Wowee I haven't posted anything here in almost 2 years. In fact, if it weren't for my friend asking me to finish this up, I probably never would have post it. This story was intended to be a oneshot, but I wrote this second chapter sometime back in 2018, just for fun. Except, just like my other writings, I kinda dropped it haaaaa.

Anyway, I hope posting this is enough to get me back into finishing my other stories.

Enjoy~

A deep orange sky. A sign that the sun was going to bed, and the moon would soon be awake. Despite the time of day, a certain rescue team was on their way back from a long, arduous journey. They were, however, excited to get back home to tell all their friends and families about the adventure they had just gone on.

The rescue team consisted of three Pokemon.

A Charizard, Odin, the leader of the group. He was rather strong, pushing a large, wooden wagon that held all the supplies and loot his team had collected throughout the journey.

A Floatzel, Rane, the "laid back" one of the group. As expected, he was taking a nap on the wagon, sitting mixed in with the cloth sacks that held all their valuables. (Odin wasn't particularly happy about him doing that.)

And finally, a Lucario, Axel, who casually walked alongside his leader. Axel took his work very seriously, usually staying quiet. However, something was on his mind, making him rub his paws together anxiously. Odin noticed and gave a smirk.

"You're excited to see her again, huh Axel?" he said. Axel gave a light blush as he looked towards the Charizard.

"I mean... w-well, yes! Of course I am! I'm just worried since... it's been so many months since I last saw her."

"I'm sure she's fine," Odin assured. "If you both truly love each other, then everything will be just fine. I can tell you that based on my experience." Axel gave a heavy sigh as he looked up at the darkening sky.

"I just hope we get there before night falls," Axel worried.

About another half hour passed before the entrance to their home village came in sight. It was still quite a way's away. Yet, Axel's eyes widened at the view. He began running ahead.

"Hey slow down there, kid," Odin called to him. "Ya' still gotta help me unload all of our wares when we get there."

"What? Why?"

"Well, I'm sure as hell not leaving this all out in the middle of the night for some lowlife to come and steal."

"But, if I don't..." Axel began pacing back and forth. It was almost nighttime. Odin could tell Axel didn't want to wait any longer to see her.

"Hm... tell you what," Odin gave a slight smile. "If you can wake snores-a-lot here in the wagon, I'll let you run off to your girlfriend." Axel slightly blushed again at the mention of her being his girlfriend, but he glanced at the back of the wagon. He hopped in to check on Rane. (Odin continued to push the wagon.) The Floatzel lazily hung his orange arms and legs around all the sacks of equipment and loot they had. The blue fins on his arms twisted and bent around the items.

Is it even comfortable to sleep like that? Axel thought. Rane looked like a giant fish that had been caught and tossed in with the rest of the loot. Axel quietly laughed to himself at the image.

"Zzz..." Despite him saying "zzz" aloud like a Combee, he sure was sleeping like a log. Axel nudged him a bit.

"Rane, wake up," he said casually. It had no effect on Rane. He continued to buzz and snore. "C'mon man, wake up!" Axel spoke a little louder, pushing a bit more into Rane's shoulder. But all that did was make him swat Axel's paw away and turn on his side, buzzing and snoring even louder.

"Hm..." Axel looked around, trying to find another way to wake Rane up. He noticed one sack that had all their berries in it. He reached in, not exactly sure how it would help, and randomly pulled out a yellow Grepa berry. Axel knew how sour this berry could be… and that Rane hated them. It was then that he knew what to do. He held the berry tightly in his paw as he quickly shoved it halfway into Rane's mouth. (He didn't want Rane to choke.) The Floatzel's eyes opened wide at the sudden wave of a sickeningly sour flavor in his mouth, and impulsively bit down on the berry. His face then began to contort into a swirl of shock and discomfort. He threw his hands over his cheeks, trying to comfort them from the strain of the sour taste. Axel couldn't help but laugh.

"Arrrghhh! Axel! What the heck?" Rane leaned over the side of the wagon and began spitting out the pieces of berry in his mouth.

"Ah, man," Axel stopped laughing. "You would not wake up. You snore like a freakin' Mamoswine. And since when did you buzz in your sleep?"

"What's it to ya'? You shoved a sour berry in my mouth! Not cool, man!"

"You kids done yet?" Axel and Rane both turned towards Odin. They then noticed the familiar structure that was the entrance gate to their village. "We finally made it, fellas. Home sweet home."

"It's about time!" Rane hopped out of the wagon and began walking off.

"Slow down there, partner," Odin grabbed Rane's head with his claws, and pushed him back towards the wagon. "You're helping me unload our stuff."

"What!? Aw, come on! Can't it wait until morning?" the Floatzel whined.

"You practically slept the entire journey back home. Quit complainin' and start unloadin'."

"Hmph." Rane grumbled to himself as he began taking things out of the wagon. That's when he also noticed Axel walking off. "Hey! Where do you think you're going, slacker?" Axel looked over at him, but Odin spoke.

"Leave the kid alone. He's got some important things to take care of before night falls." Odin looked over at Axel and waved. "Go on, son. You shouldn't keep a lady waiting." Axel remembered her telling him the same thing the last time they met. He smiled and waved back before dashing off through the village. He ran to his special meeting place.

The Lucario dashed through his village, passing by all the small houses where everyone lived. Since it was getting late, very few Pokemon were outside, and the ones that were didn't seem to pay any attention to Axel.

Good, he thought to himself. I don't really have time to say hi to everyone right now. Axel continued running ahead, into the forest that lied on the opposite end of the village. On the other side of that forest was a cliff overlooking the sea. It was there that he would see her again.

"Rei..." Axel said her name aloud. He waited so long to finally see her again. To finally tell Rei those three words... Technically, he had already said it to her in a letter, but he longed to say it in person. He thought about what she probably did while he was away. She certainly wouldn't just sit around waiting for him. Surely, she was able to make some new friends. Friends that she had plenty of time to spend with. Friends that… could get close to her—Axel shook his head at the thought. She even said it to him; She loved him. There's no way she'd betray her own feelings… right?

Axel hopped through the foliage in the middle of the forest. Assuming Rei had gotten the other letters he had sent her, she should be waiting at their special place. That is, the place where they first met: by a lone tree stump that overlooked the sea from the cliff. He could already envision the view, seeing Rei sitting on the stump, gazing out across the water, and giving a surprise look when she turned around and saw him. Her kind face and gentle smile... just the thought warmed Axel's heart. He began sprinting harder. As he stepped closer and closer to his destination, his heart began to beat faster.

Over a boulder, under a branch, through some bushes (he could've sworn they used to be bigger?), Axel finally reached the edge of the cliff. The same narrow, dirt path stretched further down from both directions, while the purple and blue sea stretched out before him. The translucent, twinkling stars reflected on the water's surface. A small layer of orange above the horizon was the only indication that there was any light still up. And that he was running out of time.

Axel turned to his right and continued down the path. But he stopped.

Wait… This should be it, he thought to himself. The spot where the lone tree stump should have been, there was now nothing except a jagged black star shape pattern in the ground. How peculiar. Axel frantically looked around to see if there was some clue, but he was so anxious, his heart pounding in his chest, he couldn't think straight. Rei should know that he was coming to see her again. So why wasn't she here? Axel's mind began to race. Did she leave? Did she get tired of waiting? Did something happen to her? Did she find someone else... to love? He folded his arms and began to pace back and forth. He couldn't stand it. He didn't want to wait anymore. He wanted to tell her now. He stopped and looked out across the sea. The fading orange in the sky only made him more impatient. He took a deep breath.

"Rei!" Axel shouted her name out across the sea. "I'm sorry for making you wait so long. But I can't bear to hold this in my chest for any longer!" He took another deep breath.

"I love you, Rei!"

The emotions that were buried in his words echoed far and wide across the sea. He stood there, listening to his words fade out into the distance. He may not have said it directly to her, but he felt a weight lift off his mind. He closed his eyes as a gentle breeze swirled around him.

"Axel!" He jumped at hearing his name from behind. His words had carried into the forest behind him, too. When he turned around, a Braixen, with her face as red as the setting sun, was giving him a flustered look.

"Rei!" Axel couldn't help but smile at the sight of her. He ran over to her and threw his arms around her. The Braixen blushed even harder, but she was also very happy to see him again.

"I've waited so long for you, Axel…" They both basked in each other's warmth from the hug.

But then Axel noticed the figure behind her, and he froze. He let go of Rei. The Braixen tilted her head.

"Is something wrong?" she asked him.

Tall; black fur; spiky, crimson hair; blood red claws. Axel's fears were true. What was this Zoroark doing with her? No… she couldn't have found another lover, could she? If that was the case, why did she hug him back? Because they were just "friends," and that's what friends do? Was he so unimportant to her that she had no problem throwing him away and finding someone else? The Zoroark had his arms crossed and a hand over his face, trying to hide his smile.

"You were right, Rei. He certainly can be silly," the Zoroark smirked at him. Axel still couldn't shake the thoughts away. A rage began to build in him. He had to prove to Rei that he still loved her, even if it meant defeating this Zoroark right in front of her. He took a few steps away from Rei and got into his battle stance. He clenched his paws into fists.

"Who are you?" Axel yelled. Rei realized what bothered him.

"It's okay, Axel—" but Axel put his paw up to stop her. He continued staring daggers at the Zoroark.

"Whoa, whoa, easy there," the Zoroark put his hands up as he approached closer to the two. "Didn't expect you to be so feisty. The name's Jun. Just a friend~" he winked.

"Just a friend?" Axel didn't believe him.

"Seriously, don't worry about it, Axel." Rei crossed her arms. Hearing her words again calmed Axel a bit. "Even I have a hard time calling us 'friends' sometimes."

"Come on! Don't be like that!" Jun nudged Rei. Axel didn't exactly like seeing that. But hearing the words come from Rei, he relaxed. He stood up straight, out of his battle stance.

"Ooh…" Jun leaned closer to Axel. Axel took a step back. "Rei, you didn't tell me he was so… cute."

"Excuse me?" Axel felt his face get warm at the sudden compliment… from another guy?

"Hey," Jun whispered to Axel, "why don't you ditch her and come with me, instead?" Axel felt his face get even hotter.

"W-What!?"

"That's enough!" Rei slapped Jun on the back. "You can knock it off, now."

"Ow! I'm kidding, I'm kidding!" Jun rubbed his back as he apologized to her. Axel was very confused by the whole relationship, and what Jun said. "I know you two lovebirds have a lot of catching up to do, so I'll leave you alone now." He turned away and started walking back through the forest but stopped short. "Oh, but my offer still stands, Axel~"

"Get out of here, you!" Rei shoved Jun along.

"Okay, okay, I'm going! Sheesh." He chuckled as he walked back towards the village. Axel put his face in his paws, still feeling himself blushing. He wasn't exactly sure how he felt about what Jun had just said.

"So uh…" he tried talking to Rei. "What's his deal?"

"Just another friend I made while you were gone. There was an incident…" Rei looked at the ground where the stump used to be. "There was fire. Thankfully, it only got the edge of the forest around here." Rei gestured towards a small clearing among the trees. The grass grew back, but Axel definitely didn't remember there being such an open space. "I bumped into Jun while trying to keep other Pokémon safe. After the whole incident, we ran into each other again and, well… I did get kinda lonely waiting for you," her pointy ears drooped. "I needed someone else to talk to... But!" her ears perked back up. "You're here now and I couldn't be happier!" Axel closed his eyes, trying to understand her story.

"And you two weren't…?"

"Well, as you just heard from him, Jun isn't exactly a 'ladies' man," she laughed.

"Right…" Another wave of relief came over Axel. He stared back into the forest, tracing the path Jun took. He had never given much thought to—

"But you're still mine," Axel felt his face get hot again as Rei wrapped her arms around him this time. Her soft white and yellow fur brushed against his own blue and black colors. "You didn't forget that, did you?" Now that they were alone, Axel embraced this feeling of being love by another. She made him feel so warm.

"Of course I didn't forget," he wrapped his arms around her, too. "Not a single day went by while I was away where I didn't think about you, Rei." He stared into her red eyes as she stared back.

"Um…" Rei closed her eyes. "Could you… say those three words again? You know, this time without shouting them across the sea like an idiot," she smirked, and Axel smiled back.

"Rei…" Axel gently grabbed her paws. "I love you, Rei. And I…" he pressed his forehead against hers. "I'm so glad to be back with you." Axel could feel his heart fluttering.

"Me too." Rei placed a paw behind Axel's head and pulled him into a gentle kiss. Axel was surprised, but he slowly sunk into returning the same affection. The sun slowly dipped behind the horizon as they stood together in each other's arms.

Perfect, Axel thought.

And then his stomach growled. He pulled away from the kiss, flustered. Rei laughed.

"Guess I should've eaten something before coming here, eheh…"

"Well, you're welcome to come back to my home for food."

"Yeah, I think I'd like that. Just the two of us."

"Just the two of us~"

Rei leaned against Axel as they walked home together.