"Ohayo..." With dark circles under his eyes, Gary listlessly held a toothbrush between his teeth and looked at the blonde girl before him.
"Good morning, Young Master Mao!" Her fluffy blonde hair draped over her shoulders, Caitlin floated in midair while Gothitelle gently waved beside her. Under psychic control, an assortment of toiletries and skin care products took turns going to work. In no time, her transformation into a bright, youthful, fully dressed girl was complete.
"I've said 'I'm jealous' so many times I'm sick of it..." Gary spat out his mouthwash and took out a bottle of concealer to cover his dark circles.
Yesterday, he and Caitlin had played League Elite. The two prone campers hid their way through every match, only to get taken out with two headshots in the final circle...
Neither could accept losing, so they kept starting another match. They hadn't gone back to their own rooms to sleep until midnight~
"Gengaa~" Gengar swung his tongue around amid a clatter of pots and pans in the hotel's kitchenette, then floated over to Gary with two cups of coffee.
"Thanks..." Taking the mug, Gary gave Gengar an appraising look. This Gengar could actually make coffee. What on earth had his skill tree looked like?
"The cappuccino's for you. I'll take the extra-strong black coffee." Gary handed Caitlin her milk cocoa disguised as a cappuccino, then gulped down his bitter black coffee.
His whole body shuddered. Gary gave Gengar a thumbs-up. "That did the trick. I'm awake now."
"Gengaa~" Gengar bounced up and down like a delighted rubber ball.
Breakfast was the hotel's butter croissants with cheese filling, just right with coffee. A standard English breakfast.
Caitlin reluctantly ate one small croissant, then put her bread down. "Eww~ This stuff isn't yummy. I want wonton noodles, or tofu pudding with baked flatbread~"
Gary broke into a cold sweat. Had he given her too much of the medicine... ahem, too much commoner food, rather? A perfectly good little English princess had somehow picked up a hint of a rural Kanto accent...
"Well, let's get Chinese food for lunch after the match. There's a restaurant in Saffron City serving Chinese specialties that's supposed to be pretty good," Gary suggested.
"Hooray ≧▽≦! Then let's hurry up and go. Beat that woman, then get something yummy!" Caitlin raised both little hands and cheered.
With Caitlin's mood sorted out, Gary and Caitlin set off for the Saffron Gym in the center of Saffron City.
The huge domed sports arena housed Saffron City's Gym. It also served as a training camp for Kanto's Psychic-types.
Psychic-types of every level gathered here. The stronger ones could move objects from a distance and use Teleport.
The weaker ones could only bend a spoon...
In short, the Psychic-types gathered to study ways of improving their mental power, and they were all admirers of Sabrina~
At the Gym entrance, Caitlin couldn't help pursing her lips. "Why are there so many weak psychic signals radiating out from here? It's really annoying~"
Gary shrugged. "Probably the Psychic-type trainees practicing."
"The strength of Psychic-type powers is determined by the brain. It's something you're born with. Who said you could improve it through training?" Caitlin looked incredulous.
"Ahem... Young people shouldn't speak so harshly. Of course Psychic-type powers can be trained." A middle-aged man in an orange sanitation worker's uniform, who had been sweeping by the roadside, walked over to them.
"What, am I not allowed to tell the truth?" Caitlin wasn't that sweet-tempered with just anyone~
"Sir... you'd better not provoke this young lady," Gary warned him kindly.
"Hmph, are you here to challenge the Gym? I suggest you curb that arrogance. Psychic-type powers are a truly terrifying force!" The man stared at the two of them, a dangerous scarlet gleam appearing in his eyes.
Gary rolled his eyes. "Just so we're clear, I warned you~"
Whoosh! The next instant, Caitlin stepped directly in front of Gary. A powerful gale formed from Confusion instantly hurled the sanitation worker's Psyshock back at him!
Bam! The man's eyes widened as he was sent flying backward. Only after crashing through a small roadside tree did he flicker and use Teleport to reach safety.
"Urgh~ This power is even greater than Sabrina's Psychic-type powers! How is that possible?" The man spat out a mouthful of blood and stared at Caitlin in disbelief.
"Sir, I warned you beforehand. You insisted on getting yourself put in your place by Caitlin. You can't blame us," Gary explained, shaking his head.
"How is that possible? It's terrifying. Someone with Sabrina's talent only comes along once in a hundred years. This girl looks about her age, yet she's reached such a frightening level too?" The man kept standing there, yammering away.
Gary couldn't listen anymore and cut him off. "Can you stop running your mouth? Every other word is 'terrifying' or 'frightening.' Can't you see you've upset Caitlin?"
Stroking Caitlin's silky long hair, Gary smiled gently. "Don't worry. No one's going to be afraid of you. Everyone loves a pretty psychic girl, right?"
"Mm~ Right~" Caitlin pouted and nodded, looking hurt.
"Unbelievable. You actually tamed a Psychic-type of this level. You've got some serious guts~" The man sucked in a sharp breath.
"What's wrong with Psychic-types? Aren't you one yourself? Why would you say something like that?" Gary frowned and snapped, "Are those two holes under your eyebrows just there to let air out?
"Whether it's Caitlin or Sabrina, they're still just sensitive young girls.
"Even if they have tremendous power, as long as you make a sincere effort to communicate with them, they can treat this world gently too."
"Impossible. Powerful Psychic-types like them close off their hearts," the man reflexively argued.
"That's because you never even tried to understand them!" Gary said angrily. "You're simply afraid of their power! Even if they've never hurt you once, you keep going on about how dangerous they are!
"Ask yourself honestly: have you ever truly treated them as people, as your equals?
"You haven't~ So you have no right to stand here passing judgment."
"Young Master Mao~ It's all right. Let's go inside." This was Caitlin's first time seeing Gary lose his temper. She meekly tugged his sleeve and tried to soothe him in a quiet voice.
Gary answered with a warm smile. "Sure. Let's go inside."
Watching Gary and Caitlin chatting and laughing, the man stood rooted to the spot in astonishment. Could an SSR-tier Psychic-type really live such an approachable, ordinary life?
Could they really smile so innocently too? They had hearts, they had feelings, they had emotions?!
Then what had I been doing all these years?!
The man couldn't help recalling all the little moments he had shared with Sabrina...
That was right. This man who disguised himself as a sanitation worker and wandered outside his own home every day without daring to enter was Sabrina's father, the former Saffron City Gym Leader.
Now that I think about it, ever since Sabrina displayed her extraordinary Psychic-type talent, I really couldn't help looking frightened. The man clutched his head in anguish.
Those wary, fearful looks must have hurt Sabrina deeply when she was little...
That was why Sabrina had used her Psychic-type powers to keep everyone by her side~ Why she had closed off her heart and sought companionship in dolls~
"Sir~ I hope you can treat girls like Caitlin and Sabrina as equals." Pushing open the door, Gary spoke slowly. "What they need is equal treatment, not pity, not worship, and certainly not fear~"
Watching the two of them walk away, the man sighed in self-reproach. "To think I understood less about life than a young man. All right~ Time to go home!"
With firm steps, the man turned and headed toward a villa on the street behind the Gym. It was the home he had stayed away from for years~
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