New World, New Bonds

Chapters

Chapter 1: Waking up
Chapter 2: Midnight
Chapter 3: Bearings
Chapter 4: Search
Chapter 5: Plan
Chapter 7: Found
Chapter 8: Unfinished business
Chapter 6: Travel

Chapter 1: Waking up

Equestria is a land that is no stranger to odd things. However, even a land of magical ponies and mythical creatures has limits and boundaries to what is considered normal. In a single moment, millions of beings quite outside that line were delivered unto an unsuspecting world. Beings in all color, shapes, and sizes. These creatures think and live as almost forces of nature at times.

And yet they can snooze a morning away like anything else.

Such is the sight if one were to peek in the marshy forests within the mountains near Fillydelphia. Sprawled out on the grass is a small blue canine-esque creature. Its eyes underneath its black mask-like markings remain closed as it remains in blissful unconsciousness. However, as dew gathers on the tip of a leaf above the unknowing creature's face, the cosmos decides it's time to wake up and greet the day.

The bead of moisture finally relents to the pull of gravity. It falls onto the snoozing creature's forehead, causing it to flinch and rub a paw over the wet patch of fur. An eye peeks open, staring blearily at the open sky above.

The dog-like creature immediately bolts upright, glancing around in alarm. The sight of trees greet him; a far cry from the cavern he was expecting. What worries him the most, however, is the lack of a familiar face.

“...m-mom?”

No voice answers the Riolu. The only sounds he hears are those of nature; wind blowing, leaves rustling, birds chirping, and some kind of strange bubbling sound.

He tilts his head to one side, ears twitching curiously. "Is... that the brook?" The young Pokémon slowly stands up on wobbly legs, crouching down as he makes his way over towards the noise.

He can envision it in his mind. The babbling brook his parents took him to every week, where they caught fish. Maybe his mom was there, right now. The very thought spurred his stumbling steps to go faster, nearly tripping over an exposed root in his haste.

As he rounds a tree he spots something blue and bubbling, but it is not a brook. Instead, it appears to be a small sleeping frog-like creature. The bubbling sound appears to be coming from it as a foam of white continuously pops and reforms around its neck and under its back. A few feet away lies what appears to be a large sword, flat on the ground, with a blue tassel coming from the pommel. While the sword makes no noise, the slight twitching of the tassel despite the lack of wind indicates it may just be another sleeping creature.

The Riolu slows to a stop before the two forms, his mind trying to come to terms with his situation. Struggling to find something good on which to focus, he drops to his knees, looking from one to the other, then to the tree behind him, hoping that one of them can explain just what is going on. "Please... anyone..."

A small groan comes from the frog, his head shifting a bit. The two large eyes on the top of his head open, gazing upwards at the treetops blankly. It stays like this for a minute before it speaks in a male voice. "What the... I wasn't camping..."

Ears twitching, the canid Pokemon's gaze locks onto the amphibian. He opens his mouth to speak, but stops short when something registers in his mind. "Cam... ping? What is that?"

"Camping, sleeping outside instead of in a house. Come on, kid, everyone knows what..." As the Froakie turns his head towards the speaker, his voice trails off. If at all possible, his large eyes get even larger as they flick between the Riolu in front of him and the white and blue arm attached to his own body.

The canine follows the other Pokémon's gaze, staring at the limb in an attempt to figure out what is drawing the water-type's attention. Not seeing anything out of the ordinary, he looks back up at the prone frog, visibly confused.

The white fingers slowly curl as the light blue creature stares. "How..." The hand he isn't staring at comes up as he closes his eyes and paws at the air in front of his face. His eyes shoot open as he sits up, hands feeling all over his head as his mouth falls open. "No... no no no... there's no way..."

Unsure what to do with the panicking being before him, the Riolu tentatively reaches a paw out. "Is... is everything alright, Mister?"

Eyes snapping to him, the frog tries to focus. "A Riolu... wait, how are you talking? Why are you taller than me?" As his speaking gets faster, the bubbly foam froths higher. "Why am I a Froakie?!"

The doglike Pokémon takes half a step back, now quite unnerved. "I... I don't..." Swallowing audibly, he steps forward once more, lowering himself onto his knees. "P-Please calm down, Mister..."

Blinking at the words, the frog takes a few shuddering breaths. "Right, right... calm... panicking doesn't help..." He flops onto his back, grimacing as he feels the cushion of foam he still produces. "I really want to scream right now. No, one thing at a time..." His head turns to the Riolu next to him. "Okay... size difference is big, but normal, I think... why can you talk, though?"

He stares back blankly, gesturing to him. "Why can you? It's normal for us to talk like this."

"For Pokémon, yes, but I'm not a Pokémon!" The frog gestures to himself before looking down and frowning. "Or... I wasn't..."

The bipedal canine tilts his head to one side, clearly confused. "I don't get it... you're clearly a Froakie... how could you have been anything else?"

"Because I was born a human. This," he waves a hand over his body as he sinks a bit into his foam cushion, "is new... no matter how comfortable this foam is."

"A... human?" The Riolu sits down in front of him, ears perked attentively. "Can... can you tell me what they're like? What you were like?"

Giving the young one an appraising look, the foaming Pokémon sits up once more, finding a natural-feeling crouching position. "I take it you must be a wild born Pokémon then. Well... umm... I don't actually know how I would go about describing an entire species... I guess just saying that we had a knack for technology and were as varied as pokemon, even if we are looked similar." He adopts the 'thinker' pose, his foam backpack extending down to become a seat cushion. "Not much really to tell about me... My name was, is, Ryan. I was a Pokémon trainer, though some would dispute that given I only had one partner." Sighing quietly, the frog muses. "I wonder where he is... hope he's okay."

A groan comes from the nearby, and formerly silent, sword. "Shut uuuuuuuuuup..." The blade flops over onto its other side as though turning in its sleep, an eye-shaped gem on the hilt currently looking as though the eye is somewhat closed, appearing to be squinting straight up at the sky. "...huh."

Ryan looks back at the Riolu that despite being twice his size, now hides behind him. Ignoring the talking sword for the moment, he asks, "You alright, kid?"

"I-I'm fine. I just... thought I saw something back here." He gives him a sheepish smile, ears pinned back against his head. "I, uh... I was mistaken..."

"I see..." The Froakie gives him a knowing smile. "Did I answer your questions, then?"

"A little..." He holds up a paw, looking at the bubbles now covering it. He shakes it as he continues, "So... you had a Pokemon for a... partner? Is... is that the same as a mate?"

Flinching slightly and shaking his head fervently, the frog answers. "No! That is not at all what I meant! First off, Geyser is a guy and I don't swing that way. Secondly, that kind of relationship between a Pokemon and trainer is very very illegal. They've got international warrants for the arrests of humans like that!" In his emotional state, the bubble production increases again, spilling over his front now.

The Riolu stares blankly at him. "...but... you're a Pokémon... would that illegal and arrest stuff really matter, now?" His attention returns to the stubborn suds on his fur, backing away a bit to keep any more from getting on him.

"See, the part of that that actually concerns me is the first part. Excuse me a moment." One of his eyes twitches, his head looking to the sky as he yells. "Why am I a Pokémon?!"

"Guys?" the sword speaks up again. "Still trying to sleep."

The larger blue Pokémon peeks out from behind a tree, looking at the animate weapon. "...do... do ghost types even need to sleep?"

"...what?" The Honedge, as it could now be identified as, wiggles around a bit before starting to tilt up onto the tip of its blade, similar to a human or bipedal Pokémon sitting up. "Am I dead?"

"You're not a Ghastly, if that's what you mean..." He slowly emerges, eyes cautiously watching the ribbon coming off its pommel. "I, uh... assume you were once human, too?"

"I'm not anymore?" Once fully upright, looking as though it was balancing on its tip, the sword turns to the other two Pokémon, and the eye on its hilt blinks. "...well, that explains why I feel... metal-y."

"Yes... that's to be expected of a sword-shaped Pokemon, I guess?" He gives a sheepish smile, shrugging a bit. "Sorry, Mister..." He glances at the Froakie, whose body is nearly covered in bubbles by this point. "You're... taking it better than he is, at least..."

"Well, yelling and screaming isn't gonna solve anything. And besides, why would I complain?" A cheerful tone enters the Honedge's voice. "I'm a freaking Pokémon now!"

Emerging from his bubbles, the frog shakes himself before looking to the other two. "I suppose I should be grateful I'm a Pokémon that still has all my limbs..." He looks at his three-fingered hands. "Even if there are differences..."

"...oh yeah... good point." The ghostly sword turns left and right a bit. "...I can't even look down at myself? What Pokémon am I, anyway?"

"I... don't actually know." The Riolu examines him carefully. "I just... know you look like a sword... that's all..." He looks to the frog, hoping he has the answer.

"You're a Honedge, which makes me wonder where your voice is coming from," Ryan says bluntly, looking over his new body.

The Honedge looks back at him. "...I'm a ghost sword and that's the one thing you don't understand?"

"I have to agree," Riolu speaks up, "that's kind of a silly thing to question."

"I'll tackle the logistical questions of your existence once I deal with my own. Could have at least made me a Greninja..." He grumbles.

"...well... you'll eventually turn into one, right?" The Riolu pats the frog on his head, avoiding the bubbles.

The sword chuckles a bit, which comes off as more than a little creepy considering the source. "So, going off what I heard while I was still half-asleep: you're a human named Ryan turned into a Froakie, and the Riolu is just an ordinary one." He glances at the Fighting-type. "No offense."

He tilts his head to one side, confused. "Why would I be offended? It's a simple fact, isn't it?"

"...I like this kid." The Honedge floats off the ground about a foot, hovering over to them. "Anyway, I'm Casey. I'd shake your hands, but... yeah."

"Doesn't your ribbon count as one? It does sort of resemble it." The frog motions to the blue ribbon attached to the Pokemon's hilt.

The ribbon in question flicks. "...don't touch that. I don't know why, but it feels sensitive."

"Okay!" The Riolu looks around, curious. "So... do either of you have any idea where we are?"

Casey blinks. "My astute observations indicate this to be a forest in the middle of nowhere."

Ryan offers observations that are only slightly more helpful. "Doesn't look like any part of a region I've ever seen."

"So... we're lost?" The canine whines softly, ears flattening against his head.

"Seems that way..." The Froakie does a hop over to the Riolu. "It'll be alright, kid. Don't worry."

"Well, if the actual Pokemon here doesn't know where we are, we're screwed." Casey sighs. "What do we do now?"

As if to answer him, a rustling sound comes from a nearby bush before a gruff voice calls out, "Hello? Anypony out here?"

Ryan looks to the noise. "Pony? What?"

Out from the bushes comes what many would recognize simply as a brown earth pony, with a burgundy mane and tail; to these three, though, it's a creature unlike almost anything they've seen before. The pony looks between the three of them, surprised. "...what in tarnation?"

Riolu looks up at the new arrival from where he sits, eyes wide in shock. "Is... that a Ponyta?" His eyes suddenly brighten up as a thought occurs. "Maybe he knows where we are!"

The pony raises an eyebrow. "Uh... what'd you say?"

"He asked if you knew where we were," Ryan replies.

Now the pony looks at the frog, confused. "I... don't think I understand. All you're saying is 'fro-kee'."

The little bipedal canine blinks at this, realization hitting him. "...wait, so... he isn't a Pokémon?"

"Looks like it... but then what is he?" The frog listens to his bubbles as he thinks. "Just a stranger and stranger day..."

Casey sighs. "So much for getting help from the locals."

The pony jumps, looking around. "Who said that?!"

"Me, stupid. The giant floating sword." He pauses. "...wait, so you can understand me, but not them?"

The stallion tilts his head at the Honedge. "I... uh, I guess so?"

"Looks like the weapon gets to be the translator," Ryan observes. "Could you please ask him where we are?"

Casey nods, at least as much as he can. "So, brown Blitzle guy, mind telling us where we are?"

"What's a... never mind." The pony shakes his head. "You're just outside Hollow Shades. Are you... lost, or something?"

"Does waking up in an unfamiliar body in an unfamiliar area surrounded by unfamiliar people count as 'lost'?" the floating blade asks. "If so, then yes."

Slowly bring a hand to his face, the Froakie sighs before peeking over at the Riolu. "You get the feeling his mouth, or... you know what I mean, is going to get us in trouble one day, kid?"

The dog-like creature looks down at him, slightly curious. "Why do you say that, Mister Ryan?"

"Call it a hunch... you." He blinks as something occurs to him. "Do you have a name, by the way? I forgot to ask."

"No, I don't." He rubs his head. "Mom always calls me her little fighter, Dad just called me Riolu..."

"Hmm... well, I guess it's not really a problem unless we come across another one." He turns his head towards the other two. "Hey, any luck over there with the local?"

Casey looks back at him, an annoyed expression in his eye. "Yeah. While you were shooting the breeze, I convinced him to show us back to this Hollow Shades place, so we at least have a village to hang around in rather than a murky forest." He flicks his ribbon towards the stallion, who was already heading back into the trees. "Move it, or I'm leaving you."

Frowning at the attitude, Ryan starts moving as well. Turning to the canine, he tilts his head and asks, "Will you be coming with us, kid?"

Riolu blinks, snapping out of his thoughts. With a quick nod, he rushes after them, soon catching up to the side of the pony and looking up at him as they walk.

The pony looks down at him. "Need something, little guy?"

He shakes his head, but continues to watch him, his little ears twitching slightly. "Was Mister Casey right? Are you a stripeless Blitzle?"

The pony blinks and looks to Casey. "What'd he say?"

"He was asking if you were a Blitzle. I'm assuming not, though." He looks at the stallion's confused expression. "Yeah, that's a no."

"Oh." The Riolu frowns at this news. "Then... what is he?" He looks to the frog behind him. "Is he a human?"

"Not even close." Ryan hops behind them, having failed to simply walk. "Humans are bipedal mostly-hairless ape-like creatures who wear clothes. This... is not that."

The gears in the Riolu's head visibly turn as he tries to process what the other Pokemon said. "You mean like a... Slaking?"

"Yeah. But smaller, less lazy, and less ugly." Casey chuckles.

"So... more akin to Hitmonchans, then?" He scratches his head, looking up at the sword in confusion. "Or maybe Sawks?"

"You've got the general idea," the Froakie says as they walk along. Each of his hops has a bit of hesitance to it, and half the time he looks down at his feet. Finally, he pays the price for this as he hops face first into a tree with a small thump. "Ow!" He rubs his face as he sits down. "Darn springy body..."

The pony looks at the frog with amusement. "Gotta keep an eye on the path ahead of you, buddy."

"And with eyes that big, that shouldn't be a problem," Casey points out. If he had a mouth, it would be smirking.

"If I didn't need you to speak to him, I would so be throwing foam at you." Ryan huffs as he stands again. "How far are we from this village of his anyway? I'm starting to get desperate enough to seek out a Nurse Joy or Officer Jenny." After another bit of hesitation, he begins hopping again, trying not to think about it.

The Honedge looks to their pony guide. "The frog wants to know when we're gonna get there."

"We're almost there," the stallion assures them. "We should see the gate in a couple minutes."

Nodding, which is difficult to discern while hopping, the water-type continues. "Good. Maybe this can stop being weird long enough for me to think and figure this out."

Before long the group arrive at the village. While in Equestria, the small town of buildings isn't that unusual in less populated areas, the sight is quite a bit different from what the former humans are used to. The cleared out section of the slightly murky forest the town resides in doesn't have a single sign of the familiar sights of Pokémon Centers, Mart, Gym, or even an Officer Jenny station. Further compounding the strangeness is that the only beings visible at the moment are more of these ponies in all colors, some even with wings or horn.

"This here is Hollow Shades," their guide says as they walk in. "Not sure where you three came from, but... make yourselves at home, as long as you don't cause trouble, I guess."

As they walk through town, the bright colors and unusual shapes of the Pokémon inevitably draw the eyes of the ponies in town. All ranges of emotions flicker across equine faces, everything from curiosity, nervousness, and of course, indifference from those who just go on with their day.

"OH MY GOODNESS!" A black and yellow blur swoops down, snatching up the blue frog and flying off, leaving everyone else there baffled.

"...did the frog just get kidnapped?" Casey asks, actually a little stunned.

"I, um... think so?" Riolu looks up where they left, frowning softly. "Should... should we go after them?"

Casey turns to their guide, who is only slightly less surprised than them. "Who was that, and where did they take him?"

The pony shrugs. "I forget her name, but I've seen her around town. If you want to go looking for her, feel free, but don't hurt her."

"I understand." Keeping his gaze fixed on where the others went, he makes a dash forward, hoping to help his new friend.

Casey lags behind a bit, but follows nonetheless, sighing. "As if this day wasn't weird enough already."

Chapter 2: Midnight

The black pegasus mare soars across the town, a smile on her face as she holds the Froakie in her forelegs. She makes a beeline straight for her house, a curious home built partially into a tree that was converted into just another section of the abode, including a cozy upper story in the trunk one wouldn't be wrong in calling a roost. Of course, as the home of a pegasus, a nice wide open window for landings is a must, something that she takes full advantage of as she swoops in and flutters to a landing.

She beams with pride as she flicks the window closed with a tail. "This is my place, little guy!" The curiously colored pony places him on her bed, smiling warmly. "If you'd like anything to be more comfortable, I'd be happy to give it to you!"

"A reason why I was grabbed might be nice..." he replies; of course, all the mare can hear him say is his name. Still, he presses into the soft bed as he looks around curiously before returning his eyes to the mare.

She squirms at the foot of the bed, uncertainty crossing her face. "Is... is that all you can say? ‘Froakie’?"

Sighing, he shakes his head, this one way communication barrier already annoying him. Taking a shot in the dark, he looks to her and pantomimes a writing gesture, tiling his hand in a questioning manner afterwards.

She furrows her brow a moment. "You... want a quill and parchment?" He nods, smiling at her and hopping once. The mare squees in delight at his reaction. "Of course, I'll get it for you right now!" She playfully boops where his nose once was, speaking with a sing-song tone. "Don't you go anywhere!"

Blinking, but unable to help a small smile as the mare leaves the room, Ryan thinks to himself. I feel like I should be more miffed about being treated like an adorable pet at my age... still, she’s nice. Large yellow eyes scan the room as he easily hops down to the floor, the way of getting around becoming a little less foreign to him. As he nears a tall dresser though, he realizes the change in perspective has not. I miss my height. Hmm, I wonder... Bouncing on his heels a bit, the frog crouches down before springing into the air and landing neatly on top of the furniture. His grin is wide as he turns and looks around the room now. Okay... that was cool!

The pegasus stumbles into the room soon after, panting softly. "So sorry! I ran out of quills and had to get a pencil!" She pulls it from under her wing and places it on the dresser, as well as a sheet of parchment. "So, why did you want these, cutie?"

He smiles back, taking the pencil in hand and being happily surprised that it still had the muscle memory of how to hold the writing utensil. Quickly, he writes two words before showing the parchment to her. 'To communicate.'

"You can write?" She scoops him up into a warm hug, happily nuzzling him. "That's fantastic! You're so smart to have learned how to do that!"

Tap. Tap. Tap. A firm sound comes from the window as something repeatedly and impatiently taps against the glass. Ryan doesn't even give it a look as he enjoys the cushion of his bubbles and the softness of the mare. The mare does much the same, humming softly in contentment.

Immediately after, there's a crash, and the blue dog-like creature lands on the bed, glass covering the floor from where he broke in. He groans softly, leg twitching in pain. "What's with... the Light Screen?"

With an alarmed croak, the Froakie holds onto the pegasus as he looks down at the Riolu. "Kid... you okay? Throwing yourself through a window is not the best idea..."

"What's a window?" He groans, sitting up and staring at the dumbstruck pony. "Is... is she alright?"

"She's probably stunned..." Ryan tries to wiggle out of her grip but fails. "And apparently very grippy."

A large sword floats up to the destroyed window, a look of bemusement somehow on his face despite lacking the features to express it. "I don't know what's more unbelievable: the fact that we have only been in this town for less than half an hour and already we've caused property damage, or the fact that it wasn't me who caused it."

The Riolu sits up, frowning softly at Casey. "But... it was your idea for me to jump up in here..."

The black mare slowly backs towards the door, whispering so the frog is the only one who can hear her. "Don't worry... I won't let them hurt you..."

"I only said we needed to get up here," Casey sighs. He turns to the mare, noticing her back away. "We're not here to harm you."

The frog turns to the sword. "Tell her to just stay calm, and that you were just worried."

Nodding with his body, the sword speaks again. "We only came here to make sure the frog was alright. You did sort of just... you know, kidnap him."

"Kidna-" The mare freezes, eyes shrinking to pinpricks as realization hits. "...oh." She looks down at him, nervously smiling. "You are friends with them? A talking blade and a," the pony glances at the scratched up Pokémon on her bed, "a diamond dog?"

Patting her reassuringly, Ryan tries to explain. "Well... I suppose we are friends, though fresh and new friends. Also," he turns to the Honedge, "I am not a kid."

Huffing a bit, Casey turns to the mare. "He says 'the talking blade is my benevolent and all-powerful master, and you will respect him.'"

The Froakie's eyes bug out as he sputters. "What?! That's not either of the things I said!"

The ebony mare takes notice of the Froakie's reaction and quirks an eyebrow at the sword. "I think he disagrees. Please don't upset the little guy."

Leaning against her appreciatively, the frog smiles smugly. "Heh."

The eye in the hilt rolls. "Fine. He said yes, we're friends, though I personally disagree at this point in time." The Honedge fixes his attention on the mare again. "While I myself have nothing against you keeping him away from me, it's unfortunately the best idea for us at the moment to stick together until we figure out how we got here. We're not exactly from around here, in case you couldn't tell."

The mare gives him a flat stare. "No, I see floating, talking swords around here all the time."

"You do?" The Riolu beams, looking up at his friend. "That's great! Maybe you can find a mate, Mister Casey!"

The blade glares at him. "You're not allowed to talk anymore."

Another smug grin comes to the frog's face. "Yes... have the genderless one find himself a mate."

Now Casey glares at the Water-type. "Excuse you, but considering the size of my blade, I think I can be classified as a male." He then looks to the mare. "I'm starting to think you should keep him. And the dog too."

She blinks at this, taking a moment to consider what he said. The pegasus nods after a bit, smiling warmly. "Why not? My house should be plenty roomy for the three of us."

Riolu, on the other hand, looks to Ryan, confused. "Did I upset him? And... what did he mean by that sword thing?"

"He's not upset, and I'll tell you when you're older." The former human quickly averts that little disaster. "As for this other plan..." he settles against the mare contently, "I think I could get used to this. She'd probably hug you too if you wanted, kid."

"But what about Mister Casey?" A blue paw gestures to the Pokémon in question. "Surely he'd like hugs, too?"

Casey sighs. "I'm a sword. A ghost sword, at that. Even if I'm tangible enough to hug, I think whoever tried it would get a few cuts." Instantly, the floating blade finds himself being enveloped by both the mare and the Riolu, practically dragging him down to the ground in the process as his eye widens. "...well... not that I'm complaining, but I didn't expect that."

"See?" The pegasus giggles, looking at him. "You can be hugged and not hurt anyone... but I'm afraid you aren't allowed to be negative in this household if you're going to stay." She smiles cheekily at him. "You take yourself outside if you have to fume, alright?"

He blinks. "...I wasn't aware I was staying... but, um, thank you."

"I know I'm staying. What about you, kid?" Ryan is glad for his cushioning bubbles as he is squeezed in the middle of the group hug.

He smiles, his tail wagging slightly behind him. "I think I'd like that. Besides, this way I get to stay with my friends!"

"You're a good kid. At least we have a place to call home while we figure things out." Looking up at all of them, the Froakie frowns slightly as he looks at the Honedge, but calms as he looks at the mare. "Getting to know our host would be a good start, so she doesn't have any more big scares." Note to self: issues warnings all around in the event I find Geyser.

"Right." Casey looks up at the mare. "So... the frog thinks, and I agree, that we should get to know each other better. Introductions and all that."

"I have a name you know..." Ryan grumbles.

"Oh, of course!" She smiles warmly, placing the smallest of the Pokémon back on the dresser. "My name is Midnight. It's a pleasure to meet you all."

Glad to be back near his writing tools, the frog scribbles away again before holding up the paper and smiling. 'Hello, very nice to meet you. My name is Ryan, the sword is Casey, and the masked one is a Riolu who... doesn't really have a name. I've just been calling him 'kid'.'

The pegasus squints at the paper, slowly saying the names out loud. "Ryan... Casey... Ray-o... Rye-uh..." She shakes her head, groaning softly. "That's too hard to pronounce." She turns, pointing a hoof at the bipedal Pokemon. "Your name is Liu, now. Much easier to say!"

He can only stare back at her, stunned. "Umm... okay?"

"Well... that works." Ryan chuckles as he draws a line under the last message and starts a new one. "This must be the universe getting me back for not doing hand-written letters these last few years in favor of e-mail." After a few more seconds, he holds up the paper again. 'So, anything you want to share? I'm also curious as to why I was suddenly brought to your nest here.'

"Oh, um..." Midnight sheepishly smiles, rubbing the back of her neck. "I... like frogs... especially cute ones..."

"Is that why there's something that looks like a bubble-less version of Mister Ryan under her cloud?" The Riolu points to a plush green limb sticking out from the edge of the bed frame.

The former human hops down and peeks at the plushie before laughing and giving the mare a knowing look. "I see..." He writes again. 'Thank you very much for the compliments, Miss Midnight, and thank you for opening your home to us little displaced ones.'

"Oh, it's my pleasure!" She giggles, gingerly rubbing the back of his head. "I couldn't just let lost cuties like yourselves sit out in the cold, now could I?"

Casey, who has been just awkwardly leaning against the wall near the broken window, blinks his eye and mutters to himself. "'Cuties'?"

"Yes, cuties." She smirks at the sword playfully. "Even you, big guy." The Ghost/Steel-type makes a coughing sound and averts his gaze to the wall.

Ryan blushes slightly as he writes more. 'Thank you again, it has been a very strange day so far. It's good to know we will have something consistent to hold on to.' He looks to the recently named Liu. "Did you want me to say something to her for you?"

He looks right back, a little unsure. "Umm... thanks for the name?" The little dog Pokemon considers this a bit longer before speaking up. "Could you ask her if... if she's seen a Blaziken, recently?"

"Sure." The frog adds onto what he just wrote. 'Liu says thanks for the name, and he wants to know if you've seen a large, bipedal, wing-less birdlike fiery creature around here recently.'

Midnight takes her time to read it before giggling, leaning down and pecking the frog on the head. "Like I said, it's my pleasure, Ryan." She turns her attention to the Riolu, sheepishly smiling. "I'm glad you like it, Liu, but I'm afraid I haven't seen anyone like that around."

"Hmm..." Not willing to go into lengthy thought about his predicament that will likely depress him just yet, the frog writes one last note before hopping down to the floor in front of the mare and holding it up. 'Well, is there anything our new landlady and hostess would like us to do or know?'

"Well, I do have a few rules." She eyes the floating sword a moment, wary. "One, I'd like you to refrain from tearing up anything. Two," she turns to look at the other two, "if you have any private business to take care of, please use a bathroom, or go outside." She taps her chin, thoughtful. "And, if you ever see a flower looped around the handle of my bedroom door... please don't enter."

Liu looks to Ryan, unsure what to think. "What... what did those last two mean?"

Casey, despite lacking a throat, manages to perfectly imitate the sound of clearing one. "I think those are reasonable rules. Right, you two?"

"Right!" The Froakie nods succinctly, whispering to the Riolu. "As for the last two... the first was about using the bathroom, the last was saying don't go in her room then because she's doing adult things. Make sense?"

"Oh. Okay, then." He nods to himself, looking up at the pony. "I think they're reasonable... but what's a bathroom, exactly?"

Midnight, instead of answering, giggles and scoops him up, cradling him in her forelegs. "What's that? Did the puppy want a little loving?" She rubs a hoof over his belly, smiling warmly when his hind leg kicks in response.

Casey decides to interject. "That reminds me... any chance you could show us around, Midnight? We haven't seen any of your home besides this room, or much of the town besides just outside your place."

"Yeah, I suppose that's true." She turns to the door but stops when her hoof hits the floor, a soft crunch echoing through the room. She takes in a deep, shuddering breath, looking over her shoulder to the sword. "Could you possibly... gather up the glass, real quick? I need to... take care of one tiny issue, before I show you around..."

Casey nods, looking slightly worried, but setting about to just using his ribbon to begin sweeping up the glass into a pile. Meanwhile, the Froakie in the room tilts his head at the mare, his species' attentiveness still a little foreign to him, but nonetheless screaming at him that something was wrong. Hopping once over to the mare's side, he looks up at her thoughtfully.

She nods and carefully puts down Liu. Turning to the door to the hall, she begins to limp towards it, leaving faint red marks in the orange carpet. Eyes narrowing, Ryan quickly hops in front of her and holds his hands out to make her stop. Once she does, he scoops off some of the suds around his neck and off his back, sticking them to the bottom of her hoof. As the missing ones start to bubble out new ones on him, he backs off a few steps, motioning to her hoof.

She tilts her head curiously at this, gingerly lowering her hoof to the ground. When the sharp bolt of pain she expected doesn't come, she stares down in awe, then to the Froakie. She gives a small smile at his thoughtfulness. "Thank you, Ryan. I'd give you a head rub, but..." She waves her injured hoof, hoping that would be enough of an explanation.

He simply smiles, content to play the silent helpful type for the moment. He hops next to her, waiting for her to go wherever she is heading to see to herself.

Midnight looks at the makeshift bandage, then to the door, and finally to Ryan. "You know... I was going to get gauze for this," she looks at her now-bubbly hoof, "but I don't think that'll be necessary, now."

Tilting his head at her, he points at the hoof before taking a few of the bubbles from himself again and rubbing his hands together as if washing them.

"So... I can wash them off?" She frowns a bit before the actual meaning kicks in. "Oh! You're right, I do need to sanitize it!" She flares her wings, grabbing the frog up in her uninjured foreleg and flying out of the room.

Liu watches them from his spot on the bed, curious. "Wait, so this glass stuff hurts when stepped on? Like Spikes?" He looks down at the superficial scratches covering his body. "I thought it only hurt when you slam into it, like Reflect..."

Casey sighs. "Liu, sooner or later you'll realize that not everything is the same as in a battle." He has finished sweeping the glass into a pile and just stares at it. "...wait, what do I do with this now?"

Ryan, meanwhile, is once again finding himself suddenly airborne as he is carried by the mare. Still, this time he enjoys it more as he relaxes, wondering where in the house they'll be heading.

Midnight carries him down the hall, descending the stairs with ease. The two of them enter the kitchen, where she places him on the counter in the middle room. "The first aid kit should be around here, somewhere..." She turns around and opens a cupboard beneath the sink, digging around inside.

The human-turned-frog looks around while she does that. Hmm... at least they seem to have most human appliances, even if there are modifications. No computers yet though... Hopefully no Poké Balls either. He shivers a little, not wanting to even go down that train of thought.

"Found it!" She slowly pulls back and turns to face him, a white, medium-sized box with a red plus sign on it firmly gripped in her teeth. She carefully places it on the counter next to him, and her hoof beside it. "Now comes the hard part... sterilizing and wrapping the bandage around the wound..."

Ryan pats her leg reassuringly as he sits next to the box. "Puncture wounds are never fun. You'll be fine; most trainers get good at this sort of thing when they meet their first Beedrill or Sandslash." He waits for her to go at her own pace.

The black mare looks to him, smiling softly. "Thanks for being concerned... I still wish I could understand you, though." She giggles and looks at her hoof, her soft smile slowly falling. "Now... how do I get these sticky bubbles off?"

Remembering the official Pokedex description of Frubbles as 'delicate yet flexible,' the Froakie gives a small sharp poke to one of the spheres. Giving a happy croak when it pops, he smiles and quickly does the same to the rest.

Midnight looks down at the now-exposed injury on her hoof, visibly wincing. "Well... this is going to take longer to tend to than I thought..." She looks to the sky-blue frog, nervously smiling. "Could you... pass me the tweezers?"

He nods, picking up the forceps and offering them to her. One part of him is curious how she even intends to use these without fingers.

She leans close, gently taking it in her teeth and turning to her hoof. Cautiously, she starts to pull one of several pieces of glass out of her hoof, barely keeping one eye squinted open due to the pain. Finally, after a couple agonizing moments, it comes free, and the mare releases the breath she had been holding. Turning her head slightly, she drops the shard onto a small ceramic plate, but loses the tweezers in the process, clattering a bit until it lands under the lip of the dish. The poor pony groans quietly, resting her head on the counter. "Perfect... just perfect..."

Feeling like a cross between a friend and a parent, Ryan picks up the tweezers himself. After checking it to make sure it's clean, he hops over to her hoof. Lifting it with one hand, he gestures the tweezers and tilts his head questioningly.

Feeling him move her hoof, Midnight tilts her head up, blinking in surprise and curiosity. "You... you want to h-help?"

He nods. "Why wouldn't I?" Again he motions to her hoof and tilts his head.

The mare looks at him for a few more seconds before softly chuckling, using her free hoof to gently rub his head. "Thank you, Ryan. I'd love it if you could help me."

He hums appreciatively, eyes narrowing in her hoof as the one rubbing him stops. As he draws the tweezers up to work, he unknowingly sticks his tongue out one side of his mouth in concentration. As gently as he can, the frog grips one of the shards and slides it out, dropping it on the plate.

Not hearing any complaints from the mare, the former human finds his groove as he treats the familiar wound type. In short order he removes the glass, wipes off the blood, disinfects the area, puts on pain-killing cream, wraps the hoof, and even puts a small layer of Frubbles over it before wrapping those under another bandage. He nods at his handiwork before finally looking up at Midnight.

She simply stares down at him in shock. Her gaze wanders to her treated hoof, and she carefully shifts it, tapping the counter experimentally. The mare looks back to the frog in stunned silence, having trouble finding the words to say. "I... you... it..." She audibly gulps, giving him a shy little smile. "T-Thank you, Ryan."

Chuckling, he smiles and pats her leg. "Not a problem. It's the least I can do. You aren't the first thing I've had to fix up and you won't be the last." Suddenly, a rumble comes from his stomach, causing him to put a hand over it.

Midnight giggles, gently patting him on the head with her bandaged hoof. "I guess you're hungry, huh?" She nods towards the fridge. "Shall we see what I have for you?"

Nodding quickly, he already sees in his mind the one thing he wants. His body tenses in anticipation as his eyes lock onto the fridge.

She picks him up and pulls open the icebox, letting him look for himself. "Go ahead and pick out what you'd like, cutie." She sits down in front of the open appliance, placing him on one of the shelves inside.

Ryan's large eyes flick around as he takes in everything. Before he even finishes taking inventory, he feels something cold against himself and looks down to see his arm clutching a bottle of milk to himself. Looking up to Midnight, he sheepishly laughs as he looks around more, idly noting the hay and flowers in one part of the fridge. What do Froakies eat anyway... No way I'm eating insects. Hmm... I don't see fish either...

At this point, as if on cue to interrupt his train of thought, Casey hovers into the room, Liu right behind him. "Hey, what do you want me to do with this?" He holds up the small pile of glass shards he had gathered with his ribbon.

She turns to look at him, smiling warmly. "Go ahead and throw it in the trash, please. I don't want anyone else getting injured on accident."

Nodding, he looks around for the trash can. Upon identifying it, he hovers over to deposit the shards inside. "I take it you got yourself taken care of?"

"Actually," Midnight reaches into the fridge, gently rubbing the Froakie's head, "Ryan did most of it. I just got the first aid kit out." She suddenly jolts, eyes wide with realization. "Oh, shoot! I forgot to put it up!"

Ryan rolls his eyes. "You really do worry too much." Using the hand not holding the milk, he pats her reassuringly.

The mare looks to him in confusion, but she starts to relax, regardless. Sighing softly, she smiles and gestures to the bottle. "Found something to drink, I take it?"

The Riolu pops up between the two of them, tilting his head to one side when he sees Ryan. "What are you doing in there?" His gaze falls to the container in his friend's grasp, his eyebrows furrowing in mild confusion. "And... what is that?"

"In order, I'm looking for a snack, and this is milk, the single greatest drink ever." The frog holds the bottle so Liu can see it. "I still need to decide what to eat though, see anything you like?"

Casey blinks, looking over, but not saying anything.

Snapping his gaze from the bottle, Liu looks up among all the items, frowning a bit more with each one he sees. Eventually, he gets to where the Froakie sits, and whines pitifully. "I... I don't know what any of this is..."

"It's okay, I'll find something. Just... no whining please." Looking around again in the vegetarian icebox, Ryan eventually settles on a classic and grabs peanut butter along with strawberry jelly. "We'll work on other options later."

Liu sniffs in the fridge, resting his head on a shelf and looking up at the smaller Pokemon. "Are there any... Custap berries?"

"Umm..." A quick search reveals the answer. "I don't see any. Just a small bowl of mixed ones, but they don't look like any Pokémon berries."

Watching the two of them for only a moment, Midnight turns to Casey, sheepishly smiling. "Could, um... could you translate, please?"

"Huh?" The sword blinks. "Oh, uh... Liu is just looking for berries."

"Oh!" She giggles, turning and gently picking up the small bowl of berries in the fridge. "Well, I have some strawberries, blueberries," she looks around the fridge, moving a few plastic containers out of the way, "a banana, a couple apples-" A small squeak escapes her throat when the Riolu jumps up next to her head, grabbing the apple and eating it without hesitation. "...o-okay, then..."

Setting down his peanut butter and jelly jars, yet holding onto the milk, Ryan taps the canine on the head with a small frown. "Manners, Liu. No snatching things from nice people. You ask."

The young Pokemon looks to the frog, confused. "But... she's not a person... you said so, yourself, Mister Ryan..."

"She can't understand him anyway," Casey points out. "Kind of defeats the purpose."

The frog turns to the sword. "She and I have limited communication ability through gestures, so the effort can at least be made." He once more speaks to Liu. "As for your comment, I know she isn't a person, but I don't exactly know a word that would fit there to encompass people, Pokémon, and..." He waves a hand toward Midnight. "Whatever her collective species is called in plural form."

Feeling a little awkward at only hearing one part of their conversation, the mare in question stands up. She rubs the back of her neck, nervously chuckling. "Well, I'll leave you to make yourself something to eat. I just... I need to check on my groceries. Then I'll take you on a tour of the house." She slowly backs out of the room, waving to them with a wing until she disappears from view.

Ryan rubs his chin with a hand before climbing out of the fridge. "Hmm... a bit skittish it seems. Still, very nice and we are very lucky to have met her, especially on a crazy day like this one." Any further words from the frog are stopped as he pops open the bottle and sips the white liquid inside. The soft sigh of happiness followed by a much longer drink seem to indicate he won't be speaking again for the moment.

Casey sighs as he watches this. "You know what I realized just now?" He doesn't wait for a response. "I can't eat anymore."

Liu looks to him, tilting his head in confusion. "But... you're a sword... I don't think you need to eat, anyways..."

"That's the point... I can't eat anymore." He shuts his eye. "You never know what you have until it's gone..."

As the Froakie finally stops drinking the milk for a moment, most of it gone now, he speaks up. "Try more to think of the positives of your new form. Even as a Pokémon in general, you grow stronger, get bigger... learn new things..." Ryan's eyes stare straight ahead as something dawns on him. "I have been transformed into a Pokémon child and now have to go through puberty again..." His fist slams into the floor. "Damn it! Once was enough! Why? Why again?!"

Mood swinging suddenly, the sword laughs. "You're right, there are positives to being a Honedge!"

"Enlighten me," the frog deadpans.

"Well, I might not have to eat, but at least I won't have a pimply face in a few weeks either." He chuckles again. "And when I do evolve, I won't have to deal with a tongue that's twice as long as my body."

"Honestly I don't know if that's not the case right now..." the Froakie mutters to himself before speaking louder. "Oh yeah? Well, at least I still have my limbs and an actual face that isn't just a design on my sheath."

The Honedge laughs again, but this time, it sounds rather hollow. "And I could kill you right now just by poking my head into your stomach."

Flinching, Ryan walks backwards away from the ghost weapon. "Wow... that was unnecessarily harsh and worrying..." He eyes the unreadable surface of the Pokemon warily, now wishing it did have a face so he could tell what it was thinking.

The eye in the hilt rolls. "I'm not going to, you paranoid lilypad-hopper. That was just my way of telling you to shut up."

"There are better ways..." the Froakie grumbles again, holding the bottle out to the young one of the group. "You want any of this before I chug the rest?"

Liu, who had been watching him hopefully the whole time, eagerly takes the offered bottle, drinking with a surprising amount of ardor. Once he's done, he puts the nearly-empty container next to his smaller friend, sighing happily.

Blinking at the guzzling, Ryan laughs. "I guess you liked it then?"

The Riolu nods, smiling warmly. "Yes sir!" He rubs the back of a paw over his lips, trying to get any milk that may be there off.

"Good answer!" Back from the slight dip in his mood after talking with Casey, the Froakie slams back the last of the milk and sets the bottle on the floor. "Ah... that hit the spot. Now then... where has the lady of the house gone off to?"

Liu looks up from the strawberry he was sniffing, tilting his head to one side. "I... think she's a floor above us... feeling a little nervous, maybe?" He takes a bite of the fruit, his nose scrunching up soon after. "Tart..."

"Yeah, those are usually better if you have them with something sugary." Looking at the ceiling as if he can see through it, Ryan hum in thought. "Hmm... that aura will be quite useful in figuring out intentions. Think we should go up and see her?"

"You can, if you'd like." He paws through the berry bowl, most of his attention on the food. "I want something to get that taste out of my mouth..."

"Hmm... I think I will, but in the mean time, try this." Opening the fridge again, the frog takes out the jelly jar and sets it before the young one. "You could also get some water from there." He points to the faucet over the sink on the counter. "I'll be right back." His piece now said, he begins hopping towards the stairs.

The Riolu watches him leave, then glances at the closed jar. He looks to his paws and frowns softly. "How am I supposed to open this?"

Hopping upstairs in no time at all, Ryan does a small bit of thinking as he seeks out the mare. I hope Casey isn't a bad influence on Liu when I'm not around... Still, I'm glad to be out of that bit of abrasiveness. Never thought I'd see the day when I'm more comfortable around some..." he stops as he tries to think of a word for Midnight before continuing, "lady of an unknown species before a Pokémon I've seen countless times. Still, it's a day for firsts... and of comfort in an unknown land. As the looming thoughts of serious repercussions of his current situation threaten to overwhelm his mind, the former human shakes his head vigorously, staying focused on his goal to keep his mind under control. Now where is she...

He hears clattering coming from a room nearby, through a door that is ajar. Curious, he hops over, opening the door slowly and slipping in so as not to scare her. Inside, he finds the mare picking up various bottles off the tile floor, placing them in a cabinet behind the mirror. As she reaches for a tube of toothpaste, she spots him, giving a small wave with a wing while picking up said toiletry.

"Huh... just the usual cleaning up for houseguests... don't know why I was worried." Still, having come all the way up here he hops on over, seeing if he can do anything to help. Motioning to the various products, he tilts his head at her questioningly, something he realizes is turning into his main gesture for her.

Midnight puts the tube on the counter, turning and smiling sheepishly to him. "Sorry, I was just... checking on something, and I, well..." She sighs, shaking her head and motioning to the items on the floor. "I knocked everything down on accident..."

"Ah, that's why I was worried. I may be paranoid, but that doesn't mean I'm wrong." Still, Ryan begins quickly hopping down to the floor, grabbing some things, and hopping back up to leave them on the counter before repeating. However, after the fourth increasingly quick repetition of this, the frog finds himself forced to sit down as his head spins. Holding a hand to his head, he can practically feel the swirls in his eyes. Okay... note to self... just because you have the body for it, doesn't mean you have the experience to not be dizzied by it...

"Are you alright?" She picks him up, holding him to her chest. "Do you want to take a rest? I mean, all that's left is floss, so we can, if you'd like."

"Yes, please..." He nods, the spinning slowing slightly.

The mare quickly looks around and, spotting a folded towel, pulls it over to him. "Here you go, little guy. This should work for a bed, right?"

He absentmindedly rubs the towel, a light headache being his deterrent to more rapid movement for the moment. "Well it's certainly soft... but you don't really have to..."

Without saying a word, she swaddles him in the cloth and cradles him in her wing. "You just rest now, Ryan. Wouldn't want you passing out, would we?"

He blinks as he rests in the cloth. ...and she's a motherly type while I'm in a small and cute body. I probably should have seen this coming. Shifting in the cloth, he hums to himself. Still... it is comfortable... I'll complain how I'm too old for this later. "Thank you," he croaks to her.

"So cute." Midnight giggles, gently patting him on the head before returning to her work. She quickly fixes everything back up and, glancing at the top of the medicine cabinet, closes the door, taking him out of the bathroom and making for the room they first entered the house.

As they enter what Ryan has mentally started calling 'the roost', his face scrunches in confusion. "What are we doing here?"

Seeing his expression, Midnight smiles softly, bringing him over to the dresser. She quickly grabs the pencil in her teeth before turning back around, exiting the room, this time heading downstairs to return to the others. The frog simply observes, curious what her plan is.

As they get close to the kitchen, a familiar voice from inside snaps, "Why are you still following me?!"

The two of them enter the room to see the sword floating around the island, the Riolu following his every motion. "Because you seemed lost, Mister Casey. I thought I'd keep you company."

"There's a difference between being lost and wanting to be left alone!" The Honedge floats up over the island now. "I'm in the latter category!"

"Why would you want to be alone?" Liu tries to climb onto the counter after him, but he can't get a good grip with the jar of jelly in his paw. "No one should be alone..."

The eye in the hilt glares. "Well, I should."

The canine's ears dip at this. "I... I'm sorry, Mister Casey... I didn't mean to upset you..."

"Hey!" The Froakie speaks up from his blanket. "Don't be cruel to the kid just because he's trying to be nice to you!"

Casey focuses his glare on the frog. "I told him to leave me alone and he didn't listen. All bets are off at that point." He does a double take. "...why are you in a blanket?"

"Circumstances, motherly host, and comfort," Ryan replies tersely before countering. "Why are you an ass?"

The sword would shrug if he could. "Why wouldn't I be? If I'm nice, people will just cling to me and follow me around. Being an asshole keeps them away."

The mare speaks up, looking right at the Honedge. "I wouldn't be too sure, Casey. I know a couple ponies who'd take that as a challenge to be your friend."

Casey looks back at her. "And they would soon discover how bad an idea it is."

"I'd have to disagree." The black pegasus slides the pencil on her hoof onto the counter, not wanting it to fall. She opens a drawer and pulls out a notepad, setting it near the pencil. "I'm sure underneath your cold exterior is a warm soul. You just have to see it, yourself."

"I don't really care to, even if there is," the Honedge growls. "I'd rather live the way I've been living for twenty-something years than change things now and turn into a wimpy little ball of friendly goop."

"Being friendly is what got us a place to stay. Being friendly is keeping you safe from just being pounded by anything out there stronger than you. Being friendly means that people will want to help you... doesn't that seem worth it?" Ryan desperately tries to appeal to the sword.

Casey sighs. Instead of replying, he just floats off into the other room.

The Froakie sighs as well, slumping in his blanket. "He's gonna be tough to talk with..."

"Don't worry. He'll warm up to the idea eventually." She places the smallest Pokemon on the counter, unwrapping him carefully. "Are you feeling better, Ryan?"

He nods. "Yes, thank you." His attention turns to the Riolu. "You okay after all that, kid?"

The Pokemon in question rests his head on the edge of the island, looking at the doorway. "...I'm okay... thanks for asking, Mister Ryan..."

"Hmm..." The frog's eyes narrow before he looks back to the mare, pointing to her and motioning to the canine. He follows this up with a small hugging motion before tilting his head at her.

Guessing at what he means, she sits down on the floor and pulls the larger of the two Pokemon close. She tenderly embraces him with forelegs and wings, sighing in relief when he returns the affectionate gesture. She didn't expect the next thing that came out of his mouth, though. Even not able to understand him, she could feel the sadness in his voice when he says, "Mom..."

Two simultaneous pangs go through Ryan at this single word. The first is a strong empathic sadness for the kid, just realizing that if he was this young, he'd be wanting the exact same comfort figure. The second was a pang for himself, for the friend that has been by his side for years through thick and thin, now missing. Even the frog's bubbles seem to droop at this while his demeanor takes a spiral down. "Where could they be..."

Chapter 3: Bearings

The living room of the dark pegasus mare is quiet as usual. However, rather than the normal reason of her living on her own, the room now has four occupants, yet none of them are saying anything. Midnight herself sits in front of her three new houseguests, all of them looking at the floor and the two smallest ones with small frowns on their faces. The air is almost stifling with the need for noise.

She breaks the silence with a sigh, looking to the only one among them floating over the floor. "Okay, so I assume none of you really know each other. Sadly, I don't think I can change that." She shakes her head, nodding towards the doorway. "What I can do is show you around the place. Hopefully, that'll make you guys feel more at home."

Casey sighs. "Sure. Go right ahead." While he isn't necessarily sulking like the other two, it's clear he isn't in the best of moods either.

"Now," she continues, ignoring his tone, "we're in the living room. This is where I bring friends when we throw parties."

Liu looks around the room, then turns back to the mare, confused. "It... looks rather clean for a party room..."

Noting his expression, she looks away, ears pinned back to her head. "It's... it's a new place..."

The light sound of slow scribbling follows before the frog in the room holds up his notebook he was given. 'Nothing wrong with a clean house.'

Midnight smiles, patting him warmly. "Thank you, Ryan." She looks over to the others, continuing. "Anyways, you've already seen the kitchen, and you technically broke into my room. That leaves the guest bedroom, the study, and the bathrooms. Which do you want to see, first?"

"Anything works," Casey says, apparently taking the role of speaking for the trio. "Though I personally will have no use for any of those, except maybe the second one."

"I'm interested in all of them," the Froakie comments, wanting to at least make their host feel like they are interested.

"Well... I suppose the study can be last, then." She scoops up Ryan and his notebook onto her back, turning and making her way to the door.

The Riolu watches them go before turning to Casey in confusion. "But... didn't you want to see the study?"

"Eh, I'm fine with however she does it," the sword replies. "Her house, her rules."

Ryan, meanwhile, still unused to being carried so much, tries to settle himself on the mare. His hand and feet grip her sides through her fur as she walks, much like a human who has never ridden a Rapidash before might do.

Bringing up her wings to help him feel more comfortable, she leads them through her house, stopping and gesturing to a door as they pass. "This is the first floor bathroom. It has a toilet and a sink, but nothing else."

Liu moves to the door across from it, opening the door and stepping inside. Sighing softly, Midnight moves to look in at him, frowning a bit. "That's a broom closet. I didn't mention it because I didn't think I had to."

The frog on her back lets out a small laugh at this, the little one's curiosity and the mare's slight exasperation serving to cheer him up a bit.

Shaking her head at his antics, she turns and gestures onwards. "Next up should be my little library. Not the same as my study, mind you."

"Right." Casey floats out of the room, following her as she heads upstairs. "Hopefully there won't be any closets in this room to confuse us."

"Well, there's a couple, but both of them are in the rooms." She points at a door with a wing as they pass. "There's the other restroom; this one with a bathtub and shower, as well."

The Froakie muses as they pass it. "I wonder if baths are better as a frog..."

"On your right is the guest bedroom," they continue down the hallway, and she nods towards the other direction, "and that's my bedroom. Of course, you already knew that."

"Speaking of those... do we know what the sleeping arrangements will be?" Ryan asks as he looks to Casey, hoping for him to translate.

The sword glances at him, then at the mare. "The frog wants to know if he can sleep with you. He gets nightmares."

With a choked croak, the Froakie freezes as his face goes red, torn between cursing the ghost blade and embarrassment at the suggestion.

"If it's an issue he has, I don't see why not." She looks to the sword, an eyebrow raised. "What about you? You're not going to take the broom closet, are you?"

"Broom closet? No way. I'm claustrophobic." He laughs a bit. "But honestly, I can probably just lean in a corner and shut my eye, and I'll be able to sleep."

"In that case, you and Liu can share the guest room." She pauses at the last door in the hallway, looking back at them. "Anyways, this is the stu..." She trails off when she realizes the frog on her back is frozen, his face a deep scarlet. "...are you okay, Ryan?"

Opening his mouth to respond, he inadvertently lets out the breath he had been holding, gasping afterwards. After a few moments of getting his wits back, the former human nods, his face returning to it's now normal blue.

Midnight continues to watch him for a few seconds before replying. "If you're sure, little guy... anyways, this is the study." She looks to Casey. "Are you still interested in this room?"

He nods as much as a sword can nod. "A place of peace and quiet will always interest me."

"You can go on in, then." The mare smiles, nudging the door open. "Ignore the pink book, and let us know when you're done. I want to show you guys around town, too, and I need to get groceries, anyways."

Peeking up over the mare's head, Ryan tilts his own as he looks to both the study and the library. "Hmm... I wonder if we could find any useful information..." Casey, for his part, heads into the study to look around, leaving the three out in the hall.

The room itself isn't too cluttered, most of the books having been in the library. A desk is the centerpiece, a light-colored wooden kind for those who don't spend too much time at it, but enough to warrant one to use.

Casey chuckles as he looks around, brushing his ribbon along the desk. "I like it."

"Thank you." She steps in after him, looking over one of the bookcases. "Most of the stuff in here is fiction, if you're into that." With a small shrug, she leans down to pick up a fallen novel. "Nonfiction is downstairs."

Casey nods. "Good to know. Thank you." He glances over the room once again, eye briefly falling on the pink tome she had previously told them to ignore. Naturally, he memorizes its location before turning to her. "I think we can head out now."

"Great!" Liu jumps up from where he's sitting, stretching a bit to loosen up. "I was starting to get bored. I want to explore!"

Ryan holds a note in front of Midnight. 'Where to first?'

"Shopping." She looks over her shoulder, smiling warmly at him. "I'm sure there's a store somewhere that we can get food that fits you guys better than what I currently have."

Soon, the quartet are out on the town. Their local mare points out a few key interesting spots as they walk. Ryan rests on her back, Liu pads along easily beside them, and Casey silently glides slightly behind them. Their presence draws the usual variety of reactions, but many ponies seem to be focused more on looking out into the forest itself or just going about their days.

"So," the mare starts, "what do you guys normally eat?" She looks to the sword behind them, an eyebrow raised in a teasing manner. "Scrap metal or souls?"

If the eye had a brow, it'd raise. "I was a very big meat eater before I lost my mouth, stomach, and everything else needed to do so. I can try devouring souls if you'd like to be a sacrifice."

Ignoring him, Ryan answers for himself, still preferring to use his pad to relying on the sword for translation. 'I'm not certain of specifics, but generally stuff like fruit or fish, I would imagine.'

The pegasus shudders at this, nervously laughing. "No thanks. I prefer my soul where it is." She looks to the side at the notepad, eyes brightening at the chance to change the line of thought. "There's a place for fish nearby; griffons go there whenever they're in town." She stops in her tracks, frowning softly. "It's a diner, though... and a specialty place, at that... if I get another job, I may be able to afford it..."

“...a job?” Liu looks up to the frog on the mare's back, confused. “What's that?”

"A task or service done or provided in exchange for agreed upon amounts of money." The Froakie says simply, frowning a bit as he looks down in thought. "I don't want her to have to get another one though... if we could find some Oran Berries or anything like that, we'd be set."

"There is a forest around us, you know," Casey points out, then stops and looks to the mare. "On second thought, since I'm guessing this world is almost nothing like ours, I assume we won't find anything edible in that forest after all?"

"There's nightshade, but I wouldn't recommend eating that." She thinks for a bit. "We could ask this one guy... he goes in there often enough to know what's there..."

"You're gonna have to be a bit more specific than 'this one guy'," the sword remarks.

Ryan offers her another note. 'If it means you don't have to get a second job while we're a burden on your home, I'm up for asking him.'

"I wish I could be more specific." She sighs, shrugging slightly. "I haven't actually met him; I've only heard about him from others."

"Well, that helps narrow down our search," the sword grunts, looking around. "Let's just go look for every male-" He cuts himself off, staring out at the forest.

The Riolu looks up at him, tilting his head to one side. "Mister Casey? What's wrong?"

"...nothing." The sword continues staring at the forest before sighing audibly and turning back to them. "Let's find this guy."

"I dunno." She scratches her head, continuing forward into town. "We could ask around for someone who goes into the forest... but I don't know if that'd be very helpful..."

The frog on her back taps her head, tilting his head in a questioning manner.

"Because he might not be back from the forest, yet." She sighs, shaking her head. "He's in there almost every day, from what I've been told..."

Looking up towards the forest, Ryan can only spot various flying and bug types milling around or otherwise going about doing their thing. No ponies coming or going. With a quick scrawl, he holds the pad for her again. 'We could always just get something cheap and filling, if it helps.'

"Sounds good." She gestures towards a nearby shop. "How about pizza? This place sells them cheap, and they taste great!"

Casey perks up, only to suddenly look downcast again as he remembers he can't eat. His eye glares at nothing in particular before he sighs, shutting his eye and reopening it in his cold, neutral expression. All this happens in the course of two seconds.

The Froakie croaks happily. "Sounds like a plan to me! We can probably figure something more permanent out later."

"Alright, then!" She looks to the Pokemon behind her, smiling sheepishly. "I'm... not entirely sure if they'd let all of us inside... good thing they have outdoor seating, huh?"

Ryan nods, but his smile easily translates his apologetic feelings.

"It's fine, cutie." She giggles, patting his head with a wing. "The weather's great for eating outside, anyways."

"Woo hoo," Casey cheers with about as much enthusiasm as one would hear from a man who was being brought in for a colonoscopy.

"Hey, now, grumpy." She pushes him playfully with a hoof. "I'm sure we can find a log for you to chop or something."

"I'm a sword, not an axe."

Dinner passes by with happy faces and full stomachs... with the exception of both for the haunted sword of the group, who maintains a steely silence and sullen floating. Night soon arrives, many new eyes peering out from the nearby forest, but none noticed by the foursome who has returned to the home of their host. Ryan hops back down the hall, having had to figure out yet another aspect of his new form and fresh thoughts of the situation have him speaking to himself.

"Can't believe I almost fell in... I'm a creature completely different from what I used to be. I'm blue, I make bubbles, I croak, and yet the thing that bothers me most is the size." He pauses a moment. "Why is everything huge?!" Panting, he sits there in the hall, calming down.

"It could be worse." Liu holds up a red, seed-covered berry, looking it over as he walks up behind the frog. "You could've been a Joltik... and we wouldn't have met Miss Midnight..."

Sighing, the Froakie nods. "Yeah... I guess you have some points... it could be worse."

The Riolu looks around, blinking a bit before turning to the others. "Did... did either of you see where she went? I wanted to thank her for this."

"She's putting the groceries away." A certain sword floats up behind them. "Which is good. Gives us time to talk."

"Something on your mind?" Ryan looks to them both, large yellow eyes blinking.

"Yeah." Casey nods, focusing on the frog. "Ryan. You had a Pokémon, right? At least one?"

"Only one, Geyser." He corrects, frowning a little at the thought. "It occurs to me this is probably the longest I've been away from him in... shoot, years."

The Honedge just nods again. "I know the feeling. I haven't seen my team in a while either." He glances behind himself, as if checking to see if they were being watched. "...it's not a good feeling..."

"Yeah..." His fellow trainer muses aloud. "I wonder where they could even be... how far were Pokemon spread? Were ones next to each other closer here or does it not matter and it's all random?"

"That's assuming our Pokemon even came here." He sighs. "Yeah, Liu's here. Yeah, we saw some in the woods..." He trails off for a moment. "...still. Even if they did come here, not like they'll find us first. We should go looking for them ourselves."

"Where would we even start? We barely even know where we are... and with all Pokemon usually looking identical by species at least..." Ryan's whole form seems to sink a bit, even his frubbles seems to droop.

Casey goes quiet for a moment. "...I may know a place to start."

If the frog had ears, they would be sticking straight up. "You do? Where?"

"The forest around this town. I glanced at it earlier, and could've sworn I felt a familiar presence... or some other Ghost-type pull. So either one of my team is in there, or there's a graveyard of some sort. Either way, worth a look." He chuckles. "And since you and I appeared so close to each other, there's a chance where my team is, your Geyser might be as well."

"Then we have to go looking for them!" A glance out the window soon curbs his enthusiasm somewhat. "Though... night in a strange forest full of both Pokemon and creatures we have no idea about is definitely not wise..." He sighs. "Still.. if they are out there..."

"We'll go in the morning. My team's smart, and I hope your friend is too, so they'd figure the best idea is to stick together not too far from where they showed up." He glances to the Riolu, who's still focusing on his berry. "...should we bring the kid? I don't even know if he understands what we're talking about."

"We could always ask him what he wants to do." The frog looks to the young pup expectantly.

"I kind of understand." Liu looks up from his berry. "We should look for that... ponyta? The one who goes to the forest regularly? It'd be easier to find your partners that way, right?"

Casey shakes his head, or rather, his body. "I doubt we'll find him. In my opinion, the best bet is to just walk in there and see if I can sense my team again, and go from there. If not, we can just leave."

"But... what if we come across something big, or scary? Like..." His nose scrunches up slightly. "...like a Gardevoir?"

Ryan scrunches his face. "...really? I mean yeah if they get mad, they're scary, but aren't most Gardevoir nice?" Shaking his head, he gets back on track. "But, the kid does have a point. Honestly, out of all of us, he might be the best fighter because I don't even know how one does... moves... as a Pokemon. And besides, we can't just leave Midnight after she took us in like this. We at least need to repay her in some way."

The sword turns to him, glaring. "Look, the way I see it, we either go out there tomorrow to look for them, or we risk them getting up and moving farther away. We don't have to leave Midnight; we're just going to find our teams and then coming back later. And whether or not you come with me, I will be doing that first thing tomorrow, because I'm not gonna be away from Anya or the others any longer than absolutely necessary!" He slams his sheathed point into the ground the way a human would stomp their foot to punctuate a sentence.

Both other Pokemon flinch, the frog being the first to recover and narrow his eyes. "You aren't the only one that misses the ones close to them! Geyser is the only constant I've had in my life for I don't even know how long! The kid here has ones he's looking for too! We all stand better chances if we don't just charge off!"

"So you'd rather lollygag around here and just wait for them to get too far away?!" Casey snaps back before scaling his anger back to a moderately quiet growl, clearly trying to calm himself. "How long are you going to wait before you go searching, then? Tomorrow? The day after? However long it'd take for you to pay back this... this..." His anger briefly dissipates. "...what would we call her, exactly? Woman? Lady? Human terms don't really work well..." He shakes his body. "Look, you take your sweet time, but I don't have to work with you. I don't have to help you, or listen to you, or follow you, or anything. I already learned not to trust teams aside from my own Pokemon, and if upholding that lesson means ditching you two for a while, I'll gladly take the chance."

Growling, an uncommon sound from a frog, Ryan swipes the air with a hand. "And what happens when you get yourself lost or killed?! I'm not saying we wait, I'm saying we don't completely abandon the one person... Ponyta... thing, that we have decidedly on our side! Just you against the world is no way to live!"

"I'm a ghost, dumbass. I'm already dead." His eye narrows. "As for me against the world, it was working pretty well after I quit-" He cuts himself off, eye shutting in a wince. "...never mind."

Liu looks up to him, curious. "...quit what, Mister Casey?"

"Nothing. Forget I said anything." He opens his eye to look at Ryan, much calmer now. "Fine. We'll wait. But if we haven't at least figured out a plan by the day after tomorrow, I'm leaving you two and going to find my team myself."

"If you do that, I'm chasing after you." They turn to see Midnight, who huffs softly. "And this house isn't cheap, so please try to avoid damaging it." She pointedly looks down at the dent made in the wood floor below Casey.

He glances down, then looks back at her with about as guilty an expression as a sword with one eye can muster. "...sorry."

"You're forgiven... this time." She sighs, pushing the door open. "It wasn't locked, by the way."

"I can't exactly try the knob," Casey points out.

"What about your ribbon-paw thing?" She smacks it with her tail as she passes by.

"...Midnight." His voice is low. "Never. Do that. Again."

"What? Why?" She stops, turning to look at him. "Is it your sensitive area, or something?"

He just narrows his eye at her. "Most Honedge likely get used to it. But for me, since this is still a new experience, anything that touches it gets roughly the same reaction as if someone walked up and slapped you between your legs. Now try to imagine opening a door with that."

"...sorry." She gestures to the room. "So this will be your and Liu's room. I hope it's alright; not many ponies come to sleep over, you know?"

"Ponies? So we weren't far off with Ponyta..." He chuckles lightly to himself. "Seems fine to me as long as there's a corner to stand in."

"So... where does Mister Ryan sleep?"

Midnight looks to him a moment before giggling brightly. "So adorable... I wish I could understand what you said." She scoops up the frog and waves with a wing as she leaves. "Good night, you two!"

Ryan blinks at the sudden movement. "Umm...."

"...there's your answer." Sighing, the sword heads inside. "Time to see if Ghost-types can sleep..."

The jackal-like Pokemon looks from the door to the sword and back, confused. "She... she was taking him somewhere moist to sleep, right? Being a Froakie?"

"...yes."

Meanwhile, the mare and the frog, too far away to hear them, reach another door and the pegasus pushes it open. "So," Midnight begins as she enters her room, "did you want a pillow to sleep on?" She gently places Ryan on the bed, sitting down before him and smiling warmly.

He nods, looking around in slight confusion before looking down at himself. Remembering how cold Geyser's outside could be at night, he quickly writes a note. 'Would a blanket be available as well?'

"Yes, I could get you one." She turns to her closet, opening the door. "What kind would you like?"

More words words are added as he tests the bed beneath him with a small hop, unintentionally croaking. 'Soft, warm, fluffy, if possible.'

"So a fleece blanket, then?" She looks back into the space, shifting items around and humming to herself. "It's either that or simple cotton or quilts..."

The Froakie shifts a little guiltily, remembering something she said earlier. 'I can make do with whatever you have. You don't have to trouble yourself.'

She glances back, skimming the note before frowning, turning bodily to him with a quilt in her grasp. "I'm not troubled by any of this. I want to help you guys." She places the cover on the foot of the bed, waving dismissively towards the door. "Even sourpuss out there."

Ryan can practically feel his writing speed get quicker as he replies. 'Sorry about him. Judging by his rant he seems like he's been through a lot. And thank you.'

"No problem." She grabs one edge of the quilt in her teeth, bringing it up to cover his legs. "If you need anything during the night, don't hesitate to ask, okay?"

He nods, but looks at the bed before writing again. 'But I can't take your bed. Where will you sleep?'

The mare giggles, gently patting him on the head. "Don't be silly, cutie. We're going to share the bed." She climbs onto the bed beside him, turning away and sighing softly. "I think there's room enough for both of us, and I don't exactly have a couch to sleep on..."

He croaks once, looking down at the blanket. He grabs the edge of it before hopping up the bed to the pillows. Much like when he was human, the Froakie gets situated, lying on his side with the blanket to his chin.

She sighs blissfully, using a wing to drape part of the quilt across her form. "Goodnight, Ryan. Sweet dreams."

"Goodnight." He croaks, hoping she understood the sentiment as he is faced with her black and yellow mane. Speaking quietly to himself, he comments. "Abducted two times today by you... and enjoyed both. Just another part of a strange day."

Chapter 4: Search

Early the next morning, before most ponies have even woken up, Midnight's house is quiet aside from the light snoring of three inhabitants. Only three, for the fourth one is wide awake, positioned directly over the bed where his host and frog companion are resting, staring down at them with a wide and focused eye.

The mare slowly stirs, groaning softly. She looks to her clock, squinting for a moment before shaking her head. "What am I thinking? It's my day off..." Her eyes roam the room until she sees the shadow at the foot of her bed.

Immediately she screams, pelting him just below the eye with her metal alarm clock. "Help! Pervert!"

Woken by the scream, Ryan's eyes shoot open as he reflexively clings to the nearest thing, which at this point is the mare. "What’s going on?!" He croaks loudly.

"Ow," Casey says, very unconvincingly. "My tough metal body has been hit by an alarm clock. Call an ambulance."

She sits there, jaw agape, before flailing her forelegs at him. "Damn it, don't sneak up on me like that! I hate jump scares!"

"I didn't expect you to wake up." He looks to Ryan, and now they can see slight panic in his otherwise stoic expression. "Overnight, I came to some realizations. And not all of them are good."

His mind not the greatest in the mornings, Ryan’s response is less than related to the topic at hand. "Whatever I'm holding onto is very soft..." One can practically see the swirls in his eyes as he tries to focus.

"...realizations?" Midnight chuckles, pulling the Froakie to sit in her lap. "And what would that be? You finally finding a way to eat?"

He shakes his body. "That's the worst part. The first realization I came to is that I can get hungry. But I can't eat."

"...oh." She grimaces at this, squirming in place. "So... what should we do about that?"

"Well, I tried everything I could to eat with a couple pieces of bread in your fridge. I tried stabbing, I tried cutting, I tried wrapping them in my ribbon... nothing." He flicks said ribbon as if to emphasize the point. "So I figured, since I'm a Ghost-type, maybe I feed off your dreams or something. That's what I was doing over you, but it turns out Honedges can't learn Dream Eater." He pauses. "I also discovered while trying to distract myself that Honedges aren't genderless, and I am definitely male. Don't ask."

A little more awake, the frog speaks. "Does that mean the sword and sheath thing you have going on will be way more awkward now?"

"Shut up, frog." Casey sighs. "Really wish I knew how to devour souls..."

"I'm glad you don't." The pegasus slowly gets up, stretching her wings. "Where's Liu? Is he still asleep?"

"When I left him, he was. Wouldn't be surprised if you woke him up." He makes the throat-clearing sound despite lacking one. "Sorry about that, by the way."

"Look, it's fine, just... don't do it again." She sighs, putting Ryan on her back as she makes for the door. "I'd better make sure he's alright... hate to have scared the little guy..."

Casey follows along. "If we haven't heard anything breaking or any screams of pain, I say he's fine."

"Better safe than sorry, I always say."

The Froakie sighs, rubbing his head as he settles on the mare's back. "What a way to start the day... screaming females, swords exploring themselves, and for some reason I feel too dry."

The mare pauses at the top of the stairs, looking to the sword behind her. "I'm sorry, but... what did he say?"

"Just moaning about how this day isn't starting very well for him." He turns to glare at the frog. "And don't act like you're getting the short end of the stick here."

"Excuse me for being less than bouncy in the mornings," Ryan deadpans back, rubbing his arms a bit with some of his bubbles from his neck.

"I... don't know what that's about..." She sighs, moving to the guest bedroom and opening the door. "Still wish I could-" She stops short, seeing a blue bottom facing the door and, consequently, all of them. "...Liu? Are you... trying to hide?"

Ryan peeks over her head. "Umm... kid? You can come out."

The rest of his body disappears beneath the bed, his head appearing soon afterwards in its place. "Did... did you find whatever made that screech?" His eyes dart wildly about the room, his body tensing as if preparing to hide once more.

Chuckling, he hugs the mare's neck from behind. "Yes, and I have successfully subdued her and her accomplice."

Liu is left speechless as the mare nuzzles Ryan's head. "So... Miss Midnight is a Pokémon?" He slowly crawls out from under the bed, looking at the two who would know better than him.

"Well..." The frog looks to the sword as he continues hanging onto the mare. "Technically... she could be. Do we know she isn't?"

Casey rolls his eye. "Have you ever seen a horse Pokémon that can talk and comes in so many different colours?"

"No..."

"A Pokémon?" The mare arches an eyebrow. "What's that? Some kind of Neighponese card game?"

"It's our species," the Honedge explains. "Well, the collective term... and technically the frog and I used to be humans, but, yeah."

"Hue-mans?" The pegasus giggles softly, shaking her head. "If you say so... anyways, I'm just glad Liu isn't hiding under the bed anymore..." She trails off when she notices the frog on her back, her brow furrowing slightly. "You... look a little dehydrated... would you like some water?"

"Dehydrated?" Looking down at himself, he notices his skin looking less smooth and shiny to more rubbery and dull. "That explains it. Be nice if I could use Water Gun or something..." Still, he looks to her and nods rapidly before thinking aloud again. "I wonder if I might even need to jump in a pond or tub... maybe it's not that bad yet."

"Alright, then." She looks to the Riolu, nodding down the hall. "Come on, let's get you guys breakfast while I fix him some water."

Casey growls to himself. "I'll just be somewhere else if you don't mind."

"Might be a stupid question, but just to check: have you tried using the mouth on your scabbard?" Ryan asks.

"It's decorative. Hence why it doesn't open when I talk." The sword sighs. "So the answer is: yes, I did, and no, it doesn't work."

"Ah..." He clears his throat. "Well maybe we can find a Ghost-type who can share the secret."

Casey narrows his eye. "Yeah. Like my team. Whom we still need to find."

"Yes, I know." The frog narrows his eyes right back at him. "Look, why don't you come with us to breakfast. We can discuss our plan of action with Midnight, see if she can help at all."

"Fine." He sighs and continues following along. "Ultimate torture..."

"No, I don't think it's even close to 'ultimate torture', if you're talking about not eating." She enters the kitchen, placing Ryan on the counter. The jackal-like Pokémon rests his paws on the counter, trying to pull himself up next to him.

"How about being physically incapable of eating, but still getting hungry, but can't die of starvation? And sitting and watching everyone else eat?" Casey snarks.

Helping Liu up, Ryan growls at the sword, his bubbles boiling. "Hey, don't take out your frustrations on her."

"I take them out on everyone. And I don't even know that move."

The pegasus stops where she is, a large bowl in her forelegs. "...'move'? What are you talking about?" She places it down on the counter. "Like... a dance move?"

Casey sighs. "Moves are Pokémon-talk for attacks."

"Attacks?" She looks at him a moment before taking a step back, turning her attention to the other two. "So, what would you like for breakfast?"

Liu holds up a paw, eyes full of hope. "Can I have another one of those berries, whatever it was?"

"Start me with a tall glass of water, a taller glass of milk, then maybe some cereal if you have it." Ryan answers, looking at the pup and smiling at the cute sight.

Midnight looks from one to the other, her expression unreadable. After a couple quiet moments, she turns to the sword, sheepishly smiling. "So... what would they like, exactly?"

Casey looks them over briefly and sighs. "Liu wants the same thing you gave him yesterday. The frog says he'll take whatever."

Narrowing his eyes and lamenting forgetting his pencil and pad in the room, Ryan huffs. He mimes a drinking motion to her.

Midnight tilts her head to one side, considering him for a moment. "...you... want something to drink?"

He nods, glad to have gotten that far. A blush comes to his face after a moment as he realizes one of the few ways he can get across exactly what he wants to drink. Swallowing nervously, he cups the air in front of him and mimes as if milking something.

"...I'm afraid I don't have any milk to give you." She turns around, opening the fridge and leaning in, her tail tucked discretely between her legs. "I do have some from the market, though. I hope that'll do."

Blushing and covering his face with a hand, Ryan grumbles. "That was what I was asking for... I choose not to think about what you first said could insinuate."

"Yeah, even I'm blocking out all relevant thoughts right now," Casey remarks dryly. "So, while we take care of the food situation for three-quarters of us, what's the plan for today?"

"I'm afraid you'll have to do most of the talking." Ryan perches almost fully on the mare's head, eyes glued to the bottle.

"In my case, as I said yesterday: if by tomorrow we haven't planned out when we'll go search for our teams, I'm going on my own." He watches the frog move. "Doesn't mean I wouldn't prefer to go today."

She grabs the bottle in her forehooves, carefully pouring some into a small glass. "And I said we should find that stallion before we make any rash decisions. I don't want anyone here getting hurt, if I can help it." The sound of chewing catches her attention, her ear flicking slightly. Turning to the side, she sees Liu halfway in the fridge, probably eating the fruit she had stored there. "...you realize I was about to get you some strawberries, right?"

Casey rolls his eye. "Wild Pokémon aren't used to waiting on others for food. Don't bother." He sighs. "Fine, we'll look for Mr. Nondescript. Any clue where we'd find him, or at least find someone... somepony... who knows where he is?"

When all eyes are off him, Ryan hops onto the counter and chugs the milk. The glass clinks slightly as he sets it back on the counter, his eyes looking to the rest of the milk with a combination of longing and guilt.

The bipedal Pokémon turns around, berries in his paws. "So... if we want to find him... maybe we should ask the... pony... that we met, yesterday?"

"I guess so. He's the only other pony we remotely know, and barely at that." The frog sips his second refill, his whole form looking less dehydrated.

"Um, guys?" The mare flaps her wings once, frowning softly. "Can I please be let in the loop?"

Casey sighs. "The kid suggests we find that guy who brought us out of the forest yesterday... come to think of it, last time we saw him was right before you swooped in and took the frog." He chuckles. "Good times."

"I'm actually looking forward to future abductions by her considering what the last two were like." Ryan says frankly.

"...you met a pony in the forest?" Midnight trots around the island, her brow furrowed. "I think... yeah, he would be a good place to start. Just wish I knew where he lived..."

"If you did, you'd be a stalker anyway." The sword glances to the door. "...when do we go looking for him?"

"After breakfast?" The Froakie on the counter offers.

"When Ryan and Liu are ready to go." She turns to the Pokémon in question, nodding.

Looking down at his fourth glass of milk, Ryan shrugs. "I could probably survive off this until lunch or something, so I'm good."

Casey turns to the other Pokémon in the room. "Almost done gorging yourself on berries?"

The Riolu stops with a berry partly in his mouth, looking at each of the others. "...maybe?" This just elicits a sigh from the sword, but fortunately, no more remarks.

A few hours later, a similar situation to this morning is seen. Everyone is eating, and Casey begrudgingly looks on with annoyance for various reasons. The only difference now is they are eating fruit salads at a cafe instead of breakfast at Midnight's.

The mare in question is looking intently at the sword floating nearby, eyes narrowed. "So... how do you even have an eye? Is that just... natural for you, or something?"

"...I'm sorry, could you repeat that?" Casey asks, sounding truly befuddled for the first time since the others met him.

"You're a sword. With an eye in your hilt." She gestures to him with a hoof. "We don't exactly have your kind in Equestria. At least, not normally."

"Oh." His eye blinks. "...you know I'm not from here, right?"

"I know, but..." She frowns, tapping her chin. "...it's still a little odd to see, if I can be honest. Not to mention a little startling if you aren't expecting it." She nods back over her shoulder. "Like it was for the waitress."

He chuckles. "I'll bet anything she switches out with someone else to come give us the bill." His ribbon flicks. "Anyway, as I said, I'm in the body of a Honedge. Honedges are floating sentient swords, and obviously they need to see, hence the seemingly-decorative eye in the hilt. Not that hard to grasp."

Midnight stares at him a few seconds longer, shrugging soon after. "I suppose that makes sense... still having trouble grasping all the subtleties of your kind..." She pauses, leaning in and looking at him with a narrowed gaze. "...do you think it'd hurt to get dust in your eye? How would you remove it if you did?"

"Hasn't happened yet, so I don't know. Probably just blink a lot and swipe at it with my hand... ribbon... cloth thing." Said ribbon flicks again. "So are we almost done here? I want to find that guy already."

"I am." Ryan pushes his empty bowl to the center of the table. "At least you and she can have conversation while eating. Liu and I can only confuse her."

"You act as though I want to have it." His eye rolls.

"You seemed to be more receptive to it just now than earlier," the frog points out.

The sword blinks, then huffs. "I don't have much to do besides watch you guys scarf down meals while my metaphorical stomach eats its metaphorical self, you know."

"...if it's a metaphorical stomach, then why was it growling earlier?" The mare pokes at his sheath with a hoof, curious.

Before he can respond, however, the last member of their group speaks up. "...Mister Casey, I've been wondering something..." Liu looks up from his bowl, a slice of strawberry in his paw. "You used Pursuit to find Mister Ryan, before ...why can't you use it to find that stallion?"

"...oh yeah." The response is surprisingly calm, as though the realization was little more than finding the right spot to place a piece of a jigsaw puzzle. "That is a thing."

"What do you mean, 'that's a thing'?" Ryan’s large mouth has dropped open. "You figured out how to use moves, including a tracking one, and said nothing for the last four hours as we searched?"

"Oh, shut up. You don't even know how to use Bubble yet," the sword snaps. Grumbling, the frog has no counter to that.

Liu raises his paw. "Actually, Mister Ryan, I think it's the only one he actually can handle..."

"No, I think I know Slash," Casey remarks. "Or Cut. Or at least Scratch... I'm a freaking sword, so it makes sense. Pursuit just slipped my mind."

"I'm sorry, pursuit?" Midnight looks at the sword, an eyebrow raised. "Of happiness, or of the one?"

"It's a move... a Dark-type one that allows a Pokémon to track down its opponent within a reasonable distance and attack it with no notice." There's a glint in his eye. "I used it to find you after you grabbed froggy boy here. Right as you were flying to your house, so I quickly met the ground right outside before I could follow through on the attack part."

"...thank you for not attacking me." She sighs, gesturing to him. "But wouldn't that require you... I don't know... picking up a trail?"

"I just need to know their appearance. I actually tracked Ryan rather than you, since you flew off so quickly. I can probably remember that guy's appearance." He thinks. "Might want to grab onto me so I take you. Worked with the kid... don't grab the ribbon, though."

"As long as you don't mind me gripping you with my teeth."

"Are we seriously all going to end up hanging onto you for dear life as you fly through town?" The Froakie asks incredulously.

"Yes, unless you'd rather wander around for another few hours," Casey replies bluntly.

Liu walks around the table, looking up at the Honedge curiously. "Can I ride on you like last time?"

Casey looks down at him and sighs. "Yes... you can."

He beams at this, jumping up and wrapping his limbs around the sword's sheath. "Ready when you are!"

Midnight giggles, winking at Casey. "He must really like hugging you, huh?" She grips his handle with her teeth, effectively shutting herself up.

"Apparently." The sword blinks, then narrows his eyes at the mare. "...are you really going to dine and dash?"

She lets go briefly to answer. "I paid when I went inside, earlier. I'm not a crook, grumpy." Rather than retort to that, the sword goes uncharacteristically quiet.

Ryan looks at all of them gathered together, turning to the sword. "Not used to group hugs yet?"

"Never was. You coming or not?" The Honedge's voice is even more sour than normal.

"Fine, don't get rusty over it." He hops onto Midnight's back, hugging her mane and neck again for support.

Once they're all on, Casey sighs and shuts his eye, trying to focus. "Pursuit... Pursuit..."

"...what is this guy doing?" This is what the mare tries to say, but her grip on his handle makes it near impossible to decipher.

Before anyone can answer or ask what she said, all their visions go to darkness for a split second. When they can see again, they're all about two inches in front of a very confused and scared familiar-looking pony, still clinging to the sword.

Liu lets go and turns to the stallion, smiling brightly and waving. "Hello, Mister!"

Ryan, on the other hand, continues clinging to the mare. "... I swear I just teleported... Give me a moment..."

Midnight gingerly lets go of Casey, trembling slightly as she faces the other pony. "Uh, hello, there... sorry to pop in unannounced like this."

The stallion, for his part, goes from scared to mildly annoyed in a very short timespan. "Oh, you three again... and I assume this is the frognapper?" Ryan narrows his eyes at the pony, already not liking where this is going.

"Frognapper?" She scowls, stepping forward and poking him in the chest. "I'll have you know I'm a frog-borrower. And he's free to leave when he wants." Said frog pats her head reassuringly.

"Hey, all I know is you weren't there, then you were, then you and the frog were gone. That's the last time I saw any of you." The stallion chuckles. "So, why'd you track me down again? And into my own home at that?"

"...we're in your home?" Liu looks around, curious, before wandering out the room.

"...should I be worried about what he's off to do?" the stallion asks the floating sword.

"Do you keep berries in your fridge?" Casey asks in response.

"Yeah."

"Then that's your answer."

"Ahem." Midnight clears her throat and gestures to the stallion. "So, we were looking for you because this guy, here," she nods towards the sword, "wants to look for his friend, but we need to find Woody, first."

The brown earth stallion sighs. "If you're going to give somepony a nickname, at least know their real name first. My name is Lumber Yard, not 'Woody'."

"No, I mean the guy who goes into the woods every day." She waves her hoof at him. "I thought you'd be a good pony to ask, since you were there, yesterday."

"...lady, I am the 'guy who goes into the woods every day'," Lumber states slowly.

"...oh." The mare nervously laughs, rubbing the back of her neck. "Sorry, the ponies I overheard called 'Woody' disgusting... I didn't think you were him because you didn't fit that description."

"Oh. Well, isn't that pleasant to hear." His voice is almost dripping with sarcasm. "Look, just tell me what you want so you can get out already."

"That's just it - it's not for me to say." She looks to the sword floating beside them, nodding. "Go ahead. I'll just stay back."

Lumber groans. "Great, I get to talk with a floating ghost sword again... how weird is my diary gonna get?"

Casey sighs. "Shut up. You go into the woods a lot, so we need your help in finding some friends of mine and the frog's. Any chance you've seen a sentient candle, a big robot-looking humanoid thing, a giant turtle with cannons on his back, a..." He trails off upon noticing the weird look he's getting from the stallion. "...this sounded a lot less like a drunk guy's ramblings in my head."

Ryan clears his throat. "Liu's parents as well, but adding a Blaziken and Lucario likely won't make the list any less weird."

"...I'd call you stupid or insane, but then again I'm talking to a piece of weaponry." Lumber rubs his temple. "Funny enough... I actually have seen one of those, though..."

"Which one?!" Ryan suddenly jumps fully onto the mare's head, hanging onto it as he stares at the stallion.

Casey coughs. "Froggy boy wants to know which one. Pardon his enthusiasm."

The stallion shrugs. "The candle thing you mentioned at the start. Had a purple flame, and I tried following it to see what was going on. It more or less just vanished, though."

The news, despite the ending, seems to be enough for Casey. He whips around to face Midnight and the Froakie on her head. "We need to go get her."

She stares blankly at him, unsure what to say. She eventually says the first thing that comes to her mind. "...the candle's a female?"

"...yes. She is." He sighs. "She's a Litwick, her name is Anya, and we're going to get her back."

"Right. Now we just need to get the kid." The Froakie looks towards where he had disappeared to. The sound of metallic clattering filters through the doorway.

Lumber sighs, rubbing his temple. "Can one of you go get him? If we're going into the forest, I need to get ready." Ryan nods, hopping off Midnight and through the door.

"So, when you say you need to get ready..." She gestures to him. "Do you mean that you need food, or something?"

"I mean that I need to-" Before he can continue, a different, powerful voice interrupts him. The words are not spoken, but instead the deep, powerful voice echoes in the minds of all who are hearing him... and he made sure the whole planet does.

“Greetings citizens of Equus, both old and new. I am Lord Arceus, creator of the Pokémon realm.”

Casey blinks. "Even Arceus is here?"

"Arc... what?" Midnight's brow furrows, more lost than she's been in a while. "How is... where..."

“You have no reason to fear me, I come in peace. 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.”

Lumber raises an eyebrow, but says nothing.

“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: 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.

"...worthy? Fair? Kind and good?" Casey mutters aloud. "Since when did I fit that criteria..."

"...I'm inclined to agree." The mare sighs, inching closer and draping a wing around him. "Clearly this Ark-us sees something we don't... and that's a good thing, right?"

"Just makes me more paranoid... either he's taking pity on me, I did something good without knowing, or he didn't do his research." The sword squirms to try and get out from under her wing.

“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.” This, of course, unsettles almost everyone in the room. “Goodbye for now, though I doubt this will be the last you hear of me, and peace to you all.” The voice goes silent.

"...well." Lumber is the first to speak after that. "So... I'm assuming your friends are these 'Pokémon'?" The sword nods with his body. "Well, at least it's a more specific explanation than just 'some new creature in the forest'."

"That just begs the question..." Midnight steps away from Casey, recognizing his discomfort. "...why bring them to our world, in the first place? Was the world they came from such a bad place?"

Casey shakes his head the only way he can. "It's less that it was bad and more just that this place is better, I guess. I'm assuming you don't have murderous teams who try to take over the world for money or to destroy the entire universe as we know it just to remake it in their image?"

"Only on Tuesdays," Lumber replies dryly.

"Really?" The Riolu standing in the doorway looks up to the stallion, eyes wide and shimmering. "Is... is that true, Mister?"

The stallion looks at him before chuckling. "I'm just kidding, kid. Don't cry. Sometimes bad stuff happens, but it usually gets solved pretty quickly, and Hollow Shades in particular rarely has to worry about it."

"Good, don't need any more crazy groups to deal with on top of everything else." Ryan hops through the door as well, heading towards Midnight.

Liu leaps forward and hugs Lumber around the neck, visibly relaxing after hearing the truth. The stallion blinks, then smiles and hugs back with one foreleg. "Cute little guy."

"Yeah, he is. Kinda childish, compared to the other two, though." She glances at Casey out of the corner of her eye. "...mostly."

"There's a difference between being childish and being an asshole," the sword snaps. "And I think I've earned the right, considering."

"Considering what, grumpy?" The mare huffs, rolling a hoof. "So you get hungry. Big deal - you're a sword."

"And you're a horse! What does that have to do with anything?!" He moves right in close to her face, eye glaring fiercely.

"Hey!" Ryan jumps in between them, pushing Casey away. "Back off! Don't you have someone you want to find?"

A low growl comes from the sword. "Yes. And if not for you two, I would've found her already. Keep slowing me down and turning on me, and they'll be trying to find you in a cemetery."

She shrinks away, her pupils dilating to pinpricks. Her gaze averts, and she mutters a response. "I'm sorry, Casey... w-we can go look for your friend, now, if you'd like..."

Casey stares at her a moment longer before floating back, one blink reverting his eye to its normal state. "...what did I..."

Lumber just looks between the two. "...is this normal?"

Liu simply shakes his head. "Not that I know of..."

"Yes to fighting, no to intensity..." Ryan hops onto Midnight's back, rubbing her head softly as he stares at Casey. "Let's just go get your friend, maybe having her around will put you in a better mood."

Casey glances at him and slowly nods. "R-Right..."

Not too long later, but still too long for some, the group of now five beings heads out through town towards the woods. The whole town seems a little twitchy, faces looking towards the skies while others look towards the woods. Not all is worry though; one mare watches on as her colt plays chase with a Poliwag, the tadpole pokemon wearing a smile as it waddles on its feet.

"Alright, you guys know the rules," Lumber dictates, leading the team. "Stay by me at all times. No running - or floating, flying, or hopping - off. If you see anything that looks like one of your friends, you alert us and then we go together. The deeper we go in, the easier it is to get lost, and my compass will only help so much."

Midnight shifts awkwardly, giving him a small smile. "Thank you for repeating them. I actually missed that third one..."

"I wonder if this is what it's like to be a Pokémon Ranger..." Ryan muses.

"It's usually easier than this, frankly," Casey mutters. "...I mean, I think."

Liu looks at the sword, padding along between the ponies as he is. "...what's a Ranger, Mister Casey?"

"...I don't know, entirely. Ask Ryan." The sword quickly tries to grasp to another topic. "Midnight?"

The mare blinks, looking to him in mild confusion. "Yes?"

He pauses for only a moment. "...I'm sorry about earlier... snapping like that."

"Oh, that?" She waves a wing at him, giggling softly. "Don't worry about it. I shouldn't have pushed your buttons, even on accident. Besides, I've already forgiven you..." She trails off as a small yellow bug crosses their path, watching it as it vanishes beneath a building. "...what was that?"

Lumber blinks. "Nothing I've ever seen before... probably one of you Pokey guys then."

"Pokémon," Casey corrects. "Be careful of it. Joltiks aren't too hostile, but if we get too close, we'll get zapped."

Ryan crouches down. "I would rather not feel what electricity feels like to a Water-type just yet."

"We'll be careful," Lumber assures the sword, him being the only one he can understand who just spoke. "Casey, or whatever your name is, I'm counting on you to recognize Pokémon and let me know what's safe to approach."

"Fine by me."

Sighing, the frog of the group settles down for a ride. "Have I mentioned how much I hate not being understood?"

"Whenever Mister Casey translates for you."

Several minutes of walking later, the town around them becomes a forest, various species of Pokémon all around. Lumber makes sure to stay away from them unless Casey says otherwise; most of the time, however, he says to stay a few feet away and not make eye contact, just to be safe.

"How deep in did you see Anya?" Casey asks during a lull of silence, to which Lumber raises an eyebrow. "...the candle."

"Oh. Not too far, actually; it was near where I first found you three yesterday." He shrugs. "We should be there soon."

After a bit of silence, one of them finally decides it’s time for some conversation. "So," Midnight starts, "when you found them, did you see that strange orange mouse, back there? The one with the weird whiskers? Because that was cute." She looks up, smiling at the frog she can't see on her head. "Of course, I've seen cuter."

He shakes his head. "Aside from those three, the candle, and a couple weird birds, I haven't seen any Pokémon in these woods."

"Ah... that's good to know, I guess..." She pauses, glancing back. "...especially since it could apparently shoot lightning..." Ryan presses himself against her back.

Casey, who had been mostly quiet besides his warnings, suddenly speaks up. "Midnight, what is it you do exactly? You mentioned having a job yesterday, but so far, all I've seen you do is cuddle the frog."

"It's my day off." She huffs softly, shaking her head. "I work at that cafe we were at... and as a janitor at town hall."

"Really? Frankly, I can't see you doing either of those." He would shrug if he had shoulders. "But if it pays, it pays, I guess."

"I wonder if she even likes those jobs..." Ryan wonders, observing the conversation.

"It's not like I'm staying with those jobs..." She huffs, returning her attention to the path before them. "It's just until I become a Wonderbolt... that's all."

"...a what?" Casey asks, confused. "Is... that like a team?"

"It's more like a military group, but I suppose it does things sports teams do..." She sighs, shaking her head. "I had a bit of trouble with the history test for it..."

"Oh... well, I guess that's interesting." He would shrug if he could.

"...yeah." She stops, groaning softly. "Can we just... pause for a bit? I'm not quite used to ordinary wildlife, much less this..."

Lumber nods, slowing down. "Sure thing."

"Ten minutes and no more," Casey adds in a warning tone.

"Easy man," the frog raises a hand. "Pokemon are probably a lot to take in for new people."

"Whatever you say..." She picks up a blue berry, eyeing it curiously. "I'm just worried about running into another bug..."

"Bugs are far from the most dangerous thing in here," he remarks. "Look out for Poison-types especially."

The mare freezes at this, slowly turning to look at the sword. "...you mean we have to worry about poison, as well?"

"Yes, but that's why I'm here. To warn you. For example, we passed an Ariados a while back that could have killed you both with a Poison Sting, but I told Lumber to go to the right instead." He chuckles. "You're welcome."

"...why are Pokemon so dangerous?"

"Because they are? I dunno. Don't ask stupid questions."

A few frubbles are thrown at his hilt. "Be nice."

"Whatever." She sighs, holding the berry out to him. "So, is this edible or not? And what is it?" Turned as she is, she misses the drooling Riolu behind her, staring longingly at the round blue berry.

"It's an oran berry. It's usually for Pokemon only, but I remember them being fine for humans to eat. Unsure if that makes them fine for ponies, though." He tries to ignore Liu.

"So, if it's for Pokemon..." She moves it away from the jackal-like pokemon, who attempted to grab it. "...does that mean we should save this?"

"Well, all it does is restore energy if hurt in battle. Not really useful since we hopefully won't encounter any hostile Pokemon out here."

"Uh... Casey?" Lumber's voice calls from a bit up ahead as he peers into a bush. "Does a green blob thing with a giant mouth seem familiar to you?"

The sword's first response is a long sigh. His second one is: "You will now see the effects of Poison-type Pokemon."

"...I was hoping we could put that on hold until a week from now..." She grumbles to herself, slowly backing away from the bush.

Lumber quickly backs away as well as the green blob makes its way out. "So, uh... you know how to take care of this, right?"

The sword just groans. "Great... Ryan, hope you learned how to fight when you became a Pokemon."

"Yeah, no. I don't know how to even use Pound or Bubble." He gulps.

The wild Gulpin looks to all of them, a frown on its face. "Shouldn't have stepped on me... So hungry..." He glares at the stallion before opening his mouth, disturbing wide and jumping at him. "Pound!"

At the height of the arc, a blue blur dashes between them, smacking the Pokemon off to one side. "Counter!"

Gulpin flies into a tree, but it's amorphous body simply molds against it and falls off. Turning to them once more his mouth opens as purple gas billows out. "Poison Gas!"

Narrowing his eye, Casey flies forward, his Steel typing keeping him safe from any ill effects the gas may have. Rearing his body back, he slashes at Gulpin. "Fury Cutter!"

"Argh!" The blob rears back from the hit, glaring at the sword. Knowing none of his attacks would affect it, he aims another Pound at Lumber.

This time, Lumber is smart enough to jump back out of the way, backing up to where Midnight and Ryan are. "Okay, so what was that about Arc-guy telling these things not to attack us?!"

"Well, apparently you stepped on it," Casey points out as he lands another Fury Cutter, this one stronger than the last.

"Can't we, I don't know, talk to it? Reason with it?" The mare shuffles on her hooves, glancing nervously at the green blob. "Something that doesn't involve us potentially getting hurt?"

Gulpin growls. "This isn't your fight, Honedge! Let me battle the one that stepped on me!"

"Nah. I think I'll just keep beating you up until you either run away or faint." He moves closer threateningly. "I'm looking for my friend right now and you are delaying the search. You're not in a position to be making demands."

After that last hit, the poison Pokemon backs up, panting. "Not worth it..." Without another word, he turns and starts lurching off into the undergrowth.

Lumber sighs in relief. "Thanks, Casey..."

"You can thank me by watching where you step from now on." The sword turns to him, eye narrowed. "Can we go now?"

"If it'll get you to stop snapping at everyone, please do." Ryan mutters.

Lumber sighs and turns to Midnight. "Are you ready?"

"Uh... yeah, just... give me a second..." She closes her eyes, shuddering softly. "I didn't think I'd be seeing a living blob, today..."

"...lady, you're surrounded by a floating talking sword, a blue frog, and a tiny diamond dog thing that smacked said blob into a tree," Lumber remarks. "How is the blob the weird part?"

"Because I haven't spent a day with it and it came out of nowhere." She raises an eyebrow at him. "Any other questions?"

He pauses, then smirks. "Are you single?"

"Yes, I am." Midnight walks forward, flicking the tip of his nose with her tail. "Not that you really expected an answer, though."

He just shrugs, keeping the same smirk as he begins leading the way once more.

The group walks for a while longer before a call rings out, echoing through the trees. To the ponies, it sounds something like "Lit! Litwick!" To the Pokemon though...

"No! Go away!"

If swords had ears, Casey's would perk up instantly. He turns to Lumber and nods in the direction the sounds are coming from. Understanding, but also a little concerned for his own safety, Lumber just waves him to go ahead first. Which he does, floating around several trees and Bug-types before peering into a particular clearing.

Inside, he spots three Pokemon: a Murkrow, a Pawniard, and a Houndour. All three of them are crowded around the raised roots of a tree, making a commotion at something inside them.

The voice, unmistakably female, calls out again. "Go away, please! I don't want to have to fight you!"

Liu peeks around a tree, his brow furrowing slightly. "...three against one? Isn't that unfair?"

"Damn right it is." Casey narrows his eye, recognizing the female voice. Not bothering to hide anymore, he storms out of the bushes about as well as one can storm without feet. "Hey. Assholes."

The three Dark-types turn to face him - and the Murkrow is promptly tackled right out of the air by the floating sword with a surprised caw.

The Riolu, seeing what his friend did, follows his example, tackling the Pawniard away from the Litwick and rolling on the ground a bit with it afterwards. He quickly rights himself, getting into a fighting stance. "Bring it on!"

The Pawniard growls and leaps carelessly at the Riolu, thinking him to be an easy target.

To his surprise, Liu blocks his attack effortlessly, striking him in the chest with enough force to slam him into a tree. "Counter."

The Steel-type struggles to get up, its quadruple weakness to Fighting hurting it greatly. Leveling a glare at the Riolu, it tries a Leer attack. He freezes at this, shivering from the weight of its gaze. Grinning wickedly, Pawniard runs forward, swinging its sharp arm at the now vulnerable Fighting-type. "Slash!"

Eye glinting in determination, Liu dodges backwards, bringing his paws up. "Detect."

Surprised, the dark Pokemon ends up slashing at the ground and getting its arm stuck in the dirt, trying to pull it free.

Smirking, the Riolu swings its arms around, a light blue wind slowly forming around him. He slowly builds up this layer, his eyes focused on his foe. His arms cross over his chest, the wind now turbulent and his legs tensing. "Let's see if you can handle this..."

Pawniard barely gets his arm out of the ground before he turns and freezes, seeing what his foe is about to do.

Liu leaps up into the air, unfolding his arms and releasing a shockwave at his foe. "Vacuum Wave!"

The metallic creature is blasted back, once again slamming into a tree and collapsing to the ground. With a groan, it starts struggling to stand back up…

After smacking the Murkrow away, not bothering with moves and instead just swinging his body like the sword it is, Casey levels down to the Pokemon that had been trapped. Sure enough, a familiar female Litwick graces his view. "Anya, are you alright?"

The candle blinks at him with her single visible eye. "How... how do you know my name?"

"Right... new form." He sighs. "Long story short: I'm assuming you got Arceus's message earlier. Like you, I got teleported here, and like apparently all other humans, I was transformed into a Pokemon. It's me, Casey."

Her eye narrows. "Casey? But... prove it."

He groans. "Really doing this? Fine. Your name is Anya, you belonged to my parents until you joined my team along with five other Ghost-types. You were first captured in Unova and brought back to Kanto, where I lived all my life aside from vacations. Shortly before you joined my team, I was a part of-" He gets cut off by the Murkrow's return, delivering a weak but surprising Wing Attack.

"Casey!" A glint appears in the Litwick's eye as her flame suddenly glows. "Confuse Ray!"

The Murkrow blinks as it tries to use another Wing Attack before a huge headache impacts it, everything going blurry. It shuts its eyes, flying too far from the Honedge and impacting right into the ground.

Seeing the opening, Casey runs in for another Tackle, lacking other damaging moves that would be effective enough. After slamming it into the ground, he backs up to see if it moves again, glancing at the Litwick.

She floats over to him, a beaming smile on her face. "Did you get him?"

"Hopefully." He blinks as the Murkrow gets back up. "Nope." He charges it again, but the Murkrow catches him off guard with a Haze attack; while there are no stats to reset, it provides enough of a cover for the creature to sneak away.

"Finally, at least one of them left." Anya floats over to the Honedge as the haze fades.

He chuckles. "Yeah... what happened to the other two?" Glancing over, he sees Liu taking care of the Pawniard. As for the Houndour, he has trouble finding it at first, but quickly sees it creeping towards the two observing ponies and the frog. "Ryan! Houndour!"

Midnight looks to the sword, blinking blankly. "How-what, now?"

"I noticed!" The Froakie hops down off the mare, between the ponies and the approaching Pokemon. Sitting, yet coiled, he narrows his eyes at the pup.

The Houndour looks at his tiny opponent and growls, taking the stance as a challenge. Flames start to build up in its mouth.

Swallowing, Ryan stands his ground, trying desperately to figure out how to fight. "Come on... I have the type advantage... just have to figure out how..."

Realizing the vulnerability, the Houndour practically laughs before shooting out an Ember attack.

Feeling something welling up as the attack approaches, the frog opens his mouth. "Bubble!" A stream of blue bubbles pour from his mouth, meeting the fire attack head on, canceling it out, much to Ryan's amazement. "I can attack? I can attack!" Hopping in place one, he rears back a moment before releasing another stream straight at the fire hound.

Eyes widening at the sudden change of demeanor, Houndour leaps to the side before diving in for a Bite attack. Shocked by the sudden change in tactic, Ryan tries to hop away a bit too slowly, meaning the hound clamps down on his leg. Shouting out, he lifts up a hand, not noticing it glowing slightly before he starts repeatedly using a Pound attack on the dog. For some reason, his skin turns a bit grey.

After a couple hits, the Houndour lets go, stumbling back with a gruff grumble. Ignoring the colour change, it lets out another Ember.

Paying more attention, Ryan hops out of the way of the flaming ball. Still in the air, he lets out another Bubble attack, his skin turning blue once more. Wondering how long he can keep it up, he continues spouting bubbles even after he lands.

The Houndour finds itself pelted by stinging bubbles all over; stumbles prevent it from dodging, and it has to start sending out embers to stop the bubbles in their path before eventually getting out of the way.

Hopping back over to the ponies, the frog once more takes his position in front of them. His large eyes are peeled as they peer at the hound, waiting for its next move.

Back with the two most humanoid Pokemon in the vicinity, the Pawniard has stopped charging and begun to think logically. Eyes glowing, it tosses up a Scary Face attack towards its opponent.

The Riolu shivers at the expression, bringing up his paws. His own mind goes into overdrive, trying to figure out some way to beat him quickly. After a second, he decides to act. His own gaze hardens, his eyes glowing as he uses his own move. "Mind Reader."

Pawniard tilts its head, curious as to what the Riolu has in store, but thinking of ways to counter it just in case.

Liu smirks, leaping up into the air, his gaze focused on the metallic Pokemon below. His eyes narrow as he starts to fall back down, his leg extended. "High Jump Kick!"

Pawniard tries to dodge, but is just too slow. The leg collides directly with its head, forcing it to collapse on its back on the ground, head nicely dented.

The Riolu sighs, reaching down and picking it up. "Come on, let's get you somewhere safe." A groan comes in response, but it doesn't struggle or try to fight back.

Meanwhile, back with the Fire and Water matchup, the Houndour has taken a different approach. Rather than directly attacking Ryan, it is instead using its Ember attack on the ground around him, trying to trap him in a ring of fire.

The frog simply stands his ground in front of the ponies. Looking down, he shoots bubbles, dousing the flames at the same speed they are created. Growling, the Dark-type leaps forward while his foe is distracted, teeth open for a Bite.

He then lets out a yelp as a round metal object collides with his face, knocking him away from his target. The frying pan bounces harmlessly to the ground, while Houndour rolls back onto all fours, growling at the mare who threw it at him. Immediately, he charges.

Seeing this, Ryan narrows his eyes. Taking a deep breath, he swells in that way some frogs can before unleashing a deluge of bubbles at the dog's side.

To his surprise, Houndour doesn't take the hit, instead rolling along the ground to let the bubbles mostly pass over, those that hit him doing little to stop him from resuming his charge.When he gets back up, though, he finds an ebony hindhoof aimed directly at his head. It seems the mare is ready to do all she can to fight.

Houndour, while surprised, takes this new challenge at face value. He leaps into the air and launches a powerful Ember down at the mare. Croaking loudly, a blue blur intercepts the blast, jumping across its path. His momentum keeps him going, crashing into the grass with noises of discomfort.

Now furious, the pegasus stomps the ground, flipping up the frying pan and swiftly delivering a powerful kick to it. It practically launches through the air, aimed straight at the falling canine. The pan nails the Houndour right in the face, sending it sprawling several feet. Finally, having had enough, the Fire-type stands up with a whimper and starts running, tail between its legs.

Midnight quickly rushes over to Ryan, gently picking him up with her soft feathers. "Don't worry, you're safe now..."

The frog groans, shaking his head. "Well, that didn't hurt as much as I thought it would... but it still was not fun." Noticeable discoloration marks his skin.

The other three Pokemon head over to the two ponies and frog. "Well, that was a more interesting rescue mission than I had anticipated," Casey remarks, his Litwick floating close beside him.

"You can say that again..." Midnight turns to the other pony, hopeful. "...do you have any burn cream on you, by any chance?"

Lumber nods, sitting down and rifling through his bags. "Somehow I had a feeling we'd need it since we were looking for a living breathing candle of all things." He tosses a small container of the stuff to her.

The Froakie motions towards the others. "They got into fights too..."

As she applies the medicine to the frog, Liu glances over to where he left the unconscious Pawniard, laying in the shade of a tree. "To be fair, you were the one who got hurt the most, Mister Ryan..."

"I think we'll survive," Casey points out. "You had the most aggressive fighter. Liu obliterated his guy and the Murkrow we dealt with fled." The sword turns to his rescued friend. "They didn't hurt you, did they Anya?"

The Litwick shakes her head, smiling at him. "They didn't get to me. I used Minimize to get to where they couldn't reach me." She gives him a quick hug. "Thank you for saving me, Casey!"

He chuckles, but before he can respond, another voice comes from the trees. "Ah, Casey... so it is you." To everyone's surprise, one of the odd-looking trees starts to crawl closer towards them, pulling its roots out of the ground to use as legs.

The mare's eyes shrink to pinpricks, and, with a shriek, she dashes behind the stallion, Froakie still in her wings. Lumber, for his part, just stares with his jaw dropped. Liu, on the other hand, has a curious expression, slowly walking closer to it.

"Harold!" Anya zips over to the Trevenant, bobbing up and down in front of it. "I didn't know you were in this forest, too."

The tree Pokemon merely chuckles as his glowing red eye appears. "I was not aware of your presence either, Miss Anya." He nods and looks to the Honedge. "I showed up just on the tail end of your bout with those hostile Dark-types, but from what I gathered, you must be Master Casey. Correct?"

Casey nods. "Yup. Transported here, became a floating sword, hilarity ensued. That's about it, really."

"Well, it is quite beneficial that we found each other so quickly." Harold looks to the two petrified ponies. "Are these equine creatures your friends?"

"...I'd like to t-think so... living tree g-guy..." She glances between the three ghost types, unsure what to do.

The jackal, however, has no such qualms, pressing a paw against one of the sections of bark on the Trevenant. "Wow... I've never seen anything like you, before, Mister Harold..."

Harold glances down at the Riolu, and its mouth curves into a smile that does little to relieve the two ponies of their nervousness. "I imagine my species is not too common from wherever you may be from, young one. Phantump and Trevenant are often specific to the Kalos region."

Lumber coughs. "S-So... um... you're friendly, right...?"

"Indeed I am, sir." Turning back to the stallion, the Trevenant nods again. "I have no desire or motivation to harm you or any other beings in this world, even if Lord Arceus had not ordered such. You are as safe with me as you are with Master Casey."

Midnight blinks, turning to the sword with an eyebrow raised. "...'Master' Casey?"

The Honedge actually looks a little sheepish at that. "His former owner wasn't so much a trainer as he was a rich psychic who had him as a butler... the traits carried over after the trade."

Ryan raises a hand out of the mass of black feathers he is covered by. "They may not understand the concept of 'trainers'."

The blank stare of the mare proves him right. "...a what, now? Like... a physical therapist?"

"Right. Uh..." The sword tries to figure out a way to explain said concept without making it sound akin to animal abuse. "Long story short, trainers were people who helped Pokemon get stronger in sort-of sparring matches. Some people just had them as pets, servants, or friends, but people like me were trainers."

"...so you train them like a coach?" She looks up to the tree briefly, shuddering a bit. "You... must've been really good..."

"...yeah, we'll go with that."

Harold chuckles. "You do not need to be so intimidated by me, miss. I am sure we can be civil and peaceful with one another. May I ask your name?"

"...Midnight." She smiles nervously up at him. "Midnight Blitz. Sorry for... I mean... y-you're really big..."

"Many Trevenant are. But not all Pokemon are like so; take Miss Anya for example." He motions to the candle before extending one of his hand-branches. "A pleasure to meet you, Miss Blitz."

She flinches slightly, then immediately smacks herself in the forehead. "Gah! Sorry!" She extends a foreleg out to him, cradling the frog closer to her chest. "Nice to meet you... um... Trevenant?" She nervously laughs.

"My former master called me Harold, after his deceased brother. Master Casey has continued to call me as such, and so may you. If Trevenant is easier, however, I shall not judge." He gently takes her foreleg and shakes it before letting go.

"Harold's fine... though it sounds like the name of a griffon." The mare shrugs, looking down to the Pokemon pressed against her belly. "...let's get you home to rest... let that cream sink in..."

Looking down at himself, Ryan looks back up to her. "...does this count as my third abduction? I have to say, it doesn't live up to the standards of the other two yet."

Getting his general meaning, she rolls her eyes playfully, nuzzling his head gently. "Oh, hush, you..."

Chapter 5: Plan

The next day, things have gotten much calmer in the house that now contains six beings: a pony, a water frog, a doglike fighter, a floating sword, a living tree, and a tiny candle. While not the most normal of households, it sees a normal start to this day nonetheless, with everyone waking up one by one in their own sections of the house.

Casey and Liu took the guest room again, Liu in the bed and Casey leaning in a corner, and Anya has joined them by falling asleep on the desk in the room. Midnight and Ryan took the mare's room again, and lastly, Harold simply planted his roots in the yard outside and went dormant like an ordinary tree.

The Riolu wakes up first, eyes blearily blinking open. They soon focus, and he uncurls himself, looking around for the briefest of moments. He slips off the bed, silently padding out the room and down the hall.

He enters the foyer, making a beeline for the pot by the door. Laying on his stomach, he brings himself closer to the lump in the soil, whining quietly. "...why do you take so long to grow?"

When the plant makes no response, another one does, looking through a nearby window. "Growing takes time. For people, Pokemon, and plants."

Liu jumps at this, his fur standing on end until he sees the Trevenant. "Oh, good morning, Mister Harold." He stands up and pulls the door open, stepping outside into the calm air. "Sorry I woke you up."

He chuckles. "I have been awake for a while now, Mister Liu. Grass types often grow tired as soon as the sun goes down, and are awakened not long after it rises. Do not worry." He smiles. "So you are growing a plant?"

"Yes." He glances back before closing the door. "Miss Midnight found an oran berry yesterday, so I planted it... with her help, of course..." He starts to make his way around the house, close to where the living tree is.

"I am sure it will grow in time," Harold says simply. "You just have to be patient. As my old master once said; 'To wish for a faster result is to wish for an incomplete one'."

"...my mom said something similar." He sighs, stopping by a flat rock and leaping onto it. "She was smart like that." He raises his paws, slowly pulling and pushing the air.

Harold watches with curiosity. "Exercising, I presume?"

"I did this with mom..." He slowly turns, lifting a leg as he brings his paws above his head. "It helps to calm one's mind... and strengthen one's body..."

"I see... forgive me for not joining you, but, well..." He chuckles a bit at his own attempt at humour.

Liu pauses, looking up at him with a sheepish smile. "Sorry... am I being too inconsiderate?"

The tree blinks before chuckling again. "Was just a joke, young one. I apologise; Master Casey's sense of humour has rubbed off on me over the years."

He tilts his head, confused. "I'm... not good when it comes to jokes..." Sighing, the jackal continues his exercises. "Mom also said I'm too serious... like dad..."

"We all take after our own parents in some way." The Trevenant nods. "Simply to have them is a blessing many take for granted..."

The jackal stops his motions, as if flash frozen. His arms slowly lower to his side, and his head bows. "...Mister Harold... how long have you been with Mister Casey?" He looks up to the taller Pokemon with misty eyes.

Harold blinks his eye before answering. "I first met Master Casey about eight years ago, but I did not join his team proper for another year."

"I see..." He chuckles dryly, getting down off the rock and sitting down, resting his back against it. "...may I please hear how you got to be on his team?"

"He and my former master met up when Master Casey was in Kalos looking for a job." He sighs as he remembers. "My former master did not tell him, but he was growing ill... seeing that Master Casey already had other well-trained Ghost Pokemon, he offered to trade me for a simple Gastly. As far as Master Casey knows, even now, that was just an everyday trade to improve both teams."

"...trainers trade their Pokemon?" Liu tilts his head to one side, confused for a moment, before shaking it and gesturing to him. "So, you joined his team about seven years ago through a... trade... do you ever miss your old master?"

"Every day." Harold nods slowly. "But had I stayed with him, I'd just be a wild Pokemon eventually... something I was not prepared for."

"...I'm sorry for your loss..." The jackal slowly stands, shaking himself off. "...but I'm glad you at least have someone you care about."

The tree smiles. "As am I, for you."

"I..." He sighs, trailing off as he starts for the inside. "...say, do you know how to raise berries well?"

Curious at the reaction, Harold follows along, electing to ignore it for now. "Plant it somewhere where it gets a good amount of sunlight, water it every day, and don't let other people or Pokemon trample it."

"...so inside isn't a good spot for it?"

"In most situations, no. But oran berries do not require as much light as others, and too much could cause them to dry up. Simply leaving it by a window or the door will be enough."

"Oh. Thanks, Mister Harold." He steps inside, picking up the little watering can near it. "And... how much water would you say it needs?"

The Trevenant watches through the doorway; while he could fit inside if he turned, he doesn't want to unnecessarily use up space. "Oran berries require more than most, but don't do too much. Just pour some on, and I'll tell you when it is enough."

He nods and starts to pour, but suddenly jumps, glancing up the stairs in confusion. A few seconds later, he shrugs and resumes, picking up the fallen watering can to sprinkle the buried seed.

Harold, for his part, ignores the jump and focuses on the plant. "That should be enough for now."

Liu nods and puts the tool down, looking at the moist soil. "...how long does it normally take to grow?"

"Berries are fast growers. The day after tomorrow, the plant itself will be fully grown; the next day, it will sprout more berries."

"That's great!" He chuckles, stepping towards the door and holding out a paw. "Thank you for all the help, Mister Harold."

Smiling, the tree takes his paw gently and shakes it. "It was my pleasure, Mister Liu."

In another part of the house, a haunted candle opens her eyes with a tiny yawn. Her flame flickers to life from the dull-glowing ember it had been. Lifting off the table, she looks around, finding the Honedge of the house to be the only one besides her in the room. Finding not a single problem with this, she floats over to him.

"Casey..." Her tone is light, still happy with being reunited with her friend. "Wake up..."

A slight groan comes from the sword as his eye flickers open. "I'm up, I'm up..."

She tilts her head at him. "It's still a bit different to see you without a face to express yourself, but somehow I do think this suits you."

He yawns a bit despite lacking a mouth, finally recognizing the one who woke him. "Morning, Anya."

Laughing a bit, her flame flickering as she does, she smiles at him. "Good morning to you, too."

He floats up from his spot against the wall, ribbon stretching out to the side the way one would stretch their arms. "Sleep well?"

She nods. "Cozy home, knowing where some of my friends are, no wild Pokemon around... I slept like a hatchling."

"Good to hear." After finishing his wakeup routine as well as he can as a sword, he glances to the door. "Not much noise going on... either everyone's being quiet or they're still asleep."

"I guess so." She floats over to him, taking a spot next to his hilt. "How have you been taking all this?"

"Eh, not too badly. Sudden life-changing situations were almost a weekly event for me before, so this isn't as out of the blue as it is to some." He flicks his ribbon. "The transformation was the oddest part, frankly. But I'm getting used to it."

She watches him, nodding. "I'm glad... I was worried when I figured out we were all separated."

"Yeah..." Casey sighs. "So was I... still am, for the others. At least you and Harold are safe, though."

"I wonder where the others could be... do you think they're all in the woods?" One hand goes to her lip as she thinks.

He hums. "Possibly... it'd make things easier, that's for sure."

"Yes... we need to get our family back together. The few we already have make things worlds better." She looks pointedly at him as she smiles.

Chuckling, he pats her with his ribbon. "Agreed. Come on, let's go check on Harold and the others."

Staring at his ribbon a moment, she then smiles, rubbing one handle of his hilt with a hand. "Let's."

In the master bedroom of the home, another Pokemon opens his eyes. It's when he tries to move that they shoot open, darting down to the black-coated hoof curled around his body, hugging him to the chest of the mare next to him and supplemented by her wings doing the same.

"She’s a cuddler..." He says quietly to himself. "Well... this is slightly awkward. Though it's also soft and warm."

The pegasus sighs blissfully, nuzzling the top of his head as her embrace shifts around him. She's almost curled around him at this point, her tail barely touching his foot.

Unable to move even a little, the frog sighs and settles in. Thoughts of trainers who likely did this with Pokemon like Ninetails or something settle in, reminding him of nights camped out back on earth. He shakes his head a bit as memories of sleeping while sitting against Geyser's surface. "Better not dwell on that... it'll just depress me until we find him."

It is at this point another warmth appears, gently pressing against his forehead.

Looking upwards, he tries to figure out what it is. "What now? She's already pretty much enveloped me." To his surprise, this leads to the mare kissing him, humming brightly afterwards as she returns to nuzzling. Ryan's mouth flaps open and closed a few times, his brain not quite able to comprehend what just happened. "...what..."

"So soft..." She giggles, holding him closer, her tail brushing up along his back.

"Ack! I know I like cuddling, but sheesh!" The Froakie croaks, literally feeling like the mare is all over him. "I wonder if this is what eggs feel like..."

The door opens, and a blue head peeks in. "Good m-" He stops mid-sentence, staring at the scene before him, baffled. "...Mister Ryan? What are you doing with Miss Midnight?"

Quickly realizing what this could looks like, the Froakie speaks quickly. "She apparently gets very affectionate in her sleep. I find myself trapped and comfortable at the same time."

"Oh." The Riolu scratches his head with a paw. "I thought you finally got together... anyways, I wanted to ask what you wanted for breakfast..."

"Cereal should do fine, but what did you mean 'we got together'?" He tries to look at Liu as best he can, but half of his vision is constantly black from fur or feathers.

"Nothing, Mister Ryan!" He dashes out the room, leaving the two of them alone once more. At the same time, the mare turns onto her back, straightening out while still gently holding the frog to her chest.

Sighing, Ryan starts the arduous process of slowly wiggling himself upward out of the mare's grip while trying not to wake her. Less than an inch at a time, he gradually works to free himself.

Halfway through his escape, she decides to nuzzle at his belly, giggling brightly. "Come back to bed... silly..."

One hand claps over his mouth as he holds in his laughter, being ticklish. The other hand braces next to her on the bed, trying to raise his stomach out of her reach. Midnight nips his belly before turning onto her side once more, holding him close to her face like a pillow.

Another tapping at the door indicates another arrival, this one being a familiar Honedge. "...do I want to know?"

Ryan flops down, the mare's head still shoved against his abdomen. "She gets clingy, it seems..."

"...nope, I don't." Rather unhelpfully, Casey immediately leaves.

"Damn it..." The frog sighs as he contents himself to a position much more awkward and less comfortable than his previous one.

With a groan, the mare wakes up, pulling away and sitting up. "...next time, I won't have pizza before bed..." She looks over, smiling warmly at the frog. "Morning, cutie. Sleep well?"

"Yes, though waking up was a bit odd," he replies truthfully, knowing she can't understand him.

She slowly stretches, sighing blissfully and grunting as she pops her back. Getting off the bed, she turns to look at the frog, her gaze going to his belly. "...are... are your burns better?"

Blinking, he looks down, seeing only the barest discoloration where there was much yesterday. "Wow... almost completely gone. It's always amazing how fast Pokemon heal."

"...since you aren't shaking your head, I'll assume you feel better." Midnight smiles, walking over and gently nuzzling the top of his head. "I'm glad to hear that. I'd hate it if someone tried to hurt you... any of you."

"Very heartwarming," a voice comes from the doorway. "When you two are done, we're waiting downstairs."

"Whatever you say, grumpy." She turns to the door, nodding towards her back. "You coming, Ryan?" Nodding, he hops onto her back, noticing his aim is better than it has been.

"Good." Casey turns to head back down the hallway. "There are a couple things we need to discuss."

The mare follows the floating sword, doing her best to not make her passenger lose his balance. When they get downstairs, they find the other Pokemon all around the living room. Harold, who floats about an inch off the floor beside the couch, glances to the mare and smiles. "Good morning to you, Miss Blitz."

"Good morning, Harold, but please, call me Midnight. And please be careful about your leaves while inside." She looks around at everyone gathered there, an eyebrow raised. "So... what is there you need to discuss, Casey?"

Casey floats over to Anya on the couch and settles in beside her, while Harold tries to subtly check his leaves for any loose ones. "Yesterday, we found two of my team. Four are still somewhere out there, and furthermore, I'm not the only one looking for someone." He nods his sword to Liu. "The kid here still has his parents somewhere out there. And the frog has his own friend to find. While I'm grateful to you for helping us find Anya and Harold, we're not even close to being done looking."

"We do not need to rush, necessarily," Harold adds, though it is hard to tell if he's directing this towards Midnight or Casey. "I am certain the rest of the Pokemon can take care of themselves for a little while, so there is no need to panic. In addition, we still don't know where to look next."

The Honedge nods with his body. "Yeah. The forest was a good start, but I can't sense any other Ghost-types around there. And anything outside of Ghost, Flying, Poison, and Bug types would stick out in a dark forest like a sore... um, hoof."

"If your friends aren't near here, Mister Casey," Liu pipes up from his spot by his pot. "Then... what does that mean if we have to go out of this place?"

"It means we have to go somewhere else and look," the sword responds. "Just grab a map, figure out prime places to check, go there, search, and come back here before we rinse and repeat until we have everyone."

"Should we try to search the rest of the forest first since it is close by?" Ryan offers. "You said anything out of the ordinary spectrum of forest types should be easy to find, right? Maybe we just haven't looked in the right parts yet."

"That will be unnecessary," Harold replies. "Before I located all of you, I searched the forest myself in my own way. I looked through the 'eyes' of every tree around; there was nothing out of the ordinary, besides Anya. That is how I found you in the first place."

"Not to mention obviously we'd know if they were just in town," Casey adds. "I'm sure we can all put ourselves in the shoes of our teams - or parents - and figure out where they would have gone."

Liu scrunches his muzzle up, trying to think a bit as the mare exits the room. "...I think mom would be somewhere warm... and high..."

Ryan adds to that from where he had jumped onto the back of the couch. "Geyser, unsurprisingly, would like a large amount of water. Preferably somewhere where he has options of either submerging himself or sunning himself whenever he wants. It wouldn't be a lake though, he likes moving water."

The mare enters the room as he finishes, a rolled up piece of paper under her wing. She places it on the coffee table and unfurls it, then turns to the sword and tree, smiling warmly. "So... where do you think your friends could be? There's several places around Equestria that could house such... diverse creatures."

Casey looks over it. "Well... this is a new map to us. Not really sure what these places are like... can you direct us to any watery, warm, or creepy places?"

"Well..." She points to a spot near the center. "There's the scariest cave in all of Equestria..." She moves her hoof along the surface. "And we're here. It'd be a day away on foot, maybe a few hours by train... but if you want watery places..." She moves it slightly up and to the left. "There's always Neighagra Falls. It's only a few hours away, if I remember correctly."

"Perhaps Neighagra Falls would be the best option for a first expedition," Harold suggests. "As for this 'scariest cave'... we could go there second. I would suggest walking over the train, however; aside from being cheaper, most of us are used to long travels on foot. Or whatever we may have instead of feet."

"Such as floating?" The mare giggles, shrugging. "I think that's fair. Anyways, you said warm, right?" She points to a sandy part of the map. "There's always Appleloosa."

Liu climbs onto her back, resting his paws on her head as he peeks over it. He frowns, shoulders slumping. "...but that doesn't seem very high..."

"Appleloosa would still be a good choice, if that's a desert and not just a colouring error," Casey adds. "Chief's part Ground-type. I left him alone once when in Kalos, and he walked to Route 13. Across the region, and I had to go hunt him down." He sighs. "Not fun."

"So Chief would likely be around that area," Harold adds. "That is three of our still-missing friends whose locations we have potentially narrowed down, plus however many of Master Casey's team may be in this cave."

"I agree, though I hope you boys don't mind if we stop by here?" Midnight taps the mountain range just to the south. "If we're possibly going clear across the country, I'd like to be well rested enough to do so... and there just so happens to be a hot springs in these mountains." Unnoticed by her, the Riolu's ears perk up at this. "It's great for relaxation, from what I've heard."

"Fine with me." Casey nods. "Any other creepy places we can keep as backup if the cave doesn't have what we're looking for?"

"...not really..." She nervously laughs. "Sorry, I'm not quite up to date with scary or creepy locations around Equestria..."

He sighs. "Well, we'll cross that bridge when we come to it, I guess..."

"Probably." She lets the map go, letting it roll back up as she turns to Harold. "So, big guy... I hope you didn't mind sleeping outside, last night."

"It was no problem at all." He chuckles. "Many Pokemon and even trainers are used to sleeping outdoors. Not to mention my biology is more than just appearance; I can survive in the same environments a tree thrives in."

"...I hope that desert won't prove a problem for you, then." She looks to Casey, but her growling stomach interrupts her. Blushing brightly, she gestures towards the kitchen. "So... anyone hungry? I can go make some breakfast, if you'd like..." Casey just glares at her. "It's not my fault my stomach growled..."

The candle floating next to the sword looks between them. "Is there a problem with breakfast?"

Casey just grumbles and floats off, leaving Harold to try and field the question. "Master Casey is... not yet fully acquainted with his new form. From what he has told me, eating is something he has yet to discover how to do."

"Oh... I'll have to see if I can show him then. I can't have him being grumpy." She floats out after her friend.

Liu watches them leave before turning to the tree. "Mister Harold... about Miss Anya..."

"Hm?" The tree looks to him in curiosity.

He scratches at his head, trying to find a way to word it. "Does she... no, never mind. It's a silly question."

"Mister Liu, I have heard my fair share of 'silly questions', and have always done my best to answer them. I shan't stop now." He smiles. "What is it?"

"I... need to know a bit more before I ask." He simply shrugs, sheepishly smiling. "I hope that's alright."

The tree hesitates before nodding. "Very well. But please let me know when you've decided to share. I do not like thinking others may have a problem with my team." His voice is more serious than normal for the last sentence.

Liu's eyes widen, and he flails his paws briefly in panic. "It's not a problem - I promise!"

"Good." Rather than continue the conversation further, Harold turns back to the mare, voice normal again. "So, Miss... Midnight. When do you wish to leave?"

"I think we should prepare for anything we may encounter, first." She taps her chin, closing her eyes as she thinks. "Medicine, food, maybe a tent... I'd say tomorrow at the earliest."

"Here's hoping Casey doesn't throw a fit about the delay..." Ryan mutters as he looks down at the map, trying to judge distances and how long each journey will take.

"If you're worried about grumpy, then don't." Midnight giggles, rubbing the obviously tense frog's back with her wing. "We'll likely be going on one long trip to all these places, so I don't think he'll mind in the long run. Besides, we're going to the falls, first." She shrugs, looking to the glass on the table by the map. "That place is the closest... and I think that milk's for you, cutie."

His head instantly turns, spotting the glass. In the blink of an eye, he is chugging it down.

"Sorry that's all I could get you, Mister Ryan." Liu sheepishly shrugs. "I don't know what cereal is..."

"Milk is half of cereal, and the most important part, so this works." He chugs the rest, sighing contently afterward. "I'll explain cereal when we get to the kitchen."

"Alright, so..." Midnight trails off, looking up at the tree in her living room. "...I'm sorry but... what do you eat, exactly?"

"Sunlight, water, and sometimes berries if need be." He chuckles. "Sometimes souls too, but only for dessert."

"...I'm going to ignore that last one for the sake of my sanity." She shakes her head, then points to the kitchen. "Well, I have some berries, if you'd like them. Nothing from your world, if what the others said is true, but they still taste delicious."

"Thank you, but I will be fine for now." He nods.

"Okay, then. I'll be right back, after I get myself some breakfast." She waves as she exits the room, leaving the three Pokemon around the small table.

"Casey? Where are you?" Anya floats down the hall, her flame casting dancing lights on the walls as she moves.

"In here," the sword calls from the bedroom he and her had slept in the night before. Inside, he has simply gone back to leaning against the corner.

When she sees him, she floats over, concerned. "Casey... is this about the food thing?"

"Me leaving? Yeah. I'm not brooding about that if that's what you mean." He sighs. "I just wanted to be alone for a bit while everyone else chowed down and planned everything."

"You know, I could always just show you how to eat like a Ghost-type if it'll make you happy." She holds out a hand.

He blinks. "...no offense, but are you sure you'd know how Honedges are supposed to? I mean... you have a mouth. I don't."

"That doesn't mean I have to use it." She smiles at him. "Besides, some of our other family members don't have a mouth either. Let me go grab something, and I'll show you." She floats back out of the room.

Casey blinks again before floating up off the floor, but not moving, instead waiting for her to return.

She returns quickly with a couple of berries held in her arms. "These should do nicely."

He tilts his body the way one tilts their head. "...what do I do with them?"

"First you pick it up." She holds one up in her hand, waiting for him to do the same.

Slowly, he lifts a berry up with his tassel. "Okay...?"

"Now, the trick, as odd as it may seem, is just to not think about it and let your body do what it will." She shows him the berry, chars it slightly in the flame on her head, then moves it towards her mouth. Even though her mouth doesn't open, the berry seems to turn slightly transparent before continuing into her. She licks her lips, "Hmm... that'd be great with a little sugar."

He blinks. "...now that you said not to think about it, I can't not think about it."

"Well, the other option involves concentrating on the part of us that makes Normal-types and our own unable to touch each other then wrapping that around the food you want, but really..." Humming, she taps her mouth. "Come on... what's a good way to put this... Ah! Think of it like throwing a piece of food in the air, opening your mouth, and closing your eyes."

"Usually that was something small like popcorn..." he mutters, but sighs. "Why couldn't I have been a Gengar or a Banette or something?"

She huffs, floating closer to him. "I think you're great just the way you are."

"You say that, but less than a hundred hours ago I was a human, and you seemed to like me then." Shutting his eye, he tosses the berry into the air, aiming where his mouth would be... and it just bounces off his blade.

Stifling a few giggles, she clears her throat. "I think you're thinking about it too much. Here..." She picks up one. "Try again, and I'll throw it to you, I just won't tell you when."

He sighs. "Fine..." His eye shuts again and he waits.

She tosses the berry lightly up and down in her hand. "You know... I wasn't kidding about saying I like you this way, but that doesn't mean I didn't like you as a human too."

He pauses before replying. "I don't get it."

She blinks, frowning a bit sadly. "It's not that complicated..." She tosses the berry at him as she senses him about to reply.

"You're saying tha-" He gets cut off as the berry suddenly disappears into him, and he makes several coughing noises... before remembering he doesn't have a throat. "...okay, that worked."

She giggles. "So... people just have to throw food at you when you're talking? That sounds fun for them, but maybe not for you."

"I'll figure out how it works sooner or later..." He groans. "Great... now that one thing's down, my stomach's back in action... getting back at me for two days without eating..."

"Want me to feed you more?" She raises the rest of the berries.

He shakes his head. "I'd rather try to practice it myself... thank you, though." He reaches out with his tassel to pat her.

She leans into the pat, tilting so that he doesn't hit her flame. "You're welcome."

He chuckles. "So, how are you handling all this? The new world, and me being in a new body?"

"It's all... different." She drops in height a bit. "It's a bunch to get used to, all at once. But... it doesn't seem like anything bad."

"Yeah. Things are tough to adjust to, but once we have everyone, it'll be just like old times... but with less training and more relaxing." He sighs as he thinks about it, moving over to 'sit' on the bed.

She tilts her head, her expression neutral as she floats over to him once more. "You mean... we don't have to fight anymore?"

He pauses. "...I can't promise that... you saw in the forest, some wild Pokemon aren't gonna listen to Arceus. And some humans here might be like me and not really be purely innocent... but we definitely won't have to fight as much."

"Well, I guess that's something." She gets next to his hilt, patting him. "I guess this is sort of like a new start, huh?"

"Seems like it..." He goes quiet.

Her pat becomes a gentle shake. "Casey? You okay?"

"Yeah..." He sighs. "...this... this is permanent, you know... it's kind of finally hitting me that this is our life. I'm a sword, we're in a world of ponies... no more battles, gyms, teams... no more nothing. Just... living here, doing nothing."

"Don't think of it as nothing, think of it as having the time to do what you want." She floats in front of his eye, trying to cheer him up. "That doesn't sound so bad, right?"

He rolls his eye. "Yeah, if what you want to do isn't 'become a better trainer'."

"Well, there's nothing really saying you can't." She looks uncomfortable at her next words. "Pokemon naturally fight... and will probably continue to do so. You can help them train... and even train yourself. Your 'team' will just be your friends instead."

The sword notices her uncomfortable appearance, and before responding, he gently wraps his tassel around her like an arm. "I'm not going to make you fight, Anya. Or anyone else. Once we have everyone, we can just relax. I wasn't saying it's a bad thing; just that I'm gonna have trouble getting used to it."

"I can help you..." she murmurs as she leans into the ribbon.

"Why? You don't need to worry about me." He chuckles. "Just take care of yourself and enjoy not having to fight. I can handle my own problems. Always have."

She frowns. "You don't have to though... not when you have others."

"So you'd rather I chuck my problems off to you to solve?" He would raise an eyebrow if he had one.

Her eye narrows, one hand poking his steel. "Cooperation, teamwork, support. Not. Alone."

"'Teamwork' didn't exactly spell good news last time I trusted it," he spits back with a narrowed eye of his own.

She backs off, looking down. "You trusted us... you trusted me..."

Sighing, he pulls her in closer with his ribbon. "Sorry... we're just arguing about nothing here, really... I appreciate your concern, but getting used to this world isn't gonna be easy, with or without you... I mean, it's definitely easier with you, but I imagine even a year from now I'll wake up expecting to have four limbs and six Poke Balls."

She gives a small smile. "You could become an Aegislash to get arms, get some rocks and we'll paint them white and red."

He laughs at that. "Wouldn't be the same, but thanks. For now I just need the group of you around me and some time to get used to my sword-ness, and I'll be good as new."

Smiling happily once more, she nods, hugging his ribbon. "Okay."

Chapter 7: Found

The Froakie quickly backs away from the encroaching swarm, seeing only a wall of danger he wouldn't even want to deal with as a human alongside Geyser. The Beedrill all continue to buzz, about three or four of them flying right at Ryan while the others head for everyone else.

His legs tense, pupils going to pinpricks as he sees the coming right at him. His skin turns grey before he suddenly darts forward, smashing into one out of panic. The Beedrill he hits flies back, hitting the ground and not getting back up. The other three look at it for a second before starting to fire simultaneous Poison Stings.

Unsure what else to do against the barrage, Ryan relies on instinct as he uses another Quick Attack, this one to dodge around before hitting another one. This next Beedrill also goes down, and the two remaining quickly start to use Focus Energy.

Croaking in alarm, the frog tries to think of how to get to them in the air in time. Bracing himself, he jumps, smacking one in the head with Pound. He succeeds in hitting, but not taking it down; now with him in close quarters, it starts a Fury Attack right on him. Unable to dodge in th air, Ryan takes the brunt of the hits, thudding into the ground afterwards.

"Ow..." Still on his back, he puffs out his cheeks, skin turning back blue as he launches a Bubble attack at them both, glad it doesn't involve moving much. The one he had already weakened goes down quickly, but the second just taps its needles together and begins to fly at him.

It gets hit before it can do anything, Liu having kept through the air and struck him with a powerful kick. He lands next to Ryan, holding his paws up in a defensive pose. The hit is enough, and it goes down immediately. However, this just attracts more Beedrill over to them; three more fly in, already powered up from Focus Energy.

"Oh great..." Ryan works back to his feet, disheartened, but not panicked anymore.

Meanwhile, less than twenty feet away, three Ghost-types are struggling in their own way. Thanks to Harold being a bigger target, Anya having a type advantage, and Casey having immunity to their poison, more of the Beedrill have chosen to swarm around them to try and even the odds.

Harold finds himself taking most hits, which doesn't help due to his weakness as is, and he can only retaliate through Feint Attack and the occasional Wood Hammer.

Anya seems to be conflicted about something, looking between her teammates and the swarm. Casey, just trying to swipe at as many as he can, looks back at her. "Anya, come on! We need fire!"

Swallowing, she nods, drawing in a breath before aiming at the swarm and unleashing a surprisingly powerful Flamethrower, given her size. This gets several of the creatures down and out, but only infuriates the rest; several turn and start launching Poison Stings at her, or flying in close to fight.

Yelping, she uses a quick Minimize, shrinking herself slightly as she dodges away. Sure enough, they miss, flying right into another Wood Hammer attack.

Harold chuckles tiredly. "This will be a challenge, it seems."

"No kidding... why did it have to be a swarm?" Anya pops back to her normal size, unleashing a Fire Spin around them, though making sure to keep it away from Harold.

"Because that's how they travel," Casey replies, staying away from the attack as well. "I'm not really surpri-"

He gets cut off by the shiny Beedrill flying in... and right past him, heading for the Trevenant instead. Harold can barely react before he gets a faceful of point blank Poison Sting.

"Harold!" Anya shouts out, sending a reflexive Confuse Ray at the shiny. The Beedrill manages to avoid it, but barely, and is properly shooed off.

A now-bruised and angry Harold turns after it, light starting to gather in his mouth. "I humbly request the two of you keep them off me for a moment."

Casey nods, going after the nearby Beedrill immediately with an Aerial Ace. "On it."

The Litwick nods as well, multiple Will-O-Wisps shooting out of her flame and hovering around them like sentinels. The Beedrill unlucky enough to be close by soon are targeted by the flames, screeching and swiping at themselves as they start to burn, while the others hover a distance away.

The shiny one, watching his friends go down like flies, lets out a growl and starts flying back in, only to be suddenly sniped by Harold's Solar Beam.

Midnight, sitting off to the side, watches all of this with a mixed sense of awe and fear. When the big wasp gets hit, she lets out a cheer, grinning like a fool. "That was amazing!"

Harold chuckles and bows to her before resuming fighting the other ones. The shiny has yet to be defeated, but for now, it retreats back a distance. However, its hit did too much damage; the other Beedrill continue attacking the Trevenant, and he starts slumping, attacks coming out far slower.

Seeing this, Anya looks to the sword who continues to battle. "Casey... we need to end this quickly!" She lets loose another Flamethrower.

Looking at all the Beedrill still up, as well as the obviously tougher shiny, the Honedge sighs. "I don't think that's likely!"

Harold slowly turns around, seeing the shiny start to come in, and chuckles weakly. Looking up, his eyes meet with the Beedrill's and flash. For a second, neither of them move.

And then one more Beedrill hits him in the back with Twinneedle, and he collapses.

There's silence for a split moment after he falls, as though in respect. Then, a resounding clang fills the air. The offending Pokémon falls to the ground, an ebony hoof resting on its head. The mare it belongs to glares at the shiny wasp in silent fury, a frying pan gripped tightly between her teeth.

The green wasp barely even gets to look back at her before its hovering falters, and with a fading buzz, it falls to the ground.

Midnight blinks blankly at this, her confusion evident and the pan blocking her speech slightly. "...the huck?"

"Destiny Bond." Casey floats over quickly. "If the user gets knocked out within a certain time limit, whoever they use it on gets knocked out with them." He looks behind them; most of the Beedrill are gone, but at least ten or so remain on their side, five more with Ryan and Liu. "Frog! Kid! Bring them over here!"

Hearing this, Ryan Quick Attacks over, hoping his speed will keep him from getting hit. The jackal glances over at the sword before dashing over, keeping a eye out for any attacks. He skids to a stop in front of them, looking at the enemies around them. "What do we do, Mister Casey?"

"You get behind me and help lure them in close. No ranged attacks." The sword chuckles, tassel glowing for a moment. "I learned a new move, and I need to use it before time's up."

"Yes, sir." He scoots back into the group, where he finally sees Harold. Both he and the mare crouch down, trying to see if they can help.

She has a few words to say, though. "How do you plan to do that, exactly? Say that their moms are fat and ugly?"

"That's how I start fights, not get out of them." He watches the Beedrill start flying in, and quickly, he floats up to meet them. His tassel flashes brightly, and he swings himself. "Retaliate!"

He hits one Beedrill, knocking it all the way back into the forest. The air from the slash itself hits all the other Beedrill, doing enough damage to send almost all of them right down to the ground. Those that stay conscious quickly see how outnumbered they are, and turning away, they fly back into the forest.

Midnight watches them flee, stunned for a brief moment. "...well. That works, I guess." She glances down at Harold, her brow furrowing slightly. "...but what about him? Will he be alright?" She presses her head against his chest, her ear flicking.

Casey sighs, coughing rather than replying. He drops to the ground, staying balanced on his point, but not floating anymore.

"Casey!" Anya floats to his side, holding him up.

He looks at her. "I'm fine, Anya..." His tassel goes limp. "Just... tired."

Moving over to the haunted tree's side with the other two, Ryan pokes him. "Harold? You still with us?" A low groan comes from the tree, but he doesn't move or speak otherwise.

The mare quickly stands, glancing from one to the other and back, concerned. "...we need to get out of this forest. Get them back to camp to rest." She turns to Ryan, hopeful. "Any ideas how we can do that?"

Not getting any particularly revolutionary ideas, the Froakie rubs the back of his head before grabbing one of Harold's branches and trying to pull him. Surprisingly, he doesn't drag too slowly. Smiling, he keeps pulling, Anya doing something similar as she floats over, holding Casey by his ribbon.

"...oh." Midnight follows along, frying pan beneath her wing, as Liu tries to also help the Honedge along. "I guess bark isn't exactly heavy, huh?"

Casey sighs, being dragged along as well. "I feel the need to remind you that I am not unconscious."

"If you can't float, you're being carried. End of discussion." The candle huffs at him.

"...could at least..." Those are the last words out of Casey before he trails off, his eye drooping closed.

Her voice is soft. "Go ahead and rest... I'll keep you safe." He doesn't respond, his eye shutting completely as he obeys.

Morning comes, the dawn awakening the camp of unusual travelers after their rather intense fight just before sleep. Movement is sluggish, but strong.

Anya yawns, raising her hands up as she starts to float. Turning to Casey, who she had slept next to, she shakes his hilt lightly. "Casey?"

He groans in response and turns over, having slept on his flat side rather than leaning against a wall.

"Time to wake up..." She shakes him once more, even tapping his blade.

Another groan. "Fine... I'm getting up..." Despite what he says, he makes no movement.

Turning to a classic, Anya pokes him once more. "If you don't get up, you won't get breakfast..."

A rock clatters across his blade, the mare's voice coming soon after. "The sooner we get up and pack this stuff away, the sooner we can leave to find your teammates. So get up, sleepy."

"Both of you have made a dangerous enemy for life and will regret your decisions in due time." He wiggles around, finally floating up. "Until then, good morning."

"Good morning." The candle hugs his hilt gently. "Glad to see you have as good of recovery as a normal Pokémon."

"I'm glad too." He hugs back. "What did I miss?"

"Just the rest of us going to sleep, nothing important."

He rolls his eye. "I meant this morning. Assuming you’ve been awake longer than me."

"Only for a few seconds." She shrugs.

"Nothing, then. Got it." He looks around. "Where's everyone else?"

"Harold's over there." She points to the tree. "And the other three are in the tent."

He looks over at the Trevenant. While definitely not still asleep, Harold has planted his roots and gone dormant, presumably to rest in the sun while waiting. "Got it." He floats over to the tent and pokes his upper body inside.

The two that are awake look down at the one still sleeping, sitting on either side of him. Midnight glances up at the entrance and smiles softly. "Morning. Are we still 'enemies', or will breakfast change your mind about that?" The Riolu looks up at them, mildly confused by her wording.

"We'll see," he says mysteriously. "Frog still asleep?"

"It seems that way." She glances down at Ryan, frowning slightly. "I guess he was more exhausted than we thought... Liu, please don't poke him." He quickly withdraws his paw, embarrassed.

"And he didn't even have a weakness," Casey grumbles. "Well, wake him up. We need to go soon."

The jackal looks at him for a few moments, then turns to the sword, hopeful. "Does anyone on your team know Wake-Up Slap?"

"No."

"Oh..."

Fortunately for the frog, it appears the slap is not needed as he stirs. His large eyes open, looking around him. "...it's a little odd to wake up to three people standing over me."

"Is it?" Liu looks to the sword, confused. "I don't think I've had that happen, before..."

"It's more common for trainers who actually have a team," Casey remarks to the frog, ignoring Liu's comment.

"Ah... that probably explains it." He sits up, looking at all of them. "So... first order of business, today?"

"We move out." With that, the sword floats out of the tent.

"...I guess he really wants to bring his team back together." Midnight looks to the other two, as if expecting a response, before facehoofing, groaning quietly. "Right... one-way communication..."

Ryan pats her hoof reassuringly, giving her a smile. "He's not the only one. Besides, I can find ways to talk."

"Mister Ryan?" The Riolu speaks up, gently poking his shoulder. "I think we only brought that pad. No feather."

"...body language it is." The Froakie sighs, patting Midnight's hoof once more. "Thanks kid, probably saved me a lot of digging in the packs with that."

"You're welcome!" He grins, then steps outside, leaving the two of them alone.

Once the flap closes, the mare gingerly picks up the frog, hugging him to her chest. "We might see your friend, soon... are you excited?"

He nods, smiling widely as he feels his small form embraced. "You have no idea. He might even hug you."

"I'm glad you're happy." She nuzzles his head, giggling brightly. "I hope you'll find time to spend with me, after." Her wing curls inward, tickling his nose with a feather.

He squirms against her, chuckling as he tries to get away from her feathers. "Definitely."

She puts him back down, smiling and patting the ground with a hoof. "Would you like to help me put this stuff up?"

He nods, hopping around and beginning to stow things.

A short time after noon, the group finally reaches their destination. The falls require no introduction, announcing themselves with the powerful roars and hisses of their falling flows, visible for even far away. Both ponies and Pokémon can be seen, the ponies acting like tourists, while the Pokémon are mostly Water-types who seem to have taken a shine to the place, lounging, diving, swimming, and above all, living in the falls.

Casey, almost unconsciously, moves closer to Anya. "Picking out a specific Blastoise here is gonna be along the lines of finding a needle in..." He trails off.

"A haystack?" Harold offers.

"No, it won't be that bad... more like finding a needle in a handful of hay." He pauses. "Except the hay is spread across an entire vacation spot."

Ryan's eyes are peeled as he scours the waters. "He'd be bigger than most... I could probably tell the moment I see him. Plus, he answers to his name. We can at least work with that..."

Liu raises a paw. "What if he can't hear you where he is?"

"Well, I wasn't exactly going to go around shouting it like looking for a lost dog." He hops forward a step. "Maybe... we could ask around for any Blastoise locations?"

"They are difficult to miss," Harold adds thoughtfully. "We should split up. Mister Ryan, you are a Water-type; perhaps you search the water, and the rest of us split up to search on land and ask around."

"Hmm... I'm alright with that idea." He nods. "I wonder if I can swim any better now that I'm a Water-type."

Midnight looks up, spreading her wings. "I could take to the skies... but I wouldn't know what I'm looking for."

"A big blue turtle with a brown shell and pipelike cannons coming from his shoulders," Casey replies bluntly.

"...somehow these things don't surprise me anymore." She shakes her head and takes off, leaving the Pokémon and their supplies on the ground.

Looking at the likely not water-proof bags, Ryan lets his gaze go back to them, then to the water. "I guess we'll meet up in a bit if we find anything?"

"I believe so." Harold nods. "I will return here in one hour, or if I locate Mister Geyser. You will likely be able to spot me, so consider this our meeting spot."

"Good luck, Ryan!" Anya waves a hand, eyeing the water herself, though with a different emotion.

"Thanks you guys!" With that said, the Froakie leaps into the water.

He immediately notices a difference from when he swam as a human. It's like he could feel a connection the the water, easily flitting around in it instead of forcing his way through. With a small, he goes just under the surface and starts to search.

Unfortunately, after an unknown amount of time of swimming, dipping his head up to take a breath, them peering down into the water to search, Ryan has nothing to show for his efforts. He sighs, a few bubbles escaping his mouth as he looks down, seeing many things, but not what he wants to.

However, something unusual still catches his eye. A small purple-pinkish shape, but not one you would normally see in those colors, on the bottom of the lake. He swims down towards it, curious. As he gets closer to the small Pokémon, he starts to hear muttering. The words are indistinguishable, but the voice is most definitely feminine.

He swims closer still, floating near the shape, which he now recognizes as a Mudkip. "Hello?"

She yelps, covering her head with her arms. "I'm sorry! I don't have any food!"

He jerks back at her sudden outburst. "Woah, woah, easy! I didn't say anything about food..."

She slowly peeks open an eye, clearly confused. "You're not... um... who are you?"

"Ryan." He swims down a little to rest on the bottom with her. "Who are you? Are you okay?"

She squirms in place, bowing her head slightly. "It's... it's nothing." She shyly smiles. "My name's Mindy... did your trainer give you your name, too?"

He shakes his head before tilting it a little. "No... my mom gave it to me. I didn't exactly have a trainer... probably would be pretty weird if I did, considering I am... well, was... one."

She blinks blankly at him. "...you're one of those humans who got changed?"

Ryan nods and smiles. "Yeah, I actually came here searching for my partner Pokémon. I'm worried about him, even if he can take care of himself."

"Oh?" The Mudkip drifts a bit closer. "Maybe I could help? I know this place really well..."

"Really?" He looks to her, surprised before he smiles happily. "That'd be great! Thank you! He's a Blastoise, so any of them you've seen would be helpful."

"You'll have to be more specific." She nervously laughs. "I've seen at least fifteen of them..."

"Oh dear... I didn't think there would be that many..." He stops, thinking. "I could call for him, but he might be sleeping... Gah, I don't know beyond just finding all of them and hoping we get lucky."

She considers him a moment before slowly nodding. "There's a couple places they tend to hang out." She points behind the frog. "A cave behind the waterfall..." She tilts her arm up diagonally. "...and a bank at the top of the falls. Does that help?"

Nodding, he replies. "Yes, it helps enormously. Thank you very much." Looking upward, his gaze goes towards the falls. "But how would I get up-" he cuts himself off as he sees the shimmering surface, on hand going to his throat as a few things click in place. His eyes dart to her, then to himself before he finally speaks. "Huh... didn't even notice I was breathing underwater... I probably should have guessed I could do that."

She gives him a strange look, backing up a step. "I... thought you were used to it, considering..."

"Not really... This is the first big body of water I've been in since we got to this world." He takes a few breaths of water. "Huh... cool."

Mindy doesn't react to this, at first due to how stunned she is, but then because of a loud splash. Yelping once more, she jumps toward a small ravine, soon disappearing from sight.

"Hey wait, come back!" Ryan swims after her, concerned.

He quickly gets outsped by a large Lanturn, swimming past him and after the Mudkip, a disconcerting grin on its face.

A grim frown forms on the Froakie's face. "I don't like where that is going..." He swims faster after the two. Fortunately, Mindy ducks into a narrow crevice, just barely wriggling in before the electric Pokémon can get to her.

The Lanturn growls. "You have to come out sooner or later!"

"Hey! What's going on?" Ryan catches up, swimming behind the Lanturn.

The Lanturn turns to him and shakes its head. "None of your business, Froakie."

"Please, I'm sorry!" She whimpers, the rock causing her voice to echo slightly. "I don't have any food! I-I gave you everything yesterday!"

The distress in her voice causes Ryan to narrow his eyes, his voice still calm. "Leave her alone."

"Excuse me?" The Lanturn chuckles. "As I said, this is none of your business. Get out of here, kid."

"No." Using Quick Attack, he darts around the partial Electric-type, bracing himself in front of the Mudkip's hiding place with his skin grey once more. "I won't let you hurt her."

Lanturn blinks, then rolls his eyes before a Spark shoots from his antenna, hitting the frog directly.

Crossing his arms in front of himself, the Froakie definitely feels the hit, but it lacks the... searing pain he expected from something super effective. Peeking a bit, he looks down at himself, seeing his grey coloring. "That should have knocked me out... unless... Protean?"

Rather than be confused as well, the Lanturn just swims in closer and unleashes another Spark. "I can do this all day, kid."

There's a small whimper from behind Ryan. "Please... you don't have to do this..."

"Shut up, Mindy," the Lanturn growls, not letting up.

"Ryan..." She gently touches his back. "It... it doesn't concern you... you don't have to hurt yourself for me..."

Bubbles spill from both the Froakie's mouth and his species' scarf of frubbles, floating upward as he cries out, feeling the attacks go all throughout him. He pants as a momentary respite comes. "Maybe not... but you don't deserve to feel this either..."

"So noble." The Lanturn's tone is practically dripping with sarcasm. Another Spark shoots out, this time followed by him tackling the frog against the wall.

"Gah!" Ryan's eyes roll back a bit, his body going limp, but still floating in front of the hole the Mudkip is hiding in.

"No!" She darts out of hiding, holding him gently. "Please! Stop hurting him!"

The part Electric-type narrows his eyes. "And why would I?"

"Because you have bigger problems," a deep voice says from behind him.

Sighing, the Lanturn turns. "What do you-" He immediately freezes.

A prime specimen of a Blastoise floats directly in front of the Lanturn, dwarfing the fish half his size. Though his cannons are stowed for the moment, his narrowed eyes suggest this might not be the case for long. A few scars can be seen on his skin itself, but his shell appears untouched.

He speaks once more. "Leave, or lose. Choose wisely."

The Lanturn hesitates for all of half a second before vanishing, a cloud of bubbles in his place.

Huffing a jet of water from his nostrils, the turtle's face softens as he looks at the two first-evolutions. "I heard the commotion. Are you alright, little one?"

"...I've been better..." She sighs, looking up to him and smiling nervously. "Of course... I've been much worse..."

"Good... I can't stand bullies." He looks over to the Froakie. "Your friend seems to have taken a bit of a beating... doesn't look like he'll be out for long, though."

"Yeah..." She blinks, then looks up to him, hopeful. "Could you... help me get him to the surface? He might panic if he woke up down here..."

Giving only a short strange look at this, the turtle Pokémon rotates until he is horizontal. "Rest on my shell. We'll surface and even head to the shore or anywhere else if you want."

She swims over and sits on his back, holding the frog in place. "That'd be very helpful. Thank you."

"You're welcome." The Blastoise rises, water rushing around them before they break the surface. The brown shell acts like an island for the two first evolutions.

As soon as the air replaced the water that had been around him, Ryan's form stirs slightly, a small groan coming from him.

Mindy gently pokes him, rolling him onto his side. "You're okay now... right?"

Their ride stays where it is, letting the two talk for now as the frog groans again, letting out a small cough. "A bit sore, definitely not energetic... other than that I feel strangely okay considering the beating I was getting."

"Well... you're white..." She prods him arm. "...does that have anything to do with it?"

"I don't think so..." Moving his mouth a bit, Ryan releases a small Bubble attack from his mouth into the air, his normal blue returning. "That settles that... looks like I have the Protean ability." Shaking his head, he sits up. "What happened anyway?"

"Well... he zapped you several times... Gai saved us... and then he took us to the surface..." She pats his shell, smiling warmly. "Thank you for that, again... sorry you have to bail me out so much..."

The big Pokémon chuckles. "It's my pleasure. I know you don't try to get in trouble."

Confused who she is talking to, and about, Ryan looks down, seeing the shell they are on. His eyes widen, his body springing into a sitting position as he looks toward the turtle's head. "Geyser?"

Blue ears flick as the final evolution turns towards him. "Hmm? How do you know my name? Did Mindy tell you?"

A brilliant smile appearing on his face, the frog jumps, despite his soreness, and hugs the big blue head. "It is you! I can't believe I found you! It's me, Ryan!"

Taken aback by all this, Geyser blinks. "That... is quite the claim."

Blinking himself, Ryan quickly responds, "When you were a Squirtle, your first scar came from a nasty fight with a Skarmory, just before you had your first big shell growth."

A big smile soon grows on the Blastoise's face as well, nuzzling his trainer. "It is you... Hah! What a coincidence!" He leans against the small form as best he can. “It’s good to be reunited with you.” The two say no more for the moment, embracing their closest companion with wide smiles on their faces, the hug saying what words are incapable of.

"Wow." Mindy smiles from her spot, shaking her head. "That was fortunate, wasn't it?"

"You have no idea..." Ryan laughs again as he squeezes Geyser.

The turtle, for his part, can only nuzzle as he swims. "I had heard from others around here about humans transforming. Seeing how I would be hard pressed to find you, I thought to stay here, doing what I could until you found me." He chuckles. "And here you are, a Froakie no less. It makes me proud to see you as a fellow Water-type."

"After traveling so long with you, I'm not sure I could have been any other type." Letting go, Ryan eases back onto the shell, looking at Mindy. "Hey... thanks."

She blinks, holding up her arms in surprise. "What are you thanking me for? I didn't do anything..."

"If I didn't meet you, I wouldn't have been able to find Geyser nearly as fast." He smiles at her. "So... thanks."

"...um... no problem?" She sheepishly smiles, unsure how to feel about being thanked.

Hoping he isn't pressing, Ryan continues as Geyser starts to swim vaguely towards shore, his small tail trailing behind them in the water. "Hey... how long has that bully been after you? Any idea why he was doing that?"

"...I... it's nothing... really..." She turns away from him. "T-Thanks for being concerned, though."

"I try to help when I hear anything going on, but as you saw, sometimes he gets to her still," Geyser comments.

"That's not right..." The frog huffs, but tries to look on the bright side. "But at least he's gone now."

"...I suppose." She sighs, pointing to a tree in the distance. "Can you drop me off near there?" The Blastoise nods, making a beeline for it at a steady pace.

Ryan, though, looks to her in slight surprise, his mouth turning downward. "Oh... are you leaving?"

"No, I just..." Mindy grimaces briefly, then shakes her head. "I figured it'd be best to-" Her voice catches in her throat, and she dashes behind the frog, trying to hide herself.

He looks towards where she had been facing, seeing only a lone Buneary hopping along the beach without a care in the world. Looking behind himself at her, he asks, "Umm... are you sure you're okay?"

"Perfectly fine!" The panicked tone of her voice contradicts her words, as well as the trembling of her body against his.

Slowly, he softly places his hand on her head. "Easy... no one is going to hurt you." Looking up, he takes another glance at the tree, noticing something. "This is actually where my friends and I are meeting up. Harold looks like he's taking a nap again."

"Nothing wrong with a good nap." Geyser starts to reach the shallows. "Glad to see you weren't just on your own this whole time."

Sure enough, Harold's eye is closed and his roots are planted in the ground. However, hearing the sound of something getting closer, he opens his eye to see the three Water-types, and he chuckles. "Welcome back, Mister Ryan. I see you found your friends."

"Found one, made another." He fondly pats the shell beneath him as Geyser walks onto shore. "This is Geyser," he leans slightly so Mindy can be a little more clearly seen, "and this is Mindy."

The Trevenant uproots himself and walks over, bowing as much as a tree can. "A pleasure to meet you both."

She simply stares in awe, her body tensing as if she's getting ready to flee. Again, Ryan puts his hand on her head. "It's okay. He's a good guy."

Geyser, meanwhile, nods at the tree. "Good to meet you. Thank you for helping keep my trainer safe."

Harold nods again. "It was no trouble. Though I would say the others had more of a hand in that than I did."

The Mudkip's head tilts to one side. "...trainer?"

Ryan looks to her. "Yeah, Geyser was my Pokémon partner. He was actually my only Pokémon." Thinking a moment, he looks down at the Blastoise. "Though I guess now, we're just best friends, huh?" Geyser chuckles and nods.

"But... aren't you..." She frowns slowly backing away from him. "N-Never mind..."

Harold, meanwhile, simply watches the exchange passively. "Trainers with only one Pokémon are not very common. It is very difficult, but I suppose that only strengthened your bond."

Geyser’s head turns, watching the two smaller Pokémon as Ryan looks to the Mudkip with confusion. "Mindy? You don't have to tell me what's wrong, but I don't like seeing you all spooked like this. Let me help." He takes a step towards her.

She takes a step back in response. When he tries this again, she does the same once more. "I'm fine. Really."

Silent for a moment, he crouches down on his stomach in a submissive posture. "You're not... but I guess you aren't comfortable anymore. Be careful though, you're a step away from falling off the shell."

Just as he says this, something comes from the treeline and strikes her in the chest. "Eep!" She falls backwards, landing not in the water but on the shore, the air driven from her lungs from the impact.

Ryan immediately jumps to her side, concerned, looking over her to see if she is bleeding or anything.

Meanwhile, Geyser stands up to his full height, scanning the area before seeing an Omanyte and Kabuto with rocks held, looking guilty from the stray projectile in their game. They scamper away quickly.

She slowly sits up, groaning quietly and looking at the item now on her lap. "...is this a Hard Stone?"

"Is that really important? Did you land badly? Anything hurt excessively?" Ryan looks at her anxiously, feeling a bit of deja-vu from when Midnight hurt her hoof, only he doesn't know what is hurt.

"I'm fine." She sighs, putting the item off to the side and standing back up. "I've had worse... thanks for your concern, though."

He nods, not knowing that Geyser now watches with a thoughtful gaze. "I take care of my friends."

Mindy lowers her gaze, whispering to herself. "...friends... right..."

"Ryan!" There's the flapping of wings, and then the ebony mare is there beside them, scooping up the frog and gingerly holding him. "What happened? Why do you look like toast?"

"I look like toast?" He repeats, looking down at the splotches of black on his skin. "Oh... umm... nothing you need to worry about."

"Here, let me just..." She reaches back, feeling around a bit before frowning. "...right, not wearing my bags..."

He croaks, getting her attention before pointing downward to the bags surrounded by the three Pokémon all looking up at them.

"Ah, thanks!" She brings him over, reaching inside and pulling out a cloth. As she starts to rub it over his cheeks, she remarks, "How you got dirty like this is beyond me... but at least you're safe."

Geyser chuckles as the frog is cleaned up. "Found yourself a second mother in this world?"

Ryan closes his eyes slightly, enjoying the feeling. "In some respects... in others I'm something cute she likes to pamper. I was also her medic at one point."

She finishes up, inspecting him a moment before turning to Harold, concerned. "Is he hurt, in any way?"

"From what I can see, nothing that some rest will not take care of," the tree replies.

"Good." She glances over to the turtle, smiling warmly. "Hi. Are you Ryan's friend?"

He smiles and nods, offering a hand to her. "I am Geyser. It is a pleasure to meet you."

Midnight offers a hoof in return. "Nice to meet you... sorry, but I don't think Casey or Harold ever mentioned what your name is."

Looking to the tree as he shakes her hoof, the Blastoise asks. "There is a language barrier?"

"Ponies do not understand most Pokémon," Harold explains. "Ghost-types can communicate in a different way, hence why myself and Master Casey can speak with them. I believe Psychic-types could do it as well." He turns to the mare. "This is Mister Geyser. The Mudkip is Miss Mindy."

"Mudkip?" She looks over her shoulder, spotting the purple Pokémon trying to pose as a rock. "...you mean her?"

"Yes, the shy one." The Trevenant chuckles. "Do not be afraid, Miss Mindy. She is a friend." Ryan beckons her closer as well.

"...right..." She slowly moves forward, but stops a couple yards away. "...what should I say, if she can't understand me?"

"Just smile and wave or something." He wiggles out of Midnight's grasp, hopping over to Mindy's side to give her support. "She's very nice."

She shuffles her little feet for a moment before looking up at her, smiling weakly. "Hello... nice to meet you?"

The mare looks down at her, an eyebrow raised. She moves closer to the tree, whispering next to the lone eye she can see. "...something eating at her? She looks like she got kicked in the gut..."

"She just seems shy," Harold replies quietly. "Though perhaps we missed something..."

"Maybe..." She pulls away, giving a warm smile of her own to the uniquely-colored Pokémon. "So, Mindy, was it? Are all Mudkips such an interesting shade of violet?"

"Not all," Harold intervenes with a chuckle. "Most are blue. In fact, barely a fraction of the Mudkip population is this color. All Pokémon have some sort of rare 'shiny' variation."

"Yeah..." The Mudkip in question sighs, turning away. "...rare..."

Ryan looks to her once more, again knowing something is wrong, but bringing it up never seems to help right now. He simply moves a little closer, putting his head in her line of sight and giving her a smile.

"I believe Master Casey should be back soon with Miss Anya," the Trevenant adds, changing the subject. "Mister Liu should return soon as well. I suggest we wait here for them."

"More friends?" Geyser chuckles. "How big of a group did you find while I was gone?"

Ryan just laughs sheepishly. "Stuff just happens." A glance goes back to his new troubled friend.

She notices, and waves a hand at him. "Yes. Stuff does. Sometimes, you can't help but go along with it."

Chapter 8: Unfinished business

Later that night, the whole group has come back together around a campfire, just barely inside the boundaries of the falls. The situation is much like the previous night's, but with the addition of two more Water-types.

Harold, naturally, has rooted himself several yards away from the fire. Liu is resting near the base of his trunk, having settled in soon while camp was setting up. Casey, who had gone silent upon being introduced to Geyser, simply sits between Anya and Midnight with his eye focused on the flames.

Geyser and Ryan sit together, the larger Pokémon laying flat on his stomach while the smaller one leans against his sturdy shell. It took no time at all for him to find the one particular section of the shell that contours nicely for leaning comfortably. The shiny Pokémon, however, has settled in the crook of Geyser's arm, resting her head on the limb as her eyes dart about the vicinity.

"...you know, for a blade, you're oddly comfortable near a fire," Midnight points out. Casey glances at her, then back to the fire, not responding. She groans, rubbing her nose with a hoof. "...look, I know you enjoy being the silent moody type, but you need to learn to open up to others."

"I've opened up plenty." His voice is low, as if he still wants to be quiet.

The mare glances over to the candle, then back to him, concerned. "Is it because Anya's nearby?"

"No."

"Then why are you suddenly being so quiet?"

He glances at Geyser, then back to the fire. "...my brother had a Blastoise."

Midnight sighs, wrapping a wing around the sword. "Don't worry. You'll see him again."

"...no, I won't," Casey replies after a moment of silence. "At least, hopefully not for a very, very long while."

"Come on." She nudges him. "Surely you can put aside some petty differences? He's your brother, after all."

He looks at her for a moment. "...yeah. He was."

"...any particular reason you're using past tense?" Her jovial smile falls, a worried frown taking its place.

"...you have death on this world, right?"

She gives him a strange look now, not liking where this is going. "...yeah? It's part of life, isn't it?"

He nods. "Barry had a Blastoise, a Luxray, and I don't even know what else. When I took Anya for safety's sake, he took my father's Zorua, Mercury." He pauses. "...the Rockets never caught me. They caught him, though."

The mare grimaces, picking up a small bag. "...I see... sorry to hear about that..." She holds up a hoof, a fluffy white item resting on it. "...want one?"

"...sure." He sighs, holding out his tassel halfheartedly. "What is it with sitting around a campfire prompting me to reveal all my dark secrets to you?"

"Is it because fires temper metal?" She places the marshmallow on his tassel, taking a few for herself.

Casey actually chuckles a bit at this. "Funny." He pops the treat into his nonexistent mouth.

"...that is so weird to watch." She holds up a sugary morsel, waiting for the right moment.

He notices her doing this and decides to humor her. "It was even weirder to learn how to do."

She tosses it in on the last word, nodding to herself. "I can imagine."

He downs the marshmallow, chuckling. "Am I just your target practice or something?"

"No." She smirks, tossing a couple more. "This is just fun to do."

He shrugs with his tassel and continues eating them as she throws them. "Good thing I can't put on weight. That was always a concern of mine."

Anya offers a comment from next to them. "You didn't seem to have problems with it back on Earth." A berry gets tossed her way. Her mouth opens and she catches it, giggling. "Thank you."

Midnight smiles, getting the gist of it. "No problem."

Casey, meanwhile, shrugs again. "Not after I got you on my team. I was a lot more self-conscious before then. Guess I just let myself go."

"You did have other things to worry about..." the candle comments.

"Meh. I blame having to stay around Saffron City for the most part rather than traveling." He holds up one of the white treats. "Marshmallow?"

"Yes please." She leans her head down. "Toast it a little?"

He holds the marshmallow over her head. "Heh... remember when we first camped out? There weren't enough trees to get wood for a proper fire, so I roasted a marshmallow over your head just like this... you got really indignant about that."

"Then I started getting some too." As it starts getting past golden, she nabs it. "It's like a treat for doing it that I came to like."

Casey pats her on the back with his tassel. "You're the only one besides Derek on the team who actually likes human food, you know that?"

She leans against the ribbon. "To be fair... most of the team doesn't care too much about what they eat since they can absorb what they want."

"Yeah, but still, it's cute to see you have a sweet tooth." He wraps the tassel around her a bit more like a blanket.

Smiling, she snuggles into it. "I did try and like hot chocolate once..."

"Well, if this place has winter, no reason not to try it again." He looks to Midnight. "...it has winter, right?"

The mare nods her head, watching the small flame on her head. "It does... I won't have to worry about you catching on fire, will I?"

"Nah. We're both careful. It's the uncontrollable fires I don't like." He glares at the campfire.

"If you're sure..." She shrugs, taking a few marshmallows and tossing them into her mouth. "I just don't want you to get hurt, even on accident."

He chuckles. "Thanks for caring, at least."

Anya peeks her one visible eye open at this, looking at Midnight a moment before pulling the cloth tighter around herself.

Casey blinks his eye. "...Anya, is everything okay?"

"Just getting comfortable." She wraps the ribbon around herself almost like she's a spool.

He hesitates before chuckling and letting the subject go. "Alright."

Meanwhile, across the flickering flames, another conversation tries to begin. Ryan looks over to the purple-pink form against his friend, unused to seeing such a thing. Something else is what's bothering him, though.

Scooting back a bit so he is sitting straighter, he speaks up. "Umm... Mindy? Are you feeling any better?" Geyser opens his eyes at this, looking between the two small water-types.

She curls up a bit tighter at this, pressing just a hint closer to the shell beside her. "I'm okay."

Not exactly the lively conversation he wanted, he tries again after a minute. "So... how did you meet the big guy here?" He pats Geyser's shall on one of the plates concealing the cannons within.

She still doesn't turn to him, but her answer is longer than before. "He protected me."

When the turtle doesn't elaborate, the former trainer makes a guess. "More bullies?"

"A group." She sighs, tucking her head beneath the larger Pokémon's torso. "One from before..."

Watching her burrow deeper, Ryan feels a small pang. "Oh... sorry... the Lanturn alone was bad enough."

She finally looks to him, if only with one eye, full of confusion and doubt. "...why are you sorry?"

"Because you went through what you did." At the slightest movement from Geyser's head motioning for him to go on, he does. "I'm sorry for the situation as a whole, because I don't think anyone should have to go through that... especially gentle souls like you seem to be."

She observes him for a moment more before turning away. "Thanks, but..." She trails off, shuddering silently. When she speaks again, her voice hitches in her throat. "You... you don't have any idea..."

"Mindy..." He watches as Geyser holds onto her a little tighter before sighing. "No... I probably don't... but that doesn't mean I don't want to help."

"...another one to disappoint..." She groans, shaking her head and burying herself even more against Geyser's side.

Seeing her trying to hide herself, he looks down. "Well... we came here to get Geyser. Now that we've found him, we'll probably try to head back tomorrow, or soon at least. If you want... you could come with us. Maybe make a fresh start, well, another one at least, maybe leave behind bad memories of this place?"

There's a long pause, just enough for him to think she's passed out, before she answers. "...can I sleep on it?"

"Of course. No rush." He actually smiles at this, curling up against Geyser. "Makes a good firm sleeping spot, huh?" Huffing once, Geyser sweeps him up with his other arm, holding one of them in each.

"...I actually find him comfortable."

"Yeah... it only gets better with time as you learn all the good spots on him." Still he snuggles into Geyser's arm. "This one's new though... I like it."

The only response he gets is soft breathing, as the Mudkip has fallen asleep.

The sun rises the next morning to various sleeping forms, including the small group that had assembled the previous day. While the three Water-types sleep in a group and Liu naps at the base of a dormant Harold's tree, a tent has been set up for the remaining three members.

Inside, a single sleeping bag has been set up, on which Midnight lies. A few feet away against the edge had been where Casey was, but at some point during the night, he had been dragged over and is now being snuggled by the sleeping mare. The last one, Anya, sleeps standing up just beside where her trainer-turned-Honedge had been, feeling the lack of a tassel around her as she begins to stir.

Her visible eye opening, she looks around. Seeing the new sleeping arrangements, her face goes blank while her flame flickers between her usual cool blue and an angry red. After a minute, she snorts a bit of hot air and exits the tent, situating herself in the remnants from the fire last night. Taking a deep breath, she breathes out slowly, enveloping herself in flames as though the campfire was never put out. The heat calms her as her form can be seen within the flames, awaiting the others to awaken.

One is awake sooner than she expects, a blue head peering over a nearby log. He watches her for a few seconds, then vaults over the fallen trunk, speaking into the flames. "I'm sorry, Miss Anya, but... wouldn't that melt you?"

The flames die down a little as she sees him. "If I was really just a candle, it would. But, being a Fire-type and Ghost-type gives me plenty of leeway. As long as I don't use an actual attack on myself, it doesn't even leave a mark."

Behind Liu, a familiar Trevenant approaches as well, having awoken and uprooted himself when he felt the Riolu leave. "Good morning, Miss Anya. Are you well?"

Thinking about the questions as the flames flicker around her, she nods after a moment. "Yes... I think I might be, now."

"Now?" Harold settles down by the fire carefully. "Is something the matter?"

She eases the heat for him as she shakes her head slowly. "No, not really the matter... I just had a little surprise this morning. It's probably nothing... and I doubt it'll matter in a few minutes."

"What surprise?" His tone becomes one of worry. "Did something happen to Master Casey or Miss Midnight?"

"Yes, but nothing bad. No need to fret." She waves a waxy hand at him.

"...if you are certain."

Liu tilts his head to one side, an ear flicking slightly. "...then why are you annoyed?"

She flinches slightly, looking away. "Probably just me being silly... I hope so..."

"Miss Anya..." Harold sighs. "For a ghost... you are not very good at fooling others."

She huffs. "It's not like I can use Will-o-Wisp to distract you two like most of my kind can." Sighing, the flames die down to dull embers at her base. "Casey... moved during the night."

Harold's eye widens. "He left?"

"I said he 'moved'." She shrinks a little. "He went to sleep next to me with his ribbon around me... and when I woke up he was being cuddled by Midnight instead."

The Trevenant seems to calm down a bit at this. "Ah... I can see why this may have irked you." His voice sounds a little teasing.

Try as she might, she can't be mad at him for that comment. "Yeah... am I being silly for feeling this way?"

"I suppose that depends on if he moved by choice." Harold chuckles.

Off to the side, they hear the sound of the tent flap opening, and Casey floats there, eye half-open. "I didn't."

A bit of pink tinge comes to the orange flames around Anya before she lifts out of the firepit and floats over to him. "Good morning!"

He looks at her and nods. "Morning. Sorry about last night. I think Midnight's used to having the frog to cuddle with, so she just grabbed me while I was asleep as a replacement." Hearing this, Harold just chuckles again.

"Oh... well, that's alright." She smiles sweetly at him as she peeks towards the tent. "Is she awake too?"

"Not right now. I managed to slip away, so I don't know if that'll make her wake up sooner, but right now she's still asleep." He gently wraps his tassel around her again in the closest thing to a hug he can do.

The flame on her head crackles slightly as she smiles and curls up next to him in the ribbon, a content smile on her face. "She can take her time if she wants..."

"I'd have no problem with that." He chuckles and heads back over to the other two with her. "So I'm guessing the Water-types are still asleep?"

"I think so?" Liu glances over to the group a distance away, unsure. "I haven't seen any of them move from that spot, anyways."

"Well, we can worry about that when Midnight's up." Casey glances back at the tent before sighing and looking over the group. "Which is hopefully soon. I have no clue where we're going next, or if we're dragging the Mudkip with us."

"From what little I heard, the poor thing seems troubled," Anya quips.

Casey chuckles. "Aren't we all..."

Right as he finishes that thought, a pink blur dashes between them, colliding with the Blastoise. The form quickly tries to burrow underneath the larger Pokémon, the sound of footsteps coming from behind them.

As the Mudfish Pokémon disappears under the shell where Blastoise has retracted into, Anya blinks. "What was that about?"

"Maybe she stepped on a twig," Casey remarks, ignoring the approaching footsteps.

Liu's ear twitches, and he turns to the sound, quickly taking a defensive stance. "Or maybe she was being chased."

A trio of Pokémon approach the group, glints in their eyes that promise no good can come of their actions. Leading them is a Grovyle, its species’ typical twig tucked into a corner of its mouth as it walks with a cocky stride. Behind him walks a Hitmonchan, its eyes narrowed and a smirk on its face. Finally, a Lanturn floats a little bit off the ground in the group, anger clearly smouldering in its gaze.

The Grass-type stops near the group, but instead turns to its followers. "Spread out. She can't have gone far."

"Hey." Casey floats closer, letting Anya go. "Looking for someone?"

"Yeah." He looks the sword in the eye, switching the twig to the other side of his mouth. "Little pink bitch that probably zipped by here."

"Huh. Figures someone like you would be scaring away all the girls," the Honedge remarks with just a trace of annoyance. "Haven't seen her. Get lost."

The Grovyle smirks. "You must be blind to not see an eyesore like her. We'll be looking anyway." Over near the dormant shell, a certain frog groggily wakes up, stretching.

"No, you won't," Casey states simply. "This is our campsite, like it or not. If you want to go chasing pink girls, go hunt a Luvdisc or something. We're not dealing with this crap right now."

"If you get out of our way, we'd already be gone. As it stands, all this is doing is making you look suspicious." His eyes narrow.

Meanwhile, Ryan yawns and hops over towards the voices. "What's going on guys?"

The Lanturn glares at the frog, teeth gritted in annoyance. "You again. You trying to hide the bitch?"

Hitmonchan turns to the Lanturn. "You know this guy?"

Sensing the hostility, Harold approaches. "I suggest the three of you leave."

"I think you'd have a better chance of Cresselia giving you a kiss." The blue fish slaps the ground with a fin. "If he's here, then that bitch must be here, too!"

Casey rolls his eye. "You know, just saying 'bitch' over and over again doesn't make you tough or intimidating. It makes you seem stupid." He floats back and forth like a pendulum, speaking in a mocking tone. "Bitch, bitch, bitchy bitchy bitch! Bitch, bitchiness, bitching, bitchery! I can do it too! Look at me, bitches!"

"Yeah, well, you're a son of a bitch." He huffs, gliding past him as he heads towards the frog. "You're going to tell us where she is, and then you'll stay out of this. Got it?"

Fighting the urge to run from the angry partial Electric-type, Ryan swallows and holds his ground. His eyes narrow as a bubbly growl comes from him. "You won't get to her." Remembering the beating from yesterday, he Quick Attacks the Pokémon right between the eyes, skin changing to grey in mid-jump. He recoils from the strike, sent sprawling across the ground.

Taking the opportunity to fight back, Casey suddenly turns, dropping its sheath and striking the Grovyle with a sudden Fury Cutter. The Grass-type staggers back a few steps with a growl before bouncing back forward, shouting out, "Pursuit!" The leaves on his arms glow an eerie black as they connect with the sword.

Casey takes the hit and flies towards the ground... only to disappear into his own shadow.

Grovyle has enough time to say two words. "Well, crap."

He is immediately struck from behind by the Shadow Sneak attack when Casey pops out. "Bitch!"

Meanwhile, the Lanturn lays there for a moment, its body twitching, before slowly getting back up, fire in its eyes. "You just sealed your fate, fool." He sets his fins firmly on the ground and fires wavy, violet rings at the Froakie.

Ryan holds his ground, bracing himself for the force of an attack, only to crack open his eyes when none comes. He immediately regrets this as the world swirls around him, causing him to fall off balance and even have trouble sitting there. "W-What..."

"Confuse Ray." He floats up to him, smirking gleefully. "That should keep you from moving for a bit." He tilts his head up, a dark cloud forming over Ryan's head. "You think you can survive this?"

Trying to focus, Ryan struggles to aim at the blue blur. His hand glows white as he flails around, ducking and diving randomly against his will as he tries to Pound the Lanturn.

The partial Electric-type smacks him on the head and backs up, giving the frog a disappointed stare. "Really?" A bright bolt of lightning strikes the ground right next to Ryan, and the Lanturn chuffs, shaking his head. "Damn it, I missed."

Out of danger for a second, the Froakie holds a hand to his head, shaking it and trying to clear his head. "Come on, focus... you're outmatched..."

Seeing this, his foe takes a deep breath, spitting out water onto his face right after. Still Normal-type from his Protean ability, Ryan lacks the natural resistance to the Scald attack a Froakie would normally have. The water sends him barreling backwards along the ground.

"There. That's better." The Lanturn nods, the cloud forming once more. "Now hold still. I hate to miss."

Immediately, a large branch crashes into the ground mere inches from the Lanturn, the branch leading up to a glaring Trevenant. "As do I. Pity."

He simply turns to the taller Pokémon, the ball on his head glowing bright blue. "Fuck off." He blasts Harold in the eye with his beam, a manic grin on his face.

When the Ice Beam fades, Harold continues to stand with the same expression on his face. "Ouch. I suppose." He lifts his branch and slams down once again with a Wood Hammer, this time not missing. When he raises it back up, there is an indent in the ground, the blue fish effectively buried by his attack.

Meanwhile, Ryan stops tumbling, his skin an angry red in spots, and not from Protean. "Argh!" He lets out a shout as he lands on one of them, feeling worse than the worst sunburn he's ever gotten. Easing himself up, he uses a combination of Bubble and his frubbles to try and ease the sting.

Harold turns to him, gaze becoming more of worry. "Are you alright, Mister Ryan?"

"Ow, umm... I'm conscious so that's an improvement over the last time I met that guy..." He gingerly hops over, wincing every time. "How do you guys take beatings like this?" One eye looks over at the still dormant shell, noting no exit holes from within the mud underneath.

"Training, determination, and a higher level," the Trevenant says with a mild chuckle. "Let's see if we can get you some berries for your burn..."

"Or you can just chill." A wall of ice hits both of them in the back, the fish climbing back out of the hole he was forced into. "Isn't that an ice idea?"

Once more, Ryan finds himself on the receiving end of an attack. The freezing wind tosses him a short distance away, though when he lands, a surprising sigh of relief escapes him along with the groan. "Ahh... that feels nice..."

"Stop liking it, idiot!"

Harold takes the hit similarly, stumbling only slightly before turning to the Lanturn, eye flashing green. A similarly-colored aura comes off of his body and briefly envelopes the part Electric-type. He flinches at this, but, when nothing seems to have happened, he smirks, then hocks up a large sphere, aiming for his eye once more.

This time, Harold ducks before disappearing into his shadow. The Lanturn lets out a loud string of curses, as his following Confuse Ray just barely misses the Trevenant and, instead, hits Ryan in the face.

As the world starts to spin once more, the frog groans. "Not again..." Slightly more prepared than last time, he braces himself on the ground. Aiming for the spinning blur, he launches into a Quick Attack.

He is launched through the air, screeching at the frog as he sails between the two Fighting-types. "Lucky shot!"

The Hitmonchan, who had been dueling with the Riolu at this time, pauses for a second as he watches his friend go by. "...wow."

Liu looks over at the sprawling Pokémon, then to the boxer, an eyebrow raised. "...is he always like that?"

"Usually he's less Flying-type." The Hitmonchan shrugs before going back to his fighting stance.

"So he's more a grounded-type?" The smaller Pokémon grins, lowering his stance as he raises his paws. He receives a Thunder Punch to the jaw for his joke. He growls, his body flashing as he turns his hardened gaze to the boxer. "Rude." He lashes out, striking the Hitmonchan square in the jaw with a Counter.

Hitmonchan stumbles back, nearly falling over, before regaining his balance. He suddenly lashes out again, hitting the Riolu with a Mach Punch before he even realizes what's going on. Liu yelps, holding his nose as he backs up, trying to gauge the situation. He sighs, closing his eyes as he concentrates. His paws raise up in a defensive pose, and his eyes open, revealing a soft glow.

Not missing any chance to get in a quick strike, the Hitmonchan rushes in again for another Mach Punch. He quickly dodges it, drawing back a paw as he glares at his opponent. "Detect." He smacks him in the forehead, his palm glowing a deep blue. "And Force Palm."

Hitmonchan grunts, staggering back as he feels his muscles start to lock up from paralysis. He tries to strike back, but only ends up falling down onto one knee.

Liu pauses at this, surprised. "...wow, I can't believe that did that." He shakes his head, then draws his leg back. "I hear that a boxer's weak spot is his knee." His leg ignites into flames, and he gives a sheepish grin. "If so, sorry about this. Maybe it'll heal, later?" He lashes out with the burning limb, striking solidly on the unprotected joint.

The Fighting-type lets out a howl of pain as he collapses completely onto his side, making no move to get back up anytime soon.

He crouches down, gently patting him on the head. "Again, sorry, but you were going after someone who's defenseless." The only response he gets is a low groan from the Hitmonchan as he slips into unconsciousness.

Growling as he faces off against the floating sword, Grovyle growls as he launches with an Agility, the leaves on his arms glowing and extending with a high speed Leaf Blade. Before he can get close enough to hit, Casey tries to throw him off guard with a Metal Sound.

Gritting his teeth, he squints and continues plowing forward into the sword. "I won't be beaten by a first evolution!"

Taking the hit, Casey falls back before spinning around and hitting him with a Slash. "I could always hand you over to my Trevenant who's probably twice your level if you'd rather lose to him."

"I'll just Fury Cutter him!" He grunts as another cut opens up in his skin as he blurs into a Pursuit. "All this for that little purple shit?!"

Casey dodges with a Shadow Sneak before striking from behind. "Fury Cutter? Good idea." He follows up his Shadow Sneak attack with one of the aforementioned Bug-type moves. "And don't be a hypocrite. You three are the ones trying to take down a camp full of Pokémon just to torment a Mudkip."

"We have prior business with her, and none of it is any of yours!" Flung forward again, the Grass-type flips back onto his feet, panting. His eyes scan around for an idea.

"On the contrary, I made preventing Pokémon abuse my business long ago." He floats towards him dangerously.

"Abuse? This is just us educating her while she's young and will listen." He grins as he spots Anya sitting out of the battles, watching worriedly. "She's gotta learn, one way or another." With another Agility, he zips over to Anya, picking her up in a headlock as he looks to the sword. "Whatever it takes!"

Casey pauses, not moving, but the glare in his eye speaking volumes. "Put. Her. Down."

"Give. Me. The Mudkip," Grovyle retorts. Anya's eye is wide as she stares at Casey, frozen in shock before it starts to narrow, her flame on her head crackling.

The Honedge stays silent for a few more seconds, eye very briefly flicking off to the side. "I would highly recommend you let her go, or things are gonna get very bad for you."

"Maybe... but it would be worse if I didn't. So, I think I'll take these odds." He takes a few steps to his right, keeping the sword in his sight.

"Don't say I didn't warn you."

A blue light flashes in the corner of the Grovyle’s eye, and he's struck in the side of his face immediately after. While he doesn't let go of the candle, the Force Palm to the face serves to throw the Grass-type off balance and loosen his grip.

With a surprising bit of flexibility, Anya turns herself around, opening her mouth and unleashing a Flamethrower right in his face. Yelling, the Grovyle throws her away, wiping the flames off himself desperately.

Finally, Casey floats over while he's distracted, and in one swift motion, wraps his tassel around the Grass-type. He keeps the Grovyle's arms pinned and his body still as his ribbon starts to faintly glow. Snapping his mouth as best he can at the ribbon, Grovyle makes no move to talk.

Seeing and feeling what her trainer is doing, Anya gasps, floating over to the Honedge. "Casey... you shouldn't do that lightly. Do you really want to kill him?"

"Yes," the Honedge replies bluntly, though now there's uncertainty in his eye. After a second, he sighs, the glow in his ribbon stopping. Instead, he just twists his body and strikes the Grass-type down with Aerial Ace, letting his body drop. "If he bothers us again."

Only a groan comes from the green form; otherwise, it doesn't move. Anya, meanwhile, hugs the sword's hilt, squeezing him tightly.

He hugs back gently with his ribbon before turning to the Riolu. "Thanks for that."

Liu doesn't respond at first, staring at the fallen Pokémon. "...no problem..." He pokes him with a paw, then, when he doesn't get much of a response, turns to the sword, frowning softly. "Well... at least you didn't kill him... but were you really willing to go that far?"

"...probably not," Casey admits. "From what I saw, he didn't hurt her... did he, Anya?" He glances to the Litwick.

She looks down at the slight dent in her wax, smoothing it out with her arms. "I'm fine, Casey." She smiles at him. "Thank you."

He hugs her closer. "Good..." He looks back to Liu. "I think I was just... scared."

The jackal looks at him for a moment before smiling, nodding to him. "I admire how concerned you were. I'm also glad you listened to reason, in the end."

"Yeah... not often I do." He chuckles to try and dispel the tension before looking to Anya. "Nice Flamethrower back there, by the way."

She blushes, still holding onto him. "Thank you. He deserved that at least, definitely."

"Yes. Yes he did." He looks down at the Grovyle, giving him the equivalent of a Honedge kick with his ribbon before leading the other two away.

A large orb of water launches out of the treeline and into the sky. After a few moments, it bursts, dark clouds starting to form above the clearing. Not even a second later, it starts to rain.

Ryan cocks his head at this, his body partially numb and thankfully so considering the attacks he's taken. "Why would he use Rain Dance... we're both Water-types- oh crap. He knows Thunder." He sprints for the cover of nearby trees.

A bolt of lightning splits the sky, ducking between the trees to strike him square in the back. Ryan cries out as his nerves scream just as loud as he does. Between his momentum and the hit, he flops forward, sprawled out on the ground with blackened skin giving off the scent of ozone.

A blue fin comes into his view, its owner looming over his prone form. "Was that the best you got?" He scoffs, a yellow ball of energy forming on his tail. "I'm disappointed."

Weakened from everything that had happened to him, the Froakie gasps out two words. "Screw... you..."

The Lanturn shakes his head condescendingly. "Not very humble in defeat, are you?" He gives him no chance to respond, flipping and sending the ball flying.

At that exact moment, the ground bursts open between the two of them, a purple shape leaping out of it. Mindy, for that's who it was, braces herself, her arms crossed in front of her face, and takes the full force of the attack. She's sent flying, crashing into a nearby tree before falling to the ground, twitching slightly as little sparks of electricity dance across her body.

The fish is completely stunned by this turn of events, not quite sure what to make of it. "...the fuck was that about?"

Grunting, Ryan claws his way across the ground towards the Mudkip, ignoring the threat behind him. "Mindy..."

The least-damaged Water-type starts moving toward him, only to suddenly find himself knocked away by an oddly stronger X-Scissor attack. Turning, he finds himself staring into the familiar eye of a Trevenant. "Hello." Without waiting for a response, Harold grabs the Lanturn and disappears with him down into the shadows.

Reaching the fallen pink form, the frog gently lays a hand on her, eyes full of concern. "Hey... are you still with me? That looked bad... you didn't have to take that hit... you were supposed to hide."

"...I couldn't just... let you guys take their anger..." She rolls onto her side, grimacing slightly as she looks over at him with one eye open. Her gaze falls onto the scorch mark on his back, her pained expression soon melting away into a sorrowful one, the rain falling across her face like the tears she tries to hold in. "...I... I'm so sorry... I didn't mean for you all to get hurt..."

Putting on a smile for her, he eases down, laying flat on his stomach. "I'm pretty sure the others can take care of themselves... I'm mostly glad they didn't get to you - well, before you came out - and that I'm still conscious." He gives a weak chuckle.

"I'm glad, too..." She slowly sits up, holding her side gingerly. "...his attack didn't really hurt that much, though... it was mostly the tree that got me..."

He looks at her before pushing himself up a bit, blowing bubbles into his frubbles and regaining his usual blue hue. Scooping out a bit of the mixture, he offers it to her. "These seem to make good padding. They're nice and cool too."

She silently looks at it for a moment, then takes the offered bit. She places a small amount on her injured side, sighing in relief as her pain ebbs away. "...t-thank you..."

"No problem... heh, I might have to make myself a cocoon of that stuff later." He chuckles and winces. "Again, I have to miss potions for quick healing. A nice Super Potion would do the trick." He shakes his head. "But, I guess I just have to do it the Pokémon way, right?"

She opens her mouth, about to say something, but stops herself, a thought occurring to her. "...oh, right... you're a trainer..." That last word seems to leave a bitter taste in her mouth, as her nose - or at least, where it would be - scrunches slightly, and she turns away. "...we heal fast. You should be fine in a day or two."

"Amazing..." Still, he looks at her curiously, wondering why she turned away, but battle-worn as he is, thoughts pursuing that soon slip from his grasp. "So you'll be okay too? Are you going to need bandages?"

"No. I'll be fine." She slowly gets up, looking up at the sky as it clears. "At least your bubbles won't wash away, now."

"Let me know if you need more." He waves to his frothing neck. "These things never run out."

"I'll take your word for it."

Suddenly, out from the shadows comes Harold and the Lanturn, the latter being dragged by the former by his tail. The Trevenant looks at the two, a calm expression in his eye, and he lifts the fish Pokémon up. "My friend has something he wishes to say." It dangles lifelessly, the faintest murmur of a noise coming from its throat. "He says sorry."

"I said let go of my fucking tail." He gets violently shaken around like a maraca in response.

"...he's still an ass." Ryan sighs as he continues laying on the ground. "At least it's over. You have anything to say to him, Mindy?"

She stares quietly at the Lanturn, who looks green around the gills from his rough handling. She scoffs and turns away, walking past Harold. "Why bother? He'll just keep coming back... he always does..."

He blinks, surprised she isn't happier. Grunting and working himself onto all fours, Ryan walks after her with an awkward stride, the mere thought of hopping painful for him. "Umm... well, at least he'll think twice after this, right? You won't have trouble getting away for a while."

"...you really don't know those guys like I do..."

"I've gotten that... but surely you want to be away from them or something, right?" He continues following her, for some reason not wanting her on her own; maybe because of those enemies, or maybe just so she doesn't wander off and leave. "I can't stand the thought of them coming after you... and maybe succeeding..."

"...your concern is... odd..." She still doesn't look at him, even as she makes her way to the campsite.

"How's it odd to look out for a friend?" he asks.

"Because..." She falters slightly, unsure what to say. "...I don't know... it's just... odd..."

He manages to catch up a bit. "Well, odd or not, it's the right thing to do. So, looks like I'll keep doing it." He gives a small chuckle.

"...you're odd, too..."

"Is that a bad thing?"

She stops at the edge of the treeline, her lips pursed as she mulls over his question. Eventually, she simply sighs and bows her head, her voice dropping to a whisper. "I don't know... and that worries me."

"Ryan!" The black mare prevents any reaction from the frog with her outburst, rushing over to him. She reaches forward but stops short, taking notice of the mark on his back. "I... I heard you all were fighting from Casey, but... h-how'd you get this?"

He looks up at her, croaking once. "You... probably don't want to know, especially with everything else I took. This is just the most visible thing."

"He says it's a long story and you don't want to hear it." The Honedge floats over lazily as he translates. "I agree with him for once."

Her expression grows even more concerned at this, but she doesn't push it. "Well... you'll at least let me help dress that, won't you?"

He nods gratefully, easing back down onto his stomach. After a moment, he waves a hand at Mindy. "Her too, if she wants it."

"I'm fine." The Mudkip smiles weakly, then walks over to where Geyser is, laying down next to him as Midnight pulls out her first aid kit.

Ryan frowns at this and sighs, looking to the sword. "How's everyone else?"

"Liu's practically untouched. Anya still seems nervous, but she wasn't hurt much either. And I haven't seen Harold in-" His eye glances to the side and sees the Trevenant coming out of the forest calmly, the Lanturn nowhere to be seen. "...okay, there he is now, making me a liar. But he seems fine too; nothing Ingrain won't fix."

"And you?" The frog looks over the sword. "I don't see a lot of damage... then again with your typing it may be hard to tell."

Casey blinks. "Uh... well, a little tired and still high on adrenaline, but I'm not too badly hurt." The sound of his voice clearly indicates surprise.

The mare stops in her gentle application of salve, raising an eyebrow at the sword. "...Casey, adrenaline can keep you from feeling pain." She frowns, pointing at him with her clean hoof. "Take that sheath off, real quick."

Ryan pauses looking to the pinkened sections of his skin where his brief burns had been. "...that still sounds weird."

Casey sighs, pulling himself out of the sheath. As it slides off, it reveals his blade, a strange black liquid starting to leak out of various cuts along the metal. His eye widens, but he says nothing.

The pegasus stares at him, shocked. "...uh... is that blood?"

"...I have no idea." He stares down at himself for a moment. "...I think so, though... either the adrenaline's wearing off, or the placebo effect is real, because now it hurts to all hell."

Midnight sighs, returning to treating her current patient's wounds. "If only I had my possessed-sword med kit. I hope some pain killers will be fine, in its stead."

Ryan waves a hand. "Submit yourself to our lovely nurse and pray she doesn't have welding equipment."

"...I think I'll just put my sheath back on and sleep it off instead."

"Catch." She tosses a deep blue item at where his mouth would be, a bit too fast to clearly tell what it is.

He does so, grumbling after swallowing it. "Stop doing that."

She sticks her tongue out at him. "What if it's too fun to stop?"

"Then I have no problem showing off my idea of fun."

The mare blinks at this, a length of gauze draped on her hoof. "...I'm probably going to regret this, but what's your idea of fun?"

He pauses before sighing. "There goes that bluff... I was trying to just unnerve you so you'd stop."

"Well, you got me." She giggles, starting to dress the frog's back. "So, are you two starting to feel better?"

"A bit, thank you." Ryan smiles at her, casting a glance over to the curled up purple form.

"Still bleeding, but the pain's fading." Casey sighs. "You could've just told me that was an Oran Berry."

"...what's an Oran Berry?"

"...the thing you gave to me just now." He narrows his eye. "Are you saying that your first instinct upon seeing me injured was to throw a random fruit at me for the hell of it?"

"Well... that reptile had it on him, so..." She shrugs slightly, a nervous smile on her lips. "...yes?"

He growls. "I hope you never work in a hospital. Contrary to popular belief, shoving random shit down peoples' throats isn't gonna heal them. What if that was poisonous?!"

A glob of frubbles hits him in the face. "Hey, calm down!"

"Why would he be carrying something poisonous around?" She huffs, nodding over her shoulder towards the Riolu, tending to his little pot. "Why would he be growing a poisonous plant?"

After a glare at the frog, he directs it to the mare. "He's a kid. How would he know any better? As for the reptile carrying it around, if you haven't noticed, people carry dangerous stuff around for when they get into fights. Or it could have just been safe for him and not me; I bet you half the food I ate as a human would make you sick or kill you." Ryan debates lobbing more frubbles, but holds off for the moment.

"...fine." Her gaze softens, and she turns back to Ryan, gently picking him up. "I'm sorry I didn't think my actions through. I was just trying to lighten the mood..."

Casey sighs and shakes his body. "Next time, just tell a joke or something." He floats off to check on the other two Ghost-types hanging out near each other.

"...but I don't know any jokes..." She sighs quietly, looking down to the frog in her embrace. "...I don't think he'd laugh at much, though... do you?"

Ryan thinks and shrugs. "Nothing I can think of..." Still, looking himself over, he gives her a quick hug for the first aid.

The mare smiles softly, leaning down to gently nuzzle the top of his head. "You're welcome, cutie. Wish I could've helped fight, though." She holds up a hoof, smirking at him. "They would've gotten a face full of iron if I saw them hurt any of you."

His smile twitches slightly at the thought as he chuckles. Still, he's glad she stayed out of the line of fire. Something occurring to him, he pokes her and twists his hand in a questioning motion, gesturing around them.

"...if you're asking where they are, I put them under a tree." She points behind him, where the two are laying together, against each other. "Still can't believe Liu beat up a girl like that, but I guess it was necessary..."

While he didn't know this, he once again pokes her chest and looks to her questioningly.

"...I'm sorry, but I don't know what you're trying to say." She sighs, laying back and putting him on her belly. "I really wish we didn't need a translator..."

He pats her softly, smiling. "For what it's worth, you seem to get most things I say. Surely there's some way though... writing and relying on the others isn't always easy..."

She doesn't quite understand this, either, looking up at him as she thinks. "...would you like me to get your notepad? It might make this a bit easier..." He nods. "Come on, then." She wraps him with a wing, carrying him over to the tent. "It should be with the rest of our stuff..."

A lone Dark-type fox stops his aimless journey under a large tree, sighing. Aside from himself, the only things around were trees and the occasional Bug and Grass-types, none of which bothered him. Still no sign of civilization.

"...well, this sucks." He sighs in a disheartened manner, letting himself fall to the ground between two large, exposed roots. "I'm going to go mad if I don't find someone to chat with... that didn't mention flowers every five minutes..."

A voice comes from the tree. "Are you troubled, young one?"

He stares up at the tree for a minute before sighing, rubbing the side of his head with a paw. "...damn it, I've already gone mad."

A chuckle comes from the plant. "Far from it, Zorua. Shall I call you that, or do you have a name?"

He sits silently, still doubting himself, before giving a tentative answer. "...my name is Mercury."

"Mercury, then." There's a pause. "I see you are traveling alone."

"Not by choice."

"Hmm..." It goes quiet once more. "Would you mind waiting there for a little bit?"

"Sure. Why not?" He rests his head on one of the roots, an ear twitching idly. "I could use a rest, anyways."

"Then we will give you some time to do so before we come by." The voice goes silent again, this time completely.

"...strange. I thought being insane would be more entertaining." He chuckles softly. "Guess I'm really not out of my mind." Several more minutes of silence pass before he once again hears a sound, this one of grass and bushes rustling as something draws closer. Mercury turns to them, jumping when he sees a tree moving closer. "Maybe I am, after all... am I seeing things?"

Finally, upon coming further into view, the moving tree turns out to simply be a Trevenant; not an unknown species to him. The Litwick riding on one of its branches is similarly familiar.

The Trevenant smiles and nods. "Hello there. Thank you for waiting."

"...that explains how you talked to me, earlier."

"Indeed." He chuckles. "Would you like to come back with us to our group? I would like to learn more about you, and why you are alone."

"We have quite the diverse group. I'm sure someone's personality would match well with yours," Anya mentions, smiling at the fox.

"You two have a group?" He glances at the candle, his expression going blank for a moment. He quickly shakes his head, chuckling quietly. "...yeah, I'd be up for it. Though, if I may say something?" He walks over to the Litwick, about to say something when something catches his attention, distracting him. "...you know you have a metallic scent around you?"

Her cheeks go a little blue as she giggles. "Well, I have been spending an awful lot of time with a Honedge..."

"A lot of time," Harold adds with a smirk, the three of them starting to head back to their group.

He tilts his head to one side, baffled. "Isn't she a bit young for that?"

"Size does not determine age," the Trevenant remarks. "And have you not heard it is impolite to bring such a topic up with a lady?"

"Nope." He grins cockily. "I didn't have any manner lessons. That, or I forgot them." He shrugs. "Take your pick."

Anya snorts, grinning at him. "Aren't you a little young to be that sarcastic?"

"I bet I'm older than you." He sticks his tongue out at her, his form changing in a brief moment to hers. "I bet I look better than you, too... ah, who am I kidding, you wear this better than I do."

"I should think so. Careful I don't just start using you as a mirror." She smirks.

"Really?" He shows his teeth, where a piece of blue fruit is stuck. "Because I think you should know you missed this."

She squeaks, putting her hand in her mouth and feeling around for the fruit. Harold just sighs, rolling his eye. "Youngsters..."

"Wow, you really fell for that?" He laughs brightly, changing back to himself. "I was just kidding!" The dark fox leaps up into one of Harold's branches, grinning down at her. "That was a neat little reaction, though. Who knew candles could make that noise?"

She huffs, crossing her arms and looking away with a blush. "I need to look my best..."

"Why? Got someone to impress?" He snickers, crouching low. "I'm flattered, really, but you look nice as you are!"

She puffs a small amount of Smog at him. "Thank you, but I have my eyes on someone else."

He actually loses his collected air at this, surprised. "Wha... really?"

"Yes... is that so hard to believe?" She gives him a flat look.

"We are arriving back at the group soon," the Trevenant interjects. "Perhaps hold off on the arguing?"

"Well... maybe?" He doesn't seem to notice what the tree says, looking down at his paws. "I guess I should've expected it, but I was still kind of hoping..."

"Aww..." Anya floats over and pats his head. "Another little one looking for love. Don't worry, you'll find someone to be your mate. I'm sure of it."

His ears turn backwards, and he frowns softly at her. "...I'm eighteen, you know."

She pats his head a little harder as she smirks. "Still younger than me." Her blue tongue sticks out at him for a moment.

"We're here," Harold interrupts once more as they exit into the clearing to find the rest of the group.

Midnight looks up from where she's sitting, Ryan on her lap, and smiles at them, waving them closer. Geyser does much the same, trying not to move as Mindy backs out of one of his cannons, pulling out a stick that had fallen in. Liu doesn't react to their appearance, struggling to keep the watering can in his paws from falling on his budding plant. From the way he's trembling, it doesn't seem he'll be able to hold onto it much longer.

Lastly, Casey floats forward to greet the two, a couple berries in his tassel. "Welcome back. Who's the new guy?"

Harold nods in greeting. "Master Casey, this is Mercury. He seemed lonely, so I decided to bring him back here for a time." Anya's eyes shoot open as they dart to Harold and then to the fox.

"...weird." He looks to the candle, gesturing to the sword. "He has the same name as this human I know."

Casey floats forward, curious. "...I think I am the human you know." He taps him on the head. "I really hate to ask, but... does the name 'Barry' ring a bell?"

"Yes. It does." He backs away from the tassel, concerned. "...why did you become a Honedge?"

"Like Arceus said... all good humans were taken here and turned into Pokémon..." He still seems taken aback by the sudden revelation.

Anya nods, floating down and hugging his hilt. "And now he's one of us!" She floats back over to the fox, looking at him with wide eyes. "But… that's really you, Mercury?"

"Yeah, it's me." He tilts his head, things coming together. "And… you're Anya. I-I thought you'd have evolved, by now..."

She shakes her head. "No... you know I don't fight much. Plus, I like me this way... I think Casey does too."

Casey just blinks before nodding to the rest of the curious group. "Come on over, Merc. We have a lot to talk about, I think."

"I think we do, yeah."

Chapter 6: Travel

The following morning finds all the Pokémon back in the living room, though now with a few bags added and one mare not present. The previous day had been spent planning, gathering, and packing, the fruit of those efforts seen now. The Riolu pokes his nose into one of the bags, sniffing curiously.

Harold watches him, curious as well. "Looking for something, Mister Liu?"

He jumps away from the bag, rubbing the back of his neck. "Nothing of importance." He turns and picks up the pot with his plant, looking at it a few moments before turning to the tree. "...should I take this with us?"

Thinking for a moment, the tree merely shrugs his branches. "I would ask Miss Midnight."

"Okay, then..." He carefully sets it back down, patting the rim of it before turning to the frog on the table. "...Mister Ryan? Are you happy we're going to the falls, first?"

The Froakie nods, poking around one of the bags. "I'm trying not to get too hopeful in case he isn't there but... I can't help it. I can't wait to find Geyser... food, basic shelter, a few survival things... so strange not to have potions or healing items..." Pulling his head out, he focuses on the Riolu. "I'm sure you'll like my partner when you meet him."

"Really?" He sits down next to the table, looking up to the former human with rapt attention. "What's he like?"

Settling himself on the couch, Ryan allows himself to reminisce, smiling unconsciously. "He's... experienced. I got him when he was a tiny Squirtle, and we've been together ever since. As time has passed, he seemed to calm from the little hyper turtle he was. He barely gets angry anymore, likes his relaxing time, but I think it's just because of how much he's been trained. He knows he's strong, but he really doesn't seem to think about that much." He shakes his head. "I could never understand him directly, but all you have to do is watch him. Kind, patient, protective, and the best friend I could ask for."

Liu listens to him in awe, eyes wide and mouth agape. After he finishes, the jackal slowly leans forward, paws resting on the furniture next to the frog. "He sounds amazing... I can't wait to meet him."

Casey, who just floats by the couch with his already-packed bag beside him, only sighs. "How long is she gonna take?"

Looking up from his more pleasant audience, Ryan speaks simply. "As long as she needs to. She does have jobs she's leaving for a time because of us."

"And yet I got scolded for suggesting we have her stay here," the sword grumbles.

Anya floats over to him, touching him lightly. "Casey... it'll just be a little longer, then we'll be on our way." He glances at her before nodding without another word.

"Are you certain you will be alright, Miss Anya?" Harold asks now, breaking his previous silence. "We are travelling to a very... wet location, after all."

She nods. "I'll have to be careful, but there's no way I'm letting us all split up again."

"Very well." The Trevenant nods. "I too am glad we will be sticking together."

At that moment, the door opens up, the owner of the house stepping inside. She turns to the box by the door, opening it up and rummaging around inside it. "I'm back. I'm free to have time off until I reunite your family and friends... Liu, stop eating the strawberries, they're for the trip." Said Pokémon pulls himself out of the saddlebag, a guilty look on his face that mixes with mild confusion when he realizes she didn't even look his way.

Casey blinks. "...that easy, huh?" His voice has a sense of incredulity.

"I have to return immediately for my night shift when you're all back together." She levels a stare at him over her shoulder. "And I'm not getting paid by either of them for the days I take off."

Harold steps in at this point. "We are sorry to inconvenience you, Miss Midnight. I hope we will find a way to pay you back for your generosity."

"Darn right, we will." Ryan adds. Even Casey nods, though either reluctance or absentmindedness is in his expression.

"...how exactly do you plan on doing that?" The mare gestures to the tree, baffled. "You... don't exactly have money."

Harold coughs a bit, feeling slightly awkward now that she's pointed it out. "Well... perhaps with services or favors, rather than monetary compensation?"

"We might find jobs or something once we stop traveling," Ryan offers. "I could always just help her at work or something." He looks to the mare and croaks to tell her he's talking about her.

"I appreciate the thought, but you really don't have to..." She pauses, glancing at the sword a moment before shaking her head. "Not even you, grumpy."

"We'll find ways, don't worry," Casey says with a chuckle.

"That's not what I'm saying." She sighs, sitting down in one of the chairs. "I mean you don't have to. I'm helping you guys out because I want to. Because it's the right thing to do."

"And would the right thing for us to do in return not be to pay you back for this, regardless of your reasons for doing it in the first place?" Harold asks, smiling.

"It would be noble..." She falters, looking towards the kitchen. "...though my budget will probably be even more strained than it already is..."

Ryan looks abashed, jumping over to her and leaning his head against her side to try and convey what she won't understand in words. "I promise... we won't be a burden to you forever. Your kindness will be rewarded."

She looks down to him, and then sighs, her shoulders drooping slightly. "...fine. But nothing that will endanger you, okay?" She gently picks up the frog, nuzzling his head. "I couldn't stand it if you - any of you - got hurt because of me." The Froakie allows himself to be coddled, knowing she enjoys it and feeling guilty anyway.

"I make no promises on the endanger part, at least on my end," Casey quips.

"...fine." She looks to the candle, continuing to hug Ryan to her chest. "Keep an eye on him for me, please?"

She nods, looking to the sword. "I can do that." Casey rolls his eye, but doesn't protest.

"Thank you." She stretches, then picks up a couple of the bags, slipping them onto her back. "So, who all's ready to go?" Casey is immediately by her side. "...somehow, I feel I should've expected that."

Ryan and Anya settle next to her as well. Harold also makes his way over, minding his leaves. With Liu walking up, pot in hand, the mare nods, smiling at them all.

"Alright, then. Let's go find your friends."

The journey begins, yet is not nearly as interesting as one might expect. The odd group of floating sword and candle, bipedal dog creature, small blue frog, black mare, and walking tree serve to garner a few questioning glances from both pony and Pokémon alike when they pass through the town, but they are not stopped. Both Ryan and Anya don't carry any of the bags, being too small to do so without hindering their movement, while Harold carries whatever cannot be carried by the others. For some reason, Midnight has decided to strap her frying pan to the outside of her saddlebags where she can easily reach it.

They clear the forest easily enough, many eyes watched them, but none approached, preferring to keep to themselves. The sun gets lower and lower on the horizon as they march across relatively normal land dotted with occasional trees and hills, but mostly just grass.

After several minutes of silence, Casey speaks up. "Hey, Midnight? Since we have some time, think me and my team could talk to you about something?"

The sword floats up beside her, Harold moving in closer as well. "Here's the thing. We both - hell, we all - know that your house is getting more and more cramped. When it was just you, me, the frog, and the kid, it wasn't too bad; but now we've got Anya, Harold, and are about to have a five-foot-three turtle with cannons on his back. And after that, there's the kid's parents, however big they may be, and of course the rest of my team."

"Chief in particular is taller than any room in your house, and even if he fit in, he would collapse the floor beneath himself if he was not on the bottom floor," Harold adds. "And while Derek does not have the weight problem, his size still causes even me to pale in comparison."

"The point we're getting at is this," Casey says, regaining control of the conversation. "There is no possible way your house will fit us. I don't even know if it fits us now."

She stares blankly at him, stopping in her tracks to process what he just said. "...a turtle... with cannons on his back?"

"...they only shoot water, if that's what you're worried about," Harold states, unsure of what else to say.

Casey just sighs. "You didn't even listen to half of that, did you?"

Anya taps his hilt. "Perhaps focus on the size issue for now."

Midnight shakes herself, then nervously laughs. "No, I got it all."

"Good. Solutions?"

"We could ask Lumber to help us get some wood. And with materials, we could get a lower cost for making another house." She smiles at him, playfully tapping him just below the eye, where she assumes his nose would have normally been. "That way, it won't put any big strain on our budget. Does that sound alright with you?"

"Number one, never do that again." He scoots back a bit. "Number two... building a house works, but why pay for wood when there's a giant forest two feet away?"

"So we don't take down a tree a Pokémon is living in?" Anya offers.

"We have a living tree who can make sure they're empty," Casey points out. He turns to Harold. "You can do that, right?"

"...I think you are overestimating my abilities, Master Casey," the Trevenant replies in an uncharacteristically dry tone.

"...point." The sword thinks for a moment. "...why use wood in the first place, though?"

"Because it's cheaper than stone, and I can find stone anyways." She huffs softly. "Seriously, did you think I was only going to use wood?"

He just stares at her.

"You guys just said that one of your guys was massive. I think a stronger material is in order, don't you?" She chuckles, slowly making her way back to Liu, who had continued to walk ahead absently. "Don't wander away from us, now. We don't want to get separated."

Casey sighs, turning to Anya. "Why do I feel guilty all of a sudden?"

Trying to think of a way to say this gently, she speaks softly. "Because she defied and went above what you thought you could expect of her. She's also still thinking of all of us."

"I guess..." Sighing again, he resumes floating after the group. "I don't know whether to be thankful for her help or annoyed that she won't leave us to our own devices."

Frowning, the Litwick floats after him. "Be thankful. She seems to only want to help. Without her, we'd have no idea where to go."

He just shrugs with his tassel. "Maybe... I really don't want to get any more in debt to her than I already am, though."

The mare calls back from up ahead. "Hurry up, you two! You can make out later!"

A blush somehow appears on the blade before he turns and yells back. "I could say the same about you and the frog half the time!" He looks back to Anya. "Let's catch up. We'll finish this discussion with her when we're back home." She nods, quiet and with a thoughtful look in her eyes.

Just a few hours later, the group has stopped walking and set up a camp. Since, aside from Midnight and Liu, everyone in the group is either decently small or has no need for shelter to sleep, only one tent was packed. While the others either handle setting it up or scouting the area for hostile Pokémon, Harold gathers various pieces of wood and digs a pit for Anya to start a fire, but not before he's moved at least twenty feet away.

Now everyone sits around the fire - some further away than others - and just exchanges conversation; well, most of them do. Finding himself seated next to the haunted tree. Ryan shuffles around after they had ate, uncomfortable in the thick silence.

Harold, feeling a little uncomfortable himself - though due to his proximity to the flames rather than the frog - decides to break the silence. "So, Mister Ryan... how does it feel to battle as a Pokémon?"

Looking towards the tree, the frog thinks before answering. "It's... still strange. I don't even know how to summon my moves much of the time, they just happen. The battle itself, well... it's like a massive rush of both fear and excitement... I'm not used to that."

"I am sure it will come in time. Even if it does not, I do not think battles will be too common." He smiles, which is unsettling in and of itself.

Ryan unconsciously seems to try and make himself smaller before the Grass-type over four times his height. "I hope so... and yet I don't want to stay a Froakie... so I guess that means I have to fight."

Harold simply nods. "Perhaps. Though Miss Midnight seems to very much enjoy having you the way you are."

Chuckling he rubs the back of his head. "Yeah... small and cute I guess. She certainly hugs me plenty enough." He shakes his head. "But I was an adult back when I was human. The height difference alone is... jarring. To go from six foot tall to one isn't easy."

"The opposite is true with evolution," the living tree remarks. "Greninja are, on average, about my height. Do you think you would be able to handle another sudden change in size?"

"It'll take some getting used to... but it'll at least be closer to what I knew." He looks down at himself. "Plus... this is sort of the child form of this Pokémon. I don't exactly want to stay a child for the rest of my life."

Harold's smile drops, and he sighs. "Consider it a blessing while you are."

Sensing something likely sad behind that statement, Ryan deflects slightly. "I suppose at least I have my adult mind."

The Trevenant nods, trying to regain his composure. "That is a plus."

"Though... I have no idea how this will affect some of the goals I had..." The Froakie sinks slightly. "I mean really, how are you supposed to find a nice human girl when there are none?"

Harold blinks, then chuckles. "Well, simple: find a nice Pokémon girl instead." He glances across the fire at two particular Ghost-types with a small smirk.

Flopping onto his back, Ryan sighs. "Great. I barely understood women of my own species, now I have to figure out ones of ridiculous variety? I suppose it's a project..."

"It is not as hard as you make it out to be," Harold insists. "Just do what you would have done as a human. Find someone you connect with."

"Is it really that simple?" He looks upside down at the tree. "Did it work like that for you?"

"...no," the Trevenant admits. "I have not found a... partner. But some of our other team members have, and that is how they describe it."

"Oh... okay." He looks back up at the sky, quiet for a moment. "Hey... what are your thoughts on battling? Since you asked mine and all."

Harold is quiet for a moment before responding. "My old master said that a battle is simply a way of determining who is better through unpredictable and unreliable means. But in my time with Master Casey, I have grown to... enjoy it, to some extent. So as a sport, I am fine with it; as a way of asserting dominance, I refuse to accept it."

"Huh... interesting..." Ryan offers no more opinion on the matter, content for the moment.

The group closest to the fire sits there quietly watching the embers dance in the flames. Then two words break the silence.

"Miss Anya?"

The candle looks to the Riolu, not expecting to be spoken to. "Yes, Liu?"

"Being a trainer's Pokémon..." He gestures to her. "What's it like?"

"It's... different," she admits. "I mean, I've never really enjoyed battling, so I was more like a family member than anything."

"So," he turns towards her, tilting his head to one side, "it's not much different than my family. Is that right?"

"In a manner of speaking... none of them could understand me so that had its drawbacks." She shrugs. "Honestly, until Casey became my trainer, it was just living in a nicer house than I used to. Once I joined him, it was more about traveling and being able to talk to all kinds of different Pokémon, all while getting closer to Casey himself."

"Really?" He puts a paw to his chin, closing his eyes. "...why did you mention getting close to Casey?"

She blinks, looking into the fire and speaking slowly. "Well, it's just... with a house of people, some you get close to, some you don't, you know? Casey was someone new... but he still cared."

"...I think it goes further than that." He shrugs slightly. "I don't know. You just give off the vibe my mom does when she talks about dad..."

Anya’s flame burns a bit more intensely as she suddenly floats down to the level of his head, waving her hands. "Eheheh... maybe not say that so loud..."

He stares at her blankly, confused. "...why?"

Clearing her throat, she speaks quietly. "I just... things are busy right now and I'd rather him find out from me, okay?"

His eyes light up, and a smile forms on his lips. "Oh, so that's it!" Liu hugs her, whispering where her ear might've been. "Don't worry. I won't say a thing."

Hugging him back, she giggles nervously. "Thank you..."

"You're welcome, Miss Anya." He pulls away, glancing over at the sword. "So... how did you meet him? Did he force you into one of those balls I've heard about?"

"Well, no, I was caught sometime before Casey got me." She smiles. "Actually, it was less being caught and more of me following someone home. The ball was a formality. I met Casey when he came to visit his family."

The jackal turns to her, surprised. "Wait, so you followed one of those... humans to their home? Why?"

"I was young, on my own, and they were interesting." She sighs as she looks upward in thought. "Many humans stay away from Ghost-types, but this was one that didn't."

"That sounds like a great family." He scoots a little closer, his full attention on her. "But if they didn't stay away... why did you gravitate toward Casey?"

"Well, I didn't really, not at first." She floats down until she rests on the ground. "I mean, he was just this mysterious figure who dropped by occasionally. It was only when he took me with him when things looked bad did I really start to get close."

"...when things looked bad? What-" He flinches, noticing the change in her aura. "N-Never mind... anyways, when did you really... you know, find out?"

"Find out what?"

"Your feelings."

"Oh..." Her hands fiddle with each other as she tries to explain it. "I'm not sure I ever really just... knew. It just sort of happened over time. Maybe it was just a crush that lingered, or something that just kept getting stronger, I don't know."

"I see... I think..." He glances over to the sword, smiling a bit. "...what do you like about him, exactly?"

Instead of answering at first, she giggles, looking at him strangely. "You are very curious about these things, especially for someone your age."

Liu just shrugs, looking elsewhere. "I want to know what your aura says... for future reference. So I want to know as much as possible."

"Huh... not quite the answer I expected, but I should have maybe seen it coming." Still, she shrugs and sighs. "I really can't pinpoint what it is I like about him though... I like all of him."

"That... doesn't help me, but I'm happy to hear it, all the same." He chuckles quietly, nodding to her. "Thank you for trying, at least."

"It's just one of those things you have to experience for yourself." She giggles as she pats his head. "You'll find someone you feel that for someday."

The Riolu doesn't seem to agree, if the doubtful look on his face means anything. "If you say so..."

Several feet away from the fire, Casey sits, staring off into space. Unlike Harold, whose weakness to fire would be just a cause of temporary minor panic if exposed due to his experience, the Honedge fears near-instant unconsciousness or worse if the fires were to lash out at his steel body. So he keeps ten feet away, minimum - a little paranoid, sure, but sometimes it pays to be overly cautious.

Midnight, noticing his separation from the rest, and how everyone else is currently occupied, makes her way over to the sword, a bag of berries in her mouth. Without waiting for an invitation, she sits down on the ground in front of him, placing the bag on a nearby rock as she speaks up. "Beautiful night, isn't it?"

He looks at her, a little surprised, then shrugs with his tassel. "If I'm being honest, they all look the same to me."

"You'd be surprised." She smiles at him, looking up at the moon above. "Been a while since I've been camping... I've always loved it, though..." She smacks her neck, frowning at her hoof afterward. "...I always hated the insects."

Noticing this, the Honedge lets out a small chuckle. "I think I just got used to it because I was always sleeping outside. Got used to the sky, the moon, even the bugs. I think I had a roof over my head twice a month at most."

"Yeah, but I bet you don't have sweet blood." The mare pauses a moment before sheepishly continuing. "So... did you enjoy it? Being outside so much, I mean."

"Eventually, yeah." He nods. "I always was an outdoors kind of guy. Claustrophobia may have had something to do with that... though actually, my first few months weren't very good..."

She scoots closer, slowly reaching a wing halfway out to him. "If you want to talk about it, you can. I won't force you to."

"Well, for one thing, I was ten years old and scared of anything with a shadow." His blade reddens a bit. "And my starter was a Duskull - a Ghost-type, who loved messing with me... I stayed up crying a lot of nights because he wouldn't leave me alone..."

"...wow. Sorry to hear that, Casey." Midnight rubs the back of her neck. "At least you turned out alright, eh?" She playfully smirks, brushing her feathers along his back reassuringly.

"If you can call the asshole I am 'alright', yeah." He sighs. "Sorry for angsting like this."

"It's fine." She scoots a bit closer, picking up a strawberry in a hoof. "Frankly, I'm just glad you're talking with me so openly."

He watches her curiously. "I guess... usually people don't ask about me in the first place. Ghost-type trainers aren't really seen as anything but creepy loners." His eye glances down to the other berries briefly.

"Why? Because you like a specific type?" She chuckles, shaking her head as she tosses the berry into her own mouth, reaching for another. "That's really not much different than saying I'm weird for liking frogs. Everyone just has different tastes."

"Just a reputation. Like how Fire trainers are perceived as aggressive, Bug trainers as weak, and Psychic trainers as smart." His eye follows the berry as she eats it before darting to the next one she picks up. "Guess after it was forced on me so much, I adapted to it..."

"Bug trainers? Those exist where you're from?" The mare takes notice of his gaze, slowly turning and holding out the strawberry to him. "...you want one?"

He blinks and extends his tassel like a hand. "Yes please?"

She smirks playfully at him, tossing it into the air a few times. "Can I say something first?"

"Depends on-" The berry suddenly makes contact with where his mouth would be, interrupting him... and fading into his blade. He goes quiet for a moment. "...that's still hard to get used to."

"I figured." Midnight shrugs, pushing the bag a bit closer to him. "I brought these here for you, anyways. You didn't seem to eat much, from what I saw."

He blinks before his ribbon begins to sway back and forth like a pendulum. "O-Oh... well, thank you..." He picks another one up, but before eating it, he looks to her. "...Midnight? I hope I already know the answer, but... can I trust you with a secret?"

"Sure." She smiles warmly, gesturing to him. "What's on your mind?"

He thinks for a moment before ingesting the berry, then speaks. "I think Ryan and I have talked about them a bit, but... do you know of the 'teams' from our world?"

She sits in silence, her brow furrowed deeply, trying to think up something regarding teams, but ultimately fails. "...no?"

Rather than getting annoyed, Casey just nods. "Didn't think so. Long story short: each region has had at least one evil team wanting to use Pokémon for their own selfish gain. Sinnoh had Team Galactic, who wanted to destroy the world and reshape it in the image of their leader; Unova had Team Plasma, who wanted to get rid of trainers and free all Pokémon into the wild; and Kanto had Team Rocket, who just stole Pokémon from trainers and sold them to get money, or abused them as workers."

"...they sound like bad characters... except for Plasma... maybe." She sighs, shaking her head. "Let me guess... you were connected to one of these groups?"

"...I was a member of Team Rocket for four years."

"I see. That explains why you brought them up." The mare gently pulls him close in a half-embrace. "At least you aren't part of them, anymore, right?"

Surprised by the reaction, he slowly turns to her. "...you... aren't mad? Or... upset, or... something?"

"You obviously feel bad about it." She rolls her eyes. "What kind of friend would I be to hold something from the past against you? Or make fun of you? Granted," she looks at him, frowning slightly, "I want to know what you did, exactly, but I can't exactly fault you, can I? I don't know the circumstances."

He goes quiet for a moment before gently wrapping his ribbon partly around her in the closest thing to a hug he can. "...thank you, Midnight. I'll answer questions if you have them."

"Oh, I'll have questions... just none that come to me, at the moment."

"Alright." He sighs. "Please... don't let Ryan or the kid know. Or anyone else we come across. My team knows, but... I don't think being reminded will help them."

"You have my word." She holds up a hoof, holding the other over her heart. "I won't tell another living - or nonliving - being."

His ribbon once again swings. "Thank you." He leans slightly against her; not enough to put all his weight on her, but just enough to get closer. "I promise, I will find a way to repay you for all this."

"Take your time." Midnight gently pats him on the back. "...you know, I think I'm getting a little closer to you as a friend. I like it."

Casey is silent for a moment before responding; if he had a mouth, he would be smirking as he spoke. "Just don't let Ryan know, or he might get jealous."

"...really?" She looks to where he sits with Harold, an eyebrow raised.

"With how much you hug and cuddle and kidnap him, and how much he dislikes me, I think he'd feel a little betrayed to see us getting all chummy." He chuckles. "If you ever need to throw a frying pan at me to cover up, I won't bear any ill will."

"I'm going to hold you to-" She suddenly stops, her smile falling to a flat look. "...kidnap? Really? I don't do that."

He narrows his eye at her. "I can count the number of times he wasn't carried by you to your bedroom on my one blade."

She turns up her nose, trying hard to keep a straight face. "He's never complained about it."

"Stockholm Syndrome."

"...what the heck is that?"

His eye rolls. "When a kidnapped person essentially befriends their kidnapper and enjoys being in their company because there's no alternative."

"Then your theory falls short." She smirks, wagging a hoof at him. "He's free to go as he likes. So there is an alternative."

"I believe the proper word for my so-called theory is 'joke'," he remarks.

"...oh."

Sighing, he pats her head with his tassel. "Don't worry, you'll get used to my sense of humour eventually."

"I hope so... otherwise living with you guys won't be easy..."

"Well, you won't be living with me and my team for much longer," the Honedge points out. "Harold and I can figure out a way to build ourselves a place to live - for cheap, if not free, so don't worry - and when the others show up, we'll just move them in there immediately. So you won't need to deal with me much longer."

"Aww." She hugs him, pouting. "But I'd miss my friends if you did that. Can't you, you know... live nearby, so we can still keep in touch?"

He chuckles. "We'll be in the same town, but that's all I can promise. Though given the size we'll need, it'll be a big house that sticks out like a sore thumb, so you shouldn't have much trouble finding it."

"I'll keep that in mind..." She glances over to the candle. "And I look forward to any youths that come about..."

He blinks. "...what do you mean by that?"

Midnight smirks at this, waving a hoof at him. "Nothing."

Casey sighs, and all is quiet for a moment before he speaks again, tossing another berry into his nonexistent mouth first. "So, now you know my dark secret... how about you? What was your past like, aside from the whole Thunderbolt thing or whatever they're called?"

She tilts her head at him, but one ear folds down. "Fairly normal... though we all have things that happen that leave their marks."

"Well, I started with being ten and crying. When was your first life-altering event?"

Midnight sighs, brushing a lock of hair out of her face. "...five, and my brother almost dying."

The sword winces. "...I'm sorry..."

"It's fine. You didn't know." She waves her hoof at him. "He's still alive... it just terrified me, at the time."

"What happened?" He moves closer, eye wide.

"He fell from our cloud home, before he learned how to fly." She sighs, shaking her head. "I told him he was too close to the edge, but he wouldn't listen..."

Casey nods slowly. "Yeah..." He pauses before hastily adding, "S-So I take it you caught him?"

"No, I couldn't." She rolls her eyes. "He's my big brother... besides, someone else saved him."

"...oh. Well... at least he was saved?" Casey offers awkwardly.

"Yes. About a meter above the ground, by a pony in blue and yellow." She smiles at him. "You could say that's what drove me to strive towards being a Wonderbolt."

"Wow." Casey blinks, taking this all in. "Still... I'm sorry you had to see that..."

"It's in the past." The mare shrugs, giving a wry smile. "I just have to move on from it."

"Where's your brother now?" The question comes more from simple curiosity.

"He lives in Applewood." She chuckles quietly, turning her gaze to the sky. "He became an agent for some famous pony... can't remember her name for the life of me."

"Well, at least he's doing fine." He looks down at the ground for a moment.

"Yep." She goes quiet for a moment, before turning to him. "You don't mind if we go visit him at some point, do you? I haven't seen him in a while."

He chuckles. "Who am I to prevent a family reunion?"

"Yay!" She happily hugs him, grinning widely.

He smiles and hugs back. "After all, you're doing the same for us, more or less."

"Exactly!" She laughs brightly, gesturing towards the edge of the clearing. "I need to take care of some business. Have as many berries as you want."

He blinks, then chuckles. "One more thing I don't have to do." He nods. "Thanks. Shout if something shows up."

She calls over her shoulder as she hurries off. "Will do!"

Casey sighs, relaxing and chowing down on the berries. He continuously glances between his team, Ryan, Liu, and the general direction Midnight went. For a few moments, his gaze falls and lingers on Anya.

At that moment, a piercing scream echoes through the field, coming from behind the sword's spot. Immediately, he turns, a low growl coming as he practically flies off in that direction. "Midnight!"

Over near Midnight, an Ariados closes in. It has never seen something like this before, but it looks good enough for a meal or two. Unfortunately for it, the cavalry arrives with a bang - or rather, a Tackle, slamming it right back into a tree. Casey floats back, growling at it.

Hissing, the bug skitters a small distance away, looking over the Honedge. Ghost-types were never good eating, but once the soul was beaten out of him, perhaps it would make a nice web decoration. He fires a String Shot.

It hits, but Casey retaliates with Autotomize, making up for the lost speed and easily breaking from the web. He then disappears into his shadow, then popping out behind the Ariados with a hard slash.

The bug recovers quickly, its own shadow moving before it launches into the air and toward the sword. "Night Shade!"

Rather than take the hit, Casey uses another Autotomize, shedding bits of metal from his blade, and darts quickly out of the way. Turning around, he smacks it on the back with Pursuit.

As it soars towards the ground, Ariados melts into its shadow this time. Much as Casey had done before, it whips around behind him, sharp legs rearing up and slashing the defender.

"Casey!" Midnight grits her teeth, her body trembling in fear. She wants to help, but is rooted to the spot by the presence of the large arachnid.

Casey takes the hit, flinching back, but then looks up at the Ariados. If he had a mouth, he would be grinning. He floats up, turns, and starts swinging at him with two words: "Aerial Ace!"

"Uh oh-" The spider is sent flying, crashing into a nearby tree. It slides down, ending up belly up at the bottom, twitching and making no move to get back up.

Casey huffs and turns back to Midnight. "You okay?"

She embraces him, letting out a shuddering sigh of relief. "Thank you... I was so scared..."

He sighs, partially in relief and partially in some sort of annoyance. "Congratulations on managing to get put in danger while going to the bathroom." Still, he wraps his tassel around her to return the embrace.

At that moment, the others arrive, having been not nearly as fast as the sword. Ryan is the one to speak. "What's wrong? What happened?"

"Ariados attack," Casey replies simply. "It's out cold now. We're fine."

And, as if on cue, a violent buzzing sound starts to reach their ears (or lack thereof).

Anya looks up. "Maybe not..."

From the trees come a swarm of Beedrill. Not two or three, or half a dozen; an outright swarm, well into the double digits. Harold backs up a bit, his Grass-type already worrying him, while Casey just growls. "Son of a bitch..."

Backing away a few steps, Ryan shouts out slightly panicky. "I vote we run!"

"Honestly?" Casey shouts back, then pauses. "...I agree."

One Beedrill - a shiny, green instead of yellow with blue eyes, and their apparent leader - jabs its stinger in their direction.

And then they all charge in.