“Stand with me, brothers and sisters!” he exclaimed, his arms outstretched as he stood in front of his podium. “In the past, we have, time and time again, stood against the plight bestowed upon us by the humans. We sought nothing more than peace throughout our lives, yet the humans gave us nothing more than neglect! Meanwhile, the Arvilios family--the rulers of our kingdom whom we have grown to trust for centuries after our self-exile--have chosen for us to return en masse... to the humans?! For years, we have been at peace. For years, we have remained in the shadows, maintaining constant vigil over this once peaceful kingdom. It is us who want peace; it is the Arvilios family who now seeks to destroy what values we had established long ago!”
Another voice spoke up. She joined him by stating, “In the past eight years, we knew the Arvilios family was at risk of losing the faith of its denizens. They have ruled for 300 years. By nature, they were prone to having a ruler whose decision would lead us to ruin. It has been so long, after all. In the beginning, however, they knew the humans were to never be trusted. As did this organization, the safety net of this very kingdom. We have tried many times to reason with the family that upon return we will be greeted with the same abuse, contempt, and agony that our ancestors endured. They will not listen. Now our kingdom has reached the point of begging, and even still they refuse to listen. Now, days before they announce our location to the distant humans, the Circle of Unity shall strike at the heart of the kingdom, Arvilios Castle, as they have proven to be unwilling of yielding to the truth. Rise, brothers and sisters of our imperiled kingdom! Rise up and help in keeping secure what is ours!”
“Down with Arvilios!” he yelled, his arms extended powerfully.
“DOWN WITH ARVILIOS!” the Pokémon of the Circle chanted. “DOWN WITH ARVILIOS! DOWN WITH ARVILIOS!”
“DOWN WITH ARVILIOS!” she shouted with the crowd fervently, repeating herself with the other Pokémon.
---
“Huff... huff... huff... F... Father, is it... okay... to stop for now?” the eevee asked exhaustedly.
The charizard nodded. “Of course, Sindi.”
“Tha... thanks...” She laid down on the warm grass almost immediately.
He approached his daughter. “Perhaps I overwork you... I apologize. Last time we were out here training, your mother pulled me away once we were finished. She told me that I... work you too hard, that the first thing you do is go to your room and rest for at least two hours.”
Sindi faced away from her father in thought.
“Sindi...”
Sighing, the eevee said, “I’m sorry... Fighting isn’t something I want to do very much. There’s more to life than that, you know? Such aaas... cooking. Or even art!”
“I wish you had informed me sooner,” the charizard replied with a shake of his head. “Even still... do you understand why it is that I train you as hard as I do?”
“To help me defend myself, I knooow...” she replied, rolling her eyes a little.
Her father continued regardless. “I do it because I fear for your safety. I admit... I project myself onto you at times. I realize this. But there is something you must understand: You can’t live in this world not knowing how to battle another Pokémon. You don’t know what dangers lie in this world; Pokémon up to trouble and want to steal from you, harm you, or even... use you... for food.” His voice hesitated on the last part, as if he had something else to add.
Her eyes snapped back at her father. “Dad, I know, but... what if it’s not all that bad out there? And even if it is... why should we have to in the first place? In fact, what’s the point at all in living in a world where fighting is something you’ll do every few minutes anyway?! Why can’t I just relax in a house, do what I want, and be okay?!”
“Because it’s...! Because it’s just how things work, Sindi!”
“To heck with how things work, I bet you don’t even have a clue how my feelings work!”
“Don’t be like that, Sindi, I--”
“Urodaros! Sindi! Please!” a female voice called out. It was another charizard, with darker orange scales and dark red eyes.
Urodaros’ head quickly turned toward his wife’s voice. “Uriel?” Urodaros murmured.
“Once again I check on training and once again I find the both of you about to have an argument. This is the third time, Urodaros.”
Without a word, Sindi turned her head away to rest it. She didn’t move from her lying down position.
“Uriel, I... I’m sorry,” the male charizard spoke.
Uriel pulled the other charizard aside to quietly speak to him. “I’m starting to think having you handle her training isn’t best.” She was, at the same time, thinking out loud.
“But why? She’s learning so much so fast. She even learned a move that makes me... want to hit her less!”
“I don’t care. I don’t want you ruining your relationship with her by trying to teach her how to defend herself. And if she learned a move like that already, then she’s evidently capable of holding her own as is.”
“You’re... you’re not suggesting she not be taught, are you? You can’t teach her, you have our other children to tend to!”
“Not what I had in mind at all. What I was... going to suggest was a personal combat tutor.”
“But... this is how I connect to her...” he somberly replied.
“We’re hiring one tomorrow. I’m sorry, but you’ll have to find something different to connect with.”
“Uriel, please, just one more chance...”
Without another word, Uriel turned toward Sindi, approaching her. The eevee’s ears twitched as she heard the repeated sound of grass being stepped on getting closer to her. “Don’t hate your father,” she murmured to her. “He just wants what’s best for you. But I don’t believe he is what you need at this point in your life as far as training goes.”
“But I don’t want to train anymore.” Her eyes weren’t meeting her mother’s.
“Look at me,” Uriel said. Sindi looked back and the charizard then continued to say, “If you want to do what you want to life, there are some things in life you’ll have to do first. If you want to open a tea shop, for instance, you’ll have to learn to protect it and yourself should something bad happen. You should also learn to judge when to fight or flee for yourself. We’re trying to teach you how to live and survive by yourself. Okay?”
Sindi said nothing.
“Okay?”
“Yes, Mom,” she said, looking away again.
Uriel sighed quietly and turned back toward the interior of their castle, leaving the garden area. Passing by Urodaros, she whispered to him, “I remember when she was just an egg when we first found her... But even still, I sometimes wish she were a bit more like the other two. She can be tough for us, very tough. But you still must treat her well. You know she means none of what she says. She loves you. You must love her, too.”
“I do... it’s just...”
“No more.” She then walked back inside, leaving the two of them alone.
Urodaros glanced at the nearby pond, then looked back at Sindi, realizing that he had not looked directly at her for the entire time Uriel was around. He walked over to the eevee. “I... I’m sorry,” he said. “You’re right, I... I don’t understand how you feel.” The charizard paused to see if she would say anything, which she didn’t. “But... well, I guess we don’t understand each other. You don’t seem to understand my feelings as well. But know that I still love you. That will not change. I was also hoping that we could learn about each other through training, but it appears that won’t help.”
“You sound like you’re trying to guilt me.” She didn’t even glance at him.
“I’m not. I promise. I...” He paused again, looking away in thought. Looking back, the charizard said, “Again, I’m sorry,” then slowly turned around to head back inside. The eevee was then completely alone.
Finally some peace and quiet, the Sindi thought after a few minutes of relaxing silence. Love you dad, but gosh I wish you paid more attention to my feelings than your wants. She rolled onto her back, looking up at the clear blue sky. Hm. I’ve been so busy training I haven’t noticed how nice of a day it’s been. She rolled onto her belly, staring at the fountain for a moment. Then she stood up, stretched her legs, and started to head inside. I wonder if anyone else in this family feels the way I do.
