It was the second day that the rain persisted on for, and Lucario looked down at the little memorial he had built, right at the foot of the tree that his treehouse was situated upon.
The memorial itself was a little wreath, made up of the flowers he could find all around. And at its very top, was the only feather that Decidueye left him. It was all hung on a thick, albeit short branch sticking out of the tree trunk.
As Lucario looked down on the little wreath he had built, a solitary tear formed in his eye, though it was quickly washed away by the rain pouring on him. The Aura Pokemon looked up at the dark clouds. It didn't look like it was going to stop raining anytime soon.
Chapter 1: "In the heart of mediocrity."
" In the heart of mediocrity, you may find the quiet strength that sustains the rhythm of life."
It has been three days since Decidueye's sudden disappearance, and Lucario couldn't stop thinking about it. What was it that made him leave? Was it me? Or maybe a human had caught him?!
Thoughts like these were often followed by his wails and cries of longing for his father. The constant thoughts of whatever could've happened to Decidueye haunted him, and they just wouldn't let go.
But after those three days of sitting and grieving alone in his treehouse, he found that the food stock as well as the water stock have been running dry. Besides, it's unhealthy to sit all day and do nothing, he just had to do something, anything!
Lucario got off his hay bed, walking up to the crate with food and grabbing the basket that was laid neatly right beside it. Surprisingly, it was lighter than he had remembered. Then again, he did evolve, so the evolution process must've strengthened him physically.
Lucario stared out at the shining sun through the entrance to his treehouse, uncertain if she really should go. But he couldn't just sit there and starve to death! So, with a quick leap forward, he swiftly made it down on the ground unscathed.
Lucario then put the basket down on the ground, grabbed the ladder by its lowest step and tossed it at a branch that was low enough for him to reach it, but high enough for nobody else to do so.
As Lucario walked through the forest in search of fresh berry trees, the basket in his paws, he felt yet another sting in his head, like a Beedrill stabbing him. The pain was enough for the Aura Pokemon to drop the basket down to the ground, kneel down and grab his head to maybe help with the pain.
Lucario closed his eyes shut, clutching at his head and hearing the same voices as he did the moment he woke up as a Lucario for the first time. Only this time, they weren't imaginary.
A sudden pat on the shoulder awoke Lucario from his trance like state and sent him recoiling backwards in shock. He looked ahead to see who that someone was, only to find a Lycanroc's muzzle sniffing away at him like a dog would.
"Ah! Who are you?!" Lucario started off, getting up on his two feet and walking backwards.
The Lycanroc huffed, looking at Lucario with a confused look. "A cowardly Lucario? Huh. Never seen that one before, and neither have I seen you before." He moved closer again, continuing to sniff Lucario from a distance.
"Cowardly?" Lucario echoed, bewildered and surprised at Lycanroc's words. "I'm no coward!" He said valiantly, even though his previous actions said contradicted with his words.
"Yeah, yeah, whatever." Lycanroc stopped sniffing Lucario and sat down in front of him, looking at him expectantly. "So, where do you hail from, traveller?" He said, a smirk forming on his mouth.
"From my house. I went out for berries, so if you could please excuse me..." Lucario tried moving past Lycanroc, but he stopped the Aura Pokemon from leaving by raising the ground in front of him to act as a sort of wall.
"Do you mind?" Lucario looked at Lycanroc and gestured at the wall he had made.
"You seem like you're in a hurry. What's the matter?" Lucario could spot that Lycanroc's tail was slightly wagging, clearly amused at their little interaction.
"I'm just trying to find some food is all, and I want to get back to my house as soon as possible." Lucario put his paw against the rock wall and scanned it thoroughly. It seemed thin, and Lucario had a plan hatching if Lycanroc wouldn't let him go.
"I know a good spot for picking berries if you're interested." Lycanroc said enticingly, and truth be told, Lucario was interested. His ears perked up and he listened intently.
The Aura Pokemon looked puzzled, not knowing what to do now. Though Lycanroc's intentions were pure, he still felt apprehensive. He could hear and see words forming in Lycanroc's mind, even if they were cryptic to him. He soon realised that those were his thoughts! Lucario was dumbfounded by his new abilities. In addition to being able to read thoughts, he could also see faint images of what seemed to be memories inside the Wolf Pokemon's mind.
The Wolf Pokemon titled his head and smiled cheerfully at Lucario, completely oblivious as to what he was doing. "These strange things at the back of your head are rising. Is that good or bad?" Lycanroc pointed out, raising a paw and gesturing at the aura receptors.
Lucario quickly pulled them down, feeling embarrassed. "Don't worry about it. It's a Lucario thing." He smiled innocently at Lycanroc, trying his best to play it off cool.
"Alright... Anyways, do you want to see the berry trees or not?" Lycanroc said gleefully. He really did sound and look like he was desperate for it, and his emotions only confirmed it.
Lucario looked around at his surroundings, seeing no way out of this one. He sighed and nodded, bending down to pick up the basket he dropped earlier. "I guess your help would be much appreciated. Thank you."
"Oh, no problem! You don't have anything to thank me for yet, but you will soon! Come on, follow me." Lycanroc said, retrieving the stone wall back into the ground and bounding away towards what sounded like a rushing river.
"Hey, wait for me!" Lucario called out, following Lycanroc's tracks and tailing him.
:::::::::::::::::::::::
It was a sight to behold. The sound of the rushing river blended perfectly with all the cheerful yells and screams from younger Pokemon in the area, playing with each other.
Lucario could see just how happy they all were, and it made him happy too. Maybe other's emotions paid a toll on him? Or what if they influenced him? Is that why he was happy when looking at the children playing?
A sudden bump on the side stopped Lucario's thoughts abruptly and he looked down to see the orange wolf right beside him. "Come on, what're you waiting for? The cave is right around this corner."
Lucario looked around, wide eyed. He didn't see any corners here, but he didn't mention it, seeing as it would be a strange thing to ask.
Lycanroc went upstream and Lucario followed. Soon enough, they found themselves staring at a giant cascading waterfall, falling down from the cliff above. Lucario looked at Lycanroc, expecting him to say that they went the wrong way. Instead, he motioned for Lucario to follow him and started walking, not running, towards the cataract.
"Are you sure this is the right way? There doesn't seem to be anything here other than the waterfall." Lucario seemed sceptical of Lycanroc's route, though he still didn't sense any bad intentions coming from him.
"Yeah, just follow me and watch your step. Don't want you falling down into the river and possibly drowning, you know." Lycanroc said nonchalantly, stepping on a steep and small platform, growing out of the cliff's side.
Lucario watched on as the Wolf Pokemon jumped on another platform, going behind the waterfall and into what seemed to be a narrow path in the rock and stone.
"Well? Are you coming or not?" Lycanroc asked, looking back at Lucario.
The Aura Pokemon quickly snapped out of his state of confusion and took a step on the same platform as Lycanroc did, making sure not to fall. Then he made a risky jump across a small gap, separating the narrow path from the platform he was on.
Lycanroc continued onward, going through the slim pathway effortlessly while Lucario struggled to fit himself in. Once they both got out of the passage though, Lucario instantly forgot about the struggle and looked up in awe, seeing yet another, albeit smaller, waterfall in a clearing behind the bigger one.
The waterfall was falling into a small pond where several fish Pokemon thrived and lived. The light was provided by a rather big gap in the ceiling of the cave, letting the sunrays in and illuminating the whole space.
And around the pond, grew several berry trees with ripe and fresh fruit, ready to be picked and eaten. Though before Lucario could stop staring at the trees himself, he was stopped by yet another, albeit slightly stronger, tackle from Lycanroc on the side.
"I… I'm at a loss for words. I never knew this place existed, and I've explored the area many times! How did you come across this cave?" Lucario was very curious, and it was apparent that he really wanted to know. His tail swayed slightly from side to side as his eyes beamed at Lycanroc.
"Well, I have my own methods of exploring." The Wolf Pokemon chuckled silently and nodded to himself, looking embarrassed ever so slightly. Lucario could sense a feeling of pride emanating from him, probably because he was "praised" by Lucario.
He shrugged it off and strode to the nearest tree, looking up at all the luscious fruit growing on it. Many of them were new to Lucario, having never seen them before, but one particular berry caught his eye.
And that was an Occa berry, oval in structure with a spicy and sweet taste to it. Lucario adored them, since there once grew a tree that supplied him of them near the treehouse. However, that tree got infested a long time ago, effectively killing it and making harvesting any good berries from it impossible.
The berry he spotted though was high up the tree, almost at the very top. However, the Aura Pokemon was adamant on harvesting it and enjoying its spicy taste. He wouldn't give up so easily.
But Lucario needed a plan. He couldn't just jump up the tree or climb it, since not only would it be dangerous, but it could also lead to some of the branches snapping under his weight. The blue Pokemon put his paw under his chin and pondered, thinking of the best way to go about this. Then, an idea struck him.
"Hey, Lycanroc?"
"Yes, that's me. Anything wrong?" Lycanroc walked up to Lucario and sat down on his haunches, right beside him. Lucario was looking up the tree at the Occa berry, and Lycanroc soon followed his gaze curiously.
"Earlier, you made some sort of stone wall to stop be from leaving. How did you do it?" Lucario turned to look at Lycanroc, his eyes sparkling with eagerness and excitement.
"I used a move called Stone Edge. Ever heard of it?"
"I only read about it. I never saw it in action though." Lucario smiled and leaned down to Lycanroc's eye level. "Think you could use it to lift me up?"
Lycanroc raised his eyebrow and stood up. "Well, it wouldn't hurt to try... right?" He chuckled nervously and sighed, taking a couple of steps back. "You ready?"
Lucario readied himself, getting lower to the ground and putting one of his paws on it for balance. He nodded at Lycanroc in affirmation and turned to look at the tree, focusing on one thing.
"Here goes nothing, I guess." Lycanroc hesitated before stomping on the ground lightly with his forepaws.
In an instant, Lucario's senses sharpened, and he felt the aura surrounding him focusing in one point and forming a dull spike. That point was right under him. He jumped back in surprise, and not even a second later, a short spike emerged from the ground.
The same aura then showed yet another spike, only this one was closer to the tree. Once the point emerged from the ground, the voice that drew him to his knees earlier, whispered in his ear once more.
"Close your eyes and follow me." It muttered, barely audible. Its voice was husky and sounded out of breath. Lucario did as the voice told him and closed his eyes, sceptical of this whole ordeal. "Take a deep breath... Now go."
Even though the Aura Pomemon's eyes were closed, he could still somehow see, although nothing had any colours, showing only the outlines of these things in bright blue light. He saw a small figure jumping on the first spike before leaping to grab the other.
Lucario did the same, jumping up from the ground and sticking the landing on the small and dull point which arose from the ground. He took yet another deep breath and hopped to the next spike, landing with the same grace as before.
"Now open your eyes and enjoy your prize." The voice said, slowly starting to disappear back into Lucario's mind. The Aura Pokemon's eyes flew open, and he looked around, finding himself standing with one foot on the spike. He shook off the confusion and reached out for the berry, successfully picking it from the tree.
Lycanroc's mouth was agape, and it was sure he was just as surprised as Lucario. "How- How did you- Wha- Huh?" The Wolf Pokemon stammered, not believing his own eyes.
"Trust me, if I knew I could do that, I'd tell you before." Lucario said, dropping down to the ground and landing with his fruit in his paw. He looked at it, his mouth slightly watering at the thought of tasting it.
He took a bite of the berry, relishing in its spicy and sweet flavours. He let the piece roll around in his mouth, trying to get as much taste out of it as possible. He had an interesting tactic when it came to eating- the first bite was always small, barely a nibble to check if whatever he's eating is good for consumption. If it was, then Lucario would take as big of a bite as he could.
And just like he did with everything else, first came the small bite, and then the berry was suddenly gone. It was surprisingly small unlike all the other Occa berries Lucario had come across, which slightly upset him. He then looked over at Lycanroc, who was staring him down with a hungry look in his eyes and a tail, wagging slightly from side to side.
"I guess I should give you something in return, shouldn't I?" Lucario looked around the illuminated cave, his vision bouncing from tree to tree, trying to find more berries that he enjoyed. His eyes suddenly lit up as he spotted a tree growing specifically only one type of berry- the Tanga berry.
It was both spicy and sour, melting in Lucario's mouth anytime he had one. He loved eating them, mainly because Decidueye always had plenty of them around and he had grown accustomed to its taste. Besides the flavour, it was smoother than a Lucky Egg and slid perfectly down his throat. Just thinking about eating some made Lucario zone out, and Lycanroc had to gently nudge him to make him come back to the land of living.
"Ah, sorry. I'll get to it." The Aura Pokemon began advancing towards the tree he had in mind, kicking around some rotten berries that have fallen down on the ground a long time ago.
Once he was underneath his target, he grabbed the tree by its trunk and shook it violently. Moments later, berries were falling down on the ground like rain from the sky. Some fell a little further, some a little closer, but only one managed to hit Lucario in the head as it fell down.
Lycanroc barely stifled his laugh as he watched the blue Pokemon clutch the top of his head, seemingly in pain, from afar. He then trotted down to his friend, looking down at the berries on the ground and sniffing them intently. And then, he took a bite of one.
In an instant, the Wolf Pokemon could feel his throat burning up and his tongue slowly losing the ability to taste. He looked at Lucario in shock and disbelief, who was munching down on one with no effect.
"Something's wrong?" The Aura Pokemon inquired, looking at Lycanroc in confusion. It's not that spicy, nor is it sour he thought to himself.
"Yes! Something is very wrong!" The bright orange Pokemon gasped for air in between words. Clearly, he hasn't eaten many spicy things in his life. Lucario then watched as he sprinted to the small pond in the middle of the cave and lapped the water loudly, quenching his thirst and dampening the burn.
Lycanroc turned his head to look at Lucario, his muzzle soaking wet. "How can you eat this?!"
"I'll do you one better: how can you not?" He said amusedly, never even considering that other Pokemon might like other flavours. After all, him and Decidueye always liked spicy food.
Lucario popped another berry into his mouth, chewing it down vigorously into smaller bits before swallowing it down. The Aura Pokemon walked past the drinking wolf and retrieved the basket he had left on the ground earlier, with the intention of taking some of the spicier berry's home.
Once the basket was full, Lucario turned to Lycanroc, who was sitting by the pond and looking down into it, examining all the fish.
"Say, Lucario, you don't have a place I could stay at, do you?" The Wolf Pokemon said, breaking his gaze and looking over at the blue furred canine.
"Well, there is a place." Lucario said, thinking of his treehouse. "I guess it's only right that I return your kindness. Do you have any more business here, or can we go?"
Lycanroc shook his head briefly and began trotting down to the exit with Lucario following closely behind, the basket filled with berries under his arm.
Upon exiting the cave and making their way to solid ground, Lucario ate yet another berry as he looked around, briefly scanning everything and everyone with his aura abilities, getting used to them. The younger Pokemon that were here when they entered the cave were now gone, seemingly replaced with older looking Pokemon. Because of that, the aura of the area wasn't as joyous as before, instead taking on a much calmer tone.
They both disappeared into the forest soon after exiting the cave, now with Lucario taking the lead and Lycanroc trotting behind, looking behind them every now and then.
The wind whistled quietly and blew the leaves around, gently shaking trees and letting sunlight pass on to the grass. Everything looked and sounded perfect, even if the silence between the two Pokemon was deafening. The harmony, however, was soon broken by approaching laughter coming from ahead.
Lucario focused and tried identifying the source of the sound, thinking it was further down the path. Before the Aura Pokemon could do so though, Lycanroc nudged him slightly with his paw, trying to get his attention.
As he opened his eyes, he saw the same trio of Passimians he had met quite some time ago, only now there were no signs of the peaceful one, instead being replaced by another annoying and obnoxious primate. Lucario looked down at his friend, seeing him all tensed up and ready to attack.
"Don't run, stay calm, and do as I say. It's all going to be fine." The Aura Pokemon told his friend through telepathy, as to not let the troublemakers know their plan.
"I have a feeling we've met before, haven't we?" The biggest Passimian stepped in front of the other two, the pride and confidence coming from him practically drowning Lucario.
"I believe we did. And I think you remember how it ended the last time." Lucario said valiantly, determined not to be beaten by them a second time. He didn't want to rely on others saving him.
The leader's smirk left his face as he looked back at the other two, motioning his head for them to come forth. "The key difference this time is that we won't let you off so easily. Hand us the berries and we'll keep it brief."
Lucario scoffed and pushed the basket of berries to the side. "In your dreams."
"The moment they attack, I want you to take the berries and run forward as fast as you can. Don't even look back, just make it to the nearest clearing and look for a treehouse." Lucario explained to Lycanroc, who shook his head lightly.
"I'm not leaving you here." The Wolf Pokemon was just as determined as Lucario to not hurt his new friend.
"You know what to do boys." With a sudden and unpredictable move, the leader lunged forward at Lucario with an extended fist, aiming for his throat as the other two focused on Lycanroc.
The odds weren't in their favour, but that wasn't going to discourage Lucario from besting their assailants. The Aura Pokemon hastily raised his arms up in an attempt to block the attack. He was successful, and the Passimian groaned in annoyance at this.
His opponent ran forward again, only this time with the intention to ram himself into Lucario and push him into a tree. Unfortunately for the blue Pokemon, he couldn't do much to counteract. He was not only smaller but also weaker physically.
As Passimian took Lucario with him, he was surprised to notice that he was slowing down. Upon looking forward, the primate saw the Aura Pokemon pushing him back with all his power. Panic flashed in Passimian's eyes, as he has not foreseen this.
Using the brief time window Lucario had, he used Force Palm and sent his enemy sliding back ever so slightly. Noticing the opportunity, he jumped forward, jumping over Passimian and pushing himself away from the Teamwork Pokemon by kicking the back of his head and propelling himself forward.
Passimian groaned, annoyed and hurt by this show of agility and turned to face Lucario, only for his head to be forcibly turned back around in the way he was staring by a powerful punch from the Aura Pokemon.
He swayed from side to side, struggling to keep his balance before finally losing it and collapsing onto the ground. Lucario turned his gaze to the other two battling Lycanroc, overpowering him.
The Aura Pokemon put his foot on the defeated Passimian and whistled, catching the attention of the other two. "Two on one? Have you no shame?" He smirked at them as they looked at each other. He felt fear seeping out of them like water from a leaky barrel. Strangely enough, it brought him a weird sense of satisfaction.
"Boss?" One of them called out to the fainted Passimian.
Seizing the opportunity, Lycanroc used Stone Edge and trapped the two in a rocky cage, keeping them in one place and disabling them the ability to run away.
Lucario strode closer to the two Passimian, looking up at them with the smirk embedded on his muzzle. He spoke with disdain in his voice. "I'll make it clear: your monkey business stops here. You either stop stealing from others, or I'll make sure to hunt you guys down and make your lives hell on earth."
"Y-Yes sir!" They replied in unison, comically holding each other and trembling. It was truly a sight to behold, to see a Pokemon this big shaking in fear.
Lucario nodded in Lycanroc's direction, telling him to lower the spikes. Lycanroc growled quietly and did as the Aura Pokemon asked him, watching the Passimian grab their unconscious leader by his arms and haul him somewhere into the forest.
After a brief period of silence, Lycanroc turned to Lucario with a surprised look. "That was harsh. And here I was, thinking you were a harmless Pokemon." He chuckled light heartedly.
"Well, I had to make my point. These brutes wouldn't understand otherwise." He laughed along in unison. Lucario then noticed something sharp and pointy, laying on the ground just beside Lycanroc's left forepaw.
It was his friend's claw! The Aura Pokemon hadn't seen the fight between the other two Passimian and Lycanroc, but it must have been a tough one since it broke off.
"Your-"
"Claw? Think nothing of it." Lycanroc looked his paw over as if checking for any serious damage. "It'll grow back." He smiled gently at Lucario which seemed to comfort him and ease his mind.
"Are you sure? I swear I will repay you for your loss!" Though his friend's smile was certainly reassuring, he still felt guilty for making the Wolf Pokemon fight with two Pokemon all by his lonesome.
"I'm telling you; it'll grow back!" His voice was a little louder and firmer this time. This was the end of this conversation.
Lucario sighed and took the broken claw in his paw, tossing it to the basket along with the berries. "Then I assume you have nothing against me if I keep it?"
Lycanroc looked quizzically at his friend, confused by his actions. "Not at all... But why?"
"I have my reasons." Lucario teasingly grinned at the orange wolf, not intending on telling him why.
He got up from the ground he kneeled down on and walked to the berry basket which was now garnished with a claw sticking out the top of one of the fruits.
He picked it back up and placed it on his shoulder. It hurt for a brief period of time, but the pain went away as fast as it came. Lucario looked up to the path leading onward to his treehouse and began leading the way as Lycanroc followed closely behind.
It wasn't long before they arrived. The Wolf Pokemon stared in awe at the suspended house, wondering how Lucario managed to get it up there.
Before he could ask a question though, Lucario picked up a small twig and tossed it at a ladder hanging down from a branch. The two connected, and the steps soon came crashing down, swaying from one side of the house to the other.
Lucario quickly stepped in, stopping the ladder and beginning to climb it up. He looked back briefly at his companion. "What's wrong?"
"I... can't climb ladders." There was a tone of embarrassment in his voice, as well as an aura that was radiating the same emotion.
"Right, I forgot about that." Lucario got farther up and slid the basket across the floor before getting down once again and brainstorming for any ideas on how his friend would get up. And suddenly, an idea struck him.
"Lycanroc, earlier you used Stone Edge to help me get up a tree, didn't you?"
As if sensing what Lucario was about to say, the Wolf Pokemon looked at him in shock. "Clearly you're not suggesting that..."
"And what if I am? Tell me, have you ever tried this before?"
"Well, no, but that doesn't mean that nothing can go wrong."
"Come on, don't be such a pessimist! Besides, if you have never tried it before then you don't know how it'll go." He said, encouraging Lycanroc and prodding him further and further into actually doing it.
"I guess it wouldn't hurt to try then..." A newfound spark of determination lit his mind up as Lucario cheered him on.
Within the span of a few seconds, a big and dull spike emerged from right beneath Lycanroc who barely fit his paws on its point. Lucario began climbing the ladder in tandem with the slowly raising spike, all the while watching his footing not to fall off.
Once he was at the top, he climbed through the entrance and looked back at Lycanroc who was struggling to make the jump across. "Come on, I believe in you! You're so close to your goal you can just grab it!"
Lycanroc grunted and pushed himself forwards off the spike, stretching his paws out towards Lucario who caught him in mid-air. He breathed heavily, likely because of the shock and looked at Lucario who was smiling at him. "I told you that it's possible."
The Aura Pokemon hoisted his friend up to the treehouse and dusted himself off. He looked at Lycanroc who was slowly taking in all the information. There were so many things he has never seen, so many books...
"I'd appreciate it if you didn't touch anything on the shelves." Lucario smiled at the Wolf Pokemon who nodded in affirmation and continued gliding across the floor, looking everything over.
"You're quite the collector, Lucario." Lycanroc said, his eyes sparkling in awe.
"Oh, you mean these? They aren't mine, they're my father's." He replied enthusiastically, though bringing up Decidueye took a lot of effort for him to do so.
Lycanroc looked at Lucario, surprised. He didn't realise that someone else might be living here with him. "I see. In that case, I'll see myself out. I doubt this place could hold three Pokemon inside." The orange wolf chuckled and turned back around to the exit.
"There's no need, he's not coming back." This time, Lucario's voice was quieter and more solemn. He was no longer happy about mentioning his dad.
Lycanroc's ears folded back and pressed against his head. He noticed the sudden shift in Lucario's tone, something that the Aura Pokemon hoped he hadn't noticed. "Why?"
Lucario shifted his feet nervously and looked away. It was obvious that he did not wish to talk about it, and the Wolf Pokemon understood that perfectly, not inquiring after a period of silence.
Lucario was first to break the stillness, going over to the basket he had slid to the other side of the room earlier and picking it up to dump all the berries into the food crate. "What flavour do you like the most?"
The sudden question caught Lycanroc off guard. He trailed his eyes over to Lucario and watched as he rummaged through the crate. He smiled softly at the sight. "Do you have anything sweet?"
"Surprisingly, I do." Not a moment later, he pulled out a fruit which resembled a chilli pepper, the only difference being that it was pink. "Here, it's a Mago berry," He smiled in Lycanroc's direction and tossed the berry to him. "Don't worry, it's not spicy."
Lycanroc skilfully caught it in his mouth before putting it down on the floor and taking a small bite to test if Lucario was being honest. And to his surprise, he was. The berry was indeed sweet, and no other flavours were present.
He relished in the sweet taste as Lucario took out a berry of his own- a Tamato berry, one of the spicier fruits he had lying around. He took a big bite of the spicy berry and chewed it intently, feeling the spiciness warm him up from the inside.
The Aura Pokemon looked down at Lycanroc again, watching him lick the remains of the berry off of the floor. Then, out of the blue, a question surfaced in his mind.
"Hey Lycanroc, do you mind if I ask you a question?"
Lycanroc looked up at Lucario with bits of the berry stuck to his muzzle. He tilted his head and raised his eyebrow. "Sure, I don't mind."
"In all the books I've read and all the different herds of Lycanroc I've met before, none of them were orange." Lucario took another bite of the berry he was holding. "How come you are?"
The question left Lycanroc stumped, as even he did not know the answer. Lucario, seeing his friend's perplexed expression decided to test the limits of his mind reading abilities and dove straight in.
At first it felt as if he was flying through space, turning and rotating in every way possible. Soon enough though, he found himself in a white void with various pictures and words flying around. Lucario spun around, trying to grasp his mind around everything that was happening. There was so much to unwrap here, and yet so little at the same time.
He felt his feet touch something solid, and upon looking down he saw a flat rock beneath. Lucario tried moving somewhere, and the rock followed his every move, ensuring he wouldn't fall. The mind intruder found this quite enjoyable, as he spent the next minute or so walking in circles and watching its behaviour.
His interest was piqued though when he saw a sentence forming out of nowhere, which then flew right to him: "Is he asleep?"
This in turn caused him to immediately eject himself from Lycanroc's mind and return to his body. Upon his return, he saw his wolf friend curiously sniffing away at him.
Lucario yelped in surprise and moved his head back, avoiding Lycanroc's black nose. "You're awake? I thought you fell asleep or fainted." His voice was filled with concern for Lucario.
"Ah, don't worry about it. I just wanted to test my mind reading abilities." Lucario replied nonchalantly, not thinking much about what he said.
"Your... Your what?"
Due to a moment of carelessness, Lucario told Lycanroc too much. He didn't plan on this happening and didn't know what to say. He was just left there, staring at the Tamato berry in his paws.
Lycanroc sighed and smiled softly. "Well, I'd appreciate it if you didn't go venturing into my thoughts again."
"I understand and I promise to not do that ever again." Lucario said hastily, embarrassed of himself.
After that, silence fell between the two for the second time today. No words were exchanged, with the only sound present being Lucario slowly chewing the Tamato berry. Awkwardness started to set in.
"A-Anyways," Started Lycanroc, trying to get rid of the uneasy tension between them. "I noticed there's only one bed, so I think I'll get going now."
As Lycanroc was getting ready to somehow make his way down, Lucario called out to him. "Wait." The Wolf Pokemon turned around and titled his head, curious. "Do you have anywhere to stay then? I-I mean if you want to go, I can't keep you here, but if you're planning on going out in this darkness, then I suggest you stay."
Lycanroc considered Lucario's words and replied with slight hesitation in his voice. "Well, if it's no problem, then I guess I could stay the night..."
Lucario beamed with joy, happy that he convinced someone to stay over. And he wasn't trying to do just that, as several dangerous Pokemon tend to come out at night, lashing out at anything and anyone they see. He knew this because before Decidueye found him as a Riolu, he used to wander the forests, often finding himself in such predicaments with the night dwellers.
"But here's the issue." Lycanroc pointed to the singular hay bed at the far end of the treehouse. "There's only one bed."
Lucario shrugged in response and smiled at his orange furred friend. "Don't worry, I'll figure something out for myself."
"Wait, for yourself? I'll be sleeping in the bed?"
"You're the guest after all. And even though I've never had anyone over, something's telling me that it's just the right thing to do."
Lycanroc hesitantly jumped onto the bed and was immediately positively surprised by how soft and comfy it is. It was probably because Lucario flattened it out so much that there were no rough or sharp points sticking out of the hay.
Lucario noticed his delighted expression and felt the strands of Lycanroc's positive aura bind his mind into feeling the same happiness. The Aura Pokemon smiled at his friend. "Do you like it?"
The orange wolf simply nodded and turned around a few times in circles before laying down on the hay and shortly after falling asleep.
"Must have been a long day for you today then." Lucario whispered to himself and looked around the treehouse. There wasn't much left to do except for finding a good place to sleep in. There wasn't that many good sleeping spots, with the exception of one.
Lucario peered out from one of the bigger windows and carefully climbed onto the windowsill. He was doing his best not to look down, but curiosity took the better of him; he just felt like he had to. And as the Aura Pokemon looked down, he felt a sudden eerie chill creep up his spine, stopping him dead in his tracks.
The brave climber swallowed his fear and looked up at the flat roof above. He continued climbing, skilfully stepping from branch to branch and making his way higher to the top.
At last, when he finally reached the top of the treehouse, he hung on to the ledge and pulled himself up with the remaining strength he had. Lucario fell down on the flat surface and panted heavily from exhaustion. "I'll need to think of something if I want to have more people over for the night in the future." He thought to himself and slowly, he too was being taken away by the caring touch of drowsiness...
The hardwood was surprisingly not that bad to sleep on. With the gentle breeze of the night, it felt as if Lucario was sleeping atop a fluffy Mareep. It caressed his fur and skin so perfectly that it had really awoken something in him, and he felt like he was in his egg again; safe and comfortable.
With sleeping outside come many upsides, but there are also downsides. That thought occurred to Lucario only after he was pecked awake by a wild Pikipek. His eyes swung open to chase the little bird away, only to be met by the blinding light of the Sun.
Lucario yelped and covered his eyes whilst looking away. Amidst his thoughts though, came some other noises. The Aura Pokemon quickly adjusted his eyes to the brightness and began his descent off the flat roof and into the treehouse.
Upon reaching the window through which he exited earlier, he swung himself inside and landed on something both hard and soft. It felt like his own fur, though dirty with pebbles and other stones inside.
"Can you get off of me?" Sounded a voice from under Lucario. As he looked down, he saw himself clinging to Lycanroc by his rocky fur.
"Right, sorry." The Aura Pokémon hurriedly did as instructed and stood by Lycanroc, patting him on the back to compensate for the encounter. The orange wolf could do nothing but sigh and shake his friend's paw away.
"Well, I suppose it's time for me to go. There's not much room here, and I doubt it would be comfortable with me around. Besides, you returned my favour, so I have no other business here." Lycanroc trotted over to the circular entrance to the treehouse and looked down, focusing on using Stone Edge to get down.
"Umm… Lycanroc?" Lucario called out to his friend before he went away. "Just remember that whenever you need something, I'll always be here." He smiled sweetly and innocently, causing Lycanroc to do the same.
"…Thank you. I'll keep that in mind." With those last words, a tall and wide platform arose from the ground, rising to the entrance of the treehouse. Lycanroc looked at it hesitantly and jumped on it before disappearing down below the house.
Once again, Lucario found himself alone. He looked around, searching for anything to cure his boredom, yet nothing came to his mind. That is, until he saw the rows upon rows of different books up on the shelves.
It has been a while since he had last read a book. Maybe he should read another one? Better yet, what if it was in English? The thought excited Lucario and the books just enticed him even more to do so. There was nothing he could do to resist.
He grabbed the first one that caught his attention and yanked it off the shelf. Its spine and cover were brightly coloured in various shades of yellow and a splash of blood red reflecting nicely from the sun. Lucario turned the book around to read the title.
"The Basics of self-defence" read the title, and immediately after reading it, Lucario was hooked. He flipped the book open, opening it on a random page with images of humans punching each other, usually in the lower abdomen area.
But he couldn't be so forward, he had to control the urge within him to just seek out the entertaining images and leave all that juicy and informative text behind. Besides, after reading through the dictionary and learning English to some degree, it would be wise to upkeep that knowledge and read regularly.
Minutes became hours, hours became days and Lucario found himself in a reading frenzy, turning from book to book and unable to stop. When Decidueye was still around, he had someone to remind him to take breaks. Although since there was no one else except for him, it meant that he could read with no breaks!
At that time, it sounded fun and exciting to Lucario, having days upon days all for himself to read. What he did not account for though was the tiredness that reading so much would bring. He felt himself getting extremely sleepy, and yet he couldn't stop. In that frenzy of his, the longest he had spent sleeping was a mere four hours.
After three days of continuous reading, Lucario finally stopped and flipped to the last page, which read in big and bold letter:
"Now go out there without fear and show those burglars what you're really made of!"
Show them what you're made of? He was certain that it was obvious to see that he was made of flesh and bone with fur on the outside. At long last, Lucario had finally felt the cold slap of reality hit him with all the sleep he was lacking, all at once.
It felt as if one second, he was awake, and the next; he wasn't. Lucario snored lightly in his sleep, dreaming of all the different self-defence tips and tricks. For example, how to throw a simple punch. Or how to throw your opponent over the shoulder. There was also something called a 'leg sweep', which was used to throw the enemy off balance.
Lucario didn't know how long he had slept for. Minutes? Hours? Maybe even days? What was clear though, was that when he finally opened his eyes, there were two things that stuck out to him:
The first thing was that searing migraine that always occurred at the worst of times. This time however, the pain was manageable.
The second thing was the fact that it wasn't day- it was night. More specifically, the end of it. The moon could be seen shining through one of the windows, while the sun slowly peeked its top out from behind the tallest of trees.
It felt and looked as if Lucario was stuck somewhere in the middle- It wasn't really night, but it wasn't day either.
The Aura Pokemon swiftly made his way to the food crate and grabbed a Persim berry out of the box. What he failed to notice in his moment of carelessness, however, was the claw which broke off of Lycanroc's paw, stuck in the top of the berry.
As Lucario took a bite off of it, he coughed loudly, spitting out the claw along with a bit of the berry. He paid no heed to it, instead focusing on the fruit in his paw. For as bland as it tasted, it did calm the effect of his headache somewhat effectively.
Within a few minutes, both the pain and the berry were gone, and Lucario was left staring at the claw he spit up from before. He hesitantly picked it up, brushing it clean against his fur and taking another look at it.
It now not only felt clean in his paws but also looked clean. A job well done. Lucario took another glance around the treehouse and decided to put it up on the shelf along with everything Decidueye has left him. There were quite a lot of empty spaces, and the Aura Pokemon was hoping to one day fill them up.
He then looked a bit further down, spotting the journal that his big owl friend had left him before departing on his mysterious journey. It still fascinated Lucario how he could just disappear like that, with no traces other that the small note and feather he left behind.
He took the small notebook in one of his paws and picked up a pen into the other. Lucario then turned to the exit and started to walk down the ladder, holding on to his belongings as he did so.
At last, when he was at the ground, he kneeled down in front of the memorial he made for Decidueye and bowed to show respect. After doing so, he flipped the journal to the first page and began writing in broken English, trying his best.
"It has been about eight days since Decidueye's disappearance, and only now did I take the journal he left me in my paws. I intend on keeping a track of all the adventures I go on in here, writing them down.
While my English may not be perfect, I find it somewhat easier to write in it. It's much easier to memorise the letters than in Footprint runes.
Not much has been going on since father left. I still miss him, and I doubt I'll forget him any time soon. What I also won't forget though, is the new friend I made some time ago.
An orange Lycanroc! Can you believe that? He's orange! Unlike both his other forms, which evolve in the day and night, he seems to be the amalgamation of the two, as if he evolved somewhere between day and night. Fascinating.
He even left me a souvenir to keep- his broken claw. It broke off while we were defending the berry basket from a group of Passimian. Thankfully, we teached them a lesson and warded them off!
Though, I wonder- does this claw and its owner hold any secrets? I'd surely need to dig deeper to find out, and I promise you, one day I will! On that note, I end today's entry and will write another one when something interesting will happen. I cannot wait to see what I will discover!"
AUTHOR'S NOTES
What will Lucario discover? Will he find anything at all? Or maybe something else will happen? All those questions will be answered in Chapter 2, which will be released somewhere around three weeks from now on. It'll take longer due to all the things I've been overwhelmed with lately (mainly school), but I will make sure to write it as soon as possible! As always, stay tuned to see the adventures of Lucario unfurl, as he chases dreams and thought, unlocking secrets left and right! God bless everyone who saw my earlier chapters, and I hope this one will be as good as the previous ones or maybe even better.