Hey! This is just a note to anyone who had the perseverance and drive to read up to this point without falling asleep out of boredom or something :P I promise that the story, (and my own skills as a writer) will progress and get better soon! There are big things in store heading to our a little clan of eeveelutions, so if you can find the intense inner strength it most likely takes to sit through this stretched out yarn, take heart that things will pick up soon!
"Decisions to decisions are made and not bought, But I thought…"
The noonday sun baked the land below with visible heat that peeled through the air in tangible waves. It was going to be a scorcher today. A medium sized Umbreon shook his head as he lowered it to the floor. He felt pinned inside the shadowy den by the juggernaut of light that marched off the sun. Every night had its dawn. And that was a fact that always haunted him. He lay in his usual semi-curled up sleeping position with his daughter in his crest. He smiled at the cool, gravelly texture of the dirt floor that pushed up against his chin. The only gift the sun gave was shade. Daniel yawned and lazily picked his head up. Now that he was awake, he might as well go have a look around and make sure all was well in the world. Daniel smiled as Mist fell under his sweeping gaze. She was mimicking his typical sleeping position. That was good. A little of her spirit was coming back now that her sickness wasn't as terrible. Daniel shrewdly noted that she was breathing perfectly synchronized with his rhythmic breathes. Perhaps she was already awake. The Umbreon couldn't help but smirk; over the years he had built an image of himself to his children that he could always tell when they were actually asleep or not. Being so young, they still believed it. But the trick was the breathing. If the breathing was regular, the said Pokémon was asleep. Daniel closed his mouth and held his breath. Slowly the little Eevee's inhales and exhales fell more and more into discord. "Alright Mist, get on up!" He laughed, pressing on her shoulder.
The brown kit stood shakily. "You always know," she giggled.
"And I always will you little trickster!" he joked affectionately, dabbing at her small nose with the tip of his tail.
Mist dropped to the floor and rolled onto her back, paws batting at Daniel's tail as he lashed it through the air. Daniel winced as the small Eevee caught it with her forepaws and proceeded to sink her teeth into it. "Oohf! Let's be careful now Mist!"
Daniel slid his tail out of her mouth, frowning when he felt the fever heat still emanating from Mist. The disease may be down, but by no means was it out. "I'll be back little one," Daniel told Mist as he turned to leave the den, "Wait here, I'm going to find your mother."
Mist nodded and hunkered back down between the floor and back wall. Daniel screwed his eyes shut as he stepped out, eyelids screwed shut against the harsh sunlight. His eyes burned red despite his heavy black eyelid shields. He opened his eyes, and then shut them and waited for the afterimage to fade away. Each time he repeated this action, his vision became a little clearer. The dark Pokémon walked off across the clearing in search of Elsie. Suddenly, a part of a nearby bush seemed to separate itself from the green plant. Daniel waved his tail lazily in greeting as he recognized the leafy frame of Fern, the Leafeon. The plantlike eeveelution opened her mouth and called out jovially, "Hey Dad! Have you seen Adar lately? I'm playing hide and go seek with the twins and I'm thoroughly stumped!"
Daniel could hear two small Eevee's giggling behind a nearby tree and realized that kind Fern was simply putting on a show for them. "I have no idea where he is Fern! Those two little rascals have sure pulled one over on you!"
Fern shook her head as the clearly audible sound of her younger siblings laughing floating across the clearing on the summer breeze. "Shhh! I think I might hear them!" Fern exclaimed about ten percent louder than necessary.
The Leafeon quickly turned around and searched the wrong section of the woods while she hummed noisely. Daniel smiled as he caught Benjamin and Ellie's eye from behind their cover. They performed frantic hand motions, first pointing at Fern, and then at the forest, all the while trying not to burst out laughing. Daniel made a big show of nodding and then winking before walking over to his eldest daughter. The Umbreon wasn't a professional, but he could act with the best of them. "I think the noise came from out here, Fern." Daniel advised, guiding her in the indicated direction with his tail.
"Oh they're in for it now!" Fern said, winking at her father.
She ran into the woods with what appeared to be fierce determination. As soon as she was out of sight, the twin Eevees fell onto the ground, banging there little brown paws against the earth in laughter. "You two better find a new hiding place before she comes back!" Daniel recommended to the hysterical Pokémon.
Ellie immediately shot off like lightning to the edge of her parents den and turned to face Daniel, eyebrow raised questioningly. Her father nodded his consent and Benjamin hopped up and dashed after Ellie, who was already inside the den. "Just try not to disturb Mist too much!" The Umbreon called after them.
Daniel sniffed the air. Elsie must have gone off to enjoy the strength of the sun in private for a short amount of time. Being the sun Pokémon, this must have been perfect weather conditions for her. He hadn't seen Adar yet, but more likely than not, he was off practicing his hunting and fighting skills. Or playing at them. Daniel conjured up a mental image of their last training session in his mind. Adar had voiced his worry that he would never become stronger and remain the inexperienced Eevee he was now. Daniel smiled. Everyone had this worry at one point or another. What if I'm not good enough? What if I'm never able to do that? The progress and skill was something that was never achieved overnight. The experience had to come first. One day, Adar would go on his own adventures and learn firsthand. He drifted deeper and deeper into his thoughts. He was done with his own adventures and for lack of a better word, experiences. There were regrets in his past, but leaving the Mt. Silver Brigade was not one of them.
"AHHHHHH!"
A piercing scream split the air like the cut of a Gallade. Daniel's reverie was broken on the spot. That was Fern. A snarl building in his throat, the Umbreon crouched low to the ground and leaped into a full out sprint in the direction of the outburst. Daniel could just make out the outline of Fern's leafy body through the think trees ahead. He narrowed his red eyes and launched himself through the air using his powerful hind paws. The Umbreon landed gracefully in a small clearing between Fern and an incredibly large Arcanine. Daniel fell into his standard battle stance and bared his teeth at the intruder. The Arcanine showed no sign of aggression and backed up, tail dragging across the bare earth. "Dad, Wait!" A familiar voice yelled.
Daniel felt the furs on his back begin to lie flat as an adolescent Eevee leaped in between him and the mysterious fire Pokémon. "He's a friend and he saved my life." Adar said.
Daniel stood up glancing at the orange dog in mistrust as it cautiously made its way back into the clearing. "Then what made you scream?" He asked, turning to Fern.
"It was just shock dad," Adar explained for his stricken sister, "she was just walking low to the ground and looked up just as Blaise was walking by. But really, he's good Dad, he saved my life."
Daniel calmed down and turned to Fern who nodded in agreement. "Well then Mr. Blaise, I guess I owe you an apology, and my sincerest thanks if this is all true!" He told the Arcanine, warmly.
Blaise lowered his head and accepted the Umbreon's apology. "It was nothing. I'm pleased to meet you after hearing so much!"
Daniel backed up turning his head in confusion. Then he seemed to deflate as he caught sight of the red ankle band on the Arcanine's massive right foreleg. "Yes, I imagine there will be much to talk about. Would you please come back to my home with me and explain just how a member of the Mt. Silver Brigade found my son in a forest leagues from the mountain."
Blaise carefully sat down in the middle of the clearing where his new Eevee friend lived. The curious eyes of three other Eevees stared at him from one den, which Blaise found very difficult to ignore. His first contact with Daniel had not exactly gone the way he had always imagined it to. He could barely make out the herb-strewn pelt of the Leafeon he had nearly tripped over just minutes ago at the far end of the clearing, observing him from a distance. Blaise had been raised on the stories of the Umbreon's heroics. He was always taller whenever the Arcanine had imagined him. But that wasn't what bothered Blaise. Size was only a minor contributing factor. There was a Weaville back at their camp that while small in stature, could shred an Onix. What bothered Blaise, was the Umbreon's apparent lack of enthusiasm for seeing someone from his old brigade. In his mind, Daniel had always been a raring and ready for anything explorer who would sooner be sleeping on the mountainside than in his bunk at the brigade camp. But the Umbreon Blaise had met had visibly drooped when he registered that Blaise was a member of the Mt. Silver Brigade. The Lieutenant had made it clear that Daniel had left the rescue guild because he wanted to be with a supposedly angelic Espeon and to raise a family. Did the Umbreon see this as an intrusion? He had seemed welcoming enough once he had learned that Blaise was friendly. Adar had only reinforced his mental image of the adventuresome Umbreon. The little beast had taken on a fully grown, albeit whiney, Houndoom with only minimal experience. Bravery passed on from father to son. That was the spirit and vigor the name Daniel the Demon inspired. Blaise looked up as he heard Adar coming closer now. His father had taken him to the side for him to explain what had happened first. If Adar was approaching him, that meant the Umbreon was done with his interrogation. "Hey Blaise!" The Eevee greeted happily.
"Hello Adar," Blaise smiled back; at least this little Eevee had the courage to speak to him.
Blaise spied Daniel heading in his direction and braced himself. His actions now would represent the Mt. Silver Brigade. To the Arcanine's relief, Daniel smiled warmly as he made his way over. "Sounds like I do owe you my sincerest gratitude Mr. Blaise!" The Umbreon said to break the ice.
Blaise felt some of the tension leave his body. Not a bad start after all. "Really it was nothing Sir, Turoc was just being an imbecile. And please, just call me Blaise!"
Daniel frowned. "I'll have a talk with him when your squad reaches my territory. And Blaise, you can just call me Daniel."
Blaise was momentarily nonplussed. He had practically grown up in the Mt. Silver Brigade. The one thing they had always held to, was proper titles. Why was Daniel so different? The way the Lieutenant spoke about him, Daniel would have torn his arms off with his teeth if he so much as forgot to address him properly once. "Alright… Daniel… I guess you want to know what we're doing here."
The Umbreon nodded amicably. "It would be most kind for you to tell me."
The Arcanine shrugged and explained how his Lieutenant had taken a pack of Pokémon from the brigade camp to a forest for a reason he hadn't shared with anyone. He had only said to his advance group that he took into the forest that they were coming to visit his old friend Daniel the Umbreon. Daniel the Umbreon considered this for a moment before asking, "Is there no way for them to perhaps turn around and leave before they find us?"
Blaise shook his head. "He brought an entire pack. He would look like a fool."
Daniel hung his head and kicked at a loose piece of dirt. "All the better I guess," He mused, "it was going to happen eventually anyway. And this Turoc character sounds like he really needs to be taught a lesson."
Daniel's gaze fell to Adar who was listening in on the conversation intently. Blaise gulped. If the stories were to be believed, Turoc was in a world of trouble.
"…This wouldn't hurt a lot. I guess not."
I do not own Pokémon. The quoted lyrics are to the song Kids by MGMT that I also do not own
