Before I say anything else, I want to thank you all for the amazing support. Over 30 likes! That is not a small number, but it pales in comparison to what the author I'm dedicating this chapter to usually gets.

And that author is R37uy, aka Wisp The Vulpix! Wisp has always been an inspiration for me. In fact, I discovered his fics even before I found 30 Percent. He's an experienced writer. I enjoyed reading every single one of his fics, but his updates are a little on the slow side (Come on Wisp, give us an update!). I'm totally a hypocrite for saying that, though.

His PercentVerse story is a more interesting one, with peaks into the actions of the legendaries and the cause of the transformation.

I've actually spent the most time playing Minecraft with him (Yeah, I'm a Minecraft nerd). He's a fun guy to hang around with—it doesn't get better than that.

In terms of why dedicate this chapter specifically… Wisp's writing always had a light-hearted quality. I wanted this chapter to be lighter, and he was the perfect source of inspiration. Writing in a style like this is far out of my comfort zone, but I tried my best and it worked out great! This might just be my favourite piece of writing that I've done.

In fact, this may be my favourite piece of creative work that I made, ever.

I was almost afraid to open my eyes because… I felt fine. I checked myself over once I managed to summon the willpower to get up, and sure enough—I was miraculously left without a trace of injury.

I barely managed to resist the urge to leap off the bed and dance. It had been three days since I returned home, and I was tired of being bedridden! Instead, I carefully stepped off and stretched. An intense wave of pain hit me right when I was yawning, making me yowl loudly. I was collapsed on the floor for a whole minute until the pain passed.

"Sorin? You okay?"

My mother peeked in from behind the door, presumably having heard the commotion. I stood up and gave her a reassuring smile.

"You're fine? And you're up! Feeling better?"

I nodded. My mother breathed a sigh of relief.

"Thank goodness! I didn't want to admit it, but I was beginning to think you'll be stuck like you were forever. Now get over here. We're getting you cleaned up. You look like a mess."

—%—

A mess is an understatement, I thought as I looked in the bathroom mirror. My fur looked gray from being so dirty.

My mother brought with her a stuffed bag of supplies. "Look here, we've got brushes, special shampoo, grooming stuff… You should have seen the pet store. They were getting raided. Seriously, I'm surprised the building didn't explode with how many people there were."

She reached over to turn on the water but hesitated and glanced back at me. "Are you comfortable with me helping you bathe?"

I looked down for a second, just to make sure everything's covered up. It didn't really feel awkward like it should have, now that I was thinking about it.

I nudged my mother's hand gently with my muzzle. She got the message and began helping me into the tub. I flinched a little when the warm water brought up some unpleasant memories but quickly relaxed once I realized how nice it felt. I sunk in as all the tension I didn't know I had left my body.

My mother rinsed away the dust and soot, then began to massage my body with shampoo. It was so—

"Are you purring?"

I was what?

"Aw, you're cute." My mother patted my head.

I felt my face heat up with embarrassment, but I couldn't stop purring, even as she dried me off and began grooming me. At some point, I gave up and just laid down and closed my eyes. The soft brush moved through my fur and sent soothing waves of pleasure across my body.

"And done!"

Just as I was starting to enjoy it!

Wait, was I really enjoying it? It did feel soothing, and if my purring was any indication…

Was my humanity slipping away? Or am I just accepting my new body? I certainly hoped it was the latter.

Speaking of my body, I gave it an appraising look in the mirror. With my thick white coat now clean and neat, I actually looked quite… cool. My oversized sharp bits combined with red eyes was a little intimidating. I made a mental note to be careful not to cut anything by accident.

Maybe if I had known Pokémon before, Absol would have been one of my favourites. I suppose I got lucky transforming into an Absol.

"How is it? Like your new look?"

I yipped in confirmation.

"A clean Absol is the best Absol. Now, I have a little gift for you." She rummaged through the supply bag and retrieved a small black box.

"You ready?"

The box opened to reveal a gorgeous necklace with a silver chain and a golden pendant shaped like a pair of wings. The very center of the pendant had a circular hole with a ying-yang-esque pattern etched around it.

"I realized that all elementals of the same species probably look very similar, so I went to find something I can identify you with. I thought of a collar, but that'll make you feel like a pet. I thought of a scarf, but I figured it'll be too cumbersome. Then I remembered this necklace. It's a family heirloom of sorts, but no one really knows where it came from. It suits you, don't you think?"

She put the necklace around my neck, and it fit perfectly. I could bury it in my chest fluff to hide it or have it rest on top. I love it! I nuzzled my mother's side before I realized what I was doing. She chuckled and hugged me briefly.

"Let's go get some breakfast."

I marvelled at my new trinket one last time in the mirror before following my mother downstairs. The mysterious jewellery felt oddly familiar, like I've seen it somewhere before but couldn't quite place where.

Clara immediately rushed towards me the moment she spotted me approaching. "Are you better?"

I was about to reply when a burning sensation came over my body. I gritted my teeth and tried not to react, but Clara caught on. "I guess not, then…"

"I'm okay! Other than apparently occasional little episodes, I'm back to normal!"

"No, really! I'll probably fully recover soon." I added when she gave me a disbelieving look.

"Seriously?"

"Seriously."

Was it my imagination, or did her eyes gain a new sparkle?

She suddenly tackled me in a hug.

"Umph! Hey, mind the sharp bits!" I wasn't really annoyed, though. She was warm and fluffy! And cute. Wait…

"Eep!" She released me. "Sorry, I got too excited. I was so worried that you were never going to get better!"

My father peeked over from behind the Flareon. "There's barely any room in here with that wiggling brush of yours, Clara!"

Clara squeaked and tucked her tail beside her.

I shared a wide grin with my father. "Hey, Dad."

"Good morning, son. Nice necklace. It's great to see that you're well."

My stomach growled as the scent of bacon reached me. My mother came over with plates of food. Crispy bacon wrapped in golden French toast, cut into bite-sized bits and covered with maple syrup, with fresh fruits on the side—now that's breakfast!

"Well, I suppose we could talk while eating," my father said as he saw me stare intensely at the food.

I dug in as soon as a plate was put in front of me. I had been eating nothing but berry-based stuff for days! I cleaned off my plate and looked up to find everyone paused on their first bites and staring at me. My parents were trying hard not to laugh while Clara was looking at me like I was an alien. "Uh…"

My mother burst out giggling. "Oh, that was too good! I've never seen you do anything so fast! Your dad must have really done something special with his cooking today."

"Wait, Dad, did you make all this by yourself? These are amazing!"

My father shrugged. "With the help of a few stools. I've been doing a little better at everything lately, actually. Clara said something about me being a psychic type and my mind becoming sharper. Oh, quit looking so awkward, Clara. How are you liking the food?"

"It's delicious. Thank you for accommodating me, Mr. and Mrs… erm…"

"Breon," my father replied. "And thank you for being so polite."

He gave me a look.

"Hey!" When you're that hungry, decency can take the backseat.

"Anyways," he continued, "please just treat us like family while you're staying here. It's the least we can do under these circumstances. I hope you'll be able to reach your parents soon. They must be worried sick."

"Yeah."

"Not that we want you gone," my father added. "You've been the most helpful."

"I wish I could understand what you're all saying," my mother said after a moment of silence. "I feel like the odd one out here, which seems ridiculous."

A mischievous grin grew on my father's face. "There is a way. Clara has been assisting me with something for the past few days. Something psychic."

"Oh? Telepathy?" I guessed.

"You got it! This is the perfect opportunity to pull a little prank, don't you think?"

"Ooh, I'm in!" I declared. "Clara?"

"Sounds like fun!" she agreed.

"Perfect!" My father leaned in towards us and started talking about a plan.

My mother narrowed her eyes at us. "What are you all huddled together for?"

Of course, she received no response.

—%—

"I'll clean up. You three can go and relax."

My mother waved us off after we finished breakfast.

"That's our cue!" said my father.

We gathered around the corner of the doorway that led to the kitchen.

"Test. Can you hear me?"

"Loud and clear, Dad!" I whispered.

"Yep!" Clara confirmed.

"Great. Let's get this thing going."

I peeked around the corner and watched my mother gather up the plates on the floor. My role in the plan was to simply observe and give signals. I waved my horn twice when I saw my mother place the dishes in the sink.

"Lucy."

The voice rang inside my head. It was my father's telepathy, but he was projecting a deep and authoritative voice instead of his own. Judging by her reaction, my mother heard the same thing, too. She flinched so hard she had to hold on to the countertop to keep balance.

"What was that?"

"Lucy, wake up."

"What?"

"Lucy, wake up. You've been in this dream for far too long."

"I'm hearing things."

"You need to wake up. I can help."

"You're telling me I've been dreaming this entire time? Who are you anyway?"

"I'm the dream spirit. I only show myself to mortals when something goes wrong with a dream. Your dream has gone very wrong."

My mother jumped as she noticed something by her side. I tried not to laugh as Clara approached her. Clara was wearing a light blue silk curtain that covered her, and with a bit of glow from her inner flame, she looked ethereal.

My mother rubbed her eyes and blinked rapidly. "I'm… not hallucinating, am I?"

"Follow me, and I shall take you out of this dream."

"Everything will go back to normal?"

"Everything will go back to normal."

"I almost don't want to think…" My mother sighed. "Why would I even question anything at this point. Fine. Take me away."

She fell for it! I couldn't believe she was fooled by the act so easily. I gave my father a wave of a paw. He flashed me a grin, then snuck into the washroom and closed the door, just in time before Clara and my mother came through the hallway.

"When you open this door, you will wake up."

"That's it?"

Come on, just open the door!

"Any last thoughts?"

Darn it, Dad.

My mother drew in a breath. "Is disappointment an appropriate response? I mean, I don't like how things are going, yes, but I really thought we could have made it through. Ever since Sorin came back, the situation has been improving. Our family relationship wasn't great before, and the whole transformation thing has magically brought us closer than ever before. Evan—" that was my father's name—" has gotten much livelier, like he got his youthful self back. Sorin… I think we learned to appreciate each other much more. He would have never allowed me to hug him. None of this would have happened if it weren't for the change."

Well, this is awkward. None of us had prepared for my mother to go off like that.

"And Clara!"—the "dream spirit" trembled at the mention—"She's so nice, like a second child we never got to have. She helped us so much when Sorin was resting—teaching us basics about Pokémon, looking after Sorin… I know she'd have to go back to her parents soon, but still.

"Would things have been better? I suppose it doesn't matter now. But you'd know, right, spirit?"

Whatdowedowhatdowedo

"I'm sorry." My father came out of the room, tears welling up in his eyes. "It was supposed to be a prank, but I've just given you false hope."

"It was just you? How?"

"Telepathy, and… Clara, Sorin, you can come out now."

Clara shook the curtain off her, and I revealed myself from my hiding spot. Clara started fidgeting with her paws while I looked around, not sure where to rest my gaze. We simply sat in silence for what felt like hours.

"I'm so sorry. I didn't think this through." My father finally spoke up.

My mother suddenly burst into laughter. "Ha, ha-ha! It was pretty ridiculous how I got fooled by that, eh?"

The Meowstic only had a sad frown on his face. "You don't have to pretend to make me feel better."

"I'm not pretending, promise! You would have gotten me good! And, well… I meant everything I said. We are better." My mother smiled at my father, but he still looked down.

She suddenly picked up the Meowstic and placed him on her lap while sitting down on the floor, provoking a startled "Hey!" that quickly turned into a low purr as she began scratching the back of his ears. My father was blushing so hard it looked like his fur had turned red, but he didn't protest.

My mother giggled. "Sure, this worked on Sorin and Clara, but you as well? You're all a bunch of cuties!"

I had to laugh at the sight of my father acting like a cat, too. He was always composed in my mind, but between suggesting the elaborate prank and this, apparently he had a different side!

My mother put him down eventually. He beckoned Clara and me over. "If you want to talk, I can translate now."

"Um," Clara began.

"Yes?" my mother prompted.

"Do you really see me as…?"

"A second child? I do! You've been nothing but amazing!"

Clara had nothing to say but a faint "wow." She lowered her head and looked thoughtful.

"What's wrong? Do your parents not think the same of you?"

"My parents are usually very busy, so we were never too close."

"Oh, you poor child. I'm sure they love you all the same."

"Yeah."

"Come and give me a hug."

My mother took the opportunity to also drag my father over.

"Group hug!" she declared. "Sorin, get over here. It's so warm!"

And to that, I replied, "No, thanks! I'll just cut you all up in the mess anyway."

"They're not that sharp."

"They're sharp enough."

"And you escape again! How do you keep managing that?"

I did have a record of avoiding hugs, especially group hugs. It's mostly because I find physical contact awkward. I'm much more comfortable now, but group hugs are still a no. Although drowning in all that fluff did look a little fun. Just a little.

"So, you're not mad at me for pulling the prank?" my father asked after they disentangled themselves.

"All forgiven. I'd even say it was a success. It ended with us all having fun and laughing at the end, didn't it?"

"Well, in that case, you can say that we had—" My father did an exaggerated wink—"a Meowstical experience."

"I take it all back. You were better when you were old and tired all the time."

—%—

"Whoa, it's pitch black."

"What's going on?"

"The power cut out, I think."

"Hey Clara, is that you?"

"Yeah," Clara responded. "I can glow a little. I'm not bright enough to help, though."

"Heh." That was my father chuckling. "Glowing fox."

"I can still see," I reported. "I've got dark vision."

"Great! Can you fetch the battery lamp for us?"

"Of course."

I went in search of the lamp but paused at the window. "It's all smoky outside! No wonder it got so dark."

I found the lamp, but it was placed high up on a shelf.

"Careful," I mumbled as I propelled myself up on my hind legs and grabbed onto the shelf to stay steady. From there, I was able to pick up the lamp with my mouth.

I made my way back to my mother and bumped her leg.

"Oh, thanks, Sorin. Good boy!" she said jokingly before turning on the lamp.

"Holy smog!" My father exclaimed telepathically. "Quick, check if there's a fire."

My mother was already on it. "No fire. Power's down for the whole city, but only our area got the smog. The causes for it are unknown, and we're recommended to stay inside. Look, someone posted a picture of the smoke cloud from outside."

It looked like a scene from some sort of doomsday movie. The smog was dense enough that not a trace of moonlight shone through. Thankfully none of it seemed to be able to enter the house.

I turned to Clara. "Is this also some elemental trick?"

Clara tilted her head. "There's Smog—the move—and Smokescreen, but to pull off something of this scale… it would have to a lot of elementals, or a legendary."

"Now I can't cook dinner." my father grumbled.

"I mean…" I eyed Clara. "We do have the tools for it."

"If you crack an egg on me, it will not cook," Clara said deadpan.

"Pfft! Thanks for the mental image. Seriously, though, we might be able to make this work. Just gotta be careful not to burn the house down."

"What's the plan?" I asked.

"If we hold a pan up, Clara can breathe some low fire from underneath, and it should be safe. We won't do anything special, just fry some eggs to make egg sandwiches. It's not as if we need heat to make a meal. This could be fun, though!"

"Let's try it!" Clara decided.

"Aw, I'm not tall enough," my father realized after he grabbed a pan. "Hey Lucy!"

"Yes?"

"Come help us try something. Can you hold this up? Yeah, right there. Go, Clara."

Clara blew a stream of low but steady fire. My father hopped up a stool and cracked a few eggs into the pan. "Hey, it's working! Keep it up, Clara!"

While the eggs were cooking, my father went and started preparing the rest of the ingredients for the sandwich. I felt a bit useless sitting on the side. "Hey, can I help at all?"

"Er," My father scratched his head. "I really can't think of anything, sorry. Oh wait, I have an idea!"

He lodged two plates between my horn. "You can hold the plates!"

An episode decided to come at the worst time. I flinched and almost stumbled into Clara, then had to spin around to try and keep the plates on my head.

"Whoooah!" I stumbled all over the kitchen and tripped over myself, narrowly avoiding a face plant, sending the plates flying into the air in the process.

I braced for the plates to fall on my head, but that never happened. I looked up and found them suspended in the air.

"I'm dropping them!" my father suddenly cried as gravity reclaimed the plates. With a synchronized movement, I caught one with my mouth, and my father caught the other.

My mother watched the whole ordeal and began clapping very enthusiastically.

"Whoo!" she cheered with a big grin on her face. "Nice moves! You two can go start a circus!"

I was a bit embarrassed but mostly surprised. "What was that, Dad?"

"Telekinesis, I think." My father rubbed the back of his head. "Didn't even know I could do that."

"Eggs are done!"

"Yay!" Clara was panting slightly.

"Tired?" I asked.

"It was a bit of a workout, but breathing fire's fun!"

"Yeah, breathing is fun," I said sarcastically.

"What do you know? You're not a fire type!"

"True. I bet I'll still learn to breathe fire one day, then we can talk."

"Then you'll understand!"

"Anyways," I redirected the topic, "Dinner time! The eggs smell amazing."

"And you have me to thank for that!"

"Mmm."

She rolled her eyes as she realized that my mouth was already stuffed with egg sandwich. "Food's your thing, isn't it?"

I swallowed. "Hey, you're welcome to not eat if food's not your thing! More food for me!"

"Pfft."

"You're teasing each other an awful lot there," my father said with a sly smile.

"What's that supposed to mean?" I shot back.

"Nothing," he said nonchalantly.

"Hey, can someone pass a napkin?" my mother asked.

My father waved his arm. "Wait! Lemme try this!"

He put his arms to the side of his head dramatically and started humming, although that was probably also for effect. Sure enough, the napkin levitated towards my mother and landed on her outstretched hand.

"Nice! You know, I could get used to having three super helpers."

We all puffed up a little at that.

"It's heartwarming to see you all adapting to your new bodies and learning new skills. Just remember that I'll never treat you like an animal, regardless of my teasing. You will always be equal to me, no matter the appearance. On another note, we work together great, don't we?"

"Yeah, go team!" my father waved his arms. "We're going to be unstoppable!"

Despite the gloomy sky outside, I couldn't help but feel that our future was looking bright.

"Hey, I know what can stop you." Clara had a sparkle in her eyes.

"What's that?"

"Inescapable hugs!" She pounced on me before I could react.

Yep. Bright, warm and fluffy. Guess she's gotten more comfortable with me.

*Ring, ring*

Who could be calling us at this time?

"I'll go get it." My mother got up from the table.

She came back with a solemn expression. "Caller says his name is Erik Parker, and he's got emergency business."

Word count is 3630