"You think they're fucking yet?"

Shiro choked on air when he heard the question Ven had just asked. He snapped his head down from the air he was sniffing to look at the absol incredulously.

"What?"

Ven shrugged his shoulders, casually stretching out in the patch of sunlight in the middle of the sidewalk. "You do know that's what they're doing, right?"

"Obviously I didn't."

The absol laughed. "You're clueless."

Shiro was just about to protest when a blur of red, orange, and gold sped past them. Ven glanced up, startled. "You think that's him?"

His lucario companion turned in the direction the blur had gone. "It must be. The human said he was a fire type." He took a long sniff of the air. "He definitely smells like one."

Fire types smelled like ash, smoke, and burning wood. It was definitely an acquired taste for anyone other than the fire type itself.

Shiro started with a brisk jog, before breaking out into a full run. Ven, easily keeping up with his blue companion, laughed. "I always did enjoy chicken hunting."

Things seemed to be looking up for Iyoku-Tekina.

The espeon- pardon, the not-espeon- was finally approaching shore, along with his odd green companion, at the dock of… actually, he couldn't quite recall the name.

"Where are we again?"

He and Haru were perched on the front rail of the ship. After watching the older espeon balance on the two inch thick rail with unbelievable ease, the espeon-poser tried to do the same, confident he had paid enough attention. Needless to say, he was considerably less graceful than the more experienced psychic type. Iyoku had went tumbling overboard, and if it weren't for Haru's powerful telekinesis, he would've been sharpedo chow. Now, after finally managing to steady himself on the rail- with the help of Haru's telekinesis- they were both sitting side by side, heads held high with all the regal aplomb of a real espeon, tails curled tastefully around their front paws. Haru's tail dangled over the edge slightly, Iyoku noticed. He subtly fixed his form.

This is the Johto region, Haru explained, patient as always, yet still startling Iyoku- who was still unused to the telepathy thing. The humans here are quite renowned for being closer with their Pokémon than other regions. They're also known for being the weakest Pokémon-wise, because of their low-powered wild Pokémon, who human trainers cannot effectively 'grind' against.

"Why is that?"

Haru dismissed his question with a flick of his forked green tail. That is a story for another time.

Iyoku considered this. "Well, then, I suppose it should be easier to defend my mate from threats if the wild Pokémon here are so weak," he concluded.

For some reason, I doubt she will be sticking around here for much longer, Haru responded, eyes flickering briefly.

"Why? Is Johto not a suitable settling place for my mate?"

According to the future I have foreseen, she will have her hands full quite soon with a new addition to her team. Then, without leaving room for more questioning, Haru's head tilted ever so slightly to the side, one ear cocked.

"Come," he said, suddenly, in his real voice. It sounded exactly like his mental voice, just less booming. "It's time you meet my trainer."

And it made Iyoku realize he had not once encountered another human on the ship since he arrived, having kept himself well-hidden until now.

People were starting to crowd out now, onto the front deck where the two cats were perched. Haru stood, fluidly, and strutted along the railing, his tail calmly waving back and forth. The few people 'ooh'ed and 'ahh'ed at his ever radioactive green coat. He then slid- yes, slid, like flowing water- down onto the second rail under the third, and then the first, and then finally the wooden floor, landing gracefully on his four paws- first the front paws, then the back paws a second later.

Iyoku, wanting to be 'ooh'ed and 'ahh'ed at as well, attempted the same moves.

His embarrassment was profound as Haru brought him back from another near-swim with the fishes.

Ignoring the giggling humans to the best of his ability, Haru barely concealed a smile. Don't fret over it. It's just something that comes naturally to all felines.

And Iyoku realized that his green friend did, in fact, mean that as the shady comment it was cunningly slipped in as. But he said it in such a kind and calm way that it almost slipped over the false-espeon's head. Almost.

"You are a… what's that word I'm looking for?"

I believe you mean 'ass,' Haru supplied nonchalantly as he began to fluidly move through the growing crowd of people.

Iyoku followed- bumping into several legs on the way. "Yes. You are an ass."

Leita awoke to a sleeping zoroark curled around her naked body.

He was very warm, what with all that long, thick dark fur. She smiled as she began running a hand through his hair, reminiscing the time they first met.

"Did you hear that?" Leita tilted her head to the side, as if listening intently. Ven looked up from the sandwich he was stuffing his face with.

"No."

Shiro, a riolu at the time, lying back with his eyes closed, spoke up without opening his eyes. "Maybe you're finally going crazy. I would, having to put up with this dumbass all day."

"Hey," Ven snapped. "It's been a while, okay? So so-rry if my selection time was a little longer than you liked!"

Leita turned out their following argument, much more focused on the pull in her chest- not unlike the one she felt before meeting Ven. Shiro suddenly sat up.

"Why does your aura feel… off?" He demanded, noting the subtle shift in the aura's feel and directory.

"You can feel when I feel it?" Leita responded, looking over the bridge leading back into Cerulean City- Nugget Bridge. They were just trying to relax at Cerulean Cape, and now this was happening. "I have to go into the city."

"Feel what?!" Shiro repeated. Leita just stood up and began walking.

The trainers that they had defeated- correction, the ones that a certain absol had defeated- were once again camping out on the bridge, ready to attack the poor trainers just trying to cross. They ignored Leita and her two Pokémon, though, as she had already defeated them all.

"Where are we-" Ven stopped as soon as Leita hopped the ledge next to the Gym. Both males followed.

"You should be careful on those things," Shiro lectured. "They're very high up, at least four feet, and-"

"Shh."

Leita was listening again, and this time Ven heard what she was listening for. A slight scratching on metal, alongside several whines. "How on earth did you hear that from all the way over on the Cape?" The absol asked incredulously.

Leita shrugged, already on her way to the other side of the Gym. "I don't know. I just felt a tug in my chest and suddenly I heard those sound in my head. They were kind of… echoing, I guess?" She felt along the wall, as it was getting darker and she didn't want to trip. "Look!"

There, trapped between several pipes, was a dark furred fox.

"What are you thinking so hard about?"

Loki's sudden words caused Leita to tense up slightly, before quickly relaxing again. "I was just thinking."

He snuggled further into his trainers body. "About?"

"Remember when we first met?"

She could tell he was grinning. "Yeah, I was super cold and hungry. It was hell being stuck in there for so long."

"You still don't remember how you got there, huh?" Laetus was skeptical.

"Nope." The illusion Pokemon was adamant with his story.

"Right. That's your story and you're sticking to it."

There was a comfortable silence.

Then, "So… shower?"

"Alright, so, I'll take his left, you take his right. On my signal, we both attack- me high, you low. Got it?" Ven said in a hushed whisper.

They had been chasing the fiery bird around for a few hours, now, but he was just too fast.

"Sure," Shiro agreed, ready to just throw in the towel.

"Alright. On three. One, two…"

"You guys suck at whispering," a male voice stated flatly from behind the two candid Pokémon. They both jumped and spun around.

There, tauntingly close, was a combusken. He was just standing there, feathered arms crossed over his chest. "And you suck at strategizing. While we're at it, you guys just suck."

"Hey," Ven said, slightly hurt. "We're new to this track-and-catch thing. Cut us some slack."

The combusken, whose name the two males couldn't remember, looked disapprovingly at them both. "You must not be very good battlers, then."

"Hey!"

"Independent battlers." The fighting type clenched a clawed fist, which burst into first flames, the electricity, and finally ice, all in quick succession. "You know, without your trainer having to tell you what to do."

"Untrue," Ven retorted. "You don't even battle. You're literally just an example Pokémon for Pokémon sports."

The fire type just shook his head. "It must be tiring for your trainer to have to hold your paw through battles."

"She doesn't hold my paw, but she sure does hold my-"

"What's your name?" Shiro interjected smoothly.

The dual type gave him a wary look. "They didn't tell you before sending you after me? They call me Volcan."

"We didn't remember it because it's such a generic name."

"Shut it, Ven," Shiro sighed. "Look, Volcan. Can't you just… I don't know, go back to the PokéAthlon?"

"No." Volcan sniffed distastefully. "Those posers don't know how to really battle. I was bred for a purpose- that purpose was definitely not to be a poster boy for Pokémon sports."

"Bred?" Ven scoffed. "What are you, the product of one of those IV-obsessed ACE Trainers?"

"Yes, actually. That's exactly what I am."

Not expecting the matter-of-fact reply, Ven was stunned into silence.

"How'd you end up at the PokéAthlon, then?" This was Shiro.

"One faulty IV, Defense, which isn't even really that faulty if you don't mind a 29, and I was shipped off here as an offering to the contests. I've never left the city since."

"That… kinda sucks, actually," Shiro agreed. Then a lightbulb went off over his head- literally. Well, it was actually more of a burst of Aura concentrated into the shape of a lightbulb. "How about you come with us?"

Still weirded out by the lightbulb-aura trick, Volcan considered his options. "I mean, you guys clearly need some work. If I'm going to be with a trainer, as I'm assuming that's what you mean, then said trainer will need to actually train."

Ven was about to say something snarky, but Shiro beat him to the punch. "That's fair."

Volcan uncrossed his arms. "Alright. Take me to your leader."

Professor Allen Birch never really felt the need to check up on his trainers. After all, they were big kids. They had control over element-controlling beasts, for Arceus' sake. But there was something off with his newest trainer- Miss Rose Vier.

So, he had Porygon pull up everything on the webs database that related to a Laetus Rose Vier.

Before he could properly investigate, the screen of his desktop began to glitch out.

"Porygon?" He said aloud.

The aforementioned porygon suddenly shot out of the computer, hitting the floor with a plastic 'clank.'

The rest happened quite fast.

Eyes wide, he noticed the porygonZ on his computer screen. Then, a hypno appeared in a flash of light and started swinging his pendulum in front of the Professors face.

The last thing he heard was the breaking of glass, a window perhaps, before he was out like a light.

Ho-Oh opened his eyes.

He knew something was seriously fucked in the world right now; specifically, in his region.

"Father… do you feel it?"

His feathers ruffled; he was rarely ever startled, especially by his own creations. Suicune was standing in front of him, sort of unsurely- Raikou took that moment to bound up the rest of the stairs onto the top of his fathers tower.

"I do, Suicune." Ho-Oh smoothed his feathers. "I think that-"

"Who in the bloody hell thought it was a good idea to restore one of those Arceus-forsaken creatures?! I mean, I know humans are dumb and too curious for their own good but-"

"Raikou!" Ho-Oh snapped his beak at his youngest child. Then he composed himself. "Anyway, as I was saying. I think that the last one of those… things had reproduced before she was eradicated."

"I remember that year," Raikou said wistfully. "It was so fun hunting down all those ungrateful brats. The killing part wasn't so interesting, but the chase, on the other hand? Best year of my life."

"Raikou," Ho-Oh sighed, for the billionth time in his immortal life.

"What? Suicune enjoyed, it too, didn't you Sui-Sui?" Raikou asked rhetorically. When his brother didn't respond, he continued talking. "Along with just about every legendary involved in the Eradication, which was everyone except for the major deities. I still think it was us that bagged the most, though."

That, Ho-Oh couldn't argue with. The three beasts had been relentless, almost always hot on the trail of another hiding target, not even resting until every last one was either relieved of all their internal organs or just plain dissipated off the face of the earth. Even Suicune, calm, collected Suicune, had earned his title as a beast that year.

Sometimes, Ho-Oh feared what he had created.

Shaking off those thoughts, he shot a quick Searing Shot at Raikou.

"Ouch, old man!" Raikou whined. "What the fuck?"

"Language, you mutt," the fire phoenix chastised. "This is serious."

"Father's right, Rai," Suicune finally spoke up. "Please stay quiet and listen."

Raikou, now having been checked by his brother, fell silent.

"Thank you. Now, if we're actually the only ones aware of this problem, it can prove to be much more difficult to eradicate than before." Ho-Oh paused. "Where's your brother? He should be here for this."

"My apologies, father," Suicune said. "Entei is currently in Unova, trying to solve a conflict between a trio of beasts much like ourselves- our 'shiny' variants."

"You know, the ones that pissed off that mother zoroark," Raikou piped up. "The troublemakers."

"Ah." Ho-Oh spread his wings, causing the sunlight to hit them at just the right angle to make them flash and glow in a rainbow light. "I suppose this discussion can wait."

His eyes glinted mischievously. "Now, about that pact of yours…"