Author's Note: Hello once again! A day later, and Chapter 3 is now up! Ahh...I started a new game for the sake of this fic, but it was SSSOOOOOOO worth it. I feel so happy writing this...anyways, onto the chapter!


It took them about ten minutes of walking/running/pushing/dragging/resisting/shoutin g/hurrying to emerge from the forested area they were in, entering a new environment entirely. Despite Oshawott's efforts to get more information out of Snivy, she remained resolute in her claim that there was no time to explain, only giving him brief words such as "meeting", "important", "whole life", "land", and some other word…Quag-something. He wasn't sure. It had all sounded pretty important from the way she was rushing though, even if he really had no idea what it was she was getting at. Or why she wanted his help, for that matter. Again, they'd only known each other for less than five minutes before she suddenly started dragging him off somewhere for this "important meeting" of hers. What did he have to do with any of that? She'd said it herself, he'd just fallen out of the sky randomly in front of her. Though, he had to admit, he was glad that she hadn't left him there in the woods. Truth be told, he probably would have come running after her anyways even if she hadn't asked/demanded his help with…whatever it was she needs help with. She was the only person…Pokémon…he knew in around here at this point. And something told him that even if he managed to wander off and find a town somewhere, they wouldn't have been as accepting of his story as this girl was.

So they continued; slowly at first, due to Oshawott's insistence toward knowing more about what was going on, but he soon just calmly accepted that it was urgent and hurried on. As the two of them, Snivy and Oshawott, continued down the path, the trees around them slowly became more and more sparse, being replaced by giant rocks and abundant cliffs as they went. More cliffs seemed to rise above and below them as they walked, implying that they were on some sort of mountain trail. There were a couple of bridges over some relatively small rivers here and there as well, most of which stretched down towards some small visible waterfall in the distance, while the rocky terrain had its own fair share of grass and plant life growing in fair amounts as well. Oshawott had to admit, he'd never seen anything like this before. He himself, back in his own world, had lived in a city most of his life. He had, of course, been out in the wilderness from time to time, usually in the form of camping or something similar. But this…this was…pure, unbridled nature. He'd never imagined that it could be so…bright and colorful. That was truly how it was. The rocks were a mixture of earthy brown and gray, the grass and tufts of weeds here and there were a bright, healthy shade of green, the water he saw was crystal clear and blue, actually making him thirsty just looking at it, and also invoking some strange desire within him to go swimming (odd, since he'd never really held any particular fondness for swimming before in his life). Along with all of this, the sky above him was one of the most beautiful he'd ever seen. Perfectly clear, with just the right amount of puffy white clouds scattered about, and the sun was warm and refreshing against his skin while also making the world around him seem almost cheery. Not like the frequent cloudy/smog skies of the big city, nor like the constantly almost burning heat of the outdoor weather sun whenever it was spring or summer. It was a whole new experience for him…and he found himself loving it.

As they approached another wooden bridge placed over a river, very close to a small waterfall and with a small red sign in the ground nearby with faded letters upon it, Oshawott took a moment to stop and take in the surroundings while Snivy continued on, unaware that Oshawott wasn't with her. Oshawott look around excitedly and took a deep breath of the cool, fresh air, allowing it to fill his lungs and rejuvenate him like he couldn't remember anything else ever doing before. He smiled.

Wow! It's beautiful! he thought with amazement. It's just bursting with nature here…

Snivy was about halfway across the short bridge when she noticed Oshawott's absence. She turned around briefly to see him still standing at the front of it. Rather than scold him, she smiled, but still said urgently, "This way, Oshawott! Come on! Hurry!"

Oshawott remembered himself and quickly caught up to Snivy, where they continued across the bridge and back onto solid ground. They went around a large boulder that looked like the result of some form of rockslide. Likewise, it looked like a dead tree of some sort had also come down with the rockslide, becoming wedged in-between the boulders. Nevertheless, it was easy for them to make their way around it.

Oshawott didn't know for certain, of course, but he thought they were making good progress…up until Snivy suddenly stopped, almost making him bump into her as he jerked himself to a halt. "Huh?!" he heard Snivy ask before she continued forward, making him curious as to what had made her stop. He looked up ahead toward where she was now…and saw it. A large gorge appeared to separate where they were from the other side of the mountain. On the path before them, a white stone bridge covered up the gap…or at least it should have. The entire middle section of the bridge was missing, from the looks of it; broken off somehow. Snivy peered over the edge, then quickly turned back to Oshawott and exclaimed, "The bridge has collapsed!"

And indeed it had. The multitude of giant rocks filling up the bottom of the gorge and the evidence of a landslide around them left little doubt as to what had caused the collapse. In any case, what was left of the bridge wouldn't be enough to get a Pokémon across…at least not this pair of Pokémon, neither of whom had any way to cross the gap.

Snivy rushed back toward Oshawott and started panicking. "What am I gonna do? How am I supposed to get there now?" she asked frantically as she started looking left and right, possibly for some way to get across. Oshawott once again felt some small twinge of annoyance at Snivy having not yet told him where "there" was. This was quickly silenced however when Snivy suddenly yelled "Ah!"

She looked past Oshawott at something, causing him to turn around and see what had caught her eye. In had been originally hidden from view by the giant boulder they'd gone around, but now that they were past it, Oshawott could see a small cave just off of the main path that looked like it led into the mountain itself. Snivy came up to him and spoke. "Looks like there's no choice but to try going through there. You ready?" she asked.

Oshawott looked back at the cave entrance and gulped. He'd never actually been inside of a cave before; he'd only seen and heard about them. Back in his own world, he would have had enough reason to avoid going inside of one with the darkness and possibility of bats alone. But here…he knew one thing about Pokémon that they, like animals, inhabited a variety of areas, caves included. And while they may, for the most part, look relatively harmless on a screen, something told him that wouldn't be the case in real life. Snivy here had turned out nice enough, but…who was to say that any other Pokémon they met would be the same? They were called "Wild Pokémon" for a reason, weren't they? Still, he didn't want to just leave Snivy on her own…both for her reasons, and for his own. She was trying to get somewhere important, and he didn't feel like leaving her side just yet when she had so readily accepted his bizarre tale. So in spite of himself, and with a slightly quivering lip, he managed to nod his head once.

"Great! Let's go, Oshawott!"

With that, Snivy rushed on ahead into the cave, Oshawott uncertainly bringing up the rear as he followed her in.


The cave was kinda dark. That much is a given, isn't it? In was inside of a mountain, so of course it was relatively dark compared to the outside. That being said, there was still some light in there on account of a few holes in the ceiling, allowing sunlight to peep in here and there. That sunlight bounced off of the surfaces surprisingly well, more or less illuminating the entire cave. It was still dank and shadowy compared to the outside, but at least they weren't blind. That had been Oshawott's primary fear upon going into this cave. Now, however, his fears were more-or-less relieved.

He and Snivy proceeded unceremoniously into the cave. The combination of damp soil within the mountain and thin beams of sunlight allowed for the occasional patch of plant life growing along the cave walls, while tiny droplets of water sometimes fell from tiny stalactites on the ceiling. Their footsteps echoed loudly ahead of them as they walked. If there were any other creatures up there, they certainly wouldn't be sneaking up on them, that was for sure. It may have just been his imagination but…the cave also seemed to be slanting upwards as they went. He didn't know where it would ultimately lead them, just so long as it led "out".

As they walked, silence reigned between them. That was fine with Oshawott; talking would have only made even more noise and given them less time to react if they were suddenly attacked. He didn't know why exactly he felt that they was such a possibility of being attacked. Paranoia wasn't a typical habit of his. However, he became comforted whenever he looked over at Snivy and saw that she too was looking around expectantly for something to jump out at them. It wasn't just him that was being affected like this, then.

It also gave Oshawott some time to think. To think about…everything, really. He'd just been turned into a Pokémon…found out that he could talk to other Pokémon (and from what Snivy had said, it sounded like there were other Pokémon out there besides them), and was now on some sudden quest with a girl, a Pokémon no less, whom he hardly even knew. It was almost too much for him…what the heck was going on? That dream…it had been a dream, right? He wasn't dreaming now, but he had been before…and that voice. What had that been about? It had cried for help…and then he'd seen that weird vision. That small, pink creature was being chased by the larger, black and purple one…at this point, it was probably safe to say that those two had also been Pokémon of some sort, though he wasn't familiar with them. Then, after that…he'd found himself turned into an Oshawott…looking at a weird light…and the next thing he knew, he was skydiving. Then he'd blacked out, woken up to find a Pokémon standing over him, and then all of this had happened…

When he'd gone to bed the previous night…not even that. When he'd gone to bed mere hours ago, he most certainly had not been expecting anything like this. How the heck does any of this happen? Even now, just thinking about all of it made his head swirl and ache…

Fortunately, they weren't in the cave for very much longer. About two minutes in, Snivy spoke up excitedly. "Hey, up there! I see the exit!"

Oshawott left his thoughts to simmer away and looked up. True enough, up ahead was another cave opening, through which more sunlight flooded through. He and Snivy rushed towards it and out into the open again.

They found themselves on a plateau of sorts. As Oshawott went ahead and peered over the edge, he was surprised to see where they had been before. The same path, the same broken bridge, the same boulder, everything, just now below him. He was now standing above the very cave mouth through which they'd entered; it had led into the mountain, circled up and around, and led back out onto higher ground. Truly curious. His attention was captured by Snivy's voice coming from beside, though.

"Well, we're up here now…" she said, "…but we've still got that gorge to deal with."

Oshawott looked over. It was true; while they were now higher up, the gorge still separated them from the other side of the path. The side they needed to be on. Furthermore, there were no bridges up here. Across from the ledge they stood on was a nearly identical ledge, separated from them by the gorge, that looked like it also had a cave entrance, possibly leading pack down to the main path. A large dead tree stood close to the edge of the gorge, but aside from that, nothing. Just the fall.

"How are we gonna get across?" Snivy wondered aloud. "The gap is too big to jump, at least for us…and neither of us can fly…I don't see any way to get over there. What about you, Oshawott…Oshawott?"

Oshawott had left Snivy's side and was approaching the edge of the gorge. More specifically, the large tree there. He stopped at its base and looked up curiously. The tree was large, yes…possibly large enough to walk on…and while the bark was clearly dead, it still looked pretty sturdy…if only he had a way to knock it down, then maybe they could use it to bridge the gap…but how?

His eyes wandered down the side of the tree, and came to rest on a spot near him at the base. He inspected it closer. Here…the wood looked…chipped, almost. It looked weaker structurally than the parts surrounding it. And looking back up, he saw that the tree was already leaning away from him toward the gorge itself, on account of gravity and being so close to the ledge. All it needed was a push…that was it!

With his new idea in mind, Oshawott put his 'hands' up to the base of the tree, the same spot he'd indentified previously, and started pushing. And pushing…and pushing…his feet were digging themselves into the ground, but the tree itself wasn't budging save for a small crack he saw. Snivy must've realized what he was trying to do, because she came over and added her own efforts to his. Together, they pushed as hard as they could…Snivy was noticeably weaker than Oshawott was, possibly on account of having such tiny feet and thin leaf-like hands, but she was trying. Nevertheless, even their combined efforts seemed to do little more than crack a part of the tree. Panting, Oshawott stopped and looked up.

We need more force if we're gonna get this thing down…what to do…

He looked back around the plateau for anything he could use to possibly ram the tree with…

Wait. Ram…

He took a moment to inspect the size of the plateau, specifically its length, from one end to the other. It was mostly circular in shape, and while not particularly large, it was still big enough for one of his current size to get a good running start. A new idea in mind, he left Snivy where she was and made his way over to the other side. She noticed this and spoke up.

"Oshawott? What're you doing?"

"I have an idea. Just stand back."

With a shrug, she did as she was told and moved away several steps from the tree, watching Oshawott intently. Oshawott planted his feet firmly into the ground on the other end of the ledge and turned around, looking directly at the tree. Then, without warning, he started running towards it, making sure to build up as much speed as he could over this short distance.

"HYYAAAGGHH!"

Waiting until the last moment, he turned so that his shoulder was toward the tree, aimed for that one weak spot at the base, and plowed straight into it. The effect was immediate. The section of the tree he'd hit crumbled under his force and gave way. Without the much-needed support, the rest of the tree groaned and splintered, eventually snapping completely and falling downwards toward the other side of the gorge. At first, he was afraid it would just fall down entirely and leave them with no way to get across, but the base of the tree fortunately stayed on its side of the gorge while the top of the tree fell down and broke itself onto the other side. By the time it was finished creaking, it had completely crossed the gap where the gorge was. They'd done it.

"Alright! It worked!" Oshawott yelled out in elation. Snivy was likewise delighted, as she ran up to him.

"Oshawott, that was awesome! Great work!" she praised. Oshawott grinned and rubbed the back of his head in response, much like how he usually did when he was human. Snivy wasted no time in hopping onto the fallen tree, jumping up and down a bit to test its stability, and when it supported her weight, dashing to the other side. "Alright, it's safe!" she called to him. "Come on over and let's keep going!"

Oshawott did just that, if with a bit more anxiety mixed in. One wrong step and he would have fallen onto those rocks below…that wouldn't have been pleasant. Nevertheless, he successfully made it across to where Snivy was eagerly waiting for him.

"Okay," Snivy started, "So now that that's done…" she pointed to the alternate cave entrance on their current side that he'd noted earlier, "if that first cave we went through led upwards to the top of this area, then this one should lead down, right?"

Oshawott nodded once in agreement…then realized something. "Hold on," he said. "Why don't we just…you know…climb down?" he asked, gesturing to the edge of where they currently stood, down from which was the side of the path they needed to be on.

Snivy looked at him funnily. "You serious? Why risk breaking ourselves rock climbing when we can just go into this cave and come out in the same place?"

"...umm…because it's faster…I think?"

"Maybe, but we'd have to be super careful not to slip or anything, and that would take longer. This way will be easier. Now come on!"

Snivy started off toward the cave mouth. Oshawott, understanding her line of reasoning and not wanting to make her upset by lollygagging, hurried to catch up.

Once again, they entered the cave. Technically a different one this time, but…basically the same. Same appearance, same lighting, same smell…well, a slightly different smell this time, but yeah. The main difference was that Oshawott could feel them going downwards this time instead of upwards. So Snivy had been right in her assumption. With any luck, they'd be back on the main path before too long. All they had to do was keep moving…

"So…Snivy…" Oshawott began, talking while they both kinda/sorta ran through the cave. He still felt weird referring to a physical Pokémon…but by this point, whatever. "You, uh…gonna tell me what it is you're so enthusiastic about?"

"You've already asked me that. You'll see when you get there," she responded. A smile started to split across her face. "Oh, I'm so excited!" she squealed.

"Excited? Excited for what?" he asked, not noticing the sudden additional noise of rapid flapping in the background. "What's so-?"

It hit him before he knew what was happening. Suddenly he was on the ground, along with Snivy, as a loud screeching noise, along with a sound of loud thumping and flapping, filled the air. Oshawott cringed from hitting his head hard against the floor and looked up. He gasped.

There were…dozens of them. He didn't know exactly what they were…but…the closest thing they resembled to Oshawott were bats…or at least their heads. Yes…they were blue, shaggy creatures, somewhat resembling the heads of fruit bats. They all had large, piggish noses, each with a single nostril in the shape of a heart. Their eyes were hidden behind two shaggy tufts of fur. They all had large mouths with a single fang, with which they were all screeching noisily, and two relatively small wings on either side of them, with which they were all flying rapidly above them, swarming out of the cave. In a few moments, it was over. They were all gone. Slowly and deliberately, Oshawott picked himself up, then went over and helped Snivy do the same. He was still feeling a bit dazed…and he could feel a bruise forming on his noggin from where he's hit a rock during his fall…but otherwise he was okay. Snivy looked fine as well, to his surprisingly large relief.

"Wh-what…what were those things?" he asked Snivy after he's helped her up.

"Those…were Woobat…" she stated calmly, dusting herself off. "They tend to live in caves like this…should've remembered that…" she looked up ahead. "…yup. See up there? Up head on the ceiling? Those heart-shaped marks? That's where they were sleeping."

Oshawott looked up at where Snivy was gesturing to and saw it. A multitude of heart-shaped pockmarks dotted the ceiling to the cave, each of them glimmering with a slightly pink residue. Snivy continued. "The noise we were making must've have woken them up and scared them. Probably accidentally hit us on their way out."

Oshawott registered these words and grinned sheepishly. "Eheh…err…sorry about that."

"Oh, it's no problem!" Snivy assured. "But right now we need to hurry. Come on!" And with that, she once more darted off further down the cave, leaving Oshawott to tail behind her.


It wasn't much longer after that when they finally emerged into the open again. The two of them quickly looked at their surroundings…and were pleased to see the stone bridge from before, only this time on the other side of them. The other land features, too, were the same, only now from the other side of the gorge. They'd done it. They'd gotten across.

Snivy jumped up and down with glee and turned to face Oshawott, expressing that exact merriment. "All right! We finally made it to the other side!" she cried out happily. "Okay, not much farther! We're almost there now! Come on Oshawott, let's give it our all!"

Oshawott couldn't help but grin at her enthusiasm as they continued onward, over another wooden bridge and past some more boulders for another few minutes before they finally exited the mountainous zone of land. The path beneath them became more solid and recognizable as a road, Oshawott noted…as he looked up, and saw themselves arriving at a crossroads of sorts…


Author's Note:And we all know where they're at now! (or most of us do...meh.)

Anyways, thanks to those who have reviewed so far, both by friends and my fans alike! For now, I have a Reader Question for you all!

If you have played Mystery Dungeon games at all, which theme is your favorite of all of them? My favorites are...well, all of the final boss themes. Rayquaza from Recue Team, Dialga from Explorers, and the Bittercold from-AHP! NO SPOILERS FOR THOSE WHO HAVE YET TO PLAY THE GAME!

And if you haven't played the games, what's your favorite video game theme in general?

Alright, that's all for now! Seeya next time, folks!