A/N: Greetings, new and old readers alike! I'm Shadow, and welcome to Thunder and Ice! If you're new, here's a quick little thing: this story is riddled with silliness, friendships, romance, heartbreak, bloodshed, death, mystery, suspense, stupid jokes... A little bit of everything. I'm currently revising all of my earlier chapters wherein pale and wither in comparison to my current writing, so if this is your first time reading, I hope you excuse my amateurish writing style and resist from critiquing entirely until the latest chapters (around Chapter 30 or so). I'll be working on nothing but full-fledged revisions towards the end of July or start of August, so please be patient if you decide to read after the revisions are uploaded! ^w^
Now, I present to you... Thunder and Ice. :3 And, if there's any doubt, I do not own Pokemon. Even if I had the opportunity to, I'd crumble under the pressure and expectations of fellow Pokemon fans worldwide and give it up to someone more responsible and controlled. I'm just the average writer, everybody. x3
Thunder's POV
"Thunder! Don't forget your berries! I will NOT pick wasted food out of your room!" Mom's voice rattled the wood walls around me, stimulating me to fume at her voice. The flareon was so loud, but, at least I was used to it, after so many years. After all, she was my mom.
Choking down my groan, I yelled back a response. "I won't!" Instantly I dropped her from my mind as other thoughts whirled around in my head. As I went to fetch what was left of my small berry pile, I smiled at my delight-filled thoughts. After so long, after growing through my cub life as an eevee and pushing through my freshly-evolved jolteon phase, my parents thought I was responsible enough to go off by myself into the world and live in my own den. Because of my mom's overprotective personality, I was stuck in that fallen log that they called home, way longer than a usual Pokémon should've been. It was frustrating living in that log with a loud flareon, a jokester umbreon, and a baby eevee. Now, I was packing my items and things for leaving out of my home-forest Maplewood, and into another forest called Sugarcane.
Sub-consciously I finished packing a giant leaf with all the things I needed. There were berries for the trip, enough Poké to last me a while, and other necessary items I needed. Next to the giant leaf was a clay pot filled with a glistening amber substance. Inside was Maplewood sap, famous for its sweet taste and glossy texture. The jar had carefully-carved swirl designs engraved around the exterior, showing off an impressive look. I stuffed my paw in the fancy jar and felt the sweet sap stick to my fur, caking my paw with a bright amber color. I pulled the paw out and then I shifted my attention back to the leaf.
After a couple minutes drifting by, the leaf was folded up and sealed shut with the glossy sap. Some of the famous substance remained on my paw, so I started to lick it off. The invigorating maple taste blasted in my mouth, an experience I was glad to live. When the yellow paw was clean of any of the amber, my gaze wandered around my tree bark room, than it zeroed in on a corner where red leather material lay. I trotted forward and bent down to pick up the item. Once it was moved out of the dusty shadows, I could see the mangled up red scarf that I've seen all my life. The scarf that I had been given to as an eevee and it was a precious item that I'd grieve over if lost. My prized treasure.
My parents gave each of their cubs when we were born something we could wear. Mine was that slightly-beaten scarf. My little eevee sister, Aqua, had a purple-and-pink beaded necklace, but at her age it dangled around her creamy mane loosely. My older brother Solar, a leafeon, had a jet black scarf, but he moved away a long time ago. I always wore my scarf, even during summer months.
With a solemn maneuver, I tossed the red scarf up and it fell lightly around my neck. I scrambled my paws around, but after a moment the scarf looked normally wrapped, and then I grabbed my leaf bag of essential supplies. I walked through the exit of my room, heading through other rooms before I came to the exit of the enormous log, sunlight raining down. Since it was barely the ending of the winter months, there wasn't a thick enough canopy to shield lots of the light.
After my eyes adjusted, I saw three foxlike creatures sitting with different expressions in the clearing. The flareon sat there with a slightly irritated look, probably from waiting, and yet a bit tearful. Her umbreon mate sat next to her, his tail slightly wagging in held-in excitement. The small eevee was last, and she was rolling mindlessly in the partially wilted grass, yipping out random mews and phrases.
Mom's golden red pelt glinted from the sun rays, a look of beauty consuming her. "Look at you Thunder. You're so grown up, besides that messed up fur you never clean." That was just like her; adding an insult within her yappy words.
I just proudly smiled and faced my dad. His partly messy ebony fur contrasted with Mom's pelt, yet his five golden ringlets matched her flourishing yellow tail. Dad had the widest grin on his dark face, beaming. "Good luck Thunder! I know you've been waiting for this!"
He couldn't have been more correct. My body was practically flooded with adrenaline, and the only way I kept it down was from reminding me constantly to save my energy. He bounded up to me and rubbed his paw against the top of my head, partly ruffling my yellow fur, but there were unnoticeable changes from how wild my pelt already was. My electricity always coursed through my fur, causing it to stick up and give off a roughneck appearance, and it was difficult to control.
The beaming umbreon padded close and leaned his muzzle close to my diamond-shaped ear. "We all know it's been long enough," he whispered cautiously. With those words, both of our eyes locked on the fiery flareon, her own eyes distracted by her luscious red and yellow fur. Dad and I quietly snickered and he backed off, now facing his mate and daughter with his usual upbeat look. "I have some other news to tell all of you!"
That was a bit unexpected to me, my ears pointing up in slight shock. The black fox cleared his throat before speaking again. "Lately I've been searching around Maplewood, and I found us a new home. It's not exactly a den, it's a burrow, but it's better than living in a giant fallen oak tree like a flock of pidgey!" His news brought gasps from his three listeners, filled with shock and happiness.
After an event when I was an eevee kit, we were stuck in that stupid tree, forced to live there for several years. When I foolishly wandered into simisear territory –since I was lost for the moment-, I was chased out by a group of the short-tempered fire monkeys. I ran as far as I could and luckily stumbled upon my family's den. Ever since that day, we lived in that hollowed out log, the simisear claiming our old den as their own because we couldn't protect it, and we haven't find a new home since then. Now after the years painfully crawled by, Dad found a better place. Too bad I was moving out to a different den in Sugarcane.
My parents didn't want to move out of Maplewood, even though they found a den better for us in Sugarcane. They wanted Aqua to grow up underneath the leaves of Maplewood, just like Solar and I had. They also didn't want to drag her away from her home at such a young age, despite her being close to choosing her evolution, and a new name if she feels her current one wouldn't suit her evolved form. So instead of moving to the abandoned den in Sugarcane, they let me have it.
Mom and Aqua were cheering loudly. "Oh thank Cresselia's moon," Mom sighed. "If I stayed in that log one more day, I swear I would've burned it to ashes." Aqua grinned and chased her fluttering tail, her happiness exhibited, her purple-and-pink necklace jingling around. After another share of laughs, I glanced towards the trees in the distance. My thoughts of adventure and curiosity zoomed around in my head again. After my family and I exchanged our farewells and how we were going to miss each other, I waved bye to them and darted off towards the trees. I heard my mom's voice, still loud like it always was over my shoulder. "It's hard to see our cubs leave," she whimpered. I went with ideas of adventure and excitement fresh in my mind, a leaf bag firm in my maw, yet a bit distraught on leaving my family behind.
Once I finished bolting through the trees and dashing a long distance, I slowed to an easy pace. My expression was beaming, showing how overjoyed I was to any passing Pokémon. After a while, the walk grew stale. The deciduous trees started to few in number, showing more open clearings instead of tightly packed areas. Soon though the trees completely disappeared. When I glanced around the area in confusion, one of my paws came down and landed on nothing. Alarmed, I sprang back from the area, staring down at a wide gorge in front of me. If I wasn't quick enough, I would've plummeted about twenty meters into the aggressive stream below.
I observed the gorge, seeing that it spread out to the left and right and didn't end, and it was about ten yards wide. My mom told me about this place, and it was called Giant Gorge. It surrounded the whole eastern side of Maplewood and signaled that you were leaving the forest. Luckily there were bridges, one around the southern and northern ends. I was approximately around the center, so both of the bridges would have been about an equal distance away. The only problem was that heading towards either one would take up the rest of the day, and unless I wanted to travel in the unknown at night, I'd have to camp out somewhere and wait till daybreak.
Was it possible that I could jump it? It was only near ten yards wide and maybe if I ran with a lot of effort than I could make it. It wasn't fully impossible, and ten yards, for a jolteon that was child's play. I had amazing flexibility and agility, so I could use my great running skills to save time.
If I just kept my mind focused, than I could leap that distance with ease, and soon I'd arrive at the next area seperating me from Sugarcane. With the bold thought in mind, I dashed a couple meters back and braced myself to run forward. I crouched and locked my eyes on the other edge, thinking the same thought continuously. I can do this…
My wits were prepared, and I knew that one small sign of retreat or flinching would ruin everything, and I'd instead be drowned by the ferocious waves. My eyes narrowed. In an instant my paws sprinted in a rapid shade of blurriness, and the gorge's edge approached at an alarming rate. When I could feel the crumbling edge, my yellow hind paws mimicked coils and I launched into the air.
It was amazing. For a second, it was as if the world was shoved into slow motion, reminding me how free I felt. The wind passed through my matted fur refreshingly, my body traveled with the wind like I was in sync with it, and I watched in awe the distance I overcame. I kept climbing higher in the air above the drastic drop, and I didn't even start to lose altitude till I was farther than halfway across. Time resumed, my elevation decreased, and I roughly landed on the grass lining the other side. I tried to land on my paws but the impact was hard to control, so instead I fell lopsided and skidded a few feet away from the gorge. The leaf bag in my mouth fell in the grass once I slammed hard in my failed landing.
I stood up swiftly despite the tough landing and shook my entire body, as if I was soaked with water. That was amazing, reminding me of the freedom I just received. I felt as if I finished running a race, and my heart was beating hard from both the running and excitement. Sparks flew through the air around me, unable to keep itself crowded around in my messy fur. Crackling sounds pierced the silence. The smile remained cemented on my face from the jump. I was glad I evolved into a jolteon, because I loved to run and race around. Plus, I was outside of Maplewood for the first time. I quickly checked to see my scarf, and I saw the red leather sustained around my neck, filled with static electricity. I calmed down my element and grabbed the leaf bag I dropped, than continued to dash away.
After a while I started to walk through weeds as tall as wheat. A few pine trees stuck up in the area that stood widely apart. I was in a place called Coconut Pines, according to what Mom had told me. It was near a beach, meaning that soon the weeds would turn into sand and the pine trees would become palm. While I padded stiffly around, my frustration started to build up. The grass was taller than me so my sight was mostly blocked. Irritated, I sometimes drew my claws and slashed and shredded the grass.
Soon the tall grass shortened, and I could see above the weeds after half an hour of being lost. My fur was matted and tangled with bits of grass that I slashed at in frustration. The pine disappeared and was replaced with bright palm, growing coconuts and chestnuts on their trunk. After a little more time, the grass completely disappeared and my paw sank into the warm sand. Weak crustacean creatures lied upon the beach in a random fashion and palm trees disappeared from eyesight, the signature trees on beaches further back in the sand. The water that gently lapped at the sandy edge was Salty Gulf. Where land met sea, I thought, and then the legend of Kyogre and Groudon came to mind. I was told that myth as an eevee. I wondered what legends and stories they had in Sugarcane.
In the sky, highlights of bright pink threads stretched from where the sun was setting. The sky was a lighter hue where the sun was at, while in the eastern area it was an indigo. The pink colored stripes were thick near the sun but it faltered and faded near the darker of the sky. It was a beautiful evening to see, but it would seem better if I didn't have a situation to deal with.
I had no idea how to get across the gulf. It would take forever to go around the body of salt water, but there was no way I could go straight across either, unless some Pokémon like staryu decided to be friendly and let me ride. Maybe one of those starfish Pokémon would be around the shore. I padded towards the low tide and stared at the gentle waves. It was hard to see under the water from the surface, so I bounded a bit deeper in the water and ducked my head under. My hearing turned into an endless buzz when my ears went under, and my eyes gazed around, my vision blurry and distorted. Than a burning pain shot in my eyes, causing me to scream out in pain which came out in a line of bubbles.
I jerked my head up above the surface and scampered clumsily towards the shore, desperately and frantically wiping my eyes. The searing pain caused my eyes to water unintentionally. It was like my eyes were burning like a rekindled fire. The salt must've been the cause of the sudden pain. I needed to flush my eyes out, but I couldn't with salt water, so I just tried to rub out as much as I could. It felt good as my paw passed and nudged the nasty spice away, banishing some of the pain, making it durable enough so I could think without it tugging at my shoulders. I decided to let my scarf drain of the water that it absorbed, so I nimbly took the drenched leather off with my jaws and carelessly dropped it in the gritty sand, letting the water leak out of it so it'd be dry.
The pain was easier to endure and I started to think. There was no way I was going in those waters, even if some Pokémon could carry me across, the pain was too excruciating to experience again. The only thing that came to mind was running around the gulf, even though it'd take a while, but using my Quick Attack numerous times could help. That slick move would probably cut the time in half, and I could hopefully make it to Sugarcane before twinkling stars were layered in the sky. My decision was confirmed. I crouched and tensed my haunches, taking in whiffs of the salty fragrance of the ocean for a second. Hopefully I'd get to my den before the sun and pink streaks disappeared.
The velvet scarf was around my neck again, my leaf bag was back in my muzzle, and I was back in my leveled and crouched position. Sand sat motionless around my paws as my eyes narrowed. My path was like an endless route of sand, but it was just some illusion, because the sand had to end somewhere. Like my legs were concealed of springs, I flung into the air with the power. A dust cloud disguised me for less than a second when I landed, but I shot forward with at an outstanding speed. My paws created rapid movements as I rushed forward, my paws appearing blurry again as I went north-east.
My magnificent speed kept up its pace, a huge trail of sandy clouds following me from my hind paws. When I was in one spot, I was farther ahead, and where my paws pounded was replaced with a small dust cloud. I increased my speed and felt the comfort of wind in my fur. I started conquering more distance per second, enjoying the rush that my quick running could create. The salty pain in my eyes barely caused me to wince now, the pain more tolerable than before.
The sky started to darken and the pink threads were vanishing. After several moments of my speed continuously increasing, the bones in my legs started to feel weak. I nearly collapsed sideways as I attempted to stay at my current speed, but it was too pressuring and I needed to either slow down or face a major injury. I applied immediate brakes with all four of my sore paws and skidded to a slow halt, and then fell sprawled on the terrain. This huge sandy smog was thrown in the air, making it hard to calm my breathing, and I was forced to drop the leaf bag again.
It had only been about a few minutes later as my speed had continuously increased, but my bones in my legs started to grow fragile. I nearly fell sideways as I attempted to stay at my current speed, but it was too pressuring, and I was forced to either slow down or face a major injury that would seriously slow down the trip. I tried to slow down, but the control at this speed was out of my paws. I applied immediate brakes with all four of my sore paws, and came to a slow halt. Then I skidded and fell lopsided in the sand, this huge smog of sand thrown into the air, making it hard to control my breathing as I made the terrible landing, being forced to let go of the leaf bag that hanged in my mouth again.
I decided to lay there in the sand for a moment, enjoying the slight heat, letting the sudden event of no action comfort me. The dust cloud from my crash had quickly subsided, making breathing easy once more. The pain was easy to feel in my muscles without moving, a tinge of burn in them, and I felt as if I couldn't stand. I wanted to stay there, but the reason I was on that trip snapped to me. If I didn't get to Sugarcane before dark, it'd become harder to travel, even though it was so close. Despite the anchoring pain grasping my legs, I slowly got up on my paws.
Great job Thunder, you just lost lots of time because of that, I mentally scolded myself. If I ran, the pain would worsen and the injury would become more serious. I could only walk. Once on my paws, I found my leaf bag and picked it up, then started a slightly painful walk along the sand. Paw by paw, step by step, I trudged through the sand which puzzlingly started to feel cold. The sky still held several of the pink streaks in the sky, but the sun was out of sight. I quickened my pace to a small jog, pain nipping at my legs, not majorly. My paws itched, wanting to create dust clouds again, but I couldn't. I sighed.Why did I have to go so fast?
The time painfully crawled by. After about two hours of my agonizing walk, my sight was limited with lack of lighting in the dark atmosphere. My fur was layered in cold sand, my muscles aching, and my paws rough. The only light guiding me through the endless sand route were the stars hanging above me and a claw-shaped moon, sustained in the blackness of night. My ears were lowered in exhaustion and my electricity lacking, my pine needle fur starting to look lifeless. I never thought that the journey would be so difficult. I was struggling to keep my eyes open and when I looked at my reflection, my whites were tinted red. I swore if I took one more step, I'd collapse into the sand and faint…
My ears stood on end, my eyes widened with disbelief, and I stared weakly at the outskirts of my limited vision. There were pine trees and fertile soil. I could see the border when sand transformed into lively grass, and I knew that was Sugarcane Forest. Finally, after that exasperating trip, I made it to where I'd start my new life.
I started to gallop to Sugarcane, but pain was digging further in my legs, forcing me to slow down. I groaned in depression. What kind of jolteon couldn't run? Unfortunately I started walking, watching the forest stretch closer, and I was both miserable and joyful. Joyful because I reached Sugarcane and miserable that I couldn't get there sooner because of my leg injury.
During my walk, I looked over my shoulder, seeing a lifeless route of sand surrounding the gulf's shore. Soon my paws stepped on the grass. It was a bit dewy, and it felt good to step on a grassy surface again. I stared into the new forest, seeing it packed with foliage and shrubbery, the dense terrain silent besides the rustling of leaves. Some of the trees had a dull dark orange sap on its trunk, very different from the golden amber sap back in Maplewood. The forest also had lots more vegetation.
My walk continued, walking along the smooth grass blades, my rough pads rapidly starting to feel better with each paw step. Suddenly a familiar scent came to my nose, making me confused. I sniffed the ground a few times to try and identify it. The scent had a familiar ring to it, and then I recalled what it was. The sweet scent was from the delicious golden amber sap I grew up with. Maplewood sap, it was hard to believe I didn't figure it out sooner. I mean, I grew up with it all my life. So, how did the scent get in Sugarcane? The sap on the trees were nothing like Maplewood, so it had to either mean someone was caked with my home-forest's sap, or it was from a resident in Maplewood. I thought for a second and I remembered that my dad's signature scent was basically the sap. That meant it was his scent, probably from when he came and found my den.
That meant there was a scent trail leading into the depths of the forest, indicating that the scent led me to my den. At least I didn't need to worry on finding my den even though I didn't think about it till then. I was about to dart forward, but my recent injury was plaguing my mind, irritatingly reminding me to walk. So I was fast-walking, my nose lowered slightly to keep track of the scent trial, and I started thinking comforting thoughts of home to pass time. Were Mom, Dad, and Aqua at the burrow yet? Were they filled with joy or sadness? Were they alright? The answerless questions whirled in my head, causing me to pick up my pace. I shoved those thoughts away and repeated in my mind to get to the den. If I kept thinking about them, I'd be homesick quickly.
During the steady jog I took in my surroundings. It was very tranquil and quiet, possibly a little too quiet. It did seem a little more silent than I was adjusted to, but Sugarcane was probably like that at night. At Maplewood, you always heard rustling leaves or a squawk from a bird Pokémon. I dropped the thoughts about home, not wanting to think too much about it.
Then I felt a sharp blow in my flank suddenly, sending me rolling across the grass. I blinked, unsure of what just happened. I hesitated for a second, lying there in a tense position, but before I could regain my thoughts a flash of darkness crossed my vision and I was harshly shoved down. Something sharp and rough swiftly wrapped around my neck, and another around my waist, stimulating me to cringe up in fear. It clenched tighter around my throat. I shakily peered up, seeing a huge predatory bird Pokémon pinning me down with a talons around my chest and neck. The Pokémon had me in a fierce death grip; with I pinned on my back, helpless with my life in his deadly talons. A devious glare shined from the bird's eyes, dark feathers melting with the darkness around us. It leaned its head closer so that we were muzzle to beak and then it squawked loud, an electric jolt shooting down my spine.
"Talk!" he shouted, causing my fur to stand on end. I managed to make out a few barely audible words.
"A-About wha-a-at…?"
"Who are you?!" he screamed louder, showing me he wasn't patient.
"T-Thunder... the jolteon…" I stammered, it barely more than a whisper. I mentally scolded myself for sounding so weak. That would just encourage the stranger bird to attack me further.
"Why are you invading Sugarcane forest, are you planning to attack Sugarcane!? Tell me!" I couldn't talk, the way he roared out his words made my blood feel like it froze. He thought I was some kind of intruder, and if he continued to think that, he'd kill me in mere seconds.
"I-I-I'm not I-I-in-" The deadly bird quickly cut me off.
"Stop stammering! Answer now or you'll wish you had!" I was intimidated without a doubt, so I took a huge breathe and explained as fast as I could.
"I'm not intruding! I'm just trying to get to my new den since I'm considered old enough from my parents perspective and I just got here and I'm really worn out and tired so I really need to get there and I'm following my dad's scent trail from when he was searching for the den and... please don't kill me." I felt like a complete moron once finished. I was like a scared little cub the way I talked. Luckily, his grip loosened and he let go, but I stayed in my position, wondering if he'd really let me up.
"Get up, Thunder," he ordered, his tone dull. Since I wasn't that frightened anymore, I obeyed, yet I tried to avoid the metal gaze of the bird.
"Sorry for the misunderstanding. Lately, a mischievous Pokémon had been around the forest, an umbreon to be precise. He wandered around like he was lost and came back here several times. It was like he was looking for something." I almost laughed, but kept it in, not wanting to offend him somehow. He just shifted from really dangerous to a bit embarrassed, and laughing would probably change him back.
"Hey, I think that's my dad. He's an umbreon and was just looking for a den. As I said, he was searching for a den, since I'm moving into Sugarcane." We entered a sort of awkward, strange conversation, mainly about me. Falcon mostly remained silent, usually nodding and hesitantly speaking an occasional question to keep me going. It made me feel a bit uncomfortable, so I soon ended it.
Once ready to run off, he then invited me to meet back at the entrance when the sun was starting to rise. I didn't know why he kept insisting, but I nodded in agreement, seeing that it was possible he wanted to show me around the forest. When we begun parted ways, the strange bird quickly squawked in a finishing sentence. "Also, I'm Falcon." He then swiftly darted into the night sky, leaving plenty of mystery in his wake.
A while later I was in my den, my new den. It was a small, vacant cave, void of any scents or signs of any other Pokemon. I lied down by the entrance, ready to wake up when the sunlight brushed over me, and I allowed my eyes to drift shut. Only one thought coursed through my mind before I was pulled into slumber.
Funny, after all that talking, I still don't know who this Falcon is... And then everything went blank.
A/N: I got the idea of that evening with bright pink threads because I saw it one sunset. It was awesome! So this is the first chapter of Thunder and Ice, revised! So who's Falcon? Where's Shard? What's going to happen? Is this seriously the only questions I can come up with? Anyway if you liked it or not, once I'm finished editing I'm sure the next couple chapters will be better. Thanks for reading!