Deeps

“Tell me, nya~… where is the pain at its worst?”

Chloe winced. “The big slash across my front.”

Chloe was in the infirmary. After a long and awkward journey back from Crooked Grove with Kite, the flygon had insisted she get a check up, to make sure she was fighting fit for tomorrow, where they’d be meeting at dawn to train. Chloe had dryly remarked that it was his first good idea all day, and he’d just laughed.

“Ehhh… How did you come by this injury?” Enigma the meowscarada asked, rummaging through some cupboards.

Chloe shuffled on the examination table. “I battled a shiftry earlier. It slashed me with its leaves, they were really sharp.”

“I see, nya,” Enigma nodded, closing the cupboard door. “May I examine this slash more closely?”

“I-” Chloe froze. She suddenly felt extremely nervous. “What- what would that involve?”

Enigma smiled gently. “Physical contact. I sense you would be uncomfortable with this, nya?”

Chloe felt embarrassed, but the idea of someone else ‘examining’ her like this… She suddenly felt very naked, and she unconsciously shrank into herself. The prickling feeling of her body being different, being wrong, was returning unexpectedly, and she grimaced. “I- I’m sorry, I…”

“No need, nya,” Enigma waved a paw. “You are far from the only pokémon who would be uncomfortable in this position, I promise you this!”

He approached the table non-threateningly, and placed two blue berries beside her before stepping away again. “Ehhh, your injuries are not bad enough to warrant an exam today, Chloe. However, if there ever, eh, comes a time that your injuries are more serious, nya, I may need to force the issue. I do hope you understand?”

Chloe nodded meekly. “Y- Yeah, I do… Hey, Enigma?” Chloe’s whole body was starting to feel wrong again, so wrong, and it was draining her. Six strange hands, big spherical body, a weird, bulbous face… “Hahh… how do I stop feeling dys… dysmorphic or dysphoric? Which is it again?”

Enigma looked concerned again. “Firstly, nya, eat up. Those oran berries will help with your physical injuries.”

Chloe nodded, and picked up a berry. This was easier said than done, as her body really didn’t feel like her own right now, and her movements were sluggish.

“It may be similar to the other night,” Enigma explained. “Now that you have nothing else to think about, nya, all you can think about is your, eh, incongruent body.”

Chloe swallowed a mouthful of berry, and felt the pain ebb. “I don’t really feel like I’m in my body right now,” she said quietly. “I’m just so… I feel so off, I don’t know…”

“How do you want to be, Chloe?”

Chloe started trembling slightly. “I- I can fly!” she whispered. “I want to be like this, I want to be a pokémon, but this feeling is just-”

Enigma sat down on a chair next to the table. “I must admit, nya, that you are the first patient of your kind I have had to treat, if you can believe it!”

Chloe smirked, and some of the feeling returned to her body.

“I am truly sorry, nya, but I do not have any ideas that I know shall work with certainty,” the big cat said sadly, “but I will suggest evolving once again. I will also suggest, nya, that you surround yourself with friends who will validate you, and, eh, make you feel at home in your body.”

“Hmm…” Chloe hummed, taking another slow, methodical bite of her oran berry. She felt so… disconnected, like her mind was refusing to accept her body. Even though she knew she wanted to! Being a ledyba, even if that wouldn’t have been her first choice, was still amazing. She could fly, for goodness sake! She just need a distraction, something to force her mind back into its new body and continue getting used to it. Something like-

There was a knock at the door. “It’s Chloe’s friends!” Shucu’s voice called through the door, “Can we see her?”

Enigma cocked his head at Chloe, who smiled and nodded.

“Come in, nya~!”

The door burst open, and Shucu was already clambering onto the foot of the table. “Chloe are you okay what happened to you??”

“Shucu, Shucu!” Celes called fussily as she caught up to the helioptile. “You stay right, right there, now. Didn’t Deeps just talk to you, you about personal space?”

“Aw geez you’re right sorry Chloe!” Shucu slapped her own face, and sat down at the end of the table. “But are you okay though?”

Chloe couldn’t help it, and burst out laughing. Deeps approached her bed too, and Meteor towered over everyone, smiling awkwardly. The feeling in her body, her limbs, her face, it was all coming back. “I’m okay, I’m okay! I just got into a fight with this shiftry-”

“A SHIFTRY!” Shucu shouted, her eyes and mouth making stupid looking ‘o’ shapes.

Celes gasped. “That is, that is a dangerous battle, Chloe!”

“Really?” Chloe giggled at their reactions.

Shucu nodded. “Yeah I mean that guy’s all evolved when you’re not, for a start!”

“And, and!” Celes added, “shiftry are known for their power over winds, Chloe!”

“I know that,” Chloe was getting a little irritated, now. Why were her friends chewing her out like this? “But that dungeon is meant to be a really easy one, so I thought I’d be able to hold my own.”

“Ooooh a dungeon!” Shucu hopped from one foot to the other. “Tell us from the start!”

Deeps nodded. “I’d like to hear too. All we did with Enigma today was talk about the mission board and what moves we can learn.”

“Ehhh, come now!” Enigma shrugged dramatically. “It is very important for your progression, nya!”

The group laughed, and Chloe started to tell everyone how her day had gone. Enigma watched, satisfied, as all the day’s tension drained from his patient. He quietly left the room, satisfied that she would be okay for the time being.

---

Chloe spent the next ten minutes going over her day with her friends. She told them about how Kite had swapped with Feathers last second, and she’d had fun garnering their sympathy for his weird behaviour. She also told them about the dungeon and what she’d learned from Kite about identifying their borders, and she took particular care to go over her battle with the shiftry from start to finish. She glossed over all the parts involving Piper, not really wanting to talk about her.

Shucu looked upset. “Are you suuuure that was Kite Chloe because I can’t believe he’d act like a jerk like that!”

Chloe just shrugged. “Never meet your heroes, I guess.”

Shucu drooped. “Aww, man…”

Chloe couldn’t help but feel sorry for the little helioptile, but she wasn’t about to start defending Kite over it. Meteor spoke up then, the first time since he’d entered the room. “Um… Maybe eating something will make you feel better, Shucu?”

Shucu perked up instantly – it was as if she’d not been sad in the first place “GOOD idea Meteor let’s all go get a bite to EAT!”

Shucu jumped off the table, and ran for the door. Celes and Meteor moved to follow.

“Yo, Spots, can we talk about something quick?” Deeps asked suddenly, when the rest of them were half way to the door.

Chloe gave Deeps a questioning look. “Uh, sure. Is Spots my nickname?”

Deeps nodded, and waved the rest of the group away. “I’ll catch up in a sec.”

Shucu’s eyes narrowed. “What’re you talking about without us huh Deeps?”

“Just stuff,” he said evasively. Shucu gave him a long look, before shrugging and zooming out the door.

Celes waved. “See you, you two soon, then!”

Meteor waved nervously too, and now Chloe was alone with Deeps.

Chloe looked at him curiously. “What’s up?”

Deeps hesitated, not looking at her. Then he spoke. “How was Piper today?”

Chloe felt a pang of nervousness. “Why do you ask?”

Deeps looked at her. “S’just, you didn’t really say all that much about her just now.”

Chloe cringed. He’d actually noticed that? “Why do you care?” she asked defensively.

Deeps frowned. “I noticed she looked really upset when she came back today, and she wasn’t with you and Kite.”

“Again, why do you care?” Chloe asked, getting even more defensive. Why was he asking her?

“Chloe, I-” Deeps looked exasperated. “Look, Spots, I get that she’s kind of rude to you. Sure. But she looked really upset today, you know?”

Chloe shrugged. “She’s made it pretty clear to me she wants nothing to do with me, so I’m staying out of her business.”

Deeps crossed his tentacles. “You’re cold, Chloe.”

Chloe was indignant. “I’m cold? I tried to reach out to her and she was the one who threw it back in my face, okay? I’ve done my part in this!”

“I just don’t get it though, Spots,” he shook his head. “I’ve spoken to the girl. She’s reasonable, you know?”

“Not to me,” Chloe said darkly.

Deeps frowned. “Do you know why?”

“Nope,” Chloe said, a little too quickly.

Deeps picked up on it. “You sure, Spots?”

Chloe shifted uncomfortably. She opened her mouth to insist, but stopped.

Maybe she should tell Deeps.

He’d been the one to pull her out of her slump, he seemed to be pretty good at talking to people. Maybe he could talk to Piper for her, and get her to stop being so stupid.

Chloe sighed. “Look, she- she did give me a reason, but it’s pretty ridiculous.”

Deeps perked up. “Oh?”

Chloe looked away. “I dunno, maybe- if you’re in her good books somehow, maybe you can talk to her for me, get her to see straight?”

“Need to know the reason first, Spots.”

Here goes. “She said- I tried to reach out to her, right? After we found out we were on the same team, I went and talked to her, same day, said we should just turn over a new leaf-”

“Chloe. Why is she so upset with you?”

Chloe took a deep breath. She was so nervous. Why was she so nervous? “She said- she told me she didn’t want to be friends with someone who’s prejudiced against dark types.”

Deeps didn’t say a word.

Seconds passed.

Why wasn’t he saying anything?

Chloe suddenly needed to defend herself again. “But obviously, I woke up here days ago. It’s literally not possible, you know?”

Deeps was frowning hard, looking at the ground, tentacles still crossed. “What prompted her to say you were prejudiced?”

Chloe gritted her teeth. “Does it matter? Like I said-”

“It matters,” Deeps interrupted. “Tell me, Spots.”

Chloe felt angry, now. “Are you actually taking her side? I-”

“Chloe.”

Chloe stopped, mouth still open. Deeps continued. “I’m not taking anyone’s side, alright? I just need to know. I want to resolve this.”

Chloe tried to keep her frustration under control. “Fine. She said I treated her like she was a violent killer, or something.”

Deeps looked at her. “Did you?”

“When I woke up,” Chloe explained through gritted teeth, “I had no clue what the heck was happening to me. She came up to me to flip me off my back, and I panicked, worried she was gonna hurt me. When she fought a feral, I asked if she’d killed it. That’s literally it.”

Deeps sighed. “I mean, that’ll do it.”

Chloe groaned. “Oh, come on, Deeps! I had no idea how the world even worked then! For all I knew she could have killed it!”

“But you still treated her that way, Spots,” Deeps insisted.

“So you are taking her side!” Chloe exploded. “You actually think I’m some kind of bigot? You think I’m a bad person too?”

Deeps looked surprised. “Whoa, when did I say that?”

“It’s implied!” Chloe shouted. “I guess you got lucky with the first bit of advice you gave me, huh?”

“Jeez, Chloe, cool down!” Deeps unfolded his tentacles, moving backwards. “I do NOT think you’re a bad pokémon, but we gotta get some things clear, here-”

“Maybe I should take a reverse leaf out of Piper’s book. I want nothing to do with someone who’s gonna treat me like a bigot-”

“CHLOE!” Deeps shouted, the first time she’d heard him raise his voice. She paused, but she was no less angry. He wasn’t going to treat her this way. She was a good person, she definitely was.

She took some deep breaths. Deeps was staring at her, angry as well, but more controlled.

She relented, for now.

“Alright. Okay,” she threw up her hands. “Get whatever things you wanna get clear, Deeps. Go for it.”

“Okay, but you need to let me finish before you speak. No interrupting,” he warned. Chloe hesitated for a second before nodding. “Alright. Cool.”

Deeps paused for a moment, collecting his thoughts. “Okay. Spots, first things first, I’m serious when I say I don’t think you’re some kind of bigot. I don’t think you’re that kind of pokémon, for real.”

Chloe nodded appreciatively, but stayed wary. It was all well and good him saying that, but he was still treating her like one.

Deeps talked slowly now, making sure he was making his point clear. “Can you understand that- that even though you didn’t know the implications at the time, that- that your words still had those implications?”

Chloe frowned, before conceding slightly. “Okay, sure. But as soon as she found out that I didn’t know the implications, she should have realised I meant nothing by the words, right?”

“I-” Deeps faltered, face contorting like he wanted to disagree, but couldn’t find an argument. “Okay. How about some comparisons. Kite treated you pretty bad today, right?”

“Yeah, he did,” Chloe agreed immediately. “Are you gonna say he didn’t know better or something?”

“Read like a book,” Deeps smiled weakly. “But let’s try it anyway – try and look at things from his perspective. He’s probably doing what he thinks is best, right? For him, it’s really important that he looks after you because you’re a human, and that could be really important for, uh, saving the world, possibly? He didn’t know that acknowledging your human-ness is upsetting for you, right?”

Chloe shook her head. This was stupid. “But it wasn’t like that. He wasn’t just acknowledging it, he was actively treating me like I wasn’t a pokémon. I mean like, not a creature with thoughts and feelings, you know? It’s not the same.”

Deeps sighed in frustration. “Come onnn, Chloe. You’re so stubborn, you know that?”

Chloe refused to say anything to that. If anything, Deeps was the stubborn one. It was obvious that Piper was in the wrong here, and Chloe still had no idea why Deeps was defending her. How could she have read him so wrong?

Deeps had a conflicted look on his face. “You’re really gonna make me go there, huh Spots?”

Chloe just shrugged, not sure where there was. “You got one more chance. I’m getting tired of this.”

Deeps groaned. “You got it Spots. Okay, here goes.” He looked off to one side as he asked his next question. “Say we’ve never met before. Would you think I was a boy or a girl?”

This caught Chloe off guard. “Uh…”

“I know the answer, Spots. Just say it.”

“I mean, from looks alone, I’d think you were a girl,” Chloe said uncomfortably.

“Yup,” Deeps agreed. “So you’re talking to someone else, all three of us in the same room. You say something like, ‘hey, that frillish seems cool, we should talk to her’, and I overhear.”

Chloe was feeling even more uncomfortable, now. “Sure,” she said.

“I overhear,” Deeps powered on, “and I come over and say something like, ‘hey, I know you didn’t know, but just for future reference, I’m a dude’, yeah?”

Chloe just nodded.

“What would you say next?”

Chloe didn’t say anything, not knowing at first that she was being asked a question. “Uh,” she squirmed. “I guess something like, ‘oh sorry, didn’t realise, I-‘”

Deeps clapped his tentacles together, and Chloe jumped. “So you DO get it, Spots! I knew you had it in you!”

Chloe blinked, thoroughly confused. “What?”

“You don’t get it?” Deeps pressed. “You just said something upsetting to me without knowing and with no way of knowing it was gonna be upsetting to me. And yet! You still apologised!”

“Oh. Huh.” Chloe… couldn’t argue with that.

But you have to! You can’t be a bad person! You’re not a bad pokémon Chloe, so…

She started speaking, frantically trying to come up with a good argument. “B- but… really I could have been more, uh, conscious of pronouns in the first place, you know? I- I shouldn’t assume, even when- if, uh-”

“Xerneas, Chloe, you’re more stubborn than a mudsdale!” Deeps interrupted her angrily. “You said something that hurt Piper, deeply. You need to apologise. End of story!”

Chloe couldn’t let it slide. “But I’m not a bad per- pokémon, Deeps! She knows I didn’t say it with any bad intent, so-”

“Arceus above, it’s not ABOUT whether we’re good or bad pokémon!” Deeps was exasperated. “It doesn’t matter if you intended to hurt her, what matters is you DID hurt her!”

“But-”

Deeps was in full swing. “Look, Spots, it- it- there’s often not much difference between a ‘mon who’s intentionally bigoted, and a ‘mon who’s just stupid and ignorant. You get me? Your words hurt her, Spots!”

Chloe suddenly felt very small. “You said you don’t think I was a bigot.”

“Yeah, well, maybe I was wrong,” Deeps snapped.

That was the last straw. “Oh you’re wrong, alright!” she growled. “Why do you care SO much about her, huh? That you’d choose her over me?”

“It’s not about sides, I’m-”

“Save it!” Chloe interrupted, opening her wings. “I don’t want to hear any more of your- your sanctimonious crap! Bringing her food, always asking after her, you’re so much better than the rest of us, huh, Deeps?”

Deeps looked hurt. “What’s gotten into you, Chloe?” he pleaded. “I thought you were better than this! All I want to do is look out for ‘mon who no one else will, y’know? I did that for you, and I’m just trying to do that for Piper, too!”

No one’s ever on my side…

Chloe froze, Piper’s voice echoing in her ear. She was suddenly worried, worried that she wasn’t in the right any more.

But she had to keep trying. “But Deeps, surely- surely you don’t have to do that for a bad pokémon, right? Bad pokémon don’t deserve pokémon looking out for them!”

“Yikes, Chloe,” Deeps winced, shaking his head.

“What!” Chloe said, trying to keep her anger more in check, now.

“Chloe, you…” Deeps was searching for the words. “I don’t think looking at the world, looking at pokémon and seeing ‘good’ and ‘bad’ pokémon, it’s- I don’t think it’s a useful way of seeing the world, you know?”

Chloe frowned. “Then what?” she asked. “Surely some pokémon are just bad, right?”

“I don’t mean to get all philosophical up in this infirmary,” Deeps said, “but I guess- I just look at actions, y’know? I gotta believe that we can change pokémon for the better, right? How can we believe in that if we think some pokémon are just ‘bad’?”

Chloe didn’t say anything, so Deeps kept pushing. “It’s like earlier when I said- I said there’s no difference between a ‘mon who’s intentionally bigoted, and a ‘mon who’s ignorant, right? Whatever their reason, both of them are gonna say something stupid and hurtful to someone, right? Doesn’t matter if they’re good or bad at that point.”

“Yeah, but…” Chloe started, but she trailed off weakly. Puzzle pieces were slowly, slowly being put into place.

Deeps could tell. “And maybe- maybe to someone like Piper, she’s sick of caring about the difference between them, yeah? Because either way, it hurts her bad, yeah?”

Chloe had ran out of things to say, and she knew it. She closed her wings again, slumping back down onto the table. “Maybe… I’m just- I’m not sure…” she mumbled, a part of her still refusing to give in. How could she give in? Giving in meant she was the bad guy! But all the fight had left her.

Deeps approached her slowly. “It’s cool, Spots. Just think about it, okay?”

Chloe nodded slowly, going back over their conversation, the things Deeps had said, the things she’d said. The things she’d said…

“Oh, man,” Chloe cringed. “I’m sorry I called you sanc- sanctimonious? How do I even know that word?”

Deeps laughed. “It’s cool, Spots. I’m sorry it came to all that, you know?”

Chloe couldn’t look at him. “I don’t think I like myself very much when I’m angry. Seriously, I’m sorry, Deeps…”

An awkward silence fell between the two of them. Chloe felt so, so drained.

“I don’t think I can handle food right now,” she admitted, feeling intensely awkward. How could she face her friends when Deeps would be there? And when she might be a bad pokémon?

“You sure?” Deeps sounded concerned. “Are you gonna be okay alone in your room for a bit?”

Chloe nodded, getting up and opening her wings. “I’ll be fine. Tell them all the pain got worse and I decided to go to bed or something.”

Before Deeps could say anything else, she flew out of the room, and straight up the stairs, as fast as she could. She didn’t want to talk to anyone, to see anyone, she didn’t want anyone to find out about the argument she’d just had with one of her new friends, she just wanted to be alone, alone, alone…

She looked up.

She was outside room one, her hand raised, as if ready to knock.

She didn’t know how long she hovered there, in complete agony.

Finally, she continued past the door to her own room, and flew straight into her pile of hay, burying herself away from the rest of the world.

---

---

“I’ll be fine. Tell them all the pain got worse and I decided to go to bed or something.”

Deeps opened his mouth to try and object further, but Spots chose that moment to flee, rushing out of the room before he had a chance. He sighed in frustration, and punched the side of the table the ledyba had been sitting on. His tentacle squished against it ineffectively.

“That girl…” he muttered to himself. “Sanctimonious? Really? I mean, I guess she has half a point, but come on…”

Deeps was frustrated with himself. He’d tried very hard to get through to the girl, and he wasn’t sure if he’d succeeded. Where had he gone wrong? Was this not a good time? But if he’d kept putting it off, it wouldn’t have been fair on Piper. Had he been unreasonable? He didn’t think he had, but he had ended up snapping once or twice, and he’d definitely misjudged Chloe’s stubborn anger.

Man, had that come out of nowhere.

He punched the bed again. “How hard is it to say sorry, girl? By Xerneas…”

His frustration vented, he headed straight for the cafeteria. The rest of his friend group was waiting for him, at the table that was fast becoming their regular spot.

Shucu spotted him instantly, waving exaggeratedly at him. Shucu was cool. She was bubbly and impulsive, and it sounded like she said every word that came into her head as fast as she could. She bore her heart to the world, and he knew it was bound to cause problems eventually, but at least it was genuine.

Celes smiled at him too, waving more politely. She was a weird one, and he could barely read the girl. She seemed very naïve. It was like she wanted to be friends with everyone, and yet at the same time gave off this strange aloofness, caring about things in the moment but not giving them a second thought once the moment passed. She was easily influenced, which he hoped was the reason she hadn’t noticed how Piper was being treated, and he hoped that that meant he’d be able to sway her back when the time came.

And there was Meteor, towering over the two girls, smiling politely at him. He liked Meteor. He was the epitome of a gentle giant, quiet and polite. But Deeps sensed that the guy was way more in tune with the pokémon around him than he was letting on, and unlike the other two, he was probably quite aware of what Deeps was trying to do.

He smiled and waved at his friends, drifting over to their table. He hated to keep doing this, but he was set in his goal at the moment. “Hey, pals!”

“Hi Deeps where’s Chloe?” Shucu vibrated. That girl was always straight to the point.

“Her slash is playing up,” he explained. “I chalk it up to her being human, you know? I get the sense they don’t do a lot of fighting, and she’s not used to getting hit like that.”

Celes looked sad. “Oh dear, oh dear!” she frowned. “Should, should we go and check on her?”

“Nah,” Deeps deflected. “We agreed I’d just bring her up a meal and make sure she’s good. She needs space. Go ahead and start without me, ‘kay?”

“Okay!” Celes said brightly, returning to her meal without further hesitation.

“Th- that is kind of you, Deeps,” Meteor smiled.

Deeps shrugged. “S’just bringing some food up, King.”

Shucu squealed. “KING! Is that you nickname for Meteor huhhh?”

Deeps laughed. “Maybe so, maybe so.”

“What’s my nickname Deeps you still haven’t told me I’m DYING to know!!”

“All in good time!” he smiled, not ready to admit that he was struggling to think of something fitting for her. “Gotta find a natural moment to slip it into the convo, right?”

“Grrr…” Shucu growled at him, before going back to her meal.

“Good- Good luck with her!” Meteor whispered. ‘Her’, not ‘Chloe’. Deeps was so sure he knew, and he winked back at Meteor for good measure.

Deeps headed over to the mawile at the bar. “What’s on the menu today, Az?”

Azalea gave him a disapproving look. “Pecha pie. You expect extra again?”

“Hey, it wasn’t for me!” Deeps countered. “S’for the girl who doesn’t like to eat here.”

“Yeah, sure, sure,” the mawile turned away busily, while her maw scowled at Deeps. She plated up a big slice of pie, and handed it to the frillish. “One slice. Enjoy.”

Deeps thanked the older pokémon, and drifted back through the bar slash cafeteria, past his friends, and up the stairs. He turned left, and stopped at the first door. Door one. He knocked.

There was a moment of silence, before Piper shouted from the other side. “What?”

“S’Deeps,” he called through the door, trying not to be too loud. “Got some food if you want in?”

For a while, there was no answer, until finally the door crept open. Deeps slid inside, shutting the door behind him.

Piper and Shucu’s room was no different to the others – sparse and functional. Two beds of hay and two trunks for storage. Piper had dragged her bed to one corner.

“What’s to eat?” Piper asked warily.

“Pecha pie again, I’m afraid,” Deeps shrugged. Piper groaned.

“Ugh, pecha’s so boring, though. Why are they skimping out on us?”

Deeps laughed. “I think it’s probably the mawile’s stock. She owns the joint. She probably doesn’t want to waste her best ingredients feeding us lowly recruits.”

“Heh, I’m not lowly,” Piper smirked. “Soon I’ll outrank her then make HER live off pecha, see how she likes it!”

“I don’t think she’s actually a Delver, just the original owner of the building,” Deeps smiled, setting the pie down on the ground. “So how was your day?”

“Terrible,” Piper said. “Don’t want to talk about it.”

Piper didn’t say anything else, hungrily digging into her dinner. Deeps was concerned, but couldn’t really say anything, so instead he drifted over to the window to watch the view, giving her some space. He saw the bandstand where he and his friends had hung out the previous evening. He thought back to that evening, Chloe and Shucu vandalising the bandstand, Chloe learning how to fly, Chloe following his advice and telling everyone how she wanted to be treated…

That ledyba had really stolen the show, huh. But then again, she was the human. Whether she wanted it or not, she was obviously going to turn out to be really important.

And even now, the spotlight was still on her, and she wasn’t even there.

Piper had finished eating. He took a deep breath.

“So I talked to Chloe just now.”

Piper inhaled sharply. “How’d it go?” she asked, trying to sound uninterested.

Deeps continued staring out the window. “Not… great. But not awful either? I think I planted some seeds, but it might take time. It’s weird.”

“How can it be weird?” Piper asked. “She either gets that she’s a huge jerk or she doesn’t. Which is it?”

Deeps sighed. “Piper, you know it’s more complicated than that-”

“It’s not!” she insisted. “She shouldn’t have treated me that way. I won’t let it go.”

“I’m not saying you should,” Deeps said quickly, “but still, it’s more complicated than that. That ledyba has… she has some issues I’m trying to work out, okay?”

Piper growled. “You’re taking her side?”

“Oh Arceus, not you too…” Deeps muttered.

Piper stepped up to him. “What’d you say?”

He turned to look at her. “That’s all Chloe could think about, too. ‘Who’s side are you on Deeps? You’re not siding with the bad pokémon are you?’”

“Well are you?”

Deeps just laughed, deciding not to get into the good or bad pokémon debate again. “I’m just trying to make some peace, here, Piper. But you’re definitely in the right, sort of objectively speaking, I guess.”

Piper looked pleased to hear that.

“But,” Deeps stepped up to her, now, “you hurt her feelings a lot too, you know. She did NOT want the whole group knowing she was a human, you know?”

“I know now,” Piper huffed, “but I didn’t at the time, alright? It’s not my fault-”

“You know that’s like, her whole argument, right?” Deeps interrupted her.

Piper stared at him in stony silence.

“She says that because she didn’t understand the concept of being prejudiced against dark types at the time, that you should forgive her for doing it accidentally.”

“What’s your point, Deeps?” Piper asked, exasperated.

Deeps shrugged. “I’m just saying!”

An uncomfortable silence fell between them. Deeps decided to change the subject, but only slightly.

“You think you’ll come eat in the bar soon?”

Piper hissed under her breath, and didn’t say anything. She looked at the ground, trying to keep her expression neutral. Deeps could tell she was fighting hard to keep it that way. “Not yet?”

“I can’t,” Piper whispered, deeply frustrated.

Deeps felt sad. “Still scared of him, huh?”

Piper looked up, suddenly angry. “I’m not scared! Just- it’s-”

“Poor word choice, yeah,” Deeps admitted quickly. “But I get it. I’ll see what I can do about that one after I break through to Chloe, if you want me to?”

Piper didn’t answer, instead averting her eyes back to the ground. Deeps sighed. He needed to get back to his friends, before he was gone for too long. “I gotta go, Sweeps,” he said.

Piper just nodded. “Sure. Uh… thanks for the food.”

“S’just bringing up food,” Deeps shrugged, as he left her alone in her room, closing the door behind him once more.