My spine shivered when I laid down to rest for the night in a bush, even after a year of not living in that household, I still hated sleeping inside of logs, bushes, anywhere where I wouldn't become food for another Pokemon. The sound of Noctowl, kricketune, just the dead of night, it was still nice and peaceful. Not too long after I was released back into the wild as I had chosen, I quickly realized I wouldn't be safe, ever. No human, no trainer, nobody to have my back and keep me safe. My sense of security was gone. It still is, but that just comes from living in the wild doesn't it?
Well, this is the life I had chosen, I wanted to explore the world, so I can't complain.
A twig snapping dragged me out of my thoughts, a fire started building up in my throat incase whatever made that noise was hostile. "Man… this map is impossible to read!" The sound of a human voice? Maybe it was a trainer, or a simple traveler like myself. It still didn't make me relax, I know some humans can be downright evil. On top of that, he probably wasn't the one who stepped on a twig. "Let me see that map Butch!" a new voice? Well, if these people were trainers, then I would definitely be in trouble. "Our luck's not going to get any better man, it's too dark to see anything. Let's just settle for the night Caleb." the other voice sighed. "You're right, maybe once we set up a campfire we'll be good to go."
Well, if these humans were staying, then it couldn't hurt to get a look at them. I brought my eyes to the edge of the bush, one human ran through a couple of backpacks on the ground. He popped off the sleeping bags on top of each of them and laid them out while the other lit a match and threw it into a half-hazardly made fire pit. "Hopefully we'll know where we are with some light," he said. "If not, then we might need to get a new map, Caleb." With the addition to the campfire radiating, I could tell one human had very, very hard to notice facial hair. Like it wasn't there. He wore a basic jacket that was unzipped and some jeans, which were torn up at the shins. The other human was sitting with his back to me, so I couldn't immediately tell what his facial features were.
"Well, at least we got a decent amount of supplies for if we are lost." The facial haired one said. "Yeah, say Caleb, can you make some food? I'm starving!" Now I knew which human was which. "Of course you'd want me to cook something, how much did you brag about those instant meal kits you brought?" Caleb said. "Listen man, you're just good at cooking. Why did you get a job offer?" Butch said. "Well, alright. Don't expect anything fancy." Butch got up and walked over to one of the bags. Retrieved a couple of jars and a spoon. He plopped himself next to Caleb, who had pulled some food out and a pan, and handed them to his companion.
Neither of them had noticed that I was watching them. Caleb placed the pan over the fire and got to work making himself and his friend something. It honestly didn't smell too bad, which made me want Daisy's cooking. If what these two were saying was true, then I assume they were heading to the same place I was heading. Butch looked up from Caleb's cooking and jumped. "Hey Caleb," his friend looked up. "Are you that hungry or what? The food's almost done, so calm yourself." He said, taking the pand off the fire. "Look over there!" Caleb's eyes followed his friend's finger, his eyes laid upon me. All either of them could see were my eyes, so they definitely didn't know what I was. Caleb stopped for a second as our eyes locked, I could tell he was scared out of his mind. "Hey! Whatever or whoever the hell is there, show yourself! I'm not scared to go over there and beat the hell outta you!" His voice shaked as he trembled. Well, I may as well humor him.
I poked my head out of the bush, which made both humans even more scared. "Caleb, we should run. A wild Ninetales isn't a good sign." Butch said, taking a step back. I pulled my entire body out of the bush, and started making my way up to the campfire. I did my best not to appear hostile, and stopped in front of the two travelers. "You won't hurt us right?" I shook my head. Before speaking in a soft voice. I didn't use my telepathy, the last thing these two needed was a talking pokemon. Caleb took a step forward with great caution, then extended his hand. It didn't take me long to figure out what he wanted.
Without much thought, I walked forward and dumped my head into his hand, and tried my best to show I was friendly. Caleb pulled his hand away at first before sighing. "Well, you're not a Mightyena or Houndoom at least," he said. Butch edged his way closer to Caleb as his companion started portioning out their food. I kept my distance from the two of them, I did not need their food, nor did they want me to touch them.
"Hey Ninetales," I lifted my head up from my paws. "You want some?" Caleb offered a spoonful of soup, it looked delightful, but I refused the offer. After leaving Daisy and Nate, I made a vow to not eat any human food unless it was made by either of them. Without another word, I laid my head back down, and fell asleep.
The smell of salt and gas hit my nose as I followed my new companions, I was close to home. The very moment I took my first step onto a sidewalk, I broke off from them, I knew they wouldn't care. They were not close to me and I had an idea of where to go. It was almost like I have never left, remembering which street corners to turn as my memories came flooding back. The gate to my human's home was closed, so I hopped right over. I looked behind me, Caleb and Butch were nowhere to be found. They probably lost me in the crowd.
I walked up to the door and pawed at the door, hoping somebody would hear my scratching. Did they move out? Did they entirely forget about my promise to them and leave? My heart fell at the realization that I would not be able to see them ever, possibly ever again. Did I stay away for too long? Did I accidentally mistake a century for a year? I laid by the door and stayed for a while.
My eyes opened to see two pairs of shoes. "Ninetales?" I looked up to see Daisy and Nate, the boy had grown a bit since I had been gone, and Daisy didn't look like she aged at all. I jolted up from my spot and nearly knocked the woman off her feet. "I thought you guys left!" I cried and whimpered in pure joy as Daisy rubbed my back. "We wouldn't, you made a promise that you'd come back here last year, and so I thought we'd stay here." Nate grabbed and pulled me into a big old hug. "Hello Nate," thy boy didn't say anything. He just rubbed his face in my fur and enjoyed the moment.
"Hey Daisy!" The three of us turned to see Flareon and Jane at the gate. "Oh! Ninetales you're back!" I didn't even see the Flareon move as he tackled me and started licking my face. I was back at home, no other humans can take my human's place in my heart. No Flareon could replace the one cuddling with me. "So why were you two stopping by?" I asked. "I let Nate borrow Flareon for trainer school, so I was just coming by to drop him off."
"Well, how about for today…" I looked at Nate. "I'll battle for Nate. I've been looking forward to this." The child jumped up and down while Flareon let me up on my feet. "Well, let's go. What are we waiting for?" Daisy shook her head as me and Nate ran through the gate.
"You better wait for us!" She yelled, before sprinting after us both.