Wow, this took longer than I thought. So, looks like the gang has gotten a lucky break for once. I wonder how long that'll last…

I had a great idea for a side-fic, so I plan to work on it as well, which may lead to more infrequent updates. I hope you're enjoying this story so far, and feel free to comment.

(Emma, David, Jake, Kitt, and Michael observing aftermath of explosion)

Emma: David, what were you DOING?! You know you can't cook!

David: Well, considering I wasn't making anything fancy and Michael was double-checking the recipe, I thought it'd be okay!

Michael: Well actually, you kinda roped me into that, then afterwards told me I could leave, because you said nothing would happen.

Kitt: David, what were you even making?

Jake: Well, based on the splatters and this pile of scorched mush, I'd say it was….

David:….Ramen noodles.

Jake: The microwaveable kind.

Kitt: Ramen Noodles!? That's IT!? It looks like that time you tried to make that really fancy noodle dish and chocolate éclairs for dessert!

David: Well, I guess the two are more closely related than one might think.

Michael: Considering you followed the directions, I still don't understand how this could've happened.

David: Who knows? My only concern is, how am I supposed to explain the mess? Considering that I'm pretty sure this stuff stains…..

Emma: You idiot.

Kitt: David, just do your best to clean it up. We'll help get the stains out….Hey! Anakin, don't eat that!

David: (grumbles) Well, at least SOMEBODY appreciates my cooking…

Chapter 12: New Friends and Foes

"So... I guess we're safe?" David asked. I noticed for the first time since he walked in all the camping gear piled around him. He must've dropped it upon witnessing Jake's little "stunt". Michael had a similar pile around his feet, including our backpacks. It was a wonder that the two of them had hauled our stuff this far this fast, especially since it had only been the two of them.

"Looks like it. For now." Emma replied, answering for me. She glanced at my shirt again and gasped. "Kitt! You're bleeding again!"

I looked down to see a ruby stain against the pale fabric. "Looks like the bandage slipped. Sorry about your shirt, Emma."

"It's fine. Yours was shredded, and the blood should come out after I wash it," she replied, ringing the bell that Jake had pounded on earlier. Audino peeked out of the examination room.

"Excuse me," Emma called, "Nurse Joy said there were still a couple rooms open?"

Audino nodded, and after JAKE AND Emma took their share of the gear, led us up a flight of stair to the second floor. Since the layout of most Pokémon center were the same, it was safe to assume that the rooms were up here, while the clinic and café were downstairs. We stopped at room #4, where Audino pointed at Emma before giving me a key. The message was clear: this was to be our room. The guys were handed a key to the room across the hall before Audino headed back downstairs.

I stuck the key in the lock and opened the door to our room. The furnishings were simple, but comfortable: Twin bunk beds, a desk with a computer, a dresser, a minifridge, and a rug in the middle of the room. I assumed the fridge was there for anything that had to be kept cold; from leftovers to the secret ingredient to a poffin recipe. You never could tell what some trainers would need to store.

Emma dumped our stuff on one of the spare beds before helping me to get Anakin's backpack off my shoulder. She set Anakin on the bed, and he immediately hopped off and began rolling around on the rug, stopping to knead it or chew on the edge. A faint, uneven purr rumbled in his throat. I heard Emma begin sorting through our bags as I headed into the bathroom, since I now had a chance to see how badly Star had clawed me. Also, I figured that I had a better chance of getting the stains out of my borrowed shirt the faster I got on that.

Pulling the shirt off one-handed was a little tricky, but I managed, and as I slipped my arm out of the sleeve the bandage Emma had hastily ties fell off as well, and I got a good look at my injury in the mirror.

Star's claws had left three diagonal slashes from my shoulder blade to just above my heart, one claw catching my arm. While the latter was little more than a scratch, the other wounds were deeper, wide at the top but narrowing the further down they went. For the most part, they had stopped bleeding, already mostly scabbed over, in part because of the faster healing granted by my DNA, and partly because Emma had managed to get a bandage on so quickly. If the slashes had been deeper, I probably would've needed stitches. As it was, they would take a couple weeks to heal, and the scars a couple months at least to fade. I grabbed some toilet paper and dabbed at the claw marks that were still bleeding a bit, meanwhile putting the stopper in the sink and filling it with cold water. I dropped the shirt in to soak, hoping the stains would come out.

There was a soft knock on the bathroom door, and I opened it far enough that Emma could reach in and drop some stuff on the counter. It turned out to be a tube of Neosporin, some of those ridiculously large Band-Aids, another cotton pad and bandages, and one of my t-shirts, this one forest green. I managed to apply the Neosporin to my wounds, as well as one of the huge Band-Aids to the claw mark on my arm, but after a few minutes of ineffectively struggling with the bandages Emma decided to help out before I made my injuries worse or somehow managed to strangle myself. Since we were in no hurry to get anywhere she managed to tie the cotton pad on securely this time before I pulled my T-shirt on. She also grabbed her shirt from the sink, saying that it had soaked long enough and that the blood should come out. She left the torn shirt in the sink, apparently believing it salvageable. I wasn't so sure, but if anyone could repair it, it was Emma.

After unhooking Anakin's claws from the rug, Emma and I headed back down to the lobby, Anakin trailing behind us. The guys were already downstairs waiting, and Anakin wandered around as we began discussing possible plans for the near future. We had just about reached a decision when…..

YAAAAAAAAH! GETITOFFGETITOFFGETITOFF!

Anakin came charging back towards us, yelling at the top of his telepathic lungs. As for his regular lungs, he was screeching at the top of those, too. He had made it about halfway when a blur came up from behind and tackled him. The blob of fur skidded across the floor before coming to a stop at Michael's feet, where it turned into two Shinx. The smaller one, obviously, was Anakin. The other was a female about his age, currently sprawled on top of him. She seemed happy to have found a playmate, albeit an unwilling one.

Anakin squirmed out from under the other Shinx, scrambling over to me and hiding behind my legs. The other Shinx ran over too, seeming to think this part of the game. She snuck up behind Anakin, pouncing on his tailtip. With a yelp, Anakin raced up the nearest tall object, which happened to be me, not stopping until he was perched on my head, shivering. I felt his tiny claws dig into my scalp, and winced. He also seemed to have left some holes in my skin as he climbed up my back.

I thought than the female Shinx would lay off the pursuit and leave Anakin alone now, and obviously he thought so as well. He didn't see the mischievous gleam in her eyes. She had a feline grin on her face as she formed an electrical charge around her paws, and to my shock and Anakin's horror, began to walk on the air, almost as if climbing steps. When she was nose-to-nose with Anakin she let out a happy squeak, causing him to bury his face in my hair in dismay.

Nurse Joy came out of the Examination room, seemingly unconcerned about the flying Shinx currently terrorizing my Pokémon. "I see you've met Thunder, then," she said, ruffling the Shinx's ears. Thunder gave a small purr, before crying out in surprise as she suddenly fell. I managed to catch her before she hit the ground. Thunder immediately began snuggling in my arms, while Anakin let out a tiny hiss. I got the feeling he didn't like her much. The again, I couldn't blame him.

"Thunder?" Emma asked, while at the same time David said, "What's a Shinx doing here?"

"Thunder is the only name she responds to, so that's what I call her." Nurse Joy replied. "As for why she's here, I don't know. Thunder just showed up one day in the rain about a week ago, crying to be let in. So I took her in, dried her off, and let her stay. I believe she may have been abandoned by her Trainer."

"Abandoned? Why would you say that?" Jake asked.

"Well, the best evidence I have so far is that no one has come looking for a missing Shinx. They aren't native to this region, and a Shinx cannot normally learn Magnet Rise, the attack Thunder just used to freak out your Shinx." Nurse Joy let Anakin sniff her hand before scratching behind his ear. "I believe that Thunder was hatched by someone who didn't want her, and that they left her outside the Pokémon Center hoping someone would take her in. So far, there hasn't been a single trainer interested. I think, based on your Shinx's reaction, she likes to unnerve the Pokémon of Trainers she doesn't like in order to avoid leaving. I wonder if she's waiting for someone in particular."

I put Thunder down before pulling Anakin off my head. Doing so bothered my slashes, but not as much as before, so I knew they were healing. I put Anakin down as well, and he growled at Thunder before running to hide behind Jake. Thunder sat down and watched him. After a few minutes Anakin came out and allowed Thunder to touch noses with him, but after that he growled when she came too close.

"So how are our Pokémon doing?" I asked. Though the drama between Anakin and Thunder—as well as Jake's stupidity—had provided a bit of a distraction, I was still worried about them, especially Ren. But my main concern was how Cameron was doing. "How's our friend doing, as well?"

"He's still unconscious, though he should wake up soon, either tonight or tomorrow morning. You'll have to make sure he takes it easy, though. I don't know what's afflicting him, but I do know from experience that overdoing it while you recover from a disease will increase the likelihood of a relapse. I don't think your friend will want to spend any more time here than he has to."

That was for sure, especially with the Hunters so close. There was a chance they weren't after us and would dismiss us as ordinary Trainers, but I knew no one in our group wanted to take that risk unless we had to.

"As for your Pokémon," Nurse Joy continued, " They'll be fine in a few days. Your Eevee should be fine by tonight, and the Umbreon will most likely be able to leave tomorrow morning, though I'd advise you to keep his face wound clean. It didn't need stitches, but may scar if it gets infected. It should be healed in a few days."

"That's a relief." Michael said. Nurse Joy looked at him. "Those two are mine. I was worried about them."

"How's my Lucario doing?" Emma asked. "Aaron took a lot of damage defending Michael's Umbreon."

"And Luna," David added. "She was in pretty bad shape last time I saw her."

"They need to stay a few days, especially your Absol. I had to stitch the slashes on her back, and she pulled a muscle in her hind leg, but she'll recover. Your Lucario received stitches as well, though only on his arms. He's lucky that he was able to keep that Shadow away from him, or his wounds would have been much worse."

"How'd you know he had to hold Star back?" Emma gasped.

"His arms bore several claw marks, but remarkably, most of the rest of his body was uninjured." Nurse Joy replied. "Your Lucario's wounds were typical of a Pokémon holding an attacker at bay. By the way, which one of you is the Braixen's Trainer?"

"I am," I said. "Will Ren be all right?"

"Ren will be fine." Nurse Joy told me. "Her wounds are not that severe. Though I'd recommend that she should take it easy for a few days, especially if you want to enter her the Contest coming up."

"There's a Contest!? But I thought that Kalos didn't hold Contests!"

Here we go again. Out of all of us, Emma was the one who was into Contests, hoping to be a Top Coordinator someday. She already had a fair number of Ribbons, proof of her skill. The rest of us weren't as into contests as Emma was, though I enjoyed them and had a few Ribbons of my own. The guys participated on occasion, so they had a smattering of Ribbons among them as well, but I was sure Michael had never entered. David and I preferred Gym battles, while Jake didn't care either way and Cameron had little interest in either. Michael was always busy with his Shadows, and Orre didn't have any Gyms, so I really didn't know if he'd ever tried earning a Badge.

"The Kalos region does have Contests, though this is only the second time Camphrier town has hosted one. If you'd like, I can register you and your friends, though it will be a week yet before the Contest starts."

"I hate to interrupt, Nurse Joy," Michael suddenly said, "But you still haven't told us about the Luxray that we brought in as well. How is she doing?"

"The Shadow Luxray is doing well. The Cologne that your friend brought calmed her down, and I was able to tend to her injuries. She'll be fine. I take it she's your Pokémon?"

"No, Star belongs to Kitt." Michael replied. "I had to Snag her, though, so I guess I'm her Trainer temporarily. As soon as she's Purified I'll give her back."

Nurse Joy looked a little confused, so we had to introduce ourselves at that point. I guess there were times when not knowing who was who could be an issue, especially when a group of injured Pokémon had several different Trainers.

"Kitt, where's Anakin?" Jake asked. I glanced around, realizing with horror that I couldn't find him. Even Thunder seemed to realize that he was gone, snuffling around the room looking for her playmate. She headed towards the automatic door, ignoring objects in her path, nose still glued firmly to the ground.

"I'll follow Thunder. You guys check around here. Anakin can't have gone far; he must've snuck outside to hide." I headed outside in time to see Thunder's tail disappear into a hedge. Glancing around first to make sure the coast was clear, I Shifted and followed her into the bush.

It wasn't hard to follow Thunder no that I was as small as she was, and had senses much stronger than when I was human. I could hear her paw steps up ahead, and I soon picked up her scent, and Anakin's too, which made following a trail much easier. As a Pikachu, I was able to slip through gaps in the hedge that were too small for a human, and it wasn't long before I found Anakin.

There was a small flower garden where the bushes ended, and among the flowerbeds was a bench where one could take a break from their travels. Another Trainer was already there, Anakin purring happily in her lap. I was surprised; I'd never seen him act this way. A scruffy-looking Umbreon with pale green rings was curled up on the bench as well, apparently dozing in the warm afternoon light.

I suddenly realized why Anakin was so friendly with this Trainer. We had run into her soon after Michael became a Shifter, though we hadn't seen her since. She was about five years older than us, with hair almost the same shade as Emma's and blue eyes, and she was currently wearing capris in addition to her tank top and jacket. She had swapped the boots she had been wearing when we last met for sneakers, and I wondered if she had come to participate in the upcoming contest, or if another Shadow was nearby. Rui seemed amused by Anakin's presence; perhaps she was remembering a group of teens with a Shinx Egg, and wondering if the Egg had hatched.

Thunder trotted up to Rui, and she laughed as Anakin hissed and turned away. The Umbreon lifted his head to glare at the two Shinx before closing his eyes again. Along with his odd-colored rings, the Umbreon's eyes were of a strange golden hue, a few shades different from Cameron's amber eyes. I knew there was more to him than what most people saw.

I was about to leave the hedge when I caught a strange scent on the wind. Anakin and Thunder smelled it as well, huddling closer to Rui, and the Umbreon raised his head and growled, the rings on his body beginning to glow. A group of people approached the bench, and if it wasn't for the fact that one of them smelled like a Cipher agent I would've had to stuff a hand-paw in my mouth to keep myself from cracking up.

Three of them were dressed in tight-fitting formal suits despite the warm weather. The suits themselves were well-kept, ironed to perfection….and bright, Magcargo red. In addition, they wore fancy ties and gloves, dress shoes, and an oversized belt buckle with a symbol on it that looked like the offspring of a flame and the letter F. It was a wonder they could see, because each of them wore large, opaque sunglasses the same shade as their suits. Even their hair looked hilarious: the two men had it slicked down except for a tuft on the right, where it was styled to look like a Charmander's tailtip. The woman had her hair pulled into two pigtails above her ears, and stylized just like the men. I suspected that her hair was slicked down as well. All three of them had dyed it to match their outfits.

I wonder how anyone can take them seriously. Then again…

The fourth member of the group was the one who smelled of Cipher. She must've been the leader of the group as well. If past encounters with members of other evil organizations and their fashion senses were anything to go by, then she was an Admin or some sort of Higher-Up. Her outfit was a cross between a dress and the suits the grunts wore, the skirt portion stiffly starched so it stuck out almost horizontally from her body. She wore thigh-length yellow socks and platform boots of the same shade as her outfit, again Magcargo red. The woman's orange hair was cropped short in a style reminiscent of a Galactic Grunt's, though it was slicked down to her head. I couldn't see her eyes; they were hidden behind some sort of visor.

The squad of strangely-dressed people quickly surrounded Rui, who seemed unconcerned with their threatening attitude. Perhaps it was because, like me, she was trying not to laugh. Then the Admin stepped closer, looked down at Rui, and told her to hand over any and all Pokémon she had, including Anakin, Thunder, and the Umbreon. Rui refused, saying that the Shinx were not hers, the Umbreon belonged to no one, and even if they were, she wouldn't give them up. This seemed to really tick off the Admin, who ordered the grunts to back off. She leaned down and put her face close to Rui's, whispering what I assumed was a threat. Then she backed off and drew out a Pokéball.

Rui's own fingers dropped to her waist, and she removed one of her Pokéballs from her belt. I could tell the situation was going to get ugly, especially from the reaction of the Pokémon. Placing Anakin on the bench, she stood, and released her Pokémon, a Dragonair of a soft violet hue with orbs of a darker shade—not a Shiny, but not a normal Dragonair, either. The Admin released her Pokémon as well, a Mightyena who looked ready for battle. Without warning, it attacked, charging at Rui's Dragonair with the intent of sinking its fangs in her throat.

However, Mightyena was unable to complete the attack, bouncing off of a barrier summoned by Dragonair. When the Protect attack faded, Rui had Dragonair use Ice Beam, freezing Mightyena in its tracks. A Thunderbolt rapidly finished the battle.

The Admin looked stunned for a minute, then drew two more Pokéballs from her pockets. A Beartic and a Leafeon quickly made an appearance, and I saw Rui's eyes widen.

More Shadows! How many are here!?