Ch. 8 - Falling

Zageith discontentedly sighed at the totally destroyed cemetery. Construction crews were spread out, removing soil and what appeared to be chunks of a massive mausoleum that wasn't there, the last time he recalled. His fingers twitched at the crowd of people gathered to watch in shock at the destruction.

"So, any further good news?" he asked drily, turning to his G-Pointdexter.

Mariemi sighed and nodded weakly.

Zageith glared at her for a few seconds before sighing again. "So the Pendragon Knights took both the brat, and everyone directly involved into custody, locking them down in the police station like a miniature fort, and the dark bitch got away with whatever was left of her forces that she could muster. And now you say there's more wonderful news?" he asked, grimacing.

"Headquarters just called?" Mariemi threw out, gulping.

Zageith stared at her for a few seconds, before just shaking his head, twitching.

* * * * *

Fuck. Distinctly my first thought, yes. Indicating a sexual regard? I'm not nearly that lucky. No, this was the cumulative of waking up to not only not being dead, but still being the miserable failure that life seemed so adamant on me remaining. Oh yeah, and feeling like my arms went through a wood chipper.  Wondering why the hell I was still alive, I shifted my perspective in a slightly more external direction.

I sniffed gently. Chemical smells assailed my poor olfactory sense. A light chemical smell, but of base, not acids. The kind, wait. Déjà Vu. Oh hell, it was the hospital again.

My eyes opened up with a sudden sense of urgency, and the dim ceiling light greeted me. This room was much smaller than the first one I was in. It also felt different. It felt like I was underground. My ears twitched lightly as I heard voices, but a ways away and from above me somewhere.

My eyes rapidly surveyed my surroundings as my second sight swept what my normal vision didn't pick up. Bedside table littered with various medicinal objects, multitudes of bandages on my right arm, a light wrapping around my left, and a stocked cabinet on the far wall, next to the door all enlightened my mind instantly. Much to my dismay, I also noticed surgical tools on the folding tray set up next to my right arm, and an IV stand ready to be used.

My mind flew as I managed to sit up. A quick scan of my right arm told me that it was considerably burned, with potential deep tissue damage. The energy had lanced through to the bone in some spots, and I winced as I pulled bandages off. Once my arm was bare, I grabbed one of the potions from the table next to my bed and started spraying it all over my arm. Letting the empty spray applicator fall, I reached up with my wrapped left arm, and held my hand towards the ceiling light. Ambient mana builds up where generic energy is located, and I managed to pull the heat based buildup out from around the light and electrical wires. My left arm felt tingly, and the light dimmed a little as I realized I must be pulling a bit of the generic electricity along with it, but it would still do.

Lines of power arced through the potion, and the liquid started sizzling as it spread unnaturally through my entire arm. Running the strings through my muscles as well, I felt my skin start to piece itself together again as the potion ran its course. The sense of urgency was still there, and I rapidly unwound my other arm. Frowning, I discovered they'd already applied potion effects to it. The deep burns were now scarred badly into my flesh, and I winced upon seeing it. Magic couldn't really assist that anymore, but I wasn't bleeding, so I tossed the wrappings aside as well.

My eyes ached as the urgency increased. Standing, I looked around my surroundings rapidly. I was in a medical gown, but there was a small locker to the side of the cabinet and sink setup. Walking over to the sink, I rapidly rinsed off my sizzling arm, and smirked lightly as I saw it was mostly healed except for a few reddened marks. Something felt wrong about the situation, but I kept moving anyway.

Frost built up on my arm as I let the water droplets freeze before flaking off me. I dug into the locker and found my clothes from before, still a little ripped up. They'd have to do. Rapidly tossing the gown aside, I managed to get my boxers and pants on before I heard footsteps coming from down the hallway. My ears twitching slightly, I narrowed my eyes as the door became partially translucent in my mind, and I saw a NurseJoy with a syringe approaching. My left hand extended quietly out and opened the drawer next to the sink. Several more surgical tools were in it, and on a whim, several scalpels and needles drifted out of it. I caught one of the scalpels and slipped to the back of the door, against the wall in the direction it opened, but far enough back to not be hit by its trajectory.

Smiling, the NurseJoy opened the door gently and stepped in. My eyes pulsed painfully as I spun, flicking my left hand out and sending the syringe flying. Her eyes widened, but the same hand had clamped over her mouth as I slammed her into the counter before kicking the door closed with my right foot. Right hand pressing the blade against her throat, the others drifted about her face, neck, and stomach, as she froze up instantly, wide eyed.

"Where am I, how long have I been out, and where are the others?" I asked, surprisingly forceful as one of the needles drifted in front of her eye.

She started crying almost immediately, but made no attempts to resist. Something ached in the back of my mind. What was wrong? Something felt very off. The sense of urgency was overwhelming, however, and I let a small crack appear in my hand over her mouth. "The hospital room under the police station, and about a day and a half!" she whimpered between sobs.

Pushing her harder into the desk, I asked again, "Good, where are the others now?"

The NurseJoy shook her head, and cried more, shivering. I growled, but then picked up lighter footsteps and narrowed my eyes. Glancing towards the door again, I shifted my second sight past it to look. My eyes widened as I saw a slim girl walking down the hallway at a brisk pace. Wait, something was wrong. Kari.

She lightly pushed the door open and gasped as I turned to glare at her. Her eyes locked with mine for several seconds, then hers got bigger. "Keith! What's wrong?!" she asked, looking shocked.

It felt like someone stabbed a dagger into the back of my head. Wincing, I let out a muffled scream and released the NurseJoy, dropping to my knees and trying to clutch my head. The stabbing only got worse as it felt like my eyes were going to explode out of my head. The various drifting tools fell from the air all around me as I did so. I felt arms slip around my shoulders though, and pull me into a rather warm body.

The sense of urgency retreated slowly, as Kari held me to herself, and I shivered as the pain receded from my eyes, before drifting into nothing again. Slowly opening my eyes, a dull ache greeted me, along with a less hazy view of the world. Kari was over my face and looking very worried. After a few seconds of staring into my eyes, she smiled again. "Your eyes are normal again. Are you okay?" she asked hesitantly.

Normal? "I think so. What was I supposed to be doing again?" I asked weakly, confused now. The sense of drive I'd felt earlier was gone, leaving me vaguely wondering what I had been pursuing prior.

Kari shook her head. "Recovering. And when I got here, your eyes were a silver color and glowing," she explained, helping me sit up and then pulling me into herself fully.

The NurseJoy, panting slightly, slid down the wall while clutching her chest with one hand, over her heart. She looked like she was calming down now, but still eyed me wearily. Why had I attacked her like that? I could have just asked her and she probably would have responded. "Oh, so he doesn't always act like that?" she asked questioningly, raising an eyebrow to me.

Kari shook her head rapidly. "No, he's the nicest boy I know. Something is very wrong," she muttered in return, kissing the top of my head. I blushed a little, then looked up at her again.

She seemed warm, and it was nice to see her. I was curious as to what happened after I lost consciousness, though. Wait, a day and a half?

"How is everyone? Is Patrick okay?" I asked, suddenly worried.

Kari sighed and nodded. "He's extremely tired, but waiting for you to wake up," she informed, giving me a gentle, but urgent look. She knew about the crystal, and I realized I was going to have to figure out how to recharge him fast. "Kittra's being detained and questioned. She apparently claimed to bonding with you, and saying that led her to a change of ways, but they want a statement from you before they release her," she added, smiling again.

I couldn't help but smile at the crafty Hellcat. Kari seemed to already know what my reply would be too. "Of course. She's not a bad person like Karumi and Cassia were," I agreed, nodding up at Kari.

The NurseJoy raised an eyebrow. "Person? Don't you mean Pokégirl? And how'd you heal your right arm like that?" she asked.

Looking down at it, I frowned and realized that I had no idea how I'd healed it. The knowledge was still there, but it showed up just as abruptly as the initial magical writing had. "I don't rightly know. But yes, person. She has her own personality, so why should I treat her differently?" I pointed out, smiling at her.

She looked very surprised, but smiled weakly back at me. "Oh, and I apologize for my behavior. I don't know what happened, Miss, um," I trailed off.

"Um, Tyra. And don't worry about it. You didn't actually hurt me, just almost gave me a heart attack," she muttered, looking confused.

Chuckling, I nodded weakly, before adding, "Well I apologize for scaring you. But thank you, Tyra."

She flushed lightly at the thanks, and shook her head. "No no, it's okay. And you didn't have to ask for my name. I'm just a pokégirl," she replied gently, smiling at me.

Kari snickered as I shook my head rapidly. "No, you're a person. It's only polite. Besides, I'm half pokéboy myself, see?" I pointed out, twitching my ears and giving my tail a swish.

Tyra frowned while looking at the ears. "Type two Pokéboy gene?" she asked, to which I nodded gently.

"Yeah. A gift from my mother," I elaborated, looking up at the tip of my right ear as I shifted it forward.

Kari snickered and helped me to my feet, before wrapping her arms around my right. Smiling over at her, I noticed her just pressing her cheek softly into my shoulder. Tyra snickered at us, and I blushed. "She's adorable, and seems to like you quite a bit. Was she your starter?" she asked, smiling back at me.

I blinked and blushed again, shaking my head. "No, Kari is a human girl, and I'm not even a tamer yet," I explained, smiling back at the NurseJoy.

Tyra lost her smile and gave me a questioning look, and I felt Kari lower her head. Huh? "That can't be right. She's not human. She healed you at the site before they brought you in here. That's the only reason you're still alive after all that blood loss," Tyra alleged, shaking her head.

Frowning, I looked back over at Kari. She nodded weakly and detached her right arm from mine before lifting it up. My eyes widened as a small orb of energy appeared in her hand.

After a few seconds, it fully dawned on me. Kari had thresholded! Looking back over at my best friend's face, I saw that she was just staring sadly at the orb. "What happened, Kari?" I asked her softly.

"I tried to use the spell I saw your mom use on you. Ended up putting too much energy into it, though, and got light headed. Then I changed," she explained, looking sadly up at me as the energy faded away. "I'm a Witch now," she added after another moment.

Frowning, I pulled her gently against me, causing her to get a surprised expression. "I would have thought you'd be an elf, but my offer still stands," I assured gently.

I felt her hand tighten into a ball, taking a crease of my shirt in with it. Her face pushed into my chest. "Thank you, Keith. So much," she muttered, flushing.

"The guild usually gives a threshold girl a little time to adjust before requiring a tamer, as long as she has a source of taming as to not go feral," Tyra informed, walking back towards me and examining my other arm.

Kari blushed more and nodded. "The OfficerJenny upstairs told me I could either use the NurseJoys at the hospital, or a third party if I had a preference," she spoke weakly, suddenly blushing and smiling up at me. My eyes widened and I blushed. Kari wanted me to do it?

Tyra snickered and nodded, before agreeing, "Third party it is." She seemingly finished checking my arm and turned to walk back towards the hallway.

Several moments of awkwardness went by before I smiled back over at Kari. Her flush had dissipated, and she smiled gently back at me, before asking, "Are you sure you're okay to walk around?" Taking her question to heart, I did a mental check of my body. Sore. Very, very sore. But my legs supported me fully, so I should be good to go.

That sense of urgency came back a little as I remembered Patrick. I nodded before peeking out into the hallway. We were in a corner room. There seemed to be archives to the right, and to the left a short ways were a series of cells and the stairs up. Shifting my second sight to the right, I rapidly noticed there were three bathrooms on the inner wall. Smiling then, I motioned for Kari to follow. She raised an eyebrow but trailed along after me as I entered one of the bathrooms. They were small, only suitable for one person at a time, and each had their own lock it would seem.

Closing the door after Kari got in, I held my left arm out to the bathroom counter. She tilted her head, then jumped when all of the marks along my arm alit with dark energy, and the black void opened up on my palm.  Whew. It still worked. The book and crystal were willed out, and deposited softly on the counter. I took the book and immediately started flipping through it, trying to figure out where the ritual for the crystal recharge was.

Kari seemed to figure out what I was doing, and took the crystal instead, looking at it carefully. Hearing footsteps coming from the archive area, a knock came to the door, suddenly, and I frowned. "Hey you two, the commissioner wants to see you up top. I was just coming to get you when I saw you both enter here. What are you doing?" came from the other side. A female voice.

Kari seemed to hesitate for a second in thought. "It's been a day and a half, and I needed my first taming," Kari called back out, suddenly. I mentally snickered.

There was a moment of silence, followed by a sigh. "Damn it. Well hurry it up. I'll go tell him he'll have to wait for a bit," she returned, before I heard footsteps walking away.

I grinned at Kari, who smirked, before I returned to the book. There was nothing about the crystal in the spells section, but I did find it mentioned in the special materials area. It was dealing with energy crystals, but someone had written a note, in English it would seem, at the bottom of the page pertaining to the soul crystals. Karumi maybe? The handwriting was very, very neat, regardless.

Reading it, I realized it could be recharged almost exactly like an energy crystal. It just needed five filtering spells instead of one. Shrugging, I set up the symbols in my mind, at all five points of a star around the crystal, then drained ambient energy from the lights again to fuel the recharge. It worked almost instantly, and the crystal started glowing several times brighter than it had before, the heat energy flooding into the leyline matrix inside of it.

Kari smiled gently and nodded towards me. "Did it work?" she asked after a few seconds.

"It would seem so. It was easier to do than I thought," I informed, sucking the book and crystal back into my arm. "We're just lucky my arm still functions," I added, shivering at the sensation.

Kari snickered and nodded, before looking up and down my arm. "If one didn't know they were symbols, they'd think your arm got caught in a blender, though," she muttered, sliding her fingers up and down the scars.

I just watched her trace them with her finger slowly. It was hard to believe that what she didn't want the most, had happened. And it was because I was retarded and got myself injured again. "I'm sorry. For what happened, I mean," I muttered weakly after a few seconds.

She stopped tracing and just stared at her own finger against my skin. "While I didn't want to be a pokégirl, it was going to happen eventually. I'm actually glad that it happened because of that. It gives me more justification to the change, I guess," she replied, resting her forehead against my arm.

Grabbing her, I pulled her into a warm embrace. She just melted against me and rested her face on my left shoulder. "Well I thank you for healing me," I added, trying to at least smile this time.

Kari smirked back and shook her head. "Trust me, there's no way in hell I'm going to let you go and die on me," she informed.

My eyes widened, and I felt a blush bull its way past my defenses. Then it just sort of happened. She leaned up a little and her lips brushed against mine. There was a definite spark of energy, but the touch was so tender that all I could do was pull her tightly into me. The warmth rushed up from everywhere as her arms wrapped around my neck and her eyes closed softly. She kissed totally different than Kittra, and even Kiya. Her lips were soft, and her body seemed so much warmer than the other two. Idly, I wondered how much of it was just me enjoying her a lot more?

The kiss seemed to last forever, her body just pressed into mine, my arms wrapping around her waist and hers over my shoulders. She was shivering a little now as I shifted the kiss gently along her lips to kiss the corner of her mouth lightly before moving back an inch or so. Her eyes opened and sparkled at me, cheeks flushed as much as I imagine mine were, as our faces were only an inch apart.

"Mmm, I've been wanting to do that for years," she murmured happily.

I made a little choking sound. "Wait, what?" I asked, eyes widening.

Kari giggled and snuggled closer, moving her hands to rest against my chest. "I've had a crush on you since we were in middle school, Silly," she revealed. The proverbial ten ton weight dropped on top of my head.

"You like me as more than a friend?" I asked, blinking in surprise as I felt my cheeks alit again.

Kari raised an eyebrow up at me. "Really now? What was your first clue? The passionate kiss we just had? Me wanting you to be my master and tame me? Me just telling you that I did?" she asked, voice dripping with sarcasm, but also vast amusement.

"You're a brat, you know that?" I pointed out wryly, smirking at her again.

She grinned and danced away from me merrily, before sticking her tongue out at me. "Well I like you, too," I added, winking at her. She stopped instantly and stared at me for a few seconds before blushing and smiling again.

"Just because I'm your pokégirl now, right?" she asked, winking back.

Rolling my eyes, I shook my head. "Hardly. I liked you before that, I think. But I just didn't want to ruin our friendship if you didn't feel the same," I explained, looking down a little.

She collided with my chest, and I stumbled backwards a little before catching myself with my right foot. Both of her legs wrapped around my waste, just above my tail, and her arms went around my neck as I held her there. She was surprisingly light, but very warm still. "Well, you don't have to worry about that now, Master. And what shall your new pokégirl's name be?" she asked, grinning at me from point blank range.

"You'll always be Kari to me, and I'm not going to tell you to change that. And don't call me 'Master', okay?" I requested, kissing her on the nose.

She wiggled it for a few seconds before giggling and nodding at me. "Oh fine.  But I will in public, just so people won't think you're out of the ordinary," she added, releasing me and dropping down again. I nodded and smiled at her, before grabbing her hand.

"You could just pretend to be my girlfriend you know," I pointed out as I walked back towards the door.

She made the cutest squeaking noise, and I smirked back at her, opening the door to the bathroom. She was staring at me, wide-eyed. "B-Boyfriend?!" she asked, seemingly shocked.

"Well I do like you like that. And you like me like that. Who cares if you're a pokégirl? It won't get in the way of me being a tamer, and you'll just automatically be my alpha, right?" I reasoned.

Kari grinned and nodded happily. "I'm glad you'll let me keep liking you like that. I was so nervous when I told you. And if we share feelings that are a bit beyond the standard pokégirl-master relationship, then oh well, right?" She asked, seemingly for assurance.

I nodded softly to her before pulling her back up to my side and continuing, not letting go of her hand. It was so warm, and she gave mine a squeeze back before catching up and walking at my side. "I'll try to be a good alpha too, of course," she promised, after several seconds of realizing my answer was already very clear.

"Good. Your magic can already play a solid support role, and Kittra, if she wishes to be in the harem too, will probably be on offense," I observed, knowing the Hellcat's personality, at least. She'd surprised me at the cemetery, but definitely in a good way. Actions speak the loudest, and you can't get much more loud than blowing her old master to hell and back for me, I suppose.

Pity I didn't think Karumi was dead.

* * * * *

Leaning back in the cushioned chair of a modest office in the upper floors of the police post, I tucked my hands into the pockets of my jeans, while watching Knight Cuthbert. He was one of the Pendragon Knights, I discovered, and was stationed here specifically to hunt Karumi. He had been here for two years already, and she was an extremely elusive foe, it would seem.

Kari sat relaxed, against the bottom of my chair. Patrick was in a chair off to the side of the room, and seemed to be doing a great deal better than Kari had reported before I got here. He'd given me a knowing smirk when I'd arrived, and I figured he knew I'd recharged his crystal. Kiya was out as well, and sat against his legs. Kittra was nowhere to be found.

Watching Cuthbert, I noticed he was filling out a bit of paperwork. His archangel, Lythis, was out and standing reasonably rigid at his side, which he seemed to ignore entirely. She was his alpha, if I gathered correctly. Glancing to the left again, I watched the smaller girl snooze in the window sill. I'd not seen her before, and had yet to see her conscious. Her skin color was similar, if not a little darker than Kiya's fur, but her hair was a unique dark red. No fur ran along her skin, and she was surprisingly nude. If I hadn't known she was a pokégirl however, I might have had issues guessing her gender. She had barely any chest at all, and was tucked up into almost a ball. The only other out-of-place feature was the two antennae coming out of her forehead.

"Okay, then. I'm finished filling out the reports," Cuthbert suddenly said, causing me to snap my focus back onto him as he looked up. "The Hellcat has been very helpful so far, and has cooperated entirely. I had my A-Bra read her mind to get most of the report. Before she fell back asleep, anyway," he continued, glancing to his left at the girl tucked up in the window.

"So you know what happened during the three weeks or so, right?" I asked, glancing softly towards him.

He nodded and looked back down at his paperwork. "Yes. I'm aware of most of the details. And now I understand Tia's final words as well. You're completely removed from suspicion, Keith Ó Braonain," he confirmed, smiling gently.

Sighing, I nodded weakly. That was a good start, anyway. "What about Kittra?" I asked hesitantly after a few seconds of silence.

"The Hellcat? She seems to have taken a liking to you. Do you confirm that you bonded with her?" he asked me, raising an eyebrow.

Nodding slowly, I returned, "Yes, I have. I tamed her almost exclusively while we were in the dimension, and I think she decided that I was more suited to her desires than Karumi." It was played up a little, but something about the situation I didn't like, and I wanted to make Kittra look as good as possible.

Cuthbert frowned for a moment, before smiling again and nodding. "What she did was brave, and almost makes up for the crimes she's committed under Karumi's command," he agreed, emphasizing the 'almost.'

"Almost?" I asked, as he seemingly wished me to.

He nodded gently. "An opportunity like this won't come up again. Karumi's too intelligent for that. But she's on her last legs right now. The explosion was reported, and we found the body of an Infernal Polterkissed at the site," he explained.

"So Cassia is dead then. And Karumi isn't," I speculated, then weakly smiled, before further deducing, "And since Karumi is now alone, and her most powerful officer has turned on her, you want Kittra to help you kill Karumi in return for her innocence."

Cuthbert stared at me for a second before chuckling. "Patrick told me you were bright, but if I didn't know better, I'd say you have a mind reading blood gift," he commented, grinning in a warm way. Tia had a friendly master, anyway. Either that or he put on a good show, but I was inclined to believe otherwise, at least for her memory's sake.

"He's empathic, Sir. I doubt a blood gift, but purely in personality. Coupled with his intelligence, it just seems like mind reading,"  Lythis suddenly spoke up, watching me carefully.

Cuthbert frowned and nodded. "I gathered, but you can relax Lythis. I know you're bothered about Tia as much as I am, but don't forget she trusted the boy," he pointed out, glancing up and over at her.

She closed her eyes slowly, but nodded, seeming to exhale weakly. Cuthbert turned and regarded me before nodding, and continuing, "That is indeed the deal. If you, as her Master, help us either kill or utterly route Karumi, then she is forgiven of prior misdeeds and given a fresh start under your harem. Do you agree?" he asked.

"Of course," I stated simply. It's not like he gave me much choice, regardless. Leaving Kittra to her fate, probably be it death or level five taming cycle, was not in my intentions after everything she'd done for me, regardless of her past record.

"Very well. Now I already know that you have a solid grasp of basic magic, and your eyes are very unique. However, I'd like to get some of your basic knowledge down before I work with you in this task. I don't typically work with anyone without doing this," he explained, sliding a sheet of paper towards me.

Looking it over, I saw that it was a form, as well as a questionnaire on pages two through fifteen. The last page was a signature stating the answers were given to the best of my capability and no information was falsified. "You want me to fill this out?" I asked him, looking back up in time to see him handing me a pen.

"Indeed. I need to get to know you and your abilities, so I can plan ahead," he elaborated.

Nodding, I mentally shrugged and took the pen. The first sheet was basic information about me, including an optional magic form, which I filled out as well. The questions following that were mostly about laws, pokégirls, and basic tactics, covering a wide range of things. It took me half an hour to fill all of it out, but it wasn't exactly hard. My dad working with the police gave me a firm grasp of law, and my mom actually being a pokégirl gave me solid information on them, as she made sure I memorized critical information. Tactics I was moderately okay on, but answered to the best of my capabilities.

After signing, I slid it back towards Cuthbert. He read it over for another solid fifteen minutes before looking back up and smiling. "You'll make a good ally after all. Necromancy and Transmutation specialties, huh?" he commented, seemingly rhetorically, but I nodded anyway.

"Yes, that was what Karumi specialized in, and she taught me," I furthered, testing him.

Cuthbert nodded gently. "Indeed. It makes sense, although I've witnessed you using two different casting methods so far. Geomancy used for your Necromancy and Transmutation spells, and War Magic when you healed your arm. Are you a generalist caster, then?" he asked, raising an eyebrow.

He hadn't mentioned the grimoire, so he either was intelligent, or didn't know about it. Although the rest of his question confused me. "The arm was based on instinct, so I'm not entirely sure," I muttered, looking down slightly.

"I was only curious. Your mother was registered as knowing both Aura and War casting techniques, with specialties into Evocation and Alteration, so I wondered if she'd taught you, is all," he added, looking back down at the papers.

My eyes widened slightly, but I kept my expression under control. Mom knew how to use Aura and War spells? I thought she'd just picked up a bit of healing magic. Although I also thought she was just Dad's Alpha. I hadn't known they were recognition bonded, or that she was so amazingly powerful in combat. There seemed to be a lot of things I didn't know. It didn't make sense. And how'd I know how to use that War Magic technique to enhance my healing factor with the potion? Something was very wrong.

My attention jumped back to reality as I heard a sliding motion on the desk, coming towards me. Looking up, I raised an eyebrow as I saw it was a standard pokédex. "Your answers also qualified you towards passing the standard Tamer's test, so congratulations," he announced suddenly. Kari's attention was instantly locked on the pokédex, and she started smiling.

"Congratulations," Patrick suddenly said, smiling.

Looking over at him, I tilted my head skeptically. "You knew about this, didn't you?" His grin told me the answer instantly. I rolled my eyes and looked back at Cuthbert.

"I also added 10,000 standard starter funds, and the bounty of 25,000 for the Dark Lady," Cuthbert informed.

Confused, I ran it through my mind again to process it. 35,000 SLC was a considerable amount for a startup fund. With that, I'd be able to buy some solid equipment and outfit my two girls with supplies. Frowning, I glanced downwards towards the tattered remains of my shirt. If we'd be doing more fighting and traveling, I'd need some more durable clothing. And camping gear.

"Don't worry, Cuthbert. He's probably just making a shopping list already," I heard Patrick say.

Snapping out of my zoning, I looked up in time to see Cuthbert chuckle. "A man after my own heart. A well laid plan is often better than the best of soldiers," he recited, as if it was the mantra he lived by.

"It's true. And that's how we should approach the Karumi situation as well," I followed up, looking back over at Patrick again.

He nodded towards me. "Of course you have my assistance, Keith."

Cuthbert frowned, looking concerned, before asking, "You have no stake in this, Patrick. Why are you helping?"

"Keith and I are friends. Besides, I owe him my life, and I planned on sticking around him after this too," he replied. Kiya smiled gently over at him and nodded in agreement.

Cuthbert nodded slowly. "You do have seniority. Would you like command of the situation?"

Patrick laughed and shook his head, before responding, "Not in the least. Keith's way better at plans and tactics. I'll just be backup firepower."

"How long do we have before we move against her?" I interrupted, hoping we'd get time to rest and get a solid plan in place.

"No longer than four days. Rest, re-supply, and provide me with a plan that I can shape my forces to within three," he requested. It sounded more like an order, and I swallowed uneasily.

Standing up abruptly, I nodded to the older gentleman before helping Kari to her feet. "Can I get my Hellcat back too?" I asked, suddenly concerned for Kittra. It was weird. She had known what she was doing, and what she wanted, but I still felt responsible for her. Like it was me that inspired her to this, instead of simply providing an opportunity.   But she had done me a huge service, and shown a solid example of loyalty, regardless.

"Ah, yes. She'll need to be adjusted to your harem before the attack. Oh, and both of your groups are to stay inside the station until the attack," he ordered. Definitely an order this time.

Patrick frowned. "We need a place to train though, and tame, not to mention sleep," he protested, shaking his head.

"There's three taming rooms downstairs near the clinic. You can also stay in the detainment cells for now," he explained, gesturing downwards. Oh, joy.  

"As long as it has a couch," I muttered, heading towards the door, Kari in tow. There was no point in struggling, as we were in a poor position from the start.

Frankly, I'd heard enough anyway, and wasn't entirely sure what to do anymore. Karumi wasn't dead, which meant my hands were still tied. But if I couldn't talk to Karumi, even, I had to go along with the police. That, and pour through the spell book in hopes of undoing the magic on Kari. I heard a dry chuckle and felt the eyes on the back of my head as I exited the room.

* * * * *

"So, what do you think of the boy, Lythis?" Cuthbert asked slowly, minutes after the door had closed to his office and he looked up from his paperwork.

The archangel frowned before shaking her head. "He's cold. Keeps a mask up almost constantly, so he was difficult to read. The strange thing is he was highly empathic himself, and picked up on things very easily," she replied after a few moments of thought.

Cuthbert sighed and nodded, before turning to his left. "Did you have any more luck with him being in the room directly, Purdue?" he asked, in the general direction of the seemingly sleeping A-Bra.

Purdue shook her head tiredly. "I tried my hardest, but he attacked my every attempt. It was impossible for me to get a scan, even this close," she reported in a quiet voice, left antenna twitching.

"He had no outwardly displaying signs of even knowing she was awake. He's either expertly trained, in which we're in some serious trouble, or isn't aware of himself doing it," Lythis pointed out, sounding a bit frustrated as her brow furrowed, but she kept her arms tucked behind her back.

Cuthbert shook his head slowly. "I'm leaning towards him being not aware of it. I guess we shall see if I'm still alive by morning. That will give us our biggest answer, no?"

Lythis made a groaning noise, and Purdue twitched her antenna again.

* * * * *

Sighing, I fell against the couch. The underground feeling was all around me, but this time I at least knew where I was. The room was small, but cozy, seemingly meant for detaining political interests while background checks were done. Further proof that the police post was league funded, as there would be no need to have this type of room when the town is this small.

Looking about as Kari wandered out of the bathroom, I saw that the room was mostly furnished as a resting quarters, or relaxation chamber. There were no beds, but the couch would function in a pinch. There were no cooking appliances either, so we'd obviously have to use the staff kitchen around the corner. An OfficerJenny, Tyra the NurseJoy, and a quiet looking Growlie apparently lived here full time, and were upstairs. Not too large a staff, but it explained why they had the more normalized quarters.

Kari surprised me by walking directly over to the couch and laying down on top of me, resting her cheek lightly against my chest. Instinctively, I wrapped my arms around her and held her there. She seemed so tiny now. "Mmm, you do smell like fox," she suddenly muttered, smiling up at me gently.

Blushing, I shook my head weakly at her. "Don't you go turning into Kittra now," I warned, winking at her. She giggled before turning over and laying with her back to my chest instead, my hands lightly resting on her tummy. Her longer hair got caught on the fabric of my shirt, and ended up flopping lazily over her right shoulder after she turned.

"Speaking of Kittra, we didn't go and get her yet. Is there a reason you're waiting?" she asked, placing her hands on mine.

Sighing, I pulled her closer. "She's been by herself for a day and a half, and I want a nap. If I do go get her, she's not going to let me sleep, I figured."

Kari broke into copious amounts of giggled before nodding back against me, and adding, "You're probably right. She's probably ravenous for you by now."

"Very funny. You don't need to remind me," I scolded playfully.

Kari giggled and lazily rested her cheek sideways on my chest, draping her right arm off the couch. "There is one thing I'd like to get out of the way, though," she spoke, suddenly serious sounding again as I felt her arm moving around. I heard unzipping and a rustling sound, then remembered I'd set my bag down there.

"Oh? What is it?" I asked, rubbing her stomach lightly. Her arm raised back up then, and backwards. Instinctively grabbing with my left hand, I was surprised when I was handed a pokéball.

Kari turned back over after handing it to me, and smiled gently. "I want to be yours, Keith. If you pokéball me, I'll be registered as your pokégirl," she requested, resting her head back on my chest.

"Are you sure this is what you want, Kari? I want you to be fully for this," I asked one last time, but still smiling softly. Her hair draped lightly down her back, bangs partially over her left eye, she looked absolutely stunning smiling up at me. It forced me to swallow hard as she nodded, grinning now at my flush.

Nodding back to her, I pushed the button on the ball. The beam of light consumed her entirely, and her weight vanished off of me. Seconds later, I was alone in the room, and the pokéball chimed success at the 'capture' it had just done.

The silence was pervasive. Losing my smile, I slowly raised the ball again and stared at it, holding it above my head whilst laying on my back. The ball was so tiny, but Kari was inside of it. It felt surreal. The whole situation felt surreal. Looking at my pokédex in the bag, I saw 'Witch' added to my registered list. It prompted me to enter a name for her, and I shuddered.

I didn't know what was happening anymore. Sitting up on the couch, I suddenly felt so very alone. It was all so wrong. What the hell did she do to deserve this? It was all a product of this cruel world. Watching the carpet darken in small, random dots, I sighed as I dropped my head into my knees and just let myself cry. I just wanted to slow down and get my bearings again. But nothing was happening slowly anymore. Things were changing too fast, and there was nobody to talk to about it.

Coughing, I realized I could see my breath, and the spots on the carpet were turning white instead of a darker blue. Frowning, I sat up again and looked around. It was a lot colder in the room now, and I wandered over to the thermostat. It read nine degrees, and I raised an eyebrow. That was weird. It shifted up to ten suddenly, and I shrugged, walking back to the couch.

Kari's pokéball, well, mine, was just laying there. Picking up the Pokédex, I rapidly entered 'Kari' into the datapad and confirmed it. Kari registered and activated as an in-use pokégirl, and I sighed. It was a compulsion, but I didn't want her to be inside of the ball anymore. I hit the button on it.

The beam of light appeared again, and the same Kari I knew faded back into existence. She promptly shivered and looked around. "Why is it so cold in here?" she asked, before looking back towards me. Her expression melted to that of surprise, then worry. "Keith, what's wrong?" she appended, walking slowly over to me.

"I'm sorry for the temperature," I apologized, wincing as she brushed a bit of the frozen lines off my cheeks.

Kari shook her head gently before smiling again, and replying, "No, Keith.  I'm just worried about you, that's all. Although we'll catch cold standing here."

She got me to smile a little at that, anyway, and she grinned. Then hauled me in the direction of the bathroom. I raised an eyebrow questioningly, but she said nothing as she closed the door behind us. Resigning myself to just watching her, I sat down on the counter that was against the left wall. It was a lot like a hotel bathroom, I noticed, with the mirror above the counter that had a small sink built in. The toilet was between the sink and the shower tub combination. Kari pulled the curtain on the shower and turned the water on before starting the spray.

I started to tilt my head when I realized the air in the bathroom was rapidly getting warmer with the hot steam and mist being added to it. She grinned back at me and closed the lid to the toilet before using it as a chair. "There, now we'll be toasty in no time at all," she announced, seemingly proud of herself.

Snickering, I nodded to her, smiling again. "Thank you, Kari," I spoke after another few seconds.

"Don't worry about it, Master!" she returned, beaming.

"Hey now, don't start calling me that!" I whined, scowling at her, earning a giggle.

She shook her head after a few seconds and wiped her eyes. My eyes widened in surprise as I just realized she was crying. "I know, Keith. I just am happy that I'm your pokégirl, and nobody else's," she replied, smiling back at me again. So they were happy tears?

Setting her pokéball, that I hadn't realized I was still holding, back down on the counter, I pushed myself off it and walked over to her. She seemed uncertain until I hugged her gently. "I'm glad you're mine, too. This way I can make sure that you're well taken care of, as well," I added, kissing her cheek softly.

Backing up again, I stopped when I felt her hands were locked onto my shirt. Unsure, I looked back at her, and discovered she was smiling at me, eyes softening further. "Do you really mean that?" she asked hesitantly, her face a mixture of emotions that I had difficulty reading.

The question was easy enough, at least, and I nodded, smiling back. She immediately started crying again and buried her face in my neck. I was surprised until she started muttering, "Thank you so much, Keith! Nobody's ever done this for me before, and I just couldn't take it if it wasn't you with me." The blush crept up my cheeks again, but she pulled me down tighter against her before I could react. Losing my balance, I slipped and fell almost entirely into her lap, causing her to let out a muffled yelp of surprise.

"Er, sorry! I lost my balance," I apologized, blushing harder and using the top of the toilet's tank to try to lift myself up again. Kari hooked the collar of what was left of my shirt, though, and pulled me back down again as she slid off the front of the toilet. Blinking in slight confusion, I was pulled roughly into her as we both kneeled on the floor. Then she kissed me.

My eyes widened as it was utterly unlike our first. It felt like she was starving, and I was her favorite dish. Her arms wrapped around my neck as she pulled herself against me fully, kissing me hard as I felt her tongue glide lightly along my lips. Smiling now, I closed my eyes and just let her do whatever she wished. She obviously wanted this a lot, and I wasn't about to deny her.

Groaning, she slipped her tongue into my mouth as my hands found her back, pulling her tight against me. I could feel her heartbeat thudding against my chest, more rapid than earlier, and felt her heat up even more. I guess I did feel a little too cold, and her body's temperature felt amazing to me, as I just relished in the feeling of her against me. Her tongue danced lightly across mine, as mine curled around hers, causing her eyes to open and widen in surprise.

Grinning against her, I let out a low murmur as my tongue snaked against hers, giving it a light tug inside of my mouth. It hadn't changed much after I got the ears, but it was a little bit longer than what I had before, and a lot more flexible. I didn't advertise it, though. The heated flush crept up her cheeks and her eyes glazed over as I assaulted her tongue.

I really should have read her pokédex entry. But I guess it was more fun discovering things by myself as I played. Her body, and subsequently, her tongue, was extremely sensitive. While not actively ticklish, her tongue seemed to be very much enjoying my attention, as her body was starting to squirm against me. Her arms slid down off my neck and she tugged impatiently at the bottom of my shirt. Taking the mental cue, I released her mouth, ignoring her protesting whimper, and pulled my shirt easily over my head. Her whimper dropped several octaves as her eyes dragged along my abs, up my chest, and slowly back up to my face.

"Why is this so different from beach?" she suddenly asked in a low, heated murmur.

Smirking, I pulled her back into an embrace, grinning wider as I saw her entire face flush red as her body pressed up against my now bare chest. Her right hand traced the light muscle lines of my abdomen while her left arm slipped over my shoulder again. "Maybe because you know that I'm all yours, now?" I threw out, hoping she'd agree.

Kari managed a grin, followed by a low growl upon sinking against me, rubbing her chest upwards against mine, succeeding in pushing me backwards. Laying down on my back, I smirked up at her as she sat up on me, then my eyes widened as she slipped her shirt up over her head. Little Keith was wide awake now, and she was sitting right on him. I knew she could feel it. She had to be able to feel it! We were crossing a very definite line that we couldn't return over.

Her shirt joined mine, followed rapidly by her bra. My eyes locked onto her breasts as I felt the flush route my remaining willpower and take over my cheeks again. Hers were crimson as well, as she watched me. They hadn't changed in size from the threshold, but they were still amazing. When she'd flashed me before, I'd only caught a glimpse before looking away. She was a solid B cup, and they were very nicely shaped. Perky, but very rounded. She seemed to have natural lift without needing her bra, but without looking like she could poke my eye out with them. Not that it would be a very bad way to go blind, and certainly not a bad last sight.

She grinned as I ogled her chest, and actually cupped them in her hands. The nipples were hard and stuck out a third of an inch, also unlike my earlier sample. "I'm all yours too, Master," she murmured down at me. My eyes widened, but I didn't scold her this time. The way she said it hinted at something else entirely, and I felt suddenly like my pants were way, way too tight.

Reluctantly, I averted my eyes before blushing more, feeling embarrassed suddenly. "Kari, if you don't move off me, I'm going to lose consciousness from circulation loss," I muttered. She blinked, then smiled downwards towards my crotch. I distinctly realized we'd already crossed the aforementioned line.

"Oh, it did feel bumpy down here," she agreed, rolling her hips lightly against mine.

Part of the groan escaped my mouth before I winced and pulled it back in, causing her to snicker in delight. What happened to the shy, reserved Kari that I knew so well?! I knew witches were supposed to be feisty, but she seemed totally normal prior to this.

Not being able to take her rolling anymore, I rolled us instead. She squeaked sharply when her back touched down on the colder floor, but grinned up at me as I settled on top of her. "Kari's a bad girl today. What has possibly gotten into her?" I asked mock-haughtily, raising an eyebrow to her.

She grinned even more, and instead of answering, grabbed me with surprising force and pulled me back down onto her. Her breasts were amazingly soft, a sharp contrast to her nipples trying to stab into my flesh, and I sank against her gently, supporting my own weight with my arms. I noticed they were a little shaky, and pulled a bit of energy out of the stone beneath us for strength.

Kari's lips found mine again, but this time she urged me into her mouth instead. I complied without complaint, and soon was playing with her tongue merrily. She gave tiny little murmurs of happiness while I cupped her left cheek with my hand. Then her eyes widened in surprise and she gave a heated moan instead as my right found her breast.

Surreal was an understatement, really. My hand was massaging my best friend's breast. No, my pokégirl's breast, who was rapidly becoming a lot more than a best friend. Her skin was sensitive indeed, and she was squirming under me again in less than a minute. Then I started tweaking the nipple itself, and she went absolutely crazy, hungrily attacking my mouth trying to get my tongue even deeper into hers. Her cheeks were still flushed, but it was different from a blush now.

Her eyes were open as well, and looked up into mine. I could see them sparkling with an extremely urgent desire, and I found myself pushing into her hips gently. She let out a groan with each push, before growling after I lost count and slipping her hands away from my back and butt. Her fingers worked with amazing precision, and she managed to unhook both of our pants within seconds. She did an extremely sexy shimmying under me, sliding her pants down her legs and kicking them off, before attacking mine. She was less gentle with my pair, but I credited it a success that I still had skin left after they joined hers.

After she was content with both of us being pants-less, she looked back up at me, hunger more apparent than ever. Her hands went up and each found my butt then, as she gently pushed me forward and into her panties. She was amazingly hot and I groaned as she pushed down until my bulge was buried tightly against her crotch. She gasped, but began rocking almost immediately. Having just the two layers of fabric between us, I could easily feel the outline of her lips give with every rocking motion. 

My kissing resumed against her neck this time, causing her to release a throaty purring noise as I painted a heated trail down her neck and over the top of her left breast. It became a loud groan as my path continued around her nipple, barely teasing the edge of it before I kissed slowly down to the sensitive underside. Her back arched as she growled in frustration, rocking motions getting painful.

Finally, I released her torment and licked around the nipple lightly, before sucking it into my mouth. Her groan hit a new octave, as her eyes slitted opened and her mouth locked into a constant jaw drop. She stopped rocking for a moment, and held my head there against her chest. My urges remained, however, so I let myself continue her movements, grinding my bulge into her hot, and wetter by the second, panties.

My eyes widened as she slammed hers shut suddenly, and let out a barely muffled scream. I was concerned until I saw her whole body start shivering, jerking repeatedly. Grinning, I eased up and let her ride it out. Suddenly the front of her panties got a lot wetter, and I looked down at them. They were white, and plastered to her skin badly. I could see every contour of her mound, and she looked so amazingly sexy that I wondered why we hadn't done this sooner.

Finally she stopped shaking, and gasped sharply, looking up at me suddenly. "That was amazing!" she exclaimed, suddenly smiling again. She was covered in a thin sheen of sweat now.

"I'm glad you enjoyed it," I replied, catching my breath and drawing more energy from the ground. It came slower, this time, and I wondered briefly if I was already depleting reserves of mana under us. That was a lot faster than with Kittra, although maybe rock had less mana than grass?

Kari responded, "But it wasn't enough. That maddening urge to be filled is still there."

She frowned briefly before smiling back up at me. "Can Master tame his first pokégirl now?" she suddenly asked, causing me to shiver.

Lifting off her, and moving back, I helped her lift her legs up as I slipped her panties off. My eyes widened as I saw how swollen the lips of her pussy were. She must be really sensitive if my teasing did this much. She was mostly bare, but just had a small tuft of dark green hair just above her slit. Leaning down, I tentatively licked along her folds, causing her to gasp and wince. "No, Keith. Not right now. Please, just tame me," she pleaded, looking at me urgently.

"Are you sure, Kari?' I asked hesitantly. I knew, having grown up with her, that she'd never had a boyfriend, and hated one night stands.

She nodded and smiled reassuringly at me. I returned the nod and slid my boxers down. Kari's eyes locked onto my erection instantly, and became quite big. I wasn't huge, by any means. Seven inches long, and an inch and a quarter wide. She licked her lips, and I blushed, assuming that to be a sign of approval as I slid the head along her heated lips. She let out a low groan, but managed to nod to me.

"Be gentle," she requested, as the head of my cock slid inside. If she was going to say more, it was cut off by a throaty moan.

Words failed me as I slid in the first inch, so I hope she didn't want a confirmation. She was so unbelievably tight! She had Kittra beat at least two fold, and the Hellcat was tight enough already. Pushing a little more, she winced, and I was a little concerned I wouldn't fit. She held my hip still lightly, and I stopped moving as she took deep breaths. After several seconds, her hand on the other side joined as well and pulled me forward, very slowly.

Fighting urges to just hilt myself, I tried to focus on other things. The pattern in the floor tiles seemed interesting enough. After almost a minute, I pushed up against something, and she whimpered. Looking down at her, I watched her slowly adjust, as her insides squeezed me snuggly. After a few more moments, she looked up at me and nodded, bracing herself. "Are you sure?" I asked softly.

"Yes. All the way in, but then don't move!" she ordered.

I nodded slowly. "Then on five," I confirmed, adding, "One."

"Two," she muttered, swallowing.

"Three," I followed in a normal tone before slamming into her all the way.

She let out a piercing scream, followed by lower whimpering as she started to cry. I held deadly still, leaning down and kissing each cheek softly. Kari had just given my her virginity, and I was inside of her. The reality check shocked me, but I focused on her needs for now. Kissing her lightly, I tried to distract her by massaging her breast again. She responded to the kiss slowly, and I just listened to the water running next to us, feeling her warm body under mine as we passionately kissed. Not urgent this time, but filled with something else that felt just as strong.

The kiss became hungry again a few minutes later. Her tongue slipped into my mouth, as I felt her hips start to rock again. Grinning as we started to make out again, I slid myself back a little before doing a test thrust into her. She gave a groan and kissed harder. Test successful!

Starting a slow pattern, I tried alternating between three short and long thrusts, sliding out to just my head before bottoming out inside her wet pussy again. Soon she was writhing under me, and making heated, short groans with each thrust. Her hips would slam up to meet mine every time, causing a wet slapping sound to echo through the bathroom, to mingle with her vocals.

She was so snug, hot, and soaked that I knew this wouldn't last long. But hell, we were going to be doing this again. And a lot. I wasn't rushed for perfection. She squirmed under me and gasped into my mouth. We weren't kissing as much as simply holding our mouths close. A thread of saliva connected our tongues as I slowly tasted along her upper lip. Her thrusting outpaced mine and became urgent as I pinched her nipple, alternating breasts.

Knowing I was close, I hungrily attacked her mouth again, massaging both breasts at once while pinning her down, increasing the speed and length of my thrusts. That did it. Her body seemed to explode into spasms under me. She let out a muffled cry into my mouth as her walls went crazy, clamping tightly down on my dick. I wasn't expecting it, and gasped, feeling it shove me violently over the edge.

It felt like we just kept falling forever. She wrapped her legs and arms tightly around me, holding me inside her as far as she could take me, as I released a flood directly into her womb.

The world spun as I felt light headed. I'd just had sex with Kari. I came inside of her! She opened her eyes slowly and smiled up at me. Her eyes danced with a warm happiness.

"Kari thanks Master for taming her. Wi," she suddenly said before her eyes widened and she clamped her hands over her mouth. I stared at her for a few seconds before just bursting into laughter. "Witch," she muttered, playfully pouting.

Then the rush died down. It had happened with Kittra too, though, but I don't think my body was this badly off with her. Sighing, I drained more energy from the ground to fuel myself.

It was like trying to breath in when you're underwater. My eyes widened as no energy came, and all I got was a dull throb expanding up my arms, followed by an angry burning sensation. Wincing, I slid my arms back and tried to bend them. They felt swollen and like a liquid sensation was built up in them. Kari raised an eyebrow to me while tilting her head.

I barely managed to raise myself off her before my arms gave out and I fell onto my side. Kari gave a whimpering yelp and leaned over me, shaking my right arm. She pulled back as if burned, however, and looked up and down it. Frowning, I followed her sight and widened my eyes even more as I saw my skin. It was a pale gray color now, darkening the closer it got to my hand, with lines of black going up and branching out along it. The muscles, to add to the pain, decided to lock up across my entire body again, and I gasped, curling up to try to get them to stop.

Kari's arms wrapped around me and pulled me upwards then, as she helped me backwards and into the shower. Shoving the curtain closed to keep the hot air inside, she put me under the water and started trying to massage my clenching and stiffened muscles. The world spun as it felt like my body was eating itself alive, and I stifled another scream as spasm after spasm ripped through my arms. What the hell had happened to them?!

She held me still to the best of her abilities. "Master, what's wrong? What can Kari do?" she asked weakly, massaging across my arm again, and I felt her magic activate. The warmth of the shower magnified and I felt it seep into my muscles, along with her energy. They finally stopped clenching, and I was able to breathe normally again. Kari stopped massaging, seeing me slump and relax, and frowned down at me. Everything went numb. Not able to move, I just lay there, looking up at her.

"I'm sorry, Kari," was all I could manage to mutter. Smiling softly, she leaned down and rested on top of me, as both of us just lay under the shower water. I managed to turn my head just enough to nuzzle into her neck gently as she settled on top of me.

* * * * *

Dozing lightly, I awoke to the sound of the door opening. Giving Kari a squeeze, she murmured softly. We were all clean and dry, at this point. I'd discovered a new set of clothes for each of us outside the bathroom door when we got out. They were a little bit too big, but that was okay.

Looking to my right, I saw Patrick walk in slowly and set his bag down gently. He looked up at me, then smirked as he saw me watching him. "Did you two get the clothes?" he asked quietly.

Kari stirred on my chest anyway, and opened her eyes softly. I nodded towards him. "Obviously, as we're wearing them. You left them there?" I asked, hoping he could alleviate my confusion. Not that I was complaining. Black, gray, and blue were my favorite colors, and the hoodie fit nicely. Kari's was a little too big for her, and would drape over her hands as well, but mine covered up most of my arms, which was good considering the shape they were in.

"No, the Growlie offered to deliver them while I talked to the officers holding Kittra," he answered, digging through his bag, before adding, "I was kind of confused as to why she came back so utterly distraught and abashed, though. And good morning, Kari."

Kari blinked sleepily at him, brushing her longer left bang out of her face, before muttering softly, "Kari says good morning as well. Witch." I chuckled again, and Patrick frowned before looking back up at her.

"Oh, well that explains the distraught Growlie. You two got your first taming out?" he asked, causing Kari to blush suddenly and sink against me more. My right arm joined the left circling around her back and I nodded towards him. They protested weakly, but I ignored them as they shook a little.

"Yeah. It was more than a little awkward at first," I added, kissing the top of her head. My energy was rapidly coming back to me, and I wonder how long I'd dozed for after Kari helped me back to the couch.

Patrick chuckled lightly. "Danni was a little awkward as well at first, but I'd imagine your case was different. I wasn't used to her not even recognizing what we were doing, practically."

Frowning, I looked over at him again. "Kari and I had a crush on each other prior, but we'd never had sex before. Danni and you were a little closer, weren't you?" I asked, politely smiling.

He sighed and nodded before pulling his pokédex out of the bag. "Yeah. She was my girlfriend. Then she realized she had a high chance of thresholding into a Chickenlittle," he confirmed, sitting down on the opposite couch finally.

"That must have been brutal. She couldn't secure a Moon Stone in time?" I deduced, more than anything.

Patrick rolled his eyes. "She could have if her family had helped her buy one. Neither of us could make enough money in time, and her family just wanted to sell her. I was forced to buy for time and purchase her off them for almost double the standard price for one," he spoke, sounding more irritated by the second.

I shook my head sadly, and Kari looked pissed, but didn't say anything for obvious reasons. "I hate people like that. I'm sorry, Patrick," I returned sympathetically.

"It's in the past now, and I'm not looking back. That's why I was so happy when your family wanted to help out your sister so much. It was wonderful to see," he further enlightened.

Frowning at the memory, I absently nodded. My anger was still there. Unbelievably so. But everything that happened since taught me quite a bit. Pokégirls were people too, and capable of both good and bad acts. The only thing I didn't trust was their capacity. Anything that can obliterate everything I know and love with little effort doesn't set well with me, for obvious reasons. But it was strange, seeing as one of those important persons was an actual pokégirl now. It was mixed feelings, but Kari had done nothing to earn my distrust. Quite the opposite. Other pokégirls seem to be the same way, so maybe it was okay in trusting them too? My attention focused over at Patrick again as he pulled out his two full pokéballs and set them on the couch before digging into his bag again. Kiya and Danni were trustworthy as well, which further proved the point. Danni especially didn't deserve what happened.

My arms gave a dull ache then, and I remembered that I should probably get them looked at. "Hey Patrick, do you think you can go get Tyra when you have a moment?" I asked, glancing back over at him.

He set his pokédex down, that he just pulled out of his bag. "Why? Is everything okay?" he asked, looking back up at me. Sighing, I winced slightly and pulled the sleeve of my hoodie back over my hand and halfway up my forearm. Patrick's eyes widened. "Holy shit! What did you do to your arms?" he asked in unreserved shock.

Sighing, I related the extremely condensed version of the story to him. He looked more and more irritated throughout, and shook his head at the end of it. "You're screwing around with magic you barely understand, Keith. Please, be more careful," he muttered, looking exasperated.

Kari whined and wrapped her arms around my neck, and I nodded weakly. "I'll research it a lot more before using the technique again," I assured, staring down at the couch. It was extremely uncomfortable, finally thinking you were able to do something, and then having it backfire like this on you. Patrick sighed, but nodded.

"Fine, I'll go get Tyra. Wait here," he ordered before running out of the room. There was silence, for a bit. Kari simply lay her head on my chest, not that she really could say anything solid at the moment. She seemed to greatly dislike Tamer Shock.

Picking up my pokédex from my bag with my right then, I made a decision, and connected to the police station's wireless. My pokédex synced with it, and I brought up Pokébay bidding lists. I wasn't expecting much locally, so I also tapped into the league-wide lists. We'd have to pay a little more to have items shipped to us, but for a larger selection, we might end up saving more.

To be honest, I was surprised when there was a thunder stone locally. It was a little below market value listed, but electric pokégirls were rare in this area, so the owner probably just wanted to get rid of it.

In the second search, I wasn't quite so lucky. There weren't any moon stones found locally, or even in this part of the blue league. Sighing, I expanded the search to the mainland, and found two or three almost immediately. Patrick raised an eyebrow up at me, upon hearing my sigh, but Kari just grinned as she watched me sift through the offers. All were in reasonably high demand, but one had less than an hour to go before the bidding was up.

Debating rapidly, I took a risk and put in almost 50% markup above standard value, beating the top bid by 2,000slc. That meant 8,000slc for a moon stone, and a solid 2,500slc for the thunder stone. 10,500slc wasn't bad considering all the help Patrick has been to me so far. Kari kissed my cheek gently and nodded approvingly. Now all I had to do was wait for the biding to end, and the local owner to contact me. 

"Master is very nice to Patrick," Kari muttered, smiling gently up at me.

Snickering, I shook my head. "No, he's nice to me. It's rare for a guy like him to exist. I guess if I can do something to help him, I want to," I reasoned, kissing her forehead.

Kari looked sad, though. "Master really is nice. Patrick didn't get bounty like Master did, and still couldn't afford to help his mate. It made Kari very sad, but Patrick wasn't going to say anything. Then Master thought of it by himself," she trailed off gently, smiling back up at me.

They hadn't given him the bounty? Why? He was right there with me. I pulled Kari tighter, just as I saw Patrick round the corner again, walking now, with Tyra trailing behind him. She snickered at me upon getting into the room, then shook her head after I peeled back my hoodie arm.

She knelt down and examined it for a good minute, before sighing. "I'm going to have to get one of the doctors from the hospital to come over and look at this. It looks almost like a case of poisoning, but is way too localized for that," she informed, shaking her head.

"I think it was a reaction to my spell," I added, frowning. Poison, huh? That's definitely a strange reaction.

Tyra looked skeptical, but nodded. "Necromancy, right?" she asked. It was more hypothetical than for confirmation, and I really didn't like the tone she put to it.

I sighed and nodded anyway. Kari looked upon the arm grimly. "Well it could be almost anything once that gets involved. I'll go talk to the doctor, but it might be a day or so. They're awfully busy over there," she offered, standing up again.

Patrick looked at her abhorrently from behind her back, but I spoke first with, "Very well. I can wait a day or two, thank you." Tyra nodded and walked briskly out of the room.

Patrick watched her round the corner before shaking his head. "Well that's one way to act like you have a plague, damn," he muttered, seconds later.

I chuckled weakly and shook my head. "I'm guessing necromancy isn't exactly possessing a large fan base," I deduced, shrugging.

"Bigots. It's technically saved my life now, and you're making sure it stays that way, so they can go to hell as far as I'm concerned," he spit out, glaring down the now empty hallway.

Before I could respond, my Pokédex beeped, and was now flashing. I brought up the screen on the pokédex and saw that the local owner of the thunder stone had already gotten back with me, if the blinking message icon was any indication. Her message was surprisingly long and somewhat rambling, but she seemed to actually know me. Looking at her data, my eyes widened as I saw she was a tamer that worked with the police? Female tamers were rare, and my memory shot back to that woman that was with Cuthbert upon me first meeting him. Huh.

"You got adjusted to that pokédex fairly quickly, I note," Patrick commented, interrupting my thought process. 

I snapped out of it and grinned back up at him. "I'm a dork, remember?" I reminded, causing Kari to snicker. Not like I could be much else with this body the way it was, but I wasn't complaining. I did enjoy intellectual pursuits.

"Yes, but getting messages already. I'm amazed," he added, chuckling.

"Oh, that was just someone getting back with me for what I wanted to purchase, that's all."

Patrick shook his head and rolled his eyes weakly. "Mr. Moneybags over there with all the credits now has went shopping already?" he asked, with a hint of envy in his voice.

Smirking, I nodded. "Yup. Got a Thunder Stone now. We'll see about the Moon Stone in an hour or so," I announced, smiling at him. His eyes expanded as his expression shifted to surprise instead.

Chapter 8 - End