Okay, sorry for the delay. Writer's block is setting in, so there may be a longer delay between chapters. Not to mention my other stories... Anyway, I hope ya like, no wait, I hope ya LOVE it!
"What's that one called?" Rainbow asked, pointing toward a small sting of three stars as she laid on her back in the soft grass, gazing at the many little lights in the dark sky of night.
Zara, who was laying on a nearby rock to keep his tail from igniting something, sat up and followed her wing's point with his eyes. "That's the Belt of Orion. It's part of a constellation called Orion the Hunter, just like the Big Dipper is part of the Ursaring."
She sat up as well and stared at the Charmander in awe. "You sure know a lot about the stars. I wish I was as smart as you are."
He grinned. "You are smart! You know a lot about the legendaries and the sky, while I know a lot about the stars and flammability. We know what our parents have told us and what we've experienced."
She smiled. "Yeah, but you talk really smart."
"Oh, stop it. You're making me blush!" he said as he rubbed the back of his neck in bashfulness. "It's just something I picked up from my father.
She was about to reply when someone yelled "Zarathustra! Rainbow! Dinner time!"
"We're coming, Dad!" Zara called back as he hopped down and lead the phoenix back to his cave.
It was well lit thanks to the torches that lined the walls. In the back were hallowed out rocks that held the family's things. Rainbow thought that both of these things were cool. She'd been to Zara's home several times before, but she still felt a bit of awed by these little adaptations.
"Thank you!" she chirped happily as Zara's mother, a Charizard named Mozart, handed her a rock plate with delicious looking, cooked fruits and vegetables.
"You're welcome!" Mozart replied cheerfully as she gave her son and mate, a large Dragonite named Sondheim, their plates as well.
After dinner, Sondheim told them the story of a human who had found a sword and become power hungry, called Veilstone's Myth. It was a very interesting story.
When the tale was over, Zara smiled and looked at Rainbow. "That's one of my favorite tall tales."
She smiled back. "I can see why."
"Hey, do you want to roast Marshmallows?" he asked as he climbed to his feet and rant to one of the rock bins.
"What are those?" she inquired.
"These!" he replied, pulling out a bag full of puffy, white cylinders as well as a couple of sticks. "Humans created them. I don't know what they made them of, but they taste heavenly!" He opened the bag and took out one of the Marshmallows. He stuck it on the stick and held it over his tail until it turned golden brown. He held out the stick to Rainbow. "Try it. It's really good."
She took the crispy Marshmallow from the stick and chewed it. Her eyes widened and she wondered why an angelic choir hadn't shown up to sing. She swallowed it and gave Zara a wild look. "Those things are amazing!"
"I know," he replied as he handed her a stick.
Soon, they had eaten half the bag. They were sticky with the warm, white goo of Marshmallows and their stomachs hurt a little from eating too much.
"We should clean up and go to sleep," Zara groaned as he got up to go to the nearby pond. Unfortunately, he stepped on a little dropped goo and his foot stuck, causing him to fall face first onto a tuft of grass.
Rainbow couldn't help laughing when he got back up. The grass was stuck to his face, making his look like he had a green beard and green mustache.
"What are you laughing at?" he asked.
"You, beard boy!" she managed to giggle out.
He gave her a confused look. She grabbed his arms and lead him to the water to look at his reflection. He looked in and started to laugh as well, causing her to start laughing again. They laughed so hard that they fell to the ground.
"OW! MY GUT! I haha think I haha literally busted it!" Rainbow cried, unable to stop laughing despite the pain in her gut.
"I can't stop!" Zara exclaimed in anguish before being claimed by laughter once more.
Finally, they managed to stop long enough to stand up, only to fall to the ground laughing once again. They were both covered with grass, leaves and dirt. They looked like furry, green monsters!
"MY SPLEEN!!" Zara screamed through the laughing fit that was causing his entire body to spasm.
"WE'RE GONNA DIE LAUGHING!!" Rainbow laughed, despite her opinion of that dieing was not funny at all.
About a half an hour later, Mozart and Sondheim went looking for the kids. They found them passed out on the ground by the pond, still covered in grass and other material. After a laughing fit of their own, the adults cleaned them up and carried them back to the cave.
-ooo-
Entei ran wildly across the meadow, enjoying the feeling of the air whipping through his fur as he tried to sort out the thoughts that were racing through his mind.
He was failing.
The volcano lion ran toward the forest, figuring that the rush of adrenaline that came with dodging trees would help to take his mind off of his confusing emotions, even if just temporarily.
As he weaved through the labyrinth of foliage, his breathing became ragged. He was beginning to tire as the constant strain on his legs began to show itself. He continued running, not caring about how his aching body was screaming for rest.
Just then, his left front leg caught on a fallen log, causing him to fall forward. He saw a rock ledge right in front of him and closed his eyes, bracing for and impact that never came as he crashed right through the dense, but delicate wall of vines that hid a cavern entrance. He opened his eyes to see why he hadn't hit the wall, just in time to see the rapidly approaching rock floor as he landed head first. After that, all went black.
A while later, he woke up with a groan, his aching muscles even sorer from sleeping of the hard ground. He blinked his chestnut eyes a few times as they adjusted to the lighting. Once they did, he felt a gasp escape his throat.
The walls seemed to be glowing in a strange, iridescent green. On closer inspection, this was due to a special kind of fungi that grew on them in large numbers. There was also a small stream. The water was illuminate, thanks to the fungi, giving it a beautiful, slightly mesmerizing look. The splashing of the water echoed off the rock walls in a very calming manner and the air was humid, but cool.
Entei found a large patch of moss and laid down, sighing in contentment as the atmosphere calmed his mind, allowing him to think clearly.
"I see somebody else has discovered my little paradise."
Entei jumped. His head jerked to find the source of the voice, which was a little more difficult than usual, thanks to the echo effect. Finally, his gaze settled on a large, orange and black striped canine. "Oh, I'm sorry! Is this place yours?"
The Arcanine chuckled. "Well, I don't exactly own the land, but I found it a while ago and I come here a lot. I don't mind if another person knows about it though. My name's Ember, by the way."
Entei smiled. "My name is Entei. It's a pleasure to meet you and an honor to be permitted to enjoy this amazing place."
"Entei the legendary pokemon?" she asked, looking a little surprised.
He nodded.
"Cool. I've always wanted to meet a legendary pokemon!" she said with a smile. "But how come you're not with your trio?"
"I needed space to think calmly and running does that for me sometimes," he replied.
She nodded and sat on the ground. "I know how you feel. When I run, it's like the whole world doesn't matter. All that does matter is the wind in my fur and my paws on the ground."
He smiled. "That's how it is for me too."
"So, what did you need to think about? The problems of the world? An evil organization?" she asked curiously.
He chuckled. "No. It's more complicated than that. You see, my trio members, Suicune and Raikou, have been spending a lot more time together. I thought this would be a good thing, but now they hardly spend any time with me. Meanwhile, I have to watch their apprentices, plus my own."
Ember nodded. "I can see why you needed to calm your mind. Thoughts like those keep running around in circles until you think your head's going to explode."
"I just wish I knew what to do. The other legendaries call me wise, but I certainly don't feel like I am right now," he said in a depressed tone.
Ember smiled. "Maybe you should talk to them about how you feel, like you're talking to me. I'm sure they really care about you, but are too caught up with each other to notice how you're feeling."
"That could work... but I'd hate to hurt their relationship. I've known that they've had feelings for each other for years and I've been waiting for them to figure it out too," he replied.
"It wouldn't hurt their relationship with each other to tell them how YOU'RE feeling. It WOULD help their relationship with YOU though," she said.
He smiled. "Yeah. You're probably right." He stood up. "Thank you for listening to me and allowing me to enjoy your little place. Do you live here? Maybe we could talk again sometime."
She stood up as well and smiled back. "The feeling's mutual. I'm a bit of a nomad, but I almost always stay withing thirty miles of here. It shouldn't be too hard to find a big pokemon like me."
He nodded. "Okay then. I have to be heading home now or they'll start to worry. I hope to see you again soon, Ember," he said with a smile.
Her smile got a bit bigger. "Right back at ya, Entei."
-ooo-
"Hiya, Mesprit!" Mew called excitedly as she flew a circle around the being of emotion before tackling her for a hug.
"Uh, hello Mew," Mesprit replied, still a little surprised by the sudden appearance of her best friend.
She often wondered how a calm girl like her could be best friends with a hyper girl like Mew. Then again, Shaymin was best friends with Celebi and that was basically the same thing.
Cody tried to keep up with the conversation. He gathered that his mom was excited about a song called 'I Want Candy', while Mesprit was trying to tell her that the song was not actually about candy at all. He found this too confusing, so he looked around for something to do. He spotted a smaller version of Mesprit and grinned.
Emma was reading her book, The Secret Garden. She was just getting to her favorite part when the book was suddenly jerked from her paws. She glared daggers at the culprit, a blue furred kitten.
"Hiya, dread-locks! Whatcha readin'?" he asked as he looked at the book's cover.
"A book, genius!" she snapped as she snatched it out of his paws and flew back to her corner to continue reading it.
However, the shiny pokemon just grinned. 'Wow! She thinks I'm a genius!'he thought happily as he watched her read her book. He was even purring. He stopped after a while of her ignoring him. He frowned. He liked to be the center of attention. He grinned mischievously as he dipped himself into a puddle. He walked over and shook his body, causing him to become fluffy and her to become wet.
"YOU LITTLE FUZZY FREAK! YOU GOT MY BOOK WET!" she screamed as she lunged to strangle him.
He simple dodged and giggled as she chased him around the cave in an attempt to kill him. His mother had told him that being called a freak was a compliment, so she had complimented him again! Plus, she was playing with him! Yes, he was one very happy kitten.
I hope ya'll enjoyed the chapter! Oh, and if you have any ideas, feel free to tell me! I might not use them all, but I do need some good suggestions. Now, hit that button and review please!