TEEN: To Never See the Moon Shine (Chapter Sixteen)

[Lifestream]

Chapter One[/CENTER]

Grey clouds covered the sky, covering the moon. A lake stretched across the horizon, its dark water still and glassy. A sheet of pale mist hung over the silent water, blurring the view of the lake.

A small tumble of boulders rose from the grass. The horizontal half of a log was wedged up against the rocks. Under it, the ground was dark green with soft clumps of moss. At the back of the den, a lithe light pink Pokemon slept with her thin tail curled over a single bundle of brown fur.

Her eyes snapped open in alarm as a twig cracked at the den’s entrance. Fear flashed in her large dark eyes. She covered the bundle with her paw and bared her teeth.

“Hush now, Yori.” an old voice rasped. A small pale blue shape entered the den. Yori sighed in relief.

“You scared me, Father.” she whispered, laying her head back on her small paws again. The blue Pokemon’s bones jutted out beneath his pelt. He was frail as a leaf, slowly lowering the front end of his body before he fell over onto his side to avoid painfully lowering his back onto the ground.

The icy blue Pokemon chuckled. “You’re very protective of him.” he remarked. “I was afraid I was going into the lake.”

Yori snorted. “He is very young! He is to be protected with upmost care!” she snapped.

The old Pokemon gazed at her apologetically. “Of course, of course.”

Yori opened her mouth in a wide yawn. The Pokemon leaned forward and licked the top of her head. Yori pulled away, embarrassed.

“Oh, Salvatore, please! I wish to sleep!” she begged, though her eyes sparkled despite the weariness that dragged at her fur. The blue Pokemon nodded, his face soft with affection.

“Yes, get some rest.” He glanced at the tiny Pokemon and his heart suddenly fluttered in joy. Barely suppressing the urge to leap to his paws and burry his nose into the young Pokemon’s fur, he simply watched the peaceful rising and falling of his chest as he slept.

“You’ve earned it.” Yori sighed thankfully and laid her head down again. The small brown Pokemon beside her squirmed, but stilled as Yori curled her thin, forked tail around him.

Salvatore licked his paw and drew it over his ear. He was surprised he wasn’t trembling with excitement. At last his grandson had been born! It had seemed like he’d lived multiple lifetimes, watching impatiently as Yori grew bigger and heavier. But now the small Pokemon had been born and he felt light as a feather.

"What about is name?" he asked his weary daughter.

"I thought his grandfather would have something in mind." Yori mumbled drowsily.

Salvatore's heart skipped. "Oh, what an honor!" he exclaimed. Yori didn't reply, just covered her face with her paw to block out the moonshine.

"Let's see," the old Pokemon began. "He could be called Sun because his mother is the Sun Pokemon. Or Snow after myself. No, Yori would shred my ears if I did that. Hmm..."

Salvatore sighed sleepily. He glanced through the den entrace toward the deep black sky. The stars glittered like shattered ice against the sky's shadowy surface. The moon seemed like a giant pearl in the sky, casting cold silver light down onto the lake. It's reflection on the water's shadowy surface flickered as a Magikarp touched the top of the lake.

A thought flashed through Salvatore's mind, and the elderly Pokemon let out a sigh of contentment. "Moon." he murmured, gazing up at the brilliantly glowing sphere. He twisted around, grunting, to lick at an itch. He turned back to stare at the starry sky again.

"Moon." he echoed. He glanced at tiny brown Pokemon and sighed once again. Salvatore sighed a great deal. Most thought it was because of his old age, that he missed his youth and former power. Yori's sister thought he was the strongest Pokemon around the lake.

But it wasn't that. Salvatore didn't long for the clock to tick backward. He didn't wish to be the musclular Glaceon he was at one time, taking on any challenge without second thought. Salvatore didn't long for the days to come back at all. His sighs were truly sounds of contentment. He was proud of his younger days and was glad he had such great daughters and now a grandson to pass on his many years of wisdom to.

Salvatore sighed again. "Moon." he said again, laying his chin on his paws. "May he gaze up at it as I do tonight and realize its beauty."

The old Glaceon fought to stay awake, but darkness was already seeping into his vision. With a final sigh, he gave in to the dizzy blackness.

 

[Lifestream]

Re: To Never See the Moon Shine

Chapter Two​

Moon was awakened by bright sunlight filtering into the log den. He smelled, almost tasted, the freshly picked berries at the den entrance. He got up and shook his thick brown fur and began lapping at his cream colored mane. Moon felt his mother’s warm gaze as he approached her.

“Good morning, dear.” she said softly, touching his head with her nose. Moon felt her chest puff out in pride. “You’ve opened your eyes.” she murmured.

He felt his grandfather’s breath hot on his face as the Pokemon leaned forward. Moon was almost blown off his paws by the waves of excitement pulsing from the old Pokemon’s body.

“Yes, you have, and it is time you begin to explore our world.” he rasped.

Moon shuffled his paws in the thick grass beneath his feet impatiently. “Let’s go, Salvatore!” he begged. “Let’s go now!”

Salvatore chuckled. “I remember when you were young Yori.” he remarked.

“Salvatore, please don’t.” Yori groaned.

“You were so excited to get out of the den! Remember when you climbed that tree and I couldn’t get you out? Ah, and that one time you fell in the lake and I had to jump in and get you? Oh, there was that time that--”

“Salvatore!” Yori exclaimed crossly. Salvatore dipped his head apologetically.

He turned to Moon. “Shall we see the forest first?” he said softly. Moon nodded excitedly.

“Come on, let’s go!” he yowled, haring away from Salvatore and Yori.

“Moon, look out!” Salvatore shouted. The warning had come too late. Moon cried out in surprise his paws hit something hard and fell painfully onto his muzzle. He heard the drumming of paw steps and smelled Yori and Salvatore. Moon sat up and licked his stinging paw. He heard Yori slide to a stop beside him and felt his ear fold under her tongue.

“Are you alright?” she fretted between rapidly licking Moon’s tall brown ears. “You could have been hurt!”

Moon heard Salvatore approached, ambling up the slope on frail legs. He felt the old Glaceon’s concerned gaze sear his thick fur and bowed his head, ashamed.

My first day out! he thought miserably. And I’ve already messed up!

Moon rose to his paws, wincing as he placed his throbbing paw on the ground.

“Don’t run off like that again.” Salvatore huffed, his breath coming out in ragged gasps.

“Don’t be so hard on him, Salvatore.” Yori pleaded. “He just got excited.”

Moon shook scraps of leaves of his fur and batted Yori’s muzzle away with his paw.

“I’m fine, really.” he mumbled. Yori side and laid her forked tail across his back.

“Just don’t do it again, hear?”

Moon walked alongside Salvatore, his head and tail drooping. Salvatore shot him a sympathetic glance.

“Don’t be ashamed.” he murmured. “We all make our mistakes.”

Moon felt anger flare up in his stomach at Salvatore’s sympathy. “You only pity me because I’m small.” he growled under his breath.

“What was that?” Salvatore wondered, his tall blue ears forward toward him. Moon sighed. “Nothing.”

Salvatore shrugged and trotted into the shade of the forest. Moon hurried to keep up, following the sound of his grandfather’s paw steps.

Suddenly the thumping of the Glaceon’s paw steps silenced. Moon slid to a stop, a whisker away from running into Salvatore’s long legs.

Salvatore gazed up at a huge oak tree that towered over him. Its moss covered roots arched over large stone and burrows of other Pokemon. The top of the great oak wasn’t visible, as the dark green leaves shielding the branches disappeared into a thick white cloud.

“This is the largest tree around the lake.” Salvatore explained. “When the weather gets hot, human’s come to the forest and make nests by this tree.

Moon tilted his head. “Human’s?” he asked. He heard Salvatore’s fur rustle as he nodded.

Moon parted his jaws to taste the air. Fragrant scents of the forest hit the roof of his mouth, filling his nostrils and mouth with its sweet aroma. Moon could always smell these scents from his den unless the wind was blowing toward him. There was nothing strange in the air’s aroma, nothing that didn’t belong.

“Yes, humans. They should be coming back in a few days now that the cold season has ended.” Salvatore replied with a sigh.

“Are they friendly?” Moon questioned, approaching the huge trunk of the oak. He smelled the bark at the tip of his nose and turned sharply before he bumped the trunk. He stumbled over a stray root and was almost caught in a drooping, leafy branch, which he crawled under. Salvatore shook his head.

“No. They send captive Pokemon out to fight and take you as prisoner against your will.” he sighed. “Your mother and I stayed away from them after a close friend was caught by one.” Salvatore sighed a second time. “That Pokemon was very impulsive. It led her to picking a fight with the humans when they went too far through the forest.” He bowed his head. “I haven’t seen her since.”

“Who was she?” Moon asked as he struggled under an arching root.

“Lyra.” Salvatore replied. “The beauty of the forest. Oh, how sleek her golden fur was, and her nine long, slender tails, and eyes always eager for an adventure…ah, I miss her so.”

Moon suppressed a shudder. He trotted forward, but to his dismay his paws became tangled in a clump of thistles. He yowled as the thorn sharp prickles stabbed through his skin. He unsuccessfully tried tearing his paws out of the prickles, but only feel forward onto his chest and smashing his muzzle into the ground.

Salvatore trotted as fast as his bony, frail legs could carry him to where Moon squirmed, which only drove more thistle prickles into his paws.

“Don’t move.” he panted, grabbing the bright pink flower delicately in his teeth and pulled it away from his paw. Moon gritted his teeth in pain as the long needles were pulled out of his foot, leaving small droplets of blood in his fur. Salvatore tugged Moon away from the thistles by his thick cream-dipped tail.

Moon lapped at his cut paws delicately, wincing as his tongue past over the bleeding skin.

Salvatore stared into his eyes. He felt a pit begin to open up in his stomach. Moon’s dark eyes gleamed with disappointment that he’d trod on the thistles in from of his kin, but otherwise they were dull and clouded. Why didn’t I notice it before? the elderly Glaceon wondered.

He sat in silence, watching as Moon tended his burning paw. Moon glanced up sharply at Salvatore, feeling his worried gaze chill his skin. No, Salvatore insisted. He will visit Claudia first before I say anything to make Yori frantic.

But the terrible thought pulled at Salvatore’s pelt the entire walk home, cutting through his stomach like the freshly sharpened scythe of a Scyther.

Please, don't let it be true! Salvatore wailed silently up at the sky.

 

[Windywords123]

Re: To Never See the Moon Shine

Ooh, nice cliffie! I love it so far, this is really intriguing. Please continue!

 

[Lifestream]

Re: To Never See the Moon Shine

I'm glad you're enjoying it! =)

Chapter Three​

Yori watched questioningly as she saw the tall, bony shape of Salvatore and the small body of Moon appear over the slope.

“You’re home early!” she called to them.

Moon trotted toward his mother’s voice, stumbling as the ground sloped downward. Salvatore sighed and dragged his paws after the Eevee, his head and tail down. Yori’s eyes followed him worriedly. She tailed the old Glaceon as he padded behind the rock fall.

“What happened?” Yori hissed as Salvatore dropped heavily on his rump. Her thin pink fur bristled when Salvatore began to wash dark blue tail. “Salvatore!” Yori spat, fighting to keep her voice down. “Tell me what happened in the forest!”

After what seemed like ages of silence, Salvatore looked up from lapping at his fur. His eyes were bright again and he stood taller.

“Nothing, Yori.” Salvatore replied softly. Yori opened her mouth to protest, but Salvatore silenced her with a flick of his tail. Yori nodded and let Salvatore pass to go to the lake’s shore.

Moon heard Yori’s paw steps as she padded from behind the rock pile to greet him. He felt affection pulsing from her in waves as she nuzzled him and licked his thick, matted fur clean.

But behind the love and adoration, Moon felt she was disturbed by something. He tried to feel deeper into her, but it seemed as though a thick wall of brambles barred his way.

Frustrated, he slipped away to try and find answers from Salvatore. Moon caught him coming back from the lake, licking droplets of water of his whiskers.

“Hello, Moon.” Salvatore greeted, dipping his head. Moon closed his eyes and focused hard on his emotions, but he too appeared to cloud his feeling, only his thoughts were blocked entirely. Moon stifled a hiss and nodded to his grandfather.

The Glaceon smiled softly. “In the morning we’ll take you to our family.” he said. Excitement and confusion pulsed through Moon.

“You mean we don’t live here?” he asked, tilting his head. He heard the rustle of fur as Salvatore shook his head.

“We live further into the forest. That’s where our family is.”

Moon began to shuffle his paws and twitch his tail eagerly as he pelted his grandfather with excited questions. “Is our family big? What kind of Pokemon are they? How deep into the forest? What do our dens look like? Do humans go there? Are my kin really strong?”

Salvatore chuckled, waving his pointed tail to quiet Moon. “You can ask everyone else those questions. But you have to go to sleep early so you’ll be good and rested to travel through the woods in the morning."

--

Moon’s eyes opened slightly, warm morning light heating his face. He moaned sleepily and turned over so the sunshine could warm his back as he closed his eyes again.

“Moon.” a soft, soothing voice whispered into his ear. Moon smelled his mother’s sweet aroma wreath him. “Come on, it’s time to wake up.” Yori coaxed, nosing him to his paws.

Moon stretched his front paws forward in a yawn, his tiny teeth gleaming white as they caught a ray of sunlight. He felt the rasping of his mother’s tongue on his back as he stretched his bushy tail up and reached his head upward to ease the stiffness in his neck.

“I want to sleep!” Moon complained, ducking away from Yori’s tongue.

“We have to go home.” her soft, chiming voice came again. “You can sleep when we get there, okay?”

Moon’s stomach lurched as he remembered his excitement to journey through the woods to meet the rest of his kin. “Let’s go, let’s go!” he exclaimed, tripping over clumps of moss as he circled Yori happily.

“Yes, Salvatore must be waiting.” Yori purred, guiding him out of the den with her thin forked tail.

From what Moon heard, the old Pokemon was pacing back and forth impatiently outside the den.

“Ah, I was waiting!” Salvatore exclaimed. “I miss everyone. We must leave at once.”

Despite his old, brittle body, Salvatore trotted briskly up the slope toward the woods. The fragrant forest scents tickled Moon’s nose as he trailed Salvatore, following the heavy pounding of his footsteps. He scented bark in front of him and swerved to avoid a tree as he, Yori, and Salvatore entered the forest.

“Slow down, Salvatore!” Yori panted. “He can’t move that quickly!” She glanced back at Moon, her eyes hard with concern as she watched him struggle over a fallen branch.

“I’m fine!” Moon snapped, sliding under a stray oak root. He still smelled his scent trail from yesterday. Salvatore was leading them the same route he’d taken Moon the day before. Moon waited the trees to open up into the clearing where to giant oak towered into the clouds, but the elderly Glaceon swerved off path abruptly.

Yori dropped back to run beside Moon as the woodland grew dense. Moon had to squeeze through thick undergrowth and dig under spaced that were too difficult to fit through.

Exhaustion weighed his paws down as though they were made of lead after only a couple minutes of crawling through the suddenly dense woodland. Sweat trickled down his face, stinging his and dripping from his furry chin.

“Salvatore, Moon needs to rest.” Yori pleaded.

But Salvatore shook his head. “It’s not much further. I need to go back.”

“But what’s so important?” Yori pleaded. “Look at my son!” Moon shook away his weariness and padded forward, passing the two Pokemon.

“I’m fine, honest.” he assured Yori, fighting to keep from panting. “Let’s keep going.”

Yori glared at Salvatore before walking ahead, her fur bristling. Salvatore tagged alongside Moon, grumbling with irritation. Moon suppressed a laugh of amusement. He wondered if he’d ever argue with Yori the way she did with her father. Curiosity suddenly welled up in him at the thought of a father.

“Salvatore?” he asked.

“Hmm?”

“Who’s my father?”

Salvatore sighed. “Not here. I didn't know much about him.”

“Not here?”

“Yep.”

“Where’d he go?”

Salvatore shrugged. “I don’t know. But I don’t care.” he added bitterly.

“Why, what was wrong with him?” Moon question, leaning closer.

“He was insane.” Salvatore sneered. “But don’t tell Yori that.”

Moon opened his mouth to reply when many different smells hit his nose. He identified one as water, the same musty scent the lake carried. Another carried a fragrant aroma, very similar to the giant oak’s leafy smell. He recognized the scent of ash and fire mingling with the others as well.

The bracken and stray branches subsided and felt the ground drop steeply downward at the tips of his claws.

Salvatore halted behind him, his chilly, icy blue fur brushing Moon’s pelt.

“Welcome home.” he whispered into Moon’s tall brown ear.

 

[Lifestream]

Re: To Never See the Moon Shine (Chapter Three)

Chapter Four​

Moon heard the sounds at the bottom of the hollow in the ground quiet. He felt Salvatore’s stiffened body relax, as though a heavy weight had been lifted off his shoulders.

“Claudia,” he murmured softly, so softly Moon had to strain to hear him. He felt Yori nudge him to the side.

“Come on, dear.” she coaxed, pushing him further along the cliff. Eventually the ground began to become a slope instead a drop. Salvatore picked his way carefully down the sloping hill.

“Careful, it’s steep!” Salvatore called over his shoulder.

“I think we’ve noticed, thanks!” Yori snapped.

Moon heard Salvatore mutter something and irritation heating Yori’s sleek fur. Moon suppressed a sigh. Apparently they were still upset after they’re argument in the woods.

Salvatore’s careful stepping down the slope became a quick walk, then a slow jog, until he broke into a run.

“Claudia!” he yowled. His cry was high with excitement, but Moon sensed something else within him. He narrowed his eyes, the suspicion that something was wrong welling up inside him.

He hurried down the slope after Salvatore, tripping over a lump in the earth. Moon heard Salvatore’s tail entwining with another Pokemon’s and their faces brushing. The pure, clean scent of water fell over him as he neared them.

He pricked his ears as he heard Yori’s cheerful voice drift toward him. He padded toward his mother when the fragrant aroma of the forest hit his nose, along with the smell of heat and the scent of an approaching thunderstorm.

“Come meet your cousins, Moon!” Yori called. Moon padded through the belly-high grass in the direction of his mother’s scent. He felt Yori’s tail wrap around and bring him to her side.

“Moon, this is Thalia,” Yori said, nodding at the Leafeon.

“Welcome, Moon.” Thalia greeted with a voice like chiming bells.

“And Cail,” Moon felt the sharp gaze of a Jolteon sear his pelt, almost causing him to take a step back, and heard the rustle of his spiky golden fur as he nodded curtly.

“And Sota.” Yori flicked her tail toward the last Pokemon.

Moon turned his head in the direction he heard Yori’s tail wave and the scent of fire and ash warmed his nose. He felt Sota’s gentle eyes rest on him, and nodded.

He was too tired to talk. The exhaustion of the run through the forest was catching up, and his paw’s felt like weights at the end of his short legs. Yori seemed to realize his weariness and wrapped her tail around him, guiding him across the clearing.

Moon felt the grass turn to stone beneath his paws, then the stone turn to moss.

“Lie down, little one.” Yori said softly, pushing him down on his side gently with her paw. Moon felt his legs buckle beneath him and thankfully sank into the thick bed of moss. Closing his eyes, he almost immediately fell into sleep.

--

Moon grunted as he felt something jab into his side. He'd woken up later that afternoon, explored the hollow and ran through the forest again. When he'd come back he had felt just as tired as befire and thankfully fell asleep in the cave again with Yori, Cail, Sota, and Thalia.

He felt another poke to his ribs and smelled to icy scent of Salvatore and the pure, watery aroma of Claudia.

“Moon!” Salvatore hissed, prodding Moon with his paw again. “Wake up!”

Moon rose to his paws and yawned, stretching his paws in front of him and flexing his claws.

“Come outside, Moon!” Salvatore’s quiet whisper came again.

Moon followed Claudia and Salvatore’s paw steps, feeling the chilly breeze ruffling his fur as he exited the cave. It must be before dawn, he thought curiously. What would they want at this hour?

“What’s wrong Salva…tore?” Moon asked awkwardly as he felt Claudia’s piercing eyes gaze into his own eyes, her breath, tainted with the scent of fish, hot on his nose. He heard Salvatore murmuring prayers toward the sky.

Claudia’s fur rustled as she slowly nodded. “Stare at the sun.” she ordered.

Her voice was stronger than Salvatore’s, though Moon could sense the many years of age weighing heavily on her voice. She might be even older than Salvatore! Moon thought, surprised. Moon stared up at the sky, moving his head until his face grew warm under the sun’s rays. Claudia said nothing, her sharp eyes burning Moon’s pelt.

Moon began to tear at the grass with his claws after several minutes went by, but didn’t dare look away from the sun, fearful of what Claudia might say. Judging by her searing gaze and strong voice despite her old age, Moon suggested she might have a large temper.

After Moon’s neck began to ache from looking up so long and it seemed as though ages had went by, Claudia finally sighed.

“That’s enough, young one.”

Moon noticed the sadness in voice and felt his fur prickle with fear. He glanced questioningly at Salvatore, whose head was bowed, the fear and sadness pulsing from him threatening to throw Moon off his paws.

Claudia gazed at Salvatore, her sharp eyes gentle. “I’m sorry Salvatore.” she said softly.

There was a long silence. Moon could barely breathe, afraid of what Claudia would say next.

At last, Claudia spoke again. “Salvatore, I’m very sorry. Your fears were correct. He is indeed blind.”

 

[Windywords123]

Re: To Never See the Moon Shine (Chapter Three)

Ooh, very well done. You can't tell at all, but once you re-read, it's very obvious... And the title is awesome.

 

[Lifestream]

Re: To Never See the Moon Shine (Chapter Three)

Ooh, very well done. You can't tell at all, but once you re-read, it's very obvious... And the title is awesome.

Thanks. It was a bit difficult to never include that Moon could see things, but I'm glad you like it =)

Chapter Five​

Panic flashed from Salvatore. “Claudia, you must check again!” he begged. Moon felt anger flash from Claudia.

“Do you doubt my answer?” she growled. “You wanted to know the truth, so I gave it to you! Why should I be worrying about you? We should both be worrying about him!” Claudia flicked her muscular finned tail toward Moon, whose head was tilted with puzzlement.

“Blind?” he asked, his sightless eyes holding the slightest gleam of curiosity. “What’s that?”

There was a long pause before Claudia spoke. “Do you ever wonder why everything is dark?” For the first time, Moon began to wonder about the unbroken blackness that always greeted him when he opened his eyes, that strange darkness that never cleared even when he rubbed his eyes with his paw or blinked his eyes.

“Well, it’s not exactly, um, normal.” Salvatore said, his voice muffled, as his face was buried in his paws.

“What do you mean?” Moon questioned, his heart beginning to quicken.

“It means you can’t, erm, uh,”

“It means you can’t see.” Claudia finished for the Glaceon.

“I can see!” Moon protested.

“Oh yes? Then what do I look like?” Claudia prompted.

Moon opened his mouth to reply, but realized there was nothing he could say. He didn’t want to, but he had to admit that he didn’t know what Claudia looked like. He only knew what the darkness looked like.

Claudia sighed. “Come with me, young one. Join an old Pokemon in the forest.” Moon felt her soft blue tail wrap around him, steering up across the hollow. He heard Salvatore begin to follow them, but stopped as Claudia shot him a sharp glance over her shoulder.

“I think you should stay, Salvatore.” she said. Moon was slightly surprised by how soft her voice sounded. Salvatore opened his mouth to protest, but Claudia interrupted. “Someone has to tell Yori.”

Salvatore bowed his head. Claudia said nothing more, just continued walking.

Moon was still confused by their conversation. “What’s so bad about being blind?” he wondered aloud.

“Blindness has its disadvantages, which you’ll find out, believe me.” Claudia sighed.

Moon felt the ground begin to rise under his feet as they reached the steep slope and began to climb.

“How could you tell I was blind?” Moon asked when Claudia steered him into the forest.

“My brother became blind when I was younger.” Claudia replied sadly.

“Became blind? How did he become blind after he was born?”

“Blindness commonly occurs during the middle of someone’s life, caused by illness or something like that. My brother Tullio was blinded by humans.” Claudia growled bitterly.

“Tell me about it!” Moon begged. “I like stories!”

Claudia sighed. “Very well, Moon.” She paused for a moment before beginning.

The Story Of Tullio’s Blindness​

Tullio became blind many years ago, when I was young. Tullio, my sister Star, and I were exploring the woods. We were enjoying our time in the forest. We played for many hours there.

That’s when we all scented a very strange, unfamiliar smell. All though we didn’t know what it was, we knew it didn’t belong. We followed the strange scent, which gradually grew stronger as we progressed into the woods.

“Look at that!” Tullio gasped, awe and astonishment glittering in his eyes. I looked up to see the biggest oak any of us had ever seen. It towered up into the clouds, its trunk almost as wide as the hollow, and its giant roots arching up over our head.

“Wow!” Star exclaimed, rushing forward toward the great oak. Suddenly she stopped, her eyes wide. “Look!” she hissed, crouching down. “Humans!”

Tullio and I slowly crept forward, our bellies low and ears flat. I wrinkled my nose as their stench filled the air. Tents, sleeping bags, and a pile of charred wood were set up at the far side of the clearing.

Tullio’s bright red fur bristled. “We should drive them out!” he hissed.

Star’s eyes widened with astonishment. “No way! They’ve totally out numbered us!”

“Don’t you see?” Tullio argued, his eyes gleaming. “Everyone always treats us like stupid little kids, even though we’ve grown and evolved! Our parents wouldn’t let us come out here until now. If we beat these humans, maybe they’ll stop treating us like this!”

Star shook her head.

“I’m in!” I agreed quickly. I wanted to prove my worth just as much as Tullio did.

Tullio’s eyes glittered. “Let’s get ‘em!” Tullio shouted, haring across the clearing toward the humans with me hard on his paws.

“No!” Star called after them, still crouched down in the grass.

Tullio opened his mouth wide and spat out a Flamethrower. The humans let out cries of alarm as the Flamethrower hit the ground in front of them. One by one, they threw small balls that flashed red lights and released other Pokemon.

A Sneasel narrowed its eyes and lunged at me with incredible speed. I narrowly avoided its long, flashing claws and knocked it aside with my tail. Sneasel screeched in fury, jumping at me again with outstretched claws. I ducked under him to avoid the Fury Swipes, but Sneasel was ready this time and reached down to slash at my ear.

I saw Tullio wrestling with a muscular Mightyena. He thrust Mightyena off of him and hurled a Shadow Ball at it.

After several minutes of fighting, a human hurled a rock at Tullio, who had Mightyena pinned down. I heard a thump as it hit the top of Tullio’s head.

Tullio screeched in pain and fled away from the giant oak. I fired a final Water Pulse at Sneasel before bounding away after Tullio. A large gash had opened up on Tullio’s head, and he collapsed onto the ground.

“Tullio!” Star cried. I hurried over to my fainted brother, fear clouding my vision.

“We have to get him back to the hollow!” I said. Star nodded and her eyes began to glow purple. Tullio’s limp body began to shine and he rose into the air. Star used her Psychic to carry him back through the forest. When she began to tire, her breathing becoming heavy, I laid him onto my back and hauled him the rest of the way to the hollow.

My mother Terra was furious and horrified when Star and I quickly explained what had happened in the forest. After several hours went by, Tullio finally woke up. Our happiness turned to horror when he began to shout that he couldn’t see. The humans had blinded my brother for life.

But life carried on. Many months went by, but I never stopped grieving for my brother. If I hadn’t been so stupid as to encourage Tullio to fight those humans, this never would have happened. Even today, I still blame myself for Tullio’s lost sight.



“Where’s Tullio now?” Moon questioned, his fur prickling from Claudia’s story. He felt Claudia’s sad gaze chill his pelt.

“One day a flock of Spearow attacked him.” she sighed. “They chased him off the side of the hollow.”

Moon’s eyes widened in horror. “He died?” he whispered.

“Yes.” Claudia sighed. “I managed to kill three of those Spearow to avenge my brother.”

“What about Star?”

“Star’s still alive, thank Arceus.” Claudia replied. “She killed off the rest of the Spearow after a few days and then left the forest to travel. She said the memory of Tullio’s death was too terrible and decided traveling the Orre Region was the best way to escape that memory.”

Moon looked up toward Claudia. “Is it really right for Pokemon to kill each other?” he asked.

Claudia sighed. “Probably not, Moon. Please don't ever kill another Pokemon like Star and I did. Anything but that."

Moon gulped and nodded. "I promise."

 

[Lifestream]

Re: To Never See the Moon Shine (Chapter Five)

Chapter Six​

Claudia and Moon stayed in the forest for a long time. The sun was almost at its highest point, the sunlight had melted away the dew and mist, and the dawn shadows had been replaced by golden sunshine.

Moon took a liking to the fierce Vaporeon. She showed him almost the entire forest. She taught him how to swim in the river that cut through the middle of the woods. She named things that he smelled and described them so he could picture them in his head after he almost stepped on another thistle.

Moon never grew tired, even after the several hours he and Claudia had been walking. But Claudia’s paws had begun to drag in the grass and her breathing became heavy.

“Let’s head back to the hollow, young one.” Claudia huffed. Moon wanted to protest, but didn’t want to make Claudia do any more for him than she already had.

She laid her tail over his shoulders and guided him through the trees. The moment Moon stepped into the clearing where then hollow waited, he felt misery and sorrow hit his face like a wave, causing him to recoil in surprise.

Claudia kept walking, steering him toward the slope and carefully guiding him around dips and suddenly drops. As Moon stepped out onto the flat ground, the voices of the Pokemon died down. He felt eyes burn his pelt as he uncomfortable made his way across the clearing. Claudia glared at Sota and Thallia as she passed. Claudia sighed thankfully as she spotted Cail in the corner, his eyes closed as his tongue rasped over his spiky golden fur.

“Well, we know nobody’s lost their minds over this.” she muttered amusedly to Moon.

The Eevee’s ears pricked. “How do you know?” he questioned awkwardly, unnerved by the staring eyes and the hushed silence.

“Because Cail hasn’t freaked out yet.”

Moon smiled, shaking his head as he remembered Cail’s eyes, sharp as flint, burning his pelt the day he met him and rough voice as he’d talked to Thallia and Sota. Claudia and Moon shared their amusement for a few moments before a growl rose up in Claudia’s throat.

“Well?” she growled at the suddenly quiet Pokemon. “What do you staring at?” Claudia’s eyes were sharp as flint, her glare sweeping the hollow. After a few moments of sitting under her intense gaze, Thallia and Sota resumed their conversations, Cail rolled his eyes and drew his paw over his tall, pointed ear, Moon’s aunt and uncle Lara and Aristo continued to feast on berries again, and the hollow came back to life once more.

“Hello, Cail.” Claudia greeted, taking a seat beside the Jolteon, curling her long finned tail around her paws. Moon sat down beside her and began plucking burrs out of his fur. Cail flicked his ears in greeting, but didn’t reply, just kept stroking his back with his tongue.

Claudia watched Cail clean his bright yellow fur for a moment before speaking. “Cail, would you do me a favor?” she asked.

At this, Cail raised his head midstroke and nodded for Claudia to continue.

“Cail, I need you to teach young Moon how to fight.”

Cail’s eyes narrowed, as though he was thinking about a past event. There was a few moments of silence before he shook his head to clear his thoughts and nodded.

Claudia dipped her head. “Thank you, Cail.” she murmured, her mind swirling with the images of Tullio leaping blindly over the side of hollow, Spearow clinging to his back until he hit the ground with a sickening thump that replayed over and over again in her mind.

“All because he couldn’t fight back.” she whispered to herself. “I don’t wish to see it again.” She glanced at Moon, whose sightless eyes showed the slightest gleam of excitement.

Claudia stood and stretched her front legs in front of her and yawned. “I’m interested in seeing Moon’s abilities. Let us begin.” she rasped, lying down in a warm patch of sunlight. She tucked her paws under her chest and wrapped her tail around her. Cail nodded and began padding toward the center of the hollow.

Thallia, Salvatore, Sota, Aristo, Lara, and Moon’s cousin Alphie gathered around to see how the training session went, though several of them wore doubtful expressions.

Moon felt a surge of determination as he followed the sound of Cail’s paw steps. I’ll show them I’m not helpless, he thought.

“Stop there.” Cail growled, padding further away from Moon. Moon heard the scuffle of his paws as he turned to face him, his intense gaze searing his pelt. “You may not be able to see,” Cail began, “but that doesn’t make you a poor fighter. Your eyes are useless, but in its place your hearing and sense of smell are sharper than normal. Use this to your advantage. Your opponent probably won’t know you can’t see if you don’t tell them. Use your ears to hear where they are and nose to scent what attacks they’re using. Never attack your opponent head on. Because you can’t see, attempting to have a close up fight where you can’t tell where your opponent is or what they’re doing is a very stupid idea. Today you will learn how to avoid head on attacks such as tackle, head butt, fury swipes, and so on.”

Moon heard the rustled of Cail’s fur as he got into a fighting position. “If you use your ears to hear where I am, you won’t get hit.” he growled, lunging forward.

Moon stood perfectly still, listening to the pounding of Cail’s paw steps carefully. When the Jolteon appeared to be only two feet away from him, he jumped to the side. To Moon’s surprise, a paw hit the side of his head, sending him rolling. He sat up and rubbing his cheek with his paw where Cail had struck.

“You must get a good distance away from your opponent, or he’ll just turn and attack like I did. Try again!”

With ears pricked, Moon concentrated on the drumming of Cail’s paws as he charged him. When he guessed Cail was about to attack, he leaped several feet away.

Without thinking, he whirled around and sprang at Cail with outstretched paws. He felt his paws hit Cail’s side, knocking him over. Then, remembering the Jolteon’s orders to never attack head on, quickly scrambled to his paws and sprinted a few feet away.

Moon heard Cail grunt as he rose to his paws and shake dirt out of his fur.

“Well done, Moon.” he praised, and though his eyes were sharp and intense, Moon sensed a hint of pride in his gaze.

 

[Lifestream]

Re: To Never See the Moon Shine (Chapter Six)

Chapter Seven​

“No! Try again!”

Moon pushed down a shout of frustration. He heard Cail pounding toward him. He jumped to the side and hooked a paw under Cail’s legs, using his other paw to land a blow on the back of his head. With a hiss of irritation, he lost his balance as Cail stumbled over his paws and jerked him off his hind legs.

“You aren’t trying!” Cail hissed. “I’ve told you many times! Aim lower to the ground so you trip me by my ankles, not my knees, or you’ll go down with me. Do it again!”

Moon felt a growl rise up in his throat. Moon heard Cail sigh.

“Look,” the Jolteon growled. “I’m pushing you because you can do it. I say it every day: your abilities aren’t restricted because of your blindness. Everyone else may treat you like a helpless little kid who can’t do anything for himself. But I see just another strong Eevee in those eyes.”

Cail’s words lifted Moon’s spirits a bit. A drop of pride formed in his chest. He loved to bask in Cail’s approval.

“I’ll try again.” Moon said. Cail nodded, pleased, and turned to pad across the clearing again. Moon’s muscles tensed as he waited for Cail to begin. After a few long moments of silence, he heard his mentor lunge forward with incredible speed and thunder across the hollow. As Cail approached, Moon took a large step to the right. He felt air rustle his fur as the Jolteon breezed by, slowing down as he passed Moon.

Once again, Moon hooked his left paw around Cail’s back legs. He dug his hind claws into the ground, lifting his remaining paw to cuff Cail’s tail, pointed ears. Cail stumbled forward, his hind legs suddenly jerking Moon forward. Moon gritted his teeth and struggled to stand his ground, but was pulled off his paws again. His hind claws left deep scars in the ground where he’d been dragged. Moon’s pelt burned under the pleading gaze of Yori, who had recently come out of her den to watch his training.

“Cail, don’t push him so hard!” she begged. Cail opened his mouth to speak, but was interrupted by Alphie, who had stood around to watch. His laughing echoed off the rocky walls of the hollow.

“Ha! You couldn’t even manage the simplest defensive move!” he chuckled. “You want to learn to fight? Dream big, Moon, ‘cause your blindness makes you as useless as a Magikarp without fins!”

Moon felt his hackles rise and flattened his ears, and noticed Yori flinch. He felt Cail’s hot breath in his ear as his mentor leaned forward.

“Do you back down to a challenge?” he growled.

Moon narrowed his eyes and padded forward, thrusting his muzzle into Alphie’s face. “Try me.” he challenged.

Alphie snorted and circled him. “You’re not the only one who’s been trained to fight, Moon. Heck, I could beat you blindfolded with my paws tied together!” he taunted, causing Moon to stare at his paws nervously.

Aristo opened his mouth to call his son off, but Cail silenced him with a stern look. Aristo reluctantly backed away.

Moon turned tail and darted across the hollow, digging his claws into the ground to gain speed.

“Moon!” Claudia shouted from across the clearing. “What’s wrong? Say something if you don’t want to fight!”

Moon heard Alphie’s laugh. “I’m not letting you go! You wanted a fight, and you’re getting one!”

Alphie bounded forward after Moon. Moon suddenly whipped around to face Alphie. Listening carefully, he located Alphie a few meters away. When the older Eevee seemed only several inches away, he leaped to the side to avoid his tackle. Alphie slid to a stop and turned, lunging at Moon again. Moon narrowly avoided his outstretched paws, panic rising up inside him.

I only know a few defense moves! I can’t attack him! He ducked away and whirled around, hurrying to the other end of the hollow, away from Alphie’s attacks.

“What’s wrong?” Alphie called. “Scared?”

Moon pushed away his worries. I have one attack, he thought, though doubt clouded his mind.

“It’s worth a shot.” he mumbled, his eyes narrowing as Alphie approached. The arrogant Eevee broke into a run, attempting another tackle.

Focusing on aiming low, he stepped aside and hooked his paws around Alphie’s hind legs. With a yelp of surprise, Alphie’s fell forward onto his chest. Moon felt relief and pride swell up in him as Alphie’s legs lightly tugged on him before sliding over his leg as he raised his remaining paw to land a blow on his opponent’s head. Moon battered Alphie’s head with his paw, sending his muzzle into the dirt.

Alphie cried out in fury and reared up, grunting under Moon’s weight. Moon slid off his back and landed in a heap on the ground. Moon felt air brush against his head as Alphie’s claws missed his scalp by less than an inch.

Moon scrambled to his paws and bolted past Alphie, slapping his bushy tail across his face. Alphie coughed as brown fur filled his mouth and eyes, biting down on Moon’s tail. But the fur was too thick, and before Alphie’s teeth could reached his skin, Moon rammed his shoulder into his side. With a gasp of pain and surprise, Alphie fell to the ground. Moon put a paw between his shoulders to keep him from standing.

“What was that you were saying about blind Eevee’s?” Moon hissed into his ear. Alphie growled furiously, but didn’t reply.

Moon heard Cail pad toward them. “Well done.” he praised, and though his voice was rough, he felt Cail’s proud gaze warm his pelt.

Aristo walked forward as well, his icy blue fur bristling. “Get up, Alphie.” he ordered. Moon stepped away, letting Alphie scramble to his paws and shake dust from his pelt. “Never again do I want you to insult young Moon again.” Aristo spat.

“Yes, father.” Alphie grumbled, burning anger flooding from him in waves.

Again, Moon felt a surge of triumph. Aristo wrapped his tail around Alphie and steered him away. Alphie tossed a final glare over his shoulder before reluctantly following.

Moon turned to stare blankly up to where he guess Cail stood.

“That was a good match.” Cail commented. “Alphie makes a good training partner for you.” Moon’s heart fluttered with pleasure at his mentor’s praise. “I expect to see this tomorrow, Moon. Don’t disappoint me.”

Moon nodded enthusiastically as Cail trotted away.

 

[Lifestream]

Re: To Never See the Moon Shine (Chapter Seven)

Chapter Eight​

Moon shook his head as a large drop of water spattered on his nose. The soft drizzle hissed softly on the cave’s roof. Moon yawned, resting his chin on his paws. He heard Claudia and Salvatore’s soft breathing at the back of the den above the pattering of the rain. Alphie mumbled something and rolled over in his moss nest. He heard Cail lap at his spiky golden fur and stood, stretching each leg in turn.

“Where are you going?” Cail growled.

Moon shook himself, padding toward the entrance of the cave. “Out.” he said.

“You’re gonna catch a cold.” Cail warned.

Moon shrugged. “I’m tired of being cooped up in here.”

Cail shook his head as Moon slipped out of the cave. Rain pattered his face, tickling his neck and rolling down his snout to the end of his nose. He shook his head as a drop fell into his ear.

Moon continued to wander around the hollow. He splashed in a puddle and bent down to drink. As he lapped at the cool, fresh water, Moon heard paw steps behind him. He lifted his head and sniffed the air, scenting Alphie coming near.

“Want to have a go?” Alphie said. “I’m bored.”

Moon laughed. “Me too. Do they always sleep all day when it rains?”

Alphie sighed. “Yeah.”

Moon shrugged. “I suppose a little fight will keep me busy.”

Alphie grinned, his tail waving. “Let’s go the forest.” he said. “We’ll be more sheltered there.”

Moon nodded, eager to get under the cover of the trees. He trotted behind Alphie, following the sound of his paw steps as he headed toward the slope that led to the top of the hollow. He dug his claws into the earth as the ground grew steep to keep from sliding back on the slick grass. Before long the ground became flat again.

Moon stopped, rubbing grass between his toes to get mud out of them.

“Hurry up, Moon!” Alphie called from under a bush, his thick brown fur sleeked down by the rain.

“Coming!” Moon reluctantly placed his paw down, mud still lodged between his toes, and bounded into the cover of the trees. A few drops of rain made it through the canopy of the forest, but it wasn’t nearly as bad as it was in the hollow, which relieved Alphie and Moon.

“Where should we battle?” Alphie questioned, gazing around the clustered trees. “It’s too crowded here!”

“Hmm,” Moon thought hard, scenting wet bark ahead and swerving around the skinny, tall pine. “Well, have you ever been to the giant oak?”

Alphie snorted, waving his bushy tail. “Of course I have! I’ve explored a bunch of the forest!”

Moon winced as he stepped on prickly pine cone, stopping to lick a sharp bit out of his paw.

Alphie broke out into a run. Moon gave his paw one last lick and bounded after the Eevee. He swerved around the trunk of an oak, narrowly missing it.

“Try and keep up!” Alphie called over his shoulder, faint mockery in his voice.

Moon raised his chin, his clouded eyes glittering. He drove his claws into the ground and bolted ahead. His heard Alphie’s paw steps beside him and struggled to pound ahead of the arrogant Eevee, but Alphie matched his pace.

"Do I need to slow down?" Alphie laughed over his shoulder.

Moon dropped behind him and launched himself forward, landing square on Alphie’s shoulders. He let out a yelp of surprise as his legs buckle beneath him. Alphie recovered, twisting over and kicking his hind legs out, sending Moon rolling through the grass. He lunged at Moon, his paws outstretched and landed on his back. Moon whipped around, facing away from Alphie, and thrust himself backward into the trunk of a tree. Alphie hit the tree with a thump, sliding off Moon’s back. He slowly stood, dazed, and hurled himself at Moon with a shriek. He wrapped his arms around Moon’s middle. Moon immediately went limp in Alphie’s arms, putting Alphie off balance so he fell to the ground. The Eevee stood and shook himself, his eyes gleaming, and sprang at Moon again. Moon tried to leap out of the way on hearing his opponent’s paws leave the ground, but was bowled over by Alphie’s body. Alphie pinned him to the ground easily, as Moon made no attempt to fight back. Instead, he sat limp under Alphie’s paws.

Alphie’s triumph began to turn to worry, his fur beginning to prickle when Moon didn’t get up. He loosened his grip on Moon’s body and leaned forward until Moon felt his breath hot on his face.

Without warning, Moon thrust himself upward, sinking his claws into Alphie’s thick fur, dampened by the rain, and pushed him onto his back. Alphie’s eyes were wide with surprise.

“That was a nice move.” he panted as Moon let him to his paws.

“Cail taught it to me.” Moon replied, shaking scraps of leaves out of his fur. “I don’t have to see to use it. I didn’t have to with any of those moves. He taught me to turn my opponents attacks into my attacks. Like when you jumped onto me, I rammed you into a tree. You’re attack became mine.” he explained.

Alphie nodded, scrambling to his paws. “The great oak isn’t far from here.” he said, his voice lined with relief.

Moon sighed, and began padding through the forest. The forest suddenly opened up. A soft breeze ruffled Moon’s fur, carrying droplets of rain that cooled his skin.

He took a step into the clearing and stopped. A sharp scent tickled his nose, carried by the wind from the other end of the clearing. Alphie had begun to trot forward, but Moon placed a paw in his path.

“What’s wrong?” Alphie questioned impatiently. “Let’s go!”

“No,” Moon whispered, taking a long whiff of the air. Although we didn’t know what it was, we knew it didn’t belong, Claudia’s words echoed in his mind. He felt the fur on his spine stand on end.

“What’s the matter?” Alphie hissed, his hackles rising. Moon leaned toward him so his muzzle was in his ear.

“Humans!”

 

[Windywords123]

Re: To Never See the Moon Shine (Chapter Eight)

I love the cliffie! Sorry for not responding for some time, I've just been busy.

 

[Lifestream]

Re: To Never See the Moon Shine (Chapter Eight)

Thanks, cliffies are my specialty

Chapter Nine​

Alphie flinched, his pelt bristling and his eyes round. “Are you sure?” he whispered, crouching low.

“Positive!”

Alphie slowly raised his head above the tall grass that covered him.

“What are you doing?” Moon hissed upon hearing the crabgrass rustle.

“Just to make sure.” Alphie began to creep forward out of his hiding place. Moon barely held himself back from leaping onto Alphie’s shoulders to hold him back, but he knew that would blow their cover. “I’ll be right back.” Alphie assured, noticing Moon’s fear.

On silent paws, he padded through the tall grass, his tail and belly low and tall ears flat against his neck. Moon pleading eyes disappeared behind the grass as Alphie crept through the misty clearing. He jumped lightly onto an arching root from the giant oak, flattening himself against the damp wood.

Moon scarcely breathed. His legs trembled as he waited silently for Alphie to return. He lifted his muzzle and took a whiff of the air. He wrinkled his nose as the heavy scent of human filled his nose. Through the human stench, he scented mud. The reek of the humans and the mud was too much for the Eevee and he drew back to the cover of the crabgrass.

Alphie dared to peeked up. He spotted multicolored material waving the soft breeze. The top of the human den was a sharp, horizontal edge leading off to a point on each end. At the points the fabric dropped into loose flaps that waved in the soft breeze. The points on the den floors were held to the ground with shining silver sticks. On one of the vertical sides, the material was cut through the middle. A dark crack led into the den.

Suddenly, a patch of blue on the fabric of the den jerked up. Alphie flinched and sank lower onto his belly. The heavy stench of mud hit his nose. Two blue shapes stepped away from the human nest and let out a sound of glee as the wind caused a branch to sway and rain water showered from its leaves on it.

Alphie squinted at the two shapes. “Quagsire,” he mumbled, recognizing the tall blue figure with a round head and thick, flat arm and a dark wavy spine. He leaned forward to get a closer look at the small Pokemon, smaller than him even, hop through the soaking grass. “And Mudkip.” he decided after several moments of examining the Mudkip.

Alphie had never seen a Mudkip before, but Claudia had told him about them. She’d decribed them as small bright blue Pokemon with a tall fin on their heads. Their mouths stretched all the way their pointed, bright orange cheeks and they had a pale fin for a tail.

Slowly, cautiously, Alphie crept off of the root and crawled through the grass on his toes. The Quagsire let out a cry and Alphie froze. He waited for several moments after the Pokemon quieted. Even slower than before, he continued to snake through the grass, careful not the make the tall stems rustle until the grass opened up and he was only a few feet from the human den.

The triangular shaped nest loomed over Alphie and he crouched lower, his fur sticking out in all directions. The Quagsire was enjoying splashing through a puddle. The splashing noises covered up the sound of approaching footsteps.

“Hiya!” a cheerful voice greeted behind him. Alphie leaped around in fear and let out a cry of surprise.

Moon scrambled to his paws as Alphie’s terrified cry echoed through the clearing. He bolted through the clearing. Grass slapped at his face, sending water spraying to soak his fur. He heard Aphie’s voice, caution and surprise easily noticeable in it.

Moon bared is teeth and fluffed up his fur as another voice spoke and heard Alphie take a step back. Without hesitation, he leaped onto the shoulders of a Pokemon, the reek of mud flooding his nose. The Pokemon let out a wail of fear and surprise as Moon bit down hard on was felt like a wide, tall ear.

“Moon!” Alphie exclaimed, panic rising up in his voice. “Stop it, the humans will come out!”

Moon felt the Pokemon’s legs buckled beneath him. The Pokemon whimpered in terror, his wide eyes rolled up to look at his attacker. Moon reluctantly let the Pokemon to his feet and stepped back, ready to pounce again.

“It’s alright, Moon.” Alphie said quietly, his heart still hammering in his chest. “I don’t think he’s bad. This is Cory.” Moon narrowed his eyes and heard a curious noise from Cory.

“Why isn't he looking at me?” Cory wondered, stepping closer. Moon suddenly leaned down toward Cory, his muzzle almost touching the Mudkip’s.

“Do you want me to look at you?”

Cory leaped back in alarm. “Why are his eyes all starey?” he squeaked. Alphie opened his mouth to speak but Moon silenced him with a wave of his tail.

“What are you doing here?” he growled, his fur rising again.

Cory tilted his head questioningly. “What are you doing here?” he said. “We’re allowed to come to the forest if we want.”

Moon’s sightless eyes sparked with anger. “That’s no answer. Tell me, what are you doing here?”

Cory flinched away. “We’re just passing through!”

Moon leaned close, his fur fluffed out to make his look twice his size. “Oh yes? Then why make such a nice camp here then?” he hissed. “Looks to me like you and your humans are settling here for a little while!”

“No, we’re leaving soon! Honest!” Cory wailed.

Moon growled furiously and opened his mouth to reply when he heard heavy footsteps pounding forward. Alphie’s heart plummeted as he saw the large Quagsire lumber toward them. Unlike Cory, it loomed over them like the human dens, its massive tail flattening the grass behind it.

“Melanie!” Cory wailed, whirling around and bolting behind Melanie’s back. He peeked out fearfully at Moon, who’s shoulders were tense as he readied to spring.

Melanie gazed questioningly down at the two Eevee. Alphie shrank away, but Moon held his ground.

Great, Alphie though miserably. He can’t see what he’s up against! Back down, Moon! But to his dismay, Moon glared up at Melanie, flexing his claws. Melanie returned his gaze sternly.

“Now, what were you doing to Cory?” she demanded.

Moon thrust his muzzle into Melanie’s rounded blue face, his gleaming white teeth bared. “You and your little friend are in my forest!” he snarled.

Melanie’s eyes narrowed. “The forest isn’t only yours.” she said.

“Well it isn’t for little human pets!” Moon countered.

“What was that?”

“You and your friend are just human toys!” Moon spat. “When you’re in trouble, you hide behind them! When you’re sad, you turn to them! This forest,” he leaned closer so his nose almost touched Melanie’s, “is for wild born Pokemon.”

Melanie screeched in fury and opened her huge mouth and spat out a jet of water. Moon yelped in surprise as the water gun sent him several feet across the clearing.

Alphie bared his teeth and lunged at Melanie’s stomach. He sank his teeth into her skin but is seemed as hard as leather. Alphie cried out as he saw Melanie’s huge flat arm coming at him.

A dark brown blur bolted past him and leaped into the air. Melanie yelped as Moon landed on her head, driving his thorn sharp claws into her skin and gnawing on her flesh.

Alphie was about to attack again when a noise inside the human den stopped him. Moon froze as well, giving Melanie the chance to swat him away with a power fist. Moon was hurled across the clearing into a tree, sending bark flying. He hit the ground with a thump.

The flaps on the human den fluttered and two tall figures exploded from the entrance. Their eyes widened in surprise as they spotted Alphie staring in horror at Moon’s limp body.

A small blue shape appeared at the corner of Alphie’s eye. He turned to see Cory slide out of the den, his face heavy with guilt as he spotted Moon’s body. Alphie’s fur bristled and he took a step toward them.

“Stop,” Melanie growled.

Alphie whipped around and glared at her, his eyes slits of fury. “Look what you’ve done!” he yowled, turning and bolting toward Moon.

Melanie’s furious face fell away into a look of horror as she saw Alphie hunch over a limp brown body.

“Get up,” Alphie pleaded, prodding Moon softly. "Come on, get up!"

Moon grunted and slowly rose to his paws. His sightless eyes gleamed with anger, the fur along his spine rippling.

“Melanie, water gun!” a human cried, his finger pointed at Alphie and Moon. Melanie shook her head as Moon shook his thick brown fur and slunk away, disappearing into the tall grass.

The moment Alphie and him were under the trees again, Moon whirled around and thrust his muzzle into Alphie’s face.

“If you hadn’t gone there, this never would have happened!” he hissed.

Alphie felt a growl rising up in his throat. “My fault? You’re the one who decided to attack them!”

Moon’s icy gaze fixed on him, causing him to flinch. It was as though he could see, Alphie thought with a shudder.

“When I heard you cry, I thought you were in danger.” he said coldly. “I went to help you, and this is what I get for it?”

“You weren’t scared?”

“Of course I was scared, stupid! Cail told me that fear makes anger. I was afraid, but I went anyway.”

Alphie froze. “I guess that means we’re friends, then?”

Moon’s icy gaze softened. “I guess so, though don't think I'm too happy right now.”

Together, so close that their fur were brushing, they turned away toward the hollow.

 

[Lifestream]

Re: To Never See the Moon Shine (Chapter Nine)

Chapter Ten​

“Come on, Moon!” Alphie hissed from beneath a thickly knotted bush. Moon nodded and picked his way through tangle of roots and small, thick plants toward the bush. He heard Alphie scoot over to make room for him and crawled under the bush. Sharp twigs scratched at his back and his paws caught in the jumble of roots under paw, but he carefully pulled himself free and settled in beside Alphie.

“What are they doing?” he questioned, the smells of Melanie and Cory tickling his nostrils and the heavy human scent making him want to recoil in disgust.

“Well, I can’t see Melanie, but Cory,” Alphie’s fur fluffed up furiously, “he’s sitting on the human’s lap, happy as a Chansey, basking in the human’s approval.”

Moon hissed as he imagined the tiny Pokemon, happy under a human’s hands, smirking at him from a distance.

“You don’t think anyone will find us here, do you?” Moon questioned, his ears pricked and nose raised as he checked for a relative’s scent.

Alphie laughed. “I’ve told you before, they couldn’t make it out here even if they did pick up our scent through the mint leaves we rolled in.” He grinned and drew a paw over his ear happily. “The undergrowth is too thick. But we’re small enough to get through the plants, even if it is a bit difficult.”

Alphie sighed, crawling out from under the bush and gazing around the clearing, satisfied with him and Moon’s new place. Suddenly, he frowned. “It could use a little bit of cleaning up, though. It is a bit uncomfortable.” Alphie said.

“You could say that again.” Moon growled as his paws got caught on a root. Alphie glanced at him sympathetically.

“Here, let’s start by pulling up some of the roots in this area so we can walk once we get here.”

Moon sighed and grasped a thick, twisted root in his jaws and ripped it from the ground. He jerked on the stubborn root again before it came out. He tossed it to the side and tore at a thick, hard plant with his claws. The leaves shredded and fell to the ground, but the stem didn’t budge. He hooked his claws around the plant and pulled upward with all his strength. The roots were ripped out of the hard earth, sending Moon rolling backward in the spiky plants.

“What’s so great about this place Alphie?” Moon grumbled, kicking the plant away.

“We can see the entire human camp from here. It’s also our little secret place that no one will ever find.” Alphie reminded him. “But, I don’t think we’re going to get anywhere pulling these plants. Let’s just spread moss and leaves around the ground.”

Moon listened to Alphie struggle through the knotted plants and leap onto the root of a tree. He heard the moss on the root tear and Alphie begin stacking the moss in a large pile.

Moon sighed and picked his way carefully through the clearing and joined Alphie on the tree root. He flexed his claws and began to rip moss away from the root, forming a pile in the grass. Alphie slid off the root and started spreading the moss around.

“More moss!” Alphie called. Moon hurriedly tore more moss away from the tree and hurled in the direction of Alphie’s voice.

“So how did we find this place again?” Moon questioned as he tossed another clump of moss across the clearing to keep himself from thinking about how useless the clearing was.

Alphie chuckled. “I’ve told you before, Moon, we were exploring and I saw the trail leading here, so I decided to follow it.”

“You mean you saw a trail that looked impossible to travel, so you decided to explore it and begged me to come along with you.” Moon corrected.

Alphie shrugged. “Same thing, right?”

Beads of sweat rolled down Moon’s face and the warm afternoon had become a chilly evening by the time the small clearing seemed well covered with moss. Moon raised his paw to his mouth and began plucking splinters and stickers out of them. He scented a bit of blood on the bottoms of his feet where the thick plants had cut them.

“We better head home.” Alphie yawned, stretching his legs in front of him. He gazed proudly around the small clearing, now floored with a thick layer of cushiony moss.

Moon thankfully scrambled off of the tree and put a paw down on the ground. To his relief, his paw sank into the fluffy moss instead of tangled roots. He felt the plants under the moss, some sticking through the new flooring a bit, but it was much better than walking on the bare ground.

Moon bounded across the clearing. The moss gave way to the spiky plants as he reached the main trail, but he barely felt it due to walking on it for so long. He picked his way through the trail behind Alphie.

To his relief, the thick knots of plants beneath his paws finally faded into the soft carpet of grass and leaves.

Suddenly, a bush trembled. Moon’s heart plummeted as the scent of human hit his nose.

“Get down!” he hissed to Alphie, who was already crouched low to the ground. Moon listened in horror as he heard the two humans burst out of the bushes. He felt the gaze of a surprise human sear his pelt, then excitement flood from it in waves.

“It’s those Eevee again!” the high female voice exclaimed excitedly. “Let’s catch ‘em this time! Cory, use water gun!”

 

[Lifestream]

Re: To Never See the Moon Shine (Chapter Nine)

Chapter Eleven​

Alphie shoved Moon to the side as a jet of water blasted toward them. Moon’s ears twitched as he picked up the sound of heavy footsteps pounding in his directed. With a shriek, he hurled himself forward, feeling the smooth flesh of Cory beneath his paws. He bit down on the tall fin atop the Mudkip’s head and felt a spark of triumph as Cory cried out in pain.

“Cory, tackle!” the human shouted over Cory’s cry. Cory kicked himself forward, knocking Moon into the thick trunk of a tree. Cory glowed as he watched Moon struggle to his paws, only to feel the second thick-furred Eevee ram into him from the side and knock him off his feet.

Moon shook bark and dirt out of his pelt and growled at Cory, who whimpered for mercy under Alphie’s grip.

Suddenly the red and white ball at the human’s waist burst and the round, lumbering body of Melanie appeared. Melanie screeched with rage and spat out several chunks of mud at Alphie. Alphie sprang away from Cory, rubbing thick mud away from his eyes with his paws.

Moon slid into the tall grasses that lined the small clearing and slowly, silently, crept around the clearing until he heard the swishing of Melanie’s heavy tail in front of him to tell him was behind her.

Careful not the rustle the ferns around him, Moon bunched his muscles and listened for Melanie to attack with her mud shot again. He heard Melanie suck in a breath, her mouth gaping, and scented the mud swell on her flat tongue. Moon lunged at her, landing between her shoulders. Melanie fell to the ground as the med was released from her widely opened mouth. The mud shot bounced off the ground into her face, coloring her pale blue skin deep brown.

Alphie’s muzzle and ears were still flecked with dark brown and mud dripped from his jaws, but his eyes were clear and narrowed into furious slits. Melanie raised a thick, flat arm to wipe the mud away from her round black eyes, but Alphie leaped up and batted the arm away. Melanie’s other arm knocked Alphie across the clearing and she began to scoop mud away from her round face.

She looked up to see Moon’s blank eyes glaring into hers, his claw outstretched and his lips drawn back into a snarl. Melanie opened her mouth a spat out slimy balls of mud at the Eevee. Mud spattered off his face, filling the corners of his eyes, clogging his ears, stinging his skin.

Moon wrapped his arms around Melanie’s neck, pulling her to the ground and driving his thorn sharp claws into her skin. Melanie shrieked in pain, swatting Moon, away. Moon slid on the grass, sinking his claws into the earth to stop himself, and launched himself at Melanie again. He landed on her stomach, hearing her gasp as she lost her breath, and placed a paw on her neck.

“But how? The mud--”

“Just one of my many advantages,” Moon interrupted her, a tiny grin tugging at the corners of his mouth. “Best try something else next time.”

Melanie disappeared under his paws as the beam of red light enveloped her. Moon began to rub the hardening mud away from his face when he heard the human walking away, frustration pulsing from it in waves.

Alphie nudged Moon. “Let’s go home.”

Moon nodded, peeling away dried flecks of mud off his ears. Alphie gave him another nudge and he reluctantly rose to his paws, the fur on his face sticking together in clumps.

“So what’s our excuse gonna be?” Moon questioned, wincing as he stepped on the sharp bottom of and acorn.

Alphie shrugged. “We’ll say a Sentret fell in the mud in front of us and we got splashed.”

Moon nodded and together they headed away toward the hollow.

 

[Lifestream]

Re: To Never See the Moon Shine (Chapter Eleven)

Chapter Twelve​

Moon’s eyes opened to the usual darkness. He opened his mouth in a wide yawn, stretching his legs in front of him and arching his stiff back. He listened for the noises around the den. There were only two other Pokemon in the cavern, their soft breathing echoing off the rock walls of the cave. Moon lifted his muzzle. “Thallia and Lara.” Moon muttered to himself as the fragrant scent of the two Leafeon tickled his nose.

Moon shook moss out of his thick fur and padded toward the entrance of the den. He reached the mouth of the cave when freezing air stung his face. He recoiled back into the cave, fluffing out his fur against the cold.

Moon stepped outside after the warmth had returned to his body. The ground crackled and broke beneath his paw, causing him to spring back in alarm.

“Moon, you’re awake.” Moon heard his mother approach him. “It’s alright.” Yori soothed, winding herself around Moon to bring warmth to his body. “Winter has come, that’s all.”

She broke away from Moon and padded away to join Sota and Salvatore. “If you’re cold, go back inside.” she tossed over her shoulder before the sound of her paw steps faded away.

Moons shivered, tempted to retreat into the cave and curl up in his warm nest, but shook the thought away and padded out of the den. The earth cracked under his paws, and the freezing air made him bush out his fur even more.

“Hi, Moon.” a voice greeted gloomily. Moon trotted over to Alphie, who sat shivering in a corner with his thick tail curled over his paws. Moon collapsed beside him, licking his numb paws roughly to bring heat into them.

Alphie sighed, resting his chin on his paws. “Well, the ice has come in.” he muttered.

Moon tilted his head. “Ice?”

“Yeah, ice. The ground freezes when winter comes, or so Claudia said. I’ve never seen winter until now.” He sighed heavily again. “It’ll get a lot worse if Claudia’s told me the truth, and we’ll have to live with it for the next three or four months.”

Moon jerked in alarm. “Four months?” he gasped, his sightless eyes wide.

Alphie sighed once more, burying his muzzle in his paws. “Yup.”

Moon sighed miserably as well as a second cold wind ruffled his fur. Alphie stood, his mouth mouth opening up into a yawn.
“I’m going into the forest.” he said, trotting off across the hollow.

Moon licked his paw a final time before rising to his paws at the sound of Alphie rising and jogging across the clearing to find something to eat. Ice crackled beneath his paws, chilling the undersides of his feet.

Suddenly he felt sharp eyes warm his skin like fire. Claudia glanced at the Eevee over her pale blue paw that she was licking as she noticed Moon halt. Slowly, Moon’s head turned her way.

Claudia’s short blue fur began to prick as Moon’s dark eyes rested on her. Funny, she thought. It’s almost as though he actually can see.

Only the dull, faraway look in his eyes abandoned the fact that he was blind. Claudia felt Salvatore rise to his paws and stretch but didn’t take her gaze away from Moon. Salvatore nudged her. Claudia reluctantly tore her eyes away from him.

“What’s the matter, my love?” the elderly Glaceon questioned, his eyes sparkling with joy as a freezing wind buffeted Claudia’s face.

Claudia wrapped her finned tail tighter around her in disgust at her mate's love for the frozen air. “Nothing, Sal, I’m fine.” she rasped, letting her gaze drift back to Moon again, who’s unseeing eyes were still locked on her.

Salvator stretching his paws in front of him and yawned loudly. “I’m going to the spring if you want to come along.”

Claudia brightened at the thought as Salvatore padded away toward the slope. When Salvatore had disappeared over the top of the hollow, Moon turned and began walked to the Vaporeon.

“What’s wrong, Claudia?” he inquired, his voice edged with suspicion.

Claudia struggled stiffly to her paws and fluffed out her thin fur. “Nothing, young one.” she assured him, resting her tail on his shoulders. “I don’t pity you. I was just thinking.”

“About what?” Moon asked, licking a stinging paw.

“Nothing important. Are you cold?”

Moon snorted. “No, are you?”

Claudia chuckled. “Come on, I know a warm place.” she rasped, turning away.

Moon bounced after her, his dull eyes holding the slightest gleam of joy. “Really?”

Claudia flicked his tail brown ear with her tail. “Would I lie to you?”

Moon shrugged and followed her up the slope and out of the hollow. Claudia struggled through the thick vegetation guarding the hollow until the dense bushes and undergrowth broke out into the forest.Moon shook scraps of leaves from his fur and followed the sound of Claudia’s paw steps, narrowly avoiding trees when the scent of bark stung his nose.

Around the cool, sharp scent of winter and frost, Moon picked up a familiar icy scent that was stronger than the rest. His tall ears pricked with interest as he took a long whiff of the air. It took him several moments to identify the scent as Salvatore’s, as it blended quite well with the cold smell of the ice around him.

“Salvatore’s was here only moments ago!” Moon announced, the scent fresh on his nose.

Claudia nodded. “Yes, he is waiting for us.” she rasped.

“Where?” Moon wondered. He heard twigs snapping and leaves rustling loudly as Claudia pushed a low hanging branch away with her tail.

“Right in here.” she said, nudging him forward.

Moon padded past the branch with Claudia behind him. The branch swung back into place with a loud crackle.

“Ah, Claudia, my dear,” Salvatore greeted. “I thought you might come.

Moon’s fluffed out fur began to flatten as a wisp of steam puffed into his face, sending a warm shiver through him. The air felt warm and damp in the part of the forest. The stone ground was wet and warm under Moon’s paws.

“Where are we, Claudia?” Moon questioned sniffing at the air. He sneezed as moisture tingle in his nostrils as he sucked up the air. There was a splashing sound and hot water flew through the air and drenched Moon’s pelt.

“The hot spring.” Salvatore answered as Claudia’s head disappeared under the steaming surface of the water. He approached Moon and nudged him toward the edge of the spring. “Get in,” he urged. “It will warm you.”

Moon padded forward at Salvatore’s command. He felt bubbling water lap at his paws. A second shiver rushed through him, spreading the warmth to every limb. Moon waded into the spring until the foaming water bubbled at his belly.

“What about you, Salvatore?” Moon called, letting himself sink into the water.

Salvatore chuckled and turned away from the pool of bubbling, foaming water. “I’d rather stay out.”

Moon tilted his head. “Why? It’s freezing!”

Salvatore shrugged, and Moon heard him scramble up onto a large rock and let his knees buckle beneath him. “I enjoy it.”

Moon shook his head in confusion. Claudia broke the surface beside Moon, shaking her head and scattering droplets.

“Not bad, huh?”

“Not at all.”

Claudia pressed against Moon and sank back under the water. Suddenly, her body began to fade from Moon’s side. Moon gasp as she faded away until he felt nothing.

“Claudia?” he called, reached out with each paw to feel for her body. “Claudia?!” he shouted more urgently. He whipped around to Salvatore, who drew a paw over his ear. Moon opened his mouth to call to the Glaceon when suddenly the water burst in front of him. He let out a cry of terror as strong arms wrapped around his neck and jerked him beneathe the water's steaming surface.

 

[Lifestream]

Re: To Never See the Moon Shine (Chapter Twelve)

Chapter Thirteen​

Moon screeched in fear, sending a cloud of bubbles rolling up his face. He struggled fiercely in attempt to break free, but he was gripped too tightly. Foam stung Moon’s eyes and he coughed as he sucked in the hot water. His lungs screamed for air, and Moon tried hard not to breathe in the water again. Moon felt the water rush against his fur as he was rocketed to the center of the pool.

Suddenly he was freed from the creature that had gripped him. His chest aching for air, Moon flailed his paws helplessly to reach the surface. But which way was up? Moon was clueless as he struggled beneath the water.

“Raise your chin, young one.” Claudia's soft , rasping voice coaxed. Moon’s ears pricked as he listened to the soothing voice. For a moment he need to breath was almost forgotten as he relaxed under the soft voice he heard.

Slowly, Moon lifted his head to where he guessed was up. The water rocked him back and forth softly.

“That’s it. Now swim!” Moon kicked out with his hind legs as though there was ground beneath his paws to propel him upward, but he only sank slowly. “It’s just like running. Go on, swim!”

Moon churned his paws steadily, and to his glee and triumph, he began to drift up! At last he broke the surface of the spring. A chilly gust of wind ruffled his fur, chilling his sodden fur and reminding him of his need to breathe. Moon sucked in gulps of air, tempted to let himself sink back under the water to warm up again, but the wonderful feel of his chest filling with clean, cool air held him above the bubbling surface.


Suddenly a slick, smooth body wrapped around Moon and held him afloat. The watery scent of Claudia wreathed around him, her breath, smelling slightly of fish, warming his face.

“Fun?” Claudia murmured in his ear.

Moon gulped. “F-fun?” he stuttered. “I couldn’t breathe!”

Claudia chuckled, swimming in circles around him, barely disturbing the water. “It’d be much better if you’d try to enjoy the water.” she said. “I’ll show you. Grab on.” Claudia instructed, using her finned tail to pull him toward her.

Moon gulped and gripped her shoulders tightly. Claudia dived under the water as Moon sucked in a long breath. The force of the dive almost tore him from Claudia’s back. He clutched her hard as she swam quickly through the foaming water. Claudia bolted to the floor of the spring and walked/swam along the muddy ground.

Moon heard other water Pokemon darting away as Claudia passed, sending small rushes of water against his face. He could hear them speaking to one another, or maybe it was just the water whispering in his ears. Smooth, slimy tufts of grass brushed his fur and bubbles rolled lazily up his face.

Moon felt a scaly body wind around him and Claudia, as if wrapping them in a warm hug. He felt Claudia’s neck shift beneath his paws as she nodded a greeting to the strange Pokemon.

Moon felt a small, feathery wing brush his cheek as the slick-scaled Pokemon touched her face to it to greet him. He nodded awkwardly in her direction. The Pokemon’s breath warmed his ear as it leaned forward.

“What?” Moon murmured, bubbles spilling from his mouth, as the Pokemon whispered softly in his ear.

But the water was swirling where the Pokemon was swimming away in a spiral. “Wait! Come back!” Moon called after her, breathing out much of his saved breath. But it didn’t return.

Claudia continued forward, and if she heard Moon’s cries, she didn’t show it.

Eventually Moon’s breath ran out and Claudia kicked up to the surface.

“Claudia, who was that Pokemon?” Moon questioned as he recovered his lost breath.

“Hmm?” Claudia murmured, paddling herself around with her hind legs as she floated on her back.

“You know, the one we met down there.”

“Ah yes,” Claudia said, her voice sounding faraway as though she was lost in her memories. “She is an old friend of mine. We go back a long time.” She sighed. “I haven’t seen her in so long.”

“What is her name?” Moon pressed.

Claudia turned to him curiously. “Why do you ask?” she wondered.

Moon shook his head, slightly frustrated. “Never mind.” he mumbled.

Claudia stared back at him a moment before she shrugged and let herself sink back under the water.

Moon took in a final gulp of air before diving beneath the foaming surface as well. He heard the Vaporeon paddling down to the floor again and kicked after her. There was a small thud as Claudia’s paws hit the floor of the spring.

Knowing the ground could be anywhere beneath his paws, Moon slowly letting himself sink. His paws hit the ground after several moments of drifting. The sand was thick and slimy, swallowing his paws. Moon struggled fiercely, sending bubbled hurrying to the surface. He heard Claudia turn to his and pad his direction. Her felt teeth sink lightly into his scruff and pull him up out of the mud. Moon mouth a thank you to her and decided to swim up to the surface again.

Feeling the ground lightly, Moon found a rock to kick off of and propelled to the top of the water.

His legs were beginning to ache from paddling and his skin felt soggy from being in the water for what seemed like a long while.

Moon slowly swam to the edge of the spring and crawled onto the warm stone. A plume of warm steam heated Moon’s muzzle as he let his knees buckle beneath him. Fluffing out his fur against the chill that managed to get past the hot puffs of steam surrounding the spring, he laid his chin on his paws.

The large bubbles in the water whispered soothingly as they burst, sending steam drifting lazily up into the air. The flat grey stone warmed his belly and paws. Warm and content, Moon drifted into a comfortable sleep.

 

[Lifestream]

Re: To Never See the Moon Shine (Chapter Thirteen)

Chapter Fourteen​

Moon’s eyes opened to blackness. The cold air from outside had made its way into the cave. Moon pricked his ears. Soft breathing echoed around the stone walls of the cavern. Yori’s thin, forked tail was lying over his back and he felt her long ear tickle his cheek. The warm nest of moss he slept in and the sleeping bodies around him sheltered him from the cold that got through the den’s narrow entrance. The wind howled outside; Moon guessed there was a storm happening. Yet something felt strangely different.

Moon rose to his paws and stretched quietly as to not disturb the sleeping bodies surrounding him and silently picked his way around the nests and Pokemon. A freezing blast of air stung his face as he poked his head out of the entrance. Moon recoiled and crouched, shivering, for a moment before stepping back outside.

Small, freezing drops of ice pelted him. The wind tore at his fur, threatening to rip him off his paws. Moon so badly wanted to bolt back into the safety of the den, but something seemed to be pulling him away from his cozy nest.

The ground was thick and icy, and Moon’s paws sank knee-deep into it with a soft crunch. Moon trudged through the freezing ground, his paws going numb with cold, unsure of where he was going or wanted to go.

“Greetings, little one.” a soft voice greeted him. Moon flinched in alarm. An unfamiliar scent tickled his nose past the sharp scent of ice.

“Who are you?” Moon shouted over the howling wind, driving his claws into the ground to avoid behind ripped off his paws.

“My name is Echo.” she replied.

Moon felt a muscular tail push him softly across the hollow. He jerked away from the strange Pokemon.

“Who are you?” he repeated, his fur beginning to rise.

“I will explain elsewhere. Come, it’s far too cold out here.” Moon hesitated before following Echo across the hollow.

“Over here.” Moon yowled to be heard, trudging past Echo and leading her to a small den under the ground. It wasn’t has warm as it was inside the cave he slept in, but Moon was relieved to be out of the furious weather. There was just enough room for him and Echo to sit. Roots hung down from the roof, irritating his ears. The wind gave another bellow and dirt began to fall from the roof into his fur.

Moon pressed against the hard dirt wall to give Echo more room to sit. He flicked his ears to clear the dirt out of them.

“Well?” he prompted.

Echo shook her head, sending flecks of dirt scattering around the cramped space, littering Moon’s fur. “I’ve been watching you for some time now, Moon.” she said, licking her paw and drawing it over her ear. Moon narrowed his eyes for her to continue. “And I’ve noticed some things about you.”

Moon tilted his head questioningly. “Like?”

“I’ve realized that you’re blind.”

“Yep.”

“But you get around fine.” Moon growled with irritation. “Tell me something I don’t know.”

Echo’s eyes gleamed with amusement at Moon’s frustration. “Alright, then. I’ve noticed the others…watching you.” M

oon leaned forward curiously. “Others?”

“You’re kin.”

“Watching me?” Moon murmured.

Echo nodded, closing her eyes as the wind shook dirt from the roof again. “There is pity in their eyes.”

Moon’s eyes narrowed, his fur beginning to bristle. “You are liar!” he hissed. “I have proven myself to them!”

Echo gazed at him sympathetically. “I understand, Moon, but what if they are the ones lying?”

Moon continued to stare at her, though his anger had faded into unease. “They pity you, Moon. It is true.”

Moon’s fur flattened and he bowed his head sadly. “I thought that was all over.” he murmured.

Echo shook her head. “But you can prove them wrong, if you wanted to.”

At this Moon’s head snapped up. “How?” he demanded.

Echo leaned forward. “You must become strong. Unbeatable.” she whispered.

“But how?”

Echo straightened up. “I can make you become strong, Moon. Come with me, and you will be invincible.” Moon’s eyes widened. “That will prove your kin different. If this is what you wish, I will be waiting at the hot spring when the moon is at its highest point.”

Moon looked down at his paws, his mind reeling, as Echo nodded and slowly backed out of the small den.

 

[Lifestream]

Re: To Never See the Moon Shine (Chapter Thirteen)

Chapter Fifteen​

Moon curled his tail around his paws, his eyes narrowed with impatience. Steam curled lazily around him. His bones were clearly visible beneath his pelt, as his brown fur clung to his skin, water leaking heavily from his belly and jaws.

Moon had quickly eaten and hurried out of the hollow to the spring to meet Echo. But Echo never appeared, and he’d ended up waiting several hours for her to show up. He’d tried passing the time by taking a swim and took a short nap on the elevated, flat stone that Salvatore usually dozed on.

Moon sighed, snatching a leaf out of the air with a single paw as it rustled overhead. He flexed his claws, shredding the soft leaf into several pieces before lifting his paw and letting the bits flutter away in the soft wind.

Moon stretched his legs in front of him, arching his back and curling his thick, pluming tail until it hurt. Birdsong filled the air, as most of the flying type Pokemon had settled around the spring to warm themselves. He recognized the low, almost growling voice of a Spearow he’d sometimes heard when the tiny bird hopped overhead in branches during autumn. The cheerful cries of Horsea echoed over the bubbling water from the opposite end of the spring as they played.

Moon rose to his paws and shook his fur out. “I’ll come back later.” he muttered, padding quietly away from the spring.

Freezing air soon replaced the heat of the steam, quickly turning the water on Moon’s pelt to frost. His skin cold and crunching as he moved due to his frozen fur, he trottedbthrough the forest in hope to bring warmth to his body.

Because the frigid forest air was freezing the water on his fur and chilling him to the bone, Moon tried taking his mind off how cold he was. For a moment, he let himself believe he was just like Alphie and Claudia and everyone else. He pictured the forest in his mind, trying to make it the prettiest he could. Trees towered over his head, brushing the huge, bright sky above. Huge leaves hung from their thick branches and snow rolled off their curled tips. Roots arched high out of the earth, creating beautiful trails and walkways (which were really the bushes and low hanging branches, all leafless and cracked from the cold season). The ground was pure white, glittering in the sun’s cool light.

He sighed at the scene he’d made from Claudia and Yori’s descriptions of the forest and its trees.

Moon’s paws carried him through familiar trails through the forest. Snow crunched beneath his step and the air hissed with the sound of falling leaves. Eventually the forest opened up around him. The leaves of bushes and ferns no longer brushed his pelt softly and the snow deepened to his belly.

A freezing blast of air buffeted Moon’s face, tearing him away from the mental scene and throwing him back into the frigid forest. Moon fluffed out his fur, shivering, and raised his muzzle. He detected faint human scent, scarcely noticeable under the heavy sheet of snow, on the far side of the clearing. The strong aroma of an ancient oak filled the air.

Moon trudged through the snow, stumbling over soggy sticks and roots, toward the great oak. He leaped onto a thick root that arched out of the ground and sat perched upon a thin sheet of moss that coated the root.

He sat there, his ears flattened to his neck and fur puffed out, trying hard to block out the cold air. Another blast of frigid air tugged at his fur, sending jolts of cold through his body.

Moon stood up on his hind legs, his front paws pressed against the tree. He drove his claws into the soft, old bark once he found a nice knot in its trunk and scrabbled up the tree. He felt around for another paw-hold and heaved himself up again. After a short time of climbing he reached a small branch and sat down at its base, gasping for breath. His shoulders ached a little from carrying himself up the tree’s wide trunk.

Once he recovered his breath, Moon reached up over his head and felt another branch hanging just above his ears. He clung to the branch with his front paws and hoisted himself up. He knocked his head against another branch and leaped onto that one.

“Having fun?” a soft voice called from below.

Moon took a whiff of the air and quickly detected Yori’s sweet scent. The Espeon climbed onto a high root and leaped through the air, landing gracefully on the lowest branch. She continued to spring easily up the tree until she stood beside Moon.

“Er, hi.” Moon stumbled.

Yori laughed. “You know, I came here all the time when I was young.” she said softly, gazing around at the oak’s large branches. “It’s so pretty in the spring time. I wish you could see it.”

Moon felt a spark of irritation at the sorrow in her voice. Was Echo really right? he thought. Do you really pity me? Does everyone?

“It doesn’t matter.” Moon growled. “I mean, I’m just different, right?”

Yori wrapped her thin forked tail around him and pressed close. “You’ll never be different to me. To me, you’re just like everyone else.” she whispered. “Because you’re my son.”

Despite the cold, Moon suddenly felt warm from nose to tail-tip. “You mean it?”

Yori sighed and pulled him closer. “Yes, Moon. I mean it.”
--
Moon smelled the pure, clean scent of water around him. A river was flowing swiftly on the edge of the forest, a place Moon had never explored. The stone was warm beneath his paws and the river seemed to be beckoning him closer. Moon carefully padded forward. He began to feel the spray of water the river gave off as it rushed around a stone jutting out of the surface near the edge. The warm water sank through his fur into his skin. Moon felt delighted by the warmth it gave him. The forest behind him was in full bloom, giving off a sweet aroma.

Moon stumbled over a stone about the size of his paw. It felt smooth like the surface of water on his paw. Curious, he bent down and sniffed at it. It held the pure aroma of water. He ran his paw over hit. His foot was soaked within a second. He felt bubbles floating around lazily under the surface of the stone.

I’ve heard Claudia talk about this before, but I’m not sure. Maybe it's a water sto-- He was cut off as his body was enveloped in a blinding light. What’s happening?

Moon felt his bushy tail grow long and split at the end. His ears shortened and widened and a fin sprouted at the top of his head. His back rippled and fins rose up on his spine. His thick neck fur lengthened and thinned into a collar-like fin. His long brown fur shortened into light blue fur.

No way! Moon gasped silently, as he found his mouth wouldn’t move due to his astonishment. As the light faded, a wide grin stretched across his face. I’m a Vaporeon! I just knew I wanted to be a Vaporeon from the start!
--
Moon’s eyes fluttered open. He stood and stretched, his heart soaring as he waved his long muscular tail and twitched his fin-like ears. Moon gasped, then sighed in disappointment when he realized his was still short and small and his tail wasn’t finned.

It was only a dream…Moon sighed again. “I want to be a Vaporeon.” he said aloud.

He shivered as a cold breeze entered the den’s entrance. Moon suddenly gasped and carefully trotted to the cave’s mouth. A crisp night breeze rustled his thick neck fur.

“I completely forgot!”

Moon frantically bounded across the hollow and up the slope. He slid through the dense bushes and tall grasses until he broke into the main section of the forest. He pressed his nose to the ground, quickly catching his own scent, and hurriedly followed it to the hot spring.

He sat on the flat grey stone, puffing to catch his breath. As his breathing slowed and he became more aware of the night’s eerie silence, Moon’s pelt began to prickle. He tiptoed around the edge of the spring, his ears pricked for a danger he expected to pop out at him at any moment, and hid himself in a gap under the stone Salvatore laid on when he visited to spring.

Once safely hidden under the rock, Moon lifted his muzzle and sniffed at the air. Nothing.

"I guess she already came. I'm too late."

Moon sighed and rested his chin on his paws. He sat there for a quite a while. He adjusted to the nighttime’s quietness and soon began humming to himself.

His muscles began to cramp from being huddled under the stone and he stood and stretched. Suddenly a huge weight crashed down on top of him. Moon let out a screech of terror, wriggling under the heavy weight uselessly. He felt hot breath on his cheek as the Pokemon leaned toward him.

“The first lesson,” she said, her voice lit with amusement, “is to stay downwind and be silent on your paws.”

Moon felt his heartbeat slow with relief as he recognized the soft voice.

“Echo!” he exclaimed as he scrambled to his paws. “I thought I’d missed you!”

“I’m glad you came.” Echo smiled softly, circling him. “You will meet me here every night when the moon is at its highest point.” Moon’s ears pricked as Echo turned and padded toward him. “Like I said, you must first learn to stay downwind of your opponent so you can sneak up on them as I just demonstrated.”

“But that wouldn’t be fair to my opponent!” Moon protested. “Cail says I should fight fairly!”

Echo snorted. “If anyone’s at the unfair spot, it’s you, not them.” she growled. “They’ll take advantage of your blindness, Moon. They’ll attack on light paws come for direct attacks.”

Moon narrowed his eyes at the truth in Echo’s words. “Show me.”

Echo grinned with approval. “You must make sure your opponent can’t detect you by scent.” Moon nodded for her to go on. “Always make sure the wind is blowing toward you or your scent.” Moon nodded. “It’s a good idea to hide yourself as well or you will likely be seen. So--”

Echo was cut off by a shrill howl that echoed through the forest. Moon flinched at the lonely call, shrinking toward the ground. I don't like the night time! It's too quiet! And when there is sound, it is worse than silence!

Echo sighed with irritation. “Ah, it seems I must be off much earlier than I expected.” she hissed, her thin fur bristling with frustration.

Moon narrowed his eyes suspiciously. You’re hiding something, he thought. I sense something more…

“Moon, I will be watching you tomorrow. You this trick on a friend or something, I’m sure they’ll be surprised.” Moon heard her turn away and creep into the bushes. “Come tomorrow at this time.” she said before plunging into the forest.

 

[Lifestream]

Re: To Never See the Moon Shine (Chapter Fifteen)

Chapter Sixteen​

Moon stood up and stretched, yawning and flexing his claws. A crisp night breeze ruffled his fur, making his shrink back into his nest. He reluctantly padded around the nests littering the den to the mouth of the cave.

Moon stepped out into the open and immediately sunk deep into the snow. He almost yelped as the ice and snow melted into his fur, stinging his skin with cold.

“Moon!” a voice hissed in his ear.

Moon looked up sharply, though he knew it wouldn’t do much. The sharp, crisp scent of ice covered up everything else, making him feel strangely vulnerable.

“Come on, Moon! More human’s came!”

Moon quickly recognized the excited, slightly smug voice of Alphie. “Where?” he hissed, flattening his ears against the cold and trudging, half buried, through the snow.

“By the great oak.”

Moon felt confusion cloud inside him. “The great oak? In the open? They’ll be up to their waists in snow there!”

Alphie shrugged, shaking his head as a snowflake fluttered into his ear. Moon clung to the earth with his claws as he stepped up the slope. The inclined trail leading up the hollow was blanketed in a thick sheet of ice, wet with snow, causing him to slip downward. The ice cracked slightly when his claws pierced it, threating to break entirely and send him sliding down the slope. But fortunately for Moon, the ice managed to endure the climbing and he made it safely to the top of the hollow.

“Come on, let’s go!” Alphie whispered excitedly.

Moon glanced toward the hot spring. “But--”

“But what? Come on, hurry up!”

Moon stared in the spring’s direction longingly for a few moments before sighing and turning to follow his cousin.

Alphie glanced behind him to be sure Moon was following before squeezing under a tree root. Moon followed, his bony shoulders easily slipping through the small gap the root provided.

The usually dense, hardy undergrowth and plants that made up the ground was frozen over and blanketed by a thick sheet of snow despite the branches that covered the sky above, giving Moon an easier walk to the Secret Place.

He pushed through the thick snow, which piled up to his shoulders, until he reached the thickly knotted bush where he and Alphie could spy on the entire clearing in which the great oak grew in.

A clod of snow hit his face, making his eyes water. “What was that for?” Moon growled, wiping the ice away from his muzzle with his paw.

“Sorry.” Alphie said, though he didn’t sound very apologetic. “The snow has buried our spot!” Alphie dug another pile of snow away, splattering Moon with ice again.

“Watch it!”

“I said I was sorry!” Alphie snapped.

He squeezed himself under the thickly knotted bush and curled up, his fur fluffed up to keep was warmth he had left inside him. Moon scooped out a small pile of snow from his place under the bush before huddling underneath it as well. It wasn’t warm at all, but still better than being out in the open.

“What do you see?” Moon hissed. Alphie stared out into the clearing for a few moments before speaking.

“A weird looking, metal vehicle of some sort.” he reported. “There’s a human on top of it with a Houndoom.”

Moon focused on creating a mental image, which contained a shining red and orange automobile with a tall, two-legged figure sitting on its back. He was weighed down with a heavy tan jacket with thick fur around the edges of the hood, his lips blue with cold and arms wrapped tightly around his chest. A lean black dog-like Pokemon sat tall by his side, warmed by the heat inside his body. The three bones striping his back, the collar around his neck with a skull pendant dangling at his chest, the anklets around his feet, and the two horns that curled on top of his head like ears took the color of the snow. His arrow-shaped tail was curled around his paws. Moon shuddered slightly as he imagined the Houndoom’s eyes gleaming crimson, sharp and cold despite their fire-like color, showing he was ready to destroy anything that opposed him.

“The human seems to be searching for something.” Alphie added suspiciously. “Oh, and there’s someone in the window.” Moon’s ears pricked and the image of the human, vehicle, and Houndoom dissolved.

“Who is it?” he questioned, leaning closer to Alphie.

“It’s…um…” He suddenly gasped.

“What, what is it?!”

“I-it’s Claudia!”

Moon gasped as well, then bared his teeth and flattened his ears to his neck. “Are you sure?” he hissed, bunching his muscles, ready to leap into the clearing.

Alphie squinted to see better through his eyes, which burned with cold. “Wait a minute…it’s not her, that Pokemon’s too young!”

Moon relaxed a little, though his fur still bristles and his ears were still flat.

“Wow, she sure is pretty though!”

Moon glanced at Alphie. “Vaporeon?”

“Well, duh, or a wouldn’t have mistaken her for Claudia, stupid!”

"Shut up! What's she doing?"

"She's looking around out the window. I think she's frightened too!" Alphie's voice was beginning to deepen into a growl. "They shouldn't treat such a pretty girl like that!"

"Erm, can you tell if she has long claws?" Moon questioned, trying to sound casual.

"Um," Alphie paused, staring hard at the Vaporeon's paws, which where pressed against the window. There was a flash at their tips as the vehicle turned so a beam of moonlight filtered through the window. He gulped at the sight of her long, hooked claws that gleamed in the moonshine. Seeing her unusually long claws made her look almost dangerous instead of pretty. Alphie quickly looked up at her face and was almost immediately reassured. Her eyes glittered in the moonlight and her silky blue fur was sleek and shiny. The fins around her face were slightly luminous under the moon's light, turning her ears a pale silver.

"Well?" Moon's words snapped Alphie back into focus. He shivered as a freezing wind ruffled his fur.

"Yeah, very long." he said absently as the Vaporeon's gorgeus eyes caught his eye again.

Young Vaporeon? Moon’s mind began to whirl. Could it be? It must be! Moon suddenly gasped and leaped to his paws. His jaws parted to let out a screech. “Echo!”