Disclaimer: nothing has changed. I still don't own pokemon. However, I DO own most of the said pokemon characters in this story, in other words, I put my own umbreon, hoot-hoot, etc. in this story…so…u Below is the key for future reference. No telepathy for a while, but it'll show up later. Enjoy.

KEY

"blah" - speech (pokemon and human speech are written the same way)

'blah' - thought

blah - telepathy (none in this chappy, but will be later on)

(AN: blah)- author's note

~~~~~~- time passes

"You can't take me, I'm free"~ Spirit: Stallion of the Cimarron

For pokemon, there are there are nights that only come in dreams. Nights when food is so plentiful that you could literally take a swim in, emerged in an endless sea of food, food that you caught yourself, immersing in the simple joy of crunching a catch between you cheeks and you held the wild animalistic urge to simply eat it. ALL of it, in a selfish greedy stupor of which the pokemon and human worlds had never seen in their lives. All is good, all is fantastic, and all is for you and you alone. Yes- THAT is the kind of night dreams are made on.

Unfortunately for me, tonight was certainly NOT one of those nights. My ears were pinned back ruefully in frustration as I trotted around yet another picked clean berry bush. This had to be at least the eighteenth bush I tired, dawn would be coming soon and hadn't a single thing to eat since the mass evolution. Not to mention that a heavy fog was setting in quickly and while I had light of my own, against the thickness coming in, it would be practically useless.

I sighed and shook my now dew-wet fur as I climbed a tall hill in hope of finding something, anything before the dawn broke. No luck on the post itself, but I'd expected that anyway. Earlier I'd even resorted to looking in the campsite where the trainers had stayed earlier for leftovers only to find the rattatta had picked it clean. It was just as well, I hated to resort to scavenging like some abandoned pidgey, I may not have any food, but I still had my pride after all.

In the distance a pack of houndour sang the last song for the twilight, in both triumph and pride. "Hmmm. Probably brought down a stantler, or maybe a tauros that escaped from a ranch or something." I chuckled "But more likely they're simply scaring random trainers that just passed by." The pack, as well as some houndoom, murkrow, and of course umbreon like myself (ignoring the fact that I'm the only one in the forest…) enjoyed our private game of jumping out into the path in the middle of a fog, or a dark night standing there in awesome brilliance, an opportunity way too good for any trainer to pass up. Then we'd run off leading them off the trail, appearing out of nowhere, and then disappearing again teasingly. Sometimes, the pack would finish the job by letting out an eerie howl frightening enough to send a slowpoke into terrified hysterics. Then the unfortunate human would either keep going, or more likely they'd t run back to the pokemon center two miles back, tell about what they saw, not get believed and question their sanity. I grinned. This was probably why us dark type got a bad reputation for being "evil" and frightening. This was also backed up by the fact none of us- really cared and therefore did nothing to disillusion that thought. If that was what the humans and trained pokemon wished to think, then let them. Not any of our business. The wild ones here knew the truth, and so did we, no more than that was needed. 'Besides, we are quite frightening when we want to be.' I thought to myself.

I turned away from the pack and began to go on my way once more. By now it was so foggy, I could barely see my on paws ion the ground and I snarled in frustration. "Accursed fog. If I didn't know better I'd think the forest itself was against me. Not only am I starving, I'm lost in this horrid, cloud of misery and woe." Another voice rang out, one with a cynical tone that matched my own "Oh yes, the entire world's after this poor little umbreon lost in the world boo hoo hoo. Come off it Rhee, it's just a fog. Not a thunderstorm, not a hurricane, not a poisonous gas that will kill us all in a matter of seconds, and certainly not a dark cloud of misery and woe. It's a fog and nothing more." A red light shot out, making the fog gradually get thinner, just so I could make out the figure who hopped down to me. "The fog will be what I tell it to be Tharn. Besides, not everyone has foresight like you do, some cannot banish this weather so easily. You know" "I thought I told you not to call me Tharn" said the hoot-hoot that walked up to me with a cross look on his face. "My name is Tharnalius, thank you. Not Tharn, not Aluis, Tharnalius." "I'll stop calling you Tharn, when snorlax fly of jumpluff seeds of golden magic with and fly all pretty like with the articuno. Or at least until you stop calling me Rhee." I began to walk again, with Tharn hopping along beside me. He was a bit more pudgy than most of his kind, and he had short stubby wings that hardly took him three feet, and therefore usually walked or hopped everywhere. He swiveled his large head to the side "Well I can't call you anything else, you won't tell me you're name. Not a real one anyway." I flipped my tail indignantly "I do so have a name. My name is the spirit of darkness, the essence of shadows, the enemy of the light, -"

"-the call of the houndoom, the freedom of the night, the voice of twilight, the looker to the moon, you're dancer in the dark, your name is in the very threads of the night's power, in the voices of all night-dwellers, and the wind that blows the murkrow wings. Yes, yes you've told me, told me more than I needed to. "

"More than ANY of us need to know, now shut your trap, some people are trying to SLEEP!" rang out an angry pidgey. We paused blinked in it's general direction for a moments and chuckled. "So..what's up for tonight? I thought you'd be sleepin' in your den by now or at least sitting on that hill of rocks above it. Why out so late?" "Hunger. I'm looking for my dinner..and not finding anything," I sighed. Tharn hopped onto my back and hitched a ride as I strode through the woodlands "You should have gotten up early at sunset and eaten then before the mass evolution. By now, all the berries have been eaten, and the prey gone back into hiding, now that the show's over. Most of the food was eaten while watching the ceremony, and there was twice as many then- more In fact seeing as how all those day-dwellers were up and about." Tharn gave me a scolding peck dead center of one of my rings "You should have been like the smart pokemon and ate before hand, or stored something away last night. Now it's too late and here's to poor eevee-lution all hungry and sad. How tragic". I grinned "In other words Tharn, you haven't eaten either and are just as hungry as I am.." The hoot-hoot closed his eyes and sighed in defeat "nope. How'd you know?" "I'm your companion, idiot, it's my job to know. Besides" my grin widened "you said smart pokemon remember? And apparently my stubby winged friend are not of that persuasion." Tharn hopped back down and gave me a dirty look "I hate you." I nuzzled his belly fur "Awwwwww, I hate you too Tharn. I hate you too."

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Various leaves and other debris were pushed aside as I trotted through the bush dejectedly. At my back the sun was peaking out from behind the trees awakening the early risers, the sky turning from midnight blue, to a light blueish pink sending thin golden rays in small bars through the trees and already some of the pidgey and lediba were awake. My tail drooped as I headed beck to my den sadly reflecting on the past ten minutes. Not too long ago Tharn had returned to his own roost not long ago after satisfying his hunger with some tree sap, which I declined to eating. After that I'd gone to the brook in hopes of catching a magikarp, fell in, got soaked. The "HA!" from the rattatta I heard before didn't help. After tonight I was more than ready to crawl back under my secure rock-den, turn in and hope tomorrow I had more luck. Sometimes a pokemon just had to cut her losses and admit defeat. Suddenly something in the grass rustled- something too small for the usual brush pokemon and certainly wasn't a human so I supposed it had to be a bug-type of some kind. I pricked my ears and quietly slunk in the grass letting my self melt into the shadows of the dawn tense and alert. A weedle was crawling amiably down a tall oak tree and making it's way so one of the bushes. It stopped for a moment looking around as if sensing danger then shrugged it off and continued. I moved closer haunches up and ready. For the pounce Wait…wait……. The weedle's head was now in the bush eyes closed in delighted with it's meal. Now. I leapt out and slid towards the bug. It wheeled around and raced towards the tree (AN: It's a FAST weedle ok?) I went after it and with a swipe pinned it's body beneath my paws. It let out a high pitched squeal making me pin back my ears and also lifting my paws just a bit. That was all it needed. It whipped it's tail in the air and in a single movement dug it's barb smack dab into my paw.

I winced sharply and started to after it only to be rewarded by a sharp pain shooting into my front leg. It wobbled and slid out from under me and I swiftly crashed to the forest floor. I lay there for a while in silent agony with tightly shut eyes not even bothering to rise. The venom was strong surprisingly fast and I soon felt close to paralis or faint. I draped my good paw over my eyes to keep out the fully risen merciless sun and was like that for I don't know how long, lying quietly in the wood in silent pain waiting for night or death- whichever came first to come. Until a scent drifted in my nose. It was very week- masked my sweet scent and if not for the fact that I was upwind I wouldn't have caught it at all. My eyes snapped open with a sudden panic. I knew that scent- it was the one smell I'd known and hated all my live and up till now I had only considered it with annoyance, but now the smell brought only fear. A snap of a twig was heard .A human. I got to my feet and limped to the oak where the weedle had emerged earlier and looked up hopelessly into the branches. Curse it…..the first branch is too high…way to high. Another twig snapped- closer this time. but…I'll try! I have to. With a gulp and a quick prayer I jumped and slammed myself as high as I could into the tree digging my claws into the bark deep, resulting in me dangling like laundry left to dry and very slowly pulled my self up. The first branch. Not bad for a species that doesn't really climb. Another snap. The scent got stronger. With no time to get any higher I dove into the leaves , drew back my ears and curled into a ball praying silently. By now the footsteps were really close closer..closer…until they stopped. Right below my tree. I back up further into the leaves and instantly cursed to myself realizing the I'd given away my position. . I tucked in even tighter hardly daring to breathe Oh Legendaries… Mew, Celebi, moltres, lugia, latias, anybody just let them pass. Please let them just pass. They did not pass. My heart was in my throat as the human looked up into the branches curiously and spoke the dreaded command

"Thakur, headbutt!"

The entire tree thundered and shook and as the pidgey above scattered I wildly scrambled to keep aloft and soon felt nothing below, air whistling and my breath being thrown back into me as I slammed into the dirt. I let out a pained cry and and opened my eyes despite the ache and the fact that the poison was now clouding my vision. I could juts make out the figure of a boy, it smelled young and probably inexperienced. And also a pokemon- a growlithe to be exact. I managed to my feet and spread them apart in the classic umbreon fighting stance with my head lowered, teach bared crimson eyes blazing with rebellion. I was not about to go down with out a fight. With my condition there was a chance I might die in this thing, but I wouldn't be caught. I'd gladly die first. "an umbreon…" the boy was amazed, then the voice turned to surprised glee "Wow! An umbreon all the way out here and on our first try too! We're getting better at this Tahkur!" The growlithe gave a happy bark in response. "Pokeball, go!" The ball flew and I turned and I snarled, turned and whacked it away with my tail into the bushes. Not that easily boy. Not that easily. The kid scowled "hmm. It looked weak, thought that would do the trick. Ah well. Thakur!" His pokemon crouched "Tackle!!" the growlithe raced towards me and I quickly leapt away, wheeled around and slammed into him with a tackle of my own. It was tossed aside and I continued the assault and gave him a deep bite attack on his foreleg. The growlithe yelped loudly and pulled away, forcing my teeth to rake into his skin. It shied away looking surprised, he hardly knew what hit him. I grinned mockingly "Who's the week one now, trained one?" "Don't give up Thakur! It seemed as they weren't done yet. The growlithe snarled "Flamewheel!" He jumped into the air and I countered with agility, but ended up slipping on it injured paw and running into a rock. Behold the nimble umbreon. The circle of flames shot through the air and I was tossed off the rock with the burning inferno blazing through the body and crumbled again to the ground. I tried desperately to stand- and couldn't. I cried out weekly and slumped back,, spirit willing but body not cooperating. I cracked open one eye just in time to see the trainer pull out yet another pokeball. My eyes widened No….. "Pokeball…." Not me…never……not like this….. "go!" Not me…

The dreaded red and white orb shot up, shone in the morning sun, then came down again. I knew I could not stop it this time. My fate was set. I saw a bright red light, then felt being pulled in.

Then…felt nothing at all.