Well I seem to be getting about a thousand view's for the story every two chapters or so. Holy crap. 5,000 views on fanfiction. This is amazing! Thank you all so much. I apologise again for the updates slowing down. Had some intensive uni work.
I've been looking forward to this chapter for a while. Probably a bit too much really, but it continues to make me smile.
Enjoy!
The last thing Sean remembered was pain.
The first thing he remembered was fear.
Sean's eyes snapped open as he rocketed up on the softest bed he could remember sitting on as a single word remained the only thing in his mind. "RAI!"
"Mmm." Rai groaned from the bed next to him and shifted painfully, trying to pull himself up in his sleep before giving up and slumping back down with a frustrated huff.
Sean's whirlwind of one word crashed to a stop as his eyes adjusted. He was in a room. Not a clearing. The room was peaceful, unlike the clearing. There a window letting light in, not the darkness of the clearing. There was the gentle sound of life living its way, unlike the clearing.
His heart thumped painfully, and eyes began to burn as Sean didn't blink. Soon his eyes began to tear up from the pain and he closed them and held them closed, jaw tightening and pointy teeth biting down into his soft lip.
Litleo snored and mumbled something.
Sean started, jumping in place, and turning on the disturbance with wide, pinpricked, eyes. He breathed hard, heart still thumping. Litleo was under a blanket, that was odd. Not a carpet of electrike trying to smother him.
Slowly, carefully, even fearfully, the meowth turned back to where he thought he had seen Rai. The shinx was resting quietly under a blanket of his own, nestled on a bed with sheets as soft as his own.
The muscles in Sean's neck began to relax as he felt exhaustion crashing over him again. He didn't want to close his eyes again, but the first time had been alright.
He blinked a few times, slowly taking in the whole room with clearing eyes. A cupboard there, door slightly open. A basin filled with clear water there, three cloths soaking away. Soft beds stuffed with straw but covered with sheets he didn't even know existed here.
A door that led to familiar sounds, Sean thought he heard the tell-tale cry of. "Hooray!" And he fell back into bed with a groan.
They weren't in Amp Plains anymore.
It was safe.
Sean didn't want to close his eyes, afraid this was just a dream and they were all just dying in a clearing by Shadow Pokémon. Things hurt a bit too much to convince him of that, however.
Sean turned to Rai, checking to see if he was breathing. He pulled an arm out of the blanket that covered him and reached over, brushing against the scrap of tail he could reach. Rai screwed his face and shifted around, easing Sean's irrational fears.
Litleo's snores were still ongoing, and it was to that sound that Sean drifted back off into sleep.
The sun rose and fell before any of the three injured pokémon stirred again.
As with the first time, Sean's eyes cracked open and squinted against the light. His slitted pupils widened and contracted as he blinked rapidly. For a moment, his mind was blank.
The rays of the sun creeping in through the window caught his eye again and Sean hissed in pain, swiping out with a clawed paw at the offending rays before stuffing his face into the comfortable bed he laid on.
Something rumbled in his throat before the headache hit him and Sean groaned. The racket he was pulling ended up causing both other occupants of the room to stir.
Litleo to his left, up against the wall, and Rai to his right, closer to the door, both shifted in their white sheeted beds. The appearance of sheets caused Sean's mind to just halt for a moment as he tried to figure out what universe he had fallen into now.
A quick glance at his paws showed they were still paws. "Do humans have four fingers or five?" Sean wondered for a moment before frowning. "Five. Thumb's a finger."
He felt a brief sense of melancholy for the fabled thumb before the shifting and mumbling of his companions pulled him back to the present.
"Rai?" Sean croaked, voice scratchy and hoarse. He coughed, saying just Rai's name sending his throat into spasms, before saying it again. "Rai?"
Rai cracked a squinted eye open, searching for a moment before his vision cleared enough to make out Sean. Rai started, jolting in bed, before rocking to all fours. "Sean!" he yelled before grimacing as his own throat showed its defiance to yelling.
"Stooop," Litleo moaned, trying to bury his head in his bed. "So loud."
He stilled himself before slowly, almost fearfully, poking his head up. He looked up, then left, and finally to his right. Sean, as the one with the clearest eyes, got a good look at Litleo's expression.
Fear. Distress. Desperation.
He blinked, and the expression was gone. A shaken grin replaced Litleo's fearful expression and he gave a quiet chuckle. "We're alive." He nodded to himself, looking around again, feverously. Sean's ears quirked as he picked up on Litleo's breathing rate speed up. "Alive. Back. Safe. We're safe. We're not drowning." His voice began to break, a mixture of dehydration and emotion causing his words to crumble. "We're fine. We're fine. We're fine."
"We're fine," Sean agreed, adding it in.
"We're fine," Rai said, giving a shaky nod as Litleo turned a borderline-hysterical gaze on them.
"We're fine," Litleo said one more time before sagging under the sheets.
"You're awake." A fourth voice chimed in and all three of the bedbound pokémon jumped. "Oops!" Chimecho said, end of her body flapping back and fourth as if she was wagging her body. "My apologies. You three are all safe here."
"Where?" Was all Sean could manage as the other two were catching their breaths from the spook.
"You're at the guild," Chimecho explained, floating closer. "You arrived three days ago, unconscious and… well." Chimecho glanced away, not wanting to say anything more about how bad it could have gone. "You've been asleep the whole time."
"We're home," Rai breathed, sagging onto his bed as well. "Oh… thank the legends. We're alive." Tears filled his eyes and he turned away, hiccupping as he tried to not make a scene.
"You're all safe now," Chimecho said, ringing a calming chime. "You all woke up as well, that was the biggest hurdle." Chimecho's voice hitched as tears filled her own eyes. "I-I'm so relieved."
Chimecho took a few breaths to calm herself, it would not be professional to cry in front of her patients, nor particularly calming for them, and she composed herself quickly. She smiled at Sean, who was trying to get out of bed and come to her side. "Stay in bed for now," she said gently, but firmly. "All three of you still need a great amount of rest. It's safe to sleep, but first. How are you all feeling? Is there any pain?"
An old medical fact came to Sean and he nodded. It wasn't helpful to yourself or your nurse if you lied or tried to downplay your state. "I've got a bad headache," he said, grimacing as being reminded of it seemed to bring the pain back in full force. "And my torso just… stings."
"Everywhere hurts," Rai admitted. "But help Sean first."
"I kind of feel like my everything is bleeding," Litleo said. "Is that normal?"
"How's your breathing?" Chimecho asked, already floating to her supplies. Litleo took a moment to think about it.
"Not great. It's a little hard actually," he panted.
Levitating in a Psychic grip, Chimecho brought new bandages and several different types of berries. She gave three to Sean, two to Litleo alongside an incense, and brought the rest of the supplies to Rai.
Sean watched curiously as Chimecho did her work. Skilfully peeling off his bandages, not fussed with the dried blood, supplying a salve before rebandaging him. It bothered Sean what he had seen, patches of fur missing and unpleasant looking burns on Rai's body, but Chimecho was quick and efficient, covering Rai up quickly.
"I will inform the rest of the guild that the three of you have woken up," Chimecho said, floating back to observe her work. "Is there anything I can do for you before I leave?"
"More of that incense?" Litleo suggested and Chimecho quickly set some more out. Litleo coughed up a spark, but thankfully nothing was lit on fire.
"If you need anything," Chimecho began, levitating a bell over to Sean. "For anyone, give that a ring and I will be along soon. Understand?"
"Yes ma'am," Sean said, smiling lightly.
Chimecho gave him a coy one back before leaving them to their devices.
She shut the door carefully behind her, closing with nary a click, leaving the three in silence.
A hushed calm fell over the room as neither pokémon chose to say anything. Everyone was feeling roughly the same, sore and tired, yet none of them closed their eyes and settled into a nap.
The air grew tense, anticipation hung in the silence of the room until Sean was unable to take it anymore.
"So that… sucked," he said plainly, feeling their eyes on him immediately as he broke the sacred silence.
"Yeah," Litleo agreed.
"Mm." Was all Rai added.
"How did we get out of that?" Sean asked, realising that none of them had asked Chimecho that exact thing. "Last thing I remember is everything going black with s… pokémon surrounding us. Do either of you remember more than that?"
"Getting suffocated," Litleo said, voice starting light before beginning to shake. "Being pressed d-down and smothered by a… all th-those." He fell silent, squeezing his eyes closed. He didn't want to think about that.
The words he had felt, coming at his very core, were on the tip of Litleo's tongue, ready to tell them what he had resisted, but Rai spoke up.
"No I… I just remember fainting. I couldn't." Rai bent his head, ashamed. "I couldn't beat Manectric. Even though he… it. Even though that monster killed my family, I couldn't beat it."
"None of us could have beat it," Sean said weakly. His mind was still taking its time to return to full faculties, but even now he could remember that such a thing was not right. "A Shadow Pokémon?" Rai and Litleo flinched. "How could we have been prepared for that?"
"It's my fault," Rai said, after taking a moment to digest Sean's words. "I dragged you there and you nearly died. Both of you," he added, remembering Litleo's presence.
Sean shook his head. He had the words to refute that, he was sure, but they were taking some time to reach him.
Litleo scoffed. As snorting would be far too painful at the moment. He grimaced anyway, the action hurting his throat, and flicking his tail as the two looked to him in confusion.
"It's not like you planted it there," he forced out, throat feeling like he had an igglybuff lodged in there. "How is a… that, your fault?"
"I…" Rai began, thrown off from Litleo's defence of him. "I made you both come. If I didn't go there without even thinking, neither of you would have been hurt."
"And YOU would have died," Litleo pointed out. "And you didn't make either of us come, we chose to go."
"You wouldn't have come if I wasn't going," Rai argued back, and Sean finally caught up enough to add his two poké in.
"You were going to find your treasure," he said. "It's not like not going was an option."
"Yes but…" Rai groaned and looked back and forth. "You can't let me stew in my own misery? This wouldn't have happened if I wasn't so hasty."
"Stew…" Litleo whispered, eyes going far as he realised how hungry he was. Shaking his head, he said. "Nope. No stew for you. Get over yourself and stop blaming yourself for this. I was coming to tell you that your funky rock was missing anyway, at least you've started looking for it!"
Sean nodded. "He's right. It might have been a bust. A…" he shivered, thinking back to the clearing. "Even something a tiny bit traumatising. But it's got us looking, so that's great!"
Rai looked between them both for a long moment. Sean's eyes drooped a little and Litleo yawned before Rai muttered, softly. "Neither of you thought it was there… right?"
Litleo shook his head, but Sean took longer to respond. "I… didn't want to dismiss it as a potential start." Rai held his gaze until Sean's cracked and explained further. "But… I didn't think that some stranger, some sableye, just randomly had seen a treasure at the end of a dungeon and not picked it up. It seemed… convenient."
Rai nodded slowly, mouth twisting.
"Sorry."
Rai sighed. "Don't apologise," he said, voice not brokering any argument there. "I'm sorry. This IS my fault, but you don't seem to be letting me drown myself in self-pity."
Sean grinned softly, Rai was getting overtly acerbic, so he knew no offence was taken. "Can't let you do that, you're the light of my… of this team."
Rai gave him a crooked smile and sighed again, moving into a yawn. "It feels like it's been a long day already."
"Yeah I'm exhausted still."
"All I want at the moment is sleep."
No one was particularly thrilled about sleeping. None of them could forget what memories the clearing left them, chatting had silenced them, but they were returning.
Rai was the first to fall asleep, too exhausted from his injuries and the talk to hold himself back. Litleo dropped next, eyes cracked open on Sean for a long time before finally succumbing to rest. Sean took the longest, every time he began to drift off he'd remember a sound, feeling, or fear and he'd jolt back to awake and need to take a look around to reassure himself.
Exhaustion took him in the end and Sean fell into a fitful sleep.
Another day passed before Chimecho even allowed them to step out of the room. All three felines had grown restless and they couldn't sleep the day away every day.
In the time since they had awoken and Chimecho alerted the rest of the guild, everyone came in to see them.
Wigglytuff was the first and he almost devolved into tears of joy and had to restrain his hugs to himself. They were recovering well, Sean was still baffled at the sheer durability of the pokémon form, but Wigglytuff didn't want to risk hurting them and receive Chimecho's wrath.
Corphish was next and being more lucid than Wigglytuff, he was able to explain the situation in ways Chimecho had avoided.
"Dusknoir carried us in his belly?" Sean shrieked upon hearing the news, even the fanboy that was Rai was a little thrown by that revelation, but neither Rai nor Litleo minded much.
"We're alive," Litleo pointed out as Rai's gaze slipped off through the window.
Sunflora came in in actual joyous tears and did hug Sean but refrained from hurting Rai and didn't seem to think a whole lot of Litleo. She brought with her a piece of interesting news.
"Dusknoir left the day after he brought you in," she said, voice even and not shrill as she often became when she was spilling the news. "He said he received some alarming news about the southeast area of the continent and had to check it out 'post haste'."
"Southeast?" Rai frowned. "Isn't that…?"
"Yeah." Sunflora nodded, giving Litleo an obvious look. "Hopefully it's nothing."
"Even if it is the 'Great Dusknoir' surely can solve it?" Litleo said as Sunflora decided she had best get to work.
After Sunflora had left, Litleo turned to the other two and said. "Isn't that where the Guild explored? For Fogbound Lake? That you didn't find or anything."
"Litleo…" Sean said warningly as Rai was cringing. The Fire-type made a face but didn't press further.
Diglett and Dugtrio visited together, but neither were allowed inside the medical wing as their burrowing would damage the floor.
"First time, and last time, I ever came in here Chimecho made sure I had a reason to visit," Dugtrio explained.
Bidoof brought them some snacks, snuck through Chimecho's distracted gaze, rattled off a few knock-knock jokes and wished them good health.
Chatot made a strategic visit after Loudred, who had not been allowed to visit for long due to problems keeping his volume under control.
Chatot begun pacing a hole in the floor of the medical wing until Chimecho froze him in place with a terrifying glare. "Ahem." Chatot cleared his throat, after pausing. "Due to your injuries you have been excused from work for the time being. Until Chimecho says you are able to return to work, you will stay here. There WILL be time made up for this, due to this being an unauthorised excursion into a dangerous dungeon without telling anybody and making each member of the guild worry over your safety and send the whole-"
Chimecho gently coaxed Chatot out of the room before he began showing more emotion in front of them.
"Well that sucks," Litleo commented when Chatot had left. "Great."
"He cares," Sean said, although he himself didn't like the idea of extra work. "But he can't show that."
Rai just gave a soft laugh.
Croagunk was the last to visit them. Being the one to bring them dinner that night. "Meh-heh-heh, good news you two. Three." He corrected, deciding to include Litleo in this announcement. "In the time you've all been asleep, I've finally managed to repair my Swap Cauldron."
"Oh wow!" Rai said, enthusiasm unparalleled in the room. "So Grovyle's tip worked?"
"Yep. Smart guy that Grovyle. Meh-heh-heh." Croagunk turned his lidded gaze to Sean, who was doing his best to look pleased, and Litleo who was just confused. "Some scrape you three got in huh?"
"I feel like I get injured more often then not," Sean said, frowning as Rai looked to him. "This is the worst so far, but it isn't the first time. Those Shadow Pokémon were horrific."
Croagunk nodded slowly, cheek-pouches not moving. "I'd bet. Some serious stuff there. How are you three fairing?"
"Sore," Sean said.
"Bored," Litleo said.
"Alright," Rai said.
All three at the same time.
"Meh-heh-heh, I get that. I mean, mentally? Emotionally? You all nearly died, and it was to a Shadow Pokémon. You know the legends about that, right?"
Sean didn't, and looking around he noticed both Rai and Litleo cringing away. "No," he said, hoping Croagunk would explain.
He regretted it. Realising that maybe he didn't want to know.
Croagunk explained anyway. "They say that if a Shadow Pokémon does you in, you become a Shadow Pokémon yourself. Not sure how true a legend like that is, what legend is?"
Fogbound Lake was true. Was what Sean nearly said, but he held his tongue. He could see Rai was thinking it.
"You can tell if something like that has left any… lasting damage, right?" Sean asked, feeling a mite nervous. He didn't like to think about being dragged down by all the electrike before, even less now.
"Yeah you're all fine physically," Croagunk said, all three breathing a small sigh of relief and muscles they didn't know they had untensed. "But stuff up here." He pointed a deadly hand to his temple. "That's harder to tell. Chimecho's good with healing the body, the best in the area, but no one really knows how to treat the head. But I hear talking about it helps."
Sean nodded. He understood what Croagunk was getting at. But it was awkward, and a little embarrassing, to talk about fears and memory's that now felt trivial. They had survived.
But a part of Sean's head still felt like he was in the clearing.
Rai's burns ached. Cold and hot in ways he couldn't really remember.
Litleo still felt like he had trouble breathing at times. Discretely coughing brought nothing up. No inky blackness he was afraid of seeing. No blood either. Nothing was there, but he could still feel the air being pressed out of him.
None of them said anything. But their expressions were enough for Croagunk. "Make sure you say something when you need too," he said lightly, moving to take his leave from the room. "Bottling stuff up never helps. Alright?"
He didn't seem to wait for a response and left the room, door falling shut with a soft click.
The room fell into an awkward silence. Sean played with a thread, tangling it around a claw. Rai's tail sparked slightly. Litleo took a few deep, comforting, breaths.
"I kinda feel like I'm still in the clearing at times," Sean said, breaking the silence. He flushed under his fur, insides of his ears going red, but he continued anyway. "I don't like thinking about what happened, but I can't help myself at times. I don't like it when it's really quiet."
He refused to look at either one of them. Saying it out loud felt like admitting to a weakness, and he didn't feel like a weight had lifted from his chest. Just that a burden was being pressed onto others.
"Something was… there," Litleo said quietly, also not looking at anyone. They all looked in a single spot, none of them meeting the other's eyes. "When the electrike were suffocating me. It told me to give in. I didn't, I said no. But… something was there."
Fogbound Lake was true. Flashed through Sean and Rai's minds again, but they didn't say anything.
"That… thing," Rai said roughly. "Killed my family. And I couldn't beat it. Is it still there? Did Dusknoir drive it off, or did he just swoop in and save us."
"Dusknoir killed the Shadow Pokémon in Mount Bristle," Litleo pointed out. "He probably would have…"
Rai nodded, breathed a little easier. "I still couldn't. I just… there was nothing I could do against it. Nothing my parent… my brothers."
There were no tears in Rai's eyes. He had cried over them for years. It wasn't the closure he had hoped for in returning to Amp Plains. No due revenge. "And my Relic Fragment wasn't there. It was stupid to go."
"We didn't look everywhere," Sean said, jumping to Rai's comfort as naturally as breathing. "We could… g-go ba..."
He couldn't quite finish that.
Rai didn't respond. None of them wanted to think of going back.
They didn't talk much for the rest of the day. But there was no absolute silence held, something Sean was deeply grateful for.
After three days of loafing around in the medical wing, Chimecho finally let them free.
"You will do NO strenuous tasks," she said, staring all three felines down with a nurse's demanding glare. "That means NO tasks, NO jobs, NO dungeons, NO training. Nothing but short walks, take plenty of rest, drink plenty of water, and if you disappear AGAIN?" Chimecho didn't finish that thought, left them to think up plenty of horrible things that would happen if they disobeyed.
"I'm alright," Sean protested, jutting his chest forward in proof of a lack of the mummy wrapping Rai suffered and plasters that adorned Litleo.
Chimecho stared him down until his ears fell flat and he obeyed.
Sean stuck close to Rai, who was still the most heavily bandaged of the three of them. He was not squeamish and had watched Chimecho's work and asked her plenty of questions she was happy to answer. He felt confident he could replace the bandages if, for some reason, Chimecho was unable to do so and she offered to let him practise on her if he so pleased.
But with walking around in not a single room that smelled like cat on the line, Sean assured her another day. For now, he and Rai, wanted to take a walk through Treasure Town.
A few residents had come by to visit them in their imprisonment. Kangaskhan had come and cried all over Rai. Duskull had spooked all three of them. Spinda brought them each a Life Seed Smoothie. There was a surprising visit from Team Gazer, but each was aware of Beheeyem's role in helping them and gratitude worthy of a shaymin was shared.
Rai received most of the attention. With Vigoroth, Electivire, who had cried on Rai and got banished by Chimecho for it, Marowak, Marill and Azurill, and several more coming to visit Rai.
Now they could leave.
Litleo left the room first, unable to stand waiting any longer now that freedom was within his paws and he, gingerly, hopped off
He avoided what looked to be a hole that had been paced into the floor and then hastily filled and continued on.
However his hasty, in his recovering state, was still slow enough for large, round, and pink to spot him. Wigglytuff, delighted as always, rolled his way over to Litleo.
"Good afternoon friendly friend!" Wigglytuff beamed upon reaching Litleo, the Fire-type looking wary.
"Uh… hi?" he said, not sure about Wigglytuff overwhelming pleasantness.
"How are you feeling?" Wigglytuff asked, walking in pace with Litleo. "Your injuries were quite severe. I carried you in myself after Dusknoir pulled you out of his belly!"
Litleo would have grimaced upon being reminded of where he had been, but what Wigglytuff said caught his interest. "You? You carried me in?"
"Yup!" Wigglytuff nodded with his whole body. "Very carefully."
"Oh. Thank you." Litleo frowned and turned away, continuing to walk. Wigglytuff trotted along, unbothered with the silence. "Do you want me to pay you or something? For the medical care I guess?"
"What?" Wigglytuff gasped, voice so endearingly genuine it paused Litleo. "Gosh no! Never would I charge a friend for being saved! Never-Never! Besides teammates don't pay. It's part of Chatot's budgeting anyway. Stuff I don't get, medical things and food and bleh." Wigglytuff stuck his tongue out, but again Litleo needed to stop and return to something Wigglytuff had blurted out.
"Teammate?"
"Yeah!" Wigglytuff beamed. "You're Meowth and Shinx's teammate, aren't you?" Wigglytuff frowned and looked off into the distance. "Why would you have gone to Amp Plains with them if you weren't?" he questioned out loud, but not actually asking Litleo.
"You... wouldn't mind?" Litleo asked, voice suddenly small. "If I was a member of the guild?"
"I would mind." Wigglytuff nodded and Litleo felt something crack inside. "If you weren't." He opened his arms. "Friendly friend, are you not? We teach well here and would love to have you!"
Litleo searched Wigglytuff's expression, looking for any deceit or jokes. He saw nothing but bare-faced honesty. And cheer. A lot of goofy cheer.
Litleo swallowed and went to speak but paused when Sean and Rai's voices reached them both.
"I'm just saying, what if Chimecho was secretly evil? Who'd ever suspect her?" Sean was saying, obviously joking, but Rai was fluffing up through where bandages weren't.
"She's way too nice to be evil. And, if you forgot already, she saved our lives."
"For eeeviill." Sean grinned, and Rai gave him a truly unimpressed look. They stepped around Litleo and Wigglytuff, giving nods to the Guildmaster, as they continued on. Litleo shooting Wigglytuff a quirky look and receiving a mimed shove.
He joined them, and they didn't notice he hadn't been there.
"This is ridiculous, Litleo tell him Chimecho can't be evil!" Rai demanded, waving a paw at Sean.
"I dunno." Litleo grinned as Rai's expression darkened into a mock-glare. "I think I'll need to hear it all just to make an 'educated' decision."
Wigglytuff danced off to parts unknown as the three felines began their walk to Treasure Town.
"So I think it's a bit early to tell if Chimecho is evil," Litleo said after Sean gleefully repeated everything. "She's got some scary faces, but she DID save our lives."
"For evil," Sean reiterated.
"We don't know that yet," Litleo tutted. "Time needs to be taken, care, before such conclusions can be made."
"Why are you talking all fancy?" Rai asked, giving Litleo an inscrutable look.
"Well these things take time to work out," Litleo explained, stretching out and popping his back. "But we've got the time to work it out. Hopefully not anymore injuries like that, maybe watch how she acts when dealing with bumps and scrapes?"
"She also prepares the food," Sean pointed out. "Perfect time to poison someone."
"Has anyone died from the food?" Litleo asked.
"Not yet."
Rai cracked a smile before snorting in laughter. "You're ridiculous," he said, giving Sean a fond look. "Don't encourage him," he said, looking back to Litleo with a noticeably less fond look.
"I think I've done enough unencouraging so far," Litleo said. It was a simple sentence, spoken with no weight or force. As if without a care to be had. It still brought Rai to a stop.
"Yeah," he said, looking at Litleo with older eyes. "You have."
Litleo stopped himself, looking back to Rai with a cool expression. Sean glanced between the two and frowned, he edged his way to Rai's shadow, but didn't speak as the two stared each other down.
"So I was thinking for our next, much better planned, excursion we could-" Litleo began before Rai cut him off.
"Next excursion?" he almost growled.
Litleo hesitated and Sean witnessed several emotions flash across his face. He spotted guilt, anger, exhaustion, pain, and several more that went by too fast. Litleo swallowed and reigned in any acerbic comments to speak more gently. "Sure. I mean I heard your first journey together didn't end so well either. Beach Cave Calamity or something. A nasty first go, a rite of passage I guess, to get membership into Team Ion."
Litleo gave them a confident look, one that didn't shake even as Rai narrowed his eyes and Sean frowned in conflicted emotions.
"Why would you want to join our team?" he demanded. "Especially after you nearly died. Why?
"Why not?" Litleo attempted, but Rai wouldn't let that cut it.
"No. Tell me why you think you can just force yourself along on our journey and then decide you're on the team after it all goes to shit? I didn't want you to come to Amp Plains, but I couldn't stop you, but you think I'm just going to let you on my team as if nothing has happened between us?"
"If I didn't come, you would have died," Litleo pointed out, mane flickering with sparks for a moment. "I'm sorry, alright? I never meant to make you hate me. I never meant to hurt you."
"So why then?" Rai asked, looking warily at Litleo. "If you didn't mean it, why do it at all? Why for five years? Just tell me."
Litleo frowned and glanced upwards at the afternoon sky before sighing. "For as long as I've known you, everyone has liked you. Everyone knows you as the shy shinx with the tragic life. Wanting to become an explorer so badly, but just never having the nerve." He shook his head.
"You had people, everyone actually, who supported you. They told you to try again later, to always keep hoping, to always look forward. That one day it'll come to you. That if you're patient, you'll be an explorer one day."
Rai shifted awkwardly, he wasn't entirely comfortable where Litleo was taking this, but continued to listen attentively.
"Who was pushing you Rai?" Rai didn't react to the use of his actual name, Litleo didn't even notice he had used it. "Everyone was saying to be patient, to feel better when you couldn't do it, to be content that you'll get there someday, never saying when 'someday' would be."
He growled in disgust. Whether at the past or at himself, even Litleo wasn't sure. "I could see, I was sure that you'd never do it if someone didn't push you. If someone didn't just look at you and say 'good enough, top marks for hopes and dreams' to make you feel better, then why would you improve? I wanted to see you become an explorer, I knew you could do it. But you weren't. You just weren't."
Litleo stopped for some breath and looked down from the sky, looking to Rai with a guilty look. "I took it too far. I know I did, and I really am sorry. I thought I had to balance all the empty praise and well-wishing, everyone saying to feel better and try again some other time like that was going to do anything. I thought it was working too. Sometimes when I pushed you really far you'd go to the dojo, train, then march to the guild."
Litleo paused. Rai didn't need to hear what happened next, neither did Sean. They both knew. But Litleo said it anyway. "But you'd always turn back. Every time. You were so… sure that 'someday' would come that you just wouldn't try. So I thought I had to push harder and harder."
With a stony expression Rai shook his head. "I wanted to prove you wrong, but every time I'd go your words would flash through my head and I'd lose my nerve. I decided you were right about me."
Litleo cringed and nodded guiltily. "I'm sorry. I never meant to make you think you weren't good enough. I was sure you could be. I thought I could make you angry enough to do it, then throw it in my face and say you were good enough. But… it didn't go that way. I was wrong."
Those last three words caused Rai's eyes to widen. "You… said you were wrong?"
Litleo nodded, turning away slightly so he didn't have to look directly at Rai's shocked face. "Yeah, whatever. Not even I can be right ALL the time." He pawed the ground grumpily before sighing and looking back to Rai. "I don't think I was wrong in all regards," he said honestly, getting a raised eye from Rai.
"I took it way too far without a doubt," Litleo said. "But I still think doing nothing but hearing 'good enough' wasn't doing any better. I hurt you in so many ways, things you'll probably never forgive me for, but everyone else wasn't doing you any better either. You ARE strong, and even before Sean turned up you were strong. But you were lazy. I'm sorry for what I did though. There's no… excuse that just makes it better, but I want to try. You, heh, you inspired me really."
Rai breathed out a hard sigh, trying to find the words in the tumultuous miasma that was his formerly understood world. Litleo was a jerk and he was the poor orphan. Now things were seeming less black and white and he couldn't find words.
"I… I… you're right." He went with. "I don't think I can just move on from what you put me through. Not yet at least, not all at once. But…" he paused for a long moment and looked to Sean before back to Litleo. "You tried to make Sean leave me after we beat you."
Litleo's expression was pain and he bowed his head. "I… have no excuse for that. Just anger and embarrassment and frustration. I tried to justify it to myself later by saying it was just a 'test' for Sean. But…"
Rai turned to Sean. "What do you think about letting him on the team?"
Sean, caught somewhat off guard about being addressed, did his best to speak his best thoughts. "Um. I don't really have the history you two have. It's not easy to forgive bullies, something I just know for sure. But…" he swallowed and looked to Litleo who was doing his best not to look vulnerable. "I think he. Uh." He hesitated again, heart doing weird flips, mind telling him this was a bad idea, mind also telling him this was a great idea.
"The story…" Sean thought before frowning and making his mind up. "You know what…?"
He set his mouth firm and nodded to Rai. "If you're willing to work with him. To try and put this behind you and start anew, then I support it." Litleo smiled widely and Rai gave a hesitant nod.
He looked back to a hopeful Litleo and breathed out a hard breath before giving a nod. "I guess we are going to be teammates now." He smiled weakly as Litleo gave a, somewhat teary, whoop. "I think we need to start over on a new foot." He reached his paw out, giving a fragile smile. Trusting Litleo. "I'm Shinx. Or… you can call me Rai."
Litleo looked at the paw for a moment in surprise, nearly reeling at the opportunity given. He quickly clasped it with his own and nodded a thankful smile back. "The names Mane. Mane the litleo. Call me Mane, Rai."
Rai smiled and nodded. "Sure, Mane."
"Thanks, Rai."
They both gave a smile before Rai pulled back. "Okay, bonding over. Let's start the day."
Nodding in relief that everything went better than he dared to hope, Mane began walking. "Yeah let's leave the gooshy stuff to Sean."
Smiling, Sean followed in their shadows as they walked in a comfortable silence towards Treasure Town. "Who said you could call me Sean?" he asked, teasingly. Litleo gave him a grin.
"You can call me Mane if I can call you Sean."
"Sure."
With some weight off both Rai and Mane's chests, they entered Treasure Town with breaths of fresh air.
The emotional weight may have been less, but they were still both sore from the recovery period and Sean caught them both wincing when they thought no one was looking.
He was a little surprised at the relative, to their states, healthiness he was in. "I didn't quite take what they did though," he reasoned after feeling guilty about it.
Everyone was all smiles as they saw the three out and about. A few smiles became somewhat fixed and confused upon seeing Rai and Mane sharing polite conversation, but no one approached them to demand answers.
They looked for Chansey at her day-care, but she wasn't in today and so it was decided to go to the next half of town.
"Little dude!" a very loud and energetic voice startled Sean and Mane as they were nearing the bridge to the other side of town.
Rai, however. "Big dude!" he replied with just as much enthusiasm and tried to run, but stumbled, right up to the boisterous owner.
"Electivire calls him dude?" Sean quietly asked Mane who gave him an amused look.
"Electivire calls everyone dude. No one knows why."
With a bemused smile, he followed after Rai with Mane taking up the rear. He didn't come all the way up to where Electivire held his modest shop.
It was more of a desk to receive applicants then an actual shop. It was bright yellow though, so it attracted attention regardless.
"Haha! You called me dude," Electivire laughed as Rai reached him. "How many Sitrus Berry's you had today?"
"Four." Rai beamed. "How many have you had?"
"Not a one today." Electivire shook his head and patted his belly. "Gave em all to Chimes."
"Is that why she was in a better mood yesterday?" Rai asked, cocking his head. Electivire just grinned a bright smile at him before gaving Rai a searching look and his smile dimmed.
"You still look in rotten shape little dude." Then tears began filling his eyes but Electivire refused to cry on Rai again lest Chimecho descend upon him. "How are you feeling?"
"Much better now that I've got some fresh air," Rai said, nodding firmly and Electivire nodded too and discretely as he could, wiped his eyes.
"Now who have we got here?" Electivire asked as Sean and Mane reached Rai's side. "I haven't been properly acquainted with your new friend I've heard the townfolk gab on about."
Rai turned an expectant look on Sean who introduced himself. "I'm Meowth. Nice to meet you."
"Nice to meet you too little dude." Electivire leaned over his shopfront and reached out a large hand. A sparking tendril snaked down with it and he smacked it with his other hand. "Bad."
Somewhat apprehensive and remembering that Rai and not he was an Electric-type, Sean clasped one of Electivire's fingers with both of his paws and gave it an awkward shake.
Electivire wiggled his finger in response and Sean was, to his relief, not shocked. "So I heard you finally got little dude to join the guild? Fantastic job little dude!"
"Rai did most of the work," Sean said. "Uh, I mean Shinx. He did most of the work, I'm just relieved he's put up with me this long."
Electivire gave a great belly laugh and Sean smiled. The large Electric-type was the odd sort, but friendly.
"Well I shouldn't keep you both here forever, Chimes probably ordered some mandated gentle exercise of some shizz. You keep on going!"
"We will." Rai beamed. "See you Electivire."
"See you too little dudes."
Sean waved and Electivire waved with both hands and both of his electrical tendrils and Sean decided that he could have lived without the reminder of pokémon with tendrils.
He shuddered as the flesh ribbons of sylveon flashed through his mind.
"What are you shivering about?" Mane asked, spotting the spasm.
"Oh just all the probing – hey there's Marowak!"
Mane gave him an odd look but did turn as Marowak passed them. "Good day," Marowak said as he reached them. "Young Shinx? How are your wounds?"
"Much better now that I'm outside," Rai replied, just as easily as with Electivire. "Have you learned anything new about bones?"
"Alas, no." Marowak shook his head and thwapped the bone he carried into his palm. Sean jumped. "But a scholar continues the search regardless of setbacks."
He bade Rai goodbye and gave another nod as Sean and Mane went by. "Oh, Marowak?" Sean called, stopping short. The stout Ground-type stopped himself and turned back.
"Yes?"
"Would I be able to talk to you sometime?"
"About anything young Meowth."
With that, Marowak gave him another nod, and continued on.
"What's that about?" Mane asked as Rai cocked his head.
"Just something I've been thinking about lately," Sean said, brushing the questions off. They crossed the bridge and Vigoroth spotted them and kicked up a dust trail in his haste to see them.
"Shinx! Shinx! How are you feeling? How are you doing? Are you in any pain? Do you need a Sitrus Berry? Why are you out? Does Chimecho know? Don't tell me you snuck out! Don't ask me to hide stuff from Chimecho! She knows everything, and she's really, really, really, really, really, really, really, really, really, REALLY scary when she's mad, or suspicious, or just floating down the street. Have you seen her when she's mad? She's like-"
Rai, with an ever-patient smile, put his paw up and Vigoroth stopped the stream of unyielding words from the apparently infinite lungs of Vigoroth. He took multiple gasping breaths as Sean tried to pull that apart and understand it all.
"I'm feeling better now that I'm outside," Rai answered. "I'm doing about the same as yesterday when you visited. I'm not in any need of a berry. Chimecho gave us permission to leave, but not do anything strenuous. You don't need to keep any secrets. And don't tell that last part to Sean, he's convinced of crazy things I think."
Sean gave Rai a baffled look, wondering how he could possibly have understood everything being vomited at him, but didn't question it. Vigoroth had acted the same yesterday and Sean didn't dare to ask questions he couldn't understand the answers too.
After another bout of a day's worth of discussion ran through in five minutes, Vigoroth let them go and the Kecleon Brother's beckoned them over.
"Shinx!" The green one smiled.
"Meowth." The purple one grinned.
"Welcome, welcome," they both greeted and received smiles in return.
"It seems Chimecho's let you free," Green said, rummaging through a drawer. "This is exciting, exciting!"
"In celebration of your bravery in returning to Amp Plains," Purple added as Green handed him something. "And also for your recovery."
Together they said. "We present you with a fresh apple each, free of charge. Picked just today from the Apple Woods, so their quality is top notch!"
"Thank you so much!" Rai positively glimmered with gratitude as Green carefully handed the apple to him, balancing it on Rai's head as the shinx grinned.
"Thanks," Sean said, smiling. It felt like forever since he'd had an apple fresh from a dungeon.
"What about Litleo?" Rai asked, as Sean took the apple off his forehead and held it out for him to bite into.
Both kecleon blinked and glanced past Rai and Sean to the third member of their trio. "Ah."
"He came to Amp Plains too," Sean pointed out. "And he's just joined the team officially." He was giving Mane a side glance as he spoke, realising that no one had acknowledged him up to this point.
Green and Purple looked to Rai for confirmation and the shinx nodded. "Yup. We're putting bagon's behind us and starting anew."
There was another moment of hesitation and silent deliberation between the two kecleon before Green procured another apple. "We only picked two from Apple Woods recently," he explained, handing it to Sean. "So it isn't quite as fresh as the other two."
"Food's food." Mane shrugged and bit into the offered apple, Sean quickly letting go so Mane's sharp teeth didn't remove more of his blood.
Rai thanked them again and they moved onto Kangaskhan as the Kecleon Brother's began whispering together.
Sean gave Mane a few searching looks, trying to find the words to ask a question delicately.
"Can't just say 'No one seems to like you, huh?'" he thought as Mane challenged his look with something resembling a challenge.
"Not many people seem to be…" he began, looking to Mane who rolled his eyes.
"Just say what you really mean," he said. "No one likes me here."
Rai, hearing this, turned around with confusion evident on his face. "No one likes you?"
"Everyone likes you," Mane pointed out and left the matter in the air to settle. Rai's expression began morphing into guilt when Kangaskhan spotted them.
"Dears!" she called, and Rai was distracted from complicated emotions by Treasure Town's adopted grandmother.
With her was pink and egg shaped and all three of them could recognise Chansey.
"You three look terrible," she said, bluntly, as they reached the two maternal pokémon. "Tell Chimecho you need less loafing around and more Oran Berry's. Sitrus is better for pain, but no one listens. They just like the energy boost and taste of Sitrus Berry's."
"Be gentler on them dear," Kangaskhan chided, coming from around her shop to walk right up to them. The instinctive part of Sean's brain still wanted to run when the muscle kangaroo of Australia's wet dreams stomped up to them.
But Kangaskhan's voice was even and her eyes gentle. Rai had no such fear and allowed himself to be scooped up by the most careful bodybuilder in the area.
"You look better," she said, looking and feeling Rai. "Being outside is good for you, isn't it?"
"Yup!" Rai grinned, he didn't need to explain himself to Kangaskhan. "Chimecho's letting us out now, as long as we don't do anything strenuous."
Kangaskhan chuckled, as soothing as a rockslide. "Not long ago now I never would have thought that was a risk. You listen to Chimecho, you here?" She waggled a finger at all three of them. "She may seem strict, but she's just looking out for you. Chansey as well."
"Thank you for helping save our lives," Sean said, smiling at Chansey who gave him a tired one back. "We heard they called you in and you saved us."
"It's hard to ignore Chatot when he's that loud and flappy," Chansey sighed. "Took nearly a minute to calm him down enough to know what he wanted. We were already half way to the guild though, it was pretty clear what he wanted."
She gave a short stretch and gave Kangaskhan a smile. "I should get to the nursery. Good day Kangaskhan."
"You have a good day yourself Chansey," Kangaskhan replied. "Don't stress yourself and make sure to take things slow."
Chansey waved and wobbled down the street, four pairs of eyes following her.
"Is… she alright?" Mane asked, rather uncomfortable but Kangaskhan gave him a smile all the same.
"Overworked," she answered. "Better question is, are you Meowth and you Litleo alright? I've known Shinx so long I can tell how he's feeling. The two of you I don't know so well."
"I'm fine," Sean answered, popping a shoulder. "It looks worse than it is, I think. Between the three of us, I had the least injuries, so I think I've recovered the fastest."
"Don't go disobeying Chimecho already," Kangaskhan said, wagging a finger. "While no one knows your body, and your limits, better then yourself, if Chansey was not exaggerating, and she doesn't, then your injuries were just as threatening as Shinx and Litleo's were."
"They… where?" Sean frowned, and Kangaskhan nodded.
"From what I heard. There were fewer fresh injuries, as whatever took you all out inflicted on Shinx and Litleo, but a build up of injuries through that awful dungeon was just as bad. You are tougher than you think Meowth."
She smiled, and Sean blushed slightly, then looked to Mane. "How are you feeling dear?" she asked, softer than before.
"I'm good, actually," Mane answered, looking between Sean and Rai. "Better then good. Great!"
Kangaskhan smiled, but a little confused. "Good to hear, don't stress yourself and listen to Chimecho. Understand?"
Mane gave a reluctant nod.
Kangaskhan chatted with Rai a little longer before gently setting him on the ground. "I think this old monster's taken up enough of your time. You'll be wanting to stretch your legs, go to the beach. Don't enter the dungeon though," she added sharply. "If something does warrant that, go to the guild. If you get hurt again there will be consequences. Understand?"
Feeling the fear again, Sean immediately nodded. Rai and Mane were quick to agree as well, and Kangaskhan was all smiles again. "Take care dears."
With repeated stops for both breath and to talk, the new Team Ion took their time in the sun seriously and avoided returning to the guild as long as they could.
With it already being noon when Chimecho let them out, the day seemed to slip away quickly. The days in the infirmary felt like they dragged on when they weren't sleeping, now it was leaving them too quickly.
But all the while, as Rai was stopped and talked to Treasure Town residents while he and Mane stood awkwardly to the side, Sean was thinking.
He'd been thinking about it more often recently, but with nothing to do since Amp Plains except sit around, thoughts he couldn't avoid with work were rushing back at him.
Nothing was more prevalent then his own position on the team.
They had decided to spend the last hour at the beach and Sean decided he had to talk now, or he'd avoid the topic forever.
"Progress isn't made unless it's forced," he thought as he geared himself for this.
"Rai," Sean said, breaking the silence that had fallen on the three of them, lulled by the rise and fall of the tides. "I think we need to discuss something important. Mane too, actually," Sean added as Rai turned to him.
"Okay," Rai said. "What?"
"Yeah, you finally going say what's been on your mind the whole day?" Mane asked, shifting to face him and be comfortable at the same time.
Thrown off a little that Mane had noticed his silent deliberation, Sean begun. "Amp Plains was… bad." He cringed on the inside, this was already sounding ridiculous. "And I think I was the problem." There. Sean was more satisfied with that. "No, I don't think. I know I was the problem."
Nodding that he'd started his point successfully, things began falling into place and Sean went to continue. But paused at Rai's dawning horror.
"You're not the problem!" Rai squeaked. "Everything else was the problem. Me. Mane. The dungeon."
"Hey," Mane protested.
"You're fine Sean. Better then fine, you're great!"
Bemused a little at this, Sean gave a self-deprecating chuckle and shook his head. "Rai, I mean between the two, three of us now, I'm easily the weakest of the team. I've only got two moves, one of which doesn't always work, and I can't do nearly as much as you. All I can do is ferry items around really."
"And that's more than enough," Rai insisted. "It doesn't matter if you're not super strong, you're still super useful and I couldn't get through dungeons without you!"
Smiling slightly, enjoying the ego boost, Sean tried to reign this back. "Rai. You don't have to defend me or anything. I'm just thinking I need to get stronger." Rai's posture began to relax. "I've been pretty lazy lately, just riding on your coattails, or Grovyle's, or Corphish's. All the tougher dungeons we've done we've had someone else. Mane too!"
Mane perked up at being mentioned in a positive way. "Keep going," he purred.
"I just mean," Sean said, edging away from stoking any egos. "I've had it easy. And I keep getting hurt, because I'm not capable of defending myself when you can't. I can't just rely on you, or Mane, to save me every time I get into trouble."
"You get yourself out of trouble," Rai said quietly. "That aerodactyl and all."
"One case." Sean shrugged. "I've got items, but… well. Look there's three of us now. That means we need to buy more items, more food, more healing, to make sure I can keep everyone in fighting shape. That means we need more money. That means we need to take tougher jobs. That means harder dungeons. If I keep getting hurt like this, I'm just going to weigh you both down."
"What are you saying?" Rai asked, beginning to get alarmed again.
"I think I'm going to ask Marowak if he can train me," Sean answered, and Rai relaxed again. "I can't keep just… coasting along. Dungeons are training, sure, but with all the harder ones I've had two people to do the work for me. And now we will always have two." He nodded to Mane who smiled back. "But I don't want to just… be so weak. I've got to actually start working and stop being so lazy. I've got to get Night Slash down, maybe even learn a new move. Cause things are just going to get harder, and I don't want to have to be the one that needs to be protected all the time. Do you understand?"
Rai digested that for a moment before nodding. "Yeah I do." He gave a smile. "You had me worried there for a moment. It sounded like you wanted to leave or something."
"Leave?" Sean's ears went straight up as he realised how he had started their conversation. "Oh my god I did not mean that at all! I'm so sorry."
Rai chuckled. "You weren't so it's alright."
"Get a room you two," Mane moaned, pulling himself up and shaking some sand off. "In fact I think we all should get a room. It's getting late and I kinda want to sleep right here. So… back to the guild?"
"Back to the guild." Rai nodded.
"Back home." Sean smiled and helped Rai up.
"Well actually," Mane said as they began to walk. "I have a house somewhere else. It's still trashed though, probably ransacked at this point. I'll need to go check that out soon."
"Need any help?" Sean asked, and Mane shook his head.
"We'll help," Rai said firmly, getting a glance from both of his companions. "I've never been to your place before actually."
"Not as unique as your absurdly dangerous dug-out cliff," Mane remarked as Rai gave him a reproachful look.
"Sharpedo Bluff is not dangerous," he argued. "It's scenic."
"True art is tragedy I've heard." Mane smirked, and he and Rai got into an argument about living spaces. Sean just shook his head at the two.
Diglett and Loudred let them in. Some level of disbelief colouring their voices when Mane stepped on the grate, but there was no trouble and the three were allowed inside.
Chimecho was already waiting for them as they came down to the first floor.
"You were out for a while," she said tersely and quickly shepherded them down further. "Your bandages need to be looked at. Have you eaten anything at all? You had better not have been around any toxic pokémon. If those Team Skull's are back, you'd better not have picked a fight."
She was quickly reassured everything was fine and Chimecho, after examining them, decided to believe them. Rai got a chance to speak to Wigglytuff, but their conversation was over in just a few moments before Chimecho rang them for dinner.
"A light meal tonight," she announced as the guild entered the mess hall. "We are prioritising recovery eating tonight."
There were the usual Oran Berry's. But multiple other grains and objects that Sean couldn't even tell. They didn't taste very nice. But he did get passed a Plain Seed that was said to be from Wigglytuff.
Only, however, Chatot was the one who had clearly smuggled it in, not doing well at brushing a few small feathers off the seed. Sean decided to eat it and be thankful regardless.
While they ate, most of the guild shot Mane curious looks. Sean couldn't see any antagonism, which he decided was something at least, but mostly just bafflement. More than a few glances went Rai's way as well, but he was oblivious to the attention even after a day of everyone wanting to talk to him.
The meowth made internal bets on who would crack first. Front runner Sunflora turned out to be made of sterner stuff then he thought, as it was Croagunk who spoke first.
"So I hear Litleo's joined Team Ion," he said to the table at large, but directed only at Rai and Sean.
"That's right," Rai nodded. "Guildmaster Wigglytuff says it's okay." He looked to Wigglytuff for confirmation and received an energetic nod in return.
"Yup! Litleo is the newest friendly friend to join the Wigglytuff Guild! Hooray-hooray!"
Chatot gave them all a fierce look when cheers weren't within half a second of Wigglytuff and the whole guild, minus Team Ion, cheered. "HOORAY!"
"Shh," Chimecho hissed, right after joining in on the loudness. "Don't stress any of my patients out."
Wigglytuff smiled, but somewhat apologetically. "I understand Chimecho. That's why I didn't mention it, Team Ion, or whatever they decide to call themselves, do need their rest." He clapped his stubby hands. "That's why Chatot has already arranged a bed for Litleo!"
"He, as a member of your team, will be rooming with you," Chatot explained, an odd mix of authoritarian and apologetic in his eyes. "Understood?"
"Certainly!" Mane grinned and nudged Sean. "We'll be rooming together. Excited?"
"Yay," Sean deadpanned.
"You will be."
"Keep your paws off him," Rai said, giving Mane a dark look. "I'm always watching."
"Creepy."
Rai squeaked and several apprentices, and Chatot, had to smother snorts of amusement. Wigglytuff just began to dance as he was oft to do.
With dinner over, Chimecho decreed it was bed time for Team Ion.
"But mother," Mane grumbled, but let himself be led down. He hadn't been in this part of the guild before and was trying to take in as much as he can, but his eyes kept drooping.
He began to complain, loudly, as his room was the furthest walk, but Chimecho shushed him.
"Home sweet home," Sean mumbled as Chimecho held the door open for them. It was a surprising comfort to crash down on his old, non-sheeted, bed. The infirmary had comfortable sheets, but everything else was strange and unpleasant. Here he could smell home and was reminded of all the enjoyable nights.
A third bed of straw had been brought in and fashioned into a circle and after Sean and Rai had slumped onto their beds, he took the freshest one and grumbled.
"If my house hasn't been looted yet, I'm bringing my bed over."
"Yes-yes," Chimecho tutted, making sure they were all comfortable. "Tomorrow or the day after that. You will not be doing any strenuous activity."
"You're no fun," Mane harrumphed but relaxed into the straw anyway.
"Goodnight you three," Chimecho whispered and floated out the door, leaving it cracked open just in case one of them needed her during the night.
They were tired enough that Loudred's snores probably wouldn't bother them.
"Hey Sean?" Rai asked, with Chimecho gone they could talk again.
"Yeah?"
"I'm up," Mane sighed.
"Good. You're not out yet."
"What is it?" Mane groaned. "And can it wait for a week?"
"I was just wondering," Rai yawned. They were all drifting off, even as Rai was speaking. "Since Mane's on the team now, should we change our team name? Wigglytuff mentioned it's an option."
"Mm."
"It'd be cool or something," Mane said. "Too tired to care yet."
"Do you know anything that'd make sense?" Rai hummed. "Ion was pretty cool, even though I don't really understand it. What's fire, and electric, and normal?"
"Plasma," Sean muttered absentmindedly. "Team Plasma could be cool."
"Mm."
"Mm."
The three drifted off, the day having truly worn them out.
Sean would have time to realise what he said tomorrow.
Two people guessed it, or at least thought it was a possibility! Average Pichu and Lucky_Guardian good work you two! Litleo, or Mane as we now know, joins the crew and completes the duo of cats into a trio of kitties! Holy crap it feels so good to write Mane instead of Litleo. Over the last three chapters I keep accidentally writing Mane and I was getting paranoid I had put his name down somewhere and missed it.
And as you can see, since I am not running with the Chimecho Assembly recruiting thing, Mane is a fully-fledged apprentice of the Wigglytuff Guild. If he had joined earlier, which wouldn't have happened, but had he joined in time, he would have been along for the expedition as well.
So I do want to hear your thoughts on whether or not the name should actually be changed to Team Plasma. My username will remain Team Ion regardless, but the idea is there. I personally think it's hilarious (and I have a funny scene in mind. But just the one. Is that enough for a team name change along with the new recruit?), so I kinda want to do this, but if it's too… weird/stupid, or whatever, tell me now. Should it stick as Team Ion, change to Team Plasma, or go with a third option?