Hey, everyone! Ta-Ni here, bringing you another chapter. This one is a bit on the long side, only because I couldn't find a good place to split it in two. Also, this will bring up one of the major changes I make in the main storyline. Enjoy!

A couple of days later, as we prepare for another day of missions, we are again interrupted. Not by Team Meanies, this time; instead another familiar scent approaches us.

"Um, is this Team Scent's base?"

Sparky steps aside, revealing the Jumpluff from a while ago. They still seem concerned, so something must be up. I step forward and reply, "Yes, it is. Can we help you?"

"Did Shiftry not do his job?" Sparky comments acidly.

"N-no, he went to save my friend…but he hasn't come back yet," the little puffball replies. "He went alone to the Silent Chasm because the air in the chasm was unusually still. We can move pretty much anywhere, as long as we have a breeze. However, my friend was trapped between two rocks and couldn't get free. Can you please help him?"

"Don't worry; we'll get your friend back," Sparky assures them.

"We should also save Shiftry, too," I chime in. However, I can feel Sparky's disappointing look behind me. Thankfully, he says nothing; probably because he doesn't want to disagree with me in front of the jumpluff.

"Let's go prepare our things before we head out; we are going to a new dungeon, after all," he says in an even tone. I turn and nod, keeping quiet and following. However, once we are deep in town, I bring it up again.

"Why don't you want to save Shiftry?" I ask. "Didn't you say it's a rescue team's duty to save others?"

"Other rescue teams shouldn't need to be saved," he replies tersely. I shill think he bailed as soon as he was away from Alakazam."

"But Jumpluff saw him leave for the dungeon, didn't they?"

He just humphs and ignores me. Something in the back of my mind tells me I'm treading on dangerous ground if I keep asking, so I quietly resolve to track BOTH scents through the dungeon. Once the mission's over, I can ask for more details, I think.

We finish our preparations and return to Jumpluff, who offers to take us to the Silent Chasm. Both of us are silent as we travel, but inside my mind, I can feel questions bubbling up. Finally, we reach the dungeon, where I concentrate on gathering the scents I need to track. Not only do I gather Jumpluff's scent (with permission, of course), but I also can smell Shiftry's scent near the entrance, confirming he did come here.

"O-one more thing," the jumpluff pipes up before we enter. "There's a rumor that a fierce monster lives here or came here recently. No one knows what it is, as all other 'mons have seen is a large shadow in the sky."

"We'll be careful," Sparky comments. "If it flies, I can always knock it out of the sky with my electricity." I hide a chuckle since I know he's posing for the client. With that, we enter the dungeon.

As the entrance closes behind us, I quickly take in the scents of the local wild Pokémon. By now, this habit has almost become instinctive, and we're soon on our way. For a while, I follow Shiftry's scent the most, making sure to check for Jumpluff's as well whenever they cross or at the stairs. However, we run into a fair amount of wild Pokémon as a result, and by the fifth floor, I sense that Sparky's getting suspicious.

"Not that I don't trust you," he starts. "But who's scent are you following?"

"Um…kind of both of them?" I reply honestly. "They're both in here…"

"We should be focusing on Jumpluff, though," he spits. "I don't care about Shiftry right now; he can handle himself."

I choose not to respond, but I shift my focus to Jumpluff's scent predominately; the last thing I want is to start a fight with him inside the dungeon. I still check the stairs for Shiftry, just to make sure he was ahead of us. Also, around the midpoint, we ran into our first ground-type, so we were able to try out our new iron tail move.

Finally, we reach the final floor, and immediately we see Jumpluff floating toward us.

"You're free," Sparky comments, somewhat surprised. "Why didn't you leave?"

"Shiftry freed me from the rocks, but he also disturbed something; he's deeper inside," they reply.

"Well, I'd call it mission complete-" I cut Sparky off.

"What about Shiftry? He's in trouble!" I cry out, shocked.

"I'M here for Jumpluff," Sparky responds coldly, stepping up to Jumpluff. "If you want to save HIM, do it yourself." With that, he teleports out without me.

I stand there, stunned at my partner's behavior. Suddenly, a shout further in snaps me from my stupor, and I run ahead to find Shiftry lying on the ground. He's barely conscious but still breathing.

"Shiftry, I'm coming!" I cry, starting toward him.

"No, stay away!" he croaks hoarsely, but a sharp cry interrupts him before he can explain.

"STAY AWAY FROM HIM!"

A bright flash of light fills the room, briefly blinding everyone. "He dared disturb my slumber. I have no tolerance for meddlers, and that includes you!" When the light faded, Shiftry was gone, and a large yellow bird hovers in front of me. "I am Zapdos, the embodiment of Lightning! If you wish to save him, you must climb Mt. Thunder!" With a loud screech, Zapdos flew off. Seeing I can't do anything else, I teleport out of the dungeon.

When I reappear in front of our base, Sparky's waiting for me.

"So, what happened?" he asks. "Gave up on him after all?"

"No," I reply. "He was taken away by a Pokémon named Zapdos."

"Did you say Zapdos?" a deep voice chimes in. We turn to see Team ACT approach; Alakazam was the one who spoke. "Zapdos is a legendary bird Pokémon who is said to control thunder. It had been sleeping recently, but Shiftry's winds triggered its anger. However, I don't think Shiftry was to blame; it must have been a side-effect of the natural disasters."

"He said we have to travel to Mt. Thunder to save him," I supply hopefully. "Do you know where that is?"

Both Team ACT and Sparky looks at me in shock. "Are you sure?" Alakazam asks. "It is said that the electricity that emanates from Zapdos can reach a thousand volts! There is little chance to survive…"

"Well, as long as Sparky comes along, I should be fine-" I state.

"No," he interrupts me.

"But, why?" I plead. "What's your problem with Shiftry?"

"I…don't want to talk about it, but I have my reasons," he replies evasively.

"But your vow to save-"

"HE DIDN'T HELP ME, SO WHY SHOULD I HELP HIM?!" he shouts suddenly, pulling everyone up short. He stops, then runs off somewhere. Part of me wants to follow him, but I also feel like I may have pushed him too far. At some point, the Jumpluff had left for town, so I turn to Alakazam and ask, "What happened to Sparky?"

"It's not my place to say; you should ask him yourself," he replies. "However, if you are insistent on climbing Mt. Thunder, make sure you're prepared. We shall make our way as well when we've prepared." With that, they leave me alone.

I debate with myself for about an hour, before I decide to follow Sparky. Following his scent, I find him a fair way into the friend areas, standing before a rockfall. His back is to me, but I see his ear twitch so he knows I'm there.

After a moment, I break the silence. "Sparky? Please, tell me what's wrong. I'm sorry if I said something-"

"It's not you," he interrupts. "I didn't mean to blow up at you, but…" He sighs. "Do you know what this place is?"

"No," I reply.

"A couple of years ago, there was a cave here. My…little brother and I decided to explore it, but we didn't realize that a mystery dungeon was hidden inside. We soon got lost inside and separated from each other; all the wild Pokémon were ground types, which is why I have trouble with them. When I got knocked out, I found myself outside the cave…but my brother was nowhere to be found. He was still trapped inside the dungeon."

Taking a risk, I step up to Sparky and lean against him, trying to provide comfort through contact. He turns to me, tears pricking his eyes.

"I told my parents that he was staying the night, but they eventually found out. The next morning, I put up a request at the Pellipper Post Office. However, even after I pooled my allowance, I could only offer 50 Poké as a reward. As such, the request was an F rank mission. At that time, most of the current rescue teams were Silver Rank or higher… and tended to ignore missions ranked E or lower. So my request sat there on the board…for over a week."

"As I watched the other rescue teams sneer as they ignore my request, I…became rather disillusioned at them in turn. All they care about is how much reward and challenge they get from the missions, not the client asking for help. Eventually, my request was taken down because it was too old, like they were writing off my brother as too far gone. Right then, I vowed I would make a rescue team myself, and I would never turn down a request for help, regardless of reward."

A sad smile crosses his face. "When I noticed you trying to hide the missions in Tiny Woods from me, I thought I'd found a partner that follows my own idea of a proper rescue team. One who would follow the same ideal." He pauses, frowning. "But at the same time…I see now I held a grudge against the other teams. Seeing others like Shiftry and Team Meanies…I almost want to let them linger a while."

"But…that's not right," I chime in. "To turn away from them is just like they acted toward you. Don't stoop to their level."

"…You're right," he responds. This time, the smile he gives me is genuine. "You really are too nice…and I hope you never change. Thank you."

I smile back, then glance at the blocked cave. "What happened here, though?"

He shrugs. "Shortly after the request was taken down, I came out here to find the cave had been blocked off by a rockslide. So no one could access the dungeon anyway."

We sit in silence for a moment, then I dare to ask, "So…will you go with me to save Shiftry? To Mt. Thunder?"

I feel him tense, but then he relaxes. "All right, if you're so sure…we'll go save him. But only when we're ready."

He yawns loudly. "I'm really tired all of the sudden; I'll see you in the morning, Lauren."

He stands up and heads off to his home, and I retrace my steps back to the base. As I curl up in my bed, I can't help but smile. I'm glad I managed to change his mind.

And there you have it. A little backstory on the partner, as well as something we might return to in the future. Next time, Mt. Thunder!

Please comment and review, and may your Ember never fade!