Lunatone and Solrock

The nights were beginning to be tinged by cold. At this time, day and night were equal in length. In a few days, the nights would be slightly longer than the days. Pokemon migrations would commence, plants would begin a storage phase before they died or went dormant. It was the start of autumn.

Solrock hated this time of year.

The rock Pokemon didn't even hate winter as much as he hated autumn. Winter at least had its own kind of charm. It turned so cold that most days were peaceful and calm, wonderful for meditations. On the other hand, autumn was frantic with activity to finish everything before death or some form of death came. Even Solrock had to prepare, storing and conserving his solar energy before the days grew short and gray. Autumn was simply dismal.

At times like this, Solrock occasionally thought back to when he had lived in space. Not much happened out in space, but at least there was always a source of solar energy available. If something blocked his light, he could just move out of the shadow's way. When living on a planet, he had to endure night. Not to mention the shifting seasons, aggressive Pokemon, rainy days, and a thousand other annoyances. Sometimes he considered going back to the quiet of space and the asteroid belt.

He was also tempted to spin up some fire for some heat. But no, he was in conservation mode. It was simply cool now. It would be cold later. Deep in winter, he would really want the heat. Back in space, he could have spun himself constantly to keep warm, and he had. But that was when the sun constantly shone on him and his kin. On this horrid planet…

A noise from higher up on Meteor Falls caught Solrock's attention. As he turned around, he spotted a silvery rock, about the same size as himself, rolling down the staggered cliffs of the crater. However, it didn't ever hit the ground. It bounced about playfully as if it was hitting the sandy cliffs; little splashes of water followed its progress. It was the Pokemon that had led him down to the planet years ago, Lunatone.

He grumbled softly to himself. Of course that was her, irreverently cheerful when he was feeling the start of autumn blues. She had her reasons for being cheerful, and Solrock felt them whenever she was near. Lunatones were random mutations in the space-faring Solrock race, crescent shaped silver Pokemon that always turned out eccentric. However, while Solrocks could live hundreds of years in space, the Lunatones would never live a single year.

It had been a tragic mystery, and then this one had convinced him to come down to this planet. Now she was forty years old and thriving enough that she had replicated several Lunatone offspring with no trouble. Solrock still didn't get why being on this planet helped her to survive. However, he also had to worry that this seasonal cycle would cut his life expectancy drastically.

"Solrock!" she called out, despite being ten feet from him. "Want to race me down the cliffs?"

"No," he replied. "I want to be left alone."

"Aw, why?" she asked, floating closer.

"I just do. It's the first day of autumn, when things go dismal."

"Oh. Fall's pretty, I think. All the trees turn red and orange and yellow, then when the setting sun hits Mount Ember's ashfall just right, the whole world turns orange. And of course there's all the leaves on the ground, which are fun to stir up." She laughed.

"Everything dies, or prepares for something like dying," he grumbled.

"No, a lot of the Nincada eggs hatch this time of year. And they bury themselves in the ground to develop further. They're kind of lazy creatures in that way."

"Can't you tell that I want to be left alone?" he snapped. "I even told you so; I would notice immediately if you didn't want to be bothered."

She tilted herself a bit and blinked her odd red eyes. They were always opened wide instead of mostly closed like him. Her descendants were like that too. "Why would I want to be alone? Besides, maybe I notice that you do, but I don't care. Or maybe I notice that you want someone to talk to despite saying that you don't want me to bug you." She shook herself in an amused manner. "I'm smart too, you know, just not as old as you."

Solrock grumbled under a whisper for a bit, but she was right. "The time I get in the sun is falling," he said finally. "Sorry, but I find myself getting cranky around this time every year. I suppose it's good for you, since you seem more active at night."

"Um, that's not it," she replied. "I like the night when the moon is in the sky. But then I like the day when the moon is in the sky. And I like the full moon best, which is always at night. So whatever the sun does, it doesn't matter to me much. But then you like the sun best, so of course you get cranky now." She twirled herself around vertically, showing off.

"But in the end, you're a different Solrock," he pointed out. "I absorb sunlight, but there's no such thing as moonlight."

"There isn't?" she asked, almost as if daring him to prove moonlight didn't exist.

"The moon reflects the sun's light, which is why it only shines when it is not between this planet and the sun. So it's not really moonlight, but sunlight in reflection."

"But I'm not influenced by the light of the sun that reflects off the lake here," Lunatone countered. "I like the light of the sun that reflects off the moon. But that takes too long to say, so I like the moonlight."

"That's still not 'moonlight'."

"And, I'm always happiest at full moon and quietest at new moon. Therefore, I must take in moonlight like you take in sunlight. Hah!"

"But then why were you born into a space-faring race, with little access to moonlight?"

"That's probably why the other Lunatones died so quickly. Your meteorite cluster only came close to the moon every now and then. Was it those times that Lunatones appeared? So that means that we were always meant to come down to this planet! Because what use would a species be if part of its group was dependant on a resource that was only available a fraction of the time?"

He gave her a hard look for a moment. "I'm miserable because of this planet sometimes. What with autumn and winter giving me only a bit of time to absorb energy and all the other Pokemon around here who have no respect for meditation and thinking, I think about going back up."

"That's still more time than the other Lunatones had in space." She spun again. "Anyhow, I'm staying here. I like it here. It changes all the time on this planet. I bet if you did leave, you'd miss summer and spring. Maybe even winter and autumn."

"Maybe," he admitted. There were good points to living here. Like all the changes.

"And you've got a lot more to do around here. What did you do in space all that time? Absorb sunlight and think? Here, you can play with other Pokemon and those human creatures. And your thinking actually impacts stuff, because you've got to think and plan in order to survive the nights and the winters."

"That is true. We can see what happens rather than just discussing it."

"So if you went back to space, I bet you'd be bored real fast and come back. Anyhow, if you won't play with me, I'll play twice as hard to make up for it. Wheee!" Lunatone threw herself up to the top of the cliffs to roll down them again.

"And if I went back," Solrock mused, "I wouldn't have you around for entertainment."

...

Lunatone Sapphire entry: It becomes very active on the night of the full moon. This Pokemon was first discovered 40 years ago at the site of a meteor strike.

Sapphire entry: Sunlight is the source of Solrock's power. It is said to possess the ability to read the emotions of others. This Pokemon gives off intense heat while rotating its body.

Written for the fall equinox. And Lunatone was the 200th Pokemon for me. Wowza.