Chapter 12: The first night

Terry trudged through the snow with the small frostbitten Pokegirl, an Eva, on his back wrapped up in his coat while Soot walked next to them expanding her heat aura to keep them warm. She's hardly any bigger than Emy was before she evolved. He couldn't help but notice this as he shielded small Pokegirl from the wind and snow. With May and Karis ahead of him leading them to the mansion, Emy stayed back next to Terry to help shield the two of them from the biting wind. Before long there was a shout from up ahead.

"Terry we found it!" May called out to them while waving her hand to point behind the hill she was standing on.

When Terry, Emy and Soot reached the top of the hill they could not help but gasp as they were greeted with the sight of a grand mansion nestled in between the hills. Rising to the sky in a grand symmetric beauty its length alone was enough to encompass two of Terry's own house with some still left over. It rose to a tall four stories with even a rooftop terrace capping both the east and west wings. Spreading out in front of the mansion was an expansive garden with each side mirroring the other. A large fountain dominated the center of the garden. A dip in the ground could be seen behind the mansion indicating where a swimming pool would be during the warmer seasons. With the quite snow decorating the mansion and grounds it created a scene that would not be out of place in an artist's gallery.

Pausing briefly the three half slid half slipped down the frozen hill to the large gates separating the mansion grounds from the outside world. May, and Karis were waiting for them at the gates. When they reached them Karis pushed on the unlocked gates causing them to open slowly while giving off a long, metal on metal creak in protest. Quickly crossing the garden they approached the door. Grabbing the large ornate knocker in her hand May rapped it against the door calling out to whoever was the owner. They heard footsteps quickly approaching the door from the other side and the click of a lock returning to its original position before the door opened.

Standing in the doorway was an Espea. Standing at a modest 4'9" with her vulpine ears bringing her to a full five feet even, she barely filled the expansive doorway. A light covering of fur, that was the color of lilacs, covered her from head to toe. Her hair was a shade darker and extended to her shoulders where it separates into individual locks. Sprouting from the inside ends of her eyebrows were two long antenna-like whiskers that almost reaching to the tips of her ears. In the center of her forehead was a brilliant red, oval jewel set above her amethyst colored eyes. She wore a light silken blouse that seemed to offer little protection from the cold, above a short skirt and leggings that once again made Terry feel cold just looking at her. Oddly enough she seemed unfazed by the cold weather. A tail sprouted out from under her skirt half way through the length of her tail it splits into two tips. She let her tail hang loosely swaying back and forth to where it trailed around her bare feet.

"Hello, can I help you?" the espea asked holding the door open at cautious distance.

"We found her collapsed outside," May quickly said lifting up Terry's coat to show the psychic type, "she said that this was her home."

"L-Lei!" the Pokegirl exclaimed covering her mouth in shock.

"Who is there Tansy?" A well-dressed man asked as he stood atop the stair case in the back of the entrance. He wore an impeccable tuxedo with a rose pinned to the lapel. His short, blond hair was combed into a flamboyant style; it appeared that even his thick eyebrows had been styled into arches as well. He descended down the stairs with a dignified gait, as he approached it became clear that he exceeded Terry's height by a few inches giving him a tall whip like appearance. Stopping behind the espea named Tansy he placed a hand on her shoulder. He observed his unexpected guest through eyes possessing both the color and resolution of granite. His face was softened by the evident laugh lines worn into it, and the gentleman's smile he wore.

"Lei!" His smile disappeared and was replaced by a look of shock when he saw that the Pokegirl on Terry's back was Lei.

"Master Kaden, these people say they had found her and brought her home to us." Tansy explained to the man who appeared to be either her tamer or the master of the house.

"Quickly come in." He ushered Terry and the others in and took Lei into his arms and turned to the stairs before calling out to the psychic type. "Tansy, I will go fetch Victoria, please show our guests to the sitting room I will speak with them there."

"Yes Master Kaden, please this way." she acknowledged his order with a slight curtsy, and turned to Terry's group and motioned for them follow her down the hallway.

Tansy led them into a large luxuriously decorated room. All of the furniture would have been considered antique even by pre-Sukube times; one piece would have cost a fortune let alone a whole set. If I remember correctly this furniture is from the Victorian age. These must have cost a fortune to restore, let alone find. Terry thought to himself as he entered and sat down on one of the couches Tansy indicated. Looking around the room he felt as if they had stepped back in time. The walls were decorated with old paintings, and lace curtains adorning the large windows.

May took a chair off to the side with Soot standing behind May with her scowl missing and occasionally looking over at the back of May's head. Emy and Karis took the seats next to Terry with Karis leaning on into his shoulder and wrapping an arm around his. Terry turned to Karis with a question in his look to which Karis simply replies by leaning in and blowing on his neck causing Terry to stiffen up in more than one way.

"Is she your alpha? Master…" Tansy asked when she saw them.

"Terry," He answered her, the redness in his face starting to drain, and then pointed to his right at Emy, "actually she is my alpha."

"Karis, at least sit strait when her master returns." Emy scolded Karis which earned her a playful taunt from Karis. Emy took the time to introduce everyone there, in addition to the Pokegirls still in their balls. After Tansy excused herself in order to serve them tea the door she disappeared behind opened again with Kaden standing in the doorway. There was an intense look in his eye when he spotted Terry. His quick footsteps echoed through the room, the suddenness of his action along with the look in his eye both startled and frightened the young tamer.

"Young man!" Kaden suddenly grabbed Terry's free hand in a vice-like grip. "Thank you. Thank you so much for saving our precious Lei!"

"I-it was nothing… we just did what anyone should have." Terry was taken aback by the man's intensity.

"Ah! Such humility!" Kaden released Terry suddenly and pirouetted away theatrically covering his eyes while tears streamed down his face. Quickly pivoting with the waterworks suddenly gone he faced May and Soot grabbing their hands. "And you young lady! I heard from Lei herself that you and your combustcunt fought hard to keep her warm!"

"I-it wasn't that difficult." May stuttered.

"You're blowing it out of proportion, besides I'm the one who did all the work." Soot added sharply with her signature scowl returning. Releasing May Kaden quickly encased Soot in a crushing hug causing May to shout out in surprise.

"Master Kaden, you can't randomly hug another tamer's Pokegirl." Tansy calmly scolded Kaden after returning with a tea set. He released the irritated Soot and quickly approached Tansy.

"Tansy my dear, did you bring our finest blend for your sister's saviors?" After answering yes she set the cups in front of everyone and begun to serve the tea. Sitting down into a chair across from them Kaden slowly sipping his tea. "You all have my deepest gratitude, and as such I must present you with a just reward that is equal to my gratitude."

"There really is no need to go so far, we really only did what any person should do." Terry quickly said.

"But I insist; my honor will not let me send you away after you have done such a service to me."

"Come on Terry, it won't be so bad. We should just accept his gift." May said trying to convince him.

"Well, if you really don't want it, I'll just accept it in your stead." Karis said still leaning on Terry's shoulder, which earned her a admonishment from Emy again.

"Alright, since everyone thinks so we will accept." Terry consented after taking a look at everyone there.

"Splendid! I also insist that you stay the night here while I prepare your reward." Kaden exclaimed as he stood up and spinning on his heel left the room.

"Ah! Wait, what do you mean by 'the night'?!" Terry quickly stood up intending to follow him but was stopped by Tansy.

"I'm afraid this you have no choice but to accept either." She pointed to the window. Outside the mansion the howling winds tore through the grounds as a flurry of snow buried the pathway.

"Where did this come from?!" Terry rushed to the window unable to believe such a storm could come out of nowhere. "The weather report said nothing about a storm!"

"Well the report did also say that there would not be snow." May said as she walked up next to Terry.

"Again. That was for a Littleroot not Mauville." Terry sighed as May muttered an "oh that's right."

"Please follow me, I will show you all to where you will be staying the night." Tansy led them into the foyer and up the grand staircase leading into the west wing. May and Terry were given separate rooms so they could stay in the same room as their respective Pokegirls. "Please treat this as your home for tonight Master Kaden and Lady Victoria will wish to speak with you in the morning. Have a nice night."

After watching Tansy leave Terry entered his room after May disappeared into hers with Soot and released everyone from their balls. Shortly explaining what was going on to Luna and Calisto.

"So what now?" Terry asked while sitting with his back against the bed tapping on his knee in idle boredom. He never was much of an indoor person, so being stuck inside with nothing to do was driving him mad. Karis was filling her nails while lounging on the bed behind where Emy sat on the bed next to Terry. Luna was sitting at the only table resizing her dress to fit her evolved form better. Callisto was in the corner so engrossed in her new romance book she was practically dead to the world.

"How about a card game?" Emy asked from her seat on the bed next to him and pulled out a deck of cards from her pocket.

"Sure, let's see if May and the others will play. I feel like taking- I mean challenging May to a couple hands of poker." Karis said putting down her nail file, and walking over to the door. As she was about to open it when the door swung wide open nearly taking off her nose, as Mara and Dart barged in.

"Hey guys, May ran us out and we're bored so play something with us!" Mara exclaimed loudly before seeing Karis's expression. "Huh? What's wrong?"

"At least knock first before entering someone's room! You two nearly opened that into my face!" Karis scolded them before returning to her seat behind Terry and Emy.

"Sure we'll play something we were about to invite you guys anyway, but why did May run you two out?" Terry asked after the two intruders sat down in front of him. He took the deck from Emy and begun to shuffle it while everyone decided on a game.

"May said that she wanted to have a private discussion with Soot for a while, so she told us to go bother you guys in the meantime." Dart chirped after putting in a vote for poker.

"!" Hearing that Terry froze mid shuffle, after getting a concerned look from Emy he shook his head as if to say it was nothing. "S-so did we all decide on poker?"

"…Is that the only game we know?" he added after a pause, to which everyone unanimously agreed. I really need to teach them some different games. Terry noted to himself. He dealt out a hand to everyone with the exception of Calisto, who had not even noticed the intrusion let alone that the others were even there. It appears that she had already finished a fifth of her book.

After a couple of hours and a countless hands the money they bet had mostly flowed to and between Terry and Emy with Luna coming in third. Terry's door opened once again and Soot walk in without a word plopping herself down next to Dart to watch the hand already in progress. Karis had already dropped out and had fallen asleep on one of the two beds snoring softly with the occasional sharp snort breaking their concentration. Terry noted that Soot was actually wearing pants for now, as she sat stiffly.

"What's May doing?" Dart asked after folding from the hand leaving only Emy and Mara to bet against each other.

"She went to take a bath before going to bed." Soot answered in a clipped tone, as she counted how much was left in Dart's and Mara's chip piles.

"I'll go join her!" Dart cheerfully jumped up and rushed out hoping to catch her. Mara rushed after her calling out to Dart with a "Wait for me."

*sigh* "I'll go make sure they don't make a mess." Emy sighed putting down her cards and gathering up her winnings, before heading out after them. Leaving only Luna, Terry and Soot in the game.

Luna withered under Soot's sour glare before standing up as well. "I-I think I'll go join them as well…"

As Luna rushed out like a scalded cat Soot picked up the deck and begun to deal out the cards to her and Terry. While sorting his hand Terry spoke up. "I heard that May wanted to have a discussion with you."

She could tell from the emphasis he put on the word "discussion" that he knew exactly what happened in their room moments before.

"Yeah, that bi-, May really knows how to hold a grudge." Soot quickly corrected herself after receiving a glare from Terry. She shifted painfully after recalling what had happened in the room just before.

"I remember the last time May felt the need to have a 'discussion' with me." Terry's body shivered and his face paled when he recalled what happed the last time.

"What did you do?"

"It was a couple years back, about one year after I moved from Jhoto. May had bought a special limited edition cake from Oldale, and not knowing what it was I… ate it." Terry shuddered from a sudden chill. "Needless to say that May was extremely pissed when she found out. May held a grudge for an entire three months, and thanks to those 'discussions' I still can't eat cake to this day."

"Three months? Over a cake?!" Soot exclaimed from shock.

"Yeah a cake, but in this case it's something very different." A stern look came over Terry's face. "There are some things that you should never say to your loved ones, because of the impact those word can have on them. Hate is definitely one of those, it is a word that can cause a lot of pain."

"I… didn't say that I hate her." She said rubbing her arm, "I just can't handle it when she hangs off of me in front everyone like that."

"Then, as hard as it is, you should make her understand that." Terry simply said. Soot merely grunted mulling over what they discussed. "Oh, and I have four aces."

"Huh?!" Looking down she watched as over half of her money was taken away in one hand. Terry's returning Pokegirls were greeted by a shrill scream of displeasure as Soot collapsed in defeat. The comatose Soot was dragged away by her sisters, and shortly after the door closed they each called it a night.

At around three in the morning Terry was awoken by a solid kick into the center of his back sending him clear over the edge of the bed. The floor rushed up to greet him when he opened his eyes. Sitting up he looked at the bed and found Emy with her leg extended and a blissfully happy look on her sleeping face. *sigh* he picked himself off of the ground and turned around to the sight of Callisto sprawled out across floor quietly rasping, "H-help…"

Only a few moments of harried panicking later, Terry was walking through the hall back to his room with a rehydrated Calisto clinging to his back.

"Really Calisto, if you feel yourself getting dehydrated then tell us!" Terry scolded her for the fifteenth time after getting her to the kitchen.

"S-sorry Terry, but it was getting to a good part of the story." She apologized weakly after finishing the last of the water Terry got for her.

"I know I have said this before but-" Terry stopped mid-sentence and looked behind himself.

"What? Is something wrong?" Although Calisto was glad not to have another lecture but the look on his face and his silence left her worried.

"Hold on, I thought I heard something." Terry turned back down the hall way towards where they just walked from. Listening closely as he walked down the hall, all he could hear was the creak of the floor under his feet echoing into the silence. Dismissing it as an overactive imagination he turned back around and started walking back to their room again.

"What did you here Terry? …Terry?" When Terry didn't respond she was going to shake his shoulder before the icy feeling sliding down her spine stopped her. Both of them slowly turned their heads in a slow mechanical motion to look behind them.

Behind them were two dark and transparent shadows walking through the hallway toward them. Heavy footsteps echoed through the hall as their sources slowly made their way forward.

A shrill scream echoed throughout the mansion shortly followed by the slamming of Terry's door. Beyond the door everyone in the room was awake and gathered around a covered lump on the bed that shivered in fear.

"A-are you okay?" Emy asked gently patting the lump which had stopped shivering, "What happened?"

The door to the room opened again and a disheveled May hurried in. still in her night gown she approached Emy. "What happened?"

"Well…" Emy pointed at the lump not exactly sure of how to explain it. Looking around May made an expression that said she understood what was going on. May approached the lump herself and sat next to it.

"Terry did you see 'something'?" The lump shook as if startled, May half expected an exclamation mark to appear over it.

"How did you know that?" Terry asked poking his head out from the covers and looking at her. Everyone except Calisto and May looked fairly lost about the situation.

"Well, the only thing that could make you react this way are those 'things.'"

"What are you talking about?" Emy asked unable to keep up with vague conversation. "What did you two see?"

"We saw something dark and scary walking down the hallway at us." Calisto shivered, "They looked like big transparent shadows. Just looking at them would send chills down your spine"

"Where they g-"

"Don't say it!" Terry shouted hysterically cutting off Emy as he hid under the covers again. "Don't say it! Don't say that word!"

"I know that g- those 'things' are scary but aren't you over reacting a bit. It must have been your imagination." Emy said trying to calm him down.

"Well… There's more to it than just being afraid, it's kind of a trauma for him." May began.

It was about a month after he moved from Jhoto we had just began to spend time together. One day when it was the just the two of us and his mother in the house I had brought him a movie to help him feel a little better about moving. I thought it would have been a good idea since the cover of the movie said that it was about a man who moved into the country side to get away from the big city, but little did I know that it was actually a horror film that ended with him getting killed late in the night by a ghost.

So as you could probably guess it did not go over well with Terry. It also turned out that he was weak to scary things even before moving, and we made the mistake of watching it when the sun had set.

Well after that I had to leave because it was getting late, and Terry reluctantly when to bed after his mother did. Leader Norman had left earlier to go out and get to know the other gym leaders and ended up staying out and drinking with leader Wattson until about two in the morning.

When Norman returned he brought Wattson with him. Since he didn't want his wife finding out he had been out drinking the entire time, he decided to sneak in through their bedroom window, which only sounded like a good idea because of how much alcohol they drank. So when they tried to sneak around they crashed straight into the laundry Terry's mother forgot to bring back in, and managed to cover themselves in a pair of sheets and managed to somehow climb the tree outside and into the first window they saw. Needless to say it was Terry's window.

Terry actually became so afraid of the bumbling "ghosts" that he fainted from terror. Norman and Wattson were also caught because of the commotion and ended up getting banned from drinking for about half a year and Norman slept on the couch for about a month.

May ended her story with a sigh.

Everyone wore a shocked face at the story. It was his father's fault?! Was the unanimous conclusion after the story. Emy looked over to Terry unsure of what to say, as a snort came from the corner Karis sat in desperately trying not to laugh. Luna walked over to the shivering lump of covers that was Terry and started to pat him soothingly.

"Well I'm heading back to bed so you guys should get some rest." May announced and left closing the door behind her. Calisto climbed in the bed with him both not wanting to sleep alone and feeling it was her fault that he was in the hallway to begin with. Emy and Luna decided to leave them be, and after Emy scolded the still giggling Karis they all crawled into bed and fell asleep.

End of Chapter 12

As always let me know what you liked and what you didn't.