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Post by subtleAssiduities on Feb 11, 2016 20:56:30 GMT -5
"Oh, dear..." Her resolve was breaking. She had never been so disappointed to hear that a Pokémon had a loving family!
Steadying her voice, she continued. "You should go back with them when they come. They must miss you so much."
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Post by Atticus on Feb 11, 2016 21:00:02 GMT -5
Going home? Winter didn't know why hearing that hurt so much-- after all, the original plan had been to go back a long time ago. But she couldn't shake the sinking feeling in her chest, the way her shoulders sagged. Of course they missed her, and she missed them, but...
"But I'll miss you," the Eevee whined, crestfallen. Without raising her head, the cub continued, "...and Entei, and the shaggy 'mon, and that one stripey guy, and the kitten..."
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Post by subtleAssiduities on Feb 11, 2016 21:17:27 GMT -5
Dominia's heart broke, and she reached a paw around the little Eevee and pulled her into a gentle embrace. "And we'll miss you. But we can't keep you from your family."
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Post by Atticus on Feb 11, 2016 21:27:22 GMT -5
Winter returned the gesture, wrapping her little forearms around the Ninetales' leg.
"Can we visit?" she begged quietly, pressing her cheek against Dominia's desperately.
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Post by subtleAssiduities on Feb 11, 2016 21:59:58 GMT -5
Again, the matriarch found her very torn. Visitors generally weren't allowed in the village, except for the legendaries. Most potential visitors simply couldn't find it. But so many of the Pokémon here were timid of outsiders... they would find visitors so unsettling.
And yet here stood this darling child, making an innocent, pure-hearted request.
"We'll discuss it when your family gets here," she said softly."
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Post by Atticus on Feb 11, 2016 23:03:51 GMT -5
Following Chance began to feel hopeless until they got to a small parting in the trees. This Arceus-damn pixie village was further than Angelo had anticipated, and he cursed Entei's name for it. The Legendary Fuckface couldn't just have retrieved his daughter in less than half the time it took the four eeveelutions to get there?
Hooligan. Who made this dickhead a Guardian?
The Umbreon was panting, but his spirits were lifted by the abundant array of colour flowers lining up in the distance. Was this it?
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Post by subtleAssiduities on Feb 11, 2016 23:22:38 GMT -5
By the time they reached the break in the trees, Vivian was legitimately concerned that Chance was going to pass out. The Espeon's orb had been glowing on and off for the entirety of the trip, but now it was starting to resemble a dying light bulb. He was no longer steady on his feet.
With blossoming of color appearing in the foreground, she took a moment to turn fully toward her eldest son. "Are you going to make it?"
He gave a faint nod that was little more than an uncontrolled bob of his head. "Yeah... It's only a little farther."
Austin frowned worriedly. He had never seen Chance look so run down before, and frankly, he was afraid that he would faint at any moment. His gaze shifted fretfully between each member of his family, and he slowly took a step toward his father. "Maybe you should wait here. We can go ahead for Winter," he ventured, nodding to Angelo.
Vivian seemed to be inclined to agree, albeit reluctantly, but Chance shook his head and pushed himself to his feet. "No. It's only a little farther. I can make it."
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Post by Atticus on Feb 12, 2016 13:15:13 GMT -5
Angelo pushed himself forward, giving the Espeon a gentle nudge. Had he not been all but collapsing, he would have gladly hoisted Chance up for the final stretch. But he could smell the flowers, carried by the soft breeze, and it assured the dark fox that they were almost there.
Carried by a few long strides, the Umbreon finally broke the entrance, and skidded to an immediate halt when faced by what appeared to be, the entire village and then some. Entei was there, as well, with Suicune and Raikou, as he now recalled. He could hardly care about all the rounded eyes. Where was his daughter?
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Post by subtleAssiduities on Feb 12, 2016 14:27:01 GMT -5
Entei laid near the entrance of the village, his front legs neatly stretched out under him like a sphynx. His eyes, half-lided found the father as he burst through the entrance. Overexcited as ever, he mused. The others followed more slowly. For a moment he thought it could simply be because they had their heads about them a little better than the father, but no; the Espeon was clearly fatigued. Maybe even sick. Another interesting piece of the puzzle: two older sons, but the daughter was the father's favorite. Clearly they had allowed the Espeon to be worked ragged to find little Winter. The machinations of large families was befuddling to him; but then he considered that perhaps that was because he had never had one of his own, unless Suicune and Raikou were to be counted. And he was not so sure that they were.
But that was of little importance now. He rose to his paws, stretched, and waited. Just what impoliteness would the father arm himself with now?
Dominia had insisted that Winter occupy her time with the other little ones who had come to be her friends. Fretting over the imminent arrival of her family would certainly do her no good, and it wasn't helping Dominia to keep her wits about her either. As the hours ticked by, she knew that she was working herself up; hundreds of years of practice in elegant stoicism, and she was allowing herself to be undone by a child!
But it wasn't the child who instilled in her the pin-prickling sensation of anxiety. It was that pair of wild red eyes, that abrasive stature, the way the Umbreon's eyes sliced through the crowd like a cleaver. This is what she had feared, she thought. He would not be taking her with a nod and a smile. She pressed her paws together, hoped that he would not find Winter immediately at the very back of the assembled group. And she held her breath.
Vivian's fur was prickling as she stepped into the village. It was not until she came to a stop, when Chance sank to the ground with an exhausted sigh, that she realized that her shoulder was absolutely throbbing. But in the faces of so many Pokémon- legendaries, nonetheless -she was not about to let that pain show. She shifted the weight off her leg and tried to make it seem like it didn't bother her; the feat was futile.
Austin crouched beside his brother, pulling his paws under him like a cat ready to spring as he looked around at all the faces watching them. None of them appeared to be Winer's. He tried to place his trust in his brother, but this was scary. And now if they were in the wrong place, Chance couldn't get up and run away with them. What was going to happen now?
He looked at his father anxiously, but something told him that just because Angelo was wired, it didn't mean that he knew what they should do.
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Post by Atticus on Feb 12, 2016 14:42:43 GMT -5
Angelo was trained, scanning the faces for his daughter's, but he was not void as his mate and sons joined him. The journey had been long, and as powerful as his wife was, she was battle torn in many ways. She'd kill him for ever pointing it out, but he did bump her gently and reassuringly in regard of her limp. They would rest somewhere after Winter was back in their custody.
He let out a sigh, his weariness tugging at him. The Umbreon could sleep for a thousand moons at this rate, both from physical fatigue and the stress and anxiety of finding his daughter.
But of course, before rest could come, he'd have to find Win. She was here, right? Entei was here, this had to be the place. He locked gazes with the Legendary Fire Beast, but said nothing. The long journey had him breathless, and he had no words for the "Guardian" who had kept a father from his child.
"Hello?" came the confused call. Winter was not ignorant to the eerie hush that had fallen over the village. But she was in the back of the throng, and was finding trouble wriggling through. Was her family finally here? She couldn't see!
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Post by subtleAssiduities on Feb 12, 2016 15:07:04 GMT -5
Dominia looked down at the child and one of her tails wrapped around her loosely; it did nothing to hold her, but the matriarch hoped it would be a calming gesture. "Soft, dear, soft," she murmured. She nodded for Winter to come closer to her, but before she checked to see if she obeyed, her gaze was back on the scruffy family: the bristling Umbreon, seemingly deciding whether or not to take on Entei; the fatigued Espeon, who looked close to unconsciousness; the limping mother, who looked like something glimpsed from the corner of one's eye as they try not to remember a nightmare. And the worried brother Umbreon, nervous, torn between the members of his family. How had such a strange mix found one another? And what were they going to do here?
The tension was so thick in the air that Dominia was choking on it. Only Entei, whose gaze remained as cool as lake water seemed unaffected.
A shrill, high-pitched cry rose from within the group, bodyless, a shriek of indignation, surprise. But it had no time to get anyone's attention, as the family standing before them was suddenly struck down by a wild bolt of lightning that shot from the crowd like a rogue missile. Vivian and Austin let out pained cries that seemed to become one, and they sank to the ground, jerking and twitching as the residual electricity found its way out of their bodies. Chance was unconscious before either of them hit the ground.
Vivian struggled to pull herself upright, and she took in the image her sons: one unconscious and beaten, the other stunned- paralyzed -and unable to right himself, still in the fleeing throws of the electric shock. Her eyes widened; her pupils narrowed to slits; and even as the color seemed to darken in her irises, all she could see was red. Her lips stretched away from her teeth as she got to her paws, the electricity bouncing off her coat like raindrops off plastic, and as she took a deep breath, swirling black coils of something between fire and dark energy rolled from between her teeth.
Entei realized a moment too late that this was not an act of bravado. He leaped to his paws, only to be buffeted back by a ball of black fire as he became the mother's first victim. The fire did not burn, but the inherent darkness of it, the squeezing, suffocating essence of a lack of good, it took his breath away. He staggered back, stunned.
The mighty beast faltering threw the village into panic. The young and the mousy scattered, letting out cries of terror as they fled in every direction but toward the family. Dominia's eyes widened, and she looked around frantically for Winter, before the child could get trampled or lost in the chaos.
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Post by Atticus on Feb 12, 2016 15:18:50 GMT -5
Of all of the things to break the ice, Angelo had not predicted lightening.
It had been a long time since the Umbreon had been put to battle; after Eleanor became a certified Gym Leader, she had been forced to focus on the Electric field. Angelo was useless in that aspect, but it gave him time to his family, which was arguably better than destroying the hopes and dreams of snotty little children for a living. Probably.
His immediate reaction was to look for the culprit, but when he couldn't spot it, he turned to his family, aghast. Chance was out like a light, singed but breathing. Austin and Vivian were on the floor, like himself, limbs twitching from the static coursing through their body. Except Viv... oh, Viv.
He watched as a strong, bear-like maternal anger swallowed Vivian, set on avenging her defeated sons. He couldn't help but feel his own frustration coiling through him, and it wasn't long before he was spitting curses-- aimed, mainly, towards Entei.
"Coward!" he howled, his lips drawn back. "You take away our fucking daughter and have the audacity to attack us for it?" He had no doubt that this was planned. Entei thought he was some holy justice, who could split family on a whim if he decided he didn't like them. He let them run themselves ragged through the woods, just to end them. And through his furious, crimson eyes, he could see Winter. His baby.
She was horrified. Her eyes were large, rounded, and dark in fright. Angelo suddenly felt swathed in shame. To curse like that in front of his baby, to see her family fall like this...
To hell with them all, these cub-thieves. He found no reason to stop Vivian; he couldn't if he wanted to. His limbs were numb, but the determined father dragged himself towards his kit. "Winter!" he croaked, his fur bristling with electricity.
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Post by subtleAssiduities on Feb 12, 2016 15:58:53 GMT -5
The cacophony of motion and sound within the village seemed far away from Entei for a minute as he tried to remember how to breathe. It had been so long since he had felt a hit like that, and he had no recollection of any attack of such a sort, hot and venomous and anxiety-inducing all at the same time. Was that what fire felt like?
His companions' presence on either side of him was enough to ground him, however. He had not lost his footing. He forced his eyes to focus and saw both of the parents in front of him, one spitting curses at him, the other preparing to spit another ball of black fire. But this time he would not allow himself to be attacked. A leap, and he avoided the ball of fire, which enveloped a sapling creeping out of the forest border before burning out eagerly.
She had another blast prepared for him as he moved toward her, but he buffeted her onto her side. She fell with a hard yelp, and the fire rolled out of her mouth like a heavy cloud, catching the grass and twigs on the ground before burning out. Entei planted his paw on her side, effectively pinning her.
The blow to the side sent Vivian onto her shoulder. If the force of hitting the ground had not knocked the wind out of her, the pain that shot through her leg and down her spine definitely would. She managed only a soft groan through her teeth, and her eyes squeezed shut, her head spinning. Her claws searched for a hold in the ground denied to her when the legendary's paw came down on her side, light, but definitive. Pinned. She wasn't going anywhere.
Watching the Umbreon stagger forward, Dominia couldn't control an overpowering wave of horror. Something about the jerking, broken way he moved sent chills up her spine, and she lost the sense that there was anything good he could offer Winter. She rushed forward, reaching the cub before he could, and putting her forepaw protectively around her, let out a sharp growl. "Get back!"
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Post by Atticus on Feb 12, 2016 16:09:01 GMT -5
Raikou followed his companion, trying to remain calm while everything fell apart. Suicune had gone off to try and gather to scattered villagers to both calm and protect them. But the saber tooth stayed, should the lion-dog require his aid.
"Win!" Angelo croaked again, hope surging through his chest. He had to ignore how frightened she looked-- he could fix that once he got to her! He could explain when he reached her, just what was happening. Then they could go to the woods, go home...
Lost in his fantasies, he didn't expect the creamy-furred figure that stepped in between him and his daughter. Another one? Someone else to keep him from his child? He stared, shocked at the Ninetales. This village was going to ruin his family.
No... he wouldn't let them.
His face fell from one of innocent surprise, to one of pure, furious determination. His nostrils flared, and a dark, purple energy began to spill out through his bared teeth. "Get away from my baby!" he snarled, his blood-red eyes flashing as his jaw fell open, aimed at the Ninetales.
"Daddy, no!"
He stopped, the shadowy energy slipping into the air like a thin fog.
The Eevee stood between the Ninetales and the Umbreon, staring down at her crippled father. "Daddy, don't hurt her," she pleaded, approaching him slowly. He stared, awestruck, until she nestled against his head. Angelo relaxed, and succumbed to exhaustion.
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Post by subtleAssiduities on Feb 12, 2016 16:22:09 GMT -5
Dominia released a breath that she didn't know she was holding. Her senses came back to her; she felt like she was descending from a dizzying height.
There was no harm to come from this Umbreon unless he was kept apart from his daughter.
Dominia lifted her head and regarded the state of the village. With the frightening mutant subdued by the very beast to whom she had delivered a blow, the villagers were settling. The pungent smell of smoke and fire embittered the air, and the sight of the incapacitated brothers, one fainted, one paralyzed, still marred the entrance of the village. But peace would return.
But now there was work to be done that would break her heart, and be it because it would be that hard, or because of the magnitude of it, she did not know where to start. Her gaze turned again to Winter and her father, prostrated on the ground before her. Would they even allow them to help? Would the villagers allow it? Surely, this had all been an accident... that lightning attack, no one would have done that on purpose, would they?
"Winter." Her voice was softer than she wanted it to be. "Ask your father if we can help him, and the rest of your family. Ask if they'll let us do so much."
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