Hiatus, Day 80
"Feels kinda nice to be back," Jay commented as he stepped into the living room. He inhaled deeply. "Ahhhh. Smells like home."
"Nah dat's de smell of fried chicken," Meowth replied. "How quickly yous forget."
He and Lucy were coming down the stairs with a handful of the other Pokémon as Jay, Amber, Jessie, and James entered the house.
"Hey Meowth, hey Lucy," Jay greeted them.
"We'd be lying if we said we didn't miss you," Lucy replied.
"I missed you too."
"Did you make lunch?" Jessie asked the Pokémon hopefully.
"Sure did," said Meowth. "Den we ate it."
"Did you leave anything for us?"
Meowth took a bill out of their jar labeled 'take-out money'. "Get some pizza."
"We will," James grumbled. "And we'll make sure it's anchovy-free."
Meowth shook his head. "Cowards. Anyways, how yous doin? Weeze heard yous robbed a bank or somethin like dat."
"I didn't do anything like that!" Jay exclaimed.
"He couldn't if he tried," Amber said as she stepped forward. "He'd get too scared and cry and run away then confess to the police."
"So, yous brought her too," said Meowth commented. "I don't think she's gonna help wit dat agenda of yer's."
"We're going to talk to Jay later. You stay away from him. James called first dibs," said Jessie. "It's your corrupted mind that probably caused him to act out anyway."
"Dat don't make no sense."
"I'll be in my room with Amb. Bye," Jay said before bolting up the stairs. Amber shrugged and then followed him, closing the door behind them.
Meowth, Lucy, Jessie, James, and the Pokémon all looked at one another.
"Someone go spy on them," Jessie whispered.
They all turned to Meowth.
"Why do I's always gotta do it?" he retorted.
"We don't need to spy on them," said James. "Jay's still Jay."
"They're preteens now. That's big," Jessie responded.
"I think you should leave them alone."
"Then I'll investigate on my own."
Everyone sighed and walked away. James picked up the phone to order pizza while the Pokémon did their own thing. Meowth and Lucy sat on the couch and filed their claws. Jessie pouted and sat down next to the two cats, deciding to give up on the idea until for now. She gasped a little as she sat down and leaned forward.
"Whatcha doin?" Meowth piped.
"Leave me alone. I'm in pain," Jessie groaned. "Not that you care."
"Why don't you go to a doctor instead of telling us about it?" said Lucy. "Like we've been telling you to do for these last few weeks."
"If you haven't noticed, things have been chaotic. These things always seem to happen at the worst times. And I just went last week. They told me to just suck it up."
"She didn't say it like that," James responded. "Dr. Liz told us that everything looked normal and that Jessie just isn't used to it, since all our other kids were very little when they were born. Annastasia was less than a pound, Jay was three pounds, and Jocelyn was 3.2 pounds. This baby is already one pound, and she still has a few months to go."
"Den it's gonna be huge. Unless it decides to pop out early like de other ones," Meowth commented.
"Regardless," said James. "Liz gave you some natural pain relievers. Did you take any yet?"
"Not yet…" Jessie grumbled.
"Do you know if it's a boy or girl?" asked Lucy.
"We were discussing this on the way over. We want it to be a surprise."
"I bet girl; she bets boy. If it's a girl I get to choose the name, if it's a boy she chooses the name, and anything in between we decided we'd do some kind of fusion of the two names," James explained.
"Weirdos," said Meowth.
"I think that's a good idea," said Lucy. "Jessie, you should take a hot tub break."
"I just wanna sleep on this couch until the pizza comes," she moaned.
"While you do that, I'll talk to Jay," said James.
James made his way to the top of the stairs and gently knocked on Jay's door.
"Come in!" he called.
James walked into the room. Jay and Amber were sitting on the bed together with several of their Pokémon.
"Amber, I would like to talk to Jay alone now," James started. "We ordered some food, so if you want to just wait outside—"
"I got it. Good luck Jay," Amber interrupted before leaving the room with Pip and Pidgeotto.
Jay picked at his nails nervously. James took Amber's spot on the bed.
"Jay we aren't going to punish you," James assured him. "No need to be nervous."
Jay breathed a sigh of relief. Then to James' shock and surprise, he burst into tears. Not sure of what to do next, James reached forward and held him while he cried.
"Why the tears?" James asked after about five minutes had gone by. All he had picked up from Jay's crying was the word 'gone'.
"I can't sleep or eat or relax. I just want to fight and run and disappear," said Jay. "I'm sorry for all those bad things I did. I'm sorry I lied."
"Okay, okay: one thing at a time. First, you didn't do anything that bad. It was wrong of you to be mean to your friends, and to not talk to us about how you were feeling sooner, but you apologized already and we forgave you."
"Okay…but I still feel like I'm under a lot of pressure."
"Who's pressuring you?"
"I don't know…I just don't feel…ready. So much is changing and I don't know what to do about it. What do you want me to do?"
"I want you to think about yourself for once. Don't worry about your sisters or your mother or the baby. Don't think about the Pokémon League or your friends or your Pokémon or growing up. You're off duty."
Jay smiled. His father always said he was 'off duty' whenever he (attempted) a homework assignment or finished a chore.
"Play with Amber," James suggested. "You have the entire hotel and this house to ourselves; no tenants nor guests nor a surplus of siblings to get in your way."
"I don't wanna stress out Mom though, and Amb stresses her out sometimes."
"Mom pretends she doesn't like her, but trust me; she does. If her last name wasn't Ketchum, she'd probably be her favorite person."
Jay ruminated on this. "Yeah…but…having fun's hard when A's gone."
"Annastasia would want you to be happy. It's important for you to stay positive. That means we won't assume the worst. Hold onto the idea that she's likely coming back—do you think your sister will go down that easily? She's an Aura Guardian, the strongest of them."
"Yeah...but it's been so long. Even if nothing got her, wouldn't she have run out of food a long time ago? It's so cold up there; all the fruit might be frozen. What if she froze to death? Or died from catching a sickness? She has such a weak immune system. And what if the Tree ate her? You told me a few years ago that the Tree of Beginning can swallow people up—don't deny it."
"All those things are possible but honestly you were in more danger on your journey that she is on hers. Mewtwo, Lucario, Scarlett, Bleu, and Lil-G know how to take very good care of her, and she's capable of more than we've seen."
"Like what?"
"She has some really incredible powers, and when she gets back a bet, she would love to give you some demonstrations."
"You mean 'if' she gets back."
Jay nuzzled his face back into James, making it harder for James to positively react.
"Don't give up on her," he said. "We aren't. We are all very stressed out and sad, but we aren't giving up. If there is anything you need, let me know. Amber's parents and a few of our friends are going to come by for a visit, but after that, it's going to be just you, me, Amber, your mother, Meowth, Lucy, and the Pokémon here. This is your time to just chill out."
"I'll try," Jay replied solemnly.
James smiled, sighed, and released him. "There's pizza on the way. I ordered mushroom and cheddar. It's still your favorite, right?"
"Of course."
"I'll see you in a few. I'll tell Amb that it's safe to come back in."
When James got downstairs, Amber, Jessie, Meowth, Lucy, and several of the Pokémon were video chatting with Rita, Lexi, Nolan, Jocelyn, Lily, Logan, and Maya.
"Hi, Papa!" Jocelyn exclaimed when she saw James appear on her screen.
"Hi Kiddo, what's up?" he replied.
"She's saying that she's changing her mind about coming home," Jessie explained in a slightly annoyed tone.
"Jocelyn, we were just there. You said you wanted to keep traveling."
"Ummmmmm…well…"
"Flaaa…."
"She told us she originally wanted to stay because of Benny," Lily explained. "She didn't want him to be alone with all the older kids. Then Benny told her that she should be with her family."
"Princess, you should've told us while we were there," said Jessie.
"I'm sorry," Jocelyn sighed. "I just love you all lots and lots."
"Flaafy fla, feee."
"Rita, do you think you'll be close to Viridian by tomorrow afternoon?" James asked.
"Yep," she replied. "Assuming that most of the day goes as planned."
"We'll ask Mondo if he can pick her up."
"Perfect," said Jessie. "Jocelyn, we'll call tomorrow morning and let you know what's going on, okay?"
"Okay," she replied.
"Flaafeee."
"Bye!"
Jessie and James turned to Amber, who was snacking on the chocolates they kept on the coffee table.
"Ya know, Jocelyn's been more independent lately," she told Jessie and James. "She's been training Flaafy and helping us take care of our monz."
"It's bad enough Jay is growing up. I don't want to lose Jocelyn too," Jessie said as she took some chocolate for herself.
"Jay still acts like a little kid; I mean, we had to go all the way back to Burge City after we were already an hour away because he forgot his Wobbuffet slippers and that stuffed Eevee he always sleeps with."
"James got me those slippers after I accidentally traded my Lickitung for Wobbuffet. He still has that Eevee?"
"Yep, even though it's been ripped and repaired like a million times."
"It was the first toy we ever gave Annastasia," said James. "Delia bought it for her since we didn't really have any money to buy her stuff yet. Then when Annastasia left school to work for Team Rocket, she gave it to Jay."
"Awe," said Amber. "That explains all the holes."
"How else is he still a kid?"
They looked eager to learn more. Amber sniggered.
"Just ask him when the cheddar-shroom pizza gets here."
XO
When the pizza arrived, Jessie knocked on the door of Jay's room until he told her to come in.
He was sitting in his corner vanity table, putting the finishing touches on his eyeliner. She took note of the Eevee toy, which was resting next to Togetic and Bayleef on the bed.
"You're back to normal," she noted. "And that color looks good on you."
"I guesso," he murmured. "And I know."
"The food's here."
"I'm not hungry."
"But we got your favorite."
"I don't feel like eating."
Jessie shut the door behind her. They looked in the mirror together.
"You look perfect," said Jessie. "But something's eating your insides, and it starts and ends with 'A'."
"I love my sister," he said as he put his eyeliner back in its drawer. "I'm scared for her."
"We're doing everything we can. We promise and we feel you…But we can't stop living in the meantime."
"What do you tell yourself to make yourself feel better?"
"I think about how when she gets back, she's gonna feel guilty for scaring us, how I still think of her whenever I see a rare blond baby even though she's almost an adult, and how I'm going to do whatever I can to help her."
"All that stuff makes me sadder…I think. I don't know."
"It's a hard place to be. We've all been feeling rough but we're happy you came back. But if you give us attitude and not Jay then we're shipping Miss Amber Ketchum back to Cerulean."
"I get it."
"Good. Now come get pizza before it's all gone."
"Let me finish my hair first."
"I wouldn't dream of interrupting that."
XO
Hiatus, Day 35
Jessie and James were in their dorm at the Team Rocket base in Toka. With them was Rumika, Acorn and Aliyah. The twins were in their Mew form, and were using telepathy to communicate with the humans.
"Okay, so these trackers are nice and secure," Rumika assured the couple. "There's absolutely no reason I can possibly conceive as to why they would shut down, fall off, or misfunction in any way."
"Are you ready for this?" Jessie asked the Pokémon.
"Definitely," Acorn and Aliyah responded in unison.
"And you are positive you can get to the Tree of Beginning?" James asked.
"We've been there many times," Aliyah assured him. "We'll have no trouble."
"If Mewtwo could go missing than theoretically so could you."
"Don't cry," said Acorn.
"I'm not crying," Jessie mumbled as she wiped her tears. "Just leave before I change my mind."
"You two are very special," James told the Mew. "Good luck and thank you."
The Mew were gone in an instant. Rumika watched them on the radar. They all stared together as the Pokémon approached the Tree.
"So far, so good," Rumika whispered after a few minutes.
Suddenly the monitory went dark. It powered back on a moment later, but when it did, Acorn and Aliyah no longer appeared on the screen.
"Where'd they go?" Jessie exclaimed. "They were just there!"
"We just saw them!" James added. "I-It can't be!"
"Let me reboot this," Rumika said calmly.
Rumika reset the radar. For a moment it showed the Mew outside the Tree of Beginning. The trio breathed a sigh of relief, but their hearts once again fell when the Mew once again disappeared. Jessie and James demanded explanations.
"Calm down," Rumika ordered. "I don't have an answer yet but I'm trying my best to get there. Relax or shoo."
As she worked, Rumika mumbled comments such as: 'I've been using the same equipment for eighteen years' and 'this never failed me before'.
The second time she rebooted the system, Acorn and Aliyah did not reappear. Rumika checked the backup monitors, which a few agents had placed near the Tree during their first time out to try and find Annastasia, but they were also blank.
"Maybe they'll notice that the lights on their monitors went out and they'll come back," said Rumika.
"I don't know if I can deal with this any other way," said Jessie.
"They'll return any moment", said James. "Any minute now."
XO
Hiatus, Day 50
"Scarlett, this isn't working, you should stop," Annastasia told the Pikachu.
"Pikaaaaa!" she cried. "Pikachuuuu"
Annastasia, Lucario, Mewtwo, Scarlett, Bleu, and Lil-G were now at the very top of the tree. They once hoped that they could fly out of the tree, but soon discovered that the Tree had collapsed over itself, making escape impossible. After trying every other known exit and finding that they were impassible, they decided to re-settle there. Scarlett was still determined to break free and spent much of her time firing powerful thunderbolts at the roof hoping that something would give.
"Stop before your energy is gone," Lucario demanded. "There is no point in wasting your energy."
"Pikachu pi pika."
"But it clearly isn't helping."
"Piiii!"
"Please don't overwork yourself," said Annastasia. "I don't think any amount of Pokémon attacks are going to help; it'd have worked by now."
"Chuuuu."
Scarlett crawled into Annastasia's arms. The teen was lying against her Altaria, who was asleep. Lil-G was also lying against the dragon-type; her tiredness was getting the best of her as well.
"When you are finished resting, we should go to the heart of the Tree," said Mewtwo.
"You think that I'm ready? It's been less than two months," she replied.
"You've come further faster than we anticipated," said Lucario. "You've developed many new skills and your body recovers nicely. We also have those potions to enhance your abilities and Night Stones. Those will help. I think Mewtwo is right."
"I don't understand how the Night Stones could help."
"Pika chuuuu pi pi ka."
"Correct," said Lucario. "The Night Stones have also been known to give humans extra abilities."
"Such as…?" Annastasia asked.
"Making aura power more pliable. It's just a theory…that potion I gave you before can definitely do that so this may be the boost you need."
"There must be a catch, otherwise we'd have tried it by now."
"You're a trainer, so you understand friendship levels and mega evolution."
"Quite well."
"The Night Stone, when in direct contact with by a human who has a very high friendship level with a psychic, ghost, or dark-type Pokémon, can possibly 'mega evolve' in a sense. But it's merely speculation and can be dangerous. Thus, is shall only be used in desperation."
"We are desperate. We have food and water, and I have at least enough medicine to last another year, but I've been off the radar for a while now and I have a family. A stubborn, powerful family that is also highly sensitive."
Lucario sighed. This supported his previous belief that families were weaknesses, the belief that Annastasia had been challenging for a while now.
"It wouldn't work anyway," said Annastasia. "I don't have psychic, dark, or ghost-type Pokémon that with me. Star, Abnoba, the Mew—all so far away from here, busy with other tasks."
"Yes, but your aura helps you connect to Pokémon, even from afar, which is one of the reasons you came without them. Besides…maybe you can form a connection with Mewtwo."
"I don't know if that can work," Mewtwo responded. "Despite my liking of Annastasia, I've yet to know her well."
"It's worth a try. Nevertheless, we must travel to the heart first, so after Annastasia rests sufficiently, our next move will be to get there."
The rest of their party agreed. Annastasia closed her eyes, finding little difficulty in falling asleep especially because of the lack of light. She hated bright lights and the only light source in the Tree came from the occasional time flower and from small pores that were located at the top. There was a patch of sky that could be viewed as well, but the Tree was so big that it did not provide enough light to simulate daytime. She was just about to fall asleep when two small but clear voices cried out to her.
"Annastasia! Annastasia! Wake up!" they called.
Annastasia opened her eyes immediately and glanced around. It was obvious immediately that it was telepathy, and that the other members of the group had heard them as well. Everyone was awake and looking around, not understanding just where the call had come from.
"Pika? Pikachuuuu!"
"Is that…."
Two Pokémon appeared before them. One pink, the other bluish-purple.
"Aliyah, Acorn…how…what are you doing here?" Annastasia asked. "How'd you even know where to find us?"
"Before your tracker failed, it indicated that you were near here," said Aliyah. "Your family sent us to find and teleport you back to HQ. No one else can get in or out of this Tree, Pokémon, human, or machine. They've been trying to rescue you."
"Lillill pup pup?"
"We were able to get in because we are symbiotic with this Tree," Acorn explained. "We used to live here."
"So, you're the Mew who used to live here. Why did you leave? Why didn't you tell us?" Annastasia replied.
"We'll explain later. Let's get you back to your family first."
"I don't understand why you didn't come sooner," said Mewtwo.
"We did, but the Tree wouldn't let us; there were too many humans present and since the Tree views humans as enemies, it shut itself down. Now, with the search teams far away, we made it in."
"Which means you can lead us out," said Lucario.
"Is everyone ready?" Aliyah asked.
"Well, my stuff's together, so I say I'm ready when you are," Annastasia replied.
Everyone huddled together as the Mew prepared their teleport. Annastasia and the Pokémon were again shocked and appalled when they discovered that it didn't work.
"I don't understand. This never happened before," said Acorn.
"This happened when I tried to teleport us out," said Mewtwo.
"Try doing it alone, without us," Annastasia suggested. "This way you can at least send a message back, letting them know not to worry."
The Mew did as she suggested, but it didn't work. They too were stuck.
"This Tree was our home," said Aliyah. "I don't understand why we're trapped."
"Perhaps the monster fusion has taken control," Lucario said darkly. "Based on the little information we have on it, that fusion is more than capable of manipulating this Tree."
"I wonder why it would let the Mew in if its only intention was to trap them once they got inside," said Annastasia.
"Pikachuuu Pika pi," said Scarlett. 'Maybe it was curious.'
"Or perhaps it sees them as a threat and wants to keep them contained," said Lucario.
"Or it wants to play games," said Mewtwo.
"You were trying to help, and now this happens," Annastasia sighed. "At least you tried, and I'm thankful for that."
"We had a feeling you would be okay but everyone else is hurting," said Acorn.
"I could imagine…you don't mean physically hurt, do you?"
"No one has been physically injured yet," Aliyah assured her.
"Jay tells your parents that he is okay, but we can sense that he is hiding his feelings," said Acorn. "Jocelyn is also sad, but she is a very content little girl and truly believes that you will come back. She is training her Pokémon and trying to be more grown up. Michio and Soledad left the group and are now traveling with different parties."
"It's mostly Jay I'm worried about," Annastasia sighed. "Michio and Soledad left? Are they together?"
"No. Jay said Michio got a job and left a while ago, but he calls them every day to check in. Soledad is with her geo-catching friends."
"I expected Soledad to leave eventually. I'm glad she re-evaluated her goals and followed her instincts. Michio got a job? He complained about doing dishes. Are you sure 'got a job' isn't code for something else?"
"Pikachu Pika pika pi?"
"Jay says that Michio talks to them and is nicer, but honestly, Jay sounds very out of touch. I wish I could tell you more, but we only know what Jessie and James know," said Aliyah.
"And Michio's job is on a boat, helping drive it…I think," said Acorn.
"Then good for him," Annastasia replied. "How's my mother? She's at four months already. I was born at five months. You don't think that anything like that is going to happen again, do you?"
"Everything with the baby seems to be doing well…it's big. Already a pound. Emotionally though, she is very upset. She misses everyone and feels guilty for letting you down."
"But she didn't let me down."
"She thinks she did."
"I think she also feels guilty for having more kids when the world is already falling apart," said Aliyah.
"How's the world 'falling apart'?" Annastasia asked.
"Those fusions, the ones being led by the monster fusion dwelling within this Tree, are attacking Team Rocket members and bases. Many people you know may be hurt, but we were sent off before we got any names."
"I had no idea."
"There was no way for us to know," said Lucario. "Is it hurting Pokémon?"
"Yes," said Acorn. "Pokémon, animals, and some humans."
"Probably humans that are against it," Annastasia mused. "Like TR is."
"I can see that being true."
"What have you done so far to try to break free from this Tree?" Aliyah inquired.
"Tried just about every attack we know, we've tried negotiating peacefully through mediation, and we've tried making ourselves vulnerable. Nothing has come close to working," said Lucario. "And we have no explanation as to why. But perhaps by working together we can achieve a result. You Mew combined with those Night Stones may be the solution."
"Acorn and Aliyah have been with you since birth; they must have a very close bond with you. With your powers multiplied, we may be able to take control of the monster fusion's mind. Then we can stop all the other fusions," said Mewtwo.
"I thought force and control was what we were trying to avoid," said Annastasia.
"Waiting here peacefully has gotten us nowhere."
Everyone but Annastasia liked the idea. It seemed to go against everything N, Ash, and her father taught her about aura. Controlling aura was about controlling herself, not others.
"You're skeptical," Lucario noted.
"Yes, but I suppose it's better to die trying than to die waiting," Annastasia replied.
"Then let's try."
XO
Hiatus, Day 82
Michio, Hiro, Elsa, and their Pokémon were docked on Pinkan Island. They had spent all yesterday picking berries and freezing them, as it was now permitted on the former reserve. Now they were all down at the beach with their Pokémon. Hiro was fishing for Pink Feebas and Magicarp while Elsa took photos of her now pink Popplio, Litten, Solgaleo, and Rowlet.
"I love how these Pinkan berries make Pokémon turn pink. I wish it was permanent," said Elsa. "So, Michio, got any plans for today?"
"I think slave duty is all I have scheduled," he said as he continued to bag the berries they had collected earlier that day.
"Ptff. 'Slave duty'. What rubbish. If you want more money just ask. I'm asking because I thought you seemed down. What's bothering you now?"
"Too complicated to explain."
"Everything with you is too complicated. I'm smart, I can handle it."
"Pop Po," Popplio chanted, encouraging Michio to speak.
"Her family called," Michio mumbled. "Her siblings returned home. They're grieving. I don't know what I'm supposed to do about it."
"I should've known this was about Anna-chan," Elsa sighed.
"Don't call her that. Only her father used that name."
"Past tense…I thought you said you weren't giving up on her."
"I'm not giving up, I'm accepting, and it's going to take a long time for me to finish that."
"You only knew her for a few months. You're young, you'll move on. It'll take some time but you'll get there. I'll see you through it."
Elsa kept talking, attempting to give him comforting words, but nothing she said helped.
"I sent her a message, and I don't think she ever got it," Michio grumbled.
"You said she was phoneless," Elsa replied.
"Several weeks ago, I asked a few trusted Pokémon to deliver a message to her. They never came back. That means she probably never saw it, which makes me worried. Life really sucks."
"Have you considered getting off your ass and going after her?"
"Every day, especially now."
"Then do it. I understand it's horrible up there but if you really love someone you know you would do anything for them. The least you could do is spend time with her family."
"I would just get in the way. As for her family, I highly doubt they want me in their home."
"I hear you video chat with those kids daily. They treat you like their big brother. Why do you assume you're not welcome?"
"They think she could do better."
"If you always have that sour attitude around them, then I can see where they're coming from. But the Michio we know sounds a bit different from the one they know."
"I haven't changed."
"Yes, you have. You never want to admit it but's clear to me, and I haven't known you for long. I also know this: you're guilty. You think everything is your fault, and you are wondering why bad things happen to good people."
"Do you have an answer to that? Why bad things happen to good people?"
"I do not, except that life sucks most of the time. What I know for certain is that sitting here sulking isn't going to make anything better."
"I don't know how to reach her or even what to do once I find her."
"What was that message you sent her about? Something romantic?"
"No…"
It was obvious by the way he hid his face that it was a total lie. Elsa laughed and patted him on the shoulder.
"I knew it," she said smugly. "Go to Pallet. That's the place, right? Pallet? You said they had a hotel; work there instead."
"They shut the hotel down for the time being," he mumbled. "…Are you firing me?"
"I might. First, I want you to call. I won't kick you off my yacht until I'm certain that you have a place to go."
"It will be awkward. What do I do, just hang out with her family for a few months? What if she never returns? I think I should stay here."
"And hide from your problems? No. I like you Michio, so I won't let you be so dumb. And I'm not paying you until you at least call them."
"I don't need your money, but…"
"But?"
"But I'll do it anyway."
"Good, now do it before you change your mind."
Michio took out his phone and walked towards Arbok and Lickilicky, who were separated from the other Pokémon and people. He nervously dialed Jay's cellphone.
XO
Back in Pallet Town, Jay and Amber were in the forest having a practice battle: a classic Pip versus Togetic.
"Iron Tail!" Amber shouted.
"Pikachuuu!" he exclaimed, jumping into the air.
"Dodge and use Psychic," Jay instructed.
All of a sudden, the song 'Daydream Believer' started playing out of Jay's pocket.
"Hold it!" Jay exclaimed. "Time out! My phone's ringing."
"So, you changed your ringtone again, this time to an even gayer song," Amber commented as Jay dug through his pocket.
"Toge," Togetic affirmed.
"I knew you'd appreciate it," Jay responded before answering the video chat. "Hello?"
"Hi, Jay. Where are you?" Michio asked.
"I thought you were talking to him this morning," said Amber.
"We did talk this morning," said Jay. "Is everything okay?"
"Yeah...I was expecting you to be in the house," Michio said after he noticed that Jay was in the woods. "I need to ask your family a question."
"You can ask us and we can ask them. We have to be inside in an hour anyway because Amber's parents and a few other guests are coming."
"I want to ask them directly. I'll just call one of their phones."
"Kk."
Michio tried James next.
James was in the attic, searching for a box of baby supplies that he had saved 'just in case'. He jumped when his phone started vibrating in his back pocket, knocking a whole box over, and nearly killing Meowth and Mime Jr. in the process.
"Watch it!" Meowth shrieked.
"Mi Mime!" Mime Jr. chided.
"Sorry, caught off guard," James mumbled before answering the call. "Michio? What's up?"
"It's dat kid again," Meowth mumbled.
"Miii," Mime Jr. sighed.
"I was wondering if you had a moment to speak about something important," said Michio.
"I was just looking for stuff in the attic," said James. "I'll call you right back."
"Is Jessie there too?"
"Possibly. I've been up here a while. When I left, she was taking a nap. Did you want to talk to her too?"
"Yes."
"Okay. I will call you back in ten. Bye for now."
"Bye."
Michio hung up his phone. Elsa had been hanging on every word.
"Sounds like they're busy over there," she commented. "Like maybe they could use an assistant."
"Fuck off, I'm doing what you asked," Michio retorted. "Don't spy on me."
"I was just making sure you were actually calling them. It's not like I have any use for that information. You should realize by now that I am not the type of person who will hold something against you—not everyone in this world is out to get you."
"It sometimes seems like it."
"Woe is Michio."
"Yeah: woe is fucking me."
James returned the video chat about ten minutes later. He and Jessie were both sitting on the living room couch, the screen tilted so that he could only see their faces and a bit of the background.
"What do you need?" Jessie began—hiding all indications that she was glad he called.
"Ummm is anyone else there?" he asked.
"I'm here, Oniisan!" Jocelyn called from the kitchen. James tilted the camera so that she and Flaafy were within view.
"Flaaaa!"
'Perfect,' Michio thought to himself. He knew with Jocelyn there Jessie would be more accepting of his offer. And she was the clear leader of the family.
"I was wondering if you needed some extra help around there, you know watching the kids or doing chores or whatever. I have a job but I don't really need it," he said quickly.
"Hmm," Jessie hummed. "Maybe. Why do you sound so nervous?"
"I..."
"Of course, you can stay with us," James told Michio. "We have a whole hotel, plenty of rooms, and we don't charge family or friends."
"Are you really going to come here? That would make me so happy!" Jocelyn squealed.
"Flaafy flaa!"
"I'd really appreciate it," said Michio. "I'll pay for my own room…"
Everyone looked to Jessie.
"Well…if you're gonna work, I don't see why you shouldn't come," she replied.
"Thanks…that means a lot to me," said Michio.
He forced himself to look Jessie in the eyes. She always made him so nervous. She grinned wickedly. It was sadly familiar. Only one other person that he knew had that smile.
"Do you need a ride?" James asked. "We have no trouble giving rides, but we can't get to the Orange Archipelago until tomorrow night. We have guests coming later."
"I can get there on my own," Michio responded. "I'll find a way."
"Okay. Call us tomorrow with updates."
"I am so excited!" Jocelyn said as she nearly choked James into a hug. "You have to cook again for us. The last time you did it was soooo good. You can help me train Flaafy and we can play games too!"
"Flaaaaafy!"
"We will. For sure," Michio replied. "Bye. Thanks."
The others on the line returned his thanks and he hung up. He was surprised to find that he was constricting his breath the entire time.
"The hardest part is over," Elsa said as she patted his back.
"The hardest part has yet to come," Michio retorted. "You haven't met her mother. She is…intense, to say the least. She says she likes me, but what I think what she really likes is messing with me."
"It's all the same thing. After all, she might be stuck with you for the rest of her life. And 'intense' mothers don't just let their daughters get together to settle down with just anyone. It doesn't matter how rich and handsome you may be."
"You don't get it. Their family doesn't need more money and even if I was to 'settle down' with Annastasia, it's not like we would get any money anyway. She's not a native Alolan. We'd be blacklisted—rejected by my entire family. I'd lose my inheritance and never be welcomed back onto the estate. Not that I care, but it's a fact. And her mother doesn't like me cause I'm an asshole. Either that or that is the reason she does like me. It's stressful either way."
Hiro, who was previously sleeping, approached Michio and Elsa.
"Sounds like everything about these people is stressful," he remarked. "Do they seriously have four talking cats?"
"Yes," Elsa and Michio said together.
"But it's not the cats that are the problem…it's me."
"I figured that," said Hiro.
Popplio snatched a few berries off of Elsa's plate and playfully balanced them on his nose. The other Pokémon cheered him on while Hiro and Elsa took photos.
"You have more to say," Hiro noted.
"Another reason as to why I get nervous around them is because of all this confusion," Michio admitted. "The conversations between Annastasia and I are rarely straightforward and her mother is the same way. Except Annastasia is patient and forgiving; her mom is merciless."
"Sounds like you have a lot on our plate for an eighteen-year-old."
"I am not eighteen yet. Soon though. I still have a little while before I become old like you people."
"Which is why we want you to use that youth; in a few years your back will hurt and you'll be too lazy to drive your own yacht."
"And when eighteen comes you'll be free," Elsa added. "Does your family know what you've been up to?"
"I haven't spoken to them once since I left, but Rita told them I've been following all their fucking rules; I built a team, got the badges, and didn't get kicked out of my group for being a douche."
"Which means you can go to Alola and get all those Pokémon you love so much back. Then you'll never have to leave Alola again."
"I don't want to stay in Alola."
"Because you secretly love Kanto."
"I openly tolerate it. I'll get my rare Pokémon then ditch that region, this time permanently."
"Oooh, then you can use your legendary Pokémon to save Annastasia."
Michio grimaced. "No. If anything, I'll try to help, but there's no way it'll come down to me."
"Not you, your Pokémon. You obviously can't do shit without them."
"Go easier on him," Hiro chided. "What is your plan for getting what you want from Alola?"
"Plan?" said Michio.
"Your family isn't going to let you take your Pokémon then run back to Kanto," said Elsa. "Even I know that. I know Makoa and the Klan rules and based on what you told me—you're not going to be able to have your cake and eat it too."
"You don't know what the fuck you're talking about."
"Yes, I do; you just won't admit it to yourself."
"I'll trick them. Make them think I'm staying, and besides, when I turn eighteen all those Pokémon are mine. I'm not stupid."
"Can't blame us for not realizing that."
Michio was about to shut down. Unwilling to let him slide away so easily, she said:
"You oughta make some real plans because I don't think miss Annastasia Morgan needs a hero."
"I never said she did," Michio replied sourly. "But she did say that she needs friends."
"Well then, Mister Friend, if you want, we can bring you to Pallet," said Hiro. "Or rather, you can bring the yacht there with us on it."
"We can sail right into the Golden Village port," Elsa suggested. "I think Pallet's only a few miles from there. Surely you can handle walking from then on. I say we set sail tomorrow. I was getting tired of the Orange Islands anyway. I could use a little more adventure."
"Fine with me."
"Sure," said Michio, secretly pleased for getting exactly what he wanted. "We can travel by night."
"Then when will you sleep?"
"When I get there."
"You'll collapse on us," said Elsa. "There's no reason we can't travel during the day."
"We'll get there much faster if we go at night and during the day."
"Hiro, are teenagers always this dysfunctional?"
"Well—"
"—It's a good plan," Michio defended.
"I'm not letting you drive this boat nonstop. There's an islet forty miles north of here. We'll leave when my audiobook's over. We'll dock there and continue after you get a decent night rest," said Elsa.
"And decent means at least six hours, preferably more," Hiro added.
'They're more like parents than my parents,' he thought to himself.
"Deal," Michio replied.
"Good. Now, normally I would tell you to relax, but you're still on slave duty, so get us more berries," Elsa instructed.
Popplio handed Michio a basket. He took it half-resentfully.
"Sitrus or Oran?" he asked.
"Both, and Chesto, in case you turn into a zombie on our way to Pallet," said Elsa.
"Po po," said Popplio.
"Oh yes, and as soon as you're done with that, you're going to need to give Popplio a bath."
"Anything else, your Highness?" Michio asked, bowing in sarcasm.
"Pack up camp and don't forget to fetch Litten. I haven't seen it in hours; it probably got stuck up another tree."
"Or an up an Exeggutor," said Hiro. "And remember to wear the mask again."
"We don't want your pretty face getting any more burn marks."
Michio groaned, then smiled. This still wasn't so bad. Besides, so far, he's done more than scale an Exeggutor for a cat, and it only burned him once, after he made fun of it for being intolerable.
"We just want to take to take advantage of you while we still have the chance," said Elsa. "Now, the sooner you get moving, the sooner we embark for Pallet."
XO
IN THE NEXT CHAPTER
· Acorn and Aliyah are sick
· Illumise and Volbeat reach their destination
· Betrayal?
AN: I hope you enjoyed this super long chapter. Please review if you can. Thanks:)