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Chapter 23
"And you hurt my partner, Fée!"
Blue could only watch in horror as Koffing unleashed his attack. In an instant, the forest vanished right before his very eyes. A blinding white light erupted from the center of the grove, wiping out everything in his sight. A thunderous roar blew out his ears, reducing his hearing to nothing more than a dull buzz.
A shockwave slammed into Blue with a force akin to an avalanche. He felt his arms get blown to the side, breaking his guard, and leaving his face and body unprotected from the blast. Seconds later, his feet were torn off the ground, throwing him off balance. The next thing he knew, he had been thrown into the air by the force created by the explosion.
He couldn't even feel the pain that was no doubt ravaging his body at the moment. The sheer intensity of the blast had dulled all of his senses, leaving him with no way to tell just how broken he was. Blue opened his mouth to scream, to howl in pain and suffering. But, no matter how hard he forced himself to yell, not a single sound came from his throat. Not even a single whimper.
Blue's shattered body struck one of the massive trees surrounding the grove. The collision sent a horrifying crack! into the air. The sound echoed over and over again as it traveled through the forest. Blue's body left a trail of bright red as he slid down the trunk. When he hit the ground, his broken and battered form crumpled into a blue and red heap by the roots.
"...kuh..."
Blue coughed out a smattering of red from his mouth. As he leaned his heavy body against the tree, he opened his eyes and glanced down at his body. A grimace appeared on his face. Seeing the state that he was in, he was glad that most of his limbs had been numbed by the blast. Otherwise he'd be screaming in pain right now.
He tried to move his arms, but all he managed to do was raise it a single inch up into the air before it flopped back down. It was like a pair of weights here attached to his wrists, and ankles, making it near impossible for him to move at all. Blue opened his mouth to growl in frustration, but the rush of air into his throat only elicited more pained coughs.
He messed up... Blue grumbled at his own idiocy. Just because he had felt a little better, he could beat them through sheer force. If he hadn't been so overconfident, he could've been able to see that trap coming... and as a result of his cockiness...
"...kuh!" another painful cough erupted from his mouth. His head fell forward as his body buckled under the force of the cough, forcing his consciousness to waver. His left paw hit the ground, just in time to stop him from collapsing into the dirt. As he propped himself up with his arm, he felt a stinging pain within him.
His dulled senses were returning, and with it, the pain from his accumulated wounds and injuries. At first, it was like walking into a thorny bush. Then, as seconds flew by, his agony intensified. The cuts and bruises that covered his arms and torso felt like burning hot coals. His left leg refused to move, and his right... he couldn't even feel his right leg anymore. It was as if it had disappeared entirely.
He couldn't see anything past the massive crater in the middle of the grove. There was a huge, no... massive wall of black smoke obscuring his sight. Blue couldn't tell whether or not Zubat and Koffing were still present in the forest. If they were... what could he do to them in his current situation? His arms... his legs...
A rustling sound from behind him drew his attention. He turned around and saw Brin peeking out from behind the tree he had slammed into. Her face looked like it had been stained by tears, and her expression was that of abject terror. But, to Blue's relief, she looked like she was uninjured by the blast. Sighing, Blue mustered up whatever strength he had in order to give the Braixen a grin.
Brin shook her head and ran over to his side. He shouldn't be smiling at a time like this, she thought. Even though she was no expert in Pokémon health, it was plain as day to her that Blue was in a terrible shape. She couldn't even bring herself to look at him. His wounds were too horrible for her to bear.
"...h – hey..."
Blue's voice was almost inaudible. He let out a tired groan as he tried to pull himself further up the tree so he could look into Brin's eyes. He lifted his leaden arm and tried to place it atop her head, but it didn't even reach halfway up her chest before his fading strength failed him. Before it fell back to his sides, Brin hurried and reached out her hands, grabbing his paw and holding it to her chest.
"...g – good... you... you're alrig –" his words were cut off by an onset of violent coughs. Brin cried out in shock and squeezed his paw in an effort to comfort him, but it was of little use. His pitiful body continued to shudder and tremble as ragged coughs continued to ravage him.
Tears rolled down Brin's cheeks as she watched her new friend continue to suffer in front of her. She shut her eyes and pulled his paw up to her face, hugging it tight. How could this have happened? But a few moments ago, the two of them were walking through the forest together. And now, her friend... her friend was...!
Blue felt her warm tears drip onto his paw. His vision was blurred. In his eyes, all the colors and shapes surrounding him were wavering, blending together into an indecipherable mess. But there was one thing in this mess of a world he was sure of, and it was that Brin was crying. It made him sick to his stomach. How could he have made her worry?
"D... don't cry..." raising his right paw, he tried to wipe away the tears on her cheek. But, as he lifted his arm but an inch, he felt a screaming pain attack him. It forced him to look away from Brin, as a wave of nausea began to rise up within him. A pitiful rattle escaped his lips as his head drooped down. Then, he stopped moving.
Brin let out a loud, concerned cry and wrapped her arms around his head. Right before his muzzle struck the ground, the Braixen pulled him up and leaned him against her. Cradling his head, she tried to comfort him by pressing his head against her chest. She could feel his ragged breathing against her fur, and his irregular heartbeat beneath her hand.
As the minutes passed, she could feel the Riolu's breathing calming down. His ragged breaths had become quiet gasps, while his heartbeat had stabilized. Yet, it didn't calm Brin. Instead, it only made her panic even further.
The heat within Blue's body was fading away.
Soft sobs escaped her mouth as she tried to preserve his warmth by hugging him tighter. In a desperate attempt to heat him up, she pressed his chest against her own, matching their heartbeats together. As she closed her eyes, a horrible thought entered her head. Or rather, a memory. That one dark night... that terrible scream... it all came flooding into her thoughts like a tidal wave. Without even realizing it, the Braixen began to tremble and shiver as frightening images began to flash inside of her mind.
Icy terror began to grip her heart. These were memories she thought she had buried away long ago. Memories that she never wanted to unearth ever again. But... this situation... it was just like that night. That night... she saw her mother fall right in front of her eyes. She remembered hearing Mismagius scream at her as she ran toward her mother.
She remembered touching her mother's chest. She remembered feeling her warmth slowly disappear underneath her paw.
She remembered trying in vain to wake her.
She remembered not being able to do a thing.
And now...
She saw herself holding her friend. Trembling and crying, just like that night back then. Could she do anything to save him? Of course she could. She had that power. She had the power to save anybody, didn't she?
But, she knew it came at a heavy price. Mismagius, Duskull, not even her mother... none of them knew the full extent of her miraculous power. When she had healed Duskull during that one fateful day, it forced Brin to realize just how dangerous her power was. Not to others, no... but to herself.
Her power... it was no Panacea. It was no amazing miracle cure. Instead, it was more like a replacement. It took her own strength... her own aura, and used it as a salve for the injured. In effect, it was like pulling off her own arms and legs as a replacement for someone else's. Which is why... she couldn't just use her powers for anything... for anyone.
Tears welled up inside of Brin's eyes as she felt Blue's heartbeat slow down even further. Was she willing to just let her new friend disappear just like that? Even though she had a way to save him inside of her right now? His wounds... to replace every single one of them would take an inordinate amount of her own strength. Even if it was just his right leg, who knows what would happen to her is she had used her power?
Can she just let him be taken away like that? Without even lifting a finger?
"Nn..." a single word appeared in her heart. That one word spread out from her chest and throughout her body like a wildfire. She felt it enter her mouth. The word stood at the tip of her tongue, waiting for her to speak it.
She had no reason to refuse.
"No!"
Her eyes snapped open at the sound of her own voice. In the instant she did, she felt a raging flame explode out from within her heart. A searing flame burst from her chest, spreading a burning heat out and into her arms, legs and even her tail. She felt her fur prickle with heat as her tail flicked upward. This sensation... this strength...! It was like her entire body had become an inferno!
Brin knew what she had to do. She was given this power to save others. Therefore, she would use it to save her beloved new friend!
With a loud cry, she wrapped her burning arms around him.
"Keh..."
Zubat groaned in pain as he peeled himself off the ground. Wiping away the dirt that caked his face, he shook his head and coughed. He hadn't expected Koffing's explosion to be so strong. In fact, it was twice... no, three times stronger than the one back at the cave. Feeling his wings aching, Zubat struggled to flap himself back into the air.
The sheer destruction that Koffing's explosion had wrought was spectacular. Horrifying, but spectacular. Upturned dirt, burnt up leaves and seared twigs were littered all over the once – peaceful grove. All that was left of the Mago trees were four, charred stumps lying on their sides, their exposed, feeble roots fluttering in the wind.
A stunned chuckle emanated from Zubat as he got closer to the carnage. A gigantic crater had been dug out in the center of the grove, and in the center of it was a smoldering blob of purple. Zubat lowered himself into the crater and landed next to the unconscious Koffing.
"Oi, you awake?" he prodded his partner with his wing. Koffing didn't budge. Instead, his mouth opened up and expelled a plume of brown gas. Zubat averted his head, and closed his mouth. Even though he's immune to Koffing's poison, it was still unpleasant to breathe in his stench.
"Keh, still asleep," Zubat slapped Koffing's face out of annoyance. Like the poke he gave Koffing earlier, it had no effect on the snoozing gas ball. With a shake of his head, Zubat flapped his way out of the crater and back into the grove.
Explosion was a strong, and devastating move, Zubat mused. But it wasn't something that they can just pull out any time they want. It's almost too destructive, especially since Koffing somehow managed to power it up. Zubat wondered if it was because his partner willingly self – destructed on his own instead of doing it by accident like before.
"Feh," Zubat smirked. Either way, it didn't matter. Right before the explosion stunned him, he saw that Riolu get blown away by the blast. No matter how confident or how cocky that stupid Riolu was, there was no way he'd be able to get up from a point – blank explosion right in his stupid face!
With a nasty smirk on his face, Zubat turned toward where the Riolu was. Without a doubt, he must be smarting from the attack. Oh, he couldn't wait to rub it into that smarmy brat's face.
"So! Had enough, brat?" he announced across the silent grove, sneering. He waited for the brat to reply. When he didn't get any, he decided to say something more. "That shows you what happens if you mess with Team Skull, keh, heh!"
There was no response from the Riolu. No snarky comeback, no rude remarks, not even a twitch to show that he had heard Zubat's taunts. Confusion crossed Zubat's face, replacing his arrogant sneer with a scowl. Was that blasted Riolu trying to rile him up by ignoring him on purpose?
A huge plume of smoke was emanating from the center of the grove, separating Zubat and the brat with an impenetrable wall of black. But such things didn't matter to Zubat, as he could tell that the Riolu was still there. With his sensitive hearing, he could hear that brat's breathing and heartbeat from miles away. And without a doubt, that brat was still inside the grove. In fact, he was just a few feet away from him.
His sneer returned to his face as he made his way over to where the Riolu was resting. If that brat was unconscious from the explosion, then he'll go and wake him up with a slap or two with his wings.
"Heh... are you trying to sneak away from me?" Zubat cackled to himself, "What was all that bragging earlier? Were you just spitting air?"
There was no reply again. His ego dented, Zubat ground his teeth together in frustration. Half the fun of taunting your opponents was shutting down their retorts! Prickles of anger were appearing inside his head as he flapped his way around the smokescreen. Then, an idea popped into his mind, making his fanged mouth curl into a smirk.
"You're just as bad as that cowardly Eevee," he snickered, "running away from anything that scares you. Do I scare you, Riolu? Keh, heh, heeee – eeagh!"
His taunt was cut short, as something fast, something hard, slammed into his big mouth. If he had eyes, they'd be bulging out of his skull right about now as he was thrown out of the sky. With a loud thud!, Zubat crashed into the dirt with his wings splayed out in an embarrassing pose.
"Agh – ggh, agh!" the swears that tried to escape Zubat's mouth only came out as unintelligible burbles. Confused and furious, Zubat jammed one of his wings inside of his mouth.
"Gehabwa!?"
It was a smooth, circular rock. His jaw dropped out of utter bewilderment and shock, allowing the stone to roll away. Coughing, he pulled himself off his back and spat out the lingering dirt and silt on his tongue.
"Wh – hack! – Who did that?!" he screeched in fury, swinging his head around the grove. His sensitive ears picked up the presence of two more Pokémon in the grove. One of which was dangerously close to him.
"Zubat...!"
Zubat turned his face toward the source of the voice, just in time for a paw to slap him across the cheek. A stinging pain exploded from the blow, making Zubat tumble away, screeching in agony.
"Gyeeeh! Eevee!" He snarled at his assailant, "What are you doing here?!"
"I could ask the same of you!" Fée retorted, lowering her head, and sending an angry glare at the bat. "What did you do? What was that explosion? Where's Blue and Brin?!"
"Keh!" Zubat quickly took to the skies as the brown – furred Pokémon charged at him. Realizing that she had missed, Fée planted her feet in the dirt and looked up at Zubat, anger burning in her eyes.
"Zubat!" she snarled at him, "Answer me!"
Zubat knew how dangerous that Eevee's tackles were. He had seen what happened to Koffing when he had taken a direct hit from one of them back at the Beach Cave, as well as how it felt when the big purple lug slammed into him as a result of that attack. That Eevee, despite her cowardice, had an incredible strength behind her blows!
"Keh, heh, heh..." It didn't matter though. If that Eevee only had tackles, then all he had to do was stay out of her range! After all, he had wings! There was no way she's be able to hit hi–!
"Haaah!"
Zubat's thoughts were cut short as Fée tilted her head back. Somehow, someway, she was hovering right in front of him. Despite that they were a couple feet up in the air, she was there. And she was about to headbutt him!
Clonk!
"Keegh!" a pained screech leaked out of Zubat's gaping maw as he was thrown out of the skies. For the third time today, Zubat tasted dirt on his tongue. "Bleegh..."
"Thanks, Mismagius," Fée sent a grateful nod to the specter holding her in the air. Mismagius returned her nod, and floated the both of them back onto solid ground. Once Fée's feet touched the dirt again, she charged toward the stunned Zubat and pounced on top of him, planting her feet firmly on his wings and pinning him down.
"Geeh!" Zubat screeched at Fée as he tried to wriggle out of her grasp, but her weight was too much for him to struggle out of. All he could so was spit, and screech at her as she pressed harder against his wings.
"Answer me, Zubat!" Fée shouted in his face, "What did you do?"
"What did I do?" Zubat sneered back, "I didn't do anything! Keh, heh!"
He jerked his head toward the smoldering crater beside them and smirked, "It was all Koffing! Keh, heh!"
"Koffing? He's here too?"
"We're Team Skull!" Zubat screeched, "Of course he's here with me! We're partners, you numbskull!"
"Grr!" Fée glared at the snickering Zubat. She pressed even harder against his wings, eliciting a pained squeak from him.
"Ouch!"
"How did you find this place?" Fée snarled at him, "Nobody other than Blue and I knew about this forest!"
"Keh, heh! Isn't it obvious?" he smirked, "You brats didn't even consider that you were being followed the whole time!"
"What?!"
"You two didn't even notice as we tailed you, all the way from that ghastly house to the crossroads!"
"B – but..." Fée was flabbergasted as she goggled at Zubat. "There was no way... we didn't see you two at all!" she glanced over at the crater, where Koffing was lying. "I would've known! I'd be able to recognize that disgusting stench anywhere! There's no way you could've masked that!"
"Keh! That's what separates the apprentices from the experienced!" Zubat snickered, "It's all in the tools, you fool!"
"Tools?"
"Orbs, berries! Keh, heh!" Zubat turned his face toward the crater, his smirk growing wider at Fée's confusion. "All it took was an Invisify Orb to hide ourselves, and some Pecha Berries to hide my partner's stench!"
Zubat's voice deepened as he sneered at her, "I could smell that minty scent coming from that Riolu back at town... I knew that the two of you were snacking on Pechas. It wasn't hard to figure out a plan to avoid your idiotic noses."
"You..." despite her dislike toward the bullying duo, Fée couldn't help but feel a little impressed at Zubat's ingenuity. Shaking her head, she wiped off the stunned expression on her face and returned to glaring at Zubat. "Tell me why you're here! And what you did to the grove!"
"Look at that face..." Zubat muttered in an icy – cold voice, "you think just because you grew a little backbone, you'd be able to just order me around like this? Keh... heh... heh..."
Fée felt a chill go down her spine as Zubat began to cackle icily. Nervousness, and a little fear rose up inside Fée, forming a heavy lump inside her throat. Risking a gulp, Fée tried to quash that familiar sensation welling up, and tried to maintain her angry glare at Zubat.
However, such an act of anxiousness didn't escape Zubat's notice. His cackles grew louder and faster, with every 'keh, heh' he emitted sending chills down Fée's spine. In his shrewd mind, he knew that fear wasn't such an easy thing to get rid of. And... of all Pokémon to be afraid of him, this Eevee was the easiest to terrify.
"Don't you remember...?" he spoke in a slow, meticulous voice at Fée as his mouth curled into a nasty smirk, "That dark, rainy day... when Koffing and I attacked you in the middle of the road..."
"S – shut up!" Fée's retort was weak, and her voice was wavering.
"You were such a coward then," Zubat sneered at her, "cowering, trembling in front of us. Begging for us to just go away. Keh, heh... well, I suppose you're still a coward now, aren't you?"
"Gh...!" Fée shuddered involuntarily as another wave of ice rushed through her body. Her legs began to tremble as her mind began to vividly replay the events of that day. She shook her head and tried to throw that thought out of her mind, to quash that memory. Being forced to remember that horrid day... it was like Zubat had forced her to swallow an entire iceberg.
"Keh, heh...!" Zubat could tell that her strength was waning. For all her bluster, she was still just a little coward! All this brat needed was one more push, and he'll be free from her clutches! He opened his mouth and let out a loud screech at the terrified Eevee, "You're nothing more than a coward! You can't even do anything now, can you? That's why... once a coward, always a coward!"
It was like a piece of glass had shattered inside of Fée's heart, breaking it into a thousand pieces. Strength and willpower fled her body, along with whatever warmth she had left. In that one instant of weakness, Zubat took his chance.
"Keeh!" With a powerful flap of his wings, he threw the Eevee off him and soared away into the air. Fée tumbled into the dirt, rolling several feet away before flopping motionless onto the ground. Tears began to roll down her face as she curled up into a pitiful ball in a fit of self – loathing.
"Fée!" Mismagius hurried over to the Eevee's side, concerned and afraid. As she lowered herself beside the poor girl, she noticed that her face was wet with glistening tears. In an effort to console her, Mismagius wrapped her cloak around the trembling Fée.
"N – no... I'm... I'm sorry...!" Fée's voice was cracking as she sobbed into Mismagius' cloak, "I didn't mean to... what he said... it just... no...!"
Although Mismagius didn't know what sort of connection Fée had with that cretin, Zubat. It was obvious to her that whatever relationship they had, it was one that had hurt Fée deeply in the past. If it was possible for mere words to reduce her to tears like this, then that one thing must've been very traumatic. Mismagius continued to hold the sobbing girl, trying to ease her fears as much as she could.
"You're a cretin," Mismagius muttered in a quiet voice. "to think that a Pokémon would stoop so low as to harm another like this. You're no better than the Pokémon back at the city..."
"Keeeeh!" Zubat heard it all with his sensitive ears. Irritation, and indignation welled up inside his purple body as he pointed his wing at Mismagius. "I don't know who you are, but you're being an eyesore!"
Mismagius' head swiveled around to glare at the flapping purple Pokémon in the air. She opened her mouth to snarl at him, but before she could even get a single word out, something sharp and blade – like struck her face.
My eyes widened in horror as I watched Brin's mother fall onto the ground. With a scream threatening to escape my mouth, I rushed over to her side. My paws flew up to my mouth as I saw a purple gash stretching from her chin up to her forehead. Her wide – brimmed hat had been nicked, with a cut going straight through from the edge to the center.
"Mismagius...!" I threw my paws around her body, shaking her in a desperate attempt to rouse her. "Mismagius, are you alright? Please... talk to me!"
"Mrgh..." A low groaning sound left her lips, announcing to me that she was still conscious. I felt a flood of relief as I saw her mouth flutter a bit. I quickly took a closer look at her wound, and much to my relief, it wasn't anything too severe.
I didn't know whether or not such a shallow cut would even mean anything to a Pokémon like Mismagius. But even then, it still made me feel much better to know that, although she was unconscious, Mismagius was alright. I threw my paws around her, hugging her tight as she had done for me.
"Keh, heh, heh...!" I heard that awful Zubat cackle somewhere behind me. Just the sound of his voice filled me with a myriad of emotions, "I thought that the ghost would be a threat... who knew she was just an old, fragile granny?! Keeeeh, heh, heh!"
How... how could he be so cruel? How could any Pokémon say such things after harming another? I just couldn't understand why Zubat... no, why this cretin was being so heartless...!
All the fear... all that coldness inside of me was melting away. Once more, I felt that powerful flame light up inside of my heart, breaking away all the ice that had frozen me earlier. My legs, which were paralyzed by fear before, were now tensed up and begging me to move. I felt every single strand of fur on my body stand up as burning anger began to build up within my chest.
"You... you're horrible...!" My words were laced with anger as I turned to face Zubat. I looked up into the sky and sent him a glare filled with fire. "You're nothing more than a cretin!"
"Is that all you got?" Zubat cackled back, "At least think of something more insulting, you coward!"
There was that word again. That one word that hurt me so much before...
"Y – you may call me whatever you want..."
But that word... didn't I already conquer it a while ago?
"But there is one thing I know..."
That's right... I did. To the me of the present... that word shouldn't hold any meaning to me any longer...!
"And it's that..."
After all... it was him who taught me that...
"I'm not a coward!"
An astonished look flitted across Zubat's features, with his mouth wide open in a dumb – looking way. His wings stopped flapping for a fraction of a second, no doubt affected by my loud shout. That was all the time I wanted.
The Explorer's Pack around my neck was thrown off as I pulled it open. There, lying inside in a jumble, were my clay berry pots. Taking one of them out by my teeth, I took aim and spun around on the spot. Using the momentum from my spin, I let go of the pot and sent it flying toward the horrid cretin flying in the air.
"Keeh?!"
Unfortunately, Zubat recovered just in time to avoid my projectile. He had flapped his wings, giving him just enough lift to fly over my berry pot.
"Keh! You think such a half – baked attack will reach me? You're an idiot!"
"Hrrrah!"
Without even giving myself any time to rest, I hurled yet another one of my berry pots at Zubat. I needed to bring him down to the ground so I could reach him with my tackles! This was the only way, and if I could just get a single hit in...!
"Keeeeeh!" To my frustration, he dodged my second pot with ease. A disgusting smirk was on the cretin's face, letting me know just how smug he was about avoiding my attacks.
Scowling, I hurriedly tried to think of another plan. Glancing inside my pack, I noticed that I only had two more pots left. That Pokémon was simply too fast to strike with something as slow as flying pot...!
"What is it, coward? You giving up already?" I growled at Zubat as he sneered at me. "Fine then, it's my turn!"
At first, I thought he was just trying to keep flapping in the air, but it looked much too odd for that. Instead, he looked like he was doing some sort of strange pose in midair by swinging his wings at me. I puzzled over his odd movements for a moment, but I quickly realized that standing still was a terrible idea.
A whistling noise tore through the air, making my ears twitch as I heard it coming toward me. The next thing I knew, something fast, and sharp struck me in the middle of the forehead. I was thrown to the ground from the attack as my head exploded in a stinging pain. Something warm and wet was tricking down my muzzle, staining my fur with a disgusting color.
I reached up and wiped away the red that was getting in my eyes. As I did so, I felt the thin cut on my forehead. This must've been the attack that Zubat used on Mismagius. It was some sort of invisible blade made from air that he could fire from his wings.
"That's not all yet, keh!"
My gaze snapped back to Zubat. He was holding his wings in that peculiar position again, preparing to attack me once more. This time though, I noticed something interesting about his attack... It wasn't actually very painful. In fact, it was more surprising than anything.
"Keeeh!" He screeched at me before firing off yet another one of those invisible blades. My eyes narrowed as I tried to see where the blade was, but it was impossible. Although I could hear the whistling noise nearing me again, I just couldn't tell where the attack was. There is one thing obvious though, and it was that it was going to hit me!
"Hah!" I threw myself to the side as fast as I could. Thankfully, my efforts were rewarded as the whistling soared past me and scored a hit on a tree trunk instead of my face. Turning my head back at Zubat, I watched him take up that pre – firing pose once more. As I saw that, my brain quickly got to work hatching a plan...
"Keeh! Keeh! Keeeeeh!"
Three high – pitched whistling noises traveled toward me as Zubat made frantic swipes with his wings. I broke out into a dash, letting the three blades splatter against the dirt. I ran in circles around Zubat as he continued to fire off more blades at me. I kept a close eye on him as his attacks continued to miss their mark, leaving thin gashes in the dirt and the trees.
"Keeh! Stop moving, you brat!" He screeched at me in anger.
"Make me!" I retorted. Maybe what I said was a little cocky, but it seemed to have a good effect on Zubat, as he screeched again and started launching more blades at me.
That was exactly what I wanted.
"Keeeh!" Zubat held up both of his wings this time, and swung them down at me. A deeper pitched whistle followed suit, informing me that the next blade was something much larger and dangerous than before. If it hit me... then it might be the end of this fight.
But, I wasn't afraid. After all, if it was Blue in this situation right now... he wouldn't have felt a single scrap of fear. A surge of heat erupted inside of my chest, filling me with an overwhelming sense of confidence. I felt the edges of my mouth curl up into a smirk, the exact same smirk that Blue would wear when he was being confident.
Maybe it was because of the similarity between our smiles, but I felt no fear inside of me at all. That great air blade... it wasn't anything to be scared of at all!
"You're finished!"
Zubat's cackle didn't even reach my ears. Once the whistling noise reached its loudest, I let out a loud cry and sprung up into the air. A loud noise exploded underneath me as I heard the air blade strike the dirt, sending a powerful gale bursting upward. The gale caught me on the back, thrusting me further and farther into the air.
"What?! No way!" Zubat's stunned look was burned into my eyes as I approached him at a rapid pace. His wings flapped up and down in a desperate attempt to rise back up into the sky, but it was too late!
I reared back my head and steeled myself for what was about to come.
"Haaaah!"
Crash! For the second time today, I slammed my hard head right into Zubat's astonished face. A satisfying thud resounded as our skulls collided together, with his taking more of a beating than mine. An anguished squeak of pain erupted from his mouth as I watched him flop out of the air and land inside of the crater with a quiet thump.
As for myself, I held out my feet and landed on the soft soil. Shudders ran up my legs as I felt the aftershock from falling from such a high distance. Shaking my legs, I tried to get rid of the numb feeling that covered my limbs.
I stared at the smoldering crater, watching the black smoke rise up from the center like an all – encompassing plume of darkness. A warm, proud feeling was burning inside my chest. A little dorky smile wormed its way onto my face as I tried to wrestle with this new emotion. I defeated Zubat, all on my own...!
The first thing I had noticed was that, with every air blade he launched at me, he had to assume that weird pose in midair first. Every time he did that though, Zubat would float lower and lower toward the ground. It wasn't something he had noticed until he was just in reach of my jumping height. And even then, he even helped me by throwing that big air blade at me, helping me fly farther than I ever could!
"Hee, hee..." I shut my eyes and held my paw over my mouth, unable to contain my mirth. I giggled quietly to myself as I enjoyed the feeling of victory.
Splat!
"Geeh!"
My happiness was short lived. All of a sudden, right in the middle of my celebration, something wet, and rancid splattered against my face. As soon as it touched my face, I felt my eyes begin to burn up with a horrible searing feeling. I squeezed my eyelids tight as I could, trying to keep the stuff away from my eyeballs. I clutched my face with my paws, trying to scrub the goop off, but all it accomplished was transferring the burning feeling onto my legs as well.
"A – aahh..!" I gasped out in pain as I stumbled around the grove, blinded by the goo on my face. "W – what is this? It hurts!"
"Good shot, Koffing..."
Zubat's voice came through from somewhere within the darkness, filling me with a sense of dread. His tone was dripping with ill – hidden fury.
"You... you think that something like that would be able to take us down...?"
Every attempt to open my eyes resulted in searing pain, forcing me to stumble away from Zubat's horrid voice in absolute darkness.
"Just because you grew a little braver..." He was getting closer, and closer... "...doesn't mean anything!"
That terrible whistling noise came careening toward me. A sharp pain exploded on my chest, making me fall forward as I felt my ruff become drenched with warmth. Groaning, I tried to pick myself back up, but another whistling blade cut into my legs, sending me tumbling back down into the dirt.
"Whoa, ho, ho... Zubat, what happened while I was asleep?"
Another voice joined Zubat's. Without a doubt, it was his ball – like partner, Koffing's.
"Take a good look, gas – for – brains!" Zubat sneered, "While you were off snoozing in your little dreamworld, I was busy cleaning up after you!"
"Whoa ho! Isn't that the Eevee from before?" A loud chortle interrupted his words. "Looks like you've found the other half of the brat pair!"
"Keh, heh... yeah, the cowardly half!"
The goop on my face was drying off, allowing me to open my eyes just a sliver. With what little vision I had available, I could just barely make out the silhouettes of Zubat and Koffing hovering over me. The searing pain was still fresh on my paws, as well as that new cut on my leg making me wince. I wanted to get up, I wanted to stand and put some distance between me and the two cretins.
"Not a chance!"
A sharp whistling noise rang out for about a second before it silenced itself on me. I let out an awful scream as I felt a new wound open up on my flank, paralyzing my hind legs with a terrible, burning pain.
Undeterred, I tried to reach forward with my front legs instead. Even if I had to crawl, I had to get away from them! To be this close... it was nothing short of dangerous!
"Look at you... such a pitiful lump on the ground..."
Ignore it... ignore Zubat's mocking sneers...!
"Still trying to run away? What a coward!"
"Whoa, ho, ho..."
Another cut appeared on my body. This time, I felt it strike me on my side, making it hard for me to breathe. I wheezed as curled up on the spot again, trying to catch my breath.
"Tell you what, coward," I heard Zubat land right next to me. I raised up my head to glare at him, but he just slapped me across the face with his wing. Feeling the smarting pain on my cheek, I had no choice but to clutch my face with my paws and drop my head again.
"We'll let you go with what you've deserved today..." Zubat's voice was mocking, snickering at my helplessness. "but you're gonna have to tell us where to find that blasted Panacea...!"
If I told them where the Panacea was... would they just let me go? If I told them Brin's secret, about how she was the one who possessed that power... would they just forget everything and leave me be? All I had to do to stop them for hurting me... was hand over Mismagius' precious treasure. Brin.
...no, there was no way I could do that. Disgust rose up within my throat as I scolded myself for even considering such a stupid thing! If I told them about the Panacea... if I told them about Brin, then everything Mismagius, and Delphox did to protect her would've been pointless! I can't allow these two... these two terrible Pokémon get their clutches on Brin!
After all, if it was Blue... even if he got hurt bad during a fight, he would never just give up! I'm his partner, I have to be just as strong as he was! I have to be just as brave as he was! I needed to be able to protect, just like him!
"Even..." I put in as much anger as I could into my voice. I raised up my head, and filled my gaze with hatred as I glared at Zubat. "...even if you keep hurting me... I would never tell you a thing!"
"Keh," he spat into my face. But, even as his disgusting saliva rolled down my muzzle, I continued to maintain my hateful glare at the cretin. "looks like you chose a bad time to grow a backbone, Eevee..."
Zubat held up his wing to threaten me, but I wasn't fazed. The secret to the Panacea was locked deep inside my heart. No matter how much he hurt me, no matter how much he tried to scare me, I would never spill Brin's secret to these cretins! I funneled all these emotions, all these thoughts into my glare. Showing him, proving to him that I was not scared of his ilk!
"I hate that look in your eyes, Eevee!" He screeched at me, "Why aren't you scared anymore?! You're a coward! You're nothing more than a coward! Be scared!"
"I'm..."
The answer to his question should be obvious. That Blue – like smirk reappeared on my face, filling me with courage. With my flame of bravery burning inside of me, I looked up and sent Zubat the most confident glare I could muster.
"...I'm not a coward!"
I told him the truth. There was no doubt in my mind as I strugged back onto my feet. The shocked looks on Zubat and Koffing's faces were more than enough proof to me that what I just said was no lie. My legs were still shaking from the cuts that Zubat gave me, but it wasn't enough to keep me down. I opened my mouth to speak, but as soon as I parted my lips, a scream erupted from somewhere inside the grove.
"No!"
Right after we heard that scream, a gust of searing hot wind came billowing toward us. The black wall of smoke that had separated the grove into two halves was blown apart by the sudden gale, scattering the black gas all around the place. It was as if a geyser of wind had erupted from underneath the smokescreen.
Coughing, I covered my nose and eyes with my paws as the noxious smoke blew into my face. I could hear Zubat and Koffing screaming in utter shock and astonishment as the gale continued to blow toward us. After several heated seconds, the hot winds finally died down. I opened my eyes, and saw that the wall of black had been reduced to just tiny wisps of smoke.
"...you never were, Fée."
A cyclone of wind erupted from the center of the grove, blowing away what had remained of the smokescreen. There, standing with his arms folded, his eyes steely, and right in the middle of the windstorm, was a blue – furred Pokémon. Black smoke flitted off his arms and legs as he strode out of the smokescreen's remains with a confident smirk plastered on his face.
"B – Blue!"
Tears welled up in my eyes as I held my paws over my mouth. Relief flooded my entire being as I watched him walk toward us. His gait was steady, with every step he took making my heart beat with joy. My eyes flitted down to his right leg, and I saw something that made my eyes tear up even further. His leg... there were no more scars on his right leg!
"K – keeeh?!" Zubat's screech was filled with astonishment, "H – how are you still standing?! You took an explosion to the face! Something like that should've left you utterly knocked out!"
"Heh..." Blue shrugged in a nonchalant way. He held out his right paw toward Zubat and clenched it into a fist, "Don't you remember what I said to you? I ate the Panacea. It's a medicine that heals all wounds and illnesses."
Bam! Blue slammed his fist into the palm of his left paw and said, "Something like an explosion could hardly keep me down!"
"B – but you said you ate the last one!" Zubat turned toward Koffing and screeched, "He did, didn't he!?"
"Y – yeah, he did...!" Koffing was also goggling at Blue in shock, "He said that there were none left for us, because he ate the last Panacea!"
"Sorry Zubat," Blue said as his mouth made a perfect copy of Zubat's sneer, "I lied."
"You wha – ageh!"
I couldn't believe my eyes. Just a moment ago, Blue was still several feet away from the three of us. A second later, he had somehow managed to cross that entire distance within a blink of an eye. I looked up in utter shock, and saw –for a brief moment– Blue's fist embedding itself into Zubat's maw.
Wham! Zubat vanished from my sight in a streak of purple. A few seconds later, I heard a loud thud! ring out from somewhere behind me, followed by a loud screech of pain.
"Z – Zubat?!" Koffing's eyes bulged out as he turned toward Zubat. His voiced was tinged with utter disbelief at what just happened.
"Hey, look this way."
Koffing, for some reason, obeyed Blue's order. As he turned around, a blue – colored streak shot out toward his face.
"Mgeh?!" Koffing made a muffled cry as Blue's open paw clamped town on his mouth. Brown gas wafted out of his mouth as he struggled to get loose, but he just couldn't break away from my partner's powerful grasp!
"Alright, let's go!" Still grinning, Blue hoisted Koffing up above his head. He began to spin his arm around like a windmill, twirling Koffing round and round in a circle. I watched in amazement as his arm became a blue and purple blur. After he had gained enough speed, Blue let go of Koffing's mouth and sent him flying off into the distance. I watched as the second purple streak sailed through the air for a few seconds before he–
Splat!
A gross sound rang out as Koffing slammed into one of the tree trunks surrounding the grove. He let out a gas – spewing groan as he slid down the length of the tree. When he hit the ground, he opened his mouth and released a billowing cloud of brown into the air. Even from this distance, I could smell that disgusting stench wafting its way over here.
"Are you alright, Fée?" I heard Blue speak as he patted my side, making me turn my head toward him. I saw his confident, smiling face but a scant few inches away from my own as he knelt beside me.
"Blue..." I felt warm tears well up inside of my eyes again as I saw him so close to me. As I cried in front of him, a desire rose up inside my mind.
I wanted to hug him, to hold him tight. I wanted to let him know just how relieved I was to see him again. I tried to raise up my paws, but a sudden jolt of aching pain inside my body forced me to drop them back down.
So this is how Blue must've felt when he was injured. The thought of that made a wry, depressed – looking grin crawl onto my face. I shook my head. Even when he was this hurt, he still forced himself to hold me, to comfort me. With what little bravery I had left, I quashed that painful ache and tried to lift my paws again. This time, I managed to get them around my friend's neck, and, with a little more force than I intended, yanked his face down to me.
"Whoa!"
His face was right next to mine now. I felt the sides of our muzzles were touching each other as I clung to him as hard as I could. I could feel his warmth emanating from his face as we embraced, making me feel happier, and stronger. All because he was by my side now.
"Fée... I'm sorry I let you get hurt like this," he mumbled into my ear. "I wish I could've been here earlier to protect you, but –"
"No..." I shook my head, accidentally smacking the side of his face with my muzzle. "Don't apologize. I'm just happy you're finally healthy again... was it Brin who helped you?"
I felt his cheek brush against mine as he nodded. "Yeah. She did some kind of... glowing, warm thing to me. The next thing I knew, my leg was healed and all my injuries just vanished."
"How is... how is she right now?"
"She's sleeping behind a tree over there. I think she might've tired herself out helping me though."
"That's..." I felt concerned over Brin's well – being. If Blue was healed by her... that means she used the Panacea, didn't she? I tried to crane my aching head over Blue's shoulder, to try and see if Brin was alright.
"Don't worry, she's fine." I heard Blue say as he pushed my head back down, "I saw her fall asleep before I left." He let out a quiet chuckle and shook his head, "I even heard her snore a little. There's nothing to worry about."
"I... I see..." I let out a relieved sigh, "That's good..."
I tried to stand up, but another spasm of pain shot through my legs when I tried to put my weight on them. A quiet gasp escaped my lips as I collapsed back onto the dirt. My body was aching all over the place, it was hard to even stay conscious with all this pain stabbing at my mind...
"Fée!" I felt Blue's arms wrap around me. His voice was quiet, and worried, "There's cuts all over your body...!"
"Oh these?" I struggled to put a smile on my face when I saw his expression, "This is.. just a few bumps and scrapes... there's nothing you need to be worried about, Blue."
"Heh..." Blue tightened his embrace, and pulled me off the ground. He hugged me tight, pulling me into his strong, warm chest. I felt his breath brush against my ear as he whispered to me, "Don't say that. That's something only an idiot like me can say, Fée."
"Hee, hee..." I leaned my face into his shoulder, "...at least you're aware of it... you stubborn idiot."
Then, within his warm embrace, I felt my consciousness begin to drift away...
"You can take a rest now, Fée. I'll clean up the mess here."
"...Heh... I'm counting on you..."
With his confident smile being the last thing I saw, I let myself fall asleep.
Zubat could not believe what was happening. Not only had he been humiliated by that coward of an Eevee, he was forced to watch his trump card be rendered worthless by that blasted Riolu. How could any Pokémon still be walking after being at ground zero of an explosion? Not only that, his entire body was unscathed!
His wing hovered in front of his cheek, rubbing it gingerly as he felt the lingering pain from that last punch. Zubat was amazed that he was still conscious after taking all those blows earlier. The damage he had taken was accumulating inside of him though, as he could feel exhaustion beginning to catch up to him.
"K – Koffing!" Zubat gasped as he pulled himself off the ground. His partner was also blasted away by that Riolu. Zubat could sense that gas bag's stench emanating from somewhere around him. "Wake up, you numbskull!"
"Woah..." A dull groan returned as a reply. Koffing was lying against the foot of a tree with his eyes staring up into the sky in a daze. A lethargic moan emitted from his mouth as the purple gas ball slowly back upright.
"Koffing... this is too much...!" Zubat zipped over to Koffing's side and slapped him on the cheek, "We can't let these two brats show us up like that!"
"B – but Zubat..." Koffing gurgled back, feeling the stinging pain on his face, "we've already been beaten up really bad... I don't want to fight anymore!"
"Too bad!" Zubat seethed, "Do you think that excuse'll work on the boss? Oh, we got beaten up, so we ran away?"
"Errgh... well..."
The purple bat flapped himself back into the air, and turned toward Koffing. A frown appeared on Zubat's face as he made his way beside his gaseous partner.
"We still have a way to win..." He whispered, "you just have to explode again the next time that Riolu comes near. Sure, he survived one explosion, but there's no way he'd be able to withstand another!"
Koffing's eyes bulged out of his head as he gaped at Zubat, "I – I can't! Zubat, you don't understand how much it hurts to blow myself up like that!"
"Keh!" Zubat slapped Koffing's face with his wing and screeched, "I don't care about how you feel, numbskull! We have to save face in front of the boss, so even if you have to blow yourself up a million times, you better do it!"
"Z – Zubat... d – do you not care about me at all...?" It looked like Koffing was about to cry as he stared at his partner in utter disbelief.
"Hey, what are you two talking about?"
Zubat and Koffing both spun around, startled by the new voice in their midst. Standing right behind them was the Riolu in question. A beaming smile was on his face, and his arms were folded across his chest.
"Keeeh!" With a terrified screech, Zubat sped away into the air, leaving Koffing behind with the Riolu.
"Oh no you don't!" Blue's eyes narrowed as he followed Zubat's flight. Stretching out his arm, he grabbed onto the abandoned Koffing and snagged onto one of his nubs.
"Woah!" Koffing let out a startled cry as Blue pulled him out of the air. Blue spun around on the spot, balancing on the tips of his feet. Koffing opened his mouth and unleashed a torrent of toxic gas in a desperate attempt to make the Riolu let go, but the pair of them were spinning so fast, the gas couldn't even reach Blue's nose.
Chuckling, Blue snapped his eyes toward the sky and glanced at the Zubat flapping away in the air. Once he was sure of his aim, Blue opened his mouth and shouted, "Hey Zubat! You forgot your friend!"
Zubat turned around just in time to see a purple meteor soaring toward him.
"Woaaagh!"
"Kee- agh!"
Thunk!
It was a direct hit. Koffing crashed right into Zubat, knocking both of them out of the air and sending them diving toward the dirt. As the two of them descended from up high, Blue kicked off the dirt and chased after them.
Zubat was the first to recover. With a screech, he spread out his wings to stabilize his flight. As he stopped in the middle of air, he turned toward Blue with his mouth wide open. He held one of his wings high up in the air, preparing to send an air blade toward the jumping Riolu.
Clonk!
He never got to fire off that air blade. Blue reached him first and slammed his fist down on top of his head, forcing his mouth shut and making him lower his wing. Stunned and in severe pain, Zubat couldn't even spread his wings to right himself in the air. Not that Blue would even give him a chance to.
"Haah!" As the Riolu landed on the ground, he spun around and turned his back to Zubat. He used his shoulder to strike Zubat as he fell, hitting him hard with his body. The force from the blow stunned Zubat, and rebounded him back up into the air. Blue's red eyes gleamed with anticipation as he watched the purple bat flop around in front of him, screeching indecipherable obscenities.
"Muuurgh..."
Blue's eyes were drawn to his left. Koffing was lying just beside him, his eyes spinning in his head in an utter daze. Smirking, Blue reached down with his right paw and grabbed Koffing by the nubs once again. He threw Koffing up into the air and smirked as he took aim at the stunned Zubat.
"Thanks for the help again, Koffing." Blue shouted out loud at the gassy ball. Koffing groaned as he descended from the air. He opened his eyes, trying to figure out what was going on. The first thing he saw was a black leg flying toward him.
Thunk!
Koffing's face was bent inward as Blue's foot collided with his body. He felt his spherical body undulate into an oval as Blue buried his leg deeper into his mug. He wanted to scream in pain, but it was too late.
"Hah!" Blue swung his right leg as hard as he could, kicking Koffing toward the flopping Zubat. A purple streak flashed through the grove for a third time.
"Keh..?"
The gassy ball traveled through the air for only a moment before it hit its target. Zubat felt his jaw ache as his partner slammed right into his face, knocking both of them out of the air once more. Like a strange, winged meteor, the two of them struck the ground with a loud crash!
Zubat was pinned underneath his partner. The two of them were buried several inches inside the dirt like a particularly ugly plant. Screeching in pain and fear, Zubat tried to prize Koffing off of him, but the dazed gas ball was too heavy for his wings to move.
"G – get off, you numbskull!" He screamed in a panic, "You're gonna get us both in trouble!"
"Woaaagh..." Koffing's reply was unfocused and useless. After being thrown and kicked around like a ball for the past few minutes, Koffing was down and out for the count. Zubat released a furious screech as he realized that he was going to be stuck underneath his partner until he woke up.
"Koffing! You useless ball of gas! How dare you fall asleep now?!"
"Don't blame him, it's not his fault he's unconscious."
An icy chill ran through Zubat's body as he heard that voice. Blue was bent over at the side of the small crater that Zubat and Koffing were embedded in, smirking at the sight of the two immobile bullies.
"Y – you... you think that this is enough to stop us?" Zubat shouted at him, trying to put on his most threatening voice. "I – I'm Zubat! I'm a member of Team Skull! You... you two cowards are nothing compared to us! Keeeh!"
"Yeah?" Blue snickered as he reached down into the crater. He pulled Zubat's crumpled body out from underneath Koffing and smiled at him. "Well, you know what...?"
In an instant, Blue's smile disappeared. In its place was a furious scowl. The Riolu's red eyes narrowed into slits as he glared at the struggling Zubat in his paws. He bared his fangs at Zubat, and spoke in a deep, threatening voice.
"I'm Blue."
He flung Zubat into the air and drew back his right arm. Every single drop of strength inside of his body flowed into his right paw as he clenched it into a tight fist. He watched as Zubat fluttered down in front of him, right in range for his final blow.
"...and you hurt my partner, Fée!"
Wham!
It was like a cannon had just fired. A powerful shockwave erupted from Blue's fist as he slammed it right into Zubat's face. The force was so powerful, so widespread, it caused several leaves to be dislodged from the canopy above.
Zubat didn't even have time to screech in pain. As soon as he had opened his mouth, his body slammed into a tree, knocking out all the air in his lungs, as well as knocking him out entirely. As he slid down the tree trunk, the last thing Zubat saw before he lost consciousness was the terrifying, furious Riolu standing before him with his fist pointed right as him.
Then, everything faded to black.
Letting out a deep sigh, Blue wiped the sweat off his brow, and shook his head. He surveyed the battlefield, taking in all the destruction around him. Large leaves fluttered down from the canopy, coating the ground of the decimated grove with a thick layer of green. Wisps of smoke, both black and brown, continued to linger in the air as a noxious remnant of the battle.
As he turned, he spotted his friend lying in the dirt a few feet away. He ran toward Fée, his mind filled with worry and regret. Kneeling by her side, he brushed off any stray dirt or leaves that had landed on her body.
"Fée... I'm so sorry..."
Her body was covered in tiny cuts, staining her fur with little splatters of red. Something thick and black was caked around her eyes. Blue licked his paw, and tried to wipe off as much of it as he could. A sickening feeling rose up within him when he saw the cut in the middle of her forehead. To see his dear friend in this state... he couldn't forgive himself for not being by her side.
Shaking his head, he threw away his self – loathing thoughts. There were more important things to do right now than beat himself up. Her Explorer's Pack was lying but a few feet away, its contents exposed. He walked over to her pack and slung it around his neck, putting it next to his own.
He glanced down at Fée's pack. There were several different colored berries lying inside of it. An idea popped inside of his head, putting a grin on his face. Excited, he stuck his paw into her pack and pulled out a small, blue – colored berry. But, as he held the berry up to his eyes, he felt his smile slip off his muzzle as a realization hit him.
Unlike Fée, he wasn't aware of the effects of each berry. While she had helped him many, many times before in the past with them, Blue never had a chance to see how she use them. An icy fear raced through his mind as he imagined accidentally worsening Fée's wounds due to his ineptitude. He didn't want to give her a berry by accident that might harm more than help.
Panicking, he swung his head around, looking for anything that could help him. As he turned around, holding that berry in his paws, he spotted something odd lying off in the distance. At the foot of a tree was what looked like a bundle of old cloth.
"...maybe I can bundle Fée up in that cloth..." Blue mused to himself as he wandered over to it. As he neared it, a strange sense of familiarity nudged him in the back of his head. He narrowed his eyes, trying to make out what the heap of purple cloth was.
A jolt of shock ran down his spine when he recognized it, forcing his eyes wide and his mouth to drop. It was not just a bundle of cloth! It was Mismagius lying on the ground!
"H – hey! Are you alright?" Blue rushed over and knelt beside the cloaked Pokémon. He picked up her thin, wispy body and cradled her head carefully.
The old Pokémon was lying on the ground, asleep. A thin cut was present on her face, and her hat, but it looked like it wasn't anything too severe. Her crooked mouth was opening and closing as she breathed in her sleep.
"Mismagius... are you awake?" Blue whispered as he lightly shook her with his paws. "It's me, Blue."
"Mmh..." Blue felt his muzzle curl up in a relieved smile when he saw her eyes flicker. Mismagius made a murmuring noise and lifted herself off the ground. She glanced around her for a moment, her eyes unfocused, before turning back to the Riolu below her.
"...Blue?"
"Oh thank goodness," Blue reached up and hugged the hem of Mismagius' cloak in relief.
"What... what happened?" Mismagius murmured, still feeling a little out of it. Her cloak trailed up to her face, and felt the thin cut that Zubat had given her. "I... I must've been knocked out by that cretin..."
As soon as she said that word, her eyes shot wide. Her recollection of the events that had happened but moments prior to her slumber came rushing back into her mind. She turned toward Blue in a panic, grabbing onto his paws with her cloak.
"Those cretins!" She shouted at a surprised – looking Blue, "What happened to them? Where are they? Where's Fée? Where's Brin?!"
"H – hold on!" Blue stammered at the frenzied mother. He unhooked his paws from her cloak and took a step back. Turning around, he pointed a finger at the two unconscious bullies lying off in the distance.
"They... they're defeated?" Mismagius muttered, sounding a little surprised. She turned her head toward Blue, her mouth slowly curling up into a smile. "By you?"
Blue shook his head, "No, not just me." He turned his finger over to the sleeping Fée and said, "Fée was the one who fought them off, all by herself. I just finished it for her."
"Fée!" Mismagius shouted in horror as she saw the Eevee lying in the dirt. The cloaked Pokémon rushed over with alarming speed. Blue had to cover his eyes as Mismagius conjured up a gale of wind behind her, rustling up stray dirt and leaves in her wake.
Mismagius lowered herself down to Fée's side, and curled her cloak around her limp form. Picking her up, Mismagius pressed the side of her head onto Fée's chest, listening to her heart beat. A sigh of relief exited the ghost's mouth when she was sure that Fée was alright.
"How did this happen?" Mismagius murmured as she gently put Fée back on the ground. She turned around, staring at Blue with an imploring look in her eyes. "Her wounds aren't too severe, but she needs treatment as soon as possible."
"Um..." Blue held out the blue – colored berry in his paw to Mismagius. "I found this in her bag, will this help?
"An Oran Berry..." said Mismagius as she took the berry out of the Riolu's paw. She held it up into the air, examining it for any bruises or cuts. A smile came onto Mismagius' face as she turned back to Blue. She nodded and said, "Yes, this will help. Thank goodness you were able to procure one so fast, Blue."
"It's not like that," Blue said with a shake of his head, "I just found it in her bag, that's all."
"At the very least, you managed to find one in her bag such short time." Mismagius chuckled as she held the Oran Berry over Fée's body.
Mismagius took the Oran Berry and, with a flick of her cloak, sliced it into two halves. Blue – colored juice began to spill out of the sliced berry, splattering onto the soil. Careful as to not waste anymore of the juice, Mismagius moved the two halves of the berry over Fée's body. She hovered the berry slices over her wounds, allowing the medicinal juice to drip on to her cuts. Mismagius began to spread the Oran juice all over Fée's fur, staining it blue. The sleeping Eevee trembled, and shivereded as the cool liquid touched her skin.
"Will she be alright?" Blue's face was filled with concern and worry as he watched Mismagius clean his partner's wounds. He turned toward Mismagius, his eyes imploring, "She'll be fine, right? Right?"
"Her cuts are shallow. There's nothing to be worried about, my dear," Mismagius replied with a hint of amusement in her voice, "give it a little time, and you wont even be able to tell that she had been injured."
"I see..." Blue held his paw over his chest and sighed. He smiled and covered his face with his paw, "I'm so glad..."
A chuckle came from Mismagius as she reached up with her juice – stained cloak. She tapped him on the tip of his snout, leaving a dollop of blue on his nose. "Fée's quite lucky to have such a caring partner like you, Blue." Mismagius said as she smiled at Blue as he tried to wipe the sticky goo off his face, "It makes me a little jealous, to be honest with you."
"Jealous?" Blue echoed, looking confused.
Mismagius chuckled and nodded, "You're the type of friend that I've always wanted Brin to make outside of the forest. Someone strong, someone brave enough to stay by her side, even in times of crisis." Mismagius looked down at Fée, "Fée really is fortunate to have you by her side..."
"Oh! That's right!" Blue said as he clamped his paw over his fist, "Brin! I need to check on her!"
"Mm?" Mismagius' head snapped toward Blue, her eyes wide, "Did something happen to her?"
"I'll bring her over here, Mismagius." Blue said as he started to run in place, "Just wait a moment, alright?"
"Very well," Mismagius replied, still looking a little confused, "But do hurry back, alright?"
"Will do!" shouted Blue as he sped off toward the other side of the grove.
"Be careful with that tray! You might burn yourself!"
"Mm... no need to worry, my dear. I'm always careful."
"Quit showing off and put it down already then! You're scaring Brin."
"Mm... I thought she'd be impressed, if anything. Very well then."
Brin watched with a big smile on her face as the baker spun the heavy tray around a few times in the air, eliciting a sigh of frustration from the cloaked Pokémon hovering beside him. A giggle came from somewhere above her, drawing Brin's attention upward.
She was a small Pokémon, small enough that she could lie down on someone's lap and still have room to spare. Brin nuzzled against that someone's warm and fuzzy belly, trying to call attention to herself. Brin saw a bright smile flash above her, followed by a warm hand coming down and scratching her right ear. Brin cooed as she leaned her head against the hand, letting it soothe an itch that she didn't even know she had.
"There, there," a soft, comforting voice floated into her ears, making her close her eyes in contentment. "are you tired, my dear Brin?"
Brin opened her mouth to reply, but a loud yawn came out instead. She heard another giggle from above, making her feel a little embarrassed.
"It's alright if you want to sleep for a bit," she heard the voice say as she curled herself into a small ball, holding onto her bushy tail with her front paws. "I'll wake you up when Duskull is done with your treat."
"Mm... that'll be but a moment," Duskull replied as he spun the tray around in the air. "I wouldn't want little Brin to burn her tongue on these biscuits. Let me cool them off first."
"Duskull, you'll end up burning yourself if you keep spinning it like that," Mismagius grumbled, covering her face with her cloak in annoyance, "put it down and let it cool normally already."
"Mm..."
"Hee, hee..."
Brin stood at the side, watching the peaceful scene play out in front of her. There was Duskull, hovering a few inches in the air and balancing a tray of steaming biscuits on his cloak. Mismagius stood by his side, trying to hide her amusement behind her cloak as she watched Duskull spin the tray round and round.
Then, she turned her head around and saw herself. The little yellow – furred Pokémon, snoozing away without a care in the world. As she looked up from her younger self, Brin felt a painful thump in her chest.
"Delphox, tell Duskull to stop being a fool, would you?"
"Hee..." Delphox tittered as she brushed Brin's soft fur with her hand, "Duskull, you heard her. You'll make her turn gray with worry if you keep playing with her feelings like that."
"Mm... I suppose," Duskull let out a low chuckle and halted the spinning tray. "I cannot imagine Mismagius wearing a gray cloak, could you?"
"With the way she acts?" Delphox let out an amused laugh, "I suppose I could!"
Mismagius sighed and shook her head. She pointed her cloak at the Pokémon sleeping on Delphox's lap and said, "I hope, for her sake, that Brin doesn't grow up influenced by your frivolousness, Duskull."
"Mm..." Duskull mumbled something inaudible as he placed the tray on the counter. Delphox smiled and tickled Brin's belly, making the sleeping Pokémon coo and wriggle with happiness.
"I wouldn't mind if she grew up to be a little playful," Delphox murmured, drooping her head down, "I wouldn't want her affected by the city's doldrums."
"Delphox..." Mismagius said, looking a little concerned. The robed Pokémon quickly looked up and put a smile on her face.
"Don't worry Delphox," Duskull said, patting Mismagius on the back, "I'm sure Brin will grow up into a fine, young lady. Just like you, mm..."
"You flatter me, Duskull," Delphox smirked at her skull – faced friend. She looked down a the sleeping Brin, and placed her hand atop her head, "But... I do hope what you said comes true."
She fluffed the soft fur on Brin's head and smiled down at her, "The only thing I want for my dear Brin... is for her to live a happy life."
Brin felt tears flow down the sides of her face as she watched her mother pat her younger self's head. Clutching her cheeks, Brin's knees failed her, forcing her down to the wooden floor. She reached out her hand at Delphox, wanting to feel her mother's warmth once more. But, as her finger touched Delphox's fur, everything disappeared.
The inside of the bakery began to swirl around, obscuring the peaceful morning with a whirlpool of black. Brin cried out in shock as everything around her became a nightmare. Delphox, Duskull, Mismagius, and even her past self vanished into the darkness. She pulled herself off the ground and an after her mother's image. She tried to reach forward with her hands, to catch that last lingering flame of light.
But it was all gone. Right as her finger was about to reach the light, it was extinguished by the smothering darkness. Brin fell to her knees once more, surrounded by black, and all alone. No matter how hard she wished for it, no matter how much she desired it... she would never be able to have her mother by her side again.
Brin tried to wipe off the tears on her cheeks, but they wouldn't stop. Her face was becoming drenched as she continued to sob by herself.
"...in..."
Her ears perked up as a sudden sound rang out in the void. Through blurry eyes, Brin glanced around her for the source of the voice. All she could see though, was complete and utter blackness.
"...rin...!"
The voice was louder this time. In response to the voice, Brin pulled herself off the ground and tried to move toward it. She didn't know where she was going, or where she was headed to, but she had no better choice right now. Still crying, Brin sniffled as she trudged through the darkness.
"...re you...ake?"
It was a familiar voice, really familiar. Brin looked up at the 'sky' of the void, hoping to see something there.
"...It's me...lue...!"
All of a sudden, a large crack appeared in the 'sky,' shattering it as if it was a pane of glass. Light shone through the fissures, blinding Brin with its brilliance. She held her hand over her eyes, and tried to make out what was behind the black.
"Hey!"
The void broke into a thousand – no, a million pieces. Light flowed into the world like a gleaming curtain, revealing everything around Brin. As she adjusted to the sudden brightness, Brin saw a familiar silhouette standing in front of her. She tried to shout at the person, to get his attention. But, as always, no words left her mouth.
So, instead of speaking, Brin decided to run toward it.
Brin mumbled in a quiet voice as she shook her head. Something was making her body jitter up and down, and her face was pressed against something warm and fuzzy. Yawning, Brin reached up with her hand to rub her tired eyes. As she did so, she felt her fingers bump against something hard.
"Ow."
Her eyes flew wide open. She looked to her right, and saw that her knuckles was bumping against something blue and fuzzy. All of a sudden, the jittering feeling stopped, making Brin look back down.
"Hey, looks like you've finally woke up."
Blue craned his head around to look at the Pokémon that he was carrying on his back. The side of his head was smarting from her sudden knock, but he ignored it and put a grin on his face. Brin's eyes gleamed with bewilderment as her slumbering mind tried to piece together what was happening. Her white arms were thrown around Blue's shoulders, while his arms were wrapped around her legs.
Then, everything seemed to click. A rising heat erupted inside of her cheeks, turning her white fur a pleasant shade of red. Panicking, her mouth flapped open and closed as embarrassment overtook her sense of reason.
"Whoa! Don't struggle!" Blue shouted as he tried to maintain his balance with the wriggling girl on his back. Although he was strong, he was still carrying a Pokémon that was almost twice his size. It wasn't something that he could just do without focusing.
Muted cries of embarrassment came from Brin's mouth as she continued to rock back and forth, her arms clutching Blue's face and covering his eyes. Blue let out a shout of surprise as his vision was obscured, making him accidentally let go of her legs.
Thump! Thud!
They both went tumbling onto the dirt, with Brin holding tight onto Blue's face. Blue groaned as he pulled himself off the ground. He rubbed the back of his aching head as he turned around. Brin, her face still a brilliant shade of red, was lying in the dirt with her hands covering her eyes.
"Ugh... that's the second time today..." Blue grumbled as he knelt in front of her. He prodded her forehead and gave her a mock frown. "What was that for?"
Brin peered out from in between her fingers and spotted Blue's expression. With a quiet yelp, she hid herself back behind her white hands and trembled. Blue sighed and shook his head. He took his paw and placed it atop her head, rubbing it in a comforting way.
"Hey, I'm not really mad. So don't be scared, alright?"
When she felt his warm paw on her head, a sudden rush of emotion flooded out of her heart. Brin felt the warm tears cascade out of her eyes as she pulled herself off the ground. Her hands were drenched, and her eyes were blurry. She didn't want to cry, but she couldn't help it. Everything came flooding back to her, making her want to break down on the spot and sob like a child.
"B – Brin? Why are you crying?" Blue was startled by the tears rolling down her cheeks. He hurriedly pulled his paw off her head and stood up, "D – did you get hurt?"
Blue was in a panic when he saw Brin sobbing in front of him. His mind was abuzz with confusion. He didn't know why she just started crying all of a sudden, and he couldn't figure out what to do to cheer her back up.
He turned around and saw Mismagius' back in the distance, still caring for Fée. He quickly jabbed a finger toward the cloaked Pokémon, and said to Brin, "I'm gonna go get your mother, alright? Just wait here!"
"No..."
Blue froze in the middle of his run. He turned around and saw Brin holding out her hand at him, her mouth open and her eyes glistening.
"D – did you just speak?" Blue whispered, a little stunned. After all, he hadn't heard her say a single word before since they met.
Brin gave him a slow nod. Before he could say another word, she took a step forward and grabbed onto his arm. Her hands moved down to his paw, and pulled it up. She closed her eyes and put his paw atop her head.
"E – eh?" Blue couldn't figure out what the significance behind this action was. All he could think of doing was rubbing her head, like he would with Fée. "Is this what you want?"
Another nod came from Brin, making Blue sigh and droop his shoulders down in relief. He still didn't know why she started struggling and crying all of a sudden, but if something like this could cheer her up, then he'll rub her head until she felt better.
Brin, on the other hand, was still embroiled in embarrassment. When Blue touched her head earlier, all she could think of was reliving that same feeling that her mother gave her when she was a child. Even though she was being selfish and causing him discomfort, she couldn't help but beg her friend to satisfy her desire.
She looked at Blue's face. He still looked rather confused and unsure of himself as he continued to rub her head. The sight of his silly face... it made her want to smile and laugh. Just like how she used to when she was still with her family. The heat inside of her face began to fade as she enjoyed the gentle movements of Blue's paw.
A twinge of warmth sparked atop her head, making her tail flick upward. She sensed a familiar scrap of her aura inside of him, flitting about inside of his body like a little spark of flame. Then, as her mouth curled into a smile, she remembered how she used her power to save his life. Even now, her body was exhausted and aching all over, but she didn't care.
"Feeling better now?"
Brin nodded and looked at Blue. As she stared into his red eyes, she felt her smile grow wider. Reaching up with her hands, she took a hold of his paw and pulled it down to her chest. She held it tight against her, closing her eyes, and feeling that little flame – like aura of hers dancing inside of it. Brin continued holding onto him for a while, enjoying his company and his warmth in silence.
"My... you seem quite attached to him now, hm?"
Brin's eyes flew open at the sound of her mother's voice. She looked up and saw Mismagius hovering overhead, looking down at the pair of them with an amused twinkle in her eye. Blushing furiously, Brin let go of Blue's paw and shook her head at her mother.
"It's quite alright," Mismagius laughed as she circled around the red – faced Braixen. She wrapped her cloak around Brin and held her tight, "I'm so relieved you're okay, my dear Brin..."
Brin nodded, and hugged Mismagius back.
"Mismagius, how's Fée?"
Mismagius looked over Brin's shoulder at the concerned Riolu. With a small smile, Mismagius nodded and pointed at the sleeping Eevee behind him.
"She'll be fine... give her some rest, and she'll be back on her feet."
"Oh, thank goodness..." Blue clutched his chest and sighed. He looked up and smiled at Mismagius, "Thank you so much, Mismagius..."
"No, I should be thanking you," Mismagius replied as she let go of Brin.
"What for?" Blue glanced over at Brin for an answer, but she looked just as confused as he was.
"For many things, my dear." Mismagius glanced down at Brin, who was still gazing at Blue with her hands across her chest. Smiling, the cloaked Pokémon spoke with an enigmatic air, "But for now, please accept my gratitude for taking care of those two cretins."
"You're welcome," despite still looking a little confused, Blue bowed toward Mismagius and Brin. Afterward, he spun around and ran toward his unconscious partner, leaving the mother – daughter pair alone. Brin reached out with her hand, grasping at Blue's retreating form for a moment before dropping her arm.
"Brin," Mismagius spoke, making the Braixen look up at her. The cloaked Pokémon pointed at Blue and Fée in the distance and chuckled. "Tell me, are you still afraid of what's beyond the forest?"
Brin stared at Blue kneeling beside Fée, worrying over her wounds and injuries. After a moment, Brin turned around and shook her head, smiling.
"Would you like to tell me why?" Mismagius said, smiling back at Brin. Giggling, Brin shook her head again. Two patches of pink appeared on her cheeks as she stole another glance at her new friends behind her.
"I see..." Mismagius curled her cloak beneath Brin's chin and chuckled, "I suppose even you have a few secrets you wish to keep from your mother, hm, hm..."
Feeling put on the spot, Brin covered her reddening face with her hands and looked away. A chill breeze blew through the grove, signifying the arrival of night. Brin shivered a bit as she felt the cold air brush through her fur.
"Heeey!" Both of them turned toward the shout. Blue was running toward them from the other side of the grove, waving at them. He had hoisted Fée onto his back, and was carrying her like he did with Brin earlier.
Blue stopped in front of them, panting a little from the exertion. He looked up, grinning, and said to Mismagius, "Fée looks like she's going to be okay. Thank you so much, Mismagius!" He tried to reach forward and grab Mismagius' cloak, but quickly decided against it as Fée nearly slipped off his back.
"Now, now," Mismagius chuckled as she wrapped her cloak around Brin, keeping her warm. She turned around, and began to drift away with Brin in tow. "Come, we can speak more comfortably once we've returned to the house. It's much too cold out here to talk about the future."
"You're telling me!" Blue said as he shuddered from the cold breeze, "It was so warm earlier. I can't believe it's gotten so cold here!"
"Hm, hm, hm... that's what happens in this forest during the night," Mismagius covered up her face with her cloak and left the grove, with Blue following close behind. "It would nice to finally have a night without chills, don't you think?"
Brin tilted her head to the side, confused. What was her mother talking about?
"What do we do about those two?" Blue asked, turning around to look at the unconscious Zubat and Koffing lying in the grove behind them. "Are we just going to leave them there?"
Mismagius let out another chuckle. "Don't worry about it, my dear. I'm sure the forest will take care of those two cretins." She flicked her head up into the air and smiled, "Isn't that right, Oro?"
The canopy of leaves rustled in response.