All According to Plan+ Pt 8Droplet: Picnicker

Flying above the ground of Kanto, Jamie couldn’t help but feel slightly uneasy. While Iron Grace wasn't as scary as IT, she was very likely the target. Why? Was the concept of a Pikachu really that valuable in the grand scheme of things? Absolutely. IT had tried to kill them over it. Given the chance, she was bound to do it again.

Shoving that thought out of her head, Jamie reached out to Lucia’s hand. Feeling the mechanic grab hold, the anxiety faded away.

“Better?” Lucia whispered and Jamie nodded, the couple’s gaze staring downward. Viridian City laid right below, the Viridian City Gym shining greatest of all.

“Yeah.” Jamie answered and let out a deep breath. Feeling Zapdos gradually descended, that didn’t stop them from looking to see if there were any bird pokemon flying about. While none at the moment, it didn't hurt to check. Then it’s back to Lucia. "Have you ever been to one of these picnics?"

Lucia nodded.

“Yeah. She was quite young when I took her. That, and the base was in its no door phase.” Sapphire explained and was met with a look from Jamie. The part about the doors had to be a joke… right? There was no way that these people just let everyone go in and out without some kind of caveat… right?

“How did they prevent people from just walking in and… you know?” Jamie inquired, only to be met with a chuckle from Doc. Reaching into his pocket, out came a revolver. Brown leather handle met with that of a metal barrel assembly, it looked to be quite a powerful weapon.

“This is a Blitz Eelektross, standard service arm for agents before they were phased out in favor of pokemon. Even then, you just leave a pokemon by the door.” Doc explained and shoved the gun back into his pocket. Feeling Articuno shift ever so slightly, he took a moment to pet the freeze pokemon. A gesture well appreciated on her end.

“They phased firearms out right before Delia and I joined.” Billie announced as she shifted her seated position and Jamie looked over. While her and Delia were now her godmothers rather than her actual mothers, there were still questions that remained frustratingly unanswered.

“Delia, why exactly did you join Team Rocket?” Jamie inquired and Delia looked away. Meeting her fiancee’s gaze, a hand squeeze followed.

“I wanted to spite my mother.” Delia answered and caught a glimpse of her former daughter’s raised eyebrow. Expected here. “She was the sort to think she was so high and mighty. In truth, she was a liar, hag and lover of dragon pokemon. We had an argument and I walked out on her. Changed my name and found my people. Of course, I still made mistakes. But it all worked out… right?”

Jamie reluctantly nodded. While that explanation sounded sensible, the scientist felt as if she was grasping at straws here. Straws that her godmother didn’t seem keen on divulging any time soon.

“Is Jamie’s ‘grandmother’ still alive?” Lucia blurted out and Delia shook her head. Splitting her gaze between both teenage girls, a sigh escaped her lips.

“No, she supposedly died moments after Jamie was born.” Delia explained, her gaze shifting away from Jamie and Lucia and to the rapidly approaching ground below. “I heard about it via an Axew with a letter a couple days later. Something about next of kin or something dumb. Said I needed to go to Unova. I kindly told them to shove it and they left.”

Jamie’s attention turned to Lucia. While that wasn’t something that could be looked up here in Kanto, Unova… was a long way to go. Especially for a lead that wouldn’t likely help them in the long run.

“Uh… good to know?” Lucia answered as Zapdo landed. Getting off, the couple let Mawile and Hatterene out. Taking a moment to look around, their gaze shifted to what was ahead of them. Before the group was the Viridian City Gym. Relatively imposing as gyms go, the attention was on the side. There, a hatch awaited.

“Is that the entrance we’re looking for?” Jamie inquired as Mawile climbed up onto her shoulder. Taking a seat, it was likely to not last long. Especially if the hatch was the sort that required you to drop down into one at a time. Yeah. That made perfect sense.

“Yep. Good to know that some things haven’t changed.” Sapphire announced as she approached. Bending down, she opened the hatch up. Staring down within, care is taken to throw her bag down. Then she jumped down right after. Landing with a light thud, that was Doc’s cue to return his pokemon. Casually walking over to the hatch, he jumped down.

“Meowth, was this how you got me down to the Pokemon Land Rocket Base?” Jamie inquired as Jasmine set Meowth back down. The scratch cat pokemon headed over, taking the time to nod.

“Yeah. Wobuffet helped me open the hidden manhole hatch. We would’ve followed behind, but you know who was still on the prowl. That, and we had Pikachu to contend with. Do you know how hard it is to get him to go with you? It’s very hard.” Meowth explained and Jamie nodded. Looking over to her parents, she watched them throw their bag down as well. Following right behind, they motion for Meowth to do the same. “See you on the other side.”

Jamie held in a chuckle and watched Meowth jump down. Setting Mawile down beside her, she made the short walk over to the hatch. Staring down, it looked clear. Tossing her bag down, now came her turn. Holding Mawile close, the jump down is relatively easy. Scooping her bag back up, Jamie got off to the side. A perfect opportunity to look over the hallway. Compared to Pokemon Land’s or the Game Corner bases, this base had gone for polished concrete reinforced via metal beams with white and red tile. Working quite well here, it was a nice change of pace from those places. Staring ahead, it looked as if the hallway led into a four-way intersection. There, the rest of the group awaited.

“It’s just like I remembered it being.” Delia announced as she jumped down. Billie followed right behind with the pair’s bags. Handing Delia’s over, the former mother accepted the gift. Which just left Lucia and Hatterene to jump down. In this case, it was the former who jumped down first. Afterwards, Hatterene moved her partner’s bag down with their hat hand. Once she had done so, the silent pokemon made the drop down with quite a bit of grace. Afterwards, Lucia grabbed her bag. Just enough time for Mawile to get back on Jamie’s shoulder and get comfortable. Once she had, it was just a matter of following Delia and Billie up to the rest of their group.

“So was this the base you worked at?” Jamie inquired and caught a nod from Delia here. Nice as the confirmation was, her godmother had to know the next question she was about to ask. If not, the scientist could only hope that Delia would understand why she wanted to know. “Was this where you met my godfather?”

Silence fell over the hallway. Delia stared at the wall, muttering something at it for good measure. Reaching out to Billie’s hand, her fiancee grabbed hold and squeezed back.

“Dahlia, she deserves to know.” Billie whispered and watched Dahlia reluctantly force her gaze back to her former daughter. Fighting back the mix of emotions swirling across her mind, a sigh escaped her lips.

“Yes. It was… a marriage of convenience. Brought about as a result of circumstances that required us to lie low.” Dahlia explained, her gaze split between Billie and Jamie at the moment. “He perished at the hands of a ‘rocket executive’. Not that any of our actual executives looked anything like that bitch did.”

The words rolled out and Jamie nodded. Nice as the confirmation was, that didn’t make it any better. So she reached out to Lucia’s hand.

“Uh… thank you for telling us.” Jamie answered as they reached their companions. Ignoring the sound of the hatch closing up, that was their cue to turn and face them.

“The changing rooms are to the right. Can I trust you to get changed and then wait outside?” Jessie inquired and Jamie nodded. Following behind the group, Jamie reached out to her girlfriend’s hand. Grabbing hold, Lucia gave it a squeeze.

“Is this what you expected?” Lucia cooed and Jamie looked away. Cheeks ablaze, the answer was quite obvious. Even if it did feel a touch early to ask that question. Oh well. Jamie could look past that part here as their destination came into view. In this case, that meant a bunch of doorways with the sign - ‘changing’ room proudly displayed off to the side. Yep, there was no doubting it. “Hatterene, do you think you could look after Mawile for a moment?”

Hatterene nodded.

“Hat.” she added and pulled Mawile down. Seated in Hatterene’s hair, she took the time to hug them. With that out of the way, Jamie and Lucia entered the changing room. Closing the door behind them, care is taken to set their bags down and look the area over. Much like the area outside, this too was relatively unassuming. Just enough space for a pair of grunts to get out of their civilian’s clothes and into their uniform. While they would need to change back into these clothes before leaving this place, that could be looked past here.

Stripping out of their clothes, the couple wasted little time in getting into their grunt uniforms. While their normal attire when it came to working, something about this occasion felt different. Likely in relation to this being more of a celebration than that of an operation. That was probably the reason here.

“You look amazing.” Jamie announced and watched Lucia’s cheeks turn pink. Muttering exited her lips, a similar compliment followed as their gazes shifted to the mirror. While Lucia still had a slight height advantage, Jamie was very much catching up in that regard. Whether or not she would eventually become taller than her girlfriend, remained to be seen. “I’m so excited.”

Reaching out Lucia’s hand, Jamie grabbed hold. Met with a squeeze, the scientist squeezed back and scooped her bag up. Lucia did the same, turning to face her girlfriend right after.

“Ready?” she whispered and Jamie nodded. Looking in the direction of the door, they used their free hands to open the door and exit.

Outside, Mawile and Hatterene patiently waited. Turning to face their trainers, smiles hung on both pokemon’s faces.

“Maw!” Mawile announced and was treated to a pet. Afterwards, Jamie watched the deceiver pokemon go around to her back and climb up to her shoulder. Taking a seat there, Mawile waved to Hatterene. In turn, Hatterene waved back. Then it’s back to watching the various changing rooms in anticipation of seeing their occupants. Thankfully, she didn’t need to wait long for the next group to walk out. In this particular case, that was Jessie, Jasmine and Meowth. The first two were adorned in the white grunt uniform. Fitting both women quite well, that did make Meowth the odd one out. Not that the scratch cat pokemon minded.

“Uh… how do I look?” Jasmine inquired and watched Jamie flash a thumbs-up in her direction. Cracking a smile in her daughter’s direction, she and the rest of her companions got off to the side. Just in time for Doc to step out. Dressed relatively the same, the only difference was a red ‘R’ pin. Battered and on the verge of breaking into pieces, it fitted perfectly on him.

“Looking sharp, dad.” Jessie cooed and Jamie nodded in agreement. Not even responding, Doc instead got off to the side. The perfect opportunity for Mawile to give him a small hug. In turn, she was hugged back.

“Thanks.” he muttered as Sapphire stepped out. Dressed in her usual black uniform, she confidently walked over to her daughter. Even if that did bring Jamie’s attention over.

“Sapphire, can I ask you a question?” Jamie inquired and was met with a nod from Sapphire. Bending down to meet the scientist’s gaze, it was a nice touch. “What exactly is your occupation in Team Rocket?”

Sapphire chuckled.

“Scouting, believe it or not.” Sapphire answered and was met with a nod from Jamie. Afterwards, the scout pulled out a nest ball. Giving it a tap, out popped a Rhydon. Gazing at Jamie for a couple seconds, their attention shifted to Lucia. Taking care to hug the mechanic, Lucia hugged Rhydon back. “Aw…”

Lucia’s cheeks turned red. Muttering something at the wall, that was the end of the embrace with the drill pokemon. Getting off to the side to the best of their ability, they chose to stand by their trainer. Which just left Delia and Billie as the last ones still changing.

“Sorry about that.” Delia announced as she stepped out. Dressed in the white grunt uniform, her heeled boots tap against the floor out of frustration. Billie exited right after, dressed much as she was before.

A Haxorus followed right behind, trying their best to act as a helper of sorts. Even if it was clear that Delia at least wasn’t particularly interested in that kind of help right now.

“You’re worse than my mother’s Haxorus. And that’s saying something.” Delia muttered and caught a look from Haxorus. Attempting to look away, Haxorus’s gaze hung onto the former mother. Lasting a couple seconds, it was long enough for Delia to mutter something under her breath. Yet, that doesn’t stop her from giving them a very reluctant pet.

Turning to face Billie, she ignored the look Jamie and Lucia were giving here. While the temptation to dig deeper here was there, this was definitely not the time to begin asking those questions. No, their focus instead needed to be on enjoying themselves at the picnic. Yet, an obvious question hung in the air as they headed back towards the intersection.

“Delia, did you bring anyone else beyond Sceptile?” Jamie inquired and Delia chuckled. Shooting her godmother a look, the chuckling turned into full blown laughter. By no means a clue, the scientist had a pretty good idea.

“It’s a secret to everyone.” Delia cooed and Jamie let out a sigh. As much as she wanted to say who she thought it was, it was probably best to drop the conversation. Especially as they reached the intersection.

“The ‘picnic’ area is to our left.” Doc explained and was met with nods from the rest of the group. Heading off once more, Jamie’s gaze shifted to Lucia. Reaching out to her hand, the mechanic grabbed hold and squeezed tight.

“Better?” Lucia whispered and Jamie nodded. Turning to the rest of her group, she pulled her girlfriend over to her parents. Catching up with ease, they were met with their smiles.

“I’m guessing you’re going to stay with us, Jamie?” Jessie inquired and Jamie nodded. Mawile copied her trainer, gaze shifting to Haxorus. Perhaps that could be done once they stopped. Jamie would be more than willing to let her do that.

“That’s my plan at least.” Jamie answered as she patted Mawile’s head. Feeling the deceiver pokemon, she was met with a hug to her head. Lasting only a second, it felt surprisingly good. Even in the face of the massive crowd of grunts that awaited up ahead. A mix of grunts (current and former), they were all dressed in the standard uniform.

“Maw?” Mawile inquired and Jamie set her partner down. Walking over to Haxorus, care was taken to hug them. Or at least, try too on account of Haxorus inching back. Stopped by Billie, she bent down to meet her partner’s gaze.

“She isn’t going to bite. No, Mawile just wants to give you a hug.” Billie explained and Haxorus reluctantly nodded. Heading back over to Mawile, they allow the deceiver pokemon to hug them. Just in time for bayleef to appear. Stomping up and down a couple times, an attempt was made to get over to Jamie and Mawile.

“Bay!” Bayleef announced as she tried to slam her entire body weight onto her former trainer. As she did so, light engulfed the leaf pokemon.

“Crap. I was kind of afraid of this.” Delia announced as Jamie managed to get her clingy ex-girlfriend off of her body. Pulling out Ferrothron’s ball, she watched it open up. Ferrothorn appeared, not quite certain what to make of the currently evolving Bayleef. “Oh. Ferroseed evolved?”

Jamie nodded and watched Mawile walk over to her ‘sibling’. Giving one of Ferrothorn’s legs a hug, her attention shifted to that of Bayleef once more. Growing taller, her skin looked to take on a nice shade of green. Massive flower petals had sprouted from her neck, making the additional height all the more noticeable.

“Meganium!” Meganium announced as the light dissipated, taking one more chance at ‘hugging’ her former trainer. All that accomplished was Ferrothorn getting between them and Jamie. Nothing in the way of affection, though.

“Her name is Jamie, for the record.” Meowth announced and got a look from the herb pokemon here. Even as Mawile took the time to give her a hug. Accepting the gesture, that didn’t stop her from shooting Jamie a look. Then it’s back into her ball.

“Sorry about that.” Delia announced and Jamie shook her head. While she had hoped that her interaction at Oak’s Ranch would be enough, it was sadly not. Almost to be expected with Meganium. The scientist could look past that.

“It’s alright. I guess she still had feelings for me.” Jamie muttered and looked in the direction of the crowd. While thinning out, there were still some stragglers ahead preventing them from passing through. For now, she bent down and met Ferrothorn’s gaze. “How are you feeling, Ferrothorn?”

Ferrothorn let out a happy cry and watched Mawile climb up Jamie’s back side. Taking a seat on her shoulder once more, Ferrothorn waved one of their barbs about. In turn, they were met with a wave from Mawile.

“Ferro?” Ferrothorn inquired and pointed to their ball. Jamie nodded and returned them to it. While she wouldn’t have minded the iron barbs pokemon being out a bit longer, this was a touch too small of a place for them.

Standing up, she took the time to ensure that Mawile didn’t fall off. Once that was done, her attention shifted to Lucia.

“I’m surprised you haven’t brought Brionne out yet.” Jamie cooed and Lucia held in a chuckle. While it would definitely help with getting through the crowd, then there was the matter of getting said grunts to not focus on Brionne and clog things up once more. The last thing that they wanted here.

“Once we get to the picnic area proper, then I will. Okay?” Lucia answered and Jamie nodded. Shifting their attention ahead, the crowd had finally thinned out. Billie took a moment to return Goodra to their ball. Sapphire did the same, taking her place near Lucia. An appropriate cue for the mechanic to let go of her girlfriend’s hand. In turn, Jamie reached out to Jessie’s hand. Grabbing hold, Jamie was treated to a light squeeze. Feeling quite good on her gloved hand, the scientist turned her attention. From here, she could just make out a massive square box. Done up to mimic that of an artificial plains, it reminded her of Professor Oak’s Ranch. Not that Jamie could put her finger on what or why exactly.

“Would it be wrong of me to assume that Giovanni had this purposefully built as a way to keep himself and the grunts from going stir crazy?” Jamie inquired and Jasmine nodded. Shifting her attention ahead, a deep breath escaped her lips.

“Pretty much. Not that this facility stopped someone from killing Giovanni.” Jasmine explained and was met with a look from Jamie here. While she knew her mom was telling the truth here, it didn’t feel any less bizarre to be brought up now. At the same time, it was kind of admirable that the group was still standing.

“Did they find whoever was responsible?” Jamie inquired and was met with head shakes from her parents. While the scientist’s first thoughts were that of IT, she seemed unlikely. Far too comfortable with picking off random grunts on the assumption that her target would eventually walk up and just let her get transformed/killed. No, it almost felt like someone who was ballsy enough to get in and out without anyone noticing. Jamie shoved that thought out of her head. Stepping through, a variety of picnic blankets were the first thing to greet them. A handful of them had grunts with their families, while others were awaiting picking out. Scanning the area for a spot that her family, Lucia’s and the rest of the entourage could sit. Eventually, her gaze came upon a spot that would work perfectly. Pointing in that general direction, they headed off in that direction. Lucia and company followed right behind. Once there, they took a seat on the blankets. “You can come back out now, Ferrothorn.”

Watching Ferrothorn reappear from their ball, they take a moment to move to a spot where the blankets aren’t. Easier said than done when the heavy ball decided that the best spot to release them was right in the middle of said blankets. What followed was the careful movements of barbs to not accidentally tear any more holes in the blankets. Even then, there were still a couple moments where it looked like they might accidentally fall over. Thankfully, Jamie was there to keep them from accidentally tipping over.

“Ferro.” Ferrothorn announced as Mawile jumped down. Taking a seat on the blanket, Hatterene was not that far behind. Waving in their friend’s direction, the iron barb pokemon waved back.

“Why don’t you come out too, Brionne.” Lucia cooed and tapped the ball against her palm. Watching it open up, Brionne appeared on the blanket. Bringing his flippers together, care was taken to crawl over to Mawile and Hatterene. Getting a hug from the former, the latter took the opportunity to pat the pop star pokemon’s head.

“Aw…” Jasmine cooed as Victreebel popped out. Latching onto her head, the former grunt took care to pull the flycatcher pokemon off and set them off to the side.

“Mawile, it might not be best to hug that pokemon.” Jamie suggested and watched her partner look over to Victreebel. Giving them a wave, Victreebel waved back.

“Yeah. It’s probably for the best.” Jessie added as Wobbuffet took his place beside her. Getting a pet, that was the patient pokemon’s cue to walk over to Mawile. Patting them on the head, he was treated to a hug.

“Wobb.” Wobbufet cooed as he headed back over to Jessie. Sitting down to the best of his abilities, that was easier said than done. While he did that, Doc dug into his pockets. Out came Articuno’s poke ball. Tossing up into the air and letting it fall back down into his hand, Articuno was let out. Heading over to their partner, they carefully rub their neck against Doc’s head.

“Hi again, Articuno.” Jamie greeted and waved in Articuno’s direction. Articuno waved back with one of her wings, watching the scientist shift her attention over to Doc.

“How has your new ‘wife’ been?” Lucia inquired and watched Doc’s face turn red. Forcing his gaze to meet the couple, a sigh escaped her lips.

“It’s not the same, but I’m managing.” Doc muttered and stared down at the blanket. Closing his eyes, he tried his hardest to latch onto anything related to Miyamoto. Yet, those memories remain frustratingly out of reach. Opening his eyes up, his gaze remained. “I know Lugia was very much trying to soften the blow, but this isn’t helping. No offense to you, Articuno.”

Articuno nodded, watching Mawile head her way. Bending down to meet the deceiver pokemon to the best of her abilities, she was treated to a hug. A far cry from Doc’s affection, it still felt divine. “She tried to make coffee the other day in Delia’s home. While the end result worked, they didn’t appreciate the mess made.”

Delia nodded, Sceptile and Meganium being let out right after. Looking over the rest of the group, they took a step back upon seeing Articuno. Hiding behind Delia, she stepped off to the side.

“Perhaps it would help if you two at least tried to be sociable to her.” Delia explained as she pushed both grass pokemon in that direction. Articuno raised a wing up and was met with very reluctant vine waves. Not that she was expecting anything else here. Instead, her attention turned to that of Lucia.

“Articuno arctic.” Articuno announced and shot Meowth a look. The scratch cat pokemon gulped, but nodded nonetheless. Definitely best to leave sleeping houndoom to their rest than open up that can of worms. Especially as both of Billie’s balls opened up to reveal Haxorus and Dragonite. Scanning the area a couple times, they elected to take a seat near Delia. Which just left Sapphire as the odd one out.

“Come back out, Rhydon.” Sapphire announced and tapped the pokeball. Watching Rhydon reappear, their gaze focused on Articuno. Pulling their head back in disbelief, it’s over to Sapphire here.

“Yeah. He finally did it. I was just as surprised as you were when I heard the news.” Sapphire answered as she watched her partner take a seat on the picnic blanket. Taking care to not accidentally tear it up, they got a light pat on the head.

“So we’re just waiting for the food to arrive?” Jamie inquired and got a nod from her mothers. Shifting her focus over to Lucia, the temptation to go over and sit beside her was there. Yet, she

“Yep. Everyone eats and then they play a bunch of games.” Lucia answered and was met with a nod from her girlfriend. Standing up, she made her way over to Jamie and her parents. Brionne and Hatterene followed right behind. Though, it was more Hatterene picking Brionne up with her hat hand and casually walking over with the pop star pokemon. Setting him down in Lucia’s lap, that didn’t stop Brionne from gazing about every which way.

“We heard about what happened the other day at the Cerulean Cave base.” Jasmine announced, silence falling upon this particular part of the blanket. Jamie let out a deep breath and looked over to Lucia. Getting a nod, her attention shifted back to Jessie and Jasmine.

“Do you know something, by any chance? Any information would be beneficial.” Jamie added and her parents looked at each other. Whispers echoed forth, none of which either teenage girl could clearly make out. Even if they could, the information likely wouldn’t help them here.

“There were always rumors of a serial killer who only killed Rocket grunts. Reports always claimed a woman with long blonde hair was the one responsible. But no one had a name for her. Until now, that is.” Jessie explained and Jamie nodded. While knowing that she had confirmed a myth was quite nice, the fact that she had been terrorizing rocket grunts for a number of years was concerning.

“Has she even gone after, say, an admin or Giovanni himself?” Jamie inquired and shifted her gaze to Doc. Staring down at the blanket, a sigh escaped his lips. Even as Delia shot the former admin a look to boot.

“No, but there was also the rumor of another woman - one with raven black locks and eyes so dark you would think that you were staring into the abyss.” Doc explained and met his granddaughter’s gaze. Looking over to Articuno, an expression of fear came over the freeze pokemon. “My apologies. I didn’t know that would set you off.”

Articuno shook her head and opened her mouth. Before she could speak, a grunt holding some picnic baskets walked up. Setting them down in such a way that everyone could grab from them, they head off to grab more picnic baskets to hand out to grunts.

“Art articuno.” Articuno announced and looked over to Doc. Giving the freeze pokemon a nod, he carefully opened their picnic basket up. Just in time for Sapphire and Rhydon to close the distance ever so slightly. Bringing the picnic basket with them, Lucia looked their way.

“Sorry, mom.” Lucia cooed and watched Sapphire open her picnic basket as well. Pulling out a sandwich wrapped in saran wrap, she threw it over to her daughter. Lucia managed to grab it. Staring down at it, she took the moment to unwrap it and break it in half. Handing one half to Hatterene’s hat hand, she carefully handed the other half to Brionne. The pop star pokemon stared at it for a couple seconds, but eventually accepted the food.

“Someone is looking awfully cute…” Jamie cooed as Jessie handed her two sandwiches. Unwrapping the first sandwich, she broke it in half. Handing the halves to her pokemon, she watched them dig in. Unwrapping the second, she took a bite. By no means awful, it did make her miss the sandwiches that Brock would make on their travels. “Hopefully he’s doing better.”

Shoving that thought away, the scientist’s gaze shifted to her parents. Currently trying to keep Victreebel from eating the wrapping, that was easier said than done here. Once they had done so, Meowth pulled out a couple bottles of lemonade.

“Thirsty?” the scratch cat pokemon inquired and Jamie nodded. Getting handed a lemonade, she took the utmost care in opening the bottle. Made the refreshing drink within all the more worth it.

“Do you want a little bit of my lemonade, Mawile?” Jamie whispered and watched her partner stare at the drink. Shaking her head, Mawile turned her attention back to the sandwich. As for Jamie, she focused on Ferrothorn. Stepping closer, it took a moment for the iron barbs pokemon to notice their trainer holding out the bottle of lemonade. “How about you, Ferrothorn?”

Ferrothorn bobbed their main body up and down, the closest they could get to a nod. Holding the bottle of lemonade out, care was taken in getting Ferrothorn to drink. Once they had done so, Jamie finished the drink off.

“So do these picnics provide desert or is that something you have to bring yourself?” Jamie inquired, only to be met with a chuckle from Billie. Shooting her a look back, that brought with it a look from Dragonite as well. A look from Delia was enough to stop him here.

“They used too, but problems with getting sugar down here forced them to stop.” Billie explained, only to be met with a raised eyebrow from Jamie. While she couldn’t remember exactly the last time she had been to a sweets shop (the tropical delights place didn’t count), it had to have been somewhere in maybe Hoenn. Yeah. That sounded right.

“There’s always snow.” Jessie suggested and was treated to a look from Billie. Doc held in a chuckle, somehow managing to get it out without anyone noticing. At least, not within the main group. Articuno had very much noticed, but decided to rest her neck on his head.

“Uh… care to explain?” Lucia inquired and Jessie stared down at the blanket. Taking a moment to compose herself, a deep breath escaped her lips.

“After my first mother died, I was taken in by a second. When the winter came in, she would make a big deal out of snow and the various things that could be made from it.” Jessie explained and met Jamie and Lucia’s gazes. Both girls nodded and met their speaker’s gaze. “Looking back on it, I’m not particularly certain if she was crazy or if I was just missing something here. Heck, it could possibly be both.”

Jamie opened her mouth, but closed it right after.

“Is your second mother still around?” she inquired and Jessie shook her head. Reaching out to Jasmine’s hand, her partner squeezed it as tight as possible.

“No. She passed on.” Jessie answered as she let go of Jasmine’s hand. Letting out a sigh, she sipped her lemonade and took a bite of her sandwich. Then it’s back over to Jamie. “If you’re done, why don’t you head to the opposite side of the room and try some of the games?”

Jamie’s face went red. Focusing on Lucia, she watched her girlfriend stand up. Motioning for her pokemon to follow behind, the mechanic reached out. Jamie grabbed hold and the couple headed off. Taking a moment to check that everyone was still with them, the actual walk over to where the games were located was relatively brisk. A mix of board games, tabletop stuff like pool and even a couple arcade cabinets, there was something for everyone. Yet, a thought seemed to bounce about Jamie’s mind as they got close. One brought about from earlier.

“I’m surprised that Iron Grace didn’t follow us.” Jamie whispered as the group got off to the side. Waiting a moment for Mawile to get up on her shoulder, she watched Lucia head over to the arcade machine. Following right behind, her gaze shifted to that of the title near the top of the cabinet - Astro Invaders. Decorated with clefairy in saucers, it reminded the scientist of her time as a trainer. Yeah, that was certainly a day in her life back then.“Oh yeah. Clefairy are aliens.”

Jamie was met with a look from her girlfriend. At this point, Lucia wasn’t even that surprised. What next? Some other kind of

“Care to tell me more about that lil adventure of yours?” Lucia joked and made room for Jamie at the controls. Putting their hands on them, that was the mechanic’s cue to start the game up.

“Yeah. Brock, Misty and I got robbed by a bunch of them. We gave chase and found ourselves helping the jigglypuff that was always following around to deal with them.” Jamie explained and Lucia held in a chuckle. Of course her girlfriend would run into a group of clefairy from another world. That was so her.

“Do you know if they made it back to wherever they came from?” Lucia continued as the game started up. Lines of pixelated saucers in rows came down, bringing with them nothing in the way of the titular clefairy.

“Last I heard was that they were raiding villages. But that was only because Dorothea kicked their asses with an arbok. Supposedly.” Jamie explained as she got to blasting. Shooting Lucia a look, she was met with silence.

“Weird. What about the jigglypuff?” Lucia inquired and Jamie looked away. For once, a part of her own adventure remained a mystery.

“I wish I knew. They were quite a nuisance when it came to putting people to sleep and then drawing on their faces.” Jamie explained as Mawile leaned forward. Entranced by the action on the screen, it would take a considerable amount of willpower to peel her away once they were finished. It would probably be a bit before that happened thou-

Or not, judging by the way the saucers were coming down now. Was this simply a case of them doing too well now or was there something else in play here? Eh. Didn’t matter in the grand scheme of things.

“Any fun stories from work?” Jamie inquired as she waved a hand in front of Mawile’s head. Snapping the deceiver pokemon’s gaze back to the present, their attention turned to the mechanic.

“Someone claimed that we had something called a MechaMew in storage. Even if we did, such a robot would likely not be useful.” Lucia explained as the group headed over to what looked to be a foosball table. Grabbing a paddle, she handed it over to Hatterene. While she did that, Jamie grabbed the other paddle and handed it to Mawile. “You both need to swing the paddle at the ball in the hopes of scoring against your opponent, okay?”

Hatterene and Mawile nodded, watching Jamie set the ball down. Hatterene floated it over, taking care to let it bounce before hitting it. Sent flying to Mawile’s side, she managed to hit it back just in time. Just barely clearing the net, Hatterene responded with an even stronger hit. This time, Mawile was unable to get to it in time. Landing right at her feet, she carefully picked it up. Attempting to bounce the ball and hit it, all it accomplished was her missing the ball entirely and swinging at the air. Picking the ball back up, she managed to get it this time.

“Bri.” Brionne announced as Lucia scooped him up. Holding the pop star pokemon up to watch, he tried his best to cheer. Hatterene appreciated the efforts. Ferrothorn did the same, doing their best to avoid their limbs accidentally colliding with the foosball table. Easier said than done here, but they managed quite well. Especially when the ball came awfully close to hitting them

“Hat.” Hatterene muttered and stared at Mawile. While she was a good opponent, they had to be getting to match point… right? These kinds of games had that sort of thing in order to prevent them from going on forever. Unless their humans weren’t keeping track. Which was also completely possible.

“Last round?” Jamie inquired and got a nod from both sides. Watching Mawile serve, she hit the ball with all her might. Having now gotten the hang of this, she hit with all her might and watched it soar across the net. In turn, Hatterene responded by swinging the paddle into said ball as hard as her hat hand would allow her to do so. So hard in fact that the silent pokemon came awfully close to smashing a ball-shaped hole through the racket. Nonetheless, the ball headed back over to Mawile’s side.

“Maw.” the deceiver pokemon announced and dived towards the ball to make a save. Attempting to prevent her opponent from scoring, all that accomplished was the ball bouncing and landing on the floor.

“And Hatterene is our winner here.” Lucia announced as her partner headed over to the net. Waiting a moment for Mawile to do the same, the pair shook hands. Then it’s back over to their partners. For now, Lucia shifted her focus to Jamie. “Anything else that’s catching your fancy?”

Jamie brought a hand to her chin. Was there anything else that had caught her fancy here? While there were board games here, none of them looked to be a quick affair. Especially with their entourage. No, they needed something else to keep them entertained for a bit lo-

Jamie didn’t get to finish that thought, mostly on the account of ceiling tiles falling to the floor. Staring up, what looked to be a white humanoid bug pokemon jumped down. Battered brown eyes stare about the area, eventually settling on Jamie and Lucia. Charging for the couple, locks of jet black hair move about. Oddly, a blue evening dress covered their body.

“Crap.” Jamie muttered and stepped out of the way. Just in time for the strange pokemon to attempt to kick her. Kicking the foosball table instead, a look of death hung to their face.

“Maw?” Mawile announced and shot the strange bug pokemon a look. She wanted to give this strange pokemon a hug, but that didn’t look to be an option. At least, initially. Perhaps if they managed to beat it down, maybe she would get the opportunity.

“Please kill me.” her possible opponent whispered and Mawile stared back. She couldn’t have heard that… right? Shifting her attention over to Jamie, she was met with a look of confusion. Pointing in the direction of this strange pokemon, she was perhaps not the only one here who didn’t know how to feel about this.

“Why?” Jamie countered, only to be met with high-pitched ‘pheromosa’. While likely their name, that didn’t change the fact that they reminded the scientist of herself. Why exactly and for what reason, was a mystery to her.

“Because she commands us to kill you in retaliation for what you did. Pheromosa, you know what to do.” a different voice announced, bringing with it a man dressed in a white jumpsuit. A white mob cap sat comfortably on his head, his gaze focused right on Jamie and Lucia.

“What are you even talking about?” Lucia shouted, her question falling on deaf ears as Phermosa took a swing. Dodging out of the way in time, she set Brionne back down. Facing down Pheromosa, this felt like a fair match. Whether or not it actually was, remained to be seen.

“You know what you did. It’s right on your face!” the man announced, only for Mawile to walk up and attempt to hug him. For that gesture, the deceiver pokemon was kicked back over to Jamie.

“Uh… I honestly don’t.” Jamie responded as she helped Mawile back onto her feet. Staring back at Pheromosa, a look of sadness hung over the limosse pokemon’s face. In a way, the scientist pitied her here. She likely had a long life ahead of her before this mess had turned her into that pokemon. “Could you maybe clue us in or is that considered confidential information?”

Pheromosa brought a hand up to their chin. Trying to hide their laughter, that did not go over well with her handler.

“Dirty creature! What the hell makes you think that you are worthy of something more than being under my foot?!” the handler announced, blissfully unaware of the approach of Billie and Delia’s pokemon. Articuno was right behind them, leaving Sapphire and Jamie’s parents’ pokemon to bring up the rear here.

“Mawile, use Vice Grip on Pheromosa!” Jamie called out and Mawile charged for her opponent.
Ducking under a swing, she let her head jaws grab hold of the lissome pokemon’s arm.

“Hatterene, confusion!” Lucia called out and Hatterene focused on her opponent. Projecting out a low telekinetic field, she took care to not accidentally dislodge Mawile. Easier said than done, but the silent pokemon managed quite well. Even as their opponent’s trainer got angrier by the moment. Flipping grunts off, Victreebel was making a beeline for his head. Jumping up, it slipped with an ease expected of a pokemon who did this often. Even if the person in question didn’t want it in the slightest.

“Idiot.” Pheromosa announced as Ferrothorn approached. Slamming one of their leg barbs into her legs, she staggered back. Electricity cackled across her body, pokemon instincts overriding her wish for an end. Letting forth a shock wave, that wasn’t enough to knock Mawile off. It did prevent the blast of water from Brionne. Not that it would’ve done anything here. “Let go of me. You’re making it harder for things to end if you don’t.”

Jamie raised an eyebrow and reached out to Lucia’s hand. Feeling the mechanic grab hold, she let out a deep breath.

“So are you just suicidal or is there a reason for you wish to die?” Jamie countered and met Pheromosa’s gaze. Why did her eyes look so familiar to her? What was setting it off so easily? Then it hit her. This was another version of her. While she had likely

“I don’t belong here - a mere tool in their hands in order to cause havoc and strife. Better to cut to the root rather than let me gro-” Pheromosa announced, only to be cut off by her handler deciding enough was enough. Taking the form of some kind of syringe gun, he shot her. Pheromosa’s eyes went red, bringing with it a boost of strength.

“What the fuck over?!” Delia screeched and charged in the direction of the man. Before she could close the distance, a Goodra of all pokemon appeared out of Billie’s bag. Rushing over to the godmother, they scooped Delia up by her arms. Flailing about within, she made no progress in getting out of the dragon pokemon’s grip.

“Behold! The glory of the Aether Foundation!” the handler announced, gloating while Victreebel kept their grip over his head. Even if they hadn’t, his words would’ve likely fallen on deaf ears.

“I guess we’re done talking then?” Jamie inquired as Pheromosa swung her arms about. Attempting to knock Mawile off, all it accomplished was her vice grip digging in that much deeper into her arm. Glaring down at the deceiver pokemon, she was met with a confused look. Not that gesture stopped her from attempting to continue ripping her off.

“Ferrothorn, spikes!” Jamie called out and watched her other partner nod. Doing their best to not accidentally hit Mawile, Ferrothorn threw a bunch of barbs right in Pheromosa’s face. For a brief moment, clarity returned to the limosse pokemon’s eyes. But it wasn’t meant to last. The red in her eyes took hold right after, bringing with it an attempted lunge by Pheromosa.

“Hatterene, Disarming Voice!” Lucia called out and Hatterene let out a scream of sorts. Catching her off-guard, that took some of the pressure off of Ferrothorn. Not by much, but enough that they could reposition.

“Kill, kill, kill…” Pheromosa responded and decided now was as good of a time as any to swing Mawile into Jamie here. The scientist ducked down, doing her best to avoid both her partner and the limosse pokemon. Just managing to dodge in time, that was also Mawile’s cue to let go. Landing back on the group, she let out a snarl and stared up at her handiwork. While doing good work, it was not even close to slowing Pheromosa down. While that could just be the result of the ‘enhancement’, this pokemon was likely far stronger than they were. But, she couldn't let that get her down. No, Jamie meant the world to her. This was not the end of their story. Yet, that didn’t stop her from oddly closing her eyes.

“Mawile?” Jamie called out, her mind being oddly reminded of the encounter with IT. She couldn’t say for certain why that was the first thing that came to mind here, but it was. Especially as a cocoon of pink light formed around her partner’s body. Looking over to Lucia, the scientist was met with a similar sight. Just the cocoon being more ovaloid than circular here.

“What is the meaning of this?! That shouldn’t be possible!” the handler announced and got a look from his opponents. Then it was right back to beating his ass. As for Jamie and Lucia, their attention shifted to their respective partners. While they didn’t quite understand what was going on here, something about it felt right. Even if it was bound to be temporary and/or hard to recreate.

“MAW!” Mawile screeched as cracks formed across her cocoon. Shattering right after, a slightly taller Mawile with much larger head mouths now stood beside Jamie. Magenta pants came up to her partner’s waist, matching the cuffs that hung near the end of her hands. The finishing touch is that of the longer head ribbons hanging down.

“Mawile?” Jamie called out, watching her partner jump up. Catching her in the nick of time, the scientist was treated to a hug. Setting ‘Mawile’ back down right after, Jamie looked over to Lucia. Hatterene’s cocoon had shattered, revealing a couple hair tendrils coming out of Hatterene’s body. Beyond that, the silent pokemon looked pretty much the same.

“Ready to take another stab at this?” Lucia inquired and got a nod from her girlfriend. Focusing on Pheromosa, the couple watched their partners charge for the limosse pokemon.

“Get them, you idiot!” the handler screeched, his order reluctantly being followed. Taking a swing at Mawile, they were met by both of her head jaws grabbing hold and biting down into her arm. Tearing it clean off, it’s thrown off to the side. Just in time for Hatternene to blast their opponent with a beam. Knocking Pheromosa back, a massive hole through the dress and cleanly through her chest was on full display. Yet, that isn’t enough to stop the limosse pokemon from fighting. If anything, that was all the more reason for the handler to attempt another dart. Thankfully, he was prevented from doing so by Articuno.

“Finish me, you cowards!” Pheromosa screeched as her opponents approached. Trying her hardest to remain upright, it’s Mawile who made the first move. Going with a hug, the gesture was reluctantly accepted by the limosse pokemon. As for Hatterene, she chose to use her tendrils to give a hug as well. That was all it took here. Death granted to a lady whose dreams were stolen from her.

“Maw.’ Mawile answered as she turned around. Pulling Hatterene back around as well, the pair headed back to their partners.

“Hey! This is a fight!” the handler announced as he managed to get free from the onslaught of pokemon intent on teaching him a lesson. Breathing a sigh, that’s the last thing he got to do before his head was cleanly blown off by a laser. Gazing about in search of the source of said attack, the couple didn’t need to look far. Staring up to the hole created by Pheromosa and her handler, Iron Grace was staring down.

“We are not even, for the record. Perhaps some other day we could solve our differences. Today is not that day though.” Iron Grace announced as Mawile and Hatterene reverted back to their regular states. Falling to the floor, that didn’t stop Mawile from attempting to give Iron Grace an air hug. A gesture the robot embrace pokemon accepted before taking her leave.

“Fuck.” Jamie muttered and forced her gaze away from Pheromosa’s body. Finding Lucia’s gaze, the scientist embraced her beloved. Pulling her in close, what looked to be a kiss was snuck in. Even in the face of her existence being used by others for their own nefarious means. All the more reason to show them wrong. For now, she and Lucia needed to get through the birthdays and all that would come from them. After that, they would figure it out once they got there.

.

Meanwhile in the woods of Cerulean City, Droplet was having the time of her life. Here with her wife and kids, she could run the troubles out.

“Ara.” she announced, ignoring the sounds of people gathering. While it would’ve been far more appropriate for her to go back to being Misty and actually being there, why bother? It was Daisy’s own fault here. Plain and simple.

“Araquanid?” Araquanid inquired and Droplet shook her head. While she appreciated Araquanid’s concerns, her thoughts were already elsewhere. Once this mess had blown over, she could figure out her relationship with Lily and Violet. Yeah. That was for the best.

“Araqa Araquanid. Ara?” Droplet answered and turned her attention to the forest ahead. Things were so great right now. Perhaps they would stay that way…