Clover sat by Duke, wrapping her tail around his tail. She loved the big Zangoose like no matter what, but she was an Espeon. An Espeon, whose father had a terrible temper. She knew it wouldn't last, but it was all she had since her mother, Sophia, died. She loved him like they were married and had kids. She wished for that day. She began to cough, rather violently.
Duke looked sharply at Clover, his love, before a look of worriment settled in. He spoke no words, since he was not as intelligent as the Espeon family and their human tongue. Oh, how he wished for the language to speak to his love. But he had to settle with this. Yet, she understood him well. He hugged her from behind, not letting her fall off the cliff they were on.
Clover stopped coughing as she looked kindly up at her love. She nodded her head before settling her head on his shoulder. "Duke, I wish we could live together forever with no worries, but with my father… we can't achieve the goal." She smoothly said in human. But there was another blockage, keeping her away from Duke. It was cancer.
Duke knew the pain of her illness, but he still loved her. She retained her beauty, and she did not go deaf, but she was blind from birth. Her attacks were still strong as ever, but her body didn't hold up the wounds on the inside. He knew it was only a matter of time before she was gone, and he wanted to let her live out all her dreams before that time comes.
"Duke?"
He remembers the first day he met her.
Duke was training in the fields, trying to learn shadow claw. He was almost there when a snap alerted his attention to his make-shift home. There was something in his den, where his food was. He would not let anyone or any pokemon eat his findings. He lived by a code: If you want to survive out in the wild, find your own home and food. If not, then go back to your mother. He growled in anger before trekking over to his home.
It was empty by the looks of it, so he scanned the room. He looked at his supplies to only find one things missing, an Oran berry. He didn't mind that it was gone, seeing he had plenty of Oran berries to last 2 years. But he was curious why the Pokémon didn't take any of his rare items? Many thieves Pokémon did take rare stones, like he had. So why didn't this one take them? He was about to head out when he heard a snap in the back of the cave.
He ran back there to find a lone, female by the looks of it, Espeon. She was in no condition to fight. She was injured head to tail. Her face was bruised, and her body was battered. It looked like she had a scuffle with some Mightyenas. He noted the Oran berry infront of her. So she was the culprit? "Ohw era uoy? Tahw era uoy gniod ereh?" He asked her in his native Pokémon tongue.
"Don't hurt me please. I just need some berries to eat, and I will be on my way. I just took one Oran berry, please have it in your heart to let me have this one berry to replenish my health." The female Espeon begged him. She looked right at him, but her eyes were glazed over. She spoke human tongue as well. A real big shocker since most Pokémon didn't know human.
"Yhw dluohs I? Uoy dessapsert otni ym yrotirret!" Duke snarled out at the female. He felt guilty about it, but it was his duty to protect his land.
The female whimpered. "Please, it's just for one day. I will leave as soon as I get the strength back into my legs. I won't be a burden; I will stay out of your way." She pleaded.
Duke sighed, looking at her. "Enif, tsuj rof eno yad."
He remembered it so well. He began to adore the blind Espeon, and he met her mother and her father. Her mother was kind to him, while her father was mean to him.
"Duke, is the sun rising yet?" Clover asked him.
"Sey, I kniht ti si. I kniht ti si nwad, yhw?" Duke spoke for once.
"Because, I wanted to spend my first dawn with you before I….." Clover began to say, but she dropped short when her head fell down onto his lap. Her body began to turn grey, for when an Espeon dies they turn grey, meaning she was dying.
Duke shattered. "On! On!" He cried out in sadness. His temper was flaring as his heart was shattering into a million pieces. His eyes began to water like they did when his mother died. "Revolc! Revolc!" No response came from the graying Espeon. "CLOVER!"
