Ethan sat outside the doctor’s office and was simply having a moment of relaxation. He watched Zoey and Chii run around in the streets before him, playing and having fun. He was grateful towards Zoey for keeping Chii occupied while they had dealt with the injured Pokémon, and the one that had died.
It had been several hours since they had made it back. Almost all of which Ethan had spent occupied inside treating the wounded and teaching Mary and the others about Pokémon physiology. The only break Ethan had before they were over was when Zephyr brought him, Zoey, and Chii some dinner so that they would not go hungry.
“Enjoying yourself?” Ethan turned his head to see that Mary Care had exited the building and had decided to join him where he sat.
“I guess I am.” Ethan mused. He really was enjoying himself. It brought him a sense of inner peace to see his family be able to run around in public without fear of anything. Maybe he had shielded them a little too much when they were living in hiding after all.
“Thanks for your help in there. I don’t think it would have gone nearly as smoothly if you hadn't.” Mary thanked him as she sat next to him and looked over to where Zoey and Chii were playing too.
“... I should be saying the same to you,” Ethan smiled at her. “You picked up on things so quickly that you put the other doctors to shame.” His smile widened as he watched Mary blush and turn away. Maybe it was a little mean of him, but it was so easy to tease Mary and she really was exceptional in her skill.
“I… thank you,” Mary mumbled quietly while fidgeting with her hooves. “But we still have a problem though…” She spoke up.
Ethan looked away from Zoey and Chii who were currently wrestling with Zephyr, and over to Mary instead.
“We need to find a place for them to stay… The doctor said that it’s fine for them to stay here at least for tonight. The ones that need more attention could of course stay longer until they are well enough, but they still need a place to get well. And my clinic is not big enough…” Ethan knew what she meant. The doctor’s office was not equipped to host that many creatures on a long term basis.
“I know, I may have a solution for that problem… hopefully.” Ethan spoke the last part quietly to himself. He hoped that the mayor would come through for him. A house or building where not only he and his family could live but where he could continue to help Pokémon like he had used to back on Earth.
“Oh, that’s great then!” Mary cheered. “What is it if you don't mind me asking?”
“I asked the mayor for a building, and since we are helping with all Pokémon related problems that might occur he seemed to agree with me that giving us a place to live would be a decent deal,” Ethan told her. It was not a lie, as the mayor had seemed to agree with him, even if he did not really give him that much of a chance to disagree.
“Oh, that’s great then! Hmm…” Mary glanced up at the sky and seemed to think about something for a moment. “There is this warehouse at the edge of the town… it was used to store timber before but it has been years since it has been in use. Maybe that is the one he will grant you? I mean… it might need some work and renovation but…” Ethan stopped Mary before she trailed off.
“Anything would be fine. As long as it’s big enough then we can make pretty much anything work.” He was not a stranger to renovating: he and Vernus had build their former secret base by themselves after all. “And that also means that you don't need to host Zoey or Chii anymore either. I appreciate everything you have done for us.” Ethan thanked her. Mary Care had been nothing but kind and had done everything in her power to help them.
“It’s nothing, any good pony would have done the same if they were in my situation,” Mary said with her usual heartwarming smile.
Ethan did not know if he agreed with her on that, but he wouldn't argue with her on it. A pony as kind as her, in his mind, she was one in a million. Or something along those lines.
“What do you think about that Taillow though?” Ethan asked her. It’s injuries had been more complicated than Ethan had originally thought.
“It’s difficult to say…” Mary let out a sad sigh. “If its wings are anything close to most birds here, then I'm not sure if it will be able to fly again.” It had been exactly that Ethan had been worried about. “I'm afraid we will have to wait for it to wake up before we know anything else.”
“I thought as much…” he knew that she was most likely right, it had been the same thing he had realised when they discovered how serious its wounds actually were. He had just hoped that he was wrong, but it seemed that Mary came to the same conclusion.
A silence grew between them as neither Ethan nor Mary was sure about what to say. The part about the Taillow had pretty much killed the mood. Instead, the two of them just enjoyed the silence as they continued to watch Zoey, Chii, and Zephyr play in the area in front of them.
Ethan had to force back a laugh when Zoey made her way over to him and Mary. Chii was riding on top of her head, and she was carrying a tied up Zephyr in her arms. He was not sure where they had gotten the rope from, but the look on Zephyr’s face made him forget about that.
“He lost!” Chii exclaimed happily as she looked down at the bound Zephyr in Zoey`s grasp.
“...” Zephyr did not really say anything, he only looked away. Ethan could not help but wonder what kind of games they had played that would end up with Zephyr in the state that he was currently in.
“Well, maybe it’s time you let Zephyr go?” Ethan suggested. He had gotten a pleading look from said pegasus. “He may have some things that he needs to do after all.”
“Aww… fine.” Chii gave in, she wanted to play more with the pegasus, but she always listened to Ethan.
Zoey unsheathed one of her claws, making Zephyr flinch slightly, and cut all the ropes binding him with one quick swipe.
“T-thanks,” Zephyr said, he was still slightly nervous from how quickly Zoey had used her claw in so close proximity to him. But not a single hair on his body had been harmed so it was all good. “Well, it’s been fun, girls, but I need to fly. I'll play with you more later if you want, okay?” Zephyr took to the air and hovered in place above them all.
“Sure, it will be great!” Chii cheered with a big smile on her face. She used her tail to wave Zephyr off as he took off into the sky, soon disappearing behind some of the nearby clouds.
“I’m curious…” Mary Care started. “What were you playing that ended up with him being tied up like that?” She inquired, and Ethan had to agree. It was a fair question to have.
“We were originally playing cops and robbers,” Zoey explained. “However, when we caught Zephyr, Chii decided that since we did not have a jail to put him in, tying him up would be the next best thing.” Ethan translated for Mary as all eyes went to Chii, who were just sitting on top of Zoey, smiling innocently, only a yawn escaping past her lips.
She jumped down from her perch and decided to curl up and nestle herself close to Ethan in his lap.
“Are you a little tired?” Ethan asked as he used one paw to stroke Chii`s fur. Chii did not reply, but he was sure that he could see a small nod coming from her.
“Well, it has been a pretty hectic day,” Zoey admitted. “Much more than she is used to, after all.” Zoey decided to sit down next to Ethan and Mary.
“That it has…” Ethan smiled and he heard Mary let out a small “d’aww” as they could both hear that Chii had fallen asleep. Only her quiet breathing could be heard from the little cat Pokémon.
“She is so cute,” Mary commented as she looked at Chii`s sleeping form. She wanted to reach out to pet her, but held back because she did not want to disturb her sleep.
“That she is,” Ethan agreed.
“... I had something I wanted to discuss with you,” Mary said to Ethan. “But first,” She turned to Zoey and channeled her magic, casting the translation spell on her. “There, now there shouldn't be any need for you to hold back if you want to say anything,” Mary smiled.
“T-that felt weird…” Zoey commented as she shook her head. “But thanks, it will be nice to not have to rely on others translating for me all the time.”
“So what did you want to talk to me about?”
“... It’s about Officer Jenny. I just wanted to ask if everything worked out.” Mary asked, she had noticed that Ethan had looked a little more at ease when he got back from the forest.
“Yeah, did she finally agree to see reason?” Zoey chipped in. “I ran into her when she came out of your clinic earlier and we had a little girl-on-girl talk.” Ethan raised an eyebrow and looked at Zoey as she said this.
“And what did you talk about?” Ethan inquired.
“Umm… you know, stuff…” Zoey said as she looked away refusing to meet Ethan's eyes.
“Zoey…” Ethan let out a sigh. Zoey had always been pretty protective of him. “Did you threaten her?”
Zoey tried to keep calm, but it was pretty obvious by the pained look on her face that Ethan had guessed right.
“You did…Zoey…” Ethan loved Zoey like he did all of his family, but she still were not rid of all of her aggressive tendencies. She was a kind Pokémon, she was just a little too used to solving most of her problems with violence.
“B-but she wanted to take you away,” Zoey turned back around and looked Ethan directly in the eyes. “I.. I had to do something.” Ethan just smiled at her and put a hand on her shoulder.
“I know that you meant well, but Jenny was just doing her job.” Ethan told her. “When she gets back, I want you to apologize to her, alright?” Zoey squirmed slightly where she stood before she gave in.
“Fine… I'm sorry, I just couldn't stand by and do nothing when she wanted to take you away.”
“Come here, you,” Ethan said as he spread his arms open and invited Zoey into a hug, which she gladly accepted. “Besides, me and Jenny came to an agreement. Everything is fine.” Ethan felt Zoey hug him even tighter after he had mentioned that part.
“That’s great!” Mary smiled as she watched Zoey and Ethan. She thought that it would have been a shame if such a family would have gotten separated.
As Zoey and Ethan hugged, they began to feel something in between them. It was like something was crawling, forcing its way up. And when a small pink head revealed itself between them, it was no mystery who it was.
“Are you mad that we did not include you in the hug?” An amused Ethan asked Chii as she nuzzled the both of them.
“Mmm-yes,” She spoke softly in a yaw, still a little sleepy.
“Are we forgiven?” Zoey asked from the other side.
“...Yes” Chii said happily as she enjoyed the hug from the both of them.
They stayed like that for a while, simply enjoying the moment. Mary watched them with a smile, seeing how close they were she could not help but feel a slight touch of jealousy. Maybe she wanted a family like that too.
Zoey noticed how Mary was looking at them and got an idea.
“Do you want to join?” Zoey asked Mary who blinked before she shook her head.
“Oh no, I dont want to intrude-” She started but was cut off by Zoey.
“Oh, it’s more than alright!” Zoey grinned as she reached out and brought Mary too into the big hug. She had initially denied the invite, but she had to agree that it felt really nice.
But eventually all good things has to come to an end, and so did this. Chii jumped back to her perch on top of Zoey`s head as Ethan and Mary sat back down.
“I also had something I wanted to ask of you,” Ethan told Mary as he turned to her. “I told you about what I did before right? With rescuing Pokémon and taking care of them.” Mary nodded as she remembered what he was talking about.
“Yeah, what about it?”
“Well… Officer Jenny suggested that we start that up again. And I wanted to ask you if we could count on you for help. If we get some injured Pokémon that requires more than I can do alone. Your medical skills are top notch and we would really appreciate it.” While Ethan had some medical training, his speciality was something else. That and Mary had already shown that she was a quick learner with how fast she had picked up on Pokémon physiology.
“I….if there is something I can do, then of course I will help. Anything for my new friends,” Mary gave him a big smile. “That and it’s not like I could just sit by and do nothing if some Pokémon was hurt and needed help.” She was still a little wary of Ethan because of his past, but she knew that he was a good Pokémon at heart.
“Yay, Ethan is going to be helping Pokémon!” Chii cheered.
“That’s right, I am. But before we get to that, there is something that I need to take care of first.” Ethan stood up as he spoke.
“The mayor, right?” Zoey asked.
“Indeed, I’ll head over there right now and see if we can't sort things out. I’ll try not to take too long, so I’ll be back as quickly as I can.” Ethan reached out and ruffled the fur on Chii`s head, making her purr slightly at his touch.
“See you soon!” Mary, Zoey and Chii waved Ethan off as he walked down into the town and towards the mayor’s office.
“... You guys are lucky to be so close,” Mary commented as she looked over to Chii and Zoey who were still looking after Ethan.
“Yeah…” Zoey sighed wistfully as she looked at Ethan disappear behind some of the buildings in the distance. They were a closely knitted family, but she could not help but wish that they were closer.
“Yeah, Ethan and Zoey are great,” Chii smiled happily. She had jumped down while Zoey was stuck in her own thoughts, and was now standing next to Mary. “I miss Uncle Vernus, though…”
“Who is Vernus, if you don't mind me asking?” Mary looked between Chii and Zoey. She had heard the name come up when Ethan told her and Officer Jenny about his past. But she really did not know anything about him other than his name.
“Vernus is my uncle!” Chii exclaimed.
“Well… only in name,” Zoey clarified what she meant. “He is in our family, but none of us are related by blood.”
“He is still my uncle though…” Chii muttered as she looked down, however she cheered up slightly when Mary used her hoof to scratch the fur on her head.
“That he is, he is one of Ethan`s oldest friends.” Zoey explained. “He is a Leafeon… though, that does not really mean much to you does it?” Mary giggled slightly and shook her head.
“No, I’m afraid not. But from how you talk about him, and what I heard from Ethan, he sounds like a really nice guy.”
The three of them were interrupted by the door behind Mary opening up to reveal another unicorn standing behind it.
“Mary, I’m afraid I need a little more help. Do you mind coming back inside?” It was the doctor who had helped Mary and Ethan treat the injured Pokémon and ponies that had been hurt in the forest incident.
“I’ll be right there,” she turned back around to face Chii and Zoey. “I'm afraid that I need to go. Will you be alright on your own?”
“Yeah, we will be fine,” Zoey told her as Chii jumped back up into her arms. “You just go do what you need to do.”
“Bye, Mary!” Chii waved her goodbye using her tail.
Mary waved back at the two of them before she turned and entered the building.
“... How long do you think it will be until Uncle Vernus finds us?” Chii asked as she looked up to Zoey.
“I'm afraid that I don't know, Chii…” Zoey sighed out sadly. She did not want to make Chii anymore sad, but she did not want to give her false hope either.
“Oh…” Chii went silent for a little while as Zoey started walking away from the doctors office and towards the rest of the town. “Do you think he will be okay though?” Zoey gave a small laugh before she spoke.
“It’s Vernus we are talking about, of course he will be fine.” She reassured Chii.
“Are you sure?” Chii asked again.
“Yes, I am sure. Vernus has been with Ethan since the beginning, and he has always protected him. He is more than qualified to take care of himself. He was also there when Ethan saved me, did I ever tell you about that?” Zoey asked Chii who shook her head in return.
“No… how was he?”
“Heh, he was great...” Zoey remembered back to that very night. “Ethan had saved me and carried me outside to where Vernus was waiting with the rest of the Pokémon they had saved. Vernus had completely taken control of the situation and had convinced all of those Pokémon that they were going to a good and safe place, and that they did not need to be afraid of Ethan because he was a human.” Zoey paused for a moment as she remembered things more clearly.
“Why would they be afraid of humans?” Chii asked curiously. Zoey had never told Chii the full story after all.
“...They were being treated badly by some bad humans for a long time, so they were just scared.” Zoey told Chii and used one paw to stroke her fur. “But Vernus had managed to calm them all down… and when Ethan arrived with me, Vernus healed the poison within me.” She remember how relieved she had felt. She had been badly poisoned for several weeks straight at that point. The human that were making her fight, not wanting to cure her because she fought better because of the poison. He only used an antidote at the last possible moment, letting her rest a little before she was poisoned once again.
“...” Chii looked up to Zoey in awe. She had known that Ethan and Vernus used to help Pokémon, but it was something else for her to hear it from Zoey. “So did Vernus save your life then?”
“I guess he kind of did.” She had been so hurt at the time, she remembered Ethan saying that she would not have survived the trip back home if it had not been for Vernus. The two of them had also switched on carrying her all the way back. Most of the trip was a blur, because of the condition she was in at the time. But she remembered how she woke up in their base. Vernus was sleeping at her side and Ethan still had not gotten any sleep by the time she awoke.
“So, how long have you known Ethan and Uncle Vernus?” Chii asked, she had only been with Ethan for a few months, but she knew that Zoey had been there much longer.
“How long…? I think it has been close to three years now,” It had been the best three years of her life if she was honest with herself. She remembered how sad she had been after she had mostly healed and thought that Ethan was going to make her leave. He always found new families or trainers for the Pokémon that he had helped. But she never wanted to leave.
Zoey had been crying again. She had holed herself up inside the secret base. Curled up in the corner with a blanket around herself to hide all of her scars. Most of her wounds had healed and she knew what was going to happen next. Ethan was going to find her a nice new family and send her away.
But she never wanted to leave. She had never been happier than she had been in the months that she had been living there. She did not want that to go away. She did not want to leave the persons that had saved her life.
“Why…” She was crying so heavily that she had not noticed that Vernus had made his way up to her and nudged her side.
“Zoey… what's wrong?” The Leafeon asked with a sad look on his face. It hurt him to see Zoey in the state that she was in.
“I… oh, I’m sorry, I did not want any of you to see me like this,” Zoey sniffed and tried to wipe her tears only for new one to take their place. “I-it’s nothing.” It was an obvious lie.
“Something is obviously wrong…” Vernus said as he laid down next to her. “Now tell me what it is… do the scars hurt again?” The first few nights during when she got her treatment had been absolutely excruciating. Her whole world had been one of pain, and she had spent more than one night screaming in pain. But Ethan or Vernus had always been there for her. Whenever she had not managed to get any sleep because of her scars, they had always stayed up with her to do absolutely anything they could for her. Even if that was just to sit with her to keep her company all night long.
“N-no, they are fine,” she sniffed. “They haven't acted up at all in a while…” She began crying heavier as she remembered back to the day before. Ethan had left with the Mightyena that came from very same place that she had been saved from. It had seemed so happy to finally get a new trainer that would take good care of it. And when Ethan returned, he had returned alone.
“Please tell me what's wrong…” Vernus insisted as he nuzzled Zoey.
“I… I don't want to leave…” her voice was low, but it was just loud enough for Vernus to hear what she had actually said.
“Is that what this is about?” He asked as he sat back up and looked into Zoey's eyes.
“Y-yes…” Zoey stifled a hiccup as she wiped her tears again.
“Oh Zoey…I'll be right back.” Vernus gave her a small smile before he stood up and walked away from her. When he returned he had a small package in his mouth. It looked like it had been crudely wrapped in gift paper.
“W-what is it?” Zoey asked as Vernus handed the gift to her. She had managed to calm down slightly but she was still very upset.
“Why don't you open it and find out?” Vernus sat down in front of her and watched as Zoey carefully began to unwrap the present he had brought her. He watched intently as she used her claws with impressive precision.
As the wrapping paper fell to the ground, a smile began growing on Zoey`s face. She held up the present infront of her, unsure about what to say.
“I…” She stared at the purple sweater she was holding in her arms. The arms were long and wide, and the length matched hers. It looked perfectly tailored for her.
“Ethan made it,” Vernus clipped in as she stared in awe at her present. “He thought you should have something like this since you don't like anyone seeing your scars…” Zoey was more than grateful. To her the sweater seemed perfect. “And I had something else to tell you as well…” Vernus said before Zoey could thank him for the present.
“W-what is it?” She asked, she had stopped crying but her eyes were still a little misty from before.
“Ethan and I noticed how much you liked it around here… that and I just found you crying here about how you did not want to leave, so… Ethan asked me to ask if you wanted to stay for good. To make this little place your home,” Vernus was going to continue but he was cut off as Zoey pulled him into a bone crushing hug.
“Thank you, thank you, thank you…” she kept repeating it, and her tears had begun flowing again. Only this time she was crying from happiness. She had not been happier in her entire life.
Vernus only smiled and hugged her back.
“You miss him too, don't you?” Chii asked. They had reached the mayor’s office and had decided to wait outside for when Ethan was done.
“I do, yeah…” Zoey sighed. Vernus was one of her best friends after all.
“You only figure out how much you miss someone when they are gone,” Zoey blinked and looked down at Chii. She never used to speak like that, even if she was right.
“Yeah…” Zoey stared out into the air, and failed to notice the small grin that crept up onto Chii`s face.
“That’s why you should use this opportunity to tell Ethan that you love him!” Chii had seen an opportunity and she did not hesitate to go for it.
“Yeah… wait no!” Zoey looked down to Chii who had the biggest grin on her little face. “You tricked me!”
“You still said yes!” She cheered.
“I can't just blurt out a confession to him just like that, Chii! Don’t get me wrong, I want to tell Ethan, but-” Zoey was cut off by a familiar voice coming from behind her.
“Tell me what?” Ethan asked. Zoey and Chii had been so caught up in the moment that they had not heard the door behind them open.
“N-n-nothing,” Zoey immediately sputtered out and brought a paw over Chii`s mouth to stop her from blurting it out.
“Zoey… you know that you can talk to me about anything, we are family.” Ethan smiled and walked towards Zoey who was backpedaling and desperately thinking of a way out of the current situation.
“L-look, there is someone surfing down the waterfall with a Gyarados chasing after them!” Zoey pointed over Ethan's shoulder towards the waterfall.
“Really…?” Ethan scoffed. “If you don’t want to talk to me about it, then that’s fine. But at least give me a proper excuse. It’s like you were not even trying with that one.” Chii finally struggled free from Zoey`s grasp.
“No, she is right, look!” She said as she pointed to the same place that Zoey had been.
And she was indeed right. It was too far away to see who it was, but there was definitely someone surfing down the waterfall… or falling with a piece of wood. It was too far away for Ethan to see properly. But the Gyarados was easily visible, being as big a Pokémon as it is.
Ethan really had no words for what he was seeing. Only a single word managed to escape past his lips as he stared at the sight before him.
“...Huh.”