Pokémon Acquisition: A Roost Spin-off

[K_S]

Acquisition:

​

Summary:

When Giovanni got the call mid Work day he nearly got caught breaking five traffic laws to reach her.

Daisy Oak knew better than to flippantly call him.

Much less sounding like a wreck.

But she didn't know what to do. This mess, which wasn't her fault, was many things.

A disaster, life-altering, disgusting, and far far beyond her skill set.

She'd only wanted to be Kanto's first Feline Coordinator, but her ambitions, her life, would have to be put on hold.

Ready or not.

Ranked Teen

Content warnings: teen parenting, criminal activity, pregnant characters, mild medical issues, ableism, racism,

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Chapters:
Intro Complete
Penny drop
Chapter 1: complete
untitled

chapter 2: complete
the hospital, a blanket, and a Jane Doe

chapter 3: complete (scene touch up for trench required)
Clean up and Prep

chapter 4 (edit req)
supply run

chapter 5 (edit rec)
shopping part 1

chapter 6
shoppinng part 2 i.p.

Chapter 7
The hospital outline

Chapter 8
Family vs famiglia

Chapter 9
Trail start (notes)
Others pendi g
​

Spoiler: Outline notes and spoilers

Chp 6,
rest of shop.vegi depo, baking goods, noodle depo, check out, and security as well as visit wind down

Chp 7
Daisy attempting to social network to get help abroad. Negative. Visits viridian gen, andres taken graces paperwork shift. They talk about morals and expectations.

Chp 8
Orn raises concerns about gios loyalty. Hes doing more than he shoukd for someone outside the familgia, the councils aware and says he can do what he wants w his "pet", but it will be without Rocket support.
Rockets debt to daisy is explored, quantified, and cut off...
Orn warns that Nona is making interested noises towards Silver, and if Gio continues to sink too much efforts in his side projects, he could be considered "soft" and removed.
Gio: "Will you drop representation..."
Orn: "And the fact thats the first question u ask just proves-"
Gio: "i have continguences, for Nona, the Mob, but you are my ace for Daisy's case. You can leave, curry favor with Nona and the famiglia back home...
Orn: "or what? What can you offer me?"
Gio: "protection, your whole line, from my plans. And an out, for your youngest grand daughter. Shes not suited for this Orn, fuckssake, most of them arent. And we shove them into this, and when they break, we let the cops off them, or kill them ourselves, ornjust "leave a gun lying around". We are burying our own race, one cjild at a time. But to make this work, we need Daisy Oak free, unsullied, and not on the rolls."

Chapter nine and up.

Trial notes.

bith daisy oak and john does mothers are hunted up. Daisys mom had signed parentalnright anullment papers on Daisys birthday. Want nothing to do with and tells thwm remotly. John does mother dragged in. Refuses to make statmendlt besides "left at safe place. Wants nothing to do. Not kantoian" shes so dogged and closemouthed that they cant suss out of her who her folks are.

She leaves unmolested by rocket. Gios got orders from nona. No using the mob for this personal vedennta. (Shes letting him borrow orn for a little).

oak is hauled in. Declaired sane and neglectful by state ergo no rights and hes not fighting it. Daisy and oak seriously cat fight during these scenes. Daisys status as emancipated comes out "spinarak incident" detailed.

Daisy takes extension to keep john doe out of states hands/emergency custody. She has to step doen vocationally and has enough savings to appear independent/fuscallly responsible.

State wants custody to cut off care and ckose case. Daisy wants eithet willing bio family found, or fostering thro a trusted family she okays.

Judge allows extensions (shes footing the med bill and releasing a kid to the state for death to occure 48 hrs later looks bad). Allows daisy to try to find families to foster. Unless bio family comes forward tho no ijterest in that.

Johns mom starts to flounce out "glad that craps done", daisy cuts off.

"Your kids name i'm not putting j.d. on his papers. You know the kid you carried for jine months."

J.d. mom. "Bever thought of"

"Think now. Dig thro that ice cavern of a chest to find something like aheart..."

Rolls eyes, gaze fkicks about, akrights on orns tie.

"Blue. Bkur (green in french) oak, there hes yours. Wnjoy." Stomps out.

Daisy having to do runs by herself. Scrambling between bkue and mon to keep everyone even kneel. Andre steos in, abduxting her and passing blue to grace. Takes daisy out on day off. After she has dinner w sakakis and orn options discussed.

Orn has 3 families in for her to consider.

Corossos (established mob family, one branch out of the game, they are in foster. No scandles. On straight and narrow oersonally but thier fostered are touch and go...)

Pros: warm environ, gregatios, affectionate 109% okay w daisy having joint custody

Cons: criminality stain. Somewhat unsafe. Lost in crowd effect.


Orions (orn and orms family) most are genious level, well off. Only thiniest skien of mob.

Pros: experienced, affectionate. Resources. Min mob influence.

Cons older family. People adopting older than oak (35 husband 42 wife). Only will consider if daisy drops all custody. Will allow visits but only tightly controlled. Ties to nona.

Sakakis

Pros, its gio and grace enough said...

Cons. Both gios history of mob ties and graces civil unreast days are an issue.

Judge reaction, complete racist bs to names. When orn arguing how they can stain Graces repute (shes viridians darling) and basicaly a .other teressa figure in kanto... during hieght of speach nona calls.

Orn claims family emergency/recess (uses italian term) and flajes off. Gio catches him in hall. Fumbling rosery.

" i wiggled a recess... and during you both are explaining this great plan. This great out. Abd it better be airtight, because i just got my marching order to burn the shop doen. And if i dont... we'll both be called back off mainland."

And nit returning tone says.

Plan:
Daisy teaches mob adjascent family kids cordinat8ng and battle and dance. Gets them trauned up and uses kalos'/unova/orres/hienns international outreach program to get then off kanto soil. Ckean family is trained as coaches. Kids leave her training to coaches, to either pass or fail coordination. Daisy's got clout to get them in basic jobs, backgroubd dancers/trainers for acts. If they can pass training circuit.. or fkunknand have them pass training journey, this will give them resources to settle in real trades out from nona.

The couches can network w transplant trainers. Set up saftey nets. Cusion incoming kids, funnel into jobs, outside of mob control. Get family members w pristine behavior as alt lifestyke couches. Slowly snail families over in pieces and inbed them abroad.

Key rule. NO mob ties. No ties to nona. Daisy is not trafficing terroriststs, shes giving oportunites out.

Orn chews lip. Considers something. Sighs.

"consider this ine pro bono. I'll donate my fee to you to get you started."

Daisy (carefully) "youre puting yourself in danger."

Orn: gio has my back, i have his, the Mob can fuck itself. I give you 2 names, if you get them outta kanto un 2 years, i'll donate a milllion. Now lets g9 bacj in there and fuck that judges shit up.

Despite orns optimism judge is pulling out all stops to derail. Daisy herselfnis suspect. Challenging established institutes (oak her career), being cozy w ex mobsters, ect. Why should state allow her any say, they could just take john doe, let nature take its course, and let this mess be forgotten.

If state does so daisy will spend eery second using her international platform to broadcast this decision. Will sink fortunes into dead kid funds/burn relief vixtim funds, and every one will bare the judges name. And thier virdict as a cause to why she donated.

Kantos repute. And the judges honor. Wouldnt stand a chance against that barrage.

"I can get that first million out, isnt hoenn got a big burn relief fund ongoing per thier last volcanic erruption... how about i drop a line. Might be able to get through and get my donation televized. Lets start with that, shall we?"

Judge tries to get her restrained. 9rders ballif to release abra to teleport her phone. Pandemonium ensues.

Daisy wakes up, sicker than hell. Gio tiredly wishes her a pleasent xmas (whats that again? To quote you, Dead stick guys birthday... Also, its apparently Silvers..."

"I missed.. gah! Hows Grace?"

"Recovering in a different ward."

Daisy humms.

"I got kicked out from maternitys visit8ng hours being up, so i settled in on your wing for the night. I'll be back in maternity at 6 am sharp."

"Hows dading treating you."

smiles gently. "Never thought i'd ever say this...but honestly... no regrets."

Daisy. "Your hands in a cast."

"Grace was upset. And in pain. Its a sprain not a break."

"Well, to get my dig in first. Blues cuter."

Narrows eyes. "Youre going there?"

"hell yes."

"Grace donated 2 mil by the way."

And if that was the good news... yeesh was daisy screwed.

Daisy forced to take 100% cuatody. State doesnt want relation to defrctive trainer on thier rosters. Would besmirch image of healthy productive results from thier programs. And since she was ponying up for blues med bills medical responsibility was hers until undisclosed date.

Aja never, state dont want him. Neither oak or anyone else. Sakakis ect blocked from cust. Using force to pull off a bakif to keep daisy from dying clearly reputation ruining.

Daisy, honestly scared. Hadnt minded being big ssi. But a mom. This young? Gio gently prods out of cycle. Reminding she has him, and grace, maybe not legally... but he was capable of quite a bit under the table.

Disnt daisy know it... still...

"First step, recover. Blues w andre. Hes safe. Being spoiled. Once youre better we make a plan. Get you stable. Get this xfer program up... get people oit and get the sbario off your back."

​

 

[K_S]

Intro: When The Bough Breaks, The Penny Drops​

She spoke in a string of near-incomprehensible syllables. It was the note of near tears to her voice that kept him on the line and not hanging up out of spite.


When her voice, warbling on the edge of terror, did not settle, he barked his orders.

“Daisy, Dolcezza, breathe.”

When she managed to draw a few breaths, proving Daisy was not totally insensate, Giovanni guided her through a breathing exercise. Despite the edge to his voice that had snapped her to reality, the pattern was delivered in a soft, soothing tone.

When she didn’t sound on the edge of hysterics, he dared one inquiry. A near-tender “Are you safe?”

Her response, a near monotone, as shock stole all the crack and wobble of her earlier fears, had him up and killing everything in his office. Her whimpered, “Yes, no, I... I don't know what to do?” was a whispered background as he was locking his door.

Checking a low growl, he waved off the Mademan that'd cued up to guard him. He wasn't leaving on Business, and the current Capo di Capo of Kanto had made his stance clear. Family matters in the famiglia were affairs that didn't warrant muscle. Personal affairs weren't to be handled on the clock. And MadeMen were not meant to draw on lower Capos to make a point.

Even if that one incident, where a wildly overprotective Capo had taken three associates with him to scare the ever-loving hell out of a bastard who'd dumped his little girl in public, was, by nearly all the famiglia in Virdian, considered a fair use of Mob resources.

Better he not, so he waved them off, because if he enlisted these men, he'd likely be using their resources to dispose of bodies.

Shoulder braced to better hold his phone against his cheek. Giovanni worked his coat to obscure his Work uniform. As he slipped his arms into the right sleeves, working his team and tools into the appropriate pockets, he offered a stream of irrelevant chatter. Contest scores, and gym statistics, silly irrelevancies, tales of old rivals and their downfalls.

One particular ribald tale managed to summon a croaked laugh. He was taking the stairs from the back exit of an old Sakaki warehouse two at a time.

On a stair landing, with a window large enough for a flyer 'mon to plow through with a rider in tow, he stopped, fussing with buttons and options.

"Daisy, are you alone?"

A whimpered no, made him lower his tone. He couldn't reach for softness. Not with a million anxieties swirling in his gut.

"Do I need to call an ambulance?" And Grace, to make sure she was attached. She'd kill him if he didn't.

"I.. I don't think so."

Deep breathe, thin down this crisis, this sounded infinitely worse than when she'd been dumped, but not on par to when that crazed fan had accosted her in her home. He'd purloined a Rocket psychic type that time, nearly been teleported on the girl's assailant.

She'd gotten a front-seat viewing of what he was capable of that night. And she'd been, understandably, leery of calling him when shaken.

Which made this call go from mildly concerning to flat-out alarming.

"Do you need a first aid kit?"

Because if she was hurt, fuck the Don, he'd take recant that decision on guards and grab the three of them and order them to pack shovels.

"Taking a deep breath, gathering her courage, she spoke.

But in that silence before, he heard it. The soft omnipresent crackle that alluded to phone signal blockers. The whispered crinkle marked her as being on the edge of a property that used the near sci-fi level tech.

Only four facilities in Kanto bothered. Silph, the League, the Kanto Interpol offices, and the Kantoian Starter and Exotic 'mon rehabilitation facility.

The last was known among the lay as Professor Samuel Oak's Pokémon Ranch.

Revelation set his hackles to rise; he considered the window with thinned black eyes, hand clasped over the Pokeball of a particularly noiseome flyer...

"I'm at Oaks." redundant that. "And.. Is... Is Grace there?"

The warble s back, the crack of fraying composure.

Not physical pain.

He turned on his heel, not quite sprinting, but he'd be at his car in a moment. From there, it was a twenty-minute scenic ride between the warehouse and the edge of the Reserve.

He'd likely be at her side in fifteen if he minded the traffic laws.

(He wouldn't, he'd make if in five)

 

[K_S]

Acquisition,

Chapter 1​

Stomping through the sliding glass doors, Daisy Oak was cutting a quickest route from the fields of the reserve to the parking lot as quickly as her high dudgeon would take her. It wasn’t as fast as a good run would have been. But she’d taken intervals to kick rocks, and plants, and swear.

Because why the hell not?

It’d been a bad idea. She knew it. Been told it. But Father’s duties during hatchling season tapered off the time her tour seasons had allowed her her vacation. And instead of hooping it up in say… Galar… meeting pretty boys with pretty accents, she was in good old backwards Kant,o trying to mend a bridge he’d let fall apart ages ago.

Again.

Mew above, she was so damn stupid, it was round six of this dance, and did she learn anything… noooo…

Hating everything about her bleeding heart. Double hating that her unmet needs as a kid were rearing up to make her waste a ton of money to come home and poke the good old familial abandonment wound, yet again. Daisy slowed her rampage after water type hatchling lab one.

She didn't want to take a tumble on the slick walkways.

Swiping her eyes, she was embarrassed to find she was running out of similes for stupid. It was feeling downright angry thirteen year old in her head right now.

And to add salt to the wound, she had tapped out her knowledge of the varieties of “bastard” around the time she’d gotten out of the professor’s earshot.


Each step was a clanged splash. Making a mess of her leggings and spooking the 'mon in the tanks along the walls. And her inner fashionista seethed at the loss of good pants.

It didn't stop her from stomping.

This was supposed to be her damned vacation. This happened every vacation. Every time she stopped working, she started hankering for something she’d never have.. And smart thing she was, she sunk a charizard's horde in… in this stupid, stupid, stupid attempt to have a normal father-daughter relationship with a man who didn't give a damn.

She'd half a mind to call the Sakaki's the second she got off the reserve. Gio might be willing to pick her up in something that screamed shady as hell just to give Oak something to stew about... He was her type of petty after all, it's why they got along so well...

But her thoughts of revenge were felled with the cold realization.

It could work. Maybe. But it would likely be a month after she left before Fa-Oa- He bothered to review the non-'mon footage.

If he bothered to do so at all.

That thought stopped her mid-step. She wrestled with herself, throat tight, eyes burning. Beating back a raw, crying jag by sheer force and a deep breathing exercise.

Appearances and all that.

Under her mask of half-assed composure, her brain was anything but.

Why was she like this? Why was she so stupid!? Those twin demons blasted on repeat inher skull. And no amount of maturity, or acting like a "proper lady" was shutting it up.

Swiping her eyes, she exited the water type reserve. All its fish tanks and grill pathways over artificial waterways were behind her with the hiss of the automatic door snapping closed at her back. While the fire type hatchery wasn't hot enough to dry her tears, the arid environment did a lot towards masking the evidence.

She'd managed to stop stomping at least.

Really, with everything, she was just too tired. The dust strewn about to make a facsimile of a desert met the residue of her temper and the water type reserve to make an instant coating of mud on her shoes.

Gah. Fatigue was pushed back by sheer exasperation. Daisy all but danced in place. Trying to shake the clinging goop off... and it was in that wild attempt to reclaim the ghost of cleanliness, that she saw it.

Her first thought was "weird". Baby blue, out here? Her brain caught up in bits and pieces. It was a scrap of fabric, maybe some egg wrapped up in baby cloth by an oversentimental trainer dropping off their first mon's hatchling. But then logic caught up.

Despite his genial-seeming nature, Professor Oak was not a sentimental man. Or even a warm one. Aides might have whisked the egg into the chamber bedecked in the softest cloth and gentle assurances that the kid's egg would be treated like spun glass...

But the wrapping wouldn't have been left on. There was a trash can right by the start of the environmental egg hatcheries for stuff like that. Flowers, mementos, or even gifts from the egg's "Mom and Dad" had been chucked into it indiscriminately.

So what made this egg different?

Getting on her tiptoes, Daisy saw the egg wasn't in the first row of the hatchery, but it wasn't in the front either... Other oddities poked out. The shape wasn't perfectly round. That wasn't right... Her feet carried her over, a cautious, slow shuffle, her hand clasped around Amewse's pokeball.

Then it moved, and it wasn't the gentle rocking of something ready to hatch.

But, rather, a weak sort of flatish squirm.

Eyes wide, boots making the rocky sand crackle under each step, she crossed the distance from the path out to the raised earth that served as this hatchery's nest. Curiosity was an invisible string that was wrapped around her very soul, tugging, tugging, drawing her closer.

If her life were a horror story, she'd be the first to die.

She said it constantly. Been told regularly. Grace Sakaki mentioned it once a month in amused tones over cups of coffee while they compared shenanigans and gossip. Her husband, Giovanni, sighed and scolded her for her latest misadventure. Daisy's manager reminded her that any stupidity fueled scenanigans were coming out of her paycheck. Those three older adults were her triad of common sense, taking the place of Mother, Father, and distant Uncle. Nevermind Grace was part enabler part one-upper, and her manager had manipulated a few of her shenanigans into free PR campaigns.

Poor, somber Gio only listened to her tales with an expression of a man considering how much liquor he'd need to partake to forget, but perversely not be a complete bad example.

She passed the first row of eggs, they were a wild slew of sizes, all spread in a row. Orange and red speckled shells were all around her now; her fingers were ghosting over the brittle shells of unborn fire types. Each touch wasn't quite burning, but at that unpleasant hot tingle that preceded sunburn. Her steps crackled less. The ground was more soft sand than rock now, to spare those delicate shell undersides.

Gio hadn't found the key to his balancing act. The Italian's efforts were probably derailed by the fact that Daisy had joined with him when she turned sixteen, and used his attempt to make the pain stop to do more stupid things. Like to try to drink him under the table. Or get him involved in stunts that made the headlines.

She turned, now not on the edge of the grid pattern, but tippy-toeing among the hatchery's eggs. She made wide sweeping steps, her dance classes paying off in full. Minding balance and shells, each step was more sure than any nerdy sedentary scientist's. It took effort not to toss a few dance moves into the mix.

As if sensing her bravado, the overhead speaker crackled to life, just in time to puncture any gathered pride.

"Please step away from the test subjects. This is your first warning of five; you will be teleported off the premises if you persist."

Seriously? Daisy flicked a glare up to where she thought the camera was. "I'm allergic to psychics, you bastards!"

"Second warning..."

Well crap... The flick of blue was close enough that she could make out the gist. She only needed a few more steps to be able to pick it up. But seeing it clearly froze her in her tracks. Swaddled, loaf-shaped, frizz-topped, it definitely was not an egg.

"Third warning."

It made a noise, a breathy sort of whine. Horror flitted across Daisy's face as she realized that it wasn't a doll. It was a person. A kid.

An infant.

She wiggled past the last row of eggs between her and.. and the kid. She reached down, not believing, but it opened its wide blue eyes and let out a raspy scream. All red, with a scaling of white blisters and sand, and it's trying to scream. Trying and failing.

"Shit, shit, shit..." She'd trying to hold them, so the screaming would stop, and couldn't find a good hold. Gritting her teeth, she tucked the kid close and turned on her heel, picking a quick path out.

"Fourth warning."

"Wait, wait. Stop!" She howled. "It's a kid, there's a kid here. Don't 'port me, get a medic, a first aide kit!"

Anything, anything sane, anything compassionate...

"Drop the test subject, and lie on the ground. The Reserve is not responsible for any damages you receive during forced transport."

Darkrai and Yveltal grant her mercy. This was going to be worse than hurt. In the last sane moment, before the purple light shimmered and made the very air between her bones rattle, her sight spun. She crunched into a ball, holding the kid to her chest, as her vision lost all colors save an infinite smear of varied viridian hues. As gravity became a lateral force rather than a grounding aspect of existence, she felt Amewse's pokeball split open. The purple light flared, burning past her shut eyes. Swirling with the greens of her world in a nauseating kaleidoscope.

Then, pain.

Her legs were a slew of conflicting sensations, so hot they froze, so weak they locked. She held the mewling thing to her chest and trembled. Trying not to puke, trying to remember if her mouth was open, fighting to remember how to breathe. Hot bitter surged up her throat, and she wasn't sure if she was able to turn her head away, but knew primal deep she'd gotten sick.

And knew shame, hot bitter shame so deep it made her sick up again.

A world away, Amewse, her perfect, precious, Persian swirled into existence. Not that Daisy was aware. The trainer's world had dissolved into remembering how to breathe in a world where the air was toxic, green, miasma.

Amewse treated the day with typical cat aloofness. Shaking off the irritating buzz of her withdrawal, she craned her white neck about. Seconds later, her tail was up but crooked down. Back arching, wiskers quivering on the wrongness of the air, Amewse's ears flicking back at the utter insult of the atmosphere.

This was worse than rain, worse than Raindance mixed with Hail. Whipping on her paws, Amewse looked about, for Madam Mealserver Warmlap. Madam wasn't supposed to ever ever be exposed to such energies. She could have a hairball get caught the wrong way and stop breathing.

Then the can opener would never whirl again.

Madam's state made Amewse pause for one second. Sick and rank fell from her mouth, and there was screaming that wasn't Madam but cuddled close. This was wrongness, within wrongness, and the smell in the air was making Amewse nearly gag.

Despite her disgust, Amewse was a TRAINED 'mon. Thus, she knew exactly what to do. Thin red eyes combed the area for assistance for the Madam. But there were no trainers, or white-clad medics, or Joys. There were no roundtound, yarnball, shaped Chancys to mewl her concerns at.

Ears slicked back, tail lashing, Amewse swatted at Madam's belt. Knocking off pokeballs and a purse, making the thing that was cuddled and screaming scream louder. Still, Amewse kept at it until the square-shaped talkie slab was knocked free. It took a few moments to flip it shiny side up and bat it until it warmed and turned a sky blue.

It had taken Amewse a week to learn what "centering" meant, but Amewse was a smart girl. She had got it right and the lesson stuck. A click and flash told her that her "centering" was perfect, as always. Amewse indulged a self-satisfied purr, and the device changed colors as a result. The blue was now not just a color, but with bars and symbols that meant things a bit beyond the feline. It was this "screen" that Amewse meowed at.

When the screen read "Call going through," Amewse gently scruffed the talkie-box and dropped it at Madam's side. Confident that things would be right again, all she had to do was be pretty, wait, and Bite any wild abra with extreme prejudice Amewse settled in to keep Madam company.

Hopefully, it would not be a long wait.

 

[K_S]

Aquisition

Chapter 2

The Hospital
​

Spoiler: Authors Note

Edited 1/19/2026, applied Tangos suggestions to tidy up some of the text.

Thanks for the reviews Tango!

AN: additional trigger warning! Nausia/puking, forced hospitalization and bodily restraints applied humanely. Inhumane price gouging practices/vulturing, cruelity towards minor

The metronone clicks and beeps of hospital tech had a peculiar effect on Daisy's rattled wits. Though supposedly soothing, the monotonous bweep acquired an edge after a seeming eternity listening to it in perfect darkness.

A saws blade that dug and scraped into her very psyche.

Muzzily Daisy swiped at the source, and when an irritating tug on her hand held her back, she blindly crooked her other hand, ready to tear the tugging bind and...

And a cool hand clasped her wrist, twined thier fingers into hers, and squeezed.

Brains still askew, it took an embarrassingly long moment to realize the pressure was a pattern.

To realize the pressure was words.

But when she did, she choked back a sob.

Safe. Grace. Safe.

Sensations trickled in, slow like molasses, but it wasnt surreal. That was worlds better than the kaleidoscope of sensation and insanity that'd been her world before.

There was pressure on her ears. Sound-canceling headphones that clearly weren't doing thier job. A softness wound around her eyes told further tales.

She'd been blindfolded.

A wiggle of her legs showed them to be bound.

Soft as a pidgy's wing beat those fingers slipped free from hers and fluttered a quick string of taps on Daisy's forearm.

Understanding came faster, now.

Easy. Safe.


Daisy slumped into the bed. The hospital had to put her in total (well, incomplete but attempted) sensoral deprivation and immobility.

It'd been a bad fit then.

Mercifully, there wasn't a tube shoveled in her throat; she double checked that with a questing tongue and got a vile taste as a result.

So maybe on the entubation. She might have slept through its removal. Maybe. Daisy worked her trembling fingers as best she could and tapped out a few letters.

Dai.

It wasn't perfect spelling, but Grace's nails tapped nonsense for a moment as the woman nervously considered something.

Finally, almost cringingly, came the answer.

Five days


And that.. that was revelation enough for now, her brain decided quite independently of her emotions..

Daisy Oak checked out of reality before she could decide what she felt about the fact that she'd been bed-bound for almost a week.

Xxx​

The next time Daisy woke, she was significantly less grateful.

Her ability to crack an eye open wasn't impeded by soft fluff, thus letting lancets of light spear in and leave behind a searing headache. Her croaked profanity was part for the pain, and part for the fact that the staff had let something die in her mouth and it'd been left to rot.

For a month.

Do not puke... the mantra came out as a soft wordless whimper, which immediately got the attention of someone. The world was blurry and hurt, so she scrunched her eyes shut and gave up on sight for a while.

So it wasn't like she could see who it was. Only that they were too close and she couldn't kick at them to back the hell up. Thier closness and the crinkle of paper cut through her confusion and tripped every alarm wire in Daisy's head.

She whined, at that sound, a barrage of noise was kicked up. Whoever it was spoke a mile a minute.

And normally that'd be fine...

But right now, spoken words were beyond her. Her hands weren't bound, so she was able to push back at the..

( flat, cool, metal at the tip top, crinkle under that... was it a clipboard?)

The thing plopped into her lap, and took mean satisfaction that it clattered to the floor.

Despite how the sudden racket made her headache worse.

Babble came from that. More words, ung she just... no words! She wanted to beg them to stop. That part of her brain wasn't better yet!

But she couldn't warn. And the subhuman noises she could scrape up summoned a prattle of nails on chalkboard.

Gorge rose in her throat. Forget not puking. She was going to now, no matter what.

No ifs, ands, or buts.

But that paperwork shoveling ass was going to get a front row viewing on his shoes.

Time was still a fuzzy concept. Boiling down to, now and not now. When the cloying sensations of heat in her throat, near choking, had passed, and her stomach stopped clenching, there came another barrage of sound. A scrape, and slam, and words... ung not words! She wanted to scream, but managed a whimper. Her thoughts devolved into no no don't puke...

And that was her whole world.

Until another cophany. A thud and slam, and after... It wasn't perfectly quiet, but close enough that Daisy could unclench. Another span of hard breathing, mercifully no words, and then cool brushed against her cheek. When she didn't wince back, the wet span was swiped over her face and mouth. It came and went, and the second circuit Daisy leaned into the touch. Luxuriating on a touch that wasn't pain, or prodding. The cloth left, and something long and cool was set against her cheek. Not cold-wet, but cool-smooth. Brow furrowed, she tipped into the odd sensation, then reached up with a shaking hand to twiddle it. Long, smooth, pointed, slik? It brushed the space by her eyes... And understanding made her dare a nod.

Yes, please... calloused hands guided the cloth. Wrapped it around her eyes, and the dark took one pain away. She was eased back until she was lying down, by hands calloused and scarred, each motion slow and careful. Treating her as if she were spun glass.

The hand twining over hers, moving slowly so she could trace the familiar rings and scars over his knuckles and fingers, told her who it was. The tapped Geo, was overkill. But Daisy wasn't going to complain.

She knew who it was, she was safe, and slid into unconsciousness without a protest

XXX​

Round three was the lucky one, where she woke up to a world that was sane.

Sound wasn't steel wool over her brain, and time had sorted itself into its proper places. There were no strobing colors that swirled over her sight, eyes open or shut. Gravity didn't wildly pivot in place and leave her behind on a whim.

Gathering her courage, Daisy pulled at the cloth over her eyes, daring to see.

While uncomfortable, light wasn't a searing napalm to her brain.

Twiddling the red fabric, a tie, she looked about the room. It was standard hospital fare, white-walled, boring, with a dry board on the far wall with her name and status scribbled on it. She wasn't sure if it was remnant damage from her teleport, or if the handwriting was so bad, but beyond her name and the words "Mild Psychic Reaction" she couldn't make out a word.

Mild... Daisy closed her eyes, holding back a storm of reactions. Not breathing, losing coherence for... for however long this was, was a mild reaction... Knowing her brain, knowing that moodiness and irritability (and hysterics) were a real possibility, Daisy scruffed her emotions and took slow, deep breaths. She was awake, able to think, and she was becoming cognizant that her ex-blindfold smelled of earth, smoke, and a musky cologne.

And that the smoke was a bit thicker than normal.

It seemed someone had indulged in a cigorette before leaving it behind.

Not that Daisy would rat the man out, Grace could be a nightmare about the silliest things... but still.. It was nice to know he worried and cared.

And speaking of care, there was, also no one around. Slumping and staring at the ceiling, winding and rewinding the tie in her hands, Daisy basked in the imperfect silence of the moment. It was just her, the hum of machinery, and a view outside that consisted of another building's wall. Huh, not Azul' Corp then. Her out-of-network was going to be astronomical.

Lucky her.

The grunginess of the ceiling (old water leaks hurriedly patched looked kinda funny, like a squished pidgy if you squinted just right) told her Daisy wasn't at Viridian Gen... which narrowed down her options to either a back alley Rocket facility (unlikely) or Grace's other haunt, Verdent Saint's.

Which was pretty alarming. Daisy must not have been breathing; Grace might not have known if she'd have enough time to make it to better hospital and picked the lesser evil as a result.

And to that jarring, terrorfying revelation, Daisy dug deep...

And found superficial spite waiting.

Her hands crooked into pseudo claws as she raked them down. First to peel back the scratchy sheets, then to assault the hated the bathrobe made out of offshoot paper towel materials they'd bundled her up in. Because if she was dressed in this, and there was no hide or whismer of her other clothes left out, then it meant her shirt and pants had to have been cut off. And that realization summoned the ghost of angry shopper, fashionista, and prickliness to the very fore of her soul.

She'd paid a fortune for those hyperdurable, designer, Galarian trainers pants. And they were gone. They'd been half of a set, and the shirt, a signed first edition Peony work, was likely ashes in the biohazard incinerator.

She wanted out, her team, and then to be pointed in the direction of Oak's reserve. Her cats knew hyperbeam, hypervoice, and other moves of mass destruction. Plus Mewfasa was big enough she could ride him side saddle. She wouldn't even need to be well enough to walk to be discharged, just well enough to yell and point at a stationary target.

A rap on the door frame sounded, and maturity incarnate, Daisy rolled over to better seeth at the wall.

"Don' wan' visi-s."

Alright, that was far and away not the coherent string of words she wanted to spit out. Maybe she'd have to stay a few hours. Long enough for her to brush her teeth, get a drink, and shuffle outside.

That'd be more than enough time for her tongue to figure out how to work with her vocal cords again.

The door opened, and Daisy tapped her demonic thirteen-year-old inner child with extreme prejudice. It wasn't subtle, or anything like elegant, but she managed to round up a pillow and chuck it at the door.

"Go 'way!"

A thump and grunt told her she'd hit someone, but when steps drew closer Daisy groaned and rolled over. Better face the music now, rather than wait for it to hit PR.

She blinked, kinda confused at the two men in her room. And her sight... wasn't quite right. Thier features were swimming. She could think things; one was tall, the other short. But she couldn't identify the color of their hair, and a blink reset the few descriptors she drummed up. Tall... the first one who entered was tall, right? She looked from stranger one, to two, with panicked deerling eyes, and that stopped the soft grumbles. Tall, the one who came in first... Maybe?

Had they come in? Weren't they always in?

Regardless, Tall shot an arm in front of Short... and there was something funny about the top of Short's head and..

And Daisy blinked, and then kept her eyes closed, all her fight dying with a groan.

Her fucking prosopagnosia was back, with a hellish vengeance. Forget riding Amewse, she wouldn't be able to manage looking down the hall, much less riding to Oak's ranch and razing the whole thing down to the ground with a legion of angry kitty cats.

Tears seeped out of her scrunched eyes, as Daisy tipped her head up and a sob rattled her throat. Still, she scraped something baser than spite, and managed to talk. Her fingers bunching the rough hospital sheets into a lump.

"My name is Daisy Oak, my Medical Proxy is Giovanni Sakaki, I have recently been hit by a psychic attack and am unable to vouch for my own care per suffering an acute episode of psychium anaphylaxis. My caretaker's phone number is-"

Numbers swam in her brain, she tried to get them back, to get them in order, but... but... She whined, unable to say, much less think... so she went lower than thought. Fell back on route. There was a route for if she was that gone, and she'd held onto it with teeth and nails.

"My wallet, there's a number in my wallet...Call it and..."

And one voice, raspy and old, rumbles a line she should remember. A horrified string of silken words that are cut off with a hissed reprimand. There's silence as she manages to spit out the rest of her lines. Without the numbers, because numbers are too complicated, she can almost feel the concepts of time unwinding in her brain. Simplifying, to now, and not now.

She wants to scream, because she'd been better. She'd been better and...

"Daisy."

She knows that word, and if she keeps her eyes closed, she can remember it's hers. Her name. And the voice is familiar. But that's all she has.

A door closes and opens, and there are steps. Farther, than closer, and very, very slow.

"Cara. Tesoro."

She knows those words, too. Though they're mainly gentle nonsense. Still, it's something, something new. A hand ghosts over hers. gently clasping over hers, she lets go of the sheets, drawn more to the warmth than anything. She maps the prickly rises of callouses, the smooth scars, and the ring. It's cold, hard, unforgiving.

Not forged, it was etched from an ignot, raw steel, polished, and treated with chemicals until it gleamed like silver. Its owner had, by hand and sheer determination, pitted it with geometric patterns, fitted flecks of stones within the flaws.

Her fingers traced the fragments to the large stone on top. A diamond holding flecks of nevermelt ice harvested from Galar's Hammerlock caves.

Its mate had firestones mixed with amber in its flaws... The stone at its heart was a ruby that had spawned around fragments of a firestone.

And Daisy hated the fact that she knew this, and not a name. That she had this worthless piece of trivia, and not the ability to make the sounds she needed to talk right.

She held on tight, a wordless apology.

From a world away she heard the door open, halfway, just enough to creak, not enough to slam. The other hand is smoothing over her head. The light of the world dims as he leaans over, to feather a kiss on her brow. He's close enough that Daisy can feel his pivot in the air currents, and the way his shadow shifts to let some light touch her scrunched-up eyes..

He speaks, softer than a whisper.

"Ottieni una proroga. Con qualsiasi mezzo necessario."
(get an extension by any means necessary)

Another replies:
"Vuoi che contatti la famiglia?"
(do you want me to contact the family?)

More growl than words, he breathes.
"Se resistono, me ne occuperò io. Personalmente"
(if they ressit, I'll deal with them. Personally)

There are four more visits, four more times of "almost better" than her coherence slides back and forth to the quixotic tides of her internal injuries. Daisy's tested ruthlessly, and the results are left with her. She knows (when she can read) that when she slides back it's less extreme. Still she's not well when she's declared "competent".

She's still got a damned blindfold over her eyes, and headphones slung over her neck in case her symptoms spike and she needs to blot out the world to not have another lapse.

It's insanity that they are forcing this meeting. But "they" wouldn't wait. So it's her, Giovanni acting as her proxy, and two representatives (her legal team, and Gios), and one impatient slip of a man whose (supposedly, Daisy can't see anything now) dressed in a judge's robe with a fluffy wig and everything.

The reason for this meeting, emergency custody case. Which had Daisy baffled. She's not a mother, she'd damn well know unless the rumors of Lysandre co' collecting eggs from toilets was true. If that was the case, ew, and oh Mew no, jail the lunitic, and get someone with a science degree to wrangle his genetic insanities right now... Daisy was not qualified to deal with any mon/human hybrid perfection zombies that may have resulted from that madman's activities.

She'd immediately been assured, no Lysandre Co' had not, and would not, be social engineering the biological leavings drawn from Lum' cities toilet systems. No, her eggs hadn't been abducted from the last time she'd been on her period in the city. And a note had been added that Daisy was still suffering some side effects from her psychic exposure.

A mild case of delusional thinking.

She'd been asked after her mother, which again was weird. But Daisy wasn't shy. Years had taken most of the sting out of those chains of events..

After Daisy's emancipation at fourteen, the woman had packed and never looked back. She remembered Mother had gotten her tubes tied to spite Oak after Daisy had been born, so unless Mom had undone things (which was impossible, and also another case of ew) she wasn't a half-sister or anything.

Right?

The silence to that chattered tangent was... alarming. Daisy teased the headset, wanting to slap it on, not hear anything. Because alarming was starting to scale into terrifying. She could feel her heartbeat pick up, and she swiped sweaty hands over her hospital gown front.

"You absolutely can't reverse it, right?" Daisy squeaked. Because dealing with Mom... again... yeah. Never again. Not after how the woman left.

"Considering she had everything caterized, no, you can't." Giovanni finally spoke up when the collected judge and law people were clearly not going to talk.

Well, that was good news, sorta. Maybe..

And that optimism lasted five more minutes, when she'd been passed up a sheaf of papers, and given a quick spiel about custodial responsibilities and..

And Orn, Gio's lawyer, snapped up the pages. "She can't read Braille, you moron." Then there's a rustle, she can imagine the orniary man tipping his head towards Daisy's rep. "Why the fuck am I doing your job for?"

"Because you're the nicest person in the room," Daisy suggested, "who can explain why the judge is trying to make me a janitor?"

Silence... while all the older adults froze, and mentally rewound the last few interactions.

"Daisy." Giovanni's voice was smooth. "Do you need some headphone time or?"

"Just rip the Band-Aid off by talking sense, and I'll let you know after."

"This is unprecedented... " Daisy's rep found his voice, yay, now if only Daisy could remember his name.

"If a life weren't on a line." Orn snapped, "something that could be remedied without dragging a sick ki-adolescence into things. By honoring the emergency reinterpreting inheritance and honor clauses, which was already done in the case of xion vs Indigo Ceria 1968-"

Daisy gripped the headphones tight, deciding she'd block them out, not for psychic damage, but for sanity reasons.

They'd gone on and on about this, making less sense each time, and she was sure that her head was going to explode if they didn't shut up right now.

Giovanni's hand on her shoulder stopped her; his roared, "Shut up, all of you!" stopped everyone else.

Except the judge, who snippily threatened to throw him out for contempt if he dared...

And it was her hospital room, Giovanni had complete access, and she was half a mind to suggest the judge throw himself out...

But that line, about a life being on the line, held back her rebellious streak. By a hair. But still.

"Can someone explain this, in plain Kantoian, please!" Daisy groaned.

Silence, Orn cleared his throat, the older man's voice a delightful rasp of smoker, meeting not gentle with himself, with a dollop of grumpy curdgmudgeon. It really was like listening to rocks smack together, deep baritone rocks. "If I can?"

Forget contempt of the court, Orn's tone in asking permission was contempt of the judge's very immortal soul.

Some rustling, perhaps someone nodded. Scarily, Gio hadn't let go, was keeping his hand on her shoulder, a mute motion of support.

"Alright. Ms Daisy, it's Orn," She'd normally say she wouldn't forget a voice like that... but in all honesty... it was a fair caveat. "What these... less than astute members of legalese have been dancing about is.. well, you got it in one. You are a sister, a half-sister. That kid you found... was Oaks. And per Oak's actions, the merciful courts of Viridian child services have decreed Oak incompetent per temporary insanity."

Silence.

"Alright, I could argue temp, but no argument about insane." Daisy ruled. "But what's that got to do with me?"

A long pause as wordless conversations were had. "Well, the state wants to take over custody."

Alright, that didn't sound too bad, but Gio's squeezing her shoulder kept her tongue behind her teeth.

"As a ward of the state, medical services would naturally be suspended."

Daisy froze, looked to the judge, mouth gaping in complete, unfettered shock.

"What, why?" The kid's skin had been red and puckered, worse than sunburn, not quite burnt through. And since it wasn't a mon attack, specialized burn treatment would be required. This wasn't a spray a burn heal on it, and be done, sort of thing.

The judge cleared his throat and took over the explanation.

"Per the hereditary and value clause, establishedin the legal council between the Red Gyarados famiglia vs Viridian ruling, any unattached child, without a viable Kantoian ancestor, who is released to the kanto state is, per established moral clauses, considered a potential criminal until proven otherwise."

Guilty before innocent, meets old racism, and social inheritance stigmas, mix and hop the result on vindictive steroids.

Welcome back to good old, great Kanto, don't let the injustice slap you on the way out.

Why did Daisy come back again? Switching citizenship to Galar sounded better and better.

Silence reigned as Daisy digested this horrifying horrifying fact and tried not to puke. Because the kid who had to prove he wasn't "criminally inclined" couldn't talk, was redder than a trapinch, and clearly needed more hospital time.

Hell, she needed more hospital time. Daisy slumped into her chair, voice crackling, breath unsteady.

"Fuck, no wonder Team Rocket has so many kids and orphans as grunts."

"Your opinions are being noted." The judge warned.

Next time she got frisked by some baby mobsters, she was packing condolence candies. She'd have to ask Giovanni what Italian kids normally liked candywise, so she didn't accidentally piss them off or something.

Giovanni chuckled, and Daisy groaned, "I said that out loud, didn't I?"

"Headphones," Giovanni ordered. "We'll pick this up in fifteen minutes, alright?"

"Ung... bossy bossy..."

Still, she did as ordered, letting the world be blocked out for a little while.

XXX
​

The final decision had been that she'd been granted temporary custody to her baby brother, john doe. It'd hold long enough for the kid to keep getting treatment and the mother to be found. But the state was going to investigate Daisy down to the bedrock. Whiche meant everything in Daisy's life had to be perfect.

That meant the moment Daisy could walk, she was discharged. Not to rampage through Oak's reserve, but through her own home, taking in all the damage and neglect her last renter had left behind.

But she wasn't alone, Giovanni had joined her, and together they made a curious sight. A young trainer and a middle-aged man working side by side like a pair of prickly, mad, gremlins. Doing remodeling and damage control in equal measure.

They spent hours in her garden. She'd been a bit silly in her first journeys. Taking cliplings and seeds from every region she visited. Thus she had a smorasmore of fauna thst she knew nothing about.

For saftey reasons ther garden had to be dug up. Anything with any chance of poisoning was a no-go. Her potted plants, all picked for decorative purposes, were declared death traps and were piled in the trashbins outside. This misadventure in horticulture meant, ironically, all the oran berries she'd planted to pass out to young trainers leaving her father's labs had to go.

Because before they bloomed thier heaking fruit oran leaves and roots were a weak poison that might cause the trots.

Or considering her luck, might cause apoxia per intense allergic reaction.

"Why did the judge consider me suitable again?" Daisy whinned, hauling a bag full of expired cleaning chemicals behind her.

"Blood relation makes you parent of the year material, hypothetically, but only if you're of the first degree," Giovanni grunted, tossing his bag, trash, and a pile of bad food onto the growing pile.

Behind them, 'mon tromped along the bottom floor of Daisy's two-story. Pushing out furniture, she'd decided her old tenant didn't deserve back. There might have been some brick breaks applied to get it through the doors, but as long as she and Gio didn't see it happen... it dixn't haooen.

It wasn't like the police could use a psychic mon on her to find out it wasn't an accident after all.

"You know if you were at all inclined for crumes you'd make a beutuful allibi." Giovani drawled.

"Shut up and lug things about Mr. Moral Citizen."

Daisy's neighbors, were going to have a conniption fit. Between galloping ground types wrecking furniture she had already violated nine noise policies, and who knew how many trainer clauses.

They'd also been at this for twelve freaking hours... and were themselves getting a bit loud and cranky as a result.


A loud bang from the house that wasn't ex-rentor furniture breaking had made her hop. Gio was at her side, first steadying, and when all the lights in the front had started to strobe all but hauking her behind him back to the house...

That had been fun. To tear out of a half-completed trench that was thier reverse gardening efforts, because his lightning rod endowed horn head, and her Manectric had decided to have the mon equivalent of a dick measuring contest.


The lightning lion was of the mistaken opinion that everything around it could be felled with voltage. And was tapping the latent energy in the house to try to fry Rhydon. Not wanting a house fire in her life had added a spring to her step. And at the front door Daisy managed to recall the cat to it's pokeball. The aborted thunderbolt crackled like misplaced fairy lights overhead, to preversely float to Rhydon's head. Making a crackling psuedo angelic halo around the ground types head.

Which did nothing to help his "who me" expression on his slate grey face.

Giovanni hadn't breathed a word, just swept past her and glared. 'Don nearly pissed himself.

A curt gesture had got 'Don heading out, to finish butchering Daisy's yard. The ground type had tried to catch her eye on leaving. Perhaps to apologise with a soft whimper, or gesture, but Gio's glare had hardened.

Slate ears slicked back, Rhydon tromped outside, tail dragging.

She was gunna need a rug to hide that gouge in the wood work.

"Your kid is going to get away with nothing." Daisy breathed.

Kinda in awe, a tiny bit in shock.

"Shut up and help me find more trashbags."


At the budding pile, Nidoqueen lounged, waited, and would drag the boodle the rest of the way to the morning trash pick-up spot. But not without tipping her stubby snouted face in an extremely judgmental manner at thier offerings.

"I've been gone for two years, how was I supposed to know the guy I rented this place to would overstuff the fridge and leave it to rot when the lease expired three months ago?"

The ground type squinted at Daisy and judged harder.

"Don't." Giovanni groaned. "Either of you. I do not have the patience for your crap today."

"Alright, old man." Daisy hip-checked him, gently, as she limped past. Ignoring his squawk of outrage, the growled, "Old? I will sic Orn on you so hard you're grandchildren will owe me money!" She made her way back in. She might have slammed the door behind her so as not to not hear his crap. They were at that fun, fun stage of working together where they were at each other's throats, so some pettiness was to be expected.

The door slammed open when he returned a few moments later, proving maturity wasn't all numbers. It also proved that despite his long legs, he wasn't moving much faster than her, so she hadn't had much of a lead.

His black eyes were all but sparking, and that placid too-still expression wasn't a warning. It was a potential death threat.

Daisy dug deep and found her compassion. Sorta.

"Senior discount time." She cheered, though honestly, between havong bwen working sincw bwfore dawn to near noon now, she wanted to cry. But she wouldn't. Worry him or waste the time. "You get a break on leg day. For the low, low price of no comments for ten minutes, you can sit your ass down, and I'll seal up the upper levels, and you get to skip those fun fun stairs."

The snarled string of syllables in Italian might have been a threat. Daisy could kinda talk a little like Gio did, but she wasn't great at it. She knew enough to flirt with boys and order off a menu. She'd been grilled by Giovanni to know how to ask directions, and under Grace's guildence she could ask for medical help, but Daisy wasn't able to do more than that. Despite his prickliness, Giovanni did take advantage of her offer. Spreawling on her dark brown recliner chair with a bonelessness that'd make Amewse have a hairball in jealousy.

Luckily, her Persian was out terrorizing the local ratata population. So no hairballs for now.

The Italian indulged his rest with extreme prejudice. Not taking a nap, but definitely going still and closing his eyes to find his inner peace and mental happy space.

Daisy didn't blame him; she lingered on the stairwell to do a few deep breath exercises herself.

She loved the Sakakis.. both of them. But Grace was infinitely easier to deal with than her husband. Gio was a raging perfectionist. Demanding things to not only be perfect but prompt. Worse? Things had to be done in the exact order that he wanted them. Anything outside his mental checklist, or out of order on it... Wel,l not too long ago it would have had to have been corrected.

He'd never used physical force, but his verbal nudges could have been considered abusive in a certain light. The only thing that'd kept them as close as they were was that Daisy had a rhyhorn's hide towards cutting words and mind games...and Gio had seriously apologized a few years back.

She was glad he'd kinda calmed down. But that didn't mean he was totally better. And her personality to kick at institutions, order, and orders was a bad mix long-term.

Daisy really wished Grace could have been there, but both she and Gio had slammed thier feet down. Eight month preggers, with one scare already, on light duty from her draconic bosses who wouldn't normally cut any slack for anyone because that scare had happened on work property?

No way in hell was Daisy green lighting Grace Sakaki taking the pothole-ridden, rocky road between Viridian and Pallet to "lend a hand". Giovanni had threatened to have his Kanguskaun, Matriarch, thrash the family car to keep her home. Per Gio, Grace had finally ceeded the match when Matriarch had been three steps away from thier beloved Bentley. Three steps! Stubborn had married obstinate; the way they were going, they weren't going to have a kid... Grace'd spawn a rock.

Daisy dragged her feet a bit. Giving the old man a thirty-minute break while she did a quick comb over. Once she was totally sure that everything she'd need was already bundled downstairs, she locked the upper floors. Taking a little time to wrangle the baby gates on the base of the stairwells closed, and test them before hauling herself into the living room.

The sight that greeted her, cutthroat buisnessman and patriarch of the (admittedly earned title of terror, looking up the man's mother in the dark web had been the stuff of nightmares) terrorfying Sakaki line had gone boneless. Sprawled in her plushy recliner like a drunken staryu, and breathing suspiciously loud that it might be considered snoring...

Daisy tipped her head. Tried to see the allure that Grace would natter about. There were a few streaks of grey about his temples. They were courtesy of her and her misadventures, he'd drawl, if she dared point them out when he was awake. His jade green long sleeve had bunched up a bit at the sleeve, letting a glossy glint of raised scars peak out. A misadventure of a different kind, he'd have deflected. Had deflected, when a much younger Daisy had grabbed said wrist and asked him if it hurt...

Really, Daisy couldn't see the intimidation or allure in the man. He just looked a bit cold.

That, at least, was easily remedied

"So, wanna help me break in this one?" Daisy whispered, whipping out a sky blue, fluffy monstrosity with cartoonish swanmays stitched in it. Giovani made a snuffled snort like a nidoran in a berry patch, twitching just a bit.

But he didn't wake up.

But that Nidoran noise? That was as good as a yes for her.

 

[K_S]

Acquisition
chapter 3
cleanup and prep​

Companion notes

Pre edit woed count on 3981 1/20/2026
words as of 1/21/26 5315
words as of 1/23/2026 pending



One power nap later, where he threatened arson when he saw what she bundled him in, and... well Daisy wasn't going to admit she'd napped too. When asked, she was resting her eyes. But with such star 'mon like Amewse draped over her shoulders like a white silken shoulder throw, and Meowscre, her pretty purugly going limp over her knees, Daisy might have caught some stray REM. It was all involuntary, however. Total cat nap mojo kidnapping her coherence.



She wasn't old like Gio who actually needed naps.



"I thought the blue complemented your eyes," Daisy drawled, stretching to get blood flowing. Not to indicate she'd just woke up. "And that's for their first bed."

She let tone and fondness tell Gio who exactly she meant. And there might have been a proprietary slant to her stake. She, not some crusty off mainland relation, was giving the littlest Sakaki thier first present. Nona and her amoral clutch of mobsters could screw themselves.

Daisy called dibs.

"I did the tassels and outline work on the 'mays myself."

Calloused hands combed over her work again. Dark eyes, thoughtful, the gym leader's stern features softened as his expression approached appreciative.

And considering the man was such an overprotective snob that was damn high praise.

"You just got to try it out first and break it in for your spawn. You know, to handle your nap time."

Because while they and them worked, topped with pointed looks to avoid confusion, Daisy might have consulted her dictionary for a few variants.

Wiggling her toes, she was not gloating. She was not smug. Her feet were just asleep, or so Daisy lied to herself.

And did so badly.

She was totally preening. Oh well.

"You're welcome."

"We are having a child, not spawn."

Spoilsport. Daisy yawned, wiggled, and stretch done stuck her tongue out. Meowscure flicked on eye, and managed to sync a whisker twitch with a facial tip to give the impression of a double eyebrow rise.

Which was made even more impressive since Purugly didn't have eyebrows to actually work with.


Trainer looked up at Trainee, had the pupil become the master in the grand game of the bluff? Lip kicking up in one corner, clearly not buying what Daisy was selling, the Italian threw the cloth at her. Letting her try it on for size.

"Where's the coffee, brat?"


Trying not to smother, he’d toss the fabric at her head, and both cats took the tassels as an invitation to reenact World War IV over her stomach. It took effort to pull it off, to unhook claws, and save her handiwork. Shoveling the twin terrors off, she was glaring at the kitchen doorway as Gio moseyed in to get himself a drink...

Oh, like hell he was. She'd earned her cup of joe, and would steal his if he dared..

"Makers under the sink," and if he couldn't see her smirk, well, that's because the coffee maker was way in the back. He had to reach deep for it, nearly bend double, and crawl in. Because Daisy's sinks were small and deep.

"Insta is on top of the fridge, in the K-Cup dispensers."

The thud of him starting in horror was music to her ears. And the yelped profanities as pain hit were like the high notes of her favorite song.

"What the fuck did you mean, instant."

His question was delivered in tones that basically said he thought Daisy was committing cannibalism. Or war crimes.

He was such a stereotype like that.

The coordinator, blankie tucked in hand, nudging a lurking Amewse aside with her foot. Reaching up, she slid it into an empty cabinet away from questing claws. When she was done, well, she had dragged things out enough to twist her features into pseudo innocence as she leaned against the door frame.

Where most would be cringing back at enraged Italiano, Daisy lived on the edge. Up close and personal was the best place to watch the show.

Daisy gave points where they were due. The male half of the Sakakis was pretty good at looming and intimidating. But between the present topic and the fact that he'd got a cowlick from some damp spot down under... He was really failing at doing anything else besides amusing her.

"I taught you better; you do each step of the brew! Is this the crap they've been teaching you in Galar? Because I swear by Nona's grave if there wasn't a more pressing reason to go back to war with those elitist, stuck-up, uncivilized..."


Cue World War Five kicking in right about now. Giggling, Daisy shook her head. Added fire to the scandal.

"They have tea rituals in Galar. Not monk spiritual stuff like Fuisha with an LCD chaser... But actual steeping, fussy timing stuff that'd make your brain explode. I seriously got yelled at for stirring my "cuppa" the wrong way by my date."

"You dumped him I hope?"

"Like the contents of a litter box."

The tell-tale tension in Gios shoulders easing was not heartwarming. And if that was another lie... oh well.

"I do have insta." She confessed. "Its what the ass left. My stash is in the secret compartment by the Persian picture.


Scraping a hand over his bruised skull, expression waffling between first and second degree murder as he realized he was being played with, Giovanni limped to the picture Daisy mentioned. A proud tom-cat posing pompously over a comically overlarge yarn ball. The hung art popped off with a wiggle, and the secret compartment under had the boodle. Mainly coffee, a hip flask for bad life choices on the go, and caffeine pills. He considered the pills and her and gave her a long look.

"They're for exams."

Actually, they were combating hangovers, the really bad ones.

Flicking an eyebrow up, Giovanni took pills and the flask out. Daisy knew she wasn't getting those back, ever.

"There are twice the recommended levels for safe human consumption and expired."

Daisy sighed, grieved, and moved on.

Someone was clearly feeling caffeine withdrawals, since the gym leader was in her stash of beans, setting things up, in a heartbeat.

Daisy waited until her cup was set. A bright blue monstrocity that said "world's best at everything", before hunting up her mixing spoon. While Giovanni filled his cup, Daisy dug up the additives from the kitchen table. Dry creme powder, sugar, cinimin...

Calcifer's features, held in those scarred hands, looked weird and distorted stamped on a mug. Maybe that's what made the old man pick it up at that convention.

"So, I'm thinking, pizza for dinner?" Reaching over Gio's shoulder, she got into the baking goods to put a dollop of sugar in. Weirdo he was, he shivered like she'd dumped a gallon in, and took his drink plain.


"Let's do some lighter fingerfood than pizza for now, and then we'll handle the furniture and lower levels... After..." well, after, there wasn't too much to do. Just pretty up a nook for the kid, double-check everything, and do a food run. Because all she had was finger food. He considered something beyond her, expression softening at internal mathmatics end. "It has been a while, hasn't it? Since a movie night?"

"You are so behind," Daisy assured him. "But don't worry, there's time to catch you up."

Daisy took a knife off the block, her cutting board, and some fruit was sliced and spread on crackers. While the Italian would of probably preferred cheese and meat, the fridge and freezer had been unplugged, scrubbed and bleached to near factory reset levels, and was slowly re-cooling itself.

It'd be cold food safe in a few hours, but Daisy was taking no chances right now.

They took thier drinks and nibbles standing. Well, Daisy was half perched on the kitchen doorjamb, Gio leaning a bit on the table. The kitchen chairs had been scrubbed and left to dry outside. The table covered in dry goods that were salvagable while the majority of the cabniets and drawers were left ajar to better air dry. That'd been fun, that spree of frantic cleaning and painting in the wee hours to hide the stupidity her last tenant had left up.

They sipped, nibbled, and were still for a bit, doing nothing at all. Just savoring the quiet. Outside, a pidgy warbled a simple tune; another answered.

Done, Gio put his cup in the sink, took hers (she'd been done awhile, just loitering), and now her once empty sink had two dishes waiting to be cleaned.

"Spicciati," to her confused look, he explained. "Sunlight's wasting."
(informal: get a move on)

Well, Daisy guessed they probably should get a move on, so they'd be done before the vampires all came out to suck thier blood. But considering she was hosting thier king.

"For that, you get to deep clean the bathroom by yourself."

"Monster!" Daisy gasped. "Waaait a second, I thought you already did that!"

"Upstairs, not downstairs." Giovanni hummed, snapping an apple as he headed out to check on Rhydon.

For one spite-fueled moment, Daisy hopped that Rhydon had dug too deep. Maybe hit a septic line, and Gio would have to deal with nastiness like that. Then she realized that if 'Don did something like that, it'd be her septic line...

Daisy took it back.

Outside, Nidoqueen bellowed, the sound was outraged and preceded by an alarming squelch.

Taking the hand held radio off its charger, Daisy decided she wanted her work music super loud and she was gunna scrub those bath tiles extra hard... and be totally unavailable for... twenty minutes.

The yowled string of Italian outside, alarmingly shrill, and some complaint adjacent roars, made Daist add an extra twenty minutes to her scrub time, alone time.

Whatever was happening outside could very well happen without her supervision.

Xxx​

Rhydon was in timeout, and 'Queen assigned to filling holes, and that's all Daisy wanted to know of the aftermath. Giovanni, shaking off hoarfrost from his duster coat, had decided indoor chores were more his speed. He'd hung up his mafioso knock-off garb, hung his fedora, and made it his life mission to test every edge in her house. Dissatisfied that nothing was child-safe, he drew Rhyhorn to gnaw off the points of tables, counters, and furniture.

It was admittedly slop shod solution, only made better by the fact that he filed the bite marks to a safer shape. Though Daisy was sure that using a 'mon claw file to sand down edges was probably cheating.

The materials that weren't sanding friendly were covered by more vibrant means. Daisy stuck sliced pool noodle over anything Gio couldn't smooth. Hot-gluing the spongy fluff down. It wasn't pretty, and clashed like hell, but it was better than waiting a week for Celedon to slowpoke mail her furniture edge caps and covers.

For the electric socket caps, there was no safe substitute. Gio had taken a bit of a break to drive to the hardware store and bought a garchomps horde of the things.

"How many sockets do you think I have?" Daisy mused, picking out a handful of the white blocky things to get started."

Gio snorted. "Seems smart to set them up in the mansion."

And to that, well touche, Daisy guessed.

Nursing his second cup of the day, Goovanni might of been followong her about as she worked. And then had to draw rhyhorn and his file when he spotted a table he'd missed. But mainly it was a slow span.

Which meant, gossip opportunities ahoy.

"May I say I'm glad you're damn tame compared to the others I've had to do this for."


Fighting with a particular stubborn socket, Daisy looked up. "Define untame."


Gio did. And because she was at the ripe old age of seventeen, he didn't hold any details back. Gio rattled off tales of weapon stashes, 'mon enhancers, contraband mon, and drugs with an amused air of a man done with other's stupidity.

She had to admit the idiot with the sharkpedo in his tub deserved the tongue lashing he'd gotten. As well as Giovanni comandeering that 'mon per league rules. Though gifting the "little nipper" to the Cerulean sisters had been a bit cruel.

"Is that why they cut off the girl's reality show, water grls, w' pretty 'mon" after the second season?"

"Guilty."

Daisy considered it, that show had been awful, and it'd been hyper-saturating the Coordinator scenes outside of Kanto for a full year. It'd been a relief not be dealing with so many water 'mon. Or keeping her cats from playing with all the new fishies on the design scene.

"You sure we can't get you canonized for doing accidental good deeds?" Daisy got the device in with a firm click.

"Unfortunately, there's no saint of "whoops, but I made it better"."

"Your faith is full of cowards."

"Tell you what. Grace will call Arceus, I'll call the pope, and we'll let you know their reactions."

Daisy snorted. Thier reparte got them through all sockets, and there wasn't an edge left unsanded or sheathed. Gio was shaking out the file and working out bits of grit caught in the holes.

"Youve done this often?"

Gio looked up from his work, rhyhorn bumping into his side, the Gym leader ran his hand over the ground type's grey side. "A few times," one finger scrolled up, and finding a bur in the horn picked up the blade and tipped his 'mon's head up. "When I first settled as a gym leader... well, I was the first Italiano to gain social clout in a field that wasn't either protection or legalese. There's a stigma in both those professions."

Daisy had heard this before. Had bumped into simular assumptions for being Kantoian in... say Kalos... Where the assumptions that Kanto leveled at Italian diaspora and purebred Kantoian were one and the same. Outsiders couldn't tell the two races apart. It'd been a culture shock to be suspected of everything for simply being. But for people in those two jobs had it worse than her globe-trotting fashion shows ever did... If you went into law, well, every client you repped, no matter your specialty, was clearly a Mob contact. Go into any type of security, and you'd be labeled, at best, as a violent thug. At worst, you were a Rocket plant to take an organization down.

"So people in the middle of custody battles couldn't reach out to friends or family who were in those professions," the people who'd made it, who had money, and pensions, who could actually afford to help, "but were dealing with.. stuff like this. Initially, they knew more than me. I was just the hired muscle." Gio's lips quirked, the joke going unexplained.

The file rasped over horn, a slow, careful sweep down with the grain. And while he worked Daisy gathered up the extras and did a full room scan. Everything looked good. She popped the extras in a bag and leaned against a wall. Gio flicked the file free of grey grit. Daisy made a mental note to resweep and mop before heading out in the morning.

"My predecessor never bothered; there was a massive backlog. People were losing custody at accusation, and thier kids getting whisked away. Government documentation was and is a joke. So the inmates made something of an undercover railroad where kids were being tracked by inmates so they could get reunited with thier parents. Mob ran... but what else could they do in thier cells but keep track of a distant niece or nephew?"

Guilty before innocent, Daisy was quite aware of how it worked. It'd been a shock to find out in Hoenn it went the other way. And while critics thought it was the reason behind thier little pirate problem, Daisy figured better pirates than this.

"I had to learn the system." Unsaid but not unfelt, etched in the haunted cast of his eyes, the slight tremor of his words, what if it's my kid, what if I screw up and it's my kid being watched over by friendly eyes behind bars while I get my shit together? "Legal and illegal aspects. I'll do what I can to keep your brother out, but if we fail. I have eyes and can call in favors. He won't be safe. Kanto prisons were nightmares. Daisy appreciated the candor as much as the offer. "But he won't be unsupervised."

Unsaid was a promise. Gio'd protect her unnamed sib with clout and blood. Throat tight, Daisy swallowed both pride and feels, and came up with snark.

"You're telling me you're living in a telenovela."

"No." Giovanni corrected, tipping Rhyhorn' head up he tested the edge with a finger tip and smirked at the thin line of blood that resulted. Mew if Daisy didn't know him so well, she'd have suspected he was an ex-edgelord or goth rather than a theater boy. "You are." Pulling out his pocket handkerchief, he dabbed at the cut. Recalling 'horn with his clean hand. "Welcome aboard."

While Gio was cleaning his cut, Daisy decided she was done with the serious stuff. Bouncing her practicality with Gio's many, many parenting classes, they hammered out where the kid's room should be. Daisy's list was pretty straightforward: near hers, close to a source of running water, enough room for a bed, and enough room for her to navigate when bogged down. A miniature guestroom near the kitchen was decided. They checked measurements for a crib (just in case she'd have to take custody for a short while) and set up a folding table in the other corner. That was set up with medicines and bandages.

A dresser wouldn't fit, but a box could be slid under the table, so close enough. She half-filled it with towels and left the other half empty for a few changes of clothes.

Since no one knew when or for how long, Daisy was skipping a paint job. Fumes, injuries, and small lungs were a worry. Well, Daisy worried. Gio suggested fans and paints. But in the end it was Daisy's house. And it was easier to pull everything down and donate the excess once the kid's mom was found, or the mom's relations stepped up. So while they measured and stocked, Nidoking was outside with an old, long rug and a bolt of matching fabric he was tearing into strips. The two trainers were going to stripe the walls with the cloth.

It wouldn't look great... but an old fabric staple wielded by Daisy and one in Gio's hands, and they were set and would be done in... half an hour.

As for why King was doing the cuts... the mon had a nearly magneton's lock on level of accuracy when it came to slashing.

And Gio hadn't even taught the 'mon cut.

Having her second cup of coffee, Daisy watched through the window as Gio's purple people eater cheerily mearused and tore the last few lines. Her driveway had become his art studio, and his scaly tail thumped along to the radios beat. He'd gotten full radio rights after Daisy and Gio had nearly gotten to blows over the station. The giving it to a third party had been courtesy of Grace, who, sick and tired of catty texts from them both, had said it was either "give it to someone else or toss it in the blender."

With overtures of, "I am one minute from cabbing my pregger ass down there, I will make your lives worse than Giovanni's freaking Hell if I have to do so."

At least 'King had enjoyed it without violence?

Gio was stomping up the driveway, sharp features thunderous. Despite the closed window, the man had a perfectly cutting tone that carried, and this heard every line as he told off his 'mon. Earthquakes timed to the song lyrics "when the thunder rolled" were unacceptable in any circumstance. And, no, they did not show ground-type supremacy.

They busted up pipe systems. Which was a bastard move. So stop it.

He poked back in to find Daisy amused, but sympathetic. While Orn and a few other people Daisy knew mockingly called Gio a cat whisperer, she had learned during their time of cohabiting that it wasn't just cats. He could, and did, speak to all 'mon. And was almost painfully shy about saying how he'd gotten what most would consider a kick ass superpower.

She'd spent one fun afternoon hounding him. Was it from a meteor he found, a stray spirit, a wish on a shooting star? She'd tossed all sorts of wild ideas at him, and "bit by a radioactive spinirak" had made him stop ignoring her and just shut down.

The sheer stupid of it had stopped him mid-step.

"How would radioactive venom that'd give me a heartattack per it's paralatic properties give me a "power"?"

A younger Daisy had been equally gobsmacked as she realized just how unworldly the "old man" before her was.

It got sadder when you realized he was only twenty-one, he was curiously sheltered from pleasure anything. He'd never had a fun day in his life. Daisy, lounging in her bedding, scraping back from her second near-death experience, looked at him and felt something in her chest hurt at that revelation. But she wasn't one to cry when sad. She just quirked a smirk and tried on sassy for a size.

"You don't read a lot of comics, do you Mr. Sakaki?"

No, he did not. It'd taken two years, and almost nine months, to gently break him into popular and archaic media so he could you know... talk to his kid about kid-centric subjects.

"Do I need to call a plumber?'" Daisy drawled.

"No," He was as short with her now as he'd been then. Really, the man'd never change.

"Unfortunatly perfect EV and IV don't make for perfect taste." Daisy shrugged, taking a sip.

Giovanni looked at her, not in frustration or fury, but rather a soft horror. It was somber enough to nearly make her put her cup down and ask him what was wrong. Almost. If he weren't such a coffee thief, she would have. Instead, Daisy tucked her drink closer and watched as he slumped into his chair. Yes, the brown recliner was officially his. Him and Amewse could fight over it as much as they wanted. Daisy was ceeding it to Gio and letting Amewse figure out if that was going to be her hill to die on all on her own.

"I don't want to give that charlatan any credit, but... considering everything... I think Nidoking may have some... cognitive issues."

Per being a bit... inbred? Maybe. Daisy wasn't around the poison type enough to tell. Still, she spared a glance outside and waved. Nidoking, feeling her eyes on him, lookedup from his fussing over an angle to tear and wiggled his ears in greeting.

Sitting on the arm of the chair, tired and precariously perched, Daisy put a hand on his knee. A mute motion of support.

The poor poor man. He talked to 'mon all day long and never really got it, didn't he? "Gio, he thinks Dolly Parton is a singing banette. We've both seen that sock plush he has. And if it turns into an actual banette when he ever cottons on and drops it for a real doll of that woman, I am not dealing with the fallout."

She patted his knee, a mute, "pay attention to this" motion, that, curiously, worked. He was looking at her, black eyes unblinking.

" He has a criminal record for breaking into a car to change the station because he hates headbanging rock, that much. He listens to tacky love songs and sings breakup songs at training." Hadn't that been a discovery? Daisy was permanently banned from Giovanni's private training area for derailing one session into a sing-off. Especially after Giovanni realized (and recognized) the song in question was from an anime.

" Liking country is the least of his problems." Another pat, and the man was glaring at her, overly sulking. "Congrats, you trained him up to sentience. Have fun with that. Now, how long until Nido's done?"

"He wants ten minutes."

"Awesome, Grace is offering complete trash for movie night tonight, help me talk her down."

Gio all but snapped the phone from her hands and went down the list. "Absolutely not, we are not doing another Rom-Com night..."

Which, thank Mew Gio was on her side tonight.

A paw rapping on the door frame made Daisy look up. Giovanni, per furrowed brows and the slight tick in his jaw, was irritated as all hell and not coming up from his frustration for anything. Nidoking was in the doorway, strips in forepaws, and he lay it at the door like an amorphous doormat.

"Delivery!" Daisy chirped. "Come on, get your staple gun, we are getting this done before it gets any later." An ear wiggle at her approach meant Nido' wanted pets, but a firm warning from Gio held her back. Poison point 'mon were not safe to touch without gauntlets, and since neither she nor Gio was carrying a set, Daisy had to keep her hands to herself. "Sorry, buddy, next time, alright?"

A rumble and by the tip of those ears, a pout, that was aborted by a flash of redlight and a sudden withdrawl.

'You're mean and bossy," she flounced past him, goods in hand. "You're like the capi de capo dei coglioni."(the high boss of dickheads)

Daisy was proud of that one. All her weeks watching crime time and studying mob stuff paid off. She didnt even flub the title.

His laugh told her she either got it perfect or screwed it up. But he'd never tell. Tossing his phone in the chair behind him, he stood, and after luxering a slow stretch, followed her to the temporary kids' room to help her wrap up.

 

[Tango]

Acquisition:​

A Roost spin off, huh? I'm pretty interested in what is happening here! Roost has been a great read so far. Seeing some brand-new material is really cool just by itself since I know it's been a long time!

Summary:

When Giovanni got the call mid Work day he nearly got caught breaking five traffic laws to reach her.​

Not sure what could motivate Giovanni to move so fast other than his son Silver being in danger.

Daisy Oak knew better than to flippantly call him.

Much less sounding like a wreck.​

Something completely insane is going on, but I doubt it pertains directly to Daisy.

But she didn't know what to do. This mess, which wasn't her fault, was many things.

A disaster, life-altering, disgusting, and far far beyond her skill set.

She'd only wanted to be Kanto's first Feline Coordinator, but her ambitions, her life, would have to be put on hold.

Ready or not.​

Ok what the heck happened!?

Ranked Teen

Content warnings: teen parenting, criminal activity, pregnant characters, mild medical issues, ableism, racism,​

Given the summary, I'm surprised it isn't firmly in M-rated territory! (The fact that it isn't is a relief since there are a LOT of different ways a summary like that could go! )

___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________


Chapters:
Intro Complete
Chapter 1: complete
chapter 2: outline complete
chapter 3: i.p.
chapter 4
chapter 5
chapter 6​

Neat! You already know how many chapters you want to make it!

Also, I am a fan of the short chapters you seem to be splitting them up into. 🥰

Acquisition,

Chapter 1​

No fancy chapter titles, I guess. I wonder if you plan to add any later?

Spoiler: Line by Line Reaction - Chapter 1

Stomping through the sliding glass doors, Daisy Oak was cutting a quickest route from the fields of the reserve to the parking lot as quickly as her high dudgeon would take her. It wasn’t as fast as a good run would have been. But she’d taken intervals to kick rocks, and plants, and swear.

I like the way you used 'and' repeatedly here. Really works well with the stompy anger going on!

Because why the hell not?

It’d been a bad idea. She knew it. Been told it. But Father’s duties during hatchling season tapered off the time her tour seasons had allowed her her to take a vacation.

I realize the way this line is written works, but having the same word next to itself is a bit jarring. Took out a 'had' for good measure too. 'Had' can be cut from almost all lines, I've noticed.

And instead of hooping it up in say… Galar… meeting pretty boys with pretty accents, she was in good old backwards Kant,o

comma that doesn't belong in 'Kanto'

trying to mend a bridge he’d let fall apart ages ago.

Her father let a bridge fall apart ages ago. Her father is Oak's son or son in law, I take it? I guess her father doesn't get along with Professor Oak, but Daisy just keeps on trying to mend things...

Edit: Came back here after reading ahead more. I think what is happening here is that Oak is her father, not her grandfather!

Again.

Mew above, she was so damn stupid, it was round six of this dance, and did she learn anything… noooo…

Hating everything about her bleeding heart. Double hating that her unmet needs as a kid were rearing up to make her waste a ton of money to come home and poke the good old familial abandonment wound, yet again. Daisy slowed her rampage after water type hatchling lab one.

So Professor Oak abandons duty to family, it seems...

She didn't want to take a tumble on the slick walkways.

Swiping her eyes, she was embarrassed to find she was running out of similes for stupid. It was feeling downright angry thirteen year old in her head right now.

Angry thirteen year old? That's oddly specific. I get the feeling she is older than that for this to be phrased this way.

And to add salt to the wound, she had tapped out her knowledge of the varieties of “bastard” around the time she’d gotten out of the professor’s earshot.

Definitely about Professor Oak, then.

Each step was a clanged splash. Making a mess of her leggings and spooking the 'mon in the tanks along the walls. And her inner fashionista seethed at the loss of good pants.

It didn't stop her from stomping.

This was supposed to be her damned vacation. This happened every vacation. Every time she stopped working, she started hankering for something she’d never have.. And smart thing she was, she sunk a charizard's horde in… in this stupid, stupid, stupid attempt to have a normal father-daughter relationship with a man who didn't give a damn.

Ah... underneath the anger she is probably horribly sad about it.

She'd half a mind to call the Sakaki's the second she got off the reserve. Gio might be willing to pick her up in something that screamed shady as hell just to give Oak something to stew about... He was her type of petty after all, it's why they got along so well...

But her thoughts of revenge were felled with the cold realization.

It could work. Maybe. But it would likely be a month after she left before Fa-Oa- He bothered to review the non-'mon footage.

If he bothered to do so at all.

So the problem is regarding something that is not a mon.

That thought stopped her mid-step. She wrestled with herself, throat tight, eyes burning. Beating back a raw, crying jag by sheer force and a deep breathing exercise.

Appearances and all that.

Under her mask of half-assed composure, her brain was anything but.

Why was she like this? Why was she so stupid!? Those twin demons blasted on repeat inher skull.

Space needed.

And no amount of maturity, or acting like a "proper lady" was shutting it up.

Swiping her eyes, she exited the water type reserve. All its fish tanks and grill pathways over artificial waterways were behind her with the hiss of the automatic door snapping closed at her back.

Interesting how you describe part of it as she is leaving it. Looks like it helps to avoid all the description clumped up in one spot.

While the fire type hatchery wasn't hot enough to dry her tears, the arid environment did a lot towards masking the evidence.

She'd managed to stop stomping at least.

Really, with everything, she was just too tired. The dust strewn about to make a facsimile of a desert met the residue of her temper and the water type reserve to make an instant coating of mud on her shoes.

I have to say that I'm noticing a ton of quality in this so far. The descriptions really pop and everything seems written crisp and clearly. I'm enjoying the way you vary your sentence lengths too and the way you use one line paragraphs for emphasis.

Gah. Fatigue was pushed back by sheer exasperation. Daisy all but danced in place. Trying to shake the clinging goop off... and it was in that wild attempt to reclaim the ghost of cleanliness, that she saw it.

Her first thought was "weird". Baby blue, out here? Her brain caught up in bits and pieces. It was a scrap of fabric, maybe some egg wrapped up in baby cloth by an oversentimental trainer dropping off their first mon's hatchling. But then logic caught up.

Despite his genial-seeming nature, Professor Oak was not a sentimental man. Or even a warm one. Aides might have whisked the egg into the chamber bedecked in the softest cloth and gentle assurances that the kid's egg would be treated like spun glass...

But the wrapping wouldn't have been left on. There was a trash can right by the start of the environmental egg hatcheries for stuff like that. Flowers, mementos, or even gifts from the egg's "Mom and Dad" had been chucked into it indiscriminately.

Wow, so they pretend to care to put on a show and the moment no one is around they drop the act completely. Sounds like what Amazon does with fragile packages.

Currently, it looks like she is seeing just a cloth and she is wondering why it is there.

So what made this egg different?

Getting on her tiptoes, Daisy saw the egg wasn't in the first row of the hatchery, but it wasn't in the front either... Other oddities poked out. The shape wasn't perfectly round. That wasn't right... Her feet carried her over, a cautious, slow shuffle, her hand clasped around Amewse's pokeball.

Oh! So she saw the fabric first and then noticed an 'egg' it was around and she is seeing it at a distance, so she is getting closer.

Then it moved, and it wasn't the gentle rocking of something ready to hatch.

But, rather, a weak sort of flatish squirm.

Eyes wide, boots making the rocky sand crackle under each step, she crossed the distance from the path out to the raised earth that served as this hatchery's nest. Curiosity was an invisible string that was wrapped around her very soul, tugging, tugging, drawing her closer.

Wow that's some really cool description there! Builds so much suspense!

If her life were a horror story, she'd be the first to die.

She said it constantly. Been told regularly.

Another 'been told' line, I see.

Nifty quirk of her style.

Grace Sakaki mentioned it once a month in amused tones over cups of coffee while they compared shenanigans and gossip. Her husband, Giovanni, sighed and scolded her for her latest misadventure. Daisy's manager reminded her that any stupidity fueled scenanigans were coming out of her paycheck. Those three older adults were her triad of common sense, taking the place of Mother, Father, and distant Uncle. Nevermind Grace was part enabler part one-upper, and her manager had manipulated a few of her shenanigans into free PR campaigns.

I wonder who her manager is?

Poor, somber Gio only listened to her tales with an expression of a man considering how much liquor he'd need to partake to forget, but perversely not be a complete bad example.

She passed the first row of eggs, they were a wild slew of sizes, all spread in a row.

Oak's got a love-el-y bunch of coconuts...

Orange and red speckled shells were all around her now; her fingers were ghosting over the brittle shells of unborn fire types. Each touch wasn't quite burning, but at that unpleasant hot tingle that preceded sunburn. Her steps crackled less. The ground was more soft sand than rock now, to spare those delicate shell undersides.

Yep! Some more of your clever ways to mix action with place.

Gio hadn't found the key to his balancing act. The Italian's efforts were probably derailed by the fact that Daisy had joined with him when she turned sixteen, and used his attempt to make the pain stop to do more stupid things. Like to try to drink him under the table. Or get him involved in stunts that made the headlines.

Sounds like she had quite the interesting time! Probably could get a fic made about that just by itself, honestly. (Unless it is referring to canon events for the manga)

She turned, now not on the edge of the grid pattern, but tippy-toeing

tippy-toeing? I'm not sure if that is correct, but it looks wrong to me. I feel strongly that it should be tip-toeing, but my feeling might be wrong on it.

among the hatchery's eggs. She made wide sweeping steps, her dance classes paying off in full. Minding balance and shells, each step was more sure than any nerdy sedentary scientist's. It took effort not to toss a few dance moves into the mix.

What an oddly dynamic way of sneaking. It's written so well and it's so odd that I don't even mind that she was angry and then curious. It kind of sounds like she is having fun at this point.

As if sensing her bravado, the overhead speaker crackled to life, just in time to puncture any gathered pride.

"Please step away from the test subjects. This is your first warning of five; you will be teleported off the premises if you persist."

An automatic system, it seems!

Seriously? Daisy flicked a glare up to where she thought the camera was. "I'm allergic to psychics, you bastards!"

"Second warning..."

Well crap... The flick of blue was close enough that she could make out the gist. She only needed a few more steps to be able to pick it up. But seeing it clearly froze her in her tracks. Swaddled, loaf-shaped, frizz-topped, it definitely was not an egg.

"Third warning."

I guess it's one of the aids operating the system. Odd that they would implement so many warnings considering how close it lets her get to the 'not' egg.

It made a noise, a breathy sort of whine. Horror flitted across Daisy's face as she realized that it wasn't a doll. It was a person. A kid.

An infant.

She wiggled past the last row of eggs between her and.. and the kid. She reached down, not believing, but it opened its wide blue eyes and let out a raspy scream. All red, with a scaling of white blisters and sand, and it's trying to scream. Trying and failing.

Wow. An utterly neglected baby!

"Shit, shit, shit..." She'd trying to hold them, so the screaming would stop, and couldn't find a good hold. Gritting her teeth, she tucked the kid close and turned on her heel, picking a quick path out.

"Fourth warning."

"Wait, wait. Stop!" She howled. "It's a kid, there's a kid here. Don't 'port me, get a medic, a first aide kit!"

Anything, anything sane, anything compassionate...

"Drop the test subject, and lie on the ground. The Reserve is not responsible for any damages you receive during forced transport."

Daaaaang. That is utterly cold. Especially considering she is Oak's daughter.

Darkrai and Yveltal grant her mercy. This was going to be worse than hurt. In the last sane moment, before the purple light shimmered and made the very air between her bones rattle, her sight spun. She crunched into a ball, holding the kid to her chest, as her vision lost all colors save an infinite smear of varied viridian hues. As gravity became a lateral force rather than a grounding aspect of existence, she felt Amewse's pokeball split open. The purple light flared, burning past her shut eyes. Swirling with the greens of her world in a nauseating kaleidoscope.

Then, pain.

I assume she was teleported.

Her legs were a slew of conflicting sensations, so hot they froze, so weak they locked. She held the mewling thing to her chest and trembled. Trying not to puke, trying to remember if her mouth was open, fighting to remember how to breathe. Hot bitter surged up her throat, and she wasn't sure if she was able to turn her head away, but knew primal deep she'd gotten sick.

And knew shame, hot bitter shame so deep it made her sick up again.

Shame... Is it because her father was responsible for the neglect? If so, I could understand that. Or perhaps it's from her own allergy to psychics?

A world away, Amewse, her perfect, precious, Persian swirled into existence. Not that Daisy was aware. The trainer's world had dissolved into remembering how to breathe in a world where the air was toxic, green, miasma.

Amewse treated the day with typical cat aloofness. Shaking off the irritating buzz of her withdrawal, she craned her white neck about. Seconds later, her tail was up but crooked down. Back arching, wiskers quivering on the wrongness of the air, Amewse's ears flicking back at the utter insult of the atmosphere.

Just where did they teleport her anyway? A sewer?

This was worse than rain, worse than Raindance mixed with Hail. Whipping on her paws, Amewse looked about, for Madam Mealserver Warmlap.

I LOVE the way Amewse thinks of Daisy!

Also, this POV shift was super smooth somehow!

Madam wasn't supposed to ever ever be exposed to such energies. She could have a hairball get caught the wrong way and stop breathing.

Then the can opener would never whirl again.

Truly the thing of nightmares. The can opener must turn just as the spice must flow!

Madam's state made Amewse pause for one second. Sick and rank fell from her mouth, and there was screaming that wasn't Madam but cuddled close. This was wrongness, within wrongness, and the smell in the air was making Amewse nearly gag.

Despite her disgust, Amewse was a TRAINED 'mon. Thus, she knew exactly what to do. Thin red eyes combed the area for assistance for the Madam. But there were no trainers, or white-clad medics, or Joys. There were no roundtound, yarnball, shaped Chancys to mewl her concerns at.

Aww! Amewse is looking for ways to help.

Ears slicked back, tail lashing, Amewse swatted at Madam's belt. Knocking off pokeballs and a purse, making the thing that was cuddled and screaming scream louder. Still, Amewse kept at it until the square-shaped talkie slab was knocked free. It took a few moments to flip it shiny side up and bat it until it warmed and turned a sky blue.

It had taken Amewse a week to learn what "centering" meant, but Amewse was a smart girl. She had got it right and the lesson stuck. A click and flash told her that her "centering" was perfect, as always. Amewse indulged a self-satisfied purr, and the device changed colors as a result. The blue was now not just a color, but with bars and symbols that meant things a bit beyond the feline. It was this "screen" that Amewse meowed at.

When the screen read "Call going through," Amewse gently scruffed the talkie-box and dropped it at Madam's side. Confident that things would be right again, all she had to do was be pretty, wait, and Bite any wild abra with extreme prejudice Amewse settled in to keep Madam company.

Hopefully, it would not be a long wait.

So I think what happened here was Amewse just made a call to a Pokemon center for Daisy? Really neat!

Chapter 1 thoughts:
So, even though we don't know what exactly made Daisy so angry, the focus became on what she found, what the teleporter did to her, how cool Amewse is, and what is going to happen next. Presumably she will be calling Giovanni very soon and thus the crazy drive out to her will commence. Great opening chapter! Really cool to see an example of your current writing level. Seems like some of your best work! And now, I'll gladly move to the next chapter.

Spoiler: Line by Line Reaction - Chapter 2

Aquisition

Chapter 2

Housekeeping​

Oh, so you ARE doing chapter titles... 😎

Not sure what it will entail, though. Seems way too ordinary compared to the insanity that just took place. I'll be curious how the chapter title plays in.

AN: additional trigger warning! Nausia/puking, forced hospitalization and bodily restraints applied humanely. Inhumane price gouging practices/vulturing

The chapter is 85% complete, the bolded section is outline that i will brush up to standard as time permits and can be ignored.

Released early /mildly incomplete to provide catnip material for contest.

not Grammarly'ed edited.

Good to know. I won't point out spelling errors and will refrain from concrit if I read the bold parts.

The metronone clicks and beeps of hospital tech had a peticular effect on Daisy's rattled wits. Though supposedly soothing, the monotonous bweep aquired an edge after a seeming eternity listwning to it in perfect darkness.

A saws blade, that dug and scraped into her very psyche.

Muzzily Daisy swiped at the source, and when an irritatong tug on her hnad held her back she blindly crooked her other hand, ready to tear the tugging bind and...

And a cool hand clasped her wrist, twined thier fingers into hers and squeezed.

Brains still askew it took an embaressingly long moment to realize the pressure was a pattern.

To realize the pressure was words.

But when she did, she choked back a sob.

Safe. Grace. Safe.

I have no idea what Daisy is suffering from, but it seems pretty darn intense!

Sensations trickled in, slow like molasses, but it wasnt surreal. That was worlds better then the kelidescope of sensation and insanity that'd been her world before.

There was pressure on her ears. Sound canceling headphones that clearly weren't doing thier job. A softness wound around her eyes told further tales.

She'd been blindfolded.

Wow and the aide just teleported her out anyway when THIS is the result to her! What a complete and total...

And THESE are the people her own FATHER employs? No special consideration for her at all, it seems! Man Oak is SUCH a peice of work in the manga!

A wiggle of her legs showed them to be bound.

Soft as a pidgy's wing beat those fingers slipped free from hers and fluttered a quick string of taps on Daisy's forearm.

Understanding came faster, now.

Easy. Safe.

Well, I guess Grace is here taking care of her. That probably explains how she is getting such specific care.

Daisy slumped into the bed. The hospital had to put her in total (well incomplete but attempted) sensoral deprivation and immobility.

It'd been a bad fit then.

Mercifully there wasnt a tube shoveled in her throat, she double checked that with a questing tongue and got a vile taste as a result.

So maybe on the entubation. She might of slept through its removal. Maybe. Daisy worked her trembling fingers best she could, and tapped out a few letters.

Dai.

It wasn't perfect spelling, but Grace's nails tapped nonsense for a moment as the woman nerviously considered something.

Finally, almost cringingly, came the answer.

Five days

Wow, so this whole thing hospitalized her for five days!

And that.. that was revelation enough for now, her brain decided quite indepenently of her emotions..

Daisy Oak checked out of reality before she could decide what she felt about the fact she'd been bed bound for almost a week.

Xxx​

The next time Daisy woke, she was significantly less grateful.

Her ability to crack an eye open wasnt impedded by soft fluff, thus letting lancets of light spear in and leave behind a searing headache. Her croaked profanity was part for the pain, and part for the fact the staff had let something die in her mouth and it'd been left to rot.

For a month.

At first I thought this meant another month had gone by with her hospitalized, but this is just her thinking her mouth was so nasty that someone must have not cleaned it for a month

Do not puke... the mantra came out as a soft wordless whimper, that immediatly got the attention of someone. The world was blurs and hurt, so she scrunched her eyes shut and gave up on sight for a while.

So it wasn't like she could see who it was. Only that theynwere too close and she couldn't kick at them to back the hell up. Thier closness and the crinkle of paper cut through her confusion and tripped every alarm wire in Daisy's head.

She whined, at that sound, a barrage of noise was kicked up. Whoever it was spoke a mile a minite.

And normally that'd be fine...

But right now, spoken words were beyond her. Her hands weren't bound, so she was able to push back at the..

( flat, cool, metal at tip top, crinkle under that... was it a clipboard?)

The thing plopped into her lap, and took mean satisfaction that it clattered to the floor.

Despite how the sudden racket made her headache worse.

Babble came from that. More words, ung she just... no words! She wanted to beg them to stop. That part of her brain wasn't better yet!

But she couldn't, warn. And the sub human noises she could scrape up summoned a prattle of nails on chalkboard.

Gorge rose in her throat. Forget not puking. She was going to now, no matter what.

No ifs, ands, or buts.

But that paperwork shoveling ass was going to get a front row viewing on his shoes.

Xxx

Uh... Ok so it seems like the hospital stopped taking good care of her. I guess Grace left and some idiot is there now instead. Eep.

Outl8ne. Gio enters post puke. Daisy recodnizes him by callouses and scars on hands (fluter touch, traves familiar strwats and valleys of old wo7nds ages ago). Calms. gio kicks out fiscal tean person.. gios daisy's medical proxy, all paperwork goes thro his lawyer. Get out.

Daisy drifts back to sleep.

wakes up coherent. Hating bathrobe of paper towel. Furoous to find theyd had to cut her out of her pabts/clothes. Wants out asap. Gio and orn drift in, gio furious orn homding gios leash. Situation explained. Daisy to "inherit" custody of infant until mother can be found. Gio and grace stepped in but paknthrew fit and used legalese to block gios temp aplication. If not state will take over. put half hwaled kid in fostercare under jphn doe, and that will be it.

If daisy takes. Harge kid will be kepy in hosp. Gio will foot the bill. Once kid healed abd mon found daisy can release cust but if not...

State wants to cut off treatment and release to oprphan ward.

Daisy grudgingly signs up to gwt kid healed up only.

State demands home visit to view temp housing.. daisy realizes... crap needs help and asks gio.

Gio grudgingly agtrees.

Timeframe of 72 hrs set.
(Post hosp)

I skimmed this a bit but considering how rough it currently is, I'm going to move on to the rest of it. I'm sure it will be much better once you polish it up anyway.

Edit: I came back and re-read this after reading the rest of the chapter. She takes responsibility for the baby and needs housing which Gio agrees to help with. Got it.

They made a curious sight,. A young trainer, and a mid-aged man working side by side like a pair of prickly, mad, gremlings.

Her garden outside had been dug up. Anything with any chance of poisoning was a no go. Her potted plants, all picked for decorative purpose, were decalired death traps, and were piled in the trashbins outside. This misadventure in hortaculture meant, ironically, all the oran berries she'd planted to pass out to youg trainers leaving her father's labs had to go. Because before blooming, the leaves and roots were a weak poison that might cause the trotts.

Or considering her luck, might cause apoxia per intense allergic reaction.

"Why did the judge consider me suitable again?" Daisy whinned, hauling a bag full of expired cleaning chemicals behind her.

"Blood relation makes you parrent of the year material, hypothetically, but only if you're of the first degree." Giovanni grunted, tossing his bag, trash and a pile of bad food onto the growing pile.

So... I think what is happening here is that she is trying to get her home in proper shape to be allowed to adopt the baby she found?

Behind them, 'mon tromped along the bottom floor fo Daisy's two story. Pushing out furniture she'd decided her old tennant didn't deserve back. There might of been some brick breaks applied to get it through the doors, but as long as her and Gio didn't see it happen.

Old tenant? Who? Is she talking about Oak?

Well it wasn't like the police could use a psychic mon on her to find outbit wasn't an accident.

Her neighbors however were going to have a conniption fit. Between galoping ground types, a near power outage when Gio's 'Don and her Mewfasa had gotten into it, she had already violated nine noise policies, and who knew how many trainer clauses.

Just how late are they doing all this??

That been fun. To have to tear out of a half complete degardening because his lightning rod endowed horn head, and her manectric had decided to have the mon equivulant of a dick measuring contest. The lightning lion was of the mistaken the opinion that everything around it can be felled with voltage. Not wanting a house fire in her life had added a spring to her step. And made her recall of the cat the fastest it'd ever been.

Wait... what? I'm so confused what is happening in this paragraph. Tear out a half complete DEgardening? What does that even mean? Just what ARE you removing when you are removing the absence of a garden??

So Manectric was battling Rhydon and was getting too crazy with the attacks? Why were they battling to begin with?

Giovanni hadn't breathe a word, just swept past her and glared. 'Don nearly pissed himself and been sent out with a curt gesture to finish thier digging. The mon had tried to catch her eye on leaving, perhaps to appologise with a soft whimper, but Gio's glare had hardened.

Maybe because of the previous section, this isn't making much sense to me either on what exactly is happening here or perhaps 'why' would be the more pertinent question.

"Your kid is going to get away with nothing." Daisy breathed.

Kinda in awe, a tiny bit in shock.

"Shut up l, and help me find the trashbags."


At the budding pile, Nidoqueen lounged, waited, and would drag the boodle the rest of the way to the morning trash pick up spot. But not wihout tipping her stubby snouted face in an extremly judgmental manner at thier offerings.

"I've been gone for two years, how was I supposed to know the guy I rented this place to would overstuff the fridge and leave it to rot when the lease expired three months ago?"

Ah ok. So that explains she had a renter in there who left and kept all their stuff there. I wonder what happened to the renter?

The ground type sqinted at Daisy and judged harder.

"Don't." Giovanni groaned. "Either of you. I do not have the patience for your crap today."

"Alright old man." Daisy hip checked him, getnly as she limped past. Ignoring his squawk of outrage, the growled "Old? I will sic Orn on you so hard you're grandchildren will owe me money!" she made her way back in. She might of slammed the door behind her, to not hear his crap. They were at that fun fun stage of working together where they were at each other's throats so some pettiness was to be expected.

I had to look up hip check. I'm surprised she was willing to do that to Giovanni, but I guess they are just close enough for that to be something she can get away with!

The door slammed open when he returned a few moments later, proving matuirty wasn't all numbers.

Ah, as in, just because he is older doesn't make him more mature. At least from her perspective.

It also proved that despite his long legs he wasn't moving much faster than her, so she hadn't had much of a lead.

His black eyes were all but sparking, and that placid too still expression wasn't a warning. It was a potential death threat.

Daisy dug deep and found her compassion. Sorta.

"Senior discount time." She cheered, though honestly between havong bwen working sincw bwfore dawn to near noon now, she wanted to cry. But she wluldnt. Worry him or waste the time. "You get a break on leg day. For the low low price of no comments for ten minutes you can sit your ass down, and I'll seal up the upper levels, and you get to skip those fun fun stairs."

The snarled string of sylables in italian might of been a threat. Daisy could kinda talk a little like Gio did, but she wasn't great at it. She knee enough to flirt with boys and order off a menu. She'd been grilled by Giovanni to know how to ask directions, and under Grace's guildence she could ask for medical help, but Daisy wasn't able to do more than that. Despite his prickliness, Giovanni did take advantage of her offer. Spreawling on her dark brown recliner chair with a bonelessness that'd make Amewse have a hairball in jealousy.

Ah, so Gio is more tired than he is angry. Considering all the manual labor those two have been participating in, I can't say I blame him.

Luckily her Persian was out terrorizing the local ratata population. So no hairballs for now.

The Italian indulged his rest with extreme prejudice. Not taking a nap, but definitly going still and closing his eyes to find his inner peace and mental happy space.

Daisy didn't blame him, she lingered on the stairwell to do a few deep breathe exercises herself.

She loved hte Sakakis.. both of them.

Aww... Such a wholesome line! 🥹

But Grace was infinitly easier to deal with than her husband.

Naturally.

Gio was a raging perfecionist. Demanding things to not only be perfect but promp. Worse? Thing had to be done in the exact order that he wanted them. Anything outside his mental checklist, or out of order on it... Well not too long ago it would have had to of been corrected.

Yikes. I know someone like that irl.

He'd never used physical force, but his verbal nudges could of been consisered abusive in certain light. The only thing that'd kept them as close as they were was Daisy had a rhyhorn's hide towards cutting words and mind games...and Gio had sieriously appologized a few years back.

Interesting dynamic...

She was glad he'd kinda calmed down. But that didn't mean he was totally better. And her personality to kick at institutions, order, and orders was a bad mix long term.

Daisy really wished Grace could have been there, but both her and Gio had slammed thier feet down. Eight month preggers,with one scare already, on light duty from her draconic bosses who wouldnt normally cut any slack for anyone because that scare had hapoened on work property?

No way in hell was Daisy green lighting Grace Sakaki taking the pothole ridden, rocky, road between Viridian and Pallet to "lend a hand". Giovanni had threatened to have his Kanguskaun, Matriarch, thrash the famiky car to keep her home.

Yeah. Good call on both their parts there. Grace needs the care.

Per Gio, Grace had finally ceeded the match when Matriarch had been three steps away from thier beloved bently. Three steps! Stuborn had married obstinate, the way they were going they weren't going to have a kid... Grace'd spawn a rock.

Makes it all the more insane that Gio killed Grace later. Granted, I know Gio isn't a paragon of virtue.... Because him going to such extremes was a way of showing he cared... I think.

Daisy dragged her feet a bit. Giving the old man a thirty minute break while she did a quick comb over.. Once she was totally sure that everything she'd need was already bundled downstiars, she locked the upper floors. Taking a little time to wrangle the baby gates on the base of the strairwells closed, and test them before hauling herself into the living room.

The sight that greeted her, cutthroat buisnessman and patriarch of the (adnittedly earned title of terror, looking up the man's mother in the dark web had been the stuff of nightmares) terrorfying Sakaki line had gone boneless. Sprawled in her plushy recliner like a drunken staryu, and breathing suspiciously loud that it might be considered snoring...

Daisy tipped her head. Tried to see the alure that Grace would natter about. There were a few streaks of grey about his temples. They were courtesy of her and her misadventures, he'd drawl, if she dared point them out when he was awake. His jade green long sleeve had bunched up a bit at the sleeve, letting a glossy glint of raised scars peak out. A miss adventure of a different kind, he'd of deflect. Had deflected, when a much younger Daisy had grabbed said wrist and asked him if it hurt...

Really, Daisy couldnt see the intimidating or allure in the man. He just looked a bit chilled.

That, at least, was easily remididd

"So, wanna help me break in this one?" Daisy whispered, whipping out a sky blue, fluffy, monstrocity with cartoonish swanmays stitched in it. Giovani made a snuffled snort like a nidoran in a berry patch, twitching just a bit.

But not waking.

Good enough for her.

Gio sleeping. A rare sight for people to witness. I guess she brought a comforter out for him or something. Cute.

Chapter 2 thoughts:
Ok, so NOW the chapter title makes sense.

Obviously chapter 2 still has some bits to complete, but there were some confusing bits as well. The stuff with Daisy in the hospital was pretty crazy.

Honestly, I'm surprised what happened to Daisy wasn't addressed in this chapter. Oak just gets away with with aide teleporting her away like that? Even if there is no lawsuit about it, you would think there would be some screaming match between her and Oak or something. I just feel like there is a mountain-sized bit of drama that feels like it should be there and yet is not.

But the scenes with her and Gio cleaning out the house to get it ready was amusing and down-to-earth.

I hope more will be adressed on the fact that she found a neglected kid and her confronting Oak at some point.

At any rate, this was really cool to see something new from you, and I'm sure I'll enjoy checking more of this out later as you complete more of it!

 

[K_S]

A Roost spin off, huh? I'm pretty interested in what is happening here! Roost has been a great read so far. Seeing some brand-new material is really cool just by itself since I know it's been a long time!

actually it's a pre-quil detailing the Sakaki's and Daisy's relationship, but it does set up the ground work for some canonical events, much later in the tale...

Not sure what could motivate Giovanni to move so fast other than his son Silver being in danger.


Something completely insane is going on, but I doubt it pertains directly to Daisy.


Ok what the heck happened!?


Given the summary, I'm surprised it isn't firmly in M-rated territory! (The fact that it isn't is a relief since there are a LOT of different ways a summary like that could go! )

Nah no M rated stuff planned, we'll be snug in Teen land for this outing.

Neat! You already know how many chapters you want to make it!

Well I did, now it's a bit off the rails. rolls eyes.

Also, I am a fan of the short chapters you seem to be splitting them up into. 🥰


No fancy chapter titles, I guess. I wonder if you plan to add any later?

Spoiler: Line by Line Reaction - Chapter 1

I like the way you used 'and' repeatedly here. Really works well with the stompy anger going on!

Spoiler: Line by Line Reaction - Chapter 1

Imagine each and being a stomp, with a few other stomps interspaced for funsies...

I realize the way this line is written works, but having the same word next to itself is a bit jarring. Took out a 'had' for good measure too. 'Had' can be cut from almost all lines, I've noticed.


comma that doesn't belong in 'Kanto'

I'll fix up when I can thanks.

Her father let a bridge fall apart ages ago. Her father is Oak's son or son in law, I take it? I guess her father doesn't get along with Professor Oak, but Daisy just keeps on trying to mend things...

Edit: Came back here after reading ahead more. I think what is happening here is that Oak is her father, not her grandfather!

Yep that's part of both Tranversal and Roosts AU status, Oak's both Daisy and Blue's dad, just decades apart... man really hasn't learned anything between his two kids...

So Professor Oak abandons duty to family, it seems...


Angry thirteen year old? That's oddly specific. I get the feeling she is older than that for this to be phrased this way.

Not shown until later, but Daisy was a bratty 13. Any backslides in maturity are "acting like a 13 year old" as a result.

Definitely about Professor Oak, then.


Ah... underneath the anger she is probably horribly sad about it.

Nah, she's just pissed. And resigned to it. She's not a sentimental woman.

So the problem is regarding something that is not a mon.


Space needed.


Interesting how you describe part of it as she is leaving it. Looks like it helps to avoid all the description clumped up in one spot.

Yep, that's why I structured it. Also, it was a fun way to play withthe setting.

I have to say that I'm noticing a ton of quality in this so far. The descriptions really pop and everything seems written crisp and clearly. I'm enjoying the way you vary your sentence lengths too and the way you use one line paragraphs for emphasis.


Wow, so they pretend to care to put on a show and the moment no one is around they drop the act completely. Sounds like what Amazon does with fragile packages.

Currently, it looks like she is seeing just a cloth and she is wondering why it is there.

You got it on one...

Oh! So she saw the fabric first and then noticed an 'egg' it was around and she is seeing it at a distance, so she is getting closer.


Wow that's some really cool description there! Builds so much suspense!


Another 'been told' line, I see.

Nifty quirk of her style.


I wonder who her manager is?

honestly I don't have a lot of notes about the manager except they have an almost zero tolerance for B.S which makes them working with Daisy a bit problematic...

Oak's got a love-el-y bunch of coconuts...

deedly deedly dee

Yep! Some more of your clever ways to mix action with place.


Sounds like she had quite the interesting time! Probably could get a fic made about that just by itself, honestly. (Unless it is referring to canon events for the manga)

Nah, this relationship is 100% AU. And I may have them refer to the incident in pieces but no plans to fully write it out. But be warend Grace has mewtube footage to blare at them of their stupidity if they act up too much. It keeps their shenanigans to a minimum.

tippy-toeing? I'm not sure if that is correct, but it looks wrong to me. I feel strongly that it should be tip-toeing, but my feeling might be wrong on it.

I don't know if either's right, I kept it tippy because it sounds more childish and Daisy's unleashing her inner little kid just then...

What an oddly dynamic way of sneaking. It's written so well and it's so odd that I don't even mind that she was angry and then curious. It kind of sounds like she is having fun at this point.


An automatic system, it seems!


I guess it's one of the aids operating the system. Odd that they would implement so many warnings considering how close it lets her get to the 'not' egg.

They don't want her to panic her and have her break the eggs so they're giving her more time. And yes, it was an aide.

Wow. An utterly neglected baby!


Daaaaang. That is utterly cold. Especially considering she is Oak's daughter.

Honestly, the staff don't know that.

I assume she was teleported.


Shame... Is it because her father was responsible for the neglect? If so, I could understand that. Or perhaps it's from her own allergy to psychics?


Just where did they teleport her anyway? A sewer?

Nope, right outside the reserve parkinglot actually.

I LOVE the way Amewse thinks of Daisy!

All her cats have funny names for her, she has no clue. Gio knows them all and is secretly amused as hell.

Also, this POV shift was super smooth somehow!


Truly the thing of nightmares. The can opener must turn just as the spice must flow!


Aww! Amewse is looking for ways to help.

Amewse under her prickly facade is basically a saint.

So I think what happened here was Amewse just made a call to a Pokemon center for Daisy? Really neat!

Chapter 1 thoughts:
So, even though we don't know what exactly made Daisy so angry, the focus became on what she found, what the teleporter did to her, how cool Amewse is, and what is going to happen next. Presumably she will be calling Giovanni very soon and thus the crazy drive out to her will commence. Great opening chapter! Really cool to see an example of your current writing level. Seems like some of your best work! And now, I'll gladly move to the next chapter.

Spoiler: Line by Line Reaction - Chapter 2

Oh, so you ARE doing chapter titles... 😎

Spoiler: Line by Line Reaction - Chapter 2

Yep, I just gotta think of one for the preceding (sweatdrop)

Not sure what it will entail, though. Seems way too ordinary compared to the insanity that just took place. I'll be curious how the chapter title plays in.


Good to know. I won't point out spelling errors and will refrain from concrit if I read the bold parts.


I have no idea what Daisy is suffering from, but it seems pretty darn intense!

Saddly this is a middle-tier episode.

Wow and the aide just teleported her out anyway when THIS is the result to her! What a complete and total...

And THESE are the people her own FATHER employs? No special consideration for her at all, it seems! Man Oak is SUCH a peice of work in the manga!

Oak doesn't even know she was teleported out.

Well, I guess Grace is here taking care of her. That probably explains how she is getting such specific care.


Wow, so this whole thing hospitalized her for five days!

Oh it gets worse...

At first I thought this meant another month had gone by with her hospitalized, but this is just her thinking her mouth was so nasty that someone must have not cleaned it for a month


Uh... Ok so it seems like the hospital stopped taking good care of her. I guess Grace left and some idiot is there now instead. Eep.

actually it's a hospital admin, basically trying to shovel paperwork at her for her to sign. Most of it is shady and financially based. It'll be revisited later.

I skimmed this a bit but considering how rough it currently is, I'm going to move on to the rest of it. I'm sure it will be much better once you polish it up anyway.

Edit: I came back and re-read this after reading the rest of the chapter. She takes responsibility for the baby and needs housing which Gio agrees to help with. Got it.

yep hoping to groom it and post it soon.

So... I think what is happening here is that she is trying to get her home in proper shape to be allowed to adopt the baby she found?


Old tenant? Who? Is she talking about Oak?


Just how late are they doing all this??

they've been working for 12 hours straight... and it gets so much worse.

Wait... what? I'm so confused what is happening in this paragraph. Tear out a half complete DEgardening? What does that even mean? Just what ARE you removing when you are removing the absence of a garden??

So Manectric was battling Rhydon and was getting too crazy with the attacks? Why were they battling to begin with?

Sakaki and Daisy are ripping apart Dais'ys garden to get everything vaguely poisonous out, so that Daisy doesn't fail the inspection. All dangers must go.

As for the mon they're having a
I'm better loved/more powerful/prettier contest... hint... rhydon is losing...

Maybe because of the previous section, this isn't making much sense to me either on what exactly is happening here or perhaps 'why' would be the more pertinent question.


Ah ok. So that explains she had a renter in there who left and kept all their stuff there. I wonder what happened to the renter?

he got sulky when the lease wasn't renewed and sabotaged on his way out.

I had to look up hip check. I'm surprised she was willing to do that to Giovanni, but I guess they are just close enough for that to be something she can get away with!

They're both pretty rambunctious and a bit rough with each other. Gio less so now that she's an adult. It's shown more in villaintines, but they scrape and tumble when he teaches her to fight and others a pretty physical oneman upmanship to their interactions..

Ah, as in, just because he is older doesn't make him more mature. At least from her perspective.

Nope it don't.

Ah, so Gio is more tired than he is angry. Considering all the manual labor those two have been participating in, I can't say I blame him.


Aww... Such a wholesome line! 🥹


Naturally.


Yikes. I know someone like that irl.


Interesting dynamic...


Yeah. Good call on both their parts there. Grace needs the care.

Grace is going to find herself in matriarch's pouch if she doesn't slow down. Persian and Daisy have had to sit on her to keep her down. The ordered bed rest is driving her up the wall and she's not a good patient despite being nurse.

Makes it all the more insane that Gio killed Grace later. Granted, I know Gio isn't a paragon of virtue.... Because him going to such extremes was a way of showing he cared... I think.

He does care for and love Grace deeply. It's just... well the circumstances had him pick between one thing and another, and Grace lost. Which should show just how deeply Gio values that other thing.

Gio sleeping. A rare sight for people to witness. I guess she brought a comforter out for him or something. Cute.

Chapter 2 thoughts:
Ok, so NOW the chapter title makes sense.

Obviously chapter 2 still has some bits to complete, but there were some confusing bits as well. The stuff with Daisy in the hospital was pretty crazy.

Honestly, I'm surprised what happened to Daisy wasn't addressed in this chapter. Oak just gets away with with aide teleporting her away like that? Even if there is no lawsuit about it, you would think there would be some screaming match between her and Oak or something. I just feel like there is a mountain-sized bit of drama that feels like it should be there and yet is not.

But the scenes with her and Gio cleaning out the house to get it ready was amusing and down-to-earth.

I hope more will be adressed on the fact that she found a neglected kid and her confronting Oak at some point.

At any rate, this was really cool to see something new from you, and I'm sure I'll enjoy checking more of this out later as you complete more of it!

Thanks for dropping a line. Until next chapter.

 

[Tango]

Getting a reply in to your review reply! 😎

actually it's a pre-quil detailing the Sakaki's and Daisy's relationship, but it does set up the ground work for some canonical events, much later in the tale...

Cool!

Nah no M rated stuff planned, we'll be snug in Teen land for this outing.

Well I did, now it's a bit off the rails. rolls eyes.

Spoiler: Line by Line Reaction - Chapter 1

Imagine each and being a stomp, with a few other stomps interspaced for funsies...

Yep that's part of both Tranversal and Roosts AU status, Oak's both Daisy and Blue's dad, just decades apart... man really hasn't learned anything between his two kids...

Clearly.

Not shown until later, but Daisy was a bratty 13. Any backslides in maturity are "acting like a 13 year old" as a result.

Ah... ok!

Nah, she's just pissed. And resigned to it. She's not a sentimental woman.

Better for her that way.

Yep, that's why I structured it. Also, it was a fun way to play withthe setting.

honestly I don't have a lot of notes about the manager except they have an almost zero tolerance for B.S which makes them working with Daisy a bit problematic...

deedly deedly dee

Nah, this relationship is 100% AU. And I may have them refer to the incident in pieces but no plans to fully write it out. But be warend Grace has mewtube footage to blare at them of their stupidity if they act up too much. It keeps their shenanigans to a minimum.

I don't know if either's right, I kept it tippy because it sounds more childish and Daisy's unleashing her inner little kid just then...

In that case, carry on! 🫡

They don't want her to panic her and have her break the eggs so they're giving her more time. And yes, it was an aide.

Honestly, the staff don't know that.

Which in and of itself kind of says something, I think.

Nope, right outside the reserve parkinglot actually.

So, it wasn't the place she was teleported to that was the problem, but very much the teleportation itself.

All her cats have funny names for her, she has no clue. Gio knows them all and is secretly amused as hell.

That's so funny!

Amewse under her prickly facade is basically a saint.

Spoiler: Line by Line Reaction - Chapter 2

Yep, I just gotta think of one for the preceding (sweatdrop)

Hmm... How about, 'Incubation' ? Her anger is stewing, she is in a hatchery, the teleportation sends her into a disabled mess. Seems like it might work.

Saddly this is a middle-tier episode.

Oak doesn't even know she was teleported out.

Well, that makes sense considering he didn't even bother to tell his aides who she was.

Oh it gets worse...

actually it's a hospital admin, basically trying to shovel paperwork at her for her to sign. Most of it is shady and financially based. It'll be revisited later.

Wow that's seems similar to scamming a senior citizen or something!

yep hoping to groom it and post it soon.

they've been working for 12 hours straight... and it gets so much worse.

😅

Sakaki and Daisy are ripping apart Dais'ys garden to get everything vaguely poisonous out, so that Daisy doesn't fail the inspection. All dangers must go.

As for the mon they're having a
I'm better loved/more powerful/prettier contest... hint... rhydon is losing...

I really feel like this bit should be written out more. Even with this, I'm having a hard time picturing how it started and how it escalated.

he got sulky when the lease wasn't renewed and sabotaged on his way out.

Ah, that explains it. But what a jerk... A lease isn't a guarantee of anything beyond the current term. It sounds like she did nothing wrong by not renewing it.

They're both pretty rambunctious and a bit rough with each other. Gio less so now that she's an adult. It's shown more in villaintines, but they scrape and tumble when he teaches her to fight and others a pretty physical oneman upmanship to their interactions..

Well, I find that interaction quite fun and amusing.

Grace is going to find herself in matriarch's pouch if she doesn't slow down. Persian and Daisy have had to sit on her to keep her down. The ordered bed rest is driving her up the wall and she's not a good patient despite being nurse.

Yeah... Grace is always a handful. But a handful people don't want to drop.

He does care for and love Grace deeply. It's just... well the circumstances had him pick between one thing and another, and Grace lost. Which should show just how deeply Gio values that other thing.

He had to make an impossible choice.

Thanks for dropping a line. Until next chapter.

 

[Tango]

Aquisition

Chapter 2

The Hospital​

Ok, I'm here to review just the finished portion here that I did not see before.

Spoiler: Line by Line Reaction

Time was still a fuzzy concept. Boiling down to, now and not now.

Italics isn't complete on "not now" forgot to italics the 'n' in 'not'.

When the cloying sensations of heat in her throat, near choking, had passed, and her stomach stopped clenching, there came another barrage of sound. A scrape, and slam, and words... ung not words! She wanted to scream, but managed a whimper. Her thoughts devolved into no no don't puke...

And that was her whole world.

Yeah... That's what it usually is before the first time it happens... As one who has had stomach bugs and even food poisoning once, I can certainly relate.

Until another cophany. A thud and slam, and after... It wasn't perfectly quiet, but close enough that Daisy could unclench. Another span of hard breathing, mercifully no words, and then cool brushed against her cheek. When she didn't wince back, the wet span was swiped over her face and mouth. It came and went, and the second circuit Daisy leaned into the touch. Luxuriating on a touch that wasn't pain, or prodding. The cloth left, and something long and cool was set against her cheek. Not cold-wet, but cool-smooth. Brow furrowed, she tipped into the odd sensation, then reached up with a shaking hand to twiddle it. Long, smooth, pointed, slik? It brushed the space by her eyes... And understanding made her dare a nod.

Yes, please... calloused hands guided the cloth. Wrapped it around her eyes, and the dark took one pain away.

Kind of feels similar to a migraine. When those happen, all sound and light cause pain and it can induce nausea. But her case seems even worse and that's saying something.

But I'm glad to see she is getting cared for. Poor girl.

She was eased back until she was lying down, by hands calloused and scarred, each motion slow and careful. Treating her as if she were spun glass.

The hand twining over hers, moving slowly so she could trace the familiar rings and scars over his knuckles and fingers, told her who it was. The tapped Geo, was overkill.

Geo? Not Gio?

But Daisy wasn't going to complain.

She knew who it was, she was safe, and slid into unconsciousness without a protest

Gio is honestly way more of a father to her than Oak seems to be.

XXX

Round three was the lucky one, where she woke up to a world that was sane.

Sound wasn't steel wool over her brain,

Wow that sounds worse than a migraine!

and time had sorted itself into its proper places. There were no strobing colors that swirled over her sight, eyes open or shut. Gravity didn't wildly pivot in place and leave her behind on a whim.

Gathering her courage, Daisy pulled at the cloth over her eyes, daring to see.

While uncomfortable, light wasn't a searing napalm to her brain.

Thank goodness! It seems like she is over the worst of it! 😩

Twiddling the red fabric, a tie, she looked about the room. It was standard hospital fare, white-walled, boring, with a dry board on the far wall with her name and status scribbled on it. She wasn't sure if it was remnant damage from her teleport, or if the handwriting was so bad, but beyond her name and the words "Mild Psychic Reaction" she couldn't make out a word.

Mild? Excuse me? What part of that was MILD? The vomiting? The complete incapacitation for several days for who knows how long at this point? Mild... (Not a stab at your writing. A stab at the utter ignorance they have of her pain)

Mild... Daisy closed her eyes, holding back a storm of reactions. Not breathing, losing coherence for... for however long this was, was a mild reaction... Knowing her brain, knowing that moodiness and irritability (and hysterics) were a real possibility, Daisy scruffed her emotions and took slow, deep breaths. She was awake, able to think, and she was becoming cognizant that her ex-blindfold smelled of earth, smoke, and a musky cologne.

Aww... Gio gave her his tie for her eyes. 🥹

And that the smoke was a bit thicker than normal.

It seemed someone had indulged in a nervous smoke before leaving it behind.

So cool that you thought to include a detail like that!

Not that Daisy would rat the man out, Grace could be a nightmare about the silliest things... but still.. It was nice to know he worried and cared.

And speaking of care, there was, also no one around. Slumping and staring at the ceiling, winding and rewinding the tie in her hands, Daisy basked in the imperfect silence of the moment. It was just her, the hum of machinery, and a view outside that consisted of another building's wall. Huh, not Azul' Corp then. Her out-of-network was going to be astronomical.

Lucky her.

The idea of things being in network or out of network is just another way healthcare is pushed to be so unaffordable.

The grunginess of the ceiling (old water leaks hurriedly patched looked kinda funny, like a squished pidgy if you squinted just right) told her Daisy wasn't at Viridian Gen... which narrowed down her options to either a back alley Rocket facility (unlikely) or Grace's other haunt, Verdent Saint's.

Interesting how she narrows it down. Much more than a staff member just telling it to her! Also since she is by herself, she would naturally have the time to try to figure it out and it makes complete sense that she would be curious about it.

Which was no little bit alarming. She must not have been breathing; Grace might not have known if she'd have enough time to make the other half hour to get to the better hospital.

And to that jarring, terrorfying revelation, Daisy dug deep...

And found superficial spite waiting.

Her hands crooked into pseudo claws as she raked them down. First to peel back the scratchy sheets, then to assault the hated the bathrobe made out of offshoot paper towel materials they'd bundled her up in.

📝 (As a reminder, when I use this symbol it refers to an editing suggestion above.)

The teleport nearly killed her... Yeah, that would be rage inducing alright!

Because if she was dressed in this, and there was no hide or whismer of her other clothes left out, then it meant her shirt and pants had to have been cut off. And that realization summoned the ghost of angry shopper, fashionista, and prickliness to the very fore of her soul.

She'd paid a fortune for those hyperdurable, designer, Galarian trainers pants. And they were gone. They'd been half of a set, and the shirt, a signed first edition Peony work, was likely ashes in the biohazard incinerator.

Anger levels rising!

She wanted out, her team, and then to be pointed in the direction of Oak's reserve. Her cats knew hyperbeam, hypervoice, and other moves of mass destruction. Plus Mewfasa was big enough she could ride him side saddle.

Mewfasa?

But... uh... Daisy. I don't think you want to go back there again attacking or they will just immediately TELEPORT you again!

Is she really the kind of person to throw that much caution to the wind when it would likely result in her being teleported again?

She wouldn't even need to be well enough to walk to be discharged, just well enough to yell and point at a stationary target.

A rap on the door frame, and maturity incarnate, Daisy rolled over to better seeth at the wall.

"Don' wan' visi-s."

Alright, that was far and away not the coherent string of words she wanted to spit out. Maybe she'd have to stay a few hours. Long enough for her to brush her teeth, get a drink, and shuffle outside.

As awful as the overall situation is, I can't help but find this bit amusing!

That'd be more than enough time for her tongue to figure out how to work with her vocal cords again.

The door opened, and Daisy tapped her demonic thirteen-year-old inner child with extreme prejudice. It wasn't subtle, or anything like elegant, but she managed to round up a pillow and chuck it at the door.

"Go 'way!"

That'l teach em!

A thump and grunt told her she'd hit someone,

Score!

but when steps drew closer Daisy groaned and rolled over. Better face the music now, rather than wait for it to hit PR.

She blinked, kinda confused at the two men in her room. And her sight... wasn't quite right. Thier features were swimming. She could think things; one was tall, the other short. But she couldn't identify the color of their hair, and a blink reset the few descriptors she drummed up. Tall... the first one who entered was tall, right? She looked from stranger one, to two, with panicked deerling eyes, and that stopped the soft grumbles. Tall, the one who came in first... Maybe?

Had they come in? Weren't they always in?

Regardless, Tall shot an arm in front of Short... and there was something funny about the top of Short's head and..

And Daisy blinked, and then kept her eyes closed, all her fight dying with a groan.

Her fucking prosopagnosia was back, with a hellish vengeance. Forget riding Amewse, she wouldn't be able to manage looking down the hall, much less riding to Oak's ranch and razing the whole thing down to the ground with a legion of angry kitty cats.

Tears seeped out of her scrunched eyes, as Daisy tipped her head up and a sob rattled her throat. Still, she scraped something baser than spite, and managed to talk. Her fingers bunching the rough hospital sheets into a lump.

"My name is Daisy Oak, my Medical Proxy is Giovanni Sakaki, I have recently been hit by a psychic attack and am unable to vouch for my own care per suffering an acute episode of psychium anaphylaxis. My caretaker's phone number is-"

Wow, she must have really dug deep to say all of this bit so clearly!

Numbers swam in her brain, she tried to get them back, to get them in order, but... but... She whined, unable to say, much less think... so she went lower than thought. Fell back on route. There was a route for if she was that gone, and she'd held onto it with teeth and nails.

"My wallet, there's a number in my wallet...Call it and..."

And one voice, raspy and old, rumbles a line she should remember. A horrified string of silken words that are cut off with a hissed reprimand. There's silence as she manages to spit out the rest of her lines. Without the numbers, because numbers are too complicated, she can almost feel the concepts of time unwinding in her brain. Simplifying, to now, and not now.

She wants to scream, because she'd been better. She'd been better and...

"Daisy."

She knows that word, and if she keeps her eyes closed, she can remember it's hers. Her name. And the voice is familiar. But that's all she has.

A door closes and opens, and there are steps. Farther, than closer, and very, very slow.

"Cara. Tesoro."

Normally I might question some of what is going on, but given her extreme debilitation, nothing seems out of place.

She knows those words, too. Though they're mainly gentle nonsense. Still, it's something, something new. A hand ghosts over hers. gently clasping over hers, she lets go of the sheets, drawn more to the warmth than anything. She maps the prickly rises of callouses, the smooth scars, and the ring. It's cold, hard, unforgiving.

Not forged, it was etched from an ignot, raw steel, polished, and treated with chemicals until it gleamed like silver. Its owner had, by hand and sheer determination, pitted it with geometric patterns, fitted flecks of stones within the flaws.

Her fingers traced the fragments to the large stone on top. A diamond holding flecks of nevermelt ice harvested from Galar's Hammerlock caves.

Its mate had firestones mixed with amber in its flaws... The stone at its heart was a ruby that had spawned around fragments of a firestone.

And she hated the fact that she knew this, and not a name. That she had this worthless piece of trivia, and not the ability to make the sounds she needed to talk right.

She held on tight, a wordless apology.

I guess the owner of one ring, probably the first one, is Gio. The other would be Grace, if I had to guess.

Also does a good job highlighting her continual struggles with her current condition.

From a world away she heard the door open, halfway, just enough to creak, not enough to slam. The other hand is smoothing over her head. The light of the world dims as he plans over, to feather a kiss on her brow. He's close enough that Daisy can feel his pivot in the air currents, and the way his shadow shifts to let some light touch her scrunched-up eyes..

Yeah, you can tell Gio really cares about Daisy. Touching, honestly.

He speaks, softer than a whisper.

"Ottieni una proroga. Con qualsiasi mezzo necessario."
(get an extension by any means necessary)

Another replies:
"Vuoi che contatti la famiglia?"
(do you want me to contact the family?)

More growl than words, he breathes.
"Se resistono, me ne occuperò io. Personalmente"
(if they ressit, I'll deal with them. Personally)

I'm glad you added translations below. Even so, it's hard to say what exactly is happening here, but that can be blamed on Daisy's pov.

There are four more visits, four more times of "almost better" than her coherence slides back and forth to the quixotic tides of her internal injuries. Daisy's tested ruthlessly, and the results are left with her. She knows (when she can read) that when she slides back it's less extreme. Still she's not well when she's declared "competent".

She's still got a damned blindfold over her eyes, and headphones slung over her neck in case her symptoms spike and she needs to blot out the world to not have another lapse.

It's insanity that they are forcing this meeting. But "they" wouldn't wait. So it's her, Giovanni acting as her proxy, and two representatives (her legal team, and Gios), and one impatient slip of a man whose (supposedly, Daisy can't see anything now) dressed in a judge's robe with a fluffy wig and everything.

I really like the bits added in parentheses. Makes it MUCH easier to understand!

The reason for this meeting, emergency custody case. Which had Daisy baffled. She's not a mother, she'd damn well know unless the rumors of Lysandre co' collecting eggs from toilets was true. If that was the case, ew, and oh Mew no, jail the lunitic, and get someone with a science degree to wrangle his genetic insanities right now... Daisy was not qualified to deal with any mon/human hybrid perfection zombies that may have resulted from that madman's activities.

I love crazy tangents like this. She started thinking of ways she might be a mother even if she hadn't done the deed!

Lysandre is just a bit insane.

But wow! She considered a scenario like that before considering maybe it was about that baby she rescued!

She'd immediately been assured, no Lysandre Co' had not, and would not, be social engineering the biological leavings drawn from Lum' cities toilet systems. No, her eggs hadn't been abducted from the last time she'd been on her period in the city. And a note had been added that Daisy was still suffering some side effects from her psychic exposure.

A mild case of delusional thinking.

OH! Ok. That makes sense. It was part of her condition.

She'd been asked after her mother, which again was weird. But Daisy wasn't shy. Years had taken most of the sting out of those chains of events..

📝Missing . on the end to make it 3 dots. (did not edit above because a bold dot almost looks like a regular dot)

"asked after her mother" does that mean they asked her mother if she would take custody of the baby before they came to ask Daisy?

After Daisy's emancipation at fourteen, the woman had packed and never looked back. She remembered Mother had gotten her tubes tied to spite Oak after Daisy had been born, so unless Mom had undone things (which was impossible, and also another case of ew) she wasn't a half-sister or anything.

RIght?

Wait... why is she considering the possibility of her having a half sister? Is she thinking maybe her mother had another baby?

The silence to that mental tangent was... alarming. Daisy teased the headset, wanting to slap it on, not hear anything. Because alarming was starting to scale into terrifying. She could feel her heartbeat pick up, and she swiped sweaty hands over her hospital gown front.

"You absolutely can't reverse it, right?" Daisy squeaked. Because dealing with Mom... again... yeah. Never again. Not after how the woman left.

"Considering she had everything caterized, no, you can't." Giovanni finally spoke up when the collected judge and law people were clearly not going to talk.

Did you mean to say 'cauterized'? Is he talking about tubes being burned at the ends to prevent them from healing to have babies again? I'm a bit lost here... Oh wait, I think I get it. Gio is confirming her mother could not have reversed the tubes tied, I think!

Well, that was good news, sorta. Maybe..

Missing dot

And that optimism lasted five more minutes, when she'd been passed up a sheaf of papers, and given a quick spiel about custodial responsibilities and..

Missing dot

And Orn, Gio's lawyer, snapped up the pages. "She can't read Braille, you moron." Then there's a rustle, she can imagine the orniary man tipping his head towards Daisy's rep. "Why the fuck am I doing your job for?"

📝

"Because you're the nicest person in the room," Daisy suggested, "who can explain why the judge is trying to make me a janitor?"

Ah! Custodial.

Silence... while all the older adults froze, and mentally rewound the last few interactions.

"Daisy." Giovanni's voice was smooth. "Do you need some headphone time or?"

"Just rip the Band-Aid off by talking sense, and I'll let you know after."

"This is unprecedented... " Daisy's rep found his voice, yay, now if only Daisy could remember his name.

"If a life weren't on a line." Orn snapped, "something that could be remedied without dragging a sick ki-adolescence into things. By honoring the emergency reinterpreting inheritance and honor clauses, which was already done in the case of xion vs Indigo Ceria 1968-"

Daisy gripped the headphones tight, deciding she'd block them out, not for psychic damage, but for sanity reasons.

Is Daisy starting to catch on to what it's about now? Is that why?

They'd gone on and on about this, making less sense each time, and she was sure that her head was going to explode if they didn't shut up right now.

Giovanni's hand on her shoulder stopped her; his roared, "Shut up, all of you!" stopped everyone else.

Except the judge, who snippily threatened to throw him out for contempt if he dared...

And it was her hospital room, Giovanni had complete access, and she was half a mind to suggest the judge throw himself out...

But that line, about a life being on the line, held back her rebellious streak. By a hair. But still.

Gio is really trying to defend her here. For someone as industrious as him to be here spending this kind of time and effort, it shows his care for her.

"Can someone explain this, in plain Kantoian, please!" Daisy groaned.

Silence, Orn cleared his throat, the older man's voice a delightful rasp of smoker, meeting not gentle with himself, with a dollop of grumpy curdgmudgeon. It really was like listening to rocks smack together, deep baritone rocks. "If I can?"

The rasp of a smoker is delightful? Does Daisy like people who smoke? Is it because Gio smokes?

Forget contempt of the court, Orn's tone in asking permission was contempt of the judge's very immortal soul.

But what is Orn asking for permission for? And what was his tone?

Some rustling, perhaps someone nodded. Scarily, Gio hadn't let go, was keeping his hand on her shoulder, a mute motion of support.

"Alright. Ms Daisy, it's Orn," She'd normally say she wouldn't forget a voice like that... but in all honesty... it was a fair caveat. "What these... less than astute members of legalese have been dancing about is.. well, you got it in one. You are a sister, a half-sister. That kid you found... was Oaks. And per Oak's actions, the merciful courts of Viridian child services have decreed Oak incompetent per temporary insanity."

Wow. Finally someone actually explained what was happening! Sometimes legallity makes relatively simple things so enourmously complicated...

Silence.

"Alright, I could argue temp, but no argument about insane." Daisy ruled.

Ah, so she is saying he is always insane and not in a way that sounds cute or flattering towards Oak. Putting a baby in an incubator and letting it bake. Just yikes...

"But what's that got to do with me?"

A long pause as wordless conversations were had. "Well, the state wants to take over custody."

Alright, that didn't sound too bad, but Gio's squeezing her shoulder kept her tongue behind her teeth.

"As a ward of the state, medical services would naturally be suspended."

Daisy froze, looked to the judge, mouth gaping in complete, unfettered shock.

So they are saying they will just let the baby suffer if the state takes over? I'm with Daisy on that one. How and why can they do such a thing?

"What, why?" The kid's skin had been red and puckered, worse than sunburn, not quite burnt through. And since it wasn't a mon attack, specialized burn treatment would be required. This wasn't a spray a burn heal on it, and be done, sort of thing.

The judge cleared his throat and took over the explanation.

"Per the hereditary and value clause, establishedin the legal council between the Red Gyarados famiglia vs Viridian ruling, any unattached child, without a viable Kantoian ancestor, who is released to the state is, per established moral clauses, considered a potential criminal until proven otherwise."

Guilty before innocent, meets old racism, and social inheritance stigmas, mix and hop the result on vindictive steroids.

It's a baby. What did it do, go rob a bank with a glock and hijack someones car? Sad thing is, I'm pretty sure there are laws this bad or worse out there in the world that are actually enforced.

But wait. Isn't Oak Kantonian? Is Oak from another region?

Welcome back to good old, great Kanto, don't let the injustice slap you on the way out.

You can say that again.

Why did Daisy come back again? Switching citizenship to Galar sounded better and better.

Silence reigned as Daisy digested this horrifying horrifying fact and tried not to puke. Because the kid who had to prove he wasn't "criminally inclined" couldn't talk, was redder than a trapinch, and clearly needed more hospital time.

Hell, she needed more hospital time. Daisy slumped into her chair, voice crackling, breath unsteady.

"Fuck, no wonder Team Rocket has so many kids and orphans as grunts."

That probably would do it!

"Your opinions are being noted." The judge warned.

Given the kind of society they live in, that is actually pretty darn scary. If they will punish babies just for existing they will literally do anything.

Next time she got frisked by some baby mobsters, she was packing condolence candies. She'd have to ask Giovanni what Italian kids normally liked candywise, so she didn't accidentally piss them off or something.

Giovanni chuckled, and Daisy groaned, "I said that out loud, didn't I?"

"Headphones," Giovanni ordered. "We'll pick this up in fifteen minutes, alright?"

"Ung... bossy bossy..."

Still, she did as ordered, letting the world be blocked out for a little while.

Good thing Gio is there to help.

Hilarious that the judge has no clue he is the boss of Team Rocket! (Or if he isn't at this point, he soon will be.)

XXX
​

The final decision had been that she'd been granted temporary custody to her baby brother, john doe. It'd hold long enough for the kid to keep getting treatment and the mother to be found. But the state was going to investigate Daisy down to the bedrock. Whiche meant everything in Daisy's life had to be perfect.

Wow. Of course they would. Wouldn't want an undesirable baby getting cared for properly if they could help it, after all!

That meant the moment Daisy could walk, she was discharged. Not to rampage through Oak's reserve, but through her own home, taking in all the damage and neglect her last renter had left behind.

Ah. Good you are specifying the context of the section coming up.

But she wasn't alone, Giovani had joined her, and they made a curious sight.

📝

A young trainer and a middle-aged man working side by side like a pair of prickly, mad, gremlins. Doing remodeling and damage control in equal measure.

Her garden outside had been dug up. Anything with any chance of poisoning was a no-go. Her potted plants, all picked for decorative purposes, were declared death traps and were piled in the trashbins outside. This misadventure in horticulture meant, ironically, all the oran berries she'd planted to pass out to young trainers leaving her father's labs had to go. Because before blooming, the leaves and roots were a weak poison that might cause the trots.

Not the oran barries too!

Or considering her luck, might cause apoxia per intense allergic reaction.

"Why did the judge consider me suitable again?" Daisy whinned, hauling a bag full of expired cleaning chemicals behind her.

He didn't. He just wanted you to say no so he could make sure that evil baby didn't get any help!

"Blood relation makes you parrent

parent

of the year material, hypothetically, but only if you're of the first degree," Giovanni grunted, tossing his bag, trash, and a pile of bad food onto the growing pile.

Behind them, 'mon tromped along the bottom floor of Daisy's two-story. Pushing out furniture, she'd decided her old tenant didn't deserve back. There might have been some brick breaks applied to get it through the doors, but as long as she and Gio didn't see it happen.

Well, it wasn't like the police could use a psychic mon on her to find out it wasn't an accident.

Her neighbors, however, were going to have a conniption fit. Between galloping ground types, a near power outage when Gio's 'Don and her Mewfasa had gotten into it, she had already violated nine noise policies, and who knew how many trainer clauses.

But why did those two mon 'get into it'? Are they not obeying their trainers?

That had been fun. To have to tear out of a half-completed degardening

I still don't like this line. How do you tear out the abscense of plants? I think you might have explained it in a previous reply but I'm really stuck on this bit because it just doesn't read like it makes any sense.

This might be a good time to mention that the vast majority of what you are writing here is really good! I think you have been writing this fic at peak performance so far!

because his lightning rod endowed horn head, and her Manectric had decided to have the mon equivalent of a dick measuring contest. The lightning lion was of the mistaken opinion that everything around it could be felled with voltage.

I get this now. Manectric thought it could bring down anything with it's lightining, but lightning rod ability (or it being a ground type in general, I guess) would prevent any damage by Manectric, but Manectric was stubborn and kept zapping to no avail. It was getting dangerous so she had to recall Manectric.

Not wanting a house fire in her life had added a spring to her step. And made her recall of the cat the fastest it'd ever been.

Giovanni hadn't breathed a word, just swept past her and glared. 'Don nearly pissed himself and been sent out with a curt gesture to finish thier digging. The 'mon had tried to catch her eye on leaving, perhaps to apologise with a soft whimper, but Gio's glare had hardened.

"Your kid is going to get away with nothing." Daisy breathed.

So, Gio was very stern with his mon after that which is why Daisy made that comment. Got it!

Kinda in awe, a tiny bit in shock.

"Shut up l, and help me find the trashbags."


At the budding pile, Nidoqueen lounged, waited, and would drag the boodle the rest of the way to the morning trash pick-up spot. But not without tipping her stubby snouted face in an extremely judgmental manner at thier offerings.

Not sure if the extra line spacing was intentional. I suppose it was since it switched to Nidoqueen, but pointing it out just in case.

"I've been gone for two years, how was I supposed to know the guy I rented this place to would overstuff the fridge and leave it to rot when the lease expired three months ago?"

Good, this bit is much more clear now.

The ground type squinted at Daisy and judged harder.

"Don't." Giovanni groaned. "Either of you. I do not have the patience for your crap today."

"Alright, old man." Daisy hip-checked him, gently, as she limped past. Ignoring his squawk of outrage, the growled, "Old? I will sic Orn on you so hard you're grandchildren will owe me money!" She made her way back in. She might have slammed the door behind her so as not to not hear his crap. They were at that fun, fun stage of working together where they were at each other's throats, so some pettiness was to be expected.

I like this bit better than the original version! Less hostile and more cute.

I'm surprised she didn't retort with something like "Yeah, nothing like blaming offspring for stuff they weren't around for!". Granted, that might be a bit too low of a blow and would probably kill the playful aggression.

The door slammed open when he returned a few moments later, proving maturity wasn't all numbers. It also proved that despite his long legs, he wasn't moving much faster than her, so she hadn't had much of a lead.

His black eyes were all but sparking, and that placid too-still expression wasn't a warning. It was a potential death threat.

Daisy dug deep and found her compassion. Sorta.

"Senior discount time." She cheered, though honestly, between havong bwen working sincw bwfore dawn to near noon now, she wanted to cry. But she wouldn't. Worry him or waste the time. "You get a break on leg day. For the low, low price of no comments for ten minutes, you can sit your ass down, and I'll seal up the upper levels, and you get to skip those fun fun stairs."

The snarled string of syllables in Italian might have been a threat. Daisy could kinda talk a little like Gio did, but she wasn't great at it. She knew enough to flirt with boys and order off a menu. She'd been grilled by Giovanni to know how to ask directions, and under Grace's guildence she could ask for medical help, but Daisy wasn't able to do more than that. Despite his prickliness, Giovanni did take advantage of her offer. Spreawling on her dark brown recliner chair with a bonelessness that'd make Amewse have a hairball in jealousy.

Luckily, her Persian was out terrorizing the local ratata population. So no hairballs for now.

The Italian indulged his rest with extreme prejudice. Not taking a nap, but definitely going still and closing his eyes to find his inner peace and mental happy space.

Daisy didn't blame him; she lingered on the stairwell to do a few deep breath exercises herself.

She loved the Sakakis..

missing dot

both of them. But Grace was infinitely easier to deal with than her husband. Gio was a raging perfectionist. Demanding things to not only be perfect but prompt. Worse? Things had to be done in the exact order that he wanted them. Anything outside his mental checklist, or out of order on it... Wel,l not too long ago it would have had to have been corrected.

He'd never used physical force, but his verbal nudges could have been considered abusive in a certain light. The only thing that'd kept them as close as they were was that Daisy had a rhyhorn's hide towards cutting words and mind games...and Gio had seriously apologized a few years back.

She was glad he'd kinda calmed down. But that didn't mean he was totally better. And her personality to kick at institutions, order, and orders was a bad mix long-term.

Daisy really wished Grace could have been there, but both she and Gio had slammed thier feet down. Eight month preggers, with one scare already, on light duty from her draconic bosses who wouldn't normally cut any slack for anyone because that scare had happened on work property?

No way in hell was Daisy green lighting Grace Sakaki taking the pothole-ridden, rocky road between Viridian and Pallet to "lend a hand". Giovanni had threatened to have his Kanguskaun, Matriarch, thrash the family car to keep her home. Per Gio, Grace had finally ceeded the match when Matriarch had been three steps away from thier beloved Bentley. Three steps! Stubborn had married obstinate; the way they were going, they weren't going to have a kid... Grace'd spawn a rock.

Daisy dragged her feet a bit. Giving the old man a thirty-minute break while she did a quick comb over. Once she was totally sure that everything she'd need was already bundled downstairs, she locked the upper floors. Taking a little time to wrangle the baby gates on the base of the stairwells closed, and test them before hauling herself into the living room.

The sight that greeted her, cutthroat buisnessman and patriarch of the (admittedly earned title of terror, looking up the man's mother in the dark web had been the stuff of nightmares) terrorfying Sakaki line had gone boneless. Sprawled in her plushy recliner like a drunken staryu,

Drunken staryu is a nice touch

Can't remember if I commented on that the first time, but just in case, it deserved one.

and breathing suspiciously loud that it might be considered snoring...

Daisy tipped her head. Tried to see the allure that Grace would natter about. There were a few streaks of grey about his temples. They were courtesy of her and her misadventures, he'd drawl, if she dared point them out when he was awake. His jade green long sleeve had bunched up a bit at the sleeve, letting a glossy glint of raised scars peak out. A misadventure of a different kind, he'd have deflected. Had deflected, when a much younger Daisy had grabbed said wrist and asked him if it hurt...

Really, Daisy couldn't see the intimidation or allure in the man. He just looked a bit cold.

Yeah. He is Giovanni after all!

That, at least, was easily remedied

"So, wanna help me break in this one?" Daisy whispered, whipping out a sky blue, fluffy monstrosity with cartoonish swanmays stitched in it. Giovani made a snuffled snort like a nidoran in a berry patch, twitching just a bit.

But he didn't wake up.

But that Nidoran noise? That was as good as a yes for her.

I wonder if he will take this like he did "Uncle G" from Green!

Closing thoughts:
Lots of great stuff here. A little bit of confusing parts and some minor typos, but this is looking great so far!

 

[K_S]

Ok, I'm here to review just the finished portion here that I did not see before.

Spoiler: Line by Line Reaction

Italics isn't complete on "not now" forgot to italics the 'n' in 'not'.


Yeah... That's what it usually is before the first time it happens... As one who has had stomach bugs and even food poisoning once, I can certainly relate.

Spoiler: Line by Line Reaction

The scary thing is per the ebb and flow of her attack, when daisy shuts doen and literally says "she was nothing more than a "dont get sick"" mantra. Mentally speaking shes not lying. Exagerating. Ect.

This expanded much later w medical tests and

Spoiler: Late story spoilers

When oak challenges daisys custody he drags her thro the mud he brings up that she literally degresses to subhuman during her episodes. That a psychic attack tjat keaves behind a migrane from too much light means if she doesnt drop everything to shut off her sight the illness will latch onto other centers of her brain (aka spread) and she'll lose anything from her whole language center, to breathing, if shes overstimulated.

Thats part of why her p.o.v. gets so patchy this chspter.

Kind of feels similar to a migraine. When those happen, all sound and light cause pain and it can induce nausea. But her case seems even worse and that's saying something.

But I'm glad to see she is getting cared for. Poor girl.

So very short version. The psychic attack mimics serious mental neruo health issues (mood disturbances, mania, epilepsy, migranes, its a random draw) as it disrupts the function of her brain. Most humans have instinctual and biological protections so they dont get these effects from being near psychics. Daisy per villiantines, had those defenses obliterated. If she doesnt drop everything to stop stimulating the shut down section (turnig off her hearing, smell, touch) the other sections try to subsitute which gets them shut down as the breakdown spreads.

As you can imagine this can really screw someone over and be dangerous.

once the attack passes the brain tries to regroup but... yeah... that can over strain things and have segments turn off again. So while recoverong, daisy staggers from distressing symptom to symptom as her body works out the psychic energies, until she has her equilibroum and "gets better".

Shes not though, just stable.

Geo? Not Gio?

Like w grace/days/daes, shes spelling things wrong. Its a hint her communication centors are shot.

Gio is honestly way more of a father to her than Oak seems to be.

Considering oak almost killed her i'd say it damned by faint praise.

Wow that sounds worse than a migraine!


Thank goodness! It seems like she is over the worst of it! 😩


Mild? Excuse me? What part of that was MILD? The vomiting? The complete incapacitation for several days for who knows how long at this point? Mild... (Not a stab at your writing. A stab at the utter ignorance they have of her pain)

Per my notes.

Mild is one centor of the bra8n being off line.

Moderate would be 2.

Major 3

Critical 4 or her himocampus goes off line.
Basically stage 4 is a death sentence.

Aww... Gio gave her his tie for her eyes. 🥹


So cool that you thought to include a detail like that!

Glad u loked it.

The idea of things being in network or out of network is just another way healthcare is pushed to be so unaffordable.

Grace really harps on it in her stories but its a nightmare. And good luck getting medical care if youre a Rocket.

Interesting how she narrows it down. Much more than a staff member just telling it to her! Also since she is by herself, she would naturally have the time to try to figure it out and it makes complete sense that she would be curious about it.


📝 (As a reminder, when I use this symbol it refers to an editing suggestion above.)

The teleport nearly killed her... Yeah, that would be rage inducing alright!


Anger levels rising!

If oak showed up shed of gotren up the energy to slap him. Giod just break his neck.

Mewfasa?

Daisys tean

Amews (amuse)
( persian, brave nature, technition, female,
Sing, hypervoice, bite, fakeout)

Meowscure (oscar)
Purugly, sassy,

Mewsty (was supposed to be mitzy, a nod towards lackidasy cats, people kept reading it as misty... including mister herself!) changed to Legend when at an internation coordinator event a mistranslation of daisy saying her star fire type was a legend came out as is legend.
pyroar, careful, ×illuminate, female
Flash, glitter gem, fire spin, teleport

Meowlin (merlin)
Galarian persian,

Mewfasa (mufasa)
Mantric, male, bold,

Mewton (newton)
DECEASED, espurr, gentle

Spoiler: Late series spoilers

In roost canon (where alola exists) gio gifts her a torracat to raise to a dark type when he goes off grid.

In transversal he gives her an umbreon and spends extra time helping her beat down her cynophobia (fear of dogs).

The madam tortured daisy w attack houndoom. Tho dsisy doesnt remember why the fear instinct is dug deep.

Either mon she gets daisy reads between the lines (dark type for him going dark) and ropes gio into one more regular day before he leaves..

She tells him it better be to get Silver back. Any other reason and his "sabatical" is going to start w a visit to the hospital. and he better damned hurry up. Silvers missing bonding time w Blue and she needs someone else to spoil.

Hes the only reason shes stsyed in kamto and near viridian. She'll keep an eye on things. And keep an eye on his civ families as much as she can... ect...

and if what he needs to do breaks him like she fears (and gio fears tho he wont say it) that he cant rsise silv after rescuing him "My doors always open".

That scene is why acquired is higher on the priority list than roost is. Its the ground work.

But... uh... Daisy. I don't think you want to go back there again attacking or they will just immediately TELEPORT you again!

Not if she hyperbeams a foundation beam first. Also i can see her swimming to coerence.. her first words being "worth it!"

Is she really the kind of person to throw that much caution to the wind when it would likely result in her being teleported again?

Yes.

As awful as the overall situation is, I can't help but find this bit amusing!





That'l teach em!


Score!



Wow, she must have really dug deep to say all of this bit so clearly!

The training is mentioned in villiantines. Gio caps off her "graduation" under his wing by getting her roaring drunk, lost, and makes her repeat it without makong a mistake before taking them back to his gym. Daisy low grade hates him for a month after.

Normally I might question some of what is going on, but given her extreme debilitation, nothing seems out of place.


I guess the owner of one ring, probably the first one, is Gio. The other would be Grace, if I had to guess.

Yep. They decided mundane rings were boring. So they studied and made each others rings as part of the cerimony.

Also does a good job highlighting her continual struggles with her current condition.


Yeah, you can tell Gio really cares about Daisy. Touching, honestly.

Glad it was a hit.

I'm glad you added translations below. Even so, it's hard to say what exactly is happening here, but that can be blamed on Daisy's pov.


I really like the bits added in parentheses. Makes it MUCH easier to understand!




I love crazy tangents like this. She started thinking of ways she might be a mother even if she hadn't done the deed!

Well it makes more sense than oak having a fing. Daisys pretty sure the mans aro and ace and has no ckue how he coukd be persuaded to do the deed he's that obsessive.

Lysandre is just a bit insane.

But wow! She considered a scenario like that before considering maybe it was about that baby she rescued!

Honestly daist hasnt even thought about the kid. Assuming that its getting optimal care.

OH! Ok. That makes sense. It was part of her condition.


📝Missing . on the end to make it 3 dots. (did not edit above because a bold dot almost looks like a regular dot)

"asked after her mother" does that mean they asked her mother if she would take custody of the baby before they came to ask Daisy?

They wanna confirm that daisys mom isnt the mom. Or rather confirm it. Because daisys mom is kantoian and if there was a chance that tge kid was hers that'd change the care status to priority per nationalistic clause.

Since it cant be daisys mom. And oaks insane so he doesnt count (hes a non person umtil declaired compitent again) it makes finding blues mom priority one. Not that daisy is even aware of this yet. That comes to a head later.

If daisy let slip or even hypothicize that the kid was italian they would of shipped it off kanto soil asap.

Wait... why is she considering the possibility of her having a half sister? Is she thinking maybe her mother had another baby?

Well consoderong oak doesnt get frisky or like sex (daisy got the talk from her manager and latrr revisited with gio when she started dating) howd it be his?

Did you mean to say 'cauterized'? Is he talking about tubes being burned at the ends to prevent them from healing to have babies again? I'm a bit lost here... Oh wait, I think I get it. Gio is confirming her mother could not have reversed the tubes tied, I think!

Yeah auto correct was throwing jink at me i'll fix that.

Missing dot


Missing dot


📝


Ah! Custodial.


Is Daisy starting to catch on to what it's about now? Is that why?

Yep and cue a huge freak out as a result...

Gio is really trying to defend her here. For someone as industrious as him to be here spending this kind of time and effort, it shows his care for her.

Family comes first. He took on a don for grace. And nona for silver. Why wpuldny he flake out of work for a few weeks to make sure daisys alrigjt? Small fry comparitivly

Spoiler: Spoils

They return thr favor.

Grace tries to take down corruption in the med field to make sure italian civs and mob members get fair care (this endears her to the Rocket exec who takes over after Gio kills Marchette) and shes a overt sympathizer for the disporia, taking huge political and social flak for defending non-kantoians. She testifies against the xavier family for attempting a genocidal culling of upper class/rich italian families and drops data that lets rocket shut down xaviers shadow institutes that were running horrible racial fueled experiment programs (think ww1 what the chinese did to the japenese prisioners of war, or what the natzis did to thier capritves)

Daisy took serious mental damage in villiantiens to keep Rocket a secret. Not willing to recreate the "final solution" scenario with a nation of escapees. Shes suffering it for her whole life. She also much later gives civilian rocket kids an out via a multinational coordinator training program. She trains the kids in battle and dance then xfers them to either galar or orre to complete. Tjis gets them out of Rocket, or into other schools than the corrupt Viridian universotoes that are just mob fronts.

The rasp of a smoker is delightful? Does Daisy like people who smoke? Is it because Gio smokes?

Shes being sarcastic. Gotta plug in some italics.

But what is Orn asking for permission for? And what was his tone?

Hes asking permissoon to explain to daisy. If he talks withoutnit he could get fined or disbarred. Amd his tone is pure hate for that judge. Gios kicking him under the table to keep jim civil.

Wow. Finally someone actually explained what was happening! Sometimes legallity makes relatively simple things so enourmously complicated...


Ah, so she is saying he is always insane and not in a way that sounds cute or flattering towards Oak. Putting a baby in an incubator and letting it bake. Just yikes...


So they are saying they will just let the baby suffer if the state takes over? I'm with Daisy on that one. How and why can they do such a thing?

Easy. If hes not kanto than hes not kantos problem. Than ignore.

It's a baby. What did it do, go rob a bank with a glock and hijack someones car? Sad thing is, I'm pretty sure there are laws this bad or worse out there in the world that are actually enforced.

Or they cluld nurture the kid andnit cluld spread its damaging genetic material among lure kanto citizens. A bigger egress than a little infantile violencd.

But wait. Isn't Oak Kantonian? Is Oak from another region?

Oaks nuts thus no rights until its restored. That got his attention. And pissed him.off. he blames daisy fornit.

You can say that again.


That probably would do it!


Given the kind of society they live in, that is actually pretty darn scary. If they will punish babies just for existing they will literally do anything.

It is. Gio and her maanger are going to have to do damage control fast.

Good thing Gio is there to help.

Hilarious that the judge has no clue he is the boss of Team Rocket! (Or if he isn't at this point, he soon will be.)

Gio only ascedends after silvers abduction.

Orns actually got the most clout present and wluld be clostler to don of viridian right now.

Wow. Of course they would. Wouldn't want an undesirable baby getting cared for properly if they could help it, after all!

Kanto (and most of the manga sett8ng) are seriously messed up in how they treat disabilities. So if they let the kid be john doe and cut care.
Well its gunna be disabled.

And not worth any effort... and since these type of injuries are so risky anyway. Why put theneffort in a maybe not kanto person.

Ah. Good you are specifying the context of the section coming up.


📝


Not the oran barries too!


He didn't. He just wanted you to say no so he could make sure that evil baby didn't get any help!


parent


But why did those two mon 'get into it'? Are they not obeying their trainers?


I still don't like this line. How do you tear out the abscense of plants?

Ah. So tearing off is old slang for running really really fast. Basically they near killed themselves to get to the house. Froma tencj theyd dug. Because gios a bit too enthusiastoc w diggong and daisys just rolling w it.

I think you might have explained it in a previous reply but I'm really stuck on this bit because it just doesn't read like it makes any sense.

This might be a good time to mention that the vast majority of what you are writing here is really good! I think you have been writing this fic at peak performance so far!


I get this now. Manectric thought it could bring down anything with it's lightining, but lightning rod ability (or it being a ground type in general, I guess) would prevent any damage by Manectric, but Manectric was stubborn and kept zapping to no avail. It was getting dangerous so she had to recall Manectric.

You got it. What you (and daisy) didnt get was the

"I'm the best boy!"
"Well i'm prettier"
"youre a show dog!"
"I'm a cat, rock head!" Ect that was slowly getting louder and louder that Gio was havong to overhear.

The second giongets home he gently informs grace she is never ever to baby tak his mon. They are using snippits of it to pick fights with daisys mon.

And grace is like "was it the toe pebbles" line por the "shiniest unicorn horn ever" that triggered it? All enthusiastic and unrepentent like.

So, Gio was very stern with his mon after that which is why Daisy made that comment. Got it!


Not sure if the extra line spacing was intentional. I suppose it was since it switched to Nidoqueen, but pointing it out just in case.


Good, this bit is much more clear now.


I like this bit better than the original version! Less hostile and more cute.

I'm surprised she didn't retort with something like "Yeah, nothing like blaming offspring for stuff they weren't around for!". Granted, that might be a bit too low of a blow and would probably kill the playful aggression.


missing dot


Drunken staryu is a nice touch

Can't remember if I commented on that the first time, but just in case, it deserved one.


Yeah. He is Giovanni after all!


I wonder if he will take this like he did "Uncle G" from Green!

Badly. Aka its complicate.

Then be touched since its silvers first present.

Then grt pissed that she used it to prank him.and didnt wrap it.

Then realize it was custom.made and go all melty again.

Closing thoughts:
Lots of great stuff here. A little bit of confusing parts and some minor typos, but this is looking great so far!

Glad youbliked it thanks for droppong another peak at it.

 

[Tango]

Getting a reply in to your reply since there was a bit to it!

Spoiler: Line by Line Reaction

The scary thing is per the ebb and flow of her attack, when daisy shuts doen and literally says "she was nothing more than a "dont get sick"" mantra. Mentally speaking shes not lying. Exagerating. Ect.

This expanded much later w medical tests and

Spoiler: Late story spoilers

When oak challenges daisys custody he drags her thro the mud he brings up that she literally degresses to subhuman during her episodes. That a psychic attack tjat keaves behind a migrane from too much light means if she doesnt drop everything to shut off her sight the illness will latch onto other centers of her brain (aka spread) and she'll lose anything from her whole language center, to breathing, if shes overstimulated.

Thats part of why her p.o.v. gets so patchy this chspter.

Oak is the worst. He wasn't exactly great in canon manga either.

So very short version. The psychic attack mimics serious mental neruo health issues (mood disturbances, mania, epilepsy, migranes, its a random draw) as it disrupts the function of her brain. Most humans have instinctual and biological protections so they dont get these effects from being near psychics. Daisy per villiantines, had those defenses obliterated. If she doesnt drop everything to stop stimulating the shut down section (turnig off her hearing, smell, touch) the other sections try to subsitute which gets them shut down as the breakdown spreads.

As you can imagine this can really screw someone over and be dangerous.

once the attack passes the brain tries to regroup but... yeah... that can over strain things and have segments turn off again. So while recoverong, daisy staggers from distressing symptom to symptom as her body works out the psychic energies, until she has her equilibroum and "gets better".

Shes not though, just stable.

Yikes!

Like w grace/days/daes, shes spelling things wrong. Its a hint her communication centors are shot.

Considering oak almost killed her i'd say it damned by faint praise.

I thought it was Oaks aide that almost killed her? Or did her altercation with Oak before the teleport incident also almost kill her?

Per my notes.

Mild is one centor of the bra8n being off line.

Moderate would be 2.

Major 3

Critical 4 or her himocampus goes off line.
Basically stage 4 is a death sentence.

So objectively, a mild for that is pretty bad, but it can get way worse. Lovely.

Glad u loked it.

Grace really harps on it in her stories but its a nightmare. And good luck getting medical care if youre a Rocket.

If oak showed up shed of gotren up the energy to slap him. Giod just break his neck.

The fact that Oak didn't show up also says things.

Daisys tean

Amews (amuse)
( persian, brave nature, technition, female,
Sing, hypervoice, bite, fakeout)

Meowscure (oscar)
Purugly, sassy,

Mewsty (was supposed to be mitzy, a nod towards lackidasy cats, people kept reading it as misty... including mister herself!) changed to Legend when at an internation coordinator event a mistranslation of daisy saying her star fire type was a legend came out as is legend.
pyroar, careful, ×illuminate, female
Flash, glitter gem, fire spin, teleport

Meowlin (merlin)
Galarian persian,

Mewfasa (mufasa)
Mantric, male, bold,

Mewton (newton)
DECEASED, espurr, gentle

Spoiler: Late series spoilers

In roost canon (where alola exists) gio gifts her a torracat to raise to a dark type when he goes off grid.

In transversal he gives her an umbreon and spends extra time helping her beat down her cynophobia (fear of dogs).

The madam tortured daisy w attack houndoom. Tho dsisy doesnt remember why the fear instinct is dug deep.

Either mon she gets daisy reads between the lines (dark type for him going dark) and ropes gio into one more regular day before he leaves..

She tells him it better be to get Silver back. Any other reason and his "sabatical" is going to start w a visit to the hospital. and he better damned hurry up. Silvers missing bonding time w Blue and she needs someone else to spoil.

Hes the only reason shes stsyed in kamto and near viridian. She'll keep an eye on things. And keep an eye on his civ families as much as she can... ect...

and if what he needs to do breaks him like she fears (and gio fears tho he wont say it) that he cant rsise silv after rescuing him "My doors always open".

That scene is why acquired is higher on the priority list than roost is. Its the ground work.

Huh. If that's where Silver ends up going, it makes me wonder what Green's fate will be.

Not if she hyperbeams a foundation beam first. Also i can see her swimming to coerence.. her first words being "worth it!"

You know... I bet she could instruct her mon to go on a rampage from a distance far enough away to not get teleported. Her MON might get teleported, but she wouldn't.

The training is mentioned in villiantines. Gio caps off her "graduation" under his wing by getting her roaring drunk, lost, and makes her repeat it without makong a mistake before taking them back to his gym. Daisy low grade hates him for a month after.

Huh. I guess I'll need to check out some more villaintines later.

Yep. They decided mundane rings were boring. So they studied and made each others rings as part of the cerimony.

Glad it was a hit.

Well it makes more sense than oak having a fing. Daisys pretty sure the mans aro and ace and has no ckue how he coukd be persuaded to do the deed he's that obsessive.

Honestly daist hasnt even thought about the kid. Assuming that its getting optimal care.

Fair.

They wanna confirm that daisys mom isnt the mom. Or rather confirm it. Because daisys mom is kantoian and if there was a chance that tge kid was hers that'd change the care status to priority per nationalistic clause.

Gotta love Kanto...

Since it cant be daisys mom. And oaks insane so he doesnt count (hes a non person umtil declaired compitent again) it makes finding blues mom priority one. Not that daisy is even aware of this yet. That comes to a head later.

Makes for a good reason for her to be caring for the baby.

If daisy let slip or even hypothicize that the kid was italian they would of shipped it off kanto soil asap.

Well consoderong oak doesnt get frisky or like sex (daisy got the talk from her manager and latrr revisited with gio when she started dating) howd it be his?

Family comes first. He took on a don for grace. And nona for silver. Why wpuldny he flake out of work for a few weeks to make sure daisys alrigjt? Small fry comparitivly

Spoiler: Spoils

They return thr favor.

Grace tries to take down corruption in the med field to make sure italian civs and mob members get fair care (this endears her to the Rocket exec who takes over after Gio kills Marchette) and shes a overt sympathizer for the disporia, taking huge political and social flak for defending non-kantoians. She testifies against the xavier family for attempting a genocidal culling of upper class/rich italian families and drops data that lets rocket shut down xaviers shadow institutes that were running horrible racial fueled experiment programs (think ww1 what the chinese did to the japenese prisioners of war, or what the natzis did to thier capritves)

Daisy took serious mental damage in villiantiens to keep Rocket a secret. Not willing to recreate the "final solution" scenario with a nation of escapees. Shes suffering it for her whole life. She also much later gives civilian rocket kids an out via a multinational coordinator training program. She trains the kids in battle and dance then xfers them to either galar or orre to complete. Tjis gets them out of Rocket, or into other schools than the corrupt Viridian universotoes that are just mob fronts.

That's cool the way they help contribute. Really ties stuff together.

Hes asking permissoon to explain to daisy. If he talks withoutnit he could get fined or disbarred. Amd his tone is pure hate for that judge. Gios kicking him under the table to keep jim civil.

Ah ok!

Easy. If hes not kanto than hes not kantos problem. Than ignore.

Or they cluld nurture the kid andnit cluld spread its damaging genetic material among lure kanto citizens. A bigger egress than a little infantile violencd.

Of course.

Oaks nuts thus no rights until its restored. That got his attention. And pissed him.off. he blames daisy fornit.

What a piece of garbage. But some people (maybe even a lot of people) are just like him in the world.

It is. Gio and her maanger are going to have to do damage control fast.

Yeah...

Gio only ascedends after silvers abduction.

Oh! Ok!

Orns actually got the most clout present and wluld be clostler to don of viridian right now.

Interesting!

Kanto (and most of the manga sett8ng) are seriously messed up in how they treat disabilities. So if they let the kid be john doe and cut care.
Well its gunna be disabled.

And not worth any effort... and since these type of injuries are so risky anyway. Why put theneffort in a maybe not kanto person.

Makes logical sense by the twisted logic they use.

Ah. So tearing off is old slang for running really really fast. Basically they near killed themselves to get to the house. Froma tencj theyd dug. Because gios a bit too enthusiastoc w diggong and daisys just rolling w it.

I don't think anyone is going to pick up on that though... Maybe they will, but I don't think so. Even though there is nothing objectively wrong with it, per your explanation, I imagine other readers will point this out as confusing because they probably won't pick up on it either. It's too clever for it's own good.

You got it. What you (and daisy) didnt get was the

"I'm the best boy!"
"Well i'm prettier"
"youre a show dog!"
"I'm a cat, rock head!" Ect that was slowly getting louder and louder that Gio was havong to overhear.

The second giongets home he gently informs grace she is never ever to baby tak his mon. They are using snippits of it to pick fights with daisys mon.

And grace is like "was it the toe pebbles" line por the "shiniest unicorn horn ever" that triggered it? All enthusiastic and unrepentent like.

This feels like a lot of context for it to be missing from the chapter.

Badly. Aka its complicate.

Then be touched since its silvers first present.

Then grt pissed that she used it to prank him.and didnt wrap it.

Then realize it was custom.made and go all melty again.

Glad youbliked it thanks for droppong another peak at it.

Of course I liked it! It's well written and has all kinds of emotional moments in it. Was a pleasure assisting.

 

[K_S]

Chapter 4
title pending​

Between pizza night and trashy comedy films Sakaki's and the renegade Oak gossiped. Pointedly, the disaster of the present mess wasn't brought up. They discussed future movies, and it was no little surprise Gio hadn't seen one damn comedy film in ten years. Grace was slacking. Understandable per her gravid state... but still, Daisy got some ribbing in and popped nine more ideas onto the list.

Giovanni was watching "Montey Python" even if Daisy had to fly out to Galar and get a physical copy in her hands and fly back.

"You don't get to argue when we both gang up on you," Grace ordered. "We discussed this. Or it'd only be documentaries and histories after you outstubborned us both."

"Seriosuly?" Daisy gapped, horrified. "Have we taught you nothing?"

"When you were out," A tactful nod towards Daisy nearly dying. "I got to watch a riveting history on the league and its badge system. They were originally embroidered patches that winners would stitch into sashes, that were mini flags of their hometown. I could have porygon engined that trivia Gio. Don't look smug." There was a loud huff as Grace shifted. "It wasn't just boring as all Giritina. Worse, it was disjointed. It went on a fascinating tangent of how there was a fraudulent badge system that got caught by a seamstress. Guess what nationality they blamed? And what got the "greatest thieves in Kanto's integrity caught" was that they weren't using crouchet. They were cross-stitching the badge pattern on fabric pads shaped like the badge... This woman figured it out; people were accused, but never caught."

"And why are you telling me this, why?" Daisy groaned.

"A mixmatch of "listen to your elders' and "sharing the suffering is affection'." Grace drawled.

"Isn't it supposed to be sharing is caring?" The gym leader hummed. He had taken half the couch, Mewfasa curled around him devowered the other half. And the setup was only working because the leon 'mon was in his famous loaf pose and tolerating Gio's feet in his personal space like a champ. The blue and gold lion's eyes were a bit too riveted on the pizza box, which told Daisy why he was being so well
behaved.

Gio, face twitching as if he was hearing something, reached out and flicked the cat's ear with a finger. Mewfasa grumbled, huffed, but settled in as his role of a glorified foot rest.

At least until Giovanni started to get interested in the plot, then the cat's ears flicked back, and he rolled his big head so his floofy mane blocked the view of the screen.

"Daisy..."

"You flicked the ear, you get the fluff."

Amewse had her present spot of lap warmer. Sprawled, belly snuggled into Daisy's lap, long limbs draping over both sides of Daisy's chair, Amewse happened to like watching the television. And was perfectly fine having Daisy's phone balanced on his forehead and gem. Thus Daisy was penned by limbs and guilt, making sure that Grace' view wasn't compromised.

"This is the first non-documentary I've seen in half a month," Grace confessed during a lull in the shenanigans.

"Giovanni Carosso Sakaki, what evil have you sunk to?"

"The ultimate evil, watching about painting techniques and artists, makes me the capio de capo of Kanto itself." Gio drawled, tryingto push some mane aside.

It sproinged back into place after five seconds. Gio made another attempt, and Daisy wished him good luck with that, but nothing short of sheer was going to work.

The sound of Grace munching as she dug into her salad carried. She'd become almost rabidly vegetarian as her pregnancy progressed. Eschewing cheeses, creams, and meats. Seriously, Daisy had heard of wild food cravings, but wererabbit-dom was a new one. As a result, Gio had sprung for the fattiest, cheese-laden pizza he could hunt up that'd deliver. And, actually, Daisy realized the man might be a bit thinner. How long had Grace's mood swing be in effect? Wasn't there a time limit?

A particularly ranchy gag (pun totally intended) came and went(daisy mentallynadded that towards the goodnold internal pun counter) and normally, Gio would have been slapping a hand over her eyes. Or Grace. But both Sakakis were being a lot more candid in thier opinions and language. Actually, thinking harder, the "r" ranking block had been lifted from search results.

And that was definitely new.

Daisy considered going with it. just letting it sit. But it bugged her. Grace hummed a curious note, and Gio was giving her a pointed look. Huh, even two towns apart, with a huge sprawling reserve as a barrier, and they were still thinking in tandem enough to cotton on to "something's wrong" and pick who needed to pipe up.

"What gives?"

Grace hummed a note and Giovanni actually used his words, once DAisy had clarified.


"You're seventeen, sweetheart, emancipated since fourteen, and going to, temporarily, be taking on a responsibility even I am scared to handle. " Another swat and the hair did not move, Giovanni glared murder at Mewfasa, who raised his tail and wiggled it in pride. "You're old enough to be... well, as they call it off mainland, "fooling around". Hell, if you were part of the mob back home, you'd have had your first kid right about now. It seems stupid to censor ourselves."

"You actually talk about stuff like that?"

Grace murmured that Gio needed to rewind and pause, and Gio did without a whimper, the simp.

"Pre-emptive mutual agreement and hammering out clauses in case one of our boundaries are pushed..." Grace chimed in, the phone making her tinny, an interesting contrast to her dry subject matter. Daisy could imagine the woman ticking things off of her fingers as she chattered what sounded like nonsense.

"We have limits. There are things we won't watch. " Giovanni translated, more amused by this than some perfectly funny stuff on the screen. "If you wanted or needed to watch something that hits that... well, we'd discuss it with you first, but... For example, Grace won't touch certain medical and pandemic films. Myself? I have no taste for Mob flicks. Despite how popular they are or how well written..."

The last came out in an exasperated tone that told of an old fight.

"I still think you should watch-"

"We've been over this, Grace." Giovanni snarled. "No. And that's why. We're both hot-headed and passionate asses; it bleeds into our likes, playing by the rules keeps the fur from flying."

"If anything we bring up crosses a line, tell us." Grace tagged in. "But, Gio's right." Then her tone became a bit sharp. "You lost the privilege to complain about things, considering I didn't get myself pregnant."

"Not a complaint, amore mio. And don't I know it." There's a bit of a smug purr to Gio's voice that made Daisy's skin crawl.

Because she'd been with guys. Nothing serious, just "fooling around" to borrow the gym leader's words. She knew what enthusiastic flirting sounded like, and Giovanni's tone was well beyond that. Cooling the raw want from his voice, Giovanni twirled the remote in his hands.

"We wanted a kid. Planned it. It's just... the world seems a lot larger than before this started. Because it's all about them..."

Giovanni trailed off

"My life's work changed tenor overnight. I don't regret it. But... it's humbling. Honestly," dark eyes bore into her, and Daisy's skin crawled for different reasons. "I'm scared I'll fuck it up. My famiglia are a nightmare. I have scars, literally, from how I was raised. I know how not to act, and a lot of book learning on how I'm supposed to... But this is new, and some days the terror outweighs everything else."

Ung feels. Still, Daisy swallowed her snark.

"It is new, but you arent alone. You have me, Grace, all of Grace's med squad, and how many years dealing with kids as a gym leader?"

"I told you this already..." Grace's voice chimed, distant but fond, from the phone still perched on Amewse's head gem. "You aren't alone-"

"Alright... alright... Dios, you two..."


Daisy snorted, sprawling into Amewse's fluff and being rewarded with a throaty purr.

"Think of all the fun experiences you'll get second-hand from me doing the worst babysitting job ever." Daisy chirped. "We can compare horror stories after."

Gio snorts, almost smiles. And Daisy counts that as a win.

"Now turn on the show, you rachketeer. You can imagine the scenes, but me and Grace are bored."

"Anything but that." With a click and flick the TV is back on and all is well.

xxx​

It'd taken them a bit of time to park. Mainly because they'd had an argument as to where to park. Under a light for security, or away from the lights for anonymity. Reminding her it was his car, not a democracy, Giovanni picked the shadiest section closest to the door he could. He then invited Daisy to take all that opinion out to the lot and bring over a cart.

The first, a rattling monstrosity that probably been hit by a car from its warped frame, was firmly rejected. He sent her out again with a glare and encouragement to work out some of her humor out of her system while she was at it.

Once properly armed, they walked side by side to the doors. It was a common Wooper-mart, brick, blockish, and illuminated in blue light to save on paint. Part grocers, part arcade, the latter had been installed so the progeny of Pallet could be dropped off while their parents shopped. What the CEO's of Johtos biggest attempt at cross Regional commercialism had failed to grasp was that Pallet had no-one under the age of seventeen.

And that was only if Daisy counted herself; the real age gap was a bit depressing.

Ignoring the soft growls in Italian at her side, about interloping assholes with the style of a drunken smeargal (Daisy was trying not to nod along, despite agreeing wholeheartedly) , she sorta wondered if they shouldn't have taken the hour-plus drive to Viridian to get her goods...

But it was right here... and rightly creeping her out.

The windows of the storefront flashed with neon lights, casting lurid shadows over the sidewalk going up. The effect, with no other buildings about it to damp it, was a bit like approaching a jumbo sized, off-colored, Banette.

The game cabinets, with no one at them, were spaced to look like a welcoming smile. But there were no tenants, ghostly or otherwise. The dust bunnies and cobwebs had been left to run rampant, making the place look haunted.

It was fine once you pushed through the glass-walled "play" area. Just a normal grocers. But the trip through was a bit like whistling through a graveyard. Or like one of those old pizzeria horror games.

"This place doesn't have animatronics, does it?" Daisy might be tucking a bit closer to Gio than absolutely necessary as they stepped in.

Tipping his head, nearly boinking her with the edge of his fedora, Giovanni smirked. "No, but don't worry, if I'm wrong, Rhyhorn loves punching things. We'll be fine."

See? Gio could get references! And that was all Daisy's doing! She was awesome at corruption and perked up at her sense of accomplishment.

The carpets were surprisingly soft. Thier patterns were a garish mess of stylized lightning bolts, galaxies, and poorly covered power cords. And the light at the end of the tunnel was a wall of glass that they were getting closer to. Near sterile white and creams, with normal white overhead lights, and food as far as the eye could see.

"What are the odds of us getting kicked out?

The gym leader, holding the cart, flicked a firm look down at the gir- young woman, voice carefully tight and inflectionless.

"None, because you're going to behave yourself this time."

"Badly, sure." Daisy chirped up at him with a tight grin. Ignoring how she'd just stumbled over one of those cords and he had to catch her before she went all the way up. She turned the pull-up into a small dance move, and he smiled at her with tired amusement.

Still smiling, he said. "I can, and will, cheerfully dump your ass here, without reliable transport back."

Daisy hummed. "I got a full team of 'mon, and I can adlib carry packs."

"And my last act, before ditching you, will be to dose them all with enough catnip to keep them high for three hours."

Daisy thined her lips, considering property damage verses monitizing the insanity that would ensue. She sighed, math definitely pointing to the fact that she'd owe money.

Oh well.

"Fiiine..." she kicked a bit at a lump and ignored how one of the game cabinets powered down. "I'll behave, but only if you do."

Tinny store music was audible, and conflicting with the low tecno strobing through the play palace.

"I'm a grown ass man who has been behaving since I was twelve."

He nearly lost the cart doing the actual airquotes at her. Daisy smirked, darting ahead to open the door.

It looked like the auto opener was offline, but hooking her fingers in the seams and tugging did the job.

Weird. But a glance in showed the place was lit, staffed, and she spotted at least one other customer. The joint was open. A quick read of the hours on the glass confirmed and affirmed all was well. And well, they wouldn't of shut the grocery side and leave the play palace open so...

She'd flag a cashier or something when they got in.

"Even when Nona or the Madam couldn't see anything?"

Gio froze, startlement, and a low, dangerous anger twisting his features. Daisy hopped out of her mocking "after you" bow and crossed her arms over her chest, in wordless defiance. Grace had to vent at someone besides Andre. It wasn't fair that she'd only been able to talk to one person about it for so long. And while a few of the stories Grace had trotted out were likely censored... Daisy'd gleaned enough to get the names of Gio's childhood demons.

His sour glare told of a mark hit, and his silence promised gossip galore if she played her cards right.

But right now, Daisy Oak wasn't playing; she was making a point.

"Don't mention them in public." He growled.

"No Shop, at shop, gotcha." The cart rolled over that stupid lump all stores had that marked the line between in and out with a rattly thump that made both wince. "But if you want to, or need..."

She left it hanging, and he softened a hair, sincerely touched.

"So what's new in Sakaki land?"

Gio rolled his eyes, but while Daisy flipped open an ad (for the store directory, she was not Grace old man, she had no plans to dicker over every coin, calm down), as she read, he brought her up to speed on the latest drama.

The Sakaki's were hip deep in what Grace called The Great Painting War.

Grace, secret Disney Princess at heart, who was unironically living the plot of many a b-rated kiddie story spin off, wanted to inflict a sugary appocolypse on her upcoming progeny. Gio was locked into wanting something realistic. A scene meant for soothing adult and childish palates. They were, after all, gling to be spending sizable spans of time in those spaces with a screaming child. Might as well tend to everyone's needs at once.

They'd argued over childhood characters being on parade... Gio'd won that round. He had no fondness for them, thier exagerated features (anime or just basic cartoon) quite candidly creeped him out. And his description of thier uncanny valley effect had sorta freaked Daisy out. Not that she'd admit to it.

And not that either of them would admit that all the animated fluff in the Sakaki house was solely Grace's.

Not anymore.

Not since the man's introduction to Miyazaki. And surprisingly, Danna Terrace's work.

Neither Viridians had wanted a forest theme. Thier chorased "for reasons" had come in near surround sound, and Daisy had been pre-empted. Before a "why" could tumble out, both husband and wife had presented a unified front. A gentle (per Grace) but firm (all Gio) order to respect the couple's privacy, and to stay the hell out of the Forest had been doled out.

And heeded. Daisy was no one's fool, and there'd been, under that command, a glint of fear in both Sakaki's eyes.

Since forests, rainforests, and cartoons were out, the couple had waffled on oceanic and pastoral themes...

And... that was three months old news.

When Daisy called foul, Gio flicked her an amused look and admitted the tie had broken recently. Then a surprising somberness settled over the man's features.

"We went pastoral."

Daisy flicked a look up from the map, route set, and first detour on the horizon. She stilled, though in surprise at the morse turn of Gio's tone.

"I thought you hated ocean everything. Ocean 'mon, seafood, swimming..."

"I do. My reasons are: my gym, allergies, and sharkpedo."

"So what gives?"

Black eyes met hers and thinned, a tiny warning of probable ire.

"Do you remember that wooloo you gave Grace two months ago..."

Now, when anyone started with "do you remember" and had a date tagged in, it was wisest to lead with plausible deniability. Be it Rocket Racketeer, Officer, or Interpol. You remembered nothing. You weren't anywhere near the scene of whatever was being discussed. And if there was evidence, well, evil twin wasn't plausable but a look-alike would fly if you led up to it just right.

So normally Daisy would chirp, "Remember, officer, I have the worst memory in the Region. My brain damage from psychics... you know..."

Considering Giovanni had had to do the freaking himelic menuvor on her to keep her from dying on her own vomit...

Daisy bit the bullet.

"Kinda?"

Sort of bit the bullet. Maybe nibbled on the edges of it.

"What you did, between regifting fling number nine's stuffie to her, was trigger an obsession."

And while the tone was scolding (the sane would consider it intimidating) Daisy perked up. Story time with Giovanni was always fun. All sweeping gestures and dramatic tones, and if Daisy lucked out... Well, Giovanni could do voices. Seriously, little Silver/Silvana was gunna be a lucky little...

And Daisy lost her train of thought at the realization that half of the Sakaki's king-sized bed was covered in plush button-eyed wooloo stuffies. Daiay gaped while Giovanni painted Grace's obsession in all its unbridled glory.

"You are shitting me!" Daisy squealed. Seriously?!"

There'd been a compromise after two weeks of back and forth. Exactly one stuffie was allowed in thier bed, and it was never left to stare at Gio with its soulless button eyes.

(Daisy was putting Caroline on the top of thier next movie night, nothing would stop it from happening)

And one chair, in thier reading room, was designated as Grace's to "wooloo up".

The result was a hybrid harvested wooloo mareep slip cover that had beautiful pale yellow flowers woven in.

Having been a regular guest of the Sakakis. Knowing that Gio's mansion was mostly a nerdy man cave, all darkwood shelves, looming furniture, and book stuffed walls, interspaced with odd bits of art or training equipment, Daisy winced at the second-hand fashion clash. And Gio, scarily aware of weakness, pounced on that motion to rant a bit, which was more than fair.

Not only did it clash. It made reading together a nightmare. Whenever Gio glanced at his wife, he was met with a sunny, vibrant, fluffy, button-eyed abomination. Because, somehow, someway, she'd managed to incorporate all the wooloo stuffies into that chair.

"Wait." Grabbing Gio's sleeve mid-rant shut him up. He followed her gaze and froze, realizing that Daisy was fixated on the claw machine escapee from the game center that'd been left by the registers.

"No," Giovanni growled, irritated that he was being forced to be the voice of reason. They were both adults; they both should be equally reasonable. "You are too old to fall for this and-"

"It's got a Nidoking."

And boy did it. On top of the mound. Plushy spines glinting in the neon luminescence of the claw machine's light system. It was the antithesis of a wooloo. With it's edges and somber colors, and something like realism to the tip of its clawed hands and blunted snout. Giovanni looked at it, stared stupidly, and some internal want reared inside of him. It sounded vaguely like his eight-year-old self had woken within him and had one word for this moment.

Want.

"You can counter the fluff with spikey fluff." Daisy crooned.

Between the two of them, with Giovanni failing five times, and Daisy pulling off lucky number six, they get the stuffie. It got honor place in the baby seat of their cart as they went deeper in.

 

[K_S]

Chapter 5
shopping
edit needed.​

Diapers and formula 1, 2 weeks worth!


Gio insists on covering the tab. Formula and diapers are, per him, insanely expensive. And considering the man made more money than Daisy would ever see in a week than she'd ever see in her lifetime...


He leads her to the back of the store. A little out-of-the-way nook with cartoonish Donphan holding up the price tags. She's charmed for about one second, then her math comprehension kicks in. And for once in her life, she wholeheartedly agrees with the Viridian Gym Leader.

One can costs a ransom. And a week's supply is a fourth of her monthly budget. Still, she's going to have little John Doe for a while... And they better damn well tell her his name, or she's going to name him, and they're going to have to live with her bad bad naming choices. She wincingly gathered the required seven cans and squawked a protest when Giovanni leaned over her to load up an extra seven.

Because that's half a month's pay sitting right there, and her throat tightens in unnamed dread at the realization.

"You will spill. Babies sick up. It's better to have more than less, and any extras can be donated."

"To the hungry little Sakaki fund?"

Gratitude makes him smile, a small, surprised flick of his lips. "Exactly." He nudges her shoulder to get her moving again. "I'll cover this, just load up on what you think you'll need."

Daisy flipped open the paper the judge had given her. Trying to puzzle out the suggested pacifiers and clothing. Luckily, the baby section was... well, not expansive, but it was an aisle and a half. Enough room to hopefully get some basics with. Giovanni shamelessly read over her shoulder and scoffed.

"Questa è tutta una schifezza." ("This is all crap.")

Some things didn't need translation. Tone just fikled in the blanks.Daisy rolled her eyes ljke a good little Kantoian defended the system. "They're the national child assistance board."

"Ask me again, how many nieces and nephews I've either 'sat, emergency fostered, or been forced to hold at familgia carpet talks?" The man flicked an eyebrow up, expression patient yet scolding.

He then showed her to the pacifiers and instead of picking the most expensive, flipped the packaging over.

"This number here, plastic type. There's some that are nominally safe for human consumption," at Daisy's horrified look, he added, "think about how they're used. Always assume there's going to be trace amounts consumed. This one, toxic, skip and move on." He tapped the number, then flipped a more middling brand. "This one is a bit safer per the number..."

"But there's glitter..." Daisy noted.

"Noted here as toxic, literally says don't put in mouth..."

"For a pacifier." Daisy deadpanned.

"Exactly." Giovanni sighed.

"How many classes did you go to again?"

"Nine."

They both were flipping packages over. Perusing the fine print instead of aesthetics and cuteness. And in the end, they'd found one that didn't make Daisy's skin creep. It was actually silicone; all the other plastics were loaded with enough chemicals to make Daisy's head spin.

While Daisy fixed the display they'd mauled, Giovanni had commandeered her papers. The snap crinkle of them being forcibly straightened out was like he was trying to shake prevailing information to the fore by force.

"Daisy, what diaper size is your brother?"

"Um," wrangling a particularly wonky box, Daisy looked at the Gym Leader, expression blank. "How's that important?"

Hooking his arm through hers, he steered her, the cart, and carried the papers one aisle over and turned on his heel. It was a hall, nearly ran from one side to the other, of the store. And down it, as far as she ckukd see, shiney plastic boxes, all stamped with cutsy critters and alien size charts.

The only helpful thing was the clear division of his/hers.

The coordinator felt some hyperventilating was warranted at that point.

Easing her onto a display so she could sit and do her thing, Giovanni flicked his phone open.

"Grace, sweetheart, I know you don't like it when I suggest this... but I'm going to need a less-than-legal medical favor...."

While Giovanni, second hand, shimmied the medical file back market to get the sizes squared up, Daisy focused on pulling herself together.

It wasn't easy.

They were exhausted. Even with a long movie break, a nap, it was the wee hours of the night, and both were loopy from too much work and too many bad life choices. Daisy has band-aids on hands, from powering chemicals, construction, and thenrockey earth of her yard. Her knuckles weren't barked, they were raw and only a few potions and cremes rubbed in were granting her mobility. Gio's present clothes were second-hand remnants of Daisy's college days. A groteskly oversized, rumpled, Galar coordinator camp sweater that she could drown in was nearly strangling him. His leggings were an old flings pj bottom that'd been laundried and accidentally left behind when things "hadn't worked out" between the two of them.

Both cashed atrociously, but it was only visible when he leaned against an aisle and talked because his ridiculous fedora-coat combo was buttoned to hide everything.

But it wasnt buttoned all the way up. Ergo, why things could peak out when Giovanni wasn't moving... but the sheer clash was enough to give Daisy the giggles.

His previous clothes were dirt and grass-stained, with broad salt stripes. They were also keeping Daisy's workout clothes company in the washer back home. He'd managed to singe his head during thier decorating, and has a sad, mareep band-aid right by his hairline like a second eyebrow because of it.

It was his own stupid fault for tipping the glue gun over his head and trying to get the last inch out. Insistent he can see it working...

Only Daisy swatting the device out of his hands had kept it from being in his eye.

Grace would not thank her for letting Gios stuborness get him in the ER.

Again


When Gio, in his pacing, handwaving, chattery glory, drifted close, Daisy might have slumped against him instead of the cold metal of the shelf. He stilled, flicked a look down, and raised a hand over her head. Gently pulling the hair from her eyes.

"I'm fine." She mouthed.

She wasn't, hell, he wasn't, but... it'd do.

"Patricia hates me, can't someone else..."

Daisy toned that out. Half the staff at Saints hated Gio, some for his accent, some for stealing away and "corrupting" thier favorite nurse, the smarter for his temperment as a patient. Letting her gaze drift, Daisy stiffened. Gio felt the move and flicked a glance first down, then followed her line of sight.

There was a person watching them, pea green shirt, blocky apron front, staff, so affirmed the logo. Before either could read the name tag, the man had ducked back into an aisle, out of sight.

Well, fuck.

Clearing his throat, Giovanni murmured. "Siamo seguiti. Quanto velocemente puoi darmi le informazioni?" (We are being followed. How fast can you get me that information?)

Grace's tinny voice devolved into a string of swears and Daisy sighed. Great, just great.

Like this couldn't get any more second hand tramatic.


Xxx

Her cart was stuffed and they hadn't even hit the food yet. Daipers were surprisingly heavy and boxy monstrosities. Tab that in with the formula and some snap on onsies that were, per Gio, barely adequate..

"I am paying, and first thing tomorrow you are applying for government assistance."

"Alrigjt alright..." she aimed for flipant. Her voice was trembling because, oh mew, this was barely enough for two weeks. If this took longer.. if she had the kid for say three weeks. She'd be back here burning through more money she'd earned beating up Surge.

And that'd kept her fed and housed for three months...

Shes fighting back the (sane) urge to hyperventilate in the baby formula aisle of Pallet's Woopermart like a complete waste of space because...

This was not chimcho change here.

A hand clasps her shoulder, grounding her... and she leans into him. Resolutely not crying. He stays still while she trembles and bites her lip.


She's not crying. She wasn't.


And if he passed down his pocket chief... well, it was to dab at sweat around her eyes, nothing else.


Eggs, milk, misc dairy


Because Gio is being such a sap (aka scarily nice). Daisy squeezed her ususal grocery run in into prepping for the baby.

(And didn't that sound weird in her head?)

She focused on meals that required minimum cooking.

Eggs are her go to for breakfast. Boiled, pouched, fried, she's got sause and seasoning galore, a few breads to make baskets, so all she just needs the base.

"Smart" Gio complimented her. Looking mildly peeved.

Grace hadn't been able to tolerate the smell of cooked eggs for two weeks. Really the limits on Gio's diet were getting a little alarming as he trotted them out.

"Are you sure she isn't gunna pop out a rabbit?"

She deserved that smack on the back of the head for that. Still, bad timing with her holding the heavy creme and half galon of milk. She almost gave both thier shoes an imlromptu bath.

"We'll hit flour, and baking next... but this should be a good base."

"You hate creme. So who was a particularly good furball to get this treat?"

"Its not for them." None of them had been particularly good... good cats, sure, but helpfull, not so much... "its for shrimp alfredo, home made noodles, it can't all be quick and easy stuff, you know?"

Gratitude lit Gio's face as he put two and two together. Then he reached over, put back the creme, and swapped it out for a different brand.

"Higher butter content, it binds better to the thickener when making a sause."

Daisy honestly didnt care. Really, she didn't, she'd picked hers because the miltank on the side looked cute. His brand was boring as Giritina, logoless, and with more writing than a contract in two languages.

She let him know that as she put it back.

He used his height supremacy to veto her (per him) bad life choices, and leaned against the fridge door to make his point. Blocking her from swapping it out,and baring his teeth in a sharkpedos smile while doing so.

The bastard.

A throat was cleared behind her. Gio looked over Daisy's shoulder, irritation flashed over his face, but then daisy was turning about. She missed the flick from irate, to furious, to too calm, and was left wondering why the manager was looking as pale as he was.

"Ah hello Ms. Um uh..."

Daisy tipped her head, waiting as dread chruned in her stomach. Hoping this would be benign, like her misreading the ckosed sign or...

"Ah.. is he bothering you?"

Nope, it wasn't. Damn.

"We're fine, besides Antonio being a total food snob."

Startlement from the manager, who clearly expected her to wail about the evil italiano villian and cling to him like a lifeline. The lack of her folding into expected patterns was kinda breaking his brain. And making a show for both the gym leader and cordinator since the poor guy was both stupid and obvious.

"Weeelll, if you don't need any help..."

The mans wide eyes flicked from her, to her belly, to the cart, and by Arceus was she being judged. Daisy could hear it from here.

Both waited for the man to scamper off, face flaming. From the sheer scandlized, tramatuzed, set of the manager's features, the Woopermart's gossip train was gunna be spicy tonight.

"So if one of them actually gets the guts to ask, you want me to praise your skills in the bed. Like legendary Don Juan it up, or... or should I just put Grace on speaker and let her do it? Or you wanna pull the sugar da-"

Him hitting her with the papers, a barked, shut up, was more than fair. The fact that he was waffling between busting a gut, and vivisection, obvious to the coordenator and then some.

and the vine of palets woopermart was definitly not pg 13 tongiht

 

[K_S]

Chapter 6,

shop part 2 ​

Noodles, rice

"No."

"But it'd only be for me..." She'd never feed him or Grace any of it. The police would never find her body.

"No." In a tone indicating he was stopping a war crime, all the insta noodles, ramen, and stove-top spaghetti were firmly put back on the shelf.

"How about the rice noodles? Those aren't Italian right? We can make a peace treaty on that?" Daisy's favorite rice noodle ramen was starting to make a migratory path back towards the cart.

Silence, while Giovanni Sakaki radiated near-lethal levels of disdain. He didn't even have to say "I taught you better than this", he just oozed it. Under his glare, Daisy reversed course and nudged her treat back deeper into the shelf so temptation wouldn't rear its head.

"How about rice... like actual rice rice and dried beans..."

It was allowed, but Gios expression warned he she was on thin ice.

Cat treats, pet food

Loading up some councilary jingle balls for her team, Daisy tipped her head towards thier uniformed attachment that was slowly updating some price stickers a little ways behind.

"So, did you piss off the owner?"


Gio snorted. "By existing."

To her confusion, he tipped his head to indicate the 'for sale" sign at the front door. Or rather, the plastic bin of nationalistic flags by said signs. Angled to get the attention of little eyes, built low and with shiny material, and set right by the fan so they fluttered...

Those flags were about as tactful as say the sansieto advertisments that streamed at every airport leading out of Kanto.... Daisy raiseed amd eyebrow, understanding the references done in cutsy mini me size. And a bit sickened by the implications.

Next time, Daisy decided, she was going to Viridian for her shopping.

Would it take more time? Sure.

But she'd be glad to spend her poke'bucks elsewhere if they were selling crap like that.


"Ooh boy." Daisy sighed, seeing the store guard had been added to the mix of flittering "concerned" and "helpful" employees.

And the fact that 'mart had sprung for one, for Pallet, whose population was basically a retirement community with a few outliers like Daisy, and didn't tip into the triple digits... She grimaced, a quick squeeze on the Italian's arm was both mute sympathy and a warning.

The poor Nidoking plush was buried under cat balls, a chew toy, and a five-pack baggie of snacks that'd be dessert for her team next week. Its horn rose out of the feline paraphernalia like a cry for help while Daisy got them moving. Breaking off the gym leader's glare off with the guard and the man's service houndour with a totally fake request for help with the top shelf.

"Siamo sicuri che non sia un sealo?"
("Are we sure it isnt a sealo?") He breathed, and Daisy was smart enough to piece together the gist.

"Quali?" (Which one)

Louder, tone firm, though his lips were twitching, making his "adukt" front utter hypocrisy, the gym leader asked. "What's next?"

"Vegis then meat, and we're done."

"Thank God.

Meat

They skipped arguing over types, deciding one of everything was for the best. Daisy could figure out what went with what, later.

"He seriously can't think your gunna steal from here. I mean your shoes, while tactless tacky purponets of child labor-"

Gio shifted his glare from the packages expiration date to her.

"-Are worth more than this places invitory..."

Closing his eyes in tired resignation, Giovanni sighed. "Please, please stop talking fair labor practices with Grace... For my sanity... And I know that, and you know that..."

But obviously the staff didn't.

Vegis, avacado, kits, tomatoes misc,


The guard and store upper management caught up at them, poking through vegi bin. Which, having seen the guard rallying an upper-tier supervisor, was, in Daisy's experience, time to go.

Giovanni proceeded to slowly peck through every vegetable on her list like it offended his immortal soul.

And the state of some of them... well,l Daisy was feeling some second-hand offence.

When her nerves were singing, and she'd of bolted, she'd been scruffed and then conscripted into double-checking his work. Bored, Daisy sorted things into meal piles. And Gio was bored too, tapping tuneless ditties into the cart's frame while he passed her each item or watched her work. The tomatoes (treated like spun glass) were nestled with the creme, flour, and cheeses, for example. The avocados were with the bread, burritos, and beans.

So on and so forth.

Black eyes flicked over her work, amused. At least things weren't getting jostled anymore... Setting the last item, the carrots atop just so, Giovanni smoothly took the cart and its cargo and looked startled at thier newest attachments.

Daisy was calling them tweetly dee and dumb at this point.

And speaking of dumb, she mentally rewound that " tune" in her head and snorted. "A jail record would not help your case."

Subtle thy name is not Giovanni Sakaki, that's for sure.

Watching Gio act, and it was quite an act, was usually a treat. But not this time.

Because she saw the rules he was adhereing to, and hated it.

He was very careful to never move suddenly, or let his voice hit certain octaves or volumes. Anything that could be construed as hostile was carefully trained away. And, he'd likely thought he'd made many mistakes, lured by minimal traffic and familiar company. But while Gio soothed ruffled feathers...

"We were just on thier way out. Didn't mean to make a scene sbarrio."

Daisy was making a bit of a promise with herself. Once trainer season was over, she was springing for an out-of-Kanto vacation for them both. Because while metropolitan areas like Viridian and Vermillion were diverse enough to offer some safety...

Pallet clearly was not.

"Miss. You sure you're alright? Really?" And those tones warned of social suicide if she fell back on a cliche "fine" and brushed them off. Note to self, look up real estate in Viridian. "Because we saw him looming over you, following you... in the cameras..."

"Wow, your stockers have nothing to do but stalk people?"

"Daisy, vivi qui." ("Daisy you live here.")

"Tre mesi all'anno. Posso permettermi di bruciare qualche ponte." ("Three months out of the year. I can afford to burn a few bridges.")

"Non farci buttari fuori" ("Do not get us thrown out.")

And really, it was the ghost of PR scandals that neither had the energy to deal with that kept them tame. Otherwise, Daisy would have used her media clout to drag Woop' into the dirt, and Gio would have evoked his status as either Gym Leader or Kanto's most prominent businessman. The fact that neither were being recognized was... kinda starting to piss Daisy off...

Still, she took a deep breath, smoothed her hair, let it out, and struck the metaphoric match that'd set off the confrontation that'd get her banned from local bingo night at the old Mew Shrine at Brush and Stroke.

xxx

"If I hear anything besides the packing of boxes and bags, one word, I will ice you, I will ice half of pallet, and sleep like a damn innocent."

Knowing that when Gio was in this mood, even eye contact was a risky thing, Daisy did as ordered. Clicking the trunk closed, the coordinator cued up beside the passenger's seat and waited. The tinted windows made it an adventure. Would he ditch her? The snick of the lock opening was permission.

"Peace?"

Dark eyes flicked over the bar and brand. Dark chocolate and nuts, ironically, his favorite.

"Youre aware you are bribing me with my own money, correct?"

"I stole it."

Well, it'd been thrown at her head. Her catching it had been finders keepers.

"Hmm, good girl." The crinkle sounded like music to her ears as he juggled indulgence and pulling out of thier spot all at once.

Home, Gio runs thier clothes in the dryer while Daisy packs and sorts. She joins him on the couch while a boring flick about violin history plays.

Not violinists, but violins.

Once the excitement of a gorefest was differed. Giovanni had dryly reminded her It was ranked general for one, and animal cruelty laws were a thing... Not actually getting to see string production kills her enthusiasm and makes the history devolve into white noise.

Daisy nods, curls on her side to better snuggle into the couch's arm. Besides her, seeing she's drifting, Giovanni kills the volume, and to keep from waking her up by getting up, kicks his feet up on her coffee table, and joins her in slumber.