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

A light rain falls from a grey sky. It's cool and there's a mild wind from the east. In the forest, raindrops patter against the fresh leaves, and glisten like silver beads on their bright green surfaces. The wet tree trunks have darkened from grey to brown. While at the coast, rain pitters lightly on the deep grey ocean, and the waves are small.

April showers bring May flowers, but March showers just bring lots of mud. The early Spring has brought plenty of rain along with it, and the paths and roads outside are mere trails of mud leading to large puddles and pits of thick, gooey mud. Some pokemon actually appreciate the cool breezes in the light shower, the soft sticky mud, the occasional ray of golden sun peeking through the grey clouds and lighting up the earth for a moment. More pokemon do not. Peppy the Growlithe fits into that second group, but thankfully he's been spending the day picking off members of that first group, as is represented by the limp corpse of a Rattata hanging lifelessly from his mouth. This has been one of his quickest hunts yet, and Aurora will likely be a little surprised when he comes trotting through the door, held all low, big tuft of white fur on his forehead sagging from the water collected in it. All four limbs are soaked with muck, and it looks more like he's wearing socks than anything else. A few heads in the barn perk up, but the barn is so empty that Peppy hardly even notices.

What's that smell? Candylion? Better save be-Ooo, pretty colors! (Delet-er, saving!)

Droplets splash in puddles at mid-day.

Since the weather's got worse since the fog of a few days ago, Aurora's not outside hunting as she promised but is once more inside with the pups, watching four of them play another boisterous game of "tug the tail", and Flame lie in his corner, apparently snoozing. The busily playing puppies have apparently taken more effort to look after than usual, since they've co-opted their mother into the game - Aurora's tail is mussed, and as she pads towards the door to greet Peppy on his return, she drags Dusk along with her, the puppy scrabbling to hold on to her mother's tail before finally losing her grip.

Peppy deposits the Rattata on the ground. He hasn't taken a look to see his family yet, mostly because the drops of water that trickle down from his furry head blur his vision. The Growlithe blinks his eyes, shakes his head a bit, and stretches out his paws a few inches, gripping the wooden floor. In this braced position, he prepares to shake himself dry... until the sound of approaching footsteps cause him to stop right halfway through his first wag. He blinks open one eye and squints, barely able to make out the form of his mate. Still dripping wet, Peppy plops right down on his haunches and erects himself into an upright position. He looks at Aurora through one blinking eye - the other is covered by his drooping tuft. <Hi, Aurora!> he greets her happily, leaning forward slightly as if to accept a nuzzle, then realizing that she would be crazy if she were to touch him when he's this wet. Instead, he glances past Aurora at the puppies... and stops halfway, his green eye locking onto Dusk. <Uh. ... Oh, was she grabbing onto your tail again?> A big, cheesy grin grows on his face.

As Peppy's guessed, Aurora hesitates rather than leaning forwards to nuzzle her mate, fearful of the amount of water he's coated in. Peppy's question surprises her, and with an, <Oh!> she turns her head to see Dusk, who's been dragged on her belly in the bust for a few feet, and is now looking a little fed up. Aurora grins, looking a little embarrassed, and says, <Sorry, Dusk... but if you get up, you can come and have some dinner.> The word "dinner" makes Dusk's ears prick up, and she gets to her feet quickly, trotting over until she's next to her mother, and then surveys the Rattata critically. The mention of food hasn't gone totally unnoticed by the other puppies, either - Dakota and Karen have already turned to look in their parents' direction, and Briska seems to have noticed that something's up. Even Flame cracks open an eyelid and glances over at the group.

As Peppy watches the sudden life that comes over the little puppies, the Growlithe glances to the side, almost a little embarassed by a thought. You can tell they're his children from how they react around the sound of food. Though the Rattata itself is rather soaked, it probably shouldn't hurt a little stomach, even if it is of a fire type. <But this is an awfully big Rattata.> It's no larger than usual, maybe even half a pound or so smaller, but a grin at Aurora will let her know that he's teasing them... not that she probably wouldn't have picked it up anyway. <I don't know if you guys can eat the whole thing.> The only one who actually really listens is Briska, who sort of peers at dad for a second before barking a couple times, excited is nothing else. Turning back to the Rattata, Peppy bends down, snatches it up in his jaw, hoists it into the air, and makes the proud walk back to the corner, Dusk following right behind him. His pace is slow, but at a rather annoyed yap from Dakota, he stops, sets the purple pokemon down, and backs away before the swarm descends upon their meal. Though still wet, Peppy is at least not dripping anymore.

A light rain falls from a grey sky. It's cool and there's a mild wind from the east.

At first Aurora's a little surprised at Peppy's statement - the Rattata doesn't seem to be any bigger than those he's caught before - but when she catches his wink, she nods and adds, <Oh, yes, it's very big. It'd be very difficult for you all to eat it...> smiling widely as she does so. She follows the hungry puppies at a slower pace, moving over to join Peppy once the young Growlithes descend on their meal. <They're growing up quickly, aren't they?> she says to her mate. <We'll have to teach them what it's like to go out in the rain soon, so that they'll be able to hunt even when it rains. And soon, we'll have to start looking for another home... or at least for another pack. So that-> She glances at the puppies, then at Peppy, and then blushes a little. <Well, you know.>

What's that smell? Candylion? Better save be-Ooo, pretty colors! (Delet-er, saving!)

Peppy, now sitting down, watches the little Growlithes tear apart their dinner with plenty of vigor and enthusiasm. They now know to pick off the best parts of the Rattata first, and their growing canines allow them to rip it off with far more ease than a few months ago. Peppy watches this marvel even as Aurora approaches him, and when she speaks to him, he's shaking his head. <It's amazing how big they are already,> he comments quietly to her, his voice filled with the wondrous disbelief of a caring father. He glances at her after she speaks about hunting, turns back to the puppies, and nods softly. <I haven't seen another wild Growlithe around here, but I guess that means we can set up a wider territory, right? We, uh...> Peppy glances up at the ceiling now, exposing his wet white-furred chest as he lifts his chin up high. Slowly, he brings his head back down, and, now regarding Aurora, asks the wiser of the pair, <... When do you think we should go out there?>

<Well, we could go... um...> Aurora's final word, "now", is partially said, but fades as she looks at Peppy's fur. <It depends. Is it raining a lot at the moment?> She adds, in a quieter voice so that the puppies can't hear unless they listen closely, <And we'd have to make sure that they didn't try to play around outside, or take them outside one or two at a time. If all five of them decided to run and hide, I don't know what I'd do.> She hangs her head a little, and keeps her eyes on the patch of floor between her forepaws as she speaks. <I'm sorry, I'm just scared to go outside with the puppies if I can't even help them if anything happens.>

Peppy obviously doesn't realize what Aurora was about to suggest, because if he had, he'd be far more surprised than he is now. As it stands, he only cocks his head slightly when she stops in mid-sentence, even moreso when he notices her looking at his fur. The little guy actually thinks for a moment or two that he's being checked out, and a small grin automatically perks up at the sides of his mouth. <It's not that bad right now,> Peppy replies with a half-caring glance at the door. <But it's been raining a lot, so the ground is really muddy.> His furry face scrunches up in disgust here, and he shakes his head slightly as if he dislikes that more than he dislikes the rain. It's only right about now that he remembers how scared Aurora is of the water, and he glances at her, ducking slightly and leaning forward to get a better look at her face despite her looking down at the floor. <Well... if you couldn't do it for yourself... maybe you can do it for the puppies. If one of them was in trouble, I'll bet you'd run out into the rain right away. I know I'd take on a whole pack of Katerwauls for them!> He grins proudly here, though it fades right away after it sinks in just how bad taking on a pack of Katerwauls would be.

Aurora nods sadly, watching Peppy's expression change as he considers what he's said. <That's what I'm worried about. I want to help them, to keep them out of trouble, to make sure they're okay... but what if that meant I got ill again? What if I couldn't help them later, because I'd got them into trouble before?> Aurora's tone is urgent, and her tail is wagging furiously - she seems to have devoted some thought to this. Meanwhile, the pups are oblivious to their mother's worries about them, and are still devouring the Rattata - Dusk seems to have eaten all she can manage, as does Karen, and the two have wandered over to a nearby patch of straw for an after-dinner nap.

Peppy's reply is simple and immediate; either he was hit with a blast of inspiration, or he really isn't thinking before he speaks. <If going out into the rain means you'll get ill again, then you'll get ill again.> He pauses for a moment as his own words sink in, as if he didn't even know what he said. He blinks once or twice, and continues. <You... we both... uh...> What's the word? <Sacerficed a lot for the puppies. We don't... get as much sleep, or as much to eat. We can't talk to each other as much, can't be alone with each other at all except when they're sleeping, and don't have any time anymore.> He is thankfully quiet - surprisingly so. The puppies don't even bother looking up, assuming it's another one of those silly little parent things that are so boring and don't even make any sense. Peppy exhales softly, straightening his stance once again, and shaking his head a bit. <But I don't... regret it. I'd do it again...> Now it's Peppy's turn to blush. He peers away from Aurora, lowering his head closer to his chest, grinning a little uneasily. <And maybe we will. But compared to what we've done so far, how much we've been through... Going into the rain seems almost easy now, doesn't it?> Though his voice is confident and secure, his face is not. Truth be told, he doesn't expect Aurora to agree, partially because he doesn't know just how afraid of rain his mate is.

What's that smell? Candylion? Better save be-Ooo, pretty colors! (Delet-er, saving!)

Aurora's silent for a while, as she considers her reply. Then, finally, a whispered, <I wish I didn't have to choose things like this...>, before smiling a little and nodding. <But if we choose right, the pups will grow up to make us proud that we took care of them. And the first step is to let them experience lots of things.> She gives a little nod, and looks at Peppy. <Whenever you think they're ready, we can go and show them what rainy weather's like. I... I won't be so scared, I think, if I know you're with me.>

In the back of Peppy's mind, a conflict comes up. A question that he's never wondered before, even though it should have struck him long ago. What is better... to make a difficult choice... or to have no choice at all? What if it only seems like there's a choice, when in actuality there's not? This seems like one of those cases - Aurora has to go out into the rain, almost no matter what. Peppy doesn't seem concerned; he knows his mate only too well, and he knows she'll do just fine. <Exactly,> he woofs cheerfully, nodding his head enthusiastically. <If we do well, they'll do well, and that's why we're going to do ou... to keep on doing our best! We're going to go set up that den, teach our kids what they need to know, and give them the strength in the wild!> He pauses for a second, his face frozen into an excited open-mouthed smile, before slowly turning his head to the door. A look of slight humiliation comes over his face, and he exhales out of his nose a snort of humor. <... Though we should, uh, definitely wait until the weather's better.> With a sagely nod, Peppy turns his head to give Aurora a few moments of his time, smile on his face, eyes optimistic and... hopeful.