If only it hadn't been night when I evolved, thought Umbreon, sorrowful and missing Espeon; Espeon was only awake during the day, unlike Umbreon, therefore the chances that they saw each other were rare. At this point, Umbreon's aching heart could mean only one thing, surely.
He had fallen in love with Espeon.
Although Espeon was a hard subject for Umbreon to talk about, he had once told a brother of his about his odd attraction. His brother had replied, "Espeon is born of the sun," and grimly whispered, "surely it would be impossible for you two to be together."
This, Umbreon knew, was partly true. Umbreon was simply too dark to handle Espeon's bright eyes. He could stare for days at the glassy orbs and still not be through, he thought, which made his heart ache all the more.
Umbreon couldn't thrive in sunlight, so he usually retreated to hideout in a hollow tree or something similar. This was how he managed to avoid Espeon unintentionally. It wasn't his fault, really, he had no choice.
But that reasoning was growing weaker, he couldn't help noticing. Umbreon knew that eventually he might just change his sleeping habits and deal with the sun. It would be difficult, for the sun was his one weakness, but surely if it was for Espeon, he could do it.
That was why, today, as the sun rose, he would head out. At first his fur felt like it was being lit on fire, but glancing behind him, Umbreon saw that no flames were in sight, only the bright, hot sun. He felt weak as he walked through the forest to Espeon's favorite place: the beach.
He remembered that Espeon loved to watch the sunrise, and he gasped as the memory brought him reeling to his knees. The weakness the sun had given him and the heartache that the memory caused was too much, so he rested for a short while.
Umbreon looked up at the sun, his eyes temporarily blinded, and wept.
Today, he wouldn't see Espeon. He headed back to his cubby in the tree to slumber. He hadn't slept well last night, so another rest was due. He would sleep all through the day and night, he told himself, and before the sun rose, he would head out.
The next day was still bright. Even though he was sure he headed out before the sun got to him, he couldn't make it far out of the forest without eventually being trapped by the blazing ball in the sky.
He had made it approximately 400 steps more than yesterday.
He nodded. It was progress. He would continue, tomorrow, so he headed home to rest.
The day after wasn't too different, but he was making note of landmarks and he could tell he made it much farther than last time, because the trees had begun looking foreign to him. The sun reached his fur after almost a thousand steps, which he found remarkable.
He walked back home, though, the thousand steps it took, and slept in the very same cubby as before. By doing this, he was building resistance, he told himself, but it wasn't so, as he found out later.
The day that followed, the sun's rays burnt into him like molten lava, but he kept walking through the searing pain and finally, emerged out of the forest. It was over two thousand steps, but he had made it. He smiled as he saw how close the beach was, and headed home. This time, he slept less.
Each day he had felt he was getting less sleep, but it did not stop he determination. He was perfectly fine, he told himself, and in his mind, he was.
Such was not true.
The last day, Umbreon trekked through the forest easily, for he had made sure he had come much earlier than the sun would rise. He made it to the beach almost an hour before the sun did.
He was sure Espeon would be there in an hour, and he smiled at the thought of seeing her in all her glory, her purple fur blinding him without trouble. He decided to take a quick rest, although it wasn't really his own decision; he wasn't in control of himself at that point. Umbreon was weak, and he felt he shouldn't appear like that before his beloved Espeon.
However, Espeon was running late, he noted as he fell into a half-conscious slumber.
His mind faded and he wondered if all he had done was for nothing.
Espeon had been getting less and less sleep with each growing night, but she didn't really mind because she felt that something good was going to happen soon. With that feeling also came a bit of dread. She wasn't sure if it was really going to be good.
So today, she wondered if she really should go watch the sunset. It wouldn't take long to decide, surely only a minute or two, which wouldn't make a difference.
But she was dead wrong.
She decided that breaking routine would mess her sleeping schedule up even more. Seeing the sunrise wasn't just for her enjoyment; it gave her power. Such wasn't the same for her beloved, Umbreon. Truthfully, she had wanted to take him to see such a sight one day together, but she knew that would be incredibly painful for him, so she gave up on that idea.
Umbreon had not given up, unlike his beloved.
Once she arrived on the beach, she noticed black fur with orange rings on it that looked as though they were on fire. The body with black fur on it was lying down in an odd position—relaxed, almost as though every muscle was not in use. She padded up to it.
The water from the ocean gently crashed against Umbreon's paws. He knew he should stand, but strangely enough, he felt himself fading faster and faster. It wasn't pleasant.
The pain he was feeling was extreme; it was an electric current running through his veins. Every hair on his fragile body was standing on end, feeling like it would explode. He thought he might be on fire once again, but he didn't have the strength to check.
The intensity of the heat grew stronger each minute. Was it really necessary for him to go through this just to see his beloved? Did others go through these trials?
But he didn't regret any of the steps it took to get here. He was happy. He was so close to seeing his lovely Espeon, and in that moment, once he heard the loved scratch of pads against the soft sand, he could see a bright, glistening tear through his eyelid, though the tear wasn't his own. Once he heard a voice whisper his name, he faded into bliss.
If only he had born unto the sun, Espeon thought.