@Dragons_Rose's one-shot: Under One Sky

"Hey, don't be shy. Go on and take the Dragonite Express there."

"Gah, but I want to stay with everyone!" A sixteen year old girl moaned, her teal hued hair pinned up began to fall into her eyes. "It's the last day, we'll all be together won't it?"

A man, holding some years above the teen girl, stood over with a kind smile painted on his face. His minty hair tumbling past his white headband. "Solana, you deserve a rest. I've already talked to Cameron about it down in Summerland. The entire base there is expecting you, and plan to give you a nice day of some R&R."

The teen, Solana, furrowed her shapely eyebrows together with a hint of frustration as she looked at her Ranger Leader. "That's not my point, Spencer. None of us are going to see each other for a long time, and you want to send me away on our last few hours as a team?"

"Yep!" A boy, the same age as Solana, chirped. His midnight hair tousled about, an attempt to contain it with a red band. "Plus, you're starting to become pale again. It's not that appealing. If you ever want to get a boyfriend-"

"Shut it, Lunick!" Solana crowed back to her, former, ranger partner with a rage flickering in her crimson eyes. A small creature crawled up on her shoulder, brushing its red cheek against her burning ones. The cream bodied pokemon gave a kind gaze to its master who grew calmer.

"Plusss?" The pokemon mused when the ranger girl placed her hand on its head.

Solana smiled to her pokemon friend, "I get it, Plusle." Her electric-types gaze though fixed from her to another pokemon in the room. Following the stare, Solana found a Minun nestled atop Lunick's nest of hair. "You have something on your head." The ranger smirked.

"I know." Lunick returned with a crooked grin on his lips. "Now go. Don't worry about us, we'll all have a small farewell in the morning. Just make sure to get back here at seven, I worry."

The girl rolled her shocking eyes as she paced her way over to the Base's elevator. As the doors hissed open she turned over her shoulder, "Yes mother." There was probably an outcry of protest, but the doors had already shut; so Solana's ears would just miss the clamoring of her fellow ranger. Alone with Plusle in the cylinder containment room taking its sweet time up, the girl let out a crestfallen sigh.

Her partner gave an empathetic expression before rubbing Solana's face to tilt up. "Plu-plu."

The ranger cracked a snort as her nose refused to stop pointing downward. "I'm fine Plusle." The electric rabbit was not convinced though. But it was smart enough to realize, there was no way it could get through its stubborn master. So the pokemon simply relaxed like a doll on Solana's shoulder in surrender.

A metallic ding filled the small room before the doors once again whooshed open, revealing a basic second floor of any ranger base. Her running shoes gradually made their way across the cloud white tiles, to where a great benevolent dragon awaited. The orange scaled creature stood dead center of the printed floor pattern, the pattern being the notorious ranger symbol. Dragonite looked descendingly to the ranger, its bistre brown eyes flickering with the memories of this child. How she was the newest member in the Ring Town ranger base, extremely novice. But in a matter of days, she was forced to learn and defeat a raging evil organization. The dragon type prided itself in how it had been the one to tear across the skies with her on his back to save the Fiore region.

It was took no words for the Dragonite to bend over, offering its back for Solana to climb onto. The Rank 10 ranger smiled in thanks as she scaled on, her face quickly turning up to the open roof where the midday sunlight bled in. A quick pat on the neck from her and Dragonite expanded its muscular wings and beat off. It was a few folds of the great beat's wings before they were high in the skies of Fiore, Ring Town looking smaller than Solana's palm.

A quick graze though the ethereal skies, over striking green land and a constantly clashing sea. It didn't take more an a few minutes for a town built on decks came into Solana's view, a ravenous Dartmouth green jungle pouring out onto a golden grained beach that practically shimmered in the sweltering heat. 

Once Dragonite had glided into Summerland's ranger base, Solana was bombarded with the local rangers.

One, a woman with copper skin which contrasted her vibrant blonde locks tumbling just past her chin. She sported a tight white crop top along with loose army cargo pants, and a pearly grin which lit up the room. "What's up, Sole?" She greeted, grasping her fellow ranger's hand in a hardy shake before a sudden pulled hug, "Congrats on the promotion to top ranger!"

"Thanks, Leilani." The teal-haired teen obliged with a forced smile. Her eyes swimming across the second floor, she spoke aloud, "Where's Per-"

As if her thoughts were being read, a meek boy peered around the corner, his blazing head of orange hair rolling about his head. The ranger had milky skin, obviously not spending enough time in the sun. At his side was a lime green frog, mimicking its partner. The ranger gave a shy wave to Solana, "Hey... Good job."

Leilani rolled her silver eyes before pulling him over, "Get a backbone won't you, Percy?"

"S-sorry!" He stifled as his lily white tank fluttered free from being tucked into his pants. "I never do anything right do, I?"

Solana patted the boy's shoulder, giving him a soothing smile. "Hey, you do a whole bunch of things right.

Percy flinched at the touch, but quickly drooped his shoulders. "But I've been a ranger just as long as Murph has. And yet he, and the rest of his base, are now going all over the world on their own-"

Solana swiftly retracted her hand, fingers curling up as her lips drew apart with a sort of dark emotion tugging at her. "Percy!" Leilani hissed, shaking her head to him angrily.

"Ah! I messed up again! S-sorry, Solana!" The blue-haired ranger only simpered back before the reunion was disturbed.

"Long time no see, rookie!" A hardy tone bellowed. A rounder man entered the scene, a white towel hanging on the back of his neck as he gave a toothy grin, his orange locks cut like a surfer's. "I guess I shouldn't be calling you that now, should I? You're probably better than me at this point."

"Pluuuuus-LUE!" Solana's partner greeted with a stretch, shaking off the already gathering sweat from its fur.

Solana gave a weak wave, "I guess you shouldn't. Nice to see you, Cameron."

The base leader swung about, inspecting the area before laughing. "Suffocating her aren't you two? Hey, Sole. Ya' came here to relax. So go ahead, the town'll greet you with open arms. Plus the beach is just spec-tac-u-lar." Still, Solana's entire body was frozen, ready for jumping into action. "Hey, hey. Relax. We have a good team for anything that happens. I mean, just last week- the newest rookie saved this town from a Gyarados with is partner Buizel."

Solana gave a subtle tilt of her head with confusion.

"Spence didn't tell you? Summerland just got a former student from Almia's ranger school." Turning over his shoulder, Cameron began to yell over his shoulder, "Hey rookie! Come meet the original rookie."

From the ground floor, a collapse of something could be heard followed by a furious scuttling. It didn't take more than a minute for a young man, maybe 14 or 15 to appear though the elevator doors. "I told you, I ain't a rookie! I graduated second best in performance from Ranger School! Only beat by that damn Kate!" His rufescent hair flying up in feathers with a few orange highlights streaking here and there. His auburn eyes nearly the same as Solana's. An orange furred weasel with twin tails came hopping behind. The creature mystified Solana, she had never seen anything like it.

Cameron easily swept up the young ranger under his arm, giving a hardy chuckle as he practically strangled the young boy. "Meet Keith Dazzle. Not to be mixed up with Keith from Fall City. They are different. That one's blonde."

Solana gave a friendly greeting, "Hello. I'm Solana Hinata." Looking back to everyone, her eyes wavered. "I'm going to do my sightseeing now, it was good to see everyone again." She nodded out quickly, her gaze never breaking from the straight shot she took to the elevator, a calm paced walk. The split second she gracefully paced Keith, his head couldn't help but turn as he saw straight into her soul from her breaking eyes. It didn't last long for she was gone quickly, resuming the Summerland rangers to their usual chitter.

"Ha! That's our Solana, no matter what she's doing, she's determined to do that." The adult laughed from the gut. Finally releasing Keith, who broke away gasping for the humid air, Cameron slapped the boy's back. "To think that girl's now a top ranger about to patrol the countries we have alliances in to prevent calamity."

Keith blinked as a few beads of sweat rolled down his neck. "She's a top ranger?"

"Yep! She and her team saved the Fiore region from some bad dudes awhile back. Her partner, Lunick, though didn't do half the work she did. Actually, the entire base didn't do half as much as she did. But they all got a whole bunch of promotions. She getting the best of all. Lucky girl gets to travel the world with her Plusle."

"No one else?" The fire-headed rookie inquired hesitantly. All shooting crooked stairs she shook them off. "I'll take the afternoon patrol, K?" He grinned idiotically before trampling off to the ground floor with his Buizel. The ranger paused in the empty ground base, the sound of computers flickering filling his ears as he breathed, "No wonder she had that face." Keith's lips pulled down as his heart tugged. But, to be a ranger, he had to put up his best front before walking out that door to help the citizens.

The day passed like a summer dream. Solana playing with the young children of the water-residing town, giving little shows of her capturing small pokemon like Wingull and Luvdisc. On occasions, the waves would though up their arms in applause and douse everyone in a salty brine. The lovely water droplets breaking apart light in thousands of images. The innocent laughter of the tropical children unburdening the heart of Solana for brief intervals.

The sun had already begun to melt into the horizon, laying the land in a blanket of a rosy light, kissing the lone girl on the beach. Her knees pulled close to her chest while her chin just rested on the caps. Solana's Plusle tugged at her loose locks, giving out clicks of protests, wanting to return home.  But the ranger's riveted stare never tore from the foaming frothy ocean which swelled with the pull of the moon gently fading into the picture. An array of sea shell jewelry sat at her feet, tempting to be swept away by the evening waves.

"I thought I'd find you here." 

"..."

The rookie Keith faced up to the ranger, seeing all the emotions that clashed within her. The boy exhaled, grasping at straws to get through to her. He plopped beside her, Buizel hurrying to his side. "So, top ranger is a big title."

"Mm."

"And everyone else is breaking apart."

"Mm..."

Keith let out a slight chuckle, watching the ocean churn. "I think I can relate. What are your friends gonna be doing?"

Solana's eyes broke from the view for a moment before shifting back. "... Murph is going to be working in Almia with the professor Hastings."

"Ah! My friend is working there as an Operator! Maybe they'll become friends too. A real coincidence or test of fate if you ask me."

"Our base leader is going to the Oblivia Region with a couple other rangers to start a base there since there is no gyms or trainers even there."

"That's cool."

"And my partner, Lunick. He's gonna take over the Ring Town base."

"That's great for him!" Keith felt a brief pang of envy for both Spencer and Lunick. "What about you?" He already knew, but it was worth the effort to hear it from her.

Solana's head fell tiredly onto the shoulder where her Plusle was not resting, her lips parted into a small "o" as her eyebrows twitched. "I'm going to be heading to different regions alone; well, with Plusle. Making sure everything is in check. First they are sending me to the Sinnoh region because there is an alleged cult starting there who raves about creating a new world. They told me there are going to be all types of new pokemon I've never seen before..."

"Sounds scary." Keith related in a hazed voice. "You're really gonna miss them, aren't you." His words more like a statement than a question.

"Miss 'em like hell already."

Keith nodded as his eyes seemed to look at nothing at all. "I get it. When I left Almia, I left my best friend. And Arceus, I miss her so much every single day. Each morning I wake up, expecting that when I run out of the bedrooms because I was late, I would find her waiting with that irritated expression of hers. Then yelling: 'you always make us late!'"

Solana's eyes finally chose to hang off Keith, "If she was going to be late, why did she even wait for you?"

The ranger snickered at his memories which played behind his mind. "I'd ask her that every day but she'd never answer. Just grab my arm and drag me to class... And now, when I wake up, she's not there. And there is this feeling in my heart I can never explain... I guess it just feels, empty. Sad. Scared. Wondering if she is safe or happy."

"..." Solana remained silent as she looked at her younger with an empathetic curiosity. Her eyes following when Keith pointed his head up to the sky with a smile beginning to burn up to his cheeks.

His mouth cracked to take in a great breath that filled from the bottom of his lungs, "But every time I miss her, I just look to this sky. Knowing she's under it too. So we can't talk or see each other, but this sky connects everyone. No matter what distance. But we are still under one sky. And I can just hope... That she is looking up at it too."

Solana's eyes widened as her breath was stolen. Once it was returned, a cherry tint became airbrushed onto her cheeks. "Yeah..."

Looking back over to his senior ranger, Keith grinned with his infamous beam. "They're waiting for you back in Ring town. You better get back home before it's too late to say goodbye."

Solana nodded, a sudden spark pushing her from the bottom of her soul. The teen swept up the shell accessories before racing off towards the Summerland ranger base. By the end of Solana's flight, the sky was already dotted with celestial constellations.

Her body sliding off of the proud Dragonite, Solana's feet smashed against the tiles with an "humph".

"You're late!"

Solana let out an exasperated breath at her former partner's need for punctuality. "By an hour."

"And in an hour, the cake could have spoiled if we hadn't put it in the fridge."

"What are you...?" Taking one of the slowest turns in her life, her jaw slowly dropped at the scene before her. Balloons and streamers decorating the back wall, looking as if a rainbow had died in there.  Standing in the very middle, with a motherly stance, was Lunick. On top of his head was a crooked party hat as Spencer stoically stood in the corner smirking. Murph already stuffing his face with half of the snack table. They all threw up their arms with expectant stares directed towards their fellow team member.

"Lunick an' eveffryone wo'ked ha'd to mak dis." The marshmallow ranger grunted out, with a slight flush of embarrassment as a cookie in hand crumbled off.

Plusle crawled into its partner's arms as they tightened like pythons around the poor creature. "Guys..." her eyes welling up with globs of water. They hastily sped down her face in beads as her entire body shuttered.

"Crying wasn't what we were expecting..." Spencer mumbled as he and the other two boys rushed to comfort their female companion. All of them hushing words of cheer.

Solana's gaze pointed to the night, trying to stop the tears from falling anymore. 'Not one drop can it the floor.' She thought. 'Then I'm not actually crying'. Her glazed eyes watching the night move in its own way, always existing. Keeping the world connected. With the back of her gloved hands, Solana swabbed away her overflowing emotions while pressing forth a shaking grin. "I-I'm just so happy..."

"Solana..." Lunick hushed with a crashing wave of relief as the others just looked at her thinking: "What a strange girl."

Solana suddenly snapped all three of their hands into her grasp, pulling them all close. At contact, Murph's entire body became stiff as a plank. The touch of his former partner, Lunick's face was engulfed in a scarlet blush that even tickled his ears. Spencer simply smiled nonchalantly at his team with his head slowly tipping.

"Promise me," The female began with a tight throat, "That whenever one person misses the others, then we look to this sky. This one sky. Our sky." She shook, fighting a colossal war so she wouldn't cry again. "Because we're all under one, same, connecting sky. And who knows, maybe one of the others is looking up at it too."

Spencer's shoulders sagged as his smile stretched further, sniffling softly. Murph already balling out tears that splattered into a puddle at his feet. Lunick's eyes were already puffing up and turning a pinkish shade. In an attempt to hide any further action, Lunick pulled everyone into a group hug, burying Solana into his chest. "Idiot. That is so cheesy..." The dark-haired ranger whispered with his sight being the endless heavens above. 

~"The sky is always there for me, while my life has been going though many, many changes. When I look up to the sky, it gives me a nice feeling, like looking at an old friend." -Yoko Ono~

@MelonLord7's one-shot: Code name: I love you

I sat in the "quaint" little restaurant. The Seashore House. May hot battles rage on hot sands! The place for hot Trainers! Honestly, with the cheap seats and mediocre food, this is more of a shack than anything else. Very unimpressive. I stirred my watered down coffee discontentedly, wondering which moron I would be partnered with next. The last few hadn't been completely unbearable, despite all having several annoying quirks. 

In the midst of my musing, a child ran up to me dragging a blue swim tube in his wake. He was clutching a Pokeball in his grubby fingers and without warning began to scream at me. "I'm going to show you how great my Pokémon are, but don't cry!" Before he had a chance to throw out his companion, I grabbed his wrist, my olive toned hand easily wrapping around it.

"Don't assume that I have time for your silly little games." Though I was stern, I hadn't raised my voice, so I was a tad surprised when he ran away crying. Foreign regions are so bothersome. The food is strange, the customs are ridiculous, and children feel that they can challenge you at any time, despite what you're preoccupied with. 

The owner soon came over to the table after that. He looked irritated, "Look, you're gonna need to order something more substantial than that," He gestured at my now cold coffee, "If you want to stay. Especially if you continue to terrorize my other customers."

I looked up at him entirely uninterested, "I'm waiting for someone." After I slight pause, I added, "And that twerp had it coming."

"I don't care if he dishonored your Miltank, you still have to order something. Or get out."

With an annoyed sigh, I took my sweet time looking over the menu, just to be obnoxious. Before I could order, however, I felt a hand cover my mouth. A deep voice emanated from behind me, "We'll have the Passion Poisson Platter." I immediately froze. In horror. Please don't let that be who I think it is. He didn't seem to notice how disgusted I was by his presence, "To share."

The owner wrote a small note on the pad that he was holding, and walked away silently grumbling to himself. It was quite obvious that he didn't like me. The newcomer released me once the owner went into the kitchen. I whirled around, already knowing who I would find. I was repulsed by Jesse's cerulean eyes looking me up and down. I had to restrain myself from cringing at his voice, "Long time no see. Wow, this really is the place for hot trainers." 

I couldn't tolerate him for any longer, and abruptly dropped a crumbled bill on the table for the coffee. I stormed out of the building.

He didn't follow me immediately. I can only assume that he was trying to sort out the payment for his 'Passion Poisson Platter'. He is such a loser. I was already halfway across the beach when he emerged from the Seashore Shack, and I had no intention of slowing down. Which had never stopped Jesse before.

"Heidi! Wait!" I could hear him running to catch up with me, though it didn't take too long at his pace. In a matter of seconds I could feel his hand gripping my shoulder. I took the opportunity to flip him. 

I growled at his figure, sprawled out in the sand, "Don't touch me." 

The idiot grinned, "I knew you would do that. You haven't changed a bit." He made no attempt to get up. It seemed that he was content just lying there.

I rolled my eyes at his constantly childish antics and changed the subject. I prefer to not think about my past with him, "Why are you here?"

"Blunt and straight to the point as always, I see." He gave me a cocky smile, "I'm surprised that you haven't already deduced this, but I'm your new partner."

My eyes narrowed, and I said nothing for a moment. Awkwardness began to envelop us, but with a single word, uttered by me, the spell was broken, "No." Then I walked away. Jesse made no attempt to follow this time. He didn't need to. It went without saying that I would have to stay in the Pokémon Center. He wouldn't have any trouble finding me, despites how much it irks me to say that.

The Center wasn't too crowded, and because the Poké – Defense Organization had already rented out a room for me to use while I was here, it took little time to get situated. The room had two twin beds, one presumably meant for Jesse, and was otherwise simplistic.

I immediately sat on the bed. I took out my laptop and began this mission's report.

Covert Operations Report

August 5th, 2015

Objective was given to operative Heidi Sutton to infiltrate previous spots of interest of supposedly disbanded Team Aqua. Anonymous reports suggest that they continue to seek legendary Pokémon, Kyogre. This is to be done entirely undercover, and operatives are not to be identified under any circumstances.

In an unexpected turn of events, operative Sutton encountered former colleague Jesse Winters, claiming to also be an operative. This is to be investigated further.

I hope that the P.D.O. realizes that I really didn't appreciate Jesse turning up. I guess that there really isn't anything I can do about it. I sighed.

I spent the rest of the night researching Team Aqua, and their history. It seems as if they were a joke. What kind of terrorist group gets defeated by a 10 year old? Morons

~~~ 

Covert Operation Report

August 6th, 2015

It has been deduced that Jesse Winters is, in fact, an operative. Much to the displeasure of operative Sutton, the two of them will be undercover as a couple. They are to find any evidence that could lead to Team Aqua.

After I called the P.D.O. and triple checked that Jesse was indeed my newest partner, I grudgingly allowed him to stay in the room that the agency booked for us. The two of us came back to the center together, and he spread himself over one of the beds as soon as we entered the little suite. He hasn't moved since.

That is, until his phone chimed. He lazily looked at it, then bounced up grinning, "The agency says that we have to go on a date to the museum!"

 groaned and rolled myself into a ball, "Can't we just be one of those couples that just stays in all day?"

He had a puzzled expression on his face, "By stay in, do you mean have sex?" Jesse shrugged, "I mean, I like you and all, but don't you think that that's kind of rushing things?"

I chucked a pillow at his head and left the room. From the hallway I could still hear his voice, though muffled, "Is that a yes to the museum?"

I didn't answer. I did, however, actually wait for him this time. I leaned against the wall facing our room until he came out. Together we exited to center, into the hot summer afternoon. The sun beat down onto us, my glossy blonde hair reflecting it. We made our way through the streets of Slateport, heading east. 

I was actually somewhat enjoying myself – he wasn't talking for once. Of course, that was a miracle in itself and couldn't last too long. Jesse leaned over to me and whispered in my ear, "Don't freak out, okay?" Before I could ask him what he meant, he took my hand. It took all my self-control not to flip him, and instead I settled for a glare.

He rolled his eyes and again spoke into my ear, "We're supposed to be couple. Act like it."

"...Fine." 

We stayed like that. I attempted to mold my face into one that looked a bit less disgusted, but I can't be sure how successful it was. Luckily, the museum wasn't too far from the Pokémon Center. At least not as many people will see us once we enter the building.

The lady at the ticket booth smiled as soon as we entered, "Hello! Welcome to the Oceanic Museum. The entrance fee is 50 Poké-Dollars.  Would you like to enter?" I reached for my wallet, but Jesse stopped me.

"No, let me pay for this, babe." I gave him a closemouthed smile, trying to keep myself from vomiting. He handed the money to the woman.

As we continued walking, she called to us, "Enjoy the museum!" I hate people who work with tourists. It's almost as if they're programmed to say these things. Arceus.

The place was actually pretty cool. There were a bunch of displays of boats and science-y stuff, and I learned a whole lot. Did you know that seawater contains dissolved salt in the form of sodium and chlorine ions? These ions leach out of rocks, and the concentration of dissolved salt makes the sea salty!

...That was really dorky...

The whole day I was running from display to display, pointing one thing after another to Jesse. Believe it or not, I was talking to him voluntarily. This was the first time I had fun with him in years, not since we were kids in Orre. That was so long ago...

We were staring deeply into the swirling vortex of artificially created Whirlpool when I felt someone tapping my shoulder. I jumped a bit, and turned to see the ticket lady from before. She smiled with a hint on annoyance hiding behind it, "We're closing now. I'm going to have to ask you and your boyfriend to leave."

I blinked in confusion. Boyfriend....? Then it clicked that Jesse existed.

I nodded and pulled him along behind me as we exited the building. It was dark out, and the air was somewhat chilly with the ocean breeze swirling through the city. I shivered. Jesse noticed. He pulled his jacket off and draped it around my shoulders. I decided to ignore him. I was too exhausted to argue about something as trivial as a jacket.

~~~ 

Covert Operation Report

August 11th, 2015

Operatives Sutton and Winters have now been in Slateport City for almost a week. No headway has been made on Team Aqua, but the operatives seem to be quarrelling less. They have recently received a tip that there may be suspicious activity on Route 109, the beach south of Slateport.  They will investigate it today.

I've been staring at myself in the bathroom mirror for almost 10 minutes now. Why do bathing suits have to be so... Revealing? I pulled at the flouncy black top, trying to make it cover more. 

With a light groan I gave up on the swimsuit and instead braided my long hair. I like how it contrasts with my tan skin. My green eyes also pop out pretty nicely. I suppose I wouldn't call myself unattractive. I never really noticed before.

I left the bathroom, and encountered a smiling Jesse. He had a picnic basket in one hand, and a beach bag in the other, "Ready to go?"

I rolled my eyes at his enthusiasm and picked up my own bag from atop my bed, "Whatever."

And we were off. He shifted the entire load of beach crap into one hand, and then took mine. I don't understand why he went through all the trouble to hold my hand, especially when he had a perfect excuse not to what with all his stuff. I didn't complain though. I didn't want to bring any unwanted attention to us.

We reached Route 109, and even though it was only 10 in the morning, the beach was packed. Jesse and I were lucky, and managed to find a spot next to the water. 

As he set up everything, I pulled out my Pokéball and rubbed my fingers over the smooth surface. Jesse perked up when he saw it, "Is that—?"

I nodded, and gently pressed the button, releasing the creature in a flash of white light. In a hoarse voice, it released a mighty battle cry, "Baaaeeee! Banette!"

Jesse looked entirely dumfounded, then his face broke out into an enormous grin, "Woah! When did Shuppet evolve!?"  

I smiled, "About 10 years ago. It's been a while." I stroked the top on Banette's head, "What about Duskskull?"

Smiling, Jesse threw out his own Pokemon, which bellowed, "Duuuuuuusc." I stared at Dusclops, marveling over how much things have changed.

We enjoyed the moment, reveling in the past.

Then I remembered that we had a job. I looked up and down the beach, "Where do you think Team Aqua is hiding?"

He glanced around, "I don't know, but we shouldn't attract attention to ourselves. Things usually happen when you least expect it, so let's just hangout here for the day. Any one of these people could be a grunt in hiding." 

That's what we did. For the entire day Jesse and I lounged around on our towels underneath a blue beach umbrella watching as Banette and Dusclops played in the sand. The two of us talked all morning, mostly about what has happened since we graduated the academy we went to as children. At noon, he pulled out a lunch that he had made by himself. 

I have to admit, I was a bit worried as to how it would taste at first, but it was actually really good. He made a bunch peanut butter and Pecha berry sandwiches – they were my favorite when we were kids. I'm surprised he remembered Jesse also brought cans of iced coffee, and Poképuffs for our Poké-partners. It was a nice little picnic.

We didn't do much else afterwards. We swam around a bit and built a really awesome sand castle. He challenged me to a volleyball match; me and Banette vs. Jesse and Dusclops. I won, but I have a suspicion that he threw game. Probably in an attempt to "get in my good graces", as he likes to call it. He's been doing this all week; Opening doors, pulling out chairs, paying for food... Stuff like that. It's weird and annoying, but every time I try to confront him about it, he gets defensive and claims that he has no idea what I'm talking about. Taurus shit.

After the game, I took a nap. I didn't mean too. I was reading a book and the next thing I knew I was being shaken awake. I don't know how long I slept, but the sky was already darkening when I opened my eyes. Jesse continued to poke me, "Heidi, get up."

"What?" I scrambled to my feet very quickly, worried, "Is it Team Aqua?" I returned Banette, ready for action.

He laughed, "No, don't worry, nothing like that." He pulled me along to the western side of the beach, "I just wanted to show you something." 

There were rocks forming in the water, not too far away from the shore. He swam out to them, and I followed. The two of us climbed onto the massive black boulders. I gasped when we reached the top. The sunset was really beautiful from here. I couldn't take my eyes away from the phenomena before me. Jesse gingerly helped me to sit down, and he then positioned himself set to me.

The two of us sat there in silence for what felt like hours. In reality, it was barely 10 minutes. I then felt his breath tickle my ear as he whispered into it, "Heidi?"

I turned my head and found myself staring into his eyes. Then I couldn't see anything. I closed my eyes when he kissed me. We pulled apart, and this time I saw his soul.

He smiled, "Can I tell you a secret?" I didn't say anything. "I really like you." 

I hesitated. It was only when his smile started to falter when I realized something. "I really like you too." His entire being brightened up when I said that, and he kissed me again.

~~~ 

Covert Operations Report

July 23, 2016

It has been a year since operatives Heidi Sutton and Jesse Winters started dating. The rumor of Team Aqua's resurfacing was untrue. The world is safe from this particular threat. 

The operatives became permanent partners in November, and have been traveling from region to region carrying out all sorts of missions. 

Though this mission has been closed for months now, operative Sutton felt that she should write one last report, for their next mission wouldn't have happened without this one, and will be extremely dangerous, and possibly even deadly.

Jesse wrapped his arms around my stomach, and read my screen. He looked confused, "What deadly mission?"

I smiled and kissed him, "Haven't you ever heard that marriage is murder?"

He grinned, "That does sound pretty dangerous. Are you sure you want to go through with this?"

I closed the laptop and turned around so that I could return his embrace, "What can I say? I'm a risk taker."

—————————————————————————————————————————

Who are you rooting for? Cheer on in the comments!