Rogue (A Pokemon Fanfic)

Chapter 7: Will-'o-the-Wisps

"This isn't a resource for you to abuse."

Kota's fuzzy figure appeared in Ren's sleep-blurred vision. She lifted her head, blinked a few times, and leaned forward to look at him. "Guess it's your mistake for showing it to me then." The comeback came out groggily.

The detective shook his head at her bitter comment and stuck his hands in his pockets. His trench coat was off and hanging from a metal bar sticking from the wall.

"So. Your search for Team Flare, was it fruitful?"

She swiveled in her chair to face the table again. "I looked at that scan you did of the region's criminal activity." The trainer brought up the chart on the computer as she spoke. "Nada." She gestured towards the areas of the map that were highlighted in yellow and green. "The most there is is a two, and no mention of Flare."

"It is possible that your encounter with them was a fluke."

"Still, there can't have been just two stragglers left, organized team or not." Ren reasoned.

Kota cocked his head to the side; silently looked her up and down, analyzed her goals, her motivators, her history. Predictable. "So you want to play hero," He concluded, doing that mind reading thing again. "Just like back in Kanto: catching bad guys outside the police." He sighed.

Ren made some rude comeback, but he tuned it out; slipped into his own thoughts. There were more important matters at hand, ones that didn't deal with Ren's need for action. The "Stone Emporium Burglary"  for example. 

It was Ren's turn to read Kota's mind. "Do you remember that burglar I stopped a week ago?" 

"No." The detective said obstinately. Ren made a start to say something, but he cut her off. "But I do remember when that vigilante disrupted the police chase and arrest for the 'Stone Emporium burglar,' only to cause more property damage."

Ren smiled bitterly and feigned continued interest. "Did you ever get the rest of those stone thingies back?"

"We found twenty more stones in a warehouse, but the trail went cold there."

"So you don't know where the thief went?"

"I don't know. I hate unfinished cases..." He shook his head. "However, I believe the arrested burglar had an abettor, most likely accompanied by a Goodra." Kota went on, as if launching into some prepared monologue, and the green-haired trainer flicked a pencil off the desk boredly. Guess I'll just investigate those ones and twos. She thought, thinking back to the scan of Kalo's crime activity.

" ---Logically, this would serve as a 'rendezvous point' of sorts." As the detective rambled off deductions and clues, Ren jumped from her chair and slipped up the stairs. Hotfooting it on the last few steps, she made her way for the door.

As she got halfway across the room, though, it opened and a figure in a slim black suit walked in. On its head, a helmet of the same color was fastened. A glaring orange 'E' illuminated the tinted eyeshade and a half dozen Pokeballs swung on a belt sewn onto the suit.