Based off of The Horse and the Fox.
Characters: Horse (Gogoat!Tierno), Fox (Delphox!Trevor), Lion (Pyroar!Lysandre), Horse's Owner (Ruby)
There once lived a wealthy tailor named Ruby, who had a strong and loyal Gogoat named Tierno. The Pokemon had lived for many years, and surely knew of the feeling time gradually crawling onto him in the form of age, only stopping when it was certain he no longer could breathe.
Of course, Ruby knew about that, and one day, decided to visit the Pokemon while he was resting on the spacious ranch, enjoying the sun's rays falling onto his leaf mane.
"Tierno, I know you don't like to hear this, but you're getting old," Ruby said to the Gogoat.
The Pokemon shook off the brown leaves that clung on to his mane. "Do you think I don't know that?" he sighed, even though he knew Ruby wouldn't understand what he was saying.
"Your well groomed brown fur is now just a hideous shade of gray, and your beautiful mane looks like it's permanently covered in dirt," the man continued.
"Anything else new?" the Gogoat asked.
"So to see if you're going to be useful, I'm going to let you out in the wild and bring back a Pyroar you killed!" he finished.
"Wait, what!?"
"Nana!" Ruby cried. "Attack Tierno!"
The black and gray Pokemon suddenly appeared a short distance behind the man, and rushed at him, her mouth filled with sharp blades out wide.
"Why Ruby?" he asked, but he didn't think much on it. The Mightyena was quickly approaching every moment, and unless he wanted to know what a Mightyena's bite felt like, then he had to start running.
Quickly going back onto his feet, he veered sharply to the fence ahead, galloping as fast he could away from the merciless jaws of the Mightyena and to the safety of the outside field.
"I'm close, I'm close…" he assured to himself, the outside gaining nearer and nearer. Finally, he leapt over, and took a few steps away from the area where he once lived.
Daring to hope, he turned around. The Mightyena didn't follow after him into the outside, but she was behind the fence, snarling at him threatenly.
Hoping the worst case scenario wasn't there, he stepped to the side. The Mightyena did just that. He stepped back to where he was. The Mightyena returned to the spot she stood moments earlier. He kneeled down. She went into a crouch, never letting go of her expression.
Realization ripped all of the hope and denial in him into pieces. "He actually meant that…"
Giving a sigh of resignation, he turned to the forest that stood not so far off, and started his trudge there. Even though he knew that there were wild Pokemon that can easily kill him for food, he needed a place to stay for a while. Hopefully, he can ally with a group of Pokemon, and spend the rest of his life with them.
After what seemed like a year, he entered the place, and went behind the long line of bushes and trees, hoping that it would keep him mostly safe from predators. But being a large Pokemon had its downsides, for stealth was next to none, and any of the Bug type Pokemon can attack him for disrupting them.
As he walked down the path, he noticed no Bug type Pokemon on the bushes at all, no song of the Flying types in the trees. Utter silence, other than the cracks of twigs that he unintentionally made.
Uneasiness took hold of the Gogoat. What had happened to drive out all of them? But he knew he should be thankful that no one was there to attack him. The thought still didn't console him, haunting him even as he tried to focus on the path.
A while later, he heard a rustle in the bushes. Instantly, he turned to where it came from.
A Toxicroak jumped out towards him, giving him a cruel smirk as its red claws glowed ominously with purple.
"Oh no!" he panicked, then went into an attack stance, his horns glowing white.
The Toxicroak was just near, when it suddenly froze mid-air, bathed in light green light.
"Wha..."
After the thought passed, it dropped onto the ground, and laid eerily still.
Tierno crept forward, and gently tapped on it. No response.
"He's dead, Gogoat," a voice said from behind.
Tierno turned around.
And in between the trees, there stood a Delphox.
The Pokemon looked the same as its fellow relatives, besides gray strands of fur scattered all over the body, but it had scars were striped all over its face and arms. Its gray eyes were solemn, seemingly hardened from the sights of suffering in life, and anxiousness seemed to had taken hold on it, as it clutched its wand tightly and darting its eyes side to side, even though it held a calm expression.
"Thank you for saving me, Delphox," the Gogoat said, dipping his head.
"It's not a problem," the Psychic type said with a gentle smile, then his eyes turned sorrowful. "I have a long history with his allies."
Curiosity and concern overwhelmed Tierno for the Delphox, but he kept it out of his mind. "So, what is your name?" he asked. "I am Tierno."
"Trevor," he replied, then his face creased into worry. "And considering that you were near Lysandre's territory, you must be a Pokemon belonging to humans."
Tierno was curious on who Lysandre is, but nodded. "Yes."
"Then how come you're here?" he inquired.
The Gogoat sighed. "My trainer chased me out."
Trevor's face then turned into one filled of sympathy. "With no chance?"
"He did, but I have to bring back a Pyroar I killed," he answered mournfully. "And that is impossible. I hadn't battled anything since I evolved, besides an occasional sickness."
The Fire type's grave eyes suddenly shined with realization. "I just have an idea to help you with that. It will help us in both ways, if it works."
"What is it?" the Gogoat asked, filled with curiosity, relief, and hope.
"But first, I would let you know, this would require much bravery," the Delphox said in an ominous and worried tone.
Tierno shuddered, but nodded for him to continue.
"I'm going to take you to Lysandre," he continued, in a bitter and sorrowful tone that appearance of his eyes. "He is a Pyroar had killed a lot of Pokemon for no reason at all, including his own allies."
Anger overtook Tierno's mind. "What kind of Pokemon is he?"
"Probably not one," he replied scathily, his grip on his wand tighter. "And that's why the forest was mostly empty when you were walking. The Pokemon either are now ashes or fled into the deeper part of the forest, which you are here." He then frowned. "If that Toxicroak was near, then that means he's trying to get whoever is left. What convenient timing for you to be here."
"Very much so," the Gogoat snarled. "So what's your plan?"
"You lie down with your feet spread out on his territory, then I go up to tell him that there is free food," he explained. "Then when he gets to where you are, you grab his hind legs with your vines, I stab him in the throat, you can go home."
"I can see so many holes in this plan already," the Gogoat sighed as the Delphox looked around on the spot where he is.
"He's too blind from his own pride to see through all of this," he assured, pausing for a moment from his search, but it didn't console Tierno much with the bitter tone he said. He looked around once more, then stopped and turned towards the Gogoat. "I'll go away for a bit. Stay here."
He nodded, and waited for a few minutes until the Delphox returned, this time standing in front of him.
"Now let's go," the Delphox said. "We still have enough daylight to go to his camp and carry out the plan." He started walking, Tierno following after, now with some hope.
(POV Switch)
Trevor knew that it was now the last time where he can turn back from the plan. But he knew he couldn't. Tierno needed to go back to his trainer, and X, Y, Shauna, and Emma need to be at peace of their deaths, so he can be at peace with his life, along with the many others that had died or were driven out of their homes by Lysandre.
"I can do this, I can do this," he said to himself. "It will end well. Tierno gets to go back to his trainer, they can rest in peace, I and many others can finally live my life in peace."
The thoughts calmed him down for a bit, and he continued walking, still holding the thought.
"Are we near yet?" the Gogoat, Tierno, asked after a few minutes
"Yes, we are," he replied. "I think this would be a good spot."
Tierno nodded, then turned backwards, went down onto his knees, laid flat on the ground, and closed his eyes.
Trevor took out his wand, then pointed at the leafy mane that grew on the Gogoat's body. Instantly, the leaves shriveled up, or seemed to.
After putting away his wand, he took a deep breath.
"I can do this," he said once more. "I will bring peace back here, and he can go back home."
He then breathed out, and opened his eyes, now flaring with determination. He took a confident stride, and another, and another.
"I can do this, I can do this," he repeated to himself over and over again during the travel, keeping confidence in his mind and walk through all of it.
So effective it was that when he arrived at his destination, a grassy, wide clearing, that the very few residents went into an attack stance.
"They're going to attack!" he panicked, confidence having dropped in him.
His hand edged towards the sleeve that held his wand, but he restrained himself from it. "No, I have to do this," he reminded to himself. He pulled his hand away, and held a steady gaze towards the residents.
"I am here to give Lysandre some good fortune," he announced.
This didn't change their stances, tempting him to get out his wand. "How can we tell you're not lying, fox?" a scarred Weavile asked.
"Ironic for a Dark and Ice type," he remarked, but kept it silent. "I am just here on friendly terms."
"What a strange Pokemon," an elderly Houndoom mused. "It's like he forgot that we had a delicious Talonflame and Meowstic for dinner. Not fresh, but still good."
"Y and Shauna deserve more than that you mangy savages!" he cried, but bit his tongue. He can't think of their blank faces and the pile of ashes right now. He had to do this. "I already submitted to Lysandre's strength for years."
"Apparently so," a Bisharp laughed. "You ran out of here than an Absol on their journey of warning disasters."
"Anyways, can I please pass through?" he asked.
"Of course," the Bisharp answered with a cruel smirk. "You can't possibly harm the boss, can you?"
"I would've expected you to did some harm to him by now," he wanted to reply, but managed to say nothing. He went forward, and entered the cave of his enemy, Lysandre.
The Pyroar had changed since Trevor last saw him. Scars were now everywhere on his body, with many gray hairs scattered. But he laid, content, licking his paws as if he had a delicious meal.
Anger and bitterness possessed him at the sight of the murderer, but he managed to speak with a calm tone. "Hello Lysandre."
The Pyroar looked up, as if he hadn't noticed the Delphox entered, and gave him a cruel smile. "Hello Trevor. How are you?"
"Fine," he replied, trying to fight the urge to kill the creature and drag the body to where Tierno was. "I have some good news for you."
"What is it?" the Pyroar asked, raising an eyebrow.
"There is a dead Gogoat lying a little distance ahead," he answered. "And I can tell that your group needed more meat to eat."
"That is true," the Pyroar agreed with a nod. "But it depends. How dead is it?"
"Considering that it seemed intact and not smelling, must be very recent," the Delphox replied.
"Then I'll go," he said, and his cruel smile then turned into of a merciless expression. "Don't pull any tricks on me, fox, or I won't let you go like the last time."
Trevor gulped, but nodded. "Of course."
"I am rather surprised that a Gogoat suddenly died around here," Lysandre said, as he followed after the Delphox. "Not many would dare to wander here."
"Xerneas blessed you either way," Trevor shrugged.
He soon stopped at the spot where the Gogoat laid.
"Right here," he announced.
The Pyroar's eyes gleamed with delight, and licked his mouth. "And even big enough to have a feast," he remarked.
"Indeed it is," the Delphox said. "Since a Gogoat would be rather heavy to drag, how about I get some of its leaves and use my psychic powers to form it as a rope to tie on both of your legs?"
"That would be wonderful," the Pyroar said, then went right next to the Pokemon and turned away.
The Delphox went next to Lysandre's head, then pulled out a sharp stone. "Now," he said.
Immediately, vines wrapped around the hindlegs of the Pyroar, and the Gogoat stood up, the illusion on his body now gone.
"What-"
Before he could finish, Trevor stabbed him in the throat.
The Pyroar gasped desperately for air, but it was no use, as blood continued to pour out from his neck. He collapsed, his eyes wide open as he tried to breathe air that will never come again.
Trevor pulled out the stone and put it into his sleeve, then took out his wand. He pointed at the wounded neck, closing it in an instant but still left the Pyroar gasping, at the pool of blood, causing it to vanish, and at the dying Pyroar's body, forming illusionary bruises.
"Now go!" the Delphox ordered.
The Gogoat nodded, and then broke into a run. Down the path that he came from, and into the bushes that he had hidden behind when he first came, and further down the trail that soon lead to the exit of the forest, and out the open field.
He stopped for a few moments, and took quick breaths. "Now back home." He started his run again, then stopped once he reached the outskirts of the ranch he once laid to enjoy the warmth of the sun's ray. Turning onto the left, he walked until he arrived at the entrance of his trainer's home.
Carefully placing his front hoof on the steps, he lifted up his other hoof, and knock it gently against the door three times.
He went off the steps, and waited for the door to open.
In a few moments, the door opened, revealing the same Ruby he knew, this time wearing glasses and having a measuring tape wrapped around his neck.
"Oh!" he cried. "You actually defeated a Pyroar!"
The Gogoat nodded.
"Now I guess the body will have to be thrown into the trash," the man said. "It would be too messy to bury."
After the body was disposed of, Tierno was left in the stables, given a carefree life for the remaining of his days. Trevor also had achieved the peaceful life he desired for so long, and had moved back to the clearing that he was born, spending his days telling young Pokemon stories of the past and what he learned from those before. And when they both died, they met again in the Land of Light, and spent an eternity of rest together.
I did not intend this to be the opposite of The Absol and the Pyroar.