"Holy!" I said under my breath as I freaked.

What was I going to do? Luckily, there was a huge rock I could hide behind, so I quickly did a (and I have a feeling I am going to hate this, but I am going to say it) "barrel roll" behind it and quickly peered behind it to investigate further and get a closer look.

The two Pokémon were trapped under a huge pile of rocks, like it had fallen on top of them. They were pinned to the sand and couldn't seem to move or budge the rocks off. All I saw were their heads showing. Both were covered in scars and bruises. They were struggling very hard to get out as the tide was starting to become closer and closer.

"What kind of Pokémon are those?" I wondered, looking at them.

I quickly remembered the book Kaname gave me and rustled through my backpack. I grabbed the handbook and flipped through the pages tofind what kind of Pokémon they were. I looked at the first one; it seemed to be a grayish-black puppy. Its eyes had yellow scleras and red irises. Its nose is also red and two of its fangs poked out of its lower jaw. I looked through the book and found the name of the Pokémon: Poochyena, a Dark-type. Now, the other one. It was sort of an orange and tan otter of some sort. It had black eyes, white scleras, and black marks that looked like whiskers on its face, but it was markings. It also had a yellow collar that looked like an inner tube around its neck. I looked it up; it was Buizel, a Water-type.

All of a sudden, I noticed the water was very close to their faces. Buizel closed its eyes as it struggled harder and harder. Poochyena struggled too, but it seemed to be more frightened and was shaking. It seemed like Buizel said something to it; I couldn't understand Pokélanguage; heck, does any human truly understand it?

However, I looked around quickly and it didn't seem like a trainer owned them. They must have been wild Pokémon.

Was this what that strange voice in my head was trying to tell me about? Am I supposed to help them? But, I was terrified of Pokémon… How was I going to help them if I can't even let myself get near them?

All of sudden, the waves got so close; it splashed them in the faces. Both coughed, but Poochyena howled in despair and helplessness, it gave me chills throughout my body. Buizel looked at it out of desperation and shouted something. Poochyena didn't seem to listen; it started to shiver uncontrollably. I didn't know what to do until I saw it; tears streaming down both of their faces. They began to start crying as Buizel rubbed its face against Poochyena, trying to make it feel better.

That was it.

"I am not going to let two defenseless Pokémon drown because of my fear. I have to move now!" I thought.

I did something I never thought I'd do; I started to get up and walk over to them.

As I grabbed my backpack and approached closer, the two immediately noticed me. At first, I thought they were going to attack me with a projectile or some sort; but when I got over there, they did not attack me. However, I could tell that they were afraid of me. They both were shivering and had closed their eyes, whimpering. I couldn't believe it; they were scared of me! In my case, it was the other way around!

"Hang on, you two," I said as I crouched down in front of them, "I'm gonna get you out of here!"

I knew I had to get them out of there, but my body wouldn't stop shaking the whole entire time. Nevertheless, I knew what I had to do. I quickly grabbed the rocks and began pulling them and throwing them in the ocean. I kept on doing this, grabbing each rock and tossing it… until I realized something; they were staring at me.

When I looked down, both of them were looking right at my eyes. Their eyes were sparkling, like as if they were touched or about to cry.

Then, Buizel asked, "Bui?" at me.

Poochyena replied with a, "Chy?" as it looked at Buizel first, and then at me.

I didn't know what they meant, but I was terrified. Sweat was literally running down my face. Part of me got so frightened; I wanted to run away right then and there…

No! I wasn't going to leave them behind to die!

"Suck it in, Thomas. Their lives are depending on you. Stay calm; ignore them for now. You can do this," I thought.

The waves were touching my knees and their little chins as I had finally reached enough rocks to the point where I could see their torsos. I quickly began to reach my hands into the area where they were trapped. When I felt their fur, all three of us shivered; all of us were startled that I was touching them. Still, I had to get them out. I carefully, with all my might, pushed their hind ends out. I did it; they were free.

I don't know what came over me at the time, but instead of letting them run themselves, I scooped them up in my arms; Poochyena was in my left and Buizel in my right. The water had splashed near my feet, showing that they could've drowned right there if I didn't help when I did. I was noting that when I felt something; they were still shivering. I looked at them; they had their eyes closed, whimpering helplessly, and hiding their faces against my chest, like they thought I was going to hurt them.

I became so frightened when I felt their faces on my chest that I wanted to drop them and run. However, I was responsible for them right now; I had to show them I wasn't scared so they wouldn't be.

I smiled and said gently in a whispering voice, "Hey, now, it's okay. Nobody's going to hurt you. You're okay. I'm here."

Buizel and Poochyena looked at me with wide eyes; I could tell they were surprised. Heck, I was surprised! How did I become so fatherly over something just by helping two Pokémon I didn't even know?

I walked over to a soft patch of grass and set them down gently. Once I did and crouched down in front of them, Poochyena immediately cuddled against Buizel and whimpered something to it. Buizel said something to it and hugged it, but all I heard was, "Bui bu bui. Bui bui bui." They both looked at me and saw my backpack. They started to become frightened again. I instantly knew what they thought.

"Oh, no, no, no," I assured them, "It's okay. My name is Thomas. I'm not a Pokémon trainer. I don't have any Pokéballs. Even if I was or I did, I wouldn't take advantage of you."

I unzipped it and I grabbed a potion bottle. Both of them looked at each other and then back at me.

"Do you guys know what a potion is?" I asked them.

They both shook their heads as Poochyena moved closer to sniff the bottle. I became really nervous, but unknown to me at the time, both of them could tell I was.

"U-um," I stammered, "I-it's a spray bottle that helps injured Pokémon. It helps heal your wounds and scars." I set the bottle down and continued, "I'll leave it, uh, here for you to-"

Suddenly, Buizel had grabbed the bottle and pulled the cover off. Before I knew it, it had grabbed my wrist and simply sighed, "Bui," at me.

"You… want me to use the potion on you?" I asked them, "You guys really trust me?"

Both of them sort of smiled at me and nodded. They lay down on the grass and awaited me to apply the potion.

"Oh, uh… Okay," I stammered as I applied to spray bottle to their scratches.

I used my hand to gently rub in the rest, but I trembled everytime I moved it. It chilled my body that I actually was feeling their warm fur and bodies with my bare hands. Both of them saw me, but I tried not to show them.

Once I had applied a good amount, I left the bottle with them.

"Now, if you get hurt again," I said, "you can use this bottle to heal yourself. Go on, you can have it."

They looked surprised at each other. Buizel finally seemed to have the courage to grab the bottle and take it back with them.

"Also," I said getting their attention, "I'll give you these things too."

Both of them took a few baby steps closer to me when I reached into my backpack and grabbed some of the Oran berries. I know they're for Pokémon, but I have always liked them too. So, I keep a couple just in case.

"Here's a couple Oran berries for you. Not only will they fill your bellies, but they'll also make you feel better like a potion if you're hurt. Here you go," I smiled as I handed them the berries.

They both were still amazed I hadn't hurt them at all as Buizel took the berries. It looked at Poochyena and started to open its mouth, slowly smiling. Poochyena grinned as his tail started to wag.

"And," I said, catching their attention again as I pulled the blanket out, "here is a special gift for you. When I was young, my mom made this for me. She said when you really love someone and you share the blanket with them, it is much more comfy than normal. I'm sure that both of you will like it."

As I held it out for them, both of their eyes were as wide as they could be; they seemed to be in a trance. They probably couldn't imagine me giving them one of my favorite things in the world to complete strangers. They looked at each other and smiled, chuckling.

"Wow," I thought, "I must have made them very happy or something. They looked so touched."

Suddenly, they both looked at me; their eyes were sparkling at me as they just kept gazing at me. Then they did something that made me so afraid; they started walking towards me and began snuggling me!

I was so terrified that I began shaking. However, it didn't seem they noticed. They just closed their eyes and snuggled their heads against my chest. It scared me at the time, but later I noticed that they had stopped shivering.

I had to say something, to make them feel good and prevent them from knowing I was terrified, so I said, "Th-there, there… U-um, it's okay, uh… You're fine. Everything is all right know."

I could tell they were very happy. Poochyena was wagging his tail and Buizel just kept staring at me. They looked at me funny, but still smiling. I think they were expecting me to hug them, but at the time, I was so terrified of even getting near a Pokémon. I nodded and smiled, as they got off me and snuggled into the blanket around each other. They really liked it; their smiles and sighing really gave that away.

"So, are you two going to be okay now?" I asked.

Buizel stood up and gave me a thumb up.

"Bui bui," it said, smiling.

"Okay, then I am gonna go now. You two take care of yourselves. Good-bye," I said as I zipped my backpack, and carried with me as I walked away.

Buizel and Poochyena waved good-bye as I continued back through the woods. As I was leaving, I could hear them talking happily to each other. I chuckled to myself. It felt so good to have helped people; I always get that warm feeling in my chest when I have helped someone. I smiled as I continued on my way home. They should be fine.

-

Well, my clock showed it was 10:36 pm as I was lying in bed in my pajamas. My backpack was across the floor near the door of my bedroom. I was holding my journal and thinking about today's events. I didn't even follow my schedule; I was supposed to play video games, but I didn't touch the console at all. I was too busy thinking.

First, what Old Man Fellows had said, "You may have yet to find yourself fall in love with one of those amazing creatures."

Indeed, it was. Well, maybe not 'love'. But, I had obviously had my mind on Buizel and Poochyena. Are they warm in that blanket? Were they going to be safe from danger? Why… did they look at me that way?

Then, there was my friends and the Pokémon handbook. How in the world was it a coincidence that Kaname giving me the handbook would help me know what kind of Pokémon I met on the beach? It didn't add up.

But, the strangest, the soft voice in my head telling me to go to the beach. If I hadn't gone there, Buizel and Poochyena could've died. I never would have gotten to meet them. Who was it that even said that, anyways?

Somehow these things fell into a perfect order, but I couldn't figure out what it was at the time. I was tired of writing in my journal, so I signed the date and then put it back in my backpack. I walked back to my bed and looked out the window before turning off the lights and going to sleep. I rested my head in my hands and just wondered about them. Buizel and Poochyena looked so happy back there when I was nice to them. It made me happy. I hoped they were all right.

I pondered, "Maybe, I'll get up early tomorrow and just check up on them… Yeah! I'll do that. Tomorrow, I'll go make sure they're okay."

So, I flipped off the lights and went to sleep. Little did I know that day would be the start of something massive in my life.