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Next to a cobbled-together bonfire in the midst of the woods, a brown-haired, average-sized male human was cleaning off his knee following an unfortunate encounter with the dirt after tripping on a root. Not far away from him, sitting by the fire, was a Charmeleon, who looked very relaxed and unconcerned about his trainer.

"Too bad you're not a Pokémon. A little thing like a scuff against the ground wouldn't even be noticeable."

Gabe rolled his eyes at his Charmeleon partner, Nitro, as he finished cleaning and bandaging his skinned knee. "I'm fine the way I am, thanks. I'll take being able to reach the top shelves in stores."

"Suit yourself," Nitro replied, sticking his tongue out at his trainer. "Next time you scuff yourself up don't expect any sympathy from me."

"You presume I already expect sympathy from you. I've had you long enough to know you're a little jerk."

That got a snicker out of Nitro. "Don't act like you don't love my straight-shooting. You've been trying to give as good as you get, I can tell."

There was a bit of truth to that, though Gabe wouldn't have gone quite as far as that. Nitro had cultivated a fair bit of attitude since he'd evolved the previous year; while he wasn't disobedient, he definitely had a mouth on him and had no problem giving shit to anyone he felt like, including Gabe himself. At times he had to check the Charmeleon, but Gabe couldn't deny he felt a bit of envy for him, he seemed to have a pretty endless well of confidence - maybe cockiness in some cases - and he'd been trying to be a little bit bolder and less reserved himself. He was never going to be as biting as Nitro was, but there was something to be said for being willing to stick up for yourself and not let yourself be walked all over. "You're gonna straight-shoot yourself right into getting chucked into a river if you don't watch yourself."

"Even odds it'd be worth it."

"Just don't ask me to fish you out. You know I'm not fond of the water."

Nitro chuckled at that. "Seriously, you'd make a perfect Charmeleon. You're like me in so many ways."

"You tell me that like every other day. I'm not really THAT much like a Charmeleon, am I?"

"You like the heat, you don't like the water. You like spicy foods. You enjoy the wild. And judging by that wound on your knee, you have a weakness to the ground."

Gabe scoffed. "You're just a regular comedian, aren't you?"

"Hm, you know, comedian rhymes with Charmeleon. Alliterates, too. Maybe there's a performance act somewhere in there..."

"Right." The human stood up, brushing himself off a bit. "Well, you work on that weird fantasy all you want. I'm gonna go find some more firewood."

"Try not to ruin your fragile body out there!"

"Fuck you."

"As if you'd be the top." Gabe rolled his eyes again as Nitro cackled like a maniac, but didn't reply to that as he turned to head off from their little rest spot in the woods. The Charmeleon seemed to have gotten a lot more at ease with lewd jokes lately...which Gabe wasn't so sure wasn't a hint towards something. Pokémon/human stuff was hardly uncommon to hear about, but Gabe wasn't really sure he was up for that...the idea just felt weird to him. Maybe it'd feel less weird if it actually happened, but Nitro wasn't actually pushing the issue, he'd never asked or tried to take. If that did happen, he'd have to make a decision about how to respond...he still wasn't sure what that was.

It wasn't something he felt like thinking about at the moment, so he just focused on trying to find some good firewood. It was unlikely he'd come across any solid logs, but regular branches and such would do for the time being...it was really only a fire for some light before they bedded down, Nitro kept things warm enough just by his presence. The sun hadn't quite set yet, but the sky was certainly painted with plenty of yellow and orange overhead, it wouldn't be too much longer. Just another day on the road, they all kind of blended together at times, but Gabe didn't really mind that, it was nice being on his own, unencumbered by a schedule or any real need to pay attention to things around him.

This time, maybe he should have paid a little more attention.

Just as he had spotted a nice big branch that he could break down, he felt his body freeze in place. Not like he'd been iced over, but more like every part of him was suddenly locked up into the position it was in. He could move a tiny little bit, but only very slowly...enough to see the glow around his body. A psychic assault!

"Hmhmhm...how perfect. Like a Rattata in a trap." Straining, Gabe turned his head to look at the speaker, but he already knew who it was, that voice could only be one person...and indeed, he saw the tall, wispy frame and raven-black shoulder-length hair of the last person he ever wanted to see entering his vision, accompanied by a rather malevolent-looking Gothitelle.

"D...Dominic!"

"Hm, you should thank me for allowing your worthless tongue to speak your name." That smug voice Gabe cringe inwardly. The long-haired pretty boy was someone he'd met a couple years ago passing through a town, and Gabe rued the day they had crossed paths...Dominic had decided that he wanted to show off a Pokémon he'd gotten in battle, and had chosen whatever random scrub he'd felt like. Nitro had been a Charmander then, and Gabe had expected Dominic to most likely flatten him...but it turned out that a Sneasel was not a great matchup against a Charmander, and Nitro had scored the decisive victory. Dominic had taken it rather personally, vowing would find a better Pokémon and win a rematch - which he had, a few months later, with a Rhydon that had been rather overkill against Nitro. Gabe had thought that would be the end of it, but Dominic wasn't satisfied - Gabe hadn't cared nearly enough about the defeat, and he wanted to see to it that Gabe was dramatically more humiliated than he had been at his own loss.

Since then, Dominic had begun a nasty habit of showing up in whatever town Gabe was visiting. Sometimes there was forewarning and Gabe was able to avoid an encounter, but other times Dominic got the drop on him and things got messy. It probably hadn't helped that, since Nitro had evolved, he always reserved a few choice insults for Dominic, which never failed to rile up the long-haired pretty boy, especially when others seemed to be on Nitro's side. That didn't always help the Charmeleon avoid a thorough beating, but even losing battles couldn't quell Nitro's spitfire, which never sat well with Dominic - and there had been a couple instances were Nitro had even won against long odds. Dominic never seemed to come with the same Pokémon twice, and Gabe had to wonder what happened to all the ones who failed to achieve what Dominic sought to impose on Gabe and Nitro. The Gothitelle was another new one, but Nitro wasn't here for a fight...and that wasn't a good thing for Gabe, who tried to call for him but found his voice arrested. He hadn't been ready for this, Dominic had never tried to attack them in the wild before, he was too much of a pampered baby to tread outside town usually...

"Oh, no, you're not summoning your rat bastard lizard on me this time," declared Dominic haughtily. "For years, you've been a thorn in my side, and I've grown frustrated with your lack of utter humiliation. It has finally occurred to me that you're too grungy to feel proper shame - you have no true pride in yourself, so how could you ever know the wound you inflicted on me?"

Gabe would have liked to issue a biting reply to that, but he wasn't being given the option. The Gothitelle seemed to know what he was thinking, though, and he felt a sudden painful rush through his body, one that he wanted to cry out at but couldn't. "Know your place, worm," she remarked, with a somewhat sadistic undertone.

"Hmhmhm, she really is the perfect Pokémon for this," gloated Dominic. "Now, if I can't utterly ruin your pride, then I'm just going to have to get you out of the way. But killing you would be unsatisfying...there's no suffering in a quick end like that. So I've found a way to remove you from the equation while still ensuring you don't get to escape your fate."

Gabe really didn't want to know what that was, but he still couldn't escape...he was trying as hard as he could, but the psychic hold was just too strong. He could only watch helplessly as the Poké Ball was unclipped from his belt, and pulled towards Dominic's hands by the Gothitelle's power. He had no idea what Dominic could do with that, but he hoped it wasn't going to be used to harm Nitro...just because he had the Poké Ball didn't mean he owned Nitro, but there were things he could do with it in his possession...which all seemed out the window when Dominic affixed it to a strange device that looked like some kind of futuristic space ray gun.

"Empty, as I figured...perfect. Too much of a scrub to assert himself over that foul-mouthed lizard." The evil grint in Dominic's eye was highly unnerving to Gabe. "Did you know, scrub, that Poké Balls carry a residual energy within them that carries the template of the Pokémon they're bound to? I'm sure you didn't, you look dreadfully ignorant. This energy serves as a sort of additional battery for the Poké Ball when the Pokémon is outside it, and helps to maintain the link between the ball's owner and the Pokémon. Normally unable to be touched, but certain things can harness and direct that energy...such as this nifty little device here." Dominic raised the bizarre weapon and pointed it at Gabe. "And now, I get you out of the way for good."

There was no hope...Gabe couldn't even scream as the beam hit him. It didn't pierce through him, though, instead it almost seemed to pulse into him and then spread out throughout his body, making the entirety of his being burn and sting painfully. Dominic was relentless, maintaining the beam on him for second after second, until it faded into nothing. The ball popped out of the weapon, having gone completely inert...but Gabe had bigger problems. The hold on his body seemed to have dissipated, but the flaring pain wasn't going away, the insane heat made it feel like he was melting...and he almost seemed to be, his skin was crawling hard, it almost felt like his entire shape was starting to dissolve.

"Hmhmhm...feeling a bit hot, there, scrub? I think you'll be feeling even more heated in a little bit..." Dominic's unbridled glee was almost disgusting to the ear, though Gabe was only barely registering it. "You'll be nothing in a couple minutes, I can only imagine what horrible fate you'll-"

"GET AWAY FROM HIM!" Nitro's raging voice was accompanied by a blast of flame, which was only barely blocked by a protective field from the Gothitelle. "Fucker, I'll turn you into ashes!"

"Yeep! Get us out of here!" The Gothitelle did so quickly, a teleport making them vanish from sight before Nitro could make good on his promise. It wasn't helping Gabe, though...the damage had already been done to him. His clothing flash-flamed, quickly falling into tattered ashes, revealing the slow warping of his body. He was getting smaller, his limbs growing shorter in proportion to his body, digits merging from five to three on each hand and foot, nails broadening and thickening. His face was reshaping, one part pulling back off the top of his head to form a blunt crest while the front stretched out to form a snout, his teeth reshaping into sharpened fangs. His entire surface was melting into a sea of reddish or white scales depending on where they were on his body, and his rear end was pulling out and forming a long, reptilian tail. There was a furious, agonizing heat burning at him from the inside, feeling like it was threatening to end him right then and there...the heat never receded, but it bizarrely got less uncomfortable as the seconds passed, almost feeling unnaturally natural.

The twisting and crawling sensations finally ebbed away, leaving the prone form of Gabe shaking on the ground. As he blinked away the tears from his eyes - his lids felt very weird, like he had more than one - he chanced to see his hands...which were now reddish, tridigital claws, the same that he normally saw on Nitro. The realization hit all at once, and far too hard...his eyes rolled back and he slumped over in a dead faint.

---

When Gabe woke up, it was dark. Overhead, at least...where he was sitting, it was uncomfortably light out, courtesy of a tail flame that was far too affixed to him for comfort.

Slowly, he pushed himself to a sitting position. His head was still spinning a bit, not totally accustomed to what he was feeling, it felt almost like it was fighting itself. But as he tried to shake off the cobwebs, the reality was starting to properly sink in.

He was a Charmeleon.

"Oh, you're awake!" With a start, Gabe's head jerked over, and he winced as it felt like his mind kept going after his eyes stopped. When he caught his focus again, it was to a Sitrus Berry right in front of his face, being held by what looked like a mirror image of himself. "Eat up. You need the energy."

Gabe took the berry, holding it a little awkwardly in his claws. It wasn't easy to eat with his new mouth, it felt like he was fighting a bit against what he had versus what he thought he should have, but he managed to eventually figure something out, taking larger bites and sort of chopping a bit with a couple chomps before the back of his snout let him mash it down more. The taste was...better than he remembered, and he felt a warmth inside him as he ate, it almost felt like his body was relaxing and slightly charging up at the same time.

It what felt like faster than he expected, the berry was gone, and he was feeling somewhat better, at least physically. "Th...thanks, Nitro."

"Don't mention it." Nitro sighed, sitting back on the ground, looking at Gabe somewhat forlornly. "So...that fucker really messed with you."

"He...he turned me into a...Charmeleon. He had this weird ray-looking thing, and he used your Poké Ball..."

"Yeah. It...I found the ball after I brought you back here." Nitro held the ball up; to Gabe's eyes, it was eerie, Poké Balls usually had some unusual kind of liveliness about them, especially when there was a Pokémon tied to them, but Nitro's now looked duller than rock. "It's completely dead. I realized when something felt strange, I felt my link with it go totally absent...that's when I knew something was wrong. He must have used its energy to...transform you. Makes sense, I guess, you look pretty much exactly like me."

"Dammit..." Gabe rubbed his head, still not used to the shape of anything that was rubbing or being rubbed. "I can't believe he'd do something like this...I mean, I always thought he was a piece of shit, but this..."

"It's awful. And if he gets away with it, he'll do it again...we have to report him, find some place to warn people about what he did."

"You think they're going to even believe me?"

Nitro growled. "I'll bite them until they do. He can't be allowed to get away with this."

"What's going to happen to me? I...do you think I'll be able to..."

The natural Charmeleon sighed, smoke leaking from his nose as he did. "I'm not gonna lie to you, Gabe...I don't know a lot about stuff like this, I mean, it's not something that ever really mattered to me...but if that thing used my Poké Ball energy, I...really don't think they can just suck it out or anything."

It didn't really have as much impact as Gabe thought it would, which really only suggested that he already knew the truth. "...I think I need to get some sleep."

"Yeah, rest up. I think the road's going to be a little rough going forward."

---

A little rough was turning out to be an understatement. Then again, how could it have not been? Gabe's life had been turned upside-down in an instant, it wasn't something that he was just going to be able to get used to in the same amount of time.

The reality of it was starting to properly sink in as they began their trek to civilization. There was a long way to go, time for him to accept the fact of his transformation, and to try to process the knowledge that he wasn't going back to the way he was. He was going to have to learn to live with it...not something he'd ever imagined he'd be faced with. Life was unpredictable in that way, it seemed.

Just because he was realizing it didn't mean Gabe was adjusting to it, though. Quite the contrary, he was struggling quite badly with the changes...his mind was still not cooperating with him, not adjusting to his new frame, his brain struggling constantly against the shape that he had with the shape he used to have. He wasn't getting used to having three digits on his hands or feet, and was constantly fumbling around. He wasn't used to having a snout for a mouth and nose or a crest of the back of his head, and talking and eating and drinking were not coming as naturally to him as he would have liked. He wasn't used to his shorter, squatter frame, which made moving around a crap shoot. He certainly wasn't used to having a tail, much less one constantly burning, and keeping that flame from starting fires was enormously difficult.

It was about the only fire that was effective in any way on him. He didn't know how to breathe fire, or use any other attacks for that matter. When wild Pokémon came around, he was basically useless, and Nitro had to step in and make sure he was safe. He envied his partner so badly, with how naturally he moved and attacked...well, it made sense, he'd been a Charmeleon for years, Gabe had scant hours under his belt as a Pokémon, and a whole bunch of mental interference. It was like even though he knew he was a Pokémon, his mind rebelled against the idea, insisted he was human and should be behaving like one. And he didn't have any answers about how to deal with that.

And naturally, this meant that Gabe's mood was in the shitter. He was trying, but his feelings of uselessness were really tanking any possible shred of happiness he could get out of this whole thing. The stress of having transformed, having to try to make it back to some town or city where he basically had to pray that anyone would believe his undoubtedly incredible story, having his mind constantly fight against him, and being unable to do much of anything for himself was making him plenty mopey and dour, depression setting in hard.

Nitro was doing everything he could for him, but he could tell his partner was starting to get frustrated over this after a few days, especially with how lackluster their progress was - they were moving far slower than a pair of Charmeleons should be able to, and it was almost entirely because Gabe was so inept and clumsy. It only made Gabe feel worse, because he didn't want to burden Nitro, the only person he could rely on...he wasn't doing anything for his partner either, only weighing him down. He wondered if he should just ask Nitro to leave him to his fate, but he couldn't bring himself to that, the idea of being alone scared him so much that he'd start trembling just thinking about it.

Things were not good, to put it lightly. And he didn't know if they'd ever be good again.

---

By the evening of the fourth day after Gabe's transformation, the ex-human's outlook was as bleak as it had ever been. Nitro had been forced to take on multiple Pokémon on his own in a battle in the middle of the day, and it had taken too much out of him for them to keep traveling for the rest of the day. Gabe felt miserable as his partner was forced to go hunting for berries to replenish his energy on his own - he couldn't climb the trees and if a wild Pokémon attacked him on his own it would have ended very badly for him. He felt so worthless, and that had him thinking that this was all going to be for nothing, he'd probably not be believed and Dominic would go free...or worse, might capture him and torment him further, rubbing in how pathetic and awful he was. He wasn't sure how things could get any worse than that, but they probably would somehow...

As night fell, they rested by the campfire - there more for normalcy than anything, neither of them particularly needed much warmth or light. Nitro scooted next to Gabe, putting a clawed hand on his shoulder; his expression told Gabe pretty effectively what was coming. "Listen, Gabe...I know this is hard on you. I know you're not taking it well. I know you're probably going through a lot of shit in your head, and it's not like I can just ask you to get over it. But...look, I don't wanna be the bad guy, but you HAVE to start pulling some weight around here. I'm starting to get run down, there's only so much I can do, and we're covering less and less ground every day...if I can't rely on you to help me out, we're doomed out here. Today was a lot closer to really bad than I'd like."

"I'm sorry, Nitro...I hate being so useless, you deserve better..."

"You're NOT useless. Listen, you got my energy when you transformed, you're capable of doing anything I can do. I know you've got the same moves I do, you'd be able to use them just as well as I can. But it's like you won't even try."

"I've tried. I promise I have. But...nothing comes out. I don't understand it, it's just...it's not happening." Gabe sighed dismally. "It's no use...my brain's just too human, it won't believe that I'm a Pokémon. I know you said I'd make a great Charmeleon, but I guess you were wrong about that."

Nitro frowned at him. "What do you mean your brain's too human? Your brain had to get changed just like the rest of you."

"If it did, something didn't work. I still dream that I'm a human, with all the stuff I had before, or didn't have. It just makes it worse when I wake up and I have to remember what happened. And everything I try to do, it tells me that's wrong, that I'm not what I look like, and that I need to act the way it thinks I should. I don't know the first fucking thing about how this stuff all works, so...it's kinda hopeless."

"It's not. Gabe...you have to push your mind to accept its new reality. That means you have to keep trying to do Pokémon stuff, train your brain to think the right way. This...well, it's not as bad, but I had to do that a bit when I evolved, too. Our brains are wired to adapt pretty quickly, but there were a lot of things I had to adjust to, at least at first. It won't get better if you don't push back."

Gabe gave Nitro a sidelong look and sighed. "I want to...but it just isn't working. I don't feel any more comfortable even walking than I did before...maybe I'm just broken, I'll never be a proper Pokémon, just some useless garbage that isn't anything. Maybe I should just-" The transformee's statement was cut off by Nitro clamping his snout shut, and then his head was forcefully turned to look into those fiery eyes, which had taken on a wicked intensity that caught Gabe off-guard.

"We are NOT going to let this happen. Dammit, Gabe, I'm not letting that fucker Dominic win. And you need to not let him win, either. He doesn't deserve it. I know you can do this, Gabe. I don't know why your head's not in the game yet, but..." Nitro trailed off, looking away for a moment, and then back at Gabe. "No, I think I do know. Your brain doesn't know enough about being a Charmeleon to overwrite your past self-image, and you're so down about it that it's not trying. I'm gonna try something that I think will help...we're gonna get you feeling GOOD about your body for once, and maybe that'll help you come to terms."

Gabe could only respond when Nitro let go of his snout. "Nitro? What...what a-AH!" Gabe could not have been less prepared for the sensation of a hot claw poking into his slit. It wasn't a part he'd had before, so he hadn't really been able to adapt to that change very well either, it felt weird to him and he mostly avoided it unless he had to urinate. But as Nitro's claw started to rub down there, he was feeling a very different sensation...one that felt very bizarrely GOOD, the first real good he could remember having since the change. And even though his mind was protesting, telling him this wasn't part of him, the pleasure was too potent for it to break through right off.

Nitro took advantage of Gabe's confusion and overwhelmed state to gently push the transformed Chameleon onto his back, where he could be on top of the other. As Gabe looked down at him in mildly delirious uncertainty, Nitro gave him a warm smile and used his claws to open up his slit. "Relax...let me take care of everything, you just enjoy the ride."

Gabe couldn't really do anything but, he was too caught up in everything...and he was soon left behind against as a hot tongue started slurping inside that slit of his, making him throw his head back and arch his back as the pleasure raged through him, the sudden rush beyond intense to his inexperienced body and mind. Moans escaped his maw as that red-hot tongue slurped that opening in his flesh, his claws furrowing the ground as he writhed in bliss.

It didn't take very long at all for something else to stir, as the pleasure brought on another typical reaction. Gabe felt something slip out of his slit, a staff of steaming red flesh that looked larger than he expected it to. His dick...he hadn't even actually seen it at full size, he'd not even really touched it that much since the change, and he was almost in awe at how impressive it stood, it had to be bigger than what he had been packing as a human for sure. Though, he didn't get a ton of chance to admire it, as Nitro quickly started going to town on it, slurping over it with his tongue and massaging it with his claws, getting more moans and squirms out of Gabe as he was subjected to a potent pleasure assault that was shunting out most anything else on his mind.

And Nitro wasn't done there, as his maw opened wide and he engulfed the entire shaft, clamping down tightly on it and pushing himself down until his snout was kissing Gabe's slit. It was crazy how easily the natural Charmeleon took him in despite his size, though having the longer mouth must have helped somewhat...still, it was definitely going pretty deep down, and the way he was sucking and swallowing around it, it was all too clear he was well-experienced and skilled and comfortable with something like this. Gabe didn't know how, he'd never seen the Chameleon doing stuff like this before, but it wasn't like he was watching Nitro all the time...

That was his gain, though, as he couldn't resist bucking up into Nitro's maw, the euphoria claiming him completely as his mind focused only on getting to climax. His tail was whipping around between his legs, occasionally running into a warm and wet obstruction - which had to be Nitro's cock, erect and ready for attention as well - and steam was billowing from Gabe's maw as he lost a good degree of control over himself. He was getting so wound up so quickly, it felt like it was coming at breakneck speed and he didn't have the mind to try to hold back...

He wasn't ready for it to hit, even as he knew it was coming, the rush was so sudden and forceful that it made his vision blur, his voice high and quavering as he unleashed his load. Nitro was ready for it, though, clamping down against and sucking and swallowing hard, draining every bit that he could out of Gabe, unperturbed by the volume or the speed at which it rushed out. Gabe could hear Nitro moaning a bit as he drank that infernal spunk down, not letting even a trickle leak out...by the time he had slumped down, panting hard and feeling spent, Nitro had slurped his cock completely clean, leaving nothing more than a spit-shine on it. He licked his chops as he grinned down at Gabe's panting form. "Tasty...I thought you'd taste just like I do, but it's a little different. I guess there's still some difference even though you're transformed into kind of a copy of me, eh?"

"N-nitro...that was...ah..." Gabe was struggling to put words together, and for once it wasn't because his head was fighting him. That had been amazing, beyond anything he'd ever expected...but, as Nitro clambered over him, it seemed that things weren't done. He let out a low moan as he felt something hot prod against his tailhole, not pushing in but promising something was coming.

"Promise you, this is gonna feel real good...just keep relaxing and let me take the wheel, I'll bring you to heaven if only for a little while."

"Nitro...I...please..."

"Heh, don't worry, I know what you want. And I want, too." Nitro took a secure hold of Gabe's body and then thrust in, driving his cock deep inside Gabe in an instant. It was something Gabe wasn't ready for, wasn't prepared to take, and yet what he felt was nothing less than absolute bliss - it was like his hole was made to be sheathed with a Charmeleon's shaft, a snug yet inherently satisfying fit that touched a pleasure spot within him that made him see stars. His cry was softer than all this might have indicated, if only because he was somewhat out of breath from the earlier action...but though he was somewhat worn, he wanted more, and wanted Nitro to experience his own pleasure, so he stayed laid back and compliant, allowing the natural Charmeleon to do as he wished.

It didn't stay that way for long, though; as Nitro started to hump him, urges to be closer compelled Gabe's mind to be less passive. Each thrust lit a fire deep within him, one very unlike any other flame his body produced, and the ceaseless waves of bliss worked him more and more up into action. Eventually his arms reached up, wrapping around Nitro and pulling the other Charmeleon more down onto him; Nitro never skipped a beat even as he was shifted around, adjusting expertly on the fly to keep his hips bucking into that tight tailhole, which was now much more actively squeezing down on him. As Nitro got lower, Gabe's legs took hold as well, clinging to that powerful body and keeping Nitro even closer. The heat from the friction of their bodies rubbing together was just another flame that stoked Gabe's pleasures, his whole being shivering in raw carnal rapture as that fiery staff drilled him deep and their shared heat made the air wavy around them.

And it only got better as suddenly, Nitro's snout met his own, and he felt a tongue entry his maw suddenly. His own rose instinctively to meet it, the long organs sliding around each other and twisting and twining like coupling snakes; the very act, utterly foreign to Gabe, felt like it pushed a few buttons in his brain that made his lingering anxieties just melt away. The final display of intimacy was initiated by Gabe, unconsciously but very deliberately as he felt Nitro's tail sliding against his, without even thinking about it his tail coiled around the natural Charmeleon's, squeezing tight and tips touching together to send a surge of delightful heat and shivers of ecstasy through both of them.

Gabe could have stayed like that forever. Never in his life, even before the change, had he known this kind of intimacy, this kind of pleasure, this kind of desire; not just a virgin, but one who never really had ever connected on this kind of level with anyone or anything. And it was more or less precisely what he needed at this moment, this lowest point he could imagine, something that could make him feel better than anything he'd ever known was the only thing that could truly pull him out of that quagmire, a fierce yank that dragged him upwards despite everything that was weighing him down. For the first time in days, he felt real happiness, real peace, delivered to him along with the magnitudes of pleasure, and he just wanted to cling to those forever, wrap himself around them and envelop them so totally that they never could go anywhere.

Alas, his body didn't have the staying power his mind did, and it felt like all too quick before he felt that throbbing in his loins, telling him that their time together was short. And though he was trying to do all he could to hold it back, there was simply no staving it off for too long, not with as fantastic as Nitro's rutting felt to him. Their kiss parted, and his cry came quickly afterwards, his cock spurting steaming hot spunk into the narrow crevice between their bodies, smearing around between them as Nitro continued to rock back and forth, his own humping accelerated to the limit as he drove into that spasming tailhole, telltale throbbing teasing how close he was himself.

Just as Gabe was losing himself completely in orgasm, Nitro added his own element to it, giving a growling cry as he thumped once more into that tight rear end. Suddenly, a rush of liquid heat surged into Gabe...he'd thought he'd known all the heat there was to know from Nitro, but once again he was mistaken, as that life-bearing lava was sensationally steamy even within his infernal body. But of course, it was nothing but euphoric for him, his body primed to crave any delicious heat and responding accordingly by sending him to the highest points of his orgasmic peak, renewing his spurts as much as his body could manage to add to the mess he was making of them. All he could do, all he could want to do, was just hold tight to his lover as they rode out the storm together, to try to make the moment where nothing else mattered last as long as possible.

But as with most good things in life, it was fleeting and gone too soon. Gabe felt the pleasure fade away, the tension relax, and his grip on that wonderful haze of bliss fade away. And then he was back on the ground, slumped back as exhaustion overtook him, panting hard as tacky spunk cooled on his belly, the modest weight of Nitro on top of him. He yearned for it again, wanted another escape from the cruel reality that had taken hold of him, but he didn't have the energy for any more...for the time being, at least, it was all over.

But, as he felt Nitro rub his back, he could tell he wasn't completely back to where he started. The anxieties, the depression, were creeping back slowly, but not as strong as they'd been latched onto him before. And the warmth of Nitro was still with him, keeping him with at least a spark of that rapture that he'd delivered, even if most of it had faded away. He held tight to the other Charmeleon, not wanting to let go of that, not wanting to lose that little bit of warmth that he needed so much.

And Nitro made no move to part from him. He did roll them onto their sides, and pulled out of the ex-human, leaving him feeling a bit empty but more relaxed, and held Gabe close as the afterglow settled on them. "I promise you, I'll get you feeling better about all this...I'll make you feel good, over and over, and you'll get better and more used to this. You'll feel like it was the shape you were meant for, and you'll be comfortable and confident...just as I know you can be."

Gabe hoped that was true. He wished for it to be. And for the first time, he went to sleep without being plagued by doubts, depression, and detrimental dreams...and a new desire, as well.

---

It didn't take long before Nitro's promise came to fruition. Indeed, even the next day, Gabe felt a little more at home in his new body; there was still a good deal of interference, but his mental map had started to adjust to his shape, he didn't feel as awkward or out of place. It started to give him a little more confidence that he could get used to it, even if it still felt quite a ways away.

But once it started, it built on itself quickly. Pushed to use his Charmeleon form and try to use his abilities, and getting a few more romps, slowly brought his mind in alignment with his body more and more. He stopped feeling like he had the wrong number of fingers, the wrong proportions, the wrong face; he started being able to move more fluidly, talk and eat with less discomfort, and control his heat and fire more, keeping his tail from scorching everything it touched. And the more normal it all felt, the better his mood was, going from dismally depressed to actually feeling fairly good about himself. The continued coupling with Nitro certainly helped as well - always the moments when he felt the best, even as he did adapt, and something that was very clearly going to continue on no matter what, as Nitro cherished those moments just as much.

The big turning point was just three days later, when - for the first time - he produced a flame from his mouth on command. He'd been trying over and over, without success, feeling the frustration even as everything else seemed to be working out...but this time, almost by accident, he opened his mouth and let a burst of flames fly. Not aimed at anything, and thankfully not hitting anything flammable, but all that came second to the sheer joy at being able to finally access the potential that lay within him. He nearly pounced on Nitro when the other Charmeleon came back, unable to restrain his eagerness at the breakthrough...and was promptly put to work channeling his other abilities, which came with a lot less stress now that he'd gotten the fire going. A necessity, because he was going to have to be ready to battle on his own as they got moving again in earnest.

From there, things picked back up again quickly. They made far better time than those early days, Gabe able to take advantage of the additional stamina his body had as well as a Charmeleon's natural speed, and the challenges they faced were not nearly as daunting to him anymore. He could climb trees to grab food, and land from a jump from the branches without injury. He could stand up against wild Pokémon, not quite as skilled yet as Nitro but strong enough to hold his own and keep his partner from being overwhelmed. He could feel himself fitting in better and better with this body, the map of his old human form getting fainter as he become more and more the Charmeleon he was. By the time they reached the city, the adaptation was pretty much complete, and he felt as at home with himself as he ever had in his previous human form. A huge emotional boost which had him feeling much happier, more confident, and more determined than ever to face down their next task.

Which, as it turned out, didn't require as much as he'd thought it would. As they sat in the investigation precinct, the captain was looking at the file in front of him. "You say the name of the man who transformed you is Dominic Parlencia? He wouldn't happen to look like this, would he?" The showed the two a picture that both Gabe and Nitro immediately recognized.

"Yeah, that's him! How did you know?"

"We've already got him in custody. He stole that prototype machine from a lab not far from here, and some agents were already in pursuit of him. They apprehended him a few days ago, confiscating the machine and holding it here for evidence. We thought we might have to release him with just a fine because we couldn't prove that he used it...but now that you're here telling us this with proof of your former state, and with this inert Poké Ball as evidence of its use, I think we'll be able to keep him here on much more serious charges. Never thought I'd be looking at a case where the laws against involuntary transformation were actually applicable..."

"I'll be happy to do whatever I have to to make sure the case is made," Gabe swore. "You need me to speak against him, I'll be happy to. This asshole's been harassing me for years, but I never thought he'd go this far...he can't be allowed to do it to anyone else."

The captain nodded. "We'll likely need your assistance, though it's possible just the threat of it will get him to accept a plea. I'm worried about what might happen to you out there on your own, though, if he might get someone to try to capture you to keep you quiet."

Nitro shook his head. "They can't. We actually tested using one of Gabe's spares. I, uh, I don't know exactly why, but I think, maybe, something about the way that my Poké Ball's energy was drained, my body's still being treated like it's 'caught.' And since Gabe's got my same energy, he's affected the same way."

"Oh, well, that's good to hear. Still, there are other ways of giving you trouble...we'd be happy to house you here until things are all settled, make sure you can be tracked in case someone comes after you. This Dominic guy seems to have an annoyingly long reach, I won't trust he's not trouble anymore until we've got him nice and tucked away."

Gabe nodded, smiling with relief. "Yeah, I think that's a good idea. We'll try to stay out of your guys' way, but if you have any, uh, training courses or anything, if I could use them...I'm still working on getting acclimated here, since I'm pretty sure there's no going back."

"Oh, I'm sure we can come up with something. I'll have Shania come up with something, she's our head trainer here. I'm glad you're taking it as well as you are, though, I've heard of cases like this that didn't end very well, they just couldn't get adjusted and...well, it doesn't go very well if you can't."

"Ah, well...I guess I'm lucky." Gabe exchanged a look and a slight smile with Nitro. "He did always say I'd make a great Charmeleon...I guess he was right about that."