Sorry for the delays in the next chapter, trying my best to sort through things, and figured I'd give everyone a short to tide them over until the next chapter. Enjoy the first side-story/Omake from PMD: Heroes of the Past.
Big thanks to Vetu Asaber and HootHoot for the art pieces (you can see them on Imgur, and embedded on Ao3, Royal Road, Space Battles, and Sufficient Velocity), as well as Megalabyte for help with figuring out the story/prompt to guide the short.
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Pokémon Square was quite the interesting place. It'd started off as an accessory city whose main purpose was to provide services for the Rescue Teams based there. Over time it had grown and expanded, with Pokémon moving in for work, then for security next to dozens of Rescue Teams working out of the area. That eventually became a thriving and connected community with protection and decent people all around. It was like Treasure Town in that regard, and as such felt a little more familiar than it should have.
Maybe that was why Silvally found himself able to relax. Or… maybe it was because of the twelve urgent requests they'd finished in three days, and he was too exhausted to think of anything other than just enjoying a quiet atmosphere and some time off.
He and Artemis both decided that the continent could hold itself together for a single day while they took a much-needed break. Could they continue and keep up that insane pace and high stress?
Definitely.
Did they want to?
Artemis would have frozen the next person who walked up to them with a request. They very much did not want to.
Instead of tending to the various needs of Pokémon this morning, they decided to explore—the city, not mystery dungeons. Silvally found it equally concerning and hilarious that the Pokémon species Kecleon seemed to run a store in every city they visited. Were they all family? Were they somehow the same Pokémon? Maybe something about type-changing Pokémon led to them becoming merchants.
…
Would he end up running a store? Silvally didn't like that idea, it involved too much talking and remaining in one place for entirely too long. That job was not for him, thank you very much. That, and he knew for a fact that Artemis would lose her fucking mind if she had to stay in one place for longer than a few hours.
Beyond the cultural whiplash of seeing Kecleon running every general-purpose store in existence—and no one else thinking it weird at all—the rest of the trip around town went smoothly.
The visit to the library was quiet, as it should be. Not for the normal reasons that one should be quiet in a library—Artemis frequently broke that rule wherever they went. However, this particular visit was a little different. She didn't talk at all, or make any comments beyond brief "mhm" sounds whenever Silvally pointed out a book that caught his interest or something he figured she'd like. The noncommittal answer was how he managed to get her to follow him into the library in the first place.
Artemis was distracted by something and Silvally wasn't sure what it was. She wasn't sick despite the warmth radiating from her, or the red tinging her cheeks and the inside of her ears. She definitely wasn't upset, because the ground remained solid and not a molten slag when she walked. In fact, the ground almost seemed to frost over for a few seconds whenever he caught her looking at him.
Of course, confronting Artemis directly never ended well. When they met the first dozen times, confrontation usually led to painful burns or frostbite, along with broken ribs. Now, confrontation was met with painful verbal burns and frosty biting words. A marked improvement to be sure, but it was still something he wanted to avoid.
So, he had a new plan. A plan that would involve relatively little effort on his part because he was still exhausted and, honestly, if this didn't work he would choose to ignore it. As much as Silvally enjoyed learning things, he'd also learned uncontained curiosity led to awkward situations.
Like the time he found Guildmaster Wigglytuff suspended from the ceiling in vines. Far too high up for anyone to reach him. He was practicing ninja maneuvers.
The other reason Silvally would leave the issue alone is because he just wanted to rest today. He'd be a good exploration partner and make the attempt, and if Artemis still refused to talk… Well, he was sure she'd forget about it the next time someone requested that they fetch a Pokémon's scarf from the woods.
Mostly because she'd be too busy burning down said forest to worry about anything else.
"Want lunch?" Silvally asked as the duo exited the library. He glanced at her as they stepped onto the road, Silvally turning to the left, with Artemis following shortly after.
"Sure," Artemis replied, without even sparing him a glance. Her tails gave a firm twitch, and one of her ears flicked, but nothing else was said.
Silvally drifted to the side, Artemis unconsciously following him, making way for a ground-type horse-Pokémon trotting along the road and pulling a cart filled with metal pipes. It stopped at what looked to be a construction site, a number of Pokémon working on a new building. It was difficult to tell what they were working on, but the signage on the worksite said something about a health and safety group.
"Anything you want?" Silvally asked after another few seconds of walking.
"Sounds good." Artemis nodded at his question.
…
So, she was really deep in thought then. Something light, simple, and familiar would be the best thing to eat. At least, he thought so.
That was easier said than done in a city he wasn't familiar with in the slightest. Sure, they'd been there for a few days now. Every single one of those days was out in the wilderness, eating whatever fruit and berries they managed to find whilst catching petty thieves and rescuing children from school field trips.
Who takes children out to a mystery dungeon!?
Then again, most of the guilds, and the Expedition Society as a whole did employ children… Maybe he would need to have a talk with Chatot when they got back to Treasure Town. That is, assuming the bird-Pokémon would talk to him.
Chatot still refused to look at him. Not since the incident.
Silvally led the way through town, weaving his way between Pokémon and half-guiding Artemis along. He angled to the right to avoid trampling over smaller Pokémon, and Artemis followed, maintaining their established distance without even consciously doing it.
Despite the unfamiliar city, Silvally wasn't uncomfortable. Sure, he got some looks, but most of them were for Artemis more than anything. Here in this new city, Pokémon didn't really recognize him. He wasn't some 'big scary outlaw' who'd been on the run for two years to them—he was just an odd-looking Pokémon, and there was no shortage of those around here. To them he was just… normal.
It was different. It was nice.
Instead, all eyes were on the world-class explorer who was following along and seemed to be on auto-pilot, not really thinking about what she was doing. She didn't even seem to notice, still lost in her own thoughts, appearing to flip between various emotions in the span of a few seconds. She was muttering to herself, but what she said was beyond comprehension.
Silvally led Artemis to the center of the city, toward a well-built town square. Various stalls and stores were set up around the pad, selling a variety of items, foods, and exploration-related tools. Something sweet in the air caught his attention, and Silvally veered to the side, weaving through Pokémon as best he could—they usually just got out of his way for fear of being stepped on.
In front of the two was what appeared to be an open-patio diner of sorts. It was a squat brick building with hand-made signage. Alcremie Appetizers was written in a flourished font above the door.
Despite it nearing afternoon, the store was relatively silent. Silvally managed to get himself and Artemis seated at a table at the back of the business, on a somewhat private patio. The moment the two sat down, Artemis blinked as if realizing exactly where they were for the first time that day. Her eyes snapped to the table between them, and the white tablecloth on it. In the center of the table was a vase with flowers, something that the fluffy, white, food-like Pokémon set down on the table as they'd been seated.
Artemis blinked, glanced up at Silvally, and then looked away, her ears immediately flicking back and forth. All nine of her tails spasmed and shifted anxiously, making it look as if nearly a dozen Ekans had affixed themselves to her rear. Her cheeks darkened and steam started to roll from her fur.
Silvally was a touch confused. Maybe she didn't like flowers, or… she might be allergic? Perhaps she had a particularly traumatizing childhood experience with a white tablecloth. Maybe something was reflecting the sunlight into her eyes?
Things to note for later. Or maybe avoid… it depended on if those things survived the next few minutes. Fire and ice tend to do significant damage to inanimate objects. And living things.
Pretty much everything if he thought about it.
Silvally sat silently and watched Artemis. The fox started to sweat, water beading on her fur and rolling down. It wasn't actual sweat, just steam from her fur rapidly condensing into liquid due to the cold radiating from her body.
Maybe she was sick after all.
Artemis opened her mouth to speak, only to pause, and close her jaws with a sharp click. She closed her eyes and sighed, moving a single paw to rest on the table. A deep, steamy breath rolled from her nose, and her ears folded back, the beading 'sweat' on her fur increasing.
"Uh- uhm… Sorry, I was, uh, thinking. About… things." Artemis let out a little breath that sounded as if it was meant to be a laugh, but came out like a wheeze. "Y-yeah. Important things. Er… Sorry, let me start over. I, uh, we have been-" she cut herself off with a small growl, her tails thumping on the ground. "Fuck, why is this so hard?"
Silvally had no idea what was going on. He set his talons on the table to mimic Artemis. Maybe it was a manners thing. Still, his ears perked, and his full, undivided attention was on the fox. He was going to make sure she knew he was paying attention to her words, they seemed important.
But she couldn't meet his gaze for some reason. Weird. Did he have something on his face?
Silvally idly scratched a talon over his metal beak, wincing at the metallic shriek it made. There was nothing on his claws, and crossing his eyes revealed nothing of importance either. He was sure he hadn't done anything wrong.
… Wait, when was the last time he'd taken a bath?
Two plates thumped onto the table top, delivered by a Polteageist—some sort of ghost living inside an ornate-looking teapot. The plates were carried on pillows of ghostly energy, which dispersed upon contact with the table.
Silvally gave an appreciative nod toward the ghost-type and turned his attention to his plate. He'd asked for a watermelon—something simple, watery, and refreshing. He wasn't sure if Artemis liked anything specific, but he'd seen her eat apples before, so he'd pointed out the Perfect Apple on the menu to the lovely Alcremie who'd seated them. Something normal sounded like the best course of action considering how… off she'd been acting. She'd not been aware enough to actually order anything when they first walked in.
Artemis's paws rose and she grabbed at the apple with both of them, her claws sinking into the flesh of the fruit. Her ears pinned back once again, eyes flicking between the plates of food, the fancy table, the flowers in the vase, and Silvally sitting across from her.
The water beading on her fur immediately became more visible, and she let out a steamy breath.
"Uh… h-hah, this was unexpected," Artemis managed, trailing off with a little laugh. "I, um, I didn't- wow."
Silvally didn't say anything. Instead, he tilted his head slightly, responding to her words, and bit into half of his watermelon. He was right about the plain food, the watermelon was refreshing, and the flavour wasn't overwhelming, allowing him to fully concentrate on the fox across from him.
Artemis was still holding her apple, unable to look him in the eyes. But why?
"So, uh… Silvally?" Artemis started, her voice somewhat timid—that was very unlike her, and worried Silvally. "Now that we've known each other for a while… Do you, um, like anyone in particular?"
Silvally paused, still holding half a watermelon in his mouth. Did he like anyone in particular? Now that was an odd question. What did she mean by that?
She was nervous about it. Why was she nervous? That means it must be serious. What could she possibly mean by-
Oh! Oh, that made sense.
Artemis was nervous because it was her job to make sure he was integrating into society properly. Obviously, a successful part of doing that is ensuring Silvally had people he liked. There were a few of course, but… This felt more serious than just people he was fond of. This felt different. More in depth—something that really meant a lot to someone, and an important part of society as a whole. More intimate and close than just 'like'.
That's why Artemis was so nervous! By 'like' she probably meant if there was anyone he trusts. It was so simple!
Silvally hummed in thought around his watermelon half, glancing away from the nervous, wide-eyed look Artemis was giving him. Who did he trust? That was a difficult question. He didn't trust many people, but that came with the years of running from anything that spoke in an understandable way. He had a few hangups and he wasn't afraid to admit it.
But trust? It took a moment to really think this through. The most recent example came to mind. He'd been seeing someone about getting his fur trimmed and cleaned out properly. It was difficult maintaining his wiry fur, and even moreso when his scales needed polishing. If he wanted to look properly clean, he needed a litany of supplies to do so. If taking care of his appearance was difficult, then allowing someone close enough to perform said tasks was near impossible.
Impossible, except with one Pokémon. In Capim Town, a sister of Treasure Town, was a salon run by a Sylveon. Being a Pokémon who could understand emotions intimately, she had no issues understanding and working with Silvally's nervousness around others. One of her ribbons would wrap around his talon and she'd keep an eye on his emotional state while working on him. She was a genuinely impressive and caring Pokémon, and the feeling of warmth and safety that filled him in her presence was indescribable.
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Sylveon could ask to do almost anything to him, and Silvally knew he would be in good and safe hands, even with scissors flying around him, sandpaper scraping his scales, and having polish worked onto his beak.
"I trust my barber," Silvally said, removing the watermelon from his mouth. It was the truth—he trusted Sylveon completely. He was never worried because she always took her time and explained whenever he grew uncomfortable.
Rip!
Artemis's paws tensed and her legs twitched, the sudden shift causing her apple to tear in half. The fox looked stunned, eyes wide, ears folded back, holding the two halves of the apple in shock.
"Your barber…?" she whispered. Her constantly flowing tails fell to the ground, limp, and her paws shook slightly. She started to tear up a little bit, the corner of her eyes glimmering with tears.
Silvally had never seen her like this. Artemis looked so… so… proud! Yes! She had to be proud that he'd managed to start trusting others after everything, and that her efforts to help him were working wonderfully. If she was so proud of that, then she was going to be thrilled with what he was about to say.
"And Emerald, the librarian," Silvally added. He trusted her as well, she was always quiet and helpful. That, and she gave the best book recommendations, and knew just about anything he asked. And, if she didn't, she knew exactly where to direct him in the library to find out what he was looking for. She was great, and Silvally very much liked and trusted her.
"Wh- her too?" Artemis asked in what had to be an awe-struck whisper, and not what seemed like a despaired breath. She was so proud that the tears started to roll, and her lip quivered with what had to be pride.
That, or she was about to cry. But come on, Artemis didn't cry, she was too tough and proud to cry over something like that.
Maybe. He should add a few others just to be safe.
"Kangaskhan too," Silvally said with a sage nod. She was always so nice and had wonderful stories to tell.
"Wait-" Artemis blinked at that. Her entire demeanour changed, and her brows furrowed in confusion. "B-but she's so old…" Several of her tails twitched and swished in agitation.
"Leafeon as well."
Artemis reeled back.
"Wait, what!? But he's a-" she paused, and glanced at Silvally again, looking him up and down. "I didn't… Huh." She blinked several times, clearing the definitely-pride-tears from her eyes, and tilted her head, one of her ears flopping to the side. "Maybe it's a wild Pokémon thing?"
Now Silvally was extra confused. He knew Artemis liked talking with Leafeon too, and they frequently told stories or joked around with one another. What was wrong with Leafeon? Why did trusting him for the proper plants and advice seem like an odd thing?
Maybe it was some 'civilized Pokémon' thing?
"Um, maybe-" Artemis cut herself off with a short laugh, her ears perking up somewhat. "Maybe I didn't, er, explain myself properly." She took a bite from half of her apple and chewed for what felt like entirely too long. "Okay, so, what I mean is… Well, it's like- Shit, sorry, this is hard to explain."
Silvally understood—choosing the right words was hard sometimes, equally so when nervous. Or, in his case, unable to speak in long sentences or else he'd devolve into a painful coughing fit. What would Artemis be nervous about though? If this wasn't about people he trusted... Well, Silvally had no idea then.
"Okay, let me try again. Um…" Artemis shook her head, her ears settling in a half-folded position. "So, now that you've been around, uh, people for a while, is there anyone you find yourself, um… a-attracted to?" Her cheeks darkened slightly.
"Like magnets?" Silvally asked. This was a weird line of questioning. Sure he had some metal plates on his body, and he thought he could sense magnetic fields due to their presence. But, what did that have to do with civilization? Were these cities some sort of magnetic hotspot?
"No, not, uh, not like magnets." Artemis let out a little laugh, and drummed her claws on the table top. "Well, sort of. I meant if there's anyone you find yourself around or near without really thinking about it. Or, um, if you have a hard time keeping your eyes off of them…"
Oh!
That made much more sense. Why didn't she frame it like that in the first place? That answer was obvious, and relatively simple as well. Someone he found himself watching constantly, or near all the time? Well, the answer was…
"You," Silvally said. It was true. He couldn't help his eyes drifting to her from time-to-time, it was mostly by reflex at this point—some learned behavior he wasn't able to shake. He was around her constantly too, through absolutely no intentional behavior of his own.
Artemis's tails spasmed hard. The ground vibrated from the nine off-time thumps against the bricks, allowing Silvally to feel it through his feet. Her ears did a funky little dance atop her head, perking up, folding flat, cocking to the side, and turning almost as red as her cheeks. She blinked several times, and her eyes started to look misty again.
"Wh- You mean- M-me?" Artemis whispered.
Oh no, he probably said the wrong thing. He could salvage this!
"And Emerald," Silvally added quickly. He visited the library often, and she was always there. The Absol was also incredibly stealthy, so Silvally found himself searching for her constantly in order to avoid being startled. It fit what Artemis asked.
The fox across from him froze, and her jaw dropped, her tails freezing in place. She blinked once, twice, and let out a quiet squeak.
"And my barber," Silvally tacked on.
…
The two stared at one another, unblinking, emotionless, and silent. The sounds of Pokémon Square echoed off the buildings around them, as did the sounds of construction and various voices. The wind brushed through both of their fur, and, somehow, the flower petals on the display between them all drifted away in the wind.
Maybe Silvally misinterpreted her questions?
"I think you're not quite understanding what I'm asking," Artemis sighed. She took a deep breath, and brought both her paws to her face, holding them in front of her muzzle. Her gaze locked onto Silvally's and she narrowed her eyes, her cheeks turning dark. "Silvally?"
"Artemis?" he asked.
Her ears fell flat, and her tails shifted around behind her. Artemis took a long, deep breath, and exhaled a steamy mist, the heat rolling off her body spiking in temperature.
"Do you want to fuck-"
A thunderous crash sounded out, interrupting Artemis. The metallic sound rang out for several seconds, followed by a number of shouts, none of them in panic or pain. Just an angry sound that rolled from what had to be nearly a dozen Pokémon, coming down the street from the construction zone they passed.
"What the fuck do you think you're doing!?" a voice shouted.
"Saving your life!" another retorted.
Artemis blinked, closed her jaws with a rough grinding sound, and let out a frustrated growl. The growl in question was rather irritated sounding, further proved by the small twin streams of flame that escaped her nose. The temperature around her spiked, and her paws burned holes through the tablecloth.
"We should go-" Silvally was interrupted.
"Yep." Artemis growled. She pushed off the table with enough force to cause the table to skid several steps to the side. The other half of Silvally's watermelon hit the ground with a splat, and the plates shattered on the floor.
Silvally fell into step behind Artemis… and slightly to the left, to avoid the sudden molten-slag pawprints left on the ground as she walked.
"StupidfuckingcontinentIcantevenhaveonefuckingdayoffandhestoodensetopickupanyofmyhintsandthisheatiskillingmeImsodamntiredArceusfuckingendmenoworIsweartofuckIllkillwhoeverinterruptedmeImnotkidding…"
Silvally only managed to understand a few of those words, his head cocking in confusion from Artemis's angry muttered growls and huffing. Briefly, he glanced up at the sky.
It wasn't that hot out.
The street had come to a standstill, Pokémon watching from the sidelines and blocking the road. There were still no screams or anything that would indicate someone dying/dead/severely maimed and injured, so Silvally wasn't in too much of a rush.
Artemis seemed to be, if the way she shoved through the crowd of Pokémon meant anything. A particularly large Machamp was shoved to the side by Artemis, all four of its arms flaring out as it tried to balance itself. The grey-skinned Pokémon whirled around, furious, and snapped at the fire-ice-fox that pushed him.
"Hey! Watch where you're-"
Artemis's glare carried with it a weight that made Silvally's fur stand on end, and it was only extended amounts of time spent with her that prevented Silvally from panicking. The Machamp had no such exposure and wilted under her gaze. If Silvally didn't know any better he could have sworn she used a dark-type ability that scared opponents into submission.
The Machamp nearly pissed itself.
The Pokémon crowded around the scene had all turned to look at the spectacle and had felt the chill that settled over them—parallel to the heat radiating off of Artemis. They very quickly parted for her and Silvally, allowing the duo through to the scene of the almost-crime.
An Absol and a Timburr were shouting at one another. The Absol's white fur was raised, and his red eyes narrowed, listening to the shorter Pokémon laying into him. The Timburr was furious, his veiny body flexing with every forceful shout. Despite the fact that the Timburr was smaller than most of the Pokémon around him, he had more than enough volume and presence to make up for it.
Just to the side of the two was the origin of the sound: a large steel beam had fallen from what had to be a rather impressive height considering it was buried halfway in the ground. A Gardevoir stood beside it, looking rather concerned and guilty, holding its white dress with clenched fists. A Kadabra floated beside it, its large yellow hand on the Gardevoir's shoulder, likely in an attempt to comfort the other Pokémon.
"Hey!" Artemis shouted, stepping between the two furious Pokémon. She used her tails to shove them both apart, sending the Absol and Timburr staggering back. "What the fuck is going on?"
Straight to the point and pissed off, Silvally expected nothing less.
"This idiot was trying to get himself killed!" the Absol exclaimed, baring its fangs. "I told you to be careful, you moron!"
"I was going to evolve you empty-headed anxiety-dog!" the Timburr snarked back. "I told you, the lumber was light! That means I'm going to evolve! I just needed a kickstart to do it. I would have been perfectly fine, I saw it coming!"
"And you thought standing beneath floating beams was the way to do it!?" the Absol shouted.
Silvally blinked, and looked back to the steel beam buried in the ground. There was indeed a piece of wooden lumber right next to it. He stepped toward the site and glanced down at the grass below, taking in the claw marks and the flattened spots. Silvally walked around it, politely moving around the two psychic types to get a look at the other side.
There were claw marks on this side, relatively large, that would fit Absol's profile. Directly opposite, past the beam, were some flattened patches of grass, and upturned dirt. The two Pokémon arguing seemed to have various grass stains and patches of dirt on their skin and fur.
Silvally glanced at the wooden beam. It was perpendicular to the direction the claw marks were facing.
It looked like Timburr tossed the chunk of wood to the side, and was standing directly beneath the steel beam. The Absol had rushed in and shoved Timburr out of the way, causing them to take a tumble.
Silvally grabbed the wooden beam in question and hefted it up with a talon. It was light. Too light for something of its size. He narrowed his eyes and walked back toward Artemis, Absol, and Timburr, bringing the piece of wood with him.
"-last time, you're not going to evolve!" Absol shouted. "Something was wrong, I stepped in. That's my job!"
"You can't laze about for weeks and then suddenly do one thing and claim you're doing your job!" Timburr snapped.
"Both of you sit down and shut up, now!" Artemis growled.
Absol's eyes widened, and he dropped his ass to the grass in an instant, a shiver running through the Pokémon. The Timburr didn't seem to care, however, and raised a hand, stepping closer to Artemis.
"And who the fuck are you, telling me what to do?" He pointed a finger in Artemis's face, nearly touching her nose. "You don't work here. You're not-"
A flash of pink from the Kadabra caught Silvally's attention, as did the following jolt from the Timburr. The small Pokémon blinked and looked up at Artemis, taking a step back. He glanced toward the Kadabra, who nodded, and then looked back at the hybrid Ninetales once again.
"O-oh. You're… fuck." The short grey Pokémon fell onto his ass and sat himself down, his hands held in his lap and gaze on the ground. "I, uh, sorry, miss Artemis. Ma'am."
Artemis glared at the Timburr again, a steamy breath escaping her nose. The grass beneath her had started to wilt, turning brown, then black. There were small fires beneath her paws, but those were quickly extinguished with a radiating wave of cold that rolled off of her. It frosted the grass within several steps of her, as well as the Timburr, who took it with a wince.
…
"You two, get me the safety sheets for the site," Artemis spoke to the two psychic types. They both nodded and vanished into thin air with a pop. "Absol, talk."
And he did. The Absol told them about how most Pokémon had gone to take lunch, and everyone was supposed to stop working. There was a final beam left to move, and Timburr told Gardevoir to move it, even without Kadabra present to assist them. Absol told them not to and warned Timburr away, but he hadn't listened. Being tired, Gardevoir slipped and dropped the beam. Absol had to step in and save Timburr.
Artemis didn't look very happy with that story. Silvally figured it was the hubris of an absolute idiot that led to a near catastrophe.
Timburr's response?
"And I would have been fine. I'm going to evolve, I'm strong enough. Gurdurrs can carry those around easy, and being hit with one isn't a big deal. I'd just bruise a little, honest." Timburr explained.
"You're not going to evolve!" Absol retorted.
"Hush." Artemis turned to face the small grey Pokémon once more. "How do you know you're going to evolve?"
"The wood beams are easy to move around. I'm strong enough to lift those metal pipes that were brought in. A steel beam would be nothing, which means I'm gonna evolve."
"Those are made of aluminum," the Absol grumbled under his breath.
"Are you talking about that beam?" Artemis asked, using a paw to point to Silvally. After a nod of confirmation, Artemis took a step toward him and cocked her head. "What do you think?"
Silvally took a breath, and shifted his typing. His muscles strained, bones ached, and his body shifted beneath the fighting-type energy that coursed through him. With a firm grip, Silvally held up the lumber for everyone to see.
And crushed it in his talons.
The two halves of wood fell to the ground with dull thumps, much to the Timburr's surprise. The inside was partially hollow, and the weight and structural integrity of the piece was more than compromised.
It was at that moment that Gardevoir and Kadabra popped back into existence, and handed both Silvally and Artemis a clipboard. At the very front were what appeared to be the Occupational Safety and Health Association guidelines for this particular type of construction and building site. Silvally glanced down, and he winced.
He counted three violations on the first page alone.
"I'm going to go through this, and you're going to sit here and listen. Understand?" Artemis growled.
At this point every Pokémon on the jobsite had gathered around, listening in absolute silence. It consisted of mostly fighting-type Pokémon, as well as several ground-types, a few steel-type Pokémon, and of course, Absol the dark-type. Every single one stood quietly, eyes down, unable to meet the furious gaze of Artemis.
"… For fuck's sake, it literally says right here: 'Do not stand under loads being lifted and transported.' You know what that means, right?" Artemis rounded on the Timburr, steam rolling off her body.
The grey Pokémon nodded.
Silvally, in an attempt to be useful, figured he should take notes since Artemis was leading the whole situation. Unfortunately, he found very quickly that writing on a surface like that was difficult—he didn't have the proper grip to hold the board, nor the claws to write well enough.
In his attempts multiple sheets had slid from the clip and fluttered to the ground, leaving a blank page in front of him, ready for notes. He frowned, and raised a talon, doing his best to write on the flimsy piece of wood that just wouldn't stay still in his talons!
'Artemis Angy' he wrote in this weird footprint rune language that they used. At least, he thought he did. Maybe he was missing a letter somewhere in there… 'Angry' was a difficult word to express with his large talons. How was he supposed to get a paw print to explain emotion?
"-and you! Drop that smile, I don't see any safety gear on you either!" Artemis snapped, whirling around to face the Absol. The dark-type went from a rather positive mood to one of stunned terror, his ears folding back. "You think you're free from punishment just because you saved someone's life? Think again, pal!"
Silvally needed to amend his notes.
'Artemis very angy.'
…
Something still seemed off about his writing, but he couldn't put his talon on it—literally or figuratively. Stupid foot language, stop putting accents on paws!
It took almost twenty minutes for Artemis to stop finding reasons to tear into the group of Pokémon assembled in front of them. Once she ran out of reasons, she asked for Silvally to give her any she missed.
So he did.
That took another twelve minutes to get through as well.
Finally, after everything, Silvally had learned several new colourful swear words, and a new way to say 'I hope you have a good day' in not so many words and not nearly as politely. Artemis allowed the cowering construction workers to leave her gaze, under the condition that all of them return with safety gear and prepare a report to submit to the local guild with all the adjustments they would make.
And Artemis promised she would follow up.
The various Pokémon around the site dispersed, most of them walking past Silvally and to the street to head home. The psychic types teleported out, taking their close friends with them, much to the annoyance of others.
Absol, on the other hand, came up to Silvally. He looked far less ashamed or angry than Silvally expected him to. Then again, Absol was the safety head of the group and ensured they hadn't had accidents for months.
"Sorry you had to step in, I know it couldn't have been easy prying her off of you," Absol said. He seemed genuinely apologetic, and cast a glance over his shoulder at the fire-ice fox who was watching everyone leave.
"What do you mean?" Silvally cocked his head, confused.
"You don't need to play innocent, I'm sure everyone could tell." Absol laughed, and smiled in sympathy. "I'm not normally one to say this, but damn, you lucky bastard."
Silvally was even more confused. What was he missing? Why was he lucky?
"Just a little advice, but make sure you've got plenty of Oran and Cherri berries. You'll need them if you're up all night." Absol gave him a wink, and stood up, walking past Silvally. "Good luck, buddy. I'm sure I'll see something about it in the news in a month or two."
Silvally blinked, and turned, watching the retreating form of Absol step onto the road and disappear from sight.
What was happening? What was he missing? Why in a couple of months? They thought they interrupted something, but what?
Confused, Silvally turned to look at Artemis.
…
She was once again red in the cheeks and ears, muttering to herself, and unable to meet his gaze for more than a second.
Silvally sighed, once again coming to the realization that 'civilized' Pokémon were odd. They never explained themselves fully and always hinted at things. It was always something strange, like 'I'm okay' being code for 'I'm suffering end me please', or 'don't worry about it' meaning either 'worry about it' or 'we're best friends now, I am in your debt and will bring you offerings of random desserts to ensure your friendship remains'.
This whole thing with Artemis just ticked all the boxes.
Confused, tired, and with his mind scrambling for any answers that would make sense, Silvally once again found himself longing for the simple things in the wilderness. At least out there the wild Pokémon were direct and honest.
He couldn't count on one talon how many times a wild Pokémon wanted to make eggs with him.
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A Matter of Trustby Vetu Asaber
A Matter of Trust [https://imgur.com/gallery/uJ9yQtJ]
OSHA Inspectionby HootHoot
OSHA Inspection - HootHoot [https://imgur.com/gallery/B5DcGOV]
Big shout-out and thanks to my supporters, I can't thank you enough: Valon, Sleepypuff (sleepy ghost), BlobbyCat, Chris (crpen1992), Baron of Bonk, IRS, JoeyW, Nithalys, PizzaJolt (spartan211), and Sugar Cube.