Pokémon As High As The Wind Blows (Fight and Flight sequel)

[ShinyMachoke]

Fight and Flight (required reading)
A03 link

Summary
Cyclone the Swellow has adapted to living the life of a villager instead of a wild creature. Yet one of the town's patrol officers, a Staraptor named Peep, is showing interest in her. And Cyclone isn't sure what to make of this.

Warnings
-Pokemon death
-Pokemon who hunt eachother
-Age difference romance, but both characters are adults

Notes
This is a story I started 10 years ago that I wanted to finish. It's currently in progress. The title and quote at the beginning is from Aurelio Voltaire's "As High As The Wind Blows". It's not my favorite song of his, but I realized a lot of the lyrics resonate with this fic and its themes. No illustrations for this one yet, sorry.

As usual, the setting and some characters are from the defunct group, PMD-Explorers. Knowledge of the group is not needed to enjoy the story.

Cyclone and Peep are my characters

Vergil, Archimedes, Tao Village, and Creeping Forest belong to PMD-Explorers. Wiki: http://papayakitty.com/wiki/Main_Page
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Chapter 1

And yet this place that keeps me warm and safe
Can seem a cage where dreams go to fade away


****

Is this it?

The sudden thought struck Cyclone like a small static shock, jostling her from her drowsy state. The sky was a deep, dusty violet. The sun had set with night was soon to follow. Cyclone, like most diurnal birds, should be sound asleep at this time, awakening just when the morning rays broke across the horizon.

As Cyclone, fully alert, began to stand up, she felt the familiar shuffling of a very large wing reflexively wrap around her. While still deep in slumber, the Staraptor, Peep, had a protective instinct towards his Swellow partner. Cyclone remained still for a few moments before attempting to rise again, this time successfully. She hopped to the edge of their nest to observe the night life that was just beginning in Tao Village.

Tao was such an odd place compared to Creeping Forest, where Cyclone grew up. Strife and struggle did not occur because of lack of food or territory or mating rites. No, these conflicts arose beyond Cyclone’s comprehension. A towering, icy hellbeast destroying the town and nearby forest? Leave it to a group of scrappy Pokemon to put the beast to sleep, then helpfully reconstruct said forest and town. But just as that problem has been neatly tidied up, half of the Tao villagers suddenly disappeared for no explainable reason. Cyclone had witnessed this happen right before her eyes; one moment she was annoyed by the captain of the Patrat Patrol asking what she’d been up to, the next moment he vanished into thin air, no trace of the Watchog anywhere. While Cyclone was more than astonished at Vergil’s disappearance, she considered herself lucky that she didn’t lose anyone she was close to. Like Archimedes.

And Peep.

***

It all started one balmy afternoon, several weeks prior. Cyclone was in the middle of making her delivery rounds around the village when she found herself covered in a massive shadow looming overhead. The shadow never passed, and Cyclone felt an intense pressure in the air around her. Instead of feeling afraid, she just rolled her eyes; she knew exactly who this shadow belonged to.

Agitated, Cyclone swiftly shot up into the air, made an aerial somersault, and ended up right in front of the village patrol Staraptor’s face. Suppressing her urge to freeze up in front of his intimidating gaze, she growled, “What do you want? I’m not doing anything wrong!”

Peep remained silent, flying in place. He lowered his head a bit, hiding his face behind his red-tipped crest.

“Well? Speak up!” Cyclone demanded.

Peep just lowered his head more and mumbled something. While his mannerisms were irritating, Cyclone was starting to get a kick out of his withdrawn behavior.

“I can’t hear you!”

“You fly good!” Peep finally blurted out in his deep voice. Before Cyclone could respond back to Peep, he, in uncharacteristic speed, turned tail and flew off towards the Patrat Patrol headquarters. Cyclone remained flying in place, her beak hung open. She then collected herself and dropped altitude, deciding she needed to finish her delivery rounds.

Cyclone had mostly forgotten about that strange incident until the next day. Just when the sun was setting, when she returned from her work and arrived at Pidove Post, the hub for mail delivery service within Tao Village. The building was shaped like a giant Pidove Head, typical of the village’s architectural style. She soared through the spacious opening and landed in an exhausted slump. She wasted no time in wriggling from her mailbag.

“Oh, hello Cyclone,” Archimedes, her employer and owner of the post, greeted. “Finally finished for the day, eh?”

“Don’t patronize me!” she answered sharply. It was well-known that Cyclone still had trouble matching the numbers on letters and packages to their destinations, and often had fix her own mistakes, making separate piles of similar numbers and try to find their differences. Nonetheless, she did manage to get her work done in time for a well-earned supper.

“Well, at least it’s not nighttime and Peep finds you had fallen asleep next to the tenement mail boxes. I don't know how he manages to get you onto his back, carrying you home. By the way, you...”

“WHAT! PEEP’S DONE THAT?!” Cyclone squawked.

“Yes, and you should be grateful!” Archimedes shot her a pointed glance. “He always brings you back, safe and sound. By the way, you have a package from him.”

Cyclone was speechless. How dare that weirdo cart her around like that without her knowledge! Other Pokemon probably saw. She had the sudden urge to preen her feathers a dozen times over.

“There’s your parcel, by the way,” Archimedes said, stretching out a wing to point to a large, twine-wrapped box against a far wall.

Cyclone shivered a bit before hopping to the box. Its sides were bent, indicating it had been in the grasp of Peep’s strong talons. He obviously didn’t handle this parcel with care. What could Peep have possibly wanted to give to her?

After snapping at the thin twine with her beak, Cyclone pushed the top of the box with her head. She only slid the lid open enough to take a small peek. A pair of dark, glassy eyes met her gaze. Her breath hitched in a suppressed gasp. The eyes remained still, lifeless. Cyclone glanced towards Archimedes, who had returned to his own pressing work, his back turned to her. Cyclone gulped. Very gingerly, she moved the box’s lid just enough to let light inside so she could see what lay within.

An unlucky Ledyba laid inside, its legs pressed flush along its body so as to fit its cubic coffin. While its spotted shell remained in pristine condition, deep gnashes decorated its abdomen.

Oh man, Cyclone thought to herself. I can’t let Archie see this!

To Cyclone’s relief, Archimedes was none the wiser, busy sorting the mail for tomorrow’s deliveries. Absolutely enthralled his work, he didn’t have even a smidgen of curiosity over what Cyclone has received. For that, she was grateful. Keeping a sharp eye on her employer, Cyclone gingerly pulled the lid back onto the box, then pushed it towards her private quarters near the back of the Pidove Post.

Once she was alone, Cyclone shoved the ghastly parcel beneath her roost. The Pidove Post held a few residential rooms, all of them rather small but vertically oriented, with horizontal poles built into the walls. Perfect for a bird. As Cyclone looked back down at the dead Ledyba, a trickle of nostalgia came to her. While her time in Creeping Forest was brief and brutal, she had lived there from birth through evolution. She prided herself on not only her flying prowess but also her techniques on hunting prey, always insects. She had to accept that things were different in Tao Village, namely, one does not hunt to survive. Hunting was seen as murder, no exceptions.

Hold on, did Peep... a member of the Patrat Patrol... commit a crime? And the victim was a gift to Cyclone. Her feathers bristled. What was that oversized feather-brain trying to pull?

“Cyclone!” Archimedes called from outside her room, causing her to nearly jump from her skin. “Would you care to join me for some honey Sunflora seeds? I had purchased some from the ranch earlier. And don’t worry about the name, no Sunkern or ‘flora were harmed in processing of this treat!”

If Cyclone could see Archimedes’s expression she would have witnessed a rare, cheeky smirk. He was well aware of the issues she had with the delinquent Sunkern gang hanging around the Swellow’s favorite place to relax, the “Awesome Gazebo”. Cyclone focused her attention back on the deliciously plump Ledyba.

“It’s okay, Arch, I had a big lunch."

 

[ShinyMachoke]

Want to post Chapter 2 right away because it's pretty short, too.
_____________________________________________________________________

Chapter 2

The next day, Cyclone had just emerged from one of the village tenement structures. Upon seeing how high the sun hung in the sky, she groaned. There was still another entire building whose residents needed their mail. She was greatly looking forward to having a break the next day. How could Archimedes have handled so much grueling work before she arrived, all by his lonesome?

Cyclone would have to make a stop to the post to pick up more mail. But first, she needed a break. After a quick drink from the stream surrounding the village, she made her way to her favored resting spot, the Awesome Gazebo. To her relief, those pesky Sunkern were nowhere to be found.

Gotta say, those Rescuer guys are doing a pretty good job, she thought.

“Did you like it?” a deep, low voice rumbled. Cyclone startled so badly she nearly toppled from her perch on the gazebo. Thanks to the high noon sun, Peep’s telltale looming shadow was absent.

“You! What was that package about anyway, axe-head?” Cyclone yelled. She glanced around and then lowered her voice. “You trying to frame me or something? You want me out of your precious town?”

Peep was taken aback. He shook his head back and forth, nearly slapping Cyclone with his huge crest. She hopped out of the way, glaring.

“I... uh... it’s not like that!” Peep sputtered. “Um... did anybody see?”

“Nobody saw! I’ll have you to know that I promptly devoured the evidence!” Cyclone’s tone was sharp, but she borderline whispered, in an attempt to keep this conversation descreet.

“Oh. That’s good,” Peep breathed in relief. “Well... did you like it?”

“Of course I did! But why did... oh. That was a gift?” Cyclone’s harsh tone had softened.

“Yes, it was. Didn’t Archimedes tell you? He uh... you sure he didn’t see what was in it?” Peep's dark red eyes darted as he spoke.

“He had no idea.” Cyclone leaned towards Peep, craning her neck out. She still kept her distance from the larger bird. “But why did you do it? Aren’t you like... some law abiding peace guy or something? Did you kill a guild member?”

“Awk! No! Of course not!” Peep was visibly flustered. Cyclone smirked in amusement. “This was far from the village. I didn’t return until nightfall. Hard to see where I’m going, but also hard for someone else to spot me.”

“Why risk it?”

The question Peep dreaded. “Because um... hmmblmrm.”

“Speak up! Goddamn!” Cyclone spat.

“You’re fast and strong and cool and also pretty and I wanted to show you that I, uh, awk!” Peep blurted. Before Cyclone could respond, the Staraptor flapped his massive wings, nearly blowing Cyclone off the gazebo. He took off, flying in the direction of the main road leading out of Tao Village. Cyclone wanted to follow him, but felt compelled to leave him be. She began to process what he just said.

“Wow... he thinks I’m... cool?”

***

Cyclone liked to spend her days off in the outskirts of Tao Village, practicing her flying techniques. Her diet of seeds and nuts was decadant compared to the bugs and berries she used to eat in Creeping Forest. Upon discovering an extra bit of padding as she settled down on her sleeping perch one night, she became determined to train herself extra hard in her free time. She was grateful for the added energy a more relaxed lifestyle, free of struggling to survive constantly, granted her, but she wanted to keep her lean figure.

Cyclone often saw various Pokemon out and about, including her old prey, Bug types. Besides living in the hunt-free Tao, the Swellow had come to lightly converse with various Bug Pokemon and began to see them more as equals, another thing that made Peep’s gift all the more alarming. She also found herself no longer on edge when she encountered Pokemon sharing the species of those who preyed upon Cyclone’s kind, namely Sneasel, Ekans, and Liepard. Still, she preferred keeping to herself. Even most other bird Pokemon she had little desire to socialize with beyond brief pleasantries.

As Cyclone worked on building small tornadoes with her wing flaps, her mind began to wander back to Peep. His compliment to her a few days ago, she realized, was the first time she ever heard him speak clearly, his usual speech mannerisms being rather gruff and to the point. The only other avians Cyclone didn’t see as a rival were her own Taillow family... wherever they were now... and Archimedes. And her working for the Pidove was not even her own choice, though she found him tolerable enough. He did help her settle into a new civilized life in Tao Village, after all.

Maybe I should go see Peep, Cyclone thought. He risked a lot to give me something awesome... I should return the favor!

Cyclone decided to take her training further from the oft-traveled road that lead from the village to the lost outpost, and the wild fields and woodland beyond. A colony of a certain Bug type Pokemon resided in this unsettled territory. Prey of that kind would surely impress Peep.

 

[ShinyMachoke]

This is the first chapter to be almost completely newly written. Also an action scene!
____________________________________

Chapter 3

“Yo fuzz, is Peep there?” Cyclone shouted as she hovered about the Patral Patrol headquarters.

“Right here,” came that gravelly answer.

“Awk! Cripes, Peep, you need to stop doing that!”

“Sorry. What do you need?”

She lit up. “Come with me, I have something killer to show you!”

“Did it involve actual killing?”

“Erm... I hunted, yeah.” Upon seeing Peep’s unreadable expression, Cyclone spat out, “I-it was really far from here! It wasn’t a Guild member! Honest!”

Peep remained silent, brow lowering. Cyclone began to flail in place, somehow remaining airborne.

“I swear, this guy had no ties to Tao! None! You’re not... oh no. Man, please don’t tell anyone! I shouldn’t have...”

“You’re funny,” Peep finally stated. “So, where is it?”

“I... argh, you freak! You were messing with me!”

“Sure was. So, what did you catch?”

Supressing her agitation, Cyclone answered, “It was too big to carry back. And someone coulda seen me. I guess I’m not as... sluethy as you are. Speaking of, I had something to ask you.”

“We fly and talk. No use wasting time here.”

“Fine. Follow me.”

As the two birds ventured from Tao Village, Cyclone resumed the conversation. “So, the other day, Archimedes said that you sometimes find me asleep.”

“Another reason why you’re funny,” Peep remarked. His eyes crinkled as his beak turned up in a smile. It was the first time Cyclone had ever seen this expression on him. It both warmed and irritated her. He then asked, “Why do you do that anyway? Don’t you know you shouldn’t fall asleep in random places? Do you understand how unsafe that is?”

“Hey, I’m asking the questions here! And quit patronizing me!” Cyclone’s crest rose in annoyance. She huffed. “Anyway. Why do you do that? Carting me around like I’m your prized prey?”

“For one, you are a terribly deep sleeper. I always find you after sundown, and you just refuse to wake up. So I am left with no choice but to carry you. As an officer of the Patrat Patrol, it’s my duty to protect civilians. Tao Village is a pretty nice place, for the most part. Still, there’s some unsavory types prowling around. It’s why the we exist, after all.”

“What kind of threat is there if nobody kills anyone else?”

Peep frowned. “There’s more danger than being murdered or hunted. Mons are capable of some pretty vile things. I don’t even think I could mention it.”

“I’m not a hatchling, jeez!”

“I just want to keep a nice bird like you safe.”

“I can keep my own self safe, thank you very much.” Cyclone beat her wings, looping through the air to make her point. She then returned to Peep’s side, sticking her beak up haughtily.

Peep sighed, deciding to not continue this little argument. The rest of their journey continued in relative silence, with only the breeze of the wind and occasional beat of their wings accompanying them.

Before long, the duo arrived at a field lush with tall grass, tall enough that the stalks would surely tower over Peep had he been grounded. The two birds had dropped altitude but remained high above the grass. Peep noticed that the scattered trees had some very specific marks slash etched in their bark. His crest stiffened in alert.

“Uh, Cyclo-”

“Argh, where is it?!” she interrupted. “I could have sworn I left it right here!”

As they flew, Cyclone briefly circled over any patch of the field with shorter grass or bare earth, searching. She’d frantically dart her head back and forth before garbling in frustration, then take off in search of another clearing.

Cyclone’s flight patterns became impossible for Peep to anticipate. He began to fall behind. He could not shake this feeling of dread coarsing through his body. How was Cyclone so oblivious to their impending danger?

A patch of grass close to Cyclone rustled, the movement too abrupt to simply be wind. She was still circling, completely unaware of something about to strike. Peep bellowed out a caw.

“Cyclone, come here! Follow me!”

“I know I’m close, Peep! I can feel i-”

A large, green shape suddenly lunged from the grass. Blade-like claws glinted in the sunlight. The blade struck at Cyclone. With no time to think, she dashed straight up into the air, a pair of long, blue and red feathers fluttering in her wake.

“Murderer!” The green creature cried as it shot from the grass again. Peep saw it was a Pokemon he dreaded would appear; a Scyther. And from the sounds of it, a pretty vengeful one.

The Scyther’s wings whirred with a perilous thrum. While Cyclone was able to escape its claws, she flapped her wings frantically, her trajectory irregular. Peep wasted no time in diving right into the Scyther with his talons outstretched, slamming right into it, and sent it crashing below the grass line.

Cyclone huffed, struggling to keep to Peep’s side. “That... that overgrown bug is way bigger than the one I killed!”

Peep fell silent. His eyes widened as he faced her. “You killed... a Scyther?”

The younger bird grinned. “Damn right I did! Impressed?”

A throbbing buzz reverberated through the air, chilling the two birds to the core. To their horror, a whole swarm of Scyther rose from the tall grass steadily gaining altitude. All wore an expression of intense rage.

One broke from the group, right towards the birds. Without hesitation, Peep grabbed Cyclone in his talons, and dropped into a barrel roll. She squawked in indignation.

“He was a child!” The Scyther screeched as it struck at the birds. Peep grunted as he jerked his body out of the way. Cyclone squeezed her eyes shut, more from the pain of Peep’s talons digging into her inadvertently, than from fear. For a brief moment, she saw several grey feathers tinged with blood drifting in their wake.

Scyther are not known to be very powerful flyers, yet their swift movements, deadly claws, and sheer numbers more than made up for this. Several of them now hovered above the two birds, closing the distance. Cyclone writhed in Peep’s grasp. She knew he was hurt and it was taking great effort for him to keep evading the mantises’ assault. As he barely avoided yet another strike, Cyclone had an idea.

“Peep! Drop me!”

“But...” he winced, eyes squeezed shut in pain.

“You’re hurt! They’re after me! Just drop me! Now!”

His talons clutched tighter around Cyclone. She saw a Scyther from above rushing right towards them, blade raised. There was no way Peep could evade its attack. In a last ditch effort, Cyclone clamped her beak in the soft flesh between Peep’s toes. She shook her head vigorously. He squawked and lost his grip on her.

Cyclone plummeted. She tucked her wings flat against her body until she nearly collided with the tops of the tall grass, then rapidly changed her trajectory at a ninety degree angle. However, a wingtip clipped the grass, she faltered, then spun wildly out of control. A Scyther’s blade nearly took her out, but her clumsy tumble just happened to roll her out of harm’s way. Unfortunately, the bird plunged beneath the tall grass, right in the heart of danger.

Cyclone hit the ground, the wind knocked out of her. How did she flub that aerial maneuver so terribly? She flicked her forked tail and froze. It felt much lighter than it should. She glanced back. To Cyclone’s horror, her long, forked tail feathers had been cleanly sliced off by the first Scyther who attacked her, leaving her tail an embarrassing little nub. It was no wonder she struggled so much in flight.

Something heavy slammed right ontop of Cyclone, crushing her to the earth. Her neck was trapped between a pair of sharp, white talons. Struggling to turn her head, she hoped to see the intense expression of her savior, Peep, but was instead met with the reptilian scowl of a Scyther. Its foot pressed hard on her, any more force and her bones would surely snap. The Scyther kicked Cyclone onto her back, her white underbelly exposed. She gasped a choking breath, coughing up a debris of dirt. It was only when the sunlight glinted off the Scyther’s raised blade that she realized how utterly doomed she was.

The blade thrust down.

A massive force suddenly struck the earth, the impact sending both Cyclone and the Scyther flying. As Cyclone hurtled through the air, she was reminded of her grueling ordeal the night the Kyurem’s blizzard blasted through her old home, Creeping Forest. Squeezing her eyes shut, she stretched out her feet. The moment her talons came into contact with a solid surface, she immediately sunk her claws in, taking a firm hold. As she flattened her body against she surface, she quickly realized she was still moving along with it. It felt sturdy, warm, and covered in coarse... feathers?

Keeping her head down, Cyclone opened her eyes. Dark grey feathers rippled around her.

“P-Peep?” she stammered.

“Hold on,” came a concerningly raspy reply.

Cyclone complied. Her body remained flat against Peep’s back, keeping them aerodynamic as Peep sped through the air. Eventually, he slowed down, making his way towards a wooded area. In a wide arch, Peep swooped into the boughs of a large oak tree. He deftly perched on a sturdy branch, but then immediately hunkered down in an exhausted slump.

Cyclone remained on Peep’s back, processing what had just happened. That massive crash, right when the Scyther was about to kill her. Was that Peep? She rose and fell with his heavy, ragged breathing. A sudden cough flung Cyclone from his back. She nearly missed the branch, her absent tail throwing off her balance.

Peep was a mess. The feathers on his body puffed out. The red-tipped plumes of his crest hung loosely over his pained face. Blood seeped from his breast. Cyclone did not escape unscathed, but she faired much better than the Staraptor. Guilt pooled in her stomach like thick mud after a rainstorm. An unfamiliar sensation to the brash Swellow.

All of this just to show off. Just to one-up Peep’s gift.

“Hey, uh. Hey, Peep. You okay?”

Just then, Peep rose up to his full height. He flung his head back, his crest making an audible whoosh. Cyclone cried out, stumbled backwards, and landed hard on her rear. As suddenly as he stood tall, Peep laughed. A loud, hearty laugh, from deep in his belly. Blood trickled down his chest. Cyclone remained sitting down, eyes wide and mouth agape.

She hopped to her feet. “Friggin’ cripes, Peep, what’s wrong?! Are you okay? You losin’ your mind?”

Peep brimmed with mirth. “I’m... I just... Hooooo-wee, Cyclone! That was amazing! You’re amazing!”

It’s difficult for one to accept a compliment from someone injured and possibly delirious with pain.

“Peep, stop. You’re hurt.”

Peep’s laughter trailed off. He looked down at his wound.

“Oh. So I am. Well, good night.”

He tucked his head down, lowered his body so it covered his feet, and promptly feel asleep. In a matter of seconds, soft snores drifted from the large bird. Cyclone was stunned speechless, yet again.

Cyclone broke out of her stupor. She demanded Peep to wake up. Realizing how vulnerable they were- one injured and fast asleep, the other unable to fly properly- she kept her frantic tone hushed. How likely would it be for the pack of Scyther to have followed them into the woods? What else lurked in this particular forest? A Swellow and a Staraptor were both fairly large birds, but predators don’t need to be larger or even stronger to pose a threat. Even a single opportunistic Sneasel could take them both out in this state.

Anxiety squeezed Cyclone’s pounding heart. She pressed her body firmly against Peep’s side. If danger approached, she would have to fight, protect them both. Any rustling leaves or snap of a twig, rattled her. Still, she kept alert, poised, and ready to act at a moment’s notice.

Peep radiated calm warmth. He breathed deep and evenly. Cyclone realized that she, too, was breathing smoothly, synchronized to his rhythm. The sensation of impending terror seeped from Cyclone’s body, replaced by tranquil clarity. Sunlight gleaming through the broad leaves cast a greenish veil over the birds. A Caterpie trundled along a nearby branch. Cyclone let out a long exhale. Her eyelids grew heavy.

Just then, Peep stirred. Cyclone faltered for a moment. Has she really been leaning all of her weight against his body?

Peep sat straight up, spreading his wings to their full span. He looked perfectly refreshed, feathers back in their proper place. Not a single drop of blood sullied his chest.

“Have a nice nap, Sleeping Beautifly?” she asked sarcastically.

He turned to Cyclone. He still looked sleepy, but content. Almost dopey. Realizing he was staring right into her eyes, Cyclone averted her gaze, burning with embarrassment.

“I feel wonderful, Cyclone. The best I’ve felt in years. Thank you.”

“Um. Sure. You’re welcome?” She had a feeling he didn’t just mean that brief nap.

Which somehow fully healed him.

“Hey wait a minute!” she cried out. “How are you not hurt anymore?”

He murmured to himself, eyes closed. “It’s Rest. Normally I just Roost, but saving you with Brave Bird really put me through the wringer.”

Cyclone cocked her head. “Why are you putting this weird... emphasis on certain words? Saved me with brave bird, what? Did you get the Brain Damage?”

Peep chuckled before answering. “They are moves. Do you not know Brave Bird or Roost? The latter is extremely useful for our kind.”

“I know what moves are, I’m not an idiot! I just like... never say them like that. It’s weird. I think I know Brave Bird? I am one, myself.”

“You certainly are. But you’re also reckless. This is not a bad quality to have. However, it’s all the more reason you should learn how to utilize Roost.”

Cyclone gazed downwards. In a way, she agreed with Peep. Though hearing unwanted advice from an older bird reminded her of her parents, particularly her father.

But you’re also reckless. This is not a bad quality to have.

She peered back at her pathetic tail. “Will Roost help with this?”

“It certainly will. But it may take awhile for you to learn it. I can help, if you’d like. But we need to return to Tao Village, and get you patched up. Can you fly?”

"Sort of. Not really." She glowered at her feet, angry and ashamed.

“I’ll take us home." Peep said. " I feel... at fault for compelling you act so rashly.”

Cyclone's dark blue eyes met Peep's red ones. “What do you mean? Hunting bugs? I’ve been doing that since I was a Taillow.”

“Yes but. Hmm.”

Peep took a moment to preen the inside of one of his wings. He then looked distantly ahead, not meeting Cyclone’s gaze. He continued.

“I need to confess something to you, Cyclone. Being with you has... stirred something in me. Begging your pardon, please. Don’t take that the wrong way.” He shook his head for a moment. “Let me ask you something. Do you remember your first flight? Not the glorified leap of a fledgling. But the first time you took off and really soared? Weaved among the trees? Rode the rising wind?”

Cyclone nodded silently. Her body grew hot, her heart thumped faster.

“That’s what being with you is like. You make me feel... wild. Both confident and uncertain. Like I’m taking my first flight again. Fluttering one moment, and soaring the next. Like I’m back home, deep in the forest, with its dangers yet safe familiarity.” Peep made eye contact with Cyclone once again, positively beaming.

“So uh... is that why you killed that Ledyba?”

Peep let out another belly laugh. “I suppose so! But let’s not do this again. Gifting each other with prey.”

“Yeah, I think you made your point. Axe-head.” She smirked at him. He smiled back at her with that dopey, youthful grin. For the first time, she felt like they were on the same wavelength.

 

[Negrek]

Hey, Iveechan! I'm glad to see you continuing this story. Cyclone is a fun character, and it felt like Fight or Flight left her at an interesting point to continue from, where she's just beginning to adjust to town life. As usual, Cyclone's personality comes through loud and clear here; I do enjoy that she remains unabashedly reckless, impatient, and self-confident despite having begun to adopt more "civilized" lifestyle. Her misadventures are a lot of fun to read about, and I think she makes a good counterpart to Peep. While it's a little hard to say everything Peep's got going on because he's generally fairly quiet, and it does seem like he will provide some stability and common sense to counterbalance Cyclone's hotheadedness, neither of them strikes me as especially bright, so I imagine there'll be a lot of opportunity for the two of them to get into trouble in the future.

There's almost an air of black comedy around the plot so far, with Cyclone not having quite gotten over her taste for bugs despite having more exposure to them as normal people and members of the society around her. A murdered corpse is certainly a heck of a courtship gift, and Cyclone initially thinking Peep might have been trying to frame her with it was cute. And of course she would have to one-up a gift like that--as if Peep could be a better hunter than her! I am glad that we seem to have moved on to, "Okay, no more murder" by the end of the third chapter, though, heh. It would be difficult to sustain the humor and the audience's affection for a main character who keeps going out and murdering kids. (I did think it was pretty great that it's Peep's admonishment, not the fact that she nearly got killed by a bunch of angry scyther, that makes Cyclone agree not to go after anymore prey, though. Feels very in-character.)

I don't know that I would have guessed that the third chapter was written substantially after the other two, but I did think you did a nice job of the big action set-piece here, which had quite a different tone than the earlier chapters. It was nice to see Cyclone exhibit some degree of care for Peep when she could tell he was sure to get overtaken by the swarm if he didn't drop her, and there was some nice tension when she ended up cornered before Peep dove back in to save the day. I also liked the detail that Cyclone's tail got sheared off, and how much difficulty it caused her--often in pokémon battles it feels like pokémon generically get "hurt," or perhaps if you have a particularly brutal injury you'll end up with a broken limb or something... People rarely seem to consider the kinds of specific injuries or setbacks a pokémon could face in battle, where for a bird, losing a few specific feathers can really be a huge hindrance. Paying attention to specific details like this makes the battle feel more real and dynamic, rather than like a couple chunks of HP bonking each other until one falls over. And, of course, it provides a nice opening to have Peep and Cyclone interact more when he teaches how to roost and heal off the damage.

I'm curious about where the rest of this story will go--obviously the focus will be on the development of Cyclone and Peep's relationship, but will we be hearing more from the angry scyther swarm? Or will there be another upheaval in Tao Village that might necessitate Cyclone's attention? I have to wonder if the wild scyther would ever consider going into the village/to the guild to demand justice if they suspected that's where Cyclone came from... the politics of a world where some people just eat other people in order to live (I'm guessing the scyther hunt other pokémon, unless they're also "civilized?") is always interesting, but I don't know that this fic is really looking to do a deep dive on that, heh. One way or another, I doubt the trouble is over for these two.

Glad you've decided to continue this story, and I look forward to seeing where you take it! I don't know how closely you'll be hewing to the plot of PMD-E from here on out, so it feels like this could potentially go in a lot of different directions--that ultimately lead to Cyclone and Peep ending up together, of course! Thanks for bringing this one back, and I hope it's been fun for you to revisit it and look to finish it off.

 

[ShinyMachoke]

@Negrek

Sorry for not replying to this for... 8 months. This is probably the most well-thought comment I'd ever gotten on a fic. Or anything! I've read this comment probably about a dozen times, give or take, haha.

I'm amused by you noticing that neither one are bright, lol. For some reason I enjoy writing characters who are ignorant or naive... which may say something about me. But yes, there will be consequences for their actions!

Oh man, I used to have Pokemon battles be way more brutal (I think you've read "Guilty by Design?" It was like potions didn't exist in that universe). I admit, having Cyclone lose most of her tail was inspired by "How To Train Your Dragon". It was a neat way to show how something as simple as tail feathers (and in Toothless's case, tail fins) is so vital to flight, and it's a part of anatomy that can be taken for granted. In the upcoming chapter, I was going to have Cyclone have a prosthetic, but I have a feeling that, even if it was offered to her, she would reject it. Because she is oozing with stubborness.

At this point, I will be ignoring any events that the group went through. Really, things got way too convoluted, so I'm going to make up how the laws of the land worked.

Chapter 4 will be in the next post!

 

[ShinyMachoke]

Chapter 4

Well-trodden paths made of stone and earth connected a myriad of towns, cities, and important landmarks throughout the land. Ages ago, a truce was formed between Pokemon who lived in settlements and those who lived in the wild; civilians would keep to their towns and trade routes, and wild ones to their forests, mountains, seas and beyond. Anyone who chose to venture from these safe zones was at the mercy of the other’s ways.

Lines become blurred in various ways, of course.

“Miss Cyclone informed me that she intended to to explore the fields beyond the borders of our village.” Peep was giving a report of the incident to Scout, a higher ranking officer of the Patrat Patrol. A Patrat himself, Scout was the current chief in the wake of Officer Vergil’s sudden disappearance. Red and yellow eyes transfixed to a piece of thick paper, he nodded as he scrawled down Peep’s report. “I took it upon myself to escort her.”

“And why, Officer Peep, did you not inform the Patrol? Is Cyclone not still under our custody?”

Peep continued the fabrication without missing a beat. “She took off before I had a chance to. By the time I caught up, she was suddenly attacked by a wild Scyther. It was my duty to intervene and rescue her.”

Scout leered at Cyclone. She stood by Peep’s side, brow furrowed, not making eye contact with the rodent.

“Unprovoked?” he asked her.

Cyclone stopped herself from rolling her eyes. “Yeah.”

The rest of Peep’s story continued relatively accurate to what transpired after they escaped the Scyther swarm. He spared the details of their conversation where they formed an emotional connection, just that they found a safe place where he could recover, then he carried her back home. Cyclone’s feathers bristled.

Scout wrote a few more lines before putting the pen down. He gave Peep his full attention. “A few things before I wrap this up. For one, going forward, report to me or any other superior before leaving Tao Village’s borders. As a consequence of this incident, we’ll need to recruit escorts for any merchant traveling Sawgrass Way for the next fortnight. We need to keep the integrity of the Boundary Truce. For the duration, your pay will receive a temporary reduction to make up for this. Understood?”

“Affirmative.”

“You are dismissed.”

The two birds left the Patrat-shaped building, Cyclone silently seething as she glowered towards the ground.

“Are you okay?” Peep asked.

Cyclone scoffed. “Uh, no? Way to make me sound like a stupid fledgling with that bogus story.”

“I explained to you why I had to... make some alterations to the report. If I gave a completely honest account, we could both have been in more trouble. I could lose my rank as an officer.”

Cyclone thought for a moment. “If you lost your rank, wouldn’t you be free?”

Peep stood up straight, eyes widening. “I, wha- be free?” He then shook his head. “I’m sorry but I need this. To be a part of the patrol.”

“No you don’t! Peep, some day I’ll be allowed to leave Tao, for good. And when I do I want you... um, want you to...” Cyclone suddenly felt like the teeth of a predator had clamped down around her throat. The metaphorical jaws then released and she blathered incoherently, her brain jumbled as if struck by lightning.

Peep leaned over Cyclone and pressed the tip of his beak to just behind her crest. She froze, mind blank. He nibbled at the feathers on the back of her head, then stroked down her neck, stopping just between her wings. He repeated the motion several more times. Cyclone closed her eyes at Peep’s gentle preening, feeling the world melt away under his caress.

“I’ll miss you,” he rumbled into her ear. She quivered, yet didn’t verbalize a response. “I’ll think about what you said. About being free. I’d love to be free together. With you.”

Blood rushed in Cyclone’s ears. She merely nodded. The rest of their trek remained silent.

“We are here,” Peep said as they reached the Pidove Post. “Archimedes will probably have you see the town doctor. So try and get better in my absence, all right?”

Cyclone swallowed before answering with a toneless “Yeah”.

Peep draped his neck over Cyclone and, after briefly hesitating, she leaned into his embrace. Feeling bold, she nipped at his chest feathers, eliciting an oddly bubbly chuckle from the larger bird. For the first time, Cyclone noticed the subtle yet crisp scent of pine needles in his plumage. It made her think of her home, Creeping Forest.

He pulled away from her, preening her crest for a quick moment as they parted.

“I will miss you, but I will return before you know it.”

“We’ll see about that, ya big lug,” Cyclone said with a smirk. She was thankful that her usual demeanor seemed to have returned. Peep smiled before turning from her, then took off into the sky. The Swellow gazed dreamily as he flew away.

“Ooooh, budding love,” cooed an irritatingly familiar voice.

Cyclone leapt, Archimedes having suddenly appeared at her side.

“Shove it, Archie!” she growled, voice cracking.

The Pidove just smiled knowingly at her, the feathers of his heart-shaped chest fluffed out. “Oh, it’s nothing to be ashamed of, Miss Cyclone. I am glad to see that you enjoyed your day off.” He then cocked his head as something else caught his attention. “What in blazes happened to your tail?”


*****

The next morning, Cyclone drowsily fell from her perch and landed on the wood floor with a hard thud. Her legs stung, her breath hitched. She wobbled, muttering curses.

A flurry of skittering noises grew increasingly louder, until they suddenly ceased right outside of Cyclone’s quarters. An unfamiliar rodent peered into the doorway. The bird froze. Hesitating at the entrance for a moment, the diminutive purple Pokemon crept in.

“Who the hell are you?” Cyclone shouted.

The Rattata squeaked and leapt back, cowering in place. Judging by the darting of his red eyes and ceaseless twitching of his whiskers, he wanted to leave the room just as much as Cyclone wanted him gone.

“I-I’m Scamper,” the intruder finally spoke, barely above a whisper. “Um. Did you fall? Are you okay?”

Cyclone twitched her barely-existing tail in annoyance. She straightened her legs, ignoring the ache, and puffed out her chest.

“Does Archimedes know you’re here?”

Right on cue, the Pidove arrived. He immediately joined the rat’s side, gently placing a wing on his arched back. The Rattata squirmed, head hung low, forepaws curled tightly against his chest.

“Of course I know he’s here.” Archimedes haughtily answered. “Because of the mess you got yourself into yesterday, I needed to put out a notice for temporary assistance. This young lad has kindly offered to sort mail while I go make deliveries.”

“No way! Nuh uh! I’m not invalid! I can still fly!”

Cyclone suddenly took off, her furious wingbeats rocketing her out of her room. Aiming for the open door on the other side of the Pidove Post’s main entrance, the Swellow instead made a beeline right into solid wall. Cyclone yelped. She barely managed to cease her flight, yet a wing smacked into the wall, and she fluttered into a clumsy landing.

Archimedes glided to Cyclone, Scamper bounding after him.

“You need to recover!” Archimedes chastised. “It will be at least two weeks until your tail feathers fully grow back!”

Cyclone huffed. “I can’t... I can’t stay cooped up for two weeks!”

“Perhaps some fresh air will help your mood?” Scamper piped up. Cyclone glared at him.

The Pidove thought silently for a moment. “I suppose that’s not a terrible idea. But you may only walk, absolutely no flying. As I will be taking over delivery duties, I will be out and about as well. If I see you in the sky for even a single moment, I’m sending you right back to the post.”

“Whatever.”

Head held high, Cyclone marched through the door. She took a moment to adjust to the bright morning sun. Far in the distance, across the town square, lay the Patrat Patrol building. Cyclone sighed, longing to be with Peep. It irritated her that just when they formed a meaningful connection, he had to leave.

Cylone didn’t understand why Peep even reported the incident. Like many things in this civilized world, laws were complex and far-reaching, looming far beyond the scope of the young bird. She opened her wings before quickly remembering she had to remain grounded. Growling, Cyclone scratched at the ground in frustration, before making her way towards the back of the Pidove Post. She needed space. And breakfast.

Too prideful to return to the post for seeds Archimedes always provided, the Swellow settled for the wild berries growing just on the outskirts of town. Morning dew coated the round, ruby-red fruits, making the juicy morsels all the more enticing. Cyclone had just barely begun her meal when a shrill voice cried out.

“Hey, dat’s our berry bush!”

The Sunkern Gang. Cyclone’s hackles raised. A quartet of the bad seeds hopped towards her. They formed a loose circle surrounding the bird.

“Buzz off, I’m not in the mood,” she sneered.

A rather rotund member of the gang chuckled. “What happened to your butt, birdbrain?”

To Cyclone’s horror, all four of the Grass types focused on her nubby tail. A cacophony of jeering laughs surrounded her. Feathers standing on end, she charged at one of the Sunkern. Before she could peck its striped face, something hard struck her right in the hind quarters. She screeched in pain.

“She’s an easy target now, fellers!”

A second hard projectile struck her, followed by another. Soon a flurry of seed bombs pummeled the hapless bird. Cyclone made a split-second decision to disregard what Archimedes said and make a break for it, but the relentless assault prevented her from even opening her wings.

A purple blur suddenly shot in front of Cyclone’s face, catching the incoming seed bomb. It threw the bomb right back, hitting one of the Sunkern right between the eyes.

“Hey, pick on someone your own size!” the newcomer challenged.

The barrage abruptly seized, allowing Cyclone to quickly gather her bearings. For a brief moment, she feared it was the timid Rattata who’d come to her rescue. Instead, an Aipom stood between her and the gang. He took a bold stance, hands on his hips and legs squared apart, his long tail swaying confidently. He wore a bright yellow bandana around his neck; the mark of a guild member.

The Aipom turned to her and winked, toothy smile never wavering. “Don’t worry, I got this!”

“I don’t need help,” she growled. The Aipom only laughed to himself before once again facing their foes.

At the leader’s command, the Sunkern Gang resumed their attack, now targetted at the monkey. No matter where the seeds aimed, he deftly caught each and every one of them in his hand-like tail. He juggled his collection of seeds with his tail and each finglerless hand. Though perturbed by the Aipom’s chattering laugh, Cyclone couldn’t help but be mesmerized by this act.

Eventually, the Sunkern Gang became exhausted. Any seeds they flung dropped almost immediately. The Aipom’s jubilant giggling morphed into a dark cackle.

“You mess with the monke, now prepare to get struck!”

“Dat’s an imperfect rhym-oof!”

The Sunkern never saw the projectile coming, smacking him right in the face. The rest of the gang scattered, crying out in fear. The Aipom continued cackling as he chased them down, walloping the Sunkern gang with their own weapons.

Cyclone took this as her cue to leave. She quickly skedaddled over a nearby bridge, crossing the stream that flowed around Tao Village, and made her way to her favored training spot. Few other Pokemon hung out in the wide open field at the time of the morning, and Cyclone was relieved to find the area deserted.

Cyclone stopped at the crest of a hill. She found herself rapidly panting and legs sore, completely unadapted to running. After catching her breath, and briefly surveying her surrounding to make sure she was truly alone, she closed her eyes. Sunlight bathed her back in soothing warmth, and the gentle wind caressed her dark blue feathers. Cyclone wasn’t aware of the tightness gripping her chest until it melted away.

Here goes nothing. The Roost.

Cyclone couldn’t will herself to fall asleep like Peep did, but she could at least try and replicate the sensation of intense relaxation. She swore she felt the very seeds of the coveted technique when she leaned against Peep’s side in the aftermath of escaping the Scyther swarm. How her own breathing matched with his steady respiration. How solid and warm his sturdy body felt. The gentle preening of his pointed beak, the woodsy scent of his feathers...

Cyclone’s heart beat furiously and her throat became dry. She was anything but relaxed.

“This isn’t working!” she shouted.

“Dude what?!” another voice cried out. Cyclone squawked in alarm, as did the owner of the other voice.

Cyclone spun around, and was face-to-face with a stocky bird. Their plumage was pale yellow and deep reddish orange, with a tall orange crest tied in a green bandana. Their red eyes were wide in surprise. As the bird rose from their seated position to their full height, Cyclone noticed that, instead of wings, their muscular arms ended in sharp claws. A bird incapable of flight.

“Hey pal, you okay?” The orange bird asked with genuine concern.

“I’m not your pal, and it’s none of your business!” came Cyclone’s gruff answer. “And why the hell are you right next to me? This field is enormous! Ever heard of personal space?”

The Combusken scratched the back of her head for a moment. She then held out a clawed hand. Cyclone backed up instantly, feathers bristled. An amiable smile crossed the chicken’s puny beak.

“Name’s Chipotle, but you can call me Chip! Or Lele. Or, y’know, whatever. Anyway, I come here every morning to train, right in this spot.”

“Ok, but that still doesn’t answer my question.”

“My bad, man. Lemme explain; the the flow of energy in this field just so happens to congregate in a way that the aura perfectly aligns with my inner groove.” The chicken spread her long arms in demonstration. She closed her eyes and splayed her claws. “Channeling this energy primes my muscles so I can harness my true potential. You dig?”

Cyclone cocked her head, agitation melting into intrigue. “Energy? Like... wind currents?”

“Everything on earth, homeslice! The soil, the roots of plants, river deeps, mountain highs...”

Chipotle dreamily droned on. Irritation prickled beneath Cyclone’s feathers, yet she tried to follow what the chicken was saying. Perhaps this bird, despite being flightless, could reveal a nugget of wisdom.

“Oh, my bad, I never asked your name!” Chipotle piped up.

“Hm? Oh. It’s Cyclone.”

Chipotle tapped her beak, humming. “Oh! That’s why you seemed familiar! You’re the town delivery bird! My partner, Karuka, always handled our mail. But she’s missing, so I trained myself ‘til I evolved so I could be stronger once we have a way to find everyone.”

Cyclone perked up. “You too? I mean, I didn’t exactly train myself to evolve. I didn’t even know my kind could evolve!”

“Really? Must’ve felt pretty wicked when you did. So, you had a partner that disappeared too?”

“Well, something like that.” Cyclone almost mentioned her sister, her family, anything about her past. Despite feeling comfortable opening up to Chipotle, she still felt the need to keep her guard up. “It’s... kind of a long story.”

Chipotle nodded. “I get it, I get it. Well, I’m gonna continue doing my thing. I’ll let you enjoy your day off. Maybe we can spar sometime!”

Instead of resuming her meditation, the Combusken closed her eyes, took a deep breath, and shot straight into the air. At the apex of her leap, she kicked out a leg while letting out a fierce cry. She then swiped her clawed hands in rapid movements, seemingly cutting the very air as she descended. The moment she hit the ground, she kicked back into the air, performing more aerial fighting maneuvers.

Cyclone stood transfixed for a moment, admiring the chicken’s prowess. Sure, Chipotle was completely flightless, but she looked like she could take anything in a battle. Cyclone once again looked back at her ruined tail. How annoying that a single part of her body being out of temporary commission could hinder her ability to fly, something so integral to her kind. She wondered if Chipotle could still leap and fight if she lost her own stubby tail. Or perhaps one of the large orange feathers sprouting from her head. Or even a broke a single talon.

I wonder if Peep could still function if he didn’t have that ridiculous crest flopping over his face.

A dark shadow passed over Cyclone. Her breath hitched as she looked upwards. Expecting Peep, she instead saw that it was only a Fearow passing by. The Fearow noticed Cyclone, giving her a curt nod as they continued their leisurely flight. Cyclone’s gaze remained on the sky. She longed to soar in its great expanse, racing the wind, catching the warm drafts beneath her wings, taking a daring dive and swooping just before hitting the earth.

Attempting this now could end her life. Peep was right, she truly was too reckless.

Cyclone lowered her head and sighed in resignation. Until she could figure out The Roost, she may as well listen to Archimedes and take it easy. As the defeated bird made her way home, all she could think about was how much she yearned to fly side by side with a certain Staraptor.
____________________________________

Notes: All characters introduced in this Chapter originally appeared in Chapter 4 of "Fight and Flight". I thought it'd be fun for them to return!