FSE

Furry search engine

formerly SoFurry search engine

The air in the hallway was suffocating to Fia. It was a physical presence in the back of her throat that combined with the tightness in her chest. It left her taking short, deep breaths to try and calm her racing emotions. If it weren't for the light shining in through the line of windows along the opposite wall, she would have thought herself trapped in one of the countless tunnels drilling into the depths of Mt. Chimney.

Fia glanced back the way she had come and for a brief moment debated the merits of skipping her orientation, before quickly shaking her head. There was no way she'd ever be able to show her face in town again if she backed out of this, not when she had gotten this far. All she had to do was smile as she was given the official pokemon she would use and [i]not[/i] mention the shirt she had gotten for her 16th birthday five years earlier. The one that had Flannery posed on the cover and 'Lavaridge Gym' emblazoned below it in a fiery font.

She was still embarrassed to admit she had worn that one down over the years until it was full of holes.

[i]Hey Flannery, did you know I thought you were the coolest gym leader for like, all my formative years? Isn't that funny? Now we're going to be working closely together![/i]

How very exciting.

It was nearly enough to make the butterflies in her stomach rage into a wild torrent. She would have given anything in that moment for the solace of a solitary peak or a seldom traveled hiking trail. Anything other than the cramped corridor she was walking down.

She hoisted her backpack tighter against her back before wincing when she felt the familiar pointed tip of her utility ax jabbing against her through the thin material. Although the peaks around Mt. Chimney were seldom covered with snow, she found comfort in carrying the dual-headed tool with her. If nothing else, the pickaxe-like head on one side was good for securing handholds in the soft stone faces.

She continued to clutch the laminated card hanging from her backpack in a death grip that strained the lanyard holding it in place. The clean, glossy surface depicted a smiling picture of her, her dusty brown hair falling just past her shoulders in a mildly unkempt wave. She still couldn't believe it when she saw herself wearing the vivid red gym uniform, the same outfit that was safely tucked away in her backpack. As badly as she wanted to wear it at all times, it seemed improper to risk messing it up during her morning hike into town. Her ragged hiking clothes and well-worn boots were more than up for that task. Even then she had made sure to put on an extra layer of rich-scented perfume to cover the lingering odor of the wilds that never seemed to wash off.

It was difficult for her to accept that this was actually happening.

That happiness in the moment at passing the final rounds of the gym trainer selection process for the year had been exhilarating. Even more so when she was told she placed high enough to take over the role of penultimate trainer. The final challenge someone would have to face before taking on Flannery herself.

It still embarrassed Fia to think of the phone call she had made to her mother, her excitement preventing the older woman from so much as getting a word in edgewise.

When she passed, Fia had been offered three pokemon to use that were typical of the gym's themes. Numel had been easy enough to command; the camel pokemon had seemed to take some solace in Fia's confidence on the field even if it was a little slow on the uptake. The slugma had a fiery disposition she could only respect from her time traversing the harsh wilds.

Most pokemon weren't too keen on taking orders from humans, especially these freshly caught ones. Thankfully, it wasn't too difficult to make them think her commands were their ideas. The final pokemon had, admittedly, been a surprise to her.

Growlithes weren't native to the area from what she knew, especially ones with deep, brown-tinted russet coats like his. His eager yipping could be heard even before she stepped up to the field that chose their possible choices, and when she saw him snap at his fellow pokemon she knew he was going to be a handful. If Fia hadn't been a risk taker, she would have gone for the safe bet, the ones that looked up at her with hesitant, nervous eyes as if uncertain of her. No matter how many times her attention was drawn to another pokemon, there was something about the rambunctious canine and the look of defiance he wore that drew her back to him. And rambunctious he certainly was, the days spent training - if you could call ordering around a canine with all the thought process of a stump 'training' - had been long and grueling. The weeks leading up to the selection exam were some of the hardest in her life.

In the end though, it had all been worth it after a week as his temperament began to calm. Fia didn't seek to rob him of the wild nature that drew her to him in the first place, but the first time he had crawled into her tent was when she knew she was getting to him. His sloppy attempts to obey her commands grewing more precise and exact, his trust building with each battle they shared. In the end, he was the reason she was elevated above her fellow trainers and selected for placement on the gym floor.

And she truly was exhilarated! But it also left her feeling like she was going to lose her mind if she didn't make a conscious effort to keep herself tethered. She had already made the walk down the white-tiled floor feel like a trek across the desert of Route 111, dragging her feet and staring at the pictures lining the wall opposite the windows. Anything to make her journey to the door at the end of the hall last just a little longer. The further she went the older the pictures became, going from vivid colors that became muted, dulling to a brownish sepia before becoming stark black and white.

It was the final one that gave her the longest pause, although now she was hovering right on the precipice of Flannery's office. It didn't seem as impressive as any of the others, rather, it showed a field that had been cleared away, the familiar looming presence of Mt. Chimney hanging above a skyline devoid of buildings. It depicted a small group made up of no more than a simple handful of people standing around, their pokemon gathered close around them. In the center, behind the skeletal framework of a building, a large geyser of water shot straight upwards. It drenched the participants in a downfall that left fur and clothing plastered to their bodies, even though each wore a big grin.

The title of the picture 'Humble Beginnings' seemed fitting, she couldn't even tell it was the same place the gym stood today.

“Wonder if someone will ever look back on a picture of me like that…" She mumbled, the sound seeming so much louder in the expanse of the hallway. One hand dipped to her belt and ran along the six empty slots, each divot holding a different promise of the future. “Someone's going to remember my name."

There was no more time left for her to wait, no more distractions to hold her back. Her destiny lay before her, and she just needed to be bold enough to reach out and turn the handle.

Fia's heart skipped in her chest, her lips trembling before switching into a smile that didn't quite turn up at both ends. She turned, taking a step forward, only to find nothing waiting for her.

The tiled floor was gone, replaced by a circular black hole lapping hungrily at her legs.

Fia had just enough sense to try to pull herself back, before tipping over the edge. Her arms desperately windmilled in place, but her momentum was already carrying her forward before she could catch herself. She had just enough sense to reach out for the wall only to send a few of the pictures clattering to the floor amidst the sound of breaking glass.

The dark abyss swallowed her like a slavering maw, shadows closing in on her from every angle in a crushing wave. It wasn't just darkness that surrounded her, she realized now. There were pinpricks of light that decorated the dark velvet, their twinkling majesty easing her fear until an odd sense of calmness began to overtake her. It felt as if she were floating through the expanses of a dream, her movements slow and drawn out as if she were being puppeted on string like a marionette. Even the pounding of her heart began to slow, each breath becoming long and drawn out as the brief, overwhelming panic seemed to dissipate.

In the back of her mind was a low hum, one that seemed to soften the more she tried to make sense of it, only to become a crashing chorus when she ignored it. It was a maddening symphony, one that left no room for coherent thought and left her begging for it to end.

Her hands drifting in front of her left small trails of white light, their tracing reflections just as alluring as the points of light that hung so far from her. She wanted to reach out and touch them, to grasp them, but her body wouldn't move in any direction she ordered it. Her form was catatonic, leaving her a passenger in her own body. All she could do was fall, watching the hole of light overhead falling further away before it vanished like a candle in the black nothingness of the void.

All at once the sound in her mind vanished.

It was silent now and the thought of making a noise seemed as if it would be some greatly sacrilegious act. The physical pressure pushing down on her chest from her excitement was nothing compared to this, and it left her cowed into stillness. Her heartbeat resounded in her ears, each loud thump softening and stretching out until there was nothing left.

If this was the cold embrace of mortality ushering her off this mortal coil, she was disappointed.

The twinkling lights surrounding her had begun to glow brighter when the tunnel overhead sealed itself, leaving her drifting in this empty world. Her hands twitched, rigid as solid stone and just as unwilling to yield to her desires. Frustration commingled with dread, leaving her desperate to prove that her body was still her own. After what seemed like an eternity, they finally acquiesced to her demands and began to move.

Fia was certain the glowing lights were still so far away, but as her fingers closed around something tangible and warm, reality came rushing back to her with a great onrush of air. Cracks formed along the darkness as if it were little more than a great mirror being shattered, glowing lines of light forming from the empty void she had left behind.

The warm sensation resting in the palm of her hand shot up her arm like a bolt of electricity, running across her chest and centering on her heart. All at once it began to pound faster and faster. Feeling returned to her in that instant, bringing her back to reality in a great boom of rushing air.

***

The first thing she realized was the cold air, and as the darkness fell around her, she brought her clenched fists tight to her chest in a desperate attempt to preserve the warmth flowing through her. Fia's voice returned just in time for her to scream as wind whipped all around her with all the intensity of icy blades cutting into her bare skin. It made her eyes water as she spun about in mid-air, searching for an equilibrium that wasn't there.

It was difficult for Fia to keep her eyes open with how desperate they were to water against the cutting wind assailing them. For a brief moment she was given the view of an empty night sky free of clouds, and she had just enough time to see the portal back to the dark sepulcher that had tried to hold her. It yawned open for only a moment longer before it collapsed in on itself and disappeared with little more than a whisper, leaving no trace it had ever existed.

Then she remembered just where she was, and despite her brain screaming at her not to look down, she dared to glance upon the field of verdant green that was rushing up towards her.

It gave her enough of an opportunity to shield her face from the branches that materialized, their rough limbs scraping and grasping at her like bony hands. Fia's body curled inwards with an instinctive need to try and lessen the possible points of impact while her arms tucked tight against the back of her head. Each blow came with a grunt or gasp that stole what little air she managed to gulp down. Near the end, the canopy grew thick with vines and vegetation that were far more forgiving and stunted the majority of the momentum carrying her plunging downwards.

Fia had been waiting for the impact against the cold, unforgiving ground. The only thing she could do was reach for anything that would slow her descent, although the coarse bark slipped free of her grasp and tore at her palms. Time seemed to slow when she finally fell free of the branches, once more finding open air below her. Fia tensed up, only to grunt in surprise when she landed on something soft and warm, something that let out a loud, booming yelp when she collided with it. The hole she left behind in the canopy left moonlight streaming down on her like a spotlight, showing her just what, or whom, she had landed on.

A pair of confused, veridian eyes looked back up at her over a broad snout with a twitching, black nose. The disconnect that it was a pokemon she had landed on hit her moments later, not that she was in any position to get up. It didn't seem to be bothered by her added weight, nor did it try to move from its position. It was an arcanine, at least, she thought it was. A fluffy gray, soot-covered mane and a dark, russet coat left him looking like no arcanine she had ever seen before. His green eyes were as wide as the moon hanging in the sky, and through the coarse rope that had been tied around his muzzle, he let out a questioning growl.

Fia didn't dare move, fearing that she'd find something broken. An arm, a leg, hell, even a rib that might have been shattered from her fall. As she sat up she realized there was no pain, no damage to dissuade her from moving any part of her body.

A line of men sat on their knees next to her, looking just as bewildered as the canine was. Their faces were scuffed and bloody and their white uniforms had been torn in numerous places. None made an attempt to speak outside of a few hushed, whispered voices in an accent that Fia wasn't familiar with.

[i]Fuck, that's…[/i]Fia's stomach twisted in a sickening squeeze when she saw the dark, red splotches or the protruding shafts of arrows tearing through their clothing. [i]Where the hell am I?[/i]

In the distance a bird called, a low, melancholy sound that echoed around her in a haunting melody.

“Where did she come from?"

Three wagons sat in line before her on a gravel path that wound a serpentine path through the dark woods. From the shadows of the one closest to her stepped a tall, imposing figure, and all at once the whispered conversation behind her fell silent. Draped around him was a cloth garment made of dark green leather his arms were tucked into, leaving them hidden from sight. It concealed his entire body in a sweeping cape of viridian clasped to one shoulder where a long, wooden handle peeked rose above him.

His face was a leering demonic visage sneering with lips drawn back to reveal cruelly pointed fangs held in a rictus grin. Two horns curved up from the forehead like dead trees on a burnt out landscape. The worst part of it were the empty, black eye sockets that looked down at her, devoid of any semblance of humanity.

“Kuran, why did you not see her coming?"

Fia rolled off the canine she found herself on and winced when her hands hit the coarse gravel and sent multiple pointed tips digging into the palms of her hands. Her body cried out in pain from her crashing descent, begging her not to move, and despite herself she couldn't bring herself to fall still.

“Wait, I…where?" Her words were lost in the struggle, overshadowed by her constricting lungs fighting to gulp down the cool night air. “Where am…"

Her attempts to move were hindered when a hand as harsh as iron grasped her. It pinched hard directly on the point where her shoulder met her neck, sending pain coursing through her form. Fingernails like daggers drove themselves through her hiking gear, the coarse material offering shocking little protection.

“Wai-" Fia fell silent when the hand grasped her tight, enough to force a meek whimper out of her.

“I'm sorry sir," a voice said from above her, their tone cracking with a clear anger that carried with it untold depths of contemptful scorn, “I did not expect someone to just fall from the sky. I'm not a mind reader, as much as you believe otherwise."

Fia had just enough sense to catch herself when she was thrown forward and found herself landing at the demon-faced man's feet. He leaned against one of the wagons while staring down at her, not saying a single word. Now she could see that the two of them weren't alone, for moving through the shadows behind him were similarly dressed men who gave little attention to her plight.

She could see the opulent exteriors of the wagons were dotted with the feathered tails of arrows sticking out of them. Thick, metallic doors like bank vaults glistened in the moonlight as three of the dark-cloaked men fought to wedge long metal poles into the almost invisible seal. The exteriors of each wagon were marked with a golden semi-circle motif broken on the top and bottom, their edges splitting off into sharp points with emerald green spots denoting each junction.

“W-Where the…where am I?" Her voice cracked with the effort of asking and despite the demon-faced man closing in on her, she finally found strength returning to her. The sense of warmth had never left her chest, instead, it radiated outwards through her limbs and to the tips of her fingers. Fia was just able to force herself to her feet amidst a soothing sense of comfort washing over her. “Who the fuck are you?"

No sooner had she asked it then she was left hissing in pain when a heavy weight landed square in the center of her back. She hit the side of the wagon with enough force to leave her seeing stars brighter than the ones in the dark passage. An elbow jamming into her throat eliminated any opportunity she had to speak.

It wasn't the worst blow she had taken, she thought, even when stars danced across her vision. One particularly unruly bitch fond of wearing oversized costume jewelry held that honor.

“You don't get to ask questions here."

The build of the person in front of her was slender, much more sinewy than the men working nearby. In this position they towered over Fia, although her height would have been noticeable even if she weren't pinned down. Their outfit was more tattered than her companions, green strips hanging down like vines while bare, tarnished white skin showed beneath. They wore no hood, and what little hair Fia could see was shaved down to the scalp leaving a thin layer of white like freshly fallen snow.

They too wore a mask, albeit one far simpler than the man watching from nearby. It was little more than a black slate, one devoid of any features except for a single hole over the right side of their face through which peered a crystal-blue eye. It watched her, analyzing her with cold, calculating interest like a scientist examining a truly grotesque sample under a microscope. At first she didn't realize a hand was running along her sides and her inner legs, not at all coy about where it was grabbing her.

“She's clean, Daku. No weapons. She's not wearing the kingdom's insignia...certainly not dressed like one, either." Her singular eye turned on the row of tied up men who flinched at her unwanted attention. “Is she with you?" Only the arcanine seemed willing to face off against her, his bound muzzle quivering against the ropes and preventing all but the tip of his fangs from showing.

Only now did Fia see the great, metal spikes that had been driven into the ground around each of his paws, each attached to a heavy set of chains wrapped over his form. That such a mountainous beast could be tethered to the ground surprised Fia, even when she saw how the metal links bit into his flesh.

After Kuran was given no answer, Daku reminded Fia of her presence by stepping up to her. The black depths of his eyes swallowed any light that shone on him, little more than pools of ink that offered no hint to the man behind the mask.

“Who else did Ismene tell about this? I paid her enough to guarantee we wouldn't have competition!"

That bird cried again, a little louder this time. It penetrated through the veil that hung over Fia while she fought to make sense of things.

The elbow pressing against her windpipe drew back and Fia's hands shot up to her throat while she took in deep, choking breaths. She only had a moment of respite before Kuran grabbed her cheek and turned her face to the side.

“Wait. Keep your eyes open. That light…" Kuran said, her voice flat and hollow, “you're…no." Kuran shook her head and seemed to grow far more interested in the hole she had left in the canopy. “No. That's not possible."

There was a loud, metallic snap that drew the woman's attention away from Fia. The upper hinges of the wagon's door creaked with exertion, groaning like a wounded animal running for its life. The men that had been working to pry it open dashed away when the heavy door began to tip forward before crashing to the ground. Seconds later the men descended on the darkened interior with all the savagery of a pack of mightyena fresh on the trail of prey.

“Leave her, Kuran." The masked man said, his ferocious visage turning away from Fia with a contemptible grunt. “We'll deal with her after we get our prize." He had already begun to strode forward, his penumbral robe drifting around him like tendrils of darkness. “I told you. I told you the Empire wouldn't be able to st-"

“Boss, there's nothing here!"

A stillness came over the tall figure, his gaze slowly shifting back towards the wagon's open doorway. Fia sat up at the change in the atmosphere, the prevailing calm before the storm. When Daku spoke, his voice was low and came out in a raspy hiss as toxic as a spitting seviper.

“What do you mean," his words carried with them a terrible rage, one that drained the color from Fia's face. It also stopped her from struggling when Kuran turned her face the other direction to look into her other eye. “You're telling me…there's nothing here?"

The bandit standing in the doorway didn't have the chance to answer before the distant bird call reached a new peak of intensity. Fia was just able to catch the glint of metal before a black-feathered arrow connected with the man's chest, sending him tumbling back into darkness.

Another appeared in a shower of splinters just above Kuran's left shoulder, and if Fia hadn't seen the way she moved to dodge it with a graceful curve, she would never have believed it. Her eye turned towards the darkness while the loud hiss of another arrow broke through the still night, forcing her to once again duck out of the way and leaving it to impact with the base of a nearby tree. It was adorned with the same black feathers with an orange stripe going up the center of them, and before the next could come Kuran was on the move.

She threw Fia to the ground at the arcanine's paws, leaving her looking up into his furry face. He simply gazed back down at her, silent and imposing, but with a flash of knowing in his green eyes.

The night came alive in that instant with the shouts of men rising in the distance to break the serene calm. Already the bandits were beginning to draw a motley assortment of weapons from their sides, clubs, axes, some even produced shields that were little more than crude planks stitched together in a facsimile of protection. Both ends of the twisting road lit up with the orangish-glow of torchlight while Daku barked orders over the budding panic of his men.

“It's an ambush!" He roared, before he turned his gazes to the sky as a low, thrumming hiss filled the air. “Maintain ranks, brace, damn you! We trained for this!" They came in a great rain that blanketed the area, but a majority landed centered directly on the center of the wagons.

As the arrows began to fall, the masked man grabbed one of his compatriots with the same impressive speed Kuran had shown. The confused bandit had only a moment to realize what was happening before it hit him. After seeing the first arrow find purchase, Fia forced herself to look away as screams of pain began to rise up. The meaty thunk of arrows finding flesh made her stomach twist and froze her in place, even when they landed mere feet away from her.

The sound of scrambling feet and panicked whispers reached her ears, and she had just enough sense to realize the prisoners lined up against the side of the road had started to scatter. All except for the arcanine, who tugged fruitlessly against the spikes that held him in place, his mammoth form shuddering with the effort.

The fear that had frozen her in place sank its icy fangs into her heart, urging her to just remain still. Fia was back in the void in that instant, unable to breathe, unable to take control. When her eyes met with the large pokemon's own, she felt herself snap free of her stupor.

Fia scrambled to her knees and scurried over to him before grabbing the fat head of one of the spikes. It was firm and unyielding, even as the arcanine lifted a paw in an attempt to help her pull it from the ground. She had no sooner pulled it free than a hand grabbed the collar of her shirt and roughly yanked her back to slam her once more against the wagon.

“You knew about this, didn't you?" The leering, demonic face demanded of her as Daku grabbed her by the shoulders and roughly shook her. She tried to dig her nails into his thick wrists, but all that earned her was a hand coiling tightly around her throat, harsh enough to make her eyes water. “You're in on this, too? Are you a scout? A spy? Kuran! I know you're not dead yet, get your ass over here!"

If she had known anything, she wouldn't have been able to squeeze out an answer with his oppressive fingers digging into her throat.

[i]Yeah, I just fell through a hole ripped through reality for the sole purpose of messing up whatever you're doing here.[/i] Perhaps it was the lack of oxygen that was making her thoughts hysterical and disjointed. [i]Or maybe I've just gone crazy.[/i]

The night had broken down into anarchy filled with the metallic odor of blood. She glanced at her feet and quickly wished that she hadn't when she met a pair of empty eyes staring back up at her. To look into the eyes of the dead man filled her with a sickening resolve that forced her to hold on to consciousness. Just as dark spots began to appear in her vision Kuran appeared at their side.

A black-feathered shaft jutted out from one of her shoulders, the cloth around it stained a dark black. Her singular blue eye blazed with anger when she slumped against the protective wall of the wagon. She grabbed the shaft of the arrow with one hand and with a loud grunt snapped off the feathered end.

“We need to leave, now."

“You don't think I know that?!" His hand clenched around Fia's throat had begun to loosen, although he still held her firm. He moved to the side of the wagon, only to draw back as a few more arrows bit into the wood. “I am the Ebony Oni, am I not?! I was chosen to wear this mask, and that means you follow my orders. You don't get to tell me what to do, mutt!"

Kuran bristled before giving a stiff nod, only to once more turn on Fia. “Of course, sir," she spat, her voice riddled with enough toxicity to make a grass type wilt. She regarded Fia for a few moments, before her voice dropped to a low whisper. “I'll find where this one came from. Then we [i]need[/i] to leave."

He grunted in response and threw Fia back against the wagon. “When you're done, just kill her and be done with it. She deserves nothing less." Daku stepped away, standing guard for any approaching soldiers.

The taller woman dug a hand into her cloak before pulling it free with a flick of her wrist. Fia had only a moment to catch the moonlight reflecting off of metal before a small, thin blade was driven through the right shoulder of her shirt. Through watering eyes she glanced at it, only for Kuran to roughly grab her chin and direct her attention back on her.

“There are more where that came from. Don't give me an excuse, despite what he says I don't want to kill you if I don't have to."

Her thumb momentarily trailed down Fia's chin, wiping away some of the blood that had trickled from her cut lip.

“You have the same look in your eyes that he did…" She said, whispering more to herself than Fia. “That same light…"

Seconds later she was roughly grabbing at the shoulder strap of Fia's backpack, nearly tearing the material in her haste to pull it free despite Fia's shouts of indignation. They only grew louder when Kuran dug a hand into the pack and drew the utility ax and brandished it with a curious tilt to her head.

“What kind of weapon is this?" She gripped the handle and swung it against the air, before grimacing and tossing it aside. “Worthless." Kuran rummaged through her bag, throwing things aside and curiously drawing out one of her empty pokeballs, “What the hell is thi-" The way she jumped when it suddenly enlarged after she hit the center button would have made Fia laugh in any other situation. “Arceus, what…is this?"

After pressing the button again, she watched it shrink back down. After tossing the backpack aside, she turned back on Fia and immediately dug her hands into her jacket, her invasive touch not hesitating for a single second despite her insistent squiriming.

“You don't wear the emperor's seal, you don't have an actual weapon, no thieves tools…you have strange items, you come from nowhere." Kuran began to speak faster, her hands trembling against her body. “You look like [i]him, [/i]you talk like [i]him,[/i] it's no-"

Kuran recoiled and snarled under her breath when she plucked a square piece of plastic from Fia's pocket. She dropped it and grasped at her hand as if it had stuck it in a roaring inferno. No longer did her eyes burn with anger, instead, a calm with all the chill of winter had taken its place.

“No. No, you shouldn't have that. You can't have that." Her voice came out as little more than a hoarse whisper, barely audible amongst the shouts of me. “You shouldn't be here."

She took another step back, only to duck as another black-feathered arrow embedded itself to the left of her head. Realizing her mistake, she quickly ducked back into the cover of the other wagon, keeping a good distance away from both her and the phone laying in the dirt between them.

“Why now?" Kuran demanded, and in that moment she seemed less like a person than a wild animal. “How were you able to come here?"

Wasn't that the question of the hour, not that Fia could begin to pick it apart.

“You…you know?" Fia demanded, the sickening tug in her stomach beginning to dissipate. The metallic taste hung heavy in her mouth from her cut lip, and she turned to spit the foamy red mixture. “I don't know why I'm here! I didn't choose to be here!"

Kuran's response was to stare at her, her unblinking eye never once leaving her. Finally, she shook her head, but whether it was in disbelief or ignorance it was impossible to tell.

“You're going to die here."

It felt like the bottom had dropped out from under Fia all over again. The world grew heavy, the copper-scented air causing the bile to raise in the back of her throat.

[i]I'm going to die here.[/i]

“What is that idiot doing?" Daku mumbled just loud enough for Fia to hear and dragging her back from the brink. “Kuran, eyes up!"

The sea of torches that had been approaching had come to a halt a few hundred feet away where a glistening wall of shields propped up to form a solid wall of metal. Each one was emblazoned with the same symbol that decorated the sides of the wagons, their golden visages almost glittering in the moonlight. They had parted in the center, and one man had begun to walk forward.

At least, Fia thought it was a man. It was difficult to tell in the head-to-toe set of crudely pressed metal that encompassed their upper body. Their chest 'armor' seemed like little more than a metal box wrapped around them, and their spherical helmet was solid except for a horizontal slit over the eyes. They raised their arms before them amidst the groaning of metal and slammed their knuckles together with a resounding smash akin to two locomotives colliding. Their legs were free from restrictions, and despite the awkward nature of the armor, as they charged forward they quickly began to pick up speed.

A rumble passed through the earth after their fifth step, intensifying with each footfall until clouds of gravel and dirt were kicked up like mortar shells from each footfall. It caused the ground to groan with exertion the closer they got until the wagons themselves began to creak and rock.

Fia grabbed desperately at the narrow, banded handle of the knife. It was long and thin, no doubt very sharp as she discovered when she felt it biting into her shoulder after making a wrong move. The worst part was how badly it [i]burned[/i]. It wasn't from heat, but rather the metal was icy cold to the touch and singed the palms of her hands.

She couldn't hold on to it for long before she was left clutching the wrist of her wounded hand. Kuran couldn't be bothered with Fia's attempts to escape, she was far more concerned with what was happening in front of them.

Daku had tossed the shield to the ground and was reaching for the handle peeking above his shoulder. With a slow brandish he drew a club that was just as unsettling to look at as his mask. It was made of light-colored wood, but there were dark stains along it of what Fia could only assume was blood. The end opposite the handle was covered in dozens of short, studded spikes rising up like thorns from a rose. He hefted it in his hands while stepping forward, directly in the path of the charging, metal-plated man.

Fia realized all too soon that she was also directly in his path. The alarm bells blared in her head, repeating again and again Kuran's bleak fortune. [i]I'm going to die[/i], she thought, [i]If I don't do something, I'm going to die. [/i]Despite the pain springing fresh in her hand, she renewed her efforts to yank the knife free.

“You're nothing compared to me!" Daku slammed his club against the ground, and as Fia watched something strange began to happen. Where the club collided with the ground, a dark pool of shadow seemed to form. When he slammed it again, tendrils of darkness began to creep up the length of the club. “I am the Ebony Oni, I am Arceus' chosen!"

The wood creaked when Fia managed to pull an inch of blade free, but the ice cold sensation was already beginning to shoot up her arms. She was exhausted, unable to force herself to keep trying. It was the same as the fatigue that usually set in after a day of heavy climbing, leaving her fingers numb and trembling.

[i]Come on[/i], she urged herself, pulling up every time she was desperate to reach that next handhold. When her strength was failing her, and her grip was failing, it always came back. [i]There will always be more mountains to climb.[/i]

The looming specter of Kuran had not moved from her spot opposite her, but her head snapped upwards when she realized Daku wasn't moving. That judging eye turned on Fia in that moment, and this time she could see cold indifference reflected back at her. It froze her to the spot, renewing the panic that bubbled in the back of her mind and threatened to strip her of whatever composure remained.

Fia didn't want to die.

Daku had already leveled the club behind him and to the side, his stance widening with his legs spreading further apart to give him a grounded base. The shadows coursed down his club, running up his arms and swirling about his mask. His empty eye sockets had come alive, burning with an umbral flame.

For Fia, it felt like watching a semi bearing down on a man, and even though she knew she was still in danger, as Daku swung, she couldn't look away.

The wooden club collided with the center of their box-like chest, releasing a great booming sound like a gong that made Fia's ears ache. The metal crumpled inwards, and for a moment Daku's club seemed to hold firm. The flame-like shadows flared only to dissipate against their armor, snuffed out like a candle before the charging man ran straight through his strike. It sent Daku spinning through the air like a top before he fell to the side of the path with a loud, roaring scream. She had no doubt that the splintering crack she had heard wasn't solely from the club that now lay shattered on the ground.

Time slowed in that moment, leaving her staring from Daku's broken form and the smoldering remnants of his club to the armored thing running straight for her.

A heavy weight collided into her from the side amidst the sound of ripping cloth before she was knocked to the soft grass along the side of the road.

Their assailant slammed into the side of the wagon as if it were no more than an unthinking automaton, sending pieces of wood flying in all directions. Their arms flailed and their posture began to falter when they came out through the other side, trying and failing to stop themselves. They fell with enough force to send one final rumble through the earth, before going still.

[i]Knocked it right out of the park,[/i] that hysterical part of her mind danced around like a chimchar, cackling in manic excitement. [i]Going, going, and it's gone.[/i]

Standing above her was that same canine face she had first looked into when she fell, looking no worse for the wear except for some missing patches of fur where the chains had bitten into their forearms. The strange-looking arcanine gave what amounted to a canine smile before he desperately nudged her with his nose, forcing her to roll over. He worried her constantly, almost herding her like a mareep through the prone forms of fallen men.

At one point she tried to get to her feet, only to fall over the extended arm of a bandit that lay twitching. The arcanine snarled behind her, and the fingers grasping for her disappeared. Only when Fia had reached the treeline did she turn back.

The night had grown quiet except for the sound of Daku's screaming. When she saw the way his arms were twisted and bent at odd angles, she found it impossible to blame him.

“Kuran! Damn it…where are you?! I…I need you!"

A loud, sharp chirp rang out over the fallen, a deceivingly cheerful noise that served no purpose amongst the dead.

The shield wall had begun to approach them and they were close enough that she could see individual faces. She could have left, although, something stopped her and left her watching as Kuran crouched at the side of Daku's broken form.

“Get me out of here, damn it, get m-"

“Seems like the mask no longer finds you worthy. Just know that I never did." Kuran swiped out a hand, knocking Daku's head back and briefly silencing him before grasping the edge of the mask. “It was never my choice to willingly follow you. If I weren't bound to it, I would have killed you when you found us."

Daku's broken arm flailed in a pathetic attempt to ward her away, not that he could stop her from prying the wooden mask from his face. In that instant, whatever illusion had made him seem less than human was broken.

He was a hard-eyed man with dark face paint around his eyes. Black rivulets trickled down where beads of sweat had slipped through it, leaving dark streaks across his soft complexion.

Fia saw nothing of the forsaking emptiness in his eyes, just brown irises that were realizing just how in over his head he was.

“Kuran…Kuran don't do this. I found you, I freed you!" He sputtered, his lower lip almost quivering. “You'd still be in that pit if it weren't for me! I am Arceus' chosen!"

“Arceus exalts a chosen few, but it seems even the chosen can break." Kuran stood and looked over the shattered wagons as well as their fallen comrades, only to shake her head. “If I had known you were just a petty thief, I would have left your bones to bleach in the pit where you found me."

Fia finally found her voice, although a pair of sharp jaws closed around the back of her torn shirt and tried to tug her away.

“Wait! What do you know about me? Where I came from?"

That Kuran noticeably flinched at the sight of her wasn't lost on Fia. She turned her head to the approaching guards and then back at the arcanine that stood at Fia's side. The large pokemon's fluffy head hung in her peripheral vision, and he let out a deep, warning growl which made Kuran's eye narrow.

In that brief moment of hesitation another arrow sprung from the darkness and collided with the mask, scattering it off into the darkness, leaving Kuran screaming as it spun away. Kuran took a few steps towards it, her arms held out in front of her almost beseechingly before the shouts of the approaching men grew louder. She turned and hesitated, before darting into the tree line behind her, narrowly avoiding three more black arrows fired in quick succession.

The arcanine tugged at Fia again, and this time his whimper caught her attention. He dipped his head forward, beckoning her with a flick of his tail. Looking over his broad back, any energy that she had left dissipated. It only took one look back at the approaching men to make up her mind.

“...alright. If you insist."

Take a chance, spin the wheel and win a prize. If she stayed here, maybe Kuran's prediction would still come true. That was all it took to convince her.

Fia focused one last time on the patch of woods that Kuran had disappeared into, not that it seemed she was going to be making a reappearance. After slipping onto the arcanine's back, she slowly leaned over him, finding a solace in his warmth. His fluffy mane was the first comfort she had felt that night, so when he turned and began to run, she let herself sink into it.

Darkness passed on all sides of her, the only sound she could hear being the canine's heavy footfalls and his calm, collected breathing. She needed only worry about holding on to him as he expertly darted between trees and over low-lying hills, his heavy bulk ensuring no foliage was able to hold him back.

Overhead the clouds rumbled like a sleeping giant, and when they stepped into a narrow clearing, lightning flashed across the sky. She was reminded of the torn shoulder of her shirt when a strong breeze kicked up, leaving her hunching deeper into the arcanine's mane to ward away the chill of the night. He smelled like cedar mixed with a smoky ash that left her nose tingling and reminded her of the rich tobacco her grandfather used to smoke.

He skidded to a stop so abruptly that she almost lost her grip on him. His breathing was a little heavy now, and before she could lift her head to see what the problem was, she heard him release a deep, warning growl. It was nothing like the growl of the domesticated canine pokemon she knew, this one rumbled deep in his chest, radiating outwards with enough force to make the hair on the back of her neck stand on end.

Blocking their path was a man, one that didn't so much as flinch away from the near feral pokemon.

Why would she possibly get a break that night, after all? Fuck, it wasn't like she could use it.

A sweeping, hooded cloak hung around him, light tan around the shoulders woven over a brown canvas and culminating in black-tipped tails that hung around his knees. When the lightning flashed, she caught a sharp-featured face staring back at her, one adorned with eyes glowing like golden embers. In his hands was a gnarled wooden bow, and a few fingers glided along the taut, green string while he whistled under his breath. It was the same melancholy bird song she had heard before the night had turned into a bloodbath, and it chilled her worse than the wind ever could.

“I see you found a friend, Akio…although, I wonder, why would you help someone escape?" He whispered, his voice smooth like honey as he took a step closer to them. He seemed to pause when Akio took a step back in answer, and it left him tilting his head to the side. “Now, now. I promised I would return you at the end of the night. Your owner was very…insistent on it."

Fia dug her fingers deep into Akio's fluff and could feel just how tense the canine was. Despite the bowman's hand twitching towards a quiver of black-feathered arrows on his hip, Fia began to sit up on his back, aware that his eyes darted towards every movement she made. Lifting her hands above her head seemed to relax him, if only somewhat.

“Listen…" she began, already swallowing to try to clear the cracks from her voice, “I don't know what that was about. I don't know who those people were…I just want to go home."

He regarded her as if she were little more than a rattata crawling from their hole and he were a staraptor trying to determine if she was worth the hunt. She could see the black-tipped arrows were the same that had been ruthlessly hounding Kuran all through the night, their feathers swaying in the wind. After what felt like an eternity, he reached up and slung his bow across his back. Only then did Akio's body loosen up beneath her.

“We were sent here to eliminate the Ebony Oni Gang," he took a step back, slipping deeper into the shadows when the rumbling overhead grew louder. A few sprinkles darkened his form which he casually brushed aside with a callous flick of his hand. “You do not appear to be part of their group. Whether you are a common thief or not, I care not. My quarry is still waiting for me."

“I'm going to tell you what I told that…that freak with the club…" Fia began, her throat tightening under his watchful eyes. She still didn't know what to make of Daku, nor the command he had shown over the shadows. “I have no clue who those people were. I don't know where I am."

“Sinnoh's playful tonight, it seems," he said, smirking a little too sharply for Fia's liking. “If what you are saying is true, you were lucky enough to see what happens to those who scorn the Emperor's will."

Akio had begun to step further back, the narrow alley of trees crowding in on him leaving him no other option. The man made no attempt to follow them as fat raindrops began to fall, each landing on Akio causing the fire-type to toss his head in clear discomfort.

“The masked woman, Kuran. Do you know where she went? I intend to cut the head from this serpent once and for all." His words sliced through the tension like a knife. “No matter…I am the right hand of the Emperor, I do not require help from anyone besides Sinnoh."

He reached to his side to pat the leering, demonic black face that hung from his belt. Fia hadn't even noticed it, not until his exceedingly long fingernails tapped idly against it.

“Besides, I have the perfect bait to find her."

“What are you?" Fia blurted out the question before she realized just what she was saying, and despite her attempts to stand tall under his scrutiny, she was finding it difficult. “You, Daku, and that…whatever the hell it was in the armor."

He tilted his head to the other side and let out a sound akin to a bird cooing while his expression rose skywards.

“You could say we are blessed by the Emperor. Myself and Daichi, at least." It didn't take long for his expression to sour. “Daku was nothing, a boy playing with relics of the past who did not understand the power that he possessed."

He sighed and looked back the way Akio had come.

“If only the Emperor could have blessed that boorish fool Daichi with wit or respect. I signaled him not to charge, but he wanted to be the one to claim the Oni." His cloak seemed to flutter around him despite the absence of a breeze to give it motion. “Always the glory-seeker, that one. He received his wish, I am simply here to ensure the Emperor's task is fulfilled…and I intend to."

In one swift movement he jumped and grabbed an overhead branch before pulling himself atop it in an instant.

“I have business with Kuran. Godsreach is that way, see that he makes it home." He raised an arm and pointed with a finger ending in a wickedly-curved talon. “I gave my word that he would be returned unharmed…I am thankful that you saw to that." He dipped his head towards her, before fixing his sharp gaze on her. “I do not know why Sinnoh's providence led you here. Do not make me regret the decision to let you go."

Thunder-cracked overhead, covering the rustling of leaves as he disappeared amongst the trees. Raindrops began to fall on them in drenching sheets, leading Akio to run faster than he had until they broke free of the forest. His paws skidded to a stop, his head darting to and fro in search of the next path forward.

Whomever Sinnoh was, they must have had an utterly sick sense of humor. From being tossed around like a ragdoll to nearly being killed, if this was their 'providence', Fia didn't want to know what they'd do if they were upset with her.

They stood now at the summit of a massive hill looking down on a valley awash with pinpricks of light where a sprawling city of close-knit buildings. In the center of it all was a square, walled-in pavilion dominated by a commanding building, its regal architecture visible even from here. Standing before it were rising, twisting twin pillars wrapping around each other higher and higher till they pierced the clouds themselves.

Across the sky, intermingled with the occasional burst of lightning, falling stars tumbled between gaps in the clouds. Even Akio's head snapped upwards, the rain forgotten, at least for the moment. There were over a dozen of them in total, streaking across the sky and falling over the horizon to blink from existence as fast as they formed. She watched them until they disappeared from view and tried to ignore the strange sensation of melancholy that washed over her once they were gone. Fia's hand drifted to the nape of Akio's neck, snapping him back to attention.

“Just, take me anywhere but here."

Within seconds, he was back on the move.

Rain drenched her form as he carried them on paws faster than lightning, leaving Fia holding on for dear life.

***

Fia didn't know for how long she had been lying awake on the dry piles of straw lining the interior of the stable. The rain had continued all through the night, pounding against the roof of the barn, the occasional errant drop finding a crack in the ceiling to plunk against the floor. She hadn't cared enough to ask Akio where they were after the arcanine brought her to the barn on the outskirts of town, not that he would have been able to answer her. All she knew was at that point, she could rest out of the cold.

In fact, she had started to grow too hot with the presence of the fire-type pokemon who insisted on pressing against her side the entire night. Her clothing hung to dry above her, laid across a solid beam running along the narrow stalls. Although she had been apprehensive about undressing in front of a strange pokemon, the alternative of sleeping in sopping wet clothing wasn't anymore appealing. Fia had to give him credit, he was at least a gentleman about it and didn't stare. The soft, steady snoring of the canine behind her was as constant as the rain, and although one of his large paws had found itself atop her, she didn't force him to move it.

They weren't the only ones in the barn, she was reminded from the soft sound of snorting and a brief flash of fire. The mudsdale and ponyta had watched the two of them come in from the deluge the night before, and despite a few gruff barks and some disapproving snorts, they hadn't done much to bother them. Not that the ponyta gave any indication he cared, he couldn't even bother to lift his head to look at her. The night had been filled with the occasional hoarse, wheezing cough accompanied by heavy sneezes that illuminated the dark barn.

Fia's dreams had been a cataclysm of sights and sounds that disturbed her sleep and left her jolting upwards, her hands clutching at her throat. From the darkness of the void crushing in on her to the screams of dying men, each vision plagued her mind and drew her back down into cruel depths of fear. It was why she pulled Akio's paw closer despite how overheated she was getting. His fur and bulky presence did wonders chasing away the haunting knowledge of what waited for her beyond these four walls.

“Fuck, I want to go home…" She said, and not for the first time that day.

While she was making wishes that would certainly be denied her, she'd also like a new climbing ax, a date with Flannery, and a position on the pokemon league.

Fia missed the warm bed she should have woken up in, one free of itchy straw that always found the perfect place to poke her in the back. She would have gotten up, had a cup of coffee and whatever small meal she was able to throw together before hurrying to the gym for her second day of training.

She would have been happy. Fulfilled. Ready to live her dream.

That thought left her heart sinking and she didn't even try to hold back the sigh that had been building in her chest. Her fingers traced across the top of Akio's paw, feeling each individual digit and the dull nails poking out. He had paws like an ursaring, with enough muscle it wouldn't have surprised her if she was able to knock aside a man with no effort. That he was a large breed was undeniable, and it made her feel so small being crowded up to him even though he never forced even half his weight against her.

The ponyta sneezed again with a discontented whinny, making his flames jet brighter.

Bright enough that Fia could see the darkened figure leaning against the wall while standing in the hay loft overhead. As soon as they realized they had been spotted they fell to the ground with not so much as a whisper, although their form wobbled with the effort to maintain balance.

The Kuran she had seen the night before was nothing like the disheveled specter that now stood before her. She still wore her mask, but her clothing was torn, scratched, and hung heavy from the rain over a skeletal frame. Holes in her clothing revealed startling white alabaster skin decorated with a multitude of angry, red cuts. Her hands were trembling, but as soon as she caught Fia staring at them, she buried them in her cloak.

“Please, by all means scream, give me a reason to shut you up." She spat, although her threat had all the merit of a mewling mutt still trying to be intimidating despite her poor state. “It's been a long, long night…I've had some asshole dogging every step I've made all night. I'm not in the mood to play games." Her hands curled over the top of the stall, no longer trembling, and Fia could hear the wood creaking when her nails dug into it. “All I want to know…is why were you there last night?"

Screaming would have been nice, it wasn't like there was much else she could do to voice her displeasure with her situation.

Fia shifted under Akio, willing the canine to remain dead to the world before she finally managed to slip free of his oppressive grip. In an instant she was surprised by just how much she missed the comforting press of his paw resting on her. It left her feeling more bare than her lack of clothing.

“Why was I there…?" She said, repeating the words to make sense of them herself. Although she still felt that kernel of fear deep within her, a new feeling was arising, one fueled by confidence in the sleeping form next to her. “Why was I there?" She stumbled to her feet, shifting atop the bed of straw, but never straying from Akio's side. This Kuran wasn't the lapdog of a demon, she was just another human. “I don't fucking [i]know[/i] why I was there, okay?! Why were [i]you[/i] there?"

Fia winced when she heard a particularly loud snore from Akio, only for the large canine to roll onto his back, his paws dangling across his chest haphazardly.

If Kuran was at all intimidated by her outburst, her unflinching nature didn't reflect it. She stood like a statue, no part of her body moving except for her hands. It made Fia wince to hear the scrape of her nails digging deep furrows into the stall door.

“They took my mask." She said, after what felt like an eternity of silence. “You're going to help me get it back."

Fia's mouth opened and fell a few times, the vitriol she had planned on spitting catching in the back of her throat. In the end, she could only laugh, hoarse and weak enough to mimic the sick ponyta.

“Oh yeah, of course. Why wouldn't I want to help you? Your boyfriend, boss, whatever he wanted to kill me and you almost stabbed me. But sure, I'll he-"

“If you're not going to shut up and listen to me, I'll make you."

Her words carried with them a malevolent promise that begged Fia to press her further. Silence filled the stables, the pinnacle of anger that Fia had been working herself towards dissipated so fast she fumbled for what to say. Kuran picked up on this, and before Fia could compose herself, she continued.

“My name is Kuran. That was the title given to me and that is all I have ever known." She stepped away from the stall door and gave a casual flick of her wrist to dislodge the wood shards buried beneath her long nails. “My life has always been in service to the bearer of the Ebony Oni's mask, and I am its custodian." Her lithe arms crossed over her chest before she passed near a shuttered window and pulled it open. Outside the rain had tapered to little more than a trickle, giving them both a view across a wide field where the city loomed on the horizon. “I thought I had already lost what honor I had left. I know now that I had further to sink…which is why I'm coming to someone like you."

Fia stepped around the sleeping dog's form and slipped from the stall, her hands cautiously held up in case the bandit made a move. What - if anything - she'd be able to do remained to be seen at that point, especially with the memory of how she had been pushed around the night before still fresh in her head.

“Why me?" It seemed like the most simple question in the world, even though it was one she found herself not wanting the answer to. “What about your boyfriend?"

In the time that Kuran managed to close the distance between them, Fia hadn't even been able to raise her arms to her chest before a sharply pointed fingernail jabbed into the center of her chest. Its pinpoint pressure made her wince and pushed her back a few steps no matter how she tried to stand up to her assault.

“Daku was nothing to me, and I would have killed him if he didn't have the luck of Arceus on his side. He found the mask, he found…me, and I had no choice but to follow him. I want you, no, I need you to understand that." From behind her mask, Fia could hear Kuran's breathing intensify to a fevered pitch. “I wasn't going to be forgotten. I wasn't going to go quietly into the void." Kuran's blue eye seemed to flash with a golden hue, so fast that Fia was just able to catch it. “I'm not going to die!"

Silence echoed around them. The horse pokemon had been snapped from their slumber, knickering and stomping their hooves just for Kuran to turn on them. In an instant, they found the stray-strewn floors of their stalls to be far more interesting. Kuran made no attempt to remove her mask, even when her breathing became labored and rough. Her hand trembled and pulled away from Fia's chest as soon as they heard the warning growl Fia had become familiar with.

“You're not one of the Emperor's soldiers, nor are you blinded by his rule," her voice grew softer, like wind rustling through the leaves. “That alone makes you valuable." She turned back to Fia and gestured out the window, the shakingness once again present in her hand. “Every person Daku conned into his foolhardy attempt at creating his own legacy is either dead or injured. Believe me, I have no choice."

Fia listened as the straw bedding creaked behind her, and in seconds she felt the natural fire-type heat she had been missing. Akio stopped at Fia's side and stared straight at Kuran, his head making the most minute turns with every step she took. His presence was a bulwark against whatever aura of malaise the masked woman was making her feel.

It made her wonder if the growlithe she had been set to train with would have grown up to be like him.

Fia steeled herself against sinking back down into the pit of what ifs that had been plaguing her all night. Her hand moved to rest on the back of Akio's neck, making the arcanine briefly stiffen before he relaxed with a discontented snort accompanied by a small puff of dark, black smoke from his nostrils.

Kuran had taken a step back, a subtle one, but enough for Fia to notice.

“I wasn't lying to you when I said I didn't know where I was." It took a lot to keep her voice steady, and she slowly stroked down the back of Akio's fluffy mane to keep herself on track. “I don't know who this Emperor is. I don't know what an Ebony Oni is. I…fuck, I don't even know how I can get back home? I haven't seen a single car or plane since I got here!" In a great rush it all started to come out. Akio was her barrier, preventing her from fearing the malignant caricature of a woman that had continuously been holding her down. All her frustration and anger, although she couldn't stop her voice from cracking. “There's no power, no lights, where the hell even is this place?! I need to get back to Lavaridge Gym!"

Kuran's head tilted minutely, and although her shoulders were still as stiff as a mountain face, she was more focused on Fia than the dog baring his fangs at her between them.

“...what's a gym? I've never heard of a place called Lavaridge, there certainly isn't one in the Hisui region."

“...Hi…sui?"

Saying the name out loud didn't make it seem any more real to Fia.

Before she could inquire further, one of the large, dual doors at the front of the barn creaked open, accompanied by a short form slipping in after it. The gust of wind that chased them was powerful, and they had to struggle to close the door with a wooden box balanced in one arm.

“Alright boys, time for breakfast! I haven't seen the royal guard yet, so I'm guessing Akio isn't back yet! Guess that means extras…for…" They froze when they turned and caught Fia standing in the narrow aisle between the stalls. It was another woman, their hair long and falling in black strands about their shoulders, nearly obscuring a confused, pale face. “Who are you?" They demanded, not waiting for an answer before lunging for the wall next to the door.

The wooden box they carried was thrown to the floor in front of the mudsdale stall, leaving the horse pokemon kicking a hoof against his stall door. When she turned she carried a three-pronged, wooden pitchfork that they didn't hesitate to level at Fia. Although it was unwieldy in their arms due to its length and was bobbing in the air, it made it no less intimidating.

“We don't let vagrants hang around here," she shouted, her shoulders puffing up while she hefted the pitchfork a little higher. “We don't do free hand outs! This is a working farm! So you best just…Akio? When did you get back?"

Fia was more than willing to let the arcanine step past her, his head held high and his tail wagged in an uneven metronome behind him. A single glance to her side made her realize that Kuran had disappeared.

“I, well, he brought me back here last night." It was getting frustrating how holding her hands above her shoulders with her palms facing outwards had started to feel normal after last night. Still, this new woman hadn't lowered the improvised weapon, even when Akio took the butt of the shaft in his maw and began to tug it aside. “I thought it'd be alright if I stayed the night."

“Stayed the night, huh?" She glanced at her with a discerning eye, before shaking her head and lightly nudged the box at her feet. “Bad enough you royal-types think you can waltz in here and take my father's guard dog whenever you want. Worse, you won't even tell us what you're doing with him!"

Fia breathed in relief when she allowed Akio to pluck the tool from her hands, and instead she reached down to grab the box she had tossed aside. Steam rose from the center when she peeled back the top, and Fia suddenly realized just how hungry she was when the mouth-watering aroma of fried dough reached her nose.

“I'm not…royalty? I," she glanced at Akio, and although his expression remained stoic she found herself uncertain of just how to respond. “He found me in the rainstorm last night and let me stay the night."

“Hmmmph…" She regarded Fia while reaching into the basket and stepping over to the ponyta. Despite the fire-types' fatigued expression, they perked up noticeably at the food being offered to them and gently plucked it from their hand. “Figures, wouldn't be the first time he brought a stray home he fancied. Well, stray, my name's Mei, this is my farm and my barn." Before the ponyta could close its mouth, she plucked a small bag from her leather pants and poured it on his tongue. Despite the pony's unhappy expression, he grunted and swallowed it with a spiteful toss of his head. “Unfortunately, Akio doesn't make the rules around here, so the way I see it, you owe me for a night's stay."

“This is your farm?" She asked in an incredulous tone, one that aroused the younger woman's ire if her puckered lips and glare was anything to go off of.

“Yes, this is MY farm. I'm eighteen, I'm an adult, and my father trusts me to look after the place while he's gone." She turned to the mudsdale now and produced another steamed roll for them. He took it a bit more gently than the ponyta had while not even trying to hide his interest in their conversation. Also unlike the ponyta, he didn't have the same white powder force on him. “You sure you're not one of the Emperor's men? You're pretty rude for a vagrant."

“Do I LOOK like I'm royalty?" She gestured to herself and immediately wished she hadn't, as the younger woman seemed to take notice for the first time of her state of undress. “I mean…"

“Guess not." Although it was brief, Fia noticed how she smirked when she glanced at the jacket and pants still hanging from the rafter, then back at her current state of undress. “You have nowhere near the same dignity they do. Are you from the Western provinces? I heard that they have no issues sleeping with dogs."

The insinuation was enough to make Fia's face warm, and she grabbed the still damp leg of her pants and pulled it down from the rafters. She was much more mortified than Akio in that regard, as the large canine pokemon's tongue fell from the side of his mouth and he began to pant.

“Okay, seriously?" Fia was already struggling to get dressed, and she nearly lost her footing in her haste. “Nothing like that happened!" She wasn't sure where this sudden desperation was coming from, although she had never been accused of something so vulgar in the past. It didn't help that the dark haired woman carried a knowing smirk that made Fia's face all the redder. “I know you're mad I'm here, but you don't have to insult me!"

“You're right, I am mad you're here." Mei snapped, and for the first time Fia saw Akio flinch. His ears flattened against his skull and his tail stopped its hypnotic swaying. His owner held one hand on her hip to regard Fia, looking her over from her feet to her face, before she shook her head and plucked another roll from the box. “Mostly, though, I'm mad that even though the Emperor gets to take more, and more, and more, I'm still expected to give charity to the less fortunate." She said, before relenting and reaching down to stroke Akio's mane. “The only reason I haven't chased you out of here yet is because my father would disown me if I did."

Mei grabbed a bowl from the workbench and dropped the roll in it, before placing it a few feet in front of Akio. To his credit, the large canine sat on his haunches and waited like a statue watching her the entire time and only stepped forward when Mei gave him a nod. Only then did he dart forward and pluck the delicate morsel from the bowl. Fia had been so focused on him she almost didn't have time to catch the dumpling thrown her way.

“Anyways, you might as well eat something if you're going to be helping me today. Rain's clearing up and I need to get back to picking."

The bun was still warm, and although she did her best not to seem too eager, she couldn't resist biting with a ravenous hunger that rivaled Akio's. The interior was filled with a thick, brown sauce floating with a variety of different vegetables as well as the familiar hint of cheri berry spice. At least cheri berries were still the same, even if everything else had changed.

“Thanks, I…I really am sorry if I basically broke in here." Fia said between bites of the roll. “I don't really have anywhere else to go."

That certainly wasn't a lie, and for the first time she saw the opposition drop from Mei's shoulders accompanied with a sigh. She set the empty box on a tool bunch overladen with a variety of instruments. Mei regarded it for a moment before she turned and crossed her arms over her dirtied apron.

“Yeah, well. There's no accounting for what Akio will drag home next, although it's typically a pokemon." Mei bit down on her lower lip, gnawing at it before taking another bite of her roll. “I guess I'm just happy he made it back, sometimes they keep him for days. What happened to his paws?" She asked, nodding to the visible bare spots where the chains had rubbed him raw the night before. “They have their own arcanine guards at the palace. It drives me crazy they still insist on taking him all the time."

The meager meal sat heavy in Fia's stomach at this question. Akio looked up from the bowl he was lapping clean and pulled his paw back, doing his best to hide the worst of it. Not that he could deny it was there.

“I don't know." Fia muttered, “I think…he was pulling one of their wagons?" By Akio's reaction, it wasn't something he wanted her to know about. Right now his eyes were boring holes straight through her, his expression as unflinching as a statue. “He had some stuff tying him up that I had to undo."

A few moments passed and Fia worried this wouldn't be enough to convince her. In the end, Mei surprised her by shaking her head and heading for the mudsdale's stall. Fia could see for the first time just how tall the stallion was now that he no longer had to hunch down in the narrow stall. He tossed his mane about and flicked his head from side to side after Mei tossed open the barn's doors, his lazy trot forward making the barn tremble. What was left of the inclement sprinkles had finally ended, leaving behind the sound of bird song accompanied by the sun's early morning glow.

“One of these days I'm going to tell them no. They've been asking ever since my dad found him." She rolled her eyes and scoffed. “'Son of the guardian', they keep saying, 'he has Sinnoh's blood in him!'." Mei shook her head again, slower this time and riddled with disbelief. “They wouldn't think that if they saw how afraid he gets at the thought of baths." That Akio flinched at the mere mention didn't help his case, although it did make Mei chuckle. “Make sure you're ready in fifteen. I have a shipment that needs to get to the palace in three days and I'm already behind schedule."

After harnessing the mudsdale up she took his lead and began to guide him away, but not before giving the sick ponyta a gentle pat to the side of his muzzle.

“You get back to sleep. Let the medicine do its work. I'm sure you'll feel better this time" she whispered to him, just loud enough that Fia could catch it. Mei gave the two of them one more sidelong, hesitant glance before leading the mudsdale out the door.

Fia released her held breath and dropped to a bale of hay propped against the wall. In an instant she felt the brush of Akio's soft fur when he stepped up to her and plopped his muzzle in her lap. Akio threw her a sheepish grin and swished his tail faster than ever, his head tilting to the side with a quizzical, warbling growl. She found herself smiling despite her exasperation and reached down to scratch him behind one of his long, triangular ears.

“Son of the 'guardian', huh?"

His bright, green eyes looked up at her and his black nose twitched against her lap. He snorted and shifted his shoulders, but provided no clear answer.

“Did she say the palace?"

Fia nearly leapt from her seat, dislodging Akio from his resting place before spinning around to find the masked woman right where she had been standing before Mei walked in. “Don't fucking do that!" She hissed through clenched teeth to Akio's accompanying growl.

Kuran simply stared at her, her fingers anxiously tapping along her arm accompanied by a growl of her own. When Akio was quick to match her tone with another of his own, she snapped towards the growling dog.

“Keep threatening me, mutt. See where it gets you," she spat at Akio before turning back to Fia. “She's going to the palace. That's where they're taking my mask, I know it. They've been calling in their high-ranking lapdogs from all over the regions to receive their annual tithes." Kuran kept her eye on the door while she spoke, giving no mind to the already slumbering ponyta. “Daku thought it was such a clever idea to strike the caravan carrying part of their payment…should have been obvious they were planning something."

“I don't recall ever agreeing to help you out." Fia grumbled, “I don't even want to help Mei. Why is it that people who threaten me keep expecting something of me?" Despite Akio stiffening and turning his head back to her at that comment, she relented and sighed. “Doesn't mean I'm not going to, it's a joke, lighten up."

Even with the barn doors spilled open to let light shine it, it seemed to stop just feet from where Kuran stood. Shadows hung about her like a shroud, and for a moment she swore it had grown even darker. Kuran's movements were graceful and effortless, like a dancer in their prime and for the first time reminding her of the exceptional dexterity she had shown the night before.

“You have a choice you can make right here, right now," she whispered, and from her belt she plucked Fia's cellphone. The last time Fia had seen it was when it was laying in the dirt at their feet. Kuran held it between two fingers, holding it away from her body and facing the darkened screen towards you. “I've only ever seen something like this once before, and...the owner had a lot of the same claims you did."

Akio moved faster than Fia could predict, his snarl reverberating in her ear followed by him throwing his large form towards her. Kuran leapt into the air, planting one foot in the small of Akio's back as soon as he crossed beneath her and using him as a springboard to grab the edge of the hayloft. The rolling, fluffy battering ram couldn't stop itself in time, and Akio disappeared headfirst into a pile of hay with a loud thunk that made the entire wall of the barn rattle.

For her part, Kuran showed no signs of exertion or surprise after that and hauled herself into the hayloft with one arm, still holding Fia's cellphone in the other.

“As I was saying…you help me get my mask back, you get your…thing back, and I'll tell you what I know." She flicked the phone into the air with one hand before effortlessly catching it and sliding it into her pocket with the other. “From the way you talk, you have no other options, do you?" Despite the mask obscuring her facial features, Fia could just imagine the victorious smirk that had to lurk below it. “You want to get back to your 'Lavaridge Gym', don't you?"

Fia glared at her with as much fury as she could muster, and she debated the merits of climbing up to her. In the end she was left scoffing and began walking towards the predicament Akio was in. The canine was still trying to pull himself free from the trap of fallen hay bales, his tail standing straight and stiff in the air. Mei's insinuation was still fresh in her mind, and that might have been why she suddenly realized just how revealing this position was. When she saw them, she was unable to pull her eyes away from the heavy, low-hanging orbs previously hidden by his fluffy tail.

They swayed with every movement that he made, covered in a russet fur that looked incredibly soft to the touch. It wasn't like she had never noticed certain males were more [i]endowed[/i] than others. Hell, the growlithe she had been paired up with didn't seem to have a problem with showing himself off whenever she gave him an order.

Fia now remembered how she had seen them for the first time when he had crawled into her tent. They were nowhere near the size of Akio's, though.

Fia stepped past his flank and wrapped her arms around the barrel of his neck, tugging with a grunt of effort until he finally came free. Straw, dust, and fragments of wood clung to his mane which he tried to shake free with an annoyed huff as well as a grumble of appreciation.

“You know, it sounds like we need to pick the entire delivery before we can even go to the palace." She shot up at her. “If you really wanted to make sure we got there, you could come down here and help us." Fia walked past the hayloft and the ponyta who was already beginning to wheeze again in its sleep “Or better yet, why don't you take that mask off so I actually know who I'm talking to?"

“First of all," Kuran said, already flopping in the center of a large pile of hay with a clear view of the door, “I just ran my ass off all night while you got to enjoy the company of a warm man, secon- don't give me that look, the two of you certainly seem comfortable around each other." She shifted a bit before reaching up to tap the side of her blank visage. “Secondly," she stiffened and ran one hand along the smooth surface of the blank mask, “you don't want to see what's under this mask. I sure as hell don't."

Fia fought against the surge of warmth assaulting her face, especially when she saw Akio's ears were perked. His tongue had lolled from the side of his maw, accompanied with deeper and richer growls then she was used to vibrating up through his throat.

It was bad enough Mei had accused her, now it seemed like she was getting no respite from any angle.

“Damn it…come on, Akio." Fia grumbled, making the canine perk up in curiosity, “I guess I have work to do."

The morning air was heavy with dew as they stepped from the barn, the drip of water from the eaves of the barn accompanying the cries of pokemon in the distance. It had been difficult to see the rows upon rows of berry bushes that decorated the countryside, a kaleidoscope of different colors ranging as far as the eyes could see. Combees fluttered from hedge to hedge with a low, constant buzzing, their interest focused solely on the blossoming flowers. The air was rife with a dozen different delectably sweet aromas that converged into a heady scent that made her nose tremble.

The warmth of the early morning sun was energizing, chasing away the dour cloud that had enveloped her since the night before. For a moment, Fia just wanted to soak it all in.

For the first time since falling through the portal, everything felt real.

Mei stood in front of a small, single-story dwelling made of rich, brown wood that complimented that looked as if it had been freshly plucked from the forest floor. The front deck was crowded with numerous empty, wooden boxes, each engraved with the name 'Hanei Farms'. Next to them were three wooden chairs, two shoved off to the side and the third drug out to sit in front of the doorway. On this Mei rested while the mudsdale drank from a nearby trough, his tail flicking every so often to ward off the occasional fly nipping at his muscular haunches.

“You talking to the dog in there?" Mei asked as the Fia and Akio approached, her wooden chair squeaking when she pushed herself up from it. “Sounds like it was getting kind of heated, you usually start the day with a lover's quarrel?"

Even the mudsdale seemed amused by this and gave a soft snort before pulling his muzzle from the water. Beads of liquid streamed down his muzzle, his lips twitching in accompaniment to a braying whinny.

Whatever he said made the dog's hackles rise and caused his tail to flag higher. In the end, all he could do was snort and shake his fluffy coat out, bits of dust and hay drifting to the ground around his paws.

“It's going to be a really long day if you keep that up." Fia said, only to receive a shrug in return. “So I'm looking at the farm…What is it exactly that we need to do?"

Mei perked up and gestured for Fia to follow her around the side of the barn. The sound of hooves on rain-saturated, soggy earth followed them as the large, towering equine's presence hung about them. It was shocking to Fia that such a large creature could make such little noise, even more so that Mei seemed utterly calm with him walking close enough to risk an errant hoove stepping on her foot.

It made her thankful Akio wasn't that big, although Fia might have preferred it over his insistence on always being pressed up against her.

“It's really easy. We just have to take in the pecha berry harvest before the starly get to it." She chuckled, “I always leave a couple rows for them to pick over, but sometimes they get greedy."

They walked for quite some time, only stopping when they came to a section of bushes running along the edge of the forest. It was hard to view too deep into them with how densely packed the canopies were, enshrouding the entire interior in darkness. There was a soft thunk as Mei dropped a wooden bucket at Fia's feet, before gesturing towards the narrow wagon-like sled being pulled by the mudsdale.

“Just start filling it up and when it's full dump it in Titan's wagon." She patted the large pokemon's side, kicking up a soft cloud of dust inherent in the ground-type pokemon's thick coat. “We want the big ones that haven't been nibbled on by any pokemon. If you see any bug pokemon, just uh, well, yell for Akio, yeah? Or hit them with a big stick."

“...a stick?" Of all the ways she had been taught to catch pokemon, that mental image alone made her smile. “Don't you have any pokeballs? Why not just catch them?"

While Fia watched, Mei walked over to one of the rows and began plucking the ripe fruit that hung low amidst the leaves. She was careful to set them in the bottom of the bucket, mindful not to let the fragrant skin of the berries split open.

“Hey, that's a great idea! I'll just do that with the gold growing on the other side of the farm." Mei asked with an amused shake of her head. “You're really not from around here, are you?" After Fia had joined her in picking, she continued. “The Empire sells them, yeah, but it isn't cheap, and I'd never waste one on a caterprie. I'm lucky to have a ball for Titan and Levi, and that's just because they used to be wild pokemon."

Titan snorted and tossed his mane, holding it a little higher to watch Fia, before he shifted on his front hooves This must have been a common occurrence for them, because he had already moved to lay amongst the muddy furrows dug through the grass. Even laying down he was large enough to make Akio look like the runt of his litter.

“I would have used one on Akio," Mei continued, chuckling when the canine raised his head and tilted it to the side, “however, I think he likes my cooking enough to not run off. My grandmom knew his great grandfather, I guess. She used to talk about the…what was it…the survey corps and how they used to make their own pokeballs." That made Mei's face light up, but it soured soon after. “Now, it's almost impossible to find the rocks they use for it. The Empire bought up all the mines in the region before my dad could walk. Pick up the pace, now, we got a lot of work to do!"

The day devolved into a blur of alternating between picking berries and dumping them into the wagon. There wasn't much to it, a mundane task that was only broken up by the occasional conversation the two sparked up. Akio was underfoot for most of it, keeping a close eye on the two women while they worked. They had just managed to finish the first row by the time the mid-day sun hung high in the sky, and Mei let them call it for lunch.

Akio and Titan were fed first, each receiving a meal of dry, brown pellets that neither seemed too interested in compared to the meal they had gotten that morning. It took a stern look from Mei before they begrudgingly began to eat, and even then Akio seemed more interested in shifting it around the bottom of the bowl.

While Mei was busy inside the house, and Akio wasn't glued to her hip, she slipped away in the direction of the barn. She moved quietly down the hay-strewn aisle, past the ponyta restlessly sleeping in the corner of his stall. His chest rose and fell in short, ragged breaths that sounded wet and thick. Each exhale was accompanied by a period of silence before he would gasp and snort to continue his unsteady breathing. It made her stop and wince, even more when she saw how low his flames had gotten in his near-comatose state. Not for the first time Fia wished she had her backpack and the - admittedly meager - amount of medicinal supplies within. It was lost in the darkness of the forest now, and just the thought of trying to find it filled her with a dread that she couldn't explain.

The hair on the back of her neck stood on end while she climbed the short ladder to the hayloft, although she was left disappointed to find it empty. Kuran had left no sign that she had ever been there, not a single piece of stray out of place. Fia wrung the top strands of the ladder and huffed before she heard Mei calling out to announce that their food was ready.

The farmhouse had seemed small on the outside, but standing in the entryway made it obvious that it was even smaller on the inside. The kitchen was hardly that, a nook with a fire pit built into the center of a dirt patch in the floor where a large pot was bubbling and smoking. A kitchen table sat nearby, loaded down with a variety of farming equipment covered with a thin layer of dust, each one bearing stress fractures or chipped blades from repeated usage. Mei noticed Fia picking over them and she cleared her throat to catch her attention.

“Dad's fixing those. At least, he was. He'll be back any day now."

Fia shifted to stand awkwardly against the wall while Mei busied herself with cooking. Meals back home typically consisted of cup ramen or tv dinners that complimented her utter lack of cooking abilities. Fia didn't know what she could even offer, and was thankful Mei never asked for assistance.

The crowded living room adjacent to the front door was filled with wooden shelves covered in a variety of knick-knacks and personal trinkets, as well as more of the crates she had seen on the front porch. Some were in a state of partial deconstruction, their boards stacked in a pile near a hammer and a pile of nails. A small table was pushed under one of the only windows in the room, and on it rested a multitude of small, wooden figurines in the likeness of pokemon. She picked one up and turned it over in her hands gently, her fingers following the roughly cut wood. It was just stylized enough for her to pick out the pointed ears and the bushy tail of what was either an eevee or a growlithe.

“Did you make these yourself?" Fia asked. “They're pretty cute."

“Yeah, just something to do on rainy days when I don't feel like working the fields." She watched Fia until she set the figurine back down as if fearing some jaded comment, but was quick to go back to her cooking when none came. “My grandmom taught my dad how to carve, and he got really good at making pokeballs, even if they didn't work without the stones. He was teaching me, but, well…" She trailed off, before nodding towards her. “So what about you? Does the stray in my barn have any family around here?"

Further in the room she came across a small pedestal tucked into the corner. On it rested two immaculate, hand-carved wooden pokeballs with surfaces covered in a glistening layer of lacquer. The tops were made of a shining red stone that felt warm to the touch, nothing like the cool plastic she was used to. Fia was already beginning to pick it up before Mei cleared her throat just loud enough to convince her to set it right back in the table's divot.

“Uh, not really." Already Fia could already feel the familiar tinge of frustration she usually got when asked this question. At least it wasn't as bad as when she was asked about it in her gym interview. “Got a mom in Mossdeep, got two sisters doing their own thing in Rustboro. I'm kind of the black mareep of the family."

“...it's 'cause you like pokemon, right?" Mei was quick to break down into giggles at the sharp stare Fia threw her. “Can't say I've ever heard of towns like that, you really are the traveling type, huh? What about a dad?"

“Not much to say, used to take me hiking and rock climbing all the time. When he'd show up, that is." Fia's brow furrowed, and she fought not to dig her nails too deep into the flesh of her palms. It wasn't worth it, she repeated to herself, not that it ever did her much good in the past. “He ditched out when I was nine. We were supposed to go hike Mt. Coronet, but he never showed up to take me to the harbor." She crossed her arms over her chest and gave a stiff shrug. “So yeah, I'm sure he'll be back 'any day now'."

Although she regretted it as soon as she said it, she looked away when Mei's spoon banged rather loudly against the side of the metal pot.

“Sorry. I don't like talking about him."

Fia left the pokeballs behind and headed back through the crowded room. Her mind was a roaring maelstrom of thoughts, already moving beyond her means of controlling them.

[i]It's your fault he's gone.[/i]

The bitter thought hung there refusing to be ignored like it had so many times in the past. Fia was so focused on it she didn't see the second stack of boards resting in the shadows of the table until her foot caught the side of them. Her hand reached out and caught herself on a large, green tapestry hanging across one wall, making Mei gasp.

“Hey careful, careful!" She set the spoon aside and rushed over to straighten the large, cloth piece that was left hanging askew from a corded braid. “My grandmom got that when the survey corps first founded the city."

Now that Fia had taken a few steps back, she could see the faded paint that decorated the surface. It was just like the picture she had seen in the hallway leading to Flannery's office, a group of people standing shoulder to shoulder with each other. They all wore similar blue outfits with white highlights, the women wearing white hats while the men had on red. The artist was truly gifted, as each face was painstakingly crafted down to the littlest of details. In the background, towering over them, was a large tree with branches that pierced the clouds and seemed to stretch to the heavens themselves.

“That's Godsreach - at least, great grandmom insisted it was." After she was content that there was no damage, she stepped back to Fia's side to better admire the portrait. “Kind of hard to tell without the city around it, isn't it? She always used to talk about how beautiful the tree was, how Sinnoh himself planted it and 'watered it with his divinity'." The air gestures she made told Fia all she needed to know about Mei's opinion. “If Sinnoh wanted to shower the farm with his divinity, I have a few berry bushes that could use a god's touch."

“I've heard that name before, Sinnoh…what does that mean?" Mt. Coronet flashed into her mind again, leaving a sour taste in her mouth that she fought not to spit out. Fia was far more careful this time navigating to the table and took a seat while Mei returned to the bubbling pot. “You know that's a region, right?"

“No, I don't know that." She said with a shrug. “Never heard of it, not sure why you'd name a region that. Sinnoh is our lord, the being that breathed life into our world." Her tone grew as sharp as the knife she plucked from the countertop. The hollow thunk of metal on wood filled the kitchen before she tossed a handful of aromatic green herbs into the stew. “Some say he still walks among us, judging us for our misdeeds while living in fear of what he has created."

“I take it you don't believe?"

“I believe what I can see and touch." Her voice rose like the steam trailing from the pot that had begun to bubble over, its metal lid rattling in place. “So let's see. I believe that I don't have enough money to hire laborers anymore, and that my oran harvest is going to rot on the vine." She pulled the pot from the fire and set it gently in a metal crucible, her hands resting on her hips as she regarded it. “I believe that my ponyta isn't getting better no matter what medicine I buy him." She grew louder as a shade of red began to fill her face, enough to make Fia lean back in her chair. “I believe somehow I'm still expected to provide charity to the less fortunate, while being made to expect nothing in return."

“Sorry, I-" Fia began, only for Mei to cut her off with a wave of the hand.

“So no, I don't believe that someone's judging me for not dropping to my knees and thanking him for a life full of hardship and disappointment." Mei grabbed a bowl from the countertop and laddeled out some of the boiling liquid before bringing it to her with a spoon and a slice of bread. When Mei tossed it down on the table, some of the brown-tinted broth sloshed out before quickly disappearing into the knotted, wooden surface. “I hope you're okay with vegetable soup. I can't really afford much else right now. Get your fill, cause after this we're getting right back to work and we're not stopping till we're done."

Their meal commenced in relative silence after Mei got her own bowl, and despite the small amount of vegetables to broth, or the dryness of the bread, Fia ate like a ravenous snorlax. It was just as good as the roll she had that morning, the odd assortment of berries complimenting the stew with a spicy tartness that made her mouth water from just breathing in the enrapturing aroma. Fia was already wiping up the remnants of the stew when Mei stood and took her bowl from her.

“I'm sorry. I was always told that Sinnoh had a plan. Especially when it came to my mom. It was always 'Sinnoh's plan'." Mei returned and set the topped off bowl back in front of Fia before returning to her seat. “You can only get lectured so many times before you get tired of hearing it. Guess that's the same with your dad, huh?"

Fia dipped her spoon back into the bowl and watched as Mei shifted the remaining contents of her own meal around. It reminded her of Akio toying with his own meal and left her wondering just how frequently thin vegetable stew was on the menu for her.

“I'm really thankful for the meal," Fia began, still struggling to find a haven from the storm in her mind. It was just like her to be focused on something as asinine as that in a situation like this. “I'll be honest with you, I'm pretty damn lost right now, and I don't know how to get home." Mei's stiff posture began to loosen as Fia spoke, and soon enough her spoon stopped toying with her bowl. “I hate to impose on you, but if you really need help around here, well…if you let me stick around for a bit, I'll work as much as I can."

Mei fell silent, her stony face leaving no hint as to just what she was feeling. Finally, after what seemed like an eternity of silence, she gave her a soft smile.

“Guess I was right when I had you pegged as a stray, huh? Well…it would be cruel to tear you away from your boyfriend, after all. And…" Mei sighed, “and I could kind of use the company. You can only talk to pokemon for so long before realizing they don't have anything interesting to say. If you keep up the hard work, I might even let you move into the spare room." Her expression softened, becoming the same warm glow that showed when she was talking to her pokemon, and she gently slapped the table. “Now hurry up, we're burning daylight and we still have a lot to do."

Fia, despite her earlier apprehension, found herself smiling along with her.

“You got it, boss."

***

Fia shifted on the stiff bedroll that seemed to be just a step up from the hay she had slept in the night before. The blankets were coarse and scratchy, but they kept away the chill of the night almost as well as Akio's fur had. Her eyes closed in a new attempt to let sleep overtake her, but it refused to be coerced no matter how she beckoned it to come. Her joints groaned in protest with each movement she made, reprimanding her for all of the physical labor she had put in that day. If she wasn't so used to hauling herself up cliff sides, she was certain she would have been left near catatonic.

She still didn't understand how Mei worked with a robotic-like intensity that neve diminished, easily finishing and coming to help Fia with her own rows more than once during the day. For as much as the younger woman got under her skin, she was dutiful and patient with her, although she had grown quiet after their lunch.

While his owner had become withdrawn, Akio had done an admirable job of keeping her entertained. Fia found herself smiling when she remembered how he had hid himself amongst one of the rows, waiting for her to pull aside the branches before he darted forward to lick her cheek. He had knocked her to the ground, in his haste, his tail - still plunged into the hedge - wagging fast and hard enough to send berries flying everywhere. His mane had been full of sticks and leaves, and despite Mei's smirk, Fia couldn't help herself from laughing.

A small 'thump' filled the room, followed by an incessant tapping on the wooden struts holding a leather curtain in place over the window. Fia shifted to regard it and in the shadow of the moonlight pouring down from above, she saw a familiar figure cast against it. It tied her stomach up in knots, and she sighed as she pried herself from the warm confines of her bedroll to creep across the wood flooring. When she threw the tarp aside, she found Kuran leaning against the side of the building. She didn't turn to greet Fia, her eyes were locked on the faint glow of the city in the distance.

“That fleabag said you were sleeping in here." Kuran said, her fingers tapping idly against her arm. After a moment she reached into her jacket and pulled out a folded piece of paper. “You know that delivery your friend is making? That's your way in."

Despite being offered the crinkled square, Fia didn't move her hands from the windowsill, not even when Kuran shot her a glare.

“Well?"

“Well…what?" Fia retorted, keeping her voice low. Even with the door closed behind her, she didn't like the thought of having to explain to Mei who the mysterious woman hanging around her home was. Knowing her, she'd probably assume it was another of Fia's lovers. “What do you expect me to do?"

Kuran gave a sigh that went on long enough for Fia to pick up on the exaggerated tone. That just made her more frustrated, any chance of getting to sleep that night vanishing along with her patience.

“Seriously, I'm not a thief or some kind of bandit." She emphasized this word, even though Kuran seemed nonplussed. “I'm a gym trainer, I'm a hiker, the hell do you expect me to do?"

“You see, there you go using that word 'gym' again. I don't know what that means" Kuran cut across, her tone as sharp as steel while she whirled in place. She stood to her full height in front of her, the two women staring each other down until Fia finally flinched and looked away. “I already told you that I can't go into the palace. I physically can't. And if anyone made it out last night without getting killed or locked up, Ismene sure as hell can't find them." Kuran leaned closer, their foreheads almost touching with the narrow wall the only thing to separate them. “You're going to help me, because…"

Kuran curled her free hand around, once more holding the cellphone she had taken from her. The glass bore a few fresh scratches and chips to the plastic casing that stood out in the light of the moon

“You want to know what I can tell you about how to get home, don't you?"

When Fia made no attempt to confirm or deny, Kuran let the cellphone linger tantalizingly close before she surprised her and set it on the windowsill.

“You can have this back, it doesn't do anything no matter how many times I hit it."Kuran said, making no move to stop Fia when she reached out to take the phone. “Must be a nice place you come from. Where else can you get something like this?" When her hand pulled free, she flicked her wrist and the miniaturized pokeball stolincreased to its full size. “I asked Ismene if she had ever seen one like this before…do you know how much she offered me for this? Here, as a gesture of goodwill." She tossed it back to Fia, leaving her scrambling to catch it before it hit the ground. “I don't know where you're from that you have something like [i]that[/i], but I bet you want to get back to it?"

Fia looked from the empty pokeball and cellphone then back at Kuran's offering hand. Although it made her bite down on her lower lip, she sighed and snatched the paper from her. The surface was as coarse as the blanket, and it was sealed with a wax symbol bearing the insignia of a large tree with a stylized letter 'I' in the middle of it. It reminded her of the tapestry hanging in the living room, although the roots of this tree sank deeper into the ground than the branches rose upward.

“We have two nights to get you ready for this. I don't know how much I can teach you in so short a time, but you're the only chance I have." Kuran pulled away from the window, standing up a little straighter and stretching out in the moonlight. “Don't let your friend know we're doing this. We don't need any loose ends." She snorted. “That was Daku's mistake and you saw what happened to him. I'll be back tomorrow night, I have to get some supplies ready."

Fia turned when she heard a soft thump outside her room, the hair on her arms standing on end. Memories of her mother catching her sneaking out in highschool froze her in place. In the brief second she had looked away, Kuran disappeared, a solemn breeze the only thing left where she had been standing.

“How does she keep doing that…" She grumbled, only to shake her head and toss the paper on her bedroll. The pokeball and cellphone rested heavy in her hand, the screen remaining dark no matter how many times she tried pressing the power button. It wasn't like it would do her a lot of good in a land without electricity, although it would be a comfort in that moment.

The barn in the distance called out to her, offering the promise of a different kind of comfort.

The tarp flapped softly behind her and the cool, damp grass kissed the bottom of her feet when she hit the ground. It was quiet, so much more than she was used to, just like the serenity of the cliff sides back in Lavaridge. Far from the rumble of cars or the incessant street traffic that she had to endure when visiting her sisters in Rustboro. She had always wondered how difficult it would be to stay sane if she took up their offer of moving in with them.

If she had, she wondered if she would have found herself so far from home.

The barn door creaked a little louder than she intended it to, but the sleeping forms of the two equine pokemon didn't so much as twitch. The mudsdale's head hung low, his chest rising and falling in great, deep breaths that caused his nostrils to flare with each exhale. The ponyta, Levi, if she remembered Mei correctly, was as solid as a statue. From what Fia had learned on her journey to become a gym trainer, it was common for a ponyta's flames to diminish in strength when they slept. That didn't mean it made her comfortable seeing flame spurts as weak as a stove's pilot light.

She stepped past them, the hay swallowing up any sound that she made on her way towards Akio's stall.

To her surprise, as soon as she opened the door she was met with a soft, inquisitive grunt and the sound of a large weight shifting onto its side. Although he seemed to be trying to blink the sleep away from his eyes, he didn't appear to be unhappy with the sight of her. She would have felt bad for disturbing him if it weren't for just how incessantly he was wagging his fluffy tail.

Fia brought a finger to her lips to shush him before stepping into the cramped stable and closing the door behind her. She flopped down in the straw next to him, only to be surprised when one of his large paws instantly wrapped around her and pulled her his side. His tongue lapped at her cheek a few times, intermixed with the soft, cooing grunts and the sound of his panting.

So much better than the blankets back at the house.

Heat rose to her face that wasn't being exuded by the canine's ashy-smelling fur, and she allowed herself to sink into it. The barn faded into darkness for a few moments, and as much as she wanted to just let herself fall asleep in his clutches, she pulled back to an inquisitive warble from him.

“I'm guessing you saw Kuran too?" She whispered, the sharpened expression that came across his face all she needed to see. “Yeah…guess she's not going to leave us alone, is she?"

He grumbled faintly, like a car trying to start on a cold day, and let his paw drift to the small of her back. It worked to silence her, while giving her a mouthful of arcanine fur, but only briefly.

“Heh, I don't know what to make of her either…I guess I'm thankful to meet you and Mei, at least. I can't even begin to understand everything that's going on." She listened to the loud, booming of his heart through his chest, the tempo increasing as her hand reached up to scritch the underside of his muzzle. “I was supposed to have a growlithe as a partner, although I don't think he would have evolved into one like you." She looked up to find his tongue hanging from his muzzle, the slightly sour odor of his breath making her look away, although she couldn't help but chuckle. “I wish I could take you back to the gym, I bet Flannery would freak out."

He tilted his head to the side, only for his ears to shoot up straight and his paw to press hard against her back, once again enshrouding her in darkness.

“Hey, what are yo-"

Fia fell silent when she heard the barn door opening accompanied by the light of a lantern shining across the wall. Before she could react, Akio rolled them onto his side opposite the stable door, holding her suffocatingly close to his chest and refusing to ease up. Even though it was soft and she was whispering, Fia could still hear the voice of Mei accompanied by the sound of hooves getting closer.

“I know, Titan…I just can't sleep…and I never seem to hear you complaining afterwards."

Through the tufts of fur springing up before her eyes, she could see the lantern shining over Akio's bulky form. It didn't linger for more than a second before disappearing further into the barn. Only then did Akio ease his grasp on her, letting her look over his shoulder to the light shining over the stable wall.

He tried to stop her by placing a paw on her hip and shaking his head even though Fia couldn't contain her curiosity.

Through a small hole in the stable wall she was able to look into the back room of the barn, one that had been left bare. Titan stood in the center of it, his tail flicking gently with Mei, dressed in a flowing nightgown that reached down to her ankles, pressing her hands against his chest.

The stallion was tense, his ears folded back even as Mei leaned up and planted a kiss on his flaring nostrils. Her hand trailed delicately down the side of his muzzle, causing his lip to pull back a little making him knicker for her.

“You know Akio doesn't care if we do this…" Mei whispered to him, another hand finding its way to his broad, muscular chest and stroking him with clear reverence in her touch. “Levi…Levi isn't going to wake up either." Her giggle was bubbly and soft, more relaxed than anything she had heard coming out of her for the entire day. “Don't look at me like you're not going to enjoy this…"

His tail flicked a few times and one of his front hooves stomped against the ground with enough force to make Mei stumble. It only encouraged her to cling to him tighter, her kisses reaching lower along his long muzzle, each one gentle and fluttering with increasing desperation. Titan's head tilted to the side a little and his long, pink tongue darted out to flick across the bottom of her chin before running along her lips, invoking more amused laughter from Mei.

“I knew you wouldn't be upset…" Mei cooed as she began to walk past him, her hand trailing down his dirty flank. Fia hadn't noticed the dusty brown streaks that had been stained into the white nightgown, the cloud of dust that the ground-type was kicking up settling over the two of them like a shroud. “I bet seeing another girl running around the farm makes you all hot and bothered, doesn't it?"

From beside her, Fia heard the low, deep growl rising from Akio and realized that his head was hovering right next to her own. His ears had been tucked back and his tail rose just high enough to be viewed over the top of the low wall. His massive bulk shifted, pressing against Fia near enough to knock her away from the hole before she steeled herself and glared at him. He huffed before wincing when he heard Mei clearing her throat loudly.

“I'm just teasing, Akio. I know you're interested in her," She called out with a stern voice, “if you're not happy about this, you can always go for a walk."

Fia looked into Akio's deep green eyes, his expression softening while he grabbed her sleeve in his mouth and tried to tug her away. But after a day spent being teased to no end by Mei, Fia couldn't bring herself to leave just yet, the curiosity that was growing in her demanding an answer. The stable had grown so much warmer, enough to make beads of sweat form on her forehead and free her completely from whatever tiredness had soaked into her bones.

When Akio made no attempt to move away, Fia turned her attention back to the scene unfolding before her. She had heard of such 'partnerships' thrown around as joking banter, of a team taking their relations to a level typically frowned upon by polite society. Hell, she had even heard an old story about a trainer marrying their pokemon.

It took her breath away to see this unfolding before her, each passing second causing her heart to beat faster and faster.

The younger woman's hand continued to glide down Titan's flank, teasing him with supple touches and making the stallion snicker under his breath. His stoic gaze was reserved solely for her, and as Mei dropped to her knees under him, Fia had to bite back the audible gasp that risked betraying her position.

It had never been something she had paid attention to on a pokemon before. Hell, seeing Akio's fuzzy balls earlier in the day was still burned into her memories. Yet he had nothing on the imposing equine that spread his hind legs wider, giving Mei full access to a low-hanging sac with two heavy, bowling-ball sized testicles. From a fat sheath an even fatter tip had fallen free, its head so much larger than the shaft that followed behind it. She watched as the stallion trembled when Mei brought her face closer to it and one of her hands reached up to cup the underside of his hefty nuts.

“Mmmm…I should have kicked you out in the rain last night, then maybe you would have gotten a decent bath for once." Mei said, noting the way the stallion stiffened with a roll of his eyes. “Oh hush, you know I like how dirty you get after a full day's work…" With one hand currently busy toying with the stallions balls, her other reached around to squeeze the base of his sheath, before it sank to the thick ring that ran around the middle of his shaft.

Her hand was so delicate compared to the bestial organ she was currently teasing, her fingers gliding along the thickening length with a confidence that told Fia just how familiar Mei was with it. She crawled closer under him, now completely enshrouded by the hulking beast's massive frame and allowing his shaft to hang right before her eyes.

Mei brought her lips to the flared tip and pressed them firmly against the thickening flare, despite it seeming far too large to ever realistically fit in her mouth. She cocked her head to the side and pressed her tongue against the edge, before pulling it across the entire length. No more words were spoken as Mei worked up a feverish intensity that made Fia's face warm with second hand embarrassment.

Titan snorted and tilted his head back before closing his eyes, his ears pressed against his head while his tail began to twitch from the stimulation. One of his large hooves came down on the ground less than a foot away from Mei, but she made no indication she was intimidated or startled by it. It almost made Fia envious to see the level of trust between the two of them, the mudsdale aware of each small movement she made and accommodating her likewise.

As the last inch fell from his sheath, Mei pulled herself back just in time for the limp shaft to suddenly jerk upwards, slapping against the barrel of his stomach with a wet smack that echoed through the barn. Fia's eyes widened as it did it again, moving as if it had a mind of its own and spraying a clear spurt of fluid across the ground where it was quickly swallowed up by the hay-strewn floor.

A raw, earthy scent rose above the musty scent of the barn. It momentarily took Fia aback, making her reach for her nose while grimacing against the onslaught her olfactory senses were under. That Mei seemed so content being under him and that close to the source of his potent musk was infeasible to her.

Akio grumbled gently beside her and she felt one of his large paws coming down on her leg. It sought to pull her away, and despite the stern look she gave the agitated canine, he didn't remove it. That was fine, Fia was content to let it rest where it lay, even though its heavy pressure was making the hairs on the back of her neck start to rise.

Mei had drawn her tongue back to the center of Titan's tip, and as she pulled her mouth away her lips glistened with the same slick pre that decorated the ground around her. Her tongue spread it like a thin veneer of lip gloss before she pulled it into her mouth, her eyes closing an expression of contentment coming across her face.

“You've been getting into the chesto berries again, haven't you…?" When the mudsdale gave a soft knicker and a twitch of the ear, Mei grinned at him. “You know I can taste it on you, you don't have to deny it."

The paw that rested on her leg had started to move further up her thigh, so slowly that she didn't realize it at first. She was utterly hypnotized by it all, of the sheer intimacy that Mei was sharing with her pokemon that almost…almost made her envious. To have someone she cared about so much, was willing to do something like this for, it evoked an echoing feeling of longing that resonated within her. Fia's entire body stiffened when Akio's paw hit the crook of her leg, and no longer was he fixing her with an exasperated expression.

He appeared confused as his bulky paw rubbed against the front of the sleeping gown Mei had lent her, the thin material doing little to obscure her panties from him. One of Fia's hands moved to rest atop his paw while a battle raged in her mind. Did she want to push him away, or let him keep going? It left her frozen like a statue as his piercing, green eyes dug into the depths of her soul.

His cold, wet nose brushed against her cheek, a surprisingly subtle touch for a pokemon of his size. Whenever he brushed against her he always put his full weight into it, but not this time. His black-lipped maw fell open and his long, pink tongue dipped forth to press against the underside of her chin. Fia shivered as it began to drag upwards, passing over her lips in a feral kiss that left behind a light sheen of canine slobber behind.

Fia's head had begun to pound, her ears ringing and interlaced with the occasional grunt or snort from Titan. The paw that had been pressing between her legs now began to rub in a slow, circular pattern, and even through two layers of cloth, she could feel just how coarse his toe beans were. His claws caught on the fabric, just enough to begin pulling strands of it apart in a slow, methodical process that Fia did nothing to stop.

That this was really happening was so surreal she was certain it was a dream, a fantasy concocted by someone else. Even when Akio's tongue licked across her lips again, a little more forcefully this time, she found it hard to believe she was sharing her first kiss.

One with a pokemon, no less.

[i]Sorry, Flannery,[/i] Fia thought with a smile and a faint giggle,[i] I guess all that time I spent fantasizing about you was for nothing.[/i]

Fia tilted her head back against the stable wall as the large canine pushed closer to her, his hot, damp breath tickling her chin now. Fia could still watch Mei and Titan out of the corner of her eye, but it was difficult to focus when Akio's large head pressed against the swell of her breasts. He nosed at each of them with the same courteous gentleness while his warm breath cascaded down the front of her night gown.

As Fia watched, Mei grasped the base of Titan's imposing shaft in both hands and began to stroke with slow, measured tugs. In no time her fingers were glistening with pre that was becoming more copious with every passing second. Mei rubbed him from the root of his cock all the way to the bulky ring at the center of it, her actions making Titan visibly shiver and shake out his dirty coat.

A warm, wet lap across the front of her chest broke her resolve and forced her to gasp. The sound took her by surprise, making Akio wince and pull away from her with ears pricked as high as they could go. They both waited with bated breath, Fia anticipating any moment to find Mei leaning over the stall door to find them.

The wet slurps and the stomping of the mudsdale's hoof against the dirty floor told her she was still preoccupied at the moment.Once he realized they were safe, Akio nuzzled towards Fia again, a bit more determined this time and letting his slobbery tongue graze against her covered breasts. Fia didn't typically wear a bra to bed, a habit she had grown fond of after untold nights spent camping out beneath the summer sky. She found herself regretting that decision when the warm, wet cloth of her undershirt rubbed against the soft buds hidden beneath. It only took a few licks for Akio to determine exactly where they were, and each wet slap of his tongue against them made Fia's toes begin to curl.

It wasn't like her to deny herself the carnal pleasure of a stray hand between her legs. At the end of a long day of hiking, it was sometimes the perfect thing to end the night with. All the stress and worry fading away, leaving nothing else in that moment. Never before had she felt the touch of another on these parts of her body, it made her want to tell him where to touch her, to guide him to the parts of her that would evoke the best response.

Fia closed her eyes as Titan's snorts and grunts began to grow heavier, the ground almost rumbling beneath her with each powerful stomp of his hoof. Her hands pressed against the top of Akio's head, digging into his thick, coarse fur and directing him lower to make his cold nose drag across the front of her nightgown.

Her eyes opened just in time for her to see him pull his paw out from between her legs, thin strips of fabric hanging from his blunt claw tips like flags in the breeze. At that moment there was no one else. All the stress of the last couple of days intermingled with a need for relief in the most instinctual way her body could receive it. She preemptively clapped a trembling hand over her mouth, knowing that when his nose finally found what it was searching for, she wasn't going to be able to hold herself back.

Never before had she felt so small. So completely and utterly vulnerable. With it came a sense of comfort, one she had never felt before, and one that she couldn't begin to parse.

Fia's torn clothing left her completely vulnerable to the great hound, leaving her to tremble when his breath cascaded over her virgin slit. She was unwilling to watch when he pressed his black nose into the small patch of brown pubic hair she hadn't had the chance to completely trim away. It wasn't like she had planned on anyone seeing this part of her, after all. From the loud snort he made, she gathered that he must have enjoyed the scent, for seconds later he began to [i]grind[/i] his muzzle against her.

Jolts of electricity raced up her back and left her grasping his mane for dear life, as if she might drift away without him to tether her. The first flick of his tongue was cautious, but it brought with it such intense heat that made her groan through her hand. After the first taste, Akio's tongue became bolder when she made no attempt to stop him. Hell, she actually spread her legs a little wider in a silent invitation for him to partake in more of her, something that Akio was more than happy to take.

Fia imagined this must have been what it was like for Mei, a gnawing need that superseded any other thought that tried to convince her this was a bad idea.

Mei had grown silent except for the occasional slurp of her lip, for she had stretched her jaw to an impressive width to take his head in. That such a large flare could fit in her mouth was inconceivable, even if it appeared far more malleable than Fia had first imagined it to be. That being said, Mei's face was partially contorted while she bobbed her head on the first couple of inches in desperation bordering on fanatical need.

Akio's tongue reminded her that she had her own suitor to entertain, one that was becoming emboldened the deeper his tongue pierced her lips. He was almost panting in his eagerness to get more of her, his tongue bathing the front of her groin and leaving it glistening with drool that cooled quickly in the barn air. The entire time his green eyes watched her in constant vigil, a sentinel never letting a single moment of this slip from his watch.

The sound of Titan's mighty whinny rang out in her ears when Akio first pushed his tongue into her. It dipped deep, spreading her walls more than her fingers ever had and radiating a heat that she couldn't compare to anything else. Even the errant flame attacks she had to dodge during training were no more than candles compared to this. Jolts of pleasure raced up her spine, sending her brain into meltdown while the rest of her body screamed out for more of him.

Fia had just enough sense to turn back to the hole as Titan's shaft grew thick and began to throb under Mei's dutiful hands, her face twisting up with exertion as soon as his balls pulled tight to his groin. Never once did she falter, not letting him go, not letting his fat tip slip from her greedy maw.

It was a show that Fia just couldn't draw her eyes away from, especially when rivulets of white began to trickle from the corners of Mei's mouth. Each twitch of Titan's heavy balls caused the flow to increase until the trickle from her mouth became pearly rivers, and finally Mei had to release him in a gasping, coughing fit that left her open to the equine assault. Strand after strand of heavy, white ropes splattered across the front of her form, the first striking her in the face and forcing her to look away. It left the rest of her open to his carnal marking, allowing it to stream down her in thick, sticky strands that clung to her body like glue.

Akio had reached a fevered pitch of licking, his tongue desperately searching deeper in her for something that only the canine seemed to be aware of. He growled deep in his throat, taking her by surprise and causing his tongue to vibrate within her better than any toy she could have hoped for. She could feel it when he met with resistance, the thin strip of skin within her denying him deeper entrance into her. He tested it with a few careful licks that made her wonder just how tempted he was to break it.

It left her heart racing, had her almost silently willing him to take the plunge for both of their sakes. She was almost ready to grab the back of his head and force him deeper before his wet nose suddenly shifted to grind directly against the top of her slit. Fia's eyes widened and she jolted upwards at the surprise attention the sensitive bundle of nerves was suddenly being subjected to.

Fia found herself sinking her teeth into the calloused flesh of her hand to hold back the sudden need to scream.

Her hips jerked upwards, making Akio snort from her reaction. For a moment his ears began to tuck back and his tongue started to withdraw from her, leaving her feeling torturously empty. That was when she finally found herself, the hand that grasped his mane squeezing even tighter and yanking him right back where he had planted himself.

The pulsing pleasure that washed over her left dark spots at the corner of her vision that danced and swayed in time with her heartbeat. It was a sublime pleasure, one that sapped the tension from her body and left her a malleable puddle of humanity ripe for Akio to enjoy. Her walls clenched around his tongue as she came for him, and she had just enough sense to hear him growl in appreciation for her.

When she came back to reality, everything seemed to be darker, and she realized that Mei's lantern light was beginning to drift away.

“See? Doesn't that feel so much better?" Fia heard her saying, her words still riddled with the occasional cough. “One of these days I'll actually be able to swallow even half of that…"

Akio's tongue pulled free of her when the barn door creaked open before shutting with a gentle bang, leaving the two of them in content silence.

The exhaustion hit her in a crashing wave that made it difficult to keep her eyes open. Every part of her fought against the knowledge that she should get up and return to her bedroom, lest Mei find her in the canine's company. It was what she should have done, she knew, but she couldn't quite bring herself to care.

That was why she didn't resist when Akio's commanding paw pressed against her shoulder and began to drag her down into the familiar bed of hay. His paws were possessive, demanding she acquiesce to his demands and leaving her with no other choice in the matter. In truth, she found herself welcoming it, the comfort of a sturdy foundation against her back all that she wanted in that moment.

Even when she felt something hard and exceedingly hot pressing against the small of her clothed back, she didn't pull away. Akio's head rested just above her own while he growled softly for her, a constant, rumbling murmur that seemed more for anyone that might stumble across them.

Mei had said that Akio wanted her, she could only imagine this was his version of laying claim to her. She found herself thankful that he didn't see the need to coat her in a literal shower of seed to prove that.

Akio's heavy breathing resounded in her ears accompanied by the occasional twitch of his hips to grind himself against her. In that instant, her fear and uncertainty began to fade away, banished at least for the moment.

In mere moments she had lost her will to continue fighting it, and gave into the solemn embrace of sleep filled with the the sound of Akio's commanding growls.