Chapter 15
I woke up unable to breathe. There was a brief moment of panic before the cause of my asphyxiation woke up and stepped off my face. Red blinked at me as I scolded him, unaware that he had done anything wrong.
The cave was much easier to see in the morning light. The Aurorus was still in the center of the room, still asleep, and still curled around the Amaura. I crept around the cave, carefully, so as not to disturb it.
I considered giving the Amaura a burial, but a quick test revealed that the ground outside was far too frozen to dig any sort of hole. In the end, I enlisted Luna's help in quietly moving the body to a secluded corner of the cave and stacking loose rocks around it. We decorated the makeshift burial site with branches of pine nettles from the trees outside and any stray flowers we came across.
With that done, I gathered my Pokemon, who were in varying states of alertness, and we headed for the exit. I would have loved to stay with the Aurorus for longer, but my rumbling stomach was a painful reminder of our lack of supplies.
It was a clear day outside, the sun reflected off the white snow, forcing me to shield my eyes. The frozen Weaviles remained in the clearing from the day before and I gave them a wide berth, just in case, as I set out.
I kept my Pokemon out this time, both for warmth and comfort. Crystal and Red were the smallest and had to be carried. Shock was just light enough to avoid sinking too far into the snow. I watched him, jealously from my position thigh-deep in white, until he stepped on a weaker surface and plunged into the snow with a surprised squawk. Luna, on the other hand, was perfectly suited to this cold weather and walked next to us with no trouble. Already weak from hunger, it was a challenge for me to wade through the snow and carry two Pokemon at the same time.
We hadn't gotten very far before we heard footsteps behind us. I turned around and was surprised to find the Aurorus following us.
"Uh, good morning!" I greeted it.
It walked right up to us and tipped its head towards us, the sails around its necked billowing gently as it did so.
"Do you... want to come with us?" I asked, shifting my weight from foot to foot.
In response, it looked at me and jerked its head, motioning to... something. I just stood there, trying to figure out what It wanted to tell me. Eventually, it gently took my arm in its mouth and led me around until I stood next to it. It nodded its head toward its back.
"You want to give us a ride?" I marveled. It nodded.
The events of last night re-played in my head and I examined the smooth expanse of skin that I knew was freezing to the touch. Lamenting my lack of extra clothing to use as a buffer, I murmured a thank you and clambered up its body. I positioned myself at the base of its long neck, trying not to think about the icy cold slowly seeping through my pants.
I clutched Crystal and Red closer, hoping their heat would keep me warm. Ever the obstinate child, Crystal wriggled out of my grasp and made herself comfortable in the space between my legs. I adjusted her position so she wouldn't fall while Red reclaimed his station inside my shirt. Once they were both secure, I gratefully patted the neck of the Aurorus and we started moving.
We covered much more ground this way than we would have if I had been on foot. I began wondering what would have happened had the Aurorus not come along. I hadn't eaten in a day and a half and Crystal was a lot heavier than she looked. If I was being honest with myself, there was probably a pretty low chance that I would have made it to the town on my own.
As we traveled, I distracted myself from the ache in my stomach by watching Luna and Shock. Shock was still struggling, not yet used to walking in the snow. Next to him, Luna would occasionally misstep and purposefully tumble into the snow, looking for all the world like she was mocking him. Shock would gripe at her each time she did this and she would snap back at him. I giggled as I watched them bicker with each other.
We traveled for the better part of the day, during which I had to break up several little "arguments" between Shock and Luna. We took a small detour, courtesy of the Aurorus, which resulted in a meager lunch of wild but edible berries. At one point, Crystal decided she wanted to touch the snow and I threw myself from the Aurorus's back to save her from sinking too far down.
Finally, we made it to a settlement tucked into the mountains. Thanks to our detour, we arrived as the sun was setting over the mountaintops. We came to a stop above a cliff. Below us, we could see the sparkling lights of a snowy town. I slid down from the Aurorus and wandered to the edge of the cliff.
"Well, great," I said, peering over. "How are we supposed to get down there?"
The Aurorus, in response, hummed and gently nudged me out of the way with its nose. I didn't have the energy to resist. I watched as mist once again began to emanate from the icy crystals along the Aurorus's body. The temperature of the air dropped around us and for a moment, I worried that we were about to be frozen. I noticed then, that the mist seemed to be collecting in front of the Aurorus. The amount of mist in the area continued to grow. Then, with a sharp jerk of the Aurorus's head, the mist coalesced and solidified into an enormous jagged wall of ice.
My mouth hung open as I stared at the wall that now towered above all of us. Before I could ask how exactly this helped us, the Aurorus was at the base of the wall. It leaned into it, putting all its body weight into the push. It dawned on me what it was trying to do and my Pokemon and I moved to help it. With all of us pushing against it, it wasn't long before the wall of ice shifted, and ever so slowly began to tilt over the edge.
The other end of the wall hit the ground with a mighty crash. The ice fractured upon impact but held together. What once was a wall, now served as a slide.
Crystal was the first to put this together and she wasted no time. She flung herself from my arms and onto the ice. Her feet slid from under her and she went hurtling down the slide, spinning wildly. Without the energy to be worried, I simply smacked a hand to my forehead, exasperated.
Luna's eyes went wide as she watched Crystal fly down. She let out a yelp that stemmed from either concern or surprise... or both. She rushed to the edge of the ice but was unprepared for how slick it would be. Her momentum wouldn't allow her to stop, however, and she went sliding down much faster than she had anticipated.
Upon seeing this, Red's head collided with my chin in his excitement. He clawed his way out of my shirt and then he, also, went skidding down the ice slide.
Shock, who had cautiously approached the ice, was taken by surprise. He yelped and jumped into the air as Red barreled past him and, unfortunately, he landed on the ice. He dug his front claws into it in an attempt to stop himself but all that did was spin him around. He proceeded to slide down backward, eyes wide, his claws gouging the ice the whole way down.
I sighed and rubbed my chin as I watched them go. Once I knew they had all reached the bottom safely, I turned to the Aurorus.
"Are you leaving then?" I asked.
A slow nod
"Are you sure you want to?"
It cocked its head.
"You don't have to live out there all alone." I held out a hand, an empty Pokeball resting in my palm.
The first reaction of the Aurorus was to recoil. Its sails flared out as it looked away. But slowly, it turned back to me. I lowered the ball and reached out with my free hand. I stepped closer to it and, regardless of the cold, gently placed my hand on the side of its face. It hummed softly and I couldn't tell if it was from sadness or something else.
I had no idea how long I stood there, gazing into its deep blue eyes, but when I pulled my hand away I could barely move my fingers. I held out the ball again.
"I'd like to repay you for everything you've done for us," I told it. "I want to give you a home. Somewhere you'll be loved and taken care of."
The Aurorus stared at the ball and I held my breath for a painfully long moment. It gradually inched closer, until finally, it closed its eyes, nudged the ball, and allowed itself to be pulled in. The ball wobbled one in my hand before it clicked and was still.
"Thank you," I whispered, hugging the ball to my chest.
I tucked the ball away and made my way down the ice slide to join my waiting Pokemon. From there, it was a short albeit, cold, walk into town.
It was a huge relief to once again walk on paved roads. I stumbled through the quiet little town searching for the tell-tale orange roof of a Pokemon center. Once I had found it, I let the nurse take my Pokemon, and I sunk into one of the chairs in the lobby.
It was blissfully warm inside the Pokemon center and the ice that had frozen to my clothes was slowly melting into the cushion of my seat. It felt good finally rest in a place that wouldn't kill me if I sat still for too long.
When the nurse called me up to receive my Pokemon, I walked to the counter in a daze. My mind was running through a list of things I still had to do tonight. It wasn't enough to just reach the town, I had to find out where this town was, as well as find food and a place to sleep.
While the nurse was handing back my Pokemon, a tall woman emerged from the doors behind the counter. She took one look at the state I was in and gasped.
"Oh! You poor thing, have you been up in the mountains?"
I jumped, startled by her intensity. "Uh, yes I have."
She drew her eyebrows together, forehead creased with worry. Her long brown hair swished behind her as she approached me. Warm brown eyes scoured my dirt-stained face. "You don't look like you're from around here either. Do you have a place to stay?"
"Well, no..." I said, shrugging.
"Wonderful!" She clapped her hands together. "You can stay at my place!"
"Oh, but I don't want to impose or anything," I said quickly, "I'll just find a nice-"
"Nonsense!" the woman cut me off with a wave of a pale hand. "I have a spare room upstairs, and supper should be ready by now." My stomach growled audibly at the mention of a meal. "See?" she continued, ignoring the embarrassed blush that grew on my cheeks. "Now, come with me, it's only a short walk away."
The woman put her hands on my shoulders and began steering me out the door. I cast one last fleeting glance at the nurse who stifled a giggle as I was led out of the Pokemon Center.