One by one, his Pokémon materialized in the room. A sinuous Dragonair unfurled in midair, its sapphire-blue scales shimmering as it gave a soft, musical trill. Raichu emerged next in a flash of electricity, landing nimbly on the couch with a thump of its striped tail and an eager "Rai!" Hot on its heels, Daisy the Gardevoir appeared in a graceful pose, emerald eyes already scanning their new surroundings with calm curiosity. By Daisy's side materialized Akemi the Kirlia, who immediately did a delighted little spin on one foot—overjoyed to be out of her ball and in a spacious place. An instant later, a tall, mustached Alakazam took shape, hovering meditatively a few inches above the carpet with legs crossed, clutching his two spoons. Milotic came next, her long, elegant body coiling in loops across the marble entryway as she let out a low, melodious cry; the beautiful water-serpent's red eyes flickered with interest at the faint scent of chlorine and bath salts wafting from the bathroom. On the other side of the room, a Charmeleon burst forth, immediately shaking out its limbs and snorting a small puff of smoke. Its flame-tipped tail swished, casting flickering light and shadows. Wartortle appeared right behind Charmeleon in a pop of light, the blue turtle Pokémon yawning widely and blinking around with groggy curiosity. The floorboards gave a creaking groan as Lairon materialized—its hefty, armor-plated body landing with a solid thud. The iron Pokémon snorted and began sniffing the air for something metallic to munch. A half-beat later, an Ivysaur blinked into existence near the open kitchen, its green bulb-topped body already perking up at the plethora of new scents (and perhaps hoping some potted plant decor might be around for a nibble). Near Ivysaur, a small grey Machop materialized in a crouch, then stood and stretched, flexing its muscled arms reflexively. And finally, with a chirruping "Swabluuuu!", a tiny Swablu flapped into existence, its cottony white wings fluttering as it took excited loops around the room like a feathered ping-pong ball.
In seconds, the quiet, elegant suite became lively with activity. Hiroshi couldn't help but grin. This ragtag collection of Pokémon was his family, and seeing them safe and excited in a peaceful setting filled him with a deep warmth. He held up a hand lightly. "Okay, team, go ahead and explore," he said. "Just… try not to destroy anything, alright? This place is on loan." He added that last part wryly—given some of their rambunctious tendencies, it needed to be said.
Daisy, ever the composed second-in-command, gave a gentle telepathic chime of acknowledgement in Hiroshi's mind. She glided further into the living room, her gown-like white dress rustling over the plush carpet. With a graceful motion, she ran a slender green hand along the back of the sofa, testing the fabric. The Gardevoir's lips curved in a mild smile of approval at the sofa's softness. Finding it to her liking, Daisy delicately settled herself onto one end of it, crossing her legs and observing the room like a quiet sentry. Always assessing, always protecting—even in relaxation, she was vigilant.
Swablu, meanwhile, zoomed straight for the open bedroom. The little blue bird Pokémon had spotted the massive plush bed and could not resist. With a high-pitched trill, Swablu dive-bombed onto the bed's duvet. Pomf! The mattress barely bounced under the tiny Pokémon's weight, but Swablu squealed anyway, bouncing up and down in pure joy. It flapped its cottony wings, puffing up little tufts of the duvet as it hopped about. After a few energetic springs, Swablu noticed it had mussed up the perfectly arranged pillows. Ever a tidy creature, it let out a concerned "Blu?!", then busied itself nudging one pillow back into place with its head and smoothing the plush covers with its soft wings. Satisfied that the bed was neat (or at least its version of neat), Swablu nestled into the mountain of pillows with a content coo, already claiming its favorite spot.
Near the entryway, Machop's eyes had gone wide at something in the corner of the living area. "Chop! Ma-chop!" it exclaimed, scampering over on its stubby legs. There, by the floor-to-ceiling window, was a small rack of dumbbells and even a compact weight bench—part of the suite's amenities for health-conscious guests. To Machop, it was like discovering treasure. The little Superpower Pokémon reverently ran a hand over one of the larger dumbbells, which probably weighed 20 kilograms—nothing too heavy for an average human, but Machop was thrilled. With an eager gleam in its eye, Machop wrapped both hands around the metal bar and hefted it overhead. It proceeded to do a set of energetic reps, lifting the weight up and down as if it were filled with feathers instead of iron. "Chop, chop, chop!" it chanted with each pump, tiny muscles bulging. Hiroshi watched from a distance, hiding a smile behind his hand. Trust Machop to find the gym equipment immediately.
The thump of Machop's impromptu weightlifting drew Lairon's attention. The stocky steel-type had been snuffling around, following its nose (or rather, sensitive metal-detecting horn) toward the kitchen, but now it turned and lumbered over curiously. Lairon's heavy footfalls thud-thud-thuded on the floor, and Hiroshi momentarily worried about the structural integrity of the hardwood. The Pokémon nosed up to Machop, sniffing at the dumbbell it was lifting. Perhaps the scent of iron enticed Lairon's appetite, or maybe it was just curious about Machop's activity. Either way, Lairon gave an approving grunt. Its steel-gray armor plates caught the reflection of Tokyo's city lights as it tilted its head. CLANG! Before Hiroshi could intervene, Lairon playfully headbutted the weight—lightly by its standards, but enough to yank the heavy dumbbell right out of Machop's hands. Machop stumbled back, arms flailing in surprise. The weight hit the carpet with a muffled whump (thank Arceus for thick rug padding). "Lai, lai!" Lairon snickered in a low rumble, seemingly amused at Machop's startled expression.
Machop was not truly upset—its big red eyes blinked in confusion, then narrowed in determination. "Machop!" it huffed, which in tone probably meant something like "Hey, I was using that!" The little fighting-type squared up to Lairon's broad form and actually flexed an arm as if to say don't mess with my workout. Lairon, entirely unthreatened, gave what could only be described as a chuckling snort and patted Machop on the head with the blunt side of its armored horn. The gesture was almost brotherly, if clumsy. Machop pouted and rubbed its head where the horn had bonked it, but any potential quarrel was quickly diffused by a sharp clearing of the throat noise from the sofa area.