Story Notes:
This is the "other" Runaways story, the long one with more characters, plot, and some other stuff too.Okay, *clears throat* I do not own pokemon, or any of those characters. the events and characters of this story are all fictional and any resemblance to persons live or dead is purely coincidental, and not meant to be insulting.Also, the inclusion of Lucario and wave guidance is all Felix's fault. Go read "Luca"... it's good and it inspired some of this story.Also, categories will be updated as necessary. They will changeAlso, I will be changing the categories as they need to be changed. the main characters are all a bit young at this point for sex, but it will probably show up in some form or another later.Also, if you can guess what the title is talking about I'll give you a cookie! (And maybe a story request, if you want)
Chapter 13: Sweet Dreams
I ring my hair and clothes out quickly before I step inside the kitchen. I pick up the coffee pot off the counter and pour myself a cup and then pour a mug for Rogue as well. I chuckle as I lean back against the counter and quickly drain my cup as I hear several people coming down the stairs. I chuckle and begin to whistle as I begin digging through the cupboards. I find the box I am looking for and set it on the counter before heading to the fridge.
"Okay, what gives?"
I grin as I turn around to face Rogue while holding a large bowl of apple sauce. "I'm making vegan pancakes!"
Rogue's eyes go wide and she takes several steps back. "Who are you and what have you done with the real Danny?" Her eyes narrow, "You're not Danny, you're Mew aren't you?"
"What?" I laugh, "Of course I'm not Mew. I'm pretty sure she can only impersonate pokémon."
"No, you've impersonated Danny before."
I chuckle, "Why did nobody tell me this?"
"Stop playing."
"I'm not playing, what did Mew do?"
"Gin! Get your hungover ass down here! I need you to check if this is really Danny!"
Gin slowly crawls backwards down the stairs as he groans, "Stop shouting, you're going to make my head explode."
Gin slowly climbs to his feet once he reaches the bottom of the stairs and carefully walks to the kitchen counter where he grabs the coffee pot and begins drinking. Rogue and I watch as he gradually drains the pot dry. "Are you clear headed enough to effectively judge my aura?"
Gin nods and hands me the coffee pot, "I have a sure fire method to make your aura really shine."
"How?" I ask, a little intrigued. Suddenly I realize just what Gin's method is and I leap away from him while simultaneously beaning him in the head with the coffee pot. The metal carafe bounces off the Lucario's head with a loud 'Klong!' and Gin falls onto his ass clutching his head.
"It's Danny." Gin groans before falling backwards onto the tile floor.
Rogue snickers, "What the hell just happened?"
"Gin was going to punch Danny in the nuts." Crystal giggles as she picks Gin up off the floor and carries him to the kitchen table. "To make his aura flare."
"Then what gives? It's obvious Gile threw you in the ocean again." Rogue asks.
"He was justified." I chuckle.
"More than justified!" Gile exclaims behind me, "The bastard kissed me!"
Rogue glances at Gin, "Are you sure it's not Mew? That sounds more up her alley."
Gin nods before laying his head on the kitchen table, "Not Mew."
I chuckle, "Now I really want to know what Mew was doing impersonating me. Anyway, it boils down to me having the absolute best nightmare ever!" I glance over at Melissa as she quietly makes her way down the stairs. "Welcome to the world of the waking, Princess!"
"Can I please punch him?!" Gile pleads with Melissa.
Melissa looks at me and then at Gile. "What happened?"
"He was making all these weird noises in his sleep this morning. So I went to wake him, and the sonuvabitch KISSED ME!"
"He has surprisingly kissable lips." I say with a grin and Melissa stares at me as I laugh, "Besides, I've already been adequately punished. Haven't I, Princess?"
Melissa's ears flatten back against her head, "I… I d-don't know what you are talking about!"
"Okay, seriously, what the hell is going on?!" Rogue exclaims, looking back and forth between Melissa and me.
"Nothing." I say with a smile, "Nothing is going on. In fact, except for my kissing Gile by accident this morning, nothing of significance has happened."
Rogue glares at me, "I don't know what happened, and I don't know what it has to do with Melissa or you kissing Gile, but I will find out, somehow."
"Good luck with that." I chuckle, "Melissa, I need your help. I think I figured out a way to make vegan pancakes, but I need your expert opinion."
"I better get extra." Gile warns and I chuckle, I think today is going to be a good day.
~0~
"Okay, fine. The pancake idea was a complete disaster." I finally admit as I scrub the stove top with a wet rag. "But that can't possibly be my fault! It simply isn't natural for pancake batter to explode like that!"
"That was a bit unusual." Melissa chuckles, and then points to a spot where there is still burnt batter caked on, "You missed a spot."
"No, I just haven't gotten to that one yet." I pause in my scrubbing, "A bit? You mean that sometimes things randomly explode around here? I mean sure, you seem to have a thing for making stuff explode, but is that really the norm around here?"
I dance out of reach of Melissa's tail as it lashes out, grinning as she rolls her eyes, "Between Crystal's eccentricity and ADHD, Gile's battle style, and Rio's rather frightening panic attacks, yes, explosions tend to be the norm around here. At least when I'm not traveling."
I rinse out my rag and get back to scrubbing, "So why aren't you travelling right now?"
"The next gym I need to beat to proceed in the League uses steel and electric types and is known for being brutal in his matches. He's been on the receiving end of a number of investigations into his treatment of pokémon and nearly been shut down for excessive force in League ordained battles." Melissa replies flatly with a weary slump in her shoulders.
I set my rag down and take a seat on the counter. "It sounds like you have been asked that a lot."
"Yes."
"Which means you've been at home for some time now right?"
"Yes." I open my mouth to ask another question, but Melissa cuts me off with a finger, "I'm going to ask a question now."
"Yes?"
"Why are you so sociable?"
"I'm not sure I understand the question."
Melissa sighs and leans on the counter, "You get along with most every pokémon you meet, and somehow, most humans. You made a living stealing from humans."
"I also did odd jobs for pokémon too, it wasn't all rescue missions."
"Not just those, you also stole supplies, and apparently you also liberated liquor." Melissa points out dryly, "But that's not my main point. You're so… not normal…"
"Extraordinary?"
"No."
"Smart?"
"A little, but no."
"Incredibly sexy?"
"NO!"
"Wow, you don't have to be mean about it. Besides, I seem to remember you voicing a very different opinion last night."
Melissa gives me a look, "It's irrelevant. You always seem to have an answer. You also almost always seem to get along with everyone that isn't a dick to begin with."
"And?"
"That's not normal."
"I would hardly describe myself as normal."
"True. However, you seem too perfect."
I snort, "You're joking right? I'm far from perfect."
"Oh yeah? Let's recap, my initial encounter with you resulted in a major, life changing shift in my outlook on pokémon and the League."
"Okay, I can understand a boy riding on an arcanine and wielding a machete would be kinda impacting. How does that make me perfect?"
"You weren't just flashy, you were eloquent." Melissa objects. "At our age back then, that's one hell of an accomplishment, and in general not normal. Then the next time we met you actually saved me, fought off a small army, and then jumped off a fricking cliff to make your escape."
"I also groped you. I didn't fight off an army, I just fought a couple people and ran like hell for the rest." I chuckle, "Hardly impressive. I was actually scared shitless you were dead and I was going to be stuck on that island."
"Still. You were pretty awesome."
I start fiddling with my hair, trying to undo the tight braids. "Thanks. Don't forget Gin though, he's the one that actually calmed Rio down. Heck, he's the one that trained me to use aura."
"I guess, but what about how you are awesome with people? You gathered a crowd and seemed to be putting on quite a show for them in the short time I went in to get new underwear."
"I am not awesome with people." I grimace, "You have no idea how happy I was to see you come back out."
"Really?" She asks giving me an incredulous look. "You looked to me like you were having a grand ole time, and when I showed up you felt like you were in trouble."
"I can put on one hell of a show, but I hate crowds." I say with a chuckle, "They make me feel trapped. As for how I felt, you were pissed, and then you kicked me in the nuts."
"What about Toni? You only interacted with her for a few minutes and by the end of that she was pretty damn enamored with you."
"Fighting types are not hard to impress. A few compliments and a show of strength is typically sufficient." I grin. "Annnnnd…"
"Don't say it."
"I'm just that sexy."
Melissa buries her face in her hands before groaning, "How long are you going to keep bringing that up?"
"A little bit longer." I chuckle. I yelp as the wet rag smacks me in the face.
Melissa laughs, "Well, I'll go get ready to head out. We're going to go buy a replacement sliding glass door."
"What am I wearing?"
"I'm not your mother, it's not my responsibility to dress you." Melissa replies with a dismissive wave. "But you'd better be finished cleaning up the stove by then. Or else you'll be going with Gile instead of me."
Crap.
~3~
I look the large box holding the sliding glass doors over. "There is no way I'm gonna be able to carry that by myself."
"I thought you were super strong?"
"Yes, over short distances!" I exclaim. I'm stronger than most humans, but I can't carry a big ass door for several miles on my back! I shake my head, "I am not carrying that. We are stealing a cart."
"Okay. I'll go get a cart."
I watch Melissa walking around the corner to get one of the large dollies used to move the heavy stuff around. Once she is out of sight I turn back to the large door in its cardboard box. It's a bulky bastard and it's gonna be a pain to carry around back to put in.
"I've got a cart!"
I reach around the box and lift. Not as bad as I thought it was going to be. I think to myself as I start walking the door to Melissa's large flat cart. Okay, so maybe it isn't a walk so much as a waddle, because although it isn't as heavy as I thought, it is every bit as clunky to carry as I thought it would be.
"I can't see around this, so you'll have to tell me when I'm close."
"You're close."
I carefully set the glass door onto the cart. "Okay, so now we go pay for the door right?"
"No, now you go pay for the door. Rogue broke it."
I sigh and move around to the handle side of the cart and start pulling it towards the front of the store.
~0~
Once we get out past the parking lot Melissa starts giving me 'looks'. Looks that scream 'mischief' and 'predatory'. After a couple minutes of pushing the cart and getting these looks with no conversation, I finally ask, "What?"
I yelp as Melissa leaps on my back and wraps her legs around my waist. "What the hell?!"
Melissa points ahead of us dramatically, "Onward!"
I sigh and roll my eyes as I begin walking, "I would have expected that from Crystal, not you."
"Less talk, more walk, Steed!" Melissa laughs, squeezing me with her legs.
I raise brow, but don't say anything as I keep walking, but I have a plan in the back of my mind. Slowly I increase my pace until I am pushing the cart at a nice jogging pace, keeping my eyes open for a specific something. Once I see my target I push the cart into the grass where it quickly rolls to a stop.
"What are you doing?" Melissa asks as I break into a sprint up a grassy hill.
"Have you figured out how to fly yet?"
"No."
"You may want to learn quickly." I chuckle as warp my arms around her knees.
Cresting the hill I can see the small spring in the middle of the park. There are a couple people fishing on the far bank, and people scattered all around, but none of them are between us and that dark blue water. Melissa begins screaming as I accelerate into extreme speed and leap out over the spring.
I stick my feet out straight and shoot through the surface. I let go of Melissa and let her slip off my back as I sink deeper. Holy shit it is cold! My eyes open as I touch the bottom. I grin, there is very little that can compare to being underwater.
It is peaceful yet full of motion and life at the same time. I look around through the crystal clear water, spotting a few Feebas swimming over to me. I wave and start fiddling with my cornrows again. I've managed to get them somewhat loose and the water is helping accelerate the process. Then it occurs to me that I am forgetting something, something important. What is it? Oh yeah, breathing.
I kick off the ground and up to the surface. My head breaks the surface and I take huge, gulping breaths. Damn, oxygen does a body good! I grin as I start swimming back towards the shore.
"DANNY! I'M GOING TO KILL YOU!" Melissa shouts somewhere behind me.
I laugh as I kick a little harder for shore. I stand up as soon as I touch ground and slosh out of the water onto the shore. Stumbling along I glance back to see Melissa also stumbling out of the spring. I smirk as she makes her way towards me, "You know, a white shirt and no bra was probably a bad choice for this trip."
Melissa lifts a hand and I find myself airborne and heading back into the spring. I splash down in the shallows and slide into the muddy bank on the far side of the spring. I look up at the fisherman staring down at me in shock and grin as I climb to my feet.
"Are you okay?"
I laugh, "Hell yeah. Running from angry females is kind of a hobby of mine." I look across the spring to see Melissa actually running across the surface. "And I should be running now."
I sprint around the spring, firing a couple golf ball sized aura spheres into the spring around Melissa. The water around her splashes wildly but her steps don't falter as she continues running after me across the spring. I sprint towards the playground area as she hits the shore. I dart around a large jungle gym and turn to see Melissa standing on the other side. "Hi there! That was pretty impressive running on the water like that."
Melissa's mouth turns up at the corners slightly, "Thanks, but I'm still gonna thrash you."
She slowly starts moving around the jungle gym and I try to move as well, but my feet feel like they weigh eighty pound each. Melissa notices my surprised expression and grins toothily, "I remembered how to do a couple of things from last night."
Oh shit. I try to get away, but it's almost like running underwater, while wearing lead boots. In moments Melissa is standing in front of me. She raises a hand and I cringe. Then she grabs me by the chin and kisses me.
My eyes fly open and I stare at her, "What happened to thrashing me?"
"I'll let Gile do that." Melissa says, kissing me again. In my head I hear, That was actually a lot of fun. Maybe we could do that again, but while properly clothed next time.
Sounds good to me. I think back to her.
WHAP! WHAP!
Both Melissa and I yelp in pain and turn to see an older woman holding a rolled up magazine, "Just what do you think you are doing in front of all these innocent children."
I take a look around and see every single kid staring at me from the various play equipment. I shrug, "It was just a kiss, no tongue either."
WHAP! WHAP!
"It is perverse and disgusting, parading your fetish in front of these children!" the woman exclaims angrily.
"Fetish?" I frown, not sure what she is talking about. "I'm just being kissed by my girlfriend." I turn to Melissa, "We are a couple, right?"
Melissa rolls her eyes, "If you couldn't tell by now then there is no hope for you."
I smirk, "Well you never called me a boyfriend, you called me a lot of things, but that was not one of them." I turn back to the woman again, "Anyway, I'm not seeing the fetish."
"Your kind disgust me. Dressing up your… animals and publicly flaunting your deviance in the faces of the righteous." She spits on me and then on Melissa.
I blink and wipe spit out of my eye, "Well then, I think I have figured out the problem here." I can feel Melissa's anger burning brightly next to me, but I grab her hand and start to walk away, "Come on Melissa, let's leave the confused woman alone."
Melissa follows me for a bit but then the woman calls after us, "You are going to burn in hell, because that is the fate of all who fornicate with beasts! Arceus declares it!"
Melissa whirls around and I tackle her to the ground as she shouts, "I'm not an animal damnit! I am a human being!" I pick her up as she continues, "I did not choose to be turned into this!"
"Drawing too much attention." I mutter into her ear as I look around at the other people in the park who are now all staring at us.
Melissa takes a deep breath and sighs, "Whatever." She pulls my arms from around her waist and stands up straight. "I can walk on my own."
I nod and follow her out of the park and back to the cart with the door. I start pushing it down the path again and Melissa walks along next to me, glowering in silence.
"I'll fix you a cup of tea when we get back." I say with a sigh.
Melissa smiles slightly, "Thanks. Sorry about blowing up back there."
I chuckle, "Can't say I blame you."
"Why aren't you pissed though? She was mostly attacking you."
I laugh, "What? Me get angry over a little insult from an obvious bigot? This may surprise you, but there are plenty of bigoted pokémon too, and many of them are much more physical in their disapproval."
"Really?" Melissa gives me a surprised look. "I was under the impression that pokémon would be more accepting of interspecies sex."
I raise a brow, "I didn't say they were bigoted about that. Many hate humans in general, why else would you need to travel with a friendly pokémon for protection?"
"I never really thought about it." Melissa says, "Is that something that came to you during a drinking binge?"
I wince, "Actually it came to me when a Ninetails tried to eviscerate me for no reason. That was one fight I was not proud to win."
Melissa looks at me in surprise, "Why?"
"I ended up killing her in front of her daughters."
"Oh."
We walk in silence for a bit, waiting on the other to break the silence. Finally I decide to do the deed myself, "So what are your views on interspecies relations?"
"I'm against them actually."
I nod, "Are your reasons… um, religious like that woman's were?"
"No, it's just that more often than not when I see pokephiliacs with their pokémon, the pokémon seem… sad." Melissa says, "Like they wish they were somewhere else."
I think about that for a moment, "I guess that would be reason not to like something, seeing it cause pain most of the time."
"It would be natural for you to assume there is nothing wrong." Melissa smiles a bit sadly, "You don't have a language barrier."
"True." I smile, "What's that like for you? Being able to talk to pokémon now?"
Melissa smiles, "That's probably the only good thing about all this."
"Hey! What am I?! Chopped liver?!" I exclaim in mock indignation.
"Nah, you're more of a Vienna sausage." Melissa says with a laugh.
I tilt my head to the side as I try to decipher that statement, and then it hits me. "HEY! I am not!" Melissa sticks out her tongue at me and takes off. I push the cart harder and chase after her, "Take that back!"
~0~
By the time I manage to catch up to Melissa we are already back to the house. "Gotcha!" I shout leaping on top of her so that we tumble over the sand into the small cave area of their property. I end up on top and I pin her face down and hold her arms against her sides with my knees.
"Take it back." I gasp, breathing hard and dripping sweat.
Melissa sticks her tongue out at me playfully as she lies panting, "Make me."
"Okay." I grin crookedly, and begin tickling her sides.
Mellissa squirms and cackles underneath me as my fingers assault her sides. Her tail slaps me upside the head a couple times, but I ride it out until she finally cries out, "I give! I give! You're not a Vienna sausage, you're a bratwurst!"
I pause and frown in confusion, "What the hell is a bratwurst?"
"It's a sausage, and I think it's actually a pretty good approximation."
I smirk, "And why the hell should I trust a vegan about the size of sausages?"
Melissa snickers, "Because, Gile loves sausages."
I think about that for a moment before laughing, "That's not very nice!"
Still laughing I climb off of Melissa and help her to her feet. She grins, "But he really does!"
I shake my head and head back to the cart, which miraculously still has the glass door on it. "Let's get this thing around back so we can start fixing things."Chapter End Notes: YAY! I go crash now
"Okay, what gives?"
I grin as I turn around to face Rogue while holding a large bowl of apple sauce. "I'm making vegan pancakes!"
Rogue's eyes go wide and she takes several steps back. "Who are you and what have you done with the real Danny?" Her eyes narrow, "You're not Danny, you're Mew aren't you?"
"What?" I laugh, "Of course I'm not Mew. I'm pretty sure she can only impersonate pokémon."
"No, you've impersonated Danny before."
I chuckle, "Why did nobody tell me this?"
"Stop playing."
"I'm not playing, what did Mew do?"
"Gin! Get your hungover ass down here! I need you to check if this is really Danny!"
Gin slowly crawls backwards down the stairs as he groans, "Stop shouting, you're going to make my head explode."
Gin slowly climbs to his feet once he reaches the bottom of the stairs and carefully walks to the kitchen counter where he grabs the coffee pot and begins drinking. Rogue and I watch as he gradually drains the pot dry. "Are you clear headed enough to effectively judge my aura?"
Gin nods and hands me the coffee pot, "I have a sure fire method to make your aura really shine."
"How?" I ask, a little intrigued. Suddenly I realize just what Gin's method is and I leap away from him while simultaneously beaning him in the head with the coffee pot. The metal carafe bounces off the Lucario's head with a loud 'Klong!' and Gin falls onto his ass clutching his head.
"It's Danny." Gin groans before falling backwards onto the tile floor.
Rogue snickers, "What the hell just happened?"
"Gin was going to punch Danny in the nuts." Crystal giggles as she picks Gin up off the floor and carries him to the kitchen table. "To make his aura flare."
"Then what gives? It's obvious Gile threw you in the ocean again." Rogue asks.
"He was justified." I chuckle.
"More than justified!" Gile exclaims behind me, "The bastard kissed me!"
Rogue glances at Gin, "Are you sure it's not Mew? That sounds more up her alley."
Gin nods before laying his head on the kitchen table, "Not Mew."
I chuckle, "Now I really want to know what Mew was doing impersonating me. Anyway, it boils down to me having the absolute best nightmare ever!" I glance over at Melissa as she quietly makes her way down the stairs. "Welcome to the world of the waking, Princess!"
"Can I please punch him?!" Gile pleads with Melissa.
Melissa looks at me and then at Gile. "What happened?"
"He was making all these weird noises in his sleep this morning. So I went to wake him, and the sonuvabitch KISSED ME!"
"He has surprisingly kissable lips." I say with a grin and Melissa stares at me as I laugh, "Besides, I've already been adequately punished. Haven't I, Princess?"
Melissa's ears flatten back against her head, "I… I d-don't know what you are talking about!"
"Okay, seriously, what the hell is going on?!" Rogue exclaims, looking back and forth between Melissa and me.
"Nothing." I say with a smile, "Nothing is going on. In fact, except for my kissing Gile by accident this morning, nothing of significance has happened."
Rogue glares at me, "I don't know what happened, and I don't know what it has to do with Melissa or you kissing Gile, but I will find out, somehow."
"Good luck with that." I chuckle, "Melissa, I need your help. I think I figured out a way to make vegan pancakes, but I need your expert opinion."
"I better get extra." Gile warns and I chuckle, I think today is going to be a good day.
~0~
"Okay, fine. The pancake idea was a complete disaster." I finally admit as I scrub the stove top with a wet rag. "But that can't possibly be my fault! It simply isn't natural for pancake batter to explode like that!"
"That was a bit unusual." Melissa chuckles, and then points to a spot where there is still burnt batter caked on, "You missed a spot."
"No, I just haven't gotten to that one yet." I pause in my scrubbing, "A bit? You mean that sometimes things randomly explode around here? I mean sure, you seem to have a thing for making stuff explode, but is that really the norm around here?"
I dance out of reach of Melissa's tail as it lashes out, grinning as she rolls her eyes, "Between Crystal's eccentricity and ADHD, Gile's battle style, and Rio's rather frightening panic attacks, yes, explosions tend to be the norm around here. At least when I'm not traveling."
I rinse out my rag and get back to scrubbing, "So why aren't you travelling right now?"
"The next gym I need to beat to proceed in the League uses steel and electric types and is known for being brutal in his matches. He's been on the receiving end of a number of investigations into his treatment of pokémon and nearly been shut down for excessive force in League ordained battles." Melissa replies flatly with a weary slump in her shoulders.
I set my rag down and take a seat on the counter. "It sounds like you have been asked that a lot."
"Yes."
"Which means you've been at home for some time now right?"
"Yes." I open my mouth to ask another question, but Melissa cuts me off with a finger, "I'm going to ask a question now."
"Yes?"
"Why are you so sociable?"
"I'm not sure I understand the question."
Melissa sighs and leans on the counter, "You get along with most every pokémon you meet, and somehow, most humans. You made a living stealing from humans."
"I also did odd jobs for pokémon too, it wasn't all rescue missions."
"Not just those, you also stole supplies, and apparently you also liberated liquor." Melissa points out dryly, "But that's not my main point. You're so… not normal…"
"Extraordinary?"
"No."
"Smart?"
"A little, but no."
"Incredibly sexy?"
"NO!"
"Wow, you don't have to be mean about it. Besides, I seem to remember you voicing a very different opinion last night."
Melissa gives me a look, "It's irrelevant. You always seem to have an answer. You also almost always seem to get along with everyone that isn't a dick to begin with."
"And?"
"That's not normal."
"I would hardly describe myself as normal."
"True. However, you seem too perfect."
I snort, "You're joking right? I'm far from perfect."
"Oh yeah? Let's recap, my initial encounter with you resulted in a major, life changing shift in my outlook on pokémon and the League."
"Okay, I can understand a boy riding on an arcanine and wielding a machete would be kinda impacting. How does that make me perfect?"
"You weren't just flashy, you were eloquent." Melissa objects. "At our age back then, that's one hell of an accomplishment, and in general not normal. Then the next time we met you actually saved me, fought off a small army, and then jumped off a fricking cliff to make your escape."
"I also groped you. I didn't fight off an army, I just fought a couple people and ran like hell for the rest." I chuckle, "Hardly impressive. I was actually scared shitless you were dead and I was going to be stuck on that island."
"Still. You were pretty awesome."
I start fiddling with my hair, trying to undo the tight braids. "Thanks. Don't forget Gin though, he's the one that actually calmed Rio down. Heck, he's the one that trained me to use aura."
"I guess, but what about how you are awesome with people? You gathered a crowd and seemed to be putting on quite a show for them in the short time I went in to get new underwear."
"I am not awesome with people." I grimace, "You have no idea how happy I was to see you come back out."
"Really?" She asks giving me an incredulous look. "You looked to me like you were having a grand ole time, and when I showed up you felt like you were in trouble."
"I can put on one hell of a show, but I hate crowds." I say with a chuckle, "They make me feel trapped. As for how I felt, you were pissed, and then you kicked me in the nuts."
"What about Toni? You only interacted with her for a few minutes and by the end of that she was pretty damn enamored with you."
"Fighting types are not hard to impress. A few compliments and a show of strength is typically sufficient." I grin. "Annnnnd…"
"Don't say it."
"I'm just that sexy."
Melissa buries her face in her hands before groaning, "How long are you going to keep bringing that up?"
"A little bit longer." I chuckle. I yelp as the wet rag smacks me in the face.
Melissa laughs, "Well, I'll go get ready to head out. We're going to go buy a replacement sliding glass door."
"What am I wearing?"
"I'm not your mother, it's not my responsibility to dress you." Melissa replies with a dismissive wave. "But you'd better be finished cleaning up the stove by then. Or else you'll be going with Gile instead of me."
Crap.
~3~
I look the large box holding the sliding glass doors over. "There is no way I'm gonna be able to carry that by myself."
"I thought you were super strong?"
"Yes, over short distances!" I exclaim. I'm stronger than most humans, but I can't carry a big ass door for several miles on my back! I shake my head, "I am not carrying that. We are stealing a cart."
"Okay. I'll go get a cart."
I watch Melissa walking around the corner to get one of the large dollies used to move the heavy stuff around. Once she is out of sight I turn back to the large door in its cardboard box. It's a bulky bastard and it's gonna be a pain to carry around back to put in.
"I've got a cart!"
I reach around the box and lift. Not as bad as I thought it was going to be. I think to myself as I start walking the door to Melissa's large flat cart. Okay, so maybe it isn't a walk so much as a waddle, because although it isn't as heavy as I thought, it is every bit as clunky to carry as I thought it would be.
"I can't see around this, so you'll have to tell me when I'm close."
"You're close."
I carefully set the glass door onto the cart. "Okay, so now we go pay for the door right?"
"No, now you go pay for the door. Rogue broke it."
I sigh and move around to the handle side of the cart and start pulling it towards the front of the store.
~0~
Once we get out past the parking lot Melissa starts giving me 'looks'. Looks that scream 'mischief' and 'predatory'. After a couple minutes of pushing the cart and getting these looks with no conversation, I finally ask, "What?"
I yelp as Melissa leaps on my back and wraps her legs around my waist. "What the hell?!"
Melissa points ahead of us dramatically, "Onward!"
I sigh and roll my eyes as I begin walking, "I would have expected that from Crystal, not you."
"Less talk, more walk, Steed!" Melissa laughs, squeezing me with her legs.
I raise brow, but don't say anything as I keep walking, but I have a plan in the back of my mind. Slowly I increase my pace until I am pushing the cart at a nice jogging pace, keeping my eyes open for a specific something. Once I see my target I push the cart into the grass where it quickly rolls to a stop.
"What are you doing?" Melissa asks as I break into a sprint up a grassy hill.
"Have you figured out how to fly yet?"
"No."
"You may want to learn quickly." I chuckle as warp my arms around her knees.
Cresting the hill I can see the small spring in the middle of the park. There are a couple people fishing on the far bank, and people scattered all around, but none of them are between us and that dark blue water. Melissa begins screaming as I accelerate into extreme speed and leap out over the spring.
I stick my feet out straight and shoot through the surface. I let go of Melissa and let her slip off my back as I sink deeper. Holy shit it is cold! My eyes open as I touch the bottom. I grin, there is very little that can compare to being underwater.
It is peaceful yet full of motion and life at the same time. I look around through the crystal clear water, spotting a few Feebas swimming over to me. I wave and start fiddling with my cornrows again. I've managed to get them somewhat loose and the water is helping accelerate the process. Then it occurs to me that I am forgetting something, something important. What is it? Oh yeah, breathing.
I kick off the ground and up to the surface. My head breaks the surface and I take huge, gulping breaths. Damn, oxygen does a body good! I grin as I start swimming back towards the shore.
"DANNY! I'M GOING TO KILL YOU!" Melissa shouts somewhere behind me.
I laugh as I kick a little harder for shore. I stand up as soon as I touch ground and slosh out of the water onto the shore. Stumbling along I glance back to see Melissa also stumbling out of the spring. I smirk as she makes her way towards me, "You know, a white shirt and no bra was probably a bad choice for this trip."
Melissa lifts a hand and I find myself airborne and heading back into the spring. I splash down in the shallows and slide into the muddy bank on the far side of the spring. I look up at the fisherman staring down at me in shock and grin as I climb to my feet.
"Are you okay?"
I laugh, "Hell yeah. Running from angry females is kind of a hobby of mine." I look across the spring to see Melissa actually running across the surface. "And I should be running now."
I sprint around the spring, firing a couple golf ball sized aura spheres into the spring around Melissa. The water around her splashes wildly but her steps don't falter as she continues running after me across the spring. I sprint towards the playground area as she hits the shore. I dart around a large jungle gym and turn to see Melissa standing on the other side. "Hi there! That was pretty impressive running on the water like that."
Melissa's mouth turns up at the corners slightly, "Thanks, but I'm still gonna thrash you."
She slowly starts moving around the jungle gym and I try to move as well, but my feet feel like they weigh eighty pound each. Melissa notices my surprised expression and grins toothily, "I remembered how to do a couple of things from last night."
Oh shit. I try to get away, but it's almost like running underwater, while wearing lead boots. In moments Melissa is standing in front of me. She raises a hand and I cringe. Then she grabs me by the chin and kisses me.
My eyes fly open and I stare at her, "What happened to thrashing me?"
"I'll let Gile do that." Melissa says, kissing me again. In my head I hear, That was actually a lot of fun. Maybe we could do that again, but while properly clothed next time.
Sounds good to me. I think back to her.
WHAP! WHAP!
Both Melissa and I yelp in pain and turn to see an older woman holding a rolled up magazine, "Just what do you think you are doing in front of all these innocent children."
I take a look around and see every single kid staring at me from the various play equipment. I shrug, "It was just a kiss, no tongue either."
WHAP! WHAP!
"It is perverse and disgusting, parading your fetish in front of these children!" the woman exclaims angrily.
"Fetish?" I frown, not sure what she is talking about. "I'm just being kissed by my girlfriend." I turn to Melissa, "We are a couple, right?"
Melissa rolls her eyes, "If you couldn't tell by now then there is no hope for you."
I smirk, "Well you never called me a boyfriend, you called me a lot of things, but that was not one of them." I turn back to the woman again, "Anyway, I'm not seeing the fetish."
"Your kind disgust me. Dressing up your… animals and publicly flaunting your deviance in the faces of the righteous." She spits on me and then on Melissa.
I blink and wipe spit out of my eye, "Well then, I think I have figured out the problem here." I can feel Melissa's anger burning brightly next to me, but I grab her hand and start to walk away, "Come on Melissa, let's leave the confused woman alone."
Melissa follows me for a bit but then the woman calls after us, "You are going to burn in hell, because that is the fate of all who fornicate with beasts! Arceus declares it!"
Melissa whirls around and I tackle her to the ground as she shouts, "I'm not an animal damnit! I am a human being!" I pick her up as she continues, "I did not choose to be turned into this!"
"Drawing too much attention." I mutter into her ear as I look around at the other people in the park who are now all staring at us.
Melissa takes a deep breath and sighs, "Whatever." She pulls my arms from around her waist and stands up straight. "I can walk on my own."
I nod and follow her out of the park and back to the cart with the door. I start pushing it down the path again and Melissa walks along next to me, glowering in silence.
"I'll fix you a cup of tea when we get back." I say with a sigh.
Melissa smiles slightly, "Thanks. Sorry about blowing up back there."
I chuckle, "Can't say I blame you."
"Why aren't you pissed though? She was mostly attacking you."
I laugh, "What? Me get angry over a little insult from an obvious bigot? This may surprise you, but there are plenty of bigoted pokémon too, and many of them are much more physical in their disapproval."
"Really?" Melissa gives me a surprised look. "I was under the impression that pokémon would be more accepting of interspecies sex."
I raise a brow, "I didn't say they were bigoted about that. Many hate humans in general, why else would you need to travel with a friendly pokémon for protection?"
"I never really thought about it." Melissa says, "Is that something that came to you during a drinking binge?"
I wince, "Actually it came to me when a Ninetails tried to eviscerate me for no reason. That was one fight I was not proud to win."
Melissa looks at me in surprise, "Why?"
"I ended up killing her in front of her daughters."
"Oh."
We walk in silence for a bit, waiting on the other to break the silence. Finally I decide to do the deed myself, "So what are your views on interspecies relations?"
"I'm against them actually."
I nod, "Are your reasons… um, religious like that woman's were?"
"No, it's just that more often than not when I see pokephiliacs with their pokémon, the pokémon seem… sad." Melissa says, "Like they wish they were somewhere else."
I think about that for a moment, "I guess that would be reason not to like something, seeing it cause pain most of the time."
"It would be natural for you to assume there is nothing wrong." Melissa smiles a bit sadly, "You don't have a language barrier."
"True." I smile, "What's that like for you? Being able to talk to pokémon now?"
Melissa smiles, "That's probably the only good thing about all this."
"Hey! What am I?! Chopped liver?!" I exclaim in mock indignation.
"Nah, you're more of a Vienna sausage." Melissa says with a laugh.
I tilt my head to the side as I try to decipher that statement, and then it hits me. "HEY! I am not!" Melissa sticks out her tongue at me and takes off. I push the cart harder and chase after her, "Take that back!"
~0~
By the time I manage to catch up to Melissa we are already back to the house. "Gotcha!" I shout leaping on top of her so that we tumble over the sand into the small cave area of their property. I end up on top and I pin her face down and hold her arms against her sides with my knees.
"Take it back." I gasp, breathing hard and dripping sweat.
Melissa sticks her tongue out at me playfully as she lies panting, "Make me."
"Okay." I grin crookedly, and begin tickling her sides.
Mellissa squirms and cackles underneath me as my fingers assault her sides. Her tail slaps me upside the head a couple times, but I ride it out until she finally cries out, "I give! I give! You're not a Vienna sausage, you're a bratwurst!"
I pause and frown in confusion, "What the hell is a bratwurst?"
"It's a sausage, and I think it's actually a pretty good approximation."
I smirk, "And why the hell should I trust a vegan about the size of sausages?"
Melissa snickers, "Because, Gile loves sausages."
I think about that for a moment before laughing, "That's not very nice!"
Still laughing I climb off of Melissa and help her to her feet. She grins, "But he really does!"
I shake my head and head back to the cart, which miraculously still has the glass door on it. "Let's get this thing around back so we can start fixing things."Chapter End Notes: YAY! I go crash now