A New World

By

WYLD STALLYNZ

As Dice started to type, Luna looked back to Mrs. Scifo, tugging at her pant leg gently to get her attention. "Yes, dear?" Mrs. Scifo asked, looking down to Luna.

Luna pointed upstairs with her paw, her let ear ticking downwards, imitating a clock, before uttering a short, sharp, "Bree!"

Mrs. Scifo blinked, then gasped, her free hand going to her mouth. "The banana bread! I completely forgot about it! Thank you, dear!"

Moonstone's eyes flashed open as his mother put her other arm around him, stabilizing him against her as she started rushing back upstairs and through the halls to head back to her kitchen. While Moonstone's kitchen was small and more utilitarian, his mother's kitchen on the other side of the house was much larger, with many different appliances littering the counter space.

She carefully set Moonstone back down on the floor, slipping on oven mittens as she hurriedly took out a large, steaming loaf of banana bread. "Oh thank Arceus... It's still good! Thanks again, dear," she smiled, thanking the Umbreon by stroking her a couple times, before turning her attention back to the food she was baking.

Moonstone took a deep breath, his body still flowing with a little adrenaline. He sighed, before walking briskly around the kitchen to burn off the nervous energy, trying to calm himself. After a moment, however, when he saw Luna staring at him, he quirked an eyebrow, inquiring, "Moonsong? You okay?"

"Hmm?" she blinked, her eyes half-lidded. After a second, however, her eyes shot open, glancing away as she replied quickly, "Y-yeah, of course I'm fine! I was just umm... Making sure you weren't hurt from before?"

"Oh... Thanks a lot, M-Moonsong," he yawned, his body shaking slightly as he took a deep breath, his tongue sticking out. He sagged, swaying slightly. "Ugh... I think I need to sleep," he murmured, his eyes going out of focus slightly.

Moonsong rushed to his side, supporting him again as she slowly coaxed him over to a corner of the kitchen where a large, purple cushion lay. Encouraging him, she helped him lay down on her cushion, smiling to herself as he gave another cat-like yawn, curling up into a ball instinctively, tucking his paws underneath himself. He was asleep within moments.

Luna wasn't sure for how long she stood staring at the sleeping form in front of her, when she was suddenly picked up by Mrs. Scifo, who stroked her slowly, asking softly, "And why are you just standing there, hmm dear?"

Luna blushed, her ears folding against her head as she glanced away, grateful that Moon's mom wouldn't be able to understand anything she said. "I-I was just, umm..."

Much to her surprise, Mrs. Scifo giggled, saying in a teasing voice, "You were... What, eyeing Moonstone now that he's an Espeon, a Pokemon like you?"

Luna's jaw dropped before she glanced away quickly, her face starting to heat up once more. "O-of course not! Don't be ridiculous! E-even if I did, there's no way he'd feel the same way!"

Mrs. Scifo, not being able to understand, just kept stroking the Umbreon gently, continuing, "It's only natural to be attracted to your own kind, but don't be stupid, alright? He's still Moonstone, and suggesting something like that might hurt your friendship..."

Setting her back down on the floor, Mrs. Scifo went back to baking, hoping to distract herself while she waited for her husband to get some results as to how and why this happened to their son. Luna, on the other hand, padded back over to Moonstone slowly, talking quietly to herself. "I... she's right, of course. I can't entertain crazy ideas like that... He's still going to see me as his pet, not his equal, even if he is an Espeon... A gorgeous, muscular Epseon with fur that matches mine," she continued, her eyes starting to grow half-lidded, before they widened in shock, shaking her head rapidly. "No! Can't think like that! I..."

Sighing, she settled down against Moonstone, whispering to herself, "I just need some sleep... Yeah, that's it. I haven't slept in two days, and that's what's making me think such crazy things!"

Having convinced herself of what the problems were, she settled in against Moonstone, falling asleep as she closed her eyes, a small smile on her face.

.o.O.o.

"... and that's how the Rayquaza Cult was founded," Dice finished, smiling at Moonstone's befuddled father. "Any more questions?"

"Duuude..." Axew whispered in awe. "And I thought I was spaced..."

Cassie raised a hoof.

Dice raised an eyebrow. "You, the Ponyta with the coat color... what was your name again?"

"Cassie," the Ponyta replied. "What I want to know is why they put you in charge if the one that actually started the cult was Prof. Oak?"

Blaze stared at her. "Are you seriously asking her questions about that?"

"Ahem, I will type it for the benefit of the human. Yes, well, although Prof. Oak was the one that started the cult, he was too far drunk to actually claim leadership, and since I was too young to drink and had only joined because they needed someone to illustrate their pamphlets, I just made a case proving to them that they needed me more than I needed them. And thenthey made me their leader."

Blaze sighed and turned to the Axew. "Can you believe that?"

"Duude... that's like, crazy!" Sage agreed. "I mean, whoa man! Just, whoa... I never thought I'd be standing in the same room as the Great Pazooz of the Rayquaza Cult!"

"The great what now?" Blaze asked.

"Yeah, bro... like, I thought she was craaaaazy, as in, lost beyond the redeeming powers of Mary Jane... but she knows bro... she knooows..."

"Knows what, exactly?"

"The secret origins of the Cult!" Axew whispered in awe.

"But... you just said earlier that she was clearly spaced!" Blade argued.

"No, my fiery bro... we are allspaced."

"No, we're not!" Blade snapped. "I don't do drugs! I keep my body clean of-"

"Like, we're all in a planet, right? And planets float in space, my friend... you just don't see it because we're blinded..."

"... by the system," Blade growled. "You're going to say we're blinded by the system, aren't you?"

"Nah... it's the light dude; the light blinds you because the truth is too shiny to truly comprehend..."

Blade started smacking his face on the floor.

Mr. Scifo looked at the odd behaviour of Blade, who he had just found out was a fighter and almost hesitantly raised his hand.

Dice nodded and typed away. "Yes, human?"

"Why is Blade smacking his face on the metal floor?"

Dice looked at the Cyndaquil as it stumbled back after a particularly vicious face-slam. She then typed, "He's been stoned."

"Oh..." Mr. Scifo said a bit uncertainly as his hand lowered.

Cassie, for her part, was holding her head in her hooves. "Why did I have to end up here with these people? Why? I really didn't hate my job that much... dealing with drunkards is easier than dealing with this gang... why?" she lamented.

Mr. Scifo cleared his throat. "So... were you all this crazy, or did the transformation somehow addle you?"

"This is our coping method, human," Dice typed in response. "We had to protect our fragile minds after your son had his way with all of us."

Mr. Scifo's eyebrow twitched. "My son what?"

"Had his way with us," Dice typed. "He completely took over..."

"What in the name of Ho-Oh are you talking about?" Cassie asked, reading the screen with incredulous eyes. "Dice, are you really that-"

"Especially poor Cassie," Dice typed. "He made her trot her way all the way here."

Mr. Scifo's face was neutral. "I will give you one chance only to retract from what you have just implied, even if it was in jest."

Dice stared at Mr. Scifo.

Mr. Scifo stared back.

"I like you, human..." Dice typed grudgingly. "You're a tough nut to crack, Mr. Scifo."

Moon's dad smiled ever-so-slightly. "Thank you. Now, let's see the data my son collected..."

The group watched in silence as Mr. Scifo pulled up graphs and studied the DNA strands on the computer. Minutes passed and the only sound other than the typing was Wave's soft snoring. Slowly the others curled up where they were, still watching until, one by one, they fell asleep as Dice observed and Mr. Scifo typed.

After some time, Moonstone's father glanced at Dice, who had a far away look in her eyes. "I'm surprised this doesn't bother you as much as the others," he said.

Dice started, and looked over at him before floating up and typing on the word processor. "What do you mean? I always joke around when I'm nervous."

"That might be true, but you don't seem to have as much trouble dealing with your situation as you might want all of us to think," Mr. Scifo said softly, trying to not wake up the others. "You seem almost glad this happened."

Dice remained silent for a moment. "I am," she typed. "I'm not who I used to be anymore. I don't want a cure. I don't want to be a human again, and be once more on square one. I... I wasn't happy with who I was."

Mr. Scifo looked at the Latias with a neutral expression. "There's a story behind this, I think."

Dice snorted, and then looked guiltily at the others. When no-one stirred she sighed. "Yeah... I just recently turned eighteen..." she typed, then looked at Moonstone's father. "You have to promise to keep this a secret... I don't even know why I trust you and Moon with my stuff, but don't tell even him about this, okay?"

Mr. Scifo nodded.

"I just turned 18... and the first thing I did was leave home without anything other than some empty Pokeballs... I went straight to the Pokemon Center and asked Nurse Joy to help me file the paperwork needed to be legally free of my parents."

Mr. Scifo blinked, frowning as he looked at the Latias, who did not return the stare. "That's... I know that's possible, and it's a service provided for all Trainers but... why would you... did they... did they abuse you?"

Dice shook her head. "Nah. I just... I was never close to them... they weren't thatbad but... they weren't that great either... we never had any real emotions to tie us together... I just couldn't... relate to them." She shrugged, doing her best to ignore the look of almost pity Mr. Scifo was giving her. "I think... I think they're happier without me," she typed a bit faster. "And it's not like I really mind... who needs a family anyway? I mean, look at me! I get along better with Moon and you than my parents!"

Mr. Scifo stopped her rambling by placing his hand on her shoulder. "It's okay," he said, deleting the conversation from the word processor. "You don't have to worry about that anymore... you're your own Pokemon now."

Dice trembled a bit, and nodded. Then cleared her throat as she typed, "What is taking Moon so long, anyway?"

Mr. Scifo was silent. "Dice, what's your relationship with my son? You seemed a bit comfortable around him."

Dice chuckled as she typed. "Ah, that, I just like to tease him. He needs to relax, you know? I admit we hit it off from the get-go, but he's more like a really good friend than anything else. I have no emotional interest in him, no offense."

Mr. Scifo chuckled as well. "I see, like a brother, you would say?"

Dice blinked. "Yeah... I guess I could call him my bro..." she giggled. "I certainly tease him enough..."

Mr. Scifo smiled. "Well, then, how about we adopt you into the family and you can claim him as an actual 'Bro'?"

.o.O.o.

Moonstone groaned slightly, waking up slowly, trying to figure out what it was that had woken him up from his great nap. He blinked a few times, before he registered what he was seeing. Curled up next to him was Luna, her hind legs and lower torso curled at his stomach. Her torso resting on his, her head resting on his shoulder. His face flushed when he noticed how close her head was to his, a blush forming wildly across his cheeks. He chuckled, however, when he saw that her mouth was open a little, just starting to drool. His body shook just a little, causing her to moan cutely, snuggling closer to Moonstone as she started to purr very quietly.

Moonstone was quieted by the blush spreading once more across his face as he stared at her. 'What is wrong with me? She's just Luna...'

Struggling with his thoughts, he very slowly and carefully maneuvered his way from under Luna, watching as she clutched her tail with her forelegs, pulling it to her chest as she hugged it in her sleep. 'Wow, she's really cute like that,' he thought to himself, his face flushing once more. 'Gah! Why do I keep thinking that? I just need to wake up. Yeah, that's it.'

Deeply flustered, he headed straight downstairs, knowing that doing some research would help clear his mind. That's why he loved science so much. It might be hard to understand, but every law eventually broke down to simple equations just waiting to be solved. His thoughts were interrupted, however, as he heard Dice typing away at the computer. He paused at the bottom of the steps, listening in as his father said, "Dice, what's your relationship with my son? You seemed a bit comfortable around him."

He snuck his head around the corner, padding forward silently, trying to read the screen from so far away, surprised that he could make out her response. 'I guess cats have better vision. Awesome!'

His ears twitched, pivoting as they turned to hear his dad ask, "I see, like a brother, you would say?"

Moonstone's eyes widened slightly as he stopped moving, rooted to the spot. 'Oh no... Please no. Don't you even go there; she will make my life a living h-'

"Well, then, how about we adopt you into the family and you can claim him as an actual 'Bro'?"

Moonstone's left eye twtched involuntarily, his brain shutting down as he tried to comprehend what his father had just suggested, but failed. Only managing to utter a squeak, he blacked out, falling to his side senseless, the shock overwhelming him.

.o.O.o.

Dice stared at Mr. Scifo in disbelief. Had she heard right? After going through the trouble of legally disowning him-herself from her family, she was being asked to jump into a new one? And she hadn't even known these people for more than what, two hours? Were the rich really that insane? Or did they really like her? Was it out of pity? Because if it was, there was no way in hell that she-

Mr. Scifo and Dice heard a thump and turned to look in surprise at Moonstone, who had apparently heard the last part of the conversation and passed out.

Dice looked back at Mr. Scifo. "I'll do it."

.o.O.o.

"Mooooooon~" Dice called, poking the Espeon on the ribs with one of her claws. "Wakey, wakey!"

Moonstone twitched, but didn't wake up, his tail immobile on the floor.

Dice sighed. Then poked harder. "Waaahahahahaaake uuuuuoooop..." When it didn't work, she started buzzing like a mosquito around his head, sometimes louder, sometimes softer to give the impression that it was flying away and back.

Moonstone groaned, his brain finally starting to reboot, though only enough to cause him to wince, trying to shut out the visual and audio annoyances coming from the room in general.

Dice sighed and picked up the Espeon from under his arms and shook him. "I said wake up!"

Luna walked into the room in time to see Dice shaking Moonstone somewhat roughly. Having only just woken up as well, Luna, jumping to conclusions, yelled, "Hey! I thought I told you not to hurt my master! Put him down gently right this second!" she demanded, bristling as she bared her fangs.

"Ugh, alright, alright, 'm awake!" Moonstone protested groggily, struggling to open his eyes and get his vision to focus. "Luna? Where'd you go?"

Dice's smile became Haunter-like. "Oooh... Luna? Did you just... wake up and call for Luna? Oh, this is awesome..." She grinned at the Umbreon and wiggled her eyebrows suggestively. "Been having fun you two? Cuddling up? Kissing?"

Both Luna and Moonstone's faces turned red, looking away from each other as they both tried to stammer protests. "W-wh-what are you talking ab-of course we weren't-I mean, the idea of that is-"

"Delicious? Scrumptious? Appealing? Really nice? As in, really, really nice? Something you want to do every day of every week of every year?" Dice grinned like a maniac. Time to twist the knife. "Oh, Luna! My brother is growing up so fast!" she squealed, then said a bit calmer, "Take it easy on him, he's... inexperienced."

If Moonstone's face was red before, now he was violet from embarrassment. He was so angry and so embarrassed at the same time that all he could do was leave his jaw open, trying to protest, but failing. Luna was not much better, her face flaming as she now her best not to imagine herself and her master in his new form in an intimate environment, but that only made things worse for the poor Umbreon. Finally, the images becoming too intense for her, she ran back upstairs, away from the horrible, horriblecreature who would suggest that they would do such...Inappropriate actions!

While Luna ran off, trying not to think of them cuddling, and perhaps even kissing, Moonstone finally regained his speech as he screamed at the top of his lungs, "What the hell is your problem? Why would you even suggestsomething like that?"

Dice chuckled. "What, isn't she a bit too protective of you? She likes you, mark my words. I've been a Pokemon Watcher for a few years; I know these things."

Moonstone, who had just began to recover, turned purple again as he protested, "W-what? D-don't be ridiculous! I-I mean, a Pokemon and a human-"

"A Pokemon and a Pokemon,you mean." Dice interrupted, wagging her eyebrows again.

"B-but... T-that's still the same thing!" Moonstone weakly protested, dropping from her grasp. "I'm still a human at heart, and isn't that what it comes down to?"

"What are you guys talking about that has Moon all worked up?" Mr. Scifo interrupted, watching how his son's face was still purple, wondering what was said by Dice to make Luna run off like she did.

Dice went up to the computer and typed, "Oh, I'm just teasing him and letting him know that I accepted being part of his family... he's surprised to find out he has a little sister now."

Dice grinned at Moonstone. "Right? Besides, you'll find out if what I said was true sooner or later. I'll apologize to Luna if it makes you feel better."

"Y-yeah, you'd better go apologize to her! Go on, get out of here! I have experiments to run, research to be done, and I'd like to do it while I'm still alive!"

Dice chuckled. "I'll leave you to it..." She flew up the stairs after Luna, leaving Moonstone behind with his dad and a bunch of sleeping Pokemon.

Sighing in relief, Moonstone turned to the computer, typing, "Figures you'd adopt a troll into the family... Here's what she REALLY said..."

.o.O.o.

Dice floated up the stairs and took her first look at the kitchen. It was big and had a lot of counter space. "Awesome." Dice grinned as her eyes slowly settled on the door that led to the Living Room, where she could hear Mrs. Scifo talking softly to someone.

Slowly, she peeked through the open door to see a slightly trembling Luna curled up on Mrs. Scifo's 'or should I call her mom?' lap as the human woman slowly stroked the Umbreon's back.

Noticing movement from the next room, Mrs. Scifo looked up, seeing the purple Latias. "Oh, hello dear. Did you need something? What are you looking for?"

Dice smiled pleasantly and did her best to bow politely at the Scifo matriarch. Then she carefully pointed at Luna. "Can I borrow Luna for a minute?"

"Hmm? Is she alright?" Mrs. Scifo asked, trying to guess at what the Latias' cooing voice was saying. "I don't rightly know. The poor dear ran in here just a minute ago, shaking furiously! I've been trying to calm her down, a-"

"Leave me alone," Luna muttered, interrupting her master's mother. "If you know what's good for you, go get lost."

"Oh, come on, Luna, give me a chance..." Dice said floating slightly closer, but leaving enough personal space so that the Umbreon wouldn't feel pressured. "I'm sorry I upset you, I just want to talk for a bit, okay?"

"Talk about what?" she muttered, glaring at the offending Pokemon. "Talk about how you insulted my honor for even insinuating that I'd do anything... inappropriate... to my master?"

Dice sighed. "Look, Luna, it's just teasing okay? I admit it was a bit too vicious, especially since you don't know how I am and how much of a jerk and tease I can be at times, but it's just... well, in part it's a coping method and in part this is how I am... and I think being a Latias makes it even worse! I see a chance and I jump on it! I can see you really care for Moon and perhaps I shouldn't have taken that jump to tease you about something that's not on either of your minds right now, but I really didn't want to hurt your feelings." Dice smiled. "Can you forgive me? Maybe we can be friends?"

"I honestly don't know," Luna replied after a moment of sullen silence. "I mean, yeah, you're supposedly a human who got turned into a Pokemon, but everyPokemon knows not to suggest anything like... that... You couldn't insult someone more if you tried!"

"Well, I don't really know Pokemon social rules! Except than what I have observed in Wild Pokemon, and honestly, Pokemon seem to be less likely to beat around the bush than humans." Dice grinned. "But, having said that, I understand that this is perhaps a bit too much for you, so for your benefit I will curve my opinions of such matters while in your presence as a sign of peace." Dice's grin again creeped into Haunter levels. "Besides, as the newest member of the family I shouldn't really provoke any of the others, right?"

Luna blinked, then said slowly, "No... Just because you got turned into a Pokemon like Moonstone does notmean you're family!"

"Oh, nonono, I agree, uh... sis," Dice said, her smile evolving before the Umbreon from Haunter-like into Gengar-like proportions. "But Mr. Scifo offeringto adopt me and me acceptingdoes..." Dice giggled. "Yay! I'm Moon's sister! Aren't you happy?"

Luna's eye twitched, her mind unable to comprehend what the Latias just told her. "But... No, that's not possible! Moonstone's parents couldn't have signed the papers already! Besides, you just met! Why the heck would-"

"It's easy, actually!" Dice said, floating closer. "You see, since I had already handled a lot of paperwork in the Pokecenter, all we need to do was connect to their system with Moon's computer, fill out a couple of forms, and voila!"

"B-but... No, you are notmy sister! You have to earnthat title!" Luna yelled as she stood up, rushing form the room.

"Err... O-okay then..." Mrs. Scifo stammered, watching as Luna ran form the room. "Umm... Are you hungry or tired, dear?" she asked the Latias hesitantly. "And I'm sorry I have to ask, but I don't really know how to tell if... You're a Latias, right? Aren't you supposed to be red?"

Dice nodded, then, seeing a pencil and a small notepad, she quickly wrote. "Supposedly, but I'm special!" then she scribbled a bit more. "I hope Luna calms down; she's a bit upset with all that's happening."

"Yeah, I guess," Mrs. Scifo said, somewhat stunned that the Latias could write, until she remembered, "So, you were transformed too, right? Was it... Did it hurt much? What did they do?"

Dice shrugged, then scribbled, "I was a human and... I'm a Latias now... it didn't hurt, or if it did I was probably unconscious... other than changing me, they pretty much left me as I was... I don't know how they did it. But it's okay." Dice sighed. "I'd better go to Moon and the others; we have to decide what to do..." she smiled at Mrs. Scifo. "And thanks for the offer for food and rest, but I'm okay for now... I don't think I could sleep yet."

"If you're sure, dear. If you need anything, just come and ask, alright?"

Making sure that she was fine, Mrs. Scifo sat back down in her chair as Dice flew downstairs. "Hey, Moon, did you find anything?" the Latias asked as soon as she was in the Lab again.

"Young lady, just what do you have to say for yourself?" Mr. Scifo asked, crossing his arms.

"I didn't eat the cookies! I swear! It was... uh... Latios did it! He followed me here!" Dice said immediately, eyes wide.

Mr. Scifo blinked, then turned to Moonstone, who then turned to Dice, smirking as he winked cheekily at her, typing in what she said, finishing with, "True story!"

"But, seriously, what seems to be the problem?" Dice asked.

Mr. Scifo frowned, replying, "I don't appreciate lying, Dice. Is it true you were making fun of Luna and Moonstone?"

"But... I did say I was teasing them!" Dice sighed, floating up next to Moonstone and typing. "Sorry if I understated that... I wasn't expecting Luna to take things so seriously, I already apologized to her for that, although she doesn't know if she'll forgive me anytime soon."

"You'd better have," he replied, relaxing a little. "A little teasing is fine, but you have to know when to stop, and you went too far this time, you have to learn when to stop. It's hard enough on them that Moonstone was transformed, teasing them about their feelings is not going to help at all, and if you want to be part of this family you have to really respect certain boundaries."

Dice's head was low. "Sorry... dad."

Mr. Scifo nodded. "Well, you already apologized to Luna, now, apologize to your brother."

Dice looked at Moonstone uncertainly. "Do I have to?" she asked.

Although Mr. Scifo didn't understand exactly what "Lai... tias?" meant, he could well imagine what she was trying to say. "Yes. Yes you have to."

Dice sighed. She half-heartedly raised a claw and reluctantly patted Moon's shoulder. "Sowwy."

"... Eenope," Moonstone replied with a deadpan expression. "Either you say it like you mean it, or go away."

Dice growled. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath before opening and locking her amber irises with Moonstone's. "I'm sorry I pushed too far, Moon." she said slowly and deliberately. "Please forgive me?"

Moonstone kept his gaze on her for a moment, waiting to see if she would break, before relenting, sighing, "Yeah, fine... I forgive you..."

"Yay!" Dice hugged Moonstone. "Thanks, big brother!"

"Oh... Right... That," Moon commented, grimacing ever so slightly. "I forgot about that... Yeah, you're uh... Welcome... Sissy," he finished with a grin, his eyes shining mischievously.

Mr. Scifo nodded. "I can see that you two are better now. I'd better go see your mother, Moonstone; she should probably hear about the new addition to the family."

After he left, Dice glared at Moon. "Sissy?" She sighed, then cuddled up to him. "I guess this means we'll keep our relationship a secret, Moony?"

"Wait, what?" Blade said as he looked at the pair in confusion. "You mean, you two are together as in... togehter?"

Dice feigned a gasp. "Oh, my! Moony! He found out! What will we ever do?"

Thinking quickly, Moonstone sighed, answering tragically, "There is nothing for us to do but to throw ourselves from a cliff! Ladies first," he finished, shoving Dice away.

"Oh no! I'm faaaaaaling!" Dice gasped... "Wait, I'm not... I can fly." She deadpanned. Then chuckled. "But seriously now, what are we doing now? Are we really just going to wait it out here, or are we actually going to try and find what happened to us?"

"Wait it out?" Moonstone asked, tilting his head. "What, is that really what you think we're doing? No way! You think I'm just going to let them get away with what they've been doing? Hell no!You wanna know why we came here when we escaped instead of giving them hell?" He turned away from Dice, looking at everyone else. "Do you all wanna know why we came here?"

"Duude... I know why we're here..." Axew said. "It's aaaall part of the plan, you know? We think we have free will, but we don't... we are only playing in the hand of Arceus..."

"But... Arceus doesn't have hands..." Cassie pointed out.

"It's a metaphor, dudette... just like blood-ties... metaphors we use to hide and excuse the obligations imposed on us... that's why we have to be free..."

"Butterfree?" Dice asked.

"Yeah, bro... completely, like... totally free..." Axew nodded sagely.

"How are you still high if you haven't smoked or snorted anything in several hours?" Blade asked.

"Dude... being high is a state of mind..."

"Well, yes-"

"But you don't have to snort or smoke to release your mind, bro! Don't lie to yourself!" Axew said, eyes wide, arms slowly opening to encompass everyone in the room.

Dice looked at Moonstone. "I think he's getting cranky without his fix..." she whispered.

It was then that Wave slowly woke up and walked in front of Sage, drawing the Axew's attention to the flowers on her green mane. "Duuuuuude..." the Axew grinned, stepping up to the Whimsicot and plucking out a couple of flowers.

The group watched in disturbed silence as the Axew proceeded to ground them up in his paws, and produced a piece of paper out of somewhere. Sage carefully sprinkled the crushed flowers into the paper and rolled it up.

"Bro... I gotta go for a five minute break..." Sage said to Moonstone. "I'll see myself out..."

The gathered Pokemon watched in silence as the Axew somehow lit the spiff and made his way up the stairs to the back exit.

"But..." Blade whimpered.

"There, there..." Dice sighed, patting the Cyndaquil on his head. "Let the stoner go... don't try to understand..."

Moonstone blinked, watching him leave, before starting awkwardly, "Alrighty then... Okay, why did we come back? First of all, we needed a plan. If we had just run around randomly, we would have eventually gotten caught again, and then who would bring them to justice? They have to have dozensof Pokemon, and unless you're doing a ton better than I am, we can't really fight. We came back to make a plan on how to sneak back into the building to find information about what they did to us, so that we can bring them to justice."

Blade collapsed, unconscious.

"Sorry!" Wave apologized. "I think I discovered how to use Sleeping Powder!"

Dice coughed. "Uh... a-anyway, you were saying, Moon?"

"... Right," Moonstone continued. "Well, I'm not sure why, but either we were insanely lucky that we didn't meet any guards, or those guards were out doing something. I'm guessing that, what with what time it was we woke up, they were out gassing more people. So if we head back, it seems like the night might actually be the best time for us to go, as they'll be busy."

"... I think they're just incompetent." Dice deadpanned. "Seriously. Incompetent. A drunk Magikarp could do their jobs better. A. Drunk. Magikarp, Moon." She shook her head and sighed. "But, are you sure that they'll still be there tonight? Won't they notice we escaped?"

"That's a good point, Dice," Moonstone conceded, tilting his head in thought. "That's certainly something we need to think about. Now, it's only 9 in the morning, which means we have about... 13 hours to relax before we should head out. Now, the question is whether or not we can learn any moves before then, and who is going back. I need to know now, before we start out serious planning, is there anyone who doesn't want to head back?"

When everyone remained silent, he smiled. "Excellent! Now, here's the plan. If you need to eat or sleep, do that first. Once you've got your energy back, we should try to see if we can't learn a move or two in case we get caught. For now, however, I'm going to plan for a stealth mission. We're going to sneak in, find some info, maybe some tangible evidence if we're lucky, then get the hell out of there again to bring it back here! Sound like a plan?"

Dice shrugged. "Sure. I don't even know what powers other than that little ball of Mist I used earlier today I have..." she looked back at Moon. "Any ideas? I never got to see a Latias while observing Pokemon..." she looked away and muttered. "Nor any Legendary Pokemon, for that matter..."

"Hmm, not that I recall, but... Wait a second, I know!" he exclaimed, turning to Dice with wide eyes. "I remember a certain legend that says Latios and Latias could change their appearance to be whatever they wanted it to be! Latias was rumoured to transform into a hot girl from time to time, so that she could freely wander the streets of Alto Mare. Maybe you can too! Not that I'd know how to go about trying," he admitted, frowning.

Blade snorted, exclaiming, "Who cares about some stupid camouflage abilities when there's fighting moves to learn? Come on!"

Dice yawned. "I... I might pass out for a while..." she said, her hovering a bit less stable. "I haven't slept at all... and..." she yawned again. Slowly she drifted to a corner of the lab and lowered down to the floor. Within moments she had curled up and was snoring softly.

Moonstone gaped at Dice, shaking his head slowly. "Ohhhhh no... No guest of the Scifo's sleeps on the floor!"

At that statement, all of the others shared glances.

"We all slept on the floor!" Cassie whispered harshly to Wave.

"Different standards for different Pokemon," Wave whispered back.

Padding over, Moon poked Dice somewhat roughly, until she woke up. "Oi, what do ya think you're doing, Sissy? You do notsleep on the floor, okay? It's insulting to my hospitality! Now come on, I'll show you to your new room." Turning around, he asked, "Any of you guys tired as well? Anyone want a shower, food, anything?"

Blade raised a paw. "I could use some beer. And a sandwich."

Dice blinked heavily and looked at Moonstone in confusion for a moment. "Huh? Oh... it's Moony... hi... I can't... I can't move bro..." her voice became barely a mumble. "... too tired..." her head dropped and she snapped it back up, blinking Noctowlishly. She yawned again and leaned her head on Moon's back, eyelids lowering again.

Moonstone sighed, then said softly, "Alright, alright, come on, Sissy. Let's get you to a bed, silly Lati."

"... -on't call me … sissy... gives the wrong impression to the ladies..." Dice muttered. Then she smiled, eyes closed. "...like Lati... sounds... nice..."

Rolling his eyes, he turned to Blaze, instructing, "Should be right in the fridge, Blaze. Not many choices, I'm afraid, but that's because I know what I like, you know? If I don't have any you like, talk to my dad. He's got a modest collection to chose from."

Blade's smiled could have crushed a lesser mind. "Thank you!" he said, running up the stairs and straight to the fridge.

Wave smiled at Moon. "I think I can eat some salad, if you don't mind?"

Cassie shrugged. "And I'd like to see a Pokedex... maybe I can figure out what I can do with this body..."

"Just type away!" Moonstone replied, starting to climb the stairs. "You should be able to look up just about whatever you want on Yumi! She's just a little slow at times, so please be patient! The salad is in the fridge," he added to Wave absently.

"Xell? What are you doing?" Luna asked, staring at Moonstone as he helped the semi-comatose Latias up the stairs past her.

"Moonsong? O-oh, I'm just helping, um, Lati, to her room." Moonstone explained, rolling his eyes a little.

"... soft..." Dice mumbled.

"Oh, how... Nice of you, Moon," Luna commented, her voice a little strained. "I'll umm... Be outside then, if you need me."

'Not that you seem to need me anymore,' she lamented, trying to keep her face neutral as she turned away and headed outside slowly.

Moonstone watched her walk away. He was sure there was something wrong, but he couldn't place what it was. Shrugging to himself, he faced forward once more, helping Dice to her new room.

He grunted slightly, huffing, "Good grief, Lati, ease up on the sweets!"

A soft snore was the only response he heard, causing him to sigh in disappointment before taking her into a guest room, the walls and decorations warm, earthy colors. Shaking her slightly, he tried to push her up onto the bed, watching in satisfaction as she pulled herself forward in her sleep, trying to get comfortable. He nudged a pillow to her, laughing quietly as she pulled it to herself, hugging it to her chest and mumbled "Moon..."

Moonstone blushed, before shaking his head, laughing nervously as he tried to play it off as an unconscious form of thanks, and not something of a more... romantic nature.

"Brother..." Dice sighed as Moonstone turned to leave.

Moon almost melted in relief when he heard that, murmuring to himself, "Well, at least I don't have to worry about her trying to come on to me..."

Filled with a new surge of energy, he padded outside, closed the door and walked down the stairs, heading outside to see if he couldn't learn an attack or two while trying to come up with a plan of attack on the facilities where he had been held captive.

The room was silent but for the snoring of Dice as she slept blissfully. The door slowly opened...

.o.O.o. End Chapter 3 .o.O.o.