[mingle post] Extreme summer weather

[kenfrompokemon]

A. HEAT WAVE

It's a hot day in Ultern. The kind of day where you just can't muster the energy for anything. The kind of day where you feel like you could fry an egg on a car hood. On the radio, the usual DJ's voice reminds you to drink plenty of water, wear a hat and use sun screen, and to make sure your Pokemon are protected from the heat as well.

How are you spending a day like this? Eating ice cream or shaved ice? Resting in the shade? Taking advantage of the Pokemon Center's cooling system? Are you the type who trains outside no matter the weather? Or are you one of those poor souls who have to work outside in the blazing sun?

B. NATURE POWER

On another day, there's a sudden rainstorm. Water droplets attack the roofs in a loud barrage, wind howls, and you can hear the distant roars of thunder. It was hot just earlier, what happened? On this day, even the local radio station broadcasts nothing but static.

What are you doing on this stormy day? Caught by surprise while travelling? Staying inside and shutting all windows tightly? Listening to the rain with a cup of hot chocolate, or going out to enjoy the blasts of rain and wind on your skin? Taking shelter in the Pokemon Center, or knocking on the door of the closest house you can find to escape the rain? Exploring caves? Helping wild Pokemon deal with the weather?

Or maybe something completely different?

Comments

[chloeandeevee]

That sounds amazing! I would love to visit someday.

[Eevee cheers. She would too!]

[kenfrompokemon]

[Ken is a split second away from responding "Me too!" before stopping himself. Nope, bringing up the fact he can't go home would just darken his mood unnecessarily.]

Ah- I'm sure you'd love it! There's a lot to see. The Ruins in Sanskrit Town, the Boardwalk built on top of water in Teknos City, Blue Forest...

[Ken sounds a bit wistful as he speaks, watching the rain. Man, he misses Nihon. He wonders how everyone back in Silent Town are doing...]

[chloeandeevee]

It sounds so beautiful.

[Chloe sobers, knowing Ken must be missing his home like she misses hers.

Eevee chirps, laying a paw on Ken's shoulder and one on Chloe's. Chloe smiles at that and pets her.

[kenfrompokemon]

[Ken's caught up in his thoughts and barely hears Chloe. But then, surprised by the touch on his shoulder, Ken looks at Eevee, then smiles gently.]

Ah, thank you. Sorry, I didn't mean to bring the mood down.

May I...? [He raises his hand as if to pet Eevee too, but looks at Chloe for permission first.]

[chloeandeevee]

It's fine. I'm sure we all miss our homes.

[She smiles at Ken's request, and Eevee trills excitedly.]

Of course.

[kenfrompokemon]

Yeah, I guess that's part of the whole drifter experience. ...Thanks, Chloe. It helps to remember I'm not the only one feeling this way.

[Since he's got permission, he pets Eevee.]

Such soft fur! You must be one of the fluffiest Eevees in all of Ultern!

[He's exaggerating for fun, of course.]

[chloeandeevee]

[Chloe nods.]

Sure.

[She smiles at this.]

I brush her every day. She is really soft.

["Eevee-vee-vee!" Eevee exclaims.]

[kenfrompokemon]

Is that so! No wonder she's so soft, then. You two seem like really good partners!

[He keeps petting Eevee, ruffling up the neck fur a little bit.]

[chloeandeevee]

[Eevee makes more happy sounds, loving the attention.]

We are. I actually wasn't even planning to train Pokemon. I was happy just with our family Pokemon, Yamper. But then Eevee and I found each other and there was a connection right away.

["Eevee-vee!" exclaims Eevee.]

[kenfrompokemon]

I see! I'm not much of a Pokemon Trainer either, to be honest. I got a starter Pokemon, Flambear, when I was ten years old, but I preferred catching Pokemon and releasing them to training them... So I participated in the local Bug Catching Contest a lot. One time, a Ledyba got so attached to me he wouldn't let go, so now I've got two Pokemon I'm raising. I guess that's how it goes sometimes!

[chloeandeevee]

Catching and releasing? I've heard a little about events like that, but I haven't ever participated. Do you just throw Pokeballs at them or do you have to battle them first?

That's really neat the Ledyba wanted to be with you so much.

[Eevee chirps happily.]

[kenfrompokemon]

It depends! In the Bug Catching Contest, you can fight them first, but you generally score higher if you manage to catch them without a battle.

Yeah, he crawled up the back of my jacket and just made himself comfortable. Snug as a bug, you could say, haha! It was so cute I couldn't bear to let go either.

[Maybe most people wouldn't be fond of a bug Pokemon crawling inside their clothes, but that doesn't occur to Ken!]

Oh, Eevee, you want some more pets? Here you go~ [Ken keeps petting, making cutesy noises at Eevee.]

[chloeandeevee]

It's much nicer to catch them without a battle. I'm glad that's become the standard back home. It used to be that you couldn't do that at all.

[She's a little cringey at the thought of a bug doing that, but maybe with a Ledyba it wouldn't be so bad....]

Oh.... That does sound cute.

[Eevee continues to make happy sounds and nuzzles Ken's hand!]

[kenfrompokemon]

Huh, really? Sounds rough, I'm glad that changed for you.

[Ken likes bugs, so he'd honestly think it'd be just as cute with a Spinarak!]

Right? He's so cute! I'd show you my Ledyba, but my Pokemon both get scared of stormy weather easily. And they're not too fond of meeting strangers either, to be honest... Haha.

[Ken keeps cooing and babbling increasingly incoherent babytalk at Eevee while petting!]

[chloeandeevee]

Yeah, it's a lot nicer now. I was able to catch Eevee just with a Pokeball.

[She nods.]

Oh. That's okay. I understand. My friend Goh has some shy Pokemon too.

[Eevee waves all paws, babbling back in delight! Chloe has to smile at such cuteness.]

[kenfrompokemon]

That's great! It's strange to think something like that'd be impossible, but I'm from a pretty strange world, according to most people, so I can't judge.

Oh, what kind of Pokemon?

[It's hard not to smile at that cuteness! Those paws are so cute, Ken wants to poke them... but he won't. He offers Eevee a high-five, though!]

[chloeandeevee]

Yeah. My friend Ash was really surprised. He remembered telling another friend of his ages ago that just throwing a Pokeball wouldn't work and she would have to battle first. Back then, that seemed to be true.

Goh had a Sobble. He's long ago evolved now, but as a Sobble he was always turning invisible and hiding places. We'd find him in the weirdest spots!

[Eevee happily gives a high-five!]

[kenfrompokemon]

Hmm... That sounds like Pokeball technology in your world must've advanced quickly! It was impossible with the old Pokeballs, but the newer models are more effective... Or so I'd assume. Technology is like that sometimes, after all.

A Sobble, huh? Yeah, makes sense! Sobble tend to be shy and timid by nature. It suits them, with their natural camouflaging abilities! But as they evolve, those camouflaging abilities evolve too, to be less for hiding and more for hunting! [...Ah, he started infodumping in his usual style like he was on radio, even though the only person hearing him already knows about Sobble. Ken flushes in embarrassment and looks away.

...He appreciates the high-five from Eevee, though!]

[chloeandeevee]

Yeah, I guess it must have.

[She just smiles.]

You know a lot about them. Goh had some trouble with his, especially after it evolved into a Drizzile, but it's an Inteleon now and seems really happy.

[Eevee cheers.]

[kenfrompokemon]

W-well, knowing about Pokemon is part of my job, after all! [Seems like Chloe didn't mind at all, so maybe Ken made it a bigger issue in his head than it was.] That's good to hear. Evolving is natural, so people might not consider this, but... changing drastically in a short time can often bring Pokemon stress. But just as often, it can make them happier, too. You never know beforehand.

[Ken looks somewhat pensively at the rain, thinking of his own, unevolved Pokemon.]

...Well, as the trainer of an Eevee, I'm sure you've thought a lot about evolution yourself, right?

[chloeandeevee]

[Chloe nods thoughtfully.]

That makes sense it would affect each Pokemon differently. Evolution fascinates me and I want to study it all I can.

[She smiles at Eevee.]

We went around visiting all the evolved forms of Eevee so Eevee could decide what she wanted to evolve into, but she's still not sure. She loves all the forms and can't pick just one.

["Vee-vee-vee!" says Eevee.]

Or maybe she'll even stay Eevee. I want her to do whatever will make her the happiest. Meanwhile, she can use Copycat, so she's been able to mimic attacks of all the evolved forms.

[Eevee looks happy about this.]

[kenfrompokemon]

Oh, are you aiming to become a Pokemon researcher? That's great, I wish you luck! Or, well, I guess you don't necessarily need to become a researcher to study Pokemon. I'm a living proof of that, haha! Studying Pokemon is needed to talk about them on the radio, after all.

[Ken smiles as he listens to Chloe.]

You've put a lot of thought into it, huh? I'm sure it must've been fun to travel and see them all. Right, Eevee?

That reminds me, I heard a rumor of an Eevee in some other world that could freely evolve to Jolteon, Flareon or Vaporeon, change between them, and then turn back into an Eevee at will. Supposedly, that Eevee eventually evolved into an Espeon, losing that special skill. Some may think it was a waste, but if being an Espeon made it the happiest, then it was worth it. In the end, whether Eevee evolves or not, whatever choice feels right for you two is the right one!

[chloeandeevee]

Yeah, that's what I'm hoping to do. It was just part-time back home, when I wasn't in school, but here, well ... we've had a lot more time to get into it. That's great that you get to study Pokemon too.

[She smiles and nods, and Eevee exclaims happily.]

We really enjoyed it. We met so many wonderful people and Pokemon and saw so many new places.

[They both listen to this story in amazement.]

Wow. We'd love to meet that Espeon and her trainer, even if she can't change forms anymore. That's so amazing she could do that!

[Eevee cheers.]

[kenfrompokemon]

That's great! I don't think I have it in me to be a real researcher, but learning things researchers have learned is fun! So I really admire Pokemon researchers.

To be honest, when I first heard about that Eevee, I had my doubts about how real of a story it is. But after spending more time in Ultern, I've learned that there's so many different worlds out there that an Eevee like that isn't so unusual. I hope they show up here someday!

[chloeandeevee]

Yeah, I've really come to appreciate my dad's work a lot more now that I've seen how fun it can be.

We hope so too, don't we, Eevee?

["Eevee-vee!" Eevee exclaims.]

Do you know who the Trainer is?

[If rumors are circling, maybe they originated from someone in that world.]