Paldean Knights - Chapter 18 (Patreon)

“Aww... c'mon, one more?” Nemona entreated me, holding my hands and staring deeply into my eyes.

I did not blush.

I didn't.

Instead, I stared her down and sighed. “I've only got one more pokemon I'd be comfortable sending into battle right now-”

“I'm fine with a single!” She grinned.

“But!” I held up a hand and she wilted slightly. “My sableye – the only other one I'd want to battle with right now has... well, body image issues.”

Nemona blinked, staring down at me with wide amber eyes as she stalled out. “Body... image, issues?”

I sighed and looked around. While others were still outside at the battle arena, she and I had ducked into the warmth of the nearby building after the match for some cocoa and treats. Also, to get away from the praise being directed at me.

“Instead of anther match, how about I show you something, okay?” I asked, giving the otherwise-empty room another once-over as we sat on the cushioned bench near the drink table. The fiery-haired lyra had taken up a post by one of the entryways. The other ones being manned by various personnel from my parents' entourage.

“Hmm... well, it's not a battle, but I guess rivals should share some secrets,” Nemona hummed, and I rolled my eyes.

This girl.

“Let's see...” I stated, running my hand along my belt where the minimized pokeballs containing my friends sat. Sprigatito had asked to be balled after the match given how cold it was and she had taken a bit of damage here and there. Mankey was still exuberant, but without the prospect of another battle, he'd only wanted a snack before hopping back in his ball.

He didn't say anything, but I don't think the cold was too comfortable for him, either. The King's Wood didn't have all that many snowstorms, after all.

I hit the ball with the 'mon that I'd been thinking of, and detached it, tapping it to enlarge before holding it out and hitting the release. “Sableye, I want you to meet someone.”

“Sable!” He crowed, turning his head this way and that before fixing on Nemona.

“Oooooooh,” the tan-skinned girl immediately cooed, lacing her fingers together and leaning over in her seat as she smiled. “Oh, wow! He's amazing! And he's even got a little jacket on!”

“Sableye!” The little gremlin scoffed, lifting his chin up and looking proud.

“I never thought I'd get to see a shiny!” Nemona continued to gush-

-and I sighed slightly as Sableye wilted, ducking his head slightly.

His golden head. Golden body, too, for that matter. The gems that were his eyes – normally silver in coloration – were instead a softer shade of gold, polished to a shine. The gem on his chest – barely visible through his hoodie – was emerald instead of ruby.

“None of that now,” I told him, reaching out and picking him up before dipping a hand into my bag and pulling out a 'burrito' for him to chow down on, immediately perking him up.

Also, it was a good way to get him more used to socialization during mealtimes.

“So, yeah, this is my sableye,” I told Nemona with a smile as I rubbed the goober's head while he ate. “I found him deep beneath the castle and I've been training him for a few years now, almost as long as Mankey. He's technically battle-ready, but he's very shy.”

“Sable-eye-eye!” Sableye objected.

I looked skyward for a brief moment, shaking my head.

“What'd he say?” Nemona asked, still enthralled by the unusual coloration of the pokemon.

“He's not shy, he just doesn't like big crowds of people. He's worried they might steal his gems,” I explained tiredly. “Even when I've told him that I'll make sure that doesn't happen.”

“Ah... yeah, right, I can't see this little guy being shy,” Nemona giggled, reaching out to touch him before visibly stopping and meeting my eyes. I smiled, it was good practice not to just assume someone else's pokemon was comfortable with human contact – especially while eating – but nodded as I removed my own hand.

“Huh, I thought it'd be smooth,” Nemona whispered as she slid a hand over his head. “But it's got little ridges and bumps, that's neat. I can't really see them, though. Even when I look closely.”

“I think it's an adaptation because they're mostly subterranean,” I told her as sableye concentrated on his meal, making little issue of being petted while eating as long as Nemona didn't look like she was going for his food. One growl when she got too close to his mouth solved that. “To give them increased grip and feeling when they're digging through rock or climbing on walls. It might also be a result of their diet, though.”

“Their die-oh, right. Sableye eat rocks, I forgot,” she giggled and knocked her fist against her head.

“Gems, in particular,” I told her, nodding at sableye as he was consuming the last of his meal. “I mix in gem shavings, dried berry slices, and powdered vitamins into a gravel base to make these.”

“Oh, neat... wait-” Nemona blinked sniffing the air. “I know that smell. My cousin has an eevee she keeps as a house pet. She has an apartment, so she's litter-trained him. Isn't that-”

I coughed pointedly and looked away, my cheeks reddening slightly. “It's an all-natural crystal base that they scent using dried moss. It's kind of accidentally the best kind of pre-made meal pack a sabeleye could ask for. My uncle's Pyroar fathered a litter a few years ago, and the litleo were house-trained when they were still kittens.”

I cleared my throat again. “I, um... found a bag of it still stored at the castle and ran the idea by Dr. Joy, who said it would work as long as I didn't feed them just that.”

She'd actually found the entire thing hilarious to the point that she'd submitted my 'findings' as a formal academic paper.

On The Cost-Effective Dietary Fulfillment of Sableye.

“Huh,” Nemona replied bluntly. “Huh.”

Yeah, been there. “So... it's kind of like seasoned rice for them. It's not filling or satisfying by itself, but serves as a good base to make their meals out of.”

“That's... actually really cool,” Nemona said, smiling softly as she kept petting sableye who, now that he was done with his meal, leaned into the affection, giving a gravel-like purr. “Aww... yes, you are cute. I can't believe I'm getting to pet a shiny, though... they're so rare even my family doesn't have one. And you just... found him?”

“I did,” I nodded. “Though it took a while for me to figure out he was shiny. Down in the caves, he liked to cover himself with muck to keep his hide dark. Both to avoid predators and to fit in better with the rest of his pack.”

“Okay, I think I see where this is going,” Nemona nodded, looking him over in a new light. “That's why he has this little hoodie on, because he's not used to people seeing his gold skin, isn't it?”

I nodded, not really needing to elaborate.

Shiny pokemon were... kind of like albinism back in my previous world, though the conditions were more complex. It wasn't even a heritable condition, so breeding a shiny was largely unsuccessful. But that drove their value up, instead of down. Scarcity meant it was a point of incredible prestige to train a shiny pokemon. But that also invited threats, so much so that a normal trainer who lucked into a shiny usually sold the pokemon off to a wealthy trainer or noble so they wouldn't be targeted by one of the criminal Teams looking to steal the 'mon.

'Shiny Hunters' were no joke in this world. A single capture could and sale of one could set you up for a decade or more if you spent your money frugally.

They could also ravage an ecosystem if they didn't care what it took to get them that payday.

And few enough did.

“So... I've got a confession to make,” Nemona sighed, leaning back from giving sableye attention, the little goober almost immediately turning to me for more of the same. Rolling my eyes, I gave in and allowed him to curl up on my lap.

At least nowadays, I wouldn't have to shower and change after hugging him.

“Oh?” I asked, mildly curious.

“I was so excited about today and getting to battle you that I completely forgot to get you a birthday gift,” Nemona laughed awkwardly, then pressed her hands together and ducked her head. “Don't tell my dad? I told him I'd handle it and then totally spaced.”

I snorted and shook my head, reaching over to take a drink of my hot chocolate. “Honestly, it's fine. My family gave me most of the stuff I'll need for school, I got some very expensive near-useless junk from the various noble houses that came to the palace, and I can buy anything else I need. It's not a big deal.”

Nemona hummed in dissatisfaction. “Yeah, I know that... I'm kind of in the same situation, but... I still feel bad. And I didn't even pay you for your win back at the palace, either.”

I wanted to outright scoff, but refrained.

Even if we were both independently wealthy by virtue of staggering multi-generational wealth accrued over centuries... there was still the matter of etiquette. Not handing over a prize of some kind for your opponent's victory wasn't scandalous or anything, but the casual observer would find it rude and a mark of an untrustworthy trainer.

“Just pass me something and we'll call it even,” I shrugged, not really caring all that much about the custom, but willing to entertain the observance of it.

“Ah... yeah,” Nemona laughed again, her expression awkward as she fiddled with her fingers. “One of the reasons why... well, I don't really have any money on me. I usually only carry my wallet around when I'm at school...”

This girl.

I stared at her, more than a bit exasperated. But, on the other hand, it was fairly common. I was seen as a little bit weird for always carrying a billfold full of cash around as it was, given my 'royal station' or whatever.

“When your birthday comes around, I'm getting you a personal organizer or something,” I muttered, snorting.

If anything, that just made her wince more. “I have three, but... I don't exactly know where they are.”

I twitched, taking a deep breath.

THIS GIRL.

“Then we'll settle it when we get to school,” I offered, already exhausted by this conversation.

“Hmm... but that still leaves your birthday gift,” Nemona frowned at herself. “Are you sure there isn't anything I can get you? You've already got those TMs and you got two pokemon... is there anything you're missing? I know you said honedge was one of your dream team, and you've already got so many...”

I ran my fingers over my belt reflexively, taking comfort in the weight of each of the filled pokeballs in a way that surprised me with how natural it felt already.

That, and I always wondered how trainers differentiated between specific 'mon and their balls.

I didn't anymore. It probably wasn't conscious – on their part, at least – but I could feel my own essence interlocking with that of the stored monster in each ball. So, yeah, I just knew.

More relevant to the current moment, though, was the fact that my belt was more than full. I hadn't had the heart to leave ponyta – or any of the others – behind. So I had sprigatito, mankey, smoliv, nincada, sableye, carbink, and ponyta with me to start out the day. Plus my egg. But then uncle had given me charcadet and Allister had made his own contribution.

So, currently... I had nine pokemon plus an egg on me.

Oh, and the kabuto fossil!

Which, well... it wasn't illegal, especially for a prince, but... it was a lot of pokemon, especially for a trainer just starting out.

But...

Gotta' Catch 'em All!

I twitched again, for an entirely different reason, and reached into my satchel again with a sigh.

“Oh, what's that?” Nemona asked, leaning over as I opened up my notebook.

“Just a list. Of pokemon.. That I'd... uh, kind of like to have...” I replied, a bit lamely as I turned the page. And... turned the page again.

“That's a lot of pokemon,” Nemona noted idly, her tone slightly stunned.

My face felt hot.

I'm sure it was nothing.

“It is...” I hummed, running a finger down the list.

“Why's smeargle in red?” Nemona asked, reaching over and tapping a finger on one entry in particular.

“Because I haven't reached the point in my life where I'm willing to stoop that low,” I replied, my tone grave and serious as I turned to look at her.

“...I don't know what that means,” she admitted, frowning.

“It means that if I ever bring a smeargle to a pokemon battle, I've stopped holding back completely,” I explained, still utterly serious.

“...you taught a mankey to fly by punching the ground with it's feet and that was you holding back?” Nemona asked blankly.

“Yes,” I stated simply.

“I'm both terrified and intrigued,” she admitted, her expression turning playful. “If you can teach a mankey to defy gravity-”

“Grabity,” I corrected her, huffing a quiet laugh as I realized that sableye had fall asleep in my lap.

“Grabity?” Nemona blinked, tasting the word. “Uhh...”

I sighed, the term 'shounen action hero' would mean nothing to her. “So, mankey – as a general rule – don't understand complex subjects. You will get absolutely nowhere trying to explain the concept of gravity to them. But, on the other hand, if you just tell them that the ground beneath them is using a move called grabity – because it's grabbing them – then that? They get that.”

Nemona's amber eyes blinked rapidly. “...and if you attack a pokemon using a move, then the move stops. So if they punch the ground...”

“Then the move that's grabbing them and holding them down stops for a little bit, and they can fly,” I explained with a nod.

Nemona opened her mouth.

Then closed it slowly.

“I feel like that shouldn't work,” she admitted.

“You're right, it shouldn't,” I affirmed.

But it does.

Neither of us had to say it, the words hung in the space between us heavily.

Nemona shook herself. “So, what you're saying is that I should get you a smeargle? They're mostly Kalosian, I think, but there are a few breeders in Paldea-”

“Please don't,” I asked tiredly. “I'm not ready to confront the darkness within myself yet.”

Nemona giggled, hunching her shoulders as she laughed. “Okay, okay, but... seriously. The Torrez family are one of the Houses of the Dragon, so... any dragons on that list?”

I sighed and flipped a few pages, making Nemona's eyebrows rise with each new set of names. To be perfectly fair, it wasn't just a straight list. I'd added notations and key strategies as well as moves after each pokemon in a mess of keywords that would mean little to anyone else reading this.

“Oooooh, can't do that,” Nemona hissed, tapping at the dragon-ghost type I'd paused on momentarily. “I know there've been sightings in Paldea, but no one's actually caught one. And, besides, it would make the Dragon Houses in Galar super angry if someone did. It's supposed to be their pokemon, you know?”

“Yeah, don't worry,” I shook my head. “It was a big scandal when Champion Geeta caught a duraludon. And an even bigger one when she figured out how to evolve it. I have some prep work to do before I get Galar that angry with me.”

Nemona snorted and shook her head.

“But... since you are one of the Dragon Houses of the region,” I began leadingly, turning the page. “How about this?”

“A goomy?” Nemona asked, then nodded. “Yeah, we can do that. Goomy are common enough, though trainers who want them are rare. You know that dragons generally take longer to evolve than other types, right?”

“Very slow experience gain, yesh,” I snorted back at her, smirking as she didn't get the joke. “But... I'd want an egg. And I'm okay with waiting, if I need to.”

“I'd have to check with our family's stables and see if there's a sliggoo who laid recently, but if you're okay with waiting then that should be fine as a birthday gift,” Nemona nodded, then released an explosive breath. “Whew, I thought you'd want something hard for a minute, there.”

“Like jangmo-o?” I smirked.

Nemona groaned and ruffled her hair. “Uggggh, don't remind me! It's all stupid politics stuff... since another branch of the family are the main ones that keep them, they don't want to hand one over for me to train!”

“Well... for your new team, you're keeping pawmot as your partner, right?” I asked, and she nodded firmly. “Then you've got hawlucha and – obviously – quaxly once he evolves. So that's three slots on your new team filled.”

“Yeah. My tournament team from last year's run had pawmot as my ace, then the aqua-breed tauros, dusknoir, milotic, poliwrath, and infernape. So I'm looking to fill a few holes strategically with my last few picks this year. Jangmo-o would be perfect, too,” she sighed.

“And no poison?” I asked, just to make sure.

She winced, but nodded. “Yeah, I'd rather... avoid that.”

“I'd say maybe try to pick up a male ralts, then,” my lips twitched as my smirk subtly widened, but I refrained from looking at my egg. “If you're going to try and go full fighting-type specialist, at least.”

“Ooooh, that's... not a bad idea,” Nemona cooed, smiling as the idea set in. “I'll think about that. Probably pick up a wild card for my last spot so no one can come at me hard with a ghost team or something.”

I rolled my eyes at the comment. “Just pick up a pancham or a scraggy. They'll keep your theme and back up a gallade fighting ghosts.” “Ah-bup-bup,” Nemona waggled a finger in my face. “No more hints. I'll figure out my sixth spot on my own. Besides, I'm not going to be the one who has my hands full training two full teams this year.”

At least.

But I didn't say that. Nemona would worry I was biting off more than I could chew, but... I'd spent years learning how to manage entire packs of pokemon at this point. Or, as with the nincada, swarms. Even if I did end up training a third team...

Well, I'd cross that bridge when I came to it.

One of the reasons why no one had completed a full sweep of the zero badge challenges in the region was because of the variety necessary, after all. The Cortondo Gym alone required five bug pokemon, at minimum. The sixth one could have a tera-type of bug – just like the gym leader's ursaring – but that obligated your use of terastalization and limited your strategic options in the battle.

Then, for Cascarrafa Gym, you'd need a host of pokemon that could all swim, float, levitate, or fly to some degree. And Medali's gym leader changed his challenge each year, so I couldn't exactly anticipate it at this point. The sheer variety of pokemon you needed to complete each and every challenge was a challenge in and of itself. Even the top-tier ace trainers rarely had enough money to reasonably support three fully-competitive battle ready pokemon teams.

I'd run the numbers, out of simple curiosity, and even if they were averages... the cost could be ruinous.

I now knew how much an adult snorlax ate on a daily and weekly basis, for instance.

And that would give me nightmares.

I shivered.

“-so, I'll need to show you around the battle club when you get to school, though barely any of them will actually battle me anymore,” Nemona sighed, and I came back to myself as I realized I'd spaced out. Then she frowned. “Well, except for these three guys. They're not very good, but they're better than nothing. And they keep coming back for more, so I keep fighting them. They'll be good to break in my new team with, at least.”

“So, if they always lose to you... why do they keep challenging you?” I asked, frowning as well. That wasn't entirely normal. “Are they, like... your fan club or something?”

Nemona snorted harshly enough to make sableye stir in my lap. “Heh-hah! No... I don't actually think they like me all that much. I think it's because I'm the only person who'll take their challenges, since they always want-”

The girl stopped abruptly, her eyes going wide as she slammed her right hand, curled into a fist, into her left open palm. In almost the same moment, she leapt up and grinned widely. “I know how to pay you back! One minute!”

I blinked, watching as she dashed off.

“Huh,” I grunted, leaning back as I returned to petting the sleeping sableye. “That was... weird.”

Maybe there was something she had brought with her that they used as a currency-substitute at school? Or... something else? Maybe she was grabbing paper to make a cheesy 'favor coupon' or something that I could redeem. I could entirely see a bunch of school-age kids creating some sort of arcane system of dares and counter-dares around impromptu tournaments.

I frowned as I looked outside, watching Nemona's father as he... talked to my parents?

Squinting, I focused a bit and...

My parents were unsure, potentially happy, but... worried.

Nemona's father was enthusiastic, having the airs of someone attempting to sell something...

I clicked my tongue.

That was going to be a-

“Okay, I'm back!” Nemona cried, hurrying over with one hand tucked carefully to her side, hiding something as she approached – her cheeks stained faintly red. “Here you go! Your prizes for winning both our matches so far!”

I refrained from sighing and held my hand out. “Okay, what did you-”

A bundle of cloth was placed in my hand, the larger piece wrapped around the smaller one. Both were still ever-so-slightly warm in my hand.

Both pieces were covered in tiny patterns of pokeballs.

I felt my jaw hang loosely as I realized what I'd just been given.

“I don't really get it, personally, but I think it's supposed to be some kind of courtship thing,” Nemona grinned, shrugging. “Those guys I told you about? Yeah, they always get me to bet my underwear, but they put up rare candies in exchange, and those are limited by the school in how many you can buy and they're hard to get anywhere else... so...”

Emotions warred within me.

I looked Nemona directly in the eyes, my blue to her amber. “Would refusing this constitute a personal insult?”

Nemona frowned, looking down at them. “I mean... they are clean, I made sure when I took them off just now. Isn't that fine? I mean, I thought boys wanted that. Do you not? Those three are always talking about how they want to sniff them and stuff... you can go ahead, if you like.”

My etiquette classes have failed me. I have no idea what to do when a young noble lady from a respected house offers me her undergarments.

I mean... I knew what I should do, but...

For the first time, I cursed my enhanced senses. It was one thing to know when someone was actively trying to deceive you through flattery and grand gestures. It was something entirely different when they were being utterly sincere about their offer.

“I, um... just didn't expect it,” I stumbled, willing my fingers to close around the cloth bundle and retracting my hand slowly.

I'm doing this? I'm really... yes, okay, fine. This is happening. Sure.

“Cool. So, um... I guess that'll be our bet then?” Nemona asked, grinning at me as she sat back down, her cheeks still red. “Since money doesn't really matter that much?”

“Does... that mean I should put my own underpants up my part of the wager?” I asked, cursing my traitorous tongue. “I'm not entirely sure of the etiquette here.”

“Oh, um...” Nemona's face flushed a bit more. She wasn't quite cherry-red at this point, but It wouldn't be too far off. “I... please? I didn't really want theirs, but... yours would be, um... fine. Good, I mean.”

I took a breath. “I suppose I'd be fine with that as well.”

Nemona smiled brilliantly at me, and I tried not to notice the desperation in her aura. “So...”

I blinked. “So?”

“Aren't you going to smell them?” She asked, nodding at the bundle of cloth-

-her bra and panties-

-that she'd taken off her body and placed in my hands.

“I, um... okay,” I stated, serious and not at all squeaky. Personally, this had never been my fetish. I'd always thought it was pretty scummy to steal a girl's panties and then sniff them like some sort of drug addict looking for a fix. Plus, female undergarments were actually pretty expensive and it was a dick move – no pun intended – to steal them in the first place.

But Nemona was rich.

She could afford to bet her underwear on pokemon battles if she wanted to.

...I swear to Arceus, that had better be a new sentence. It would be utter madness to find out someone was in this position before me.

And, more importantly, she was apparently approving of me knowing what her unmentionables smelled like.

I brought my hand up to my face, pressing the cloth to my nose.

...okay, I can kind of see the appeal.

Then, of course, my egg began to crack.

~~~

Pokemon chapter!

A quick heart-to-heart between Nemona, who's still on her high from the recent battle, and Aznaro who... has no idea where this conversation is going or how it got there.

But... he might have an inkling by the end of it.

Oh, and voting results...

Mind Games: 212The Hand We're Dealt: 209Butler Boy: 164Paldean Knights: 144

Mind Games keeps its crown by THREE VOTES, the bare skin of its teeth. This month, every vote counted, because the margin was razor thin. Even if THWD didn't quite win, I hope the people who voted for it take heart. Mind Games can be dethroned! Maybe! But not quite this month.

This coming week, I'll be working on a chapter of MG and then THWD. I hope everyone enjoys the pokemon chapter just posted, and once again thank you for all your support.