The Tale of Seven: The Summon of Sorrow

[Reno]

In the wake of the upset, Roxas stood there, hardly aware that his husband had left his side, and slowly he blinked, trying not to let it show how his daughter’s words had hurt him with her brother still there. Vaguely, as if he was in a dream, he said, “I’m going to get a cup of coffee, you just… stay there.” Mechanically, looking more robotic than human, he turned and headed to the far-side of the room, where a table of drinks stood, knowing in the back of his mind he wasn’t paying for this but didn’t have the mind to care.

Had Roxanne really just said that?


“Just let her be for now.” Terra said to Ven, seeing how put out he was by being run out on. “You know Bonnie is the only one who can get through to her sometimes.” He glanced up as he saw another dash of canary yellow, seeing Roxas just teetering across the room to the drink table. From where he sat at another corner, the gym leader spotted Sora watching after his youngest twin with sympathy in his eyes, knowing the eldest wanted to go and attend to Roxas, and being unable to because he WAS supposed to be paying attention to his son, and more importantly, listening to what his husband was saying. The two caught each other’s gaze and Terra just nodded before glancing at the steaming blond beside him, rubbing his arm.

“Ven, go talk to Roxas. I think he really needs you right now.” That was all he needed to say, before the younger was up on his feet and hurrying over to where the poor desolate father was. Now alone, Terra sighed and stood, making his way over and plop down beside Roxel, who was too looking quite upset. “Hey kiddo.” He reached out, petting Melody on the head, her feathers nice and soft. He didn’t know too much about Torchic, but he knew the softness of her feathers meant she was in great health. “You’re taking great care of her.”


Sora sighed in relief when he saw Terra mutter to Ven before the blonde was hurrying over to Roxas, silently thankful. This wasn’t going to be good… Roxas never had enough confidence, so this blow would be rather daunting. And poor Axel… even if the comment was directed at the blonde, her fury included them both – because they were both her fathers. Now he understood the woes other parents talked about when raising teenagers… they sure were a handful and-
“Sora!”
“Huh?” He blinked looking round and seeing Riku giving him a glare. “Uhhh… Ummm… The answer is seven!” Tensai put a hand over his mouth to stifle his giggles, watching his father smile sheepishly. “Okay, Okay, I’m here, sorry. What were we talking about?”
“Dad just said you guys are going to upgrade my call app.”
“Oh… Right! Yes, we were discussing it on the way over.” Sora nodded, glad Arcy had stayed around the house for a few days after bringing Tensai to the Xipil household. Otherwise, they would have been hard-pressed for transportation. “And we thought it would be a… peaceful solution I suppose.”

Tensai smiled, glad his fathers were always strict but fair. But slowly his expression fell. “It’s very nice of you guys… and I really appreciate it… but I don’t think it’ll matter.” When he was met with confusion, he explained gently, “Well if Uncle Roxas is taking Roxy and Xel back home… I mean what’s the point? I don’t want to go on my journey without them.” He sighed, looking truly upset and it wasn’t really for his own plight anymore, “And if there was any hope of Uncle Roxas changing his mind, there certainly isn’t one now. I can’t believe she said that either. I know she doesn’t feel like that! Why would she be so mean?”
Sora tilted his head, knowing that his son had been dreaming of this for months, and Roxas decision was rather earth-shattering for them all. Out of all his cousins, Ten and Xel probably spent the most time together, they were close enough to be brothers sometimes. Though, Ten found friendship in all his cousins anyways, and would love to travel with all of them – but with Xel, the picture was just black and white, not colored like it was meant to be.
Rather than addressing that though, he said more gently, “I wouldn’t be too hard on her Ten. Thinks are tough for her.”
“What do you mean?” Tensai asked, frowning. How was it any different from him, or Bonnie, or Sanyi? Or even her own brother! And still there was no excuse for how she was acting.
“Well……” Sora sighed, “Tensai, it’s different for her. She’s the only girl in her family.”
“But Bonnie-“
“Yes, I know. Bonnie and Sanyi are too – well in that situation I mean. But… there’s a difference for her too. She has Xel too.” Orange eyes looking up at him, uncomprehending. “Ten, I’ve been a triplet all my life. I know what it’s like. You feel like you struggle all your life to be different and recognized. There’s always this competitive edge with siblings that you never quite shake. And Roxy is not only a twin, but she’s also… a girl – which to her is probably a fatal flaw. Don’t you remember when we all visited and she would always try to join in all the boy games and would get frustrated because it wasn’t really fun for her until Bonnie carted her off to do well… girl things?” There was a slow nod, “Well see? For you it’s easy, you have me and Riku. Heck, even for Sanyi and Bonnie it’s easy because when they feel not included at least it’s only a singular feeling. But for Roxy… She has to struggle with being not included in things that Roxel will be – and that hurts her because she doesn’t have a constant female presence to fill in that gap where well… a mom would be, to do girl stuff with all the time and not just on vacations. I’m sure she sometimes even feels like she isn’t as loved as Roxel… or was only adopted too because she came in the package.”
The black-haired boy sat there for a long moment, before bowing his head. “I guess I never thought of it that way. But Uncle Axel and Uncle Roxas love her to death!”
“Yeah, I know. And she’ll realize that too one day, if she doesn’t already. We all sometimes just say things we regret because we’re angry.” Sora said, thinking of Ven when his father disowned him after learning he was truly Venita Troublefield, the famous coordinator. Things had a way of piling up, creating a big mess of hurt emotions and misplaced attacks. “Don’t worry too much about it, some things have a way of working out on their own.”

There was a growl that drew their eyes to the floor, Jolteon glaring up at them an electrical current running down his body making the spikes stick up more. Dang right things worked out on their own – now when were they going to work out this disruptive, stupid kit!!
“Oh come on Jolt, cool it.” Sora chuckled.
“TEON!” The fox barked before turning around and sitting down, showing his disapproval with a bushel of spikes.
“It’s good to see you being so spirited~” Sora teased.


Aqua sighed, looking at Roxas nearby pouring a cup of coffee - and forgetting to stop, the murky liquid overfilling the cup and ending up on the tablecloth. When Ven got there though, she turned away, concentrating on her own boy who was still staring off into space. She turned to look at her wife beside her, demanding, "Don't you have anything to say?!"


“Damn it Bonnie, let me go!” Roxy cried, struggling against her girlfriend’s hold and wondering how the heck she ran so fast in heels. But, it was the sound of Gunnar’s voice that made her deflate, suddenly embarrassed by her display and not even knowing the Almasy’s were nearby to see her pathetic actions. But as she listened, she realized his words weren’t scathing for once… but complimentary. She looked towards him.
”I gained a lot of respect for them.” Her eyes widened, feeling strangely guilty at the flush of happiness that ran through her, wondering if he truly meant that – but she never knew Gunnar to be a liar. But… she didn’t deserve it. She hadn’t even planned on going after them in the first place – had to be, hah!, convinced to go. And she was sure if he knew what she just said to her dad, that he would probably want to eat his words right back up.

“Yeah,” And now Lucina was agreeing?! Oh god, she wasn’t sure if it was better or worse and she just wanted to cry again! “What they did was really amazing Mr. Xipil. I know your angry at her, my dad would be just the same if me or Gunnar did this but… but if it wasn’t for them, and their friends… Sal, or even one of us, might not even be here anymore. We owe them a huge debt that I don’t think we can ever quite repay.”

[Rikugurl]

The cup was suddenly taken along with the hand that was still pressing down the tab. The brown liquid continued to flow over the white rim of the coffee cup, staining the sides as it poured down the sides. Napkins quickly met their doom when they too were suddenly stained by the coffee that had leaked over, trying to correct what had been wronged. "Roxas..." A familiar voice entered the other blonde's head and together, they locked eyes for a moment. "What are you doing?" He wasn't surprised when he didn't get an answer, but still places his hand on his brother's shoulder. "Look... you can't take what she said to heart. She loves you and when people get angry, you know you say things you don't mean."

He turned his brother to face him, seeing the hurt in his eyes. "Remember dad?"

"M-my wife... she's such a big fan. The moment she saw you on TV, she instantly fell in love with you... and she'd not much of a contest watcher but every time you're on... Even I... I watch your things too but of course my wife collected everything that comes out..."
"Dad.... it's me...."
"First you go off and get your first pokemon almost KILLED, then you waste all the money we gave you, THEN you join Team Rocket and steal Pokemon, NOW YOU'RE A FUCKING WOMAN!? You've been NOTHING but a disappointment to the Holani name since you left the house! Why do you keep doing this to us!? You're mother is dying and the doctor just announced that she only has two days.... two days, Ventus..."
"Dad---?"
"DON'T CALL ME THAT! You're not my son anymore! I want nothing to do with you!"

"And now we talk over the phone almost everyday. You're a wonderful father, Roxas. Both of you are. Not only did you help rebuild Lavaridge, you built an entire miniature world on a volcano. You took in so many hurt and damaged pokemon and nearly hundreds have been adopted each year. You did all of this... and rose those two children. They love you... and though you can't do everything for them, you've given them a life they never could of had in an orphanage." Still, Roxas sighed, looking away.

"One fatal day, you died, Roxas. You were shot in the back and you left us. Pokemon are our friends and they'll do anything for us if we're not only good people to them, but to others to. Moltres wouldn't have brought you back if she didn't think you were a good person, Rox..."


"Tooor?" The little chicken looked up when he was pet by a larger, stronger hand than she was use to. Her big eyes looked at the brunette, before nestling down on Roxel's lap.
"Thanks..." The boy answered, though it wasn't as peppy as it usually would have been. He was always happy when people said his pokemon looked great and always recommended his daddy Axel because he had showed him just how to take such good care of them... but now...
"I'm really mad at her." He didn't have to explain who 'her' was to the gym leader. "It's like she takes everything for granted. Dad gave her Borva, BORVA and she says something like that...?"


The silvertte glanced at her wife, seeing her all flustered. "Well... I think this is rather ridiculous." Both wife and son blinked, wondering what she meant. "I mean.... did all of us have to come down here and rip our children a new one? Wouldn't a video chat accomplish the same thing?" Now, being a security officer, you'd think she'd be as overly protective of their son as Aqua. "Our parents didn't hold our hands when we were out saving the world. I love Sanyi and the rest of the little adventurers but that's what they're doing. This is their adventure now. What would have happened if our own parents rushed to the hotels we were staying at to yell at us for all the crazy things we tried to do. YOU infiltrated a Rocket base all and were the distraction. If our parents stopped us from doing the things we did, our world would be underwater right now."

Her gaze turned down to Sanyi, whose face was bright and lit up. However, it only took one word to turn his smile back to a frown. "But," She continued, "I'm not happy that you broke a promise, Sanyi. If you make a promise, you need to keep it and if you can't, don't promise it. Breaking a promise doesn't stop there. It breaks trusts and hearts, do you understand?"


Bonnie pulled away, having heard what the Almasy's had said.
"Is that right?" Axel asked, seeing the two nod. He looked at them good, and sighed, glancing over at the two girls. "Roxy.... please come here." If his children's rivals were going to say such nice things about them, they should at least say it to their faces.

[Reno]

Slowly, blue eyes rose, meeting an almost identical pair, Ven's a shade lighter than his own. Finally he nodded, "I... I suppose your right." He sighed running a hand through his hair, looking down at the tablecloth that he had stained. "But dear Arceus, how do I not give my kids a complex if I let the littlest things get to me? I mean, teenagers say stupid stuff like this all the time, I should of expected it." Not even two days agoy, Axel had to encourage him again because he didn't feel satisfactory to deal with Zoroark and Zorua.
Ven put in gently that he would of taken it badly too.
"You see?!"
An eyebrow rose and Roxas finally cracked a grin, "Well Ven, don't mean to bring up old memories, but you always made getting a splinter the end of the world~" For that, he got punched in the arm.


"Heh, you sound a little... jealous." Terra pointed out, and the red-haired boy snorted, looking further unhappy. "If I recall correctly, Axel told me he gave you Sanuye~"
Roxel nodded slowly, but didn't seem too impressed by this. It was a good thing Aqua wasn't there or she would of slapped him silly - that or just get used to not being listened to!!

Instead he tried a tactful approach. "Hmm, I was under the impression they were both your Pokemon technically anyways - I don't see why you can't just ask to borrow her when you need her. But nevermind that. Listen, I don't what it's like to have a sibling, but I do know this. Girls... they will never make sense, ever. They're complicated, especially when they get older - trust me. Bonnie isn't always the easiest little girl to raise. She can throw the weirdest mood swings." He shook his head but said, more understandingly, "I don't think she meant what she said though Roxel... or did she? I don't know. But I think I know someone who does."

Dual colored eyes looked up at him curiously, wondering what the answer was to that. It made Terra chuckle and ruffle his hair. "You silly!" Eh?! "You're her twin, and probably the closest person to her - probably even moreso than Bonnie. If anyone can figure out what's going on in her crazy head, it's you. And even if you can't, she definitely open up to you - if you, you know, cool it a bit and ask her nicely. Because if there is one thing I learned, you never approach a girl angry because she'll kick you in the nuts for it." He winced as if remembering a literal experience of this - and with 'Venita' and Aqua as his closest friends, it wasn't hard to imagine it COULD be true.


Aqua opened her mouth then snapped it shut - well DUH her parents didn't give a damn. Her father was dead and her mother hated her. But she knew that wasn't what Fuu meant, she was just trying to make a point and if she said what she was thinking, that would be that for this argument.

"I really did mean to keep my promise." He mumbled, but when his mother gave him a hard stare, he decided it was better not to push the issue. "...Okay. I will mom." Sanyi said softly, looking away again, towards Tensai and Sora who were laughing now as they got an uncooperative Jolteon to lay down and give him a good massage that seemed to win him over too. It seemed Ten was off the hook already.

Like Roxy he felt a slight bit of rebellion well in his throat, and he wanted to just shout, 'And if I kept my promise back then, I would be dead too!' but he said nothing. Nothing at all.
"Well... good." Aqua sighed, running a hand through her hair, shaking her head but she wasn't sure if he was really listening.


There was a sniffled, Roxanne using the sleeve of her shirt to wipe at her eyes before she slowly walked over to her father, confused, when he gripped her shoulders and turned her to face them. WHAT WAS HE DOING?! Her cheeks flushed in confusion and embarrassment, but shrugged helplessly. "D-Don't mention it... really..."
Her father explained that wasn't what he meant. He meant for them to say it again to her to her face. She blinked before hiding her behind her hand, hissing, "Dad, you're embarrassing me!" And it was comical enough that Lucina crack a smile, definitely knowing the feeling. Whose parents didn't embarrass them at some point? Ugh, every time her mother jubilantly called for a party with all her 'little friends'... oi, have the time she wanted to disappear in the walls.

[Rikugurl]

Ven spat his tongue out at his brother, glad he was feeling a bit better. He glanced over at Terra, seeing him sitting down on the lounge couch, talking with Roxel. "I think you still have someone to talk to." He indicated, knowing that Roxel needed his father than his uncle. The blonde was still sort of shocked seeing how soft he was with kids and now even teenagers. He just thought he had a spot for cute little girls. It was kind of adorable. Together, the two walked over to the couch, Ven's hand slowly rubbing Terra's shoulder to get his attention. "Come on, we have to get going. Let's say our goodbyes to Bonnie and head home before it gets dark."

Roxel watched as his uncles left, looking away when his dad replaced his uncle on the couch.


Riku caught a glimpse of his brother-in-laws leaving and nudged Sora who was still massaging Jolteon. "Sora..." When the brunette and their son stood again, Riku ruffled Tensai's hair. "Remember what I said, alright? Be careful and if you need anything, you make sure to call us."


"Alright, let's head home~" Fuu pushed Aqua's shoulder some, hearing her mumble that she always looks like the bad guy. However, as Aqua was saying her goodbyes, Fuu looked back at her son and leaned down, placing her hand on his shoulder. "You did wonderful out there... I'm really proud of you. You're already becoming a great dragon trainer. Keep it up, alright?" She gave him a kiss on the forehead and rubbed his cheek before turning, heading off to Aqua.


Gunnar glanced at Axel and then at Roxanne who was blushing away. Huh, she actually looked kinda cute. He shook his head slightly, giving a nod to his sister. "How about we join forces?" Even this shocked Luci, not liking the fact that she would have to spend more time with barrettes here! "Oh come on, Luci.... we might need their help... and they might need some battle tips. I know things haven't worked out, but until now, I never really saw you or your brother as anything but a good self-esteem booster." Both daughter and father gave the brunette a good, hard look but he continued. "What about it, Roxy? You keep our pokemon strong and healthy, and we'll help you train?"

[Reno]

"Alright~" Terra said, glancing back at Roxel and giving him a smile before standing and following after his husband. But Roxas had no trouble sitting down beside his son instead, sighing as he glanced at the young red-head who was running his fingers idly over his Torchic's down-feathers.

"Roxel..." Roxas sighed softly, looking at his son, seeing how down he suddenly was. "I suppose I spoke a bit irrationally, huh? You guys have a right to be a little ticked off, I'm punishing you when you did exactly what we and the rescue center always trained you to do."


"Thanks mom." Sanyi said sincerely, giving her a slight smile, and watching his parents go. He sighed though, slumping some in his seat. What a day - and it barely even started.


Jolteon huffed as the hands left him, rolling over a bit irritably. Hey, he was getting pampered here!
Tensai nodded in understanding. "I will dad." He reached up giving him a hug. "Thanks for... caring enough to come all the way out here for me."
Sora met eyes with Riku, grinning widely, mouthing 'Isn't he just so cute?!' Of course if he said that OUT LOUD he was certain his son wouldn't appreciate it. So, he only hugged Tensai back when he let go of Riku to hug him, giving him a tight squeeze. "You take care not Tenny."
"Daaaaaad."
"You might as well give up, I'm always going to call you Tenny."
A sigh and a smile. "I know. You just can't live if someone doesn't have a nickname."
"Hey, that is NOT true!"
He was giving a raised eyebrow from his son, a disbelieving look from Riku and even a tilt of the skeptical head from Jolteon! "Okay... it might be... a little true."
"Jolt, jolt!" Well, duh!
Sora laughed some and let Tensai go, giving his hair a good ruffle too, and after a couple more goodbyes they following their relatives and friends out of the dining room.
Tensai, seeing Roxel was busy still with his dad, crept across the room and plopped down beside Sanyi instead.


If Roxanne expected anything - it was certainly not this. She stared at Gunnar with guarded eyes for a few moments, trying to figure out his angle. And beside him, Lucina looked a little more reluctant at the idea of traveling with the 'loser' crowd... but, she supposed she really couldn't look at them like that anymore.

It was kind of funny. This wasn't the only time they had ever tried to play nice. In fact, back when they were young and having problems, their parents had actually tried to join forces, talking it out and trying to get their children to play nice.
And then, in the irony of the century, it turned out Seifer and Roxas hated each other and couldn't be civil for five seconds - one thing lead to another, and that was the end of that pact.
But... things had really changed...
"Well...... it's not just up to me. It would be up to all of us..." Roxanne started hesitantly, but glanced at Bonnie as she walked over beside her. Was this a good idea? She wasn't sure, but her gut, for some reason, was telling her to go for it. "But, if you reaaallly need me," She teased just lightly, "I'd say okay. What about you Bon-Bon?"

[Rikugurl]

Nervous fingers felt the soft feathers under their pads, only being able to calm him some. He bit his lip as his dad's tone changed drastically, realizing that none of their parents really thought this through or talked to each other. They just based everything on anger and fear... but he could understand. They went through so much and they didn't want their children to have such a crazy life. He looked up slowly, his bi-color eyes a little glossy. "It's ok dad.... I know you're just looking out for us. I'm just glad we were able to help that pokemon even under all that pressure. We wouldn't of been able to do it without your teachings."

"Torchic!" The little pokemon stood up, turning to look at Roxas and smiled.
"Oh, by the way... how is that Zorua doing?"


"Weeeeeeeell...." Bonnie chuckled, glad to see Roxy was back to her old self. Mood swings were a lovely thing. "It'll be interesting and I'm sure the term 'barrettes' and 'ribbons' are sure to come up again... but I suppose we need some more girls on our team." She winked, making Luci raise an eyebrow.
The Almasy kids and Bonnie all headed back to the hotel where the rest were waiting but before Roxy was able to follow, Axel pulled her back. "Roxanne...." Axel gave her a gentle smiled before suddenly pulling her into a tight hug. "I love you."

[Reno]

Roxas smiled gently and nodded, "I'm really proud of you," He said earnestly, knowing that what his children had done yesterday, while a bit foolish... really had been brave and resilient.
When the topic of conversation changed though he chuckled some and nodded, "Zorua is great. His pneumonia has almost cleared up completely and Axel and I are certain he's going to make a full recovery. And his mother... well, she's... got a thing for Zan."
"Zan?!?!"

"Yeah, she keeps turning into an Absol and making... you know eyes at him... and Zan is acting all weird about it." Roxas chuckled and shook his head, but before more could be shared, they noticed someone else coming inside the dining room that made their hackles rise. Gunnar and Lucina.


Lucina blinked as her father pulled her back, expecting she was about to get scolded for before, and was shocked as instead she was pulled into a hug. However, she hugged him back, holding on tightly as if afraid her dad's thinness would finally get the best of him and the wind would take him away. She looked up at him, her green eyes shimmering some. But only a select few knew it wasn't her actual eye color.
"These ones!" The girl said, pointing to the bright green contacts. "I wanna look like daddy since you look like our other daddy!"
"Well I wanna look like both!" Roxel stomped his foot.
"Both?! That's look stu-"
"NINE!"
"I mean uh... It just won't work because-"
"You think they'll ever pick anything?" Axel sighed over their arguing children.
"Maybe next century." Roxas joked as he flipped through a magazine.

"I know daddy... I love you too. I didn't mean it... when I said that. You and dad are the best, really. I don't know why I said it... I feel horrible."

[Rikugurl]

Roxel giggled, hearing how Zan was acting weird. He knew what that always meant. Babies! He was going to so miss the delivery too, even if it really grossed him out to the point that he always threw up and finally his dads wouldn't let him help anymore but he was glad he was still a part of their care because he was able to set up the nursery or if things weren't perfect, the medical nursery. His dads were always heart broken when a baby pokemon didn't make it. They said it was because Ninetale's second and last batch only had one survivor; Sanuye. Ninetales never had another little after that, probably because she lost so much when the volcano erupted. He had to wonder though, she was suppose to outlive them by a long shot so would she have more babies in the future?

He still doubted it.

He though, remembering the little cemetery they had in the back, a place where ghost pokemon were kept. They buried all the pokemon who died of old age, put down for numerous reasons or as stated above, didn't make it very long after birth. They held a ceremony for each and they all had their own gravestone.

Slowly he glanced up, frowning instantly when he saw Gunnar and Lucina walk in. What were they doing here?"


Not making eye contact with Roxel, Gunnar walked right up to Tensai and Sanyi. "Hey, you guys ok?"


Axel smiled, running his thin fingers through his daughter's hair gently. "I know Roxy... I was kind of the same way too when I was young. When I left home for the first time, I really gave my aunt a lot of trouble... but I think you need to appologize to someone else, huh?"

[Reno]

Roxas really thought it was all quite peculiar too. What WERE Gunnar and Lucina doing here - and out of the blue like this?! He was further surprised when Lucina looked about and when she spotted Roxel, came over to them. "Hello Mr. Xipil, may I speak with Roxel for a moment?"
Roxas felt his hackles instinctively rise, not liking this at all, and beside him Roxel shifting uncomfortably. But then he remembered that Gunnar and Luci were the kids they had helped - a fact that his mind was still having trouble wrapping around. He looked at his son who seemed to be silently pleading for him to not leave, but he pat his son on the shoulder - he would have to fight his own battles. "Sure." He stood, leaving the two of them and for the fourth time, a new person sat in the chair beside him. The blonde watched Roxas walk off before glancing at the boy beside him, "You're parents are pretty tough on you, huh?"


"Depends on who you ask," Sanyi grumbled but Tensai chuckled.
"Oh it wasn't that bad."
"For you. Your parents coddle you. Mine just yells... and cusses and yells some more." He crossed his arms slouching in his seat.
Tensai reached over, patting the distraught teen on his arm before looking up at Gunnar. "What's up? Is Sal alright?" This even perked Sanyi's interest, who always loved to hear about dragons.


"I know," There was a nod, the girl reaching up and giving her dad a kiss, before she let him go and hurried back into the dining room - only to almost run into her other dad as he came wandering out. Shoes screeched a little as they both halted on the tiled floor, both of them standing their awkwardly, neither knowing what to say.
But it was Roxanne who finally broke the dam, her arms being thrown around her dad as she spluttered out almost incoherently, "I'msosorry please don't hate me!" Big, blue eyes picked slowly, glancing up at Axel for a moment before looking back down at his daughter, running his fingers tenderly through her hair which was slowly coming out of her barettes. He glanced up seeing Axel just a few feet away watching with a fond smile before he looked back down at his daughter.
"I could never hate you Roxy." He said softly, "You're my daughter, and I'll always love you." He felt body trembled some, and from her sniffles he knew she was crying. "Ssshh, it's okay."

[Rikugurl]

Roxel gulped when his father left him with a horrible witch of a person. He looked away, even noticing how Torchic ruffled her feathers and stuck her little rear in the air. "Chic!"
"Yea... It's cause I'm an idiot. I'm sure you know that by now..." He was waiting for it, the smart ass comment that he didn't have to say that again. But to his shock, his jaw almost hit the floor when she said he WASN'T. That no one who could work under that kind of pressure was an idiot in her book. Was she... was she.....WAS SHE.... complimenting him!?
"Torchic?" Melody turned, her head tilting some this way and that as she looked up at her master's rival.

Her little bitty eyes blinked when she was suddenly pecked, remembering that this same girl had pulled her feathers once, making her cry. Now, she was being very gentle and it felt really nice. Green and blue eyes looked at the girl next to him, almost flabbergasted and couldn't find the words to say. For all he knew, he was probably drooling! "R-really?"


"He's doing fine, thanks to you guys. If you hadn't been there to save him from falling, he wouldn't have made it and if he did, he would of been off his feet for a lot longer. Nurse Joy said it would take a few days but it was better than a few weeks to months." He too saw their dumbfounded looks and instead of feeding them more gloat, he cut the chase. "So, I was thinking... I know we've been real jerks but the tables have turned. How about we make a deal? How about we travel together. Roxel and Roxanne can keep our pokemon strong and healthy and in return, we'll help you train for badges. What do you say?"

[Reno]

"An Almasy never lies." Lucina said with a slight chuckle but nodded. "Yes, I definitely mean that. What you guys did for us... was really brave. And on top of that, you came after us even knowing you hated us just because you knew we were in trouble... that's really admirable." She pet the three feathers atop the Torchic's head before looking up at Roxel. "We owe you our lives."

Before she allowed the other to get too far off into his own ego, she continued, "Listen I know we haven't always - okay we've NEVER seen eye-to-eye but... What say we put that all aside? Gunnar and I... well, we were wondering if you'd let us travel with you guys. We could help you guys with your training, and you guys could teach us more about proper Pokemon care."


Goldish-blue and orange eyes blinked at Gunnar in shock for a few moments, before slowly look at one another neither really sure what to say. Unlike Roxy and Xel, they didn't really have to be around the Almasy siblings too much - but even their first impressions of them was less than heartwarming.
"Well..." Tensai was the first to speak, surprisingly, since Gunnar and sister certainly hadn't treated him too well these past two days. But, his daddy always told him not to hold a grudge, and he always did his best not to. "I wouldn't really mind I guess...... but only if Xel agrees to it too."
"Could I get to learn how to ride Sal?" Sanyi asked his eyes practically sparkling in boyish excitement, completely ignoring the way his cousin kicked him under the table. Like that was a good reason!!

[Rikugurl]

Much like his father, Xel had a pride for keeping Pokemon healthy. He loved it when his father would contrast the feeling of fur and feathers from a new pokemon they began to adopt to one that was ready for adoption. He could feel the difference his dads did for these pokemon, giving them a much better life than they previously had. He even felt brittle scales of an Arbok when rescued from a team and a few months later, they were as hard and sturdy as a rock! Lucina asking him to help her own pokemon transform like this was even better than evolving them!

"TORCHIC!" Melody flailed suddenly when Roxel jumped up and she fell hard on her butt.
"YES!" His voice carried out over the room, making some glance over at him as if the girl had proposed or something!


Gunnar rose an eyebrow before turning back to the boys on the couch. "Guess that answers that question... and yea, if he'll let you." He grinned as Sanyi deflated over the table but replied, "But since he let you calm him down and did such a good job at it, I'm sure he will." This blew Sanyi's sail back, making him nearly sequel in delight.


The sun began to fade over the large city, though with the lights all turning on around them, they understood why Bonnie had said this was a city that never sleeps. Jubilife City was certainly a place she always enjoyed, believing she belonged here more than back in Sandgem. She always wondered if it was because she was born in a large city...
But NOW, because they all agreed to join forces with the Almasy kids, they had to stick around here for awhile, punching a hole through her wallet. Sure, she was famous but she wasn't a millionaire! She had NO idea how their parents afforded all their stays... then again, they camped a lot. She still wasn't too fond of that idea.

Unfortunately, there were too many of them to really invite back to her house to bunk, though surely the greenhouse would be more than large enough to hold them all but it was really a jungle in there at night! And of course they couldn't use her grandma's ranch because of all the Poochyena, Mightyena, Shinx, Luxio and Luxray it had. They just had to...

"HE DID IT!" She was pulled from her thoughts, looking back to see a very happy Tensai and Roxel running over to the group as they waited outside a famous ice cream stand. "He did it?"
"YES! TENSAI GOT HIS FIRST BADGE!"
The whole group suddenly surrounded the sunset eyed boy, forgetting their place in line as they marveled over the shining Mine Badge.
Two of the group stayed in line, nudging each other with some grins. Of course Tensai got a badge, they trained him all day!

[Reno]

"Oh man, that's great Ten!" Roxy squealed in delight giving him a celebratory hug while Sanyi held the badge up, seeing how it sparkled in the light.
"Nice, how'd you do it?!" Sanyi asked as he passed it over to Bonnie, knowing only Roxel and Tensai had gone to the gym this time for the re-challenge, the rest of them staying behind and becoming tourists for the time being - though other than Bonnie all of them were too broke to really BUY anything.

"Pepper, Napoleon and Moxley." He explained - it was the same team he had used last time - but this time he had changed the order of who he used. He spied over his friend's shoulder, sharing a grin with Gunnar and Lucina who had showed him the big flaw in Byron's defense - he had no speed and his pokemon's reactions were slow. He was actually a great match for Tensai's much faster team (who of course he partially had to thank his father for). "It wasn't so hard, once I knew the trick to it."

"But that's not all that happened!" Roxel shouted in sudden excitement, gripping his best friend and shaking him, each word empahsized with a good shake. "BUT. THAT'S. NOT. ALL. THAT. HAPPENED!!!!"
"Haha, okay okay!!" Tensai laughed, pushing his friend away some, but reached for a pokeball at his belt, hearing Xel squealing and, in the corner of his eye, saw him doing a dance of excitement. "Alright Moxley, come on out!" He called as he threw the Pokeball in the air.

With a burst of light the fox appeared, shaking his head and looking quite proud of himself as he sat down and curled a forked tail around his paws. "Essssssspe~"
"Whoa!" Lucina cried as she jumped out of line to come over as well, admiring the bright green Espeon! "He evolved?!"
"Ah-huh it was awesome!" Tenny said with bright eyes.
"Oh man, Uncle Ven is gonna flip when he sees!" Roxy said, both the blonde girls reaching out and petting the magnificent fox.
"Dad's gonna flip. I can't wait to tell them!!"
"Speeeon!"

[Rikugurl]

Bonnie's eyes widened twice their natural size before she shot down, petting Moxley like the others. "Wow, he's so beautiful." She heard an annoyed mrow and laughed. "I mean handsome, of course! My dad is really going to love you! I'm sure you'll will even make his Espeon jealous." None of them really had to ask how it happened, all knowing that Moxley was happy and proud he won his first badge and became an Espeon. If it was any later, he would have become an Umbreon. Now wouldn't Riku have loved that!? It was also so rewarding seeing a Pokemon evolve, especially when it's on their own.

She rubbed the little red gem on his head, making him purr. Espeon like it when she did that too, knowing that it must calm them.

"Congrats~" They heard Gunnar from behind, their attention pulled away from the espeon for a moment as they noticed he was holding a tray full of ice cream. There were even little cones with all sorts of flavors, just for Pokemon. They all found a large picnic table and grabbed their respected ice cream. There was laughter as Moxley walked around the table, hoping he could snag a few of the miniature ones. "Just because you evolved, doesn't give you the right to become a glutton!"

Rays of light popped out from pokeballs, a few Pokemon appearing to get some ice cream. "Rio~" A little blue and black creature reached up, taking one right off the tray and just as he was about to bite into it, he felt a presence nearby. He looked to his left and saw a little purple rat who was looking up at his treat. "Lu?" The puppy offered the ice cream to the rat, seeing him chew on it happily. The pupply blinked when he was patted, glancing up at the boy who owned the rat and who was offering him another ice cream. "RIO!" The pokemon took it, smiling happily.

"Torchic?" An ice cream was balance easily on the little chicken's head as she wattled over to another pokemon, just sitting under a tree. Yellow eyes gazed down at the smaller creature but looked at her offering. "Shift..."

"So..." Roxel muffled, his mouth full of ice cream when he decided to start a conversation. Quickly he swallowed and let out a happy sigh. "Where to next?"

[Reno]

"Well," Lucina said, her table manners much better than her brother's, shoving some napkins towards him as he started getting the ice cream all over his fingers, "Route 203 is reporting to be clear now - that is if you guys still want to get your Coal badges." No one looked particularly thrilled at that idea though - and of course, just because a route was clear didn't mean the bad guys weren't just lying low.

"Hmm, we could always go the long way around - head up Route 204, circle around to Eterna for the Forest Badge and go down to Orebourgh." Sanyi offered as an alternative. This idea, though longer, was a much more readily agreed to one.

"The Eterna forest is a great place for Pokemon this time of year." Tensai added and while he glanced away to look down at Pepper, who was sharing an ice cream with Pharaoh, didn't notice Moxley sneaking some licks of his ice cream. "That's where Dad caught Honeytail. You'll get to see her home Pepper!"
"Sttun!" Came a happy call the red skunk.