Hero Worship-Cnote 1/2020

Hero Worship
By Cnote

Contains Gardevoirs, alien space battles, foot massages, bondage and detailed cuddling. Also a pretty off ratio of lewd to writing. Couldn't help myself.
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In the rainy night, a small door opened at the rear of a small cottage.

She lifted her arm, palm towards the sky, then closed her three large fingers over it. The cold rain that had been pelting her now ceased to do so. A thin blue film of energy appeared above her, each time a rain drop hit it the barrier rippled as if the rain had fallen into water. She lowered her arm and breathed deeply, counting the seconds.

As expected, lightning struck nearby. The clap of thunder was almost immediate. A second barrier at her front absorbed that sound, the water like barrier almost splashing with the absorbed energy. She sighed and moved forward into the open, heading for the tree line. To her breast she held a small bundle with one arm, the large red horn from her chest keeping it from shaking.

It was an early spring rain, and it was terribly cold. Each droplet hitting the barrier around her ran off of it like it was plastic. The rain did not bother her, nor did the cold. She dreaded the future. She had known this day was coming. It had come several times before, and she knew she would probably have to do this again eventually. This was perhaps the 20th time she’d done this. She lost track after five.

It was just so wonderful though. His touch, his breath, the closeness, the intimacy. Even though after the first time she’d resolved to not let it happen again, that very same night, he’d called to her and led her to his room, where her body and heart submitted to him fully.

The egg was dead anyway. Empty, save for the thick clear liquid inside. No…to call it dead would be a lie. It was never alive. She could just toss it out of the window and nature would reclaim it in a week, shell and all. She reached the usual spot, about 100 yards into the forest. A tiny clearing, perhaps the length of two of her reaching arm to arm. There, in the dark, and despite the rain, she could see the disturbed earth where she’d buried the last one a month or so ago.

Despite knowing for a fact that the egg was a dud, she could not just throw it out. It had been part of her. It had been the vessel for a new life. It was not the egg’s fault that she mated with an incompatible human. Similar enough to her to be attracted to, and to trigger her body’s appropriate response, but not similar enough to provide offspring. She sat down on the ground, floating just above it with her power, and crossed her legs, and held the egg tightly to her chest. “Garde…gardev gardevoir.” Her apology said, she held onto it still, and with her power, began to move the earth nearby, close to where the previous had been laid to rest. As she slowly parted the earth, handful by handful, she thought back to the first time.

She’d woke up to the pain. So intense it was that she had woken up her trainer-husband with the spasms. After getting her to the local pokemon center, half an hour later she was resting in a bed, her gown nearly in tatters from the stress, the head-sized blue and yellow spotted egg resting on her chest. Just as this one was now. It was a miracle. It was a secret, of course. No would could know it was half Ralts and half Human. She had kept her mouth shut when asked what kind of pokemon the father was. No one had pressed her beyond that. She just lay, exhausted, holding her husband’s hand. The final piece of the puzzle was in place. Beyond all odds, she’d given him a child.

Then the heartbreak an hour later, when the nurse had to show her that the egg was infertile. The baby had not died inside; no, there never was a baby. She had gone into hysterics, demanding the tests be done over and over and over until she had screamed herself out and she lay on the floor, holding the egg, cradling it in the fetal position. Her trainer had then just picked her up, after being assured she was physically healthy and could go home to recover, and carried her there.

Two days later, after refusing food and drink, she finally lost consciousness, the egg still in her arms. Her husband pried it from her sleeping grasp. He wrapped it in a blanket and set it down near her, then waited for her to wake again. He sat in the same room for nearly 12 hours, staring down at his beloved Gardevoir. The only sound was a fireplace he occasionally stoked and added fuel to. When she finally stirred, showed her the egg so she would not panic.

“It hurts. I can feel it.” He pointed to his chest.

She nodded. As she spoke her name over and over like all pokemon did, the meaning of her words were fully understandable to him.“All over. I want to test it again. They could all be wrong.” She stood up and wobbled, her body still not fully recovered, her energy still depleted.

She fell into his waiting arms, where he took her onto his lap and pressed a glass of water into her hands. “Please. Drink.”

She did so, gently sipping. She was still staring at the egg in its bundle. “Let’s go to the pokemon center…it will work this time. It has to.”

He simply shook his head and held her close. His bond with her was powerful, the pain she was feeling wracked him as well, but from a distance, like placing ones hands too close to a fire. He was able to endure. He had to.

“No…no no no no…” She tried to struggle out of his lap, but his firm grip held her there gently. “No…you don’t mean…”

He simply nodded. “I think fate is playing a joke on us.”

She started to sob, quietly. He cradled her still, tears welling up in his eyes as well. “I’m sorry. I’ve failed you as a partner…I…”

“Don't be sorry. We knew this was a possibility. The most probable one.” He said, putting her head into his chest. “If I were a Gardevoir it would have worked. I’m the one to blame.”

“No, don’t say that…it’s not your fault at all…”

“Then why are you saying it about yourself?”

Her consciousness drifted back to her reality. Sitting cross legged in the air in the rain. The hole was ready. She floated to the hole and kneeled before it, setting the blue spotted egg inside. She took a small chain of beads from the bundle as well, and prayed.

“Gar degar garde devoir gard voir gardevoir, devoir garde ga-ah-rde voir gard.”

She felt the tears coming on. Every time this happened. No matter how many eggs she buried, the small, tiny doubt in her heart still was there. She was a failure as a pokemon. She was a failure to her trainer. She was a failure to her husband. She was a failure as a female. Her thoughts turned dark, like they always did. She’d run away so she didn’t have to do this again. So he’d get a real wife instead of this useless one. She knew it wasn’t true. But she also understood that her heart and mind were not in harmony. She clenched her eyes tight, and started to telekinetically cover the egg with dirt, each small pile of dirt on the egg reminding her of the potential life lost. Unable to look down at the egg any longer, she flicked her wrist and teleported away, not picking a specific target.

She appeared in the field of flowers near her home, leaving a Gardevoir sized imprint where she fell from being too high off the ground. “Garde…gardevoir…” She was now completely soaked from the water spiling from the flowers and the rain, her barrier down.
She’d need to be more careful in the future. She shed her tattered and wet gown and tossed it away, it disappearing before it hit the ground, then went back inside for a warm drink, a warm bath and hopefully, two big, strong hands to soothe her.

*****

She had the envelope. She recognized the seal on it. She knew it was important.
She floated into the main room of their tiny studio apartment, then gave the envelope to her master. "Garde?"

He inspected it, then smiled up at her. He broke the seal on it, then fished the letter out. He read it carefully. He could also feel his Gardevoir trying to read his mind while he did.

"We talked about this." He said, reading the message still while shutting her out. "If you are going to succeed at the Institute, you're going to need to control yourself." He smiled up at her and opened his arms for a hug.

Gardevoir's face lit up, and she leapt into his arms. All her hard work. All the special training. She'd been accepted into the Empathic Therapy Institute. She would follow in the footsteps of her hero, Sana.

Sana, author of 16 books. Sana, who could speak to all pokemon and spoke 3 different human languages. Pokemon Psychologist. Pioneer of Empathic Therapy to help humans and pokemon alike. Professor at both her own school and at Mauville University. Winner of contests. Published a cook book. Once endorsed a...type of bicycle? Despite her being unable to ride one herself. Chaser of myths, accomplished archaeologist, having published a paper on the Sinnoh region with its champion.

Sana, the Gardevoir. Sana was both a hall of fame pokemon, AND a hall of fame pokemon trainer. She had been her own 6th pokemon and personally defeated the region's champion's ace in an exhibition match. She had been denied the title, however, as she wasn't human. So she successfully sued the Hoenn government and had been given actual citizenship. Sana, a pokemon who if anyone tried to capture, would count as kidnapping. She had a pokemon trainer license, could vote in elections, own property. She was effectively a human, but still had the awesome powers of her bloodline. Sana, who by all estimates, was at least 50 years old. 15 years beyond the average lifespan of a Ralts, and 3 years older than the previous record. Sana herself had claimed it was possible she was older, but didn't want to give the real number.

The only slightly above average and not-Sana Gardevoir hugged the letter of acceptance close. She had been marked as a particularly capable pokemon when she was a Kirlia, and had dreamed of becoming like Sana. Now she was off to Sana's own school and clinic. She was overjoyed. She looked at the letter over and over again. Sana herself had even signed it...and she had a last name? Did she have to pick one? She looked up at her trainer. "Garde, gardevoir garde."

"You need a name?"

Gardevoir nodded. She pointed at the signature. "Voir, voir gardevoir gard."

"A pretty one like Sana's?"

She nodded again, taking his hands.

"How about Sana 2?"

She shook her head. "Garde, gardevoir dev..." She pointed out the window, down to the bustling city below.

"Something nature-y? Like after a berry? A flower?"

She nodded. "Devoir."

"Lily then. I like Lilycove City, so now its like they named a city after you."

Lily loved it and curtsied to her trainer, then went back to trying to read her letter herself. She would learn to read without her trainer's help before going to ETI. She had aimed for a star as was going to try her best.

******

"You...you mated with her." The Gardevoir said flatly.

"I was drunk." The man stared down at her. "I felt lonely, and you weren't available."

"I can't believe this." Her Gardevoir-voice was beginning to stutter. "You told me you only needed me. I was enough. I filled all of your desires." She floated to the window in the room, looking out at the field of flowers. Back at the forest.

"You know I said the truth. It was a mistake. I wish you'd let it go." He said. He wrapped his arms around her, breathing on her three ear tassels on the right side of her head.

She wrapped him in a telekinetic barrier and pushed him away, he hit the ground hard, causing the room to shake. "Don't touch me. All I can sense is on you is a human whore you lecherous piece of Tauros shit."

He tried again, this time wrapping her fully in his arm, cupping one of her large breasts in his hand, teasing her inner thigh with the other. "Come on now, you can forgive me, in fact, as your trainer, I order you to forgive me, and then we can go to bed...and..."

Gardevoir stood perfectly still. Her sadness had given way to rage. He dared give her an order like that. After promising to her he'd never do it again after she had unlocked her potential. Her body was forced to comply. They went to his bedroom. He lay on the bed. Then she straddled him, resting with her legs across his waist. "Master..." She said sarcastically. "I've obeyed your order." Then before he could speak again, she wrapped her power around him and just pressed down. As hard as she could. She forcefully penetrated his mind. She clawed through it, easily shutting down his defenses, ripping through his memories like a knife through butter. "Where is the stupid whore. Where is she."

"Please...stop..." He said weakly. "It hurts...it hurts..."

She was too enraged to care. Deeper and deeper she tore. She used her hands and wrapped them around his neck, too weak to hurt him, but it made her feel better. "Think of her, think of your whore...let me see her. I will compact her into a pokeball. I will launch her into the sun. I'll toss her into a daycare center with a Ditto. I'll..." More and more anger spilled from her. Deeper and deeper she delved. Then she found her. It had been an Officer Jenny. She couldn't tell which one specifically, but she had her information. "Think of your blue haired whore. Do it."

He could no longer speak. He was losing conciousness.

She blocked his fall into unconciousness. She forced him to think of the moment he'd seduced Jenny. And then, she altered the memory and instead of the soft and sensual oohs and ahhs from her, they were cries of agony and ungodly gurgling. Her pretty face began to melt, her skin turned transluscent. Her vagina turned into a gaping maw of teeth. "Go on, fuck your whore. Fuck her now, I want you to, you worthless..."

Sudden blackness and silence in his mind.

She went silent. The room was completely silent, she could hear only her own hearbeat. She removed her hands from his neck. "...Alex?"

Nothing. His heart was beating, he was still breathing, but he was not there.

She let out a scream, both vocally and psychically. The psychic scream reached for miles around them.

An hour later they were in the human hospital.

"He's suffered a terrible psychic attack. Did he get hit by your opponent when you were battling?" The doctor asked her.

She nodded, dumbly. "Garde...gardevoir..."

Alex, her trainer and husband, lay there in the bed, his ears packed with gauze. The bleeding had stopped, and he would likely recover. "We should talk." He said, after a long moment.

She nodded. She sat in the air next to him, holding his non-IV hand in her lap.

And so they talked, via telepathy. Their bond was still powerful enough that Alex could use the same route his Gardevoir used to project her thoughts into him, to do the same for her.

He'd violated her trust by cheating. He'd forced his will on her using his influence as her trainer, after promising not to ever do it.

She had unleashed her full power on him. No permanent damage, but the mental scars were forming.

The next day, back at home. Alex held a regular pokeball in his hand. He showed it to his Gardevoir. Then he dropped it on the ground, and crushed it with his foot.

The Gardevoir nodded to him, then took his hand in hers, helping him walk. Now that she was no longer his pokemon, they could start over. This time as equals.

*****

Lily and her trainer sat in the lecture hall. While Lily's time at ETI had only just begun, she'd already been exposed to so many new humans aside from her trainer. She'd come to the conclusion that her trainer was the only sane human in the entire world, and that humans cared only for the stupidest things. She adored her trainer for being the only sane one. Unfortunately, Sana was rarely at ETI; she had a full schedule on a myriad of topics, and would have no time for a lowly new trainee like her.

But today they were not at ETI. Today they were at the University of Mauville, and Sana herself would be there, giving a guest lecture on one of her many achievements and hobbies, Pokemon Cryptids. Her trainer had no interest in it. Lily had just wanted to see Sana.

The hall quieted down as the appointed hour turned over, and a professor from the Pokemon Anthropolgy department began to introduce her. Dean of Psychology, double Ph. D in human and pokemon psychology. More and more of her accomplishments read off. Then Sana herself entered the room. Sana approached the microphone, tapped it with one of her big fingers, then greeted the crowd. "Thank you for having me." She spoke in a gentle and soft voice, very feminine, as would be expected of a Gardevoir, and not in her native Gardespeak, but in perfectly plain Kantonian. She wore a labcoat, unbuttoned at the top, showing off a tiny bit of cleavage and more importantly letting her horn out. She'd shed her gown and was wearing a skirt, made to look so it matched with the coat perfectly, her knees exposed. She wore high heels, despite her feet not touching the ground. Most impressive were her giant Gardevoir sized glasses which hung around her neck, which if worn, would make her the dorkiest looking pokemon in the entire world. Lily's trainer used his pokedex to take a picture of Sana, as did many other people in the crowd.

"Oh my God! A talking pokemon!" A voice from the crowd called.

The crowd let out a small laugh, and then once it had died down, Sana replied. "You know, I've ga-ard...graded, his papers bevoir. Frankly I'm surprised HE can talk." A chorus of 'oooos' and 'ouches' and laughter sounded as Sana used Will o the Wisp on that man's ego. She smiled and continued. "Pokemon cryptids garde one of my favorite fields. Some call it mythology, but some are more real than that." She flicked one of her fingers and a small touch of telekinesis changed the screen behind her to a picture of a giant Dragonite. "Some are confirmed to exist but unable to be found...and others..." she flicked again and it showed a large pokemon's head poking out of a portal of darkness. It had gold horns and looked very scary. "Shouldn't be found. But in between those, there garde some fun ones. Like this one." Flick.

Lily's trainer showed the picture of Sana to his Gardevoir. "Maybe I should get you some glasses like hers."

Lily examined the picture. Then looked back up at Sana, who was showing off a picture of an Electrode with an unusually human looking and sexy face. The picture showed Sana as just wearing a labcoat and glasses. No shoes. No cleavage with her horn. Her gown looked...regular. Most strange of all, Sana's hair in the photograph did not have flecks of silver in it, while she clearly did while standing there at the podium. She kept comparing the picture and the real Sana, and it never matched.

She asked her trainer if he saw a difference, and he shook his head. "She looks a lot like you. Kinda. Small world."

Sana was most definitely wearing shoes, and had her gown cut short in the front so that the bottom of her kneecaps could be seen. Lily shook her head, slapped herself a few times, then looked back up. Still the same. She could no longer listen to the talk. She was too mystified by this. An hour went by and all she could do is look back and forth between Sana and her picture.

"And finally, one voir cryptid. And that wasn't a slip of my accent." She smiled and got a giggle. "This one is special to me, as well, you can guess why." Sana flicked, and a picture of a Gardevoir was on the screen. But this one was different. It had many human like features. Breasts, visible bone structure in the torso, a waist, a pelvis, knees, feet. "The Venusian Gardevoir. Named after the roman goddess of beauty and love. Imagine the loyalty and power of a Gardevoir, but the body of a human woman. I may be powerful, but not that kind of powerful...though any man in here should beware, as apparently they were considered to be closer to a succubus."

Lily's attention was grabbed. She focused all her energy to single out Sana's voice. Was she about to...

"Legend says that if a Ralts line pokemon loved its trainer sufficiently, it would adapt itself to its master's sexual desires. Changing its own body and passing that line that seperates the bond between trainer and pokemon, and husband and wife." Sana continued. "This one is most interesting to me, not because of these unverifiable claims, as fun as they gard, but because we have a voirified sighting." She flicked again. A picture this time. A human man, tall and stout, balding. Holding the hand of a Gardevoir,  she had very feminine features, a narrow waist, and visible feet. The Gardevoir was smiling genuinely, her eyes full of love for her...husband? They were in a garden with large vegetables growing around them, a shack in the background. The Gardevoir was holding a straw hat before her to hide her chest, but had just a touch of cleavage showing above the brim.

"Its not fair to call this one a legend though. We are pretty sure we know where this farm they're on was. We have a pretty good idea of who this man is." She pointed at the Gardevoir. "But no record of her. He died alone and unmarried at the age of 60, according to town records. None of his journals have been found if he kept any, no record of this unusually shaped pokemon winning any gym battles, or staying in the pokemon hospital. No registered children. No other photographs. No living witnesses." She took a deep breath. "Because of this, I believe that the Venusian Gardevoir pictured here made an active attempt to hide her own presence. Could you blame her? Such an unusual couple would not want to attract attention. So why did she allow this picture to remain? She is obviously aware its being taken."

A hand shot up, a human girl with a Pikachu on her head stood up and asked a question. "Couldn't we just find their descendants then? They must have had intercourse at some point. Would the offspring be a human baby, or a Ralts in a womb, or a human in an egg, or..."

Sana cut her off. "Well, as we all know, pokemon offspring are always the mother's species. So if this rule applies here, we know that any kids they'd have would have been Ralts. Probably hatched from eggs. Now we can't confirm this, as we haven't found any Ralts with detectable human DNA before." Sana then paused, and looked over the crowd. Her voice got a tiny bit lower. "In any case, chances are their relationship was ineffectual. Human DNA and Ralts DNA are unusually similar, but..." She coughed a few times. "Excuse me. But, its very unlikely they would have offspring. Garring a miracle. Or an abomination of nature. Depends on your point of voir."

"So its impossible?" The Pikachu girl asked.

Sana smiled weakly. "Anything is possible. Sometimes, you'd just have to make a wish. In any case, to conclude..."

After Sana finished her talk, she took no questions, citing a very busy schedule. She apologized profusely, then floated out of the door she had come through. No entourage followed her.

Lily was a sensible Gardevoir. She was nice and obedient, adored her trainer. Was never unpredictable. Lily was also unaware of the adage, 'Never meet your heroes.' She took a deep breath, yanked her trainer's tablet from him with the picture on it. The teleported past the door she'd seen Sana disappear through.

Sana was alone. Drifting through the crowd of humans and pokemon. Making efforts to physically avoid them. For a gathering that was focused on her, she seemed unusually invisible. No one stopped to talk to her, no colleagues, no worshipers like Lily, no one. She was almost like a ghost.

Lily reached out with telekinesis and touched her shoulder.

Sana stopped cold in her floating tracks. She looked over her shoulder and made eye contact with Lily. Her eyes began to glow blue, a Hypnosis attack.

Sana was trying to hypnotize her. She put up her own glowing blue barrier before her eyes and scrambled the waves coming to her. Then she reached out with telepathy. "Is that you in the picture you showed at the talk?"

Sana stopped her attempt to hypnotize. She closed her eyes and more blue energy emenated from her. Time began to slow, and then stopped. Only Sana and Lily were moving. "You are not the first one to ask me that." A flash of light. Sana was now inches from Lily, so close that their hair touched. Sana blinked a couple times, squinting. Then she put her glasses on, looking like a complete dork as she did, staring at Lily through them. "Do...have we met?"

Lily did not need to squint or glasses, however, to see through Sana's illusion. She nodded matter of factly. "You would not have included the Venusian in your presentation if you didn't want to be found. If you wanted truly wanted to hide, you wouldn't have even mentioned it."

The act immediately dropped, Sana nodded at her. Then she noticed the tablet Lily was holding and her picture. "What color of shoes am I wearing?"

"Black high heels. And you have feet."

Sana inspected Lily's picture. "This is how I should appear to you. Yet you can see what I'm actually wearing?"

A quick nod.

Sana quickly took Lily by the hand and they both teleported. They landed in an unused office, the only furniture being a desk and a powered off computer screen. The windows were drawn shut. Sana moved one arm up, one to the side and did a twirl; blue energy surrounded her, then expanded to form a bubble around them. Telepathically, Sana said. "We can talk in here. Are you one of mine? If not, you need to apply to ETI."

"I am actually." Lily beamed. "I started a few weeks ago."

Sana sat down on the desk, leaning forward. "I think I know who you are then. You scored a perfect on empathic channeling, intelligence and almost perfect on Future Sight. I signed for you myself. Do you have a name?"

"Lily. My master gave it to me the day I got my acceptance letter. I felt I should have one so I could more easily follow in your footsteps." Lily was blushing furiously, a little overwhelmed by Sana's star power.

"Well, Lily. You'll be getting pushed ahead in your program. It'd be a waste for you to be helping human couples decide who gets to use the remote. To be frank, you're too good for it."

"What do you mean?" Lily took a cross legged position as she floated in the air, staying at eye level with Sana.

"I've been using this illusion for about 10 years. You're the first one, human or pokemon, to see through it." Sana leaned back on the table, then lifted one hand up and pointed at Lily.  "Now, forgive me, but I need to do this for my safety."

Lily tilted her head in confusion, then a force pushed her from behind to embrace Sana.

Sana placed her hand on Lily's back horn and held her close. Sana was moving through her memories, watching them. "Did you tell anyone else about your suspicion?"
Unbidden, Lily remembered when she had pointed out that Sana's photograph looked wrong to her trainer.
Sana considered her next move, then pushed deeper on, this time searching for things about Lily's trainer. "Your trainer seems like a good man. I've seen him before. He is in my husband's department here. A touch thin. Ah...I see. You two shared a ramen cup for dinner last night."

At the mention of her trainer, Lily finally pushed back, tried to wiggle out and break the contact between her, but the power differential was too great. On her feeble attempts, she managed to take a glimpse into Sana's soul. The power within was vast, like an ocean compared to her mud puddle. Sana brushed her attempts aside with a flick of her wrist.

Sana focused on Lily's trainer a little while longer, forcing the image to stay in Lily's mind. "Do you love him?"

Lily's face turned to one of suspicion. She shook her head. "What do you mean love? He is my master. I'm his pokemon."

Sana noted this, then finally released her. "I did that for two reasons. Can you guess why?" Sana sounded as if she was asking a question at a lecture.

Lily fell to the ground, and looked up at her. "You did it to show me the power gap between us. Its unreal..."

"That is one answer, yes. I am not one to mess with." Sana smirked down at her. "Secondly, I need you."

"Need me to...what exactly? I could not even fit in your shadow."

Sana held her hands up, showing her her six fingers. "I'm also about 45 years older than you. Experience means a lot to us psychic pokemon. Our bodies age..." She indicated the grey specks in her hair, "But our minds remain sharp until we die. You could surpass me someday. Do not think its impossible." Sana sighed. "Truth be told, if my mind were a tool, its been worked too much. I'm stuck in one way of thinking. But you...your mind is still fresh and flexible. I need your help with this. And as an apology to my intrusion of your mind, I'll take all of your questions and answer them as best I can. No more games, no more tricks. If I am to trust you, you need to trust me as well, and I want to earn it."

Lily was surprised. The threat of force was enough to bend her to Sana's will. Now she wanted to work on something together? "What do you need me to do?"

"To the point then. That's fine. Go right for the goal, and any important details will be collected on the way. I like that." Sana cupped her hands together. "I want you to study me."

"Beg pardon?"

Sana nodded. "I will explain. I've been asked to write biographies about myself for years now. I of course declined...given that any good biography would be complete. I have secrets. Secrets that I don't know can be told when I'm alive. Or even when I'm gone." Sana touched her speckled hair. "I...don't have a lot of time left. Perhaps 10 years. My husband is in his 60s now, and the possibility of something happening to him is getting greater and greater with each day. Future Sight can't see EVERYTHING."

Lily nodded. Despite her talent at viewing the future, she had not seen this happening. Actually meeting Sana?

Sana continued. "And if something happens to him...well...I'm just a Gardevoir. Like you. You'd know what would happen to you if something happened to your trainer."

The thought came to Lily, and she shooed it away. She knew very well what would happen, but it was too much to consider.

"I know you understand. This is why I can't trust a human to do this for me. They could never truly understand. So I'll answer your next question. You are right in that I'm a Venusian Gardevoir. I coined the term myself."

Lily nodded. "So you are that Gardevoir in the picture?"

Sana breathed deeply, covering her horn with her hand. "I am not that Gardevoir in the picture. I can't prove this, but I think she's my grandmother."

"But if she did have a child with her husband, that would make you what, one eighth human?" She counted on her fingers, but ran out of fingers.

"Presumably. But...and you understand this is of top importance to me to remain a secret. You do understand?"

"Yes. I'll keep any secret you want."

"I'm not one eighth human. I'm three quarter human, according to DNA analysis I did personally with my husband. That works out is if my father was a human, my mother, another Venusian Gardevoir."

"Shouldn't you be much, much more human looking? You have a Gardevoir's head and hands, the horn, the powers. Do pokeballs work on you?"

Sana nodded. "I suppose that the Ralts genetic features are very powerful. And of course I know how to break out of pokeballs short of a Master Ball. Good luck finding one of those."

"But I thought you said that humans and Ralts couldn't breed?"

Sana threw her arms up in the air."Thats one of the big mysteries. We can't. Not through any known artificial or natural means."

"It makes you a miracle then." Lily said, in wonder, leaning forward and inspecting Sana closely.

"Some may call me that, yes." A little musical jingle started to sound. Sana removed a green and red smartphone from her coat pocket. She typed on it a little bit, then looked back to Lily. "I have an appointment in 3 minutes. I will summarize. I want you to ghostwrite my story. I want someone like you to research, compile and write about me. You have me at an arm's distance; you can analyze my life and bring about a new perspective on me, one that I never could. And when its finished, I want you to publish it. After my husband and I are both gone. I can give your trainer the rights to the book so he'd get all the money from it."

Lily blinked. She was astonished at the length of time Sana was preparing for the inevitable. "I have never written anything before."
"I will teach you. You will learn, with your aptitude it will be easy. And think of it, young garde, It will provide enough income for you and him to live comfortably the rest of your lives, a life of plenty and leisure. Imagine that, Lily. You and your master free to go where you want. Not trapped in a shoebox apartment outside of a college, barely scraping by. When was the last time you saw your master with a full belly and in a comfortable bed? You can see the world, live in luxury and wrap yourselves up in each other. Or live humbly and try to improve the world. What I'm offering you is that ability, that choice. Freedom." Sana said. As she made the motion to Teleport away, she once again fitted her glasses to her eyes, squinted at Lily, then disappeared.

Lily leaned back in the air and considered. She'd actually listened to the book being read before. Sana was right, however. She was hungry. She knew her master sacrificed a lot to keep her.

*****

The Gardevoir lay in her trainer's arms. The desire had been quenched. She lay there, exhausted and blissful. For a few moments they'd been one being. A whole being. No barrier between them. One heart beating, one soul bound together, one body full and complete.
Her trainer lay asleep under her. This had been their first time since 'the incident'. It had been nearly a year. But on that cold night. The snow had started to fall. She longed for him. The only male she'd ever been with. His touch was perfect, his kiss was perfect. Everything was perfect. He'd remained faithful. She'd only used the gentlest of touches with her telepathy and mind reading.
They both constantly challenged each other on these. Whenever she felt his lust burning, she'd gently remind him of his promise. Whenever her emotions and anger flared, he'd take her hands and hug her, disarming her completely, making her talk out her frustrations and gripes.

As the pokeball's control over her faded, her mind had expanded. She realized she had control over her own voice. She uttered her first Kantonian words. She began to understand the human written language. She found an old pokeball and found out how the capture device inside it worked, and developed a defense to it. There seemed to be no limit to what she could do. So at his behest, she kept going. She captured a pokemon herself and bent it to her will. She began to write down what she and her mate had done to patch things up. She harnessed her own empathic powers to enable two arguing humans to perfectly understand where the other was coming from. From there, they'd repaired the relationship in weeks.

Her mate became the catalyst for her advancement. She knew she was no longer just a Gardevoir. Nor was she a human. The physical change, the mental changes. She was more than that. All she needed was his gentle encouragement and some inspiration, and she seemed to make the impossible possible.

A pokemon had a book published. A pokemon graduated from college. A pokemon defeated a gym leader with pokemon she had caught. She reflected on herself, and the boundaries of her potential grew and grew.

She never forgot the eggs. Despite her body now being almost fully human, once every 3 weeks or so, she'd give birth to a worthless egg. It didn't even hurt that much any more. She no longer saw herself as a failure with each dud egg, but it still pained her heart to bury each egg in the nearby forest. So she turned to spirituality to try and salve the wound.

Almost as closely guarded secret as her heritage, she began to worship nature. Thinking that perhaps that was how her mother had done it. Science said it was impossible. Yet she existed. Her mother and her mother's mother and so on had come from somewhere. So, the most learned and accomplished Gardevoir in history, once a week, knelt before the majesty of nature, usually on top of a hill on a starry night, and pleaded for understanding or direction or inspiration. She didn't want an answer. Only a point in the right direction. And if the mystery was to remain just that, a mystery, she asked for a miracle. Very little she wouldn't give for it.

*****

"Where did you go? You scared me to death!" Lily's trainer scolded her.

"De...devoir. Garde gardevoir." Lily said quietly.

"Did she answer your question?"

Lily nodded.

"So is she?" He sounded like a stern father more than her trainer.

"Garde, gardevoir. Ga-aaard." She opened her arms wide to accentuate what she had said.

The trainer was surprised. "And she said you could work with her?"

Lily nodded. Empathically, she could feel doubt in her trainer's heart.

The trainer looked up for a moment. Then hugged her tightly, not seeming to care about the horn jabbing him in the chest. "Wow. Thats so great. I'm so proud of you. We have to celebrate." He picked her up and twirled with her, both of them laughing.

Lily then gave her trainer an envelope. "Garde, gardevoir. Voir." She pressed it into his hands.

Sealed the same way her acceptance letter had been, he opened it carefully.

"Dear Mr. Endry:
Your pokemon, Lily the Gardevoir, has been accepted as my personal assistant to work at ETI. As this is a paid position, I am using this opportunity to inform you that her wages, at the rate of 5000 pokedollars a day, Monday through Friday, will be deposited into the account you have provided us for your current job at the University, as by law, you are entitlted to any compensation she makes. Lily is already aware of her daily duties and will just need to be dropped off at ETI and picked up at the end of her schedule.
Should this be inadequate, and you wish to negotiate or nullify this offer, please contact my office as soon as possible. Also find enclosed the sum of 10000 pokedollars, to cover any potential loss from you losing access to your partner for the time being.
Sincerely,

Sana (unintelligible cursive handwriting) Ph. D.

Director of Operations, ETI

He sat down for a moment, putting his hand to his head. An extra 25k a week would alleviate so much stress. It was only half of what he himself made, but it would be enough to add much comfort to their lives. Was it really right to make his pokemon work though? Being away from her that long would really dampen things.

Then again, she herself had apparently negotiated with Sana. She wouldn't have done that if she didn't want to. And then, was it right of him to keep the money she made? He could separate her money from his.

"Garde? Gardevoir? Garde." Lily seemed confused, as she sensed unease within him.

"I'm torn about this." He said, holding the 10k bill up to the light. Of course it was real. "She didn't trick you or anything, did she?"

Lily shook her head. "Devoir. Gardegarde devoir."

"But you shouldn't have to. Its my responsibility to take care of you."

Lily nodded, then buried her head into his chest, holding him tightly. "Garde, gardevoir. Gaa-ard."

"Are you sure?"

Lily nodded again. "Dev."

Mr. Endry gulped, swallowing his pride. All he could do was ensure that she was treated fairly. "So, what do you want to eat?"
They walked together side by side towards the local grocery store. Ten thousand would buy a feast.

*****
Alex and his Gardevoir moved side by side down a dimly lit road at night. Having left their beautiful cottage behind, they had come to the city. She had gained so many new opportunities, it would make travelling so much easier. Both were on edge; neither of them liked it. Alex, for the cramped spaces and tall buildings, and his partner for the small cracks and crevices danger could be hiding. And despite them being used to fields of dirt and mud in the spring, the city just felt...dirty.

There was almost no crime in the city. But neither of them decided to let their guard down. As they rounded a corner, they saw red and blue lights flashing ahead. Never too cautious to not be curious, they approached the taped off barrier, and looked on.
A trainer-aged girl was laying in the middle of the street, completely drained of color from her skin. She had a large wound on her neck, but there was no blood in it. A Gothitelle was standing over her, silently weeping.

An Officer Jenny approached them and sent them on their way. Golbat attack, they said.

The gardevoir covered her ear tassels. She fell to her knees, staring at the Gothitelle. "So loud...please...Alex..." She lifted her hand up and Alex took it, carrying her away from the scene. A block away, the Gardevoir finally calmed down.

"So much pain. So much..." The Gardevoir's eyes were watering. "Cries of agony, of pain."

"I didn't hear anything."

"The Gothitelle was screaming psychically. 'I told her this would happen' and 'Why couldn't I stop it'. It was awful. I can still hear it from here..."

Gardevoir was silent for the rest of the night until they got home. She was still silent and withdrawn when they climbed into their bed together. "Master..?"

Alex hadn't heard her call him master in years. Not since before the incident. The room was completely dark, except the slight glow of a digital clock.

"Please, let me please you. My mind is all a flutter."

Alex was now really confused. Using his bond with her that she had established to read his emotions, he reached out and touched hers; she was uneasy. She wanted something to cling to. A return to normalcy. So he moved his hands to her body, running one hand up and down her side, the other stroking her front horn.

"No no. Not like that. Please. Let me please you." Nude, she lifted the blanket off of her and her mate, then sat at his feet. "Relax, let me please you." She picked up one of his feet and started to massage it. Her large fingers were good at this task, finding each and every spot, wiggling his toes, pressing into the soles, applying pressure where it was needed. She smiled when he held back a laugh as her attentions tickled him.

Alex lay back and looked down at her. She had a warmth radiating from her. A genuine desire to please. He sighed and let his pokemon work.

She continued her work, moving to his other foot, giving it the same love and attention. "We promised to talk to each other. So I'm gonna tell you, and I'm rubbing your feet as an apology." They smiled at each other. "I can read the future you know."

"Mmmhmm. You've used it before to predict the weather."

"Well, that is what the Gothitelle was crying about. She had seen her trainer's death, and couldn't stop it." The Gardevoir's hands tightened, applying more pressure.

It had suddenly gotten very heavy in the room. "Go on."

"I know its uncomfortable. But I need to ask you." She picked him up with telekinesis and flipped him around, setting time in a kneeling position. She began to work on his shoulders, pressing deep and thoroughly, enjoying the chills he got down his back when he did. She decided to press her breasts against him, perhaps his touch earlier was the right way to go. "What do you want me to do, should I see...you know. You. Should I tell you?"

Alex considered. "Its not right now is it?"

"No. no no no no no." She continued to press her fingers into his back, reading his thoughts to determine where the next good spot was. "I can only see a few hours at best. Any further than that and its uselessly fuzzy, or just flat out wrong."

"I think its best that if you see that, then do nothing about it. Thats an order from 'master'. I feel...its probably unnatural." He moaned softly, her touch softening the conversation.

She smiled and moved her hands to his front, running her fingers up and down his chest, enjoying the firmness of his muscle. "I'm a wild pokemon. You don't get to tell me what to do."

He shifted, taking her in his arms and gently sitting her on his lap, facing her away. He placed one hand on her breast, the other on the inside of her thigh, his breath on her neck, his lips dragging gently as he planted small kisses on her slender, ivory neck. "While we're in my bed, I am master. You are my pokemon."

She took the hand on her thigh and held it in hers, squeezing it as hard as she could. She enjoyed this, more for feeling his powerful desire for her in his heart, rather than the physical sensations. She did enjoy the hands though. Strong, gentle hands. Hands that took what they wanted. Hands that made her melt, and gave a physical flavor to the desire for her. She was just a small, helpless female pokemon now, about to be preyed on by a big, strong male. "Master...please...be gentle..."

Hearing her beg set a fire within him and soon she was on her back, with each entrance into her reminding her of her place and who she belonged to. He was glad that she didn't actually mean to call him master, that she wasn't actually going to ask again, and that she most certainly did not want him to be gentle.

*****

Sana's office was part museum, part laboratory. Across shelves and small decorative stands were clutters of different devices and artifacts. Lily sat in the chair on the opposite side of Sana's desk. Day 1 and she'd already learned so much, just from her office.
Different colored crystals, strange alien-looking devices, bones from ancient pokemon, artifacts from ancient humans. A ruined sword that floated by itself, a collection of evolution stones. A Clefairy doll that appeared worn and well loved. An old, beat up straw hat sitting on top of a bust of a human woman. A beautiful tiara of silver that had jet black gems adorning it. She most liked this one, she had floated over to touch it and Sana had wrapped her knuckles from across the room via telekinesis, it feeling like she'd had her fingers closed in a book as she reached to touch it.

"I'd be happy to show you around, but we have business to attend to first." Sana said in Gardespeak, indicated the tall chair, specifically made to accommodate Gardevoirs, it having a narrower seat and larger arms.

Lily was impressed. She found the chair comfortable, it even had a hole in the back so her back horn could poke out. "You think of everything."

Sana squinted through her glasses at Lily again, then removed them and let them dangle around her neck. "Yes, its how you get to where I am." Sana said, a touch of pride in her voice. She then dropped a stack of papers on the desk, making a loud thud. "Here's your book. Rather, the version I wrote. This covers everything I'm willing to commit to paper."

The phone-book sized tome seemed forbidding. Lily picked it up telekinetically and brought it to her, holding it before her and opening it randomly. It was academic writing. Kind of dry, detailing the first days of ETI.

"You understand why I need someone else to go over it then. I can tell by the look on your face, I get the same look when I eat an Aspear berry."

"You can read my emotions by looking at my face?" Lily was shocked, her mouth agape. Sana was so amazing.

"Yes. Its called 'body language'. Most human communication takes place from subtle movements of their hands, face, et cetra. Pokemon do it too, but Gardevoirs are harder to read because the majority of our communication," She indicated her horn, and then Lily's, "are between these. I CAN sense the disgust you felt reading my boring writing, but its on your face too."

Lily nodded dumbly. Then in an effort to not look dumb, she needed to ask a question. She kept thumbing through the tome, slowing reading the thoroughly detailed life's memoirs. "If you've already written the book, why do you need me?"

"Well, a few reasons. Firstly, as you can tell, the writing is a bit dry."

"Wouldn't a human author be better then? I have only been able to read human language for a few months." Lily pointed at the book.

"More than just that though. You have the ability to see through my illusions, my projected appearance to the outside world. We all have our strengths. My ability to manipulate objects psychically is unmatched, but I'm actually sub par at detecting life, for example." She shrugged. But because you are attuned to me enough to see through my veil, we are mentally compatible and on similar wavelengths. Before you ask, I don't know WHY you and only you have been able to do it. My first thought was that you're also a Venusian Gardevoir, but, well..."

Lily looked shocked. She put her hand to her horn, looking around the room.

"But thats not how it is." Sana indicated the shape of her body with her hands. "This means that you can get into my head with minimal intrusion. You've taken preliminary courses for this program before, you know that just the mere presence of a psychic viewer in your head can change memories. I needed someone with minimal impact. My ghostwriter, if they were human, wouldn't be able to look at the source information when they needed to."

Lily sighed, then nodded. "You trust me with this?"

Sana sighed. "No." She said flatly. "Thats what we're going to work on today. I want to show you 3 arguments."

"Arguments? What?" Lily felt completely out of her element.

"Three reasons why it is to your advantage."

"Am I not being paid with money? My master seemed really confused about it. He didn't know what to think."

"Oh, all human men are like that." Sana smiled. "They want to shoulder every burden in the world to protect their sweet, weak, helpless little females. Its sweet, in a way, but its also unhealthy. Your pay is mostly to keep him off of my back. If I didn't pay you, you see, he'd insist on being here all the time. If I had to ask permission each time I bonded with you, or whatever is necessary, my time would run out."

"So...you're..." Lily tried to find the word, looking at her hands as if counting.

"Yes. I'm renting you." Sana smiled. "Don't feel bad though. I don't think of you as an apartment or a couch or a bicycle. You're my respected and valuable partner. And speaking of..." Sana waved her hand and seized control of Lily's perception. "To work."

Lily froze, feeling this sudden intrusion. She tried to wrest control back, but Sana's grip was too powerful. Her reality shifted and warped, then they were in a small cottage.

Sana appeared next to her, her lab coat aflutter. "I apologize for that. But see this." Sana pointed to the floor.

A human man and his Gardevoir were cuddled up before a fire. They were both entranced, eyes barely open. The gardevoir sitting in his lap, on the rug before the fire. They were holding each others hands, and to Lily, she could sense an immensely powerful connection between them. She blushed. Watching such a display of a potent bond like that was embarrassing. She gasped out loud, then realized that the couple didn't know they were there.

"My first argument for why you should help me out is this. With the extra money, you and your master will shed the shackles of hunger and want and you can spend more time with each other. You two can grow together and focus on each other, rather than filling your bellies." Sana looked at the couple and sighed, a little blush appearing on her face. "The first time I ever completely bonded with Alex."

Lily blushed even deeper. "This is...lewd. I can't look."

"You'll be in my mind seeing things more intimate than this. This is why its so important to me, Lily. I want you to study the scene. Can you feel the emotions in here?"

Lily took a deep breath and settled herself, then reached out to the couple. She let out a small whimper. "Thats...so cute. You are both scared yet both want the other to love you like you love them."

Sana nodded, smiling. "What else? Whats different about me, specifically?"

Lily drifted to the couple, then knelt down, looking at the past-Sana. "You...you seem pretty regular to me. Your horn is a little smaller than average but..."

Sana was offended. "What do you mean my horn is...no. That's not what I meant. My body. Compare it to me now."

Lily watched the couple, then realized the Gardevoir's feet were nubs, rather than the present Sana's stocking feet. Then she looked over the other changes; Sana did not have her breasts or the curvature of hip that was obvious even through her gown and labcoat. "You weren't born like that?"

"No. What I am now," Sana inspected herself. "Came after this." She pointed to the couple. "This is one of the things I don't want people knowing about me until I'm gone." She waved her hand and the scene around them shimmer and disappeared, back to her office again.

Lily grabbed onto the chair she had sat in and used to regain her bearing. "A little warning when you do that, please."

"Only two more. Ready?" Sana snapped her fingers this time, the scene once again shimmered and changed.

Sana and Lily were standing in an arena. Thousands of people around them, cheering and screaming. They were at the sidelines of a great pokemon battle.
On one side, Lily
recognized Steven, the Hoenn Champion. Snazzy outfit, powder blue hair. On his side was a Metagross, huge and imposing. She could feel the psychic power emanating from it, distorting the space around it. She could see the tiniest ripples in reality. The Metagross was far from healthy though, it was visibly burned. Not that it would do much to stop it, but it was in pain.

On the other side, the opposite trainer had just recalled her pokemon. And there, wearing just her gown and the red bandana that all Hoenn females wore on their pokemon journey, was Sana, holding the pokeball telekinetically before her. She snapped it back into a small bag she had set on the ground.

The score was 1 to 1. Sana's final pokemon would not stand a chance against this beast.

Lily held onto the present-Sana, intimidated by the crowd and the Metagross. "What is this?"

"You've certainly heard about when I won the Hoenn league?" Sana smiled. She pointed to her past self. "Reach out to her, read her heart. This isn't in my version."

So she did, Lily extended her empathic sense and wrapped it around the past Sana. Sheer terror. Defeat. Wanting to go home and hide in her pokeball. She was in way over her head. Then she had an idea. A ray of hope. Though it would make many people angry. Perhaps people wouldn't notice?

Past-Sana stood in her trainer box and folded her legs up under her, sitting cross legged in the air. She focused on herself, isolating Metagross and herself from all the rest. It was just him and her now. No sound. She could feel the power rising within her. She took that power and honed it like a knife to a whetstone. Sharpening and sharpening.

The referee looked at his watch and called to Sana. "Trainer Sana, you have 20 seconds to send out a pokemon!"

She opened her eyes and nodded. Steadying herself, she held her last pokeball up. "My final pokemon will be..." She made as if to launch the pokeball out to release her pokemon, it zipped onto the field, then back into her bag. Then, as dramatically as possible, as this was part of the act, walked out onto the field herself. "Myself."

The entire stadium went silent, and after a heartbeat, it burst into madness, half booing, half cheering.

Lily watched the judges pour over their books, deciding if this was a legal move amongst themselves. After a long bit of commotion, Steven called to Metagross and they discussed, then Steven shrugged and Metagross returned to the field, in position for the start of the fight.

She took a stance ready, ready to unleash her plan. She called to the judges. "I started my journey myself, I wish to end it myself, even if I lose."

Present-Sana was smiling widely. "So did you catch it? Metagross had."

Lily reached out and sensed both pokemon on the field again. "You...you used Calm Mind outside the battle. Twice. You cheated." Lily was astonished and offended.

"And then I appealed to the judges on an emotional note to allow me to finish. They probably thought I meant to go out fighting."
Lily was horrified. She stood there, mouth agape. "You...you..."

Present-Sana nodded. "Another thing thats not in my book. Do you think it should be added?"

"Absolutely yes!" Lily shouted. "How could you?"

Present-Sana pointed to her past self. "Ask her."

So again, Lily reached out to past-Sana. One thought on her mind. She can't let Alex down. After all he'd done, the travelling, the ridicule, the accusations of using his pokemon to garner attention.

"You...you cheated to honor your master?"

"He wasn't my master at the time...nor my trainer. He was just Alex."

"Doesn't that go in the way of everything that it means to be a trainer?"

"In a way, yes. But results matter more. Watch."

The judges had allowed it. The crowd cheered, half for Steven, half for the spunky garde. Sana was winding up her first attack, as was Metagross. Electricity started to form around her hand, a mighty Thunderbolt attack to fell the mechanical monster.

Metagross shot ahead with blinding speed, one of its arms glowing, its signature Meteor Mash. The pure power behind it would surely defeat the tiny Gardevoir.

The two attacks clashed, Thunderbolt holding off the Meteor Mash by just inches.

Then time stopped.

Lily noticed the change, then she swore she could hear voices.

"I've been wanting to speak with you. I noticed you used Calm Mind...quite impressive." A metallic, emotionless and masculine voice said.

"Thank you, you're quite impressive yourself." Sana's voice said, not trying to hide her crime. The two psychic types were speaking to each other while clashing.

"I've been watching you over Steven's shoulder as he watched your fights, studying you. That you could make a man like him nervous...my pride isn't worth what you've done to help our cause. I won't tell a soul. Keep up the fight, sister."

"What...what do you mean?" Past Sana asked, startled.

Time unfroze, the clash ended with a large explosion. After a moment, a large crash. Everything was quiet now. Steven was in shock. Sana even more so as the smoke cleared, as Metagross lay on the opposite side of arena, partially embedded into the wall, his eyes as Xs.

Sana stood there, her jaw on the floor, unable to believe what had happened.

The area shimmered and flashed and changed again, back to Sana's office. She leaned hard on her desk. "This is...exhausting. I need a break."

"You cheated in the fight but...he gave up?"

Sana looked up at Lily and nodded. "Apparently he was a fan. He's a good pokemon, that Metagross. We became good friends afterwards. And he absolutely destroyed me in a one versus one fight later."

Lily looked down at the book. Sana's victory over Steven was a legend. A story she'd heard even when she was a little Kirlia listening to Nurse Joy, about how to always give your all. And she'd cheated?

"You're distressed. Thats alright. So tell me." Sana sat down in her big chair, leaning into it deeply. "Why did I show you this?"

Lily found her eyes watering. Everything had been yanked out from under her. "I don't know. To hurt me?"

"No. But I am sorry that I have. Please understand, Lily." Sana smiled weakly at her. "I'm not perfect. My book is squeaky clean and perfect. So I leave this question to you; whats more important: the truth, or the story?" Lily seemed confused, so Sana reached out and explained again, this time with perfect understanding. "You probably used my story to inspire yourself to be better. Is that more important than the truth, which as a scientist myself, am obligated to seek out? Which is more useful? This is the decision I want you to make as you spend time with me."

Lily had no answer. She just stood up and floated out of the room, closing the door behind her quietly, her emotions blurring and distorting her energy like a storm cloud.

Sana's eyes narrowed, putting her glasses back on to watch her. She looked down at her desk, then at the door. Her book was missing. Lily had taken it. She was up to something. "I should have known, she was masking her emotions the entire time." She said to herself.
Things were not going to go to plan. She had a different memory for her this next time.

*****

It had been several months since she'd accidentally called him 'master' while in his bed. Sana was getting kind of tired of him 'telling' her to repeat it.

Not that she disliked submitting to him sexually. He was very good at tending to her needs and making her feel desirable and loved. But having to kneel to him? She understood it helped him get off, but he'd been getting a little too rough as of late.

Again not something she disliked. She did like gentleness sometimes though.

After wanting to talk to him about it for awhile, she decided that just talking wouldn't be enough. Sometimes words work, but now Sana was going to remind him who she was. She had everything she needed.

Cute star barrettes for her hair. A hairband with antennae on the top, ending in some sparkling green stars. Finally, a little toy ray gun she'd found at a toy store.

She would be breaking a rule or two, but she figured he'd have fun with it. She put some barrettes in her hair, making it look as if her hair had gold stars in it. Then the antennae, which were battery powered and made the room glow a soft green color, similar to her hair. She checked herself out in the mirror, making sure her gown was cut just a little short in all the right places, adding a long slit to the side to showing off her thigh, then a small cut down the middle so her breasts were barely contained inside.

She heard the door open in the other room, then it shut. He was home. She briefly touched his spirit, he was in a decent mood. With her mind, she turned the lights out in the house and stepped out of the bathroom with her little toy ray gun.

Alex was trying to turn the light back on in the living room. "Sana, did you do this?" He asked, not looking at her as she entered the room.

Sana smiled and projected her meaning into his mind, her actual words being the usual Gardespeak. Her glowing green antennae were the only light source in the room, giving it a soft green glow. "There is no Sana here. Only a sexy alien babe." She leaned against the wall, showing off her cleavage to him. He wasn't looking at her. A quick flick of her wrist yanked his head in her direction, then she continued. "I've traveled here from my home planet to find the sexiest man I could to repopulate my planet."

Alex looked up and down at her, then cracked a wide smile. "I don't know if I believe you. How do I know you're not just pretending to be an alien? What planet are you from?" He stood there, arms crossed, acting defensive, going along with the joke.

She sexily flipped one of her antenna at him. "I...uh...I'm from...the moon?" She said, not sure if that counted as a planet.

"From the moon? So you're a Clefairy? You're kind tall for one." He teased.

"I'm not a Clefairy, I'm a sexy space vixen! See?" She pointed at her antennae. Then she pointed her ray gun at him. "Take your shirt off, human. I need to test if you are compatible with my sexy, alien body."

Alex smiled warmly at her and started to undo the buttons on his shirt. "You know, you sound a lot like a Gardevoir I know..."
Sana approached him, drifting over slowly, swaying so in a way she thought looked otherworldly. She bumped into the coffee table, floated over it, then went to him, raising her levitation height so that they were eye to eye. "She sounds like a real nice Gardevoir. You should give her ice cream the next time you see her."

Alex let his shirt drop to the floor. "She might get angry that I'm seeing a sexy alien vixen though."

"I asked her, I have her permission." Sana and Alex smiled at each other, unable to stifle a laugh. Once they got over their giggling fit, Sana tried to take on as serious a tone as possible. "Hold still, human. I need to determine if you're compatible with my sexy alien body." She lowered her height to her usual height and kissed his next, leaving tiny kisses up and down the side of his neck. "You cannot resist my power, human. Surrender to me."

"And if I refuse?" He let out the softest coo as she gently kissed his neck. He kept his hands to his sides so she could play her game.
"You can't refuse me. You need my sexy alien body. Thats not better than your Gardevoir's body in the slightest. But still pretty good." She added quickly, then moved down to his collarbone, still planting butterfly kisses.

"Then I refuse. Unleash your wrath on me, sexy alien. I can resist." He smirked down at her.

"Big mistake, you stupid human." She pointed the toy gun at him and fired, a little red light appeared at the tip and making a little beeping noise. "Now you're stunned. Next time I fire it might be on kill, you never know!"

He 'fell' down to his knees, looking up at Sana. "Oh, please spare me..." He took her hand not holding the gun and kissed it gently, moving up the underside of it.

She shivered as he did, that was one of her weak spots. "Your tricks won't work on me, human." She withdrew her arm and bent over, letting him see her breasts and horn 'accidentally' fall out of her gown. "Now, surrender to me. Surrender..." Her voice became soft and low, repeating the word surrender to him.

Alex pretended to fall under her spell, then made an effort to snap out of it. "You are a powerful alien..."

"Sexy alien." She corrected.

"Sexy alien, sorry. But I'm too strong for you. I'll never surrender." Alex looked up at her defiantly, she caught him eyeing her breasts.

Sana did enjoy this back and forth, but kissing him had set things in motion inside of her. She needed him, and sooner than later. So she decided to break a rule. Her eyes began to glow blue, and she pointed the gun at him again. "You must surrender..." She reached into his mind very, very gently and began to narrow his perception to just her. Can only see her, can only hear her, can only smell her. "Surrender to me..."

The words became disjointed and floated around in his mind. He slowly began to relax, letting his hands fall to his sides.
She continued the slow Hypnosis attack, gently cradling his mind as it let go of thoughts and worries that weren't of her. "I'm the only thing in the world right now. You need me."

His smile went from sly to a little goofy, and he repeated. "I need you..?"

"Yes...you need this sexy alien body. Go ahead, touch." She lowered him to a kneeling position, then straddled him, floating above him slightly so they were eye to eye. Her blue glowing red eyes now the brightest thing in the room, she leaned forward and touched his forehead. Neither of them blinked. "Touch my body...you need to touch me..."

"I need...to touch..." He slowly raised his hand and placed it on her back, just below her horn. The other he placed on her side.

"Feel my flesh, human. Feel the power I have over you. Feel how soft and smooth it is." She paused for a moment to let him start to grope, then guided the hand on her side to her big nippleless breast, where he started to squeeze it gently, his other hand on her butt now.

"Soft..." He was groping her absentmindely, as if it was a natural reaction.

"Yes...weak, helpless human. Succumb to me. Surrender to me..." She pushed even closer to him, her Hypnosis getting more powerful now. She could sense his arousal, and she singled that out in his heart. "No worries, no responsibility. Just soft, smooth skin, yours to squeeze and grab...I came all the way here from the moon for you..." She swallowed and felt her own needs begin to grow. She needed more time to entrance him fully and safely.

"Must...touch...must..." He was almost completely out of it, he moved his hand to her front horn and started groping it, it being just a little firmer than her round ivory orbs.

She gasped and blushed a little, but liked the direction he was going. "You must kiss...you must kiss me, my good little human." She moved forward to let him kiss, and he did, gently, with just a little tongue. She returned it, using one hand to steady his head and the other to ensure he kept molesting her. She entered his mind now, which was full of mist, and he saw only her. She cradled his mind, making sure it was being gently guided to the state she wanted him in. "Good human...good boy. Kiss the pretty alien. Touch her all over. You don't need to think...just act..."

He fell deeper and deeper. His only thoughts now were kiss and grab.

She delved into his mind once more to make sure his mind was sufficiently and gently handled, then used her hands, physically to undo his belt, and after slipping her hand inside, she moved his member out into the open. She then rested her body just above it, wrapping her legs around him. "You need to be inside me...inside...you belong inside..." She let the command echo in his mind, her Hypnosis still bright in his eyes.

He obediently put his hand on her hip, and she pressed his member against her entrance, which was now plenty ready to accommodate him.

"Inside...you need to be inside..." She whispered her command, then gently began to lower herself onto him.

"Inside..." To her surprise, he used both hands at her waist and pulled her down onto it, going all the way inside to the hilt.

She gasped, wiggling a little. The sudden intrusion into her had surprised her, and since humans had slightly hotter body temperatures than Gardevoirs, it felt hot all the way in. She needed a moment to adjust, but he wasn't letting her move. "Inside..." He kept repeating to himself.

She almost laughed at the situation, then just decided to let it roll. She embraced him gently, pressing her breasts and horn against his chest, enjoying being completely full. After a moment his hands returned to her hips and she could move and wiggle again, which she did. "Yes...inside of me...this is good...you need this...you need to be inside the sexy alien..."

"I need this..." Alex said, then unbidden, his hand ran up her side from her hip, ending with him cupping her head. After a short breath, he pressed her head forward, pressing her into a deep, deep kiss.

Sana's eyes almost rolled back into her head. This was absolutely perfect. She was completely full, there was a powerful emotional bond, his hands were all over her most sensitive spots. She could no longer stand it. "Give me your essence...I need it..."

"You need..." He said, drone like. He continued his deep kissing, moving his butt groping hand up to her back horn, causing a complete connection as he was touching both of her horns now.

Sana's eyes shot open. If the pleasure before had been like scratching an itch, but just outside of it, slightly to the left, slightly below it. Now it was drilling that itch perfectly. "I NEED IT YOU HUMAN, GIVE IT TO ME!" She shouted, loudly, her voice amplified by psychic power.

He moved both his hands down to her hips again and he forced them down, pushing her to accept all of him again, and no matter what she did, she could not wiggle out of it. She embraced him herself, biting down on his shoulder until she felt the hot spurts inside, feeling his entire being behind it. He didn't let her move for a long time, the entranced man ensuring every last drop was inside of her.

"Never let me go...never ever..." Sana said softly. She could only feel her helpless body filled to the brim which quenched the fire inside of her. She collapsed onto him, breathing heavily, not from her own pleasure, but from his hitting her full force and unexpectedly through their psychic link. "So good...so good..." Sana swallowed and ran her three fingered hands up and down his back as she basked in the afterglow, from both of them.

"Never let go..." He said, still entranced. Then his hands moved up to her body and started groping her again. Then the kiss came, deep and insistent. She tried to put up her hands to stop him, but he was too strong. He was stuck in a loop. She tried to command him to let her rest, but his hands went back to her horn, which kept her unable to speak or give mental commands, as his pleasure was flowing into her like water from a faucet, and her cup overflowed.

After awhile, she gave up trying to stop it and just let her hypnotized mate breed her until he passed out completely. By then the room was dark, her little antennae had run out of battery power. She had been completely overpowered physically by him, and despite him being under her complete control, she was still at his mercy. Perhaps planet Earth was safe from alien invasion after all.

She licked her lips and thought to herself. "Perfect."

*****

Sana took a deep breath. Someone had intruded into her sanctuary. It was a good thing though, as she needed desperately to 'talk' to Lily.

On the roof of ETI was a private garden. The entire rooftop was covered in flowers and tall grasses, with 8 trees in an octagon in the center, making a clearing. The trees were all different kinds, so in the autumn they'd make a beautiful firey scene as the leaves changed. She'd designed it after a certain place, that only Alex seemed to recognize. And he was the only other person or pokemon allowed here; there was a blue barrier above it to keep flying types out, and the entirety of ETI had Teleportation scramblers so that no one could teleport in or out. A precaution with having large amounts of psychic pokemon in one area.

Sana was kneeling in the center of her clearing, nude. Which to Sana, meant she was just in her gown. She believed that she could only properly present herself to nature this way. Today she was not asking for inspiration or guidance, but for peace. Serenity to calm her shaking hand.

Lily had walked out of her office with all of her secrets, and she wasn't sure if she would keep from blabbing. Everything could go wrong. She could lose everything. Her mind stayed in the darkest of places, and her emotions were a maelstrom within her. Lily had appeared at the elevator, like an answer to her prayer. Sana tried to calm herself, to at least hide her trepidation from the fellow empath.

Lily floated through the flowers, quiet as a ghost. She reached out to Sana, who she saw kneeling in the clearing before her. "You have a beautiful garden."

Sana used her powers on herself, to force her emotions to calm themselves. "Thank you. Please, join me." She indicated the space next to her.

Lily floated to her side, gliding quietly and gracefully. She knelt and put her hands in her lap, right at Sana's side. They didn't look at each other.

A long silence. Sana trying to keep herself calm, and Lily nervous that she'd burnt the bridge. Both had their hearts hidden to each other, and to an empath, the silence was maddening.

Finally, Lily asked a question. "You usually wear human clothes? Are they warmer than the gown?"

Sana smiled briefly, then went back to her stern countenance. "Yes, in most situations. I wear undergarments to help support my breasts and because certain things are visible on me, my glasses help me see better. I wear a labcoat as its expected of a scientist, and people wouldn't take me as seriously if I didn't." She smiled to herself. "I wear high heeled shoes because my husband thinks they're attractive. But yes, my human clothes are warmer. Not as comfortable."

Lily nodded. Then they both went silent again. Lily still nervous, Sana still trying to calm herself.

Finally, Sana had enough. "Did you tell anyone what you saw?" There. It was out. It was an immense relief.

Lily sighed and lowered her head. "I discussed the championship with my master."

Sana's eyes narrowed. "What did you tell him?"

"Just that it hadn't gone as everyone thought, and it bothered me." Lily could feel anger rising from Sana, she tried damage control. "No great details, and he respected it when I told him I couldn't say more. You can search my mind if you like to confirm."

Sana considered it. Cracking open this whelp's head like a walnut would be easy. "Well, that's better than I expected. I don't need to do that I think. I don't need to take your head in my hands, overpower your defenses, and dig into your mind regardless of your comfort or permission until every last secret of yours has been spilled." Sana looked down at her clenched fist, finally looking at Lily, browbeating her.

Lily felt a wave of violence come over Sana. She lowered herself more, trying to appear weak.

Sana caught herself. She desperately wanted Alex here. He'd always been able to quench the rage in her heart. But he wasn't, and she needed this release. "I know you felt that. Do you want to know what I'm thinking? What I'm afraid of? In fact...lets go to my office. I don't want to sully this place with this vision." Sana stood and undid her gown, falling around her in a heap. With her powers she took her clothes that had been in a pile on the edge of the clearing and they started to float to her.

Lily saw her from behind. Her body was truly alien, wide shoulders, her torso curved in and out on the sides. She could see bones on either side of her back horn, and her legs were much, much thicker than an average Gardevoir's. A strange garment wrapped itself around her chest, it being specially designed to deal with her back horn, wrapping itself around her upper torso and going up her arms and resting on her shoulders. Then she lifted her arms and a blouse went onto Sana's top, then the coat she'd always seen her in wrapped itself around her. A pair of underwear went around her legs and disappeared behind the coat, a rectangle of cloth wrapped around her waist to cover the panties, and then finally her shoes went onto her stocking feet, a little band on her ankle keeping them on while she floated. Finally, she reached out and took her glasses out of the air and put them on her eyes, looking at Lily, then letting them down to her neck. As she stepped out from the heap of her gown, it disappeared, as it always did if it stopped contacting its owner and the owner willed it to.

Sana realized she'd just been watched. "Its a very complex thing, I know. Some of this isn't as comfortable as I'd like, especially the bra."

"Bra?" Lily asked, as they both went to the elevator.

After a quiet elevator ride and a quick float down the hallway, they were both back in the office they'd been in the day before.

"So, it helps support them, and helps strengthen your back muscles?" Lily asked.

"Yes. I sometimes forget how different I am. I can use telekinesis to float like you, but my body isn't as balanced and streamlined, so I wear certain garments to shift the weight around to make myself more comfortable."

"You said it was uncomfortable though."

"Well, if I don't wear it I'll be hunched over all day as they're quite heavy. If I do wear it, I feel it digging into my flesh all day as I move. Even the nicest ones I can still feel do it. And finding a tailor who can make a bra that is designed to go around Gardevoir horns and keep a secret is quite difficult. And I'd have to consciously support them with telekinesis if I wanted to go that route." Sana sat at her desk, crossing her legs and arms. "So, enough with the deception and distraction."

Lily recoiled. She could still sense the brimming violence under Sana's collected presence. "You are angry at me?"

Sana nodded. "I made a great mistake yesterday. I let you go without showing you what I'm about to show you." Sana sighed and leaned back in her hair, resting her feet on the desk. "I want...need you to understand something. Not everyone in Hoenn sees me as a hero. Some see me as less." Sana seemed to lose her words.

Lily nodded, leaning forwards. "They aren't comfortable treating you like a human?"

"Yes. Others still, there are those who would treat me like a scientific curiosity, rather than a person." Sana said.

Lily nodded again.

"These aren't people like Team Aqua or Magma hiding in their dark corners. These are people I have to associate with due to my position. I can read their thoughts, and they have...dark plans for me. Should I let my guard down."

"What sort of plans? Will they study you?"

"Well, of a sort." Sana sat in her chair, touching the tips of her fingers together. The room suddenly went dark as Sana seized control of Lily's perception. "Firstly, they'd have to overpower me. I am an accomplished battler, but not even I could fight 1 vs 6 or more." As she said this, a bolt of lightning struck Lily. A blast of ice afterwards, and then a tumult of rocks fell on her.

Lily gasped, and tried to weather the attacks, but each one hit home and each one was painful, especially the rocks. She covered her head, trying to wrest control of her senses back, but was interrupted when a powerful physical blow caught her right under the front horn, she crumpled over and began to cough and tried to get her breath back. Then she felt a tiny itchiness on her skin, opened her eyes and realized she was being covered in Stun Spores. She felt her entire body spasm and lock into place. All around Lily there were black shadows of humans with glowing red eyes, each with a pokeball in their hand. She called to Sana. "Please, I understand, you're afraid..."

Sana kept her position, floating in her sitting position away from the crowd. Her voice was calculated. "I'm afraid you don't. And then, once you're sufficiently weakened, the pokeballs. One after the other."

A pokeball zipped out of the crowd and hit her on the top of Lily's head. She was sucked in. She could feel the tightness as it restricted her movement inside, feeling those needles dig into her mind, demanding she obey. Lily broke free and was immediately was captured again.

Again and again and again.

After breaking out of the 4th one, she looked up to Sana. "Please...stop it..."

"They wouldn't show me mercy. They've been jealous of my success, and will take great joy in watching me squirm. And its not like pokeballs are expensive." Sana waved her hand and pile after pile of pokeballs appeared around Lily.

Lily recoiled from them, backing away as much as she could while feeling the spores on her skin sting and shock her.

"They may even send...spies..." Sana's voice was as cold as the Ice Beam she'd used before.

Lily gasped, trying her hardest to breathe, each movement only making the Stun Spores make her body more heavy and stiff.

"Then, well, you're captured. What do they do with you then?" Sana said. The shadows and pokeballs disappeared, and a surge of energy filled Lily, her body restored. A snap of her fingers and they were in a dimly lit room. Immediately around Lily there was a fog. Her senses couldn't pierce the fog.

"First, they'd bind your body. Can't study something if its free to move around." Sana's immense power forced Lily to down to all fours. A shackle appeared on each of her limbs, her legs spread wide, her arms forced into position at her neck, around which appeared a cold steel bar, which attached itself to her arms, then froze in place, attached to the ground under her. Finally, a cold metal platform formed under her, letting her body rest on it, with her bottom half hanging off of it, her legs forced apart.

Lily struggled against it, feeling the cold steel dig into her sensitive ivory skin. "You can't...please Sana, I understand now, I do!"

Sana's violence hadn't been quelled yet. "No you do not. Once your body is secure, they'd secure your mind." Sana snapped her fingers again and a helmet appeared before Lily. It fastened itself onto her head, its visor covering her eyes with a dark shade she couldn't see through. "Your powers suppressed..."

Needles entered her brain, it felt like. Each time Lily tried to muster any kind of psychic power, she touched one of the needles and it pricked her. She curled up into a ball in her head, unable to reach out. She couldn't reach out telepathically, all she could feel was the cold metal and colder room.

"Hearing and sight gone. They also don't want you to scream, so they'll make sure you can't." Two probes extended from the helmet, forcing themselves into Lily's mouth. They split, going along with her teeth and forced her mouth open. "They need to keep your mouth open though, so they can feed you." A large smile appeared on Sana's face. This was justice. This is righteous.

Lily tried to bite down on the gag, and it only triggered the needle in her head. She was alone now and defenseless. She couldn't even beg Sana to stop.

Sana's anger was still rising. Lily could hear her voice telepathically, but couldn't reply. "Then, your humiliation begins. You will be fed with a tube, forced into your throat. You will never actually taste it, but its basically oil and grain mashed into a paste."
A tube pressed into her mouth, pushed past her tongue, and forced itself into her throat. Lily was forced to swallow over and over again, lest she couldn't breathe.

Sana still was not satisfied. Lily was not scared enough yet. "You have to understand Lily, that you won't survive the experiments. So they'll breed you. Over and over and over. Either with a captive male pokemon." As she said this, an image of a male Gardevoir wrapped in chains entered her mind, "A machine," An image of a device with a phallic probe and a tube of a thick, white liquid, moving close to between her legs, "Or a Ditto raised specifically for potency and to not care if its partner is willing." A warm slimy sensation climbed up her legs, and just before it made to enter her, it disappeared. "And once he's done...you'll give birth to an egg you'll never see. Once its out, they'll put the male or machine back to work. And they'll run experiments on your children. And it will never stop. Ever."

Lily struggled as much as she could, her words coming out only as unintelligible grunts and moaning, she was crying and terrified. It was too real.

Sana decided enough was enough and yanked Lily out of her body, letting Lily's perception see her own body bound to the breeding stand as it was. "And it can get worse." She held Lily's hand to steady her, then cleared the fog. Around them there were many other pokemon in the same contraption, lined up as if they were on a factory.

Lily could not believe this. "You...you are making this up."

"And as an empath, you'd feel each and everyone one of their screams and agony. The supression helmet doesn't affect that."

"Stop it...stop it..." Lily cradled her own head. She could feel the screams from the pokemon around her, begging for to be released, begging for their trainer, or worst of all, begging to die.

"And if you think your master would go along...he'd either surrender you and willingly put you here...or..." Sana blinked and they were at a graveyard and on a nearby gravestone, was the name of Lily's trainer.

Lily had had enough. All of her power she focused, fueled by raw emotion at the perceived threat to her trainer, and she aimed it directly at Sana. Sana grinned and took the brunt of it, and Lily regained control of her body and senses. They had returned to their office, and Lily was glowing blue with her power. She was holding her hand up as if to unleash a powerful attack on Sana, backing away from her.

Sana's violent impulse had been quelled. She brought herself back into reality, steadying herself.

Lily was waiting for her to make a move, any move at all.

Sana said out loud, in her Kantonian. "Its pretty awful isn't it. I won't show you any voir."

"You are sick, a monster!" Lily looked over her shoulder, as if to run.

Sana switched to telepathy so she could get her point across better. "I admit I can get pretty dark, but what I showed you is reality.  Right at this very moment, people are plotting to put me in that situation. To study me, like I am some...object." Sana, now collected, returned to leaning back in her chair. She was unnervingly calm as she said this. "People that sent you to find dirt on me. Admit it, and I will only look for them in your head when I crack it open, and I won't put you back in that...hell for a year like I planned this morning."

Lily started to back away, but she bumped into something as she floated backwards. She looked up at what it was. It was a tall man, with grey hair. Just as tall as her trainer.

He put his hand on Lily's shoulder, then spoke to Sana, in a deep, comforting voice, like Lily had heard narrarating a book. "I felt the illusion from the university."

Sana stood up and pointed at Lily. "She's going to reveal us to the world. She stole my book yesterday. I'd bet there's a line of trainers outside, ready to capture me!"

The man approached her and wrapped his arms around her. She kept her hands at her side, Lily could only see her hands dangling at her sides from behind him. "There's no trainers outside. Just me, and a bunch of worried pokemon downstairs because they heard your outburst."

"But...but...she..." Sana wrapped her arms around him. "I...I messed up. Didn't I."

He just nodded, swaying with her.

"But she took the book...and she was hiding her feelings...she was trying to deceive me..."

The man looked to Lily. "Why were you deceiving her?"

Lily looked sheepishly at the ground. "I wanted her to like me. I was also really distressed when she told me about the fight with Steven, and I didn't want her to think I was on the verge of tears. I took the book with me because I thought to read it over night to get a better idea." Lily produced the book and floated it to the man.

Sana shook her head. "Oh...no...I..." She buried her head into his chest, starting to sob.

"You must be Alex then." Lily said.

Alex nodded. "Yes. You actually did read her book then." He started to stroke Sana's back as she sobbed, her immediately calming down as he did.

"Well not exactly."

Alex raised his eyebrows. "You should explain why you are still here then."

"She promised me what I wanted most, the ability to spend more quality time with my master." Lily said, holding her hands before her. "She also noted how easily you can calm her down. Its kind of amazing. She was trying to kill me awhile ago."

"Yes. She is such a powerful little thing, but turns into putty when I hold her." Alex grinned and kissed Sana's forehead. "She'd do well to call me master from now on."

Sana smacked him then continued her gentle sobbing.

"Firstly, let me apologize on her behalf. Are you hurt?"

Lily examined herself. "Just on edge, scared. I'd...really like to see my master now." Lily floated backwards till she touched the door.

"I fully understand. Please, go to him. I will tend to Sana. Then later, or tomorrow, I will visit you..." He looked down to Sana. "By myself. I want to make this right, and its in our best interest to keep things quiet."

Lily looked to Sana, who seemed small and young in his arms. Just like the young garde she'd been reading about in the book.
Alex cradled her head, stroking her back, knowing the effect his touch had on her. No words needed to be spoken, he was just holding his helpless little pokemon in his arms as it cried.

*****

Closeness.

His breath, his heartbeat, his warmth. She needed this.

The physical manifestation of the bond she felt with him.

His arms were heavy and restricting. In some positions it was difficult to breathe.

Before tonight she'd never been closer to him than sitting in a chair next to him.

This was intimacy. True intimacy.

Her entire being was infused with him. He was touching both of her horns. There was nothing between them.

She lay with him, a little hot, her eyes wide open, unable to sleep.

He was dreaming.

His dream was as vivid to her as if she was thinking it. Not the details of it, but the emotions being poured out from him.

He was scared. He was also happy. She didn't know Dream Eater so she couldn't tell exactly what was going on.

He felt a closeness, a completeness. A life form was near him and it filled him with love and pride.

Who was it?

Was it a family member?

Was it her?

She couldn't tell. All she knew was each time she tried to wiggle out of his arms, he'd keep her close and the bond would deepen.

His mind was open to her. She browsed through it, as gently and lightly as she could to not interrupt his dream.

His fears. His hopes. His worries. His favorite food, favorite color.

Memories of holding up the little Kirlia in his hands.

How proud he was when she evolved.

How surprised he'd been when she had become more than what he had expected.

The Gardevoir's eyes began to water, and she wondered if he could see into her mind as well. If he could, she decided to think about how much she enjoyed being his pokemon, and how happy she was to have him near.

A need. There was a need for him. An emptiness that only her trainer could fill. That he had been filling.

She needed him. That would be the message she'd leave for him.

She lay awake the rest of that night, succumbing to her slumber only as the sun rose over the horizon, shining into the cottage's window.

*****

"She has quite the imagination." Alex had told her.

Nine a.m., a knock on the door. Lily had answered the door, and the same tall man was there. She had backed away, scared and called to her trainer. Then a voice entered her mind, most certainly not her trainer's.

"May I come in?"

She'd never, EVER met a human that could speak with her telepathically. She'd stood there, mouth agape as her trainer greeted him as 'Professor Alex.' He was terrifying. Still raw from her assault from Sana, and she could sense he energy all over him.

Her trainer pet her to calm her, then Professor Alex said, "Use a V-shape with your hand and stroke the bottom of her back horn on both sides."

He took Lily in his arms, her looking up at him unsure, then he tried, gently squeezing the base of her back horn on both sides.
Lily melted immediately. She leaned heavily on him, the perfect touch interrupting even her telekinetic movement. She let out a small moan, sounding like a gentle pirate. "Ahh...arr....arde...."

"It works on Director Sana as well. Excuse me, just Sana. Its hard to switch from professional to casual mode." Alex saw that his pupil was nervous and his pokemon was swooning. "Lets sit. I need to speak with Lily about what happened."

Lily served all three some cheap and mostly worn out tea, which had been used so much it barely flavored the water.

And there was barely any room in the studio apartment. Lily and her trainer on the couch/bed, and Alex on a chair, with a 'spool' between them to keep the cups on.

"So she told me what she did."

"Gardev, gardevoir voir voir! Arde, voir, gardevoir!" Lily pulled back into her trainer's arms.

"You can speak plainly, my dear garde. In fact I am only speaking to you with words to keep your trainer in the know." He winked at her, then telepathically, said, "I know a few tricks."

Lily dug herself further into her master's embrace. Her trainer apologized. "She is still really upset, but won't tell me why."

Alex nodded. "Lily, if I may, can I see the meeting you had with Sana the other day, via your horn?"

Lily recoiled, covering her front horn, shaking her head.

"Please, my dear. For both your peace and my wife's." Alex lowered his head.

"Wait...you're, married to Director..." Her trainer was startled.

"I see you kept your word to keep our secret Lily. You're a good garde. I appreciate it. But please." Alex reached his hand out, wrinkled and shaky, as if to take Lily's hand.

For some reason, Lily trusted him. When his hand touched the top of Lily's horn, she braced for a sudden intrusion into her conciousness like Sana had done.

But there was nothing. He was there, but his presence left no impact.

Her trainer saw this. "Lily, are you all right?" He placed his hand on her back horn.

Lily gasped at the sudden intrusion, falling forward to get away from his hand on her back.

"Gently, son. Ask her what was different about my hand to yours."

Lily looked to him. "Master, this man's touch is invisible. I couldn't feel him connect with me. You...were much more blunt. Like a hammer."

Lily presented her front horn to him again, and he once again placed his hand gently on it.

Telepathically linked, he spoke to her. "You have been having dreams about Sana?"

Lily's face turned red. "I had suspicions. I've seen many things about her. The eggs, the bonding, the girl that got attacked by the Golbat...the weird alien thing you two do...I hope you made her pay for that hypnosis trick."

Alex bursted out laughing. "I did. That I did."

"So why was I dreaming about her life, when I hadn't met her yet?"

"Same wavelength I think." Alex pointed to Lily's horn. "Same reason I can talk to you in my head, and the same reason you could see her memories without corrupting them. I'm guessing they started when you two moved here?"

Lily nodded. "She loves you. Deeply. She also hates that she can't be what you need."

Alex sighed, then looked to her trainer, then to her. "I was never what she needed either. I think it was because we felt we were inadequate for each other, that we tried so hard..."

"Are you two talking to each other? I want in as well." Her trainer said, pouting.

Alex closed his eyes, then addressed Lily's trainer. "You see, I'm allowing the garde to steer. I just want to see what she saw." After a moment, Lily began to breathe heavily and Alex removed his hand gently. "Sana scared her pretty thoroughly. Now, Lily. I just want to tell you, what she showed you isn't real."

Lily shook her head. "She told me it was going to happen if I betrayed her."

"Yes, but those...centers, they don't exist any more. They used to." Alex sipped his tea. "One of those things she didn't put into the book."

"Why are you telling me this?" Lily asked.

"It means her threat to you has no teeth. She has always been very emotional. Very high highs and very dark lows. When we were younger it wasn't as bad...she's gotten worse."

"Why is Director Sana threatening Lily?" Her trainer got defensive.

"Sana sees shadows everywhere. She saw the breeding center once and she now thinks every human aside from me is out to put her in one. A bit paranoid."

Lily interjected. "A bit? It felt so real, like..."

"The one time we did find a center like that, she attempted to bond with every single pokemon there, to try and soothe them. It was beyond her power. It destroyed her emotionally, but humbled her as well." Alex said, tasting the flavored water.
"Her power? Beyond her? She's like...a goddess..." Lily said.

"You've seen just her offensive psychic powers. The empathic power you gardes have isn't able to handle that much load, no matter how good they are at manipulating matter. But she tried anyway. It scarred her. If it could happen to them, it could happen to her."
"She's dangerous then. You can't always be around. Maybe she should be recaptured?" Lily suggested.

Alex nodded. "I've considered it. It would stunt her abilities, but she's worked hard to prove herself over the years. It may even her out. Give her a measure of peace...perhaps its time we retire?" Alex shook his head. "I don't know. I know she's terrified of me dying."

"I'm terrified of something happening to him." She pointed to her trainer. "Yet I don't lock people in illusions like that."
"I can understand that answer. I'm not here to ask for forgiveness on her behalf. Just here to comfort you and your trainer in saying that her threat to you isn't real, and that I am sorry I was not there to intervene. I sensed her distress but I thought she could handle it."

Lily then beamed a message to him telepathically. "You are very open about your emotions. Not like my trainer."
He replied in the same. "Living with my Gardevoir over the years has made me much more willing to express myself that way. By the way, he knows you're talking about him." He pointed to her trainer, who was quite angry.
"Are you two talking about me?"

"Yes. Only good, I assure you." Alex said. "In any case, my boy, I'd appreciate if you can keep a secret about Sana and I. Your garde already is. In fact, you have my permission to share everything you've learned about Sana and I with him. Its not fair for you to shoulder this burden alone." He nodded at Lily. "As for 'hush money' as its called...Sana would have to be present. She makes a lot more than I do."

"I...what do you think of this, Alex? You are aware of what she's asking me?"

"Yes, it was my idea to have her mention Venusian Gardevoirs, to bait someone who could see through her glamour but didn't want to mention it. No, you're not crazy." Alex stood and bowed to the couple on the couch curtly. He looked to Lily, then asked in her mind. "Any more questions?"

"How are you able to do this? Like, talk to me like this?" Lily asked.

"I'm simply using the same channel of power I do when I talk to Sana. Which means..." He smiled down at her, genuinely. "I don't know. I didn't expect it to work when I came here. I only did it out of habit. Sana is the only Venusian Gardevoir I'm aware of. And...probably ever will. Though it would mean the world to her if she were to meet another."

Alex nodded to them both, tipped his hat to Lily, told her trainer he looked forward to seeing him in class, then departed. They sat staring at each other.

Her trainer lifted her up and sat her on his lap. Lily leaned back into him, resting her back horn against him, appreciating the comfort. Her trainer ran his hand down her side, moving his hand down to her butt, squeezing it lightly. "Do you think he was able to tell?"

Lily rested in his grasp, letting his hands wander from her thigh up to her breast. She shimmered blue for a moment, then stretched her legs out and wiggled her stocking feet, finally able to relax. "I think our secret is safe."