Suddenly, my feet felt something. Grass. Ground. A place to stand! I opened my eyes, despite the burning, and found that I was in the scenery that the portal shown. I panted with heavy breaths; man, that hurt so much. My whole body was completely sore. It hurt to even breathe. I looked down and glanced at my body; yep, it was still yellow and covered in fur. Wait a minute… I was standing… then, how come I'm closer to the ground?

I tried to speak a word and take a step, but suddenly my body gave out. After so much physical pain, I wasn't able to move anymore. I winced and felt my body slowly start to lean forward, meaning I was falling. I closed my eyes and readied for impact. Just as I came closer to hitting the ground hard, I felt two arms grab my torso and gently place me down on the ground.

I then heard the first voice say, "Oh no! Is he okay?"

Then the second voice said, "Yeah, he's fine. It looks like he's over exhausted and maybe a little sore."

"S-Sore?" the first one asked in a worried voice, "You mean… you don't think he was in pain, do you?"

"Well… his human body and this body… they have different bones, muscles, everything…. He must've felt everything change…" the second one replied.

"Oh my... you mean..." the first one replied, "He felt everything... his body breaking and...?"

After the voice trailed off, the second one sighed and said, "I'm afraid so... Darn it, we should've asked Jirachi if this would happen or if we could've avoided it."

"B-But…. I didn't want Thomas to get hurt," the first one said, sounding sad and regretful.

"Neither did I. For now, let's get him to the base and check on him there," the second one replied again.

Base? What base? I didn't see any building before I closed my eyes. And why did these voices know my name? More importantly, how did they know about what I went through and how I was sore? And how in the world did they know about Jirachi? It didn't make sense. And also, where were Buizel and Poochyena? I didn't see them when I got into this place.

"How do we get him back to the base?" the first voice asked.

"You're going to carry him," the second said.

"Okay. Will you please keep a good hold of him so he doesn't fall off?" the first asked politely.

"Don't worry; I'll keep him straight. I don't think he can move right now, so I'll make sure he stays on," the second one answered, as I slowly felt two arms grab around me.

With a little exhale, this person or whatever it was placed me onto something furry. I didn't know what it was, but… it felt so soft and nice. I was completely limp, as suddenly I felt like I was moving. Whatever the furry thing was, it started to move with me on top. Then, I felt my body start to slide to the right. Just as I was about to think I was falling, the two arms gently straightened me back on top. Whenever I started to slide, the arms would guide me back. Who was it that was helping me? Where were they taking me?

Suddenly, I heard something. Water. It wasn't rushing, but still water. I could feel it too, as the air got a little cooler. I suddenly felt a shade… a shade of a building in the darkness loom over me. I suddenly felt the two arms pick me up off the furry thing. I then was placed on a very nice place. It felt like a bed of some sort. But it was able to hold more than just me.

I suddenly felt relaxed and calm. I slowly but surely opened my eyes. I was in some sort of big cozy home. I tried to look around, but my body was too sore to let me. I then heard something approach me. I looked straight up and saw none other than Buizel on my right and Poochyena on my left, kneeling over me.

My heart became fluttered with joy. They were all right. I was so relieved. I wanted to say something to them, tell them I'm sorry and what happened, but then something happened that made me speechless.

With a wagging tail and a face that was overjoyed, Poochyena smiled and said, "Hey, Thomas."

My eyes widened. HE TALKED! Poochyena spoke English and I was able to understand him! How was that possible!? What was going on!? Did I die and go someplace? I mean, that pain back there was incredible; did it kill me without my knowledge?

I then heard a soft chuckle from Buizel. I looked over at him. He was grinning and looking at me with love.

"Wow… you look great," he said, happy and excited for some reason.

I was amazed. Was this… the gift? The ability to hear my Pokémon talk was the gift? If it was… then the pain was worth it. But… there was so many things I didn't understand. I had a million questions I wanted to ask. I tried to move, but I couldn't budge. My body was so sore and numb. I groaned in response as I felt Poochyena's paw gently touch my arm.

"We know you probably have tons of questions right now, like what just happened to you, where are we, and why you can understand us talking now," Poochyena said with a smile, "but right now is not the best time. It's getting late."

Buizel nodded with a smile and said, "Your body is over exhausted. You can't really move, and your voice is still getting used to the changes. You need to rest and recover, okay?"

No, it wasn't okay. There was so much I wanted to learn. I grunted, trying to move and speak. I wanted them to hear me. I wanted them to know what I wanted them to know. But then, a gentle paw from Buizel was placed on my chest.

"No, Thomas," he said, "You need to sleep. I promise when you wake up in the morning, we'll answer any questions you have."

"We know you're excited, Thomas; heck, we are too," Poochyena said, winking at me, "But let's have a good-night's rest and then we'll spend all day tomorrow together."

Buizel then turned to him and asked, "Brother, can you get the blanket please?"

"Sure, bro," Poochyena replied and obeyed.

Brothers? You mean Buizel and Poochyena were brothers? No wonder they were so close to each other. Why did I never think of that? I watched Poochyena disappear for a moment and Buizel look back at me.

He placed his paw on my head and rubbed it gently. It felt really enjoyable. Something about it made my whole body tingle with a good sensation. I closed my eyes and smiled. Buizel chuckled as I heard little footsteps come closer.

I opened my eyes to see Poochyena with the orange and white blanket! I was so happy to see it. Poochyena wagged his tail and smiled at me as he gave the blanket to Buizel.

"There you go, brother," Poochyena said with a smile.

"Good job," Buizel said, "Now go ahead and lie down with Thomas. I'll get the blanket over us."

Once he did that, he then walked over to my left side, laid down on his side, and snuggled into me. He snuggled his muzzle into my neck and rested his left front paw on my chest.

Buizel then sat down next to my right and spread the blanket over all of us. With that, he laid down, snuggled his nose into my neck, and hugged my around my stomach. Both got comfy and sighed in happiness. Then, they said the words that I had said to them two nights ago.

"We love you, Thomas," Poochyena said.

"We love you so much," Buizel said.

They loved me. They really loved me. I smiled and closed my eyes. I felt at peace. Buizel and Poochyena's fur made me feel wonderful. Not only that, but because of our love, the blanket felt like Heaven in warmth around me.

I felt the soreness starting to leave my body and the fatigue slowly affect my eyelids. I yawned deeply and then snuggled into both of them. The two Pokémon then hugged me tighter and made me even sleepier. I didn't know what had happened to me yet, but at least I knew that I could trust them about it. So, I went to sleep, awaiting the amazing adventure that would be before me and my two buddies.

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