Entry #2: Rule of Cool.

In nearly all forms of media made for entertainment, barring those specifically aiming for realism, Rule of Cool is present. RoC is a simple trope, stating that "The more visually/audibly stimulating a cool event is, the more effective the action used to enact the event is."

It's an easy enough concept to understand when applied to combat. Usually, a fight between any number of participants is a frenzied, chaotic event that ends in seconds. Only one decisive blow, a killing stroke, needs to land for it to be over. That's not very entertaining to most people, though. What is entertaining is a drawn-out slugfest complete with slo-mo shots, flourishes, acrobatics, and banter between punches. Under Rule of Cool, trash talk and moments of badassery are a must.

You can take it a step further than that even. If an action is really cool, then the person taking the action might find themselves able to do things they couldn't before. Hit harder, run faster, tank more hits, anything.

Now, in a universe governed by Shounen rules? Rule of Cool is ALWAYS applicable.

With Rule of Cool always on standby, one has to consider not just how efficient their actions are, but how they and others would perceive the actions based on how 'cool' they are. Ninja running is one example. It makes no sense to run in such a foolish way when applying conventional logic. Logic saying 'running with your arms dragging is more aerodynamic' means nothing even if you're fast enough on your feet that drag does become a problem. It works because it's cool. Even a normal person, someone with normal human speed and bereft of the ability to benefit from lower drag when running WILL run faster that way.

Because it's cooler looking. That's it. That's all it needs. So long as people (who don't even need to see it, though that helps. (See addendum #1)) consider it more visually stimulating, then it works.

It's for this reason that I'm not ever going to disparage the masses for being morons ever again. If they aren't entertained by the idea of flashy, wildly impractical things, then RoC dies and is out of mine and Lulu's reach forever.

Well, maybe not. Mystique and complexity play their part in Rule of Cool as well. The mystery and danger of the unknown and veiled is just as cool as punching so hard that things explode. I recall one old series about using the spirits of heroes in death games. One of the heroes was from Irish folklore, Cúchulainn, armed with this iconic spear, Gáe Bulg.

Now, I'm not a historian, but I recall the only ability Gáe Bulg possessed was the ability to erupt into barbs, requiring the spear to be cut from the body of the victim. This version of Gáe Bulg has a magical attack that is 100% accurate and almost always fatal unless you have some sort of divine ability to block, heal, or dodge. How? The puzzling and mind-boggling ability of causality reversing.

Normally, the cause of "the heart being pierced" is "the thrust of the spear", so the logic behind the whole event is "The spear is thrust and pierces the heart." Not with this. With the magic ability, the effect "heart being pierced" happens first, before the spear thrust. This means that the target is hit before the spear is even in motion. It rewrites destiny to say "The heart is pierced by the spear thrust" to assure a hit, so you need something even wilder to counter it.

It's dumb, it's cheating, it's literally the magical equivalent of a child saying "No but I hit you though."

And it's Cool. Such is the nature of secret techniques. If it takes a while to explain how it works and/or can only be poorly explained, then it'll probably invoke the mystery clause of Rule of Cool. See examples like King Crimson.Brainy types will analyze it, understand it, and be amazed. Midwits and idiots will hear a lot of big words and activation conditions and think it deep, and thus cool. Shit, it took me a session browsing the wiki before I understood some of the more bullshit powers from that old anime. Some are so dumb that they run full circle and come back to being cool.

RoC is a deep subject tied to the very core of shounen anime and thus tied to the core of the world beneath my feet. I'm sure I'll come back here to add more notes sometime soon.

Addendum 1: Testing has revealed that YES, if people are actively amazed by what they are seeing and/or hearing, then RoC stacks on itself. Mister Johansson came to watch Lulu and I spar one morning, and he stood with his mouth open in surprise as we traded blows. I could feel my strength begin to swell as his faint aura flashed on the edge of my senses, and it took an effort to not let myself fight beyond peak human. Lulu had no such reservations and put a boot in my ass. Actual measured testing is required to determine just how effective the spectator boost is, and if there is a diminishing effect from repeat watchers who are used to what they see.

With a yawn, Julian seats himself down at Mister Johans - Bob's kitchen table as the rancher hums a tune at the stove, something divine-smelling cooking. "Mornin' Bob."

"Good mornin' to you, Julian," the man looks over his shoulder with a smile. "Breakfast'll be ready in a minute. Coffee is already done."

Julian nods sleepily and rises again, walking to the cupboard where the dishes lay as to set out three spots. Like he's done dozens of times before, three plates, three forks, and three knives are set out.

"Where's Lulu?" Bob asks. "Normally she's the first one up."

Julian looks up at Bob's back as he reaches back in the cupboard for a pair of mugs, one for himself and one for Bob. The teen hums as he slides past his employer to the steaming coffee pot on the edge of the small counter. "She's up," he says, pouring out two hot mugs. Julian sets one down at Bob's spot and sips the other, a coating of aura in his mouth letting him drink it fresh without a burn. "A Houndour by the fence had the Miltank in a tizzy, so Lulu went to go dissuade him of anything he might regret."

From the unfamiliar aura fleeing the edge of Julian's sixth sense, he can tell his partner found success. Her own signature of bright blue lingers for a moment, then begins bounding back to the house.

The rancher nods and turns back to the stove, scraping sizzling hashbrowns with his spatula. "Neighbor kid's Houndour?"

"I think."

"That boy needs to get a better leash," Bob harrumphs. "Stella is gonna send that little dog packing with an ugly hoofmark on his rear one of these days."

Julian grins into his mug as he sits back down, imagining the poor dog pokemon yelping and zipping away from the fence crying cartoonish tears, a horseshoe stuck to his behind.

The doorknob of the back door in the room over jiggles, then in walks Lulu, stopping just long enough to wipe her hindpaws on the floormat. "I think Houndour will have second thoughts next time," she comments, stepping into the kitchen with her nose twitching. She pulls one of the squeaky wooden chairs out from the table and takes her spot.

'When I get a house, I'm going to need a big table for all of my pokemon…' Julian's morning-brain conjures up a chaotic scene akin to the Last Supper as he idly watches Lulu rub a spot of dirt off of one of her paw spikes. Her gauntlet is absent, safely stowed upstairs. 'Shit. I'll need a big house with a big kitchen for a big team to sit in.' He grunts into another sip of his coffee.

Lulu's nose twitches again, and she levels her trainer's mug with a frown. "I still don't understand how you enjoy that," she says with clear disdain. "Something so pleasant smelling having such an awful taste is an affront to nature."

Julian smiles and sets his mug down. "It's an acquired taste."

'One I've had fifteen years to get used to.'

"Not one for coffee, eh Lulu?" Bob chuckles as he shuts the stove off.

Julian leans back slightly, letting Bob, pan in hand, scoop a heaping helping of steaming hot eggs and hashbrowns onto his place. The rancher does the same for Lulu, who smiles and nods her thanks, then he fills his own plate before dropping the pan in the kitchen sink to be washed later.

As Bob settles into his seat at the table with a content sigh, he lifts his fork and gives it a deft twirl in his fingers. "Dig in, you two. You're gonna need the energy. We've got to re-roof the garage before it rains tomorrow, milk the Miltank, then deliveries need to go out."

Neither Lulu nor Julian need any encouragement to dig into breakfast.

Pushing open the barn door, Julian sighs and pulls his leather work gloves off, stuffing them into his back pocket. He glances out into the pasture, and already the Miltank have noticed the open gate and barn. All the pokemon ready to be milked have begun the walk over to him.

'I guess that's the single nice thing about sapient cattle. No need to round all of them up, they just come in without a fuss when they're ready.' Part of him wonders what role normal animals play in the world other than food, and where are they? They definitely exist, the meat section of the supermarket proves it, as the shelves explicitly say things like 'beef' or 'pork', and the packaging usually features pictures of real animals. 'Eh. I guess I don't really care that much. It makes sense that an anime world would sidestep the whole 'eating sapient creatures' issue with a big handwave.'

Looking down at himself, Julian reflects over the last few weeks.

After months of living in a Lucario pack, ranch work proved to be easy enough. The work involved more lifting and moving with loads, but the miraculous power of aura negated the aches and pains of a hard day. Something too heavy to lift? Aura fixes that. Go overboard and sprain something? Circulate your aura and encourage the sprain to heal in mere hours. Tired after a long day? A shot of aura to the nervous system will keep you awake. Think someone is trying to rip you off? Read their aura and watch for dishonest wavers.

It took some time to refine his senses enough to read people, and even then it's not always 100% accurate. Living with a pack of the open-book aura-batteries called Lucario spoiled him in that regard.

Anyway, the ability to manipulate raw life force is utter bullshit now that almost no one else around them can pull the same thing. To think anyone could have the power so long as a Lucario is willing to unlock it for them… It makes sense why the rare breed of pokemon are so secretive. 'And it makes my fateful meeting with the pack all the more suspect…'

Julian and Lulu's mere twelve dollars an hour from Bob went a surprisingly long way without taxes or room and board to worry about. Lulu didn't need much at all, just the basics. As Julian expected, his starter found a new delight in a hot shower (he didn't realize just how vibrant a blue she would be after having proper soap take years of dirt out of her coat) so some money went into grooming supplies for her… and a drain catcher so fur doesn't clog Bob's bathtub.

Julian took the liberty of spending their first fist full of cash on some new clothes, a cheap phone, some hair ties to keep his messy, shoulder-length hair out of his face, a mundane, non-Silph backpack to replace his ratty berry-stained bag, and several books on the subject of pokemon training and traveling life. The clothes, phone, backpack, and books on pokemon were useful, but the guides on camping?

Laughably bad, as they assumed the reader had thousands of dollars to drop on gadgets.

Not exactly one for fashion, several black sleeveless shirts, a few sets of jeans, a belt, brown work boots, leather work gloves, socks, and underwear constitute Julian's new wardrobe. A jacket was debated, but just letting his aura slowly flow kept him warm during the chilled Sinnoh nights.

Bullshit. That, and a vain part of him doesn't want anything to cover his bare arms or the tight black shirt that leaves little to the imagination.

The rest of the money was squirreled away, waiting to be used on supplies and rarely brought forth for a luxury or two.

Fingering the leather cord on his keystone necklace, Julian hums to himself in thought. 'I should get something new to hang the pendant on. This leather is starting to fray.' He looks back up as the first Miltank waddles her way into the barn. "Morning, Matilda."

"Good morning, Julian," the cow pokemon smiles up at him. Her smile falls as she looks at his hands, suddenly looking disgruntled. "Oh, Julian…" She gives him an accusatory glare and crosses her short arms. "I know humans have lotions and concoctions to make their hands softer. Must you have those rough calluses?"

The man-turned-teen twitches. "Matilda, please don't make this any weirder than it has to be."

The Miltank clicks her tongue and waddles her way to the milking table in the corner of the barn, Julian reluctantly following behind her. "Honestly, Robert has the excuse of not understanding, but you don't," she says. Even as a squat, bipedal cow, Matilda is still a pokemon, and thus has more than enough leg strength to hop up onto the bastardized massage table, which wobbles as she lands on it. She takes her time settling, making sure to not pinch anything as she lays down, the udders on her belly hanging through the hole in the center of the padded table.

After grabbing a clean pail and the stool from the corner, Julian seats himself, plops the pail under Matilda, and starts the always awkward process of milking her. Focusing on the metallic rasps of milk splattering in the pail, he vainly tries to pretend he's milking a normal cow. "You know, if I let my hands soften up, I would just tear them up working and get more calluses, bringing us back to square one."

The Miltank lets out a long-suffering sigh. "Silly boy. How are you ever going to find a mate like that? Don't make sense, just say 'yes dear'."

"I'm th-fifteen, Matilda, I think I have some time before I need to worry about that…" He nearly slips and spills his real age.

For a few minutes, Julian works silently.

The cow pokemon adjusts the pillow under her head with her chin before glancing around. "Where is Lulu, hun? Normally she's here so she can silently snicker at you."

"Helping Bob reroof the garage," Julian replies, rising and taking the nearly full pail over to an empty 15-gallon jug. He pours the milk inside, hearing it fill a third of the way before capping the jug. "Some of the shingles are getting old, and he wants to replace them before water can get in and cause rot." As he turns around to return and finish getting the last bit of milk from Matilda, he pauses when she gives him a searching look. "What's with the face?"

"Nothing," she turns her eyes away. "How long until you and Lulu leave, hun?"

The blonde trainer thinks for a moment. "We've been here for about six weeks…" He sits back down and replaces the 5-gallon pail, going back to milking the Miltank. "So in about two weeks Lulu and I will be setting off. Why?"

There is no answer for a long minute, and just as Julian begins to become anxious, Matilda finally speaks. "It'll just feel a little strange without you here I reckon," she says. "I know Robert likes havin' you and Lulu around, and not just for work. When Lucas left to be a trainer for the pokemon professor in town, it had Robert down for a while."

"Lucas is Bob's grandson, I take it?" Julian recalls several photos in the house, one of which being a young boy with dark blue, almost black hair. 'Wasn't Lucas the protagonist in the 4th gen games?' It's been so long that he can't recall.

Matilda nods, looking at the wall of the barn wistfully. "He's a smart, gentle boy. Perfect for being a pokemon trainer. I ain't surprised that the professor scooped him up."

'So Rowan is already sponsoring a trainer…' Julian suppresses an annoyed sigh. 'We can find other sponsors I guess.' Outwardly, he asks; "Lucas worked the ranch with Bob before we did then?"

"Not often," the Miltank rises after Julian squeezes the last few drops from her. "His father wanted him to study, but when Lucas was here, he was a doll."

The blonde teen takes the full pail over to the jug he pulled aside and dumps the milk inside before capping it again. "Sounds like a nice kid," Julian comments. "So is this a big roundabout way of saying you'll miss me?" He teases.

"'Course I will."

Surprised, Julian turns to face the Miltank, who hops off the table and gives him a hard stare. "So will the rest of the girls, and Robert, and Stella, even if the ornery old mare won't say it." She frowns. "Why do you look so startled?"

"I… Lulu and I are just ranch hands who've been here for a few weeks is all." He fumbles, unsure how to explain. He sets the pail down and leans on the milk jug next to him. "I don't think that really constitutes knowing each other long enough to be worth missing. We're just… work associates I guess?"

'Come to think of it. I think I could call maybe two people back with DARPA friends, if barely. Who goes to work to make friends?'

The look Matilda gives him is one of offense, and from her, he can feel her aura buzz in agitation. Unbidden, embers of Friendship warm his chest.

"That don't matter none," the Miltank points a hoof at him. "Friends ain't nothing that take an age to make. Be it a day or a lifetime together, two people or pokemon can have something that lasts. You're going to be missed by everyone here." Her indignant anger slowly drains, replaced with melancholy. "I guess… you ain't going to miss us then?" She asks, eyes slowly filling with hurt tears.

"That's not what I said!" Julian quickly denies, wondering how this conversation even took this turn. "It's… Well… Look, don't put words in my mouth, okay? I'll miss you…" The blatant lie makes him hesitate as the Friendship inside of him burns him as he says the words. "I just don't see the point getting super attached to people you work with, and it's for reasons like this. I may never come back to Sandgem for all we know."

Matilda's shoulders slump. "I see…" She looks away.

The image makes Julian wince.

'Shounen anime you dummy. Of course real, instant friends are a thing here. Even if you don't like them, they might like you.' The revelation makes Julian wince again. 'Great. I'm the odd one out and look like a jerk for it. Does Bob feel the same way? Stella? Nurse Joy?' Lord knows even if she hasn't been a constant presence, Joy has been a huge help every time he and Lulu have stopped by the center.

"Matilda?" He starts unsurely, pulling the downtrodden Miltank's eyes back to him. "Things were a little different where I'm from. People just don't grow close like that so quickly. I didn't realize you all thought that way about Lulu and me. I'm sorry if I came off like I didn't care at all…" He sighs and crosses his arms. "This has certainly given me a lot to think about, at least."

The cow pokemon blinks, then smiles gently, walking up to pull a surprised Julian into a tight hug. "It's okay, hun. I forgive you. I can't say I rightly understand that kinda mindset, but 'round here in Sinnoh, folk care for one another," she says, pulling her face from his chest to look up at him.

The warm embers of Friendship pulse in Julian's chest, making his entire aura lighten and putting a smile on his face as he hugs the Miltank back.

"Now!" Matilda lets go and waggles one forehoof at him. "Every bond between you and someone else is special, remember that. No more of this pretending while pushing others away, you hear? There ain't nothing wrong with missing someone."

Julian smiles back. "Of course."

As she turns to leave and tell the next Miltank it's her turn, Matilda throws one more line over her shoulder. "I still think you could do without the calluses!"

"There we have it!" Julian grins and bends over, letting Lulu hop off of his shoulders. "Just like new, eh?"

"Perhaps not 'new', but certainly better," Lulu wryly comments as she stands up and dusts her paws off. "Better than replacing the whole thing."

Beside them on the sidewalk of Sandgem's sleepy market street, Miss Justine, the elderly pokemon daycare owner looks up at the now firmly attached sign hanging over the door of her daycare. The sign, depicting a Furret curled around a multitude of baby pokemon, squeaks slightly as the wind makes it rock.

"Julian, Lulu," Justine clasps her hands with a smile. "You two are just dears, you know that?"

Just a day prior, a Staraptor almost drunkenly smashed into the old sign then flew off without so much as a word according to Miss Justine, leaving the sign hanging from a single hinge while the rod it was hanging from was bent at an odd angle. Normally, the wrought iron sign would need to be pulled out of the masonry of the building and repaired in a shop, or just replaced. A costly and time-consuming endeavor for an old woman who raises pokemon more out of love than profit.

To Lulu, who caught on to the importance of money quickly, there was no reason to make Miss Justine go to the trouble when the strong paws of a Lucario could just bend everything back into place.

'That, and having a supportive hometown rooting for you in the finals of the pokemon league tournament has to be worth some kind of trope boost.' Julian muses. 'A little goodwill goes a long way.' He clears his throat and files the thoughts away for later. "It's not a problem at all, Miss Justine," he smiles. "We could help, so we did." He looks over his shoulder, where Stella impatiently waits with her cart hooked up behind her. Julian can feel the equine pokemon's eyes boring into him. "Let's get you your jug and we'll be on our way. I think Stella is getting a bit antsy."

Justine clicks her tongue and shakes her head, making the gray ponytail her hair is pulled back into flick side-to-side. "Sinnoh needs more hard-workin' youngsters like you two. This town of old codgers especially."

The blonde teen just smiles and trots back to the cart parked on the side of the street. Ignoring the Rapidash's impatiently tapping hoof, he sucks in a breath in a show of effort before lifting one of the jugs up and out, not at all actually strained as the aura running through his veins does the hard work for him. With careful steps to keep the Moomoo milk from sloshing too much, he carries the jug inside. "Just set it down anywhere, dear," Justine says as she follows him in. "The little ones can help push it around later."

With a shrug, Julian sets the heavy jug down by the reception desk and looks around the daycare's tiny lobby. Through the wall, he can feel auras that dwarf Miss Justine and stand head and shoulders above him, but they're like children before Lulu's bonfire of soulful blue. "Need help with anything else before we take off, ma'am?"

Miss Justine laughs, a sound like a cackle that doesn't fit her grandmotherly image at all. "Dear, don't spoil me now. I know you got a job to do, so I won't keep you." She waves a hand. "Get going."

"Don't be afraid to wave us down if we're passing by and you need something," Julian grins. "Off to the landing strip then. Let's move, Lulu."

Back outside, Stella snorts as Lulu and Julian exit the daycare, the bell on the door jingling and making the horse pokemon's ear flick. "About time, you two," she grumbles as the boy and Lucario clamber into the cart's carriage seats. Julian doesn't even need to touch the reins before Stella starts pulling them along the street in a route she's long since memorized. "Do you need to stop and play superhero for everyone we talk to?"

Lulu sniffs and crosses her arms. "We've no urgent tasks today, so there isn't any reason to not help where we can. One should give to their community."

"That's all fine and dandy, but it makes my day longer too," The Rapidash frowns. "Maybe only do extra chores if it's something urgent? It's getting old after the hundredth time…"

"It hasn't been a hundred times…" Lulu turns away.

Stella snorts and throws her fiery mane. "Hundred and first then. Keep this up and everyone will think you're brown-nosing for something."

'We are. What we want are supporters.'

"Hundred and first," Julian scoffs, watching as they pass the small electronics store of Sandgem. Standing outside washing the windows is Peter, the middle-aged owner. He turns when he hears Stella's hooves clopping down the road and waves at them with a bright smile. Julian waves back. 'The league year starts in just two weeks, then Lulu and I start off…' Again, the anxiety of leaving 'home'pokes at him, but it's so much less than when they left the pack. He leans back and wonders about Matilda's words from earlier. 'Friendships are so much easier to form here, and they're made to last. The average person is just… naturally approachable and friendly. Hell, a lot of people don't even lock their doors. I know Bob doesn't.' He frowns and wraps a hand around the keystone hanging from his neck, gently rubbing the cool gold and the smooth stone. 'Can't do that back on earth. Leave your door unlocked and someone will invite themselves in and help themselves to everything expensive you own. You can barely even ask someone the time without getting an ugly look.'

"Julian?"

The teen looks to the side, where Lulu sits with her paws folded in her lap. She gives him a sideways glance. "You look deep in thought and your aura darkened for a moment. Is everything okay?" She asks.

"Just fine," he quietly answers. "I was thinking about how different Sandgem, or hell, Sinnoh in its entirety is from my home."

"I don't think I've heard you talk about where you're from at length." Lulu fully turns her head to peer at him with her ruby eyes. "I didn't quite understand how you got lost the last time you tried to tell me."

Stella's ears don't flick back to listen, but her aura stills in obvious curiosity, so Julian carefully chooses his words. "It's… a long story. I think you were missing some context for my explanation last time. I'll have to teach you some human concepts first for it to really stick. Even then, you might find a better explanation in a book, so as soon as those beginner books I ordered come in, I can start teaching you."

Lulu nods and smiles, trusting his words. "Of course. I'll be happy to learn."

At the same time, Stella's aura darkens in disappointment but remains still as she curiously ponders Julian's words. He can practically feel the questions on her tongue. "Pardon for eavesdropping," The Rapidash begins, and for a moment Julian fears she's going to press for a better explanation. "What's so different about Sinnoh and wherever you're from?"

"Well…" Julian keeps his voice down. It's no secret in Sandgem that he can understand Lulu, but no one really knows just how deep it goes. Talking to and understanding a pokemon that isn't his word for word? Not attention they need right now. "Everyone is honest and friendly, for one. Back home, it takes serious time and effort to form worthwhile friendships. Here, it just seems like it happens on its own. Before being a pokemon trainer, I could count my friends on one hand with fingers to spare. It just wasn't worth it most of the time." He crosses one leg over the other and looks up at the cloudless blue sky, silently marveling at the brilliant color unmarred by smog. "It was hard to tell what people were thinking, too. You couldn't really trust anyone without knowing them. A lot of people in Sandgem leave windows open and doors unlocked at night. That would never fly back home, that's just asking for your house to be broken into." He turns his attention back to Stella and Lulu.

Lulu gives him a startled look, her aura frazzled. Stella likewise looks back at him, slowing her gait so she can focus her bewildered eyes on the boy.

Julian can't help but shrink slightly, feeling as if he misspoke.

"That…" The horse pokemon pulling the boy and Lucario along hesitates. "Don't be offended, but that doesn't sound like the sort of place I'd like to be. Or a place a young'un like you should be…"

"Idyllic anime world, Julian. Stuff is backward here. Big bad threatening to break shit? No prob. No friends? Legitimately horrifying.' He chastises himself. "No no, I understand. Sinnoh is my new home anyway."

A tension previously unnoticed in Stella's withers eases, and she turns her attention forward again. "Good."

From the way Lulu's aura is rolling in turmoil, Julian can tell there's a question eating at her, but she remains silent. Instead, her eyes carefully regard him.

The rest of the ten-minute trot to the airstrip to have the remaining milk boxed up and shipped out is leisurely. Lulu and Stella's respective auras settle, the conversation apparently fading from their minds the further they go, and before long, the modest airport on the edge of town comes into view.

The Sandgem airport is small, smaller than any municipal airport Julian has ever been to. With a single black tarmac runway for planes, a single-story office and small warehouse off to the side, a tiny ATC tower, and just one hangar. Only a handful of aircraft are at the airport at any given time. Not to say the airport is totally barren, because…

Julian shades his eyes with his hand, watching the shadow of a soaring Fearow against the sun swoop down towards the hangar. In its talons, a huge wooden cargo crate is carried aloft seemingly without any difficulty. With a few flaps of its broad wings, the bird pokemon kicks up a storm of dust as it lands gently with its load. A team of men in jumpsuits jog out of the hangar towards Fearow and its crate, dollies and crowbars ready.

…Planes are fine for some applications, but flying pokemon are often better.

There isn't even a fence around the field, just a single guard post along the road.

Stella slows and comes to a stop by the one-man guard post, making the brown-uniformed guard put down his newspaper and peer up at Julian. "Ah, hey kiddo. Delivery?"

"Delivery." Julian nods.

The guard presses a button on the wall of the guardhouse, making the gate arm blocking the road rise with the whine of an old electrical motor. "In you go. Have a good one."

"Same to you," Julian smiles.

They continue on, taking the cart up to the single-story office and past it to the warehouse. They ride past several teams of people and pokemon, either on break or waiting for something to do until they get to an open bay door on the side of the building. It takes only a moment for a team of Machop to walk out and begin unloading the remaining fifteen jugs from the cart, taking them inside the warehouse to be packed. Each of the three Machop easily carries around the metal jugs that would topple a man, and already a jumpsuit-clad man inside the warehouse is setting up a wooden crate as another stands by with a five-foot-tall roll of shrink wrap.

"Angelo?"

Julian, too engrossed watching the warehouse workers, doesn't notice the minuscule aura approaching until his name is called. He blinks, then peers down from the cart to his left. Both Stella and Lulu follow his gaze, the former looking confused while the latter frowns grumpily.

Standing just a few yards away with his ever-present scowl is Paul Shinji. The purple-headed teen blinks and raises an eyebrow. "What are you doing here?"

"Nice to see you again, Paul. You're a stellar conversationalist as usual," Julian snorts, making the other boy's frown deepen. "We're here on work-related business, dropping off Miltank milk to be shipped out. What are you doing here at the airport?"

"I just flew in from Veilstone," Paul points a thumb over his shoulder to a small passenger plane on the runway getting ready for takeoff. The propeller on the nose of the plane spins up, then the aircraft slowly begins to pull down the tarmac to leave.

Julian waits, but when Paul doesn't elaborate further, he waves his hand in a "well?" gesture. "Okay, but why? A rematch or something?"

Lulu perks up, her aura flaring almost enough to be visible.

"...Later," Paul eventually says, much to Lulu's disappointment. He crosses his arms. "I'm in Sandgem to have Professor Rowan update my pokedex, then I'll be setting off for the Sinnoh gym circuit."

"Pokedex, huh?" Julian murmurs, trying to keep his stinging envy out of his voice. Oh, the awful things he would do for a real pokedex, but alas, the real deals are only given out by regional professors, and even knock-offs cost thousands.

"I also want to talk to you about something," Paul doesn't avert his eyes, but his aura twists in a decidedly uncomfortable way. "About what you said after that battle a few weeks ago."

"Oh?" Julian rubs his chin. "Sure thing. Let me finish up here then we can give you a ride back to town as we talk." Without waiting for an answer, he turns back to the Machop unloading the last jug. "Hey, can we get our shipping forms?"

"Sure thing, pal!" The Machop cheerfully replies. Like with all pokemon, Julian can hear the raw sounds that Machop's mouth makes, but Julian's aura feeds a comically thick Brooklyn accent to his brain, making the teen smirk. "Hey, knuckleheads!" Machop raises a cupped hand to his mouth, magnifying his voice. "Someone get the kid his papers so he can go!"

"Yeah, yeah, loudmouth. Cool it!" Another Machop yells, shaking the claw-hammer in his grip. He sinks the nail into the crate he's assembling with a single masterful whack. "Jimmy is on the way!"

From a small side office comes one of the warehouse workers, this time a man in a hard hat and jumpsuit with a clipboard under his arm. He walks his way up to the now empty cart holding Julian and Lulu, and holds it out. "Afternoon, son. Sign here and take your copy."

Julian signs the form, rips off his copy and folds it, then hands the clipboard back. "Thanks. Take it easy." He says, stuffing the farm's shipping copy into his pocket. As the warehouse worker waves and leaves, the blonde trainer turns back to Paul. "Okay, let's get going."

Lulu, albeit reluctantly, hops into the back of the empty cart, letting Paul unsurely climb on and sit next to Julian, placing his backpack beside him as he does so.

"Stella?" Julian begins. "Can you take us to the pokemon lab please?"

"I suppose," The Rapidash sighs and begins a brisk trot, turning away from the warehouse and back toward the road. Her fiery mane and tail flare just a little in her annoyance, hitting the boys behind her with a puff of warm air. "Didn't we just have a conversation about doin' everyone favors a little bit ago?"

The blonde smiles back awkwardly, then schools his expression as he looks to Paul. "So, what did you want to talk about?"

The younger boy's face remains impressively blank, but his aura contorts itself into an anxious shape. "Regarding what you told me, how pokemon need training and… other things. How sure are you?" He asks carefully, as if wary of stumbling into a joke.

"A hundred-and-ten percent," Julian smiles and waves to the airport gate guard as they pass, then returns his attention to Paul. "I don't think it, I know it. A pokemon grows in proportion with the love they receive from a trainer. You can drive pokemon into the ground with the most effective, most grueling training, refine them into something elite while totally divorcing them from your emotions, and still get wiped by a trainer who was half as effective as you who made an effort to see their pokemon happy and loved." He raises a finger. "As I said, it's like the powers that be made things this way as a check and balance system."

"Check and balance system, huh?" Paul shakes his head. "First, there are no higher powers, and second, why would you think that?"

'Oh, I'm not getting into that argument.' Julian rolls his eyes. "Think about it. If pokemon could grow just fine on training alone, why hasn't a psycho raised an unbeatable team and become the Overlord of the world or something?"

Paul blinks. "What?"

Behind them, Julian hears Lulu shift. "What do you mean?" She asks.

Stella says nothing, but she does twist one of her ears around to listen.

"Think about it a little," Julian taps the side of his head with a finger. "If genuine love and friendship plays no factor in the growth of a pokemon, then how has some immoral, unfeeling wackjob not raised a team of pokemon into unstoppable monsters and taken a huge chunk of the world as his own, if not the whole world?"

Paul doesn't seem impressed. "They would be stopped by the Pokemon League. No Champion would let some crazy trainer run roughshod over them."

Julian nods along. "Sure, nowadays, they would have to compete with the League, but I'm talking before the Leagues were really organized. A hundred, two hundred, five hundred, a thousand years ago? Why didn't someone rise to power in the years before the League and create a tyrannical dynasty or something? Logically, there should have been at least one in history, but there's… almost nothing. Barely anyone who could be called evil in all of recorded history has made a successful power grab long enough to cause permanent damage. Doesn't it seem weird that all the evil with a capital E figures in history who used pokemon were stopped?"

Paul hesitates, but after a moment he formulates an answer. "You're forgetting the tale of the King of Kalos. He killed countless people and pokemon with some mysterious weapon out of revenge. Why wasn't he stopped then?"

'What?' Julian blinks, frantically trying to think of the light reading he's done about pokemon history. It takes a moment, but he recalls a crucial detail of the old tale. "Remember the keyword almost when I say 'almost nothing'. The King of Kalos was motivated by grief over his slain pokemon, and grief is arguably the most destructive form of love. Plus, he wasn't using a pokemon to cause havoc, so this whole conversation barely applies to him."

Before Paul can attempt to unravel his argument, Julian continues on. "You can't honestly say that throughout the entirety of history, the best trainers all just so happened to be moral, good people out of happenstance. No, there is a very clear correlation between a capacity for genuine love and the power of pokemon raised by the people with that capacity. It's for this reason the world isn't a hellish dystopia run by one guy with a pokemon that can sink islands. If you lose the ability to form friendships and love in a natural manner, then your pokemon stagnate. Get it?"

"Well…" Paul struggles to answer, looking away. "Thats…"

"Think of the Champions. Do any of them strike you as someone cruel or out of their mind?

"No," Paul forces out. His brows furrow and Julian backs off slightly as the younger boy's stoic expression finally begins to crack. "There's still no proof of any of this. For all I know, you could be messing with me."

"What do I have to gain by doing that?"

When Paul can't answer, Julian sighs and runs a hand through his hair. "Look, I get that my theory is just a theory and all, but I'm very confident in what I'm saying. Friendship and love triumph because that's the natural order. A rule." The blonde says, feeling the weight in his own words.

Paul rocks back in the cart's bench seat, his eyes wide and mouth dropped open slightly.

"And there's no point in fighting it," Julian returns his eyes forward. "I'm not trying to jerk you around or belittle your style of training, I'm trying to pass advice that I think will help both you and your pokemon."

Paul looks down at the ground passing under their feet, his aura twisting and turning in a confusing mix of rattled, warring emotions.

Stella, likewise, seems to be reevaluating what she knows, her trot slowing to a walk as she returns her ear forward.

'I hope I didn't reveal too much…' Julian takes Stella's reins in an attempt to pretend the awkward silence isn't happening. 'I just want Paul's pokemon to be happy is all.'

"Julian…" Lulu's voice is quiet, but the troubled tremor of her aura pulls her trainer's eyes off of the back of Stella's head and to her. When her red eyes lock with his, Julian can't look away. "How did you learn all of this?" She asks, searching his face for answers.

The blonde trainer licks his lips, only to find his mouth is dry too. "Those are secrets better discussed alone, Lulu."

She takes a deep breath that pushes her chest spike out. "You weren't just being philosophical after our battle with Chimchar then? Is there really some sort of force we cannot see enforcing these rules?" She asks, placing a paw over the lip of the cart.

"Yes."

Lulu finally looks away, and Julian doesn't need to feel her aura to know she's getting overwhelmed. "Are there more rules like the one you described?"

"There are," he reaches back and puts a hand over the paw resting on the lip of the cart. "Don't worry too much about it for now. I'll explain more later."

The rest of the trip to the Sandgem pokemon lab is spent in silence. Paul's aura slowly calms as they grow closer, stoic expression returning as the purple-haired teen reflects on everything he's heard.

Stella keeps looking back, a question obviously on her lips, but each time she seems to change her mind and return her gaze forward.

The one that bothers Julian most is Lulu. On the back of his head, he can feel his Lucario's stare. He can feel that she wants to know more. 'I'll tell you everything, Lulu, I'm just not sure how to explain, or even if you'll understand.'

Stella stops the cart before the closed gate at the laboratory of Professor Rowan, letting Paul disembark with a quiet; "Thanks." As the other boy steps off the seat, Julian looks up and takes in the lab for the first time.

Being the largest building in Sandgem, the lab was always visible in the distance, but seeing it up close really hits home how large it is. The cylindrical, futuristic building is 6 or so stories tall, with an exposed deck on the 3rd floor circling the whole building. On the top are a number of satellite dishes and antennas, and at the bottom are glass doors at the end of a beaten path starting at the gate. Behind the building is a square stone windmill easily as tall as the lab, with a three-bladed propeller that spins lazily in the breeze. What purpose the windmill serves to such a hi-tech location is anyone's guess.

"Hey, Angelo?"

"Hmm?" Julian returns his attention to Paul. "What's up?"

Paul sighs, seemingly mulling something over before he says; "Travel with me."

"Pardon?" The older teen tilts his head, wondering if he heard right. Did Paul just say-

"Travel with me."

He did.

"Erm…" Julian scratches his head, bewildered. "That's kind of out of left field. Any reason, or…?"

"You seem so sure of yourself that I want to see it first hand." Paul crosses his arms, his scowl deepening. "This is the first time I've ever heard any of this natural order junk, so I want to see if you're real or just full of hot air. If it's all real, I'll…" His next words seemingly pain him. "I'll admit that you're right." He closes his eyes in thought and taps his foot. "Since you're working for a farm, you're obviously broke and have no skills, so this will split the cost of traveling for you as well. You're taking the gym challenge, aren't you?"

Julian chokes out a laugh despite the flare of annoyance from the reminder of how financially insecure he is. 'Fuck. That's a good point actually…' He turns to Lulu, who is watching the whole thing with narrowed eyes. "Lulu? Any input?"

Paul goes to scoff, but stops himself just barely short.

The Lucario sighs. "Despite my own distaste for certain company and my confidence in ourselves," she begins, giving Paul a pointed look. "There is safety and security in numbers. It would be a wise idea. At least I think so."

"Well well, I guess that decides it," Julian grins and holds out a hand. "Glad you could join us, partner!"

Paul gives the outstretched hand a sour look. "I'm already regretting this, and you're the one joining me." Reluctantly, he reaches out and clasps Julian's hand. "Just be back here in a week, moron."