27 The Tail End of Mathematics

Trundling through the edge of the forest, slight joy fills my eyes as I view the not-so-distant Shalour City. Of course, most of my tasks are paused while the Gym Leader is prancing around in the trees behind me, but that's beside the point.

Civilization!

A warm, cooked meal that isn't freeze-dried.

A bed!

Not being alone with my thoughts!

Getting away from that bastard rodent that's been annoying me for the last hour because my pokémon may have inadvertently demolished their home.

Woohoo!

Speaking of… Out of the corner of my field of view, I spy something fast dart right towards me from the treetop. I flick the pokéball I've been carrying upwards and finally catch that little asshole.

Now, to visit the pokémon center and relax.

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"Listen, I'm sorry about this whole situation, too. I'm just as unhappy about it as you are," I glibly reply as my focus is on more important matters. "If you really want to leave, you can do so. I'll reset the pokéball, and we can go our separate ways."

"Tai!" The tiny swallow, Taillow, puffs up their chest in response. No, I didn't catch the evil Rattata plaguing me for an hour; I caught an entirely random bird by accident.

"So what?" I shout, losing my last shred of patience with this bird. "I catch you, my bad! I offer to let you go back to the forest, which I should say is within eyesight of this place! But you don't want to? Why?!" I'm getting looks now, but I honestly don't care. I've never been one to care about my appearance—go ask Grant.

This bird gives me an evil eye while standing over the scone I bought them. Ugh, after dropping off my pokémon at the center, including the egg to find out which egg group it might be in, I stopped at the café next door to deal with some pressing matters.

For example, my continued schooling in case this whole trainer shindig doesn't work out. My also rapidly dwindling financials that I've been budgeting out between five, now possibly, six pokémon and myself are steadily heading to an uncomfortable point. Now, this damn ungrateful bird that staring at me like I stole its lunch or something.

…Oh. Oops.

Sometimes a problem that may seem difficult from one position simply needs a change in perspective to see the easy solution. When one has a brain that overthinks like mine, finding that alternate view can be…challenging.

"That rat was your lunch…and I stole that from you." A nod. Well, don't I feel like crap, partially. Dang bird was just hangry. "I'll order something with meat in it for you when the waiter comes back around."

"Low," the bird responds in what I can only assume is gratitude. It…sits down and perches itself in the metal lattice of the table.

I exhale through my nose and roll my eyes. "Am I to assume that, as long as you are fed, you're fine with coming with me?"

"Low." Hnng, push away bird to save money? Potential asset?

"This is a two-way street, mind you. If I'm going to pay for your food, I expect you to pull your weight." Or else you might become food for Robin.

"Low." The guilt of stealing a bird's lunch is slowly being dwarfed by the more rational and less sympathetic parts of my brain that say I can't afford to use another pokémon; especially one that has almost no chance of being helpful in the upcoming battle against Korrina.

So, before I can make the completely wise decision to chuck that bird's respective pokéball deep into the forest, I turn back to my online classes, silently judging the course.

"Taillow?" The bird hops up, staring at the professor on my laptop's screen, pointing at a chalkboard filled with various equations that he has almost little idea of what they contain.

"Interested in my math class? Yeah, well, that makes one of us."

"Tail?" The bird twists their neck at me, giving me the impression that I think I have an ego that's too big for my own good. I did have that, but I dropped it somewhere in the forest after my impromptu battle with Korrina.

"Don't give me that. If you look at almost all fields of mathematics and science, it doesn't makes sense. It feels like our alphabet system is missing a lot of the symbols and notation needed for some of the well-known equations. Those same equations that 'professors' claimed to have seen in a dream with little proof, but that their colleagues accepted with ease because they worked in all applied cases. Even the names don't make sense. Like who is Euler?"

The bird goes silent at my mini rant. "Yeah, and it's a miracle that we've made it this far as a society. Problem is, I feel like that sometimes, too. Like this knowledge dripped in through the cracks of existence into my head. I feel like I could explain all of these with ease, but the words are trapped on my tongue. The reality we know sometimes feels like a mash of differing ones."

If I could make and publish definitive proofs for all of those hashed equations and theories, I could probably use that to get an honorary doctorate, at least.

"Enough about the generalized education system, which is a rant I am saving for one specific, idiotic individual that is the direct subject of my ire. Let's check on my pokémon and your teammates."

"Tai…" The bird faintly whispers as I pack up my stuff. I have no idea why I've only been monologuing for… hold on let me check the time—about 40 minutes. That's pretty good and Professor Sycamore could attest to that.

I begin walking on my heels to decrease the bounce in my step as the Taillow nests into my hair. I'll have to check their gender…and slog through the process of choosing a name. I should probably just buy a name book at this point.

Ugh…

I walk up to the one-of-many Nurse Joy employees. I wonder if they replicate asexually or something. I once asked Professor Sycamore about it and he said, 'Don't worry about it,' which is not what you say to make someone not worry about something.

"Hi, I'm here to check on my pokémon and egg?" I ask as I mindlessly scan my Trainer ID.

"Yes, I have them right here," she says in her classic cookie-cutter response as she pulls up my pokéballs on a tray from underneath the table. The door behind her slides open as the Wigglytuff waddles out with my egg. "We were able to find that at least one egg group is Amorphous. But there could be another."

Amorphous…so about sixty-ish pokémon.

"Thank you, Nurse," I respond, foolishly thinking that's where it ends.

"We also found that the pokémon inside is still growing, so the egg might expand to help with its volume." I peer at the egg on the table, already pretty big. It's about a foot and a half already, or 46 centimeters.

It's going to grow more than that? Could it be a Grimer or something?

I heft the egg off the counter, not wanting to cause any panic with eight metal Octillery arms sprouting in an enclosed area near confidential information and private pokémon. "Thank you…Nurse Joy. I'll keep that…in mind."