Kindly Kold, I would like to say that Eevee and its evolutions do have claws, but they probably don't. I would say that Blazewind got 'claw' from Stormclaw's attitude, saying that he would rip opponents to shreds with his claws, if he had any.
ShebytheDogDemoness, thanks for your review!
Just a fanfic reader, your reviews are helping me a lot. I did go over and review my last chapter, and edited it a bit. Personally, predictions scare me when they're accurate, so I'm really glad you haven't said what you think will happen. This chapter is probably more predictable. Thank you for your comments!
ExuroFlamma, you have a good point there. But it makes a little more sense to put Umbreon in the 'not forest Pokemon' area, since in the Pokemon games they have to evolve during the night when they really love their trainers. It would be the exact same thing if an Espeon came into the picture.
Chapter 4
A week had passed without Umbreon really realizing it. Noric came every day with him to training, they'd hunt together, and now practice fighting with each other. Normally it was Umbreon's face that was in the dust though.
Fern seemed to have forgotten that she'd ever been nice or friendly to Umbreon; she reached an all-time low in forgetting that he even existed. It didn't surprise him much, seeing as her mother had been doing that ever since he'd first arrived.
Stormclaw had still not come back from his mission to find the Houndour that had killed Scarfang. Life went as it normally did in the Whitefang Pack, most didn't have a doubt that Stormclaw would be back any day. That was until Blazewind ordered that Takula go and find him a day ago, yesterday.
It was midmorning by the time that Noric and Umbreon came back from a hard practice in the forest. "I wish Fern would go train with some other Eevee. She makes me sore." Noric mewed to Umbreon as they made a bee-line to the best spot in the tyro's area, the one always in the sun.
Umbreon purred his agreement to that statement. They both needed a good wash from falling into the dirt, as the dirt had gotten all over them. But their rumbling stomachs reminded them of the fresh pile of food in the center of the clearing, one neither of them had made a contribution to.
The autumn air was turning more and more bitterly cold by day. All forest creatures showed the effects of it, from the lengthening fur of the Eevee and their evolutions, to the mass migration of many food sources. Pickings were becoming slimmer and slimmer by day as most Pidgey and Spearow got the urge to fly south for the winter. For that reason, food was to be shared now; one Spearow had to feed the two hungry tyros.
The bird Umbreon and Noric shared looked to be one of the birds that was too old to make the flight south, and the stringiness of its meat confirmed that. "It wasn't enough." Umbreon moans as it was finished off.
When Noric didn't reply, Umbreon turned his head to look at his friend, seeing that he had bristled up. He was looking into the underbrush, where the bushes were rustling noisily.
Takula came streaking into pack grounds, her eyes wide as saucers. "He's gone!" She yowled to the startled crowd around her. "Stormclaw's gone!"
Like wildfire, mumbles spread through the grounds that were not silenced when Blazewind jumped to her feet and began interrogating Takula.
"What happened?" Was the first question as Blazewind set her fiery eyes on Takula.
"He's… He's… gone!" Takula sobs, "Trainers… got him…"
As if Umbreon was a trainer himself, most eyes darted to him. Murmurs, loud enough for Umbreon to hear, spread through the grounds, Pyrone's speech cutting through as the loudest. "I knew it!" She shrieked, "I knew it all along! That creature is an abomination to us all!"
"No." Takula growls, "Don't bring Umbreon into this, he was not there. I was, and you need to understand that Umbreon didn't take part."
"Daughter." Blazewind barked when Pyrone opened her mouth to retort at that, "I will have none of this. We are a rare breed of Pokemon, and trainers know that. We have been hunted into near extinction more then once, and trainers did that. Our pack numbers have dwindled to less then ten, in the period of two moons, and trainers were responsible for that. If I see you pointing you paw at Umbreon again without sufficient proof, you will be sorry."
Pyrone snorted before turning and pacing away. Blazewind watched her go with an emotionless face, her eyes wide with anger. "Members of my pack! Today we have gotten word of yet another loss, one that cannot be avenged so easily!" She boomed through the grounds. Eevee, Vaporeon, Jolteon, Flareon, and the single Umbreon focus their attention on the pack leader.
"A new deputy must be crowned again, to help us through the colder months. That is why I have chosen-" Blazewind's eyes came to rest on one Flareon in particular, "Elvera to by our now deputy. Elvera, if you would?"
Elvera scrambled through the crowd to Blazewind, where she bowed her head to the pack leader and waited. "Members of my pack! We all suffer yet another loss of one of our own. Stormclaw had been a brave warrior and a good deputy for his short-lived time. But we must move on without him now, as he would have wished us to do. I give you the Flareon who shall not be Elvera from this day forth. Fireburst, may your term as deputy be a successful one!"
Cheers broke out from the surrounding group. Elvera seemed to be yet another popular choice for the job of deputy. Umbreon added his cheer along with Noric, who was mewing at the top of his voice. "I'm tyro to the deputy! I'm tyro to our deputy!"
To cheerful cries and mews, Fireburst padded over to her tyro and Umbreon. "There won't be any more practice today!" She mewed brightly before turning and heading off for Fern.
"Great, now we can relax!" Umbreon mewed happily, purring contently from his warm spot. Noric, from the glint in his eyes, seemed to have another plan.
"You know what we could do?" Noric asked, and without waiting for a reply, continued, "We could go visit Flamedance! She said she'd like to have our company."
Umbreon froze, his eyes widening, "You don't really think she wanted us to go into her pack grounds… do you?"
"Of course! Now come on, last one there's a forest berry!" Noric exclaimed before dashing into the underbrush. Umbreon sighed to himself before following his friend, still not wanting the Eevee to be barbequed. It didn't take long for the familiar scents of the Whitefang Pack to die away and the sweet scent of Flamedance's pack to waft into Umbreon's nostrils.
"I'm the forest berry." Umbreon mewed before Noric had the time to, and they both purred their laughter. Neither of them noticed that a Vulpix had wondered over to them, until he waved two tails in Noric and Umbreon's faces.
"Greetings neighbors. What brings you two to Eaglefire Pack grounds at lunchtime? Or are you here to hunt?" The Vulpix grunted after Noric jumped a few feet back, startled by the Vulpix.
"We want to visit Flamedance, if that's okay." Umbreon mewed quickly.
"Flamedance?" The Vulpix repeated, sounding slightly downhearted, "Oh, of course, you didn't want to hunt, you wanted to see her. She's locked up in the queen's cave now, but you two will be able to go see her."
"What, did you want to hunt with us or something?" Noric asked as he heard the sad note in the Vulpix's speech, "Because we could hunt with you after we're done-"
"Wonderful!" The Vulpix blurted, totally drowning out the Eevee's last words, "Come, she's over here!" He darted off in a straight line, still heading east.
Umbreon and Noric followed after exchanging glances. It didn't take very long for them to find the queen's cave, following the Vulpix of course. The path was winding and narrow at some points, and Umbreon told himself that he'd never be able to find his way back without another guide.
Small, pitiful mews came from the cave, which yawned widely outward. Seven Ninetales were curled up around the cave, their tails fanned over the small baby foxes that had barely any resemblance to their mothers at the moment. Most were, from the slight glances Umbreon got before passing, nearly furless and with only one tail. They weren't seen as a threat to any of the queens but one, a wiry old Ninetales with two cubs that had started growing copper-colored fur already. She hissed at Umbreon and Noric as they passed, but didn't follow them as they made a bee-line to the back of the cave, where Flamedance was.
The Vulpix that had guided them to the cave settled down next to the wiry Ninetales, were he whispered to her for a while before getting into a play-fight with one of her cubs. Umbreon and Noric sat down on opposite sides of Flamedance and purred at the Ninetales, who was whimpering slightly.
"Good day little ones. Thanks for joining me in this boring old cave." Flamedance said in a dramatic tone.
"Abomination! You shouldn't be anywhere near this forest! For shame, for shame I say!" The old Ninetales snapped at Umbreon, pointing a wiry paw at him. Umbreon huffed, before Flamedance quickly placed a paw firmly on his head.
"Word travels quickly from Whitefang to Eaglefire. Blazewind told use about you, Umbreon, and you'll find that not all of us find you an abomination." Another one of the queens growled, giving the wiry Ninetales a glare, "You should just ignore the ones who do, until you prove them all wrong."
"Wow." Noric mumbled, "I didn't know you were popular in Eaglefire Pack too Umbreon!"
Flamedance let out a merry bark, "Yes, you could call it that! Umbreon dear, you must not make a fuss about this," She continued, seeing the downhearted look that Umbreon was now sporting, "Now, little ones, how is your training going? Still in line to be the best fighters in your pack?"
"It's going great!" Noric exclaimed, "We're going to be the best for sure! And we'll both become warriors before Fern, another annoying Eevee that you wouldn't like, so we'll be able to boss her around!"
"Now, now Noric, you don't want to become a warrior just to boss Fern around, do you? That counts as wanting a good thing for the wrong reason, it does." Flamedance barked, but her fiery eyes were dancing with laughter.
"Well that's one of the perks…" Noric stated, "But, did you know? I'm tyro to the deputy now!"
"Wonderful!" She replied, licking the Eevee over the forehead once.
"Yeah! And I'm going to become a warrior sooner because of that, because Fireburst will want to have a fully trained tyro as soon as possible! But Umbreon's mentor will make him a warrior too, because she knows he's good! Isn't that great? Takula-"
But Noric didn't continue after that, all of the queens and the Vulpix in the cave visually bristled, and Flamedance exclaimed, "Speak of the devil!"
"OUT! Out, out, out! I will not have the abomination in this cave any longer! Saying that, that… creature's name, my word! Out I say!" The wiry Ninetales roared as she shot to her feet and advanced on Umbreon and Noric. They both panicked for a second, crashing into each other before racing past her snapping mouth and out the cave.
"Whoa, that was strange." Umbreon mewed after they had put a considerable distance between them and Eaglefire Pack's queen cave. They both were panting from the run, and had barely a clue to where they were.
"I don't know what caused them to do that… all I was talking about was Fireburst, warriors, and Takula." Noric responded, his small nose pressed to the ground as he fought to find their scents.
Umbreon found the familiar scent of himself and Noric first, and waved his tail at his Eevee friend to follow him. "Maybe something you said is bad to Ninetales. Like the word 'great' or something." Umbreon mused.
"I think you're right. Well, the next time we visit Flamedance, let's word our speech better." Noric replied, purring to himself. They had reached the familiar scents of the Whitefang Pack again and it was a relief.
"Hey Noric!" Umbreon exclaimed, stopping to turn and face his friend, "Last one to the lake is an old forest berry!" With that, he turned and charged away, Noric mewing happily after him.