How strange it is, being the one man in a crowd of smiling faces who doesn’t seem to be enjoying himself. They’re all there for pleasure. Duty chains him to this place. Fenrir, a Lycanroc that evolved at dusk, trots alongside the Sheriff. He’s one of Dewford’s two Police Dogs, along with Voyager. The dogs are a study in contrast.[break][break]
Fenrir is a mirror of Navy. There is little joy in him, at least when he’s on duty. Instead, he sniffs the air with suspicion. The green-eyed wolf understands that trouble could come at any moment, from any corner.[break][break]
“Thanks, Baki.” Navy says as he takes the sweet treat from her. “What I’d give for a funnel cake or a deep-fried oreo.” At least he can pretend to be his normal self when he opens his mouth. “You know, I’ve got this, if you wanna run off and have some fun on your own.”[break][break]
He doesn’t want her to. He’s thankful for the company. It adds levity to an otherwise humorless job. Life’s not a party. That’s the lesson he’s learning. When monsters from another dimension wish to destroy the world, he finds it hard to simply stand by and party.[break][break]
“Man, it reminds me of when everyone thought Meteno was gonna hit.” He muses, quiet so that no one but Tsubaki and Fenrir can hear. “I ‘member finding this death cult a few days before the meteor was gonna strike. League brought me into help cover it up and investigate. Had a bit of fun and then took the express train to the afterlife.”[break][break]
He wonders how many more stories like that there have been here in Hoenn over the years. They were all covered up, too, he imagines. Oh well. No use crying over spilt milk. He takes a bite of his candied apple and keeps browsing the stalls with Tsubaki.

[break][break]

+ Hyakkaryōran Tsubaki[break]

eat a carnival treat

[attr="class","pokeclass"]

“Alright, alright.” He waves off the grim conversation. People are having fun. If she’s going to act like this, well, he’ll just have to force her to have fun, too. Walking over to a nearby PC, they’ve been set up all over the field, he pulls up his Pokemon box.[break][break]
A few clicks later and he’s switched out his team a little. He throws out four Pokemon. Fenrir, his Lycanroc, a creature of dusk. Voyager, legendary beast and royal pain in Tsubaki’s side. He immediately tries to glomp her, showing love that only a dog can. Shuwen, a creature that made itself known to him in the depths of the sea. Last, but not least, Ironsides.[break][break]
“Baki and I are gonna go off and have some fun. You four patrol, alright? Shuwen, you’re in charge.” The bear gives a solemn nod, directing the others with a wave.[break][break]
“None of that morbid talk, alright? Don’t care if I started it. You want me to see you as a woman, well, that means I’m gonna get on your ass for bein’ extra like I would an adult.” He moves closer to her, smiles, looks past her. There’s a bumper car track nearby. There’s only one thing to do, really.[break][break]
“You. Me. Bumper cars. C’mon, Baki.” Without waiting for an answer, he starts walking up to the track.

[break][break]

+ Hyakkaryōran Tsubaki

[attr="class","pokeclass"]

“Then by all means!” He revs his bumper car. The carnies chuckle at him, clearly amused by the gravity in his voice. There’s no contest he won’t go to hell and back to win. The Pokemon League? Oh yeah. Booty Bump Beatdown? Shogun of Squats is going to the top. Bumper Cars? They call him Mail Airhardt.[break][break]
A green light gives them the all green signal. Somewhere along the way, Hattori jumped out of his pokeball. The tiny frog rides the back of Navy’s cart. He gives a cheeky grin and a wink to his Lord’s lady, flashing a peace sign at her.[break][break]
Their cars slam together, sending them both reeling. More kids are rushing towards them both. The hipsters of Dewford are out in force. Like sharks sensing blood in the water, they’re out for the Sheriff’s blood. Navy whoops, cheers, and slams into them too. In a battle royale, you can’t pick sides. He slams some poor kid into the wall.[break][break]
Perhaps feeling a little guilty, Hattori disappears. He returns with a balloon, handing it to the crying child. It’s been twisted into the shape of a Garchomp – a recent favorite of Dewford. Hattori hands the balloon to the child. It’s enough to get him back into the game.[break][break]
But this is about Navy and Tsubaki. Navy turns his bumper car around, ready to crash into her again


[break][break]

+ Hyakkaryōran Tsubaki

[attr="class","pokeclass"]

Her ploy goes off without a hitch. Her protector sees the illusory Tsubaki coming right for him. Skidding like he’s riding in some sort of street car rather than a rinky dink old fairground whip, he accepts her challenge. It’s a battle of wills. Him vs. her, head on. One winner, one loser. His eyes are alive with the delight of competition. What more can be done if she is so brazen than to meet her head-on?[break][break]
Hattori’s nature allows him to see the truth. Though his Lord is a warrior of light, he is a creature of the dark. His mind understands the ploys some could use on a man like Navy. He sees the writing on the wall. Disappearing from the back of Navy’s car, he prepares his own trick.[break][break]
She slams into something alright.[break][break]
That something being a massive log. Hattori substituted that log for Navy, pushing his Lord’s bumper car aside. Tsubaki’s powerful forward thrust sends the log flying off into the crowd. Were this a baseball game, that would have been a home run. Going, going, gone! Four runs for the beautiful white-haired girl in the front.[break][break]
Until the log crashes into the top of an empty ranger watch tower. Wood explodes like a bomb has gone off, sending the wobbling tower crashing down. People jump, unsure what’s going on. In the confusion, no one seemed to see what happened. None save Tsubaki and Hattori.[break][break]
A switch flips in Navy. He tears his seatbelt off and jumps out of his bumper car, using his own momentum to jump clear of the track. He shouts orders at deputies. A pokeball comes free from his waist.[break][break]
And all the while Hattori looks up at Tsubaki, terribly embarrassed.


[break][break]

+ Hyakkaryōran Tsubaki

[attr="class","pokeclass"]

Chaos bows to order. All is soon right in the world. The Sheriff walks around, a lawman’s swagger in his step and a command in his voice. Everyone sees him and they calm down, realizing that things will be alright. Things are always alright when Sheriff Navidson’s around, or so it seems.[break][break]
“More like this carnival’s set up in spite of the town, rather than going along with what’s already here.” Navy eventually says to Tsubaki. Things are back to normal. He’s eating funnel cakes, having finally been given his grand prize. The carnies showered him with the stuff in gratitude.[break][break]
“Ugh. Gonna have to work out so hard tomorrow to make up for this sugary crap.” He says before taking another bite. There’s other deputies to man the carnival, other people to run this show. The carnival doesn’t hold much appeal anymore. Maybe it’s because he’s grown up. Maybe it’s because the person he is now isn’t meant for moments like these.[break][break]
Either way…[break][break]
“Let’s go catch a movie.”



[break][break]

+ Hyakkaryōran Tsubaki

[attr="class","pokeclass"]