute he was deliberately disrespectful, next he was shy, and now his face shined with innocence and cuteness. He raised a finger and waggled it to drive home his sentence. "Now, that...is a secret!"

Richie shook his head. "He's at it again," he muttered.

Sparky did the same. "Pi-ka, pika-chu," he said. This was unknown to everyone, but he was saying: "He's just hopeless."

Misty just frowned, annoyed with Phibrizzo's attitude. Togepi chirped, content.

Dolphin climbed onto the broken platform and knelt so that her eyes were level with Phibrizzo's, saying something inaudible. Misty didn't think she'd ever seen her so angry; her face was contorted in a silent rage, and her shoulders were shaking. What had her brother's statement reminded her of?

For his part, Phibrizzo looked as confused as was possible for him. "Yeah, he still does that, but I don't know why you're so mad," he said to Dolphin. "...Wait. You're not over what they did to your mind, still?...Fine. Sorry. I didn't know."

Dolphin lost her anger almost right away. Exhaling, she began saying something else that she couldn't hear. Phibrizzo took a few seconds to puzzle over what she might have said, then nodded and turned to Misty. "Excuse me? I haven't discussed it with him yet," he said, jerking his thumb at the passive Pokémon, "but there's a pretty good chance he'll be my starter. Problem is, I haven't registered yet, and I still need to get home. Any chance you could take him to that Pokémon Center, or whatever it is, and have someone look after him until I come back? It may be a few days, but I'll still try to stop by."

Misty and Richie stared at each other questioningly before turning to the Flareon. The Pokémon whined worriedly, then circled around the pool until it was able to make a running leap to the broken platform. With that done, it circled around Phibrizzo's feet and cried something at the gym leader.

Phibrizzo smiled, an honest and happy smile that no one in the room had yet seen on him. "Well," he said, "I guess he agrees with me. Could you do for that us, please?"

With an expression such as that, there wasn't anything everyone could do except agree. The smiles that had been absent from everyone's faces returned as Flareon stared at its new part-time trainer happily.

-----------

Said trainer was focused on his sister, though. "You can come by...let's see...next Friday. Aunt Eva's going to be coming by for dinner, so this'll be a good chance for you to meet her. I'll have to ask my foster mom if she'd be willing to make a little extra. You have my address and everything, so I guess I'll see you then."

Dolphin nodded slowly before locking eyes with her sibling. Was it just him, or were her eyes shimmering? "You okay, Dolphin?" he asked nervously. "It's not like you to get emotional about stuff."

The water-minded woman didn't answer, instead drawing Phibrizzo into a hug. A bit surprised at first, he finally relaxed. "Fine. You win," he groaned. "Just don't throw me again." That woman always did puzzle me. Why's she doing that?

"Family members are supposed to care for each other," Curtis said, pausing to cough several times. "It's only natural. You're not on your own world anymore, keep in mind. Tell me: do you feel even the slightest negative difference in your health?"

As much as Phibrizzo tried to find any proof that positive emotions were detrimental to his very being, he couldn't. In fact the more he tried, the more he kept coming to the same conclusion: he was beginning to develop emotional attachments to the people in his life. It would've been virtually impossible to do this before; even if he wanted to and tried, no one else would let him live it down (Xellos and Zelas in particular).

But as Curtis said, he was no longer on his own world. Perhaps being partially human had benefits, after all.

Only one way to find out if it was true: keep on going.

Hesitating for a second, Phibrizzo slipped free from Dolphin's hug. "I'm going to have to go now," he said to her before turning to Misty and Richie. "Thanks for doing this for me. Really appreciate it."

"No problem. Glad to help," Richie told him, waving his hand a little.

Misty waved as well, smiling good-naturedly. "Take care, okay?"

"Yeah. Sure. Bye-bye," the half-mazoku responded half-heartedly.

As Richie turned to the gym leader and began discussing something with her, Phibrizzo stepped off to his sister's right side, balancing himself on part of the broken platform. When Dolphin turned, her form blocked the half-mazoku from the others' view. "See you around, sis," he muttered quietly, keeping his head lowered so that she wouldn't see the moisture that had started to gather in his eyes.

Getting a mental image of his home's backyard, he focused and disappeared.

---------------

Location: Kaden residence
Time: Five minutes to six

"Hey, mom! I'm home!"

Sylvia got up from where she was watching the news and entered the kitchen. Sure enough, Phibrizzo had just entered through the back door. "Hi, honey," she greeted him. "Marcus will be getting take-out on his way back, so I'm just resting for now. How was your day?"

"It was pretty good, I suppose," Phibrizzo said reluctantly. "I was wondering: do you mind if we have additional company when Aunt Eva comes by next week?"

"Well, I guess so," Sylvia replied, unsure. "Who is---Phibrizzo," she said, cutting herself off, "just what is that drawing on your hand?"

"Funny you should mention that..." Phibrizzo began, rolling his eyes.

--------

Location: Cerulean Gym
Time: Half an hour later

It had been an eventful day, all things considered. Preparing for the Water Show, actually performing in it, having a surprising encounter with a sibling that she thought she'd left behind, and battling a criminal who hadn't had bad intentions after all. In a few weeks, another show would be performed, and she still had to plan for that; most of the funds that were earned through these shows financed the gym and contributed toward her and the gym leader's everyday lives. She didn't mind, though; unlike her sibling, she loved the water.

Dolphin remembered what Misty and Richie's faces looked like when she told them that Phibrizzo had actually teleported out of the building. She'd wished then that she had one of those camera things that was advertised in a local magazine. Absolutely priceless!

Richie had since left the gym, en route for Pallet Town where he was to meet up with a well-known Pokémon professor. Misty had placed a call with someone to replace the platform that Phibrizzo's attack had destroyed (Dolphin was still amazed at the fact that the telephones actually worked); she then left to drop the Flareon at the Pokémon Center and buy some dinner for the both of them. In the meantime, Dolphin was resting in her favorite spot: the middle of the pool, with no light except for what was coming through the windows.

After a few minutes, she decided that something to drink was in order. Opening her eyes, she propelled herself out of the pool, dried off her arms (the rest of her form, her performance outfit included, repelled water), and made her way to the kitchen.

Something's out of place here, she thought as she checked the kitchen for something to drink. Let's see...soda's here, but I don't want any of that...tastes nasty, anyway. Orange juice tastes okay, but that's not what I'm looking for...hold on!

Dolphin spotted something that was sitting in the sink: an empty coffee pot and a matching coffee cup. Not liking what she saw, she checked a cupboard for her supply of coffee packets. No sign of them. I know I had at least one packet left. Someone must've taken it!

Frowning, Dolphin scoured the cupboards. No sign of the coffee packets. I thought so; someone must've taken my coffee! It couldn't have been Misty; she doesn't drink that stuff. If she didn't touch it, then who--- Her mind took a running leap to an obvious conclusion. Phibrizzo! Why, that little rogue...he drank my coffee!

Racing to her quarters, she grabbed her purse and made sure it had everything in it. She then left a note for Misty saying that she ran to the store to get something, then locked the gym doors and bolted for the nearest grocery store. That little squirt...I can't believe he took my coffee! He is so going to get it!

There was something that Dolphin neglected to think of, however. Even though Phibrizzo had indeed gulped down a cup of coffee, he by no means finished the entire pot. And when she saw the empty pot, she missed the tall-tale traces of red and white fur that clung to one side of it...

-------------

Chapter Nine concluded. Chapter Ten soon to commence

Author's Notes

"Red herring" is a term I learned in school recently. In a nutshell, it means that one person keeps trying to take a conversation off course.

I remembered seeing several old comic strips that depicted lawyers as sharks. The comparison isn't really fair, I suppose, but it does make for some amusing mental imagery. It probably explains why Dolphin seems so taken with them. Heh, heh.

The 'If you don't have anything nice to say' and 'I imagine anyone else could've made such a stupid mistake' were quoted (directly and indirectly, respectively) from "Samurai Pizza Cats" episodes. Just thought I'd let you know that I didn't make those up.

Like I said before, Phibrizzo's not going on any journeys in Kanto. He will eventually, however, start training Flareon for an eventual rematch with Domino.

Where do the timelines for Pokémon and *What* Insertion? coincide? Ash Ketchum left for the Hoenn region around the same time that Phibrizzo first appeared in Tokyo. Simple as that.

I haven't really divided the story into any arcs, or anything like that. I'm just winging it as I go along; sticking to an outline limited what I could do with my other stories. This story has long since surpassed my other fanfics in both content and size, so I'm sticking with my present plan of action.

That's that. Let's move on.