"Everything went well, then?" Yellow handed me a steaming mug of tea with a small smile on her face. We sat side by side in wicker chairs on the sunporch Gold, Green and Silver had built onto the house as a birthday present to Yellow a year ago. Yellow's Pokemon milled about our feet, occasionally butting their heads against our hands in pleas for attention. I scratched behind Ratty's ears with my free hand.

"It was...interesting," I replied slowly, hiding my grin behind my mug. "I've never considered what Gold would be like outside of a platonic relationship, but I wasn't expecting him to be so...sweet."

Yellow laughed and winked one pretty amber eye at me. "You didn't think the boy who bred and raised baby Pokemon for a living would be sweet?" She waved her hand at my eyeroll. "You can let your Pokemon out if you want!"

I set down the mug and released my team from their Pokeballs. "The Gold I know has always been a dorky, skeevy, show-offy—"

Yellow swatted my arm playfully. "Oh, do keep singing his praises this way! You are so caught up in that big old brain of yours you forget to look at what's right in front of you. Abre los ojos, niña. Open your eyes." Tucking a lock of sandy hair behind her ear, Yellow swept one arm in front of her. "What do you see in front of you?"

I knitted my fingers together. "Is this some kind of test?"

"I can read a Pokemon's thoughts, not yours. I just want to pick your brain."

I took a deep breath and scanned the huge backyard. "I, uh...I see grass, lots of Pokemon, trees and sky…"

"Try again—really look. Look past the outside and tell me how it makes you feel."

I groaned, leaning my head back against this chair. "Yellow, this feels like therapy!" I sat there for a moment with my eyes closed. I peeked one eye open when Smoochee headbutted my knee. With one hand cupping her face, I puckered my lips up and made a kissing sound. Smoochee squeaked in delight and blew kisses back.

"She likes that," Yellow said warmly. She looked at me carefully. "What do you see when you look at Smoochee?"

"Her joy," I answered immediately. "She's so warm and cheerful. She's like a ball of sunshine wrapped into an adorable little baby!"

Yellow hummed thoughtfully and sipped tea. Looking at her, it was far too easy to underestimate her. This was the woman who single-handedly sought out Red and defeated the Champion; the woman who could read the thoughts of Pokemon and heal with a touch. She had a brilliant, calculating mind that could give Green a run for his money all bundled into a tiny frame and hidden behind a sweet smile.

Her point hit me like a bag of bricks.

"Oh, jeez, Yellow," I complained. "Do you have to be right all the time?"

She shrugged small shoulders. "How's that for a taste of your own medicine?"

I laughed loudly, Xatee pulling her head up from under her wing in surprise at the sound. "Bitter," I admitted.

"You need to remember to look past the surface, brainiac." She whistled softly for a moment, and a Pidgey descended from the trees to land on her head. "Remember how you and Archy became friends?"

"Of course," I murmured. "He was vicious...but it wasn't his fault. His paw was hurt."

"Gold is vicious in his own way," Yellow laughed. "But there's something in his paw, too."

"And Silver?" The words left my mouth before I could stop them.

Yellow's expression hardened ever so slightly. "Silver is much more fragile than he looks, Crys. Just a few years ago he was nothing but a child thief who didn't even like his own Pokemon. There are exactly three people in the world he trusts: Blue, Gold, and you."

"That's the problem!" I ran a hand through my hair. "He and Gold...they could really hate each other. And Silver…" I tucked my legs up to rest my chin on my knees. "Silver could hate me so much." I felt my throat clog. "Yels, I can't lose either of them."

"Realizing you love someone is terrifying. Realizing you love two people…" Yellow spread her hands.

"I've always loved them, Yels—I just didn't know I liked them."

The two of us laughed together and sipped our tea in companionable silence.

"Tell me about the wedding," I said after a few minutes.

Yellow's eyes lit up. "Oh, it's going to be so beautiful! My uncle has volunteered his forestland for the venue, he and Red are going to be spending time making a clearing. I've got White running the decorations and Platina taking care of possible vendors—I'm not scary enough," she said sheepishly. "You liked the dresses, right? I never got your opinion, I was too busy sobbing." A smile blossomed on her face. "I'll probably have to get a bigger size for Blue!"

"Sounds like you'll need to buddy up to a seamstress," I teased.

"I've already commandeered him! He's making my dress."

We chatted about styles and fabrics, veils and bouquets until the sky turned inky and the Illumise began twinkling. The screen door banged open and Red stood there, his hair sticking up in a thousand directions.

"Hello ladies," he said cheerfully. ChuChu raced up his leg and into his arms in greeting. Pika appeared behind him and raced into the backyard, sparks flying. Red bent and kissed the top of Yellow's head, beaming at the ring that gleamed on her hand. "What have you two been up to?"

I started to say "Nothing!" at the same time Yellow said "Chatting about love."

I narrowed my eyes at her; she pretended not to see.

"Aw, shucks," Red laughed. "Wedding stuff again?"

"Mhm, and wondering who it is Crystal should be walking down the aisle with." Red only looked confused.

"Oh...alright," he said slowly. "Anyway, I have some amazing news!"

Yellow and I perked up in our seats immediately. Red started smiling and stroking ChuChu.

"I got an offer to host a Battle Royale here in Kanto! This company, Greater Good, they're hoping to raise awareness for some sickness certain Pokemon are getting. Basically, people will pay a registration fee and the proceeds go toward the research!"

"That's amazing!" Yellow cried, leaping to her feet. She wrapped her arms around both her fiancé and her pokemon in a tight hug.

"Did they say where the research was conducted?" I asked.

"Some government-funded lab. There's pokemon being reported with weird EV levels and decreased appetites."

I looked up at them both. "There's an Emolga at the Lab just like that! I haven't gotten any notices about treatments." I frowned down at my hands, a sudden fear wiggling into my mind. Maybe we had gotten it and I'd just been too distracted lately to even check. Or worse—we'd gotten it and nobody had told me, knowing I was too self-involved at the moment. My stomach twisted into a knot.

"You should try to call this Lab and find out, Crys."

I shook my head. "No, no, I'm sure they sent something and I just missed it." I smiled at Red. "That's awesome that they want you to host, though. You'll do great!"

"I'm so proud of you!" Yellow chirped, beaming up at him. I echoed her sentiment and then prepared to leave, gathering up my pokemon and hugging them both goodbye. The stars were beginning to glitter across the black expanse of sky as Xatee and I took to the air and headed home.

I couldn't help but feel terribly embarrassed by the Emolga situation. I couldn't blame Green or Elm for keeping it from me—I'd been so consumed with my love life that I hadn't even been fully present at work, making countless mistakes and sweeping them under the rug. Shame bubbled in my gut as Xatee swooped to a landing in my backyard. I released the rest of my team, leaning my forehead against Megaree.

"I'm really making a mess, aren't I?" I whispered to him. Mega made a humming sound and swung his neck around me. "I need to keep my head together. Research is what I love. I can't let the guys get in my head like this all the time."

Mega made a whuffing sound as I stroked his shoulders. "My first priority needs to be what it used to be: being the best researcher and teacher I can be."

Bonee came close and rested his head against my shin. I knelt down and scratched just under his chin the way he liked and smiled at him. "And you guys, of course."

Smoochee scrambled up my back and made kissing sounds, nuzzling against my hair. I closed my eyes and relished the affection, returning it in equal amounts. As I sat there with my Pokemon, all thoughts of Greater Good left me.

#

I pulled at the corners of my mouth to make a silly face at Bella, who giggled and drooled in her mother's arms.

"She's taken such a shine to you!" Daisy commented, beaming at us both. "I think Uncle Green is still her favorite, though."

Said uncle smiled a little crookedly but otherwise didn't divert his attention from the computer screen in front of him. I rolled back the sleeves of my lab coat and made shapes with my fingers just over Bella's head. She squealed in delight.

"I can't believe my little Belladonna is going to have a cousin to play with soon! I swear, she'll be talking by then. She got all of Bill's brains."

I grinned at that. "You weren't one of your grandfather's favorite researchers for your looks, Daisy."

She hushed me even though her cheeks turned a little pink. "What do you think, Greenie?"

Green finally pushed away from the computer, the chair wheels squeaking a little. "She's lovely," he said simply. "Though I admit I miss having Bill around to handle some of the technical malfunctions we've been having." He turned a shrewd eye to me. "You exported that report you made on the infant Kangaskhan, right?"

"This morning," I assured him. I'd been throwing myself into my work the last week, and I was pleased to say it had returned to its usual exceptional status. I had an evening planned with Silver for tomorrow and had rationalized by working double shifts not just at the lab but in the school, too.

"It's not here. That damn glitch—that's the fifth file we've lost this month." Green scowled. "We aren't detecting any viruses in the system, but it just keeps getting deleted."

"Not to worry," I said, retrieving a flash drive from the pocket of my lab coat. "I backed it up and can retrieve it for you." He shuffled aside to tickle his niece as I plugged in the thumb drive. I was so carefully organized that it took less than twenty seconds to find and print the file for him. "Why is the baby Kanga so important?"

Green twitched Bella's nose before he answered. "It's IV rates have been fluctuating. I just want to keep an eye on it."

Daisy shifted Bella in her arms, looking thoughtful. "Try comparing the levels to an infant Cubone's and matching their treatments. The pokemon are similar enough that you should at least be able to get more accurate data."

Green kissed his sister's forehead, to her surprise. "This is why we miss you," he told her solemnly before retaking his seat at the computer. Daisy and I looked at each other and shrugged.

"I'll walk you out," I told her, looping my arm through hers. Bella dribbled down the back of Daisy's shirt, but I didn't feel the need to tell her. Daisy would feel it soon enough.

"He's been so stressed," Daisy fretted. "The gym has been really taxing on him. I was trying to talk him into hiring out some of the jobs there, but he wouldn't hear of it." She looked at me with her soft green eyes. "Blue is worried about him."

"I'm sure it's just the stress of impending fatherhood," I said gently. "You know Green has never been one to do things halfway. He's just handling it the only way he knows."

Daisy hummed in acknowledgement. "Still, would you mind just keeping an eye on him? He really thinks so highly of you as his junior and I'm sure reminding him to set a good example will bring him around."

I nodded as we stopped in at the front doors . "Of course I can; I'm sure everything's alright though, Daisy." I gave her a one-armed embrace and wiggled my fingers at Bella. "Bye baby! Bye bye baby!"

A short while after Daisy left, I was eating lunch across from Green when he cleared his throat.

"Crystal, I have some unfortunate news."

Tears immediately threatened, my head flooding with self-doubt. You're going to be fired! Of course he noticed your attention slipping!

"W-what is it?" I could barely breathe, my fingers tightening on my can of orange soda.

"That Emolga, the one we've been keeping an eye on...it didn't make it. Last night, it passed away."

I felt my mouth drop open in surprise. "How? Th-they were fine yesterday! Their diet was improving!" The tears that had threatened spilled over just slightly. Ashamed, I dabbed at them with the sleeve of my lab coat.

Green's scowl was sharper than usual. "To be honest, I'm not sure. I thought it was going to pull through. But when I came in this morning…" His voice trailed off.

"I'm sorry for crying, senior, I just…" I sniffled slightly, more tears sneaking through. Green shook his head.

"No need to apologize. I admit I was rather attached to it, too." Green glanced around quickly and then leaned closer, beckoning for me to do the same. "I think there's been interference in the Lab."

I was startled. "What? How?" I blinked more tears from my eyelashes. Green held one finger to his mouth as a warning.

"The files going missing...this sickness that keeps springing up; it's awfully convenient that our info keeps vanishing or subjects die or vanish before it's complete."

"What do you mean, vanish?"

He steepled his fingers, still speaking with a hushed voice. "The baby Kanga. I asked about the report because it keeps getting shuffled around in the Lab. There was actually a second one last week, but no one besides Elm or I knew. I would've told you, but…" Green pursed his lips, pointedly not saying you were distracted.

It still stung.

"The Kanga went missing over the weekend. No sign of a break-in or stealth—it just vanished. For some reason, the other one is still here. I need you to keep a very close eye on it. Nobody can know about this. Not even Gold and Silver."

I frowned. "Have you told Blue?"

He shook his head, and the weight of the situation felt leaden.

"I won't tell, Senior. I swear."

"From now on, report directly to me or Elm. No one else."

"Yes, Senior."

Green sighed heavily, his eyes closing. "Thank you, Crystal. I know this is a lot to ask, but I wouldn't ask if I wasn't certain you could handle it."

I nodded again, taking a deep breath.

"Next week, I'll have a specialist in here to investigate."

I cocked my head. "Who?"

*shows up three years late to the party with starbucks* oh, hey ff! it's uh...it's been a while. Oops! So much life has happened between now and then. The last time I was updating this story I was struggling to get through school, and the only thing I would make time for was writing for my favorite fictional nerds. It's been a whopping three years: I graduated, moved out, gotten several jobs, gotten engaged, adopted pets...I had to live a total grown up life. It's been tough, I'm not going to lie. But in the beginning of February I realized how much I missed this story. I love me some Pokespe and it brought me so much joy to write. While my fiance plays Pokemon games for the first time, I've finally indulged myself in writing this again. I hope old fans still remember it (and me!). And I hope you guys love my updates