FSE

Furry search engine

formerly SoFurry search engine

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

The afternoon summer sun was bright, partially hidden by a sea of clouds that seemed to stretch endlessly across the sky. The ground was still wet from the previous nights' light rain, coupled together with the heavy rain storm from the day before. I made traveling on the dirt road somewhat uneasy due to the random puddles of water and mud, but it wasn't enough to dampen Chris' good mood. Early yesterday morning, Nyx had bid farewell to her fellow ghostly companions. She appointed the role of leader to the gengar, making it clear to him that he wasn't to influence the young gastly with any more of his perverted pranks. The gengar gladly accepted the position, not before bursting into tears along with the other ghosts in a heartfelt farewell of their own. Neither Chris nor Alice knew that ghosts could get so emotional. Now they were on the road and just a few hours away from their destination. However, there were some people who wish the trip would go a little more smoothly than it is now.

"Hey Chris,"Alicesighed, almost tiredly by the sound of it.

"Yeah?" Chris asked.

"I know you want to get to know your new pokémon better by having her out with us, but... Do you think you could get her to stop terrorizing my flaafy?!" Indeed, Nyx had taken up to scaring April by spontaneously disappearing from sight only to reappear to lick the pink sheep and tell her that she was delicious. April would scream and hide behind her trainer while the misdreavus would giggle at her. The orbs around her neck would glow every time she did this, thus having Chris assume that she was feeding off of April's fear. It had gotten to the point where April was extremely paranoid of the ghost and was very jumpy.

"Come here, Nyx." The giggling ghost floated over to him. "Look, you have to stop scaring April like that. It was okay the first time, but you gotta stop or else you'll give her a heart attack."

"Aww, but I was having so much fun," she whined, but Chris could tell she wasn't really complaining.

"I could tell. Why don't you take in the sights for a while? It's one of the reasons you wanted to come along right?"

"Indeed, you're right. I'll stop playing for a while and observe my surroundings." The ghost floated up and settled herself atop his head. "Your hair is quite comfortable."

"Quit being silly," he chuckled.

"You're going to spoil her," Tora commented, looking at the pair. Chris looked down at her with a smirk.

"Like I haven't spoiled you a little."

"You spoil me because you love me."

"Yeah, I do, but it's also because I want to."

"Chris,"Alicechimed in. "I think it's about time we take break. I'm getting kind of hungry."

"Sure, that sounds good."

That said, the group stopped off the side off the dirt road and began preparing lunch. "Whose turn is it to cook?"Aliceasked, slipping off her backpack. She rolled her shoulders to rid the dull ache that had been building there.

"It's yours," Chris answered, setting his own things down. "I cooked last night's dinner and breakfast. Need any help?"

"No, I got it. You go do whatever and I'll call you when it's ready."

"Alright." Chris mulled over in his head what he wanted to do for the time being. He could train with Nyx to see how she fairs in a battle, but he didn't want to tire her out right before lunch and sitting around doing nothing wasn't even interesting. He glanced toward Tora and Aaron, noticing that the raichu's fur looked a little rough in some places, and thinking that it's been a while since the last time they sat down talked to each other. Most of that time was given up because she was spending a lot of her time with Aaron now, not that he's ever complained about it. He's happy for her, but he wants to hear how she's been doing so far on their journey together from her. He opened his backpack and looked through it for her brush. He pulled it out after a moment of searching and turned to the pair.

"Hey, Tora," he called out. The raichu turned from her conversation to Chris. "I wanna talk to you for a bit and you're due for a good brushing." She looked over her fur and noticed that she was looking a little rough in some places. She was a little surprised she didn't notice it earlier.

"You don't mind, do you?" she asked Aaron.

"Of course not," Aaron replied. "I'll just helpAlicewith lunch if I can or talk to April; she still looks a little jumpy." The psychic got up, kissed her cheek, which made Tora smile, and walked on over to April. Tora went over to Chris, who was now sitting cross-legged under a tree, and sat down in his lap. He was about to ask Nyx to give them some privacy, but the ghost was nowhere to be seen. He hopes that she wasn't trying to scare April again.

With brush in hand, Chris went over her head-fur first, earning a content sigh from the large chu. She leaned into the brushing, turning her head every which way so he could get everywhere. "You know, we haven't really been alone in a while," Chris commented.

"Hmm, you're right," she agreed. She hadn't realized that she's been neglecting her time with Chris for Aaron for a while now, probably since the start of their journey. She started feeling bad about it since they used to spend nearly every waking moment together.

"Hey, I'm not upset or anything," he quickly said, seeing her ears drop a little. "It's just... I don't know what's going on with you since we haven't really talked in a minute."

"Oh, okay," she sighed, glad he wasn't upset with her.

"So what did you think of your first gym battle? Was it anything like how you were expecting it to be?"

"Well... I knew it was gonna be tough, but I didn't think I would be almost drowning in the middle of a battle."

"Yeah, that was pretty scary." They both shivered at the memory.

"But I'm glad I got the chance to experience a real gym battle and that you were there with me." The chu turned to smile at her friend and trainer, who in turn did the same.

"Yeah, me too."

He moved onto brushing her back, which felt even better to her than her head. She could probably sit there all day and let him brush her back all day. "So, how are you and Aaron doing?"

"We're doing fine," she answered, almost dreamy-like. Although he didn't have to see it, he knew she was smiling. "He really knows how to show me a good time, especially when we go out. He can be really charming when he wants to be, but he likes to joke around a lot too. He can be annoying at times, which I think he does on purpose sometimes, but I don't really mind it because he's just being himself and I really like spending time with him."

"Oooh, sounds like somebody's got a crush," he teased, which made her blush a little.

"M-maybe..."

"So how do you feel about him? You've never told me."

Tora hesitated a moment, wondering if she should, or could, tell him. It was slightly embarrassing to tell anyone, even herself, how she feels about Aaron. "When I'm around him," she started, feeling a slight lump in her throat from nerves. "I feel safe and happy, like he's someone I can depend on for anything. My heart beats faster for some reason when he smiles at me sometimes... or even just looks at me, and I have to force myself not to say anything stupid. I have to catch my breath when he looks at me sometimes."

"Why's that?"

"Well... when I see him looking at me sometimes... I can almost feel his eyes roaming all over me, like he wants to remember every part of me or... maybe touch me... It gets me kind of excited when he looks at me like that because I know it makes him happy. Because of that, I want to look... pretty around him..." Little by little she was starting to feel more comfortable talking about her feelings with Chris, who's really only mildly surprised at her last statement. She's never seriously cared for her looks, so it was a really big thing if she actually wanted to look good in front of Aaron.

"So you want to look pretty for him? Never thought I'd see the day when you cared for how pretty you looked in front of others." Tora looked back at him.

"I bet if you had someone looking at you all the time, you'd care a little more of how you looked," she countered.

"Alright, alright; you got me there," he admitted. "But what do you find attractive about his appearance? I mean, you like something about him, right?" He continued his brushing, around her sides and belly now, while she thought of an answer for him.

"His eyes were really the first thing I found attractive about him."

"Oh yeah?" She nodded.

"Yeah... they're a really beautiful shade of blue... I could probably get lost in them if I stare for too long. It's like they can tell me everything I need to know about how he feels about me. You know, when he kissed my cheek just now... I felt tingly all over...and it still feels like his lips are still there. When he held me that night we spent on his island... I could hear his heart beating in his chest. I think he was a little nervous... or excited."

"Why do you think that?" By now, Chris was done brushing her fur and had set the brush aside. He leaned back against the tree and hugged Tora, who leaned back with him, from behind. She got herself comfortable in his arms and sighed dreamily.

"Because it was beating so fast... but I knew he wanted nothing but to stay there with me because... I wanted the same thing... to be held by him forever. I really like being around him... and it feels good to be loved by someone that much... I don't think I could be any happier than when I'm with him..."

"It sounds like you really love him." Tora's ear twitched.

"Love? Is that what I'm feeling?" she asked herself. She had never really felt love before, or more precisely, the more intimate side of love. She's only felt the unconditional love of family and friends. "I thought I'd be feeling something different when in love; like being head-over-heels, completely infatuated with him or something. I haven't even had a crush on anyone before, but I... love Aaron... as in... love-love Aaron? No, it couldn't be... I mean, he makes me really happy and I care for him... a lot... a whole lot... so... much... Wait, why is my heart beating so fast? I'm just thinking about him... holding me in his arms... kissing me softly... while we're making lo-oh arceus!" Her cheeks grew warm at the almost complete last thought.

She looked across to where the psychic was chatting with April. The chu stared at him, finding herself not even seeing the espeon, but visualizing a floating mew. When he turned to her, he smiled and blew a kiss at her. She reached out and caught in her paw, then brought it close to her chest like a precious treasure. Realizing what she did, and in front of Chris no doubt, she blushed fiercely and looked away at some far away tree. Aaron chuckled softly and returned to his conversation with April.

"Wow, you've got it bad," Chris said teasingly, which only made her blush more.

"N-no I don't," she said defensively.

"Yes you do. You probably have it as bad as he did and just didn't know it until you said it out loud."

"I... I think you're right."

"So are you going to tell him?"

"I have to, don't I? I mean, he told me his feelings, even though he knew I didn't feel the same way at the time, so I have to now that I know I do."

Tora sat up and wiggled free of Chris' embrace, eager to tell the psychic what he's wanted to hear for a long time. She knew exactly what she wanted to tell him; everything she needed to let him know how she honestly felt about him. As she approached him, Aaron turned and smiled at her. "Hey there beautiful," he greeted her. "I didn't know it was even possible for you to look any prettier."

"T-thanks," she replied. She suddenly felt little butterflies in the pit of her stomach for some reason. "Actually, there's something I want to tell you."

"Oh? What is it?"

"Aaron, I-I...I wanted t-to tell you..." The feeling in her stomach grew in intensity, feeling like there was a knot in it. She unconsciously licked her lips, feeling that they were too dry for some reason. "I wanted to s-say..." Her chest tightened up and she could feel her face heat up as her heart rate increased. Her tail twitched behind her and she immediately brought it around and began to nervously play with it. "Just say it!" she screamed. She almost felt afraid for some reason, although she knows she shouldn't. He has the same feelings for her after all. "Why can't I say it? It's just three little words!" "W-what I'm trying to is... t-that I... I..." "I love you!" "I..." "I love you!!" "I..." "I love you!!!" "I think the weather is going to be nice today." "Smooth... I'm such an idiot..."

Aaron raised a brow and looked up at the sky. "Oh... It does look that way," he said. Tora mentally slapped herself a dozen times for saying that. What was worse was that April was right there watching them and had looked up to the sky as well.

"Wait, I meant to say-"

"Lunch is ready!"Aliceshouted, probably saving her from another embarrassing moment of failure.

"It really smells delicious, which is good because I'm hungry. Want me to get you a bowl?" Aaron asked.

"Uh, n-no... I'll get it..." With a defeated sigh, Tora followed behind Aaron and April to retrieve her food.

"RAWR!!!" Nyx roared out loud as she materialized out of nowhere, effectively scaring everyone in her presence and causingAliceto drop a spoonful of hot soup on her shoe in fright.

"Chris!!!"Aliceshrieked, while the ghost laughed at the trouble she caused.

*****8*****

As the day rolled on, the anxiety Tora felt had arisen to new heights, thus making her fell awkward around Aaron. She tried several times to strike up a conversation, but she would freeze up and could never find her voice, or say something completely ridiculous and irrelevant. It frustrated her so much that she couldn't say those three little words to him; three words that had so much meaning and weight behind them. She wondered if Aaron felt this way before he confessed his feelings for her. He sure didn't seem like it from her perspective. It was such an uncomfortable feeling to want say something so badly, so important to someone, but couldn't find the courage to do so.

Aaron noticed a change in her behavior while they were eating and was worried about her. He had never seen her looking so... conflicted before. Maybe that wasn't the right word for it, but he could see that she was troubled about something. Reading her mind was simply out the question. He could never forgive himself if he found out something he wasn't supposed to and was something personal to her. Whatever it was, he knows, and hopes, that she'll be able to tell him what's bothering her so much. In the meantime, he just has to act like he doesn't know something's wrong.

In just a few hours, the group had finally arrived inAuburnTown. Even as they were walking down the first block, they could clearly see that something was going on. It seemed like the entire town was out on the street working. Some people were putting up decorations, which mostly depicted either Articuno, Zapdos, or Moltres, the three Legendary Birds of Kanto, and streamers that were color-coordinated with them. Some people were setting up booths and stands for what looks like various games and food choices. The air was already filled with many different smells, all of them delicious.

"Wow; it looks like there's a festival going on," Chris commented, marveling at the work already done to the town.

"That's because there's going to be one later on today," a gruff voice said, belonging to a muscular, heavy-set man with a large beard. "I see you all are new here, or else you wouldn't be wondering what was going on."

"Yeah, can you tell us what's going on?"

"Sure thing. Right now the whole town is getting ready for our annual festival honoring the legendary birds Articuno, Moltres, and Zapdos. It's something that's really grown so big that it's nearly the only day of the year that everyone looks forward too for a good time. You kids are more than welcome to join us; I'm sure it'll be an experience you'll never forget. Now if you excuse me, I have to set up some booths. You kids enjoy yourselves tonight."

"Thanks, we'll definitely be looking forward to it,"Alicesaid as she waved him off. She turned to Chris with a big smile on her face. Even before she said anything, he already knew what she was going to say, not that he had any objections to it.

"Sure, we might as well stick around for the festival," he said. His statement was met with a squeal of excitement.

"Alright! Let's head over to the pokémon center and get ready for the festival! Let's go April, hustle!"Alicetook off toward the pokémon center, with a not as fast flaafy following behind her. Chris chuckled at her excitement and ran after her, Tora and Aaron by his side.

They got to the pokémon center, which was located near the center of town, and got their room keys. The first thing Chris did was gather all his dirty clothes so that they could be washed. Then he went to take a nice hot bath with Tora and Aaron to get all of them officially clean, before moving onto his other pokémon. When he released Lani, he found that she had started shedding again and seemed to have grown a bit longer. He washed her after helping peel off her dead skin, which was easier than he expected it to be. Washing Kaden was pretty normal, nothing to complain about, but Nyx proved to be the most... interesting to wash. He knew she could be washed... he just didn't know how difficult it could be. One second he has his fingers in her hair, the next his hands fall through her body, which proved to be rather cold on the inside. He got chills every time she turned intangible while he was touching her, much to her amusement.

At the end of her bath, a knock came at the door. It wasAlicecoming to see if he was ready to go shopping for new supplies before heading to the festival. "Hey, are you ready to go?" she called.

"Hang on, I just finished giving them their baths," he said.

"Well hurry up and finish getting ready. We don't have all day." He heard her leave, practically run down the hall, and asked Tora and Aaron if they wanted to go, but they both declined, for reasons that were their own. With the promise of coming back in a couple of hours, he left the pair with the room to themselves. So there they were, sitting on a bed alone in a room in complete, awkward silence. Neither of them knew what to say to each other. Aaron, who had transformed back into a mew, didn't want to let on that he noticed something was wrong with her, and Tora was still trying to find a way to tell him how she felt.

Aaron was the first to break the silence after a couple minutes. "So..."

"Yes?!" Tora exclaimed suddenly and nervously, to which Aaron raised a brow.

"How are you feeling, you doing okay?" he asked. The chu looked down at the sheets.

"I'm okay..." she replied distantly.

"Are you sure? You seem a little... different lately."

"It's nothing... I'm fine, really." She tried to play off her uneasiness with a forced smile, but not even she was believing it. Aaron frowned and his ears flattened, feeling a pang of sadness for what he was going to ask next.

"Did... did I do something wrong?" The raichu jerked her head to the mew in surprise, seeing the sad look on his face.

"N-no! You didn't do anything wrong," she shouted a little louder than she intended, feeling guilty that she might've hurt his feelings.

"Then what's bothering you? You know that you can tell me anything. I don't want to read your mind to find out, since it's bothering you this badly. I'm worried, so I want you to tell me so I can help you in anyway I can. Does it have something to do me?"

Tora paused, taking a moment to think of what she was going to say to him. "I'm sorry for worrying you Aaron, I didn't mean to," she said. "It's just...what I want to say has everything to do with you, but I'm just not sure how to get the words out." She watched Aaron's expression turn from worry to slightly curious. He moved closer to sit right next to her.

"Well... how about you start small, you know, slowly?" The chu nodded and took a deep breath, letting it out in a slow sigh and feeling some anxiety leave with it. She felt his long tail touch hers and it brought some much needed comfort.

"Aaron... we've been together for a while now. During this time, I've had some of the best times I'll ever have in my life. I really like being around you."

"I like being around you too," he said, nuzzling her side. Tora smiled and hugged him with an arm.

"You make me feel really special all the time, whether it's just telling me I'm pretty or giving me a little kiss. You do everything you can to make me as happy as possible... and you have. Right now, I can't imagine being away from you because it would feel as if a part of me was missing."

Aaron was hanging on her every word, heart thumping hard in his chest while he stared into her eyes. He almost couldn't believe it. "Is this really happening?" he asked himself. "Is she... is she going to say what I think she is?" He prayed that this wasn't some cruel trick being pulled on him.

"I want to make you as happy as you've made me. I... I love you, Aaron, and I want to be by your side forever... as your mate." The look on the psychic's face made all the anxiety worth it. It was a mix between extreme happiness and surprise. Aaron almost didn't know what to do with himself right then, so he settled for a hug until he figures what to do next. It was an absolute dream come true. Finally, his feelings for her are returned and she wants to be his mate- his mate! Already the thoughts of them living together happily with a few little ones running around were swirling in his head. It was too early to be thinking about it, but now a whole list of possibilities opened up for him... for both of them, and he wanted to see them come to fruition as soon as possible.

Tora returned the hug, relieved that she had gotten those feelings out and allowed herself the pleasure of becoming the mate to the most wonderful pokémon she's ever met. She was his now and vice-versa. If she had known earlier that all it took was for her to be happy in his presence, then she would've gladly given herself to him a long time ago. Still, this was nice and she was sure that she wouldn't regret this decision. A thought crossed her mind; since they were mates now, it means that they'll eventually have kids together. "I'll be giving birth to his children," she thought. "And to do that... we'll have to..." Her cheeks grew warm at the thought, but more than that, there wasn't the slightest bit of fear when she thought of it. There was only a quiet anticipation when thinking about the passionate act of making love to him for the first time. That was how she knew her love for him was real.

The two looked into each others eyes, feeling that the other was thinking the same thing. The urge to act upon their feelings was growing stronger as each passing second ticked by, their faces inching ever closer. There was no hesitation in what they were going to do, what they felt was right to do, and what little consequences there were was quickly put away in the back of their minds. They were to be alone for a couple hours and the moment was perfect. Their lips barely grazed each other before the turning of a doorknob startled them out of their trance. Chris stumbled into the room, blue powder all over his face, hair and shirt. He looked terribly drowsy.

Chris looked to the pair on the bed; feeling passed his drowsiness that something seemed odd. "I didn't... I'm not... interrupting anything, am I?" he asked with half open eyes. Tora and Aaron both blushed at what almost happened and separated from their hug.

"N-no, you're not interrupting anything," Tora said nervously. "W-what happened to you?"

"A bulbasaur sneezed while I was... walking by and blasted me with... sleeping powder. Gotta... wash this off..." He lazily shuffled his way to the bathroom and turned the cold water on to wash his face. Tora and Aaron sighed in relief and chuckled at almost getting caught.

"Oh well," Aaron said looking back at her. "Until next time, I guess." The moment was gone, but the feelings were still there. He took her paw in his and smiled. Tora smiled back and gently squeezed his paw, a silent agreement forming between them that they'll get their chance later... in a more private location. In the meantime, they'll just enjoy the rest of the day.

"Yeah, next time..."

Once Chris had finished washing the powder off and changing his shirt, Tora and Aaron went along with him this time.Alicewas waiting for him in the lobby with April by her side. She asked him if he was alright and he said was fine, albeit a little sleepy. Since it was getting a little late in the day, they decided to head straight to the festival. Most of the festivities were centered on the east-side of the town, where they discovered that there was more room for booths and people. Along the way, they passed by the gym. They didn't bother stopping by, since it was more than likely it would be closed today. There were people everywhere by the time they reached the east side of town, where the rural area was.

The paved streets and concrete sidewalks gave way to dirt roads and grass. The smell of different kinds of foods was heavy in the air, more concentrated here than when they entered the town. Beef, steamed vegetables, pork; it was all there as was everyone else. Before they went any further, Chris and Alice released all their pokémon. "Okay you all, listen up,"Alicestarted. "We're taking a day off to have fun at a festival." The announcement was met with cheers from the pokémon, save for Jari and Kaden, who didn't know what it was. "I don't think I have to say it, but I will anyway. Have as much fun as you want, but please be on your best behavior. We don't want another incident like the one at the water park."

"That goes double for you Nyx," Chris added. "I don't want to hear people screaming their heads off because you wanted to pull a prank on them."

"Oh, I have no idea what you mean," Nyx giggled, in a way that told him that she was already up to something.

"I'm sure you don't. Anyway, we'll meet up over there when it starts getting dark," Chris said pointing to a large area of open grass. "There's going to be fireworks later and I hear it's going to be awesome this year. So that's something to look forward to."

"Alright, you all are free to go,"Alicesaid.

Chris picked Lani up and put her on his shoulders as the rest off the pokémon broke off into their little groups. Seeing as her new scales hardened yet, it would be a pain for her to slither around. "Looks like you're stuck with us."

"But I don't wanna go with you and your girlfriend," she fake whined. "You two might get all lovey-dovey and I'll have to take a cootie-shot from being in contact with you."

"Oh hush," he replied lightly. "That's never gonna happen... and I don't think they give cootie shots anymore."

"Why not?"

"Oh, I don't know... maybe because it's stupid and can only be used by children under ten with fingers." The two laughed and Chris walked withAlicethrough the crowd of people.

*****8*****

"Ugh! This place is so crowded!" Jari complained in annoyance as another person had mistakenly bumped into him yet again. "I'm gonna bust the knees of the next guy that bumps into me!"

"Calm down, Jari" Kishan said. "No need to cause any trouble right away. We haven't even gotten to do anything fun yet."

"I've got to say that I kinda agree with him on this one," Kaden interjected. He too had bumped into his fair share of people in the short time they've been left on their own. It seemed that the only ones who weren't affected by the mass were Kishan and April. The two weaved through the crowd like they weren't even there. "There are way too many people to move around comfortably. Why are they even here anyway?"

"They're honoring the legendary birds Articuno, Zapdos, and Moltres," April explained, being the only one who knew what the festival was about.

"What? They're doing all this for some stupid birds? They obviously don't know who I am, cuz as soon as I meet those bird-brains, I'm gonna completely destr-" He stumbled forward as another person had bumped into him. The cubone turned and was a half-swing away from letting someone have it, causing everyone to almost jump to stop him, until he saw that it was a woman that did it and stopped himself.

"Oh, I'm sorry little guy," the woman said as she knelt down to pat him on the head. "I didn't see you down there. I didn't hurt you, did I?" Jari snorted and crossed his arms.

"Like you could ever hurt me," he said, knowing she couldn't understand him.

"I'll take that as sign that you're fine. The woman smiled and pulled something from her purse. "Here, this should help make you more noticeable so people won't bump into you." She placed a cone-shaped Articuno hat on his head. It had an elastic string on the bottom so it wouldn't fall off. "There, we go," she said as she stood back up. "Now everyone will see you coming a mile away. Have fun." The woman walked off to enjoy herself, leaving Jari and the three snickering pokémon behind him alone.

"You better watch where you're going next time," Jari mumbled.

"Nice hat," Kishan chuckled. "Do you get one every time you almost hit a lady?"

"Shut-up! I don't need this stupid thing!" he shouted, taking the hat off and throwing it away. "I won't be caught dead wearing that. It's a sign that I'm one of the idiots blindly worshiping them."

"Aww, but you looked so cute in it," April said with a hardly contained giggle.

"I don't do cute; I'm too awesome for that. I'm undeniably the most charming, charismatic destroyer of legends out there. There's nothing that ca-" He was bumped yet again and, judging from the looks on everyone's faces, it wasn't by a woman this time. Jari turned and was about to strike the man's knee, but Kaden stopped him before he could go through it. "Let me go! That guy needs to know who he's messing with!" the cubone shouted as he tried to wrestle his weapon from the heracross' grip.

"No, he doesn't," the heracross said. "And you don't need to be getting us into trouble." A loud ringing noise caught his attention and he turned to see what made the sound, but he couldn't see passed the people. "Say, let's go over there. I'm think there's something that will take your mind off that guy."

Rather than drag the cubone along by his club, Kaden picked him up, much to Jari's displeasure, and carried him over toward where he heard that sound. Kishan and April followed right behind him. They had little trouble getting to where they were heading, due to Jari's shouting driving most of the people away. They arrived at a place where there were men lined up for a game of sorts. There was a man with a big mallet in his hands standing in front of tall wooden tower. The men behind him were all chatting and laughing, mostly about how he couldn't ring the bell. "Just stand back and watch," the man with the mallet said confidently to the men behind him. "I'll knock the bell off this thing."

They watched him lift the mallet over his head and swing down with all his strength on a pad attached to a wooden board. It seemed like he made good on his word, but the black puck only went up a few feet, up to a marker that read "Power Puff" with a picture of a jigglypuff next to it. The surrounding men laughed at the disappointed man. "With that kind of strength, you'll be lucky to bruise a two-year-old," A man said, who seemed to running the attraction. He wore a colorful top hat and blue overalls. "Step on up and test your strength! See if you got what it takes to ring the bell! Ring the bell and win a prize! Come on, are you telling me all you strong young men are too scared to show you manliness?" He continued to goad the men on, managing to get a couple more to test their strength. Kaden and Jari watched them with rising interest. Surely it couldn't be as hard as they're making it out to be.

"Pssh, those guys are so weak," Jari scoffed. "I could ring that stupid bell no problem."

"Oh yeah? Care to make a bet on it?" Kaden asked. Jari smirked under his mask.

"The usual bet, right?"

"Of course; the loser does one favor for the winner. Whoever rings the bell or comes closest to ringing it wins." Both pokémon nodded in agreement to the terms and proceeded to walk up to the attraction. It seemed that none of the other men wanted to step to the challenge, so they met no resistance when they cut in front of everyone else.

"Oho!" the man with the top hat exclaimed. "It seems we have a couple takers, non-human I might add! Care to take a shot you two?" Jari and Kaden nodded. "Then step right on up!" Before Kaden took another step, Jari tapped him with his bone.

"Hold it; I'm going first," he said. "Gotta show you how it's done before you get your hopes up too high."

"By all means," the heracross replied. He was in no rush and felt confident that he would win the bet.

When Jari stepped up, it turned out that he would need a boost in height, since the soft pad he was supposed to hit came up to his head. A few men standing in the back chuckled at this while someone got a nearby step ladder for him to stand on. He gave his bone weapon to Kaden to hold while he was handed the mallet, which was heavier than he expected, but he didn't let it show. The cubone took a deep breath and used most of his strength as he heaved the mallet over his head. He almost stumbled backwards when it tilted too far behind him, but he corrected himself. His close call however wasn't missed by everyone though. A couple jokes were made about him biting off more than he could chew, or not even being 'power puff' strong, but he ignored them. He'd show them all just how strong he was.

Jari took in deep breaths and spread his legs apart a little more as he got ready. He gripped the mallet tightly, bringing the heavier object down with all his might and hitting the pad with an audible thump. The black puck shot up straight up, already higher than anyone expected it to. It hit the metal bell at the top, which had a marker that read "Ma-champion" with a picture of a machamp next to it, which was followed by the top hat man shouting "winner". All the men groan and complained that the game was completely rigged, while Jari hopped off the ladder with a "that was child's play" look all over his face.

Kashan and April approached him. "Wow, that was pretty cool," the wartortle commented, slightly impressed by the feat. "I almost thought you wouldn't be able to lift that thing at all."

"That was too easy," Jari replied. "I don't see what the big deal is." Before April got to voice her opinion, the man in the top hat came over to congratulate him and handed Jari a little charmander doll. The cubone looked at the doll and made a face. It was too cute for his liking. Even if it wasn't, he'd prefer one of his likenesses instead. "Here, you can have it," he said, holding the doll out to April. The pink sheep hesitantly accepted the doll with a slightly flushed face.

"Oh, t-thank you, Jari," she stuttered, not expecting him to give her anything.

"Don't mention it." The only reason he gave it to her in first place was because he figured that Kishan wouldn't want a cute toy either, especially if it was given by him, and he didn't have it in him to throw away a prize he rightfully won. She was a safe bet, since she was a girl and he figured that she likes cute things. The meaning behind the gesture was completely lost to him, but not to April and Kishan, the latter raising a brow at him while the former smiled and tried her best not to think anything beyond him just giving her a doll.

Their attention was soon brought to Kaden when he stepped up to take his turn. The heracross managed to both ring the bell and literally knock it off the tower, a feat that everyone thought, and believed, was impossible. Even the man running the game was surprised by this. He received a replica of a machamp's power belt as a prize. Also, since he outdid Jari, he won their bet as well. Jari, refusing to believe he lost, demanded a rematch. Kaden had no problems complying to his request, feeling the competitive urge in him grow, and sought out another game for them to play while Kishan and April followed them.

*****8*****

Everyone was enjoying their time at the festival. The people of the town participated in various games and ate as much food as their stomachs could hold. There was even dancing around a small bonfire. As the night progressed and began to settle down, people were heading down to field so that they could see the fireworks display. Alice and Chris, with Lani hung comfortably on his shoulders, made their way onto the grassy field to find a spot. Lani sported a Moltres papier-mâché hat, a prize she easily won at a "ring toss" game. Chris was wearing a yellow and black crown he won at a game andAlicewore a blue and white bracelet she won from knocking down a stack of milk bottles. She had quite an arm on her; it made Chris wonder if she's played baseball before.

"This place is so cool! I don't think I've had so much fun at one time before," Lani said excitedly before she took a bite out of the cotton candy Chris was holding.

"Yeah; it was totally worth it to come here," Chris added. "I just hope no-one's causing any trouble somewhere."

"I wouldn't give it too much thought,"Alicesaid. "The only ones we really need to be worried about are Jari and Nyx, but the others should be able to keep them in line."

"Yeah, I guess." Walking only a bit farther, they found a decent spot to sit that should be easy enough for their pokémon to find them and to have a good look at the fireworks.

Soon enough, their pokémon found them, in really good spirits. The first group to arrive was Kishan, April, Kaden, and Jari. They each had a little prize they had won from the games they played, save for April because she wasn't good at any of the games. She simply kept the doll Jari gave her. Tora and Aaron came back after them, both wearing rings on their tails. Tora's was yellow, while Aaron's was light blue. Chris wondered how they got them on, so they showed him that the rings could be pulled apart a little from the bottom just enough to put them on. Nyx and Fang arrived shortly after they did... with an unbelievable amount of prizes. The ghost and gligar were wearing hats on top of hats, several necklaces, wristbands wherever they could wear them, and to top it all off, Nyx had several of dolls and toys hovering above them with her psychic powers.

Confirmation from Aaron told them that the pair had won them all fair and square. Apparently, Nyx had a knack for shooting targets with a rifle and Fang was a pro at skee ball. That would explain the strange rumor they heard not too long ago about a couple pokémon dominating the game booths. "I'm not bringing all of that stuff with me,"Alicedeadpanned. "I'm mailing it all home."

"Same here," Chris agreed. "You two just couldn't be satisfied with just a couple prizes? You just had to go out and get as much as you could?"

"Of course!" Nyx replied as if there was no problem. "It's certainly not our fault if the games here aren't challenging. It would be a shame for us to hold back our talents."

"Yeah, I'm not holding back because some kid doesn't know how to play," Fang added. Chris sighed with a shake of his head.

"Well, you two didn't get into any trouble so it's fine. Just know that we're not dragging all that stuff with us when we get back on the road."

The pokémon sat in somewhat of a semi-circle around the two trainers, each of them trading stories about what they've done. It seemed like everyone had a good time. Some time later, the first high-pitched whistle of the night resounded in the air, followed by an explosion of color that bathed everyone in the area in a blue hue. Everyone awed at the sight, even more so when two more went off in bright flashes of red and orange. The show was amazing as far as Chris could tell. It was the perfect ending to their great day.

Out of his peripheral though, he saw a couple of pokémon who weren't paying as much attention to the show as the others were. Tora and Aaron were cuddling and leaning on each other with their eyes closed. He noticed Tora's tail was wrapped around the both of them and, although his wasn't as long, he was doing the same. For some reason, they seemed a lot closer than he's ever seen them. It almost felt wrong to watch them. His gaze drifted to the rings on their tails, now wondering why they got such little prizes when they could've gotten something better, like a doll or something. The gears in his head turned and turned until he remembered the conversation he had with Tora earlier. If she told Aaron how she felt about him, then the rings could possibly have a more meaningful purpose behind them than just a prize won at a festival. Chris smiled as he turned his attention back to the show. "Good for them."

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