Chapter 4 – A Very Overdue Family Reunion Part 2
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Chapter 4 – A Very Overdue Family Reunion Part 2

Once through the gate of the Cambridge Manor, we all beheld the large southern-style mansion. For most of us, it was our first time seeing a house this big, let alone going inside of one, but to my Dad, it was a ghost of the past. 

"It will all be fine..." He echos his previous statement as he focuses on the cobblestone road and not on the manor itself. 

The Cambridge Manor was a three-story, white stucco, and grey shingled roof home. Greco-Roman columns were placed evenly all around the house, spanning from the foundation to the roof, and a wrap-around raised wooden porch jutted out from the building for a good 12 feet. The second floor had a similar wrap-around balcony that ran the perimeter of the house. Windows were spaced symmetrically in between the columns on either side of a 10-foot entrance door and another door of the same kind could be seen from the 2nd-floor balcony. Wrought iron railings in decorative leaf patterns lined the 2nd-floor balcony as well. 

Leading up to the impressive homestead was a straight cobblestone road that merged into a circle in front of the main entrance where many fancy cars were parked. On either side of the straight road were large trees with long branches and rich greenery, providing shade as well as a picturesque view as we drove down the path. 

Spoiler

The Cambridge Manor - Example Image

https://media.architecturaldigest.com/photos/56af91683c15bf3825650410/master/w_1920%2Cc_limit/antebellum-homes-southern-plantations-01.jpg

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As we drove in complete, tense, silence, I noticed that on either side of the cobbled road, just past the trees, were fields of lush green grass with different types of Fire Pokemon roaming, playing, and otherwise living their normal lives. 

Now would be a good time to mention why the Cambridge family had such an elegant manor. 

Dad's parents were the premier breeders for the Arcanine Pokemon line in the entire world. If someone wanted a Growlithe or Arcanine, they come to the Cambridges. My Grandparents bred the Pokemon for show and battle, but also served as a Pokemon League Sponsered Reserve for these rare fire pups. But that was not all they bred. 

While they were known for Growlithes and Arcanines, they also had the Rapidash and Ninetails lines as well. If someone wanted one of these Pokemon, they would come to the Cambridge family. Additionally, they donated both large sums of money as well as baby Pokemon for new students to schools all across the region.

Not only were they rich, but they were vey well-liked. 

So, with all this in mind, it was not a surprise for me to see a team of Rapidash and Ponyta running within a fenced area beyond the trees, but it was surprising for me to see the number of them! There had to be at least 100 of the horse-like Pokemon running and grazing through the several acres of grassland around the manor.   

3 of them were separated into their own enclosure, and I pointed them out for Rose to see as we drove by. 2 adult Rapidashs looked over a small baby Ponyta who appeared to be jumping and playing around with its parents adorably. The incredible thing was that one of the Rapidashs and the Ponyta had a white fire on their mane and tail instead of the usual red.

"Finn...Is that a variant?' Rose asks with sparkles in her eyes as she watched the mother Rapidash start grooming the foal.

"Yup! That is a beautiful coloring too. No wonder they want to breed more of them." I explain as I smile at the unique Pokemon.

Variants, or variant Pokemon, are Pokemon with unique colorings or differing elements. 

They are somewhat similar to "Shiny Pokemon" in the games, but there seems to be a genetic reason for them being different, rather than just a one-in-a-million chance of it happening. In the case of the different elemental typings, they are similar to Delta, Alolan, Galarian, or Hisuian Pokemon, however, in this world, they are all wrapped up in one term: Variant Pokemon. 

Another departure from the games is in the fact that they are not very rare at all. About 1 in 100 Pokemon are born with some sort of variation.

It could be subtle, like a differing pattern in their fur or a slightly paler color to their skin, or it could be dramatic, like in the case of these Pokemon. I had even seen a sky-blue Pikachu once on TV!

Pokemon Researchers have discovered that this occurs due to different Pokemon of a species genome interbreeding. While it is a well-known fact that a baby Pokemon will always be of the same species as its Mother, this doesn't mean that the father or the heritage of the Pokemon has no input whatsoever. These unique traits display themselves in the features or elements of Variant Pokemon.

Think of it like hair color on humans. On Earth, the color brown is more genetically dominant than the color red, so it is most likely that a baby between a brown-haired man and a red-haired woman would have brown hair. But the baby they have turns out to have blonde hair...Why?

Because of the genes of the baby's parents. Both of the parents have ancestors with blonde hair, however far down the line, so, although very unlikely, their baby was born with blonde hair.  

Let's use the 2 Rapidashs as another example.

The Father has normal coloring and the Mother has the special variation of white fire. The regular coloring and elemental typing are dominant in the Father, so, most of the time, the foal will have the normal, more dominant, genes passed on - Becoming a standard Ponyta. But if the Father also has genes in his ancestry that correlate to the same variant genes as the Mother, their foal can be a variant. 

In this case, because the Mother has white fire instead of the normal red, there is a much higher likelihood that this specific variation would occur in the foal because it is a nearer genetic option. 

Their separation shows that my Grandparents want to try to breed this variation to receive more of these types of Pokemon. It is a tricky thing and can take years or even generations to accomplish, but it is not unheard of for variants to be uniquely bred like this due to appealing characteristics.  

As a side note, Pyra's variation is only in her slightly pink coloring, as far as I can tell. I haven't noticed any differing elemental typings or additional moves being learned from her as we train. 

"Down to the last two...That's too bad." My Dad comments, looking over at the Pokemon as well. 

"Poachers?" Mom asks.

Dad sighs. "It was always a problem growing up. Pokemon are just too trusting of strangers..."

"...Please tell me your parents aren't aware we were poachers at one point." My Mom asks worriedly. 

"I don't believe so...but it would be best to avoid that topic if at all possible." My Dad answers gravely. 

"What are poachers?" Rose asks curiously from her spot in the back seat still staring at the baby Ponyta. 

'Girls and Ponies...Nice to see similarities to my old life's world like this...' I think, smiling at my younger sister's childish delight. 

"Bad men and women who capture Pokemon, specifically variants, and sell them off to others." Mom answers softly.

Rose gasps and looks at her. "Momma did that?"

Jessie and James both wince, but, to their credit, they don't lie to her. "Yes, sweetie. We were not always the best of people. We learned from our mistakes, however, and are trying to make up for the bad things we did in the past..." She says, turning to Rose with a sad smile.

"Though, to be fair...we never actually captured a Pokemon successfully..." Dad mumbles.

Mom ignores him and continues. "Can you forgive Momma?"

Rose tilts her head and puts her hand to her lips in thought. "Hmm..."

My parents start shaking with fear.

"Hmmmmm..." Rose continues to ponder turning her head to the other side. 

Mom and Dad both share a piteous look and I can see tears welling up in Dad's eyes.

'My little sister is a sadist...' I realize as I can clearly see her hiding a smile behind her hands. 

She then giggles and announces with childlike glee, "Of course I forgive Momma! I love Mommy & Daddy!"  

They share a loud sigh of relief and smile back at her...Well, my Dad does briefly, before looking back to the road. We were almost at the end of the drive and entering the circle. 

"We love you too, Rosey," Dad says with a smile. Much of the tension from the drive had been released without him noticing. 

"Finn...?" Mom questions vulnerably. 

I sigh.

"You have both done an amazing job turning your lives around." I start, "I don't like what you did in the past...from what Ash says, you were a downright terror and caused a lot of destruction of property...But I am proud of who you two are now, and I am very proud to be your son." I announce with feeling. 

It was the truth. 

So many people say that they will try to reform themselves, but how many actually do it? How many stick with it for the long run? 

'I know I didn't in my past life...'

My parents impressed me greatly with their resolve to change and their love for my sister and I which gave them that resolve. 

Dad started crying and Mom teared up. I hugged Rose who was starting to tear up too, probably just because others were and she didn't understand what was going on. 

When we finally arrived at the Cambridge Manor and parked, we got out for another warm family hug. 

I made sure my parents were both presentable and had stopped crying before we all made our way to the entrance. 

'Arceus, please let this go well...' I send a final prayer to the Pokemon God.

* | * | *

My family stood awkwardly in a corner of the parlor in the manor house. We had been led here by a butler in a suit, who hadn't given us a name, and told to wait for everyone to arrive. 

The room was richly decorated with several large leather couches, leather chairs, and mahogany end tables set up so that a large group of people could sit in a semi-circle around a central fireplace in the room. The floor had a collection of finely designed rugs and the widows all had silky drapes to block the oppressive sunlight. Even with this, however, the room had a very warm feel to it and was well illuminated by the combination of soft sunlight and electrical lights above. 

We had been standing here for about 10 minutes already and my Father had slowly been getting paler and paler as time went on. 

I sighed and sat down on one of the leather couches, pulling Rose up beside me since she was starting to look anxious. My parents stared at me like deer in the headlights and I waved for them to take a seat as well. They did so reluctantly. 

No sooner had they sat down, than the door across from us opened and a stern-looking man with shoulder-length cerulean hair walked in. He wore a nice white button-down shirt with black slacks and shoes, and his eyes seemed to be searching the wine cupboards nearby for something.

He looked to be a bit older than my Dad, who immediately stood again when the man entered. 

Seeing the movement and registering our presence, he freezes completely." Who are you all...J-James!?!" The man nearly shouted in shock when he saw my Father's face. 

"H-Hello, Brother Eugene...It is good to see you-" That is all Dad got out before my still unmet Uncle Eugene turned and sprinted out of the room, slamming the door behind him. We heard him start yelling on the other side, but the words were muffled. 

"I...I think we should go..." Dad said, turning to us with a shaking hand running through his hair.

"James, we just got here! We need to at least wait to meet your parents!" Mom counters, feeling a bit shaken up from the encounter herself.

"I don't think we are welcome here-" That is once again all James could get out as in the next moment a stream of blue-haired people exploded out from the same door my uncle had left from. Some even tripped over themselves in their mad rush to enter. In total, 3 men and 2 women were now standing in the room, all of them with cerulean-colored hair, and all of them staring directly at Dad. 

"J-Jamie...?" The older of the two women said in a shocked whisper. She had long ringlets of our signature family hair and wore a rather beautiful orange and white dress.

'Okay...I am sensing a theme here. Next will be...'

I turn my attention to the other door in the parlor, one leading to an undiscovered portion of the manor. Sure enough...

"U-Uh, Yea...It's me, Sister Presilla...I came to-" Dad says slowly, but, for the third time today, he is interrupted mid-sentence by a door slamming.

*Bang*

An old man with slicked-back white hair and wearing a full 3-piece suit rushes through the door and stares at my Father in shock.

"My...My Son? Is it really you...?" The old man, Grandpa - I realize, chokes out. 

"Yes, Father. I have returned home...I wish to introduce my family to you all." Dad says, somehow sounding more confident than he had all day. Good for you, Dad!

Then...

Silence.

A lot of silence. 

No one moves. No one breathes. They all just stare. 

'Did time just stop or something...?'

"What's all this then? Did I raise a bunch of Magikarp? Walter, go hug our son!" The voice of a tired old woman says with a sigh as she enters the room at a measured pace. 

Like a dam being broken, 6 people rush fast as lighting to slam into James and start hugging him tightly...Followed immediately by the waterworks. 

Mom, Rose, and I watch on in happiness and...a bit of trepidation as the 7 people dogpiled in front of us all start wailing in joy at being reunited. 

It would have been a lot sweeter without the snot dripping from each of their faces...but I guess I know where Dad gets that from now. 

Still, all jokes aside, it was an amazing moment.

There were no talks of blame or anger, just 7 family members happily reunited after nearly 20 years. 

* | * | *

After the long hug and tearful welcome, during which the families of the Cambridge siblings entered the room in confusion as well, It was finally time for us to meet them all. 

My Grandfather, Walter, and my Grandmother, Margret, were introduced first. Grandma Margret had long white hair and a warm, if firm, smile. She wore a simple white sundress and hat but appeared regal in it nonetheless. She was also the only one who chided my Father for coming home so late, and, from one look I could tell, she ran this house. 

I am not sure what it is with the Cambridges, but women always seem to wear the pants in the relationships. It was the same for my Mom, my Aunts, and my Grandmother.

'I also like strong women, so what does that say about my future...? Let's not think about that for now...' I decide to shove that thought to the back of my mind. 

My Uncles were named Eugene, Roger, and Frank, and my Aunts were named Presilla and Hannah. I tried to be polite and proper with my introductions...but they each just swallowed me up in a hug and said how cute I was...

'Was hugging also a Cambridge tradition? ...Could be worse, I suppose.'

Each of my Aunts and Uncles was married and had kids of their own, so I suddenly went from having no extended family to having over a dozen. Hell, I had over a dozen cousins alone!

I will not lie, it is gonna take some time for me to remember each of their names...

Even with having so many, it appeared Dad and Aunt Presilla had worked the fastest, as I was tied for the oldest cousin with her daughter, Abigale Cambridge. While Rose had many children about her same age, 4, Abby and I were the only ones older than 6. 

We immediately hit it off!

She was a wonderful girl with lovely green eyes, wavy shoulder-length cerulean hair, and also wore a sun hat and dress like our Grandmother, though Abby's was purple in color. 

Abby and I took on the role of babysitters for the remainder of the family reunion, allowing the adults to meet and reconnect with one another without having to worry about their children - Much to their relief. 

While we watched over the kids, who were playing all sorts of games like tag, house, and Pokemon Trainers, we talked about ourselves and what our lives had been like so far. 

I told her about my love for Pokemon, training, as well as my interest in becoming a World Trainer someday, and she shared with me her dream of becoming a famous Pokemon Announcer, just like her idol Jasmine. 

She was so enthusiastic about it, in fact, that we talked about the finer points and nuanced skills of being a Pokemon Announcer for the better part of an hour. Her only current issue was in finding a way into the entertainment industry. She was considering starting with child modeling, as that is a great way to start building fans and making her face known, but she didn't really know how to begin.  

I mentioned that Lara was thinking about doing the same thing to gain some good pictures for her newfound acting career, and Abby lost it. Apparently, she had not only heard about the upcoming PokeDetectives show, but one of her favorite child actresses was going to be in it. She was also a huge fan of Serena and so the mention of her daughter, Lara, set her off. 

I never knew girls could talk so fast...Or look so scary when excited...

By the end of our conversation, she had extracted a promise from me to give her contact information to Lara so that they could share ideas and tips about getting into the modeling industry. 

I felt like I should have been hesitant with this, and the memories from my past life warned me about potential issues this could bring, but I decided it was alright for two very important reasons. First, she was my cousin and I could tell she wasn't trying to use me. Second, Abby just desperately wanted a friend she could talk to about this stuff. She was very innocent and pure about her requests and honest with her intentions. I would have had to be a black-hearted man suffering from true trust issues to think she had some ulterior motives. 

So, yes. I would pass on her information. 

That didn't mean I would force Lara to be her friend though! If they became friends, that was on them. I was just connecting two like-minded people together. 

We talked for a little while longer after that, in between breaking up some fights with our rambunctious little cousins, before my Grandma clapped and asked if we should move this outside to enjoy the great weather. She also mentioned showing us their breeding Pokemon and I was all for that!

...Maybe even a bit too eager, if her knowing smile was any indication.

...I liked Arcanine a lot, alright!?! It was a big doge with lots of floof. What's not to like!?!

...I was not, however, prepared for the biggest Arcanine I had ever seen to suddenly come sprinting at us from over an acre away the moment we exited the house into the backyard...

:Sweat: I guess we are doing a part 3! haha I will try to get that out in the next few days as well.

I was not expecting to have so much to write about this, but I think giving time to build the family characters is only a good thing for the long run of the story. So, here we are. haha

More to come soon!

Hope you enjoyed the chapter! If you did like it, please consider leaving a heart, rating, or review!

Let me know what you think in the comments!

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