Andre shuffled to the side to avoid colliding with a Ludicolo as he snapped back to the present. Supplies. Right. That's why he was here. Sasha was an Ekans and lots of Pokemon would be suspicious of her before she entered the city, much less a shop. Honchkrow was busy studying their new guest so that left Andre to tend to his own wounds.

It was only once he stepped into the corner store that Andre remembered that he didn't get paid for the job last night. Maybe he could sell off the extras he nabbed from the warehouse last night, a perfume bottle and a small stick split in two at one end. He figured the stick wouldn't be worth much but he could barter a good price for the perfume. It pained him to have to sell his prizes, he would much rather hold onto them. The things he nabbed were never too valuable, but he liked having them.

Approaching the counter, a tired-looking Hypno leaned over the counter to lock eyes with Andre, who placed the perfume on the ground and nudged it forward. They pulled it to them with telekinesis and looked it over. "I can give you 5000 gan for this."

Andre did his best to widen his eyes and make his lower lip tremble. "5000 gan? This is all I have left. Can't you give me a little more?" It was embarrassing, but the sad look had helped him haggle before.

"Kid I'm doin' ya a favor with 5000 gan. Anyone else would barely give you 3000." The Hypno scoffed."And don't try that cutesy routine on me. It ain't gonna work."

Rolling his eyes, Andre placed some bandages and spray bottles on the counter and took the remainder of his money, totaling around 1800 gan. As he turned to march out of the store, the clerk spoke up again.

"I'm feeling some psychic energy from you kid. If you wake up as an Espeon one day, come talk to me, m'kay?"

Andre glanced behind him and half acknowledged the offer before swiftly leaving the shop.

Andre sat in an empty alleyway and began to tend to his wound, spraying it with the chemicals and wrapping it in bandages. Over, then under, then over, then under. The monotonous motion left his mind free to lose itself in thoughts. Psychic energy? What was that old guy saying? No way he would become an Espeon. If anything he should've felt dark power. Andre lived in a cave and worked during the night, heck he was a thief. It doesn't get more dark type than that. If he could even evolve, he would turn into an Umbreon for sure.

He dropped the bandage to apply more of the healing spray, reaching into his bag to retrieve the bottle. As he pulled it out though, the stick he had caught his eye. Maybe he could use it to stabilize his leg, but it was too long as it was now, plus he needed motion in his knee. Using his claws to grab the coarse wood, he pulled it from the bag and placed it over his good leg. He placed his forepaws on either side and began to push down. As he applied more and more pressure a moment of hesitation filled his head. He tried to stop and release the tension, but it was too late. Andre fell forward as the stick snapped in two.

Andre braced himself to stop his face from smashing into the cobblestones, but his paws never hit the floor. In fact, not even his hind paws were on the ground anymore! He was hovering above the ground, almost high enough to reach the second-story windows on either side of him! In a panic, Andre tried to orient himself but all he did was twist and start to spin uncontrollably. As the world spun around and dizziness took hold, Andre only had one thought.

"I WANT TO BE ON THE GROUND! NOW!"

Before he could blink Andre slammed into the stones below him, the ground cracking from the impact. A mixture of relief and pain filled his body. Taking a moment to recover, Andre looked to his side to see if anyone noticed but his eyes landed on the two pieces of the stick. They emitted a dull glow that seemed to fade by the second. A similar glow, as Andre finally realized, to the glow that shrouded his left paw. A vibrant magenta pulsed out from him and kept getting brighter until the dying light from the wand faded completely. What was that thing and what did it do to him? A dull headache began to buzz in his skull. The more he noticed it the more it grew. His paws flew to his forehead where a lump had developed, a bruise from the landing, he told himself. Pushing through the piercing headache, Andre collected the medicine and the two halves of the wand in his bag and ran towards his home in the forest.

"Well, that's quite the story young one. I'm not entirely sure what to make of all this. Identifying the Doublade you brought me is no problem, but this is a different story." The Honchkrow muttered as he tried to make sense of Andre's tale. "What I can tell you is that this is psychic power. T'would explain the gem in your head."

"The w-what in my head!?" Andre tried his best to stay calm but his face betrayed his panic.

Honchkrow did their best to keep a calm tone. "Yes, there is a small red gem in the center of your forehead. This is quite normal for Eevees who are evolving into Espeons. Usually, the evolution process takes some time but it seems to be going even slower for you. Based on your story and the distance to Windy Hill I would expect your fur to have at least changed hue by now. It looks like the process has halted completely though."

A sigh of relief escaped Andre's chest. At least there was some good news. "Can you get it out or something? You're a dark type, psychic power is vulnerable to dark forces so get this thing off my forehead!" He began trying to tug the stone out of his forehead but only succeeded in causing himself pain.

"I'm sorry but once evolution begins, it cannot be reversed. I know it's not what you want, but being an Espeon may not be as bad as you're thinking."

Honchkrow was doing their best to console their distressed friend but to no avail. As Andre turned to leave they moved to follow until he glared over his shoulder, and Honchkrow knew he needed some time alone. He limped out of the cave and curled up on the cliff above the entrance. Night had fallen around him and a breeze shook the trees. The cool air was repelled by his matted fur but his nose and paws felt the cold, causing him to shiver a bit.

The tears continued to roll down his cheeks and snout as he sniffled. Why did the world hate him? He didn't know how he got here, who he was before, or what he was doing and yet the world kept kicking him down at every opportunity! And the worst part was there was no one for him to blame. All that he had was his rage and sorrow with nowhere for it to go.

Andre looked to the sky and wept. There was nothing else he could do. Would he still fit in with the others when he evolved? Espeon was a daytime Pokemon and a psychic type at that. He was so sure that with how close he had become with Sasha and Honchkrow, nocturnal Pokemon, that he would evolve at night, making him an Umbreon. It was going to be perfect. He would even be a dark type, the same as Honchkrow.

The more he thought, the more his rage built and the less he could keep it inside. He needed somewhere to point it, something to take it out on. A nearby tree? A rock in the wrong place? Andre looked around frantically, a wildness in his eyes. He couldn't decide what to direct himself towards. Would destroying just one thing even be enough? No, it wasn't just one thing he was mad at or about. It was everything! The whole world should know his anger, even if only for a moment! His mind was made up. He stood with purpose and dashed into the forest, weaving between trees and bushes. His injured leg cried out in pain but it only pushed him to run faster. The sun fell below the horizon and the world was cast in darkness, but Andre didn't care. His head began to pound and his lungs burned until finally, he let everything out with a scream of pure, unfiltered fury.

The sound echoed out across the dense woods. Branches and leaves began to sway and shake as a pulse of dark energy erupted in all directions. As his head finally cleared and he opened his eyes once more, Andre saw branches and leaves falling around him. A strange yellow light illuminated the woods around him. Wherever he turned, the light followed. Confusion took over, and he limped to a small creek nearby. Looking into the shallow waters at his reflection, Andre could see a yellow ring surrounding the red crystal on his face.

The ring was an Umbreon's, yet Espeon's gem was still there. This shouldn't be possible, yet the longer he stared into his reflection, the more real it felt. Nothing like this had ever happened before. Signs of two evolutions in one individual. Unsure of what to make of this or what to do next, Andre began the long walk home, the cool air persisting and his wounds still burning under the bandages. A war had started, and none were prepared for the changes it would bring.