Disclaimer: I'm gonna pull one from the vault for this chapter. Haven't used it on THIS story though, so it's technically new, right? Right?

Anyways uh... without further ado...

I COULD NEVER HOPE TO

I COULD NEVER HOPE TO OWN YOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOU

COULD NEVER HOPE TO OWN YOOOU

DON'T OWN ANY PART OF POKEMON

THROW OUT YOUR LAWSUITS

NO!

WILL NEVER OWN

WILL NEVER OWN

WILL NEVER OWN YOU

(Awesome Medici Guitar Solo)

Chapter 43: Insatiable Hunger

Shelligan

Adventure! Has anything but the stirring of heart and loin produced such sonorous soliloquies, such powerful poetic language, such thrilling and captivating prose? Sirs and mesdames, I think not, and for good reason! Nothing gets the blood pumping and the imagination spinning like the thrill of discovery, the promise of achievement, and yes, perhaps even the trappings of romance sprinkled along the way. As long as mortal beings hold fast to ambition, the call of adventure will never go unanswered!

That being said, our particular band of travelers was experiencing a ferociously strong bout of adventure fatigue after the past few weeks, as it seemed we were bouncing from one catastrophe to the next. Explosions, poachers, criminal gangs, and of course Death himself had beset us, and while we had walked away time and again it was not without scars. The skin on my back was crawling and itching something fierce, a product of having rammed into things with my shell too much. The perils of needing to knock so many murderous beings unconscious.

The next few days of quiet travel, then, came as a much needed recharge for all of us. The weather gradually grew cooler as we passed into the month of December, snow crunching beneath our feet and decorating the all-encompassing pines of the mountain forest, making for quite the scenic route. The absence of Medici made it an even more tranquil, meditative journey, and while that was nice in some ways I couldn't help but worry for the boy. When I saw Maxilla Radio Tower first crest over the horizon, I felt a wave of relief rush over me, even though we were still a day off. Soon enough.

We made camp that night near a large outcropping of rocks next to a ridge, Maxilla's buildings just ever so visible from our perch. In addition to making everyone feel worried, Medici's absence had also left us without a chef, and though the efforts of Axel to try and take his place were admirable, his cooking tasted like the backside of a Grimer, to be perfectly blunt. Amber, bless her dearly, snuck us Pokeblocks after dinner to tide us over, but my stomach was still in a rush to get to Maxilla and bask in the midst of the food carts once more.

"Shelligan! Sheeeelligaaaan!" I heard Axel call, and I emerged from my shell slowly, weary from the day's travel and the food-induced coma Axel's latest concoction was threatening to put me in. "There you are, your magnificence," he grinned, already getting me to forgive him a little for his Apricorn and Razz Berry ghoulash. "Can you find Inigo for me, buddy? Meet Qwill and I at that ridge right over there..." he pointed to a sparse area about a hundred paces from camp. "It's been long enough, I want you guys to do some team building with Dragonette."

The time had finally come. I felt my stomach unsettle from more than just food, a sensation near identical to opening night jitters. I had done this before, true. Twice. But both of those times the creature that might snap and try to tear me to shreds was barely any larger than I. It did need to be done, though, so I sprung to a salute with as much bravado as I could muster, making my way into the woods in search of my Treecko compatriot.

I found Inigo at the base of a tree, lying in the snow, the pitch black Pokeball he'd taken from the hunters clasped to his chest. "It is an odd contraption, is it not, Shelligan?" He turned the ball in his hands and tapped the top gently, not needing to look in my direction to know that I'd arrived. "Have you seen such a thing before?"

"Barnum and I were not the sorts to mingle with people who'd use such horrible things." I leaned against the trunk of the tree. "But, yes, I've seen them before. I remember in Califrey a Swellow got away from its trainer and started careening through rooftops. Officers managed to tranquilize it, but the drugs reacted poorly with the stardust lining its veins. Poor thing was dead before they got it to a Center."

"Sad," the Treecko said, though his tone didn't indicate it. He sat up from the snow, shaking it off his head and turning to face me, setting the ball on his knee. "Is there any hope for rehabilitation? I find myself having conflicting ideas about what to do with this Tyrannitar; wondering if burying the ball and letting it die in peace is the kindest option."

"Axel won't let you, even if it is. You know him." I took the ball from the Treecko a moment, casually juggling what I knew to be an enormous and deadly creature. "I think you're over-complicating it. Get it to the Center, let them transfer it to a ball that will keep it more comfortable, and then... well, we can let Axel decide, right? Perhaps he'll want to keep it for our team."

"I do not want that." He extended his Leaf Blade a little, drawing in the snow, nothing in particular, though his composition work was better than I'd anticipated. "If Axel chooses to keep this Pokemon, it would be his sixth. And that means if he were to encounter another Deathling and capture it, he would have to make a choice. Transfer someone." He lifted up his arm, cutting a notch in the tree next to me. "We have built a team that would be a shame to break up. But it is also not wise to let one of Death's Pokemon enter the storage system. It is a conundrum I do not enjoy thinking about."

"Then don't, Inigo," I suggested, laying a hand on his shoulder. "I get that you feel responsible for this thing, but it's ultimately not your decision, unless you're planning on becoming that thing's trainer. Bothering yourself with what might or might nor happen is only going to distract you." I shook him gently, trying to lift his mood. "And you know what the Entertainer's Code says about distractions."

"Do not be distracted, be the distraction?"

"Precisely," I chuckled, handing him back the ball. "Either way, we've got more important things to worry about right now. Axel's calling us together. It's time to start breaking Dragonette in."

He nodded, rising to his feet and collapsing the Pokeball, fastening it to his body much like a human would before darting off towards camp. I shrunk into my shell and spun along after him, both of us arriving at the outcrop around the same time, filing in next to Qwill as Axel walked down the line, patting us each gently on the head. "You guys have done well making each other feel welcome so far, so I'm not too worried," Axel smiled, rolling the Skarmory's Pokeball between his fingertips. "But... if the three of you need me, I'll be back at camp. Just holler."

I gave Axel a salute, letting him know I was ready. Inigo nodded slowly, and Qwill nodded up and down rapidly, his foot drumming against the ground as fast as a Buneary nervous with stage fright. Axel lifted his arm, and in my mind I could hear the drum roll beginning, the slow, steadily building music reaching a sudden crescendo as the ball hit the ground and burst open, the enormous metal bird within flapping its wings once before landing on the ground, the force of the gale produced forcing us to brace ourselves lest we stumble backwards.

"Heya, Dragonette," Axel approached the creature slowly. It stooped down so that it could look him in the eye, and my trainer, very gently, reached over and placed his hand on its metal bill, smiling. "It's been a while, I'm sorry, we got busy. Now that things have settled down, though, I wanted you to meet the team." He backed away, gesturing to each of us. "I want you guys to get to know each other, and be able to function without me around, so I'm going to be heading back to camp." He pointed towards the small column of smoke still rising from the smoldering campfire. "Have fun!"

I put my showmanship to good use and kept up a brave face as he walked away. Dragonette watched him leave, teetering back and forth on its claws as if it were debating whether to follow him or not. Not wanting things to go south already, I interceded, stepping forward. "Hey there! Dragonette, yes? Welcome to our humble little caravan. I am the Magnificent Shelligan, master of the performing arts, and..."

"What's that guy's name?" I was caught off guard by the voice. The fact that it was feminine was shocking enough, even though I knew the Skarmory was a woman after the name it had picked, but there was something else. A curious quality, sounding not unlike a toddler asking a parent about something, though the creature's size and markings indicated it was well beyond that phase of development.

"His name is Axel," I explained, happy that the conversation seemed to be off to a good start. "He's our trainer and a good man, you're lucky to..."

"Axel. Like an axe. Like for chopping. Got it." I gulped uncontrollably, and the Skarmory casually leaned over to clean its enormous wing. "It's just sort of weird because I'm not killing people anymore even though I want to even though I don't, you know? And the guy who's trying to help me with that who I hate but I don't hate because he's nice has a weapon in his name which makes me think about killing people again." It lowered its beak down, pecking at the ground. "I don't know. It's weird. I don't know."

I opened and closed my mouth, then turned to Inigo. "I think I understand what you are going through," the Treecko said, stepping forwards. "I am Inigo, and I was like you once. I understand how difficult it can be to extricate Death's voice from your mind, keep its influence at bay. If you need anything..."

"Oh no, her voice is definitely gone, don't worry about that..." We all did a double take, Inigo's the most pronounced.

"His voice... is gone? That can not be correct." The Treecko did his best not to sputter, though his voice wavered a hair. "Perhaps it has not attempted to contact you again since your release, but it will. You will need to be ready."

"Not his voice. Her voice." The Skarmory corrected. "And I don't know... I haven't heard her at all since I was captured which sucks because I liked her voice but is great because she was making me kill people and apparently I'm not doing that anymore even though I want to because it's fun but it's not fun because it makes people dead." There was some kind of important revelation there, but before I could press Dragonette further, Qwill finally spoke up... to the effect you might expect.

"Why are you talking like that, miss dragon lady?" Qwill chirped, running around in a circle to calm his nerves. "You keep contradicting yourself and saying things over and over and over and over again which I guess makes a little bit of sense in case you think that we didn't hear you the first time because you're so much taller than us and might have to shout and you might not want to shout because then Axel and the others might think you're being mean when you really just want to talk, but we can hear you just fine, ok? And that still doesn't explain why you keep saying one thing and then the other like you have both opinions at the same time because most people only have one opinion at the same time and yeah ok maybe that's just my opinion but you should really pick something and stick to it! As long as it's the not-killing part of it because killing is super wrong and you shouldn't do it because life is scarred or something like that and I guess killing means that the scars don't ever heal? And yeah, it sucks to have scars forever so I can see..."

The Skarmory narrowed its eyes and lifted one of its claws, then stopped, placing it back down. Then lifted it again, causing Inigo and I to ready ourselves for attack, then set it back down again, grunting. Qwill continued on, either oblivious to Dragonette's displeasure or unconcerned by it. "He doesn't count as a person, right? He's a Pokemon? I can kill him?"

"No, you definitely, absolutely can not kill him. Thank you for asking first."

"Why not? Pokemon kill Pokemon all the time in the wild. Heatmoor and Durant practically build their identities off of their predator/prey relationship. "

"Yes but he's on the team, you see. The team we're trying to include you in. So he's off the menu, so to speak." I laughed nervously, finding it hard to keep a straight face. Her articulation scared me, alerting me that there weren't any second thoughts in her head.

"Oh well, if I was going to eat anyone it'd be you, don't worry about that." She cocked her head and... smiled? Is that menacing look supposed to be a smile?! "You look like you'd be super tasty scrambled all up and slurped out of your shell, if you don't mind me saying so."

I do mind! I very much mind! "That's uh... I suppose I'll take that as a compliment."

"Good! Because I meant it as a compliment because I think I might like you even though you're kind of weird and sweaty even though I kind of just want to eat you but I also like you so I think I won't even though I'm hungry." It blinked, then let out a soft caw, beginning to turn around to look off of the outcropping. "I'm actually... really hungry, now that I think about it. That stuff inside the Pokeball isn't great, I want something... fresh..."

"Well, uh..." This was getting out of hand quickly. Whether influenced by Death or not, this was a bird of prey and it was already scanning the horizon, looking for something to swoop down upon and feed. We couldn't let that happen... not yet. It would be out of our reach within seconds, and if it tasted blood... "Actually, we should be in the town of Maxilla by tomorrow, so if you can hold off for just one more day, you'll be able to feast to your heart's content!"

"But on human food, right?" It flapped its wings, stretching, looking ready to soar. "Human food smells weird and bad but also kind of good and I kind of want to try it but I didn't ask me and I think that I should probably just stick to hunting. I think I see some Gogoats in that field down there..."

Inigo narrowed his eyes, preparing a Vine Whip in case the Skarmory decided to dive, and Qwill had begun to gnaw at one of his front paws, flame on his back burning brightly. "Waddawedoo waddawedoo waddaweoo?" he whispered to me. "If we wait too long she might get away from us and then she might kill something and then she might remember that she likes killing things and not be able to argue with herself about it and then oh my gosh town isn't that far away she could fly there in minutes and then she could start killing people and oh my gosh Medici and Gardevoir are there too what if she..."

"We will not let her get the chance, Qwill," Inigo dug his feet into the ground. "If she lifts a claw, I will restrain her while you get Axel, understood?"

"Wait! Wait, both of you, we can't let this happen!" I said, darting forwards, thinking on my feet. "Oho, well perhaps you think that a meal of Gogoat sounds delicious now, but you have no idea the splendors you'll be ruining your appetite for once we get to Maxilla, my dear."

"I think that's ok. I'm kind of curious still but I'm also not because I want to eat now and I doubt that there's anything in Maxilla worth waiting for."

I reeled back with a loud gasp of utter, inconceivable horror, playing it up as much as possible. To my relief, the Skarmory turned her head towards me... and in that brief moment of curiousity, I struck. "You couldn't be more wrong, my well-burnished friend. Maxilla is so renowned for its cuisine that ballads have been written about the wonders of its taste! Why..." I cleared my throat, and raised a hand to the sky.

In Maxilla, sweet Maxilla, exist a noble three

A trinity of flavor that most everyone agrees

That thou must try before you die, and so I sing to thee

Of Maxilla, sweet Maxilla's delicious potpourri.

Was I making the song up as I went along? Yes. But there was truth hidden in the verses somewhere. And most importantly, a spark of wonder was beginning to glow inside the pupils of my now captive audience, who folded her wings and hunched down closer to me.

We start off with a dinner that will stoke your deep desires!

The belly of an Emboar, roasted in its natural fire!

When bathed with spicy sauce and paired with noodles from the fryer

The taste is so electric it's like licking a live wire!

Back once again to noodles, because there we can't go wrong

We find some that are gently softened by a Chimecho's song

When steeped in hearty chicken broth and served beside Oolong

We understand why every day it's consumed by a throng!

In Maxilla, such pleasures are not few nor far between!

With noodles, in comes carrots, celery, and some fine mung beans!

When scattered by artisanal hands and dutifully steamed

They rival any meal you've eaten in your wildest dreams!

And that is why, in Maxilla, a tongue is never bored.

A city packed to brimming with the finest cooking lords.

Such pleasures for the palette sound outrageous to afford.

But we shall feast there anyway, of that, please rest assured.

Qwill let out an excited yelle and clapping his back legs together in applause, and Inigo shook his head, slowly clapping as well. Dragonette, eyes wide, was drooling the slightest bit and looking squarely at me. "That sounds... wow..." Her stomach rumbled heavily. "Now I'm even hungrier! But I can't spoil my appetite until I try this noodle thing even though I think the word sounds silly and stupid and Gogoat is still a delicious meal but I think noodles will be even better if they've got songs written about them." She bounced back and forth on her claws a bit, shaking the ground, and perhaps it was a trick of the light but... I could have sworn she shrunk in size a bit, her head now slightly underneath the tops of the trees, rather than towering over it. "What was your name again?"

"The Magnificent Shelligan." I bowed, maintaining eye contact with the Skarmory all throughout. "A humble, world-weary, well-traveled performer who only seeks to amuse. At your service, my dear."

"I like you! And I kind of like you too. And I like you as well, but that doesn't mean much, so I'd ignore that."

Right... noted.

Author's Note

I think at some point I intended there to be more packed into this chapter, but I realized that it's been a while since I've let Shelligan really breathe. I really enjoy how this turned out, as it gave us some insight into some of the relationships we've only briefly looked at before: Shelligan and Inigo alone, or how the 'core three' interact with each other and decide on things when Axel isn't around.

I don't think I have much else to say, actually. Everyone will be in Maxilla next chapter, and as I'm sure you may have guessed, lots and LOTS of noodles will be bought. As for what else happens... tune in next time to find out, I suppose. Shill shill, review please, shill.

Viva la feminism?