Clara Devita was a Pokémon coordinator that was recognized throughout the world as a prodigy in the art. Now in a new world, she will do whatever it takes to pursue her true passion
Clara Devita was a Pokémon coordinator that was recognized throughout the world as a prodigy in the art. It only took her several years to achieve goals that most coordinators could only dream of. Many of them viewed her as an idol where she represented the coming new age of Pokémon coordination. However, Clara had a secret. A secret so great that not only would it brand her a criminal, but it would also destroy her dream.
Prepared to spend the rest of her life hiding her secret from society's scrutinizing eyes, Clara continued to live her life with the constant fear of being caught, that is until she and her team are whisked away to a new world by the all powerful Arceus. There, Clara will have to face new challenges in her new much more plush body, in order to keep doing what she loves best.
Clara fidgeted nervously as she cautiously exited the dressing room that had been assigned to her.
"I know that I designed this dress and that I really wanted to show it off, but now that the moment has finally arrived...." Clara blushed as she looked down at the dress she had spent that last three weeks preparing and couldn't help but mentally kick herself for how stupid she was for not seeing it earlier. The dress was simple in design. It was divided into two parts. the chest piece was made of black leather, and it hugged her body tightly from below her breasts, to the very edges of her neck. The bottom half of her dress was of a more complex design. Instead of leather, the bottom half was a long flowing piece of black silk that barely touched her ankles. The most noticeable feature however, was the large, pointed tail with a single blue ring around it that drew the most attention to her rear.
Clara was actually proud of how her design turned out; however, she couldn't help but sigh as she looked down at the one feature that she was new severely regretting.
"UGH! I hate having my belly exposed!, it's so embarrassing..." Clara mumbled that last part with a frown.
Clara's thoughts were quickly interrupted however, as a large black mass rubbed affectionately against her legs. Despite the situation, she couldn't help but smile as she looked down at her companion who had now preceded to more vigorous rubs and purring.
"Well of course you would like it. I did after all design the dress after you didn't I silly?" Clara said playfully. The rubbing stopped, and the perpetrator looked up with its big, yellow, mischievous eyes. Clara giggled as she bent down and scooped up the umbreon in her arms.
"You did make it quite clear how much you liked this outfit Saul." Clara whispered suggestively.
Saul gave a soft smile and preceded to lick Clara's cheek. Clara responded by giving Saul a small peck on the forehead.
"You know that we can't do that here, but I promise that we will go on one of our camping trips after this." Clara stated happily. The umbreon smiled and nodded before gently jumping out of her arms and onto the floor.
"OH! I almost forgot! we have to get you ready as well Saul!" she exclaimed suddenly. Before Saul could even react, Clara scooped him up again and ran back into the room with the umbreon in her arms. Clara quickly placed Saul in front of the mirror and began to brush him feverously. Saul glared over his shoulder at Clara as she continued to pull on his coat.
Clara smiled sheepishly at this. "Sorry, I got caught up in the excitement. I promise I will be gentle this time."
Saul's purr was his only response as Clara began her delicate brushing on his fur. As Clara groomed him, she could not help but notice the blue rings on Saul's body begin to glow a light blue.
Clara smiled at his reaction as she continued to brush his coat. A few minutes passed before she was done brushing him. The purring stopped, and the umbreon looked over his shoulder with a satisfied look on his face.
Clara knew that face better than anyone, and she couldn't help but chuckle at the Umbreon's current expression. "I should record your reaction every time I finish brushing your fur. It is so adorable." Clara giggled. Saul give a light huff as he jumped off the luxurious chair and began to stretch his muscles in preparation for the upcoming event.
Clara stole one last look at the mirror as she went over her mental check list of everything she was to get done before she went on stage.
" Ribbons, check. Pokeballs, check. A happily groomed umbreon." Clara glanced over at Saul as he continued to warm up him muscles. "check! And finally, the dre-....." She paused as she remember her earlier dilemma. Her blush returned stronger than ever.
"Ch-Ch-Check." Clara stuttered. However, before she could repeat what happened earlier in the hall, Saul pressed his face against her legs in attempt to comfort her. Clara's negative thoughts were bled from her mind as she let out a small sigh of relief.
"Thanks Saul, I needed that." Saul gave her a small smile and nodded before he raised his paw at the door.
Clara gave a nod in understanding. "Yeah, the match is about to start. We better get going before we are disqualified." Clara quickly returned Saul to his pokeball before exiting the room and making her way towards the stage.
*~*
Clara picked up her pace as she strode confidently down the hall towards her destination. This is it. The moment that I have spent the last several years training for. I just can't believe we are finally here, She mused to herself with a small smile. Now it is time to put all that training to use, She glanced down at her Pokeball belt and let her smile bloom. Of course I couldn't have done it without you guys. I will make sure to treat everyone after this regardless if we win or lose.
Clara slowed down her power walk as she neared the door to the inner stadium. After a slight hesitation, she flung the door open and made her way onto the field. As soon as she stepped through the door, her ears were met with the screams of excitement from the hundreds of people who have come to witness the final event of the Grand Festival. The deafening crowd however, grew silent as the announcer took her place in the center of the battlefield.
"All right folks! It's time for the event the everyone has been waiting for!" she announcer exclaimed with much enthusiasm. "This is the final battle of the Grand Festival, and one of these lucky coordinators will leave today with the fabulous RIBBON CUP!!!" The cheering broke out again at the mention of the trophy that all was currently sitting on a pedestal behind the judges. Clara couldn't help but give a small cheer as well at the mention of the cup, it was after all the item that every coordinator dreamed about obtaining.
"People of Slateport City, ARE YOU READY FOR THE FINAL EVENT!?" The announcers question was met with a loud cheer. " I can't hear you." The announcer taunted. The next cheer forced Clara to cover her ears at the level of volume as the sheer mass of cheers made it feel like her head was vibrating. Ouch! jeez, I haven't heard anything that loud since I battled that Exploud. Clara mentally whined as she rubbed her ears.
"OK! on our left we have contestant number 34, Sarah White from Lilycove City!" The crowd cheered louder as the spotlight highlighted Sarah. She was a young woman in her twenties with a long ponytail braided from her golden, blond hair. Her dress was a navy, blue silk trumpet that covered the entire midsection of her body as well her legs. The most noticeable feature however, was the large fluffed up piece of cotton that she had wrapped around her neck. Clara recognized the pattern almost immediately after that. Apparently Sarah had gotten the same idea about Pokémon fashion and had decided to model her dress after her Altaria.
After Sarah gave a quick bow, the announcer quickly shifted her attention towards Clara. "And to our right we have contestant number 4, Clara Devita from Lumiose City!" The spotlight now shifted onto Clara, as well as the attention of everyone in the stadium. Clara waved and smiled at the crowd as they cheered for her as well, but immediately covered her stomach when she heard someone whistled at her. She quickly composed herself after realizing her reaction and hastily reached down to grab to the two Pokeballs that were on her belt as she readied for the start of the battle.
The announcer grabbed everyone's attention once again. "Ok, the rules are simple. This will be a double battle between two of each contestants Pokémon. And like all the previous battles, this match will be decided when either of the trainer's meters hits zero, if the timer hits zero, or if the other trainer's Pokémon are unable to battle! Now without further adieu, LET THE BATTLE COMMENCE!"
Sarah was the first to react. "GO! Vivillon, Altaria!" Sarah shouted as the two Pokémon exploded from their Pokeballs in a flash of stars and bubbles before proudly displaying themselves for everyone to see. "Vivillon!, Altaria!" exclaimed the two Pokémon.
Clara got into her own stance. "Let's win this! Saul, Maiden!" Clara called out as she released her Pokémon onto the field. And like Sarah's Pokémon, the two erupted from their Pokeballs in a storm of leafs and musical notes. "Umbreon!, Gothitelle!" exclaimed Saul and Maiden as they got into their battle stance as well.
Sarah attacked first. "Vivillon use energy ball!, and Altaria use dragon breath!" Each of the Pokémon opened their mouths as they prepared to fire their attacks, however, they were not given a chance.
"Saul!, Maiden! Use psychic!" shouted Clara. Saul and Maiden eyes glowed an eerie blue as they grasped both of the opponent's Pokémon in their psychic hold.
In the split second that the Vivillon and Altaria were about to fire their attacks, Clara's Pokémon turned them around so that they were facing one another. Sarah's Pokémon looked wide-eyed at one another as they fired their attacks at each other. The explosion that followed covered up Sarah's Pokémon in a thick smoke, and Sarah's meter dropped down about a fifth of a fraction.
"Not bad." Smirked Sarah. "But not good enough! Vivillon use gust, and Altaria use sky attack!" Clara had no time to react as Alteria's sky attack burst from the smoke at an unnatural velocity thanks to the gust. The large bird went careening into both Saul and Maiden before Clara could even shout a counter.
"Saul! Maiden!" Clara shouted out of distress. However, she quickly calmed down when she realized that both of her Pokémon were ok, but battered pretty good.
Clara gave her own smirk. "You're not bad yourself. Now Maiden, use rock tomb!" The Gothitelle released a small battle cry as she summoned the giant boulders that were now falling towards Sarah's Pokémon.
"Dodge it! Then Altaria, use dragon claw to get rid of those rocks!" Sarah shouted. The two flying Pokémon dodged and weaved through in an almost dancing fashion as they avoided the massive boulders. Even as Clara heard her meter go down, she still couldn't help but smirk. Once the boulders had stopped falling, the Altaria took action by slicing the boulders into pieces with its dragon claw.
Clara's smirk grew even wider at this. "Ok! Maiden, use psychic on the rocks!"
"Gothitelllllle!" shouted Maiden as she willed the rocks up into the air to surround Sarah's Pokémon. Once the Pokémon where surrounded, Maiden willed the rocks to fly rapidly around the other two Pokémon. The effect was immediate, the rocks went flying in erratic patterns while hitting Sarah's Pokémon on the process, the sheer amount of rocks were too great to dodge.
However, Clara's strategy was not over yet. "Now Saul, hit them with hyper beam!" Saul parted his jaws as he prepared the devastating attack.
"Oh no you don't! Altaria use bulldoze!" Sarah shouted. Altaria complied and charged with intent to break out of the rocky prison. However, rocks kept hurtling into the flying-type which were slowing down its speed significantly.
The rocks that were still pelting Sarah's Pokémon provided Saul the perfect opportunity to fire his hyper beam. Saul aimed and fired the massive beam of energy right at the escaping Altaria.
The explosion rocked the stadium as the hyper beam met its mark. A large cloud of smoke billowed out onto the field, obscuring everyone's vision. When the smoke cleared, it was clear that Clara's tactic had paid off.
Both Vivillon and Altaria were barely able to stay off the ground. Their bodies were covered in soot and bruises, though it looked like Altaria took the worst of it
"Vivillon! Altaria!" Sarah cried out, a concerned expression on her face. "quick! Altaria use roost! And Vivillon use light screen!" Altaria quickly landed onto the floor of the arena while Vivillon got in front of Altaria and preformed the light screen.
I have to keep the pressure up. Clara concluded as she looked over the current situation. "Saul, Maiden! use shadow ball!" Saul and Maiden both fired their shadow balls at the downed Pokémon with the intent to end the match. However, Sarah wasn't going to go down that easy.
"Vivillon use protect!" Vivillon threw up the impenetrable shield at the last second, the two shadow balls colliding into the shield and promptly exploding.
"OK! It's time to end this! Vivillon use your energy ball, and Altaria use ice beam!" Sarah shouted. Both of Sarah's Pokémon let out a loud battle cry at they put their all into the next attack. Vivillon's energy ball was the first to fire, and as the massive ball of grass energy zoomed through the air, a large ice beam hit the back of it forcing it to freeze. The energies mixed together, ice and grass, melding together to become a devastating new attack. The result was a hurdling comet of prismatic energy that left a trail of color deifying beauty in its wake.
Clara had to admit, it was beautiful, but she wasn't willing to shown up just yet. "Alright! Saul use shadow ball, and Maiden use your dark pulse!"
Saul quickly fired his shadow ball with Maiden's dark pulse right on its tail. The dark pulse connected with the shadow ball and prompted a fusion of both ghost and dark type energy. The was result was a massive black fire ball that left a trail of heat and glass in its wake.
The two massive energies collided with one another and fought for dominance. Everyone covered their eyes when they saw the two powers radiated and expanded, a sign that an explosion was imminent.
Several seconds passed with nothing happening. Clara was the first to risk a peek at the aftermath of such a collision, and like everyone else's reaction at that time, all she could simply do it stare in awe at the result.
Floating in the middle of the stadium, was a large black orb the size of a beach ball. The beauty was indescribable as she watched countless colors dance inside the obsidian orb. However, The beauty was short lived as the orb then decided to explode.
Before Clara could even shield herself from the incoming shockwave, an all too familiar umbreon jumped directly between Clara and the oncoming shockwave.
"UMBREON!" Saul shouted as whatever remaining energy he had left, which wasn't much, was used to shield him and Clara. Once the shockwave passed, Saul let his protect dissipate while he waited for his trainer to get up. Clara quickly recovered when she saw that the umbreon was having trouble standing up. She stood up and quickly scooped Saul up in her arms and hugged him tightly.
The stadium was silent for a few seconds before people regained their senses and began to cheer like mad. The cheering was once again interrupted as the scoreboard dinged, signaling that the match had come to an end. Clara froze at that sound, and risked turning her head around to look at the score board.
The score was Sarah with 8% left on her meter, and Clara with 10% left on her meter. After seeing that score, Clara did the only reasonable thing that any person would do when they realized that they just won the grand festival, she passed out with a goofy grin on her face.
*~*
Eight hours after winning the ribbon cup, Clara felt like she was going to pass out from exhaustion from the sheer amount of interviews and autographs requests that had been thrown at her. When Clara first set her eyes on becoming a top coordinator, she would have never believed that being famous was a bad thing.
Oh well, Clara mentally shrugged. All that mattered right now was the camping trip that she promised her team after the contest. And she was making sure of that promise because no sooner when she was given some alone time in the restroom, did she jump out the window and sprint like sprint like a mad man away from the reporters. After making sure that no one was following her, Clara quickly stopped by at her apartment to pick up her camping gear before she left towards her secret camping spot.
Clara and Saul arrived at the camp site after a three hour hike, they probably would have arrived a lot earlier if not for the several long breaks they took on the way up. Clara gave a sigh of relief as they walked under the canopy that concealed their secret spot. The camp was shrouded by a large dome of natural leafs and vines that grew off several large trees in the center of the campsite. Several yards from the trees was a shallow brook that provided clean water from the nearby mountains and ran through the outer walls of the area.
Reluctantly, Clara tore her eyes away from the scenery and made her way to a large patch of grass in the center of the dome. There, she unpacked her supplies and laid them out in front of her before sorting them into separate piles.
Saul waited till Clara had finished prepping the tent before he walked over and placed a paw on her hip. Clara turned to take a look at the offending umbreon with a confused expression on her face.
She only understood what Saul was trying to tell her when he removed the Pokeballs off her belt with his psychic and gently placed them in her hand.
"I know, I was just about to bring them out. I just wanted to have the campsite ready as a surprise since I only told you about it." Clara replied with a light smile as she gently rubbed Saul's head. The Umbreon cooed as she began to scratch him in his favorite spot right behind the ears.
With one head still scratching Saul's head, Clara tossed the Pokeballs into air. "C'mon out guys! time to celebrate!"
The Pokeballs exploded in a brilliant flash of light as a Gothitelle and Noivern emerged. The latter stretching his large leathery membranes as he got a feel for the area.
"Noiveerrn" Moaned the sound wave Pokémon as he flopped down on his belly and began to roll around in the grass.
I have to agree Echo, it is nice to be here once again, Maiden communicated telepathically for the other two to hear. Clara gave a little groan in envy at the Gothitelle's ability to communicate with her mind.
"Hey Maiden, when do you think you will be able to link me telepathically to other Pokémon as well? I'm getting tired of missing out on everything you guys say to each other." Clara stated honestly.
Maiden frowned at this " I know I have the power to links minds together, but a human's mind is a lot different from a Pokémon's. Plus, I only evolved a week ago, so I am still trying to adjust my powers to the point that I know I can perform the link safely without tearing apart your mind."
Clara shuddered at the thought of that. As much as she wanted to spark a real conversation with Saul, She wasn't willing to risk becoming a vegetable for it.
"point made. Ok! that morbid thought aside, I just wanted to tell you how proud I am of you guys. We came a long way, and regardless of the trial, we always pulled through with flying colors. And our efforts are shown in this here cup." Clara held out the ribbon cup for her Pokémon to see, a smile etched on their faces. "And as a reward I went and got the most expensive cake I could find."
It was Clara's turn to grin as she pulled out the large pink box from her backpack. Even inside the box, the aroma of the cake quickly spread amongst the party. Maiden gave a delighted sigh as the scent hit her nose, while Saul and Echo made no attempt to hide their drool.
Clara's grin threaten to split her face as she lifted the box to expose the cake and all its glory. Every Pokémon sat in stunned silence as they witnessed the contents of the box. Maiden was the first to respond.
"Is that what I think it is?" The Gothitelle projected in awe. Clara's grin remained as she nodded her head in confirmation.
"It is my dear friends, a starf berry cake!" Clara pronounced in a overstated fashion.
Starf berries where an incredibly rare breed of fruit that yielded to every known Pokémon's taste. Not many get to taste the benevolent fruit at all in their life time. And the fact that Clara had a whole cake made out of them was simply unbelievable.
The Pokémon quickly broke the silence as they let out a loud cheer. Tonight was going to be interesting.
*~*
Echo was the first to crash as he fell asleep upside down in the tree with a content smile and some cake frosting still plastered on his face. Maiden was quick to follow as she fell asleep on top of the sleeping bag Clara had brought for her.
Clara and Saul were the only ones awake as they sat both sat silently together next to the small fire, both content just by embrace that they were sharing. However, Saul broke the silence when he leaned up and licked Clara's lips. With a sultry smile, Clara leaned down and began to kiss the umbreon back. She however didn't get that far as an overwhelming drowsiness began to wash over her. Her vision stated to fade as a voice resonated in her head.
"Rest now my children, for when you awake a whole new world shall be your home.”
Clara let out a small groan of discomfort as she tossed and turned in her sleep. She kept this up until she came into contact with something soft and warm. Clara smiled softly at this and proceeded to hug the warm mass tightly while nuzzling it with her face. She inhaled deeply into the fur once she realized that she must be snuggling Saul. The scent that greeted her nose easily confirmed that it was indeed her beloved Umbreon.
With much reluctance, Clara slowly opened her drowsy eyes to peer at her lover's sleeping form. Her vision was immediately obscured as Saul rolled on top of her. Normally, Clara would have no problem with this because due to the Umbreon's size being smaller than her own, but now, she was finding it hard to breath as he continued to snore lightly on top of her.
When did he get so heavy? Clara pondered as she struggled underneath Saul. Once she squirmed free from the fuzzy death trap, she turned her head around to examine just exactly why Saul was suddenly so heavy. Her question was quickly answered as she stared wide eyed at a massive Umbreon that was now as big as her. Clara quickly got to her paws as her ribbons flared out in sheer surprise.
She froze. paws… ribbons?!
Clara quickly snapped her head around to examine herself as she tried to make sense of the situation, what greeted her was most unexpected.
She was a quadruped for starters. Most of her fur was a blinding white color while other parts of her body, like her paws and tail that she was currently looking at, were a vibrant pink. She paused as she felt one of her ribbons brush her face, she willed it to come closer in so she could examine it, and was quite pleased that it followed her command. Clara felt a sense of dread as her suspicions were confirmed while she still gazed upon the ribbon that was hovering in front of her face… She had become a Sylveon.
Clara's mind started to panic, but she quickly settle down as she came up with a new theory. This must be just a dream, that was the only explanation. It wasn't the first time that she dreamed herself as a Pokémon cuddling up with her Saul. Except in all her previous dreams, she was never a Sylveon, and Saul was always awake to enjoy her fictitious fantasies. Plus, she couldn't remember any of her dreams ever being this real, but dreams can be an enigma at times, so it is understandable if she had a weird one once in a while.
Clara gave a mental shrug as she summed everything up. Oh well, might as well enjoy it before I wake up. She slowly padded her way back towards Saul before coming to a halt once she was literally right on top of him. Clara gave a sly grin as she leaned down and licked Saul's lips with a small groan before moving up his head to nibble on his ears.
She couldn't help but giggle when the Umbreon began to form a deep blush in his sleep at her affectionate advances. Using her ribbons, Clara gently lifted Saul's head to get a better view of his face before she pressed her lips against his to form a deep, passionate kiss. It was at this moment that Saul's eyes began to gently flicker before shooting open.
With a startled cry, Saul pushed the advancing Sylveon off of him and immediately got into an offensive stance.
"WHAT THE?! WHO THE HECK ARE YOU?!" Shouted the Umbreon as his fur bristled and rings glowed an eerie blue.
Now that left Clara speechless. Not in any of her dreams did Saul ever physically talk with his own voice, much less act like she was a total stranger.
Before Clara could even reply, Saul began to frantically look around the area as he seemed to be searching for something, or someone. After quickly surveying the area, Saul turned around and glared daggers at the Sylveon."And what did you do to Clara?" he asked in a much lower and more threatening tone.
Clara reflexively shield herself with her ribbons as she sat fearfully before the enraged Pokémon. "You're scaring me Saul" Clara replied meekly as she continued to shield herself with her ribbons.
Saul's ears perked up, he recognized that voice. "Clara?" he asked cautiously, his previously dark tone fading. Again, without waiting for her to respond, Saul walked closer towards Clara and began to gently sniff her.
A confused expression took hold of his face. "You sound like her, and smell like her, but Clara is a human, not a Sylveon." He stated with his hostile tone now returning. "Prove to me that you aren’t a ditto that is trying to play some sick joke on me." he growled.
Clara's anxiety was quickly replaced with a mischievous smile as she recalled one particular event. "Back in Lumiose City when you were still an Eevee. I found you sleeping in my underwear drawer after you had decided to take a dirt bath in my flower garden out front. When I woke you up, you ran out the door in blind panic with my panties stuck on your head before crashing into the mailbox." Her smirk grew wider. " And let's not forget the after math when I had to give you a bath and you-"
"I get it Clara! Just stop before someone else hears!"" Saul interrupted with a large blush adorning his face as he began to frantically glance around for a different reason this time.
The Sylveon's smile threatened to split her face as she ran up and tackled Saul to the ground. "OH! I knew you would recognize me!" Clara elated as she continued to nuzzle the downed Umbreon. Saul laid frozen on his back before he began to nuzzle back her affection. Unfortunately, this would have to wait because there were more serious matters at hand. With much reluctance, Saul gently broke away from the muzzle and pushed himself up.
"As much as I would love to cuddle with you Clara, we however must find out where we are and why you are a Sylveon." Saul said slowly as he examined Clara's new body.
Clara sat on her rump in deep thought as she mulled over Saul's words. Maybe… Maybe this is one of Maiden's pranks. She loves creating illusions to fool around with me when she is bored, but I have never experienced an illusion this detailed from her.
After having been exposed to Maiden's pranks for the many months that she had know her, Clara had figured out that the only way to break herself out of one of Maiden's illusions was to give her body a shock of some kind. With that idea in mind, Clara lifted up one of her pink ribbons in front of her face, and bite into it.
"YEOWCH!" Screeched Clara as she flew a good ten feet up into the air. Her ribbons streaming behind her as she ascended.
Saul stared blankly at Clara as she descended and landed on her butt, clutching her ribbon in her two front paws. Saul sighed as he walked up to the whimpering Sylveon. Without saying anything, Saul bent down and began to gently lick the wound on her ribbon, a sigh of relief from Clara was the result of his attention. After a good minute of tending her wound, Saul sat back up and looked at Clara with a confused expression on his face.
"What in Arceus's name possessed you to bite your ribbon? you should know that a Sylveon's ribbon is sensitive." Saul's stated with a small frown on his face.
Clara shot him a small glare. "I bit my ribbon because I wanted to know for sure that we weren't trapped in a psychic Pokémon's illusion, and judging by the pain, I have to say that we are indeed neither asleep nor under a trance." She concluded before she continued to lick her wound.
Saul mulled over Clara's words as he absorbed the new information. So they now knew that were indeed awake, but they still had no idea as to why it happened. Saul shook his head to clear his thoughts. This was no time to guess how this situation occurred, they needed to find out where they were and how to get back to town before someone starts to worry. Heck, they might even find someone who might know what happened along the way.
Clara was already ahead of him. "We should get going and head for the nearest town. Maybe we can get some help there." She pointed one of her feelers towards a small trail. "Our best bet is to follow that path till we till we come across a town or village."
Saul smiled as he walked over to Clara and gave her a lick across her muzzle, eliciting a coo from the former human, and causing Saul to chuckle.
"You always knew what to do when under pressure." He smiled cheekily. Clara silenced him as her lips connected with his before pulling away. " I have my moments." She replied with her trademark grin before walking past the dumbfounded Umbreon as she swayed her hips.
Saul gawked at Clara's retreating form as she approached the path while still swaying her hips, and occasionally glancing over her shoulder to make sure he was still watching. He gulped That's just not fair, he mentally whined before taking off after his mate.
*~*
Little Brook was a quiet little town to the far east of Canterlot, and for such a small town, it had quite the reputation. Little Brook was known for its exotic flora and mineral rich mines that provided rare and one of a kind items that were widely sought after by the nobles at Canterlot. Heck, even the princesses would place a special order from time to time.
The town was discovered by two families that each shared the little town's bounties. The Melon family ran the botany department, in which they would tend, harvest, and distribute all kinds of greens throughout the town. While the Glimmer family were in charge of the mines that have produced some record breaking gemstones in the past. Yep, the town was paradise… until the peace was disturbed by the arrival of these strange new creatures.
Melon stripe huffed as she pulled her cart into the town square in hopes to sell some watermelons and flowers this morning, only to be disappointed by the deserted streets and locked doors that greeted her.
Melon stripe was a young mare in her early twenties. Her coat was a light shade of green while her mane and tail were both a vibrant red. A cutie mark of a watermelon adorning her flank making it clear that she was part of the Melon family.
Melon's amber eyes surveyed the town square as she looked for any other ponies. She let out a sigh as she realized that this would look like a low income day.
"Where is everypony?." She muttered out loud.
"Probably inside their estates shaking in their boots." Chuckled a voice from behind her.
Melon turned around before a large smile began to form on her face. "Streak!" Melon shouted as she ran up to hug the stallion.
Golden Streak was one of Melon's dearest friends that she had known since they were both young foals. His bright, golden coat gleamed from the sun's rising rays while his white mane and tail were caked with dirt. His pickaxe cutie mark made it clear that he was from the glimmer family, and it also explained why he was so dirty.
Melon broke the hug as she looked into Streak's blue eyes with a confused expression on her face. "What are you doing here? I thought you had your shop set up three blocks from here."
Streak's smiled faltered at this. " The streets are near empty at my shop, so I left flint in charge while I came to check if you where having any better luck." He glanced around the town square. "But apparently it is the same here as well."
Melon frowned at this. It was clear that all of the ponies in town where currently spooked of the arrival of these strange new creatures, but she didn't want to waste the day just sitting at a melon stand that wasn't going to make any sales. A smile reappeared on her lips as an idea came to her.
"Hey Streak." Melon said as she broke the brief silence.
"Yeah?"
Melon's face flushed. "Well, since it looks like neither of us are going to make any headway in our businesses today. Can I request that we both take the day off and go on one of those dates you promised me?" She said with a determined, but red, face.
Streak gave her a warm smile before nodding. "Sure, beats hanging around an empty stall all day." The two of the shared a laugh as they walked into the park.
*~*
Melon and Streak had spent their afternoon in the park watching the new creatures frolic in the foliage. They even hoof fed one of the creatures that was residing in the pond before it shouted "Wooper!" and dove back into the water.
To sum it all up, Melon had an amazing day. She continued to mull over the date even as she leaned on Streak's side as he escorted her back home. It was a thirty minute walk before they arrived at Melon's farm, which was surrounded by a large field of watermelons and exotic flora.
The two stopped once they arrived on the porch of the house. Melon turned around and smile brightly at Streak.
"I had an amazing day, despite not being able to sell anything today." She chucked. Streak smiled back at her.
" Yeah, I did too. I am almost hoping that ponies will still be hiding in their houses, but I know that is bad for buisne-." Streak didn't get to finish that sentence as Melon quickly kissed him on the lips, her face as red as a tomato.
"Goodnight Streak." Melon said before she hastily entered her house and closed the door. Leaving the blushing stallion on the front porch as he imitated a fish.
Melon gave a happy sigh as she walked into the living room of her house and sat abruptly on the couch. Before she could mull over what just happened, the rapid tapping of hoofs from upstairs met her ears. She turned around on the couch just in time to see her younger sister Green Leaf run down the stairs.
The ecstatic green filly stopped in front of Melon and began to jump up and down.
"OOOHH! I AM SO HAPPY FOR YOU BIG SIS! YOU FINALLY MADE THE MOVE!" Leaf exclaimed a she continued to jump joyfully in place with a big grin plastered on her face.
Melon's blush threatened to change her coat color all together. "y-y-y-you saw?" She gulped nervously. Leaf stopped her jumping as she settled down, but the large grin was still plastered on her face.
"Yup!" She nodded.
Melon sighed. "Can we talk about this tomorrow then? Because I need some sleep after today." She emphasized with a yawn.
Leaf pouted. "Fine. But you have to fill me in on the details tomorrow." She declared as she pointed her hoof at her older sister.
"Don't worry I will." Giggled the older mare before yawning loudly again. "Now let's get to bed, we have a big day ahead of us tomorrow." She smiled warmly as she walked her beloved sister up to their room. *~*
Clara and Saul had been walking on the trail for several hours now and they still couldn't see any signs of civilization. Not only that, but it was getting dark as well. All the diurnal Pokémon were taking roost in the foliage around, and the more nocturnal Pokémon were making their presence clear.
Clara ducked with a squeak as a large swarm of Zubats flew over their heads, oblivious to the two Eeveelutions. Once the swarm was out of sight, Clara sprang up and ran with Saul right on her tail. They ran like this for a good half mile before Clara started to slow down back into a walking pace. Saul immediately stopped running as well and continued to walk besides his exhausted mate.
"Why Zubats?" Clara shuddered, "Why not some cute Noibats instead?"
"I have always wanted to ask you this Clara, but why are you afraid of Zubats? you seem to have no problem with Echo after all" Saul asked with a concerned expression on his face. Clara leaned against Saul as she told her tale while suppressing a shudder.
"When I was ten years old, the year before I met you, I stumbled upon a cave while exploring for evolution stones for my collection. one thing led to another, and a Zubat got tangled in my hair." She said with a pause.
"Just in your hair? that isn't bad at all." Saul said with a thoughtful look. Clara merely shook her head.
"It wasn't the hair, it was the fact that it latched onto my head and stole a pint of blood from me." Clara muttered as Saul felt another shudder travel along her back.
Saul didn't say anything else, instead, he leaned forward and licked her cheek. It seem to do the trick as the color returned to Clara's face as she returned the gesture.
The couple walked for at least another hour before Saul spotted something with his superior night vision. "Look!" he pointed at the large barn with his paw. "We can stay there for the night, and maybe we can figure out where we are in the morning." Saul said as he escorted the drowsy Sylveon.
The two treaded carefully inside the barn as they cautiously scanned the area. "Hello? anybody in here?" Clara asked, silently hoping that there would be a reply. When there wasn't she just sighed before flopping down onto a large pile of hay. she laid there for a few moments before lifting her head to search for the one thing that this pile of hay was missing.
Saul was sitting near the entrance of the barn as he surveyed the area in case anyone dared to come after his beloved Clara. He didn't mind really, being an Umbreon meant that he could tolerate the night better than most Pokémon, so it was only natural that he stayed up and guarded his mate while she slept. It was the lea-.
Saul didn't get to finish that thought as he yelped with surprise as a pair of ribbons wrapped around his body and pulled him in tight towards the prone Sylveon.
Clara smiled as she used her prehensile ribbons to pluck up her mate and place him by her side. I could get use to these things, Clara thought as she smiled. She quickly grasped the startled Umbreon into a tight embrace and pressed her lips against his before he could even utter anything. She eventually broke the kiss, letting her tongue leave Saul's mouth. She smiled brightly at the still frozen Umbreon before she let out a loud giggle.
"You know. I always wanted to try rolling around in the hay." Clara whispered with her large bedroom eyes staring directly into his. Saul couldn't take it anymore, he lunged forward and returned the kiss in full force, letting the night sweep them away.
*~*
Clara awoke the next morning to find Saul sleeping next to her with a satisfied smiled etched on his face. She smile at this and kissed his sleeping form before walking outside the barn and stretching. Once she was done stretching, she proceeded to lick her matted fur dry from last night's activities. Speaking of last night, it was probably one of the most enjoyable experiences of Clara's life. Sure, it felt good when she was still human, but it felt so much more… natural, as a Pokémon. She then frowned as a certain thought crossed her mind.
Melon let out a massive yawn as she slowly woke up from her blissful dream. Her eyes gently fluttered open as her mind began to reboot, reminding her of yesterday's events. A gentle smile formed on her face as she remembered her date last night with Streak. The conversations they had, the kiss she stole from him, the hand feeding of new fauna…
Melon's smile quickly dissolved into a frown as she remembered the town's current predicament. I just hope nopony is hiding inside their homes like yesterday because I don't know how much longer I can go without making a profit, she mentally moaned at the severity of the situation.
Fortunately, Melon's thoughts were interrupted as she felt something shuffle in her bed. She turned her head, she saw her younger sister who had crawled into bed with her last night. Melon's smile returned as she leaned over and kissed her little sister on the forehead before getting up and making her way downstairs towards the kitchen.
Knowing that her sister would be waking up soon, Melon began to gather all the ingredients and essentials that she need in order to make Leaf's favorite breakfast. As she poured some batter into the frying pan, Melon couldn't help but chuckle as she heard the scrambling of hoofs from upstairs. The sound only grew louder until Leaf came into view as she rapidly trotted down the stairs. The ballistic filly came to an abrupt halt as she entered the kitchen area.
Leaf help her nose high as she sniffed the air, drool evident on her lips. "We're having pancakes? Alright!" She exclaimed, pumping her hoof in the air. Melon smirked at her sister's antics.
"Yep, we're going to need it for day we are going to have." She smiled warmly.
Today was the first day of the Platinum melon harvest for the Melon family, an annual season that marked some of the Melon families most prestigious products to finally reach maturity.
"By the way Leaf, I need you to go and get me my hoe and wagon from the barn. I'm going to need them when I am hauling those heavy platinum melons." Melon said with her eyes still on the solidifying pancake batter.
"But breakfast is about ready!" Leaf whined at the thought of missing her favorite meal of the day.
Luckily, Melon already seemed have a solution to the problem. "Don't worry, I'll save the batter till you get back so that I can still give you a fresh batch. And if you do all that, then I will let you tend to the pixie lilies this year." Melon concluded as she turned over a pancake.
Leaf's scowl was immediately replaced with a bright smile at the mention of the pixie lilies. "Really?! I can handle the lilies this year?!" She exclaimed as her smile grew even wider.
Melon returned the smile. "Only if you promise to take extra special care of them, they after all are one of the Princess Celestia's favorite flowers, after all."
Leaf vigorously nodded her head. "Don't worry! I will!" She called out as she trotted out the door, only for Melon to stop her a mere second later.
Melon placed her hoof on Leaf's shoulder, a worried expression etched on her face. "Just promise me you'll be careful as well. I know you are a strong little filly, but I want you to avoid these strange, new creatures. Although they seem harmless so far, I don't want you to take any unnecessary risks." Melon said as she pulled her sister into a hug, which Leaf quickly returned before pulling away.
"Don't worry sis, I will be careful." Leaf promised as she trotted out the door and up the hill towards the barn. Melon didn't take her eyes off her sister till she went over the peak of the hill and out of sight.
I hope that none of those creatures give her any trouble, Melon mentally sighed as she walked back inside to tend to breakfast.
*~*
Saul was still snoring gently on the hay pile when Clara walked back into the barn. The normally perky Sylveon had a deep frown on her face as she silently walked over to her mate, before laying down next to him.
The sudden shift of weight on the hay woke the sleeping Umbreon, and his eyes gently fluttered open as he took in the sight of Clara laying down right next to him. He felt a sudden warmth in his chest as he remembered the antics he and Clara shared last night.
Saul slowly edged towards Clara with a gentle smile on his face. Once he was right next to her, he stretched out one of his forelegs and guided it slowly over her shoulder before pulling her into an embrace.
Saul immediately sensed something was wrong when Clara remained motionless returning his affection. Fearing the worst, Saul quickly sprang up and jumped in front of Clara to see if she was hurt in any way. To his relief, Clara's body showed no signs of any injuries, but her eyes were swollen and red.
She must have been crying, Saul concluded as he sat down in front of Clara with a worried expression etched on his face.
"Clara, are you alright?" He asked with a worried tone. Clara's body jumped as Saul's voice broke her line of thought. She turned her head to look at him with a pair of eyes that were on the verge of flooding again.
"No, everything is not alright, Saul." She answered honestly as tears began to form at the edges of her eyes. "I'm scared, not just for us, but for the team. Not only did we end up in a new location, but we also have no idea where Maiden and Echo are. What if they are hurt or something worse?!" Clara sobbed, tears streaming down her face.
Saul looked down at Clara with a stoic expression, his emotions unreadable. He sat there in silence for a few seconds before speaking up.
" Clara, we both know that isn't the only reason." he said as he laid down and looked directly into Clara's eyes. Clara froze before giving a faint smile. "Nothing gets past you does it?" she murmured as s frown took hold of her face again. Seeing that Saul was determined to ease her pain, Clara let out a sigh as she lifted her head and placed it over his shoulder.
"The truth is, I don't even know if I even want to become a human again. I hated hiding our feelings from everybody, but I did it anyway in fear that they would take you away from me, and now that I am a Pokémon as well… I don't know if I can go back to that type of life style." Clara confessed as tears were now flowing freely down her cheeks.
Saul sat there silently with the crying Sylveon on his shoulder. He waited several minutes to let Clara get all her tears out, before making his move.
Saul gently broke the embrace before leaning back in and licking the tears off Clara's face. Clara let out a soft purr as Saul's soft tongue rubbed against her fur.
Once he was done lapping up the tears, Saul gently lifted Clara's head with one of his forelegs as he looked directly into her eyes.
"To answer your first question, I wouldn't worry too much about Maiden and Echo. After all, they are very strong Pokémon, and I am sure we will find them eventually." He smiled gently before continuing. "And as for your second predicament, all I can tell you is to follow your heart and let it guide you. Either way, I am still happy to be your mate." Saul concluded as he leaned in and gently kissed Clara's lips.
Clara hesitated before returning the gesture, a soft smile now etched on her face.
"Thank you Saul, you always know what to say." Clara sniffed as she hugged her beloved Umbreon. However, their moment was rudely interrupted as a growl emendated from both of their stomachs, Causing both of them to blush.
"I think we continue this over breakfast." Clara giggled as he ribbons began to rub her tummy in emphasis.
Saul chuckled from her response. "Agreed."
*~*
Saul and Clara both walked out of the barn to greet the still rising sun. Both of them were smiling as Clara leaned against Saul's side with her warm ribbons wrapped around his torso.
"There must be some food around here, after all, this is a farm." Clara quipped as they continued their search.
Saul frowned. "Should we really take food from the farm? After all, it is their livelihood." He pointed out as he turned his head to see Clara lifting her new and improved nose into the air to assist her endeavor.
"Don't worry, we will pay them back once this is over with. I do, after all, have all that prize money from when we won the ribbon cup." She shrugged her ribbons as she continued to sniff the air.
Saul nodded. "Okay, let's just not take any more than we need. We don't want to cause any problems for the family that owns this place."
Clara was about to reply before a certain smell hit her nose, causing her mouth to water and her stomach to growl quite loudly. I know that smell anywhere! Clara mentally squealed as she quickly found the direction of the source.
"Pancakes!" Clara exclaimed happily as she ran towards the source of the heavenly smell with Saul close behind.
*~*
Melon hummed to herself as she pulled the final pancake off the pan and added it to her ever growing stack. With a happy sigh, She sat down and began to enjoy the large tower of pancakes, only to be interrupted by the sound of a small ruckus outside.
Leaf's back already? Wow, never knew pancakes were such a motivation for her. Maybe I should make them more often, She thought with a giggle as she left her seat to open the door.
*~*
The two Eeveelutions sprinted down the hill as the house came in sight, excitement etched on both of their faces not just for finding food, but for finally finding civilization. Now they could get help and finally figure out what happened to them!
Saul slowed down as they neared the house, intending to approach casually so as to not frighten the residents. However, Clara had other ideas as she continued her sprint right up to the door. Saul quickly reacted by plucking Clara off the porch with his psychic, eliciting a surprised squeak from his mate.
Saul gently placed the disgruntled Sylveon next to his side as she continued to glare at him. She opened her mouth, preparing to chew him out, but was interrupted as the door swung open.
Standing before them was what Clara could only describe as a grass-type Ponyta. Its green coat stood out from brown exterior of the house. Its yellow eyes seemed to scan the yard until resting upon her and Saul.
The Ponyta's eyes widened as she backed up slowly towards the house, intending to flee into the safety of the house should one of the two Pokémon make the wrong move. Clara had seen this from plenty of wild Pokémon, so she did the only thing she could in a situation like this. She slowly padded forward with a smile on her face
"Hello!"
*~*
Melon was shocked to find two of these creatures right in front of her porch, both of them staring at her with big curious eyes. She was about to flee back into her house until the pink one walked forward with a friendly expression on its face.
"Sylveoooon," It chirped in a melodic voice before sitting a few feet away from Melon.
Melon had to admit, it was insanely adorable, but she had to be careful because she knew looks could be deceiving. She mentally shivered at the parasprite rumor she heard from Ponyville. Her thoughts were interrupted as the little creature began to chatter again.
"Sylveon? Veon, Sylve?" It chirped with a confused expression on its face. It opened its mouth to say something else, but was interrupted by a low growling.
Melon couldn't help but chuckle as the little creature clutched its belly with a blush adorning its face.
Come on Melon, give them a chance. Mom would have done the same. Melon mentally scolded herself as she walked back into the house and beckoned them both inside.
"C'mon in, you and your friend must be hungry."
*~*
Saul observed Clara as she worked her magic on the Ponyta, ready to jump in and protect her if things went south. Fortunately, it didn't have to come to that as it seemed Clara was able to persuade the Ponyta to let them inside. Still, he couldn't help but mull over the language that the Ponyta used.
It didn't understand Pokéspeak, but we understood it… is… is it even a Pokémon? Saul mulled as he approached his mate who was still sitting down in shock for probably the same reason as Saul was.
"I don't think she's a Pokémon." Clara stated with a worried expression as Saul approached her.
"She?" Saul questioned with a tilt of his head.
Clara nodded. "The tone of her voice is evident that she is a female." Clara firmly declared before she was once again interrupted by her stomach.
"You know what? how about we talk about this over some pancakes?" Clara blushed once again as Saul chuckled. The two turned their attention to the mare still waiting in the doorway before they both nodded to each other and walked into the house.
Once inside, the overpowering smell of pancakes immediately assaulted Clara and Saul's noses. Drool began to drip from their lips as they reveled in the alluring scent. The mare giggled at their obvious display.
"Don't worry, I have enough for both of you." The mare said as she placed down a small plate of pancakes in front of the two Pokémon, which they both ravenously attacked.
Clara began to chew loudly as she stuffed pieces of pancake in her mouth while using her prehensile ribbons to grab the pancakes directly off the plate. Syrup coated her white fur and ribbons as she assaulted the breakfast item.
Saul wasn't fairing any better. The fur on his face was matted with syrup as he continued to dunk his face into the stack of fluffy delight. The rings on his body began to glow a bright blue as he continued to stuff his face.
The mare at the table watched with fascinated horror as the couple annihilated the stack of pancakes that she had each given them. She suddenly began to wonder if they really were parasprites. Thankfully, she was proven wrong when they both finished their food and laid down on the kitchen tile before simultaneously releasing a content sigh.
*~*
"Wow, I don't think I have ever had pancakes that good before." Clara purred as she started to lick her sticky fur clean. Saul nodded with a smile as he walked over to Clara and began to help her groom.
Clara cooed as Saul began to lick her ribbons. his soft tongue easily grabbing the sticky syrup. She began to assist him by licking the ribbons as well, their tongues occasionally brushing against one another as they fought for certain patches of syrup.
Once Clara was clean, all attention was then shifted towards Saul. The Umbreon would lick his paws before brushing them over his ears in the spots he could not reach. He would do this several times before Clara finished up the spots he missed. Realizing that most of the mess was matted onto Saul's face, Clara leaned forward and began to lick the syrup and pancake crumbs off Saul's cheeks and lips.
Both of them became oblivious of the mare in the room as they continued to groom each other quite thoroughly.
*~*
Melon watched with wide eyes as the two creatures in front of her began to groom each other in very affectionate manners. She blushed heavily and turned around once she realized that she probably shouldn't be staring at the couple.
Melon silently prayed to Celestia as to not have her little sister walk in at this moment. It would not only be awkward for the two beings on the floor, but for Melon when she would have to explain everything to her little sis.
Unfortunately, Melon's lucky streak came to an end as the sound of hoofs trotting against the wood of the porch alerted her of her sister's arrival. Any plan to stall Leaf and hide the two creatures was shattered as she came bursting through the door with a massive smile on her face.
"Hey sis! You'll never believe who I mee-." Leaf sentence was abruptly cut off as she gazed upon the two Eeveelutions that had just completed their grooming.
"OHH! You made new friends too!" Leaf gushed as she trotted over to the two pancake stuffed Pokémon and proceeded to pull them into a hug to prove her point. Melon let out a sigh of relief that the two of them were able to finish their grooming before Leaf entered, but paused when she mulled over Leaf's words.
"Are you saying that you met one of these creatures as well Leaf?" Melon asked with a hint of worry in her voice. Leaf nodded vigorously as this.
"Yup! I met my new friend on the way to the barn. says that she was looking for two of her friends and that they are around here somewhere."
"Oh dear, well I hope she finds them." Melon paused as she just realized something. "Wait, you understood what she said?" She asked a curious look on her face.
"Yes, and no. I couldn’t understand what she said with her mouth, but I did understand her when she did something that she calls 'Telepathy'." Leaf babbled as she had trouble pronouncing the last word. Melon was about to ask what she meant by that, but was interrupted as a new voice entered the conversation.
"It'll probably be easier if I explained it." The voice echoed inside Melon's head as she looked around for the speaker.
The new figure walked in through the door and stood behind Leaf, who was still nuzzling the struggling Umbreon and Sylveon into submission. The new arrival was a tall, black figure with a tear drop shaped head. On each side of its head where four large disks that reminded Melon of a certain mane style… Now that Melon thought about it, the new arrivals appearance did resemble that of a maid.
The new arrival spoke up as Melon mulled over her appearance. "Hello, my name is Maiden, and I am here for my friends." Maiden pronounced to the whole house as she gave a dramatic bow.
*~*
Clara's ears stood up to their full height as they tried to catch the sound that didn't exist. She snapped her head around and past the cuddling filly's head as she took in the sight of her beloved Gothitelle, Maiden.
Clara's ribbons immediately flared out and propped themselves on the ground for support as she used them to pry herself from the child's death hug. Once she was free with an audible pop, Clara leaped across the room and tackled the Gothitelle to the ground with a beaming smile on her face.
"Maiden! You're alright!" Clara beamed as she wrapped her ribbons around Maiden's head and proceeded to nuzzle her.
"Well, I was alright… Until you tackled me to the floor." Maiden commented sourly with her real voice. However, she quickly dropped the tone as she returned Clara's affection by giving her a tight hug.
Maiden lifted her head when she heard Saul pad over to her, his eyes glowing blue from his psychic. Maiden wondered what Saul was using psychic for until she saw the filly levitating in the air before being placed down on the mare's lap.
"It's good to see you again, Maiden." Saul said with a smile as walked up to her and joined Clara in the face nuzzling, only his was brief, opposed to Clara who was still going at it.
After a few more minute of snuggling and purring, Clara finally got off the downed Gothitelle who then wasted no time by getting right back up once she was free.
Maiden smiled warmly at her two friends before readdressing the ponies in the room. "Thank you for taking care of my friends, I am grateful that they were able to find someone who was willing to help them regardless of their appearance." Maiden smiled warmly at the two wide eyed ponies.
The young filly was the first to snap out of her gaze as she returned Maiden's smile. "You're welcome! I don't know why everypony is so scared of you and the other creatures, but I do know one thing." the filly paused for dramatic effect. "You guys are awesome!" she exclaimed finally.
Maiden and Clara both giggled at the filly's enthusiasm before Maiden spoke up again. "Oh! Where are my manners? This is my trainer, Clara. And her mate, Saul." Maiden said as she gestured towards the two Pokémon at her feet.
"Umbreon!, Sylveon!" The two of them greeted out loud.
Maiden turned her gaze onto the ponies. "And you said that your name was Green Leaf, correct?" She asked with a curious tone.
Leaf nodded at this. "Yup! And this here is my big sister Melon Stripe." Leaf said with a smile as she gestured to her older sister.
"H-Hi" Melon stuttered as she raised her hoof and feebly waved at the three strange beings in her kitchen.
Maiden frowned at this. "You don't need to fear us. Pokémon are generally only dangerous when provoked. And I can assure you, you two have done nothing that has made me mad." Maiden soothed the pony as her smile returned.
Melon's muscles began to visibly relax as Maiden reassured her that they had no intention of harming her or her sister. She gave the Pokémon in front of her a soft smile as got off her chair before walking to the fridge and pulling out a big bowl of pancake mix.
"So, you guys hungry for some breakfast?"
*~*
Clara looked up at Maiden as she finished eating the pancakes Melon had offered her. "I'm curious Maiden. How exactly did you find us?" Clara asked the Gothitelle as she finished swallowing her last pancake.
"It wasn't easy." Maiden began. "When I first woke up, I was disoriented and started my search by just simply walking around and calling out for you. After a few hours of this, I eventually came across another Gothitelle who understood my plight." She paused as she took a sip of water before continuing. "This Gothitelle immediately saw my inexperience in using my telepathic powers and offered to teach me some of the basics of my new abilities. As you know, we Gothitelle have to power to see the distant stars, So once he taught me how to do that, it was easy to shorten the gaze to just find you guys." She concluded.
"Wow, so you have the power to show us the distant stars now?" Clara asked in wonder, her ribbons swaying about as if caught in a light breeze.
A smirk came across Maiden's face. "Not only that, but he taught me something that I am sure you will enjoy." The smirk didn't leave her face as she closed her eyes and let her voice project through the minds of everyone in the room.
"Now Clara, say something inside your head." Maiden commanded as Clara felt her presence inside her head.
"I don't know what you intend to do Maiden, it's not like anyone else ca-." Clara's mental conversation was interrupted as Melon bounced up from her chair
"I heard you! I heard you're actual voice!" The mare exclaimed with wide eyes as she looked at Clara.
Clara's mouth just open and shut a few times before she snapped her head around and smile brightly at the Gothitelle.
"You figured out how to link minds!? FINALLY, I was tired of being left out of the conversations." Clara grumbled using the new way of communication that Maiden had provided her.
Maiden smiled at Clara's remark before releasing a surprised yelp as pair of warm ribbons wrapped around her and pull her down to the ground where Clara could lick her cheek.
Saul chuckled at Clara's antics as Maiden fought to free herself from the surprisingly strong Sylveon's grip. However, his attention was averted as Melon walked back into the room with a saddle bag on her back.
"Okay, If you guys need me, I will be at the town square informing the mayor of what you guys told me. Hopefully they haven't done anything drastic yet that could cause the Pokémon to-." The sound of a distant explosion interrupted her as everyone paused before sharing worried looks. Leaf was the first to speak up.
Melon was the first to react as she dropped her saddle bags onto the floor, before rushing out the door and onto the porch.
Even from there, Melon could see the smoke rising up in the distance from the park's general area. She narrowed her eyes in focus as she caught the glimmer of golden armor from dozens of guards flying around the park as they tried to subdue whatever was causing the havoc.
Melon broke away from the view as she turned around to regard her sister and friends as they walked out onto the porch, each of them looking quite anxious.
"Maiden, do you think you can see what is going on down there?" Clara asked as she glanced over to the Gothitelle still standing in the doorway.
"I'll try," Maiden replied, using her new psychic link to communicate with everyone around her.
Maiden closed her eyes as she began to extend her psychic powers. The disks on her head began to vibrate as she concentrated on extending her vision to the small town's park. She opened her eyes once again to see the world move by in a quick blur as her sight extended all the way into town. What she saw shocked her.
Golden armored ponies were rushing around the town, netting any Pokémon that dared showed its face. She shifted her gaze as she witnessed a dozen of these ponies corner an Aggron and attempted to contain it, only to fail miserably as it charged a flash cannon and fired it at the ground, knocking all the ponies back.
However, some Pokémon were not able to defends themselves as easily as the large Aggron. Maiden's gaze shifted again as she watched large flocks of Pidgey and Fletchlings get plucked out of the sky by pegasi before getting stuffed into a net. The Pokémon screeched in protest as they were carried down to the ground and shoved into cages.
Maiden's teeth grinded together as she held her psychic powers back from being controlled by her emotions. With a heavy sigh, she dampened her psychic output until it diminished completely, letting the world rush back to her as her eyes became her primary method of seeing again.
Clara watched Maiden with a concerned expression as the Gothitelle turned around to address the party, a grim expression plastered onto her face.
"Tell us Maiden, what did you see?" Clara asked nervously, obviously afraid of the answer.
Maiden glanced down nervously at her trainer, afraid to tell her the truth because she knew how Clara would react. She momentarily thought about lying to her, but quickly disregarded it, as it would get them nowhere.
With a heavy heart, Maiden told her the truth. "The situation looks dire. Pokémon are being round up by these ponies in golden armor and forced into either a net or a cage. It is also clear now that the explosion from earlier was not from a Pokémon attacking, but rather from a Pokémon defending itself."
The reaction from Clara was near instantaneous. Maiden stepped back as she watched Clara's fur bristle and flare as her lips pulled back into a snarl, a deep growl emanating from her throat.
Saul was quick to react as he leaped forward in front of Clara, pulling her into a crushing hug, all the while whispering into her ear.
"It's okay Clara, It's okay. That's all in the past, just calm down… just calm down." Saul whispered into Clara's ear as she began to calm down and slump into Saul's embrace.
Melon and Leaf looked quite shocked at Clara's reaction. They had only known her for a few hours, but she had seemed like a nice person. The fact that something as cute as a Sylveon could be morphed into something so terrifying… it was quite frightening to say the least.
"W-w-why did she act like that?" Leaf asked nervously as she shivered behind her sister.
Saul looked over Clara's shoulder as he addressed the two through Maiden's link. "Let's just say that Clara's had a bad experience with cages." Saul answered in a somber tone as he continued to hug the shivering Sylveon.
Before the two ponies could press for any further information, another explosion emanated from the town, this one much larger than the one from before.
"That was an Electrode using self-destruct." Maiden informed that group as she began to survey the town with her psychic powers again. "We have to get down there and tell them to stop this at once. Because if they keep this up… there won't be much of a town left." she replied coolly.
Melon quickly broke out of her shocked gaze at the mention of her town in peril. Her eyes narrowed as she realized the severity of the situation at hoof.
"Maiden's right, we have to go down before the guards antagonize the Pokémon even further." Melon stated with a resolved face before turning her attention towards Leaf.
"Leaf, I need you to stay with Clara and Saul inside the house while Maiden and I go into town and try to convince the mayor in calling off the guards."
"But I want to come too! I can help!" Leaf protested defiantly to her sister.
"Be that as it may, I am not going to put you into any sort of danger. I promised mom that, and I intend to keep it." Melon stated firmly as she stared down at her sister.
Leaf winced at the mention of their mother, the painful memories suddenly trickling back like a leaking dam. She quickly pushed these feelings to the side as she returned Melon's stare.
"I am not a little kid anymore sis. I can take care of myself, and you know it." Leaf retorted as she held her ground.
The two sisters held their ground as they continued glared at each, neither one of them yielding to the other's demands. This continued until a third explosion disrupted their dispute, lightly shaking the ground as the smoke plumed up into the sky.
"We don't have time for this! we need to go NOW!" Maiden shouted as she lifted the two quarreling sisters off the ground with her psychic before gently dropping them on their rumps, snapping them out of it in the process.
Melon quickly got up before turning her gaze towards her sister and letting out a heavy sigh. "Fine, you can come. But for the love of Celestia, please be careful and stay by me. I don't think my heart could take it if I lost you."
Leaf didn't say anything as she looked at Melon with a heartfelt expression. She trotted over to her sister before finally giving Melon's worries closure.
"I promise sis, I won't leave your side… Even if your fat flank slows us down." Leaf smirked as she ruined the sentimental moment.
Melon responded with a light chuckle as she gently cuffed Leaf's ear before galloping down the hill and towards the town, her sister quickly following suit.
Maiden began to follow them, but stopped as she regarded Saul and Clara, both still in a tight embrace.
"I will be down with you shortly, I just need Clara to regain some of senses first. I don't need her having another breakdown when I'm not around." Saul assured Maiden as he continued to gently stroke Clara's back.
Maiden wordlessly nodded before rocketing down the hill and after the two ponies, leaving Saul to tend to his mate.
Saul continued to stroke Clara's back as she rested her head on his shoulder, occasionally stopping to lick her cheek once or twice before resuming his strokes. This continued for several minutes before Clara gently pushed herself away from Saul with a gentle sigh as her stress evaporated.
"Thanks Saul, you always know how to calm me down." Clara sniffed with a soft smile before leaning forward and licking Saul's cheek.
Saul let out a small sigh of relief once he realized that Clara had returned to her normal perky self. "It's alright Clara, it happens." He said with a smile as he returned her gesture, happy to have Clara back.
"You know that you don't have to come, right?" Saul said as he looked Clara in the eyes. "Maiden and I are more than capable of handling it ourselves… plus, I am worried how you will react once we get down there." he murmured the last part as he looked down at the ground.
Clara frowned slightly as she placed one of her ribbons on Saul's shoulders. "I know you are worried, and you have every right to be, but we have to do this as a team, Saul. Besides, what kind of trainer would I be if I sent my beloved Pokémon down into a town to deal with hostile ponies while I just lounged around?" She smirked as she licked Saul on the lips.
"A pretty bad one." Saul replied with his own grin.
Clara nodded. "Now let's get down there and give the others a hand… err.. paw." Clara chuckled lightly at her bad joke.
Saul chuckled as well before suddenly taking off like a speeding bullet down the hill, catching Clara by surprise.
"Hey! Wait for me!" Clara yelled as she chased after her mate towards the chaotic town.
*~*
Saul began to slow down as he neared the entrance of the town. His ears stood up as he surveyed the area for Maiden and the others while also looking for any signs of potential danger. However, his attention shifted as he heard Clara approaching him from behind, her loud breathing easily giving away her presence.
"You.. see.. them?" Clara panted in-between breaths as she slumped down next to Saul, before rubbing her ribbons across her face to remove the sweat that had accumulated on her forehead.
"No I don't, but they can't be too far ahead." Saul replied as he continued to survey the area, refusing to leave Clara's side until she caught her breath.
"Melon said that she was going to see the mayor before all this chaos started, so it's safe to say that's where they are heading there." Clara concluded as she stood up, still panting lightly from her run as she rubbed up against Saul's side.
Saul glanced worriedly at Clara. "You still need a few minutes to catch your breath?"
"No, I'm good. Plus, we have more important matters to attend too." Clara said as she began to walk towards the large building in the center of the town, hoping that it was the town hall.
Saul nodded wordlessly as he padded up to Clara's side, his ears still erect as they surveyed the area.
The two of them cautiously walked along the sidewalk for several minutes before turning a corner and entering a big clearing. The first thing that caught their eyes was the massive amount of shops and stalls that rested on the sides of the clearing, each of them decorated with different types of wares.
As they walked further into the clearing, Clara noticed several shapes moving in between stalls, some even crossing the road to reach other shops The ones crossing the road made it easy for her to identify the figures.
"Ponies... But what are they still doing out here?" Clara thought out loud.
"Well, most of the fighting is happening near the town's park, so I assume they are just the ponies that were brave enough to come outside despite the potential danger." Saul chimed in as he sat down to ponder their next course of action.
"Well this sucks. This is the fastest way to the town hall, and we don't exactly have the time to try to find a different path." Clara stated with a frown as she followed Saul's example and sat down next to him.
Several seconds passed before Saul let out a heavy sigh as he stood back up, his sights set on the town hall on the other side of the clearing.
"It looks like we don't have any other option, we are just going to have to risk it and continue on without trying to attract too much attention to ourselves." Saul stated with a sour face. He hated rushing into things without a plan, the outcome for these types of situations were always unpredictable, but they just didn't have the time to sit around and toss ideas back and forth.
Clara nodded with a frown as she eyed the ponies that mingled in the clearing, a feeling of uncertainly creeping into her chest. Fortunately, that feeling melted away as she felt Saul's tongue rub against her cheek.
Clara smiled at Saul before returning the gesture. "It's ok… Even if they prove to hostile, they won't stand a chance against Saul". she mentally assured herself as she and her mate walked into the clearing.
Clara's heart felt like it was going to burst out of her chest once she realized that several ponies were already staring at her and Saul. She gulped nervously as her new ears detected the hushed conversations directed at the two Pokémon as they walked further into the clearing.
Clara hopes actually began to rise once she realized that they were more than halfway through the clearing. "Maybe we will get lucky and not run into any trouble at all." Clara thought enthusiastically.
However, her hopes were quickly dashed as two guards burst loudly into the clearing, knocking over several fruit stands. Fortunately, the guard's attention was not focused on them, but on a small Foongus that they were pursuing.
"Leave me alone!" Shouted the little mushroom Pokémon as it dodged and weaved through the crowd with its pursuers right on its tail.
Clara was impressed with Foongus' agility as she watched it slip out of the guard's grasp several times. However, that appreciation turned to horror as she realized that it was heading directly for her and Saul.
Clara and Saul didn't have any time to react as the Foongus came barreling at them, slamming into Saul's leg.
Startled, the Foongus decided to use its best defense mechanism: Spore. A green cloud erupted from the mushroom Pokémon as it rolled over, unconscious from ramming into Saul's leg.
In a mere instant, Clara found herself throw to the side by a powerful force just before the cloud touched her. She quickly looked over to see who was responsible, seeing that one of Saul's paws was outstretched in her direction. Clara quickly pieced it together that Saul had pushed her out of the way so he would take the full brunt of the move.
"Saul!" Clara shouted in anguish as she watched her beloved Umbreon get consumed by the spore.
Saul's face scrunched up as he fought against the spore, his muscles tensing as he tried to force his body to stay awake. He stood up defiantly for a few good seconds before his body couldn't take it anymore. He fell to the ground with a heavy thud as his eyes slowly shut.
"Clara…." Saul whispered before he passed out.
Clara was there in a instant, shaking the Umbreon with renewed vigor in a desperate attempt to wake him up.
"Saul!.. Saul! WAKE UP!" Clara continued to shake his prone form, unaware of the two guards approaching her.
*~*
Steady Light liked to think of himself as an above average guard, his experience in the field surpassed most of the other guards after all. He had an impressive record of catching many fleeing criminals in the past, from the teleporting unicorn, to the agile Pegasus. The other guards in the battalion would often call him the "light speed", for his well known ability to obtain extremely high speeds with an impressive amount of control. A few officials even suggested that he join the Wonderbolts, but he would decline every offer, for he didn't like the idea of performing when his ability could instead be used to help Equestria for the greater good.
So it only made sense that he would accept a mission to depart to the luxurious town of Little Brook in order to help a team of guards in the capture of these dangerous new creatures. Once there, he was partnered with another Pegasus mare by the name of Star Dust.
Light knew of Star Dust from quite a few sources. Like him, she was a Pegasus with an impressive track record for both flying and criminal seizer. She was also the talk of many stallions around the guard. Her beauty and impressive combative abilities made her eye candy to most of the other guards.
So there he was with Star Dust, both of them assigned to have a very important role in the capture of the creatures. Their task was to apprehend the more agile creatures that currently ran around the town, while the other fellow guards would target the larger more dangerous ones.
In less than an hour, they had already caught several flocks of the flying, bird-like creatures that soared around the town's park. They acted swiftly by corralling a lot of them into a miniature twister that took both of them to generate, before capturing them within a mythril-tight net.
It proved to be a more dangerous task than Light had anticipated, for he quickly realized that even the small creatures were quite dangerous on their own. Several of them would flap their wings to generate powerful gusts of wind that almost knocked him and Dust out of the sky. Heck, even a few breathed fire at them, but they were eventually able to overpower the creatures by shocking them with several thunderclouds. He didn't want to shock them, but with the way things were going, he had little choice.
After an exhausting hour of clearing the skies of the critters, the two exhausted pegasi touched down to report to their commanding officer. After being praised for their hard work, their officer was kind enough to give the two of them a small break so that they could regain their strength to aid in capturing the more agile critters that have escaped from the other squads.
Light let out a sigh of relief as he sat down on the cool, shady bench at the edge of town square, his gaze focused on the sky as he leaned back.
Light's ears twitched as he heard the sound of hooves on stone approaching his position. He tilted his head slightly forward as he caught a sliver of blue in his peripheral vision. He let a small smile form on his face as he saw Dust trotting over to him with two lush apples carried in her mouth, both by the stems of course.
Dust returned the smile as she approached the bench. With a small flick of her head, she tossed one of the apples over to Light, who casually caught it with an outstretched hoof.
Light made room for Dust as she sat down next to him, who also released a content sigh as the cold bench helped cool her body off from the vigorous flying from earlier..
"Mmmm, the apples are pretty good here. Not as good as Ponyville's, but still pretty dang good." Dust commented as she took another bite of the bright red apple.
"True, the apples here might not be as good as Ponyville's, but the melons here are unrivaled." Light replied as he also took another bite.
Dust nodded in agreement at Light's statement as she swallowed the rest of the apple.
"So, what do you think of these new creatures?" Dust asked, quickly changing the subject.
Light's smile faltered at Dust's question. "That's honestly a good question. When I first encountered these creatures, I thought they were regular beasts, but after spending the last hour capturing them… I am not sure what I think anymore." Light sighed before taking another bite of his apple.
Dust looked at him with a confused expression on her face. She looked like she was about to say something else, but was interrupted as something flew over the bench, grabbing the rest of Light's apple.
Light blankly stared at his empty hoof for a few seconds before shifting his gaze toward the little varmint that dare steel his lunch.
The closest thing light could compare the little critter to, was a mushroom, except mushrooms don't have eyes, a mouth, and arms.
The little critter continued to munch on Light's apple as he and Dust just sat there slack jawed at the little creatures boldness.
A smirk appeared on Light's face as he got off the bench, Dust quickly following suit. "You up for a little wager?" Light said as he directed his smirk at Dust.
"Oh? What do you have in mind?" Dust asked with a mischievous smirk of her own.
"I say we have a race to see who can catch it first, no flying allowed. Loser has to buy the winner a platinum melon." Light said as he directed a hoof at the little critter.
"Mmmm, I can already taste it." Dust taunted as she got into position.
"Then let the best Pegasus win." Light smiled as he crouched into position as well, both ponies ready to spring at the slightest movement.
The little mushroom turned towards the two ponies as it finished gobbling down the rest of the apple. "Fooooongus?" It said with a tilt of its head.
And just like that, the two pegasi sprang forward.
"FOONGUS!!!" Shouted the little creature in surprise at it quickly leaped out of the path of its pursuers, resulting in both ponies colliding their heads into one another.
"After it!" Dust shouted as she rubbed her head, a scowl now on her face.
Both ponies were quick to recover as they continued their pursuit of the little mushroom. They lunged and dived at the little critter as it bobbed and weaved through the bushes and other obstacles, but each attempt they made only resulted in empty hooves or another clashing of the skulls.
They chased the critter for about another minute before it dived under one of the fruit stands that marked the entrance to the town's market. Light and Dust both dove at the mushroom in unison as it squirmed its way under the fruit stand. The impact from both the ponies sent the cart tumbling over, spilling all its contents onto the ground.
Oblivious to the damage they were causing, Light and Dust continued to chase the creature as it shimmied its way through a small crowd of ponies.
"Fooooongus!" Shouted the little mushroom as it exited the mass of ponies.
Once out of the crowd, the two guards actually had some room to attempt to catch the critter as it continued its mad dash. Unlike before, Light and Dust took turns at trying to grab it. Though they were close on several attempt, they all ended with the same result as the creatures slipped out of their grasps like a bar of soap.
The chase didn't last that much longer as the critter was abruptly halted as it slammed face first into the leg of another creature that Light could only describe as a black cat with blue rings on its body. Next to it was another creature, though this one certainly looked a lot more feminine with its cream-colored coat, and the ribbons that were placed on its ear and neck.
Light noticed that both of them had a look of horror on their faces as they looked down at the little mushroom that had ran into black one's leg. He was confused at their display before his thoughts were interrupted as a cloud of green dust erupted from the little mushroom.
The black one quickly reacted by shoving its companion to the side as it took the full burden of the green cloud's effect. The cloud quickly enveloped the black creature as its partner could only watch.
"Sylveon!!!" Shouted the pink one as it watched its friend slump onto its side as the cloud dissipated.
As soon as the cloud was gone, the pink creature immediately got on its paws and leapt forward, rushing to its companion's side.
Light and Dust watched the display in pity as the creature tried to wake up its prone friend by shaking the black one's side.
"Sylve! Sylve! SYLVEON!" It cried in a desperate, pleading voice as it continued to shake the other one's side.
Dust tore her eyes away from the scene before turning her head to look at Light, a sympathetic frown stuck on her face.
"What should we do?" Dust asked with a saddened tone as she tried to tune out the pink one's cries.
Light sighed heavily as he continued to stare at the two creatures in turmoil. "Isn't it obvious? We help them anyway we can. However, once we have made sure that the black one is stabilized, we will have to capture them both, or risk disobeying orders." He stated that last part with a frown.
Dust nodded in understanding at Light's words before redirecting her attention at the two creatures on the ground. With Light by her side, the two guards cautiously approached the pair.
*~*
Clara's ears twitched as she heard the sound of someone approaching her. Ceasing her attempts to wake Saul up, Clara spun around to glare daggers at a pair of guards that were standing several meters from her and Saul.
One of the guards was a mare, her coat and eyes were light shade of blue which complimented her white mane and tail that reflected the light of the still rising sun. The other pony was a different body structure from the mare, so Clara immediately classified him as a male. Further evidence to her theory made itself clear as she saw the shifting of muscles underneath his white coat as he continued to creep up on her.
Clara immediately got into a threatening crouch as the two guards continued to approach the couple, a low growl creeping up her throat as they took another step.
The guards stopped their advancement when they were about five feet away from Clara. At that point, Clara's ribbons were coiled back like a bunch of snakes ready to strike as she directed a snarl at the Ponies.
The two guards looked at one another before nodding simultaneously, they both turned their attention back at Clara, who was still growling at them.
The mare stepped forward with a small smile on her face. "It's okay little guy we are just trying to help." she said in a soothing tone as she tried to calm down the hostile Sylveon.
"And why should I believe you? All you have been doing is catching Pokémon all morning like a bunch of poachers." Clara growled as she focused only on the mare. She knew that the guards couldn't understand her, but she hoped that they understood the tone she was using.
The mare seemed to understand the message as a frown replaced her smile. "I know you don't trust me, but you have to give me and my partner a chance."
Clara froze at that. She said partner, but no one is beside her. She pondered for a moment before realization dawned on her. "Then that means!"
Clara quickly spun around to check on Saul, relief washing over her as she saw that he hadn't move from his spot beside her, though he was still splayed out of the ground from the spore. However, that relief quickly turned to rage as she spotted the stallion hovering over Saul's form, his forelimbs stretched out in a grabbing motion.
Faster than the Pegasus could react, a pair of ribbons wrapped around his torso before forcefully slamming him into the ground next to the mare, causing the Pegasus to wheeze as the air left his lungs. Not giving the guards any time to react, Clara began to build power in her ribbons as they curled up in front of her face. The ribbons glowed bright pink with fairy energy as Clara swung the appendages outwards, creating a massive wall of compressed air that slammed into the two ponies, sending them sprawling back.
The two pegasi were quick to recover. After several tumbles, they were both able to gain their footing before rocketing off into the sky to avoid another fairy wind. The stallion then dived directly at Clara, his wings tight against his body as he picked up speed.
Clara saw this and barely had time to counter his dive with a fairy wind as he got uncomfortably close. The fairy wind she released sent him spirally though the air before he stabilizing himself by readjusting his wings.
"I can't keep this up, if they both attack me from different directions at the same time with that tactic, I am done for." Clara mentally calculated as she saw the two pegasi get into position for another dive.
"Time to try something else… Misty Terrain" Clara said to herself as a green light began to build at the tips of her paws. The glow expanded, compressing the air below her as a green sphere of fairy energy formed. Once the orb was at a decent size, Clara let it pop, unleashing a thick mist throughout the whole clearing.
The two guards stared down at the ground with wide-eyes as they watched the thick mist spread over the whole clearing, covering the two Pokémon completely in a thick blanket of vapor.
Reacting quickly, the mare dived down where Clara was last seen, hoping to catch her before she moved locations. She was too late, as Clara had already moved herself and Saul a good distance away.
Clara used her ribbons to gently carry Saul as she navigated through the mist, the ponies still rummaging blindly through the fog. She gently placed Saul down at the base of a large oak tree before turning around and returning to the battlefield. Once the battle was over, she would grab Saul and attempt to once again track down Melon and the others.
Clara returned to the battlegrounds, concealing herself in the mist as she stalked closer towards the two guards.
"What the hay is with this fog?! I can't move it or anything!" Shouted the mare as she tried to feebly grab the mist with her hoofs, only for it to pass through it.
Clara frowned at this as she crept closer. "These ponies aren’t too bright. They make it sound like they could grab clouds in the first place." She mused as she positioned herself directly under the two pegasi.
Clara's eyes narrowed as she focused on the two frantic ponies who were still trying to beat at her mist with their hooves and wings. She let out a deep breath as she felt energy build in her ribbons, prompting them to extend many times their original length. With a mighty cry, Clara let her ribbons soar straight up towards the two unsuspecting ponies.
The ponies had no time to react as four glowing tendrils of pink light erupted from the mist, each extending over several stories as they wrapped around both pegasi
The two guards yelp in surprise at they were plucked out the sky before being tossed violently through the air. Thankfully for them, a cloud broke their fall.
Clara stared wide-eyed at this. "So they really CAN touch clouds." She observed while the two ponies groaned as they pulled themselves out of the cloud.
The stallion looked down from the cloud at the ground below, watching Clara's massively extended ribbons sway back and forth as they rested near the surface of the thick mist. He snorted loudly before turning at the mare who was currently popping several joints as she stretched from the impact.
"I didn't want to resort to this…. But get the thundercloud ready." He told the mare as he continued to watch the massive pink tendrils sway below him.
The mare gave a brief nod as she began to scoop up hoof-fulls of vapor, condensing them in-between her hoofs as if she was creating a snowball. She quickly repeated this process several times till the clouds started turning a threatening black color. She shoved the now primed thundercloud towards the stallion before she began to prepare another one.
The stallion easily caught the thundercloud as he landed on top of it to slow its acceleration. He stared down at the still swaying tendrils as he reared back onto his hind legs, before slamming his forelegs down on the cloud, sending a large bolt of lightning directly at Clara.
Clara screamed as the bolt of lightning connected with her ribbons, sending a shock across her whole body as she spasmed uncontrollably. Losing her concentration, the energy in her ribbons faded as they began to revert back to their normal size. Worst yet was that her Misty Terrain was beginning to fade, giving the ponies a clear view of her as she began to recover from the shock.
The two guards looked surprised by the fact that She was still standing. Unfortunately for them, Clara was not going to go down that easy.
The mare down looked down at Clara with concern as she saw the scorch marks on her fur. "Can't you understand we are just trying to help? We don't want to fight you!" The mare shouted below at Clara.
Clara's teeth gritted together in anger. " I know your type! You will just wait till my guard is down before you shove me into a cage! You made that awfully clear as you tried to steal Saul right from under my nose… And let me tell you something.. I.. Will. NEVER. BE CAGED AGAIN!!!" Clara screamed, not caring that they didn't understand her.
Clara opened her mouth as she felt her rage building into a physical form. A large ball of yellow energy began to form in front of her as she poured more power into the attack. As the ball of energy grew bigger and bigger, it began to change its color to a bright pink as fairy energy was thrown into the mix. Once the ball of energy was primed, Clara let it loose.
"Hyper Beam!"
A massive ray of energy erupted from Clara's mouth as it sped through the sky towards the two guards, razing anything that stood in its path.
Both ponies yelped as they jumped off of the storm cloud they had been standing on. A mere second later, the large hyper beam connected with the charged thundercloud, causing a large explosion that blew away all the other clouds in the sky.
Both ponies were sent tumbling like ragdolls by the massive shockwave of the explosion, They tried to stabilize themselves, but failed as the air pressure from the explosion proved too great. They both continued to tumble through the air for several seconds before crashing into the top of tree, causing several Emolga to glide out of the tree in fright.
Clara glared hatefully at the top of the tree where the two ponies hanged from, unconscious. She glared at them for a few more seconds before her spite was interrupted by an all too familiar groan.
"Ugh… Clara?" Saul muttered as he slowly got up, only to tackled back to the ground by Clara.
"Thank Arceus that you're okay!" Clara shouted ecstatically as she smothered Saul's face with licks and kisses, not caring if anyone was watching.
"It's good to see you too, Clara." Saul sputtered in between licks. Saul couldn't help but give a light chuckle at Clara's behavior because he would do the same thing to Clara all the time back when she was human.
Unknown to the two Eeveelutions that were currently preoccupied with showering in each other in licks, Two pegasi watched the two lovebirds as they hung from a tree branch like laundry.
"So that's why she was so protective of him." Giggled the mare as she hefted herself up.
"I am glad that the black one is okay, but did she really have to attack us so vigorously?" The Stallion commented as he rubbed a few sore spots from the scuffle.
"Love makes people do strange things, Light." The mare shrugged as she helped lift Light up onto the branch.
Light stared at the two lovebirds at they continued to shower each other in affection, a light blush adorned his face. "That it does, Dust, that it does." Light replied with a smirk as he got comfortable on the branch.
Unfortunately, the brief peace was interrupted as a mental voice made its presence known.
“Greetings citizens of Equus, both old and new. I am Lord Arceus, creator of the Pokémon realm.”
Clara and Saul both froze, in mid lick, at the mention of Arceus, their brains trying to grasp the situation that was currently playing in their heads.
"You have no reason to fear me, I come in peace.” Lord Arceus continued. “I have revealed myself to inform you that I am the one responsible for the Pokémon’s presence in this world, for the citizens of Equus, the Pokémon are the beings who have appeared over the past few days.”
There was a short pause before Arceus continued.
“I have my reasons for bringing them here, and to the leaders I will reveal them in time, but for now a warning, the Pokémon, while some may not seem it, are just as intelligent as any race who calls Equus home, and, seeing as how they are my subjects, I will not tolerate them being treated any differently than you would treat your fellow Pony, Griffin, Minotaur, Diamond Dog, Changeling, Deer, Hippocampi, Zebra, Horse, Buffalo, Cow, Donkey, or Dragon depending on whichever race you belong to.”
Something clicked in Clara's head. "So, we really aren’t on Earth anymore."
"To my Pokémon, I say this, I brought you, all of you, here so that you could live in peace, do not seek to harm the natives of this world, for I am the one responsible for your displacement. And to the Pokémon who went through changes when I brought you here I say this.”
Clara's ears instinctually raised up as she focused on the next piece of information.
“You are the ones who proved themselves worthy, those who were fair, kind and good in the old world, consider this your reward. And to all of you, as sapients the laws of Equus, and the varying countries, now apply to you, and only the laws of Equus.” Arceus stated, the last part in a stern tone.
“That is all for now, but just to be clear, the Pokémon are not to be harmed simply out of spite. If you have a problem with what I’ve done, feel free to contact me, I currently reside in an ancient temple deep in the Everfree Forest, or a pocket dimension outside of the space time continuum, so if any of you wish to face the sheer power of a god, feel free to come by.” Arceus stated in a smug tone.
"Well… He is certainly full of himself." Clara thought to herself before Arceus spoke one last time.
“Goodbye for now, though I doubt this will be the last you hear of me, and peace to you all.” Arceus finished, his voice finally leaving everyone's minds.
The whole town was silent as all the ponies and Pokémon were in shock at what had just occurred. Clara and Saul fared no better, but thankfully, their concentration was broken as they heard shuffling from a nearby tree.
In that tree, were the two pegasi that she had fought earlier.
Clara and the stallion both made eye contact as they caught each other's gaze. They held their gaze for several seconds before both of them muttered at the same time.
Clara sighed as she picked up another piece of broken wood from one of the nearby stands with her ribbons before placing it into a wagon filled with similar debris.
"I still can't believe that we have to pick up this mess." Clara muttered as she dropped another beam of wood into the wagon.
Saul said nothing as he looked over his shoulder and at his mate, his eyes dimming back to their normal shade as he finished using psychic to lift a log. He continued to stare at Clara as she continued her task of clearing the market, her back turned to him as she focused on her current task.
With an unreadable expression on his face, Saul dropped what he was doing before walking up behind Clara. With one swift motion, Saul pulled her into a tight hug as he rested his head on her shoulder.
Clara let out a small gasp at the sudden contact, her ribbons releasing their cargo of cluttered wood as the appendages shot out in surprise. She turned her head to direct a small glare at her mate, but hesitated once she saw the small tears building up at the edges of his eyes.
"What's wrong, Saul?" Clara asked in concern as she turned around to let him know that he had her attention, her ribbons cradling his head as she looked at him worriedly.
Saul stared at Clara with a somber expression for a few seconds before he let out a small sigh as he replied to her question. "I… I'm sorry Clara." Saul finally muttered as he continued to let his head be supported by Clara's ribbons.
Now it was Clara's turn to be confused. "About startling me? It's alright, I can just pick this stuff up again." Clara said as she began to stroke Saul's cheek with one of her warm ribbons.
Saul slowly shook his head. "It's not that… It's the fact that I let you down when you needed me most. It has always been my job to protect you, and I failed you," Saul confessed as he directed his gaze at the ground; however, his gaze was quickly shifted back to Clara as her ribbons lifted his head.
"It was not your fault, Saul. That Foongus came out of nowhere, so it could have happened to anybody." Clara said with a small frown as she resumed stroking Saul's cheek. "Besides, I was able to defend myself this time around now that I have this new body." She reassured him.
Saul released another sigh. "You're right, it's just that I'm used to being the one protecting you, not the other way around." He stated honestly as he leaned further into the embrace.
Clara frowned slightly as she returned his embrace. Saul has always been protective of her, even when he was just a little Eevee. The reason for this behavior was partially her fault: When Clara was still in rehabilitation after the incident, she would heavily rely on Saul to calm her down if she had one of her panic attacks, or worse. It didn't take long for the little Eevee to develop a behavior that was similar to that of a watchdog as he would sleep by her side every night, growling at people who tried to approach her when she was asleep. This continued for the next five years before Clara was deemed fit enough to leave her caretakers and begin her long awaited Pokémon journey with Saul by her side.
Clara couldn't help but sympathize for her mate, for she knew that all too familiar feeling of having one of your lifelong tasks suddenly ripped away from you. Having been transported to a new world meant no more Pokémon contests, and that thought alone was severely depressing. However, unlike Saul's predicament, contests might be introduced to Equestria in the future, meaning that it was still possible that she could continue to pursue her passion.
"It's okay Saul, I'm not the little girl that I used to be. Not just because of this new body, but because you helped shape me into the woman that I am today." Clara stated with a smile as she continued to stroke Saul's cheeks.
Saul looked like he was about to disagree as he opened his mouth to reply. However, he was quickly silenced as Clara pressed her lips against his, effectively cutting him off. The two stayed together like this for several seconds before Clara pulled away from the kiss with a radiant smile.
"The thing is Saul, you have always helped me when I needed it the most, but I have never been able to truly return the favor. So now, I want to help you. I don't want to be that little girl that you watched over day and night, or the trainer that you won all those contests for. Instead, I want to be the mate who will always stick by your side, no matter what the situation might be." Clara whispered as she brought Saul into a crushing hug, which he gladly returned. The two Pokémon remained oblivious to the world until another voice introduced itself.
"Ahem." Maiden coughed as she walked up to the two Eeveelutions who were still embracing one another. "Can't I leave you two alone for ten minutes without coming back to find you cuddling?"
Clara and Saul both blushed as they abruptly pulled away from each other, quickly remembering that they were not the only ones helping clean up the mess from this morning's incident.
"Sorry, it's just that Saul had something on his mind that he needed to tell me." Clara apologized as she brushed some dirt off her ribbons. "After all, finding out that we are on a totally different planet can be stressful for just about anyone."
Maiden nodded in understanding as she began to pick up some debris with her psychic. "Still, it's not fair to the other two ponies who are helping to clean up this mess if the ones who caused most of the damage don't pitch in some effort." Maiden stated as more debris was thrown into the wagon with her superior psychic skills.
Clara puffed out her cheeks in irritation at the mention of the two guards from earlier. "Well they shouldn't have tried to steal Saul from me when we were doing nothing wrong." Clara huffed as resumed her task of cleaning up the stalls. Maiden frowned at Clara's response, but otherwise kept quiet as she continued to help the duo.
That unfortunate incident from earlier had been the bane of Clara's day. After Arceus had finished relaying his message to the world, Clara found herself in an awkward predicament when both offending parties realized the severe misunderstanding. To make matters worse, Melon and the rest of the group came bursting into the marketplace with a brown mare that Clara later found out to be the town's mayor, Wax Stamp. Needless to say, the party was shocked at the market's condition after the scuffle. Stalls were shattered into piles of lumber, produce and other goods littered the ground, and even the cobblestone road was crack and blackened from the lightning bolts produced by the two guard's thundercloud.
After having a heated argument with the two guards known as Steady Light and Star Dust, the major decided to punish both offending parties by having them clean up the marketplace that they had nearly leveled.
So here they were now, cleaning up pieces of shattered stalls and wares as they tried to restore the market to its former glory. The three Pokémon continued to work in silence as they sped up the process with their powers, unfortunately they were interrupted yet again as another voice decided to join the fray.
"So, how's it coming along guys?" Light said as he trotted into clearing, a few bandages wrapped around his torso from his earlier engagement with Clara.
"Just fine Light, you can go back to helping Dust now." Clara rudely shrugged Light off using the new psychic link that Maiden had created for the ponies.
Light sighed at Clara's response. "Look, I know you're still upset about what me and Dust did, but I came to apologize for the misunderstanding from earlier. It was wrong of me to try to take Saul from you, but I figured it was the fastest way to get him some medical attention after that mushroom knocked him out." Light frowned as he approached the irritated Sylveon. "Anyway, me and Dust felt quite bad about it after we had some time to think things over, and we just wanted to know, will you accept our apologies?" Light finished as he held out a hoof intending for Clara to shake it.
Clara thought carefully at the guard's words as she looked at his outstretched hoof. It was obviously a genuine apology, but she just didn't know how to respond to it after all that had transpired that day.
Clara briefly shifted her gaze at Saul as she waited for any sign of his approval. After a few moments, Saul nodded towards Clara before he rubbed up against her side in support. Shifting her attention back to Light's hoof, Clara gave a small sigh as she grasped the outstretched hoof with one of her ribbons.
"I accept your apology, just promise me that you will never try anything like that again. It's one of the fastest ways to get yourself mauled by a Pokémon." Clara said with a small smile as she shook his hoof.
Light nodded with a sigh of relief before letting an elated smile form on his face as he shook Clara's ribbon. He felt much better now that she had accepted his apology. The guilt had been eating at him all day. His smile turned into a look of confusion as he saw Clara scan the space behind him. He was about to ask what she was looking for until Saul spoke up.
"Where is Dust anyway? I thought for sure that she would be the one apologizing about earlier… no offense." Saul stated the last part sheepishly, afraid that he might have insulted the stallion. However, Light seemed to take no offense to this at all as he grinned at Saul.
"None taken. I also expected Dust to be the one to apologize to you guys, but she had another idea in mind. So instead, she sent me to bury the hatchet in case there was any bad blood between me and you two since I was the one that caused the incident." Light admitted, his playful grin dying down.
"What do you mean by other plans?" Clara asked, quirking her head to the side.
Light opened his mouth to say something, but was interrupted as a blue streak landed in-between Clara and him, throwing up a cloud of dust from the rapid descent.
"Hey guys, I'm back!" Dust chirped as she hefted a heavy package off her back, eliciting a thunk as it hit the ground. However, no one returned her greeting as they were all too busy spitting out the dirt that had flow in their mouths thanks to Dust's touchdown.
"Welcome back." Light finally muttered as he finished getting the last bits of dirt out of his mouth. "You better have brought some drinks with you, Dust. I don't plan on spending the rest of my day grinding sand in between my teeth."
A grin threatened to split Dust's face. "Nope! But I got something way better." She said cheerfully as she bent down and bit the package's tie, letting the cloth unfold to reveal its contents.
Clara leaned her head forward eagerly as she tried to get a better view of the package's contents as the last of the cloth unfurled. At first glance, one would guess that it was a large watermelon; however watermelons aren’t silver with bright red stripes running down its sides. She had to cover her eyes with her ribbons as the sun glistened off the giant fruit, creating a bright, silver light that shined directly at her.
Light was the first one to recover as a large smile broke across his face. "A platinum melon!" He exclaimed before shifting his gaze at Dust, "But where did you get it? I thought they weren’t suppose to be on sale until the next few days."
"Oh, I have my sources." Dust snickered at Light's reaction. However, her snicker quickly died as Light gave her a stern look. "I didn't steal it, I swear! Melon gave it to me as a get-well present once I got out of the infirmary." She emphasized by exposing her bandaged foreleg.
It was Light's turn to snicker at Dust. "I know, I just wanted to see you get flustered, that's all." He chuckled as Dust's cheeks turned red with embarrassment.
The three Pokémon continued to watch the couple quarrel for several moments before walking over to one of the trees to rest in the shade, knowing that this was probably going to take a while.
"I think they would make a cute couple." Clara giggled as she laid on her belly, letting the grass tickle her underside.
"That they would." Saul chuckled in agreement as he followed Clara's idea and laid down right beside her.
"It's a shame that Melon and Leaf had to head back to the farm to work on the harvest." Maiden chimed in using her regular manner of speaking, "I'm sure Leaf would have loved to see those two bicker." She chuckled.
Clara hummed in agreement as she leaned against Saul's side, rubbing her sides against his warm coat. She purred happily as Saul licked her cheek, a gesture which she quickly returned before pulling Saul into a kiss.
Maiden felt awkward as she stared down at the two Eeveelutions who were currently partaking in a contest to see who can share the most affection. Why do I feel like I am the Aipom in the middle? Maiden thought to herself as she got up and approached the still bickering ponies.
"Ahem," Maiden coughed, breaking up Dust and Light's conversation as they stared up at Maiden in surprise.
"Sorry." Dust said sheepishly as she realized that she forgot that the others were present. Quickly realizing that two other Pokémon where not with her, Dust looked up at the Gothitelle with a confused expression.
"Where are the other two?" Dust asked as she looked behind the Maiden in a attempt to spot them.
Maiden directed her thumb over her shoulder at Clara and Saul who were still laying in the shade, grooming one another.
"They decided to follow your example while they waited for you guys to finish flirting." Maiden said with a blank expression.
Both Dust and Light's cheeks flared up as they realized what Maiden was implicating.
"I-I'll go get the knife!" Dust said hastily as she rushed towards her saddle bag that she had tossed down along with the melon, obviously trying to change the subject.
Unlike Dust, Light was quickly able to regain his composure before beckoning the two Eeveelutions out from under the shade to join them.
Everyone was gathered around the platinum melon when Dust returned with a large sword resting on her back. Everyone but Light stared wide-eyed at the pegasus as she leaned her head over her shoulder before grabbing the hilt of the claymore with her teeth and drawing the blade's steel into view.
"That's no knife." Clara gulped as Dust lifted the five foot long claymore over her head, preparing for a downward strike. Clara and the others had no time to react as the claymore was swung downward at blinding speeds, cleaving through the platinum melon's flesh and causing a flood of melon juice to coat everyone present.
"OH! This is a good one!" Dust said enthusiastically as she freed her weapon from the melon, ignoring the irritated glares from everyone else as the silver liquid continued to drip off of their now soaked bodies.
"Why did you use your sword and not the knife that I loaned you?" Light asked Dust as he continued to glare at his partner.
"I couldn't find it." Dust admitted sheepishly, rubbing a hoof behind her neck in embarrassment.
"Just when I finished grooming too," Clara muttered as she examined her white coat that was now stained in a light metallic sheen. Though it may have looked pretty now, She knew it was going to become a major pain later once the juice would dry up, leaving her coat all matted and sticky.
Saul lifted one of his stained paws up to his face before giving it an experimental sniff. It had an odd but pleasant smell to it, one that reminded him of the starf berries that Clara had bought for them shortly before coming to this world. With mild hesitation, he gave his paw a quick lick.
Saul's eyes shot open as the melon's flavor hit his tongue, tingling all his taste buds in unison.
"Clara, Maiden! You have to try this, it tastes just like a starf berry!" Saul exclaimed in excitement as he began to lick the juice off of his fur vigorously. The other two Pokémon looked at Saul in confusion before each of them gave an experimental lick as well. Both of them paused as they analyzed the taste before breaking out into large grins.
"He's right! It does taste like a starf berry!" Clara grinned as she followed Saul's lead and began to lick her ribbons with vigor.
Unlike her friends, Maiden was able to keep a somewhat dignified appearance as she suckled the tip of her mitten-like hand, a happy hum escaped her throat as she enjoyed the taste.
Despite being covered in melon juice, Light couldn't help but stare at the three Pokémon in amusement as they continued to relish the melon's taste.
"You know, the actual melon tastes pretty good as well." Light chuckled as he motioned towards the melon that Dust had just finished dividing into equal slices.
Quickly abandoning her efforts of cleaning herself, Clara's ribbons shot forward and grabbed one of the slices before reeling it back in like a fish. Saul and Maiden soon followed Clara's lead as both of their eyes glowed an eerie blue, each of them using their psychic powers to levitate a slice over to their eager mouths.
Dust and Light watched the Melon slices float over their heads in wonder as they both tried to process exactly how the two Pokémon were able to accomplish this feat.
"Exactly how are you guys able to perform magic anyway?" Dust inquired, grabbing a melon slice for herself as she settled down next to Light. "You don't have a horn or anything to channel your spells through, yet you still continue to go against everything that I was taught at the academy."
"It's not magic." Clara stated as she continued to devour the melon, taking advantage of the telepathic link so that she didn't have to abandon the delicious fruit in order to speak. "Each Pokémon has special moves that they can use. The move that Maiden and Saul used was called psychic, and it can be used for battle, or for basic usage like lifting a melon."
"So can you perform psychic as well?" Light asked, becoming increasingly interested at the idea that such feats could be performed without the use of magic.
Clara shook her head as she briefly directed her attention at Light, her cheeks still full of melon as she continued to chew her food. "Nope, Sylveons can use several psychic type moves though, but I can't use the move psychic."
"So psychic is a move, but also a type?" Dust chimed in, a confused expression on her face. "Ugh my brain hurts."
"We can discuss it later, but for now, let's eat." Light butted in as he took a bite from his own slice. However, Saul ignored Light's request as he remembered a certain question that he wanted to ask Clara.
"Speaking of moves, I have been meaning to ask you something Clara." Saul spoke up, ignoring Light's sigh.
Clara's ears twitched as she lifted her head up from her nearly finished slice. "What is it, Saul?" She asked, tilting her head to the side.
"I was wondering how you were able to perform those moves so well. You have only been a Sylveon for two days, yet you were still able to pull off an advanced move like hyper beam." Saul said with a worried expression.
Of course, Saul actually hadn't seen the attacks since he was still asleep thanks to that Foongus's spore, but Maiden had told him enough by describing what she witnessed near the town hall.
Clara frowned as she pondered what Saul was asking. Exactly how did she perform those feats without any source of training? Sure, she had seen all the moves in action before, but they had been used by other Pokémon, not herself. She thought about it carefully for a few more seconds before she came up with a hypothesis.
"It could be that every other human that has been transported to this world have been able to control their powers just as well as any other Pokémon." Clara paused as she thought of another possible explanation. "Or maybe... maybe it is fact that I'm a Sylveon."
This earned her a few confused stares.
"Can you be more specific?" Maiden asked, clearly interested in Clara's hypothesis.
Clara nodded before continuing. "I think the answer to our question is the fact that I am a Sylveon, or more specifically, the fact that I am a Eeveelution." Clara said, ignoring the confused stares from her friends as she continued. "Think about it, Eevees have an unstable DNA column that allows them to adapt to even the harshest environments. Maybe it was thanks to these genes that I was able to adapt to this new body so quickly."
The small group was silent as they mulled over Clara's idea. Saul and Maiden had a look of realization as they both came to the same conclusion as Clara, but Dust and Light just stared at the Pokémon in confusion, both wondering what the heck they were talking about.
"I still don't understand any of this. A different world, humans, Pokémon… it's all so confusing!" Dust groaned as she chewed on platinum melon's rind in irritation.
"I agree, as much as I wanted to drop the subject, I can't help but try to comprehend what you just said." Light admitted with a sigh as he tossed his melon rind into a nearby wastebasket.
"I think that it is best that we continue this conversation when Melon and Leaf are present. After all, we have a plethora of information to share with you guys, and I prefer not to repeat everything multiple times." Maiden said as she gazed up at the farm in the distance.
Everyone nodded in agreement before cleaning up the mess they had made, and resuming their earlier tasks of cleaning.
*~*
It had been several days since the Pokémon fiasco at the town's market. By now, all the debris had been removed from the clearing and most of the stores had been rebuilt or remodeled. As each day passed, it became more and more obvious that the Pokémon were adjusting well to their new home, some even making friends with the local ponies. The news only got better when the town's mayor received a letter from Canterlot, stating that they were sending a unicorn scholar who was to teach the local guards how to cast a translation spell that could be used on the Pokémon. However, there were still some ponies having trouble. Not with the Pokémon, but with what was brought along with them.
Golden streak let out a heavy sigh as he pulled another cart full of weird-looking rocks out of one of his many mines. They came in a variety of shapes and colors that were not like anything he had ever seen. He had found some that resembled a ruby with what looked like fire trapped inside of it, whiles others would even have odd sun-like formations. Regardless, Streak still had no idea what to do with these new stones.
With a heavy grunt, Streak placed his latest cart next to a dozen other's that contained the same weird stones.
I'm going to have to take a sample of each one to Melon's new friends. I have a hunch that they might know what this stuff is. Streak thought to himself as he strapped on another cart harness before making his way down one of his oldest tunnels.
He was only down a few hundred feet down the tunnel before a small glow from one of the walls caught his attention. Carefully un-strapping his harness, Streak stepped away from the cart as he approached the glow. The prismatic light only grew brighter as he approached it, till finally, he was standing right in front of the source. He lifted a foreleg to cover his eyes as the glow turned into a blinding light, before settling back down to its gentle glow.
Cautiously, Streak leaned forward to examine the source. It was a beautiful multi-colored crystal that continued to glow dimly in the dark cave. He watched in fascination as lights seemed to dance from inside the stone as it showed off its beauty. He moved in closer when he saw a shape flash within the stone. In the middle, was a black DNA helix that sat at the epicenter of the piece.
Realizing that he might have something special, Streak quickly took out one of his smaller picks as he began to beat away at the surrounding rock. After several minutes, Streak finally pulled the uncut stone out of the wall and stared at the piece in awe as it rested in his hoof.
However, he was interrupted as a low growl emanated from deeper within the cave. Before he had a chance to react, a strong force rammed into his side as he tumbled into his cart.
Disoriented, Streak slowly lifted his head to see a raptor-like creature standing over him, a clearly angry expression written on its features.
"Gabite!" The dragon-like creature roared as a blue ball of energy began to form in its mouth.
Streak could only stare in horror as the Pokémon released a blue stream of fire directly at him.
Time seemed to slow down to a crawl as Streak's mind began to shift gears into overdrive. All his senses were heightened to their peaks as the adrenaline began to pump into his veins, his heart beating a mile a minute as the he watched the blue flame creep closer and closer to him.
"GET UP!" Streak's conscience screamed, snapping him out of his daze. He scrambled to his hooves in an effort to prop himself up, his body moving in the same lethargic manner as the flames that continued to advance towards the stallion.
Streak's hooves finally managed to get a solid foothold on the ground as he began to pull himself up, his instincts screaming at him to go faster as he saw his progressing demise. Now on his legs, Streak leaned his body to the side as he prepared to jump out of harm's way. However, his escape plan was quickly thwarted as a searing pain shot through his shoulder, causing him to gasp and stumble as his muscles locked into place.
"Shit!" Streak swore out loud as he lost his balance and fell onto the ground once more, his shoulder throbbed in protest as he landed on his side. With a pained huff, Streak lifted his head to see the flames practically on top of him.
He had missed his chance, now he was out of time.
Streak could only watch in misery as the flames descended upon him. His life flashed before his eyes as he felt the heat lick at his fur.
He remembered the time he spent growing up in the mines, learning their secrets as he explored their depths with his father by his side. He had even earned his cutie mark along the way as well. His sixteenth birthday, his high school years, even his first crush. All these memories continued to rush by him as he wallowed in the past…until a particularly recent one caught his attention. A simple kiss from a beautiful mare that he had adored ever since he had first laid eyes on her.
Melon Stripe.
Something snapped inside Streak at that moment, his feeling of sorrow being quickly replaced with a bubbling rage.
"What in Tartarus am I doing?!" Streak questioned himself as he stared defiantly at the flame. "I am a member of the Glimmer family for crying out loud! So what if I get burned?" With the last of his strength, Streak braced his forelegs firmly on the ground.
"I'M NOT GOING TO DIE TODAY!!! YOU HEAR ME?!" Streak screamed as the flames engulfed his body, the stream of fire quickly eating away at his fur. He braced his legs down even harder into the ground, bracing himself for the constant barrage of fire; however, the conflagration was abruptly cut off as a figure jumped between him and the inferno.
"Caaaarbink!" shouted the jewel-like Pokémon as it took the full force of the Dragon rage, the energy from the attack simply evaporating into thin air as it came into contact with the rock-fairy Pokémon.
Streak starred up at his savior in shock, the flames that licked his coat dissipating as their source of energy was suddenly cut off. He watched in awe as the small Pokémon absorbed the attack like it was nothing, a small smile slowly forming upon his face.
"Heh, even in death, pops can't just let his little colt go." Streak mulled over his luck as the flames began to die down, revealing the still agitated Gabite.
"Gabite." The cave-Pokémon snarled as it glared at the Carbink, energy already gathering around its arm as it prepared for next attack. The purple energy condensed and swirled around the Gabite's arm before morphing into the shape of pair of hellish looking claws.
The Gabite rushed forward at a surprising speed as it rushed forward at the pair, its shadow claws extended in preparation to rend the pony and Carbink into pieces. However, it didn't get the chance to finish its attack as a blinding light erupted from the crystal on the Carbink's forehead, the wall of energy slamming into the rushing Gabite like a run-away freight train.
The Gabite was thrown back by the wall of energy before slamming violently against the wall of the cave, causing the mines to shake from the tremendous impact. As the dust cleared, it became evident that the Carbink's attack had done a number on the Gabite, which was currently imbedded into the wall, unconscious.
Streak didn't take his eyes off of his savior as he attempted to propped himself up, but he stumbled once again as a fresh wave of pain erupted from his shoulder. Thankfully, the Carbink quickly hovered to Streak's side, catching the stallion before he could further injure himself.
With a nod of gratitude, Streak gently pushed himself away from the Carbink so that he could stand on his own.
"Thank you. In more ways than one." Streak smiled at the jewel Pokémon as he began to rummage through his cart, searching for something.
"Bink!" The Carbink chirped happily.
Streak searched his cart for a few more moments before he finally found what he was looking for. "Ah ha!" he exclaimed out loud before pulling out a first-aid kit from the depths of his cart. Wasting no time, Streak quickly opened the kit and began to apply ointment to his shoulder, his quick and fluid applications clearly showing his experience with these kinds of injuries.
"Lucky that it was only a bruise." Streak thought as he began to wrap the gauze paper around the wound. "Getting a broken bone this deep in the mine would have been troublesome." He quickly finished the last of the wrapping before sniping the edge of the cloth with his teeth, letting the adhesive glue from the gauze seal itself in place. He was about to put his kit away before he realized something.
Streak turned his attention towards the Carbink that was still watching him curiously. "I almost forgot to ask, are you hurt?" Streak asked the Carbink, a small amount of guilt forming in his chest for tending to himself first before the one who actually saved him.
"Carbink." It replied, shaking its body side to side.
"That's good." Streak sighed in relief before putting the med-kit back into the cart, his shoulder already feeling much better.
"My name is Golden Streak by the way." Streak said as he turned around and held out a hoof towards the Carbink, who stared blankly at the appendage. "Oh right, no limbs." he chuckled sheepishly as he rubbed the back of his head with his hoof.
"Bink." The Carbink shrugged, not minding the unintentional insult.
"And you must be a Carbink." Streak deduced from his minimal knowledge of Pokémon. He had a certain someone to thank for this knowledge.
*~* Yesterday
"Now, does anyone else have any other questions?" Clara said as she stood in front of the town hall with all of Little Brook's citizens present. The last few days had been hectic for the poor Sylveon and her Pokémon, for they had been the only ones that had been able to establish a reliable means of communication between the two races. Meaning that they had to be the ones to inform the town of all the information regarding Equestria's newest arrivals.
Streak stood at the edge of the crowd with Melon, both of them giving the Sylveon a sympathetic look. He honestly had a few more questions that he wanted to ask, but he could tell that the poor girl was exhausted, his questions could wait for another time. However, one mare didn't seem to share his sentiment.
A scarlet hoof quickly shot up into the air, causing Clara to sigh heavily. "Yes, what is your question?"
"You said there are over six hundred Pokémon. How exactly are we suppose to identify them in order to know which ones are dangerous?" The mare asked, holding a pen and note pad in her magic, eager to write down Clara's response.
Streak shifted his attention from the mare when he heard a hard thunk coming from the stage. He looked over to see that Clara had smashed her face against the desk of the podium. Everyone just stared at Clara as she continued to bash her head several more times before finally quitting her onslaught and lifting her head off the podium, a fake smile adorned her face, as well as a large bruise on her forehead.
"While it would take too long to explain all the properties of the every single Pokémon, I can still give you a basic idea of how to identify which Pokémon it is." Clara said with a faux smile as one of her ribbons lightly rubbed the bruise on her forehead. "The key to identifying most Pokémon is by basing them on the sound they make. Each type of Pokémon has their own unique sound which corresponds with their name, for example."
"Sylveoooon." Clara said in her real voice, causing a many of the ponies in the crowd to perk their ears up as they listened to the her real voice.
"That was Pokéspeak, and it's basically the language in which all Pokémon speak, aside from the few that use telepathy." Clara said as she cast a glance at maiden, who weas currently offstage. "If you haven't guessed it, the Pokémon that I am is a Sylveon, which is evident from the sound that I made."
The mare quit her frantic scribbling as she looked at the Pokémon on stage with an overwhelming amount of curiosity. "So what you are basically saying is that all Pokémon just say their names to communicate?"
"Pretty much." Clara shrugged as she cooled down her bruise with an icepack that Saul had thankfully brought for her. He knew her so well.
Unfortunately for Clara, the mare was nowhere near done yet.
"That is good to know, but I would still like to know which Pokémon pose a significant threat, so can you please provide us with a list of these Pokémon, as well as their description?" The scarlet mare asked as she tilted her glasses.
Clara responding by bashing her head again, the sound of the soft thunking of her head hitting the podium once again filling the clearing.
Saul simply stared at his frustrated mate as she continued to bash her head into the podium, making no effort in stopping her. With a sigh, he padded off the stage as he headed down to one of the town's many creeks.
He was going to need a lot more ice.
*~* Present
The Carbink tilted its body in the similar fashion of a nod, confirming Streak's theory. Streak smiled at his minor achievement, but his smile quickly turned into a frown as the Carbink turned around and hovered deeper in the cave.
"Wait!" Streak called out, reaching out his good hoof towards the Carbink. To his surprise, the Pokémon actually stopped, turning around to regard the stallion with a confused expression. Not losing his motivation, Streak walked up to the Carbink with a smile on his face.
"You wanna come back to my place and have something to eat? It's the least I can do after you saved me back there. Plus, I'm told that I make a mean dish of ratatouille." Streak chuckled as he reached his hoof out invitingly.
The Carbink stared as the hoof for a few seconds before nodding and following the Stallion out of the cave.
*~*
Clara's head was throbbing painfully as she laid in the bed that Melon had given her and Saul, a pained expression on her face as the ice pack did little to help.
"Ow, ow, ow, ow." She muttered in rhythm with the throbbing. "Why is it hurting this much?
"Probably because you kept banging you head on that podium until there was a one-inch dent of your face on it." Saul chuckled as he padded into the dark room, his blue rings shining softly as he made his way towards his mate.
"Ugh, keep it down. It feels like my heart and brain swapped places." Clara groaned as she shoved her face into a pillow.
"Here, take this. Melon said that it's a family remedy that should help with the pain and swelling." Saul whispered in a quieter tone as he lifted a small glass of green liquid towards Clara.
Clara said nothing as she picked up the glass with her ribbons, scrutinizing the drink's contents with the eye of a top coordinator. After gazing at the glass for a few moments, she quickly dumped the drink into her mouth, swallowing the whole drink in one large gulp.
"GYAAAAHHH!" Clara hollered as a horrible taste assaulted her tongue, causing her ribbons to tense up at the shock.
Before Saul could utter a word, Clara dropped down onto her stomach and preceded to roll around like she was on fire, sending blankets and pillows flying across the room as she steamrolled over the bed.
"What in Arceus's name is in that goop?! Muk crap!?" Clara screeched as she made a bee-line to the bathroom, her face becoming a light shade of green. She slammed the door to the bathroom open as she rushed towards the sink, throwing her head under the faucet as she turned the knob with her ribbon.
Clara couldn't help but moan in relief as the crisp water washed away the disgusting taste that had violated her mouth. She rinsed her mouth out several times before she deemed that her mouth no longer carried the awful substance, but the evil drink had marked its victim.
"My tongu' is gween!" Clara cried as she stuck out her newly painted tongue at the mirror.
"I think someone is overreacting." Saul chucked as he walked into the bathroom, barley containing his mirth as his mate glared at him with her tongue still hanging out.
"Oh ya? take this!"
"What are you- GYAAH!' Saul had no time to react as Clara tackled him to the ground, effectively pinning him as she leaned her face closer towards Saul's. With an evil smirk, Clara bent down began to lick Saul's face, her tongue leaving a trail of green that began to coat his fur.
"Nooooo!" Saul cried out has he felt is fur being plastered with the gunk, which was already hardening onto his fur. Clara continued to assault Saul's face for several more seconds before she leaped off of him to take a look at her handy work.
Unlike Saul, Clara didn't try to contain her amusement as she began to laugh herself silly, her face turning red as she forgot how to breath.
"AHAHAHA! You look like you're wearing a mud mask!" Clara cried in-between breaths as held her sides.
"I get it, it's funny, now help me get this stuff off before this stuff really starts to harden." Saul scolded his mate as he placed his head under the water faucet in order to keep the green paste from drying.
With an immense amount of willpower, Clara toned down her guffaws to light giggles as she padded over to Saul, who was still running his head under the water.
"Ya know, this reminds of the time you found my duct tape back in Lumiose city." Clara giggled as she used her ribbons to clean his face, the ribbons working efficiently as they lathered and scrubbed the Umbreon.
Saul shuddered at the mention of duct tape. That had not been a fun week for him. walking around with barley any fur had been brutal, after all, an Eevee's thick coat is one of their most prominent features.
"Ya, I was really rambunctious as an Eevee, wasn't I?" Saul smiled as he tried his best to repress the memory.
"That's an understatement." Clara chuckled as she continued to scrub Saul's face. "But it was probably one of the most damn adorable things I'd ever seen."
"Ya, I'm pretty adorable, aren’t I?"
"Don't push it buster." Clara smirked as she leaned in and kissed Saul's clean cheek, a small chuckle escaped her lips as the water splashed against her face.
"Ya, the family's secret remedy hasn't always been known for its… flavor." A new voice entered the conversation, causing the two Pokémon to turn around to look at the entrance of the bathroom.
"Morning Melon." Saul said, switching to telepathy as he lifted his head from the sink, not a trace of the green brew to be found.
"Why didn't you tell me or Saul that the drink tasted that bad?" Clara interrupted with an annoyed expression, skipping over formalities.
Melon fidgeted a bit. "Well, I figured that you wouldn't have drank it if I told you that it tasted like pickled toothpaste," Melon said with an apologetic tone. "But you're feeling better now, aren’t ya?"
Clara paused before inspecting her body for any of the pain that she felt earlier. Much to her relief, she found that the throbbing her head had now stopped. Not only that, but her irritatingly tight muscles had relaxed considerably. Glancing into the mirror, Clara let out an audible gasp as she looked at her forehead, the large bump from earlier now gone.
"Amazing, it's gone." Clara muttered in awe as she kept looking into the mirror in search of the swollen mass.
Melon seemed to surprised with the results as well as she walked over to Clara. With a tender hoof, Melon slowly turned the Sylveon's head so that she could get a better view of her forehead. True to Clara's words, the wound had vanished.
"hmm…" Melon hummed in concentration as she continued to examine Clara. "That's weird, the medicine I gave you has always worked wonders in the family, but I'd never seen it work these kinds of wonders."
"Maybe it has to be the Pokémon factor at play." Saul suggested as he joined Melon in examining Clara's forehead.
"I have to agree with Saul. After all, Pokémon are known for having an amazing healing factor that helps them recover from some of the most brutal fights." Clara said, but was interrupted as Melon mushed the Sylveon's cheeks together.
"Can you stop kneading my face like a ball of dough please?" Clara asked in annoyance as Melon continued to examine her face, the former becoming more irritated by the second.
"Oh, we playing with Clara's face again?" Maiden chuckled as she walked into the bathroom, Leaf close behind as she followed the Gothitelle.
"Yay! bathroom party!" Leaf exclaimed in excitement as trotted up to her sister.
"TOO MANY PEOPLE!" Clara shouted in vain as everyone began to feel her face at the same time.
"Her face is so soft."
"It's like a marshmallow."
"I want a marshmallow."
Clara felt overwhelmed as everyone continued to assault her face, all of them oblivious to her discomfort as they continued to feel her face. "How in the name of Arceus did it end up like this?!" Clara mentally screamed.
Unfortunately for Clara, thinks only got worse as a certain filly got too curious.
"Her bow looks soft too!" Leaf exclaimed as she stroked the warm bow on the Sylveon's chest.
"HYAAA!" Clara shrieked out loud at the contact, a large blush adorning her face.
All of a sudden, everyone in the bathroom felt the sensation of being constricted as Clara's ribbons shot forward, wrapping around everyone's torsos before lifting them into the air. A split second later, they were tossed out of the bathroom like dirty laundry, the sound of a door slamming shut quickly followed suit.
They all looked at the bathroom door in shock before Leaf finally broke the silence.
"I was right."
*~*
Several miles outside the town of Little Brook, two Charizards stood on a mountain ledge overlooking the town. They both stared down at the small town beneath them, both of them wearing an unreadable expression.
"You sure this is where you felt it, Alain?" the orange Charizard asked his companion in a skeptical tone.
The black Charizard turned towards his friend in acknowledgment, his large blue scarf blowing violently in the high altitude winds.
"I'm positive that I felt it emanating from this town." Alain nodded as he tightened the scarf around his neck.
Clara was still blushing when she made her way downstairs to join the others for breakfast, having already spent several minutes in the restroom in order to calm down. While Leaf touching her bow had certainly left her flustered, it did give her a few ideas that she would like to try the next time she was alone with Saul. And it was these ideas that kept her face a darker shade of pink than usual.
"You alright?" Saul asked his mate as she entered the dining room, a concern expression on his face.
"I'm alright, I was just startled. That's all." Clara said as she jumped up into the chair next to Saul. With a smirk, Clara leaned forward and whispered in his ear. "But, it gave me a few ideas that I would love to try later."
Now it was Saul's turn to become flustered as his face practically exploded into a dark shade of red, causing him to stare aimlessly at the floor in order to hide his embarrassment. Thankfully, his trail of dirty thoughts were broken when Melon walked into the room, balancing several large plates of food on her back.
"Wow, now that's a lot of food." Maiden observed as she stared at the tower of food, clearly impressed with the mare's skill in being able to balance that many heavy objects at once.
"Yup! You guys are going to need the strength with what I have planned for you today." Melon grunted as she expertly hefted the food off her back and onto the table.
"And what exactly do you have planned for us?" Clara asked, scooching her chair closer to Saul before pressing her side against his.
Melon opened her mouth to reply, but was cutoff as Leaf jumped out from under the table.
"We have work for you!" Leaf stated in excitement, ignoring the irritated face that her sister was currently making for being so rudely interrupted.
"Why were you under the table?" Clara asked.
"I was sorting my gum collection." Leaf answered with a wave of her hoof.
Raising a questionable eyebrow Clara lifted the cloth and peered under the table, expecting to see this "gum collection" as nothing but chewed up pieces of gum that had been pressed against the underside of the furniture. Much to her surprise, she instead found a pile of neatly sorted gum packets that were separated based on color, size, and flavor. After staring at the collection for several seconds, Clara lifted her head out from under the table and simply stared at Leaf.
"What?" Leaf asked, tilting her head to the side in confusion.
"Why would… never mind."
"Ahem!" Melon cleared her throat loudly from behind Leaf, grabbing everyone's attention. "As I was about to say before I was interrupted," Melon shot Leaf a light glare, the filly just responding with a sheepish smile. "We do have work planned for you guys, and I'm sure that you guys will love it."
Several seconds passed as the party waited for Melon to tell them about the job, but the mare just stood there, obviously waiting for someone to ask her first. Maiden was the first one to break the silence.
"What might this task be?" Maiden asked as she took another sip of her tea.
"I'm glad you asked!" Melon happily exclaimed, a large grin threatening to split her face. "We plan on having you guys helping us with the platinum melon harvest. You see, Leaf and I have been the only ones to work the harvest for a great number of years, and we have been barely able to complete it with just the two of us. But now with you guys here, finishing the harvest should be a cinch!" Melon gave a small twirl of excitement at the last part, causing Leaf to giggle at her sister's antics.
"Sounds good." Clara replied as she munched on a large scone. "But I'm curious as to why it's only you two running the farm. Because from the sound of things, you two needed all the help you could get." Clara finished as she washed the scone down with some coffee.
Both, Melon's, and Leaf's attitude took a one eighty turn at that, their previously cheerful attitudes becoming replaced with a melancholy smile. Clara recognized the sudden shift of atmosphere almost instantly, all too familiar with sadness that permeated the air.
"You know what? forget I asked, I can obviously tell that it is a sore subject, and I don't want to stir up bad memories." Clara insisted, doing her best to change the subject.
"It's alright Clara, you didn't know." Melon reassured the Sylveon before looking at everyone else at the table.
"The truth is, it wasn't always just me and Leaf, but also my mother and two older brothers." Melon admitted as she steeled her gaze, determined not to give in to her emotions. "My mother Red Vine was a master botanist who was respected throughout Equestria for her discovery of over a dozen exotic plant species that resided within the Everfree forest. While my brothers were just a pair of goofballs that constantly bickered with one another, unable to agree on even the simplest decisions."
Melon paused before smiling warmly and staring off into space, letting herself become engulfed in memories. She only broke out of her trance when she felt something wet hit her foreleg. Lifting a hoof to her face, Melon touched her cheek and felt the warm tears streaming down her face, soaking into her fur.
"Hmm, when did I start crying?" Melon chuckled dryly as she wiped the tears away with one of the table napkins, earning sympathetic looks from everyone in the room.
"Anyway, as I was saying. My brothers wer-" Melon was cut off as she was embraced tightly by four warm ribbons, all of them lightly rubbing Melon's fur in an effort to soothe the mare.
"You can stop now." Clara pleaded, a sad expression plastered on her face as she continued to hug the mare. "I know the pain that you are going through right now, and I don't want to see you force yourself to continue any further than you already have."
Melon just opened and closed her mouth in response, shocked at level of empathy in Clara's voice. It was a tone that she was familiar with, one that she had experience countless times since her mother and siblings passed… compassion.
Melon blinked as she felt something else latch onto her. Looking over, she saw that not only her sister had joined in the hug, but Saul and Maiden as well.
"I've known them for little over a week, and yet we already share this strong of a bond?" Melon thought to herself with a smile on her face, a sudden warmth beginning to fill her chest. She couldn't stop herself as tears began to stream down her cheeks, but for a different reason this time.
Saul looked up at Melon with a bit of concern as he saw fresh tears beginning to pour from her eyes. However, his concern was quickly replaced with relief once he saw the smile on her face. It had been a while since he had seen someone like this, wearing a pure smile as they cried in joy.
"You're all too emotional. Clara and Saul's behavior must be rubbing off on all of you." Maiden chocked up as she stood up from the hug, turning away from the group to quickly wipe away the tears that were forming in her eyes.
Saul chuckled at Maiden's antics, happy to see the Gothitelle opening up to someone besides Clara, and her little group. Happy with how everyone else was taking things, Saul then shifted his attention back to Melon, who was currently wiping her tears away with her foreleg.
"You okay now, Melon?" Saul asked, catching the mare's attention.
"Yes, I'm fine now." Melon chucked as she tried to stand back up, quickly discovering that she was still pinned down by Clara's ribbons. "But I think I might need your help in getting Clara off my leg."
Saul laughed as he looked down at Melon's leg, seeing his mate holding onto the limb like an infant trying to prevent their parent from leaving the room.
"Clara, you can let go of her leg now. The sentimental part is over now." Saul tittered as he pried the protesting Sylveon off using his psychic.
"You know that you could have said that before you lifted up me in the air." Clara pouted as Saul placed her down right next to him.
"And where is the fun in that?" Saul chuckled before licking Clara's cheek, cutting off the Sylveon's retort.
It took several minutes for the group to unwind from Melon's unsettling topic. Maiden had sat back down at the table to eat her breakfast like nothing had happened, while Clara and Saul had huddled near one of the corners of the room to enjoy a nice grooming session. And comically enough, Leaf had tried to mimic the Eeveelutions grooming by licking her own fur; however, she quickly found out that her hoof didn't taste that great.
Melon had left the room to take a light shower in order to freshen up, and only a few minutes had passed before she reentered the kitchen with a towel wrapped around her head and a scroll in her mouth. walking up to the table, Melon laid out the scroll, letting the long piece of paper flow onto the floor.
Maiden whistled, "That's a long list."
Melon just nodded in acknowledgement as she began to read the list, checking to see if she forgot to write down anything. Satisfied that she had written everything she needed, Melon beckoned for everyone in the room to huddle around. Clara and Saul got up from their little spot and walked over to melon before jumping up into a pair of chairs to the side of the mare. While Maiden simply scooted her chair over.
"Where's Leaf?" Melon asked, looking at the empty chair where the filly usually sat.
"Last I saw her, she was scrubbing her tongue in the downstairs bathroom. She somehow got the idea in her head to lick her hoof… I wonder how that happened." Maiden chuckled, glancing over to at the guilty couple who were fidgeting.
Melon wore a confused expression before dismissing it with a slight shake of her head. "I swear, I'll never understand that filly." Melon sighed before gazing back down at the list. "Anyway, this is the chore list for today. I had most of the chores divided up into separate categories in order to accommodate you guys into the schedule. While I may not know most of your guys's skills, I still went ahead and- yes Clara?" Melon acknowledged the Sylveon raising her paw.
"You know that we still haven't said whether or not we would accept the job." Clara said with a cheeky grin as she put down her paw.
Melon stared wide-eyed at the Sylveon, "I-I'm sorry, I just assumed tha-"
"I'm just yanking your chain! we accept." Clara interrupted with a giggle.
Melon simply huffed before shifting her attention back towards the list. "As I was saying, I planned on splitting us up based on-"
"I'm back!" Leaf exclaimed, bouncing back into the room.
"Can you all stop interrupting me?!" Melon shouted in frustration, the towel on her head falling off in the process. Everyone froze and made zipping motion with their mouth, letting the mare have the floor.
Melon sighed heavily before rolling the scroll back up and setting off to the side of the table. "I'll make it short and simple. Maiden is to help me with the platinum melons, and Clara and Saul are to help Leaf with the pixie lilies."
"But you said that I could do the lilies by myself this year!" Leaf whined.
"Well this is something better." Melon said with a grin as she looked down at her pouting sister. "After all, how often do you think you are going to get the opportunity to teach somepony how to work the pixie lilies?"
"Really?!" Leaf beamed, her previous attitude quickly discarded.
"Yes, really." Melon giggled before directing her attention back towards the Pokémon. "It looks like I will have to hold onto my tale for another day, and thanks for helping me calm down too." Melon grinned sheepishly, rubbing the back of her head.
"It's no problem whatsoever, Melon." Clara grinned at the mare. "After all, what are friends for?"
A smile blossomed on Melon's face before she reached and pulled the Sylveon into a quick hug, catching the Pokémon off guard and effectively knocking the wind out of her.
"Air!" Clara mentally gasped, making a tap-out motion with one of her ribbons. Thankfully, the hug quickly ended and the Sylveon quickly slid out of the mare's grasp, eager to get away from her death grip.
"Careful sis, you might snap her in half next time." Leaf chuckled, amused of her sister's obliviousness to her own strength.
"S-sorry" Melon blushed in embarrassment as she helped Clara regain her bearings.
"Remind me to never piss you off. I'd prefer to not be compressed into a Poffin." Clara muttered as she rolled her shoulders, eliciting a few pops and cracks.
"Why? You might taste even better than you are now." Saul chuckled, using his real voice so that Melon and Leaf didn't have to hear his lewd comment… and maybe because he wanted a little revenge from earlier. So naturally, couldn't help but smirk as he watch Clara's face flush into a bright shade of red as she stuttered incoherently for a couple seconds.
"A-anyway, where do we start?" Clara asked finally, getting a grip back on her speech.
"Just follow Leaf, she will escort you to the lily patch." Melon replied, secretly wondering what exactly Saul had said to Clara to make her so flustered.
"Yup! follow me!" Leaf said cheerfully, happily trotting out the door and onto the front porch. The two Eeveelutions both sharing an anxious glance before following Leaf outside, leaving both Melon and Maiden alone with one another.
"So, how am I going to assist you today?" Maiden asked the mare, setting down her now empty tea cup.
"Depends, how much can you lift?"
The wide grin grew across the Gothitelle's face. "We'll see." She said cryptically, her eyes glowing a bright shade of blue.
*~*
"How much farther?" Clara whined, her paws already aching.
The small group had been walking for almost an Hour now, leaving the flat farmland behind to trek up one of the nearby mountains. When Clara had heard that they were taking care of lilies, she had expected them to just be watering some flowers in a greenhouse or something. But she wasn't prepared to venture up the side of a flipping mountain! Not only that, but a few of the resident rock-type Pokémon weren't that keen with strangers passing through their territory.
"Not much farther." Leaf hummed, ignoring the small pile of unconscious Golems that Saul had subdued.
"Looks like that was the last of them." Saul said, jumping down from his small perch on the Golem pile. "They shouldn't cause anymore trouble, most Golems learn their place after they are defeated."
Leaf nodded her thanks, and Clara just smiled as Saul made his way back over to the group. when he finally caught up, Clara immediately pressed her side against his as they padded along, leaning in to also lick his cheek. Saul smiled and quickly returned the gesture, eating up Clara's affection.
"I keep forgetting how strong you are when you want to be." Clara chuckled, lightly wrapping one of her ribbons around the Umbreon as they made their way up the mountain.
"When I want to be? What's that suppose to mean?" Saul said in a mockingly, angry tone.
The Sylveon just giggled, "I mean that you can be a goofball someti- KYAAH!"
Saul acted fast and caught Clara with his psychic, her face a mere inch from the ground as his hold stopped her fall. As he lifted her up, Saul looked over at the spot where Clara had been standing, hoping to see what had tripped her. To his surprise, it was Leaf, laying prone on the ground and staring intently at a large crack in a oddly shaped rock.
"What is it Leaf?" Saul asked, curiosity overriding his previous agitation.
Leaf remained silent, her face scrunched up into an uncharacteristic stare as she looked at the strange rock.
"Something about this rock seems… off" Leaf finally said, continuing to stare at the ominous stone.
hesitantly, Leaf reached out a hoof and poked the stone, though nothing happened. Cautiously, she picked up the odd rock to examine it further. The rock was trapezoidal in shape, and had a large crack running down the center along with two dots on opposite sides of the stone. Other than its odd appearance, it was just an ordinary rock… so why couldn't she shake the feeling that something was not right?
Continuing to focus on the stone, Leaf was oblivious as Clara padded up to her with a slightly irked expression written on her face, the one that mothers often used to reprimand their children.
"Honestly Leaf, you've got to at least warn us when you plan on doing that. I almo-" Clara stopped midsentence once she saw what Leaf was examining, her eyes shooting wide open in alarm.
"Leaf! put it down!" Clara shouted, rushing towards the filly.
Leaf turned her head to look at Clara in confusion. However, her attention was quickly shifted back to the stone as it began to shine a brilliant, purple light. Now dreading what was about to occur, Clara took action and quickly wrapped all of her ribbons around the filly, swiftly yanking her into the air. The stone fell out of Leaf's hoof and dropped onto the ground with a small clutter, the light still growing brighter.
The light continued to grow brighter and brighter, until finally… It stopped. Clara was the first to open her eyes and stare back down at the stone, which was now oozing energy. Suddenly, the purple energy leaking from the stone began to morph and shift into shape. A flat purple disk with green orbs took shape, shortly followed by an eerily jagged grin.
"W-what is that?" Leaf shivered from behind Clara and Saul, both of them forming a barrier between the filly and their foe.
"A Spiritomb." Saul snarled as he glared at the forbidden Pokémon. "It's a Pokémon that is composed of souls from those who have created great misdeeds."
"S-souls!?" Leaf shrieked, shaking even harder now.
Unfortunately, Leaf's little outburst caught the attention of the Spiritomb, who decided to casually float over to the little group. Preparing for a fight, Clara and Saul both crouched down and growled at the Spiritomb, daring it to come any closer. However, they weren't expecting what happened next.
"Cynthia?"
*~*
"What in the name of Celestia?" Melon gasped as she sat down in utter shock, her mouth practically hitting the ground as she stared at the sight in front of her.
Before her was over several dozen platinum melons floating about ten feet off the ground, all of them swirling around one another like a lethargic tornado. In the center of the Melon storm, was a Gothitelle wearing a smug smile.
"What? You asked me on how much I can lift." Maiden chuckled innocently, her eyes glowing even brighter as more melons were lifted into the air and added to the sluggish twister.
Melon continued to just gawk at the display, but was snapped out of it when one of the ascending platinum melons bumped into the back of her flank.
"GYAHH!!! Watch it Maiden!" Melon shouted at the Gothitelle, a small blush already tinting her cheeks.
"Why, whatever are you talking about Miss Stripe?" Maiden snickered, acting like she didn't know what Melon was talking about.
"You know exactly what I'm talking about!"
"Oh, I do?"
"Ye-" Melon cut herself off. She knew that this was going nowhere fast, and that Maiden was just egging her on. After all, Leaf had done the same exact thing to her so many times that it hurt her head to even try to remember what the heck they were arguing over in the first place.
"Exactly how are you able to levitate so many of them at once?" Melon asked, completely changing topic as to not get caught in one of Maiden's proverbial arguments. "Most unicorns that I've met have only been able to lift a couple of these melons simultaneously, yet you are doing far and beyond with what seems like very little effort."
Maiden huffed lightly, a little disappointed that Melon had caught onto her plan already.
"It's quite simple actually." Maiden began. "Most psychics have a lot of utility when it comes to using their potential. For example, most are able to project their thoughts with ease by using telepathy to communicate. However, the same cannot be said for me, for I have very little control over my psychic utility".
Maiden let out a heavy sigh before continuing, her psychic hold gripping even more platinum melons.
"You probably didn't notice, but the skill I used in order to communicate, I didn't learn till a little after we came to this world. And it's a basic skill, one that most psychic types learn at a very early age." Maiden sighed.
"But that still doesn't explain why you are able to achieve….. this" Melon said, gesturing at the mass of floating melons.
"I was getting there." Maiden assured. "As I was saying, while it's true that I have poor utility in my psychic powers, it doesn't mean that my potential is wasted. Because in exchange for utility, I have a massive psychic energy field. Meaning that I can perform tasks that would leave most psychic types exhausted. That said, I also have the ability to control my raw psychic power, so I'm able to bend most things out of my sheer will."
Melon couldn't help but whistle in amazement at what Maiden was telling her. "That's mighty impressive to be able to control that much power. But then, why do you look so sad?" Melon asked, genuinely concerned at the Gothitelle's wellbeing.
"Again, It's quite simple." Maiden began. "Because of my power, most Pokémon tended to avoid me, afraid that I would hurt them. So you can imagine how lonely it was growing up when everymon was too scared to even come within a ten foot radius of me. However it was a different case with the humans, who often went to great lengths in attempts to capture me just so that they could become stronger." Maiden said with a sad smile, trying her hardest to keep her feelings under control so that this conversation wouldn't get too emotional.
"That's awful!" Melon gasped, quickly getting off her rump and trotting over to Maiden, Where she had to dodge several floating melons to get to her target. Once there, she quickly enveloped Maiden into a hug, catching the Gothitelle off-guard. The floating platinum melons wavered a little bit as Maiden's concentration was briefly interrupted. Thankfully, Maiden was able to quickly able to reapply her will to the melons, preventing a produce catastrophe.
"Careful! I'm carrying approximately seventy-three platinum melons, and I would hate to drop them." Maiden scolded the mare still embracing her.
At the mention of her harvest's potential demise, Melon quickly backpedaled from the Pokémon, an expression of horror written on her face.
"Sorry!" Melon quickly apologized before she gazed at her floating platinum melons. "Also, can you please put my melons down? Because you just put a horrifying mental-image in my head." She squeaked, staring anxiously at the melons.
"I can do better." Maiden quipped, her blue eyes now practically blazing.
Before Melon could ask what she meant by that, a loud creaking sound emanated from behind her. Turning her head around, Melon saw the spectacle of her large harvest wagon being hefted into air alongside the melons. As soon as the wagon stopped ascending, the melons took action. One by one, platinum melons began to gently float towards the wagon, where they were deposited inside.
Meanwhile, Melon was back at square one with her rump on the ground as she looked at the amazing display of power and efficiency.
"A-at this rate, we will be finished with the whole season's harvest within the week." Melon whispered to herself, her mind still trying to process the sheer magnitude of such a feat.
Only a couple minutes passed before the wagon was fully loaded with platinum melons. The wood from the wagon already creaking from the its heavy cargo as it was set back onto the ground.
Once the wagon was placed on the ground, Maiden released her hold, her eyes shifting back to normal as she dismissed her psychic energy. It had been a while since she was last able to cut loose like that. And to be honest, she enjoyed it. Even if it left her a little winded.
"See? No problem." Maiden chucked as she wiped the sweat off her forehead, panting slightly from exerting all that energy at once.
"T-thanks." Melon stuttered as she inspected the cart full of platinum melons, making sure that none were damaged in Maiden's little display. To her pleasure, all of the melons were intact and unscathed, each equally separated to prevent a build-up of weight from crushing the melons on the bottom of the cart.
"So, have anything else that needs to be taken care of?" Maiden asked, cracking her knuckles in anticipation.
"No, this will do for today. After all, I don't want a surplus of platinum melons that will spoil before they sell." Melon replied.
"You sure?"
Melon just turned her head to look at Maiden blankly. "You just finished about seven hours of work within fifteen minutes. So ya, I'm sure."
"Oh…sorry, I didn't mean to take away you job like that."
"It's alright, just do it in moderation next time." Melon said with a smile. "Now, let's head back to the house and prepare these melons so that I can sell them. And maybe, we can stop and take a short lemonade break as well."
Maiden smiled and replied with a nod, the idea of a refreshing beverage sounding pretty good right now. And with that, the two began their short trek back towards the house, the large melon cart in tow. It only took them about half an hour to make it out of the platinum melon patch. They probably would have made it in under twenty minutes if Maiden had carried the wagon with her psychic, but Melon had insisted that she be the one to pull the wagon.
After a while, the pair had arrived at the foot of the hill overlooking the house. And despite Melon's stubborn determination, Maiden eventually had to step in and help her work the cart up the hill, using her psychic powers to reduce the weight of the overloaded wagon.
Once at the top of the hill, Melon prepared for the easy downhill walk. However, she stopped in her tracks when Maiden held her arm out in front of her.
"What gives?" Melon asked, a bit irritated due to the fact that Maiden had stopped her so suddenly when she was so close to her goal.
"There's someone in front of your house." Maiden replied, her eyes already shifting color as she focused her psychic energy to let her eyes zoom in on the target. As her new sight came into focus, Maiden was quickly able to make out two shapes. One obviously a pony, and the other looked to be a Pokémon. After further focusing, she was able to fill in the shapes of both individuals, giving her a clear view of them.
"Who is it?" Melon asked nervously, slightly worried about Maiden's behavior. While the mare couldn't think of anypony that would have it out for her, she knew that it might not be the same case with her Pokémon guests.
"It's just Golden Streak." Maiden answered as her eyes shifted back to normal. "And it looks like he brought a guest."
"A guest?" Melon asked hesitantly, a few hundred scenarios already playing through her head. Was it a relative of his? A Pokémon? Another mare?! Melon shook her head vigorously at that last thought. Streak wasn't the type that would cheat on her like that, and she knew it. But her newly found marefriend instincts kept nagging her at the possibility.
"Are you coming, or are you just going to stand there all day with that murderous expression in your eyes?" Maiden tittered, already halfway down the hill.
"C-coming!" Melon stammered as she began to pull the wagon, cursing herself for being such an open book.
It only took the pair a couple minutes to reach the bottom of the hill. Where Streak quickly noticed them and trotted over to the pair with a Carbink by his side, both wearing satchels.
"Afternoon, girls" Streak said with a smile as he trotted up to Melon and gave her a quick peck on the cheek, his chest fluttering a little as his lips connected with her soft fur.
Melon smiled and returned the gesture before looking at the Carbink behind him. "Care to introduce us to your new friend?"
"Oh! Of course! This is Bixbite, a Carbink that saved my life yesterday when I was mining through one of my old caverns" Streak chuckled nervously, anxious as to how Melon would react. Unfortunately, he was right to be worried.
"WHAT?!" Melon screamed. "YOU'RE LIFE?! YOU MEAN TO TELL ME THAT YOU HAD A NEAR DEATH EXPERIENCE AND YOU WAITED TILL TODAY TO TELL ME?!" The mare shrieked, advancing towards the now cowering stallion.
"Y-y-yes." Streak gulped, fearing for his life a second time this week.
At that point Melon looked like she was about to explode. Streak clenched his eyes shut as he prepared for a verbal, and possibly physical, assault. However, it didn't come. Slowly opening his eyes, Streak caught a glimpse of Melon as tears began to roll down her cheeks. Before Streak could even react, Melon lunged forward and pulled him into a tight hug, her tears already soaking his fur.
"Y-you idiot… you stupid idiot." Melon lightly sobbed as she hugged him tighter. "I have lost too many loved ones already, and you know that more than anyone. Yet you still pull shit like this." Melon said as she pulled away from the hug, glaring into Streak's eyes.
Streak opened his mouth to defend himself, but was cut-off when Melon pulled him into an incredibly deep kiss. Too shocked for words, Streak did the next best thing by returning his marefriend's gesture, letting her vent out her pent-up emotions.
Standing at the sidelines, Bixbite and Maiden just stared at the couple in confusion. Both Pokémon wondering what the heck just happened.
"Does she often do this?" Bixbite asked the Gothitelle.
"Well, this morning she broke down in tears over a tragic story that she has yet to finishing telling us. And now she is shifting through emotions like a Kecleon changes colors." Maiden mused as she rubbed her chin in thought. "Both incidences seem to have very good reasons. So, no. She doesn't do this often… But I can't say the same for my trainer." Maiden chuckled lightly at the thought of one of Clara's little outbursts.
The two Pokémon watched the couple try to eat each other's faces for about a minute before Melon finally broke the kiss and returned her glare back on Streak.
"You're not off the hook you know… but by Celestia, I'm so glad that you're alright." Melon sighed as she hugged Streak one last time before hefting herself up off the ground. Streak quickly doing the same.
"Oh, it seems like they are finally done." Bixbite observed as he began to hover over towards Streak.
"Ya, we're do-…. wait. Bix! You talked!" Streak exclaimed as he began scrutinize the Carbink.
"I could always talk, you just never listened." Bixbite said as he tilted his body. "Also, I thought my name was Bixbite, not Bix."
"Your name is Bixbite, but Bix is just a nickname." Streak replied before shaking his head. "But never mind that! How can I understand you now?!"
"My doing." Maiden casually replied as she lifted one of her hands. "I simply created the same link that Melon and I share. Meaning that Bix can now perform telepathy to a basic degree."
"I-I see… well, thank you, Maiden" Streak smiled nervously, a bit intimidated by the Gothitelle's powers. However, this feeling was quickly shifted to Melon, who was staring at him and Bix.
"So tell me Streak. How exactly did you put your life in danger when you were exploring your mines?" Melon asked, wanting to know the near cause of her coltfriend's demise.
Streak sighed. "Well, I was excavating my mines, like usual, but I kept coming up with these strange new stones that I'd never seen before. So, in hopes of finding some familiar gemstones, I headed down one of the older mine shafts. Unfortunately, I didn't find anything that I recognized there either, but I did find this odd prismatic rock that glowed like a torchlight." Streak said as he plopped his satchel down on the ground and began to rummage through the bag's contents, showing the girls the strange stones that he was talking about.
"However," Streak began, his hoof still rummaging through the bag. "After I pulled that one glowing rock out of the wall, I was attack by what I assumed was a dragon Pokémon."
"A Gabite to be more specific." Bix chimed in.
"Ya, a Gabite, and a nasty one at that. Tried to roast me alive." Streak chuckled, rubbing his one of his bandages uncomfortably.
"It tried to cook him with a dragon rage. Thankfully, I was able to step in before he took any serious damage." Bix chimed in once again, earning a grateful look from Streak. However, Streak clearly wasn't the only one grateful when Bix found himself plucked out of the air and smooshed against Melon's chest.
"Thankyouthankyouthankyouthankyouthankyouthankyou!" Squealed the mare as she showered the Carbink in gratitude.
"Can't Breath!" Bix gasped.
As Melon continued to squeeze the life out of Bix, Maiden took initiative and picked up one of the many stones Streak had brought with him, examining it closely.
"Ah, this is quite the collection of evolution stones you've got here Streak." Maiden commented as she examined a few more of the unique stones.
"So you know what they are?" Streak asked in excitement
Maiden nodded. "Indeed I do, but I only know their names and properties. If you want to learn more than that, I highly recommend asking Clara. After all, collecting evolution stones was one of her favorite hobbies back on earth. Heck, with her collection, I'm surprised Saul didn't evolve into a Vaporeon, Jolteon, or Flareon."
Streak smiled eagerly at what Maiden was telling him, the idea of powerful stones from a different planet being found in his mines was extremely fascinating. Heck, he hadn't been this excited since his father taught him about alexandrite.
"Okay! So what is this one?" Streak asked, hoofing over one of the red stones that seemed to glow as if ablaze.
"That's a firestone. It's an evolution stone that is used to make some fire-type Pokémon evolve." Maiden replied.
"Okay." Streak said to himself as he pulled out a notepad and began to write down this valuable information. "And what Pokémon specifically use it to evolve?"
Maiden frowned slightly. "There's a good list actually. But as I said before, it's better to ask Clara about that because I don't want to accidently give you bad info."
"Fair enough." Streak shrugged. "Now, onto the next one!"
Clara gulped, unsure exactly how to respond to the Spiritomb. What it was asking was the last thing currently on her mind. Even though she was confident that she and Saul could take it, she was mostly worried about the after effects of defeating it. If defeated, there was a strong chance that the Spiritomb would become vengeful and seek to cause mischief and mayhem to those who had defeated it. And that was the last thing that she needed.
While Clara was preoccupied with coming up with a solution as to how to deal with the Spiritomb, Saul decided to take initiative by stepping forward and addressing the forbidden Pokémon.
"I'm sorry, but there is no Cynthia here. But may I ask why you seek this person?" Saul asked with a surprisingly calm face, ignoring Clara's look of horror at Saul's attempt of conversation with such a potentially shortsighted spirit.
The Spiritomb hummed before directing its attention at the shiny Umbreon. "Cynthia…she is my trainer." It answered after a short pause, clearly lost in thought.
"Okay, that is a start." Saul smiled. "Can you tell us who she was and what she looked liked? Because we assume that all the humans that were transported to this world were turned into Pokémon, and a description of her might give us a clue as to where she can possibly be now."
The Spiritomb hummed again. "Well, she is a very kind-hearted person. One who would do anything to protect the ones she cared about. Of course, this was quite easy for her, since she is a Pokémon champion."
Clara's jaw plopped onto the ground. "You mean to tell us that you're THEE Cynthia's Spiritomb?!" Clara gasped, a feeling of unexpected relief washing over her. While it was scary to think that this Spiritomb had the power of a champion's Pokémon, the fact that it was also trained by the compassionate Sinnoh Champion made it a lot easier for her to stomach.
The Spiritomb nodded. "So you do know her, but do you know where she is?" Spiritomb asked, floating uncomfortably close to Clara.
"I'm sorry, but we haven't even met any other humans yet, let alone a champion." Clara replied, unconsciously edging away from the forbidden Pokémon.
The Spiritomb noticed Clara's awkward behavior and looked sadly down at the Sylveon.
"You have no need to fear me, for I am not a vengeful killing machine as of most of my brethren have been branded as." Spiritomb sighed sadly.
Clara felt immediately ashamed with herself when she saw the look on Spiritomb's face. Sure, Spiritombs have a bad reputation that often proceeds most people's expectations, but that still gave her no right to pigeonhole this Spiritomb into that category without even getting to know it.
"I-I'm sorry, you're right." Clara sighed, moving back to her original position closer to the Spiritomb. "It's unfair of me to immediately cram you into a stereotype just because I'm afraid of what you can do. Besides, everyone deserves a chance, regardless of how different they are." Clara finished with a smile, gently placing a ribbon onto the Spiritomb's keystone.
"So let's start over. My name's Clara Devita, former human, and the first person to be recognized as a top coordinator for less than twenty-four hours" Clara chuckled dryly.
The Spiritomb smiled gratefully at the Sylveon. "It's nice to meet you Clara, and thank you for understanding… Oh, and call me Sprite. It's what Cynthia would call me when we were still back on earth." Sprite chuckled lightly before a hoof suddenly burst through its "chest".
"Cool! My hoof goes right through you!" Leaf exclaimed as she continued to poke at the apparition, seemingly oblivious to everyone's stares. "I didn't understand a single thing that mister ghost-rock said, but I can tell that we're are friends now!"
"Mister?!" Sprite huffed. "I'll have you know that I am actually a girl mind yoUUUUUUAAHH!" Sprite exclaimed the last part, an odd green blush forming in her purple fog.
Behind the Spiritomb was Leaf, who had given up at prodding the purple fog and had instead opted to poking at Sprite's odd keystone body.
"Hmm, while I can't touch your face, I can still touch your butt." Leaf hummed as she poked one of the purple "eyes" on the keystone.
"GYAAAH!" Sprite exclaimed with a blush, quickly tearing herself away from Leaf by levitating out of the filly's reach. "Keep your hooves to yourself!"
"Leaf! What did we tell you about randomly examining other people!?" Saul scolded the filly, picking her up with his psychic before turning her upside down in midair.
"Not to do it." Leaf pouted in reply. "Now can you please put me down? I'm getting woozy from all the blood rushing to my head."
As Saul reprimanded Leaf, Sprite cautiously floated back down to the ground, making sure she was a good distance away from the green filly. As she did, Clara quickly padded back up to her.
"I-I'm so sorry! Leaf has trouble keeping her hooves to herself, and often gets herself into trouble because of it." Clara exclaimed shakily, fearing how Sprite would take the filly's unattended advances. Thankfully, the Spiritomb was taking it quite well.
"It's alright, she just… startled me." Sprite admitted, her blush now fading away.
"If it makes you feel any better, she did the same thing to me this morning."
"Oh? What did she do to you?"
"She… fondled my bow."
Sprite winced in sympathy. While she'd never met a Sylveon till today, she still knew that a Sylveon's bow was a very sensitive spot on the their body. How did she know this you ask? Well, it's quite simple. As a champion's Pokémon, Sprite always had to be in top shape in order to win in the battles Cynthia often pitted her in. And with fairy types being her only potential weakness, Sprite had taken it upon herself to study the newly discovered type, learning everything she could in case she was ever to face one. She learn what she needed… and then some.
"Must have been quite the experience, discovering such a sensation by complete accident." Sprite chuckled.
Clara just sighed and nodded. It was true that it was a pleasant discovery that she would like to incorporate into her sex life, but she couldn't help but shudder at the thought that Leaf had helped her discover it. Thankfully, her train of thought ended abruptly when Leaf shouted over her name.
"C'mon, Clara! Those pixie lilies aren't going to take care of themselves!" Leaf waved at the pair from atop Saul's back, the Umbreon looking quite defeated. "Oh! And bring miss ghost rock! I'm sure she will love to see the lilies as well!"
"It's not ghost rock!" The Spiritomb shouted defiantly. "It's Sprite!"
"I got this." Clara chuckled at Sprite before turning her attention towards Leaf. "Her name's Sprite, not ghost rock, Leaf. And I'm sure she would love to come along." Clara said, earning a large grin from the filly.
"You sure it's okay with me to come with you?" Sprite asked. "After all, we just met."
Clara responded with a long chuckle. "When you've lived in the same house as Leaf and her sister for about a week, their positive attitudes can become quite contagious." Clara smiled before padding after the rest of the group, Sprite hovering closely behind her.
The group continued their ascension up the side of the mountain for about another fifteen minutes before Leaf motioned for the group to stop, nearly tripping Saul this time.
"We're here!" Leaf grinned, motioning her hooves towards a large cave in the mountainside.
The rest of the group stopped and stared at the cave entrance, all of them clearly not expecting lilies to be growing in such a dark cave.
"I thought lilies needed sunlight to grow." Saul commented as he padded up to the foot of the cave. "Do these flowers not rely on photosynthesis? Or are they carnivorous? Because I don't see any other way how a plant can survive these conditions."
Leaf's grin just grew wider. "Well, you will just to see and find out!" he exclaimed dramatically, jumping into the cave entrance where she was immediately swallowed up by the darkness.
"That's the problem though, I can't see anything." Said Clara as she and the rest of the Pokémon followed Leaf into the dark cave.
"Allow me." Saul said, the blue rings on his body glowing. Then like a light switch, Saul's rings flared to life, illuminating the dark cave in a brilliant blue hue.
"I always love it when you do that." Clara sighed happily as she padded alongside her mate before leaning forward and planting a kiss on his cheek.
"I know, why do you think I always kept the lights down in our room?" Saul smirked, leaning towards Clara and returning the gesture.
The group continued to venture into the depths of the cave for about another fifteen minutes before Leaf stopped the group, her attention focused directly on Saul.
"Saul, I need ya to kill the lightshow now, or you'll miss the best part." Leaf told Saul with a surprisingly stern face, her bright yellow eyes seemingly shifting as she stared at him.
"Uh, Leaf. I think something wrong with your eyes." Saul observed in concern, the look of Leaf's eyes suddenly giving him a slight chill.
"Huh?... OH!! How could we forget to tell you?" Leaf said with her usual silly smile, her voice echoing off the cave walls.
Without saying anything else, Leaf closed her eyes and stood deathly still, drawing concern from everyone present. Just as Saul was about to make an attempt at grabbing the filly's attention, Leaf's eyes shot open, looking distinctively different from earlier. Her normally bright yellow eyes were now a glowing shade of amber, giving her the appearance as if she was just a pair of floating eyes in the darkness. However, the most noticeable feature was her pupils, which were now slitted.
Everyone in the cave just stared at Leaf with a cocktail mixture of emotions and expressions, all which made Leaf laugh.
"Bet ya guys are wondering about these babies." Leaf emphasized, pointing a hoof at one of her eyes.
"I'll admit it, I'm quite curious as to how you are able to change your eyes like that." Saul hummed in thought as he leaned closer towards Leaf. "So, tell us. We're all ears."
"Well, it's quite simple actually." Leaf began with a cocky grin. "My mother was a earth pony, and my father was a bat pony."
"What's a bat pony?" Clara interrupted, also leaning forward to inspect the filly's eyes.
Leaf hummed. "A bat pony is basically like any other pony. except they have a dark coat, fangs, leathery wings, and slitted eyes. Anyway, they are often portrayed as the royal guards for princess Luna, due to their nocturnal nature and superior night vision."
"So you inherited your father's eyes?" Clara asked, wanting to know more about the filly's father. Fortunately, she kept her mouth shut, remembering the cry-fest from earlier regarding their mother.
"Not just me, but Melon as well. Though she prefers to hide her eyes due to the fact that most ponies are easily frightened by it, and let me tell ya, that's not good for business." Leaf sighed, her eyes shifting back to their normal shade of yellow.
"But never mind that! The lilies are just around the corner!" The filly exclaimed in her normally bubbly tone before dashing around a corner of the cave that seemed to emanating some light.
The two Eeveelutions looked at one another before taking after the filly, Sprite close behind them. Saul was the first one around the corner, but he immediately stopped in his tracks when saw the sight before him. Unfortunately, Clara, who was closely behind him, had too much momentum built up from chasing after Saul, and as a result, she crashed into Saul, sending the two barreling into the field of lilies.
Flashes of pink and red blurred past the couple's vision as they tumbled through the field, a sweet fragrance filling their nostrils as they rolled through the flower stalks. Once they came to a stop, Clara found her back pinned to the soft ground with Saul standing over her splayed body. The two of them blushed fiercely, Saul already attempting to get up from the awkward position. However, he was quickly tugged back down by Clara's ribbons, forcing him back into position before she lunged forward and kissed Saul, her paws wrapping around his head as she pulled him closer. The two of them held the kiss before they were forced to pull away, both gasping for breath.
"I love you, Saul." Clara whispered with her real voice into his ear, a blissful smile adorning her face.
"I love you too, Clara." Saul also whispered, his heart practically fluttering.
"HEY! You're squishing the flowers!" Leaf shouted suddenly, her head poking out from between the thick flower stalks as she suddenly burst into the scene.
Both Eeveelutions let out a startled yelp before quickly scrambling off each other, their faces flushed in embarrassment at being caught.
"S-sorry." They muttered in unison, both refusing to make eye contact with the filly.
"Geez," Leaf sighed. "Maiden was right. You guys really are helpless. I mean, who the hay plays tag in a field of some of the most beautiful flowers in Equestria?!"
Both Pokémon stared dumbfounded at the green filly, wonder if she was being serious or not. After a long pause, it became clear that she was indeed serious.
"R-right! We were playing tag!" Saul suddenly burst out with a nervous chuckle. "Sorry about that, won't happen again."
Leaf just gave a light sigh. "It's alright…but check out these cool lilies!" Leaf's attitude suddenly taking a one-eighty as she shot her forelegs forward, cupping one of the lilies in her grasp.
Clara gasped out loud as her eyes gazed upon the beauty of the flower. large pink petals filled up most of her vision as the lily seemed to burst to life. The interior colors of the petals shifting colors as if it were a kaleidoscope, bringing out the flower pristine beauty that seemingly bended the light to its whim. However, the most prominent feature of the flower, was the small scarlet crystal in place of the flower's stigma.
"It's… beautiful." Clara whispered in wonder, gently lifting the flower out of Leaf's hooves with her ribbons before lifting it to her nose and sniffing it. "And the smell… It reminds me so much of a Roselia's sweet scent. Without the feeling of lightheadedness afterwards."
"Indeed." Saul agreed, taking a sniff of Clara's flower before looking at Leaf in confusion. "But there's still one thing that I don't get. Exactly how are these flower able to grow inside this cave?"
Leaf just giggled before lifting her hoof up, and gesturing it towards the ceiling. Saul followed her direction till his eyes rested onto the ceiling… and the large crystal structure that lay embedded in it. The crystal was massive, the size rivaling that of a full grown Tyranitar. And like the pixie lilies below it, the massive crystal was a light coral pink with a mixture of red and other colors swimming around inside of it.
"What is that?" Saul asked in awe, Clara already abandoning the flower to stare at the massive crystal as well.
"That." Leaf gestured to the crystal. "Is a fairy diamond, and probably one of the largest in Equestria. You see, fairy diamonds are a very unique type of gem, one that has a powerful latent magic hidden within it. It is also thanks to this magic that the pixie lilies are able to grow in the first place, for pixie lilies only grow in the presence of fairy diamond magic."
"Wow, it must be a very expensive gem." Clara whistled.
"Actually, it's priceless." Leaf sighed. "And because of that, a lot of treasure hunters have tried their best to find this location, hoping to steal the diamond for themselves. Thankfully, we've been lucky, as a couple of them have already gotten uncomfortably close already." Leaf scowled, looking at the dark tunnel in which the group had entered from. "We really need to figure out how to hide this place better because it's only a matter of time before somepony stumbles into it."
"Maybe I can be of assistance." Sprite chimed in from above, startling the group.
"Wait." Clara began, looked up at Sprite inquisitively. "Since when were you able to use telepathy?"
"Simple, I could always use it."
"Then why have you been using me to relay your messages to Leaf?"
"Again, simple. I couldn't find the right frequency." Sprite answered, lowering herself down towards the group. Unfortunately, her brief explanation clearly wasn't enough, if the confused looks she was getting was anything to go by.
Sprite gave a light sigh as her keystone met touchdown with the cave floor, having already prepared an easy explanation. "Alright, so picture the brain as a radio, with each "station" set as a different function in the owner's mind. These "stations" each contain important functions such as movement, thoughts, speech, and senses. So, in a sense, I have been shifting through Leaf's "stations" since we first met, trying to find the best way to communicate with her. Unfortunately, her mind is much different from any Pokémon or Human from Earth, making it incredibly difficult to adjust to her brainwaves." Sprite frowned, remembering all the trouble she had went through in order to make it through filly's mind. "Normally, an adept psychic Pokémon would have no trouble in deciphering this, but since I'm not a psychic type, it's much more difficult for me."
"Wow, I never knew that it was that complex." Clara hummed, having placed her head on Saul's shoulders during the span of Sprite's explanation.
"Yes, it's very complex. Anyway back on topic. I'm offering that I can watch over the cave while you aren't here, but not without a price."
"Price?"
"Yes, my price is that I want you to see if you can find anything on Cynthia's whereabouts and inform me if you find anything at all. While she may be a Pokémon champion, she can be a bit helpless at times, and frankly, I'm terrified at the idea of her being all alone." Sprite said with a sad but caring smile.
Clara smiled softly before giving an knowingly nod. "I promise that I will inform you if I find anything on your trainer. Also, while I think that you protecting the place is an excellent idea, it's not my decision to make."
"I see, thank you for wanting to keep me informed." Sprite smiled before turning towards Leaf who was behind the Eeveelutions. "And what do you think about the idea Lea-… Where did you get those?"
Following her gave, both Clara and Saul turned their heads' around at the same time, wondering what had distracted the Spiritomb. Both Pokémon practically doing a double-take as they took in the sight of Leaf sitting on an ornate pillow, drinking out of a small tea cup, and reading a comic book that was splayed out in front of her.
The filly noticed the stares she was getting and looked up from her book. "What? Sometimes I come up here just to read. What's so wrong about that?" Leaf huffed in a mockingly haughty tone, lifting her nose up into the air like a snobbish noble.
"Also, I also think that Sprite's got a super idea, but it's better to ask my sister for permission first." Said Leaf, dropping the snobbish accent.
Sprite opened her mouth to ask just how Leaf managed to get a flipping tea set out without them noticing, but she was quickly cut off when Clara pushed one of her ribbons over the her "lips". "Don't ask, trust me." Clara sighed before turning back towards Leaf. "And I don't mean to sound pushy Leaf, but can we hurry this up? It's going to be nightfall soon."
While Clara wasn't one that was afraid of the dark, she was afraid of certain Pokémon that dwelled in it. The most specific one being Zubats.
"Sure thing." Leaf smiled before dragging over a large flower basket in her teeth and discarding it in front of the group.
"Let's get picking!"
*~*
Nightfall was nearly upon the group as they walked over the hill leading towards the house, Their large basket of pixie lilies illuminating the dim, dusk light. As they continued down the path, it became clear that the nocturnal Pokémon had begun to awaken from their slumber, causing ruckus as they began taking to the skies and scattering across the forest floor and canopy. Thankfully, the group hadn't encountered any Zubats yet, or they may have had to add one unconscious Sylveon to the workload that they were carrying.
Clara let out a sigh of relief once the house was in site, the idea of getting into a Zubat-free environment motivating her to push ahead of the group. Unfortunately, she only made it halfway there before she was yanked off the ground by Maiden's psychic, the sudden change in trajectory causing the Sylveon to squeak in surprise.
"THERE YOU ARE!!!" Maiden bellowed angrily, dropping Clara unceremoniously in front of her. "DO YOU HAVE ANY IDEA HOW MANY STONES THIS STALLION HAS BROUGHT?!" Maiden emphasized by waving her arm as the giant pile of stones with Streak sitting sheepishly by its side.
"Um." Clara mumbled, sweating nervously as Maiden forcibly turned her head to look at the mountain of evolution stones. "A lot?" She gulped nervously.
While Clara had been one for collecting evolution stones back on earth, the sheer size of this pile was quite intimidating. Even for collector as experienced as her.
"A lot?" Maiden's eyebrow twitched. "Try over two hundred and fifty Arceus damned individual stones."
*~*
Arceus quirked an eyebrow.
*~*
Clara just sat there, gaping at Maiden's words. "O-o-over two hundred and fifty, you said?" Clara whispered in awestruck, wondering how One individual could achieve such a feat on their own.
Maiden smirked evilly. "Yep, and guess who's going to teach him extensively about every single one." Maiden tittered, poking Clara's chest.
Clara's eyes widened in horror, not at the idea of helping Streak with his stones, but the idea of sticking outside to help him… at night. Thankfully, Streak could sense her predicament and quickly intervened.
"It's alright Clara, I know you must be exhausted after your first day of work here at the farm. So let's postpone the lesson until tomorrow." Streak suggested, earning a heavy sigh of relief from the Sylveon who began to take her leave, but was stopped as Streak gently tugged at one of her ribbon.
"However, before you go. There is this one stone that was quite unique from the others, and I wanted to get your analysis on it since Maiden had such high regards on your knowledge on these kind of things." Streak offered as he began to rummage through a sleeping Carbink's bag.
Clara's eyes shot open in shock when Streak turned around with a large multi-colored rock, the raw power inside it clearly visible as the energy swirled around inside the stone. However, the most prominent feature was the large double helix resting deep within the ore.
"T-that's…" Clara stuttered vocally, unable to use her telepathy with her mind was still trying to process what Streak was holding.
"A keystone." A new voice said, causing everyone present to turn around in alarm.
Standing behind them were two Charizards. One of them being shiny and wearing a blue scarf, while the other one looked generically normal aside from a few battle scars, telling them immediately that it had been in some tough fights.
"I'll get right to the point." The black Charizard stated, pointing its claw at the group.
Everyone remained silent as the Charizard held his cold stare to the group, his expressionless face masking his true motives as his eyes scanned over them. Clara had to suppress a shudder as the Charizard's eyes locked onto her, as well as a sigh of relief when they left her.
The others were fairing no better, most of them looking just as nervous when those piercing red eyes focused on them. However, despite the intimidation, Sprite and Saul were both able to maintain a calm demeanor, as well as, return the glare.
Meeting the black Charizard's gaze, Saul calmly walked forward and stood in front of the group, his face unreadable as he turned to address the two Charizards.
"I believe that it's quite rude to declare a battle without introducing yourself." Saul began, catching the attention of the two flame Pokémon. "Also, while I don't mind a good battle, I must ask. Why do you want this keystone?"
The black Charizard mentally quirked an eyebrow at the Umbreon's boldness. After all, he was usually the one that would talk to people like that, not the other way around. Either way, it didn't matter to him, because he had to get his hands on that keystone at all costs.
There was a long pause of silence as Saul waited for the Charizard's answer, his bright yellow eyes never leaving the pair as he waited for a response.
After a few more moments of intense staring, the black Charizard finally let an emotion grace his feature and gave Saul a miniscule smirk.
"Short and right to the point huh?... Very well, I'll tell you what you want to know." The black Charizard replied as he lifted his claw and gestured to the two of them. "I'm Alain, and this is my partner Charizard."
"Hello." Charizard casually greeted from Alain's side, a small smirk also adorning his face.
"And as for the keystone," Alain continued. "I'm going to need it if I'm to continue my task at mastering mega evolution. And believe me. One way or another, I'm not leaving here without that stone." Alain declared as he once again glared at the group, his smirk gone as if it never existed in the first place.
Despite Alain's intimidating presence, Saul maintained his ground, glaring just as intensely at the black Charizard.
After a few more moments of intense staring, Saul finally let out an agitated sigh as he broke eye contact.
"So there really is no other way." Saul grumbled before looking back up at Alain again. "…Very well. I accept your challenge."
That seemed to break Clara out of her trance as she leapt forward in-between the two Pokémon.
"W-wait just a minute Saul! What do you mean you accept?!" Clara stammered out loud, her anxiety interfering with her telepathy. "Don't you remember the last time you fought such a strong opponent?"
Saul visibly winced as his mind was assaulted with the images of blood. however, he quickly pushed those memories aside before steeling his gaze, determination written all over his face as he placed a paw on his mate's shoulders.
"Things are different now, Clara. I'm stronger than I was before." Saul reassured her, but seeing as she was not convinced, Saul let out a sigh before leaning forward and licking her across the cheek.
"I promise that I got this. Plus, you got Maiden here in case things were to go wrong." Saul added as he continued to soothe Clara by licking her cheeks.
After a few more seconds of Saul licking her on the cheeks, Clara finally let out a defeated sigh before returning his gestures with a simple kiss.
"I Really don't like it," Clara hesitated. "but I'll trust you on this."
Saul smiled. "Thank you, Clara. I promise that I everything will be alright."
"It better be." Clara said sternly before turning towards the two Charizards.
The two flame Pokémon looked anxiously at the Sylveon, expecting a verbal lashing of some sorts from her. Thankfully, that was not the case as she looked at Alain with a confusing expression that he could only describe as a cross between anxiety, and relief.
"While I'm not happy at you for challenging my Saul to a battle, I am relieved to meet another human after being throw into this world. I was beginning to think that I was the only one." Clara chuckled dryly.
"Wait…you're human as well?" Alain looked at the Sylveon in surprise.
Clara nodded. "Yes, I'm a human…. well, was." She sighed before perking right back up.
"Anyway, my name is Clara Devita, and I'm a top coordinator from the Kalos region." Clara gestured to her herself before using her ribbons to gesture to everyone else. "And this here is my mate Saul, as well as, Green Leaf, Melon Stripe, Golden Streak, Maiden, Sprite, and….uhhh." Clara trailed off when she got to the Carbink floating next to Streak.
"Bixbite." The Carbink answered, sounding slightly miffed.
"And Bixbite!" Clara concluded sheepishly with a nod.
Alain looked over at the group with mild interest. To be perfectly honest, he had stopped listening to the pink fairy once he had heard her mention that Saul was her mate. He could understand people calling each other couples, but the word mate was a foreign term that was usually reserved for Pokémon, not humans. Quickly piecing the pieces together, Alain looked down at the Sylveon with wide eyes.
"Wait a moment, you said that this Umbreon was your mate… Are you saying that you're… a Pokephile?" Alain prodded, leaning down towards Clara.
Clara realized that she had screwed up. She knew that being on a whole new planet meant different laws, especially ones about Pokémon, but she had forgotten that just because she was free from the Earth's old laws, it didn't mean she was free from the brutal criticism of others who frowned upon such actions.
Clara leaned back as Alain inched closer, her ears folded back in distress as the large Charizard invaded her personal space. She was about to make a break towards the safety of the group; however, she didn't get the chance as the shiny Charizard was suddenly violently thrown away from her, his body bouncing like a skipping stone as he rag dolled across the dirt road before slamming into the side of a hill, causing a huge explosion of dust and debris.
"ALAIN!!!" Charizard exclaimed in shock before reeling around in fury to glare at the one who had dared to attack his trainer.
Standing in front of him was Saul, who was glaring darkly at the large hole in the side of hill where Alain had collided. It was also clear to Charizard that Saul was the one who had attacked his trainer because of the steam rolling off the Umbreon's shoulder, indicating the pure power and speed that was put behind that physical impact.
"You'll pay for that!" Charizard roared as he charged forward at the Umbreon, energy forming around his claws before extending to hellish lengths as he readied his dragon claw.
Saul made no attempt to move as Charizard closed in on him, even when the large dragon was just a few feet away. However, at that point, Charizard was already swinging his claws down, ready to rend into the Umbreon's flesh.
"STOP!"
Charizard froze mid attack with his claws a mere inch from Saul's face, the sudden halt of the attack sending a strong gust of wind that blew over the everyone. Despite the dragon claws coming so close to hitting him, Saul maintained his cold and calm demeanor, not at all phased by the aggressive display.
With a snarl, Charizard let the energy around his claws dissipate as he stood back up to his full height, barley containing his rage. However, that anger was quickly replaced with worry as he looked towards his trainer, who was halfway out the hole.
"Alain!" Charizard exclaimed as he dashed towards his trainer to offer is trainer some help. "Are you alright?"
"I'm fine." Alain coughed as he accepted Charizard's outstretch claw. "I'm just glad that my new body could take a hit like that."
Without even looking up, Alain could still feel the animosity radiating off the Umbreon as his cold yellow eyes bared down on them, the glare sending him an unusual feeling of nostalgia.
Those eyes…there's no doubt about it. Alain thought to himself as dusted himself off before making his way back towards the group, his Charizard close behind him. When he got closer, he noticed that Saul had stopped glaring at him, the umbreon being preoccupied at fending off a pretty irritated Sylveon.
"Why the hell did you think that was a good idea!?" Clara berated her mate, using her real voice so that the ponies did not have to hear their argument.
"H-he was coming so close to you after finding out that we- OUCH!" Saul yelped as Clara chomped on his ear, not hard at all, but enough to get a response from him.
"Then give him a warning before you try to turn him into a museum piece." Clara advised cautiously before letting go of his ear and proceeding to lick his "wound". "After all, it's those kinds of misunderstandings that creates enemies." Her anger now faded, concern taking its place.
Saul looked like he was about to retort, but never got the chance to state it when Leaf decided to chime in.
"UUUGH! I hate it when I can't understand them." Leaf groaned, feeling heavily left out of the conversation that just took place.
"don't worry, you aren't missing much. They are just having another one of their sappy moments." Maiden deadpanned as she looked at her trainer, secretly wishing that she wasn't able to understand them either.
Leaf pouted. "Not that, I wanted to know what the giant lizard was saying."
Maiden sighed. "First off, they are Charizards. Second-"
"Uh, guys." Streak interrupted as he looked nervously past the two Eeveelutions in front of them. "They're coming back… and one of them looks really pissed off."
Sure enough, the Charizards were indeed walking back over to the group. And true to Streak's words, the orange Charizard looked very pissed as he glared at the group, his eyes practically screaming for a battle. Thankfully, Alain was keeping him in check, tapping Charizard with his claw whenever it looked like he was about to lose control.
"That was a nice Giga Impact ya just did there." Alain commented with a wry tone once he got into earshot.
"That wasn't a Giga Impact, it was a tackle." Saul scoffed, now using telepathy again.
Alain raised in skepticism, clearly not expecting that kind of response. A moment passed before he turned towards his Charizard with a small, yet eager, smile.
"Looks like this battle won't be easy." Alain grinned.
Normally, Charizard would be one for sharing Alain's sentiments. However, he had more important things on his mind as he glared back at the Umbreon that had tossed around his trainer.
Before Charizard got the chance to express his displeasure, Clara stepped forward with a guilty expression on her face.
"I'm sooooo sorry about that!" Clara apologized feverishly. "Saul is just very protective of me when he feels like I'm being threatened, especially when it comes to that subject."
Alain quirked an eyebrow. "You mean Pokephilia?"
Clara visibly winced before quickly composing herself. "Yes… Pokephilia." She said as she scrunched up her face, as if disgusted by that word. "You see, since people aren’t so…supportive, about the idea of a human and a Pokémon being together, you can only imagine how frustrating it was for us to keep our relationship a secret. Especially since I was regarded as a popular star in the Hoenn region."
Clara stopped and looked over at the shiny Charizard for any signs of possible assault, worried that he would outright attack her on the spot like some of the more radical believers do. Thankfully, he showed no signs of aggression as he stood there with his arms crossed, looking at the Sylveon as he gave her his full attention. Taking that as a sign to continued, Clara spoke up once again.
"I honestly don't know what side you are on regarding Pokémon-human relations. But I just want to tell you that the love that Saul and I share is very real and not one of those fucking abusive relationship scenarios that everyone seems to assume." Clara spat at the last part as her ribbons briefly flared. "However, we're not on Earth anymore, and those rules don't apply here. And for the first time in four years, Saul and I are finally able to express our affection without the fear of being arrested, and or worse, separated. So I'll warn you now," Clara narrowed her eyes, "No one, not even Arceus, is going to take away this happiness from me."
Silence once again took a hold as Alain just stood there, staring at the little fairy as she finished venting her frustrations out on him. Everyone held their breath as they waited to see how the former human would react. Everyone except Charizard and Saul, who were both still glaring venomously at each other.
However, everyone was caught off guard as Alain let out a deep chuckle seemingly amused by Clara's words. This of course, upset Clara greatly.
"Find something amusing about all this, Alain?" Clara growled, keeping her tongue in check.
"I'm sorry," Alain smiled as he ceased chuckling. "you just remind me of another pair of lovers that I met along my journey, both as easily aggressive, and passionate, when it came to this topic."
Clara stopped her glaring and looked at Alain with large, hopeful eyes. "So you mean?"
"Yup," Alain cut in. "I'm perfectly alright with these kinds of relationships… as long as it's actual love, and not the abusive slavery crap that, although rare, does exist"
Clara let out a heavy sigh of relief as she flopped down into the dirt. "Thank goodness, I really didn't want my first encounter with another human to end in an all out brawl."
"I wouldn't get rid of that thought just yet." Alain grinned. "After all, we're going to have a Pokémon battle either way."
Alain turned his attention towards Charizard, who was still locking eyes with the shiny Umbreon. "Isn't that right, Charizard?"
"huh?" Charizard blurted out as he broke his visual deadlock with Saul and turned towards his trainer.
"Oh, That's right. Can't wait." Charizard mumbled absently, seemingly deep in thought.
Alain frowned, it wasn't like Charizard to shy away from a battle like this, even if the opponent couldn't mega evolve. Wondering what was the matter, Alain stepped away from the Sylveon and ventured over to his partner.
Charizard looked at his trainer as he felt him place a claw on his shoulder, worry etched on his face.
"There something wrong Charizard?" Alain whispered so that only the two of them could hear each other. "It's not like you to act so out of it before a battle."
Charizard mentally cursed his trainer's keen eye, wondering if anything ever got past that man.
Leaning in closer, Charizard whispered into his ear. "I don't know how to describe what I'm feeling, Alain, but something is not right with that Umbreon."
Alain gave Charizard a confused look. "What do you mean 'not right'?"
"On the surface, he looks like a regular Pokémon, but the moment he knocked you into that wall… there was something else." Charizard shivered lightly, remembering the Umbreon's eyes as he glared at him in pure rage.
"Something else? What was it?" Alain inquired.
"Power." Charizard instantly replied. "Pure, unfiltered power. Much more potent than even Steven's Metagross."
Alain's opened wide in surprise. "Even more than Steven's Metagross you say?... This is troublesome, especially now that we don't have mega evolution anymore."
Alain closed his eyes, deep in thought as he tried to come up with a solution to this. Sure, he had trained hard since his last battle with Steven. But the Hoenn Champion was still a formidable foe, not one to be underestimated. Laying down his options carefully, Alain went over each scenario that he could think of in-order to come up with a solution that would benefit him the most. After carefully choosing, Alain made his way back towards Clara, who was whispering something into Saul's ear. Noticing that they were approaching, Saul gently tapped Clara's side, notifying her that they had finished their little conversation.
Alain was the first to speak. "Charizard and I would like to postpone the battle for about three days, if that's alright with you."
Clara nodded. "It's alright with me. Plus, I wouldn't like to battle right now anyway, now that it's dark out."
"Then we will see you in three days, at the quarry several miles east of town." Alain said as he opened his wings. "Be there around noon." And with that, both Alain and Charizard shot up into the sky, the farm quickly disappearing in the distance as they soared through the clouds.
*~*
Flying side-by-side, Alain turned towards Charizard. "If he's really as strong as you say he is, we'll need to train hard within these next three days, especially now that you cannot mega evolve.
Charizard merely nodded as he continued to fly by his trainer, thinking about the one thing that he didn't tell his trainer about Saul. There wasn't just power behind those eyes…but something… dark.
*~*
Back down at the farm, the group watched the Charizards disappear into the night sky, the only indicator of their location being the flame on their tails that shined bright in the night sky.
"hmm, well things just got interesting." Maiden hummed in thought. However, her thoughts quickly trailed when she saw a colony of Zubats in the distance, an evil plan already forming in her head as of how to get revenge for being subjugated to being a stone encyclopedia for Streak.
Melon looked at the two Eeveelutions in concern as they approached the group, worried for their well being.
"Are you two alright? It looked pretty heated for a moment. Also, what exactly did they say? Sprite did her best to try to translate everything, but I think it overwhelmed her." Melon said.
Sprite shoved her 'nose' in the air before turning around. "I'm a champion's Pokémon! I don't get overwhelmed… It's just… difficult, for non-psychics to use telepathy."
"We're alright," Clara said as she leaned up against Saul's side, ignoring Sprite's comment. "As for what they wanted. They sa-"
"Hey Clara!" Maiden suddenly interrupted before flinging something at her "CATCH!"
Clara didn't have any time to react as something small and purple was flung her way, hitting her directly in the face and sticking their.
"Heelloooo." The face hugging Zubat hissed.
GYAAAAAAAAHHHH!!!!
*~*
It was the next morning at the Melon farm when everyone gathered around the dinner table to discuss how to deal with the upcoming Pokémon battle. Even Streak had stopped by to help throw around a few ideas as of how to remedy the situation. So far, they weren't making any progress.
"I just don't understand why we can't just give him the stone and call it quits." Melon sighed as she rubbed her hoof against her head. "From what I've seen since the guard's failed containment, even a single tiny Pokémon can cause some serious damage without a lot of effort. And believe me, the last thing that this town needs is more repairs."
Maiden began to rub her head as well. "It's not as simple as that. Trainers tend to be very prideful when it comes to a Pokémon battle. And just giving him the keystone is an even worse idea because it would be just as insulting as a gym leader handing out badges to losers that say, 'Better luck next time!'."
"Then exactly how are we going to deal with this?" Streak chimed in as he munched on a scone. "Alain and Charizard seem like pretty nice guys, albeit a little rough on the edges. And I honestly don't mind giving them the stone since this 'mega-evolution' seems to be really important to them… but if they won't accept the handout, then I can't see how this can possibly end peacefully." He finished with a sigh as he set down the half-eaten scone.
"You ponies are thinking too much into it." Sprite hummed as she hovered over the table. "Back on earth, the easiest way to settle a feud was with a Pokémon battle. This situation is no different."
"Well, this isn't earth. We aren’t prepared for the excessive damage that you guys cause whenever you decide to duke it out." Melon said as she looked up at the Spiritomb.
Saul chuckled from the other side of the table. "That's why Pokémon insurance was practically mandatory. Arceus knows how many walls we've had to replace when Maiden decided to join our little family."
Maiden blushed in embarrassment. "Th-that was a long time ago! I haven't broken a wall in months!" Maiden paused before her lips peeled up in an mischievous grin. " At least I wasn't breaking the bed every few weeks when you and Clara decided to have one of your 'special moments'."
Saul began to choke on his breakfast at Maiden's lewd comment before quickly washing down the lodged food with some brisk water and taking in a large gasp of air, His face heavily flushed from embarrassment, and lack of oxygen. Melon almost followed Saul's example as she was drinking some coffee at the time, before unloading the hot beverage in a violent spit-take… right into Streak's face. And Streak probably would have been blushing too… if he wasn't rolling around on the floor in a feeble attempt to get the piping hot coffee off his face.
"Ya know? I think you're more Spiritomb than I am." Sprite deadpanned at the Gothitelle who was now rolling around the floor in a furious fit of laughter, enjoying the chaos that she caused like it was sweetest nectar comedy had to offer.
Maiden looked like she was about to make a retort at Sprite, but she was quickly distracted as Melon ran back into the room with a wet and heavy towel to help wipe the hot coffee off the stallion's face. However, she didn't even make it halfway through the room before she tripped on her own hooves, the momentum sending the heavy, wet towel flying across the room and slamming into Saul's face, knocking him out of his chair with a loud thud.
Maiden was at the point wheezing and struggling for breath as tears streamed down her face, a stupid smile threatening to break her face in half and she continued to literally roll around the floor in laugher.
At this point, it looked like maiden would literally die of laughter, her face turning a dark shade of purple as she struggled for breath in-between laughs. Thankfully, Saul came to the rescue as he came leaping over the table and slowly made his way over to the down Gothitelle, cross-popping veins practically decorating his skull.
*~*
Clara groaned in her sleep as she subconsciously tried to grab and hug a certain umbreon that always slept in the same bed as her, however, the only thing she found was an empty spot on the bed, no Umbreon to be seen.
Letting out another irritated groan, Clara forced her drowsy eyes open to look around the room before finally coming to the conclusion that Saul must already up. She was about to place her head back down onto the pillow before her eyes caught the time from one of the clocks hanging on the wall. Now, since she was still only half-awake, her brain was processing things a lot slower than it normally did. that said, she placed her head back down on the pillow for a few seconds before the time suddenly registered to her, her eyes quickly shooting open.
"Shit!" Clara swore as she fumbled around in the sheets before finally managing to free herself from the beds blissful embrace, part of her mind wanting to just jump back into bed. Unfortunately, she didn't have that luxury today since Streak was suppose to be coming over today with plans as of how to fashion the keystone properly without breaking it. And in order to do that, he had personally asked her on assisting him in the matter, since she already knew a great deal about the stones.
Hoping that she wasn't keeping everyone waiting, Clara quickly jumped down in front of the mirror and began to groom several spots of fur that had be ruffled from her peaceful slumber, opting to use her tongue instead of a shower, since the latter took much longer. Satisfied with her slapdash job, Clara made her way out of the room and proceeded towards the kitchen area.
"I just hope they didn't start anything while I was asleep." She muttered under her breath.
However, that seemed to be exactly the case when she heard an angry shout come from the kitchen.
"OH SHUT UP!" The voiced bellowed, before being followed by a loud conk that shook the house.
"…..I need to pick my words more carefully next time."
*~*
Clara was met with a strange site when she entered the kitchen. First off, several chairs had been flipped, along with several plates. How she didn't hear that, she didn't know. On the floor was Streak, his face covered by a wet towel as Melon used it to clean something off his face. And on the other side of the table, was a very irritated Saul standing over a floored Maiden, a large lump protruding from the Gothitelle's skull as her eyes swirled around in a comical spiral.
Clara let out a small sigh as she made her way over to the table, all too familiar with Maiden's shenanigans, especially before the Gothitelle's evolution.
Suppressing the memories of Maiden as a Gothorita with a small shudder, Clara willed her ribbons over to her two Pokémon before scooping them both up, and depositing them back into their chairs.
"Oh, morning, Clara." Saul chuckled sheepishly, realizing that he had been caught. "Did you sleep well last night?"
Clara looked at Saul with a blank expression for several seconds, the awkward silence being momentarily broken as Maiden's still unconscious head fell onto the table with a loud thud. Seeing this, Saul looked back at Clara more nervous than ever, expecting the Sylveon to chew him out. However, he wasn't expecting what happened next.
"Good job, Saul." Clara said with an expressionless face, using one of her ribbons to imitate a thumbs-up as best as she possibly could.
Saul just stared wide-eyed at Clara, his mouth hanging open in shock. Silence took the reigns as Saul had trouble possessing what she had just said, the only sound being made was the muffled cries of Streak as Melon continued to wipe feverously at his face, unaware that she was crushing the poor stallion as she tried to remove the coffee.
Realization soon dawned on Saul's face as he continued to look at the unnaturally calm fairy-type in front of him, his expression of shock quickly turning into one of amusement.
"You're still mad about what she did to you last night, aren’t you?" Saul chuckled.
"Oh, you have no idea." Clara muttered as she looked over at Maiden's unconscious form, remembering all the old nightmares that had resurfaced that night thanks to Maiden's little prank. She also made a silent note to thank Arceus for Saul knowing dream eater.
Saul gave her a sympathetic smile as he wrapped a foreleg around her neck, pulling her against his chest. The Sylveon gave no objection as she rested her head on her mate's chest, slowly falling back to sleep as the pitter-patter of his heartbeat played in her ears. Unfortunately, nice things don't last forever. That point being proven as Leaf rushed in through the front door and into the kitchen, a large smile threatening to break her face in two as she skidded to a halt in front of her sister.
"She's here!" Leaf exclaimed multiple times in excitement as she hopped around.
Melon looked up from the downed stallion. "Exactly who's here?"
"The translator from Canterlot! That's who!"
"Oh, thank Arceus." Clara grinned eagerly as she sat up from her comfortable position. "Don't get me wrong, I like talking with my mouth full and all, but it feels like I use telepathy more than actual words these days."
Leaf gave happy nod as well before she noticed the comatose Gothitelle with her head slumped against the table.
"Why's Maiden sleeping on the table?" Leaf asked as she pointed a hoof.
Saul chuckled nervously. "She, uh, bumped her head on the shelf when she was getting a tea packet."
Leaf stared at nervous Umbreon for a few seconds before looking back at the downed Maiden. "Shouldn't we get ice for that big bump on her head?"
"On it." Clara quickly replied, as she promptly dumped a bucket of ice onto Maiden's head, fully engulfing her cranium in the process.
"…Uuh, She's still not waking up."
"Eh, She'll be fine." Clara shrugged as she got out of her chair and stretched, ignoring the look from Saul that basically read 'You're so cruel.' And she couldn't really blame him, after all, the only way to end one of Maiden's mischievous streaks, was to fight fire with fire. Or in this case, pour ice on the fire.
"Anyway, where is this mare?" Clara smiled eagerly. "I can't wait to actually start using my mouth again."
"She's over by town hall, at the mayor's office." Leaf paused before adding. "Oh ya. She also said to bring a couple ponies as well. Something about an experiment or something."
Melon frowned. "An experiment? I don't know how I feel about that." Melon said as she finally relinquished the towel from Streak's face, the stallion quickly dashing away from the mare's death grip like a cat that had escaped the hold of an abusive toddler.
"I think I'm willing to try anything at this point." Clara sighed. "I'm tired of teaching all these ponies the 'do's and don'ts' about Pokémon."
Saul chuckled. "Oh, don't over exaggerate, Clara. It's not that bad."
"…I caught a couple of colts a few days ago playing kickball with a Voltorb." Clara simply replied without even looking in Saul's direction. Unfortunately, Saul was also taking a sip of his coffee when she said that. The sudden shock causing him to do a comical spit-take, right into Streak's face once again.
"T-that is pretty bad." Saul coughed as he tried to clear his windpipe of coffee, oblivious of the full-grown stallion that was, once again, getting his face molested by a towel as Melon rubbed the coffee off him vigorously.
Clara nodded. "Exactly, that's why it we need to head over there as soon as possible." She paused to munch on a blueberry muffin. "…Preferably after breakfast."
With that, everyone sat down and quietly enjoyed their breakfast. Okay, maybe it would have been quiet if Leaf wasn't inhaling her cereal like some animal, or if Streak wasn't complaining about an excessive loss of fur from his face due to Melon's unrestrained method of drying. And let's not forget about Maiden, who was still unconscious in her chair with her head buried under a small mountain of ice cubes. But other than that, it was just another normal breakfast for this quirky family.
"Okay, you guys finally ready to head out?" Clara asked as she dropped her dish into the sink.
"Looks like." Said Streak, before pausing to look at the still unconscious Gothitelle. "But what do we do about her?"
"I guess I'll watch her." Sprite chimed in from the ceiling, startling the stallion.
"No offense, but I forgot you were there." Streak said before adding sarcastically. "And thanks for startling the crud out of me, helped me get my mind off the scalding coffee and my probably broken nose."
Sprite chuckled. "Not offended in the slightest. After all, I'm a ghost type… And you're welcome."
"Well," Melon began as she put the last of the dishes away. "Let's not keep this translator waiting any longer. Shall we?"
And with that, the group disembarked towards town hall, leaving behind a Spiritomb, an a unconscious Gothitelle. The pair were alone in the house for about a minute before Leaf came bolting back into the house before draping a blanket over Maiden tenderly.
"Hold that helps warm ya right up." Leaf smiled before placing a small kiss on the mound of ice, and bolting back out the door.
To be honest, Clara was almost expecting something to happen as the group made their way through town. She waited for a cry for help, or for a Pokémon to come bursting through the other side of some building's wall. Anything that seemed out of place or that was inevitably going to go south. After all, these last few days had been hectic, and she wouldn't be surprised in the slightest if some stupid event reared its ugly head in an effort to ruin her day.
Thankfully, fate had decided to be merciful for once and spare the group of any unnecessary interruptions as they treaded through the market square.
Looking around, Clara was surprised to see a lot more ponies interacting with their new extraterrestrial neighbors as if they were part of Equestrian society to begin with. Clara couldn't help but smile as she observed a pony couple sitting together as they watched their daughter play with a Chansey, or when the parent's expressions turned to one of shock when the filly climbed into the Chansey's empty egg pouch. Of course the Chansey didn't mind, but it still made Clara giggle when the parent's began to overreact and attempt to remove their daughter, all the while apologizing to the egg Pokémon.
"Find something funny?" Saul chuckled from beside his mate, grabbing the amused Sylveon's attention.
"I think that it's mostly the fact that a little over a week ago, this town was plunged into chaos as the Pokémon made the debut and accidently terrorized the locals. Which quickly spiraled downward into a near all out brawl from both sides." Clara smiled before gesturing to their surroundings. "But now look at it. It's like that dispute never happened, it's as if the Pokémon were never strangers to Equestria in the first place."
Saul gave a small chuckle as well. "Ya, it's amazing how different this place is from Earth. Everyone's just so… excepting here."
Clara nodded. "It's a trait that greatly separates humans from ponies, no matter how many different ways I look at it." Clara hummed as she pressed herself against Saul's side.
Saul smiled and returned her affection with a soft lick on her cheek, eliciting a soft giggle from the intertwining Pokémon.
"Hey sis!" Leaf suddenly called out from the front of the group. "Look at this!"
Following Leaf's gaze, Melon looked over at the spot that had caught her sister's attention. Half expecting it to be something minor like some lost change, Melon was surprised to see a sizable puddle of purple goo with green spots, lying in-between a couple of bushes near the side of the road.
"What is that? Some kind of Pokémon?" Melon questioned mostly to herself as she leaned in closer to inspect the blob. Meanwhile, Streak was leaning over her shoulder to see what the fuss was about.
"It looks like a gob of purple bread dough." The Stallion commented before making room for the two Eeveelutions to squeeze.
"It's a Goomy." Clara quickly informed with a worried tone. "And it looks severely dehydrated."
"Poor thing!" Melon gasped before reaching into her saddle bag and pulling out a canister of water before carefully pouring some water into the lid of the canister and setting it down beside the Goomy. "Here you go little guy."
The Goomy didn't show any sign of responding as it continued to lay there like a shriveling worm on a sidewalk, worrying the mare greatly.
"It's not responding." Melon said worryingly.
"I got an idea." Said Clara, who was now picking up the cup of water with one of her ribbons. She edged the cup of water closer towards the soft tissue Pokémon, before dumping all of cups contents onto the Goomy.
"Hey!" Leaf glared at Clara. "What's the big idea? dumping water on him like that!"
Clara ignored the filly as she began to pour another cup and repeat the process, further agitating the filly. Thankfully, Saul finally got involved and stopped the filly before filling them in on Clara's plan.
"You see, Goomy's normally live in damp, dark caves in order to keep themselves moist, because their bodies are mostly made out of water to begin with." Saul said as he now looked at his mate who had taken the whole canister from Melon, and was now dumping it on the little Pokémon. "What Clara's trying to do is help it regain its moisture by pouring all that water on it, since Goomy's absorb almost all their water through their skin anyway."
"Oh…" Leaf settled down before adding sheepishly. "Sorry."
Saul smiled. "It's alright, you didn't know."
Their little conversations was shortly cut off as a little groan filled their ears. Everyone rested their eyes on the Goomy, who was now looking a lot better. it's once saggy body was now firm and in place, with a lot of color already returning to its features. Despite its now healthy features, it still appeared to be out cold.
Clara sighed as she twisted the cap back onto the now empty water canister. "It should be fine now, but it was more dehydrated than I thought. It's probably gonna be out for a while."
"So what do we do with it?" Asked Streak, learning forward and lightly pocking the soft tissue Pokémon with his hoof, only to retreat it with a film of slime now coating his hoof.
"Let's take it with us!" Leaf exclaimed in excitement.
Melon looked like she wanted to object, but instead opted for a sigh. "Fine, it can come with us."
"Yay!"
"But I'm not finished yet." Melon held up a hoof. "Once it wakes up, we'll make sure it's alright before bring right back here."
"Boooooo!"
Streak coughed awkwardly. "Anyway, we should get going. We don't want to keep the mayor waiting any longer than we already have."
Agreeing with the stallion, the group continued their way towards town hall. Hopefully without anymore interruptions.
However, fate had other plans in store. Because shortly after the group had turned a corner and were out a site, a frantic looking Vaporeon stuck its head out the bush before scanning the area and retreating back into the foliage.
*~*
Being the Mayor of Little Brook was no easy task, especially with all the Pokémon that had been dumped so suddenly on their planet by a being who claimed himself to be a god. In fact, the mayor's recent rise in her stress levels was probably not all that different from any other mayor, king, or princess that resided on Equis. And while it was bittersweet knowing that she wasn't the only pony having to deal with the recent rise in political debates and arguments, she still couldn't help but feel cheated by the sudden appearance of the Pokémon.
Mayor Wax Stamp sighed. "Why did this sort of thing have to happen during my term as mayor?" She thought sourly to herself. "My main goal for becoming mayor of this town was to keep the more greedy nobles from exploiting this towns resources and corrupting its political system. But, now with these Pokémon showing up, I have little doubt that they won't use the damage that they caused as a means to spread doubt about my leadership."
Wax stamp let out another audible sigh, catching the attention of her secretary, Gentle Breeze.
"Is something the matter miss Stamp?" Gentle Breeze asked in concern as she looked up from the stack of papers that she had been working on.
Gentle Breeze was a sweet mare, one who could always cheer up Wax Stamp whenever she was in a slump with little to no effort at all. Breeze was a young earth pony that Wax Stamp had the pleasure of being introduced too shortly after being elected mayor. The young mare, at the time, was just looking for some college credit after she had enrolled into one of Canterlot's many prestige schools. Well, that was over four years ago… Now, Breeze worked full time at the office as Wax Stamp's personal secretary, managing her meetings and filing away extra work, and despite all the extra work, she was almost always able to keep herself in a cheerful attitude.
Wax Stamp looked over at the Turquoise mare with her tired baggy eyes, which seemingly reflected off Breeze's mint green eyes.
Stamp let out a heavy sigh, "I just have a lot on my plate dear, what with all these Pokémon suddenly appearing and causing a ruckus amongst many of the nobles and business corporations that rely on our town's resources. Heck, I'm getting nonstop complaints from the local traders that have lost business ever since the Pokémon had arrived. Complaints like "A Pokémon has contaminated the shipment", or "One of the rocks suddenly came to life!", or my favorite, "They make me feel really uncomfortable, so I'm just going to wait till they are sent back to whatever dimension they came from." Wax Stamp huffed heavily at the last part, still finding it hard to believe that one of their lead shipping companies had taken a temporary leave of absence without so much as a warning.
As soon as the mayor was finished with her rant, Breeze took that as an initiative to get up from her seat, and give the major a light hug. Wax Stamp flinched in surprise at the sudden contact, but quickly got over it as the stress she had been keeping pent up all morning seemingly evaporated into thin air.
"Praise Celestia for that special talent of yours." the older mare sighed in relief, "I can't imagine retaining a shred of sanity without you."
The younger mare chuckled as she broke the hug. "It's kind of ironic that a pony that can relieve stress is working such a stressful job." Breeze said as she looked back at her cutie mark, which dictated a gentle gust of wind blowing through a patch of grass. "But I like it here regardless… besides, I don't want to wake up one morning and read in the newspaper that a you were arrested for shaving a certain noble's cats.
For the first time that day, the mayor smiled.
"Oh, c'mon. I know you thought about doing it too." Wax Stamp chuckled. "After all, what kind of stallion brings three angry cats to a business meeting?"
Breeze snickered as she leaned towards one of Stamp's ears, "It's probably because he couldn't get any real pussy." She whispered.
Both mares burst forth in a fit of laughter at the lewd joke, tears both running down their faces as they struggled for breath. That was another thing that Stamp loved about Breeze, her ability to adjust to another's sense of humor, as Breeze wasn't usually the type of mare who would make such lewd jokes.
It took the pair a minute to steady their breathing and calm down from the joke, with the exception of the sudden rebound of laughter that would spontaneously explode without warning whenever they thought they had finally calm down.
"You always know how to make my days bearable, breeze." The older mare wheezed as she wiped the tears away with one of her forelegs.
The younger mare smiled as she copied the mayor's actions in making herself more presentable. "It's no problem, honestly." Chuckled breeze as she sat back at her desk, prepared to get back to paperwork.
However, as soon as Breeze gazed upon the documents on her desk, her eyes opened wide in mild horror. The mare now practically pressing the document to her muzzle as she looked at it frantically.
"Breeze, dear. What's got you so frazzled all of a sudden?" Wax Stamp asked in concern, anxious as to what was making her secretary acting like a frightened field mouse all of a sudden.
"I lost one of my contacts!" The mare gasped as she jumped out of her seat and onto the floor, intent to find the lost eye piece.
"Is that all?" Wax Stamp questioned with a tilt of her head. "Why not just use your spare glasses in your desk?"
"Because they look horrible!"
Stamp could understand Breeze's reaction towards her glasses, as she wouldn't want to wear those big clunky frames either. But Breeze was a young mare in her prime, so unlike Stamp, breeze could pull off the 'cute' glasses look - that some stallions seemed to adore - with little to no effort at all. However, that attention is also what caused Breeze to switch to contacts, as she felt intimidated by the eyes of so many ponies.
"I know that's just an excuse, Breeze, and that the real reason that you don't want to wear them is because you don't want the extra attention." Stamp chuckled as she began to scan the floor for the lost contact.
Breeze didn't answer, and continued to remain silent in her search before a loud knock coming from the entrance of the office door.
"Who is it?" Stamp asked out loud as she got up off the floor, and made her way towards the door.
"It's me, Melon stripe." Replied the melon mare from behind the door. "We're here to see the translator from Canterlot."
"Oh, a moment please!" Stamp replied before looking down at here secretary. "C'mon, Breeze. We can search for your contacts after the meeting. But for now, just bear with the glasses."
Breeze paused before letting out a heavy sigh. She then got up off the floor and made her way towards her desk where the large pair of glasses awaited within it. With a quick tug of her hoof, she quickly opened the drawer and pulled out her glasses. She hesitated as she slid them on, even pausing once or twice to cast a quick glance across the carpet, hoping to be lucky enough to spot the missing eye wear. Unfortunately, no such luck.
Stamp just chuckled at the young mare's antics as she looked her over. "Wow Breeze, I forgot how cute you looked with those on."
Breeze just blushed in embarrassment as Stamp opened the door.
*~*
"Oh! he's so slimy!" Leaf said in glee as she glanced back at the unconscious Goomy glued to her back.
Despite the group's small delay in finding the dehydrated Goomy, they were surprisingly making good time as they fast-walked towards town hall. Although, they did have to stop now and then to give Leaf a short rest, as it was physically exhausting, even for Leaf, to carry around a Pokémon on her back that was pretty much over a quarter of her body size. And while it would only make sense for the others to take turns in carrying the soft tissue Pokémon, they were somewhat reluctant to have a giant slug slime them up. Thankfully, Leaf didn't mind in the slightest. In fact, it looked like the filly was enjoying herself despite the exhaustion and sweat dripping from her brow.
Clara glanced over at the Goomy sitting atop the filly's back, which was now looking much better than it did when they first found it.
She took note as the Goomy seemed to unconsciously relax on top Leaf's back, letting it's soft tissue body sag down the barrel of the filly as slime secreted from the Pokémon. If she had to take a guess, the Goomy's body was probably looking for more moisture to fuel its own body as it slept soundly. And what Clara did know about Goomys, is that they like to live in warm, damp environments, which perfectly described your average swamp. However, with no swamp around for miles, the Goomy had to settle for Leaf. Her pumping heart and flowing sweat providing the ideal source of warmth and moisture for the Goomy.
Clara was pulled away from her thoughts when she felt a snout gently nudge one of her ears.
"When do you think we can get that Pokémon off my sister?" Whispered Melon as she glanced over at her giddy, little sibling. "If that thing keeps spreading more mucous on her, she's going to look like a giant, furry booger!"
"We can't take it off her right now." Said Saul, as he joined in the little conversation. "It has to get off her back willingly."
"Why can't we just take it off?"
Clara sighed, "See the slime covering your sister?" The sylveon lightly gestured to the still unaware filly. "That slime is too thick. If we were to tear the Goomy off her now, Leaf would probably lose all the fur on her back."
"Then what do we do?!" Melon harshly whispered, fearful of what could happen to her little sister.
Clara shrugged, "We wait till it wakes up, where it can remove the slime on its own without hurting Leaf."
Melon looked like she wanted to object, but otherwise remained silent as she gnawed on her lower lip while casting quick glances at Leaf. Her internal "Big Sister" practically screaming at her to find a quicker solution to remedy the problem, but Melon knew better than that. She knew that trying to rush something like this wouldn't benefit anyone, especially since she didn't have any experience dealing with sentient slugs.
Melon's train of thought was abruptly interrupted as she felt Streak's side press against hers, the stallion making a clear attempt to comfort his marefriend.
"You don't have to always think about the worst case scenario." Streak said with a small smile. "I'm sure the little guy doesn't even know what he's doing. After all, he's out cold like a rock during a blizzard." Streak directed Melon's attention back towards the still giddy filly. "Besides, Leaf's having a blast. There's no sense in ruining her fun now."
Melon smiled at Streak's words, his sense of logic providing comfort to her muddled mind.
Clara and Saul both smiled as they looked back to find both earth ponies walking close to each other's sides, in what they could only assume was the pony equivalence of holding hands. Despite the motions being just them simply walking close to one another, it was still cute to watch as Melon leaned her head over into Streak's, the mare clearly getting comfortable with her current position.
But alas, as they all have learned all too well, good moments don't seem to last in this town, as Leaf alerted the group with her bubbly voice.
"We're here!" Leaf said merrily as she stood in front of a pair of large, oak doors.
Clara and Saul stopped shortly after Leaf, the two Eeveelutions now taking in the grand scale of the town hall. And they had to admit, it was an impressive town hall if they've ever seen one.
The building was tall and rustic, made from a compilation of both wood and iron workings that beautifully intertwined with one another. The walls of the building had been painted in a bright shade a white, which was pretty bold since dirt and other stains could easily show; however, the walls seemed to remain dirt free, almost as if filth had never tainted its surface. Another feature that caught the Pokémon's attention was the bright blue roof that covered the surface of the building, making it seem like the roof was part of the sky. The only reason for the roofs current visibly being the gold inlays that laid in-between the tiles of the roof, each sliver of gold seemingly giving off its own individual glow.
Clara and Saul both whistled in unison.
"Color me impressed." Clara commented as she scanned the architecture in front of her. "I didn't think I would find a more impressive building than the ones back in the Kalos region. And that's saying a lot itself, since I was born there."
"No kidding." Saul added. "Even Kalos's top engineers couldn't keep something in this pristine of condition for more than a few years."
"Well, we have the enchantments to thank for that." Said Streak, now joining in on their little conversation.
"Enchantments?" Asked Clara as both Eeveelutions tilted their head in confusion.
Streak nodded. "Yes, enchantments. You see the gold in-between each of the roof's tiles?" Streak began as he directed a hoof at the roof. "Each sliver of metal is actually pieces of enchanted orichalcum, a special recipe of the glimmer family. Griffons often use this type of metal for their elite armor and weaponry, but the glimmer family uses a special method of distillery, extracting the metal's magical properties so that we can use it in other ways."
"What kinds of ways?" Saul asked curiously, beating Clara to the question this time.
"Well, for here, we use the enchanted orichalcum to strengthen the building's integrity, keeping it safe from most elements as well as providing superb protection to the structure's foundation."
"Seems more like a bunker than a town hall."
Streak shrugged. "That's because it's both. We use it mostly for politics and whatnot, but in the case that some sort of disaster were to occur, we were to evacuate to the town hall."
"Wait, so this is where all the townsfolk came to hide when the Pokémon first arrived?" Asked Clara.
Streak nodded. "Pretty much. But enough dilly dallying, we're scheduled to meet the mayor inside."
The two Pokémon and pony paused when they heard a grunt. Looking over their shoulders. they spotted Melon trying to clean the Goomy slime off her sister with a handkerchief. Only for the handkerchief to become stuck to the filly as well.
"Point taken. We don't want Melon accidently sticking anymore things to Leaf either." Clara deadpanned as she walked towards the large pair of oak doors before gently pushing them open with her ribbons, thankfully catching the attention of the distraught sister and her goofy sibling.
"Wait for us!" Leaf cried out.
"Not like that you're not!" Melon shouted as she ran after the slimy filly.
