Pokémon Who's Got The Kids (PMD)

[zoru22]

Who's Got the Kids?​

Serperior and Inteleon were top-tier adventurers. Though on separate teams, they had both helped save the world. After having fought back two worldwide calamities, they had promised themselves that when their kids were ready, they would settle down to have a proper family.

Unfortunately, a group of humans known as Rainbow Rocket has been discovered capturing pokemon out from under their noses. Though the world is not alone in working to fend off Rainbow Rocket, Inteleon has to leave home again, as his sniper abilities are required. Rainbow Rocket must be stopped before every pokemon's life is ruined, either by natural disasters or the world is permanently enthralled by the evil team's tyranny.

As the war wages and the world is thrown into upheaval, the legendaries who maintained and vented off the great power of world's magical leylines either cough by these travelers or themselves leaving their dungeons to join the fight against this new threat, the guild itself comes under attack.

When all you have are either heavily injured veterans or pokemon who had never really trained to fight, someone had to stay home to protect the kids.

~~~​

CONTENT WARNINGS:
The story should be considered as rated PG-13.

This story is very much being planned out as I write, so CW are liable to shift or change.

Spoiler

- Think Animorphs
- Pokemon get hurt, the descriptions of that hurt can be quite detailed
- Trauma will happen. Some pokemon will break bones or be hurt in similarly-traumatic ways
- Abuse of kids is shown
- Characters can be hurtful of each other- physically and emotionally

Re: Reviews

Spoiler

On a high-level, across all my postings, I prefer comments focused on the events of the story, as well as personalized reactions about a particular character or characterization.

This story is my first real attempt at character voice. You'll know I did what I want if you can read a dialogue or a chapter and you can tell who's talking even if I was light on directly referencing the character themselves.

Other than that, I would prefer reviews to be reacts engaging with content in-story directly. I would appreciate avoiding grammar and such unless it's particularly bad- straight up dropped sentences or really run-on/incomprehensible sentences. If the story itself is good, I hope that readers will have enough charity to continue to read despite occasionally-awkward SPAG.

~~~ Prologue ~~~​

A spider-like pokemon, with four legs out each side, colored yellow and light-purple, with two similarly-colored appendages shooting up and out of the back of the pokemon's abdomen. The pokemon, known as Ariados, its head and body are striped with red-and-black colors, warning would-be predators of the pokemon's poison typing. Behind the Ariados, is their dungeoneering team partner, a thin and tall gecko-like Inteleon, keeping its eyes behind them, watching their back and ensuring their tracks are covered from would-be pursuers.

"It seems our wandering has either thrown off our pursuers. Or they lost interest in following us." Inteleon told their partner. He was confident they'd covered their trail—it did no good if the enemy made housecalls.

"That's good, I suppose," Ariados says. Though, neither's posture relaxed. Ariados' two air-facing appendages twitched with anxiety, shuffling her small pack on her back. Inteleon kept guard in the rear, passing through the forest, as they began to turn east, deeper into the forest, heading toward the dungeon that lay between them and their home. Fogwood forest, one of the many dungeons that were littered across the continent, where feral and ethereal pokemon called home.

The trip through fogwood was uneventful. They shined their badges at the Totem Lurantis, keeper and guard of the shifting dungeon. Lurantis smiled as the now-familiar duo progressed through. Ariados shivered, her feeliers sensing the predator's eyes lingering on her abdomen. Whether Lurantis was checking the spider out or deciding, this time, not to eat her, Ariados chose to speed up her pace out of the totem's view.

It was another day of traversing, avoiding the dungeon's native pokemon, as well as Fogwood's ethereal, natural defenses. The Lurantis and her family of fomantis may be able to pass through, and may have the agency to pick her own battles and avoid traps, but dungeons, Fogwood included, were seemingly wary of granting such freedom to others. Even experienced teams needed to beware.

Regardless, Inteleon and Ariados both made their way through the forest, all without incident. Stepping out of the exit of the forest, presented with the trail that led to the town square, and ultimately, Haxorus' adventurer's guild. Without stopping at anyone. Not the kecleon's shop, not the bank, not kangaskhan's storage, the duo made their way back to the guild's headquarters.

"Here they come," Inteleon said.

Ariados paused, shuffling the small bag on their back, holding out the appendages on their back. "Give me your pack, and I'll take it to Haxorus' office."

Inteleon nodded, dropping his pack onto his friend's back right as they rounded a large rock, approaching the large tree that stood in front of the guild. As they rounded the final bend, a single, tiny stream of water shot out from behind the tree, straight for Inteleon's face, but Inteleon held out his hand, a single, reflective square formed, blocking the tiny attack.

"Aww Daaaaaaad! I thought I was gonna get you this time!" a tiny, frog-like sobble shouted, bounding out, jumping from behind the tree, leaping for her father's chest. He held out his arms and caught her.

"D-D-d-dad's home!?!" another, smaller, softer voice said, before rushing out from behind the guild building, "D-d-dad's back!" a little snivy excitedly said, before running out, tripping, tears in his eyes. "D-aaaaad!" they said, using their small arms to push themselves back onto their feet, the snivy's slightly-older sister looking disdainfully at her little brother's waterworks as Inteleon stepped forward, picking his second child up.

"You two aren't supposed to be outside the guild while mom and I are gone, you know," he said, lightly chastising them both.

"I knoooow," sobble said, rolling his eyes. "But crybaby there wouldn't stop crying because you two were both gone. His leaves even started to dry out! See!" sobble said, pointing at her little brother, his coat, a tiny speck of yellow on the coat. Inteleon frowned.

"Sobi, were you being nice to your little brother?" he asked, using his long tail to wipe snivy's flowing tears. Sobi's face was cracked and dried. Her face wasn't getting the moisture it needed. In comparison to snivy's face, hers was as dry as the desert.

"Yes, I'm always nice to him," Sobi said.

"N-N-No you're not! You're always mean to me! And we were out here cuz Sobi didn't want to be alone while she practiced shooting her water gun!" Snivy said.

Inteleon frowned, stepping up to the entrance of the guild with his two kids in his arms. He never remembered bickering this much with his own siblings. "Is that true Sobi? Where's Zorua?" He asked. Inteleon knew Sobi was already about to start her rebellious phase, and had asked the ghostly, red-and-white zorua to keep an eye on his daughter. At least until she was old enough to form their own team. He rubbed his eyes, as the Nosepass resting at the front door moved a half-inch, the front door of the guild opening for him.

"Zorua evolved!"

He was greeted by a ghostlike figure, a single yellow and red eye staring him down from the halls, long white-and-red hair waving, followed by a slight drop in temperature. The Zoroark smiled, rubbing the back of his head. "Sorry, yeah. What Sobi said. I evolved. Haxorus is gone, and asked me to help coordinate the guild while he was gone."

Inteleon frowned, then looked at his kids as he stepped into the fortified building. "The guildmaster took a mission?"

Zoroark looked at the sobble and sniffling snivy sitting in Inteleon's arms, before smiling and nodding.

"In that case, Ariados and I have a report to make," Inteleon said.

"Right, right. Ariados is cleaning up and getting some food. Take care of the kids, then I'll meet you two in Haxorus' office, in, say, three hours. I'll send Rotom down to get you." Zoroark said. Inteleon nodded, as they walked the empty guild halls.

"Dad, I thought you and mom had retired," Sobi said, complaining at her father's leaving them yet again. He smiled. There was a soft snoring—snivy, eyes still wet, had fallen asleep in his arms. "And yet, not even a few months after you say you retire, you and mom both go out on missions! One day you're here, the next you're gone! You know who tells us you took a mission? Zorua had to!"

"Sorry, Sobi," he told his daughter, giving her a quick squeeze. She squirmed.

"Let me down! I wanna walk!" she said, firmly rejecting his hug. He obliged, and Sobi landed on her feet as she was dropped to the floors with a practiced softness, before hopping through the halls following her dad and the little brother in his arms. "Why do you have to have so many secrets? Everyone else talks about Dark Matter this, Bitter Cold that, Mom talks about fighting Zekrom and Reshiram with you. She talks about fighting pokemon made of pure shadow. But you never talk about YOUR stories or YOUR missions."

"Hmmmm," he hummed softly, waving the little snivy in his arms as they proceeded to their little apartment in the guild.

"I wanna hear about all your awesome sniper shots! That time you and mom were fighting an angry gigantimax charizard and you shot him right out of the sky! All your teammates tell me about it! Ariados talks about your old missions! Or the time your shot punched Yveltal back from the tree of life! Or the time you and mom stopped a chain reaction of exploding voltorb!"

Inteleon smirked at that last one. It wasn't funny back then, potentially losing your mate and dungeoneering partners to some voltorbs as the pack of migrating pokemon had somehow convinced themselves they were supposed to explode all at once in order to clear a new way through the dungeon. But it was, admittedly, pretty funny now.

"How about this, Sobi," he said, holding out his hand in a finger gun, giving his daughter a slight splash in the face with water. "When I come home, and your face isn't completely dry, and you're not making your little brother cry, I'll tell you some of my stories." They were at the door to their carved out space in the guild, the floor for the S-tier adventurers and their families.

"Dad, that's just not fair," Sobi complained, stepping into the door, following her father. "Zorua, I mean Zoroark never cried! Mom doesn't cry! Nurse Leavanny doesn't cry."

"First, Nurse Leavanny doesn't have tear ducts. Nor does their skin need as much moisture as you do," Inteleon said, before holding his free hand up to his mouth, shushing Sobi. The three-room apartment was small. Quaint, even. None of the guildmates' rooms had kitchens.

They stepped down the hall, pulling into a side room, where a large sunlamp sat, with some greenery and a pile of soil. Snivy and Serperior's room. He gave the soil and his sleeping son a light spray of mist and water, before setting him down, to soak in the sunlamp. Before shutting the door to the sleeping kids' room.

"Second, don't give me ideas. If you're not taking care of yourself, I will have Zoroark tell you his story. Then for the month your scales won't be cracking and dry. And third, your mom is, well she's your mom. Sobble need to let some tears go or—"

Sobi interrupted: "—or my face and skin and scales dry out and crack, yeah yeah, I know I know," Sobi said, rolling her eyes. "I just don't feel like it," she added, grumbling. His daughter was definitely starting to enter her rebellious phase. He needed a direction to point her slowly building frustration before it started causing real trouble.

"You're getting old enough that you might be able to start your own adventure team soon, Sobi," Inteleon said, going into his and Sobi's room. Their space was, effectively, just a large tub with sand at the bottom, two spots carved out where they had pushed the sand into a shape they each felt comfortable enough to sleep in. Sobi was more cuddly when she was younger, but now that she was getting older, she was going to need her own space, and soon.

He stepped into the water, lying down to relax.

"Aww dad, you can't just say that and go to sleep! You're so boring when you get back from missions," Sobi complained. Inteleon just smiled.

"When you're an Inteleon, and you're running dangerous missions for a week straight, you'll understand, Sobi," he said, before reaching behind his back, pulling off. A now soaking-wet object, covered in Ariados silk.

Sobi's eyes went wide, looking at the round object, a little piece of Purple and Pink showed through the dissolving silk. "What's in Ariados' silk? Is that a present? Did you bring it home for me?!?" she said, walking over the sand, splashing water everywhere. More of ariado's silk fell off the wet ball.

Instead he shot her in the face again, causing her to fall back and cry out in annoyance and rub her eyes. "Stop doing that!" she objected.

"Don't touch it." Inteleon demanded, adding, "you wanted to hear the story, didn't you?" he asked. She nodded vigorously, her eyes finally tearing up after the last shot he dosed Sobi with. "Ariados and I stole this from a human."

"A human!" she exclaimed, "I thought they were gone! Weren't they forced to leave when The Lake Guardians made it so we could talk?!"

Inteleon closed his eyes, nodding, sinking into the sand and shallow water. "That's still true," he said, "but it seems some found a way to us, and they're causing trouble."

He grabbed the ball, holding it in the water. "It's called a pokeball," he said, spinning it around on one of his fingers, the white, emblazoned M on the front spinning in a circle. "And whoever these evil humans are, they're using these balls to do something that's upsetting the world's balance," he said.

"But how did you steal it, dad? Did you and Ariados sneak up to the camp of humans in the night?!? Did you and Ariados leave a big trap for them and they fell into it? Put them to sleep and then wrap them up?" Inteleon smiled at his daughter's questioning, stopping the spin of the ball. It was heavy. He set it down in the water, burying it in their bed's sand.

"No, Sobi. What do you think I did?" he asked, encouraging his daughter to think it through.

"You shot them!?!"

Inteleon held up a finger to his mouth. "Our little secret."

She nodded. As much as she complained, he had told her multiple times why he kept secrets. That was no secret. "If you're going to be an agent, you'll need to learn how to keep secrets," she was told. And now, he'd deliberately shared one of his. "Now, for your first mission," he said, holding up a free hand, booping her softly at the sensitive spot between her nostrils. "While I go to sleep now, I need you to think about and then tell me later tonight, after I meet with Zoroark, why I showed you these secrets. If you can get it mostly-right, mom and I will say you're ready to start your first adventure team. Cook Flygon's kid is looking for an adventuring partner right now."

"Owww dad, you just did this so I'd leave you alone, didn't you!" Inteleon just smirked at his daughter.

"Have I ever lied to you?" he asked.

Sobi's response was quick and sharp: "Yeah, you did. When you told snivy and I that you and mom were done adventuring." Inteleon couldn't help it. He laughed, little tears coming out of his eyes.

"Oh, Sobi" was all he could muster.

 

[zoru22]

~~~ Chapter 2 - Ache ~~~​

Serperior, known as "Serpi" by her mate, or "Mom", by her kids, was a fourteen-foot long snake, the back half of her body was a dark green leaf coat. Normally, it would be dark green, that is. Instead the dark green leaves were an ashen brown. Her face, protected though it was in leaves, similarly denatured and brown. The underside of her length would normally be a light green with little gold embellishments here and there crossing between sides, making her leaves look like a regal human noble's suit.

Instead, Serperior was a burned and charred mess. She and her partner drew looks, as they always did, when passing through the town from the guild slithered through the little town. Though her pace was slow and steady, she held her head high, a portion of her forward length arched up and back through the air. She would not wince, though the burns had gone deep.

Crossing through town as she normally did when out and about with her guildmate, passing the baker's and shops, the populace always noted her presence, then tended to look away. Today was no different, though the looks were often of concern. Normally her coat is a pristine shade of dark greens and gold. Serperior's poise was always regal, and today was no different.

She had two short arms of leaves which extended out her side, as if she was holding her arms behind her back to evaluate all those who looked upon her. Today, they were naught but throbbing, charred stubs. Functionally, she did not care. It was not the first time she'd had to regrow her arms from leaves. It would not be the last. Still, she led, her teammate limped from behind, ears pulled back.

Were it not for bags wrapped around Serperior, most looking at her would assume that she was, in fact, judging all she saw. Were it not for the burns and marks scarring her face and the burns on her body, such was her species' natural, neutral pose. The four or so leaves on her tail were all missing. They crossed the town square together, then rounded the way through the path toward the entrance sizable guild complex, little flakes of crispy leaves falling off along the way.

Before rounding the final corner, passing a large rock jutting out of the ground, and below the ledge where the great guild tree stood, she paused and turned around. Bearing the same-color bandanna was a white-and-blue nine-tailed fox, the alolan ninetales. Though he carried a similar, natural regal air about him, the burns and melted fur disabused of any notions or primadonnas or disconnected royalty this evening.

Ninetales, the dual ice/fairy type fox smiled. Serperior's mouth curved upward as she returned it. They were almost home, and both needed a visit in the guild's medical hall. Serperior salivated at the thought of, perhaps, a plate of cooked oran berries and maybe a plate of meat. They proceeded to the front entrance of the guild hall together.

Their hauls from the magical dungeons were relatively light—just some food and items they had brought with them on their adventure. Their mission had been not to scavenge for spontaneously-spawned items of magic in the dungeons, but to check up on reshiram and zekrom, a pair of dragons that lived in Teravolt Tunnels and Turboblaze Temple. Dungeons the dragons had claimed for themselves in the last year.

Ninetales winced, let out a short, high-pitched whine in surprise. As one of the packs he held around his midsection rustled and moved about, rubbing along one of the burns and patches of missing fur. He paused before they ascended the last incline toward the guild hall, inspecting the pouch to make sure it was tight. Ninetales' passenger rustled and chirped, letting its displeasure known.

"Serpy, the package is getting a little, uh, a bit much,"

Serperior just continued slightly forward. "We're almost there, child."

"I'm not a child! I'm almost a-mmfff" they tried to squeak out, muffled in their little carrying case, apparently losing their grip on whatever it was they were holding.

"We're almost to the guild. We'll help you find your parents when we can, be patient. You are as small as my sobble daughter," Serperior said as she slithered and walked up to the front of the guild. Serperior took a quick skim of the front and side area of the guild. A few new leaves in the tree had holes in them. Sobi had been outside, practicing her aim with her water gun. And she wasn't outside playing with Zorua. Since they weren't there to greet her, the kids were either eating dinner, or Inteleon had beat her home. Probably both.

Sobi. Which meant Inteleon was home. They stepped over the sensor apparatus. Serperior and Ninetales shifted just so, flashing their badges at the content statue. Nosepass moved ever-so-slightly, and the front gate opened. Ninetales, his fur charred and smelling of melted plastic, nodded his head at the nosepass as they proceeded inside the guild.

"I'm telling ya, my na—" the child in the bag said, a pair of purple, speaker-like ears poke their way out of the bag, a very small, probably-recently-hatched-but-neither-ninetales-nor-serperior-knew-any-noivern- noibat. "Ach! Too bright!" they complain, stuffing their head back into the makeshift carry-bag as Serperior and Ninetales moved into Haxorus' illuminated entranceway.

"She said to be patient, little one," Ninetales said, smirking.

"I just wanna see where we're going!" the noibat complained. A Rotom hovered past them, zipping through the hall, heading down past the entrance toward the mailroom, then down the stairs that led to where Serperior and Ninetales' respective guild lodgings were.

"Take noibat to the nursery—" Serperior had begun, but Noibat interjected.

"I'm not a baby! I keep trying to tell you! Why won't you listen! I'm not from here! I'm not a kid, I met Eternatus—" the bat, noticing neither adult was paying attention, cut their squeaking short. "ugh, whatever," they huffed from their pouch. Ninetales continued to wince more at the bat's continued movement pressuring his burns.

"—I'll put the packs into storage and handle our report. Let Vulpix know we're back and go see the nurse," she said. Then, after a moment, she added "I would appreciate it if you checked if we have anyone who knows what a freshborn Noibat needs to eat?"

Ninetales nodded. "I was planning on that already. But what about your health? You're in worse shape than me," he said, reaching his head around and grabbing a strap with his teeth, pulling the strap loose. Serperior shook her head.

"I'll be fine," she said. She and Ninetales could both still move pretty freely. She had done her job, she wasn't worried about herself. Ninetales looked at her. He'd vocalized his concern for her attitude toward herself in the past. But Serperior had been the team's tank, and took blows that would have put him out of commission. She'd made sure he knew better than to argue with her about her self-care long ago. It didn't stop these quips, however.

She reached out with her single remaining functional vine, and looped it through the loosened harness that held Ninetales' pack. He stepped backward, the pack coming off with the the help of Serperior's single functional vine, sliding it all unceremoniously to the ground.

"Oof" Noibat cried as they were forced out of their pouch onto the floor. "Why is everything so bright!?!" they complained, standing up, holding their hands over their eyes.

She turned her head down to the noibat. Bats were night creatures, she knew that much. "Are you hurt?" she asked, watching the little bat struggle under the change in condition.

Noibat, visibly taken aback at the question, did not respond immediately as his eyes struggled to adjust. Serperior's size could have also been a reason why they didn't respond immediately. "No, I'm fine, it's just so bright. But thanks for asking, mom."

She would have shrugged if her arms had regrown already. "I'm not your mother, child." She said. Ninetales gave Serperior, then Noibat, a look as Noibat froze. "But it would have been wrong to leave you in that dungeon."

"What!?! That was j—" Noibat saw Ninetales' face, and decided it was better not to explain his sarcasm, instead nodding. "Sorry. You're both just trying to help." They turned their face down to the ground.

"Follow me, and I'll take you to the nursery, little one," Ninetales told the noibat. "It'll only be a few hours until we find you a place to stay for now," they said, his tails perking up. Noibat's large ears moved forward and back as the fuzzy purple bat nodded again, following along, then beside the light-blue fox. "If you have a nickname you want to be known by, the caretakers will help you get situated," they said, as the duo stepped down the hall. The noibat paused.

Then stepped out and bowed their head, not looking up. Whether to hide their eyes from the lights in the guild halls' ceiling, or acting the way people unfamiliar with her species did, Serperior did not know. "Thank you," they said, bowing a little.

Serperior nodded as she hoisted the packs onto herself, using her vine to wrap them around her body.

"Don't worry yourself about Eternatus, child." Serperior said. "While you're here, just focus on learning. We'll take care of it."

"Thank you," the Noibat said, a little tear dropped out of its eye as it used its wing and a little claw to wipe the tear off. She turned back to her work, trusting Ninetales to take care of the lost child and learn why the bat was crying.

Proceeding down the opposite end of the guild's complex, dropping down to the first floor basement, Serperior whistled as she slithered through the hall, stopping to grunt when she stretched just the wrong way, or bumped a part of her length into a wall. She took a moment to step into the lady-pokemon's locker rooms and the pokemon guild's baths, she gave herself a quick once-over in the mirror.

She looked about how she felt—burned, charred and sore. And, missing her leafy-arms to boot. Not that they were ever long enough to do much but wave around or occasionally hold things behind her back. Returning to her whistling, sliding along the guild halls, having dropped the packs off at their team's cubby-holes, she smiled.

"Oh! Serpi! I thought it was you! You and Ninetales are both back! And, uh, you've seen better days!"

"I'm still a bit sore, yes, Minccino," Serperior said, the small chinchilla-like pokemon going bashful at Serperior responding to him.

"Ah! Well! Both Meowstic and Leavanny are on duty tonight!" the guild's janitor exclaimed in their high-pitched, squeaky voice. Serpi raised her brow at that, curious. "You should get seen by them as soon as you can!" Minccino said.

Serperior slid through the hall with the mouse-like chinchilla, though she deliberately kept a decent distance from the foot-and-a-half tall ball of fuzz. It had taken a long time for serperior to learn just how imposing she could be. It did make sense. Snakes were natural predators, even ones like her, who could subsist on light for most of the year if she just sat under the sun until winter.

But, both nurses on duty? That didn't happen unless they were preparing to receive someone. She and Ninetales would have tried to bring Reshiram in, but getting him out of battle-mind had been enough, and without a water type to at least take the edge off the heat, they had both been severely disadvantaged. With both nurses on-duty, they were expecting serious trauma.

Even though Minccino was supposedly just a staff-member that was being paid to work with Rotom duo to help maintain the facilities, she had a tendency to pick up on details, comings-goings, and overhearing conversations that were supposedly-secret. Serperior looked around the hall. No one was nearby, and Minccino's ears were perky and her tail seemed to swish about freely. She seemed comfortable. Serpi wasn't always the best judge.

"Minccino," Serperior asked, "do you know who, exactly, Haxorus is trying to bring in?"

"He's trying to bring Hoopa in," Minccino squeaked quietly. Serperior almost lost all of her poise. She'd expected a Hydreigon or a Tapu. Hoopa was a powerful pokemon, even in his bound form. But the little djinn was too much of a wildcard to trust with keeping the dungeons.

"But I didn't hear everything. Zorua, I mean Zoroark, yeah he evolved last night knows the whole story. But everyone's worried, powerful pokemon in their dungeons are disappearing." Her voice drew low. "Latias even showed up from the mist continent yesterday to check on us—she'd not been getting any sleep."

Now she knew why the guild had entered high alert, and the various teams were sent to check up on Reshiram and Zekrom. They'd not been able to find Zekrom, no. Reshiram had been on a rampage in his own dungeon… Causing trouble in a dungeon that wasn't even his.

"So, that's why they sent Inteleon's team to look after Spectrier and Calyrex," she mused as they proceeded up the stairs, Minccino using her tail to hop up the steps.

"Latias said the stormbirds' dungeons doubled in size. They'd only been able to find Lugia!"

Serpi couldn't really place exactly what the issue was, but something about the whole situation just… felt wrong. When dark matter attacked, you had shadow pokemon you could fight. When the bitter cold appeared, the enemy was clear. She knew why Haxorus would try and bring in Hoopa first.

"Thank you for telling me, Minccino," Serperior said, Minccino's ears perking up higher at the verbal gratitude. "If you go through my pack while you're checking them for holes, you'll find a juicy sitrus berry in mine. Let's keep this information you told me between you and me?"

Minccino blushed, grabbing her tail. "Ah-uh, of course! Thank you, thank you thankyou!" Minccino squeaked, pulling her tail in front of her face in embarrassment. It was unlike Serperior to share her sitrus berries. But, she'd want to be rewarded for sharing high-value information. Minchy's verbal gratitude told her that they appreciated the present as well. Sitrus fruits didn't really provide the benefit they normally did if you weren't at full health. Chances were low that it would still be good by the time Serperior was in prime shape again.

Unless she went to the medical ward tonight. She shook her head, instead pleased that she'd managed to make another pokemon happy. She continued her whistling as she proceeded up the stairs to the guildmaster's quarters. Zoroark, and by now, probably Inteleon would both be up there. She'd never seen a Zorua like their guild's was, with white and red highlights, being part ghost instead of dark.

Slithering along the floor, Serpi mused herself on what Haxorus' little apprentice looked like as a grown adult, imagining white-and red wisp-like fur, floating up into the air, meeting up into a bead like a regular dark-type Zoroark's bead, then disappearing into the ether like Zorua's.

Arriving at the guildmaster's office, using a single vine, she opened and shut the door to the uppermost hall. Outside the guildmaster's office, she heard Inteleon's silky-smooth, confident voice.

Followed by a more effeminate, rhaspy voice. She approached the door and pushed her way in. Inteleon and Ariados were there, both looking her over as the sizable 14 foot long mass of snake muscled the way through into the—thankfully-oversized office of the guildmaster.

"What a coincidence," Inteleon said, unphased at her disheveled appearance and the smell of burned foliage.

"Serpi!", Ariados exclaimed. But she was not focused on either her mate or his dungeoneering partner. She was focused on the hunched-over mass of wispy red hair that floated on the other side of the room.

"Minccino said you had evolved," she declared.

"Yeah?" Zorua-now-Zoroark asked, smirking.

"I was expecting your head-fur to float up into the ether," she said. "Like when you were a Zorua."

Zoroark just shrugged. "Me too."

"Looks like it gets in the way, makes things hard to see," she said.

"It does," Zoroark confirmed.

She nodded, before turning about. "I've decided I'm going to go to the medical ward and get checked before I go to bed. Are you ready to hear my report?" She asked. Inteleon and Ariados were both silent.

"One moment, still figuring out these new hand-claw-things," Zoroark said, waving his hand in the air, showing off his three red claws, shuffling through the paperwork, only accidentally shearing through a few sheets of paper.

"Found it. Teravolt Tunnel and Turboblaze Temple, checking in on our lovely reshiram and zekrom. I am ready now," Zoroark declared.

"Zekrom's missing, and because of that, Reshiram went on a rampage through Zekrom's Teravolt Tunnels. Every feral that was living in the dungeon is either dead or immune to fire. All that's left are the ethereal pokemon and defenses and traps the dungeon itself is maintaining. We tried to convince him to come with us, but he declined."

Ariados and Inteleon were both silent. Zoroark grabbed a stamp and pressed it down on her mission papers without adding any commentary. Serperior wasn't mad that her and Inteleon were asked to leave retirement. She wasn't even disappointed, and she'd say as much if she was asked.

If you cut a leaf off, you might be able to get it to grow. If you leave the leaf, it probably wouldn't grow on its own. She was strong, and she would fight, if she had to. But she had little saplings that needed a caretaker to help keep them pruned and direct them. She could not direct them if she was always chasing after them.

"Non-mission-related, we took a detour back home and passed outside the training dungeons and met a newly born noibat, who had no parents nearby, and said that they have a name and was crying about Eternatus."

Zoroark went stiff, the room grew cold. "You brought them to the guild?"

"I did," Serperior nodded. There was a shuffle outside the door, then a poorly-disguised whisper as her own squeaky snivy spoke, their voice wobbling.

"Mom's home! See, I told you!" Snivy said, sticking out his tongue at his older sister, before complaining, "it's, uh, really cold in there!" Snivy noted the anger in Zoroark's eyes, little tears forming in his eyes, before being picked up by his dad.

Sobi followed her dad, "Another pokemon-human in the guild!" she exclaimed.

"Ariados and I will get them, Serpi" Inteleon said, her mate shutting the office door behind them as their kids and the spider shuffled out of the office. Inteleon would direct her little sprouts where the best places to grow would be.

She noted the colder temperature, the palpable bitterness in the air she hadn't felt since the culmination of the last fight for their planet. Zoroark was simmering.

Zoroark's yellow eyes bore into her, before diverting, and he stabbed a claw down onto the heavy table. It was made to withstand haxorus' rage. Zoroark's anger left only shallow scratches.

"Do you wish to kill the noibat?" Serperior asked.

"What?" Zoroark asked, the anger and malice draining from his face.

"The bat is smaller than Sobi. It has no family or friends," she said. "I am a natural predator of bats. I could use the protein," she declared.

Zoroark stopped, then turned thoughtful for a moment. "No," he said. "I want—I want to find out why actual humans are coming here. To our earth, and threatening our existence! We just won several wars and—" the temperature in the room had dropped again. "I just want them gone. Don't eat the noibat. Please. Maybe take them back out to Perenna's gardens with your kids and see if she knows what happened."

Serperior nodded.

"Is that all?" Zoroark asked his guildmate.

"One last thing," she said. "If Haxorus wants me to go on another mission, he will need to find someone else."

Zoroark's one visible eye widened at that. "Why?"

She used the only analogy she could think of. "What is the point of defending an orchard if all the trees in it are dead or don't make any berries?" She asked.

"You're worried about your kids?"

That bit was a bit more complicated of an answer, and if she walked through each thought, she wouldn't be getting to the medical ward in a timely manner. Instead, she chose the short answer.

"Yes," she smiled. "Yes I am."

 

[zoru22]

~~~ Chapter 3 - The Medical Wing ~~~​

Serperior examined their family friend, all of the papers strewn about Haxorus' desk, filling in for the guildmaster in his absence. Zoroark was still quiet, choosing to shuffle them about. He would not argue with her.

"Are you planning on joining the response teams?" Serperior asked. The guild was large, and it had a lot of pokemon registered under its banner, though their island-continent was smaller than either the Mist or Water continent, so it was somewhat easier to track the comings and goings of the teams.

Zoroark shook his head, his impressively long and disheveled fur floating off wispily.

"No, I will be here, tending to the guild. Haxorus and his team decided to be more directly involved this time around. They still regret sending your and inteleon's teams without more help. They're not going to get caught lying down this time."

She didn't see how extra help would have done anything in the case of Dark Matter on the Water continent… By the time Ampharos had formulated the plan and they had enough heavy-hitters, the thing had already infected the World Tree.

"It will take a few days to factor the fact that you'll be sitting this one out. We were putting all the teams on alert, including Inteleon's. We'll need his sniping for the next stage in these plans," Zoroark said.

"Inteleon can do as he pleases," Serperior said. Though, Zoroark should know neither mate was concerned how the other chose to spend their time. They weren't even wholly exclusive. Which meant that the apprentice was looking for something else. "What aren't you telling me?"

Zoroark stepped out from the side of the desk, looking up at the scorched and scalded serperior. He was tall now, though the hunched form and highlights of red amidst the snow-white fur gave a distinct impression of blood.

"Are you propositioning me?"

"No." He stated, without hesitation. "My head hurts just trying to direct the teams and keep us supplied. I don't even know what I'm asking for. Maybe some help keeping organized. I have no idea how Haxorus has managed all these moving parts… Actually, ignore me, I'm just complaining." He said, closing his eyes in a smile.

"Okay."

Zoroark's jaw practically dropped. Did he want something else from her? Was he asking for help managing the guild from her? No. That would only end in disaster for all parties. If all of the active teams were going to be out on missions… That was for the leaders to figure out. It wasn't the first time they needed as many resources as they could get. It wouldn't be the last. So far they'd all been lucky that no one had chosen to attack the guilds directly.

"I am staying here to protect the children of the guild. Not to push paperwork or coordinate teams. Tomorrow my children will go on their first adventures with a new team, and I intend to ensure my little sprouts get ample opportunity for time in the sun."

"I understand, Serpi."

"Good. Then I will see you tomorrow afternoon."

Serperior left the office and went down the stairs, taking each one slowly and steadily, the sharp pain of each step a reminder of the battle with the accursed legendary. She sighed. Why was it that they decided it was acceptable to turn off their minds when things got hard for them? Complaining didn't do any good. Even if the gods of the world were stupid.

What nagged at her, this time, however, was one problem—if Zekrom really was dead, then the new egg would have been found. Someone may have already found the egg, or, they had somehow captured the dragon of legend and taken them outside of Zekrom's chosen dungeon. Which meant they either defeated Zekrom so handily they gave up. It didn't matter. Zekrom was gone. Which meant this group was hunting the gods. Which meant she needed to prepare. The guilds had never been attacked directly before. But if Haxorus was successful in bringing Hoopa into the guild, then it meant—

"Moooom!" Snivy cried, tears rolling out of his eyes as she rounded the corner after descending down the stairs, running at her as fast as he could. Which wasn't very fast. She pulled out her good vine, and wrapped him up with it, setting her boy on what remained of her little arm-nubs.

"Hello, little Snivy," she said, letting the temperamental child's sobs play out.

Ariados used the limbs on her backside to give Serpi a wave before proceeding back toward the guildmaster's office, leaving her, Inteleon and the kids alone for a moment of their own.

"Serpi," her mate said, leaning against the wall, leg propped up, his tail on the ground.

"Go finish your report with Zoroark," she told him. She'd take the kids with her to the medical ward. For a short moment, they wrapped their tails together in a quick embrace while Snivy silently cradled along on his mom's neck. He was too short yet for them to fully curl together, but the child was drawn to her presence like a magnemite was unwillingly pulled to a nosepass' nose.

Sobi watched her father leave, her face moist. She took a step forward to follow him, but was rebuffed by her mother's strong surprisingly-nimble-tail.

"Come along Sobi," Serperior said.

"Aww dad!" She whined as her father disappeared down the hall with a simple tip of his head and flash of his fingers waving at his kids without saying a word. The one-foot-tall sobble didn't argue, instead hopping onto Serperior, her mother's body began to scrunch up and undulate the opposite direction, toward the medical hall.

~~~​

In the hallway on the way to the medical field, Snivy was the one to break their mutual silence. "Mom, why are you so hurt? I thought your and dad's guild badges protected you?"

She could feel Sobi's grip tighten at the question, as they moved along the long complex's hall. As tough as her daughter usually tried to play it, Sobi was, luckily, still relatively easy to predict, though it was getting harder the more her personality came to form. Though, Sobi's personality had a tendency to change when Inteleon was home.

"They do protect me. Not the way you think, however."

"Yeah, stupid! Mom flashes them at pokemon and they know she's from the guild and they leave her and Ninetales alone. Ninetales said the spirit of the dungeons see her badge and let her walk to where she says!"

"Don't call me stupid!" Snivy said, trying to stand up on his mom's stubby leaf, before standing up to look at his older sister.

"Yeah? What are you gonna do? Go quiet? Cry?" Sobi said.

Serperior paused their movement just outside of the medical hall, turned, and accidentally knocked Snivy off his perch, and the little, two-foot-tall snake fell to the floor with a squeak, trying, and failing, to use his arms to get a hold of his mom before he hit the floor. Sobi withered under her mom's gaze, turning invisible in fear as she was reminded just who, and what she was riding.

Snivy righted himself, sticking his tongue out the direction where his sister had sat, invisible.

"Are you going to continue this, little sprout?" Serperior asked.

"N-no," she stuttered out, drops of water rolling off the invisible Sobi where she stood.

"Good," Serperior said, turning her head around just in time to spot Snivy sticking his tongue and making a face at his older sister. "Continue antagonizing one another, and you will get to work out your problems together in the Stardust Caverns."

"Me too?" Snivy complained, running along, trying to keep up with his mother more than five times his size. "That's not fair!" he cried but a single glance from Serperior and he quieted down. "I didn't do anything…"

Ignoring Snivy's further moaning, Serperior slithered into the medical bay, Snivy trailing behind, trying not to trip or fall over on his little legs.

"Hello Nurses?" Serperior called out after slithering up to a reception desk, ringing a little bell. She ignored the looks Snivy and Sobble were giving each other. She hadn't grown up with siblings, and the closest she'd ev—

"Serpi! Oh my my my!" Leavanny shouted, rushing out from one of the back rooms practically skipping around the counter, a little sewaddle resting, sleeping in a sash made of leaves, face covered by the little leaves that made up the back of her head. "Meowstic said she could feel someone hurt was coming, but I didn't believe it was you, no no no! Ninetales even said to set a spot aside for you and your kids if you came in, and we almost didn't, yes yes yes! Come here, come here! We have a spot for you and your kids while we get you healed healed healed!"

Leavanny skipped along the medical ward floor, passing the various beds for the different pokemon types. The ward was sizable—the ceiling was tall enough that Serpi's whole length could not hit it. Serpi followed along to the end, and was greeted by a sunlamp and a long, elevated log which would hold her body straight, hooked up to a hose where water would be able to drip down and allow her body to naturally soak it in. The log would hold the bulk of Serpi's mass, but would not hold the end of her tail.

"We even prepared a spot spot spot for little Snivy and little Sobble!"

"It's Sobi now," Serperior said.

"Oh! Sobi, then" Leavany said, their permanently-upwardly-curved face helping the nurse to maintain their friendly attitude. Sobi hopped off her mother, before inspecting the bucket of water and looking at her mom, eyes moist though they were, expectant.

"Do not interrupt the meeting they are having."

"I know, I know I just wanna meet noibat!"

Leavanny reached her leg out and grabbed the fore-side of the log. With a grunt, Serpi was rotated back and laying flat, just a few feet off the ground. The nurse was taller than m—

"C-C-can I come? I wanna meet the new kid!" Snivy asked, right as Leavanny flipped the sun-lamp on and walked off for a moment, waving as Nurse Meowstic was walking out from the back room with a cart full of supplies rolling forward without the nurse even touching it, propelled by her psychic abilities.

Sobi, exiting the medical ward, turned rapidly, nearly falling over, and began to open her mouth to speak, but was preempted. "Stay with me Snivy, you can meet Noibat tomorrow."

"Fine," Snivy whined.

"Would you like a sleep seed while we get you looked over over over?" Leavanny asked, using his leaf to grab a handle and pull a lever slightly, a trickle of water dripping forward, just enough that her natural plant structure would absorb it just faster than it dripped. The few scorched roots greedily sucking in the guild's mineralized water.

"No. I will fall asleep on my own." Serpi was tired and aching, so actually falling asleep was unlikely.

"Mom, I'm bored," Snivy said, his voice cutting through the sound of the dripping water rolling over her aching body. They had just barely arrived in the medical room.

"Espurr is in the other room if you want someone to play with with with!" Leavanny told Snivy. "Little Sewaddle here can go join you in a bit too when he gets up up up."

"I guess," Snivy said. He'd complained about Sewaddle and Espurr not being the greatest playmates. Unfortunately for her son, Sobi needed some extra space, even if Serpi herself didn't understand why. She closed her eyes, and just tried to rest under the light of the sunlamp as Snivy was taken to the playroom that Meowstic kept Espurr in while he was on-duty.

As she drifted off, feeling Nurse Leavanny's leaves poke and prod at her coat, the nurse grew quiet, and she drifted off to memories of the past.

~~~​

"Mom? Why are you always bringing berries and stuff back for Trapinch?" Sobi asked her. "He's the same age as me. You're not trying to set me and him up are you!?" Sobble had accused her mom.

The ends of Serperior's leaf coat stood on end, her daughter's face pressing in the back as they were resting under together in the sun. Serpi didn't respond. They always complained about Inteleon keeping so many secrets. But Serpi knew the game, and she allowed a smile to creep up her face, as Sobi's little pause had bought her time.

"Don't look at me like that!" Sobi exclaimed, shivering. Despite that, her face was dry.

"You have your theories already, no? Otherwise, you would not be asking me this."

Inteleon was much better at holding the treat in front of Sobi, directing her growing questions. But Serpi would give it a shot anyway. "Why do you think when I get home, I give treats to Trapinch?"

Her daughter was young, but Sobi was starting to put together various details. She half-expected her foot-tall daughter to call her out.

"Mom! That's not fair, that's exactly what dad does!" Well, Serpi was correct about that one. Calling Serpi out for pulling the ploy from Inteleon's strategies was exactly what Sobi did.

You are too observant for your own good, Serperior had thought. Sobi's face changed, as the little Sobble hopped around in silence, crawling over her mother's large coil, curled up together though they were.

Serperior had pulled her mind back and allowed her natural posture and instincts to keep her face from being too readable. Would Sobi demand a straight answer and force Serpi to shut it down directly? Not likely. And it was important to encourage questioning like this. It was what made Inteleon so effective, and allowed him to puzzle out social situations so effectively.

"You're trying to set Trapinch and me up, aren't you?"

She'd already denied this claim. Her head rose up, and she licked and tasted the air.

And yet Sobi had brought it up again. Sobi shrunk under her mother's gaze.

Her daughter was still stuck on this thought. It had been a long time since she'd had any protein.

"I'm sorry!" Sobi cried, holding her little hands over her head.

Why? The child was so small, and the smaller she was the easier it would be... One move and there wouldn't be any more questions.

No, Serpi had to remind herself. She wasn't feral.

"Serpi," Inteleon's words ran through her mind. "It goes so much farther than treating others the way you want to be treated," Inteleon had admonished her. "Think, for a moment," he'd said, patiently, yet forcefully, "Of your leaves. Or the limbs of a tree. Every limb of a tree is part of your body. Not every limb is as strong as every other limb. And yet, the center part of the tree still nourishes every limb, even the ones that are not so strong."

He'd paused, looking into her eyes.

"It is like a heavily-curated orchard. And kids and other pokemon. Your teammates. They are a part of you. And they need a chance to grow. Protection from the worst of the winds of fate. Time in the light, Nutrients—"

Serpi was pulled out of her reverie by the vague sensation of some oil-like substance rolling over her body. No, there was no one there. Just her and Sobi sitting in the sun. There were reasons why her species were continuously getting rarer.

What would Inteleon do to encourage Sobi's critical thinking? He would ask her questions until she had been drawn to the conclusion. Serpi lowered her head down onto one of her coils.

"Why would you say that, Sobi? Explain it like dad taught you to," she said. For most plants, threats, and the threat of a threat, or the appearance of threats would only act as a covering from the sun. But Sobi still needed to learn and start getting stronger.

"H-H-he's a boy, right?" Sobi had let out a single shiver, her little feet and fore legs to hold as tight as she could.

Serpi had kept her head low, and rested on her own coil. Sobi faded in and out of her sight as the oily feeling continued to persist.

"And you knew his dad."

"And Ninetales said you and Trapinch's dad had a thing. But it didn't work out…" she trailed off.

"And everyone keeps saying that Serperior are like nobles and royalty back on the Mist Continent, so that makes me royalty right? And royalty arranges mates."

Serpi was looking down at her daughter, but was forcibly jerked awake, her whole body snapping back to attention.

"Oh my my my!"

The light of the sun seared into her eyes, yet beckoning her to fall asleep again. Her eyes refocused and she tasted the air. She was on the ground. Rising up, the log bed was beside her. She'd somehow snapped and fallen out. Leavanny was standing to the side, and oily substance dripping off his leaves.

"You were sure tired. Slept through the night. We were very, very worried, yes yes yes! Thought you were sick sick sick!"

Serperior looked herself over. Her coat wasn't brown any more, and most of the aches from the burns were gone. The nubs of her leaf-arms were gone, replaced with a graft of leaves from the leavanny. She flexed them, waving them about. They were stiff. It always took a few days before Leavanny's patches and grafts integrated. It was convenient, not to have to regrow your limbs from scratch.

"Please come in sooner next time, Serpi! We can help help help! Fast fast fast!"

She tasted the air with her tongue. The burning smell was gone. Though whether that was because it was gone or masked by the oils, she did not know.

"Did Haxorus bring anyone in last night, while I was sleeping?"

"Always Always business with you!" Leavanny said. "Look at you! Just had your burns removed. Ready to charge into more dungeons. But no no no. Meowstic and I are still awake awaiting Haxorus' arrival and whatever poor poke he planned to bring back back back."

"Your care has been excellent once again, Leavanny," Serperior said, reorienting herself, leaving residue of the slick oil on the floor as she wiggled around.

"What of Snivy?"

"When he saw you asleep, he chose to leave leave leave. But you should stay. At least so I can rinse this pecha oil off. Minccino sure doesn't need extra work does she?"

"Fine."

Leavanny led Serpi over to a large basin with a drain in it and a showerhead out the top. As Leavanny turned the shower head on and the icy cold water poured down, her thoughts turned back to her dream. Was it a warning? Or just Serpi's own fears? The conversation had happened, but something about the dream had felt off.

But the girl was still having trouble with her brother. Serpi was going to have to give Sobi the same talk Inteleon had given her. Again. She'd tried once, already.

The conversation had carried on. Serperior had been too tired to explain exactly why Sobi was wrong. But the misconception—was corrected. Pokemon didn't have kings or queens or royalty. They had mythical and legendary pokemon, yes. But they were clearly just pokemon with more power. They didn't arrange marriages for their kids. That was a thing other parents did, when they were worried what pokemon their kid was attracted to.

And it rarely worked anyway. It hadn't worked for Serpi, anyway. But that was more complicated.

"But—" Sobi had asked, "then why does Haxo—"

Serperior had frowned, then held out her leaf-arm. She tapped her daughter on the nose, a little too rough than she intended—she realized when Sobi's nose started to bleed. She had pushed Sobi's mouth closed with ease. She had watched her daughter, Serpi staring her in the face, not cry despite the pressure.

Carefully, yet still wobbling, Sobi had pushed back on her mom's arm and instead slid back, letting the slight bit of blood drip down, using her tongue to keep it from dripping onto her mom's coat. Her daughter's tears were flowing slightly more freely, but she didn't complain, even as she began to turn slightly translucent.

"Haxorus is only a guild leader." Serpi had said, turning away from her daughter and taking Sobi to the medical ward to get patched up by the nurse on duty. Her voice was stern.

"If Haxorus had a kid of his own, the kid would be allowed to mate with anyone they wanted to." Serperior paused. "I don't want to know who told you Serperior are royalty. But they are wrong. You of all the kids should know that."

Once Sobi had been patched up, the sobble had gone silent. Serperior's frown had held, and she the once-brave child had been shrinking back from poking and prodding her mother with more questions.

Not wanting to end that day in complete silence,

"Do you really want to know why I sometimes bring treats for Trapinch?" She had asked, her voice turning low.

"U-u-uh-huh," Sobi said.

"You remember who the third member of my adventure team was?"

"F-F-Flygon," Sobi said. Her daughter had been confused at that question. She

"Then. Why isn't he on my team any more?"

"Did you get in a fight? Were you possessed by Dark Matter and forced to fight? Was Dad there? Did Ninetales have to hold you down to rescue you?!?" the child gecko prodded and poked, her curiosity stoked once more. The girl's uncanny ability to hit a little too close to the truth and yet miss it… was something special.

"My little waterscooter," Serpi said, "I'm just back from the water continent. Your father and I are going to retire once your new sibling hatches. I cannot tell you everything now."

Despite the metaphorical weight that was coming off Serperior's back, she twitched, imagining the little sobble's mind working into overdrive, trying to put the puzzle together, when she still had less than half the pieces.

"I'm not going to be able to sleep with only that!"

In the shower basin, Serpi was nearly done, with her single good vine wrapped around a brush and the help of leavanny who had a pair of soft brushes stuck to her leaves, the oil was mostly off. She could feel the stub of her second and third vines already sprouting.

Serpi thanked Leavanny again, then dried off and proceeded to see if she could find her kids before going to the guild's mess hall and getting some food. The guild really did have access to incredible healing resources. But they couldn't help everyone. Her old teammate, which Sobi already knew—was one such person.

What kind of a rescuer or adventurer was a flygon that was missing a wing?

 

[zoru22]

~~~ Chapter 4 - Daycare ~~~​

"My head hurts," Nick had said, tripping once more. He had been following the Alolan Ninetales for what felt like an eternity and his eyes hurt, his feet hurt, and his legs hurt. And his arms hurt. They were, however, less arms than little purple wings with claws sticking out the top.

Ninetales' heart rate was smooth and even. His claws clacking along the smooth and cold rock floor of the guild. Nick couldn't see Ninetales, what was there was a big void of information, filtered by the impressive and thick fur the fox's, well, nine tales. Still, despite his cool posture, Nick could tell his heart beat ever so slightly faster.

"Dishes are re—" a squeaky voice shouted, a few halls over, a rapid humming.

"What's the menu toni—"

The sounds disappeared as ninetales stood in front of Nick. "How long has it been since you woke up, child?" he was asked. "Seems you're overstimulated. I don't know of any in your position. So I'm sorry you had to awaken here on our continent. Hmm. You're a bat, yes?"

He had closed his eyes to navigate—the lights were too bright, and sound had done an excellent job of overstimulating him, that much was true.

"If you and Serperior hadn't told me I was a Noibat, I wouldn't know what I was—" Noibat had said. The last generation he'd played was Pokemon X and Y, he had to admit, but he didn't actually beat it or get far, though he did at least know a few pokemon from the newer generations.

"What are you doing?!?" he squeaked, as his long, flat feet were pressed down on, and he was lifted into the air. It… felt pretty good, actually, hanging upside down. Though his ears were facing into the Ninetales' body, and he couldn't hear a whole lot like that. Nick was okay with keeping his eyes closed too, though the vibrations in the air bouncing through the guild's halls were enough to give Nick a good sense of location and place.

"Uh, thank you," he whispered, each word echoing back off the floor into his upside-down ears, providing a colorless image of a flat nothing, and well a soft nothing. The itch, or the impulse to open his eyes and keep them on the thing he couldn't make out—was strong. But he knew what it was—Ninetales' body was carrying him.

Traveling through the hall to the end, a series of smaller voices, as well as some banging and talking grew louder. Nick tilted his small head into his chest, covering his eyes with his wings, letting Ninetales' tails and body muffle the sound. He'd already heard enough to realize he was in over his head.

Someone in the front hallway to the right and up some stairs had talked about humans and pokeballs. Serperior had met a Minccino who had said that the storm birds were missing? It wasn't a lot of information, but it was enough to get his own heart racing even faster and louder than it normally did. It raced plenty fast on its own.

And to top that off, the being he'd met, the one in his dreams was— he gulped. Nick hadn't played sword and shield, but the red face, jagged and pitchfork-like arms, as well as the long, spine-like body? Unmistakable. It also helped that they'd introduced themselves to him as Eternatus.

Ninetales had let him go, and he was set down on the floor, sound returning. At least slightly as he stood back up. Towering over him, was a monster with four appendages staring down at him, each prehensile and moving with the deliberate ease of a tail. The other was just a massive void. Not ninetales, he could tell.

"Open your eyes. It's okay! We turned down the lights for our new guest! Welcome to the Guild of Eternity!"

"Seriously?" he said, opening his eyes, the monster before him was a blue-eyed fox with a white body and pink-and blue highlights. Sylveon, Nick told himself.

"Hm?" Sylveon asked, his face turning from a generic pleasant smile to curiosity.

"That's what you named the guild?" Nick asked.

"Ah, well. We didn't pick the name," the other pokemon, towering over him, said. They had a brown body, a headdress of cotton, and a pair of curly green horns sticking out and down. A Whimsicott.

"I'm going to let you help Noibat here get situated. Has anyone heard from Delphy?" Ninetales asked, Sylveon's tassels snapping taut at the fox's brusqueness. Nick's heart dropped.

"Ah, no." Whimsicott said, "Vulpix is in the other room." Ninetales didn't even nod. Ninetales' cool heartbeat picked up as he left the room, pushing the door open, limping along. "Daaad! I thought I smelled you!" a chipper voice shouted from the other room.

The new Noibat was happy he wasn't some kind of predator-food.

Everyone kind of drooped, before Sylveon interrupted. "Come with me, little Noibat! I'll get the paperwork!" Sylveon stood at least thrice his own height. Everyone towered over him. The ceiling felt impossibly high, and, well. Waking up as a pokemon was pretty cool! He'd even played a couple pokemon mystery dungeons games!

He'd had a little hope things would be better. Hoping he could find a partner and convince them to take him to the guild? Someone he could support, who was anxious about joining? He shook his head. This was where it would look up. He couldn't expect Ninetales to stick around, considering how burned he was. Ninetales and Serperior had both protected him, given him food, and taken him this far.

"Ah, little one," whimsicott had approached him, pulling him close. Whimsy's fur was nice. It was warm. It was quiet. When the whimsicott let him go, the world was quieter, and Sylveon was waving at him, some kind of book in his tassels.

The thump of the book reminded Nick that even with cotton in his ears… his head still hurt, though his eyes weren't assaulted by the guild's impressive technology level. He didn't know what he'd expect from the Pokemon world, but having dimmable electric lights in the ceiling was not one of them. He was even more surprised when the book opened and Sylveon pulled out a pen, and it was held in his tassels.

Nick walked up next up to Sylveon, who glanced back at the cotton pokemon, before wrapping Nick up with one of his tassels, pulling him up onto the small table, just a few feet off the ground. But far too high for Nick to re—"Can you hear me again, yet?" Sylveon asked.

"Oh—yes! Thank you whimsicott! I was overwhelmed—"

"You'll always be welcome, sweetie. It's not every day I need to put some cotton in anyone's ears," she said, letting out a short giggle.

"Yeah, usually it's checking to see if you put it in their ears. And then I have to take it out," Sylveon grumbled. "Now, let's get you checked in, lollipop. How old are you?"

"Twenty four ye—"

"Not how old you think you are, popsicle" Sylveon interrupted. "How old are you?" the quadruped asked. A loud crash sounded, followed by squeaks and squeals from the opposite room.

"I've got it!" Whimsicott said, before rushing through the door to the other room.

"Oh. I. Uh, I woke up like, four days ago. I think?" he managed to squeak out. His voice was significantly-higher pitched than he was used to hearing. He stood up on the desk, and walked over to the book as Sylveon marked it down with his pen.

"Can I ask what this is for?" Nick said, staring at Sylveon holding the pen, already marking things down in the book. Humans kept records. But did pokemon? Well, if they had dimmable electric lights, then it stood to reason they might, he supposed. He just hoped he wouldn't have to file taxes at the end of the year.



*Born: 1 week before summer.* Sylveon had penned in. Well, he couldn't have expected them to use the cesarean calendar. But how did they know it was a few days before spring?

*How long was a week?* He wanted to ask, but chose not to, the whining and crying in the other room reached a crescendo, before quieting down as presumably Whimsicott had managed to wrangle the kids.

*Ex-Human? Y/N* the next line had said, but Sylveon had already circled in the Y.

"You… you have a book of forms for new pokemon… where you specify… if they were a human or not... as an option?" Nick asked.

Sylveon nodded, "Yup. And there's more. Whether or not you grew up with us being fictional, or if you had pokemon in your world, among other things. Anyway, we'll get to that on the next page. How do you want to be known? Your human name? Your species? There's not a lot of Noibats or Noiverns in this continent, though I think there's one or two noiverns flapping about as totems in some dungeons to the north. Personally, I recommend the name lollipop."

Well, he knew humans waking up as a pokemon had already happened, and it was known, so he guessed it made sense? "Uh… Nick's fine. Can I change it later?"

"Of course! Though don't change it too much or you lose your nickname and Uxie will choose it for you."

"Uh, Uxie?"

"God of knowledge. Well, memory, really."

"... Oh," Nick said. "Nick's fine for now, then."

"Hmm…" Sylveon hummed for a moment, before penning in onto the form, before pausing midway through? "Are you sure? There's a lot of Nicks."

"There are?!?" he exclaimed. "Is someone pulling in humans named Nick??" he asked. Though girls probably too? Nicole was a popular name. How many humans were being pulled into the pokemon world?

"No, no, lollipop," Sylveon said, "The pokemon species Nickit—they get nicknamed Nick all the time. And Uxie's not willing to—"

"Oh my god."

"Gods," Sylveon corrected.

"Oh my gods," Nick exclaimed. No one would ever take him seriously if he named himself after a pokemon of a different species.

"Uh, just Noibat is fine for now. I guess. It's not like the guild has a bunch of noibat then?" Sylveon was cuter in person than it was in the games. Holding a pen and book, especially with the white, blue and pink bow… The sylveon just shrugged, leaving the name field empty, instead checking a box that said: `Species name.`

"Well, Noibat! First page is complete! If you want to change your name to lollipop later, let me know. Uxie loves giving names. At any rate, take a look over the form and see if it's right. We still have one more page to go, but this was all we need for today." Sylveon said, turning the book so that Nick could see without having to hover over it.

Being a kid again was strange. Other than feeling tired, and getting frustrated at not being able to hold things, and the hurt of his head and the hurt of his eyes in bright light and all the strange noises and well, the smells that he'd been tuning out until he smelled the sweet sugars in the air… Well, those were just growing pains. Nick could get used to those.

He inched closer to the form and looked it over. "I'm a… girl?" He said, before his face turned flush, and he looked over his body.

"Does it matter?" Sylveon asked, pulling over the book.

"No. Yes. I mean, maybe." He said, struggling to find his figurative mental footing. "But… How can you know? I didn't even know! I'm used to having everything visible, not hidden by clothes or anything. I can't actually tell!"

"I smelled it," Sylveon asserted.

He? She? Froze. That didn't make ANY sense. Newly-hatched humans you couldn't smel—No. Of course a daycare worker would be specialized in smelling, he realized.

"Do you have a different preference?" Sylveon asked.

"Is Uxie going to help me change back into being a guy?" he said, only half-sarcastic, his voice' pitch squeaking out.

"Sylveon, the baby was already overwhelmed!" Nick jumped—he hadn't even noticed the door had opened, so focused he was on the line. Sylveon's face turned into a frown. Whimsicott waddled up to him on the table, pulling him into a hug. The last thing Nick saw was a little pichu's ear sticking out from Whimsicott's notable cottony fluff.

He wanted to say something. Anything. But couldn't. And whimsicott was right. There were no secrets here except the ones in his head, and even then, each new thing he learned about this world… It wasn't what Nick had expected. He accepted Whimsy's hug.

Was he supposed to save the world? Was he supposed to participate in it, save the day at the last moment? If so, he wasn't exactly feeling that special. Everything anyone did had told him he wasn't special. Just another kid. Yet another person who woke up as a pokemon and somehow was taken to a guild?

Carried in like… Carried into the guild like he was yet another haul for these pokemon. Sitting in the warmth of Whimsy's cottony embrace, he had to be special. Something made him special right? Maybe he just didn't understand the whole picture yet. He could wait it out. Start up an adventure team with one of the kids when he figured out how to fly, maybe. But he was so small.

Everyone towered over him. Inteleon had shot someone. A human? He didn't catch if it was a confirmed kill. He'd assumed not. Whimsy was twice his height. Sylveon was three times his height. It was a bit much, if he was being honest with himself. He was grateful to Ninetales and Serperior for bringing him in. But he didn't ever, in his life, think that he? She? Would have the first thing they do to fill out a registration form at a daycare where the thing they asked was… Whether he was human or not.

The Stormbirds were apparently missing? Something about Inteleon and Calyrex? Nick didn't even know what a Calyrex was. Someone in the basement had cried that their mom was home—Serperior's son, if he had to guess. Only to be berated and told they were just imagining things?

The cooks—A ledian and a Flygon were banging pots and pans as they had begun to cook dinner? And the worst part of it all, was that many of the conversations had been happening all at once in the guild's poorly-sound-proofed building. He'd not been able to filter any single one conversation out. He'd been overexcited, until his head had started to hurt.

Nick pushed back from whimsy, before scraping missing cotton off his ears. "Can we just—" he said. Can I just… be a normal pokemon? Call me a girl and all that? Start over? Whatever. I don't care," she said, voice squeaking slightly higher.

Sylveon's facial expression softened.

"Why, hello! I am Sylveon, and this is Whimsy the Whimsicott," the Sylveon smiled at her, closing the book and wrapping Noibat in a quick hug.

 

[zoru22]

~~~ Chapter 5 - Kids in the Cafeteria ~~~​

"Awww, but Sylveon! I wanna meet them!" Sobi exclaimed outside of the guild's daycare area.

"Sorry, Sobi," Sylveon said, offering her a smile in consolation, "But Noibat needs some quiet time to herself to think things out. Please be patient."

It didn't usually work on whimsi or anorith, but she was already letting her tears fall. Sobi felt them fall down. "O-oh. Okay" she said. They weren't fake tears, not by any means. When Sylveon's expression softened, and tassels fell. Sylveon's softened expression turned into a frown. Sobi made to blink, spreading her tears, trying to accentuate the look.

Sobi knew Sylveon was too kind for his own good. But nevertheless, he reached down with his tassels, pulling her close as he did when he comforted her when she was newly hatched and was hurt. He lifted her up into the air, and was pulled to his face as he hummed.

And gave her a kiss.

Except it was a lick.

"Blech!" Sobi said, interrupting her from her tears, wrestling her arms from his tassels, pushing her hands over her face, using her flat, chameleon-like hands to wipe off the saliva. More tears fell, the pink around Sylveon sparkling with fairy dust.

"What was that for!?!"

"Just a fairy comfort kiss for a fairly persistent sobble."

"Pleeeassseee, Sylveon, I wanna meet them. My mom said they're hu-mmpleplep," Sylveon had covered her mouth with one of his free tassels.

Sylveon held her still, walking her into a side room, where one of the caretakers took the kids who were enabling other pokemon to misbehave, his voice going low. "Pause for a moment and think about your words here."

She was about to say her mom had said that Noibat was a human. But it wasn't such a big deal? Why? There were pokemon that were humans in town! She was pretty sure some of the rescue team members were once humans, too! The one she did know was an S-ranker, just like her mother. But she didn't meet any of the others.

In fact, Staraptor was the only one she knew who ever actually talked about being human before. And Starly said his dad never said anything about actually being human. Or how he became one.

"Now, be careful with what you say next," Sylveon said.

She didn't quite understand why it was so bad to say that Noibat had been a human. But she did know they had to keep it a secret. Like the pokeball that dad had hid in their room. She could keep a secret, it would be just like.

"I wanted to meet Noibat and see if they wanted to play," she said. It wasn't even a lie.

"Much better."

"But why though? Why is it a big deal?"

"It doesn't matter. You chose your new name, yes?"

"Uh, yeah."

"And how many pokemon asked you why?"

"Only my annoying brother."

Sylveon smirked, setting her down. "You wanted to change your name. And Noibat wants her privacy tonight."

On the cold stone floor of the daycare room, Sobi groaned, giving her face another good wipe.

"Well, can you at least leave her a message for me? I want to meet her but my mom said she was gonna take me and Trapinch to Aunt Perenna's tomorrow."

"That's nice of your mom," Sylveon said.

But Sylveon didn't give his permission. She frowned. But decided not to cry, pushing her tears back. Her stomach growled. It was dinner time.

"Go, eat. Meet with Trapinch before your field trip tomorrow, Sobi." Sylveon had pushed the door open, nudging her. It was time to go. He probably needed to get back to helping Whimsicott. The little kids' group would eat soon, too.

Trapinch would be at the cafeteria already. Once she was out of Sylveon's sight, Sobi smirked. Her camouflage would get her into the nursery door, where she could meet Noibat. But not now. She needed to get food, then talk to her dad.

Meet Noibat: her first super-secret mission was a go. The other. She needed to answer her dad's question. And she already forgot what it was.

Dad would let her make a rescue team, even if she answered him wrong. And besides, she could still do both. The tricky part was finding Noibat. And getting inside. If she could stay invisible; she could sneak in.

"H-hey!" Snivy squeaked, running up to her. She groaned and rolled her eyes. "Leave me alone."

She pointed her hand at Snivy, pooling a little water in it as he drew near. He saw her aiming at him and walked up anyway. She hated that he was a grass type.

"What? Spit it. I'm going to eat."

"Well, uh did y-you meet him. I mean, the h—" she sprayed her brother in his face, interrupting him.

"No, and it's Noibat. And he is a she," she said.

"Then you did too meet them!"

"Her," she said, rolling her eyes. She had stopped her tears running, letting her face dry out a bit.

"You're just being mean to me."

"I can be meaner," she stuck her tongue out at Snivy.

"N-N-No you can't."

"Shut up," she told him. "You're supposed to be with mom. She said you had to stay with her!"

"Mom's asleep," Snivy said. He was getting teary already. She wanted to spray him again, but they were in a main hall and she didn't want to leave a mess for someone to slip on.

"The one time I get free time to myself, and you follow me!" Her eyes were dry. Even while she complained. She wasn't going to be caught with teary eyes at the same time and place as her little brother. No. Way.

"I wasn't following you!"

"Were too."

"Were not."

"Go eat sun, greenie," Sobi said. He complained he got cold when mom was gone. "Or go play with espurr and sewaddle and leave me alone." Then, when mom was home, he spent twenty minutes with her and ran off!

"I am leaving you alone! And Espurr is weird and sewaddle is boring! I wanted to meet Noibat too!" Snivy was tearing up again. He was definitely a better sobble than Sobi was, that much she could tell.

"Fine," she said, throwing her hands up in the air. "But get ready to hear me say I told you so when they make you leave, cus Noibat wants to be left alone!"

With a "humph!" Snivy turned his head and ran off. Which was good. Because she hated his stupid face. She stepped into the guild's cafeteria.

"Another squabble with Snivy?" Sobi jumped to the air in recoil.

"Oh. Hi Dreepy. Yeah, I guess so." Sobi said, the red-and green noodle rising up and out of the ground. Together they entered the cafeteria line for the shorter pokemon. There weren't a lot of pokemon in the cafeteria, actually. Staraptor and Starly sat next to Ninetales, who was still covered in burns, and Vulpix were all eating their food together on a mat.

But that was it.

"Where's your mom?" Sobi asked.

"On a mission. I didn't get to go this time." Dreepy said, sighing, her face sad. Sobi hopped up onto the counter, grabbing a plate of grilled apples. Neither of them ate a whole lot, and Dreepy usually ate Distortion instead of apples.

"Uh, one sec, Dreeps. I'll meet you at our spot." Dreepy nodded. She paused, before speaking—"Hey, Flygon! Hey, Ledian!" she said, calling out into the kitchen backroom.

"Sobi!" Flygon's voice called out from back into the kitchen. Out from the back, covered in an apron, emerged a Flygon. Well, a Flygon that was missing most of their red eye protectors, had a scar over the left side of their face, was missing half a wing, and had unsealed holes in the other. The guild's head Cook, and Sobi's mom's ex-teammate.

"Nice to see you today! You and Trapinch are taking your first dungeon tomorrow, right?"

"Yep! Perenna's!"

"Excellent! I can't wait to hear your stories! Are you taking Dreepy too?" the crippled Flygon asked. Sobi glanced over to where her friend was patiently waiting. Her gut sank. She wanted to bring Dreepy, but teams were usually three weren't they? If she could bring Dreepy and Noibat and Trapinch, she'd really like that.

"I…" she paused. Dreepy was Sobi's oldest friend, and despite being old, hadn't been able to join a rescue team, and was still weaker than anyone Sobi knew. Bringing Dreepy on the team was risky. They said that Dreepy stayed babies for decades. Sobi really wanted to bring Noibat along instead. But Trapinch was expecting to bring Dreepy along. She perked her face up, "I mean, yeah, Dreepy's coming too!"

Flygon gave her a smile. "Well, I can't wait to hear your first stories in the dungeons. Go eat with your friends and Trapinch will be here soon," Flygon said, waving her off.

Sobi walked down the little slope with her plate of apple slices that was as big as her head, holding them with both hands. Luckily, her forelegs had small suction cups on them which held the plate in place, letting her walk with it, though she wasn't great at walking on two legs.

Flygon headed back into the main eatery, where Dreepy and Trapinch were already sitting. "...If Dreepy wants to go," Sobi muttered under her breath.

"Hey, Trappy," Sobi said, sitting down at their mat, setting down her plate of grilled apple slices.

"Hey, Sobi!" Trapinch said as she situated herself at her little friendgroup's table. "Is everything ready to go tomorrow? My dad told your mom I was gonna start a rescue team?"

"Rescue Team!?!" Dreepy squeaked, before drooping, realizing she had been excluded from the planning.

Sobi paused, hesitating for a moment. Maybe they could bring noibat on their first, practice "mission" as an escort.

"Did you wanna join?"

Dreepy's eyes went wide, before going flush. "I-I-I probably shouldn't, I'd just hold you back," she said, her face turning down to face the mat. Sobi knew that Dreepy didn't have the greatest track record with a team. But she was still about as long as Sobi was tall.

Sobi would be a Drizzile soon, and Trapinch would be a Vibrava. "Trapinch was going to be the leader, and I was going to join his team, because he's the biggest and strongest… We can sign you up as a team member," Sobi said. They could swap Dreepy with Noibat later, after she convinced her to join their team. "And if it doesn't work out, it's not a big deal," she told Dreepy, smiling.

"Yeah!" Trapinch said.

"Oh-Oh, thank you!" Dreepy said, holding her small arms together, blushing. Well, blushing as much as a ghost could and all.

Sobi started to eat her apples, her mind drifting to her plans for sneaking into the daycare sleeping area for the younger kids. She decided against it. Noibat would only be a few days out of the egg. Dungeoneering, even in the "safe" dungeons, when you were too little was a bad idea.

"Tomorrow, we'll talk to Sobi's mom and go see Auntie Perenna in her dungeon. I've already talked to Zoroark, he'll have our badges for us tomorrow." Trapinch turned, pointing one of his side-eyes at Dreepy. "Someone left a Sitrus Fruit in my cubby-hole. You can have it, Dreeps," Trapinch said, the star in his eyes glowing.

"I-I'm not sure what to say, Trap, that's so nice! I've never had one before," Dreepy squeaked out.

Yeah. This was going to work out just fine.

 

[zoru22]

~~~ Chapter 6 - Fieldtrip ~~~​

Serperior slithered to the Cafeteria, flicking her tongue in the air, tasting, checking for Sobi or Snivy's scents. Instead of smelling her kids, she smelled the drift of oran fruits, roasted nuts and apples. She was hungry for her bi-yearly dose of protein, and felt her skin getting loose and itchy. Snivy would probably need his protein soon as well, but some good sun and a tray of Flygon's cafeteria food would help stave both of them off.

She entered the mess hall, reached out with her vine to grab a tray of oran berries, and with a particular wrap of the vine with the end of her good vine on one side, opened her mouth wide, and poured them into her mouth. Snakes like her didn't chew or tear or mash their food. Already, she could feel her body growing, pushing against her skin as the muscles that didn't heal overnight began to restore.

There was another tray of mashed nuts. She was itching. Her body would increase in size and strength significantly soon. She thanked humans of the past for creating the high-density nuts. At less than an eighth of the density she wanted to eat, she could already feel herself tensing. Lying behind the doorway would be a good place to surprise someone.

"After seeing you last night, I figured you would be quite hungry today," Inteleon said, appearing behind her. Her muscles tensed and screamed. She had the type advantage. Plenty of protein. They wrapped their tails together, and she downed one more set of nuts. The protein took far, far too long to hit. She flicked her tongue out.

"Yes. I shed today."

"I told Sobi and Trapinch."

She wrapped her tail with his, slowly, progressively pulling him closer.

"You left your badge with Leavanny," he said, pulling up the scarf-badge. She pulled her head close to his, as the first bit of protein began to hit, and she refocused, loosening her grip on Inteleon. "Even when you're hungry, I've never seen you forget it," he told her, holding it out, looping it around her neck.

Even though she was an S-rank, she had kept the cloth the same since she became an adventurer of their guild. One side was colored blue, the other red. Embroidered inside was her S-rank badge, a silvery plate stitched into the cloth, the shape of the sun—symbol of eternal dawn. Inteleon slid the magnetic clips built into the end together, the red side of the cloth flipped so it was visible.

Inteleon smiled.

"Care if I join you on this 'mission'?"

"If you wish." She knew he had a reason for joining that wasn't just joining the kids. She hooked her vine around the empty food trays, setting them at the area made for washing dishes. She just didn't care to lead the conversation.

"Ariados and I depart for another mission tomorrow morning. We're taking Ninetales."

That piqued her curiosity.

"A Latios showed up in the middle of the night last night. Humans attacked. Solgaleo's missing." First, the Storm Birds. Zekrom. Solgaleo. Serperior had no love for the gods. But losing them was a problem.

"The guilds on the Grass continent managed to recover a pokeball, and discovered they don't work if you're frozen in time."

Serperior stopped in the hall, her hunger temporarily forgotten.

"The guild on the Grass continent are already working to pull their time gears."

The entire Grass continent would be frozen in time, and those who weren't on it would still be able to enter or leave. It was a dangerous, risky plan which relied on the trespassers not knowing how the magic of the world worked. She didn't mind sit-and-wait plans. But as she continued her walk, she did realize one thing: "Any humans caught in it would be frozen as well."

"I predict that's the real hope."

"Your suspicions?" Serperior asked, the second wave of protein finally hitting. She estimated about an hour before the cravings started getting bad again. As they proceeded down the stairs and pulled out their packs from their cubby holes—Minccino had already patched Serpi's bag. It was empty. She didn't actually need it to carry food for herself. Not for travelling to Perenna's gardens. The three small dungeons Perenna helped to maintain, full of small feral pokemon and excellently-maintained gardens.

"I suspect the humans are targeting gods they consider non-essential to the world. Whether they are testing our world's defenses or looking to enslave them, I do not."

Humans shouldn't be able to enter their world. Not without being turned into a pokemon. At least, that was what she'd been taught since she was a snivy. And though she had suspicions it was her Serperior parents quipping about being better and smarter, she didn't know. It didn't matter if they were now passing the protections placed around the world.

"Why are YOU here? And why do YOU have a badge?!?"

Inteleon gave Serperior a look. Their kids were already bickering. They slowed down their approach to the bickering kids.

"S-Snivy, let's wait, your parents—" one voice squeaked. It was Noibat.

"I already told you! Noibat and I started a team! And no! Stop bullying me! You just don't want me to come!"

"You'll get her killed!"

Serperior perked up, noting the pronoun difference. So Noibat had been a human. Not that Serpi had much doubt. Sobi was right in more than one way. Her muscles still screamed. She wanted more easily-digestible protein. Slowly, they rounded the final corner of the entranceway.

"N-No-No I won't! Mom took you and me to Perenna's when we just hatched! It's safe!"

They were still a few hundred feet away from the kids, and approached leisurely. Dreepy and Trapinch were both there, Dreepy hiding her face in the wall.

"Uh guys," Noibat said, pointing at Inteleon and Serperior approaching. Sobi's mouth closed, her eyes drawn to her mom's bandanna.

Snivy was dripping wet, a small bandanna around his neck, just like his mom's but much smaller, and the blue side facing out. Noibat was small, and as Serpi approached, shrunk away at the approach of the two adults.

"Hello, Trapinch," Serpi said, bowing her head slightly.

Dreepy turned around, phasing her head back through the other side of the wall. "Hello Serpi. Hello Inteleon."

"Hello, Dreepy." Serpi said. Sobi's eyes and face were glued to the bandanna wrapped around her mom's neck. The skin on her face was quite moist.

"Your mother is not in the frame of mind to handle your squabbling today, Snivy, Sobi. I expect you to keep your complaints to yourself."

Serpi kept quiet. Inteleon was right. She did not have the patience for it. Talking, spending thought on word choice, ensuring she wasn't hurting anyone, sending the wrong signals, checking to see how they felt. And most of all, making sure she didn't give the wrong ideas. All took energy.

"Now, Snivy. Please explain why you and Noibat have badges AND followed your sister to the front of the guild."

Energy that was preciously low. Didn't help with increasingly itchy skin, either. She had to spend energy not to squirm in place. Deliberately choosing not to shed in the center of the guild hall entrance.

"W-W-well, Rotom called me to Z-Z-Zoroark this m-morning, and w-we both got badges."

"Liar! You st—" Inteleon held out his hand, pointing at Serperior. "S-Sorry." Sobi said, quieting down.

"I-it's my fault, sir," Noibat said, bowing her head. "Last night, Sylveon told me Sobi and Snivy were going to the dungeons today, and I had questions for Perenna. So I asked Snivy, and he said we could go if we started a rescue team." Noibat looked up, before glancing at Sobi. Staring at her mom's neckband again.

Snivy stuck his tongue out at his sister.

"Can you fly?"

"Ah. N-No. No, ma'am." The bat squeaked. She would be more helpless in any fight than Sobi was when she hatched. Not even useful for recon.

"Then, you are food," Serperior said. Sobi's eyes tracked her mom's face with studious intent. Serperior's mind retreated out of the little interactions.

"Hmmm," Inteleon said, stepping in. "Trapinch, take your team and go ahead. We will chat with Snivy and will catch up."

Trapinch's starry eyes and permanent, serrated grin was inscrutable as ever, but the new team leader spoke up. "We'll wait for you at the entrance to Perenna's! Let's go, team!" Trapinch said, rushing to the guild's front door.

"Yay! Do you know how long it's been since I left the guild without my mom?!?" Dreepy said.

Sobi did not move, glancing between Noibat and Serpi, both Trapinch and Dreepy stopping at the front door, waiting for their teammate.

Serperior had a thought. She heard no reports of guild members or their kids missing to humans. If she had more energy, she may have put a few lines between dots. She stored the thought for later. Dreepy and Trapinch were waiting at the front gate.

"Run along, Sobi," Serpi said. A split second, and Sobi ran forward in silence, oscillating between opaque and transparent, her tears dripping down onto the floor.

"Your first mistake, Snivy," Inteleon said, "was antagonizing your sister. You knew she wanted to invite Noibat on this trip."

Snivy didn't complain. Just looked down at the floor. Serpi herself had immediately tuned out Inteleon's budding lecture on preventing escalation before it happened. It would be a miracle if either Sobi or Snivy understood those lessons in a timely manner. It had taken her a long time to learn many of those lessons. Though she was much, much older. Luckily, Snivy hadn't picked up an exact set of Serpi's personality quirks.

"Let's go. You can lecture them on the way."

She was staring ahead, trying not to focus on Noibat. Not that she was worried about instinct taking over. They proceeded to the front door. Noibat squeaked. Serpi looked back. The morsel was face down on the floor, picking herself up.

Noibat took a step forward. Her long feet and claws were clearly meant to hook into cave ceilings. Not bear Noibat's weight all day long. Serpi's motion as she approached the guild's front door auto-opened. They stepped out into the sun together, Noibat trailing behind. The newly-hatched-bat was walking better, but once she stepped into the sun, she yelped about her eyes hurting.

"You look like a wounded feral," Serpi said, soaking in the sunlight, tasting the air. The sun helped stave off the impulses. But it didn't grant her sympathy.

"Don't eat him, I mean, her, mom!" Snivy said.

"Maybe going on this trip was a bad idea. I think I'll take my lea—"

"I have no intention of eating Noibat," Serpi said.

"You are more safe with Serperior than you are with any other guildmate, Noibat. But if you decide to wait until you can fly, we understand."

"Can we wait a few minutes? I'd like to think a little."

"Five minutes." Serperior looked to the Nosepass at the front gate, who waved back to her. He would track time for her. It would give her time to deal with the itch, at least. She slithered out onto the front ground, rolling on the ground, flexing and unflexing her muscles.

"In that case, I will return with some supplies," Inteleon said.

"U-Uh, Serperior?" Noibat asked as she was trying to work her shed off and be rid of the itching. Her skin was coming loose. She was careful not to ruin Nurse Leavanny's grafts, though she already felt her dexterity and control of the grafted leaf-arms increasing.

"What?"

"Why did you say I'm food?"

"I'm hungry. You can't fly. And you made a rescue team."

"O-O-oh." Noibat said, turning to Snivy. "C-C-Can't you e-eat apples?"

Serperior's skin was finally giving way, and moments later, she was squirming out, faded green-and-white scales and sheds transparently waving in the light breeze. She looked over herself, observing her newly-refreshed coat, and the extra feeling of extra stretch. The fight with Reshiram had been hard. But she felt significantly more free. Whether it was from the high of just having the itch gone, or the feeling of extra stretch, she didn't know.

But there, in the sun, she felt better. She rolled around on the ground, picking up her pack which had fallen to the ground without notice, using her vine to lift the clip over one side over the back of her head, then using her vine to clip the other side.

"Time!" Nosepass said.

Inteleon hadn't returned yet.

"Noibat," Serperior said, getting the purple bat's attention, interrupting Snivy trying, and failing, to explain his species' diet. Her sons' eyes were wet, frustrated after being asked too many questions and not being able to answer.

"Y-yes?" Noibat didn't look her in the eyes, though they had a good thirty feet between them. She shouldn't be that intimidating from such a distance.

"Your decision?"

"If it's acceptable for you, I would like to come. We can disband our team when we get back to the guild, but I would like to talk to Perenna!"

The guild front gate opened. Inteleon was back. Serperior nodded, but they were short on time, and would need to take some shortcuts to get to Perenna's.

"I have supplies, a pack of Oran berries and some apples if you get hurt, little bat."

"Oh, t-t-thank you!"

"We need to go." Serperior said, slithering back onto the path, using her vine to throw open her empty pack. Serperior wanted to grab a few Sitrus Berries at Perenna's, but that didn't matter if the protein was gone. Noibat could eat them instead.

Serpi looped Noibat's feet with her vine, and dropped them into her pouch. Inteleon grabbed Snivy, who's eyes were still moist, and off they went. Stretching her newly-freed body under the sun was nothing short of a joy.

They left the front of the guild, leaving the large tree, and surrounding rocks behind, descending down the large hill upon which the guild complex stood.

Inteleon broke the silence. "How long had you planned to start a team with Snivy?"

"Ah, uh, last night. When they showed up in the, ah, 'daycare'." Noibat nearly coughed that last word out. She still didn't like being associated with the children.

Snivy's tears were flowing again.

Serperior could tell without even looking at him. He had a tendency to cry when he was caught. Crying, when to cry, as well as what made people cry, was one of the mysteries of the world to her. Though she was learning her son's patterns. Unfortunately, that did not map for anyone else. Each was a puzzle which required unraveling.

Her desire to puzzle it out was always in the negative, but she would try anyway.

Serpi was pretty sure Inteleon had already figured out what had happened, but told him anyway.

"I told you to stay in the Medical Hall, and give your sister room. Did I not?" Serpi scolded Snivy. She paused talking. They had barely passed the outer layer of trees of the small forest that stood between the guild and the nearby town. If they went straight, they would go into town. Instead, they left the trail and headed to the north, taking a shortcut to Perenna's.

She left Inteleon to talk to Snivy. He was the one that knew how best to release her building pressure valve. Giving someone who was angry their space was intuitive. You didn't antagonize a god unless you had a deathwish or some goal from it. If you knew something caused you pain, you didn't do that thing. If you knew something would cause others pain, even if it wouldn't hurt you, you still didn't do that thing.

Speeding along, thinking to herself, she realized that calling Noibat food was probably threatening. The way she stood, walked, and fell over. The bat looked like a pained and wounded feral.

"Noibat. Your feet hurt when you walk, don't they?"

"Uh, yeah! They hurt a lot. How could you tell?"

"Your walking looks painful."

"O-oh."

"Your feet aren't made to be walking all day long. You have claws in the bottom of your feet, yes?"

"Oh my god."

"We do not own any gods."

"Sorry! It's just a turn-of-phrase. But I see what you're saying. I'm so stupid!"

"What?!?" Snivy said, sitting on his father's pouch.

"I trip and fall all the time! It's not just because I'm weak, it's because my feet! They don't bend. I can kinda walk a little, but they hurt!"

"Just fly, then!" Snivy said.

Serperior let the kids go back and forth, zoning out. She did taste some additional nuts in the air which Inteleon had managed to pack. She was glad.

"What were pokemon like in your world?" Inteleon asked, catching their attention again. He was no marathoner, but he had always had the speed advantage over Serpi in the long run.

"Is it really that obvious?" Noibat asked.

"Yes," all three of them said.

"Ninetales and I knew you were an ex-human, simply finding you where we did, several days ago."

"If we weren't under so much time pressure, I would help you blend in," Inteleon said. "Though Sobi is not too bad."

"I'm sorry. I should have waited until I could fly before coming out here," Noibat tried to apologize. Neither adult said anything immediately. "I just… heard all this stuff about legendaries and mythical pokemon disappearing, and then I remember seeing the face of Eternatus in my dreams, and I—"

Inteleon chuckled. "Eternatus? Calling you to become a pokemon?"

"I mean, yeah? But then I find out that, like, I'm not even special? And I'm in a body I didn't expect? I thought humans only wound up as starters or Eevees! All I did was answer some questions, and—"

"Kid, neither I, nor Serperior care about your personal problems. We have plenty of our own."

"Eep! I'm sorry!" Noibat cried.

"We will help you make things right for you. If you're still alive when all of this is over. Until then, this is your first. And only mission. Learn to fly and show us you aren't just a talking protein present."

"That's not fair…" Snivy whined. He didn't object as clearly as Sobi did, but she could sense how he was starting to pick up her style of talking. Still, she always seemed one step ahead of him. Which was… expected. Serperior herself would readily admit that she had some difficulty keeping up with her daughter.

Keeping Snivy out of the junior adventurer's rooms would be for the best for their budding team. They had landed on a new trail, the one that led from town, directly to Perenna's dungeons. At their faster pace, they managed to arrive in less than an hour's time.

While waiting for the trio, Serperior had gone into the third dungeon, the largest one, with the strongest pokemon. She spotted her prey, knocked them out, and waited for them to awaken. When they failed to form any coherent words, they were food. One had to be careful, as they could be a pokemon who had fainted in the dungeon, and had been under the dungeons' spell. Thus was the protocol.

Feeling better, she left the dungeon, giving Perenna and the dungeon spirit a courtesy wave, though she saw neither.

"You left after us! And Still beat us!" Trapinch said.

"Well yeah, of course they did. They're my mom and dad,"

"I know, but I had a little hope! How did you get here so fast and without passing us?!? I've only known about the path through town!"

"We take a different path when Serpi is hungry. But you were so slow that she had time to eat and come back."

"Well, I'm glad I didn't have to see that!" Dreepy said.

"Off-target, Dreeps."

"Oh. Sorry," The Dreepy drooped.

"Mom shed today!" Snivy said.

"Oh Really! That's so cool!" Dreepy said, turning to face Serperior. "Wish I could shed. Your new coat looks so nice, Serpi!"

"Thank you," Serperior said, flexing her leafy arms, checking the leaves. They were rapidly integrating. In fact, she could almost flex the very ends like Inteleon could flex his fingers. For Serpi, the extra length was usually an extra few inches. Her entire body loosened up. She would measure herself later. That fight with Reshiram was hard, and had sapped a lot of will.

Inteleon set Snivy on the ground. "I will take Noibat to Perenna. Snivy will stay with his father and stay by his side," she said. Noibat wanted to talk to Perenna, and it was clear that would be a private conversation, given how she had initially wanted to leave the fact that she had been a human a secret.

Serpi noted her son's disappointed, yet resigned expression as he sighed. But he did not cry. Surely her son understood they could have left him at the daycare instead? Not necessarily. Inteleon approached Serpi and flipped her bandanna over, wrapping his pack over her head. The blue side facing out, now that she wasn't hungry.

They gave one another a quick wrap of their tails.

Perenna's Gardens were a series of three dungeons, with properties that were curated carefully for kids and weaker pokemon and their space-warping range was kept small. The first two dungeons were ethereal pokemon—pokemon made of pure mana. The last one had ferals and ethereals. There were friendly dungeon spirits who willingly hosted sapient, non-Totem pokemon. But they were rare.

"So, uh, who is Perenna, again?" Noibat asked, squeaking.

Noibat had already said she'd met Perenna. Or dreamt about her. She was perplexed at how Noibat knew she wanted to talk to Perenna, but didn't figure out she was Eternatus. Well, not everyone had the same ability to put facts together, Serpi supposed.

Noibat in her pouch and a set of food and berries Inteleon's now wrapped around her neck, Serpi slithered down the trail, back toward the entrance of the third dungeon, the one where she had hunted thirty minutes before. The one where Perenna would wait for visitors.

"You know her as Eternatus."

"Oh my go—I mean, holy shit," Noibat squeaked.

Serpi had never heard of shit with holes in it, or how that applied to the current situation. Ex-humans were weird, though not Staraptor had never used phrases like that. Serpi sighed, chalking it up to another one of the great mysteries of the world that she just wouldn't understand.

 

[zoru22]

~~~ Chapter 7 - Perenna ~~~​

"Oh wow, I didn't think the smell of the flowers would be so strong," Noibat said, her head poking out of the pouch. Serpi flicked her tongue out, sampling the chemicals in the air. The child was correct—Perenna's garden dungeons had strong scents.

They were in the first "room" of the dungeon, and the feral pokemon who lived there were still hiding. Sobi's team would be a few hours before they completed. Though she knew Sobi had expressed desire for Serpi to follow behind her team, Noibat required the same lectures any child in dungeons needed. Though her opinion on the approach was mixed. Getting hurt was excellent means of learning.

"Noibat," she said. She would allow the bat to learn.

"Yeah?"

"This dungeon is the longest and largest of Perenna's gardens. There may be spots where you will be required to perform certain tasks to go on."

"Eeep!" Noibat cried, "I-I-I suppose that makes sense... The ga—I mean, dungeons probably need to have two people to traverse them. Haha, I probably shouldn't expect stairs at every layer either…"

Serperior smiled. But, there was a real chance for injury. Not from a feral pokemon or the dungeon's defenses. She would ensure that.

"Jump out of the bag," she said.

Noibat looked down. "I mean, I have to be, like, six feet up off the ground… Can you set me down so I can hop out?"

"I can," Serpi said, without making a move. She had her one good vine ready, just in case.

"Ah. I see. I see what you're doing," Noibat said. Serpi held still as Noibat shuffled about in her pouch.

"Aieee!" Noibat screeched, tumbling out into the open air. A flash of green and the human-turned baby-bat was dangling upside down in the air.

"I am no expert in flying," Serpi said, "However, I believe it requires opening both of your wings."

Noibat didn't respond, her lungs working in hyperdrive. Notably, Noibat had no tears. Serpi set her down on the ground and used it to open Inteleon's pack, the one holding the food. It took a moment before sitting before Noibat was a small chunk of dried yellow fruit and a square, white rock.

As Serpi expected, before Noibat even said anything, she had reached out with both her claws at the top of her wings, and had grabbed the chunk. Three bites, and it was gone.

"Thank Yoooo-ohhhh that's warm!" Noibat said. "What was that!?!"

"Dried Sitrus."

"Oh wooow. Is there more? I feel so good!"

"There are more chunks of dried Sitrus. But you do not get them for free. Take a few licks of the calcium block and we will continue."

Noibat grabbed the block of white, and sniffed it a couple times, before licking it. "Hum. I mean—" lick "—I know this is supposed—" lick "—to be a training session thing—" lick "—but, okay this stuff doesn't taste like anything—" lick "—though I swear there's some iron in there too—" lick "—and now I'm thirsty. Okay, that also feels weird. That can't be normal calcium."

Serperior did note that there was some extra meat around Noibat's midsection and wings. "It's a calcium/iron nutriblock. Strengthens your bones, and boosts your muscle strength."

"Uuugh! So many questions!" Noibat exclaimed, setting the cube down.

"There will be ample opportunity to learn from Snivy, later."

"O-Oh, okay."

Serpi picked up the cube, then looped her vine around Noibat's legs, picking her up into the air as they proceeded a bit further into the dungeon. The first layer was mostly just tall bushes with many flowers, along with a few trees. Rattata and Raticate tails disappeared under the bushes, and little pidgeys hopped away from her in the trees which stood at the edges.

"So, uh," Noibat said as she weaved through the maze. Serpi didn't respond. "This just looks like a fancy corn maze to me."

Noibat's curiosity was peeking through. Again. Serpi continued navigating, at least once shooting a single razor leaf to spook off an enterprising ekans that had been eyeing her charge. She was mulling the next task for Noibat, when they came into Perenna's pond room, little poipole and poliwag spotting her approach, causing the water to ripple as they dove deeper, hiding from the grass snake's presence.

"Don't think I can swim!" Noibat squeaked.

"Remember to open your wings."

Serpi raised Noibat into the air, up and over the small pond. Slowly, methodically, she unraveled her vine from Noibat's legs. Noibat's claws dug in as her comfort was challenged. "Ee! No! Don't Dro—" Noibat stopped her cry, realizing that Serpi wasn't shaking her off the extended vine.

"Eep! Okay! I think I can do this!" Noibat said, before taking deep breaths. She was not crying, Serpi noted.

At approximately ten feet above the water, Noibat took a little wiggle, opening her wings slightly, reshuffling her claws' grip on the vine.

"Okay. I can do this. Leeeee—" Serpi shook her off, and the bat fell with a scream, holding out her wings, almost curving before splashing down, tumbling into the water.

One. Two. Three. Four. The vine was wrapped around a dripping and shivering bat. Serpi looked up at the sun, before pulling at it, feeling the extra energy and warmth immediately flow down. Of all her spells, she would readily admit that Sunny Day was her favorite, though it was expensive.

"Eee! My eeeyeeees!" Noibat cried, shaking drops of water off, hiding her eyes under her wings. Serpi saw tears. A second later, and the sun reduced in intensity. A minute later, and Noibat had taken a few sips of the pond water, most of the water covering her already dripped off.

"I hit the water, and I thought, I t-thought you were gonna get me! And then, I was like, waiting for you! And then a third, I moved my a-arms and the air bubbles holding me up under my wings left, and I started to sink in the water, and! I-I thought I w-was gonna die!"

Serpi ignored the insult. She offered no dried Sitrus slice or calcium-and-iron block. She held out her vine, letting Noibat step on it, hooking her small claws into it. They were sharp, but made no indents or scratches.

"What happens if I get knocked out in a dungeon?" Noibat asked. "Are dungeons deadly? I mean, this garden seems friendly enough. But like, what if I drowned back there!?! Or I fell to the ground and broke my wing?"

The first one was a fair question. The simple answer was "do not get knocked out." But, everyone was knocked out or hurt once or twice in dungeons. The problem wasn't when you were newly-hatched, or just starting your rescue team. The problem was the awkward stage when you finally hit your last evolution, and was still between being B-class adventurers and S-Class. One bad day could ruin your or your teammate's career.

"We are in the second area of the dungeon," Serpi said.

"Wha—" Noibat exclaimed, looking around, hanging upside down. Serpi held her up in the air for a better view. "Wow, the air here is a lot different. It's so much more… quiet. Lots of Sunflora and Bellossom and Lilligant just resting! The wind is so still! And I see black and white bug-like pokemon moving, but they're not making any sound!"

Serpi had never noticed the sound shift between zones, though the second one, the one they were in, was about a mile long. It was still bushes and trees, but curated well. There were decent chances she'd never seen every room, or one was new. Dungeon spirits were fickle on the best of days, though Perenna kept her three in check.

"The pokemon that makes no sound is an ethereal."

"Ethereal? Like a ghost?"

What she had expected Noibat to smell, was the row of Sitrus Trees at the end of the layer.

"I don't even hear the rats or splashes of the pond any more. Plant types are so quiet. It's so nice!"

The second layer's feral pokemon were composed of various grass types— Cherrim, Roserade, Bellossom, Lilligant, Sunflora. None of them were of the disposition to attack unless provoked. Instead they stood in their rows and sat in the sun, letting roots down and enjoying their days.

The sun's position had shifted. They were taking too long. "Last attempt at flying in this area." She told Noibat. Serpi was getting impatient.

"Okay! I think the third time's the charm!" Noibat said, nodding, or tried to nod while being upside down.

Holding Noibat up into the air, she contemplated why she had chosen to delay Noibat meeting Perenna. Noibat shuffled a bit. The vine could extend out to approximately thirty feet, and then with the height she gained with a full extension, Serpi could lift the bat nearly forty feet into the air.

"No matter what happens, open your wings and hold them out." Her vine was fast, but at this distance, she would have to do a full retraction before sending it out again. She could catch the bat before it pummeled into the ground, provided instructions were followed, making her descent slow or guided.

"Oh Wow! I can see Eternatus! Uh! Hi? They can't see me, can they!?!"

"Release your claws!" Serpi chastised.

"EEEEe—" Noibat let go, plummeting down. Serpi reeled in her vine, whipping it back to herself, keeping her eye up at Noibat, still her screeching increasing in pitch until Serperior could not hear it any more. Serpi had no magic that could spawn a gust of wind, and watched as Noibat plummeted, fighting the wind and her own mind as she finally caught the air, reflexively flapping once, orienting herself, and then twice, pulling a curve out of a death-descent, then thrice, lifting up—and she was caught before she slammed into a line of flowering bushes.

"EEEEeeee—" Noibat's pitch dropped back into the range Serpi could hear, her ear canals ringing, her vision turning double.

She set the bat on the ground, who wandered off behind a bush, hyperventilating. She set out another dried Sitrus square, helping herself to a snacking of nuts. They needed room for the fresh sitrus berry she was going to pick, so she helped herself to a few more. And an apple. As a treat.

Noibat returned from out behind the bush. "That! Was!" she huffed, her small lungs working overdrive. She fell forward, face flat onto a thick patch of grass.

Serpi frowned. When Flygon was a vibrava, flight had been natural. She thought it had been natural for baby taillow, starly, pidgey, or any other flying type. No bird type she'd met had ever fainted from flying unless they'd been fighting or fighting a storm.

She picked up Noibat, and instead pulled out an oran berry. They only had one fruit left—the third Sitrus cube Inteleon had fortuitously packed. They needed to go. She put the oran berry and Noibat herself, into Noibat's pouch. Noibat could have the second Sitrus when she'd recovered from the burst and exhaustion.

Putting the second sitrus cube back into Inteleon's pouch, Serpi proceeded through the second layer with ease. Only a few ethereals ran up to her, each dispatched with a slice of her vine, before dissolving into black, white and grey. Dungeons were living things, with their own personality and spirits. And the autonomous, mostly-mindless ethereal pokemon being bugs was one of the few things Perenna wasn't quite able to cultivate. Dispatching an ethereal heracross, Serpi decided she liked them.

"Soooo they're made of magic? Or are those the dungeon spirits Snivy was talking about?" Noibat asked as they entered the last line of the second layer.

"They are not the dungeon spirit," Serpi said, observing the line of Sitrus trees. Perenna rewarded those who made it to the end of the second layer. "They are ethereals. They will pursue you without thought or care or planning." A black-and-white Ledian floated in through the opposite end of the space. Serpi crossed out of the dungeon's second layer, into the third.

The third layer was a bland expanse of dirt, extending out for several hundred feet in all directions. There was a small mound, and a black-and-gray Leavanny stood, stock still.

"Is that the dungeon spirit?"

"No. Ask Snivy later," Serpi said. "Here, eat your second Sitrus. This may take a moment."

"Eee! Thank you! I thought I left it back on the grass!"

Serperior scoffed at the idea that she would be so careless. Sitrus Fruits and berries were probably the most coveted kinds of fruits. Each increased one's vitality. Those who ate many of them—like her—found themes—"Why is this dungeon not so hostile? Who is that Leavanny? Why are they standing there?"

"Because Perenna has shaped it to her will. She protects the dungeon, yet keeps its power deliberately slim so that she may enjoy watching kids and weaker pokemon progress through, from her perch. No."

"Then doesn't that mean I'd be safe to go through her dungeon?"

"No."

Noibat was getting a Sitrus effect, or Sitrus high.

Or, she was simply excited again. No, Serpi concluded. She was clearly being affected by—"What happens if I faint in a dungeon!?!"

What was Serpi doing, stalling? All she had to do was slide forward.

"Perenna caters these dungeons specifically to kids. And she is determined to keep the challenge manageable, but she will not prevent injury or failure. If you were to faint in the dungeon, you would join the dungeon at the whims of the dungeon spirit. And would need someone to make you faint again."

Occasionally, dungeons had respect for adventurers and would set them outside with an Oran and an apple so they could get home. It was best not to tell that to the kids. Poor form to encourage risk-taking.

"Would you save me if I was attacked?"

"You fainting here would be my most embarrassing failure."

Finally, with Noibat's questions pseudo-quelled. Serperior faced the Leavanny. As she approaches, they come into motion.

"Oooh Serperior! And with such a shiny and warm gym badge!" The Ethereal said. The Leavanny's antennae didn't twitch, not like the nurse's did. Their movements were stiff.

"I thought you said that Eth—"

"You remember me, Leavanny."

"You're right! I did! That's so nice!"

"Seems the dungeon spirit has taken a liking to you."

"Or. Perhaps, the dungeon likes you!" Leavanny said, their voice chipper. The black-and-white bug's head tracked Serperior as they approached. Serperior made to walk past, but Leavanny's arm stretched out. Blocking the way.

"Well, I guess it doesn't like either of us as much as I thought. Can't let you pass, Serpi."

"How does it know your naEEYEEP—"

The half-automaton's midsection was gone, their body dissolving into the air.

"I. You just killed them! Couldn't we have talked her into letting us through?" Noibat squeaked as Serperior crossed the field. No, no they couldn't. She left the field, leaving Leavanny's body to reconstitute itself. They crossed to the other side, to the fourth layer.

The air grew thick, practically buzzing, as a large, twenty-foot-long skeletal dragon with two trident-like spikes for hands sticking out their sides floated before them. The dragon turned to Serpi and Noibat, head sticking out of her pouch.

Perenna's six glowing white eyes smiled.

"No, dear, she couldn't. Leavanny will reconstitute and continue to await the next group. Such is the life of contracted souls."

"D-does she sit there like that all day?"

"Sometimes she gets to help me garden, if there's no pokemon from town coming to visit. She does get days off too. Though next time she would appreciate a bit more conversation. Or a little more chance to fight next time."

"I thought you'd be larger," Noibat said. Serpi was… annoyed. Perenna is one of the larger dragons, but if she were to dynamax or gigamax… none would compare in physical size.

"Oh, sweetie, don't encourage me!" Perenna said, shifting, the color of her many ridges shifting grey and silver, the forge-like energy core dimming. It wouldn't be the first time a kid goaded her into blotting out of the sun.

"Noibat is here because she believes saw you in a dream," Serperior stepped in.

"Oh, you're one of mine, then?"

"I don't know what that means, but I was a human before…"

Perenna's massive head tilted up. Then down, nodding. "Yes, dearie, you're one of mine."

"Ooookaaay then. Why?"

"Why you? You filled out the quiz and said yes silly."

"What quiz?!?"

Perenna's six glowing white eyes turn into little frowns. "Oh dear, sometimes this happens."

"What happens!?!"

"One a moment. Okay! I found your records. Nick Christensen."

"Uh, that's my full human name, yes. But what do you mea—"

"Twenty-Five year old. University Wisconsin Medical School dropout. Changed to major in Epidemiology and Minor in statistics instead. Unable to find a job in your desired career, you moved to Wisconsin Dells and began working at Noah's Ark Water Park as a seasonal employee. You complained of significant 'student debt', 'car loans', 'rising gas', and expressed gender confusion, but was concerned about testing transitioning in the presence o—"

"Stop! Stop! I get it! God! How the fuck do you even have all that information!?! How did you get all of that?" Noibat asked.

"You put it onto the form."

"No. I would have remembered that. I wouldn't put that shit into a shitty quiz. Or I had to have been shitface-blackout drunk. But all right, whatever. I don't have any memory of this form. But whatever. Let's say I DID put all that information onto some form. Whatever! Why me and why a girl!?!"

"Why you? You answered sufficiently differently from your peers. Most humans tend to default to particular groups of pokemon and you answered one that had open slots."

"No. That's insane. Fuck! I get it. There's other humans on other continents. I admit it! I played a few Mystery Dungeon games. And I don't care about the stupid form any more. And I sure as hell don't care about saving the world. What if I say no to sa—" Noibat's pitch shifted out of range that Serpi could hear. Serpi noted her eyes were watery.

"We never asked you to save the world."

Noibat paused, the last option stunning her into silence. This time, she was softer.

"Then what is my job? I was brought over for a reason, no?"

"I brought you over for my own purposes. But you and cohorts like you are free to live your life as a pokemon as you choose. Are you unhappy with the arrangement? Do you wish to return to the human world? Change your pokemon body? If you wish to return to being a human, that is doable. Unfortunately I do not have power over time, and this world is much slower than your ho—"

"Let's slow down now. I wasn't trying to complain. I'm just. Yeah, I'm just confused."

The giant silver-and pink dragon, glowing in the flames of eternity, turned thoughtful. "You did say you were quite confused. Though it should have been fixed during the transfiguration and translation processes. May require a psychic to say if it's a terminal issue. There are three on the Grass Continent who specialize in identity problems and could help diagnose once their schedule opens up and they find some additional free time."

"Pulling the gears seems to have a tendency of freezing plans."

"In the meantime, we do have a very kind and understanding Manaphy whose services I can heartily recommend. I understand they are staying at the guild until we can patch the issues with humans crossing the barriers. I suspect between Dark Matter and Bitter Cold, the net stressed the sys—"

"It's become a war, Perenna," Serperior interjected.

"Oh?" Perenna drooped. "No one keeps me updated! I will have to update!"

Eternatus was a… strange creature, with strange fixations. Though, Serpi herself could hardly judge. How she would know the Grass continent was sealing themselves in time but not realize those were effectively acts of all-out desperation for an opponent that seemed to be as ethereal as a ghost?

"Anyway, my apologies for the interjection."

"Uh, thank you, Serpi. No thanks on the Manaphy help, I don't want to body swap."

"No, no. They are excellent therapists."

"Even so, I think I'll manage with Whimsicott hugs for now."

Serperior got lost as their conversation continued. And yet she had been enamored by it regardless. She would investigate why, later. Though she did notice Perenna repeatedly fail to directly answer one question Noibat had asked multiple times in different words.

The child was struggling. It would be a few hours yet before her kids even entered Perenna's the third and final dungeon, technically the present for those who made it for the first two. But still, by the rapid changes in Noibat's pitch, occasionally hopping so high Serpi couldn't hear, she knew there was still a question on Noibat's tongue.

"Perenna, and Noibat, if I may interject," Serperior began.

"Of course, Serpi!" Perenna stated, her six white glowing eyes turning into upward-facing crescents.

"Noibat wishes to know why she is a girl, when her body as a human was male." Perenna had a tendency to get lost in minute details of a question, or assume she had answered it when she had not. It would not surprise Serperior if she still launched into pokemon biology or another non-answer and Noibat needed help directing it.

"Uh. Thank you Serpi. I, uh, I was getting lost in the sauce," Noibat expressed. Serperior had never heard of sauce before, but, as with most things she did not understand, she let it lie.

Perenna's gray and silver frame flashed deep blues and reds—the coloring Eternatus was most known for—expressing itself when she performed additional work or computations.

"I see now. You wish to know why your body is phenotypically female. You expressed gender confusion in the freeform answers. However! That was not an answer to your question. You want to know the decision point? Or the mechanics?"

"The decision point, I think? I probably won't understand the mechanics, I don't think," Noibat said.

"Oh Snomwash! They're not that complicated. I just need t—"

Serperior let out a protective barrier between herself and Noibat. "Another time, Perenna." Serperior demanded, holding her vine over her guild badge, brimming with energy.

In a tenth-of-a-second, Perenna's core flared, the dragon of eternity, the being responsible for fighting entropy itself turning on Serperior. Another tenth of a second later, and the power dissipated. Serperior relaxed, the feeling of the Pressure weighing over her gone.

"I apologize for that outburst. I must work on my self-control."

The snake would be hard-pressed to disagree.

"Right. Little Nick? Nicki? Noibat?"

"Noibat is fine for now, though I am taking suggestions for a new name that isn't lollipop."

"Noibat for now, then. When you answered my personality quiz, you were presented with gender options. And per your earlier objection, while I am not omniscient and therefore cannot guarantee you were not inebriated at the time of filling it out, I can say that your spelling and grammar in the questions were perfectly parseable. They do not read like a confused human incapable of consent…"

Serperior was getting bored again, choosing to curl up and lie down in the sun this time. She forced herself to stay awake, but Perenna liked kids far, far more than adults. They were safer in her presence than most adult pokemon. The same could not be said of the dungeon proper.

"Then why don't I remember taking this… quiz? And what if I feel differently later?"

"If you feel differently about your body later, come see me. Though it may have to wait until this issue with these humans is resolved. There's not many things I can execute alone, but between The Lake Guardians, Manaphy, Mew, Jirachi, and Magearna, there are plenty of options!"

"For your memory question, I haven't ever deliberately erased humans' memories. But the process when you become a pokemon may still involve some data loss! I would have to debug the human to pokemon body translation interface to be sure it's not a code issue."

"C-C-Code issue?"

"Well, it might not be a code problem! For all I know, when you were pulled through the ultra-wormhole, you hit your head and blacked out with a minor case of Transitory Global Amnesia. I assure you, if that happened, it was not intentional. I believe I have answered all of your questions. May I ask you a few of my own now?"

Noibat says, "Okay, sure"

"Are you unhappy with your species?"

"Other than the fact that I'm a foot tall, can't walk and can't fly, and I can't hold a pen or pencil. Have to use both claws just to eat some fruit, and can't tune out noises from half a building away? No."

Waiting for Inteleon and her own kids to arrive, Serpi closed her eyes.

"Noted. Are you unhappy with the guild or the way you've been treated?"

"I mean—"

"Serpi does not care if you're not happy with her or the guild."

Noibat squeaked out, "that's a long answer."

Perenna was right, because that was the last thing the S-ranker heard before she fell asleep.