Contents:
Peppy
Obvious exits:
North <N> leads to Overgrown Lands - Route 11: Off the Route.

Chilly rain falls from a grey sky. It's bleak and raw. The wind blows from the east. In the forest, raindrops patter against the leaves, and glisten like silver beads on their fiery vermillion and gold surfaces. The wet tree trunks have darkened from grey to brown. While at the coast, the sea matches the miserable grey sky as the rain splashes down onto its white-capped waves.

The weather is, in a word, miserable. The year thus far has not exactly been very pleasant to experience firsthand - when it's not too hot and muggy, it's too cold and wet. Little drops of rain dribble down through cracks in the ceiling of the large pokemon barn off of route 11, and any unsuspecting pokemon (namely, the four puppies no doubt playing around inside) that aren't careful enough could find themselves walking right into the column of water dripping from above. If Peppy, the father of this family of growing Growlithes, takes a long time to finish a hunt when the weather is crisp and clear, the wait for him to return on a day such as this is no doubt seeming eternal. No doubt he's found himself drowning in some giant puddle that he was stupid enough to walk into, or got his paws so stuck in mud that he's slipping into it like quicksand. Whatever the case, the weather doesn't show any signs of clearing up; if anything, it's getting worse as the day rolls on, and the loud crashes of thunder seem to get closer every time.

Rattata snatching things away, save the base without delay! (Saving)

One would think that, after several years of life, even a Growlithe would realise that warm weather and long days are followed by wet weather, shorter days, and eventually large amounts of cold and slush when winter arrives. Still, the onset of autumn has taken Aurora by surprise every year, and this year is no exception. She's currently on pup-watching duty while her mate is out, and her attention's divided between the four very active puppies, the sleeping Flame by one of the hay bales, and the loud splattering of water on the roof and outside walls of the barn. The pups who are still awake are loud and boisterous enough that the rain falling is difficult to be heard, but whenever there's a lull in the action Aurora's attention returns to the rain. Oh, and the thunder as well. Thankfully, the pups don't seem to be as worried by the incipient lightning storm as their mother does, with only a few worried whines sounding from the group as they play.

It's not quite clear how the barn floor keeps from flooding; perhaps the building itself is on higher ground than the rest of the land, or perhaps the architect who designed it worked in ways more subtle than the residents of the building realize. Whatever the case, somehow the water from the ceiling manages to drip mostly away, leaving only small puddles throughout the barn instead of flooding the entire barn and turning into a great swimming pool (not exactly a desirable position for a family of seven fire-types, all right!). Well, the thunder keeps on crashing and the rain keeps on pounding, and it's still a while until Peppy finally comes slipping through that big red door. He's soaked to the bone, every strand of hair either sticking to his body or drooping lower than usual below it. The big puff of white that usually sticks so proudly above his forehead has now come down so low that it blocks his vision, and the Growlithe's head is so declined that he probably can't see more than a few inches ahead of him. Judging by the fact that his paws are disgustingly muddy and leave big gooey tracks as he steps across into the center of the barn, it's quite likely that the fact that he can't see far ahead of him did, indeed, get him stuck in a few muddy puddles.

Rattata snatching things away, save the base without delay! (Saving)

Aurora's studious contemplation of puppies and rainstorms is interrupted by the arrival of the family breadwinner (or should that be Rattata-winner?) returning with the aforementioned Rattata, and a coat-and-a-half-ful of rainwater and mud. The former will be gratefully received by the family, but the latter probably won't be so popular... Nevertheless, the fact that Peppy's here means that he managed to survive hunting without falling into a swollen stream or sinking into clinging mud, and the relief is visible on Aurora's face as she sees Peppy return. <Welcome back, dear,> she says with a quiet smile, and pads towards him, intending to take the Rattata off him and to the puppies so that Peppy can have a chance to shake out his fur.

Chilly rain falls from a grey sky. It's bleak and raw. The wind blows from the east.

Rattata snatching things away, save the base without delay! (Saving)

Uh oh. Peppy hears Aurora's voice, and smiles from his position, but he doesn't know she's coming closer to him; he assumes (without even bothering to go through *all the trouble* of looking up to see) that she's still lying down in the corner, watching him. Needless to say, when he dries off, shake-shake-shaking his body and frizzing up every strand of fur on his orange, black, and white body, poor Aurora is probably going to end up very cross when she finds that her mate has become a fuzzy sprinkler. <Man!> woofs Peppy, finishing up the last of his drying off session by wiggling his bushy tail, trying to get every last bit of water out of it. <It's really raining rough out there!> he exclaims, nicking the Rattata back up into his mouth and turning to face Aurora. Should, for whatever reason, Aurora have managed to avoid a midday shower of mud, he'll beam at her and march over to put the Rattata in the corner; if, instead, he soaked the poor girl with his ignorance, he'll stand there for a moment, looking so goofy with that big corpse hanging lifelessly from his mouth, and grin slowly from behind it. <Uh,> he growls as best as he can. <... Sorry?>

True, Peppy does have a sopping wet furry fringe covering his eyes - and true, Aurora could have dodged at least some of the water flung her way by stepping back quickly, if she'd expected it. But, of course, she didn't, and so she's still moving towards Peppy as he shakes himself dry. It takes a full few seconds and a surprised stare at Peppy for Aurora to realise what's happening, and another few seconds for her to hurriedly step backwards, almost stumbling over her hind paws. Two of the pups have come over to say hello to their father, but they're nimbler on their feet than their mother, and so they're only lightly sprinkled with water. Not so for poor Aurora - as well as a fair amount of water, there are also a good few splashes of mud on her coat, and the fur over her eyes is dripping a little as she stares at Peppy, still blinking in surprise, still rather too shocked to do or say anything.

Peppy can only watch Aurora for a few seconds at a time; apparently, the tuft on the top of his head isn't as willing as the rest of his coat to relinquish the water sticking inside, and it still droops and sags in front of him, and, with an annoyed grunt, the Growlithe has to flick his neck up to send his mane back up to the top of his head, only to have it fall back down a couple seconds later. The two pups, not quite interested in watching Peppy and Aurora peer aimlessly at each other like they think the other is a ghost; no, all they want is food, and when their whines of <Daaaaad! Give us the Rattata!> go ignored, they both just clamp onto some part of the rodent and tear it right out of Peppy's mouth, dragging it over to the wall and munching away, glad to get first dibs on the dinner. <Uh,> Peppy arfs sheepishly, his voice now clear and certain now that his mouth isn't full. <I'm, uh...> Flick up to remove the tuft. <... Sorry?> He grins nervously at her, hoping that *this* sorry means more than the last one!

Rattata snatching things away, save the base without delay! (Saving)

Drip. Drip. Drip. More water falls off Aurora's damp fur and splashes on the floor, and Aurora still stands there. It's a good minute or so before she blinks once more, shakes her head, then shakes herself dry - well, reasonably dry, although the patches of mud still cling to her coat. There's another pause as she drips for a little, and then Aurora murmurs, <Please, don't ever do that again.> The fur crest on her head drips a little more, and she shakes her head vigorously again, then shudders. <Please, do not do that again,> she repeats, her voice louder and a bit more foreceful.

Peppy is grinning and trying to use that normal goofy charm of his to try and lessen any anger Aurora may have, but only in the same sense that he would do the same thing if he did that to any pokemon. If anything, he believes that Aurora will be less offended and less hurt than some random stranger would be, simply because he knows and has known for more than a year now that Aurora isn't a mean person. That's why it surprises him so greatly that Aurora becomes so very cold and so... distant in response to being soaked by her mate. The cheesy, toothy grin on Peppy's face diminished first into a look of humbled sadness, then into a look of concern. <... Aurora?> Peppy woofs, taking a step or two closer to her apprehensively, almost as if scared to get any closer. His jaw falls open slightly, presumably to ask her if anything's wrong, but he can't find the words to say it; this is a side of Aurora he doesn't think he's ever experienced.

Rattata snatching things away, save the base without delay! (Saving)

Aurora's head-fur is now almost dry - at least, it's only dripping very occasionally, and doesn't flop damply into her eyes - and so she stops shaking her head at the feel of each drop of water trickling down her muzzle. She lets out a sigh of relief as several seconds go by without the feeling of water running off her fur, and grins a little. As she glances up at Peppy, however, his worried expression is enough to wipe the grin right off hers. <I'm... what's wrong?> she asks hesitantly, and then a droplet of water rolling down by the side of her right eye makes her shudder, and then shake her head violently, sending that drop of water flying into the air along with a few others.

Rattata snatching things away, save the base without delay! (Saving)

Now, if you had one nickel for every time Peppy picked up on an obvious hint, you wouldn't have enough money to buy a nickel's worth of anything. Aurora's vehement hatred (or, at least, coldness) towards *something*, however, has drawn in the male Growlithe's interest so greatly so he's peering at her like a display in a museum, a painting on the wall. Because he's looking at her so intently, he manages to catch sight of the little trickle of water on her face, and, as Aurora shakes and sends the little droplet soaring across the air, he watches it until it connects with the ground and splatters into a pool of its siblings. He turns back to Aurora, waiting for those rusty gears in his head to click. Waiting... waiting... waiting... chunk! <You're afraid of water!> The gears grind again! <I forgot about that!> Once more! <Oh, Aurora!> And he bounces forward a couple steps, making sure to keep his distance just in case one tiny little H2O molecule has the nerve to even come close to his mate. <I'm sorry! Does it hurt? Can I help? Is there a lot? Is there any more?>

The fact that Peppy's taken so long to remember that his mate happens to be terrified of water - and rain or spray in particular - does make Aurora smile a little, and when she shakes her head this time it's a gentle, slow movement in response to Peppy's frantic questions. <I think I'm mostly dry now, Peppy,> she replies, and looks up at him, trying to see whether her mate's managed to rid himself of water quite as effectively. <There's a bit of mud, but that's all. And I shouldn't have come up to get the Rattata, because you had no way of knowing that I was there, because your fur was in your face and you couldn't see, and...> Finally Aurora has to stop to breathe, and when she starts to woof again her expression is one of mild worry. <But please, please, don't shake water over me, if you can help it,> she asks in a pleading tone. <Even just a little bit. It makes me think and feel things I'd rather not remember.>

Rattata snatching things away, save the base without delay! (Saving)

And boy, if poor Aurora is worried or concerned, Peppy is about three steps further than that. <I won't!> he woofs, a little loudly, his eyes pleading and wide as he mentally forces himself to actually remember this tibit of knowledge. <I won't ever, I was so dumb, I should have, um, um, went all the way over there to dry myself-> He gestures with head over over to some corner (which is already occupied by a Bulbasaur and her son, suggesting that Peppy didn't even look over to that segment of the barn before suggesting what he should have done), but his eyes remain locked on Aurora the whole time. <Instead of just doing it right there, and I'm really sorry, I wouldn't, um, want you to remember any bad things!> He pauses right in his sentence for a second, glancing up as his forehead as he thinks about what he just said. Suddenly, all this frantic apologizing isn't quite so brainless. He narrows his eyes slightly as he thinks for a second, and, nodding his head slightly, he speaks, this time in a deeper, more controlled voice. <... I know what you feel like. I'd be very angry, too, if somebody did something, on purpose or not, that made me think about something that makes me sad.>

Chilly rain falls from a grey sky. It's bleak and raw. The wind blows from the east.

Rattata snatching things away, save the base without delay! (Saving)

Aurora may have been expecting an apology, but not one quite as profuse as the one Peppy actually gives, which makes her nod at first, and then hang her head with a little embarrassment, her cheeks flushing red under her fur. <It's okay, I'm dry now...> she murmurs as Peppy continues to apologise, and only raises her head when Peppy's finished speaking. <It doesn't make me sad, exactly,> she says slowly, as she appears to be thinking over what went through her head earlier on. <It's more like... it's like I'm in the forest again, and it's raining, and I don't know which way to go to get out, and I'm scared.> She shakes her head once more. <I don't like feeling like that...>

Peppy, his white furry cheeks now puffy from the frown creasing his face, nods slowly in response to Aurora's explanation. <You're right,> he arfs softly, maintaining eye contact with his mate as long as she's not looking away. His tuft is thankfully drier now, so it doesn't bobble in front of him and obstruct his view. <I... sad is a bad word, maybe,> he admits, nodding his head slowly. <But they're definitely bad feelings, ones you don't want to remember because they make you feel really scared.> Peppy, of course, must have a plethora of experiences that make him feel scared, and they involve all sorts of different kinds of pokemon, many of which are rather odd enemies for a Growlithe to have. <So, um.> He glances to the side, and no doubt if he was a two legged animal he'd be rubbing the back of his neck by now. <I'm, uh, I really am sorry for forgetting something like that, and I-> Boom! A crash of thunder explodes suddenly, causing Peppy's jaw to snap right shut as the Growlithe ducks down quietly, ears drooping to the sides of his head. Funny how he just got over talking about being scared...

Rattata snatching things away, save the base without delay! (Saving)

Aurora nods a little, a faint blush still visible under her fur. <Like I said, it's okay. Thank you for being so concerned about me,> she says, and steps forward hesitantly, taking small steps as she moves towards Peppy. The thunderclap comes as she's a foot or so away from Peppy, and as he ducks she barks in surprise, looking around frantically. There's no thunder for a while, though, and after some time she relaxes, and then bends her head down to try to nuzzle at Peppy's cheek - if he's still ducking down, she'll lower her head to try to compensate.

Rattata snatching things away, save the base without delay! (Saving)

Concerned about her? Ack, that's right! Instead of whimpering and acting all scared because of a little lightning, he should be all tough and make sure that she's the one who's okay! Because big tough guys aren't ever scared of lightning! No siree! And Peppy's a big tough guy, a guy... who... just kind of melts before sweet smart girls. The very instant Aurora leans forward and touches his cheek, any thoughts of being brave just kind of get tossed on the back burner, replaced instead by that chill of love inside. Peppy, of course, easily lets Aurora right into his personal space, and even nudges forward a little himself, nuzzling her right back. Any of their children who may have been watching the spectacle no doubt tune out now, sticking their tongues out at the emotions they won't understand for months or years and making their little <Ewww! Gross!> noises before going off and doing whatever it is that puppies with full stomachs do. Peppy hears the little one's little squeaky gag and smiles softly, a look that remains stuck on his face as he presses cheek to cheek.