I realized that there's a mistake in an earlier chapter. During the flashback, Emma mentioned that they should hide out in Hoenn, because no one originated from that region. This is somewhat true. Kitt came from Kanto, and her Pokemon form is Pikachu, despite the strange coloring (though it's possible she was born in the Orange Islands, as many pokemon who live there are variants of Kanto Pokemon. David was born and raised in Sinnoh, and his Pokemon form reflects that. Based on this, one could assume that Emma, as the third Natural Shifter in the group—Cameron and Michael are technically Altered Shifters, while Jake is in a classification of his own because of his origin—would have come from Kanto as well. Perhaps she was born in Kanto, before moving to Hoenn at a young age. If the scientists at the Lab were deciding where to search based on Pokemon form, Hoenn wouldn't seem logical because none of the group Shift into Hoenn Pokmeon. (Cameron IS actually from Sinnoh, but remember, he's not a Natural Shifter.)

Chapter 10: The Secret's Out

Seconds seemed to stretch into minutes as I ran; the only sound the pounding of my footsteps. The bird Pokémon had fallen silent, having most likely fled. Up ahead, I could catch glimpses of Emma through the trees, and the occasional flash of pale yellow, which I knew must be Jake. My shoulder throbbed in time with my steps, and I could feel the bandage slipping. I hope Emma doesn't mind if I get a little bit of blood on this….

Anakin, thankfully, was still. In fact, he might've fallen asleep. I couldn't blame him. He must've been worn out from his first real battle. It was another milestone that we would have to celebrate, if we got the chance.

The trees started thinning, the path widening, and ahead, I began to see glimpses of a stone wall, and beyond that, buildings. The path suddenly changed from dirt to cobblestone, and I almost tripped over one protruding rock. Jake and Emma were already at the gate, and as I cleared the last of the trees, they headed into town. I followed, and we headed towards a building with the familiar red roof of a Pokémon Center. I noticed in the background sounds of construction, and I wondered what that was all about as I stepped through the automatic doors of the Center.

Jake and Emma stood by the reception desk, Jake impatiently ringing the small bell kept there so Trainers could summon Nurse Joy. An Audino poked its head from around a door to one of the rooms, then ducked back inside, calling for someone. By the time I got to the desk as well, Nurse Joy was standing behind it, waiting to hear why she was needed.

"I take it your Pokémon need to be treated? "She asked, glancing from me to Emma and Jake, who was still holding Cameron. I felt Anakin shift in my backpack and winced at the sudden stab in my shoulder.

"Yes. We were ambushed earlier by a high-level Pokémon, and several of ours were injured." Emma replied. I knew she was being careful not to say too much. "A couple were hurt pretty badly, and though we did what we could, we knew they'd need professional care. Can we stay for a few days while they recover? Oh, and we have a couple friends on their way—they had to stay behind and break camp."

Nurse Joy's face softened. She nodded. "We have a couple of spare rooms left. I'll have Audino show you while Chansey helps me with your Pokémon." A Chansey waddled up with a stretcher, and Jake carefully placed Cameron on it. Emma unslung her backpack, pulling out the Pokéballs that contained our other injured Pokémon.

The Audino ran in carrying one of the trays used for carrying Pokéballs, and Emma placed the Pokéballs containing Aaron, Luna, Umber, Gene, and Ren on it. After a moment's hesitation, she added Star's Pokéball as well.

"Um…Nurse Joy….there's something you need to know about this one," I said, lightly touching Star's Pokéball. "I don't know if you've heard about the Shadow Pokémon outbreak, but….this Luxray is one of them, and a very high-leveled Shadow at that. She's the one who ambushed us…and she's currently very aggressive." I didn't say why. From the way Nurse Joy had focused on me as I said "Shadow Pokemon", I knew that she had dealt with them before, and it hadn't been easy. "Be careful. Though my friend said these would help," I added, handing her the Cologne case. "He's dealt with Shadows before."

"Hey! Wait a second!" Jake was trying to get the attention of Chansey, who had begun wheeling Cameron away. Chansey turned and frowned; Jake was getting in her way.

"Listen," Jake said, and I suddenly realized that Nurse Joy had turned her attention to the scene. I mentally facepalmed. Things looked like they were going to be going downhill. The Audino whisked the tray of Pokéballs away to a back room, where I knew that the initial examination of our Pokémon's injuries would begin. I've been locked in Pokémon form before, and knew from experience how an injured Pokémon was cared for.

"Please, just listen to me!" Jake began again. Chansey promptly ran over his foot with the stretcher, eliciting a soft curse from Jake and a disapproving glance from Nurse Joy. "It's about that Riolu…. I know he's in bad shape, but he'll start panicking if he wakes up in one of those intensive care units; he needs to wake up in a normal bed! The last time he regained consciousness in an IC unit he completely freaked out." I winced; that had been a nasty little surprise. It was a good thing that the Nurse Joy there had had a similar case the week before.

Chansey managed to maneuver Cameron's stretcher around Jake, but not before running over his other foot. I wondered if that had been an accident—then again, probably not. Jake watched her disappear into the IC ward. There was a moment of silence, and then Nurse Joy asked a question that I had hoped wouldn't come up. "I'll see what I can do….but why does this Riolu need to rest in a bed, instead of an IC unit? Surely he'd recover faster in one."

I shut my eyes, trying to think up a way to phrase an answer. Then I heard a gasp. My eyes flew open to see Nurse Joy swaying on her feet, eyes wide and face pale. Emma jumped over the desk to catch her before she fell, and I spun around, looking for whatever threat had followed us here. All I saw was… "Jake, you IDIOT!"

Jake had partially Shifted, a talent unique to him. His ears now knifed through his hair, twitching slightly as his hearing increased to radar-like sharpness. He hadn't Shifted enough for his tail to be visible, but when he placed his hands on the desk I could see that near-transparent webbing connected his fingers at the first joint, and his nails had changed into dull claws.

I was shocked that Jake had exposed what he was…..and then the doors chimed.

Emma reacted before I could do anything. She vaulted back over the desk and grabbed Jake by one furry ear, hauling him towards the waiting area. Jake was protesting at Emma's harsh treatment of his ear, while she was busy muttering curses under her breath. David and Michael were frozen in the doorway, identical expressions of "Oh, crap" on their faces. I saw Jake pull back, Shifting to full human form and hurrying away, only for Emma to begin chasing him around the lobby. He yelped and Shifted again, diving under a couch with a scrabble of claws.

I turned back to Nurse Joy, who thankfully had not collapsed when Emma went after Jake. Her face had regained some of her color, though I thought that she still looked pale. "I take it that the Riolu…is like him? " She asked, waving towards the lobby, where Emma sat glaring at the offending piece of furniture. "Are you all like that?"

I lowered my head, unable to meet her gaze.

The secret was out.