Pathos「Pokemon Fanfiction」

Twenty-Six

Chapter Twenty-Six: Trust Me

The blonde laughed at her question—a clear, amused sound that made her skin crawl just because it was Fabio and he was capable of anything—and he leaned against the counter as he spoke once more.

"You trust me too little," he joked, and she took note of the warning edge in her tone. Sure, it was concealed with the practiced ease of a master, but she had known him for long enough to read him like a book. "I did come here to buy something, after all."

"I don't serve mercenaries," she replied through gritted teeth. "Get lost."

Ignoring her, he made his way over to a shelf and picked out a relatively cheap bottle of medicine. "I'll take a carton of these," he hummed, dropping a handful of silver coins onto the counter. "This should be enough to pay for my purchase, right?"

Yan raised an eyebrow in suspicion, and she hesitated a few moments before taking the money. "It's not going to be for anything good, isn't it?"

If she was to be honest, she wouldn't have been surprised if the coins had been poisoned.

"I wouldn't know," he hummed, a thin smile forming as he accepted the cardboard box from her hands. "It's for a mission, after all, and I don't meddle in the moralities of my client's intentions. Though, if I were to say, this is an assignment that might involve you this time."

She frowned at that, shooting an anxious look at the teenager and shaking her head. "I'm not going to get involved with whatever you do," she sighed. "Look, I'm already being a literal saint by risking the reputation of my shop to sell you things. Please reciprocate and get out before I make you."

Fabio continued to grin. "Part of my contract was to bring you to my clients. They think that you would be useful in whatever they're going to do because of your information on Hoenn's bases."

His expression was unsettling, and she forced herself to gulp down a breath of air—she knew that look well and she hated it. It was one of those times where it looked like the boy was going to force her to come along no matter what, and she knew that he was disgusting enough to use any means to drag her there.

"I don't have a choice, do I?" The silence screamed a yes back at her, and she shot a quick glare at the boy. "Fine, I'll come. Just let me get my Butterfree—you're up to something illegal again, aren't you?"

His beam was as sharp as the dagger in his hands. "I always am."

§

The girl clenched her fists as she glanced at the two teenagers that Fabio had named clients, turning to look at him with a nonplussed expression and speaking in a low voice. "If you knew that I know these clients of yours, you could have just said so."

"What do you have against them, anyway?" For once, the questioning lilt in his tone was genuine, and he glanced back at her with a tilt of his head. "From what I know, Aiden is a pretty nice guy. Are you like this because of Avis'—"

Yan jolted upwards at the mention of the deceased teenager. "You didn't have to mention him. Weren't you his friend too?"

Fabio responded with a small, sad smirk, rolling his shoulders in a gentle shrug and stopping to reply. "Sort of," he stated. "I mean, I was pretty close to him and he helped me out when I needed it. I guess that made us friends."

She looked away from his piercing gaze, choosing to focus her eyes on the duo before her instead. Lillian regarded her with a sparkle in her gold eyes, as if she was up to something nasty, and Aiden looked every bit out-of-place as she did, standing behind the smaller girl and shooting them the occasional flighty glance.