The blackness around Shadow soon brightened, unveiling a sprawling meadow, with lush green grass spreading out infinitely in every direction. He blinked, utterly perplexed by the shift in scenery. He didn't know where exactly he was, but could tell immediately that it was not where he had been moments ago, and there was no sign of Leaf.
Shadow's first assumption was that he was within a dream, but if that was the case, his mind had adapted to evolving alarmingly quickly, because when he glanced down at his body again, he could see that he still had black fur, and a quick flick of his tail confirmed it was thin and forked, like an Espeon's tail. No, not 'like' an Espeon's tail; he was an Espeon, so it was an Espeon's tail. He just had black fur for some reason.
The much more pressing concern was figuring out where he was now, and maybe even how he had gotten here, so that he could find his way back.
As he took a few cautious steps forward, he discovered that his body felt weightless, unhindered by the awkwardness of his new body, yet not so weightless that he was actually floating. It was the strangest feeling, and one he couldn't really describe to himself even if he tried.
Adding to the strangeness of his location was the realization in the back of his mind that there was no weather to speak of. His awareness of such a mundane detail confused him, as if a part of his mind was constantly analyzing the weather and was conscious of the fact there simply WASN'T weather. No wind currents, no precipitation, and the light illuminating the area was not produced by a visible sun. It was as eerie as it was fascinating.
Perplexed by the bizarre environment, Shadow continued to walk forward, constantly looking around and surveying the landscape. The grass seemed to extend on forever, but there were details dotted about that at least reassured him that he wasn't in one of those nightmares where absolutely no progress could be made, no matter how much one ran. By squinting ahead, he could make out what looked like a tranquil lake, surrounded by mist and flowers. Some other shapes were moving around ahead, so Shadow quickened his pace.
As the newly-evolved Espeon drew nearer to the lake shore, he could begin to make out the shapes as being other Eevee. There were three of them in total, all looking to be roughly about Leaf's age. As he came nearer, it became easier to identify two of them as being male, and the third as a female, and at this distance, they definitely seemed to be about Leaf's age, if a day.
More telling was that one of the males was split off from the other two, observing them in passive silence. None of them had seemed to notice Shadow's presence yet, even though black fur should definitely stand out in such an open and lush environment.
However, as he came within earshot of the two sitting together, they broke off their conversation abruptly, the female Eevee shrinking back and looking in Shadow's direction with a mixture of confusion and fear. The male Eevee seemed slightly amused by the reaction and turned to face Shadow with far more confidence. Actually, it was something other than confidence, a demeanor that the Espeon couldn't immediately put his paw on.
"Now -that's- a nice look," the Eevee remarked, looking Shadow up and down. Shadow blinked at the Eevee as it came nearer and walked in a slow circle around him, examining his figure. There was an odd glint in the Eevee's eye, a shrewd and calculating look that surpassed curiosity and interest. Something about it was unnerving, but at least it wasn't threatening.
"How did you even get in here?" the female Eevee asked nervously.
"He's an Espeon, Nettles," the male counterpart replied, completing his circle and smirking. "Freshly evolved, so I bet that psychic power's unstable. But hey, I don't want him waltzing in here whenever he wants, either."
"I don't even know where 'here' is," Shadow replied, glancing between the two Eevee, and sparing the third one a glance. "Or who you three are."
"Oh...I'm Nettles," the female said sheepishly. "Um...and that one over there is Briar, and this is-"
"Devine," interrupted the male, his female counterpart falling silent with an embarrassed squeak. "Of course, we know who you are, Shadow. Nettles practically worships you, being Leaf's big brother and all that."
"Devine!" Nettle whined, then looked towards Shadow pleadingly. "I'm so sorry about the forest. We didn't mean to-"
"I meant to," Devine interrupted, his eyes flashing in annoyance. "Leaf's a kit. Kits do whatever they want. Actions have consequences, and if he can't handle that, then he's not maturing properly."
"I really don't want to argue about this in front of Shadow, Devine," Nettles whispered, casting glances between the Eevee and Shadow.
"Fine, I'll kick him out. Ooh, but I've got to thank you for the inspiration, Shadow," Devine said, grinning.
"What?" Shadow wondered, becoming more and more convinced that he was having a bizarre dream with every word either Eevee spoke. His headache definitely wasn't improving, that was for sure. Devine's grin widened and his body glowed white, his shape growing larger and shifting, until the light faded to reveal a feline with lavender fur covering its body. It had large puffed ears, a thin tail that split into two prongs at the end, and a blue-grey gemstone on its forehead.
The lavender Espeon opened his eyes, which were a distinct shade of golden-brown, and looked himself over.
"Well darn, I had hoped to get the same fur color he did," Devine lamented, turning to gaze at his reflection in the lake. "Hmm, didn't even get the silver gem and eyes. But I love the look all the same."
"...you evolved yourself on a whim?" Nettles asked incredulously. "Do you even know what that could do?"
"No, I don't," Devine replied, without even a hint of concern. "But too late now, isn't it?" The new Espeon turned his gaze to Shadow, who just stared back, dumbfounded. "Yeah, it was cool seeing you in person, but...I just don't want you in here."
The Espeon's gemstone glowed brightly, so brightly that Shadow was forced to shut his eyes. An instant later, he felt his legs give out, his body feeling so much heavier than it was moments ago. The grass cushioned his fall, but the pain in his head came back full force.
"Shadow? Shadow!" Leaf's voice called, becoming increasingly more desperate with each rendition of his name.
"Ow, headache!" Shadow protested, grasping his head with his forepaws in a desperate attempt to dull the pounding in his brain. As he opened his eyes, he found himself back in the same area he had been when he evolved, his brother staring at him anxiously.
"Can you move?" Leaf wondered.
"Do I have to?" Shadow muttered. Really, he couldn't imagine any benefit to forcing himself to get up and then immediately fall over his newly evolved legs again while his brain was having a tantrum and hurling itself against his skull.
Leaf was silent for an uncomfortably long time. Just as Shadow was becoming concerned that the Eevee had wandered off or something, he felt Leaf's body snuggle up against his side, and resting his head on Shadow's leg.
"Night, Shadow!" Leaf murmured. And then he was asleep, leaving Shadow painfully aware of how loud the young Eevee's breathing was, and how uncomfortable his current laying position was now that he had an Eevee leaning against his body.
"If my leg falls asleep before I do..." Shadow muttered, but perhaps Arceus was listening, because he never finished that thought before unconsciousness claimed him.
The sound of Leaf's cry jolted Shadow from sleep, his silver eyes darting about frantically. For a moment, he caught sight of a semi-transparent barrier of some sort, but at soon as he became aware of it, it faded away as if it never existed. Locating Leaf took no time at all, as the young Eevee was giving him the evil eye from around the same spot the barrier had possibly existed a mere moment ago, his fur disheveled, as if he had been rolling around in his sleep.
"What's wrong?" Shadow wondered, noting with a sigh that it just barely around dawn, marking yet another night of unsatisfying rest.
"You pushed me out!" Leaf grumbled.
Shadow gave the Eevee a blank look, waiting for him to explain what that even meant, but Leaf either didn't notice Shadow's confusion, or was too irritable to elaborate. The latter seemed more likely - Leaf was stubborn and unhelpful when he was cranky.
"Sorry?" Shadow said finally, hoping that would placate the Eevee enough for them to go back to the sleep Shadow desperately craved. He could probably doze off again himself, but Leaf was also a spiteful little guy when he was cranky, and would probably just tackle Shadow the moment he closed his eyes.
"For?" Leaf prompted. Shadow groaned internally. Their parents had been teaching Leaf how sincere apologies acknowledged the wrongdoing, and would prompt the kits to elaborate if they only said the word 'sorry'. This was a great lesson, but it wasn't doing Shadow any favors when he actually had no idea what he did to upset Leaf, and was too tired to actually care.
"Do I look like a mind-reader?" Shadow muttered under his breath. It took him a second or two for his brain to register what he had just said, but he stopped that line of thought before giving it further consideration. He had no idea how to use his psychic abilities yet, and had by now worked out that he had somehow broken into Leaf's mind immediately after evolving. Even then, the thought of forcing his way into his brother's personal thoughts made him feel mildly ill.
Sighing, Shadow sat up and stepped towards Leaf, only to immediately stumble, still unused to the longer stride his Espeon legs took, and not having the balancing worked out. Leaf flinched and backed away a little, watching Shadow's unstable steps with a bit of concern.
"Is it really hard to walk?" Leaf asked, his focus on Shadow's apology temporarily forgotten.
"Just...needs practice," Shadow responded with gritted teeth. "Help me for a second, please."
"What should I do?" Leaf wondered, biting his lip uncertainly. Shadow tried to gesture him closer with one forepaw, only to promptly topple over. Judging by the way Leaf's body was shaking, he was desperately trying not to laugh.
"Get the giggles out now," Shadow said, resigned to it. "I laughed when you first learned how to walk. Heh...the way you clung to Dad's tail after losing your balance..."
"That was fun, though," Leaf said, his eyes glazing a little at the memory, but then he blinked and looked around. "Where is Dad? And Mom?"
Shadow cringed. Now he gone ahead and reminded the little guy about the absence of their parents. He had even had the dream again last night, still as haunting as the other nights, and even more disheartening now, the sixth day since they had left home. Being awakened by Leaf's cry this morning had chilled his blood more than anything ever had, fading only when he had seen Leaf alive and well.
Shadow struggled to swallow, but it felt like there was a lump in his throat. He couldn't tell Leaf what he feared had happened, and he didn't want to have to answer questions about what he had seen. Or the Pokemon he had met and talked to. The burden of that knowledge would be too much for Leaf now.
But how long could he dance around the issue? Leaf was young, but he wasn't stupid. He'd know that Shadow was hiding something,and one way or another, he would insist that Shadow answer his questions. When push came to shove, Leaf would always win on sheer persistence.
"Shadow?" Leaf prompted nervously. "Are you cold?"
"What?" Shadow sat up again, vaguely aware that he was shivering, and his breath kept catching in his throat, as if he was holding back sobs. "Just a little, I guess. My fur's a lot shorter than before..."
He trailed off awkwardly, thinking of something he could say to change the subject for now. He didn't want to outright lie to Leaf about the situation, but he wasn't ready to confront the subject with his brother. But no matter how much his mind wandered, it always drifted back to the dreams.
The eyes. Those eerie yellow eyes that had seemed to stare into his soul. How many nights had they returned in his dreams? An ever-present nightmare, like a predator standing over its prey, delighting in the game it was playing. It could strike and kill him at any moment, but was taking its time, letting the prey think it could get away, only to take that hope away. Neither Leaf nor he could hope to fight against an enemy like that. Not if their parents, fully-evolved Eons, had lost...or worse.
Was it following them now? Was it nearby?
"Shadow?" Leaf pressed, now sounding genuinely scared, moving closer to Shadow and nuzzling him. "Are you okay?"
"Y-yeah," the Espeon managed to choke out. "Hey, do you want to try to learn how to battle today?"
Leaf brightened a little. "Really?"
Shadow managed a chuckle, but he felt none of the playful joy he was trying to spread. "Yeah. I've got to re-learn my stuff from the ground up, so might as well give you a chance to learn, right?"
Leaf giggled teasingly. "So you're going to teach me how to trip over my feet?"
