Blackness and a thick murky pressure surrounded me.

Up. Up and forward.

It wasn't too different to hovering normally, once I was in. Just... harder. Like marching forward against the wind.

My head broke out of that pressure first, emerging from the snowbank piled up against the manor's back wall. I glanced around nervously for anyone who might see me. It seemed safe here...

The dim orange glow in the sky told me that it was nearly dusk. The sun was already beneath the white cloud that cloaked the tundra north of here.

The tundra... That white haze... This was my last chance. I could go to them now. The ghosts should still be asleep right now, and certainly no one would find me out back, right? I could escape. I could be free.

No... No... I couldn't just leave and hide forever.

I sighed. Time to do something crazy.

Rather than doing the sensible thing and getting far, far away from the manor, I pulled my full body from the safety of the ground and rose up. Past the first floor, grateful that the windows had all been boarded up. Past the second flood. All the way up to Silver's attic. She was probably the most vengeful of them all...

Terror was building up in my chest. I don't even know what was keeping me going... Was it really courage? Or was I just afraid of my other options? Maybe I was just stubbornly sticking to my terrible plan at this point.

I prayed the fear wouldn't disrupt my phasing, and pushed my face gently into the wall.

Silver's attic hadn't changed at all in the last week. Her many shelves of trinkets, and stones, and treasures still glistened in the fading sunlight. But even with how that all sparkled, I was fully focused on Silver hself.

She was curled up on a fur-covered sort of... bag in the corner of the room. It figured she would sleep up here... guarding her horde like some sort of dragon. Maybe she had been one in a past life... Could that happen?

Even in sleep her expression looked cold and harsh. Either she was having a bad dream or her face was just stuck like that.

I was frozen in place watching her for a few seconds. The gentle rise and fall of her chest. The slight stirring of her hand, as if she were caressing some newly stolen prize.

The moment passed and my heart returned to a more... workable pace as I was sure she was asleep. I just... needed to get out before she woke up.

I pushed myself through the wall and stopped breathing, afraid that even the gentle sound of my breath might wake the sleeping demon. I guess not needing that much air could come in handy, after all...

I moved quickly down her stone collection. Blues, and greens, and pure whites... I had to find it quickly... quickly...

Luckily the Fire Stone stood out, glimmering with false embers even in the faint light of dusk.

I almost couldn't bring myself to pick it up. The one thing Silver had cherished above all else. And she had made it clear what would happen if I touched it...

I shook my head vigorously. Oh... Why did I care about that now? She would kill me if I she saw me anyways, it's not like taking it would change much. And besides... it wasn't hers.

I picked up the stone. Even in this dangerous situation I couldn't help but spare a moment to appreciate it. I could at least understand why she loved it so much... it was so pretty. But I couldn't keep it, of course...

It wasn't a bribe. At least, I didn't mean it like that... I intended to give it back to the kit, even if she wouldn't be my friend. She... she didn't deserve the cold. No... no child deserved it.

Not even me.

"Silver?"

I heard the voice too late. I should have fled straight through the wall in a panic. But I froze instead.

Scratch had come through the door without so much as a knock, something sparkly and purple in his hands. I guess he'd finally found a worthwhile gift...

For a moment I wondered if I could fake it. Pretend to be Silver. Scratch said it himself, right? We looked the same?

But we were still too different. I could never match her cold-hearted glare. And he obviously knew that.

"A-aurora? How are you... ?" he muttered, mercifully low enough it might not wake Silver. But then his eyes turned to the stone in my hands. "What are you doing?" he asked incredulously.

I surprised myself by being speaking up. "It's- It's not hers Scratch. You know that," I fumbled out back at him. In spite of all the time I'd been convincing myself this was right, I still felt so guilty in that moment.

I saw him staring at Silver from the corner of his eyes. Debating whether or not to wake her up. He knew what that would mean...

"Are you serious right now? After what you did, now you're trying to steal from Silver?" he asked accusingly.

I couldn't tear my eyes from her. Was that stirring normal, or was the noise waking her up? If she woke up, this would all get very bad very quickly. Did I really have any chance of convincing Scratch to let me go? Was there any point in stalling?

"Y-you said yourself that stealing was taking it too far. That they shouldn't do it. I'm... I'm just bringing it back," I whispered in a pleading tone.

Scratch shook his head. Disappointment, or disbelief? "You know how much that means to her. Maybe she shouldn't have taken it in the first place, but... trying to take it from her while she's asleep, after already betraying everyone's trust? That's low... That's really low."

"B-but- " I struggled to form a response, heart pounding. There was almost no way this ended without a fight.

"I really tried to help you out. But you never really even tried to be a friend, did you? You hurt all of us with- with Havoc. And that wasn't enough of a betrayal now? When does it stop, Aurora?"

"It's not hers!" I yelped out indignantly, then stuffed my own hand over my mouth. That was louder than I meant... "You acted like you cared about doing the right thing but... Why do you even try to tell her not to steal, if you're just going to ignore it when she does?" I whispered.

"I... She's... " he started, and then let out an exasperated sigh. A dangerously loud one. Silver seemed restless, but he was being merciful enough to speak in a hush.

"She's a friend," he finally continued. "I'm not her parent. I can't make her do anything. I can tell her to do the right thing, but ultimately there's nothing I can do to stop her. I don't steal from my friends, if that's what you're suggesting I should have done," he gestured to the stone I was holding with disgust. "And even if she probably shouldn't have it in the first place, it makes her happy. And that's what matters to me."

"You said I was your friend... And you still tried to lock me away..." I muttered. I instantly regretted that.

"Do you really think that's the same?" he whispered angrily. "You betrayed our trust. We put up with so much of your shit. We tried so hard to make things work with you and you kept questioning us, disrespecting us, and finally moved on up to trying to judge us." He cast me a hateful glare. "Don't think I'm naive. I covered for you because I knew they'd take it too far in the heat of the moment, but don't think I really believe that panicking excuse. You knew what you were doing. You thought he deserved it." he sneered at me in disgust.

Well, that much was true. And if anything, I'd only become more convinced of that since...

Everything he said... It was just like Faceless had told me. At the end of the day, his concern for what the other ghosts were doing was just symbolic. He didn't really care at all...

I felt cold. My next words were... dangerous. But at that moment, I just wanted to prove it. I just wanted to prove he was a liar.

"You... It's all just fake... isn't it? You don't really care at all if any of this is right or wrong!" I hissed.

"You're insane. That you think your warped sense of right or wrong means anything anymore? You're a traitor and a thief!"

"You said they'd go too far, right? That wanting to kill me was wrong? So... do you still think killing me would be wrong? Even now?"

His angry glare broke to confusion. "What? What the hell does that have to do with anything?"

"Do you think killing me is wrong?" I asked sternly.

"I'm not feral Aurora!" he hissed. "You're a traitor, but I'm not going to murder you. That's the damned reason I lied for you in the first place. They were so heated... I didn't want anyone to do something stupid."

"You know if she wakes up, she'll kill me." I said matter-of-factly, staring him directly in the eyes.

I saw him deflate a bit. He realized the trap I'd set for him.

"Wh-why do you think I'm still whispering? You're going to give me the damned stone right now, and... go back down in the cellar while I figure out how you got out and what the hell we're going to do about you."

I closed my eyes for just a moment to rest. This was the last peace I'd get until it was over.

"No. I'm- I'm not giving you the stone. I'm taking it with me."

When I opened my eyes again, he looked furious.

But he wasn't attacking. He was frozen over. Conflicted. If he woke Silver now, he'd be admitting he didn't really care if it was wrong.

He didn't yell, but wordlessly he lunged through the air towards me. I swiftly floated to the side and he crashed into the shelf with a bang, knocking several stones to the floor.

Was he really that clumsy? Or...

"WHO?" her frigid voice screeched from the corner of the room in an instant. I wasn't waiting for her to figure out what was happening. I fell backwards through the wall immediately, Fire Stone in hand.

The last thing I saw before phasing through the wall was Scratch's face when he saw Silver rise. He looked... relieved.

He'd tell himself that it was all an accident. That he had no idea he'd wake Silver up in the struggle. That he couldn't control her violent reaction. That he had done nothing wrong.

It was disgusting.

But I had no time to dwell on it. I could hear the banshee shrieking in the attic behind me. No time for anything. I had to get away from here, and as fast as I could.

I flew north, cursing whatever it was that limited my flight speed. The screeching behind me wasn't getting quieter, and I didn't dare turn around to look.

Trees flew by beneath me, flashes of brown and white with speckled hints of green. Thankfully the constant wind wasn't blowing its flurry against me. But even without the wind opposing me, I wasn't going fast enough. She'd catch me. She'd kill me.

I tilted forward even more, practically prone in the air as I tried to will a faster flight. This was exactly what I wanted to avoid. There was no way I could win a fight, or hide, or even outrun her. She'd catch me and then it-

I scrunched my eyes tight for just one moment. I needed to focus. I couldn't do this right now.

The waves of snow riding on the wind became denser, and I saw the great white expanse of the tundra growing in the distance.

Town was south, but the only direction I was going to go right now was as far away from her as possible. I caved and stole a glance backwards.

Her expression was fury incarnate. Like the iciest demon of the underworld was speeding towards me to steal my soul straight from my body. She was screeching something, probably curses, but it was lost in the howling wind. She was a bit behind me, but she'd be on me within moments if I paused for even a second.

I spun my head forward again, regretting having looked. We were closely matched, but she was gaining. And given that this didn't seem to be tiring my body out, she must have been the same way...

Her catching up was inevitable. I needed to do something different. Anything.

The tangle of brown rushing by beneath me thinned out as I flew past the edge of the woods. The blanket of white in the sky only got thicker though, as I dove right into the storm. These were supposed to hide me, right? Maybe this was exactly what I needed...

I dove deeper into the white void. The varying shades of gray below as I zipped past a protruding stone or a cliff face were the only proof that I hadn't already died. That and the continuous howl which drowned out any chance I had of hearing her coming...

I couldn't tell if I had been flying through the blizzard for seconds or minutes at this point. Every thought in my head had been replaced with "GO", and "GO FAST". When did I stop? When could I stop? When would she stop? Was she even still chasing me? She couldn't see me in the storm, right?

I let myself look back again. She was still right on my tail, and still as furious as ever. Stupid. If I could still see in the blizzard, of course she could too.

Maybe if I dropped the stone she'd chase after it and I could escape? She was obsessed, and I might be able to get away in the lost time. The stone... its faint warmth still pressed against my body as I cradled it close my chest, trying my hardest not to drop it in the frenzy.

But I still shivered. I'd seen the hatred in her eyes. The bloodlust. This wasn't just about the stone. I'd crossed her.

What did I do? I couldn't run. I couldn't hide. I couldn't fight. I didn't know much, and I couldn't do much but... I needed something now. There had to be some way out of this? Right?

My eyes swept down across the tundra I'd once called come. I'd never gotten to sweep past it from above before. Not that there was much to see. Snow, rocks, and the rare flecks of brown, or orange, or black as a pack of Pilowsine, or Glalie, or their young trekked across it. None of them could see us through the snowstorm.

It was a miserable, lonely, and cruel place. But it might be the advantage I needed. That and... I loosened my hug on the Fire Stone to look it over. That, and Silver's obsession...

I scanned the tundra with more purpose. They were rarer, but I knew what I needed to find now. I had a bit of time before she-

A bolt of blue shot through the air past me, narrowly missing as it crackled with frozen energy. I instinctively turned back to see her preparing another blast. Less time than I had thought... I was in firing range now.

I turned my eyes forward again. Looking back would only slow me down... She was clearly struggling at this range. Please don't hit...

I drifted left a bit, hoping to throw her off. A beam flew way too far to my right, breaking up the monotonous yell of the wind with a loud crackling.

Please, please, please... Where... Where?!

My eyes finally found a collection of brown dots nestled into a snowbank. Swinub. Weeks ago, my mother would have been pushing me to hunt the things. But Swinub weren't enough... I needed-

Another beam whizzed past my ear, nearly causing me to tumble from the sudden noise and rush of cold. Not the good kind of cold... The old cold. The cruel cold.

Then I saw them. Just a bit away from the little Swinub, two much larger blots of brown on the white landscape. Mamoswine, sharping their tusks against a nearby boulder. They were a bit far from their young but... It would have to do. It would have to work. Right?!

I broke from my linear course for the first time, and dove down towards the Swinub napping in the snow. I cloaked as I did, swooping down straight into the smallest of the litter and screeching like a striking Talonflame. It gave me an odd pride to know that if I were hunting them, I would have picked one off successfully for the first time.

But I was not hunting the Swinub. Instead I went right past the pig just as it began to stand and squeal in panic. I dropped the Fire Stone next to it and flew straight into the ground under it.

The white became black and I felt that odd, thick, liquid pressure all around me again. It felt... peaceful. To be alone in the dark after all of that running and panic. But it was far from over.

I could feel... ripples, in the ground. Like waves washing over me as the dirt I was in shook from the massive footsteps above. The Mamoswine had come to check on their young. Did Silver take the bait?

She said she came from down south. She didn't know anything about the tundra, did she? She saw me cloak before flying down, so... Hopefully she thought that meant she was safe. Hopefully she didn't know the Mamoswine could smell her.

I began to wonder why I didn't just hide in the ground sooner. It was almost nice down here. And there's no way she could find me in this void. Maybe I could just stay here until she left...

But I was feeling so nauseous all of a sudden. Like I was getting sick and... Oh yeah! I needed to breathe!

I quickly "swam" a bit away from the source of the stomping above and peeked my head out to gulp in some air.

I looked back just in time to see Silver hovering over the cowering Swinub, with a mix of shock and hatred on her face as the larger of the two Mamoswine charged towards her.

She took the bait. I just needed to get the stone and get out while she was still distracted...

Silver flew to the side to try and avoid the rampaging behemoth, but with a wide swing of its tusks Mamoswine caught her on the tip and flung her down into the snow. The titan reared up on its hind legs in front of her, ready to crush her. She sank into the snow and disappeared.

This wouldn't last long. With her phasing and flight, she could easily escape. She was obsessed with the stone, and probably wouldn't leave without it... But the moment she had it, she'd be gone.

I could just run right then and there, and I'd definitely escape. The Mamoswine hadn't noticed me, and she was in no position to watch which way I went...

But I still had mistakes to fix... Which meant I was in the same position as her. I couldn't leave without the stone.

I took a gulp of air and sank into the ground again. Forward, forward, forward... How far did I need to go? How far had I gone? I just had to guess...

When it seemed like I might be close, I peeked my head out of the ground. A tiny Swinub was squealing like crazy right next to me. Two more were scattering nearby... Silver was floating above, cursing and unleashing her ice beam towards one of the Mamoswine... The other one was was trying to gather the panicking piglets... And the stone was... Ah!

Thankfully the bright orange stood out in the drab environment. It was lying, abandoned in the chaos, not too far behind me. I had overshot it.

Phwack! Something frigid struck me in the back of the head with a sharp sting. Then another, and another.

I winced and held my arms out to shield my face then turned towards my attacker: the tiny Swinub I had woken up. The thing was blowing out an icy wind filled with heaps of snow, right at my face. I guess even the little ones could smell me this close. I scowled and cringed as I weathered the storm.

The infant grew tired and stopped its barrage, turning and running back towards its mother with a shrill squeal cry. The mother, all of its piglets in tow, turned towards me. I saw those massive nostrils sniffing.

Above them, I could see Silver weaving through the air trying to avoid a barrage of massive icicles the Mamoswine was spewing. But she wasn't looking at her attacker. She was scanning the ground, looking for her stone so she could get out... Instead she locked eyes with me.

Instinctually I glanced back to the stone, and she followed my gaze.

The other Mamoswine suddenly stiffened. Then it charged towards me.

I flew towards the stone as fast as I could. Silver did as well. My fate was wholely in these next few seconds.

Was I going slower through the ground, or was I always this slow? Was that screaming the wind or Silver? Was the pounding my heart, or the charging beast? The pounding... Oh Arceus, the pounding.

It was definitely the beast. It was louder, and louder. My whole lower body was vibrating with the intense shaking of the ground. It was right behind me- I'd never make it! I was going to die here- the Mamoswine couldn't stop now if it wanted to!

My body reacted before I could process that thought and I fell the whole way into the ground without time to take a breath.

The whole world shattered around me as the titan slammed down on the ground right above, flying right past as expected. I didn't have the air to wait. I surfaced just in time to hear her scream rip out above the wind.

Not Silver's usual banshee cry of terror, but a scream of pain...

The Mamoswine had caught her making for the stone just a few feet past where I had emerged and tossed her down into the snow again with its massive tusk. I saw bits of red tainting the white...

Luckily for her, it must have tossed her a bit out of its path and been unable to stop. It was just slowing down now, having charged far past her.

For a second I wondered if I should help her... but the other Mamoswine began rushing in to finish the job. There- There was nothing I could do to that thing. And even if I could, she'd probably just try to kill me herself while I was distracted, right?

Maybe I wasn't totally useless but... I definitely wasn't a hero.

Instead I took the opportunity to float over to the stone, just a few paces away. I grabbed it up hastily and glanced back to Silver.

She had risen from the ground and was facing the charging Mamoswine head on, preparing another ice attack. She was covered in mud and dripping with blood and hatred. If I didn't know, I'm not sure I would have been able to tell which was the feral...

I felt a small pang of sympathy. "Good luck," I whispered and sunk into the ground with the Fire Stone in hand.

I swam away as far as I could through the darkness, alone with my thoughts again. I couldn't help but wonder if every howl of the wind above could be her dying scream.

Dawn was getting close by the time I found my way back to Everrime Town. I was only able to find it because I could see through the storm and could fly up and look around from above... In the end, I was really gonna need to learn how to navigate properly anyways. I let out a pitiful laugh at how much I had to go through just to finally understand that...

But unless I wanted to wait all day, I had to move quick. The life-threatening part of this was over, and somehow I was still alive. Maybe fate had changed its mind about me after all... But I still had a difficult task ahead. A really uncomfortable one...

I recognized the house right away. I guess the trauma solidified it in my brain, but whatever. It was useful to know.

I slipped right through the wall to a familiar scene. An empty room with a crackling fire filling the hearth. Filling the room with a dreadful heat to me... but a heavenly relief to the small Eevee kit lying on a rug in front of the fireplace.

Maybe I imagined it, but she looked a lot less restful than I remembered... I hoped we didn't scar her too much.

My heart was pounding almost as much as when I took the stone in the first place. No matter what happened... at least she wouldn't be cold anymore.

I floated over, cloaked, and curled up on the ground in front of her. With a silent prayer, I gave her collar a gentle nudge.

She rose her groggy eyes, curiously at first, and then with a look of concern when she realized no one was there.

"H-hey... Please don't freak out.. I'm- I'm not-" I started slowly and quietly, trying to keep her calm.

"G-go away!" she growled, eyes fearful. She wasn't yelling, but it wasn't quiet either. I glanced nervously back to the room I knew her parents slept in.

"P-please! I'm not here to scare you!"

She looked rose to her feet and took a defensive stance, growling towards my voice. But unlike last time, she was trembling. She was more afraid than ever. I had done this...

"L-look. I'm going to stop being invisible now, o-ok? I'm not trying to play a trick on you," I promised. My colors returned as I slowly became visible again.

She recoiled back, still shaking. But then she saw the stone, and shock overtook her fear. "That's my stone!" she shouted with bewilderment, "You're the one who took my stone!"

I cringed and glanced again to the bedroom. I thought I saw shapes stirring in the darkness, but no one seemed to rise.

"I- I'm gonna to give it back you. I promise! But please be quiet!" I pleaded. "I just want to talk to you, and I uhm... I don't want your parents to attack me again..."

Recognition flashed in her eyes. Thankfully she did quiet down, though. "You're- you're the one from the other night!" she said accusingly. "I'm gonna call my parents again if you don't give me the stone right now!" she hissed. At least her nerves were returning...

"Yes, I... I came to scare you the other night... " I admitted with a look of guilt. "And... I came here tonight because... I wanted to say, uhm... sorry."

She paused. She was calculating... trying to figure out if this was some kind of trick.

To reassure her, I put the glimmering stone down right in front of her and backed away.

"My fri- The uh, the ghosts I was with told me we were just gonna play some harmless pranks. And I... I should have known it was more than that... and I uhm... I shouldn't have been there. So uhm... I'm sorry. For scaring you. And... everything." I mumbled lamely.

Her eyes were fixated on the stone. She was entranced by the glimmering false embers. Like the stone was all she could ever care about. In a way it almost reminded me of Silver... but this was different. She needed that stone.

She didn't tear her eyes from the Fire Stone, but they began to glaze over. Her thoughts had drifted elsewhere.

"You were the voice, weren't you?" she asked.

"I... uhm... I don't understand what you mean..."

"The other night when... when it happened. Someone yelled for the ghost to stop. It didn't sound like mom but... I thought it had to be her, since no one else was here. Was- was that you?" she asked in a melancholy, her head down as she stared over the stone.

"Oh. Uhm... yeah... I'm- I'm sorry I didn't stop him sooner... I was... I was scared..."

"Oh." she said, nervously pawing at the ground around the stone.

A few silent moments passed.

"Thank you... " she muttered, still refusing to look me in the eye.

Another awkward moment of silence, broken only by the drip of her tears on the stone.

"I- I forgive you." she sniffled.

My heart finally found a place to rest in my chest. Hearing those words had been the most impossible part of all of this to me.

"But..." she finally turned up to look me in the eyes. Hers were pouring with tears. "Why did you take my stone?" she asked with anguish. "It's- it's so cold. I thought that... I thought that I'd finally be able to go out alone, and play with the other kids, and sleep in my own room, and... and just.. and just be free. But then the stone was gone and mom said we couldn't get another one and there was nowhere to go. The cold is everywhere and it hurts... it hurts so bad. I could never leave mom, or the fireplace, so I could never play with anyone, and..."

She was sobbing at this point. Cold and alone... I had definitely chosen someone I could relate to.

"I- I didn't take your stone. That was the other Froslass. Silver," I explained. In hindsight it probably sounded like a really bad lie but... Her pleading eyes made me think she probably wasn't in any state for skepticism anyways...

"And I uh, I brought it back because... because I used to be the same. Before I evolved I was always freezing... Always shivering... I shivered so much it actually hurt," I gave a sad smile, and she nodded in commiseration. "And uhm... we lived alone, so I also didn't have any friends. But uh... I guess I still don't have any friends... but like... I guess I just kind of... didn't want you to feel that way too. You didn't... you didn't seem like you deserved it."

Still crying, she pounced forwards and began to nuzzle me. "Thank you... thank you... thank you..." she murmured through her tears. I felt... guilty being thanked for this, after my hand in hurting her... I guess the kid was more messed up by this than she let show...

"So... uhm... Eevee? I was wondering if..." I stuttered over myself. I had no right to ask this but... given she was pushing affectionately against my face, she seemed receptive already. "Can- can we be friends? I know I hurt you the other day and all, b-but..." I struggled to find a reason she should forgive me.

She hopped off of me and gave a big smile through her tears. "I'll finally be warm... a-and I can finally have f-friends. Y-you can be my first!" she choked out.

"I'll- I'll do my best!" I promised, smiling back. I was starting to cry too.

We cried joyfully together for a few minutes before she regained her own composure. She approached the stone, pawing at the ground around it nervously.

"I- I want to evolve now..."

I nodded encouragingly. "You'll feel... you'll feel a lot better when you do."

"Right..." she frowned and stared at the stone. "Does- does it hurt?"

"Not at all," I smiled. "There's nothing to worry about. Just enjoy this."

She hesitated another moment before smiling back, shedding her fear entirely. And with that big grin, she pushed her paw to the stone.

Beartic finished storing away his kitchen supplies for the day and went to clean out the oven. He could never hear a thing with his head in that box... Which made it the perfect opportunity. When a few minutes later he finally climbed out, he stepped out of the kitchen to clean the dining room before settling down for the night.

But rather than setting to work, he stared at the room in surprise. All of the fur and food was already wiped clean from the tables. Every abandoned platter brought into to the kitchen. Every chair and rug dragged back into place. As though the room had cleaned itself.

Alright, so this probably barely counted as mischief... but his look of confusion was so satisfying all the same. I barely held back a giggle.

His expression hardened, and he gave a knowing nod before turning and going back into the kitchen. A moment later I saw him set a small pink poffin on the window frame between the kitchen and dining room. Then I heard the door to his bedroom close.

I grinned. Judging by his new tendency to "accidently" leave poffins out at night... I think he might have caught on to what was happening. I hovered over and grabbed the treat, snapping it into two pieces. I just wished each one was a little bigger...

I went straight through the wall and out into the village proper. I was cloaked, of course. Even if some of the villagers were starting to catch on to my presence, I still wasn't quite accepted yet...

I flew past the jolly Delibird, cheerfully handing off a package to that Sneasel who always picked fights... Right past the civilized Abomasnow who always sold rare southern berries in the street.

I zipped past a Glaceon and smiled. Hearth always said the nicest things about her dad... I hoped I could meet him soon. He sounded nothing like my father...

I couldn't wait to meet them all... like properly I mean. Living in the village like this... it was nothing like my daydreams. But it was still nice. And soon enough, I'd make those dreams a reality too. It was like learning to phase: it had come eventually, right? I just had to keep trying...

And besides... There was one thing just like my daydreams. I had a friend now. That was more than I ever had before.

I flew past the edge of the village, into the woods. It was easy to spot her stark orange against the snow, not far into the outskirts. She was resting peacefully on a rock, the snow melted into the mud all around her. She had the biggest smile. She always did, ever since...

She'd taken the name Hearth when she evolved. It made a lot of sense. She wasn't chained to her mom, or her fireplace anymore. She was her own hearth now.

I wished I had been that clever when I made up my own name... but I still liked mine.

Still cloaked, I snuck up behind her.

"Boo!" I shouted with a grin as I revealed myself.

She spat a weak ember into my face in surprise, and we both yelled out in shock.

Then we both started laughing.

"Can't you just say 'hi' like a normal person for once?" she grinned.

"Sorry," I giggled. "Guess it comes with the type."

"Yeah, well melting snow comes with mine." She pounced on top of me.

She was so warm... It was definitely a bit uncomfortable. But if I asked her to get off and keep her distance, she would. I knew she wouldn't tell me I was disrespectful, or that it was just in my head, or that I needed to get over it, or that I was weak...

She... she never told me that stuff. There was some awkwardness at first, of course... Neither of us really knew how being friends worked... And honestly I'm not even sure I understood how people were supposed to treat each other at all.

But even when I upset her, and even when I'd misunderstood her... She never held it against me. Even after what I'd done to her during the haunting... she'd never remind me of it.

It was bizarre.

Or maybe it wasn't. Maybe this was normal after all.

But if she could tolerate all of my mistakes, then I could bear short, blazing hugs for her. And honestly, I think I kind of enjoyed hugging her too.

"I uhm... I brought a treat that Beartic left out. I think he's leaving them for me," I held out the tiny half of a poffin to her. "Sorry it's not much..."

"Making new friends already?" she grinned and took her half. "Don't forget about me when you're the most popular ghost in town."

"I uh... don't think that would be very hard to be..." I winced thinking of the other ghosts.

Luckily they had never come by town since. I guess Havoc's arrest made them think more about the risks... Either way, I didn't need to think about them anymore. I'd put them behind me... and I needed to do so in my thoughts as well.

Hearth gobbled down her poffin in one enormous chomp, and then shuddered. "Oooooh... Why would anyone make something so sweet?"

I took a small nibble from my own. Rich, sugary, sweetness... Where was it vanishing to in my ghostly body? I had no idea. Nothing mattered but that taste...

At the end of the day, I had to admit. Being a ghost was a pretty good deal. I could go wherever I wanted, I could fly, I didn't have to worry about starving... And I could still taste this sugary delight.

I bit down again, lamenting that my two small nibbles had taken out most of the treat.

Sure, I got way too excited at pranking people now. And sure, I practically died inside every time it was a bit too warm.

But you know what? Hearth understood. She'd play along with my pranks, and... if I went too far, she told me so. And from what I was getting to know about her, I think she wanted to hug twice as much as she actually did... so she definitely understood how I felt about the heat, right?

And I think maybe the villagers didn't mind my little pranks in town either... though I tried my best to make sure they weren't at all harmful. Maybe when I finally showed myself, they'd all be understanding in the same way?

"Hey, you're doing it again!" Hearth spit a tiny ember at my feet. "Stop zoning out! It's creepy when you stare at me like that."

"That's the creepy thing?" I laughed. "I really am a terrible ghost."

"Terrible ghost? Maybe. But I've yet to win a game of tag. Of course, being invisible is kind of cheating ya' know..."

"I'll uh... I'll add that to the rules list," I smiled sheepishly.

"Yeah, put it right under 'no hiding inside solid rock' and 'no flying twenty feet into the air when I nearly catch you'," she rolled her eyes. "Come on, I'm feeling it tonight. Twenty second lead, you're it."

I glanced up at the setting sun. "You know it's uh... going to be dark soon, right? Don't you need to uhm... go home and sleep?"

"Bah, I'm not afraid of the dark! Besides, we never have enough time to play at dusk. You've been coming out in daylight, so I can play a bit in the dark."

My smile reached my heart. "Alright... but uhm... You know that I can like.. uhm..."

"Just start counting!" she yelled and leapt off with a huge grin. I saw her bounding into the woods, a soft orange glow in the darkening forest.

One... two... three...

You know, I wonder when Arceus decided I deserved a happy ending after all?

Four... five...

Maybe I was always the one that thought I didn't...

I thought I was weak, and a burden, and a bad friend... And everyone had always just agreed with me. How could they all be wrong? If that was all true, then I deserved everything that came to me...

But Hearth didn't see me like that... she thought I was nice, and good, and worthwhile. And now I had to choose who to believe.

My parents... the ghosts... none of them cared about me. They hurt me. They hurt me a lot.

So I guess I just wanted to believe the people who made me feel happy. I guess I just wanted to believe... myself? After all, I knew wasn't trying to hurt anyone...

It seems so obvious in hindsight not to base my self-worth on people who kept hurting me. People who didn't care what I wanted. But when they did it with a smile and called me friend... Maybe I just didn't know what a real friend looked like. Or maybe I just wanted to believe I finally had friends.

So maybe I did deserve a happy ending. At least, that's what I was choosing to believe...

Ah, I had let myself get distracted again. It had definitely been twenty seconds, right?

I smiled mischievously. Something told me "no seeing in the dark" would be added to the rules next time.

I hope you enjoyed this short...-ish story. Thanks for giving it a read!

This was a bit of a learning project for me, so reviews with thoughts, feedback, and constructive criticism are all greatly appreciated!