“T-t-talk?” Jenny stammered out. “W-what about?” Ethan had tried to appear as non-threatening as possible, but the small seriousness in his voice was enough to send the shivers into Jenny.
She tried to retreat further into the corner, but her partner, her Growlithe, would not let her. He held her close, providing her with warmth and safety. “Ethan is a friend, trust him.” He softly cooed to her. “He just wants to help.”
Ethan watched Jenny and her partner silently. The great officer Jenny, she had been his bane once upon a time, hunting him relentlessly. Even after they came to Equestria, she did not stop. To see a person of that much pride, power, and unquestionable valor reduced to the state she was now… it was strange. But Jenny had grown to be more than just another person, she had put aside her differences, seen past her pride and duty. Ignored all the old scars to give him a chance at a new life, a new chance. It was his duty to help her, to help guide her back to the person she used to be. She deserved that much; she deserved more. But despite his feelings to help Jenny, Ethan could not help but feel a sliver of hatred in the back of his mind. Hatred for the ones that had hurt her, had hurt their friend. He had felt such things before, it was normal, but the feeling just would not go away this time.
“He is right, I am here to help. As for what we should talk about…-” it was a little too early to ask about what she had been through, those old wounds did not need opening just yet. “- we don't have to talk about anything in particular. But it would be good for you to talk about something, it will help.”
“Y-y-you want t-to evaluate me.” Jenny stated, her resolve showing as she forced the words out. “S-s-s-s-,” she started shaking as she got agitated.
“Calm down, Jenny, take a deep breath. It's just us three here, you don't need to push yourself.” Ethan encouraged her to take some time as she stammered more the harder she pushed herself, it seemed.
“I d-d-don't…” Jenny glanced at her partner, who also nodded before she accepted Ethan's words. She closed her eyes, leaned back into her partner’s grasp and breathed out completely. After a second or two, she slowly inhaled, her bandaged chest expanding as her lungs filled with air. She repeated this a number of times, and as she did, the shaking started to die down, until it died completely. She opened her eyes once more and looked over to Ethan. “You want to see how messed up I am from what happened, that's why you need to evaluate me… don't even think to l-lie-” Jenny took another deep breath, “-to me. I know.”
Ethan nodded with a somber expression. “No, you're right. That's exactly what i'm doing.” Jenny was almost as good at spotting lies as he was. Besides, there was no reason to lie to her. “I need to know what state you are in to best treat you. I know that you like being the one in charge, but I got to treat you as a patient for now.” Jenny was shaking again, though not for the same reason as before. She was in a position of weakness again, and she could not do anything about it.
“I… I know, but that does not mean that I have to like it.” Jenny almost sneered at him and even the Growlithe looked at Ethan with wary eyes.
“That being said, you are still my friend. I do this because I… all of us want you to get better. The time ahead of you will be trying, it will be impossibly hard on you… but I know you, I know how strong you are.” He had experienced it first hand after all. “So, is there anything you want to talk about?” He sat back in his seat, letting Jenny have the space she felt she needed.
The hurt lady in question looked down at her own paws as she mulled it over. They too were bandaged, but not as extensively as the rest of her. She missed the reddish brown coat she had grown accustomed to seeing on her paws. “Why don't you tell me what all of you have been up to,” Jenny said, looking up with a small smile, “I would like that.”
“Catch you up, so to say? Well, it's a lot, but we certainly got the time.” He passed a glass of water over to Jenny who accepted it with shaky paws. He took the other glass for himself and took a small sip. They had certainly been up to a lot in her absence. “Well, we did not know that you had disappeared yet, but after the battle, Brawly and I…”
Vernus nearly collapsed into a pillow when he finally got back inside. He did not mind helping out, he really didn't. But when every single question those mon had went right over his head… perhaps he needed to do some reading, too. So he would not be embarrassed like that again.
“Oh come on, it was not that bad,” Zoey argued as she sat down next to her deflated Leafeon. “You were of… some help.” He had shared some of his personal experiences helping Ethan, but for the most part, he had just whined. Teaching was really not his strong suit.
“I was horrible and you know it.” Vernus groaned. He was laying on his back with his four legs pointing straight up into the air.
“You tried, and I appreciated the company.” Zoey smirked and descended upon Vernus. She crawled over him until her head was right above his. “Really, it was nice,” she thanked him with a kiss to prove it.
“Maybe there is some other way I can help,” Vernus smirked and kissed back. His paws trailed up her arms, her tails intertwined with his and-
A heavy knock from the front door rang through the house, interrupting their little moment.
“Perfect timing,” Vernus groaned as Zoey rolled off him. “Can't we let the others deal with it?” He pleaded.
“Ethan has his hands full and Brawly is out training with Chii.” Zoey said as she straightened out her purple sweater. She did not need to wear it anymore, not since Mew had fixed her fur. She was more grateful for that then she could ever explain… but she was just so used to her sweater. It made her feel safe. “Right now, we are in charge.”
“Fiine,” Vernus rolled off the pillow to join Zoey as she walked out of their room. The knocking intensified as they got closer, and the door shook as heavy beats fell upon it. “Are we expecting someone?” Vernus asked.
“Not that I know of,” Zoey paused for a moment. “Mary usually just lets herself in.” But waiting any longer would simply put whoever it was in a sour mood, so she stepped forth and opened the door. “Oh, hello Mary,” Zoey greeted her friend. “What’s with the knocks, you trying to beat down our door?” She teased with a grin.
“Oh, sorry. I just wanted to see how Jenny was doing. I hope I did not interrupt anything.” Mary directed her eyes downwards and rubbed her leg.
“Not at all,” Zoey beamed. “If anyone woke up because of that then they needed to wake up anyway.” She paused and the silence stretched out for a few long seconds while Mary still stood in the entrance. “Please come in. Jenny is busy with Ethan right now, but why don't we just sit down for a little while? It feels like forever since we spend some time together.”
“That does sound nice, I'll take you up on that offer.” Zoey led the way, with Mary following close by and Vernus, after closing the door, slowly followed as well. Mary was nice, but she was more Zoey’s friend than his.
The group settled down at one of the smaller tables with a few cushions around to serve as seats. Zoey loved to spend time with Mary Care, but they had no time to meet up in some time. First there was that whole business with Olivia then Jenny came back. It had been a hectic time and it would be good to just spend some quality time with Mary.
“What sort of tea do you want?” Zoey asked once they had gotten seated.
“Hmm,” Mary put her hood up to her chin. “Do you have something sour?” She asked after pondering for a moment.
“I think we do,” Zoey turned to her mate who was still standing.
“I'll get it for you, no need to ask.” Vernus said with a shake of his head. Zoey always had the same kind of tea so there was no need to ask there. He walked past Zoey, brushing by her tail. He slowed down however as it wrapped around the front of his chest. Zoey had not turned to look at him, but he knew exactly what she was doing, and how to solve it.
“OW!” Zoey yelped as Vernus bit down on her tail, not too hard, but definitely not gently either. As soon as she had turned around however, Vernus was already hopping towards the kitchen, laughing the entire way there. “He can be so-” she paused when she saw the raised eyebrow Mary had and the look she was giving her. “What?”
“Oh nothing. You two seem well for one another.”
“I… yes,” she gave in, the slightest hint of a blush gracing her cheeks. “I was not too sure at first, but he really won me over. And well, I really do love that goofball now.” It had taken some time after Ethan had turned her down, but she was glad that she had given Vernus a chance. “How about you, anypony special in your life?”
“No, far too busy with work. Maybe someday though.” The little tease, Zoey knew that Mary had her eye on somepony, that much she had figured out. If she knew, maybe she could help set them up. “So, how is Jenny doing?” But that would have to wait for another time.
“She is awake, so that's good.” Zoey did not know much, but she could guess. “After what she has gone through though, the road to recovery will be long and hard for her.”
“She is lucky to have such good friends to support her then.”
“Yeah… speaking of that, did you bring the supplies for her?” Zoey asked. After Jenny had returned they asked Mary to bring over some spare supplies for her, bandages and the like, since they had already used a lot for her and were running low.
“O-oh… no, I was planning on making a second return a little later with them.” Zoey thought it seemed strange… but Mary almost sounded nervous. Perhaps she had just forgotten. “I had some extra errands I needed to take care of them anyway and wanted to get them all done at the same time.” Yeah, that made sense… she guessed.
“Okay, it's no real hurry anyway, her bandages are not to be changed until this evening.” Mary knew that, so she had probably planned her day accordingly, or so Zoey thought. “Oh, and here comes our tea.” They could smell the aroma before Vernus even came into sight. “I never get tired of that smell… he makes his own tea from his little garden. I should show you sometime, it's really a sight to behold.”
“Perhaps another day, and that does smell fantastic.” Vernus walked over carrying a small tray with three cups and some napkins in his mouth.
He grew all sorts of things in his garden; tea had never really been his first intention, but he soon figured out that he had the perfect plants and leaves to make some truly magnificent blends. It was a way for him to do something useful with that old horrid expertise of his. Making herbs and berries that could be used for food, medicine, and things like tea. It felt good. Maybe he could expand on it further to add to their income, but he would have to give it some more thought.
After he had put down the tea, Vernus sort of lost himself in those thoughts. He vaguely heard Mary complementing the tea, before she and Zoey started chatting again. They laughed and motioned to nothing in particular while talking. Slowly his gaze moved over towards Zoey. How lucky he was to have her. He had crushed on her for years, but had always kept himself in check. He could have told her that Ethan did not swing that way, but it had to come from Ethan. And now, he had the most perfect girl a Leafeon like him could want and… Zoey was staring back at him with a shocked expression. Had she said something, was he supposed to have heard something? He could not have spaced out for that long, how much could he have missed?
Surely he would invoke the wrath of Zoey if he directly asked what he had missed, so instead he kept his eyes upon her, raising an eyebrow while waiting for her to fill him in.
Had it not been for their guest, Zoey would have done unspeakable things to her mate. She dragged a paw down her face, she loved him dearly, but at times he could be a moron. “M-mary, can you repeat that? I don't think Vernus heard it all.”
Mary finished a long sip of her tea, and put the cup down without making a sound. “Of course,” she moved into a more comfortable position. “It happened a few days ago. I went past the old mayor's house and into the forest behind it to collect some medical herbs that grow locally. It's something I have been doing for years, and it saves a lot of money. Anyhow, after a while and I had gotten deep into said forest, I found something out of the ordinary.” Something clicked inside Vernus’s head, he knew that location. “I just saw a corner of it at first, it was hidden well,” a cold sweat began to form on his back. “But there, within the tree, was a room built out of vines, branches and all sorts of plants.”
“Really?” He had to think fast, Zoey had grabbed his attention for this exact purpose. He was sure that they had cleared everything that could be used as evidence from that place. The room itself wound eventually fall apart, but it was too early for that. Mary was their friend though, she trusted them. “You mean like these?” Vernus gestured to the other plant walls in their home, the ones he had created. An outright lie was never a good idea, so perhaps a bit of redirection was needed.
“Yes, exactly like those in fact.” She stood up and trotted over to the nearest plant wall, that made up Zoey and Vernus’s room. “How did you make this?” She asked, inspecting the intricate work that had gone into making them.
“Using some of the abilities I have from being a grass type,” Vernus answered as he took her side. “We are able to form and twist some plants much easier than other Pokémon.” He lifted a paw to a nearby vine. “We can inspire growth in the plants and really skilled grass types can then form said plants into stable structures like this. Since the plants are still alive they are much stronger than a normal wall.”
“Fascinating.” Vernus hoped that she had believed him, for he had mostly used truths in some way or another. A lot of grass types had wonderful abilities with plants and could affect them in a number of different ways. But he had not met another one who made made whole rooms and bases using just such a technique like he used. “And this is quite common among grass types?”
“No, not exactly.” He answered, she was still prodding, so he would give her another half truth. “Young ones, or ones that has yet to evolve can't do things like this. It requires training just like anything else.”
“They are so similar it's almost scary.” It was scary, her comment that was, and it sent shivers down both Vernus and Zoey’s backs. “Perhaps you can show me sometime, I would love to see how it's made.” Mary looked over at them with an exciting smile.
“Of course, I'll gladly show you. Anytime.” They were planning on building some more rooms in the future anyhow, so Vernus did not mind.
Zoey was not as subtle as Vernus was, but she still had her moments, and there was one more thought that plagued her. “Did you meet the Pokémon who made that hut?” She asked.
“No, sadly it was completely empty.” That was the answer she had been hoping for. “It would have been wonderful to meet the Pokémon who made it, but I'll just have to settle for the show you will give me sometime.” She gave a small laugh and looked over towards the door. “It has been pleasant, but i'm afraid I must take my leave.”
“Oh, so soon?” Zoey was saddened, she loved spending time with her friend, but they got to see each other too rarely. She really had to do something about that in the future.
“Yes, I have a lot of errands that I need to run today.” They escorted Mary over to the door, who almost tripped over a Zigzagoon that ran right in front of her. “Thank you so much for the tea, Vernus.”
“Anytime,” he nodded.
“I hope we see you soon,” Zoey added. She leaned down and wrapped her fuzzy arms around Mary in a warm hug. “You are always welcome here you know.”
“Of course,” Mary hugged back. “I'll see you around, bye:” After separating from Zoey, she waved them off as she left and walked away from their home.
Vernus and Zoey waved back for a small while before closing the door. Zoey was the first to speak up and she slowly turned to Vernus.
“W-we…” She swallowed since it felt like a huge lump was stuck in her throat. “We cleared everything out from that place, right?” She spoke in a hushed whisper.
Vernus slowly nodded as he thought back. “I think so, but we have to be sure. If she found it and told us, she may mention it to somepony else too.”
Zoey really did not want to return to that place. “So, we will go back there?” But they had no choice.
“Yes, after the sun has set, we will make sure that nothing links us to that place.”
“No, no, no! You are doing it wrong!” Brawly sighed from the rather harsh criticism from the leader of their team. She looked cute and cuddly, but she could shout out commands like an old boot camp commander.
“Would it not be better if I practiced juggling with normal balls?” He suggested. “That would not hurt nearly as much if they hit me.” They had been at it almost non-stop after they made a short visit home to check up on Jenny.
“The pain is a good motivator!” Who was this Skitty and what had she done with Chii? He knew that it would be harsh, but as soon as their training had started, Chii’s personality had shifted completely. She was harsh, but she was just as harsh on herself.
“Now come on, send one at me!” Brawly could only grit his teeth and get back up once more. But in truth, he was kinda enjoying it. Pushing himself to the limit once again, it was something he had missed. “Aura Sphere!” The blue ball of energy shone as it grew between his palms and shot towards Chii, that however, was the easy part.
“Tail Whip!” Chii caught the sphere in her tail, guided it around her and send it back towards him in full force. Now one he could handle.
“Aura Sphere!” Brawly fired off another before the first one could reach him again. It was when they started getting to more than two that this was a little tricky. Not to mention how gentle he has to be when actually catching them and guiding their path.
“Assist!” And there came number three, fired from Chii just as he caught the first one, spun around and sent it back to her. And this as still the easy part of their performance. They were both hurting, tired, and dirty.
“Don’t just throw it back! Flow with it, make it look like it's as natural as breathing!” And they both loved it.
“Sounds like you have been up to a lot of shit in my absence.” It was gradual, but over their talk, Jenny had started to open up a little bit. She was actually smiling, and even laughed once or twice.
“We really have, a lot of good times, and a lot of bad ones too. But with you back, it seems like it's going to smooth itself out from now on.” Or at least so he hoped.
“I would have thought that you would be glad to be rid of me.” Jenny looked straight up at the roof as she spoke. “We have a rather shit history together.”
“If he had not, then I would have done it alone.” Her Growlithe spoke up.
“I know you would, thank you.” Jenny let out a soft sigh, feeling her companion and the safety he provided.
“Yeah, he would probably have assaulted their bases without any help… We may have bad history, and I would be lying if I said that the thought had not crossed my mind.” A low growl emanated from the Growlithe, daring him to continue along that line of thought. “But I learned to work with you, after we got here I got to know you, the real you.” He remembered their first few days together, where their relationship was built upon threats and ultimatums. “You were forced to work together with me. You could have done nothing a lot of the time, but you helped us nonetheless.”
“You did good work, I could not just stand by and do nothing while others fought the good fight.” Jenny laughed for a third time.
“No, that's the kind of person you are. I think of you as my friend, we went over that before you disappeared.” She refused to look at him, and even turned her head away so he could not see her misty eyes. “Friends look out for each other.”
She wanted to be tough, like she had always been. But her emotions were shaky at best after everything that had happened to her, and now that she was finally back in a safe place, back home, she allowed herself to feel vulnerable. Growlithe held her tight and stroked her back as she cried into his chest.
Ethan could hear the Growlithe starting to whisper some quiet words to Jenny, but closed his eyes and tuned them out instead. They deserved that level of privacy, and who was he to rob that from them.
Jenny notified him when she had gathered herself once again. “S-so what now?” She asked, doing her best to wipe away the tears around her eyes.
“I think we are almost done for today.” He wanted to dig more, but he knew better. “It's been a taxing session and you look tired. I only have one more question.”
“Okay, I can do one more.”
“How did you escape?” It was more pure curiosity that drove Ethan to ask this question than anything else. “We found the place where you had been held, but you were gone a-”
“aaaaaaaaaAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!” Growlithe were the first to jump up, and Ethan followed quickly as Jenny gripped her head and a shrill scream filled the room.
“What happened!?” Growlithe had to shout to be heard over Jenny’s scream. “It's okay, you are safe here.” He tried to comfort her, but Jenny has gripped herself tightly and was rocking back and forth.
“She is having a panic attack! Try to calm her down!” There was no time for anything else, and after giving Growlithe that order, he ran out of the room with great haste.
“N-no more. P-p-please no more.” Jenny was shaking and after a few words her screaming continued.
“There is no more, you are safe here. I won't let anything hurt you!” He held her right and tried to calm her down with his presence, but it was like she did not notice him at all.
“Can't go back! Won't go back!”
“No one is mak- Hey!” He had to stop and dive down to grab both of her front legs in his mouth and pull them up. She had suddenly started scratching her left hind leg, and it was already bleeding.
“Let me go! LET ME GO!” She started to struggle even more, and he had to let go with his mouth so she would not hurt herself against his sharp teeth. Instead he prompted to hold her down.
“Stay still Jenny! You are hurting yourself!” It tore him apart to see his partner and lifelong friend like this, and where the hell was Ethan? He had ran out of them in an instant.
As if he had heard the Growlithe’s thoughts Ethan barged back into the room, a glass of water in his paw.
“Where were you!” Anger exploded from her partner. Ethan had left them, left Jenny as she started hurting herself and-
“Here, drink this!” Ethan pushed himself in between them, and set the glass to Jenny’s mouth. She was refusing to cooperate so he used his other paw to prop her jaw open. “I'm sorry, but you need to drink this.” Ethan started pouring the content of the glass into Jenny’s mouth. At first it was just splashed away and coughed back up, but as he held the glass firmly against her mouth, Jenny started swallowing, draining the glass completely before going into a coughing fit.
“Help me roll her over,” her partner Growlithe was still angry with Ethan, but did as instructed and, as she got rolled over on her side. Ethan placed his paw on her back and started rubbing in a circular motion. He also noticed that the bed sheet under her had blackened; he was a fire type so he had not felt it, but Ethan must have.
“I’m… where…” The coughing died down and Jenny blinked slowly. She looked up at her partner, seemingly struggling with such a simple act. “Don't… leave, please….” With those final words, she slumped down into the bed.
Ethan fell back into his chair, clutching his singed paw. Just touching Jenny at that moment had earned him minor burns. “It's just a sedative,” he explained to the Growlithe who had not left Jenny’s side, but was looking cautiously at him. “A weak one.”
Her partner looked down at her with worry in his eyes, glancing over the burnt parts of the bed. “Is she going to be okay?”
“It's going to take time. But she has a loyal partner to help her through it.”
“More than one it seems,” the Growlithe cracked a small smile. “And sorry for yelling at you, I had no right.”
The Lopunny shook his head. “No, you had every right. I think I would have been angry with you if you hadn't yelled at me.” They could have tried to calm her down without the medecine, true. But because of her earlier outburst as a fire type, and the wound he now could spot on her leg, he has been right in doing so.
“Still, I should trust you. You are trying to help and I'm… what am I doing?”
“You are providing her with stability and safety.” Ethan smiled. “Something I could never do.” He grunted as he stood up from the chair. “I think we are done for today though, I'll go get her some fresh bandages.”
“And some Rawst salve for your paw.”
“Yeah, that might be a good idea.”
It was later that day, near evening’s grasp when Vernus was making his way back from his garden. They were using more medicine than ever before, and he needed to keep up his production of medicinal herbs and berries. He was almost their sole provider on that front; they bought some supplies from Mary Care on occasion, but they could not afford to do that for the most part.
Not that he minded–in fact, working his garden and mixing the plants into different salves and powders were a great form of stress relief. He could just turn his mind off and work on autopilot. He just wished that they did not have to rely on charity to get by at times. Ethan never did mind, but strangely enough, he had noticed that it bothered Brawly some. They just had too many expenses compared to what they got from the mayor. Perhaps they could press him to give them more, they were doing good work after all.
And then there was that whole thing with the house Mary had found. He just wanted to put that whole thing behind them, but it kept coming back. Just a few more days and it would have most likely untangled on its own, his structures never did remain long without the proper maintenance.
He hated that they had to do to Olivia, but it was necessary. A necessary evil.
“Fuck that shit, it does not matter if it's necessary or not. We should have found another way.” Wrong was still wrong, no matter how much good you did afterwards, and he wondered what hell would be like when he got there. Perhaps he could say hello to a few old friends. He knew that they would be there.
As he was clearing the thickest part of the forest and their house and the evening sky came into view once again, he spotted a figure on the path leading up to their home. It was a pony, he could tell that much, but the light in his eyes from the evening sun made it hard to make out any details.
“Hey Vernus, is that you?” A familiar voice called out to him as they got close to each other.
It seemed like Mary had returned already, most likely with the bandages and additional medicine for Jenny.
“You know someone else that look this good?” In the beginning he had managed to get a few embarrassing moments out of Mary, but now.
“Quite a few, maybe I could introduce them to Zoey?” She had stepped up her game, and his pokes of fun were in wait.
“Eh, perhaps not. Anyway, I thought you were not coming back until later this evening, did you finish all your chores early?”
Mary paused at that, “Oh yeah, I got them out of the way rather quickly. How long ago was it that I was here again?” Mary asked eventually. “It's been such a busy day, time must have slipped my mind.”
Vernus scratched his head, moving the leaf on top of it out of the way. “It was a few hours ago, not too long.”
“I see,” Mary used her magic to lifted her saddlebags off and pushed them onto Vernus. “Here would you mind taking these? It's the stuff for Jenny.”
“Sure… but wouldn't you like to come in for a bit? I'm positive Zoey would love to talk some more.”
“Oh I would love to, but I just remembered that I have one more errand that I need to run. And it can't wait. Tell Zoey that we will catch up later.”
“Will do, I'll catch ya later!” Vernus said his goodbyes as Mary trotted away immediately.
Mary maintained the trot for a little while, but the closer she came to the town the faster she went, before she knew it she was going in a full gallop.
Something was very wrong and she knew exactly what. Vernus did not know, but she had, in fact, been swamped with paperwork and had not left her house at all that day, not until just a little while ago when she decided to visit her friends.
There was not many that knew that she had planned to do so much paperwork on that day, there was only one pony that she had mentioned it to, except that he was no pony, not really.
He had promised her that he would not do things like this anymore, and he had promised her that he would never again do it, looking like her. Someone had visited Zoey and Vernus, but it had not been her.
She knew that he would be home at this hour, he always liked his routines and system. So, Mary stormed towards the house of Neighagra Falls police chief and resident Changeling.
“Protocol!” The door was slammed open and the whole house practically shook. With her horn glowing brightly, Mary stepped in with heavy steps. “What. Did. You. Do?!”