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the body moves on its own when lost in thought, following unmarked paths without concern as the mind wanders through memories. ever since she awoke arlette has had a hard time keeping the events of the cavern locked away like she’d prefer. the strange glyphs (she now wished to have paid more attention to), the ethereal whale that controlled the water and doors and ― of course ― the titan itself: regirock. everything felt unreal ; like a fever dream. but the injuries (the death) reminded arlette that reality was as twisted as she remembers.

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a spark in the darkness ; a lick of a flame. it flickers, sparks flying into the air before disappearing like nothing yet stealing her attention with shocking ease. a pokeball drops from her hands to release her furfrou, gesturing for the canine to sniff out the source of the light.

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its nose prods behind a withered bush, poking it inside until the pokemon is startled backwards by a quick, harmless puff of black ash. from the opposite side a charmander darts away, dashing as quick as it can deeper into the safari until it’s out of sight. arlette is left with her furfrou, an amused, crooked smile stretched thin on her lips. “it’s okay girl, we’ll find something else.”

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arlette stifles a laugh as the dog before her presses its nose into its paw, smearing flecks of ash into its fur, black smudges smearing on a white coat. if the trip to the safari and back didn’t clear her mind arlette figured getting the furfrou clean could help. they continue forward until something else catches their attention, not a flame but a glimmer. eyes appear in the darkness ; watching. arlette does the same while her furfrou lowers, bares teeth with a guttural growl.

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the creature acts first. a shadowed, smoky claw extends out of the black to strike once, twice ― but nothing happens. even with its body hidden the surprise is obvious. “go fetch georgette, lets see what it is.” arlette urged, letting her hand slide down the dogs spine as it darts forward in chase. the commotion brings noise that startles the surrounding creatures, mixing the sounds of battle and nature into a strange symphony.

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a heavy slam (one that arlette feels rumble up from the ground through her legs) launches the once unknown creature into view ; a mimikyu, tattered and visibly exhausted, jumps into the air to escape. following behind were jaws, clamping down on the mimikyu's body to secure its capture and defeat. once the ghost type goes limp, clothed head dangling against the side of its muzzle, georgette prances forward ; dropping the mimikyu at arlette’s feet.

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“good girl.” arlette gushed, fingers scratching the cheeks of the dog as it becomes a puppy once more with the feeling of praise radiating off its trainer. more attention is in order but, before she forgets, the woman takes one of the three pokeballs she’d been given upon entry and tosses it limply onto the stilled body of the fainted mimikyu.

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the ping of a successful capture prompts the team of two forward into awaiting silence. their battle had scared any pokemon nearby and, if arlette was going to find anything else, they’d have to travel deeper. a pokeball rolls in the woman’s palm as her mind wanders. quiet brings thoughts both welcomed and not, and arlette can do nothing about it. their path is aimless, lead by the blurred figure on four legs, and in time they must stop ; path blocked.

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shoes fall on soft earth, denting imprints near a river's edge once arlette stills. air wafts, hair lifts and she takes a deep breath. the sight of the water sets the woman at ease and, knowing she must figure out a path for herself, arlette chooses to follow her new find. she isn’t sure when it happens nor how long she’d been walking for until it did. it’s a noise that breaks the silence and captures arlettes attention, drawing her eyes to the water once again. a body emerges, small ― oddly colored ― and swimming only a few feet from where she stands.

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georgette is anxious and, while arlette appears calm, she feels the same energy. her voice drops, words caught in her throat at the loud whine coming from her furfrou and, before arlette can stop it, the canine leaps into the water towards the feebas. the panic is similar to the mimikyu, caught off guard by the furfrous attempt to fight ― but instead the feebas doesn’t attack but swims (fast) towards where arlette stands.

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she crouches down, staring at the feebas circling near her. it’s odd ; cute in its own way. but most of all the feebas is different. “sorry about her.” arlette begins, an apologetic smile clear on her face. “she won’t hurt you.” she’d always thought it strange to talk to wild pokemon. it felt different from telling commands and praising her own. there was no connection with them (possibly no understanding on their part either) but, nevertheless, arlette preferred to do this capture passively.

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it took time but arlette had more than enough to spare. she almost enjoyed the dragged out minutes of just talking aloud to a creature she wasn’t sure understood. by the end the wind had calmed, stilling water and nerves, bringing noise that had scattered back to its original place. the feebas was given a choice ; an escape. arlette cradles the pokeball in her hand as she lowers it near, allowing the pokemon a choice: a new life with her or the comfortable everyday it was used to.

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arlette feels the slightest tinge of pain as she stares at her distorted reflection. the pokeball shines in the light of evening and, despite the smudged fingerprints spotting its casing, still reflects the woman’s face. out of everything arlette could think of her thoughts fall to leo and the strange remark kim said regarding him. had leo actually helped her out of the cave? it was true she couldn’t remember anything up to a certain point but regardless that didn’t seem like him. silence falls upon the pair again and, as the wind picks up once more to bring a distasteful smell, arlette pulls her furfrou in another direction. whatever was causing it was something she didn’t want to run into.

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with the strange stench behind them, fresh air blowing its unpleasant smell downwind, arlette figured now would be the time to head towards the exit. having the workers of the safari search her out didn’t seem enjoyable for either party involved. it takes some time for arlette to finally recall her furfrou back into its pokeball. the caine, once full of energy, had begun to slow, tired from the excursion (and rightfully so). arlette could feel exhaustion creeping just behind her too. being bedridden in a hospital bed had left her anxious ; stir-crazy even. back than she’d wanted nothing but to leave and, once she was emitted out, that’s exactly what arlette did. she left with no intentions on coming back.

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in her thoughts arlette doesn’t hear the scurrying coming from the dense brush on either side of the well-kept path. it’s only when the rodent darts from the grass does arlette snap back into reality, forcing her body to a sudden halt. the minccino is startled ― stops mid dash to stare wide eyed at the woman before it ― and, before arlette can make any move, runs off as quickly as it came. she sighs. a single thought comes to mind that irks her: leo would have thought that pokemon was cute. with narrowed eyes arlette pushes forward down the familiar path, refusing to linger on what her mind seems persistent to bring up.

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from where arlette stands her eyes can just make out the roof of the zones main building. it stands a hulking structure ; a man-made landmark for visitors. while she couldn’t be sure an educated guess told her she’d be at the exit soon, within twenty minutes possibly. the thought was a relief for the ache in her feet but, with one empty pokeball still weighing her down, arlette wasn’t sure if she should leave just yet. if she gave up now she’d be wasting a perfectly good opportunity. one more pokemon ― one more capture ― that was all she needed.

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a quick detour brings the woman a little ways from her former goal, eyes peeled for any pokemon to stumble across her path. it takes some time (more than arlette would have wanted) but eventually something catches her eye. a bagon stands a short distance away atop piles of boulders, head lowered ; cautious. the realization that the creature had spotted her long before she’d laid eyes on it strikes her a little too late. arlettes footing is stumbled but sure, pushing herself from where she’d stood and far to the right as the bagon runs, ramming its head into a nearby tree around where she’d been.

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light fades out at the release of her pokemon, a body emerging in the glow to add distance between arlette and the bagon. the battle is fast. a well aimed moonblast to the bagons upper body leaves the dragon collapsing a few inches from the vileplumes feet. while it attempts to stand once more every move the bagon makes is shaky, ultimately leading to it tumbling to the ground once more. there’s a small hint of pity in arlettes eyes as she tosses the pokeball, something that lasts but a few seconds. while it had lost the battle due to its rash nature an eagerness to fight had never been a bad quality in her eyes.