Disclaimer: I don't own Pokemon. Never will.

Chapter 2

Food For Thought

The next day, Reishi awoke, blearily opening her eyes to sunlight and raindrops. And an empty stomach. She sighed as she got up from her hiding place, and into the world of light. The dewdrops glistened like glass and the air smelled of lavender. A nice morning if any.

Reishi waltzed off into the woods, away from Terminus Cave, in search of sustenance. Good Arceus, she was starving. How was she to find anything nutritious out here. After about an hour, she laid against the trunk of a tree, exhausted and weakened by her ever gnawing hunger and even lower resolve.

Nothing. Absolutely nothing. She leaned her head on her chest, holding back tears. She was dead. No matter what, she was going to starve-

A new scent filled her nostrils. What was that? Her head turned to the direction of the smell. And a new light filled her doubtful eyes as she trotted over to the source. What she found mere moments later was a lot better.

Berries. Life.

And effectively, survival.

Reishi didn't know how many berries she had downed then, but it was probably a lot, as after she was finished gorging, she laid on her back, belly full for the first time in about 24 hours.

The berry bush was comfortably nestled underneath an oak tree, filled with more fruit. It made the Noibat's mouth water even more.

The thing was... there was no water around. And water was just as important, possibly even more so, as food. Reluctantly, she got up.

"Water... water..." she said to herself absently. Where was she going to find a nearby water supply? With a tree this abundant in resources, it would have to be around here somewhere.

She set off on her quest to find it, making a trail back to her new establish base of operations.

The sky was darkening, and so were the clouds. Another storm was coming. This time, however, Reishi didn't mind. She had a home and plenty of food. Things were promising.

She then promptly came across the biggest tree mounted on a rock ever. Her gold eyes widened. Never in her life had she seen anything like this. This was extraordinary. She began to climb it, occasionally slipping. Her tiny claws grabbed a withered looking branch and pulled herself up to the top.

Everything was hers to see and she gasped in awe. It was beautiful -

"Hey, young'un! Get yerself down off me!"

The rock shook and the Noibat tumbled as the rock - now an old looking Torterra - got up and glared at Reishi with heated fury.

"Scram, lil' bugger!" she roared and Reishi promptly took her leave. The Torterra sighed and lumbered onto the ground again murmuring, "Young generation so rude these days... It's horrendous. Then again, Rey, you never liked children noways..."

Reishi, meanwhile, ran on home, panting from exhaustion. That was a bit of a scary encounter. Who knew what other nasty foes could be here in these unlawful woods?

She shielded herself within the thick leaves of the bush, the fruity smells lulling her to sleep.

Life was perfect.

She awoke in the middle of the night suddenly to smell a crisp burning in the air. This immediately got her attention as she opened her eyes to see -

She didn't like what she saw.

Reishi saw the forest on fire, everything in a howling vortex. Trees tumbled like leaves, and many Pokemon fled in fear. Birds of all kinds flew overhead in the sky, filling up with smoke.

Reishi's eyes widened. A forest fire? But how?

Nevermind that, she had to get out of here! She escaped from her bush home, running frantically to escape the ever growing fiery maw. A shame she couldn't fly. Would be pretty good at this point.

The smoke was cumbersom. Reishi coughed and hacked repeatedly, her eyes watering. In a few moments, she collapsed, vision going in and out. The last thing she saw was a giant rock, which looked awfully familiar...

I'm dead. So very, very dead...

A/N: Read and Review please like usual! The Torterra will play a role in Reishi's history, so she isn't a random occurrence.

~GRB