32. Dragon Meets Dragon

Scales didn't mind sleeping outside.

He really didn't. Preferred it depending on the climate. A good, sunny day back on the Isles was a great nap, if the Masters let it happen. They usually didn't. A bad day and the northernmost island would blow in a blizzard. He hated blizzards; most dragons did, apparently.

Still, he could deal with the cooling night air as he leaned against the back of the restaurant. Too big to fit in Blue's old bedroom. He'd gotten stares from the other residents, sure, but that wasn't so different from home. An old Theivul nodded to the large Hakamo-o as he walked towards the front entrance. Scales waved back, as he pulled up the blanket Blue's mother had found for him, and shuffled in his straw mat. It didn't do much, he was cold blooded after all, but it was better than nothing.

His newest friend's family was nice. Blue's mom was a great cook, and honestly that was enough for him. Really nice too, let him have more than usual. No meat though, but apparently someone could fix that. He had to meet this Finn guy.

Tomorrow though. His belly was full enough, and he could feel sleep approaching. He never fought it. Why would he? It was his second favorite thing to do after all. Hell, even the cold seemed to be helping along…

…

Blue didn't sleep well. The reemergence of the nightmare kept jolting him awake. It was a good thing Rio and Pana seemed to be heavy sleepers, they didn't need to deal with another one of his problems on top of everything else.

He looked at his two roommates. Pana claimed Red's old bed, and was still snoozing away. She even slept quietly. Rio didn't seem to mind using his own straw mat, curled up in a ball. He slept like a quadruped? Another support to his theory, one they'd be testing when he woke up. Hopefully it'd get his mind off of dad's fate…

Determined not to think about it, he took a peek outside. Snow blanketed the ground. A surprise shower then? It was still mid autumn. Someone probably used a strong Blizzard and it blew upwind. Oh well, snow was nice. His fur kept him warm enough, and it shouldn't be a problem for most-

It was then Blue remembered where Scales was sleeping, and his blood ran cold. Like Scales probably was.

"Oh shit."

He scrambled for the door, knocking it open and blowing past his siblings' own room. He didn't stop when Yellow poked her tired head out, he didn't stop when his mother stuck her one head out of the kitchen, the restaurant warm because of her preparations for the day.

"Blue?" She asked. "What's-"

That's all he heard, quickly jumping up and opening the door. The snow wasn't deep, only coming up to his feet, but he had no idea how much cold Scales could take. And at an extended period of time!

The Bidoof quickly dashed through the snow, and then he saw his friend covered in a wet blanket, ice covering his forearms and creeping up his chest. Oh Arceus, this was bad. Blue knew he had to get him inside, and fast!

The Bidoof started pushing against his currently freezing friend, but he wouldn't budge! He was too weak, and Scales was too heavy! Damn! Why couldn't he have woken Rio, or Pana? He butted again, and again, and again, but still nothing! At least he wasn't Sleep Talking… all he had to do was move the heavy-

The large dragon suddenly shifted! But, in the wrong way? Blue didn't notice the taller figure pulling Scales from his slumped position, but the grunt gave him away. Blue turned to the figure, who was wearing a red-orange cloak. When they moved it looked like flickering flames. A fire cloak! The Bidoof thought he could see the bulges of fire stones sewn in. A blue fin stuck out of his back, and his claws grabbed at Scales's forearm.

"Heavy, aren't ya?" the figure grunted, getting an icy arm over his own neck. He could now see the rough blue scales and piercing yellow eyes of a Gabite staring down at the Bidoof. A bag hung from the bag at his side, covering his red belly, but a long, faint scar still stuck out.

"Still breathing," the Gabite noted, dragging Scales through the snow. "That's good. Let's get him inside, probably gonna need you to open the door."

With that, the Gabite continued to drag him through the snow, and up to the restaurant's entrance. Blue wasn't far behind, jumping up and pushing the door open for the Gabite who was currently saving his friend.

"Blue?" his mother asked, before seeing the shape Scales was in. "What- Oh dear!"

"Hi Nutmeg," the Gabite said, sitting the dragon down. "He was just sleeping outside your shop, in the snow."

The Gabite took off his cloak, draping it over the now thawing punch dragon. Blue watched as the ice continued to melt, now faster thanks to the cloak.

"Oh I should have never let him sleep outside…" Nutmeg said, coming to look at Scales. "It shouldn't have gotten this cold for another few months!"

"Bastards…" the Gabite said, looking from Scales towards the kitchen. "May I borrow your kitchen? I wanted to discuss catering plans, and now I have a taste tester that may need it."

"Of course, Finn!"

…

The smell woke Scales as the cloak fell off him. The cold was pushed to the side as he looked towards where the smell was coming from.

The big, steaming bowl of stew sitting in front of him was the best thing he smelled in a while, bits of meat and vegetables bobbin in the-

Wait, meat?

He didn't even notice the spoon to the side, just picking up the bowl and starting to drink. The potatoes and carrots mixed well with the meat, not too tough, not too chewy. The flavors exploded as he guzzled. Savory, not too salty, little spicy, and most of all, filling! Even mom's cooking couldn't compare to this!

"Well, I'm glad you like it!"

The new voice snapped Scales out of his meal, and he put down his bowl to look at the Pokemon sat opposite him. A Gabite, he thought. He'd never seen another dragon! And he could cook! This trip was already worth it!

"Yeah!" Scales said, putting down his bowl for a bit. "It's amazing!"

"I'm glad!" the Gabite said with a grin. "It's a new recipe I cooked up, but not a lot of Pokémon in this town eat meat, so I haven't had a way to get a second opinion. The key is-"

As the Gabite talked, Scales slurped up the rest of the bowl, quickly devouring the meal. The last thing of meat he had was Rio's skewers, and this was so much better! On his mind was the retreating cold as he finished the meal, burping in satisfaction, shaking the ground. The surprised Gabite blinked.

"...and a little Tamato juice for an extra kick. Do you...want some more?"

"Please!" Scales pushed the wooden bowl towards the chef, who took it with a hooked claw.

"My name's Finn by the way," the Gabite said, smiling at Scales. "I'm glad you like my stuff."

"Scales," the large Hakamo-o said, licking his maw in anticipation. "And yeah, who wouldn't?"

"The boss, for one…" was all Finn said before darting behind the counter and ducking into the kitchen. Scales stared at the door for a while, waiting for his next serving. That warm feeling in his stomach spread around his body, but it seemed to linger in his chest.

"You alright?" Scales looked down to see Blue who stood right next to his leg. He looked really tired, ragged even. The Bidoof couldn't hold back a yawn before replying.

"Yeah," he said, shaking himself. "Just got up early. Ran out as soon as I saw the snow. Are you ok?"

"Uh, yeah. Why did you-"

"You were literally freezing over!"

Oh, that's why he was cold earlier! That… could've been bad...

"Sorry," Blue said. "Snowfall should be months away, and we didn't have space for you. I thought-"

"It worked out," Scales yawned. "Don't worry about it."

"Still-"

At that, the door burst open, and Finn walked out, balancing another bowl of stew on his claws and putting it in front of Scales. Nutmeg was right behind him, relief washing over her face at the sight of the now conscious dragon.

"There you go!" the Gabite said, a smile growing on his face. "Eat up!"

Scales did just that, slurping up the best soup he'd ever had with no offense to Nutmeg's own. He just liked meat more.

"Oh honey you're alright!" the Greedent said, walking up to Scales. "I'm so sorry about the snowfall. We'll have to find you somewhere else to sleep, outside won't work obviously. I don't want to risk another freak blizzard. You could sleep in here once I close up shop for the night."

Scales caught Blue's wince as he finished off his second serving… The Bidoof obviously didn't want that to happen. The Hakamo-o had been told he moves in his sleep, and that has caused… problems.

"You could come with me," Finn said. Scales blinked, looking at the chef, along with the squirrel and her beaver son. "I've got a place a little ways from here. Should have enough space for both of us."

"Are you sure?" Blue asked, looking the Gabite dead in the eyes. "He can be… loud."

"I'm a heavy sleeper," Finn replied. "Course it won't be for free. I need a taste tester for all the dishes I have planned for the wedding…"

"I'll do it!" Scales said, shooting up from his seat. The crack of wood made him look down, only to notice he had stabbed his own claws into the carved wood table and his knees snapped the shaft that held the thing up. The dragon raised his hands, and the table came with it.

"...Sorry," Scales said. "I'll… fix that before I go."

"Well," Blue sighed. "I'll help you out. We've got all day…"

…

The Abomasnow looked over her demonstration, the forest blanketed with her Blizzard. That should have been more than enough to prove she was serious.

"That good enough for ya?" she asked, before transforming once again. It felt weird at first, but eighteen years of practice let her do with just a thought. Still, tripling in size and becoming bipedal was just a little disorienting. Her normal body was much more pleasant.

The Espeon stretched in front of the assembled group of bandits. All but the leader looked particularly beat up. Especially the Marowak. Skull helmet cracked, bandaged arms and legs, leaning on a splint. She kinda felt bad for him.

Becoming something so big and then shrinking back down was a bit of a strain on the back. She waved her two-tipped tail playfully, completely relaxed, before laying on her stomach.

"So?" Selena asked, smiling at the leader, bright blue eyes shining. "Believe me?"

Veles simply stared at the shapeshifting Espeon, before his eyes turned back to the ruby stone he held in his large claws. The halved orb was warm to the touch, half a yellow arc on its front. The Tyranitar got up, towering over his minions, and looked at his own body. The strange black markings that started to spread as soon as he touched the thing seemed to have stopped. His right arm has lines sprouting from the black circle that formed around his elbow snaking all the way up his claws. The scar that slashed across his hard belly seemed to burn, but it didn't hurt. It felt kinda… nice.

"Let's say I do believe you," the Tyranitar said. "and this isn't some kinda crazy illusion put on by a Zoroark. What now?"

"You go in the Labyrinth and find the next pieces," Selena yawned. "Free your Legendary, and we can move on with our lives."

With a thought, the Espeon made a psychic bubble under her, and let it lift her to the much bigger Pokemon, looking him in the eyes.

"If you don't believe me," she continued. "That's fine. Just know that we're all in deep shit if you don't."

Veles glared at the blue-eyed Espeon. This sounded mad, but considering what she just did, there was at least some truth to it.

Besides, having a Legendary Pokemon's power would be quite useful. Not much would be able to stop him. It was worth pursuing, at least for now.

"Alright. Where do we-"

"Boss!"

Everyone turned up to see a Murkrow flapping through the harsh winds, carrying a small bag. Edgar, their scout. He did good work, unlike the rest of his main crew. He really needed to vet his inner circle better.

"We'll continue this later," he said to the completely relaxed Espeon. "What do you have for me Edgar?" Veles asked the bird.

"No sign of the Riolu," the scout answered, landing on the Tyranitar's shoulder. "The Bewear and that freak are heading toward Redwood though. It's… not hard to keep track of em…" The Murkrow shuttered after saying that, and Veles knew it wasn't because of the cold. Based on what she did to Mac, he couldn't blame him.

"Alright," Veles said, after a little while. "We'll pay em a visit. Payback for Mac and my booze. Anything else?"

"Yeah actually!" the Murkrow flipped his bag open, pulled a neat letter from his bag. "It's from-"

"Rosie!" Veles said, the edge in his voice melting away as he snatched the letter from the Murkrow's beak. "How did she look? That Bibarel treating her right? What was his name… Rojo?"

"Red, boss. He's treating her like a queen, don't worry about that."

"Damn right! Only the best for my girl. And how's... Finn?"

"Also good."

"Of course he is…"

At that, Veles tore open the letter, reading what was the latest with his daughter. What was in there… didn't inspire confidence.

"...If he makes you happy, sweetheart…" he said after reading. "Well, we were heading there anyway."

The Tyranitar turned to his still healing crew, who all straightened as he glared at all of them. That was better. His people needed to listen to him first after all.

"Listen up!" he barked, stomping his large foot. The ground around them shook briefly, snow falling from the trees surrounding their base. "Send out a call for the best gift you can find for my little girl's big day, and once you're done with that, get all the crews in the area surrounding that Bewear."

"B-boss?" the heavily injured Marowak asked. "The freak's probably a problem too. I'm not sure-"

"I'm going too," Veles said, silencing the Marowak with a glare. "Apparently I need to, if you all can't handle a single Riolu."

The bandaged Rhydon that stood next to Mac, looked like he wanted to speak but knew better than to do so. Selena chuckled lightly, eyes shining and still calmly floating.

"What's so funny?" the bandit king asked, turning to the Espeon.

"Nothing," she said, turning back to the Tyranitar. "Life is just funny. Mind if I come with? I just love weddings."