[POV: Zero, 914 BBF]
{How are you doing?}
[Still alive. Kind of.]
Zero stared at the duo that consisted of a jolteon and a lucario and judged them silently. They were in the market again, looking at necklaces. Now, Zero didn't have a problem with that. What his problem was that they were looking at the flashier ones. With lots of colors. Ew.
The real question, he thought, is if the necklace is for themselves. He decided that the best way to solve his problem was to go talk to them.
"Which one though? We don't exactly have a lot of money," Tal was saying.
"This is your idea Tal. If you aren't sure what she likes, then why buy her anything? Maybe you should wait to get to know her a bit more, don't you think?" came Rio's serious reply.
"But I want to get her something! I'm hoping it will make her feel more welcome, as yesterday probably wasn't the best of days for her."
The lucario sighed. "You realize that we've been here for two hours, right?"
Tal nodded. "I know, but I don't want to be there while Wolfe is. The guy unnerves me for some reason."
"I'm sure that he's gone by now! It's almost noon!"
Zero laughed. He couldn't help it, the poor lucario seemed totally done with the jolteon's antics. Side effect of him doing so, however, was that both pokemon heard him and stiffened.
Tal turned to face him at a speed only a jolteon could manage, and glared at him.
"What do you want, Zero?" he asked haughtily.
Zero raised an eyebrow, still chuckling slightly. "Can't I just be at the market?"
Rio growled at him. "You don't need to be near us, however."
Zero shrugged. "Maybe not, but I'm not exactly here to cause trouble. Merely noticed you two at a jewelry stall and was curious as to why two manly men were looking at such colorful jewelry. Shopping for a certain lady friend, hmm?"
Tal glared at him. "And why do you care?"
He shrugged, then said, "No particular reason that I'm willing to share. However, if you'd like advice I could help you."
At this, Tal just glared even harder, while Rio saw a light at the end of the dark tunnel.
"Yes!' the lucario said quickly. Tal turned his shocked glare back to him.
Zero smiled. "Of course, why not. What's your budget?"
Rio had a grateful look in his eye as he answered, ignoring any and all complaints coming from the jolteon. "We have 260 poke between us."
Zero frowned slightly. That limited options considerably, and if there was one thing he hated, it was limited options. He shook his head.
"Is this for your beautiful new housemate?" he asked.
Rio nodded while Tal just glared at him. Zero shrugged.
"Alright, let's not worry about price. I'll cover it." He told them.
Rio's eyes widened in gratitude while Tal's narrowed suspiciously.
"Why would you do that?" the jolteon asked him.
"Let's just say that I feel bad about almost injuring her yesterday. She's lucky that I'm as fast as I am," he replied, while slightly lifting his splinted leg to show it off.
This answer seemed to settle Tal's suspicions as he nodded. "Well then thank you. I still don't like you though."
Zero waved a paw dismissively. "You should really just get over that night. Neither of us could control our actions really, so don't dwell on it. Besides, chicks dig a guy that's open minded. You should tell Lura that story sometime. See what happens," he told him with a wink.
Tal blushed a deep crimson and started stammering. At this point Zero ignored him and turned back to the task at hand. Picking a right necklace.
The vendor had a lot of options, and seemed to be a cheerful guy, as he had an easy smile. Next to him was a gardevoir, who he was familiar with. She was a real sweetheart towards everyone. Zero jumped onto the counter and smiled at them both.
"Hello Zero," the man told him. Zero nodded at him. Then he turned to the gardevoir, whose job was to act as a translator.
"Greetings," she said.
"Hello Ariel, how're the kids?" he asked.
"Just fine, thank you," she replied, beaming at him. If there was one thing mothers liked, no matter the species, it was talking about their kids.
"Glad to hear it. So, what do you guys have for new stock? Nothing too terribly fancy, but flashy enough to compliment a pretty little vaporeon."
Once she had translated, the vendors smile widened. "Ah, found a new lady friend, did ya Zero? You'll have to introduce us sometime. Anyone who catches your eye is bound to be someone pretty special," he said. "Hold on a moment, I think I have just the thing for you."
With that he turned around and went to the back of his stall where he started rummaging through some crates, mumbling to himself.
"Now where did I put the damn thing? Ah, here we go!" he said, before turning around, holding a small, well decorated box. "Now, I don't have this on display, mainly because I know very few individuals could afford it, but I know you easily can. What do you think? Hand crafted in Durose, and made using the highest quality of gold and silver, straight from the mines of Taria, and using gemstones from the jewelers in Daric." Then he lowered the box to reveal a beautiful, yet simple necklace that Zero thought would be perfect.
It had a silver chain, which he knew took a lot of time and precision to get perfect, which the chain appeared to be. It had three gems set in gold, which formed the body of the necklace, with two sapphires on the side and a large, clear diamond as the center piece. Not too terribly flashy, just the right amount to be attractive yet not overbearing. He was sold.
"Alright, what price?" he asked, with Ariel translating.
The vendor thought for a moment, then said, "I'll tell you what. I'll let you have it at 25,000 poke, even though it could easily go for 40,000."
Zero nodded. "You've got a sale, my friend. Hold on just a sec, my purse is on it's way. Can you wrap it?"
The vendor grinned. "Using your partner's abilities to cheat again, eh Zero? No problem. I'll throw in the box as well."
As the vendor wrapped the box in a gold foil, Zero closed his eyes and concentrated.
'Gabe,' he sent. 'I need you to bring some of my poke to me'
'Great,' came the reply. 'I was just about to sleep. How much?'
'25,000'
'Oh great, you bought another house, didn't you?'
'No, just some jewelry. Expensive jewelry.'
'Be right there.'
A few minutes later, a familiar gallade appeared in front of the stand. He placed a leather sack with a little piece of rope tying off the top onto the counter, before disappearing again. The sack was obviously filled with a lot of coins, as it was visibly bulging.
Zero pushed the heavy sack over towards the vendor, and waited patiently as Ariel psychically counted the money. Then the vendor slid over the neatly wrapped box before smiling again.
"I have to say Zero, I always enjoy selling to you. It always means a day of profit for me," the man told him. Zero just smiled at him and nodded understandingly. Then he turned to Rio and Tal, who were both staring at him in both awe and shock. He gestured for the lucario to grab the gift.
"Since I bought it, you get to carry it," he told him with a cheeky grin. Rio just nodded, still dumbstruck. Zero turned back to the vendors and smiled at them, before saying, "Pleasure doing business with you. Tell the kids I said hi."
After that he jumped onto the ground to join Tal and Rio. "So what do you gents say to getting some lunch? I'm feeling generous today," he told them.
"Uhh, sure, I guess," Tal responded, seemingly forgetting his annoyance with the umbreon. Rio nodded again.
"Alright, we'll go to Dee's Pub. I have a tab running there."
[POV: Lura]
Lura was perplexed. Wolfe had left hours ago, and Tal and Rio still weren't back. Needless to say, she was bored. Very bored. She wished that they had waited for her at least. She debated on trying to find Zero's place, but decided that she didn't know her surroundings anywhere near enough to risk exploring. So she waited.
About an hour into the afternoon, she heard a couple familiar voices at the door. She leaped onto the windowsill and glanced out into the street, trying to catch a glimpse of who was at the door, though she had her suspicions. Unfortunately, she couldn't see anything from her angle.
Oh well, she thought. I can just go outside. That thought in mind, she pushed her way quietly through the flap in the door and out onto the street, where she saw something that she really hadn't expected to. Tal, having a conversation with Zero.
"Listen, Tal, you should be over that by now. It's not like it happened just last week. It happened a year ago! Your sister is over things already, and in my opinion she had more of a reason to be upset with me then you do," Zero said.
"It's not that simple, Zero. Some of us get over things sooner than others, and although I know that I'm fast physically, I'm not emotionally. While it might not seem like that big of a deal to you, it is to me," Tal replied.
"I think that you two need to figure out your problems on your own time. Some of us have things to do you know." That was only the second time she had heard Rio speak.
Zero nodded understandingly, and then he smiled brightly. "Also, we should note that there are more ears among us, so if you don't want her to know, we should probably drop the subject."
Lura flinched slightly. How did he know I was out here? I didn't make a sound!
Tal also looked startled. It was obvious that he hadn't been aware that she had joined them, so that just made her even more curious as to how Zero knew she had been present. She decided that this was just too weird for her not to ask.
"How did you know I was out here," she asked him.
"I always know when beauty is in my presence! Just ask Gabe," came his reply. Tal rolled his eyes and groaned softly. At least he seemed to be more accepting of the umbreon today. Lura wondered what they were all doing. Her question was answered by Zero.
"So, should we give it to her now? I'm terribly impatient, and I want to see her face light up," he said. Tal actually smiled along with the umbreon, and nodded in agreement. They both looked at Rio, who was holding a small gold box.
"Uhh, give me what exactly?" she asked. Rio just shrugged and gently placed the box on the ground. He pointed at it as he stood up.
Lura was slightly confused about why they were giving her a gold box, but then she realized that it probably held something. She padded up to it slowly, before looking at Tal and Zero, seeking guidance.
"Just open it already! I hate waiting games," Zero exclaimed. Tal nodded in agreement, looking eager. "Just to let you know, this was Tal's idea, I just provided the funds while Rio was the pack mule. So really, it's from all of us with lots of love. Consider it a 'welcome to the city' gift."
Lura smiled brightly as he told her this. "Awh! Well thank you guys! But you really didn't have to get me anything."
Tal shook his head. "Nonsense, of course we did! What kind of people would we be if we didn't?"
Rio replied to this, saying, "Normal. We would be normal people. No, we didn't have to get you anything, but we did anyway."
Zero chuckled as Tal glared at Rio. Lura giggled slightly as well, placing a paw delicately against her muzzle. Then she looked down at the box and wondered how she was going to open it. She decided that the best course of action would be to use her teeth, as they were sharp and could grip relatively easy.
After a relatively short amount of time, the box was unwrapped and all that covered whatever was inside was the ornate lid. She used a claw to lift it off, and flipped it off to the side. Once she saw the boxes contents, she gasped.
Inside was a necklace, a beautiful necklace, which had a simple chain with three gemstones set in it. For a second she didn't even move, she just stared at it in awe. It must have cost a fortune, she thought. She didn't know what to say. She looked up at the three pokemon watching her face with huge grins plastered on their own, even Rio's.
"I… I don't know what to say," she exclaimed. Tal beamed at her while Zero just grinned, obviously enjoying her reaction.
Rio, however, decided he should inform her. "The most common thing to say would be 'thank you', but it's really up to you if you say anything at all."
Lura just nodded, although she thought that 'thank you' didn't really cut it. "Well, thank you guys! Thank you so much!"
"You're welcome!" Tal said, while Rio and Zero just nodded their heads to accept her thanks. She looked down at the necklace for a moment, trying to figure out how she could put it on without looking stupid. Before she could make a move though, the necklace started to glow a faint shade of purple. Then it lifted out of the box by itself and opened just in front of her, not moving.
Lura was startled, for a moment thinking that the necklace was haunted, until she saw that Zero's eyes were also glowing purple. She realized that he was using psychic to lift it up for her. She smiled at him before thrusting her head through the chain. Zero's eyes returned to their normal color and the necklace settled itself onto her neck.
"Thank you all so much!" she exclaimed. No one had ever bought her a gift like this before, and she really didn't know why they decided that they would. She decided that she should just accept the gift and not question why she received it.
"Now that's out of the way, I'll go start getting things ready to cook dinner. Good day to you, Zero, and thank you for the meal," Rio said. The umbreon waved a paw dismissively.
"There's no need to thank me, but you're welcome," he told him.
Rio nodded and stooped to pick up the jewelry box, before he walked past Lura to the door, opened in, and went inside, leaving the eeveelutions to themselves. Tal looked uncomfortable now that his long-term friend was gone, while Zero just looked like Zero. Confident grin and gleaming eyes.
"Well, I guess that I'll go inside as well. Coming, Lura?" Tal asked.
Lura frowned. She wanted to be out of the house, she'd been in it all day.
"Actually, I was hoping that we could do something out of the house. I've been inside all morning," she replied.
Tal frowned while Zero's grin brightened. "In that case," the umbreon said. "You can enjoy the day with me! I'm sure we could have all sorts of fun, right Tal?" As he said this he winked at Lura, who understood what he was trying to do. She giggled and nodded, before saying, "Oh definitely!"
Tal, however, saw the wink and took it to mean something else, which caused him to bristle slightly. "On second thought, I'll just hang around with you two today," he told them.
"But of course! Wouldn't want you to miss out on all the fun, now would we? Now, what did you want to do today, Lura?" Zero said.
She giggled again. Now all three of them would be with eachother! She was glad that Zero had seen what she wanted, and thought it was funny how he got the jolteon to change his mind.
"To be honest, I'm not sure. What would you recommend?" she asked him.
"Well, I could show you my place and introduce you to Gabe, so that way if you ever need me you can just ask him," came the reply.
"And why would she need you? I'm more available than you are," Tal demanded.
Lura was slightly curious about that as well, but had decided that it would be rude to ask. Tal obviously didn't care if he came across as rude.
"Why lots of reasons, of course! For instance, if she's ever lonely and needs some attention, or if her bed is too cold at night and she wants someone with more fire in them to keep her warm," the umbreon said with a wink at her again.
Lura blushed brightly at what he said and what was implied, while Tal looked absolutely livid. Before he could say anything though, Zero held up a paw.
"Peace, Tal. That was a joke. Now, that's not to say I wouldn't be open to the idea of sharing a bed with her, I'm not one to go seek that kind of attention, despite what you think. People always seek me out, as you very well know. In all honesty though, she might need me if she needs a guard or just a friend to talk to. We both know that I'm the best fighter this side of Nor, maybe even beyond that. And I can be serious when the situation calls for it."
Tal swallowed whatever retort he had come up with in his head and sighed in defeat. "Yeah, I know."
Lura stared at Zero, still blushing brightly after his first statement. Still, she decided that she should answer. After all, she had been curious as to where he lived. If he showed her, then she could find him the next time she was bored.
"I think that that would be fine," she told him. The umbreon's eyes brightened.
"Is that an invitation to your bed?" he asked her.
Lura blushed even deeper. "That's not what I meant!"
"That wasn't a no," he said with a cheeky grin.
At this point Lura found that she couldn't speak and started stammering. Why did this umbreon make her react in such a way? Sure she thought he was handsome and all, but she didn't think that that would be enough to make her brain mush. Hell, she thought that Tal was handsome as well, but he never made her act this way. She resorted to hiding her face behind her tail.
Zero padded up to her and pressed his side against hers again, before wrapping his tail around her and pulling her into him. "Perhaps Tal should stay behind, no?" he murmured in her ear.
"I-I-I…" she trailed off, unable to speak. This was when Tal stepped in.
"Zero, I think that's enough. You're making her uncomfortable," he said.
Zero grinned. "Or perhaps I'm making her to comfortable," he replied. "But you're right, that's enough. I know what you meant, Lura. I'll show you two my place. Lura, you'll always be welcome there, and Tal, same to you."
With that said, he unwrapped is tail from around her, leaving her with a strange chill. She shook herself to clear her head.
"Follow me," the umbreon said, before turning around and trotting off down the street, leaving Tal and Lura to follow. Tal looked at Lura worriedly, as well as something else in his eyes.
"Are you ok?" he asked.
She nodded and smiled at him. "I'm fine Tal, but thank you for asking. I don't know why he makes me that way, I only have that problem with him. I'm not sure what to think."
Tal nodded slightly. Then he sighed. "It's alright Lura. When he's himself he won't actually do anything other than tease you."
She frowned. "And when he's not himself?"
He hesitated. Then said, "Well, he's more free then."
Lura kept her frown as she stared at Zero. What an unusual pokemon, she thought. He turned around and grinned at her, before focusing in front of him, seemingly lost in thought.
[POV: Zero]
'Bringing guests over to meet you and see the house. Clean up a bit will ya?' he sent.
'Why do you not get that I'm sleeping? Fuck off,' Gabe replied.
'Don't be that way. You slept last week, that should be enough.'
'You're a riot, demon. Who are you bringing?'
'Lura and Tal. Do me a favor and hide the contract information as well. No need to give anything away, now is there?'
'True. Alright, I'll get things ready. Any food?'
'Lura hasn't eaten since breakfast, but I treated Tal and Rio to dinner, so they should be good. I'll probably have something, and I'm assuming you haven't eaten yet either.'
'Got it. And you would be right as well.'
Zero smiled slightly. 'It's like I know you or something. Oh, one more thing.'
'What.'
'Thanks partner.'
[POV: Tal]
Tal was conflicted. It was pretty obvious as to why, what with Zero being how he is. Despite what he said, he didn't really have a problem with the umbreon. Mostly he had trouble coming to terms with himself.
He debated on telling Lura that story, as Zero had suggested, but found that it didn't really matter. Just a moment of stupidity on his part, combined with not being able to control himself. That's not to say he didn't enjoy that night, he just has problems coming to terms with that part of himself.
Then his thoughts turned to his pretty new house-mate. When he first saw her, he just couldn't help but stare. She was beautiful in every sense of the word. He just didn't know how to act around her. He wasn't the type of pokemon that could talk to anyone and not feel bothered in the slightest. Like Zero.
He didn't like comparing himself to Zero, as he knew they were in two separate leagues. It was relatively simple really. Zero was a social butterfly, and he was not. He used to idolize the umbreon, and even now he found that he couldn't really hate him, but things changed. He used to be in love with the umbreon, actually. He got what he wanted a year ago, but Tal hadn't really been aware that he wanted that kind of affection from him. So that was what he was still coming to terms with.
He didn't dislike the umbreon, he liked him too much.
However, now that Lura was here, he might be able to focus on her instead. It might finally take his mind off the umbreon.
[POV: Lura]
The journey through the streets passed in relative silence, each eeveelution minding their own business. Lura was slightly curious as to what they were thinking about, but she felt it would be rude to ask. It probably wasn't her business.
Finally they neared High Point's wall, and reached Zero's home. He stopped in front of a rather neat house, nothing to terribly fancy, although there were no houses near it. The house had a simple design, with three levels to it, at least that Lura noticed from the outside. It had the normal square design that all houses in Forn had, with the usual looking roof access.
His large property had an iron fence around it, and Lura was actually pretty surprised at how much space he had. It was easily large enough to fit her old house as well as the barn, with some room left over. On one section of the yard there were three straw dummies, which she assumed he used to train. There were also a couple simple targets, with red rings painted on them. Lura didn't know what purpose they served, so she made a mental not to ask Zero about them
Overall, she rather liked his property. It had a homey sort of look to it, and she could see Zero being very comfortable in it, along with whoever else lived there. She could easily see why he liked it.
"Well, home sweet home," the umbreon said. "It's not anything fancy like some people like, and I've been told on more than one occasion that I should add more decorations and color to it, but I hate color with a passion. And who needs decorations that don't serve a purpose?"
Tal nodded, as did Lura. "I actually expected something flashier from someone with so much wealth, but I'm not going to say that I'm disappointed. Just surprised," the jolteon told him.
Lura saw this as a great time to ask Zero a bit about his yard. "So, what's with all the dummies? And what are those targets for?"
"As I said earlier, I'm a good fighter. The dummies are to keep my skills up whenever my partner isn't available, or for him to use when I'm not available. As for the targets, they're for ranged attacks. I replace all my practice equipment every week or so, depending on if I'm out on a job or not. If they aren't really used, I leave them be," he replied.
Zero led them through the gate, which had a latch, although it wasn't in use at the moment. Then he led them to the houses entrance. His door also had a flap, so Lura assumed it was common for all houses that have quadruped pokemon living in them. It certainly made things easier.
"Now, my partners name is Gabriel, although he prefers to be called Gabe, much like Zero isn't my real name, merely a nickname. He's a great guy and I'm sure you will all get along. Lura, as you haven't eaten anything since breakfast, and I haven't eaten anything since yesterday, I had Gabe prepare some food for us. It should be ready now. Tal, I already bought you and Rio food earlier, but if you're still hungry you can have something as well," Zero told them.
Lura stared at him in shock as he entered the house with Tal following right behind. His name isn't Zero? I wonder what it is then, she thought. Then she shook herself and entered the house.
The interior of the home was very similar to the Bailey's house, with a stair case visible right when you entered. There were only a few visible decorations on the walls, and those looked to be paintings of people and pokemon. She decided to check those out as soon as she could.
"Alright, just a couple rules for the house. Rule number one, if you have to use the bathroom, use the actual bathroom. Two, don't break anything. And finally, the basement is off limits. No touching. Got it?" Zero told them. They nodded, although Lura was curious what was in the basement now, and he smiled. "Good! Now, feel free to explore the house! Unless you want to see my bedroom. I'll have to be present for that." He winked at Lura again, before turning around and trotting off. Lura marveled at how he seemed to move so easily, even though he had a broken leg.
"Well, I'm going to look around a bit," Tal told her. He seemed to be very interested in the house, leaving Lura slightly curious again. Then he took off around a corner.
Lura decided that she would check out the paintings now before she forgot. Padding up to them, she was immediately struck by the quality, as well as a couple questions.
The first painting held a familiar face in it, as well as a relatively new one. It held the image of Wolfe in his combat gear, holding his helmet in his hand, as well as a gallade who she recognized from the market. They were both grinning brightly and the craftsmanship of the painting made them appear almost life-like. The background was set on a battlefield, at least that's what she assumed. There were no bodies, but there were broken catapults strewn about, as well as a couple banners. In the bottom right corner there was a date, as well as a location. The date read 3142 3E, and the location said Taria, Taria.
So, she thought. This was probably based after that battle. She wasn't to terribly aware of what the current date was, but she figured that since Gary told her the war happened around 25 years ago, the date was somewhere around 3167 3E. She decided that she would ask Zero.
The next painting didn't have Wolfe in it, but there was a very familiar face. It was Zero. He and Gabe were standing in a very fancy and ornate room that she guessed was a throne room, again with smiles on their faces. Lura's guess was confirmed as she glanced in the corner. The date read 3166 3E, with the location reading High Point, Foria. So, that was probably painted last year.
Then she looked at the third painting. This one also had Zero in it, but she didn't know the second pokemon. It was another umbreon, although this one was female, if its figure was anything to go by. Lura had to admit that it was very beautiful, with a small smile on its face. The strange thing about it though, was that its rings were blue rather than yellow like Zero's. They both looked incredibly happy, and their tails were intertwined, with Zero kissing the female umbreon's cheek. Lura felt a slight twinge of jealousy, but she batted it away. She looked at the date and let out a squeak of shock.
The date read 3076 3E, with the location being Daric, Darvia. That's impossible, she thought. This painting was painted almost 100 years ago!
"Beautiful, isn't she?" she heard Zero say next to her, startling her. She snapped her head to the side and stared at him.
"Yes, she is," she said. She turned her gaze back to the painting. "Zero, what's the date?"
Zero turned his gaze to the painting. "The year is 3168 of the 3rd era," he told her.
She thought about how to phrase her next question without sounding rude. Before she could, however, Zero pressed his side against hers and wrapped his tail around her, bringing her closer to him again.
Again, Lura found it hard to breathe properly. Internally, she wailed. Why does this always happen!? She didn't know what to do again. She wished that she could figure her emotions out. She mentally shook herself.
"Is that your father?" she asked him.
"No, that's me."
"But…" her voice trailed off.
He chuckled at her. "I know, I'm old, aren't I?"
"But there's no way you're that old! You look like you're my age! How old do eevee's usually live?"
"Around 50 years," came his reply.
"But… If that's you then that would mean you are over 90 years old?!"
"What is age but a number?"
"But…" her voice trailed off again. "Isn't Wolfe really old too?"
He nodded. "We're about the same age. It's only because of him that I am able to live as long as I have anyway." He turned to look at the painting again, and his smile faded. "She should have lived as long as I have as well. But, things happen."
Lura saw that he was getting depressed, and decided to try to cheer him up, although she wasn't sure how she could. Then she looked at the painting again, and got an idea. Turning to Zero, she steeled herself. Then she placed her lips on his cheek, kissing him much like he kissed her last night.
Zero stiffened in surprise, before smiling slightly. Then Lura pulled back and turned her head, before resting it against Zero's shoulder.
"Thank you for that, Lura. You know, you're very similar to her, even down to the name," he told her.
"And what was her name?" she asked.
He chuckled. "Luna. Her name was Luna." Then he pulled away from her, and winked. "Now, don't worry about me, I'm fine. Now let's eat the food that Gabe was so nice to make for us. Also, I'll introduce you to him."
The rest of the day passed relatively quickly for Lura. They spent a few hours at Zero's house, before Tal and Lura decided to go home. Tal stayed quiet for most of the visit, seemingly lost in his own thoughts. When Lura asked how he was, he simply smiled at her.
Gabe was an interesting individual in Lura's opinion. He reminded her of Wolfe in some ways, but that made sense as supposedly they were partners for a long time. He was very courteous, much like Rio, except he spoke more. Overall, she thought he was a very nice pokemon.
The next day went by just as quickly, if not quicker. She spent most of it with Tal out exploring the town. Time passed. Over the next few months, Lura split her time between Tal and Zero, or the both of them on occasion. They certainly got along better after Lura joined them.
About two months after Zero showed them his house, Zero pulled her aside to speak with her.
"Listen, Lura. I know I told you that if you need a friend or a guard that you were to come find me, but something has come up. I'm going to be leaving town for a little while. I'm not entirely sure how long I'll be gone, but it'll probably be a few weeks."
Lura frowned. "Is everything alright?" she asked him.
He hesitated. "I'm not sure. I've just gotten word from a contact in Norovia that something is going on in Nor. Not sure what though."
Lura just frowned, and nodded.
Soon another month passed, and then another and yet even another. Eventually six months had passed, and then a year and finally two, and there was still no sign of Zero. Rumors started circulating around town that he had moved. Slowly but surely, he became more of a memory.
Tal and Lura's friendship got stronger and stronger, until they were practically inseparable, though it never went any further than friendship. Not for lack of Tal trying, just Lura didn't want that kind of relationship, though she didn't really know why. She guessed it had something to do with Zero, although she wasn't sure.
Three years after Lura moved to Forn, something happened. It started out as a normal day, with Lura going to the market to meet up with a few other friends for some food and a bit of gossip. Her group of friends consisted of Rose, who Tal had eventually introduced her to, a sylveon, who was simply known as Pink, as well as a gardevoir named Ariel, who apparently knew Zero.
"Did you hear that they're selling Wolfe's house and property?" Pink asked.
Lura and Rose's ears perked. "Wait, really?" Rose asked
The sylveon nodded. "Mhmm. No-ones been there for years, so they decided that it was just wasting money maintaining it while it's empty," she explained.
Lura frowned. "What about Zero? I mean…" she broke off suddenly with a shriek. A sharp, cold, piercing pain had erupted from her right shoulder. Its onset had her squirming on the ground, crying almost. It was so bad that everything else faded into the background, until the only thing she was aware of was the pain.
Finally, blessedly, the pain faded to be replaced with a wonderful sense of calm. Lura stopped screaming and just laid there, breathing heavily. She slowly became aware of her surroundings and saw her friends hovering over her with worried looks on their faces. All of her friends, that is, except Ariel who was sitting, who was sitting nearby also breathing hard.
"Wha-what happened?" Lura asked. Her friends exchanged glances with each-other, before turning back to her.
"You tell us! You just collapsed, screaming in pain! And when Ariel touched your mind to see what was wrong, she collapsed as well," Rose told her. Lura stared worriedly at the gardevoir, who smiled at her softly, still breathing hard.
"I-I've never experienced anything that painful before," she told her. "What cause that?"
Lura shook her head worriedly. "I'm not sure. That's never happened to me before. It felt like it was coming from my mark," she said, gesturing with her head. Then Rose gasped.
"Look at it!" she exclaimed.
They did, and Lura saw that it was glowing a dark purple. What happened? Why is it glowing, she wondered? As they stared at it the glow started to fade, until it was it had its normal appearance.
"You know, I've always been slightly jealous of you because you are one of the marked, but after seeing that, I'm glad that I'm not," Pink told her. The rest nodded in agreement.
About a week after that incident, word reached Lura that supposedly Wolfe had been killed, about a week prior. She and her friends were very shocked at this news, although it would explain why her mark had acted so strangely. The story was that he had been sick for a long time, and while he was resting, someone snuck into his room with a dagger and stabbed him in the heart.
When Lura heard this, she felt awful. She was sad that she didn't really know him that well, and what little she knew was tainted by the situation with her family. She didn't even know his first name, if indeed he had one. She wished that she had asked Zero about him.
A week after the news reached Forn, the city held a mass funeral for him. People came from all over the countryside to attend, and even the High Point nobles came down, including Foria's king and queen.
The ceremony was long, filled with lots of speeches and praises to the deceased. He was a war hero after all. After the ceremony, the city hosted a party in his honor, complete with dances and humans, as well as a few pokemon, getting drunk and doing something stupid. Apparently, Wolfe had stated that if he were to be killed that everyone should host a celebration, so that the day wasn't too terribly "depressing".
Lura wasn't sure how she felt about this. Someone had just died, yet everyone was celebrating and having a good time all around. It was very conflicting. Lura only stayed to watch a few of the couple's dance. Tal asked her if she wanted to join him, but she declined. First, she had no clue how to dance. Second, it didn't sit right with her to celebrate someone's death.
After watching for a bit, Lura decided to turn in for the night. Before she went to sleep, though, she decided to stargaze for a while as her own personal tribute to Wolfe. As she gazed at the moon, she couldn't help but think of Zero as well. Wolfe had been in Nor, and while she wasn't really sure if Zero was still there, that was the last place she knew he was headed.
A month after Lura's incident with her mark, she received even more surprising news. Or rather, a surprising visitor.
It was night time, and Lura was out on the roof again, when she saw two figures running down the street towards their house. Lura was slightly confused, as it must have been close to midnight and everyone else was asleep. The figures had a sense of urgency about them, so Lura was very curious what was up. She was even more interested when they stopped at her house. A moment later she heard a rapid pounding on their door.
She ran back inside the house as the pounding continued, which had now had woken everyone in the house. They all grouped around the door and waited as Stephen started to open the door, grumbling slightly as he did so. His grumbling stopped immediately when he saw who it was. Lura peeked around him and gasped.
Standing in the doorway, with Gabe standing next to him, stood Wolfe. He was in his combat gear, and Lura saw that it was covered in blood, mostly around the chest area. He had a stern look on his face that spoke volumes of annoyance.
"Wolfe! I thought you were killed!" Stephen exclaimed.
Wolfe's face tightened even more. He gestured at his chest, before saying, "Emphasis on 'were'. I really don't appreciate being stabbed, I'll have you know. Pain in the ass is what it is."
They stared at him, dumbfounded. Finally, Stephen found his voice again. "But, how are you alive?"
"You said it yourself, I'm a cheating demon."
Gabe sighed angrily. "Wasting time here," he said.
Wolfe shook his head. "Right. Stephen, we need to leave, now."
Stephen frowned, but then shrugged. "Alright, just let me get my coat and boots."
Wolfe shook his head. "No, you don't understand. You need to pack whatever you need to survive and load it in a cart. You and your family can't stay inside the city."
They all stared at him. "That serious?" Stephen asked softly. Wolfe nodded.
"Alright. Betty, pack whatever food you can. Rio, pack some clothes. I'll go get the cart from out of storage," Stephen ordered. Betty and Rio nodded and left to go do as they were told. Tal and Lura shared a look, slightly confused as to why they were obeying Wolfe without question.
"Wolfe…" she said softly. He looked down at her.
"Lura, I'm sorry for being gone for so long. There are some things that I need to explain to you when we get a chance," he told her.
She nodded, although slightly nervous. "Is… is Zero back with you?" she asked him.
He frowned. "That's one of the things that I need to explain to you."
She felt her heart freeze for a moment. Is… is he dead, she wondered? She nodded sadly.
Stephen then spoke to Wolfe again. "Come with me and tell me what's happened." Wolfe nodded, and they left down the street, with Gabe tagging along with him.
When they got back with a cart, which was pulled by Gabe, Stephen looked very worried and had a stronger sense of urgency about him.
"We need to hurry!" he called into the house, before picking up a few bags that were placed near the door, and placed them in the cart.
Half an hour later, the cart was loaded and they were all standing around it.
"Is this everyone?" Wolfe asked. Stephen nodded. Wolfe turned to Gabe and nodded. "Do it," he told him. Lura was slightly confused again, but that disappeared quickly as she saw the psychic type close his eyes and appear to concentrate. Oh, she thought. Teleport. Then everything faded out of sight as she lost consciousness.
