Author's Note

Uh...

Oops?

It's been way too long, and I feel so terrible that I made everyone wait. I don't know why I'd lost interest in this, besides maybe some intense flamers that pm'd me, but after rereading the story from start to current, I sort of fell in love with it again.

So here we are once again. Hopefully this time with passion!

Music of the day

Pokémon Legends Arceus - Jubilife City

Uploaded

(03/27/2024)

Legend below

"Good morning, Darling..." = Normal Speech

''Keep your head high!'' Normal Thoughts

Chapter 11

Picking up the pieces

A week had passed since they all had that little heart to heart in the living room.

The next morning had been rather, awkward, yet it wasn't bad. Hugh had spent that day planning out how he was going to fix things, alongside Sabrina and the rest of the family who'd lovingly offered their input.

The biggest thing that needed to be fixed was something Nate had mentioned to him a few days ago during their phone call.

The most glaring issue right now revolved around how Hugh simply didn't know them all. To rectify the other problems, he first needed to truly come to know everyone in the house, and that would only happen if he spent a lot of time with them.

Simply reading a summary of their lives or anything similar would be both disingenuous and unnecessarily cold, and wouldn't truly help him learn who they were, what they were like, and how they lived their lives.

So he made a plan, a plan that would allow him to get to know them all, a plan that wouldn't leave anyone out.

He needed to set time aside to join Lexie at her fashion show tomorrow, see how she likes to spend her time away from home. He planned on bringing Midna with him, and Sabrina if she was willing.

He wasn't going to be able to do everything he wanted to everyday, but that's why this was going to take time. He'd take everything one step at a time and work his way from there.

Something he wanted to do as well was visit Bella up at Humilau City for her swimming class that she was teaching. He was going to bring Mia and Mya along so he could see how they were with others, alongside making sure he was responsible for them during the second half the day, as that was when their rushed evolution truly became a serious burden, and leaving them alone at such a time would be seriously irresponsible of him. That and, he'd realized that they desperately depended on him and his affection towards them, leaving them behind for so long would be uncaring of him.

At some point he'd also have to visit Scarlett at the filming studio over in Black City to see her and show her his support as well.

Sabrina had told him that Priscilla loved to go to the gym, and had been dying to drag him along for one of her killer sets. He knew he couldn't leave her hanging, and knew he had to set aside time for that as well. Tesha would often join her too to blow off steam.

Speaking of Tesha, what she had told him that night had really put her situation into perspective for him. He'd probably learn so much more, not just about her, but everyone as time passed, but what little he did know now opened his eyes. This position he'd suddenly found himself in wasn't going to be an easy one to fill, that was apparent to him.

But he was going to do his damn hardest to fill it.

He realized that with everything he'd suddenly be doing, he wasn't going to have much free time for Sabrina. She was, arguably the most important person he needed to care for, and he couldn't ignore her for the rest of his family.

He also couldn't forget them in turn for her, and it put him in a stressful situation.

But, when he'd brought the subject up to her, she'd smiled.

One day, whether or not he got his memories back or he was unfortunately forced to forge new ones entirely, things would likely go back to how they were before everything changed. When that time came, she would catch up on all that time missed with him.

But, until then, she was going to try her best to stand by his side and support him, be the best wife she could for him. And he could never thank her enough for it.

He knew that despite her smiling at him and promising to do whatever she could to help him out, telling him not to worry too much about her while he figured everything out, he knew it was going to be extremely difficult for her.

During all of his well thought out planning, the truth was, there was no time for her almost anywhere in it, and she, like the rest of the house, had personal needs only he could tend to.

He couldn't allow his personal feelings to get in the way forever, and he needed to get over his insecurities on the matter.

And he was going to do it soon.

Very soon, because he wasn't sure she could hold herself back much longer. And he felt terrible whenever he'd catch her holding herself back because of him.

The next morning had started off really well, all things considered. He was awake before any of them, as he usually was. He'd struggled to slip out of his wife's grasp, as she'd snuggled up to him some time during the night, and he really didn't want to wake her.

Midna, who'd also been sleeping with him had wrapped her arms around one of his during the night. It was seemingly impossible to slip free without waking them both, but somehow, he managed.

Perhaps it was a super power of his…

Either way…

The rest of the house had been out cold, still sleeping in their rooms. With this chance to start the day off strong, he'd decided to get a breakfast going for everyone, intending to start the day off on a great note.

Of course, he wasn't alone for long, as Sabrina had awoken a short time after he did, and had snuck up on him, surprising him with a hug from behind that put him in a precarious situation.

Not that he found himself minding, mind you.

He happily accepted her help in preparing food for the family, and what followed was a mix of his focus on cooking being tested by her continued teasing or accidental revealing positions she'd end up in when in line of sight.

She was such a tease.

But he loved her, hopefully as much as the past version of him did. And he would come to love her like the past him did.

Thankfully, her teasing and precarious situations never evolved into what he presumed she desperately wanted from him, but she definitely approached that line a handful of times.

The constant bedroom eyes she tossed his way wasn't helping, but it definitely made her intentions clear. But, even then, she settled for kisses for now.

That being said, she wanted a whole lot of them, and by the time the others had woken up by the smell of the food, his face had been sufficiently…

Marked…

But, with a smile he greeted the slowly awakening house with breakfast.

Priscilla and Tesha were off to Humilau City for the gym, apparently Tesha was a personal trainer.

Who knew?

Scarlett had an early shoot to attend, and Lexie wanted to tag along to play a background role. Naturally, the director wasn't going turn down that Luxray. He'd have to be brain dead.

That left him with Bella, Mia and Mya, Midna, and of course, Sabrina.

He wanted to hang out with all of them, but trying to get to know everyone all at once would be a lot. So he didn't pester any of them when they left.

Once it was down to just them, he brought up the idea of joining Bella at her swimming class. He would bring Mia and Mya along as well, Midna too.

When he posed the idea to the fluffy Arcanine, she looked positively ecstatic.

However, this time they were going to travel by vehicle, instead of using Sabrina's teleport abilities, as using her power for more then just him and her strained her, and would result in having her do it twice, once there and once back.

Nevertheless, it was the perfect opportunity for him to try out his truck.

Because he had a truck…

Yeah, now he just had to wrack his brain for the muscle memory to work it, as he'd not ever driven before he set out on his journey all those years ago.

After everyone else had up and left to do what they had planned for their day, he got everyone else loaded up in the truck.

Sure, Humilau City wasn't very far from Undella Town, but it would be nice to relax on the way instead of walking the whole route.

So, half an hour later saw the young man on the road, his wife by his side, the twins in the back seat, with Bella and Midna in the bed of the truck more then thoroughly enjoying the sensation of the wind as it ruffled their fur.

The ride was nice, his truck proving to actually be a gentle drive all things considered…

But, not a short while into the drive, he realized that he'd not accounted for one thing in particular.

Seeing as they were attending Bella's swimming class, naturally they'd all be in swimsuits, obviously.

What he hadn't accounted for was just what Sabrina planned on wearing, and the fact that she was going to wear it on the drive, and nothing else. As it turns out, the effects of a relatively bumpy road on a certain large oversized pair of barely covered feminine assets right in the corner of his eyes, proved to be thoroughly distracting.

And she'd simply gaze forward, pretending to be none the wiser.

Oh, but she definitely knew what she was doing, that was for sure.

But, that aside, the coastal drive felt wonderful, the silence comfortable not tense. This close to the ocean, they were blessed with the slightly salty sea breeze as it blew over, ruffling his long purple bangs. It made his lone red eye sting, but he'd come to ignore it well enough.

However, with some time to kill, he thought he'd ask about what it was like being a swimming instructor for a bunch of people, and how her nature as a fire type Pokémon would make such a profession difficult.

"Hey Bella?" He called out, voice easily heard over the sound of the winds. He wasn't driving too fast.

"Hmm?" The large plump and furry Arcanine perked up, leaning out the side of the truck-bed to get a little closer to her master. "What's up, Hugh?" She asked curiously.

He smiled at her eagerness to respond to him, and how she gave him her undivided attention. "I was just curious, what's it like being the swimming instructor for the Humilau City Gym? I mean, you are a fire type after all." He asked, pointing out some of his concerns.

Past him had seemingly let her go about and do what she loved, but he couldn't help but be a bit concerned for the circumstances that it placed her in.

Fire types didn't do well with water after all…

Bella beamed at his open concern, happy he was actively worried about her. "O-Oh, well, it's not so bad. I'm actually a good swimmer, and I float really easily, hehehehe…" She explained, laughing nervously as she trailed off, face turning red underneath her fur.

Her embarrassment faded a bit as a genuine smile seemed to form on her face. "I really enjoy it there, and everyone really likes me. I was never really a fan of battles, but I am very strong, so it was obvious why I always stuck by your side in battle back then." She explained quietly, a small smile on her face.

She sat back down, her back to the window to the back of the truck cabin. Midna stuck her tongue out playfully as she clambered back into her large fluffy sister's lap. "You promised me that I could always opt out anytime, go and do whatever I wanted to do… But I couldn't… I-I could never leave your side. I was dedicated to helping you bring down those- those- punks!" She huffed angrily, before pouting as she realized getting upset over the past wasn't going to help anyone.

"But, I said that I wanted to help in other ways after it was all over, and you gave me your support, even though you kept worrying over me. When I told you that I wanted to become a swimming instructor at the Humilau City gym, you looked like you thought I was joking." She explained happily, laughing at the last bit.

"Heh… I'll admit that the idea worries me now. But I can tell that it makes you happy, so I don't have any problem with it." He laughed nervously, eyes glancing to his right to spot the happy smile of his wife.

She was happy with how things were playing out, he could tell.

"You're doing well, Darling." She whispered, just low enough that no one else could hear. As if to reinforce her point, she kissed him on the cheek.

He smiled, heart glad to hear her say that to him.

"Come on Dad, ask us something next." Mia chirped from the back seat, leaning happily on her sister, Mya's shoulder.

"Ooh ooh! Yeah, ask us how we met!" Mya chirped as well, eyes gleaming.

Hugh smiled up at the mirror, seeing their eager faces waiting for him to say something. "Alright, I'll bite. How'd we meet? You're not going to tell me you suddenly stumbled upon me and were struck by my charming character…" He joked, figuring that's how most of them met.

If he was to believe Sabrina anyway…

"Uh huh, sure Daddy…" Mya rolled her eyes playfully.

"We actually came from the islands… E-Err… What were they called again? Anoha-?" Mia tried, slowly trailing off.

"Alola." Sabrina gently corrected from the front seat.

"Right! The Alola Region. It's north-"

"South." Sabrina interjected again.

"Oh yeah! It's south of Unova, uh, south east." Mia explained giddily.

"Yeah! So like, it's made up of all these islands with all these little cities, and it's super cute! It was always so nice there, but it's way colder here honestly." Mya added helpfully, Mia nodding enthusiastically alongside her twin.

Hugh smiled. "Oh really? I think I've heard about that place." He said lightly, glancing back at them through the mirror. "If it was so nice, what made you both leave?" He couldn't help but ask.

As if a switch was flicked, their ears fell flat against their heads. Hugh couldn't help but feel like he'd just opened up a huge can of worms.

"Well… It's a long story…" Mia muttered quietly.

"Yeah, it wasn't really all that fun back then…" Mya added.

Waves crashed violently against the side of the ship, rocking it back and forth, threatening to send it overboard. A loud and powerful storm continued to blow against the deck, the winds it carried seemingly acting with a mind of their own.

In the corner of the dark and dank storage room, hidden behind old and likely moldy wooden boxes cowered two Rockruff, sisters. The twins were soaked from the rain outside, shivering from the anxiety that wracked their little bodies.

The one tried to console the other, but both were frazzled, and so deeply scared.

But, at the end of the day, they were finally freed from the chaos of what was happening upon the region.

"We remember everything being so scary back then…" Mia muttered quietly. "Alola had been a pretty and safe place once, w-when we were younger. But then one day everything changed. These gangs showed up, terrorizing the people and hurting those that didn't side with them. T-They'd separated us from our families, and we'd been running ever since."

"Sissy had decided that we needed to leave Alola, so we snuck aboard a ship that was leaving the docks." Mya added helpfully, poking her way into the story. "I don't really remember much about everything back then… But Mia says that's probably a good thing…" Mya added quietly at the end.

"So what happened after you escaped Alola?" Hugh asked curiously.

"We were getting to that, Daddy!" Mya chided.

"Sheesh, come on, let me tell the next part. You just sit there and drive, Dad." Mia jumped in.

"Okay okay." Mya laughed.

The rain continued to assault the ship, water leaking through and into the storage room. Even inside the ship's walls, they weren't safe from the cold water, shaking in their dark wet corner.

The only bright side was the fact that they had each other to hold onto.

The night felt like it lasted forever, the twins unable to fall asleep for long due to the violent waves crashing against the side of the boat.

They didn't know how long they stuck aboard, but they were far too fearful to try to leave now that they'd made it onto the ship.

However, eventually they reached someplace far, far away from Alola. They were aware that something must've changed, because the waters had become calm, quiet. The rain had stopped falling, and moonlight could be seen through the old cracked windows that lined the walls.

When they crawled out from the storage room and onto the outer deck, the storms from before had gone, and a bright sunny sky greeted them with open arms.

They'd come out of the ship on the other side, the chaos of Alola long behind them as they found themselves in a new world.

"Oh! You both managed to catch a shipping boat to Unova? I guess that explains-" Hugh chipped in, snapping his fingers.

"Daddy! Come on!"

"Yeah, let us tell the story!"

The two cautiously avoided the crew who worked on the ship, sure to say out of sight as they made their way onto land. With the boat left behind, they'd found themselves in some sort of industrial district, tall buildings illuminated by a bright unobstructed sun.

It was entirely different then Alola had been when they left.

But they still held a fear of people, especially Pokémon Trainers. So they found themselves hiding away in an abandoned building complex for some time, too scared to come out for fear of what might await them.

Then one night, a stranger wandered into their abandoned home, a gentle smile on his face and a warm and comforting aura surrounding him…

"We'd been hiding in an old rusty building for weeks, little food, bad water… It was awful…" Mia murmured quietly, looking away.

"We weren't sure how long we were going to be in there… We were so scared to leave." Mya added softly as she recalled her younger days.

"We had been out of food for three days when you found us. You were searching the docks of Virbank City for rouge Team Plasma members when you found us."

"At first… We thought you were going to be like the bad guys at Alola…"

"But then we saw your smile, and we knew you were different. You rescued us from the building and decided to take us along with you." Mia smiled, a soft look crossing her maw as she recalled the past.

"We'd been so starved for attention… So used to living in fear and uncertainty, when you rescued us with that giant smile… Well…" Mya spoke up.

"We evolved right then and there due to the overwhelming feelings we had. Our bodies weren't prepared for evolution, so we suffered from a sort of forced transformation… A-At least, that's what Professor Juniper said… I don't really understand it all that well." Mia hoped in helpfully.

"We gained all the strength of our evolutionary lane-"

"Line, Mya. Evolutionary line." Sabrina corrected gently.

The dog flushed in embarrassment, sticking her tongue out. "Right, our evolutionary line. We got really strong, but since our bodies didn't grow naturally, we sorta lost our stamina along the way…"

"Basically, we need medication to live normally, otherwise we spend more then half the day sleeping just to make up for our rushed forms…" Mia nodded, glancing up to him, the young man gazing lightly at the road ahead. "These big adult bodies weren't the easiest to try and get used too…"

"You've spent so much time helping us adapt and make the most of it, and when we're on our meds we feel great!" Mya beamed.

"And when they're not, you find them sleeping half naked in the living room…" Sabrina teased cheekily, glancing in the rear view mirror with a little smirk.

The twins pouted.

Hugh laughed, finding the way she treated them like a mother to her rambunctious children. He turned to Sabrina, cheeks tinting a light red as she smiled down at him.

He couldn't help but truly look at her again, and take her in for everything that she was.

She was an honest woman who truly did her best to care for those she loved, went out of her way to help him and his family in all their affairs, and didn't ask for anything in return but his affection…

He really was falling in love with her all over again.

He grinned lightly, face flushing just a tad more. He leaned closer to her, getting her to do the same.

"I love you, Sabrina." He muttered softly, yet genuinely, as he pressed his lips to hers in a short yet chaste kiss.

Her heart melted like she was a Kirlia all over again, returning his feelings two fold as she returned his kiss with passion.

"Hey! Eyes on the road, love birds!" Midna squeaked from the truck-bed. "You two can make out once we get to the gym…" She trailed off, smirking teasingly.

Hugh pulled away with a light cough, cheeks hot red.

Sabrina only grinned.

"I really do despise waiting for what I want…" The voluptuous Psychic Type murmured lowly, leaning back down to steal another kiss from the increasingly distracted driver.

Hugh found it impossible to complain about the increased attention, keeping one eye on the road.

Up ahead, he saw the entrance to Humilau City, the ocean front town a beautiful sight…

Chapter

11

End

Info

For anyone who wants to know more, I have made a character spreadsheet for the characters in this story. It contains all the information already stated, some simple traits.