Chapter 2

Retreat

What Zane found behind that archway blew his mind. He had heard Zoroark mention the word 'village' multiple times, but regardless his expectations had been pretty low. He was expecting to see a handful of dirty, tired Zoroark hunched around a fire, living in primitive conditions similar to cavemen. They were just Pokémon after all, how civil could wild Pokémon be anyway?

Apparently, very civil.

At first Zane couldn't see anything at all, as his eyes were still trying to adjust to the sudden bright light of the village after being in the pitch black forest for so long. But steadily things shifted into focus as his eyes adjusted and what he saw made him stumble in surprise. From the looks of it, the village was in a circular shape, centred around a massive fire pit. The pit itself had a thick support of rock walls to keep the searing fire inside from igniting the village, and on the top sat a grid of what seemed like iron grating. At various points around the pit sets of crude stairs led up to the top, where a group of Zoroark were gently raising pieces of an unidentifiable roasted meat onto the glowing red cooking grills. Zane shuddered to think what that strange meat could possibly be. In between the sets of stairs were long wooden tables littered with copious amounts of food, and wooden bowls and plates.

All around the perimeter of the pit was a thick wooden walkway, littered with wooden stools, chairs, and other seating items. From their crude design most of the items seemed to have been hand-crafted by the Zoroark, but among them sat human-made items, redesigned for different purposes. On the other side of the pit one massive Zoroark was sitting on a bicycle seat that had been tied to a tree stump. He seemed to have no trouble balancing his huge frame on the tiny seat as he patted his friend on the back, guwaffing loudly.

On the perimeter of that main walkway stood many wooden buildings built between the massive tree trunks. Some were only small shacks or storehouses, and some looked large enough to be medium sized houses. All of them had the same curious archways for entrances, coupled with small holes cut out either side for windows. All along their face and on the inside Zane could see multitudes of crafted items and human knick knacks. But what caught his curiosity was the fact that they were all well lit, as though they had functioning light bulbs inside. But surely the Zoroark couldn't have a power supply!

Here, there and everywhere Zoroark scurried, walked, stood or worked busily. Zane had been expecting only a few Zoroark, but here he could see at least forty of them without even counting. There was obviously more than that, as one tired looking Zoroark hastily shooed a whole gaggle of Zorua out of a small windowless shack. There we so many of them grunting, growling, roaring and laughing that Zane couldn't hear his own footsteps as he timidly trudged ahead. He was fairly certain that he could hear some human voices in the cacophony, but whether they were real humans or Zoroark speaking in human he was not sure. At any rate he couldn't spot another human anywhere.

By now most of the Zoroark and Zorua had shifted to the fire pit, patiently holding wooden plates in paw. It seemed that Zane and his particular Zoroark had just shown up in time for dinner, or whatever meal the Zoroark called this. Zoroark himself had moved further up ahead closer to where the other Zoroark were, before disappearing into the crowd completely. For a panicking moment Zane suspected that Zoroark was abandoning him for his previous affectionate remark. What was he going to do now? He was too nervous to go any further, but he felt vulnerable just standing there awkwardly by the entrance. What if some Zoroark got mad at him for blocking the doorway and threw him onto the fire?

For a second moment Zane contemplated running back though the archway and taking his chances with the dark forest. Zoroark himself has said that they dominated this area of the forest and no other creatures would be able to hurt him, but what if this was all a trap? Now that he thought about it, the idea of a magical boundary sealing him in the forest was rather far-fetched, and it seemed rather suspicious that Zoroark had led him all this way into the deepest part of the forest, right around meal time… Dammit! How could he have fallen for this? He had the dream of being Unova's greatest Pokémon professor, yet he had been stupid enough to allow wild Pokémon to lead him to be their mealtime!

Without pausing for another moment Zane bolted back through the archway and sprinted for his life, madly forcing his tired body to move at a pace it was not eager to perform at. The light from the village quickly disappeared ashe once again felt himself in the choking darkness, but this time it felt comforting; like a formless shield protecting him from the sharp Zoroark eyes inevitably following him. Even though he could not see a thing he continued to plough ahead, the noise of dead leaves crunching underneath his feet sounded like savage instruments announcing his early demise as they gave away his position. Behind him he could hear load cries and roars echo out from the village he was fleeting from, the aggressive sound awakening the primal instincts that lurked in every creature when it was being hunted. He was getting the hell out of here. Now.

He cried out in alarm as his foot smacked into some hard object on the forest floor, causing him to stumble forward and land face forward on the earthy ground. The desperate human boy screeched in pain as his arm scraped across a sharp rock, already he could feel his crimson life-force dripping out of the gash as he latched onto a tree and clawed his way to his feet. As he got up his bag slipped off his shoulder and fell away into the darkness, but it was of no concern to him; he was already sprinting further into the void. He could feel his blood running down his arm and dripping little droplets behind him, leaving just another trail for his predators to follow.

Under the sound of his own gasping breath he could hear the swift rustle of leaves, evidently something was pursuing through the treetops. The chase was on.

Before he could take another step something dropped down from the forest roof above and landed heavily onto him, causing him to fall down to the ground again. For just a split second Zane was granted the opportunity to roll onto his back and face his opponent, but immediately after that his attacker pressed down on his body preventing him from moving another inch. Even though he couldn't see his opponent he swiped crazily, his closed fists striking against a furry face. His attacker didn't even budge in the slightest at the repeated hits and soon had Zane's arms pinned against the ground.

"GAH! Get off me! I'll kill you! I'll kill you you bastard! Die! Die!" Zane screamed wildly; fully aware that his shrieking voice would not be intimidating at all to his foe. At first the attacker simply sat there, was it surprised by his retaliation? Or was it just considering how to devour him?

To his surprise the foe moved off of him and hauled him into the air. Even though he began swinging his fists madly again, they didn't come into contact with anything but air.

"In Arceus' name, what are you doing human! Why did you run off like that?" A familiar voice called out to him. The claw holding him up let go, allowing him to fall back onto his ass.

"Piss off! Go die! I won't let you kill me!" He wailed back, trying his best to get to his exhausted feet. But his disgruntled body failed him, causing him to stumble back down again.

"Kill you? I don't- Look, is this about how I walked away from you? I'm sorry, but I was just so stunned from what you said… I didn't know how to react…"

"Shut up! You brought me back to your village just so you could throw me onto that fire, didn't you! I won't be cooked by Zoroark, I can tell you that now!" The human yelled back, still edging away.

"What did I tell you-" Zoroark paused midsentence before lashing out and holding Zane as tightly to his own body as he could. Zane would've screamed in fear, if he didn't have a tuft of Zoroark's thigh fur in his mouth. Even if this frantic moment, he couldn't help but admit that Zoroark's soft fur felt nice, even if it was in his mouth. In this sudden silence, Zane could hear other shuffling noises all around them, timidly approaching them from every direction. The movement was incredibly subtle, but there was no denying that something else was there with them.

"Begone, you monsters! This human is under Zoroark protection, and you should know better than to come so close to our villages!" Zoroark roared furiously out into the area. There was a moment of silence, as though some cognitive process was occurring in the darkness, before the shuffling started up again. This time it seemed to be moving away from them.

"Moonguss… Amoonguss… guss, guss, moonguss…" The mysteriously invaders whispered to each other, before becoming inaudible completely.

"Oh, thank Arceus' name on high. If those Amoonguss had beaten me to you, you would be a dried-up skeleton by now." Zoroark let out a sigh, obviously of relief, as he let go of the startled boy. As Zane leant back and spat Zoroark's fur out of his mouth, he too let out a sigh of relief, realising just how close he had come to death.

"We Zoroark are diplomatic creatures, and resolve all issues and decisions fairly. We are not forcing you to come to our village, so you are free to return to… that." Zoroark paused to indicate towards the retreating Amoonguss, forgetting that Zane couldn't see at all.

"But as promised, you can come to our village and be safe for the night. I've already told you, and I'll say it again, Zoroark do not hurt human beings unless they attack us first. The only reason I chased you just now was because I knew you'd die. I don't want you to die; I want you to be safe!" Zoroark pleaded gently. Up until now his voice had been stern, but now it had softened and returned to soft and ever so slightly girly voice he had used before.

Zane felt a pang of guilt twitch in his heart hearing those words. He still didn't trust Zoroark entirely, but up until now Zoroark hadn't hurt him in the slightest, and had now saved his life from a probably grizzly death. Besides his own paranoia he had no reason to accuse Zoroark of treachery. Just what kind of idiotic creature did Zoroark see him as now? He felt frustrated; he had been forced into a situation in which he could not flee. It was either run the risk of dying in the forest, or run the risk of being devoured by Zoroark. Neither of those sounded appealing. But to be honest, he secretly wished that Zoroark was a friend. He had been nice so far, considerably nicer than any other human had treated him… Just for now, he would have to brace himself and return to the village, and just pray he didn't become the next thing to fit into Zoroark's stomach.

"Um… I'll come back with you… I guess I'm sorry for causing so much trouble…" With that the boy tried getting back to his feet, but fell down for the fourth time. A savage burning sensation in his stomach reminded him that he hadn't eaten since this morning, a deep rumbling sound echoed from his stomach to agree with him.

"I see. You are exhausted, starving, blinded and…" Zoroark paused to sniff Zane's arm, recoiling as his sensitive nose smelt the stench of blood. "You are injured also! I will carry you back to the village straight away!" Without another word Zoroark gently lifted the boy into his arms and cradled him like a baby. Despite appearing to be skinny, even by a human's standard, Zoroark was amazed to feel how plump and supple the human felt in his paws. He was almost tempted to squeeze it…

"Zoroark?"

"Yes, human?"

"Please stop squeezing my butt."

In a flash Zoroark fumbled awkwardly with the human in his arms as he attempted to shift him into a less… uncomfortable position. To Zoroark's disclosure the human remained placid throughout this whole endeavour, but that was likely due to the poor thing's exhaustion. It had run quite a considerable distance from the village in such a short period of time.

As he began walking back to his home village he tried his best not to knock around the human resting in his arms. Considering that it had been flailing wildly at him just a minute ago, this sudden placidity was ever so slightly disconcerting. He grunted as he struggled to hold the human's weight as the boy shifted his position in his arms. He was now on his back, looking up towards Zoroark's face. If they were in lighter conditions Zoroark would have wondered why the human was staring at him, but he remembered that the human couldn't see in this darkness like Zoroark could; and he was probably staring off into space. He did have a rather unfocused gaze.

He knew he should have been watching the path ahead of them, but he couldn't help but stare back into the boy's eyes. They were a soft warm brown colour, reminiscent of that melted chocolate he once found on patrol. They contrasted starkly against his yellowish, slightly golden hair, but it was a good contrast. It made the human's face feel more… alive. That was the thing about human faces, they were so unique and interesting. He could easily tell the difference between all of his fellow Zoroark simply by looking at the patterns of their markings, shape of their body and their unique scent, but humans were so astoundingly different from each other that sometimes they seemed like different subspecies altogether.

"Hey… Zoroark?" Zoroark jumped at the human's sudden words and snapped his attention back to the path ahead, pretending as though he had not been staring into the human's eyes for the last five minutes.

"Yes?"

"Do you have a name?" The human enquired. The boy scratched his nose and rubbed his eye before letting it slide back to his side. The human's arm felt so weak and fragile against Zoroark's own arm, yet it felt peculiarly pleasant, as though that weak form belied some degree of appeal.

"Of course I have a name." Zoroark replied, wondering how the human could not have figured that out yet.

"What is it then?"

"Zoroark."

"No, not that name! That's your species name! Don't you have anything other name people associate with you?" The human replied with the slightest hint of irritation.

Oh, that's right. Humans all had individual names, didn't they? What a strange concept, Zoroark mused to himself.

"No. Zoroark culture is focused on being one big uniform unit, rather than a group of individuals. Therefore, we do not have individual names. The only form of identification we have is our rank names." It may have been a infinitesimal twitch, but the human seemed to reel back in surprise at this revelation. Did humans always get worked up at such insignificant details?

"Wh-Wha? That's so sad! Is Zoroark society some sort of communism or something? What does every call you?" The human wrinkled his nose, desperately trying not to sneeze as some hidden particle invaded his nose.

"Communism? I know not the meaning of that word. But my rank is Scout, and that is the closest thing to an identity I have." Zoroark uttered, hoping that the human wasn't about to coat him in its nasal lining.

"Scout, huh. Can I call you that? I feel… sorry for you knowing that you don't have a special name to have on your own…" As innocent as they were, those words made something in Zoroark's heart quiver slightly. Why was this human, a creature who suspected him of murder several minutes ago, now showing sympathy towards him over something that was so insignificant? Humans really were unpredictable creatures.

"Yes you may, and don't feel sorry. It is of no concern to me." As he said that, the light of the village entrance came into view as they circled around a thick trunk. The light was dim, but to the human's weak eyes the unexpected brightness made him squint as he once again tried to focus his eyes.

"Thank you very much for saving me, Scout. For a second time too. I guess it was really bad of me to be such a pain like this." Zoroark was not fully adept at reading patterns in the vocalizations of humans, but he was sure he could hear a trace of guilt. It was evident that this human was regretting his decision to flee.

As he passed through the archway and entered the village Zoroark gazed down into the humans' eyes, and was shocked to see him staring back into his. There was the slightest blush crossing his smooth facial skin, trigging a flood of blood to flow to Zoroark's own face. He was grateful that his fur would prevent his blush from being as obvious as the human's. Dammit, now his throat was tightening up and he was struggling to think of what to say to this confusing human. The first time they went through this door the human professed it's gratitude to him, and then it ran out thinking he was going to kill it, and now he was bringing it back again with even more gratitude ringing in its heart. Why did humans have to have such frivolous emotions?

"I- It is fine. It is my job to rescue humans, so I bear you no grudge." Good, he had managed to respond this time. He wished the human would stop making him feel this strange sensation in his heart, it was something he'd never felt before and it unsettled him.

By the time they had returned, the evening meal had finished and things had become more peaceful around the village. Everyone was sitting in their usual places resting idly after the big meal. But as Scout and his human walked along the path, everyone stopped what they were doing and stared intently.

Zane couldn't help but notice it as well, and he subconsciously placed his hand on Scout's paw and gripped it tightly. Everywhere multitudes of eyes were observing him from every angle and he couldn't tell what they were thinking. The Zoroark which had been taking food off of the cooking grills now sat on the stairs, watching as they picked food out of their glinting teeth. The bulky one who was sitting on the tiny bicycle seat was now hunched forward, clasping his paws as he watched them go past. Far at the back two evidently elderly Zoroark and their troop of followers calmly watched from the distance, their sets of beady eyes making Zane shiver uncomfortably. Around a doorway a cluster of young Zorua peeped at him while their caretaker quietly hushed them back into the building they came from. Scout must have sensed his onset of fear, as he gripped him tighter against his chest.

Zane tried his best to ignore the unwanted attention as the two of them hurriedly moved through the centre of the village. He trusted Scout now, but these other ones were still suspicious to say the least. With care Zoroark carried him into a small building which smelt strangely familiar to his old science lab at high school. The entrance had a small porch separating it from the walkway with a shelter hanging above. Flowerpots and nets filled with onions and herbs dangled by the roof on string, swinging softly as the human and Pokémon passed underneath. Broken electronics, old magazines and other bits of crap sat around the doorway like a shrine offering to whoever lived inside. Where the hell was he being taken?

The room inside was made of log wood as he expected, but to his surprise this room was fully furnished, with most of the furniture being of human origin and relatively clean and fresh. In the right corner opposite the door sat a tall hospital bed complete with mostly white linen. A metal table containing several racks stood to its side, filled with all sorts of metal medical instruments. Syringes, needles, mirrors and all sorts of things glittered in the light. Sitting at the base of the table was his backpack, much to his amazement. How on earth had it made its way back to here?

The left of the room looked like something straight out of a hospital drama show. Two of the walls had large white benches attached with all sorts of little items scattered around them. A broken soap dispenser sat uselessly in the middle. There was the occasional sink built into the benches, but where the water taps should be were nothing but giant holes. On the wall at the back were three vastly different bookcases nailed together, with an array of medicines, bandages, tonics and herbs all sitting on the various shelves. To Zane's surprise a single light bulb dangled from the roof, working just the way a light bulb should work. Did these wild Pokémon really have a power supply?! From all this alone, Zane had the right to assume this was a medical bay, or doctor's room at least. If all this stuff was here for something other than healing him, then he was screwed.

Zoroark delicately lay Zane on the bed and fluffed up the pillow before turning away, but to his surprise the human grabbed his paw and pulled him back.

"Hey, where are you going, Scout?" Zane asked, alarm ringing clearly in his voice.

"I'm going to tell Healer to come tend to your wound, and then I'll go get you some food. You don't mind eating Bouffalant meat, carrots and Aspear sauce, do you?" As much as he was warming up to this particular human boy, Scout would have been rather cross if it was fussy when it came to food. Humans tended to take unnecessary delicacy when eating their meals, from what he'd heard.

"Oh, yes. I eat those kinds of things all the time… But you'll come back right?" Zane enquired again, this time with more concern.

Acting as though he were possessed, Scout leant over the human's face until their eyes were inches away from each other. He could feel the boy's hot breath on his face, and inevitably he was sure his own hot breath would be covering the human.

"Yes, of course I will return to you…" Zoroark whispered softly into his ear. He placed his paw on the shocked human's chest and for a moment both of them stayed there, locked into that stare. In an instant Scout came back to his senses and stumbled away in shock. What in Arceus' name just came over him? Why had be suddenly been compelled to behave in such an unacceptable way… Was it that strange feeling in his heart that compelled him to act so compulsively? Or was the human casting some enchant on him with those sweet, brown eyes? Nevertheless the boy was staring at him in equal shock, making his face run red again. With an embarrassed sigh the Zoroark bolted for the door, but a cry from the human made him pause and look over his shoulder in confusion.

"Um… My name's Zane. Pleased to meet you, Scout." The boy said meekly, biting his lip as he tried to avoid locking eyes with the equally flustered Pokémon.

"N-Nice to meet you, Zane." Scout uttered coyly before he ran out the door, leaving the stunned human behind.

Warily Zane slumped his head on the pillow and stared at the blank roof above. He was certain this was the most messed up day of his life.

A most messed up day indeed.

A/N: I like the name Scout, but I'm starting to regret choosing it. Everytime I type his name the words 'need a dispenser here!' echo in my mind. It's distracting to be honest.

One another note, please critique! If there was something you enjoyed about the story, please point it out. And if there was something that had a negative impact on the story for you please say what it is and clarify. That way I can improve as much as I can.

Honestly, this chapter took a sudden unexpected turn and didn't stop. In other words, this chapter's content popped up out of nowhere. Zane wasn't supposed to run away, but that's how things suddenly turned out. How odd.