FSE

Furry search engine

formerly SoFurry search engine

Chapter Seven

Rustboro Dreams

by Havoc

"The best thing about dreams is that fleeting moment, when you are between sleep and awake, when you don't know the difference between reality and fantasy, when for just that one moment you feel with your entire soul that the dream is reality, and it really happened."

• Unknown

---

Aurelia looked around, not quite certain where she was. Her surroundings were dim like twilight, and the air had a cloudy, shimmery feel to it. The young Zangoose could not see very well, which was disconcerting to her. Her eyes were normally very good in darkness, but now she could not see more than ten feet in front of her. Her white and red fur started to stand on end as she tried to use her other sense to determine what was around her, but she had no luck.

This is strange..., she said to herself. Where is Eric, or Peb, or Anna? Mia, Lorena, or Jeremy? She could not see any of them. Slowly, she began to walk forward, her arms held slightly in front of her to feel for anything she might accidentally run into. Her panic began to grow when she did not see the darkness clear, and she started to run, stumbling blindly forward as she tried to escape the twilight.

"Eric!" Aurelia called out, her voice sounding terrified even to her own ears. "Peb! Anna! Eric!" No answer came to her fearful cries. She continued running, her long ears whipping about as she turned her head this way and that.

Suddenly, she saw what she thought was an object moving ahead of her. Desperate for anything other than darkness, she moved towards it. The closer she got to it, the clearer she could see whatever it was. Aurelia slowed down as she approached, growing wary. As she got closer, she could see that it was a person standing with its back to her. Although she could not see a face, she felt certain that it was a young man.

When Aurelia was almost right behind him, the man turned around. Aurelia looked up, eager to see his face, but haziness nibbled at the edges of her vision, and she could not see who it was. For some reason, however, she felt like she knew him, and that she could trust him.

"Lia," the man said. His voice sounded warm and kind.

"How do you know my name?" Aurelia asked. She blinked her eyes furiously, trying to clear her vision so that she could see his face.

The man chuckled, and he reached for her, taking her by the paw. "Follow me. I'll show you the way to what you're looking for." He tugged on her arm, and Aurelia felt compelled to follow him. The pair began walking, and Aurelia could see the darkness starting to vanish. Light was replacing the haze, growing brighter by the second.

In an instant, a brilliant flash enveloped both of them, blinding Aurelia and making her bring her free arm up in front of her eyes. All of a sudden they were away from the dark place. Aurelia felt the sensation of lying on something soft. She felt exposed, naked, and she clasped her arms around her. The Zangoose looked up, blinking her eyes against the dazzling light before her. The man from before was kneeling over her, looking down at her. She still could not see his face.

"Lia, we're here," he said. "I told you I would lead you in the right direction." He touched his hand to her body, brushing his fingers through the fur on her belly. Aurelia found herself trembling at his touch.

"Who...are you?" she whispered, unable to make her voice louder.

The man gave no answer. He just leaned down, closer and closer to her. His face was getting nearer to hers, enough for her to feel his breath against her cheeks. Aurelia could almost make out his face. Just a little more...A little closer...Inches away...Their lips were almost touching...He opened his mouth, about to whisper something to her...

"PEEP PEEP PEEP!!!"

With a start, Aurelia woke up, her dream vanishing in a flash of brilliant sunlight coming from overhead. Dazed, she perceived a pair of small, black eyes staring directly into hers, unblinking. The Torchic behind those eyes looked gleeful, pleased with herself for waking up the sleeping Zangoose.

"L-Lorena!" Aurelia gasped, breathless. "Get off of me! What do you think you're doing, waking me up like that!?" She batted at the little Torchic with the back of her paw. Lorena dodged her swipe and flitted off, cheeping mischievously as she hightailed it back to her trainer's tent.

Her heart still pounding from the intense dream, Aurelia held a paw to her brow. Sometime in the night, she must have rolled out of her sleeping bag and partway out of the flap of her tent. She sat up, rubbing her eyes and looking around the clearing in which she, Eric, and Mia had set up camp. Nobody else was stirring, even though the sun had already risen. Sighing, she crawled back into the tent and zipped the flap up, hoping to get an hour or so of extra sleep before they packed up for the day.

It was that dream again..., the Zangoose thought to herself, settling down on top of her sleeping bag. She was feeling a little too warm to get inside it. I've been having that dream more and more lately... She went down on her back, looking up at the roof of her tent. It barely feels like I slept at all...And what's that smell?

Aurelia's sensitive nose perked up, sniffing the air inside her tent. Several moments passed before she could place the spicy, dusky aroma. Sitting halfway up, she looked down.

Ahh...Dammit...

Aurelia reached a paw down, touching the tip of one claw to the damp, slightly matted fur between her legs. This happened every time she had that dream. But really, who could help but get turned on by an intense dream like that? And she was a healthy young adult, after all. If she felt urges like that, it was nothing to be ashamed about, right? All it meant was that she had the proper biological drives. Perfectly normal, wasn't it?

Ah...I'm making excuses..., she thought to herself. Aurelia flopped back onto her bedroll, shifting to her left side and closing her eyes. I should have a little more self-control if I'm gonna be a famous show pok _é__ mon..._ Relaxing, resting her head on the pillow, she tried to put the dream out of her mind. But...I could have sworn the man in the dream this time was...

She shook her head to clear it. That was one complication and bit of awkwardness that she most certainly did not need right now! If she let herself think about him that way for even one minute...Hm...Well, that wasn't really fair to him, was it? He wasn't bad looking. And...she would be fooling herself if she told herself that thought hadn't crossed her mind once or twice in all the time they'd known each other. But it was just too weird to think about! He was human, and she really ought to be attracted to her own species, even if...Well, she was half-human, after all. So in the grand scheme of things it really wasn't all that strange, was it?

...Dang it...It's no use... Surrendering with a lilting sigh, the young Zangoose rolled over onto her stomach, pulling her knees under her and lifting up her tail end. Just a little bit...to ease the tension... She moved a paw underneath, reaching back between her legs. She bit her lip gently as a finger brushed the sensitive, swollen flesh it encountered there. Ah, yeah...

Aurelia thought back to her dream, taking it up where it left off, where it always left off before she woke up. The man - the human - would kneel over her as she lay on her back, leaning close to her. His lips would be mere inches away from her ear, and she'd be able to feel his breath stirring against her cheek. Finally, she'd hear what she always knew he'd whisper to her...

"I love you, Aurelia..."

She gasped as she stroked a finger along her slit, normally hidden by fur but now prominent with arousal, imagining that her shadowy human lover was doing it to her. Oh, but he wouldn't just touch her there, not right away. First his hand would lightly brush her cheek as his lips touched her in the tenderest kiss, his thumb caressing her soft fur. He'd move his fingers down her face and neck, brushing down her shoulders. She'd arch her back, look lovingly into his deep blue eyes...

He'd smile down at her, brushing back a lock of his dark brown hair as his hand cupped over her slight breast. Aurelia moaned softly, reaching underneath her body and mimicking the motion. Her fingers found her nipple through the silky softness on her chest, and she pinched hard, sending a shock of pleasure through her upper body. The Zangoose raised her rear higher, opening up her legs wider as her finger probed her sex, shallowly at first then deeper as her inner moisture slickened the digit. Aurelia began rocking her hips back and forth, the vision inside her head slipping as she became caught up in the sensations. She tried to concentrate, wanting to take her fantasy all the way.

As he touched her breasts, he would kiss her again, deeper this time. His tongue would touch her lips, gingerly asking permission to enter, which she would gladly give. Their tongues would intertwine in a deep lovers' kiss. She'd wrap her arms around his bare back, clutching him to her, begging him to take her...

Aurelia cried out shrilly, unable to stifle her voice before it escaped her mouth. She cupped her hand over her pussy, her knees clenching together as she came. Her entire body shook, and she grabbed her pillow and jammed it into her mouth, muffling the continued moans and cries of ecstasy that continued to accompany the throes of her orgasm. When her legs could no longer support her body, she fell over onto her side and curled into a ball, exhaling into her pillow as the last tremors of pleasure echoed up and down her spine.

Exhausted, Aurelia finally relaxed, panting as she rolled onto her back, staring up at the ceiling of her tent. She removed her hand from between her legs, thoughtfully tracing a finger up her stomach as her other hand propped up behind her head. She took one long breath in, slowly letting it out in a long sigh of peaceful contentment.

It was much more intense this time, she thought. Especially when I pictured...his face... She was slightly troubled by this thought for a moment, but she put it out of her mind quickly enough, closing her eyes sleepily, the odd trilling purr of her species quietly rumbling in her throat as she began to fall asleep once more.

"Lia? You awake?"

Aurelia's eyes shot open again as her tent door rustled. She scrambled to grab the open flap of her sleeping bag, barely managing to slide herself inside before the tent was unzipped. Eric poked his head inside.

"Oh, did I wake you up?" he said. He looked a little groggy, and must have just woken up himself. "Sorry...I just thought I heard something. Sounded like someone moaning, or something..."

"Ah, no...I mean, yes...," Aurelia stammered, her sleeping bag pulled up to her nose. She could feel her face burning, and was certain that a rosy tinge was coming to her white cheeks. To make it worse, the spicy, dusky scent of her arousal permeated the air inside her tent. She wasn't sure that Eric would be able to smell it, but maybe he could. "I mean, I heard it, too, but I think it was just a wild pokémon somewhere in the woods, or something..."

"Oh...Okay...," Eric said. He yawned, and then paused with his mouth slightly open, his nose wrinkled slightly. "What's that smell? It smells kinda...I dunno...exotic."

Aurelia racked her brain for a good excuse. She wasn't too interested in having the complicated conversation that might arise from telling him the truth. "Oh, it's nothing. I mean, um, you kinda caught me in the middle of freshening up for the day. It's just...um...it's some perfume my mother gave me as a going-away present. Do you like it?"

Eric blinked, looking a little surprised by the question. "It's kind of a strong scent...," he said slowly, "...but, yeah, it smells pretty good. Really good, I guess." He rubbed a hand over his face. "Well, it's getting kind of late in the morning. Hurry up and finish getting ready so we can head into town. I'd like to look around a bit, and then maybe tomorrow we can try heading to the Gym!" He ducked his head back out of the tent, leaving Aurelia to her now very confused thoughts.

He...He likes it?

...Maybe while they were looking around town, she ought to actually try to find some perfume.

---

Thankfully, Aurelia managed to get herself ready for the day without any further awkward encounters. She'd had enough time to freshen up (for real, this time) and was packing up her things in her bag when Eric came to help her get her tent packed up. Before the sun was too high in the sky, Aurelia, Eric, Mia, and all of the pokémon were emerging from the woods and making their way down to Rustboro City.

Having come from a moderately large town like Slateport, Eric and Aurelia took a city like Rustboro as a matter of course. In fact, it was much smaller than Slateport, with the largest buildings being the complex belonging to the Devon Corporation. The small, family-run company was known worldwide as a producer of specialized poké balls and a variety of other high-quality goods. Eric was a little eager to get into some of the shops in the city, since there was certain to be a selection of cool gadgets at lower prices than one would find elsewhere.

Mia, on the other hand, was positively gushing as they entered the town, looking up with excitement at the, to her, tall buildings. Having grown up in the isolated village of Pacifidlog, she had never had much experience with big cities. She admitted to Eric that she hadn't left the ship when it had docked at Slateport, so really the only places she had ever been before now in her life were her hometown, Littleroot briefly when she had visited Professor Birch and gotten her Torchic, Lorena, and Dewford Town. She went on about how amazing the buildings were for so long, in fact, that Aurelia was growing quite weary of the girl by the time they entered the first shop, a department store that carried a wide variety of wares.

Thankfully, Mia parted ways with them for the morning and scampered off to another section of the store, leaving Eric and Aurelia to browse on their own. The first thing the Aurelia wanted to do was search for some new accessories that she could add to her repertoire, and Eric reluctantly obliged her.

"I don't see why you need to go shopping for anything else, Lia," Eric protested halfheartedly, following her to the fashion department. "You've already got a lot of accessories, don't you? Isn't it kinda...I dunno...pointless to get more?"

Aurelia turned to him, her paws on her hips and an expression of shock on her face. "Eric, I'm surprised at you! You should know that any girl who allows her wardrobe to become stagnant is just completely out of touch!" She turned back around, giving him a sassy swagger as she went over to a jewelry display.

"Well, pardon me for not being up on ladies' fashion..."

"Besides...," Aurelia said, looking over the items in the case, "...everything in my collection was given to me by Mother. It's everything that she used when she was still working, and it's all just a touch too old for my liking. That jewelry I wore to dinner on the ship the other evening? Ancient!"

Eric rubbed the back of his neck, bewildered. "Well...Well, I thought it looked nice on you. Does it really matter how old it is if you look good in it?"

The Zangoose felt an unbidden rush of warmth to her face. "Never mind about that, just humor me, okay?" She browsed for a few moments before a saleswoman came over to them.

"Is there something I can help you with?" the employee asked. She was, of course, speaking to Eric. Eric gave her a blank look, having absolutely no idea what this lady thought he could possibly need help with in the subject of ladies' jewelry.

"Yeah, I'm looking for something simple...," Aurelia said, glancing up from the display case she was looking at. "Something gold, perhaps, maybe with a gemstone on it. I like red stones."

Both Eric and Aurelia had a moment of pure enjoyment at the look of astonishment on the saleswoman's face. Clearly, naturally, she was not expecting a pokémon to talk to her, much less inquire about the store's jewelry selection. For a minute or two, she just looked between the human and the Zangoose, her thought process seeming to have been interrupted. Then, finally, she seemed to snap out of it.

"Well...Ah...Were you looking for real jewelry, or do you just need costume jewelry?" she asked Aurelia.

"Just costume jewelry is fine, I think," Aurelia replied after considering. "I'm going to be wearing it in shows, and as long as it looks real enough that's all I need."

"Very well, then," the saleswoman said, her cheerful work demeanor making its way back. "If you'll just follow me, I'll see what I can do."

She led Aurelia over to a row of display cases, Eric lagging behind as he gazed over his shoulder longingly at the store department that sold Pokémon Trainer supplies. But, that would have to wait. He did say she could do her shopping first, after all...

But Aurelia had been acting strange, lately, Eric thought to himself. It had all started while they were on the ship, soon after leaving Slateport. He couldn't understand it. Usually she was an independent sort, not caring whether or not she was with someone as long as she was doing something on her terms. Of course, she did enjoy being with friends...or friend, really, since Eric was the only one. Lately, though, she seemed to be trying to spend as much time with him as possible. And for some reason he didn't think she liked Mia too much.

Eric, for one, didn't think there was much to dislike about Mia. Sure, she was a little timid, and Aurelia was definitely anything but timid, so he supposed there was a bit of a personality clash there. He thought, though, that he himself got along quite well with Mia, and he knew that Aurelia could see how likeable she was by how well the two of them got along. In fact, Mia and Eric had been quite friendly towards one another, so why should Aurelia harbor such animosity towards her? Eric had noticed that Aurelia would try to draw Eric's attention to herself and away from Mia. Now why would that be...

"Hello? Calling Eric...," Aurelia said, waving a paw in front of his face.

Eric blinked, his train of thought suddenly blasted from the rails. "Huh, oh, what? Sorry, I wasn't listening."

"I said, what do you think?"

Eric looked at Aurelia. She was standing in front of him, staring at him, her chin tilted up to show off her neck. The Zangoose was wearing a thin necklace of what looked like gold. The necklace was fairly lengthy and consisted of two concentric bands attached at the back of her neck. The inner, smaller, band fit rather tightly around her neck. The longer band on the outside hung lower, and at the very bottom hung a small golden pendant with a ruby red jewel. The jewel was exactly the same color as the splashes of red that crisscrossed her white coat, and rested lightly between the tops of her breasts.

"So? How does it look?" Aurelia asked. Eric noticed that she had the tip of her tail in one paw, and she was nervously twisting it between two fingers.

Eric found himself without words for a moment or two. He looked Aurelia up and down, taking everything in. He was struck by the simple elegance of her appearance. Literally, she was wearing nothing other than her luxurious fur coat and the necklace, but it all went so well. Clothing would have ruined the ensemble, and anyway whoever heard of a pokémon wearing clothes? Quite honestly he thought she looked...well...pretty.

"Lia, it...uh...it looks great on you," Eric stammered. He felt like he should say something more, but he wasn't quite sure what. She was looking at him so expectantly. What did she want him to say? "It...uh...It goes really well with your fur, and...um...You look really beautiful..." He trailed off a bit, thinking how strange it sounded to be saying that about her.

But she just glanced down demurely, a soft blush coming to her cheeks and a smile on her face, still twisting the tip of her tail between her fingers. "Thanks..."

The awkward silence that followed was broken by the saleswoman clearing her throat. Eric started and turned away, conspicuously looking at a display case of pocket watches that he had absolutely no interest in whatsoever.

"So, would you like that one," she asked Aurelia.

"Oh!" Aurelia said, turning to her. "Yes, please. I think it's perfect." She unclasped the necklace and handed it back to the saleswoman, who took it back behind the counter to place it in a box.

The Zangoose and her human companion looked back at each other when she left, both of them a tad red in the face. They knew that something had just passed between them, but exactly what neither of them was certain.

---

The rest of the day passed uneventfully for the pair. Eric and Aurelia spent most of it walking around the town, checking out the shops and the sights that could be seen. Aurelia kind of wanted to see some of the shops that were on the outskirts of Rustboro. She'd heard of the Pretty Petal Flower Shop, for example, but Eric mentioned that Mia had talked about seeing that shop and that sort of killed her desire to visit it. Thankfully, at least for Aurelia, they managed to avoid the shy redhead for most of the day, only meeting up with her when it came time to get lunch. There was a delightful open-air cafe near the center of town that catered to both people and pokémon, and they all enjoyed a light meal there.

In the afternoon, Aurelia and Eric visited the Devon Corporation's main building. Eric was riveted by a small museum they had on the ground floor, showcasing a progressive display of Pokémon Trainer gadgets. The exhibit had pretty much everything, starting from the most basic apricorn poké balls that the first trainers used to the specialized balls that Devon produced and shipped all over the world. It wasn't just poké balls, either. They had a display that showed devices like Itemfinders, Pokégears, and even one of the new Pokétches that were being produced by a sister corporation overseas. Even Aurelia thought it was interesting, though not as much as Eric, who didn't want to leave and practically had to be dragged away.

As the afternoon started drifting into evening, Aurelia and Eric went by the Rustboro Pokémon Gym. The building was an imposing structure, large and decorated mostly with granite boulders outside in a sort of sculpture garden. The gym was located in the northern part of the town, near the road that led northeast towards the rock tunnel one would take to get to Verdanturf. It was far too late and they were much too tired to go inside now, but they both had wanted to see it all the same.

"I can't wait to come back tomorrow," Eric said, excitement in his voice. "We can spend the morning training, seeing how we stack up against the resident trainers. And then, if we're ready, we can try and take on the leader herself!"

Aurelia was less enthused than her human companion. "Are you sure you're ready for something like that?" she asked skeptically. "I mean, you've been a trainer for a little more than a week, and the only battle you've really had is when you fought Anna with Peb..."

"Are you kidding? I've been ready for this my whole life!" Eric placed his hands on his hips, grinning at Aurelia with much more confidence than he had any business displaying. "I've read everything I can possibly get my hands on about training pokémon. I've watched every television show there is to see and every tournament that I could manage to drag my mom to! I'm as ready as I'll ever be!"

"Well...If you say so...," the Zangoose said uncertainly, scratched her ear with one claw. "I just don't want you to get your hopes up, and then get disappointed..."

"Oh, don't talk like that, Lia. I'm confident that I'll do just fine." He put a hand on her shoulder. "Besides, I've got my best friend with me. I can't fail."

Aurelia was quiet for a few moments. "Well alright then. If you think we'll do fine, then so do I!"

They spent a few more minutes checking out the gym, and then they left, heading back to the middle of the city and the Pokémon Center, so they could get a room for the night. They stopped at a food stand that was still open to grab some dinner, and Aurelia used the distraction while Eric was ordering and paying for their food to slip away for a minute. She went into a shop and purchased a small bottle of a nice-smelling perfume, managing to get back to the food stand before Eric noticed she had gone.

---

In Rustboro, as in any other city in the modern world, the Pokémon Center was a place not just where trainers could rest their weary pokémon but also where they could rest themselves. To that end, the Rustboro Pokémon Center had a large number of reasonably priced rooms for rent. Eric and Aurelia went to the center as soon as they were finished with dinner, and were pleased to discover that they still had a few rooms available. Eric even managed to get one with two beds, which was a nice thing because, as he whispered to Aurelia while the nurse on duty was checking them in, it would be a little awkward if the situation they'd run into on the ship were to repeat itself.

"Oh, don't act that way, Eric, dear," Aurelia said, teasing. "Don't pretend you weren't hoping to wake up next to a girl twice in one week." That sent Eric flushing as red as the fur on the Zangoose's face.

The pair of them carried their things to the room, situated almost all the way at the back of the building on the second floor. Upon entering, they found that it was at least more expansive than their berth on the ship had been, but even so it wasn't what one would call luxurious. There were twin beds as promised with an adjoining sitting area, and on the far wall of the room was a door which led to the bathroom. Aurelia immediately tossed her bag onto a chair and made straight for the bathroom, more precisely the shower. The two days they'd spent trudging through the forest and around town had left her in dire need of a wash. Eric heard the sound of running water almost as soon as the door had closed. He shook his head ruefully. He supposed girls were the same regardless of species; even if they liked tramping about out in the wilderness, keeping themselves looking prim and proper was still important.

Eric went to the sitting area and put his bag down next to Aurelia's, taking a seat on one of the chairs. The chair was wonderfully plush, if a bit worn from the use it had doubtless received from hundreds of trainers like himself, and it felt great to finally get off his feet. He closed his eyes, suddenly aware of how incredibly tired he was. When it came right down to it, he and Aurelia had been up to a lot of mischief in the relatively short time they'd been traveling together. After a bit over a week, they'd traveled across the ocean on a ship, explored a cave, foiled a criminal plot to hijack an ocean liner, and made their way through a spooky forest. A lot of work for a novice trainer and a half-pokémon who had never been away from home alone before. Eric didn't want to let his ego get the better of him, but he felt like he and Aurelia were more than ready for the challenge of facing their first Gym Leader. He let himself slip away into fantasies of grandeur, slouching in the comfortable chair.

A sharp tapping on his shoulder roused him from his half-sleep an unknown number of minutes later. He opened his eyes to find Aurelia standing in front of his chair, toweling her furry head off. Eric felt himself blushing all over again. As he had discovered on the ship, showering quite conspicuously plastered the fur to Aurelia's body, leaving little of her form to the imagination. He averted his eyes away from his friend.

"I wish you'd give me a little more warning!" he said, a little crossly. "There are some things I don't really want to see!" He said the words perhaps a bit more sharply than he'd meant.

Aurelia gave a little tsk of admonishment. "How rude! You do realize I am naked all the time, right? This shouldn't be anything new to you."

"Yeah, but...I mean, when your fur's all damp, I can kinda see...everything," Eric said, glancing back at her.

Aurelia gave him a grin full of sharp teeth, leaning in. "Mmm, yes, but at least it's such a nice sight to behold, eh?"

"And another thing," Eric said, feeling more and more awkward as she leaned in. "What's gotten into you, lately, Lia? You've been acting kind of weird around me ever since we got off the ship in Petalburg."

The Zangoose straightened up, seeming a bit taken aback, and she modestly wrapped her towel around herself. "Well...that's...oh, nevermind." She turned away from him, her tail hanging limp between her feet. "Anyway, the bathroom's free. You should go take a look at yourself in the mirror, you need a bath even worse than I did."

Thankful for an excuse to escape the tension that had just manifested between them, Eric got up from his chair and made for the bathroom door. Behind him, he could hear the slight creak of springs as Aurelia got on one of the beds. There was a soft flump as she dropped her towel on the floor, and a rustling noise as she got under the covers.

"Oh, and Eric?"

"Hm?" Eric said, looking over his shoulder back at her.

Aurelia gave him a taunting smile. "No need for a towel when you come out. I have no such hang-ups like you do."

Eric gave an exasperated sigh as Aurelia's gleeful laughter followed him into the bathroom, stopping only when the closing door muffled the sounds from outside.

---

Fifteen minutes later, Eric stepped out of the bathroom feeling worlds better. Despite all her teasing, Aurelia had not been mistaken. He had been filthy. Eric finished toweling his hair off and hung his towel up neatly. The room was dark now, and he could barely make out a lump in the bed Aurelia had chosen. She seemed to be asleep.

Eric sighed as he made his way to the bed next to Aurelia's. He honestly didn't know what was the matter with her. Aurelia had always been one to tease, but...the way she'd been acting lately had seemed more like flirting. He sat down on the edge of his bed, looking at the wall. Sometimes he really couldn't figure her out. Well, no matter. It was late and he needed sleep. He stretched his arms out, swinging his legs up on the bed and lying down. His arms flopped down on the bed, which felt wonderfully soft and...and fuzzy?

Eric sat up, his eyes shooting wide open. "Lia!?"

"Don't scream, you're gonna wake up the whole building," Aurelia snickered, jerking him back down again. She lay there beside him, her eyes glinting in the faint moonlight shining through the window, a paw pressed into his chest.

"Wh-What...What the hell are you doing?" Eric asked, his face burning. "What are you doing in my bed?"

Aurelia said nothing for the longest time, just watching Eric in the darkness. The bed was small, and they were pressed right up against one another. Her fur was still cool with lingering moisture from the shower, but the shivering he was feeling was not from cold. He felt like he should say something to break the silence, but nothing issued forth from his half-open lips. Luckily, he was saved from having to make the effort.

"I guess...well, I wanted to say sorry...," Aurelia said, her voice sounding rather sheepish. "I think I might have taken it a bit far back there."

"A bit far."

"Yeah." Aurelia sat up in the bed, crossing her arms over her knees. "I could tell I made you uncomfortable. I was just trying to have a little fun, but I suppose I crossed a line without meaning to..." Eric remained where he was instead of sitting up. He looked at Aurelia, could tell from the way she sat that she meant what she said. She continued. "It's just, you're my friend and we've been through a lot together lately. I thought I was just playing around, but if it's going to mess our friendship up I'll stop." She looked over at him, waiting for a response.

Eric took a moment to consider what he was going to say. "I...accept your apology, Lia. You did kind of make me uncomfortable for a while, there, but I know you're just teasing. You've always liked making fun of me." He reached up and patted her shoulder. "We're still friends. Hey, we always will be! There's not an awkward moment in the world that's going to change that."

Aurelia grinned, leaning back down and giving him a hug. "Good. I'd hate for our journey together to end almost as soon as it began."

Eric hugged back. "But...couldn't you have said all that from your own bed instead of sneaking into mine?"

"Yeah, but it wouldn't have been as fun," the Zangoose said. She squeezed him extra hard and then, curiously, kissed him on the cheek. "Sleep well, Eric!" Snickering, she let him go and jumped onto her bed, rolling her back to him and falling asleep almost instantly.

Eric lay frozen where he was for several long minutes, the only sound in the room being Aurelia's quiet, peaceful breathing. Then he rolled onto his back, staring up at the ceiling. His hand came up to his face, lightly touching the spot where Aurelia had kissed him.

Sometimes, he really couldn't figure her out.

---

"You can close your eyes to the things you do not want to see, but you cannot close your heart to the things you do not want to feel."

-Unknown