Disclaimer: I don't own Pokemon.
Rex and his father stared each other down across the dinner table as their family clamored around them. Rex knew that Mell knew. And he assumed Mell knew that he knew that Mell knew. But the instant he brought it up, Rex could prove him wrong, and he didn't have the evidence to fight back. LIke a game of chess, there would be no victory unless his father could completely ensnare him, and Rex refused to let that happen. And he knew that his father knew it.
"Quinn, stop hogging the rice!"
"Mom, tell Margo to stop yelling at me!"
"Oh my god, you two, could you be any more annoying?"
"Um, may I please be excused, Dad?"
"Ask your mother, kiddo."
"Finish your vegetables first, Callie. Francis, be nice to your siblings. Quinn, leave some for your sister. Margo, ask for food to be passed, don't snatch it," Patricia addressed them all one by one is quick succession. "Mell, how was work?"
His father still hadn't spoken much yet, and never directly to Rex - biding his time, no doubt. But there was no way Mell could know. Rex had covered all of his bases and more.
"Ah, it was fine." Rex's father waved the question off. Mell was a large man, with a middle-aged gut forming over his strong build from years of work. Despite his protests, Rex's mother would sometimes tell teasing stories of his rock-and-roll roadie phase back when he was young. That was long gone even before Rex's oldest brother came along, but the fire never quite left him, whether it came out in booming laughs with his family or angrily raising his voice. "That last storm was a pain in the ass- uh, the butt, and they say there's more coming, but for now, skies are all blue."
"Dad, can you help me with my homework after dinner?" Quinn asked. He was the younger and meeker of the two sixth-grade twins, but he was as hungry as he was sensitive, and he linked with a carvanha because of it. Rex was pretty sure he could have some battle potential, if only he had the stomach for it.
"Mom, Nora isn't eating at much. I think she might be sick," Margo declared. She was bolder than her brother, but could be somewhat abrasive. Rex had no idea what made her link with a numel of all things, but at least Nora didn't chew on his clothes whenever she got into his closet, unlike Quinn's monster. Dumb fish.
At the end of the table, Callie was as stoic as ever. She was a small girl, even for a nine year old, and seemed to blend into the background wherever she sat. Rex had never been close with any of his siblings except Saul, but he definitely found Callie the most tolerable - even downright likeable at good times, like the rare night they would watch the stars together on the roof.
"I'll look at her after dinner, Margo," Patricia promised. "Quinn, your father just got home from work, and he's tired. Francis, will you help Quinn with his homework?"
Francis frowned. As soon as Saul left home, Francis decided that as the oldest child in the house, she was objectively too cool for her family, and spent most of her time at one of her many babysitting jobs or hogging the computer. No monster, thankfully - Rex didn't know what she would link with.
"I helped last time and the time before - can't Rex do it?"
Mell tilted his head. "That's a good question, Francis. Can you, Rex?"
And so it began. Rex narrowed his eyes. It was a flat yes or no question, which meant there was no way to give an evasive or half-complete answer. Francis would keep arguing with him if he refused, and he needed to throw attention off of him and back to the neutral family battleground ASAP, but claiming to be finished brought its own dangers. No, he needed to take a middle ground.
Rex nodded as he carefully selected his words. "…I can probably take a quick look," he agreed. "What class is it?"
"Math," his brother answered sullenly. "I just don't get long division."
"No one does. Rex might be able to bluff his way through it, though," Francis snorted. Rex wasn't sure if that was a compliment or an insult, so he just shoveled a bite into his mouth.
"You're finished with your studying, then?" Mell asked directly. He was determined to get this answer, Rex noted. Enough to verbally chase him down. But Rex was slippery, and he wouldn't give in that easily.
He swallowed his food and shrugged noncommittally. "As finished as I can be. Amphibious monster bio - you know how that goes."
His mother put the glass down. "Well, I'd be happy to check your work while you help Quinn."
Rex's stomach tightened. Nope, nope, nope, abort, bail, mayday.
"Y-you really don't have to! It's a mess, anyway, and - "
"Oh, I'm sure it's not that bad, honey. Even if it is, making mistakes is nothing to be ashamed of - it just helps us learn even better," she insisted.
Rex bit his lip. Vehemence was the enemy here. If he came off as defensive, that was just more proof against, but as long as he stayed civil and reasonable, his father couldn't demand to see his work without being the aggressor.
"Actually," he started. "I just meant that I want to try looking it over myself. This was a really hard chapter, and I think it might sink in some more if I do, uh, my own corrections."
Patricia blinked, then smiled, seemingly a bit surprised. "Well, that's a very mature way to think of it." Rex smiled back, half fake and half real. His mother was an important ally to keep - if, against all odds, his father decided to throw caution to the wind and just pull rank over Rex to see his notebook, Patricia was the only one Rex could counter him with.
Mell raised an eyebrow. "You're sure you don't want it looked over at all?"
A weak final gambit - Rex had his number by now, and they both knew it. "I don't need to bother you guys with that. You just got back from work, and Mom's already looking at Nora," Rex assured him. Bullseye - phrasing it as doing them a courtesy by not asking for help would make it that much harder to argue with. How's them apples, huh?
Mell paused a moment, then nodded. "If you're sure, kiddo." Rex fought down a grin - victory was within reach.
"I could use the computer though," Rex pointedly mentioned towards his older sister.
"Die," Francis casually intoned.
"Age before beauty," he sneered.
"Ladies first," she shot back.
"Children," their mother warned them.
"Sorry, Mom," they chorused together, and matched a quick glare at each other before putting their heads back down for food.
"What's hard about amphibious monsters?" Margo snorted. "That just means they're slimy and they swim. I learned that stuff, like last year." Rex tried to shoot a warning look at her - he really didn't need this conversation to continue, and he really didn't need people other than their mother trying to grill him on homework he didn't do.
"It's not just about knowing what the definition is, sweetheart," Patricia explained. "It's about their specific biology, like what could tear a poliwag's membrane, or what to do for a dehydrated wooper." Rex nodded along, despite having no clue what to do for a dehydrated wooper.
Callie chimed in softly. "Um, Dad?"
Mell sighed. "Yes, Callie, you're excused. The rest of you are, too."
Six chairs squeaked against the floor in quick succession as Rex, his siblings, and his father all stood up to set their dishes away. Relief flooded Rex's chest - he made it, and all he lost in the process was ten minutes to look over his little brother's math. That went better than he could have -
"You're sure you finished your studying already, Rex?"
His mother's voice was perfectly casual - no different from how he sounded when she was asking what Rex wanted for dinner, or reminding him to clean his room. But something in it set Rex's teeth on edge, and a quiet siren began to wail in the back of his head. As his family moved around him and separated into their respective rooms, Rex was left alone at the dinner table with his mother.
"Yep," he responded with more confidence than he felt. "Just gotta look it all over."
"I see." She nodded. "And was that before or after you snuck out with Blair?"
Rex froze. He felt his face go pale and his stomach drop into his socks, and he couldn't even move a muscle. Rex's mother finished her rice easily and naturally, like she had only asked about the weather. Slowly, Rex dragged a hand down his face.
She exhaled through her nose. "Thought so."
"How?" he groaned. "I was perfect this time! How did you know?!"
She shook her head. "I didn't, until you just told me."
Rex's jaw dropped, and his mother stayed stone faced.
"…You had no idea."
"I had a hunch," she corrected him. "You didn't complain once about being stuck inside all day, Blair is sleeping in her capsule instead of buzzing around like Margo after drinking coffee, and your gear is in the wash when I know for a fact you haven't done laundry in at least a week. But no, I wasn't sure until you confirmed it."
Rex wanted to curl up into a ball and die. He couldn't believe he was so stupid - he had been so distracted by his father that he missed the other enemy in plain sight. Then, he practically gave himself away on a silver platter.
Patricia turned to look at him dead on. She had her confession, and she was steadily moving from investigation to passing judgement. "I'll give you one chance to explain yourself, Rex."
"I wasn't - !"
"And try not to dig yourself deeper."
"Well, fine, I guess I won't even tell you my damn - "
"Watch your language, young man."
"Why are you telling me to talk if you're just going to interrupt me?!" he snapped.
"Because I already know what you're going to say!" she rebuked him. "You're going to say Blair needed exercise - "
"Which she did!"
"And you're going to say that you had been cooped up inside for days - "
"Which I had!"
"And you're going to say you don't need to study any more, because you're already going to pass the test - "
"Which I am!"
"How?" She tilted her head. "With your cheat sheet?"
Rex's heart stopped. "H-how did you - !"
She raised an eyebrow, and he clamped his mouth shut tight. She got him again.
Patricia shook her head slowly. "You've been a troublemaker since you were born, Rex. But I've been a mother for a lot longer."
They stayed there for a moment, Patricia sitting and Rex standing, as his hands bunched into fists.
"…Am I supposed to apologize?" he nearly whispered. "For wanting more than this? For being willing to go out and take what I want instead of sitting here my whole life, working a job I hate, coming home to a crammed-full house with a family that are the most - "
She stood up to meet his level, and her voice rose with her. "Do you think I like being your warden instead of your mother?! Do you think I just make these rules up for fun?!"
His volume went up to match hers. "You make these rules because you don't trust me! You think I'm so stupid that - !"
"Then stop doing stupid things! How am I supposed to trust you when you can't even - !"
Up the stairs, Callie closed the door behind her as she walked into her room. It was going to be a loud night.
…
A/N:
Please remember that Rex's parents are two full-time workers doing their best with a very difficult son alongside five other children. They're not perfect, but they're very much in the right here, and are only treated as antagonists because this was written from Rex's perspective.
Fun note - all the family members are references to other villainous teams: Mell is Yell, Patricia is Plasma, Francis is Flare, Margo is Magma, Quinn is Aqua, Callie is Galactic, and Saul (not present) is Skull. These have no deeper meaning aside from references, though, so don't worry about it much.
Unrelated, but I just realized I got my scale for Treasure Island way off. Judging by the FRLG map, there's no way Rex should have been able to walk from the northern tip to the southern tip in under six hours. Whoops. Just another canon divergence, I guess - Treasure Island is officially much smaller than in canon.
*1 - Psychic connections are loosely divided into two things, being links and bonds. A human can link with just about any monster with enough time and mutual effort. A bond is much deeper, and only possible with your own monsters. It's also very taxing - there isn't a human alive who can fully bond with more than three monsters at once.