ITT: We Have All Become Pokémon

(I walk to one side of the room and then back, carefully approaching Marsha. Back home I never was in a true serious relationship like I've had here-even in spite of the fact we've only been a thing for...fuck, three days? Two whole? I don't want to fuck any of this up... I get on the bed, assuming a kneeling position. After steadying myself on my legs (thank the unusually strong legs that I have on this body) I lightly rub Marsha's head fins again as I lean in and lightly whisper to her:)

You can tell me everything. I made the promise to be yer rock, and I'm damn well not gonna change that anytime soon.

edited 20th Oct '17 3:14:24 PM by Team42Larson

[Wait, Benji? Huh, must've had one of his transformative bouts...though it's a bit late for that, I think.]

"No," [I say, pulling Niles back onto my shoulder before he can slip off,] "I think we're gonna be good..." [Before I continue on, I say to Andy,] "Just come with me back t'the drawin' room."

(Finally, Marsha sits up and looks to Marlon.)

Marly...I'm afraid 'a losin' Benji, and what I just saw outside didn't help at all... (Marsha says.) He was with Dinah, and he was kissin' her and he was a Krokorok like her...he's gonna stop bein' Benji and change inta someone else...it's just like they said when we first found out he was a Ditto: Dittos can switch to new identities with little notice...and now Benji's gonna leave his parents and I for Dinah...

Well, that's that, then. (Benji says as he watches Eliot and the others head on to the drawing room.) Let's get back to the others.

Okay... (Dinah says.)

(The two of them go to the stairs to head up to the bedrooms.)

edited 20th Oct '17 3:39:22 PM by kablammin45

(I listen in on Marsha's spiel, putting my arm around her all the while. When she makes mention of others first discovering Benji's identity, I stop my possible advice-giving to ask:)

Can ya tell me the story a' how ya first found out? I'd imagine that this happened when yas were kids.

edited 20th Oct '17 3:59:00 PM by Team42Larson

Hoo yeah, the day we found out Benji was a Ditto. Dat was somethin' special. (Marsha says, chuckling slightly.) See, we didn't actually know he was a Ditto when we found him at our front door one rainy day. For the next several days we just thought he was like any other Mudkip. Then came that one evening...

(Sometime ago...)

(A late afternoon in Silversand finds young Mudkip Marsha and her family on an outing at the beach. Right now, Marsha and her best friend, a young Machop named Maxine, are having a playful wrestling match with each other on the sand, and Marsha is losing badly. Her recently taken-in Mudkip sibling Benji is watching them from a distance.)

Haha! Okay! Okay! Uncle! Yas got me, Maxie! You win dis time! (Marsha squeals.)

(Having pinned Marsha to a pile of soft sand with her own body, Max gets to her feet and begins to dust herself off, being covered in wet sand.)

Hehe... again? Geez, Marsh, yer makin' dis too easy for me! (She boasts, stretching.) Hey, maybe I could blindfold myself next time! Whaddya think about dat?

Heh, maybe then I'll finally win a match with yas, Maxie! (Marsha says.)

(Then she looks over to Benji, who is still watching timidly from a distance. Marsha turns back to Max.)

Hey, maybe ya could teach my new bro how ta wrestle or somethin'. He's gonna hafta learn if he's ever gonna survive gettin' in scrapes like we do. (Marsha tells Max.)

Ya sure? I mean, look at 'im! I could probably knock 'im out fer days just with a fingah poke! I'd need, like, t'be half-asleep or somethin'! (Max says rather proudly, looking over at the Mudkip and inspecting him with her hands on her hips.) 'Less y'got guts!

I bet he's got some guts! (Marsha says. Then she turns to Benji.) Hey, Benji! Come ova here and Maxie here will teach yas how ta wrestle!

Umm...I...don't...want to... (Benji says, inching back a bit.)

C'mon, bro! She won't actually hurt yas! (She turns to Max.) Will yas?

Relax, Benny, all the advanced stuff like clinches an' locks an' all dat is outta yer league; I'll just stick to light throws, an' dat'll be all good 'cause there's nothin' but sand here! ...I think.

Like I said, Benji, ya won't get hurt just by bein' thrown into the soft sand heres. (Marsha tells Benji.) Come on ova here!

(Finally, Benji nervously begins walking over to Marsha and Max. Once he's over there, he looks to Max, opens his mouth, and...suddenly grows in size, turns a grayish-green color, and his limbs grow longer. In only a few seconds, he has transformed into a complete double of Max.)

Okay, I'm over here, now what? (Benji says in Max's voice. He promptly throws his hand over his mouth and looks at himself.) Uh oh...

(Max's eyelids slowly rise as she witnesses Benji's sudden transformation - but it's only 'her' voice coming from his mouth that hit her 'reality senses', undeveloped as they were, and send her reeling back slightly, yelping.) GYAH! Wh-what the hell?! Uh, I m-mean... heck?

(Marsha is equally shocked by her brother suddenly transforming into a copy of her best friend.) B-B-Benji?! How did you do that? (she stammers.)

I-I-I don't know! (Benji stammers, still speaking in Max's voice.)

(Acting on instinct, Max finds herself practically lunging at Benji, though she stops short of actually coming into contact with him.) Well, c-cut it out! Dis is really freakin' weird, an'... an'...

I dunno how! (Benji says, sounding almost close to tears.)

(Not knowing what else to do, Marsha runs as fast as her stubby little legs can take her over to her parents.) MOM! DADDY! COME 'ERE! BENJI JUST TURNED INTA MAX!

(The commotion attracts the attention of other beachgoers, who look to the two identical Machops on the beach and begin curiously gathering around Benji, crowding out the real Max in the process. Benji crumples to the ground and curls up.) Go away! I didn't mean to do this, just sayin'! Go away!

Yep...less than half-an-hour later, they told us that Benji was a Ditto all along... (Marsha says after telling Marlon Benji's story.) Fortunately, my mom and dad decided to keep 'im around, and life was never the same for us again...and I mean dat in the good way, of course...I could go on and on with stories about what Benji and I did around town, either with our parents, Maxie, or by ourselves...

(Marsha sighs.) I just wish we could keep makin' these stories...

edited 20th Oct '17 4:16:03 PM by kablammin45

Andy nodded. Alrighty.

He doesn’t mention the fact that Eliot seems pretty able to take his stuff at this point.

(I listen in on this story, lightly rubbing her back all the while. While still rubbing her back, I look to her to give my response, not caring about how badly my accent slips here:)

Wow...Marsh, yas hafta realize though that even though Benji found 'imself a love interest, it doesn't mean that he'll just give up on being Benji....and ya know what? No matter who comes and who goes, ya have me now ta always lean on through all a' tha nuttiness that we go through on the daily.

Whoa, Benji, is that you? (I say upon seeing Dinah coming into our bedroom with an unfamiliar male Krokorok.)

Yeah, it's me! (Benji chuckles.) Hey, guess what, fellas?

What is it? (Delilah asks, looking up from the book she is reading with Lucy.)

We're in love! (Dinah says, smiling.)

You mean you weren't already? (Lucy asks, genuinely surprised.)

Looks like we've joined the club, eh, Del? (Benji says.)

Yeah, I guess you have, Benji! (Delilah says, chuckling.) Marsha and Marlon are in the other room, by the way. They just wanted to talk about something.

Gotcha! (Benji says.) Come on, Dinah! Let's go!

Okay, Benji, but let's not interrupt them if they're still talking.... (Dinah says.)

(They begin heading towards the original bedroom.)

Well...yeah, yer right, Marly... (Marsha says, leaning against Marlon.) Mom, Dad, and I are practically the only family he's ever had, so I don't see him leavin' us this easily. If he does leave...yeah, at least I still have yas.

(Marsha leans against Marlon. A moment later, Benji (still in his Krokorok form) comes in with Dinah.)

Guess what, sis? Dinah and I just realized that we like each other! In that way, just sayin'! (Benji says.)

Yeah...that's great, bro. (Marsha says, quietly.)

(Benji seems confused. He looks to Marlon.) Somethin' botherin' my sis, Marlon?

Dana is sitting outside the mansion, staring into the trees.

What should I be doing? I feel kinda.. useless.

Meanwhile, just outside orichalcum...

"So, ya say there's that hidden psychic village 'round here, huh?" the Froslass said somewhat excitedly, but with the ever-so-slight tinge of sarcasm that exposed it as a rhetorical question. "Haha, you silly-billy! There's no civilisation for miles! It's almost enough to make me lose my temper, but I could never get mad at anyone for just making a mistake!"

Lars sighed and idly scraped together the two steel bracers he had chosen to wear, alongside a pair of dust-proof goggles that did well to conceal his angry eyes. Not so much to conceal his angry mouth, however. Looking up at Hotoke's Sodamobile - a lot like her hut back at Silversand except on wheels propelled by the eldritch forces of the netherworld, as summoned by her hubby - Lars chose to forcefully slam his arms on the counter. "Look, lady. Are you freakin' blind?! The town's right there! ...Gah, why the hell am I even... I just need some o' that new stuff, I've got shit to settle in there."

"Sugar to settle in an empty forest? Huh, guess that Diglett really did a number on your li'l noggin. But hey, all customers are equal in the eyes of SuperiorFarms, Inc.!" Hotoke said somewhat 'lovingly', clasping her hands together.

"Yeah, yeah, whatever. Just name that snake's price."

"That's one brand-new UR-Soda, comes up to just about... 20,000 Poke! With extra charges for the damages inflicted upon my original sales cart. Best to demolish that little contention here, dontcha think?"

"20,000... what?! That cheap-ass wood was that fucking expensive?!"

"Yyyyep, you betcha!"

I don't know what's happening or where I am. The pain seems to be lessening, but I don't think I can feel anything. Whatever 'surroundings' I can 'recognize' seem so empty. It's almost like I'm… I'm fading…
No, he's not dead.

Look, Benji...we don't want yas ta just abandon your Benjiness, if you know what I mean. There's nothin' wrong wit being a Krokorok and being in love, it's just that your big sis doesn't wanna see you forget who you ever were.

(I say to Benji.)

edited 20th Oct '17 7:55:04 PM by Team42Larson

Wha-? Sis, you think I'm gonna stop bein' Benji and forget about bein' Benji just because Dinah and I fell in love? (Benji asks.) It's gonna take a lot more than me fallin' in love to make me throw away the past several years of my life, just sayin'. I wouldn't trade growin' up alongside ya for the world, Marsha.

Well, that's good ta know, bro. (Marsha says.) But why are yas a Krokorok?

Well... (Benji chuckles.) Since Dinah and I are an item now...

Oh, Benji, don't feel like you have to stick to being a Krokorok now. (Dinah says.) You're a Ditto!

Yeah... (Benji says.) Is there a different form ya prefer, Dinah?

(Benji shifts into the form of Marjorie.) Would you prefer this form?

Benji, as long as I know that you're Benji, I don't care what form you take. (Dinah chuckles.)

Okay, I hear ya, Dinah. (Benji chuckles, shifting back into his default Swampert form.) By the way, we just popped into the other room where Goobert, Delilah, and Lucy are. It looks like Lucy's doin' a bit better than she was before, just sayin'.

edited 20th Oct '17 8:58:03 PM by kablammin45

After a few minutes, Uryu returns with a small cloth bag gripped in his mouth, and pushes the drawing room doors open psychically. Once inside, he looks over to Eliot and gestures over to a nearby couch.

If you could drrrrop him off there, I should be able to begin. And yes, I worrrrrk best alone. Don't worry, he's in good paws.

"Just calm down. Calm down, okay?" Finley tells Mila. "It's getting late. Let's sleep this off... everything is going to be alright."

Finley gives her a light peck on the cheek.

"Ready to go in?"

"Okyy... I—I dn wanna... dn wanna l—lea—lea... ve yyyyou..."

Mila continues to hold on to Finley, even as they're preparing to move indoors. She seems utterly wrecked, as even Finley's presence has barely made a dent in her emotional state. After she finishes speaking, she continues to cry quietly, with sobs sometimes breaking out much louder than the others.

[I nod. I can feel Niles stir a little, but I don't disturb him. I gently lay him down on that couch, making sure he doesn't hit his head or anything like that, though it's kind of hard even with his assistance. Once he's on, I slink off towards Andy, grabbing my stuff from him.]

"Thank you," [I say, putting my bag around my shoulder and reaching into it, pulling out the medicine from Dr. Durango. I just hold my shawl in my other hand for now.]

edited 20th Oct '17 9:30:49 PM by BlackMageAnolis

Not a problem at all, Theo.

Andy bows out, and heads back into the kitchen near the foyer, and looks for some scotch or crackers to feast on.

Well, that's good ta know. Whadda ya think we should do with Lucy? We can't just turn her over to an orphanage or anything like that.

(I ask Benji.)

Well, maybe we could see if mine and Marsha's parents would be willing to take care of her for a while until we figure somethin' out. (Benji suggests.) Problem with that is that they were plannin' on goin to Gleamscape this week because of the music festival goin' on over there, just sayin'

edited 21st Oct '17 5:26:35 AM by kablammin45

Gleamscape, eh? Before all that stuff in Agartha happened we were plannin' on going there. And there's a music festival happening there? That sounds pretty interestin'. We should also tell everyone also about that....

(I trail off at the mention of parents:)

....And yer parents are gonna be there, too? What are they like?

(I ask. I look outside briefly and see that what was once afternoon sun is progressively being replaced with a slow creeping away into darkness.)

edited 21st Oct '17 6:21:16 AM by Team42Larson

I float to Marlon. "Never heard that they were going to do that, honestly..."

Music festival? (I ask as I peek in.)

Yeah, Gleamscape's all about their music, just sayin' (Benji says.)

That sounds really cool! (I say.)

And yas will probably like our parents, Marly. (says Marsha.)

Our dad's pretty chill, and a bit weird, too. But it's the good kind of weird, just sayin'. (Benji says.) As for Mom...well, just imagine Marsha if she were a little bit bigger and ya got her. Marsha took a lot after here, just sayin'. Heh, and I thought I was the Ditto...

(Marsha chuckles while shooting a look at her brother.)

Sounds like a plan ta me! Should we tell the others about what's goin' on there? It is beginning ta getting late, though, so if anything we'd set out in the morning.

(I suggest to Goobert and co., and give off a direct response to Wrench:)

That's where we were going before we saw the carnival, and well...you know how that ended up.

edited 21st Oct '17 8:51:19 AM by Team42Larson

Yeah, sounds like a plan! (I say.) I'll go let Delilah and Lucy know, and then I'll go tell the others.

Nah, Dinah and I will go tell the others and save ya the trouble, Goobert. (says Benji.)

Okay! (I say.) I'll be right back! (I quickly run back to our bedroom.)

So will we! (Dinah says, smiling. She and Benji begin heading toward the stairs.)

Hafta say, Marly, this is probably the happiest that I've seen the bookworm since we first met her. (Marsha remarks.) I guess realizin' that you're in love with someone can do dat to a guy or gal.

(I reenter the bedroom to find Lucy sitting in Delilah's lap as they read a book together. I smile to myself for a moment before remembering why I came in.) Hey guys, guess what? We're going to Gleamscape tomorrow morning like we were originally doing.

Gleamscape? (Lucy repeats.) I've never been there before. This'll be cool!

I haven't been there either! (I say to Lucy.) This'll be new for both of us! How about you, Del?

Well, Goobert, it's been a while since I've been there. ( Delilah says.) It's actually where my mother lives now.

Really, Del? (I say, surprised.) Cool! I can't wait to meet her!

I'm sure... (Delilah says, her smile faltering as she looks at herself.)

Are you still worried about what she'll say about you being a Dragonite now? (I ask Delilah.)

You weren't always a Dragonite? (Lucy asks, looking up at Delilah.)

Yes...and no... (Delilah says in response to both of our questions.) I used to be a Garchomp until I was hit by a Transfer Orb. Now I'm a Dragonite.

So a Transfer Orb...whatever that is...did that to you? (Lucy asks.) That's so cool! Where can I get one? I wanna be an Alakazam! Or a Lapras! Or a Blastoise!

Lucy, you can't just recklessly use them! (Delilah warns.)

Hey, Del, again, I'm sure your mother will understand once you explain everything to her. (I tell Delilah, bringing the subject back to Delilah's concerns.)

(Delilah nods at me.) All right...

You'll be fine, Del! I'll stick with you! (I reassure her.)

(Delilah smiles and gives me a quick kiss before turning to Lucy.) First thing in the morning, we'll gather your things up and we'll head towards Gleamscape, okay?

Okay! (Lucy says.)

(Benji and Dinah find Eliot and the others in wherever the frick they are in the manor right now.)

Heya, fellas, we're talkin' about headin' to Gleamscape in the mornin' so we can hit the music festival that's goin' on there. Whaddya fellas say to that? (Benji asks them.)