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Aeron opened his eyes, feeling like sleep had never come. It was daylight already, but in the flareon's mind it was still midnight. It's time, he told himself, completely unwilling to face the day. It had been this way his whole life. He never wanted to wake up, but he had to. His brothers needed servicing, and it was his job to be there when they did. Their father made that perfectly clear when he took Aeron from behind twice in a row, telling them how the flareon beneath him was simply a tool for the family. A way to release stress and nothing more. The flareon. . . Aeron thought to himself. He knew better than to ever use his own name_._His brothers saw him as nothing but a hole, and if they caught him thinking he was a real pokemon with a real name, he'd never hear the end of it.

Aeron was the name he gave himself. As far as he knew, his father or mother never named him. He didn't even know what happened to his mother; she had died before Aeron could form any lasting memories. His luxray father, however, had been killed quite viciously by some huge pokemon just two weeks ago. At least that's what his brothers started reporting to each other. If they were lying, they did an awfully good job of faking the fear in their voices.

Seeing his brothers so shaken made those few days the best of his life, made only better with the knowledge their father would never come home again. Aeron had been only eleven when the luxray had his way with him. He had been forced to evolve, and when the transformation was complete, any sense of pride he felt was raped out of him. They berated him for evolving because only pokemon could evolve; a worthless hole shouldn't have that privilege.

A worthless hole. . . Aeron repeated. At least once per week since then he had been raped by his two brothers and his father. 'Rape' was becoming a more inaccurate word every day, though. Aeron never enjoyed the things he had to do, but rather than fight and struggle, he simply started accepting the verbal and physical abuse so he could go back to sleep. When the luxray died just two weeks ago, Aeron knew he would never be as sore.I was right, the flareon thought, glancing at his flank. Only he could stretch Aeron so wide for so long.

The flareon concealed a miserable yawn and finally stood, dreading what his brothers might do to him today. He wished they had died some horrible death while he slept, but life was not so pleasant to him. "He's awake," The vaporeon said, traveling alongside his jolteon sibling as always. They never spoke to Aeron, only to each other. "About time," The jolteon replied, out-speeding his brother. Haros had always been the eager one, and his impatience was especially prominent today. Lit was more cool and calculating, but he was also vulgar and needlessly aggressive whenever the rape began. Aeron had the scratch marks and bruises to prove that.

Haros quickly got into position, his familiar member rubbing against Aeron's lips. He knew every detail of his brother's penis by now, and he made a habit of using that knowledge to make Haros finish as quickly as possible. There was a sensitive spot near the base on the left side, so he immediately opened his mouth and swallowed the pulsating meat in front of him, extending his tongue to reach the spot he knew would make Haros shudder. Lit wasn't far behind, and by the time Haros began thrusting into Aeron's mouth, the vaporeon parted the loose passage he had entered so many times before. Aeron knew better than to clench his teeth, but not doing so was sometimes still a struggle even after four years.

Lit hiked up the flareon's legs with little difficulty, his member sinking deep into Aeron thanks to the new position. Aeron didn't like the feeling of having his hind legs raised off the ground with only his front legs to support him, but then again, Aeron didn't like anything about his situation. "This fucker never gets any looser, I swear," Lit growled, his foul language already kicking in. Aeron disagreed completely with the statement. He remembered how tight that orifice used to be when he was eleven and younger, but now it felt like he could fit anything up there.

Aeron had never been happy with his life, but the day he lost his virginity was the day everything got worse. When he was younger, his father never abused him sexually or physically, and his brothers seemed to tolerate him a little more than they did now. Aeron also could have sworn he'd been given more to eat, but he couldn't really confirm that. He'd been underfed his whole life; anyone who looked at him could tell. His legs were bony and his ribs were showing, and he could never quite stop trembling. Still, things had been better before then. The luxray wasn't as cruel.

Aeron often wondered why his father had hated only him. While he was left alone to quietly starve in the dark, Lit and Haros were allowed to train with their dad. Aeron saw them do strange things like launch water and lightning from their mouths and body.

He wondered if he would ever do anything like that, or if he even could. Perhaps something was wrong with him, and that was why his family rejected him. They should at least see if I can fight before assuming I can't, Aeron had thought, tears streaming from his eyes. It had been a year since he cried like that. Sometimes he felt as if he _could_fight, as if some dormant power inside of him would awaken and put him on equal footing with his brothers. That feeling would always fizzle out within a minute or so, but it was strangely empowering whenever it surfaced.

"Of course he's never too loose," Haros responded, his member twitching on top of Aeron's dry tongue. "Not like we screw 'im every day." The jolteon's mild panting increased in volume with nearly every thrust, and Aeron could tell his job was almost done for the day. At least, if his brothers didn't decide to go for seconds. There was always a fifty percent chance they would, but Aeron hoped they wouldn't. Today felt especially depressing, and he couldn't wait to pass out on the cave floor and be left alone for another few days.

A swat to his rump only increased that desire. He knew Lit would become more and more violent the closer he came to orgasm, and judging from how hard the second swat hit, he couldn't be that far away. Aeron's legs were returned to the ground so his brother could continue the spankings, but the aggressiveness didn't end there. Haros was being particularly rough with Aeron's mouth, and his claws were digging into the flareon's shoulders. Funny. . . No matter how many times they hurt me, I still feel pain. Aeron wondered if he would ever become immune to pain, but after four years of abuse, it didn't seem likely.

"What do you think?" Lit asked through a lustful snarl, slapping Aeron's rump a seventh time. "Switch ends?" The vaporeon jammed himself inside completely, his constricted cock pulsating as he awaited his brother's response. Haros nodded, his member twitching at the idea. Both of Aeron's brothers made a few more reckless thrusts before pulling out, and the jolteon eagerly circled around to take Lit's place. "It's been a month since I've had the ass," He panted, taking the sight of it in. "Never again." Haros got into position, mounting his brother in record time before ramming his length into the unwilling hole. "Damn," He sighed, pulling halfway out with a lewd squelching sound. It didn't take him long to begin pounding away, ready to relieve his aching balls at any moment.

Lit seemed to be in less of a rush, however. He beckoned Aeron to lean down until his nose kissed the tip of his brother's member, and Aeron was unsure of whether to suck or simply lick. Instead, Lit gave him a third option. The flareon opened his mouth and drank what Lit was giving him, the bitter taste of urine pouring onto his tongue. Aeron would rather die of dehydration than have a belly full of pee, but still. . . quenching his thirst was a pleasant sensation. His lips were soon forced upon the vaporeon's shaft, and even when swallowing as quick as he could, he couldn't hold the entirety of his brother's stream.

"Good thinking," Haros said, giving his strong erection time to soften before joining his sibling in relieving himself. It wasn't the first time Aeron had suffered this sort of humiliation, but he had hoped it had been the last. The flareon took in what he could, while the rest simply rolled down his chin and rear. He'd never get over how strange it felt to be peed inside of, but strange or not, he knew it would eventually happen again. And again. And again. . . Aeron thought blankly, offering no resistance as he was forced to suck Lit's urine-soaked member. Haros took a few more moments to empty himself, completely flooding Aeron's passage with the acidic fluid. After he was finished, he immediately resumed thrusting, and Aeron could feel him start to harden again.

The flareon focused on Lit's tip, making sure to lick it each time his head was pulled up. That was his sensitive spot. "Haros," Lit muttered, watching with vague amusement as Aeron sucked him off. "I have another idea," He revealed, slipping his throbbing meat from the lips wrapped around it. The jolteon looked up in curiosity, but he never stopped thrusting. In fact, it felt like he had increased his pace even further. "Shock him," The vaporeon said bluntly, waiting for Haros to obey. And to Aeron's chagrin, that's precisely what he did.

The electricity ran through Aeron's entire body, forcing all his muscles to spasm and a sharp pain to shoot through his spine. Haros' member became uncomfortably large inside the flareon's passage, and the constant thrusting only increased the pain. "Damn, doing that makes him super tight," Haros praised, unable to restrain himself. His pelvis collided violently with Aeron's every second or two, and another charge of lightning made the flareon's legs give out. His ring contracted around the jolteon's cock with such intensity he was forced to stop until it loosened again, but by then it was already too late. The pressure brought Haros to orgasm, and his tingly seed splattered throughout Aeron's rectum with unprecedented quantity. Lit seemed to enjoy Aeron's agony just enough to bring him over the edge, and soon he was coating the flareon's muzzle in cold, thick jism. "Heh. He looks almost cute when you cover him in spunk," Lit mocked, wearing a smug smile as his throbbing cock rested between Aeron's eyes.

"He always looks cute from this end," The jolteon said lustfully, licking his lips and groping Aeron's drooling bottom. Haros spent the next thirty seconds catching his breath, showing no concern for his brother's health once he finally pulled out. Aeron was a trembling heap on the floor, electricity coursing through his abused body, and his siblings didn't bat an eye. Why would they? Aeron asked silently, surprised he was expecting sympathy or compassion. Nobody had ever showed him those things. Instead, his legs were hoisted up and he was mounted again, this time by Lit. He could practically feel Haros' seed and urine drenching the vaporeon's beating length, but Aeron knew how Lit enjoyed taking an orifice that had just been used. It seemed to be one of his favorite things to do.

Only half conscious, Aeron watched Haros come into sight and turn around, lifting his rump to Aeron's mouth. It took him about five spankings to realize what he was supposed to do, so he quickly extended his tongue and began licking Haros' entrance. The fur around his ring tickled Aeron's tongue, so he refrained from touching it as much as possible. Focusing only on the small hole in front of him, he pushed inside and felt himself lapping at his brother's humid walls. Honestly, Haros' rear tasted better than his pee. Then again, anything tastes better than that. . . Aeron told himself, pushing his tongue in so deep the fur began tickling his nose instead. The jolteon gave a moan of approval and pushed his rump back, the large mound grinding against Aeron's face and spreading the cum across his muzzle. Aeron opened his mouth to breathe and was flooded with his brother's unpleasant musk, his tired eyes widening at the scent.

I wonder if I smell this bad? Aeron asked himself, his tongue temporarily frozen in place. Ever since Lit learned to expel water from his mouth, he had been in charge of giving his siblings a weekly bath. However, now that their father had died, he only concerned himself with cleaning Haros, who in return cleaned Lit by tongue. Predictably, licking every inch of Lit's body often led to sex between the two, leaving Aeron to lie in the background and accumulate filth. He had always hated the way water felt on his fur, so perhaps not being bathed was another plus his father's death brought. However, there was a persistent itch all across his body, and sometimes he could even smell himself. He briefly wondered if his scent bothered his siblings, but he realized he didn't care. _He_was bothered by his scent, and he knew he'd have to bathe again sometime soon.

Lit pulled and chewed on Aeron's tail, taking large clumps of fur from it with his sharp teeth. Both his paw and member pounded away at the flareon's rump, abusing it like it was his to abuse. Aeron noticed his eyes were watering from the pain, but thankfully neither of his brothers could see that. Cries of pain earned him abuse, and tears earned him more abuse. Aeron couldn't even remember the last time he shouted. In fact, he couldn't remember the last time he spoke at all. It must have been more than a year or two ago, but he couldn't be sure beyond that.

Haros continued rubbing his bottom against Aeron's face, forcing the flareon to fight back several sneezes. His tongue was lodged so deeply inside his brother it almost felt as if it were stuck, but he knew better than to believe it was. All this enjoyment over some simple tongue-work. . . Aeron thought, noting Haros' glazed-over eyes and drooling mouth. Lit growled and pulled another tuft of fur from Aeron's tail, keeping it between his teeth like a piece of meat he wanted to savor. Aeron never understood why their father groomed Haros for a position of authority over his brothers, when Lit was clearly the more aggressive and intelligent one. Whenever the luxray left the cave for longer than a few minutes, Lit would mount an eager Haros and quickly destroy any illusion of leadership his father had planted in his head.

Whenever any of his children evolved, the luxray would mate with them as a sort of 'coming-of-age' ceremony, and although Aeron knew it was normal for fathers to mate with their sons, it still seemed like more of an excuse to empty his balls than anything..When Haros evolved, he let the young jolteon mount him to 'help demonstrate authority'. Lit was forced to take a submissive role when he came of age, and when Aeron came of age. . . He didn't like to think about it.

Still, Haros' 'ritual' was the first time Aeron had witnessed a mating, and back then, he was traumatized to know that could one day happen if he displeased Haros. Lit, however, was the opposite of traumatized. Aeron could still remember the sight of his brother's erection pounding in the air, his eyes locked onto Haros' new yellow rump. That was years ago, however, and now even this current level of abuse didn't really bother him. He was used to it. He was used to it. . .

Lit had finally stopped spanking him, and by the awkwardness of his thrusts, he was about finished with mating, too. Another clump of fur was caught between his teeth, but rather than bite it off, he kept it in his mouth, hot breath and saliva rolling through Aeron's tail. Lit pulled out and began rubbing his slimy dick against the flareon's aching rear, which is apparently just what he needed to coax out his second orgasm. Fresh semen gushed across Aeron's entrance and tail, the thick juice slowly beginning to roll down the beaten flesh of his rump. The cold temperature of his brother's load helped soothe the stinging pain of his spankings, but Lit probably just wanted to leave a mess both inside and outside the plaything that was Aeron's backside.

"I think I'm done for today," Lit said calmly, returning to all fours. "Hurry up with this asshole so you can scout for food," The vaporeon told a moaning Haros, who nodded sluggishly in response. Asshole. . ._Aeron echoed in his mind, continuing to lick the jolteon's. The supposed 'alpha' of the group pressed his bottom even more firmly against Aeron's snout, forcing a small glob of cum into the flareon's nostril. It was inhaled into his nose before he even had the chance to realize it was there. Aeron repressed a shudder and did his best to remain focused on the nearly complete rimjob. _Almost done, he told himself, his body preparing itself to collapse on the cave floor and rest for as long as it could. It was all he could think about.

Haros' increasing moans told Aeron he wouldn't have to wait long at all. His tongue delved deeper into the musk-riddled hole, doing its best to finish the job. It circled around again and again, putting pressure on whatever spot it felt like. "Ahh, fuck," Haros cried out in what was hopefully pleasure, his ring tightening around the hard-working tongue inside it. After it relaxed and tightened again, Aeron knew his job was done. Seed came spilling from his brother's wet cock not a second later, the red shaft convulsing quite obscenely in its release. The ground beneath him was painted white, and so was Aeron's face after it was pushed into the puddle. The flareon was apparently meant to clean the tangy semen before the earth even had time to absorb it, and so he did. To him, it was the least humiliating thing he had to endure all day.

"Alright, I'm off," Haros announced, moving to exit the cave without sparing a glance at Aeron. "Wait," Lit commanded, sounding as if another idea had hatched. Haros paused for a moment and turned around, awaiting the vaporeon's next words. Aeron continued lazily licking the cum from the foul-tasting ground, hoping this idea of Lit's didn't involve him. "Shock him again," He told Haros darkly, wearing a sick smile. Aeron didn't even have to prepare himself before receiving another intense shock, the electricity audibly crackling as it ran through his convulsing body. He was barely able to keep the scream inside his mouth.

The electrocution subsided after a few seemingly eternal seconds, and Aeron was left to twitch violently on the freshly-cleaned cave floor. "Mmhf, that gets me hard like nothing else," Lit grunted, his cock stiffening for a third time. "Hurry back so I can have something fresh to fuck," The vaporeon growled. Haros looked noticeably surprised by his brother's spontaneously dark attitude, but he obeyed all the same. It was strange. Usually Lit's aggressive streak ended whenever he climaxed once or twice, but today it appeared he was only growing more and more dominate.

Still, Aeron could see he truly was done with 'the hole' for today. He attempted to get comfortable, but the burning pain made it impossible. The urge to throw up crept through his body, and for a moment he thought he might actually spill what little food he'd eaten. He would have covered his mouth with a paw, but moving any part of his body was not only painful, but almost impossible because of the convulsions. Thankfully, the urge died out on its own. Not so thankfully, his thoughts also began to vanish, and soon he noticed he was blacking out.

He didn't know how many hours had passed, or even if a single hour had passed, but Aeron awoke from unconsciousness feeling slightly rejuvenated. Lit and Haros were nowhere to be seen, which did quite a bit to improve his mood. Hopefully they're dead, the flareon thought, amusing himself with all the ways nature might have killed them. His green eyes rolled to the left and spotted two small, shriveled berries on the ground. Aeron's stomach growled noisily, and he ate the tiny things without a second thought. The pitter-patter of rain distracted the flareon from his own foul scent creeping into his nose, and his eyes traveled to the cave entrance. There was a stranger standing outside, but for whatever reason, Aeron didn't feel even the slightest twinge of fear upon looking at the dark figure.

"Can I come inside?" He asked, his voice somewhat high-pitched. It was almost completely dark out, but there was a fire on the stranger's tail that illuminated his right side. His body appeared to be red, just like Aeron's. If he wants to come in, why didn't he just do so? The flareon asked himself, remaining silent. "I-I don't mean to be a bother, but. . . if I don't find shelter soon. . . Well. . ." The pokémon gestured toward the flame on his tail, but Aeron wasn't sure what he meant. He wasn't sure he understood anything about this stranger.

"Are you alright?" The pokémon questioned, hesitantly taking a few steps forward. He was definitely reluctant to enter the cave, but once he did, he seemed shocked by what he saw. "Oh, my goodness!" He shouted, quickly closing the distance between them. "Who did this to you?" The stranger asked, his face expressing an emotion Aeron had never seen before. It reminded him of the faces his brothers made when discussing their father's death. "Oh, this is bad. . ." He muttered to himself, hovering his claws over the flareon's body as if that would fix something. Personally, Aeron didn't know what the big deal was, but at least this foreign pokémon didn't seem interested in raping him.

"Don't worry," He said, scanning the area cautiously. His claws slipped underneath Aeron's back and hoisted him up, one resting between his shoulder blades and the other supporting the small of his back. Aeron should have been accustomed to being touched by now, but the process of being lifted by a stranger threw him for a loop. "I'll get you out of here," He announced, and Aeron found himself wondering if he should be happy about that. He loved the idea of never seeing his brothers again, but was this pokémon any better than them? Was there even anything worthwhile outside the cave? Maybe it would be best to find out, the flareon told himself.

Aeron noticed the stranger's facial features were very round and smooth, making him look exceptionally young, and his yellow eyes complemented his red body in a transfixing sort of way. Looking at him made Aeron feel comforted, somehow. "I'm sure we'll find shelter before the rain gets to me. You just focus on resting," He said softly, making his way toward the exit. Aeron didn't know if he was making the right choice in letting these events unfold, but he couldn't bring himself to choose the alternative and stay.

The mysterious pokémon was only able to take another three steps before a torrent of water crashed into his back, forcing him to his knees. His glowing tail darted to the left, but it did little good. His fire was doused considerably, and the weakened pokémon inadvertently dropped Aeron just before he was struck with Haros' lightning. His screams echoed throughout the cavern as he fell to the ground, electricity popping from his limp form.

The flareon watched in silence as the stranger was kicked aside by Lit, his body accumulating the ground's filth. "Some rescue attempt," Lit scoffed, turning his gaze to the small, flickering flame. In an instant, Aeron knew what Lit planned to do, and before the water could leave his mouth, something happened. He didn't know or care how, but every ounce of dormant hatred in his brain forced his body into some kind of change. His fur turned a bright orange and lit up most of the cave, and he could feel himself getting hotter. His entire coat was swaying and crackling like fire, and his two brothers immediately backed away. His vision was slightly obscured by heat waves, and just being near him was apparently enough to make Lit and Haros break out in sweat. The two stared at him in differing levels of surprise, and Aeron stared at them with hatred.

For once in his life, he felt in control. He felt like the dominate one. He felt like a god. The instant his eyes turned to Haros, an arc of fire burst from his blazing fur and swerved just before hitting its target. The jolteon jumped back in response, but he would have been too slow had it not gone off course. I missed, Aeron noted, unsure of the reason why. Despite the mistake, Haros' leg had caught fire. Are the flames really that hot? He questioned, just as casually as one would ask about the weather. The jolteon's terrified screams brought a smile to Aeron's face. Aeron couldn't remember the last time he had smiled.

The flareon turned his gaze to Lit, but no flames followed. It's not enough to look. Maybe I need to will it, he thought, envisioning his brother on fire. It wasn't the first time he had done so. To Aeron's pleasure, his fur loosed another arc of flames. Lit had the presence of mind to start running away beforehand, and the fire swerved just two seconds before reaching him, buying him enough time to hide behind one of the cave's branching passageways. No matter. Aeron quite liked the aesthetic of his 'home' starting to catch fire.

He turned his attention back to Haros, whose screams had been upgraded to cries of pure agony. Aeron watched the jolteon's entire body slowly catch fire with detached amusement, despite his best efforts to put himself out. For a second, Aeron felt a twinge of guilt for being so cruel. This was his brother, after all. During his younger years, he had actually been somewhat nice.

Aeron kept his attention on Haros until he stopped twitching. Like clockwork, the flames dispersed and returned to his fur, leaving the jolteon's blackened corpse behind. Lit returned to his field of vision, apparently making a mad dash for the cave's exit. Aeron knew he would have no reservations about killing him, at least. His eyes followed the fleeing vaporeon, and it took him less than a second to envision the coward burning alive. Something's wrong, Aeron noticed, his fur not reacting in the slightest. He tried again, turning around so he could keep Lit in his sights. Nothing.

The vaporeon disappeared behind the cave's exterior, probably thinking himself clever. Aeron's fur crackled in accordance with his annoyance, but he could feel his energy leaving him. Hopefully Lit was frightened enough to stay away. Aeron doubted he could pull this unexplained miracle off again, and he didn't like the odds of even a two-on-one fight.

The fire creeping across the cave floor was absorbed by the flareon's blazing coat just in time. His fire-fur lost its brilliant glow and slowly drooped back down, as if it were deflating. The heat distortions in front of him faded away, and his leg strength all but disappeared. The flareon collapsed on his stomach, his chin colliding painfully with the hard ground. For the second time that day, Aeron lost consciousness.

He awoke to something he had only ever seen from afar. His family had called it a forest, but it looked different now that he was inside of it. Rather than a cloud of green and brown colors off in the distance, Aeron could see the tall pillars that made up the forest.

The bottom halves were varying shades of brown and looked very dehydrated, while the top halves were covered with oddly shaped pieces of flat grass. The numerous pillars provided enough shade for Aeron to sleep in, and he was beginning to notice how nice it felt to lay against soft grass instead of that hard cave floor.

"Hey," The stranger said enthusiastically, standing somewhere off to the side. Aeron was too tired to turn his head at the moment, so he simply continued looking forward. "Are you feeling okay? You slept an awfully long time. . ." What was this pokémon's deal? It bothered Aeron not knowing what he wanted, or what he expected in return for taking him from the cave. "Um. . . I'm Cyrus, by the way. . ." Aeron turned his head to see the red stranger wearing a fake smile, or perhaps that was his real smile. Aeron didn't know.

"Can you talk?" Cyrus asked, his smile fading. Aeron blinked. The stranger _wanted_him to talk? That was strange; very strange. He would probably need to drink some water, but he definitely knew how to speak, and he was going to prove it. Aeron opened his mouth, but already something felt wrong: He could tell the words wouldn't come out like he wanted them to. They didn't flow like they did in his thoughts. Instead, he had to repeat what he wanted to say in his mind and learn from it.

"I. . . kin," He stated hoarsely. Aeron put a paw up to his throat, not expecting the pain that came with speaking. "Oh, that's a relief," Cyrus sighed, looking pleasantly surprised. "Sorry about your throat. . . I gave you some water while you slept, but I guess it wasn't enough," He said, scratching the back of his head. "We're by a river, if you want to drink some more. Oh, and I gathered some food for you, too!" He exclaimed, pointing to Aeron's right. The flareon lazily turned his head to the indicated spot, and his eyes automatically widened.

He had never seen so much food in all his life. Berries of every size and color, long, thick yellow things, green, bite-sized ovals. . . He didn't quite know what everything was, but he wanted to try it all. "It might be a bit much, but I figured you could use a big helping. We've got apples, grapes, I think there's a melon somewhere in there. . ." He trailed off as Aeron stood and shakily made his way toward the pile, consumed with the idea of gorging himself.

"Apple?" Aeron questioned softly, placing his paw atop one of the long, yellow things. Whatever it was, Aeron wanted to try an apple first. "No," Cyrus said, smiling. He closed the distance between them and held up something red and semi-ovular. "You have a banana. I have an apple, see?" Aeron's paw left the banana as he stared at the food in front of him. It looked different than he expected, but he was glad for the help nonetheless. He took a few steps forward, and although Cyrus' extended claw still looked to be another few steps away, he knew to open his mouth and grab the apple resting atop it. For whatever reason, things always appeared somewhat further away for Aeron than they actually were.

He didn't recall having that problem when he was younger, but perhaps it was a normal development. Maybe everyone's eyes played that trick on them, and they simply had to suffer through it until it went away.

"Is it good?" Cyrus asked, watching Aeron swallow his first bite. It was about what he had expected, if not a little sweeter and juicier. "It. . . is," The flareon answered, already going in for another bite. He didn't know foods could quench thirst.

"By the way," Cyrus said, looking rather hesitant to continue speaking. "I'm, uh. . . I don't know what happened back in that cave, but. . . " His lips quivered quite noticeably, and he began blinking rapidly. Before Aeron could judge whether he was going to cry or not, Cyrus burst into tears. "Oh, thank you for saving my life! I'm sorry you had to, I mean, I was supposed to be saving you, and. . . Well, I don't know why those two pokémon were so mean, but I'm glad we're out of there, and I'm sorry you had to kill them to save me. . . I should have gotten you out faster, but I was so shocked by your condition that I just couldn't!" He finished, wiping the tears from his yellow eyes while he collected himself.

Aeron simply stared at him, uncertain of how to feel. Does he want something from me or not? The flareon asked himself, cocking his head slightly. "I. . . dunt understann you," Aeron expressed, glancing between Cyrus and the apple. The strange pokémon finished rubbing his cheeks dry and looked into Aeron's eyes, seemingly confused. "What do you mean?" He sniffled, obviously not grasping the flareon's statement. "What do. . . you. . . want. . . from me?"

"N-nothing. . ." He answered, looking a little offended. Aeron wasn't sure if he was telling the truth or not, but either way, he needed to understand Cyrus' motivations. "So. . . why. . . help me?" He asked, resisting the urge to rub his sore throat. "Because you needed help, I-I thought. . . Did. . . Did you not want to leave the cave?"

Of course I did, Aeron told him silently, frustrated he wasn't getting the answers he wanted. "You. . . helped. . . because I. . . needed. . . help," The flareon said, hoping Cyrus would realize how stupid that sounded when repeated back to him. He couldn't have done something nice without expecting something in return, that wasn't how things worked.

"Yes," Cyrus confirmed, looking more perplexed by the minute. Aeron grumbled and ran a paw through his dirty head fluff, not understanding anything. "Um. . . You don't think all pokémon are like the ones who mistreated you, do you?" Cyrus questioned, taking a small step closer to him. Aeron didn't have a reply for that, but it certainly made him stop and think. They are, aren't they? He asked himself, beginning to shakily pace back and forth.

Over the next few weeks, Cyrus continued to show Aeron how wrong he was. The charmeleon taught him where to find food and water, what countless things were called, how to speak more proficiently, and what the company of a friend felt like; all while asking nothing in return. Most nights, Aeron would have nightmares about life in the cave, or about Lit coming back and attacking both him and Cyrus. There was nothing more relieving than waking up to discover they were just dreams, and nothing more satisfying than seeing Cyrus sound asleep just a few feet away.

Life is better now. . . Aeron thought to himself, smiling. It felt good to smile. It felt good to be well-fed, to be clean, to be safe. . . It felt good to be free.