"What were you two whispering about so secretively?" Victor asked the Gengar that floated over to him.
"Gengar—"
Nothing.
Gengar shook its head.
"Alright then."
Victor folded up the sun umbrella and lay back on one of the lounge chairs in the yard.
It's a shame it doesn't rock.
With that thought, Victor decided he would buy a rocking chair online tomorrow, the kind that sways back and forth. He could lie in it, rocking gently, right here in the backyard, watching the Pokémon play. A small tea table next to him, a few cups of tea, and the Petilil or the Vulpix in his arms.
Hiss... I can't wait.
He immediately took out his phone and picked out a rocking chair with many positive reviews.
"Gengar?"
What are you doing? What are you buying? You're shopping online too, and you have the nerve to lecture me?
Gengar had finally caught him in the act of online shopping and immediately launched a deadly interrogation with its eyes.
"This is for a good reason!" Victor explained with a straight face, not even blushing.
"Gengar—¬_¬｀"
Gengar shot Victor a disdainful look, then left to go push Shana on the swing.
Victor quietly enjoyed the tranquility of the evening. "Vulpix," he called out. The Vulpix came over and hopped into his lap, curling up.
Looking at its tail, which was beginning to split, Victor took out a brush and began to comb its fur.
Under the moonlight, Dali and Erli were telling Sanli about the events of the previous night. The Vespiquen was organizing its new swarm, explaining the rules they needed to follow to live in the Breeding House. The first and most important rule it taught them was: if you see a certain purple fatty, turn and leave immediately, without hesitation.
Mime Jr., Shana, the Petilil, and her Chingling were on the swing, with Gengar standing behind them, pushing.
And he himself was holding the Vulpix, quietly watching the stars.
Victor couldn't help but sigh. Whose dream is this, anyway?
Later that night, back in his room, Victor lay in bed with a small notebook, recording the recent events and his future plans for the Breeding House.
Gengar sat beside him, watching battle videos on its phone.
"Gengar—"
I must get stronger.
The Petilil and the others were in Shana's room, sleeping with her.
Just then, there was a knock on the window.
Victor turned and saw the Vespiquen gently tapping on the glass.
He hurried over and opened the balcony door. "What is it, Vespiquen? Did something happen in the forest again?"
"Ves." The Vespiquen nodded.
Victor's heart tightened. Don't tell me the Pokémon hunters are back.
He was just about to take out his phone to call Jenny, but the Vespiquen shook its head.
"It's not them?"
The Vespiquen nodded, then signaled for Victor to follow it.
Victor nodded, then turned to find that Gengar had disappeared.
The Vespiquen flew into his room, out the door, and to the entrance of Shana's room.
It indicated that Victor should bring Shana and the others along.
Victor hesitated, but after the Vespiquen assured him there was no danger, he reluctantly agreed.
"Shana, it seems the Vespiquen wants to invite us somewhere. Do you all want to come?"
"Okay."
Shana pushed open her door. She was holding the Petilil, and Mime Jr. was clinging to her leg, being dragged along.
"..."
Ignoring their childish antics, Victor got a jacket for Shana, then led her, the Petilil, and the others, following the Vespiquen downstairs and out into the forest.
Gengar was already waiting in the backyard, wearing the camera Victor had bought.
"So that's where you went. You went to get the camera."
Victor took the camera and put it around his own neck. He had already guessed why the Vespiquen was leading them into the forest. It was probably for some kind of Pokémon festival. That's how it always happened in fairy tales and on TV.
A knock on your window late at night, asking you to follow them.
They arrived at the entrance to the forest and followed the Vespiquen deep inside, stepping on the ashes of burnt trees, until they reached a lake.
Some of the surrounding trees had been burned to ash, some were only half-burnt, some had curled leaves, and some were completely unharmed.
There were no other Pokémon around, only Plant Cloak Burmy, Plant Cloak Wormadam, Wurmple, Silcoon, and Cascoon, with numerous Beautifly, Dustox, and Mothim fluttering in the air.
"This is... don't tell me?"
Looking at the Burmy, Silcoon, and Cascoon gathered around the lake, Victor guessed what was about to happen.
Emergence!
Victor quickly switched his camera to video recording mode, aimed it at them, and waited.
As midnight arrived, the Chingling on Shana's head let out a chime. "Ching~"
One of the Burmy began to glow with a white light. It then slowly spread its wings, and with a powerful flap, the light scattered, and a beautiful Mothim flew into the sky.
Then another, a Silcoon, followed by a Cascoon. Here, there, and over there, points of white light began to appear, growing brighter and brighter, until the entire lakeside was aglow.
Emergence signifies new life.
In this scarred forest, the Burmy, Silcoon, and Cascoon all chose this place to emerge, and the beautiful light of their evolution enveloped the entire wounded landscape.
Victor stood in the middle of it all, turning this way and that. Wherever a white light appeared, he would turn his camera, until he was just spinning in place.
He stopped and just quietly watched the scene before him.
Gengar and the others were also stunned. Shana, holding the Petilil, couldn't help but gasp.
"Wow—it's so beautiful."
Yes, it truly was beautiful. That was Victor's first thought as well.
He couldn't find the words to describe this moment. Perhaps only one would suffice.
Awesome...
Emergence, evolution, new life, the light of evolution, the scarred forest...
All of it merged together to create a scene that one would never forget.
Victor just stood there, looking so small beneath the massive trees that surrounded him, so small before the gently rippling lake. His heart almost stopped beating.
Under the moonlight, as if absorbing its essence, they slowly opened their wings. Then, under the watchful eyes of Victor and the others, they gave a powerful flap, scattering the white light, and flew into the sky.
More and more Mothim, Beautifly, and Dustox began to fill the air, their wings beating under the moonlight. As they flew, specks of phosphorescent powder drifted down from the sky.
It was as beautiful as a painting.
The Staravia flapped its wings, blowing all the powder away from them.
Some of the powder was poisonous.
The Staravia glanced at Victor.
The Vespiquen quietly watched the Beautifly in the air. A white light glowed from its claws. It looked at Victor, then at the surrounding trees, and the light on its hands faded.
When the last of them had left, flying off into the distance, Victor put away his camera. He thought that if he edited this into a video and posted it online, it would definitely get a lot of likes.
"Thank you, Vespiquen, for letting us see such a beautiful scene. And you too, Staravia, for blowing the powder away."
"Ves." The Vespiquen turned its head away.
The Staravia just nodded, as if to say, "You're welcome."
"I just realized, the Vespiquen is a tsundere," Victor thought with a secret smile. He had seen its earlier action but knew it had held back for his sake and for the sake of the forest. It usually hated Beautifly the most because they liked to steal its honey.
"Let's go. Time to go home."
Victor hung the camera around his neck, took Shana's hand, and turned to leave.
[Emergence, New Life: ...]
---
[Get 10+ chapters ahead on - P.a.t.r.e.o.n "RoseWhisky"]