What makes a dream a nightmare?

Surely it can't be the sensation of soaring through the skies on the back of a Pidgeot, high above the clouds. Flips and twists are no challenge for the skilled master of the winged beast. In fact, flying upside down would have not been a problem. Simply put, there was nothing less than dreamy about flight to Falkner.

Until he allowed his bird to spiral into a nosedive – something he'd done many a time before – and the clouds they fell through were harbingers of destruction. Lightning flashed, thunder echoed, and the rain poured. This was not the kind of weather to be walking in, let alone flying. They had to get to the ground as quickly as they could. One bolt of electricity could help that, jolting through the Pidgeot's wings and making its descent into the forest below a much quicker journey.

This was the sight Bugsy caught a tiny glimpse of while walking back to his Gym after the surprise storm scared off his insect friends. He knew of only one person who would be in the air over this town during the day, and that person happened to be a friend. The only problem with rushing to save him was that, even when the sun was directly overhead, the Ilex Forest was a dark and scary place. With a storm bearing down on the area, it was almost death to enter.

But hypothetical death was nothing compared to the reality that maybe, in the threshold that made up Azalea Town's westernmost border, someone innocent was dying, and only Bugsy would be able to save him. So, with the raindrops smacking the top of his head, he entered, unsure of what would greet him. Would it be a pleasant scene, or was something beyond imagination in store for the young boy?

Feathers strewn throughout puddles of rain-mixed blood. Two bodies, one of a bird and one of a human, intertwined in no way living creatures should be. It hit him that there was no saving either of them when he saw the lifeless face of his friend, his eyes widened in fear of crashing through the trees, his mouth slightly opened as if he had been screaming for help where no one would hear him. Scrape marks covered his cheeks, but gashes that still had blood trickling from them lined his arms and legs, while several of Pidgeot's talons were embedded straight into his chest; possibly a result of the falling.

There was not much Bugsy, in his state of fear of the darkened forest and emotional distress from seeing someone in such a position, could do, except take the tangled bodies down from the tree where they were dangling from and carry them to the closest city. From where they were located, that would be Goldenrod. Since there was no chance of saving either, he'd have to carry them to the Gym there.

Stepping outside after the rainstorm (it could have been worse, she thought, because the thunder didn't start until it was past the city), Whitney didn't expect to see Bugsy standing in front of her. She also didn't expect to see his shirt covered in blood, or the tears rolling down his cheeks, or even his body shuddering with every sob.

Taking a peek behind him, she noticed a bloodied Pidgeot, feathers missing in places and the distinct smell of burnt flesh coming off of it. Then she saw some blue hair coming out from under it, very familiar hair that she had been envious of at times.

Her bottom lip quivered as she asked if she could look a bit harder. Bugsy didn't deny her request, nor did he deny her a shoulder to cry on when she jumped back in shock at the current state of the man she considered her one true love.

Three people awoke from their slumber suddenly, two crying, one screaming and furiously checking himself to make sure he was completely fine.

"That was, no doubt, the weirdest dream I've ever had," Whitney yawned, rubbing at her eyes, which were still red from all her crying. "Thanks for coming over, guys. I had to make sure both of you were still alive. It was so-"

Bugsy interrupted with, "Real? My dream was, too. It felt like I actually was in it. Of course, that can't be possible, becau-"

"Because I'm alive?" Both of them looked at Falkner, who was shuddering. "Did we all have the same dream or something? The realistic aspects, yeah, we can say we all had realistic dreams. But you two are just as disoriented as I am..."

Walking in the front door like he owned the place, Morty appeared in a way much unlike he normally did, with a smile on his face. He quickly removed it once he saw the expressions on the faces of his friends. "What happened to you guys? Rough night?" When they all responded that yes, they had very rough nights, he began grinning again. "That's really funny. I had a great night. First night I've slept all the way through since the last time Eusine came to visit. Must have to do with the fact that he makes me send my Ghosts away."

Much like the common nightmare, the three younger Leaders all had a shared thought: kill the purple-clothed man for what his Pokémon did to them.

So what makes a dream a nightmare?

Surely it can't be a wandering man, now can it?

A/N: Written for The Domain's newest writing challenge. The prompt was dreams, either good or bad. I included many of the things that I needed at least three of, including fear, falling, dark, purple, raindrops, and intense emotion.

Now why'd I pick Pokémon? Because it's the fandom I like writing for most, especially about the first four Johto leaders, as demonstrated here. I did cry when writing this, too, for hypothetically killing my favorite Leader. Anyway, I don't own Pokémon.

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