(Same here! Should we go through with it, or have them pass by without somehow recognizing each other?)
@WavePearl @SpicySparrow @122 Generation (FYI, Blacky and Atelier are in the graveyard northeast of Kickenham (where Hammerlocke Station would be for anyone who've played SwSh) for now. I'll leave how the group would reunite from there up to y'all.)
(Just do what you see fit. Edit: On the second thought, has Aine ever gone to Kickenham before? I think that should affect how the girls will get there.)
(If that's the case and Aine's teleportation only works for places she'd previously gone before, a walk would be in order for the girls. What do you think, @SpicySparrow?)
@Puppet Master @122 Generation @SpicySparrow (Aine's teleportation song only allowing her to go where she's been before is fair, and is in line with similar fast travel spells.)
@122 Generation @SpicySparrow (Then they will.) "Unfortunately, my warp spell only works on places I've been before..." Aine admitted. "So we'll have a bit of a walk to reach Kickenham..."
"Well, then what are we waiting for? Let's get moving and fast." Xuehua immediately turned in the wrong direction before correcting herself.
@SpicySparrow Aine tried oh-so-hard not to laugh at Xuehua's eagerness. She'd heard about the Royal Archives in Kickenham--Arceus knew how much lore was inside, waiting to be studied!
@122 Generation (Sorry for the delay. Had a bit of writer's block and it's quite lengthy to write on my phone.) "Um... Blacky?" a familiar voice brought the Umbreon back to reality while he was having his moment. The voice itself came from a ranger Pikachu with a set of Pikachu-sized bow and arrows on his back. This particular Pikachu was one of Blacky's adoptive brothers who was still a baby Pichu when Blacky lost his parents. "Allen!" Blacky cheered and hugged the now named Allen. He had to be careful lest the Pikachu would accidentally zap him. "Good to see ya again, bro," Allen returned Blacky's hug. Took them awhile until they let go. Now that the hug was broken, Allen pulled out a portable harp evoking Espeon with the name "Frans" etched on it. "Say, Blacky, why do you have this in your room?" he asked with a rather sus feeling. "I mean, there's the name 'Frans' on it. Did you... did you steal it from him or something?" This question made Blacky widen his eyes in discomfort. "Gimme!" the Umbreon quickly yanked the harp from his brother. "Can't believe I forgot mum's harp back then..." And yep, seems like Blacky's sentimentality and how he referred to this Frans guy as "mum" made even less sense for Allen. As far as he knew, Frans is a male name. Allen couldn't help but to wonder if Blacky used to have two dads but called one of them mum to avoid confusion or something. "Sorry about that," Blacky wiped off his tears. "As you heard there, this thing used to be my late mum's," he explained, lest Allen would think about some weird things about it. "Her real name was Francesca, but everyone used to call her Frans." Only then did Allen realize his fault. Of all people he could've misgendered, the Pikachu clearly didn't expect to misgender Blacky's birth mother like that. And Blacky himself? He just marked that under "eh, it happens" and moved on. This kind of thing had been happening from back when his Espeon mother, Frans, was alive, after all.
(@Puppet Master I'll give you that. Typing on a phone can be daunting. But man, I’ve got writer’s block on my fanfic too) Atelier turned his head to see a Pikachu that Blacky seemed to know. Since Blacky was a local here, he had to know a handful of people here, right? He was amused at the banter between them, at least, particularly when Blacky said, ‘Gimme’. Even so, he figured this harp must have sentimental value for the Umbreon. “Your late mother’s, eh? You should hold onto that,” he remarked. What else was there to be said?
@122 Generation "Yeah, right. I just forgot to bring it last time," Blacky muttered. To be fair though, he did mention his late mother's line of work back in Summerton, just not the fact that she used to own a harp. And then he noticed Allen tilting his head at the Eevee in a fancy robe. It reminded the Umbreon that the two most likely hadn't known each other yet. "Anyway," Blacky mentally cursed himself for not realizing it sooner. "Allen, this is Atelier, a friend I met along the way. Atelier, this is Allen, one of my master's adoptive kids," he introduced them both to each other. It was quickly followed by the Pikachu's "Yo," with a slightly camp wave. "Wait a minute, you could've called him 'dad' too, right?" Allen abruptly halted his wave, then playfully teased his Umbreon brother. This is because Blacky's master could've passed as his adoptive father too. However, all Allen got from the playful tease was a rather annoyed glare with Blacky muttering, "Just not out here, please." (Reminder to @WavePearl and @SpicySparrow: feel free to give the boys a "stealth hi" whenever you can~ And yes, that "Eevee in a fancy robe" is Atelier.)
(Agreed. They can sneak in on the boys anytime) Atelier waved back at the Pikachu. “Allen.” He wondered if his foreign robe could have been less conspicuous. It was that noticeable, wasn’t it? Nevertheless, it seemed the Pikachu had never seen this kind of robe before. Before Atelier could say another word, it seemed Blacky and Allen had gotten into friendly banter. Sometimes, he wondered how Blacky coped in times like these. One moment, he was observing his parents' graves, and then there was Allen popping by to greet them.
@Puppet Master Meanwhile, over in a bush, Aine watched the boys visit with a Pikachu. The harp Blacky held looked beautiful. While I had harp training in the minstrel's academy, it's been some time since I played one...