CHAPTER 8

Rylan sped forward as fast as he could, reaching out to grab Buizel. Raticate was just inches away from the injured Pokémon.

In just a moment's notice, Raticate's fangs had been caught in Rylan's paw.

"Hey, lemme go!" Raticate yelled. "How are you doing that?"

To Rylan's surprise, he didn't feel any pain from the fang attack. It was as if he was aiming to catch it by instinct. Hearing something speak at the back of his mind, as though giving him instructions, he closed his eyes and let the voice take control of his actions.

"Force…PALM!" Rylan shouted, slamming his open paw into Raticate's chest. The force of the attack caused Raticate to fly backwards, writhing in pain.

"Ow ow owwwwww!"

Quite stunned by what just happened, Rylan opened his eyes and looked at his paws. Is this the kind of power that Fighting Pokémon possessed?

"G—Get him, you idiots!" Raticate shouted.

The Rattata leapt off of Buizel and prepared to attack Rylan. He promptly grabbed Buizel and ran back toward the guild, the Rattata in hot pursuit.

A few feet away, watching intently from behind a rock, stood Houndoom and the mysterious Pokémon, concealed once again in the shadows.

"Seems the kid is in trouble," Houndoom said. "He's being chased by Raticate's cronies."

"We need to help him," said the concealed Pokémon. "You know what to do."

"Right," said Houndoom, preparing to charge in.

"However," said the other Pokémon, "see to it that he doesn't make it back to the guild. I'm a wanted outlaw; I can't risk showing up there. Take him to…let's say…Oscuro Canyon. That's where he and the other two were heading to begin with, and it's not too far from here. But don't let them see you just yet."

"All right then," Houndoom said. He ran off, hidden behind the trees of the forest, until he was far ahead of Rylan. Once Rylan passed, Houndoom leapt in front of the Rattata and unleashed a powerful Flamethrower, barring the Rattata from passing. Startled, they fled back to their boss.

Rylan noticed Vulpix sitting in the grass as he came closer to the guild. "Vulpix!" he called out.

Vulpix turned toward the sound of the familiar voice. When she saw Rylan carrying Buizel, a relieved smile replaced her worried expression.

"You made it!" she said happily. "I knew you could do it!"

Exhausted from running, Rylan gently set Buizel down next to Vulpix. Buizel appeared unconscious but he seemed to be fine otherwise.

"I thought you'd be at the guild by now," Rylan said.

"I needed to rest for a moment," said Vulpix.

Rylan nodded. "Oh, Vulpix…" he started. "I… I'm really sorry about earlier. The things I said to Buizel…and to you… I should have just kept my mouth shut."

Vulpix smiled. "Tell Buizel that when he wakes up," she said.

"Erm… I'd rather not," Rylan said. "I don't know how I'd tell him."

"Just tell him the same way you told me," Vulpix suggested. "You two were definitely off to a rocky start, but I feel you can become friends if you cooperate with each other."

Rylan looked at Buizel. He didn't like him, but for Vulpix's sake, and for the sake of the team, he knew he had to try and get along with him. He slipped his paws carefully under Buizel and hoisted him up, looking over at the faintly visible guild fortress in the distance. "Wanna head back now?" he asked. "You two need to get some rest. It's been a long morning."

Vulpix giggled.

"Hmm?" Rylan asked. "What's so funny."

"Seeing you here, like this…" Vulpix said. "If it weren't for you, I don't know what Raticate would have done to Buizel. Earlier, you were this withdrawn Pokémon who didn't seem to care about anything. Right now, I feel as though you've really changed a little on the inside."

"Um… Well… I…" Rylan blushed and looked away. "I suppose I have you to thank for that."

"Me?" Vulpix inquired. "What do you mean by that?"

"You pushed me forward when I would have otherwise not gone at all, when I would have just given up," said Rylan. "So… Thank you, Vulpix. Buizel is very fortunate to have you for a friend."

"As am I very fortunate to be friends with you," Vulpix said.

So now they're friends? Rylan couldn't even remember what having one was like, but what he was feeling now… Being around Vulpix was starting to make him feel happy. Was this truly a genuine friendship coming into being?

Rylan chuckled nervously, blushing even more. "C—Come on, let's head back."

"Sure," Vulpix said, trying to resist the pain in her back as she stood up.

"Sorry, you two, but naptime starts now," said a voice.

Rylan turned on the spot. Then something forcefully impacted with his head, and everything went black.

Rylan awoke from his sleep, feeling dazed but much less exhausted than before. "What just happened?" he asked. He sat up and looked around. It appeared to be much later in the day, and he and his teammates had been laid out around a small campfire. Convenient, given that the air was pretty cold.

"Vulpix, wake up," he whispered, approaching Vulpix and gently touching her side. She yawned softly and stretched.

"Ry… Rylan?" She asked. "What happened to us? Where are we?"

"I don't know," Rylan replied. "The last thing I remember was picking up Buizel and suggesting that we head back to the guild."

"Where is Buizel?" Vulpix asked.

Rylan pointed to him sleeping nearby. "Right there," he answered.

"Let's make sure he's-" Vulpix started her sentence while attempting to stand up, but stopped, seeming rather surprised about something.

"What is it?" Rylan asked.

"My… my back," Vulpix said. "It's healed."

"For real?" Rylan asked, puzzled. "That was fast. Now that you mention it, my leg feels much better, too."

"Now's not the time for questions, though," Vulpix said. She approached Buizel and gently tapped him on the back. "Buizel, wake up."

Buizel opened his eyes slowly and looked around. "Are the poffins done yet?" he asked groggily.

"How are you feeling?" Vulpix asked.

Buizel sat up. "The last thing I remember was quickly losing that fight to Raticate and his gang. I was hurting all over…"

"Hmm?" Vulpix asked.

"…And I don't feel any pain anymore. Seriously, I feel quite good," he finished.

"Odd…" Vulpix said. "Someone must have healed us."

"Whoever it was must have also dragged us out here," said Rylan.

Buizel noticed Rylan and then started poking at the ground, trying to distract himself.

"Ahem," Vulpix coughed, trying to get the other two to say something to each other.

"Okay," Buizel sighed. "I'm sorry."

"I'm sorry, too," Rylan responded.

"That wasn't so hard, now was it?" Vulpix asked. Now, before we do anything else, I suggest you two have a little heart-to-heart. We won't function well as a team if you two can't get along with each other."

Buizel and Rylan both looked at Vulpix. "What do you expect us to say to each other?" Buizel asked.

Vulpix sat down and looked at them. "Why not start by just telling each other why you don't like each other?"

The two looked rather uncomfortable about this suggestion, especially Buizel. They both knew that Vulpix was right, however. The best way to move past a quarrel is to learn to accept the other person.

"All right," Buizel said. "I—"

"No," Rylan said. "I'll go first."

Buizel and Vulpix looked at Rylan, surprised at his initiative. "How come?" Vulpix asked.

"I'm afraid…" Rylan replied. "I'm scared of doing this, but… I'm sick of being scared and thinking that running away from my problems will solve anything, because I've seen firsthand that it solves nothing."

Vulpix nodded, and surprisingly, so did Buizel.

"So then," Buizel said, "what is it you don't like about me?"

Rylan knew what he wanted to say, but he was struggling with how he wanted to say it.

"You…" he uttered. "You just really… Ever since you learned that I used to be human, you've acted like I shouldn't be around. You immediately distrusted me. I was under the impression that you felt I was deliberately going to hurt you or Vulpix. I don't like that about you."

Buizel rubbed the scar behind his ear as he listened to Rylan. He didn't say a word.