That night, back in their room at the inn, Marie sat at the edge of the bed, placing the Pokémon Egg carefully in the center of the covers. Eevee and Ralts lay nearby, resting and not particularly interested in the egg. But Dragapult and her two little Dreepy, always the eager babysitters, hovered around the egg, curiously inspecting it.
Her brother hadn't told her what kind of Pokémon this egg would hatch into just that it came from a strong lineage and was sure to be a Pokémon with excellent potential.
Knowing her brother's tastes, it was probably a Dark-type. And since it was a gift from brother to sister, his aesthetic wouldn't be too far off. Sure, his style leaned toward the punk-rock side, but he'd never once picked out anything weird for Marie in the past.
So if it was a Dark-type, it was probably one that looked good too...
She ran through the possibilities in her head. There were quite a few Dark-types that matched her taste. Her brother's Obstagoon came to mind immediately its black-and-white coloring was pretty stylish.
Still, she couldn't pin it down. Shrugging, Marie gave up speculating, picked up the egg, and stepped barefoot onto the carpet. She set the egg down gently, incubator and all, on the table nearby.
"Oh right, Dragapult. I almost forgot. Since I've gotten used to calling you by your species name, I was wondering want a nickname? Same for you two little ones."
She turned back toward Dragapult and her Dreepy, who were sprawled out on the bed. Marie sat down sideways and scooped Eevee into her arms, smiling as she explained.
"I've always just called you by species, right? But now that you're part of the team, it'd be nice to have names to tell you apart. It'll also help during double battles saves time giving commands."
Dragapult flicked her tail lazily and glanced sideways at Marie.
"Grr... (A nickname, huh? Well, we usually just recognize each other instinctively, so names aren't really necessary for us. But if it makes things easier for you, I'm fine with it.)"
"Then how about 'Baru'? Something simple. It might take time to get used to a brand-new name, but this should be easy. And as for you two..."
Marie reached out and gently poked the little Dreepy she had met earlier.
"You like staying on Baru's right side, so let's call you 'Yuri.' And you'll be 'Dreepy,' since you stick to the left."
"Nya~ (Yuu? I like it!)"
"Nya~ (I'm fine with that too...)"
Wild Pokémon clearly didn't care much about names. Strangely enough, it was Eevee who had lived with Marie the longest who seemed to value names the most.
That thought sparked another idea. Marie gave Eevee a gentle pat on her round belly and lowered her head with a smile.
"Eevee, I'll let you name Ralts."
"Eeh? (Wait, what?)"
Eevee was lounging comfortably on Marie's lap when she suddenly heard her name and looked up in confusion, completely clueless about what her Trainer was planning this time.
"A name! Ralts is going to travel with you, right? Shouldn't you give her a name too?"
Marie pinched Eevee's long ears playfully, speaking with convincing logic.
"..."
Eevee turned her head to glance at the little Ralts beside her, who was still holding onto her tail and practicing the recently learned move Calm Mind. Honestly, her Trainer was probably just too shy to ask Ralts herself and was pushing everything onto Eevee again. First the babysitting, then the training, and now even the naming...
Ralts was clearly focused. Calm Mind was a move meant to clear the mind, focus thoughts, and temporarily boost psychic powers. With long-term practice, it could even slowly strengthen her mental abilities.
She was so absorbed that she hadn't noticed anything going on around her.
Still, while Eevee grumbled inwardly, she didn't reject the task. Ralts had been rather clingy these past few days. So she tugged gently on Ralts's side with her tail. When the little Pokémon snapped out of her trance, Eevee spoke up.
"Eeh~ (Would you like me to give you a name? It helps tell you apart from others, and it'll be easier for us to talk too.)"
"Ralts... (A name? Like yours, Eevee?)"
"Eeh. (Exactly. Something like that. Though I'm not very good at naming, so if you don't like it, you can ask Marie to come up with one instead.)"
"Ralts! (It's fine! If it's from you, Eevee, I'll love whatever name you give me!)"
Ralts was clearly thrilled. In a flash, she Teleported right in front of Eevee and wrapped her tiny arms around her neck, affectionately nuzzling into her fur.
"Eeh... (Alright, let me think...)"
Eevee tilted her head, letting Ralts snuggle up to her. It felt kind of nice, like having a clingy little sister. For someone who was always the one being looked after, it was a strangely new and heartwarming experience.
"Eeh! (How about... Sii-chan?)"
"Ralts! (Yes! That's perfect! Anything is fine with me!)"
"Eeh... (Well, as long as you're happy...)"
Eevee gently raised a paw to hold back the overly affectionate Ralts who was getting dangerously close again. Though she looked exasperated, there was an unmistakable warmth in her eyes. This big-sister role might not be so bad after all.
Marie watched the whole exchange quietly from the side and didn't comment on the name. As long as the ones involved were happy, she didn't see the need to interfere.
Baru, the Dragapult, who had far more experience dealing with Pokémon than humans did, silently watched the interaction with an expression that resembled a proud old father. He could sense there were more interesting things on the horizon. Staying by Marie's side might turn out to be a lot more fun than he expected.
Marie and Eevee had both spent plenty of time with Pokémon, sure but compared to Baru, who had helped raise Pokémon in the Wild Area for years, they were still novices.
As for Sii-chan, the newly named Ralts, neither Marie nor Eevee read too deeply into her behavior. Marie simply assumed she admired Eevee's strength and looked up to her naturally.
And Eevee? She was still just a one-year-old. It was asking a lot for a young Pokémon to fully understand the emotional intricacies of a different species.
All she really understood was that it felt nice to finally be the "big sister" for once...
So for now, these two simple souls Trainer and Pokémon remained blissfully unaware of what it was that little Sii-chan truly longed for deep down.