I have a Tumblr blog for this story now! You can find it under the name "snowbound-fanfiction". That should be me.

This is, narrowly, the longest chapter of the story up to this point. We've also passed 30,000 words, which I think is pretty cool.

I'm also very proud of the last few paragraphs of this chapter. I think it's really clever. You'll see why when you reach it.


Well, that was a comforting thought.

If you couldn't tell there, I was being sarcastic. I didn't particularly like the idea of being a stuffed Lucario head hanging over the mantle of some rich poacher's fireplace. As a result, I resolved that I was going to learn how to fight and defend myself against anyone who would pose a threat to myself or Angelina.

Why am I feeling like I have to protect Angelina too? Oh well, not like that's super important right now.

As Andrew drove me back to my house, neither of us said a word to the other for the longest time. It was a rather awkward silence, but it was a silence that I needed, because, when people aren't talking around me, I feel like I can see things a little more clearly.

If I take the protection, do I benefit from it?

The obvious answer would obviously be yes, of course I would benefit from being protected. I was being hunted by poachers, and they were actively looking for me, not just passively. At the same time, I didn't know how much of the freedom I currently enjoyed I would have to give up were I to accept Dr. Dexter's offer.

I'll have to take some time to think about it. But, until they catch me, I've got all the time in the world to think about it.

"Do you want me to turn on the radio?" Andrew asked me.

It was completely out of the blue. I hadn't asked for music, nor did I see any indication that Andrew liked music. I nodded, though, and Andrew turned one of the dials.

"When I'm in Detroit, I run r-".

"Sorry, wrong station".

I laughed. I strongly suspected, however, that it would be the last time I laughed that day. The decision that was coming up would no doubt be one of the most important ones I'd ever be making in my life.

Eventually, we did reach my house, and I bade Andrew farewell. After that, I let myself in using the key that was taped to the grill on the back porch.

My parents still weren't home from work, so I decided to make myself a bowl of ice cream and sit in front of the TV. Turning on the television, I switched to the news channel, where they were covering my story more.

"We are now on Day 3 of this story, but Lucas Enfield remains a Lucario. He was spotted entering the home of Angelina Hawley at roughly 11:55 AM today; we don't know exactly why he was there, but, given that the two appear to be dating, it is likely that it was for a reason related to that".

Please stop interpreting things that are none of your business!, I thought angrily.

"In any case," said the news anchor, "we were unable to reach the young man for comment. That is all there is for today".

I sighed with a slight amount of relief. While I wasn't out of the woods yet, not by any sense of the imagination, at least they hadn't picked up on Angelina's transformation as of right now. They were going to find out sooner or later, though, so the relief was going to be short-lived. Still, it was going to be nice while it lasted.

Eventually, my parents did come home from work. They'd brought flatbreads home from the grocery store, so we would be having homemade miniature pizzas for dinner. Even though I usually enjoyed this dish, I knew that it was going to be awkward between us once I told them about the offer Andrew had made me. As such, I wasn't looking forward to dinner that much.

We sat down to dinner, and the first thing my mother asked me, I kid you not, was, "How was the tour of the laboratory?"

That question caught me completely off my guard. I replied with, "It was...interesting, to say the least".

"How so?" my father responded. It was then that I realized there was absolutely no way I was getting out of explaining my dilemma to my parents. Then again, it wasn't like I'd thought there was to begin with. I had to face this head on.

"Dr. Dexter gave me a choice" I explained. "And it's a hard one, one I might need your help with".

My mother put down her flatbread pizza. "Lucas, you're eighteen now. You can make decisions on your own. You don't need us".

That line almost made me want to cry, but I was fortunately able to keep my composure as I continued on.

"Well, Dr. Dexter said that I could go with him to the manor of Thomas Kemp, his friend. He says I'd be safe there, away from the prying eyes that desperately want to capture me".

"Oh" my mother replied, and I could see the realization dawning in her eyes that she was indeed involved in this decision.

"I'd have to leave you guys" I said. "It's a hard decision, for sure".

"We couldn't come with you?" my father asked me.

I shook my head. "I wouldn't want to put you in danger. Hell, you're probably already in danger thanks to being associated with me".

It was then that I realized something else. This wasn't just about my own safety, but that of my parents as well. It was one thing to risk my own life by staying here, it was quite another to risk my parents' lives. No matter what, I didn't have the right to do that.

Maybe I should leave, I thought. It's probably better for them that way.

But then I looked back at my parents, and I could tell that my mother had tears in her eyes. The thought of me leaving her, possibly never to see her again, had to have been killing her inside. It made the idea of leaving and taking Andrew's protection very hard.

And yet...

"That's true" my mother said. "I don't see any way we could go with you. Then again, you're legally an adult now. You can make your own decisions, and you can definitely live with Thomas Kemp. You did say that was his name, right?"

I nodded. "I'll have to think more about it. I don't want to make my decision based on fear; I want to think rationally about this. Or rather, as rationally as possible when all things are considered".

After dinner, my parents tried to talk to me, but I locked myself in my room instead. Technically the door wasn't locked; it had no lock. However, I sat with my back firmly against the door so that it could not be opened from outside my room.

The reason? I needed some time to be alone, some time to make up my mind. Whether I decided to go or to stay, my life would most certainly never be the same again.

At one point, my mother knocked on my door, but I dug my heels harder into the floor and pushed back so as to make it utterly impassable. She wasn't going to open the door, no matter how hard she tried.

"Lucas? Let me in, please".

I probably sounded like about five years old when I replied, "I don't want to".

"Come on, Lucas. If you want to handle this situation like a mature adult, then let me into your room".

I don't know why, but I caved, standing up and stepping away from the door. She then opened it and sat down next to me on the beanbag chair.

"What's wrong?" she asked me, and that made me feel even sadder. It wasn't enough that I felt like I'd lost some of my dignity. It was just so difficult to envision myself leaving home, even if it was what had to happen.

"I don't know. I just don't know if I'm ready to give up my home just yet". I could feel my tears crash against the mental dam I'd built up, trying to release themselves. But I wasn't going to let myself cry.

"You'll always have a home with us, Lucas, even if you decide to leave. I'll understand either way, no matter what decision you make".

"I'll wait for the morning" I said. "Talk to Angelina about it".

"Why with Angelina?" my mother asked me. "This is only about you, isn't it?"

So she doesn't know? I guess she doesn't know.

I shook my head. "Mom, Angelina's a Lucario now too".

Her eyes opened to be the size of dollar coins, but I was sure she could tell I wasn't lying. "Wow. I wasn't expecting that. How do you think it happened?"

I was going to tell my mother that I thought it was because of the scratch I'd given her on accident. Then I remembered that that wouldn't explain how I'd become a Lucario in the first place, other than that weird locket I'd found underneath my pillow.

But that can't be right!

When I'd found the locket in my bed, I had already been experiencing the symptoms of becoming a Lucario. It just didn't make too much sense to me, but, then again, nothing seemed to anymore.

"I honestly don't know, Mom. I honestly don't know".

"Was Dr. Dexter's offer for both you and Angelina?" she asked me.

I nodded. "It was. Her fur is mint green, so that's another unusual color that the poachers are going to be after. She'd have to go with me, she's in just as much danger as I am now".

I could tell, based on my mother's expression, that she was starting to suspect something about the nature of the relationship between myself and Angelina. However, she seemed to decide that it wasn't worth it to try and press me further, so she said something else.

"Does she know about what he offered?" she asked me.

"No. I'm going to invite her over tomorrow and ask her about it. I think the decision can wait a little longer".

My mother nodded. "Well, if you'd like to be left alone, then I'll oblige that request. I'll see you in the morning".

"Good night, Mom".


Almost as soon as my head hit the pillow, I sank into yet another nightmare. I swear to Arceus, I was getting used to this by now, but that didn't make them any less terrifying.

In my dream, I was running along the same path I'd been on in my last nightmare. The ground, however, felt cold to the touch, as though there were a light dusting of snow on it. Indeed, as I looked down and around, I saw that there was.

I kept running. I didn't know exactly why, but there was a need to get away from something behind me. I felt even more terrified than I had been in the dream in which I'd been drowning.

Eventually, I was running so fast that I could barely see anything. Had I broken the sound barrier? It seemed unlikely, given that none of the rocks seemed to have shifted, but, then again, it was only just a dream.

Being that it was a dream, you'd think that I would have been less terrified. However, it didn't have that effect on me. I was just as scared as I would have been had this been happening in real life.

I saw what looked like a cliff in front of me, and I tried to slow down. However, something, I didn't know exactly what, wouldn't let me.

I ran so fast that, as soon as I reached the cliff, I achieved liftoff.

Now, I'd never been paragliding myself, but I'd seen videos of it, and, from what I could tell, it was almost exactly like this. It was as though I were connected to a harness that was lifting me far upwards.

Looking back, I saw what I'd been so scared of; a group of what appeared to be poachers with assault rifles. Not the kind for hunting, either; the kind for killing. They were shooting at me, but I was already too high up for that.

After I let my fear ebb away, it was replaced by something far different: Wonder. I'd never floated above forests and rivers and mountains like this, and it was quite something. In the distance, I saw what appeared to be a castle, rising tall against a lake.

The castle was situated on an island in said lake, which appeared to be the mouth of a river that came from the mountains. A glacial river.

Oh my God, that is gorgeous.

But then the scene shifted, and I was looking down at a great hall of a castle. I reasoned that it was probably the same castle I'd been seeing earlier in the dream. It was quite a majestic one, if I do say so myself, and the majesticity of it extended to the great hall.

The great hall was made up of large, light orange tiles, and it was easily the size of four church sanctuaries. It was gigantic, and there was a stage at one end of it, which appeared to be for when a band would come and perform music there.

I remembered hearing legends about this place. I'd even seen a movie about it once, but that was nothing compared to actually seeing it in person.

This was Cameran Palace, the ancient home of Sir Aaron from back in the day.

Sir Aaron had been one of the few human beings to be able to harness the power of aura. As such, he was usually considered to be a legend, and every second grader knew about him, let alone every twelfth grader.

I was sitting down in midair, feeling lighter than said air. From this vantage point, I could see just about everything in the great hall.

Eventually, a woman walked in. She was tall and skinny, adorned in a long pink dress. She had long blonde hair and cold blue eyes.

That's Queen Ilene!, I thought excitedly. I thought of making myself known to her, but then I remembered that I doubted I could do so. After all, it was just a dream.

Queen Ilene was looking up at a painting on the wall of the great hall. When I looked in the same direction, I saw one of the most famous paintings in the world.

It was the painting of Sir Aaron with his Lucario. This ancient Lucario had given his life in order to restore the Tree of Life in the Kanto region, and he was now on the other side, getting to hang out in the afterlife with his former master.

Queen Ilene then did something I hadn't been expecting her to: She talked to the painting, because, you know, that's totally a normal thing to do.

"I've been hearing about a disturbance in the aura lately" she said in a cold voice. It wasn't necessarily rude, just cold, much like the way a doctor speaks when giving a patient a grim diagnosis or prognosis. "Was this caused by Lucas Enfield's transformation into a Lucario?"

Don't ask me why, but hearing my name always gets my heart pumping. Whenever I know something is about me, I get excited and nervous at the same time.

For a moment, I thought that Queen Ilene was going crazy. Just a few seconds later, however, Sir Aaron appeared in the hallway.

It wasn't Sir Aaron, of course; it was his ghost, but he had the same appearance, personality, and memories as Sir Aaron, so, for all intents and purposes, we'll say he was Sir Aaron.

"Indeed, Queen Ilene" replied Sir Aaron. His voice was a lot warmer and friendlier than the queen's, and he sounded like someone you'd have a summer picnic with down at the park. That is, were he still alive.

The ghost of Sir Aaron continued. "I'm not going to pretend that I have all the answers, but there's an evil force corrupting everything. At least, that's what I've gathered from all of this".

"Any information about this evil force?" Queen Ilene replied.

Sir Aaron's ghost shook his head. "Only that, whatever it is, it's causing the weather to go crazy in some places. They've been having blizzards in the Coronet Range at much lower elevations than they should be happening at this time of year".

I gulped. We were getting to the most important part, but, more importantly, something I'd believed had been confirmed: My transformation and the weird weather were related somehow.

"And you think that's why Lucas Enfield transformed into a Lucario?"

"We're still investigating the causes" Sir Aaron's ghost replied. "But, let me tell you one thing, we cannot allow Lucas to fall into the hands of a poacher. That would be one hundred percent catastrophic".


I sat bolt upright in bed, trying to catch my breath. That had been quite the dream.

There were a few things from that dream that I knew I would remember for a very long time. The first of these was flying above the mountains in northern Kanto; that was quite something, let me tell you.

The other one was, of course, the newfound knowledge that I was correct. Some force was corrupting the world, and it had caused me to turn into a Lucario.

We cannot allow Lucas to fall into the hands of a poacher. That would be one hundred percent catastrophic.

In hindsight, this was probably the tipping point for me. If it wasn't the single catalyst for my decision, it was definitely a major factor.

If Sir Aaron and Queen Ilene thought it was extremely important that I remain out of harm's way, then maybe it did make sense to take Andrew's protection.

It still wouldn't be an easy decision, for sure. I'd have to leave my parents to do so, and there was no guarantee even then that I'd be 100% safe. But the idea of going to stay at Thomas Kemp's mansion seemed more and more plausible the more I thought about it.

By this point, I had all but decided to leave, but I knew that I couldn't make that decision on my own. Angelina also held a lot of stake in this, so I couldn't just not tell her.

After eating breakfast that morning, which tasted like sandpaper due to the knowledge that it was probably going to be the last breakfast I ever ate with my parents, at least for a while, I went to my phone and dialled Angelina Hawley's number.

She picked up almost immediately. "Yes, Lucas? You want me to come over?"

"Yeah" I replied. "If that's okay with you, of course".

"It's more than okay with me. I love spending time with you".

I love spending time with you. If it were under better circumstances, I would have found that line incredibly heartwarming when it was directed at me. As it was, however, I was very preoccupied with the information I was about to give Angelina.

"I want to tell you about yesterday, and what happened, because you hold a lot of stake in it". That was me talking.

"I'll be over there in ten minutes" Angelina replied.

It wasn't even ten minutes later that my doorbell rang, and I went to open it. Sure enough, on the other side, there was my friend, a Lucario with mint green fur.

"You owe me for this, Lucas" she told me in the type of voice that sounds playfully angry, if that is even possible.

"Oh, and why is that?" I replied, trying to sound as innocent as I could.

"It's absolutely terrifying to go out for the first time as a Lucario. I'm lucky that I didn't get spotted by any news vans, at least not that I know of. So whatever you've summoned me here for, it had better be pretty damn important".

"Oh, it is" I replied. "Trust me, it is".

I told my parents that I wanted to be alone with Angelina for this conversation, and they obliged. We ended up going to the hammock in my backyard, which could hold the two of us, but only barely. It was then that I spilled the beans.

"When I left your house yesterday, it was to meet up with a scientist named Dr. Andrew Dexter. He took me to the Greater Pastoria Laboratory and gave me a tour".

"What sorts of things were in the lab?" Angelina asked me.

I shook my head. "I don't think that's too important right now. In any case, at the end of the tour, Dr. Dexter gave me an offer, and that offer applies to you as well".

I saw Angelina's eyes open even wider than they were before, and it was then that I noticed just how red her pupils were. Even though their red eyes were a ubiquitous feature of the Lucario species, I still felt as though I were noticing it for the first time.

Oh well. There are more important things anyway.

"What sort of offer was this?" Angelina asked me.

I saw no reason to beat around the bush. "You know how there are poachers coming after us, and we don't know how to fight yet?"

She nodded, looking scared but also hopeful, in a way. It was clear that she'd spent yesterday afternoon worried about this, and now someone was actually going to address the problem. That had to be a relief for Angelina.

"Well, Dr. Dexter said that if we so chose, he could have us taken to a mansion owned by a man named Thomas Kemp. Kemp's a philanthropist of sorts, and he gave a lot of money to help set up the Greater Pastoria Laboratory".

"Okay" Angelina replied. "What about this mansion?"

"We'd be taken there for our own protection. We'd have to leave our parents in order to accept the protection, though; being with us would only put them in danger".

"That's it. I'm going with you".

I raised my eyebrows slightly. "You are?"

"Of course. You did say that being with us puts our parents in danger, right?"

"Uh, yeah, that was not even fifteen seconds ago. In any case, I hope that your parents will be okay with you leaving".

"They will be" Angelina replied. "Believe me, they will be. I'm sure that they'll be relieved their grocery bills aren't going to triple with me around".

I laughed at that. "It's true about the hunger".

She nodded. "Just tell me a few things. How are we going to get there, for one?"

"We're going to be taken there in Dr. Dexter's helicopter. The mansion's fifty miles north of Hearthome City". I was impressed with myself for remembering that last detail.

"Oh wow. It must be absolutely gorgeous" Angelina replied.

"Indeed, it does sound like it. So you're going to come?" I was excited, more excited than I wanted to admit. If she came with me, that meant more time I was going to get to spend with Angelina, who, I will admit, looked even better in her Lucario form.

"Of course. It would be really selfish of me not to".

"Then go home and pack. We'll be staying there indefinitely".

She nodded. "It's not like it'll be that hard to pack" she replied. "After all, I don't wear clothes anymore now that I'm a Lucario".

"Yeah, but what if you should switch back to being a human and not have any clothes on?" I asked. Almost immediately, I wished I hadn't; that probably only served to make her worry more.

Angelina shook her head. "I'm really not that worried about that. I don't think we're going to suddenly return to our human forms".

I didn't ask her how she was so confident. I had the same feeling myself.

After that, she left my house. I watched her car drive off towards her house, only about five minutes away.

The plan was that she'd meet at my house for lunch with me and my parents, and that would be our last lunch together indefinitely.

Packing wasn't difficult. Considering that, like Angelina said, Pokemon didn't have to wear clothes, there was none of that necessary. I just brought my computer and its charger, as well as my tablet, phone, and its charger. I hoped to Arceus that this mansion had Wi-Fi; otherwise, I might go insane.

Okay, replace might with would. Without Wi-Fi indefinitely, I would go insane.

I was perhaps 98% confident now that it was the right choice, whereas, before talking with Angelina, I'd "only" been 96% confident. No matter if I felt homesick while at the manor, I'd made the right call.

So why was it so damn difficult to make the decision at first?

I realized within seconds that it hadn't been such a hard choice after all. The dream I'd had with Sir Aaron and Queen Ilene had been the tipping point for me.

I made my choice. And yet I made it out of fear, just like I hadn't wanted to.

I gulped. I had made my bed, and now I'd have to lie in it. I was going to hide away in Thomas Kemp's manor, just like a mouse in his hidey-hole.

Well, let's hope this doesn't end up being a mouse trap.


The part about flying over the area surrounding Cameran Palace was inspired by a real-life event for me. Some of you might not know this, but back in June, I went on vacation to Greece with my family. It was spectacular; the food, the sights, the architecture, etc. were all amazing. While there, my father and I were able to go parasailing, which was really fun. It was quite something to sit down on the back of the boat, hear the engine roar to life, and then float 200 feet in the air. Man, that was a great vacation, the best one of my life thus far.

I hope you all enjoyed the chapter, and I'll see you next time for Chapter 10. Man, it'll be a fun one to write.