**Palette Town**<br/>"Jonathan." Charity gasped in surprise as her old friend held out a hand to keep her from falling over. "What are you--"<br/><br/>"I sorta figured you could use some help avoiding the paparazzi." The red-haired man laughed, pushing his glasses up and offering his usual amiable smile.<br/><br/>"Thanks." She laughed, looking around one more time. Sure enough, there were a number of news people trying to get her picture, and even more chaotic still, several dozens of young trainers all scrambling for her advice. Jonathan put an arm around the woman and shielded her from the onslaught of eager individuals, leading her inside while the police watched from atop their unusually skittish fire horses.<br/><br/><br/>Once in the safety of the building, the quiet of the lobby struck in stark contrast to the crowds outside. Everything smelled fresh. Polished stone floors reflected crystal lights hanging from the ceiling above. Comforting tones of red and gold complimented dark green leaves carefully manicured in lovely vases around the sitting area.<br/><br/>"Here." Jonathan's voice jerked Charity out of her thoughts. Her slipped a key card into her hand. "I already got you your room. Seventh floor. Third door on the right. The number's on the card."<br/><br/>"Thanks." The woman gasped, a little overwhelmed at the fact that she still haven't even adjusted to being back in town.<br/><br/>"I got you the room with the best view. And a balcony. Don't worry though, Gary paid for it."<br/><br/>"Is he coming tonight?"<br/><br/>"He's finishing up the paperwork with the bank, getting the deed to his grandfather's house signed over. He was sort of hoping you guys wouldn't have to stay in a hotel for long."<br/><br/>"It's alright." Charity shrugged, making her way towards the shining elevator doors.<br/><br/>They rode the elevators up, and when the bell chimed for their floor and they stepped out, Jonathan pointed her in the right direction. They made their way to the room, but before the professor had a chance to slip inside, Jonathan halted her.<br/><br/>"Hey, I've also been trying to get a hold of you since your trip to Unova, but for some reason your pokegear was acting up."<br/><br/>"Must be the distance." Charity said, turning slowly to look at her friend in concern. The tone of his voice made her worry. "What's up?"<br/><br/>"I got a weird message from Samuel. I'll send it to your gear tonight so you can read it. Maybe you'll be able to make more sense of it than I could."<br/><br/><br/>They said their farewells, both agreeing that Charity needed some time to herself so that she could regroup from her trip and get some rest, and once Jonathan was gone, the professor went inside, closed and locked the door, and tossed her stuff onto the plush couch. She dug through her backpack to get her gear out and set it on the table, shortly thereafter opening up the curtains to let some light in.<br/><br/>She then flipped on the tv, watched a few minutes of the news, and then realized how good a hot shower sounded. She left the tv on, and quickly went to the bathroom to indulge her senses in sweet-grass soap and honey shampoo.<br/><br/><br/>***Viridian Forest***<br/>Kavarr's brass-yellow eye snapped open, slitted pupils narrowing in harsh scrutiny. At once his muscles tensed and his claws dug into the earth in anger. Head lifting from the ground, his neck arched and his mouth gaped open, letting go an ear-shattering roar punctuated by a shriek. The charizard reared back and opened his wings, lifting a clawed hand and swiping it across his captive woman's chest.<br/><br/>He meant to draw blood, but he knew how to limit his own strength. He didn't want to kill the girl after all.<br/><br/>Just put her in her place.