THAT SYLVEON

So, I started this chapter as soon as I was finished with the last, so I must be the master of procrastination if I was to let this one come out late again. We progress onto the ninth chapter, and I thinking that things should be picking up from here on out.

We've been doing alright in the writing department, and I believe that this story is going fine, although, not as refined as it's predecessor. Even I have to agree. However, that won't stop us from trying our best to make it somewhere as good as it was. Those were the good ol' days XD

Awesome Sawss/Luanastar do not own Pokemon or any other copyrighted franchises mentioned in this story.

Wracked with pressure, Barry made his way over to the bleachers after winning the tough battle against battling star Alexander Evergreen. A flushed Lola Punnichi sat by herself, red with fluster. He trekked up to the level she was on, and audaciously sat next to her. He could feel the blood rush to his cheeks.

Lola looked up, and noticed the sudden appearance of the Blaziken that she crushed on. She smiled as her dreams evolved into a reality. His stunning purple irises were beautiful beyond belief. His amazingly slim thigh and calf muscles asserted themselves under his feathers, as she saw whenever he serendipitously flexed them. Best of all, his calm, tranquil and serene voice flowed out from his beak like water from an undisturbed river. He was so thin, but granted he was to ever take off his shirt, Barry looked like he had been an olympic contender 300 times.

"Uh, hi Lola." begun the Blaziken, rubbing the back of his neck. He looked so cute whenever he did that.

"H-H-Hi Barry." sputtered the Lopunny, mentally slapping herself.

Wow, and I used to make fun of Julley.

"I saw you, by yourself here. I-I was just wondering, if later today, you would like to get some ice cream after school." asked Barry, his vital capacity seemingly increasing. Lola went dead silent, making Barry believe that he had struck a wrong nerve in the Lopunny. "O-Oh, is it too abrupt a time and place to inquire? I'm sorry, I didn't even take neither the time nor the consideration to initiate a formal conversation with you-"

Lola's eyes widened, realizing that she wasn't seizing the opportunity to go out on a date with the Barry Bursyamo. "NO! Uh, I mean, no. It's fine. I'd love to go on a date with you, Barry."

Barry cocked his head. "Date? I thought we were going for ice cream?"

"Uh, yeah. Ice cream. That's what I meant to say." uneasily said Lola, forcing a collected smile. Barry caught the case of the smile too, but had to get up to return to his mat, much to the dismay of Lola.

"That'll be great. Thank you. I'll see you right after school." waved Barry to the Lopunny, standing up and walking back over to his bench, where a mischievous Anais and giddy Raidon sat together. Anais especially just looked like she was up to no good.

"Great moves, Barry!" remarked Anais, reeling back in her seat. "I could see her blushing from here!" Raidon didn't seem to be in on this, but the look on his face told Barry that he was watching him go to talk to Lola as well.

Clearly, Barry did not catch on to Anais' mockery: "To be honest, I was kind of blushing too… But I suggested that we go for ice cream after school, since the temperature today is quite high."

Ugh, I could go for some ice cream right now, actually. I'm burning right now.

You sure you aren't hot under the collar because you're sitting right next to you-know-who?

Buzz off. I'm sweaty and hungry.

"Ugh, I'd love it if I had some ice cream, actually." admitted Anais, beginning to pant a little with her tongue lolling out. Raidon began to pant a bit too, but not because he was hot.

"If you want, you could come with us so you could get some ice cream, too." said Barry, sitting on the mat and performing some static stretches.

"That would be awesome if you're paying, but I wouldn't want to interrupt your date." replied Anais, looking around for any forms of water she could borrow from her peers.

"Date? But we're going to get some ice cream?" Barry's density was unmatched.

I didn't know he had such a high mass and a low volume.

…

Y-You get it? 'Cause density is equal to-

I get it, Giratina.

"You know, I'll come with you guys, then." concluded Anais, shaking her head profusely. This Blaziken was so hopeful in the eyes of girls, but under those muscles and cool head, he really was hopeless.

Barry smiled and turned over to Raidon, who was looking a little restless. Barry, being the nice guy he was, just had to ask his cohort the same question.

"Would you like to come as well, Raidon? It's my treat."

Raidon couldn't believe his ears. It was as if Arceus had this day set up for him perfectly so he can spend at least a little bit of time with Anais. He was a little anxious about how the Sylveon felt about him. He knew he crushed on Anais. Badly. However, it was worth getting every look and sniff of the fairy type if she didn't return those feelings. Yes, it is quite weird, but in love and war, all's fair, his mother would tell him.

"S-Sure! As long as I'm not being a burden or anything." answered Raidon. Barry shook his head gracefully.

I didn't want to say anything, but this guy just makes me feel awkward.

"You certainly aren't. Is it alright if we can meet outside of the school gates later today?" recommended the Blaziken, pointing a thumb outside of the nearest window that was closest to the public streets. Both Anais and Raidon dipped their heads, and received a thumbs up from the upbeat fire type.

When the Blaziken left, Raidon switched his gaze over to Anais in the worthless attempt to spark up a conversation while he still had the chance. However, it was a thousand times harder when it was you doing the talking. He didn't come from a very social family, therefore, he gave life to the first words that popped into his head.

"Those two make a really good couple."

Anais didn't look in his direction, but he saw her smile broaden. "Totally. I remember when we were younger. You know, and Eevee and a Torchic. We were barely 4 years of age when we first met. I used to bully him a bit because I was bigger and taller than him. It's kind of ironic now, though. Now, he's got his own girlfriend and everything."

Raidon smiled. Out of all Pokemon here, Barry was undeniably the youngest. However, he certainly knew how to act the age several years above him.

"I get what you mean. He's a pretty cool guy, though." admitted Raidon. He couldn't think of someone who actually hated Barry with a passion.

"I know…" Anais trailed off, her eyes not moving away from the sight of the floor. "Hey, don't tell anyone this, but I kind of envy him. Like, really badly."

Raidon felt a little confused. "But why? Isn't he your cousin?"

Anais despondently nodded, feeling ashamed of herself for letting the slightest pang of jealousy enter her mindset.

"I know he is, but he's just so… Well, nothing is wrong with him!" Anais raised her voice. Raidon wasn't too sure on what to do in these situations, so hopefully she would just calm down. "Look at him! He's got the perfect complexion, amazing muscles, a rich family and now complete with a girlfriend, who just so happens to be my best friend; What more could he have!"

Raidon felt himself quake in a little bit of fear. "Anais… But think about the things that you may not know about him. You can't just assume he's perfect."

Anais felt a paw slither around her shivering shoulders for comfort. She didn't reject the idea. In fact, she liked it. She liked the settling warmth that his muscular arm provided. It put her at ease, and slowed down her blood pressure. Panting a little, Anais was finally able to compose herself.

"Phew… T-Thank you. I guess I let myself go a little bit too much. Sorry about that."

Raidon saw what he was doing, and noticed that it worked favourably for him, so he stepped it up a little by rubbing the Sylveon's light pink fur, feeling her go tense a little, before loosening up.

"It's okay. It's alright to get a little frustrated sometimes."

Anais leaned into his side, experiencing more of the warmth that she ever so desired.

"Hah, I guess it is."

Spending time with your children has always been a great way to escape all the stress that came when you were an adult.

Julley, the 32 year old father of two, was outside in the garden, fooling around with his second child, Julius. The young Eevee didn't seem to run out of energy - something that Julley longed for since a year ago. The enjoyed a friendly game of tag after Julley had returned from work. Cassidy was on the inside of the house. What she was doing was uncanny to the mind of the Umbreon.

"Tag! You're it!" shouted Julius, tapping his father on the side and scampering off to the other side of the garden, to which Julley gave chase. Julley adored seeing his pride and joy have a grin on his face. It reminded him of the innocence that many said he had.

"I'm coming after you!" responded Julley, inducing Julius to feign a scream, darting left to right to make himself a harder target to catch. This was why playing tag with the Eevee was always an adventure for him. Julius was simply too fast. Whatever he carried within those baby muscles would shoot him several meters up into the air by simply flexing.

From the garden door, Cassidy came through, holding the edge of a cardboard box with her fangs. She set it down on the nearby wooden table, and called her husband over.

"Julley! Come over here! I found some of your old pictures!" whooped the cheerful Glaceon, taking a big stack out and placing them in various piles among the table. Julley halted their game and ran over to his wife, eager to relive some of his old memories.

"Where did you find all of this?" asked Julley, picking out a picture of himself as a small Eevee with an Oran berry helplessly squeezed in between his teeth; all of its azure juices spilling over his mane.

"I was cleaning out the attic, and I found a box with your name on it." said Cassidy, trying not to laugh at a picture of him standing next to Jasmine. The Lucario seemed to have a confident glance on her face as one of her arms wrapped around the Umbreon's neck, much to his discomfort.

"That's amazing! I remember when each one of these were taken, too." reminisced the dark type, gazing up into the clouds above.

Julius had noticed the commotion, and jogged over to find many photos of what actually looked like a mirror of himself. Fortunately, they were merely images of his old man in his Eevee days. Julius smiled as he looked at each one. His father had a large grin on his face as he elaborated at every photo he picked up. As Julius scanned through them, one of them particularly caught his eye.

Julius used his brown furred paw to move the photo over, as he carefully looked at it. There was a total of three Pokemon in this picture. One Umbreon, one Eevee, and one Blaziken. The Eevee, he recognised as his father thanks to the vacant smile on his face. This meant that the Umbreon to the left had to be his grandmother, April. It hadn't been so long since Julius had seen her - approximately a month - so in comparison to both times, she hadn't changed a bit. However, this left the smiling Blaziken's identity a mystery. But why did it concern him so much? He was only three - Perhaps a little bit too smart for his age.

Julius shook it off and assumed that it was a family friend, before brushing it to the side.

"And I remember this one! This was when my Mom and I finally moved into our new house in West Latias city! Those times were great…" rambled Julley, slightly leaning on his wife for support.

Is it possible to faint from too much nostalgia?

I don't know, why don't you find out for yourself?

We don't have cameras to take photos with around here, duh.

"Makes me realise that we need to take some more family pictures, so when we're old, we could look back and laugh at how irresponsible we were!" Cassidy joked, laughing harder than she should be. She picked herself up and walked back inside of the house.

Julley smiled and collected up all of the pictures, stacking the back inside of the box so he could take a more in depth look into each and every one of them later. Julius followed his mother into the house, as it was getting boring waiting outside to resume their game. Julley watched his son trot inside with a spring in his step. If there was anything that could put a grin on the shaky maw of the Umbreon's face, it was the giddiness that arose from simply being around Anais and Julius.

Speaking of the Giratina, Anais impatiently stood slumped on the school walls, watching Pokemon alike pass by, as well as the precious time that she could be spending doing literally anything else. It was at least a bonus that she was a Sylveon, and not an ice type, like a Glaceon. They would have evaporated in this kind of heat.

Every time someone passed by, Anais raised her head in hopes that it would be one of the other three that agreed to go out on this feat. Unfortunately, that aspiration never seemed to come true.

For the sake Arceus, Giratina and Mewtwo! Where are these people?

I can't really tell. I don't have the same 'powers' as Arceus. I'm just in his room, using his weird orb assigned to your existence. Imagine it as a controlled circuit television camera, inside of your mind! Wooo!

That… I can't imagine that.

Yeah, your brain isn't meant to comprehend that kind of stuff, since your brain is three-dimensional. But what dimension is your MIND?

Anais was getting a headache from all of this thinking. Thankfully, It only took five minutes more for Barry to come sashaying out of the gates, his bronze baggy apparel barely swaying on the Blaziken's back. Anais could have lasted only a few seconds more, no less, before she would have snapped and just went home.

"Hey! Anais!" called the fire type, beaming as he strolled over. "Sorry I'm sort of late. A fight broke out in the playground, and the principal wanted me to give a statement."

Anais rolled her eyes and giggled a tad, as if she wasn't filled with umbrage to begin with. School fights weren't as common around here… If you were new. Fights had occurred sporadically since last year, and have now become a so-so spectacle. Although, fights aren't like battles; Battles are made in a controlled environment, when the sole objective is the overcome the opponent, rather than beat them into submission. It all starts as you would expect it. Some guy says one, the other guy says two, and suddenly, a disagreement is made. Punches, kicks and scratches are exchanged in a match to beat or be beaten up. On other occasions, students would actually resort to using their environment to their advantage, such as tables, ladders, and even sometimes, the glue gun in the art department. If you were new to this school as of this moment, you'd have an incredibly hard time getting on.

"I guess it's alright. Where's the others at?" Anais questioned, coming off the wall and facing the Blaziken head-on. Barry tugged at the nape of his bronze Squirtle-neck hoodie, looking a bit unsure.

"I'm not entirely sure. They should be coming out any second, though." answered Barry, checking the time on his phone, which was the only function that he actually used it for, huffing as the clock approached 4 o'clock.

Finally, Raidon arrived, blushing as soon as he made eye contact with his dissatisfied peers. Especially Anais. Her ocean blue eyes was now a vicious, wavy storm under dark, thunderous clouds.

"Hiya, guys. Sorry about being late. My locker key broke so I had to wait to get a new one." told the Luxray, pawing at the ground curiously in shame.

"It's alright." spoke up Anais. "At least we'll have a lot of time to get some ice cream, so there's no need to worry about anything."

D'AWW! She cares about the Luxray!

Well, not completely. He's still a friend.

A boy-friend?

No, just a-

Boyfriend!

As her mental conversation didn't really work out, a sudden change in heart from the Sylveon, provided a catalyst for a sudden burst of happiness in the Luxray. Raidon felt better thanks to Anais' interjection of kindness.

He sent her a smile, of which she returned with the same, as well as a small tilt of her head. A visible blush came on both of their faces, therefore both turned away from each other in an effort to avoid making the situation awkward.

The last to join the fray was none other than Lola Punnichi, running out of the school gates in a rush to arrive somewhere on time. However, those hopes were dashed a long time ago. Her thin Lopunny legs couldn't take her any faster, although she wished that she could have been quicker. She'd make a reservation at the gym this upcoming leg day.

"Hey guys *pant*, sorry I was *pant* late." Lola was on her knees, clearly unfit from the 200 meter sprint.

Barry came over to her, helping her to regain her precious oxygen molecules back into her lungs. "It's fine. Just regain your breath, because you don't want to overwork yourself beyond your own body's stamina."

Lola smiled at the Blaziken's helpful but very elementary advice, and stood up straight. It was cute how Barry worried about the slightest of issues. It showed that he really did care. However, sometimes, he cared too much for his own good. She didn't know how to react when he told her about the addition of Raidon and Anais to their personal date, but she took it as simple social etiquette. But, the main reason why she was so hyped for this was purely because of the fact that it was only going to be herself and Barry out on the town… Getting ice cream.

"Thanks. So, do you guys want to go and grab some ice cream now? I know a pretty good parlour in the mall, you know." stated Lola as a matter of fact. The remaining members in the group all nodded in agreement, and the destination was settled.

The bus that covered nearly the entirety of the whole town came by, and all four of the friends hopped onto it, Their stop was to be the main super market, where quite literally everything was sold there. Barry was a little bit skeptical upon coming back there again, just in case they put the blame on him for shattering millions of Pokedollars' worth of wine glasses. There weren't any other Blaziken's within the area who could be a suspect, so it wouldn't be the brightest of ideas to be flirting with danger.

The bus was as standard as any other bus in the city. Two floors, about 50 seats overall. Anais, Barry, Lola and Raidon traversed upstairs, and sat there, since according to society, all of the coolest people sat on the upper floor.

Raidon wasn't very used to public transport. Walking was enough for him, in his opinion. As he sat next to Barry and behind Anais and Lola, he turned to the Blaziken for a bout of quick and subtle advice while he still had the chance.

"Barry, can I talk to you about something?" anxiously asked the Luxray. He did not want to amplify his voice any more loud, in case the females in front found suspicion surround Raidon like a cloud. Yet, he was grateful for the certitude that Anais and Lola were talking with very high decibel levels, possibly talking over them so they couldn't hear any speech aside from their own.

Barry, who was adjusting his hoodie, switched his attention from his garments to the Pokemon beside him. "Sure. What's going on?"

Suddenly, Raidon's tongue got folded nine times, and he was unable to speak properly without stuttering. The topic was to be quite private anyway.

"Uh… I-It's to d-do with Anais." Barry wagged his head up and down. He wasn't surprised that he found the Sylveon alluding in one way or another. Nine times out of ten, Raidon could be found staring into the back of Anais' head during registration period.

"Anais? What's going on with you about her, exactly?" politely asked Barry. getting comfortable. He should enlist in a part time job in being a psychotherapist; because that's what he was for most people.

Raidon didn't know how to put this properly into words. "O-Okay, well. Anais is a very nice and caring person, and I also think that her eyes and face make an incredible composition that is her beauty." Raidon had closed his eyes before Barry had a chance to speak.

"So… you like her?"

That could have been said a little less bluntly.

"N-No! I mean yes! Ugh, you see my problem?"

Barry put a talon under his chin as he entered thinking mode. "Hmm… Don't worry, I see your problem. You're in a state of denial because you think that having feelings for Anais is a bad thing."

Raidon was just about to interject with how the Blaziken was wrong, but that was when he realized that Barry was indeed right. Raidon looked forward, shocked with his mouth open, and set his gaze on the back of the chatty Sylveon's head. Blood rushed to his cheeks as the moment got increasingly awkward for him. Barry was more that just right. He was spot on.

Suddenly, the head turned around, her shimmering orbs glaring Raidon in his face, catching off guard. Immediately, he looked somewhere else, preferably to his right, and hit the front of his nose on something feathery. Raidon glanced up, and then back down, realizing that Barry was now standing, and his face was basically in his crotch.

Lovely. Reminds me of my weekends.

"Uhh…" Raidon mumbled, getting out of his chair and standing on the catwalk.

"Uhh… I think that this is our stop." muttered Barry, wanting to get off this bus as fast as possible. Witnesses Anais and Lola let out roars of guffaws at the serendipity of the situation, as they headed off the bus, the boys following suit.

The bus headed on hastily without them, leaving them within a dirty cloud of dust, smoke, and other unpleasant substances. Thankfully, they had made it to the mall, completing half of their objective so far. Lola lead the trio inside of the mall, and all the way across to the other side, where a small, ice cream shop was located. Anais couldn't recall this being here, but Barry could. It was one of the last things he saw before he careered into the avalanche of sharp, glassy materials.

"They sell all types of ice cream, so pick what you want, and I'll go up and order it." suggested Barry, sitting down at a table meant for four. Lola sat next to him, so that meant on the other side, Anais would sit next to Raidon.

Anais picked up a menu, and her eyes darted to one of the first things on the menu: "Oooh! Barry! Get me the triple chocolate gelato, with sprinkles, Oran juice and a wafer!" It was around instances such as these, where Barry would reconsider the reality that Anais was older than him by about 11 months. What luck. And by that, he meant, what bad luck.

Raidon wanted something a little smaller than that to satisfy his taste buds. "Can I please have the Sitrus scoop?"

Barry nodded at a request that was easier on his wallet. Lola was the last once more to order. "Hm…So… Okay. Barry? Can I have the double whipped Pinap scoop?"

Yikes. Lola had an appetite that could match his mother's. In fact, it may as well be bigger than his mother's… Nah, of course it couldn't.

"Alright, I'll go and order." Barry got up and walked over to the cashier, who immediately went crazy, screaming, 'BRENDAN BURSYAMO! GUYS! IT'S BRENDAN BURSYAMO!' The others just giggled and went back to their own conversations. Barry couldn't say that this has never happened before. Though, he was two feet shorter than Brendan now. There wasn't much way the cashier could get that mixed up.

Wow. People recognise Barry thank they do you, Arceus.

That's because mortals are ignorant.

Eh, personally, I think it's because you're just boring.

Lola rested her head on her paw as her hazelnut eyes fell onto Raidon, examining him very closely. If anything, the Luxray was a 4, and that was Lola being generous. Her eyes next went back to Anais. The Sylveon was definitely a 9. So what was she doing hanging around this herb? Raidon was moderately cute, but that was all the credit that Lola could give. Plus, assuming that Anais was now acquainted with this Luxray, what had happened to Nester?

"So, are you two like… going out now?"

"No." answered Raidon.

"Not really, at the moment." answered Anais, bold and confident as she was usually.

Raidon was a little hurt at the general response of the question, but performed the most radical double take in the history of about sixteen years once he had discerned what had actually just come out of her mouth.

"Oh really? So what's happened with Nester?"

This question got Anais thinking for a while. Even Raidon waited in shock for the answer. She hadn't even considered his point of view in their so-called 'relationship', but Raidon could not complain in those regards.

"He's… He's just not the one for me. He's always busy, and never seems to look at me as his girlfriend. I swear, next time I see him, I'm gonna dump him."

*CLAP CLAP CLAP*

*CLAP CLAP CLAP*

Lola was shocked at the heck of a response she got out of a measly little question.

"W-What!? Think about what you just said, Ann!" However, the Sylveon didn't listen to her minor pleads, and turned her head away from the Lopunny. "Plus, you know that Nester hates getting dumped!"

"So? He can just scamper off to the hundreds of other girls that will swoon at his feet." remarked Anais, scoffing as she did. This left both Lola and Raidon with a bittersweet feeling in their guts.

The remainder of the wait for ice cream was met with silence, as neither party decided to speak up. Raidon really considered what exactly it was that Anais valued in him so much to the extent that she would give up Nester, the hottest boy in the school by a mile. Or… Was it him that she valued, or perhaps it was someone else? There was no way that he meant so much to the Sylveon. Unless… She actually liked him? Well…

"Voila mon amis! Bon appetit! C'était seulement $15.99! Ils me donnaient une réduction!" exclaimed Barry, placing the glass ice cream cups carefully on the table, and taking back his seat next to Lola back from the air particles.

Yeah, tell me about it. Those damn air particles, am I right?

Anais stuffed her face full of the ice-cold sugary snack before she was to be interrogated some more. Plus, she was particularly hungry and hot from all of the waiting that she did outside of the school gates. This was her reward.

Barry, who decided on a milkshake rather than getting ice cream, took a look up to the Luxray across from him. He didn't seem to be all that grossed out from watching the Sylveon eat. However, he especially looked at the way Raidon gazed at Anais. His eyes did not broadcast any sort of hate or jealousy. They were very much the opposite: Infatuation. It was like Raidon couldn't get enough of the Sylveon, to the point that Barry sympathized with his awful obsession. Sometimes, he wished that his cousin would stop being so associated with her own needs and passions, and open her eyes to recognise the needs of others.

Barry felt an furred forearm fall upon his own, and saw that it was Lola, leaning on him with a bowl of ice cream half empty, or half full, depending on how you see it.

"Thanks for buying us this ice cream, Barry." purred Lola, grooming the Blaziken with her shoulder.

"It's alright." replied Barry, but couldn't seem to get his focus away from the Luxray. "I just thought it would be a nice way of getting to know each other." Barry emphasized that last point to ensure that Anais heard it. Judging by the way she demolished that creamy dessert it was not very likely.

Finally, Anais was done with her food, with Raidon, Barry and Lola following in tow. No one seemed to be all that tired of the mall just yet. In particular, Anais, who still insisted on browsing around the store some more. However, it was majorly met with disagreements. If anything, Lola wanted some alone time with Barry. Meanwhile, Barry knew that it would be beneficial to Raidon and Anais if he just left them alone… Perhaps Anais didn't have too bad of a plan, actually.

"Thinking back on it… I guess we could stay for a bit longer. It's barely 5 o'clock yet." recommended Barry, despite the certainty that it was replied with unsure faces. "And my Dad updated my debit card yesterday."

Three of a kind all let smiles fly, as all of them nodded to agree with the idea. Barry joined in on the grin convention, before handing his cousin a hundred Pokedollar bill, courtesy of Brendan Bursyamo. He still needed to find the nearest ATM to withdraw some more cash.

"Pfft, I'm going to shop 'till I collapse, all over the floor!" cried Anais, jumping up and down in glee.

"Uh… I think I'd rather stay here with Barry." Anais shrugged her shoulders nonchalantly, before darting in one direction to the clothing store just a few feet away from them. However, midway across her flight, Anais stopped in her tracks and turned back towards the Lopunny and the Luxray.

"Hey Raidon!" Said Luxray's ears perked up in surprise. He hadn't been expecting Anais to finally notice him. "Aren't you coming?"

Raidon broadly bared his teeth as he was given another opportunity to further strengthen his relationship with Anais. This time, he'd try to come clean and express his emotions, while he still had the chance.

…

TRY.

Finally done! Thanks for Jirulius for beta reading, too. Everything done here was a team effort. I found the reviews from last chapter to be particularly interesting, so another thanks to all that reviewed. I will respond to your reviews in the following chapter, just so all inquiries made across the span of the last few chapters will be answered. Otherwise, peace out!

-Awesome Sawss/Luanastar/Jurilius