"Of course. If that Pokémon has a good home, that's its own reward."

He turns back to Tiernan.

"Now, I also have this for you–"

He reaches into his bag, and removes a square of red metal and glass, holding it out for him.

"–for the 'research' part of this journey. Are you very familiar with what a Pokédex does?"

"Only vaguely."

"Ah! Well."

He leans forward, laces his fingers under his chin.

"The abbreviated version is – if you encounter a Pokémon in the wild, or with another trainer, the Pokédex will retrieve some information about its species for you. If you catch a Pokémon – and your Pokédex will pair automatically with Pokéballs on your person, you don't need to worry about that – it will record more detailed information on that single Pokémon and send it back to the database. You can make notes yourself, too, if you're so inclined."

"Huh. Cool."

“Isn’t it just?”

—now is not the time to gush! There’s more to be done.

“Forgive me, but I have to ask — you’re familiar with the mechanics of catching a Pokémon?”

"Kiiiinda?"

"Ah–"

"–well, if you'd like to follow me out to Aquacorde, I can demonstrate that for you. It's a good place to buy supplies, too, if there's anything else you need."

"That'd be nice!"

"Then...I know this might seem abrupt, but have you packed all the things you'll be taking with you?"

"Yep! Seph, where'd I leave my—"

She's already getting up to fetch it from the next room.

"—backpack. I love you."

She sets the hefty camping bag down next to his feet, looks at him for a moment, and then pulls him up off the couch and hugs him tightly.

"I'll miss you."

"Yeah. Me too."

Hugs.

Feunnec makes a concerned chirping noise.

"Aww, don't worry about us, we'll be okay."

He pulls away from the hug and picks up his bag.

Feunnec eyes him thoughtfully as he puts on the backpack, and then jumps onto him and scampers up to perch on top of it. What an excitingly lofty vantage! She shall be ruler of all she surveys!

(He giggles.)

He can’t help but laugh a little himself.

“...I can wait outside for a moment, if you’d like.”

"Nah, let's go."

He nods.

“Au revoir, then, mademoiselle. Take care of yourself.”

He heads for the door.

Tiernan follows.

And Persephone closes the door behind them.