Ugh, this was a hard one. Like, even though I knew what I wanted to write, and how I wanted it to look, this was a damn hard chapter. The first draft neither pokemon seemed right. The second, Shadow was being too mopey and emotional. The third it was Sparkette. Four, fix, and six cleaned them up to be decent, then I had a seventh to fix some scene settings, and an eighth for spelling. Even after all that, it came out very short and honestly, I'm still very unhappy with it. But I feel like after having spent so, SO long on it, this is the best I'm going to get. However, like this chapters bright side, there is a bright side for the story. I recovered a file from my old laptop with chapters 7 through 25! Now granted these are early rough drafts. A lot of details were changed, names, ect. So they need to be completely rewritten. But I have the basic plots meaning I can get them out faster! I'm not needing to struggle for ideas to get to where I was. So let's hope for faster chapters (and less laziness from me). Remember to leave comments, because I LOVE reading them. Be it good or bad. And don't forget to join the discord and meet the pokemon, as well as get sneaks into what's to come!

Zubat...

Zubat...

Another Zubat...

Oh look, a Zubat...

Zubat...

Hey, a Zubat!

Zubat...

"Can you not just say that every time one flies past? The place is swarming with them, but that's damn annoying." Shadow sighed, sitting beside me at the entrance to a small cave our humans were hiding in, discussing something in a rather argumentative fashion. "Like you're never annoying?" I barked back, annoyed at still being in a damn cave. It was hot, humid, dark, and filled with diseased pests. I hated it. I just wanted to be out of this place. But I guess we were still lost.

"Fair enough. Just... please, stay strong." he sighed, walking back to our trainers. Tyler shouted at him, but apparently they started talking, despite us having been told to guard the entrance and let them figure something out. I growled and just barked at the Zubat, although thankfully the nasty smelling spray Autumn had doused the entrance in was working. Still, I just despised this entire place.

"Sparkette! Can you come here please?" Autumn shouted, waving me over. I rolled my eyes and walked back to her, seeing a bowl of food on the ground, nearly full, but not quite. "It's all we have left. Between both Tyler and I. I'm sorry it's not the usual amount, but it'll just have to do." she said, clearly hurt that she didn't have anything more to feed me. "It's more than enough. We just need to hope we can find our way out tomorrow, right?" I said, giving a fake smile, digging into the bowl and chomping the kibble happily. Not sure what it was made from, but kibble was good.

As I was almost done, I noticed Shadow sitting nearby, watching me. He was smiling, but he seemed... sad. Something was wrong with him, that much was clear. Wait, why didn't he have a... oh no. "Shadow, please tell me you ate too." I said, feeling tears well in my eyes. "You need to stay strong. You need to be the light in the darkness. It's not the first time I've given up food for another, I'll be fine." she said, shaking his head.

"Shadow! How could you!?" I shouted, streams of tears rushing down my muzzle as I recoiled in horror. He'd purposely not told me, and given what was probably his share to me. He hid that he was going hungry for me until after there was nothing left for me to give him! I knew he took stupid risks sometimes, but to go hungry just so I could eat, why would he do that!?

"Sparkette, like I said, I've done it before. You have to eat to keep your strength up. I'll be fine. I can live with going hungry. But I don't want you to ever feel that pain. So eat, because I'm not going to." he smiled, then walked over to his pokeball, pressed the button with his paw and recalled himself. I wasn't aware we could even do that. "Get your ass out her you manipulative punk!" I screamed, crying and bapping his ball with my paw.

"Sparkette, honey, come here." Autumn said, sitting beside Tyler. I sighed and went over, climbing onto her lap and receiving pets. "Look, we talked to Shadow before this. Did he ever tell you about the females in his pack?" she asked, wiping my eyes with a cloth. "They had a plague, wiped out most of the young Eevee. Only two females lived, and they were in very high demand." I answered. "Did he mention that they were pampered by him? As in he did things and gave up things and did anything he could to make them happy?" she asked, pulling out a brush for my fur. "And they both turned him down? What stuck up bitches. No wonder he left." I scoffed.

"Actually, he's their older brother. Both of them had just found mates before he joined me. He only came because he knew they were going to be cared for, and he needed an adventure after raising them alone, as they didn't have parents." Tyler laughed. "Wait, so he's not just being a prick? He's just... looking out for someone he cares about?" I asked, looking up at him. "Poor girly. Someday you'll know what it's like to have someone care enough to make sacrifices for you." he said, then layed down, rolling over so his back was to us. "Also might help to learn that boys are jerks." Autumn scoffed, laying on her back with my on her chest. Well, I agree, boys are jerks. They mean well, but they don't seem to think about a woman's emotions much.

"A ladder! This might be it finally!" Autumn cheered as we found the metal pipes going to a hole in the ceiling. Even more promising was that there was LIGHT at the top! We all scrambled up, and finally after so long had found the exit. We dashed out into the warm morning air, relieved to not be in the caves any longer. "Cerulean City here we come!" Autumn cheered, jumping in a spin and sprinting down the path towards the road that would take us to the city. "Come on Sparkette, we're almost to the second gym! We have matches to win!" Shadow laughed, following her. I guess he did still have energy even after skipping a meal. "Let them enjoy it. I prefer the slow road. A nice brisk walk, we're all going to the same spot. We should enjoy the journey." Tyler smiled, picking me up and tagging along.

"Tyler, can I ask a question?" I asked, realizing too late I posed an oxymoron. "I encourage you to ask anything you wish." he said happily. "Do you think Shadow is happy with his life?" I asked, watching him run behind Autumn, who now had her arms spread like wings. "I don't think. I know. Shadow is a generally cheerful pup, but I know he loves what we're doing more than he enjoys sitting in a forest with a dead chance of finding someone. Honestly, I think he's probably one of the happiest pokemon you'll ever meet." he answered, chuckling at my question. It honestly made me feel better though. By noon we reached the Pokemon Center, restocked, ate, and rested.