June 12th

11:30 A.M.

Nick was outside with three of his friends, along with two others: a three-year old male poochyena, and a three-year old growlithe. They were reading some picture books near the playground while Miss Mabel watched the two others play on the playground. She had brought the books out in a small cart. 

Since the pup couldn’t read, Liam was reading the book to him. This book was about a brave knight and his loyal dragonite companion. The pup was drawn in by the colorful pictures that helped tell the story.

“So did you hear….? Some people called hippies came to visit the orphanage!” said the growlithe.

“Yeah, some staff members were talking about it. They mentioned how nice these teens were to Nicky, and they even gave him a free shirt to wear. I really never heard of those kinds of people before.” said the poochyena. 

“Neither did I, it’s interesting to hear about new types of people.” the growlithe replied. 

“Well, at least they were nicer than Lady Drevelle… who I wish was a little nicer to us,” said Tom. 

While Miss Mabel was keeping an eye on things, she spotted a gray limousine approaching the orphanage and was rather happy. Three people got out of the vehicle: two men in two different colored suits, and a young woman in a gray business dress with fancy high shoes. 

Mayor Reinhart was wearing a tan suit with a red tie while the gentleman next to him wore a black suit with a black tie. He was also sporting black sunglasses. All three were carrying black briefcases with silver handles. The teacher approached them and brought them over to the playground where the children were. 

“Children… I’d like you all to meet Mayor Reinhardt and his two guests.” said the teacher.

The kids on the playground stopped and made their way over to the visitors, with the infant being quite curious about them. The pup titled his head as he looked at the three individuals, examining them closely with his eyes. The other children murmured to themselves a bit. 

“Greetings children! I’m the Mayor of Striaton City! Here with me is James Provlone of the Unova Child Protective Services and next to him is Representative Milla Derkins from the Striaton City Workers Union. We’ve come to check on things, just to make sure everything is alright with the orphanage and its owner.” said Mayor Reinhardt. Nick crawled over to the mayor while cooing and wagging his tail with excitement, the man noticed the infant and crouched down to greet him. Chuckling to himself. “Hello there little fella, who are you?”

“That’s Nicholas, but we call him Nicky. He’s a recent orphan who was born many days ago.” said Liam. 

“I see now…. Welcome to the world little one!” said the mayor as he gently shook the pup’s left paw and stood back up. 

“It’s a pleasure to meet all of you, I will be investigating Lady Drevelle and talking to her about the financial management she’s been doing,” said Milla.

“Nice to meet you kiddos, I’ll be responsible for making sure you’re all being cared for properly at this orphanage.” said James as his lips curved upwards into a friendly smile. “Our mission is to make sure all children are protected and nourished in this region. No child should ever be left to starve or treated harshly.” 

“Come along with me, I’ll take you to Lady Drevelle.”  said Miss Mabel.

“Lead the way,” said the mayor. 

The teacher brought the mayor and the representative to the orphanage while the Social Worker stayed outside with the children, putting his black sunglasses over his head. He’d put down his briefcase and opened it up, taking out a notepad and a silver pen. Nick looked inside the case, wondering what else was inside of it. The man chuckled as he saw the pup gazing at his briefcase. 

“Here Nick, play with this toy ball.” said the man as he took out a red bouncy ball and placed it next to the shiny pup. The infant looked at the toy and rolled it around on the ground. Giggling to himself as he did so. “Well… you seem to be well cared for. That’s good.” James then looked to the other kids on the playground, getting his pen and notepad ready to go. He was going to ask them some questions. “So children… have the staff at this orphanage been treating you well?”

“Yes, except for one…. Lady Drevelle.” said the squirtle.

“She’s mean and strict, she also made Nicky cry on two occasions!” exclaimed Tom. 

“It was unreasonable too, she ignores us whenever she can! She doesn’t like any of us….” said Rossie. 

“We appreciate the home we have, but she doesn’t show us the same love and attention…” said the growlithe. 

“That’s terrible to hear, I am sorry about that!” the man said to them as he wrote down everything on his notepad. “Tell me… is there anything you don’t like about how the orphanage is operated?”

Liam told James about how everything is strictly scheduled and that all the children have to be on time for breakfast, lunch, and even dinner. Believing it was too strict. The growlithe chimed in saying that he didn’t like the uniform he had to wear and that it gets itchy sometimes. 

“I think I can agree on that. While having order is an important aspect, not everything has to be entirely perfect. The most important thing is that all the orphan children are happy to be here. One more question: who do you like the most?”

“I like Miss Marin, Angelina, and Marsha! They are the nicest staff here!” said Rossie. 

“Yeah, they’re the best around!” said the growlithe. 

The pup gave off some affirmative babbles towards James, showing his approval of Angelina and Marsha. He had a very strong bond with those two interns, especially since they’ve been caring for him since he hatched from his egg. 

“They are better than the Queen of Mean, that’s what we call Lady Drevelle…” said the poochyena. 

“Alright then… that’ll be all. Thank you for answering my questions. I will now go and interview the rest of the children to hear their opinions.” said James as he saw an audino approaching them in the distance, giving them a friendly wave. He’d look to Nick as he said “Also, you can keep that rubber ball as a gift from me.”

The man made his way over to the building and went inside, just as Miss Marin was coming outside to make sure the children were doing alright. She was holding a white diaper bag over her left shoulder, which was heavy with diaper changing supplies. 

“Doing alright children?” asked Miss Marin.

“Yes ma'am!” said Rossie.

“We're doing fine, I was reading Nick a story before being asked questions from that man.” said the squirtle.

“That’s good, go ahead and resume having fun!” said the audino. 

Liam brought the book over to where Nicky was, and resumed reading the story to him. Starting off from the last page he left off on. 

The social worker was working hard, asking the rest of the children important questions about how they were being treated, the orphanage itself, the staff, and the owner. He made sure to get down every detail on his notepad, which he had plenty of paper for all the writing he was doing. 

The answers given gave him a lot of concern, they were all similar to the other answers he recently received from the other children outside. It almost angered him to a degree, but he kept his cool. Not wanting to scare those who he was interviewing. Having a calm head was the most important thing when it came to being a social worker. 

In Lady Drevelle’s office, Milla was about to speak with Lady Drevelle about her financial manipulation as she took the secretive financial document out of her briefcase, slamming it down on her desk to see. The gothitelle was shocked, this was the document she had been worried sick about.

“My Financial Adjustment Document! Ho- how did you get this?!” said the gothitelle in a mean and nervous tone. 

“Miss Mabel gave it to the mayor, and I received it from him. According to this document, we’ve discovered that you’ve illegally reduced employee wages below the ten-percent margin. This action is only legal if you’re not making enough money to pay your staff or if you’re about to declare bankruptcy. So tell me… why are most of the funds going towards luxuries?!” said Milla in a serious tone. 

Lady Drevelle was shocked and angered that Miss Mabel had taken an important document of hers and handed it off to someone else without telling her. She looked at the representative as she came up with a quick answer that she believed would get her off the hook. Hoping that it would be effective.

“Why…? Well it’s for making the orphanage more luxurious for the children and staff! I just want them to be comfortable in luxury…” said Lady Drevelle as beads of sweat formed on her forehead. The representative spotted an advertisement for an Undella Town beach house that was being sold at the price of two-hundred fifty-thousand pokedollars, and got rather suspicious of it as she examined it.

“I don’t believe that! I think your true intentions are represented by this Beach House advertisement right on your desk!” the representative exclaimed as she showed the advert to the gothitelle by presenting it right in her face. “I believe the real truth is that you were saving every coin and dollar to afford this beach house, and thus… that’s why you redirected most of the funds towards luxuries. You were likely planning to use the funds from luxuries to pay for it! You already get paid enough by the government… you shouldn’t need to filch from employee wages!” exclaimed Milla.

“How dare you accuse me…?! I would never do such a thing to my employees!” shouted the gothitelle as she moved her eyes around the room. Indicating that she’s not telling the truth.

“Then why haven’t you shown this to your employees?” the woman asked. 

“Because I…. you know what?! You want the truth?! Here’s the truth: I’m tired of these stupid kids, and I wanted to retire from this position in style! I redirected the employee funding so I’d have the money to buy that wonderful beach house! These brats should be happy that I gave them a roof over their heads!” shouted Lady Drevelle angrily, revealing her true intentions. 

Mila smiled to herself, she found the truth behind the illegal financial management. It was all in the bag now! The owner couldn’t back out of this situation since she willingly admitted to the crime. The mayor shook his head with disappointment, he couldn’t believe the information he just heard.

“As the honest and hard-working mayor of this wonderful city, I am disappointed in your actions! An employer should never reduce wages until it's absolutely necessary! All employees deserve an honest payment or promotion if their hard work pays off. The fate of your position shall wait until James finishes his interview with the children.” said Mayor Reinhardt. 

“You should be ashamed of your actions…” said Milla. The gothitelle stared at her angrily and scoffed, but didn’t say a word. There was a look of shame upon her face as she hung her head. At this moment, the owner regretted the actions she committed. 

A few hours later… The investigation was finished. All the children including Lady Drevelle had been interviewed. Miss Mabel was told to gather everyone and bring them to the front floor. She agreed to the task and got to work on it! While that was happening, the three were talking between each other about the results of the inspection. 

“Well… according to the children: Lady Drevelle is described to be strict, mean, and an unpleasant individual to be around. Some of the children prefer to stay away from her at all costs. From the information gathered… I believe the proper choice is termination, Mister Mayor.” said James Povlone. 

“I’m in agreement with James, her illegal financial manipulation could land her in jail for a week. No hard-working employee should ever work with an employer that manages finances like that unless they are in total agreement with the staff.” said the representative. 

The mayor thought about what he’s told, for this decision was going to affect the orphanage in the future and the children that are housed within its walls. He took a deep breath in and then slowly exhaled after making up his mind. He’d say to the two “I am ready to make my decision.”

All the children and staff were gathered on the first floor, with Lady Drevelle standing next to the mayor as she stared at all those who were gathered. Angelina had seen the children getting interviewed and wondered what was happening. Miss Mabel and Synthia waited with anticipation on the mayor’s decision. 

“Thank you all for gathering. With this investigation finished, I am ready to make my decision: Lady Drevelle, with a heavy heart… I declare that you are no longer owner of Blisswood Orphanage and have been fired from the position! While you’ve given these children a home, you’ve never truly shown that you cared about them. This also includes the illegal financial manipulation you’ve done behind the backs of the hard-working staff. You have two weeks to pack up your belongings. To conclude this announcement, please direct your attention to Social Worker James Provlone.” said the mayor as he stepped back and allowed the man to take center-stage. 

The kids and staff looked at the man as he stepped forward, taking his sunglasses off and stowing them away in his pocket. Taking a deep breath in as he readied himself for the speech he was about to give to everyone. Nick curiously stared at the man as he held onto the toy ball he was given.

“Ladies and gentlemen…. When it comes to raising children, you must always be dedicated to taking care of them, no matter the situation. Show them that you truly care for their well-being. Show that you’ll support them in the toughest of situations!  Love and affection can go a long way, helping strengthen the bond between guardian and child! While starting a family might seem like a simple decision… it isn’t. It’s a very crucial choice that must be thought about wisely before action is committed. I’d like to thank the staff here for keeping these children in good condition, and showing them the love and attention that they deserve!” said James as he cried a bit, drying his tears with a tissue from his pocket. 

The staff clapped after hearing the man’s speech, with some of them even crying a bit. Angelina and Marsha were both moved to tears. It was a very wonderful and emotional speech, one that was worthy of a standing ovation. After five minutes, the clapping ceased as the mayor and representative stepped forward. 

“While it was stated that this would be concluded, I would like to ask the former owner an important question: Why are you like this to the children?” asked Mila. Lady Drevelle looked back at the representative and back at the crowd with sadness. 

“The reason why I am so strict and mean dates back to when I was a young child long ago…” said Lady Drevelle. She took a deep breath in and then slowly exhaled. From there, she’d start her story: Many years ago, she used to play with many of the kids in her neighborhood. Making wonderful memories with them. Ones that’d last a long time. However… It all changed when her mother told her that the kids were a distraction to her, and that she should focus on her studies instead of playing with those brats. Wanting to be an obedient child, she begrudgingly agreed and no longer played with the neighborhood kids. She had taken on her mother’s personality, which had made her the individual she was today.

Everyone was rather surprised and saddened by this story. While most of the staff knew about this, the two interns didn’t know. They had the answer to why the owner of the orphanage was so mean and strict, including the children as well. Lady Drevelle took another deep breath in, for it was quite an emotional story to tell. 

“Children… I am sorry for not giving you the love and attention that you deserved. I also apologize for the illegal crime that I’ve committed behind the employee’s backs. I don’t expect you to forgive me… but I shall accept the consequences given. I wanted this place to be in order, to be a perfect place for all the orphans in the region. However… my constant desire for order has caused me to make terrible mistakes.” said the gothitelle as she cried a little.

“We shall take our leave now… thank you for having us!” said Mayor Reinhardt. The three individuals exited the orphanage and made their way to the limousine, driving away shortly after. Leaving the owner of the orphanage in front of the crowd.

“What shall I do…? Who’ll take care of the orphanage while I am away?!” Lady Drevelle asked herself with deliberation. 

“I’ll do it… I’ll become a temporary owner and keep things in order.” said Miss Marin as she stepped forward towards the owner. Nicky, Liam, and the two interns followed behind her. 

“You’ll do it…?” the former owner asked.

“Yes, I promise to do my best!” said the staff manager.

Lady Drevelle looked at her and shrugged her shoulders, nodding her head in reply as she said “Alright… you're the new owner of Blisswood Orphanage until the job position can be filled again. Please do your best to take care of the staff and children.”

“Yes Lady Drevelle!” said the audino. 

Nick crawled over to Lady Drevelle, wanting to be held in her arms. He wasn’t afraid of her anymore, she was no longer the scary presence that she previously was. This whole investigation led to the gothitelle showing another side to herself, a more tragic side. The gothitelle was surprised and immediately picked him up, gently hugging the infant.

“I’m sorry for being mean to you! You’re not a brat at all, but instead… a wonderful and energetic child who deserves a family!” exclaimed Lady Drevelle as she happily cried. Nicholas hugged her in return. 

After a short bit, the gothitelle gently placed him on the floor as both of the interns approached her. The infant sat on his diapered bottom as he looked at Marsha and Angelina, wondering what they were about to do.

“Lady Drevelle?” asked Angelina.

“Yes Angelina?” answered Lady Drevelle.

“With you no longer being the owner… does this mean our internship is over?” the grass snake asked.

“Unfortunately, it does. I’ll make sure to give you both full credits on the Internship Report. You don’t need to call me Lady Drevelle, just Miss Drevell will do. I don’t deserve such a formality anymore. Your internship ends tomorrow… I hope you both have a good rest of the summer.” said the gothitelle.

“Thank you… Miss Drevelle.” said Marsha.

“For now, I must go pack my things…” said the gothitelle as she headed to her office. 

The crowd of children and staff dispersed after Miss Drevelle returned to her office. Miss Mabel took Nicky and Liam to the activities room to spend time with each other while both interns headed to the Staff Bedroom to pack up their suit-cases that they brought with them to the internship.

“I can’t believe it… our whole internship is over,” said Angelina. “But…” 

“You may not see Nicholas again, depending on what your parents decide. I know… you told me all about it during one of your breaks.” said Marsha.

“If mom and dad say no, then I won’t be able to see him again for a long while… or even at all!” said the grass snake as she cried. “I’ll miss him, and all the times we spent together!” The pikachu grabbed a tissue from a small table in the room and handed it to her crying friend. 

“It’s going to be okay….. You just need to hold onto the hope that your parents will be all for it!” the pikachu said to her as she gave her friend a gentle pat on the back. “Even if they decide against it… just know that he’ll always be in your heart and in your memories. No matter how far apart!”

“Thank you Marsha… you’re a great friend!” said Angelina as she gave the pikachu a hug.

Both interns sat in the room, hugging each other as they both cried together. This was quite an emotional moment for the two of them, and this day… was going to be one that wouldn’t be forgotten for a while. The day when Lady Drevelle’s heart became softer.