Padded Moon Chapter 2

	I followed Lillie closely as she led me toward the beach. At least, that’s how I wanted to describe the first leg of my journey, but that wasn’t quite what had happened.
	What had really happened is that she kept a few footsteps in front of me, my eyes still trained on her hips and rear, trying to somehow discern what lay underneath her clothes. My mother seemed so sure, but why would anyone else be wearing diapers? I mean, come on, she looked like she was the same age as me, and no one my age would wear… right? Alas, even my attempts to judge her walk cycle failed, as every time a Pokémon so much as walked by us, she’d squeak and leap behind me, each time the rustle of grass and the crack of a twig, along with the noises of Perch riding to her defense would obscure any telltale noise that would mark her as wearing something less than age appropriate.
	Each time she’d laugh it off, talk about how she hated seeing Pokémon hurt, and continue leading me along.
Maybe she did wear diapers, but only because she scared so easily? I shrugged the thought off and gave a sigh, only to hear her nearly trip, pause, and scream. Once more she ran behind me.
“Eek! It’s angry, I made it mad, I’m so, so, sorry!” she blathered. It took me a full second to spot the object of her terror. A Slowpoke. A dopey looking Slowpoke sat squarely in the grass, its mouth in a wide open smile. It looked utterly clueless.
“Alright, Perch, let’s do it!” I called, sending my adorable Rowlet out. He flapped twice in the air before landing. I balled my hands, ready to order a dodge. Instead, the Slowpoke continued staring off into the distance for another full second. Only after I gave off another sigh did it turn to us, tilting its head.
“Is this thing for real?” I asked, scratching my head, “You must have kicked the da, erm, darn thing, and it’s not even going to notice?” I crossed my arms. Lillie gave out a squeak.
“I-I didn’t mean to!” she blubbered, and I swear I could hear a sniff.
If she was wearing, maybe it was symbolic?
“Hey, relax, it doesn’t seem to mind. Besides, it-” I was cut off by the sound of gushing water. I pivoted on my feet to see a jet of water smash right into Perch. “Are you kidding?” I yelled, “It’s not that it doesn’t mind, it’s too dense to realize what happened immediately. Perch, Leafage!” I called. My Rowlet complied, firing a trio of feathers from its wings. They smacked the Slowpoke right in the jaw, but he didn’t seem to even feel it. I was about to say something unbecoming, but it then flinched and fell over. A full three seconds too late.
Perch swiveled his head back to me, and I nearly squeaked as he did. He didn’t even shift his footing, he craned his neck a full one hundred and eighty degrees.
“Oh my gosh, that is so adorable!” I spouted at the same time Lillie opened her mouth.
“I-Is it over? I hate seeing Pokémon hurt…” she mumbled, grabbing onto my arm. I gave a little snicker.
“Almost, almost, watch this.” I snatched a ball from my hip and tossed it into the air, catching it before throwing it like a pitch at a baseball game. It whacked the Slowpoke in the face again, and this time it reacted immediately, though far too late to avoid getting sucked in by the red light.
I watched with a grin as the orb waggled back and forth, back and forth.
“That’s it!” I said as it gave a third wiggle. “Come to mama, just stay put in there, you little goof.” I couldn’t help but giggle to myself. A satisfying click echoed from the ball as it stopped wiggling. I shot Lillie a wide grin.
“Did ya see that? I got ‘im, he’s mine now. I’m going to name him something cute, but also cool.” I boasted. Mom always did talk about how important it was to be both cute and cool. Lillie simply looked away, gripping her bag. A few happy noises, I wasn’t sure how to classify them, echoed from the Pokémon that was hiding inside. Never too early to have a fan.
	“Just don’t hurt him.” she mumbled, only to catch her wording and throw her arms in front of her. “W-what I mean is, u-unnecessarily, I d-don’t mean to say you’d hurt them or anything!”  Before she could go on, I put a hand on her shoulder.
	“Yeah, yeah, I get you. Relax, I’ll keep track of him.” I said, rolling my eyes and turning from her. Not before stealing a glance down the front of her dress, finding disappointment in that it was, well, a dress. I hoped it might be open to the front or something, I mean, I remembered a dress, but Mother did say something about looking at how she was dressed.
	It struck me then, though, that the way she was dressed she could easily hide a diaper underneath. The only telltale sign would be how she walked and, well, with a dress she shouldn’t have anything obstructing her legs. And she did tend to sway her hips quite a bit, and not in a fashion that tried to draw attention to them.
	“Umm…” she said, jarring me from my thoughts. I realized that I hadn’t been glancing, I was staring. “D-did I do something wro-“
	“Oh, no, no, no!” I said, this time I was the one waving my arms around. “I-I was just trying to think of a good name for him. L-like Stalwart, or, um…” I quickly snatched the Pokéball up, turning it in my hands. It blinked with a notice that I had too many Pokemon on my team. It flashed all seven, asking me to send one to the PC, whatever that was. I thought of it for a moment, and then clicked on ‘Monarch,’ the first Caterpie I had caught. I set the Pokedex to my side, only to yelp as the Pokedex rumbled. I picked it up and it beamed with an image and description of Slowpoke.
	“Alolan cooking involves drying Slowpoke tails and then simmering them into a salty stew.” It read. I huffed at it.
	“Salty? Ick.” I said, turning back to Lillie. “But whatever, we’re almost there, right? I mean, it’s the hut over there, isn’t it?” I asked, pointing at the rather damaged looking hut nearby. She gave a nod, but still seemed to shrink back.
	“W-well, yeah, but, um…Who knows how many other Pokémon might come after us! We should be careful.” She muttered, reaching her hand into the bag to pet Nebby. I sighed.
	“Yeah, yeah, but we’ll be fine now that we have Aristotle here with us.” I said, turning and taking my first step toward the house. I heard her squeak and then rush up behind me.
	“H-hey, w-wait up. A-and Aristotle?” she asked, her lips curled into a pouting frown.
	“Yeah, Aristotle, it fits him.” I said.
	“It does?” she said, staring at me with her mouth curled into a frown, “I mean, um, it doesn’t look very smart.” She said, dusting her skirt off. A moment later she heard a rustling behind her and yelped. Lillie scuttled out of the tall grass like a Goldeen out of Sharpedo infested waters. I followed soon after, a grin on my lips. I snatched Perch’s Pokéball, returning the owl to it and setting it back on my belt
	“Well, why don’t we ask him?” I said, tossing Aristotle’s ball out. Aristotle burst out of it, wearing the dopey expression on his face. “What do you think about your name, Aristotle?” I asked, mustering the most fawning voice I could make. I sounded like I was talking to some baby, and I could hear Lillie huff just behind me. I shot her a grin and hugged the Slowpoke to my chest. “Besides, he’s a psychic type, so it fits.”
	Lillie blinked, raising her brow. “That’s a psychic type?” she asked, her hand gravitating to her bag, idly petting Nebby. “He doesn’t look smart enough, are you sure?”
	“Of course I’m sure.” I said, patting my chest. “The gym back home had them, so of course I’d know.” Granted, that gym also had ghosts and a Venomoth, but she didn’t need to know that.
	“Oh, um, a gym?” she said, leading me around the building. “Like, um, exercising and stuff?” she asked.
	“No, no, like a Pokémon gym.” I said. She paused for a moment, then blushed and looked away. “Over in Saffron City.” I said, “I always loved seeing the fights that had Slowbro involved. They’re so loveable.” I pulled Aristotle up again and kissed him on the nose. “Yes you are, yes you are!” I cooed.
	“Fights?” she said, huffing. . “I don’t think I could bare to go there. I hate seeing Pokémon hu-”
	“Hurt, yeah, I know.” I said, pulling Aristotle to my chest. He maintained his blank smile even as his chin burrowed into my chest. I thought it might have even smiled wider. “If I didn’t know any better, I’d say you’re trying to guilt me over it.”
	Lillie waved her hands, shaking her head twice. “Oh, n-n-no, nothing like that! I’m j-just saying you should be careful, that’s all! B-besides, your Pokémon seems to like it anyway.” she said, looking away all of a sudden and stepping up to the front door. Her hips swayed as before, but it was more than that. Her entire body seemed to shift its weight with every step. I tried mimicking her gait as I followed her, but quit immediately as I discovered it was the same steps I took when waking up with a soaked diaper.
	Lillie raised her arm to knock, only to stumble backwards as the sounds of smashing and fighting erupted from inside the house.
	“Oh yeah, Rockruff! Let’s go!” I heard among the sounds of what I had hoped was a training dummy being knocked into a bookcase, “Give it everything you’ve got! My body is ready! Woo!”
	I sighed, and I couldn’t help but notice that I wasn’t alone in the act. Lillie let her arms droop, as if contemplating just walking away in that moment.
	“Ahh. There they go again…” she mumbled before turning to me with a forced smile. “The Pokémon Research Lab has its own unique charm, as I think you might agree.” she said, my eyes thankfully having been trained at the back of her head before she turned. I didn’t want to be caught looking at another girl’s backside, especially if she did wear diapers. Though, the way she stood now, with her legs idly crossed and her arm at her hip, made it seem as though she couldn’t be wearing anything thicker than panties. She awkwardly coughed, and I snapped my vision back to her head. Oh, darn. I could feel my cheeks warm, and there was an idle blush on her own. “I’ve actually been, um…” she said, as glancing to the side, “imposing on the professor here for the past three months.” her voice seemed to grow quieter with every word. She couldn’t have noticed, not with mentioning a fact like that. I ignored that that thought made no sense.
	“I’m not much of an assistant, but it’s the least I can do to pay him back for letting me stay.” She said, frowning and looking back at the door. “Maybe I’d be more help if I were a real Pokémon Trainer, too…” her voice trailed off, was that guilt? Or was she still hung up on Trainers and Pokémon getting hurt? I sighed, and she turned to me, her blush growing hotter. I immediately piped up.
	“Oh, no, I’m sure you’re fine!” I said, I hadn’t even convinced myself with that line, “I mean, like, you don’t need to train to be an assistant. He always mentioned testing moves out on himself, so I’m sure that idiot could appreciate having someone around to bandage him up.” I said, waving my hands as if it were nothing. I definitely remembered my mother having a few stories about him getting hurt. Luckily for me, Lillie seemed to perk up at this. She even smiled, and nodded. She opened her mouth to speak, only to be interrupted by another crash, this time she nearly leaped back, hiding behind me.
	I heard frantic barking from the house, even a howl. Lillie huffed and stepped back to the door with puffed out cheeks. “The professor, he never stops researching moves. Not even…” she paused, giving a sigh and rubbing her head, “…inside the lab itself.” She turned to me, adding dejectedly “Looks like we’ll have to patch the roof again…” Now she looked away, “and I had just washed his lab coat and finally gotten it clean, too. Now it’ll be in shreds, and I’m no good at mending clothes, so he’ll just have to buy a new one and-“
	“Oh, don’t worry about that!” I said, cutting into her speech. “I know how to sew a little bit, I kept getting all my clothes ripped up and stuff, so I had to learn a bit.” I said, giving a grin. I did know how to sew a bit, but there was no way I could repair a lab coat and not have it look like it was done by an eleven year old or something. “So I can help with that if you would like.”
	She blinked, but gave a grin. “Oh, would you, really? I’d love that so much!” her smile only broadened as she spoke, and I couldn’t help but smile brighter at that. It seemed almost infectious the way she shyly grinned, as if she was afraid she looked silly. “Oh, but before that, we should really just go inside before he does any more damage. Come on!” she said, turning away and finally yanking the door open, taking but a moment to steel herself before barging in. I followed closely, and surely enough, I saw Kukui standing in front of a massive aquarium that was, somehow, untouched from the hurricane that had toppled the rest of the room. His labcoat was in better shape than I expected, though I could see a bit of red through a hole where he had been bitten. I audibly sighed, that man was a complete idiot sometimes. Hell, he even needed me to spell out my name for him before I arrived. I have the easiest name to remember outside of being named Sun or something.
	“Hey there, Moon!” he said, waving as if I were on an incoming boat, “Thanks for getting her for me, Lillie!” he said, strolling over to us. Despite his carefree gait, I could tell he was hiding a limp. I bit the inside of my cheek to prevent a laugh, or to avoid calling him an idiot again.
	“Of course. However I can be of help…” Lillie said, her tone as dry as a desert. Sarcasm, I didn’t expect that from her. “I am supposed to be your assistant, right?” she said, I couldn’t help but notice a glare from her eyes.
	Kukui grinned, as if she was telling a good joke. “Rockruff’s moves were just so stylin’, and I was making good progress with my research.” he said, ignoring her huff and turning his grin to me. “Say, Moon, lemme see your Pokedex for a second, yeah?” he said, already stretching his arm toward me. I sighed, and gave him the item, taking it from my bag. He took it, flipping it over and gesturing to the room. “So what do you think of the place? Not bad, right?” he asked, flipping the back of the Pokedex open. I took a look around the room. I had to admit, I didn’t think he could keep a house that was so…nice. Granted, there were some toppled tables and fallen books, but it was overall fairly neat. My eyes were immediately drawn to the massive aquarium behind Kukui. A single Luvdisc flittered through the planted seaweed, making kisses against the smooth glass. Nearby was a small kitchen area, and just from a look at the sink and the idle cutting board, I could tell it saw constant use. A small living area lay nearby, presumably for reading or eating. Stairs led to what I could only assume were the more lab-ish parts of the house, and a ladder that went up to a small area. A bedroom, maybe?
“But that’s not why I called you here, eh? Here, it finally arrived!” Kukui announced, jarring me from my thoughts. He tossed the Pokedex up in the air, catching it and flicking open a port on the backside.
“It?” Lillie asked, her braided hair falling over her shoulder as her head tilted.
“What’s wrong, Lillie? Don’t make me do all the talking!” he asked, gesturing widely with his hands. As if on cue, the Rockruff barked in agreement. He turned to me, still wearing his trademark grin. “See, there’s this Pokémon inside your Pokedex called Rotom…” He trailed off, looking at me expectantly. It took several seconds before I realized he was waiting for a response.
“Oh.” I said, looking back at the Pokedex. “Really?” I finally managed. A Pokémon in my Pokedex sounded like a bit of a stretch. That being said, this was Kukui, if he accidentally managed to force a Pokémon into my Pokedex, well, he was the man who could get it done. “Rotom?” I said, trying to think of what that Pokémon was. I had only heard of the name once.
“Oh,” Lillie piped up, speaking in an even tone, as if she rehearsed it, “I can tell you about Rotom. It is a peculiar Pokémon, with a body made up of something like electricity.” I raised a brow, but she continued. “It can take up residence in machines.”
“Yeah, buddy!” Kukui exclaimed, “And to put that crazy skill of Rotom’s to work…” He flipped open the Pokedex, holding it up with a grin. “It’s the next generation of Pokedexes, but it’s only complete once Rotom has gone into this body specially designed for it!” He took an object from his pocket and slid it into the Pokedex. “A whole new way for people and Pokémon to communicate.” He pumped his fist, adding a trademark “Woo!” He closed the back of the Pokedex, adjusting it in his hands and poking at the screen, the machine making various noises as he navigated menus. “And there’s only a few of these beauties out in the world so far!” Finally he flipped open a slot on the underside, taking out a small SD Card out of his pocket and sliding it in. “And now if I just power up your Pokedex with the parts that I just got in…”
Suddenly a burst of blue light zapped through the room, and an unfamiliar “Kzzzt!” sounded off. Electricity spilled out of the device, illuminating the unsurprised grin on Kukui’s face. He looked like a mad scientist, without the scientist parts. The electricity leaped around, finally balling up beside him and turning into a solid orange circle. Points spiked out from the top and bottom, and blue lightning bolts hovered in stasis beside it. Two giant blue eyes opened up at me above a mouth sporting the grin of a Gengar.
“Hey now! Sorry ‘bout that, Rotom.” Kukui said, as if regarding a friend, “Guess I surprised you?”
The Rotom responded with only more electrical noises, not dropping that grin. It utterly matched Kukui’s. I only hoped that wasn’t permanent.
“Rotom!” Kukui called, holding out the Pokedex, “Here, boy! I powered up your favorite ‘Dex! Give Moon here a Helping Hand, yeah?”
With another electrical zap, it burst back into electricity, pouring itself into the Pokedex. Kukui once more jabbed at the screen, flipping switches and manipulating the sides of the device into arms. Before I could even ask what he was doing, the machine burst out of his hands, now sporting two large blue eyes and a wide grin. I blinked.
“Is that…floating?” I asked. I paused, realizing where I had heard Rotom before. A ghost type, it was a ghost type. I looked at Kukui with a shocked expression. “Wait, did that thing, did it possess the Pokedex? Are you sure that’s safe?” I said mere moments before the Pokedex flew right into my hands, causing me to yelp.
“Zzzrt!” static burst from the speakers, only for a few dials to flip and turn themselves. “Nice to meet you, pal! Gentle on the goods, okay!” a voice said. I blinked, there was no mistaking it, it had come from the speakers. It sounded mostly human, albeit a bit distorted and auto-tuned and sounding like it had gone through three radios.
“W-what?” I stammered, taking a step back. My heart pounded. A ghost! In my Pokedex! I was going to kill this man. I was absolutely going to.
“See, Moon?” Kukui said, that stupid look on his face showing that he had not even thought about the fact that he had just set a poltergeist loose on me, “Now Rotom can talk right to you!”
“That’s what I need!” I said, furrowing my brow, “A ghost talking to me. That’s safe!”
“From what I can tell, yeah,” Kukui said, giving a nod and a thumbs up. “it looks like Rotom has taken quite a liking to you!”
“It’s a ghost!” I exclaimed, “What if it tries to possess me, or do something, I don’t know, naughty?” I said, not quite sure what it could even do.
“And this will help how, exactly?” Lillie asked, her voice tinged with the patience of a Vigorowth.
“Moon hasn’t been here in Alola too long yet.” Kukui answered, “So I decided to give her this special Rotom Dex to help her navigate around.” He gave me a warm smile. I sighed, puffing out my cheeks. I looked over the Pokedex, stopping as I saw the frown on the Rotom’s face. I stared at it for several seconds, and then sighed again.
“Nice to meet you, Rotom.” I said, before lowering my voice. “But this seriously better not be the start of a horror movie, I am not equipped for those.”
“You can see where you’re headed just by looking at Rotom, and if you give it a little tap…” Kukui said, sliding through options on my screen, explaining the functions of each option. I listened as well as I could. It didn’t seem too tough, especially since a lot of the options were waved away with ‘Rotom’ll do that.’ It had a map, a log of anything I might store on me, a comprehensive list of any and all Pokémon I might encounter that would update itself with information as I went. I was stunned at the last one, I had heard of Pokedexes of course, but something with that much in it, all for me? I might even be able to get over the talking ghost within it.
The lesson was cut short as the door swung open. I looked to the entrance to the grinning face of none other than Hau. A second later, I realized I was also smiling. I forced the smile down, blushing lightly. That grin of his was infectious, and dangerously so.
“A-lo-la!” he sang, sounding out every syllable, “The salty breeze sang to me and brought me here to you!” he said, walking right up to me with his hands on his hips. The scents of beach refreshments and food seemed to follow him, forming an intoxicating aroma. I really hoped I wasn’t blushing as hard as I thought I was. As if the stars aligned, he turned away from me near immediately, letting out a “Woa-ho-ho!” as he ran across the room. He shot his gaze toward the ladder up, as if it were the most interesting thing in the world. “Is that a loft?! That’s awesome!” he exclaimed. Before he could as much as step toward it, Lillie bolted in front of him, holding her hands out.
“No it’s not! It’s private!” she shouted, her cheeks already burning. I couldn’t blame her, I never wanted anyone into my room, either, but that was only because of the open package of diapers I always kept by my bed. Not to mention the full-on changing table my old room had. Still, every girl had to have secrets of some sort, right?
Lillie deflated, her cheeks only burning. She cleared her throat and averted her eyes from Hau’s shocked face. Her tone of voice quieted to nearly a whisper. “The professor has been kind enough to let me use it…” she said, looking away and fumbling with her skirt.
“If you see a person or a Pokémon who needs help, you just help them…” Kukui said, walking on over. “Right, Moon? Hau?”
“Huh?” I said, tearing my eyes away from Lillie’s face long enough to register what Kukui said. “Oh, yeah, of course.” I finally managed, not quite as convincing as I’d like. “You can’t let someone go a night without a roof over their heads.” I added, sprinkling in a grin of my own.
 Kukui flashed a thumbs up, “And that’s why I’m letting Lillie stay up there in the loft.” He said, waving as if to close the topic. “So, Moon, I’m leaving this Rotom Dex in your hands! Rotom, you look after Moon, yeah?” A burst of static followed his speech, as if Rotom was in agreement.
“So that’s the Rotom Dex, eh?” Hau said, nearly colliding with my shoulder. The scents of fresh food seemed to waft off him. I couldn’t help but blush. “It’s kinda cute.” He said. I took a step back, stumbling.
“I a-erm, it is, yeah, it is!” I agreed, my hands pulled to my chest.
“All right, there are some important things you need to know about your Island challenge.” Kukui interjected, looking to my face, and then Hau’s. “The Island Challenge is to become the strongest trainer around-” his words hit my ears, but I didn’t actually recognize any of them. I stared at Lillie as inconspicuously as I could, the way she blushed, the way she stood, she was rather cute. She idly swayed, and I tried to hear for signs of plastic, but there was none to be found. I would have laughed at myself were no one else to hear it. Why would I think she’d be in such a similar situation to me? How stupid.
“There are four main islands that make up Alola,” Lillie said, jarring me from my thoughts, “and a Kahuna for each one of them. If you wish to be recognized by the kahunas as worthy, it’s said you must clear seven trials.” She put as much emphasis on the seven trials as she could, trying to make it sound as lofty as possible. I got the impression that she didn’t quite understand it.
“Moon!” Kukui said, “I want you and Rowlet to get out there and give it a shot!”
“Perch.” I said immediately. For just a moment, I thought I could hear a hoot.
“Perch.” Kukui repeated, sporting a grin. “Now that’s a name, Moon, I knew I could count on you! You were able to fully use your Pokémon’s moves in your very first battle, after all. I think you might have a talent for drawing out Pokémon’s strengths, yeah.”
“Oh, um…” I said, mulling it over. Seven trials, four islands? I hadn’t even spent a night outside of my house, let alone cross a country on my own. Until last night I couldn’t even change myself. I gave pause, I STILL might not be able to change myself. I hadn’t even practiced. “I’m not really sure…”
“Oh yeah! As someone who’s dedicated my life to studying Pokémon moves. I really want to see you out there meeting all kinds of Pokémon on your island challenge!” Kukui said, as if ignoring my every word. “Here!” he said as he reached into his pocket and tossed something at me, hitting me square in the face. I stumbled back, slapping my hands at my face, and then pinning the object to my chest as it fell. I blinked, looking at it. A pendant, a yellow shape composed of a square and two triangles, with four colored triangles within it. Colored beads loosely hung on the string of the pendant, with a few leather strips on the bottom of the pendant.
“And what’s this?” I asked, embarrassed at my clumsiness.
“Everybody on the island challenge gets one of these island challenge amulets.” He explained. I nodded and secured it onto my bag. It was too small for my neck, and I wouldn’t feel right with a necklace anyway. The weight around my neck always felt uncomfortable when I tried.
	“I got one from my gramps too!” Hau joined in.
	“Alright then, Moon! You too, Hau! Get a move on!” Kukui said, throwing out one last thumbs up.
	“What?” I spouted, “Where? Like, where do I start? Where do I go?”
	“To the trainer school!” Kukui said.
	“You’ve gotta be kidding me.” I mumbled, “You were just getting done telling me I had a natural talent for this.”
	“You gotta learn the basics of being a Pokémon Trainer through Pokémon battling.” He said, ignoring my protest. “It’s a long road to becoming the island challenge champion, and the Trainer’s School is the first step!” He turned to Hau, sporting a grin. “What about you, Hau?”
	Hau slipped his hands to the back of his head. “I’m good.” He said, looking to the side and stretching out his arms. “I just wanna play with my Pokémon!” he declared. He glanced back at Kukui, his smile turning sheepish. “I mean, uh, train with them. Right!”
	“The island challenge.” Lillie muttered. “So this is how the people of Alola connect with the people around them.”
	“Lillie!” Kukui suddenly exclaimed, causing the poor girl to yelp and jump. “You take care of Moon, yeah? Until she gets used to Rotom, help her find her way around!” he said, turning on his heel and wandering off before she could get a word in. Hau followed soon, giving off a generic ‘see ya!’ and rocketing out of the house.
	“Wait-” she said, frowning as she saw his back. She sighed. “Okay, I suppose you do need help, don’t you, Moon?” she said, looking up to me with a blush. I couldn’t help but blush as well.
	“Sorry…” I mumbled, looking away. “I hate to be a bother.”
	“Oh, no, no, it’s fine.” Lillie said, “I know it can be hard to move to a new place, and, um, well, I only just got to know the place myself, but I can help you around town.”
	“I’d appreciate it, really!” I said, adjusting my posture. I flinched at the quiet rustling of my undergarments. I was just realizing how hot it was getting. I would need to find a way to keep cool, getting thinner diapers was not an option. How was I even going to get diapers on my journey, anyway? Would mom even be okay with this? “Besides, I’d really like to be with you more.” I blurted out, instantly regretting the phrasing.
	“R-really?” Lillie said, looking to the side. “W-well, you did save me, I’d love to have a friend as brave of you, and-” suddenly she was cut off as Kukui walked by.
	“Oh, by the way, Lillie, make sure to pack extra diapers if you’re going out.” He said, moments before disappearing into a room. Lillie’s face lost all color, and then flushed red.
	“Kukui! I-” she started.
	“Wait, you do wear them too!” I shot.
	“No, I do-too?! What do you mean ‘too!?’” she exclaimed, her cheeks the color of a firestone.
	“I-” I gulped. “I-I mean m-my friend did, and-”
	“I don’t wear anything like that, I-” Lillie rambled. I shut my eyes for a moment, took in a deep breath and shot my finger out. When I opened my eyes, she was pointing at me, and her voice mirrored my own.
	“You better not tell anybody!”