Chapter 29

The Tauros bellowed as it was battered on all sides by powerful gusts of wind. The gale calmed and the bull Pokemon crashed onto the dirt path, unconscious. Its trainer, a burly guy named Jake, returned it and shoved some money into Leaf's palm before leaving.

Leaf tucked the money away and grinned at Dragonair, who stood tall. "Great job, again. Let's get back to your flying exercise."

The fins on Dragonair's head stretched out. With delicate flaps, they lifted the dragon several feet off the ground. Dragonair glided to the end of the route, half a mile away, and back. Leaf counted the number of laps. 8…9…10. Dragonair landed next to Leaf, panting. She patted his head and poured water from a bottle into his mouth. Once Dragonair's thirst was quenched, he slumped onto the grass. Anyone else would've looked exactly how they were: tired and sweaty. Somehow, Dragonair's movements still had an air of elegance.

Leaf smiled. Over a week had passed since Dratini evolved and she was no less in awe of him. He wasn't some mighty beast. Though he didn't need to be quite as meticulous with his attacks, he still didn't hit as hard as most of her Pokemon. And since he'd only recently gained the ability to fly, he needed tons of practice with it. Yesterday was the first time he could even get himself off the ground without the help of Twister. But there was something so regal about Dragonair that for the first time, Leaf could truly believe he was a dragon.

Leaf felt her hat get pulled off. Haunter dropped her hat onto Dragonair's head. The dragon stood and with a jerk, tossed her hat on Haunter. The ghost cackled and they began to play catch.

Eventually, Leaf said with a laugh, "Alright, that's enough. Give me my hat back."

She should've said it when Dragonair had her hat. Haunter cackled and drifted away from Leaf's outstretched hand. Leaf rolled her eyes and tried to grab it again, but the ghost ducked out of the way.

Leaf turned to Dragonair. "Get my hat back, will you?"

To Haunter, Dragonair made a lovely breathy sound. Haunter cackled in response and after some back-and-forth, Dragonair blinked sheepishly at Leaf.

Leaf let out an exaggerated sigh and lifted up Haunter's PokeBall. "If you don't return my hat, I'm going to return you."

The threat worked. Haunter placed her hat back on her head and zoomed away to resume its Shadow Punch exercise. Dragonair's fins twitched: his new way of showing embarrassment. Leaf couldn't help but smile. In the past, Dragonair was terrified by Haunter, who took pleasure in harassing him. Now, they were becoming a duo. Haunter was the troublemaker and Dragonair was its reluctant, rule-abiding sidekick.

"I'll be right back. I'm gonna go check on the others." Dragonair nodded.

Leaf stepped over a ledge, onto an open path where Haunter and Golduck were training near each other. Haunter was using a boulder as a punching bag while Golduck held his Water Gun as long as possible. Golduck soon ran out of energy and the water splashed onto the ground, creating a dark, wet line over sixty feet long.

"Nice," Leaf said. Then, faking a disapproving tone, she asked, "Why didn't you keep Haunter focused on training? It stole my hat just now!"

Golduck shrugged while Haunter cackled.

Leaf moved into the woods and heard the cracking of wood. Fearow was spinning against a tree, beak digging into it. She was practicing her newest attack, aptly called Drill Peck. Leaf had tasked her with not only drilling deeply, but also cleanly, leaving little to no marks outside the hole.

Fearow's beak slid slightly to the left. Instantly, she drew back with a frustrated cry. She shook her head a few times, glowered at the trunk, and began to drill into it again.

Fearow, Leaf had been starting to notice, was tough on herself. She wasn't sure if the vulture always had this drive or if it stemmed from her unfortunate luck in battles. Leaf thought about sharing words of encouragement, but decided Fearow wouldn't appreciate the distraction now. She tiptoed past the bird.

Further in the woods, the ground began to quiver and rumble beneath Leaf. Venusaur was weaving the branches of Frenzy Plant through the trees. Or at least, trying to. The branches would frequently whip something. The sound made Leaf wince, as if she was being whipped herself. Leaf didn't know if Frenzy Plant was meant to ever be fully controlled, but she hoped Venusaur could be somewhat precise with it. An attack that was both deadly and accurate was always better than an attack that was just deadly.

The branches calmed, so Leaf could hear Venusaur's ragged breathing. Her starter acknowledged her with a groan.

"Good," Leaf said. "You're getting better each time."

Venusaur didn't look like he believed her, but unlike Fearow, he didn't seem particularly upset. He knew he would eventually see real progress. Leaf admired his faith in himself.

As Leaf began to return to the dirt path, she wondered where Vulpix was. Vulpix was also supposed to be in the woods, working on her speed and agility. She'd told Vulpx not to go deeper into the woods than Venusaur and it was unlikely the fox would disobey her. Leaf's guess was that Vulpix was with Dragonair, waiting to get a drink of water. Despite being a fire-type, Vulpix did need to stay hydrated.

Then, from her left, Leaf heard a howl. She ran to the sound, gasping when she reached its source.

Vulpix was crouched down, snarling. Above her were three Pidgeots. They screeched at Vulpix and one of them charged at her. Vulpix leaped back and fired a Flamethrower, which the Pidgeot dodged. The fire didn't hit anything, harmlessly disappearing into the air once Vulpix stopped, but Leaf was suddenly hyper-aware of the many trees and bushes that surrounded them.

"Don't use Flamethrower!"

Vulpix jolted at the sound of Leaf's voice. Seeing the opening, the same Pidgeot surged forward and knocked the fox back with a wing. Vulpix got up quickly, but the other Pidgeots had joined their companion, swooping in with a Wing Attack. Vulpix yelped as she was repeatedly struck.

"Confuse Ray!"

Vulpix's eyes lit up, but with three opponents quickly coming at her in different directions, she didn't know who to aim for. The light faded instantly when she was hit again. As the Pidgeots began to circle back again, Leaf noticed Vulpix's legs shaking.

Leaf whipped out Vulpix's PokeBall and returned the fox. She turned and sprinted with the knowledge that her life definitely depended on it. Behind her, she heard the Pidgeots screeching and didn't dare look back to see if they were chasing her. By the time Leaf had returned to the dirt path where Golduck and Haunter were, she was out of breath, her legs burned, and she was covered in sweat. Golduck and Haunter were about to approach her, but she gestured at them to keep training.

Vulpix was whimpering as Leaf sprayed a potion on her. It wasn't because of the pain. The poor fox was humiliated, even though it was completely logical that she would struggle against three fully evolved Pokemon. She couldn't even use Flamethrower, her strongest attack by far. Leaf felt the weight of the Fire Stone in her satchel. Vulpix was the only one of her Pokemon to have never evolved. She hadn't thought about it before, but she now wondered if whatever Vulpix evolved into could've successfully taken on those Pidgeots. Her odds would certainly be better.

Leaf shoved the thought away. Vulpix was aware of the Fire Stone's existence. If she was ready to evolve, she would've already.

Leaf stroked Vulpix's back. "Don't be upset. You can't win every battle and that was an especially tough one."

Vulpix whined and leaned into her. Fearow and Dragonair had many losses. The fox, curiously, was starting to collect ties: a tie with Erika's Tangela and Janine's Venomoth despite the type advantage, a tie with Archer's Weezing. In a way, it was more disheartening to be neither particularly bad nor particularly good.

She would've won those battles if she was an evolved Pokemon. Guilt seeped into Leaf for having those thoughts again. Did Pokemon even need to evolve to stand a chance against powerful opponents? Was that really the sole purpose of evolution?

Leaf held Vulpix's head so that she could look directly into her eyes. "It's only up from here, OK? Before you know it, you'll be so strong that you can beat ten Pidgeots."

Vulpix's eyes sparkled. With a purr, she nestled onto her lap. The fox was so warm and cozy, as if Leaf was sitting in front of a fireplace, a blanket wrapped around her. Even though it was the peak of summer, it was a pleasant feeling.

At the end of the week, Leaf decided it was time to travel to Cinnabar Island. There was no turning back, as far as Leaf was concerned. The flight was long, so she'd decided to only go once she was confident about facing the seventh Gym. And she was. The Cinnabar Gym specialized in fire-type Pokemon. Golduck should be able to clear through it and if he couldn't, she could use any of her other tough Pokemon.

Leaf trekked down to a small beach south of Fuchsia. The waves lapped gently over the sand. Above her, the sun blazed. She saw on the news earlier that a heat wave was coming. That had solidified her decision to depart today. Leaf wasn't going to have Fearow fly during a heat wave, of course. She also didn't want to spend another week or so in Fuchsia, waiting for the temperature to cool down. She wouldn't even be able to train during that time.

Leaf shielded her eyes from the sunlight with her arm. Despite being by the water, she could feel the oppressive heat beginning to shroud Kanto. The heat wave was going to be severe. She dropped her arm and sent Fearow out. After Fearow stretched her wings, Leaf kicked a leg over her. Once she was sitting comfortably on Fearow, the vulture soared high into the air.

The salty wind felt nice on her skin. Leaf looked down, seeing nothing but deep blue. Every now and then, she spotted a swimmer, a tiny dot in the vast ocean. She couldn't imagine swimming so far from shore, but she knew they likely had water-type Pokemon who could save them from drowning.

Eventually, Leaf grew bored of staring at a world that looked the same everywhere. She cocked her head so that Fearow's face was partially in view. "Let me know when you need a break. I'll keep an eye out for small islands."

Fearow nodded, her gaze fixed ahead. Leaf tried to think of a conversation topic, but it was hard when she and her Pokemon had been glued together for so long. There was just nothing new to share. Leaf looked ahead and thought about the Indigo League. There had already been some challengers, but no one noteworthy, so only recaps were shown on TV now. Most didn't make it past the first Elite Four member, Lorelei. If they did, they couldn't get past Agatha, the third one. It was part of why people were predicting that Red or Blue would seize the championship. They were the only ones who showed true potential.

Leaf felt herself grip Fearow tighter. She hadn't fantasized about being Champion in a while, but she still wanted it more than anything. She couldn't articulate why. All she knew was that she'd been working so hard to reach it that it was turning into a necessity.

Something brown caught Leaf's eye; two small islands right next to each other. Leaf told Fearow to land.

The two islands were identical to each other. Other than sand and a few pebbles, the only thing sitting on top of them were caves. She felt a chill coming from the cave she faced, like she'd opened a fridge.

Behind her, Fearow squawked. Leaf turned and smiled. "You can rest while I explore this cave."

Fearow didn't seem totally on board, but didn't protest. Leaf returned her and went inside.

There was an incline. Leaf descended and immediately began to shiver. She crossed her arms, which did little to warm her up. She hastily took her jacket out of her satchel and zipped it on. Better, but she still crossed her arms. It had to be literally freezing in here because her face and legs stung and she could see her breath. A voice in Leaf's head told her to turn around, but her curiosity was winning. It wasn't everyday someone found a cave in the middle of the ocean. Besides, it felt almost nice to be cold rather than hot. And it wasn't like she was going to venture too far.

Leaf quickly arrived at the point where the sunlight ended, but she didn't need to take out her flashlight because the path was lit up by bioluminescent…fungi? She wasn't sure what they were exactly, but they clung onto the rocks, the walls, the ceiling. They glowed a soft blue.

She reached a fork. In order to not get lost, Leaf decided she would only turn right. A moan echoed through the cave. It was hard to tell how far the source was from her.

Leaf's foot suddenly slid and her heart skipped a beat. She glanced down. This cave truly was freezing because beneath her was a patch of ice. Leaf peered ahead and saw there were actually multiple patches of ice. I'll need to watch where I'm stepping.

The further Leaf ventured, the louder the voice in her head became. It was screaming at her turn back. Leaf was about to listen when she heard the moan again and this time, she knew she was close.

Hand hovering over her belt, Leaf crept towards the sound. When she reached it, her eyes widened and her hand dropped to her side.

She was in an icy cavern. In front of her was a body of water. On the other side was a group of pearly white seals of different sizes. The larger ones looked elegant with their slender bodies and mermaid-like tails. The smaller, pudgier ones had tan maws and looked stupidly funny with their tongues stuck out. Their tails looked like waterspouts. Everyone had horns and two tusks.

Leaf recognized these Pokemon from a TV program. The smaller ones were creatively named Seel and the larger ones, the evolutions, were Dewgong. One of the Dewgongs moaned––it was the same moan Leaf heard earlier––and slid into the water. After a moment, it resurfaced and hopped onto the ice, water droplets clinging onto its body. Some of its companions noticed Leaf. They glanced at her and then blinked away, uninterested.

Against the wall, there was a strip of land that stretched over to the other side. Swallowing, Leaf crossed it. She was close to the seal Pokemon now. If she stuck her foot out, she'd hit a Seel. Amazingly, no one minded Leaf's proximity. The Seel closest to her even shimmied up to her and sniffed her foot. Before she could decide if she could pet it, the Seel turned away and dived into the water.

Leaf looked around the cavern. There was another path cutting deeper into the cave. She'll see where this path led and then leave, Leaf decided.

Another incline. Leaf took a step forward and in an instance, the ground disappeared and then rammed into her rear. As Leaf slid down the path, which she realized was coated in a sheet of black ice, her arms flailed around, desperately searching for something to grab on to. She kicked at the ground to slow herself down, but there was no traction. Around her, bioluminescent fungi flashed by quickly, their previously soothing glow now making her head spin.

She reached the end of the incline. The impact of her feet against the flat ground made her bounce and fall forward. It took Leaf a moment to crawl towards the wall, just a few feet away, and sit against it. No longer in shock, her entire body screamed in pain. Her arms were bruised and scraped from catching herself at the end. There was a sharp pain in her feet and the skin on the back of her legs felt raw. Worst of all was the ache in her butt and lower back. It was unlike any she'd ever felt; she couldn't breathe properly. Her breaths were sharp and quick, as if each one was abruptly cut halfway in and out. It was stinging her throat.

Leaf turned her head towards the incline. From here, it looked much longer and steeper than it did at the top. There was no way she could walk back up, especially in this state. And it was too narrow for Fearow to fly her out.

Leaf scanned the new cavern she was in. This one also had water, but she wouldn't be able to cross it since her side wasn't at all connected to the other. There were two trails on the other side. After her fall, Leaf felt apprehensive about exploring them, but maybe one of them was the way out of this ice cave. Once her body was strong enough, she would ride Fearow.

Leaf's teeth chattered. The cold felt good at first. Now, it was too much. She brought her arms and legs close to her chest. Her toes hurt. On second thought, maybe she should just send Fearow out now. It might be painful to ride the bird, but it was an easy choice over freezing to…Leaf couldn't bring herself to say the word in her head. If only she had a blanket. Her jacket provided some warmth to her upper body. She had nothing for her bare legs.

No, that wasn't true.

Leaf detached Vulpix's PokeBall from her belt, shivering so much that she nearly dropped it. As soon as Vulpix was out of her Pokeball, before she could register where they were, Leaf brought the fire fox onto her lap. Every part of her that Vulpix touched instantly flooded with warmth. Leaf adjusted herself so that as much of her as possible made contact with the fox. It was probably a third of her body that was able to do so, and that third felt absolutely amazing, like it had forgotten what it was like to be cold. The rest of her, on the other hand, seemed even more aware of how cold it was.

"M-Might need to move you around a-a bit, if you don't m-mind." Leaf forced a smile. "I just need to rest for a m-moment, then Fearow can fly us o-out."

Vulpix gazed at Leaf with concern. She surveyed the cavern, its icy surfaces, the bioluminescent fungi that served as the only source of light, the still and dark water. Her round, chocolate eyes returned to Leaf, taking note of her scrapes and bruises, feeling her body shiver and hearing her teeth chatter.

Vulpix stretched herself to allow more of her to cover Leaf. Leaf buried her face into the fox's fur, shutting her eyes to try blocking out everything except the ball of warmth. Maybe because of that, or maybe being trapped in a mysterious ice cave was very mentally draining, Leaf was swept by a wave of exhaustion.

She was slipping in and out of consciousness. She saw Red standing in front of a sunset, Pikachu perched on his shoulder. Red's body was a shadow against the burning orange. The world looked as if it was on fire. And then she smelled smoke and saw the deep pit surrounding Silph Co.'s headquarters. She heard screaming, not all of them human. The sounds began to twist together until they were news reports, superimposed on each other. Terrorist attack fifteen-year-old Red Woods from Pallet Town Diglett twenty-two dead and counting hero Blue Oak immoral catastrophe Saffron City tragedy President Ken Champion. It was that last word that woke her up for a moment, sending chills down her spine. And then she saw a young boy crying. It was Red. Some bully had punched his nose. It was bleeding now. There was a roar and she saw an orange dragon flying in circles. Charizard, the dragon was called. She learned that while watching Red's Saffron Gym challenge on TV. She saw Red's brown eyes, the resolve that made him nearly unrecognizable from the crying boy. Then, Blue appeared. Blue as a child, that is. His smiling face, not his usual smirking, but the open one that held nothing back. She stopped seeing that smile after his parents' deaths.

She was cold, so cold. She shifted so that Vulpix could warm those parts, but that meant some parts that were warm were now freezing. The immediate contrast made her jolt. The aches around her body were duller. She couldn't tell if they were healing or if the pain was numbed by the cold. Blue was standing in front of her again, hands in pockets. His lips didn't move, but she heard his voice. I'm your rival. What would be the point if I didn't push you a bit? Were these memories, or figments of her imagination?

There was another shock of cold. Vulpix had shifted slightly. She heard a shuffling noise before seeing the fox rummaging in her satchel. Vulpix moved away and a shiny fire-colored stone slid out onto the ground. She stepped off Leaf, who shuddered as her entire body froze.

"V-Vulpix––"

Vulpix pressed her forehead against the Fire Stone and closed her eyes. Her body glowed white and doubled in size. When the light faded, the Fire Stone lost its color completely, resembling a normal rock now, and Vulpix was covered in lush golden-white fur. There was a small mane of thicker fur around her neck and a long fluffy crest on her head. Her ears and snout were sharper. Her six tails were now nine and had pale orange tips. They were so large, larger than herself, like a peacock's tail. She gazed at Leaf with narrow, piercing red eyes. Leaf could feel her Pokemon's love radiating off her body, the same way her heat did.

Not-Vulpix curled around Leaf, her tails blanketing her body. She was even warmer than before.

Leaf leaned into Not-Vulpix's flank, turning her head so that she could see her face. "You're very pretty."

Not-Vulpix licked Leaf's cheek and then nuzzled against her arm. Leaf scratched behind the fox's ear and drifted back to sleep, her last thought being: evolution is for not only protecting yourself, but the ones you care about.

She woke up to Not-Vulpix growling. The fox's stare was fixed on the other side of the cavern. Leaf followed it and froze.

Dragonair was no longer the most beautiful Pokemon she'd ever seen. A majestic sky blue bird stood across from them. The shimmering feathers on its chest were a paler shade of blue while the crest on its head, three rhombuses attached at the bottom, and its stream of a tail, longer than its body, were darker. Its beak and thin legs were gray as storm clouds. It stared back at them with ruby red eyes.

Leaf couldn't believe what she was seeing. Articuno. The legendary ice bird. It was said to appear before doomed travelers in icy regions. If the traveler was deemed worthy, Articuno would lead them to safety. If the traveler wasn't worthy, they would be left to perish.

Articuno spread its wings and let out a beautiful cry, the song of a siren. The Ice Bird flew off the ground and down the trail on the left, tail flowing behind it. Its cry began to fade.

Leaf's body was throbbing, but much better than earlier. She acted fast. Thanking Not-Vulpix, she returned her and sent out Fearow. The vulture shuddered when she was sent out.

Leaf climbed on top of Fearow. "Follow the sound, quick!"

Without Not-Vulpix, Leaf was freezing again. But now, she was strong enough to temporarily put up with it. Leaning into Fearow, who sped down the left trail, also helped even though she wasn't as warm as the fox.

Articuno's cry seemed to be getting further and further away. She wasn't sure if what she heard was the cry itself or just its echo. Fearow seemed confident in her navigation, twisting and turning through the cave. At some points, Leaf heard the moans of Seels and Dewgongs.

There was a flash of light and Leaf went from freezing to burning. They were outside now, surrounded by ocean water, the sun beating down on them. Articuno was nowhere to be seen or heard.

Leaf's head was light as Fearow landed. They were on the other island, Leaf noticed. She only knew that because the second island was now on her right instead of her left.

"Thank you, Fearow," Leaf said. When the vulture gave her a quizzical look, she continued, "I'll explain later. I need to do something first."

Leaf sent Not-Vulpix out, causing Fearow to squawk in surprise. Now that they were both standing, Leaf saw they were similar in height. She scanned the fox with the Pokedex.

Ninetales. It has long been said that each of the nine tails embody an enchanted power. A long-lived Ninetales will have fur that shines like gold.

Leaf beamed and hugged Ninetales around her neck. "I would've been a goner if not for you." Behind her, Fearow squawked. "You too, Fearow. The both of you really saved me. I shouldn't have gone into the cave."

Leaf pulled back, giggling when Ninetales licked her nose. "We have to get to Cinnabar now. We'll all spend time together then."

After Ninetales nodded, Leaf returned her and hopped back onto Fearow. The vulture took off.

In the years to come, whenever Leaf found herself struggling internally, the image of Articuno spreading its glossy wings would flash through her mind. Every time, she would ask herself, had she been hallucinating? No, right? Ninetales was the one who'd noticed it and Fearow listened to its cry. Leaf had seen Zapdos before. By some miracle, she'd seen the Ice Bird as well. It had guided her to safety. Articuno had deemed her worthy.

Vulpix has finally evolved! I was excited for this scene, cuz it's the one evolution that didn't come from battling. Also, this is Leaf's first time seeing a legendary up-close!

I realized while writing this chapter that I don't understand Seafoam Islands. I have it written as being sort of like an underwater cave (I hope that came across), cuz that made the most sense to me, but idk. Logic isn't really Pokemon's strongest suit.

Thanks for reading and as always, appreciate any reviews.