Between schoolwork, therapy, and studying for my learner's permit test, you'd think that I'd have less time to write. Not so. I still managed to put this chapter out quite soon after the last one. How's that for speedy?
This was my favorite chapter to type up thus far, and I hope you enjoy it. Thank you to Awesome Sawss for giving me this idea, even though he wasn't the one to suggest it. For those who don't know, Awesome Sawss has an awesome sawss story called That Glaceon, which this tale was inspired by. You should give it a read.
But did I write this to promote That Glaceon, or to write it for myself? It's the latter. So here we go.
The plan had been made, but it was not going to be put into practice just yet. This was a disappointment to Ulysses, Ethan, and Jason, but it was a sad reality of life at Camp Eevee. You had to wait your turn for things.
After their time at the jumping pillow was over, they all headed back to the cabin for shower hour. Essentially, this was exactly what it sounded like; all of the campers were forced to take showers, one after the other. Actually, to be fair, there were two shower stalls, but there was still a set order, which the counselors said would change every day.
Once their showers were over, the campers could relax on their beds until it was time for dinner. For the most part, nobody said anything, but all of them had their own thoughts.
One of these people deep in thought was Ulysses. The Umbreon didn't have any idea what he had gotten himself into. Not only was he not used to summer camp, but it was sure as hell looking like Jason and Ethan were going to go ahead with their plot.
Ulysses had never been to a slumber party at anyone else's house, which explained why he didn't know the hand in a bowl of warm water trick. After consulting with the other two, he'd learned how it worked. Supposedly, if you stuck a sleeping person's hand in a bowl of warm water, they would urinate on the bed. He'd never heard of this trick, and he had his doubts as to whether or not it would work. But it would be quite funny if it happened to someone who wasn't him.
You know what?, he thought to himself. It'll be fun. I'm going to join up with them, and we're going to make this the best prank ever.
As the Umbreon was deep in his own thoughts, Zora said, "Okay, it's time for dinner. Let's all head down to the dining hall now".
The campers followed the Zoroark lady out the door and past the large pine tree. Looking upwards, Grant wondered...was this going to be a good idea, or a bad idea?
Perhaps there is a prank involving the wasp nest, he thought to himself. Chuckling a small amount, but not enough for anyone else to notice, he thought, That'd be hilarious.
"So...what's for dinner tonight?" Liam asked Lucas as they were walking through the small clearing in the woods.
"Pizza" the Lucario replied, licking his lips. "Delivered here from a local place". It was no secret to the other counselors, as well as campers who had been here before, that Lucas was a major pizza enthusiast.
The campers all gathered, in lines based on cabins, in front of the dining hall. They didn't have to wait very long until the boy's head counselor, a tall Jolteon wearing a navy blue sweatshirt, rang the bell.
"It's dinnertime!" he announced excitedly.
All of the campers from Cabin Five, as well as dozens of others from various other cabins, bounded up the steps. Sammy, Jason, Ulysses, Freddie, Liam, Ethan, Grant, and Vincent made their way to Table 5, where they sat down. On the table, two pizza boxes had been placed.
"I'm used to pizza from Pizza Hutmonlee" Freddie said. "I don't know if I've ever had this pizza before".
"What region are you from again, Freddie?" Blake asked the Flareon, passing him the box.
"Kanto" Freddie replied. "And all the pizza there was from Pizza Hutmonlee, or Domino's, or something like that".
Lucas nodded. "I've heard that. In Sinnoh, it's mostly local chains, I think. They don't really have that many Pizza Hutmonlee places where I live, in Eterna City".
"You live in Eterna City?" Grant asked the Lucario counselor.
"I do" he replied.
Sammy looked at the pizza before him, and he wasn't very impressed. The pizza he was used to, from Pizza Hutmonlee, was circular in shape and had a thin crust.
The pizza from the local chain, which the box labeled as Matty B's Pizza, was a doughy square in shape, and had been cut into sixteen rectangular slices. There wasn't that much cheese on it, and it didn't look very appetizing to the wealthy Sylveon teen. However...he supposed that it was better than nothing.
As the campers started eating, the counselors started discussing things among each other. Eventually, Zora asked, "How was the trip up here for you guys? Did you run into a lot of traffic?"
"Not really" Ethan replied. Of course, the Espeon, like most of the other campers, had been asleep for a good part of the trip, so he couldn't really say for sure. However, the fourth-time camper had something to say about the ride.
"I think that you should play a different movie next year" he said. "I'm getting tired of watching Lucas's Adventure every year".
"Eh, that's not the top priority" Blake said. "Really, it's just one movie, and the camp bus, while it is part of the tradition, isn't the most important part. You know what I'm saying?"
The Espeon did know what Blake was saying, but that didn't mean he had to like it.
Even though the pizza appeared to be substandard, it really was anything but. Grant particularly liked doughy foods, so it was not a real surprise that he was enjoying this pizza. Even Sammy couldn't find much to complain about once he had actually tasted it.
Soon, all but one slice had been taken. Ulysses moved to take the last slice, and he started eating it. However…
"You kill it, you fill it. That's the rule here" Daniel said.
The Umbreon looked at the Dragonite, slightly puzzled.
Daniel reiterated himself. "Here, if you finish off the food, you have to go get more. That's the way it works".
Ulysses nodded. He took the empty pizza box and carried it in his mouth inside the dining hall. Almost immediately, he was surrounded by the sounds of many other Pokemon eating and chatting, which reverberated against the wooden walls and floor. Eventually, he made it to the front, where the chefs were all Lucario.
The Umbreon waited in line until it was his turn, and the chef placed some more pizza in the box, which Ulysses then delivered back to the table. He decided that he quite liked this system; it worked well.
Ethan whispered into his ear. "Liam...eleven PM. Got it?"
Ulysses nodded nervously. He knew that he might regret playing a part in the prank later, if indeed it did turn out to come back to haunt him. At this point, however, he was willing to do whatever it took to ingratiate himself deeper into this group.
It had to be said that the Umbreon was quite socially awkward in general, and often had a hard time fitting in to a group. Because of this, he jumped at the opportunity to be a part of a huge prank like this, even if it was one that would very much embarrass one of his cabinmates.
Eventually, dessert was brought out - apple pie, which did not disappoint. Once everyone had eaten their fill, they were left to hang out on the front lawn for a while, watching the sun sink over the lake.
The lake was probably several hundred yards wide, with canoes, kayaks, and rowboats on the edge. There was a small, fenced-in swimming area, as well as a slide floating in the middle of the water. Sammy assumed that it was anchored down, so that it didn't just float away.
"It's beautiful, isn't it?" said a voice from behind the Sylveon.
Sammy turned around to see that Vincent was the one standing behind him. The Vaporeon was looking quite pleased, and the Sylveon remembered that this was his sixth summer at camp. Something like that. No wonder he appeared happy - he must have loved it here, to come that many summers.
"All right, campers!" announced Lucas. "Put on some bug spray, because you'll need a lot of it where we're going. We're heading to the evening meeting!"
The campers of Cabin Five were led back through the woods and past their cabin. They were led alongside another cabin, which was the one that the boys' head counselor stayed in. It was the same head counselor, of course, that had been the one to ring the dinner bell.
The hill here was so steep that planks had been driven into the ground to form stairs. It was a steep climb, but thankfully not a long one, which led past a larger building.
"That's the central pavilion" Daniel told the campers. "For those of you who have never been here before, it's where we hold our meetings when it's raining out. Of course, it doesn't rain very much up here; we're rather lucky in that respect".
"Keywords being, up here" Zora said. "Remember to drink plenty of water, since this camp is at a pretty high elevation. You're going to need it, especially you, Grant".
Grant nodded. Since he was a Glaceon, Grant's body always required him to drink a lot of cold water, otherwise, he had been warned, heat exhaustion was a possibility during the summer.
"What's the weather supposed to be like for this session?" Jason asked Lucas. Ulysses could tell that the Jolteon was trying to act as innocent as possible, so that they didn't know what he was planning.
And once more, the shy little Umbreon wrestled with his own moral convictions. This is wrong, he told himself forcefully. I should not be assisting with this scheme to make Liam wet the bed. I should tell the counselors.
That would certainly have been the morally correct thing to do, and Ulysses was considering doing just that. However, he ultimately decided against it.
The reason for this was that, even if he told the counselors that Ethan and Jason had been planning the prank against Liam, they might not believe him. Since the other two were unlikely to admit to such an evil scheme, this meant that he, Ulysses Jackson, was going to be the one in trouble.
I'll let the chips fall where they may.
After walking down the hill and through a pavilion, the campers were led to an amphitheater of sorts, with benches set up in front of a stage. The benches were arranged in three columns, leading up a hill.
"Cabin Five all sit together" Zora said. The Zoroark lady was making sure that all of the campers were staying in line, and that they all got in the proper seats.
As Cabin Five got settled, they noticed dozens of other campers, from various other cabins, enter the amphitheater. Most of them were younger than the Eeveelutions of Cabin 5, and some of them had not yet achieved their evolved forms. Each cabin was led by their counselors, and they sat in a specified area of the amphitheater.
"Is everybody here?" came a voice from behind the doorway to the pavilion.
What appeared to be a backdrop for a scene in a play moved to the side, and in its place were a pair of Buizel. It was clear to see that one was male, and one was female.
"That's David and Erin Eevee", said Liam into Ulysses's ear. "They're the directors of the camp".
The Umbreon nodded, barely taking that in. All he could think about was what was going to happen that night...the prank to end all pranks. Was he really going to do it on this guy?
"Good evening, and welcome to another amazing summer at Camp Eevee!" annoounced the female, Erin. "For those who are new here, welcome! For those who have been here before, welcome back!"
There were shouts of applause from all over the hillside. Of course, many of the campers were faking it. Some of their parents had forced them to be here, and so the shouts of joy were just that - forced. However, many of them were genuine again, having genuinely looked forward to coming here for months.
"Are there any announcements that any staff members have to make?" David asked.
The Jolteon, the boys' head counselor, raised his hand.
"What is it, Ronen?" David asked.
"I'd just like to remind everybody that in four days, we will be having the Scholarship Contest".
"Could you please explain, Ronen, what that is, for those who have not been here before? Because not everybody knows that".
"Sure" Ronen replied. "Basically, it's an annual camp tradition. You sign up for one event- basketball, running, or swimming. Your parents have made pledges to this camp, such as five dollars per basket made, or whatever it may be. And that money is used to fund scholarships to this camp for those who can't afford it otherwise".
That news warmed the Umbreon's heart. His family had only been able to send him to camp due to a scholarship, and it was good to know that there was a way for other kids to have the same opportunity.
Of course, if Camp Eevee was really this crazy, with so many planned pranks and all that jazz, he wondered if that would really be doing them a favor. He hoped so, but he somehow doubted it.
"So", Ronen the Jolteon said, "the sign-up sheets are going to be in your cabins fairly soon...how soon, exactly, David?"
"They should be in there right now" the male Buizel announced. "So, if you want to sign up for a particular sport...make sure that you do sign up, because we can only have so many people swimming, for instance".
The campers all nodded at that bit of useful information.
"Any other announcements?"
Nobody spoke up, so Erin did.
"Tonight's evening activity is…".
All the counselors did a drumroll on their laps, but it was no surprise what was announced.
"CAMPFIRE NIGHT!"
All right. As I promised, I will respond to the reviews here, so here goes...ah, never mind.
You see, currently has this really annoying glitch that isn't letting me see the reviews except through my e-mail inbox. I would, however, like to thank everybody who gave me a review, because they are very much appreciated.
Also, if anyone would like to check out my other current project, Lucas's Adventure: Book A, that would be great.
With that, I'll see you next time!