Into the Unown CH 92 & 93 (Rewrite)

Author's note:

As I mentioned previously, I wasn't too happy with the contents of chapter 92. And after receiving some mixed response from the general public for chapter 91, I decided to pull the trigger on a rewrite.

I say rewrite, but the plot points remain the same, only with some added detail.

Chapter 92 is where most of the changes were made, with only minor adjustments on chapter 93.

Overall, I mostly addressed some nagging holes that I felt were present in the chapter. But I would love it if you guys could give it a read and provide some feedback. Should you have the time.

I've gone ahead and updated the chapter compilation post with the rewritten chapters, but the original post remains untouched if anyone prefers that version of the chapter instead.

Also, don't worry. I have a new main chapter coming right after this as well.

As usual, thanks for reading and thanks for your continued support.

***

Chapter 92

“How should I go about doing this? Cute innocent girl looking for her sister, or just go in Dragon blazing.”

Nina wanted aggression on the bad guy’s side. Because innocent bystanders would cower in fear when attacked, while most bad guys tended to fight back. Not to mention if she caused chaos, the police will have justification to arrest everyone for illegal Pokemon battling. Since they wouldn’t have known who the primary aggressor was, just that they received reports of a commotion.

“Going in Dragon blazing it is.” The girl smirked as she pushed open the rusty metal door. Inside, she could see three goons in blue vests hanging around what was supposed to be a reception desk.

“Hello, I’m looking for an asshole who kidnapped a lost girl just now. You three stooges wouldn’t happen to know where he is, right?” Nina tilted her head at one of the goons. “Actually now that I had a better look at your ugly mug, I’m pretty sure you’re the asshole.” She pointed at one of the goons who was now frowning at her.

The man in question scowled before schooling his face to be that of an amicable city employee. “Hi there, little girl, I think you might have made a mistake. This building is still under construction and it's dangerous to be here…” The creep reached out a hand in an attempt to assuage Nina. But naturally, the girl was having none of it.

“Sic’ em, Nairy.” With a flash of light, the Pokeball hanging around Nina’s neck opened to release an angry looking serpentine Dragon, glaring down at the creepy kidnapper who tried to touch his girl.

One of the ‘volunteers’ at the back, a woman, was quick to respond, expanding her Pokeball to let out a Poochyena. But unfortunately for her, the unconscious body of her colleague was soon sent tumbling back towards them via a vicious Dragon Tail from Nairy. 

Another Water Pulse for good measure, and soon, the final goon was being suffocated inside Nairy’s wrap. The guy was too slow to react and didn’t put up much resistance at all.

“Now then, if you don’t want my partner here to burn you alive in Dragon fire, I suggest you tell me where the kidnapped children are?” Nina threatened, while Nairy singed the guy’s hair with a mild Dragon Breath to prove her point. 

At the same time, the entire building shook. Indicating that Beverly had also begun the assault on her end.

The man in Nairy’s grasp shook in fear and nodded fearfully at Nina, who signaled her Dragonair to loosen his grip for the man to talk. “D-downstairs… In t-the b-basement.” He stuttered. 

Nina would have liked to ask for more details, but by that point, Lieutenant Jenny had arrived at the scene with her Growlithe to ‘arrest’ her. “The captives are in the basement,” said the girl. “We should get down there and hold them off before they do anything stupid.”

The Jenny frowned as she cuffed the goon that Nairy was restraining. “We should wait for backup…” She muttered, the tone of her voice filled with doubt.

“Do you really want this whole thing to develop into a hostage negotiation!” Nina yelled. “They’re in the basement. By the time that backup shows up, they’ll have reinforced the place and hunkered down!” As far as Nina could tell, the only way to access the basement was through the emergency stairwell or the elevator. The place would be a nightmare to siege, especially with the presence of any Dark Types thwarting the use of Teleport.

Lieutenant Jenny sighed. “Fine, but you have to stay behind me and let your Dragonair take the lead.”

The girl readily agreed as the pair of trainers and their Pokemon rushed towards the stairs. On the way down the stairwell, they encountered a stream of Rocket goons that were rushing up to see what the commotion was about. And these were unmistakably Team Rocket goons, with their dark uniforms and gaudy red R.

“Jackpot!” Nina grinned as Nairy crashed into the terrorists with a Dragon Rush, sending them flying limp across the air like screaming bowling pins.

With a massive 4.5 meter Dragon serpent bulldozing her a way through, Nina and Lieutenant Jenny made it down to the basement floor in no time. Though the policewoman did face difficulties lumbering her way through the fallen bodies, slowing down their advance somewhat.

Unfortunately, Nairy didn’t manage to get all the goons, and some of them had retreated and were waiting with their Pokemons at the exit. While Nairy and Growlithe engaged them in battle, Nina squinted and took in her dim surroundings.

The space was dimly lit, with a good portion of the light bulbs flickering in and out in an vexing manner. She could see the presence of numerous cages lined up by the side of the basement. Some were filled with crying children, while others had listless looking lost Pokemon.

Nina scowled in anger. “How in Arceus did the police not find this place sooner?!” Lost Pokemon aside, this many missing children must have raised some sort of alarm right? Nina shot a suspicious look towards the Jenny by her side.

“No mercy, Nairy! Burn them all!”

The Dragonair howled in rage and engulfed all the perpetrators in purple Draconic flames, eliciting cries of agony to permeate the space. Only a few Houndours were capable of enduring the Dragon Breath and attempted to fight back with their own Fire. But those were quickly extinguished with a sweeping Aqua Tail from Nairy.

Seeing an opening to push through, Nina left Nairy to it and rushed towards the cages with Espy on her shoulder. She had faith that her partner was more than capable of holding their assailants back.

“W-wait!” Lieutenant Jenny exclaimed as she moved to chase after the reckless girl, only to be intercepted by a Poochyena who attempted to Bite at her. “Dammit!” The woman cursed as she summoned another Growlithe onto the field.

Nina and her companions were clearly outnumbered. As powerful as Nairy was, he wouldn’t have been able to take out all their assailants in a timely manner. So she wanted to secure the hostages before the disorganized Team Rocket grunts wised up and started employing meat shields. “If I can at least get some of the lost Pokemon free, they can join in on the battle and add to the chaos.” She thought.

The first cage that Nina reached was the one containing the girl that she and Beverly witnessed getting kidnapped earlier. By now the girl had woken up from her forced stupor and was sobbing uncontrollably. Nina threw her hood back and took off her sunglasses. “Hey there… it’s gonna be alright, big sis is here to rescue you.”

The girl momentarily held back her sobs and looked up at Nina with starry, hope filled eyes. “A-Aquarium Girl…?”

Nina let out a warm smile to assure the girl. “Yup, that’s me! Say, you wouldn’t happen to see where those baddies kept the keys did you? Kind of hard to break you out of these cages without them.”

“I know!” A defiant boy cried out in a nearby cage. “It’s at the back, where they keep all our Pokeballs!”

Nina flashed the boy a winning smile and a thumbs up. “Thanks kid, I’ll get you out soon. Keep up your spirit and hang tight!”

Nina ran towards the direction indicated by the boy, only to suddenly stop in her tracks when Espy cried out in alarm. The girl barely stopped in time for the Eevee to launch off her shoulder and rushed towards a corner with Quick Attack, unveiling a Houndoom who leaped out of the shadows and into Nina’s path to dodge.

“Well, well, well… What do we have here?” A masculine voice drawled, with a distinctly New York accent. “Bad day to be playing hero, kid. Tell ya what, if you back off and surrender now, I might be kind enough to just lock you up and sell you off to a nice, rich daddio, whaddya say?”

From behind the Houdoom, a sleazy looking man with tasteless golden grills lining his teeth stepped out of the shadows and leered at Nina lecherously from top to bottom, like the girl was some slab of meat whose quality he was assessing.

“Vee!” Espy cried, jumping in front of Nina to glare at the Houndoom and its trainer defiantly.

Nina held back a frown, trying to keep her face as impassive as possible. “This is bad, Espy isn’t a match for a Houndoom, poorly trained or otherwise.” So she unclipped a whistle she kept on her belt and blew into it forcefully.

The sudden high pitched noise must have irritated the Houndoom because he whinnied and Lashed Out at Espy who handily dodged to the side with her Calm Mind.

The Rocket goon snorted. “Hmph! What a pity, s’not always we get such high quality goods. Houndoom, roast ‘em. Lessee if this one’s pipes sound as good as she looks.”

“Espy, Protect!” Nina called, fully anticipating what was coming. And just as she feared, a wide area Flamethrower was released from the Houndoom’s maw. The searing hot flames splitted in the middle as it impacted Espy’s Protect barrier.

“Eeeee!!!” Espy cried out in distress while she struggled to maintain the defensive move. To the sides, Nina could also hear the cries of Pokemon and children as the dark red flames began heating up the metal exterior of the surrounding cages. Thankfully, Espy had enough presence of mind to extend her barrier at an angle to prevent the flames from actually reaching the victims, so it was only the scorching heat they had to contend with. Unfortunately, the larger barrier also imposed a lot of unnecessary strain on the Eevee.

Nina yelped and stepped closer to Espy and her Protect barrier. The oppressive flames converged on the girl’s back to cut off her retreat. “Dammit! This guy’s a lunatic and Espy can’t hold Protect for too long.” It hadn’t been too long since Espy learned Protect from the TM that Nina bought. And she was still tweaking the strenuous move to better suit her.

“Hang in there for a little bit longer, Espy! Nairy’s almost here!” Nina called out to her Pokemon encouragingly and blew into her whistle once more in desperation.

“EEEEEE!” 

But despite Espy’s determined cry, Nina could already see the cracks forming on the translucent barrier as the Eevee shrunk the Protect to maintain its integrity for as long as possible. 

Nina inched closer to Espy as the flames closed in, before finally deciding to raise her hood and throw her body over Espy to shield her from the flames. She was hoping to give her Eevee some reprieve from the roasting flames to better concentrate.

“You’re doing great, Espy. Just have to keep it up for a while longer…” Nina whispered hoarsely, in a feeble attempt to encourage her princess. “Just a bit longer…”

But despite her bravado, she could already feel her hoodie giving out as heat began to sear into her delicate skin. Causing her to wince in pain in spite of herself. This was one time where she wished she had her signature yellow windbreaker with her. The miracle material and its temperature regulating properties would have been extremely useful right now.

Seeing her human’s face twist into a pained expression made the fragile little Eevee wish she could be stronger; as strong as her father, or Nairy. At the very least, she wanted to be strong enough to contend with the Houndoom who was causing harm to her human.

She cursed herself for being weak, tears streaming down in frustration, her heated emotions burning hotter than the flames that she was resisting as they fed into the Protect barrier to infuse it with a purplish Psychic glow. 

The empowered Protect barrier expanded, even curving to shield the cages in their periphery to spare the kidnapped victims from the harsh heat, completely isolating the Houndoom and its trainer.

At the same time, Espy began glowing, her luscious fur shedding and body shifting to take on a more feline form. Her previously fluffy tail that Nina always enjoyed huffing, twisted and elongated before finally splitting into two near the base.

Nina reeled back from the blinding glow, mouth agape at the awe inspiring scene that was taking place before her, then broke out into tears of her own as her emotions synchronized and became one with Espy’s. “Thank you, Espy…” The girl sobbed. “Thank you for evolving to protect me!”

“Es! Espeonnnn!!!” As Espy cried out in triumph, and the Light of Evolution began to dissipate, an angry roar could be heard from behind the two as Nairy finally arrived in a surge of furious Draconic energy, his body full of scratches, scales chipped in places to indicate the fierce resistance he had to fight through. 

And indeed, when Nina looked behind her, she could see a swarm of Zubats and Spearows, led by a Golbat, chasing after the Dragon. The Rocket goons must have changed tactics at some point.

“Nairy! I’m leaving the creep and his Houndoom to you. Espy will take care of the tagalongs.”

“DRAA!!!!”

“ESSSS!!!”

With that, Espy lowered her barrier to allow Nairy to decimate the Houndoom with a devastating Double Pulse attack. Meanwhile, all the Flying Pokemon that were chasing after Nairy were held in place, mid-air, by an overbearing Psychic aura that suddenly engulfed them.

Nina’s companions let out another cry and lashed out without mercy; Nairy slammed a Double Tail onto the lecherous Rocket goon, crumpling the guy’s body into a bloody heap with a sickening crunch. Meanwhile, Espy narrowed her eyes, her Psychic aura crushing her captives, folding their wings and bodies at unnatural angles before dropping them onto the floor.

Nina winced at her Pokemon’s brutality. She was unsure if the Rocket goon was dead, and it’d be a miracle if any of those Flying Pokemon didn’t become lifelong cripples after this. “I’m gonna have to endure a lot of pointed questions for this…” 

After seeing the dreary condition of the cages and nearly getting roasted alive, Nina had very little sympathy to give to these scumbags. But she still scrunched up her nose at the visceral scene and made a mental note to have a talk with her Pokemon.

Having witnessed the sorry state of their Pokemon, the pursuing Rocket goons that Nairy did not manage to take out in time faltered, allowing Lieutenant Jenny to subdue them from behind as Espy froze them in place with her Psychic Aura.

Nina ignored the moans of pain from the incapacitated Team Rocket members and continued on her search for the keys before steadily going through each cage and releasing their captives, either to cries of gratitude or listless and glassy stares.

Midway through her efforts, aided by some of the more energetic kids who offered to help, a bunch of police officers in blue uniforms and black boots stormed into the basement to aid Seiigi Jenny in apprehending the criminals.

“Did you do this…?” A disheveled and nervous looking Lieutenant Jenny asked Nina, when she caught sight of the bloodied Rocket goon to the side

Nina scratched her head apologetically. “Technically, my Pokemon did. We didn’t have a choice, that guy would have killed me if my Eevee didn’t evolve in time. He had no reservations against harming the hostages either. I’m sure some of the kids can testify on my behalf.” 

Everything that Nina said was technically true, if a bit contrived. And she was sure that the kids would be too traumatized to give any accurate statements. All they’d remember would be the miserable darkness and the scary flames that nearly burned them, all of which only served to further incriminate Team Rocket.

“Anyways, do you know if Beverly is okay?” The girl continued, in an attempt to divert the conversation.

The policewoman cleared her throat and nodded. “Miss Mizuhana is safe. We’ve sent our best battlers to assist her on the top floor. She struggled in trying to hold back the two executives of this particular splinter group, but she held out long enough for help to arrive.” The Lieutenant continued, eliciting a sigh of relief from Nina.

“That’s good to know…” The singed and haggard looking girl muttered as she leaned against a nearby wall and slid down in exhaustion, with both the newly evolved Espy and Nairy nuzzling up against her in comfort.

“You did it, Espy. You finally managed to evolve into a proper Espeon…” Nina whispered to her princess affectionately while gently caressing her velvety lilac fur, which was now much shorter than before. A blessing in disguise for Nina, since it made grooming easier.

“Es~” The Espeon nuzzled her head against Nina’s face and tickled her with licks.

“Hehe… We should find some time to visit the Sea Cottage and show off to Bill and your dad. I’m sure Umber’s gonna be really proud of you.”

“Espy es!”

Chapter 93

In the end, about a dozen children and nearly forty lost Pokemon were rescued from that particular Rocket den. Which really brought into question the competency of the local law enforcement. 

A fact that Misty made full use of as she mercilessly tore into the commanding officer in charge of the subjugation efforts when she finally arrived at the scene.

“So not only did you stubbornly refused and hampered the aid of Interpol and the League’s Ace Trainers for the sake of your vainglorious pursuit, but you also had to rely on two of my apprentices to spearhead the operation for you — who I should also note, are only ten and twelve years old. Thereby placing them in dire danger where either of them could have been killed or worse!”

The middle aged Jenny, the superior of the Jenny that accompanied Nina earlier, reeled back at the Gym Leader’s fierce admonishment, looking flushed with indignation. “We would have successfully completed the operation even without the cooperation of —”’

“Would’ve! Could’ve!” Misty interrupted. “The fact of the matter is, without Nina and Beverly’s efforts, this operation would have been a wash. You could have allowed Team Rocket to escape. Or worse! The hostages could have been harmed or we’d be forced into a standoff where the city would have had to negotiate with terrorists!”

Nina and Beverly just spectated the drama on the sidelines, with the younger girl sitting on her uncle’s lap — who, she should note, was also fuming silently. Ali had apparently spent the whole day trying to cut through all the red tape keeping him from rushing over to his niece’s rescue.

“And that’s not even accounting for the fact that the city allowed these terrorists to impersonate council personnel to go on an unrestrained crime spree!” The enraged Gym leader continued. “Ten! That’s how many kids were rescued by my girls! How in Distortion did the Cerulean police allow ten missing children’s cases to go unresolved for so long!”

Commander Jenny groaned and glared at Misty. “Thanks to you, my officers have been spread far too thin during this time! And we already had detectives working on tracking down the missing children—”

“Oh, fuck off! My sisters and I have already informed the City Council of our plans beforehand. And might I remind you that it was the council who decided they wanted to double down and cash in on our wedding. We did want to profit on merchandising and some sponsorships to make up for the extravagant costs, yes. But it was never meant to be turned into this spectacle. So don’t you dare try to shift the blame on me or my Gym!”

Misty huffed and gestured for her people to follow her in leaving. “I expect accurate reporting, commander. Fully reflecting you and your people’s ineptitudes. Don’t let me catch you trying to overstate your meager contributions and downplay the true heroes of this operation.” She gestured towards Nina and Beverly with that last sentence. “I’ll be making my own separate report to the League as well to ensure full transparency and accountability.”

“Interpol will also be interceding,” chimed Ali. “For months, we have been feeding intel to local authorities on suspected criminal activities. It is devastating to know that our efforts have not been treated with due severity. 

“Your inaction nearly allowed all of these missing children and stolen Pokemon to be trafficked out of the region from right under your noses. Had it not been for the bravery of my niece and her fellow Gym Trainer, these victims might be halfway across the Eastern Ocean by now.”

And with that ultimatum, the Interpol inspector followed after his fuming fiance with Nina in his embrace and Beverly to the side. Normally, Nina wouldn’t allow herself to be coddled like this, but given how on edge her uncle was, she decided to just let Ali indulge in the comfort of her presence for now.

On the way out, Nina waved at a meek looking Lieutenant Jenny who was also present. Despite the circumstances, they were comrades who fought together. And the policewoman was also kind enough to play along with her reckless whims. A fact that she would no doubt be admonished for later on. Not that they’d be able to do much to her, the woman was one of the reasons why this controversial operation did not end in a disaster after all.

In truth, Nina felt a little mixed towards that tense exchange. On one hand, she understood why the Cerulean Police was reluctant to allow external organizations to undermine their authority. But on the other hand, she also felt that they were too heavy handed in trying to obstruct the helping hand that was offered to them, for no good reason other than to preserve their vanity.

At the end of the day, it was all just inane politics and a clash of egos. Nothing that would involve her and Beverly. Or at least she hoped the adults around her would shield them from it. In fact, the one sided verbal beatdown the older Jenny received was clearly a warning for the police to back off and not attempt any funny business with the two children.

So basically; “If you go back on your word and try to press charges on our girls, we’ll make you regret it.” Just another layer of leverage and assurance to keep each other in line. And in return, Misty and Ali will just make a token gesture of admonishment and refrain from pursuing any tangible actions in retaliation as well.

***

“WHAT WERE YOU TWO THINKING!” Nina and Beverly winced at Misty’s admonishment.

“That was extremely reckless of you two. You shouldn’t have agreed to their stupid plan like that,” Ali scolded.

After getting both Nina and Beverly looked at by the nearby paramedics, the group took shelter from nosy reporters in the private room of a nearby restaurant.

Nina would have loved to just go straight home to change out of her ruined clothes, but she didn’t want to worry her parents. So she managed to convince the two adults to allow her some leeway to buy some new clothes and get changed before they head back. Which they agreed to, by having one of Misty’s regular stores bring a selection over to this restaurant.

That way, they could avoid the scrutiny of Aquarium Girl being seen in public looking like she had just escaped from a Charizard’s maw. And since they were here anyways, might as well have some lunch while they were at it.

“It’s not Nina’s fault… I would have charged in even if she refused,” said Beverly, earning her a gentle stroke on the head from Nina.

“No, I thought the plan was feasible since we would have backup. If anything I shouldn’t have asked Beverly to take on the Rocket executives without a full grasp of their capabilities.” Nina cuddled up to her friend. “I nearly got you killed, sorry Bev.”

But the older girl simply pulled her junior in for a hug and scoffed. “Please, those guys were chumps. I only struggled a bit in the beginning cause they ganged up on me.”

“They’re criminals, Bev! What did you expect?!” Misty rebuked, as she took a sip of the cocktail she ordered. “Criminals don’t play by the rules. They’re not going to take you one on one with a referee, kid.”

“I already know that…” Beverly whined.

“She’s right,” said Ali, before addressing Nina again. “You got lucky with that Houndoom. If it had its pack with it, then you’d be in a cage by now.”

Nina wilted. “I know… I wasn’t expecting anyone strong to be guarding a bunch of helpless kids. But I guess if they were thinking of them as precious ‘merchandise’ then it kind of makes sense.” She added that she was too caught up with trying to prevent a hostage situation.

“One misstep and you could have gotten those hostages killed, Nina.”

“I know… I’m really sorry, Uncle Ali. I should have texted you and asked for your opinion before agreeing to anything.”

The man nodded in satisfaction at Nina’s words. Ali knew that his niece wasn’t an idiot and that she would learn from her mistakes. At the end of the day, both the girls were safe and got out of that tricky situation as heroes. That was something worth celebrating at least.

So he called the waiter over and told them to order whatever they wanted, in an attempt to ease their collective nerves. “In celebration of our two heroes, and Espy’s evolution. Cheers!”

The girls cheered along and clinked glasses with each other. Though Misty was still fuming at the whole ordeal. Something that she quickly got over once she had a few drinks in her.

“By the way, could you keep this a secret from mom? I’m worried that she’s gonna have a freakout,” Nina said to Ali at some point.

The older man sighed. “There’s no point. The media is already hounding the parents of the rescued children. It’s only a matter of time until it's known that ‘Aquarium Girl’ rescued a bunch of kidnapped children and stolen Pokemon. Best we break the news to Leanette on our terms. At least we can shift the narrative a bit and soften the blow.”

Nina sighed but nodded in agreement. Her uncle was right, no point trying to hide it from her parents.

“Hey, what about me?! I played a part too!” exclaimed the pouting Beverly, earning her laughs from Misty.

“Oh don’t you worry your pretty little head,” assured the woman. “No doubt Violet’s already concocting all sorts of Tauros poo to advertise you and pull in some sponsors. For a generous cut of course.”

Nina nodded in agreement and assured Beverly as well. “Leave it to Violet to handle your publicity. She’s expensive, but very effective as you can already tell from all my suffering.” She moaned, eliciting an excited look from the girl.

***

Nina let out an involuntary moan as she soaked her body into the hot water. They were using Nairy’s brand new inflatable tub, but it still felt cramped in there despite Nina having ordered the largest size they had.

It wasn’t until Beverly pointed it out during one of their regular calls that Nina realized she had made a mistake in shopping for products designed for humans instead of Pokemon. “Oh well, it’s only an issue when I’m back home. There’s a separate bathtub for me and an Espy in the dorm so no harm done.”

“Nair~” The water shifted as Nairy tightened his coil around his two companions, while nuzzling his snout against Nina’s face, eliciting giggles from the girl. Nina’s partner had become super clingy after their most recent ordeal, clearly still plagued by residual anxiety.

“Es…” Meanwhile, Espy was gently pressing against the pale patches of Nina’s skin, where the girl had been burned by the Houndoom’s flames earlier in the day. The Espeon was clearly still feeling guilty about letting Nina come to harm from her own perceived weakness.

Nina smiled warmly at her princess. “Or should I say queen now?” And gave the silly Espeon a loving kiss on her ruby red forehead jewel.

“No need to worry, Espy.” The girl assured as she flaunted her freshly healed skin on her back. “See, it’s all healed, just like new!” That was because it literally was new, the fresh patch of glistening supple skin was a stark contrast to the rest of Nina’s tanned body, making her look like a dairy cow. Pokemon world medicine truly was miraculous. It only took a single application of Burn Heal by the nurses to fix her up.

That said, her current looks might pose a problem when it came time for her performance during the wedding, but it was nothing a bit of makeup can’t fix. And speaking of, both Nina and Beverly agreed to hold off on practice tomorrow, so the girl had the entire day free.

“Let’s head to the Sea Cottage and visit Bill and your dad tomorrow, shall we?” 

Espy nodded, perking up slightly at the prospect of reuniting with Umber. The Espeon was eager to show off her growth to her father, as evident by her newly acquired twin tails splashing around in the water, eliciting a swoon and more kisses from Nina.

“Nair!”

Nina laughed at her needy Dragonair and gave him a little kiss as well. “Thank you both for all your hard work today.” The girl said as she pulled her two precious family members in for a hug. “But still, you guys went a little too far.” Nina continued, her tone taking on a sterner tone.

“Nairy, I know we were dealing with bad guys, but using Double Tail on that goon was too much, when a simple Aqua Pulse could have done the job.” Nina chided, causing Nairy to droop a little in remorse. 

“But thank you. You got all injured just to rush to me and Espy’s rescue. Otherwise, things would have turned out a lot worse for the both of us.” Nina reassured Nairy with more kisses as she and Nairy repeatedly talked about how much they loved and appreciated him. 

Regardless of their circumstances, Nairy did what he did out of love for his companions and Nina did not want to discourage him from doing the same thing again in the future if it came down to it. “Better them than us.” The girl thought. In the end, it was all about restraint and control which Nina, as Nairy’s trainer, was responsible for instilling in him.

She also briefly touched on Espy’s excessive handling of Team Rocket’s Flying Pokemon. Which in hindsight, was probably due to the highly emotional state that her Espeon was in at the time. Espy was usually much calmer than that due to her perpetually active Calm Mind. So in the end, it came back to a lack of training on Nina’s part. She needed to teach her Pokemon to maintain a balanced state of mind even when under heavy stress, else they were liable to make dumb mistakes in battle.

***

“Umb.”

“Es.” 

The pair of father and daughter Eeveelutions were as stoic as ever as they simply sat in front of each other and exchanged curt greetings.

But in the eyes of their respective trainers, they could tell that the two socially awkward Pokemon were ecstatic at their reunion. As evident by the proud glint in Umber’s eyes and how animated Espy’s two tails were.

“Espy has become quite the remarkable Espeon. In all my years researching Eevees, I don’t believe I’ve seen a specimen quite like her,” said Bill.

“How do you figure?” Nina asked in return.

Bill gestured towards Espy, particularly her tail. “See how close the split of Espy’s tail is to her body? The depth of the split is usually a good measure of how powerful an Espeon’s Psychic potential is.” He then pulled out pictures of average Espeons on his Pokedex and showed it to Nina for comparison.

And indeed, Nina could tell that most Espeons only had a split near the final third of their tail. With the longest one that Bill had on record being a split that reached halfway. In comparison, Espy’s tails were barely conjoined for five centimeters or so before splitting.

“And look at how dextrous each of her individual tails are,” Bill continued. “They’re practically independent limbs of their own!” Apparently for most Espeons, the fork is purely aesthetic with the species being unable to move the individual splits the way that Espy could.

Bill’s high praise made Espy puff her chest up in pride, while Umber let out a rare smile and gave his daughter a nod of approval.

Nina couldn't help but tackle her Espeon with a hug at the adorably awkward display of affection. “Hear that Espy? You’re the most special Espeon in the whole wide world. As expected of my precious princess.”

“Es~” Espy reciprocated Nina’s nuzzle and gave her human a little lick with her feline-esque barbed tongue. The rough texture of the barbs made it a little unpleasant on Nina’s face but she simply endured the discomfort out of love for her Pokemon.

Nina did not want Espy to shy away from physical affection like she used to. In fact, aside from appearances, this was probably the largest change that Nina observed in Espy since the Evolution. 

Her tsundere princess’s temperament had warmed somewhat and was now much more open to physical displays of affection. Where before, Espy would dislike Nina for coddling her like this outside of grooming time. Now, she accepted it without complaint and would even reciprocate. Much to Nairy’s delight as he had been pestering Espy with non-stop cuddles.

As if Espy had literally just read Nina’s mind, probably because she actually did, the Espeon huffed and jerked her head away in embarrassment. Causing her overbearing human to swoon even more at her cuteness.

“You know Nina, when Umber and I entrusted Espy to you, we were not expecting such stellar results. I mean, we always knew that she was different from the rest of the litter, but such incredible growth was beyond even our wildest imaginations. I’m sure Professor Oak would love to use the two of you as a case study on the correlation between the potency of a Pokemon’s Friendship Evolution and the strength of their bond with a trainer.”

Nina denied the praise however, citing her conversation with Sabrina. “I met Sabrina during a brief trip to Saffron City, and she mentioned that Espy was already extraordinarily Gifted to begin with. All she needed was just a bit of diligence in nurturing her Gift. So I’m pretty sure she would have done fine even if she was under your care, Bill.”

But the Pokemon Professor shook his head in denial as well. “You’re selling yourself short, Nina. No matter how much potential a Pokemon holds, they require proper nurture in order to achieve said potential. Nurture, which you tirelessly work to provide for all of your Pokemon. Otherwise, what meaning is there in bonding with a human trainer?

“But enough about that. I’d like to run some tests on Espy, if she may be kind enough to oblige.”

That last sentence caused the Espeon to wilt in despair while sending a pleading glance to her father, who simply averted his gaze in helplessness. Nina chuckled at the silly sight and kissed Espy’s forehead jewel in assurance.