Back with the others, Seth finally reached the apartment building, but he'd already spotted Ignis diving onto the roof. The two brothers had decided on racing, but Ignis had the clear advantage with his wings. “That has got to be some form of cheating,” he muttered as he walked inside. Rika and Selena were still missing, but he wasn’t too worried, they could take care of themselves.
As he walked in, he was greeted by a Leavanny with very large arm blades. “Ah, and you must be Miss Lalah,” he smiled. “My name is Seth Crescent, a pleasure to meet you.”
“The correct pronunciation is ‘Lala’,” she emphasized. “And likewise. I assume you’re related to the others that have paid a visit today?”
“My apologies Miss, and yes, if you’re referring to the Sylveon and Earth Pony that were here before.” His mind wandered to his little Fairy. “I hope she was able to find her.”
“Mm. Well, you are the first one back by foot, mister Seth,” Lala commented as she returned to her book. “Call me if you need me for anything.”
“I will, thank you Miss Lala,” Seth replied and headed up the stairs. He got to the third floor and his nose twitched. “Well, no prizes for guessing which room is Vincent’s...” He sniffed again, and could smell Christine, as well as three unknowns. “Hmm, I think one is Bit, and one smells a little like Abby...” he smiled a bit, this whole scent thing was pretty awesome. “Speaking of Christine...”
He raised a paw and knocked on the door. “I wonder how she’s doing?”
Recovering from our impromptu mental surgery, Vincent’s voice came from beyond the door. She’ll be a better ‘mon for it.
“A better... Vincent! What did you do!?” Seth’s mental tone sounded a little concerned.
Toned down her anger issues. Helped her see the truth about Sam, rather than her idealized version. All in all, made sure she would be healthier in the days to come.
“...Vincent, let me inside please.” This was something that Seth would rather discuss face-to-face, rather than through a wall.
Iiiiii’d really rather not, the Kadabra thought back. Seriously, you had to deal with her. Do you think it’d be good for, oh, the world in general if we didn’t intervene?
Seth frowned. “Vincent. Door. Now.” he paused for a moment. “Please.”
Silence reigned for several moments more, before the door clicked. Don’t say I didn’t warn you, Vincent softly said as it swung open. Seth walked inside, wondering just what lay beyond that threshold. The smell hit him the moment he walked in.
“Ah,” *cough” “Well... that’s a thing...” Seth grunted. He spied Bit near the door, and near the unconscious Gabite on the couch was a Gallade and a Mismagius. “That must be Luke and Mage,” Seth noted. Vincent was there too, but he already guessed that much.
“Okay Mr. Nurem,” Seth said. “Can you explain why you Psychically lobotomized Chrissy?”
“I did no such thing,” Vincent said, softly stroking her neck. “She refused to see Sam as anything but her shining swordsman and defender. One who would always be there for her. I merely helped her see the truth. That he was just another captive.”
“And this was your go-to plan? Rather than talking to her first?” Seth sighed as he ran a paw through his fur. “I promised her that nothing would happen to her, then I have to attack her with Selena and now you go and do this?” He closed his eyes as he tried to filter out the scent coming from the other room. “And how do you suppose she’ll react to your, ‘help’?”
She was not a happy ‘mon, mister Crescent, Luke stated from his position on the couch. Nobody with that much anger could be. All that rage and frustration...a small amount is understandable, given their shared histories...but unless something was done, she would be incapable of living in society for very much longer after learning about Sam’s Evolution.
Was she really that bad? He thought he’d come to know her over the last week. But Vincent had known her for much longer...
“Look, I’m still a little uneasy about what you’ve done and until she wakes up, I’m withholding a final verdict. But you had best give me your word now that she’ll be fine from here on out.”
“Of course she will,” Vincent said, as though offended. “I defend those that seek shelter here. But,” here he turned back to Christine and sighed. “She has to not be a danger to others or herself. She has to be able to control herself. Otherwise, I couldn’t in good conscious house her here.”
“She was fine when she stayed with us though, well... she hated Titania, but Titania has that effect on some people.” Seth shook his head and then a bolt of lightning rippled across his body, the smell of slightly singed fur overpowering the other scent. “Ah, better. Anyway, she was actually quite pleasant most of the time. Except on the train... she did not like the train.”
“We still don’t,” Vincent said. “Tight, confined cubes that you cannot leave. Just a wee bit too familiar for us to be at ease.”
Seth nodded and looked at the Gallade, “I take it that your name is Luke?”
That is...correct, Mister Crescent, Luke said, opening his eyes and fidgeting a bit. And while I...did not initially approve of my...son’s plan, once we looked a bit deeper...I saw it was necessary, but that the lightest of touches….would be required.
Seth nodded, “Well, I don’t know how you know my last name, but I will trust you, if only because Abby gave you such high regards. Oh, she and Kasai say ‘Hi’ by the way.”
Thank you for the message, Luke thought.
“And it’s really rather easy when the kiddo shares his stories about who he spends his time with with us,” the Mismagius snickered.
“Plus, two of us are Psychic,” Vincent pointed out.
“Please don’t read my mind without asking...” Seth looked down at the silver collar around his neck. “I guess it doesn’t block Psychic power... I’ll need to get that fixed.”
He snorted as the scent overpowered him once more. “I’m sorry, but I have to go. There’s only so much I can take of this, and I highly doubt you want me here tasting your girlfriend all night.”
Vincent blinked a few times as he processed that statement. “I...have nothing to say to that. You go ahead,” he stated blandly.
“I really should have worded that better,” Seth groaned. “Could you tell me when Christine wakes up please. I’d like to see her.”
It will be only...a short while now, Luke said. Indeed, Christine started to twitch as she came back to consciousness.
“But, we should do this elsewhere,” Vincent stated dryly. “Preferences?”
“Anywhere is fine,” Seth said. “I’ve only been to the Guard Station and the place Sam works.”
“Vacant room on another floor, coming up,” Vincent stated, both his hands aglow. One rested on the dragon while the other pointed at the Luxray.
Seth braced himself for a Teleport, and after a second, he blinked the spots out of his eyes and shook his head. “I will never get used to that,” he muttered.
“I said the same thing,” Vincent commented as the dragon began to rouse more the more she recovered.
Seth walked over to the dragon and placed a paw on her shoulder. “Hey there sleepy-head,” he said gently.
“Five more minutes,” she grumbled. “Don’t wanna put up with flower-head.”
Seth chuckled and smiled. “She hasn’t changed one bit.” he leant in close with a small smirk on his face. “Rika’s gonna hug you if you don’t get up~”
“I’M UP!” Christine shouted, bolting upright. Eventually she realized she wasn’t where she last remembered being before adopting a look of confusion.
“...Okay, what happened? Last thing I remember is falling asleep on the train.”
Seth wondered just how much he should say, but, truth was always something he believed in. “We’re in Las Pegasus, to see Sam remember? You got upset though, and Selena had to stop you...” He sighed, “Some ponies got hurt though. Nothing serious, so don’t worry okay?”
Christine took the news in blankly before turning to the Kadabra next to her. “Aaaand you are?”
“Heya Christine,” Vincent said. “How are you?”
After placing the voice, the Gabite picked the Kadabra up and gave him a gentle hug. “Okay, hearing about it, one thing. Actually hearing you here? Much better.” She then put the psychic back down and glared at him. “That’s your only freebie, though.”
“Rika’s gonna be jealous,” Seth chuckled. He swallowed the lump in his throat and prepared for the worse. “So... how do you feel?”
Christine tilted her head at the Luxray. “I don’t get it. I feel fine, but you’re asking that question, which means I probably shouldn’t...so what am I missing?”
“Nothing,” Seth said a little too quickly. “Just wondering if you were still anxious to meet Sam again.”
“Guy practically raised us,” Christine said. “Granted, it wasn’t exactly the best of upbringings, but between him and Bit, we got enough to live. Yeah, where is this brat’s older brother?”
“Still here,” Vincent said, only slightly miffed.
“Not now, the grownups are talking,” Seth said with a small smirk. “He’s here in the city, but he’s working right now. He should be home later.”
“Cool,” Christine said. “So...maybe I should learn where I am more specifically and what I’ve missed? Just an idea.”
“Well, as I said, you’re in Las Pegasus and Selena did a good job of wiping the floor with you.” Seth looked at Vincent, “I believe he can tell you what happened after.”
“I thought it would be best to bring you here to recover,” Vincent said, carefully stating the truth without going too far into it. “So I did, and Mage, Luke, and I monitored your recovery. At some points it was touch and go, but we did manage to return you to health. And while we were doing that, we did help adjust your anger issues just a touch.”
“...You did what.” she stated rather than asked.
“Your anger getting out of control is sort of what caused you to go off once you arrived,” Vincent dryly commented. “You can still get mad, but I’d rather you not get so mad you use Earthquake in a populated area ever again.”
Arceus bless, but the dragon actually looked sheepish at the accusation in the boy’s tone. “Okay, yeah, if I did that, then yes, I agree that my anger was out of control.” She scratched the back of her head as she observed something in her head. “Huh...Selena musta pulled out all the stops...I don’t remember much of the fight at all.”
“Selena. Mega-evolved. Iron Tail to the noggin.” Seth recapped. “That’s probably why.”
“Yup,” Vincent said, holding up one glowing hand. “There wasn’t much left of the day for us to play around with in your head, so it is so not my fault. You should probably be thankful that you don’t remember the fight.”
“Yeah,” the Gabite muttered. “I’d rather forget losing to her altogether.”
“Selena isn’t the type to rub it in,” Seth replied. “I may have gone a bit overboard by Mega-evolving her, sorry about that.” Then he remembered a conversation he had with Ignis a few days ago. “Also, Ignis wants to train you.”
“I think she should get settled into here, that is, if she wants to live here, before any major training takes place,” Vincent commented.
“Yeah, and no offense Seth, but if Vincent’s living here with other survivors...well, I already know the kid’ll do what he can for us. If he’s offering me a place to stay, I’m staying.” The Gabite nodded a few times to cement her statement.
Seth fell silent. Honestly, he knew this was coming... but still...
“Yeah, I’ll miss you though. I kinda got used to yours and Titania’s fighting.” He laughed weakly.
“I’ll miss you too, you puffball,” Christine commented with an eyeroll. “In fact, you know what? You get a freebie too. C’mere.” She spread her arms slightly in preparation.
Seth hugged the crazy dragon, he would indeed miss his new friend, but she would be better off here with her family. “Well, you can always visit I suppose. I’ll make sure there’s some pie waiting for you~”
“Only if rose-head is sick,” Christine fired back. “That way I won’t have to do much to avoid her.”
“I’ll send you a message,” Seth chuckled. Christine tapped him on the back with one claw, and he dropped down to end the hug.
“Just don’t tell Rika. I swear, sometimes I see her ribbons twitch towards me, and it’s all I can do to not Flamethrower her.” Christine shuddered a bit. There was no way Seth was going to tell her how often he had stopped the Fairy from getting in a sneaky hug.
“Speaking of, I hope she comes back soon... Selena looked so upset.”
Vincent perked up and looked down to the entryway. “Well, while I can’t feel the mind she’s with, she did just enter the building, which are clues enough, I think. Want to go meet them, Seth?”
Seth nodded and opened the door, hoping for a piece of good news today.
He was so not getting his wish.
The three Pokemon headed for the ground floor, and soon discovered Selena and Rika.
Both of which looked like they’d been dragged through hell itself. Countless injuries covered their bodies and the two looked like they could barely stand.
“...What?” Seth just asked. Vincent’s reaction was less verbal, as he quickly controlled his breathing as best he could, but there was still a slight surge in blue light around him.
“Who...did this to you?” he less asked and more intoned.
Selena and Rika shared a look as they leaned against one another. “Huh? Ooh... we did.”
Christine snickered at the thought. “Finally try to hug her one too many times, Miss ribbon?”
“Not quite,” Rika groaned. “Sethy... Iron Tail and Shadow Flash really, really hurt.”
“Un. Goddamn. Believable.” Seth sighed, his mind briefly wondering what Shadow Flash was. “I sent you to find her, not beat the crap out of each other! What the hell happened?”
“Selly had issues... I helped air them out a bit,” Rika replied. Selena was already on the floor and Rika soon joined her. “Sorry Sethy... nap time... nowww...”
Vincent just snickered. “Is it me, or is this scene, even with them being all banged up, quite adorable?”
Selena muttered in her sleep, something about adorable and death. Seth just nodded and smiled. “Well, at least its better than Selena crying like that. I really wish I knew what Jeanne had said to her.”
“While I could peek, it’d be rude,” Vincent said with a quick flash of blue. “And Lucy’s still...yeah, otherwise we’d have this fixed up. We do have a few Berries they can have...once they wake up, of course.”
“That would be nice,” Seth said as he draped Rika and Selena on his back. “I should fetch Fritter and Ignis too. I think they’re on the roof, plus we have a small selection of Berries ourselves.”
Vincent raised an eyebrow, as if to say, ‘Are you serious?’ and waited for the Luxray to catch on.
“Oh, right. Teleporter and telepath...” Seth groaned. Today was not his day, and he still had that training tomorrow. This trip was not boding well for his physical and mental health. “If you wouldn’t mind Vincent?”
“Not an issue at all. You can stay in 203, opposite the Pony landlord, for as long as you need the room, even if it’s just for the hour,” Vincent replied before sending a quick pulse of thought to the roof.
“Hey, Ignis, you up there?”
There was a brief pause before a voice lazily replied. “Hmmm? huh, oh... yeah?”
“Seth’s looking for you and Fritter, she up there as well?”
“Ah’m here,” Apple Fritter responded. “Just. Gotta fix... this darn water chute.... oh snap.”
“Aaaand she just broke said water chute,” Ignis chuckled. Vincent let out a sigh before smirking and looking over to Seth.
“Apparently Ignis is watching your marefriend get all wet up on the roof,” Vincent commented blandly.
There was a shuffling sound as a low growl emanated from Selena’s throat. She had one eye open and it was enough to make even a Cofagrigus wet themselves. “That had better.. be a joke Vincent...”
“The fact that she seems to have accidentally broken some part of our water tower isn’t,” Vincent grumbled. “Either Bit’s going to have to fix it or we’re going to have to pay someone to.”
“You do realise I’m pretty much a blowtorch with wings right?” Ignis replied. “And it was stuck, Fritter’s just a bit too strong for her own good sometimes. I’ll fix it in a jiffy.”
“Ah,” Vincent blinked before shrugging. “Well, you or the mobile arc welder, either one works for me. And thanks. I’m putting Seth, Rika, and Selena in 203, that is, if he decides to stay for longer than ten minutes. More than welcome to come down when you’re done.” Vincent said this one ‘aloud’ so as to get feedback from both parties.
“Will do, Fritter’s gotta dry out though, she got a bit excited~”
“IGNIS!!”
“Heh heh heh.”
“Do I even want to know?” Seth asked.
“Maybe,” Vincent shrugged. “And who just bragged about being a blowtorch with wings? I’m pretty sure you could find a light enough setting or a move without too much burninating to dry off Fritter in an instant.” The last bit he sent to both Fritter and Ignis, in the hopes that doing so would speed up both the repairs and the reunion.
“You want Ignis... to set me on fire?” Fritter felt the greatest urge to break another solid object with her bare hooves. “We’ll be down in a moment...”
“Depends, does he know Heat Wave? If so, I’m pretty sure that move, by definition, would not set you on fire. Dry you out like a giant hairdryer, certainly. But you’d survive.”
“I hope you like dried fruit, cause that’s all that’ll be left of your garden,” Ignis replied. “I wouldn’t worry, it’s pretty hot up here so she’s pretty much done already.... aaand, okay. That’s fixed too. We’re on our way.”
“Ah, forgot about that...James woulda killed me if that had happened…” The Psychic scratched his head sheepishly as he bowed in front of the stairs up. “Shall we then, Seth? I might even be able to snag a few Berries from the garden that might help. Pretty sure I saw some Sitrus and Oran in there.”
“Yeah, thanks Vince,” Seth nodded and followed the Kadabra. “And I was hoping to finally relax for once...”
“Depending on your definition, I think Selena and Rika are very relaxed! I’ve never seen them so still!” Vincent said with a roll of his eyes. “So where did you go while you were out and about?”
“Well, after my meeting with Captain Ace, we visited a small restaurant where Sam works. Ate some great food and then came here.” Seth tilted his head until his neck gave a satisfying crack. “So, we haven’t seen much of the city.”
“Eh,” Vincent said with a shrug as they reached the second floor. “I live here and I can honestly say that if your intention is to not gamble or drink, then you came to the wrong town.” With a soft click, the door to 203 opened. “That being said, there are some good spots around still.” Vincent smiled as he tapped his head with one hand. “Just have to know where and how to look.”
“I see,” Seth said as the group walked in. There was a thud and a grumble about low ceilings as Ignis and Fritter made their way downstairs, the dragon holding a clawful of Berries.
“I think Ignis beat me to the punch,” Vincent muttered, making a note to either get some signs or see about making certain ceilings not so low.
Ignis looked at his mate and sighed. “I figured something like this would’ve happened. Didn’t think Rika would get involved though.” And it was unusual to see the both of them so beat up. He was kind of annoyed he’d missed such an awesome fight.
“Sisters will be sisters I suppose,” Seth shrugged as he nuzzled Fritter. “Mmm, you smell nice~”
“Ah smell like a wet pony,” Fritter grumbled, but blushed none-the-less. “So what happened to these two?”
“Beat the tar out of each other for some reason,” Seth said. “I’ll know once they wake up.”
Vincent pointedly looked away, remaining silent as Selena was the first to wake up again, groaning softly as Ignis helped her sit upright.
“Urgh... damn that hurts. I forgot how powerful Rika is when she’s not holding back.”
“All three of you are Champion level, probably stronger,” Seth said. “And what hell happened? Why were you fighting?”
“Not really fighting... per say,” Selena replied. “Just, blowing off steam I guess? Rika was helping me out with something personal, that’s all.”
“And it led to this?” Seth said sternly, motioning towards her multitude of injuries. “Selena, is this about you-know-what?”
“A little,” the Dark Pokemon replied, her voice lowering a little “Talking with Jeanne... it made me remember a few things, things I thought I forgot...or at least came to terms with a long time ago. I’m feeling frustrated alright, just.... let me deal with them in my own way.”
“Mom’s a meddler,” Vincent spoke up, reminding the others that he hadn’t left yet. “She likes to try to steer everyone to the ‘best’ path, but sometimes what she thinks is best and what others want...conflicts. Sometimes she’s subtle, other times, not so much. Guessing this was one of those times, then.”
“You could say that,” Selena replied and winced as Ignis tended to a large bruise on her back. “Ah! Oh? that’s where that Moonblast hit.”
Rika stirred and reached out with her ribbons. Seth dodged but Fritter was too late as the Fairy grabbed her and pulled the mare over to where she was, kissing her lightly on the lips.
“Ahh, now I feel better~” Rika cooed, right before she winced and scrunched up her face. “Ooh, wait, no, scratch that. Selena’s claws hurt like a bit-”
“So,” Seth cut her off. “Thanks for letting us stay here Vincent.”
“Not a prob- Oh for Xerneas’s sake! Were she in control, I’d swear she was doing this on purpose!” Vincent groaned and held a hand to his head, shaking it in irritation. “Oh, and by the way? So long as she isn’t shoving her opinion on Pokephillia down your throat,” Vincent snorted, before finishing, “then mom’s usually right. Usually.”
With that, he vanished in a flash of blue, leaving behind very few doubts as to where he’d gone.
“Well... that happened,” Seth said blankly. “So, what do we do now?”
“I’m going back to sleep,” Ignis muttered, having been woken up by Vincent’s mental telegram. “C’mon Sel, you could use some rest too.”
“Yeah,” Selena replied quietly. “I have a few things I want to talk to you about.” The two Pokemon disappeared into an adjoining room... and Ignis hit his head again.
“So the three of us are finally alone,” Rika sighed happily. “I know what I want to do~”
“And I said that I’m not ready for that yet,” Seth replied with a tired sigh. “Not until I have better control.” He was also exhausted after the long trip and running around all day.
Fritter nodded, truth be told, she wasn’t quite ready to take that step yet either. It wasn’t something that needed to be rushed. “So how did yer meeting go?”
“Pretty well actually, and things have been harder here than in Canterlot. At least we didn’t have to deal with a near civil war.”
“War?” Fritter was shocked. “You must be joking!?”
“Nope, I agree with Ace, her job doesn’t pay enough to deal with something like that.” he snorted and shook his head. “Yeeesh, I can still smell it from here. What the hell are they doing up there?” He paused and looked at a grinning Rika. “Don’t answer that!”
“Aww...”
“I will, then. The serious answer is: It’s called a Heat for a reason, and check your Pokedex if you’re so curious. Whereas the answer I’m sure Rika was about to give was ‘each other.’”
“Spoilsport,” Rika muttered.
“Are you seriously listening in on us... while having sex?” Seth replied. “I don’t know whether to be impressed or not.”
“First of all, she’s tied up. So I can spare some concentration. And second, I’m working on cribbing a new technique together. For most, it’s just a coincidence that their ears are burning. I’m working on making the sensation something to pay attention to: if my ears are burning, someone within my ‘sphere of awareness’ is actually talking about me. It’s...got some fine tuning to go through yet. That smoke smell is not going to wash away…”
“...Your ears... actually burn?” Seth just blinked and tentatively touched one of his round ears. “I don’t know who’s stranger... you or Sev.”
“It was just once! ...Though the fact that this time they smoked isn’t much of an improvement. And having met the snake, I can say he’s stranger. Did you know he installed lasers in the front of the building? Ah, but you have a family to get back to. My regards to the rest of them. Do take care...and watch out, I think Bit’s on his way.”
“Hmmm, nah, your Dad is still nuttier,” Seth said to Rika. “Vince is a very close second... wait. lasers!?”
The sound of rapid knocking came from the door to the rest of the apartment house. Fritter opened the door, finding a familiar disconnected head on the other side of it. “Ah, Miss Fritter. Salutations. Did this unit hear correctly? Does Seth Crescent now possess his gear again?”
“Hey! Me and Fritter get first dibs on his gear!” Rika shouted as Seth just groaned.
“Goddammit Rika... just, come in Bit.” There was a nice blank wall that Seth felt like repeatedly applying his face to.
The Porygon-Z nodded and floated in past the mare in the doorway, coming to a halt in front of the familiar Luxray. “I was informed you possessed no small amount of technology from Earth, including but not limited to a Pokedex,” he stated.
The look in the Porygon’s eyes was... unsettling. “That would be correct Bit, I was given back my inventory at the time of the transfer. My Pokedex, TM’s and other such items.”
Bit then did something he wasn’t exactly known for: He locked up. It was a disturbing thing, seeing a floating program come to a screeching halt in all his processes save the hovering one.
Rika hopped up and poked the Pokemon with a ribbon. “Um... Sethy? I think you broke him.”
“Vincent?” Seth thought. “I broke Bit...”
“Huh...last time he did this, he was less than sane...Oh I see now! He has so many things he wants to work on, he’s having trouble choosing. They’re all labeled as ‘High’ priorities, he literally can’t pick one, so he’s locked up. My suggestion is to offer him a suggestion, see if that snaps him out of it.”
Seth nodded and paused as he thought, what would be best...? “Hmm... AH! Hey Bit!” Seth reached into his saddlebag and took out the False Swipe TM. “How about deconstructing this and learning how to create your own TM’s? Would save on the headaches your teaching method causes.”
At this, Bit resumed moving as though he never locked up, his eyes riveted to the TM that Seth was holding. “That sounds acceptable, Seth. Though I would still appreciate looking at your Pokedex at a later time time to compare relative data values.”
As long as you don’t damage it,” Seth replied. “To me, it’s more than data... it has the memories of my journey with my family.” He reached into his bag and pulled out the device, along with his XTransceiver. The erratic program Pokemon put one of his arms over his chest with no small amount of difficulty.
“I would never,” he stated. He then tapped his beak to the AC port, causing a small spark to jump between them. “Connection established. Comparing data values. This should only take a moment.” Images flashed across the screen as the program spoke, data being called up and dismissed once the program had finished with it.
It was quite interesting to watch, images flickered through Bit’s eyes, but they passed too quickly for Seth to watch.
‘Beginning Voice Journal Playback’
‘Entry 001 - We finally started our journey! Just Ignis and me! You just watch, I’ll become Champion easy!
Entry 004 - We caught our first Pokemon today! It was a Psyduck, I named him Drake, after that funny cartoon I like~
Entry 020 - We have our next travelling partner. She’s a little Eevee named Rika. And you wouldn’t believe it, but her mother, an Umbreon named Umbra, she could talk! I saved her from a poacher and she entrusted Rika for me to raise. I’ll do my best!
Entry 042 - We have a few Gym Badges now and we’re taking a break in the Hoenn region. I came across an Absol that was being tormented by a small village. Those uneducated idiots actually think Absols cause disasters, rather than just predict them. I saved her and she just kept following me. Guess I have a new partner.
Entry 100 - This is it. We have eight Gym Badges and we’re ready for the Pokemon league in few months. Our dreams will finally happen.
Entry 132 - So I was in the city and saw someone getting arrested, just because they were kissing their Pokemon? What kind of idiot law is that!? Sure it’s a little strange, but I’m positive that the Scolipede looked like it was enjoying it.
Entry 150 - So it’s official. Even without evidence, those blind, arrogant fools in the League kicked me out. I’m forbidden from taking the League Challenge and obtaining any more Badges... I-I’ve failed my Pokemon, my family...
Entry 187 - I met this cute girl in Nimbasa today, she’s a Gym Leader and apparently supports my fight to change the Pokephilia laws. She wants to meet me at the Ferris Wheel tonight. Wish me luck.
Entry 204 - This law is so ridiculous! The Rangers spend so much time and resources on something so pointless... Hopefully, if I can accomplish what I aim to do, then maybe they can focus on real crimes...
Entry 222 - We completed our training with Diantha today. It was so hard, she may look pretty, but she is ruthless in her teaching. Oh, and Rika evolved into a Sylveon~
Entry 286 - Well, I had to break it off with Elesa. People stopped coming to her Gym and even the League threatened to take her license, simply because she was dating someone of my... reputation. It’s hard you know... sometimes I wonder... nevermind.
Entry 323 - So many people. So many innocent Pokemon and humans have been hurt by this law. Jayce, Gene, and countless others, all living in fear of this stupid, unbalanced law. Well that’ll change soon. Elly contacted me, she’s arranged a meeting with Cynthia, the Sinnoh Champion. Once we have enough public support, then they'll have no choice but to revise these laws.... It’ll happen. I know it...
{Further Entries Corrupted...}
Bit blinked a few times as he compared what few archives he had from the rare instances he’d been able to sneak onto the wider Internet to Seth’s entries. Considering the...activities going on upstairs, along with those that truly loved one another before the shift, such as Gene and Belle, Bit found himself thankful for the one in front of him. “Data comparison complete.” Turning his head around to look around at Rika and Apple Fritter before continuing his reply. “Take care of him. It would be a shame if one such as him were to befall any misfortune.”
“You don’t have to tell me that,” Rika giggled, hugging her Luxray, Fritter nodding as well.
“Eeyup, count on it Bitty!”
Bit turned his head back around to face Seth, and if you looked at his eyes, they seemed to be...somber, somehow. “Perhaps, had you succeeded,” he whispered, before trailing off and shaking his head. “No matter. I will be taking this,” the program snagged the TM with one arm, “To my lab, or what serves as one. Thank you for the time and information. If there is anything you desire to know in return, all you have to do is ask.”
“Sure thing... oh, you can borrow this as well.” Seth placed the XTransceiver on the table. “It used to be a communications device, so it doesn’t exactly work here. Perhaps you could use it somehow? I know having phones again would be really handy.”
Bit seemed to lock up again, but there was a subtle difference. He actually appeared to be trembling, and before anyone could point it out or ask if Bit needed more help…
Seth was suddenly the victim of the rare, endangered, Bit-full-body-hug.
“Wha? Whoa... heh, okay. I take it you like it then?” Seth chuckled, placing an arm around the Pokemon.
“This...if I am incapable of rebuilding a computer by the end of the week after looking at this, then I do not deserve to be called a Porygon! This is a gift without measure! This will speed up all my projects!” Bit pulled his head back, the eyes visibly altered to resemble smiles.
“Glad I could help, truly, I really am.” Seth smiled. “I have something for the rest of you as well, but Lucy’s may have to wait until she’s more... presentable.”
“Sethy is like Santa Claus, only more sexy,” Rika giggled. Fritter tilted her head and blinked.
“Um.. what’s a ‘Santa’?”
“Human folklore. At the moment, unimportant.” Bit finally released Seth and tilted his head in curiosity. “Queries: Will you be leaving the XTransceiver here with your other gifts, or will you be taking it with you?”
“Without the wireless communications network that supported it, the device is a paper weight,” Seth said. “You can borrow it as long as you need to, here’s the solar-powered charger as well.”
“Appreciated,” the program said. “I will endeavor to return it to you in as good a condition as it currently is in, along with bringing some form of infrastructure to Equus so that such things might work again.” After moving the charger to be next to its device, Bit turned back to the Luxray. “Second query: what other gifts?”
Seth beamed widely and pulled out a box. He placed on the table and opened it. “Okay, so first, I have this for Sam. He mentioned about how his exoskeleton was heavier than normal? Well, this little item is called a Float Stone. All he has to do is wear it and his weight will be halved.”
Bit considered the stone and nodded once. “Logical. Should help counteract the negative side-effects of ESS-010. What else?”
“Next, something for you,” Seth pulled out a small black box. “It’s not a Pokemon item, but still useful. A Hard Disk Drive with about two terabytes of storage.” He used to use it for storing legal documents and whatnot. He knew that Porygons needed to dump excess data on occasion, and this would mean that Bit wouldn’t have to delete anything too valuable.
“I…” Were Bit capable of crying in gratitude, he would be. With something like this, he feared no longer for his memory or mind degrading. “That means more to me than you will ever know, Mister Crescent.” The program felt the need to hug something again.
“And lastly... well, I couldn’t think of something for the remaining three members of your family. But, just before I left Canterlot, some Carbink I befriended gave me the answer.” He took a smaller box out and opened it carefully. Three shining stones were inside, one gleamed a brilliant white, while the others were quite different.
“A Keystone, Lucarionite and Garchompite.”
“That…” Bit considered the stones. “Correct this unit if it is in error, but those help a Pokemon realize all of their energy, Mega-Evolving, correct?”
“You are a ‘mon of science yes? How about a physical demonstration?” Then... an evil thought crossed his mind. He wondered if Vincent would like a demonstration as well.
“Not necessary. It is just...considering the alterations Sub- Christine underwent, it is dubious as to what effects, if any, the stone would have on her.” Bit ticked as he stared at nothing in particular while working out some calculations. “As well, should Lucy be exposed to that stone while Vincent is holding that Keystone, there is no doubt she could trigger a Mega-Evolution. Whether Vincent would survive it at this time is another matter altogether.”
“Dang,” Seth muttered. “Well, alright. A very controlled environment for Christine, once she evolves anyhow. And yeah, I suppose we should wait for Lucy’s little ‘predicament’ to end, no matter how funny it might be.”
“Quoting: Comedy is tragedy plus time. A shattered pelvis would only be funny long after the fact,” the program stated bluntly.
“But it would be funny,” Seth stated. “Ah well, we can always show you Ignis or Selly’s tomorrow. So, are these okay?”
“More than okay,” Bit said. “I will take them all to my lab, if that is okay with you, and once the conditions are met, such as Lucy being out of her Heat, or Christine Evolving, I will distribute them. Sam, I will give his as soon as possible. Perhaps I’ll fashion it into a pin for his tie.”
“Very dapper,” Seth agreed. “So, the most obvious aside, how has everyone been? I understand that you had a run in with Rika’s estranged father. Emphasis on strange.”
“Sev was...easily excitable,” Bit conceded. “Vincent’s reply to having a wall knocked in was for him to unleash his strength. Unstoppable insanity met immovable object.”
“Papa...” Rika groaned. Was there no end to his zaniness?
Elsewhere, Sev felt a little proud for some reason. Well, of course he should Sev was Sev!
“That... would have been something alright,” Seth said. “Oh, I met that Sandslash, uh, Mary was it? She seems nice.”
Bit didn’t stop his old habits from reasserting themselves in time. “641, subject 29. Claw modification on a shiny Sandshrew. Claws ended up being sharp enough to cut through most objects, but subject possessed no cont-” He eventually shook his whole form a few times and looked away, ashamed that his old programming had come to the fore. “I...apologize.”
“It’s alright,” Seth nodded. “I didn’t know she could cut through metal, that’s pretty intense. Sam must worry about pissing her off.”
“It is my understanding that she helps ‘train’ him in how to use his armor by attacking him with her modification,” Bit replied, still slightly embarrassed. If he had cheeks that could flush, they would be right now. “It is also my understanding that now that she is a Sandslash, she possesses the control she once lacked over her claws’ sharpness.”
“So she couldn’t before?” Seth shuddered. “Well, I’m sure glad she can now. Still, if she’s training Sam, maybe I should send Heath down sometime? He’s never met another Sandshrew before.”
“Ill-advised,” Bit said. “Mary apparently returned to her old trainer once she escaped from the lab, and with her modification and Evolution from her time there...there has rarely been a more determined and easily-irritated Pokemon chef than somemon who can replace all her kitchen cutlery as easily as her. Were you to introduce the two, it would have to be after work-hours, and for the love of Cresselia, do not have him criticize her cooking unnecessarily if you like him intact.”
“Pft, I doubt that.” Seth smiled, “You see, Heath was a Sandshrew when we got here. Remember that little incident my family had to deal with just before you guys arrived in Canterlot?” Bit nodded and Seth continued. “Well the stallion responsible somehow created Rare Candies using Alchemy. Heath was forcefully evolved, but he still has the mind of a child. Honestly... I just don’t know how to train him as he is.”
“Ah,” Bit said, whirring as he considered the situation. “It is sad that this unit was told to delete the Simulator Room from active memory, otherwise I might be able to help. Then again, it was dragging down my performance quite a bit, and there was that...incident here.” He looked away and muttered something about how he didn’t ‘rage-shift,’ more like he had a case of ‘multiple partition disorder.’
“That’s alright. Diantha is helping at the moment, but perhaps when we visit next?” Seth stretched his cramped leg out. “Ahh, there we go. So, how’s Chrissie doing?”
“Christine is adjusting well to having a stable home that does not promise horror on a regular basis,” the Porygon-Z stated bluntly. “I assume from the time she escaped to now, she has quite a few stories to tell. Moreover, she seems to have lost her fascination with Sam thanks to what Vincent and Luke did. Overall, I project her future as cautiously optimistic.”
“Honestly, the time I spent with her was quite enjoyable. She is sarcastic like all get out, but I consider her to be a good friend of mine.”
“Cept she wouldn’t let me hug her,” Rika pouted.
“I got one,” Seth said and then clamped his paw over his mouth. Rika’s eye went wide as she raced from the room. “Uh-oh...”
“HUUGGSSSS!” Rika yelled from the hallway.
“I really hope Vincent has insurance,” Seth sighed.
Christine was settling in nicely in her new home. The last tenants of this place had cleaned it out, but not cleaned it up at all. And now that she had a place of her own, she wanted to be able to find everything easily. The bathroom and bedroom had been handled with ease, she was now on the kitchen, going over the silverware they’d missed.
“Forks, spoons, knives, serrated knives...huh. Y’know, I’d think if I were leaving, even in a hurry, I’d take my eating implements with…”
Her door opened with a silent click as Rika made her way inside. No-one escaped the snugglefairy. No-one.
“And-Oh Arceus, that reeks! Guess they forgot something in the fridge! Gah, it’s like a Weezing died, a Muk was born from that, then died on his own fumes!” Christine rapidly backed away from her now-a-health-hazard fridge, waving one arm in front of her face to try and get some clean air.
A shadowed whisper sang throughout the building.
“Fee, Fi, Foe, Fum... Imma hug me a silly dragon!”
The mutated Gabite’s eyes shrunk to pinpricks at not only the voice, but what it was saying. “Oh no,” she muttered, looking at both her fridge and silverware drawer, a plan percolating in the back of her mind.
“Cross my heart, hope to fly... stick a cupcake in my eye. You cannot run, you cannot hide. You’re gonna hug me, that’s no lie!”
“All right, Christine. On the one claw, you’ve not been in a real fight for some time, that little brawl with Selena not counting. On the other claw, crazy fairy. Time to put some tricks to work in a more urban environment.” The Gabite breathed deeply once, twice, and on the third time, she said two words.
“Double Team.”
Three images of the dragon appeared in the kitchen, turning it from ‘cozy’ to ‘cramped’ in a second.
There was a sound, like something scratching at the walls before two pink ribbons pierced the illusions as Rika dropped down in front of Christine.
“Gotcha!”
“Not bad,” Christine said, honestly impressed. “But you’re missing one key factor, little fairy.”
The dragon then pointed at her waist. Her lineless waist. “You stopped at two.”
“Aw poop,” Rika cursed. She then found herself flying towards the open, smelly fridge, as the illusion faded, revealing the real dragon behind her, launching Rika with her tail.
Rika grabbed a cupboard with a free ribbon and pivoted in the air as she aimed at the fridge. She opened her mouth and at point-blank range, fired a Moonblast at the offending object, removing it, and the wall behind it from existence…
“Aw come on! I’m sure a Flamethrower or three or five would have cleaned it out! No need to go blasting it that hard!” the dragon groused. “What’m I gonna store my food in now, huh?”
“Eheh, whoops?” Rika giggled. “Um, well... I guess we could go shopping for a new one...!?” she suddenly gasped. “That’s it! Shopping. Just us girls! It’ll be AWESOME!”
The Gabite gave the fairy a half-lidded deadpan stare. “Let’s review. I’ve been wild for a while. You seem intent on hugging me. Even coming in here and trying to do so while I’m just getting settled. And when I try to contain you, you vaporize my fridge. And your solution is to take me out on the town to get a new one?”
Rika smiled, before it slowly faltered... “Yeah... I guess you’re right. I’ve been... not a very good friend. Sorry about your fridge too, at least it’s gone, that sludge looked sentient...”
“Okay, I’ll give you that one,” Christine said with a chuckle. “And hey, it’s not all bad,” the dragon tacked on, actually taking a step closer. “You just have to understand that not everymon has as few boundaries as you do towards others. Plus, I have...a slight...okay, major, aversion to Fairies. You, not so bad, even if you are...enthusiastic. Titania, though?” She shuddered and made a ‘bleh’ sound.
“Titania is... special,” Rika nodded. “But yeah, I just thought... that you looked kinda sad sometimes. And, I wanted to show you that there can be people that can love you... you just gotta let them in sometimes.”
The dragon stopped for a moment, tilting her head in confusion. “Who are you and what have you done with Rika? Seriously, you’re serious right now, and it’s weirding me out.”
“I’m allowed to be serious sometimes,” Rika pouted. Christine laughed a little and drew close enough to ruffle the fairy between her ears.
“Okay, yeah, point. And I’ll think about what you’ve said, I promise you that much at least. But first, new fridge. To the town?”
“Yay!” Rika leapt up to embrace the dragon, only to pause in midair and float gently back down to the floor. “Sorry...”
The landshark rolled her eyes and picked Rika up before giving her a hug. “This is your only freebie, understand? From here on out, you ask first.”
Rika squeed and nodded vigorously. “I knew it, you really are warm to huggle~”
“...We do have to go out to get a fridge...and tell someone about the wall, you know. We’re not Vincent, we can’t do it all from in here.”
“Truuuue, or we run like hell and let them figure it out,” Rika suggested... and saw the look on Christine’s face. “Eh, fiiine...”
The dragon set the Sylveon down and the pair made their way to the main door of her apartment, hoping that nobody had heard the sounds of the scuffle.
When the door opened, Seth, Fritter and Bit stood there.
“So uh... who blew something up?” Seth queried.
“I did,” Rika beamed, sounding a little proud. “I destroyed a possible threat to national security.”
Seth looked to Christine, hoping for a sensible explanation. “Eh, to be fair, that thing was definitely a threat to my security, and I’m a citizen of this nation, if that decree from that world Summit thing is right, so I’m willing to give her this one,” the dragon said with a smirk. “Now, Rika?”
“Yes Chrissie- YEEP!?” Suddenly the Sylveon found herself playing the role of a hat.
“Onwards, to shopping!” Christine proclaimed, holding one claw high. Seth watched the two leave...
“Um... what?”
Bit ticked a few times. “It would appear that the two of them have bonded.”
“Vincent?” Seth asked out-loud, a not-so-small amount of concern in his voice. “Christine and Rika have bonded... should we be worried about this?”
Nah...they’re on a vector away from us, so we’ll be safe, was the Kadabra’s reply. Now as for the rest of Las Pegasus...I have no idea.
Seth peered inside the apartment and shuddered. “Oh, and Rika blew up a wall. Just FYI.”
Blew up or knocked down? One’s more fixable than the other.
“...Vapourised? Yeah... that sounds about right.”
Oh for the love of- CHRISTINE, RIKA! Get some two-by-fours while you’re out so I can fix the wall someone disintegrated!
“Roger-Doger Vinny~” Rika’s enthusiastic reply came.
“But first we need a fridge for me, that also vanished under some mysterious show-pony’s hat!” Christine tacked on.
...Seth, be afraid. Be very, very afraid.
The fear Seth felt that day was unfathomable. All of existence would quake in the wake of this newfound alliance... Or not.