Pokemon: Bounty Hunter Alex

A week later, Alex and the group explored everything that interested them in and around Malie City. They spent days browsing the city's shops and market stalls, picking up souvenirs and local goods. Unsurprisingly, a large portion of their purchases consisted of Johto-themed merchandise that fit Malie's aesthetic. Decorative crafts, traditional clothing, regional snacks, and various trinkets gradually filled their bags as each member of the group found something that caught their eye.

They also made the trip west to the Houkulani Observatory, where they joined one of the public tours. While the facility's research areas were restricted, the visitors' section offered plenty to see. Interactive displays explained Alola's astronomy programs, and a curated viewing gallery allowed them to observe distant stars, planets, and constellations through powerful telescopes. Even those who weren't particularly interested found themselves drawn to the marvels of outer space.

Curiosity eventually led them north to Malie City's Outer Cape and the nearby Recycling Plant. What began as a casual visit quickly turned into a learning experience. Celise and Maris, in particular, paid close attention to the facility's organization, waste-sorting systems, and processing equipment, occasionally taking notes and discussing potential applications with Rhea for their own operation back at the base. While it wasn't the most exciting tourist destination, it proved surprisingly useful.

On another day, they headed east to the Malie Garden. Compared to the bustling streets of the city, the garden offered a quieter atmosphere. They spent several hours wandering along the winding paths, crossing small bridges, and admiring the carefully maintained landscaping. Families, trainers, tourists, locals, and Pokémon alike filled the area, creating a relaxed and welcoming environment.

By the end of the week, they felt they had experienced everything Malie City had to offer, capping their vacation in the Alola Region. With no major locations left on their itinerary and their bags bursting at the seams, they agreed it was time to head home. Before that, however, they had a few stops to make.

They rode the airship and spent a day saying their goodbyes to Marlo, Leilani, Malia, Nohea, and Koa with promises to see each other again someday. Marlo and Leilani were still on the fence about establishing a Silver Network base in the region, but that was fine. Alex wasn't planning to build one in Alola anytime soon anyway. They had plenty of time to grow into their power and decide later.

Malia and Nohea, meanwhile, didn’t want to become bounty hunters. They preferred staying to continue their Island Challenge like their parents, so they wouldn’t be coming along. They also didn’t want to leave their friends behind just yet, given how young they were.

It saddened Alvera that they would go their separate ways, but she understood, given her own budding photography career that would keep her busy for the foreseeable future. She remembered her conversation with her dad about how important each individual’s desires were, so she decided it simply wasn’t meant to be and let them go.

That didn’t stop her from giving the twins a long, intimate farewell on the airship, though. She even handed them some of her favorite toys to remember her by.

Koa, unlike the twins, wanted to become a bounty hunter and immediately move to Kanto for training right then and there, but he was rejected by his mother, who said he was too young. The poor boy was simply acting out of a childhood crush on Lila, after all. Only time would tell whether their love would ever bloom.

The family was dropped off on Akala Island at their home on Royal Avenue before the airship took off and headed west toward Poké Pelago, where they would retrieve their Pokémon, with a surprise waiting for them.

They flew for a day and arrived at the cluster of islands to find a stampede already surging toward the floating platform at its center. There, Mohn was waiting for them with over a hundred assorted Pokémon, all eager to reunite with their trainers. It had been nearly two months since they last saw each other, after all.

The separation had been the longest they’d been apart since they’d been bonded, so the Pokémon’s excitement was almost overwhelming. They erupted into frantic, joyful cries at the sight of their trainers’ faces as Alex and the others approached atop Mantine.

They didn’t even bother to wait and immediately bolted toward the flying Pokémon. It caused a bit of chaos as Mantine was forced into the water from the excessive weight, drenching everyone in the cool, shallow surf. Fortunately, they were still dressed in swimwear, since they were still in vacation mode.

Alex, in particular, was tossed around like a volleyball, being passed between his 50+ Pokémon who were excited to see him. He couldn’t, in good conscience, ask them to calm down given how excited they were, so he simply indulged them. The others, however, only had about half a dozen Pokémon each, so they were simply mobbed and cuddled instead.

They frolicked in the water for a time until everyone was satisfied and began recalling the Pokémon into their Poké Balls. Once the last of them disappeared, everyone’s attention shifted to a group of small blue Pokémon still lingering behind, cuddled up with the three kids.

“Those are Phione, aren’t they?” Iris asked. “Aren’t they supposed to be rare guardians of the sea that follow Manaphy around? What are they doing here?”

“Phione aren’t exclusively sea guardians,” Vera answered. “They’ve been known to pick out and bond with Trainers or get attached to Pokémon, so it isn’t strange for them to leave the sea and their supposed duty.”

Alex made his way up onto the platform where Mohn stood and asked, “Who do these Pokémon belong to?”

“They don’t belong to anyone,” Mohn answered. “We get Pokémon like these every once in a while, those born on the islands or that come from the sea and end up attaching themselves to the Pokémon that stay here. When it’s time to go, you can decide whether to capture them or just leave without them.”

Alex thought it over and decided to add them to the lake’s defenses. Unfortunately, it was getting a bit too small for its inhabitants. Perhaps it was time to expand the property.

He approached the cuddling group and asked, “Do you guys want to come along with us?”

The Phione all turned to Alex and immediately nodded, eager to continue playing with their friends.

“Alright. I’ll store you in Poké Balls, so don’t resist,” Alex said as he captured each and every one.

Once that was done, Alex paid an exorbitant sum of millions of credits to Mohn for his Pokémon’s stay of almost two months before leaving on the airship.

There, they released all the Pokémon into the habitat floor and allowed them to get comfortable. Some immediately dived into their element, while the more sophisticated ones like Raticate, Alcremie, and Hypno joined their trainers upstairs and picked out rooms for themselves. This was to lessen crowding as well as give them some privacy if they wanted it.

They were also introduced to the new Pokémon. There was Alex’s Guzzlord, who asked if the Pokémon could be eaten and was promptly rejected; Seismitoad, Breloom, and Raichu, who were intimidated; Alvera’s newly acquired, somewhat jealous Arctozolt; and her new army of Alolan Raichu, who suddenly outnumbered Alvera’s original team. Thankfully, they didn’t have the strength to match, as they were only at Expert rank, solidifying their hierarchy.

Everyone spent some more time placating their Pokémon’s need for cuddles and familiarity before they all settled in the main living area by the airship’s tall windows.

“Clarissa,” Alex called out. “Do you think you can get the League to approve the expansion of the base toward the danger zone?”

“I don’t think it’ll be a problem, considering how devastated that area is with the constant floods. It might actually be a good thing,” Clarissa answered. “I’ll see what I can do.”

“Thanks.”

The base was definitely getting a bit too small for Alex and his Pokémon. They needed more space for training as a group, since the majority of them were expected to reach Champion rank soon. On top of that, they needed to prepare for when they reached Master rank. It wouldn’t do to have such a small training ground anymore; sparring would get dangerous despite the walls.

The population of the forest had also been growing each year, despite the number of Pokémon being adopted by the employees. This included the man-made lake, which had seen an increase in young Pokémon, not to mention Mantine’s Titan size. It was truly about time to expand the entire backyard of the base by at least a few miles.

“Hey, Alex,” Vera suddenly called out. “The girls and I have been talking, and we think it’s about time to add the others into the group.”

“You mean give Mira, Lina, Celise, Talia, and Clarissa their own triggers?” Alex asked. “Are you sure?”

“Yes,” Vera said as she stared deeply into Alex’s eyes, activating her trigger. “We’ve been talking about it over the vacation, and the vote was unanimous. We figured now would be the perfect time to add them since we have an entire week with you before we all get back to work.”

Alex looked around at the girls and saw them blushing with anticipation. They weren’t just going to be having mindless sex any longer, but passionate lovemaking instead. It was the difference between being fuck buddies and intimate partners.

“Are you girls all sure?” Alex asked one last time.

“Yes,” Mira said, cheeks tinged pink. “I’m not having nightmares anymore, so I think I’m ready for more than just sex.”

“I’ve just been waiting for Mira to join,” Lina added, fidgeting slightly as she looked away, her ears faintly red.

“We’ve decided to elevate our surveillance,” Celise said, though her calm tone didn’t quite hide the light blush on her face. “Talia and I will no longer be allowed any privacy in exchange for acquiring your love. This is to ensure we’ll be caught when our psychic imprints mess with us.”

“It’s kinda stupid that it took this long, but I can’t deny that having these implants made me hesitate about anything more,” Talia said, rubbing her arm as she glanced down, clearly embarrassed.

They were still technically spies for Team Dominion, but even Alex had to admit the years they’d spent together essentially confirmed that the psychic imprints were nothing more than memory blocks. Someday, when Gardevoir reached Master rank, it wouldn’t be a problem any longer.

“I’ve wanted one for a long time now, but I kept getting shut down,” Clarissa complained, puffing her cheeks in frustration.

“For the hundredth time,” Nyx groaned. “You’re aiming to become the Champion of a region. It’s more complicated than any of our situations.”

“Mom said it would be fine.”

“And your dad said he might consider burning our base down, so shut it. Just be happy it’s happening now.”

Alex watched the girls blushing while Clarissa puffed her cheeks at Nyx, finding all of them especially cute today. No doubt, he didn’t mind adding them at all. He could attest that the sex and relationship were truly different when triggers were involved, the only exception being Marnie, whose Dark type energy acted as a similar trigger. Now that they were being added, it would elevate their passion in bed together, increasing their pleasure multifold.

“Sure,” Alex said, before calling Gardevoir over and asking the important question. “What would you like your triggers to be?”