"Oh? You pervert finally came back?"
"..."
Jack didn't say anything, knowing that the label of a pervert was something he might never shake off. Outsiders could never understand his feelings; his upbringing had made him long for Page One for a long time.
Jack's Alcremie was recounting its experiences from Fishman Island to Yamato's and Maria's Alcremie. Beside them were some Milcerys, belonging to Iscariot, Page One, and others.
Following the principle of not worrying about scarcity but rather about inequality, these kids had mostly acquired an Alcremie or a Milcery, making some of the Hundred Beasts Pirates realize that kids with Pokemon pets had a higher status.
Only Robin and Perona were different here; their aesthetics were unlike the norm. Robin had a Sobble, while Perona was often seen with her bear-sized outfit, though at times it seemed like the bear was taking care of her.
"Hey Pei, I prepared gifts for you, all specialties from Fishman Island."
"Eh? Jack, do you like Pei that much? You've prepared so many things for him."
Looking at the items Jack took out from his backpack, Yamato had a look of disbelief, as that bag's size was even taller than Page One.
"No, aren't these all the same?"
Holding the regularly sized package while Page One struggled with a large bag, Yamato's face was full of disbelief.
However, she could understand such matters; people have their favorites. Arceus gave her far more things than others.
Others were lucky to have one or two exclusive Pokemon, whereas Yamato had collected a full team, which even included Diancie and Genesect, the mythical Pokemon lineup.
After she made her request, she soon had that unnumbered Genesect. Though smaller than the GT-series Genesect, it was still powerful enough to provide Yamato with considerable firepower for the future.
"Pei, let me help you take it back."
Page One was struggling with that large package, and Jack intended to lend a hand, but Ulti was quicker.
"Get lost! That's me and Pei's room; you pervert are not allowed in. I'll help him carry it! And you can't call him Pei!"
Jack's return seemed to bring more laughter among the young people of the Hundred Beasts. As long as he was with Ulti, the atmosphere would never be dull.
However, Jack noticed many people working and seemed to be renovating something on Ghost Island.
"What's this for?"
"It's for the wedding venue. Zeraora and Sister Setsuna are getting married, and the day is almost here."
Not only that, but Jack even saw Arceus personally supervising on the road.
"You guys, lift that sign a bit higher. Don't you think it looks asymmetrical with the other one over there?"
"Got it, Lord Arceus, we'll change it right away."
Days passed, and with the eldest son Zeraora about to get married, Jack couldn't help but feel a bit sentimental.
And it's not just one wedding; it's three. One will be held inside Ghost Island, a wedding prepared for Zeraora, another in the Hundred Beasts' territory outside Ghost Island, as a high-level official's marriage is a grand event within the pirate crew.
Even pirates can find reasons to throw a banquet without needing one, let alone having such a perfect excuse. Also, there will be one on the back of Zou Island, a wedding prepared at the bride's side, as it's impossible to bring out more than 20,000 members of the Fur Race.
"Mugorogoro, you really are invested in this. Isn't there still two months left?"
"It's never too early to prepare. Mind yourself. Those drinks are for their wedding; they're not for you to drink casually."
"Don't worry; we'll just prepare more if needed. It won't affect them."
Preparations on Ghost Island were underway, yet Zeraora and Setsuna weren't as anxious. In the room located in Kuri, Setsuna was sprawled casually on Zeraora's bed.
They had become so familiar that they didn't need to observe any formalities.
"Rotom, could you please turn the temperature down a bit more? Thank you."
It was currently August, and the temperature in Kuri was quite high. This scorching heat was tolerable for humans but unbearable for the Fur Race, as their thick fur made them loathe such hot weather.
Due to the height of Zou's master, the weather on Zou Island wasn't as hot, but Rotom smart home had already solved this problem.
"Copy that, Roto. Is 15 degrees okay, Roto?"
"Yes, keep it at that temperature."
The air conditioner here naturally had no temperature limits, and as a Pokemon that changes its attributes based on the appliances it possessed, Rotom became an Electric+Ice Type when using a cooling air conditioner. If needed, it could lower the temperature to sub-zero levels.
However, there was no one else in the room; as the groom, Zeraora had gone to check his wedding venue, and Perona had fled due to the low temperature.
Perona liked a dark environment but didn't enjoy a cold one.
Setsuna lay on the bed, scrolling through some letters from Zou Island, which arrived via special Radio Snail fax. Since the wedding was to be held three times, her immediate family, of course, had to be involved.
"Dad's cigars have run out again... Wanda kind of misses Perona... Pedro... got a bounty on his head?"
The current Zou differed significantly from the original timeline. Inuarashi and Nekomamushi hadn't returned to Zou but instead traveled to the future, so Zou wasn't influenced by their service to the Kozuki Family; instead, it underwent some special changes due to Setsuna's substantial material support.
Zou Island also had some troublemakers, like Pedro.
Pedro was five years younger than Setsuna, thus considered of the same generation. When she began frequent visits home, she met this duke-in-training.
Upon seeing Setsuna returning with so many things from her journeys, they also wished to contribute in their way, like searching for the special Plates.
With this mission in mind, several months ago, led by Pedro and including Jebo and Pekoms, the Fur Race members set sail, and they took along some Moonstones.
Their voyage was in the name of an expedition, thus the group's name was the Nokes Expedition Team, not a pirate crew.
In the original timeline, they were bounty hunted by the World Government for seeking Poneglyphs on behalf of Nekomamushi, but this time was different; the World Government actively targeted them.
The previous Emboar incident had led the World Government to some conclusions, while the squads sent to Zou met setbacks. With the newfound abilities of the Free Moon Lion, Zou no longer feared those squad threats.
Therefore, these outward-bound Fur Race members became their target. Even with the ability to transform into Free Moon Lions, coping with those attacks was still challenging.
Eventually, Pedro made a decision. He and a few others with Moon Lion abilities would remain outside, while the rest would return to Zou first.
However, on their way back, they encountered more unforeseen events. Although they defeated their enemies, the expedition sustained casualties. During this, Pekoms was accidentally lost in an explosion and, by chance, drifted into the Tottland Sea Region.
He arrived in BIG MOM's territory five years earlier than in the original timeline, just 12 years old at this time. Upon his arrival, he was soon discovered by the BIG MOM Pirates and brought before Charlotte Linlin.
"Mamama~ Mamama, a Fur Race member? Do you know Zeraora? I heard he's getting married."