Merry Christmas… I know I should have updated sooner

Loss of Identity Chapter 17, Through time, space, and snow

"Um, Excuse me? Miss Mawile?"

The Mawile at the back of the room turned around to face her guest, shutting the journal quickly with one hand. "What is it? I'm kind of busy with something. Actually, why did you even need me? Ampharos covers the guests and stuff. Please leave, sir."

"I- uh…" Ian stammered over his words a bit. "Sorry, but Ampharos told me to come talk to you."

"About what?"

"Humans."

The Mawiles heart skipped a beat, but she didn't show it. "What about them?" she asked, one eyebrow raised.

"Well, uh, you see, I am- sorry, WAS, a human. About 15 mon- moons ago." Ian said, avoiding eye contact.

The Mawile glared at him. "Just use months, kid. I know what they are. What happened, and why are you here anyways?"

He stared for a moment. Before speaking. "How do you know about months?"

The Mawile cursed herself inwardly. He really was human, and she just outed herself as knowing too much. "Its none of your business"

Ian sighed. "I came to you to ask about where Mew is. I have a sneaking suspicion that they're why I'm a Pokémon right now."

"Mew asked the expedition society specifically to hide records of her existence after Dark Matter. I have no idea where she's been for the past 7 years. You're best off talking to Fen about that." the Mawile stated.

"Fen?"

Mawile let out an exhale. "One of the heroes of the Dark Matter. She's basically a personality born out of Mew's rebirth. She lives in Serene village with Churchill. Your best bet is to go talk to them, and then head out to find Mew." Mawile looked the Umbreon directly in the eye. "One more thing, before you go. What's your name kid?"

"Ian."

The Mawiles jaw dropped momentarily, before she regained her composure. "You don't have amnesia, do you? Every human so far has."

"Actually… I don't. Over the past year or so since I got here, though, a lot of things have slipped my mind… I shouldn't be familiar to you though…" he said

"You don't… remember me?"

"Wh… what's your name?"

"Venus."

Ian stared for a moment at the Mawile. "Wait, you aren't…" he coughed, and turned around, his eyes bugging slightly out once they were out of sight. 'How in the hell… she wasn't even real! An OC! A team member! How in hell is she here?! As the Mawile from super? I… holy shit…' he shook his head, and turned around.

"Do you remember me?" Venus asked.

"Kind of? I uh… think a lot of it must have left my mind, but… I do…. I think." he clarified.

"Good. I'm going to come with you. I dont give a Rattatas ass if it's been 18 years since I've seen you, we'll go find Mew together." Venus said.

"Okay… that helps a lot. I've been alone for almost a week now since my… friend… was held from me." The word 'friend' was strained.

"Well you wouldn't mention it if you didn't think I could help. What happened to her? And yes, I can tell it's her." she eyed him.

"Oh, uh… well we worked in Frosted Village ever since I woke up as an Eevee. She found me somewhere on the northern mist continent last… September was it? I guess September in this world, February in my world." he took a breath. "Once we got to the village, encampment, whatever, we started a Discovery team."

"There's your problem. Frosted village is a branch of the society here. After the Bittercold incident, Neo and Nova were left extremely paranoid of humans, and left to start a branch of HAPPI, now renamed to the Expedition Society." She paused to think. "I assume, then, if she's not with you and you're here without gear, they banished you."

"Spot on…" he had a guilty look about him. "They put Ava- that's her name, by the way, under house arrest in the village, and threatened to kill me if I didn't leave. They said they didn't want me bringing disaster to the village." Ian was shaking. "I don't know what happened to the village or Ava, and I'm… really worried."

"Well good thing you came here, then. I'm going to send out a letter tomorrow with the executive order to send Ava here. If they disobey an order from me or Ampharos, we can have the branch shut down. If they hurt her in any serious way, we can prosecute them, even. They were supposed to report any humans to the society so we can help them. And…" she paused for effect. "You'll see Ava soon. Promise. Every human so far had a partner. Brandon, Brandt, Churchill, Jonah, and now you. I'll also talk to Ampharos about starting an investigation into world ending events. As much as Neo and Nova's behaviour is unacceptable, they have a reason to be suspicious. Every human so far has brought with them a world ending event, or in the case of Jonah, 2. But for now, we'll talk to Churchill and Fen, and head out to find Mew. After that, you and Ava can meet up again, and we'll get you set up with a proper exploration team, or if you want, we can help you get jobs somewhere. That is, if a world ending event doesn't rear its ugly head. Regardless, what me and Ampharos have learned is that keeping the humans from their companions never ends well. And vice versa.'' Venus said.

"So basically…" he was a bit overwhelmed by the information. "We'll go get mew, then I can finally see Ava again?"

"Yep."

"Thank you, Ma- Venus. Where should I stay the night though?" Ian asked.

"In case you haven't noticed, you're an Umbreon."

"Thanks captain obvious." he rolled his eyes.

"You're nocturnal. I'm going to get some sleep, and tomorrow I'll get the letters sent out and Ampharos warned, and tomorrow evening we'll head out to Serene Village. I guess stick around Lively Town, or explore the town outskirts a bit. Just don't go into the dungeons alone. You can go dungeon mad, and it's extremely difficult to come out of that." Venus explained

"I know that. Last year, Ava and I helped John with it. He had to get a lot of therapy and training to get himself back to a proper state of mind. And even now, he's banned from entering any dungeons since it would basically destroy him."

"Good. Now get going. I'm busy, and tomorrows an important day." Venus said, before turning back to her journal. Ian left shortly after.

Venus sighed, before chuckling a bit, which turned it her howling with laughter. Eventually, she stopped. "I can't believe it… I spent 15 years searching for him before… he just shows up… jeez…" she wiped some tears from her eyes, and started writing.

Outside the headquarters, Ian looked around. It was still late at night, a waxing gibbous moon above. It would be a few days before it peaked into a full moon.

The streets of the town were empty. Some buildings had dim lights in the windows, presumably from lanterns, and the cobblestone of the street glistened. It was wet with water from the snow that couldn't quite stay on it before melting. To the east, about two hundred metres was the ocean, its inky blackness reflecting the starlight. The sleeping Lapras at the port, and the small docks far below.

Ian sighed, and started off to the west of the town. 'May as well go find something to eat… I don't think anywhere is open right now.' he thought, as he exited the main gate, and entered the small wood outside the city.

The moonlight shone through the roofs of the snowy trees, and the sound of Ian's paws in the snow crunched and squeaked as he walked. The land sloped upwards ever so slightly, eventually reaching an ultimatum. A small ledge overlooking the woods, and lively town, the bright moon above, with a cave behind.

Ian looked out at the sight. A strange feeling brewed within him. The entire place felt attuned to his mind and body, and now with the bright moonlight, his body screamed at him to do something.

So he did. He thought it was ridiculous, but he couldn't resist it, and he raised his head to the sky, letting out a long loud howl. It was loud and high, carrying for a long distance. It seemed to complete some part of him, and the ambience of the area seemed at rest.

Eventually, it subsided, and he looked back at himself. His rings were glowing brightly, and he was holding himself ever so slightly differently. More… naturally.

'Heh, I can't believe I just did that.' He thought, chuckling a bit. 'A civilised Pokémon, even with the soul of a human just… giving in to instinct like that. It felt good.'

He pondered his situation for a moment more, before heading back down into the woods below.

As the late afternoon sun shone down on Lively Town, its residents went about their day.

Many Pokémon could be seen in the square running around with errands and such. Some were buying things from Lively Town's Kecleon branch, a pair of Krookodile could be seen entering the inn, and a Diggersby was outside a shop in the market. All was right with the world.

Inside the expedition society, Venus shot awake on her desk. She had fallen asleep last night writing letters, and slept in.

'He should just be outside town.' She thought. 'I'll go find him, and we can get going.'

She looked down at the papers under her. 'Forgot to finish these… whoops.' She thought, taking out a stick with charred wood on the end, and writing onto the parchment.

Just outside of the main gate, an Umbreon slept. He had fallen asleep sometime last night outside the gate.

He slowly awoke to a cold feeling in his fur, noticing a cold breeze as a cloud passed over. He shivered, before standing up. "Oh yeah." He quickly dashed into town, clearing up his messy fur with one paw so he didn't look like a wild Pokémon. He tripped over himself trying to do that, however, and chuckled internally.

'Ava would have loved that. It was like when I first got to this world. I was hardly able to walk.' He thought, a sad smile gracing his muzzle. 'I'll be able to see her again once I find Mew. Then this whole thing can be over.'

He approached the Expedition Society HQ, and stepped inside. Venus was in the main lobby handing a stack of papers to Ampharos when he noticed Ian.

"Ah, it's you from last night! Venus has caught me up with everything that happened to you. Suffice to say, you'll be in good hands very soon, mister Ian!" Ampharos said, his cheery personality shining brightly.

"Thanks. And, uh, just for now, call me Umbreon… I guess. I don't like other Pokémon using my name unless we know each other well. It just… didn't go well last time." He responded.

"That's quite fine then my boy. I guess I'm lucky my creators have graced myself with a name then. Much easier for me!" Ampharos laughed.

"Might have just been laziness, but hey, if you like it you like it."

"So are you ready?" Venus asked. "Everything else is set."

"Yeah. Should be. I kept all my stuff on my person."

"Then let's go. We're wasting… uh.. not anything actually, since we'll travel at night." Venus said.

"Yep." Ian said, as the two of them left the building, and entered the town square once again.

"Did you have anything to eat recently?" Venus asked the Umbreon as they passed the Kecleons store.

"...No. Probably should, though."

Venus grabbed him by the ear. "I'm legally still your trainer, and have to take care of you. We're gonna get something to eat before we leave so you dont starve."

Ian winced. "Let go, please. I'm fine."

"If you're hungry, you're not fine. Come on." She let go, and brought him to the Kecleons stall.

"Hello, welcome to Kecleons Mart! What can we get for you today, Miss Mawile?" The sole shopkeeper, a green Kecleon said. To Ian, he sounded like he had an almost middle eastern or Indian accent.

"2 travel kits. And extra rations Kec." Venus said, before dumping about 500 Poké on the counter.

"Of course!" He handed her a large bag, and smiled. "Here you go, miss!"

"Thanks."

As she walked away, Ian spoke up, his ears pressed slightly against his head, agitated. "Okay, can you not grab me like that again? I'm not okay with it. That, and I can get stuff for myself. I'm not some kid. I'm 17, and able to act on my own." He said, eyeing her. They stood at an equal height.

She avoided his glare. "Sorry. I've just been really worried, and I'm still protective of you since you were my trainer."

"I get that, but I'm not your trainer. So from now on, just… don't. I hardly even remember any of it, so it just feels awkward." He said.

"Alright." And with that, they left Lively Town.

As the 2 of them travelled, they were mostly silent. A conversation did some up between them though.

"So why are you so short?" Venus asked him a couple days later while they trekked through a grassy field. "Most Umbreon are about three foot three. You're probably two-ten, at most."

"I'm small for an Umbreon?" He asked.

"Small? More like miniscule. You're the same size most Leafeon grow to. It's kind of hidden by that thick ass fur coat you have, but otherwise, you're really small for an Umbreon." She said,

"Thanks for the morale boost." He deadpanned. "It's weird though, I was really tall when I was a human. I don't remember the exact height though. It explains why Ava almost seemed taller than me during the day after we evolved."

"By the way, how did you evolve?"

Ian looked away, remembering what had happened on the mountaintop, and stayed silent.

"Oh my Arceus, you didn't…"

"No! We didn't! Jesus Venus, get that stupid maw of yours out of the gutter!" He was blushing hard now.

She laughed. "Then what happened? Everyone knows that Umbreon and Espeon couples evolve together.

"I just… it was when I fell in love, and accepted my own fate as a Pokémon… only for it to shoot right back in my face. I hate having to use my former humanity to get other Pokémon to listen to me. It feels wrong since I want to identify as one and just leave my humanity behind. But I can't until I get back with Ava and figure out why I'm a Pokémon." He explained.

Venus sighed. "Sounds like you don't even know who you are without Ava. What your identity even is. That's rough."

"It is."

"Then for your sake, and for Avas, we'll wrap everything up, and we can all go home." Venus said.

"For our sake." Ian confirmed.

And with that attitude, they continued the long trek to Serene Village.

Ava sat there. Alone.

She had been sulking for over a week in Frosted Village, under house arrest for helping her best friend. How was it such a crime to them? Humans hadn't brought the disasters! How couldn't they see that? She was angry, and was unable to do anything about it until the sentencing was up. Until suddenly

Knock knock

Avas head looked up at the door. She then ignored it. She didn't need to talk to anyone right now.

Whoever was at the other end opened it, and came in anyways. It was neo and nova. They had a frustrated look on their faces.

"What do you want now? To berate me more?" Ava asked, the salt evident in her voice. "Well you don't have to. Just leave me alone."

Neo simply levitated a piece of paper over to Ava without another word, and the 2 of them left, closing the door.

Ava looked at it, and annoyedly, read it over.

"This is the message from the Expedition Society addressed to the leaders of the Frosted Village branch, from Ampharos and Mawile.

We have received word of the 6th former human being found, and have spoken with him ourselves. You are to release their teammate, Ava Espeon, over to us. Failure to comply will result in termination of the Village branch by the officials. You are to show her this message as well.

To Ava, we're sorry about the blatant racism against the human having affected you so severely. We'll keep an eye on you at HQ until Ian is done with his errands, and you can either continue to work out of the Water Continent, or leave to find your own lives, presuming there is nothing serious affecting the world.

We are expecting to see you here within one week."

Underneath the writing was 2 different pawprints, presumably from Ampharos and Mawile.

Ava looked confused, when suddenly, a sort of aura around her vanished. It was the same one that Neo had set up to keep her from leaving. She was free.

'He's fine… he made it to the Water Continent… but what errands? I'll ask when I get there.'

And with that, Ava stepped outside for the first time in nearly 2 weeks. The town was empty, everyone having gone out on missions, or otherwise. Ava walked over to the town hall, and stepped inside. Neo immediately gave her a dirty glare.

"What do you want? You can leave. So leave and be with the human." Neo said, venom dripping from her voice.

"Give me the journal you stole from him."

"And why should we do that?" Nova said. "It's not yours."

"Because you used his own private musings against him in an unfair trial. You'll never have to see me again after this. Or him." Ava stated.

A small worn leather journal appeared beside Neo. She had teleported it in. "Go."

Ava quickly snatched it up, and stuffed it in her bag, which she had grabbed earlier, and left the village, not looking back.

She would reunite with him, no matter the cost.

Meanwhile, across the world, in a small wooden hut in a small village, 2 Pokémon were asleep.

The two of them had been through a lot in the past 7 years, but winter was always their time to rest. The village, overlooked by a large tree on a hill, and Revelation Mountain, had always been quiet during the winter. The large number of grass types living there didn't take winter very well, and despite not being grass types themselves, the Pokémon inside slept anyway.

Until the door knocked.

One of them, a fairly short Lucario shot awake. "Whazzat!? Oh… someone's at the door." it knocked again. The other Pokémon inside was awake now too. A Braixen.

"Can you get it Churchill? It's probably just Carracosta coming by for whatever reason…" She yawned.

The Lucario stood up, and stretched, before shivering. "Arceus it's cold in here. This dang house has no insulation." he walked over to the door, which knocked again. "I'm coming! Chill!" he said, opening the door to 2 Pokémon.

"Oh, Mawile. And… Umbreon… uh, hi. Here, come in, it's cold out." Churchill said, ushering them in."

"Thanks." Venus said. "We need to talk, the 4 of us I mean."

"Sure, what did you need?" Churchill said.

"Who is it?" the Braixen said, walking over to the main room."

"It's Mawile, and someone else, Fen." he looked a bit confused. "Never seen you around before."

"Yeah, who are you?" Fen asked.

"We'll get to that." Venus said, slightly miffed. "Ian?"

"Hmm? Oh, sorry. Uh… hi, my name is Ian, I'm uh… you're a human Churchill?"

"Yeah, some ancient one. Me and Fen are Team Horizon. We stopped Dark Matter a couple years ago. Like… 7 I think." he said. "What about it?"

"I am- sorry, was, another human. And we're looking for Mew. I'm about ninety five percent sure that Mew is the reason I'm a Pokémon now." Ian said. "Ve- Mawile said that since there's no records of Mew at the expedition society, that you would be our best bet for finding them."

"And for that you'd be correct." Fen said. "After Mew fully separated her soul from me in Purifying Cave, well, she left. She told me where she went since I was still technically part of her, but then vanished. She left to go to Mystery Jungle again on the Grass Continent. I would be careful though." Fen said. "After our souls separated, since we never were truly a full soul each, she ended up with mostly the angry and resentful part of it, and I ended up with mostly the happy and nice part of it. Basically, Mew became a resentful and rude Pokémon after she left. It also means I'm hardly capable of feeling most sorts of negativity."

"So basically we have a salty ass Mew in the middle of the Grass Continent?" Venus clarified.

"Yeah. seeing as it's about a week's travel to Treasure Town alone, would you like me to teleport the 2 of you there?" fen offered with a smile.

"That'd be great, Fen. What about Ian though?" Venus asked. "He's a dark type. Wouldn't it not work on him?"

"Actually, I don't quite know why, but it won't be a problem. It might have something to do with the way he evolved, but I can still psychically 'see' him." Fen said

"You can stop talking about me like I'm not here." Ian said, annoyed.

"Sorry. But yeah, I can teleport the two of you to Treasure town, and then you can travel to Mystery Jungle from there. Are you ready?" Fen asked.

"Yep."

"I guess."

"Then hold on." and with a flash of light, Venus and Ian vanished from the house.

Yeah I think I have some explaining to do. After July I was kind of burnt out from writing, and took a month off, which turned into school starting back up, which took most of my free time. I finally managed to squeeze this out after Christmas break started a few days ago. I might have another one out by the end of break, but don't count on it.

In other news, I'm pretty sure this is the 50k word mark as well. So that's nice.

Big thanks to Sparkfire for beta reading this chapter. I had asked him to do it back in august, but then I forgot to write for 4 and a half months.

And yeah, I promised I wouldn't abandon the fic. I even have an idea for another Pokémon one (unrelated to this one sadly) which I might post chapter 1 of soonish. It's gonna have a totally different focus.

But yeah, thanks for reading. Please review if you can, it means the world to me to see what people think of this fic. Have a good day, and Merry Christmas!