Subject: [PW!] Forty-five Years Of Marvin Date: Sun, 10 Feb 2002 20:21:26 GMT From: Rob <robfrompw@yahoo.com> Organization: AT&T Worldnet Newsgroups: alt.games.nintendo.pokemon "Like, Happy B-day, Marvy!" "Happy birthday, master." "...hey, wakie wakie! Uh, he's not... dead, is he, sis?" "I do not think so. I may not be a doctor, but heavy snoring usually indicates life." "Are you SURE? He's forty-five years old now, y'know!" "Yes, I know, but perhaps we should not remind him. He is sensitive about his age, after all." "Sure thing, sis. MARVY, WAKES UP! IT'S YER B-DAY, BUT YER NOT YET AN OLD FART! FERSURE!" Marvin bolts up in his bed when he's yelled at and the two Ditto who were sitting on his chest roll down onto his lap, onto the tray of food placed there. He rubs his eyelids vigorously before opening his eyes, then looks at the tray on his lap to see a purple Ditto sitting in a pool of spilled Moo Moo Milk and a pink Ditto reclining on a leaning tower of pancakes, covered in maple syrup. Marvin blinks, then asks with a raspy voice, "Breakfast in bed? Uh oh, that only means one thing..." The purple Ditto rolls her eyes, anticipating a certain lame quip, "We have not been replaced by pod Pokemon, master." "I know that, Xerox!" Marvin, dressed in a white undershirt and blue boxer shorts, holds up an index finger, "I may have been confused the last three times this happened, but now I'm fully aware of what this means - today's my birthday, isn't it?" "Like, yah, Marvy..." Now the pink Ditto rolls her eyes, "Didn't ya hear what I just said? About you not being an ol-" Xerox slaps one pseudopod on Famifax's mouth before she can finish saying the 'o' word, "Yes, master, today is your birthday. That is why we prepared this meal for you, but since you awoke abruptly, your breakfast is now, quite literally, on us." Marvin grins, "Wow, Xerox, you're getting better at making puns!" "You say that as if it were a good thing." Xerox remarks, then hops off of the tray on Marvin's bed, onto the floor, "Do not concern yourself with the spilled breakfast, master. I shall just Transform into the janitor from the Goldenrod Galleria to clean this mess up." The purple Ditto closes her eyes and concentrates, but she does not Transform - in fact, she doesn't even shimmer. Xerox frowns, "Has it been ten Transformations already? Why, I visited the Pokemon Center just one month ago!" "No use crying over spilled Moo Moo Milk." Marvin comments, trying to be optimistic, "I'll just dunk my pancakes in it!" The magician grabs one of the pancakes that the Ditto Sisters prepared for him and does dunk it in the milk that Xerox spilled over a moment ago before taking a bite. He chews it for a moment, swallows it, then licks his lips, "Mmm, this tastes great!" A wide smile appears on Famifax's pink Ditto face, "YAY! I'm so super-happy you like 'em, Marvy! I made those 'specially for you outta all sortsa junk I found in the kitchenette. Hey, like, if ya want some more maple syrups with that, you can totally rub the pancakes all over my body!" After saying this, she bursts into fit of giggles, "Hehehe, I could Transform into..." She closes her eyes to Transform, much like Xerox did earlier, but she fails to change shape, "...hey, what's the big ideas?" Marvin is relieved that Famifax didn't Transform - he was afraid that the Ditto he considers his daughter was going to turn into a scantily-clad supermodel covered in maple syrup, an action that would disturb him. He says, "You must be out of PP." Famifax squints her eyes, "Well, I did go to the bathroom this morning, but like, I don't see what that's gotta do with... OH, WAIT! You mean THAT PP! We're totally outta Ethers, so we gotta go to the Pokemon Center. Wanna come with, Marvy?" Since he's a fast eater, Marvin's almost finished with his entire breakfast. After swallowing some pancake in his mouth, the forty-five year old replies, "Sure! Then after that we can go to the National Park. At my age, I want my birthday party to be a walk in the park." A few more bites and a quick costume change later, Marvin steps out of his apartment wearing a golden tuxedo, a silver bowtie, and a crystalline blue top hat. He is followed by Famifax, who's now wearing a Pink Bow, and Xerox. After locking his door, Marvin and his Ditto stroll down Rail Road to Main Street. When Marvin enters the Pokemon Center, he is taken aback by what seems like a Pokemon battle in progress between two Team Rocket members, four half-Pokemon people, a regular Pokemon Trainer, and Jason Bard, the musician who Mimic and Drake performed as at the time travel concert a couple of months ago. Eager to help them, he reaches into his tuxedo's coat to produce a Pokeball, but as he fumbles around inside his coat, he notices that the people are not moving. He then notices that a red velvet cord has been placed around them, roping them off, and a sign right next to the cord reads, "Do not touch." Marvin stops and stares at the frozen people as his jaw falls open as one of his eyebrows raise, but his Ditto just casually walk past him, towards Nurse Joy. Afraid that he's turned senile at age forty-five and is just hallucinating the roped off area, he asks his Pokemon, "Has this Pokemon been turned into a wax museum featuring half-Pokemon people, or is it just me?" "Wowie," Famifax turns around and looks up at Marvin, "Have you, like, been living under a Golem for the past two months?" Xerox turns around and looks up at Marvin as well, "Have you not visited the Pokemon Center nor watched the local news since we returned from Cerulean City, master? These are not wax statues, but actual people who were frozen in time. Nurse Joy claims that she has heard them unfreeze three times late at night, but that by the time she comes out of her room to see if they are all right, they are frozen again. A couple of shiny Unown are thought to be responsible for this since a similar incident occurred in the Violet City Pokemon Center, but to a greater scale - the entire Pokemon Center was frozen in time." "Shiny Unown?" Marvin asks, stepping up to the people frozen in time to get a better look at them, "How could shiny Unown be responsible for this?" When Nurse Joy steps into Marvin's view to answer the magician's question, Marvin suddenly remembers why he hasn't come into the Pokemon Center since he returned from Cerulean City - just as he had thought, he feels very awkward around Nurse Joy after the provocative dream he had that predominately featured her the last time he came here. Nurse Joy sighs, looking over at the roped off area, and explains, "Based on the position of the two Pokeballs on the floor, we believe that the two Team Rocket members threw out Pokeballs containing shiny Unown, hoping that the Unown would weaken the half Pokemon they were trying to catch with their Hidden Powers. I think the two Unown froze them all and fled, only to return every two weeks to freeze them again. If my theory is correct, the shiny Unown are returning soon - after midnight." Marvin smiles nervously, "...so, uh, do you... want to have a pajama party... with me, or something, to catch them in the act?" "Thanks, but I'm just going to stay up by myself, sir." Nurse Joy answers abruptly, then turns her attention to the two Ditto that followed Marvin into the Pokemon Center, "So, you two want to get healed? Please follow me!" Xerox and Famifax follow Nurse Joy and her Chansey into the Center's back room, leaving Marvin all alone with the people who are frozen in time. Marvin crosses his arms and stares at the motionless people in their battle stances, so surprised by their stillness that he appears motionless himself. He admires how well Mimic and Drake Transform when he sees Jason Bard sprawled on the roped off couch. He's awed by the young man who's holding Master Balls with Vines protruding from his wrists. He's startled by the half-Sneasel girl, the half-Pikachu girl, and the half-Meowth guy standing in front of the motionless Team Rocket members. The regular Trainer is also quite a sight, not due to his appearance, but due to the expression of concern stuck on his face. "Hey, Marvy, better start, like, moving or else they're gonna rope you off too!" Famifax surprises Marvin by hugging him from behind as if her arms are ropes - now that she can Transform again, she's turned into a duplicate of Nurse Joy. Marvin sweatdrops and pulls himself away from Famifax. When he sees the purple Ditto next to the Nurse Joy lookalike, Marvin says, "All right, you two, let's go over to the National Park. Good luck stopping those Unown, Nurse Joy!" He heads out of the Pokemon Center, Famifax and Xerox in tow, and heads up Main Street, knowing that he'll reach the National Park if he keeps heading north. As he walks, his eyes wander towards the curves on Famifax's current body, so it isn't long before he suggests, "Hey, Famifax, why don't you turn into a ten year old girl? You know, so no one confuses you for a nurse..." Famifax smiles, "Okie dokie, Marvy! It's yer birthday, so I'll totally take any requests you make! Fersure!" She shimmers and shrinks down into a Ditto before Transforming into a cute little blue-eyed ten year old girl with pink pigtails. They head past Goldenrod's northern outpost, up Route 35, talking about what they're going to do after they take a walk in the Park. They're about to enter the Park when a man in a Venomoth suit grabs onto Marvin's shoulder, restraining him and saying, "Excuse me, sir, but you are WAYYYYY too old to participate in today's Bug Catching Contest. The Contest is only for those under the age of sixteen." "What?!" Marvin angrily shouts, "This is age discrimination! If I can't walk in the National Park on my birthday just because-" The man in the Venomoth suit stops Marvin in mid-rant, "It's your birthday? Well, then, feel free to participate! The National Park makes an exception for people on their birthdays - you know, so they can feel young again! I see your daughter has a Ditto - what Pokemon are you going to bring into the Bug Pokemon Catching Contest? You can only take one with you." "Hmm..." Marvin reaches into his coat pocket, pulls out a Safari Ball, and hands it to the man in the Venomoth suit, "I'll leave my Exeggutor. He's really weak against Bug Pokemon, and besides, I really should train the rowdy Octillery I got in a trade a while back..." The magician makes a Pokeball appear in the palm of his hand then tosses it onto the floor, releasing a red octopus-like Pokemon, who immediately wraps two of his tentacles around Marvin's legs and squeezes them hard. The Octillery narrows his eyes up at the Trainer he has no respect for, "Oct. Octillery oct?" A pained expression appears on Marvin's face as his Water Pokemon applies pressure onto his legs, "Octillery, I don't need you to move anything anywhere today, especially not my legs, so please let go!" Marvin's Octillery reluctantly releases his grip on his Trainer's legs as the man in the Venomoth suit hands Marvin a Park Ball. The costumed man then gives Famifax, who's still disguised as a human girl with pink pigtails, a Park Ball, explains the simple rules of the contest, and ushers Marvin, his Octillery, Famifax, and Xerox the Ditto into the National Park. -Marvin