B.B. POV
Damn that Lombre! He had me so furious that I was seeing red! Why couldn't he just keep his mouth shut? Ever since he had returned to Pokemon Square with the news that the frozen walls of the Stormy Sea had opened up, Bullet had been hanging on his every word, drooling and practically bouncing out of his skin in excitement.
It's not that I was jealous, though! Not at all! Just because Bullet would sit for hours, listening to Lombre with his fantastic eyes sparkling and heart-stopping smile on his face… No I wasn't jealous. I was concerned. No, not quite concerned exactly, I was worried sick! Here Lombre was, glorifying Stormy Sea to the point that it was all Bullet could talk about. Day after day, Bullet would go on and on about Stormy Sea and the amazing things that Lombre had told him about it. He would talk about all the treasures and hidden secrets that were surely hidden away at the bottom of such a deep ocean, and how he couldn't wait to explore such an incredible place.
Is it no wonder I was horrified? Here was my beautiful, fiery angel, going on about exploring to the bottom of a nearly bottomless ocean in a dungeon of slippery, ever-shifting shelves of sea ice! This would be an extremely difficult and dangerous exploit for anyone, but Bullet was a fire type pokemon for crying out loud! What could he be thinking? That dungeon would be filled with water pokemon that could shoot him down before he even sensed their presence in the watery darkness! Not to mention that the light from the fire spewing out from his head and tail would attract the attention of every enemy in the ocean in no time flat! Add on top of that the fact that all it would take was a slight loss of footing and Bullet could go sliding out through one of the many gaps in the ice and get swept away by the turbulent currents that would drown all but the strongest of swimmers, which Bullet certainly was not!
I couldn't even talk him out of it, either. Every time I tried to bring up the subject of Bullet not going, he would look at me with those eyes, so filled with excitement, and my tongue would tie itself into a knot in my mouth. It was no good. No matter how badly I wanted to, I could not refuse him anything.
I had managed to put off the exploration for awhile, with various excuses coupled with the fact that we had no way of getting out to Stormy Sea. However, that period of relief drew to a close when Bullet and I were called to Wiscash's Pond. Wiscash had summoned us to present us with a gift that he had found amongst his possessions. It was a Surf HM disc. Bullet was overjoyed. He danced in circles, bounced up and down, and fervently thanked Wishcash for his generosity. I smiled respectfully on the outside and thanked Wishcash for thinking of us, but on the inside, it felt like my heart had stopped and my body had frozen over. Curse that old man for always saying and doing more than he should! First there was the Ninetales Legend incident, and now this!
There was no avoiding it now. Team Sureshot was making an excursion to Stormy Sea, and there was nothing I could do to change it. It's not like I didn't think that Bullet was strong, it wasn't that at all! I knew Bullet was tough and could handle himself in just about any situation. That's why I trusted him as my partner. It was just that I knew how badly the odds were stacked against him on this one; plus, the thought of anything bad happening to him or him being hurt in any way made me sick to my stomach. I would do whatever it took to prevent something like that from happening, but what if I was distracted or the moment went by too quickly for me to respond? What was I supposed to do if I lost him?
…I had never had someone I cared about so much before. Even if he could never find out about my feelings, it didn't matter. I loved him, but it wasn't just that. He was my best friend, my most trusted partner, and the closest thing to family I had. Nothing else mattered to me, as long as I could stay by Bullet's side. As long as he was happy and safe, then I could deal with the rest.
Bullet POV
I was worried. Well, shouldn't I have been? My best friend in the whole world, B.B. the Grovyle, was acting strangely, distracted and withdrawn. The last time he acted like this was right before we set off to Sky Tower, right before he was supposed to disappear from this world. Of course, I was concerned! I mean, I don't think something like that could happen again. He said it wouldn't. B.B. said that he wasn't going anywhere, after the last time, but… something still wasn't right.
I still often remembered the day that B.B. and I met. I had been concerned with the rising number of natural disasters, as usual, and had gone for a walk through Tiny Woods to contemplate the possibility of forming a rescue team. The idea had occurred to me before, of course, but without anyone I could trust to be my partner for a rescue team, my goal seemed out of my reach. Feeling discouraged by this thought, I absently wandered off from my regular path and stumbled into a clearing, where I saw a Treecko laying in an odd position on the ground, passed out. I was shocked, obviously, but even more than that, I was happy. Not that he was hurt, of course, but because, here was my chance, weak as I was, to help somebody who was in trouble.
At first, I thought B.B. was really quite strange, but my opinion of him quickly changed. When Butterfree came charging out of the trees, calling for help for her child who had been trapped in the ravine in the deepest part of the forest, B.B. did not hesitate. He assured Butterfree that he would get her kid back to her, no sweat. Then, he gave a cocky sort of smirk and scurried off in the direction Butterfree had indicated, in the direction of the ravine. I followed after him, and was astonished by his bravery and determination, even though it was clear by the look on his face that he was completely unfamiliar with everything around him, even his own body moved rather awkwardly as he became accustomed to it.
Watching him fight his way through the ravine, I had already developed immense respect for B.B.. He was someone who knew how to handle himself, and didn't hesitate, once he dedicated himself to something. I could easily tell this, right from the start. I already thought he was a cool guy, but when we returned with Caterpie, from the way he smiled at the kid and pat him on the head, I could tell that he had a really good heart too. He was gentle and kind, as well as being proud and strong. Sure he had a bit of chip on his shoulder, but that kind of added to his charm, I thought.
I quickly jumped at the chance to ask B.B. to form a rescue team with me. I had only just met him, but I already knew that he was the only Pokemon I had ever met that I would trust to cover my back in any situation. It had to be him. I was thrilled when he agreed. It felt like destiny, the way the way we two strangers just seemed to work perfectly together. We grew closer by the day, through the good times and the bad, and it felt like everything was perfect, and just the way it was supposed to be… but then everything changed.
I'll never be able to forget that evening on the Hill of the Ancients…
"Huh? W-why…? Why? I don't understand! Why do you have to leave? Didn't we… Aren't we friends?"
"Yes. You will always be my friend, Bullet. I will never forget you."
"Don't go, B.B.…"
"I'm blessed to have met you."
"I… What am I going to do when you're gone, B.B.?"
"I'm so very sorry. This is good-bye…"
"B.B.! Nooooo!"
Watching my best friend dissolve into nothing more than a ball of light and fly off into the sunset that our world never would have seen, if not for him, I felt like I would die! The one who was most important to me, the one who I would do anything for, was gone! In that moment, I felt like it would have been better if Gengar had left us dead when we plummeted down from Sky Tower, instead of bringing our souls back to our mostly restored bodies. That way, nothing would have been able to separate B.B. and I ever again, not even the fact that he was born human.
Ever since that day, I've always been terrified of losing B.B.. Even if it seemed like a silly fear to him, I still felt uneasy whenever the two of us were apart. Being separated from B.B., I thought that that was the worst feeling, but this was even worse. Seeing him right beside me, but feeling like he was so very far away, this was truly the worst feeling. I could read him far better than he thought I could. I could see that he was hurting, and I could see that he did not want me to know why.
When we received the Surf HM disc from Whiscash, I was ecstatic! This meant that we could finally go on a big exploration again! This could be just what I needed to get B.B. to talk to me about what was bothering him; he always opened up more when we were out in the field exploring or doing rescue work. It was like spending the day fighting side by side would strengthen our bond to the point where I could get past the walls that B.B. kept raised around himself. I don't know if he even realized it himself, but I sure did, and I was grateful for it.
It was settled. We had everything we needed ready to set out for Stormy Sea the following day. Team Sureshot would set out at sunup, with B.B., myself, and our other partner Blade, the Absol who had joined us during our time as fugitives and accompanied us to Sky Tower. I said goodnight to B.B. in front of our team base, like I always did. He muttered a goodnight and that he would be sleeping there at the base that night, then quickly turned and disappeared inside the base. I frowned and stared after him, but there was no sign that he would be leaving the base again until morning.
With a sigh, I turned and made my way back to my home in the Scorched Plains. I arrived at my little room, which was hidden away inside one of the cliffs surrounding the always burning plain, and went straight to bed. I settled into my nest of soft ashes, which were warmed by the hot rock all around them, and watched as the lights of the flames burning outside flickered across the ceiling of the little cave. As I grew hypnotized by the gentle lights and slowly drifted out of consciousness, I promised myself that, no matter what, somehow, someway, before I again slept in this bed, I would make B.B. talk to me. I would find out the truth.