Hard chapter to write: the semi-confession. The divider was where the original chapter ended, but since that was entirely too short I decided to extend it to include content that was going to get it's own chapter later on. It'll give you a taste of what's to come.

Let's just say that ... Well ... I won't spoil it.

Chapter 03: My Revelation

Love ...

The first time I heard the word used in its most intimate context were in the books that I carried along with me; the research journal of that breeder. I grew especially interested in her written material because she did not write in a way associated with traditional researchers. Her style had a personal flair that made me remember that there was a human being behind the pen and ink.

" The most controversial subject of this time is whether Pokemon are capable of feeling the same depth of emotions that humans do. " She wrote at the beginning of this chapter's entry. " Before the influential research of the great breeding masters Pokemon's behaviors were widely interpreted as nothing more then instinct, but mounting evidence points towards the existence of greater emotions. Pokemon express feelings that resemble joy when they're around common companions, and fear when they're faced with a new situation. They express anger when put in an awkward situation, and sorrow when faced with the loss of a loved one. It is undeniable that these creatures who served us so faithfully for generations do not feel something deeper then instinctive responses, but the extent of this trait is up for debate. "

" Love ... the most moving emotion that a human can feel. To hold something dear to your heart, to devote yourself to it, and cherish it for all eternity. How are we to say that Pokemon cannot share that same bond that humans do? They devote themselves to us without question, and it is undeniable that they have some form of love for us in our hearts. My own personal assistant, Charlie, may love me in the way that a Pokemon should love a human, but I know for a fact that he loves his mate and children more then anything on the creator's green earth ... "

These concepts were entirely new to me. I had not had the time in my short life to learn of positive feelings like love and devotion. My time was spent in battle or in preparation for the battle that was sure to come. I lost myself in it, and now that the worst of my battles were behind me I did not know what to do with myself.

I could settle with ensuring that Lucario would not do anything foolish by confronting him this very moment. It took little effort to find and follow him into the depths of the forest where the bush became so dense it scraped across the flesh even when I tried to avoid it. He slowed to a stop at a patch of laid devoid of trees and those mysterious crystals, exhausted, and leaning against the trunk of a tree for support.

" Lucario ... " I was not exhausted at all since I decided to take to the air again, so I approached him immediately.

He shot a dirty look at me from over his shoulder. " I thought I told you - "

" That the lesson was canceled for today. " I countered, staring back at him with disinterest in that medial thing. " The lesson is the least of my concerns. " I continued, coming to hover over his right shoulder. I lowered myself to the ground to stand behind him. " I am ... concerned ... and confused. "

The fighter turned to face me, still leaning against the tree for support. " About what? "

My eyes narrowed slightly as I tried to find the correct way to word my concerns, but I couldn't. " Everything. " It was the truth, though not the best way to say it. " This entire incident has been incredibly confusing for me. Nothing that I've done so far has been logical, especially - "

" Life ... is not always comprehendible. " Lucario said those words slow enough that they'd continue to echo through the walls of my mind. " The humans outside of this region are discontent in general because they must come to understand everything that happens in life. It is not possible. " He tilted his head back to look into my eyes. His own widened after a second, and his words gradually slowed. " There are some things that can only be felt, not told, or even ... explained. "

The fighter fell silent, and I was confused as to why until I caught wind of something that forced me to look into the smaller Pokemon's eyes. My eyes searched for something behind those little pieces of ruby I did not know until it was found; the emotion that lay just below the surface of that hardened exterior. There I saw a Pokemon who lived a lonely life serving the only person they ever cared about, only to lose them in the end: a Pokemon who's heart had been shattered needlessly.

I could feel his pain, and I did not know whether it was because of the wave or the own discovery of my dormant emotions. I felt compelled to do something, again, though not as strong as it was the first time. Perhaps this time training her allowed me to suppress that instinctive drive enough to have me act in a more rational way.

The monster who attacked him so brutally weeks ago would not low himself to one knee to be level with him, nor would he gently take him by the shoulders to bring into an embrace. The fighter was trembling, but I would not blame him for it now. " Then I will no longer try to comprehend what I am feeling for you right now. " I whispered to him, my arms sliding over his shoulders to lock him in that embrace protectively. " Regardless of what it may be I ... enjoy this feeling, and I will embrace it. "

It was decided that nothing would change what I felt about him. Even if he did not feel the same way about me, even if he continued to avoid me, and even if he rightfully hated and despised me for forcing him into this situation I would feel any ill towards him. I didn't think I was capable of hating him at this point.

I pitied him too much ...

Lucario didn't do anything about this, and for a moment I considered pulling away so he would lash out at me again. Then he did something I quite unexpected. I felt him lay his head on my chest with a sigh, half heartedly returning the hug by wrapping his arms around my shoulders. " I have lived a lonely life. " He started with a sigh. " Even when I lived with Sir Aaron I was lonely because I knew that I could never be anything more then his servant. I refused to settle for anything else, and in the end I lost everything ... " His muttering gradually grew softer.

Reaching down, I caught his chin with one of my paws so I could look at his eyes. " You know - "

" I know. " Not only did he interrupt me, but he ensured that I would not say another word until he finished.

There we kissed for the second time (and the first with two wilful parties). This time he came to me with it; forcing his body against me to seize my lips. It happened so fast that I would have lost my balance if not for a subconscious attempt to save myself telepathically. I pushed us back into a stable position before I accepted his offer completely, tilting my head to keep our snouts from pressing together awkwardly.

This time I was not just imagining his affections.

This time I was sure that I was in love.

This time it was real.

The sun and moon were in that odd transitional period that happened twice in the day, painting the sky a beautiful mix of blues, pinks, and reds that would gradually fade into an inky navy blue. Typically, forests were the most active during this transitional period when nocturnal Pokemon woke and tried to catch an easy meal out of the exhausted Pokemon returning to their dens to sleep. Though we were among them, I held high doubts that any Pokemon would be foolish enough to try and attack us.

Lucario was not so sure, however, and suggested that we should go back to the den immediately. He seemed highly disturbed on the entire trip back to the nest; his senses kicked in at seemingly random moments and he continually looked over his shoulder. I ended it with a kiss to the forehead, and another action that he was not pleased with.

" Would you put me down!? " I didn't have much experience with holding anyone, but I faintly remember someone long ago holding me in such a fashion. Since he's considerably smaller then me I just lifted him up by the waist and held onto his legs, leaning back a bit so his body would naturally lean against mine. Occasionally he pushed against my shoulders in protest. I just reaffirmed my grip on his legs. " You don't need to do this. I'm not sick! "

I looked down at him as I approached the entrance of the den. " I contest that. You seem to be convinced that we are being followed, but I don't sense any other brain activity in the area. " Nothing that would be a threat to them, anyway.

" That's because - " His eyes darted as if he was about to make up an explanation, but ultimately he sighed. " Never mind. I guess I'm worried over nothing. "

I would not look into the matter further, for the moment. " I think we should get some sleep. " I changed the subject completely as I leaned in to place him on the ground.

" I'm not tired. " Lucario put it simply when he turned to enter the mouth of the cave.

His response was confusing. So he did do it because he thought something was there ... " You're the one that suggested that we come back. " It was not an actual protest since we were already back. I was simply disappointed that we had to stop kissing, among other things, to return to the den for a false alarm. I took my time following him into the cave, more concerned about smoothing out the fur that he disheveled then the nonexistent threat.

My anger eased when Lucario spoke again. " I did not suggest we come back here to sleep. " And my fuming ceased when he reached out to push a bit of lifted fur on my shoulder down. " I apologize for the earlier interruption, but now we can continue without interruption. "

" Continue - " Once again he left me speechless with a kiss, or rather fumbling my words in a startled fashion to the point that anything afterwards was reduced to nothing.

There wasn't just kissing this time. I felt him pushing me further into the den forcibly, and just before he would have had me on the wall I lost balance. My reflexes alerted me to the imbalance, and I instinctively corrected the situation before I crashed to the ground. Telepathy wouldn't be necessary this time; I simply twisted Lucario's shoulders around to reverse our positions. The force of the impact brought us undeniably close, so I pulled away from him to ensure that he was all right.

The fighter was fine, though a little displeased that his plans were foiled by an instinctive reaction. " ... touche' " He smiled a little through his frown.

He pushed himself into me for another kiss with a bit more force then necessary. I caught onto his game quickly. He prodded at that caged animal, those feelings I tried so hard to suppress, with a sharp stick in hopes of getting it to lash out. It worked wonderfully. Those mental barriers I put between myself and those horrid memories were being dissolved. I could not analyze the situation because I refused to remember it, and thus those memories were faded away before they had a chance to leave an impression in my mind.

Now I found that we were mimicking the same actions, only with Lucario as the aggressor until I corrected the situation. I broke the kiss roughly to catch my breath, but ended with leaning back down to place a flurry of kisses on his cheek leading down to his neck. The contact made Lucario squirm. I felt his paws leave my shoulders to slide down and out along my chest to reach my sides. I don't know where he would've stopped if I let him keep going, but I had to trump him again.

To prove ... something ...

My mind is so clouded I can't think of the words.

" A-Ah! " I didn't blame him for growing alarmed when he felt fangs dragging along his neck. His reaction made me shiver; that feeling of warmth flowing through my veins anew and tightening in a very uncomfortable place. The pulsating sensation was slowly becoming unbearable. Those tinges of pain along with his reactions forced me to shift slightly, but not without biting down on his neck first. An instinctive, perhaps possessive, action I'm sure. I wondered how much it would take to pierce the skin. Just to taste a little bit of -

Chirp ... Click. Click. Click.

What was that!?

I definitely heard it this time; it came from directly outside of the cave. It pained me to do it after coming this far, but our safety was slightly more important then what would have transpired if we were to continue. Lucario was considerably faster then me, and managed to slip out from under me when we parted before I could stand.

When we came to the entrance of the den the intruder was gone, judging by Lucario's stance. It troubled me. I could normally sense another being from a distance away, but I didn't pick up the intruder until they were right on us. " ... Is it gone? " I put my own concerns aside to ensure that it was safe again, for the time being.

Lucario nodded. " That thing is getting bold. " He muttered to himself.

" What ... thing? " I questioned as Lucario turned his back to head into the cave again. " I did not sense anything at all. "

" That's because you're using your telekinesis to sense them. " He explained simply, then looked down at himself with a frown. " ... I'm going to bed. "

How could he think about sleep at a time like this!? He must of had a good reason for doing it, sure, but I myself couldn't imagine doing such a thing. Not with whatever that was still lurking in the shadows. Not with my body still wound from our earlier ... activities. The least I could do was relieve some tension by brushing against him, slowly, as I went towards the back. " So now you're tired. "

I sat down in the corner, surrounded by the collection of items that I 'acquired' from the human settlement. Lucario went to his side to adjust the staff along the opposite wall as he spoke. " I'm still not tired, but I'd rather get some rest then be tired if they come around again. "

Though tempted to ask just who 'they' were, I decided to leave things as they were for the night and worry again tomorrow. I didn't want the memories of today marred by whatever may lay ahead. Today was supposed to be one of the happiest days of my life; today I believe I found the Pokemon I want to spend the rest of my life with. There was still a lot that needed to be amended between us, I imagine, but I took his behavior towards me as a sign that things were going in the right direction.

" What're you smiling about? " He actually came to sit down beside me. I put my weight against the wall, and be put his weight against me before settling down completely. The subtle warmth he gave off was all that was needed for the night. I felt it whenever he came near. It became considerably stronger in these past few weeks. Now it's to the point where I barely notice I'm acting oddly at all. I didn't even notice I was smiling until he pointed it out.

" It's nothing. " That I'm not proud of, that is.