5.

"Da thought it was cute when little Nida fell in love with Nido. He didn't find it cute when he realized his two week old daughter was pregnant." stated their cousin when asked about the subject. Many thought it depraved. But how can true love ever be awful? - Milktank's Philosophy

"You can talk with us now because you are more in touch with your instincts." explained Ninetails her theory. "You are kind of odd, you know, I've never seen anyone act quite like you before... You remind me of a human."

Leos scowled, flame flickering slightly brighter. "I am little like a human. And I don't think my instincts should control me."

In response to that, the many-tailed white fox laughed, then turned away to sleep. "I have nothing more I wish to say to you, at least until it is decided whether or not you are one of us. Why don't you go and see them decide your fate? Maybe Master will pet you."

"I do have him here, hiding here somewhere. Leos!" he heard Betty call, speaking of the devil.

Kebin had arrived to Betty's home. Leos stared from behind the sofa, very unsure of what to feel, before going. Being around Betty had become a little like an addiction, his only source of attention, comfort, warmth and food. Even his own hate for her couldn't keep him away, as he kept himself at her feet and holding himself against her leg like a tame little kitty. Leos occasionally wondered what was wrong with him that he was so weak as to obey someone he hated. The two humans discussed his life, going over the details of what to do with him, as he stared vacantly at nothing. Distantly, he realized he was depressed. He decided he wanted Kebin to take him away from Betty, yet at the same time wanted to keep away from Kebin, and desired Betty's attention in his child body's desire for a parental figure. It was an ugly truth.

"So you see, I don't think you were a very good handler for him. You lost him, after all, and you can see yourself how well I've tamed him. In addition, I'll make you a good offer; I can breed him and offer the pick of the litter of his babies. They'll be a lot easier to control for you." she smirked.

Breed? She planned to BREED HIM? Leos gazed rather uncomfortably at Betty at these words.

He pondered on when and how exactly she planned to breed him, he was still a baby, and wasn't planning to get married. She couldn't possibly expect he'd just bam anyone pretty who walked by, right? Leos had standards. Yet, technically, it was true he was capable of breeding right now in this childish body- it was an uncomfortable fact many pokemon could produce early, even after they came straight out of the egg, as some sick instances in history had proven.

"That's true, Miss Black, but I still have a legal right to him and I want him, He's my starter, and the star of my future team. I am sorry about losing him." Kebin professed, rubbing a burn wound. "Thank you for your tips, though. I won't get attacked by him again, if that is what you are worrying about. I have Pidgeotto to protect me and better handling techniques." So he'd raised the pidgey he'd gotten to a pidgeotto, that's what had taken him so long to get around to coming here. Had they considered the possibility of not getting their 'prized starter' back and done that as a consequence, or was it an indicator of how serious they were taking this training thing?

"Is that so? So his well-being doesn't come into it?" her eyes glistened wide. "Even if he loves me more?" ...no comment on that.

"Well, I dunno... I guess we could see who he'd come to, you or me, although I think you just have him trained to obey." Kebin stated dryly. "Love doesn't come into it, I think. I don't think pokemon can love." Little snot.

"Still, it's worth trying! Okay." she schooched away from the charmander, and took the opposite side of the room from Kebin. "Now. Leos, come!"

"Leos, come here!" Kebin commanded, though he looked unexpectant of it working well. Leos gazed outwards between the two evils, sighing. To neither did he come. "I think we confused him," Kebin stated, when Betty looked angry at his refusal to obey an order. Since when was Kebin capable of offering sane and sympathetic explanations, he wondered? Maybe he'd knocked a degree of sense into him. Curious now, he walked to Kebin and sniffed his hand, which clenched nervously, causing him to smirk. Ha, the kid was still afraid of him (was that really something to be proud of? a mature part of him wondered). "It looks like I win." they stated, firmly and without a trace of the fear hidden within.

"I guess you do. Take your charmander and go." Betty glared, folding her arms. "Don't come crawling back to me when it evolves and kills you."

Kebin flinched slightly, Leos could feel it as he had his hand around him, ready to pick him up. Considering Kebin's previous love of over-using pokeballs, he got the feeling this was to show off as the other continued, lifting him up firmly and not looking back to Betty as they walked out the door. Mischievously, he slobbered on Kebin's ear, causing him to flinch again, though they stifled it while still in sight of Miss Black. Leos smirked at the other's discomfort, even while he felt discomforted that he himself was becoming more and more childish in manner to match his body. There had to be a logical explanation...

"Okay, you little $#!%." muttered Kebin as they went down the stairs, to the door, and went out of the building complex. "I've got you back now, so you better not prove so much trouble for me or I'll sell you, you hear?"

Great... There was just no winning here, he thought, as he was put down, and sucked back in to a pokeball.

"Leos, go."

Light poured into his eyes, a slight shock after all the darkness to his mind, and the image of a totally new environment. The smell was putrid, the walls dark and the floor purple- and strangely gooey. Glancing about, he found himself in a ring beside Kebin, with a crowd watching, booing. A tunnel lay up ahead.

"Welcome ladies and gentlemen to the poison pokemon gym! Will our challenger here make his way to the gym leader? No one knows! Let the first battle begin!"

What he had first mistaken to be grass rose up from the ground, several oddishes surrounded him, but only one stepped forward to fight, opening its mouth and trying to absorb energy from him. Darting, and immediately finding it very hard to move quickly in the muck, he couldn't dodge, and hissed at the slight feebleness and pain he felt.

"Ember, Leos." Kebin commanded, and he was strangely happy to obey, opening his mouth wide and sending small balls of flame at the oddish, which quickly crumpled. Another stepped in, looking determined, but it too fell at an unasked for extra spurt of flame. Kebin gave him a sharp look, and the charmander's glare back at him said he was an idiot. What, did he just expect him to wait to get attacked or do something else less affective?

The third, he did not even wait for it to try to attack, and launched at it- and was startled to find himself recalled into his ball. A few moments later, he was released again, and Pidgeotto stood there, having done the job. "Obey my commands and only my commands or else." Kebin stated softly, quietly, yet underneath was a clear venomous threat. The trainer walked down the tunnel, treading slowly through the muck and trying not to get too dirty, and Pidgeotto followed him, flying through the air. Reluctant to be recalled again, Leos scurried after.

"Watch." Kebin commanded, as zubats fluttered down from the tunnel ceiling, opening their mouth wide and screaming. "Pidgeotto, whirlwind then gust!"

The hawk-like bird arched its wings back and then buffeted them outward, sending a whirlwind through the air that scooped up the zubats, but by itself did nothing to them. Then, it sent a gust billowing in, sending the whirling wind crashing along with the zubats against the walls.

"Now, return!" he held out his pokeball, and Leos was fascinated to see the image of Pidgeotto flicker smaller as it was sucked a half-moment later in to the light. Speaking of light, the tunnel was getting darker and darker as it went on... "Now you, ember them!"

This use of his repertoire was getting rather stale and old, but after only a small hesitation he obeyed. One by one and two by two he downed them swiftly, and it was his guess they were all very low strength pokemon. Many managed to get on and bite him, sucking blood, but he managed to shake the leeches away and ember them. One hit a tender spot on his belly and in his temporary rage he was tempted to rip it to shreds, but a sharp look and a raise of a ball from Kebin stopped him. The trainer had other options. He didn't, he thought resentfully.

They trudged through the tunnel, using his flame to light the way, and took a turn in the path. Dead end. A strange skunk pokemon he didn't recognize rose up and tried to spray stink at him, to his digust, and he fell over into the sludge trying to get out of the way. Blech! He spluttered and shook, feeling very foul and dirty, and launched himself at his new opponent.

A second bewildered moment later, he stood dazed a few feet away from where he'd been standing, then heard Kebin yelling in anger and realized he'd been taken in and then released out of his ball. "I didn't tell you anything, Leos. Now scratch!"

Eh, whatever amused him. He tried to move in quickly, but the sludge slowed him down, and the skunk laughed, mockingly dancing out of the way before spraying poisonous gunk in his eyes. "Chrraaaaman!" he hissed, shaking and rubbing, eyes, skin, nose and mouth irritated- before he bowled over and vomited, feeling sick. Great. He hated poison pokemon.

A smirking look from Kebin gave him the idea this was intended, or at least enjoyed. "Growl, Leos!"

Growl? Growl? Honestly? Puffing up, he gave a menacing roar- then sneezed all over his opponent in the middle of it. Oh yeah, he bet that worked so well.

"Smokescreen!"

Looking back, he gave a pleading look while feeling ill. Did they really have to play this 'I-can-boss-you-around-hahaha-' game? Turning his head, he opened his mouth, and released smoke and (out of habit) flame, scorching the enemy pokemon.

"Skuuu!" it cried, getting burned, and he didn't have to look back to guess his human was furious with him for his mistake.

"That was not what I meant." Yup. He guessed correctly. The fruitcake was smoldering in tone. "Finish it off with scratch, then you're done here."

Why exactly should he do that when he was just going to get punished, again? He glanced back. Ugly face. The fellow could stand some disappointment. Arching his legs back, he pounced on the skunk's back and bite down, savage instincts taking hold as he started shaking his head back and forth in a predatory manner, stopping only to cough. Ugh, what exactly had it done to him, given the flu?

He was sucked back in the ball, and Kebin turned around to take the other path.

It was painful. Every second his weakness grew stronger, eating away at him even within the confines of the ball. It seemed like many minutes slowly went by, nothing changing. Normally, he was barely aware of himself or anything while in the ball, mildly sedated. This time was different. Limbs thrashing, he yearned to try to get free, but nothing seemed to work.

"-Poison Tail."

The light came again. Was he finally, he thought wearily, back at the center?

No. He was standing in front of the triumphant looking gym leader, smirking, because he was Kebin's last pokemon, Pidgeotto laying on the ground fainted before him for a half-second before it was returned. A dark, long gold-glittering snake smirked before him, raising up to strike. He didn't think about it- he vanished from his spot, fractionally missing a spaded tail flying at his ear. The charmander coughed, alarm filling him as he saw Kebin's face, withdrawn and grim, and the gym leader, smiling. He was being left to the dogs.

Frantically, Leos tried flaming and hopping away, ducking, biting, scratching. Little worked, as he himself was bit and slashed and his moves evaded from. He was too slow, the seviper too fast, the poison too strong and Leos too weak. Violently, the tail knocked his legs out from underneath him and wrapped around, squeezing the life out of him. The fire lizard gave a scream as long pointed fangs sank into his shoulder, helpless to move. Kebin just smiled.

"Ember, Leos."

Shocked enough to try anything, he obeyed, and was relieved to find it releasing him, unwinding and shrinking back from the flame before launching itself at him again on command of the leader. He felt his body stablizing, the life from him no longer leeching away so much as he adjusted to it, and raked his claws back on the enemy creature.

"No Leos, drop away."

The charmander disobeyed- and was immediately rewarded with a horrible whack against his face with a sharp edged tail, sending him backwards anyway. His vision blackened and turned funny colors for a moment and for a second he believed he would faint, but ended up still standing.

"Smokescreen!" Was this a test to see if he'd obey? He had no clue, but there was an urgency this time and no time to play around- he had nearly no strength left. Exhaling wide, smoke plumed outwards, obscuring his enemy's face, causing them to swing wildly and hiss. Quickly, he kept back. "Ember!" Instantly, he obeyed, baking the little serpent red-hot. Could he win, he thought hopefully? It was never fun getting knocked out.

"Seviper, screech!" An unholy noise battered his ears, setting him off-balance as it snaked out to attack.

"Metal claw Leos!" It was a move he'd never used before, and was not really familiar with. Lashing out his claws, he managed to bat the head away to the side of his body so it didn't bite down on him, and was immediately rewarded with the tail wrapping around him. Ugh... it crushed against his limbs and chest, and he felt everything go dim. "Ember, Leos!" Closing his eyes, he breathed heavily, barely hearing. "I said Ember!"

The snake unwrapped from around him. He was still.

He was in a forest, his adult charmander self again, looking in his reflection at a pool. He remembered this place, it was just a little ways away from Magby's house! He was home, he thought giddily, and glanced up at the bright blue sky. Everything that had happened was just a nightmare, he must have been sleepwalking and finally woke up. Charmander laughed. Leos, huh? What a jo-

Turning around he saw a baby charmander staring at him.

"Who are you?" he asked, blinking and yet also relieved to find he didn't have to say his name in the old tongue.

"Char char. Mander. I'mma Leuuowos." the baby spoke. "I thaw yu was Leeuuowos too?"

"No... I'm Charmander. That was just a bad dream, you can't be here. You can't know my dream!" he shouted, stepping back, frantic now. "You can't be real, I must be hallucinating, or, or... this is some sort of very bad prank. Is there a drowzee here?" he glanced around, as if expecting one to step out of the bushes.

"Yu are sleepin'!" Leos laughed at Charmander. "It's time to wake up."

"Wait, but- who are you?"

"I jus' said. I'm yuu body. I hatch'ed, I wuss there- and then suddenly I wus yu. Or you wus me, really."

The world slipped away.

"Maybe ness time I gets to be you? I always wanted to be all grown." the baby chirped. "Goo'bye now!"

"No!"

"No!" he shouted, standing upright, and was glanced at in concern by several Chansey.

"You're all better now." one of them said, staring. "Err, aren't you?"

He glared, but then nodded his head. They hadn't done anything wrong, and didn't deserve his anger. It was just... where was he? Glancing around he didn't recognize the area. He was next to rows of cages full of other pokemon, stands, people yelling and laughing and talking, a chain around his foot and neck... Oh, and food! A whole dish. He devoured it hungrily, before asking. "What's going on?"

"Oh. I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but you are for sale." the chansey admitted. "Goodbye. There is nothing more I can do for you." she turned away and began to walk off to check up on other pokemon.

"W-wait! Please, can't you help me escape or something?" he spoke plaintively.

"This is better for you. Wild pokemon don't live as long as domesticated ones." she bobbed her massive head.

"That's the lie they told you." he muttered to himself. It disturbed him to think it might be true; for one did the wild pokemon in these parts have any concept of dental hygiene or houses? His brief stint of freedom in the forest had revealed nothing much. In many of the stories they relied entirely on their masters. But regardless, now it seemed he was in a whole lot of trouble. Again.

That child he'd seen, it couldn't have been... The real owner of this body, could it? He glanced down. Was it just a nightmare, or was it something more real? Either he was an insane charmander who had never actually been an adult, with multiple personalities, or he was actually really from another world who had been hit by an abnormally slow but still lethal asteroid and woke up in what he now felt was another body. Being who he was, he was inclined to believe the latter, but, that was exactly the kind of thing an insane person would believe.

Considering the evidence, he looked himself over. If it really was another body, there should be physical differences, although his memory now of his early self's appearance was vague and most of his kind looked a lot alike. Charmander- Leos? Who was who now? had been lucky enough to never get a scar. This kid had none either, it seemed, except the marks he'd recently received in battle. Their skin tone was the same orange that was slightly redder than the average charmander, yet nothing too unusual... Same number of fingers, again, that was normal, but they were built in a slightly chubbier but familiar manner to his own, always a little bit less dexterous and bigger than he liked. His tail seemed the right length, but he couldn't remember what exactly he'd looked or been like as a very young child, he sighed.

He realized now that even if he escaped, where exactly would he go? He knew of no magical gateway or any way to another world, nor even if in this world the legends were real. In all luck, they'd not be very legendary at all and be like everything else slaves to the humans. And if he did find a way to his home, what to? His body was surely incinerated, and this body seemed to belong to this world, to (if it had not been a nightmare) another being even who was too young to care it had been taken over. It didn't sound terrible fun to become a ghost, but he was very homesick...

Charmander stopped in his thoughts, seeing the last person he expected walking toward him. Kebin. Was he going to take him back? Tell him to whom he was being sold like a dead bag of meat?

"I told you what would happen if you didn't obey me." the boy sneered. Oh, so he'd just come to taunt. That was all well then. "I hope nobody can find a taker for you and you get eaten, if not by people because you're rare in the wild, then by feral scyther or raticate that would want to eat you in the wild."

Oh, shut up already. Someone was coming by- oh colorful euphemism for foul things, it was Betty! Flattening in horror, he hoped she hadn't noticed him. Unfortunately, she had, and immediately bee-lined for Kebin.

"I've come to buy." she said.

"A pity." Kebin mumbled, which caused her to glance at him oddly. "Nothing. It's all good then. My asking price is 20,000."

"That's outrageous. Why, in your opinion, a little bad tempered thing like him, he can't be worth half that, can he? I'll be nice and bid 10,000." The slimy little cow. Just the other day she'd been claiming she should have him for how well she'd tamed him.

The male trainer paused. "12,000." Fantastic. He was worth as much as an uncommon TM, if it compared anything to home. Charmander was just so thrilled. And this guy didn't seem very good at haggling.

"Done!" she smirked, and start pulling out wads of cash.

"W-wait!" someone yelled, bursting through a crowd that bustled around a nearby shiny seaking. "I've been waiting for a charmander to enter this market for months! How much is the highest bid? 29,000? I'll match that! I'll bid 30,000!" It was a young... boy, girl, wearing a straw hat and shorts? He couldn't tell, but they were around half the height of Betty and Kebin. Betty was older and taller than Kebin, but not too much.

Betty stared, and mouthed off loudly. "Too late kid, it's already mine! And you look barely out of diapers, you can't have that kind of money."

Kebin stared. "Uh, wait a min..." he pressed Betty's money back in her hand.

The small kid glared. "I am not just out of diapers! I am very nearly almost all grown up! My mamma is very well-to-do, and I. want. my. charmander!" he stomped his foot, but to his credit didn't throw a tantrum, just looked at Kebin hopefully. "Please? I really do have the money!" he opened up his bag to show.

"Sure, Mr..." Kebin flattered, grinning wide at the thought of all that dough. He moved nearer to Leos's mat, and unhooked the chains. "He's all yours, his name is-"

"I don't care what you named him, I want to name him myself!" The kid grabbed the chain, plopped cash on the mat, and yanked 'Not-Leos-Anymore' off, though as long as he moved along with it it didn't choke him. Then, secretively, he turned in embarrassment and whispered to the charmander, "Uh, what's a good name?"

"Charm." I don't know.

"Cool." the kid turned around. "His name is now Charm!"

"What's your name, kid? Oh, nevermind, here, you can sign the papers." Kebin held a pen and a pad of paper out. Charmander tried to peer over to read it, but his view was blocked by the unknown kid.

"Provided he can read." snarked Betty, annoyed at being foiled once again, and stomped off. A small, childish part of him felt horrified at having so badly offended an authority figure in his life- he now wondered if that came from another personality.

"I can." the kid said, dantily and with a smile, scribbling. "My name is Abraham! Can me and Charm go now?" He held his head to the side in an offensively and atrociously cute manner. Human beings should not be that adorable.

"Yeah, 'k with me." Kebin shrugged, counting the money and finding it satisfactory. He did not care he'd just sold a dangerous fire lizard he'd had trouble controlling to a younger member of his kind.

"Yaaaaayyy." Abraham gave a skip, and started walking and bouncing with his favorite new pet in tow. For his own safety, 'Charm' followed , getting inspired despite himself by the youth's sheer enthusiasm. They seemed nice, and were, he hoped, too young to think about breeding and battling.