My feelings of humiliation desperately want to resurface, now that we are in full view of so many Pokemon, but I repress them, and maintain a neutral expression, besides my blushing. Furret is still all over me, rambling on and on about how good my new head ornament looks on me. I feel selfish to not be paying attention to her, especially when she's so enthusiastic, but I'm still concerned about how I look like a goober in public. I consider acting tough, but I have a feeling it's just gonna make me look even sillier, so I give in, and try to act natural in the hopes that nobody will notice.

And notice, somebody does: Furret ceases her babbling as a Sandshrew, wearing a light blue scarf and a brown sack around her shoulder, walks right up to us, with an enchanted twinkle in their eyes. On their shoulder rests a tiny Fletchling, equipped with an equally small red ribbon. Furret analyzes the duo curiously, and I quietly contemplate killing myself from the sheer displeasure of my predicament. The pangolin ogles me with adoration, and speaks up with a soft voice that defies her rough exterior.

"Has anyone ever told you how cute that ribbon you're wearing is? You look like such a little angel!" The way that she's talking to me only solidifies the mental image I have of myself as someone's pet, and my face contorts into a perturbed grimace. Her Fletchling companion has a blank expression, but looking into their eyes, I sense the faintest hint of empathy, suggesting that the bird is used to these kinds of shenanigans at the hands of their partner. As the Sandshrew continues praising me (or patronizing me, it's hard to tell) from all sides, her antics are brought to an abrupt end when another unknown face trots up to the four of us.

"Damn it, Cassie, how many times do I have to tell you to stop doing this kind of thing? We aren't here for you to bother random strangers."

A white Vulpix accosts the Ground type. He's wearing a beige shirt, and a matching, old-timey newsboy cap to go with it. Inversely to his companion, his masculine voice contrasts his feminine appearance.

"Oh, come on, Kiyo, there's no need for you to be such a killjoy all the time," Cassie protests, gesturing towards me. "You just look at him and tell me he isn't the most adorable thing you've ever seen!"

"No, he isn't the most adorable thing I've ever seen, and neither were the last twenty people you said that about. Now, leave him alone, and let's get a move on."

"Oh, quit exaggerating, it wasn't twenty people! I'd say it was closer to, I don't know, five, or maybe ten."

The Fletchling leans into Cassie's ear and whispers something, causing the passionate light in her eyes to be reignited. "See? Even Bean agrees with me! About the 'killjoy' thing, I mean. There's nothing wrong with us goofing off just a little!"

Furret interrupts, apparently also taking Cassie's side. "I don't know you guys, but I think your friend here is right. Surely whatever it is you guys are up to can wait! It's such a nice day, why not just relax?"

Cassie's smile beams even more brightly, before transforming into a smug sneer. "Aha! Now it's three against one! I knew I was right!" Bean stretches his wings, and performs the avian equivalent of a shrug, unable to find a flaw in her bulletproof argument.

Kiyo facepalms, droops to the ground, and grumbles, "You can be such a child sometimes, you know that?"

The two girls laugh with each other, and they further discuss their mutual love for cute bows and ribbons. I overhear Furret bragging about how she picked the one I'm wearing out all by herself, but I tune her out and turn to Kiyo, suddenly feeling more perplexed than I am flustered. I ask him, "Is she always like this?"

"Usually. She's a real handful..." He trails off and glances to the side, before drawing his attention to my distinctly pink accessory, stifling a chuckle underneath his breath. Apparently he's amused by my goofy appearance.

Slightly ticked off by his snickering, I retort, saying, "Watch it, girly boy."

My insult must have gotten under the fox's skin, as he scowls at me. "What the hell did you just call me?!" he yells.

"Didn't you hear me the first time?" I grit my teeth, and we glare at each other. Sparks nearly explode spontaneously in the air between us. The girls shift their focus back to us, dropping their prior conversation and running over to try and break up the upcoming brawl, Furret blocking my body, and Cassie blocking Kiyo's. A small crowd has formed around us, some curious about the debate, while the rowdier ones immediately start placing bets among themselves on who's getting knocked out first. Meanwhile, Kiyo and Cassie are barking at each other in disagreement, with poor Bean caught in the crossfire. I'm ready to fight, but Furret pleads for me to not make the scene any uglier. "Come on, please don't do something like this in public! There's no need to fight..."

I almost protest her cries, but as soon as the image of her saddened face enters my thoughts, my resolve immediately wavers. There's no way I'm going to let something as pointless as a chuckle from a stranger get me into a fight, at least, if it upsets Furret, I won't. Maybe I should put less emotional stock into accessories from now on. I inhale deeply, collect myself, and apologize to her. "You're right, I'm sorry. I got carried away."

She sighs with relief, and she requests, "Good. Now go make up with that fox boy over there, surely he can't be that bad."

I nod, and walk past her, putting myself between the two strangers, forcing my way into their bickering. They pause to look at me, and I face the Vulpix and say, "I'm sorry. I got upset over something stupid and lashed out at you. There was no excuse for it."

"See, it's not a big deal. He apologized, so let it go for now, alright?" Cassie adds.

Our combined appeals reach him, and he suppresses his temper, though an annoyed expression remains on his face, still bothered by my jab at his appearance. "Yeah, whatever. It's fine." Our eyes don't meet. I can't tell if my apology got through to him at all, but at least the crisis has been averted for now. The crowd groans with disappointment when the argument ends, and it disperse as soon as it had formed, everyone returning to their daily lives. The tension in the air follows suit, and all of us relax our nerves. Nobody says anything at first, an awkward silence hanging above our heads, but now that I've gotten the chance to get a good look at Kiyo, Cassie, and Bean, all right next to each other, the gears in my brain start to turn. For some reason, I feel like I recognize them... I guess it won't hurt to ask.

"Hey, you three look familiar. Have we met?"

The group exchanges cautious glances, unsure of what I'm talking about, and Cassie pipes up, informing me, "No, I don't believe any of us know who either of you are." Kiyo and Bean nod in agreement.

Furret turns to me in confusion, not recognizing them, either. I scan them from head to toe, wracking my brain, trying to recall... I think back to the very first time I woke up as a Pokemon. I can feel a light bulb in my head turn on at last. Yeah, that's it! These three were the first Pokemon that I saw when I woke up on the side of the road! Satisfied that I could remember, I confirm, "Yeah, I've definitely seen you guys before."

What was at first a subtle mood of anxiety shared amongst the trio has evolved into full blown panic. Their pupils all narrow, with eyelids rising, like a deer caught in a car's headlights, and they all look off in random directions. Kiyo clears his throat and mutters, "R-really? Are you sure?"

Now I'm really intrigued about what has them so shocked. Was I not supposed to recognize them? Or do they know me, somehow, and they wish they didn't? Could they have ulterior motives? I want to elaborate on where I've seen them, but it occurs to me how creepy I would seem for recognizing a random group of strangers from two weeks ago, that I had nothing to do with. Their distress only further dissuades me from pushing the subject, so I try to backpedal. "Uh, actually, I've mistaken you for some other guys, haha..."

They turn their backs to Furret and I, and huddle together, whispering to each other quietly enough that I can't tell what they're talking about. Several glances back at us later, Kiyo steps forward, and hastily says, "Well, it was great meeting you two, but we have some really important business that we need to take care of all of a sudden. Like, right now. Sorry about the misunderstanding, gotta go, bye." He can hardly finish his sentence before he and Cassie promptly break into a sprint in the opposite direction, Bean holding onto the Sandshrew's shoulder for deal life as they barrel down the road. Both of us are at a loss for words by their sudden shift in behavior. I really hope I didn't upset Kiyo that badly. I exchange bewildered looks with Furret, and she suggests, "Um... should we keep walking?"

"Good idea," I concur.

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Pub: 05 May 2023 03:05 UTC

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