Doom approached, and Brandy was going to be in its fiery heart. She had but moments to escape it.

"It's been good meeting you, Mom!" Brandy said as she hopped off Morgan's lap and turned to pull Morgan to her feet by her wrists, "We should be going now."

"I haven't met Scoria," Morgan said, "Shouldn't we wait for her?"

"Nooooooooooo..." Brandy looked to Sparky and Calcine for support. They were grinning. What did she really expect?

"We haven't talked about you either, Brandy," Fenny said as Pix reappeared on the screen behind her with a countdown timer. With an impish little smile, she hid behind one of the numbers as Brandy glared at her.

"I love them all a lot. You don't need to tell me that!" Brandy said as she pulled Morgan over to the others and tried to press them all out of the room in a group. They just surrounded her, grabbing her to stop her from escaping.

"True, but your inheritance uptake is pretty strong too. You might have a bit of a bumpy few weeks." Fenny said, "Your Partner's energy empowers itself in you, but it also bleeds out. Sparky's eyes are really just the start. I did notice you're looking a little more filled out. You have been eating well?"

Sparky started cackling.

"Maybe I should have worded that differently." Fenny said with the unabashed smile of someone who'd done it on purpose, "Make sure she doesn't miss her meals, all of you."

Mom endorsed dick-sucking as if this couldn't get any worse.

There was a beep from Pix's timer and a thump from out on the balcony that rattled the glass walls of the building. Oh, right, Brandy had forgotten; it was about to get much worse.

Morgan adjusted her hat and stood up straight as the door slid open.

"Scoria, it's a pleasure to meet y-" a fiery blur bowled into Morgan, the flutter of familiarly soft wings briefly brushed over Brandy.

Scoria had just scooped Morgan right up on her way to Fenny, and now Morgan was pressed between them both. Morgan held onto her hat as her head was lost in pillowy Volcarona chest.

"Fenny," Scoria purred, just a hint of a buzz on the edge of her voice that made the ears twitch. "What a delightful treat you've found us."

Fenny took a kiss that went on far too long as Morgan flailed her winged arms about, trying to find something to grab onto to pull herself out of her marshmallow prison. Every option she found was far too soft for her to get a good grip on and made Scoria's buzzing kiss intensify in sound.

"So," Calcine said hesitantly, "Scoria seems more worked up than usual."

Brandy pinched the bridge of her nose. They were always like this, an eternal embarrassment for her. Fenny was pretty openly flirtatious on her own; it became impossible to endure when she was with Scoria.

"Morgan's my Partner mom!" Brandy yelled. She had to yell because the buzzing was getting to the point where it started to make things vibrate, and once that happened, she'd need a hose to stand a chance of getting their attention. "Let her breathe, please."

Scoria didn't stop kissing the life out of Fenny, but she pulled Morgan out from her chest and pushed her to the side, Morgan swaying on her feet and catching herself on the wall. She looked stunned, eyes unfocused as she fanned herself with a wing. Brandy saw Tips on the couch, still watching with an amused smile. No help to be found there. Tips clearly planned to wait for her turn.

"It's cute your parents love each other so much," Sparky said.

Fenny was kicking her feet as Scoria held her up, their kiss a wet glucking din as Scoria took Fenny's throat with her tongue. It was much longer than usual, but Brandy rarely saw that outside of her absolutely destroying a milkshake.

"Cute is not the word I'd use," Morgan panted, sweat beading on the end of her feathers. "She's so warm!"

"Brandy and I are warm too," Calcine said, "You like that, do you?"

Their rivalry helped shake Morgan back to some sense, straightening her back as she tried to look cool. It was hard when her feathers were all ruffled and getting moist. "The Joyce family continues to surprise."

Fenny was breathless after the kiss, hands pawing up Scoria's body and trailing fingertips over the fluttering wings. The dopiest smile on her face.

"Mmmmm. Scoria, you can't just flutter in here. I'm working," Fenny said softly, and from her grabby hands, it was clear this was all just talk.

Scoria had already been going for another kiss, but she paused to press on Fenny even more firmly, squashing her into the wall. "Put me in the cage then. We can do work."

"Also, our daughter is here."

"Oh?" Scoria looked back, her glowing eyes narrowing to look at Brandy like she'd never seen her before. "Brandy! I thought I heard your voice. It sounds so like my Fenny's."

Brandy wanted nothing to do with this, but she had no choice when she was singled out. She went for the safe option, pointing to her eyes. "Wanted to show Fenny my new bug eyes."

"A bit more like me? I'm flattered. Thank you, Sparky, you are a good girl."

"Never done wrong!" Sparky nodded. "I'll make sure plenty of Bug gets in her."

Calcine was smirking, giving Sparky a fond fur rub as she watched Brandy try to keep her cool. Poor Morgan was just the picture of flustered awkwardness, looking to Brandy for guidance. Well, if anyone was an expert on being embarrassed by these two, it was her.

"This is Morgan. She's a Murkrow who is teaching me some tricks," Brandy said with a tip of her hand, swishing over Scoria and Fenny, the latter slowly sinking into Scoria's bust like it was quicksand. "Morgan, this is Scoria, my Poké-mom."

"Poké-mom. Cute."

"My little Larvesta is awfully cute," Scoria said proudly. "You, on the other hand, are quite delightful. I'm glad Brandy has a lady with wings in her life."

Morgan fluttered her wings out; they weren't on her back like Scoria's, so she had to spread her arms, but it looked more like a great feathered cloak that would double as wings when she did so. An impressive look that Scoria was more than happy to appreciate.

"Take her places she'd never see without you," Scoria nodded, "and if you need to wander, then Fenny and I could show you a place or two."

"Absolutely no stealing, my Partners!" Brandy cut crosses in the hair with her arms. "Forbidden! They'd never be the same."

"I wouldn't mind being changed." Morgan licked her lips. Then burst into black feathers as Calcine tried to punch her arm playfully and reappeared on the other side of the Rolycoly, tapping her arm. "But I am happy with the Joyce I've got, thank you very much. I want to do things to her more."

"Loyalty only counts if you don't wander," Calcine rumbled.

"Then let's hope Brandy's mothers don't get any hotter. I'm only Pokémon."

Brandy buried her face in her hands and resolved never to come out. She lived here now, burning in shame. The Eternal Shame.

"Still think you can handle them?" Fenny laughed as she tipped back Scoria's chin and kissed her neck. Fluttering wings, a cool breeze Morgan angled herself to get into. "They seem a rambunctious bunch."

"Brandy has a unique style," Sparky said, "She loves us teasing her so much she can't stop us. Not without putting me in a headlock, anyway."

It was a start. Brandy got her arm around Sparky and bent her into a headlock, feeling the leather of her Choker against her skin as she squealed happily. "Calcine, can you get Morgan? I think we should give them some space."

Tips waved from the couch. Brandy would say she was playing it cool, but she had a limit for puns; Fenny and Sparky had quickly run through that.

"Wait," Scoria said, "Before you go, sweetheart, Fenny has something for you."

"I swear if this is a-" Brandy's throat went dry as her words faltered, Fenny was fishing her necklace out of her cleavage. She'd worn it as long as Brandy could remember; it was as much a part of her mom as her red hair or an incredible knack for losing clothes when Scoria was around.

"When Scoria was my little Larvesta, we used this," Fenny said. The necklace chain was a simple silver, going down to a socketed fitting with a red pearl implanted in it. Swirling within were flames that never went out. "Until she could admit she loved me enough to know no shame."

"A little shame would have been nice to keep," Brandy mumbled, but she was shocked. This was a big gesture. It was pretty much a physical piece of their relationship.

"You can use it," Fenny said, gesturing Brandy over. "It'll help Calcine. She's got a lot of growing to do. Don't worry about it being old; we've kept it flush with energy."

"Mom, it's too much," Brandy said, "But thank you."

"You can give it back someday." Fenny smiled, leaning on Scoria. "I got all I need right here. Maybe pass it down to a daughter. Or sister."

"Okay," Brandy nodded. "Absolutely. Uh. I don't have a sister?"

"Yet," Scoria growled. "But we are going to work on that today. Now that you're out in the world."

Oh. So that's why Scoria was so worked up.

"A baby Joyce!" Sparky squealed in her headlock. "Can we have one?"

Brandy just tightened her grip as she tried getting the necklace over her head with one hand. Calcine came over to help, thumb rubbing over the red stone. "I love it; we'll take good care of it for you. Send you some pictures."

"Do that. Be lovely to have a name for the Dex to send messages to. We'll send you videos back, "

"Of what?" Calcine asked, unable to take her gaze off the Fire Stone.

Brandy grabbed Calcine's arm and dragged her to the door. "Of what? What would the videos be of?"

Morgan covered Calcine's ears as she nodded to Fenny. "I was wrong about you. Good luck surviving all of that."

"All of this is going to destroy me!" Fenny buried her face in the soft fuzz Scoria wore as a mane. Replying in a muffled voice. "That's how we got Brandy."

Brandy got everyone out of there before they could tell the story. She'd spend her whole life dodging it if she could.

"A Sister," Morgan said as she helped march everyone out. "You'll have to work hard. Big Sisters have to be full of fun stories."

"With all of you, I don't think I'll be short of those," Brandy smiled as Calcine tucked the necklace into Brandy's top. "Just short on ones I can actually tell her."