Into the Dungeons- Nothing but a Dream
#1 of Mystery Dungeons and Rescue Adventures
Where am I? Everything was dark...quiet, almost foreboding. There was nothing but inky blackness, a sense of eerie calm that clasped the dark world, full of nothing. Everything seemed to blend in a single shade. There were no smells, not even a sound. The only presence was the echoing words, reverberating off into the darkness, dissipating and whisping away into the nothingess. Am....am I dreaming this? Stillness, a bleak undertone that nearly froze the ebony space in its chill greeted the voice, the words being sucked from the air as quickly as they came. Beyond that, something cool...a slight trickle of something, of life...A distant sigh of wind. The breaths grew heavier until they turned into the gentle howls of a gust clawing through branches and kissing the blades of grass. The darkness became lighter with each second, fading away to leave blankess, a blank void filled with a tender breeze. I feel a pleasant breeze... Something...a far off voice amidst the cool hands of the sky, the gentle caress of a voice...but it felt so distant, a mile away. an untouchable, unreachable familiarity swam around it. It felt so homely, so nostalgic...yet so far off. I wonder who it is...? The soft voice became louder, a pause that seemed loud. It became louder, a hum, coherent words... "Hey...Get up!" The voice was haughty, lively in the midst of the dark breeze. "Wake up! Don't just keep laying there!" A flicker of light, the cerulean painted sky...then darkness again. Each flicker felt more realistic until the etched clouds in the sky retained their shape, gliding lazily through the blue pool above. "Finally! You awake now?" A face...a Pokemon? The darkness gone, a Totodile stood proud among the grass, tapping his foot, arms crossed. His red eyes gleamed as he appraised the sight before him. "You shouldn't pass out in the grass like that, you know. Other pokemon could come up and gobble you to pieces." He beamed with his sharp teeth, groping the air with his claws and gurgling in laughter. "Other pokemon..." He spoke as if he was speaking to a pokemon! How strange...How could the reptile even be heard? "I'm not a Pokemon." "Not a pokemon!" His smile turned wider, his blue tail waggling back and forth as he churled with haughty laughter. "Man, did you fall out of a Pecha berry tree and hit your head? Of course you're a Pokemon, look!" Looking down...a brown paw, a cream belly...A quick turn revealed a soft, wiggly brown tail and a bone sitting on the floor. "What in the?" A puddle...with a few sprinting steps the puddle was below, and in it, the reflection of a Pokemon. A brown head, shielded behind a large skull that arched forward like a dragon's and up at the tips like the horns a Charizard had. "I'm a...a cubone..." The brown paw with the little claws thumb rubbed over the belly, lower until it grazed a slit. Oh, her sex. Her paw, ignoring this, rose to the boney helm, feeling over the cracked and worn surface. Parts were worn flat, but others gutted out, nearly sharp along her paw. "Of course you are!" She heard him waddle up beside her, his blue scales glittering in the sun as he looked into it with her. "You alright? I thought that skull would protect you," With a chuckle, he rapped his knuckles against the skull bone, "Quite the literal hard head, huh?" "...Who...who are you? And where am I?" The totodile rolled his eyes, leaning back on the balls of his webbed feet. "My name is Rhine, and this is
. I haven't' seen you around here before, so I guess you may not be familiar with this place...that or you just hit your head really hard. Does it hurt?" "No, I'm alright..." She looked up as Rhine looked at her, frowning a bit, maybe trying to see if the little cubone had hurt herself. He probably thought her very awkward. "By the way, what's your name?" "Oh...My name is Aloe." She scowled beneath the protective covering on her head as Rhine broke out into gurgling laughter, the red scales on his back quivering with it. "What a strange name!" "And yours isn't?" She huffed, chest puffing up at the accusation, paws clenching against her sides. How dare he! With a pause, she frowned. A pokemon? Why was she arguing? With a giggle, she slinked forward. She was a human, not some silly pokemon. She couldn't believe she hadn't realized it...it was all a dream! With an impish grin, Aloe leaned forward toward the startled little reptile, stroking her paw up his chest. If this was a dream...she was going to enjoy it the most she could. She didn't often have very vivid dreams, only a few where she'd been a warrior, or one where she let a dog mount and hump her till it was content but she woke up before she'd gotten off. "W...what are you d....doing?" she felt his heart hammer in his chest as she slid her paw layer, stroking a slit similar to her own. However, she knew it was very different; male reptiles had vents, unlike people. "Don't you like it?" She grinned mischievously, her own loins feeling tight as she gently slid her paw on the slowly swelling vent. The blue scales seemed to shiver under the soft teasing. Even if the little totodile was startled, he couldn't fight lust. She felt his hands on her shoulders, his little fingers digging at her soft hide. "I...I..." She could see his uncertainty, the red blush on his face fluttering over his scales. Encouraged by his reaction, she leaned forward, licking her smooth tongue against his scaled neck. He whimpered softly, hips rolling achingly forward in surrender. "Mmm, feels good huh?" She grinned with satisfaction, suckling at his neck, nipping it with her sharp teeth, her paws stroking downward, cupping the scales beneath the vent that she knew were itching to be fondled. Rhine's claws began to knead at her as he gasped, eyes closing as he let himself be a slave to the cubone's lusting touch, little claws paws tickling at his slowly inflating orbs. He couldn't help but felt out a soft moan. He's never been touched such a way before. He knew what she was doing, he wasn't a little kid...but wow...it felt better than he'd ever dreamed it would. Even if he was unsure why it was happening, confused by the sudden advance, he didn't fight it. This pleasure definitely made it worth it. His tight groin agreed as the sides of his rosy vent were spread by the tip of a slick, pink member. "Aloe...I...I....aahhh..." His breath hissed away as the kisses trailed down his thick neck, each little peck leaving his body tingling, toward his soft stomach. Butterflies fluttered in his stomach as she lingered on the yellow stripe on his chest, tongue flicking out as she reached the quickly filling length. Aloe felt her own heart leaping into her own throat, a purr of lust gurgling out as she licked up the smooth cock. Her eyes fluttered at the taste, she could already feel her netherlips dripping with desire, driving her to dive down on Rhine, taking in his pink member all at once with her large maw. She heard him moan loudly, body arching atop hers, his chest nearly resting on her bone mask. The taste was even there, Aloe panted, gliding her tongue along the sensitive underside of the reptilian shaft, blessed with soft ridges that tickled the beginnings of her throat. Eager to gain more of the salty taste, she lapped at the head, feeling the warm trickle slip down her tongue, the flavor lingering on her tongue as she swallowed at it, fondly nuzzling into his heavy male scent. The spicy odor made her nose flare with lust, her maw bobbing up and down along the stiff erection, greeting her deep pushes with little jerks of its tip. She could hear Rhine's soft panting, his body pressing up, tail thrashing behind him at the hot pleasure filling his body as the warm tongue swam over him, stroking up and down along with the long muzzle Aloe had been graced with having. She moaned around him as well, her paw slicking down her flat chest and pressing her padded paw into her damp slit, shifting her hips into it as she picked up her pace on the male's length in front of her, gulping down his pre happily. She felt him begin to take initiative himself, his little hands grabbing the horns on her skull helm and using it as leverage to thrust into her muzzle. She took it gladly, feeling Rhine pull his ridges along her tongue, shifting up and bumping her sensitive head into her hard and soft pallet with each thrust. Aloe squeezed her eyes shut as well, pawing at herself harder, teasing her clit between her thumb and single paw pad, pleasure gracing her brown body from nose to tail tip. She pretended he was thrusting instead into her; knowing this game had to end soon for she often woke up soon after realizing she was dreaming. She was lucky to have gotten this far... With a stifled gag, she felt Rhine begin to thrust faster, his toes nearly lifting off the ground, tail thrashing madly back and forth as he humped at her muzzle, forcing her body to rock in time with his; mashing his orbs against her lower lips with his gurgling lust. Aloe heard his panting, sucking hard in resistance to the relentless pushing. He moaned loudly, each thrust hard and haughty, pushing his toes into the soft grass, drawing out his own pressure in the female's clamping maw. Sensing his closeness, Aloe pulled her wet paw away from her delicate folds, nearly as swollen as the reptile's vent. With a shove and sharp duck down, she popped the dripping length from her muzzle, causing Rhine to stumble and nearly collapse with twitching thrusts against Aloe's head. His eyes grew wide in agonized protest before She rolled herself over, her waggling tail lifting to reveal her pink slit, glistening with fluids and pink with need. Rhine nearly drooled at the site, gripping aloe's tail and ready to push into her, aligning his flared tip at her entrance, ready to claim her and release. "Somebody! Please help me!" The sudden cry was lost on Aloe, as she pushed back ferally at the erect member just moments away from thrusting into her. "S...someone's in trouble!" Rhine looked up, still holding aloe's tail in a tight vice, like he was stuck between lust and worry." "Who cares?" Aloe nearly screamed, needing the length in her, spreading her, through every inch of her...besides, it was a dream. She tried to banish the voice from her mind and thoughts, but apparently her subconscious had decided to deny her as in the distant from above the trees a worried Pokemon descended. With a start, Aloe and Rhine looked up, feeling the cool breeze tickle their noses as the Butterfree landed in front of them, her white wings, strokes with black curls and lines, shivered in agitation. In her distress, she didn't notice the position at first. "Please...please help me!" She cried, red eyes aghast with horror. They then widened, taking in the looks and jerking with a start. "What are you two-" "Nothing!" Rhine stood, his proud erection hidden behind Aloe's tail. Too taken in by her own stress to dwell, the Butterfree babbled onward, nearly tripping her own words in eagerness to get it out. "Please, please help me! My poor little baby, my little darling caterpie...He tumbled into the grown! And I couldn't get him out, I can't find where he fell!!" "What?" Rhine frowned. "How in the world did that happen?" "A huge fissure just opened in the ground! And my little baby was playing by it and fell into it! He's just a little boy, my little darling! He can't crawl out on his own and I can't get to him! I was trying to look for him and some other pokemon attacked me! I could barely fly out of their...let alone find my baby!" "That can't be true!" Aloe, despite her anger at this drama-even in her dreams she couldn't get away with it, she thought bitterly-listened intently to Rhine's words. "We've been so peaceful recently...unless the fissure made them upset and they're angry about it...if they were upset they'd just attack without reason...Pokemon get enraged when they're upset..." "I don't know why!" She cried, wings fluttering frantically, kicking up little specks of dust into the air that yanked up smaller pieces of grass and scattering them into the wind and into Rhine's and Aloe's faces. "I'm not a fighter! I'm not strong enough to fight them off! Oh dear, Oh my... Oh no...how will I save my baby? What will become of him!? Please, I beg of you, you two look strong, please help him!" "I'll do my best! Come on aloe, let's save this kid!" Rhine cried, waddling forward with his small but frantic strides, member quickly shrinking back into his vent, orbs already pulled back up into his taught scales. "H..hey! Wait!" Aloe scrambled up after him, nearly tripping on the smooth blades-not used to her smooth feet. She could barely keep up with Rhine's pace, sprinting after him, trees blurring as she followed, trying to cover her squinted eyes in the cold, stingy wind. It didn't hurt, but it bothered her along with the bright sunlight. "Rhine! Slow down!" The Butterfree watched the two run away, unable to thank them as they. She looked down the grass where they'd been, seeing the bone still lying there. "W..wait! You forgot your weapon!" She called, reaching down and picking it up. Oh, how she hoped the two of them would be alright. * * * Aloe panted behind Rhine, pads on her rough knees. "Hey...what's going on here...?" "Just keep your eyes pealed for the little Caterpie kid. If pokemon are really violent around here, you have to be careful...I've got your back, Aloe." "A...alright." With a heavy sigh, Aloe straightened herself, looking around carefully as she stepped though a large room, seeing a craggy hole in the ground, almost like a staircase. She walked toward it carefully, looking about. The insides of the cavern were thick labs of stone, ripped violently apart by a rough fissure, stress fractures along the rocks. Clumps of grass and rock were scattered in the pit, making Aloe uneasy. These walls looked unstable...Even in a dream; she didn't prefer to be crushed. "We should work our way downward," Rhine nodded to her, looking stern. "If he fell he probably went to hide, and on the surface he'd probably burrow into the holes in trees, so he probably thought it looked safe." Aloe looked up at the sharp, jagged tops of the craggy crater, the large trees towering above, some teetering on the edge, their roots winding down the sides, gripping agonizingly tight onto large, precarious boulders. "You want to go down? When this place could collapse or have enough shake at any time?" "That's why we have to!" the scaly reptile huffed. "He could be trapped...or even worse killed if we don't hurry and get him out of here!" Aloe couldn't argue with that, scampering quickly toward the wide opening in the soil. The sooner they found Butterfree's kid, the sooner they'd be in safety again. Two dark eyes gleamed and a pidgey shredded through the air from a tree, towards the unaware cubone. "Watch out!" Rhine cried, jumping into the air. Aloe tilted up, a sudden cry leaving her lips as the bird shrieked, talons outstretched, beak clacking angrily as it came toward on Aloe. Stunned, she froze to the spot, eyes narrowed, body fastened to the ground. "Take that!" the sudden voice cried out as the blue pokemon darted in front of her, launching himself forward with his fingers. The little claws on them glimmered briefly as he struck at the pidgey, knocking it from the air and slamming it onto the ground. It began to hobble to its feet, shrieking angrily. "Finish it off, Aloe!" Aloe watched the bird scuttle to its feet, launching forward and showering dist on the cave floor, bolting toward its previous target. She couldn't move...frozen like a stone slate against the ground, rooted as deeply as the trees still clinging to the cracked walls. "Aloe!" Aloe jerked up, starting down at the ground and ducking forward as if to duck under the swipe. The same moment, the pidgey slammed into her head, nearly knocking the breath out of her in surprise. The pidgey toppled along the ground, slamming into the dirt, shuddering. "W...what?" Looking up, aloe turned to the pidgey, twitching a few feet away. "You did it!" Rhine beamed. "Told you that you had a hard head!" "Why...why did it attack me?" She frowned, feeling bad she'd hurt the bird, but more relieved the skull mask had kept her from having her head torn open from the feral pidgey's rage. "As I said before...other pokemon can get angry when their homes are disturbed. When some Mon's get angry, sometimes they take it out on others, probably why Butterfree was attacked earlier, too." Rhine's grin turned to a frown. "you don't ever run into the open like that! You never know what could attack you! Be more careful. I might not be able to get to you fast enough next time. I have your back, but not if you run in recklessly." "Sorry," Aloe said passively, looking to the ground and seeing some coins on the ground. "Hey, is that money?" "Oh, right!" Sometimes when stuff happens, like this fissure, it'll throw berries off trees, or seeds will get unearthed. When you get lucky, you'll find money other Pokemon have dropped. It's pretty cool, a good way to make some money..." "Yeah, if we weren't in danger of the ground collapsing on us." Aloe huffed back at him, waddling carefully to the crag and digging through the tunnel with the chuckling Totodile behind her. "What's the fun in an adventure without a little risk?" Aloe dropped from the tunnel, brushing off her soft hide, wrinkling her soft nose and venturing forward and feeling slightly claustrophobic at the walls above, roots sticking through the ground in flittering patterns like spiderwebs would. With a shudder, aloe stood in the path, continuing forward and turning to the left. "We've got company, Rhine..." she whispered, backing up and shuddering. "Don't back down!" Rhine cried, stepping beside her. "We're in this together, as long as we fight together we won't lose!" He grounded himself as two wurmple wriggled through the walls, their eyes filled with anger. It didn't wait for sign of hostility in the two rescuers, shooting a stringy web at Rhine and trapping him to the ground, tangling him, "Gah!" The other pink caterpillar threw itself toward Rhine. With a wavering sigh and clenched fists, Aloe bolted forward. "Not today!" She lashed out to the side, hitting the wurmple into the wall next to her with her muscular tail. "Good work!" Rhine beamed. "Now get me out of here!" "Hold your Ponyta's!" Aloe cried, running forward and slamming her hard head into the wurmple, slamming it farther into the wall and leaving an imprint as the rocks cracked around it. "I'm coming!" With a jump, Aloe flew over the snared Totodile. Wow...this dream was amazing. She felt so much stronger as a pokemon. She wished she would have dreams like this more often! Leaning into her fist, she slammed it down on the wurmple's little head, making it cry out and crumple to the floor. "Wow! That was awesome!" Rhine waggled his hips, trying to break free. He kept grinning with his giddy swaying while Aloe tore the sticky strands away with her sharp thumb. "Stop smiling at me, it makes me self conscious." She flushed under her helm. She hated it when people stared at her, instead turning her back on him as the two continued through, occasionally finding little slivers of gold and carrying them in their arms. Aloe ignored Rhine as he babbled on about needing a pack to carry all their spoils. As they descended another floor, the two fought back to back, Each bounding their abilities off one another. While Aloe would cry out with a sharp growl, Rhine would swipe at them by the side or slam his tail into them. And Rhine himself proven to be pretty scary with the way he leered at the wild pokemon, temporarily stunning them in fear, even if they continued to attack anyway. "We make an awesome team." Rhine smiled, clasping Aloe's paw in his hand. "We'll have to go on more adventures, you know." "Course." Aloe lied, knowing her dreams would never allow such a thing. It was a shame...she rather enjoyed the wily Totodile's company. And the way he fought...it made her squirm. Such a powerful partner, it's what she'd always longer to have back in her conscious world. Alas, though, she'd just moved to a new school and had lost all her friends with the move. She didn't have anyone to fight beside anymore.... "Why the sad face?" Rhine tilted his head at her, puzzles. "Uh, nothing, it's fine, don't worry about it. I just don't like caves is all." She went to burrow into the hole, but grunted. "I'm stuck..." she panicked, flailing. "Hey! Calm down, stop struggling, I'll help you.." Setting his paws on her waist he tried to push her through, grumbling with effort until with one hard push his hips slipped, grounding up right against hers. "Ohhh..." Aloe moaned into the rocky passage she'd been trapped in. She felt Rhine pause above her, his paws gripping her waist. She blushed in desire and embarrassment, knowing what was on his mind as he rocked his hips against hers. "You don't mind...if I finish from earlier...do you?" Rhine kneaded at Aloe's soft rear, hesitatingly rubbing against her, the tip of his erection, growing in anticipation, poking out. "No...Please...take me...I need it so bad..." Aloe begged, trying to push herself back against the tip of the reptile's ribbed length. Without hesitating anymore, aided by the confirmation, Rhine thrust his quickly filling cock into Aloe's body. She cried out with the thrust, grounding herself, tail arching higher up so Rhine could push in farther. The warmth filled her, desire prickling at her as Rhine gripped her sides, laying over her and bucking his hips into her, the gatorhood slipping deeper into her with each push. She whimpered in pleasure to it, body shivering with desire. It felt so good...her sore, aching passage being filled with the gentle but lustful thumping that slicked in and out of her. Her walls begged for it more, already squeezing tightly, tighter than her suckling maw ever could. Her body shifted with his eager thrusts, her body submitting to pleasure. Her tongue began to hang out as she whimpered and panted, feeling the length begin to hilt her with a frantic struggle, the orbs pressing against her rump and making her ache with pleasure. With a sharp moan, she felt Rhine thrust harder, claiming her. Her body spasmed, feeling his member slide in and out, faster, drawing Aloe to near climax, her sweet netherips already dripping with pleasure, pre beginning to slick her tight walls, allowing the totodile in her to buck harder. Her panting turned to cries and whimpering the farther he began to pound into her. She bit her lower lip in slight pain as he buried himself into her, slamming his oozing shaft relentlessly into her womb, barely pulling back. Aloe drooled into the passage she was stuck in, claws gripping the ground to keep her still and she moaned, at mercy of her unseen assailant, slowly pushing deeper and deeper. The little paws on her waist slicked farther forward, she felt the weight rest on her, grunting at the pressure on her back before her eyes lidded, her legs trying to spread wider as he laid on her, thrusting wildly into her. Once or twice he pulled free in his eagerness, drawing trails of pre between them as he struggled to press back in. Each new entrance into her left her nearly nauseous with pleasure, her body slick with perspiration, both sets of cheeks flushed and hot. She felt out a screaming cry, body seizing up and mind bubbling with pleasure, her feet and paws digging into the ground as a rocking orgasm hit her, every muscle squeezing together inside her, brain nearly dripping with ecstasy at the release, drowning her in thick pleasure and delight as she collapsed onto her paws. Without her moaning, defeated now to merely panting with light gasps, she could hear the lewd thrusts into her, each one squelching her released fluids between them, becoming faster. She could hear Rhine's soft moans, each time she felt her own body shiver with delight, her walls gladly taking his continuation, rough as it had become. It wasn't long before she could feel him, too. He slammed into her as hard as he could, aloe's mouth parting in a silent cry, but Rhine very much vocal, a near splitting howl as he came into the pokemon below him, filling her with the seed that would never draw a baby from her. Regardless, he pumped the thick cum into her, filling her clenching womb with it, bucking slightly as his length spurted, the sticky juices being pushed out as Rhine bucked through his orgasm, shakily gripping Aloe. "Ohhh.." He moaned atop her, his chin nuzzling against her softly, gently nipping and licking at her soft back. She echoed the sentiment, unable to move as the heated flares of her post orgasm afterglow made her body weak and flaccid like jell-O. She could still feel Rhine's length buried in her as the gentle tongue washed her back, trapped by the tight walls still squeezing him and forcing their juices out of Aloe's swollen netherlips. "Rhine..." She breathed, whimpering softly as he gently pushed at her, trying to navigate her through the tight tunnel with his erect member inside her, still pulsing within her. It made her weak and eager but she obliged crawling through and collapsing again onto the rocky ground. In a protest yelp, she felt Rhine tug himself free, splattering his seed to the ground and leaving Aloe with an empty feeling where the pleasure began to trickle away. However, her body still reeled in the pleasure, Rhine standing beside her, leaning heavily on the wall and panting a s hard as she would. Unlike her, he didn't sweat, instead his tongue darting in and out as he tried to regain his breath. His organ quickly began to slip into his swollen, sticky vent. Yet, it wouldn't proceed to fully die down. Aloe blushed-he was staring at her slit. The two kept silent, the only sounds in the dark cave their gentle or heavy panting, their bodies shivering as the recovered from the deep pleasure within them. Aloe closed her eyes as she let her body feel like it was being rocked back in forth in the afterglow, the phantom feeling of her partner's thrust leaving her weak. To her pleasure she still felt as delighted as when he orgasmed, her body filled with a sort of fulfillment, one that left her mind clouded to the dark crevice they lay in. She could lay there forever, basking in the tenderness of their physical meeting, bringing them both to their peaks and drawing them over into a land of roiling clouds and warm suns. Aloe didn't know how long it was before she staggered to her feet, first aware of whimpering. It felt uncomfortable to stand, especially with her swollen sex. "You...you hear that? Rhine looked up, trying to balance himself without the wall, stumbling after Aloe. "Hear what?" Both of them tried to quiet their breathing, and after a few second they heard the soft whimpering again. "The kid!" They whispered to each other, trying to clean themselves up a bit, though the sticky cum didn't feel the need to agree, clinging to their bodies instead. "Hey, caterpie." Rhine called out in a shaky voice. "You there?" It cracked slightly, and Aloe couldn't help but giggle softly. "Who...who is that? Mommy?" "No, my name's Rhine and I'm with my friend Aloe. Your mother sent us to come get you, where are you?" "I'm hiding..." They listened to the soft voice creep out. They couldn't find where he was though, in the small cavern it echoed. "I heard a bunch of screaming and crying...it sounded like someone was being hurt....and it filled the entire room. I thought someone was badly injured and whatever it is would get me next...so I'm not coming out..." Rhine and Aloe grinned at one another. The only pain, Aloe thought deviously, is that Rhine had to pull out of her and they had to stop having sex when they did. "its fine now," Rhine called to the little insect. "We've defeated all the scary pokemon we found here. If you follow us out, you'll come out okay, we promise." "R..really?" "Promise." Rhine replied, determined in his own words. Aloe caught the movement in the corner of her eye, the little caterpie slinking out from under some fallen boulders and toward the two of them. "There, there." Rhine took the little green caterpillar in his arms. "All's well, lets get you to your mother." * * * "My baby is safe..." The quivering voice of the mother butterfree greeted the two venturers once they'd found her. "I'm sorry...I can't even begin to properly thank you...and I have nothing of value to give you!" she nearly broke up wailing as she held her little wriggling child close to her chest. Her little catererpie began to sniffle in his mother's arms as well. "Aww, don't worry about it, miss. There've been a lot of quakes and fissures lately, it's been dangerous. The least we could do was save your little boy and bring him back to his momma. I'm glad he's just not hurt, honest." "Please...may I have your names at least?" "I'm Rhine," He ducked his head toward her, then gestured at his cubone partner. "And this is Aloe." Aloe watched the little caterpie watch them as Rhine and his mother talked, his eyes wide with gleaming wonder. Puzzled by his expression, Aloe was nearly taken aback. Was this adoration? It felt...overwhelming. It was rather embarrassing...but it felt so good, in a way. Aloe couldn't help but smile softly beneath her bone mask. It was kind of like she was a hero... "Thank you, Rhine and Aloe!" The little caterpie cried, crawling forward and rubbing up against the two. Rhine beamed, also embarrassed by the affection. "I can't thank you enough for returning my baby safely...and this really isn't enough, not nearly enough to explain my thanks to you! But please, take these. It's the least I can do. She grabbed a backpack from beside her, handing it to the pair. "I had this sitting around the house, and I never needed it. I tried to find you before you left to give it to you...it'll be helpful to carry supplies in, you'll need them if you plan on venturing around and helping others. "Oh!" Rhine smiled, near giddy as he took it and opened it, seeing an oran, rawst, and pecha berry nestled neatly at the bottom of one of the small outer pockets. "and also, you left this behind...aloe, was it?" Reaching forward, she handed Aloe the craggy bone she'd left behind in her hurry to dart after Rhine. "Thank you so much, goodbye!" Before the duo could even thank the mother butterfree for the pack, she flew off with her child in her arms, becoming nothing more than a speck in a few seconds. "Hey..." Rhine said softly, slipping the pack over his back. "Thanks for your help before...I couldn't have gotten that kid out without your help...And your other help wasn't bad either," He grinned slyly. "You're pretty tough, I respect that." "Ah..." Aloe blushed slightly at his compliment, fidgeting with the weapon in her hand. Both of them stood silently, facing one another awkwardly. Rhine rocked back on his heels, trying his best to break the silence. "So...uh...what are you going to do now...after this, I mean?" Aloe looked away from him, staring at the ground. This was just a dream, but she felt almost guilty the two would never see each other again. She had rather liked the journey with her new friend...even the adventure part. How could she explain that to him? Did she even have to? In a few minutes she'd just wake up, and that'd be the end of it... Rhine watched Aloe stare at the ground somberly, a frown on his face as he watched her stare at the blades of grass, quiet. "Hey...why don't you come live with me if you don't have anywhere to stay?" He piped up, grinning at her as she turned to him. Before she could answer, he trotted off in the opposite direction of the cave. "I couldn't do tha...hey wait!" Aloe followed him quietly, almost wishing she could just wake up and forget all of this. It wasn't going to be fun to remember how nice things could be if she weren't stuck as a boring human in a new world with a different school and no friends...she didn't want to return to that. "Here's the place," Rhine announced, interrupting Aloe's thoughts. Aloe looked up at the shack in front of her, built together with giant slabs of rock. She tried to muster up a joke about it looking like aftermath of the fissure, but the words died in her throat and a sense of awe and appreciation filled her. She didn't know how to explain the warmth that overtook her. It was more than just being grateful...it was like she belonged. The grass around it flourished, hugging the sides of the slate house, a rickety wooden fence pegged around it with a half falling flagpole beside it. In ordinary circumstances, Aloe would call anything like this run down and a mess. but now, she couldn't eel anything but adoration for the craggy rock house with its cozily patched up stump fence and rusty mailbox in front of it. She could feel Rhine staring at her with a contempt grin upon his muzzle. She noticed with embarrassment that her little tail was swaying from side to side and immediately stopped, staring back at the ground, unable to keep from looking at the house. It made her feel something she hadn't felt in a long time...happy. "I can tell you're impressed." Rhine's grin widened and he walked forward to the house, leaving Aloe outside the gate. "I thought you'd like it, figured you'd find it an easy and cozy place to stay and rest up in." He appraised the house himself before turning back to the delighted cubone. "In fact, I knew you would!" He waddled back over to her, his tail flickering with excitement as he stood next to the mailbox, careful not to lean on it. He probably saw it was unstable, too. "This will be your mailbox. It's where you'll get mail from other pokemon." He read Aloe's puzzling expression and continued. "You know that crevice the little caterpie fell into? Like I said to his mother, Butterfree, there have been a lot of natural disasters like that all of the sudden. I'd normally think it was no coincidence...but all these horrible things can't be happening for no reason. A lot of other pokemon out there are hurting from these disasters. I want to be able to help them. I want to make this world a safer place for other Mon." His eyes burned with a determined fire that made Aloe's own heart and reserve burn vehemently. She couldn't help but feel impassioned by his determination. "And, er...I think you're capable after seeing how you did helping me rescue caterpie. Would you form a rescue team with me? I think we'd make the world's greatest team, don't you think?" Aloe frowned, knowing she would be gone...and even if a dream, she didn't like making promises she could never follow. "I don't...I'm not sure..." She felt regret when she saw Rhine's face fall. "Please...can I sleep on it? It would be a lot of work...and I'm not sure I could do it, I want to think it through...if that's alright." "Oh, yeah...." She saw him feign a grin, guilt creeping into her previous happiness. "At least..sleep here on it, alright?" "but this is your house-" Aloe started, jumping as Rhine set his paws on her shoulders, smiling softly at her. "You went through a lot today...we both did..." He looked away from her eyes, staring at the ground between them, then back up again with hardened eyes. "Even if you won't be in a rescue team with me-no, especially if you don't-I want you to have one good night's rest. After all, if you're going on your way you'll need a safe, comfy place to sleep." "Th...thank you..." Aloe leaned forward and hugged him, burying her head against her neck. It had felt like forever since someone offered her such kindness. "I really appreciate it...it means a lot to me." She felt Rhine hesitate then hug her back gently. Releasing her and leading her to the door. "Here, get some rest, I'll see you tomorrow." "Aren't you going to sleep here, too? It's your house!" "Nah, I have somewhere else comfy to sleep, I'll be alright. Just focus on getting a good rest..." He must not have wanted him being there affect her decision. She felt for bad for thinking this meant not having another round in one dream. Mentally reprimanding herself, she turned from him, feeling guilty again. "B...bye." She watched the totodile wander away, the red stripes on his back catching her attention as he headed to the right toward the woods. Trying not to focus on it, she curled up on the mattress inside the house. It was unusually empty, with only a few potted plants and some crates in the corner, almost like Rhien had just moved in himself. She didn't dwell on it as she drifted off into a sleep, knowing it would be her last time seeing Rhine, praying the dream could last forever.