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"I like fighting, and meat, and hotdogs, and talking with Dave, and math, and learning how things work," Mia said. "I like it when things make sense. But there doesn't need to be a reason for liking something. If I want something I want it. It doesn't matter why."

"Jesus." Some of Jean's dumb books had twelve-year-olds fighting criminals, but usually the criminals weren't also fucking twelve. The Pokémorphs had gone off to that church in their naïve heroism; what if there'd been twelve-year-olds on the other side, handed guns and told God wants you to...

Mia nodded slowly. That made some sense. There was a name for Mega Charizard X because it wasn't just one Charizard who was different from others. People knew things that applied to all Mega Charizard X. That could be helpful. Like if you were sick, then if there were other other Mega Charizard...

Mia frowned. Did they just mean the name? Was there something special about the name Mega Charizard X? Why were they both being weird about it? "Why are you not as much of a freak?"

What the fuck. That was even worse than he thought. "Jesus fucking Christ. Was it just you, or what, does he make a habit of enlisting fucking twelve-year-olds?" Did the one they were keeping at the holding cells have a history of recruiting child soldiers too? "...Was Silver enlisted as a...

Mia squinted at him. "There's a type of rock that reacts with some Pokémon and makes them stronger. Why is it a mistake?"

Five years, huh. And clearly she wasn't still on it; she radiated hatred for the guy. Dave exhaled through his nose. "So what you're saying is your father recruited you into his fucking criminal gang at the age of what?"

Dave nodded, thinking. It had been a while since that time they'd interrogated "Giovanni", but she'd said some jarring stuff during and after that, hadn't she, and he'd never actually managed to probe her about any of it. "So, uh. You're Giovanni's daughter. Were you on his gang? Like, the...

"No," she said. "But you look mostly like a Mega Charizard X."

Mia tilted her head the other way. "I thought you were from one of the universes without humans."

"You can be careful without being afraid," Mia said, cocking her head. "You just need to know when to be."

Mia looked blankly at him. "I don't want things that would mean I can't do the things I want. I'll avoid those things whether I'm afraid or not." She paused for a moment before continuing. "Dave thinks that's probably just how Scyther work in our universe. They're apex predators who can fly...

"I'm not afraid of anything," Mia said. "There are things I don't want to happen. But I'm not afraid."

Mia's eyes narrowed as she thought about it. "Dave wasn't there. He heard about it later from Jack. He just has memories of imagining it."

"The other me was killed," Mia said. "It only took one shot. That's why this body is better."

Oh, good, she knew. Did Brisa know? What the fuck. "Oh yeah, Silver moved into your... That's got to be a fucking time." Dave rubbed at his face. The headache probably wouldn't improve for a bit, would it. "I guess he's stopped acting like Giovanni?"

"I mean, when you first came in here worrying about Brisa I thought you meant because of something that'd happened afterwards. I was wondering if she'd finally asked you out or something. Why wouldn't she be fine?" He drank the rest of the glass and shuddered. Should he not be divulging that...

"Most people there don't like fighting except when Pokémon do it," Mia said. "They have laws about it. Dave says it's because humans are easily killed or permanently injured. I think it's also because they're not very good at it, unless they have guns."

"Well, yeah." Dave downed half of the glass and grimaced at the taste. "She's been beaten to hell and back before. You two go around fighting legends together for fun. I'm sure she's fine."

Dave popped a tablet into a glass of water, where it frothed as it dissolved, and squinted at Starr. "Look, you had a parasite take over your brain. Brisa had the Shadow Machine take over her brain once too. Shit happens on Cibus. There's not a fucking chance in hell she's holding any of that...