Abigail was left home alone for an hour or two. Even though the city would be busy enough to make her sick, Bellossom Helen went out to the store to buy her the things every girl her age was looking for: beauty accessories and panaceas for being ugly, or something along those lines.
Even on Abigail's suburban street pokemon shouted to each other like it was daytime and started to hang banners. She could still hear muffled voices with her windows closed, but she didn't mind as much as she normally would.
Furret Abigail laid out in a water pit. Her tail curled under hot water and steam for her whole body to fit. She nodded off looking outside her window.
Helen's voice stirred her from her sleep. The water hadn't cooled very much, but it felt like she slept a while. The steam started to dim when she yawned and stretched out her body, shivering from the pleasant feeling.
Bellossom Helen entered the room with a weird, yellow bottle in her hands. She set it on the edge of the bath.
"I have tons of stuff from friends," Helen said, "so all we need to do is finish up your fur and get your makeup and... demeanor right."
"Demeanor?" Abigail asked, insulted.
"Nothing's wrong," Helen said quickly.. "It's just, well... I want you to try to look cool... And stuff."
"Mmmmmk..."
"Let me put it like this... You don't really pay attention to how you appear very much, so it can lead you to look... good and bad. Like, you're very honest."
"And I get the feeling most city people aren't?"
Helen's face answered. Abigail sighed as Helen left her to use the bottle. She added drops of it to the water. She just sat for a few minutes, swishing around her tail and soaking.
Once she assumed it was long enough, she stood up and dried herself off with a white towel. She turned the nozzle to let the water pit empty with the towel spiraling down her body. Once dried off, Abigail pulled open her room's door and walked down the rampway to the first floor.
The rampway down was a little too steep, like most cheaper buildings. They were a little too thin for some species, but not often. When Abigail reached the bottom, the room opened up. There were two long windows on either side of the front door, but Abigail enjoyed the rest of the enclosed space.
The Bellossom waited on a brown cushion at a short wood table, reading a book. When she heard Abigail, Helen set the book down and stood up.
"Okay, good start," Helen said. "I'll take care of the rest."
"What rest?" Abigail asked.
"Don't worry about any of it. Just have a seat, and I'll take care of it."
The Furret huff and obeyed. She walked to the olive green couch that overlooked the table and TV hanging on the wall, lying down across it the long way. Her tail went over the edge and brushed against the floor, sweeping from side to side.
"It's fine if you got some sleep, I got this," Helen said.
"O-k," Abigail answered.
In the corner of her eye, Abigail saw Helen bring a small set of brushes for fur in her arms. She wasn't sure how she'd fall asleep with that, but she started to get it. The brush going down her back felt like a knockout punch. Tingles constantly went down her whole back all the way to her tail.
After a little time, the Bellossom gently shook her awake. Furret Abigail sighed in reply while the Bellossom spoke.
"I remember you don't like makeup, right?" Helen asked.
"Yah, no makeup," Abigail said. "I'd rather not."
"It's fine, of course. Just trying to make final choices on what look I'm going for."
"Wait, don't I have a say?"
"Don't worry. I've got ya."
For some reason, Abigail didn't really feel offended by her insistence. Helen walked around her in a circle while she sat on the couch and stared at her from different angles.
"Okay, I've got it," Helen announced, "I'll borrow from a few friends, and then I think we'll be all set."
"So I can actually get some sleep?" Abigail asked. " I worked overtime..."
"Just give me a little longer, then you can sleep for the night."
Helen kept brushing Abigail's fur for a few minutes before keeping up her promise. She left out a few minutes later, but Abigail went upstairs and slid back into her bed.
________________________________________________________________________________
When Abigail woke up, the air felt in between cool and warm like the morning time. When she sat up, she noticed a huge difference in her fur.
It was fluffier and softer than it ever had been. It all went in one direction towards her tail like a current, and had a bit of a cloudy feeling at its edges. It felt like her whole body was a high quality pillow.
She pulled the covers off and rose on her bed. She shuffled and stood back on the ground, poking out her chest to stretch her back again. After smoothening herself out, she opened her door and went down the rampway again.
A piece of paper was hanging from the ceiling at the bottom. Abigail read it once she was close.
"Gone out, back soon. -Helen"
Abigail didn't have or want a phone, so she decided to just stay inside. She still had romance novels to read. She chose one to settle in on the couch with.
________________________________________________________________________________
Abigail was lucky and unlucky; she had just reached the good parts, but she could save them for herself later. A talking mob approached close to the front door, and she could hear traces of Helen's voice in it. She closed the book and buried it under the couch's two cushions.
Five pairs of eyes stared back at her when Furret Abigail turned her head towards the door: a Breloom, Snubbull, Pancham, Salazzle, and Bellossom Helen. They all had stopped mid-conversation and just stared.
"I see it, yah. That's definitely the play. Good eye, Helen," said Breloom.
"This could actually work," Salazzle said. "Like, really work. We have a shot."
After they entered the room, the pokemon just gazed at her from different angles. Abigail wasn't sure what to say or do, so she stayed sitting in place while they circled her.
"Oh my gosh, you're right. We got this," Snubbull smiled. Her bright eyes hit Abigail like static.
"In the bag," Pancham added, "when do we get started?"
"Get started?" Abigail questioned. "Hey, I thought you said we were done."
"We got done with part one out of six," Helen said. Her guilty undertone made Abigail an epiphany fall on her face.
"She's a bit buffer than you described, even. That's pretty incredible," Breloom said.
"What...?" Abigail questioned. "Wait, incredible...? Aren't I supposed to look... more pretty?"
"Pft. Normies," Pancham said. "Of course not. You give us a way better option."
"Why do you guys keep saying us...?"
Abigail looked towards the Bellossom for answers.
"These are just some of my friends from high school," Helen explained. "We're a little too old to really be going after teenage princes after all, so we want to make you a winner."
"And a winner is what I see," Salazzle said, "so, let's get our roles. Helen?"
"Right," Bellessom Helen nodded. "Eleanor, you handle the perfume of course."
"Already planning," said Salazzle.
"Maria, go over what you know and teach her a few easy tricks after we're done."
Snubbull Maria smiled and nodded towards her.
"Anne, help me with her fur. I got a good starting point," Helen said.
"Copy that," Breloom Anne said.
"Mary, while they're busy, help me with the details of our wardrobe," Helen said. "She's from the countryside, so let's get something that matches her."
Pancham Mary followed Bellossom Helen up to Abigail's room. Abigail leaned and watched them head up, getting a little antsy about them poking around. She had other books under her mattress.
"Okay, I know what to do," Anne said, "I know how to go about this. I just have to make sure I don't fluff up your fur too much to avoid covering up your muscles."
"Avoid?" Abigail asked. "Shouldn't that be the goal or something?"
"Why would it be?"
Abigail didn't reply to the question. She didn't quite understand what she was insinuating.
Being strong was the opposite of being desirable. Or, at least it pretty much was.
Breloom Anne worked slow and precisely with the brushes. She was done in only a few minutes. Abigail had a feeling she did this kind of thing professionally with how she moved and looked at her.
Salazzle Eleanor worked in the kitchen. She used the stove as a table for a variety of bottles. As soon as Anne set the brushes aside, Snubbull Maria walked in front of Abigail.
"Okay, there are a few things to know about what you'll look like to boys," Maria said. "Elegance is intimidating at first, so it's important that you keep your face loose. Move smoothly. You don't need to pretend that you aren't strong, but don't hurt their pride. All three of these princes are sixteen, and they're still figuring themselves out. Just keep in mind how they feel."
"O-kay," Abigail nodded. "But, I'm seventeen, and I'm not really 'elegant'."
The Snubbull, Breloom, and Salazzle all laughed to themselves.
"Confidence in oneself, Abigail..." Maria said through her own chuckling.
"Uhm..."
"Anyways... There are a few tricks for eye contact depending on what you want to do or show. We are very sensitive to eye contact, so if you want to look at someone without making direct eye contact, focus in on their noise or another aspect of their face to make them feel more comfortable."
"I've never really tried anything like this before..."
"It's really quite useful. Even when you're walking, just look in the direction you want to go. You can avoid awkward situations when you and another person are walking in opposite directions and neither of you knows whether to go left or right."
"Where did you learn stuff like this?" she asked.
"Just some reading. And I still have one more trick for you. When making direct eye contact, you can occasionally focus on one eye and switch to focusing on the other to make it look like your eyes are sparkling. It expresses interest. Easy to remember?"
"Well, yah," Abigail said.
"I only have a couple things to add," Salazzle Eleanor called out, "unless you want to explain for me."
"She's going to give you some perfume. Very good for attracting boys, but it's about how you use it. She's going to focus it around your tail, so you use it as a fan and waft it around gently when it's best."
"Is there anything else?" Abigail asked. Her voice hinted a little at her being irritated, but it wasn't enough for them to seem to notice.
"Other than wardrobe, you're all set," Maria said.
"Then we can go out and enjoy ourselves till it starts," Eleanor suggested, "and you'll finally realize just how much you've got going on. Royals aren't the only boys excited about tonight."
"I'm not sure I'm really in the mood to go out when it's so busy," Abigail said.
"Oh, please. You're going to look just perfect," said Breloom Anne, "meaning there's no reason to be worried at all."
"That's not what I said."
Something about Abigail's shaky tone made the room go quiet. Bellossom Helen's footsteps sounded like small drumbeats on the ceiling, signaling her steps down to the first floor.
When Helen came down, her smile faded under widened eyes.
"Everything okay?" Helen asked.
Abigail answered when no one else did. "Yah, yah. Fine. Just... don't really feel like going out."
"Just out to eat?"
Abigail's head swayed from side to side, but then turned into a nod. "Well, sure I guess...."
Pancham Mary followed Helen as she stepped out of the rampway. A brown cloth covered her body until she set it down on the floor in front of Abigail.
It wasn't anything like Abigail was expecting; a basic, short, brown cape with a hood and a simple gold chain necklace.
"A... cape?" she asked. "I mean, I appreciate it... But aren't capes a little out of style?
"'Out of style' just means classic," Mary said. "Here. Try it on."
Mary went around Abigail and politely helped her put it on. It felt a bit like her brown cloak, but more open and not nearly as ragged. The lightweight gold chain necklace hung just below where the cloth went around her neck.
"Why'd you choose this necklace?" Abigail asked.
"It draws attention to your hazel eyes," Mary explained. "It works like a charm. Take a look."
Pancham gestured towards Bellossom Helen, who gave a small mirror to Abigail. She liked the outfit, but the fur on her head shocked her. It was bushy and wild, and definitely seen more often for boys. She always thought she looked more masculine, but they were somehow trying to bring out those traits on purpose and make them feminine somehow.
She felt weird. It wasn't that she looked like a boy, but had a strong aura as if she were some charming spy in a movie.
The other pokemon were all gathered around, reading her expression from her peripheral vision. They were all smiling when her surprise was followed by a bit of excitement bleeding through her lips. Bellossom Helen managed to signal for them to calm down and walked in front of her.
"So, Abigail. Would you like to go hang out with us for a few hours?" Helen asked.
"Yah. Okay."
"Then let's go have some fun!"
The pokemon split up to get things ready. Abigail went up to her room, grabbed her small, brown shoulder bag, and went back down. When she got back, everyone was already waiting for her by the door.
"I'm ready," Abigail said.
"Okay, just making sure," Helen said.
"Oh, you're perfume," Salazzle said, "I left it on the couch for you."
Abigail doubled back in front of the TV and put on a gentle amount, focusing more on her tail. Salazzle nodded back as they all walked out the door.
Abigail wasn't sure if it was on purpose, but right from the start, she ended up in the center of their walking formation. She was taller than all of them, so she had a clear view of the banners hanging between buildings, waving below the pure blue sky. Blue, yellow, and pink balloons were being carried by different pokemon they passed.
Seeing all of the banners together felt a little surreal. The pink banner of Verity, yellow banner of Acuity, and blue banner of Valor scattered everywhere along the walls and buildings as flags. The emblems were outlines of the heads of Mesprit, Uxie, and Azelf respectively, said to be the founders of the nations since before record. At night, the banners often gave off a gentle hue of light since they were often made of a luminous material, but they appeared normal under the sunlight for now.
Furret Abigail absentmindedly kept in step with Helen and her friends. They seemed to already have plans in mind, discussing between two different restaurants she didn't know. They walked closer to the side of the cobblestone street than usual, since electric carriages carrying hefty loads and passengers took up space in the roads. There weren't many other pokemon walking in this area, so moving around other groups didn't end up being a problem. Abigail preferred to walk on the grass, anyways.
Abigail had a feeling the building that stuck out was their destination. A large three-story brick building stood in a gap between trees, grass, and other small homes. The red and tan color gave her the sense of a grill restaurant. It was stationed on the corner of an intersection where carriages took turns changing directions and continued on their paths. They happened to cross the street when all of the carriages in sight were moving away.
Bellossom Helen took a few bounds forward and pulled the glass door open. The group moved for Abigail to enter first, even though she tried to avoid that.
The inside was lit like a sunset. The hanging, cone lights shaded the room in different, relaxing colors. Abigail moved off to the side as fast as possible to let the others through the doorway. Helen took to the front of the group.
"Seems quiet," said Abigail.
"Figured you'd like it," Salazzle Eleanor said. "All about timing."
Once Helen finished talking with a Snivy, he led them to a thick, wooden table with a booth, both close to the ground to accommodate any species, on a wall in the corner of the building. Abigail sat by the wall next to Helen with Breloom Anne on Helen's side. Salazzle Eleanor, Pancham Mary, and Snubbull Maria sat opposite of them. AfterSnivy jotted down to get six waters, Furret Abigail looked through the menu looking for something new. After she found a few things, she listed them out loud.
"I've never tried pizza or onion rings before."
The pokemon around her all made different movements with their heads. Helen's was the most subtle, but Abigail noticed all of them.
"Okay, guess we're ordering all of those," said Anne.
"Yup," Mary agreed, "and since I know the portions, I'll order for us."
Snivy came back soon after. Mary handled all of the ordering for the whole group. Once it was over, the peaceful silence didn't last very long.
"What did you eat where you're from?" Maria asked.
"Well, just anything," Abigail said. "Whatever was ready to eat.. Even ate a bear once. That was weird."
"A bear?" Helen repeated. "How did that happen?"
"Got too close to the cows. And it was good combat practice back then."
"Combat practice?"
Abigail mentally slapped herself after Helen asked that. She always avoided talking about her parents.
"Not anything major," Abigail said. "I used to be better."
"What'd it taste like?" Mary asked.
"Like beef jerky if it was made out of chicken."
"Reminds me of someone," said Eleanor.
This time, the whole table looked at Eleanor with strange looks. She only shrugged in response.
"Maybe that's how you got so buff," Pancham said. "I'll try eating a bunch of different stuff now. Makes sense to me."
"Maybe after fried cookies tonight..." Helen said, smiling.
"Yah, exactly."
"Yah, I've never tried a cookie either. Just cake, really," Abigail said. "Maybe a long time ago, but I don't remember what they're like now."
"I'll make sure to show you all the sweets that will be there," Helen said, "and it's quite a lot."
Abigail just listened to the following conversations about desserts. She knew most of the ingredients they were talking about, but city desserts tended to still be on the newer side to her. She didn't try, but hoped they didn't ask her to pronounce some of those names.
When the food came, she tried everything while the others were already eating. She knew from commercials what pizza looked like, but she never got the appeal until now.
Abigail ate slower than anyone else at the table, burning the crispy taste of cheese into her memory. By the end, she ate about the least out of all of them. The same conversation continued at a slower pace, and they were all finished by the time the conversation ended. Maria took the bill by herself. She didn't seem to think about it much.
"So, Abigail," Helen said.
Abigail snapped awake from Bellossom Helen calling her name. "Yah?"
"Any place you want to go or anything?"
"Not... really. I mean, I guess I'm just wondering about tonight."
"What about it?"
Abigail didn't really have a specific question, but also didn't know anything in the first place. Her head rolled from side to side as she inhaled.
"Uhm, I guess all of it?" Abigail said.
"Do schools not teach about it anymore...?" asked Eleanor. "I heard they weren't recently..."
"The Royal Parade is when most of the Veritan, Valorian, or Acuitan royal family members are revealed as princes when they turn sixteen. Most of the time, they also find their spouses," Helen explained. "So in every generation, a commoner becomes royalty. It's... a tradition. Like... A peaceful tradition after the wars two hundred years ago."
"But what's going to happen?" asked Abigail.
"They'll be going on a carriage through a set path in the city, and then they just wave and interact with the crowd. But this time is the first time that there are three members from the royal family being introduced at once. And it's ultra lucky they're all boys... For you."
"But I'm not even noticeable in a crowd... The odds of them even seeing me are low by itself."
"It's not like you're losing anything by trying," Breloom Anne said. "Besides, these loud ladies will get their heads turned."
Abigail watched them all chuckle with a bit of a sinking feeling. "Uh, please don't..."
"Relax, we won't do that," Helen said. "We promise, okay?"
Abigail sighed. "Okay, is there anything else?"
"When they pick you they're going to do another kind of tradition. It's kind of like, looking at memories. But not anything super personal."
"That... sounds super personal. What do you mean look at memories?"
"Psychic type pokemon bend dye in the water of a fountain," Salazzle Eleanor said. "There's a device that allows you to show your memories to them, and using the dye they show them to onlookers. That's the gist of it. It's more of just a get to know you kind of thing."
"You won't have to really do anything," Helen said. "Any other questions?"
It sounded simple so far, but Abigail had the feeling there was more to it. But considering she'd just be an onlooker, it wouldn't really matter for her. She shook her head.
"Well, do you want to head home?" Helen asked. "Get some sleep for tonight."
"Yah. Sounds good."
________________________________________________________________________________
The walk there and back was more social interaction than in her average week. Furret Abigail felt relieved to get back home, even though she had been gone an hour. She went straight up to her room and slid under the covers of her bed.
The only plans Abigail had for the future was living alone back at home. The city felt cold all the time. There wasn't much to do, just ways to waste time. Life felt like that recently.
In a few months, Abigail would turn eighteen and head back home towards the countryside. She looked forward to being home.