I could not sleep that night, my perfect little world had shattered. Pine Nose was not our father, Blaze had lied to us.
And even worse was that Lemon died not knowing the truth.
I felt my heart ache and my mind scream in agony for letting myself live the perfect lie without a single thought of suspicion.
I refused to stay there. Not that night.
I ran as soon as I saw Blaze's silhouette disappear into her and Pine Nose's burrow till I reached the dead logs and knocked on one of the logs till Mira appeared, but she looked alarmed and smacked me across the forest floor.
"Wait!" I cried. "It's me, Riptide! Blaze's son!"
"I-I...sorry" Mira muttered. "I thought that-"
"You don't need to explain" I said sympathetically. "I already know of your situation, I just wish to spend the night."
"Do your parents know?" Mira yawned.
"Yes" I lied. "They do, I'd like to spend the night here. Please."
"Alright" Mira leaded me inside the pile of dead logs where her daughters were sleeping on flat ground with a creak of light coming from the top of the pile of dead logs. Felis looked up at me with tired eyes and smiled. Dew just huffed and turned her back to me.
Mira just slept in the corner as I fell beside Felis and took in her sweet scent. She turned to me and her tail fell on my right leg, making me...
"Chill, we're just sleeping" Felis chuckled. "Unless you're thinking of-"
"No, I'm fine, fine" I fell beside her as she snuggled me closer. I knew I had to go home as soon as the sun rose...
The sun rose over the trees and I left before they woke up. I decided to take the opportunity of an excuse of being out by going hunting.
Unfortunately, fate decided to lead me on a different path.
Right as I was approaching a delicious-looking Pichu near some bushes, a loud nose scared it away.
I looked up with wide brown Eevee eyes.
It was the same human girl.
Don't forget me, Don't forget me
The same three words repeated in my mind tauntingly and it drove me insane.
She had a bent branch in her paws, with a sharp ended branch between the bent branch.
"Oh, it's you" the girl dropped her branches and threw them in a weird green thing with a hole opening.
"Hunting?" the girl asked. I looked around me to see if this was some sort of trick, that any moment more of her kind would spring out and kill me.
"It's just me, I'm Melissa" the girl gave a small smile. "You have a name?"
"Riptide" I said. She tilted her head, I forgot that humans and Pokémon speak a different language and such. I grabbed a stick on the ground and traced the name in the dirt.
"Riptide" Melissa giggled. "That's a funny name. Well, I got to go. See ya, little furry dude!"
Melissa ran on her hind legs and left me trying to figure out what a 'dude' was. I ran and caught a Caterpie between my claws while running.
"Well, I'll have come back with something" I said. I buried the Caterpie and caught two Bunnelby before carrying all three prey back. Blaze jumped and wrapped her arms around me.
"Where have you been?!" My Mother gasped. "Neither Thunder or Pixie could find you! I send them and Maudie looking for you!"
"I'm fine, I just went hunting" That was a lie. "And didn't have too much luck, it's enough to feed us for the day though."
"Just don't do that again" Blaze touched my forehead with her nose and told Pine Nose what happened.
"There you are, Riptide!"
I saw Thunder jump on me and kicked my body like he would always do during our play-fights. Pixie was speaking to Maudie and Thunder jumped off me.
"..You OK, Riptide?" Thunder had a puzzled look on his face. "You seem in thought...wanna go show off our fighting skills to the younger guys?"
"What do you think, Pixie?"
Pixie looked at me like I lost my mind. Ever since Lemon died, she was distant towards everyone except Maudie and Moth.
"Nothing, really..." Pixie replied. Before I could say anything else, she left into our family den.
The next day was basically picking ticks from our grandfather's pelt. Me and Thunder did so while Felis and Elk groomed the feathers from Bone's bony frame, while Dew, Fox, and Acorn were searching for new moss. Otter and Moth were searching for various herbs for Mud Tail.
"-and that's how I evolved" Smoky babbled as I nipped a flea off his shoulder. "Bone was jealous she could not evolve after watching her best friend Martha evolve into a Mandibuzz."
"Cool" I said with a smile. Listening to Smoke's stories wasn't quite boring or bad, but Thunder acted like it was.
"Yeah, yeah" Thunder muttered as he parted Smoky's fur on his hind leg to pick out another parasite. Bone smiled as she started another story with Felis and Elk.
"Well, my parents were the prettiest Pokemon that ever flew the skies..." Bone croaked with a smile coming from her chapped beak.
Dew, Fox, and Acorn finally came back with fresh layers of moss to spread out in the burrow that Smoke and Bone slept in.
"Thanks, little ones" Bone whispered as she let her bony wings spread across the moss floor. "Oh, yeah..."
"We should be going now" Acorn said awkwardly. "See ya, Smoky. See ya, Bone."
And so the nine of us left to our families, leaving Martha to tuck in the elders. I slept comfortably beside Thunder and Pixie, my nose stuffed in my brother's fur.
I then remembered the girl...the girl. Melissa.
I didn't know why I was thinking of her now, out of all times! But her eyes shone in my head. I almost forgot about my mother's betrayal.
Almost.