The LUMIOSE Team (PLOT)

"Very well then, gamin, I shall help you."

At last, the ghost revealed himself. He watched, head tilted, as he rose from the ground and checked beyond the alleyway.

"Wait here and count to thirty. If the coast is still clear go to the door and you will be let in. Do not tarry as the passage will not be left open long, we cannot draw attention to ourselves. And remember, you are not to endanger anyone inside. Deal?"

He nodded, and the ghost disappeared.

He began counting.

Looker didn't object to the girl moving to open the door. Miranda was young; not stupid.

But he wasn't entirely prepared for the small, brown pup that squeezed himself inside.

Miranda's response was instantaneous; her face broke into a smile as she leaned down to speak to the pup. "Oh-! Hello there. I know I've seen one before but I can't quite recall your species' name... Another Alolan, I believe? Do you need any help?"

He regarded her for a moment and sniffed the air near her--probably getting acquainted with her scent--but then his eyes caught sight of their new stallion friend.

What happened next could only be described by a total loss of control. Whatever aloofness this dog had entered with and regarded Miranda with evaporated in an instant. His entire body wagged along with his tail and he took only about a moment or two before he ran over to the giant horse, the bark that burst out choked off suddenly as he (most likely) remembered halfway through the noise that it was wise to be quiet.

He pressed himself against the horse, body still in motion, before moving to hop onto the Mudsdale's back.

As the surprise from the abrupt shift in attitude faded, Looker smiled.

"I do like a happy ending," he laughed softly as the dog settled for nudging and lightly headbutting his friend over and over in lieu of giving voice to his joy.

The ghost came back and quickly spoke to Miranda about a Pokemon needing help outside. Vitaly's unease spiked as he his mind supplied many scenarios, and he couldn't help but think of it being a trap. Using something 'needing help' to lure people out of their hiding places was one of the oldest tricks in the book. However, before anyone could stop her, Miranda was already on her feet and going towards the door.

Before he realized the uselessness of the action, he reached an arm out as if to stop her. When she cleared the shop far too quickly for it to do anything, his hand instead went towards his gun as he prepared for a potential fight. Drizzt was closer to the door, and Vitaly's eyes met his in silent communication. The Weavile shifted so that he was ready to pounce on anything hostile that entered.

As Miranda opened the door, they were ready for a fight.

What they got was a young Rockruff.

The small creature wiggled through the crack in the door, and as soon as they were in, Miranda quickly relocked the entrance. Vitaly visibly untensed as she tried to speak to the young Pokemon, and he rubbed the back of his head as he watched the scene. The puppy was guarded in a way that vaguely reminded him of a much more familiar Lycanroc, but the similarity went out the window when they saw the Mudsdale by Giovanni. The puppy brightened, and the tail's wagging nearly shook their whole body. They bolted over to the Mudsdale and started nuzzling him before jumping onto his back.

The sight was heartwarming enough to bring a faint smile to Vitaly's face, and Looker voiced the sentiment pretty well. "I do like a happy ending."

He glanced back to Miranda and remembered the question that the Rockruff hadn't answered in their haste to reunite with their friend. In a hesitant voice, he answered, "That's, uh, a Rockruff. You're right, they're from Alola."

"Oh-! Hello there. I know I've seen one before but I can't quite recall your species' name... Another Alolan, I believe? Do you need any help?"

Miss LeClair's voice floated upon the air, bringing Giovanni's attention to her and their new guest. The pokemon in question seemed to be too small to see from his vantage point, however, and he resigned himself to waiting. He wouldn't push himself to this strange pokemon uninvited like some gawping sensationalist. However, it seemed that he wouldn't need to wait long to have the mystery solve itself. Almost immediately, a tan and cream blur darted toward him and Stallion, a strange sound coming out of the small creature's mouth.

It was a Rockruff; a small puppy pokemon from, as Miss LeClair guessed, Alola. The surprise didn't end there, as Stallion's reaction provided more. The large ground type almost danced in place, almost giddy with glee and relief. As the pup bounced onto his broad back, the Mudsdale nickered and gently nuzzled the Rockruff affectionately. "I'm so happy you're ok, little one..." was the gentle response from the massive steed.

"I do like a happy ending," Looker mused, earning a chuckle from Giovanni himself.

"I am very inclined to agree," the Rocket Leader concurred.

As the two pokemon reunited, Vitaly seemed to have a sharper memory than the rest and addressed her earlier question. "That's, uh, a Rockruff. You're right, they're from Alola."

Giovanni nodded. "I can't say I can provide much more information than that, though. Vitaly, do you know much more about this species? Anything that we may care for it more efficiently? Though I'm sure some food wouldn't be remiss..." He rummaged through his pack and produced a few dried berries. Stallion's back was huge, and allowed him to place the small offering upon the beast without intruding on the pup's personal space. "Are you hungry?"

((Sorry guys, my brain is completely fried and I'm struggling to write. Go ahead and skip Miranda for this round and I'll catch up next round.))

"I am very inclined to agree," Giovanni agreed with a smile of his own.

"That's, uh, a Rockruff," Vitaly answered Miranda. Oh, shoot that's right. She'd asked a question. Looker gave the girl a grimace of apology before turning his attention to the boy speaking. "You're right, they're from Alola."

"I can't say I can provide much more information than that, though," Giovanni added. "Vitaly, do you know much more about this species? Anything that we may care for it more efficiently? Though I'm sure some food wouldn't be remiss..."

He rummaged through his rations and laid some dry berries on the stallion's back, careful to avoid getting too close to the little stranger. Said pup had stopped nuzzling and nudging the stallion's side in order to watch the hand, even though it remained out of grabbing range. "Are you hungry?"

The pup glanced at his friend with what Looker could only describe as a look of suspicion. Ah. The child is wary.

Considering he knew their horse friend, understandably so. The only human company he'd had in at least awhile would be those monsters who'd decided that the dissolution of the state meant they could now hurt people with impunity.

When the stallion nudged him onwards the puppy hopped up (adorably awkwardly) onto his friend's back to nibble at the berries. Looker found himself glancing at the boarded up windows, noting the darkening orange light the slats of wood left striped on the floor, hoping Vitaly did actually come from Alola. It was nice, hearing about new places, and as evening arrived, it could make for pleasant talk before they went to sleep.

It was better they hunker down here until morning after the ruckus they just caused.

"I can't say I can provide much more information than that, though. Vitaly, do you know much more about this species? Anything that we may care for it more efficiently? Though I'm sure some food wouldn't be remiss..." Giovanni asked as he rummaged around in his own stores to pull out some dried berries that were then offered to the puppy. "Are you hungry?"

The Rockruff was clearly suspicious of them, not that Vitaly could blame him, but the Mudsdale nudged him to take the offering.

As for the questions that had been thrown at him, Vitaly blinked as he processed the request. He really didn't know much about the species beyond knowing they existed. Offering an apologetic and nervous smile, he said, "Sorry, I don't know more than that either. I just knew someone who had a Lycanroc, and Jude told me about their evolution line. It's kind of bizarre."

The stallion nickered gratefully at Giovanni as the small pup began to eat, and the older man took that as a cue to procure more. He didn't try to interrupt the tiny pokemon feeding, even if it was to add more food. Instead, he went to the Stallion's head and offered the new berries to him. The grand creature breathed a sigh of relief and began to gently eat from the Gym Leader's hand. Finally, he felt enough at ease to relax.

"Sorry, I don't know more than that either," Vitaly answered, earning Giovanni's attention. "I just knew someone who had a Lycanroc, and Jude told me about their evolution line. It's kind of bizarre." The Gym Leader gave a small sound of understanding; he remembered that being the case, but not any specifics. Oh well. Not that it mattered at the moment.

The waning light behind the boards in the windows caused the man to pause a moment. "I am happy we had a reunion, but I think it would behoove us to plan out a meal and then sleeping arrangements before night surprises us." He turned to look at the others in turn. "No rush, of course. There's still a couple hours of daylight left, but it's always better to be prepared."

Glad she was for a name to the creature Miranda watched with a warm, bright smile as Mr. Don tended to their newfound companion just as easily as he had the large stallion. It always impressed her how he seemed so in tune with the instincts of pokemon, ground and rock types in particular, and it was one of the many reasons she admired him as much as she did.

"I am happy we had a reunion, but I think it would behoove us to plan out a meal and then sleeping arrangements before night surprises us. No rush, of course. There's still a couple hours of daylight left, but it's always better to be prepared."

Brightening up almost instantly for a chance to prove her usefulness to the group Miranda moved away from the newly re-sealed door and back towards the group, giving the stallion and his puppy friend a polite nod as she passed them. "If you like, I can start working on food. If everyone chips in a small portion of whatever rations they have I'm sure I can make something decent for all of us to share. That way no one feels like they had to over-contribute and we'll all get plenty to eat. There should still be oil in the camping gear we have so it can even be a hot meal depending on what food we have available." She looked to her guardian, almost shy as she realized she may have overstepped again. She kept doing that when she got excited.

"That would be alright...wouldn't it?"

"Sorry, I don't know more than that either," Vitaly answered. Ah, shoot. Oh well. "I just knew someone who had a Lycanroc, and Jude told me about their evolution line. It's kind of bizarre."

Jude. Looker's insides squirmed a bit at the mention of the man still being held captive by those monsters outside. He had to hope they could actually do something about this.

"I am happy we had a reunion, but I think it would behoove us to plan out a meal and then sleeping arrangements before night surprises us." Looker nodded in agreement as Giovanni turned his head from the golden slats angling their way through the windows. "No rush, of course. There's still a couple hours of daylight left, but it's always better to be prepared."

Miranda's face brightened instantly and Looker couldn't help smiling with her. "If you like, I can start working on food. If everyone chips in a small portion of whatever rations they have I'm sure I can make something decent for all of us to share. That way no one feels like they had to over-contribute and we'll all get plenty to eat. There should still be oil in the camping gear we have so it can even be a hot meal depending on what food we have available."

She glanced to Giovanni with an air of anxiety about her. "That would be alright...wouldn't it?"

"That sounds lovely, Miranda," Looker added to Giovanni's confirmation as he smiled at her and reached for his pack. "A hot meal would be wonderful if we can pull it off. I know off the top of my head that I have a couple of cans of beans I can contribute."

(Assuming Giovanni would have answered Miranda with a 'yes.')

"I am happy we had a reunion, but I think it would behoove us to plan out a meal and then sleeping arrangements before night surprises us." Giovanni said after a few moments. "No rush, of course. There's still a couple hours of daylight left, but it's always better to be prepared." Yeah, the sun was properly setting; it was time to prepare for nightfall. He started to contemplate which of his Pokemon could stay up for the night. Drizzt would be his first choice, but it had been an eventful day, and even he needed sleep.

Miranda perked up and made her way back to the group, causing Vitaly to breathe a sigh of relief. "If you like, I can start working on food. If everyone chips in a small portion of whatever rations they have I'm sure I can make something decent for all of us to share. That way no one feels like they had to over-contribute and we'll all get plenty to eat. There should still be oil in the camping gear we have so it can even be a hot meal depending on what food we have available." She then looked over to Giovanni shyly, as if asking for permission, "That would be alright...wouldn't it?"

Something about the interaction made him uneasy. Sure, he had been exposed to Miranda's demure nature for the last few days, but each instance compounded his worries. Was she always like this? Was it an effect of the Epidemic? Did her new guardian cause it?

Was he overthinking this? Something about making her cook for him felt bad, and he couldn't put words into why it felt like that. Siyal leaned his head down and nudged Vitaly worryingly. The action managed to snap him out of the spiral his mind had been going through, and he started petting the Nitemare's head as he tried to focus back on the present.

Both Giovanni and Looker gave their approval as Vitaly struggled with his thoughts. "That sounds lovely, Miranda. A hot meal would be wonderful if we can pull it off. I know off the top of my head that I have a couple of cans of beans I can contribute."