"…so if they ask, we came for commerce related matters."

"We did come for commerce related matters, Saf," Ivy said to her sister, walking by her side. "And it's not like we need an excuse to come or anything. If we had wanted to visit them on our own, we could just have."

"Yes, but… still, tell them we came for commerce related matters," the Glaceon once again insisted.

Ivy gave her younger relative a brief look before lowering her head and sighing. "Okay, okay, but I still don't see what the problem is. What, you think they might be annoyed we're here or something?"

"Maybe? I mean, if they're in the middle of work and we just come in there without warning, we might be a nuisance."

"You think? If I were working and a friend suddenly appeared I'd actually be quite happy, since then I would have an excuse to laze around for a while."

Ivy shot Safira a silly grin, the Glaceon's ears lowering in response. "I'm not sure that's how the world works, sis…"

"Nah, it's all right." Suddenly, Ivy noticed the building in front of her and stopped on her tracks. "Hey, is this the place? Looks like it."

Safira froze, ironic as that was for an ice-type, at the sight of the big building of white-colored walls standing before her and her sister. She noticed an unassuming sign above the place's entrance door, written in big red letters, which read: 'Azure Nightingale Laboratories, Subdivision 8'. Yes, that was it. "Number 8, yes. This was where we had to deliver these devices, right?"

"That was the job description, yep." Ivy lowered her gaze for a second to look at the small, almost weightless bag she was wearing around her neck. It held some small simple machines the Azure Nightingale had requested, and it was their duty to deliver them safely. "Well, let's enter." Without a doubt in her mind, the Leafeon stepped into the building.

The Glaceon showed far more reticence, though. After all, she was about to enter into an actual laboratory, and as far as she could remember, she had never been into one before. She would have liked to visit one during their last trip through the Nightingale, but unfortunately they were all closed back then, since everyone was preparing for the festival. Now that the festival had ended, they were of course open once again.

"Sa~af." Ivy called her sister's name in a sing-song voice, feeling a bit bored of waiting. She wanted to get rid of the bag she was carrying, for even though its weight was unnoticeable, she was growing weary of feeling the bag's straps against her neck. "C'mon, let's get inside."

After giving one last look to the edifice's white façade, Safira finally entered inside, following after her sister.

The place's interior looked as basic as the exterior, just white walls, presumably made out of Adamantium. There didn't seem to be much in the way of decoration other than the odd poster, and these were filled with numbers and incomprehensible words. After a few seconds of walking through the complex's interior, Safira started to feel a bit disappointed. For some reason, she had expected something more… sumptuous.

But who cared what that place looked like? It was a laboratory, and that was enough for Safira. As the siblings looked around, they saw a variety of different pokémon, a majority of which were predictably psychic-types, working with the many machines around the place.

Now, where were those two…?

Ivy took a look around the facility. There was psychic-type Kadabra near her, then another psychic-type she didn't recognize a little further on, then a group of a few psychic-types with an ice-type, then what seemed to be a fairy-type, then an Espeon, then a –

Wait, there they were. "Hey!" shouted the Leafeon, walking towards the Espeon and Umbreon whose attention she had just caught. Her loud voice seemed to have alerted not just them, but also many other pokémon in the vicinity. "What's up?"

"Please, don't shout inside the laboratory," Lumis chided her in a soft tone, noticing the reprimanding stares of many pokémon around them.

"Hey, I'm glad to see you too. Such enthusiasm." Ivy spoke in a sour voice, a bit upset since she had expected a somewhat more affective reception. "It's almost as if you were unhappy to see us."

"Sorry if I seemed rude, but everyone's working right now, you know." Lumis preferred to omit an 'Including me' at the end, perhaps out of respect for the newcomers. It wasn't their fault he was busy. "If anything I'm surprised you two are here at all. May I ask the motive of your visit?"

"Bringing this."

Ivy left the bag she had been carrying on the ground near the Espeon, and the Umbreon approached it and looked inside. He had a slight idea what might be inside, and his muzzle showed a cocky smile when he inspected the bag's interior and confirmed his hunch was right. "Lum, these are the devices you were waiting for, right?"

"No doubt about it." It seemed so obvious to Lumis that he didn't even bother nodding. "Although these materials are usually brought by a Dragonite courier from your node. Has anything happened to him?"

"Nah, he's as fine and chirpy as ever," Ivy answered. "We just… came in his place."

Skoll's rings started to shine dimly, a cheeky grin starting to form between his lips. "Oh, I see. You came because you missed us, uh?"

The Leafeon's face cowered away from the Umbreon, her eyes widening in response to his words. What he had just said was… somewhat true, she had to admit. Not that she would say it outright. When she took a quick glance at her sister, Ivy saw just what she had expected, the Glaceon looking everywhere but at them.

"W-We came for commerce related matters," Safira repeated, as if it were a mantra. It wasn't entirely wrong, anyway.

"I thought you two were merchants, not couriers," Skoll said. Nothing seemed to wipe that smirk from his face. In fact, it seemed to grow bigger by the moment.

"The leader of a node must be well-prepared, Skoll. I have to know at least a little bit of everything that has to do with our node," Ivy said in an unwavering, confident tone. She was good at keeping up appearances, or at least better than her more easily flustered sister. "How could I expect to become a good leader for my node if I don't even know how a courier does its job?"

Ivy sounded quite convincing, for even though visiting Skoll and Lumis was part of the reason they had come to the Nightingale, it was still true that it was an official job, one that they had successfully finished upon delivering the bag and its contents to the laboratory.

"Well, if that's the case we should thank you for the safe delivery."

Lumis gave the sisters a polite but unnecessary bow, and almost as if out of instinct, Safira responded with another polite but unnecessary bow. This overly polite ceremony made Ivy and Skoll share a look and a grin.

Skoll could barely keep from laughing. "What are you two doing adoring the ground? C'mon, rise those chins up."

Ivy watched with amusement as her sister and Lumis raised their heads. "Yeah, what's with the excessive formalism?"

"Well, we are before a leader's immediate family," Lumis said, eying the sisters from a safe distance. "It's only normal that we show a little bit of respect."

"Dude, we've pretty much lived with them," Skoll said, recalling the days they had spent with the siblings during their last trip.

Ivy nodded, agreeing. While it was true they hadn't known each other for long, they had no reason to act so prudish. "I know we're the daughters of a leader and all, but you can just ignore that. We aren't fans of protocol either, right, Saf?"

The Glaceon nodded and then spoke just to drive their eyes off her. "I-I guess…"

Ivy simply smiled. "Yep."

The two pairs of eeveelutions just stared at each other for a short while, not saying anything, until Lumis decided he'd had enough with the silence and spoke up. "So… you came to deliver this."

"Yes," Ivy answered.

"And… you've already done so."

"Yes."

Ivy just kept looking at the cat, unsure of what he was trying to say. After a short while, her Glaceon sister decided to intercede. "I-I think he's telling us to leave."

"Uh? A-Ah, yes, of course. We're already done here after all, and they must be busy with their laboratory work." Last thing Ivy wanted was to be a bother.

"I mean, it's not like I'm kicking you out or anything, but we are rather busy, yes," Lumis said, trying not to come off as rude.

"But the weekend starts tomorrow, right? We can meet then," Skoll suggested.

Ivy slanted her head. "Uh?"

"We could go out or something. The four of us, I mean."

"Ah… Yeah, okay. Sounds good to me." Ivy had no reason to refuse. Or rather, she didn't want to refuse. Her weekends used to be long and boring. Maybe spending time with them would help her kill time.

"Four? Funny, I don't quite remember agreeing," Lumis said. And after firing a quick glance at the Glaceon, she didn't look all that convinced either.

"C'mon, you need to get some fresh air. It'll do you good, trust me." Skoll started nudging the Espeon's shoulder playfully.

Ivy observed the affectionate gesture with a warm smile, finding it kind of adorable. Kind of. "Seriously, you two are close. Like, really close."

"Like you and Safira," Skoll said. "We're practically brothers, too. That's kinda what happens when you're raised together."

'Raised together'? What a peculiar choice of words. Did he mean they had known each other for long? "But, heh, it's not like you've been raised under the same roof."

"We have, actually," Lumis corrected her. "Skoll lived with me and my family for most of our childhoods."

"What? What about your family, Skoll?" Ivy regretted the question right after making it. Maybe she shouldn't be asking something like that? Maybe it would be too intrusive?

But before she even had the chance to say 'sorry', Skoll was already answering, a friendly smile on his face. "Well, both of my parents died when I was pretty young, but luckily Lumis' family took me in as if I were another son. My mother and Lum's were good pals, so they didn't mind having another mouth to feed."

Oh dear lord, he was an orphan? Neither Ivy nor Safira were elated by this revelation, understandably. While Safira preferred to remain silent, Ivy felt like she had to say something. But what? What is one supposed to say in this kind of situation?

"Oh, I'm sorry to hear that…"

"Uh? No, why? I've had a good life. They treated me like one of them, they never cared that we didn't share the same blood. Really, I cannot complain."

A smile didn't leave his face at any point while pronouncing those words. That was quite some composure he was showing. That, or he was genuinely happy.

"Don't you… miss them or anything?"

"My parents," he continued, "died in a laboratory accident back when I was really young. I barely remember them, I was too young, so I can't really say I 'miss' them."

"Well, as long as you're fine with it…" Ivy wondered if he was he just acting tough, dark-types were wonderful liars after all. At any rate, whatever happened in the past was kind of irrelevant now. They were no longer kids. Skoll could surely look after himself now. "Hey, you mentioned a laboratory accident? Were your parents actually researchers?"

"Yep, you got that right." Skoll's answer got a soft gasp from both sisters, who had expected the Umbreon's parents to be defenders like him too. Their reaction seemed to get a laugh out of him. "It's kind of funny, actually. You see, I'm a defender but both of my parents were researchers, while Lum here is a researcher and both of his parents were defenders."

Okay, that was unexpected too.

Lumis smiled demurely. "What's more, my father is a fighting-type of all things."

"Whoa, really?" Ivy had trouble believing her ears. That feeble looking cat, the son of a fighting-type? "What species is he? A Scrafty? A Primeape? A Pangoro?"

"Uh… no, something a little less bulky, a little more elegant. A Mienshao."

Mienshao? Now why did that sound familiar to Ivy? Ah, of course! That's the name of the species of that purple weasel-like pokémon they met at the Conflux last time, Freya. So Lumis' father was one of those? They shared the same colors, at least.

Safira also remembered Freya, and how Skoll had said she was from the Nightingale just like them. She couldn't help but wonder if maybe… "Are you, um, related to Freya?" Just as she finished formulating her question, she lowered her head and wished there was a way to go back in time just five seconds to avoid making such an impertinent question. What in the world was she doing? Her curiosity had gotten the best of her.

She slowly raised her head and looked at the Espeon warily, fearing his reaction, but he didn't seem angry at all. His expression was difficult to read, maybe he was sad or upset, but at least not angry.

"You are a perspicacious one. Indeed, my father and Freya's mother are siblings, that is to say, we're cousins."

So Freya, that Mienshao from the Beacon, was his cousin? That was an interesting tidbit of info, but the sisters weren't sure of how to react to it. It was clear by his facial expression that the Espeon didn't enjoy talking about Freya, presumably due to her ties to the Beacon.

This was quickly becoming awkward, maybe they should leave already? Lumis had mentioned being busy, perhaps they shouldn't rob them more of their time.

"Well… I guess we should be leaving now," Ivy said, in an attempt to change the subject. "I mean, we don't want to be a bother –"

"You are not a bother. Not for a second," Skoll interrupted her. Oh well, this was the kind of interruption she could tolerate. "But yeah, I guess Lumis will want to work with these fine devices you've kindly brought us. As I said before, we can meet tomorrow."

"Oh, sure! We'll make sure to pass by tomorrow."

"Glad to hear that." But Skoll didn't need to state how he felt, his wide smile and rings shining at medium intensity made his mood evident. "Well then, see you gals tomorrow."

Ivy waved them off with a paw. "Yeah, 'till tomorrow."

"Have a safe trip back home," Lumis said as a goodbye. He hadn't explicitly agreed to meet up with them the next day, but he'd at least think about it.

Safira just gave them a wordless bow as her way of binding them adieu. But wait, why not actually say 'bye' out loud? She felt a little more confident around them than some days ago. She could do it. C'mon. "B-Bye." Oh yeah. She felt like a champ.

And with renewed spirits from her astounding courage, they finally left the laboratories.


"No, they're not here. My daughters left for the Azure Nightingale this morning," a Linoone told a Vaporeon in front of the Beryl Calandra's Haecceity.

Scylla had sent some messengers to certain nodes to invite the rest of eeveelutions to the Lilac Kiwi the next day. Since she had a performance that day at the Calandra, she decided she might as well invite Ivy, Safira and Kizuna herself. Unfortunately, Linze had just told her that neither of her daughters was present at the moment, but what about Kizuna?

"Do you know where Kizuna is?"

"The Sylveon? She didn't leave the node today, as far as I know. I guess she must still be around, somewhere."

She was still at the Calandra? Time to look for her, then. "Oh, thanks! And sorry for bothering you."

"No, not a bother. It gladdens me to know my daughters have friends that worry about them," Linze said with an amicable smile. "Now, I'd love to stay and chat, but I'm afraid I have things to do. If you excuse me…"

After nodding in her direction, the Linoone entered back inside the Haecceity. Scylla couldn't really blame him, for leaders were known to be quite busy at all times. It was a miracle he had even taken the time to answer her questions.

And with that out of the way, she guessed it was about time she started looking for Kizuna. Now where might she be? "If I were a hyperactive Sylveon, where would I go?"

She didn't need think for long, since her question received a premature answer in the way of a pinkish blur dashing at full speed towards her, crying out the Vaporeon's name in a deafening yet surprisingly calming tone. Anyone else would have been scared, terrified of the approaching being, but Scylla knew quite well what to expect from this situation. She opened her mouth wide and tried to inhale as much air as she could. Her lungs would need full reserves of oxygen to survive the next few seconds.

And just on cue, Kizuna jumped at Scylla and hugged her with all her strength, coiling her with her many ribbons in something more reminiscent of a martial arts technique than a hug. Scylla started having trouble breathing far sooner than she had expected. Oh well, the Sylveon looked way too happy to cut the hug abruptly, she could wait a few seconds until Kizuna ended the hug on her own. So she waited one second… two… three…

Oh my god, was she never going to stop? Okay, enough was enough. Scylla gently pushed the Sylveon aside, hoping she would get the message.

She didn't, and went back to hugging her right away. "Scylla, you're here! Yay, I'm not gonna be bored anymore!"

While Scylla appreciated her eagerness, she did find it somewhat suffocating. As in, literally. "Calm down, Kizzie. I'm not going anywhere, you don't need to hold me down as if I were gonna suddenly evaporate."

"Huh, don't even joke about that," Kizuna said, adopting a sad expression. She didn't even know if it was possible at all for a water-type to evaporate, but Vaporeon were known to be able to at least melt into water, so she didn't want to take any chances. "But I'm really happy you're here. Honest."

Yes, Scylla had already kinda guessed so. The hug-choke had been a good hint, and the Sylveon's tail swinging around like a fan also helped. And yet, Scylla couldn't find it within herself to get angry at her. "I'm glad to see you too, although a bit surprised Ivy and Safira aren't here."

"Oh, yes, they left early in the morning. They went to the Azure Nightingale."

"Yes, Linze told me that already, but he didn't tell me the reason."

"They had to deliver some things to the Nightingale. You know, merchants, couriers, that's the kind of job the Calandra does," Kizuna explained.

Okay, that made sense, but it raised another question. "Say, why didn't you go with them? I thought you didn't enjoy being left alone."

Kizuna twisted her head to the side, a coy smile forming in her lips. "I considered it, but… well, you know, they were going to the Nightingale. So I thought I should probably leave them alone."

Scylla blinked twice. "I don't follow."

"That's where Skoll and Lumis are, so you know… I couldn't just go with them, right?"

"Still not following."

"C'mon, you know what I mean," the Sylveon insisted. But, no, the Vaporeon certainly didn't know what she meant. "If Ivy and Safira want to go see those two, well, I can't just get in the middle, you know? They'll want to have some alone time to hang out and all that. I don't wanna be a third wheel. Uh, fifth wheel."

"Wait, wait, wait, you just lost me. I thought you just said they went to the Nightingale for work. They actually went to see those two?"

"Ye – Well, no, they went there for work," Kizuna said. "Uh, or both. They went there for work, but they also wanted to see them."

"Oh, I had no idea those two…" Weird, Scylla thought. While she had only met Ivy and Safira a really short time ago, this kind of brash attitude didn't seem fitting of them. Plus, given the Sylveon's apparent obsession with romance and her hyperactive imagination, she couldn't help but wonder if she was just imaging things. "I mean, did they tell you anything about those guys in particular?"

"Um… no, not really." Kizuna lowered her head slightly, while Scylla smiled silently to herself. It seemed like she was right. "But, I mean, why else would they go see them?"

"For work…? You just said they went to the Nightingale to deliver something."

"But… even though they could have sent any courier for that mission, they decided to go themselves instead!" Kizuna said with a silly simper on her face. "Isn't that romantic?"

"I don't see how…" Scylla was having some trouble understanding the Sylveon's unusual point of view, as evidenced by the quizzical expression on her face. "They needed to get some experience transporting things and working as couriers, and among the many missions they could have chosen, they picked one that would also let them see some friends. I don't see anything weird with that, I would have done the same."

"Uh? Then… you think…" Kizuna stared down to the ground, immersed in thought, her feelers fluttering around her mouth. "There's nothing between them?"

"Well, I have no way of knowing what's going through their minds, but I wouldn't jump to conclusions so quickly."

Kizuna raised her head and looked back at her. "I wanna make sure I'm not getting this wrong. This is important."

Had the Sylveon used Confuse Ray on her or something? Because Scylla had never felt so confused. "I'm not sure what you're talking about, Kizzie. What's all the fuss about? Why does it matter if the sisters have gone to see those guys at the Nightingale?"

"It matters because, well, if they are interested in them I wouldn't want to get in the middle," the Sylveon replied, talking at an unusually slow pace.

"Uh… Well, yes, of course." Scylla nodded. There wasn't anything particularly weird about what the Sylveon had just said, but the way she had said it… "Kizzie, what are you trying to say?"

Kizuna covered her mouth with one of her bows, which was something she apparently liked to do whenever she was thinking. "I'm trying to find a mate. You know that already, right?"

"Yeah, you might have told me once or twice." In fact, Scylla would have sworn the Sylveon cared more about finding a mate than stopping the Beacon. "What does that have to do with – Oh, you're thinking of those two, Skoll and Lumis? You're considering them as options?"

"Maybe," the Sylveon answered in a low, almost shy voice.

"I thought you had your eyes set on Zephyr."

"Eyes and bows, yes! But he's lately been kinda… evasive," Kizuna said, her ears unconsciously falling down.

Scylla couldn't really blame the Jolteon for that. After all, Kizuna was a chronicler, and that meant she would know most everything about any potential mate she ended up with, even their deepest secrets. Not many pokémon would be willing to share their lives with someone like that. And as if that wasn't enough, Sylveon were also known to have the infamous ability Cute Charm.

"That's why I wanna keep my options open," Kizuna continued, "just in case Zephyr ends up rejecting me."

To be fair, Zephyr had seemed more accepting of the Sylveon than any other male, especially Agni, but Scylla could see where she was coming from. She was thinking of what other options she had, uh? "Oh, I think I understand."

"But that's not all. I also have to consider the girls…"

Er, what? Scylla stared at her blankly, as if forgetting how to blink. "Kizzie…?"

Kizuna moved close to her, awkwardly close to her, and grabbed one of her paws with her bows. "I mean, you're all very precious to me, too. I can't just ignore you when making this kind of decision."

Scylla giggled awkwardly, eyeing the Sylveon's feelers entwining around her paw. "Um…" She mumbled only because total silence would have been more awkward, but didn't know what to say.

"I mean, if any of you likes any of the boys, that's something I have to take into account! I wouldn't want to, so to speak, 'steal' them from you."

Ah, that's what she meant. Indeed, that would only cause unnecessary drama, and that's the last thing she wanted, the last thing any of them wanted. They already had a healthy amount of drama in their lives with the Beacon running around.

This reminded Scylla that they were having a discussion about romance with a criminal band on the loose. She was glad they had their priorities right. "But who are you more interested in? Did you have anyone in mind when you came from the Observatory?"

"No one in particular, although I'd be lying if I said I didn't consider all of them at some point or another," Kizuna said. If she had anything in the Observatory, other than access to almost unlimited information, that was time to think. And still, she hadn't been able to make a decision. "I guess I should start by discarding the obvious one. Agni is very fluffy and warm, but he is a no-no."

"Oh, I guess. He doesn't seem fond of your Cute Charm, that's for sure," Scylla noted.

"Um? No, it's not that," Kizuna said with a cheery smile directed at the Vaporeon. "Like I just said, I'm not gonna steal from a friend."

"Mmh?" How weird, Scylla didn't remember any of the Calandra sisters showing any interest in Agni whatsoever. Unless she meant… Oh dear Suicune, not again. "Are you talking about me, Kizzie? Because I don't like him. Not like that."

"Aw, of course you do!" Kizuna said in an almost complaining voice.

Scylla sighed. Ugh, what kind of fantasy world was the Sylveon living in? "No, I don't. We don't even have anything in common."

"That's not true at all. You have much more in common than you imagine." Kizuna spoke in a surprisingly calm and relaxed tone, appearing quite sure of what she was saying. Scylla couldn't help but raise an eyebrow at her sudden change in demeanor. "And who else could he end up with, anyway? He wouldn't like me because of Cute Charm, and about Ivy and Safira… uh… both have a type weakness to him! Yeah, that's a totally justified and non-arbitrary reason that disqualifies them!"

"What kind of logic is that? Since when are type weaknesses a good reason to prevent a couple from forming? According to that logic I couldn't be with him either, since he's weak to my type," Scylla said. While she didn't look nor sound angry, she was a bit annoyed that the Sylveon was so vehement to pair them up. "And it's not like his mate has to be one of us. He could look for one elsewhere, or he might even prefer to remain mateless."

Kizuna knew such wasn't the case, that's what the Observatory said. She thought Scylla and Agni would make a nice couple, at least according to what she knew from the Observatory, but Scylla didn't seem to like her pressing the matter. Oh well, that could wait. "Anyway, with Agni out of the way, let's analyze my other options. Or… actually, why don't we analyze everyone's options?"

Scylla stared at her blank-eyed. "What you mean 'everyone'?"

"4 girls, 4 boys, there's just 16 combinations. Let's analyze them all, it will take us just a sec." She seemed incredibly serious about it. Scylla didn't know whether to laugh or cry. "For example, let's start with Ivy." Oh wait, she was going to go through with it? Scylla lay down, knowing nothing she could say could convince the Sylveon to stop. "Fun-loving and battle oriented. I guess she'd prefer to be with a defender, Agni and Lumis are probably too… soft for her tastes. So it's between Zephyr and Skoll, probably. Zephyr is much faster, but Skoll is more defensive, and that suits Ivy's battle style better."

Wow, she was taking it completely seriously. Scylla had half expected it to be a joke or something, but Kizuna was genuinely trying to analyze their compatibilities. "Are you really basing the matchmaking on their battle expertise?" It felt a bit… shallow.

"Well, battling is important to her," Kizuna kept speaking, not at all discouraged by the Vaporeon's apparent lack of interest in the discussion. "But now that you mention it, both Lumis and Agni know sun-based moves, which would support Ivy nicely. In fact, this clashes with both Skoll, who gets his powers from the moon, and Zephyr, who prefers rain in order to launch his perfectly accurate awesome thunders. And Zephyr isn't very fond of battles, actually. Mmh, this is more complex than I thought."

Scylla was a bit surprised the Sylveon knew so much, but then recalled she was a chronicler. But never mind that, Scylla didn't come here to chat, she had to get ready for a show later. The reason she had wanted to talk with the Sylveon was to invite her to the Kiwi the next day, along with everyone else. She should probably tell her.

When the Sylveon stopped talking, anyway. "Next is Safira. She is more on the quiet side, and a little bit shy."

"I had barely noticed," Scylla commented in a sarcastic voice. The Sylveon seemed intent on carrying on with her matchmaking analysis. Meh, it could be fun. Scylla decided she could wait.

"So I guess she'd be the polar opposite of her sister, and she'd prefer to be with more collected mons like Lumis or Agni."

"Agni. Collected," Scylla repeated in a monotonous tone. Those were two words she didn't expect to hear in the same phrase, unless it was a negative.

"Well, kinda? More so than Zeph and Skoll at least, although I guess Lumis is the calmer one of them all, so maybe him? They even share the highest base special attack among all eeveelutions, at a whopping 130!" Aw, how cute, she was making up words again. Or so thought Scylla. "Although on the other hand, being with someone brasher like Skoll could help her become more assertive, and Zephyr is of course always a good choice. Decisions, decisions…"

It was as if the Sylveon lived in her own little word, or at least it seemed so to Scylla. "It's not like you have to make a decision for her, or anyone else for that matter, you know."

"True, but a little push in the correct direction wouldn't hurt, don't you agree?" Kizuna said, her bows languidly fluttering about. Oh dear, she was actually thinking of playing matchmaker. This worried Scylla a little. "I mean, don't get the wrong idea, it's not like I'm thinking of playing matchmaker here or anything." This soothed Scylla a little. "But if Safira or anyone else were to ask me for help or advice, then, duh, I'd help them out."

Scylla lazily got up, her siren tail coiling around her body, "But, Kizzie, you… don't really have any experience with this, do you?" Didn't she say she had only left the Observatory a few days ago? Then she couldn't possibly have much experience with romance, or much else for that matter.

"Oh, you'd be surprised to know how much you can learn at the Observatory! I might not have, uh, first paw experience, but I'm pretty knowledgeable about pretty much everything."

Kizuna seemed quite proud of herself, and Scylla couldn't help but wonder if her boast was justified. She was aware chroniclers were well-informed, but just how much knowledge did they hold? Was that theoretical knowledge enough to trump first-hand experience? Scylla wasn't so sure purely theoretical knowledge was enough on its own.

"And now's your turn, Scyl!"

"U-oh, what?" Scylla was taken aback at the suddenness of the Sylveon's words, unable to elucidate a coherent response. "Wait, maybe I could understand talking about the Calandra sisters since they're not here, but I am! You aren't seriously going to psychoanalyze me in my presence, are you?"

"Yeah! That's what good friends do!" Kizuna chirpily replied, a smile painted on her muzzle. "Well, it's obvious to everyone that you should be with Agni, so I won't even bother looking at any other options. And lastly, there's me –"

"Kizzie, honestly, I don't know what to do with you," Scylla said lowering her head, her eyes appearing tired. "How do I have to tell you? I. Don't. Like. Agni."

This time, Kizuna stared at Scylla with a calm, solemn expression on her face, as if considering for the first time that her words might be truthful. But she quickly rejected that notion with a swing of her head. "Then why are you always flirting with him?"

"Wha – I don't flirt with Agni! I don't flirt with anyone!" Scylla was appalled at her accusations. The people of the Lilac Kiwi already had a reputation of being… let's say, frisky, but Scylla knew it to be nothing more than a baseless stereotype, and precisely because of that she always made sure to appear as proper and mannerly as possible. They didn't call her the 'Genteel' Mermaid for nothing.

"But you're teasing him all the time."

Um… Fine, that was something the Vaporeon couldn't deny. "But that doesn't mean anything. Yes, maybe I find teasing him a little… fun, but you're reading too much into it."

"But you tease him only," Kizuna insisted. "Never Zephyr or anyone else."

The Sylveon had a point there, she had to admit. "Well, his reactions are adorable. But you're still reading too much into it." A change of topic was in order, Scylla thought. She didn't like talking about herself much, and the current topic of conversation was making her feel… somewhat awkward. "Anyway, how about we talk about you now?"

"Ah, gladly!" Luckily for the Vaporeon, Kizuna did like talking about herself. "I'd be fine with anyone, really, I don't mind. If I didn't have a deadline to return to the Observatory, I'd let you all choose before me."

"What you mean you'd be fine with anyone? You should be a little more ambitious," Scylla said, smiling sourly at the Sylveon. "You can't just… get a mate for the sake of getting a mate."

Kizuna stared at her wide-eyed, one of her eyebrows raising, looking at the water-type as if she had just spouted nonsense. "Uh? Why not? Everyone who has a mate looks very happy. I wanna be happy like that too."

It was at times like this that Scylla was reminded that the Sylveon had been living outside of society for almost all of her life. She personally found her way of thinking childish, and maybe even cute, but potentially harming. "They're not happy because they have a mate. They're happy because they have the mate they want to have."

What was this pseudo-philosophical nonsense? She had to find a mate before she returned to the Observatory! The Vaporeon clearly didn't know what she was talking about. She would know better, for she was a chronicler. "Anyway, any of them would suit me just fine. I'm not picky."

"I insist, you should be pickier. Isn't there anyone you like?" Scylla asked her.

"I like all of them."

Well, of course she would answer that. "No, I mean, is there anyone you love?"

"I love all of them." Kizuna paused for a second. "Platonically."

No, she wasn't making this easy, but Scylla wouldn't give up so easily. "Is there anyone you love romantically?"

"I, uh… What was the difference again?"

She couldn't be serious. Scylla leered at her as if she were a ghost. Which she wasn't, she was a fairy. Also, seeing a ghost in the pokémon world isn't necessarily strange, so perhaps that wasn't the best metaphor for this situation.

At any rate, Scylla was quite baffled. "That's… I mean, you know what love is, right?"

"Duh, you think I'm stupid?" Kizuna cleared her throat, coughing into a rolled up bow of hers. "It's a neurochemical reaction based on dopamine, norepinephrine, seroto–"

"No, that's not what I… Um, if you fell in love you would know it, wouldn't you?"

And perhaps for the first time, Kizuna started to wonder if maybe not all knowledge was accessible at the Observatory. "Maybe…?"

"So, returning to the matter at hand, if you could freely choose any mate, who would you choose?" Scylla made a direct and straight-forward question, wanting to end the conversation already.

Kizuna answered after four seconds. "Zeph…?" Well, it was an answer. "So… this is love?"

"I have no idea," Scylla answered truthfully. She had many times played the part of a lover in theatre, but had never felt the actual emotion herself. "But we are not going to find out by staying here chatting about it."

Ugh, what an utterly pointless conversation that had been. Mammals and their hormones, am I right? We ghosts don't have these kinds of problems. I guess steel-types don't either. What about birds? Can birds feel love?

Oh, look at me rambling about nonsense again. Let's go back to their conversation.

"Hey, Scylla, why did you come to the Calandra in the first place?" Kizuna asked the Vaporeon.

"That's what I was trying to tell you…" Scylla thought she'd better go back to her troupe, they had a show later. "I was thinking of meeting with everyone tomorrow at my node, the Lilac Kiwi. You know, so that we –"

"I don't need a reason! You've convinced me already!" Meeting with the rest of the group? No way she would say no to that.

"I've sent some messengers to the Crane and the Nightingale, but I decided to deliver the message to the Calandra myself, since I have a show here today," Scylla explained. "I didn't know Ivy and Safira would be out. You can tell them when they come back, right?"

"Sure, leave that to me! But, um, what about the Warbler? Didn't you send a messenger there for Zephyr?" Kizuna asked. The Jolteon usually spent his days at the Crane living with Agni and Opal, but what if this was one of those unusual days were he left for the Warbler?

"I met him this morning at the Conflux on my way here and I already informed him, so don't worry about him," Scylla said. This seemed to calm the Sylveon. "Well… I think that's all I had to tell you. I should go back to my troupe now. So, 'till tomorrow!"

"Yeah, see you tomorrow…" Although Kizuna tried to appear enthusiastic, she wasn't too good at it. Her head subconsciously lowered, her eyes seemed to sadden and her feelers fluttered much more slowly than usual.

None of this was lost on the Vaporeon. After all, neither of the Calandra sisters were at home, which meant the Sylveon would be left alone for the rest of the day. "We'll be doing some rehearsals, so if you want to come and watch us…"

The Sylveon's face lit up. Words were unnecessary, it was impossible to interpret her expression as anything but a 'yes'.


After finally reaching the Cerulean Warbler, Zephyr approached the node's famous training grounds. He found a Weavile sitting around the battlefield's border, resting while watching a sparring match between a Machamp and a Hariyama, which she deemed as rather boring.

Zephyr decided to call out to her. "But of course I would find you here, Vetr."

"Wow, made me wait." Vetr lazily rose from her sitting place, stretching out her arms without bothering to cover a loud yawn. "Aren't you supposed to be really fast, Zephyr?"

Indeed, the Jolteon took pride in his normally unrivalled speed, but what was she expecting? It was still midday, he thought he had arrived quite early. "I had to come all the way here from the Amber Crane, crossing through the Conflux. No matter how fast I am, it's gonna take me a few hours."

"The Conflux, uh? Saw our old boss there?" the Weavile wondered.

Their old boss? She must be talking about the leader – now ex-leader of the Cerulean Warbler, the Noivern Zvonimir. "Yeah, he's still at the Conflux, hasn't moved an inch since the day of the festival. Does this have something to do with the reason you have called me here?"

"Actually, yes. It's been, what, three days since the festival? By this point, it's becoming rather obvious than Zvonimir has no intention of coming back to us."

"Oh, so we should take him down, is what you're saying?" Zephyr threw a quick glance at the battlegrounds, where groups of pokémon were practicing their skills. Nothing worth commenting. "You didn't call me here to ask me for help, did you? Even if I'm a defender, Zvonimir is way out of my league."

"Zvonimir is out of everyone's league," she commented with a grin. "We're collaborating with the Garnet Oriole to find a way to take him down and gain access to Adamantium once again, but that's not why I called you here. The thing is, now that Zvonimir has left, we've been left leaderless."

One of the Jolteon's ears perked up. "Oh, we're gonna elect a new leader, then? Is that why you called me?"

Vetr crossed her arms, being careful not to accidentally scratch herself, and nodded. "That's correct. As a member of the Cerulean Warbler, you have a right to participate in the election process of our next leader."

"And how are we…?" Zephyr cut his own question in the middle, a grin becoming apparent on his face. "I don't know why I'm even asking. It's gonna be another damned tournament, isn't it?"

Vetr giggled lightheartedly, playing with the red feather protruding from her left ear. "Well, if you know of a better selection method than beating up people, do tell me because I have never heard of it."

Zephyr turned his gaze to the battlegrounds once again. But of course the pokémon of the Warbler would choose a method like that. "So how will it work?"

"Simple. Anyone who wants to join can. All rounds are eliminatory, and the last pokémon standing is allowed to be the leader."

Simple and to the point. Typical of the Cerulean Warbler. "And why did you call me again…?"

"Don't you want to join the tournament?" Vetr asked him.

"No." He didn't need a second to think. "I don't want to be a leader."

"So? Neither do I, and I still joined."

Zephyr winced at her. "What? But what if you win? Because, quite frankly, you can win. It's a very real possibility, it wouldn't surprise me one bit."

"I'll repeat, the winner is allowed to be the new leader. Not forced," she said. "If you win, you can just turn down the position of leader, and the runner-up would be the new leader. If they also refuse, then the next one in line would be, and so on."

That sounded rather unprofessional, Zephyr thought. "Wouldn't it make more sense to only allow those who want to be the next leader to participate? What's even the point in joining if you're not interested in being chosen leader?"

"What, you need a reason to enter a tournament? I had no idea." Vetr grinned from ear to ear. "C'mon, we're the Cerulean Warbler. You know we host tournaments even to decide who takes out the trash."

Zephyr shook his head, unconvinced. "But if the purpose of the tournament is to elect a new leader, letting everyone participate is nonsensical."

"Honing our skills is the main purpose of any and all tournaments in the Warbler, everything else comes second. We always want to test our skills against as many different pokémon as possible, we would never say no to a challenge," Vetr said. That was the motto the people of the Cerulean Warbler lived by, although Zephyr himself didn't entirely agree with it. "So you're participating, right?"

Zephyr took a moment to think about it. Should he? He really didn't have much of a reason, and wasn't particularly fond of tournaments. "I'm not really interested in –"

"I'll sign you up, okay?"

Did those red feathers block her ears or something? "I just said –"

"Look, look, I'll just sign you up and you can decide whether you want to come or not later, okay?"

"Ugh, fine. Whatever you want," Zephyr said in a tired tone, shrugging. To be honest, he didn't really care one way or the other. It was just a meaningless competition, the decision didn't really matter.

"And, uh… you are acquainted with Skoll, aren't you?" Vetr asked, while eyeing some of her fellow Warbler defenders sparring.

Skoll? The Umbreon? "Ah, yes, I know him. How do you know?"

"I saw you guys at the Conflux during the festival," she explained, her eyes still fixed on the battleground.

"Oh." He didn't remember seeing her there. "We must have missed you. How come you didn't call us or anything?"

Vetr started fidgeting with her claws, still not looking at the Jolteon. "I saw you all in this big group of eeveelutions and, well… I don't know, I thought I would feel a bit out of place."

"Nah, don't say that. I'm sure Skoll and Lumis would have been happy to see you there," Zephyr said. Was the Weavile nervous? It seemed so to the Jolteon. "Skoll said you were friends back at the Azure Nightingale. Is that true?"

Suddenly, she turned to the Jolteon with a mildly upset expression on her face. "Of course it's true. Just because we're dark-types doesn't mean we're liars."

Ouch, he had hit a sore spot. While Skoll didn't seem to mind the stereotypes surrounding dark-types, and even seemed to embrace them, not all dark-types were as self-assured. Vetr was one such case. "I didn't mean it like that."

Vetr once again turned her gaze to the battleground, apparently calming down. Perhaps she shouldn't have snapped at him like that. "Sorry about that."

"It's all right," Zephyr said with a friendly smile, not minding it. "By the way, why did you mention Skoll all of a sudden?"

"Oh, that…" While she was already looking away from the Jolteon, now she turned her whole body away from him, fully facing the battlefield. "Well, I was wondering if maybe… you could ask him to join."

Zephyr glared at her with curiosity, both due to her sudden change in demeanor and her question. "Join? The tournament, you mean? But Skoll is from the Azure Nightingale."

"As I said before, anyone who wants to join can. This is not limited to only people from our node," she explained. "And since Skoll is a defender, I guessed he might want to try his luck."

Even though the Umbreon wasn't a member of the Cerulean Warbler, it seemed like he liked fighting even more than Zephyr, who was himself a member of the Warbler. Or at least, that was Zephyr's impression from what little time he had known him. "Why not just invite him yourself, though? I take it you're closer to him than me."

"Uh… yeah…" Vetr lowered her gaze to the ground for a short instant. "But I'm busy with the whole Zvonimir ordeal and with contacting the Garnet Oriole, so I don't really have the time go see him."

"Oh, I see." Zephyr recalled meeting with Scylla that morning at the Conflux on his way to the Warbler. She wanted to reunite the whole group the next day at the Kiwi, so Skoll would presumably be there. That seemed like a good time to tell him. "Okay, I'll make sure to deliver the message. Anything else?"

Vetr spent a brief moment thinking, her right claw scratching the red feathery collar around her neck. "Oh, have you seen Minos around?"

"No, not since the day of the festival at the Conflux. I mean, you know he…"

"Joined this 'Beacon' group, yes." She didn't look particularly affected, casually scratching her right ear. "To be honest, I didn't know him very well. We sparred every now and then, but that was the extent of our relationship. What about you?"

"Same. We've worked together a few times, but that's about it. As you know, I spend more time at the Amber Crane than here." He still felt bad about the Luxray's sudden defection to the Beacon. He had always seemed like a nice guy. Zephyr didn't even want to think about how Scylla must have been feeling, since she had apparently known him for longer than any of them. "Well, is that all?"

"That's all, yes. Are you staying to spar or…?"

Zephyr couldn't help but chuckle. Truly, the pokémon of the Warbler only ever had one thing in mind. "Fine, but contain yourself. I don't want to leave this place furless and covered in scratches."