Chapter 3

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Zuri quickly walked ahead of Andrew and Rai, who remained silent. The Riolu wore a carefree smile, while the male Pikachu's eyes darted around, occasionally at Rai. "So... Lie detectors, huh?" The Riolu asked in a carefree manner. "Those things really mess you up."

"No kidding," The Pikachu replied with a bit of a nervous smile. "I have a weird fear about lie detectors, especially since they're also in my world."

"Well either way, I'm glad you guys passed." Rai smiled, "I'm pretty sure Luke and Zuri have a little thing for each other." Her smile evolved into a more coy one.

Andrew laughed for a few seconds. "No kidding. I could see that a mile away...!" He quickly looked away for a few seconds. "Well, I'm just hoping this crush is not too obvious then..."

"Aside from them, I'm glad that you passed, too." The Riolu continued. "You seem like a pretty cool guy."

"Well, I couldn't say that," He responded while placing a paw behind his back. "The only thing I'm actually known for is my writing. Which is kinda how I met Luke."

"Writing?" She tilted her head in confusion. "You met Luke through writing? You could've fooled me, you two seem like the best of friends."

The Pikachu shrugged before looking ahead. "I know... I guess you could say we really hit it off after reading each other's first books, and emailing each other."

"Hm... That sounds nice." Rai smiled once again. "But now, we're all friends! And you two aren't criminals!" The Riolu danced a bit as she walked. "How cool is that?"

"I guess it's pretty awesome!" The Pikachu closed his eyes to imagine beats playing in his ear, for the sake of old times.

"So..." Rai asked, her eyes drifting away. "Do you guys have anything to do after Luke leaves the infirmary?"

Andrew thought to himself for a moment while the beat was still playing. "Actually, no we don't," he replied while realizing his reality right now. "I, uh... We don't have anywhere to go, anything to do, really."

"Well, how about you two join Zuri and I's team?" The Riolu put a paw on the back of her head in a bit of nervousness. "We need more teammates, and who better to ask than you two?"

The Pikachu suddenly stopped before looking at the Riolu confused. "W-We don't know any moves. Why would you want us to join you and Zuri?"

"There's a few reasons, actually." She responded. "One, we're friends. Two, Zuri and Luke's thing for each other. Three, it'd be a lot of fun. Four, I'd really like to know you better." Rai stopped for a moment with a small smile before continuing. "Who cares about moves? You can always learn them sometime or another."

"If you put it that way..." Andrew responded while rubbing his nose. "I'll have to concur with Luke, but I'm in."

"Yay! Thank you, thank you!" She excitedly scooped the male Pikachu up before hugging him with a cheerful nuzzle. "You're the best, Andrew!" When Rai placed him down, Andrew started becoming a bit wobbly while giving off a red blush.

"H-How did that feel amazing?" He thought to himself while his paws started twitching. "Y-You're welcome, I guess."

"Now let's get to the infirmary!" The Riolu pointed forward before beginning to run. "We gotta ask Luke if he wants to join, too!"

She sped towards the distance, surprising Andrew. "...Holy crap, she is as fast as Zuri stated... Wait up!" The Pikachu dropped down before starting to run in the same direction.

***

A familiar Zoura ran inside to notice the front desk. A Chansey and Audino were welcoming and saying goodbye to patients. "H-Hey, Ms. Audino, Ms. Chansey? Which room is a Lucario with an Eevee in?" Zuri asked both of the nurses. "The Eevee is the one who's getting treated."

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