The Poisonous Paradise- Keith's Secret Base

[Missingno. Master]

As Keith was standing by Coselle, he saw an Abra Teleport over to him. He also saw a Nuzleaf approaching them. He wasn't sure what to make of it, as he didn't know at the time that Kage had evolved. Then, Telpo proceeded to explain through telepathy the truth about Kage.

"...Wow," Keith murmured once Telpo had finished his story. "Is that true, Telpo?" he asked.

"I just said, my name's Chance," smiled the Squirtle. "You'll make a great artist with work like that, Tasu," she added. "Say, what attacks do you know?" Chance asked.

Rubeus smiled as Bubbles stated that she was OK, but frowned a little as she added there was no need to apologize for Pisces's behavior. "It's just, she's quite possibly the rudest Pokémon on the team, though Myrtle does come close when she's having a particularly bad day... there's no way she would ever apologize for her actions, so the way I see it, somebody ought to." After a short pause, the Stunfisk spoke up again. "Would you like something to drink, Bubbles?" he asked.

[Gemini Spark]

It wasn't long after Zyra introduced herself that an Ivysaur ran energetically towards her and Hyrem. "Hahahaha, hi there Pomona!" Hyrem laughed, bending down to reach over and pet the pretty Ivysaur. "I bet you're interested in Zyra, aren't you? Okay then! Zyra, this is Pomona, I'll bet you two are going to be great friends! Go say hi!" He then gently sets her down so she can do just that. "Hi~ you're Pomona! I'm Zyra! Yay~!" she cheers in delight.

"Oh, I've been great!" Daphne beamed. "I've actually been able to get away with a few pranks on the locals just before I came here. Which reminds me, if a Mankey with a Leech Seed stuck on its foot shows up, just pretend I'm not here!" she says with a mischievous grin.

Before Delilah and Hebenon could really talk, Hebenon was asked to help Keith out with something, so Delilah simply waited in the aquarium until he returned. She looked forward to his reaction to the Lanturn's brand-new form and shined her lure excitedly for the moment.

Wow, it had been too long for Leila and Sirius, for just as Leila hugged Sirius with all four limbs, she blissfully remembered just how much Sirius' tongue tickled her face and giggled in reaction to it before giving him a kiss on the nose to return the favor. "So, how are things?"

-----

Hyrem, meanwhile, heard a commotion in the kitchen and peered inside to find a Beedrill suddenly flying right past him into the living room. "GAAAH!" he screamed in surprise before running into the hallway, cowering at the sight of the giant hornet as it brought back a traumatic childhood memory that he'd prefer not to live through ever again. "Th-th-that yours, Keith?" he stammered through the query, not nearly as excited to see this new face as he usually would others.

[Missingno. Master]

Pomona giggled happily as Hyrem reached down to pet her. Then, he placed his Bulbasaur on the floor to meet her- the Bulbasaur, named Zyra, was clearly not unlike Pomona in personality as she cheerfully greeted her evolved form. "Hi, Zyra!" beamed Pomona, just as delighted to see the Bulbasaur as the Bulbasaur was to see her. "Hey, hey, so, I've always said that Hyrem would be a really good trainer for a Bulbasaur- was I right?" she asked.

Goyle couldn't help but grin a little as Daphne explained that she had managed to prank some of the locals en route to the base. "Oh, believe me," the Victreebel stated, "if that Mankey shows up, he'll have to get through me." After a short pause, he spoke up again. "I really missed you, Daphne," he said.

Meanwhile, Hebenon, back from his errand with Keith, Teleported back into the aquarium. He swam past Rubeus and Bubbles... gave a warning glare at Pisces... noticed a Lanturn who seemed to be waiting for him... wait, what? Hebenon did a double take as he noticed the Lanturn, who, by the look in her eyes, was clearly waiting for him. After barely a second, the Qwilfish's eyes widened in recognition. "Delilah?" breathed Hebenon as he swam over to her. "You... wow, you evolved!" he exclaimed. Hebenon swam around Delilah, admiring her new form, before stopping in front of her. "I didn't think it was possible... but you've managed to look even more beautiful than ever before," smiled Hebenon as he looked into the Lanturn's eyes.

Leila giggled in response to Sirius's lickings before giving him a kiss on the nose. The Sneasel then asked Sirius how things were. "Great," smiled the Mightyena. "I missed you a lot, but other than that, things have been great. How about you, Leila, how have things been for you?"

Hyrem screamed at the sight of Melittin flying into the living room, whereupon Myrtle floated over to him, smirking as she tasted the emotions that his traumatic childhood memory had instilled in him. "Cor-rect," she stated. "That Bee-drill does in-deed be-long to Meat Sack. She regarded Hyrem with interest. "This goes a bit be-yond the nor-mal fear of Bee-drill," she continued. "Some-thing hap-pened in your youth in-vol-ving a Bee-drill. I can tell- trau-ma-tic chi-ld-hood mem-o-ries make for de-li-cious meals," she cackled.

Meowth, however, looked annoyed at Myrtle. He turned back to face Hyrem. "Hey dere, youse OK, Hyrem?" he asked. "Now, like I was sayin' before Melittin interrupted... I don't suppose ya happened ta bring Selina wit youse?" he asked hopefully.

[EpicSquirtle]

''Yep it's all true, one hundred percent'' Telpo replied. Then all the sudden a loud ringing sound suddenly pierced the air, catching Kage's attention immediately.

Quickly she ran over to where the noise was coming from, Jake's backpack! Kage quickly opened the back pocket, revealing what looked like a dowsing machine. As Kage took the device she noticed that Jake's Xtransceiver was also going off. She quickly handed the Xtransceiver to her trainer before pressing the button on the dowsing machine, revealing that it wasn't a dowsing machine at all. Instead on the screen appeared a status report. On it was one simple line. ''Staus on Aco: Not found''

Meanwhile Jake walked outside before answering his Xtransceiver. ''Hello? What, I won the bid on the Shuppet? Oh no I don't mind about the delay. Ok I'll be at the Cable Club in 5 minutes, bye'' Jake then ran over to the cable club as quick as he could.

Kage meanwhile, saddened by the fact that Aco still hadn't come back as a ghost, ran out of Kieth's base before stopping right on the top of hill. She looked at the letters on the screen again before throwing the machine on the ground, shattering the fragile electronic into pieces.

''Whoops, sorry Chance!'' Tasu apologized to the Wartortle. ''Thanks, a lot of pokemon tell me that, but I'm not so sure.'' Tasu frowned as she looked at the sketch once again. Chance then asked her what moves she knew. ''Oh, I know Chocolate Magic, Mimic, Growl and Thunder Wave''


''Ah, well that's very kind of you to do that'' Bubbles replied. Rubeus then asked her if she would like something to drink. ''Yes please Rubeus.'' Bubbles smiled.

Meanwhile Jake was walking back to Kieth's base, with a new friend floating beside him.
''Well, my teammates seem ok'' Jake's new Shuppet replied after Jake had just finished explaining all of his new teammates. However just before Jake and the Shuppet went inside, the Shuppet sensed strong negative emotions coming from the hill. ''Well I'm going to be getting myself a good meal, see ya.'' The Shuppet said before floating away.

As the Shuppet floated over to the hill, the emotions became even stronger. He then noticed a Nuzleaf sitting watching the sunset.
He could taste many delicous emotions, sorrow, anger, loneliness........
''I know your there'' Kage spoke, catching the Shuppet off guard. Before the Shuppet could answer, Kage shot a question at him. ''If you don't mind, where you a human in your last life, or a pokemon?'' The Shuppet thought for a moment. ''I was a pokemon, a Seedot to be exact. But why the hell do you care?'' He asked. ''No real reason'' Kage lied. ''Can you please answer one more question for me?'' The ghost rolled his eyes. ''Fine, go ahead''
''What was your name in your last life?'' Kage asked. The Shuppet thought for another moment before responding. ''Aco'' At Aco's answer Kage started crying tears of happiness before giving him a hug. ''Oh Aco, I'm so happy your back!'' ''Um, do I know you?'' Aco asked. ''It's me, Kage remember? I evolved!'' Kage replied. ''I don't know anyone named Kage'' Aco responed. ''Wait what?'' Kage exclaimed before letting go of the Shuppet. ''You don't remember me?'' ''Um, no, the only thing I remember about my life is my name and what species I was'' Aco responded.
Quickly, Kage's tears of happiness turned to tears of saddness.
Aco could taste that her sorrow has even deeper then last time. He snickered. A better feast for him!
However, soon he grew bored and floated back into Kieth's base, leaving Kage in tears on the hill

[Missingno. Master]

"Phew," sighed Keith as he climbed down off the ladder currently propped up against the wall of his Secret Base. He then climbed down the rope ladder, and stood back to admire his work; across the front of the treetop house was stretched a large banner. It read, in large letters;

The Re-Eeveening
All Eevee & Eeveelutions welcome!

"Nice work," remarked Meowth, nodding appreciatively. "So, when are da guests supposed to start gettin' here?"

"Shouldn't be much longer," Keith replied, checking the time on his Xtranceiver. "The invitations were clear about the time."

Just then, a tall, blue-skinned, human-shaped Pokémon came into view, tugging a massive above-ground swimming pool behind him. Pushing the pool from behind was a massive, dark grey insect- an oddly colored Scolipede.

"Excellent, Ron, Salazar," grinned Keith as his Sawk and Scolipede left the pool in the place he had indicated. "Perfect day for it, too- the weather's great, so whether anyone wants to be inside or outside, we got it covered. Now we got the pool in case anyone wants to go swimming. Also handy in case any of our guests ended up evolving into Vaporeon," he added.

"Ya mean youse don't know wat da other Eevee evolved into?" asked Meowth.

"I don't even know which ones evolved and which ones didn't," replied Keith. "I think Hyrem's Eevee evolved into Espeon, and I think Kuranes is still undecided, but other than that, I got no clue. Still, better to be prepared, am I right?"

"I suppose," said Meowth. "But wat's up wit all dat Nevermeltice youse ordered?" In response, Keith merely pointed to the left of the tree which contained his home. Meowth looked, and saw a large igloo being pieced together by a Dusclops, a Timburr, and a Makuhita. They looked to be just about done.

"Just in case we get any Glaceon," Keith explained.

"Wat about Cyanide?" asked Meowth. "She ain't exactly da most social o' Pokémon. How'd ya get her ta get involved in dis?"

"I promised her I'd invite Jake and insist he bring Pom," replied Keith. "She warmed up to the idea pretty quick after that."

"I can imagine," nodded Meowth. "Hey, speakin' o' which-"

"No, Meowth," sighed Keith, "I have no idea whether Hyrem is bringing Selina. And no, Helena," he added, correctly guessing the identity of the spirit who had materialized out of thin air behind him. "I have no idea if he's bringing Michael, either."

"Just chec-king," the Shuppet replied.

"Well, as long as you're in a checking mood," said Keith, "could you please check on the food, see if Hermione needs any help?"

"Sure," smiled Helena as she floated back into the Secret Base.

"OK, I think things are just about set," Keith stated. "What's left... Oh! Gotta fill the pool," he said as he walked over to the massive swimming pool. It was completely empty, but Keith did not look deterred. Instead, he took a Poké Ball off his belt, enlarged it, and tossed it high into the air. "Hebenon, use Hydro Pump!" he called as the ball burst open, unleashing the older of his two Qwilfish. Immediately, Hebenon let loose a forceful blast of water from his mouth, filling the entire pool in less than half a minute.

"Whoa," Meowth remarked as Hebenon landed in the freshly filled pool and started swimming around.

"Nice job, Hebenon," Keith smiled. Just then, Helena floated back over to Keith.

"Her-mi-o-ne says she's done coo-king," reported the Shuppet.

"Excellent, excellent," smiled Keith. "Alright- and where's Cyanide?" he added suddenly.

"Tryin' ta take a nap behind da tree, last I seen her," said Meowth.

"Well, go and wake her up," said Keith. "The guests are gonna be here soon-"

"Ooooohhhhhhh, no!" interrupted Meowth. "Wake up Cyanide? Does youse want me ta get mauled?!"

"Mauled?" chuckled Keith. "Ohhhh, Meowth, you sad, sad Stunfisk. Very well, let me demonstrate the delicate art of waking up my Umbreon and living to tell the tale." He then cleared his throat and called out, "Hey, Cyanide, if you wanna be awake when Pom gets here, I'd get up right about now if I were you."

The effect was immediate. Behind the dead, petrified tree on which rested the Base, Cyanide's eyes snapped open and she sprang to her feet. "Umb Umbreon!" she exclaimed as she dashed around to the front of the tree and sat next to the rope ladder.

"Wow," remarked Meowth. "OK, dat right dere, dat was good."

"Thank you, Meowth," grinned Keith as he walked back over to the tree. "Cyanide, I'm going to have to insist you be nice to the others, alright? Don't try and scare off your brothers and sisters."

"Breon," yawned Cyanide, rolling her eyes. Keith sighed, but did not respond to this otherwise. Instead, he climbed the rope ladder. The Pawniard standing by the door saluted him as he walked back into his Secret Base to grab a minute or two of rest before the guests started showing up.

NOTE: This event, while primarily for those of you who own an Eevee you acquired from empoleon dynamite's infamous litter of 14 (plus the Shiny one, as Kuranes counts as kind of their half-brother), is open to anyone who owns an Eevee or Eeveelution, or else owns a Pokémon that is the significant other of an Eevee or Eeveelution, such as EpicSquirtle's Ambipom, the boyfriend of my Umbreon. So come one, come all, and most importantly, have fun!

[Marion Ette]

Sitting before her reflection, Marion gently runs a brush through the shimmering hair of her fuzzy companion in the dimly-lit bedroom of her cottage. Paying little mind to the image of herself, her eyes focus on her lap as she navigates the tangles of Kuranes' oddly colored coat. The creature rests contentedly on Marion's lap, enjoying the pampering that he is receiving. As Marion grooms her precious little Pokemon, a sudden movement draws Marion's eyes to the mirror, as she searches the reflection for the source; seeing nothing, Marion continues to brush the shiny Eevee, only to be distracted by a pair of scissors floating, as if by their own volition, off of Marion's vanity...

"Minerva, put those down."

"You are not the boss of meeee, my dearrr. Be-sidess, I am mere-ly in-ten-ding to helpp with the grooo-miiinggg. Is that not kind of me? It is so ve-ry, ve-ry kind, and yet you are so cruel! So crueeeellll, lit-tle Ma-ry." As Minerva materializes, it is clear that the scissors are ominously carried in her cloth paw as if she were brandishing a sword. Marion can feel the shiver down Kuranes' spine, and she immediately scoops him up in a careful hug, so as not to ruin her efforts in maintaining his appearance.

"I think you will find that one of us with the reputation for being cruel is you, Min..." Marion laughs, as she softly pats her Eevee's head.

"Is that soooo? HAH! No-thing is so black and white. Cruel and kind. Right and wrong. E-ven life and deathhh. Your heart holds cru-el-ty just as much as mine, my dearrr! You simp-ly hide it bet-ter. Look at you." Minerva floats over to the mirror, narrowing her eyes at Marion's reflection. "Pale, fra-gile, beau-ti-ful, like a lit-tle porce-lain doll. But you are the same as me. We are both dolls, you see. Best not to for-get that." Minerva shakes the point of the scissors at Marion as she admonishes her, though the lavender-haired trainer seems oddly cool despite the sharp object hovering dangerously close to her face. After a moment of contemplating Minerva's expression, Marion simply shrugs her shoulders.

"I suppose," she responds, gently attempting to coax the nervous Eevee back into her lap in order to continue the brushing.

"AND YOU..." Minerva points the scissors in the Eevee's direction, thoroughly startling the creature, before suddenly dropping the scissors to the ground and smiling serenely. "En-joy that lit-tle par-ty of yours, will you nottt?" The Eevee tilts his head with confusion as Minerva floats away, laughing hysterically. Looking up at Marion, he mews with a questioning look, his eyes reflecting a soft sort of melancholy. Marion attempts to give the little foxlike Pokemon a reassuring smile. Despite not having known Kuranes for very long, Marion's dark-haired sister had lavished Kuranes with endless affection, despite her callous exterior. Kuranes had mourned for Coselle for weeks after her untimely departure. The Coselle of his memories was not a sadistic Banette who delighted in his fear. Yes, it was true that Marion was his trainer and his dear, dear friend... but so, too, was her sister. They were both dear in his heart, like two sides of the same valuable coin.

"Don't mind Minerva. I know she's... a little different now, but she still has a heart hidden under all that rage-filled fluff. Try to remember her before, won't you? That was still the same Minerva, just... Well." Marion sighs, patting her Eevee on the head, though her own expression begins to mimic that of her Eevee. "A bit more fragile. Beautiful... Like a doll."

Marion's hollow laugh does little to reassure the Eevee, who snuggles up to Marion in an attempt to comfort her. Deciding not to dwell on Minerva's condition for too long, Marion lifts the little Eevee up to eye level and gives him a smile.

"Say, Kuranes, now that you're all quaffed, think I should change into an Eevee-ning gown for tonight's event?" The shiny Eevee nods eagerly with an amused grin, and Marion gently sets her Eevee down to go change into more formal attire. Kuranes softly lays himself down, his smile fading fast as he contemplates the events that had just occurred. Was it really true that Coselle was still there, hidden beneath Minerva's frightening exterior? It was hard to believe, and yet Minerva's words rang clearly within his mind... No-thing is so black and white.

***

The path to Keith's Secret Base was one that Marion could walk with her eyes closed. Not only did he live in close proximity to her own base, but the pair had reason enough to visit one another over the course of the last year that the path was deeply ingrained into her muscles as they walked from her base to his. Though the majority of Marion's Pokemon had agreed to stay at the base so as not to detract attention from little Kuranes and his companions, Marion couldn't help but feel as if she was being followed... a common sensation, especially in the haunted grounds in which both she and Keith lived, and yet there was the sense that the spectre stalking the pair was somehow familiar. Shrugging off the sensation, Marion makes her way to the rope ladder leading up to Keith's treehouse abode, and calls up to him in a jovial tone;

Hey! Kuranes is here for the reunion! Mind if we come up? Kuranes joins Marion's calling with a joyful cry, eager to see the wide variety of half-brothers and sisters that he had only met for a brief time before being placed in Marion's care. He had caught up with a couple of them in his travels, such as Cyanide the Umbreon and Carla the Espeon, but his discussions with them had been altogether too brief. And with his other brothers and sisters scheduled to arrive, there would be so many different perspectives, so many different options for evolution presented to him at once, each with their own merits and disadvantages... Perhaps in knowing them better, he would be able to more clearly sort his own mind on the subject. The prospect was intriguing, to say the least. The shiny Eevee was ready to throw himself into obtaining as much knowledge as he could about the others attending the party... perhaps it would help him forget his grief over the loss of Coselle, and the dreadful spirit that had taken her place.

[Lass El]

El read over the invitation one final time. She had honestly been caught off guard when it had arrived, she didn't realise she was notable enough to be invited to anything! She'd been slightly bummed when she'd read it the second time and noticed that she was only invited because of Lucy, but a party's a party no matter the reason. Even if the reason is an egotistical furball.

Still, she was a little worried. Her wardrobe consisted mostly of clothes that could be described as either 'somewhat dirty' or 'stained with mud', and of course she had to love white clothes. As a result, it had been quite difficult to find something presentable. Eventually she settled on a nice pair of denim shorts and a pale brown t-shirt, though the state of her shoes left much to be desired. At least she'd managed to get them to a state where they didn't track mud everywhere, and it wasn't like people had to know the shirt hadn't always been brown.

She really needed to invest in a washing machine though.

She found Lucy outside, speaking (probably conspiring really) with Hopkins. The Shellos, as always, had a big grin on his face as El approached, though Lucy flicked an ear in annoyance that their meeting had been disrupted. "Hey you two!" El beamed, ignoring Lucy's displeasure and giving her an overly-vigorous pat on the head. "Nice day huh? You getting enough water Hopkins?"

The mollusc responded with a Mud Slap straight in El's face. The trainer let out a strange, strangled noise that would not have sounded strange coming from Colm and hurriedly wiped the mud off before it could even think of drying. At the sight (and sound) of El's displeasure, Lucy took it upon herself to rub against the trainer's legs, being careful to avoid any errant drops of mud.

"So this was your idea, huh?" El asked Lucy.

"Eeee~vee." Lucy cooed in a manner that sounded distressingly like 'maybe'.

"Oh, that's a shame, I would have thought you'd like a party."

Lucy stopped in her tracks and looked at her trainer with wide eyes. "Vee?"

"Yeah, we got invited to a party with all your siblings, but if you're going to get me covered in mud, well..."

Even while El was finishing, the Eevee had begun to scream. El sighed and was ready to chastise her, when Chip fluttered down from the sky and blasted her in the face with a Water Gun.

"Um, thanks Chip."

The Wingull chirped and proudly fluffed up his feathers while Lucy sat staring expectantly with her tail wagging a million miles per hour. This time, El actually got to sigh. She got up and tried to wring out her hair some before turning her attention back to Lucy. "Well," she said, "we better get going if we don't want to be late. Chip, go tell Sparow she's in charge again, and have someone get Hopkins to some water."

"Win!" The bird took to the skies, as at home there as anywhere else as he glided with ease. For a moment, El felt a slight twinge as she imagined Sparow up there with him, but was quickly bought back to Earth by Lucy's incessant whining. El sighed again (she was expecting to have done so many times over by the end) and gave the pokémon another pat, before leading the way off.

--------------------

By the time the two arrived, El's hair had dried to a somewhat acceptable state. Lucy had calmed considerably as well, having taken to an arrogant trot. At first El had been mildly concerned about finding the right place - after all, it was in a tree - but once she was there the great big banner made it pretty obvious. However, banners do not solve the issue that she was fairly certain she didn't actually know anyone who would be showing up. New friends are always nice of course, but there's nothing worse than being the awkward stranger at a party full of old friends.

El sighed, adding another notch to her mental tally, and looked down to where she though Lucy would be. She had a small yet thankfully brief panic attack when she noticed the Eevee was gone, quickly alleviated when she spotted her by a pool full of glimmering water.

"Don't drink that Luce, you don't know where it's from."

The Eevee hissed, flattening her ears and narrowing her eyes as soon as El made the suggestion.

"It's a joke!" El said, flinging her arms in front of her face, the thing always seemed to be a target. After a few second of nothing, El figured it was probably safe and separated them just enough for her to take a look at Lucy. She was looking intently at El, yes, but all anger seemed to have been washed away as she stared at El's backpack with a gleam in her eye.

"Yes, I bought it," El said, finally fully dropping her guard. Lucy's ears instantly perked up. "No, that doesn't mean I will use it." Lucy's ear drooped again as she sulked back over to her trainer, eying the backpack the whole way. El purposeful ignored the pokémon, instead looking up at the tree. "So, do we just enter or-"

Her train of thought was cut off by the sound of someone else announcing their arrival quite loudly. It was an unfamiliar voice, certainly not anyone El knew. Startled, El dashed to the other side of the tree, though Lucy only went half way with a look that just screamed 'really?' El, however, only had the guts to stick her head out enough to see the other trainer's Eevee - Kurane, its name seemed to be. It had a very unusual coat, one which made El smile and think of a certain Gible of hers. Still, that wasn't why she was here, she had to remind herself, and though the new arrival guaranteed there would be at least one person she didn't know, it also meant she didn't have to enter first. That was nice, in her mind at least.

[Gemini Spark]

Hyrem enjoyed his visit to Keith's base before, and now that it was to be the place for the Eevee party, or "Eeveening", he was excited to see them again including Cyanide, who he had previously built a good rapport with. Naturally, since it was an Eevee party, he had brought along his Espeon, Carla. Carla was eager to see all her brothers and sisters again, although Cyanide less so. Also with him was another Eevee, one Carla hadn't met yet, and he was brought out when they decided to take a short break on the way to Keith's base. Happy emerged from his New Year's Ball with a cute smile and jumped onto Hyrem's lap after he took his seat under a tree with plenty of shade to tide them over during the hot afternoon. The Espeon then nestled herself on the comfortable lap afterwards and curled up next to Happy. This was his chance to get to know her! "Hi, nice to meet you, I'm kind of new to the team! I'm Happy, well, that's my name at least..."

Carla's deep, purple eyes simply gazed back without much indication of what she was feeling. "Nice to meet you too. My name is Carla."
"So you're an Espeon? That's cool, but I don't think I want to be one. I don't want to go all psycho."
"That's... not quite how it works," she replied gently, resisting the urge to correct the younger Eevee on his misunderstanding.
"Well, anyway, I want to evolve into something cool and powerful! Something like Umbreon, right? I mean, the rings they have light up, right?"
"Yes, they do. But... that's your way of figuring out what's 'cool' or not?"
"Aye, that's right!"
"I fear for you then. You risk choosing the wrong path for yourself because it looks fun or powerful. Your pleasure may only last for so long."
"But I like fun..." he said, a little upset. Carla would say no more on the matter and instead let Happy think about things for a while... at least until Hyrem started scratching Carla's ear and Happy's cheek, causing both of them to purr, with Happy even licking the fingertips that were scratching him. It was a nice, relaxing day, especially in the cool shade where they would all take a nap.

By the time Hyrem woke up, the sun was just beginning to touch the horizon, meaning the party would start soon. Fortunately, they didn't have very far to go, so he picked up and cradled both of his pets in his arms, waking them up in the process, and carefully got up before walking over to the party. "Vui?" Happy mewed in tired surprise. "It's okay, we're close to the party," Hyrem whispered to his Pokemon. By the time they arrived, the two were fully awake and started squirming until their trainer set them down on the ground. "Vui vui!" Happy called out to the guests, announcing their presence. "Speea~" Carla added her greeting in a more refined manner.

"We're here!" Hyrem called out to the crowd... which only consisted of Keith, Marion, and their Eevee line Pokemon. ...Yeah, I know, not much of a crowd, I was just trying to add some sarc- never mind. Wait, there was someone new! Well, not exactly, Hyrem had met the blonde girl briefly in the Tynamo Tryouts, where her Scyther was a fierce, ravenous contender. Today she appeared with her Eevee, she certainly had a few interesting Pokemon. First, however, he had to talk with Keith, the host of this party. "Hey, Keith! And hi there, Cyanide! Remember me?" he asked the normally bitter Umbreon, setting his bag down at one of the tables nearby. Carla wasn't too thrilled about seeing her polar opposite. "You again," she mewled dismissively, "I hope you will be a good host for once." Meanwhile, Happy saw an Eevee with gray fur close to a woman with lavender hair. Well, that sure was a sight! He had never seen any Eevee's fur sparkle like that either, and it really didn't look anything like the fur coat his sister has, even though hers was pretty fluffy. He decided this shiny Eevee deserved some attention, so he approached him and introduced himself. "Hi there, you... look different from me and that other one over there," he said, pointing to an Eevee with a blonde girl. "Is your fur painted or something?"

[Missingno. Master]

True to Keith's word, it wasn't very long before the guests started to arrive. Marion was the first to arrive, with Kuranes, though two other trainers weren't far behind- there was El, a trainer Keith had yet to meet (though he had briefly encountered her Ditto and Purrloin at one point), with her Eevee, and also Hyrem, with Carla, his Espeon. As they approached the tree, however, a minor commotion could be heard from within- exasperated groaning in Keith's voice, cries of "Chaaaa!" and "Weezing weez!", and the repeated sound of a Poké Ball's return beam.


Inside the base, things were just as chaotic as they sounded. Keith was holding out a Poké Ball that was cloaked in an ominous purple aura, aiming it at the oddly colored insect that was deliberately evading restraint.

"Stewie, return!" Keith exclaimed for what felt like the trillionth time. Though his Arbok and Weezing were trying to block the Shadow Ledian's escape, Stewie managed to evade the beam yet again.

"Nothing doing, hat man!" Stewie shot back at Keith. "You will not keep me from this party!"

"OK, stop!" Keith exclaimed, briefly lapsing into Shuppet language, which startled Stewie somewhat, and caused him to stop in midair. Though Keith was a little taken aback that this worked, he did not question it- he was not one to look a gift Ponyta in the mouth. "Alright, Stewie, you can stay out of your ball, but no mischief, understand?"

"I make no promises," Stewie replied.

Keith sighed as he heard footsteps outside. "OK, as long as that wasn't an outright 'no', it's good enough for me."


Back outside, Cyanide watched as the guests started to arrive. She gave a small nod in response to Kuranes's arrival, and rolled her eyes in response to Carla's dismissive greeting. "I will be as good a host as I ever am," the Umbreon replied. "Take it or leave it." She then gave a small smirk as Hyrem asked whether the Umbreon remembered her, and nodded once to indicate that she did indeed remember. Hyrem was alright as far as she was concerned, even if he did take in the goody-two-shoes of the litter. Then, she overheard the unfamiliar Eevee asking Kuranes whether his fur had been painted. Rolling her eyes, she walked over to them. "He's a Shiny, you idiot," snapped Cyanide. "Name's Cyanide, and this is my half-brother Kuranes, now who are you?"

At the sight of the approaching guests, Ginny rose into the air by way of Magnet Rise, brandishing her blades threateningly. At that moment, however, the door swung open and Keith emerged to greet his guests. "Ginny, at ease," he said to the Pawniard. "How about you go in the house, keep Stewie out of trouble?" Though she still looked somewhat mistrustful, Ginny did back down. She floated into the house, and Keith turned to face the guests. "Hello, hello," he greeted them happily. "Please, come right in," he added, standing aside and holding the door open. "You can take the rope ladder, or if you're not big on climbing, you can see the Qwilfish in the pool for assistance."

At that moment, the Sawk who had been resting next to the pool noticed the guests arriving. Ron stood up and walked over to Hyrem. "Good to see you again," he greeted his former trainer.

"Ah, yeah," grinned Keith at the sight of this. "Almost forgot- this is your first time seeing him since the trade, isn't it, Ron?" he asked.

"Indeed it is," nodded the Sawk.

"Alright, well, feel free to come in, everyone, and don't be shy about letting out any other Pokémon you got with you," Keith said. "This may be a reunion for an Eevee family, but I don't see any reason to not let our other Pokémon in on the fun. Though any really large Pokémon like Salazar here," he added, gesturing to the large grey Scolipede who was in the process of lying down next to the tree, "I'm gonna have to insist they stay outside."

[EpicSquirtle]

Once again Jake found himself going to yet another event. It hadn't even been an hour after the Tynamo Poffin Palooza ended when he was off once again.

He glanced at the invitation in his hands.

''The Re-Eeveening.
All Eevee & Eeveelutions welcome!''

''Also, I insist that you bring Pom to the event''

Jake read out loud for the third time since they had started walking to Keith's base, the place the event. The two pokemon that had accompanied him had already expressed their excitement.

One was a Joltik, who was lying on Jakes head. The other an Ambipom, who was holding a basket of fruit for everyone that was going to be there.

''Well even if it's for Eevee it's still going to be a blast'' Sparky squeaked.

''Tasu will have a field day sketching all the Eevee'' Pom added.

''They aren't coming'' Jake replied.

''You mean it's just us three?'' Sparky asked.

''Yes, I left everyone else with Sophie for some training, it's an Eevee reunion, I don't have an Eevee so I think it would be a bit rude to bring all of you when I don't even own an Eevee yet''

''Well whatever you say'' Sparky replied

''Hey, what do you have in that bag?'' Pom asked, noting the bag sticking out of Jake's backpack.

''Oven mitts for Flareon, Rubber Gloves for Jolteon, Mittens for Glaceon.'' Jake replied.

''It is an Eevee reunion after all, their is bound to be some that are evolved''

It was then that Keiths base came into view, with a banner, announcing the event.

''We're here!''
Pom announced in excitement before running up ahead.

''Pom, wait up!' Jake called before giving chase to the long tail pokemon.

Jake eventually caught up, to see a couple people and their Eevee's and Eeveelution at the door.

He had seen most of these people during his time in Fizzytopia.
He had met Hyrem, he was the previous owner of Sprout, they had first met at Keiths base.

He had also seen the women with the shiny Eevee briefly at the bar a couple months ago, just before he left to find out more about the lake trio.

But he hadn't met the girl who was currently hiding behind the tree.

''Well I made it!'' Jake announced.

[lilboocorsola]

It wasn’t long after Taki’s change that a timely invitation arrived for her in the mail. Jess stared at the summons, wondering if she should inform her friend about it. She might not want to see the ghosts of her past that taunted – and still haunted – her. The Espeon’s enhanced perception sensed Jess was hiding something though, and gently lifted the letter with her newfound powers (albeit a bit clumsily). A look of conflict crossed her face, but eventually she nodded.

It’s okay. I’ll go.

“You sure?”

Yes. I can’t keep running away forever. I’ll face them properly and apologize for my behavior, as well as thank them for looking after me. If they still blame me, then I can accept it and move on. But nothing will resolve otherwise.

Jess scanned over the solicitation again before checking the R.S.V.P. at the bottom. “It says here you’re allowed to bring a guest. Would you like Link to come?”

Taki hesitated, then shook her head. She had already burdened him enough by getting him involved in such a dangerous task. It was lucky she was the only one hurt. If the glass had hit him… He was always protecting others, even from the plate that almost struck Cyanide. While she simply hid and cowered…

No. I… I can do this alone. It’s all right.

The girl frowned. Experience with Alice meant that heightened emotional empathy worked both ways. She could tell Taki was trying to be strong for their sake, so as not to trouble them. Yet the feline's shaking showed she was still afraid of something. Jess bent down and stroked the Psychic Pokémon softly.

“Listen, you don’t have to lie to us. We’re your pals. We’ll be there for you if you need backup.”

Taki glanced at the Poochyena, who grinned and wagged his tail in agreement. The Espeon blushed as she directed her gaze towards the floor.

Thank you.

-

“Ooh, what’s this? You two going on a date or something?”

Midna snickered as she surveyed Taki and Link, who were wearing a tiara and bowtie respectively. There had been no indication of a dress code, so Jessica naturally assumed the worst. It’d be a pretty big embarrassment if the event was intended a formal affair and they arrived in plain attire, so she hastily groomed and gussied the pair up a bit (despite having zero fashion sense). On the other hand, overelaborating would be just as bad, so while she briefly considered an old blue-and-white gown she found hanging in her closet (where did that come from anyway?), she settled on simple dress pants and a jacket for herself.

“We’re just going to a reunion. Watch the Base for me, will ya?”

Jessica answered offhand as she fussed with Link’s collar, so she didn’t see the twitch of the Sneasel’s brow as she rolled her eyes.

“Yeah, sure. You kids have fun then. Don’t stay out toooo late.”

As they left, Taki felt a prickle run down her spine. Out of the corner of her mind’s eye, she thought she saw Link’s shadow move. She blinked and berated herself.

No. Not this time. There’s nothing there. Don’t scream or make a scene, or you’ll humiliate Jess. Tonight, you must act normal.

-

“Let’s see… I think it’s somewhere around here.”

It was Jessica’s first time visiting Keith’s Secret Base, though she knew it must be nearby Marion’s, being located on the Hidden Mansion estate. The memory of Marion made her pause, recalling that while the woman wasn’t a recipient of one of Taki’s litter, she did possess a special Eevee of her own. Surely that meant she was invited as well. And if she were coming, then…

Jessica stopped the trainwreck of thought, reminding herself it wasn’t any of her business. Even if Co- Minerva did follow, Marion would definitely be able to handle it – at least however she saw fit. Still, Jess couldn’t help but wonder how Keith would react to meeting Minerva right now in her current state, after all that had happened…

Speak of the devil (ironic, given who he was dating), there he was – standing in front of a treehouse decorated with a brazen banner, unmistakably welcoming all Eeveekind. He was already greeting a few guests, the first of which was indeed a fair and familiar lady with lavender hair. She was clad in fancy eveningwear, causing Jess to regret not tidying her appearance more… Until she compared to another girl hiding behind a tree, whose clothes looked like they hadn’t been washed in quite a while. Jessica laughed, realizing her worries had been for naught as she waved cheerfully to the group. While she recognized some of the faces, there were others she’d never encountered before. She wasn’t aware of who else had ended up with members of Taki’s extended “family”, so despite her reservations (both personal and towards parties in general), she was looking forward to finding out.

Meanwhile, the main invitee herself was lingering a little behind Link, staring at the scene from a much lower level. So far she couldn’t recognize any of her so-called “siblings” by sight (and a part of her hoped the same would hold true in reverse), but reason stated that the bold black dog sitting beside the boy in the cowboy hat was most likely Cyanide. For an instant, she froze, unable to break the ice.

A reassuring bark, and she turned to her own canine companion, who smiled and nudged her mildly. She ceased trembling from chill, straightened, and took a deep breath as she stepped forward.

Hello, sister. It’s been a long time. Thank you and your trainer very much for having us.

She bowed politely, then gestured toward her cohort.

This is Link. Do you remember him? I believe you two met at the Park...

[OkikuMew]

A few months ago, of the few e-mails she received, one in particular caught Okiku's attention: it was from Keith, an experienced trainer she met a few times, both in battle and in casual matters. He was throwing a party specifically for the Eevee who came from the huge litter bought in the Coins for Prizes establishment by Wesley, but whoever also have an Eevee or any of its evolution are welcomed too. And it seemed that the psychic trainer was invited.

"Huh, I didn't know Keith knew that Coin was from that litter..." she wondered aloud, "heck, I don't even remember talking about her to him! But I guess he figured that since I got Himiko, I'm good to join in that party."

Upon hearing their respective names, the Espeon and Umbreon freed themselves from their Pokéballs and looked curiously at their trainer. Himiko had simply a smile on her face, waving almost hypnotically her tail pack and forth, while Coin seemed to be quite overly excited, hardly able to stand still.

"Oh hey, I guess you two heard what I just said, huh?" Okiku tilted her head and closed her eyes, in thought.

She wasn't too sure she wanted to go to the party in the first place. Sure, she likes to hang out with friends, but large-scaled parties, for some reason, often make her uncomfortable. Perhaps it was because of the large amount of strangers or other people she doesn't know much present in them combined with the fact it's a social event. It is true she can be outspoken and sociable around friends or, on very rare occasions, someone she finds particularly comfortable to be with, but in this kind of setting, she becomes very shy and quiet. She feels like she doesn't belong there, as if a Rattata in a 5-star kitchen.

But then again, she kept thinking, it wasn't really a party for herself. It was one for her two Eeveeolutioned Pokémon, after all. And since Keith would obviously be there, she told herself that at least one familiar face would maybe be enough to calm her down, or at least make the event less of a torture for her.

Upon reading all of those thoughts, Himiko mewed in a happy and comforting way, rubbing her head against Okiku's knees. on the other hand, Coin was still jumping around, who does not want to take no as an answer for this super-fun opportunity.

"...You really think it'll be ok? ...Then again, I'll be with you two, also. And... both of you seem to really want to go," the young woman cracked a smile on her worried lips. "Alright, for you guys' sake, we'll go."

The Sun Pokémon let out a light "yay"-ish kind of cry, while the Moonlight Pokémon yelled out in pure glee.

"Alright alright, calm down guys... it may be only in a few months 'till the party, but we gotta get ready!"

-----------------------------------------------------

On the fateful day of the party, Okiku, as her usual habit of having all the bases covered, had everything ready. She prepared her purse-like bag (one more useful to bring than her usual backpack), filling it with some headache pills, a small bottle of water, a few berries, a comb, a mirror, her Pokédex, her 3DS, instructions how to go to Keith's base and back to the Pokémon Center she's currently staying at... everything in case of almost any eventuality during the party. As for clothing, she wasn't sure was kind of attire would she and her Eeveeolutions would need to wear (she was too shy to ask Keith about it) but she made sure they would be all nicely dressed up, despite the shopping and delivery trouble she could go - and went - through. Himiko was dressed in an elegant, laced white gown, which complimented both her refined personality and her lilac fur. Coin wore a plain, short and tomboyish-looking grey dress, along of course of her typical Team Pocket hat placed slightly on its side on her head. Finally, Okiku have contacted her parents to send her one of her rare "fancy" clothing she have, which was still at her family home: a long, silky black dress with inch-wide shoulder straps and a design of small, dark magenta flowers at its base.

After making sure she got everything, she went off with her two Evolution-based Pokémon by her side to Keith's base for the first time - her first visit at a base, actually.

-----------------------------------------------------

Upon her arrival, she didn't approach the group of people and Pokémon - which she correctly guessed as the, well, guests of the party, as she realized one slight problem: All but a few were dressed in their everyday clothes, which is a bit far off of what the trio has! She wanted to back away, too embarrassed to show herself in such a way, already she felt even more completely out of place... but in a rare case of cooperation of the two 'eons, Himiko pushed Okiku carefully while Coin intensely pulled on her dress, both in the direction of the party.

"Ok ok, we're going!" she wailed. "I-I don't feel as comfortable goin' there with this, but I can't have my dress getting torn either!"

The young woman sighed and bit the bottom lip as she slowly waked to the group of guests, trying to not being noticed while still trying to see and recognize a few faces. To her surprise, most were at least a bit known to her: There was Keith of course, but there was also Marion, Jessica, Hyrem... and Jake, she believed it was this one's name. Only one person was completely unknown to her, a girl younger than her.



As for Himiko and Coin, they left Okiku "hide" by herself to meet up with those of their same line of species and, for the case of Coin, her actual relatives. The Umbreon didn't wait one second to approach them.

"'Ey, how's it going, folks!" Coin loudly introduced herself with her high-pitched, almost squeaky voice, while grinning mischievously. "Soooooo any of you have gotten interesting things on your travels with your trainers? Ooo, would'ya look at that," she stared at Taki's tiara, "It's so SHINY! How m-OOW!"

Himiko bit her tail before she could finish her question. "Coin, can you just stop thinking about 'shiny things' for just one second, especially when it belongs to someone?"

"B-but it's right there!" the Team Pocket member tried in vain to defend herself, her ears drooping down. "It's all just there for the ta-"

"No, it's not," the Espeon cut in, "Everything here, ESPECIALLY things that are ON people, belongs to someone. Now can you please stay put for this evening and refrain yourself from stealing things?"

"But I g-"

"No buts! And... hey!" Himiko's face lightened up, "did you know everyone here are Team Rocket haters? Stealing from them would be no use, it would actually hurt to your reputation you have to hold up against them!"

"REALLY!?" The currency-named Pokémon's eyes became as big and round as her namesake, "Ok!" She then sat down and looked at everyone with a (supposedly) innocent and naive smile.

"...Whew," the Espeon whispered. "I'm... sorry for her behavior, and for interrupting any of your current conversations. She just... can't seem to stop put her paws on things. Anyways, pardon me for not introducing myself!" she bowed gracefully. "My name is Himiko, and h-"

"Name's Coin! SUP!?"

Himiko couldn't stop herself from sighing again. "...Yeah, that. Unfortunately I believe I am not directly related to any of you, but I do know though that Coin here was part of the famous litter that was purchased by that trainer named... Wesley, if my memory is correct."

[Missingno. Master]

As Keith was in the process of welcoming the first of his guests inside, he spotted three more guests arriving, all of whom he had met before- Jessica, who he had met at the Park the previous autumn, Okiku, who he had met at the Nightclub and briefly seen at the Bar, refereeing a friendly battle between her Espeon and his Wartortle, and his friend Jake, who was invited in spite of his not owning any Eevee or Eeveelutions, but rather because his Ambipom was Cyanide's boyfriend. Okiku in particular seemed noticeably overdressed; indeed, as she herself realized this, she seemed to want to back away, but the Espeon and Umbreon she had with her wouldn't allow this. Jess, meanwhile, had with her an Espeon, which Keith supposed was Taki, the exceptionally shy Eevee he had seen at the Park, back before Cyanide had evolved.

Once they had gotten closer to the tree, Keith spoke up again. "I'd just like to take this opportunity to apologize to you all," he said, somewhat sheepishly. "I intended this to be more of a casual kind of affair, and I suppose I could've made that clearer in the invitations... Anyway, come right in, everyone," he added, continuing to hold the door open. "Make yourselves at home, and the same goes for all Eevee, and all Eeveelutions... And former Eeveelutions," he added in Shuppet language, addressing Marion with this particular statement. Peeves had told him long ago that Liliana had been an Umbreon when she was alive, and as far as Keith was concerned, she had just as much a right to be at this as any other Eevee or Eeveelution.



At the foot of the tree, Cyanide was distracted from Happy by the arrival of the newer guests, and turned to face them, though had not yet spotted Jake or Pom. One of the guests, the Espeon who had come with Jess, approached Cyanide, thanking her and Keith for having them there. Though she was not stammering or cowering in fear, Cyanide knew who this was, and the lack of those attributes made it all the more unbelievable to her.

"Taki?" she said, sounding somewhat incredulous. "Huh. So, you became an Espeon, too, like our goody-goody sister." She paused for a second, then added, "I'll say this much, you don't seem so scared of everything anymore. It's an improvement, I suppose."

At that moment, another Espeon and Umbreon duo approached. The Umbreon seemed quite interested in stealing the tiara Taki was wearing, and was chastised for it by the Espeon who was with her, who introduced herself as Himiko, and apologized for the behavior of the Umbreon, named Coin. She then confirmed Cyanide's suspicions by explaining hat while she wasn't a relative, she believed Coin to be.

"Yeah, didn't think you seemed familiar," Cyanide replied. "The name's Cyanide." She didn't seem quite so irritated with Himiko as she usually seemed with everyone else. "I see you and your trainer got stuck with that thing," she added, with a sharp glare in Coin's direction. "Another sister of mine. Constantly stole the rest of the litter's food dishes back at that shop. Not even for the food- the idiots just kept those food dishes well-cleaned, so they were all shiny." The Umbreon rolled her eyes. As Himiko mentioned Wes, Cyanide nodded. "Yeah, that's the guy," she confirmed. "One day, this millionaire just comes into the shop and buys up the whole litter at once. Thought he was an idiot at the time. Still do, kinda, though I do admit he got me to a decent trainer," she added, with a glance towards Keith. Then, as she turned back to Himiko, she caught sight of Jake and Pom. A small smile crept onto her face. "Now, then, if you'll excuse me," she added to Himiko, "I believe there's another guest for me to greet." She walked off after that without another word.

As Pom was walking along with Jake, suddenly a powerful, invisible force froze the Normal-type in place. Slowly, the Psychic attack turned the Ambipom around, until he was facing the caster of said attack- Cyanide had somehow crept up behind Pom without him noticing, and was standing there with a mischievous yet genuine grin on her face. "Miss me?" the Umbreon asked as she stopped the attack.



Inside the base, Stewie was buzzing around the living room. The whole base had been cleaned up in preparation for this event, and while it wasn't exactly a Spoinksty under normal circumstances, the difference was noticeable. The Shadow Ledian flew off towards the kitchen, catching the aroma of the food items as he did so. As he flew, however, his path was suddenly barred by a steel blade. Narrowing his compound eyes in anger, he turned to look, and there was Ginny, glaring right back at him.

"You again, vile woman?" hissed Stewie. "How dare you bar me from my source of sustenance!"

"That sustenance is for the guests," snapped the Pawniard.

"I don't give a Raticate's ass if it's for Ash friggin' Ketchum with the world's strongest Pikachu," retorted the Bug/Flying-type. "As a resident of this house, I have just as much right to the food as do any guest of ours, if not more!"

"Not enough right to justify cleaning out the whole kitchen like Crabbe," said Ginny.

"You dare liken me to that simple-minded sentient stomach?" said Stewie. "I'm going to kill you!"

"Oh, I doubt that," sneered the Pawniard. "If ever you were going to kill me, you'd have ended me long ago. You had ample opportunity. Believe me, I know."

"Oh, so you do let your guard down, then?" Stewie replied swiftly. "Yes, yes, quite useful knowledge. I shall be sure to put it to good use, on the off chance this fails!" he exclaimed, going into a Rock Smash attack. Ginny's reaction was immediate; she zoomed upwards, her Magnet Rise keeping her airborne, and retaliated with a Psycho Cut to the back of the Shadow Ledian's head. He wheeled around and hissed his displeasure at this, before firing off a Shadow Wave attack. In response, Ginny waved her blades back and forth wildly, rapid-firing Psycho Cuts, which were just enough to hold the shadowy waves of energy at bay. Angered, Stewie lunged again, this time for a Mach Punch, which Ginny was also able to dodge, albeit only barely. This caused Stewie to fly up the stairs instead, and Ginny wasted no time going after him, in hot Pursuit. Within seconds, the two of them were slowly, warily circling each other in the middle of their trainer's bedroom. Neither one started up any further attacks... not yet. It seemed as though things were going to be peaceful once the guests got inside. For now, anyway...

[Lass El]

As the guests started filtering inside, Lucy reached the end of her tolerance in regards to El's sudden irrational timidness. Not that she would have minded leaving her out there to freeze, but that would not be conductive forgetting on most peoples good graces and she was the one with the stone. So the Eevee begrudgingly went up to her trainer and gave her a 'friendly nudge' square in the back. Really, it was a flying tackle, the force enough to send the unprepared trainer to the ground. A few items spilled out of her backpack: a pokéball, a dragon gem and a small selection of assorted berries. Lucy turned her nose up at the mess. What did I do to get stuck with her, of all people? she thought.

It was enough to get El moving though. After hurriedly stuffing everything back in (how the berries weren't yet squished was a mystery) she began to walk off towards the entrance at a brisk pace. Lucy, st first, tried to follow with an arrogant trot, but soon had to start running just to keep up with El's longer legs. When the two got to the entrance, Lucy didn't even entertain the thought of going up herself. So she climbed up El's clothes and sat in her backpack, which, she couldn't help but notice was still unzipped.

"Lucy, you are so lucky I put the stones in the bottom." El muttered as she began to climb. Lucy's heart skipped a beat at those words, though she quickly forced herself to regain her composure. Those were bad thoughts that didn't even bare holding.

El's jitters returned as soon as she got into the base proper. From her perch, Lucy pulled faces at the human as she took deep breaths. In, out, in, out in...

"Get on with it already, I have impressions to make."

"Oh! You must be excited to see your brothers and sisters, huh?" El gave the fuzzball a warm smile, unaware of both how relevant and how far off the mark her reply was.

"NO!" Lucy called out at the top of her lungs before leaping from the backpack. Once again, items fell out, though this time one of the pokéballs happened to land on its button, releasing a very confused looking shiny Gible.

"Oh, uh, hi Nikki," El said, ears still ringing from Lucy's shout. "Did, did I leave you in there?"

"Oh for Mew's sake, HOW INCOMPETENT CAN YOU POSSIBLY BE?"

"Did I do something bad?" Nikki asked, looking to her trainer with eyes that wouldn't have looked out of place on a Poochyena.

"It's okay girl," El said. She mightn't understand the exact words, but puppy-dog eyes are a universal language. "Lucy's just having another tantrum."

"How DARE you call my righteous fury a mere TANTRUM?"

"Lucy, shoosh!" El bent down to give Lucy a whack on the nose. "Be reasonable or we'll leave and I'll lock the water stone away for another month."

The effect was immediate. Though Lucy's fur remained fluffed up, she did not make another peep. The Eevee wandered off with one last glare in her trainer's direction, off to find someone who would maybe listen to her words of self-proclaimed wisdom. El merely stood up with an embarrassed chuckle. "Uh, sorry about that," she said to anyone who may have been paying attention. "Lucy there's a little... short-fused." A hiss came from somewhere, but no shouting followed.

"Gib..."

"Aww," El turned back to Nikki, "sorry I left you in there girl! And to come into one of Lucy's fit's right after... C'mon, let's see if there's something for you to eat, would that make you feel better?"

Nikki fidgeted then leapt up into El's arms, giving her trainer as much of a hug as her stubby little arms allowed. El returned it with pats and gentle words before wandering off to find any finger foods the party may have. Comfort eating mightn't be the healthiest option, but what else was there at a party full of Eevee for someone who'd just had a less than pleasant encounter with one? And though El did feel somewhat bad for having a different pokémon out, even despite Keith's words earlier, returning her to her pokéball at that point would be just plain cruel.

[OkikuMew]

((Think we better start using this before we get completely lost in all the possible conversations... ^^; Oh and my colors too :3))


Okiku, Keith:

While walking around the tree which the base was perched into, looking at the general scene of the party without getting too much involved into it, Keith spoke out to everyone, apologizing about his omission of the type of party he had in mind. Upon hearing that, Okiku lightly sighed and her head sunk between her shoulders a bit.

"Yeah, a lil bit too late for that..." she whispered, talking to herself while wishing she should've brought her casual clothes just in case.

When the host mentioned that everyone's welcome, while holding up his tree house's door, Okiku tilted her head. She still felt very uncomfortable to show herself in that out-of-place attire, just as she was, but she didn't want to be miserable, either. She thought of with what could she have a bit of enjoyment, even with all those people around... when she reminded herself about one thing she always appreciate in parties or other social events: Food. Whenever there was candy, chips, small breads, cake, fancy amuse-bouches, doughnuts, cookies, crustless sandwiches, salad, brownies, cheese and crackers... whatever there was, she would plop it on her plate and eat it. Often would go for seconds, or even for thirds and forths if she feels sneaky enough to not look like a Grumpig, or at least look like she's nice enough to eat the leftovers that would have eventually spoil if kept after the party. Plus, commenting about the food (no matter how good or bad it is) can be a comfortable ice-breaker for others, including herself. Since it seemed the poison expert have invited people in his base, she assumed that's where he placed the yummy stuff. So, she took her courage with two hands to get inside and see what what was on today's menu.

Except... she realized she had to get up there. By climbing a rope ladder. She thought wisely it isn't a good idea to escalate anything with a long dress like hers. And watching that one girl she doesn't know having a hard time getting up there didn't help either (although admittedly her Pokémon was giving her a hard time.) She could've asked maybe Rawk to get her up there, but as she didn't want to be bothered with too many Pokéballs, she left him and the others at the Pokécenter. She bit her lip and her head suddenly drooped in despair. ...But then she wondered if someone could help her out...

"H-hey Keith," she stuttered while the skin of her cheeks turned crimson red, "c-can you help me out? I-I wanna get up there but I don't think it'll be a good idea with... heeled sandals and... long, nice dress, and... I brought nobody but Himiko and Coin," she chuckled very nervously.

Oh, why does even when she brings everything for any eventuality, there's always something that she either forgot or overlooked... It's no wonder that she have such a huge backpack most of the time.



Coin, Himiko, Cyanide, Taki, Carla, Kuranes: ((Hmm, lots of Cs and Ks XP))

The Umbreon of the group the two met up with introduced herself as Cyanide. Himiko felt a bit vexed when she called coin a "thing", but she kept her cool and diplomatically did not peeped a word, guessing she knew more about Coin than she does, and with that knowing exactly what she was going through. She was indeed correct: She mentioned how she would steal even the whole litter's food dishes back when they were little, still living in the Coin for Prizes.

"Why am I not surprised?" Himiko shook her head.

"What?" Coin defensively exclaimed. "You should've seen them, they were made in freakin' SILVER!"

"Yes yes, I know how it was," her Espeon friend languidly nodded, "I'm from the Coin for Prizes too, you know. I assure you, they were just simple but elegant steel bowls, cleaned and sterilized to perfection."

"Aww..." the little thief's ears drooped again, only to perk up after a second, "But they were so... so...!"

"Shiny?" the Espeon deadpanned.

"YES! THAT'S IT!" the Umbreon's face lit up brightly, as Himiko continued shaking her head, "And they made great hats too! Oh, not as great as this one though," she lifted her head proud, putting emphasis on her Team Pocket cap, "But STILL! Oh and the food that were in it was great and all, but that's what we always get no matter what anyways, so it was cool to slip the stuff in on the other side of the park's fence, to give it to those wild Pokémon living on the other side! They were so hungry, and I think one said he was abandoned by his parents or trainer or somethin'... But it was cool to see them happy with their belly full! And even more happy when I would throw them some of our toys I would get my paws on, too!"

"You mean that you stole...?" the psychic Pokémon's eyes narrowed towards her teammate.

"I didn't STEAL them, I just secretly borrowed them indefinitely and shared them afterwards! It was fun sneaking up and taking them, but had my own toys anyways, so give them to someone who didn't have any was fair! Ahh, those were the days..."

"...Well, at least you were somewhat generous about it..." Himiko said with mixed feelings.

When Cyanide commented about 'Wes', the trainer who bought the huge litter, Himiko simply nodded in confirmation, knowing the story pretty well from reading Okiku's mind.

"Myes, it was indeed a careless thing to do on hindsight, but he wised up in time and managed the situation quite well, if I do say so myself, trading them to skilled trainers like we now have," the Sun Pokémon pointed at her trainer with her pointy, delicate nose.

"Yes, yes! Okiku's awesome!" Cyanide's sister cheered. "She got me that hat and doesn't mind much of what I do!"

"...Or she just understands she can't fully control you, so she let you be while just keeping a distant eye on you," Himiko added.

After Keith's Umbreon excused herself and left the group, upon seeing Jake and his Aipom, the duo's attention goes towards the other Eeveevolutions present.

"Anyone you reconize here, Coin?" Himiko asked.

"Nnnope!" she answered blissfully.

"Of course you don't; I am not surprised. Again." She sighed for the millionth time. She looked up to the other guests present, then she lifted an eyebrow when she saw the one of the same type as hers. At first she would've been happy to not only see one of her kind and would want to share tricks and whatnot to control and master their powers, but there was something about her that was familiar, which she couldn't put her paw on it...

"...Taki?" she wondered aloud, surprised to see the shy Eevee she met back in the Cable Club, now fully evolved and not fleeing from anyone, especially herself.

"...OH! Taki!" Coin yelled out in recognision, approaching her Espeon sister to friendly bump her head against hers, "SO long time no see! You grew up like Himi!" she giggled. "Man, you always had the best toys for some reason! You always had whatever the wild kids wanted! And it seems that hasn't changed, I mean, look at that AWESOME crown ya got!"

"Don't even think about it Coin," Himiko threw daggers with her eyes at her.

"What? I said I wouldn't take anything! Geez, so much for trusting me..."

[lilboocorsola]

Taki, Link, Coin, Himiko, Cyanide, Carla, Kuranes:

Despite Taki’s unease, Cyanide seemed to respond about as civilly as she could’ve hoped for – probably owing to the Umbreon’s sheer surprise over seeing her sister’s newfound confidence. She didn’t even make fun of Taki’s crown… Although this was perhaps due to the fact another Espeon showed up at that moment in full elegance, white lace lavishing lilac. Beside her was another Umbreon as well, dressed simpler but still extravagantly by their standards, considering Pokémon usually wore no clothes at all. Taki immediately recognized her senior (as an “equal” now, though she had a hard time accepting the idea she could really be respected on the same level – the difference in their pride was obvious) from the Cable Club that day. As for the Umbreon… Taki shifted uncomfortably when the “stranger” started staring at her tiara, a familiar feeling of resentment rising from deep within the gut. Her suspicions were confirmed when Cyanide described her own doppelganger’s habit of stealing everyone’s food dishes back at the shop, calling their sibling by her apparent new name: Coin.

Taki’s heart sank as she cast a despairing look towards Himiko. Coin must have told her then, about her strangeness. Did that mean the one she looked up to was secretly laughing at her, even when they first met?

Himiko misinterpreted Taki’s distress and chided her companion, apologizing for Coin’s behavior. Though it was not her initial concern, Taki didn’t trust Coin either after all the times her toys had been stolen, and took the threat of theft seriously. She backed away as the Umbreon approached, her stutter slowly resurfacing.

I-I’m sorry for the way I acted too, back then. For saying all that weird stuff. I was just trying to get attention. Th-that’s why you took my things, right? To teach me a lesson. I’ve changed though. Plus…

She squeezed her eyes shut, afraid she might cry if she kept dwelling in her worst memories.

…This tiara was given to me by my trainer. It’s important to me, so…

Her entire body was shaking at this point.

“Please don’t take it!”

She shouted the last part aloud, even startling Link. Biting her lip, she gazed beseechingly – but also determinedly – at Coin. It was the first time she had ever made a sincere effort to defend her belongings. She would not lose the precious gift Jess had given her; she’d protect it with her life if she had to.

Jessica, Keith, Marion, El, Hyrem, Jake, Okiku:

After greeting Keith and Marion, Jess nodded shyly at Hyrem and Jake, the former of which she thought she recalled bumping into at Christmas but hadn’t had a chance to formally introduce herself to. She was saved from making any awkward attempts at conversation though by the arrival of her good friend Okiku, who rivaled Marion for “Star of the Eeveening” in a sexy black gown of her own. She could tell the poor girl was embarrassed to be seen in such apparel though when most of the others wore casual, and began to regret not donning her own formal attire, if only to help Okiku stand out less.

It looked like she having a bit of trouble with the ladder as well, though she clearly wished to join the tree-huggerhider who had gone before her in search of food. Unfortunately, Jess hadn’t brought any of her other Pokémon either, so she was helpless to offer assistance. Hopefully Keith had a Flying-Type Okiku could borrow.

Speaking of the shrinking woodflower though, Jess noticed a Berry lying next to the trunk, leftover from when the lass had spilled the contents of her bag earlier. Jessica hesitated, before deciding she may as well take the opportunity to try and talk to someone, and besides she was desperate wanted to do good deeds for others, even if it was as small as returning a cheap item. Picking up the fruit, she wondered whether it would be rude of her to cut ahead, so she figured she’d wait until Okiku was safely transported up somehow. In the meantime, she smiled and waved supportively, complimenting on such a beautiful appearance.

[Missingno. Master]

Keith, Myrtle, Helena, El, Lucy, Nikki: The first of the guests to make their way inside was El, though as she reached the top of the rope ladder and made to go inside, her Eevee jumped out of her backpack, jarring loose a Poké Ball, which unleashed a Gible. This Gible, however, was distinctly different in coloration- it was a Shiny, Keith knew. "Cool," he couldn't help but remark upon noticing the Gible's different coloration. The Gible's presence seemed to piss off the Eevee, who was only silenced by El's threat to lock away the Water Stone for another month- well, that answered the question of what she planned to evolve her Eevee into.

As El and her Pokémon entered Keith's base, before they reached the end of the entrance hall, a cheerful looking Shuppet and bored-looking Banette could be seen floating from the kitchen to the living room, both of them clearly using Psychic to levitate food from one room to the other- platters of assorted sandwiches, bowls of chips, all sorts of foods. In addition, from the kitchen came the distinct aroma of cooking hamburgers. If she entered the living room, it would be just in time to see the pair of Ghost-types setting down the food on various small tables that had been set up around the room, in addition to the large black table that always sat in front of the TV.


Keith, Luna, Okiku: Next, Okiku asked Keith for some assistance with getting up to the base, given that she was not exactly dressed for ascending a rope ladder. It was clear that she was embarrassed to ask this, particularly as it would have called even more attention to how overdressed she was, Keith was understanding about it- he still blamed himself for this, primarily, as he hadn't thought to specify whether it was a casual or more fancy affair in the invitations. It was his first time throwing a party of any sort, so of course he was bound to screw up somewhere, after all.

"Not a problem," Keith replied, as he took a Poké Ball off his belt, enlarged it, and tossed it into the air. In a flash of light, there appeared a Swoobat who smiled at the guests. "Luna," Keith said to the Swoobat, "I want you to go and-"

You want me to help Okiku up here because she's not dressed for taking the rope ladder, Luna finished, talking to Keith telepathically.

"...Well, yeah," replied Keith. "That won't be a problem, right?"

Nope, smiled the Swoobat as she flapped down to where Okiku was. Hi! Luna greeted Okiku, again using telepathy to communicate. I'm Luna. Just hold onto my feet and I'll Fly you right up there. Then, she tilted her head as she continued to look at Okiku. You're embarrassed because you overdressed for the party, she continued. It was not a question- indeed, it seemed as though the Swoobat knew this for a fact. If you want my opinion, you shouldn't be embarrassed, you look nice, she said, the Swoobat smiling the whole time.


Cyanide, Taki, Himiko, Coin, Carla, Kuranes, Happy: "And she's off," groaned Cyanide as Himiko's use of the word "shiny" got Coin to excitedly confirm that that was what she was trying to say. "I swear to Arceus, not even my trainer's Meowth is that obsessed with shiny things. Taki at least seems to be less of a wimp than she used to be," she added, with a glance at the tiara-wearing Espeon. "But some things never change. Including that egomaniac that girl just carried inside," added Cyanide, referring to Lucy. "Thinks she's destined to take over the world or some crap like that." Cyanide rolled her eyes, though it was at that point she had excused herself to go and greet Pom.

[uhhhhh]

Connor had already been to Keith's base though he never had planned to go there the last time and in fact, was completely accidental that he stumbled on the area. The photographer's lack of sense of direction to the point of being ridiculous had somehow unknowingly made him cross an entire sea to get to where he was now. And it was that same method that had gotten him to his destination. "You've gotta be kidding me. It actually worked?!" he said to himself in surprise as he saw the Base right in front of his eyes.

"Well, never mind that. Here we are... The 'Re-Eeveening' huh?" he fished out the invitation from his pocket to see its contents once more. It was a surprise that Connor, who had recently been entirely busy from his photography work, had received something else from Esteban, his Emolga, aside from the usual mail he kept getting. "The destination is at Keith's Secret Base. You may bring another guest with you of your choice." he read the message once again. True, he could have had brought along Gaspard or someone else with him but somehow he felt that he and Todd needed to have some time together on the way to the party. "Well, here we are Todd, ready to see your siblings again?" the Eevee did not respond to Connor’s question. “Um… Todd?”

Todd wasn’t really focusing much on what Connor was saying. It had been months since he had parted with his other remaining siblings and joined with Connor. As much as Todd was excited to see his brothers and sisters, he can’t help but feel a bit hesitant in doing so. “Vee? E-eevee…” he weakly replied to Connor. “Eh? What’s the matter little guy? Feeling nervous?” He crouched down to be closer to Todd’s eye level, “Aww, don’t worry! I’m sure they’ll be happy to see you. Besides, weren’t you being insistent on wanting to go?” Connor reassured him as he lightly rubbed his head. “Now c’mon Todd, we’ve got a party to attend! I’ll carry you with me, ok?” Connor then picked up the Eevee on his arms and headed straight towards Keith’s base.

As soon as Connor got up the rope ladder (while carrying Todd inside his jacket), and entered Keith’s base, the two saw that the party had already started and that there were already many other people and pokemon around. “Sorry we’re late! ...oh?” Connor stopped as he noticed that some of them were wearing dresses, “I... didn’t know that this was going to be a formal party Keith. Should have probably dressed better I guess.” the photographer awkwardly laughed as he looked at his usual outfit, a blue jacket that was covering his yellow shirt and black pants with his trademark orange and blue striped beanie. “Anyway, I brought my camera with me. Anyone want any pictures with their Eevee, just say so!” he grinned.

[EpicSquirtle]

Cyanide, Pom: Suddenly, as Pom was walking beside Jake an invisible force froze him in place, making the fruit basket fall on the ground.

For a couple seconds, Pom didn't know what was going on, but as the force started to turn him, he realized what was going on. The force kept on turning him until he was facing Cyanide, who wore a mischievous grin.

Pom didn't know how she had managed to sneak up behind him, but she was there.

''Miss me?'' She asked the Ambipom, just as the Psychic ceased.

''Of course I did'' Pom smiled. He then reached for two random fruit from the fruit basket, an apple and an orange.

''Which would you like? An apple or an orange?''

Jake, Keith: Meanwhile, after Pom had picked the two fruit, Jake picked up the basket and walked over to Keith.

''Thanks for inviting me, I brought fruit for everyone, since I don't have an Eevee I thought I should bring something, I'll leave it on the living room table'' Jake explained before climbing the ladder with slight trouble due to the basket.

As he got to the door, the aroma of delicious food filled his nostrils.

''It's a good thing I didn't bring Vermillion'' Jake said to Sparky, Sparky nodded, thinking back to earlier that day when the Torkoal had stolen the whole teams, Sophie's, and Jake's food.

As Jake walked in, he noticed a cheerful Shuppet and bored Banette, using Psychic to move food into the living room.

Jake followed them into the room, placing the basket on the black table and taking a seat at one of the smaller tables.

''This is nice'' Jake commented to no one in paticular, before grabbing a ham and cheese sandwhich and taking bite.

''This is so good!'' Jake exclaimed, giving Sparky a small piece.

Sparky nodded in response, it was good.

However, as Jake and Sparky were busy with the sandwhich, they didn't see the Torkoal sneaking out of the room.

While Jake was getting ready to leave to the Re-Eeveening, Vermillion's pokeball fell in the fruit basket!

Vermillion, as quietly as he could, took 1 of the trays of sandwichs, and quickly started chowing down.

[Gemini Spark]

Cyanide's curt response to Carla earned a stare from her, but she decided to leave it at that; as long as she remembered her manners, Carla wouldn't have any problems with her. Cyanide was at least nice to Hyrem, whose affectionate attention he gave her had gotten him on her good side, perhaps she would be up for some more scratching tonight? In the meantime, she berated Happy for not knowing what a shiny Eevee looked like before introducing herself and Kuranes. "I'm Happy, nice to meet you!" he mewed, oblivious to the fact that he was insulted. "I was bought by my trainer recently, and so was my sister, but she went to someone else. I... don't see her yet, I hope she heard about it..." Then he realized who he was looking at. "Whoa, an Umbreon, right?? You guys are so cool, with those rings and stuff!"

As Hyrem made his way into the party, he ran into a Sawk, specifically the one he had recently traded to Keith in exchange for Sejuani, his Swinub. "Oh, hey Lee, how's it going?" Then he heard Keith call the Sawk Ron. "Or... Ron now, right?"

The next guest to arrive was Jake, the trainer trying to specialize in Electric-types. "Hey, Jake! Nice to see you again!" Hyrem called out to the kid who was slightly younger than he was. "So if you're here, that means you caught an Eevee, right?"

Next was Jessica, with an Espeon and a Poochyena, they must be newer members to her team since she didn't have them the last time he saw her (way back when he visited Marion's base), although Carla recognized her skittish sister being nudged by the encouraging Poochyena. As a fellow Espeon, she smiled as her sister finally got the courage to step forward and introduce herself, though she started with introducing Link to everyone. Cyanide then observed how their sister, who was apparently named Taki, seemed more confident now. "Yes, and I'm glad you ended up becoming an Espeon like I did!" Carla added.

Not long after that, another Espeon and Umbreon showed up, Coin intent on taking the shiny tiara from her sister while Himiko did her best to stop that from happening. After claiming everyone hated Team Rocket, Coin refrained from her tendencies... for now. Carla pitied Coin's trainer and Himiko as much as Cyanide apparently did for being stuck with a kleptomaniac who had the tendency to steal everyone else's shiny food bowls when they were young. That sure brought back memories. Cyanide would always be the most vocal about it and get herself into a fight with Coin, which Carla would then take upon herself to break up, and by then mealtime was finished, and the caretakers would take the bowls away for exactly 24 hours. "Yes, I wasn't quite sure what the man who bought us was thinking, although I do like how I ended up with Hyrem. Our souls just resonated with each other, and now I feel like we have an inseparable bond. It could also be due to how I am slowly developing my psychic powers." Cyanide had to excuse herself for a moment to greet Pom, which left her sisters free to talk about whatever.

Ah, but wait! Coin had revealed something about herself Carla didn't know about: she would sometimes sneak food away (or her brothers and sisters' toys!) and give it to the wild Pokemon on the other side of the fence! "What!?" Carla gasped with shock. "I had no idea you were doing something so dangerous! You hardly knew those Pokemon, what if... what if one of them wanted more than kibble or toys? What if... they wanted you?" she asked with worry. "Well... I suppose nothing really happened to you, but..." her voice trailed off, trying to forget about it since it was all in the past, but it seemed something more was on her mind as her eyes widened with horror, as if she recalled some sort of traumatic memory.

Hyrem then noticed Connor walk in with an Eevee of his own. "Hey, Connor, what's up? I might have to take you up on that offer for a picture later on!" It was only when Connor made a comment about his appearance that Hyrem noticed how Marion, Jessica, and Okiku were dressed in a bit more formal attire than the guys were. Fortunately, the party was intended to be casual, so he needed not worry, folks, everything was under control! For the most part. Pay no attention to the Shadow Ledian and Pawniard fighting behind the curtain, readers! No, instead watch as the girl from before presents herself, along with another Eevee and... a shiny Gible?? A bit out of place, but then again Kuranes may find himself with some great company! Hyrem approaches the blonde girl and greets her: "Hi, I don't think I've seen you before. My name's Hyrem, what's yours?"

Carla had also noticed the scene the Eevee made with the shiny Gible, and Cyanide recognized her as the sister who had big plans of taking over the world. "I will- unfortunately- have to agree with Cyanide. Our sister's ambition is far bigger than she realizes. Not only is it far from realistic, but all she does is come off as rude to everyone around her. There is no way she will be the leader of anything with that attitude. Not if I can help it, at least." Carla then remembered Happy, and she looked around, only to spot him with one of her brothers, the photographer from the bar beside him. "Hi there!" Happy called out to the new guest. "I'm probably not one of your brothers, but maybe Carla over there's your sister, aye? I'm Happy, what's your name?"

[OkikuMew]

((OOC: Alright, time to unblock this place! I feel bad for letting MM's base in this state ^^; Hopefully I haven't forgotten any detail/person/whatever... if I did, sorry! Well for you guys' conveniance, I've added the place where people are! (Or at least believe where they are...)))




Inside Treehouse - Okiku, Jessica, Keith, Luna, Helena, Myrtle, El, Lucy, Nikki, Jake, Sparky, Vermillion, Hyrem:

Before Keith was able to respond to her request (he was likely busy with the preperations inside his base,) Okiku was shyly approached by Jessica, saluting her and complimenting on her image.

"Heh, thanks Jess," the blond-ish woman blushed as she greeted her with a nod, "I... wasn't sure what to wear for the party, and I... I dunno, I didn't feel like asking Keith about the party's dress code, and for some reason thought it was formal, s-so I took the best dress I got, and even bought some dresses for Himiko and Coin too..." she tapped her two index fingers together, "Well, I'm far from being used to wear these. I-I mean, it's not my style at all..."

Then her attention went back up in the treehouse again, as Keith was calling up on her:

"Not a problem," he yelled, while taking a Pokéball out of his belt, he released the Pokémon inside, a Swoobat named Luna. The bat swooped down to her and greeted her telepathically.

"Hi! I'm Luna. Just hold onto my feet and I'll Fly you right up there."

"Oh! Nice meeting you Luna!" Okiku thought, knowing good and well how to communicate with her favored Pokémon type.

After a glance and a small tilt with her head, the Woobat continued to speak to her through her mind. "You're embarrassed because you overdressed for the party. If you want my opinion," she added before Okiku had the chance to say something, "you shouldn't be embarrassed, you look nice."

"Heheh, thanks," she curled her shoulders frontwards for a bit, then looked over Jessica, who might be wondering what was going on for those silent moments. "Say Jess, would ya like to come up the treehouse too? Luna here could possibly carry you as soon as she's done bringing me up there. I'm off to see if they have any good snacks. I may not be fond of parties, but party food has a small place in my gluttoneous heart – and my stomach!"

After she laughed at her own, small joke, Okiku grabbed Luna's feet carefully but tightly (The Psychic specialist wondered why she didn't ask her to grab by her tail instead, as not only it is a lot longer and easier to hold than their feet, but also Swoobat usually use it to hold themselves when sleeping upside down... but she shrugged the throught away,) which afterwards the Courting Pokémon flew her up to the main entrance. The young lady grunted after her feet landed on the wooden floor of Keith's base.

"Thanks for the lift Luna," she thought for the Psychic pokémon while checking and brushing her attire for any debris caught on the way up. "...Say, I believe you haven't met my own Swoobat yet? His name is Beckett. He's quite the polite one, although I find it a bit funny he considers himself as my personal butler... even though I never asked him to be like this," she giggled. "I don't have his Pokéball at the moment, but perhaps another day I could present him to you?"

As she slowly entered the base, she curiously looked all around her, and down the big hallway. It is her first time visiting inside a secret base, after all. The walls were made out of woven branches, bark and dead leaves, sometimes fused in with the bigger and wider branches of the tree. It gave a particular smell to the place, which reminded of autumn, with a touch of toxic waste... but almost masking that odor completely was something that interested Okiku more at the moment: the divine smell hamburger patties, along with melted cheese, grilled buns and hints of the spices and mustard used along with it. The sizzling and popping of the cooked meat echoed towards the left end of the corridor.

"Ugh my Arceus it smells so gooooood..." Okiku garbled her thoughts aloud as her nose twitched in delight and her body slouched frontwards, almost zomblie-like. "Wonder if they cooked bacon to put in them... of better yet, wrapped the patties with them!" She gulped to prevent herself from drooling with her ideas. "...but they're surely not ready yet, if they're still cooking. Hopefully there's other stuff to eat in the mean time!"

Guessing that the snacks would be in the other room on the right, as she heard conversations on that side, she walked though the hallway and towards the voices. Upon turning the corner, she discovered that the source of the talking was from: Hyrem, Jake, the girl she saw climbing up earlier and a camera-wearing trainer that Okiku doesn't know. Jake seemed to be preparing to leave for some reason, but Hyrem came up to him. The girl was looking at the tables, while the other adolescent was offering to everyone of taking pictures of the event. Okiku cringed at the thought of getting her picture taken, not only not liking that in general but also with the whole problem with her dress. ...But she guessed that if Jessica and Luna's opinions were true, then her attire shouldn't be a problem, ...and at least one picture wouldn't hurt; At least, it would show that she was there and not hiding in a corner or something.

She didn't feel like socialising too much at the moment, despite the familiarity of most of the guests, so she looked at the tables that were around the living room to see if there was any plates of food around. Sure enough, there was, filled with the usual sandwiches (the "traditional party" ham and egg ones which she liked but can be fussy about them,) assortiment of chips ranged from normal, BBQ, vinegar and tortilla along with dips Okiku couldn't identify (except for a few obvious ones) but was curious to taste, some appetizing and fresh-looking salads, different kinds of crackers with a mix of sliced cheese and spreads for them (although she was dissapointed to not find creton among the spreads), a basket filled with apples, different small portions of pie, cakes and other sweet stuff... Okiku couldn't ask for more. ...Well, she could, but it was more than enough different kinds of food to taste and indulge in to satisfy her cravings. As much as she would love to take an empty plate, jump in and take a bit of everything (as she usually does), she thought it would be wiser to hold off the eating a bit so she can at least enjoy the hamburgers without being full with the other stuff eaten. ...But she couldn't help herself take at least one thing, just to give her a taste of what's to come. As she licked her lips and temptively wiggled her fingers to grab something, she eyed all the food on the tables, then finally decides to take as her inital "snack" a slice of egg sandwich. Just as she was able to lower her left hand down in the plate to pick up one though, the plate of sandwiches suddenly moved away from her and towards the edge of the table.

"HEY!" Okiku yelped, pulling away her hand, "What the...?"

As she looked more carefully for the reason of the "magical walking plate", she noticed how it was pulled away by a hungry-looking Torkoal, who's already scarfing down the sandwiches at a starling speed. Likely he doesn't want to get caught...

"H-hey!" the trainer exclaimed to the fire Pokémon, "leave some for everyone else, would ya? ...I want some too..."


___________________________________________



Outside Treehouse – Coin, Himiko, Taki, Carla:

After an Espeon named Carla discussed about Hyrem then Cyanide walked off from the group, Taki suddenly lashed out at Coin with full of apoligies for acting weird back when they were together, and hoped aloud, while shaking and almost in tears, for Coin not to take her beloved crown.

Okiku's Eevee evolutions were taken by surprise by the little Espeon's sudden outbust, both shifting slightly their body backwards, widely opening their eyes like Deerlings caught in the headlights. But none was more surprised than the Team Pocket member.

"...What 'weird stuff'?" the Umbreon asked. "Like I said earlier, I just took your toys more often 'cause it happened you had those the wild kids wanted the most! Also," her tone of voice changed into a proud one, "I st– 'borrowed' from EVERYONE, not just you! ...And as for your crown, yeah it IS really pretty and it would be nice to be added to our safe," she noticed Himiko's undenable and unamused frown, but looked at her with a smug, "BUT taking it would go against all protocol!"

"...Protocol?" the Espeon wondered in a deadpan manner.

"Yeah, TPP, 'Team Pocket Protocol'! We only take from either Team Rocket, those who are criminals, or those who have something either they have too much of or always have some more afterwards anyways!"

Himiko shook her head, not believing the crazy logic she have, but doesn't say a word since it's giving her another reason not to take anything from anyone.

"And I don't think you're any of that, aren't you Taki? An' I don't think your trainer have infinite amounts of crowns like that, unlike the toys and food which the caretakers always place back the moment they noticed they were gone! Those can be replaced soooooo easily, so why not give some who does not have those things, like those who lived outside?"

Upon hearing again the news about Coin stealing the food and toys to give it to the wild Pokémon, Carla started to freak out about Coin's safety, for some reason. Himiko and Coin shared a confused look. However, the Sun Pokémon could help feeling that her nervousness towards her teammate's past actions had some deeper meaning, but didn't dare to point it out to breach her personal space.

"Naaaaaaah, they couldn't get me!" Coin tried to reassure her sister as best as she could, "I may be able to throw the stuff over the fence, but neither I or them could jump THAT high! Anyways it would surprise me they would 'want me", I mean, they were pretty cool! It's just too bad they were stuck livin' in the forest and the streets, with no human takin' care of 'em... Man, I hope they got taken by a trainer!"

[Missingno. Master]

Inside the house: Connor arrived at the party along with Todd, his Eevee. As he climbed the rope ladder and made to enter the house, he chuckled awkwardly and remarked that he ought to have dressed better had he known it was going to be such a formal party. "Heh," Keith chuckled weakly, "Honestly, that's more my mistake- neglected to mention anything about how formal of a party this was supposed to be in the invitations... Anyway, come on in." As Connor added that he'd be glad to take pictures of anyone with their Eevee who wanted one, Keith grinned. "I'll keep that in mind, I think I'd like a picture of me and Cyanide later on," he stated.


Jake was next to enter the house. He explained to Keith that he had brought fruit for everyone, claiming that since he didn't have an Eevee, he figured he should bring something. "Thanks," Keith grinned, "though you didn't have to do that, Jake. I mean, sure, this party is for Cyanide's family, but any friend of mine is welcome here at any time. Plus, Cyanide would have been pissed if I hadn't invited you."

Inside the house, Jake and Sparky sat down, neither of them noticing a Torkoal going for some of the platters of sandwiches- turns out Jake's gluttonous Torkoal had accidentally been brought along! Uh-oh!


Afterwards, Okiku had a brief talk with another trainer named Jess, and mentioned that Luna would likely have no problem carrying her up to the house as well. The Swoobat nodded to confirm this, and then sent a telepathic message into Jess's mind; She's right, you know- I'll be glad to take you up to the house, too. She then carried Okiku up to where the house was built in the top of the tree. Okiku then mentioned a Swoobat of her own, named Beckett, and suggested that she could someday have him meet her. He sounds nice, Luna smiled, once again speaking to Okiku by way of telepathy. I'd like to meet him someday.

Okiku walked inside, practically entranced by the scent from the kitchen, and couldn't help but wonder out loud as to whether there was bacon cooking in the kitchen to go with the burgers. Well, readers, let's just take a quick peek into the kitchen to answer that question, shall we?

A small assortment of Pokémon were to be found in the kitchen. Standing on the counter was Chance, Keith's Wartortle, and her eyes were glowing a bright blue as she used her Confusion attack to levitate a number of hamburger patties in midair. Her reason for doing so quickly became evident- a small Weedle, named Hermione, was crawling back and forth along the counter, personally inspecting each and every patty, and using her Firestream attack fairly frequently to take care of any undercooked spots she had missed. Of course, she wasn't actually firing the molten bubbles directly at the burgers, but rather, was sending them flying right past the burgers, at just the right angle for the heat that they gave off to have the desired effect. On occasion, she would request for Chance to rotate one of the burgers in midair so she could inspect the other side. Keith had, on several occasions, offered to buy an actual stove, but Hermione practically insisted on continuing to cook food in this manner- she believed that it allowed her to give the food more attention, to better ensure it was cooked thoroughly and to a decent temperature. If there was one thing Hermione enjoyed just as much as learning (and being in the company of her boyfriend Scorpius), it was cooking.

On the other side of the counter, there stood a Torkoal, who was balancing a frying pan on her shell. Said shell was radiating heat, and she was currently letting out some smoke, which was curiously moving from the holes in the shell directly into the frying pan, enveloping the contents of the pan, which consisted entirely of lots and lots of bacon. Shelley then sent a small wisp of smoke flying right in front of Hermione's face to get her attention, and indeed, the Weedle turned. "Coming, Shelley," Hermione said. She crawled over to the Torkoal, fired a String Shot at the ceiling, then reeled it in to rise up into the air and get a better view of the pan. She inspected the bacon, and eventually nodded her satisfaction. "All set," she confirmed as she lowered herself back down to the counter. "And just in time, too, the burgers are just about done by now. Thank you again, Shelley," she added. "Rydia was absolutely right- Torkoal smoke really does wonders for the taste of bacon, so I have no doubt this is going to be excellent." Shelley said nothing (as usual), and merely smiled and blushed slightly in response to the praise.

As the finishing touches were being put on the burgers, Okiku walked into the living room. She reached for a sandwich, but unfortunately for her, that sandwich happened to be on one of the platters that Vermillion, Jake's Torkoal, had targeted. As she muttered about having wanted some of those sandwiches, another platter was psychically placed down in its place.

"Sorry about that," came a voice, as a friendly-looking Shuppet floated over to Okiku, speaking in English as opposed to Shuppet language, and even without the creepy stutter that was more or less generally associated with the Shuppet line these days. "Luckily, we have plenty of sandwiches, so feel free to help yourself. And I think the burgers are almost done as well. Anyway, my name's Helena," she smiled. "What's yours?"


Meanwhile, on the second floor, a Shadow Ledian and a Pawniard were floating in midair, slowly circling each other, the latter doing so by way of Magnet Rise. Their eyes narrowed as they glared at each other.

"Well?" Stewie hissed. "Bring it on, vile woman."

"Oh, I'll bring it, you soulless sack of crap," Ginny growled, brandishing her blades. Then, following a quick upwards glance at the light fixture attached to the ceiling, the Pawniard angled her blades so they reflected the light directly into Stewie's eyes.

"Agh!" Stewie exclaimed as he raised two fists to shield his eyes. Seizing her chance, Ginny lunged forward, blade raised in preparation for the Scratch attack, but Stewie had other plans- remember, Ledian have four arms, and Stewie had only raised two to shield his eyes. And having fully predicted that this tactic might be followed up by a surprise attack, the Shadow Ledian unleashed Shadow Wave, sending Ginny flying backwards. Then, he charged forward, all four fists glowing with Fighting energy as he prepared his Mach Punch. Ginny, however, was ready for this, and veered out of the way of the attack before wheeling around and sending a Psycho Cut right in the Bug/Flying-type's direction. Stewie grunted as the attack met its mark, but did not retaliate right away. Instead, the two resumed slowly circling each other. Each eyed the other warily, neither of them saying a word, though Stewie's fists and Ginny's blades occasionally crackled threateningly with various energy types, as though to remind the opponent that an attack could come at any given moment.


Outside the house: Pom happily confirmed that he did indeed miss Cyanide, and offered her a choice between an apple or an orange. In response, Cyanide's eyes glowed blue once again, and the apple floated up out of the Ambipom's tail... hand... thingy... and over towards the Umbreon's mouth. She took a bite out of the apple, and once she had swallowed it, she grinned at Pom again. "Glad you could come, Pom," she said. "So, want to come inside?" she added, glancing over to the tree.


Elsewhere, Hyrem greeted his former Sawk. Ron nodded in response as Hyrem asked for confirmation of his new name. And then, a voice came from over near the swimming pool.

"Hey, Ron," called Peeves. "Hebenon says we should move the pool into the shade of one of the nearby trees so the sun won't be right in anyone's eyes. Can you help me out here?"

"Coming," Ron called back. He turned back to Hyrem, shook his hand, and went off to help the Dusclops move the heavy aboveground swimming pool.

[lilboocorsola]

Jessica, Keith, Marion, El, Hyrem, Jake, Okiku, Connor:

Jess nodded understandingly at Okiku’s hesitation.

“I considered wearing a dress too… But, heh, it’s really not my kind of thing either.”

At that moment, a blue bat-like being swooped down to greet Okiku and offer a ride up to the treehouse. Or at least that’s what Jess assumed by the silence between two Psychic specialists. The other girl turned and confirmed, inviting her to come up as well. The mention of food certainly piqued Jessica’s enthusiasm, and while she probably could’ve climbed the ladder herself, she waited politely for Luna’s promised return. Plus, it’s not every day you get to ride on an elevampire.

Pocketing the dropped keepsake for safekeeping, she gripped the lift and requested a rise to the second floor. Upon reaching the destination, she thanked the operator respectfully before giving a direct hello to Keith, who as host himself was exposing the access for all to enter. He welcomed her inside, where Jess could smell deliciousness wafting from the corridor to the left. However, she heard voices coming from the right, where she presumed the appetizers must be if people were gathered there instead. Remembering her purpose, she suppressed the temptation to take a sneak peek at the main course and steered towards the living room. There she spotted Okiku already nibbling on a sandwich, as well as the boys from before. She quickly scouted out her target and approached, holding out the Berry shyly.

“Um, hi. You, er, dropped this.”

She then noticed the dragon wrapped in El’s arms.

“Oh wow, is that a Shiny Gible? That’s so awesome!”

She blinked, blushed, then backed up the conversation a bit.

“Ah, sorry. I forgot to introduce myself. My name’s Jessica. What’s yours?”

Taki, Link, Coin, Himiko, Carla:

At Taki’s outburst, Coin tilted her head in confusion. She explained her side of the story, surprising Taki with her words.

“You… You never noticed anything… Strange?” In a whisper. “About me?”

She supposed she should be somewhat relieved, but the fact her “sister” stole from her despite that still stung – if not slightly more so. Such ignorance worked both ways. Even if it was with good intentions, Coin had never told her what those were.

“Y-you could have simply asked… I would’ve been happy to share… But…” She bit her lip, still fighting back tears as her voice regressed back to mere thought, speaking meekly from the mind rather than mouth. No one ever wanted to play with me…

[Missingno. Master]

As of today, my Secret Base has been renovated. This is now how the base is laid out:

Originally Posted by Missingno. Master

1f:

The floor you enter the Secret Base on, the first floor is generally where guests are invited to hang out. It's where Keith spends the majority of his day (provided that day is not otherwise occupied by adventuring or running errands, anyway).

Areas:
Entrance Hall: A narrow yet long corridor running from the front of the base all the way to the back. At one end is the front door, and at the other end, the stairs and elevator. In this hall are the doors leading to all the rooms on the first floor.

Living Room: The first door on your right, the living room contains a few seats, a large table, and an aquarium for all but the largest of aquatic Pokémon to enjoy a relaxing swim in. Keith frequently allows his Wartortle, Blue-Striped Basculin, Stunfisk, Tentacool, and two Qwilfish to swim around in here, so if your Pokémon is up to taking a dip, odds are they'll encounter at least one of them. Mounted on the wall above the coffee table is a TV, which also doubles as a videophone, as do all the television sets in the Base.

Play Room: The first door on your left, this room is mostly empty. Contains a few seats near the TV on the wall, but otherwise, it's a little empty. This, however, is for the purpose of allowing people and/or Pokémon to play in it or just basically do whatever they like. Near Christmastime, however, this is where Keith puts up the Christmas tree. Prior to the renovations, it went in the living room, but it made the room seem a tad crowded.

Kitchen: Second door on the left, the kitchen is where all the food is prepared. Though there is a distinctive lack of stove, oven, toaster, or any other cooking implements, this has not hindered Keith yet- Hermione, his Weedle, as it happens, is an extremely adept cook, and uses her Firestream attack to prepare food. Granted, she does require assistance to suspend the food in midair while she cooks it, but given the sheer number of Pokémon on the team that know Confusion or Psychic, finding such help is never such a difficult task for her. And if you follow your nose upon entering at the right time, you just might be able to bear witness to Hermione's cooking skills firsthand.

Dining Room: Second door on the right, this room consists of a long table and numerous chairs. Keith doesn't eat in this room very often unless he has company, usually preferring to take his meals in the living room- however, when he has guests, this is where the meals are served.

2f:

Originally consisting of a single bedroom, the second floor has recently been expanded to be more hospitable to guests. It can be accessed Areaeither by the stairs or the elevator.

Areas:
Hermione's Library: Once you get to the top of the stairs or get off the elevator, you're only a few steps away from the library. Numerous bookcases make up the back wall. The library contains mostly notebooks full of notes taken by Keith's Weedle on various subjects, but also includes other books. If she's not cooking, Hermione can generally be found in here, reading. That said, Keith has also been known to come in here to read every so often. Chuck, Keith's Haunter, has also been known to, ahem, haunt this place on occasion..

Keith's Bedroom: A bit of a step down in terms of size, Keith's bedroom mostly consists of his bed, a TV, and a clock (the closet's in there as well, but the door is hidden). He still has the double bed, despite his girlfriend having no memory of their relationship- he considers the idea of switching it out for a single bed to be an admission that all hope is lost for Coselle regaining her memory somehow, and in that regard, he will absolutely never lose hope.

Battle Room: This room has been set up with an elevated platform for the specific purpose of holding Pokémon battles. Trainers stand at either end, and the spacious platform is where the battles unfold. Seats have been provided in the room for the convenience of any spectators. This room generally only sees use when Keith has guests, but it is also where he and Meowth will train his Pokémon on rainy days (and thus days when training outside is not an option).

b1f:

This underground floor, Keith doesn't even know it exists. It's only accessible through the elevator by pressing a well-hidden button, which makes it descend directly through the tree trunk and deep underground. The room was funded, built, and furnished entirely by a certain Pokémon of Keith's, and woe betide anyone unfortunate enough to get caught by him in this room...

Areas:
Stewie's Lair: The room where Stewie the Shadow Ledian plots his world domination. Through the numerous screens on the wall, he can see into any room in the Base where there is a TV without anyone being any the wiser, as well as anywhere else he has cameras set up, though nobody is quite sure as to where he might have other cameras set up. As for the satellite dish and the PC, their purposes are unclear, but it's doubtful that Stewie got them to get more TV channels and play Solitaire, you know? To make the room seem even more ominous, Stewie has an arsenal of sharp weaponry hung lovingly on one wall, and a skull just sitting in the center of the room. The skull appears to be the only aspect of the room that is purely decorative, but with Stewie, you never know...

By no means do I intend for this to disrupt the current storyline. As everyone who has entered the base itself thus far has only gone into the living room, which is in the same place it always was, and is still set up in the same way, I feel this is not going to cause any real problems. Nevertheless, if you wish to venture into other rooms, please bear in mind that the base is to be treated as though these renovations have been in place the entire time. Thank you for your cooperation.

[Missingno. Master]

A minor renovation has been made to my Secret Base. As of now, all the windows and doors that I've been implying to be there the whole time, they are now there officially. Here are current images of the first and second floors for reference;

Oh, yeah, did I mention the indoor pool on the first floor? Because we now have an indoor pool on the first floor. Feel free to make use of it if for whatever reason the outdoor pool provided for the Re-Eeveening does not appeal to you. It can comfortably contain any aquatic Pokémon except Wailord. OK, and Kyogre, but honestly, is that one really gonna be a problem?

These changes are effective immediately, and are to be treated as though they have been in effect the entire time. Thank you for your cooperation.