Chapter 26 – Taking Time to Reflect!
"Cave in… gotta run… Meatlug… Astrid… Hiccup… HICCUP!"
Fishlegs woke with a scream, bolting upright to turn wide, fearful eyes onto his alien surroundings. At first he had no idea where he was, exacerbating his terror – it was somewhere dark and enclosed, with narrow stone walls and crystalline mirrors displaying his terror-stricken face wherever he looked. No… that wasn't entirely true. One end of the chamber stretched on into the darkness, and the other end was a solid pile of stone that rose to the ceiling.
Slowly, the memories started to trickle back to him. Hiccup and Astrid had gotten into a fight… the battle had led to Reflection Cave… Inferno had made the ceiling unstable and caused a cave in. That meant…
A squeak parting his lips, Fishlegs' hands automatically flew to his body, patting himself down in a frantic self-assessment of his well-being. Some spots ached when he touched them, probably bruised… but nothing was broken, nor was it missing. He was alive and well, thank goodness. Something didn't feel right, though…
It hit him, and he gaped at the wall of boulders with a profound horror that froze his blood. He was alone. That meant…
"Oh no! Hiccup!" Fishlegs screamed. He scrambled to his feet and tottered toward the wall, grabbing fist-sized rocks and tossing them aside with great swings of his arms. "Astrid! Somebody! Anybody! You've gotta be okay! I'm gonna get you out – I have to get you out! Otherwise… otherwise…!"
His hand came to rest on a large, flat slab that stuck out from the pile, tears welling in his eyes and causing the wall to blur. There was no way he could lift it – and even if he could, moving it would certainly trigger another avalanche of stone. He would never get through all of it on his own, and Hiccup and Astrid would remain trapped on the other side for eternity.
No! They can't be trapped forever! Fishlegs thought, a scream beginning to well in his throat. But what if they aren't just trapped?! What if they're buried?! I've gotta… I've gotta…!
"Rrrrrhy!"
A growling cough suddenly blasted from the rocks in front of him, cutting off his increasingly despairing train of thought with a spike of fear. The pile began to tremble, pebbles clattering down loudly, and he scurried away, thoughts of another cave in filling him with renewed terror. But when he looked back at the shifting wall, he realized it wasn't another disaster at all.
With a grunt, Meatlug emerged from the pile to stand on shaky legs, rocks and dust tumbling off her armored body. Fishlegs' eyes watered again, but this time it was with purest relief, his heart swelling with happiness and love for his beloved Rhyhorn.
"Meatlug!" he cried out, flinging himself bodily at her. Comfort flooded his limbs at the familiar touch of her stony hide under his skin, and he went limp, sagging into her side as tears poured down his cheeks. "M-Meatlug… I th-thought I'd never… oh, you're a s-sight for sore eyes, girl! D-Don't worry, F-Fishlegs has got you…!"
"Hooooorn…" Meatlug rumbled reassuringly, nuzzling into him hard enough to push him to the ground.
She wasn't alone, either. Darkvarg crawled from the empty space between the ground and her chin where he'd been nestled, protected, during the avalanche. He chirped happily, scuttling forward to snuggle up between the prone Fishlegs' arm and ribs. "Larva lar vitar!"
"Good to see you too, D-Darkvarg," Fishlegs sniffled. He sat up, wiping his face, and addressed his two Pokemon with a wobbly smile. "O-Okay, the team's all here. I'm so g-glad you're alright… b-but we can't rest now. W-We were separated from everyone else when the r-rock slide hit. Th-They're still b-back there, a-and in dire need of h-help!"
Meatlug and Darkvarg looked alarmed, and their visible distress urged Fishlegs to continue, his speech accelerating into a tirade as his panic returned. "Y-Yes, yes, th-that's why we need to d-do something! E-Except I don't know what t-to do; w-we're here and th-they're trapped there, s-so we can't reach them! A-And every s-second we delay i-is one second c-closer to th-them possibly d-d-dying! W-We have to th-think of something fast! Otherwise th-they're gonna s-suffocate or s-starve a-and it'll all be my f-fault, and I'll have to s-spend the rest of my life knowing I could've saved them but I was too –"
"RHY!" Meatlug bellowed, and nudged him hard enough to almost tip him over.
Instantly, Fishlegs clamped his mouth shut, realizing that he'd been spiralling deeper into despair uncontrollably. He took a steadying breath, shutting out the frantic thoughts and worst-case scenarios that had pounded on the inside of his head so insistently. Instead, he forced himself to focus on one thing only.
Hiccup and Astrid need me. I can't give in to panic. If I do, I'll doom us all. Hiccup and Astrid need me.
"Y-You're right, Meatlug. I-I shouldn't let myself lose control like that," he confessed. Meatlug came forward with a comforting rumble and nuzzled him, which he indulged in with a grateful smile. "Thanks, girl. You always know h-how to make me feel better.
"Okay then… n-now that my head's on straight, it's time to think of a way to save Hiccup and Astrid," he added, standing up and examining the cave in. Unfortunately, there wasn't much to analyze – it was huge, thick, and if anything was moved, the entire thing might come crashing down anew. Definitely not something Fishlegs felt safe dealing with himself.
Digging or removing it is out of the question, Fishlegs thought. I don't have the Pokemon power to make a meaningful dent in this mess. Even if I did, I might accidentally endanger them if I tackled this recklessly…
He glanced over to Meatlug, who was causing a commotion. She turned in urgent circles, stopping only when he met her eyes, and then pawed the ground and snorted, tossing her head in the direction of the tunnel.
At the same time, a proverbial light dawned upon Fishlegs, and he turned around to stare intently down the glimmering pathway, the only passage open to him. As the epiphany hit him, he finished his thought with a profound sense of hope.
…so, I should find somebody who does.
"That's it!" he cried, a joyful spring in his step, and reached around to pull off his slightly squashed backpack. "If I remember correctly, when Hiccup and I compared charts this morning, we determined that this was the route that would lead to the cave exit! All we have to do is get to Shalour City and find help!"
Unzipping one of the side pockets, he riffled through it to uncover a small guidebook, with the catchy and informative label of Sightseeing Spots for Traveling Trainers: Kalos Edition. Opening it to a dog-eared page, he found himself scanning a simplified spread of Reflection Cave, with particular emphasis on a winding red line that represented the ideal travel path, stretching from end to end.
"It is!" he crowed, ecstatic glee filling him as he snapped the book closed. "Oh, thank goodness! Meatlug, you're a genius!"
Quick as a Ninjask, Fishlegs shoved the book back where he'd found it, strapped on his bag, and clambered up onto Meatlug's back, who instinctively leaned over for ease of access. Once he was perched comfortably atop the Ground-and-Rock-type, with Darkvarg secure in front of him, he gripped her spines and dug in his heels, mustering all his determination.
"Let's go, you guys! Down this tunnel and to Shalour City!" he ordered.
"Rhyhoooorn!" Meatlug roared. She reared up onto her hind legs, then took off at a sprint.
The tunnel's crystalline walls were a blur to Fishlegs as his faithful partner galloped full tilt past them, turning his surroundings into a haze of flashing blues and greys. Combined with the bumpy ride, it was an almost disorienting experience, but Fishlegs refused to falter. No matter how much the passage twisted, Meatlug lurching with every bend she skidded down, he kept his vision aimed straight ahead, dead set on that distant exit that would spell their salvation.
He leaned forward to compensate for Meatlug's speed, doing nothing to discourage her from plowing almost mindlessly forward. Faster and faster, they ran through crystal-studded halls, surrounded by the booming echo of Meatlug's feet hammering over stone. Down one corner they charged… then another… then another and another, each twist coming and going quicker than –
They rounded another bend, and all of a sudden there was someone smack-dab in the middle of their path. Instantly, Fishlegs screamed with horror and pulled as hard as he could on Meatlug's spines. "MEATLUG LOOK OOOUUUTTT!"
A second, higher-pitched scream split the stagnant cave air as the Rhyhorn dug in her heels and ground to a halt so hard that Fishlegs was almost thrown from her back. Instead, he pitched forward and almost squashed Darkvarg, groaning as his head spun from the abrupt stop and loss of motion. His ears were still ringing with the aftermath of that piercing wail, and when he sat up to get his bearings, they directed him toward the offended shout of the fellow that had caused the near catastrophe.
"Oh, thanks so much for stopping just before you killed me!" Snotlout Jorgenson yelled, a nasty scowl plastered on his already unflattering features as he pulled himself up off the ground where he'd thrown himself. "This is a tunnel, you know, not a Rhyhorn racecourse! Did it ever occur to you that someone else might be using it?!"
"I-I'm sorry, Snotlout!" Fishlegs stammered, guilt shooting through the fear that still raced through his veins. "Meatlug and Darkvarg and I are in a really big hurry!"
"Yeah, I noticed!" Snotlout shot back, shoving Meatlug away when she edged close to apologize.
"No, I'm serious!" he said in a voice high with distress. "Th-There was a rockslide, a-and Hiccup and Astrid are trapped on the other side! We were running to get help!"
At this, Snotlout closed his mouth, swallowing whatever other mean-spirited things he'd planned to say. His glare softened, shock overtaking anger, and the aggression left his body language.
"Wait… you mean, useless Hiccup and that Astrid chick…" he mumbled, before giving Fishlegs an oddly troubled look. "Are they hurt?"
"I don't know," Fishlegs replied honestly, trying not to let his voice waver. "But we're heading to Shalour City right now to find someone who can free them!"
Steel returned to the Jorgenson boy's eyes, and he gave a single nod. "Right. I'm coming with you to the city. And it's not because I got lost on my way there!" he snapped abruptly, thrusting an objecting finger under Fishlegs' nose. "I just think you'd be better off being able to see where you're going instead of blundering around like some maniac!"
Stunned speechless, Fishlegs could only watch as Snotlout brought out his Charmeleon, the flame on the Fire-type's tail brightening the tunnel by a huge margin. Briefly, Fishlegs had to wince as the firelight reflected painfully off the multitude of mirrors, but once he'd adjusted, he fixed Snotlout with a tentative smile.
"Hey, th-thanks, Snotlout," he said. "A-And Hookfang. I really… appreciate this."
"Yeah yeah yeah, whoop-de-doo," Snotlout dismissed him rudely, already starting to wander off. "Hookfang and I are going in front, so you and your big clumsy dinosaur don't nearly trample us by accident. Now move your butt."
Bemusedly, Fishlegs exchanged glances with Meatlug and Darkvarg before tapping the former on the flank. This time, they followed Snotlout's fast walking pace at a brisk trot, not moving nearly as fast but secure in the knowledge that they'd sacrificed speed for safety. As Hookfang's tail lit the way forward, Fishlegs trembled in his seat and straightened up with repressed impatience – for as optimistic as he was now that he had assistance, anxiety continued to gnaw at him.
Just hang in there, guys, he willed his thoughts to reach Hiccup and Astrid. It's going to take me a bit longer to get help – but we're on our way, I promise you!
Contrary to Fishlegs' worst expectations, Hiccup wasn't dead. In fact, he wasn't even significantly injured. Not like that made his awakening any less unpleasant.
The first thing he noticed when he came to was the pain – a full-body ache that made his eyelids tighten instinctively and prompted a muffled groan from his sealed lips. Gradually, his awareness spread to the area immediately around him as his senses awoke one by one; a shuffling sound was coming from somewhere close to his right, he was lying on his back on something very unforgiving, and the air was tinged with the faint smell of damp.
… Wait, damp? he managed a groggy thought. Wasn't I in a cave the last time I –
Right on cue, a drop of moisture hit him in the forehead, prompting his eyes to blink open. Above him, short stalactites hung from a rock ceiling, the sight providing an answer to his unspoken question. The cave had no way of knowing he'd figured it out, though, and another droplet splashed him right in the eyeball as if to confirm. Instantly, Hiccup was fully awake, gasping as he dragged himself upright despite the ache pervading his body and fumbled with his hands to rid his eye of the unpleasant sensation. Once he settled down, though, Hiccup found himself enraptured as he took in everything before him, finally realizing where he was.
He'd seen pictures of Reflection Cave, and indeed noticed the odd crystal growths and surfaces dotting the path that led to the entrance. But because his initial arrival had been preoccupied with battling Astrid, trying to restrain Inferno, and surviving a cave in, only now did he have the opportunity to take in the cave's bizarre beauty. Everything was awash in bluish-white light from luminescent crystals that sprouted from the floor and ceiling, which reflected off the walls – walls that were just as much crystal as they were rock, turning the tunnel in which he sat into a hall of mirrors. No matter where he looked, he found his own astonished gaze staring back at him from at least one surface.
It was a fantastical, alien place, like something from a fairy tale; the pictures didn't do it justice.
"BAGO!" The all-too-familiar bark of joy reached Hiccup's ears before Toothless did, giving him only a second to turn and smile before the Bagon cannoned into his midsection. Though he doubled over with a startled oof, he pushed past the painful impact and raised his arm to hold him close and press him into his chest. The dragonling snuggled deeper, the sensation of joy and relief and love bringing warmth to Hiccup's throbbing ribs as he cooed and held on tight with tiny claws.
"I'm happy to see you too, bud," Hiccup murmured, stroking his partner's back soothingly. "Sorry for worrying you… but I'm fine now. Aside from the fact I feel like Meatlug was dancing on me, of course…"
"Bago Bagon," Toothless chirped agreeably. He leaned in for one last nuzzle before backing off, regarding Hiccup with eyes that twinkled like bright, hopeful stars.
Movement from the corner of his vision brought Hiccup, at last, to Astrid. The Hofferson girl was sitting down, her back against a mirror so that it looked like there were two of her as she polished a Poke Ball, casual as could be. When she noticed Hiccup looking, she glanced up to give him an impressively disinterested side-eye.
"Good to see you're finally up," she said. Despite her bland expression, there was a subtle edge to her voice that made Hiccup bristle uncomfortably. "You slept for about an hour after I dragged you here. You must have hit your head on something, but I didn't see any serious injuries on you, so I figured you'd be fine."
"I… feel fine. I think," Hiccup replied, and patted himself down in doubt. Finding nothing broken, he let out a satisfied hum and turned to Astrid, hesitating self-consciously before he spoke again. "So, uh… thanks, Astrid. For helping me get clear of the cave in, that is."
"Don't mention it," was her blunt response.
Realizing that that was all he'd get out of her, Hiccup stood up with a huff of exertion, holding Toothless tight to his middle as he wobbled briefly on shaky legs. He strode down the tunnel until he got to the one thing preventing him from going further: the rockslide, a solid wall of debris piled all the way up to the ceiling. He whistled softly as he scanned it, wondering just how many tons of rock were buried under that first layer.
"Well, bud," he murmured, giving one of the boulders a speculative pat. "I don't think any of us are getting through this mess any time soon. We're stuck here for the time being."
Toothless let out a forlorn moan, then squirmed out of his arms to land on the wall. He reared back and then struck the rock in front of him with a Headbutt, but the only result he got was a large pebble bonking him on the snout from above.
Hiccup turned his back on the cave in and headed back to where Astrid was, noticing for the first time his backpack sitting close to where he'd been lying. Very aware of a rumble in his stomach, he opened up the bag and extracted what food he had. He opened his hands and counted a pair of granola bars for himself, a tin of Pokemon food and Yache berries, and pieces of fish from Cyllage City, salted to help it last. The sight of his meagre rations was discouraging – there was only enough here for a meal, maybe two if he deliberately cut down on portion sizes. Momentarily, he cursed himself for being in such a rush to leave Geosenge that he neglected their supplies.
"Alright, bud, let's have a bite before we figure out what to do next," he sighed, scattering a mix of pellets, berries, and fish chunks into a bowl for Toothless. After preparing two more bowls, he reached for Sharpshot's and Skullcrusher's balls and released them.
The Horsea and Axew didn't go for their meals right away, though – they stared up at him uncertainly, concern written all over their muzzles. Hiccup realized that his worry must have been showing through, and he made sure to smile as reassuringly as he could manage. They didn't seem convinced, but they surrendered and went to dig in nonetheless, which Hiccup was thankful for. In this situation, keeping their strength up was of utmost importance.
Sticking a granola bar into his mouth, Hiccup went to dig in his pocket for the last Poke Ball of the lot. Certain that Inferno would be placated enough by food to not cause trouble, he opened it… but all that came out was a hiss when the two halves split open.
Inferno's not in her ball? Hiccup's eyes flicked up to sweep the tunnel, but his prayer that he'd somehow missed the Tyrunt's presence went unanswered. The only one he saw was Astrid. If she's not here, then where…?
Dread creeping into his heart, Hiccup clenched his clammy palms as he approached Astrid. "What happened to Inferno?"
The Hofferson girl shot him a filthy look. "Oh, I'll tell you what happened to it," she scowled. "As soon as the rockslide stopped and I got your sorry butt to safety, that thing of yours turned around and attacked me! I needed to bring out Stormfly to deal with it, and we drove it off. Where on earth did you find a piece of work like that?"
"Drove it off"… so she's…!
The slowly building dread turned to panic, his heart rate spiking with fear. Ignoring her rhetorical question, Hiccup pressed her frantically, "Are you saying she went deeper into the caves? Alone?!"
He didn't wait to hear her scathing answer; he stepped away to stare hopelessly down the tunnel, empty and unfathomably long as it stretched past the scope of his vision. There was no way of knowing where it led, or how expansive the caves beyond were. And somewhere in all that unknown was Inferno – belligerent and tenacious, yes, but also alone, confused, and doubtlessly scared.
She's definitely lost by now, Hiccup thought. She could run until she collapses… she could provoke another Pokemon and get injured… and I could go after her but never find her. What kind of end is that for a Pokemon?
In that instant, Hiccup forgot all about Inferno's stubbornness, her defiance, the grief she'd caused ever since they'd met – none of that mattered anymore. Inferno wasn't a troublemaker, or a thorn in Hiccup's side – she was a Pokemon.
A Pokemon that needed Hiccup's help.
"Skullcrusher, Sharpshot, return!" he cried, calling the pair back to their Poke Balls and leaving their food dishes empty but for scraps. Shouldering his backpack, he added, "Toothless, come with me! We're going after her!"
"B-Bago!" Toothless scrambled to obey, breathing not a word of argument as he returned to his Trainer's side. Whatever he thought of Inferno, however he felt, he cast aside – when it came down to it, he knew better than to leave a teammate behind.
Somebody else, however, didn't share the same sentiment.
A strong, pincer-like grip squeezed Hiccup's arm, forcing him to stop. The hand's owner spun him around forcefully, and he found himself confronted by a pair of blue eyes that blazed with disbelieving rage.
"You cannot be serious right now," Astrid demanded in a hiss that sizzled. "That thing disobeys you, attacks things at random, causes disasters – it's an out-of-control menace! And you're going to protect it?! After everything it's done?!"
"Astrid, my own Pokemon could be in danger!" Hiccup protested, flabbergasted at her attitude. "What if another Pokemon finds her? What if she starves to death? She's not going to come back on her own! I have to go!"
"The same thing's going to happen to you if you go after it!" she shot back, letting him go only to give him a shove to the chest. "Wake up and listen to reason! It's not worth risking your life over!"
It wasn't just the push that had Hiccup shaken – it was what her callous statements were implying. Heat blossomed in his cheeks, a white-hot spark igniting in his core as, for the second time that day, Astrid provoked his temper into boiling to the surface.
"Oh, so what do you think I should do instead?" he snapped. His patience with her was close to an end, burning away like a fuse as his anger rose. "I should just leave Inferno to her fate? Ditch her and be done with it?"
"YES!" Astrid bellowed, flinging her arms up in emphatic, furious dismay. "You completely failed to control it, you admitted to continuously failing to control it, and if you had released him beforehand, we wouldn't even be in this ridiculous situation! You want to be a great Trainer?! You want to challenge the Kalos League?! If you were half as serious about that as you claim to be, you would have released a Pokemon like that the minute it became a problem! The whole reason we're trapped, the whole reason I'M trapped, with no way out is because of YOUR complete failure to be a competent Trainer!"
The sheer vitriol with which she spat her rant caused Hiccup to recoil. Rage mixed with shock as he gawked at Astrid with horrified eyes, a sense of revulsion twisting inside of him. Part of him was reminded of the time he first met Astrid, and how alien her views had seemed; the rest of him was too aghast, and too furious, to care.
"I'm not leaving Inferno behind to die down here!" he shouted back. Echoes of his sharp tone carried down the tunnel, adding emphasis. "Maybe she is a problem! Maybe I am a failure for not training her better! And maybe everything we've been through today is my fault! But listen to me, Astrid – for better or worse, I'm Inferno's Trainer, and I'm responsible for everything up to and including her well-being! No matter how she acts or who she threatens, Inferno doesn't deserve to die miserable and alone in the depths of this cave, and I'm not going to condemn her to that! That's not who I am, Astrid!"
He set his jaw and turned on his heel, his muscles tense as he walked with sharp strides away from the Hofferson girl. The tunnel stretched on before him, its end hidden by darkness, but he marched on nonetheless, all uncertainty burned away by indignation. His thoughts were solely on Inferno, visions of the Tyrunt slumped weakly in an alcove or falling unconscious before another Pokemon fueling his hurried pace. He would reach Inferno before those things ever came to pass, regardless of what Astrid said.
Astrid, he scoffed to himself, the thought of her glowering face putting extra purpose in his step. What kind of problem does she have, telling me to just abandon a Pokemon like that? I would've released her if I was a "serious" Trainer… who thinks like that? I'd never kick a Pokemon out into the wild just for disobeying a few times. Mom taught me better than that… who taught Astrid to think a rebellious Pokemon should be disowned? Nobody I want to ever meet, that's for sure…
I'll show her. It was a thought he'd had before regarding Astrid, but never with such a bitter taste on his tongue. I'll show her that there's still hope for Inferno. I'll rescue her and train her and make her a full-fledged member of the team. She won't ever tell me to let my own Pokemon run off to take its chances with nature again, if I can help it…
On and on he power-walked, past countless crystals and mirrors without so much as a glance, and making turns without consideration. Everywhere he went, his surroundings looked the same, so he forged ahead, keeping his eyes peeled for the distinct shape of a lost Tyrunt while his brain stewed in irritated, vehement thoughts. Faintly, he heard Toothless cry out as his partner waddled along behind him, but he couldn't slow down. He couldn't afford to, not for anything, because the longer it took him to search, the more time there was for Inferno to –
"Bago!"
The harsh bark that crashed in his ears was punctuated by a sharp pain in his ankle, and Hiccup was launched from his internal mire of frustration with a yell. He stumbled away and whirled exasperatedly on Toothless, who glared right back with an irate scowl on his muzzle – irate enough to feel the need to bite his Trainer on the leg, apparently.
"Really, Toothless? Why would you do that?!" Hiccup protested, pulling his leg up to rub the sore spot. "What on earth did I do to deserve… that…"
He trailed off, annoyance trickling away as, finally, he took a good look at his surroundings. He was standing in the middle of an intersection of sorts, five different tunnels branching off from each other all around him, each one indistinguishable from its neighbors. Luminescent crystals winked almost mockingly wherever he turned, to say nothing of his own increasingly bewildered face reflected back at him from the mirrors that lined the walls.
It hit him just then: he didn't know which way led back to the cave in. He facepalmed with a mortified groan at the irony.
"Toothless," he muttered, "now we're lost, aren't we?"
"Bay-go bay," the dragonling replied matter-of-factly.
Hiccup gave the branching paths another quick once-over, totally vexed. "You wouldn't happen to have been paying attention to how many turns we made, were you?"
"Bagon…" Toothless sweatdropped.
That was a resounding "no" if Hiccup had ever heard one, which was just great. He'd been so determined to retrieve Inferno that he'd had no room for anything else, and Toothless had must have struggled to catch up to him at the pace with which he'd marched off. That left both of them without an inkling as to where they were, without even a compass or map between them to use as a guide.
As long as they were stuck down here, though…
"We should keep moving, huh bud?" Hiccup suggested, glancing at the two passageways closest to him as he attempted to decide which seemed more appealing. "We're not going to accomplish anything just standing here, and we're lost already, so… might as well continue looking for Inferno, right?"
"Bago Bagon?" Toothless asked. He shifted about in a way that Hiccup took to mean he was uncomfortable – which was probably more out of concern for their own safety than a reluctance to rescue their missing teammate.
"Yeah, bud, I get it," he replied, kneeling to address his partner more intimately. "It's not safe to wander around down here and risk getting ourselves into more trouble, and we should probably try to find our way back to the rockslide where we can wait for help.
"But I can't just sit still while Inferno is out there, not if I want to be the kind of Dragon Tamer that Mom is," he said, a resolute firmness to his voice that drew Toothless' wondering gaze. "What I told Astrid was true – Inferno's my responsibility, and I've spent so much time neglecting her that it's partially my fault she's down here. Inferno deserves better than that, so I need to save her and be better for her. It's what Mom would do, and you know it."
"Bay…" Toothless' response was melancholy, and Hiccup couldn't get any sense of agreement or disagreement from it. But regardless of his misgivings, Toothless climbed up onto his shoulder anyway, showing once more the sense of loyalty that Hiccup never failed to be impressed by… and thankful for.
"You're the best, Toothless," he said fondly. "Now, which of these tunnels should we start wi–"
"Hiccuuuuup!"
The call resonated faintly from somewhere in the distance, getting louder – no, closer – toward its end. Instantly recognizing its source, Hiccup didn't hesitate to call back, and he was quickly rewarded with the audible, quickening clack of boots over stone. In less than a minute, a familiar blue-eyed blonde rounded the corner with her Golbat fluttering after, her breaths raspy and her bangs slightly askew after running all the way from the cave in.
"Astrid, I – ow!" Hiccup tried to say, only to shout and clutch his arm when her fist flew out to crash against his shoulder.
"That's for running off alone," Astrid snapped. "You're lucky I have a Pokemon with Supersonic, or else I'd never have found you."
"Gee, thanks," Hiccup snarked through gritted teeth as he nursed his bruised arm. "Did you come all this way to bring me back to the blocked tunnel, or just to give me a piece of your mind?"
"Both, you idiot," she answered, brandishing her fist as if preparing to punch him again. "Look, you might be acting completely ridiculous, but that doesn't mean I'm going to let you get yourself killed."
Hiccup settled down at her answer, some of his annoyance subsiding. The fact she wasn't so cruel as to lack basic human decency helped take the edge off his resentment. "Well… thanks for looking out for me, I guess," he uttered, and rubbed the back of his head awkwardly.
With an arch look, she began to head back the way she'd come with a half-hearted "let's go" motion. "Now, can you stop acting like a muttonhead and stay where whatever help I assume is coming can find you?"
His reaction to the notion of leaving was immediate and backed by stubborn resolve. "Hold on a moment, Astrid," he asserted fiercely. "I'll head back with you, but only once I've found Inferno. I'm not leaving without at least trying to save her."
From the mouth of the tunnel, Astrid turned just enough for her to give him a withering look with one eye, staying silent for the longest time. Expecting her to argue, Hiccup stood his ground, set his shoulders, and met her glare with the most straightforward and unwavering one he could. If she insisted on putting her foot down, he was prepared to fight her on this if necessary.
Fortunately, she didn't.
"Fine," she resigned with a roll of her eyes. "It's not worth spending our time at each other's throats at this point. You're clearly serious about this – more than I was willing to give you credit for earlier. I suppose I owe you an apology for that…"
Hiccup did a double-take, staring at her in disbelief. Astrid never seemed to him like the type that would admit she was wrong, so the fact she was relenting so easily was… humbling? Gratifying? Just plain weird?
"Uh… let's just… find Inferno," he mumbled, gesturing down a random passage. "And, um… thanks a lot. Y-You know, for agreeing to help."
"Whatever." Astrid blew a strand of hair out of her face with a huff before turning her grumpy expression on her Golbat. "Alright, use Supersonic down each of these tunnels. We're looking for the Pokemon that you battled before. Got it?"
Chuk chuk chak. The Poison-and-Flying-type clicked an affirmation before turning its enormous maw to one of the tunnels and singing out a soundwave, visible as only a waver in the air that passed swiftly out of sight. Golbat proceeded to do the same thing in every direction, pausing in between Supersonics to listen for the returning echo.
After a tense wait, Golbat fluttered over to the corridor on Hiccup and Astrid's left and hovered in front of it, clicking enthusiastically. A wave of relief passed over Hiccup, bringing a grin to his face – they had a lead!
"It found something. No telling if it's your Pokemon, though," Astrid told him. "Let's get moving. Golbat, lead the way and keep an ear out."
The Bat Pokemon flapped away without hesitation, and Hiccup and Astrid followed it into the passage. They moved at a brisk pace, making sure to keep their guide in sight at all times, and neither spoke, focused as they were on the task at hand. But as they progressed farther into the depths of Reflection Cave, the measured silence began to feel strained, and not just because of the dire nature of their mission. Whenever Hiccup glanced over at Astrid, she was facing forward with her shoulders set in a way that suggested she was deliberately ignoring him. Still, the tension felt greatest around her, like a volcano about to erupt, and Hiccup edged a little farther away in case whatever she was withholding suddenly burst.
After only a few minutes of traveling with such unease, however, Astrid spoke up suddenly and loudly enough to make Hiccup flinch.
"Hey, explain something for me," she half-asked, half-ordered. "Do you really think that your Pokemon is worth everything you're risking by chasing after it?"
Placing a hand on his chest to calm his racing heart, Hiccup looked at her incredulously. "Um… yes," he answered, unsure what about that needed further clarification. "It's, ah, exactly like I said before – Inferno might be a problem, but that doesn't mean she deserves to be left to fend for herself. I'm not going to write her off as a lost cause just because we started off on the wrong foot."
Astrid finally tilted her head toward him with an inscrutable look. "So… you think it's possible to come to an agreement."
"Well, yeah," Hiccup shrugged. "It's the same as building a relationship with a person. People who don't get along at first can learn to cooperate, can't they? Why not a Trainer and Pokemon?"
"Hmph." She looked away, wrinkling her nose. "What's your Tyrunt's whole deal, anyway? You don't seem the type to catch something that aggressive."
"I didn't exactly know she was like this when the Fossil Lab revived her," Hiccup quipped. Briefly, he flashed back to Inferno's rebuttal of his trust ritual, before shoving it away with a flush of shame. "As for why she's so… like that… well, she values strength a lot, and is obsessed with getting stronger. But she needs to learn that there's only so much she can do to do that on her own. The whole purpose of a Trainer is to help their Pokemon become strong."
That statement got a nod out of Astrid. "If strength is the issue, then you should just be firmer with her," she said. "Show her that you don't tolerate insubordination. That way you'll come off as strong and she won't be as likely to disobey."
"What? No," Hiccup answered. It was his turn to wrinkle his nose as part of him recoiled with revulsion at the notion. "If I fight her every time she acts out of line and force her to do what I say, all that will do is make her resent me. I want to come to an understanding with her – trust is the answer, not domination."
"She will trust you. I'm not talking about bullying her into submission – geez, how violent do you think I am?" Astrid growled, and inadvertently answered her own rhetorical question by giving Hiccup an irritated shove. Ignoring Toothless' provoked growl, she went on more sedately, "I meant showing her that you can't be pushed around. Be assertive. If you act strong, she's going to believe you are strong and become willing to follow you so she can get strong, too. That's how I train my team – I think you've seen enough of us to have an idea of how that worked out."
It was solid logic, and Hiccup couldn't deny that he'd been impressed with her ability as a Trainer several times already. But still, that abhorrent, recoiling feeling still writhed inside of him, telling him no. It only intensified when Valka's words came back to him, the night before he'd left home: "Remain true to yourself and always do what ya believe is right. That's how you'll become the master Dragon Tamer you're aimin' to be."
"No, Astrid," he rebutted. "Maybe that is a good training style, and maybe it works for you, but that's not how I train. I made a promise to Mom – and to you – that I'd get to the Kalos League and make my dream come true my way."
Astrid glared at him, but it was much tamer than the truly heated looks she'd shot at him in the past. He could see a spark of something underneath the annoyance, something he couldn't quite place, undermining what would otherwise have been an intimidating expression.
"Suit yourself," she finally stated, miffed. She increased her pace to walk ahead of Hiccup, leaving him to peer after her, mystified. Her attitude was as vexing as it was aggravating – she'd always butted heads with him when it came to his philosophy, but this felt different. It was like she didn't just disagree, but refused to agree.
"What about you?" he called after her, jogging to catch up. She increased her speed to a power-walk, but he kept at her side stubbornly. "What do you find so… ah, unsatisfying… about how I treat my team? Why don't you think Pokemon can be strong and friends with their Trainers?"
"Will you get off my case?!" Astrid whirled on him, teeth bared in a seething snarl as she stuck a threatening finger up under his nose. "I'm doing you a favor, helping you look for your dumb Pokemon, so the least you can do in return is shut up and –"
Chak chuk chuk chak! Out of nowhere, Golbat began to click excitedly, bringing Astrid's retort to a premature close, and flew ahead to disappear around the next bend. Hiccup's heart leapt, a rush of excitement shoving the near argument out of his mind, and he exchanged an ecstatic glance with Toothless. To them, Golbat's abrupt burst of energy could only mean one thing.
Astrid was the first to chase after her Pokemon, but Hiccup was close behind, running around the bend with such haste that he almost tripped on a protruding crystal. Even as he darted around it on one foot, waving his arms to keep his balance, distant sounds began to resonate from farther down the corridor, sounds he couldn't quite identify. Whatever their origin, though, Hiccup was willing to take any sign of activity as promising, and rushed toward the noise with thoughts of Inferno already filling his head.
Then, after one last jink in the tunnel, the path came to an end. Several meters away, the tunnel culminated in a dead end, and the first thing Hiccup's delighted gaze rested on was the hunched figure standing against the far wall – Inferno. She was right in front of him… and doing alright!
But the relief lasted only as long as Hiccup's attention remained on the Tyrunt; barely a second. Inferno was by no means alone – in the air above her swarmed a group of large, winged Pokemon, dark blue with white ruffs of fur and heart-shaped noses. By no means did their cuddly appearance fool Hiccup, though, not when shrieks of rage pealed shrilly from their mouths and beams of light shot from their fluttering forms to gouge the earth around Inferno's body… which Hiccup now saw was trembling weakly.
"Inferno!" he blurted on instinct, but got no response, from the Tyrunt nor her assailants. "Astrid, we need to do something! What are those things?"
Just as he was lamenting the loss of Fishlegs, Astrid graced him with a serious answer. "A flock of Swoobat. They're Psychic-types, so we'll have to be extra careful in separating them from your Pokemon. Get ready to move on my mark."
"Got it. Toothless?" Hiccup asked, shifting into battle mode, and Toothless replied with a growl as he leapt to engage.
"Golbat, warning shot! Scatter them!" Astrid barked.
An Air Cutter flashed through the air straight through the middle of the swarm, made up of five Swoobat total. The reaction was instantaneous and chaotic, all the flying mammals driven into a chattering frenzy by the unexpected miss. Quickly, they regrouped and shifted their collective anger towards the duo of Trainers, rainbow-colored light blasts firing from their noses.
"Supersonic!" Astrid ordered next.
"Jump up and hit one with Bite!" Hiccup took his cue, recognizing a potential opening.
Golbat's sonic waves spurred the Swoobat into further discord, scrambling in all directions with distressed shrieks. As soon as the Supersonic hit, Toothless was on the move, and flexed his legs to soar into the air and grab a particularly low-flying one. The Dark-type move coaxed a screech from the Swoobat as it flapped madly to escape Toothless' jaws. A few of the rest regained their senses enough to divebomb Toothless, but Golbat intervened with a smattering of Air Cutters that spooked them into backing off.
"Tyra!" A roar cut through the din when Inferno, either agitated by the cacophony or inspired by the counterattack, pushed off the wall she'd been leaning on and gnashed her jaws wildly, her Fire Fang producing bursts of hot embers with every snap. The flames repelled any Swoobat that tried to get close, allowing Toothless to spit out his previous target and begin firing Dragon Breaths that rocked the tunnel.
Bombarded on all sides by teeth, air blasts, and raining pebbles, the Swoobat unanimously opted to flee, squeaking in fear as they passed over Hiccup and Astrid and fled out of sight. Quiet descended once more as Hiccup sighed…
…only for his breath to catch in his throat when he witnessed Inferno moan and sink to the ground, legs giving out and eyelids slipping closed.
"Inferno…!" he uttered, stepping forward automatically as a wave of anxiety swelled up at the sight of the Rock-and-Dragon-type's condition. The situation didn't look good – Inferno shuddered on every inhale and exhale, her body pushed to the brink, while bruises and scorch marks from Psychic attacks peppered her hide. Pain and exhaustion had left her unable to do more than remain conscious, and even that seemed like an incredible chore.
Helplessly, Hiccup looked to Astrid. All previous signs of ire or reluctance had left the Hofferson girl, her face like a mask of stone except for a hint of worry in how she bit her lip. She met Hiccup's gaze and spoke, deliberately maintaining a low, neutral tone.
"Okay, we found her," she said. "What do you want to do now?"
"We have to address her wounds," Hiccup replied instantly, giving the fallen theropod another once-over. "From what I can tell, they don't seem serious, but they must be taking a huge toll. It's exhaustion that's left him so weak, I think."
"Are you serious?" Astrid asked, though not to be rude – her eyebrows rose in genuine surprise. "From what I've seen of that thing, she's not likely to let you."
She had no way of knowing that, but she was right – again, Hiccup reflected on how Inferno had almost bit him on that first bonding attempt. The safest thing to do would just be to return her to her ball and let the Pokemon Center take care of it, as he'd been doing so far…
…but he resisted the temptation. He'd had enough of running from his responsibility to the Tyrunt.
He shook his head, and Astrid didn't press him further. Instead, she inquired, "Do you have any food left? Or water?"
At this prompt, Hiccup slung off his backpack and nearly tore it open in his rush to retrieve his remaining supplies. When he'd last fed the other Pokemon, he'd made sure to save some rations for later, so it wasn't long before he located the last of his mother's Yache berry blend. Next to be brought out was a spare water bottle, still half-full, and the discovery of a small Oran berry stash took a significant weight off his back. Thank you, Fishlegs…
As quick as he could, Hiccup poured the food into a bowl and took it and the water bottle to Inferno, who didn't react when Hiccup crouched at her side. Feeling numb and heavy, like his skin had suddenly turned to stone, he unscrewed the bottle with fumbling fingers and tipped it without hesitation into Inferno's slackened jaw.
Inferno stirred at the feeling of water on her tongue, eyes focusing and claws scraping limply at the ground in an effort to get to the source. Hiccup moved in front of her, both hands clasping the bottle as he finished upending its contents; by the time he did, Inferno was fully awake and licking her reptilian lips to get every last drop. She stared, unblinking, as Hiccup moved onto the food, holding it up so she could see and smell it clearly. He started by tossing handfuls into Inferno's mouth, each one mashed and swallowed in an instant, and soon Inferno was dragging herself over to finish it.
Hydrated and energized – especially quickly, thanks to the Oran berries – Inferno fought to climb to her feet, legs trembling as they were forced to bear her weight once more. Encouraged by her recovery, Hiccup moved closer to address her, and only then did she react. Growling, Inferno swung her head with a violent snap of her fangs, and Hiccup only just pulled his hand clear in time.
Backing off from his hostile Pokemon, Hiccup turned around on naught but pure intuition and caught Toothless in both hands before his partner could attack Inferno. In the background, he saw that Astrid was also battle-ready, glowering at Inferno through narrowed eyes and preparing to give Golbat a command.
"W-Wait!" Hiccup yelled, throwing out his hand to stop Astrid, and grunting as Toothless strained against his arm. "Bud, please… Astrid, you too. Don't attack just yet. Let me try to handle this. Okay?"
Reluctantly, Astrid stood down, and Toothless kept struggling until Hiccup repeated himself more strictly. The dragonling grumbled and backed away, allowing his Trainer some space with Inferno. Hiccup gave them both an appreciative nod before returning to the monumental task he'd committed to.
"Inferno, please listen," he spoke softly, opening his arms in a bid for peace. "After everything that's happened to you today, you're scared and angry and confused, I get it. But you need to stop fighting me and let me take care of you. You've driven yourself into such a precarious state and you need help."
"Tyra!" Inferno denied furiously, lunging forward with a Bite. Hiccup darted out of the way, and Inferno overbalanced, swaying on the spot as her body tried its hardest to recover from the explosive activity. She winced and almost toppled, staggering on quaking legs.
"Inferno, I understand you don't want my help," Hiccup continued. "If there's one thing you've made clear in the days since I met you, it's that you're too proud to go along with anything I say. But is resisting me really so important that you're willing to hurt yourself over it?"
"Ty… rooooo…" Inferno moaned, managing another half-lunge at Hiccup before she stumbled in the middle of it, teetering to smack herself against the wall. There she stood, too tired to push herself upright, panting with ropes of drool dripping from her chin.
If there was one thing this action made abundantly clear to Hiccup, it was that regardless of what he tried, Inferno was going to resist him. She was far too proud to ever accept anything than her own strength, even as it rapidly deteriorated with continuing attempts to stand. No, up to this point, nothing had worked – not giving commands, not pleading, not logic.
There was, however, still one thing that might.
Morosely, Hiccup moved ever so slightly back toward Inferno, kneeling so that she was at eye level. Inferno growled, but otherwise made no attempt to drive him off. Confident that his Pokemon was too spent to be a threat to him, Hiccup began to speak.
"Inferno, you… you really are a strong Pokemon," he admitted. "That was one of the first things I figured out about you, and another was that you really wanted to get stronger. You joined me because you thought you'd get involved in a lot of battles, and so you could continue pursuing greater strength. That's why you've been fighting against me and the others – you want to want to get strong on your own, the only way you know how, and you're so proud of the power you already have, you don't know why you'd possibly need us. Is that right?"
Inferno growled lowly again, and tried to push off the wall in protest, but she only succeeded in slipping closer to the ground. Her glare was starting to grow duller, a sign that keeping it up was tiring for her… but also a sign that she couldn't disagree, and that Hiccup had hit the proverbial nail on the head.
"But, Inferno – you're not going to like this – you can only climb so high on your own," Hiccup continued, a little sadly. "Every person… or Pokemon… will reach a point where they can't get any stronger without somebody's support. Toothless and I are only as strong as we are now because we have each other to rely on… Fishlegs and Astrid both have their teams, too. And my mom – she's the strongest Trainer I've ever known, but she didn't do it alone. She had Cloudjumper, among others, to support her."
The mention of Valka got a reaction out of her. Her eyelids lifted and her pupils dilated in an unmistakable show of recognition, surprise flitting over her features as though Hiccup's words had triggered a realization that hit close to home. Whatever was going on in her head, now she was clearly paying close attention.
"The same goes for you, Inferno," Hiccup went on, the words coming more easily to him as though they were a stream flowing off his tongue. "I offered you a spot on my team because I wanted to give you that support. I want to help Toothless grow strong, and Skullcrusher and Sharpshot too. And, as much as you don't want to admit it, you need that support more than ever now."
He gestured to Inferno's sagging body, almost entirely reliant on the wall to keep her upright. The Tyrunt didn't give a response… which, in a way, was fortunate. But on the other hand, she wasn't swayed to Hiccup's side, either.
Hiccup licked his lips, taking a quavering breath and holding it in a pregnant pause. There was more he wished to say, but it wasn't coming easily – no, part of him didn't want to admit him, determined to never admit it. However, he reached deep down and willed those thoughts to be dragged from his mind and out his mouth. As the thoughts organized themselves into words, memories came and went with them – Inferno refusing his trust ritual, Inferno attacking Toothless and Skullcrusher, Inferno being drawn back into her Poke Ball over and over again.
The number of times he'd fought against Inferno, and outright avoided dealing with her, had added up to create a thickening barrier between them. The only thing that would tear the walls down was the truth.
"Inferno…" Hiccup hesitated, then steeled himself and forged on, forcing his voice to be steady. "Inferno, I hardly knew anything about you when we first met… and the truth is, I still don't know. I never even tried to learn. I gave you one training session, and when it fell apart, that was it. From then on, you were just… trouble, a problem I needed to deal with. I thought of you as something that had to be controlled, so… so that my team could be perfect again. Until Mom told me about you, I never stopped to even consider your thoughts, or your desires, or… well, you. She knew who you were with just a glance, but I… I've been a terrible Trainer. A-And I'm sorry."
He paused for air – once he'd broken the dam and forced the truth out, everything else had rushed out naturally. He felt liberated, cleansed of the poisonous guilt he'd been holding onto. In the silence before he felt well enough to continue, he looked squarely into Inferno's eyes, and the orbs that peered back were… intense, to the point of being almost spellbound, and fixated purely on him.
"Inferno, when we met, I wanted us to be a team… and now look at us," he continued, gesturing to… well, all of them. "You're terribly unwell, frustrated, angry, probably scared… thanks to the situation that I'm responsible for putting you in. Please, Inferno… please trust me. Not just so I can help you recover from all of this, but so we can start over and finally become partners. Inferno, I promise that if you work with me from now on, we can forge a path forward, and support each other in achieving our goals."
The last of his burden lifting from his chest on that final word, Hiccup threw caution to the winds and thrust his hand out to Inferno, a wordless bid for cooperation. Inferno still did nothing, her stare never faltering. Taking the inaction as a sign she hadn't understood, Hiccup shuffled closer, his fingers almost brushing his Pokemon's chin – and only then did Inferno react, features clenching in annoyance and lips pulling back in a growl that showed her teeth.
At first, Hiccup pulled back, a sliver of doubt hollowing his resolve.
But, with a cleansing breath, he allowed himself to let go. Abandoning all notions of what might happen next, he relaxed and closed his eyes… then, humble and serene, he reached out for Inferno a final time.
AN:
Life-threatening situations work wonders for character development, don't they? It's not exactly the amusing "mirror world" episode from XY, but I wanted Reflection Cave to have some importance beyond being the last stretch before Shalour.
It's true that Inferno's bad attitude didn't leave Hiccup with many options as to what to do with her, and he only became aware of the root of her nature thanks to Valka, but he does take a small part of the blame here. He's an inexperienced Trainer and got discouraged by Inferno's behavior, preventing him from doing more to try and connect with her, and that's part of the reason she refuses to trust him. But now that Hiccup's wizened up enough to extend the olive branch, all that stands in the way is what's left of her pride.
Even though Hiccup and Inferno's relationship was the crux of the chapter, his relationship with Astrid was a close second. While they did nearly come to blows again, being put into a dire situation allows them to put their energy to something besides fighting and discuss their differing philosophies more calmly – or try to, anyway. Even if Astrid is trying not to care, she just might end up taking something away from this…
Expect more sappy heart-to-hearts in the next chapter, with the second part of the Reflection Cave mini-arc. Please review, and thank you for reading!
Next time: Lost in the Hall of Mirrors