Figured that I might wanna repeat the disclaimer, because some nit-picky readers are really...well, nit-picky about that stuff (you know who you are).
I DO NOT OWN POKEMON. All I own are any individual names, characters, and (rarely, simply because so many other people are on this site), ideas.


Anima rolled over in her bed, not knowing where she was but not caring. Dreams danced through her mind, bringing fuzzy images that felt too important to be a figment of her imagination. Wherever she was, it was dark, and cold, and she was terrified.

Something was chasing her...seven somethings. The first six were just fuzzy, purple blobs that were all the same size, but the seventh was the one she knew she was supposed to be afraid of. It was much bigger than the others, dark gray in color and shouting at her to stop running, to surrender or die a painful death. She crashes through a forest, finally managing to lose them, but not before they can strike out at her. She keeps running for an agonizingly long time, finally stopping at a body of water that seems to be frozen. She looks at her reflection, and long cuts are running across her face, crimson against her pale skin. She fingers them carefully, knowing that they'll heal without any scarring in a matter of days.

At this point, a voice much clearer than the others shouts out "GET UP!". The dream started to dissolve in an instant, but not before Anima could take in the general look of the reflection in her dream. Then, the loud voice shouted out again.

"HEY! It's time to WAKE UP! The name's LOUDRED, a fellow apprentice! If you're late for morning BREIFING, you'll be SORRY!" Anima's eyes shot open. She looked over at Kippy to see that he had practically jumped out of his skin. His eyes were wide and had a glazed look to them that was probably due to fatigue and the sudden, if rude, wake-up call.

"ANYWAYS..." Loudred continued. "I'm not about to get in TROUBLE because two ROOKIES got up LATE! So UP AND AT 'EM!" Then he walked off down the hall, probably to avoid being late for morning briefing.

"Oh, for the love of Arceus...what a ridiculously loud voice..." Anima muttered, not knowing where that phrase had come from but saying it anyways.

"What did he say...? Something about briefing?" Kippy murmured sleepily. The two shot up.

"Oh! That's right! We registered at the guild! But that means..."

"We totally overslept! Come on, hurry!" Anima finished, dragging her friend out the door. They stopped at the doorway, where all the other apprentices were already standing.

"You're LATE, rookies!" Loudred said, a bit unnecessarily.

"Hush!" Chatot said. "Your voice is ridiculously loud!" With that, Guildmaster Wigglytuff stepped out of his quarters. The motto Kippy and Anima had to learn passed by in a blur for Anima, who was still caught up in her dream from that night and, more specifically, her reflection. Even the fact that Wigglytuff had apparently fallen asleep didn't do so much as barely snap her back to reality. After that, she and Kippy were taken to the bulletin boards by Chatot. Anima almost fell off the ladder as she climbed up because a flash of realization suddenly hit her. She knew what that reflection was, even though she had no idea how she could know that.

In her dream, she had been human.


"Kippy, Anima, are you aware of how time is being altered here?" Chatot asked. Time? Anima thought, not understanding.

"Because time is going out of whack, more and more bad Pokemon have been popping up," Kippy replied. Time as in hours and minutes? What is going on here?

"Right. And, whether or not time has anything to do with it, there seem to be a mass outbreak of...mystery dungeons."

"Mystery dungeons?" Anima asked.

"Anima, remember when we went to go get my Relic Fragment? The place we found it in was a mystery dungeon. They're strange places; their layouts change every time you go in them. You never know what items you'll find or what Pokemon you'll encounter. Also, if you faint in a dungeon, you'll lose all your money and half your items. Finally, you're kicked right out. They're very mysterious places. But they're still the source of many different treasures to be found," Kippy explained.

"Oh, good, you know. That simplifies things. All jobs are done in mystery dungeons. Today, because you're new recruits, you'll be doing a fairly easy job," Chatot said, looking over the bulletin board on the left side of the room. Hoping that he could find one suitable for novice explorers, he finally settled on a fairly recent request. "Here's one that you could probably do," Kippy took the paper from Chatot and read it aloud, with Anima reading over his shoulders.

"Dear explorers,
I have lost my most prized possession: my pearl. I have been very restless ever since it disappeared, and I simply cannot hold still if it is not in its proper place on top of my head.
But hope remains! I have received a report that my pearl has been spotted on the deepest floor of Drenched Bluff. I am overjoyed that it finally turned up, but I know that I could never go to such a dangerous place by myself.
I beg of you, explorers, please travel to Drenched Bluff and retrieve my pearl!
Many thanks,
Spoink."
Kippy finished reading a few moments after Anima had. She was already nodding in acceptance, but Kippy seemed angry.

"This is it? We're just picking up an item somebody dropped?" He asked, frustrated. "I'd rather be out exploring new lands, or discovering treasure, or..."

"Quiet!" Chatot said. "I know what you'd rather be doing, but until you're experienced enough you just have to pay your dues! I'll remind you again: you'll be sent back here if either one of you faints. You'll lose all your money! And you'll lose up to half of your items! Make sure you understand before just charging in. Now go!"

"Urgh..." Kippy groaned. He turned to Anima, who just shrugged. She didn't know what else to say, so she just fiddled with the Cobalt Bow tied around her tail.

"Come on, Kippy," she urged as they climbed down the steps leading to the guild. "This is what real explorers do, too," Kippy shot her an odd look.

"But...you've lost your memory. How do you know?"Anima grinned.

"Well, why else would there be a bunch of requests like this if nobody ever took them?"

"All right. Let's go!" Kippy said as he and Anima headed out to Drenched Bluff.


Anima and Kippy neared the entrance to the dungeon, and Kippy held back his friend as a wave of caution swept over him.

"What?" Anima asked, irritated that she was being held back. She looked around at her surroundings; it was a bit like Beach Cave, with water on the sides. The only thing different was probably the fact that the sand had been replaced with rocks and that green plants were seen growing just about anywhere she looked.

"We should probably be careful," Kippy said. "This sounds like a seriously dangerous place,"

"I doubt that it's that bad..." Anima said. "But I see what you're saying. We'll take it carefully." Kippy seemed satisfied with this conclusion. He smiled as Anima led the way into the dungeon.

Once again, Kippy was astounded at how easily Anima managed to take down enemies. If he had to bet, he would have said that the Cobalt Bow was strengthening her naturally-powerful abilities. He felt a little bad that his partner was doing all the work; defeating enemies, taking damage, and using up precious Power Points.

"I don't know whether or not you used to be human," he said somewhere between the third and sixth floors of the dungeon, walking through a puddle of water to be next to Anima rather than behind her. "But one thing's for sure: You know how to be a Pokemon," A faint smile danced across Anima's face.

"Be that as it may, I still want to remember," She said wistfully, managing to dodge an attack as she did so. "I feel like I'm supposed to be doing something really important here...but I can't remember what it is."

"Try to remember a little bit at a time. No sense rushing things," Kippy said, putting in a Tackle to take out the enemy trying to jump Anima before. He got the feeling that she had let him defeat it just to give him something to do, but he still felt proud about it.

"Kippy," Anima said. "Is that what I think it is?" Sure enough, perched on a miniature plateau of some sorts in the middle of the room, was a sparkling, lavender pearl with a hint of pink to it. It glittered in the wan sunlight, and on either side of it were tiny "waterfalls" of clear blue water that squiggled out in little streams bordering the edge of the room.

"That's the pearl," Kippy confirmed, picking up the lost item and placing it in the Treasure Bag. "Let's head back to the guild,"


Back at the guild, by the bulletin board they had received their mission at, Team Enigma accepted thanks from their client, Spoink. With his long-lost pearl atop his head, he did tiny little bounces of excitement as he expressed his gratitude for the umpteenth time.

"Oh, thank you so much, Team Enigma! That pearl helps me keep my balance when bouncing. Without it, I was boinging and sproinging all over the place! I simply couldn't control where I was bouncing! That's why I'm covered in so many dents and dings, you see," Spoink said. Indeed, Anima had to admit that he was looking a bit worn down. "But thanks to you, that long nightmare is over! Please accept this reward!" With that, Spoink gave Team Enigma 2000 Poke. Kippy's expression was one of sheer amazement.

"You're giving us all this?"

"Of course! That's nothing compared to what my pearl is worth! Thank you again, Team Enigma!" With that, Spoink bounced up the steps and departed from the guild without another word. Chatot walked over to the team, who was by now discussing what they were going to do with all that money.

"Great job, you two! Very well done, indeed! Now, hand over that Poke!"

"What?" Kippy and Anima exclaimed as Chatot took the Poke.

"As part of your training, most of your spoils goes to the guild. Here's your share," With that, Chatot handed Kippy and Anima the amount of money left from his fiddling with it: 200 Poke.

"That's all?" Kippy exclaimed. "All that work, and that's all we get? That's not fair!" Anima nodded.

"Quiet, both of you!" Chatot admonished. "It's just another aspect of guild life you'll have to learn to accept! Now," he said, heading downstairs. "Wash up before you report to the mess hall for dinner. You're filthy," Anima's eyes narrowed slightly at the retreating figure, but she shrugged it off.

"Oh, well," Kippy said miserably. "Let's just head to the showers and go get some dinner," Anima tried to cheer her friend up, but could only manage a weak smile in reply.

"Moping about it isn't going to change anything," She said. "Now, let's hurry. I'm starving,"


After a short, freezing-cold shower, Anima met up with Kippy in the mess hall. The others had already arrived and seemed to just be settling down, so she assumed she wasn't too late. In front of her was an array of colorful fruits that had a delicious aroma, and her mouth watered at the sight of such food. She dove in with only a slight hesitation, waiting for her fellow apprentices to begin eating before rushing in herself. On her left, Kippy was wolfing down his food like there was no tomorrow.

"Kippy, take it EASY," Loudred said from the other side of the table. "You're EATING like you'll NEVER see FOOD again!" With that, he shoved an enormous mouthful into his gaping mouth.

"Eek! Loudred, where have your manners gone?" Another apprentice, Sunflora, exclaimed.

"Probably still lost in the last dungeon he was knocked out in," Croagunk chuckled. All the apprentices started laughing, but Loudred didn't seem to find it that amusing.

"HEY! Everybody makes MISTAKES!" he said, defending himself.

"It's just that some make more than others," Anima commented, unable to contain herself. There was a momentary silence before the laughter resumed even louder than before. Of course, that was probably because even Loudred had joined in.

"TOO true, Anima, too TRUE!" After a pause, he said, "You know WHAT? You're ALRIGHT. Liveliest apprentices WE'VE seen in a LONG time." Anima and Kippy looked around the table at their fellow guildmembers, and smiled. The ice had thawed between them, and they were now accepted into the family of Wigglytuff's Guild.

That night, Anima and Kippy went to their room, stuffed with food.

"That was good," Anima said, flopping backwards onto her bed.

"Yeah," Kippy said. "I'm still disappointed about the money thing...but getting to help Spoink out, and being thanked by him...that was the best part. It made me realize that I did the right thing by joining an exploration team. Hey, maybe someday we'll find out the secrets behind my Relic Fragment," Kippy replied. "We better get some sleep. Don't want to oversleep again. Goodnight, Anima,"

"'Night, Kippy." Despite all of the things that had happened that day, sleep easily claimed both of them moments later. The moon shone peacefully down on the whole region as it slowly but surely sank into a deep slumber, awaiting the hopeful sunrise that came with a new day.