A concerned and uncertain person changed to extremely sturdy. 

A concerned and uncertain person changed to extremely sturdy.

Casey gave Zaya a hug, which the tall dog quickly returned as she laughed to herself.

“Oh, I’m sure she’ll be fine.

She seems like a great girl.”

She met up with Zaya and Adam at the lobby of the vet’s office and followed them to the front desk.

“Uh, yes, we are here for an animal bite.

But she’s going to be just fine, no surgery necessary.”

The receptionist said.

“Good, I’ll leave the paperwork here with you.”

Casey walked over to the table with the drawers and opened one.

She paused and looked at Zaya, smiling sheepishly.

“I’m sorry I didn’t tell you, I did promise I would tell you as soon as I could.”

She looked at the bandages on her arm.

“It looks like I got the blue one.”

She sighed.

“They’re not too bad.

I’m actually glad I got them, this morning was pretty traumatic.”

She shut the drawer and moved to the table with the chairs.

“You can wait here a couple of minutes while I go get the doctor.”

Casey said.

“Maybe, after a surgery as invasive as that, I’ll be fine to wait.”

She smiled.

“It looks like it’s been about two hours already.

Do you think you can go back to your room now?”

Zaya nodded to the tall dog, motioning that she could.

“Sounds good.

Thanks.”

The tall dog took a seat next to Zaya on the couch, gesturing that she wanted Casey to sit next to her.

Casey obliged and took a seat.

“Hey… so what happened?”

Zaya asked, trying to sound casual.

She was still a bit nervous about the surgery, and the last thing she wanted to do was to make Zaya feel even worse.

The tall dog took a moment to think about her answer before replying.

“I… got attacked by a big dog.

He bit me really bad on the arm.”

She started to sniffle, a bit of tears in her eyes.

“I don’t think I can go back to school now… it hurts to even move it.”

Zaya knelt down and held Casey close, giving her a hug.

“That’s ok… I’m sure you’ll be fine.

And I’ll make sure that Ivan and the others take good care of

A concerned and uncertain person changed to extremely sturdy.

I’ll eat my hat if this is the same Jade as before, She thought to herself, wondering what gave her away.

She squinted, and a frown tugged at the corners of her mouth.

She squinted some more.

The new trainer was a boy, but that’s as far as she could tell.

Though, the way he moved and fought reminded her of someone…

“Hm?

I…

I’m Jade.

From Unova.”

The fluffy Pichu on her shoulder nodded vigorously, beaming with pride.

“Wow!

I’ve seen you around the lab before.

You put on quite a show in battle.”

“Yeah, I’m kind of a big deal in there.”

Jade returned the Pichu’s smile.

She looked over at the other trainer again, who still seemed uncertain as to who she was.

“By the way, my name is Zuri.

And you are?”

“Name’s Ethan.

Ethan Durst.

I’m a trainer from Celadon City in Kanto.

Well, that’s where I was before I moved here.”

Ethan scratched the back of his head sheepishly.

“To be honest, I didn’t really come to Virbank to challenge the gym.

I’m just looking for some friends.

You’re the first person I’ve seen.

I’m new here too.

I figured I’d start out in Virbank.

I came here to get away from the situation I was in in Celadon.

So, what are you here for?”

Jade grinned.

“I’m here for a Gym Battle.

Are you going to challenge me too?

I’m sure I’ll be a good warm up fight for you.”

Ethan scratched the back of his head again.

“Hm…” He scratched his chin.

“I’m not sure.

I’m a bit unprepared for one.

I’ve never battled anyone before.

I just wanted to see if there’s anyone else around.

I’m a bit rusty.

I’ll think about it.

I know that Celadon is a bit far from here, so I’ll probably stick around here for a while.

Who knows?

You might just be the first person I meet, and then we’ll be friends forever.”

Jade nodded.

“OK.

Well, I’ll be waiting here.

Good luck!”

Ethan nodded, and turned to walk