Chapter Six

A Walk in the Woods

by Havoc

"Nature is not human hearted."
-Lao Tzu

------

"Okay, are we all ready?" Eric asked, looking between Aurelia and Mia. "Nobody forgot anything back at the Pokémon Center?" The trees of Petalburg Forest framed his body, making a green backdrop as he asked his question. The foursome would appear an odd group to anyone observing Eric and Mia the humans, Aurelia the Zangoose, and Lorena the Torchic.

"No...I have everything...," Mia said, craning her neck to get a good look at the forest behind Eric. She looked her usual nervous self, but a rapid tapping of her right foot betrayed her eagerness to explore. Her red hair was tied in a ponytail behind her head, to keep it out of the way of her emerald eyes and to make it less likely to catch on something in the woods.

Aurelia did not respond. She was in a bit of a foul mood, having had a bad night's sleep. She had been kept awake by her displeasure at knowing that she would have to be traveling with Mia for a while. Her dislike of the young human girl was purely irrational; Mia was a perfectly likable person. However, Aurelia was not used to competing for attention from Eric, her best friend. Whenever Mia was around, Eric seemed to pay more mind to her.

After waiting for a confirmation that was not coming from his Zangoose companion, Eric turned back to the forest. "Let's get going, then."

Eric wasn't that concerned by Aurelia's silence. She had been like that all morning, and he thought she was probably just in a passing mood. It didn't seem like she was sick, since she had eaten more than any of them when they'd had breakfast together. She had snapped a bit at Peb, Eric's Sableye, but that was likely because Peb had tried to snatch a few berries from Aurelia's plate. Lorena might not have helped the Zangoose's mood much; the little Torchic had sat on Aurelia's shoulder, cheeping merrily while ignoring her own breakfast. Mia had been forced to take Lorena to another room, because the Torchic just seemed to like being around Aurelia too much to focus on eating. In fact, the only well-behaved pokémon at breakfast had been Mia's Aron, a little Steel- and Rock-type that Mia had caught while in Granite Cave. It was Eric's first time meeting the pokémon, but he didn't seem interested in much besides eating his food and waiting patiently for Mia to return him to his poké ball.

Well, hopefully nobody gets into a fight..., Eric thought to himself as they entered the forest. Mia walked on his left, with Lorena on her shoulder, while Aurelia was on his right.

Aurelia looked back at Petalburg City. It was interesting how quickly the sounds of the city were swallowed up by the trees. Before they were very far into the forest, quietness descended on them. It was a silence that was broken only by the occasional cry of a bird pokémon, or the swish of some small four-legged pokémon through dry fallen leaves. The young Zangoose kept her ears perked up, to listen to what was around her, and her tail raised, to keep from dragging it on the ground and getting briars in her white fur.

For all its dimness and quiet, Petalburg Forest was not as foreboding as it might seem. A path was clearly marked, and it was obviously well-traveled and maintained. Aurelia could see periodically see evidence of modernity, whether it was a trash can placed along the side of the path or a cigarette butt casually tossed and stamped in the dirt. While most people preferred to fly or drive around the Hoenn region, or take a ferry as she and Eric had, hundreds of others chose to walk the various land routes.

They walked for a few hours, talking little. The atmosphere of the forest had seemed to impart some kind of quiet reverence on them, and they were keeping silent out of respect, even if the reason for such respect escaped them.

Lorena was the only one who didn't seem affected by the feeling of the forest. She hopped and clumsily fluttered between Aurelia's and Mia's shoulders, cheeping and looking around curiously. They were tuning her out, but when they reached a particularly dark section of the trees they suddenly realized that the Torchic had stopped making noise. Checking to make sure that Lorena hadn't fallen off of her shoulder and been left behind, Mia noticed that, in fact, the little fire bird was not with her or Aurelia.

"Wh-Where did Lorena go...?" Mia asked, sounding as though she was beginning to panic.

Eric brought the group to a halt, and a search for the Torchic began. After a few minutes, Aurelia found her perched on a very low branch, her back to the rest of them.

"Lorena?" Aurelia asked, walking up behind her. "What's going on?"

The Torchic didn't answer. She had her head cocked to one side, and was staring out into the trees, her attention completely held by something. Aurelia stared at Lorena for some seconds and then followed her gaze out into the depths of the forest. The shadows were dark enough that Aurelia's night vision, courtesy of her mother's blood, had some effect. She stiffened."

"E-Eric?" she called, her voice sounding a little scared.

Eric and Mia both came over, and Mia immediately picked up Lorena. She moved away a little bit, chastising the Torchic for leaving the group in a quiet, motherly voice.

"What is it?" Eric asked Aurelia.

"There's...something out there," Aurelia answered. Her fur was standing on end. She had caught a glimpse of movement deeper in the forest, and it was freaking her out. Normally, Aurelia was not easy to scare, but she couldn't stand being able to almost-but-not-quite see something. Especially when she wasn't even able to make out a shape. It was part of the survival instincts that came from being half-pokémon, and sometimes she was very glad to have them. Now, however, she was almost wishing they would quiet down.

Eric put a hand on her shoulder, gripping tightly. "Can you see what it is, Lia?" From the tightness of his hand, Aurelia could tell that he was scared, too.

Aurelia shook her head, her ears flapping a little. "No, it's too far away and there's enough light to foul my night eyes. I can't even tell how big it is." She looked up. "I think it's a pokémon, but I'm not sure."

"We need to keep moving," Eric said. "There are Seviper and Mightyena in these woods. I don't want to run into one when we're not experienced enough, yet." He leaned in close to Aurelia. "Don't say anything to Mia about it. Whatever it is might just be watching us. I don't want to scare her for no reason."

The hair on the back of Aurelia's neck bristled, betraying her annoyance at that statement, but she agreed not to say anything. In the back of her head she reasoned, although she didn't really mean it, that if Mia didn't know about something dangerous out there then something bad might happen to her.

------

When they were about a quarter of the way through the forest, they all stopped to have a rest. Eric checked his watch, finding that it was already well past noon. While the rest of the group sat down and massaged their aching feet, he brought out some food and prepared lunch for them. For Eric and Mia, that meant some sandwiches and water. For the pokémon, it was pokémon food. Even Aurelia ate pokémon food, because when they were not in a town and didn't have easy access to fresh berries it was the best thing for her.

Eric began passing out lunch, and when he got to Aurelia he paused to talk to her. "Have you seen anything else?" he asked in a low voice.

"No," Aurelia mumbled back. "I've been listening and keeping an eye out, but I haven't seen a thing." Her ears flattened a little. "But...I still get the feeling that something is out there..."

"Okay," Eric said. "Well, let me know if you see anything." He left Aurelia and went to give Mia and Lorena their food. Aurelia was expecting him to come back and sit with her while she ate, but instead he sat down next to Mia and struck up a conversation. With a sour expression on her face, Aurelia picked at her own lunch, now feeling not very hungry at all. Her little spot, a bit separated from the rest of the crowd, was feeling lonely. She could have moved over to sit with everyone else, but the little knot of jealousy that had been growing since the night before made her less than sociable.

"You don't look very happy..."

Aurelia's ears pricked up, and she looked around. She could have sworn that she'd heard something just then that sounded like a voice, but there was nobody who could have made it. A glance at Eric and Mia saw that they were absorbed in conversation, with Lorena sitting on the ground next to them absorbed in eating. Just as she was about to dismiss the voice as her imagination, she heard it again.

"He's a nice guy, but he should pay a little more attention to you. Still, not a bad person for a human. Not at all."

"Who's there?" Aurelia asked, whispering so that nobody would think she was talking to herself.

"Oh, just me," the voice said. "Oh, you can't see me, can you? Well, I'm just a little ways into the trees, if you want to chat..." A small giggle punctuated the words.

Aurelia looked back to Eric, but saw from his expression and the way he was gesturing with his hands that he was telling a story to Mia. He probably wouldn't be moving for quite a while. Going off on a little exploration couldn't hurt, could it? After all, it's not like he would miss her, she thought bitterly. She stood up and began walking towards the trees, off of the path.

"That's right, that's the way," the voice said approvingly. "Just a few yards in. I'm not far."

The Zangoose decided that the voice sounded female, although without something to put the voice to it was hard to tell. The voice was soft and melodious, almost singsong, so that was what made her think of a female. It sounded playful, too. Once inside the trees, she found that it was much darker than on the path. Above her head, the branches crisscrossed and formed an almost impenetrable canopy which let only a small amount of light down from the sky. It was beautiful, in a slightly eerie and solemn sort of way.

"Here I am!"

Aurelia looked around, her pointed ears held high and her eyes open as wide as she could get them. Try as she might, she couldn't see anything that might be a source for the voice. A few Zigzagoon were scampering about on the ground, but that was all she could see.

"No, up here!"

Looking up, Aurelia finally saw a diminutive Kirlia sitting up on a tree branch right above her. Although the Zangoose was not able to see clearly before, she felt sure that this Kirlia was what had been watching them from deep in the forest earlier.

"Hi, there!" the Kirlia said, hopping down from the branch. Closer up, Aurelia could tell that her initial instinct was correct, and this Kirlia was indeed female. Although the Kirlia obviously had a mouth, she was not using it to talk. The Psychic-type was instead using telepathy to speak with her through her mind. "Pleased to meet you!"

"Um...hello...," Aurelia said, a bit taken aback. She wouldn't have expected a wild pokémon to just come up and greet her, let alone invite her out into the woods, even if she was also a pokémon. This Kirlia was bold, to say the least.

The Kirlia looked at Aurelia curiously. "You talk like a human, but you're a pokémon," she said. "That's interesting. And yet I can tell from your mind that you're not really a pokémon...Not all the way, anyway. Your brain waves and emotions are different than a true pokémon."

"Er...Well, I guess that's right," Aurelia said, her tail bushing out in nervousness. She didn't think it was that obvious that she wasn't a full-blooded Zangoose, and the thought occurred to her that it might be bad if other pokémon could make the distinction as easily as this Kirlia could. Then again, she remembered reading that pokémon like Ralts, Kirlia, and Gardevoir were more in tune with emotions and that sort of thing. Perhaps it was a more limited ability. "If you don't mind my asking, who are you and why did you call me out here?"

The Kirlia blinked. "Oh, I'm sorry...I don't have a name." She bowed her head respectfully. "I regret that I cannot properly introduce myself."

"Oh," Aurelia said. "That's okay...My name is Aurelia. But you can call me Lia."

"No, no," the Kirlia said. "That wouldn't be proper at all. I don't know you well enough to be able to call you by anything other than your full name, Aurelia. And I called you out here because I'd like to talk to you!"

Perplexed by the situation, Aurelia sat down on the ground. "Okay. What about?"

"Your human," the Kirlia said matter-of-factly. "I wanted to ask about him. What's he like?"

"Eric?" Aurelia asked. "He's nice. He's a good friend. Even if he's not as attentive as I'd like him to be..."

"Is he good to his pokémon?" was the next question from the Kirlia.

"His pokémon? Well, there's only Peb, and he's been good to him so far." Aurelia rubbed the back of her neck. "Why are you asking me about Eric?"

"Forgive me...I thought you understood. Allow me to explain." The Kirlia sat on the ground in front of Aurelia. Sitting down, the little Psychic-type looked even smaller than normal. "My kind is very attenuated to the feelings and emotions of humans. Even though we are pokémon, and we live in the wild, we cannot reach our full potential until we become attached to a human being. Our true powers remain dormant until such time as we are captured, and a human gains our trust. I've been living in this forest my whole life, watching for a human who I feel is worthy to be called my master."

"Oh...," Aurelia said, a thought occurring to her. "That's why you were watching us before. You were checking us out."

The Kirlia nodded. "Correct. I was impressed that you were able to detect me. Nobody has before."

"So, wait. This means you want Eric to be your trainer?"

"Well...perhaps...," the Kirlia said, giving a little shrug. "I'm not fully sure yet...But I like the looks of him!" She tapped her tiny fingers together. "Um...Do you think...Do you think you could talk to him about me when you go back to him? I want him to know about me so I can make a good impression."

Aurelia was a little amused by this. "Well, sure I can. It's no trouble. When are you planning to show yourself?"

The Kirlia giggled nervously. "That's a surprise. But I'll be watching while you go through the forest. I'll be close by." She closed her eyes and was still for a few seconds. "They're looking for you...You should go back to them."

"Oh!" Aurelia said. "I didn't realize how long I was gone." She stood up, brushing bits of leaves and twigs from her fur. "Well...Goodbye."

"Goodbye, Aurelia. I'll be seeing you..."

------

Aurelia had some explaining to do when she got back to the others. Eric was a little mad at her for wandering off without telling anybody, while Lorena hopped up on her shoulder and gave her a chorus of reprimanding peeps. That Lorena had done much the same thing herself a few hours ago was an irony that was apparently lost on the Torchic.

Once the Zangoose had apologized for her disappearance, the group moved out once again. As soon as they were underway enough, Aurelia struck up a pace to match Eric's, and waited for Mia to get a little ahead of them.

"Eric, I need to tell you something," she said, holding onto his arm.

"Hm?" Eric asked, looking down at her. "What is it? Something wrong?"

Aurelia shook her head. "No, nothing's wrong. There's just something I need to let you know about." In a low voice, so Mia and Lorena wouldn't hear her, she related the story of the Kirlia in the woods and the conversation that the two of them had.

When she finished her tale, Eric looked excited. "Really? So this Kirlia is actually going to come to me? As in, wanting to travel with me, and I don't need to capture it?"

"Well, basically," Aurelia said. "But she said she hadn't made her mind up, yet."

"Oh...," Eric said. He looked thoughtful for a few seconds. "So, did she say what I needed to do to convince her?"

The Zangoose shrugged. "No, not really. She just said she'd keep an eye on you to make her decision. I guess you should just be yourself."

"I can do that."

Eric looked nervous. He hadn't ever really had to think about being himself before, and as strange as it sounded he was worried that now he wouldn't be able to do well at being himself. Aurelia laughed at the expression on his face.

"Chill out, Eric," she said, elbowing him in the ribs. "You're acting like this is a test or something. You don't need to look so serious."

The rest of the afternoon went by rather quickly. After a while, Eric forgot about trying to be himself and was then able to actually be himself. He stayed up at the front of the pack with Aurelia for most of the time, walking and talking with her. He seemed at least semi-conscious that he'd been ignoring the Zangoose, and Aurelia's mood improved significantly now that he was paying attention to her again instead of Mia. Mia stayed in the rear. She had let her Aron out of its poké ball and was walking with both him and Lorena. Aurelia and Eric learned that the little Steel- and Rock-type's name was Jeremy, and he occasionally trotted up to the front of the group, walking with the two of them. Aurelia got the idea that the little guy thought of himself as some kind of guard pokémon, or something like that.

The whole time, Aurelia's ears kept pricking and flicking back and forth as she heard little sounds in the woods around them. Most of the time they were just the sounds of random little pokémon wandering about, but several times she heard what she knew was the Kirlia flitting about the trees, keeping an eye on them. Eric tried not to pay attention to this, but he found it hard not to notice when Aurelia would turn her head and look off into the trees. He found himself wishing that the Kirlia would just show herself.

Evening seemed to come a lot earlier in the forest, which was already dim from the tree cover. When the sun started to go down, darkness rapidly fell as less light came filtering down through the branches. Before they would have expected to need to, it was apparent that they had to stop and bed down for the night. They went a little ways off the path and pulled their tents from their bags, setting them up in a small clearing. Aurelia made sure that her tent was as far as possible from Mia's and then got inside, spreading out her bedroll and settling in.

Aurelia was a little upset at having to forgo her usual evening ritual of brushing up her fur, but she had no mirror to use for this task. In any case, she supposed she'd just have to get used to it. She and Eric would be sleeping outside a lot, and it was no longer going to be possible to enjoy the creature comforts she'd gotten used to at home. Sighing, she put her head down and closed her eyes.

------

The Zangoose had barely been asleep for a few hours when a rustling noise woke her. Picking her head up, she opened one sleepy eye to see what the source was. Near her feet, the flap of her small tent was slowly rippling as it hung slightly open. That made her open her eyes all the way in an instant. She was certain she had zipped up the tent flap before she'd gone to sleep. Warily, Aurelia rose from her bedroll and crawled over to the opening, zipping it back up again.

"Sorry to intrude like this..."

Aurelia was thankful that she had been in the middle of a yawn, because it muffled her scream of fright enough that she didn't think she had woken any of the others. She whirled around, her heart pounding. Sitting in front of her, perched at the end of her bedroll, was the Kirlia.

"You nearly gave me a heart attack!" Aurelia hissed. "What the hell are you doing in my tent?"

"Just came to chat a little," the Kirlia replied. She jerked her head to the side. "I already went to check in on...Eric, was his name? He didn't wake up, though."

"You went to check on him?" Aurelia asked, puzzled. She thought about it for a few seconds, pondering what the Kirlia meant, and then she felt her face heat up like a furnace. "You went into his tent?" She stood up, shocked into a fit of jealousy, but her head bumped against the top of the tent and she sat down again.

"Oh my...," the Kirlia said, covering her mouth in genuine astonishment. "You're not...mad...are you? I was just...All I wanted to do was get a closer look at him...I didn't mean to intrude..."

Aurelia was quick to try to cover her outburst. "No, it's just...If he'd woken up, you might have gotten into trouble, that's all." The Zangoose forced herself to calm down. "Well, what did you think of him?"

"He's very cu-...I mean, uh...," the Kirlia stammered as she saw Aurelia raise an eyebrow. "He looks like a good trainer. And I've seen him interacting with you and the other pokémon. He seems very nice. I've seen a lot of trainers who care about their pokémon, but I think he really cares about you."

As shaken as she still was by the sudden appearance of the Kirlia, Aurelia could not help but be affected by her last statement. She wasn't sure why, because she had always known that Eric cared about her. He would not have been friends with her if that wasn't the case. Hearing it in the way that the Kirlia had said, though, made the words feel more special.

"Have you made a decision, then?" Aurelia asked.

The Kirlia gave a happy nod, giggling. "Of course I have! I want to travel with Eric, and with the rest of you. I've waited a long time to make this decision, and I'm happy that I finally found someone worthy."

"Can we expect to see you tomorrow, then?"

"Oh, I think so!" The Kirlia smiled, and then she vanished, teleporting out of Aurelia's tent.

After checking to make sure her tent was zipped up snugly again, Aurelia stretched out on her bedroll, lying on her back with her arms crossed behind her head. She couldn't help feeling a bit happy for the Kirlia. The Zangoose could identify with her in having had a dream for so long, and finally being in reach of accomplishing that dream. Aurelia also felt happy for Eric, that he would be getting another fine addition to his team. A strong Psychic-type would be a wonderful new asset. With those pleasant thoughts going through her head, she closed her eyes and let the sounds of the forest lull her back to sleep again.

------

The next morning was beautiful. Aurelia woke up in her tent feeling more refreshed than she had since beginning the trip with Eric, and when she emerged outside it was to see a scene which was gorgeous. The bright sunlight was filtering down through the treetops, painting a shimmering picture on the forest floor.

While they were all packing up their things, Aurelia related the story of what had happened the night before to Eric. He seemed highly excited and almost didn't finish packing his tent properly, but he forced himself to slow down and stay composed. Mia still had no idea what was going on, even though it probably would have been alright to tell her. She would be finding out before long, anyway, so Aurelia was content to let her remain ignorant for a while.

Traveling through the forest was much the same as it had been the previous day, with the same sort of scenery and sounds. They had to cross a rather wide stream, but fortunately there was a bridge. On this bridge they lingered for a bit to have lunch, leaning over the railing to watch Goldeen and Magikarp swim underneath them as they ate. Aurelia threw some crumbled-up bread over the bridge and into the slow-moving water, and smiled as Lorena hopped and cheeped on the railing, delighted to watch the Magikarp coming to the surface to nibble at it from below.

As the afternoon went on, and they got closer to the exit of the forest, Aurelia and Eric were beginning to wonder if the Kirlia had changed her mind about showing herself. They thought that they would be finding a place to break out of the forest pretty soon, and the Kirlia was running out of time. So, when Eric felt a light weight on his shoulder and heard a noise of surprise from Mia, he assumed that it was just Lorena fluttering up to perch on him. Turning his head to look, he saw that he was quite mistaken.

"Good afternoon," the small Kirlia that had alighted on his shoulder said in greeting, quite politely. "I'm very pleased to meet you."

"Oh...Th-That's a Kirlia...," Mia said, coming to a stop as Eric did. "Th-They're rare..."

"H-Hello," Eric said to the Kirlia, feeling rather nervous. "You must be the one Aurelia was talking about."

"Yes, I am," the Kirlia replied, with a small laugh. She hopped down from his shoulder and stood in front of the group. "Well, are you ready?"

Eric blinked. "Ready? For what?"

"Well, to fight me, of course." The Kirlia giggled, covering her mouth with one hand. "You didn't think I was just going to go with you like that, did you? I've decided that you're worthy, but I still need to know if you're capable." She looked up at him, expectant.

Eric looked at Aurelia, but she shrugged. The Zangoose hadn't been expecting this any more than he had. Eric really did want the Kirlia to come along with them, so if this was what her terms were than he would just have to go along with them. Mia stood back a ways, looking thoroughly confused. She hadn't the slightest idea what was going on.

Trying to be as calm as he could, Eric removed Peb's ball from his belt. He could have just had Aurelia fight the Kirlia, but for some reason having her fight seemed unsporting. He already knew that Aurelia could hold her own in a tough fight, and Peb remained largely untested. Also, Aurelia was able to manage herself in battle, and Eric wanted to show the Kirlia that he had his own abilities as a trainer. He tossed Peb's poké ball to the ground, releasing the Sableye from his confines.

"Oh my," the Kirlia said, looking Peb over as he shook himself out from being cooped up. "My possible future trainer knows how to pick his pokémon. I must say that I approve very much."

Peb scratched behind one of his ears. *Hey, boss, who's this lady?* he asked, looking behind himself at Eric and Aurelia. Aurelia covered her face with one paw, embarrassed by the wisecracking Sableye.

"Well, if you're ready," the Kirlia said, clasping her small hands in front of her, "then we shall begin." Immediately after saying this, her eyes began to glow and small pebbles rose from the path around her.

"Alright, Peb," Eric said. "This is your show. Use your head and keep on guard. Her Psychic-type attacks can't hurt you but I'm sure she's got something else she can use against you."

Peg grumbled a little. *Wordy wordy...I know what I'm doing, boss...* He looked at the Kirlia, grinning from ear to ear with a mouth full of sharp teeth. His eyes sparkled, and he made a show of sharpening his claws on each other. *This little girl won't know what hit her.*

The Kirlia gave a small smile, waiting for Peb to make the first move. At a motion from Eric, Peb launched into an attack, leaping at the Kirlia with claws outstretched and teeth bared. Aurelia had to admit that he looked a fearsome sight, and wondered if the Kirlia wasn't getting in a little over her head.

Peb got within a few feet of the Kirlia, looking as though he was about to strike her, when he was suddenly stopped cold in the middle of the air. As though he was being repelled by an invisible barrier, he was sent reeling back at least ten feet, almost all the way back to Eric. For a moment nobody could figure out what had happened, and Peb picked himself up off the ground, looking a little dizzy. And then Mia noticed that little sparks flashed through the air in front of the Kirlia as specks of dirt drifted close to her.

"O-Oh...," Mia said, standing close behind Eric and Aurelia. "L-Light Screen..."

Of course..., Aurelia thought to herself. Her Psychic-type attacks might not be able to hurt Peb, but her Psychic-type defensive moves will still have an effect. She tugged on Eric's shoulder, but he waved her off, having figured it out at the same time as her.

"I know, Lia," he said, setting his jaw. This battle might be more difficult than he had initially anticipated. "Peb, here's what you need to do." He kneeled on the ground, lowering his voice to speak to the Sableye. "She's going to keep blocking your attacks. You need to avoid whatever she throws at you and wait for her to drop her defenses. She's going to have to, eventually, if she wants to do any real damage to you. When that time comes, you strike as hard as you can."

Peb nodded, straightening up. *Sounds good...* Warily, he eyed the Kirlia, keeping his distance while circling her.

"Oh...Much better...," the Kirlia said approvingly, nodding at Eric. "Some strategy..." She kept her barrier up, watching Peb move around her. "But just keeping your distance won't help." In a flash, the Kirlia launched a quick burst of dark energy at Peb. The attack was almost too fast for the humans to see, but Aurelia followed it well, and could see quite clearly that she must have launched a speedy but low-level Dark Pulse attack. Somehow Peb managed to avoid the attack, leaping out of the way just in time for the energy wave to miss him. The attack hit a tree behind him instead, blackening the bark and making leaves on the lowest branches shrivel up.

Clearly this Kirlia had some interesting tricks up her sleeve. Eric wanted more than ever to get her on his team; her Psychic-type abilities would complement Peb's Ghost- and Dark-type arsenal rather well.

"Peb!" he shouted. "You've got to throw her off somehow! Try using your Mean Look!"

Peb drew a hand behind his back, and a ball of dark energy similar to what the Kirlia had just thrown at him formed in his palm. Bringing his hand over his head, he hurled a Shadow Ball directly at the Kirlia.

"That's all?" she said, narrowing her eyes at Peb. "I was impressed, but perhaps I was mistaken." She put up a hand, focusing her Light Screen, and the Shadow Ball dissipated in a shower of purple sparks, obscuring her vision for just a moment.

*Bad choice, lady,* Peb cackled.

"Wh-What?" The Kirlia's mouth dropped open. In that short span of time, Peb had made his way in front of her, his Ghost-type allowing him to simply walk through her Psychic barrier.

Grinning, Peb opened his diamond eyes as wide as they could go. A pale blue sheen came to them, and then they flashed as though they were attached to a camera. Thankfully, Aurelia turned her head at the last second, so she avoided the effects of the attack. A dull thump against the ground, however, told the tale of a curious little Torchic that could not resist watching.

"I-Impossible...," the Kirlia managed to say. She had been rooted to the spot, totally paralyzed on her feet by Peb's skillfully administered Mean Look.

"Oh, it's possible," Eric said. "Peb! End it!"

Peb drew his hand back once again, and with a gleeful look on his face he struck at the Psychic-type with a brutal Shadow Claw. Shrieking with pain, she was hurled thirty feet, where she crumpled to the ground and lay there, panting.

"Enough...," the Kirlia said, slowly drawing herself up to her feet. She brushed herself off, and then looked at Eric with her eyes shining. "That's...quite enough. Quite enough." She smiled. "It is obvious that you're a beginner, but I must say...Quite promising."

"Ah...Well, thank you," Eric said, looking at Mia and Aurelia with a pleased expression.

"I can see that I did not make a decision rashly." The Kirlia bowed low. "I am yours to command...master."

Eric's face colored at being called "master." "Well, I'm glad to have you along...Ah...I'm sorry, I don't know your name. Lia never mentioned it."

It was the Kirlia's turn to blush now. "I don't have one. I'm sorry...You can call me Kirlia, though. I don't mi-"

"Nonsense!" Eric said. "You're one of us, now. You need to have a proper name." He looked at Aurelia. "Right, Lia?"

Aurelia smiled, pricking her ears up in a friendly expression. "Of course."

Eric looked back at the Kirlia, grinning. "So..." He thought for a few minutes. "What do you think about Anna?"

The Kirlia bowed again. "If that is what master wishes, then Anna suits me just fine."

"Eh-heh," Eric said, rubbing a hand on the back of his neck. "Right...Anna it is, then. But...Do you think you could tone down the "master" stuff a little?"

Anna grinned, a twinkle in her eye. "Whatever you say, master."

While Aurelia broke into a fit of laughter, Eric pulled out an empty poké ball and tossed it at Anna. The ball hit her on the shoulder, and she was enveloped in light as the ball captured her. The device fell to the ground, shook briefly, and then became still as the capture was successfully registered.

------

Because of the delay caused by having to fight Anna, the group was not able to make it all the way through the forest. A few hours walking the next day would bring them through it, but that night they would be best served by camping out again. They set up camp as they had the night before, and settled down to sleep.

Just as Aurelia was about to fall asleep, there came a light tapping at her tent flap. Grumbling, she got up from her bedroll and crawled over, unzipping the flap and poking her head out.

"Oh!" she said. "Eric...What's up?"

"Nothing much," Eric said. He was on his haunches, squatting down by her tent. "I just wanted to thank you for everything you've done over the past few days. I don't know if I could have captured Anna without your help."

Aurelia smiled. "Hey, I didn't really do anything. She picked you, after all. All I did was give her a good impression of you."

"Well, still. Thanks for what you did. I'm really glad we decided to go into this together." He leaned in and gave her a small, quick hug, and then stood up to walk back to his own tent.

Smiling wider, Aurelia retreated back inside, zipping back up and returning to her bedroll. She wrapped her arms around her travel pillow, nuzzling her furred face against it, in a considerably better mood than she had been for the past few days. Perhaps, in the end, jealousy was a much overrated emotion.

------

"There is never jealousy where there is not strong regard."
-Washington Irving