One might think that the return trip from the Ruins would have been a soothing experience in the wake of recent events, but Shadow found it to be almost unbearably tense. The few seconds of relaxation had only paved the way for anxiety to find a better grip on his thoughts and emotions.
The first hurdle to overcome was the long passageway leading back to the staircase that Shadow had taken to get down here. The problem was that Shadow didn't want to turn his back to the Weavile and, by extension, the unconscious Riolu. Neither of them rated high on his trustworthiness list, if such a list actually existed, regardless of Frost's familiarity with the Weavile. For that matter, Shadow had no idea how their battle had ended. If he really had to guess, he'd have placed his bet on Lin, but his reasoning was based entirely on the fact Frost was acting unusually submissive around her.
Furthermore, he was uncomfortably aware that he couldn't sense Lin at all. Despite obtaining greater awareness of his psychic abilities and what the various prickles in his mind and body meant in relation to things around him, Lin was completely absent from this mental radar. No, that still wasn't the most accurate way of putting it. Rather, it was that his mind registered her presence as a void. A mental blind spot, but still detected by his normal senses. The indiscrepancy was incredibly off-putting, and Shadow suspected that he would need to consciously train his mind to recognize such voids, because otherwise, he would be ridiculously prone to ambush from Dark-type Pokemon.
Shadow's other concern with this corridor was that he didn't want to take the rear of the group, either, in the event that odd green sphere that Diablos had extracted from himself would reappear and assault him again from behind. Yet Frost had the issue of lacking the same level of night vision as Shadow or Lin, meaning he needed one of them to guide his steps.
Ultimately, Lin accepted the lead, with Shadow guiding Frost a few paces behind her. They walked in silence, which only added to the tension in the atmosphere. Shadow had tried not to be obvious about his apprehension towards Lin or the Riolu that she was carrying, but something told him he had failed in that endeavor.
No one spoke until they emerged in the upstairs chamber, and Shadow immediately began to shiver. The entire chamber was frosted with snow and ice, a remnant of the battle waged between Frost and Lin. An enclosed, underground room far from the sun or other heat sources would probably remain this frigid for some time, and Shadow's teeth began chattering as cold pervaded his body.
"It's a beautiful look, at least," Frost noted, gazing around the room with a small smile. Shadow just gave him an annoyed look in response. "Not to your liking, huh? Shame, I'd love to decorate a den like this..."
"Ice dens aren't practical, even for Ice-types," Lin replied curtly, the blue scarf around her neck fluttering in the icy breeze that somehow still rippled around the room. She didn't pause her stride, but continued directly towards the opposite staircase.
"Really? Why not?" Frost wondered, reluctantly following after the Weavile, practically wincing at the footprints the three of them were making through the otherwise settled and unblemished snow.
"Unless you need to store only frozen items and materials, cold sucks the moisture from the air. What you want is an insulated den, so that you can maintain a comfortable temperature inside, and then chill it slightly for your comfort," Lin said.
Frost nodded slowly, and silence again settled over them as they made their ways up the stairs. Lin's pace slowed significantly as she attempted to climb the winding stairs without bumping the Riolu's head against the walls. Shadow silently took notice of the Weavile's careful attention to detail. Cecilia had mentioned her friends earlier, and clearly they were the ones she was referring to, but he didn't like the implications this gave him now.
Downstairs, Lin had spoken to Diablos, clearly aware that Diablos was a separate persona than Force. In that sense, Lin knew more about Diablos' nature than Shadow did. Yet if Lin and Force were friends of Cecilia, did she also know more about the situation than he did? How much did she know? How were any of them associated with the one who attacked his family?
He had so many questions now, so many concerns that needed to be addressed. Yet no one seemed particularly forthcoming with information. Diablos had brushed off the questions, and now Shadow had even more uncertainty than before. One thing was certain, though...he couldn't afford to be ill-prepared next time. He would need to master his abilities. Not just learn how to use them, but actually train himself to be able to use them for survival. Frost was so much stronger than he was, and from what he had seen from the match against Lin, the Weavile was stronger than Frost.
"We're back!"
Shadow snapped out of his thoughts at the sound of A/C's voice, and found that the three of them had reached the top of the steps. They were standing in the chamber where Cecilia had fought the Sigilyph, and on the opposite side of the room stood A/C, Leaf, and Cecilia.
"Did you guys just stand there for a while or something?" Frost wondered, stepping past Lin and giving the other three Pokemon an amused look.
"Are you all right?" A/C asked, peering at Frost carefully. "You've got significantly more scratches than last time I saw you."
Shadow winced slightly. There was the one scratch along his back that he had seen Lin deliver early into the fight, but now that he had a better look at the Glaceon, he saw a number of similar cuts along his shoulder and forelegs. Clearly, he had been on the receiving end of quite a few hits.
"Flesh wounds, don't concern yourself too much," Frost replied, giving himself a brief glance over. "So what kept you?"
"I mis-Teleported originally," A/C explained with a sheepish smile. "The Ruins don't seem to allow you to Teleport into a specific room, but has no issues with Teleporting outside. We had to re-navigate from the entrance."
"What happened to Force?" Cecilia asked, her voice jumping half an octave in alarm, spotting the unconscious Riolu still held in Lin's arms. The Quilava dashed over to the Weavile and peered closely at her charge, giving the aura Pokemon light prods.
"He'll be fine, Cece," Lin said, sounding vaguely annoyed by Cecilia's invasive inspection. "At least wait until we're outside before you start prodding him."
"Fiiiiine," Cecilia complained, then turned her attention to Shadow, her expression shifting to nervous concern, and Shadow blinked, realizing how intensely he had been watching her. "You okay, uh, gorgeous?"
"Um...probably," Shadow mumbled, averting his gaze. He didn't know how to answer that question. He had a lot on his mind, and much of it had to do with Cecilia and her friends, and where they stood in these circumstances. Why had they come to the Ruins? The fact they were here, and the vibe Shadow had picked up earlier, all combined with Diablos reappearing...it was either one hell of a coincidence, or there was a connection that he couldn't quite put his paw on.
"You look okay," Cecilia said, adding a bit of perkiness to her voice again. "Well, more than 'okay', if you follow," she added, giggling a little. Shadow managed a tiny smile in response. There was something contagious about the Quilava's bubbly mood at times, or maybe he just enjoyed the flattering comments and attention from her.
"Thanks. Uh...and how are you?" he asked, awkwardly aware of Lin observing the two of them, although the Weavile made no comment.
"I'm good now! Center patched up my injury in a jiffy," Cecilia replied brightly. "They're fireproof, so my flames won't incinerate them. See?" she asked, pivoting to display two white bandages wrapped tightly around her hind legs. Shadow felt his face grow warm, and he glanced at the ceiling awkwardly for a moment. Somehow he doubted that Cecilia had genuinely overlooked how much of her figure she'd end up displaying alongside the bandages.
"Cece!" Lin scolded sharply, and the Quilava turned back around, her blue eyes widening innocently. Lin just fixed Cecilia with a serious look, then turned her focus to the Kadabra. "Excuse me, but could you offer us a quick trip outside?"
A/C blinked at the Weavile, taking note of the Riolu cradled in her arms and the blue scarf around her neck. "Oh, is your friend injured? I could take you to the Pokemon-"
"That won't be needed, thank you," Lin interrupted. "He's tired out, but unharmed."
"Very well," A/C answered, and her eyes closed in focus. Without prompting, Lin stepped nearer to the Kadabra, and Shadow did the same, moving nearer to Cecilia to better bask in the warmth of her flames that dispelled the lingering cold in his body.
Shadow shut his eyes in preparation of the flash of light from A/C's Teleport, and didn't reopen them until he felt grass beneath his paws instead of stone. Glancing around, he found that they were not directly outside the Ruins, as he would have expected, nor were they directly outside A/C's den, although this at least made sense in that the other Pokemon were not friends of A/C, and therefore the Kadabra was unlikely to bring them to her doorstep.
It took the Espeon a few moments, but he eventually managed to identify their location as being on the outskirts of the small human town, roughly a mid point between A/C's den and the town. More surprising to him was that the sun had since passed the mid-point, and was actually beginning to descend towards the horizon. A surprising amount of time must have passed while they had been inside the Ruins.
"Will this do?" A/C asked. Lin glanced around for a moment, then gave a nod and a word of thanks. "You're welcome. Have a good evening."
"Likewise to you," Lin replied with a slight bowing motion. She spoke in Cecilia's ear too softly for Shadow to catch, then turned on her heel and walked over to the shade of a tree, setting Force down on the grass beneath it. Cecilia went over to where Frost was standing and said something, and after a short pause, Frost produced the small stone he had taken from the underground chamber and passed it to Cecilia, who took it carefully in her mouth before dashing over to the tree that Lin and Force were beneath.
Shadow stared at Frost, trying to figure out how the Glaceon had managed to transport the stone with no obvious means of carrying it excluding his mouth, which seemed unlikely due to earlier being able to talk. The only idea he had at the moment was that maybe the dangles of his head could carry things, but if that was true, he didn't see HOW that was possible.
"I will need to return to the Center to complete my shift today, but you may use my den," A/C said, addressing the three Eons. "Did you need a Teleport there or...?"
"We can walk," Frost replied promptly. A/C smiled and disappeared in a flash of light. Leaf just looked around uncertainly. He had been surprisingly quiet for a while, or maybe Shadow just hadn't noticed him talking much. "Leaf, want to use the last hour or two of sun for a training session?" the Glaceon asked.
"Sure!" the Leafeon replied promptly, his tail flicking a little bit. "Are you going to watch, Shadow?" he asked, looking over at his brother hopefully.
"Um..." Shadow began, but Frost shook his head.
"Not this time, Leaf," the Glaceon replied. "Shadow has a talking date or something." Shadow frowned, but Frost simply smirked in reply, nodding towards Cecilia pointedly. Leaf whined a little, but he didn't make any real objection. "He'll watch the next one, promise," Frost said, stroking the young Leafeon's head, the action relieving any complaints the younger Eon had.
"Uh...thanks?" Shadow said, frowning and glancing towards Cecilia, Lin, and Force uncertainly. He really wasn't sure if he wanted to talk with any of them right now. He did want to know what they knew, but something kept holding him back. They made him uneasy, and part of him didn't want to risk finding out something he'd regret knowing.
"We'll be right here," Frost said, giving Shadow a serious look. There was something in his tone that gave Shadow the feeling that Frost wasn't simply telling him where he and Leaf were. It was more like he was suggesting that they were nearby if Shadow needed them in a hurry. Hm, maybe Shadow really was that transparent with his feelings, if Frost had so easily identified his unease.
Shadow pushed that concern aside. He didn't need to dwell on that sort of thing now. He took a deep, soothing breath, much like how he began his training sessions, to push aside the feelings of anxiety and fear. After another two or three similar breaths, he made his way slowly over to the trio of Pokemon.
It seemed that Force had awakened for the most part, because he was sitting up with his back against the trunk of the tree, and his eyes were open. Even at this distance, Shadow could see his eyes were red, like they had been earlier, but they were also slightly unfocused, as if he was barely awake. Cecilia was talking to him, although Shadow couldn't catch any of the conversation, and he seemed to be alert enough to reply in some form.
Lin was inspecting the odd stone closely, but her gaze flicked towards Shadow as he approached. She cleared her throat quietly and made a subtle gesture with her claws. Cecilia looked over, but Force didn't seem to have caught the exchange, because he didn't react at all. That suited Shadow fine - he preferred to interact with Cecilia.
"Hey gorgeous, what's up?" the Quilava chirped, but her smile seemed a little forced, as if she wasn't sure whether she was supposed to be smiling. He was also aware that she was watching him more closely than usual.
Shadow hesitated for a moment, attempting to ignore the presence of the other Pokemon. "Um...you said before you wanted to talk later? Does...now work?"
Cecilia's brow creased in thought, and she glanced back at the other two Pokemon. Force was blinking a few times, his gaze becoming more focused, whereas Lin was all but ignoring Shadow's existence entirely in favor of turning the smooth stone over in her paws.
"I'm...not sure. Um...I wanted to make sure Force is doing okay and figure out what's going-"
"That's why I want to talk now," Shadow cut in, and Cecilia twitched. She was definitely looking uncomfortable now, and her flames were crackling with greater intensity. Shadow held his gaze on her for several seconds, and finally, the Quilava heaved a sigh.
"Okay, fine, can't say I didn't expect this," she said, her tone becoming slightly bitter, but she looked Shadow in the face. "What do you want to talk about?"
The Espeon raised an eyebrow slowly. "What did you want to talk to me about?" he asked. "You said back in the Ruins, you wanted us to talk, and you'd explain later."
"Right, but you came over and said you want us to talk now," Cecilia said, confusion spreading over her expression.
"But you wanted to talk first. We made the whole plan to talk later. It's a date or whatever, remember?" Shadow argued.
"Am I still asleep?" Force wondered, staring at the two quadrupeds with a bewildered expression. This snapped them out of their deadlocked debate rather quickly, but as Shadow glanced towards the Riolu, his jaw tightened and his patience broke.
"Just tell me what's going on!" he snapped, the sudden shift in tone causing Cecilia to flinch. Lin looked up briefly, but remained unperturbed. Force joined Cecilia in looking incredibly uncomfortable, but no one replied. Shadow growled in frustration, his silver eyes narrowing.
"Shadow," Cecilia began, her voice practically pleading. "I just...I don't want you to be mad or...I dunno..."
"Hate you?" Shadow finished. Cecilia blinked, staring at the Espeon in confusion. "That's what you were going to say, right? You don't want me to hate you?"
"Um...yeah. How did you-?" she asked, her eyes darting to the sides. "Are you reading my mind? Can you tell what I'm thinking right now?"
Shadow growled in exasperation. "No, I can't tell what you're thinking! I just guessed! Why are you changing the subject?!"
"Okay, I'm going to insist that you calm down now," Lin said, getting to her feet in one fluid motion. Her red eyes gazed into Shadow's with such overwhelming intensity that he instinctively retreated a half-pace. The Weavile was not taking an aggressive stance, nor did she seem to be threatening him, but her eyes carried a commanding pressure to them that he was immediately cowed. She did not break eye contact, and after several seconds, Shadow looked down, shame replacing his anger. It was just like back in the Ruins, when facing Diablos. His anger and frustration had driven him to use his psychic abilities in a brutally aggressive manner that made him feel ashamed afterwards. Before, his emotional state had been rendering him almost useless in combat and made him a pushover in conflicts, but now...why was he feeling so aggressive?
"Shadow..." Cecilia said finally, and Shadow looked up at her. "This probably isn't the best time for us to talk."
Shadow gritted his teeth so tightly that his jaw began to hurt. He could feel his psychic power building within his head rapidly, but Cecilia stepped closer and nuzzled him. The warmth of her fur was oddly soothing, but he pushed her away gently after only a few seconds. He knew she had only done it to try to calm him, rather than her usual flirting. It reminded him of his parents, and how they would embrace him and stroke his fur when he was particularly agitated. Or when Leaf was particularly agitated. It had been effective enough then, but he didn't want to get distracted from the current subject, nor did he want to dwell on memories of his parents.
"Then when?" he asked seriously.
Cecilia considered, then glanced towards Lin questioningly. "Tomorrow morning?"
"Whatever you want," Lin answered indifferently. "No plans or schedule until Kaito gets back to us."
The Quilava nodded slowly, turning back to Shadow. "Tomorrow morning? Over breakfast or something? Shut up, Force, that's not what I mean!"
"Just something in my throat," the Riolu said innocently, producing several fake coughs to conceal his previous snickering. Shadow ignored him.
"Fine," he grunted.
"I'm really sorry about this, Shadow," Cecilia said quietly. Shadow just grunted again in response, and walked away. If he felt bad about this interaction tomorrow, he'd apologize then, but right now, he just didn't give a damn. This was one of the worst days he'd experienced in a long time, and he doubted it was going to get much better anytime soon. Under normal circumstances, this would be a day to just go to bed early and let sleep wash away his problems.
It just sucked that recurring nightmares was kind of a thing with him these days.
