This is probably my favorite chapter of Werewolves thus far, just because it has such high highs and low lows. You'll see what I mean once you dive in.

We have now passed the 50,000-word mark, and I've also gotten 3,200+ views on this story. Let's keep going, shall we?

Current music: Goodbye Earl - The Chicks

CODY HARVARD, 19

I'll never forget what flying felt like. From the moment I told Fearow that I was ready to go, I was thrust into one of the most incredible experiences of my life.

Suddenly, it didn't matter that I'd just screwed up my life royally. It didn't matter that I'd hurt someone I cared about. I didn't even care that I was supposed to be afraid of heights.

When Fearow's wings started flapping, the ground receded beneath us. Somehow, such a skinny bird was nonetheless strong enough to propel both of us into the air without any forward momentum; it seemed to be pure strength. And yet, it didn't seem bothered by this.

Within a few minutes, we were soaring thousands of feet above the ground, higher than the tallest buildings in the world. The towers I saw down below, those that were illuminated even at this ungodly hour, truly looked like toys that a child might build a city out of, not like buildings in which actual people lived and worked.

Sometimes, all you need in order to understand just how small you are in the grand scheme of things is a bird's-eye view of the world.

Even though I was strapped to Fearow's back, my instinct was still to hold on tight. I could have raised my arms high above my head like people on a roller coaster, but I simply wasn't brave enough to do that yet.

Fearow didn't say a word for most of the ride north, which seemed to go by quickly. Despite the wind in my face and ripping through my fluffy brown hair, as well as the fact that I wasn't wearing a jacket, I didn't feel cold at all, just pleasantly cool.

Someday, if I have grandchildren, this is going to be the story that Grandpa Cody tells them. They'll all know about the time I flew on the back of a golden Fearow.

Had I not been in such a euphoric state of mind, I would have possessed the presence of mind to know that this probably wasn't going to happen. Indeed, the mere prospect of dating was a remote one thanks to the reputation I'd earned for myself.

But at that moment, I felt liberated. The minutes flew by, and minutes eventually turned to hours, although I wasn't exactly the best judge of time when I had no clock to go by. With a watch, I probably could have stayed up there indefinitely.

I had ample opportunity to wonder if anyone down below saw me. At this height I'd probably just be a speck against the night sky, but there were enough people throughout those hundreds of miles that someone would surely get suspicious. That was pretty much the only negative aspect of my flight.

Full of vigor, I noticed that the sky to the east was starting to get a little lighter. Where it had been midnight blue before, the horizon was now a shade of cobalt. Once the first red streaks of dawn appeared, I'd get to see more of the land below me, but I also ran a higher risk of getting caught.

"We'll be there in about an hour!" Fearow announced in a voice seemingly loud enough to wake a coma patient. By this time, the bit of sky along the horizon was orange, and it seemed that the sun would rise any minute.

Given that we were entering the Coronet Range, I could feel the air getting thinner and colder as Fearow gained more altitude. Still, I was able to breathe comfortably, and the cold didn't chill me to the bone as much as it would have normally.

Maybe this Pokemon is enchanted somehow. In a world where Cody Harvard is a were-Lycanroc, stranger things have happened.

Soon enough, the scenery became more dramatic, as the cities and suburbs gave way to forests, lakes, and mountains. The mountains themselves were stunning, to say the least. Almost all of their spired peaks were capped with snow, which was being illuminated by the sun that had just come up.

I avoided looking too closely at the snow, though; I'd been told that the sun reflected off of the substance thanks to its high albedo, whatever that meant, and that it would hurt my eyes due to the brightness. I wished I had brought my sunglasses, but, in my defense, there had been no reason to think I'd need them.

"Just a word of warning, as we approach the destination, you will become a Lycanroc again even though it's not the full moon. It's part of the magic of this place, if you want to call it that."

That was rather disappointing to hear, since transforming was one of my least favorite parts of life as a lycanthrope (not that there were many good parts), and I'd been having the time of my life on this trip. Alas, all good things had to come to an end.

Within minutes, I saw a green valley surrounded by several mountains and a lake with electric blue water. It was a color more frequently associated with the tropical ocean, but I was well aware that the temperature would be nothing like that.

Once we were roughly even with the center of the valley, Fearow pulled into a dive, me hanging on with an iron grip. I was holding on so hard that it hurt, especially in the cold, rarefied air.

And then it happened.

The transformation seemed to occur in a single moment, so quickly that I barely had any time to register pain. It could be that the adrenaline I was running high on had served to dull the agony, but I didn't think it would have been enough for me to evade it completely.

I wish I could tell you that as my stomach plunged to the center of the planet, I was yelling something along the lines of, "Oh my Arceus, this is totally awesome! It's like a roller coaster, but about a thousand times better!" I wish I could tell you that I'd faced my fear of heights and blasted it into smithereens.

The truth, however, is a bit more embarrassing. I simply howled like a Lycanroc, because I was a Lycanroc. It wasn't an authoritative howl, either; it was one of fright.

The ground got closer and closer, until I could make out what appeared to be a village of sorts in the valley. This village was hemmed in by two mountains, with the aforementioned lake on one side and sparse pine forest on the other, the latter of which seemed to spread out as far as the eye could see; at a minimum, it was several miles.

My ears were popping painfully every few seconds as the wind rushed past us. Thousands of feet above the ground turned to hundreds, and I felt certain that within seconds, we were going to crash into one of the buildings in the village…

...and then, out of seemingly nowhere, Fearow spread his wings widely, producing resistance against the air. Like the canopy of a parachute, this increased wingspan allowed us to glide slowly down to the ground, and I let out a breath I hadn't realized I'd been holding.

"The golden Lycanroc promised that I'd get you here safely, and that's exactly what happened!" Fearow exclaimed as he slowly brought us down to one of the village's small fields. "I mean, look at me! Do I seem like the type to break promises?"

"Uh, no" I replied. "You did just fly me here, so I have nothing to complain about."

Fearow touched us down on the field, and I did my best to unclip my harness without chewing through it. Dealing with straps was a hell of a lot harder when you didn't have hands.

"I'll help you out there, brother."

Wait...who's calling me a brother? I don't have any siblings!

I was tempted to shout those words aloud, but I was grateful that someone from behind me undid my straps, and I was able to climb off of Fearow's back. My paws crunched against the frosted ground.

Turning to face my unknown "savior", I saw something that surprised me.

It was a Lycanroc, probably middle-aged, with a golden pendant around his neck. This Lycanroc was in his midday form, as evidenced by the beige fur around his backside and the top of his head.

"Thanks" I told him, a little embarrassed that I'd needed help doing something that should have been quite straightforward. "It's a lot harder working with your paws as a quadruped."

The older Lycanroc nodded, grunting a bit as he did so. "Yes, that can be difficult, but you get used to it whether you're born into the species or if you become one."

I had another question. "Uh...who are you, sir? I hope that's not rude to ask."

My new friend (at least, I hoped we were friends) smiled at me. "It's okay to ask me that; indeed, you can ask me almost anything. I'm Mr. Lumine, and I'm the mayor of this village." He pronounced his name LOO-MYNE.

"It's...nice to meet you, Mr. Lumine" I replied, feeling my face flush a bit. It was more than a little nerve-wracking to be speaking with someone who radiated authority as this Lycanroc did.

"No pressure, Cody. I can be pretty casual when I want to be. Don't be fooled by my title of mayor; I may be the leader of Lycan Hollow, but that doesn't mean I can't have fun!"

"So this is Lycan Hollow" I said matter-of-factly. "That's where I ended up."

The mayor simply nodded. "That's the name of this village, yes. Almost everyone here is a Lycanroc or a Rockruff, but there are a few members of other species as well. Welcome, by the way; did I welcome you yet?"

"You have now."

"I've heard rumors that someone would be coming, but I didn't know exactly who it would be. What is your name?"

"Cody Harvard" I told him curtly, not seeing any reason to be untruthful when Mr. Lumine was so welcoming. "I'm from Skylock in the Greater Pastoria region. Nineteen years old."

"Welcome to Lycan Hollow, Cody" Mr. Lumine responded, extending a paw for me to shake. In five years of being a were-Lycanroc, I'd never actually shaken paws like this before, so I found it difficult to keep my balance as I was doing so.

Once I'd awkwardly shaken paws with the mayor, I asked him, "Why did you call me brother earlier? I think it's pretty clear we're not related."

The mayor raised one of his tiny black eyebrows. "There are other ways of being related besides blood, Cody. There's a form of brotherhood that we all share living here, one that outsiders never seem to understand. They can never understand, unless they actually experience it. Oh, look, your welcome party is coming."

"My...what?"

Behind Mr. Lumine, what seemed like dozens, maybe over a hundred Lycanroc and Rockruff came scampering towards us. Most of them had their tongues lolling out of their mouths, as though they'd just been presented with a mouth-watering dish.

"Don't worry, they won't bite," the mayor assured me. "They're just excited to see a newcomer."

It was one thing to hear Mr. Lumine's assurances, but my brain had other ideas. It was bad enough that I occasionally still had nightmares from that fateful night when my life had been forever altered; I didn't want to relive it during my waking hours as well!

The crowd stopped just behind the mayor; it seemed that unlike that jerk who'd bitten me, these people had the decency to respect my boundaries. They still looked hungry, but I could tell that it wasn't malicious in any way.

"Can I have your autograph, sir?" one of the crowd's members, a young Rockruff, piped up.

Mayor Lumine turned to face this Rockruff. "Now, Matsing, we don't want to overwhelm our new guest, do we?" Turning to me, Lumine asked, "Just to clarify, Cody, you don't want to sign autographs, do you?"

I frowned. "What kind of question is that? I don't have a pen with me."

"I bring one wherever I go, so I could give you mine if need be. But it doesn't seem that the need is. So I'm sorry, guys, but no autographs. It's enough to just welcome Cody, there's no need to bug him about signing a sheet of paper."

If I hadn't been grateful to the mayor before, I certainly was now. I was in no mood to spend the day signing autographs; if everyone in this village expected me to, that might end up being an all-day affair.

A few of the Pokemon still tried to get close to me, but I gave them my best Death Glare™ in order to send the message that if they hounded me, they would pay the price. I appreciated their hospitality, but this was getting a little excessive.

"I'll show you around the village and to my house" Mayor Lumine told me, beginning to walk towards a cluster of buildings. "We call it the Big House, even though it's not a prison."

I didn't think it was a prison to begin with. But if this IS a prison, it's got to be the most beautiful one I've ever come across.

The village of Lycan Hollow seemed to have been put together haphazardly, as though the city planning council was made up of young children who thought it would be funny to have the layout make no sense whatsoever. A small one-bedroom log cabin stood next to a three-story stone tower, which stood next to a field of tall grass.

When I asked the mayor what that field was for, he shrugged. "It's just like the one you landed in. It can serve a number of purposes, but it doesn't have to be useful in order to be worth having."

It was still pretty early in the day, so the "streets", if you can call them that, were nearly deserted. This was a good thing, because I didn't want any more rowdy Rockruff like Matsing clamoring to get my autograph.

Although I'd been told (repeatedly so) that I belonged here, and was among other members of my species, I still harbored plenty of shyness from five years of being a social hermit. After all, friendship is muscle.

Luckily, I did not get too many stares. Only one Lycanroc gave me a funny look, and this Lycanroc was quickly tamed by a death glare from Mayor Lumine. This allowed me to breathe more easily as we approached the largest home in Lycan Hollow.

The appropriately named Big House stood three stories tall against the shore of the icy blue lake. It was painted a minty shade of green, with an expansive front porch facing the village and, from what I could tell, a somewhat smaller back porch facing the small, rocky beach against the lake.

"Welcome to my humble abode" Mayor Lumine announced as he led me up the steps and to the door. "I'm hereby inviting you to breakfast here, if you so desire."

I snorted. "There's no need to be so formal with me, Mayor. But thank you for your invitation."

Part of me was tempted not to accept said invitation; after all, I'd just met Mayor Lumine, and he had already given me so much. He'd welcomed me into this village, seemingly without a second thought. But then I heard my stomach yell audibly for food, and I knew I had to say yes.

"Very well. I'll whip something up, and you can sit on the back porch, for that's where we'll eat. It's a beautiful day, don't you agree?"

Once I was sitting at the picnic table on the Big House's back porch, I couldn't help but agree wholeheartedly. The sun had risen just above the mountains at the other end of the lake, and the orange light caused the electric blue depths to sparkle. On the other side of the lake, there was a mountain with a small glacier at the top (not that a glacier could ever be called "small"; it's all relative.)

Even the grass against the lakeshore was striking, since the frost on each blade gave it a lighter color than usual. And, although I was well aware of how cold it was, I didn't feel it quite the same way, probably thanks to my abundant fur coat.

I don't want anyone to be under the impression that everything was perfect. Obviously, that wasn't true. Now that I'd left town in the dead of night, there would no doubt be a manhunt for me back at home.

Why do they want me so badly? It was just a mistake; I would hope they'd know that by now!

Alas, so many questions, so little time. All I knew was that if I returned to Skylock, I was a dead Golduck, to borrow a phrase.

Still, I couldn't help but be entranced by the way the sun lit up the tiny ripples on the lake, as well as the whole mountainside. There was something about it that felt magical, even if I'd just screwed up my life...or, perhaps, especially because I'd just screwed up my life.

My reverie was interrupted by the sound of the door swinging open, and Mayor Lumine returned with a tray in his mouth of pancakes and bacon. With strength to rival a Machamp, he heaved it onto the table.

"That looks really good" I said, all efforts at being articulate forgotten the moment I laid eyes on my meal. There was a stack of five enormous pancakes, probably about a foot wide each, golden brown in color and looking very crispy. That was just the way I liked them.

The mayor smiled. "I did my best. Only the best for newcomers; that's a principle this village lives by. Nobody who moved here should ever forget that they were once an outsider. Now, dig in before they get cold."

I realized that the mayor had not provided a fork or knife for me to eat with. Over the years, I'd gotten better at using utensils, albeit messily. Surely someone as important as the mayor wouldn't forget to provide me with the ability to follow basic table manners!

"Uh, sir? Mayor?"

"What is it, Cody? You don't want perfectly good pancakes?"

"It's not that. You forgot to bring me utensils. Like, a fork and knife. That's how people eat pancakes where I'm from."

The mayor winked at me. "I didn't forget to bring them, Cody. You don't need them. There's a difference."

It cannot be overstated how much of a paradigm shift this was. From a very young age, you're taught basic table manners, and what could be more basic than not eating with your fingers, or, in this case, claws?

"You want me to eat...without utensils?"

"I have them in the house if you really need them, but why would you want them? Leave out the middleman and just chow down!"

In response, I did something that felt quite shameful at that moment. I leaned over my plate, reached out with my claw, and tore off a piece of pancake roughly the size of a playing card, albeit much thicker (these flapjacks were both fluffy and crispy.)

When I was finished with that bite, I gave the mayor the Lycanroc equivalent of a thumbs-up. "These are the best pancakes I've ever had!"

That conclusion did not feel premature. It wasn't just that they were perfectly buttery and rich, while also being just flaky enough that they were crunchy in spots.

As much as I hated to admit it, something about eating like an animal made the pancakes taste even better. It was as though this were the way things should be; it was simple and pure.

Although they didn't need maple syrup to be delicious, I added some anyway. I knew that cleaning up was going to be a pain, but I didn't dwell on that. It was time to go to town.

Ten minutes later, I had devoured the entire stack of pancakes, and I patted my belly contentedly. However, there was maple syrup all over my fur, and even some on my snout.

I didn't even question the amount of food I'd eaten, for I'd been that hungry. My metabolism was definitely faster as a Lycanroc, but why hadn't that been the case all those times at home?

Nonetheless, Mayor Lumine chuckled as he saw the aftermath of my feast.

"Well done, Cody! What you need now is a bath!"

I looked up at the mayor, rather taken aback; after all, it had been many years since anyone had forced me to bathe. Then again, I was kind of a mess after having eaten the pancakes so greedily.

"Where's the bathtub? Are you going to have to scrub me?" I was embarrassed to even ask the latter question, but that paled in comparison to the embarrassment I would feel if this actually needed to happen.

Mayor Lumine laughed uncontrollably; it was a sound that could have melted the thickest glaciers of the Coronet Range. When he came up for air, he spoke matter-of-factly.

"That's not how we do things here, Cody. Your bathtub is over there." He pointed at the lake.

My eyes opened until they were almost as wide as the pancakes I'd just wolfed down, no pun intended.

"But the water there is like ice! I'm going to get hypothermia!"

"Well, it's a rite of passage here. So jump in the lake and swim around, get all that syrup out of your fur. When you're clean, come back here and we'll find a place for you to stay."

There was no arguing with the mayor, that much was clear. Besides, I didn't want to talk back to the Lycanroc who had welcomed me with open paws, shown me to his home, and cooked one of the best breakfasts I'd ever had.

I took a deep breath and sprinted to the edge of the lake. I knew that it would be better to get the dip over with quickly rather than tiptoeing in half an inch every ten minutes.

When I was within a few feet, I jumped.

With an almighty splash, the frigid waters of the lake enveloped me, and let me tell you, they sure were frigid. I might have had plenty of fur to insulate my body, but it seemed near-useless when dealing with a body of water that couldn't be far above freezing.

I rose back to the surface, my teeth chattering, and doggy-paddled a few feet to get back to the shore. The lakebed had dropped off quickly, meaning that I had to half-wade, half-swim the distance.

"Dunk your head in, Cody! That's the only way you can get the syrup off your snout!"

He's telling me to do WHAT?

It was one of those instances when you're instructed to do something that your instincts tell you is a bad idea, and yet you also know that you must do it.

I began hyperventilating thanks to the cold, but I tried to breathe more slowly. This was difficult, indeed almost impossible, but I reminded myself that I only needed to stay under for a second or two.

And then I fully submerged myself.

To someone who's never been surrounded by water of this temperature before, let me paint you a picture. Imagine the worst ice cream headache (or "brainfreeze") that you've had in your life, coupled with the rest of your body being so cold that it hurts. Imagine it being so painful you can't think properly.

In a way, it was almost a spiritual exercise. I'd never been baptized into the Church of Arceus, but everyone knew about that ritual, including myself. People were immersed in water to be given to Arceus, whatever that meant.

Now I was doing the same, but it was a rite of passage to give myself to this community. Only once I'd braved the icy waters could I fully proclaim myself as just like them, to officially say that I belonged.

I rose to the surface after a few seconds, which felt like an equivalent number of minutes. Then, I climbed back out of the lake, shaking my body to rid it of the residual lake water.

Mayor Lumine noticed that my fangs were still violently banging against each other. "I'll get you a towel, Cody. Just sit tight for a minute."

After having been in the lake, the mountain air felt even chillier. That being said, I didn't believe I could ever have acclimated to the lake's temperature. I felt chilled to the absolute bone; my very heart had been frozen.

The mayor returned a minute or two later with a thick towel, which had the logo of a Pokeball on it. I looked up at him.

"This towel is special; it's very good at getting moisture out of a Pokemon's fur in a way that regular towels just aren't. So use this one, and then we'll find you a place to stay."

I did as I was told, rolling around on the towel until my body was dry. Once this had been achieved, I smiled widely like an adolescent showing off their new braces.

"There we go! All right, let's find a room at the inn for you, unless you want to stay with a family."

"I could stay with a family here?" I asked, both excited and intimidated at the suggestion.

Mayor Lumine nodded. "Of course, the family would have to agree, but they probably would. In case you couldn't tell from earlier, the residents of Lycan Hollow are welcoming almost to a fault."

It felt like a hugely consequential decision, although it really shouldn't have been. I'd only be staying here for a few days, most likely.

That begged the question, however: What happens after I leave?

I knew the answer immediately; it was hardly even a question. If I returned to Skylock, the police would hardly be so welcoming as the villagers of Lycan Hollow were.

It will be slammer time for me.

ROYAL REDMOND, 25

The meeting continued for what felt like a decent length of time. However, judging by the way Felipe was squirming in his seat, it probably seemed like an eternity to him.

Like, what's the deal with Felipe? He seems to find this a particularly sensitive subject, and I just wonder why.

After the voice vote regarding werewolves had been resolved, Secretary General Sultan went through several other topics, all of which were followed by additional voice votes. None of them seemed to be as hot-button as the issue of lycanthropy, and by the end of the meeting, I hardly remembered what they even were.

Eventually, the meeting was adjourned, and we were permitted to head back to our hotels. Felipe and I shared a taxi once more.

Along the way back to the hotel, neither of us spoke very much. That is, until we reached Statue Circle, where we got out of the cab due to the driver telling us he couldn't park right outside the hotel. There was just too much traffic.

"Thanks anyway" Felipe told the driver, handing him a wad of cash. "Have a nice rest of your day, okay?"

As the two of us got out of the cab, we soon found out the reason for the traffic.

The entire street was blocked by a crowd of people standing in place, holding signs above their heads. It needs to be said that there were no Pokemon in the crowd, and the reason for that became clear almost immediately.

"Pokemon will not replace us! Pokemon will not replace us! Pokemon will not replace us!"

That was the chant coming forth from their mouths. The crowd was being riled up by a man who, for all intents and purposes, looked like a stereotypical wealthy elitist.

I mean it, he had white hair and was in a top hat and tuxedo. How anyone could see him as a man of the people was almost beyond me. The man was waving a stick back and forth like someone conducting an orchestra.

"What is that?" I asked Felipe, as if he knew any more about it than I did.

My friend frowned at me. "You haven't heard of Jeff Monopoli before?"

I shook my head. "What a ridiculous name! And what a ridiculous thing to chant, too!"

"It's no laughing matter, Royal. Mr. Monopoli is a dangerous man indeed; he's quite charismatic. Sometimes it seems he can make anyone do anything."

My heart dropped; any desire to crack a joke about his last name was swiftly forgotten. Ditto with questions about how Felipe knew this information.

"So these people are protesting Pokemon replacing them? But what do they mean by that? They must really think that having extended equal rights to Pokemon is a threat to them!"

Felipe shrugged. "In a way, they're not wrong. Humans had dominion over Pokemon for millennia even; in the grand scheme of history, the advent of equal rights for humans and Pokemon is a relatively recent development."

I narrowed my eyes and furrowed my brow. "But in what way does that mean Pokemon are replacing them? Pokemon having more rights doesn't mean they have to leave!"

"It's pretty ridiculous," my friend agreed. "But like I said, Mr. Monopoli is nothing if not persuasive, and you don't have to like him in order to admit that."

Anyway, the crowd had quieted down, but plenty of car horns could still be heard; the drivers were demanding to know why it was taking so long to get around the circle. The protest had caused quite a traffic jam.

Mr. Monopoli was speaking. "Ladies and gentlemen, leaders and fighters for freedom and the Coronet City dream, the best is yet to come!"

Although he wasn't a large man by any means, he radiated authority. Even if I believed his cause to be abhorrent, his voice was almost enough to make me think, Hey, maybe the idea that Pokemon should have equal rights is a bit far-fetched. Almost.

The hateful little man cleared his throat before continuing. "Today we're going to walk down Kanto Avenue, and we're going to make a scene. We are going to make sure the whole world hears our voice. We are Team Skyward, and what does that mean, everyone?"

The crowd chanted in unison, at a volume that made me feel even colder than the Coronet City air, "Relegating Pokemon to their proper sphere will push humanity skyward!"

This is beyond parody. And yet, these people all follow him. I wonder how sorry their lives must be, that they have to resort to being his puppets?

"That's right!" Mr. Monopoli bellowed. "So we're going to make sure that the attention of every man, woman, and child understands our message, and sends that message forward to Pokemon: You are not welcome in this sphere."

By this time a few people had gotten out of their cars to see what all the fuss was. It was understandable, really; why would anyone want to sit in stationary traffic in the middle of a city, and not do anything about it?

To their credit, most of these individuals wrinkled their noses in disgust at the human supremacists and returned to their cars. On my end, though, I had no desire to run away.

"We should get going, Royal," Felipe told me, grabbing me by the jacket and starting to lead me away from the traffic circle. However, I was strong enough that I broke free from his grip, and went to stand next to the giant golden statue of Sir Aaron with his Lucario.

"What are you doing? It's too dangerous!"

"I have to see what they're up to, Felipe. I can't explain it, I just have to."

The scene was very much like that of a horrific car accident, which was only made more likely with such traffic. It was an absolutely terrible sight, but you just couldn't look away, no matter how hard you tried.

On some level, I was sympathetic towards Felipe's plea. It just wasn't safe to stand in the middle of Statue Circle when there was about to be a conflict between the protestors and the drivers.

Who am I kidding? This conflict has already begun, since they're blocking the way. It's just a matter of how ugly it gets.

I noticed a Spoink out of the corner of my eye, cowering behind one of the streetlamps. It didn't seem that the crowd had laid eyes on it yet, but when they did (and it was a matter of when, not if), that Spoink was going to be in serious trouble.

"All right, everyone!" Mr. Monopoli yelled, beckoning the protesters to follow him. "Time to march!"

The human supremacists, most of whom were young-looking men probably about my age, began pompously marching through the traffic circle and past the various stopped cars, as though daring them to run the protesters over. None of the vehicles moved, of course; their drivers seemed to have more respect for the lives of their fellow humans than the supremacists did for Pokemon.

All of these men kept chanting, "Pokemon will not replace us!" loud enough to make my ears ring. I saw that the adorable little Spoink was still behind the lamppost, looking absolutely petrified. I couldn't blame it.

"Come on" I told Spoink, trying to strike a balance between friendly and firm. "You've got to get out of here before they find you."

"I'm too scared to move," Spoink replied, bouncing up and down so slightly that his tail didn't leave the ground. (I could tell, based on the voice, that Spoink was male.)

Felipe shook his head as he ran over to me, a wild look in his eyes. He was clearly angry with me for taking this risk.

"Royal, you and Spoink are going to get yourselves killed if you stay out here where Team Skyward can find you. I've heard plenty of stories."

"What stories?" I asked, dreading the answer.

Felipe grimaced. "You don't want to find out. All the things they do...it's horrific. You'd think that they should accept that they live in a society where Pokemon exist, but no."

What I said next might sound tone-deaf to many, but these were my real thoughts.

"If they're just saying hateful things, surely there's not as much harm to be done, is there? It's one thing to spit out vile language, it's another to act on said vile language."

The look Felipe shot me suggested that he wanted to say: Oh, you sweet, sweet summer child.

"I keep saying this, but we need to head back. All of us. Something's brewing in Coronet City, and I don't want to be part of it."

I don't condone, let alone endorse, any type of hatred. Given what those people are protesting, "Pokemon will not replace us!" was the first chant that came to mind. I hope it's clear, based on context, that I'm presenting the anti-Pokemon bigotry as a bad thing.

Also, thank you to ScribeChronos for suggesting that a Spoink appear in the story! I found a place for him in this chapter.