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Thea smiled warmly, tugging the cheek of her Pawmo softly, surprising him for a moment. "Yes he is. The newest member of the group, but already cares just like a family." The embarrassment made Hammy flatten his ears against his head, averting his gaze while the pads of his paws flickered. Thea giggled, already relieved from all the tense situation they all just went through. "Got it, no training until she gets fully better." She nodded.[break][break]

When the Floette approached, Thea giggled and gently brushed the cute Pokémon's head if allowed. "She is a dear. Thank you very much, Mimi." Her smile grew at the cuteness and care of the Pokémon.[break][break]

Her eyes returned to Benji, and she nodded. "I see! I'm asking because well. Me and my Pokémons are in a Dojo, so getting hurt isn't uncommon, and I want to make sure my Pokémons are top notch in terms of healthy. But the usual physician that takes care of them will retire soon, so..." Thea rubbed the back of her nape.[break][break]

"I wanted to find a new one!"[break][break]

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When Lydia came out of the locker room, Thea crossed her arms and looked at her up and down, with a grin covering her lips as she nodded in eager approval. "Great, that looks wonderful on you! All fit and set, certainly not the first time you wear a gi!" Sometimes she had to adjust other newcomers obis, or the gi was wore all wrong, but it seemed like she wasn't talking to an amateur.[break][break]

Her eyes went up to Lydia's, and she inquired: "Well, what are you looking for? Just sparring, or training? Seems like you already know your way into a dojo." She said, already leading the woman to the center of the dojo.[break][break]

It felt like she was mildly disappointed earlier for not meeting the actual master of the dojo, so maybe she wanted to challenge it formally? Regardless of the case, Thea intended to treat her with as much respect and hospitality as possible.[break][break]

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"Really? I can only wonder how many stories you two have together." Her lips quirked up, mischievously. "I like some gossiping if you don't mind~" Thea grinned, perking up at the suggestion of him paying a visit.[break][break]

"You will be very welcomed! And I mean, I do plan to come back here whenever I pass by the town. This place is too cute!"[break][break]

When approached by the hulking Scizor, Zeus stopped and looked at him and tried to size him up, oinking briefly. If anything, he looked like the one Pokémon that wasn't just about cuddling there. Gominha squeaked like a balloon looking at Zeus, giving him a scolding gaze while still glued to Pulse, making Zeus look back at her with a frown.[break][break]

"Seems like Zeus is bored, huh?" Thea chuckled. "Sorry, he usually is only at affectionate mood when relaxed." She apologized for the Primeape's manners.[break][break]

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"You made it by yourself?" Thea's eyes opened widely, containing her energy to not make her just clasp her hands against the table while standing up— Instead, she simply bent onto the table, leaning away when the waiter returned with their order, which she promptly apologized with slightly flushing cheeks.[break][break]

"Like, you've made it from scratch? Or did you buy a jacket that already existed and added the stuff in it? Do you work with that or..?" She wondered. Either of those were impressive, but the curiosity picked her.[break][break]

"I kinda like to give my Pokémons a bit of some clothing at times, even if Zeus doesn't like it too much, and Hammy is still getting used to everything." She gestured at her Pokémons. The Wigglytuff had a lace and a hat on her, while her Minccino wore a ribbon on her head and a shawl.[break][break]

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The large head of the Drampa was the first thing that would appear to Cass. The dragon Pokémon carefully gave a ride to Thea and the usual Pokémon gang that was with her, and as soon as her eyes locked on Cass', she jumped out of the dragon's back, hurrying to wrap Cass in a tight embrace. "Cass! You..." Thea's lips frowned. When the Saude had met Thea and tried to lead her to Cass, with all the hurry that even her Pokémons started to have, Thea could only think the worst had happened.[break][break]

But seeing her friend there, and mostly intact, made Thea's heart wash in relief. "I thought something had happened to you—" Thea leaned away, holding Cass' shoulders to look at her eyes with her own teary ones.[break][break]

Meanwhile, Thea's Pokémons approached. Even Belle and Hammy that were usually timid, didn't shy away from getting close to meet their fellow Pokémon friends once again.[break][break]

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Cass' words made Thea pause and look at her with frowning lips. How they got into that situation was still alien to her— and the fact they were put in the same cell couldn't be a coincidence. It was the three of them, they were certainly captured together. But she didn't say anything back, not at her friend trying to comfort her.[break][break]

She had to stop complaining and think about how they would get out of that situation together.[break][break]

"We... We will get them." She frowned, almost vengeful, letting out a sigh and casting a glance at the tower. "It is our only clue, so let's go."[break][break]

Thea moved with quick steps. If it had a minimum chance it was Kay, she was going to hold onto it tightly.[break][break]

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Thea kept her eyes on Cass. She couldn't help but feel like, while that place wasn't hostile, that strange calmness and emptiness after so much agitation and chaos felt extremely dangerous. Like a game, like some sadistic desire of making them feel everything was fine now, only to wake up to hell again.[break][break]

"Alright... Let's look for him." Thea nodded, following up with their search.[break][break]

Buildings and buildings passed as they wandered through the dreamscape, but it almost felt like they were walking in eternal circles. It was clear they were taking straight lines, but buildings almost felt like they were repeating. It was like an illusion of freedom. Yeah, there were no chains locking their necks and wrists here, but Thea was slowly feeling as restrained as she was back in that cell. Except without dealing with claustrophobia.[break][break]

Eventually, she closed her distance with Cass, embracing her arm with her own, bitterly whispering— "I am sorry I'm not being able to protect you."[break][break]

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The mention of Cass moving in with the made Thea perk up in excitement, though she soon noticed the joke tone, and she chuckled while rubbing her neck once again. "We sure will. In this case, let's exchange the egg a few times. If we can bring it to school, it is even better and easier to take care of it." Thea grinned.[break][break]

"But yeah, now let me occupy my mouth with these delicious stuff~ Still, you will start taking care of the egg. Remember, it is a gift to you!" She laughed, forking another piece of her cheesecake, and chomping it with an eager 'yuuum~!'[break][break]

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Thea's eyes brimmed looking at the Galarian Rapidash suddenly appearing from the pokémon. It was a beautiful Pokémon, and were it not for the tense situation they were in, Thea would already be showering it with affections and compliments. But soon, the Healing Pulse from the fellow Pokémon made the wound closing even faster.[break][break]

Nodding at Ever, Thea approached slowly with her potion. The Staraptor was still far from feeling complete trust to the strangers, but at this point, be it for the calming Healing Pulse or for sheer exhaustion from struggling and fighting back so much, it allowed Thea to do what she needed, with its head resting against the tree while it breathed heavily.[break][break]

Zeus, the Primeape, was ready to attack if the Staraptor tried anything, but Belle held his fist, shaking her head.

"Everything will be fine..." Thea muttered quietly, gently spraying the potion on the actual wound, that despite becoming less severe, it was still quite a gash. The potion was a bit more effective to handle such a large injury, but it was clear the bird still needed more medical attention.[break][break]

"I think its life isn't endangered anymore, but yeah, I think you would need to bring it with you anyway, because it still needs treatment..." Her lips pursed looking at the condition the poor thing was in.[break][break]

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Needless to say that Thea returned the affection happily to the incoming Pokémons. Gominha continued to have fun with the whole idea and Zeus was still a bit stoic, but was far from rejecting the greetings at this point. Belle, that was the most timid, was starting to give away, seeing how much fun Gominha was having with the others.[break][break]

"Had your back, huh— Ngh! I'm kinda jealous, it sounds cool." Thea clenched her fists. "True, friendship bond going through harships together, one helping another!" Perhaps a tomboyish way to think about it, but she felt like that was quite appealing.[break][break]

"Oh well, not training yet. He showed up in my father's dojo a while ago, and I was invited to pay a visit. I would love to train under him though, he is very strong!" Thea chirped happily.[break][break]

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"A caged Arcanine..." Thea muttered it to herself, shooting a grin. "That's a nice one, I will keep that in mind!" Sounded cool at least. "Here is the place to let out the steam, for sure... But with discipline!" Thea nodded eagerly, gesturing for the woman to follow her.[break][break]

Approaching the locker room of the dojo, she glanced at the Pokémons that were going to join their training too, smiling warmly. Meanwhile, Gominha approached as well, rolling closer to the other Pokémons and looking at them with curiosity. "They look wonderful~ And you are sure in good hands, I do plan to take care of this dojo at some point, so I am training for it too." She flexed her arm, and opened the door of the locker room to the guest.[break][break]

"There is a locker with a 'guest gi' sign, just open it and choose the one that fits you the most. I will be waiting outside so we can start as soon as you are ready."[break][break]

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Thea's relief only grew as Benji spoke of Bella recovering steadly. Rushing as fast as she could to the PokéCenter was worth in this case, and she looked at Hammy before ruffling his head. "See? If you didn't make me notice she was feeling bad, she wouldn't be recovering as well as she is now." The Pawmo looked at Thea and Benji, still with droopy ears, but he nodded briefly.[break][break]

She chuckled faintly at his reaction, looking at the Comfey and the Floette that were returning with even more help, which only made Bella look better.[break][break]

"Thank you so much." Thea said, wanting to squish the two cute Pokémons, but the situation and the fact she didn't want to get on their way stopped her.[break][break]

"It is nice to meet you, Dr. Sawyer!" She clasped her hands together. "Are you only on the emergency field of the PokéCenter, or do you make normal appointments too?" Thea asked, curious.[break][break]

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Thea looked at the little girl with a mix of curiosity and concern. But at the same time, it did feel nice to see someone so inclined to protect others. A small smile crossed Thea's lips.[break][break]

"You don't need to do it by yourself. We can do it together." She reassured, even if she didn't want the girl to put herself in danger, she figured it was impossible to convince her otherwise, especially after the hell they were going through. She could only hope that it all would have a good ending soon enough.[break][break]

Because the longer it took for their good end to come, the less 'good' this end would be.[break][break]

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