Butch raised his head tentatively, then nudged Shade, who was curled beside him. "Coast clear," he murmured.
Shade unfurled slowly, groaning as he stretched. "My legs are numb," he complained.
Butch glowered at him reproachfully. "Better numb than Bagged," he replied.
They jumped up on top of a dumpster and dug through the trash for a while, looking for anything edible, then settled atop a closed bin with their prizes.
"You know," Butch mused as they ate, "we should look into finding a new city. You've nearly outgrown this one!" He elbowed Shade, chuckling.
It was almost true. It had been 10 months since Shade's parents had died and Butch had taken him in, and Shade had grown into a handsome adolescent. On the other end, Butch's fur was greying at the tips.
Suddenly, a scuttling sound came from behind them and they froze, holding their breath. The scuffling grow louder, and scrawny Rattata scurried from a hole in the wall on the under the dumpster. Butch and Shade relaxed and continued eating.
Soon, however, Shade became aware that the Rattata had not left, and that its watery eyes were fixed upon him. It followed his every movement with its gaze, its nose twitching as it stared intensely at his food.
With a sigh, Shade broke off a piece of moldy bread and tossed it to the sorry creature. It stashed the bread in its cheeks, blinked at Shade, and scurried off again.
Butch had watched this in silence. Once the Rattata had gone, however, he sighed and shook his head. "If you keep giving in to every pair of goo-goo eyes that just happens to look your way, you'll wind up as thin as this fishbone," Butch huffed, tossing a fish skeleton off under the dumpster. "You need to put yourself before others. Survival of the fittest."
Shade rolled his eyes, a knowing smile on his face. "If you had put yourself before others the night you found me, I most likely would have been Bagged, stuffed, and put on display in the Capitol by now."
"I did take you in for my own benefit!" Butch sniffed, tilting his head up. "You do all the grunt work for me." Shade chuckled, and they finished the rest of their meal in silence.
When the last crumb had been eaten, they settled in more comfortably and gazed at the sunrise, which was just beginning to glow over the skyscrapers of Phiro.
"Tell me about the war again," Shade said at last.
"Again?" Butch moaned.
"'A long time ago, Pokémon and people lived together in harmony,'" Shade prompted.
"You already know the whole thing by heart!" Butch laughed.
"Please? It's always better when you tell it," Shade begged, butting his head under Butch's chin in an affectionate way.
"Fine, fine. Stop your whimpering," Butch said, smiling. "A long time ago, Pokémon and people lived together in harmony."
Shade closed his eyes, letting the story unfold in his mind's eye as Butch wove the tale with his voice.
"Pokémon had large open spaces to roam, and the humans lived happily in their towns and small cities."
"There was a king of the Pokémon," Shade prompted on cue.
"Yes, there was. He lived on the highest mountain in the whole world, where it was said the very sky touched the earth."
"What Pokémon was he?"
"Who can say? Some say it was the great Arceus himself, come down to live among us. Some say it was one of Arceus' servants, a Pokémon not even we know of yet. He ruled over all Pokémon, and was very kind and good. The humans, too, had their rulers, but none as great compared to the Pokémon king."
"People were nice to Pokémon back then, weren't they?"
"Yes, they were. Some people kept Pokémon as companions. Some were Pokémon professors, who studied Pokémon. There were even Pokémon trainers, who captured and befriended Pokemon. Together, trainers and their Pokémon did great things."
"What happened to all those who liked Pokémon?"
"They either gave up their Pokémon, or were executed. A select few, myself included, believe that some managed to escape to a region far away, where they can live in freedom, far from the war."
"What started the war?"
"The humans, you see, rapidly grew smarter, inventing things such as boxes filled with moving pictures called 'TeeVees,' and metal beasts with four round rubber feet called 'kars.' And as they grew smarter, they became greedier. They began building more and more things on Pokémon land, pushing us into smaller and smaller reservations.
"The hardest blow, however, came when they tried to build on the Pokémon King's mountain. Apparently, there were many resources the humans needed inside the mountain. However, whatever the humans built there crumbled within a week, supposedly due to the King's great power. Finally, one of the human leaders went up the king's mountain to ask for permission to build. When the Pokémon king refused to give his consent, the human leader became infuriated. He told the king that, by standing against him, he stood against the entire human race. The humans' leader declared war on all Pokémon, and offered rewards to whoever killed Pokémon and brought their bodies to any of his 'bases,' known all by the same name, the Capitol. He then challenged the King to a battle, but did not play fair... the King was mortally wounded, and retreated deep into the mountain. The humans haven't given up on building on the King's sacred mountain, though it is still under the King's protection."
"Where is the king now?"
"Some say he is in hiding, waiting for the humans to lose the war so he can reclaim his throne and return all Pokémon to their rightful places. I believe he is biding histime, waiting for the perfect moment to strike the humans down and secure victory for Pokémon."
"What are Pokémon doing to try and stop the humans?"
"We Pokémon are doing whatever we can, fighting hard to hold on to our remaining patches of land. I once fought on the front lines of the army that was made up of the Pokémon that lived right here, where this city now stands. However, once I lost my leg to a Houndoom, I was unable to fight. From what I've heard, soon after the Chanseys carried me off, the Pokémon surrendered, and the humans began expanding their city right away."
"Where are your friends from before the city was built?"
"Who can say! I only hope they've left this awful place to live in the few Pokémon territories--small territories the humans have not yet conquered."
"Why don't you... WE leave and go to one of them?" Shade was genuinely curious. He hadn't heard this part of the story before.
"You think I'd get very far on only three legs? No, I have to stay here. I have a better chance of surviving by hiding, than running."
There was a lull of silence. "Do you think we have any chance of winning the war?" Shade said quietly.
"I believe, that if we find the king, we will be able to set things right once again."
Shade was struck by a sudden idea. "Do you think I could go help fight?"
Butch laughed. "With you gone, who would take care of me in my old age?" His expression suddenly turned serious. "It is my hope, though, that once I die, you won't stick around here. Leave this city, and don't come back."
"If you ever die, certainly," Shade teased.
Butch puffed out his chest. "I've been able to cling to life so far. I'm not giving up on this life yet!"
Shade laughed, and Butch gave a chuckle as well. "We've had our dinner break, now it's time to get to bed. It's already day!"
With a dejected sigh, Shade leapt down from the dumpster. Butch's landing was only slightly less graceful. "I'll wake you at twilight, all right?" Butch promised.
"All right. Sleep well."
And with that, they curled up under the dumpsters and went to sleep.