As the young gymnast bantered with his canine Pokémon, a resounding thud suddenly echoed throughout the poorly lit apartment, followed by an elongated wail of pain that could send shivers down one's spine. "OooOOOooOOoOOOooohhh!!" Could his client's absurd claim have been true? Could this place actually be haunted by a departed soul?

A pair of googly eyes appeared in the darkness, cold and unblinking. A figure that vaguely resembled some kind of freakish, bipedal dinosaur approached Beau and his Snubbull. "I stubbed my toe on the couch!" A whiny, feminine voice was heard, as the shadowy figure turned on a flashlight to reveal it was actually a young woman wearing a childish costume. The pajama-clad girl blinked upon noticing the burly youth. "Oh hi! Did you come here to look for Ghosts too?" She casually asked him.

Beau Fontaine

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The man's terrified reaction elicited a snicker out of the dragon-hooded girl. "Heheheh! You were scared because of my very realistic Pokémon disguise, weren't you?" She flashed a shit-eating grin, proudly gesturing at her costume that was anything but 'realistic'. She then shrugged at Beau's question. "I told the doorman I was the cleaning lady and he just handed me the keys. Then again, he was also staring at pictures of Belle Delphox on his laptop at the time, so he probably wasn't paying much attention."

As for his next question... "Well, I was livestreaming a ghost hunt in Petalburg Woods, where I met this boy who I thought was a ghost, but wasn't actually a ghost, who told me that ghosts like hanging out in Mauville Hills for some reason, so here I am!" The clearly eccentric girl explained in the most confusing way possible. "I'm Andrea, by the way. I'm temporarily a human, a part-time streamer, and a full-time research assistant and enjoyer of all things Pokémon!" She introduced herself.

Beau Fontaine

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Andrea nodded understandingly as the young man called himself a personal trainer. With that kind of physique, she could totally believe that. He looked like he could snap her in half with those beefy arms of his, or perhaps give her a big, warm hug.

The room's temperature drastically dropped out of the blue, causing the young PokéManiac to shiver as well. "Brrrr... I dunno. Maybe it is?" She mused, looking around for anything resembling an A/C. Sadly, even with her flashlight, it was difficult to see anything in this darkness. Granted, they could just flip the light switch on, but then this wouldn't be a spooky ghostly thread, would it?

"I have an idea." The dragon-costumed girl sent out an adorable little Deino that looked about the same size as Snubbull. "Hey, Chomper. Can you have a look around?" The diminutive dragon nodded at her query. Sight was not his species' strongest suit on account of all that hair covering his face, but his other senses were on point, making it easier for Chomper to find his way around as he scouted the apartment for anything out of the ordinary.

Beau Fontaine

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Andrea jumped up and yelped in shock when a crash was heard from inside the bedroom. "Eeep! Chomper, are you okay over there?" She hollered. As her Pokémon fired a second Dragon Pulse towards nothing, it became clear that he had been the source of the first sound. Whether the Deino was attacking because he had spotted an enemy, or because he REALLY didn't like the occupant's tacky curtains, was unclear.

Another alarming sound that was Beau's manly yelling caused the draconic cosplayer to sprint up to the kitchen, pointing her flashlight at him. "Nope, I don't see anything. Eeeeeww..." She winced in disgust as she ran her fingers through the back of the man's neck, which was covered in a sticky, slimy substance. "I've heard that boys sweat a lot, but this is ridiculous!" The young woman said, wiping her fingers clean with a spare napkin.

Beau Fontaine

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"If it came out of the A/C then there's something seriously wrong with the A/C!" The young PokéManiac mused, casting her flashlight all over the kitchen in search of anything remotely resembling an air vent. It was bad enough that Mauville was a closed off space, but now it seemed they didn't even have proper ventilation in their houses. What was wrong with the people of this city?!

Their riveting A/C search was interrupted by the ruckus of their two Pokémon engaging in battle with a wild Haunter. Rushing back to the living room, Andrea gasped at the sight of the Ghost type. "The rumors were true! Hey, Mr. Haunter! Were you a human in your past life by any chance? I need to know for my research!" She yelled at the floating specter, who was probably too busy to humor her bizarre query.

Chomper got all Worked Up, boosting his offensive capabilities, before lunging at the Haunter with a vicious Crunch attack. With his maw wide open, he was ready to sink his fangs into the enemy's gaseous body and find out if a spirit of the dead could bleed.

Beau Fontaine

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Seeing the Haunter vanish into thin air before her question could be answered, the young PokéManiac pouted dejectedly. "Aww, man. That was my only lead. Now I'll have to look for another Ghost." She lamented, while Chomper returned to her side, licking his trainer's fingers in order to cheer her up.

Finally finding the light switch, Andrea flipped it on, illuminating the entire room. If one could ignore the knocked down furniture and the few charred marks on the walls caused by Chomper's Dragon Pulse, the apartment looked in quite good condition all things considered. The incompetent doorman was still an issue, but that was neither here nor there.

"I don't really mind, though. I had a lot of fun!" The draconic cosplayer beamed with a dazzling smile. "Thanks for sticking with me. Ghost hunts are even more fun when done with friends! Bye, Beau! Bye, doggy!" She reaches down to pet the Snubbull's head, before turning on her heel and running off, conveniently before the cops could arrive and ask her awkward questions.

Beau Fontaine

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