FSE

Furry search engine

formerly SoFurry search engine

**********8**********

Alice strolled down the street on her way back to the pokémon center with April and Kishan by her side. The evening sun was finally setting; the streetlights and neon signs were just coming on. She had just enjoyed a nice dinner with her pokémon after a hard day's work. With the exception of Jari, her pokémon were a big help around the center. Nurse Joy even praised them for their efforts, even the cubone, which was a major ego boost for him. All-in-all, she estimated this to be a very good day for her. She almost couldn't wait to get to her room, take a nice long shower, and bury herself under the sheets.

As Alice stepped through the automatic doors of the pokémon center, she was shocked to see everyone in the lobby sprawled out on the floor or slumped in their chairs. Her first thought was that there had been a robbery and they were all dead, but the lack of blood and the almost obnoxiously loud snoring of a large man quelled that theory, for the most part. She released Fang and Jari from their balls. "Alright guys, I don't know what going on here, but we need to work fast! I need you all to split up and wake up everyone who's sleeping... and alive while I call the cops and find Nurse Joy. Let's move it!"

That said; Alice and the pokémon quickly set about their tasks. Joy wasn't found at the front desk like she usually is, so Alice ran toward the back where she last saw her. After checking a few patient rooms, she found the nurse collapsed on the floor of the supply closet. "Nusre Joy, wake up!" Alice shouted as she shook the pink-haired nurse awake.

"Ah! Wha-what's going on?!" Joy exclaimed, disoriented from being awoken so abruptly.

"Are you alright?"

"Yes, I'm fine... Why am I on the floor?"

"That's what I want know. When I got here, everyone was asleep on the floor like you were. I think everyone in the whole center is the same way"

"What?!" Joy quickly got to her feet and ran out the room, almost knocking Alice over.

"Where are you going?"

"I'm going to check if everyone is okay!" she shouted before disappearing around the corner.

Alice made to follow her, but changed her mind. Instead, she decided to double-back and head to the second floor to see if Chris was in his room. On her way there, she ran into Fang by the stairs and brought him along. The young girl also wondered how such a strange phenomenon could happen in the first place. It was one thing if a person or two were sleeping in the lobby chairs, but this was another matter entirely. 'If a robbery had taken place here, Nurse Joy should be calling the police soon to report whatever was taken. If not... then this has to be someone's idea of a bad joke because this doesn't make any sense.'

When she made to Chris' room, she was surprised the door was already ajar. She stepped inside to find Chris and Nyx sleeping soundly on the bed. Just like with Joy, she shook him until he awoke. Chris grumbled a bit before his eyes opened. "Mmm... What are you doing here?" he asked drowsily, stretching his arms as he sat up.

"I came to check on you, since everyone else in the center had been knocked unconscious or something."

"Knocked unconscious? That's weird..." He glanced to the side to see Nyx still dozing off and an overturned bag of poffins. He wasn't sure why, but something seemed... off.

"Hey, I didn't get a chance to ask Nurse Joy this, but do you remember anything before I woke you up? Like, did someone come into your room or did you drink something funny?"

"What? No, nothing like that," he said as he tried to remember everything before his unexpected nap. "I... was out with the girls... and we made some poffins. We came back here and then... screaming?"

"Screaming? Who screamed?"

"Um... I don't..." He reached for his chest, faintly recalling some pressure being there. "The girls..." He thought as he looked around the room. Not finding what he looking for, he felt around his belt. "One... Two..."

Chris' heart dropped as finger fell through a gap in the line of pokéballs. He bolted to the bathroom, flicking on the light before drawing back the shower curtain, hoping to find something there. Seeing nothing but an empty tub, he frantically ran back into the room and went straight for the closet. "What's wrong?" Alice asked.

"Where is she?"

"She? Who're you-"

"Lani! Where is she?!" Chris shouted at her.

"I-I don't know. I haven't se-" Chris didn't wait to hear the rest of what she had to say. He bolted for the door, running across the bed and jostling Nyx awake.

The ghost awoke to seeing Chris slide past Alice out the room, the latter calling after him as she did the same. Confused, the ghostly mistress yawned and floated off the bed. From her new height, she noticed the gligar was still there. "What's going on?" she asked Fang.

The gligar turned to her and shrugged. "I don't really know," he replied. "It has something to do with Lani though."

"Lani?"

"Yeah, it sounds pretty serious. I think we should follow them." Without another word, the two pokémon left the room and made their way downstairs to the lobby.

Once downstairs, the pokémon caught a glimpse of their trainers leaving the center and followed them out. The two pokémon had no problems catching up to them thanks to their flying, but once they did, Nyx went from curious and confused, to worried. The ghost could feel the raw emotions emanating from her trainer and remembered that there was only one other time she's felt his emotions this strongly. The only difference from the previous time and this time was that he was angry beyond anything else. She was almost afraid of even approaching at this point. Even so, Nyx swallowed what little uncertainty she had and flew next to her beloved trainer.

"Master Chris, where are you going?"

"I'm going to get her back," Chris grunted.

"Do you mean Lani? Do you even know where you're going right now?"

"...No, but whoever did this can't be too far away."

"Okay... Well, do you know where she's being taken?"

"Back to her original trainer."

"Alright, that's a start. Do you know where that person is?"

"...No..."

The ghost wasn't the least bit surprised at his responses, knowing he was clearly acting purely on his emotions. She also knew that the dragon was the only other pokémon than Tora he seems to have a close bond with. As much as she hated to admit it, there isn't a single thing she could think of that would help them at the moment and Chris wasn't making things any easier. "So, what you're telling me is that you don't know where you're going, how to track her, or even where she and her original trainer live? How do plan on getting her back without that information, or even a plan of action?" she asked sternly.

Chris didn't respond, or better yet, couldn't respond. Once finding out Lani was no longer with him, all he could think of was getting her back. There was no planning, or any conceivable thought put into it. It was... is something he needed to do. His running slowed to a stop, his breathing coming in ragged gasps as his heart thudded in his ears.

"Well?" Nyx persisted.

"I... don't know..." He finally said with his head low, clenching his fists as tears threatened to come forth. He knew it was a fruitless effort on to chase after Lani at this point. The dragon's been gone for who knows how long and he doesn't even know where to even begin his search for her.

The misdreavus' face softened. "Master Chris..."

From behind, Alice placed a hand on his shoulder. Having figured what was going on, she could only offer an option to help with the situation. "Chris, let's go back and report this to the police. They'll be able to do a lot more than we can," she said.

Chris took a deep breath to calm down. It didn't help much, but he prevented himself from suddenly bawling his eyes out. "Y-yeah... Let's do that," he sighed, trying to keep it together. With Alice, Nyx, and, now that he noticed, Fang at his side, he turned around and started walking back to the pokémon center. He felt Alice's hand close around his. Chris looked over at her to see grinning at him.

"Hey, we'll get through this, alright?" The smile was reassuring and Chris felt somewhat better knowing she was with him right now.

"Yeah... Thanks."

*****8*****

Clouds darkened the sky as a dry wind blew through the area. The distant rumbling of thunder and flashes of lightning is seen and heard as a storm slowly makes its way due south. While some of the wildlife takes cover from the inevitable rain, others seem to want to brave it out. However, even with the storm drawing near, there was one who couldn't care less of it, his mind a jumbled mess of emotion when he could muster the energy to do so.

Chris trudged along behind Alice as she lead the group toward their next destination; Celadon City. The young boy has been emotionally distraught and less sociable as of late. Understandably so, but his less than hopeful mood has been having a somewhat negative impact on everyone and the traveling storm wasn't helping. "I think we should stop here for today," Alice says, stopping to look at the sky. "The storm looks like it might pass over us. It'd suck to get wet out here without our tents set up yet."

"Mhmm," Chris mumbled.

"You mind setting up while I get lunch ready?"

"Sure."

"Chris, why don't you let Aaron set up?" Tora suggested. "I need to see you about something... private."

"Uh... Alright," Chris replied, not sure what she wanted to talk privately about. He told Alice that he was going for a little walk with Tora before following the chu away from the group and into the surrounding forest.

As the two ventured deeper, Chris couldn't help wondering exactly what Tora wanted to talk to him about. She refused to tell him until they reached a suitable spot to talk. His first thought was that it would probably be about her upcoming heat, which he could understand why she'll be uncomfortable talking about that around the other pokémon. Now that he thought about it, she'll be due for that in just a little while and he doesn't have any of the medication needed to help suppress it.

"Chris, I'm worried about you," Tora said as she finally came to a halt. Chris stopped in his tracks, realizing almost too late that she had stopped walking.

"Is that what you wanted to talk about?" Chris asked. "You didn't need to bring me all the way out here to tell me that."

Tora sighed, momentarily fiddling with her paws trying to come up with the best way to start off before deciding that being direct at this point would be better than skirting around the issue. "Yes, I did. As much as I hate to tell you this, but you need to snap out this funk you're in. You're too depressed to do much of anything and you've barely said anything more than a couple words at a time for the last three days. You haven't even talked to me at all."

"Oh... Sorry about that. I'm just focusing on one thing at a time. I didn't mean to neglect you. I'm alright."

"It's not that you've been neglecting me and there's nothing you need to apologize for. It's just that you haven't talked to anyone unless they've specifically asked you a question that you could respond to with either a yes or a no. Are you really trying to convince me that you're alright when you're clearly not?"

Chris frowned. This was not the conversation he thought he'd be having or wanted to have. "I'm not trying to convince you of anything. I just don't want to talk about it. If I don't, I'll be fine.

"No; you won't be 'fine'. Right now, you're anything but 'fine'. Chris, you... I heard you crying last night... when you thought Aaron and I were sleeping." Tora watched his expression quickly change from shock to denial. Chris immediately opened his mouth to say something, anything, to defend himself, but nothing came to mind. Instead, he closed his mouth and averted his eyes from hers. "I know you're upset about Lani, all of us are, and I'm aware of how cheesy this may sound, but... just talk to me about what you're going though. It might help you feel better."

"Maybe, but it won't change anything right now," Chris replied as he faced her again, feeling a bit of anger bubbling in his stomach. "We have no leads on where she could be, Aaron can't find her telepathically, and there's apparently no trainer in this region named Chad that has a dragonite and a lucario registered to them and looks the guy we saw that day. That's... I don't even know where to begin with that! It's going to take them who knows how long to put face to profile and it'll be way too late by then! It's bullshit! The way I see it, we're up shit creek without a paddle, so talking about it isn't going to help!"

Tora's eyes widened in shock, her chest tighten and her mind momentarily blanked from his outburst. She couldn't believe he just said that to her in that tone. Not only that, but he swore as well. She was sure he didn't mean to yell at her; the proof was on his face the moment he realized what he did. Although, even if he had meant to, it just shows her how much he's hurting and she couldn't, in good conscience, back down over a little shouting.

"Sit," she said firmly, pointing at the tree closest to her.

"Look, I'm sorry-"

"Sit down... now." Chris didn't hesitate didn't hesitate any further and sat down with his back against the tree. Tora followed and situated herself on his lap with her body pressed against his. She then rested her head against his chest. "Hold me." Again, Chris did as commanded and wrapped his arms around the chu. There was a certain level of awkwardness from being in this position, not only because he was told to do it, but because it seemed like an odd thing to do given the mood. Unconsciously, he began to slowly rub up and down her back while the other shifted to hold the back of her head. It felt more natural to hold her this way than to simply have his arms around her.

The chu sighed and shifted a little to get more comfortable. With her ear against his chest, Tora could hear the rhythmic beats of Chris' heart. Chris slowly exhaled a breath he didn't know he was holding. The petting has always been somewhat therapeutic to him and he was already feeling a lot calmer than he did just a minute ago. The young boy tilted his head back against the tree with his eyes closed and joined his friend in listening to the sounds around him. Through the rustling of trees in the wind and the occasional distant rumble of thunder, Chris was able gain some peace of mind, though not for long. The reasons to why he was in the middle of nowhere holding Tora in his lap slowly crawled into the forefront of his mind.

Chris thought back to the last moment he felt the dragons' smooth scales under his fingertips. 'It feels like so long ago,'_he thought. _'Just saying that I miss her doesn't even come close to describing this emptiness I feel now that she's gone. She was right there in my arms and... the way she looked at me then... I don't know how to describe it. Maybe because of all her flirting earlier I didn't think twice when she said it was nothing, but... thinking on it now, my chest feels tight and I can't shake the feeling that she wanted something from me.' While he mulled over what Lani could have wanted from him, his petting slowed to a stop and a sigh escaped him. He remembers the dragons' affection rising after they left the Jewelry store, particularly after making a couple comments about human/pokémon relations.

It was at that moment a light went off in his head. 'What if... What if Lani meant everything she said at the mall? Was my gut instinct at that time right? Does she want to... does she like me that much? Even if she does, what do I do about it? How does anybody go about handling something like this?' The subject put the young boy in a very alien position. In his heart of hearts, he believes pokémon are equal to humans in the fact that they are sentient beings capable of making choices not completely driven by instinct. Even with that in mind, Chris wasn't completely sold on the idea of humans and pokémon being mutually intimate with each other, although he has no real argument against it either. 'I guess growing up hearing about the negative side of this has probably turned me into a prude of sorts or conditioned me into just being against it, but that's not the real issue here. There's no doubting that I love her very much and want her to be happy, but I don't want to just say or do something because I feel obligated to return her feelings. That'll just lead to disaster. I'll have to talk to her about it; if I ever get a chance to.'

"Feeling better?" Tora asked.

"Hmm, sure," Chris sighed.

"What are you thinking about?"

"It's... nothing." He couldn't bring himself to tell her what he was thinking. The idea of it still sounded crazy to him.

The chu restrained herself from extending her claws as she flexed her paws against his shirt. "Why can't you tell me what's bothering you?"

"What do you want me to say?"

"I want to know what you're feeling, what you're thinking, and... and..." She stood up, balancing on his legs. "I'm not going to repeat myself anymore. I know you better than anyone possibly could. You're hurt and you're bottling your emotions up like the boy you are. That's not doing anyone any good." Tora shuddered, her own emotions getting the best of her. She was starting to feel somewhat helpless and didn't understand why she, and everyone else, was being shut out. Lani was her friend too, and she was just as hurt as he was. Then again, perhaps that was the problem. Since that day, she's only thought about how much she misses the dragon and just assumed that Chris felt exactly the same as she did. If that's the case, then it would be no wonder why he didn't talk to her or anybody else. It was painfully obvious to her now that they felt differently on the issue.

Before she could say anything more, Chris embraced her in a hug. "I'm sorry," he whispered.

The act and what was said confused the chu for a moment, until she read deeper into it. 'I should be the one apologizing to him.'

"I'm... fully aware of how I've been acting and everything you said is true. I'm not helping anyone moping around like the world has come to an end or bottling up my emotions until it gets to this point. It's just... all this jazz is really messed up and there was nothing I could do to stop it."

Tora sat up. "Is that why you're depressed; because you weren't able to stop it? Chris, from what you told me on how it happened, I don't think anyone could've even prepared for that, let alone prevent it."

"That isn't all. I... knew it would have happened one way or another." Tora's ears perked up. "W-what do you mean by that?"

"The night Lani ran away, she told me that it most likely wouldn't matter how prepared we'll be in trying to protect her. None of us, besides Aaron, have the power to stop that lucario she knows and, more than likely, his accomplice. They would've struck when we were at our most vulnerable; that being when Aaron isn't around."

"Wait; how do they know about Aaron?"

"He met Luke when he found Lani that night. Being a lucario, he could tell how strong Aaron is and would've preferred to avoid an altercation with him at all cost." He sighed. "I honestly thought I'd be ready for this when she told me, but... The way it happened..."

"It's alright," Tora said as she hugged him. "None of us could've asked you to act differently."

Chris returned the gesture, resting his chin on her head. "You know, I sort of promised to return her to her family before we started this adventure. I guess I jinxed this on us."

"If that's true, then I'm guilty of doing the same thing."

"She deserves to be happy with them after all she's been through. I wanted to give that to her, but at the same time... I was hoping that she'd want to stay with us."

As soon as he finished that sentence, Chris remembered something important, something he's kept from nearly everyone else for a long time now. It was something that started out as wanting to protect Lani, but it soon faded into a distant memory that has him regretting every keeping to himself. He looked down at Tora and rubbed her cheek, which she leaned into, trying to come with the best way to start off. "Tora, there's something I have to tell you," he said almost hesitantly.

Tora looked up to her friend, catching the grief in his voice. "What is it?" she asked.

"For... longer than I realized, I've kept a secret from you and everybody else. It wasn't until now that I remembered what it was."

"What was it?"

"I, uh... I knew Lani's trainer was looking for her before she found out the night she ran away."

Tora's ears twitched. She had not been expecting to hear something like this. Already the chu had at least five questions to ask, but she settled for the one that seemed appropriate for now. "How long have you known?" Chris swallowed and averted his eyes for a moment.

"...Since the afternoon we arrived in Cerulean City."

"Wha- that long?"

"Yeah. I called mom and dad to tell them how we were doing, since I didn't call them back in Pewter City. After that, they asked me if I was in trouble or anything. When I said I wasn't, they told me that someone came to the house looking for me and-"

"He went our house?! Why the hell would you keep that to yourself?! That doesn't make any sense!" Tora punched him in the chest, for his stupidity and for keeping such information a secret.

Chris flinched, losing some air from the hit. He could have said that Aaron also knew, but that wouldn't right; he'd just be throwing him under the bus. The psychic was quiet about the whole thing and gave him the chance to make the right decision. It was his fault for making the wrong choice. "He could have taken our parents hostage or something! It's one thing for him to assume we lived in the city, but to actually find our home... God!"

"I'm sorry. I honestly didn't mean to screw up this bad."

"It's not..." Tora took a deep breath and exhaled slowly. "I mean, it's too late to do anything about it and it's not helping now anyway. I guess the important thing is that nothing did happen. Is there anything else you didn't tell us or is that it?" Chris shook his head. "Okay." The chu looked away for a brief moment before she hugged Chris. "I'm sorry I hit you," she said sincerely. "But you deserved it."

Chris returned the gesture with a faint smile. "It's alright; I know I did."

The two remained quiet from then on, their own thoughts and the distant thunder being enough to fill the silence. Chris' thoughts were consumed by memories of Lani; from their first encounter, to their last evening together. All her smiles, laughs, her tears, and even her playful flirtatious behavior toward him seemed as if they were happening right then in mere moments of each other. They were a reminder of how hard he and Tora had worked in giving her a fresh start on life and being there for her in those rough times.

During all this reminiscing, he remembered something from one of their rare times alone together. It wasn't something that particularly stood out when he first heard it, but now it seemed like the most obvious thing in the world. He let out a brief laugh at how simple the possible solution might be, which baffled Tora as the action was out of place.

"What was that about?" the chu asked.

"I think I've got an idea on how to find Lani," Chris replied.

"Really? What is it?"

"It's... not the best idea I've ever come up with, but with the way things are, there aren't a lot of options available to us. So, what I was thinking we do a little backtracking to find an answer. For that, I just need Aaron's help."

"Wait, backtrack to where? And what do you need Aaron's help with?"

"You probably don't remember, but we have met someone who knows where her previous trainer lives. Unfortunately, none of us except for Aaron can approach this person or we won't get that information."

"Oh... okay. So, who is this person?"

"He's... the guy who tried to take her away in Pewter City."

"Pewter City? Who... You... You can't be serious!" Tora exclaimed as she looked up at him, trying to decide whether to be surprised or angry at him for even suggesting the idea. "That man is an asshole and his weavile is... he's... disgusting!"

"Yes, I know, they're some of the worst out there and we really shouldn't be associating with either of them, but-"

"No, we shouldn't, and we're not going to.

Chris sighed. "Tora, what about Lani? She's our top priority right now and it's not as if you'll be in the same room as him anyway. I only planned for Aaron to go alone while we continue toward Celadon. He could always find us through you, so we can keep moving toward Celadon while he's gone. We both know how capable he is, so I'm sure he'll come back with the information we're looking for."

"This plan seems pretty detailed for something you just thought up."

"I'm finalizing details as we're talking, but that's beside the point. This is all we have to work with, so unless you have something better..."

"You already know I don't, but I'm not exactly liking the idea of Aaron, or anyone for that matter, talking to that man. He's the worst, but I honestly can't stand in the way if it means getting her back. Also, I'm sorry that I spoke out of turn and completely dismissed your plan because of... well, you know."

"Like I said; it's alright. I don't expect you to blindly follow me around like a sheep to the slaughter because you're my best friend in the world and I value your opinions over anyone else's. I'm glad that you can put your personal feelings aside to do what needs to be done. And, who knows? Maybe after talking to Aaron, he might be able to come up with something better." The sudden boom of thunder over their heads caused them both to flinch. "So, with that being said, let's head back before we give them something else to worry about." The chu nodded. "Right."

The two got up, a spark of confidence and hope in the plan as they journeyed back to the others. "You know, now that I think about it, I probably wasn't the best candidate to help you through your slump. I should have gotten Aaron to talk to you instead of doing it myself."

"Why's that?"

"Well... I'm not sure if it's my place to tell, but he's experienced the loss of loved ones and could relate to what you're going through better than I can."

"He's... lost some loved ones?"

Tora nodded. "Yes. I mean, I almost lost you a couple times. Even though I felt terrible at the thought of you gone from my life forever, you've always come back to me. You should definitely talk to him about how he dealt with it whenever you get a chance."

"I'll, uh... do that," he replied, not sure if he could really go through with it, let alone bring it up with the psychic. 'Bringing up that part of his past would be a little too personal and unpleasant a subject to just suddenly want to talk about. I never thought about going to Aaron for anything concerning losing someone. I can imagine what he's going to say if I ask him flat-out if he's ever lost someone before. Well, I could just ease into somehow. I don't want to be rude about it.'

*****8*****

A long sigh escaped him as he stared uninterestingly at the wall in front of him. In his boredom, the young dratini had taken to counting the bricks that made up his prison chamber. He's counted up to 2,783 so far and wasn't even thinking of stopping now, at least not until he finds a spot he knows he can remember later. The task took a considerable amount of effort, partly due to his eye wandering every so often, which he was training not to wander so much, but he honestly felt it was better than doing nothing.

The dragon had already counted the tiles on the floor of two of his chambers. The room he currently resides has 1,720 twelve inch tiles; the dimensions being 40 wide by 43 long. From the entrance, there's a cracked tile fifteen feet across and to the left of it. If he remembers correctly, he's been in this room eight other times already. The days, often times, pass in a blur, so much so that the young dragon has given up trying to keep track of what day of the week it is, or even what month it is. It made no difference to keep mental notes of that sort of time. The only time that mattered was when his next meal will be coming, which was approaching rather quickly.

'I need to find a place to stop before she gets here. Otherwise, I'll have start over again,' Skylar thought. He then paused for a moment and sighed. "It's sad that losing my place on the wall is my only major plight right now. I almost wish they'd give me a ball or something to amuse myself with while I'm not doing anything. Hell, I'll even take a crossword puzzle if it means keeping my brain from rotting. Sure, I'm glad they took the damn blindfold off, but it's not really worth it if I still have nothing to do. Shot, where was I? Oh, right. 2,795... 2,796... 2,797..."

The sound of keys jingling outside almost disrupted the dragons' count, but he refocused and continued. His stomach already told him what time it was and his nose told him exactly who was entering. Her soft-padded footsteps were as near-silent as the first day they'd met, yet had a confident stride that came from days of repetition and the sincere willingness to perform. To the dragon, she was a welcomed reprieve from the everyday 'life' of being a prisoner.

"Dinner's here," Ren says as she takes her place just outside his cage. The buizel notices the dragon looking past her and whispering something. "What are you doing?"

"Hold on a second," Skylar replied, finding a good place to stop. He settled on a corner spot he was sure he'd remember later. "Alright, what's it going to be tonight?"

"The same thing you've had every time I come in here; oatmeal and berries. It's the meal of champions," She said with a smile.

"If this is what champions eat, I wasn't missing out on much."

The buizel stirred the food and scooped some out. "Maybe, but at least you're getting something while it's warm." She blew on the steamy oatmeal. "Now open wide and say 'ahh'."

Skylar sighed, obliging to her wishes... yet again. It still tasted as bland as cardboard, but it was a taste he was accustomed to. "You don't have to say that every time you offer the first bite," he said after swallowing, which slightly pained him in his chest.

"If I stopped now, you'll miss it."

"That's because I'm used to you doing it." Ren didn't say anything to that and fed the dragon a second spoonful. The buizel studied Skylar's facial expression this time. At first, he didn't react, but he froze, she assumes, once the taste really hit his tongue. She watched his eyes slowly light up as he savored this new taste.

"Wow, that was... actually good," Skylar commented, somewhat at a loss for words.

"Did you like it? I put some of that crunchy, sweet white stuff in it that makes food taste better." Ren said proudly.

"It's... sugar..."

"Yeah, sugar. That stuff is amazing. I've never had anything like that before."

Skylar starred at the buizel in disbelief and, for the first time, felt genuinely happy in a long time. A grin found its way on his face. "Thank you, Ren," he said sincerely. "You really didn't have to do this for me."

"Yes, I did. It's the least I can do to make your days here better," she said as she offered another spoonful, which he accepted. "You're at least talking more and less... depressed when we met."

"Hmm..."

The two fell into silence. Skylar felt a pang of... guilt... or perhaps fear on the sea-weasel's last comment. In his honest opinion, he hasn't progressed anywhere near a positive state of mind enough to be complimented about it. He still has conflicted thoughts of being better off dead and living for the slim chance to see his family again. The latter was the only thing keeping him from actively thinking of ways to commit suicide. He's still terrified of going to sleep, yet the waking world was hardly any better.

Despite it all, Skylar did notice a change within himself in the last couple of days, something he tried his hardest to prevent. The dragon knew that it would lead to only more heartache in the end. He realized a small part of him looked forward to seeing the sea-weasel again. It didn't take nearly as long as he thought it would for her to break through his defenses and make a place in his heart. 'Why, and how, did it happen?' he asked himself.

The more he thought about it, the more it came together. She was the only one in this bleak, abysmal prison to show concern for his well-being, to ensure his food is warm, to console him after a session of physical abuse or horrible nightmares. Ren was quickly becoming something more than his caretaker, more than someone he could talk to. Her innocent, calming aura was glowing brighter and brighter in the dark sea of despair, like a lighthouse in the middle of a thick fog. The buizel was turning into the one thing that could give him the strength to keep going... and he was terrified of it.

Hope of any kind was purged with endless visions of gore, death, darkness, and madness. The incompressible become reality in the most twisted perversions not even the devil himself could think of. His deepest fears will play out in front of him as if they were really happening, with the sensation of being awake. He couldn't... wouldn't let Ren be apart of it. He'd sooner cast her away, than for her to be anywhere other than the waking world. Even when among the fully conscious, his moments of peace are often short-lived by a visit from one or more of his wardens, a couple of whom who are quick to deliver the physical abuse. Whether or not becoming accustomed to sort of torture to the point that the blue dragon is nearly numb to seeing such gruesome visuals half the time is a good thing, he believes whole-heartedly that no individual, no matter how evil, should ever have the chance to adjust to this sort of living.

"So... you still haven't told me anything about your family," Ren stated as she fed the dragon another spoonful. "If it's too personal, I understand. I was just curious about where-"

"Ren..." Skylar interrupted, looking the buizel with a dull expression. "Can you stop being so nice to me."

"Huh?" The buizel was confused. She didn't know how to react to such an unpredictable request that goes against her nature. "Wha... What are you talking about?" she asked, hoping for some clarification.

"Stop being so goddamn nice to me!!" he shouted, jarring Ren into dropping the spoon. "I can't do this with you anymore! You're getting into my head and... I don't want you in the nightmares. Not you..."

"Skylar, wha-"

"Just leave me alone!!!"

The loud bang of the metal door hitting a wall resounded behind the buizel, causing her to turn sharply at the psychic barging in. "What in the fuck are you screaming about?!" A medicham shouted irritably as she marched toward the pair.

Ren was at a loss of what to say. "I-I-I don't-"

"I wasn't asking you, dumbass." The medicham stood in front of the cage, glaring at Skylar. "You want to tell me why I can hear you on the other side of that door before I get any more pissed than I already am?"

"I want her to leave... Take her away..." The psychic spared a glance to Ren before stepping to the side and opening the cage.

She approached and knelt before the blue dragon. Her face softened as she sighed and reached her hand out to grasp the back of his head. Skylar visibly stiffened when she touched him and it took just as long as his reaction for the psychic to deliver a knee to his face. Blood sprayed from the dragon's nose, pain erupting and ringing in his head. Dazed, he barely registers the second hit, but feels the third. At that point, he feels his body fall backwards and his head hit floor.

The dragon's head fell to the side. Through his blurred vision, he could make out the horrified expression on Ren's face and her body shaking. Before a coherent thought could be formed, Skylar felt an extremely cold hand grab his throat and lift his body. "You little shit," he heard the medicham growl as she slammed him against the cage, stars filling his vision upon impact. "You don't tell me what to do!" An icy punch to his gut took his breath away and sapped his strength. A second punch followed; and another after that.

The sound of fist hitting Skylar's scale-covered body echoed through the room, Ren becoming more terrified as time went on. Fear rooted her in place as she asked herself why this was happening. What did he do to deserve this? Where did everything go wrong? She watched as the dragon's body seized up with every successive blow, feeling her heart grow heavier and heavier.

'Stop... Stop hurting him!' her mind screamed, wishing to say it out loud, but her voice failed her. Once she noticed his body had become limp, Ren ran into the cage before she knew what she was doing and tackled the medicham. "Stop it; you're killing him!!!" she shrieked.

The psychic buckled from the unexpected tackle, but did not fully fall. She sharply turned to the sea-weasel with half a mind to give her a taste of her fist as well, but Ren's words sunk in and she turned back to the dragon she had in a near death grip. Skylar was clearly unconscious and there was ice building up around his neck. Half his midsection was practically frozen and already noticeably bruised from her punches.

While it wasn't her intention to take it so far, the medicham felt a little better letting off some steam. Without so much as a second thought, the psychic simply let the beaten dragon fall to the floor and started to make her way out the cage. Ren scrambled to Skylar's body and put an ear to his mouth and a paw on his chest to check if he was still alive. His breathing came out in slow pained wheezes, his chest shuddering each time. "At least he's breathing..." She jerked her head up. "H-Hey! I need some hot water!"

The medicham, who had already made it to the door, stopped and turned to the buizel. "And how is that my problem?" She replied maliciously before indefinitely leaving the room, abandoning the frantic sea-weasel to deal with the unconscious dragon. Ren almost couldn't believe the psychic ditched her, albeit, having just witnessed her... irrational behavior, it wasn't really a question of believability, but morality. She didn't dwell on it however and fixed her attention on Skylar. Knowing that time wasn't on her side, she dashed out the room, praying that he'll still be alive when she returns.

Ren headed straight to the janitorial closet to retrieve some towels and the bucket she'll need. She passed a few pokémon along the way, but didn't pay them, or their odd looks, any mind. All that mattered was getting back to Skylar before the worst-case scenario happens. It didn't take her long to grab the towels off the shelf in the closet and stuff them in the bucket before heading off to the kitchen.

Reaching her destination, she found the kitchen empty for the first time. The air still smelled of delicious food and it looks like no one has started cleaning the dishes or putting the leftover food away yet. She found it a bit strange at first, but put it out of her mind for now. She still had to get the hot water. Using one of the towels as a mat, the buizel placed the bucket on it and positioned them in front of the sink, before jumping on the counter. 'Which one was it?' she thought frantically, trying to remember which knob turned the hot water on. "Argh, forget it!" Instead of trying to figure it out, she turned both knobs and hoped for the best. As luck would have it, the knob mark with an 'H' was turned more than the other.

As the water heated up, Ren grabbed the nozzle next to the faucet and pointed it at the bucket. "At least I remember this much about this stupid sink." Once she saw steam begin to rise, she squeezed the trigger and let loose the heated water into the bucket. The sound of water calmed her down somewhat, enough to get her frantic thoughts under control. Her breathing slowed; the rational side of her replacing the erratic, although her frustration didn't wane.

"What happened?" she asked herself aloud. Everything had been going routinely well; she fed him, talked for a bit, but then he fell quiet. It wasn't that odd for the dragon stop conversing with her. It was expected and usually after a careless remark on her part, at least that's what she assumes. Even so, the silence would only last for roughly a minute or two before he would change the subject, but he didn't this time. Instead, he gave her the strangest look she's ever seen.

'He looked so scared... as if he'd seen a ghost. What was he thinking that he'd suddenly me thrown out? What did he mean by not wanting me to be part of the nightmares? And... why did she beat him like that?!' None of what happened made any sense to her. The more she thought about it, the more questions that came up she had no answers to. It frustrated the buizel to no end that, despite her wanting to fulfill her role as caretaker, her limited knowledge and power prevented her from doing just that.

Before Ren could dwell on that thought any longer, she noticed the bucket was mostly filled. The buizel turned the water off, hopped down, and proceeded to haul the heavy pail by pulling the towel. Thankfully, there weren't any pokémon wandering about on her way back, no doubt in her mind they would most likely stop and harass her about what she's doing. The door to Skylar's room was, surprisingly, still open. Ren didn't think too much about it until she stepped inside. There, standing in front of the downed dragon's cage, was an ursaring.

The large bear took notice of her arrival almost immediately. "Hey, who fucked this guy up?" he asked, not bothering to hide his amusement. "Whoever did it must have been pretty pissed off or somethin'." Ren frowned, deciding to ignore him and make her way to Skylar. She passed the bear without making eye contact and sat next to her charge. The ice that built up on the dragon was already beginning to melt, much to her relief. "Hey; ain't you gonna say anything?" Grabbing one of the towels, the buizel soaked most of it in the water, which stung her paws, and laid it on the melting ice. She repeated the process again on his lower body and chest, hoping the heat wouldn't do any more damage than what's already been done.

Ren gasped as she was suddenly jerked backwards by the scruff of her neck and lifted into the air, the snarling mug of an angry ursaring coming into view. "Hey! You speak when I'm talking to you!" he growled in her face. "You try that one more time, I'll kick your little ass into next week, ya hear me?! I will break that little body of yours in two!"

Ren squirmed in his grasp, fear bubbling up in the pit of her stomach. The buizel had never been on the receiving end of such a strong killing intent before. It was almost suffocating. It wouldn't surprise her in the least if he gutted her on the spot. "I-I'm sorry," she whimpered. "It won't happen again."

The large bear grinned, pleased of his effect on the smaller pokémon. "Good; it better not." He released her, letting the buizel fall to the floor on all fours before proceeding to walk out the cage and the room. "Before you pull some dumb shit like that on someone else, let me tell you something," he said at the doorway. "Don't get too comfortable with your little nanny position. No one would blink or think twice if I were to kill you right now because you're weak and easily replaceable with any other weakling out there. The strong eat the weak around here, so unless you got the strength to back up your words... don't fall out of line. You just might live another day, even if it's not guaranteed." With that said, the brown bear left, closing the door behind him.

Ren didn't move from where she fell, still too scared to move. Once the fear settled, she slowly moved beside Skylar. Gazing upon the blue dragon and reflecting on what the ursaring said to her, the buizel realized that she was just as much a prisoner as he was. Granted, she had the 'freedom' to move about as she wanted, but it was with the condition that she did her job. The eggshells and glass she'd been walking on since her arrival were very apparent now and, for the first time in her life, she felt truly powerless.

Tears welt up in her eyes as she removed all but one of the lukewarm towels from the blue dragons body, the ice on his body having already melted. Using the remaining towel, Ren rubbed up and down Skylar's body, being careful not to accidentally tear off any scales. "You have it worse than I do, yet I'm the one crying," she whispered with a sniffle. She wondered how he dealt with the constant abuse, what kept him from completely giving up on living. Was it his family? If so, where are they and why haven't they come for him? 'The less you know, the better off you'll be; trust me.' Those words, the same words said to her by Skylar the first time she met him, echoed endlessly in her head like a catchy tune. Her paws balled up into fists. "That's a lie," she growled in frustration. "And how can I trust you if you won't open up to me? If all I need to do is become stronger into order to get the knowledge I need to protect the both of us, then I'll do it. I... I won't let this happen again, I swear."

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