Pokemon Mystery Dungeon

Shadows of Ganderosa

Chapter 50

Paladin of the Amulet

There was a palpable silence hanging in the room. Ryan couldn't believe his eyes. There, standing before them in a sand-covered shawl, was Ryan and Dillan's lickitung friend. However, she looked worse than Ryan remembered.

The same pokemon who once had a joyful smile and elegant grace in her eyes now wore many cuts across her arms and legs and sand-covered fur. Her eyes were deep and cold as she stared long and hard directly at Ryan.

Every second she stared felt like an eternity. Ryan's heart felt on the verge of breaking at her stare. The last Ryan had seen of her, she lay face-down in the snow, sparking from his own attack. Did she know he was the one who hurt her that night? Is that why she stared at him with this intensity?

"So, you must be the traitor's friend," Fitz spoke up, breaking the silence. She stepped proudly towards Adelina, glaring her up and down as if studying the lickitung for signs of treasonous intent. "And I see you are also acquainted with our cowardly hero. Would it be a fair assumption to say you are with the Guild?"

Adelina gave no response to Fitz' question. She didn't even bat an eye in her direction. Her entire focus was fixed on the pachirisu.

A heavy silence once again hung over Ryan. He felt his heart ache to explain himself to her. Would she understand? Should he even bother?

Yet before he could decide on a course of action, Adelina quickly flipped her shawl and exited the tipi.

"Addi!" Ryan called after, dropping to the sand and chasing after the lickitung. "Addi, wait!"

As he exited the tipi's warmth into the cold, desert night, Adelina quickened her pace. With every step she took, she flecked sand into the air. Ryan, hardly thinking about what he was running into, dove head-first into the cloud of sand. It speckled his eyes, causing him to grimace. He stopped for only a second, cursing aloud while dabbing his eyes with his tail. And when he opened his eyes, he saw Adelina running out of the camp, right into the desert.

"Addi!" Ryan called, yet she didn't stop running. The pachirisu didn't take any longer to dab the rest of the sand from his eyes. He just cursed beneath his breath and gave chase.

When Adelina finally came to a stop, the two found themselves well outside of the camp, atop a sandy hill where the wind blew strong. The moonlight barely illuminated the surroundings well enough for Ryan to see the lickitung.

"Alright," Ryan said. "We're outside of the camp. Is that what you wanted? Can we talk n-"

He stopped his sentence suddenly as Adelina's clenched fist buried itself into the side of Ryan's head. His body spun limply through the air before making a hard crash into the sand.

Ryan's eyes widened as the world above spun unstably. The stinging of his eyes became numbed by the throbbing of his skull.

"What… the hell did you… do that for?" he managed to squeak out.

"Why?!" Adelina screamed, stamping her foot in the sand. "Why did you lead me on?!"

"Lead you… on…?" Ryan repeated, making his way to his feet despite the pulsing in his brain.

He looked forwards just in time to catch sight of the orange glow of twin energy swords slashing towards his head. Ryan reacted on instinct, throwing himself back down into the sand, watching as the blades missed his nose by mere inches.

Adelina aimed her blades low, clearly trying to strike him. With another slash, Ryan rolled right, narrowly avoiding the second attack. His body tensed as he glanced back to where he laid, a pair of slash marks now etched into the sand.

The swords… This wasn't just any Sword Dance attack. These were actual blades.

"Damn you!" Adelina screamed; her monstrous expression now illuminated by the sword's glow. "Just when I thought we could be a team again – go back to the old times when we had each other's backs – you left me!"

"Addi, please!" Ryan pleaded. "I didn't have a choice!"

"You always have a choice!" Adelina snapped her swords towards Ryan once more, this time towards his feet. As Ryan made to jump above the blades, he found that instead of the usual two swords, Adelina only used one this time.

Shit!

Ryan's eyes tore towards Adelina's right, swordless hand. She must have dissipated one of the energy blades when he wasn't looking. He could only brace his body as Adelina pummeled her fist into his chest, hurling him into the sand. He felt his body cry out in agony as he squeaked in pain.

"You chose to give into that nidoqueen bitch!" Adelina shouted. "We were a team, Ryan, and you left me! Again!"

"That nidoqueen… would have killed you," Ryan spat through gritted teeth. He buried his fists into the sand as he managed to stand up, facing the snarling lickitung.

"You don't know that!"

"She's not some normal nidoqueed, Addi! The pokemon she works for changed her into an unstoppable killing machine! She's unnatural!"

"I don't care! We were a team again, and you threw it away! You threw me away!"

Adelina's breathing sputtered as the orange glow of her swords reflected the tears streaking her face. Her glower loosened with the tears, yet she still held the orange sword firmly.

"You threw me aside just like you did before!" she shouted. "And I just can't understand why! Weren't we partners?!"

"I left for you!" Ryan demanded with clenched fists, his anger rising with the feelings of guilt. "I went with her for-"

"Stop with the lying already, Ryan Simon! I know you! I was your only friend when you got dumped in my world with no clue what to do or where to go! I would have gone through hell to save you, but you couldn't get past your own need to do everything on your own!"

"I'm not trying to do it alone!"

"Then you've told Dillan you're not really a pokemon?!" Adelina questioned. "You've told him how you're some freak brought here to save his world and not yours?!"

The pachirisu's cheeks began sparking intensely a s his fists clenched tighter than ever done before. "That's not how it works! You don't understand the position I'm in, alright?!"

"So that would be a no, then. Unbelievable! Why is it you push everyone in your life away from you?! Why can't you let them in?!"

"This is different, Adelina! You don't understand!"

"And why's that, Ryan?! What don't I understand about you that's so complicated?!"

"I'm the reason Dillan's a pokemon to begin with!"

Silence hung in the air. Ryan panted, waiting for a retort from the lickitung, but she did no such thing. Her intense stare began to soften as she considered his words, "What are you talking about?" she demanded.

"I can't tell Dillan I was human because I'm the reason he isn't one anymore!"

Adelina stood there in silence. Her anger subsided more and more as she thought about what he said. "He's not a… He's… You mean… he's like you?"

"I failed, okay?!" Ryan shouted. His legs began to quiver as the wind threatened to topple him. "I failed to stop The Enemy! And when that happened, Dialga brought in his own hero to save the world: Dillan!

"And I can't tell him because… I…" Ryan took a shuddering breath. "I'm scared, okay?! I hate to admit it, but I'm scared that he'll hate me just as much as I hate Palkia!"

As Ryan finished, his gaze moved towards the floor, and he fell backwards. The wind blew sand through his fur, feeling especially rough. Perhaps it was because he'd finally admitted his greatest fear to someone.

Adelina fell back, as well. Her face tensed in concentration as the rest of her anger left her face. Ryan didn't know how they did, but he knew his words had affected her. Adelina's eyes moved towards the sky. She loosened her grip on the remaining sword and it vanished, leaving the only light left to be the moon.

"Why did you leave us at the Alkan Guild?" she asked, her voice regaining some of the elegance Ryan once knew.

Ryan continued to glower at the ground – not out of spite for Adelina, but frustration at himself. He opened his mouth to answer but found the words stuck to his throat like the sand in his mouth. They were words he could hardly admit to himself, much less Adelina… yet he felt compelled to force them out for the lickitung.

"Part of me did it to save you… but… the other part did it to escape…"

Ryan took a deep breath of the chilled air. "I wanted to go home… I still want to… And part of me believed that if I went along with Giratina for a bit longer, maybe I'd find some way back…"

"So, you went back for an easy way out? Even if it meant leaving everyone else to clean up your mess?"

"No," Ryan said forcefully. Yet even as he denied it, he knew it was the truth. And based on Adelina's scowl, she did, as well.

"If that's the case, did you come back because you saw The Enemy wouldn't give you what you wanted?"

"I came back because Dillan was in trouble," Ryan insisted. "I came back to help my friend."

"And what would you do if you did have the chance to go back to the human world?" Adelina asked. "Would you take it and abandon us?"

"That's…" Ryan started. "That's not a fair-"

"Why isn't that a fair question?" Adelina said, finally facing the pachirisu. "Don't we deserve to know whether or not you're going to leave us if you get the chance?"

Ryan didn't answer. How could he? He wasn't even sure himself whether he'd take the chance at the cost of his friends. How could anyone be sure before the opportunity stood in front of them?

"You know what, Ry?" Adelina said, wiping the tears from her eyes and making her way to her feet. "Forget I asked. We both know what you'd do."

"Addi-"

"Just do me one last favor?" Adelina began. "Whatever happens tomorrow – whatever half-baked plan your team has – leave the Eevee Tribe out of it."

"What?" Ryan asked, caught off guard by the question. "W-wait. Addi, we need their help! We can't get the Amber Amulet if we don't have help!"

"Look at the state they're in, Ryan," Adelina insisted, pointing towards the encampment at the bottom of the hill. "One of their leaders is in a coma, and over half of them died trying to get into Kerroshia. They've suffered enough at the hands of The Enemy. What do you think is going to happen when their Paladin fails them the same way he failed me? What happens when Dillan realizes one of the only pokemon he can rely on kept from him the most important secret?"

Ryan's mouth ran dry at that statement. He gritted his teeth bitterly, unable to reply. Did she sincerely think so little of him? Was the hole he dug himself into really so deep that he shook the faith of the only other pokemon he trusted? If that was the case, could he trust himself?

Adelina said no more to Ryan, making her way back down the hill at a slow pace. He didn't try to stop her, meekly watching the back of her head, hoping she would turn around and give him some sign that he could redeem himself. Yet she did no such thing. He was merely left to stare at her in thought, wondering if he could have done anything differently that cold night at the Alkan Guild.

Ryan must have spent a good while on that hill, lying in the sand and staring up at the stars in thought. His mind wandered from what Adelina told him to when he first encountered the Eevee Tribe. He remembered it being so simple back then. Maybe it was out of ignorance, but part of him wanted to go back to that time: to when the only thing he had to worry about was treasure hunting and not fleeing from the government or damaging friendships beyond repair.

He lied there for hours, thinking about the past and how he managed to screw everything up so badly. By the time he stood up and made his way down the hill, the sun peaked above the horizon, signaling daybreak. His legs felt heavy, and he yawned a great deal as he entered the camp once more. The flaps to the tipis were now open as multiple eeveelutions stepped out into the light.

It was a strange sight to behold if the pachirisu were to be honest. Perhaps because, over the last day, he had only seen the drab oranges and yellows of sandy hills. And now, hues of bright pinks, blues, and reds all interacted with each other in an active manner. It was as if civilization had sprung from an artist's pallet.

But possibly strangest of all were the joyful smiles of each pokemon once they spotted Ryan. They whispered amongst each other with excitement over their "Paladin" and how he came to make things right. If they knew he had given up, would they feel betrayed like Adelina hinted at? Betrayed?

Did she know about their faith in him? Was she right about him? Would he simply let them down if they came along? Would he let down his friends?

"Oh, Paladin, sir," an umbreon called out from in front of Ryan. "It's an honor to finally meet you! How are you on this fine day?"

"Tired," Ryan said bluntly. "Now, if you would be so kind as to-"

The umbreon laughed aloud over Ryan's statement. "How silly of me to ask such a question," he chuckled, rolling his eyes playfully. "I should have known based on your sagging tail that you were tired. Please, allow me to treat you to a meal."

"I really shouldn't," Ryan said with a half-hearted smile, raising his hand in objection. "I have a meeting with the elders, and my… associates are probably waiting for me."

"Oh, but I insist!" the umbreon said, stepping beside Ryan and ushering him forwards with his tail. "My partner makes some truly delicious kadrous soup! I'm simply out getting some salts from a friend." As he said this, he showed off a wristband with a pocket on the side of his arm that appeared to be carrying something quite thick inside.

"I really should be going-" Ryan tried insisting, though found no amount of arguing could stop the umbreon. The pokemon continued to talk and talk and talk over Ryan's objections. Eventually, Ryan pursed his lips, deciding he was stuck being treated to whatever cuisine awaited him.

The two eventually arrived at a tipi whose outside was stitched with what appeared to be a scene Ryan couldn't make out. It appeared to be of a river while a couple pokemon swam beneath its waters, moving through plants.

Ryan recalled from a couple years back when he asked about the tapestries that make up their tipi homes. The images were symbols relating to the family that lived inside. Sometimes, they were about a great act they accomplished. Other times they indicated what job the pokemon had. Ryan could only guess as to what this one meant – perhaps that the umbreon or his family had crossed a great river for the tribe?

"Usha!" the umbreon called. "I have returned with a special guest: the Paladin!"

"The Paladin?" a voice asked sweetly from beyond the drape entrance. "Well, bring him inside at once!"

Ryan looked inside the tent, hesitating to enter. Yet with another light nudge from the umbreon, he walked inside.

It was a quaint interior. A single candle sat in the center as a vaporeon stood to the left. They stood over what looked to be a few plates whilst placing a green dish atop. They turned to see Ryan and the umbreon enter and smiled sweetly. She bowed towards Ryan who held back the urge to look away in guilt.

"Paladin, we are truly humbled that you would enter our simple home." She made her way to her feet and waved her tail towards a set of furry rugs. "Please, sit down! Enjoy a meal!"

Ryan raised a paw towards her, saying, "That's really not necessary. I'm just stopping by for a quick bite, and I'll be out of your… fins."

"Nonsense!" the umbreon laughed. "You are not intruding in the slightest! We are honored by you and want you to eat a good meal! Usha, entertain him for a while I add the spice!"

"Of course, Palar," she smiled sweetly, giving him a peck to the forehead.

As Ryan reluctantly sat down on the rug seating which warmed him to the touch (clearly made from excess flareon fur). The vaporeon, Usha, took a seat across from him as her umbreon partner made his way towards the food. The vaporeon lightly pressed a paw against Ryan's as she began.

"It has been ages since I saw you here," Usha stated. "Are you the same Paladin who came to us two years ago in search of the Amulet?"

"Y-yeah," Ryan admitted, albeit a bit sheepishly.

"Oh, you looked so brave back then," she reminisced. "As I recall, you used to have a strap around your shoulder with pouches of berries."

"I did," Ryan said with a light laugh, remembering the pouches and how absurdly large they were.

"I couldn't believe you could run with it on," the umbreon, Palar, said from the corner. "It must have been some burden."

"It really was," Ryan admitted. "That thing was always scraping against the ground, picking up dust or sand. I actually got rid of it a little after leaving you guys."

"I told you he would," Palar called triumphantly.

Usha pursed her lips and pawed in his direction. "We had a bit of a quarrel about whether or not you kept the pouches after leaving – just a fun argument we had. Nothing you need concern yourself with."

Palar laughed a little as he spun around, carrying three plates of a green plant across his back. Blue juice was drizzled over it with what appeared to be red dust sprinkled on top.

"Here we are," he said, walking towards the vaporeon. "Coval was more than happy to provide us with red dust so long as we help him with the week's move."

The vaporeon sighed aloud. "Of course, that would be his price." She slid her tail underneath the plate and placed it in front of her. "And to think the only thing you asked for was dust and watch duties."

"I told you the dust was worth it," Palar stated, walking towards Ryan. He looked at the pachirisu with a smirk as he said, "I tell you, this red dust makes all dishes very tasty. Try for yourself."

He lowered his back for the pachirisu, nudging a smaller plate of the green plant towards Ryan. He looked over the dish and its colors, resisting the urge to laugh. Upon closer inspection, the colors and sloppy manner it was prepared looked like a child's art project, and Palar's face gleamed with kiddish expectation. He looked to Ryan as if searching for approval to place it up on a fridge.

Nevertheless, Ryan refused to disappoint. He was already in this mess. He might as well commit. He reached for a plate and removed it from Palar's back. The umbreon practically bounced in joy at Ryan's acceptance. He quickly moved beside his partner before sliding his own dish down his back and into place.

Palar sat next to his partner as they both watched Ryan expectantly. The pachirisu felt the back of his neck getting hotter as they stared. Regardless, he pawed at the meal, breaking off a piece of the plant and placing it into his mouth.

If Ryan were to use an analogy for the searing heat that burned his tongue, he would refer to the travesty of Pompei. Though at least as its citizens suffered at the hands of a volcano, they were allowed to scream for relief. Ryan was forced to sit there, red-faced beneath white fur and holding back the urge to spatter the walls with bile. The pachirisu considered shooting from his seat and begging the vaporeon to bathe his tongue in a "Water Gun" attack. He didn't care if it was comparable to throwing up in his mouth. He wanted relief.

"Praise be Palkia, I think he likes it!" Palar announced, not realizing Ryan's forced smile was him holding back tears.

The two eeveelutions began to eat the dish with smiles on their faces and cheerful demeanors. How the hell can they stand this stuff? Ryan thought frantically, forcing himself to swallow the flaming-hot dish. That was a mistake as the burning feeling ran straight down his throat.

"It's… good," he said as his throat began to clench from the burning. "Pretty spicy."

"That would be the red dust," Ursa said. "I find it overpowering, but Palar enjoys it, so who am I to complain?"

"Oh, please," Palar laughed, nudging the vaporeon with his shoulder. "You should have seen Usha last night, practically drooling over the idea of having some red dust to sprinkle over our berry stew."

"Oh, stop that!" She pawed playfully at his shoulder.

"Please, though," Palar said to Ryan. "Eat all you want."

"Thank you," Ryan said through a cough. "Truly."

The three of them spent the next hour or so finishing the dish and talking about anything that interested the three. Ryan felt a little surprised over how easy it was talking to the two. Their cheerful and friendly manner made it easy for him to relax. How long had it been since he could simply let his shoulders slump and have a simple conversation?

"So, Paladin," Palar began with a calmed smile, lying down on the flareon-fur rug. "Might I ask you an honest question?"

"Depends on the question," Ryan said with a light nod. "Ask away, though."

"Where do you come from?" he asked. "The Elders always spoke of a being from another world coming to ours to relieve us of the Amber Amulet, but they never said what that world was like."

"Ooh, that's a good question," Usha said, pecking Palar's forehead again.

They both looked to Ryan expectantly, though he didn't meet their gazes. His smile persisted, though his brow knitted itself in saddened concentration. "That's a hard question if I'm being honest," Ryan admitted. "It's like this world… but also not."

"Do tell," Usha urged.

"Well," Ryan said, thinking back to his life before being a pachirisu. "In my world, we have deserts and oceans like you guys do. But we have some different plants. Like, whereas you guys have apricot trees and oran bushes, we have evergreens and poison ivy."

"What kind of smells do you have in your world?" Usha asked.

"Better yet, what kind of tasty meals do you have?" questioned Palar. "Any red salts or apricot stews?"

"Palar," Usha criticized. "He just said they don't have apricot trees in their world. How can they have any apricot stews?"

"We might not have any apricot stews," Ryan said, "but we do have brownies with nuts on them. Those were some of the sweetest deserts around.

"And as for smells…" Ryan hesitated for an answer. Come to think of it, he couldn't recall the smells of his world. He knew there were differences – there was a lot more smog and smoke where he was from, and a lot less nature – but as to remembering what exactly they smelled like, he was at a loss.

Thinking about it, he realized he had spent so much time here that the ideas of smells and tastes from this world blended with his memories of his own. Could he remember what a brownie tasted like or was he imagining pecha bread? What about a hamburger? Could he even remember what it was like to eat anything but berries and vegetables?

"Are you alright, Paladin?" Palar asked, noticing the intense look of concentration on Ryan's face. His smile had dropped as he stared at the wall.

"I'm not sure…" Ryan admitted. "I… don't think I can remember what it's like to…" Ryan forced a smile. "Never mind. It's stupid."

"How long have you spent in this world, Paladin?" Usha asked with a look of sympathy. Her and Palar both looked at him with concern as though he were a troubled friend. "It's been at least fifteen rotations since we last saw you."

"Over two years," Ryan admitted. "Maybe three. I stopped keeping track."

Seeing the confused looks on their faces, Ryan added, "It's been a very long time."

"Have you really spent all this time looking for the Amber Amulet?" Palar asked.

Ryan felt his throat begin to clench again – this time out of fear. Would they both be disappointed if he told them the truth? When they realized he had given up, would they feel as though their hero had failed them?

Why was he even here? Was it to disappoint them? They were going to ask him about the Amber Amulet eventually. These questions were inevitable. So, why did he entertain the idea of relaxing knowing he would have to eventually hurt them?

"I should go," Ryan said quickly, standing from the rug. "It's been very nice meeting both of you. Thank you very much for being so cool to me."

"Paladin," Palar began quickly, standing from the rug. "I do apologize if that question offended you. It wasn't my intention to pry."

"Yeah, well, we live with our mistakes," Ryan said, making to leave. Yet before he could exit, a blue paw pressed against his shoulder.

"Please, Paladin," Usha said from beside him. She sounded saddened and concerned. "I understand that traveling to a new place can be terrifying. Take it from us wanderers who never had the luxury of calling a single place, "home." You don't have to face the unknown on your own."

"What makes you think I'm doing things by myself?" Ryan asked with a scowl.

"Child," Usha said with a calm smile. "I might not be as old or as wise as our Elders, but I am smart enough to spot when someone is keeping great secrets."

"What am I supposed to do about that?" Ryan asked, raising his tone. "If I let anyone know my 'secrets,' I hurt people! How can I do that to anyone?"

"But keeping it a secret is hurting you," Usha stated, keeping her calm. "Especially if they deserve to know. And I suspect by your defensive nature that you are hiding something important from someone you care a great deal about."

Ryan lowered his head to hide his twitching lip. He wasn't mad at the vaporeon – just at himself – and he didn't want to give her that impression after how kind she was to him.

"What gives you the impression I'm hiding something?"

"You forget I have a partner," Usha chuckled, playfully pushing Palar's shoulder.

"Paladin," Palar began. "We don't wish to see you in pain. We want you to prosper, even if you have made mistakes. You should never allow them to eat you."

"You make it sound easy," Ryan said silently.

"Isn't it?" Usha asked. "As long as you learn from your mistakes and continue trying to be the best you can be, why should you or others doubt your heart?"

"You don't know what I've done," Ryan stated, eyeing both Usha and Palar.

"You've given us hope for the future, Paladin," Usha stated. "You being here proves you're still trying to help. Why should past mistakes matter?"

Those words… Maybe they were right. He was still trying, regardless of what Adelina or Fitz or Valery believed. Maybe that meant he could make up for what he had done.

"Still… My mistake messed up my friend's life, and he doesn't even know it. How can I tell him something like that?"

"Try starting with, 'We need to talk,'" Palar laughed. "If you're both friends, you'll help him to get back to the way his life was, and he'll understand."

"Offering him food also helps," Usha snickered, passing Ryan some of the left-over food.

Ryan smiled slightly at the dish. "You sure that's not just for your husband?" he joked.

"Trust me," Palar started with an affirming nod. "It works on everyone."

Ryan looked at the two, thinking about what was said. Perhaps they were right. Maybe he didn't need to keep this secret to himself. Perhaps… Perhaps Dillan would understand. He did consider the gabite to be his friend, and Dillan wasn't the type to hold grudges. Perhaps they were right.

Ryan smiled sincerely at the two. He felt a tear come to his eye that he quickly wiped away. "Yeah. Maybe you're both right."

"Of course, we are!" Palar announced. "We haven't stayed partners for this long without knowing how to keep relationships strong!"

"Thank you," Ryan said. "Both of you."

"Don't forget to give him that dish when you tell him!" Usha insisted.

"I'll try," Ryan smiled, imagining Dillan's panicked stamping as he eats the dish for the first time. Then again, he was a dragon. Perhaps he would have a natural immunity to fiery meals.

Nevertheless, Ryan exchanged final goodbyes with the two before walking off to find the group. To be honest, Ryan was still on the fence about telling the gabite. Palar and Usha's words made sense, and he knew he had to tell Dillan eventually, but he was still very worried about how he would react. Yet as he turned a corner, past a couple tipis, he spotted Dillan and the rest of the group waiting outside a massive tent with golden embroidery sewn into the hem.

"There he is," Fitz started with a glowering look and crossed arms. "I thought you had run back to The Enemy." As Ryan got closer to the group, Fitz's eyebrow raised at the pachirisu. "What in Arceus's name are you carrying?"

Ryan looked down at the dish, realizing he was still carrying the food offered to him by Usha and Palar. He quickly dropped the food on the ground with, "Nothing. It's just something a few of the locals gave to me."

Dillan walked up to Ryan with pursed lips. He looked down at the pachirisu, tense as a board. "Ryan, what happened?" he asked with a worry in his voice. "We've been here for at least an hour now. The Elders are getting a bit restless."

"They didn't want to talk to us without you," Conner stated with a "humph."

"I... guess I did some soul-searching," Ryan shrugged. "What's it matter?"

Just then, the flap to the tent wafted open and the frantic face of one Aram the espeon appeared.

"Have you found the Paladin yet?!" he began.

"Aram!" Ryan called with a muffled clap of his fuzzy paws. "Right here!"

Aram looked down, now spotting Ryan. "Oh, Paladin," Aram sputtered. "My apologies. The sun must have been in my eyes, preventing me from spotting you."

"Sure," Ryan said with a wave of his paw, preferring that excuse to, 'you were too short, and I happened to overlook you.'

"Right this way," Aram said, opening the curtain for the group. "The Elders are waiting."

As the group trickled in, Dillan was about to enter before Ryan tapped his ankle a couple times.

Dillan looked down at Ryan with a bit of surprise. "What is it?" he asked.

"Hey," Ryan began. He felt his stomach begin to twist and knot up as he tried working up the courage to say something. "Uh… You wanted me to come clean about everything that's been going on with me, and… well, I'm still not ready to… But uh…" He felt his throat start to clam up as he rubbed the back of his head nervously. "Once this talk with the geezers in there is said and done… uh… Do you mind if we talk? Friend to friend?"

"Uh…" Dillan began, looking as though he had just caught the same stomach bug as Ryan. "Sure," he said. "I'm cool with that."

"Nice," Ryan said with an awkward finger-gun towards Dillan. "Dope, even. Uh… yeah. Sounds great."

…

…

…

Silence. Awkward, uncomfortable silence filled the air. Ryan began rubbing the back of his head more profusely as Dillan did the same with his claw. Thankfully, they didn't have to be the ones to break it as Aram called from inside, "Not to be rude, my Paladin, but you and your friend are keeping the Elders waiting!"

"R-right," Ryan and Dillan said in unison. The two entered the tent simultaneously, both unsure of what their future conversation will bring. Yet they both knew that, before they got to that, they would have to meet the Elders.

Author's Notes:

I'm shocked. I don't write this story for a year and it's still getting favorites and follows. I try writing a different story but people still want Ganderosa. So, who am I to deny the people?

Will the story be finished? IDK. College sucks and adulting is even worse, so maybe; maybe not. Regardless, I'm here writing now and will try to keep doing so.

Until next time, I hope you enjoyed the chapter! I'll see you guys in the next one!