Here we are peoples! The chapter where Keith and Rhythmi last appear!...for now. And don't you worry, I've got something planned on those two keeping contact with Kate. ;)

Authors note: I did say Megan was 8 but I'm changing the age to about 6-7.

Because of them finally graduated from school, I decided to celebrate their success with some personality profiles.

Kate: (age 15-16) Dreams of being a ranger. Born & raised in Vientown, Fiorre. Her family will be mentioned in the story below. Kate is a very confident, humorous girl who seeks adventure and a little competition. She's a tiny bit stubborn, does occasional pranks and tends to bottle up things. Her caring side for pokemon is, well, caring, sweet, loyal and friendly. Kate is dense in some ways, not knowing much about Keith's real cause for transforming (see next profile). Best friends with Keith and Rhythmi. There was an accident that happened to her six years ago (age 8-9) but details are still to be confirmed…

Keith: (15-16) Dreams of being a ranger. Born in Lavaridge, raised in Fortree, Hoenn. His family life will be talked about at a later date. Keith is brash, headstrong, competitive, arrogant, love to prank and impatient at times. But he's also shown to be funny, supportive and outgoing. Six years prior to the story (age 8-9), he met up with a witch who tried to kidnap him. Escaped barely but was cursed. Poofs into a Pikachu in hot temperatures (irony of liking warm places), occasional hugs, fevers or embarrassment. Has to cool down to change back. Only Kate knows of the curse, due to accident, but hasn't known of embarrassment issue. Speaking of which, Keith seems to be developing some new emotions and internal conflictions concerning Kate. His transformation occurrences went up since meeting her….

Rhythmi: (15-16) Dreams of being an operator. Born & raised in Celadon City, Kanto. Family life to be discussed later. Rhythmi's social with just about everyone, nice, perky and smart. She loves to tease; most of it directed at Keith, saying he likes Kate (then followed by Keith trying to get back at Rhythmi for the remark). But overall, she's the kind of friend whose there for you in good and bad times.

There. D-o-n-e! Done! Enjoy the story guys! …and girls.

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"SISSY'S HOME!"

That was the first thing Kate, Rhythmi and Keith heard as they took their first step into Chicole Village. A little girl with long, very light brown hair ran up and hugged Kate tightly. Despite looking at a picture beforehand, Keith felt seeing her in person definitely confirmed the two girls were related.

"Oh your sister is so cute!" Rhythmi cried out.

"Yep! Guys, this is Megan. And Megan, this is Rhythmi and Keith." Kate introduced.

Megan. Megan Evergreen. The little sister to Kate Leon. Keith couldn't get that one detail out of his mind. He was tempted to ask Kate why their last names were different. But it wasn't like he could just come out and ask. For all he knew, the subject could've been sensitive.

"Gotta hand it to mom and dad." Kate was saying. "They really know how to pick out the good towns."

The town was very small and open spaced. Houses had a cozy appeal, relaxing & carefree. At the farthest part of the south was Kate's. And not that bad a house either. Didn't seem to old but it certainly wasn't new. Already looked like it had been lived in for years.

"This is our new house!" Megan pointed to the house and then more south, where an arch stood between the trees. "Over there is daddy's new farm! I got to call it 'Partner Farm' cause mommy and daddy are like partners!"

The front door of the house opened, with voices wondering what all the shouting was about. Same people from the picture; Kate and Megan's parents. The mom had medium brown hair with color between Megan and Kate's brown. Her eyes were a blueish green, similar to Megan's. As for the dad, he was hard to see any resemblance to Kate. Dark brown hair, green eyes….it was possible that Kate inherited the personality from her dad….but…..

"Oh Kate good to see you!" Mom hugged Kate tightly.

"And this would be Keith and Rhythmi? I've seen you two through the picture Kate sent us." Dad said. "You guys can call me Carter and my wife, Tessa."

"Good to meet you." Keith nodded.

"Your parents are so nice!" Rhythmi complimented.

Everyone went inside (though Megan wanted to stay out and play). Dinner had been prepared and served. Due to the dining table + chairs getting broken through delivery, everyone decided to eat around the coffee table on the couch and chairs. Everyone had been laughing and smiling. Keith could feel that Kate had always been joking around with her family. She grew up in a relaxing home and atmosphere. Not to mention with good vegetable soup. Once everyone was done, Kate, Megan and their mom went off to do dishes.

"So Keith…perhaps you're Kate's boyfriend?" Carter squinted suspiciously.

"I AM NOT!" Keith objected, his face a bit on the pink side.

"Oh Keith is such a kidder." Rhythmi nudged Keith's arm.

"Rhythmi…." He was grinding his teeth, resisting the urge to strange.

"Relax! I was just kidding!" Carter laughed. "But I am glad to see Kate having some friends."

"Didn't she have any in Fiorre?" Rhythmi asked.

"Not unless you count the pokemon." Carter shrugged. "Kate was known as the 'wild flower' of Ringtown. Very pretty but impossible to tame. Her energetic nature didn't sit well with many people so she was off playing in the forest with the pokemon."

No friends at all? Did…..that mean he and Rhythmi were the first?

"In some ways the rangers had been her only human friends. She's known about them since…pretty much her entire life. Sometimes as a kid, she'd tag alongside them and watch the adventures unfurl. There were moments where Kate helped them with soothing raging or healing injured pokemon." Carter went on. "And I suspect the influence they implanted on her sparked that ranger dream early on."

"That's so sweet!" Rhythmi sniffled.

"It's great how you support her in this." Keith said.

"Tessa and I know the risks. But we feel that for Kate, it's worth it. She'll do just fine." Carter told him. "Besides, she has a lot of support from her new friends now."

BAM!

Everyone turned to notice Kate had tripped trying to go up the stairs. She dropped her bag, the one with her stuff from ranger school. Kate had been muttering a swear word though Tessa didn't seem to catch it.

"Sorry guys!" Kate apologized sheepishly, getting back up.

"I told her to put the bag upstairs so no one would trip over it." Tessa explained.

"Here. Lemme help." Keith sighed, walking over and carrying the bag.

They walked upstairs down the hallway into Kate's room. Since it wouldn't be used much (if at all), it was laid out very simple-like. A few boxes here and there. Bed, dresser, closet and rug. All the basics. Keith set the bag down on the floor beside her bed but noticed something fall out of one of the pockets.

Picking it up, he saw it was a photograph. A woman who looked like an older, model-like version of Kate, smiling though she seemed tired. Her hair flowed down her shoulders like a cascade, the color exactly like Kate's. Even the eyes were perfectly identical. In her arms were three small babies, blissfully asleep. They seemed like tiny angels….and almost….the exact same. Like clones of some sort.

"Hey Kate? Who is this?" Keith asked, showing the picture.

Kate's cheerful smile turned to one with sadness. She stared at the picture for a little bit, as if hesitating whether to tell him something or not.

"That's…my mother." Kate finally told him.

"…your MOTHER?" Keith was taken aback. "B…but I saw her! Downstairs!"

"That's not my real mom. That's my mothers sister, aka my aunt." Kate said.

So that meant her 'dad' was her uncle, not blood related no doubt. And her sister was really her cousin. That would explain the different last names. And some of resemblance between the girls.

"My real mother a few days after I was born. She was too weak after delivering triplets." Kate went on.

"So…then those are your sisters. Or uh…brothers." Keith stumbled, still in shock over the new information.

"Brother and sister, yeah. The one in the center is my brother, Indigo. Left is my identical sister, Josie." Kate showed him. "But…..neither are around anymore…."

"Wha…" Keith was about to ask.

"Josie died at two weeks old. Born too weak. I almost followed her to the grave for the same reason but…something stopped me from leaving. Call it silly but…I always thought that maybe Josie had something to do with it." Kate explained.

A long pause. Tension filled the air. Why did it feel so darn stuffy in the room?

"And Indigo?" Keith quietly asked.

"There was an accident six years ago. We both were hospitalized but….he never made it." Kate mumbled.

Keith looked over the picture again. Kate's mom seemed happy, full of love over her newborn babies. If Kate was exactly like her mom, then Keith would've loved to meet her. And to think…maybe Kate would look like her mom when she grew up. Maybe more elegant. Kate was already good-looking. How much more beautiful could she get?

Those thoughts were clouding Keith's head again and yet…Keith didn't feel the urge to push them away. Instead, he let those thoughts come by. Something about them….and about her…..

An accident...Kate mentioned an accident before...wait...yes! At the Ascension Square! Kate said that after the accident, she stopped singing. The accident that took Indigo must've taken her singing as well. Probably from trauma.

"Hey wait. Didn't you have a dad? He could've raised you and your siblings." Keith asked, suddenly wondering where the heck he was.

"Died during mom's pregnancy. Huge car crash." Kate's voice was starting to tremble.

Her eyes were a bit watered up. This had been an incredibly hard subject to tread on and yet Keith managed to dive right in. Now the poor girl was remembering the pain of losing her brother and of never getting to know her birth parents or sister. Keith grabbed Kate's arm and pulled her in close. Kate didn't fight it, instead resting her head on him and letting a tear or two go. This hug felt different than the last...more serene and close. There was something else in the midst of him holding Kate but he couldn't identify what it was. It seemed that for the longest of times, maybe an eternity, everything was perfectly silent.

POOF!

And thus the moment had ended.

"You've got to be kidding me." Keith growled.

He was still in Kate's arms…just as a Pikachu in a shirt. Why on earth did he transform? He wasn't embarrassed at all! Kate looked at him in a blank surprise for a moment. But she smiled, set him down on the bed and wiped the tears away.

"Room must've got a little stuffy. That and the body heat might have triggered a transformation." Kate guessed.

That was probably it. Stupid curse….always being inconvenient.

"You head to the bathroom. I'll get your clothes and give them to you there." Kate suggested.

Keith nodded and leapt off the bed. He walked out of the room and down the hallway. Almost there! And nobody would….wait….footsteps…someone was coming! But ack! He was in Pikachu form! How could he…?

"Sissy! Are you done?"

That was Megan. An idea popped into Keith's head. Risky, yes, but it might work. Keith dropped onto the floor and remained completely still. Just as he did, Megan came up the stairs. She was about to head to Kate's room when she found Keith on the floor. Keith was mentally praying this would work, that she'd never catch on.

"Pika! What're you doing in the hallway? I left you with Mister Fluffy." Megan picked him up. "I better go put you back."

Yes! It worked! Megan carried him down the hallway, over to her room. Upon seeing the room, it blinded him in an overflowing power of bright pink, rainbows, dozens of pokeplushies and cute stuff with ribbons. In short, every guys nightmare. Keith was having a hard time resisting not to puke.

"There you go." Megan set him on the bed, next to a stuffed Wigglytuff. "Now you stay th…hm?...COMING MOMMY!"

Megan skipped out of the room, shutting the door behind her. Right away, Keith bounced off and dashed towards the door. He poked the door open slightly, seeing Kate was in the hallway looking a bit confused.

"Keith?" She whispered. "Where are you?"

"Your sisters room." He whispered back, running by her side. "I think your sister needs something in her room that's…oh I don't know…NOT PINK!

"Keep it down!" Kate opened the bathroom door. "I'll be downstairs. Better hurry up before people start asking questions."

Keith got inside, seeing his clothes folded on the floor. Kate closed the door and started to walk back downstairs. Luckily, Keith didn't take long to change back. And he was experienced at dressing quickly. He was able to come back down, acting as if nothing happened at all.

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Rest of the visit went smoothly and as to be expected. Close to the time the boat was to come, Kate went back to the school with Keith and Rhythmi to send them off. Her two friends proudly climbed onto the boat with some of the others assigned to Fiorre. As happy as Kate was for them….she also felt bad.

Her two best friends. Heck….perhaps her first real friends….were going away. Sure Kate knew this wouldn't be the last time she'd ever see them. It was a for sure thing that they'd find each other again. But who knows when? And she'd gotten close to them. With Rhythmi and Keith, Kate felt she could open up and be even more herself. Something that she had only done with the pokemon in the forest back in Ringtown. Even more, those two helped her move forward. Rhythmi was a great coach and friend to talk to while Keith used competition and pranks.

The boat started to drift off into the ocean. Students, teachers and Kate herself waved to the students on the boat. Keith and Rhythmi would do alright. Their dreams were strong and bold, held together by their friendships, memories and the pledge they made. Kate knew they'd do just fine. And so would she.

"HEY KATE!" Keith was calling to her. "I'll be twice as good a ranger as you are when I see you again!"

"Yeah THAT'll be the day, redhead!" Kate yelled back.

His response was a laugh. Kate couldn't help chuckling herself. Ms. April shook her head and wondered outloud if those two would ever grow up.

The boat went all the way into the ocean and, eventually, disappeared into the sunset horizon.

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Thus the ranger school saga is over! Now we turn the page to the epic tales ahead for Vientown Daze!...gotta work on the name, yeah.

Remember to review, eat your pizza and keep a look out for the very-soon-to-come update!