It was a kid—just a kid—floating in the water, wearing bright orange shorts and bobbing like a lazy buoy. Probably not even a teenager yet.
But naturally, Akira Hayashi, part-time farmhand and full-time dumbass, didn't see him at all. Nope. His entire brain was laser-locked on the fishing rod, muscles coiled like he was about to haul up Kyogre itself.
Dude, seriously? If you yank that hard, the kid's gonna eat a hook to the face!
Serperior, who definitely did not sign up to babysit humans, frowned—yes, frowned—and flicked out two glowing vines from her leafy neck fluff like it was just another Tuesday.
WHAP!
One vine smacked Akira right on the butt.
"YEOWCH!" he yelped, flinging the rod like it had turned into a live Salandit. "What the heck, Serperior?! I didn't even do anything this time!"
Was this about the time he'd swapped her berry stash with fake ones? Because that was ages ago and mostly funny.
Serperior didn't dignify him with a look. She stretched her second vine toward the river, wrapped it around the half-submerged kid with surgical precision, and pulled her up like some kind of elegant vine-wielding superhero.
Akira's brain needed a minute to reboot.
Then it registered. Oh crap, that's a child.
He bolted forward and scooped her into his arms.
"No obvious injuries…" he muttered, scanning her soaked form. "Coughing a bit. Probably swallowed some water. Should be fine if we clear the airway."
He let out a shaky breath—relief, panic, and oh no please don't let this turn into paperwork all crashing together.
He motioned to Serperior for help with what he called the "vine version" of the Heimlich. Let's face it—she was way better at this than he was. One wrong squeeze from him and he'd be giving this kid a rib-shaped souvenir.
The kid spat out half the stream in a watery splutter, then coughed like she was trying to evict a Poliwag from her lungs.
Akira finally got a chance to look at her properly.
Judging by the soggy school uniform clinging to her like a Clamperl on a hot day, the kid looked like an Orange Academy student.
Pale skin, neat twin-tails, probably ten years old at most.
She also looked... oddly familiar.
Akira squinted. Was he supposed to recognize her?
His brain was still buffering when he muttered, "Guess I should drop by the nearest Pokémon Center. Or maybe call Officer Jenny? That's the responsible adult move, right?"
Then he paused.
Uniform. Naranja Academy.
...Should he call Geeta?
Ugh. That sounded like way too much drama. The woman was basically Pokémon royalty with the patience of a Gardevoir stuck in traffic. But he didn't know any of the other teachers. Except her.
He sighed and reached for his Rotom Phone—
"Cough!"
The girl coughed again, louder this time, and her eyes fluttered open.
She blinked, dazed. Looked up at him.
Then her whole body went stiff. Eyes wide. Pupils dialed in like she'd just seen a ghost—or worse, a Gengar in her bathroom mirror.
She clapped her hands over her mouth, trembling like she was about to scream but forgot how. Tears welled up.
Akira tilted his head. "...Huh?"
What kind of reaction was that?
Was she scared of him?
Okay, let's check the scene here: One Akira Hayashi, current mood = tired golden retriever. One Serperior, current mood = probably plotting world domination.
Ah. Right. That might explain it.
"It's okay," he said quickly, flashing his best Big Brother Smile™, complete with heroic sparkle. "Serperior's my partner. She might look intense, but I swear she's chill—mostly."
Serperior gave him a slow, judgmental side-eye like he'd just tried to explain taxes to a Magikarp. Then she cracked her vine through the air.
Smack!
"OW! Rude!" Akira winced, rubbing his poor abused backside. "That's abuse, you know!"
She'd aimed carefully—no real damage. Just enough sting to make a Beedrill proud.
Akira sighed dramatically, hands in the air. "Honestly, your love language is violence."
Still, the moment broke the tension.
The girl relaxed slightly, watching them with wide, curious eyes. The fear in her face was melting into... confusion?
Suspicion? Maybe a little awe?
Akira figured it was a start.
Step one: Build trust. Step two: Get the kid out of wet clothes before she turned into an Ice-type.
"Hey," he said, softer now. "I'm Akira Hayashi. I run this little farm."
He gestured to the still-sulking Serperior. "And this is Serperior. She's got a temper, but she's secretly a sweetheart."
"Serp," Serperior added, doing a little hair flip with her leafy mane that somehow managed to be both elegant and terrifying.
The girl hesitated. Her eyes flicked from the leafy diva to Akira's goofy grin.
"...I'm Nemona," she said at last, voice barely above a whisper. "Thank you for saving me, big brother."
Akira blinked.
"Nemona, huh?" He smiled. "That's a lovely—"
Brain: ERROR. SYSTEM CRASHING.
Nemona? Nemona!?
Hold up. THE Nemona!?
Champion-tier, battle-hungry, "let's fight until one of us collapses" Nemona? The same one who got the nickname "Ironfang" because she treated casual battles like gladiator matches?
No way. This little soaked marshmallow was nothing like her.
She was pale. Soft-spoken. Grateful.
Where was the sun-tanned gremlin energy? The wild eyes? The battle-roaring, Poké Ball-hurling maniac who called six-on-six showdowns "friendly sparring"?
He squinted suspiciously. "So, uh… where do you live?"
She replied without hesitation: "Mesagoza."
Akira's soul left his body.
Yup. That was it.
This was definitely Nemona. Pre-battle addiction. Pre-tan. Pre-'my Poké Balls have seen war' energy.
Same face, just… younger. Softer.
The realization hit him like a Hyper Beam to the brain.
How in the Distortion World did this version of Nemona turn into the feral Champion he knew?!
And if she was here... did that mean the other future-world-changers were wandering around too?
Before he could spiral into a timeline crisis, Nemona suddenly grabbed his hand with both of hers.
"Big brother! We have to go!" she whispered urgently, eyes flicking toward the woods. "The people who kidnapped me—they might still be nearby!"
Akira froze like a Deerling in high beams.
"....EEHHHHH?"
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Author's Note:
Hope you all enjoyed the chapter!
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