The Other Side of the Coin

"Again, thank you for your help getting unstuck, but I am perfectly capable of continuing on my own."

'Oh, it's no trouble at all, Thảo can easily push your chair, and we certainly couldn't just leave you on your own. When we catch up with your companions…"

They'd been talking in circles for a while now, and it was taking all of Hailey's very meagre social decorum to not scream. That, and doing so would probably just cause another attack too.

They were back in the tunnels now, winding, vaguely circular, with a soft floor of sediment. It probably would have really sucked to try and push through it, but she could have, definitely.

Brigit was walking by her side, quite overly focused on her new travelling buddy right now. The concern was still in her voice, but her demeanour had changed again now that they were back in the dim, buzzing incandescent light of the stringed bulbs. Calm, though in a sleepy way rather than a controlled way. Weird, was this also inheritance or did she just have seasonal affective disorder?

As insisted, Thảo was behind, big meaty hands on the handles, easily driving the chair through the silt and dirt. Also hitting every possible bump in the road, but she seemed to be having trouble focusing in general. Her neck was so long that even behind them both, the Tropius' head was still in view, leaned low and forward, just under the ceiling. Whenever Brigit spoke Hailey could see her eyes flick to her partner, and whenever she spoke up, the big leafy ladies vision clearly wandered. Instead focusing on the many interesting patches of rock sticking out of the wall. A grass type amateur geologist, who would have guessed?

Gathering her breath, Hailey tried to sound diplomatic, in a nonchalant way. "I… think I've already mentioned, there is no other group, or partner. I am travelling on my own, I just decided… it would be nice to see more of the path. Then I got stuck."

"For how long though? You were asleep when we found you. What if we hadn't come along?" Brigit was not letting that slip past, no matter how tired she may have actually been she was clearly no bimbo. "And how do you not have a partner? You can't just waltz into the wilderness alone, it's just not done."

How? Ouch, real shot to the heart there, she’d like to see these two, or anyone really, find someone dumb enough to stick with her. The longer this conversation went on the more likely two things were. One, the fact that she was… kind of a fugitive, it was a grey area, it might come out. And two, she might try to throttle the very nice woman who was just concerned for her safety with her pathetic stick arms. Each word must be chosen with care.

"Oh… not long I'm sure, just a little nap, the sound of the water, even those Zubat, was kind of soothing. Speaking of though…" deflect and re-target. "I really appreciate what Thảo did to help, but it sure is a shame they had to get roughed up, pretty sure they were just angry their nap was interrupted."

That actually got a laugh out of Brigit, more of a snort really. "Yeah, I can sympathize with em, nine out of ten of my naps are interrupted by Thảo to, though not usually with a Solarbeam. Hopefully the type matchup means they only got stunned."

"Type Shmype, you know I'd blow Articuno out of the sky if she came for you Bribri. After all, this is aaaaaaaaall mine, isn't it?." The husky voice terminated in a smack that echoed only slightly less than the squeel that followed. At that moment Hailey was actually thankful for the long, stringy hair that normally made her look like a drowned corpse. It blocked the flush that so rarely graced her grey parlour.

Irritation, anger, yeah, that was it.

She might well have been the most sheltered person on the whole damn planet, but she wasn't blind. Nurses and other staff sneaking down the hall or into a uninsulated closet, near manic teams and the 'celebrations' that sometimes happened after a healthy verdict, the constant innuendos on the news, even her books weren't free of it.

It always made her blood boil. Yeah, you're having a great time, now keep it out of my business. Apparently that was to much to ask though, it was on her to grit her teeth and ignore it.

"Thảo! Not now! Wait till we have some private time! If I wanted an audience I would have become a trainer. But, ummm."

She couldn't see it, but she was sure the Pokémon had a lascivious smirk on her face. "Huh? Who? Oh, oh right. You should really not mumble though little leaf."

Well, at least she wasn't the only one turning red now. Arceus save her from horny fools, but Arceus was the one who made them in the first place.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

She'd been getting flashbang’d a lot lately, but Hailey still enjoyed getting back out into the open air. It had been a new experience, so different from… anything else she'd done before, but she didn't think she was a 'cave person'. The only thing she'd missed was not having to keep a constant eye on the sky. Still, for now she just enjoyed the fresh air, the blue sky, and the sun in the East.

East?

Oh, that hadn't just been a nap. Best to keep that to herself.

Thảo took an opportunity to stretch, really stretching out a plain tank top in the front while her broad leaf wings stretched in the back. Hailey took the opportunity to take back control of the chair, spinning it around to face the pair head on. Step one, control the conversation that was inevitably going to start.

"Surprised you were out and moving down there Thảo, must have felt beyond cramped." Thảo didn't respond, continuing her stretches, onto arm bars now and she clearly wasn't wearing a bra. Not surprising for a Pokémon but it certainly made some things 'pop'. Brigit coughed to fill the silence before she answered instead, "Well yeah, grass types usually prefer open spaces but what can I say, my Thảo has always been an explorer. Heck, she's why were even out on this day trip. I would have been happy lounging at home but she was like 'let's go for a walk Brigit, you're turning into a potted plant Brigit, we should check out that cave Brigit'. Isn't that right herbhead?"

"You know you love it Bribri, if it wasn't for me you'd just sit in front of those damn screens till you rooted to the floor, but why are you talking to yourself."

Fuck.

Hailey's stomach dropped, the other times could have been brushed past but she saw Brigit's jaw drop there, she was going to ask what was going on. Another highly singular character trait was about to come out. The worst part was making a run for it would just be more conspicuous AND there was no way she could outwheel even a apparent couch potato.

"Thảo! What in Hoopa’s Holes is wrong with you?!" The height difference really made the shock the grass type got all the more apparent as she jumped back from someone literally half her size, and probably a quarter of her weight, throwing her hands up. "It's one thing to be absent minded, I know very well you've usually only got one thing running around in there, but to just blatantly ignore someone? After you've spent the last hour pushing them around? You better have a good fucking explanation for this or you're sleeping in the ball for a long time!"

If she ended up causing a actual breakup over her stupid crap Hailey thought she might just wheel herself into the nearest lake. Bad enough it ruined her life. There was nowhere to go though. Thảo started looking around, but not with her body at all, like how a human might. It was really like someone had stapled a… Ekens or something on top of a Rhydon. The serpentine neck flowed around like water left to right, up and down, till it finally focused, and Hailey got the sense that Thảo actually saw her for the first time.

She hated it.

'Yes, here I am’ was all that ran through her mind, 'What's the worst part to you? The sunken, dead eyes? The drowned witch hair? The arms that were a boney mess of prominent veins and track marks? Or perhaps the even more pitiable limbs that seemingly didn't work at all?’ As bad as being ignored was, it was nothing compared to being under the microscope, all she could do was brace.

"Briiiiigit? How long… I mean, you say I've been pushing her for an… hour? I thought we were just… walking in the tunnels… the Zubat got riled up for some reason… the light… why did I use Sunny Day?"

The thud of the Tropius' butt hitting the ground felt like someone should have called timber first. The shock and the impact almost made her jump out of her chair, and Thảo's head was still able to look down on her. Unfair really.

The fastest way past this thing was probably through unfortunately. They more they guessed the more she would stick in their minds. “Brigit? You don't need to yell at Thảo, she's not doing it on purpose." Brigit looked unconvinced by that, so Hailey dove back in to cut her off. "Yes, I'm being serious, this is what always happens with Pokémon, they have… let's call it trouble, focusing on me. It's weirdly complex, not well understood, but there's nothing they can do about it. So please, don't yell at her."

There, hopefully just enough information. If she had to get into history to end this, it wouldn't be pretty.

Thảo was still sitting, there, probably would have rested her chin on her hands if that wasn't a far bigger undertaking for her. Brigit kept looking like she wanted to say something, then pulling it back. If Hailey had to guess based on past experience, wanting to know more but also not able to figure out how without being rude.

Despite the cliche, it was still a welcome distraction when Brigit's stomach let out a loud growl. That seemed to snap Thảo out of her pondering as well, "Brigit, you did actually eat the food I put out for you, right? You didn't just drink a cup of coffee before a hike to another town, right?" The silence that came from the other girl was deafening.

Lunch was a good distraction.

------------------------------------------

Thảo was so broad that Hailey hadn't even noticed the backpack she'd been lugging, it looked comically small in her hands. They clearly hadn't packed for anything other than a lunch in the woods but it still was more than she'd brought along. Hell, Thảo probably ate more in a meal than she did in a month.

A pot with a lid, a ladle, a butane burner, all standard camping stuff you could pick up at any Mart, but Hailey found herself fixated on it. You couldn't exactly have a open flame in a hospital ward, and she wasn't on good terms on the cooks, a title she only used generously, that worked down on the main floor. Cooking shows had once been a favourite of hers, till she finally got annoyed at the fact she never got to try anything like that.

Strange thing was, Thảo seemed to only be pulling out fruit. She recognized some pieces, even if she normally only got them in mush form. Oran, Cheri, Pecha, but there were also ones she didn't know, like a chunky yellow one with brown ridges. She even reached up to her chin and broke off one of the long ones there! Was that… ok to eat? Thảo seemed unconcerned as she pulled out a wicked sharp looking flat knife and started chopping at a speed that made Hailey fear for her fingers. Some were positively bursting with juice, others looked far more solid, but all went into the pot.

Brigit meanwhile had been tasked with sourcing some water and sparking the stove. It was subtle, but Thảo visibly flinched a little when the spark caught. The two didn't need to talk at all, they knew their roles here. Jealousy wasn't what she'd been hoping to feel on this trip, quite the opposite for once, but there was no point in making a scene.

Instead she just reached into one of the bag still attached to the chair, rummaging around till she grabbed a package. Why did they have to make plastic so noisy? Pulling the cellophane bag out she squinted at the label. Grumpig Gummies? Whatever, it would work. She tried to open it quietly but, well, there's really no possible way, so when she looked up again, she caught both of them staring at her.

Or at the Gummies actually. Were they some kinda health nuts?

Brigit looked like she wanted to say something, Thảo actually did. "That's not all your lunch, is it Hondew?"

"Just a snack, I don't eat much." It wasn't her fault, the vending machines in the Hospital only sold crap. Good ones sold things like sandwiches, pizza, even burgers, she'd seen it on TV!

"Oh come on, you're already all skin and bones now that I get a look at you. BriBri, how many place settings did you pack?"

"Just our two unfortunately, didn't think we'd meet anyone."

"Well you can give her mine, I'm hardly gonna shrivel up!" An exclamation followed by a hearty laugh and slap of the belly. Hailey could only sputter.

"No no, it's fine! I've got… plenty of snacks!" If her crooked smile didn't make them both frown, the sad, half full plastic bag would. It wasn't fair, it wasn't like she'd ever had a job! There was only so much change people dropped around her! Getting a hand to get unstuck was one thing, how did you wave off people trying to feed you?!

The answer was, you couldn't. A slightly battered metal bowl and spoon was shoved onto her lap, quickly filled by a deep ladle that Thảo seemed to wield like a third arm. The kitchen was certainly her domain back home, Hailey would have bet that Brigit was a lot skinnier back before the two had met. The way the Tropius was staring her down, it was like she was under a spotlight.

The soup, or was it a stew? Whatever, was a surprisingly vibrant orange, slightly thick, with various chunks of fruit bobbing like buoys. It was certainly like nothing any cafeteria lady had ever served her, almost every meal was boiled till it it fell apart, hold the spices and salt. Well, if 27 years of that didn't kill her, what chance did this have?

Huh, were did it go?

Her brain lagged like a Slowpoke, took a sec for the whole experience to hit her consciously. Her taste buds must have atrophied over the years, for them a occasional over processed hit of salty or sweet was the most they usually had to deal with. But this stew (soup?)? It was… fresh was the only word that came to mind, even though it was wholly inadequate, just like her vocabulary.

Brigit had a hand up to her mouth, looking like she was trying to suppress a giggle, Thảo had no such decorum. The Tropius openly grinned at her, wiggling her eyebrows. "See? What did I tell you?" She boomed with obvious pride, "I tell you some Pokémon think all you need to land a lady is a fat cock and some pickup lines, but they never see home cooking coming!"

Brigit actually did laugh at that, scooching over a bit to lay a hand on her partners thigh. "Yep, no cheesy pickup lines from this one at all, certainly none to do with comparing parts of my body to various fruits. Cookings the only reason I keep her around really."

Thảo sputtered at that, "What? Only reason?! Well I guess you do like swallowing things, what was that you were begging me for the other night? To 'fuck your throat pussy with my tongue till it came out the other side?' I guess you just are my little glutton, only sticking with my for the feedings. In fact, it might be time for one right now!"

Hailey was honestly only half paying attention, her tongue had a mind of its own, roving around her lips in search of just one more morsel. Looking down she wondered if there was any more in the pot, if they'd perhaps mind a second healllllllll--- that was a cock, that was straight up a Pokémon cock jutting out of Thảo's lap, rising like a palm above the pot.

Hailey was aware of them of course, even the fact that Pokémon had the uncanny ability to make the vanish into thin air when they wanted. Regardless if they wore clothes or not, only tournament level shamelessness would have them just flopping around in public. Even if people (and her nurses) were constantly sneaking off into hidden spots for a quickly, they generally did in fact sneak away before getting down and dirty. So why was Thảo so comfortable?

Oh.

She'd forgotten Hailey was there, again. And judging by how Brigit was currently practising her snake swallowing, she probably wasn't thinking straight either. Not surprising really, she may have known the basic facts of life, but Hailey still had a hard time believing the two actually made it work as a couple.

Thảo was… intimidating, to put it mildly. Calling it a trunk was no understatement. It was coloured brown, like the rest of her body, and looked thick enough around that you'd need both hands to eat that meal. There was almost no taper going up the length of that beast, ending in a wide, flat top like the cut end of a sawn log after you sanded the edges down some. There were also these weird… ridges? going up. The whole thing could have been textured like bark for all she knew.

And Brigit… fucked that thing? Regularly? How was she not the one in a wheelchair, it was almost the size of one of her legs! Arceus it was pulsating, hungrier than she'd been after her first bite.

This was… to much. She was getting distracted, but so were they. This was her chance to scoot without anymore questions or awkward goodbyes. It wasn't wise to push a fast pace and risk triggering another attack, but she was feeling good from lunch, warm deep inside.

The screams and moans that followed her for far to long also had something to do with it.