=== NOCTURNE AND MIDORI


"Hurry!" Phoebe called back at the others as they ran through the shrubs, bushes, and thorns of the dark woods. After all, it was a friend of hers that was in trouble, and she wasn't the kind to deny help. Right after her ran Sasha, who had been the second closest when the call was heard. Following further back were Richard, Estelle, Leon and Tiffany, who was hanging onto the Swablu chick to prevent him from falling.

"Who are we running to save again?" Leon yelled his reply at the Espeon, hastily running and trying not to trip on the many roots that were lining the ground.

"Her name's Midori, and she's a friend of mine!" Phoebe answered, panting a little as she was starting to tire. "I'd recognize that voice anywhere!"

The race finally came to a stop as they reached one of the very few clearings the forest had. There, features obscured by his grayish feathers, stood an Altaria, looking down with pity at the sight of the Leafeon that was bowing, staring back at him with both fear and desperation.

"Why would anyone in this wretched place come and help you...?" the Altaria inquired. He was far different from what Leon had seen of Aria earlier. The very tone of his voice already showed the kind of Pokémon he was. "The only ones that go through this forest are those who have no regard for themselves or others."

"Please," Midori begged, "I just need those herbs; that's all! Without them, Mister Nocturne will die!"

"That is what I intend," the Altaria answered coldly. "He dared challenge me...pitiful bird." He raised one of his storm cloud-black wings and simply replied, "Requiem leaves no survivors."

"Leave the lady alone!" Leon said as he jumped out of the bushes that had been covering them until then and stood with a fist raised, sparks coming out of it

"What?" Both the Leafeon and Altaria stared at Leon, not knowing what he was doing there. While that happened, Phoebe snuck up from behind Midori and poked at her with her paw. They looked at each other before nodding and retreating back through the bushes.

"And who in the world are you, stealing away my precious time?" Requiem asked, scanning Leon with his avian eyes before directing a disdainful stare at him. "Perhaps you are just the only one to care about this helpless Eon's call for help-" he gestured to where Midori was originally standing only to notice she was gone. "Eh-eh?" the Altaria looked at the spot before noticing both the Leafeon and some herbs that were growing right where she was were gone. Grumbling in anger, he turned to look at Leon again, letting the darkness of the forest obscure his features and proceeded, "You are going to regret this."

"Come on," the Pikachu answered, changing from sparks to diamond dust, which seemed to hold a certain impression on Requiem.

"Strange..." Requiem mused, staring at him. "How can you do that...? No matter. It won't save you," he finished as he flew at Leon with his fleecy wings starting to glow, only to be stopped by the Pikachu's own hit. The Ice Punch's effectiveness became instantly noticeable as Requiem fluttered back slightly, feeling his body heat go down. The Altaria took some time, breathing, before bowing in front of Leon and adding, "I know when I will lose a fight...I admit defeat." Immediately, Leon dispelled the icy charge from his hands and turned around.

"Then go away," the Pikachu answered, getting ready to walk away and leave the Altaria be. Far too big a mistake that was, however. The moment he started to leave, Requiem lunged at him again. Fortunately, someone else who had been watching had already seen this coming. The bird's attack was cut short as he was caught mid-air and pinned to the ground by the black-blue blur that hit him.

"Planning something?" Richard asked, staring seriously at Requiem. "If you're going to fight, do it from the front." He felt a special kind of hatred against Requiem for that single act. If there was one thing he had not once been able to stomach, it was a treacherous back attack. Sparks came forth from his fangs before he dug them into the Altaria. Not enough for it to be fatal, but enough to leave him unconscious for quite a while. Satisfied with what he had done, he stepped off and looked at Leon, who couldn't quite come up with words.

The Pikachu had not been expecting that kind of attack from anyone, and it came to him as a surprise. However, he didn't know what surprised him the most: the back attack, or the fact it was the Luxray he tended to clash with so much who saved him from it.

"Thanks," Leon muttered.

"Don't thank me," he replied. "Instead, learn not to be so gullible. I could have seen that coming when I was a cub." He headed back into the bushes before looking at him again. "Sasha and the rest took off back to camp with that Leafeon. Apparently, she's not one for shakeups. You coming?"

"Y-Yeah, sure..."


***


Not much time had passed since Leon and Richard had returned to camp. With Sasha, Phoebe and Midori gone so she could deliver her herbs (although she did not exactly tell them who she had to deliver them to), Leon, Tiffany, Richard, Estelle, and the small Swablu had been left to wait for them. While the Buneary, Swablu and Absol had fallen asleep, huddled together in a strangely endearing sight, Leon had taken back to his reading while the Luxray lied on his back, looking up at the dark canopy of the dead woods they were in and immersing himself in his own thoughts and feelings.

Leon tried to focus on the book, yet was unable to. There was something amidst the thick, blue mist that kept calling for him through the silent, paradoxically harmonic dissonance of the night; something that kept poking at his mind, giving him the impression that he was being watched and bringing him an odd, familiar feeling. But how could that feeling be familiar? After all, it was unlike anything he had ever felt before. After some more failed attempts, he put the book down and looked at Richard. Perhaps some talk could help put him at ease.

"Hey, um..." Leon told the feline, who didn't seem to pay him attention. He found striking up a conversation with him rather hard. What could they possibly talk about? "You...eh..."

"What?" Richard cuttingly answered, keeping his tone low to avoid waking Tiffany or Estelle up.

Leon didn't have much time to think before he spoke, and ended up saying the first thing that came on to his mind: "Why'd you help me back there?"

"A warrior deserves to die from the front," the Luxray replied, still looking up at the darkness. "Believe it or not, I've got some respect for how you're trying to change who you are, and the way in which you stood up to me the other day...not that I'd ever admit that to you," he finished, grunting.

"Respect?"

"Not many would see me like that and still have the guts to spit some bravado at me. Kind of made me respect you a little. You're the only one to do that...you and Sasha," he added with a cynical sigh of both sadness and amusement.

"Sounds weird, the way you said it," Leon answered, scooting closer to where Richard was and sitting next to him. "What's so funny about me or Sasha?"

"Nothing," the feline lied, trying to keep his thoughts to himself. Was it wrong that after what had transpired last night he was, perhaps, feeling something for both the Absol and Glaceon he had been with? Was that what made him feel even worse about doing it? "There's nothing with you. And Sasha...there's just...'stuff' about her."

"What kind of stuff?"

"Nah, never mind."

"You like Sasha?" Leon asked, looking at the Luxray with curiosity. If Richard's answer was yes, the Pikachu was in for a surprise. He honestly couldn't imagine him loving anyone, let alone be loved in return.

"I, just- Ah, let me be," Richard growled, rolling on his side so his back was facing Leon.

"So you DO like her!" Leon chuckled, climbing the Luxray's side and trying to make eyes meet. "Why don't you tell her?"

"I don't like her- I mean, not as in dislike, it's...argh! Will you drop this already?"

"Fine," Leon chuckled some more, heading back to where he was sitting and picking up the book again, looking over it at Richard with an amused expression. "It's kind of funny, how you freaked out about it..." He kept reading for a while before looking at Richard over the book again and laughing a little, "You like Sasha! There's nothing wrong with admitting you like someone!"

"Back to your bookworming and leave me alone," he grunted back. "I've got bigger stuff to think about...like how I'll gut Blackfang the moment we get out of here and reach Selenia."

"Sure, let the bloodshed take your mind off all the love!" Leon taunted the feline some more. Though they certainly failed to be the best of friends, playing with him like that was something Leon found relaxing against the forest's sinister atmosphere. And he somehow got the feeling Richard knew he was just playing as he wasn't getting angry at any of his comments.

"Okay, so I find her a little attractive, big deal. Can we go back to being grownups now?" If only Leon knew it wasn't just Sasha he liked...but that would make Richard look even worse.

"Sure, let's do that," Leon chuckled some more.

"Hey, we're back!" Phoebe greeted, moving closer to the fire and lying down next to it, letting it warm her up to make up for how cold the night out in the fog was.

"And we brought a Mummykrow with us!" Sasha added, doing the opposite and lying down as far from the fire as she could, that is, next to the Luxray, who immediately seemed to stiffen.

"Funny, the jokes you make, ma'am," the wrapped-up Murkrow squawked, stepping closer to the fire. With his wings clipped as they were, he had to walk on his talons, something he was not used to doing anymore. "Or they were, the first FIFTY TIMES!"

"Been saying that a lot, actually," Sasha answered, smiling. "Sorry. It's such a good joke!"

"Define 'joke'."

"Thank you for helping me," the Leafeon murmured, sitting in front of Leon and looking at him with her innocent, hazel eyes. "I needed those herbs to make medicine for Mister Nocturne. If you hadn't been there, I probably wouldn't have been able to get them."

"Nocturne?" Leon stared at the Murkrow, feeling slightly surprised that they would be seeing each other again in that dark place.

"Yup," Midori nodded. "He's that Murkrow wrapped in all the bandages. Though, from what Phoebe and Lexa-"

"-Sasha," the Glaceon corrected her from the other side of camp.

"Right! Sasha...from what Phoebe and Sasha were telling me, you already know each other."

"We met some days ago," Leon answered as he put his book down again, got up, and walked up to Nocturne, looking at him. "What happened to you?"

"I took off for my vengeance. I'd make Requiem pay for what he had done, and afterwards, I'd go for the Don himself. But Requiem overpowered me," Nocturne sorely replied, hopping off the stump he had gotten up on and standing in front of Leon, looking at him eye to eye. "How is the egg Aria left in your care?"

"Hatched," Leon gestured back at the sleeping Absol and Buneary, telling Nocturne to notice the small, fluffy white puff. "He's right there, if you want to look at him."

"So, he's hatched..." Nocturne walked up to where the Swablu was and looked down on him, blue eyes taking an odd glow, if only for a moment. He wanted to feel the little one, but with his wings tied, watching was all he could do. He kept silent for a moment before looking back at Leon. "I'd take him in my care right now, but that would be more harm than good for him. Can I ask you to take care of him, if only for the time being?"

"Not a problem," Leon nodded.

"Come rest by the fire, Midori," Phoebe told the Leafeon, gesturing for her to come with her paw, "you could use the warmth. Don't get too close, though."

"I know...thanks," the Leafeon replied quietly, lying down next to the fire with her friend. "I was coming back from Isa Yuka when I saw him. Poor Mister Nocturne...he would have died without your help."

"He would have died without yours, too," the Espeon added. "Have some faith in yourself."

"I guess you're right..."

"So," Sasha told Richard as she inched as close to him as she could, discretely sliding one paw up his side until it ended on his chest, trying to make her move as natural as she could, "you've been looking up at the shadows all this time?"

"Y-yeah, I have," the stone-stiff feline answered, not moving his eyes from the canopy of the forest. "It's...it's all I've been doing."

"Why? What's there to look at up there?"

"Nothing. That's what makes it interesting."

"Don't try to cover yourself inside your lonely perspective of the philosophical matters of the world and the self!" Sasha replied, patting the Luxray with her paw in an answer he (and Sasha herself) didn't really understand.

"And that would mean...?"

"I don't know. But I'm sure it means something, so, there. Tell me what you're thinking about!"

"I'm thinking...roses."

"Roses?" Sasha asked back, not grasping what he meant. Why on earth would he be thinking about roses in a dark, misty forest? "What...I mean...what?"

"Don't really know why."

"So, what have you been up to?" Nocturne asked Leon, hopping back on a nearby stump and staring at the Pikachu with his calm yet imposing gaze. "You told me you were heading for Selenia. I was planning to meet you there when I was done, but I see you really didn't go there..."

"We were," Leon answered, sitting on the stump next to the Murkrow, "but the train ride had some complications and we decided to travel on foot. It's probably going to take us a while longer."

"Well, good luck. You know no travel is wrong as long as you make it to your destination."

"That's a fairly odd way of seeing things," Leon answered. "But it's actually true, if you look at it."

"Perspective," Nocturne nodded, "It makes all the difference..." He fell quiet for a moment before adding, "You know? I left that chick in your care and I never even bothered learning your names."

"I'm Leon," the Pikachu replied, then pointed at the Glaceon and Luxray, being blissfully oblivious to the way they were together. "Those are Sasha (remember to call her that ) and Richard. Then there's Tiffany and Estelle cuddling up with the little one, and that's Phoebe, talking to...what's her name?"

"Midori," Nocturne answered. "She's a very sweet young lady, but what time I've spent with her kind of makes me think she's got an inferiority complex."

"Why?"

"I don't know. There are many reasons for which that might happen, boy. Most of the time we find ourselves doing something that can hurt others so much they develop such problems. Envy, or even fear of being surpassed...that can always be suppressed by treating the Pokémon you consider a menace like complete nothing."

"Wise," Leon nodded in agreement, "I never thought of it that way before. Where did you learn stuff like that?"

"Long ago, from an Altaria named Étude Melodia, my father. As I grew older and took off in flight of my own I forgot all the things he taught me, but being wrapped up and near-immobilized kind of takes me back."

"I see..."

"So, what were you doing by Isa Yuka?" Phoebe asked the Leafeon as she reached into her own bag and pulled out two small berries, giving one to her friend. "You told me you were going to Blitzheim?"

"I was," Midori answered, taking a small bite of the berry she had been given, tasting the faintly sweet flavor of the produce before answering, "but I got a letter from this guy asking me to go to Isa Yuka for a major finding. I don't even know who he is, but he was right. Out in the wastelands right where he told me I found this huge underground chamber."

"Wow, that's like your dream come true. Have you told anyone?"

"Not yet...I still have to go explore the inside. That's why I was going back to Desina, but the train never arrived," the grass-type continued, finishing what was left of the small berry before adding, "I never thought I'd be finding you in here. I was starting to feel scared..."

"Scared?" Phoebe replied. She understood that the forest was dark, and that, basically by herself, she an easy prey for anyone, but she didn't understand what frightened her.

"Because of the monster, deeper in the forest," Midori answered. "Last night, after the fireworks for the festival ended, I could hear him hiss and growl...and I heard him say such horrible things. At least with you here with me I don't have to be so afraid. You'd get rid of him, right?"

"I'd try," the Espeon nodded in agreement. "I don't know what good I would do, though. You always were the stronger one."

"Thanks, Phoebe..."



=== ATTACKED


Quite a few hours had passed since Midori and Nocturne had arrived, the forest now shrouded in almost total darkness save for what little precious light the fire could grant Leon and the others. The fog had gotten even thicker to the point everyone had to round up as close to the fire as they could, much to Sasha's displeasure, in order to be able to see each other. They had found themselves forced to wake Tiffany and Estelle up as to avoid losing sight of them in the darkness. It was then, once he noticed what the forest looked like at midnight, that Leon understood why the place was usually avoided by all but the strongest and most seasoned or skeptical travelers. He himself felt a chill on his spine, and he could swear the fog grazed his back as it flowed behind him...and then that dreaded, oh-so-annoying thing he felt nipping at his mind. What was making him so anxious about that place?!

"Is everything okay?" Tiffany, who was sitting next to him leaning against his side, asked him, feeling him tense.

"Yeah, I'm fine," Leon answered, almost indifferently as he reached his arm around her and began stroking her right ear in a slow, gentle motion that made her lean her head on his shoulder and close her eyes. "Just...stuff on my mind. Nothing important. It's just...don't you ever feel like there's something gnawing at your mind? And then this forest is so dark and strange...it kind of scares me. Doesn't it creep you out a little?"

"Nope," the Buneary answered calmly, feeling her love's hand caress her ear. "Believe it or not, this night is like any winter night in Ilsia. And, though there is something gloomy about this place, I know there's nothing to fear. I've got you with me, right? We've all got each other."

"Yeah...you're right. This place is a bit macabre, but we've got nothing to be afraid of. Not as long as we stick together."


"Aw, he's so cute!" the Leafeon said as she saw the Swablu hop around and stop to look at her and then at everyone, analyzing them in his own, mysterious way.

"He is," Nocturne nodded, looking at him, "and he's all that's left of his mother and father. I won't let him get hurt." He walked up to where the chick was and looked closer at him. "Hello." The Swablu just answered with his stare, probably because he was too young to speak yet, and let out an extremely low and gentle chirp.

"Wonder what he thinks of us," Phoebe commented, lying next to the fire as she watched the scene. "I really don't remember what the world was like when I was that little..."

"Of course you wouldn't," Richard replied, leaning against the one tree that was close enough to the light for it to reach him, with Sasha and Estelle leaning against him. "At that age, all any Pokémon does is eat and sleep."

"Eat!" Nocturne said, jumping as if remembering something. "Of course, eat! Eh...I need...what does he eat?"

"Try giving him a berry," Phoebe told him. "Just make sure it's a small one. A very small one."

"Right," Nocturne replied, "okay...mind giving me one?" His question met an answer as Phoebe rolled a berry at him. "Thanks."

"Isn't he cute?" Estelle said, staring as the small one ate while she cuddled as close to Richard as she could. "When I was that little, I bet the world must have been so huge!"

"To me, the world was limited to one room where I'd sleep all the time," Sasha replied from the feline's other side. "That's what they tell me, at least. And what about you?" she asked, patting the tense Luxray's side. "What were you like, you know, when you were little?"

"Bet he'll say something that's gonna bring us down!" Leon called from the other side of the fire.

"For your information," Richard grunted his answer at the Pikachu, "I was actually a very happy, life-loving little Shinx. Not that it's any of your business."

"Whoa, really?" Leon taunted back. "How's that possible?"

"Hey, shut up," the Luxray answered. "Sometimes one just changes."

"Yeah, leave him alone!" Sasha told Leon. "Just what were you like? Huh?"

"Isolated in one dark, cold room apart from everyone and everything," Leon replied sadly, recalling the darker, less lovely days of his existence. "I was trapped there, away from the world for I don't know how long until one day they let me out and introduced me to everyone. And since that day, it was nothing but training, fighting and working, ending lives to prove how strong I was." When he finished, he looked around and noticed everyone looking at him in a way that only suggested he had been the one to bring the others down. "I'm sorry..." He looked down and sighed, then continued, "Shouldn't have said all that..."

"Um..." Midori muttered, leaning closer to Phoebe, "what's he talking about?"

"Too weird and long a story," the princess answered, "and before you hear it, you gotta promise you won't judge him."

"Oh, okay..."

"That's awful!" Tiffany told him, patting his back. "I had no idea you had gone through all that. Just...why would they do that to you?"

"To make me a better tool, I guess," Leon replied. "I really don't remember that much, except for my first days training with Bernard. He taught me a lot of stuff."

=x=x=x=

The sound of crashing water filled the air as the Pichu sat down on a small rock by the waterfall's pond. The water was so hot it caused steam to emerge as it hit the snow near the shore. On the next rock in front of his, kneeling straight with both hands against his knees was his Lucario master. It was possible to practically feel the calm in the air as the two (or at least the Lucario, while the Pichu, struggling) meditated. That was a moment Leon remembered as one of the few in which he felt at ease.

"But I'm not sure," XV asked in his little voice, feeling the question that had been circling him get the best of him. "Are the resistance warriors too?"

"A warrior is anyone who strives for his beliefs," III answered with his eyes closed. "You, me...even the resistance. We are all warriors as long as we fight for that which we consider fair until we reach either glorious victory or a bitter end."

"Bitter end? But, if they fight for their beliefs, shouldn't they win?"

"They do not because we, too, fight for our own. They are warriors and I admire their resolve, but I, too, am one. And that is why I must destroy them."

"Wow... But, is what we do really right?"

"Right is a viewpoint. What is proper to us is wrong to others. What matters is keeping to what we really strive for and to never surrender. Otherwise we put ourselves and all of those around us to shame."

"Okay..."

"Go back to meditating. It strengthens your spirit."


=x=x=x=


"Not pointing the right way, but it's true," Richard commented. "Glorious victory or bitter end, but no second chances: it's how we did it in the badlands."

"Bernard was a great teacher," Leon continued. "He was everything I wanted to be like back then. It all changed in time, though."

"What doesn't?"


"So, I was thinking..." Sasha murmured at the Luxray's ear as she softly caressed his chest in the way that caused him to feel like he was tied to a rock at the bottom of a lake. "Can we go talk somewhere else? Just a little distance from here."

"Talk?" Richard stammered. "What about?"

"Just come on! Estelle? Will you get him to come with us for a walk?"

"A walk?" Estelle answered nervously. "I don't know...wouldn't it be dangerous?"

"Fine, let's not go too far; just a little bit into the fog."

"But why?" Richard and Estelle answered at the same time.

"Just come on!" the Glaceon answered, patting Richard's body with her paw. "Please? It's important."

"Fine," the Luxray slowly got up, followed by Estelle as he looked at the others. "We'll be coming back in a while; just going for a walk."


"Why are Sasha and Estelle so close to him?" Midori asked Phoebe, trying to get a better understanding of the group she would be spending the night with. "Is he close with them?"

"They're close. But I really don't know how," Phoebe answered. "You know what? I'll be right back." And with feline agility, the Espeon jumped up at one of the dead trees and stood on its branches, then began slowly walking from tree to tree.

"Hey," Leon asked Tiffany, looking around to see they had been left alone with Nocturne, Midori and the chick, "where'd everyone go?"

"Richard just said they were going for a walk," Midori replied, "but he said it so low you probably didn't hear it. So, you two," she shyly asked, looking at the couple, "are you, like, together? Because you seem close, but I don't know..."

"We are," Leon nodded.

"And we hope to stay that way," Tiffany added.

"Well, I'm going to get some sleep now, before the pain comes back," Nocturne said, hopping on a tree trunk and perching himself there. "Good night."

"Night, Mister Nocturne!" Midori answered. "Have sweet dreams."

"'Night, Mister Nocturne?'" Leon chuckled. "Sounds oddly funny."


***


"So, here's the thing," Sasha started, stopping and turning to look at the other two with a faint grin. "We're far enough for them not to hear us, and I'd like to know: what we did last night... wanna do it again?"

"What?!" Richard reacted by stepping back, his expression changing from the usual serious one to an amusingly awkward one. "Didn't...didn't I tell you what I thought about it? It's wrong! We're not supposed to-"

"You're handsome, but you're cuter when you're quiet," Sasha cut him short and looked at Estelle. "So? Come on, a majority vote wins!"

"A vote?!" Richard continued. "Like this is some kind of po-"

"Hush."

"I...I don't know, Lexy..." Estelle answered, looking down and blushing a little. "It was fun, but I'd like it to be something special, and it's getting dark. I want to go back..." She looked at the two before turning back and walking to camp, soon disappearing in the darkness.

"Well," Sasha smiled naughtily, "more for me, then."

"Look," Richard chose to take things another way, perhaps to see if he could get her to change her mind, "I like you, okay? But it's wrong to do this. I'm...I'm taking advantage of you," he finished, "and that's bad."

"Advantage?" Sasha laughed softly. "Like, I'm some helpless little Eevee that you're toying with?" She smiled, and softly nuzzled him, giving a soft purr.

Richard was stunned as he felt his thoughts clash again. When she did that, it felt so good. It felt right, in a way, but after what had happened the last time he even dared admit being in love he just couldn't risk it. He didn't want to lose anyone again.

"The only advantage you get is the one I'm giving you," she whispered as she turned around and raised her rear at him. "Come on..."

"I don't think we should."

"Come on!"

"There's more to life than just mating, you know?"

"Oh, will you just pound me already?!"

"Whoa! Magically, I'm convinced!" Richard huffed in sarcasm, turning around and beginning his walk back. "Throwing some tantrum won't get you anything."

"Fine! I didn't want to, anyways!" Sasha replied angrily, standing straight and walking deeper into the fog. "I just wanted to spend some time with you, but if that's what you want, then fine!"

"There are more ways to spend time together!" Richard roared back, "and you're going the wrong way!"

"I don't care! Anything just to avoid seeing you!"


***


"Just, who does he think he is?!" Sasha grunted as she wandered through the blue fog. While she had no idea where she was going, her experiences on the outdoors had given her a good sense of orientation, so she could find her way back to camp if she felt like she was in trouble; but right now, she didn't care. She was feeling enraged, and the worst part was that she couldn't even find a reason to be so. She had offered herself, and been rejected by others many times, but she had never felt it strike her as hard. "I offered him heaven...screw him and his stupid morals!" But that was what hurt her so much. Most of the time when she did so it was out of simple desire, attraction on a physical level, but the Luxray managed to awaken something in her she could have sworn she had already forgotten.

However, as she dealt with her own conflicts between her anger and her feelings, someone else was watching, someone who had been waiting for that moment for quite a while...

"Hello!" XIV greeted maliciously as he leapt out of the shadows, stopping in front of her with a perverse grin. "What are you doing out here, all by yourself? It's dangerous, you know?"

"I'm not in the mood for you," Sasha indifferently answered, walking right by him with her eyes focused forward. "Leave me alone."

"Well, I don't think you get it," the Houndoom replied, walking by her side. "It's not really a choice..."

"I said go away," Sasha stopped and turned to look at him before stepping away a little and getting ready to stop whatever he was planning. "Last time, I was hurt and couldn't defend myself, but this time it's different."

"Is it?" XIV huffed confidently, preparing to pounce her as well. "Let's see, then." Saying this he leapt at her, but Sasha was not about to let him have his way. She quickly jumped away and bounced back at him, bashing the Houndoom on his side in what she hoped would put a hurt on him, but all she got was a strong pain in her head when she hit him. She staggered back, trying to shake herself aware as XIV drew closer at her.

"Is that all? Your overgrown pet might be able to hurt me, but there's a reason why I'm way above the average Pokémon."

Sasha just growled, trying to think of what to do. If she tried to run away she would just expose her behind, and she knew that was just what he was after, but if she tried to fight him... And to think, she considered herself strong! She had to find another way to handle the situation, but how? Just as XIV got near, she got an idea.

Before the large canine could react, she leapt at him again, but this time made a short flip before smashing her Iron Tail right on his head. As she expected, this managed to put at least some damage on the dark-type, but what she really wanted was what she could almost swear would happen next.

"Ow! You little..." the Houndoom gritted his teeth in pain, shuffling back before looking at her, his pained expression changing into a slight grin. "Have it your way."

"Come on, then!" Sasha taunted, and, like she predicted, the Houndoom soon opened his muzzle and the large ball of flames came shooting out. Perfect. Much to his surprise, the Glaceon didn't move. Instead, she just stood there, letting a bright glow envelop her body and sending the fire right back at XIV the moment it hit her. The impact and the resulting smoke caused XIV to stagger and cough before his attention focused on Sasha again. "Clever little minx, aren'tcha? But it won't save you from this..." he muttered as he reached to a small rolled-up herb he had tied to his paw and took it in his muzzle, lighting it with the fire from his maw before hurling it at her. The roll just hit Sasha's front and dropped, emitting some smoke.

"Oh, please don't hurt me with this!" Sasha scoffed, looking at the object. Before she could react, however, more and more smoke began to come out and became thicker and thicker, and she had inhaled it. Now knowing what exactly was going on, she just began to cough and cough, and soon found herself losing sensibility in her body and feeling dizzy. That couldn't be good. The smoke cleared just in time for her to see XIV dash at her and headbutt her. The blow came at full force, and though she certainly felt almost no pain thanks to whatever the smoke had done to her, she still took the impact. She was sent back a little and dropped to the ground, her vision too blurry to see where he had gone. She struggled to get back up, and just as she finally managed to, she heard that ominous voice coming from behind her, and realized all too late: she was in trouble, and her legs quickly gave in to her own weight. She had been paralyzed, too!

"Amazing, what a little home-made herb mix will do, huh?" she heard XIV murr as he moved behind her. "Now, what to do with you? You're a tough girl; I heard tough girls like it in the rear..."

"Just back off!" Sasha barked at him as loud as she could, and realized the herbs had rendered her voice so raspy it was almost inaudible. "You'll be in trouble the moment I get back up!"

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"I'll be gone by then," he calmly answered as he reached down between her hind legs and took a short lick at her nether lips, causing her to grunt and flail in disgust at what little of it she could feel. "Don't move so much: you'll like it..." he said as he continued to lap at her, enjoying how her body started to become unwillingly aroused at his actions.

"Just leave me alone, you bastard!" she yelled at him as strongly as she could as she tried to kick him away, but it failed to do her any good. With her voice in that condition, no one would hear her, and her legs didn't even seem to obey her.

"You've got such a sweet taste," he commented as he kept licking up her emerging juices and proceeded to stick his hot tongue into her folds, bringing a shiver from the helpless Glaceon. He moved his tongue around inside her, feeling her soft, cold walls before pulling out and licking her again from bottom to top, starting at her clit and moving up all the way to her tailhole, smearing her behind with both her juices and his saliva.

Sasha just lay there, taking his abuse and gritting her teeth in frustration as all she could do was hope it would be over soon. She just felt so powerless and humiliated.

"I think you're ready now," the Houndoom murred as he stood, his member already hard and dripping some pre as he prepared to put her through more of her torment. He positioned himself above her and began to slowly descend until he was lying right on top of her. Sasha just closed her eyes and clenched her teeth in desperation as she felt him lick her ears in a circular pattern, smearing them in more of his warm drool and blowing his hot breath on her neck before biting on the nap of her neck, wrapping his forelegs around her chest and pulling her up.

Sasha began weeping in her torment as she felt him start rubbing himself against her entrance, getting more of her juices on him and dripping more pre, though he did this purely for the intent of torturing her before finally sinking his rod into her folds. The Glaceon screamed in her lacking voice as she felt herself forced to take the Houndoom's hot member inside of her. It wasn't the size that hurt her, though. She had taken bigger males than that, but it had never been forced upon her like that. He didn't give her a moment to adjust to him before he began wildly thrusting inside of her, clearly focused on his own pleasure and not even stopping to think about hers. While her juices and his pre made it far easier on her, she still felt pain, both in her body and spirit.

XIV let go of her neck and just threw his head back in pure pleasure as he pulled out of her only to slam back in with such force he had to grab onto her tighter so she wouldn't fall off, and with every thrust more of his pre squirted out into her and his knot grew slightly bigger. "You're so tight," he grinned cruelly, licking her neck again, much to her disgust, "and so soft...makes me wonder how many times you've done this!" he asked with a particularly strong thrust, his knot entering her and popping out again.

"Shut up!" Sasha cried, "just shut up!"

The Houdoom's tongue hung out in pleasure, his thrusts becoming harder and more erratic as his orgasm drew close, his knot almost reaching full size. Sasha just prayed it would end soon, not knowing what in reality frightened her the most: the fact she could feel that fleshy bulb prodding at her entrance, or what he would do to her once they were done. With no warning, her attacker hilted himself inside of her, knot and all, in a single slam. The Glaceon's eyes widened and she let out another raspy scream as she was tied to the male above her, but he didn't stop. Still tied, he kept humping her until he finally came, howling out in his own sick pleasure with his boiling hot seed sticking to her walls and flowing into her womb.

Even after he was done, XIV did not stop his torment of her. He kept humping against her and licking her neck, taking one of her cap's ends in his maw and sucking on it. Sasha felt so sickened she could have easily thrown up right there if it wasn't for the risk of dirtying herself. Finally pulling out once his knot had softened enough, the Houndoom wiped his member clean of his seed and her juices on her, turning her rear into a mess of cum and pussy juice.



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"Alright, I'm done now, baby," he told her as he got up and licked her cheek. "You've been the best I've had yet! Now, be a good girl, and if you tell your pet..." he stopped licking and blew a small strand of fire on her cheek, leaving a burn mark on her, "it'll be worse."

"You got what you wanted, you bastard," Sasha growled weakly, tears rolling down her cheeks as she still processed her recent humiliation. "Just go away now!"

And like she told him to, XIV disappeared into the fog, leaving her lying there, broken and alone. Slowly, as time passed, she began regaining sensibility, while her limbs obeyed her once more, she also felt an increase in the pain in her nether regions, and much to her disgust, felt some of the canine's seed dripping from her. She just began her walk back. All she wanted was to rest, nothing else. As she did, she thought how this had been her fault, in a way. Perhaps if she hadn't been so arrogant or even so lustful, ignoring the Luxray's feelings, she wouldn't have been attacked back there, and none of this would have happened. But it was too late for her to think about it now.

Finally, she got back to camp, where her condition was immediately noticed by everyone as they crowded around her to see if she was fine.

"What...what happened?" Tiffany asked, looking worriedly at her.

"That Houndoom Fourteen ambushed out in the woods after I had a fight with Richard," Sasha murmured. "He...raped me..." she sobbed, walking towards a corner and lying down to rest. "I feel so disgusting between my legs..."

"Oh, my!" Estelle let out a short, worried huff, rushing to the Glaceon's side. "That's so terrible. I know...come with me. Let's help you clean that up."

"How can Pokémon so horrible exist in the world?" Midori asked, shaking her head, "It's awful..."

Leon hadn't said a thing until then. He just watched, and, suddenly, clenched a fist, making lightning envelop it and making sparks come out of his cheeks. Not saying a word, he began walking in the direction Sasha had arrived from, stepping firmly.

"Leon?" Tiffany asked as she saw him depart into the fog. "Where-"

"Off to give XIV what he deserves for doing that to my friend," he simply replied, and, like that, vanished into the darkness.



"Damn..." Richard thought as he looked down into the dark trees below. He had ascended so high that he was no longer in the darkness that the trees caused, but rather in the one that naturally covered the forest. 'I like her so much, both of them. But, after all that happened...I am not suited for love. And now I get these feelings coming on me...' He sighed and muttered, "Why am I such a loser?" Just as he said this, an apple struck him in the back of the head and landed next to him, followed by a stone wrapped up in a piece of cloth. "That's very funny," he said seriously, looking at the objects that had hit him. "Come on! Let's all laugh at Richard's misery!"

"Don't mean to sound like a guy here, but grow a set, man," the Espeon, lying on a tree branch, told him before jumping down and landing next to him. "What happened?"

"Got into a fight with Sasha because she wanted me to mate her again. Why can't she understand I'm just not like that?"

"She's a little more physical when it comes to affection," the princess answered. "It's how she grew up when she was left loose to wander the land, surrounded by males in every town she stopped at because of her looks. It's her way of telling you she cares. You'll just have to accept it."

"Then there's this..."

"This...?"

"Never mind."

"Imagine if Lord Apollo had told that to Lady Violet in that sunflower legend," Phoebe replied. "'I came back for you. I have this dream... But you know what? Never mind. I give up.'"

The Luxray sighed before answering, "What do you want, Phoebe?"

"I want you to admit the reason you feel so odd around Sasha is because you're attracted to her."

"Fine, I admit it," Richard grunted, "I like her. I like her a lot. In fact, I like her so much that I'm over-my-head thinking about her and I blame my stupid complexes and my own damn bad luck that she has to be the sister to the one guy I got killed in the war and that it doesn't really matter to me as much as the fact she'll get hurt for hanging out with a walking death sentence like me!"

Phoebe just stared seriously at him for a while before saying, "Are you done? Good. You have to give it a chance, Richard. No one can exist alone."

**And she's right. I've been trying to steer you for the last five years, but you're so stubborn!**

'But you...and Elena... After what happened, do you really expect me to-'

**She's fine, Richard. She was sleeping when it happened. She didn't even know. Maybe the reason for which I am still here is because you've never let me go. And you like and are liked by two girls now? If anything, I think you're living any guy's dream!**

"I guess you're right..." the Luxray sighed deeply, answering both, "I...let's just go back. I'll talk to her, and I'll see, okay? I just need to think things through."

The Luxray and Espeon arrived back at camp only to find a now clean Sasha lying on the grass with everyone gathered around her, except for Leon.

"What happened?" Phoebe asked, approaching. "Is everything okay?"

"No, it's not!" Estelle told her. "Lexy was raped by that Houndoom!"

"What?" the growl came out so dry and low anyone could have mistaken it by another sound from the forest. Slowly, the Luxray walked towards Sasha, with his muscles tense and sparks coming from his paws. "He did?" Sasha just nodded, staring at him in an odd way that carried a plea, an apology, and even regret. "No..." Richard growled ominously, the sparks running along his body intensifying before he got down next to the Glaceon and managed to get her up on his back.

"Where are we going?" Sasha weakly asked, lying against the feline's black fur.

"We're going to show him a lesson," Richard answered in a confident tone. "No one treats my girl like that...either of them," he nodded, looking at Estelle before taking off running into the forest.

"Hm-hm," Estelle nodded, "Kitty's finally accepted his feelings!"