After a while longer of chatting in the group, Auron set his phone down, still smiling, and drifted off to sleep.
The next morning, he was up right on schedule.
Bleary-eyed, Auron glanced at the wide-open window and shook his head with quiet amusement.
"Golbat again — no idea what time she actually leaves. Way too early."
He checked. Seven o'clock.
He chuckled softly, stretched, and rolled off Snorlax's belly — giving it a pat on the way down.
"Rise and shine, big guy. You're coming out with us today."
"*Lax~*"
Snorlax mumbled something sleepy and sat up slowly, rubbing his eyes.
"Deoxys — I'll call you when breakfast is ready, okay?"
Deoxys gave a quiet nod.
Auron looked over at Deoxys and the Dratini curled up in its lap and smiled despite himself. "You really spoil her, you know that."
Deoxys's eyes narrowed the tiniest bit. Through Aura, Auron caught a gentle ripple of amusement.
"You," Auron said, shaking his head.
He stopped lingering and headed for the door, taking Charizard, Crawdinator, and Elekid with him downstairs. The three of them came down with Auron every morning — it had become their routine, keeping him company in the living room while breakfast came together.
Out the door, Crawdinator and a still half-asleep Elekid fell into step behind Auron.
Bringing up the rear was Charizard, carrying the sleeping Probopass tucked under one arm.
"Morning, Farfetch'd."
"*Bwe~*"
Farfetch'd glanced back at Auron on the stairs, acknowledged him, then went back to work — leek held ready, practicing its cutting form with absolute focus.
Auron had gotten up later than both Golbat and Farfetch'd, so he didn't know exactly what time either of them started their days. But Farfetch'd had been rising early and training alone since the very day after it hatched. The first morning it disappeared, Auron had genuinely panicked — only to find it in the living room, putting itself through drills before the sun was up.
What struck him most wasn't the dedication. It was how completely un-newborn Farfetch'd seemed. No trace of the usual fragility, no stamina issues — its appetite already rivaling Elekid's. Snorlax had eaten plenty as a newborn too, but even he had eaten less during those early weeks than he did once he was fully settled in.
It gave Auron grounds to suspect that the Pokémon Virus might actively accelerate the newborn period — helping young Pokémon clear that vulnerable early stage at a faster rate.
Not a bad trade, either way. Eat more, hit harder.
In a recent spar against Elekid, Farfetch'd had come one good hit away from winning. That match had lit a fire under Elekid — the older Pokémon had been noticeably more driven in training ever since.
It had also given Auron a clearer read on where Elekid actually stood.
Elekid had by now mastered the Farmer's Triple — his old three-move foundation — and had added Brick Break, Mega Punch, Mega Kick, Electro Ball, and the Electric-type heavy hitter, Wild Charge.
Brick Break, Mega Punch, and Mega Kick — Auron recognized those. Snorlax knew them too, and Elekid had almost certainly picked them up from him. But Electro Ball and Wild Charge were different. Snorlax didn't know either of them. Neither did Crawdinator.
Which left Auron genuinely puzzled — where had Elekid learned those moves?
It might have been another Electric-type in the forest. Or possibly Grandpa Ashford's own Electivire — though that seemed unlikely, since if Electivire had taken Elekid under its wing like that, it probably would've moved in by now.
Either way, Auron didn't push the question. Elekid had learned the moves. That was what mattered.
Auron had started sending Elekid out each morning with a small parcel of homemade Energy Cubes or Pokémon food.
"Someone taught you — the least we can do is give something back."
That was what Auron had told him. Elekid had nodded, still a little uncertain what it all meant, then dutifully started delivering a small portion of Auron's cooking to whoever this mysterious Pokémon was — every single morning.
---
Breakfast today was soy milk and baozi.
Auron steamed a full batch of baozi, then made a second round of pan-fried ones — both types alongside the daily Energy Cubes. Simple, but complete.
He was lucky he had his side income from content creation. At the quality grade his Energy Cubes had reached, not even a researcher's salary would comfortably cover the costs for three Pokémon.
Since university started, the Energy Cubes across his whole household had gotten an upgrade. The Berries available through the research institute's store included varieties rarely found anywhere else — and those Berries had pushed the Energy Cubes he made for his team to a steady A+ rating.
On a good day, with the right ingredients lining up, he could even produce a batch that scraped into S-tier. But reaching that level consistently was out of reach — too dependent on raw material quality, which meant it would be luck-based for the foreseeable future. For now, A+ was the reliable standard.
By the time Auron finished setting breakfast on the table, Deoxys was already there — Teleport, with Dratini in tow.
"*Juu~*"
Dratini had learned to read the rhythm of mornings. When Deoxys nudged her awake, it was almost always time to eat.
"*Juu~*"
Dratini bumped her cheek against Auron's with happy, squinting eyes, then settled contentedly into her meal.
At the same time, Charizard knocked lightly on Probopass's shell with the back of one claw.
Probopass's head shot out immediately — a quick, startled pop — followed by a sweep of tiny, disoriented eyes in every direction.
Charizard grinned and nudged the small dish of Energy Cube pellets Auron had prepared for Probopass into position right in front of her.
Probopass seemed to finally register what was happening. Without even looking at what was in the dish, she started eating in a drowsy, unfocused daze.
Auron watched her and found himself genuinely wondering: if Charizard had pushed a plate of chili peppers over instead, would Probopass have eaten those too, eyes still closed?
---
After breakfast, Auron headed for the school gate.
They had agreed the night before — eight in the morning, everyone meets at the gate. The Mystery Zone wasn't far, so they'd settled on driving over. Seven people, one seven-seater: no need for a plane.
Tim, with all his resources, had placed the order for the car the previous night as soon as the plan was decided. It would arrive at the school gate before eight, freshly registered, ready to go.
"Morning."
When Auron arrived, Jace and Tim were already waiting beside the new car.
"The others not here yet?"
Jace nodded with a mildly long-suffering expression. "Simon and Lucas are almost here. Serena and Lena are going to take a while."
Tim nodded in agreement. "Women. Always a production."
Auron raised a silent thumbs-up. *Not saying a word. But I agree.*
*(End of Chapter)*