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Description
Crown City. A truly picturesque setting where humans and Pokemon lived together in harmony. The jewel of the Sinnoh Region cradled alongside a majestic waterway.

On the edge of town a large two story home sat nestled against the edge of a deep impenetrable forest. The home, while obviously quite old, had been kept in excellent condition. The stonework had been recently whitewashed and the windows were all clean and spotless. The heavy oaken front door with it's brass handle was well polished and the tiles on the roof were neat and clean. The grounds of the home were also well maintained with a small garden occupying the majority of the lawn which was walled in by a short white wooden fence.

In the homes kitchen a lone female Zoroark was busy washing dishes. She was powerfully built and her eyes maintained the fierce intensity and intelligence that her species was known for. Her hips and thighs were slightly wider than normal for her species but considering the five eggs that she had laid in the last few years she could be forgiven for gaining a a few pounds here and there. The other distinguishing feature about her were the two silver rings in each ear. A gift from her mother that she rarely took out.

Zariya let out a deep sigh and looked down at the dishes in the sink. They were coated with a fine layer of berry juice from the dinner that she had just served to her children. The five other Pokemon in the house with her were voracious eaters and she always went out of her way to make sure that they had plenty to eat. But lately she had been doing more and more experimenting with exotic dishes and more complicated meals. She enjoyed the challenge even thought it usually took most of he day to prepare. Although truth be told the cooking was more of a distraction for her than an actual challenge. Something to help her keep her mind off of her worry's and woe's. Specifically the current fate of her mate, Garth the Lucario.

The two of them had met under the most unusual circumstances possible. Zariya had been just an ordinary Zoroark living with her mother in northern Sinnoh. She had been rather ignorant of the world and the way it worked at the time and frankly there were times that she wished that she could just go back to that level of naivete. It would make things so much more simple. However, fate was not keen on letting her remain that way as the day that she reached the age of adulthood for her species a hooded Lucario and a sadistic Weavile had arrived and kidnapped her and her mother. Zariya's last memory of that day was losing consciousness after the Lucario had jammed a needle into her neck. She had awoken strapped to a cold metal table in a laboratory with that same Lucario, now dressed in a lab coat, glowering over her.

The Lucario had introduced himself as doctor Garth. He had told her that he was a freelance member of Team Rocket and that he would be performing several experiments on her for their benefit. She had been so confused and angry at the time that she had barely understood what he was talking about. That had been until he started experimenting on her. The experiments he had done were cruel and painful but none of it had compared to the time that he had raped her. Losing her virginity had been an incredible blow to her psyche and her self esteem and after that she had basically become an empty shell for the Lucario to do with as he pleased. That had changed when the egg that she had produced as a result of the rape hatched into a beautiful female Zorua whom she had named Julie. Zariya had once again found a reason for living and had gone out of her way to pull herself through everything that Garth did to her.

At the same time she had noticed a change in Garth as well. He had started being more gentle with her and they had begun making love together and she had been allowed to live in his quarters. Over the course of several months Garth became almost gentle and more than once Zariya had caught him crying himself to sleep. It began to occur to her that she might be able to change this wicked Lucario into the mate that she had always wanted.

This plan was put on hold however when Garth's assistant Azrael the Weavile had forcibly raped her, resulting in her laying his child. Garth had forcibly chastised the Weavile but to Zariya's dismay Garth seemed pleased that Zariya would be having another child.

Doubling her efforts Zariya spent every moment that Garth wasn't experimenting on her by his side. He had gotten to the point where his experiments were no longer painful and most of them ended with the two of them cradled in each others arms on the exam table or in Garth's bed or his private shower. Azrael was becoming rather sick of this and tried to convince Garth that they had to sell her to Team Rocket now that they had everything they were going to get out of her. But Garth no longer wanted to sell her. In fact he no longer wanted any of this. Something had been filled in the empty void that had been his heart for so long and the smiles on the faces of the three children living in the basket in his bedroom brought more joy to him than his science ever could. Azrael couldn't take it anymore and attempted to rape Zariya again.

Something inside of Garth snapped and he broke Azrael's neck like a twig. He knew from that moment on that his life working with Team Rocket was over. He and Zariya had rapidly packed up and after a short battle with several Rocket Grunts who had come to collect Zariya the two of them had managed to escape and make it to Crown City. Garth had gotten a job at the Pokemon center and Zariya had taken to caring for their three children who were quickly joined by another two thanks to Garth's overactive libido.

While she desperately still missed her mother Zariya had recognized that under the circumstances this was not a bad life to have. However, fate had quickly intruded upon their happiness.

The son of one of Garth's earliest test subjects, an Umbreon named Lucian, had arrived and informed Garth that not only was Zariya's mother Hitome still alive and being held by Team Rocket but so was his younger brothers Nellis and Novac, and their baby sister Astrid. All three of whom were Garth's children resulting from him raping said test subject.

Garth and Zariya had been blown away by the news and Garth had immediately decided to go with Lucian to help free them. While Lucian was obviously distrusting of Garth and to a lesser degree Zariya he had agreed to allow the Lucario to tag along. Zariya worried that Lucian would stab Garth in the back for what he did to his mother and the rest of his family but she was also worried about what her mother might do to Garth upon seeing him. But she wasn't going to try and talk him out of it. Once his mind was made up Zariya knew that there was almost no changing it. So the next morning she and the children had all said their goodbyes as Garth and Lucian had headed out. Her second oldest son Abdul, the offspring of Azrael's rape, had wanted to go along too but Garth and the rest of the children had talked him out of it. And with tearful hugs and kisses all around Garth had set off with Lucian to try and atone for another sin from his past.

That had been three months ago.

Zariya hadn't heard from Garth once since he had left and it was beginning to way heavily on her and the children. While the family was holding together alright Zariya could tell that the stress was beginning to get to everyone. Her second eldest son Abdul, the son of Azrael, had begun spending more and more time away from home. He would often get in late and Zariya could smell the scent of female Pokemon on him. She was worried about his escapades but every time that she had tried to discuss it with him he had just shut her out. Meanwhile her eldest daughter Julie and her eldest son Logan had been spending more time out and about on the town. Zariya didn't know what they were up to and frankly she had too much on her mind to try and get them to open up about it. The only two who seemed to ever be around were her two youngest. Cheng the Riolu who always had her nose buried in a book and Ripley, the tiny Riolu who had hatched only days after Garth had left.

She knew that it was normal for her children to become more and more rebellious as they got older and to venture out on their own and become more independent but at the same time it left her feeling empty inside. She loved them all more than anything in the world and she wanted to be a part of their lives. But at the same time she knew that this was for the best. They were all growing up and becoming adults and she couldn't deny that she had acted very much the same when she had been that age.

Zariya let out a deep sigh and went back to doing the dishes. Dwelling on the negative wasn't going to help anything. Right now she just had to focus on the present and hope that she heard from Garth soon.

Her thoughts were interrupted as she felt a tugging at her apron and looked down to find Cheng standing there looking up at her with big curious eyes. Zariya always felt such a sense of wonderment when looking at Cheng. Unlike the rest of her children who had the normal colors for their respective species Cheng had hatched with bright pink fur. While her siblings had lightly teased her about it from time to time Zariya thought that only added to her adorable looks and, as much as she hated to admit it, she knew that it would also attract plenty of boys later in her life.

Zariya smiled down at Cheng and knelt so that she was at eye level with her daughter. “(Why hello there sweetie. Is there something you needed?)” Cheng looked her mother straight in the eye and in a very calm voice responded.

“(Mom I was wondering if I might be permitted to go into dad's study and read some of his books. I know that you always told us to stay out of there but none of the books we have in the rest of the house are intellectually stimulating enough to hold my attention. I promise that I'll only be in there long enough to grab a couple and then I'll go straight back to my room.)”
Cheng had a slightly pleading look on her face and Zariya had to suppress a slight chuckle. While her other children were begrudgingly learning 'useless human junk' as Abdul had referred to Garth's reading lessons on more than one occasion Cheng was bored with the books that Garth had provided for his children and wanted access to her father's dense medical texts.

“(I think that that would be alright Cheng. But just let me finish with the dishes and then I'll go in with you to help you pick a few books. Your father showed me a few he wanted to-)” Zariya was suddenly interrupted by a loud cry of annoyance from the small room down the hall that she had turned into a nursery for Ripley.

Zariya let out a deep sigh and removed her apron. “(Give me a few minutes Cheng. I think that your little brother is hungry.)”

Cheng just nodded and headed off in the direction of her father's study while Zariya walked down the hall and into the small nursery where Ripley was fidgeting in his crib.

“(Aww Ripley. Is someone hungry?)” Zariya reached down and tried to pick him up but the tiny Riolu simply squirmed out of her grasp and kept on crying as he flailed about.

“(What's the matter Ripley?)” Zariya said in a soft and soothing voice as she tried once more to pick up her sobbing infant son. Once again Ripley slipped from her grasp and just kept on crying. Zariya was beginning to get a little bit worried. She had never seen him act this way before and was about to go and get Cheng to give her a hand when she heard the front door to the house open. She knew that Logan had been outside earlier helping to keep the house in good condition and she figured that it was just him coming in.

“(Logan is that you? Could you go and ask Cheng to come in here. I think that something might be wrong with Ripley.)” Zariya reached back down and was about to try and scoop Ripley up in her arms when suddenly he stopped crying and stared wide eyed behind his mother as she heard a deep voice from the direction of the door that caused her to freeze in place.

“(I'm sorry I'm late my love. But I couldn't ask to come home to a more beautiful sight than you.)” Zariya spun around and nearly fell to her knees when she saw the large Lucario standing before her. Her mouth felt dry and her knees weak as she managed to form a single word. “(Garth!?)”

Garth the Lucario smiled and spread his arms wide as Zariya seemed to regain her strength and launched herself into his arms.

The three months of loneliness seemed to melt away as the two of them tightly embraced and shared a passionate kiss.

The two of them stayed like that for what seemed an eternity but was actually less than a minute before they broke the kiss and stared longingly into each others eyes.

“(Oh Garth!!)” Zariya gasped as they broke the kiss. “(I was so worried that I'd lost you!)” She cried as tears began to all from her eyes. Garth gently caressed his beloved mate as she whimpered. “(Shh Zariya it's alright I'm here now. I'm sorry it took me so long to get back but I was...delayed.)” The Lucario's attention suddenly shifted to Ripley who was sitting up in his crib staring wide eyed at his father.

Garth smiled and slowly released his Zariya as they both turned to the little Riolu.
“(Oh Zariya. He's more beautiful than I ever could have imagined.)” Tentatively Garth reached a paw down into the crib and pressed it lightly against Ripley's cheek. Ripley continued to stare in shock for several seconds before a huge smile spread across his face and he happily gripped his father's large paw in both of his own and let out a loud squeal of delight.

Zariya seemed to be a little taken aback. “(But he was crying and fussing just a minute ago?)” Garth looked over at Zariya and winked. “(It never happened with Cheng because I was around to comfort her but when they are young sometimes a Riolu's aura abilities activate for short bursts. It can be very distressing when they are this young. The best way to calm them is physical contact with another aura user.)” Ripley started to nibble on his father's paw and Garth slowly pulled it back. He was practically beaming with pride as he turned to Zariya and kissed her again.
However, the reunion was short lived as Cheng called from the hallway. “(Mom I was wondering if everything was going alright with Ripley? Do you need a-)” Cheng stopped the instant she stepped through the door and saw her father kissing her mother full on the mouth. Her eyes got wide in shock before realization struck and she ran forward to greet her father while yelling loud enough for everyone else in the home to hear her.

“(Hey dad's home!!! Logan Abdul Julie get down here dad's back!!)” Cheng rushed forward and embraced her father in a tight hug which Garth responded to by lifting Cheng up in the air with a feigned level of difficulty.

“(Cheng!! Oh Arceus how you've grown since I last saw you. I can barely pick you up anymore!)” Garth held his youngest daughter close to his chest as his three eldest Zoroark children rushed into the room at the news that their father had just gotten home.

All of them stood in the doorway staring at their father in shock for several seconds as Garth looked back at them with a slightly mischievous grin on his face.

“(What's wrong? I leave for awhile and you all forget what I look like?)” He set Cheng down and approached them each in turn in a bone crushing hug as he did nothing to hide the tears that had been falling since he had walked into the nursery.

“(Logan. Abdul. Julie. I'm so proud of you three for looking after your mother while I was away. I'm sorry that I couldn't be home sooner but I promise you all that I will never your mother or any of you alone like that again.)”

Julie just nodded and Logan seemed a little unsure of how to respond to the comment but the scruffy Abdul kept his father in a tight embrace as he spoke to him.

“(Dad...I...I know that I'm not your real son and that we don't get along all the time but I just want you to know that I think you're the best dad in the world and you don't need to apologize. We all know what you were doing was super important and we're all old enough to look after ourselves and mom.)”

Garth looked at his son and was surprised to see tears flowing from Abdul's normally intense eyes. He sniffed and gripped Abdul's shoulders tightly.

“(Abdul I want you to know that I have never viewed you as anything but my son. You're as much my son as Logan or Ripley is and I love you just as much as I do them. I never want you to forget that you are as much a part of this family as anyone else. Is that clear?)”

Abdul looked at his father and nodded as a small smile creased his features. However, this suddenly vanished as he was the first to notice something that the others had overlooked in their joy at seeing Garth alive and well.

“(Wait a second dad. Where's that Umbreon who you went with. And for that matter where are his siblings that you two were going to rescue and...oh Arceus did you find grandma is she okay?!)”
Abdul's words shocked everyone as they all instantly recovered from their stupor over seeing Garth alive. Zariya in particular was rather distraught at the mention of her mother and not seeing her with Garth. She hadn't heard anyone else other than Garth come in and her mind immediately began to turn to dark thoughts as she feared the worst.

“(Garth? Did you and Lucian manage to find his siblings and my mother?)” Tears began to form anew in Zariya's eyes as she braced herself for the worst.

Garth looked into his beloved mate's eyes for a moment and let out a deep sigh that felt like a knife through Zariya's heart before Garth stood to his full height and smiled.

“(Yes, we did my love.)” Garth didn't say anything else and instead reached a paw out to comfort her.

Zariya felt a wave of relief wash over her like a wave as the tears fell. Not tears of sorrow but tears of utter and total joy as she allowed herself to be led by Garth towards the front door to the house. Behind them the children followed at a respectable distance. They knew that this was going to be a very emotional moment for their mother and they wanted to give her some space to enjoy it.

Garth stopped in front of the door and gently turned the nob as Zariya held her breath. “(She wanted to come in with me right away and greet you but I thought it would be a bit less of a shock for you if I came in first to greet everyone.)” He looked at Zariya. “(There's no need to worry Zariya. For the record she's just as nervous to see you again.)” Garth gently hugged Zariya once more before fully opening the door and pushing it open.

Standing halfway up the walk that led to the cottage were three Umbreon, one of whom Zariya instantly recognized as Lucian. The other two were smaller and Zariya figured that they must be his two brothers. Standing next to them was a gigantic Nidoking idly staring into while his arm was wrapped affectionately around...

Zariya gasped when she saw her. While time and captivity had done their damage her mother still was a beautiful site to behold with her well groomed fur, dark mysterious eyes and powerful build she was a true goddess of beauty hiding a caring streak that had at times shocked Zariya throughout her life.

Held in her mother's arms was a small Eevee wrapped in a blanket and sleeping peacefully. Zariya recalled that Lucian had also mentioned Team Rocket having the last egg that his mother had lain before Garth had let her go. But this was a minor thought that was quickly pushed aside as mother and daughter locked eyes with each other.

The two of them stood there not moving for several seconds before Zariya's mother turned to Lucian.
“(Lucian take Astrid!)” She gently placed the sleeping Eevee into the Nidoking's arms before turning and running towards her daughter. Zariya's nervousness about seeing her mother again instantly vanished and she ran towards her mother. The two of them met in a tight embrace as Zariya buried her head into her mother's shoulder.

Finally her family was whole again.

…...................................

Hitome the Zoroark smiled as she gently caressed her daughter's fur and held her as she did her best to keep from collapsing into sobs herself. Her daughter. Her beloved Zariya was finally back in her arms. “(Shhh it's alright Zariya. I'm here. You don't need to worry I'm here.)” Zariya sobbed as Hitome knelt down with her.

Zariya at last managed to wipe her tears away long and look into her mother's eyes. “(Mom you have no idea how much I've missed you. I thought about you so much these last few years. Garth said he had no idea where Team Rocket had sent you and I...I wanted to go look for you but I had the children to look after and-)”

Hitome placed a paw against her daughter's mouth and gave her that look that only a mother can give to a child to silence them. “(It's alright Zariya there's no need to explain. I got quite a few answers from your Dr. Garth after he rescued all of us and on the trip back here.)” Hitome's eyes took on a harder edge as she looked past Zariya to Garth who noticeably gulped.

Her eyes narrowed slightly. When Garth had first showed up at the Team Rocket lab where she and the others were being held her first reaction had been to try and strangle him to death. Until Lucian had managed to convince her that he was there to help. Still it had taken a great deal of convincing even after that before she was willing to let Garth lead her and the others out of that hellhole. After that and spending a month traveling with and ceaselessly interrogating and threatening him she was relatively convinced that not only did her daughter truly love the Lucario but he felt the same way about her and was desperate to make amends for what he had done to not only the two of them but all the other Pokemon he had hurt while working for Team Rocket.
Still she didn't trust him and wasn't totally convinced that he wasn't manipulating her daughter to some degree or another. That kind of trust would take years, more than she had left to live.
Zariya could see the hard edge in her mother's eyes and followed her gaze over to Garth. “(Mom I know what you're thinking and please trust me despite what he did he's not the same Lucario who kidnapped us. He's changed now and is trying to make up for everything that he did in the past. He loves the children and would do anything for them. I know this as surely as I know that the sun will rise and set.)”

Hitome looked at her daughter and sighed as she gave her a slight nod. “(I know Zariya. He told me as such on the way back here and right after he rescued us and I stopped trying to crush his windpipe.)”

Zariya looked at her mother in shock as a slight grin came over Hitome's face as she slowly got to her feet and helped her daughter up. “(Come now Zariya there is much to discuss and the doctor has a few introductions to make. And I have one rather large surprise that I hope you will enjoy.)” Hitome looked over at Mukotsu as she said this and gave him a barely perceptible wink.

A loud cough got everyone's attention and they all turned to see Lucian standing there with a rather sour look on his face.

“(Touching as all this is I would like to take my siblings back to their mother soon so could we please move all the introductions along a little faster?)”

Hitome let out an annoyed sigh. Lucian had been a pain in the ass ever since he and Garth had rescued them. Not that she could blame him. He had after all been reduced to asking the Pokemon who had kidnapped and raped his mother for help in rescuing his siblings who had been the result of said Lucario's Weavile not having any self control.

Still despite the general mistrust of Garth that both of them shared Hitome did have a slight degree of respect for him for trying to make amends for his past. Something Lucian was unwilling to accept. No whenever he looked at Garth all he saw was the monster who had hurt his mother and it was obvious to everyone that it took all his self control to keep from lunging at Garth. How he had managed to keep from doing so while the two worked together over the last three months was anyone's guess.

Garth was the first to speak.

“(How about we talk about all this inside where it's more comfortable rather than standing around on the front walk. Maybe we can all clear our heads over some of Zariya's homemade berry juice?)”
Zariya smiled. “(I'd be happy to do that Garth. In fact I just made a fresh batch the other evening so there is plenty to go around.)”

The Nidoking who had been silent up till this point finally spoke up. “(Well if it's got alcohol in it then I'm totally game!)”

Hitome scoffed and lightly slapped him on the ass. An action that Zariya took note of with significant interest. “(Mukotsu behave yourself! Yes Doctor I think that would be an excellent idea. It's been a long journey and right now I think that we all could use a few days rest to recover.)”

She was looking at Lucian as she said it and while it was obvious that he didn't like the idea the fact that both of his brothers immediately rushed forward after everyone else meant he was simply outvoted.

“(Fine. But only for for a few days to rest.)” And with his sister sleeping comfortably on his back Lucian walked inside after the others.

Description
Crown City. A truly picturesque setting where humans and Pokemon lived together in harmony. The jewel of the Sinnoh Region cradled alongside a majestic waterway.

On the edge of town a large two story home sat nestled against the edge of a deep impenetrable forest. The home, while obviously quite old, had been kept in excellent condition. The stonework had been recently whitewashed and the windows were all clean and spotless. The heavy oaken front door with it's brass handle was well polished and the tiles on the roof were neat and clean. The grounds of the home were also well maintained with a small garden occupying the majority of the lawn which was walled in by a short white wooden fence.

In the homes kitchen a lone female Zoroark was busy washing dishes. She was powerfully built and her eyes maintained the fierce intensity and intelligence that her species was known for. Her hips and thighs were slightly wider than normal for her species but considering the five eggs that she had laid in the last few years she could be forgiven for gaining a a few pounds here and there. The other distinguishing feature about her were the two silver rings in each ear. A gift from her mother that she rarely took out.

Zariya let out a deep sigh and looked down at the dishes in the sink. They were coated with a fine layer of berry juice from the dinner that she had just served to her children. The five other Pokemon in the house with her were voracious eaters and she always went out of her way to make sure that they had plenty to eat. But lately she had been doing more and more experimenting with exotic dishes and more complicated meals. She enjoyed the challenge even thought it usually took most of he day to prepare. Although truth be told the cooking was more of a distraction for her than an actual challenge. Something to help her keep her mind off of her worry's and woe's. Specifically the current fate of her mate, Garth the Lucario.

The two of them had met under the most unusual circumstances possible. Zariya had been just an ordinary Zoroark living with her mother in northern Sinnoh. She had been rather ignorant of the world and the way it worked at the time and frankly there were times that she wished that she could just go back to that level of naivete. It would make things so much more simple. However, fate was not keen on letting her remain that way as the day that she reached the age of adulthood for her species a hooded Lucario and a sadistic Weavile had arrived and kidnapped her and her mother. Zariya's last memory of that day was losing consciousness after the Lucario had jammed a needle into her neck. She had awoken strapped to a cold metal table in a laboratory with that same Lucario, now dressed in a lab coat, glowering over her.

The Lucario had introduced himself as doctor Garth. He had told her that he was a freelance member of Team Rocket and that he would be performing several experiments on her for their benefit. She had been so confused and angry at the time that she had barely understood what he was talking about. That had been until he started experimenting on her. The experiments he had done were cruel and painful but none of it had compared to the time that he had raped her. Losing her virginity had been an incredible blow to her psyche and her self esteem and after that she had basically become an empty shell for the Lucario to do with as he pleased. That had changed when the egg that she had produced as a result of the rape hatched into a beautiful female Zorua whom she had named Julie. Zariya had once again found a reason for living and had gone out of her way to pull herself through everything that Garth did to her.

At the same time she had noticed a change in Garth as well. He had started being more gentle with her and they had begun making love together and she had been allowed to live in his quarters. Over the course of several months Garth became almost gentle and more than once Zariya had caught him crying himself to sleep. It began to occur to her that she might be able to change this wicked Lucario into the mate that she had always wanted.

This plan was put on hold however when Garth's assistant Azrael the Weavile had forcibly raped her, resulting in her laying his child. Garth had forcibly chastised the Weavile but to Zariya's dismay Garth seemed pleased that Zariya would be having another child.

Doubling her efforts Zariya spent every moment that Garth wasn't experimenting on her by his side. He had gotten to the point where his experiments were no longer painful and most of them ended with the two of them cradled in each others arms on the exam table or in Garth's bed or his private shower. Azrael was becoming rather sick of this and tried to convince Garth that they had to sell her to Team Rocket now that they had everything they were going to get out of her. But Garth no longer wanted to sell her. In fact he no longer wanted any of this. Something had been filled in the empty void that had been his heart for so long and the smiles on the faces of the three children living in the basket in his bedroom brought more joy to him than his science ever could. Azrael couldn't take it anymore and attempted to rape Zariya again.

Something inside of Garth snapped and he broke Azrael's neck like a twig. He knew from that moment on that his life working with Team Rocket was over. He and Zariya had rapidly packed up and after a short battle with several Rocket Grunts who had come to collect Zariya the two of them had managed to escape and make it to Crown City. Garth had gotten a job at the Pokemon center and Zariya had taken to caring for their three children who were quickly joined by another two thanks to Garth's overactive libido.

While she desperately still missed her mother Zariya had recognized that under the circumstances this was not a bad life to have. However, fate had quickly intruded upon their happiness.

The son of one of Garth's earliest test subjects, an Umbreon named Lucian, had arrived and informed Garth that not only was Zariya's mother Hitome still alive and being held by Team Rocket but so was his younger brothers Nellis and Novac, and their baby sister Astrid. All three of whom were Garth's children resulting from him raping said test subject.

Garth and Zariya had been blown away by the news and Garth had immediately decided to go with Lucian to help free them. While Lucian was obviously distrusting of Garth and to a lesser degree Zariya he had agreed to allow the Lucario to tag along. Zariya worried that Lucian would stab Garth in the back for what he did to his mother and the rest of his family but she was also worried about what her mother might do to Garth upon seeing him. But she wasn't going to try and talk him out of it. Once his mind was made up Zariya knew that there was almost no changing it. So the next morning she and the children had all said their goodbyes as Garth and Lucian had headed out. Her second oldest son Abdul, the offspring of Azrael's rape, had wanted to go along too but Garth and the rest of the children had talked him out of it. And with tearful hugs and kisses all around Garth had set off with Lucian to try and atone for another sin from his past.

That had been three months ago.

Zariya hadn't heard from Garth once since he had left and it was beginning to way heavily on her and the children. While the family was holding together alright Zariya could tell that the stress was beginning to get to everyone. Her second eldest son Abdul, the son of Azrael, had begun spending more and more time away from home. He would often get in late and Zariya could smell the scent of female Pokemon on him. She was worried about his escapades but every time that she had tried to discuss it with him he had just shut her out. Meanwhile her eldest daughter Julie and her eldest son Logan had been spending more time out and about on the town. Zariya didn't know what they were up to and frankly she had too much on her mind to try and get them to open up about it. The only two who seemed to ever be around were her two youngest. Cheng the Riolu who always had her nose buried in a book and Ripley, the tiny Riolu who had hatched only days after Garth had left.

She knew that it was normal for her children to become more and more rebellious as they got older and to venture out on their own and become more independent but at the same time it left her feeling empty inside. She loved them all more than anything in the world and she wanted to be a part of their lives. But at the same time she knew that this was for the best. They were all growing up and becoming adults and she couldn't deny that she had acted very much the same when she had been that age.

Zariya let out a deep sigh and went back to doing the dishes. Dwelling on the negative wasn't going to help anything. Right now she just had to focus on the present and hope that she heard from Garth soon.

Her thoughts were interrupted as she felt a tugging at her apron and looked down to find Cheng standing there looking up at her with big curious eyes. Zariya always felt such a sense of wonderment when looking at Cheng. Unlike the rest of her children who had the normal colors for their respective species Cheng had hatched with bright pink fur. While her siblings had lightly teased her about it from time to time Zariya thought that only added to her adorable looks and, as much as she hated to admit it, she knew that it would also attract plenty of boys later in her life.

Zariya smiled down at Cheng and knelt so that she was at eye level with her daughter. “(Why hello there sweetie. Is there something you needed?)” Cheng looked her mother straight in the eye and in a very calm voice responded.

“(Mom I was wondering if I might be permitted to go into dad's study and read some of his books. I know that you always told us to stay out of there but none of the books we have in the rest of the house are intellectually stimulating enough to hold my attention. I promise that I'll only be in there long enough to grab a couple and then I'll go straight back to my room.)”
Cheng had a slightly pleading look on her face and Zariya had to suppress a slight chuckle. While her other children were begrudgingly learning 'useless human junk' as Abdul had referred to Garth's reading lessons on more than one occasion Cheng was bored with the books that Garth had provided for his children and wanted access to her father's dense medical texts.

“(I think that that would be alright Cheng. But just let me finish with the dishes and then I'll go in with you to help you pick a few books. Your father showed me a few he wanted to-)” Zariya was suddenly interrupted by a loud cry of annoyance from the small room down the hall that she had turned into a nursery for Ripley.

Zariya let out a deep sigh and removed her apron. “(Give me a few minutes Cheng. I think that your little brother is hungry.)”

Cheng just nodded and headed off in the direction of her father's study while Zariya walked down the hall and into the small nursery where Ripley was fidgeting in his crib.

“(Aww Ripley. Is someone hungry?)” Zariya reached down and tried to pick him up but the tiny Riolu simply squirmed out of her grasp and kept on crying as he flailed about.

“(What's the matter Ripley?)” Zariya said in a soft and soothing voice as she tried once more to pick up her sobbing infant son. Once again Ripley slipped from her grasp and just kept on crying. Zariya was beginning to get a little bit worried. She had never seen him act this way before and was about to go and get Cheng to give her a hand when she heard the front door to the house open. She knew that Logan had been outside earlier helping to keep the house in good condition and she figured that it was just him coming in.

“(Logan is that you? Could you go and ask Cheng to come in here. I think that something might be wrong with Ripley.)” Zariya reached back down and was about to try and scoop Ripley up in her arms when suddenly he stopped crying and stared wide eyed behind his mother as she heard a deep voice from the direction of the door that caused her to freeze in place.

“(I'm sorry I'm late my love. But I couldn't ask to come home to a more beautiful sight than you.)” Zariya spun around and nearly fell to her knees when she saw the large Lucario standing before her. Her mouth felt dry and her knees weak as she managed to form a single word. “(Garth!?)”

Garth the Lucario smiled and spread his arms wide as Zariya seemed to regain her strength and launched herself into his arms.

The three months of loneliness seemed to melt away as the two of them tightly embraced and shared a passionate kiss.

The two of them stayed like that for what seemed an eternity but was actually less than a minute before they broke the kiss and stared longingly into each others eyes.

“(Oh Garth!!)” Zariya gasped as they broke the kiss. “(I was so worried that I'd lost you!)” She cried as tears began to all from her eyes. Garth gently caressed his beloved mate as she whimpered. “(Shh Zariya it's alright I'm here now. I'm sorry it took me so long to get back but I was...delayed.)” The Lucario's attention suddenly shifted to Ripley who was sitting up in his crib staring wide eyed at his father.

Garth smiled and slowly released his Zariya as they both turned to the little Riolu.
“(Oh Zariya. He's more beautiful than I ever could have imagined.)” Tentatively Garth reached a paw down into the crib and pressed it lightly against Ripley's cheek. Ripley continued to stare in shock for several seconds before a huge smile spread across his face and he happily gripped his father's large paw in both of his own and let out a loud squeal of delight.

Zariya seemed to be a little taken aback. “(But he was crying and fussing just a minute ago?)” Garth looked over at Zariya and winked. “(It never happened with Cheng because I was around to comfort her but when they are young sometimes a Riolu's aura abilities activate for short bursts. It can be very distressing when they are this young. The best way to calm them is physical contact with another aura user.)” Ripley started to nibble on his father's paw and Garth slowly pulled it back. He was practically beaming with pride as he turned to Zariya and kissed her again.
However, the reunion was short lived as Cheng called from the hallway. “(Mom I was wondering if everything was going alright with Ripley? Do you need a-)” Cheng stopped the instant she stepped through the door and saw her father kissing her mother full on the mouth. Her eyes got wide in shock before realization struck and she ran forward to greet her father while yelling loud enough for everyone else in the home to hear her.

“(Hey dad's home!!! Logan Abdul Julie get down here dad's back!!)” Cheng rushed forward and embraced her father in a tight hug which Garth responded to by lifting Cheng up in the air with a feigned level of difficulty.

“(Cheng!! Oh Arceus how you've grown since I last saw you. I can barely pick you up anymore!)” Garth held his youngest daughter close to his chest as his three eldest Zoroark children rushed into the room at the news that their father had just gotten home.

All of them stood in the doorway staring at their father in shock for several seconds as Garth looked back at them with a slightly mischievous grin on his face.

“(What's wrong? I leave for awhile and you all forget what I look like?)” He set Cheng down and approached them each in turn in a bone crushing hug as he did nothing to hide the tears that had been falling since he had walked into the nursery.

“(Logan. Abdul. Julie. I'm so proud of you three for looking after your mother while I was away. I'm sorry that I couldn't be home sooner but I promise you all that I will never your mother or any of you alone like that again.)”

Julie just nodded and Logan seemed a little unsure of how to respond to the comment but the scruffy Abdul kept his father in a tight embrace as he spoke to him.

“(Dad...I...I know that I'm not your real son and that we don't get along all the time but I just want you to know that I think you're the best dad in the world and you don't need to apologize. We all know what you were doing was super important and we're all old enough to look after ourselves and mom.)”

Garth looked at his son and was surprised to see tears flowing from Abdul's normally intense eyes. He sniffed and gripped Abdul's shoulders tightly.

“(Abdul I want you to know that I have never viewed you as anything but my son. You're as much my son as Logan or Ripley is and I love you just as much as I do them. I never want you to forget that you are as much a part of this family as anyone else. Is that clear?)”

Abdul looked at his father and nodded as a small smile creased his features. However, this suddenly vanished as he was the first to notice something that the others had overlooked in their joy at seeing Garth alive and well.

“(Wait a second dad. Where's that Umbreon who you went with. And for that matter where are his siblings that you two were going to rescue and...oh Arceus did you find grandma is she okay?!)”
Abdul's words shocked everyone as they all instantly recovered from their stupor over seeing Garth alive. Zariya in particular was rather distraught at the mention of her mother and not seeing her with Garth. She hadn't heard anyone else other than Garth come in and her mind immediately began to turn to dark thoughts as she feared the worst.

“(Garth? Did you and Lucian manage to find his siblings and my mother?)” Tears began to form anew in Zariya's eyes as she braced herself for the worst.

Garth looked into his beloved mate's eyes for a moment and let out a deep sigh that felt like a knife through Zariya's heart before Garth stood to his full height and smiled.

“(Yes, we did my love.)” Garth didn't say anything else and instead reached a paw out to comfort her.

Zariya felt a wave of relief wash over her like a wave as the tears fell. Not tears of sorrow but tears of utter and total joy as she allowed herself to be led by Garth towards the front door to the house. Behind them the children followed at a respectable distance. They knew that this was going to be a very emotional moment for their mother and they wanted to give her some space to enjoy it.

Garth stopped in front of the door and gently turned the nob as Zariya held her breath. “(She wanted to come in with me right away and greet you but I thought it would be a bit less of a shock for you if I came in first to greet everyone.)” He looked at Zariya. “(There's no need to worry Zariya. For the record she's just as nervous to see you again.)” Garth gently hugged Zariya once more before fully opening the door and pushing it open.

Standing halfway up the walk that led to the cottage were three Umbreon, one of whom Zariya instantly recognized as Lucian. The other two were smaller and Zariya figured that they must be his two brothers. Standing next to them was a gigantic Nidoking idly staring into while his arm was wrapped affectionately around...

Zariya gasped when she saw her. While time and captivity had done their damage her mother still was a beautiful site to behold with her well groomed fur, dark mysterious eyes and powerful build she was a true goddess of beauty hiding a caring streak that had at times shocked Zariya throughout her life.

Held in her mother's arms was a small Eevee wrapped in a blanket and sleeping peacefully. Zariya recalled that Lucian had also mentioned Team Rocket having the last egg that his mother had lain before Garth had let her go. But this was a minor thought that was quickly pushed aside as mother and daughter locked eyes with each other.

The two of them stood there not moving for several seconds before Zariya's mother turned to Lucian.
“(Lucian take Astrid!)” She gently placed the sleeping Eevee into the Nidoking's arms before turning and running towards her daughter. Zariya's nervousness about seeing her mother again instantly vanished and she ran towards her mother. The two of them met in a tight embrace as Zariya buried her head into her mother's shoulder.

Finally her family was whole again.

…...................................

Hitome the Zoroark smiled as she gently caressed her daughter's fur and held her as she did her best to keep from collapsing into sobs herself. Her daughter. Her beloved Zariya was finally back in her arms. “(Shhh it's alright Zariya. I'm here. You don't need to worry I'm here.)” Zariya sobbed as Hitome knelt down with her.

Zariya at last managed to wipe her tears away long and look into her mother's eyes. “(Mom you have no idea how much I've missed you. I thought about you so much these last few years. Garth said he had no idea where Team Rocket had sent you and I...I wanted to go look for you but I had the children to look after and-)”

Hitome placed a paw against her daughter's mouth and gave her that look that only a mother can give to a child to silence them. “(It's alright Zariya there's no need to explain. I got quite a few answers from your Dr. Garth after he rescued all of us and on the trip back here.)” Hitome's eyes took on a harder edge as she looked past Zariya to Garth who noticeably gulped.

Her eyes narrowed slightly. When Garth had first showed up at the Team Rocket lab where she and the others were being held her first reaction had been to try and strangle him to death. Until Lucian had managed to convince her that he was there to help. Still it had taken a great deal of convincing even after that before she was willing to let Garth lead her and the others out of that hellhole. After that and spending a month traveling with and ceaselessly interrogating and threatening him she was relatively convinced that not only did her daughter truly love the Lucario but he felt the same way about her and was desperate to make amends for what he had done to not only the two of them but all the other Pokemon he had hurt while working for Team Rocket.
Still she didn't trust him and wasn't totally convinced that he wasn't manipulating her daughter to some degree or another. That kind of trust would take years, more than she had left to live.
Zariya could see the hard edge in her mother's eyes and followed her gaze over to Garth. “(Mom I know what you're thinking and please trust me despite what he did he's not the same Lucario who kidnapped us. He's changed now and is trying to make up for everything that he did in the past. He loves the children and would do anything for them. I know this as surely as I know that the sun will rise and set.)”

Hitome looked at her daughter and sighed as she gave her a slight nod. “(I know Zariya. He told me as such on the way back here and right after he rescued us and I stopped trying to crush his windpipe.)”

Zariya looked at her mother in shock as a slight grin came over Hitome's face as she slowly got to her feet and helped her daughter up. “(Come now Zariya there is much to discuss and the doctor has a few introductions to make. And I have one rather large surprise that I hope you will enjoy.)” Hitome looked over at Mukotsu as she said this and gave him a barely perceptible wink.

A loud cough got everyone's attention and they all turned to see Lucian standing there with a rather sour look on his face.

“(Touching as all this is I would like to take my siblings back to their mother soon so could we please move all the introductions along a little faster?)”

Hitome let out an annoyed sigh. Lucian had been a pain in the ass ever since he and Garth had rescued them. Not that she could blame him. He had after all been reduced to asking the Pokemon who had kidnapped and raped his mother for help in rescuing his siblings who had been the result of said Lucario's Weavile not having any self control.

Still despite the general mistrust of Garth that both of them shared Hitome did have a slight degree of respect for him for trying to make amends for his past. Something Lucian was unwilling to accept. No whenever he looked at Garth all he saw was the monster who had hurt his mother and it was obvious to everyone that it took all his self control to keep from lunging at Garth. How he had managed to keep from doing so while the two worked together over the last three months was anyone's guess.

Garth was the first to speak.

“(How about we talk about all this inside where it's more comfortable rather than standing around on the front walk. Maybe we can all clear our heads over some of Zariya's homemade berry juice?)”
Zariya smiled. “(I'd be happy to do that Garth. In fact I just made a fresh batch the other evening so there is plenty to go around.)”

The Nidoking who had been silent up till this point finally spoke up. “(Well if it's got alcohol in it then I'm totally game!)”

Hitome scoffed and lightly slapped him on the ass. An action that Zariya took note of with significant interest. “(Mukotsu behave yourself! Yes Doctor I think that would be an excellent idea. It's been a long journey and right now I think that we all could use a few days rest to recover.)”

She was looking at Lucian as she said it and while it was obvious that he didn't like the idea the fact that both of his brothers immediately rushed forward after everyone else meant he was simply outvoted.

“(Fine. But only for for a few days to rest.)” And with his sister sleeping comfortably on his back Lucian walked inside after the others.