Pokemon Fan Fiction ❯ PokeGirls- Field Research ❯ Hasty Decision ( Chapter 2 )

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After being officially registered into the League database, Toman Kross' first order of business was to give his Boobisaur a name. He gave it a lot of thought, sitting on the computer desk and tapping the rim of his glasses. Finally, he reached a decision, and suddenly said, "I have it. You," He pointed at her, "Will be known as Marya from now on. Unless you had an idea?" He stood up, cocking an eyebrow at her.

She smiled. "No, actually. Marya will do." He looked like he was about to say more, but before he could, she took a few steps towards him, not stopping until she was very, very close. This made Toman uncomfortable enough to try and back up... right into the table. He was forced down into a sitting position. Marya took advantage of this, leaning forward and pressing her large chest against his body.

"W-what are you doing?" Toman asked, embarrassingly aware of his burgeoning arousal at the feeling of her hard nipples. His dark skin hid his blush fairly, but it was still obvious.

"We're going to Tame now, right?" She asked, in a tone that made it clear that it wasn't really a question. "I can't really lie back comfortably..." She indicated to the large bulb on her back, "So that means I should be on top, right? Unless you want to do it... 'doggie style', was it?"

"That's correct," He assured her before beginning to panic. "And wait a moment, we're in public in front of my dad, I'm not going to just-"

"Son, go to your room," The professor suddenly ordered him, crossing his arms and leaning back sternly in his chair. "Marya, go with him. I expect you to spend a long time in there, studying the mysteries of Pokegirl biology, before you come back out. Am I understood?" The son looked into the father's eyes and saw the mirth ill-masked behind his 'severity'.

".... Clearly," Toman acknowledged in his tone that he reserved for when he was unhappily submitting to an inevitable event. He took a few more moments, then moved to get up, rubbing more against the implacable Boobisaur. "Marya, I can't get up."

"Yes you can," She objected, nipping playfully at his exposed neck and making him shiver. "I see it- hells, I can feel it against my body. You can get up," Marya assured him.

Beyond flustered, he retorted, "That's obviously not what I meant..." As she relented, allowing him to slowly get to his feet. His erection was now plainly clear to everyone, a fact that he tried to hide by staying close to her. She didn't mind at all, holding his hand as she led him out of the room. "Which way?" He pointed out the directions to her, and tried to relax. It's all natural, Toman. Besides, you can't honestly say you aren't a very lucky boy.

The teenager had nothing else to focus on, and so took a closer look at Marya as they walked. She was noticeably shorter than he was, and in contrast to his lanky and wispy frame, she was solid. Solid, but in a way that still looked slim and powerful, like a dancer. The plant-girl certainly had curves, which all swayed with her graceful, confident movement. Her long hair had an odd texture and smelled like life itself, perfectly in place and neat.

It was difficult to believe that she hadn't stepped out of a fantasy, even as she led him along down the hallways of his home. "Something wrong?" She asked, looking over at him, their faces inches away.

"I- Nothing," He stuttered, scolding himself mentally. Toman prided himself on being able to control himself, and here she was, rendering him base and vulnerable. He couldn't even think of a single thing, it was every aspect of her that made him... enchanted. It was getting to be somewhat of a task to remember to breathe regularly.

Kiera was leaning against the wall near his open door. She waved as they approached with one hand, and gripped something in the other. Toman greeted her. "I wondered where you got off to while father was registering me."

The Stretchymaid grinned widely and pulled him into the sort of bearhug that only an elastic being could manage, swinging him around. "I'm so proud of you, Toman!" He did not reply by virtue of being unable to breathe. After a few moments she loosened up and released the boy, pecking him on the cheek fondly. She turned to look at Marya, and said, "I want you to take good care of him, alright? He's still just a kid in all the important senses..." She leaned in closer, "But he's got a huge cock, so it should all work out."

Marya nodded. "I felt it... just, wow." She cleared her throat. "And don't worry about him. Together we'll be fine."

Toman was able to hear all of that, and was currently busy looking offended when Kiera skittered off and Marya took him inside. The lights were out, but the curtains let in beams of natural light from the outside onto his bed and the television blanketed the shadows with a cover of soft blue. Toman took the opportunity to sit down on his bed, fidgeting shyly. Marya went over to the window, and pulled the curtains back all the way, sighing happily as the sun's rays tickled and played her bare skin.

"... You're going to leave them open?" The boy asked. "There are some bushes out there, but they aren't high enough to cover much..." He trained off, sighing.

Marya thought for a moment, and then pulled open the window, leaning out. She reached out, touching the bush and caressing the leaves for a moment. It seemed to shake in reply, stretching out in her direction in a tiny, microscopic motion, as a new plant would grow towards the sun. "You've been taking care of them," She murmured, looking back at the human.

"I'm not too much of an outdoor creature, but I do enjoy gardening, a bit," Toman admitted. "Used to have a garden... I think that's one of the reasons I picked you..." Thought I could maybe know what I was in for. How wrong am I? He was so conflicted right now- one part of his mind was screaming about the whole affair, another on the opposite side demanded that he disregard the window and fuck her, now. Concerns flashed through his mind, and he tried to think of solutions as quickly as possible.

Something came to him, and he snorted. It was so simple, and yet it was perfect. He went over to his desk near the TV and fished around in the drawers for his tape dispenser and two loose sheets of paper. Marya came up behind him, and asked, "What are you doing?"

He showed her, taping up the two pieces of paper, and together covering the bottom half of the horizontally tall window. It let some of the light in and it wasn't perfect, but it would suit their needs long enough, and the top half still shone down from its angle right on them.

They looked at each other for a moment. Toman was still struck dumb that he hadn't figured it out right away, and she was marveling at his reasoning powers. Then, as if both had been yanked together at the same time, they pressed into each other and began to kiss. Neither had much experience at all, but most of it came freely and naturally to them.

She lead him over to his own bed, his clothing left in a messy trail behind them. He laid down on the sheets, arms around her shoulders bringing her down at the same time. The boy had expected her to be slightly colder, as a plant, but she was warm enough to make him nearly unbearably hot. He was sweating. She captured his lips again, taking dominance and rubbing her hips against his. He eagerly pressed his cock into her inner thigh, letting the long shaft run up and down it with her movement.

That was enough for her, and with no further pretense or foreplay she positioned herself above him, and began to slide down. They gasped at the same time, as he entered her incredibly tight vagina. She gave a yelp of pain as she moved faster than she could adjust to, her inner walls being stretched out deeper and wider. Toman threw his head back onto the pillow, half-lidded eyes fluttering as the last sapient thoughts quickly vanished.

Marya didn't stop until all of him was buried inside of her, but she was biting her lip hard with pain. Toman noticed that she had stopped there, hazily wheezing and looking at her. "Are you ok?" He whispered.

She shook her head. "I... it hurts, so much..." She actually began to whimper... it was just too much, and it felt like she was being ripped apart on the inside.

He grunted, bringing both hands to clasp on her hips and pulling with all of his inconsiderable might. She began to slide slightly off of him, but he couldn't do it alone. "Back up," He groaned as she clenched onto his cock, still. "Go... slower.... we have all the time in the world..."

Despite her mistake, she forged ahead, trying several more times and going at a more sane pace. She slowly, slowly got herself adjusted to the enormous intruder, inadvertently drawing out his torment.

She got into it, now deriving more pleasure than pain as his shaft was plunged up into her. Both learned many things, made mistakes, and bumbled, like anyone with no experience trying something out. Even so, their time together seemed like a pleasant eternity. In reality it didn't take long at all for Toman to climax with nearly no endurance and so stimulated, squirting seed into her. She moaned in surprise as the sticky cum began to fill her, and felt every muscle in the boy's body tense and then release as one.

Toman was motionless under her for a long time, gasping, grunting, and gently running a single hand through her hair. He felt tired, and yet more alive than he had ever been in his entire life. The feeling was indescribable. Neither of them knew how long they laid there, but eventually Marya whispered into his ear, "You forgot to take off your glasses."

He found this amusing, laughing softly, all his strained lungs could bear at the moment. "So I did. You know..." He looked up at the ceiling for a moment, then back down to the beautiful plant woman that acted like his blanket. "That was..." He had no word for it, and shrugged. "You know."

"Yeah, I do," She confirmed, setting her head down on his chest again and listening to his heart. It had raced and pumped, but now was low and steady. "I'm so glad I chose you... Master."

The pause he took was long, but neither seemed to notice that. "It's supposed to work the other way around, you know. I'm supposed to own you. You aren't a human..." He could feel her eyes looking unfocused at the far wall. "But I don't care."

Ruby was a fairly mainstream League, and that meant that Pokegirls were truly second class. Most people considered them as pets or valuable tools at best, but nothing more. Toman was not one of those people, he had always had true idealism, and didn't see why Pokegirls couldn't be treated fairly. That put him on the 'fringe', apparently. However, especially just then, laying with his Pokegirl in the twilight, he thought of her as a person. Actual and whole.

His mind did tend to delve too deep into such matters, and he spent more minutes thinking about all the ramifications for that and debating with himself silently. The afterglow had mostly worn off, leaving him with a functional mind once more.

"It means so much...." She murmured so faintly he barely picked it up, his own train of thought crashing instantly, "... you've already made me truly happy. Master." Even with what he thought about Pokegirls, he saw nothing wrong with the relationship they were going to have, even though he was her... owner. She needed that. Though they had just met, Toman decided he was going to be a good Master, for her, and other Girls.

Neither was actually ready to sleep, it was still relatively early in the day. Toman and Marya took a shower together, the rejuvenating water making the PokeGirl horny again. As he washed both of them with his hands and a sponge, she gave her first blowjob, only able to get three-fourths of him into her mouth at all. The boy still enjoyed it, naturally, and was so weak-kneed that he needed to get a shower stool to sit on. He was close to coming when she stopped, jacking him off the rest of the way. His shorter semen spurts went all over her face, and she licked at it with her green tongue. What she didn't get, the jets of shower water did.

Marya hadn't been brought to climax yet, which actually bothered the new Tamer. Nearly every PokeGirl had been genetically engineered to orgasm in as basic a level as the human survival instinct. He could tell that she was in need, and so began to give her a clumsy fingering. With all of the stimulation, she had an even shorter fuse than he, screaming his name into the shower curtains. Toman had half-expected Kiera to try and eavesdrop on him, and it came as a relief when she was nowhere in sight as they toweled off. "I'm really hungry," He said as he got dressed in a new outfit that looked very much like his old clothing. "... and we need to do something about your lack of clothes." He briefly considered lending her some of his. However, her breasts were so big that any of his clothing would be turned into a belly-shirt, and the fabric might not take it so well. Add her bulb on the back to that, and he wasn't even sure any would possibly fit. Not an option, then.

"We do?" Marya tilted her head. She had never developed much of a sense of modesty at all, compared with the variably skittish Toman.

"We do," He echoed, nodding. "For many reasons. I don't need the extra negative attention of judgmental people, it's embarrassing to me, and it's also very distracting. Let's go see what Father can fix us up with." They retraced their steps, and found Professor Kross still at his post, although the room was devoid of other humans. Most of them had been claimed by now. Only two remained, a Bimbo who seemed completely unaffected by her failure to attract a Master, and a Torch Chick. Fire-type PokeGirls were prized in Ruby, even in the warmer southern climate, and yet she hadn't been taken. She didn't even look unhappy about this. Considering the circumstances, this struck both Marya and Toman as quite odd. A Torch Chick was intense and sometimes emotional, and this seemed like just the thing to set her off.

She had such a deep tan she resembled Toman and his father's skin colors, but her hair was such a blazing red it looked like it was a living fire. Her eyes were also red, but it didn't look demonic- it only added to her considerable cuteness. She had a small stature and frame, and no real chest at all to speak of- A cup, like all of her breed. The Girl met her curious gaze with no trace of embarrassment at the examination. Toman, however, was flustered to hell and back.

"You two look a lot more educated than you did when I ordered you away," The Professor said, raising an eyebrow and grinning. Toman's attention was drawn away from the last pickings, over to his father. He could just feel the waves of pride and amusement radiating off him as though he were the sun itself.

"We got some valuable cram time in," Toman replied, and the joke was in such ill taste that he himself was forced to make a face at it. He was still shocked how well he was taking all of this- in a relatively short span of time, he had his first sex, first blowjob, and first time making a woman climax. It was all happening so fast, his nature to go with the flow somewhat took over. "I see most of the inventory has sold out. Anyone still expected to come?"

"One more," His father replied, nodding. "Your friend, Dom. He called ahead and told me that he'd be running late, and asked me to reserve a specific PokeGirl. So, the Torch Chick is spoken for." He gestured to the fire girl. "That's why she isn't sad, in case you're all wondering."

"Dom was the enthusiastic one, he rattled for years about becoming a Tamer and all that," Toman said. "It's odd that he'd put this day off for anything. When did he call, by the way?"

"About eleven or so in the morning, before we'd even opened up shop. He wanted to make sure we still had the Torch Chick," Kiera said, entering the room from a closet to the side with a broom in her hands. "I took the call, actually. He seemed happy to talk to me. I wonder why."

"Because he's male," Toman replied evenly, his mind pondering. A Torch Chick is a traditional starter for Sex League Tamers, even though they have some good combat abilities, too. That's probably what Dom's going to get in to. That sort of 'combat' had always galled him, even with his newfound experience and personal sex toy/weapon. I guess that's where the money and popularity's at, though. "Oh, and we need to get Marya some clothes, father." He sat down on top of the computer desk again, and adjusted his glasses which had fallen slightly from the top of the bridge of his nose.

"Ah," The Professor nodded. "Son, forcing her to wear even skimpy clothing is going to have a markedly negative impact on her."

Toman frowned. "Are we talking about harmful effects?" He looked over at the PokeGirl, who shrugged frankly. She wouldn't know, having only worn clothes twice before in her entire life.

"Possibly." Kross sighed. "It won't be anything that will be crippling, but she'll likely always be afflicted by... hunger and pangs. Her covered skin will get sickly. She'll probably end up hating it. It could affect her energy, and her ability to fight. In short, son, I want you to weigh your pre-Sukebe attitudes about nudity against her happiness and health. I know you're a good boy, and wouldn't want to cause her harm, right?"

The guilt-trip was working perfectly. Marya nodded hastily. "The Professor knows so much, Toman. He must be right about this, it just feels so natural to be naked for me. Besides, I know you like it. I'm hot." The Girl had a valid point. "You might think it would be odd, but I'm sure lots of Masters keep their PokeGirls naked."

"Over half," The Professor confirmed. "For Boobisaurs it's over ninety-nine percent. Nobody will even care, and you'd be saving her a lot of grief. Well?" The man's tone made it clear that it was a question with only one possible answer.

Toman sighed and closed his eyes. "You're right." Admitting that made him feel better, somehow. "Alright, the clothes idea is out. I'll get used to it..." He had always hated how nervous he was about the topic of sex and women. Maybe this would finally get him more comfortable with it... Hell, it's the most direct way to achieve that, He thought to himself.

He was nearly knocked over as Marya have him a tackling hug that was commonly referred to as a 'glomp'. "See, Master? Like I said to Kiera... everything will work out fine with us."

"Yes," Toman replied, allowing a small smile to crack his demeanor. "Alright. The first order of business is to feed me before I starve to death. When's dinner?" He glanced at a clock on the wall, it was long past five. Still a good deal from dinner-time at the Lab. "Ugh."

Professor Kross chuckled. "I'm sure we can get Samir to cook something up a little early. Marya doesn't actually need food like we do, as you know." That was true. According to the PokeDex, all she needed was some sunlight, dirt, and an unspecified amount of water to sustain herself well. "We've got several hours of daylight left. Plenty of time for Marya to get full."

Marya giggled. "Well, I had some sunlight during the Taming, but I could do with a little while in the soil. I can do it while Master's eating."

"Alright, sounds good," Toman nodded. "After we've both finished, we can start preparing. We'll need a lot of supplies from the PokeMart. My starters' stipend of ten-thousand should be able to handle that." His father had furnished him with the 10,000 slc in order to obtain everything he needed to start his Taming career a while ago, and the money had sat there in a savings' account until now. "Well, go ahead," He said, noticing Marya was waiting for his word. As soon as he released her, she bounded out of the room like a happy child, heading to the kitchen. With the help of Samir and Kiera, she got two pitchers full of clear, cool water, and took them with her outside.

The Boobisaur thought to go for Toman's garden, but remembered he had used the former tense when he mentioned it. She mentally noted she needed to ask him why he didn't any more, and then went over to the bushes in front of his room. "I've figured out a solution," She said to herself, happily laying herself face-first onto the soil right next to the bushes.


/


Toman consumed large portions of hot Borscht soup, Stroganoff, and Lasagna, complimented with nearly a gallon of Mosertack Milktit Milk. He usually observed rather good table manners, and did a hurried version of that now, wolfing down as much as possible but not being especially crude about it. Part of that was just the need to get more food in him now, and another part admitted that he was almost... excited to be preparing for his upcoming adventures.

As he scarfed down the delicious meal, his mind reflected on this. His attitude had been so changed, just by Marya. Well, she is quite a girl, he mused, downing another glass of the milk. His Alpha, as much as that meant in a one-Girl Harem. His first.

Even then, he was prescient of all the dangers of being a Tamer. The world is a hazardous place, especially once you leave the bubble of safety we have here.

He was at the table with a dozen lab aides and several PokeGirls, including Kiera, and three Hooters. The nocturnal beings had just woken up, and this was their hearty breakfast. The owl-girls were, when in a domesticated state, always thirsty for knowledge and loyal to the Professor, making them good research assistants. They were able to keep experiments running through the bleak hours of the night when the humans and day-oriented Girls turned in, then passed the torch back a few hours after dawn. The others were all Ingenue, the nearest breed of Pokegirls to humanity, and one of the most common and useful.

Professor Kross was absent, as he wasn't feeling very hungry and was still waiting for Dom to appear and claim the Torch Chick.

When he was finally so stuffed that he could no longer continue, he cleared his plates and put them in the sink, along with his glass, and generally tidying up after himself. He withdrew all of his funds from the savings account and into solid-paper form. Then, he went outside, and easily spotted Marya laying near the bushes. Her tint was rather different than the surrounding dirt in the auburn hues of the sunset. "Hey," He said. She opened her eyes, looking up at him with a smile.

"Hey," She replied like an echo. "Master, look." She pointed to the bush. "Notice anything different?"

He had been too busy looking at Marya to notice, but once he paid attention to the shrubbery he was certain it looked much taller. It was tall enough, in fact, to effectively cover the bottom portion of his window from sight. He cocked an eyebrow. "You... made the bush grow?" It looked like months of normal growth compacted into the same number of hours. It was almost miraculous. Yet, he remembered from his studies that Boobisaurs could have such effects on plants. "Wow. That's a much better solution than my brilliant paper-and-tape shield," He nodded to the window, which was still obscured by the stopgap measure.

"I probably thought of it before," She replied laconically, enjoying the dirt around her still. "But it takes time to make the soil rich enough. I figured now, we can Tame as much as we want in the comfort of your room."

"Ah?" Toman grinned. "Excellent work."

Marya beamed with pride. "I know. Hey, have a seat," She offered. "I was going to come in, but... let's watch the sunset together." The flaming, life-giving orb hung very low in the sky, threatening to pass under the gently sloping hills of the surrounding forests. The boy nodded and sat down in the soil next to her. It was dirty, but it also wasn't the first time the sheltered boy had been in filth. Besides, Marya's very presence seemed to make the dirt not cling to his pants as much.

Master and PokeGirl waited for a few minutes, before the drooping sun finally escaped from the sky. It was as if a candle had been blown out, and the burning oranges and reds in the air and on the Earth were replaced by the black and blue shadowy curtain of a moonless night. The stars were still invisible, as well. A variety of wildlife, mostly PokeGirls, began to audibly rustle outside the borders of the village.

"Well," Toman spoke up. "Let's get over to the PokeMart." Street lights began to start up, illuminating the streets of Samara, and the trickle of dark figures walking to and fro the various buildings. He stood up again, brushing himself off and offering her a hand up. She took it, reluctantly leaving the soil. However, her time in it left her feeling very energized- so much so, in fact, that Toman considered he might have to Tame her again soon.

Being the small hamlet that it was, Samara took nearly no time to cross, and before he had noticed it they ended up in front of the brightly lit PokeMart, which looked rather square-shaped to his eyes. He had only entered the establishment twice before, both times to window-shop and ogle the PokeGirls there. Now, with the money in his pocket and PokeGirl at his side, he had a purpose.

That didn't mean he knew exactly what he was going to get, although he probably should have researched that ahead of time. Either way, he stepped into the Mart with the greatest confidence and exchanged a casual greeting with the cashier behind the counter. She was a girl with no obvious anthropomorphic characteristics or nonhuman traits, so it was difficult to tell wether she was actually human or an Ingenue. He didn't care enough to ask, which might have been considered very rude.

"Let's see... what to get first..." He gravitated towards the potions racks along the back of the store. Hundreds of different bottles, brands and liquids sprawled out before his eyes, each one tagged with a label describing the effects of the chemical cocktail and what the price was. Many of them were made for specific breeds of PokeGirls, and others were outlandishly expensive. At the end, he saw the generic line of healing potions. The regular was tagged at two-hundred a bottle, and was the weakest. The label promised that it would at most cover over scars and other minor injuries. There were a few High Potions as well, which were over twice as expensive at five-hundred. Their League-certified labels proclaimed to provide any healing up to and including minor regeneration of extremities.

"How many do you think we should get?" Toman asked. Some Tamers were known to skimp on healing items, trusting a PokeGirl's natural regeneration and healing as being sufficient in order to save some money. He, however, would gladly suffer such an expense for her.

"Hm." She was as inexperienced at adventuring at he was, but she had a bit more confidence in herself. She said, "Two of the High Potions and four of the regulars." That came to two-thousand. "We don't want to go overboard with them, we'll need lots of other supplies, too."

"Agreed, then. Hold these." He grabbed them off their racks and handed them to the PokeGirl. She curiously examined the bottles as Toman looked for any other useful items. He grabbed two Antidotes and two Burn Heals off the shelf, placing them in her arms as well. "That should be enough for now," The teenager decided. "What's next..." He moved on, and found an isle in the middle that was crammed full of collars. A grin suddenly split his face and he turned, walking down it and examining the available stock.

"You're thinking about getting me a collar?" Marya blinked.

"Why, is that a problem?" Toman asked, pushing his glasses up and looking over with a shameless grin on his face. "I'm allowed to get a gift for my PokeGirl, right?" His eyes returned to the collars, scanning them. The ones that actually had any effect were much too expensive, and so he was going for mostly decoration. He got a very nature-themed one that was seven-hundred. It even smelt like a rosebud, and after some inane sniffing, he showed it to her. "Hm?"

"I like it," She nodded approvingly. "You're going to spoil me if you keep this up, Master. You know, I don't really mind that."

"Somehow I thought you wouldn't. Don't worry- there'll be some tough fighting and lack of money ahead," Toman said. He leaned in, putting his arms around her neck and attaching the collar. It fit well after a minor adjustment. "You look nice," He remarked, gazing into her eyes.

She replied by wrapping her arms around his waist and giving him a long kiss that expressed her love and affection towards him. She rubbed her curvy body against him, grinding hungrily. Toman raised his eyebrows, kissing her back but eventually pulling away. "Feels like you're getting energetic. Save it for when we're back at the house, yeah?"

Marya began to pout, and combined with the ever-so-subtle Lust Dust she was releasing and her dream body's constant rubbing, Toman found her very hard to resist. "Come on, it'll be like ten minutes," He insisted. "Don't make me beat you."

"Yes, Master," She said, sighing and letting go. Only when his back had turned to keep going through the store did she let out the giggles she had been holding in. Didn't the PokeDex say 'average' libido? Toman wondered to himself, then remembering the addendum about sunlight. Ah, yes. High after a good sunbathing. Lovely.

For only the thirtieth time today, he was wondering what kind of world he had gotten himself into when he reached the Packs hanging from shelving nearest the door. They ranged from intricate technological wonders based on PokeBall technology ['PokePacks'] all the way down to a simple knapsack with a PokeGirl theme. Toman would have liked to try out the PokePack, but it was an order of magnitudes beyond his current funds. He settled for a large, spacious regular backpack with segmented compartments for different items and several clips to hang cards and charms on, along with pouches for water-bottles and other utilities. The price-tag was asking for a thousand. He mentally totaled up their sum so far, and it came to four-thousand and three-hundred slc. He carried the pack himself, as Marya's hands were full and she obviously couldn't just wear it. "We can get a sleeping bag, tent, and other camping supplies from the general store," He said, more to himself than Marya. "So what's left... ah." He pointed to the PokeBalls section. "Let's see if anything's worth it."

He did have the six spare standard-issue Balls, but perhaps he could get a special item that would be of use. He took a single Great Ball and added it to their growing list, prompting Marya to get a hand-held shopping basket and put it all in there. "Hm..." He got to the end, where the PokeBalls section blended into the Repel aisle. There were varieties of lifelike dolls of PokeGirls that would help a Tamer distract the enemy, and even a PokeBall that contained a one-time use dense smokescreen, useful for escaping a Feral encounter. He took one of the Smoke Balls and put it in Marya's basket.

"Ok," Toman said. "Let me go over this one more time... yeah. Now let's check out and get home." Marya gave him another kiss of approval and followed him as he went over to the counter. There were no other customers around at all, and he took the basket, setting it down on the counter.

The cashier began to scan the items, her computer system beeping to confirm each item and display its price on the LCD monitor pointed outwards. "Alright," She spoke up after manually typing in the collar, "Your total is seven-thousand three-hundred, will it be cash or check?" She had placed the equipment in several large plastic bags stamped with the Mart's logo on the front.

"Cash," Toman replied, fishing the money out of his pocket and counting it out, surrendering it to the store worker. "Oh, how much to get the collar engraved?"

"Two hundred extra," She said without having to look it up. "I can do that right now, if you want." He nodded, and took off Marya's collar. Toman gave her the name to put in, and the clerk took it, going into the back of the store. It took a few minutes, and Marya was considering pouncing Toman again by the time she came over to the counter. "Here you go."

Toman handed her the two-hundred standard league credits and gave a slight bow. "Thanks. C'mon, Marya, grab the bags and let's go." She obeyed, following him out of the store and onto the darkness of the sidewalk. The Boobisaur negotiated her cargo, and retrieved the collar, putting it on herself pridefully.

They returned home, and after stowing away their new possessions and the remainder of his money stash, they locked themselves in his room for a thorough bout of Taming. Before going to sleep, both of them cleaned themselves in the shower together again. This time, however, Toman was left with too little energy to do much, so Marya had to resort to the shower-head to get off.

Toman Kross spent his first night as a Ruby League Tamer acting as the pillow for his Boobisaur, who was sprawled across his body like a warm blanket.


/


He had gone to bed earlier than usual, and thus it was only about an hour after sunrise when be began to stir. Something was pinning him down, a large, warm bundle that moved like he did when he breathed in and out. Becoming curious, Toman slowly opened his eyes. He saw the blurry figure of a girl's head resting on his upper chest, and yesterday's events came flooding back into his mind with a start. He idly brought up a hand, and stroked Marya's hair. She looked so peaceful and gentle there, on top of him. It was a surprise when she yawned and said, "Good morning, Master."

"I thought you were still asleep," Toman rattled out groggily, squinting as a nearly unconscious reaction to his horrible vision.

"The sunlight woke me up," Marya replied. "I've been soaking in its glory ever since." She was in her lethargic 'recharge' mode, as noted in the PokeDex entry about her breed.

He would have happily laid with her, were it not for completely natural urges that tugged at his mind. "Um... I need to go." It took a moment for her mind to cycle through it, but a look of recognition tugged at her eyes and she lazily rolled to one side, coming up against the wall and setting him free. The teenager took care of nature's call, and decided he might as well start the day then instead of trying to get back to sleep.

Professor Kross was at the dining room table, reading a 'Pad that circulated weekly called the Samara Ledger. He could have gotten his news from the television in one corner of the large room, but some archaic tradition caused him to read the 'paper', instead. Next to the data-pad was a steaming mug of morning coffee. The older man looked up as he approached from down the hallway. "Good morning," He called out. "I have news for you about Dom."

"Oh? Is there something I should know about?" Toman reached into the refrigerator and retrieved a can of soda- his preferred method of early caffeine poisoning.

"He came in after you went to bed, wanted to talk with you. I told him to come back tomorrow, he looked really worried about something." He sighed. "That boy seems like he's constantly in a rush. He needs to take life slower, as it comes."

"Some people are just like that." Toman stifled a yawn, and countered by gulping a large bit of the syrupy drink. He could instantly feel the sensations of the caffeine in his bloodstream. Its label professed to be 'magically enhanced' and he honestly didn't doubt it. "He took his Girl?"

"Indeed. He seemed very glad to have her. She reciprocated those feelings, naturally. The poor thing had been out there all day... I offered to let her have a lie down, but she wouldn't have that. Fire-types, you know." Toman actually wouldn't know, having very little experience with them. He could guess, however.

"Hm. I was planning on heading over to the library for some training material." Now that he had most of the equipment that would be necessary, he figured he might as well start Marya's combat training. "According to the Dex, even at her current starter level, she can learn Vine Whip, Vine Bondage, and Lust Dust."

The Professor cocked an eyebrow. "My son, you almost sound... applied at this task. This task, being a Tamer, that you ever so hated."

Toman nearly tensed up, but instead managed to smile. "I think I'm going to find my mind changed. And, at any rate, it'll be my head out there. I want to make sure that we're prepared for the coming trials." He finished his soda, and made his exit. His father watched him go with a sigh, shaking his head. His son had always been slightly strange. At least he wasn't kicking and screaming about it.

Dom's house was on the edge of the village, near the borders of the surrounding forests. Toman had been there a few times before, but not often. The recluse didn't tend to venture out much except for the library and occasionally for shopping. However, his senses told him that whatever was happening with Dom must have been big to make him so incredibly late yesterday. Wondering what could have happened, he found himself at the house in no time. He was about to lean in and press the doorbell when a window on one side slid up. The blonde himself peeked out. "Hey, man," He said. "Come around back."

Toman cracked an eyebrow. "Alright." He did as requested, circling around the regular-looking home and yard. Dom was waiting for him on the back porch. "What's up?" He asked, as a genuine question rather than a rhetorical greeting.

"Plenty," The other boy snorted. "I was about to head over to the Lab to see you."

The dark-skinned teenager had a seat without asking on the porch steps. "I've known you better than almost anyone else in this town, and I can't imagine what kept you yesterday from claiming what you earned. What happened?"

Dom let out a long sigh. "Oh, it's a long story. We had a family emergency... I was out in the forest, looking."

"Looking for what?" Even with PokeGirl patrols and sonic barriers set up to make a protective envelope against Ferals, one occasionally slipped through. Going into the forest, especially without a Girl of one's own, could be dangerous.

"Our maid." After a few more moments, Dom began to elaborate. "You see... my Dad, he really doesn't like PokeGirls. It kinda runs in my family, all the way back to when my ancestors fought 'em." He shook his head. "He's really shitty to the two Girls our family keeps. One of em's an Ingenue who nurses grandma, and the other's our cook, a Stretchymaid. Well, he's decent to the nurse around Grandma, she's grown fond of the Girl, but the cook is always fair game."

"So she ran away?" Toman pitied the Girl if she did. Once she had a bounty and got caught, she had some Conditioning Cycles to look forward to, along with a bleak future, if any at all.

"If only." Dom sighed. "I feel really guilty, but I never, you know, tried to stop him..." He trailed off. The normally charismatic boy had been afraid that if he tried to get his father to calm down, he would only succeed in drawing his ire over to his own son. "It's been going on a while, too. You just... get used to it, horrible as that sounds."

The lankier teenager nodded soberly. "So... what did she do, if not run away?"

"Oh, she ran alright. But not before she evolved. Into a Penance." Toman had studied that particular grim breed, and he gasped in recognition. "Yeah. That's right." Dom shook his head sadly. "The poor girl, she just bolted. I guess she couldn't take another day of it. She was gone so quick, they move so quick. I... I ran after her, into the forest. After a few hours, I hadn't seen her once. I was just, searching, had no clue where to look or how to find her. Had to give it up and return home."

"... I'm sorry," Was all Toman could say, the words sounding remarkably hollow.

"I liked Stacy," Dom admitted. "Liked her a lot, grew up with her cooking and all that. She was really hurting, and I never even saw it. We're remarkably shortsighted creatures, Toman."

"Yeah," He agreed. "... She's probably fifty kilometers away by this point."

"I know, she probably is," Dom acknowledged, leaning against one of the support beams of the porch. "But... I still wanna go out for her. Deeper into the forest. I have to, man, I just..."

"That's the really crazy part," Toman sighed. "You can't go out there, even with a PokeGirl. The Ferals will rip you to shreds. A Penance has natural defenses comparable to an Onyx, but you have nothing." He tried to compose himself. "Look, she'll run from any human contact now. Neither we nor our PokeGirls have the speed to catch up with her."

Dom looked over, straight into the recluse's gaze. "I have to help her."

"There's nothing you can do," Toman stood up. "Come on, listen to me. Even if you find her, what are you gonna do? Now that she's a Penance your dad probably won't even let her return."

"We can send her to you," Dom reasoned. "Your family has enough for another mouth, and the Prof.'s the kind of guy who would take care of her. Look, there's a chance I'll be able to pull this off."

Toman sighed again. "From the bags under your eyes, I'm guessing you didn't get all that much sleep. You're out of sorts, and not in your right mind. Calm down, and consider things." He took a long pause, then added, "You can't go out there. That sentence is ended with a period."

"I don't remember when you got the ability to tell me what I can and can't do," Dom said, so casually it was chilling. "I want your help on this, but if you're not going to do it I'll fucking go alone."

The son of a researcher was at a loss for words for just an instant. "Damn you, Dom. I'm going to go in there and warn your parents, and they'll take your Torch Chick. Then even your dumb ass won't go past the sonic barriers." He had begun to brush past him, making for the back screen door. I can't believe I have to do this, but he's not going to listen...

It only took a single punch, right to the back of his head. At his range, it was impossible for Dom to miss. The other boy had never expected it, and abruptly stopped walking, shuddering before he crumpled like an imbalanced paper house. After a quick check to make sure Toman was merely knocked out, Dom stepped inside, leaving him there. "Sorry," He muttered quietly to himself. Now I'm in it chin-high.

"Grace," She called out, getting the attention of the PokeGirl in the living room. "Come on. We're heading out into the forest." She only hesitated an instant before following. She gasped at the sight of Toman's unconscious form, but still moved to keep pace with Dom. He didn't look back as he made the dash out for the tree-line, not twenty meters from the back yard.


/


Toman didn't know how long he was out until he slowly fished his PokeDex out of a pocket and looked at the time. He let out a string of oaths in English and Russian, whatever came to mind. The fool had a fifteen-minute lead on him, which meant he could already be crossing over the sonic repellant spikes. He struggled and groaned, getting onto his feet, even though he was still dizzy and his vision was blurred.

Dom's parents were completely out of his mind; he headed home as fast as his unstable legs would convey him. He gasped and huffed, skidding to a halt in front of the Lab and pushing the front door open. "Dad! Dad!" Professor Kross wasn't in the dining room, however, having finished his coffee and paper.

"Toman?" Kiera was sprawled over the couch, looking quite indolent and lazy. "What's up? Why are you in a hurry?"

"Kiera, call the police," Toman ordered. "And tell Dad that Dom's going out into the forest. Deep out into the forest. He's in danger!" He shook his head, hoping to clear it, and began down the hallway, his shoes thundering on the wood.

"What are you going to do?" The Stretchymaid asked, sitting up.

"The most insane thing possible," His voice replied, coming from the other end of the hallway. "I'm going after the bastard!" He rounded another corner, and burst into his room most uncharacteristically. Marya was still laying on his bed and absorbing the light, but the bang of the door startled her into looking up. "Marya! Get up! We have to move."

"... Wha?" She asked, blinking several times. "What's going on?"

"My idiot of a friend is about to get himself killed, and we're going after him," Toman explained, gasping to regain his breath and leaning against a wall. "Damn it!" He punched the wall, with the only result being that his hand hurt now, joining his head and legs. "Come on," He implored, finally getting the PokeGirl to her feet. Without bothering to tell her to follow, he left the room, headed towards the room where their gear had been stored by the aides.

He pulled on the backpack after shoving all of the items in, going back to the front door and nearly making it outside before Professor Kross arrived, Kiera in tow. "Son," The man called out, seeing his pack and Marya. "Wait!"

"Dad... I have to follow him," Toman replied, cooling his heels for just a moment.

The PokeGirl researcher let out a long sigh. "I know. Take this." He reached into his belt, and pulled out something that looked very much like a gun, extending it handle-first. In his other hand he produced a box of elemental fire bullets.

Toman stared at it for a moment. He recognized it- his father had shown him the weapon before. It was the Kross Family heirloom of sorts- a modified SW 640 Revenge War-era firearm that could take medium power elemental ammo. It packed enough punch with the right bullets that even a PokeGirl couldn't just ignore it. Toman had even learned how to operate the gun, a few months ago. "Father... thanks." He took the weapon, and then the ammo box, pulling out a clip and shoving it into the weapon. "Hope I don't have to use it." With those words, he was off, tearing down the sidewalk and streets, narrowly missing several impacts with bystanders.

"Now would probably be a good time to ask what kind of attacks you already know how to do," Toman gasped as he ran, Marya effortlessly keeping pace, now fully awake and aware.

"Well I can Tackle," Marya said thoughtfully, looking away. "And I can do Vine Whip, I think."

He selectively decided that he hadn't heard 'I think', and nodded, pushing his glasses up against the wind and shaking motion of his running body. Toman didn't think twice about bringing her into danger along with him. It was obvious, a PokeGirl would rather be at their Master's side in such an emergency. Plus he needed her to have any chance at survival, pistol or not. "Fuck. I really hope I'm not going to live to regret this..." He nearly hit himself for his choice of words even as they entered the fringes of the part of the forest around Samara considered 'safe'.

This was such an idiotic thing of him to do, but somehow he thought that he would be able to find Dom better than the Police. The Samara PD, due to the security and small size of the village, only had one OfficerJenny and a dozen volunteer officers, and two squad cars. They would obviously have to respond, but it wouldn't be enough people to get it done. Yeah, like you can do better, He sarcastically scolded himself.

His second day so directly involved in the world of PokeGirls was shaping up to be quite interesting, unfortunately for Toman Kross.