"Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls! Welcome to Kalos's first-ever four-way Battle Royal!"
Iris stood in a clearing on Route 19, with her hand raised above her head, as she announced the upcoming event to the wilderness. Her four newest catches were standing before her, arranged in a square as they stared each other down, with varying degrees of intensity.
"These four Pokémon will be battling each other all at the same time, and the last one standing wins!" She gestured toward the combatant closest to her, a two-foot-tall white-and-purple slug Pokémon, which had evolved from her Goomy some weeks back. "In this corner, we have the steadfast Sliggoo!" Her arm moved to the next Pokémon, then the next. "Next, the mighty Bagon! The feisty Tyrunt! And finally, the tenacious Noibat!"
Noibat was practically bouncing up and down as his name was called out, eager to get in the ring and show everyone what he was made of. Tyrunt was growling, scratching one of his feet against the ground, ready to battle. Bagon and Sliggoo were not quite as energized as the other two, but they both bore determined expressions on their faces, ready for the chaotic battle to come.
"Everyone, do you best!" Iris called out. "Let the Battle Royal… begin!"
Iris stepped back as she started the match, and the clearing instantly devolved into an all-out pillow fight.
Sliggoo and Bagon immediately rushed forward, not to attack, but to act as defense for the young Noibat, who they all considered to be the baby of the group. Bagon stepped in front of Tyrunt, shoving his bone-hard head into the dinosaur Pokémon's mouth as it chomped down. At the same time, Sliggoo fired a weak, slow Water Gun at the swooping Noibat, who dodged it easily as he flew by. Noibat boldly slapped Sliggoo's face with a Wing Attack, and the slug Pokémon stumbled dramatically in response, in an exaggerated manner. Noibat cheered and flew confidently toward Tyrunt, and both Sliggoo and Bagon turned toward him, prepared to play defense once again.
Iris watched the action unfold with an adoring smile on her face, as the two older Pokémon did their best to prevent Noibat from Tyrunt, while pretending to be injured by the attacks from the younger two. She eventually covered her nose and mouth with her hands, as Brock walked up and watched alongside her, his frilly pink apron on.
"So… what is this supposed to do for them?" he asked.
"It's supposed to be training," was Iris's muffled reply.
Brock's eyes followed Noibat as he flew triumphantly above the rest of the group, without a scratch on him. "Is training supposed to be this adorable?"
She shook her head.
He smirked. "Are you going to stop them, then?"
"Not on your life."
As the two of them watched Iris's Pokémon battle and babysit, a bright yellow glow illuminated another corner of the clearing. Pikachu was standing on his hind legs, his tail glowing yellow and crackling with electricity, as Ash watched him carefully from behind. The trainer kept his eyes on Pikachu's tail, studying the electricity carefully, trying to discern if it looked the way it needed to look.
"Alright, Pikachu, let's go!" he called out, pointing forward. "Use Thunder Wave!"
Pikachu cried out and leaped into the air, spinning around and swinging his tail out in front of him. The electricity was flung off of his tail, turning into a large bolt that instantly homed in on the nearest tree, shocking it and frying it to a crisp.
Ash groaned, scratching his head, as his disappointed Pokémon landed back on the ground. "Still not it… what are we doing wrong?" He knelt down and sat on the ground, reaching for his Pokédex and turning the screen on, as his Pikachu ran back to him. The Pokémon clambered onto his lap, and the two of them studied the Pokédex carefully with frowns on their faces. Neither of them looked up as they heard gentle footsteps approaching.
"How's it going, Ash?" Serena asked, as she used a handkerchief to wipe sweat from her forehead.
"Mmh… slow," he answered, keeping his eyes on his Pokédex.
"How come?" She stood behind him and leaned down, also glancing at his Pokédex. "What are the two of you trying to do?"
"We're trying to learn Thunder Wave."
She cocked her head. "Hm? Didn't you tell me you wanted to learn another move?"
"Well, what I really want is for Pikachu to learn Electric Terrain," Ash explained, glancing up to look upside-down into her eyes. "Based on what Diantha told me about controlling the battle and stuff."
She nodded. "Right, that's what it was. So why are you learning Thunder Wave instead?"
Ash held up his Pokédex. "I read that if your Pokémon learns Thunder Wave, then it's easier to learn Electric Terrain after that. It's the same… uh…"
"Same principle?" she suggested.
"Yeah, that." He set the Pokédex back down. "But it's really tough. It's like a different form of electricity than Pikachu normally uses. And I don't really know how to help him along, 'cause I've never had to teach anyone a move like this, you know?"
Serena hummed, thinking on this for a moment, before speaking up again. "Why don't you give Clemont a call? He has Pokémon that know Electric Terrain. I'm sure he could help you out."
Ash's eyes lit up. "That's a great idea, Serena! Thanks!" He immediately fished his phone out of his pocket, opening up his contacts and calling up his old friend. Serena leaned down and rested her hands on her knees, looking into the phone screen over Ash's shoulder. After a few seconds of ringing, they both saw the bespectacled, blond-haired boy appear on the screen with an excited smile on his face.
"Ash! And Serena!" he exclaimed. "What a pleasant surprise!"
"Hey, Clemont!" Ash responded.
"It's great to see you!" Serena added. "How are you? How's Bonnie?" Pikachu climbed up onto Ash's shoulder as she spoke, waving happily to Clemont. Serena reached out to scratch the Pokémon's head, and his ears flattened as he murmured happily.
"We're both doing fine, thanks," Clemont answered. "To what do I owe the pleasure?"
"I was hoping you could help with something," Ash replied. "Pikachu and I were trying to learn Thunder Wave… well, we were trying to learn Electric Terrain, and they say you should learn Thunder Wave first, since it's…"
Clemont nodded. "Yes, I understand. Are you and Pikachu having trouble with Thunder Wave?"
"Yeah, we are. We can't get the electricity to come out right. It's supposed to be like… it's not a bolt of lightning, right? It's more like… whoosh, but instead we're just like, bzzap. You know?" Behind Ash, Serena had to work hard to not burst out laughing at his description.
Clemont gave a polite chuckle. "You're right, it's not like a bolt of lightning. It's more like an electric field. The air gets charged with electricity."
"Yeah, that." Ash nodded. "So how do we do that? You taught it to your Luxray."
"Well, Pikachu needs… hm…" Clemont paused as he held his chin, trying to figure out how to explain the principles behind Thunder Wave to Ash and Pikachu. Ash was a very skilled Pokémon trainer, but as he had just demonstrated, he was not an expert in conveying complex concepts.
Ash, Serena and Pikachu all watched him deliberate for a few seconds, before his eyes lit up with an idea. "Actually, I have an idea." He looked down and focused for a second, and the others could hear the sound of a Pokémon being released from a Poké Ball. A moment later, the face of his Luxray could be seen walking into the frame, and Clemont turned toward it. "Luxray, Pikachu is trying to learn Thunder Wave. Could you explain to him how you do it?"
Luxray grunted and nodded, stepping up to the phone until his face was filling the screen, and started speaking in a language none of the humans could understand. Pikachu climbed down into Ash's lap and listened intently, occasionally nodding and speaking up himself. Ash and Serena watched with quiet amusement as the two Pokémon conversed over the phone, with Pikachu occasionally turning his head and wiggling his tail experimentally.
"Well, I… guess those two have it under control," Serena spoke, standing up fully. "I'm going to get back to rehearsing."
Ash turned to look at her in surprise. "You're going to rehearse more? You've already been doing it for hours. I thought you were done."
"You can never be too prepared," she answered, turning and walking back to her own corner of the clearing, where her Pokémon were resting. "Good luck, Pikachu!"
Ash watched her approach her Pokémon, clapping her hands and encouraging them to stand and get started again. Delphox rose easily, but Sylveon and Pancham needed a moment to stretch and summon the energy needed to resume, accompanied with some light grumbling. He frowned and turned back toward his Pokémon, hoping that Serena wasn't working herself and her partners too hard.
Back at the other side of the clearing, Noibat was standing triumphantly on top of a "defeated" Sliggoo, while Bagon easily held down an exhausted Tyrunt. Iris, torn between amusement and exasperation, congratulated Noibat on his victory, reaching out to remove him from his perch on Sliggoo's head. She was going to have to think a bit more carefully about her next training exercise, she decided.
"Stone Edge, Pancham!"
At Serena's command, her Pancham slammed his front paws against the ground, and an array of stone pillars jutted out of the ground, each one at a different angle. He stood up and ran forward, jumping to the top of the first pillar before leaping to the second. He twirled about in the air, doing a handspring off of the second pillar and spinning to the next. Behind him, Delphox and Sylveon were watching his progress, nodding with each pillar he touched; their job was to destroy each pillar as he jumped off of it, but they were taking a break as everyone focused on Pancham's movement.
Finally, Pancham sprung off of the final pillar, doing a front flip in the air as he descended toward the ground. He landed heavily on his feet, taking a moment to catch his breath before raising his arms in triumph. Delphox gave him a warm smile, while Sylveon let out an excited cheer at her partner's success.
"Great job, Pancham!" Serena exclaimed. "I knew you could do it if you kept at it!"
Pancham lowered his arms and exhaled in relief, wobbling a bit on unsteady feet. Seven straight attempts of the acrobatic pillar climb had drained his mental and physical stamina, and he was looking forward to getting some well-deserved rest. He could hear the telltale sounds of Brock starting on dinner, and his stomach growled in response.
Serena turned toward her other Pokémon and clapped her hands. "Alright, everyone! Let's take it from the top! Take positions!"
The smiles immediately fell off of the faces of all three of her Pokémon. Delphox gave her trainer a concerned frown, while Sylveon's ribbons fell limply to her sides. Pancham let out an audible whine, turning to face Serena incredulously. He watched as his two partners trudged into their starting positions, mustering the strength for yet another run-through of their Master Class performance routine. Delphox and Sylveon turned to face him, waiting for him to get moving, but his tired legs and his tired mind both refused to cooperate.
"Come on, Pancham! Not much longer, then we'll be done!"
Pancham began to protest, complaining about how exhausted he was. He tried to gesture with his arms, but it took more effort to move them than he wanted. Serena gave him a disapproving look, her hands on her hips.
"I know we've been at it for a while, but this needs to be perfect!" she insisted. "The Master Class is on the line! I don't want us to lose our shot because of a slip-up! We have to practice until we get this right!"
A small pang of anger struck Pancham's heart, as his frustration at being tired turned to frustration with his trainer. Instead of moving into position, he folded his arms and sat back down on the ground in a huff. His eyes were fixed on hers defiantly, almost challenging her.
Serena's eyebrows shot up in shock. "Pancham!" she scolded. "What's gotten into you?" He hmphed and looked away from her, refusing to move. Serena felt one of her fists clenching in anger, for a brief moment.
"Why are you being so stubborn about this?" she demanded, marching forward. "All of us are working hard here, not just you! I'm tired, too! I've been dancing my butt off for hours, but you don't hear me complaining!" She leaned forward as she stood over him. "You need to step up and be part of the team, alright?"
Pancham's eyes went wide, stunned at her words. After all the work he had been putting in, day after day, did she just accuse him of not being part of the team? Was she suggesting that he somehow didn't care enough? Had she been paying even a moment's worth of attention to his efforts?
Before he knew what he was doing, he rolled over onto his hands and knees, forcing himself to his feet. Instead of getting ready for his performance, however, he began half-running, half-shambling into the forest that surrounded the clearing. He didn't know where he was going, but he knew he couldn't be in her presence for one more second.
Serena gasped, scandalized, looking as though she had just been slapped. "Pancham! Get back here!" Pancham refused to listen, running further into the woods until he was out of sight. Behind her, both Sylveon and Delphox were staring in shock, their mouths practically hanging open.
"Veo?" Sylveon dared to utter, in disbelief.
"Hmph!" Serena folded her arms, unrepentant. "Well, if he wants to be a little prince about this, he can go right ahead. Once he decides to act like a grown-up and join us again, we'll be waiting for him." She turned back to her remaining two Pokémon. "We can do this with just the three of us, anyway. Let's go!"
Her command was met with even more incredulous stares from Delphox and Sylveon. They looked at each other for a moment, wanting to confirm that they had both heard the same thing, before turning back toward their trainer. Serena looked back and forth at the two of them, the moment slowly growing awkward, before she sighed and relented.
"Fine, fine. I guess I'll just go help Brock with dinner. You two can rest for now." She walked past the both of them and trudged toward Brock, deflated and disappointed. As she walked across the clearing, a panicked shout caused her to jump.
"Incoming!" Ash called out in her direction, and she stopped in her tracks. A strange combination of charged air and lightning bolts flew right past her, missing her by about two feet. The electricity was still strong enough to give her a small jolt, the hair on her arms standing on end. She blinked several times, standing perfectly still, as Ash ran up to her.
"Are you alright?" he asked. "It didn't hit you, did it?"
She groaned and reached up to her head with both hands, able to feel her hair sticking out in all directions. "Great…" she grumbled, trying and failing to comb it back down with her fingers.
"Sorry about that…" he offered. "We're getting a lot closer, though! That call with Clemont really helped a lot."
"That's great to hear," she responded half-heartedly. "But can you get closer without threatening to shock the rest of us?"
"Sure thing," he answered quickly. "Sorry again!" He turned and jogged back toward a guilty-looking Pikachu, as she turned and made her way toward her tent and the bag inside, in dire need of a hairbrush.
As she rifled through her bag, grumbling with irritation, she felt the bristles of a hairbrush against her hand, and eagerly pulled it out. She was about to brush her hair with it, but she stopped herself as she took another look at the brush. Her normal hairbrush was black, with stiff bristles, while this one was a brown color with much softer bristles. This was the brush she used for her Pokémon's fur.
Immediately, she was accosted by a memory from her past, of Pancham clamoring to get his fur brushed even as Serena was working on her Braixen. For a brief moment, she felt a twinge of guilt in her chest at the thought of Pancham, before she quickly shook it off. Pancham had made his irresponsible choice, and he was the one who had to live with it, not her. She cast the guilt aside along with the brush, as she kept rummaging through her bag.
"C'mon, champ, chin up!" Iris gently encouraged. "You did great for your first time training! You just need more practice, like everyone else has had! You'll get there!"
Iris was seated at the picnic table where the group was eating dinner, her body twisted around to face a dejected Noibat. The young Pokémon was sadly eating his food one pellet at a time, his normal energy almost entirely absent. Sliggoo watched him with sad eyes, while her Bagon offered words of encouragement as he stuffed his face. Tyrunt chowed down obliviously on his bowl of food, only concerned with his own performance, which he believed was superb.
"I bet that whole Battle Royal thing raised his expectations a bit higher than they should have been," Brock suggested, from the other side of the picnic table. "Then when the real training started…" Noibat let out a grumble that he meant to be low-pitched, but it still came out as a squeak, albeit a disgruntled one.
Iris reached down to gently pet Noibat's wings. "That's just how training goes. Nobody is great at everything right off the bat." Her voice picked up. "Your Supersonic is still really good! And you'll get the hang of Gust with a bit of practice. Altaria will be happy to help you out with that." She could feel Noibat's wings relax somewhat, mildly encouraged.
"Everyone has trouble with something," Ash contributed with a full mouth. He took a second to swallow before continuing. "Not everything comes naturally to everyone. Pikachu and I have been partners for years, and we still-" He reached down to pat Pikachu on the head, and received a powerful static shock in return. "Yow!" He immediately started shaking out his sore, tingling hand.
Iris snickered. "Thunder Wave's going well, you two?" Pikachu sheepishly rubbed the back of his head with his paw.
"Well, that's what I mean!" Ash continued, rubbing his shocked hand. "Even with all Pikachu's battling and training he's done, Thunder Wave is still tough for him. So don't feel bad! Once you get these new attacks down, you're going to be awesome on the battlefield!"
Noibat's eyes lit up, bolstered by the encouragement, and he started eating his food more quickly and energetically. Iris giggled as she watched him stuff his face. "Hey, slow down! You don't want to make yourself sick!"
Ash, Iris and Brock watched with satisfied grins as Noibat slowed his pace as little as possible, wanting to get back to his training as soon as they were done. Only Serena, at the opposite corner of the table, showed no interest in the adorable, young Dragon-type. She wasn't showing much interest in anything, in fact. Her head hung down, her eyes lazily taking in her mostly-untouched plate of food, which she occasionally poked at with her fork. Her stomach, which had been empty and growling not long ago, felt heavy and leaden now.
"You feeling alright, Serena?" Ash's voice in her ear brought her back to the present. "You've barely eaten. Are you sick?"
"I'm just not hungry," she answered, not looking in his direction. Nobody at the table believed her.
"Is it Pancham?" Brock suggested. Serena didn't answer, pushing a slice of carrot around her plate.
Ash put a brave smile onto his face. "Ah, there's no need to worry, Serena! Pancham can definitely take care of himself out there. He'll be just fine, and I bet he'll be back before we know it!"
"Mm." Serena kept her eyes down, a sliver of irritation entering her voice. She knew Ash meant well, but worry was definitely not the emotion that was eating her up inside right now. She forced a bite of her meal into her mouth, giving herself an excuse to not talk more. The perfectly-cooked food was tasteless in her mouth, and it landed heavily like a rock in her empty stomach. Regardless, she continued to eat at a very slow pace, as the others cleaned their plates and talked quietly among themselves.
Brock was the first to finish his meal, followed quickly by Iris, and Ash some time after that. The three of them continued to talk as they picked up their plates, moving to get them cleaned off. Serena had one or two more bites of her own food, before looking down at her mostly-full plate. After twenty seconds of staring, she let out a sigh and stood up, grasping her plate in her hands. She felt terrible wasting the food that Brock labored away to cook, but she knew she wasn't going to get any more-
Serena nearly dropped her plate as a crashing sound echoed through the clearing. Everyone turned their heads toward the source at the same time, looking for signs of trouble, but only seeing the rustling of trees amidst the setting sun.
"What was that?!" Ash exclaimed, squinting as he took a few steps toward the source of the noise. "Is there some kind of battle going on?" He jumped as another crashing sound rang out, followed by the faint but distinct voice of a very familiar Pokémon.
"Pancham!" Serena shouted in a panic, eyes wide. She immediately began sprinting toward the edge of the clearing, as fast as her legs could carry her. Ash and Pikachu followed behind her, with Iris, Brock, Sylveon and Delphox all bringing up the rear.
Serena began weaving her way through the forest as she reached the edge of the clearing, curving around the underbrush and pulling her feet forcibly through the tall grass until it tore from the ground. Her mind was already coming up with a dozen horrible explanations for what was happening, most of them involving a much larger, more dangerous Pokémon. Her Pancham was an incredible dancer, but none of her Pokémon were battlers like those of her friends. If she didn't come to his rescue, Pancham might be…
Another yell from her runaway Pokémon caused her to pick up speed, but a large pillar of stone emerging in front of her face made her stop in her tracks. Ash and Pikachu screeched to a stop behind her, along with everyone else, as several more pillars of stone appeared one after the other, diagonally oriented and increasing in height. A blur of black and white fur sprang from one pillar to the other, tumbling and flipping between each landing, before springing off the final pedestal and falling to the ground. The Pokémon slammed its hands into the ground as it landed, and all of the pillars fell apart at the same time, with a loud crashing sound that echoed through the forest.
Serena watched as Pancham took a moment to rest on his knees and paws, panting and sweating. He rested his head on the ground for a moment as he caught his breath, before slowly pushing himself back to his feet, a determined expression on his face. She recognized that pattern of stones, and those acrobatics. It was the same one they'd been running through earlier that day.
He'd been practicing.
"Pancham…?" Serena's voice snapped Pancham out of his focus, and he turned to face her in shock. The two of them stared into each other's eyes for a few moments, neither of them saying a word, their faces slowly contorting at the strength of the guilt filling their chests. Their eyes soon pooled with tears, and Pancham ran forward and leaped into his trainer's arms, as she held him tightly against her chest.
"I'm so sorry, Pancham!" Serena pleaded, her eyes shut tight. "I'm so sorry about what I said!" Pancham murmured what sounded like an apology of his own into Serena's shirt, clinging tightly to her as he cried into her collar.
Behind them, their friends and partners watched with a variety of expressions on their faces. Ash, Pikachu and Sylveon all looked worried, while Iris and Brock looked somewhat relieved. Delphox watched the exchange with her usual knowing smirk. None of them said a word, not daring to interrupt the tearful apologies between Serena and her Pokémon.
One hour later, the travelers were gathered around the fire for some much-needed rest. Most of the Pokémon were curled up on the ground, allowing the warmth of the fire to slowly lull them to sleep. Pikachu was resting on Ash's cross-legged lap as he often was, and in a rare occurrence, Pancham was doing the same with his trainer. He had eaten his fill of dinner when he returned to camp alongside Serena, who had doted on him for the remainder of the night as a means of apology. Even now, she was absentmindedly scratching his full, stretched belly with her left hand as he lay on her legs.
"Well, someone sure is comfortable," Brock observed, watching Pancham melt into a puddle on Serena's lap.
"Well, he had a big dinner," Serena replied. "He deserved it, after all of his hard work today."
"You all were working hard today," Ash added. He paused for a moment before saying his next words. "Maybe… a little too hard?" The words came out hesitantly, weakly, as if he were nervously poking a beehive with them.
Serena looked back at him in surprise, not used to criticism or negativity from him, but her face quickly fell and she broke away from his gaze. She didn't have any rebuttal. The Pokémon resting on her lap was proof positive that he was right.
"I agree," Iris spoke up. "I'm not telling you how to prepare or anything, but you went kind of nuts today. We didn't even do that when we were preparing for our Performance Battle."
"Yeah, I know," Serena muttered.
"What's gotten into you?" Iris continued. "You've been crushing the competition ever since you started, and you never had to practice like this before. What are you so worried about? The Master Class can't be that much harder, can it?"
Serena stayed quiet for a moment, hesitant to explain herself properly. After all of the confidence she had gained, and that she had shown her traveling companions, she was much too embarrassed to admit that a single eleven-year-old girl had her scared out of her wits - especially one that she had been mentoring up until a few days ago.
"I'll take it easier from now on," she eventually conceded. "You're right. My Pokémon are all really solid. We can relax a bit and still be in good shape." All of her companions noticed that she refused to answer the question, but none of them said anything about it.
"You're going to do great!" Ash insisted, with his characteristic optimism. "You nearly won the whole thing last time, and now you're way better than you were then!" He failed to notice soft, plodding footsteps approaching him as he continued on. "That crown has your name all over it!"
"I know the competition is tough, but based on what I've seen, I have to agree," Brock added. "You've got to be one of the top performers in Kalos right now. Everyone else is trying to catch up to you."
Serena smiled gently, a feat that was slightly easier with everyone else's encouragement. "Thanks, guys. I really hope so."
Ash was about to speak up again, when he felt a soft weight on his right knee. He turned his head to see Houndour lying next to him, resting his chin on the boy's knee, looking up at him with pleading eyes. His face split into a wide grin, as he dared to reach out and pet the dog Pokémon on his head. Houndour sighed softly, his eyes closing and his ears lowering.
Serena had to cover her mouth to suppress a delighted squeal, the previous topic instantly forgotten. "Oh my goodness, look at that! What a sweetie!"
Ash nodded, slowly rubbing his hand along Houndour's head. "Yeah… he's finally warming up to us." He spoke quietly, as if disturbing the Pokémon with his voice would cause him to leave.
"He's warming up to you," Iris clarified, her smile no smaller than Serena's or Ash's. "He loves you, like all your Pokémon do."
"He's not my Pokémon," Ash reminded her, though his voice had little conviction to it.
Brock smirked. "I wonder if Houndour would agree with that."
Ash's smile faded. "He's still got a trainer out there who's waiting for him."
"Ash, it's been over a month," Iris responded. "Nearly two. I don't think…" She lowered her voice to something closer to a whisper, her eyes moving to the young Pokémon. "I don't think his trainer's coming back."
Ash kept his eyes on Houndour, deeply conflicted. "You think his trainer just… abandoned him?" His fist clenched involuntarily as he thought of Houndour's trainer simply abandoning the Pokémon without a second thought. He'd seen plenty of that throughout his journey, and it never made him any less angry, no matter how many times he saw it.
"It might not have been that," Brock suggested. "Maybe not intentionally. Maybe something… happened to them. You know how things can be."
"It could be any number of reasons," Iris added on. "But if the trainer was healthy and wanted Houndour back, he probably would have found us by now. You might just have to… be Houndour's trainer from now on."
The group all went quiet at this. Ash returned his focus to the Pokémon resting against his knee, gently rubbing his hand back and forth on Houndour's head. For the first time, he started considering the possibility that his temporary situation might become a permanent one. Maybe Houndour's trainer wasn't out there, searching for his beloved Pokémon and awaiting a happy reunion. Maybe Houndour's family was gone for good, never to be seen again. Ash could feel his heart break for the young Dark-type, as the world started to feel a little colder and a little crueler.
"Well…" Serena began. "If that is what happens… at least Houndour will be someplace where he's happy." She smiled as her eyes glanced at another puppy Pokémon not far away. "And he won't be the only one who's happy."
Ash smiled again and nodded. "Yeah… he won't be." As he pet Houndour with his right hand, he felt another creature bumping against his left. He chuckled and dutifully began petting Pikachu with his free hand, causing his longtime partner to murmur and melt into his lap. Maybe the world was cold and cruel, but this campfire and its visitors were warm and friendly, at least.
After another twenty minutes of conversation, the group dispersed to get some sleep. Pikachu, Axew and Pancham all followed their trainers into their tents, while Houndour sleepily trudged in another direction. He plopped himself down alongside a sleeping Growlithe, leaning gently against her as he settled in and closed his eyes. Growlithe was briefly awoken by the sudden intrusion, turning and smiling as she saw who had decided to join her. She leaned in and gave his cheek an affectionate lick, before snuggling back against him and returning to her slumber.
Author's Note: I'm still not satisfied with this chapter, but it's been over six months and I needed to get something out. The next chapter should arrive a lot sooner.