The Beheeyem looked over towards Eris, and the girl would feel a small poke on her mind - the Pokemon checking what she couldn't quite say.

And with that, it told Hideo to explain further.

"Oh, right. I've been told I'm a bit higher priority of a target compared to other Leaguers, so Rocket's gonna be more interested in kidnapping me. So I was thinking: why not let them think they got a chance at it?"

He let out three Pokemon: two regular Zoroarks, and a white Zoroark variant that'd appeared with the distortions. "So let me introduce you to me! And metwo! And methree!"

On cue, Illusions overtook the Zoroarks - each looking identical to Hideo - down to the clothes he wore and the grin he bore. And Hideo knew that, each confirmed by his Beheeyem. "They're pretty convincing as long as they don't need to speak!"

"Wanna toss in any of your own Pokemon before I send them in?"

Eris Halla

   

There was something unsettling about hearing his own voice synthesized like that, something that sent a chill through Hideo's spine. At least with the Zoroarks, he could be in blissful ignorance of having himself copied (similar to the stuffed versions of himself his Pokemon seemed to adore).

His own voice, though? There was no avoiding the minor existential confusion from hearing himself, without it actually being himself.

It drowned out his Beheeyem's attempt to tell him that his previous words made Eris a bit uncomfortable.

"That…works, I guess." Discomfort aside, those would sell the illusions even better. He didn't even question why Eris had two phones. A regular Zoroark took one, while the Hisuian!Zoroark took the other, leaving the Pokerus-infected Zoroark on its own.

"Alright, me's! Time to mess with some Rockets!" He cast a dramatic finger into the woods, and off went his doppelgangers, scattering forward.

It wouldn't take long until the distinct crackle of a radio call was heard from Eris's radio.

"Tango spotted in sector B2. Looks like…it's that Gym Leader kid. Moving in to-"

"We just spotted him on E4. Verify contact."

"He's in B2. I can see him. What're you-"

"He just ran through J1!"

The calls began to overlap, each trying to verify their spotted Hideo - and it wasn't long until the arguments began.

"Sounds like they're taking the bait perfectly," Hideo said, a grin on his face. He turned over to Eris. "Wanna throw some more fuel on the fire? I'm guessing that ain't just a one-way radio you got there."

Eris Halla

   

Hideo was oblivious to Eris's distress, too amused by overhearing his Zoroarks' collective success at sowing confusion amongst the Rockets. He thought nothing of being targeted, after already dealing with Rockets harassing him before he was with the League.

He'd offered the chance to Eris to help with his disruption, but she seemed to want to leave it to him. Fair enough. He nodded, accepting the offer, pressing down on the proper button.

He put on the deepest voice he could. "Target spotted in G8."

The answers were immediate - and panicked.

"No, he's in B3! I'm chasing him right now! Damn he's fast!"

"He's in E4 and - holy shit he just punched out my Dreepy!"

"Oh hell no he just called my shoes ugly!"

Hideo couldn't resist laughing; his little misinformation game was working perfectly!

He turned to Eris once again, a wide smile on his face. "You sure you don't wanna try a bit? You could put on a voice if you-"

A pat on the shoulder from his Beheeyem stopped him from continuing. He stopped immediately, surprised Elga would stop him from doing anything. It gave Hideo a chance to think it over, the smile on his face diminishing. "Oh, uh, right. Sorry 'bout that, Eris."

He could reason she wasn't too comfortable tricking people she'd possibly been working with some time ago.

"...how've you been adjusting to not being with Rocket?"

Eris Halla

   

Loneliness wasn't too surprising. Hideo knew Eris had been with Rocket for a while. Even if Rocket was treating her badly, that was still the life she'd known for so long; she probably still had connections there that she missed.

It's the part about Chu-e Choi that surprised him. He'd thought Chu-E was under close watch by the League, but it didn't sound close enough. "I…I'm sorry Eris. I didn't know."

Her one chance of a family, gone. It must've been sudden too, if she hadn't tried to follow them.

Hideo lowered the radio, simply letting the Rockets chatter as they struggled to understand what was happening. "What happened? Any idea where he went?"

Eris Halla

   

His immediate thought went to Rocket taking Chu-E back - but hadn't they wanted to get out of Rocket? Why would he want to go back? It didn't line up with what she told him.

But he knew that it was not the time to be arguing over that kind of detail. Even if he himself had no responsibility for what happened, he'd offer his sympathies.

He turned the radio off - it was better if panicked Rocket chatter wasn't distracting them.

"I didn't know that happened," he said, walking over to her. "I'm sorry that happened, Eris. Really."

He opened his arms, going in for a hug (with his Beheeyem's guidance to make sure he was actually going towards Eris). There wasn't much he could do at the moment, but he'd offer this comfort to her.

"You know you can always talk to me about this stuff."

Eris Halla

   

"You can always talk to me about this kinda stuff, Eris," Hideo said, squeezing Eris close. "Even if it's hard to put into words, you can just talk. I can make time for you." He could leave battling to his employees, or even just to the Pokemon themselves; some could even take his place at commanding if needed.

"You don't hafta stay quiet about this kinda stuff. I'm always here to help you. Even if you just want someone to be around."

He knew it wasn't easy to get answers out of Eris, but the best he could do was support her; they were friends after all.

That's what friends do.

Eris Halla