Chen Yan walked into the Pokémon Center with Gengar. Seeing that it was Chen Yan, Nurse Joy stood up from her chair at the front desk and walked over.
"Why did you bring food again?" Nurse Joy asked, looking at the bag in his hands.
"We've packed all our things and will be leaving shortly. This should be the last meal," Chen Yan said with a smile.
"But..." Nurse Joy trailed off, looking as if she wanted to say more.
"I know, cold, zero calories, no heat. Don't worry and eat it."
"Really? Then I'll rest easy. Thank you." Nurse Joy took the food, placed it on the counter, and then spoke:
"Let's go, I'll take you to pick up Glameow for discharge."
Chen Yan nodded.
Nurse Joy led Chen Yan into Glameow's ward, where Chansey was removing the bandages from Glameow.
Glameow, who had been laughing and chatting with Chansey, instantly tensed up its little face the moment it saw Chen Yan and Gengar enter, and turned its head away.
Chen Yan and Gengar exchanged glances and laughed.
"Its legs won't develop any chronic ailments in the future, but it's best not to stand, walk, or run for long periods of time this week to avoid lingering issues," Nurse Joy noted aside, explaining the precautions after discharge.
Chansey removed the bandages, applied fresh medicine, and tied a clean bandage into a bow.
Once Chansey released its hands, Glameow stood on all fours on the bed, lowering its body as it tried to attempt a jump.
Before its body could even begin to jump, it flew up into the air on its own.
"Meow?" Glameow wore a puzzled expression, right until it saw Chen Yan's face at close range.
Chen Yan reached out to support its belly and scooped it straight up into his arms.
"Didn't you hear what Nurse Joy said? You can't just run and jump around carelessly. Did you really want to end up crippled and limping?"
"Meow!!!"
Glameow's fur instantly fluffed up, every claw in its paw pads fully unsheathed as it prepared to launch an attack right at Chen Yan's face.
"Wait..." Nurse Joy reached out her hand to stop Chen Yan, as she knew Glameow's habits all too well; it never let any human touch it.
"Ghostly."
Chen Yan called out.
Gengar's face suddenly appeared right in front of Glameow, causing Glameow to instinctively close its eyes.
"Stop messing around. Have you forgotten who saved you? I know you hate me. Don't worry, I'll be leaving Sandgem Town today, and you won't ever see me again after this."
"Meow?"
Glameow opened its eyes and looked at Chen Yan, a trace of confusion lingering in its beautiful blue feline pupils.
Leaving? Where to?
Even Glameow itself didn't realize that its gaze carried a hint of reluctance.
Chen Yan stared into Glameow's eyes for a long time, then broke into a grin.
"Of course, I'm continuing our Pokémon Journeys with Gengar, so you can rest easy. No one will come bother you anymore, and nobody will want to pluck your fur either."
"Meow!"
Glameow rebuked Chen Yan angrily.
Chansey had told it a few days ago that the fur in his hand back then hadn't been plucked by him at all; it had simply fallen out on its own due to malnutrition.
"Alright, I'll send you out." Chen Yan reached out to pet its head, only to be swatted away by its paw with utter disdain.
Chen Yan shook his hand, feeling the weight in his palm. "Not bad, you've put on quite a bit of weight."
Compared to the first time he held it, it was much heavier, yet still retained a lean, bony feel.
He couldn't tell if Glameow was naturally built that way or if it was still somewhat malnourished.
Treated like a toy and teased, Glameow opened its mouth and chomped down on Chen Yan's hand.
"Ouch, so fierce? Do you believe I'll let Gengar teach you a lesson?" Chen Yan pulled his hand back and glared threateningly at Glameow.
"Meow!"
Glameow met Chen Yan's eyes head-on and let out a low growl.
Nurse Joy beside them pressed her lips together, exchanged a look with Chansey, and caught the amusement in each other's eyes.
"Alright, I won't tease you anymore. Say goodbye to Nurse Joy and Chansey."
Glameow twisted its head away and ignored Chen Yan.
Well now, what a little tsundere indeed.
Chen Yan smiled and shook his head, then turned to Nurse Joy and Chansey, speaking up, "Thank you both for all your hard work these past days. I'll be taking it away now."
"Heh-heh--"
Thanks for the effort~
Metapod: [Blinking.jpg]
"It was only our duty." Nurse Joy nodded.
Chansey gazed at Chen Yan with undisguised reluctance.
If you leave, who's going to bring me food anymore... Boo hoo hoo.
Chen Yan held Glameow as he walked to the entrance of the Pokémon Center, then looked back to nod at Nurse Joy and Chansey.
"Chen Yan."
Nurse Joy called out to stop him, and Chen Yan looked at her curiously.
She offered a gentle smile and gave a slight bow, "May fortune favor your journey."
The corners of Chen Yan's eyes crinkled. "Thank you."
Chen Yan carried Glameow out of the Pokémon Center, where Professor Rowan watched the Glameow in his arms with curiosity.
The friend Chen Yan said hated him was a Glameow?
Chen Yan continued carrying Glameow to the spot where they had first met, then bent down and set Glameow onto the ground.
Glameow stepped onto the concrete pavement of the road, gazing at Chen Yan with its pretty blue pupils.
Chen Yan squatted down, reached out to stroke its head, and naturally drew a round of chewing and biting.
However, relying on the hand-speed he had honed from dealing with mischievous Gengar, Chen Yan pulled his hand back in time. He looked at the Glameow before him and smiled as he spoke:
"Alright, you can go now."
Glameow didn't budge an inch.
"Remember what Nurse Joy said. Rest well first, don't run around too much, and once you're fully healed, running around won't be a problem."
"I told Nurse Joy that if those Meowth dare to come give you trouble again, you should just go stay at the Pokémon Center, or head over to Professor Rowan's research institute."
Glameow kept staring straight at Chen Yan.
Behind him, Professor Rowan stood under a tree, watching Snivy-which had suddenly appeared up in the branches-and smiled softly.
After chattering away with a long series of parting instructions, Chen Yan squatted on the ground, gazed at the Glameow before him, and said, "Let's go."
At those words, Glameow gave Chen Yan one deep look, then turned its body around and headed toward the alley.
Before stepping into the alley, its body paused for a fraction of a second, but it didn't look back; instead, it continued walking inside.
Chen Yan stood up, walked over to Professor Rowan, exchanged a few words with him, and then hurried off.
Inside the alley, Glameow walked carefully through the shadows, its mind recalling the days it had spent in the Pokémon Center.
Even though, apart from the first two days when he came in to torment it, he hadn't entered its ward again, Glameow knew that for all the days that followed, he had come to check on it every single day, right outside the ward window-only each time, it had simply been pretending to sleep.
And the song he used to sing...
"Meow."
Glameow let out a low meow and shook its head.
Humans cannot be trusted!
Learning its lesson, Glameow tried its best to shake Chen Yan out of its mind and continued walking forward.
Until it caught sight of those Meowth once more.
Glameow's entire coat of fur puffed up on end. It glared fiercely at them, lowering its body as its sharp claws slid out from its paw pads.
When the Meowth on the opposite side saw that it was Glameow, they exchanged glances, then all dropped to their knees, banged their heads on the ground a few times, and fled the alley running for their lives.
Glameow: ???
Gazing at the stumbling backs of that pack of Meowth and the injuries on their faces, Glameow blinked its eyes.
You really are an idiot!
Both you and Gengar!
Glameow spun its body around and, disregarding Nurse Joy's strict advice, broke into a rapid sprint until it burst out of the alley.
It gazed at the bustling crowds coming and going on the street, but among the throngs of people, that punchable face was nowhere to be found, nor was there any sign of that obnoxious purple figure.
It sat down at the boundary where the sunlight met the alley's shade, watching the endless stream of people pass by ahead.
After a very long while, it stood up, turned around, lowered its head, and headed back toward the alley.
It had barely taken two steps when it bumped right into a leg. Angrily, it raised its head, preparing to teach the human in front of it a lesson.
The moment it lifted its gaze, it discovered a punchable face beaming down at it with a wide smile.
Glameow stared in a dazed, cold shock.
Chen Yan panted heavily, steadying his violently pounding heart, and then smiled. "I kept worrying that you wouldn't turn back."
With that, he squatted down and placed two small fish right in front of Glameow.
"I was afraid I'd miss meeting you, so I ran all the way back."
"Meow?"
Glameow tilted its head, looking at Chen Yan with curiosity.
"Glameow, you know what? Back in our hometown, if someone wants to take home a cat, they have to bring a betrothal gift."
Glameow blinked its eyes.
"Meow?"
Are you trying to bribe me?
Chen Yan chuckled softly. "Not really. Actually, if a person wants a cat to help them do something, they have to pay some wages as compensation for the cat."
"Meow?"
What could I possibly help you with?
"Hmm... What can you help me with? You can help with plenty of things, like letting me cuddle you when I sleep at night... cough cough."
Meeting Glameow's death glare, Chen Yan cleared his throat with a couple of coughs, then continued:
"Keeping me company to chase away the boredom is the biggest help of all."
"Meow..."
I don't like to fight... And I can't fight either...
"That's totally fine, no need to fight at all. We have Gengar and Metapod for fighting, right?"
"Heh-heh--"
That's right, just leave it to Big Brother me!
Metapod: [Blinking.jpg]
Gengar: It says leave it to Second Brother.
"Meow?"
Then I'm your cat now?
"No." Chen Yan shook his head.
A look of sadness surfaced in Glameow's eyes.
"No one belongs to anyone; we're family. Do you know what family means?"
"Glameow will always be Glameow, nobody's appendix or possession. It's just that on our journeys ahead, we'll accompany each other, encourage each other, and help each other out. Perhaps there will be places where Glameow needs my help, or perhaps there will be places where I need Glameow's help. So, you can also think of this as paying your wages in advance."
Glameow blinked its eyes, then lowered its head and began to eat the two small fish before it.
The fish were tiny, and the bones were numerous.
Yet Glameow felt as though this was the most delicious fish it had ever eaten in its entire life.
Of course it knew what family meant; it had once possessed a family of its own.
In the distance, Professor Rowan witnessed the entire scene, the amusement in his eyes lingering and refusing to fade.
Glameow finished eating the fish, then looked up at Chen Yan and gently tapped its paw against a Poké Ball.
The Pokémon that refused to trust humans had chosen to trust a human once more.
"Ding-dong~"
Successfully caught!
Chen Yan gripped the Poké Ball in his hand, broke into a wide grin, and struck a thoroughly uncool, chuunibyou pose.
"Glameow, Get☆Gaze!"
"Heh-heh!"
Gengar jumped up right along with him.
"Gengar! You threw Metapod out again!!!"
"Heh-heh!!!"
Yameru! Second Brother, I didn't do it on purpose!
Metapod: ???
"Meow?"
What on earth are you guys doing?!
Before you continue