That night, having missed the last town with no other town within reach, Xia You and Misty could only camp beside a small nearby lake.
Xia You pitched the tent and invited Misty inside. Of course, unlike when he had shared bedding with Sabrina or Erika, they slept on opposite sides with a lamp between them, leaving space in the middle. The tent served only to shelter them from the wind and rain.
Even so, Misty flushed bright red, imagining all sorts of things that might happen next.
Without Erika around, Xia You naturally took on the important task of making dinner!
Though his cooking was only average, he had spent enough time with Erika to learn a fair imitation of her methods. After some work, he made a thick seasonal soup as the main dish, and it actually tasted delicious.
At least, he was very pleased with it, and Misty praised it to the skies too!
The two of them and their Pokémon all ate their fill. Once the sun had fully set, darkness surrounded them, and the moon hung high overhead, they put away the dishes and sat in front of the tent, chatting as they gazed at the calm lake before them.
The campfire crackled, and starlight spilled across the lake, its reflections mirroring the sky above like a river of stars.
Beside them, Eevee and Torchic played and tussled with several of Misty's Pokémon, while Gengar sat to one side like an old monk in meditation, marveling at the beauty of the starry sky.
Poking the blazing fire with a stick, Xia You turned to Misty and asked, "I really didn't expect your sisters to agree so easily to let you travel this time."
"What's so surprising about that?" Misty smiled, though her smile was a