Pokémon Do Psychic Cats Dream of Electric Sheep?

[SparklingEspeon]

Spoiler: Author's Note

Hello, everyone! This is a rewrite of my older fic of the same name, which can be found here. I started rewriting it from scratch in 2023, and the fruits of my labours are finally beginning to bloom!

This is an alternate universe adaptation of Pokemon Super Mystery Dungeon, the last in a spinoff series of four anthology games where you play as a human reincarnated into a pokemon-only world to save it from destruction. Having some knowledge of those games, and Super in particular, will enhance your reading experience, but you can also treat it like a normal fantasy story with pokemon instead of humans.

For those savvy with the game, this fic puts Espurr in place of the main player character, and in general functions as an expansion and character study of the cast, many of whom got neglected by the game itself. I've traded plot accuracy and context to that end, though there are still familiar broad strokes and the overall outline remains.

A massive thanks to my beta readers, @Namohysip, @Inkedust, @windskull, and ShadowVulpi (you should check their fics out too if you haven't already!), and without further ado, welcome to my fucked up brainchild monstrosity about How I Want To Write A Weirdo Nerd Child Under The Guise Of Fixing A Bad Game please enjoy and don't forget to like subscribe and hit the notification bell for more

~ * Do Psychic Cats Dream of Electric Sheep? * ~

Espurr has to save the world. Not her world, where she should be graduating middle school. No, she has to save the one where she's a cat and the two least normal kids in town have glued themselves onto her. Worse still, she's being hunted, and her pursuers aren't afraid to hurt others to get to her. If she wants a hope of saving this strange world, let alone getting home again... she might just have to rely on her two most currently-unwanted friends for help.

A PSMD rewrite starring Espurr.

Rating: K+ - T
Genres: Fantasy | Mystery | Horror
Content Warnings: Death, Bullying, Heavy Themes​

Spoiler: Map of the World

Spoiler: Book Links

Book links:
Book I: A Darkling Horizon
Book II: A Cruel Summer
Book III: A Runaways' Plea
Book IV: The Dungeon's Curse
Book V: Darkness Takes Over
Book VI: The Scorched Earth

 

[SparklingEspeon]

Written and Illustrated by Sparkling Espeon

Beta read by Windskull, ShadowVulpi, Namohysip, and Inkedust

Dedicated to the weird kids, the troublemakers, the nerds,

The eccentrics, the bookworms of the world,

And to anyone who ever felt they were different.


~\({O})/~


Book One: A Darkling Horizon​

Spoiler: Table of Contents

00. Prologue: A Talk With Mew
01. I Become A Furry
02. I'm Not in Kansas Anymore
03. We Sneak Off Into The Creepy Woods
04. A Ghost Dragon Invades My Dream
05. Someone Dies and We Go Shopping
06. The School Finally Hires a Decent Teacher
07. Tricky Trickies All Over The Place
08. Pancham Is a Grimer
09. The Children Yearn For The Mines
10. We Form a Conspiracy
11. Tricky Vomits Off The Side of a Boat
12. We Go On a Field Trip
13. I Destroy 17 Seats and a Perfectly Fine Blackboard
14. I Have To Go
15. We Take An Unexpected Detour
16. The Statue Killer is Unmasked
17. We Live Another Day
Special Episode I. The End's Beginning

[To Book Two! ->]

 

[SparklingEspeon]

PROLOGUE: A TALK WITH MEW

~\({O})/~​

. . .. . . The airship, Cloud Nine, floated silently above the city of windmills below. It was stormy tonight, bordering on sleet and hail – one of the many things that made Baram Town a dreadful city to park the government of Nebyllin over.

If there was anything Grovyle Rufus detested more than the city below, narrow and built for birds, it was the seasons: blisteringly hot and humid in summer, enough to make the leafblades on the sides of his arms wither from heat; then ice storms and cold the next, just in time to freeze them off. A younger him, spry and hungry with ambition, once tolerated the awful weather for a chance at the power he’d grown weary of holding. Now, he'd rather retire somewhere warm and familiar, where his bones didn't ache from cold.

At least there was only a year until Cloud Nine moved – to one of those Southern cities where it never got cold enough to snow, if he could still remember. Just one more year until all this was out of his weary claws. Between his age and his waning popularity, Rufus didn't expect his colleagues to nominate him for Prime Minister again. Frankly, he was lucky they'd done it twice.

Truth be told, he could use a break. Seven long years of governance took its toll on a poor grovyle. His mind wavered from today's batch of problems – failing berry crops which would mean bailing out farmers later on, labour strikes that would peter out eventually if those blasted MPs would stop fanning the flames with their incompetence, and the Rescuer's Guild, which was threatening to pull its considerable weight if he loosened any more of their cumbersome shipping regulations. That was a problem, and he'd have to sit there and look bad for the press while the idiots in Parliament duked it out, and what could they do about it? It was Wartortle, and the first Human always got what he wanted.

No, that quagmire aside, Rufus' thoughts were quite occupied. Ever since he'd woken up a few days ago, something had felt different – he couldn't put his claw on it, and neither his vaporeon secretary nor his close friend in Cape Noe noticed a thing, but it occupied his mind so thoroughly he'd spaced out several times in Parliament that day. The opposition had gleefully used that as fodder for their narrative of an ailing leader well out of his prime.

Well, Rufus's knees weren't what they used to be, but his mind was still there. He knew what he felt, and whatever it was, something told him it was far more important than anything on those papers.

A paw lightly tapped him on the shoulder.

"Hello!"

Rufus jolted with a gasp and spun around, falling out of his chair and hitting the rose-petal carpet. An intruder!

"Guards!" he called, flailing as he hit the floor. "Guards!"

He summoned energy to the leafblades in his arms, prepared to fight. He wouldn’t go out without a fight. He was determined to live to the end of his second term at least.

"Oh, sorry, the guards forgot to be here tonight."

Floating behind Rufus was a pink, catlike creature with a long, wiry tail. It wasn't clear how she'd managed to get in here, or… what she was.

"And your secretary, before you ask," she continued innocently. Rufus' blood ran cold. That vaporeon hadn't missed a day in her life.

"And the orb line—" Rufus' other arm, silently reaching out of sight for the connection orb under the table, halted. "Everymon in this wing of the building, actually. They've all gone down for drinks at Spinda's.

"They'll be back tomorrow, don't worry," said the pink cat. Rufus looked up at her, frozen and waiting for her next move. She shrugged. "Just wanted to avoid any awkward situations, y'know?"

Rufus collected the scattered papers from the floor shakily, staring up at the cat.

"Well, you've managed that," he muttered with annoyance as he pulled himself back onto his aching feet. "Who are you? Don't you know it's a crime to break into the Prime Minister's office—"

"I'm Mew!" said Mew, gleefully cutting him off. "And you're Grovyle Rufus the Third. Born in Sawsbury, 83, likes fermented radishes, Prime Minister twice because you cheated in—"

"Alright, alright, enough!" said Rufus, flustered. Was she trying to scare him? Blackmail him? Where was she from? What was she? She couldn't be… Mew, the one spoken of in legend… that wasn't possible.

"Enough," he managed to rasp out, pulling himself up to his feet. "Why have you come here?"

"I'm here to talk to you about something important," said Mew. She teleported behind him with a 'pop!' almost faster than he could blink, and when he spun around, she was cheerfully gesturing to his chair, beaming rosily. "Have a seat?"

"You break into my office," said Rufus, his tone flabbergasted, "and offer me a seat?"

SIT

The word barrelled through him. Suddenly, Rufus was in his seat. Mew appeared on the other side of his desk with another 'pop!', lounging in the air above his visitor's chair.

"It's been a while since I've visited one of your leaders," she yawned. "I'm surprised they didn't tell you about me; though, it has been a century or two…"

"Probably got lost in the paperwork," Rufus muttered, stupefied. Not like he'd know.

"Anyway," said Mew, yawning. "I'm here to tell you we've summoned another Human."

"Another what?"

"Another Human," said Mew, tilting her head curiously. "The legendary heroes of our world. Or don't tell me you all forgot?"

"Of course we haven't," scoffed Rufus. There were two of them still alive today. Old motions from the many speeches he'd given propelled him onwards: "We're grateful for everything they've done for us. Or, well, did."

He sat back in his chair and let out a resigned sigh. That strange tilt in his gut… it was starting to make some more sense.

"Then I was right. Something's changed, hasn't it?"

"You sensed my death," said Mew, like it was no big deal.

Ignoring the shocked look on Rufus' face, Mew just shrugged, reading the unwritten words in the air. "Without me, the evil in the world has nothing holding it back. It's only a matter of time now."

"But if you're dead, then… what are you doing here?" asked Rufus. He'd reached the limits of his surprise. Now, his tone held weary resignation.

"It's… complicated," said Mew. "And we're short on time. But you need to know that somewhere out there is a Human. And right now, she's unprotected. I need you to find her and keep her safe before it's too late. She is your last hope, upon which this fragile world's hopes and dreams will be staked."

Rufus just slumped back in his chair, trying his best to process it all. How was he supposed to start, let alone find this... Human?

"There are millions of pokemon in this country. Where would I start?" asked Rufus tiredly, resigned to his fate. He could already feel his leaves wilt at the absolute field day his opposition was going to have with this. The headlines were taking shape already: "Ailing Prime Minister declares random runaway "next Human" in latest loony fantasy!"

There was a large, detailed map on Rufus' desk, portraying every knot of a massive coastline. Mew pointed at the very bottom, towards the long, thin peninsula that was known for having nothing but mountains, farmland, craggy beaches, and a few scattered villages. He noticed her paw was already translucent.

"There," said Mew. "I don't know the exact location anymore. I lost it when I… died. But she's somewhere there. You must go at once! Do everything in your power to keep her safe. Promise me?"

Rufus just nodded. What else could he do?

"You have my word," he said. It was a promise he already knew he couldn't keep.

Mew's eyes closed with resigned satisfaction, and she began to slowly dissolve into light. Her body burned brighter and brighter, consumed by golden radiance, forcing Rufus to shield his eyes, until the shine abruptly faded, leaving him alone once more. There was no trace that another pokemon had entered his office, nothing except for Rufus' word, which meant less and less these days depending on who you asked.

But the feeling, the one that had kept him awake in bed each night, no longer felt strange or overwhelming. Instead, it was filled with a drive. Somehow, deep down, Rufus knew Mew had been there, that she spoke the truth. Wherever this Human was, whatever she was now, there was perhaps no other pokemon in the world that was more important. He had to track her down.

In the back of his head, there was a tickle that went unnoticed. Something silent and dark unclamped from his mind like a leech and swiftly slithered back to the depths, as if scorched by the light.

It began scheming.

~\({O})/~​

Music of the Week!

A Grand Tale of Time and Darkness - Arata Iiyoshi

 

[SparklingEspeon]

CHAPTER ONE: I BECOME A FURRY

~\({O})/~​

. . .. . . In moments like this, Espurr would normally mouth something witty about life hitting her like a truck. She was a tad winded right now, though, and it would honestly be on the nose. Her head hurt too much for it anyway.

She'd been running somewhere very important, and now she was probably bleeding out, so… she'd never make it there. It was strange how calm she felt. Given she was dying, it should've been easier to have an opinion about that. She'd read about shock after injuries and wondered if this was it.

Her head really hurt. Was she so sure it was a truck? It felt like a bus.

The crash must have mangled her something nasty. Everything felt wrong, too short or strange or bent out of shape. She opened her eyes and was surprised to find they still worked. Dense, interweaving treetops met her gaze, blurring together like an abstract painting. Or perhaps that was the headache talking.

She sat up. Somehow, despite the obvious mangling, she could still do that. Her nose wrinkled: the stench, floating on the wind, was revolting. Was this how dying smelt? She'd read about that too.

Wherever she was, she was alone. And there was no hint of pavement. Trees surrounded her, overcast by shadows. The ground was covered in dead leaves, mossy roots, and low ferns. Not even the crickets chirped here. The sound of the wind left as quickly as it came, leaving only the eerie rustling of dead leaves in its wake. Quiet, tense unease replaced it.

“H… Hello?” she croaked, looking around the vast, dark clearing as she rose to a sitting position. “Daniel? Anyone?”

It was only when Espurr's hand passed in front of her that she sharply gasped. It didn't look like her hand… and that caused her to snap awake and look at herself for the first time.

Strangely, she wasn't dying. Or bleeding out. But this might've been worse? Her body was coated in bushy lavender fur, extending into white on her arms and legs. She could feel her ears, large and floppy, hugging her head. A fluffy, catlike tail swished behind her. She could feel it move, every motion alien and unwanted.

Her head spun staring at all of it. She'd died, hadn't she. She'd died and gone wherever dead people go, and she was starting to think it was some sort of purgatory because no-one else was here, and she was some sort of cat, and—

Swish.

The sound of long grass and low ferns parting made Espurr's senses snap back to her. She went still and silent, her tail puffing up, and carefully twisted her head towards where the sound had come from.

In the darkness of the woods, where the trees leaned inwards and the light didn't venture, her new, sharp eyes made out the outlines of three figures watching her. They stood thrice her height, their posture like full-grown men, but they were thin and bony, crooked at the shoulder, and tall, pointy hats rose out of their heads. They didn't move an inch, and they didn't make a sound. Unsure of what to make of it, Espurr stumbled to shaky, unfamiliar feet, wobbling against a tree for balance.

"Hello?" she asked with a trembling, scratchy voice.

There was no response from the three figures in the shadows. They simply remained fixated on her, their heads and pointy cones following every movement she made. Then, after a long, uncomfortable silence, they turned to themselves, holding up their arms.

Lights flickered from bulbs on their palms, alternating and blinking in strength quickly – red, green, yellow. As the lights flashed, Espurr saw them clearly: shrivelled faces shrouded behind gleaming, pinprick eyes, thick and angular cloaks, limbs long and bulky, and each with a crooked skin-cone that stretched far above their heads.

Her eyes widened. She squeaked in fear, stumbling back and tripping on a stick.

Crunch. Thud. The lights vanished, and suddenly they were shrouded by shadows, impossible to see. A whistle was her only warning: a ball of darkness flew out of the shadows, headed straight for her—

Luckily, cats had quick reflexes. Espurr threw herself out of the way just in time, hitting the ground and rolling away. She didn't see what happened to the bush behind her. The sound of roots twisting and branches snapping told her it wasn't good.

Swish. The Coneheads glided out of the shadows, moving swift and silent and uniform. As they brushed up against the shrubbery, Espurr saw how they floated – shrunken, underused legs dangling beneath sleek cloaks as they glided. Time seemed to slow. She watched her life flash before her eyes: her earliest memory of her parents, her eleventh birthday, spent alone, the day she took a train through the woods and pretended it would transport her into a fairytale.

She broke off into a run.

Her unfamiliar legs failed her. She tripped several times. Her body hit the ground, painfully. Sticks and pebbles and leaves scraped her with each fall. She picked herself up, running desperately until she could no longer hear the swish of parting ferns or see the gleam of a light between the trees.

She stopped in the middle of another, darker clearing. Espurr collapsed to her paws and knees, panting wildly as the fear wore off. Her chest hurt, her lungs couldn't take in enough air, and her body screamed with aches and pains.

But she had to keep walking. Safety seemed farther away than ever now. Dead leaves, thick foliage, and tall, mossy tree trunks decorated every inch of the eerie, silent forest. The light was slowly seeping away, the trees looming further and further with each lost beam. Espurr's stomach rumbled, and she felt her tail and ears flop down miserably with the hunger pangs. Wasn't there anything to eat around here?

Nothing she could tolerate. A ginger nibble off the nearest fern made her scrunch her face up in disgust. Gross. The neighbourhood cat used to hungrily snap up beetles, but the very thought made her want to be sick.

Soon the air turned colder. The sky became darker. Her breaths came out in cloudy puffs. She looked up to the canopy, where the sun was now orange and setting through the abstract treetops. It was going to be night soon, and she wasn't any closer to getting out of here. Those Coneheads would find her in the dark, in all this cold… she hadn't realised she was shivering until now. Was it fear or chill?

A tendril of wispy mist swirled around her angular, unfamiliar feet. Espurr looked behind her. A massive, silent wall of fog approached, stretching from the ground all the way up to the branches of the treetops. It was so thick she couldn't see anything through it, and from its direction she caught that scent again – rot. The smell of something dead.

The wind ruffled her fur, battering her face with the smell. Espurr retched, stumbling back and covering her nose with her paws. It was so strong! That was enough to convince her the fog was bad. She had to get away from here. But where could she go? It was approaching too fast!

She looked up. The treetops, stretching higher than the fog, had branches large enough to hold her. Would that work?

Anything to get to safety. She didn't know if she could climb with her shorter arms and strange, tip-toe feet, but she had to try. So Espurr scurried over to the nearest tree, a great twisted oak, and put her foot on the trunk's mossy roots.

~\({O})/~​

Night fell in minutes. Curled up on a branch just large enough to hold her, silence hung around Espurr, with only her thoughts to keep it at bay.

It was finally sinking in that she might not get to go back home. If she really was dead... was this purgatory, or hell? Maybe those Coneheads were sent to torment her. Perhaps this was punishment for what she'd done, her sins finally catching up to her.

She'd give anything to go back to just a few hours ago, when her biggest problem was being late for some stupid graduation that seemed so far away now. How much of herself was she right now? She tried to recall her name, and all her mind would return was 'Espurr'. She tried to remember the details of her life, but it was poked full of holes, faces and names blurry except for a few. What had she even looked like before? A sick pit of dread developed in her stomach as she realised she didn't know. She could remember her life, but she didn't remember herself. A look down at her trembling white paws and dirty lavender tail told her she didn't look like this, though. It felt like wearing a suit; she could control it all but it felt so wrong.

Even if she could get home... how would she convince people she was a human, let alone her?

With sickly ruminations swimming around in her head, it wasn't long before exhaustion took over and she slowly drifted off to sleep.

Rustling in the thickets below roused Espurr from sleep. Her eyes opened blearily to abstract moonlight, blurred and scattered by the branches above. The canopies were dark and twisted now, and so was the whole forest. The ground was blanketed by a sea of thick, white fog, snaking insidiously through the trees as if searching for something.

Swish.

A green flash of fear invaded Espurr's sight. A faint yellow light blinked and lit up the fog below. Other lights followed, flickering away as quick as they'd appeared. Quiet horror flooded through Espurr. She scrambled back and pressed herself up against the tree trunk, her heart pounding in fear, paws clasped against her face, vision spinning. She didn't dare to breathe. The Coneheads had found her! How?

Swish.

More dead leaves and ferns brushed against the tattered cloaks of slender floating bodies. Peeking carefully over the branches as far as she could muster the bravery for, Espurr could see their crooked, dark, pointy cones poking out of the fog, still as shadows. More sparks of green fear crossed her vision. Were they waiting her out? She'd read about predators like this, ones that would patiently corner their prey in its hiding spot, waiting for it to break from starvation or desperation. She... was that cornered, doomed prey in this situation, wasn't she?

The wind picked up again, bringing with it that rotting scent, and this time it didn't stop. Espurr looked in its direction as the wind got stronger, and with the horrid smell came a deepening in her pit of dread. She knew. There was something else coming with the wind. When the branches began to bend against the gale and a roar rose in the distance, Espurr began to realise: she couldn't stay here.

She surveyed the ground from her cage of branches. The fog blanketed the ground completely. The Coneheads were still there. Why couldn't she have become something with wings?!

That left her one option. She'd sneak around the trunk, carefully climb down the other side, make a run for it in the fog, Perhaps, if she was silent enough, the Coneheads wouldn't see her.

Pressing herself against the bark of the tree, Espurr began to carefully move from one branch to another, grabbing onto small twigs and silently hopping between large beams as she moved around the tree. The rotting scent had stopped torturing her nose after a bit, but the gale was getting stronger, her fur ruffling wildly, a loud howling rising in the distance like a demented roar. The branches were swaying, threatening to betray Espurr's grip. She was almost there. She just had to climb down now. She leaned out, reaching for one more branch...

A howl of the wind blasted through the trees, rattling the branches once more. Espurr stumbled and lost her grip. Catlike reflexes kicked in and she madly flailed, outstretched paws grabbing for the nearest twig, but missed it by a hair. With nothing more than a terrified whimper, Espurr began the long, silent, gut-wrenching trip to the ground.

Crack.

A loud yowl pierced the abstract night canopies.

Pain. It was white hot, racing through her and concentrating in her arm – her arm. It was at a funny angle. It wasn't supposed to bend like that! Crimson flashed across her vision, and somehow she knew what it meant. Pain.

Fighting back tears and sobs, Espurr staggered to her aching feet. The pain made it hard to think, see, feel. It hurt so much. Why was this happening? The pain. Red. It hurt! She clutched her arm, but that just made it feel worse. How could that make it feel worse?! Thick fog was all around her. The rotten wind swooped down and swirled around her, letting out a ghostly laugh like it was taking delight in her suffering.

Swish.

Espurr didn't have to see it; just the image in her head was enough to send her into flight mode. She bolted, fleeing through the woods wherever her legs would take her. The gnarled root of a tree sent her tumbling to the ground. She landed on her bad arm. Crimson flashed across her eyes like splattered blood. She grunted and bit back her yowl of pain, letting her tears flow. It hurt so bad.

She heard it again: Swish. She looked back. Her tear-blurred vision framed an image that burned into her mind: an emerald cape attached to a large, lean, dark figure, striding towards her through the ghostly fog. It wasn't the Coneheads: it was worse. She felt the evil flow out from them. Their overwhelming aura of darkness singed the ends of their cloak, searing itself into her vision.

Espurr, barely lucid, hanging on by the barest of grips, shut her eyes tight and stumbled into a run again, only able to flee for her life.

~\({O})/~​

An audino quietly picked the herbs and weeds from around a small bush in the forest, slipping them into her exploration bag. It was the full moon, and her herb stores were running low again.

Fresh-picked herbs were always available east of the Lively Mountain Range, but rarely grew anywhere west of it. They were so vital to Audino's medical practices, but somehow they were the hardest thing to get ahold of. She could always get them from Kecleon, but the miser overcharged for them and everymon knew it. She had been lucky to find this clutch sitting around the nearby mystery dungeon. Mystery dungeons being what they were, Audino had returned once every month at the full moon – it was bad luck to pick more than once every lunar cycle – and found the exact same bush and herbs awaiting her.

Of course, finding the bush was a different beast entirely – every time Audino came looking for it, it was always in a different place. But that was to be expected of a mystery dungeon. The places were always rearranging themselves however they saw fit. Audino was just grateful she'd found it quickly this time. Something was different tonight, and she could feel it in the air. It was like the dungeon had grown darker, making her fur bristle, and her surroundings put her on guard.

The lack of dungeon ghosts around at this time of night made her ears twitch with uneasiness too. The dungeon's natural defences mostly came out when it was dark. The ones here were weak enough for a child to defeat, but all the same they were never beings to shy away from a fight. As much as you could call them 'beings', anyway; they were more like an immune system for a living, breathing labyrinth. Regardless, Audino had been in enough dungeons to know… if there were no ghosts, there was usually something worse around.

And whatever that was, Audino wasn't keen on meeting it.

An unnatural wind blew past her, shaking the trees with visible anger as it went. In the distance, she could see what looked like a thick wall of mist, fast approaching. Worry flooded through Audino, her paw slipping into her weathered explorer's bag and clutching the escape orb she had bought from Kecleon's. This dungeon wasn't supposed to do that... this dungeon was too weak for that. Something was very wrong here.

There was a loud thump in the distance, accompanied by a sickening crack. Audino had half a mind to smash the orb right now and forget her herbs. But that notion disappeared once she heard the yowl of pain that followed. Whatever pokemon had made it sounded rather young… But a dungeon ghost, even a weaker one, could spell trouble for her at this point.

Suddenly, Audino saw the silhouette of a small pokemon running towards her through the fog. Was it a ghost? Her grip on the escape orb tightened. She watched as within seconds, an espurr stumbled out of the distant mist and into the immediate area, running frantically through the woods. For a split second, Audino hesitated. Espurr weren't apparitions native to this dungeon. So why was one here?

She only had to see the look in the espurr's eyes to understand completely. Their eyes glimmered in the moonlight with a look of terror, an intelligent look. By now, the espurr had seemed to realise Audino wasn't a hostile apparition, and changed course directly towards her.

"Help!" the pokemon hoarsely cried out in terror that wrenched Audino's heart, clutching their left arm to their chest as they stumbled up to her. Audino studied the arm with a nurse's precision, identifying the fracture in a matter of seconds. It wasn't easy to break a pokemon's bones. That thump, that yowl… had something done this to her?

Something else was approaching from the fog at this very moment. Hints of the strongest wind yet began to blow through Audino's fur as she hurriedly beckoned the espurr towards her. Behind the terrified child, she could see a trio of silhouettes approaching, shrouded by fog and framed by flickering lights. Red, yellow, green…

The espurr reached Audino, violently shivering from cold and terror. Audino hugged her close, keeping an eye on both the wind and the approaching pokemon.

As the wind grew stronger, the pokemon approached, and Audino got her first good look at them: a trio of beheeyem, ghostly lights flickering in the fog. Their crooked cones stood tall into the night; their eyes gleamed brighter than lights and sent chills down Audino's spine. Those weren't wild looks either: they were too shrewd, too calculated. Audino's eyes narrowed. Her arm around Espurr tightened.

"Hold onto me, and whatever you do, don't let go. Understand?" Audino instructed loudly. The espurr nodded, staring at the beheeyem and holding back tears.

There was no more time to waste. The howling of the wind was picking up, turning into a rancid gale, and it brought the creeping, looming wall of fog with it. Any longer, Audino knew in her gut, and the approaching pokemon would be the least of their worries. In one swift motion, she hugged Espurr tight and whipped out the escape orb.

"Shut your eyes!" she yelled to Espurr, hurling the orb at her feet. It shattered and exploded into a plume of brilliant, blue-white smoke, and when the smoke cleared, Audino and Espurr were nowhere to be found.

~\({O})/~​

Music of the Week!

The Smell of Fear - Heitor Pereira

 

[SparklingEspeon]

"Nos Iter Simul – We March Together!"

-Motto of Nebyllin



CHAPTER TWO: I'M NOT IN KANSAS ANYMORE

~\({O})/~​

Dear diary (or mathbook),​

It’s me again. Writing in books that weren’t made for that feels wrong, but here I am.

It’s lights out, so I’m hiding under the bed right now with a torch and a pen. Swiped a few muffins, I’ll feed the wrappers to the neighbourhood cat. He’ll eat anything.

The group home is having a start-of-summer party next week. It’ll be after exam day at school. The matron asked if I was going to be there. She’s only known me for a month. I told her I didn’t know, but… I don’t.

Can I be honest? I don’t think I want to

I shouldn’t

I just don’t feel talking to others right now.

I don’t like this place. I think I won't go.

~Sincerely, #-*- - -

~\({O})/~​

"Oh! You're up now. Good."

Espurr's bleary vision sliced through her fuzzy dreams and gave way to bright sunshine, gleaming through a window. She was in a straw bed that rustled softly, settled in a large, airy room with rustic, apricot walls and dark brown floorboards. A wide-brimmed, floral hat hung from the wall, above a couple brown bags crumpled against the floor. Espurr remembered that bag, how rough it had felt against her fur…

Her fur! Her heart dropped, everything flooding back to her in an instant. She had to get back home!

She tried moving off the bed, to get somewhere, anywhere! But her left arm just wasn't cooperating; it felt dull and stiff, and when she tried to move it, a sharp pain rang out and made her gasp. Red tinged her vision.

"Oh! Don't do that, please." Someone jotted over, the floorboards creaking under them, and she felt gentle, unfamiliar paws grab her and settle her back into bed. "You still need rest!"

The voice and sudden jostling jarred Espurr from her panic, and she looked up. Helping her back on the bed was the strange creature from before, who was pink and yellow from head to foot and stood on two legs. She stared Espurr up and down with her piercing blue eyes, making sure she was settled properly.

"Alright now?"

"Where am I?" Espurr shakily asked, biting down the crimson roar of pain from her arm. She was on the verge of panic, starting to realise just how unfamiliar everything was.

"None other than Serenity Village," said the pink creature calmly. Seeing that Espurr was settled, she returned to folding something on the counter. "You collapsed the moment we arrived – half delirious, I suspect. Just before our end-of-week shopping trip, too. You're lucky Kecleon's stays open late Saturday nights. Not that I'd buy from him on a good day, but…"

Another dull throb from Espurr's arm. Lightheadedness was returning to her. What was this. Where was she?

"Where's that?" she asked lightly, her voice almost delirious. She was going to wake up soon. She was going to wake up soon and this would all be a dream, and... you could fall asleep in a dream, couldn't you? That must have been what happened.

"You mean Serenity Village?" Espurr could glean apprehension from the edges of the pink creature's speech, an unsure, wavering fuschia. "I'll see if I can get a map from the principal's office later," she decided on. "We're in the far South. Sound any more familiar?"

A confused shake. Espurr was sure she looked silly.

That made the pink creature really think.

"Well, I'm sure it's not too far from home," she finally said, trying to sound reassuring. "Do you remember where you came from?"

"I'm from... Halifax?" Espurr tried. "It's near Kansas City," she added helpfully.

Addled and shaken, things were still coming to her in pieces. She'd have the full picture soon, but she remembered enough to remember her town's name. She was growing more and more certain that it wasn't anywhere near here.

The pink creature 'hmm'd, pulled out a sheet of paper, and turned her back to Espurr as she started writing on it.

"Never heard of either of those villages," she muttered.

Murky colours swam over her head. Espurr thought the idea of calling Kansas City a village was rather absurd. She could just about make out the words "confused", "possibly abandoned", and "send out notice to surrounding villages" in whispers as the creature wrote, and bit down some queasiness. Her heart slowly dropped into her stomach, filling her chest with dread. She was starting to get the feeling this wasn't a dream.

Finished writing, the pink creature set down her pen, closed the cupboard, and glanced again towards the open doorway.

"What are you waiting out there for? You need treatment!" she called loudly to an unseen person who seemed to be hovering just outside the round doorway. Espurr could feel their presence now, fuzzing peach hues around the edges of her mind.

Had she always been able to see colours like that? No, she hadn't, but trying to shut it off felt like plugging her nose.

"Sorry, Ms. Audino," a high-pitched, childlike voice muttered from outside. "I don't like the school clinic…"

"Well, you wouldn't have to spend time in the school clinic if you didn't go jumping out of trees," Audino said, pouring something into a pair of leaf-made pouches. "Now come in and sit on the nest so I can treat you."

Jumping out of trees… Well, that made two of them, Espurr supposed. At least she wasn't the only lunatic around anymore.

"Not to worry," Audino continued. "You'll have company."

"Really?!"

The voice perked up with the excitement of a toddler at a sweet shop, and a bright yellow fox with fiery ear fluff dragged herself in on one paw and flopped down on another straw bed. She looked at Espurr with wide, mischievous red eyes, almost like she was plotting something.

Audino supplied her with a few of the leafy green bags, setting them over the fox's paws.

"IF you rest, you'll be doing better in a few hours," she said, then got up and looked at Espurr. "How about you? Doing alright?"

Espurr was very much not doing alright, on the brink of a meltdown, and could only nod unsurely that yes, she was. Trying to comprehend the situation beyond that might have made her break. Satisfied, Audino grabbed her bag and walked briskly towards the door.

"I'll be back shortly; I've scheduled another appointment for today. I don't want either of you to move a muscle while I'm gone, do you understand me?" Audino directed the last sentence squarely at the fox.

"Yes ma'am! Absolutely understood!" the fox chirped in a tone that Espurr gathered meant it was not understood at all. Audino kept her wary eyes on her for a few seconds longer.

"I expect to see you both sitting on those beds when I return," she said, and then she walked out the door without another word.

A thousand thoughts flew across Espurr's mind the second it swung shut: This couldn't be a dream, could it. She had to get out of here. How far away was the next town? Were they still in Kansas? Could she phone home? Were there phones here? Where could she find one? What was her mom's number again? What could she do about…

Espurr spared a quick look down at her purplish fur, which wasn't looking any more like her skin. She couldn't remember what her normal skin looked like. That was threatening to tip her over the edge. She really didn't want to think about that. Nevermind that. Phone. She stirred from her nest again, gritting her teeth, ignoring the pain. She needed to find a ph—

"Soooo-o-o-o-o-o-o…" the fox began loudly, crashing a high-speed train through Espurr's thoughts.

Espurr looked over, wide-eyed, at the creature who shared the room with her. Right. She wasn't alone. The yellow fox drew her single word out until she was out of breath, then gasped for more.

"What are you in for?" she asked, sputtering. "Wait, you're new here," she piped up just a second later when Espurr was about to respond, leaping onto the side of the bed. Words tumbled out of her mouth like a waterfall. "Are you… Hah! There's no way you're miss Audino's kid, are you? …Wait. Are you? Huh? Are you? Pleeeaaase tell me! Hey, what're you in for? Wait, I feel like I asked that one already…"

"Could you. Ask those a bit slower. Please." pleaded Espurr tiredly, who was extremely unprepared for this and felt more than a little overwhelmed by the constant onslaught of existential crises so soon after she'd woken up.

"Oh." The fox didn't seem very phased. She settled back in the bed. "Okay, what are you in for?"

"Well. You won't believe it, but I fell out of a tree," answered Espurr plainly, rubbing her eyes with her good paw.

That left the energetic fox's mouth hanging wide open.

"Woah," she mouthed in amazement, her eyes brightening. "Well guess what? I'm in here for the same thing! Twisted my tail, sprained three of my paws, and my ear hurts" – she wiggled her left ear, her smile growing strained in pain – "but it was all for a noble cause!"

"A... noble cause?" enthusiasm had left Espurr's voice entirely.

"I couldn't let a fellow child suffer in the clutches of the evil Nurse Audino for a whole week!" the fox moaned dramatically, clutching a paw to her swooning head before groaning in pain and quickly collapsing backwards onto the bed.

"I'm Fennekin Tricky, by the way," she chirped, popping back up. "Do you have a name?"

Wonderful. Like she needed a reminder. Espurr huddled closer, studying the floorboards like varnished wood had suddenly become wildly interesting. She remembered that she had a name, but not what it was.

"Just Espurr," she said.

"Aww," said Tricky. Her ears drooped. "I thought you were one of the cool 'mon."

"What's that mean?"

"Like…" Tricky trailed off, searching for the words. "Like, the 'mon with names! From up north!"

"''Mon aren't cool if they're not from up north?" asked Espurr. Who's 'mon? she thought.

"Well duh!" exclaimed Tricky, like this was obvious. "Here they're all boring and think that names should be for like, old pokemon or something. I'm from up north, so I have a name. That's where I was found! What about you? Where're you from?"

The big question. Espurr felt positively unsafe spilling her location to someone who looked like they gossiped with everyone in a five-mile radius.

"Halifax?" she asked hopefully anyway. "It's near Kansas City. Have you heard of it?"

"What's that?" Tricky asked, her face flat. "Sounds like some dumb village in the mountains."

"It's a city..." Espurr trailed off.

Tricky cocked her head. "Are you suuuure you're from around here? We're the biggest city around. Unless you're going to Crossings, but that's like, sooo many miles away so it doesn't count."

"I said I was from Halifax," Espurr insisted.

"Never heard of it!" Tricky chirped. "Ooh, wait! Are, are you like a wild pokemon? Is Kansas City some kind of forest village? I've never met a wild pokemon before, that's so cool! Do you, do you..."

As Tricky launched off into one-sided babble, Espurr felt jittery enough to collapse into a puddle on the bed. Crossings... she'd never heard of that place, either. And she knew all the cities in Kansas, from that one time she spent six hours memorising a map of the State. She hoped she hadn't landed somewhere in Missouri. She couldn't be anywhere close to home, could she?

"I'm not sure where home is anymore," she mumbled quietly, looking off to the side.

Apparently having tired of talking, Tricky sighed and yawned, blowing out an orange wisp of flame that danced dangerously close to the ceiling. She stretched in the bed with her paws under the ice. Pausing for just a second and snapping her jaw shut, she pulled her paw out from under the leaves and twisted it just to be sure.

"Oh wow! I'm healed! I'm finally healed!" she screeched.

Excitedly, she pranced out of the bed and did a few victory twirls. Espurr cringed as she watched Tricky's tail painfully cramp up, sending the fox crashing to the floor headfirst.

Thump.

"Ow…" she muttered from the floor. "Work in progress."

And then she was back up again, walking stiffly to avoid wagging her tail.

"Hey, wanna go do a village tour?"

"Didn't Nurse Audino tell us to stay here?" Espurr pointed out. "Besides," she said, tilting her head. "I don't think you can go many places with that tail."

"Eh," Tricky dismissed it with a flick of her ears and a paw-wave. "It'll heal in a bit. Besides, if you listen to the adults your whole life, life stays boring! C'mon, have some fun!"

"But that's not–"

Not that she had a choice. Tricky quickly sprung up, pranced behind her, and nudged her off the bed completely with a shove.

"Hey!" Espurr yelped, taken aback. But the yellow fox had already chomped down on her good arm and was tugging her along towards the door. "I didn't say–"

"Dif' way!" she yipped excitedly, hopping towards the door with Espurr like a dog toy, and pulling her through it.

The building was located on a steep, grassy hill. Tricky impatiently pulled Espurr down the steps, tugging her by her good arm. Espurr protested, but not wanting to lose a second arm, could only follow along where she was pulled. Tricky pulled her down the stone steps and towards a flat, downhill clearing with several wooden stump-desks and a blackboard hanging from the branch of a low tree.

"That's the school – school's out today – " Tricky gasped in between breaths as they passed.

"Tricky!"

Both Espurr and Tricky's heads whipped around, where what looked like a very angry weasel wearing a safety vest was marching towards them.

"Berry crackers…"Tricky muttered through Espurr's arm. "Bye Watchog! See you tomorrow!"

"Is this another one of your shenanigans?" Watchog angrily asked as he continued marching towards the pair. "Put that poor student back where you found them right now!"

But Tricky was already shoving Espurr off.

"No can do, Watchog! Audino's orders! Espurr needs me to show her around town!"

"No I don't–"

"That's VICE PRINCIPAL Watchog to you!" Watchog yelled after Tricky, drowning out Espurr's meek response entirely. Already, she didn't like him. "And those don't sound like Audino's orders!"

"They are! Trust me!" Tricky yelled as they continued down the downwards path, Watchog and the classroom getting further and further away.

"Trust… you?" Espurr could hear Watchog's stupefied sputtering in the distance. It wasn't hard to see why.

"C'mon!" Tricky said, once they'd reached the base of the hill. Ahead of them was a winding path overshadowed by a forest of tall pine trees.

"The town's this way. Coming?" she looked back at Espurr with large, scarlet, expectant eyes.

Espurr could have gone back to the clinic right then. She was sure Watchog, as huffy and puffy as he was, would've taken her. But gears were turning in her head. There was a town this way? Maybe she'd been too hasty. This was the perfect opportunity to figure out where she'd landed. Maybe she could even figure out a way to call home from here.

"Sure," Espurr said, putting on a brave front and taking a few bold steps forward, until she was under the shade of the pine tree path. "If it's a short trip. Could we be back before Nurse Audino?"

Tricky's ears perked up mischievously.

"Yup!" she said. "You're really coming?"

Espurr nodded. "Can do."

A grin of excitement spread across Tricky's face. She turned around and made to prance down the path, beckoning Espurr on with her tail. "Follow me!"

Ignoring the dull ache in her bandaged arm, Espurr began to hurry after Tricky on unsteady feet, doing her best to keep up.

~\({O})/~​

"This is the village square!" Tricky announced loudly, strolling into the sun.

Espurr took a look around: they'd entered a large, round plaza with colourful houses and tents set up on all sides. The transition from dirt to cobblestone felt strange against her feet. The houses all had domed, acorn roofs, and the paved stones of the square were arranged like a spiral mosaic, trailing in spirals from green into purple into orange. Long, black street-poles extended above the square, topped with bluish glassy orbs that caught the light. A few pedestrians were going about their business, doing what Espurr had to assume was pointedly avoiding Tricky from the large berth they were given. None of them were human, all of them more magical animals like Tricky and Nurse Audino had been.

Like she was.

The shock made Espurr’s legs feel like jelly. It all looked so… so different… she felt like crumpling to the ground. This was nothing like home. She was far away from home. Too far.

She was never going home.

Desperate gears started turning in her head, trying to find some straw to grasp: there seemed to be streetlights, so was there a phone box around anywhere? She couldn't see one. What about that big, two-storey building with the lights? Lights had to mean power, so–

"That's the Café Connection," said Tricky helpfully, seeing where she was staring. Café… Espurr's eyes lit up. A familiar word!

"Does it ha—" she began hopefully.

"The village is larger," Tricky prattled on obliviously, cutting Espurr off. "But this is where everything happens! You've got your Café Connection, your perfume tent – no-mon talks about the perfume tent – and your Kecleon's stall!" She excitedly pointed them out as she mentioned them; the large, two-storey building with a sloped roof, a striking red teepee-like tent that resembled a bird in decoration, and a green-and-yellow tent with enough crates and shade behind it that it might as well have been a building on its own.

"Don't steal from Kecleon," Tricky added in a hush, leaning too close to Espurr's ears for comfort. "Trust me."

"And so, you see…"

Stray voices slipped into Espurr's ear, drawing her attention away towards the other side of the square, where what looked like a pink deer and something in a metal shell were arguing. Espurr couldn't help it; once she picked up on a conversation in the background, she was listening in and that was that.

"He's nine! We both know he wouldn't walk into one of those places like that! Not unless somemon prompted him first…"

"Well, I'm getting to that…"

"What's so interesting?" Tricky's head curiously slid over to the side of Espurr's. Upon seeing them, her eyes lit up, and suddenly Espurr was being pushed against her will towards the pair by the world's most energetic fox.

"Deerling! Shelmet! Guysguysguysguysguys—"

Deerling, the elder one, looked up in annoyance, her face twisting into tiredness as Tricky pushed the hapless Espurr towards her.

"Um… hi?" Deerling raised a hoof in perplexed greeting, looking at Espurr. "Tricky, what are you up to now?" she asked with a much sterner tone, leaning her head around to look at her. "I thought you were still in Nurse Audino's office for jumping out of that tree."

Espurr was suddenly dumped backwards onto the ground. She fell with a yelp. It hurt! Tricky pranced in front of her stiffly. "Guys—you are never gonna believe this—I found Nurse Audino's kid! Really! See?"

"Loser alert…" Shelmet, the younger one, rolled his eyes.

"Tricky…" Deerling whacked her hoof against her face, then shook her head. She was clearly annoyed now. "Nurse Audino doesn't have kids. Plus, she isn't married, and she isn't a psychic-type. How could this be her kid?" she stuck an irked hoof in Espurr's direction.

"Well…" Tricky's tail drooped. She bit back the pain. "She's… adopted! Nurse Audino saved her life last night!" She nodded very quickly, like the speed would prove her point more. Then she looked at Espurr. "Right?"

Espurr was still uncrumpling herself from the ground, feeling quite nettled – from a broken arm to this? – but she figured out almost immediately that Tricky had just come up with the perfect cover story for her.

"Um, something like that," Espurr added, nodding.

Deerling looked surprised; Espurr figured she wasn't very used to being wrong. She quickly stuck out her one good paw, trying to move along. "Hi. I'm Espurr."

Her paw wasn't taken. Deerling looked somewhat confused at the gesture. Espurr, wilting inside, retracted it. Looking down at Deerling's hooves, maybe she should have realised that wasn't normal here.

Deerling shook off the confusion, and then she was all business again.

"Great," she said, bowing her head quickly towards Espurr. "Deerling. See you in class tomorrow." She ignored Tricky, who scowled and then turned her nose up with a 'hmmph', then fixed her piercing glare on Shelmet again.

"And you…"

Shelmet, who had been trying to inch away, froze in terrified silence.

"Show me exactly where Goomy went in," Deerling growled. "We need to get him out of there before his parents come looking!"

Without another word, a hopping Shelmet led Deerling off towards the large town archways ahead of them. In the distance, a path forking off towards dark-looking woods lay ahead.

"So-o-o-o-o…." came Tricky's voice, making Espurr's heart skip. "Are we following them, or are we following them?"

Espurr did not want to follow them.

"I'm just here to find a phone," said Espurr. She'd come here to get her bearings, not to take a detour. "Besides, I thought we were getting back quickly. If we go after them, Nurse Audino will know we left…"

"Yeah, but…" Tricky's tail swished between her legs. "C"mon, it'll be fun!"

"You can follow them," Espurr said. "I'd only slow you down."

And splitting here would give her an opportunity to explore the place and get back to the room before they wound up in trouble.

"But I thought…" Tricky trailed off, disappointment ringing clear in her voice. "I thought you were gonna…"

"I don't want to get into trouble," Espurr admitted. And I don't want to have come out here for nothing.

"Hah!" Tricky laughed. It sounded fake. "I laugh in the face of trouble!"

She forced out a few laughs to make it sound more real. Espurr wasn't buying it.

"You sound constipated," she said.

"Pbht." Tricky blew a raspberry. "Rude."

"Don't you worry about what Nurse Audino would say if she came back and we weren't there?" Espurr said, a bit more assertively. "You promised this would be a quick trip."

Tricky deflated. Even she couldn't refute that was true. Assuming she'd made her point, Espurr turned around and started searching around the square, her pace quickening as she went. She just wanted to find a phone box. Maybe the Café Connection had one…

"Wait, c'mon!" Tricky cried dejectedly, running back and forth and orbiting Espurr as she walked away from the square. "It won't even take that long! It'll just be in and out! It's probably nothing anyway!"

"Tricky, isn’t there anyone better to pester?" Espurr pleaded tiredly. "Why can't you leave me alone?"

Besides, she was injured. It wasn't like she'd be much help at all.

"Because..." Tricky trailed off, her tail swooshing erratically. It cramped up and she shuddered in pain. "They don't... you don't... just, c'mon! Pleeeaaase?"

Espurr did her best to march forward and ignore her. Phone box. Just keep calm… Yesterday was beginning to flash through her head again. She couldn't go back into another spooky forest. She just couldn't. What if it was the forest? What if the Coneheads were still out there, looking for her? What if they… What if they found Deerling and Shelmet? And Goomy, whoever that was?

Espurr hadn't realised she'd stopped walking until Tricky stopped prancing around her, head tilting in confusion.

"…Does this mean you changed your mind?" she asked hopefully.

Espurr's eyes widened with a gasp, and she suddenly tugged Tricky by her front leg into a narrow alleyway without warning.

"Hide!"

"Hey, what gives—" Tricky started to fuss, but Espurr quickly put her good paw up against Tricky's snout in a shushing motion.

"Shh," she said. "Look. Nurse Audino's coming back!"

Sure enough, the pink-and-yellow pokemon was leisurely hiking into the woods towards the school, unaware that the two kids she'd left alone were watching her at this very moment. Espurr's tail sunk a bit, curling around her. Oh, they’d done it now. Could they even get back before Audino did?

"No biggie!" Tricky, unexpectedly, leapt up with new life. "We'll just take the loooong way around. If we're quick, she won't even know we were missing! Follow me!"

She began to dash down the thin alleyway, stopping and turning back some twelve feet away from Espurr.

"C'mon, slowpoke!" She yelled back from across the alley. "At this rate, taking the long way around won't be a shortcut!"

Espurr just couldn't move as fast as Tricky could, and that was a fact. She kept stumbling over her still-unsteady legs and needing to lean against the wall for balance every several strides. How was she even going to keep up, at this rate?

Audino had been right. She did need rest.

~\({O})/~​

Music of the Week!

There's Something Wrong - Yuki Kajiura

 

[SparklingEspeon]

CHAPTER THREE: WE SNEAK OFF INTO THE CREEPY WOODS

~\({O})/~​

. . .. . . This wasn't the way back at all, Espurr was quickly realising. The buildings of the village had long since turned to dense trees that blotted out the sun and cast everything into various shades of blue and purple. It was darker than the foggy green forest she'd woken up in before, more ominous and looming.

"Are you sure this is the way back to school?" she asked Tricky, who was sniffing something out on the ground as they walked through and brushed aside blue and purple ferns and underbrush.

"Yep! Toootally. We're taking the loooooong way around," the fox remarked, her eyes and nose glued to the trail ahead. Espurr could see her mental smirk, painted vividly with pink and gold. She bored holes into the back of Tricky's head with her narrowed eyes.

"What sort of shortcut takes us further awa—"

"Stop!"

Tricky suddenly perked up straight, sticking out a paw and her tail to stop Espurr from heading any further.

"I'm going in after him!" the sound of voices through the underbrush up ahead caught Espurr's ears.

"No! You c-can't! We… we're not gonna let anything bad happen to you!"

"Like you didn't let anything bad happen to Goomy?"

There was a scoff, followed by the clip-clop of someone backing away.

"Save it. You two go in after him if you're so chivalrous."

"W-why do we need to do that? I'm sure he's fiiiine, he's just late."

"Pancham, you eejit, he should have been back hours ago!"

"You brought us here?" Espurr snapped under her breath at Tricky. The corners of her vision were tinted with magenta annoyance, and rightly so! Now they were certain to get in trouble, and if those strange creatures happened to be lurking around… "I thought we were going back to the school!"

"Well, yoouu weren't going to come on your own…" Tricky said. "Soo I had to improvise!"

"But…" Espurr stopped, at a loss for words. She glared daggers at Tricky, stomping the ground. "If I wanted to come, don't you think I would have said so the first time? You can't just drag me around—"

"But this is way more fun than sitting around in the school!" Tricky pleaded, almost like she was trying to convince herself. "You wanna have fun, don't you?"

Cold anger laced Espurr's face, lashing across her eyes as ice blue. She made sure as much of it pierced through as possible. If she'd had laser eyes, Tricky would have been a pile of dust.

"No," she said. "I don't want to have fun. And next time—"

"Who's that?" Deerling yelled loudly towards the brushes, stealing the voice out of Espurr's mouth. "Show yourselves!"

Tricky bounded forward, throwing apart the blue-purple leaves of the foliage. Espurr brushed past them, following her out into a small, overcast clearing.

"Oh…" Deerling, standing in the middle, relaxed as Espurr gingerly picked some twigs out of her fur. "It's you two."

"You guys left without meeee…" Tricky pranced forward and whined, her voice theatrically sad.

"Well, I didn't see you signing up to help," Deerling pointed out, staring daggers at Tricky.

"Well, no-mon told me!" Tricky whined.

"There is a good reason for that," Deering snapped, turning around. She nodded her head down at Tricky's silently cramping tail, which she was walking stiffly to avoid provoking. "Besides, you're injured. Just go back to the school clinic."

"Yeah! We don't need a loser like you taking up precious space when we're short on time," a third voice interjected. The words had come from a two-legged, stout panda who leaned against one of the trees, his arms folded. Pancham, Espurr assumed. He was chewing a twig in his mouth, twirling it like he thought it made him look cool. One look and Espurr could tell they weren't going to be friends.

"Who's the new kid?" Pancham asked.

"Nurse Audino's child," everyone but Espurr replied in unison.

"Hmmph," said Pancham, spitting his twig out. Espurr looked at the wad of spit and suppressed a shiver of disgust. They definitely weren't going to be friends.

"Look, we're out of time here!" Deerling stepped up. "Goomy should have been back hours ago. He could be in serious trouble! And if you don't want to get grounded for life by your parents…" she glared pointedly at Pancham and Shelmet. "Then it's our responsibility to help him!"

"Hey," Pancham said, raising his arms. "Dad's outta town, he ain't gonna do jack squat. Besides, it's not a big deal. You're freakin' out over nothing."

"I am not freaking out over nothing, Pancham!" Deerling growled at him. "You know that! You all know that! He could get hurt in there!"

Tricky's ears quickly flattened, and out of nowhere Espurr was blindsided by a cloud of haze that coloured her vision blue and blotted out her thoughts. She realised that it was coming from Tricky, who looked distressed. Desperate to get free of the mind-fog, she moved away from Tricky, and it lifted just enough for Espurr to think again. Soon it was gone, and Tricky had settled back into her normal peppy self. Espurr eyed Tricky with concern: what was that?

But Tricky was trying to ignore her.

All the overlapping voices and arguing that had been going on in the meantime were making Espurr's head hurt. All she wanted was to be back safe at the school. She hadn't signed up for this! But at the same time… Espurr looked towards the forest ahead of her, and saw the dark, tangled mass of trees that lay ahead. Even from here, she could tell something was wrong with it. There were little things off; how it seemed to shimmer like rippling water, or how it smelled, musty with a hint of black rot fuzzing around the corner. And there was someone just like her stuck in there…

What if the Coneheads got him?

The thought of going in after him made her stomach flip. She didn't even have both of her arms right now. But the thought of going back to the school knowing there was someone stuck in there just like her made it flip more. Whoever Goomy was... she couldn't just leave him alone in there, could she? She'd never forgive herself.

"He's gonna be fine!" Pancham shouted dismissively over the rest of the yelling. "All of this because—"

"We'll go."

The clearing fell silent. Everyone looked in surprise at where the voice came from. Tricky's mouth fell open in awe and stayed that way. Espurr looked around to make sure everyone's attention was on her, then put her good paw down.

"…Are you sure?" Deerling asked, eyeing Espurr's cast. "You don't look too good."

Espurr's attention was drawn back to her cast, and the dull maroon throbbing of her bone that was slowly beginning to become sharper. She had a feeling she was going to regret this. A lot.

"Well, you need a volunteer, don't you?" she pressed. "I don't see anyone else… unless you want to get an adult involved?"

"No," said Tricky, Pancham, and Shelmet all at once.

"Then I guess it's settled," she said.

"Hey, we won't stop you." Pancham said, gladly stepping aside. Shelmet quickly followed suit, bobbing his shell with a wide grin.

Deerling sent them a quick glare, then cleared a path for Espurr and—reluctantly—Tricky.

"Have fun getting killed!" Shelmet yelled after them.

"Shelmet!" hissed Deerling back with vitriol. Shelmet disappeared into his shell with a squeak. "All of you, back to town. We're getting some more help."

As they walked in, the bushes began to close up the way back. Espurr looked back as the branches curled up around each other, creating a dark wall of blue leaves behind them. From here on out, the forest looked like it wanted to tear them limb from limb.

Maybe it did.

~\({O})/~​

"I'm gonna be honest with you…" Tricky excitedly scampered all around Espurr as the two of them made their way through the shadowy forest. "That was amazing! I didn't think you were the exploring type! Now we can be fellow explorers together, and brave mystery dungeons together, and even join the Expedition Society together! When we grow up, of course. The Expedition Society doesn't accept children."

Espurr was still cross with Tricky, and it was written on her face. She stumbled over her own feet for the seventeenth time that day. Sure, the ground was littered with all manner of trip-friendly objects, but she knew that wasn't the problem. Oh, how she wished for her old feet back…

"We're just here for Goomy," she said firmly. "And we're not fellow explorers. Don't get ideas."

If Tricky had heard her, she didn't show it.

Espurr looked up at the woods, noticing the utter lack of wind, how the forest seemed to stare down upon them with a thousand evil eyes, the rancid scent of decay that once again filled the air… Something was wrong here.

"Can you feel it?" she finally asked aloud, shivering. Her tail dipped low, just above the ground. "This place doesn't want us here."

"Well, duuuh." Tricky was blasé, trotting cheerfully. "We're in a mystery dungeon." She dismissed it with a flick of her ears. "I should know, I've been through, like, 30 of these and come out just fine! You'll always know you're in a mystery dungeon when the wind stops blowing, and you get that kinda creepy feeling, like somemon's watching you…"

Tricky's word vomit blended in with the background noise as Espurr walked. How far in was Goomy from here? And what did he look like, for that matter? She just hoped he wasn't too far from the entrance…

"…And you know it's time to leave once this really thick fog starts creeping in…" Words finally stopped sprinting out of Tricky's mouth, the fennekin falling silent as she saw the same thing Espurr did: A thick mass of fog slowly crept between the trees, thick and dense, obscuring all it touched.

"…Exactly like that," Tricky quietly finished. She suddenly looked a lot more frantic. "Already?!" she yelled to all the trees around them. Her voice echoed up into the hollow, painted canopy. "We were only here for five minutes! How come there's already fog?!"

Espurr watched the treetops above crackle violently, blown by a strong wind that had come out of nowhere. The hackles on her tail rose.

"Tricky?"

"Yeah?" The normally hyperactive fox glanced back at Espurr.

"What happens if you stay in a mystery dungeon for too long?" Espurr asked, her voice wavering with just a hint of fear.

"Well, first, this really freaky wind starts to blow out of nowhere," Tricky started, her tail stiffly curling behind her. "And it just gets stronger every time it comes back. And then if you don't leave after that, then the dungeon starts lashing out at you itSELF—"

Both Espurr and Tricky jumped a combined total of six feet apart as the trunk of a giant tree suddenly splintered apart, falling to the ground with a deafening crash and flattening the area of ground they had previously been on.

Shaken, Espurr quickly made her way around the tree trunk to where Tricky was still picking herself up.

"Maybe I should just stop talking…" Tricky finally conceded, still catching her breath from the sudden incident.

"Good idea." Espurr readily agreed.

~\({O})/~​

This had all been such a bad idea. Goomy only wanted to prove himself to the other kids. He was nine! That was… a big kid's age for sure! But no-mon ever seemed to realise that. Deerling only coddled him, and Pancham and Shelmet bullied him more than the others, and Tricky… No-mon liked to talk about, or to, Tricky. Not that Goomy hadn't tried. Three months ago – the first and only time he'd attempted making friends with her – she had roped him into stealing unripe strawberries from her Pop's berry patch. That didn't end well for either of them.

But this was just as bad, if not even worse! Pancham and Shelmet had told him to do it. If he could find the paper they had left in this dungeon from the last school field trip, write his name on it, and bring it back to them before nightfall, they said, then they would finally stop teasing him!

And he'd found the paper too, on the first floor of the dungeon, no less! Watchog had taught him dungeons always kept anything you dropped in there until somemon picked it up, and he was proud for remembering it. But then this really creepy fog began to roll in, and suddenly everything felt scarier than it should have, and he couldn't bring himself to move. He was too scared to.

And it just got worse the longer he sat there. The fog, the gusts of wind, the scary feeling coming from everywhere… He had heard that there were wild ghosts in mystery dungeons that would devour you if they caught you, pokemon who had been consumed by the Dungeon Wraith and turned into angry spirits…

No matter how confidently Deerling told him the Dungeon Wraith was just a story made up to frighten little kids into staying in the towns, Goomy couldn't help but wonder if the off-kilter howls he heard travelling through the woods really were just the wind. Off-pitch roars and screeches bellowed through the trees like the moans of ghosts.

Goomy didn't like ghosts. He trembled again, keeping the paper close like a shield just in case a sudden wind came up and blew it away. Was he going to die here?

"GOOMY!"

Off in the distance, to Goomy's left. He looked in that direction, but couldn't see anymon through the thick, prowling fog.

"GOOMY! WHERE ARE YOU?"

His heart leaping with sudden joy, Goomy realised where he had heard that voice before. It was Tricky!

"I- I—" Goomy's voice stuttered and died in his throat. No! He couldn't be too scared to call for help, not when it was so close! Too scared to move, too scared to talk… Pancham was right. He really was just a little kid after all. Maybe he deserved to be teased and coddled. He'd take that over sitting alone in this dark and scary dungeon any day.

"GOOMY!"

With a sudden pang of fear, Goomy realised the shouts were coming from his right now. They were passing him!

"I- I… I—I'm HERE! I-I'M OVER HERE!" he yelled out, his voice returning to him with a hoarse crack. His stutter, the one he'd had all his life and just couldn't ever kick, returned with it. His antennae, already flopped down against his head, sunk down a little further in response. Any further and he'd be nothing more than a pile of goo.

An excruciating ten seconds passed. Goomy didn't hear a response. The colour was draining out of his slime. Had he not been loud enough? Did they not hear him?

But all his fears were dashed when two shadows approached through the clouds, the fog parting to reveal—

A pair of furfrou. They leapt out of the clouds in sync, their eyes vacant and their mouths dripping with drool, both aligned in permanent snarls. Goomy couldn't stand it anymore. He broke down in tears, collapsing into a puddle. He was going to become some wild ghost's lunch!

"Begone, foul beasts!"

Tricky's voice whistled through the air again, and the furfrou were suddenly sent running off once a pair of twin embers blasted through the fog and set both their scruffy heads alight. They howled and snarled, tendrils of fog seeming to snuff the fire out as they scurried off. Tricky pounced out of the mist, followed by an espurr who Goomy didn't know but was just as glad to see.

"T-Tricky!" Goomy happily slimed over to Tricky, giving her his best attempt at a non-slimy hug. Despite the warmth from Tricky's fur, he couldn't stop himself from shivering, his slime trembling from the echoes of fear. He'd never get over his cowardness, would he…

Happiness was short-lived, however. The mystery dungeon let out a bellowing screech that blew through the trees and nearly knocked the three of them off their feet.

"Uh-oh…" Tricky looked up at the trees, rattled. "It's getting mad. We should go."

~\({O})/~​

"In my two years of service as the esteemed Vice Principal of this school…"

The luminous orbs were uncovered in the Principal's Office, one of the rooms in the back of the School Clinic. They shone with a warm yellow glow, illuminating the spiky fur of Vice Principal Watchog as he paced the office like a military madmon. All three of the other teachers in the room tiredly sat in front of him as he did it. "In my two flipping years of service… one student has been the very bane of my existence."

Espurr, Tricky, and Goomy were all seated in front of Principal Simipour, the head faculty member of Serenity Village's school. He watched Watchog pace back and forth through the office through sleep-worn eyes, the same tired smile adorning his face as he did it. A short stack of papers decorated his desk, blank sides up.

Watchog suddenly spun on his feet, pointing a paw directly at Tricky.

"Thievery, trespassing, cutting school… And now she's corrupting the newcomers! She's making them think they can do whatever they want, whenever they want…" Watchog let out a hysterical chuckle. "Just think, the next generation: A bunch of scummy layabouts who steal and pillage and trespass to their heart's content! Are you all just going to sit back and let this be the future?" he questioned the teachers, gesturing broadly to the trio of students in front of him. "This needs to be nipped in the bud, right here, right now—"

"I'm terribly sorry to interrupt your… maniacal rant," Farfetch'd started carefully, clutching his stalk in his wings. "But is there a reason you've summoned us teachers and these three poor students here after nightfall, when they should be sleeping safely in their beds right about now?"

"Ha!" Watchog squeaked out a sudden laugh, cutting Farfetch'd off with manic eyes. "Oh, I assure you, Farfetch'd, sleep is the last thing on these little devils' minds…"

"Wanna remind me why you made him Vice Principal again?" Espurr heard Audino mutter to Principal Simipour. She sounded rather irritated.

"As it happens," Watchog continued, "I didn't have these students dragged from their beds. Rather, I got a tip-off from our very good student Deerling and ran into them on their way back…" he paused for dramatic effect, "…From the Foreboding Forest."

Silence fell over the room, as the other three teachers tried to digest that. Espurr held in a scowl and stared at the floor. If Deerling had even tried to make a case for them, Watchog clearly hadn't bought it.

"But what were they doing in the Foreboding Forest, I hear you ask?" Watchog continued. "Why, none other than… a dare!"

He whipped out the paper with Goomy's slimy paw-writing on it, making sure the other teachers could see it.

"And here's the proof!" Watchog crowed triumphantly. "A sheet of paper, straight from the school's stores! And there's only one pokemon who would propose a dare as stupid as this…"

Watchog cast his narrowing eyes down towards Tricky, who immediately looked affronted.

"I-it wasn't me this time! I swear!" Tricky cried out in her defence, but found herself breaking under Watchog's intense glare.

"You said you found all three of them exiting the dungeon together;" Principal Simipour spoke, his expression as infuriatingly cheerful as ever. "Yet only one has written their name on the sheet of paper?"

Watchog suddenly looked a lot less confident. "…Yes," he conceded, suddenly losing a good portion of his bravado.

"And assuming the point of this dare was to write one's name on this sheet of paper and bring it back to the village…" Simipour turned to Goomy for confirmation, which Goomy readily provided with a nod. "Then I think it's safe to say these two were not part of the dare in the first place, wouldn't you agree?"

"…Yes," Watchog concluded, looking suitably cowed.

"And knowing that," Simipour continued, "What would you then say they were doing in the dungeon?"

Tricky piped up before Watchog could.

"We were saving Goomy! Pancham and Shelmet dared him to go in and he didn't come back out, so me and Espurr volunteered to go in after him, and we saved him from getting eaten by dungeon 'mon!"

A wave of uneasiness passed through the teachers at the mention of dungeon 'mon.

"See?" Tricky told Watchog indignantly. "The dungeon was only one floor anyway…"

"Then, I think it's settled," Simipour concluded.

Watchog caught his jaw just in time to stop it from falling open in shock. "You aren't seriously going to let them go unpunished, Principal?!" he asked in shock.

"Oh, certainly not," Simipour replied, clasping his hands. "Children going into mystery dungeons unsupervised is grave misbehaviour indeed. But…"

He glanced towards Tricky, Espurr, and Goomy.

"…The cause was noble, and I have a hunch little Goomy here won't be venturing outside the bounds of the village on his own anytime soon. Therefore, excessive punishment is unnecessary. A week's worth of detention will do."

"Detention for a week?!" both Tricky and Watchog cried out.

"But we went in to save someone," Espurr said. She figured she might as well plead her case. "How come we're being punished?"

"For leaving the school without permission while you were injured," interjected Audino sternly.

"Dungeons are incredibly dangerous places. You should have come to an adult instead," Simipour replied.

"Like the adults would ever set foot into a dungeon…" Tricky huffed out of the corner of her mouth.

"One week is final. And unless you'd like me to make it two, I highly suggest leaving it there," Simipour finished, pointing his sleep-worn gaze towards Tricky.

With little more than a squeak of fear, Tricky disappeared out the door, only stopping once to groan in pain as her tail cramped halfway down the hall.

"Wait!" Audino called out after her, grabbing her exploration bag and dashing out after Tricky. "You still need healing! I'm ordering you back to the clinic!"

The door slammed shut behind them, leaving only three teachers and two students in a silent office.

"I-I think I s-should be going," Goomy finally stuttered out, his antennae slightly floppy. The excitement of the day's events must have been finally beginning to get to him.

"I agree," Simipour replied. "If I remember, you live in the same area as Farfetch'd, correct?"

Goomy thought about it for a second, then nodded. His antennae bounced back and forth. Simipour turned to Farfetch'd.

"If you would do the honours…" he asked. Farfetch'd nodded and left without another word. Goomy slimed off in his wake.

"W-what about Pancham?" Watchog sputtered as the door closed. "Aren't we gonna punish him too? I say two weeks' detention."

"Now now, Watchog," Simipour said. "Pancham and Shelmet's family has been historically difficult when it comes to punishments."

"W—" Watchog began. "W-we can't just not do anything!"

"You know his father," Simipour yawned. "The Kecleon merchant folk are a hassle to deal with, and that's from a distance. Lecture him, tell him to clean the school clinic tomorrow, and leave it at that."

Espurr looked at Watchog as he silently mulled over his options. A moment later, he stormed out, letting the door swing shut behind him.

"Espurr, was it?"

Espurr glanced up at Simipour, who still wore the same, lethargic expression on his face. His eyes were shut like he was an inch from sleep. She nodded. "Yes, sir."

"I heard about your predicament last night," he told her, still seated. "I must say, it was rather reckless of you to charge into yet another mystery dungeon only the day you got here, especially with that arm."

He opened a drawer below his desk and put the stack of papers in front of him into it.

"The pokemon who chased you have been sighted several times in the past several days searching the area. Highly dangerous, do not approach." Simipour's voice lost its airiness. "That is why, for the time being, I strongly implore you to stay within the bounds of this village. For your own safety, of course."

Espurr suddenly felt jittery, almost like she wanted to puke. She barely kept it together.

"You mean… they're lurking around here?" she asked.

"Quite possibly." Simipour closed the drawer and leaned back in his seat. "But, for now, I think it best that you stop allowing such thoughts to clog up your mind, and take kind Nurse Audino up on her offer to let you stay at the School Clinic."

Left to mull over the very frightening prospect of potential boogeymon murderers lurking around the town limits, Espurr nodded silently, and politely bid Principal Simipour good night. She looked back once on the way out, but Simipour was already snoozing with his head on his desk.

~\({O})/~​

"And I mean it this time." Audino stopped at Tricky's straw bed on her way into one of the clinic's other rooms. "Stay in your beds, or I'll see what I can do about extending that week's detention to a month."

Satisfied at the suitably frightened look on Tricky's face, Audino draped a thick tarp over each of the high-up baskets containing luminescent moss that lit the room with a bright blue glow, then continued into the clinic's other room, leaving the door open just a crack behind her.

"It's so unfaaiiir," Tricky whined once they were alone, flopping down on the bed. "We save Goomy once and we get thrown in detention! The adults never do anything right!"

Espurr carefully helped herself to one of the berries on the plate between them, and took a bite as she tuned Tricky's whining out. She felt very calm while eating, which was odd considering the past day or so. It seemed like she should feel more of anything, really. Fear, fright, desperation? Instead, she felt untethered, detached, weirdly floaty, like her mind was still sorting through it all.

"What's wrong?" Tricky asked. Espurr realised rather than eating, she was gazing down at her half-eaten berry with a stricken stare.

"Nothing," Espurr said. Another thing she couldn't say aloud. "Just the dungeon."

"I know what you meeeaan," Tricky groaned, flopping herself backwards on her bed of straw. She really didn't. "That dungeon was so cool, though. I've only been in it twice before. Usually it has multiple floors, though…"

What replaced the emptiness, and Tricky's endless droning, was a hollow feeling Espurr wistfully recognised as homesickness. She wasn't a stranger to that, but it only felt more vast and overwhelming now. The more she learned about this place, the further away everything she did know seemed. How would she ever be able to make her way back home from all of this?

A little while later, Espurr glanced at Tricky, who had drifted off to sleep through her rambling. She was still muttering gibberish in her slumber, the half-eaten celery stalk resting idly at the foot of her dangling paws. Espurr just lay awake in bed, watching the orbs cast a yellow glow against the wooden ceiling that was so unfamiliar compared to the one she knew. What a strange place she'd ended up in, and how she wished for the comfort of her room again…

Dear diary,

I'm writing to you in my head because I don't have a diary right now. I don't know if I'll ever have a diary again. Or if I'll see another book. I don't think they read books here, I didn't see a single one. That's awful and horrifying! I think I would die if I never saw books again. Or a library.

I never thought I would say it, but I actually miss Kansas. Everything's so strange here. I miss my house, I miss the library, I miss all the buildings in my town and the stupid oatmeal for breakfast that I hate. I miss the busses that are never on time. I even wish my old group home leader was there to scream at me. I don't… I don't know. I don't know what's going on. I wish someone would just tell me what was going on!

I don't know if there's anyone else here like me. Maybe there isn't. Maybe I'm stuck here forever. I'd give anything to go back. I'd do anything if I could just be human again, and if there weren't any mystery dungeons, and if I wasn't in a strange room with a talking fox that no-one else even likes.

Maybe it's a dream. Maybe it's a dream? Please god, please let it all be a dream. I just want it to be… be a… dream…

~Sincerely, Espurr

~\({O})/~​

Music of the Week!

Feels Like Home (Harry Potter 1) – John Williams

 

[SparklingEspeon]

The Daily Pelipper – Your one reliable source of news

BREAKING: Current Prime Minister to tour country, ending in South Ophria

BARAM TOWN – Following a tumultuous eight years in office, Grovyle Rufus, National Union Party Leader, will be capping off his second term as head of government with a rallying tour of the country – ending in its southernmost province, South Ophria. Late this May, the grovyle will tour its largest city, Crossings, before ending in Serenity Village, the largest town in the isolated Firland Peninsula.

Claiming some of the lowest approval ratings in years, Rufus' National Union has been plagued by instability, corruption, and mounting challenges from fringe parties who claim Cloud Nine has become a den of scandal. When asked whether he would continue as Party Leader for a third term, Rufus declined to comment.

The administration is reported to have made the decision to end in South Ophria as a ceremonial passing of the torch, as Cloud Nine will leave Baram Town, Luftand, this fall and settle in Crossings, South Ophria for its next term and next Prime Minister.

CHAPTER FOUR: A GHOST DRAGON INVADES MY DREAM

~\({O})/~​

Slowly coming to, Espurr felt dizzy.​

She tried to sit up, yawning and rubbing her eyes with both paws.

Wait, her broken arm was healed?

She twisted her left arm in surprise, watching it move around just like new. The shock was cold and slow-moving. Then she snapped awake, realising that she wasn't in her bed. She gasped in fright.

Darkness cast its cloak upon her from all sides, continuing endlessly for as far as she could see. Even the straw bed she'd drifted off on was gone; instead, she was laying on the ground in the middle of a pool of shallow water. Despite that, she didn't feel wet. She scooped her paw into the water out of curiosity, confused at how it came out completely dry. Despite how dark it was, Espurr could see her reflection perfectly, as if the sun was illuminating her fur coat. Where was she?

And how'd she get here? Espurr was quite sure this was setting a new record for supernatural kidnappings somewhere, and it was starting to get on her nerves. If someone was going to kidnap her, the least they could do was show themse—

Sudden light from behind lit up the water with a warm blue glow. Startled, Espurr quickly whirled around, shielding her eyes from a sphere of light floating above her. She took a few steps back, preparing herself to run if she had to.

"Hello?" she asked, squinting, her voice wavering.

"Greetings," said a voice pleasantly. The sphere of light descended towards the water, forming into something more solid. It took the form of a glowing, three-headed dragon, which Espurr briefly recognised from an old mythology book she'd read.

"Who… are you?" she asked, too taken aback to ask anything else.

"Me?" asked the dragon-thing, cocking its middle head. "Oh, well, I'm usually called the Voice of Life. Most call me Hydreigon. You may also call me that. Your name?"

One of the few blank spaces in her head. She still couldn't remember her name…

"People call me Espurr," she settled on, eyeing the ripples in the water.

"Hmm…"

The large, three headed dragon seemed to hum out of one head, then the next, idly floating around Espurr in the black expanse almost like he was a balloon. He settled in front of her with a splash, the large draught of air blowing her back a little.

"So!" he began. "Questions. Answers. You're probably wondering why you're here."

"I'm wondering a lot of things," said Espurr ill-temperedly, folding her arms. Was this the person who'd brought her here? "We could start with why I'm not in my bed. Either of them."

"You are in your bed, actually," said Voice with a three-headed grin that almost looked like he thought she'd make a tasty snack. "You're dreaming quite deep! It's the only time I could reach you." All three heads suddenly looked sheepish.

"I... was hoping you'd ask why you're here," admitted the left one.

"Can you answer that too?" said Espurr.

This looked like it was going to be a while. Her eyes still on the softly-glowing hydreigon, Espurr sat down in the water, her tail perking up behind her. She might as well get comfy.

Voice cleared all three of his throats loudly, then the middle head began to speak in a regal voice: "Every so often, this world faces a catastrophe, which threatens to swallow it up whole. You are hope. An outsider, brought from far away to save everyone from the destruction of the world. If you succeed, your name will be written and sung in the pages of history for eons to come!"

"And... if I don't succeed?" asked Espurr.

"Well, none of you have failed so far," said Voice. "Err, not permanently. Those are good odds!"

Espurr was almost scared to was ‘permanently’ meant here.

"Well, what if I just want to go home?" she asked.

Hydreigon looked a bit taken aback.

"Come again?" he managed to stutter out.

"What if I just want to go home?" Espurr repeated, some tiredness from the past few days cracking through her voice. "I have a maths test in a few days, and I really want to finish the book I was reading, and there's someone important I was..."

As Espurr talked, words and letters seemed to materialise above their heads, foggy, crisscrossing in streams. None of them made sense, but she did recognise the equation from Problem Four on the practise exam from weeks ago.

It was wrong. Again.

Hydreigon didn't seem particularly receptive. In fact, he looked rather guilty.

That wasn't a good sign.

"I'm trying to say, you can find someone else, right?" she finished carefully, then looked up at him in hope. "I'm not sure how I was picked, but..." I'm not the right person for this. Her words stuck in her throat. "I'm not cut out for something so important. You can find someone better than me."

Silence. Voice looked even more guilty. His two arm-hands curled in towards his body.

"Right?"

"I'm afraid…" Voice's right head tapered off. He gazed into the deep, dark blackness beyond. "That is not a luxury open to us."

The world seemed to stop turning. The streams of numbers and letters crumbled away into dust.

"Wait," said Espurr, her mind suddenly scrambling. Her tail bristled and curled into the fake water behind her. "Wait. What do you mean?" she asked, her voice rising in worry and desperation. "If you could bring someone in, why can't you take them out again? Can't you find someone else? Please?"

"I'm afraid I didn't do the bringing in," said Voice's middle head, bowing towards the water below. "And time is running out. By now, the powers hunting us will have figured out how to track and intercept journeys between worlds. How do you think They were able to get to you before we could?"

The meaning of They registered in Espurr's mind immediately. Suddenly she could see them, ghostly, blurry images shrouded by the fog of the dream, hunched shadows with pinprick eyes and cones for heads.

"You mean the Coneheads?" she asked, leaning forward.

Voice looked pensive for a moment, then nodded.

"They have many instruments to carry out their dark bidding," he said darkly. "These… 'coneheads' may be one of them, yes."

It was… a lot to think on. Espurr didn't know how she felt right now. Except annoyed. Very vividly annoyed. If nothing else, that shone through. She could have personally picked out three students in her class who would have been better for this! The least they could have done was ask first – would you like to go off to the spooky fantasy world and maybe be a hero but probably die?

Maybe then, they'd find someone truly fit to be a hero.

"So," said Voice, breaking the silence. "I'm quite sympathetic to your plight. If, by the end of this, you wish to be taken back to your own world, then so be it. But as it is, we're in quite the sticky pickle, you see, and while you're here it affects you more than most…"

He trailed off, looking slightly desperate. Espurr had to wonder just how badly he needed this. Probably very much. If someone looked a little desperate, they were usually very desperate.

But then, what other option did she have? All she wanted was to go home, but she also didn't want to be hunted down by weird conehead things. And if that meant playing hero for a little while…

"So if I help you get rid of 'Them', you promise you'll put me back afterwards?" said Espurr, settling for what sounded like the best deal she was going to get.

Voice, relieved, nodded with all three of his heads. "That's about the face of it!" he said.

"Shake on it." Espurr held out a paw. Voice looked unsure of how to handle that, before Espurr remembered that didn't seem to be a gesture here and she should stop doing it. She took it back awkwardly.

"Err, promise me."

Voice simply nodded his heads instead.

"You have my word."

"Then it's a deal," said Espurr.

And just like that, she felt a bit better. There was something she had the power to fix and change now. It sounded daunting… but in honesty, she'd take that over having no idea or direction at all.

"So, what do you know about 'Them'?"

~\({O})/~​

Not much, it turned out. There was 'something something ancient', 'something something evil', but Voice was apparently just as much in the dark as she was. Which made Espurr feel just peachy about the deal she'd made. With a three-headed, floating dream dragon. Had he really pointed her in the direction of nowhere and hoped it'd work out? What had she just been roped into?

Oh well. There was still some leeway for her to hope this was all a bad, very elaborate, multitiered dream. Maybe she'd read a bit too much fantasy before bed. There was that one movie, too…

Maybe, if all else came to nothing, she'd find a way to get out of here on her own. How far away could she possibly be?

If there were clocks here, they probably would have struck nine in the morning. The sun had already risen, the chilly morning breeze had scattered, and the local birds and squirrels had long stopped squabbling over the branches and tree-nuts. Large, impressive clouds rolled over the sky, turning into fog as they met the slopes of the faraway mountains. If she was home right now, school would have long since been in session.

"Look sharp, class!"

The fourteen other students lounging around and talking with each other in the classroom quickly took their seats when loud, portly Farfetch'd walked in and took his place at the teacher's desk. Behind him, a blackboard swung gently in the breeze from the branch of a low-hanging tree. He picked up a leek half his height, then stomped it into the ground like a cane.

"We have a new student joining us today," he began, clearing his throat. "I'm told some of you met her yesterday, but just for formalities, she'll introduce herself now."

He looked over at Espurr expectantly. Until now, she'd been standing off to the left, where the others couldn't see her, and frankly she'd have liked to keep it that way. She wasn't a spotlight person.

She moved over to the blackboard, stiffening up and facing the rest of the class. Fourteen sets of eyes stared back at her. She wanted to die.

"Good morning," said Espurr, the words sounding unnatural and stale. She really hated public speaking. "My name is," – a pause to stomach the inertia – "Espurr. I wish to become a student at the Serenity Village School, and I hope that we can all become good friends and classmates in the future."

Silence swept over the classroom so harshly an already-fidgety Espurr could hear the thirty bugs in the immediate vicinity going about their business. A single "pfffft" emerged from Pancham's side of the classroom. Her tail and ears flattened. The entire affair felt so awkward she wished she could zap away into the creepy woods and live there forever.

"Very well done!" Farfetch'd broke the silence and clapped his wings together in feathery applause.

He was the only one.

Trying to move on, he crossed the final name on the board out with a leek. "There's an empty seat next to Tricky right there. Why don't you take that one?"

Of course she got the seat next to Tricky. And Tricky couldn't have looked happier.

"Isn't this so cool?!" she whispered excitedly the moment Espurr sat down, her tail wagging furiously. "Not only do we get to attend the same school and detentions, but we get to sit right next to each other too!"

Espurr thought she heard Watchog mutter something like "Of course, put the troublemakers together, not like I care, I'M just the Vice Principal…"

Farfetch'd cleared his throat again, thumping his leek into the ground.

"Now… is the class ready?"

The class was not ready by any means, but Farfetch'd continued anyway.

~\({O})/~​

School passed quickly. It was shorter than Espurr's old school, and almost none of the classes were objectionable enough to be miserable. Farfetch'd had a sense of timing and humour, and Audino was patient and kind throughout her own class, which was about identifying and using the native types of fruit. Watchog's teaching style, however, was akin to an angry, snarling great dane who was somehow qualified to teach outdoor safety.

"Sit straight!" he barked at Pancham, who had been relaxing in his seat with his feet on the desk.

"Yeesh, teach," Pancham grumbled, sitting straight.

"Any more of that and it's detention," Watchog growled back. "Don't think your pops will save you forever."

Espurr saw Pancham sit up and make a surly, rude gesture under his seat. She urgently nudged Tricky, who had been playing dead as a form of class protest, so that Watchog's punishing eye didn't wander towards them.

School let out during the highest point of the afternoon, when the sun was at its hottest. If the heat was overbearing, a full coat of fur only made it worse. And it was hot like Espurr had never experienced it before: a baking, humid warmth, scorching like the sun itself had veered down to earth. It was in this soup-like heat that Vice Principal Watchog declared it was time to serve detention.

"Now, Principal Simipour doesn't hold the same high standard to punishment that I do…"

Watchog marched down the beaten dirt pathway behind Espurr and Tricky through the village's eastern archways and towards mountains, forest, and vast fields of farmland. Goomy, unable to properly keep up, slimed behind them as fast as he could.

"But your detentions for the following week will be personally overseen by the law-upholding gaze of yours truly, Vice Principal Watchog," Watchog announced, his voice bursting with self-absorbed pompous flair. "And I assure you, I. Will. Be. Vigilant. In my—Sharp left!"

The three students wearily stopped trudging down the path at Watchog's command, instead taking a left off the path.

"Mr. Watchog?" Espurr panted, brushing away the dust Watchog had unwittingly kicked into her fur from behind. Not that it did much; her tail dragging on the ground was picking up twice as much dirt.

"Vice Principal Watchog," Watchog muttered. "What is it?"

"Why are we leading?" Espurr asked between heat-strained breaths. "You have all the directions..."

Vice Principal Watchog sputtered. "I… I have to make sure you don't run off while I'm not looking! Wouldn't be the first time we've had deserters…" he growled, staring at Tricky, who was suddenly very interested in the flowers.

"Sharp right!" he yelled a second later. Everyone perplexedly took a sharp right.

"Now we're just back on the path," Tricky observed obnoxiously, her tone gleeful. "Do you even know where you're going, Mr. Watchog?" she asked cheerfully.

"For the last time…" Watchog sputtered, his face red, "It's Vice Principal Watchog! And yes, I took a wrong turn. All straights from here."

After a few more minutes of silent endurance in the sun as Watchog danced around them frantically, they finally arrived at the berry fields: long, open rows of bushes stretched far into the distance, ending at the neatly-clipped trees that marked the beginning of the forest. Mountains, swathed in rolling fog, loomed in the distance.

"Here we are," Watchog sighed with the enthusiasm of a grumpy swadloon. "The three of you will be spending detention picking this week's lunch. Here's a list from Principal Simipour, it has what you need to pick and where." He handed out a list each to Espurr and Goomy, who took it with his slimy paws. Espurr looked over at Tricky, who was distracted by a large, hovering insect.

"I expect hard work from all three of you!" Watchog continued. "If I catch any of you slacking, I have permission to extend your detention periods… into Summer Vacation," he finished with a grin and a sharp glare intended just for Tricky.

Tricky, who had been doing something Espurr couldn't make heads or tails of up to that point, didn't like the sound of that. She gulped, and began to physically drag Espurr off to the Strawberry Section by her good arm.

Goomy accidentally dropped his copy of the list as he slimed after them. He watched it blow off into the fields helplessly, carried away by a sudden gust of wind.

"That Watchog is evil!" Tricky gasped once they were at the gate of the fields, and Watchog was out of earshot. "He wouldn't cancel Summer Vacation, would he?"

"I-I think he would," Goomy stuttered as he slimed up, his eyes peeled to the paranoid weasel loitering about stiffly in the distance.

Tricky grabbed one of the wicker baskets resting next to the large gate in her mouth, entering the fields with a hop and a bound. "Epferr! You're on reading dudie!" she yelled back through the fields, oblivious to any of her classmates' plights. "Goomy, help me pfick berrpfies!"

Then once again, she left Espurr in the dust. Magenta annoyance tinged her vision once again as she glared—could Tricky be any more carefree? Both Espurr and Goomy traded looks. Goomy looked at his slimy paws that weren't fit for picking berries in any way, shape or form.

"Want to trade?"

Espurr handed her list out to Goomy with her one good arm, heading over to the remaining wicker baskets.

Goomy gave Espurr a grateful nod, bobbing his head readily and taking the sheet.

"Okay… I- It says we need 200 strawberries from t-the orchard…" Goomy began, following Espurr through the gate and into the field, where Tricky was already busy several rows down shoving countless berries into her basket without rhyme or reason.

He panted as he went, drooping, his antennae floppy. It looked like he was suffering from the heat far more than Espurr was. Which made sense, she guessed, looking at him. He was slimy…

"I-I remember when it use-used to rain most of these days," panted Goomy as they picked. "It-it wasn't so hot the-then…"

"It used to rain a lot?" asked Espurr, filling the basket at a faster rate than he was.

"A-all the t-time," said Goomy, using his paws to pluck a berry from the bush. "Now it's ju-just s-s-sun. I d-don't like the su-sun."

"That makes two of us," said Espurr, putting the basket where it was easier for Goomy to reach. "It only rains a bit where I used to live. I wish it did more."

"W-where d—"

"I'm Espurr," interrupted Espurr quickly before Goomy could finish. "You?"

"G-goomy," said Goomy. "Tha-thanks for g-going in after me yesterday," he awkwardly added.

"What were you doing in there?" Espurr asked.

"A d-dare," Goomy said. He deflated a little. "I-I thought that if-if I brought the paper b-back, then they'd…" he shook his head. "Ne-nevermind."

"No, go on," said Espurr.

"They said they'd stop treating me like a little kid," said Goomy. "But I didn't bring it back alone, so…"

"Well, I think it takes guts to take on the dare in the first place," Espurr replied. "A little kid wouldn't have gotten as far as you did."

Goomy brightened up a bit after that, picking the strawberries faster. They moved on to a new bush.

"H-hey," he said. Espurr, concentrating on holding the now rather heavy basket up with her one good arm, looked at him.

"W-wanna be friends?"

The question made Espurr stop in her tracks. No-one had asked her that before… well, except for…

But Tricky wasn't here. Visible shaking and the squawking of some distant crows in the bushes several rows over told her they were out of earshot.

Well, she did like Goomy, quite a bit more than Tricky...

"Sure," she said. She made to extend her paw out to shake on it, but stopped herself at the last second. Goomy gave her a friendly nudge instead.

She was getting the hang of this.

~\({O})/~​

Dear Diary,

Wrote Espurr on a piece of paper, laying on her straw bed in the dimly-lit room.

I think I'm starting to get the hang of things here. It's not that different from home, really. Everyone's still animals, and I suppose me too for now, but there's still school and days and nights and crabby teachers. Just like back home.

A pause. Espurr rolled onto her back, ignoring the dull pain in her arm, staring up at the bare wooden ceiling. She felt like sighing.

I will get back home. I have to. I promise I will. If what Voice said is true, then I won't be here much longer anyway.

I don't know what I'm supposed to stop yet, but there have to be leads somewhere. I'll start looking tomorrow. The sooner I find it, the sooner I can leave. And this can all go back to being a strange, awful dream.

She couldn't help but think of Goomy after writing that. Did she want it to be a dream?

Of course she did! She had a life to get back to. She had other people to get back to. She couldn’t just leave her old life behind. Couldn’t just give up on…

With those last dying thoughts, she stuck the paper underneath the straw, then rolled over and stared at the wall, letting her thoughts circle into strange, nonsensical loops as she drifted off to a pleasant, deep sleep.

~\({O})/~​

Knock-knock.

The wind of a spring gale howled outside, rustling the leaves in the trees and cloaking the pitter-patter of the endless rain. The sound was comforting to old 'mon Abernathy, who had been there to witness many spring seasons over his long life and intended to stick around for at least a good twenty or thirty more. There hadn't been as many storms in recent years as there were in the raichu's youth, which only made this one a welcome sight. Hopefully the grass and flowers, which had grown yellow and sickly over the years, would brighten up now.

Knock-knock.

It came to Old 'Mon Abernathy's attention right about then that the banging he heard from the door downstairs wasn't the wind rattling his doorstopper.

It came again.

Knock-knock.

Somemon persistent enough to knock three times must want something. He was expecting important visitors in the next few days, but he didn't think they'd come so quickly. And certainly not in the middle of the night… If that was them, he'd best get up and fetch the door. So the elderly raichu pulled himself out of his warm bed, and hopped down the wooden steps of his house to see who was knocking.

"Who is it?" he asked as he swung the door open. The face he expected was one of an audino from Serenity Village, the town that was about to be connected by ferry.

But instead, the figure that greeted him was of somemon tall and lean, dressed in a shadowy, green cloak, hidden by a veil of darkness. They were silent. Abernathy couldn't see their face.

"Hello?" he prompted, trying to get an answer out of the strange figure. Silence. The silence was beginning to unnerve him, making him think that perhaps this spring shower wasn't a sign of good fortune after all.

Still, the figure remained silent.

"I'm going to shut this door now," said old Abernathy, his voice laced with caution. "If this is some kind of prank—"

The figure suddenly stepped to the side deftly, and the last thing old 'mon Abernathy saw before the blast hit him were multitude flashing lights of red, yellow, and green.

~\({O})/~​

Music of the Week!

Worst Pep Talk Ever - John Powell

 

[SparklingEspeon]

hsets://con.gov.nebyllin/geography/provinces/south-ophria/8675364

Province Information: South Ophria

South Ophria is the most southerly province of Nebyllin, comprising the southernmost part of the Nebyllish mainland and the Firland Peninsula to the west. Crossings is its capital and largest city, formerly a major garrison of the Rescue Federation and sitting at the intersection of two major rivers. Agriculture is South Ophria's largest industry, comprising over 80% of its yearly output. The main methods of travel throughout South Ophria are by ferry and road.

South Ophria is bordered by Terrabondace to the north, and North Ophria to the northeast. The Province is home to a rugged subtropic biome, housing everything from foggy coastal mountains to low-lying marshes to sunny farmland. Its coastal barrier islands, forming the Wet Banks, are some of the most diverse and notable in all of Nebyllin, ranging from sandy beach deposits to tangled mangrove marshes.

While the Eastern Mainland is well-travelled and populated, the western Firland Peninsula has relatively little connection or population density due to its mountainous terrain, lack of development, and isolation from the rest of the province. Towns in this region are small and underdeveloped, but the peninsula is renowned for its untouched natural splendour. Numerous abandoned forts and castles can be found along Firland's coastline and barrier islands, relics of its time as an Annex of the Rescue Federation.

ⓘ It is advised to take heightened caution around Mystery Dungeons in Firland, due to an uptick in rapidly strengthening Dungeons throughout the region.

CHAPTER FIVE: SOMEONE DIES AND WE GO SHOPPING

~\({O})/~​

. . .. . . The morning breeze rustled Espurr awake. After a long day yesterday, she'd fallen asleep and had pleasant dreams. She yawned and stretched, for the first time in the past few days feeling truly rested.

The door of the school clinic was ajar, the source of the breeze. Next to it, moving a few bins around, was Audino.

"Oh," said Audino. "You're up. Good. I was just about to wake you."

The pink pokemon moved a bunch of bins to the table near the medicine cabinet as Espurr stretched.

"How come?" Espurr asked groggily, still rubbing the sleepiness out of her eyes.

"We're taking you out to town to get you registered," said Audino. "Get you some school supplies too, if you're going to be hanging around."

Hanging around… Espurr didn't expect she was going to be hanging around for too long. She was just here until she found out what was lurking around the village limits. But more importantly…

"What town?" she asked, reluctantly stepping off the bed at Audino's behest as the nurse packed one of the bags that hung from the wall next to the door, and put her bright, wide, flowered hat on her head. "Aren't we already in one?"

"This one's a proper town," said Audino, adjusting her hat and rifling through the bag. She grabbed a pouch that jingled, stuffing it inside before closing the flap. "You'll see when we get there. Oh, and we'll be going by water, so make sure you strap in for a long haul."

By water…

~\({O})/~​

It took Espurr a couple minutes to make sure her lavender fur was all brushed straight, the fluffy curls atop her head somewhat tamed and the leaf-green sleeve around her healing arm tucked tight. Audino gave her a small blue ribbon that went in a bow neatly atop her head. She had a bright orange apple and a strange blue fruit to eat for breakfast, which tasted like a strawberry and had the texture of a peach. Then it was time to venture into the outdoors, the chilly morning breeze nipping at her fur as she followed Audino down the pine tree path and towards the town. It was still pleasantly cloudy, the morning fog glowing blue and orange in the light of the rising westerly sun.

The town square, deserted in the early morning, was near a beach, bordering a still bay that widened up into the sea beyond. Audino led Espurr down past the acorn-houses and onto the bay, towards a wooden pole that was sticking out of the sand. Espurr jumped back as the water in front of her suddenly began to bubble, parting around a wide blue head with orange fins.

"You rang?" asked the amphibian pokemon, head poking above the waves.

"One trip to and back from Crossings, please," said Audino, rummaging in her bag. She produced a few shiny golden coins from her pouch, handing them out to the pokemon. "This should cover the fares."

Espurr vaguely remembered Crossings. Hadn't Tricky mentioned it was the biggest city around?

"This is Swampert," said Audino to Espurr. "He'll be ferrying us to and from the town."

"Hi," said Espurr with an awkward wave of her good arm. Swampert responded with a grunt. It made her want to shrivel up. Clearly, she hadn't quite gotten the hang of the local customs yet.

Swampert took the coins in a large slimy webbed paw, looking them over before nodding. "Alright, then." He dipped underneath the water, resurfacing with his back in plain view. A drenched saddle sat atop it, with a few adjustable harnesses. "Hop on."

Swampert's back was slimy, but he was fast. Espurr, with only a couple straps around her chest and waist protecting her from certain death, clung on for dear life as the pokemon sped across the ocean with the speed of a dolphin, slicing clean through waves and weaving through currents. They made a wide bow around, heading into a wide, murky river that snaked deeper inland. Audino seemed much more relaxed than Espurr was, only making sure the bag was safe and that Espurr hadn't lost hold. Espurr was terrified – how had no-one slipped off and fallen into the ocean before? She tried to ask Audino, yelling over the wind, but between the rippling breeze and the crashing of the waves, her words were lost to the wind.

"What?" asked Audino over the sound of the rippling sea. Espurr could barely hear her either.

A half hour later, the water pokemon began to slow, however, and then Espurr saw it – in the distance, quickly getting closer, the bank of a large bay was coming into view. She could see in the distance tall, colourful buildings, rising far above anything in Serenity Village.

They stopped at a pier, atop an enclosed beach near the bank of a river. The water seemed to bend and part gracefully for Swampert, letting him skid onto the shallow waves before sliding to a stop on the beach and lowering his broad back, allowing the two of them to disembark.

"We'll be heading back in a couple hours," said Audino to Swampert once the straps had been undone and they were safely on the beach. Espurr felt dizzy on her feet and like she could hug the beach, if it wasn't too large and sandy. She never wanted to do that again!

"Take your time," said the water pokemon, who'd already gone back to lazily floating in the shallow beach water. "I'm not going anywhere."

Silently, he slipped back underneath the ripples of the river bank without another word.

"What is this place?" asked Espurr as they climbed the uneven stone steps from the beach up towards the rocky hill above. It didn't seem far away from the village at all, but it looked like a whole different world…

"Crossings," said Audino, adjusting the bright, floral, wide-brimmed hat she was wearing. "The largest city in the province. And it just so happens to be where all the good, fair-price shops are."

As they walked up the steps, the rock giving way to clean white cobblestone, Espurr's eyes widened, struggling to take in the view. Crooked, three-storey shops selling shiny blue orbs and polished sticks with runes stocked their wares out front, while others were advertising fresh berries and fruits, as well as large gummy-like things the size of loafs of bread piled up in wooden containers. Pokemon of all shapes and sizes were heading to and fro in droves, looking over all the wares and haggling with market vendors, and some were holding up fliers for their own stores. The smell of baked goods teased Espurr's nose, and she noticed a cosy-looking bakery decked out in lovely shades of orange, foods all displayed in the fancy windows out front. It was filled with glowing, diamond-shaped pastries and massive loaves of bread and little cookies iced to seem like white and purple butterflies. She'd barely finished taking in one sight before another caught her eyes and ears, turning her head another way. She'd never seen something so lively and bright before!

Walking through the streets with colours and wonders and smells that never seemed to end, they soon came upon a building that seemed to dwarf all the others, built like a large, domed castle with vibrant cobalt roofs and a ridged clock tower at the top of the building's highest spire. It sat in the middle of town, and at the top of the massive, studded archway, in large, engraved text, read:

SOUTH OPHRIA DEPARTMENT OF REGISTRY​

As they approached the building, they stopped near the giant entrance archways. Espurr got sudden dubious vibes off Audino, like she was hesitant to enter.

"Here's our first stop," she said after a pause, adjusting her hat again and leading Espurr onwards towards the building.

The atmosphere changed immediately once they were inside, the white cobblestone of the town shifting to clean marble floors. The hall was built like a massive cathedral, the arched windows of domed roof sending light into the pristine pillars and corridors below and stretching so much higher than Espurr could have ever imagined. Just the height made her head spin! She felt the urge to stand in the centre and spin around while looking at the top until she got dizzy. But Audino pulled her along, heading for the desk.

The only sounds bouncing around the acoustic halls were the clacking of mechanical keyboards, the closest one 'monned by what Espurr inferred was a slakoth from the card on the counter reading 'assistant Slakoth'.

"Can I help you?" he asked tiredly, lethargically clicking buttons on the keyboard with his long claws. The keyboard was hooked into a strange blue orb, which projected an image onto a translucent panel in front of him.

"We're here to get this one—" Audino tugged on Espurr's arm "—registered."

"Name, town?"

"Espurr," said Espurr, prompted by Audino. "Serenity Village."

"She'll be with the school there," Audino added helpfully.

The slakoth nodded, then yawned.

"This way," he said lazily, scooting back his stool and hopping down, heading further into the building. "We take the photos over there."

The photo stall was in the back, surrounded by the massive hall on all sides, and it consisted of a bunch of white panels, a lightbulb, and another blue crystal orb attached to a stick. Espurr was made to face the bulb and the orb as the slakoth struggled to snap it down to an appropriate height.

"Brace for the light," he said, and with a high-pitched whine and a few clicks, the orb apparently took her photo. Bright light flashed her. She gasped and looked away, squinting.

"No!" cried the slakoth irritably. "We'll have to take it again!"

Espurr scowled annoyedly as the pokemon repositioned her like a floppy rag doll. She hated picture-taking.

Someone very loudly cleared their throat. Espurr, who hadn't been expecting it, looked over curiously. Slakoth grunted and turned Espurr’s head towards the camera again, leaving her to spy out of the corner of her eyes. Approaching them was a very large, dusk-coloured, striped crocodile that stood on two legs. He wore an official-looking white scarf, and there were suit cuffs attached to his wrists. On his nametag: Krookodile.

"Audino of Serenity Village, yes?"

Audino suddenly stiffened up, adjusting her bright floral hat again. Espurr couldn't help but try to listen in, even as Slakoth dragged her by her good arm to get a shot of her from the side, adjusting her annoyedly. Was this what Audino had been fretting about?

"Yes," said Audino hurriedly.

Krookodile sighed. His form was shrouded in lime-coloured tiredness and annoyance. The colours around everything still messed with Espurr's head. "What a coincidence. I was just about to contact you by post."

Audino stayed composed, but Espurr could tell it was taking effort on her part. The negative aura reeking off of her was singed a deep blue.

"That's just as well," Audino said. "I thought it would be a decent time to pay a visit."

"Signing on another student?" asked Krookodile, his eyes landing on Espurr. Espurr tried to look like she hadn't noticed, and like they weren't boring holes into her. "Your establishment is under scrutiny right now. Do you really want to bring on another so close to your inspection date?"

"Last I checked we were within our rights to take up to twenty students with our current staff," said Audino. "This makes fifteen."

Espurr heard Krookodile 'hmm' affirmatively.

"Yes, technically you are," he said. "However, the board, after reviewing your merits and student roster, doesn't think your school is qualified in spirit… for the status of state school. And frankly, given the previous trouble that was reported to us before, along with the relative lack of discipline you have handled the students involved with since then…"

Students involved with… The gears in Espurr's head were beginning to turn. She tried her best to at least keep one ear on their discussion, as Slakoth forcefully adjusted her into a position where she couldn't see them and checked to make sure she wasn't turning back around. Did that mean… Tricky?

"…You'll understand why the province board has begun discussing whether your school should continue to receive state funding," Krookodile finished.

He was staring Audino into the ground. She was cracking a bit.

"As the intendent assigned to your district, I will be in charge of conducting that inspection." He somehow found a way to lean in closer. "And I should hope you'll be keeping things running spick and span. Just the way a government-funded school ought to be."

Audino couldn't do much more than nod quickly.

"Yes, sir," she said. "Everything will be done on time just as planned."

"Excellent," said Krookodile. "Don't disappoint me."

He looked over at Espurr.

"And I do hope your…" he trailed off, twirling a set of claws around as he searched for the word. "New student blends in soon enough."

"She will," said Audino quickly and hurriedly.

Krookodile snorted, doing his tie up with his claws.

"Then I will leave you to it. Expect authorities to get in touch a week before the term ends."

And then he walked off. Audino was clearly shaken. Espurr could see the dark, deep green shrouding her. She looked like she wanted to faint.

"Who was that?" asked Espurr, once he was gone.

"That was Krookodile," said Audino, her tone gritted and measured. She looked quite agitated. "He's the superintendent for the district Serenity Village is in. Don't pay him any mind; he's never seen the right side of the bed before."

Flash. Another photo out of nowhere, making Espurr groan and jam her eyes shut from the unexpected flash.

"No-no-no!" exclaimed the irritated slakoth. "We'll have to take it again now!"

All Espurr could do was sigh apologetically. She just didn't like camera flashes!

As the slakoth turned her around and took her picture from behind – flash – Espurr peered through the cracks in the panels, focusing on a large statue that was being wheeled in on the other side of the building. It was surrounded by official-looking pokemon, all wearing pristine white scarves, and Krookodile was going to meet them, so it had to be important… The statue was of a large, rodentlike creature with a long, thin thunderbolt tail, ornately detailed and built to scale. If Espurr didn't know better, she would have said it could have come to life at any moment. Was it possible to sculpt that level of detail? It looked beyond what handiwork was capable of, almost… alive.

And why would they be carrying some statue in like it was some big secret?

There was another thing she noticed too. Lurking in the building, watching them go and trying to pretend like he wasn't, was a large, lean, yellow, creature in an emerald-green cape.

Flash. The picture was taken.

A green cape. Striding towards her through the ghostly fog.

Flash.

She remembered.

"What were you looking at?" asked Audino, as the slakoth ushered her off the platform.

Espurr, her heart still pounding, turned back to look at the place she'd been peering now that she was in a clear place.

"There was—"

But the statue was gone.

They must have really wanted to get it out of there, hadn't they…

"Hmm?" asked Audino, looking where Espurr was.

"It's gone now," said Espurr.

And so was the 'mon in the green cloak.

All in all, it took about ten minutes to get the photos and the papers written. Espurr had to sign a few papers and stamp a paw-print in black ink. She'd get a paper in the mail deeming her as with a school in a few weeks.

Their next stop, a few streets away and back into the languid mess of colours and noise and light, was a small, two-storey bookshop named the Crooked Book Nook that seemed to lean ever-so-slightly against the buildings on either side of it. It was almost claustrophobic from the ground floor, bookcases leaning over them like they were sagging from the weight of all the different tomes. Despite that, the shop was well-lit, the first storey an overlook decked out with windows that illuminated the many shelves and tables below. Audino read the signs hanging from each aisle, looking for the correct section.

"You'll need one for dungeoneering class, and one for botany…" Audino trailed off, leaving Espurr to her own devices as she searched. Espurr's eyes widened, glimmering with excitement. Finally, a library! Books being her past time, she couldn't help herself from going through the shelves with glee, eventually gazing at some of the ones on display at a table off to the side.

The books here weren't like the books she had back home. Many of them seemed almost alive, or enchanted – one book, How to Enchant Things, was covered in runes that seemed to glow with green energy, while another, A Light in The Dark, shone bright light off its pages when she opened it. Half-blinded and looking away, Espurr groaned and quickly snapped it shut. How were you supposed to read a book like that?

After the last two, she didn't really want to mess with the one titled Teleporting for Dummies.

"Need help?"

Startled, Espurr nearly dropped the book as she looked up. There was a 'mon in front of her that was hot pink from head to toe, except for their light-pink arms and the giant, poofy bangs that hung from their head. Was it hair?

"No, I think I have it sorted," she said nicely, setting the book down on the table. The creature looked down at it.

"Hey, I recommend you be careful in this section," the pink 'mon said causally, leaning against a bookcase and folding their arms. "One time we stocked a book called The Disappearing Act, which actually disappeared after you sat down and read it. Another time it was The Explosive Guide to Explosives, which… well, needless to say, those weren't exactly bestsellers."

"Why would anymon... make books like that?" asked Espurr, somewhat shocked. Weren't books supposed to be for reading?

"Beats me," the 'mon shrugged. "I just help sell 'em. But if it's worth anything, Campfire for A Rainy Day actually makes for a pretty good campfire. It's waterproof, too. Anyway, acquaintances can call me Tinkaton. You?"

"Espurr," said Espurr. "I'm from Serenity Village."

She raised her good paw to shake before remembering people were mad and didn't do that here.

"Ahh, right," said Tinkaton. "Then you must be here for schoolbooks. They're all the way on the other side of the bookstore—"

"Got them," said Audino from behind, cutting into their conversation. She had three large books in her arms, which Espurr read the titles of: Do's and Don'ts of Mystery Dungeons, The Book of Berries, and An Abridged History of The World. "Let's go ahead and pay for these." She looked at Tinkaton. "Mind ringing us up?"

"Sure thing," said Tinkaton, hopping behind the counter. "You're here for the afternoon?"

"Just another hour, actually," said Audino. "I have to get some more dungeon supplies for exams later."

They left the bookstore through the same crooked doorway they'd entered through, emerging back into the bustling, sunny marketplace.

"I'm just going to make one more stop," Audino explained, turning around the corridor and off the main street, into a more residential sector of town. She stopped Espurr there. "You wait for me here; I'll just be a minute."

And then she was off, leaving Espurr to her own devices off to the side in the large, crowded main street.

All of a sudden, the city seemed so much noisier. The currents of the crowd moved against her, threatening to sweep her away, and before long she was moving along with them, just at her own pace. She took in the sights as she went – what looked like a large, walking sunflower was pushing around a cart with colourful bundles of normal flowers, and a dog made entirely of… bread? Was selling various, smaller, dog-shaped loafs to whoever would buy one.

She wasn't quite sure what to make of that.

It seemed like Espurr couldn't pass a building on any of the streets ahead that wasn't covered in some sort of art. One of them, in what she assumed was one of the lesser city squares, was grander than the rest. It stood out from the others, weathered and nearly two storeys high. The oils on brick immortalised the image of a blue otter and a yellow mouse standing at the edge of a cliff, combining beams of light from their paws that were aimed at a colossal snowflake in front of them. She had no idea what it meant. Only a golden plaque on the front gave her any clue.

"The Heroes of Paradise"

"There you are!" came Audino's voice out of nowhere, and Espurr looked back to see her running up, her flowered hat almost lopsided. "I thought I told you to stay in one place!" she admonished Espurr.

"It was only a street…" said Espurr.

"One street too many," said Audino. "Stay in one spot next time!"

Espurr pointed up at Audino's hat, which was beginning to slip off. Audino looked up, and adjusted it. She pulled something out of her bag, and lumped a pastry into Espurr's paws. It was one of the ones that bread-dog was selling.

"Thought you'd be hungry," she said.

~\({O})/~​

School was nothing remarkable. Espurr was more tired than usual – getting up to go to Crossings had meant she'd gotten up a couple hours earlier than she normally would – and was thankful when it finally ended. She felt like faceplanting into bed the moment the sun went down.

For detention, Watchog made them clean the classroom after school. Which meant plucking weeds near the grass and bushes, polishing the teacher's desk, dusting the blackboard, and finally – putting away the supplies that had been left out during class.

"Hey," she said to Goomy as the two of them were packing up. Goomy looked at her, helping jam some of the school supplies back into a bucket.

"Y-yes?" he asked.

"Do you know who the "Heroes of Paradise" are?"

Goomy looked like he was thinking hard for a couple seconds.

"I-I heard a-b-bout them, b-but I don't know wh—"

"I know!"

Tricky seemed to pop out of nowhere, practically shrieking the words with excitement. She also knocked over the school supplies Goomy had been stacking. Goomy melted a bit with a sigh. Espurr felt bad for him. Tricky was a bit like an annoying dog – grating on the ears, a whirlwind of destruction, and never where you wanted her to appear.

"Where did you hear that?" the fennekin asked, panting obliviously. "Huh? Huh?"

"I saw it today," Espurr said with a hint of annoyance, helping Goomy restack the supplies. "And since you're here, could you help us restack these?"

Tricky carelessly lopped one thing back into the nearby bin with her tail – not at all where it was even supposed to go! – and then began spewing word vomit.

"The Heroes of Paradise are only like, the most famous heroes in the modern day!" the fennekin began. "They said for years and years, there were all these wars, like, between the North and South. And then seventy years ago, the most dangerous blizzard ever engulfed the world. It was caused by the Bittercold! The Bittercold was the amalgamation of everymon's mean thoughts, it just all created a storm and that storm threatened to wipe everymon else out. The Heroes of Paradise were the ones who defeated the Bittercold and stopped the storm from lashing out and destroying everything!"

"Huh…" Espurr's mind was already turning gears. A Bittercold… was that what she was looking for? Could that be the monster she'd been sent here to defeat?

"Where are they now?" she asked. Dead, she assumed.

"Oh, they're up North," said Tricky, spreading out her paws. "In a big city named Pokemon Paradise! They say it's so big that you can walk for hours and never see the end of town!

"They built it," she added sagely.

"A-anyways, I have to go h-home now," interjected Goomy, who had cleanly put everything back in the bucket while they were talking. It was the last thing to put away. Yawning, he bid them goodbye and began to slime off. Tricky yawned.

"Yeah, me toooo…" she whined. "See you later, Espurr!" she waved as she pranced off, leaving Espurr completely alone to put the bucket away in its proper place. At least there wasn't that much inside it, so she could lug it along with one arm. And she could think as she worked.

The entire exchange simply left Espurr with more thoughts than brainpower to dissect them. She didn't see anything like a Bittercold these days. And since the Heroes of Paradise were still alive… why couldn't they handle the new threat? Why had she been brought here in their place?

What was so wrong with them?

~\({O})/~​

Music of the Week!

Diagon Alley and the Gringotts Vault / Wand of the Phoenix - John Williams

 

[SparklingEspeon]

The Dazzling Dewgong – South Ophria's Best Paper

Disappearance, Suspected Murder in Crossings – The Statue Killer Strikes Again

Crossings city police are investigating the disappearance of Raichu Abernathy after he was reported missing, authorities announced.

The 91 year old 'mon's residence was found wide open, with a statue resembling him placed just beyond the doorway. The incident was reported at 4:00 Tuesday, with police arriving fifteen minutes later, the Daily Pelipper confirmed in a press release. This is the latest in a series of similar disappearances occurring in the region.

"The search for Raichu Abernathy and the other victims is ongoing," the West Crossings Police Department responded when asked for a comment. "We ask all citizens to submit a report immediately if he is spotted or if any suspicious activity in your area occurs. Murder cannot be ruled out just yet, but for now we're investigating it as a possibility."

No arrests have been made in connection with Abernathy's disappearance or presumed murder, or any of the other disappearances. Concerns have been raised over the crime in a historically safe portion of the city, along with the statue, which appears to be a perfect replica of the 'mon.

The city did not respond immediately to further requests to comment.

CHAPTER SIX: THE SCHOOL FINALLY HIRES A DECENT TEACHER

~\({O})/~​

. . .. . . Even though the fennekin was an open book, it still took Tricky an entire day and a half to ask Espurr a question.

"Doywncomtdinrwfme?"

The hurried mash of syllables slammed into Espurr's ear at a volume that made her wince and pull back. She looked across their desk at Tricky, bewildered.

"…What?" Espurr asked, keeping her voice in a hush to stay undetected. The class was currently copying down notes from the blackboard about ancient Human society – most of which were just horribly wrong and made Espurr want to correct them all. Lawn flamingos were not idols.

"Doyouwanttocometodinnerwithme?"

The voice was loud enough to get the attention of Farfetch'd, who looked up from his papers to survey the classroom. Espurr immediately looked very busy in her notes, which were next to Tricky's notes, which were doodled animals. Once his head had gone down again, Tricky opened her snout and took a deep, dramatic breath, like she was going to blow dragon-fire on something.

"Dyuwunna—"

"Speak slower!" pleaded Espurr in a hush. "And please whisper."

"Do. You wanna. Come. To dinner. With me?" Tricky forced out in the loudest whisper possible.

Espurr stole another look at Farfetch'd, just to make sure he hadn't noticed. If he had, he didn't seem to mind. His face was still firmly down in his schedule book, a quill from his wing feathers scribbling intently.

The truth was, Espurr didn't like Tricky very much. And that Tricky hadn't seemed to pick up on that just made Espurr like her less. Worst of all, she still hadn't apologised for – or even mentioned – tricking her into entering the woods that day when they were supposed to be going back to the clinic! That alone soured her on Tricky.

"I need a bit to think on it," Espurr said nicely, hoping Tricky would take the hint. Besides, she shouldn't be keeping friends anyway. Not when her stay here was temporary.

"Aww, but what's there to think about?" Tricky whispered back, eyes bright and tail lashing. "My Pop's a chef. He makes really good food. Nothing like what the school serves! You really should come."

"Give me some time to think about it," said Espurr. “Please.”

She should have turned Tricky down there, but somehow, she just didn't have the heart to say it directly.

Tricky didn't look particularly happy about that, but she perked up nonetheless and was sing-songy for the rest of class.

~\({O})/~​

"Today I have a special announcement to make," said Simipour, taking a spot in front of the blackboard. Following him was a pokemon that none of the others had seen before, as far as Espurr could tell. His body was covered in smooth, knobbly bark, and he was stout and humanlike. A large leaf hung from his head, but the smile underneath was warm enough to catch her off-guard. He draped his green cloak and his bag in the currently empty sentry spot, and hung around near the blackboard, leaning against the fence.

The principal beckoned for the pokemon near the blackboard to come forward.

"This is Nuzleaf," Simipour said. Nuzleaf gave a wave. "He'll be filling in a very important part of your curriculum that you haven't yet covered: elemental power."

"Elemental power?"

The voice had left Espurr's voice before she could even think about it. She looked both ways, then awkwardly rose her good paw, realising she'd asked without. A couple snickers rolled through the classroom behind her, making her feel very embarrassed. Could anyone see the red in her face through her fur?

"Yup," said Nuzleaf, sounding like he hadn't skipped a beat. He didn't sound anything like Espurr had expected, a thick ranch drawl escaping his lips. He kicked off the fence, walked forward and clasped his hands together. "The innate energy shared between each an' every one of ya. The one definin' power an' trait that links all of us together. Our species' hallmark."

Simipour gracefully let Nuzleaf take centre stage as he walked behind the teacher's desk.

"Now, I dunno how much y'all have learned over the past few years," began Nuzleaf, leaning forward. "The other teachers will probably fill me in later, but do any of y'all want to give me a leg up? Can anymon tell me wha' elemental powers are?"

Immediately Tricky was jumping up and down in her seat, her tail lashing furiously. Espurr could hear the 'ooh! Me! Me!'s fighting to burst from her jaws. Nuzleaf tossed one of Farfetch'd's stalks in the air, caught it, and pointed her out.

"It's like these really cool fighting moves you can do, like blowing fire or blowing water or making plants grow and stuff!" Tricky blurted out, riding up against the limit of how fast you could talk while sounding intelligible.

Deerling, who sat behind Espurr, yawned and snorted. Espurr thought it sounded like scoffing.

"Ahh…" Nuzleaf looked sheepish. "Sorta. But tha's only half the story. Anymon else?"

"Elemental powers are the manifestation of the energy that powers all energy-based beings," Deerling spoke up behind Espurr in a stately, controlled voice. "Since pokemon are made of energy, we can harness it in a way no other living thing can. That’s what differentiates us from normal old animals."

"Correct!" said Nuzleaf. "Somemon's been studyin'."

Deerling tried, unsuccessfully, to hide that she was proud of herself.

"Elemental powers are the lifeblood of everythin' that ticks in our world," continued Nuzleaf. "As bein's capable of harnessin' that energy, we can not only influence our surroundin's, but also use that energy to create somethin' entirely new. Like so!"

He suddenly pirouetted, sharply raised his hands up into the air, and clapped. The clap sounded thunderous, and a black bolt of energy arched up into the sky before exploding into fizzling fireworks above the classroom. Little specks of shining glitter spread throughout the air, raining down on everyone, before blinking away into nothingness.

"Woah," said Shelmet, before Pancham gave him an annoyed look. Shelmet immediately looked like he wasn't impressed.

Satisfied that he'd impressed the class, Nuzleaf put his hands down and dusted them off.

"Tha' was a move of my own makin'," he said. "And by the en' of this week, if you all pay attention, each and every single one of you will be able to do it yourselves. How does tha' sound?"

Espurr, bedazzled, thought it sounded utterly magnificent.

~\({O})/~​

Recess was awash with nothing but praise for the new teacher and the cool things he taught.

"Who even is that?" asked a pachirisu through two large cheekfuls of food.

"Swallow your food first," said a pawmo who sat next to her.

"If's for lapher!"

Goomy, in the corner, was trying and succeeding in producing a few stuttering purple sparkles. They vanished once they left the tips of his slimy paws, but it was more than most of the other students could muster. He had a small crowd surrounding him.

"Very cool!" said Deerling.

Deerling and Goomy seemed to be close. Even though they sat rather far apart in class, Deerling followed him around nearly the entire day when he wasn't in detention.

"Well, I'm already ahead in class," bragged Tricky in another corner. "See what I can do?" She opened her mouth and blew out a small stream of fire into the air, which became a flaming ribbon that contorted into a rude word. Audino gave her a mean look and quickly swatted her away from the windowsill she was in danger of scorching.

Espurr, in her own little nook and cranny with her lunch, mostly just had to agree. The subjects here were so… different to back home. She could get on-board with these. Especially with a teacher as kind and fun as Nuzleaf was.

But as kind as Nuzleaf was, his class was the last in the school, which meant right after lunch, Vice Principal Watchog shoved them out the door for detention. And Watchog was not a very nice teacher.

"Come on!" he crowed from the fence, like he was an irritable banker short on time. "That soil won't turn itself. You've got three more gardens to plough after this."

Tricky, who was pulling the plough while Espurr and Goomy tugged weeds, grumbled through the reins, smoke curling from her ears. Espurr, trying her best to work with an arm in a cast, could only sympathise. She'd long since decided Watchog was the new bane of her life.

There was a newcomer in town that day. Espurr heard about him long before she saw anything. A tall, lean, yellow 'mon in an earth-green cloak, who seemed to be rather nosey for an outsider passing through. Almost no-mon knew anything about him, and bad news had followed in his wake – a 'mon was found missing in Crossings, a strange statue presumed to be a calling card left on his doorstep.

The picture of the ‘mon, a stout, orange mouselike creature called a ‘raichu’, looked just like the statue Espurr had seen in Crossings. And someone fitting the newcomer’s description had been hanging around the statue yesterday…

Were they connected? Could he be working with the Coneheads?

A newcomer so soon after a murder was a bad omen, the village said. He was not to be trusted until proven otherwise. And given what she'd seen in Crossings that other day, Espurr was more than happy to follow that advice. In fact, he got a special spot at the top of her suspect list. Involved in a likely murder… if that wasn't a lead to finding whatever she was supposed to get rid of, she didn't know what was.

Now that school was out and Watchog was dragging them back to town, Tricky was getting ready to ask Espurr over again.

"Hey, have you thought about it?" she asked, bright-eyed. Espurr really hadn't. Between Nuzleaf and the newcomer, she'd been swept away in other things. And truth be told, she didn't really want to go. Everything about Tricky ruffled her fur the wrong way.

"I'm a bit tired," she replied, hoping Tricky would take the hint this time.

"That's okay!" Tricky yipped, the hint flying far over her bushy ears. "I can walk you back to the school afterwards!"

Espurr yawned. Inside, she felt herself shrivelling up. She'd just have to be blunt then. "I'm not interested, Tricky. Sorry."

"Oh…" Tricky seemed to droop a little. Her tail was definitely less lively. "Okay, then… Let me know if you change your mind."

She was droopy all the way back to the town square.

~\({O})/~​

It wasn't until the next day that the both of them met the newcomer.

He was loitering around the town square just before sunset. Watchog had made them pick berries again for detention that day, and it had somehow managed to be hotter than the first time. Goomy was tuckered out, his slime congealing more than it usually did, and Espurr was really considering doing some research into whether 'hairless cat' was a style or not. Only Tricky, who seemed to thrive in the heat, was energetic.

"Are you sure you don't wanna go tonight?" she whined, prancing around Espurr desperately as they walked back to town behind Watchog. "Pleeeaase?"

"I'm sure," said Espurr, trying to trudge along faster.

"But it's leftover night!" Tricky pleaded. "I made sure to leave some of all the best stuff!"

"I'm not hungry," Espurr responded, swallowing her irritation.

"But everymon gets hungry," Tricky pointed out. "C'mon! Don't you wanna—"

"Tricky," Espurr said with irritation, turning around. How many times could she say no? "How many times do I have to tell you I'm not interested?"

Tricky, who had been practically right behind her, recoiled a little. Espurr backed down.

"Sorry," the fox said, drooping over a bit.

"Maybe some other time," offered Espurr limply, hoping not to be rude. She tacked on a smile. She suspected it made her look ghoulish.

Tricky said nothing afterwards, just sitting back on the ground and swishing her tail back and forth as she studied the pebbles on the pavement below her.

"Wait right here," Watchog ordered them as they approached Kecleon's stall. "I have to purchase the non-pickables. I don't want to see you standing one inch out of place when I return, or I'll assign summer detention for all three of you. Got it?"

"Got it…" All three students recited wearily.

Satisfied enough, Watchog started off towards Kecleon's stall, leaving them on their own. Espurr took a seat on the ground the moment he had turned his back, almost drooping with sleep just like her classmates. The day had taken a toll on them, and as someone who had woken up early that day, it was taking most of Espurr's willpower to keep herself awake.

"Good evening."

All three students glanced up wearily at the pokemon who had greeted them, suddenly straightening up and leaping to their feet when they saw who it was. Audino adjusted her exploration bag over her shoulder, her floral hat on her head and a smallish purse in her other paw.

"N-Nurse Audino!" Tricky immediately tried to look awake, only succeeding in looking constipated instead. "We totally weren't sleeping on you right now. Trust us!"

Audino gave them a laugh and a warm smile.

"I hope 'Vice Principal' Watchog hasn't been too hard on you," she said, waiting next to them.

"Only a little," said Espurr tiredly, which meant that he'd been absolutely backbreaking, and she was on the verge of death.

"I think m-my sl-slime is hardening," mumbled Goomy weakly. Audino, concerned, gave him something to drink.

"You all behaved yourselves?" A brash voice suddenly rang out behind them. Everymon turned around to face Watchog, who lugged back a week's worth of nuts in his paws. He glowered at all three of the students as he approached. "Did anymon move?"

"Oh, stick a wooper in it, Watchog," Audino retorted grouchily. "They were with me the entire time, and I haven't seen them move once."

Espurr, Tricky, and Goomy were treated to the rare sight of Watchog's face suddenly growing spooked as he noticed who was with them.

"A-Audino!" he exclaimed nervously, tightly gripping the sack the nuts were held in. "Fancy seeing you here…"

"Happened to be in the area; thought I'd lend a helping paw," Audino replied. "Hope you haven't worked them to death."

"And just what are you insinuating by that?" retorted Watchog.

"Oh, nothing," said Audino. "But one makes observations from patterns."

"Really?" Watchog folded his arms defensively. "This again? They're just as happy to cause trouble on any other day. The way I see it, this is a useful waste of their energy."

"A useful waste?!"

On the other side of the square, far away from Watchog and Audino's arguing, a 'mon Espurr had only seen once before was stumbling through the square, having just knocked over a vendor's apples. She recognised him from Crossings… was he the newcomer everyone had been whispering about?

Her eyes narrowed. She put her guard up.

"Hey!" yelled Kecleon, who managed the tent. "Those are fresh apples! I just had them come in from up north! You'd better hope none of them are bruised!"

"My apologies," said the stranger with an apologetic bow. He helped to pick them up, but Kecleon swatted him away.

"Just go. You've done enough," the lizard irritably muttered. The stranger backed away and moved on.

Espurr realised quickly that something was off about the way he was interacting with people. It seemed to be from one thing to the other; if he wasn't knocking over supplies, he was hitting it up with some of the pokemon on the street. No pokemon who was up to normal things behaved like that; it looked like he was trying to hit as many pokemon as possible on purpose… it took her a second to register that he seemed to be heading this way.

"Ah, two new faces!" said the stranger jovially as he approached. Now that he was up-close, Espurr got a better look at him – tall, bright yellow with black stripes, built almost like a giraffe with a long neck, but with a large, red, faintly glowing orb on his tail and big, long ears that belonged on a rabbit. He wore a cloak that was just as earthy green and slender as the stories had described. He must have been three times her height.

"Oh, apologies," he said. His voice was light and airy. "Where are my manners? We haven't even introduced ourselves!"

He stuck out a flipper-like paw.

"My name is Ampharos," he said, like he was announcing it to a crowd. "Though you may also know me as… the Dashing Wanderer!"

He did a flamboyant flap of his cape, but the breeze just blew it back on him. He shook it off. "And you two?"

"I'm Tricky," Tricky started loudly before Espurr could say they were just some local kids. "And this is Espurr! We're training to join the Expedition Society when we grow up!"

Espurr's jaw nearly dropped. When had she said that?

But before she could refute it, Ampharos had already finished musing and opened his mouth.

"Hmm… Expedition Society, you say," he said. "Very intriguing."

"What are you doing here, anyway?" asked Tricky brightly. "There's, like, nothing here. We're just a loo stop on your way to the mountains."

"That… is classified," said Ampharos. "But I can tell you the sights here are nothing short of spectacular. You must get all sorts of tourists in the spring and summer."

"We don't! We haven't had a newcomer since… since…" Tricky stopped to think for a second, and that second was enough for it to click in Espurr's own head. If Ampharos learned that, then he’d know to…

“Tricky, wait—” she started. But she was too late.

"…Since Espurr here! Yeah!"

Espurr wilted. For all she knew, he was the murderer! And Tricky had just possibly made her a target...

Ampharos hmm'd.

"Well, that's very interesting indeed," he said. "I should like to make your acquaintance further at a later time. For now, I have many important things that need attending to. So good day!"

And with one more swish of his cape, like he was some sort of campy superhero, he began to walk towards the Café Connection.

That was it! Espurr was peeved, her ears as pinned as they could go. How could Tricky just say something like that? If he was in any way connected to that murder up north… she might be next!

"Tricky!" Espurr snapped annoyedly. Tricky looked back at her.

"What?"

"How could you just tell him that? You don't even know him!"

"But he seemed nice," said Tricky.

"But he's a stranger!" puffed Espurr.

"Sorry…" muttered Tricky. "I forgot."

"How could you forget about something like that?" asked Espurr.

"I just… did!"

Espurr hmmphed and swiftly walked away, making sure that she left before anymon else noticed and she outpaced Tricky before the fox could keep up.

"Have a good night," called out Audino from the distance as she passed them.

Whatever road Espurr took wound up taking her to the outskirts of the village, along the vast lake that flowed out to the sea. Buildings and other ‘mon disappeared completely, leaving nothing but trees, the side of the lake... and the house.

It was out on a small island, with only a rickety wooden bridge leading to it from the mainland. It was dilapidated, its walls blackened from mud and some of its roof missing. The building looked like some of the old, crumbling ones back in Halifax, the complete opposite of the airy villas of Serenity Village. The ground it stood on was soggy, and the house had begun to lean ever so slightly into the ground. It was a crooked house.

But the most unsettling thing about it was the aura it gave off. Espurr could feel the evil flowing from it. Her ears flattened down, her tail bunched up, and she took a few steps back. Her instincts told her to hide or flee. It was an evil place. Maybe it had been banished there because the people who built it realised what they'd made.

"Heeey! Wait for me!"

The distant voice was punctured with a twang Espurr recognised even from far away. She only had to turn around to see Tricky running towards her from the direction of the village and the mountains dotting the horizon.

"Wait… up…" breathed Tricky hoarsely as she finally caught up, panting and out of breath as she came to a stop on the path next to Espurr.

"Why'd you just run off?" she asked, recovering.

“Because I needed a walk,” Espurr said, turning around and starting to head back to the village. Anything to get away from Tricky and that house. “Alone.”

“Sorry about earlier, but… but I thought…” Tricky stammered. Espurr wasn’t looking or listening. “I thought you were my friend?”

“Friend?”

That struck a sour note within Espurr. Before she knew what she was doing, she turned around to face Tricky.

“No. We’re not friends,” Espurr said, her voice dripping with contempt. “Friends don’t hound other friends to go to some dinner party. Friends don’t trick other friends into insane quests they get week-long detentions over. Friends don’t spill friends’ secrets to random strangers, and friends don’t speak for other friends!”

By the last sentence, she was yelling. Tricky, crouching, fur puffed up, was left speechless by Espurr’s words.

“So no,” Espurr said, pulling back. “We’re not friends. And we’re never going to be friends unless you grow. Up.”

And with that, she turned back around and started towards the village without another word. She could hear Tricky sniffling in the background, and a brief tug on her conscience appeared. She knew Tricky had just made a mistake; Espurr hadn’t told her to keep that secret. But she was cross with Tricky for seven different reasons, and this was the straw that broke the camel’s back.

Tricky, still on the ground, was left speechless by Espurr's words.

"So no," Espurr said, pulling back. "We're not friends. And we're never going to be friends unless you grow. Up."Besides, it was doing Tricky a favour. If she got this attached now, then it would only hit her harder when Espurr left.

~\({O})/~​

The sun had already set by the time Espurr made it back up to the school clinic. She ate a light, simple dinner, and climbed into bed. Audino covered the luminous orbs on the walls with white cloths, and then retired to the backroom office. Espurr flopped on her straw bed, blotting out the dull orange throbbing of her broken arm, staring up at the ceiling in thought. She tried not to think about her bad experience with Tricky today.

Dear diary,—

Muffled, urgent voices from the room over jarred her out of her thoughts. Espurr's sharp hearing made out the sounds of voices. When she looked over, she saw that the lights had been uncovered in that backroom where Audino had gone. The warm yellow light shone from under the crack of the door.

Against her better judgement, Espurr let her curiosity get the better of her. She crept off her bed, over towards the door, lowering her ear against it the best she could while remaining hidden.

"Gone? What do you mean gone?"

That was Farfetch'd.

"I mean gone," said Audino. "The news came in from Crossings. It was him. The police have no body, suspects, or motive for the disappearance, just that an unusual souvenir was left in his place."

"What kind of souvenir?" Watchog. "And what kind of criminal leaves one behind?"

"The kind who strikes more than once," said Farfetch'd anxiously. Espurr could hear him clutching his leek.

"That's what has everymon worried," said Simipour. "The criminal left behind a full-sized statue of the 'mon who was who was abducted. They seem to have been planning their target for a while, and dumped it there once the deed was done."

A wave of silence passed through all the teachers. It was an uneasy silence, the kind filled with tension.

"Well, perhaps we just got unlucky," a new voice proposed. Espurr recognised the thick ranch drawl – that was Nuzleaf! "The 'mon was old. He could'a had an enemy. Tha' would explain the statue too; ya don' throw somethin' like tha' together in one day."

There was uneasy agreement from the other four teachers on the matter.

"And what of the newcomer?" spoke Farfetch'd.

"This… Ampharos?" Simipour said.

"That's him," said Farfetch'd. "Do we think he's responsible? He came out west from Crossings just yesterday."

"Hmm…" Simipour mused. "Innocent until proven guilty is our policy. We must keep a wary eye out, but not be too quick to act. You never know what the true story may be."

More uneasy agreements from all the teachers.

"Until further notice, we proceed as usual," said Simipour. "We find another guardian for the student, perhaps somemon with less… history. Meeting is adjourned."

It took Espurr a few seconds, and the shuffling of footsteps, to realise they were leaving! She scurried back to her bed, and appeared to be fast asleep as the other three teachers filed out and then left.

But when they were gone, the information rattled around Espurr's head. The murdered 'mon… was meant to be her guardian? Her mind flashed back to the Coneheads. Could they have been responsible? She hadn't seen them after she'd been saved that night, and that dungeon must have been far away… but that didn't mean they were gone. And that city, Crossings, it was close. From now on, she had to be on her guard. Because a supernatural killing and a strange newcomer showing up around the same time could not bode well.

She drifted to sleep with unease on her mind.

~\({O})/~​

Music of the Week!

I'm Helping The Idiot – Sonya Belousova, Giona Ostinelli

 

[SparklingEspeon]

CHAPTER SEVEN: TRICKY TRICKIES ALL OVER THE PLACE

~\({O})/~​

. . .. . . The wind was strong today. Gusts rattled the classroom blackboard and made the branches of the old tree it hung from creak.

While the other students in the schoolroom chattered excitedly, Espurr was left alone with her thoughts. Everything seemed to take on a darker tone today. The breeze was ominous, the sky overbearing, and the students who weren't talking seemed shifty and furtive. The conversation she'd overheard last night had shattered her sense of security completely, made her wonder who the killer was, where they could be hiding… and what they'd do next.

If there was one thing she knew, it was that investigating Ampharos had to be a priority. He already knew she was the only other newcomer to the village, thanks to a certain fox, so that meant he had the advantage. It narrowed the list of pokemon he'd be looking for immensely. If he really was the killer, then it was only a matter of time before he'd act. It could be as soon as today. It could be this afternoon. She needed to get a leg up on the game before that happened.

Tricky, next to her, was slumped over on their desk, head in her paws and ears down. It was a far cry from her normally perky self. But Espurr didn’t… no, she couldn't feel sorry for her. They weren't friends. Espurr didn't need friends here. Tricky was just getting into something that would hurt them both later. Espurr was right to drive her away.

With the exception of Watchog's class, school was just as breezy as it had been for the last two days. Before Espurr's eyes, it mostly blurred together. What she was really excited for was Nuzleaf's class.

Something about the way Nuzleaf taught seemed to captivate the whole school. His classes were the highlight of most students' day. Yesterday, he'd taught them the correct warmup poses to bring out their energy so they could focus it on something, and even Goomy managed to control his errant sparks. In his off time, he seemed to enjoy reading, and Espurr was hoping she could catch him some day, even though he seemed to be always busy when he wasn't in class.

He was a returning villager after a long time abroad, Audino had told them. Nuzleaf had been found and taken in as a child, just like her. He'd travelled the world for years after he'd graduated school, only coming back every now and then to pay a few close friends a visit. But this year, he was settling down for good. The school had offered him a position as a teacher in the wake of his return, and he'd taken it up. But details about his far past were foggy. He didn't seem to have any other family here that she could see – he apparently lived alone on the far side of town.

Today, Nuzleaf was teaching the first stage of the special move that he'd promised they'd all learn in a few weeks.

"Now everymon take those warmup poses I taught y'all!" he said, taking up his own. It looked like a marionette about to pirouette, his hands up in the air, his legs together, and standing on his very toes. Everymon assumed similar positions, Tricky bracing as if to pounce, Goomy stiffening up, and Espurr straightening up. Her arm, recently freed from its cast, felt stiff from days of disuse. She had never felt more aware of it than she did now. Nuzleaf had told her it didn't matter, but she felt like it did.

"And now…" Nuzleaf began. "We… spin!"

He pirouetted, and everymon followed him directly. Tricky leapt up and spun in the air. Goomy twisted around. Espurr tried to spin—

But she found herself crashing into the desk instead. Everymon else spun, a few errant sparks erupting up in their air from their twirls. Espurr was taken aback with shock. She picked herself up from where she'd fallen, rubbing her side as she got up.

Everymon else was looking at her. She suddenly felt very embarrassed, again.

"Now, now," said Nuzleaf, drawing everymon's attention. "No-mon's perfect. Y'all should see all the times I fell over in class. I didn't even reach the spin, I was so bad. Was enough to get the nurse to take me off the lesson plan, she was worried I'd crack my head. Now let's try again…"

In the end, Espurr came out the worst. Everymon else had managed to at least create some sparks, and every time she lost her balance and fall over. Tricky seemed to be a natural, spitting fire into the air that fizzled like a firework and contorted into several ribbonlike streams. But even with Nuzleaf's attempts to downplay it, handing out treats from his sack to everyone, it was becoming increasingly clear that she just wasn't as good as the rest of her class.

During recess, Espurr happened to look out the window of the school clinic and notice Nuzleaf down in the classroom outside. Taking her lunch, she scurried out the door and fought against the wind, battering her with her lunch of nuts and berries on her way to the seats.

Nuzleaf was reading an old, dusty book he'd pulled from his bag. The wind kept tossing the pages, and he'd flatten them persistently. Espurr crept into the classroom and stood, trying to hide her fidgeting, right behind him.

"Hi," she tried greeting him.

Nuzleaf jolted, spooked. He nearly dropped the book he'd been intensely studying, his face a dark shadow, before he relaxed and pulled it back into something kinder.

"Ah," he said. "Ya scared me. Espurr, was it?"

Espurr nodded. "That's me."

"Splendid." Nuzleaf gestured to the seat next to the desk he was sitting on. "By all means, have a seat. Anythin' on your mind?"

Espurr did as she was directed, sitting on the seat where Goomy usually was. Her dull arm pressed up against the stool, reminding her of how stiff it still was.

"Well it's just that…" she began, then trailed off. "I want to learn, but I think maybe I'm not cut out for this."

"Nonsense," Nuzleaf said, waving it off. "Anymon's cut out for it. You've just gotta keep tryin'."

"But I didn't do it correctly even once," Espurr said. "Everymon else did."

"Tha' doesn't mean anythin'," said Nuzleaf. "Everymon learns at their own pace. Maybe you jus' need some practice. Here's a thought – why don't you find a friend that can help ya? I thought you were tight with that fox, Tricky, was it?"

Espurr repressed an air of displeasure. She was sure it showed up in her tail, though.

"Not Tricky," she said.

"Well, maybe somemon else, then," said Nuzleaf. "But that doesn' mean you should just give up. A partner can make even the smallest amount of practice perfect."

Espurr fidgeted some more. Nuzleaf's words sounded right, but…

"Could I… practise with you?" she ventured.

She expected a no. Nuzleaf did seem like a very busy 'mon, after all. But Nuzleaf's face just warmed.

"Sure," he said. "You'll have ta get an early mornin', though. Gotta start before the birds sing and the kids show up to school. Tell ya what. We’ll work on some of your other powers too.”

“Other powers?” Espurr asked.

“Sure,” said Nuzleaf. He closed the book he was reading, adjusting himself to face her better. “Didn’ ya hear? ‘mon like you… they got the power to move thin’s with their mind.”

“Like…” Espurr broke off. “Like a psychic?”

Just thinking of that as possible made her a bit dizzy. It wasn’t even the wackiest thing she’d seen, but imagining that she could do something like that…

“Well, ain’t you a psychic type?” Nuzleaf asked with a wry grin. He gave Espurr a quick, appraising look.

"So what's the story behind your tail, anyway?" he asked. "Most cat 'mon I know of use 'em from birth."

Espurr’s eyes widened, her fur bristling ever-so-slightly. He

"Y'know," Nuzleaf said. "As your teacher 'n all. Might help a tad if I know what I'm workin' with."

Espurr hadn't been expecting him to pry. She didn't have an excuse for that. What was she going to say?

She had to think of something on the spot.

"It's a problem I've always had," she said, trying to make it sound like she wasn't talking out her arse. "I've just… never used it properly."

"Ah," said Nuzleaf. "Well, I reckon we can get that sorted out. Though how you've been balancin' all this time, I'll never guess."

Espurr thanked him for the opportunity, and then scurried back to the school clinic. Lunch was almost over, and it would be time for detention afterwards.

Maybe, even if she had to stay a while, things here could turn out fine after all.

~\({O})/~​

"For your detention today…" began Watchog pompously, as he marched Espurr, Tricky, and Goomy along the windy, sun-beaten path. "You're going to be raking leaves in the Foreboding Forest."

"Foreboding Forest?" Espurr asked. "Where's that?"

"Ooh! Me!" exclaimed Tricky, who had taken the lead with zeal. "It's the forest we went to the day yo—" noticing Watchog was there, she quickly shut up.

"Yes," said Watchog with a hint of disdain. "It's the forest you criminals so eagerly eloped into when you earned yourself this punishment. And you're going to be in charge of cleaning up the entire area. Ironic, isn't it?"

"I don't think that's the right usage of 'elope'," said Espurr. “Or ‘ironic’.”

"Of course it is!" barked Watchog. "I know my vocabulary better than a bunch of students."

Espurr was sure giving him the actual meaning wouldn't be worth it. He clearly had it all figured out.

As they walked, the sun was quickly snatched away by the shade of thousands and thousands of thick branches and leaves, which cast the ground down below into a blue-purplish darkness. Watchog stopped them when they were in the thick of it, making sure that Tricky wasn't going to bolt off in excitement. He dropped the sack he was carrying on the ground, the metal 'clanks' it made catching Espurr off-guard.

From the sack he pulled three rakes, designed to be held by paws and mouths, handing one to each of them.

"Get raking," he said, then crossed his paws behind his head and got cosy against a tree. "And don't leave my sight. I'll be watching you very closely from here."

"B-but, sir," said Goomy.

"Vice principal."

"V-vice principal," said Goomy.

"What."

"The area's t-too big to rake if we just stay here…"

"And what about all this wind?" yapped Tricky. "It's gonna be impossible to clean up like this!"

"Figure it out!" snapped Watchog. "And I have good eyesight. I'll see you. Now get to work."

Goomy just nodded, shaking like blubber. Tricky mumbled and grumbled and puffed some smoke. Espurr quietly grabbed a rake and started shovelling.

It wasn't long before they had raked their way far out of his ear and likely eyeshot, and Watchog had fallen asleep anyways. If Espurr listened hard enough, she could hear the faint sound of his snores.

"Are we done yet?" Tricky whined, looking at the area around them. It mostly looked clean, the leaves scraped into tons of small little piles they just needed to merge into one big one, but outside their immediate vicinity the forest was still covered in tons of leaves.

"He can't expect us to clean the entire forest," Espurr pointed out.

"A-and he w-wouldn't want us ne-near the dungeon," stammered Goomy.

Tricky suddenly perked up.

"The dungeon!" she exclaimed, prancing around and wagging her bushy tail like a little dog. "Hey – I wonder how close the dungeon is! Wanna go look?"

"No," said both Espurr and Goomy.

"Aww," drooped Tricky. "I mean… I guess I can just go look on my own then. I'll just be a second!"

Espurr gave her a stern look. "Tricky, you can't just—"

But Tricky had already taken off. And she was taking her rake with her! Espurr and Goomy looked at each other in exasperation.

"S-she's g-gonna get us in-in trouble," Goomy whined.

"No surprise there," sighed Espurr.

At this point Espurr was more than happy to let Tricky take the fall. But at the same time… she looked into the woods, which seemed to open up with its darkness, threatening to swallow them in the closer they dared to go. The thought nagged at her. What if those Coneheads were still around? What would she say if Tricky ran into them and she'd decided to ignore it instead of going after her?

Worry soaked the pit in her stomach. A look back at Watchog.

Still snoozing. He'd just be useless anyway.

Oh, alright…

She couldn't just let Tricky to her fate, could she? Espurr lugged along her rake, and began to slink down the path that Tricky had taken.

"W-wait," said Goomy. "Wh-where are you g-going?"

"After her," Espur replied, continuing onwards.

"W-what about y-your arm?" asked Goomy.

"It'll be fine," Espurr said.

"But I th-thought w-we weren't s-supposed to follow her," Goomy stammered, struggling to keep up.

"She could run into trouble out there," said Espurr. "We have to find her before that happens – it's for her own safety."

"W-what kind of trouble?" asked Goomy, his voice quaking a bit. Espurr knew how skittish Goomy was.

"It's better if I don't tell you," she answered.

They were slower, but they took off after her the best they could, lugging along their rakes. If Watchog found them later, at least they could say they were just raking further out in the woods.

And they'd make for good weapons.

As Espurr stumbled over the roots, she and Goomy managed to lose Tricky in the mess. Or maybe they'd just taken a wrong turn somewhere. The roots had quickly become more twisted, the trunks darker, the leaves piling the ground so thick Espurr's feet sunk into the mess. The canopy had dimmed so much it was almost like being in a room with the lights shut off.

They only stopped when Espurr could hear Goomy softly vibrating.

"You alright?" she asked, clutching her rake to her chest.

"J-just scared," Goomy said, the vibrating lessening. "Did we t-take a wrong turn?"

They might have. The leg of the woods they were walking through looked more like a forest from a horror story. And there was no sign of Tricky.

"I think so," said Espurr. "Maybe we should turn back."

"W-we c-c-came in a straight line, right?" said Goomy. "I'm not g-good with directions."

"I remember a few turns," said Espurr, looking behind them. She'd never been the best with directions either, but she absolutely wasn't letting Goomy know that.

Swish.

The sound was silent, in the very distant woods off to the side. It wouldn't have been caught if Espurr's hearing wasn't sharp as a cat's. But she heard it. It was a very distinctive sound. And she'd heard it before.

All of the sudden the woods seemed darker. Every glimmer of sunlight of the tree trunks could have been the flicker of a yellow light. Every shadow could be the tip of a dark cone. The crackle of the dead leaves on the ground could be the sound of a brittle, mottled hand reaching out of the darkness for them. Espurr suddenly felt so dizzy from fright she could barely keep her bearings.

But she needed to. She turned to Goomy.

"We should go," she said in a hush. "Now."

Goomy caught on almost immediately that something was wrong.

"What?" he asked. "W-what's happening?"

"Shh!" whispered Espurr as she carefully walked back the way they'd come. "There's no time to explain. Just follow me. Quietly."

Goomy looked unsure, but she could see him nod.

They walked back, through the darkness of the forest ground. Espurr kept her rake close to her, in case she needed to use it as a weapon.

Swish.

It was closer now. It came from the other side. Espurr's breath hitched, her heart nearly stopped in her chest. Were they circling her?

She could see tiny pieces and glimmers now, signs that they were here, that they knew she was here, and they were getting closer. That glimmer on the tree was definitely a flickering yellow light. That shadow was moving. The shrubbery had clearly been disturbed, and not just by them. It had been killed where it stood, wilted and dead, grey and stiff like stone. It hadn't been like that when they'd walked through it. Espurr remembered that bush.

Swish.

That was right behind them! It was too close for comfort. Espurr didn't want to think about what she'd see if she turned around. She just knew they had to get away.

"Run!" she yelled to Goomy. Then they both took off as fast as they could. The hum of charging power came from behind them as they dashed through the woods for dear life, then the explosion against a nearby tree. Espurr tripped on a root and fell flat to her face, and as she lost Goomy's rake and rolled over she saw it, the massive, shadowy cone attached to two glowing pinprick eyes, and it took everything in her not to scream. She just picked herself up, and ran as fast as she could.

Somehow, by miracle, she and Goomy managed to stumble into the lighter part of the woods again. Espurr stumbled through the trees, unsure if this was the part of the woods they'd been in previously, or if everymon else was okay—what about Watchog? What about Tricky?

But soon she came upon a familiar grove of trees, and saw the ground quickly begin to look a lot neater and tidy. She wanted to jump for joy. They'd made it back!

"Where were you guys?"

The sound, coming from behind, made Espurr jump in fright. She turned around to see Tricky standing there, looking completely unaware. She was covered in dirt, and had a big grin on her muzzle.

Espurr's relief soured into annoyance. How could Tricky—

"We got lost," she hissed angrily with a glare, "following you. Why did you run off like that?!"

"S-sorry," muttered Tricky, surprised. She looked down and her tail lashed the ground. She looked ashamed. "I thought you guys were going to stay here… I came back and was looking for you!"

"What are you three doing? I didn't say breaktime!"

The sound made all three of them jump out of their skin. They turned around to see a clearly groggy Watchog, who'd just woken up from his nap and stormed over.

"We weren't taking a break," said Espurr, thinking quick. "We just finished."

Watchog's face immediately contorted in disbelief, but then he looked around the clearing. Espurr watched his face turn into shock as he saw the clearing around him completely clean.

"Well…" he trailed off. "Alright. I guess you can't clean the whole forest. Where's the rakes?"

It was at that point that Espurr realised she and Goomy had lost their rakes back in the forest.

She cast the forest a big glance. Already she was feeling antsy, her ears listening intently for any sounds of a 'swish' or something similar. She just wanted to get out of here…

"The wind got them," Tricky piped up, breaking the silence. "It got, like, really strong and just took them away. It messed up the whole place and then we had to clean it all again, so that's why it took so long!"

It looked like Watchog wasn't going to believe it, but just then a big gust of wind ruffled him from behind. Espurr hadn't noticed it before, but she guessed it was a bit windy.

Watchog looked like he truly didn't want to believe it. But what could he say?

"…Alright," he sighed, giving Tricky the largest 'I know you're lying and just can't prove it' stink eye he could muster. "Let's just go home."

Espurr couldn't have been any happier to leave these woods than she was then.

~\({O})/~​

Watchog abandoned them at the city limits, like the good and diligent vice principal he was. Just this once Espurr would have liked it if he'd obsessively walked them into the town square like he did every other day. Tricky lived on the other side of town, so with only a sad glance at Espurr, dancing on her paws like she wanted to say something, she left soon after once they entered the main square.

"Bye," the fennekin mumbled, taking off. Goomy gave her a small wave.

Goomy lived in the northeast side, while Espurr was staying at the school clinic, so they both walked north to the square before they had to split.

"H-hey," Goomy said before they did. Espurr stopped to look at him.

"Yes?" she asked. She hoped it wasn't going to be—

"D-do you know w-what that was back in the woods?" Goomy asked.

Espurr deflated. It was.

Could she lie and say she didn't know? Would that be endangering him?

Would telling the truth be endangering herself?

Well, if there was anymon who deserved to know – and could keep it secret – it was Goomy.

"I've seen them before," said Espurr, settling for a compromise. "Can we talk about it tomorrow?"

She breathed a sigh of relief when she saw Goomy nod his jelly-like head.

"Y-yeah."

Espurr nodded affirmatively. "Great. I'm tired, so I'll see you then."

"N-night."

Then they went their separate ways.

As Espurr lay in bed that night, the pieces of the last few days zoomed around in her head. Ampharos, the dead guardian, the Coneheads… and most of all, that bush she’d seen, turned to solid stone. Was that a power the Coneheads had? That statue… could it be connected?

And what did it all have to do with her?

~\({O})/~​

Music of the Week!

Old Man - Marco Beltrami

 

[SparklingEspeon]

The Daily Pelipper – Your one reliable source of news

Energy Companies to make major gains in first monthly quarter of the year

Energy companies have provided the means for a sharp ascent in this year's first monthly quarter, and their latest financial reports have justified the budding confidence from investors.

HAPPI made an increase of 40% on sales of emeras to cities, provinces, and nations across the salty sea, from Pokemon Paradise in Nebel to Crossings in South Ophria. The Kecleon Company lagged behind slightly at a 35% increase, but is projected to match HAPPI by halfway next year.

"It's important more than ever that we provide the energy needs for a growing and prospering population," said HAPPI Director Sylveon Sparkleglimmer, speaking in Los Arcos, North Ophria, known to many as the energy capital of the world. "The market for quick, easy energy is always growing, and we have strong confidence in the winds of trade to carry us all the way."

CHAPTER EIGHT: PANCHAM IS A GRIMER

~\({O})/~​

. . .. . . The next day, in the small amount of time between lunch and Watchog carting them off to detention, Espurr and Goomy managed to sneak away. Goomy was sure Deerling would come out looking for him sooner or later, so they both decided to camp out in the shade behind the School Clinic. No-mon would come looking there first.

"I saw them outside town when I first got here," said Espurr, sitting against the wall. Goomy, munching down on a sandwich he'd made with the remnants of his lunch, nodded as he listened, his antennae bobbing with him. "I don't know what they wanted. I think they just wanted to hurt me."

Goomy shivered a little.

"D-do you think they're d-dangerous?" he asked.

Espurr nodded, leaning forward. She put her own sandwich in her lap. "Like I said. I think they wanted to hurt me. They destroyed a bush when they shot at me. And back in the woods, when they went after us, I saw the grass turn to stone. And then…"

She stopped there. Would it make sense to tell him about the…

…Oh, she might as well.

"A 'mon disappeared in another town. The school said it was called Crossings. And I saw them wheeling in a statue the day I went there. I think he was turned to stone."

"T-turned to stone?" Goomy was shaken. "I've n-never heard of a pokemon that can do that…"

"It must exist," said Espurr. "And if they're hiding here, then we've got to do something about it."

"Why don't w-we report it to the school?" asked Goomy.

"Because the school doesn't know I was eavesdropping," said Espurr. "And because Watchog and the Principal are useless. Watchog will just think I'm making it up."

Even Goomy had to admit that was true.

"What about that Ampharos character?" Espurr continued. "He just showed up a day or two ago, right? And he came from Crossings."

Goomy nodded. "I t-think so."

"What if he's somehow connected? He was there when they wheeled in the statue. I think he knew what it was. Which means, if he came here…"

“T-then the Coneheads followed,” Goomy finished. He fidgeted uncomfortably. “H-how could we prove it?”

"We can't yet." Espurr took a decisive chomp of her own sandwich. "Not without a good opportunity. We'll just have to follow him and make sure the Coneheads can't get to anymon else until we have some kind of evidence. He’ll slip up eventually. He has to."

~\({O})/~​

The next few days passed quietly. Espurr got up in the morning, attended school, tried not to fail too much in Nuzleaf's class, and then served detention with Watchog. In their short blocks of free-time, Espurr and Goomy searched for clues regarding Ampharos and tried to find anything that might link him to the Coneheads.

There'd been no sighting of the Coneheads ever since their encounter in the forest, which Espurr took as a half blessing – no activity meant no-mon else they knew of was being attacked. But no activity also meant no leads. Instead, they watched Ampharos the whole evening as he chatted up the shopkeeper, a large ‘mon known as ‘Kangaskhan’, at the Café Connection, until Goomy had to leave for home and Espurr had to go back to the school.

"W-what if he just d-does it while we're in class?" Goomy asked. They were currently staking out in the town square, pretending to play a game with pebbles as they watched Ampharos through the window of the café. This had been their plan for the last three days, and it had gotten them nowhere.

Espurr, who had been adamant about sticking to the plan, hadn't considered that.

"Well, there's not much we can do about that…" she trailed off disappointedly, thinking. "If only there was a way we coul—"

"I can do it!"

The sudden voice nearly made Espurr jump out of her fur. She and Goomy looked behind themselves to see an eager Tricky standing behind them. The fennekin looked dirty and in dire need of a fur-brushing, covered in soil and leaves like she'd been jumping through someone else's garden without permission.

"W-what… we-were you doing?" Goomy asked, looking at the mess.

"Jumping through somemon else's garden without permission," said Tricky gleefully. She trotted over, shaking off the leaves and dirt. "It's Hipopottas'. She said mean things to me yesterday on the way home so I ate her tulips."

Tricky belched loudly, and a few singed petals flew out of her mouth. Espurr watched them flutter to the ground, wide-eyed.

"This is a closed meeting," she said bluntly.

Tricky's ears flopped down. She looked like she wanted to scowl. "But I got Pops to pull me out of school for a few days," she said. "Sooo-o-o-o-o-o…"

She danced between her left and right paws eagerly. "If you needed somemon to spy for you when you're in class…"

Tricky left the ending hanging right open. Espurr knew exactly what she was getting at.

But she couldn't refute Tricky was right: there was no good reason not to take her help. And Goomy would very quickly point that out. Even now he looked much more open to having Tricky on the team than she did.

Not that she was going to fold to Tricky's elementary manipulation tactics.

"You can spy on him for us while we’re in school," Espurr said, keeping her arms folded and her face stern. "But that’s it.”

Espurr could see Tricky drooping a bit even though she tried to hide it. But regardless, she cheered herself up with a manufactured smile and raised her ears and tail again.

"Great! I'll totally follow him around all day tomorrow. You all can count on me!"

Espurr and Goomy, looking at each other, just shrugged.

~\({O})/~​

As it turned out, Tricky was a lot less useful than they thought.

"Well…" the fennekin began, her tail swishing behind her as she pawed the ground. "I followed him around, but he wasn't doing anything interesting… He just did a bunch of weird stuff in the afternoon like picking flowers."

"Nothing at all?" Espurr asked, disappointed. "Where did he go after that?"

"I kind of lost track after a bit," said Tricky, staring hard into the dust. "But it was all over town. He did talk to Pancham though."

Espurr and Goomy looked at each other. Pancham…

"That was a bust," said Espurr as she walked away with Goomy. Behind them, Tricky padded off silently, crouching and ears low.

"I-I think she just wanted to hang out," Goomy said.

"I can't," said Espurr quickly. Inwardly, she wanted to hide. It didn't matter if Tricky wanted to apologise or not. Espurr couldn't be friends with her. Not when this was all temporary anyway.

And that was how it had to be.

Lunch was another one of those times when it paid well for one to keep their distance from the rest of the class. Not that Espurr had too much to worry about. The only pokemon who noticed her, Goomy, was being hassled by Deerling, while Tricky was trotting back and forth along the edges of the round blue rug, stealing glances at her and pouting.

"Psst."

Espurr almost jumped! She looked around.

The face of Pancham met her. He was grinning, so he must have either been trying to scare her, or he was up to something. Espurr assumed it was the latter. With what Tricky had said earlier… she was on her guard.

"Do you need something?' she asked.

Pancham raised an eyebrow, then smirked.

"Cold shoulder," he remarked. "Alright. I can do that. Anyways, I just wanted to congratulate you for saving Goomy back there in the Foreboding Forest. Much bravery, you're his hero forever. But…"

He stood up, put his arms behind his head, and jumped on his back into a nearby straw bed. "Wanna know how you can be my hero?"

His… hero? Was he listening to himself?

"Why would I want to be your hero?" Espurr asked him frankly.

"Because being my hero comes with benefits," said Pancham. "Don't you want to not be eating on your own in this little corner of the lunchroom anymore?"

"I like it here," Espurr said flatly.

"Well, I'm gonna offer you anyway," said Pancham. "See, the Foreboding Forest is what you do if you wanna give Watchdog a heart attack. But to really get in with the cool kids around here, Like them—" he pointed to Deerling and the other girls she was surrounded by "—then you'll have to do something a lot more spectacular."

"And what's that?" prompted Espurr. He did a good job of stringing people on, and he definitely knew it.

"Well," said Pancham mischievously. "I didn't think somemon who wasn't interested would want to know more. Unless you changed your mind?"

"Tell me more and I might consider it," said Espurr, who was curious despite herself.

Pancham's smirk became wider.

"I peeked at the detention cards," he said, his voice dripping with confidence, "and for your final detention, you three will be going to the luxury location of the abandoned Drilbur Mines."

"Actually, they're not abandoned," Tricky spoke up loudly from her corner of the lunchroom. She'd had her muzzle in a peach, and the juice had made her snout soggy. "The drilbur are still there! I know because I've seen them—"

"Shut it," Pancham cut her off rudely. "Duh, they're still there, it's an active mine. This doesn't involve you."

"But I'm in detention too!" whined Tricky, loudly enough that Espurr worried they were going to get caught. Luckily, Audino was too busy packing something on the other side of the room, where the white cabinet of medicines was.

"So what?" said Pancham. "What I said goes around here, and I say you don't get a say. So shut up and go back to your stupid peach."

Tricky grumbled and gave him a glare, but she did stick her nose back in her lunch.

"So anyway," said Pancham, turning back to Espurr, "There's a section of the mines that's completely off-limits. It's all boarded up, and even the drilbur don't go down there. But I have. And you know what there is?"

He paused, like he expected Espurr to ask him 'what'. No, he definitely expected that.

"What?"

"Gemstones," said Pancham with as much mystique as he could muster. "And all you have to do is bring back two of them for me. Sounds easy, right?"

"What's the catch?" Espurr asked.

"It's because it's a mystery dungeon!" Tricky blurted out irritably. The fennekin had looked up from her peach again, glaring in their direction at Pancham. "You should at least say it if you're going to be a grimer."

Pancham sighed, with both Espurr and Tricky's eyes on him.

"Fine," he said, putting his hands in front of him. "Yeah, you got me. It's a mystery dungeon. Was gonna reveal that on my own time, but ruin it for me, I guess. Spoilsport."

Tricky blew a raspberry at him and pretended to eat again. Espurr could tell by the way her ears pricked up that she was still listening.

She knew what Pancham was up to. He wanted a way to get back at her for getting them in trouble at the Foreboding Forest all those days ago. And she wasn't going to fall into that trap.

"Sorry, I'm not interested," said Espurr politely.

"Did I hear some talkin' about the mines?"

Another voice cut through the midst of the lunchroom, causing all three heads to look over. Nuzleaf was walking by them, carrying a tray of his own. The corner of his cloak glimmered with some sort of sparkly dust, and he seemed to be hiding the other one. Had he been listening in the whole time?

Pancham looked just as surprised as she did.

"T-teach!" he exclaimed, nearly falling out of his seat. "W-what are you doing here?"

"Well, heard y'all's interestin' conversation and thought I might listen in," said Nuzleaf. "Seems to me y'all were talking about that mine the drilbur over at the Rockery boarded up."

Pancham suddenly looked a lot less confident. He looked to Espurr for help, but she shrugged gave him an 'it's your mess' glance.

"Y-yeah," he said, assuming his confident posture again and waving the notion off. "We were just telling ghost stories about it. Y'know, the one with the treasure, and the monster…"

He looked at Espurr. "Weren't we?"

Espurr quickly nodded. "We were."

"Yeah!" Tricky affirmed from her corner.

"Stop butting in," grumbled Pancham.

"Well, that's good," drawled Nuzleaf. "Because I'd stay far away from there if I were you. 'Specially since the others tell me that shady newcomer's been spotted in the area. The one with the long, yellow neck. Gonna be on heavy surveillance for a few days, police say there's been a break-in an' all. Can you believe it?"

And then he moved on with his day, like he had absolutely no idea of the bombshell he'd just dropped. Espurr was left almost speechless. Was this… their lead?

"So," said Pancham once Nuzleaf had gone. "Intrigue. Wanna go?"

~\({O})/~​

"Not on his terms," Espurr said firmly as she marched down the pathway from the School Clinic. It was a cloudy day today, and the wind was stronger than usual, blowing several leaves along with it. Goomy hurriedly followed along with her, his antennae battered back by the gusts a bit. "But we have to investigate!"

"I-I don't think I sh-should go," Goomy said, quivering slightly. "I'm n-not cut out for mystery dungeons."

Espurr could see his jelly-like flesh shivering. She remembered the foreboding forest. He was right: he really wasn't cut out for them.

"You don't have to," she said reassuringly. "I'll do it on my own."

"B-but I don't – I don't think e-either of us should g-go in," said Goomy. He was definitely trembling now.

"But this could be our lead!" said Espurr. "Ampharos hasn't done anything suspicious in almost a week, and now he's poking around in the Drilbur Mines? He has to be up to something there."

"L-let me sh-show you something," said Goomy, pulling her along in the direction of the library.

The library was a long, imposing, narrow building with a rickety wooden roof made of stones and cement. It looked like it was centuries old, and belonged next to a shack in the countryside. The tall double doors were crooked and made of wooden planks, and though the building was only one storey it was still tall enough to be two. Or maybe that was Espurr's new height talking.

Inside was no better, shelves twenty times her height lining the inside of the building in orderly, neat rows. There was almost no light, which Espurr didn't have trouble with – her new eyes adjusted quite well to the dark – but considered counterproductive to the point of a library.

They used a ladder to get down the book Goomy had read. It was on the very top shelf near the back, something they both figured Watchog had done so Tricky wouldn't be able to get it. According to Goomy, the book was right up Tricky's alley.

'An Atlas of Mystery Dungeons,' the cover read. It was brown and leather-bound, and the edges looked tattered and frayed from presumably years of overuse. Whatever this book was, it certainly wasn't part of the normal curriculum.

"Isn't this outdated?" Espurr asked Goomy, grimacing at the dust that came off the book on her paw. Gross.

"W-watchog used it until l-last year," said Goomy, opening the book with his paws. "W-watchog's n-not careful with b-books." The book sent a cloud of dust into their face, sending them both coughing.

They turned to page seventy: Anomaly – Drilbur Mines

Goomy pointed out a part of the page to Espurr, and she started reading.

"It says here that a famous outlaw went missing in the mines almost 20 years ago," Espurr read aloud. Below the words, on the page, was a picture of a wanted poster, with a fierce, dragonlike creature that resembled a land-borne shark a bit. The poster labelled the 'mon: OUTLAW GABITE.

Goomy nodded, his antennae bobbing.

"But shouldn't he be dead by now?" Espurr asked, perplexed.

"N—" Goomy stuttered. "N-not h-him. The-the dungeon."

"What about it?" Espurr tilted her head, looking at him.

"I-if you're a powerful 'mon and you die or g-go missing in a dungeon, t-then sometimes… a gh-ghost of you sticks around," said Goomy. "T-they say that's where all the hostile 'mon in d-dungeons c-come from."

Monster… hang on, hadn't Pancham said something about a monster?

"Well, I doubt we'll find anything like that," said Espurr. "If Pancham had actually been in there and seen a monster, he wouldn't shut up about it."

"H-how do you know he went in?" pointed out Goomy.

The question made Espurr go silent. She… hadn't considered that.

"Well," said Espurr hopefully. "Perhaps he's making it up. Perhaps we won't have to go in. No-mon said Ampharos went into the dungeon, right?"

Goomy nodded, but unsurely.

~\({O})/~​

"Alright, troublemakers," grumbled Watchog at the gates of the village, as he lugged the pack over his shoulder. It was absolutely heaving, almost towering over his head. "let's get going."

Espurr, Goomy, and Tricky were heading down the path away from the Village and towards the farms again, this time taking a sharp turn right as they headed down towards much more craggy rock formations. Watchog walked in front of them this time, having apparently loosened up enough that he wasn't bothered with not seeing them anymore. His pack swayed dangerously as he walked.

"Hey, are you guys doing the dare?"

Tricky whispered it at about as loud a volume as whispers got, wedging herself in between them cheerfully. Espurr was worried Watchog might have heard. She noticed with relief that the clanging of a couple pots hanging atop his sack seemed to have saved them.

Watchog had really overpacked.

"We're just investigating," Espurr told Tricky curtly.

The last thing either of them needed was Tricky rushing off without them. Again.

"But you know you guys need a guide, right?"

Espurr tried to ignore Tricky's whispers, focusing on the ground in front of her very intently as they walked. She wasn't going to drag Tricky into this. She wasn't going to drag Tricky into this. She wasn't going to—

"I know the way!" said Tricky. "And if you want to get past the drilbur, then I'm the only one who knows how. You need me if you're going to do anything, even investigating."

"We'll see about that," said Espurr.

"And here we are," announced Watchog loudly, shattering their conversation as they entered the drilbur mineyard. He let his bag fall to the ground with a loud clatter, stopping Espurr, Goomy, and Tricky in their tracks. "Who around here do I talk to?"

For a second, the mineyard was quiet. Then, over the tops of the rocks, Espurr spotted little heads pop up, one after the other. They scrambled forward and were soon gathered in the middle of the yard.

The poor drilbur carrying what was marked in big, messy letters as "the social interaction rock" scurried forwards, trembling feebly. He raised a large claw and opened his mouth, a sheepish expression on his face, but no sound came out.

He wasn't even as tall as Espurr.

Espurr couldn't wipe the baffled expression off her face. These were the mighty drilbur she needed help getting past?

But Tricky didn't look fazed.

The drilbur, who seemed almost frozen where he stood, finally found it in him to talk.

"W-what brings y-you to our fair mineyards?'' he managed to stammer out, sounding positively terrified to be speaking.

"These three children," said Watchog loudly, gesturing sweepingly to the three of them standing there, "are participating in a segment of mandated community service for the greater good. Would you be interested in taking a few new workers for the day?"

"S-s-see," said the drilbur, practically trembling. "W-we weren't e-expecting that for a w-w-while…"

Espurr looked around the courtyard, which was full of dust, large boulders, and mining equipment from some old carts to pickaxes and crates. Her eyes fixed on a large boulder near the left side of the yard. The rock was somewhat pointy, and from the top blew a clearly visible scrap of cloth: emerald green.

Just like Ampharos' cloak!

"Look," whispered Espurr quietly, nudging Goomy so he'd see. He was slimy. "That cloth!"

Tricky looked in the same direction Espurr was pointing.

"Oh, the dungeon's that way," she said matter-of-factly.

"H-how do you k-know that?" asked Goomy.

"Well, duuuhh," said Tricky. "I've been there. Not – not in the dungeon! But I know where it is!"

"A-alright," whimpered the drilbur, finally breaking under Watchog's haggling. "We-we might have a spot f-for them cleaning up over there." He pointed with a claw to the other side of the large mineyard, where there was a large avalanche of rocks atop what used to be a minecart. Some drilbur who hadn't joined the rest were already around the pile, lugging rocks onto large sleds, which were being tugged away once full.

Espurr's heart sank. She'd planned to wait until Watchog abandoned them, but now that she thought of it… why would the Drilbur let them anywhere near a crime scene?

And there'd be no chance to sneak away. Not in an open area like this.

"Great," said Watchog snappily. "I want to watch them. Anywhere for a poor teacher to sit?"

"Hey," said Tricky quietly, nudging Espurr with her snout. "If you wanna investigate… now's the time!"

Espurr looked back at Watchog, who was now fervently debating with the poor drilbur just how close to them he could sit while they worked. Their chance was slipping away. It would only take them a second, and Watchog couldn't fault them that much for slipping away to look at something. He'd just lecture them a little. Right?

She didn't want to do it. But if it meant poking further into all this…

"Alright," she told Tricky. “Lead the way, then.”

"W-wait f-for me…"

Goomy, who apparently didn't want to be left alone with Watchog, went with them as they slipped away from the argument without a sound. Watchog never noticed.

As the three of them snuck up to the boulder and crept around it, they saw a mineshaft that looked like it had been boarded up. And just before that, a few drilbur who were looking over what seemed like a disturbance right near it. Bingo!

But Espurr looked closer. The boards around the mineshaft were broken, and the break was recent. Very recent. So recent there were still shards of wood all around the floor. That meant… whoever had broken them had gone in.

And it was surrounded by drilbur. Far too many for Espurr to get past on her own.

"We'll need to go in…" she trailed off in realisation, looking back at Goomy. And Tricky. Tricky, who looked positively batty about the idea. She so didn't want to give Tricky what she wanted…

Tricky's paw immediately shot into the air, her ears and tail brimming with excitement.

"I can help you get in!" she blurted out triumphantly.

Espurr really didn't want to… but she looked at the Drilbur, who were small but many. And then at Watchog, who somehow hadn't noticed them yet. How long would it be until he did? Seconds?

"Fine," she said resignedly. She did need Tricky's help. "Just do it before Watchog sees."

And they'd deal with Watchog later. She'd say sorry, but it would be a lie – some more detention was worth not getting petrified at a later date by Coneheaded things.

"A-are we r-really doing this?" Goomy's voice trembled like jello. But it was too late to back out now. Espurr tried to pat him reassuringly. It felt limp.

"On it!" said Tricky with a grin like it was her birthday. She then pranced out from behind the boulder, boldly announcing their presence to the entire collection of drilbur with a paw-wave.

"Hi again, guys!"

"U-uh-oh…" the drilbur all stared at Tricky collectively in shock and horror.

"I-it's the T-t-troublemaker…" one stammered out.

"A-and she brought f-friends!" another finished, pointing straight at Espurr and Goomy. They came out from behind the boulder too, joining Tricky in front of it.

Tricky sent a prompt 'I-told-you-so' smirk Espurr's way, before trotting forwards.

"Y-you're not here again for our g-gold, are you?" one timidly asked.

"Nope!" Tricky trotted towards the mine shaft. "That was last month. Today we're going exploring!"

"B-but you can't!" said a drilbur in horror.

"It's a c-crime scene!"

"P-please think about this!"

"Now where did those three troublemakers get to?"

A voice in the distance. Espurr's ears twitched, and she stole a quick peek around the boulder to see what was going on. Watchog was glancing around the mine-yard angrily, the heavy rucksack and his green cape still swinging from his shoulders.

"Tricky!" Espurr quiet-shouted from the boulder. "Watchog's onto us!"

Tricky looked back for a second, before focusing on the Drilbur with a wide grin.

"Soooo… we'll just be going now," she said, stepping forward. The drilbur moved closer, preparing to stop her.

"We-we're not going to l-let you pass!"

"Fiiine…" Tricky drooped her ears and tails disappointedly, turning away and walking back to where Espurr and Goomy were. The two of them watched her in surprise. It wasn't like Tricky to give up…

"Sike!"

Tricky suddenly bolted back, launched off the boulder, and rolled into a ball, and smacked into the drilbur, knocking them over like bowling pins. Her attack sent them fleeing for cover or rolling out of the way. Despite herself, Espurr had to admit it was pretty awesome.

"C'mon!" Tricky yelled to Espurr and Goomy, uncurling charging for the dungeon. "They're gonna get up!"

"Hey! You three shouldn't be over there!"

Watchog's bark sent Espurr's heart racing. She and Goomy leapt from the boulder and followed Tricky quickly, just as Watchog suddenly peeked over the rock.

"Get back here, you louts!" he snarled loudly, his face crazed as he stumbled for them.

"No can do, Watchdog! Run for it!" Tricky screeched, running further towards the mineshaft. Espurr and Goomy scurried after her, and the three of them suddenly tripped in just as Watchog skidded to a stop at the shaft. Espurr felt the rush of air as his paw just missed her bow.

"Find them!" was the last thing Espurr heard before they tumbled down into the shaft. Darkness closed around them like an envelope, and all of the sudden they weren't in the real world anymore.

~\({O})/~​

Music of the Week!

Mine Escape – John Powell

 

[SparklingEspeon]

CHAPTER NINE: THE CHILDREN YEARN FOR THE MINES

~\({O})/~​

. . .. . . The other side of the mine shaft led to a steep hill that made Espurr, Tricky, and Goomy trip and tumble, sending them falling further down, down—

Espurr shut her eyes tight as the others screamed and tried her best to roll herself into a ball, protecting her face and limbs so they weren't damaged on the way down.

The whoosh of the wind by her ears suddenly disappeared, leaving behind something damp and musty in the air as the three students tumbled into a heap at the bottom of the slope. Once everything had gone still, Espurr dared to take a shaky breath and untangle herself from the others. The air smelled dusty, stale, and faintly like death – the telltale scent of a mystery dungeon. She was beginning to realise they all smelled like that.

"Is everyone alright?" she asked, looking around. There was a tremble in her voice she couldn't quite kick.

"I'm alright…" groaned Tricky, splayed out into a pile of yellow fur and limbs on the ground. Goomy, pulling his slime together and rising out of a pink, gloopy puddle on the ground, nodded shakily, trembling a bit.

"Y-yeah. M-me too."

Espurr pulled herself to her feet and shook the dust out of her fur, looking around them. Her eyes adjusted to the dimness of the caverns quickly.

'What a mistake,' she thought to herself regretfully. She was trembling a bit. Why had they come down here?

There was no sunlight around. But that didn't mean the dungeon was pitch-black. It glowed with the light of all the crystals anymon could ever wish for. Green and blue and soft orange gemstones shone along the walls and roofs, glowing dimly and giving the corridors a soft, ethereal glow. Tricky hopped to her feet quickly, the sparkles of all the jewels reflecting in her amazed eyes.

"Wow wow wow!" she exclaimed. "Look at all these gems! And in a mystery dungeon, too! Who would be stupid enough to board this off?"

Immediately, thoughts swarmed to Espurr's mind: the outlaw from that book…

"Maybe something happened here," she said tensely, trading looks with Goomy.

"Y-yeah," said Goomy, still shaken. "W-we read in a book—"

"But they wouldn't close it off forever just because something happened!" said Tricky, cutting them off. "I bet those drilbur were just silly cowards who were too scared to mine in a dungeon."

With that, the fennekin began to trot off cheerfully with her tail high. Espurr wished she could feel that cheer right about now.

She studied the crystals on the wall as they went. From what she had seen of the drilbur, Tricky's explanation mostly checked out. They definitely were cowardly. But she noticed the unnatural, jagged gaps on the walls as they walked too, like there had been a crystal there once and then somemon had torn it out. Maybe it was thieves… but nothing had been stolen in the village, and the drilbur probably would have toughened up by now if they were being stolen from all the time—

"Espurr, Goomy, watch out!"

Tricky's voice shot over from Espurr's left, and she barely had time to react before a brilliant orange ember flashed through the crystals, blinding her and a geodude.

The geodude wasted no time getting back to its feet… hands, and skittered straight for Espurr like a spider. Just the movement was spine-chilling, and it was fast.

Espurr gasped, green fear grasping her eyesight. She shunted Goomy away and quickly backed herself up against the crystal wall as the geodude scurried towards her. She had to think quickly. She had to do something! She had to—

The pokemon let out a snarl as it closed the distance. Espurr ducked at the last second, then kicked the geodude's hand out from under it and scampered a good distance away before it could grab her. The geodude slammed face-first into one of the crystals on the wall, landing in a daze. One of Tricky's embers a second later missed but dealt a finishing blow to the blue rock. It shattered into tiny pieces, expelling shimmering white dust everywhere. The geodude hissed, starting to skitter the rest of the distance towards Espurr, until it was blasted from behind by a bunch of purple sparks. The geodude collapsed to the ground, leaving an unstable, frightened Goomy behind it, his slime shivering and his slimy paws still flitting with purple energy.

The whole thing happened in seconds. Espurr watched in silent, wide-eyed terror as the geodude's body degraded before her eyes, collapsing into a pile of reddish dust on the dungeon floor. What had just happened? Had they… killed it? Was this what happened to pokemon when they died?

Tricky scampered over to them. She looked excited, her mouth hanging wide open, her tongue out, and her eyes bugging out of her head.

"Holy mystery dungeon…" the fennekin breathed as Espurr and Goomy picked themselves up and made their way back to her. "…we fought a dungeon 'mon! And WON! This is amazing!"

"Did… did we kill it?" was all a shocked Espurr managed to ask. "It just… crumbled."

"That's 'cause it's not real," Tricky said, like it was the most obvious thing in the world.

"It looked real to me…" Espurr protested. She was pleading with life at this point – if anything would start making sense right about now, she'd gladly take it.

"Well, it's not! The dungeon just makes those, no-mon knows why. But we beat one!"

That would have to be good enough. Espurr didn’t think she was getting a better explanation.

Tricky suddenly gasped and scampered ahead, leaving Espurr and Goomy in the dust.

"Come on! I found the stairs!" she yelled, bounding into the distance. Espurr, still shaken from the encounter, looked over to make sure Goomy was fine, then they both took each other's paws and tried to catch up.

Only then, as they walked ahead, keeping an eye out for any more surprise monsters, did Tricky's statement fully hit her: Mystery dungeons had stairs?

~\({O})/~​

Mystery dungeons had stairs.

Perfect, smooth, pristine stairs, and Espurr couldn't even begin making heads or tails of that. Shouldn't they at least get dusty? What about damage, or age? Even as she walked down the steps, which just happened to be the perfect size for Espurr, Tricky, and Goomy, the smoothness of the stone compared to the rough floor of the dungeon baffled her. Did all dungeons have these?

"All dungeons have those," Tricky said dismissively. "Dunno why, don't really care." She shrugged, glancing around the cavern. "Hey, is it darker on this floor?"

It was. The cavern was just a little darker than the last one, and the crystals here glowed dimmer in the encroaching darkness than before. But hadn't they gone up? And here there were red ones. They glittered in secluded spots amongst the many other colours, like a missing colour added to a painting.

Espurr was about to say that it was, but then they both heard the distant skittering echoing through the dark cavern walls, the sound of approaching dungeon wildings.

"I hear more enemies coming," she said instead, urgently.

"W-we sh-should hide," said Goomy, antennae flopped over as the chittering and howls grew. "It s-sounds like a lot."

Before Tricky could even open her mouth in response, several geodude skittered around the corner, rushing right past and around the two students like they weren't there. The three of them shared puzzled looks. Then the sandshrew rolled past. And the roggenrola clopped on by.

Tricky couldn't contain her snickers at the goofy way the retreating herd of dungeon wildlings was running off, but Espurr cast a look to the cavern up ahead. That geodude before hadn't ignored them… but maybe these ones were running from something else. Something like… a larger dungeon pokemon?

And then she heard the distant stomping. And Espurr put it all together.

"Hide!" she yelped, pulling Tricky by her ear-fluff behind a large, teal-coloured crystal jutting up out of the ground. Goomy hurriedly slimed after them.

"Oww… Watch the ear-fluff!" Tricky complained in a harsh whisper once they were all safely hidden behind the crystal. "How would you like it if I pulled your ear?"

Espurr's ears briefly tingled, and something told her that would be a very bad idea. Goomy, shivering, pressed himself further into the crystal – he could hear it now, too.

"W-w-what's t-that?" he asked, his antennae flopping over.

The stomping slowly became louder. All three of them could hear it clearly now, the sound of a heavy stomp and then the screech of claws being dragged across the floor.

Thud. Screeech. Thud. Screeech. Thud.

Louder and louder. Espurr realised she was holding her breath. Her vision was tinting green with fear and she didn't know which of them it came from.

Thud. Screeech. Thud. Screeech. Thud.

Only when the creature was just a few paces away was Espurr brave enough to peek out at it. What she saw only made the streaks of green clouding her mind stronger: A monstrous, sharklike creature on two legs lumbered through, dragging its feet through the cavern like a zombie. Its head hung low, drooping down in front of its body, and the blades attached to its thin, spindly arms screeeeched as they dragged against the stone ground with each step. It was at least three times their heights, if not more.

Espurr recognised that 'mon from the book immediately.

"Gabite…" she whispered to Goomy. Goomy trembled harder. Tricky's ears flopped down.

As the gabite stomped off through the hall, Espurr, Tricky, and Goomy slowly emerged from behind the crystal, stepping on the sea of sparkling gemstone-dust that now littered the floor. Some of the fragile crystals along the walls had exploded from the footsteps' vibrations. They could still hear the echoing thuds of the gabite's lumbering in the distance.

"What was that?" Tricky whimpered, much of her bravado suddenly lost.

"A-a dungeon ghost," said Goomy. "H-he was an outlaw."

"Or he used to be," said Espurr grimly, staring at the dungeon corridor ahead.

"No-mon told me something like that was down here!" cried Tricky, breathing heavily. "Why didn't anymon say something?"

That was the last straw for Espurr.

"You know, I bet that's why they boarded this place off," she started pointedly, folding her arms and glaring at Tricky. "Goomy and I could have guessed that. Maybe you should have listened when we tried to tell you."

Tricky just huddled up near the ground, her paws over her head. Her eyes were as wide as saucers, and she was breathing heavily.

"Y-you were the one who wanted to come in here…" she deflected, whimpering in response. "It's not my fault!"

"Bu-but wh-what do we do?" asked Goomy. He was ignored, as usual.

“It’s not about that!” Espurr started, her eyes narrowing. Scarlet anger streaked across her vision. “It’s that you never listen!” she fumed. “You didn’t listen the day we met, and you aren’t listening now! You would have wound up here anyway, no matter what Goomy and I said, because you just can’t help yourself. And then you would have been in here alone. Or tell me I’m wrong.”

Tricky didn't have an answer. She just curled up tighter into a ball, covering her face with her tail. Espurr scoffed.

"Fine," she spat. "If you want to bury your head in the sand, then go off. Goomy and I are going to find an actual solution. Like the way out."

And with that, she briskly walked off to assess the situation. The sound of Goomy's slime against the cavern floor told her he was following.

"There are stairs where we came from, right?" she asked Goomy. "Maybe the way out is somewhere on the first floor.”

She looked back towards the dark corridor, where to her dismay she could see nothing. The crystal's light didn't carry far enough for them to see the end of the hallway. But if it was their best shot, then…

"W-wait," said Tricky from behind them. Espurr and Goomy looked back to see the fennekin standing in the middle of the corridor, her legs still quaking a bit. She sniffled.

"Dungeons rearrange themselves behind you," the fox explained. Espurr could still hear the quake in her voice, but she was slowly calming down. "And they reset every couple days. So the only way out is… down to the next floor. Until we find the exit."

Espurr and Goomy looked at each other. Then they turned around, and made their way back to her.

"How do we know where to find the staircase?" Espurr asked.

"We just…" Tricky trailed off, pawing the ground. "We just have to find it! I'll start."

She perked up immediately. The harsh blue tones Espurr was getting from her disappeared in an instant, replaced by dissonant lemon shades. Tricky scampered off into the hallway, looking for a staircase.

A distant roar from behind them and the agitated chitters of several apparitions sent Espurr and Goomy scurrying after her seconds later.

~\({O})/~​

Their earlier argument left a mark on the walk afterwards. It was quiet and sombre. None of them talked much unless it was to fight off a dungeon ghost or to debate whether they'd been in this hallway before. Espurr felt the sea blue moodiness from Goomy, and the deep, dark blue Tricky was desperately trying to pretend didn't exist, and a third, ocean blue she realised was herself.

No-mon knew how long this dungeon went on for. They were on the third floor now if she was counting right. There could be just one more left, or another six. The time after that was spent in silence, walking through the maze-like caverns in search of the next floor down.

Until Espurr tripped.

Catching herself on the ground with a yelp, she scrambled around to look at what she'd tripped on. It was a dusty, ancient leather bag, which was so dull and aged it blended in with the floor almost perfectly.

"You okay?" asked Tricky, bounding over.

"W-what is that?" said Goomy..

Espurr got to her knees, picking the object's strap up.

"It looks like a bag," she said. But who would leave a bag sitting around in the middle of the dungeon?

The inside wasn't any more exciting than the outside was. There were a few berries that might as well have been dust by now, some paper and a pen that had no ink, and a couple of ageing sticks with weird lines on them. There was also a lot of built-up dust that exploded out into their faces, making them all cough and turn away.

Then, Tricky's eyes fixated on something in the distance ahead.

"Woah," she said, suddenly taking off ahead. "Look at that!"

Espurr and Goomy looked up ahead in Tricky's direction, where the fox was busy gawking at the massive silhouette of…

Bones.

Lots and lots of bones. The bag forgotten, the two of them dashed closer to look at it. They formed what had once been a large dragonlike being three times their height, ribs and legs and claws scattered around the floor. Whatever was here seemed to have decomposed rapidly. A large, sharklike skull lay at the crown of the skeleton.

"I think we found Gabite," said Espurr, looking at the massive skeleton that towered over them.

"Or w-w-what's l-left of him," added Goomy.

Thud. Screeech. Thud. Screeech. Thud.

In the distance. All of them looked to the cavern behind, eyes widening.

"It found us," gasped Tricky.

She sprung to her feet, bounding further into the dungeon, then thought twice and came back to make sure they were following. "C'mon!" she yelled, dancing on her paws.

Espurr thought quickly, then decided to take the bag and dragged it along as she and Goomy caught up with Tricky. But as usual, she just wasn't as fast as them. She couldn't keep up.

Then Gabite broke out into a run. She could see it now! Stomp stomp stomp. Espurr yelped and quickened her pace, for what little good it did her. She wasn't fast enough!

Gabite charged forward, and in her panic, Espurr tripped over her tail. The bag fell in front of her. She hit the ground hard. Turning around on the ground, all she could see was the gabite sliding to a stop, raising a single, blade-like arm, and preparing to bring it down—

A single ember flew through the air, reflecting off the gemstones and blinding both Espurr and the gabite. It struck Gabite in the snout. With a squeal it staggered backwards, and Espurr felt Tricky chomp down on her good arm, physically dragging her away. The bag bounced along with her, awkwardly swinging from Espurr’s hsoulder.

"Why diph phou phop?" Tricky asked frantically through her mouthful of Espurr's arm. "I can phee the phtairs from here!"

And as a dragged-along Espurr staggered to her feet, she saw it was true – at the end of the corridor lay the stairs that would lead them to the next floor. They were paces from escape!

Gabite snarled, nearly recovered. The sound sent both Espurr and Tricky running faster, and by the time Gabite was able to open its eyes again, they were already out of sight.

The roars of the zombie pokemon raged through the cavern as Espurr, Tricky, and Goomy rushed down the dungeon stairs. Espurr glanced back at the stairway as she ran. It was going to close up, right?

"What are you doing?!" Tricky cried out in terror.

"The stairs—" Espurr began.

"—They don't move if somemon's watching them, you ignoramus!" Tricky screeched, rushing back and practically bulldozing Goomy and the poor feline down the cavern hall.

Faster than anything she'd done in this dungeon, Espurr turned her head away. She heard Gabite's terrible roar, and a single thud against stone, but then the light suddenly cut out. Gabite's roars became muffled, then disappeared altogether. Only silence remained.

Tricky stopped when she realised they could no longer hear Gabite's enraged roars.

"Is everyone here? Did… Did we make it?" she asked, catching her breath and giving Espurr a chance to break free from the fennekin's grasp. Espurr looked back to the cavern they'd come from, now shrouded in darkness.

"I-I made it," said Goomy, the trembling wavering through his voice.

"I can't tell…" Espurr responded, nearly too jittery to talk. "It's too dark."

"Well, I can't hear him." Tricky's voice also had some jitter. She shook herself off, the sparkling dust in her coat sending glimmers of light that reflected off the crystals and cast a dim glow around the cavern. Espurr noticed the red hue a few of the gems took. Could it be?

Quickly, she went ahead, shuffling her fur as she went to illuminate the gemstones around her. They weren't in a narrow hall shrouded by rock and crystal anymore. The cavern was wide and open. It was almost as large as the entire school classroom, and in the middle of the cave sat the largest mountain of treasure Espurr had ever seen – thousands and thousands of gold coins, dotted with the occasional red gemstone from within the dungeon. This must have been Gabite's loot!

As she stood there, wide-eyed, Tricky trotted up, looking around the cavern with amazement.

"Wow…" she began, the stars invading her eyes again. "Remind me why I wanted to leave again? This is amazing!"

"Let's just grab something and leave." Espurr didn't fancy the idea of staying in the cavern any longer than necessary.

"I-I want to go too." Goomy agreed. As enthralled by the place as Tricky seemed to be, even she didn't contest the idea, and the three of them set out to work picking a few of the better gems from among the pile. They were all red, Espurr noticed. Had “Gabite” been taking them?

Espurr opened the bag she had slung over her shoulder the best she could with her working arm, allowing Tricky to dump the glittering red stones into it. The bag felt heavier now, digging into her shoulder, and adjusting it was painful on her bad arm.

Thud. Screeech. Thud. Screeech. Thud.

Faint, in the distance. Espurr glanced at the shadows from behind, writing it off as her imagination. The stairs to this floor were sealed. There was no way for the gabite to get back here before they left the dungeon... Right?

"I see some light!" Tricky announced, looking ahead. Walking around the massive pile of gems, Espurr did indeed see a source of light in the distance, brighter than the soft glow of the gemstones. Maybe it was the way out!

Thud. Thud. Thud.

Faster. This time, Tricky and Goomy heard it too. It echoed around the cavern, making it impossible to tell where the sound had come from. Both Espurr and Tricky hurriedly turned towards the underground hallway they had come from.

But when the gabite attacked, it wasn't from the front. The only warning the three students had was the sudden sound of footsteps from the left—

—Stomp-Stomp-Stomp—

"No fair!" Tricky whined, just before they both jumped out of the way of the charging gabite. The monstrous pokemon spun around, digging a blade into the ground as it slid to bank the turn, then bellowed loudly at all three of them.

That was it. Without thinking, Espurr grabbed a big fat gemstone, and hurled it straight in Gabite's face. It exploded into shards of sparkling dust, knocking Gabite's head back with a grunt.

Gabite stopped for a few seconds, trying to process what had just happened. Silence settled in the room. Neither Espurr nor Tricky or Goomy dared to move, staring up at it with wide eyes. Espurr's tail flattened. The gabite remained still for a few seconds more. Then, slowly, its face pulled back into a snarl, and as that snarl grew louder it brought its sharp fin down upon Espurr's head—

Espurr ducked out of the way at the last second, sliding to the ground and scurrying away. Gabite’s blade slashed straight into the pile of treasure, causing several gemstones to explode into glittering dust.

Having destroyed some of its treasure enraged Gabite even more, and it began to unleash all fury upon the pile, blindly swiping for them. Espurr suddenly felt Tricky chomp down upon her right arm and one of Goomy's antennae, pulling her out of the way of an attack.

Espurr and Goomy, thrown back, stumbled back out of harm's way. In front of them stood Tricky, her mouth flaming with fire.

"Stay behind me!" she growled. Gabite roared and began to charge forward. Tricky released a massive stream of fire from her throat, slamming Gabite in the face and sending it reeling away with a screech. The fire seemed to blind it, causing it to fly into its treasure pile. It let out a piercing screech of rage, lashing out to cause blind destruction.

Tricky bounded over to them, looking them over.

"You guys are okay, right?" she asked hurriedly and frantic.

Gabite hadn't noticed them yet. It was still busy destroying its treasure. Every new coin sent flying, every gemstone exploding into dust, was met with another thunderous roar, and eventually it gave up with the slashing and swiping and just charged headfirst into the pile. Espurr watched the mountain of treasure sway dangerously. And then she put two and two together. Maybe she could…

"I have an idea," said Espurr, crawling over to them. "Stay close to me!"

She focused on a single gemstone, located on the bottom of the pile. She concentrated on it, trying to pull it with her mind. Nuzleaf had said she'd be able to…

Her heart skipped a beat as she suddenly saw the gemstone move a little. But it wasn't coming out any further. It was too heavy. Espurr couldn't free it on her own.

Gabite sniffed the air, its sight finally returning once more. Its eyes fixed on Goomy, Tricky, and Espurr, and seconds later, so did its body. It let out a mighty roar once more, loping towards them with reckless abandon. Espurr poured all her concentration into one final psychic pull—

The gemstone soared free at the last second, whizzing through the air and knocking Gabite's right foot off its mark. Suddenly sent tumbling to its side, Gabite could only brace for impact as its body slammed against its massive pile of treasure. The three of them watched in horror as the mountain of gold clinked, clattered…

And then began to topple with a thunderous sound, burying Gabite under an avalanche of shiny, gleaming coins.

The ear-piercing sound of crashing and screeching gold filled the air for at least a minute, and their sight exploded with gleaming metal and sparkling dust. But then the sounds slowly died away, and only silence was left. A few gold coins clinked as the pile of treasure settled, and the air was thick with sparkling dust.

As the thunderous impact rattled away, the massive hulking beast that was Gabite lay on the ground before them, slain. Slowly, its body crumbled away into more of that reddish dust, which seemed to dissolve before Espurr's eyes.

The three of them looked at each other, struggling not to laugh, or collapse, and giddy with something between distress and excitement. They'd done it!

It was Espurr who broke the silence first.

"We should… go."

"Y-yeah." That was Goomy.

"Yeah, let's." Tricky hurriedly agreed.

~\({O})/~​

Music of the Week!

Pirates vs Natives vs Heroes vs Chickens - John Powell

 

[SparklingEspeon]

CHAPTER TEN: WE FORM A CONSPIRACY

~\({O})/~​

"I-is he still out there?" a drilbur asked, pacing about the colony's hiding spot behind the large, pointed boulder. The glow of the setting sun, gleaming over the massive rock, illuminated the drilbur colony's many anxious faces. Cloaked in golden light and purple shadows ahead of them was the huge, looming mineshaft, which lay still and silent.

"He's still pacing around," answered another, who had just returned from their sentry spot atop the large rock. "We heard him grumbling about 'no-g-good-troublemakers'."

Many of the drilbur drooped their heads at the scout's report.

"N-now what d-do we d-do?" one of them asked, the collective stutter beginning to return to their voice.

"I supp-pose we c-could stay back h-here for the rest of-f our lives," another drilbur proposed. It seemed like the colony was actively considering it.

Suddenly, there came a rumbling from deep inside the mine shaft, and the three children they were fretting over tumbled right out on top of each other, all panting and covered in sparkling dust. The Drilbur of the Mines were left agape.

There were several muffled shatters from within the bag Espurr was carrying. She wilted at the sound, realising what those were. The gemstones…

"We… defeated… your… monster…" Tricky spat out between gasps.

"Y-y-you what?" a lone drilbur stammered. A few others, prone to drama, fainted on the spot. Espurr, Tricky, and Goomy all picked themselves up on shaky feet.

"We. Beat your monster," Tricky repeated matter-of-factly. "Y'know… Gabite?"

Several gasps rang throughout the drilbur clan, amongst shocked whispers of 'It's true!'.

"H-how?" another drilbur spoke up. "H-how did three children…?"

"It was crushed by all the treasure," Espurr explained frankly.

"And the gemstones," added Tricky for posterity.

"Y-yeah," stammered Goomy.

"G… G-gemstones?" The word seemed to catch many of the drilburs' interest. "W-what gemstones?"

"Y'knooow…" Tricky drew out her sentence promptingly. "The gemstones?"

One of the drilbur walked forward, picking up a few grains of the dust that had fallen from their fur in his claw.

"Emeras…" he quietly whispered to himself. "We s-struck emeras!" He yelled to the rest of the clan. There were cheers everywhere, as the mood outside the cave suddenly went from overwhelmingly anxious to undeniably joyful.

"What's an emera?" Espurr asked Tricky and Goomy.

"Beats me…" Tricky yawned, falling flat on her haunches. "I was asleep that day in class."

Goomy's antennae perked up.

"I-I know–" he began.

"H-how can w-we ever thank you?" the drilbur asked, speaking over him.

"I have an i—" began Tricky excitedly.

"Aha!" snarled Watchog loudly, surprising all of them. He reached around the boulder, stepping into the clearing imposingly. The rest of the drilbur all made way for him, terror written on their faces.

"Finally came back, did you?" the large weasel sneered at the three students.

"We can explain—" began Espurr.

"Explain?" laughed Watchog. "Save it for the judge. You three are in a world of trouble."

Then he noticed the bag on Espurr's shoulder.

"Where did you get that?" he snarled, roughly snatching the strap. Espurr gasped as she was pulled forward, stumbling forward as he yanked her.

"Hey!" yelled Tricky.

"Quiet," growled Watchog. Goomy trembled.

Espurr swallowed the pain from her still-stiff arm and met his yellow, glaring eyes with her own violet ones.

"It's my souvenir from the mines," she said, choosing her words carefully.

"Troublemakers…" Watchog seethed, leaning in close. "Don't get souvenirs."

"B-but they weren't t-t-troublemaking," one of the drilbur piped up.

"Yeah!" Tricky fired back, much louder. "We weren't troublemaking!"

"Y-yeah," chimed in Goomy.

Watchog couldn't contain himself. He let out a high-pitched chuckle of disbelief, letting go of the strap. Espurr tumbled to the ground, hitting the dust. That hurt.

"You expect me to believe that?" the vice principal wheezed, coming down from his laughing trip. "You probably just bullied the drilbur into saying that!"

"No-mon bullied us," the drilbur spoke, his voice suddenly losing all stutter. "Except you."

"You barged onto our property!" another piped up.

"Forced us to let them work!"

"Yeah! Is that even safe for children?"

"Kicked us out of our own mine-yard!"

"Bossed us around!"

"You're a b-bad vice principal!"

Watchog's face contorted into several, increasingly exaggerated faces as he tried to process the mounting accusations against him.

"You can't give us orders!"

"You aren't fit to give orders!"

"You shouldn't be here!"

"ALRIGHT!" Watchog suddenly yelled, so loudly that Tricky's ears flitted from the volume. He took a few deep breaths, then composed himself into something calmer and more appropriate. "Why don't we just go home… and forget this all happened?"

"And you'll never come back?" The drilbur all collectively gave Watchog the stink-eye. Watchog blinked and opened his mouth a couple times in disbelief, but then thought better of it and nodded his head instead.

"And you'll take our word that these three haven't been up to any troublemaking today?" The drilburs' stink eyes only seemed to get more intense, all directed his way. Tricky had a goofy grin plastered on her muzzle, and Espurr had to admit the positivity was contagious.

Terrified, Watchog nodded his head ferociously.

"We'll just be going now," he said with a quiet, stricken voice, picking up his towering bag and traveller's cloak and shuffling off stiffly. Espurr, Tricky, and Goomy shared a look of triumphant disbelief, barely able to contain their grins, then quickly followed along before they could push the bar any further. A Watchog down on his luck was not a Watchog to test.

"Yeesh, I h-hated that 'mon…" Espurr heard the drilbur begin to loudly gossip behind them as they left. She was sure they knew Watchog could hear them.

"T-tell me about it. T-talk about p-proud ponyta…"

~\({O})/~​

Watchog, silently stewing, let them loose and stormed off the moment they reached the town square that day. Espurr couldn't complain. The three of them were quite scuffed up, and even though they were all likely to get a lecture at the school tomorrow, somehow Espurr just didn't care right now. She was grateful and happy to have made it out of there alive, and from the similarly relieved faces on Tricky and Goomy's faces, it looked like they felt the same.

"I can't believe that worked!" hissed Tricky under her breath once Watchog was gone.

"I hope he doesn't feel too bad," said Espurr.

"Who cares?" shrieked Tricky in a hush, bouncing up and down. "It's Watchog! This is epic."

"I-I think he's g-gonna punish us at the school tomorrow," stuttered Goomy.

"Sooo…"

The three of them, interrupted, looked to the far side of the square, near the Café Connection. Pancham, leaning against a house near the Café, beckoned to them smugly. Shelmet was next to him, and they both had extremely annoying looks on their faces.

"Did you get them?" he asked.

"You didn't tell us the mines had a monster in there!" Tricky yelled as they approached Pancham. Espurr hurriedly checked to make sure Watchog was out of earshot. Sure enough, the long, brown pokemon was moping his way home, far off in the sunset distance by now.

"We… uh, we knew about the monster," Pancham said. "I was just testing you. Did you get the gems?"

Espurr could already feel her gut churning with annoyance; she could tell exactly where this was going.

"We tried," she began. "But they exploded into dust the moment we took them out of the dungeon." She showed them the dust in the bag for good measure. She was met with the downright mean laughter of Pancham and Shelmet. It just made her fur bristle more.

"You three are such dimwits!" Pancham gasped out between laughs. "We got you so bad!"

"Everymon knows you can't take emeras out of dungeons without processing them first!" Shelmet added, crying tears of laughter. Espurr's eyes narrowed, pink annoyance flickering at the corner of them, and Tricky was staring at them in hurt disbelief. Espurr saw the darkening look upon Tricky's face, the burgeoning cloud of red that was growing around her head. Even Goomy looked annoyed.

Well, if they wanted to dish it out…

"Anyways," Espurr said, closing the strap on the old, tattered bag. "Thank you."

"What?!" Both Shelmet and Pancham ceased their laughter to look at Espurr in shock. Espurr sent them her best attempt at a smile.

"It was fun," she said sweetly to their face. "I'm glad you sent us."

"You had… fun?" Shelmet gasped. "In a mystery dungeon?"

"More fun than picking berries would have been," Espurr replied.

By this point, Tricky had caught on. She blew a raspberry at Shelmet, before quickly nodding along with Espurr. Goomy tried to puff himself up too, though he just looked like a balloon.

"Doesn't surprise me," Pancham said, folding his arms. "I always knew you were a freak. Just like your partners. Now the whole village gets to know, too…" He blew his own raspberry at Tricky.

Tricky gasped. "You wouldn't!" she shot back at him, some steam puffing out of her ears. "You can't prove it!"

"Yeah," Pancham brushed Tricky off nonchalantly. "But who's the village gonna listen to? Me… or the local troublemakers? Untouchable, remember?" he sent Tricky a wink that made her look like she wanted to blast him onto the next continent. She growled at him, some more steam blowing from her ear fluff.

"And now, I must be off, ladies." he bid them goodbye in the most obnoxious tone possible, blowing them a kiss and then sauntering off. Shelmet blew a raspberry at Tricky before scampering after Pancham.

Tricky growled with anger, watching them stroll back to their house on the other side of the square.

"I hate them…" she snarled, her ears flat with rage.

"Maybe they'll leave us alone now," Espurr said.

"Pancham and Shelmet never leave us alone," Tricky muttered. "They're just dumb, rotten bullies."

Her words hung in the air for a little bit.

"I… I-I'm g-gonna go home now," Goomy said, tiredly. He yawned, his mouth gaping to fill his face.

"Bye," said Espurr and Tricky, waving him off. Goomy was gone quickly.

That left Espurr and Tricky alone in the square. They awkwardly stood in silence for a bit. Espurr could feel the corners of blue negativity beginning to creep in from Tricky’s direction again.

“Hey Espurr?” Tricky asked.

“Yeah?” Espurr asked, turning around.

The fennekin anxiously pawed the ground.

“Sorry,” Tricky said.

Espurr turned around, surprised.

“What?” she asked.

“For dragging you around,” said Tricky, “and stuff.”

The fennekin pawed the ground anxiously.

“And taking you to Foreboding Forest. I just…”

The pawing became more anxious.

"Um, well… I should probably get going," she said quickly. "My Pops is gonna give me the lecture of the century if I don't get home before dark. And, also if he finds out what happened today, so don't tell him."

Espurr couldn't imagine a world where she'd willingly tell anymon in charge about what had happened today.

"Well, good night then," she said.

Tricky waved goodbye with her swishy tail, and then ran off in the direction of her house. Espurr gave her a halfhearted wave back, then started towards the pine tree path with the old, tattered bag.

~\({O})/~​

Somehow, Watchog never punished them. Espurr was fully expecting to receive a huge lecture and more detention in the Principal's Office the next day, but when Watchog came back to school he was still moody and simply didn't talk to her. He glowered around near the blackboard the rest of the day, as the other students gossiped between classes about what could possibly have made him so upset.

The events of that day hung fresh in all their minds over the next couple of mornings. The three of them managed to go at least two days without talking to each other – at all. Espurr was still meant to be on a no-talking basis with Tricky, and now that they weren't having detention together, Goomy sat in the back of the class and wasn't near them at all. But they did find themselves sitting close together at lunches, and without detention to fill their evenings anymore, that left a large block of time Espurr and Goomy mostly filled with spying on Ampharos as he went about his day.

But it felt like somemon was missing.

On the third day, Espurr, Tricky, and Goomy all decided they had to talk about it. So Espurr bumped into Tricky after school, and decided to ask her out.

"Tricky," Espurr started, managing to catch her on the walk to school. She looked at Goomy beside her, then took a deep breath. "Would you like to hang out with us after school?"

Tricky looked at her, eyes wide, then gasped and heaved dramatically.

"You wanna hang out?!" she screeched excitedly, prancing in place. "What do you wanna do? I can do anything!"

"How about just… talk?" Espurr asked. Goomy nodded.

"I-I wanna d-do something calm after last t-time," he said.

"Sure, we can do that!" Tricky blurted out quickly. Then her ears pricked up. "Ooh! Ooh! I know the perfect place! No-one will find us there I swear!"

That place turned out to be a small, crumbling fort in the woods near the beach, made from solid stone bricks. It was near a large tree on a hill. They'd needed to pass the Crooked House to get here. The small, one-room tower was entwined with an ancient, massive oak, with branches that spread far out above all the other canopies. The second floor of the fort had caved in after years and years of battering by the elements.

"I found it a year ago," said Tricky, deftly hopping around a few pieces of junk and into the crooked stone doorway. Espurr and Goomy peered in, looking down at the cluttered, dirty stone floor unsurely. The fort was slanted, and there was dark water covered with leaves and twigs floating in the corner.

"What?" asked Tricky, looking back. She looked where they were staring, which was at the debris-littered floor, ridden with broken wood, soil, acorns, and dead leaves. "It's fine! Just step around the junk."

That was easier said than done. Espurr helped Goomy around the debris, doing her best to dance around the mess herself.

A rickety ramp led up to the second floor of the fort, which was similar to an empty balcony. Much of the junk on the first floor had come from remnants of the second, which had fallen through a large hole in the roof. What remained of the second floor left a lot of room upstairs for sitting. Up here, there was nothing fresh air, the rustling of branches above, and the breeze ruffling Espurr’s fur. It was the perfect spot to watch the sun set over the easterly mountains.

"It was a bust," said Tricky, head atop her paws, as they watched the sunset from beside the tree. It was the first time any of them had spoken in entire minutes.

"I-I agree."

Goomy deflated onto the stone besides Tricky and Espurr, having found a good spot to relax.

"I-it was a w-waste. And w-w-e d-didn't even find anything about A-ampharos."

Espurr, who still had that old, dusty bag next to her, clutched it closer to her knees.

"We did find one thing," she said.

"W-what?" Goomy looked at her curiously.

"Did you see the scuff marks in the dungeon?" Espurr asked. She looked at Tricky.

"You said dungeons reset their environments every couple days?" she asked.

Tricky nodded. "Yeah… why?"

"If that's true, then those scuff marks had to be made around when we went in," Espurr continued. "But it wasn't us. It was from before. From sometime last night."

Tricky suddenly looked interested. Her ears and tail perked up.

"Wait," she said, huddling closer to them. "You think somemon went in there and disturbed Gabite?"

Espurr nodded. "The same somemon who could have told Pancham exactly where to send three 'mon on a dare…" she waited for effect as she saw Goomy and Tricky's faces light up in realisation.

"And the same 'mon who would have been sighted there earlier that day," said Tricky.

"A-ampharos," said Goomy.

"Exactly," said Espurr. "He must have been there at the dungeon earlier that day. Remember that green fabric on the rock? And he used it to try and get us killed. If that's not proof he's linked to the earlier murder and the Coneheads, I'm not sure what is."

"Earlier murder?" Tricky exclaimed, practically standing up. Some birds flew out of the oak's branches above them.

"Wait wait wait," she said. "How out of the loop am I."

Espurr blanched, followed by Goomy beside her.

"Right," she observed sheepishly. "We never told you."

"Tell me what?" Tricky's tail wagged like a blur. Her eyes were wide.

Espurr and Goomy just looked at each other.

"C'mon…" Tricky whined. "Nothing as cool as a murder ever happens around here! I need this!"

Espurr hesitated. The cat was already out of the bag… how much did she really have to lose by telling one more person?

Tricky turned out to be an intent listener when she wanted to be. Espurr was surprised that the fennekin didn't interrupt once when she was telling the story, like she expected would happen. By the end, Tricky just nodded, adjusting herself in the grass with a serious expression on her face.

"So it's a murder case," she said levelly. "Right."

Espurr nodded. "But now that you know, you're sworn to secrecy. No telling anymon else, got it?"

"Okay!" Tricky nodded vigorously. Then she tilted her head in confusion. "Wait, why aren't we telling anymon else?"

"B-because we d-don't want the w-wrong person finding out," Goomy said helpfully.

"Secret investigation." Tricky nodded sagely, then stood stiffly to attention. "Got it." She flopped down onto the stone anyway. "Still a waste though. We didn't get a single piece of gold!"

Espurr toyed with the flap of the bag. Watchog had angrily searched it on the way back before letting her keep it, but upon finding nothing but old antiques and emera dust in the bag's main pouch, assumed that it must have been a piece of rubbish no-mon else wanted and let her keep it.

"I wouldn't say that…" Espurr trailed off. Then she undid the bag's clasp and opened a hidden pocket, showing Tricky and Goomy what was inside. The glitter of the bag's contents, reflecting the sunset's orange light, gleamed brightly and cast it into their faces.

"You WHAT?" Tricky screeched, loudly enough that whatever poor birds had come back or were still roosting in the big oak were scared away again, squawking as they went.

"Watchog isn't very observant," stated Espurr plainly.

"T-that's…" started Goomy in awe.

"That's awesome," said a gobsmacked Tricky.

"I'd reckon we can afford a lot now," said Espurr as she closed the bag, sounding quite pleased with herself. And as far as she was concerned, why shouldn't she be?

Goomy, too, looked very content. And though she seemed to restrain herself from jumping up in the air and doing a victory fit, Espurr had never seen a goofier look on Tricky's face. She could barely contain one from spreading on hers too. Even if it was reckless… she couldn't deny it had absolutely turned out for the better.

~\({O})/~​

Music of the Week!

Roslin and Adama Reunited - Bear McCreary

 

[SparklingEspeon]

The Dazzling Dewgong – South Ophria's Best Paper

New Emera Mine, Deceased Outlaw and Treasure, discovered in Central Firland

A new emera deposit has been discovered in the middle of Firland, South Ophria, the owning Kecleon Company recently reported. The estimated production capacity of the dungeon within could power fifty mid-sized towns for years.

"We're excited to add yet another fully producing emera mine to our collection," stated a higherup at the company, "and we'll be investing more resources into dungeons in the area in the immediate future."

The mining operation has unburied old concerns about extensive mining operations in Firland, which has long been regarded by the public as a haven of natural beauty. But those same sentiments have not been represented in the province – only certain areas of the marshlands are considered protected land.

The mine is also claimed to have been the final resting place of the infamous Longclaw Gabite the Outlaw, who robbed countless guilds, banks and households in his lifetime and whose treasure was never found. Longclaw's bones will be carried off for a proper burial, while the treasure has been claimed as a bounty reward by the Kecleon Company. Hopes remain that with Longclaw's bones removed from the dungeon, the rumoured apparition will also dissipate.

CHAPTER ELEVEN: TRICKY VOMITS OFF THE SIDE OF A BOAT

~\({O})/~​

. . .. . . Time seemed to pass with the wind. School was breezy, the days were nice, and before Espurr knew it, months had gone by. Soon it wasn't February or March, but the end of April. She had even had her cast removed, after a while. Her arm had healed enough to not need it anymore.

Not long after the mines, the three of them decided to spend just a bit of their hard-earned treasure on some of the expensive-looking sweets that were carted into town with the rest of Kecleon's wares. Just one of the gold coins in Espurr's bag was probably worth everything in Kecleon's tent put together, given how he'd acted when they showed it to him. When he saw it, his eyes widened like a surprised wombat, and he looked both ways, then pulled them in towards the shade of his tent:

"Did you get that from the mines?" he hissed urgently.

"Woouuld it be a problem if we did?" asked Tricky innocently, with her best baby doll eyes.

Kecleon's attitude seemed to change on a dime. All of the sudden he was all smiles again, though he did carefully close the tent flaps.

"Oh no, not a problem at all!" he tittered, letting the emerald curtains dip behind them. "We just want to be careful. Wouldn't want to attract too much attention. There might be… thieves around. Anyway, looking to buy? What can I interest you in?"

"We want some sweets," said Espurr. "How much can we get?"

"Hmm…" Kecleon frowned, slipping a pair of ornate spectacles on his face, and inspected the coin in his claws with the precision of a jeweller. He flipped it into the air and caught it tightly in his scaly palm.

"It'll buy you a tray."

"Wait, b-but isn't it w-worth m-more than that?" stammered Goomy.

"Yeah!" said Tricky, her eyes narrowing. "You're trying to swindle us!"

"Consider it repayment for all those stolen apples," Kecleon muttered threateningly, fixing his steely gaze on Tricky.

Tricky shrank down and laughed nervously.

"Maaaybe I did that," she admitted.

The coin, lightning fast, disappeared into a pocket on the lizard's apron that he zipped up tightly. It jangled with spare change, much like every other pocket on the garment.

"Here you go!" he flashed them a shopkeeper's smile as he pulled a large tray of sweets out from behind the glass and handed it to them. It was laced with everything from plum gummies to orange macaroons, and almost too big to carry! Tricky's eyes were practically exploding.

"And worry not about the coin,” said Kecleon. “It'll be our little secret."

Nuzleaf was still practising with Espurr every other day now, in the mornings before school started.

"Alright," said Nuzleaf, walking around Espurr as she practised the pose Nuzleaf had outlined for her. "keep tha' posture, back straight, tail out…" Espurr adjusted herself as he pointed things out, keeping her paws together and held out right in front of her. Her target: a discarded container laying on the desk before her.

"Alright," said Nuzleaf. "Now ya just have ta direct it. Imagine all tha' power flowing inta your paws, and then slammin' into that can!"

Espurr shut her eyes, and imagined power flowing out from her, funnelling into her paws, then, arching out—

Something arched out. What it was, Espurr didn't see. What she did see, when she opened her eyes, was that it wasn't nearly enough to topple the can - it had only moved a little. Honestly, the wind could have blown it further…

She sighed and slumped back down into the seat behind her. Everymon else in the school knew this by now! And it wasn't like they were more experienced—half the school couldn't have done anything like this a week ago. But there they were, shooting off sparks and making plants bloom and blowing fire and ice, and Espurr was still trying to figure out how to make her power work in the first place. How was she ever going to catch up?

"There there," said Nuzleaf, sitting next to her on the school bench. He patted her back. "You're gettin' better."

"I barely made anything appear," protested Espurr in a defeated voice. "How can I be getting better?"

"Well, could you have done tha' a week ago?" Nuzleaf asked.

Espurr shrugged.

"Maybe?"

"Maybe isn't a yes," said Nuzleaf. He winked, then began to rise from the seat.

"Wait," said Espurr. Something had been gnawing away at the back of her mind, and she figured it was best to just say it. "What if it's just my arm?"

"What do you mean?" Nuzleaf sat back down on the bench, folding his own.

"What if the only reason I'm getting better is because my cast came off?" asked Espurr. "We've been doing it for a week since, and it's only improved once, so…"

"Ahh, nonsense," said Nuzleaf, waving it off. "That ain't how it works."

He pointed to her arms. "It's not about what's in there—" then he tapped his head. "It's about what's in here. And how you use it."

He leaned forward a bit, facing her completely. "But hey. I used to be just like you. Third year at the school; everymon else was doing great, but there I was, unable to create a single spark. Worried my guardians so much, they thought I was going to grow up and never use a single move! But do you know how I changed that?"

Espurr shook her head. "How?"

Nuzleaf took a deep breath. "I realised where the real power comes from. It's not about muscles, or wands, or brute force, or any of those doodads. It's about what's in your head, and how you use it.

"Now see, I wasn' your brightest or most popular studen' an' all. I was somethin' of a shut-in, actually. Got bullied a lot for it. But then I realised: it was that very spite, that very anger, that allowed me to plough through and break down the barriers that were holdin' me back. And when I focused on that, everythin' became clear. I had a goal. I was gonna show up everymon, and prove to them all just how powerful I was."

He sat down and edged a bit closer to her on the bench.

"Now, I think you've got a lotta power in that head'a yours. Ya just need to learn to channel it. Think… close your eyes. What makes you tha most angry?"

Espurr shut her eyes, and thought hard. Immediately an image came to her: Pancham's smug face.

"Got somethin'?" said Nuzleaf.

Espurr nodded.

"Great. Now… focus on that. And try again."

Espurr concentrated again, imagining power flowing into her paws, focusing hard on Pancham, on the bright burning annoyance she felt with somemon who'd led others into a dangerous dungeon on purpose, twice…

Her paws heated up, and a strong blast of power suddenly left them. She heard the crunching of tin, and when she opened her eyes the metal container was crumpled in on itself.

The sound of clapping came from beside her.

"Now ya've got it!" said Nuzleaf. "Keep practisin' with that. I think we're gettin' somewhere."

~\({O})/~​

"We're going to Crossings! We're going to Crossings!"

Tricky jumped up and down and hopped all around excitedly like a kit who had just had the run of the sugared berry stall. Her pops, a large, blue, turtle-like creature who went by 'Carracosta', had forced her to brush her fur and wear a snow-white bow atop her head. It did absolutely nothing to make her look any less untamed. The fennekin was doing orbits around the class group in excitement.

Deerling, who didn't look super impressed, just yawned.

"In an hour or so," she said, tapering off the yawn. "Maybe don't combust before then."

Goomy, who normally would have hung with them, seemed shackled to Deerling and her two friends Ponyta and Blitzle for the time being. Though he didn't seem especially happy about it, he didn't make much of an attempt to come back to their side of the class. Espurr wondered about that.

Pancham and Shelmet were off bothering Deerling, which Espurr considered a plus because it meant they weren't bothering her or Tricky. She instead took a moment to reach under her desk and pull out a folded piece of paper where no-mon else could see it. She unfolded it in her paws and stared hard at the drawing: Three crooked figures with bulbous lights on the ends of their arms, sleek, cloaklike bodies, obscured faces, and long, pointy cones which extended towards the sky entire feet above their heads. She'd been keeping an eye out for them over the last few months, but there had been no sign for a while. Where were they… and what were they doing?

The sudden sound of somemon clearing their throat caught Espurr's attention, and the rest of the class too – everymon had taken their seats. Farfetch'd and Simipour took positions at the head of the classroom, but didn't say anything. Following them were Watchog and Audino.

Espurr was disappointed to learn Watchog seemed to be the one who was going to speak, as he took the centre position right at the helm of the desk and cleared his throat obnoxiously.

"Alright, listen up, troublemakers!" he barked. "Some of you may know that the ferry service that goes around the Province now has a route heading through us. This means we're going to be using the boat to take our annual spring field trip to the province capital. But I expect all of you to behave perfectly. Remember, one step out of line, and we can send you straight back home. I hope that's not lost on our rowdier members…"

A glance over towards Espurr and Tricky's desk clued Espurr in on exactly what that meant.

"What Watchog means," Audino started—

"Vice principal."

"What the vice principal means," Audino began again, "is that we expect you all to be on your best behaviour for the duration of the visit. I trust you all know not to act out too much."

"Yes, Nurse Audino," said the rest of the class, with a politeness that had not been reserved for Watchog. The Vice Principal just folded his arms and grunted. Espurr caught a clear whiff of quiet, honey-coloured smugness off Audino as Watchog stepped down from the pedestal: See? They respect me.

Watchog just huffed.

"I'll still be watching you all," he grumbled as he returned to his sentry spot.

Farfetch'd moved forward, pulling a curly piece of paper from his bag. "As you'll probably guess, class for today is cancelled, so we'll just take attendance…"

~\({O})/~​

The docks were in the other direction of town, fifteen minutes' hike along the shore. The beach path led past tropical trees Espurr hadn't seen before, and ended on a magnificent sandy beach surrounded by rich, green-blue sea. And at the end of it stood the boat.

She hadn't expected it to be so large. It must have reached at least up to two storeys, and it was sleek and modern-looking. Espurr would have thought in a place like this, they'd still be using wood and sails.

A boarding plank slid out of the pure white hull, crashing down on the sand in front of them. It kicked up a fair amount into the students' faces. Espurr was able to dust it off quite neatly, and Tricky just spat it out. It seemed like poor Goomy had accidentally eaten some, though.

"Alright!" barked an impatient Watchog, walking past them with a bag on his back he could barely carry. Did he really need all that stuff? "Everymon on board! Get on with it!"

Espurr shouldered her own bag and began to march up the plank after Deerling and some of the older kids. Goomy fell in stride (slime… ? Espurr wasn't sure) with them up the plank.

"It's hot out…" Goomy panted, shaking some sand off his left antenna. He looked dehydrated.

The ferry set out soon after they'd boarded. A handful of other townsmon had come too – nearly everymon Espurr recognised out and about in the town square most days. Even Kecleon had come. He seemed to be on holiday, and had taken all sorts of strange gear with him that Espurr assumed was vacation material for a lizard. Currently, he was sunbathing on the deck.

Like most of the class, Espurr was out on the top deck, enjoying the wind on her face as the ship bobbed up and down on its voyage. Some of the other students were seasick. Espurr was glad she wasn't one of them.

"Boats…" Tricky moaned pitifully, flopped over the railing like a ragdoll. Espurr patted her back in concern. "I'm gonna puke…"

Espurr quickly edged several feet away before it happened. She did not want to see what the projectile vomit of a fire-breathing creature looked like.

Of course, there was one passenger she wasn't quite happy to see. Ampharos was loitering around on the far side, probably because he knew that if he got too close to all of the villagers somemon would have taken issue.

All of the sudden, fire-type vomit seemed a little less unappealing than it had a second ago.

It wasn't long before the boat was close to making its landing point, and a voice came out over the loudspeakers: "Please be aware the ferry will be docking at its next landing point in five minutes. Gather your belongings and be ready to disembark."

The announcement played on repeat every thirty seconds. Luckily, Espurr had kept her bag with her at all times, so she didn't have much to grab. Tricky just pawed at the snow-white bow she was wearing – clearly it made her uncomfortable, as she was scratching the area around it constantly – and Goomy was keeping a tight hold on the tin of crackers Deerling had given him for lunch.

The ferry came to a landing, and Espurr stepped off the wooden plank. The air here felt like walking into an airborne bath. The distant flatlands around her were covered in greenery like she hadn't seen before, and nestled in between the emerald grass and trees, between several smaller islands and bridges, was a sleek white town.

"Welcome to Crossings," said Farfetch'd, stamping his leek into the grass like it was a cane. All the other students were barely able to restrain themselves from running off into the large, sprawling, city ahead of them. Espurr walked with Goomy and Tricky, but made sure that Ampharos was a good distance away before she took her eyes off of him.

Crossings itself was a charming piece of landscaping – though Espurr had been here before, the largeness of it still carried her away. It seemed so much livelier than Serenity Village, with pokemon scurrying past to and fro in mostly straight lines down the pure white cobbled roads. And the shops! There were shops everywhere, and they were selling all manner of strange things.

The group toured the city for a small while, exploring some of the stores and old buildings before they reached the inn. Tricky stopped Espurr and Goomy outside a shop that read "Dungeoneering Equipment For Exquisite Explorers", practically pulling them inside. The building was musty, and the shopkeeper looked like he'd been alive longer than the shop. Inside were a host of things Espurr couldn't make heads or tails of, like a dusty old orb that apparently told you where the nearest life forms were for the entire floor, or a magnifying glass that helped one spot where dungeons popped up in the first place. Tricky was particularly excited over a Neverending Knapsack.

"Look—look!" she was practically bobbing up and down at the thing on display.

"What's a Neverending Knapsack?" Espurr asked, looking at the sleek, white bag on the pedestal.

"You can put anything you want in it," Tricky explained in excitement, "And it'll never run out of space! It's state of the art. All the registered explorers get them issued now. I never thought I'd get to see one!"

"It'll cost ya," said the ancient grovyle. Espurr practically jumped. She'd thought that was a statue!

"How much?" asked Tricky.

"Wouldn't suppose you three happen to have any gold pieces layin' about?" said the shopkeeper. "We only have one and it's for display. You'd have to have a literal treasure to afford it."

"Why keep something that's only for display?" asked Espurr. Carefully, she shut Tricky up before Tricky could eagerly divulge that they did in fact have some gold in their bag.

"So people will come in and buy other stuff," grumbled the grovyle. "And because we'll be getting another shipment of them in a few months. It takes a while for things to get down here from up North, don't you know."

Tricky perked up more when they entered an ice cream parlour. Some of the pocket change Audino had given them bought them all a nice sundae – in flavours Espurr could never have fathomed existed, like "tamato twist" and "lum express". Espurr's was neon green and tasted like a strange mix between watermelon and orange. They ate it on shiny white tables outside because heat and ice cream went together well. Though Espurr didn't exactly like the soupy air and the way it felt against her fur, Goomy seemed to be enjoying it very much. Tricky had already finished her sundae and was staring at the bowl like it ought to refill itself immediately.

"Hey, mind if I take this seat?"

Espurr looked over at the one empty chair left at their table, where somemon stout and pinkish was looking up at them. It was a child from another school attending the field trip. They didn't seem much older than the three of them were, and the main distinctive trait about them – aside from their size and the long, pigtail-like adornments coursing down their back, was the large hammer they carried. Espurr recognised them from the bookstore immediately – Tinkaton!

The pink 'mon looked at all the other tables, and then back at them. "Everywhere else's full."

They weren't wrong. The place seemed to be popular. Espurr nodded after getting approval from Tricky and Goomy. In response, Tinkaton happily plunked their large hammer on the chair, hopped up and balanced themselves on the handle, and then plopped themselves on top of it. Now they were level with the table.

"Sorry about that," said the creature, pulling a sundae of their own out of nowhere. "We’ve met, right?"

Espurr nodded. "At the book nook."

"Right," said Tinkaton. Then they saw over the rim of Espurr's drawing. Their eyes widened.

"Hey, let me see that," Tinkaton said, and before Espurr could say a thing they'd reached over and snatched the paper out of her paws.

"You guys seen these?" they said, looking up curiously.

"Maaaaybe?" Tricky trailed off.

"Do you know what they are?" asked Espurr.

Tinkaton looked up. "They're Constructs," they said dramatically.

"C-constructs?" stammered Goomy.

"Yup," said Tinkaton. "Real nasty types too."

They flipped the paper back towards Espurr. Espurr took it back. "'Mon raised from the dead. Looks like beheeyem. You've seen 'em too?"

"You've seen them?" asked all three of them at once.

"Of course," said Tinkaton. "The city's on the watch for three beheeyem. They've been skulking around and acting shady. But from the way you've drawn 'em… now I wonder…"

Espurr, Tricky, and Goomy all looked at each other.

"What do you know about Constructs?" Espurr asked.

"I only know about 'em because my uncle was gettin' into that stuff years ago, back when he was having his slump," Tinkaton said. "We eventually knocked some sense into him, but he doesn't really talk about it much. All I know is he was practising it with some other guy. That guy got 'im into it."

"Who was the other guy?" asked Espurr.

"Beats me," said Tinkaton. "We never saw 'im. He disappeared when I was a hatchling. All we know is the 'mon had a green cape."

Espurr, Tricky, and Goomy all looked at each other.

"Is there any chance we could talk to your uncle?" asked Espurr, folding the paper and stuffing it into her bag.

"Nah," said Tinkaton, shaking their head. "He's been senile for years. Never talked about it anyway. But..."

They leaned in over the table.

"Here's what I do know. If you guys are doing any investigating, you should look for thunderstorms or mysterious blackouts recently. It takes a lot of power to conjure a Construct. Electric 'mon can produce that power, or an ordinary 'mon could steal it from a town. But without power, or a way to channel it, I don't know where you'd get it all from. Especially for somethin' this mean."

~\({O})/~​

"What more proof could we need?" asked Espurr. She, Tricky, and Goomy were sitting around a small, round table in the corner of the inn's café area. Dinner had long ago been finished, and now there were half-eaten sticky buns on everymon's plates. Espurr had the page with the conehead sketch in the middle of the table, where all three of them could see it.

"An electric 'mon just happens to arrive in town at the same time somemon here is murdered, and then these Constructs show up, and the moment Ampharos breaks from the group, they're skulking around Crossings again?" Espurr took a pointed sip of her drink. "It basically solves itself."

"B-but how do we prove it?" Goomy stammered.

"I guess we'd need to catch him doing it…" Tricky said, her ears lowering in perplexment.

Espurr could only fold her arms. That had her stumped.

Ampharos was clearly somehow guilty; they all knew that. But in all their time watching him, they somehow hadn't managed to catch a single thing that proved it.

"You guys look bleak."

The atmosphere was so thick the three of them nearly jumped. Pancham, looking smug as ever, sauntered over and took a place uninvited on one of the empty seats at their table.

"We're just… tired," answered Espurr, trying to sound as casual as possible. It wasn't false. She could already feel sleep dragging her eyelids down.

Tricky let out a wide, exaggerated yawn.

"Me too…" she said, pausing to scarf down the little pieces of dessert that remained on her plate. "I think I'm gonna go sleep…"

"M-me too," said Goomy.

The table was cleared faster than it took a skwovet to wolf down a nut buffet, leaving only Pancham sitting at an empty table. Espurr didn't look back to see what his reaction was, but she assumed he was perplexed.

~\({O})/~​

"Now just so you're aware," said Audino to Espurr as they walked down the narrow hall of the inn's second floor. Everymon else had already tucked in for the night, but Espurr had been out late digging for any information she could find on Constructs. So far, the town library didn't seem to have anything… though they weren't keen on letting children into the sections with older books.

She looked up at Audino, the sudden words breaking her out of her train of thought.

"Tomorrow night, you're going to go see somem—"

"My guardian?" asked Espurr.

Audino seemed a bit startled, as if she wasn't expecting Espurr to know.

"Y-yes," she said, collecting herself quickly. "Not sure how you knew that."

Espurr decided not to let on that the walls of the school clinic were very thin.

"Why not one from the village?" she asked.

Audino certainly seemed less prepared to answer that than she was the last two. Espurr caught what seemed like a slight pang of… sadness? But it passed as quickly as it had come.

"It just didn't work out in the village," she said. "But think on the bright side! You'll live in a big city! Here you'll be able to take the ferry back whenever you want."

They reached the room Espurr and the other kids were staying in, and Audino knelt over to dust some dirt off Espurr's fur. "And I know your new guardian is going to be very sweet."

She gave Espurr a quick hug. Espurr hadn't been hugged in many years and wasn't sure how to react, so she let herself be squeezed like a disturbed fish and stood there trying to process it after Audino had let go. It felt warm and fuzzy.

"Now, good night," said Audino, standing up and walking away.

It took until Espurr was about to flop down on one of the straw beds to realise that she'd been wearing the bag all day and hadn't noticed. She deposited it in a heap near the door then flopped down on the straw next to Tricky, who was softly snoring.

Left with her mind simmering, all she could do was stare up at the ceiling.

Dear diary,

I don't know if I want to go anymore.

~\({O})/~​

Music of the Week!

Glass Onion Theme Revisited - Nathan Johnson

 

[SparklingEspeon]

CHAPTER TWELVE: WE GO ON A FIELD TRIP

~\({O})/~​

. . .. . . "Espurr! Get up!"

The roof of the inn suddenly met Espurr's eyes. It was daytime – from how light it was, probably close to noon. Tricky and Goomy were over her, looking quite concerned.

"W.. ugh…?" groaned Espurr, barely awake. She yawned and rubbed her eyes, clearing away the bleariness. Her body felt tense and unrested, her fur tousled and her curls messy.

"You were t-tossing and turning around," explained Goomy as Espurr groggily sat up. "W-we thought you were h-having a bad dream."

"More importantly, it's breakfast time!" Tricky yelled frantically over them both, popping up in between them. "Everymon's already downstairs! Audino said we had to wake you."

All of this only half-registered with Espurr, who was still reeling from her bad dream. But time and place came back to her, just in time for Tricky to almost push her off the bed and towards the door. She made sure to grab her bag before they all went down – who knew if she'd be able to get it later?

Just like there'd been a dinner in the hotel, there was a breakfast too. Rows and rows and rows of chopped fruits and swirly cinnamon cone-shaped pastries and a platter of pancakes that were, as Espurr found out, lemon flavoured, lay spread out on a fancy table in the lobby. Children and guardians and teachers from other schools placed food on their plates, taking them to small, wooden tables with round benches.

Espurr had never had a lemon-flavoured pancake before, so she grabbed a couple of those and a small tin of berries and sat down at a nearby table. Not too far away, her ears picked up the sound of Farfetch'd instructing Tricky not to eat herself into a food coma, as the entire class would be going on a field trip today.

A minute later, Tricky happily trotted over with a plate in her mouth, and sat down with seven lemoncakes and three cone pastries and a peach in front of her.

"Isn't that a lot?" asked Espurr, looking at the stack of food that went up to Tricky's snout.

"Yeah but my Pops only makes these on special occasions," Tricky chirped happily, with her mouth full of lemon pancake. "haf' tph saphour i'!"

She was practically inhaling them. Espurr, who had been nibbling on hers, moved over on the bench to make space as Goomy slimed up.

"S-so what was that dream about?" he asked, setting his plate on the table. It was filled mainly with fruit. "Yo-you looked r-really distressed."

Espurr instinctively hid behind her lemoncake a little at the thought of recounting it. She couldn’t remember much, just a black void like last time. But this time… it had felt sinister. Like somemon’s eyes, thousands of them, were watching her from every angle, inspecting her down to each strand of fur, learning everything there was to know. She couldn’t suppress a shudder.

"It didn't feel normal," she said. "It felt like there was something there."

"Somethinth d'ere lithe a niph'mare?" asked Tricky through another full mouth, this time with cinnamon swirl pastries. Only the peach was untouched now.

Espurr shook her head.

"No," she said. "Something really there. In there with me."

"B-but how c-can something be with you in a dd-ream?" asked Goomy.

"I don't know," Espurr replied. She eyed the ground. Even though she hadn't eaten in over half a day, she suddenly felt a lot less hungry thinking about it. She thought briefly: was it worth telling them about Hydreigon? Were the two dreams connected?

"Hey, wanna see something cool?" said Tricky. Then she practically inhaled the peach, chewed with her mouth open, and spat the charred, smoking pit back onto the plate before belching loudly. She looked very proud of herself.

~\({O})/~​

"Alright, troublemakers! Finish getting ready! Let's go!"

Vice Principal Watchog rang a bell on a stick in the middle of the inn room. No-mon paid attention to it, too preoccupied with their own packing. Audino and Farfetch'd were busy making sure everything inside the bags they'd brought along was there, while Watchog's was fully packed and practically half his size, sagging at the straps around his shoulders. He brushed aside his green cloak, lugging the straps over his shoulder.

Espurr was taking the time to spruce herself up and make her fur look extra nice, while Tricky was furtively dangling her pretty white bow out the window by a paw, seemingly debating if she could burn it and hide the remains. In the corner of the room, Deerling was telling Goomy not to veer too far away from her. Goomy didn't look happy about that, but he didn't have the guts to stand up to Deerling and her friends. Shelmet was looking over Pancham, who was clutching his stomach with a queasy look on his face.

"I feel sick…" he moaned, looking up from his spot on the straw beds.

Audino, who had left the bags to Farfetch'd, was looking over him.

"You ate too much?" she asked, inspecting him.

"Blugh… think so…" Pancham nodded.

Watchog stomped over, his bag clanging noisily after him.

"Well, you can't go on the trip if you're gonna be like that," he said harshly, folding his arms. "How will you keep up?"

Audino gave him the 'lay off' look.

"Why don't you just rest for now," she told Pancham. "We'll see how you're doing after the trip, okay?"

Pancham, lying flat on the straw bed, just nodded groggily.

"He's faking, isn't he?" whispered Tricky suspiciously, padding over to Espurr. The smell of singed fabric wafted over with her.

"Definitely," said Espurr, her eyes narrowed as she watched. She looked at Tricky, clutching the strap of her bag. "I barely saw him eat anything at breakfast. Just one of Nuzleaf’s treats."

"Who's going to stay behind with him?" asked Farfetch'd.

Audino looked like she was about to offer, but Nuzleaf stood up first.

'Ah'll do it," he said.

Audino sent him a questioning look.

"Well, I'm the nu—"

"You should be with the group," Nuzleaf said. "Jus' in case somemon gets hurt. Better to have an experienced nurse where one's needed, right? If this gets worse, we'll just go ta the nearest doctor."

Audino couldn't argue with that. She nodded, sitting back down on the other straw bed.

"I'll bet he ate too much on purpose just so he wouldn't have to go," Deerling remarked to Blitzle, Ponyta, and Goomy in a hush as they all walked out the lobby door. Goomy looked pleadingly at Espurr and Tricky as they left, but he was shoved outside with the three of them.

Ate too much… as the rest of the teachers were leaving, suddenly all the pieces clicked in Espurr's head.

"Of course!" she said brightly, hushed.

"What?" asked Tricky, tilting her head.

"Ampharos came along too, didn't he?" whispered Espurr as they rushed along, hanging behind the other teachers and out of earshot. "This field trip is the perfect time to slip away unsupervised and meet up with him. No wonder he wanted to be left behind. Why didn't we see it sooner?"

"Well…" Tricky trailed off. "It'll be fine, won't it? Nuzleaf's watching him and all…"

"If Nuzleaf can catch him," Espurr said.

But then, Nuzleaf had an uncanny way of catching everything. A few weeks ago, Pancham and Shelmet decided to purchase a stick of pyrogum, which exploded into fireworks once blown and popped, in order to disrupt class. Nuzleaf waved a single finger, and the half-chewed gum flew out of Pancham's mouth and exploded right over his desk. Pancham's fur didn't stick down for the rest of the day.

Even so… it just didn't feel right in Espurr's gut. If Pancham was faking sick to stay behind… what were the two of them planning?

~\({O})/~​

"As Vice Principal and dungeon class teacher, I'm going to be the field supervisor for this trip," Watchog proudly stated as they left the lobby, marching them down to the pier. "Which means no misbehaving! All of you better listen up when I give orders."

They departed from the hotel into the big, noisy city, and met up with the pokemon from the other schools to form one big, noisy crowd at the docks. It looked like there were lots of other schools going on the field trip too. The ramp to the shiny white ferry quickly became cramped and crowded, as the students and teachers of five different towns all flooded aboard one large ship.

"Don't they have snacks aboard?" whined Tricky as they tried to stay together in the crowd flooding onto the ship.

"Didn't you just eat twenty pancakes?" asked Goomy, somehow without a stutter. In all the chaos, he'd managed to sneak away from Deerling and her friends.

"And seven of those cone things?" added Espurr, keeping a tight hold of her dusty brown bag. "And you hate boats!"

"Yeah, but that's like, nothing!"

"Let's not worry about food right now," grunted Audino, trying not to lose her bag or floral hat as she shoved past a flock of kids and towards the rest of them. "We'll find some after the trip."

The ferry, full up with 'mon of every colour, shape, and variety, departed from Crossings Harbour and sailed north of the city, out of the sun and into the cover of craggy swamp trees. As the light was enveloped by the shade of the dense, tangled canopy, Espurr leaned over the boat's railing and studied the water. The vast river they were drifting along seemed to turn from dark blue to a muddy green, then slowly became a lovely warm lavender, illuminated from below and casting light onto the side of the ship and her face. The glow caught the attention of most of the 'mon on the dock, and soon everymon was looking over the railing and chattering to each other excitedly.

"What's in the water?" Espurr asked to one of the nearby crew members, a ghostly, greenish wyrm-looking 'mon whose nametag read 'Dragapult'.

"We call it Night Light Cove," said the 'mon disinterestedly. Espurr could read his unenthusiasm, dancing around him a deep violet-indigo. He must hate it here. "It's always been like that."

"How does it work?" asked Espurr curiously. "Does anymon know why?"

"Well, somemon knows why," shrugged the 'mon. "Just not me."

Muffled groaning caught her ear. Espurr turned to see Tricky curled up on the dock, stuffing her snout into one of the cabin pillows, which she'd dragged out onto the deck. Goomy was patting her back.

"Lost your appetite?" asked Espurr, flopping down next to them, the bag following. "You don't look so good…"

"Shouldn't have eaten all those pancakes…" Tricky groaned, her ears and tail flat on the ground.

"Now if you all direct your eyes right above," sang a shrill voice that Espurr recognised as another one of the boat's employees, a large, red-and-grey bird whose nametag read "Talonflame Lightwing". The voice caught the attention of many of the children, who were busy staring into the dazzling glow of the waters. "you'll see the true beauty of Night Light Cove. Look!"

They all looked above, where the once dark canopy was suddenly alight with thousands and thousands of tiny lights. Espurr recognised them immediately – fireflies!

The rest of the students were in awe. Espurr heard "oohs' and 'aahs' go up all around her. One of them alighted on her paw, buzzing and blinking its tail.

But just as quickly as they were here, the fireflies suddenly flew away, leaving in waves like the ship had run into an invisible wall the bugs couldn't pass. They left everymon in darkness – even the water wasn't glowing as much here anymore. Espurr wondered why…

"Look…" said Tricky, who had shaken off her queasiness, jumping in place and nudging Espurr with her tail in excitement.

Then Espurr smelled it. The faintest hint of a rancid stench dancing around the tip of her nose – that rotting scent on the breeze. It reminded her of her dream. She only had to look ahead to see what Tricky was so excited over. And it struck fear into her heart.

Ahead of the ship, where the glow of the lake faded away into darkness and the trees were overgrown and mottled with decay, lay the entrance to a massive grove of tangled swamp oaks. Bad energy, the scent of decaying flesh, flowed out from it like a waterfall, overwhelming Espurr's senses. She clutched her nose and groaned, trying to ward away the horrible smell.

As the ship got closer, Watchog gathered all the students and teachers together in one group.

"What can you tell me about this passage?" he asked them.

"It's… shimmering?" Deerling asked, tilting her head.

"Exactly," said Watchog. "You identify a dungeon by seeing if your surroundings shimmer. If they do, it's a dungeon."

"What about the smell?" Espurr asked, raising one paw. She was still clutching her nose with the other one.

"What smell," said Watchog.

"The smell from the… dungeon," Espurr said, her tail lowering in confused embarrassment. It was so strong! Why wasn't everymon else holding their noses too?

"What are you talking about?" grouched Watchog crabbily. "I don't smell anything."

Espurr looked around at the others, but no-mon, not even Tricky, seemed to notice. Some of them were giving her strange looks. Was she going mad?

"This dungeon is called Night Light Cove," said Watchog. "It's class A, which means it's one of the weakest. We shouldn't see anything we can't deal with in here. Now everymon hold paws! The ship is protected, but it's important we enter dungeons while we're all touching each other."

Everymon put their paws on each other, as the boat sailed closer, closer, until Espurr realised – they were going in! The bow of the ship passed through the entrance, disturbing a shimmering wall that came closer and closer to them. Espurr braced herself and shut her eyes, feeling the whoosh as her ears popped and a breeze fluttered over her, and then the air changed and everything felt musty and damp.

She opened her eyes again, noticing her paw on Tricky's front leg had turned into almost hugging her for comfort.

The rumble of the ferry's engines came to a stop as the sleek white ship docked at the beginnings of a marshy bay. The wooden boarding plank rolled out and hit the ground with a muddy splash.

Tricky hopped down onto the plank with Goomy and Espurr, who was clutching the straps of her bag and holding it close for comfort. The environment of the dungeon was dark and overbearing, looming over her like they'd just entered a lion's den.

Once they'd all converged into a messy crowd and hit the mud surrounding the shallow, swampy harbour, the sounds of teachers calling for their students rang up around the clearing.

"Riverton, here!"

"Balton!"

"Lorrylight students over here, please!"

"Alright, Serenity Village with me!" The harsh, familiar barking of Watchog flew over the crowd, Espurr's ears honing in on the direction instantly.

"Listen up, please!"

All heads turned to look at the large talonflame from before, along with the rest of the boat employees who were organising the field trip. Joining them were some 'mon from Crossings, which Espurr could see by the white scarves they were wearing. She spotted… Krookodile! He was standing near the rest, his thin, stubby arms folded. They were here to inspect the school's performance, weren't they.

“The main leg of the field trip begins now,” said the talonflame loudly. “Five flags have been planted within the dungeon at secret, separate locations, one for each school. Your mission is to find one flag, and make it back to the dungeon’s entrance, where the ship will be waiting. Is all that understood?”

There were several murmurs, nods, and shouts of confirmation from all around the clearing.

"Then with that out of the way, please choose any of the pathways you see before you." The talonflame spread her wing out, gesturing to several different branching corridors that led deeper into the dungeon. As the groups of other schools began to choose theirs, Watchog led them along to the nearest one.

Espurr looked around at the dark, swampy environment of the dungeon, and felt her fur bristle. But it was like Tricky said, wasn't it? Once you entered a dungeon, there was only one way to go: forward. So she took a deep breath, clutched the strap of her bag, and tried to feel brave as she marched onwards with the rest.

The sky seemed to fade to abstract colours of darkness as they ventured further into the dungeon, replaced by a scraggly roof of vines and tree roots. The light faded away, only a dim lavender glow throughout the puddles and streams illuminating its steep, gloomy caverns. Tricky splashed through a few, hopping around like she was right at home. After checking to make sure everymon was there, Watchog pulled a luminous orb out of his backpack. It shone brightly, lighting up their surroundings like a torch. He closed his bag and began to march forward again, beckoning the rest of them along.

The dungeon twisted and turned, long tunnels branching out into splinters and curves and dead ends. The entire maze was as silent as an undisturbed creek, a devourer of noise that played off Espurr's ears in an uncomfortable way. Did anymon even live in these things? How could a place be so quiet, so dead?

In the shadows and corners, something felt off. The life in the air was being sucked into the cracks in the floor. The walls breathed, smothering everything inside in rotting dampness. It was like there was something Espurr couldn't see watching her from in between the roots and vines.

It was halfway through the third floor that the ground suddenly rumbled. Strong wind blew through the corridor, bringing with it a powerful gust that nearly knocked them all off their feet. The familiar stench, like something had died, pervaded the air. Holding her nose, Espurr looked back at where the wind was going. But as the ground continued to tremble, suddenly realised she needed to look down.

Whispers spread throughout their group – "What's going on?" "Is this part of the trip?" – but the teachers, still catching their bearings, didn't seem to have any idea.

It was Tricky who broke the silence. Her ears perked up in realisation, and the rest of her quickly followed.

"The dungeon!" she called out. "It's rearranging itself!"

Espurr barely had time to ask "what's that mean?" before she was nearly obliterated by a swiftly moving wall.

"Everymon come closer!" Audino's shout was nearly drowned out by the sudden rumbling as several more walls and pathways began to move and collide with each other. Espurr stumbled closer to Tricky, trying to keep her balance as the roots, streams, and walls moved. But a glimpse of red caught her eye – in between the shifting walls and roots lay… the flag!

Espurr's eyes widened. She gasped. The flag!

"Look," she pointed out to Tricky, who saw the same thing. Espurr cast a glance back towards the rest of the group, which was trying to keep itself together. They beckoned for her. But they were this close… they couldn't let an opportunity like that slip out of their paws, could they?

One more look between the group. Then at the flag. Espurr made her choice. Even if they were separated, there couldn't be too many floors after this. She'd find the way out.

"I'm going to get it," she said to Tricky, then dashed forward.

"Wait for me!" Tricky hopped after her as the two of them dodged a wall.

"G-gguys!" Goomy's terrified shout echoed behind them, followed by something Audino said that was lost to the wind.

Espurr ran forward, hopping over roots and evading walls that swung in from out of nowhere. She let her fear and apprehensions go, choosing to focus on the moment. The wind in her face. Tricky next to her. The chaotic pathway to the flag that was getting closer and closer. They were going to make it! Something else shoved in to replace it. It was… excitement? Thrill? The feeling of being alive. Espurr hadn't felt it in so long. And she was in love.

All of the sudden, something lurched out of the darkness. Espurr only saw it for a split second before she reacted herself: a face with gleaming green eyes, overshadowed by a large hatlike adornment on its head the size of a cone. She saw the blinking lights shine: red, yellow, green. Her body reacted before her mind, and she yelled for Tricky to notice and jumped away immediately. And just in time. The conehead made a snatch at her, her feet barely escaping the grip of its arms before she hit the ground several feet away.

Espurr tumbled to the ground – dodged a wall - and immediately tried her best to get to her feet, but the ground was unsteady and hindered her efforts to stand up. The conehead's eyes glowed, and suddenly she could feel herself being tugged back in the conehead's direction. She had to fix this herself! Espurr did as Nuzleaf instructed. Her vision welled up with red anger. It spun into her paws and erupted out, blasting the conehead back. It let out something between an unholy hiss and screech as it was blasted in the gut and thrown back several corridors. The walls closed up behind it.

A sudden clash in the dungeon floor as the walls slammed together launched Espurr forward. She curled up into a ball and tumbled down the hall, down, down down—

Until she landed with a grunt next to the flag. Tricky, who had gone back for her, suddenly bounded up. She grabbed the flag out of its spot in the floor with her mouth and started to bound back.

"Come on!" she yelled to Espurr through the flag stick. "Let's get back!"

Espurr nodded sharply and pulled herself off the ground.

The dungeon was settling down around them, walls finally clicking into place. The noise and rumbling disappeared, giving way to an uneasy quiet. Espurr and Tricky couldn't believe their luck – as the rest of the corridors settled down, they saw their group coming around the corridor. They ran forward to meet them.

"What were you two thinking?" asked Audino angrily, glaring down at them.

"We got the flag!" crowed Tricky as they trotted back up. She presented it proudly.

Audino looked like she wanted to tear them a new one. But instead she just sighed, crouched down, and brushed them off. "Next time something like that happens, you stay with us! You two got very lucky."

"That was awesome," bragged Tricky quietly in the back to the rest of the class as they continued. She was even more hyper than normal. Deerling looked positively stricken. Espurr realised why, and blanched.

She tried to look ashamed, but she couldn't shake the giddiness. It had felt… fun to break the rules like that. And it worked out – they had the flag, and she'd fought off a conehead!

As they reached the exit of the dungeon, dim light shining on their faces, Espurr felt her heart rise just a tiny bit. A smile started to break her face. She hadn't felt that good in so long. Maybe she could fit in here.

~\({O})/~​

They all climbed onto the boat in higher spirits than when they'd boarded it earlier that day. In all the chaos of the dungeon resetting, it was hard for the judges and instructors to decide just who had come out first. But eventually two schools emerged: Crossings and Serenity Village. Serenity Village had been the first by one saving grace – Espurr and Tricky had been carrying the flag when they came out. Crossings school came second, emerging just seconds later.

They departed back into Crossings soon after. The sun was already setting, despite that it felt like they'd only spent an hour in there. Lights were already on all around the town, shining brighter together than they ever had in Serenity Village. It wasn't until they got back to the inn that trouble reared its ugly head once again.

There was a gathering near the inn doors, where a whole bunch of pokemon were blocking the way forward. Watchog, who looked especially haggard and grumpy, sighed.

"Alright, what now?" he questioned crabbily, marching forward with purpose. "If somemon hasn't died, I'll—"

But he was stopped short when they got close enough to see what had happened. In the middle of the square, surrounded by townsmon who were either whispering to each other or pointing what looked like strange, blue, orb-like things at it, was a nearly perfect stone statue of a 'mon. A Seviper, posed like they were fleeing from something in terror.

"I seen them!" bleated a loud and frenetic flaafy repeatedly to anymon who would listen. "Two o' them! Big and brown, with cones on their heads!"

The description captured the attention of Espurr, Tricky, and Goomy immediately. They shared a worried look. and her friends immediately. The Coneheads…

"And I seen him, too!" continued the flaaffy, loud enough somemon on the other side of town could hear them clearly. "Some ‘mon with a green cloak!"

And that sealed the deal. She was sure of it. Ampharos…

Espurr could tell Audino looked scared silly. And she could hazard a pretty good guess as to why.

"That 'mon…" Audino breathed under her breath, looking at the Seviper.

Espurr understood why immediately: it was her guardian.

~\({O})/~​

Music of the Week!

The Goblet of Fire - Patrick Doyle

 

[SparklingEspeon]

CHAPTER THIRTEEN: I DESTROY 17 SEATS AND A PERFECTLY FINE BLACKBOARD

~\({O})/~​

. . .. . . The field trip, though it should have lasted one more day, was quickly cut short. The Crossings Police gathered everymon together in the lobby and asked them some questions. They were all basic – where were you all day, how did you first see the crime, had anymon seen the suspects in the last 24 hours?

They showed a paw-drawn picture of an Ampharos in a bulky green cloak, collected from eyewitness testimony. No-mon had. Ampharos hadn't been seen since arriving with them on the ferry yesterday. Once the investigation was done, the statue was rolled to the station for safekeeping, and all of them were on the first ferry home the following day.

Through all of it, Espurr stayed quiet. Her head was a frenzied blur, taken up with the shocked look on Nurse Audino and the teachers' faces, and the haze of purple fear stoked with excitement that hung over the room. She huddled up on the ferry pillows next to Tricky and Goomy, who had a corner all to themselves. Her thoughts were taken up with fear and guilt: were the Coneheads responsible? They came looking for her. If she hadn't convinced herself it would be fine, that she could fit in somewhere for once, maybe there wouldn't have been—

Deep breath. It was all a fantasy anyway. Espurr had always known she couldn’t stay. This was just a reminder.

They huddled together for warmth in the cold morning air, tired, stressed, and exhausted. Tricky yawned, her ears drooping and head lazily bobbing, close to sleep. Espurr shut her eyes, listening to the sound of Goomy's soft snores and slowly slumping down against the warmth of Tricky's tail. Snuggling into it, she felt consciousness slip away, all thoughts of bad dreams forgotten.

~\({O})/~​

After the crime, Serenity Village tightened security. Curfews were lowered – children were to be back home by dark, and venturing outside the city limits without supervision was strictly forbidden. Ampharos had, against all common sense, returned to his room in the Café Connection and could be seen around town, much to Espurr's displeasure. She was sure he was a killer! If only they could find some proof…

The police showed up before long. They were a couple of 'mon from Crossings. The one in charge looked like a flying, oval disc with two magnets spinning on either side. He called himself 'Officer Magnazone'.

"Everymon carry on," he said in a tinny, robotic voice, addressing the village square. We're just here to keep an eye on things in the surrounding towns. We'll be patrolling the vicinity and searching for anything that looks suspicious."

He looked over the gathering of villagers, a bored expression on his face.

"Rest assured," he said tiredly, magnets spinning. "We'll be at the bottom of this before long."

Espurr’s sentiments were shared by the town, but proof was harder and harder to come by these days. It became almost impossible to survey Ampharos when he was off doing things during their school hours, and their free time grew ever shorter with each day. Even Pancham wasn't sneaking off as frequently as he used to, though Espurr counted that as more of a blessing than anything. At least it levelled the playing field.

With another sudden kidnapping or murder in the same small spot, the rumours began to spread with much more speed than before.

"I always knew he was up to no good," grumbled Hippoppotas, who was very vain and cared more about her flowers and whatever gossip there was each afternoon than anything else. "Knew from the moment he stepped in here, and still do. He'll do it again before it's all said and done, and no mistake. Village should show him the door while we still have the chance!"

But Ampharos was either on a mission or phenomenally thick – any smart criminal would have skipped town by now. Which made Espurr wonder: if he wasn't leaving, then what was he planning instead? Who else was in danger?

Time was running short. She had to reach the bottom of this, and quick.

"Did you ask Mr. Nuzleaf about Pancham?" Espurr asked Tricky and Goomy at the nearest opportunity, when they all had a free moment at lunch.

"M-Mr Nuzleaf said h-he had to take a bathroom trip, and when he c-came back Pancham was gone," explained Goomy. "A-and the m-murder happened shortly after."

"And the doorman said he thought he saw somemon exit that room on his break," added Tricky, "so we know he's telling the truth."

"When did you talk to the doormon?" Espurr asked.

"Before anymon else got up," answered Tricky nonchalantly.

"B-but doesn't th-this just p-prove Pancham's i-in on it?" asked Goomy.

Espurr nodded. "He and Ampharos were both at the scene of the crime right before it happened. And since he snuck out to get there, he must have been doing something."

"Doing what?" Tricky cocked her head. "Didn't the coneheads do the killing?"

"That's what we need to find out," Espurr said. "They're still our best suspects. But…"

She trailed off. Was it too wild a theory to suggest?

"Maybe he was meeting Ampharos somewhere."

"What do you mean?"

"Remember in the dungeon, when it suddenly started rearranging itself?" Espurr asked.

"Yeah," nodded Tricky.

"I think somemon caused it on purpose," Espurr said.

"What do you mean?" asked the other two.

"There was a conehead in there," answered Espurr breathlessly. "It tried to snatch me when the dungeon shifted. And when we left…"

"Oh! Yeah…" Tricky suddenly said. "And the dungeon isn't supposed to rearrange itself that early!"

"What if," Espurr began, "Ampharos followed us to the island and triggered the dungeon, then hopped back and had Pancham help him prepare for the murder? Then, if the Coneheads got me, it would have been an early win. But if he didn't, he'd kill the guardian anyway just to keep me in one place."

"It makes some sense…" said Tricky.

"B-but wouldn't it be easier to pick you o-off once you weren't in a group?" Goomy asked. "Why d-didn't the killer just wait?"

Espurr didn't have an answer for that.

"I don't know," she said. "Maybe they thought they could take advantage of the dungeon."

"And how did Ampharos know who the guardian was?" asked Tricky. "Unless he was eavesdropping…"

No-mon had any answers for that either.

~\({O})/~​

A few mornings later, Espurr woke up bright and early. It was damp and rainy, and morning fog rolled over the school grounds and the town below. Early mornings were one of Espurr's favourite times, but today the dark and loneliness just seemed overbearing. She needed to be out. Somewhere. Or with somemon. So she quickly grabbed her bag, fixed her messy head-fluff and bow until it looked half-decent, and scurried out into the misty morning.

It didn't take long to find where Tricky lived. The house sat on its own atop a small hill, with a roof styled like a large blue shell and scribbled drawings doodled on the walls. Most of them were faded with age. A wooden plank taped to the mailbox read in scrawled claw-writing 'Residence of Carracosta Blueshell'.

Espurr trudged through the grass and rolling mist up to the doorstep, then stopped, her paw just inches away from the door. Suddenly, the massive piece of wood seemed to loom over her. It was three times her height.

Was this too early? Would she be bothering anymon? Did she have the right house after all? She guessed Tricky didn't have friends over very often, judging by the state of the garden. Summoning her courage, she took a deep breath and knocked on the door.

There was a grunt inside, followed by the sound of something large hitting the floor and shuffling over. The ominous sounds made Espurr clutch the strap of her bag and take a step back.

A couple of seconds later, the door swung open and the bulky form of a large blue turtle whom Espurr took to be Carracosta stood in the doorway. His eyes were weary. From the way he drooped, he looked like exhaustion had taken pokemon form.

"Tricky's friend?" he grunted out after a bit. He sounded just as tired as he looked, a haggard, weathered croak emerging from his beak.

Espurr quickly nodded, straightening her fur out from the dampness of the fog. "Espurr, Mr… ?"

"Carracosta." The large blue turtle took a second to messily clear his throat. "Tricky's not up yet. I wake her at the crack of dawn, but she sleeps until the last minute anyway. Maybe you'll have better luck."

"Epferr!"

The voice came from the hallway. Carracosta turned around, looking back to see Tricky behind him. She stood in the parlour with a wagging tail, her fur all tousled and messy. Half a stack of pancakes flopped out of her mouth, the other half well on its way down her throat.

Carracosta let out a large, exasperated sigh.

"What. Did we say. About morning pancakes." He rumbled.

"Oh, phorry Pophs," said Tricky sheepishly. She swallowed the remaining pancakes in a single, large gulp, then gave a nervous grin. "One at a time…"

She quickly bounded towards the door, meaning to hop out onto the porch. "Alright see you later—"

Slam. Carracosta's powerful fin blocked the door faster than what seemed possible for such an elderly turtle, making Espurr gasp and jump back a bit in fright.

Tricky stopped short, skidding across the floor. It didn't even faze her. She looked up at Carracosta.

"You have chores to do," rumbled Carracosta with an intense turtle glare. "Last night's chores. Go do them."

"Uhhhh, can I do them later?" Tricky's grin seemed to grow in proportion with the amount of trouble she was in. Her ears were pinned back, and her tail swished back and forth quickly. She stole desperate glances at Espurr. "School doesn't start for another three hours…"

"GO DO THEM!" boomed Carracosta loudly. His other large flipper pointed briskly towards the kitchen.

"Yeek!" Tricky let out a squeak, jumping in the air and scurrying back towards the kitchen. She disappeared around the corner in a bright yellow flash.

Carracosta sighed once she was gone. He massaged his brow, then glanced at Espurr. "Anything else?" he grunted. 'See what I have to deal with?' his eyes read.

"Could I help out?" asked Espurr, trying to look extra-nice. It felt like putting on an act.

For a second, she expected a resounding 'no' – Carracosta seemed the strict, ornery sort. But the large, blue turtle just grunted and shrugged. He stood aside, showing her the hallway. He was a 'mon of few words.

~\({O})/~​

Tricky's house looked like a painting gone wrong. Neat portraits, furniture, and dark blue rugs the colour of Carracosta himself clashed with what Espurr assumed were Tricky's things. Books, scarves, wool beanies, and twigs lined the floor, stacked haphazardly on the shelves and flopped over stools and the edges of the rug. A large, blue armchair was in a corner of the room. Carracosta tromped in and fell backwards onto it, letting out a large sigh as he relaxed and got comfortable. He picked up a book that was almost as large as Espurr, opening it and slowly leafing through the massive pages. It looked more ancient than him.

Tricky was a counter away in the kitchen, cleaning dishes. There were a lot of dishes. She licked the remaining food off a few until an angry grunt from Carracosta stopped her in her tracks. Then it was straight in the sink, plus little spurts of fire from her mouth here and there to incinerate the remaining morsels. She puffed smoke out of her nostrils and formed the clouds into moustaches.

"Why'd you come?" she asked curiously.

"Didn't want to spend all morning at the school," said Espurr awkwardly, kicking her legs idly off the side of the counter. Espurr was sitting by the sink, helping put the finished dishes away in a bin beside her. There were a lot of spoons, so many spoons that Espurr could not possibly fathom what anymon would want this amount of spoons for. She was afraid to ask. She dumped almost a hundred of them into a large blue bin marked "SPOONS".

"I'm not sure how to ask…"

"Shoot." Tricky grabbed a piece of what turned out to be broccoli with her tongue, then grimaced and spat it into the sink.

"Why have you got so many spoons?"

"Oh, one time Pancham made fun of me," Tricky began, "so I used all my savings and got, like a ton of spoons from Kecleon's, and then I covered his room in spoons while he wasn't looking!"

She thrust her soapy paws into the air in a grand gesture, splashing droplets of water everywhere. Espurr edged away, shrinking from the water.

"He's still mailing them back to me," Tricky added cheerfully for posterity.

"Do you… do things like that often?"

"Only to 'mon who annoy me."

After the dishes were done, Tricky took Espurr to her bedroom, which was a small, wooden room on the right at the end of the hallway, locked behind a thin wooden door.

"And this is my room!" she sang, trotting in with her tail held high.

Espurr's tail went flat with terror. The room triggered her fight-or-flight instinct. She could barely see the floor over all the junk that was lying around! From dusty issues of 'Dungeoneering Daily' to old sticks and a patchwork blanket, the room may as well have been spare storage. Only a small, badly-kept bed in the far corner of the room was free of clutter. A single window, half-covered by faded red drapes, let sparing light into the room.

"What?" Tricky looked back, bewildered. The fennekin was expertly stepping around all the junk.

"You don't… sleep in here, right?" Espurr stared down at all the mess, wide-eyed.

Tricky looked down at all the junk.

"Oh. I'll clean it someday. Besides, the thing I really wanna show you is hidden on purpose!"

Espurr tried her best to sidestep the junk all the way to Tricky's bed. It was an actual bed, not just a mass of straw. Carracosta must have been generous. Tricky dived head-first underneath, rummaging around in all the further mess under there.

"Have you hidden things by accident?" Espurr started, carefully keeping herself on the bedcover. Coming from Tricky, that seemed worryingly plausible.

"Do you really wanna know the answer to that? Or do you wanna see my secret?"

Espurr waited a bit, then decided to curiously peek under the bed as Tricky dug. A yellow paw slapped her away amongst the digging.

"No spoilers!" a muffled Tricky yelled from under the bed. A few dusty pictures clattered out from all Tricky's digging, locked in small, wooden frames. They looked positively ancient, grainy and fuzzy, the colours faded and grey. Two pokemon were smiling in them and waving at the camera, one tall, yellow, and foxlike with a dark red robe of fur, and the other wispy, purple, and ghostlike with a large hat. A large egg sat in between them, and both of them had gold badges with wings pinned to their chests.

Espurr picked one of the picture frames up, studying the picture inside.

"Who are these?" she asked curiously, studying the 'mon in the picture. Tricky peeked her head out from under the bed.

Wait, you found them!" she gasped, coming out from under the bed. She dragged a box with her, pulling it out with her teeth and sitting on the bed.

"That's my mom and dad," she said breathlessly, jumping up on the bed. "I never met them, but they were explorers before they died."

"What happened to them?" Espurr looked at Tricky curiously.

Tricky's ears fell. Espurr felt maybe that wasn't the best question to ask.

"Pops never said," she muttered. "All he tells me is he found me on the road one day, wrapped in these."

She pushed the wooden box open, shuffling back and letting Espurr see what was inside. There were two scarves laid neatly atop one another. They were sky blue and looked like bandannas, the fabric glistening when it reached the light. It was impossible to tell whether they were sky blue or a silvery turquoise. They almost glowed.

"They're lovely," said Espurr.

"I know, right?" Tricky exclaimed. "I haven't taken them out in years. They're probably like, super dusty."

"I don't like dust."

Wham. Tricky closed the box with her front paws.

"No more dust," she said cheerfully.

The fennekin sat back and slumped against the wall.

"I wanted to become an explorer because of them," she said, letting her ears fall again. "They travelled everywhere and took jobs all over the place. Their last job was for the Expedition Society – look! The badges are even here!"

She rummaged in the box further, producing two tarnished, dull golden pins with tiny golden wings and a purple button in the centre. She gave one to Espurr, who held it delicately in her paws.

"What happened after that?" asked Espurr, looking over at Tricky.

"Then they disappeared," Tricky mumbled. "No-mon ever said why." Her tail curled around her. "I thought maybe the Expedition Society would know. But they're all the way up in Lively Town and they don't answer my mail. So that's why I'm going to join them one day!"

Espurr had never thought about why Tricky wanted to mess around in mystery dungeons so badly. But when it was painted like that… she stared hard at the old, weathered badge.

"Tricky, I—"

"Huh?" Tricky looked over at Espurr.

"I never apologised for the things I said to you," Espurr said. "That first week. I was mean. I... shouldn't have been."

"Nah. I get it." Tricky curled up a bit. "I'm annoying," she mumbled. "At least you talked to me. Everymon else just... doesn't."

Hues of blue tinged Espurr's vision. She noticed they were coming from Tricky.

"How come?" Espurr asked.

"It's... nevermind." Tricky's ears pinned back a bit. It looked like she wanted to talk about anything else. "But we're friends now, aren't we? So we're cool!" She plastered a large smile on her face.

"Yeah," said Espurr, matching it with her own the best she could. "Suppose we are."

~\({O})/~​

That day, Espurr learned that Nuzleaf would be absent for a few days, and Watchog was filling in for his class. The classroom went quiet as Watchog lumbered up, then took his spot at the teacher's desk.

"May I have your attention, please," Watchog muttered out, looming over the students from the teacher's desk. "I'm sure I don't need to remind everymon of what happens if I catch you using the skills taught in this classroom outside of it."

"Detention for life," the class wearily recited back in unison. "We know."

"Good." Watchog picked up one of Farfetch'd's leeks and whacked the blackboard unceremoniously like a gong.

"Self-defence," he began, monotone, before tossing the leek to the side. "We already know that pokemon can draw on their inner energy and channel it into external energy. What kind you are affects what type of power you can use: A fire-type will draw from fire, a water-type will draw from water, etcetera."

In the back of the classroom, Shelmet snored loudly in his seat, having snuck in late and dozed off at some point in the class.

"Everymon awake in the classroom!" Watchog barked at him. Shelmet snapped awake, quickly sitting straight up in his seat.

"Now what happens when your body uses too much energy?" Watchog asked loudly.

"You faint," most of the students replied back tiredly.

"Fainting." Watchog whacked the blackboard again with another leek. "You can faint from hunger, fatigue, or by getting hit too much. In dungeons, fainting can mean the difference between life and death."

Watchog cast his intense gaze towards Tricky. "And that is why none of you should be playing around in mystery dungeons," he finished tiredly. At Tricky's determined smile of 'Never!', Watchog changed gears, chucking the leek to the ground like it was an apple core.

"While going into an actual mystery dungeon for this lesson is a waste of time," Watchog went on, "the Principal has given me express permission to use my Vice Principal Powers—" Tricky failed to suppress a loud snort of laughter "—to turn this classroom into a Fully Safety Regulated Mystery Dungeon! Ping-Shapow-Whazam!"

Watchog snapped and clapped his paws together repeatedly, the sounds coming from his mouth devolving into indistinguishable sputtering noises as he continued. It continued for a full half-minute, until eventually a final sound effect tapered off into a wheeze made him cough from loss of breath.

"We're still in the classroom," Tricky pointed out impishly after Watchog had finished.

"Yeah. Lame." Pancham traded looks with a still-sleepy Shelmet.

"Use your imagination," Watchog grumbled, leaning a paw on the desk as he caught his breath.

He took his position behind the desk again, staring at the students in their seats.

"Pair up! All of you!" Watchog clapped his paws together. "We're going to be sparring with each other today."

There was zero enthusiasm from any side of the classroom. Pancham, from the back of the class, lazily stuck a paw up.

"No, you can't use weapons," Watchog said.

The paw went down.

"I need a couple of volunteers…" he began, his eyes gliding to two of the seats at the front of the class. "Espurr, Tricky!" he snapped. "How about you two?"

"Sure!" Tricky got up from her seat, tapping Espurr on the shoulder with her tail as she passed.

Watchog positioned them on opposite sides in front of the teacher's desk, making them back up until they were standing against opposing sides of the classroom. He made the other students stand against the wall, so they'd be out of the way in case a stray attack made its way to the seats.

"On my mark!" he began, raising his stout arm into the air. "I want you both to hit each other with a strong, healthy attack." Espurr moved her eyes from Watchog to Tricky, who was busy conjuring an ember in her chest. The fennekin opened her mouth, and Espurr saw the flickering flame that burned in the back of her throat.

"Entire books have been written on the art of harnessing your energy," Watchog declared for the class. "But my opinion? The best way of learning is by doing. Start!"

Watchog's arm came flying down, and in an instant, Tricky planted her paws into the ground and shot a blast of flame straight at Espurr. At a loss for ideas, Espurr did the only feasible thing she could think of in the moment – she ducked. The small spark of flame went straight over her head and flickered away in the distance as it flew off.

Espurr slowly picked herself up from the ground, ignoring the stinging where she'd hit the dirt. Her heart pounded in her chest, small red and green splotches fading away with every beat.

Watchog sputtered in annoyance. "Wh— what was that?" he questioned annoyedly. "Again!"

Espurr and Tricky took their positions once more. Watchog stood against the teacher's desk, raising his arm a second time.

"On my mark!"

It was at that point that Espurr realised she had absolutely no idea what she was doing.

"Ready?" Watchog surveyed the both of them. Tricky nodded readily, practically bouncing in place. Espurr resumed her fighting position. Watchog had said that all pokemon could harness energy, right? Well, she was a pokemon. She had to be able to do something.

"Start!"

Once more, Tricky launched an ember straight at Espurr. And this time, it didn't miss. Espurr felt like she'd been punched in the stomach, and the punch burned. She stumbled a few feet back, falling against the edge of the blackboard tree.

"And that is how to properly use a move!" Watchog crowed, clapping his paws together in applause. Espurr slowly picked herself up from the tree, biting back the dull ache from her side.

"Alright, next pair over here!" Watchog pointed to the ground in front of the teacher's desk. "You two. Up against the wall with everymon else!"

Pancham and Shelmet rudely pushed Deerling, Blitzle, and Ponyta aside as Espurr and Tricky took their spots with the others against the steps to the clinic.

"No misbehaviour, either of you." Watchog raised his arm again, eyeing both of them closely. "Three… Two… One…"

"Start!"

The next time they sparred didn't go any better. Tricky fired another ember from her mouth, which Espurr narrowly avoided. Watchog gazed down at her disapprovingly, arms folded, as she picked herself up from the ground.

"Again!"

Espurr was hit in the face.

"Again!"

Espurr stumbled against the desks.

"Again!"

Espurr charged forward with a stick in her paws—

"That's cheating!"

"My throat hurts," Tricky complained. "Can we do somemon else for a while?"

"Switch!"

"Wow," Pancham said, as a roughed-up Espurr and Tricky took their places against at the end of the line. "You guys are getting battered. I'd hate to see you have to go up against me."

Espurr wasn't about to be humiliated in front of Pancham. She stared down at her paws in frustration, the purple encroaching on her vision and building up in the back of her head. Why wasn't she able to do anything? She was the only one who couldn't! Why couldn't it just work like it did back in the dungeon?

If Nuzleaf was here, he’d know what to do. But instead, she had to figure it out. If she could just try again…

She looked up at the sounds of crashing coming from the front of the classroom, where an obviously faking Deerling had just let Goomy tackle her to the ground.

"Mr. Watchog?" Espurr raised her paw. Watchog looked like he wanted to correct a certain honorific, but bit it back. "Yes?" he asked.

"I'd like to try again."

Watchog thought it over. Then he shrugged and pointed to the space in front of the teacher's desk. Tricky let out a wordless groan, slumping her head, ears, and tail in defeat. She began to trudge towards her spot in the classroom slowly.

"Not you." Watchog stuck out an arm stiffly, stopping Tricky in her tracks. "I promised Audino I'd leave you all reasonably unharmed, so up to the clinic you go. Now!"

Without another word, Tricky changed her course towards the school clinic, bounding up the stairs quickly.

"Any volunteers?" Watchog asked the rest of the class.

"I'll do it." Pancham's smooth voice rang out against the silence of the other students. Espurr watched him saunter up to the other side of the teacher's desk, taking a fighting position confidently. All the better. She'd enjoy this.

"One more time! On my mark!" Watchog raised his arm, glancing at both students. "Everymon ready?"

Espurr closed her eyes, blotting out the world. She focused on Pancham, trying to see if she could summon those feelings like Nuzleaf had instructed her. She focused on the rage, the anger, the way he left Goomy in the woods, the way he tried to trick them into going into the mines, how he was probably at least partially responsible for what happened in Crossings a few weeks ago. The power started to build in her as she concentrated. It felt wild, unstable, refusing to go into her paws even as she forced it there. Instead, it ping-ponged around inside her, making her strain as she tried to control it.

"Start!"

Pancham wasted no time charging towards her, his fists brimming with colourless energy. That was going to hurt if it hit her. But Espurr was determined not to let that happened. If she could just get a good grip—

Pancham's fist collided with her face, sending her flying back several feet. She hit the ground painfully, barely registering the sound of Watchog calling the match. Her face stung, but what stung even more was the realisation that she'd just let it happen, and there wasn't anything she could do about it. It just didn't work. All that rage, all that trying, and it didn't… the frustration in her finally reached a breaking point. Her ears began to tingle, accompanied by growing static. The wave of purple mounted in Espurr's head, and suddenly turned into something much more tangible—

There was a large 'boom!' and then everything hurt, and she couldn't open her eyes again for several minutes.

~\({O})/~​

"Holy mystery dungeon!" Tricky hollered with glee, leaning out the window of the School Clinic. "The classroom is wrecked!"

"So wrecked…" Shelmet said in between bites of food, "That school should be cancelled for the summer?"

"Nice try." Audino said, setting Espurr's lunch aside and taking a bite of an apple. In the corner, Watchog stared out the window and muttered quietly to himself in disbelief.

"Safety-regulated, my tail…" he babbled silently, sounding mad. "Piece of the blackboard nearly got me in the heart."

Principal Simipour, who looked like he was close to dozing off while standing, poured himself a wooden cup of mango tea and blew on it to cool it off.

"The classroom's destruction should do nothing to impede our regular school schedule," he said, yawning. He looked as sleepy as ever. "Exams will continue as usual."

That garnered collective grumbles from all the other students. Simipour took a sip of his tea indifferently.

"What about the inspection?" asked Audino. Simipour looked out the window, then sighed. He took a pondering sip of his tea.

"We have a week yet," he said. "We'll find a repairmon."

Espurr watched it all from one of the clinic's nests, still a passive observer. The ringing and fuzz faded away, and the roof of the clinic was only spinning a little now. Her head still pounded like she was being whacked between her eyes repeatedly with one of Farfetch'd's leeks, and she felt much wearier than before.

"Doing better now?" Farfetch'd looked down at her, his pointy beaked craned down towards her head.

Addled as she was, it took Espurr a few seconds to respond: "I think so."

"Atta girl." Farfetch'd lightly tapped Espurr on the shoulder with his leek, before moving off to another part of the clinic.

"Espurr!"

Espurr barely had time to glance in the direction of the voice before she was tackled by Tricky. Soon after, she was swarmed completely by the rest of the students.

"You totally destroyed the classroom!" Tricky exclaimed. "It was awesome."

"It was not awesome!" Deerling glared at Tricky angrily. "Somemon could have been seriously hurt!" She looked at Espurr. "Are you alright?"

"I think I swallowed a wood chip," Goomy complained.

"Maybe it'll stay in your belly forever and ever…" Shelmet hissed to Goomy evilly. A swift kick against his side from Deerling's hind leg made him retreat into his shell.

Pancham didn't say anything. He just folded his arms, and leaned back against the wall.

As the others filed out, Audino placed Espurr's lunch in front of her, a meagre assortment of berries, nuts, and seeds.

"Seeing as you're doing better," she began, "want to stay behind today and help me tidy up after lunch?"

"What about the classroom?" asked Espurr. "And the inspection?"

Audino looked off to the side.

"We'll figure something out," she said.

Espurr had the feeling it was still a large hit. She started picking things off the floor while Audino dusted. Misery was starting to cloud around her.

How was she supposed to protect everymon else when she was becoming a danger herself?

~\({O})/~​

Music of the Week!

The Stone/Norwegian Ridgeback - John Williams

 

[SparklingEspeon]

CHAPTER FOURTEEN: I HAVE TO GO

~\({O})/~​

. . .. . . The school clinic was dark. Espurr tossed and turned in her straw bed, trying to get to sleep. But no matter how she tried, she couldn't do anything but lay awake staring.

She turned in her bed and stared out the window, looking at the night beyond. As her eyes registered there weren't any drapes there, she squinted, then slowly raised herself from her bed. That was dark… too dark. Where were all the stars? The village lights? The outside looked darker than inside the clinic. That didn't make sense, it had to be…

It hit Espurr all at once. She was dreaming, wasn't she?

With that realisation, the walls of the school clinic silently glode outwards, separating from each other and melting into the darkness of the dreamscape. Espurr quickly hopped off her surroundings as they shook and started to melt away. She looked back, eyes wide, as her bed sizzled, collapsing into a pile of black goo. Her feet made soundless splashes as they hit a shallow pool of water.

Another dream. Espurr wasn't a stranger to these any longer. Her nose curled as she smelled a faint, damp rot, almost like a mystery dungeon.

"Hello?" she worked up the nerve to call out, looking around for anything that moved. She clutched for the straps of her bag, but they weren't there. There was no sign of that black thing anywhere. "Voice?"

A light lit up from behind her. Soft, pleasant wind rustled her fur. Espurr shielded her eyes and turned around, her tail bristling as she watched the silhouette of Voice descend from a sphere of light. They were the only lifelike things in the dead, damp expanse.

He landed in front of her with a silent splash, shuffling his wings. All three of his heads grinned uncannily.

"I must say, you've been doing rather well," he said.

"I… have?" Espurr asked, surprised.

"Of course," said the hydreigon. "You've stayed alive, and that's well enough. I can't tell you how many of your kind, well… perhaps that's best left for another time."

The smiles on his two puppet heads somehow got wider, grinning with sharp teeth. It made Espurr shudder. She didn't know why, but she was viscerally put off by him in that moment.

"Well," she started, regaining her composure quickly. "Dying wouldn't be exactly pleasant."

"No, it wouldn't," said Voice. He leaned in closer, his heavy breath ruffling Espurr's head fluff.

"I'm here to warn you," he said. "Something bad is about to happen. You are the only one who can prevent it."

"Prevent what?" asked Espurr.

"Prevent him," said Voice. "The one you call 'Ampharos'."

That got Espurr's attention.

"What do you mean?" she asked. "What is he doing?"

"He will kill again tonight at the place you call the Crooked House," said Voice. "I have read his intentions the best I can. This is all I know. You must stop him by any means necessary."

Ampharos… kill… it was all going to happen again. The dreamscape flickered with a hazy vision of that seviper. Espurr's breath caught in her chest. She nodded grimly. But even so… something still didn't seem right about this.

"You read his mind?" she asked in surprise, piecing it together. Voice nodded.

"So you know who he'll kill," Espurr pressed. "If you could do that all this time, why didn't you say something before?"

"I cannot read the minds of the whole world," Voice said, bowing his head. "And at times they are hazy. This was all I could recover."

"How can you read minds to begin with?" asked Espurr. Once the first question tumbled from her mouth, more followed. She just kept uncovering crack after crack. "Couldn't you have reached out to somemon else? Haven't you? Why drag me in? Is anymon working with him? There has to be something else you can tell me—"

"Enough!" Voice growled sharply, rearing forward and stopping Espurr. She fell quiet, startled. Her tail bristled and she shrank back a bit. He suddenly seemed frightening. "What I've given you is sufficient. You will wake up and you will fulfil your mission here. Ampharos must be stopped, by prison or by death. And when you have completed that task, I will allow you to go home."

He leaned in. "Do we have a deal?"

Something about this rubbed Espurr the wrong way. Very wrong. Hydreigon was starting to scare her. His body language, that look in his eyes…

She straightened herself up, meeting Voice in his face. She wasn't afraid.

"And if I fail?" she asked firmly.

"Then you'll die," said Voice with a menacing tilt. "I suggest not failing. Now…"

There wasn't much other choice, was there?

"Deal," Espurr said reluctantly. She was so tired of this cat-and-mouse game! Why couldn't somemon give her straight answers for once?

"I look forward to good news," said Voice. Espurr stood back as he shuffled his wings and reared up, suddenly looking much more fearsome.

With loud flaps, the large dragon began to rise off the ground. The dream started to crack apart, consumed with light. The light got stronger and stronger, until—

Espurr woke up with a gasp. Her eyes adjusted to the dark. She was in the school clinic, just how she'd gone to sleep. She looked out the window and saw the normal night sky. She breathed a sigh of relief.

Suddenly, she heard a cloth being unfurled. Luminous moss shone from under the door to Audino's office. Espurr's ears twitched, homing in on hushed voices. She rolled over in her bed and peeked over her nest, listening.

"I happened to look at the location Vice Principal Watchog chose for his test yesterday," whispered Audino in the other room. "I think he should change it. It's a safety hazard."

"A safety hazard?"

That was Simipour. "What makes you think that? The School Dungeon is a safe dungeon. No fog. No aggressive apparitions. That's why we use it for exams like this."

"The last time I went in, there was fog. I filed the paperwork for that when I got back that night – didn't you see?"

Simipour yawned.

"It must have gotten lost in my desk. But I don't understand such a change. Dungeons take centuries to grow stronger; the School Forest is barely a decade old."

"The dungeon's going bad, Principal." Audino's voice faltered. "The Drilbur Mines… Wooloo Plains… Poliwrath River… All the dungeons here go bad faster than they should. You know that. We should move the test."

"To where? The School Dungeon is the nearest and safest dungeon around. Would you rather we hold our tests in the Foreboding Forest? What would Watchog think?"

"We should hold it on the school grounds! We're running a school, not a sporting event. His test is ridiculous under normal circumstances, right now it's unacceptable." There was a slam on the table. It must have been Audino putting her paws down. "I don't care what he thinks; we need to change it."

Another yawn.

"I'll see that Watchog does a sweep of the dungeon before the test."

"And he'll change it if it looks dangerous?"

"That is his choice. Good night, Audino."

Ten seconds later, Espurr tried to look asleep as the door opened and Simipour shuffled out, hanging his head like a zombie as he trodded towards the door.

Normally, she could sense the emotions of anymon who walked by. But Simipour's were cloaked by a humming veil, a staticky fuzz creeping on the edge of his mind. It made the fur on her tail bush up. That was odd. Espurr carefully cracked an eye open, following him all the way to the door.

Somehow, deep down, she knew in her heart that things were still very wrong here.

~\({O})/~​

Dawn came sooner than Espurr wanted it to. She felt like she hadn't slept a wink.

The inspectors were here. They brought a lot of brass with them. There were more of those blue orbs being set up around the village square, which Espurr learned were being used as video cameras. They were there because the day after next, somemon important was coming to speak once the semester concluded. The Café Connection was booked up all through next week, and Kangaskhan was having the place specially cleaned and decorated.

"Gotta put your best foot forward," she proudly proclaimed in her signature drawl.

Krookodile yawned as the work carried on, fiddling with his white wrist-cuffs and leaning against a tree. He looked quite peeved to be here.

"What happened to your classroom?" he asked flatly, looking over the empty field as he and a few other bored-seeming government 'mon surveyed the school property.

"Renovations," said Audino smoothly before anymon else could interject.

Krookodile grunted in disappointment, then scribbled on a clipboard.

These were the last few days of school, which Audino upturned most of the School Clinic for. The straw beds were pushed aside to make way for spare tables brought in from the storage room, and twin baskets of berries had been set on each tabletop.

As the class filed in for a late schoolday, Espurr sat on a nest and let her tail whip back and forth.

If everything went well… she'd be gone the next day. And she hadn't even explained to Tricky and Goomy that she'd be going… or why. She didn't know how to explain any of it. Should she just come out and say it? How would they take it? Just when she and Tricky were starting to become friends… she’d have to tear it all away. No… maybe it was better if she said nothing. She could leave a note.

Espurr sighed. Her vision was clouded by something that looked like mud soup. It was just hitting her that this could be the last time she saw Tricky and Goomy… ever. As she took her seat next to them in the school clinic, she cast a couple hesitant looks their way and wondered how to tell them.

"If I could just have everymon's attention, please…" Farfetch'd stomped one of his teaching stalks onto the floor of the School Clinic as he walked up to the new, indoor, board. It had been wheeled out of storage in the back. He mumbled to himself, counting the heads in class.

"14… 15… right." Then he cleared his throat. "As a reminder, our final exam takes place tomorrow. We'll be having the committee from Crossings setting up in town soon for an inspection. You all know the rules. All of you should remember to be on your very best behaviour, and study well…"

The classes were shorter, but the coursework was heavier. Nearly every teacher was stressing the importance of exams and behaving for the coming inspection, and there was even bookwork to take home. Espurr usually focused during school, but she found it hard to pay attention to any of them right now.

During lunchtime, somemon who had been missing for the past week walked in the door.

"I'm back!"

The voice sounded near the front of the school clinic. Espurr turned to see Nuzleaf walking in, carrying several bags of sweets with him.

He set the bags on the table, dishing much of it out to the younger students, who excitedly clapped and cheered. Skwovet stuffed at least ten into her mouth, shovelling until her cheeks bulged and were almost the size of her head.

"Sorry 'bout that," he said, slicking his head-leaf back. "Had to leave town an' get dungeon supplies for the test tomorrow. But I come back and the entire classroom is levelled! What's the deal with that?"

Espurr shied away while the rest of the students very readily explained exactly what had happened to the classroom.

"Ah, no worries," said Nuzleaf, waving it off. "One time I knew a 'mon who blew up an entire building because they hit the wrong pipe with their attack! That was a doozy."

Soon after all the chatter had dispersed, Espurr was sitting on one of the straw beds alone, staring at the wall and weighing her options.

She felt a weight next to the bed, turning around to see it was Nuzleaf.

"Missed me?" he asked.

"A bit," said Espurr. She nudged herself away from him a tiny bit, looking away.

"Only a bit?"

"Maybe more than a bit," Espurr admitted.

"That's what I thought," said Nuzleaf. He pulled out some sweets and dumped them on the bed between them. "Couldn't let the little ones have all of it."

As Espurr eyed the wrapped pieces of jam treats and taffy and tentatively took one, Nuzleaf leaned back against the straw and got cosy.

"I heard there's been a bit of trouble gettin' you adopted, right?" he continued, looking down at her. He unwrapped a sweet – a sticky, red block – and tossed it in his mouth. "Hard ta find somemon after that incident in Crossings an' all."

Espurr nodded.

"So…" Nuzleaf was suddenly rubbing his knobbly hands together. "I talked a bit with the teachers, and if you're okay with it, I was wonderin'… maybe you'd be okay with me doing it?"

The world stopped turning. Part of Espurr couldn't believe what she'd just heard. She turned her gaze away from the floorboards and towards him. Nuzleaf wanted to adopt… her?

"You… want to adopt me?" she asked, eyes wide.

"Of course," said Nuzleaf. "You're my best student. Why not?"

Best student… conflicting feelings flowed through Espurr. She did like Nuzleaf. A lot. She wouldn’t mind being adopted by Nuzleaf. He was always so nice to her. She wondered if she could see what he was thinking, but his thoughts were always veiled, just like Pancham’s.

But she couldn’t put him in danger. It wasn’t fair. And she couldn’t be… adopted alone…

She was going back anyway. It wouldn’t matter soon.

"Every other guardian has been murdered," she pointed out grimly, staring at the ground, hoping it would put him off. "You'd just make yourself a target."

"Pssh, naw," said Nuzleaf, waving it off. "If they come after me I'll fight 'em off lickety split. Besides," he continued, his voice in a hush. "I'll know they're comin'.

He gave a reassuring wink.

"So waddaya say?"

Espurr went back to staring at the grooves in the wood, all huddled up. If she said yes, would she be condemning Nuzleaf too? If she told him no, what would she think? If she told him she was probably leaving tomorrow, would he believe her?

Could she tell him about what was going on? If anymon had trusted her, it was Nuzleaf.

She wasn't strong enough.

"I'd love it," she finally said, regretting her words all the way. If I'm still around after this.

If there was anymon who could fight them off, it was Nuzleaf. He'd be fine. He knew. He would listen. He'd have to. Wouldn't he?

"Awesome!" said Nuzleaf. "I'll just get the papers drafted 'n all then. We can sign 'em right after the semester ends, if time permits."

"Just don't tell anymon before it's time," said Espurr hastily, staring at him. "Please?"

Nuzleaf scratched the back of his head, a sheepish expression on his face.

"Yeah, sure, I can do that," he said.

~\({O})/~​

A repairmon from the village came after lunch. It was a rush job – the classroom needed to be cleared of wreckage before anymon from the city came to inspect. The teachers seemed anxious about getting it done as soon as possible. Espurr could see the unpleasant auras of red and purple hanging over them all like a haze. Audino ushered the rest of the class out the back by way of some very creepy woods, and led them away quietly while Watchog and Principal Simipour sluggishly talked with the fletchinder repairmon.

"Hey, didja change your mind?" asked Tricky, prancing up as they all trotted back down the pine tree path to the village. Goomy, beside her, looked over and nodded. "Goomy said he wants to hang out too. You could sleep over at my place if they're too busy doing repairs!"

"No," Espurr started, then stopped. “I can’t. Sorry.”

"Wait, what?" asked Tricky, surprised. "Why?"

"I'll be going somewhere else tonight," said Espurr. The one time words were important, they felt like putty in her mouth.

"Huh?!" Tricky exclaimed.

"W-where?" asked Goomy.

"Did you get adopted?!" Tricky asked hyperactively. "Omg! We can totally sleep over there too!"

"No," said Espurr sharply, catching them off guard. She had to tell them somehow. She took a breath, promising that she'd leave a note later. "I'm leaving. I'm going home."

Tricky and Goomy were left dumbfounded.

"…Home?" asked Tricky. Her ears lowered. "I didn't know you had a home."

Espurr looked down.

"Everymon comes from somewhere," she said.

"Can we visit?" asked Tricky. "Ooh – where are you from?"

Espurr shook her head.

"You can't visit," she said.

"Why not?!" asked Tricky, bounding forward.

"You just can't," said Espurr.

"Wait – you can't just leave us hanging like that!" said Tricky. "It's not fair!"

But Espurr had already turned around and left. Tricky bounded after her, but she had slipped away.

Espurr needed time to herself. Time to prepare. Time to divest from… everything here. There’d be time, anyway. She’d leave them a note, later, when it was all over. They’d learn why she had to go home.

She had someone to get back to. Someone she couldn’t leave behind.

~\({O})/~​

Then​

The world had colours, but they were dull. Espurr went from home to school to home again. Home was cramped and crowded, dozens of kids just like her piled on top of each other until someone came to take them off to a real home.

Sometimes there was food. It would be the bare minimum to keep them alive, soggy cornmeal mush or pieces of stale bread. Espurr had heard tell that in other places, they fed kids like her, the ones without parents, properly. But in a town like Halifax, surrounded by cornfields and pickup trucks, it was a miracle they had places for her to go at all. So, she grew up. While her schoolmates added numbers and flashed playing cards at each other, she swiped and earned pocket change to buy things from the supermarket, learning to cook in her spare time.

Amongst the sea of bland, endless days, Espurr had one friend. He was Daniel, a loner like her. They liked to hang out behind the shabby brick school in their spare time and read or compare gross things they found. Daniel was the closest thing Espurr had to a family. They’d met when she was six and he was five, sorted into the same group home, and somehow, even when they were moved all around the state, they had managed to stay together.

“Am I ever gonna see you again?” Daniel asked one night, flopping down from his bunk to look down at Espurr. Espurr set her library book flat, looking back up at him.

“What do you mean?”

“I mean, uh…” Daniel climbed down, hitting the ground silently. He took a seat against the bunk bed beam. The soft snoring of others filled the silence. “When one of us gets adopted. Or moved away to another home. It happened to Jackson last week.”

Espurr frowned, carefully marking her place in her book and setting it aside. She adjusted her large, round glasses, which had fallen down her nose, then sat next to him.

“We’re going to stay together,” she said. “Okay?”

The fuzzy outlines of her shape crackled in her memory, as if awkwardly cut out with scissors.

“But what if one of us does get adopted?” Daniel asked.

“Then they’ll just have to take both of us,” said Espurr. “I’ll make such a big stink they won’t let either of us go alone. No matter what.”

She clasped Daniel’s hand. “And if we do get separated, I’ll find you. No matter what. We’ll see each other again, okay?”

Daniel nodded, the glum look on his face slightly disappearing.

“I’ll find you too,” he said, a slight stutter starting to invade his voice. “If we get separated.”

“Then we’ll find each other,” said Espurr.

They had both promised to each other that night. It was a promise that Espurr never could have kept. Perhaps it was her fault for making it.

She had always been the more driven of them. She was smarter than the rest, more capable than even the adults; she knew that. She was working a few grades ahead, reading books far above her level, and there weren’t many people her age who knew how to survive on their own. There wasn’t anyone else with her drive, her will to move forward, climb ever higher.

It was the only stable thing she had, the only thing she could rely on. She was going to claw her way out of this hole by the skin of her teeth, escape this town and this state forever, become good enough to make sure she and Daniel stayed together. After all, with talents like hers, who wouldn’t want to adopt her?

The day it all came crashing down, she had been at school far too late to even notice.

“Hey, where’s Daniel?” Espurr asked the housemistress as she walked onto the curb from school. Usually she could see him from here, the other kids all playing outside on the lawn or

“Oh, him?” said the housemistress. She had her shades on and was sipping a lemonade from under the wide brim of her sunhat. “He’s been adopted.”

The world seemed to stop moving.

“A… dopted?” Espurr could barely put any force into the word.

“By a very sweet couple passing through town,” said the housemistress nonchalantly.

“But…” said Espurr, voice quiet with shock. “We… we were supposed to be adopted to, together.”

“Well,” said the housemistress with a shrug. “There’s far too many kids around, and they wanted him or nothing.”

“Th—” Espurr stammered. “You can’t— they were supposed to take us both! You can’t do this. You can’t just separate us like this!”

The housemistress looked over her shades at Espurr with a look of apathetic annoyance.

“This house has to make quotas, you know,” she said. “Or do you want everyone to be turned out into the street?”

“But…” Espurr was starting to feel faint. She was breathing hard. “But—”

“Look, people leave, okay?” the housemistress snapped at her. With a scowl, she batted away Espurr’s hand and rose from her porch chair. “Better you learn that now than later.”

Espurr’s eyes narrowed. Her hands balled into fists as the housemistress entered the group home.

“Where did they go,” she growled.

The housemistress stopped, looking back at Espurr.

“They left town,” she said. “So before you do anything, just think—”

Espurr wasn’t thinking. She turned around and sprinted. All she could think about was that they had all just gotten out of school, it couldn’t have been that long, and she knew where the exit to town was. If she could only just get there in time, she could catch up before they left and plead their case, demand they stay together. She couldn’t let him leave. She couldn’t let the only person who’d ever known or cared for her slip out of her life forever, she couldn’t go on without him, she—

She didn’t notice the truck coming until it was too late.

~\({O})/~​

Music of the Week!

Detention (Harry Potter) - John Williams

 

[SparklingEspeon]

CHAPTER FIFTEEN: WE TAKE AN UNEXPECTED DETOUR

~\({O})/~​

. . .. . . Nightfall was soon. Espurr had to act, and quick. Since the police were here in town, she decided to use them. A quick, anonymous tip that something was about to happen at the Crooked House was enough to send them on their way. Then, after sneaking away and making sure she was seen when Audino locked up for the night, Espurr packed everything she thought she'd need into her shabby brown bag and went down at twilight to survey.

She needed to be there. Voice would know what happened, surely, but she had to see for herself.

Espurr snuck down to the outskirts of town and crawled through the muddy foliage, the dark path alight with the sound of chirping insects. She found a place to crouch down just outside the village entrance, where she was sure she'd be out of danger. She didn't know what was about to happen, but if she waited long enough, she'd find out—

"Espurr!"

Espurr hissed and jumped high in the air. She spun around, seeing Tricky hesitantly stepping forward from a pair of bushes, her eyes wide.

"Tricky!" Espurr said, calming down. "What are you doing here?"

"We were seeing what you were doing," said Tricky indignantly, tilting her head. "Duuuh."

"We?" asked Espurr.

Goomy looked out from behind Tricky's large, bushy tail. He waved a slimy paw. "H-hi."

"It's not safe out here," said Espurr, calmly scouting the area over the bush. She felt bad turning them away, but didn't show it. "You should just go back."

"Then why are you here?" asked Tricky.

"Because I'm—" Espurr cut herself off. "It doesn't matter."

Should she tell them? It only seemed fair. Especially if she was leaving. “I told you I’m not going to be here much longer.”

Tricky spoke up. She stomped her foot.

"Well if you're leaving, we're not just letting you go away without—"

A sudden explosion in the town caught all three of them off-guard. Espurr, Tricky, and Goomy looked into the town square to see Nuzleaf duelling with the Coneheads.

He bounced from house to house, launching attacks at them. They followed up with blasts of their own, which he barely dodged with his agility. His green cape billowed behind him. Espurr’s eyes widened. Was this because… Nuzleaf was supposed to become her guardian? How had the Coneheads found out this quickly?! How had Ampharos?

Was this who he was going to kill?

The battle was starting to draw a crowd in the square. Espurr, Tricky, and Goomy stayed in hiding behind a trash bin, watching as Nuzleaf drew the battle out of the town and down the path. They watched as the Coneheads whizzed past them and down towards... the Crooked House!

"Come on!" hissed Espurr, getting up from where she was. "We have to follow them!"

As they went down the path, sticking to the foliage and staying out of sight, Espurr saw the police lights whizz past. That must have been her tip!

"Did you know this was going to happen?!" asked Tricky as they bounded along. Goomy was sliming quickly, trying to keep up.

“Yeah,” said Espurr between pants.

"How?!" asked Tricky.

"I'll explain it later," Espurr said hurriedly. They did at least deserve an explanation. If she wasn't going to see them again after tonight, she owed them that.

They reached the house soon enough. It was surrounded by police.

Espurr hid herself in a bush, Tricky and Goomy following.

"What are all these 'mon doing here?" asked Tricky. Espurr shushed her and watched with bated breath. Her heart caught in her chest, and she hoped that Nuzleaf wasn't already… the sight of that stone seviper flashed in her head.

There were flashes from inside the crooked house, and all of a sudden, a figure stumbled out the front door. Espurr's eyes widened as police lights shone on him. It was Ampharos!

His green cape billowed in the wind, the yellow pokemon shielding his eyes with a flipper. He looked surprised to see all those policemon here. As the police fastened Ampharos' flippers with a spool of glowing rope and took him away, Espurr watched as Nuzleaf stumbled out of the house and was tended to by the police.

The Coneheads were nowhere to be seen.

"What was all that?!" asked Tricky, flipping out in the bush. "Ampharos totally just got arrested!"

"It's done," said Espurr softly, sitting back in surprise and relief. Her eyes followed Ampharos being led away. A small smile spread across her face. "We finally got rid of him."

And that meant… she was going home.

Wherever home was now.

"Wait," said Tricky. "Waitwaitwait. You mean you figured it out? It was him?"

"I think so," Espurr nodded.

"How? Why didn't you tell us?"

"Because—" Espurr stopped, realising she didn't have a very good reason. “It’s just… complicated. Okay?”

“What’s complicated?” Tricky scowled.

“Y-you’re not telling us anything,” Goomy added.

“It’s hard to explain,” said Espurr. And I’m not going to be here much longer. I think… I’m going to go home soon. Maybe any minute.”

She looked up at the sky, almost as if expecting some ball of light to swallow her up right there and then.

But it wasn’t coming.

“What does that mean?” Tricky looked puffed up, angry.

Espurr scowled and folded her arms, studying the ground. Her ears twitched, hearing something in the forest. Was that anything to worry about?

There was no point holding it off any longer.

"There's… something I didn't tell you," she admitted. "Either of you. I think you should hear it."

Tricky sat down, her tail and ears flicking in annoyance. Goomy looked at her silently with waiting eyes. Espurr took a deep breath, and prepared to admit everything—

Espurr heard the whistling just as Tricky's eyes widened, ears pricked up.

"Look out!" Tricky screamed, brushing up Goomy with her tail and pouncing on Espurr, throwing them all out of the way of a blast. Espurr rolled to a stop and looked up. They untangled themselves from the pile they had landed in, all seeing a Conehead approaching from the underbrush. Espurr's eyes widened in horror. Her mind raced. How did it find them? And if Ampharos was being taken to prison, why hadn't they…

"Scatter!" yelled Tricky, and the three of them picked themselves up and fled.

"I thought we got rid of them!" said Espurr as they ran. "How… wait."

There were only two of them with Nuzleaf…

Espurr thought fast. Who would know this place better than…

"Tricky!" she said. "Where can we hide?"

Tricky's ears popped up. Her eyes gained a mischievous glint.

"You're okay with anywhere?" she asked.

Espurr looked at Goomy.

"J-just hide us," he shivered.

Tricky's grin grew wide.

"I know just the place!" she yipped. "Follow me!"

She took a hard right, and Espurr and Goomy followed her. Seconds later, a blast hit where they would have been running, causing the grass to shrivel up and turn to stone.

They emerged from the forest and into the open rows of Carracosta's farmland. As they disappeared into the fields, the mountains loomed above them and blotted out the night sky, getting closer and closer.

"Where are we going?!" Espurr yelled to Tricky as they ran. They were about to reach a dead end!

"You'll see!" yelled Tricky, looking back. She looked forward and suddenly gasped, trying to skid to a stop in the dirt. "Ahh! We're here!"

Espurr only had a second to recognise the tell-tale stench of mystery dungeon before they hit the shimmering, overgrown cave, and tumbled forth into darkness.

She gasped and curled herself up, her bag tumbling after her as she fell against Tricky, Goomy letting out a yelp as he fell on top of her. They all landed in a pile on a bed of flowers, letting out a large cloud of pollen that coated them in yellow.

Espurr sat up, coughing and wiping the stuff away, while Tricky shook herself off. Goomy sneezed. They looked around the silent corridors, overgrown with flowers and fines like the inside of a bush. A strange, illuminating moonlight snuck through the canopy, lighting the hallways with an unearthly glow.

"Where are we?" Espurr looked at Tricky. Her voice echoed through the cavern, overgrown with vines and flowers from the roof to the floor.

Tricky looked around.

"It's different than I remember…" she trailed off. "It's called Nectar Meadows. I haven't been here in years."

Espurr's eyes lightened. She remembered that from her book.

"Wait," she and Goomy both said at once.

"What?" asked Tricky.

"Isn't this…" Espurr started.

"T-the book says there's b-beedrill that live here," stuttered Goomy.

Tricky waved it off.

"Nah," she said, tail high. "It'll be fiiine. They're only a problem in…"

Her tail and ears suddenly drooped.

"…Spring."

Both Espurr and Goomy looked at her with wide, disbelieving eyes. Tricky tittered.

"Uhh… maybe they're asleep?" she grinned nervously, shrinking back. "A— anyway, bugs hate fire! So we'll be fine! I think!"

She pranced ahead, ears pinned back.

"How big can this dungeon be, anyway?"

Espurr and Goomy looked at each other, then picked up and followed her.

~\({O})/~​

There was no mistaking it was a dungeon from the moment they walked in. The overgrown wooden sign just inside labelled "Now Entering - Nectar Meadows, 1 – 3F. BEWARE OF BEEDRILL" helped. The dungeon must have swallowed it.

The halls were filled with all sorts of plants, from moss to tall grass to various flowers that lined the walls and roof of the dungeon. Pollen hung in the air. The sweetness of flowers mingled with the rotting scent of mystery dungeon, making Espurr wrinkle her nose as she walked. Goomy sneezed. Tricky sniffled. As Espurr stepped under one of the holes in the dungeon's sunlight-filtered canopy, she saw that the halls ahead were completely empty.

They crossed a floor.

"Don't you think it's been too quiet?" she asked as they went on. "The sign said there were supposed to be beedrill."

"I-I'm not complaining if we d-don't find beedrill," said Goomy with a shiver.

"Yeah," agreed Tricky. She whistled, which echoed down the halls. Espurr looked behind them as a flower's stem seemed to slither up the walls like a centipede. "See? They must be sleeping."

"But there's not anything here," pointed out Espurr, looking around as they walked. "The dungeon's completely empty."

"We're on floor two," said Tricky. "That's… almost there! What else could there b—"

The pin missile suddenly slammed into them. Espurr let out a grunt as one sent her flying. She smacked against the wall hard and tumbled to the ground with a grunt, then scrambled back. Their attackers were a trio of large, hovering, insect-like creatures she assumed were beedrill. One alone was larger than her! Espurr thought fast, grabbed a rock, and pelted it in the beedrill's face.

"Goomy!" she scurried out of the way as the beedrill was knocked back in the air, looking for her partner. One of the beedrills dove for Goomy, but he let out a large yell and summoned several purple sparks from his paws. They fizzled out into the air and barely did anything. He had to duck out of the way as it swooped down and tried to skewer him, its large spear missing by a hair.

The other beedrill was already back on its wings. Espurr got in front of Goomy and prepared to whack it with the bag as it zoomed in—

"Begone, foul beast!"

A shot of flame suddenly flew out of nowhere from behind them, sending the beedrill flying back.

Tricky, who had been thrown into the other hallway, scurried back, joining the three of them. They backed away as more and more of the beedrill appeared, forming an entire swarm.

"I don't think we can fight that," Espurr noted.

"Great observation," Tricky said, deadpan. "Run!'

The three of them booked it. The swarm was very fast, almost as fast as they were. Tricky sent back blasts of fire to keep them at bay, while Espurr found things to pick up and throw. A particularly sharp rock whacked a beedrill in the face, sending it careening back and hitting a few others, which slammed into the dungeon wall and fell to the floor, dizzy.

Espurr quickly found something else to lob, her energy renewed. Goomy didn't have anything much to throw, but he was doing a good job of keeping up. Some of his sparks coalesced into a small attack, zapping one of the beedrill. Goomy lit up with excitement.

Suddenly, the swarm was disrupted by something. Something big. Behind them. The three of them looked back, seeing a bunch of beedrill falling to the ground behind them.

Stone.

Espurr caught on quickly.

"It's the Coneheads!" she yelled. "They found us!"

"How?!" Tricky squealed.

The swarm descended upon the Coneheads, which was rebutted with more dark blasts. More and more of the bees fell to the ground as stone statues, then crumbled away into dust.

Goomy's antennae perked up.

"D-down here!" he cried.

Espurr saw where he was pointing – towards an alleyway to the side – and caught on quickly. The three of them got the same idea at the same time. Tricky shot a blast of fire, which combined with Goomy's sparks. The fire turned purple and created a fiery blast that obscured everyone's vision. In the chaos, the three of them lunged into the side alley and pinned themselves to the wall, completely silent, as the swarm of beedrill rushed past.

All of them barely dared to breathe as the Coneheads followed, meticulous and silent, searching the main corridor. But they gave up and passed on, and only when their crooked heads turned the corner did the three of them slump to the ground, letting out sighs of relief as they flopped over.

Espurr's heart was still pounding with adrenaline, the rush slowly wearing off as they got their bearings. The pollen settled around them as they dusted themselves off and recovered in the alley.

They slumped down together in the alley and caught their breath. Tricky and Goomy looked at Espurr.

"What now?"

Espurr huddled up into the vines and looked at the ground.

"I don't know," she said.

This was all so much bigger than just the dungeon. The Coneheads must have… known that Espurr was going to be at the Crooked House. Why would they split up like that otherwise? It felt too deliberate. Her heart sank as she put the pieces together.

"I don't think it's a mistake the Coneheads found us," she said. "I think… they knew we were going to be there. That's why they didn't attack the police or try to free Ampharos. I think we walked into a trap. And that means…"

She sighed and huddled down further.

"I don't know what to do. I'm sorry I got us all into this."

The last part was the hardest to admit.

"I can't fix it on my own," Espurr mumbled.

Tricky and Goomy huddled closer to her.

"Espurr, you don't have to," said Tricky.

"Y-yeah," said Goomy. "W-we're all in this."

"But you don't understand—" Espurr started.

"What don't we understand?" Tricky asked.

How was she supposed to tell them? If she couldn't fix it, then she didn't have control, and that meant…

"If I can't fix it on my own, then what am I worth?" Espurr asked. "I'm supposed to save all of you, and it's all just going…"

It’ll be just like last time. Just like when she wasn’t powerful enough to save the one person she cared about.

The words were tumbling out of her mouth, and she didn't have control of them anymore.

"W-why would you have to fix it on your own?" asked Goomy. He looked confused.

"Because—" said Espurr. She stopped. She wasn't able to finish.

"Because what?" asked Tricky.

"Because I have to," Espurr insisted. Neither of them look convinced. She took a deep breath. “Look. There was somem… one I knew. Back home. I promised him we were going to stay together, and… I couldn’t keep that promise. I wasn’t good enough for that. And now I don’t know if I’m ever going to see him again. I failed him.”

She huddled a bit tighter into her corner.

“And now the Coneheads are here because of me. Ampharos is here because of me! I brought danger here. And if I can’t solve it, then… I’ll have failed all of you too. So… it has to be me. Not the teachers. Not anymon else.”

Tricky and Goomy were silent. Espurr couldn't take it, so she filled the silence with more words.

“Everywhere I go, it’s never been enough,” she kept rambling. “I’ve never been good enough to fix things. So I thought maybe if I fixed this mess, then I’d be good enough to fix the one back home, and then maybe then someone there would…”

Someone would want me for once. She trailed off, then shook her head.

“Sorry,” she said. “I shouldn’t have got you involved with me. I failed you two the moment I let you be my friends.”

Tricky stepped forward.

"I'm here because I want to be," she said firmly. "And Goomy is too! Right?"

She looked at Goomy, who gave a large nod.

"I don't know what's going on, or what happened back home, but… aren't we your friends too?" Tricky asked. She looked down at the flowers. Her tail swished back and forth, then curled around her.

“Doesn’t matter,” said Espurr, folding her arms. “I can’t stay here.”

“I don’t care!” barked Tricky. With Espurr and Goomy looking at her wide-eyed, she continued. “It’s fine if you have to leave after this. I don’t… I don’t care. But you don’t have to do any of this on your own! I’m not letting you! And if you’re going to fight the Coneheads, we’re both with you no matter what. And you don’t get a say in the matter.”

"Y-yeah," Goomy agreed, trembling and puffing himself up like he was mustering up the bravery. "I-I'm not letting you d-do this on your own."

Espurr let their words sink in. All this time… she’d been shoving it down, focusing on going home like it was a lifeboat, but she didn’t know what she’d be going back to. She’d never been given this for free before.

“You… really mean that?” she asked, surprised.

"Of course!" said Tricky.

"W-why wouldn't we?" asked Goomy.

Espurr considered it for a second. Then, she decided not to hold herself back anymore. For the first time, she pulled them both into a hug. They hugged back. For a moment, Espurr’s vision shone with a warm, honey-like gold.

"But you're still on the hook for telling us whatever you were going to say once we get out of here," Tricky said when they broke the hug.

"Of course," said Espurr. She felt strangely giddy after that.

"Now let's get out of here together!" Tricky proudly announced.

Espurr, Tricky, and Goomy peeked out of the dungeon alleyway and looked both ways. The hall was empty.

"Looks like the beedrill disappeared…" said Tricky.

"And the Coneheads," Espurr added. She eyed the ground and thought for a moment. "How can we get past them both?"

Goomy perked up.

"I-it looked like they were f-fighting," he said. "N-not just chasing us."

Tricky perked up too with a gasp.

"Wait," she said. "That's true! Beedrill attack anything. I learned about them in Watchdog's class."

Espurr got an idea.

"Can we lure the beedrill to some part of the dungeon?" she asked.

Tricky nodded.

"Totally," she said. "We just need some fire."

For show, she burped up a small flame.

"I think I have an idea," said Espurr. She huddled them all together, and started to explain…

~\({O})/~​

They crossed another floor without encountering either the beedrill or the Coneheads. Espurr could hear them flying around, and every once in a while, she thought she saw the flickering lights of the Coneheads. But the three of them were careful not to be seen.

If they could escape the dungeon without encountering them, then Espurr was going to count that as a win in her book. But that was unlikely. They couldn't face them both on their own, and fighting one would attract the other. So Espurr decided to use that in their favour.

It wasn't long before their luck ran out. Up in the hallway ahead, they ran into the Coneheads. Tricky gasped and motioned with a paw towards them. When Espurr and Goomy saw, they quickly backed out of sight. Then, they found a few convenient flower bushes to hide in, covering their breath so they wouldn't be heard. They watched as the Coneheads monitored the area, searching through bushes, getting closer and closer. Their dark energy made the entire floor dour. Espurr looked at Tricky and nodded. It was time.

Tricky blew out a small flame and deliberately set one of the flowers alight. The fire started to spread with her help, crawling up the thick vines along the dungeon walls. Before long, the dungeon grumbled. In the distance, they could hear the flapping of several beedrill.

"They're coming!" hissed Tricky. "Hide!"

Then, the dungeon began to pick up. A rotten wind started to blow. Espurr picked up on it first. That was… far stronger than they expected…

"Grab onto something!" she yelled, then ducked for cover. The wind started to blow stronger, stronger, stronger…

The Coneheads noticed them. Quick as a flash, they drew their arms, lighting the corridor with green, red, and yellow flickers. They locked on Espurr. She yelped and rolled over, squinting her eyes shut as she expected to be hit—

A sudden blast of wind ricocheted down the corridor, blowing away everything in its wake. Espurr found a root to cling to, Tricky digging her paws into the dirt and biting onto a thick bramble. Goomy, small and light, clung to a patch of weeds, which anchored him to the ground.

The Coneheads were blown away at first. But they quickly found a foothold against the wind, anchoring their large arms into the ground and crawling back. Espurr watched, her face falling into worry as one of the Coneheads lifted an arm out of the ground and started to charge up an attack. They were sitting ducks—

The buzzing of the beedrill got louder. The three of them looked the other way as suddenly, a large swarm of beedrill tumbled down the hallway in midair, unable to keep up with the dungeon wind. They ducked their heads as the beedrill tumbled past, barely grazing the tips of their fur. The beedrill smashed into the Coneheads, blowing them away and down the hall and around the bend.

"Hold on!" Tricky barked. Goomy's grip almost slipped, but Espurr caught him with her free paw.

The wind died down after a bit, allowing them to slowly fall to the ground and regain their bearings. They hit the ground gently, landing without a scratch.

Espurr stood up, feeling her legs quake a little.

"That was awesome!" yelled Tricky. Goomy, whose blubber was quivering a little, nodded his head in excited agreement.

"I-I feel great," he said.

Espurr had to agree. "It… was," she said.

Tricky sniffed the air.

"I can smell the stairs!" she crowed, prancing ahead. Espurr and Goomy quickly followed her.

"You can smell them?" asked Espurr. "How?"

"I just… can," said Tricky. "They smell like flowers. Follow me!"

She bounded forward, and Espurr and Goomy quickly dashed to keep up.

~\({O})/~​

The dungeon was only one floor longer. They snuck through the hallways and up the stairs, making sure to hide in patches of weeds and flowers whenever any beedrill were around. Goomy snagged a few flowers for himself, and Espurr dusted her coat of all the pollen. Having long fur was a hassle.

Soon, they emerged into the fields the same way they went in, just like in the Drilbur Mines. Espurr didn't understand how it worked yet, but she was learning to take it as it came.

The sun was already starting to rise. It had only felt like an hour, but she guessed they'd spent the whole night in there…

The three of them walked home through the fields, and nicked a couple of berries from overhanging plants for a quick breakfast. The sky got brighter and brighter as they walked.

"Hey, d-didn't you say y-you w-were going to tell us something?" Goomy asked.

Espurr nodded, her eyes widening. She'd forgot!

"Right," she said, stopping. Tricky and Goomy turned to look at her. "Where do I start?

"I'm not from here," she began. "Really not from here. I'm from another world, where everymon… one isn't…" she looked down and gestured at her cat-ness. "Like this. We call ourselves 'humans'.”

She looked at them, wringing her paws together. "And that's the truth."

She looked down and waited for the onslaught of protest.

But it never came.

When she cracked her eyes open again, she saw Goomy, whose antennae were flopped sideways in confusion, and Tricky, whose eyes were wide as saucers.

Tricky's eyes widened. For a moment, Espurr didn't know what to expect.

The gears turned in Tricky's head.

"Wait," she said. "Waitwaitwait. So you're saying you're… one of the legendary heroes?"

Espurr nodded. "I think so."

Tricky let out a snicker. Then she laughed.

"Bwahaha!" she giggled. "That's good! You're funny!

Espurr eyed the ground.

"It's alright if you don't believe me," Espurr started.

"…Wait, you're serious?" The laughter disappeared from Tricky's face.

Then, her eyes widened again.

"Wait," she said, her tail lowering and ears pricking up. "You're serious?"

They got so wide they may have been saucer plates.

"You're serious?!" she shouted. "Omg omg omg! This is insane!"

"Wait. You’re serious?" Espurr looked surprised.

"Well duh I believe you! Don't you see how awesome this is?!" Tricky pranced back and forth between Espurr, Goomy, and the large bushes several times. There was a wide, excited grin on her snout.

"I-I don't get it," said Goomy.

Tricky stopped right in front of them, kicking up dust. Her tail wagged back and forth like a manic dog.

"I'll explain everything!" she exclaimed. "I, uh, I have to go sneak back into my bedroom before Pops flays me, but you guys meet me at the school library right before class! I'll be there I promise!"

~\({O})/~​

Music of the Week!

You're My Friend - Yuki Kajiura

 

[SparklingEspeon]

CHAPTER SIXTEEN: THE STATUE KILLER IS UNMASKED

~\({O})/~​

. . .. . . Somehow, despite only heading back to her house for a minute, Tricky was almost an entire hour late. Which left them just ten minutes before school began. Espurr and Goomy, who had been examining the spider-like cracks in the School Library's wall, glanced up as Tricky rushed up the hill and messily slid to a stop right into their personal space. She was wearing the blue scarves from her bedroom today around her neck, untidily nestled in her fur.

"Sorry…" she panted, shaking her coat off. Espurr and Goomy, who had been bracing for impact, uncurled themselves. "Pops made me clean up. I came here as fast as I could! C’mon, the book’s inside!"

The library itself was just an old, dim warehouse full of dusty old books, so Espurr, Tricky, and Goomy had no trouble slipping in through an unlocked window and searching the narrow, tall, crooked shelves until they found the book Tricky wanted. Rows of dusty tomes leaned over them claustrophobically, and light inside the building was scarce. Espurr could see in the dark better than anymon else, but that didn't seem very productive for a library, she thought.

"See this team?" Tricky shoved a book titled 'Mons and Mystery Dungeons: A Complete History' into Espurr's face. There on the page lay a paw-drawn painting of three pokemon, each labelled "charizard", "wartortle", and "bayleaf". The oils were faded and dulled, but the picture was still clear. "That's Team Go-Getters! They saved the entire world from a meteor almost two centuries ago! Wartortle writes books. I have all of them under my bed."

"What about them?" Espurr asked.

"Well, get this:" Tricky put her front paws on the book and leaned in close. "Wartortle was Human!"

Tricky's loud voice at close quarters rattled Espurr's hearing a little, but all the sudden it all made a little more sense. Just not sense in a good way.

"Don't you get what this means?" Tricky went on.

"That the world's about to be struck by another meteor?"

"No! Wait—" Tricky stuck her nose in the book once more and leafed to another page, where an artist's impression of three more pokemon – "meowth", "litleo", and "shinx" – sat. "Look at these guys!"

"Also Humans?" Espurr guessed. She and Goomy shared a confused look.

"Nope, just Meowth," Tricky replied. "These guys – Team Ion – were the ones who restarted Time a century ago! And— And—"

She leafed even further into the book.

"Them – Team Anthem – they defeated the Bittercold 50 years ago!" Espurr and Goomy looked at the pokemon – "dewott", and that one which Espurr immediately recognised was a pikachu – on the page, painted with those same faded, flaking oils. "Dewott's the Human."

Espurr brightened with recognition.

"Those are the Heroes of Paradise," she said.

"Exactly!"

Tricky snapped the book shut, her tail wagging excitedly. An explosion of dust flew into Espurr and Goomy, making them cough. "NOW do you get it?"

Tricky's ears flopped down as they hacked and wheezed out the dust. "Sorry," she muttered.

Espurr recovered first. She'd caught the trend.

"But if I'm here… doesn't that mean the world is about to be destroyed again?" she asked Tricky.

"That's exactly it!" said Tricky, her tail wagging. "We could be the very first to know! And it explains why the Coneheads are here! They must be working for whoever wants to destroy the world this time!"

She seemed far too excited about that. But it was a reasonable guess. Espurr and Goomy shared a look.

"Perhaps we should visit the jail later," said Espurr in thought. "Ampharos should still be wherever they're holding him. We could get some information out of him."

"Ooh – ooh – I did some thinking about that too!" Tricky yipped. She pranced off, running through the library to an old, dusty table. Espurr and Goomy did their best to keep up.

Tricky perched at the front of the table, climbing on top of it. "I think I know who the statue killer is!"

That caught their attention.

"W-who is it?" asked Goomy.

"It can't be Ampharos," said Tricky. "It has to be somemon at the school!"

"What…" Goomy panted out. The trip here had tuckered him out the most. "B-but how? All of our teachers are…"

"Suspects." Tricky stretched out and slammed her paws down on the table in front of Goomy, expelling more dust that made all three of them cough for a bit.

"A-again?"

"Sorry…"

Waving away the rest of it with her tail, Tricky continued with a grin:

"Think about it! What if the killer doesn't want to kill Espurr?"

"But what other motive could they have?" Espurr pointed out. "They've been killing any guardian that gets assigned to me—"

"And we never asked why!" Tricky interrupted. "Or how!"

Espurr and Goomy went silent as realisation dawned on them.

"If the killer wanted to kill or kidnap Espurr, then, then they had months to do it, right?" Tricky continued. "They didn't even have to kill anymon else!"

"B-but they've been k-killing the guardians instead," Goomy continued.

"Exactly! And – and – and neither Ampharos nor Pancham could know who those pokemon were. So he can't be the culprit!"

Espurr and Goomy nodded. It was starting to make sense.

"The only other pokemon who were close to the murder scenes were the pokemon at the school," Tricky finished. "So it has to be a teacher. The only pokemon who were at every crime and would know who Espurr's next guardians were going to be!"

"B-b-but why?" Goomy asked. "All of our teachers w-were h-here since we were little!"

"Except for Nuzleaf," Espurr said darkly. She didn't want it to be true, but… the pieces were starting to click together. "Does anymon here remember him before he left?"

"Nuzleaf…" Tricky's musing words trailed off into the echoey building. Goomy shook his head.

"T-too old."

Espurr considered her next action. Should she tell them? But now was better than never. Best to just be out with it.

"Nuzleaf offered a day ago to be my new guardian," Espurr blurted out.

Tricky and Goomy looked at her like she'd grown another tail.

"What?"

"Why didn't you tell us earlier?" Tricky demanded.

"I was going to say it after school let out," Espurr said, unable to stop herself from fidgeting awkwardly.

Tricky and Goomy just looked concerned. The awkward fidgeting increased.

"It's not like I couldn't take the boat back here when I wanted, so I thought…"

"Forget the boat! If Nuzleaf is the killer, then he's going to take you tomorrow," Tricky stressed. "You have to stay here! You have to convince somemon else to take you."

"B-but what if he k-kills that pokemon?" Goomy asked. Espurr and Tricky clearly hadn't considered that. "It c-could be anymon now."

"Goomy's right," said Espurr, folding her arms. "If I try to get away, he'll be suspicious. Everymon at the school could be in danger. And if he's not the killer, then it could tip the real one off. We have to know for sure."

"And when we do?" asked Tricky.

"Then we confront him," said Espurr firmly. She was tired of running and slinking around. "We face him and the Coneheads before he can plot anything, and we end it. We have to. Today."

"Together?" asked Tricky. Goomy also looked at her.

"Together," agreed Espurr.

A distant sound met their ears – the clanging of the pingy school bell.

"Alright, everymon front and centre!" The distant, shrill sound of Vice Principal Watchog's voice drifted in from outside the window, catching their attention.

"Berry crackers!" Tricky hissed. "We're late!"

Jerking into motion, Espurr, Tricky, and Goomy scrambled to get out of the library, tripping over as few books as possible on the way out.

"D-do you t-think he noticed we're g-gone?" Goomy asked as they hid and peeked out from behind a bush. Class was being held outside today. They could see Watchog pacing in front of the group.

"Duh! Watchdog's taking role-call today!" Tricky hissed as they snuck up. "Of course he noticed!"

"Let's sneak in and hope he doesn't see us," suggested Espurr. In her experience, Watchog tended to have the observational capacity of a rock. Having an ego as large as his did that to you.

"Alright, listen up!" Watchog barked, returning to his militaristic pace of the outdoor classroom. Espurr, Goomy, and Tricky sneakily filed in behind the group of students, hoping not to be caught. The other three teachers were sitting on seats behind him, looking like they wanted to be anywhere else. Simipour was snoozing.

At the edge of the classroom, where Watchog usually surveyed them, Krookodile stood with a clipboard. Espurr glanced at him uneasily, observing his usual aura of lime-green annoyance with life.

"The final exam before Summer Vacation isn't a cakewalk like the others," Watchog continued. "You're going to be heading into the school's very own mystery dungeon, and you will need to rely on the things taught in my class to clear the dungeon with a passing grade. We only use this dungeon for the exam, so you will deal with things you've only been taught about in books and school."

He suddenly pivoted towards the class, leaning in intensely with a scrutinising eye.

"First rule! Teams of three! Why? Go!"

Deerling raised her hoof. Watchog straightened up and waited expectantly for an answer.

"Three is the proper number for a mystery dungeon team, sir?" Deerling guessed.

"That's correct!"

Blitzle and Ponyta, at Deerling's side, looked extra smug.

"Second rule!" barked Watchog. "Dungeon bag! What's in it? Go!"

Shelmet got that one, hopping up and down.

"Two oran berries, a pecha berry, and an escape orb," he answered proudly. "Easy."

"Wrong!" Watchog barked loudly, nearly jolting him out of his shell. "You forgot the elixir! The paralysis wands! The warp seeds! What's it gonna be like if you're in a dungeon and you run out of those things?!"

Shelmet shrunk back into his shell with a squeak, only his eyes visible. Espurr decided Watchog was enjoying having the floor a little too much.

"Dude," whispered Pancham, nudging his shell. "You actually participate in these things?"

"Third rule!" Watchog returned to his pacing. "What do you do if you get cornered by an enemy? Go!"

Tricky hopped up and down in place excitedly.

"Attack them!" she called out. The sudden spike of green Espurr saw shoot out of her said she'd realised drawing attention to them was a mistake way too late.

Watchog's gaze turned to them, and Espurr froze. Watchog narrowed his eyes, but he didn't say anything.

"Correct. You'll find five bags of supplies in the Principal's office," he said calmly. "Then we'll draw lots for teams. Go on! Get out!"

~\({O})/~​

"I can't believe I'm with Pancham!" Deerling stormed. "And Shelmet! They're both creeps!"

Watchog had quickly shooed them all out of the clinic, and then they went around the back and down the other side of the hill. There, the woods beyond shimmered, refracting the light in strange ways. It seemed to drive away the light, casting the trees beyond in darkness. The faintest hints of something rotting danced in the air, making Espurr's nose flatten with the regret of being able to smell on that horrid day.

"I'm afraid the teams were drawn randomly," Farfetch'd said, fiddling with his leek. "Even if you didn't get the pokemon you wanted to be partnered with, you'll still be expected to work together as a team."

"Well, can't we have a redraw?" Deerling complained. "I work better with Blitzle and Ponyta."

"No redraws!" Watchog cut in. "You know as well as I do this test takes all day," he told Farfetch'd. "And if one student gets a redraw..." He let his sentence hang in the air to draw out the impact.

In the corner, Pancham and Shelmet did a victory dance.

Since Deerling was with Pancham and Shelmet, and all the other teams had been drawn, that left Espurr, Tricky, and Goomy, all late arrivals, on the final remaining team.

No-mon had wanted to team with them anyway. There was an aura of collective relief around the other students.

Audino gave each team one bag filled with all the supplies they'd need, under Watchog's pretense of 'all real exploration teams having only one supply bag'. Espurr, Tricky, and Goomy were handed the ratty bag that Espurr had carried around.

Tricky strongly insisted she was going to carry the bag this time, and eventually all five teams were at the foot of the dungeon, ready to begin the test.

"Just… be careful, okay?" Deerling said to Goomy in the couple of minutes they had before the test. She shot a quick glare at Espurr and Tricky. Goomy reluctantly nodded, and Deerling backed off with a huff to join Pancham and Shelmet.

"Everymon ready?" All heads turned as Watchog and the other teachers walked into the clearing, followed by none other than Principal Simipour himself.

"It's only right that I should be here to see all the students off for the final exam of the Spring Semester," he explained, seeming to notice most of the school was shocked to see him awake and standing.

"Now, I don't wanna hear anything about fights and foul play, you hear me?" Watchog barked. "You encounter each other in the dungeon, you just walk. Away. Your mission is to capture one of the five red flags placed at the dungeon's anchorstone by myself and Farfetch'd last night. Once you have your flag, use the escape orb placed in your bag to leave the dungeon. The quicker you return with your flags, the better your grade. Now go! Shoo!"

Watchog stood back and shooed them all off into the dungeon. Deerling's team went first, and once the entrance had finished warping around the fourth team and had returned to normal, Espurr's team followed.

~\({O})/~​

"You know all the great teams had names, right?" Tricky eagerly pranced about with the exploration bag slung over her back as they walked through the school dungeon. The thick, dark trees extended above them, high into the abstract treetops. The hallways were dark and overcast. It was familiar. "Maybe we could be something like the Adventurous Exploration Squad! Or – ooh – the 'Dungeon Destroyers'!"

"How about Team Troublemakers?!" Pancham yelled back at them. Somehow, they had spawned just ahead.

"Suck it, Pancham!" Tricky bellowed back. Her voice echoed down the shadowed corridor.

Goomy looked frightened of the woods around him, but Espurr was worried for a completely different reason: This was it. This was the forest! The one she had woken up in just a week ago. The one where she had been hunted down by the beheeyem. The one where she had broken her arm. It had been the school's very own mystery dungeon!

And now she was back. What if the Coneheads were back too? A dark thought rustled in her head: they had never discovered where the Coneheads were hiding.

What if they had never left?

She didn't want to risk another encounter if she didn't have to. Espurr cast a look behind them, just in case the entrance to the dungeon might still have been open.

It wasn't. And using the escape orb to magic herself out of the dungeon meant a failing grade from Watchog for sure.

"What's wrong?" asked Tricky as they walked. Espurr was looking around, trying to find any sign of something having been disturbed recently. Dungeons didn't preserve changes for longer than a day, right? So, if anything was out of the ordinary, one stone leaf or blade of grass…

"It's here," said Espurr. "I woke up here. This is where I met the Coneheads."

"They were here?" Tricky asked.

"L-look…" Goomy was looking at a large section of the wall that was different from the others – a tangled mess of plants and roots that had been turned to stone. The three of them rushed over and looked at it. The bag dragged on the ground after Tricky.

"That's new," said Espurr, walking over to inspect. She planted her paws on the stone. It was cold and hard. She looked over at Tricky and Goomy, who had also run up.

"What if they never left?" she asked them. "Whoever's behind this could have been keeping the Coneheads here all this time! It explains why they found me so quick. And no-mon ever uses this dungeon outside of the exam – who would have looked?"

Tricky squirmed uncomfortably at the thought.

"B-but if that's true…" said Goomy. "What if they're still in the dungeon?"

"We have to tell the other teams!" gasped Tricky.

"And the teachers," added Espurr. "At least, the ones we can trust."

She took the bag from Tricky and started to ruffle through it. Once she found the escape orb, she pulled it out and looked at it. Should they go back? What could the teachers outside the dungeon do to call off the exam?

"What do we do?" asked Tricky.

Put on the spot, Espurr came to a decision. She replaced the orb, took the bag from Tricky, and slung it around her neck.

"We should make sure the other students are safe first," she said. "If the Coneheads really are here, they'll be looking for us. And whoever's behind it all might be with them."

Tricky and Goomy nodded. They set off into the dungeon with renewed spring in their step, on a greater mission.

~\({O})/~​

Carrying the bag made Espurr feel safer. She clutched its strap like it was a stuffed doll, or a magic shield that could protect her. A heavy magic shield, but she could cope. She thought she saw Goomy shivering a few times, but for the most part he was busy just sticking with her and not getting himself lost.

Tricky constantly pranced ahead of Espurr and Goomy, peeking around corners for dungeon 'mon and giving them paw signals when the coast was clear. Espurr thought it was dramatic, but it did save them from dungeon apparitions they would have otherwise walked into.

Espurr, Tricky, and Goomy all stopped short at the sound of distant talking to their left.

"I-is it a dungeon 'mon?" Goomy asked.

"No, it's…" over by the corner of the hallway ahead, Tricky craned her neck and squinted her eyes to get a better look.

"…Holy mystery dungeon. That's Pancham's team!" she quickly scampered back to where Espurr and Goomy were standing. "And they're heading this way!"

Sure enough, Deerling, Pancham, and Shelmet were heading straight towards them. Pancham had a threatening saunter in his step, and Espurr's tail bristled. She had the creeping feeling this wasn't going to end well.

"Are you sure we should be doing this?" Deerling lectured Pancham as he strode towards Espurr, Tricky, and Goomy. "You heard what Watchog said – walk away!"

"What Watchog doesn't know won't hurt him," Pancham replied. "This is revenge for the mines."

Shelmet was too busy trying not to get left behind to add anything of substance to the conversation.

"Well, well, well." Pancham came to a stop in front of Espurr, Tricky, and Goomy, who were all standing their ground at the dungeon crossroads. He folded his arms and tapped his foot. "If it isn't the pests. It seems like we've come to an impasse."

"Just drop it, you big meanie!" Tricky yelled at Pancham. Espurr stepped up.

"We don't want a fight," she said, standing between them. "You're all in danger. We think there's somemon in the—"

"You really think I'm gonna fall for that?" barked Pancham. "You're not getting out of this that easily."

Espurr had to resist slapping a paw on her forehead. How dumb could…

"We'll fight you if we have to!" Tricky barked. "Just listen to us!"

"As much as I hate to agree with Tricky, she's right," Deerling said. "You guys all know what Watchog told us. Just walk away!"

"Y-yeah! Listen to Watchog!" Goomy added in from Espurr's side.

"Y-yeah," Pancham mimicked, making a crude imitation of Goomy's voice. "L-l-listen to Watchdog. You guys take your licks, and maybe we'll return your flag in one piece."

"You don't want to do this here," Espurr warned him.

"Yeah, no," shrugged Pancham, cracking his fists. "I really do. You're gonna say you were roughed up by dungeon 'mon after this, right?"

Espurr looked quickly to see if they could flee, but aside from the small, narrow corridor they had come from, there was no other way out. They were in a small, crooked hallway that only went two ways. Pancham had them trapped. Espurr narrowed her eyes and resisted the urge to growl, taking a reluctant attack stance. Did everything have to end with a fight?

Tricky stepped up, staring Pancham dead in the eye. She took an attack stance.

"Guys?" Tricky asked, her tone making it clear that it wasn't a question. "When have we ever listened to Watchog?"

There was a brief moment of silence, as all the students tried to think of a single time that they had ever listened to Watchdog.

"…Good point," Pancham said, and then he rushed forward, his paw rushing with black energy, and punched Goomy clean across the wall.

"DUNGEON WAR!"

Tricky's declaration of war was cut short when she received a rock to the snout, and then everything became chaos. Tricky attacked Pancham. Shelmet attacked Tricky. Pancham attacked them both. Espurr tried to get to Goomy, who was currently trying to make sense of being splattered across the dungeon wall. The exploration bag she was carrying bounced heavily against her side as she ran, and it was hard to keep her balance and dodge the stray debris and attacks from the ongoing fight at the same time.

"Stop this!" Deerling shouted, stamping her hooves into the ground. "Stop this right now! Pancham!" a loose Ember from Tricky hit her square in the face and sent her reeling back.

"U-ugh…" Goomy was still a little dizzy by the time Espurr reached him. She quickly made to grab him – looked for a tangible place to grab – then finally settled for one of his slimy flailing paws. Quietly, they both huddled behind a rock until the fighting subsided.

"That's it! You guys made me do this!" Deerling took a battle stance. She took a deep breath, then charged headfirst at Pancham, Tricky, and Shelmet. All three of them were knocked apart by Deerling's headbutt. Tricky fell on her back, spitting out an ember into the endless canopy in surprise. A tree branch came falling down, and Espurr realized almost too late it was coming down upon her and Goomy—

She did the first thing she could think of. She shunted Goomy out of the way.

Espurr was lucky enough to avoid being crushed by the branch. Her bag was not so fortunate. The contents were crushed under the branch's weight, landing right next to Espurr. There was a bright flash, and then Espurr, Tricky, and Goomy were gone.

The dust settled. Pancham, Shelmet, and Deerling picked themselves up.

There was a moment of silence, as they took in what they had just done.

"Aww,—"

Pancham then said a word that made Deerling gasp in shock.

~\({O})/~​

Dim light slowly trickled into Espurr's eyes. Groggily, she sat up and rubbed them. What happened?

Her surroundings came into focus. She was in a forest clearing, just like… when she'd woken up the first time.

Uh oh.

Espurr stood up quickly, pulling her bag close and looking around. The place was silent and uniform, the canopy abstract, the woods snaking off endlessly.

This must have been the dungeon anchorstone.

There was a pile of pink goo on the ground, slowly slithering together as Goomy gathered his bearings.

"Goomy?" Espurr asked, rushing over and helping him to his feet.

Goomy unscrambled himself and shook his head.

"W-what happened?" he asked.

Espurr's bag rustled with glass shards. She connected two and two quickly.

"I think we broke the escape orbs," she said. "Something's wrong. We're in another part of the dungeon. Where's Tricky?"

They looked around. There was no sign of her.

"W-wait," said Goomy. "Th-this is the anchorstone. Shouldn't we grab the flag?"

Espurr looked around. This very place made her fur stand up on end. She couldn't tell why, but there was something very wrong here. "I don't think we should stay," she said. "There's something wrong about this place—"

She abruptly cut off as she trudged through the dungeon. Espurr and Goomy both yelped as they came face to face with a stone statue!

Espurr jumped back, pulling Goomy with her, then calmed down when she saw it wasn't moving. She crept up to the statue, carefully inspecting it. It was of a small, two-legged dog trapped in mid-run, dangly feelers flying behind it and a terrified look on its face. She stepped back and looked at it solemnly. Was this another of the Conehead's victims?

"I-it's another pokemon, isn't it?" asked Goomy. Espurr nodded.

"I think so," she said softly. "Do you recognise them?"

"N-no," said Goomy. "I-I know the species, though. It's a r-riolu."

"Hey," said a voice from the mist.

Espurr and Goomy turned around, hearing the sound of footsteps coming towards them. Espurr recognised that voice – it was Nuzleaf!

But at the same time… she had a bad feeling. A really bad feeling.

"Hide," she hissed to Goomy.

If Goomy was going to argue it, he didn't after hearing her tone of voice. He managed to roll out of there quick, leaving Espurr standing alone. She watched as a figure got closer and closer in the mist, eventually revealing Nuzleaf striding through.

"Heard ya got lost," he said. "You were out for a while. All the teachers are lookin' for ya. You alrigh'?"

Espurr pushed down her fear, gave him a quick smile, and dusted off her fur. She kept her guard up.

"I think I am," she said. "I… was out for a while, wasn't I?"

"Sure were," said Nuzleaf. "You took one helluva nap there."

He turned around, his green cape swishing behind him. "Well, come on. I think I saw the stairs thataway. Can't keep your friends waitin', can you?"

"Speaking of friends," said Espurr, who didn't move. "Where are they? Are Tricky and Goomy alright? Did you see them?"

"Tricky and Goomy?" asked Nuzleaf. He kept going onwards, Espurr following at a distance. "Yeah, sure. I saw 'em at the finish line with the rest of the class."

Espurr knew that instant he was lying. Her heart sank with disappointment.

"Are any of the other teachers in the dungeon?" she asked, silently looking for a way to bolt around and get back to Tricky and Goomy.

Nuzleaf was hesitant to answer. Espurr could almost sense the gears turning in his head. Was he trying to make up a convincing lie?

"Dunno," he said. "I went in first. Was just so worried, ya know? I'm sure the others'll catch up 'n all soon enough."

He kept trudging, but must have noticed that Espurr wasn't following along.

"Aint'cha comin'?" he asked, turning around. Espurr, who was so close to making her escape, mentally cursed. She was hoping he wouldn't notice her slip away…

"I think I might wait for the other teachers," said Espurr, thinking quickly. "It's better for us all to go out together instead of letting them search, right?"

Nuzleaf turned around fully.

"Well, that's just crazy talk," he said. "I'm a teacher. I'm supposed to keep ya safe an' all. Can't just let ya run off on your own, can I?"

Espurr took a step back. She clutched her bag. Her entire body felt tight and coiled, ready to spring away at any moment.

"You're right," she said, trying to disarm him with a cheery smile.

The moment Nuzleaf turned around, Espurr silently darted off into the woods. Only the rustle of her bag gave her away. She had to get to Goomy and find a way ou—

Something moved in front of her. Espurr skidded to a stop, eyes wide. She saw a flickering yellow light, and a massive, dark figure towered over her. It was a conehead!

She gasped. Espurr brandished her bag and prepared to smack it away—

"I wouldn' do that if I were you."

Nuzleaf was behind her. He walked up and folded his arms, relaxed. With a wave of his fingers, the conehead backed off, remaining silent.

The jig was up.

"Who do you work for?" asked Espurr, turning around and not skipping a beat.

Nuzleaf hummed.

"Smart girl," he said. "You don't miss a beat."

"Answer the question," said Espurr, trying to sound as level as possible.

Nuzleaf laughed. He leaned against a tree.

"This ain't class, kiddo. I don't think you're in a position to ask questions."

"It was you, wasn't it?" continued Espurr. At this point, she was just stalling for time. A quick glance at the woods, disguised as a look back at the Conehead, showed that Goomy must have snuck away. "You were the one who summoned the Coneheads. They killed those 'mon for you.

"Yes, of course it was me," Nuzleaf said dismissively. "Who did you think it was – long-neck?"

"You mean Ampharos?" asked Espurr, tightly clutching her bag. While she stalled for time, she frantically looked for any way out. She so hoped Tricky was alright, and that Goomy had managed to escape… "He was fighting you?"

"Yes, Ampharos," Nuzleaf said sharply. "He likes to stick his nose in places it doesn't belong. Of course he was fighting me."

He snapped his knobbly fingers. "Come on now, Espurr. You were my brightest student, you're smarter than this. It was all I could do to make you think he was the one behind the murders."

"How come?" asked Espurr. "Why murder all those pokemon?"

"So I could get to you," Nuzleaf said. "Isn't it obvious? Couldn't let them take you away, now."

There was a sudden rustling in the distance behind her. Espurr looked back, her heart jumping in fear as she saw a third black figure with a pointy cone hat standing thrice her height in the distance behind her. It didn't move a muscle, but she could feel unseen eyes trained on her.

"They won't bite," said Nuzleaf calmly. "As long as you don't run."

It took everything in Espurr not to bolt right there and then.

"But why do you want me?" she asked, backing up slowly, trying very hard to keep the waver out of her voice. "I'm just a schoolkid. None of us are useful to you."

"Don't sell yourself short," said Nuzleaf. "You're far more than that. And He sees it."

"Who's he?" asked Espurr coolly.

"All in due time," said Nuzleaf. He relaxed his position against the tree.

"Y'know, we're not so different, you an' I," he said.

"I'm not a murderer," said Espurr matter-of-factly. She took another step back. "Or a kidnapper."

Nuzleaf psshed. "I don't take pleasure in that," he said. "Not any more than you do."

He leaned forward.

"What I mean is, we're both from back there. That home you wanna get back to so badly."

Espurr's eyes widened.

"How do you know about that?" she asked in shock.

"Why, I've known from the beginnin'," said Nuzleaf. "Why do ya think I came back? Enrolled at the school just as you got here 'n all? You thought that was a coincidence?"

Though Espurr had taken a few steps back, they were dwarfed by Nuzleaf's steps forward.

"So, you're Human too?" she asked. Somehow, that came as a larger shock than anything. There was more than one? Her thoughts raced. Had Voice been lying to her?

"Yepadoodles," said Nuzleaf. "Grew up on a ranch."

He crossed his arms.

"When I first landed here decades ago, I was just like you. An aimless kid lookin' to find their way in the world. Village took me in, raised me like one of their own, but I never felt home. Never could make friends with any of 'em. In both worlds I was a loser, a midget, a freak. Bullied by others. I didn't have a lick of power to my name in the world where everyone has power. I thought I was broken. But then I met Him.

"At first, He didn't know why I was here. He thought I was an anomaly. But He listened to me when no-one else would. Gave me the power I needed to step up and become a somebody. Didn' need nobody but myself to do it. And now look at me."

He spread his arms, and black power crackled in an arch between them like lightning. "That's power."

"Why are you telling me this?" Espurr asked.

"Well, to be honest, it's because I've grown quite fond of you over this semester," answered Nuzleaf. "And while He wants you dead, I think you're worth more than that. I think you could be powerful. Believe me, Espurr, I don't wanna do this anymore than you do. What's the point? Kill ya, and fer what? When I could teach ya instead?"

Espurr did some of the calculus in her head.

"You'd call off the Coneheads?" she asked.

"Of course," said Nuzleaf. "No-mon else needs ta die. You just come quietly now. You can see your friends again. Ampharos will take the fall, nosy little bugger. We won't even hafta leave the village. You'll just have to do a little favour for Him every once in a while, nothin' big. But think of everythin' you'd gain!"

Espurr couldn't. She wouldn't. She had to find a way out of this, even if that offer was… couldn't she weasel out of it later?

"He senses a darkness within you," continued Nuzleaf. "A fear of rejection and failure. Those are things He could fix. Just like He fixed them for me. I used to be small. I used to be just like you. But He made me what I am now.

"So don't doom yourself to this," said Nuzleaf. "Don't fight the losing battle. Come with me… come with us. And perhaps, when our work is done… He might send you home."

With that sentence, Espurr's resolve swayed slightly.

"You could send me home?" she asked.

"Of course," said Nuzleaf. "If that's what ya want. And all you have to do, the only thing you have to do, is let Him in."

There was still that pull, that want to go back home to the familiar and dull, where there weren't creatures trying to hunt her and terrifying new situations on the regular. But… somehow… nothing he'd promised seemed to tempt her. Not power, not threats, not even wanting to go home.

Espurr's eyes narrowed. She gave him a small smile.

"Thanks, but I think I'm better off where I am," she said. "Sorry."

With that, she swung the bag and let go, sending it flying in the direction of the conehead. She leapt out of the way, letting the bag smack the conehead in the face and sending its attack careening in a random direction.

"Get her!" roared Nuzleaf.

He pointed at her, and the second conehead moved like lightning, blocking her path. Espurr's catlike reflexes kicked in, and she bounced in the other direction, ducking behind a tree as a blast of dark power soared towards her and turned the trunk to stone. She ran past Nuzleaf and headed for Goomy's hiding spot. ducking under the third conehead as it swooped out of the forest and running towards Goomy. She reached him and backed up, the coneheads lunging for them—

Nuzleaf caught Espurr by the neck, raising her up. Espurr's reflexes suddenly gave out, making her go limp and flop over. What was happening? She could only watch in horror as he kicked Goomy away like a ball with a grunt and held her out in front of the Coneheads, who had gathered and started to charge up a blast…

Espurr could feel her heart thumping in her chest, her body still limp. Goomy was still discombobulated. Was this the end?

"Get away!"

A yell from left field caught everymon's attention. It was Tricky! Espurr's heart leapt for joy. She'd never been so happy to see that face!

Tricky bounded forward, flames lashing from between her jaws, jumped up, and attached herself to Nuzleaf's face, making him yell and try to claw her off. His grip loosened enough for Espurr's reflexes to kick back in, and she pulled herself out of his grip. Nuzleaf shook and spun and grabbed and tried to peel Tricky off. Eventually he succeeded, grabbing her by the tail and throwing her on Espurr and Goomy. The three of them tumbled back and fell into a pile.

Nuzleaf stood over them, angry and threatening. Behind him, a conehead charged an attack…

"That's it," hissed Nuzleaf, who was bleeding from Tricky's clawing and spitting. Behind him, the Coneheads stood. Espurr noticed they were charging an attack behind him. Did Nuzleaf know?

"Y'all had your chance," Nuzleaf spat. "I'm gonna make this painful—"

The Coneheads' attack charged and released, heading straight for Nuzleaf—

It was over before Espurr knew it. When she opened her eyes, the dust settling, Nuzleaf was gone. In his place was a stone statue, freezing his expression of rage into place forever.

Espurr, Tricky, and Goomy panted in a pile, looking up at it and still trying to process what happened.

Distant voices floated in from beyond the anchorstone. The Coneheads looked up.

Audino and Watchog approached from a distance. They saw Nuzleaf's statue, frozen in a threatening posture over them. They saw the Coneheads.

And then in a blink, the three shadowy figures had booked it, disappearing into the dungeon's depths with a ghostly whine. Audino rushed over to Espurr, Tricky, and Goomy, pulling them into a quick hug and looking them over.

"Are you okay?!" she asked them. Watchog stood over them, eyeing them for injuries.

"Yes," Espurr panted. "Yes we are."

As she, Tricky, and Goomy huddled into each other, Espurr looked past Nuzleaf's remains into the dungeon, searching for any sign of the Coneheads.

They were gone.

~\({O})/~​

Music of the Week!

The Face of Voldemort – John Williams

 

[SparklingEspeon]

CHAPTER SEVENTEEN: WE LIVE ANOTHER DAY

~\({O})/~​

. . .. . . The entrance to the School Forest warped and spat out Audino and Watchog, followed by Espurr, Tricky, and Goomy. All of them looked quite shabby and beat-up. They were met with the faces of Principal Simipour, Farfetch'd, and the rest of the students. Pancham was there too, looking rather cowed. He couldn't meet their eyes.

"They wanted to wait out here for the students' return," said Simipour, the same sleepy smile overtaking his face. "Who was I to stop them?"

Krookodile stood in the background, hmming and taking notes.

"Come on," said Audino, shooing the three of them forward. "Move along. We've got to get these three to the school clinic."

As Espurr trudged along with the others, carrying her beat-up bag with her, one thing she did notice was that for once in his life, Watchog looked concerned instead of sulky.

"Did we pass?" asked Tricky as they went up to the school clinic. Her voice slumped with exhaustion. They'd all been through the wringer. It was the only thing any of them could think to say.

"I don't know yet," said Audino, leading them on.

They were the only team without a flag, after all.

~\({O})/~​

They spent the rest of the day getting cleaned up and resting in the clinic. Audino refused to let them go until the late afternoon. Espurr bathed and then went through the long process of drying her fur out – she had to get it cut – while watching Tricky fight the very notion of cleaning off.

"Come ooon!" the fennekin whined, struggling and flailing as Audino pushed her towards the bath. "I'm fiiine! I haven't taken a bath in six months and no-mon's complained!"

"You haven't taken a bath in how long?!" questioned Audino sternly. Tricky nervously grinned.

In the end, the fennekin was made to bathe for twice as long as Espurr and Goomy, who sat in the wooden crate happily soaking up as much moisture as he could. Goomy seemed to like baths.

When Tricky finally emerged from the bath, she was peeved and soaking wet. The irate scowl on her face was almost as droopy as her fur, dripping in strings off her flat tail and ears. It made her look almost half her size.

"Don't. Say. Anything."

Smoke was curling from her ears. She growled and padded outside, shaking herself off with a fiery puff.

"You three should count yourselves lucky," Audino warned, giving them each a checkup to make sure they were okay. She locked away her medical supplies in the school clinic's cabinet. "I'm amazed you got out of that with as few injuries as you did. You just might be the single luckiest kids I have ever seen in my entire career. A bill of clean health for all three of you!"

Espurr could tell that Audino was shaken up about Nuzleaf, but whatever she thought, she didn't discuss it in front of them.

Later in the afternoon, the other students' parents came to pick them up. Carracosta came for Tricky, while Goomy awkwardly met his parents - a goodra and a gallade - outside, who fawned over him protectively. He didn't seem to enjoy it.

Since Espurr was back to having no guardians, she just stayed inside the school clinic, where Audino was tidying up. Audino was busy dusting things that barely needed dusting and making beds that were already made. Espurr recognised it as a nervous tic. It seemed like she was trying to keep herself occupied.

"It was Nuzleaf," she said when they were alone, breaking the silence between them.

"What?" said Audino in surprise.

"Nuzleaf tried to feed us to the Coneheads," explained Espurr. "We think he was keeping them in the school dungeon. He was responsible for all of it. He admitted to it all."

Audino didn't answer her for a moment. She just silently cleaned. Espurr couldn't blame her. From the swirl of colours she saw rattling over Audino's head, she could tell Audino was going through a lot.

"Tricky and Goomy will say the same thing," she added. "I wanted you to know."

Audino still didn't answer, but she did stop cleaning for a moment. Espurr thought she sniffled, before she wiped her eyes and ushered Espurr out.

"Go along now," she said. "Join your friends."

And that was the end of it.

Later on, Espurr caught hints of a conversation from behind closed doors.

"We're removing the statue from the dungeon," said Farfetch'd. "It looks like young Espurr was correct. We discovered… evidence that somemon had been living there for a while."

"Living in a mystery dungeon?" that was Simipour's sleepy voice.

"Not only that," said Farfetch'd, "but there were documents from the school in there too, concerning the adoptions. The kind only teachers would know about."

An uneasy silence followed.

"Well, it wasn't any of us," said a scratchy voice. That was Watchog.

"That it wasn't," Simipour agreed. "Any chances of a break-in?"

"I would have noticed a break-in," said Audino.

She paused, then took a breath to compose herself.

"I don't want to believe that about him," she said, her voice sorrowful. "He was always so nice. When I heard he was looking to teaching here, I was…"

She trailed off.

"I recommended him," she sighed.

"It's not your fault," Simipour said comfortingly. Espurr heard him patting her on the back. "How could you have known?"

A chair creaked. Audino must have taken a seat.

"But now… the question remains: what do we do with Espurr?"

Simipour's question was answered with silence, as everymon in the room thought. Espurr pressed her ear to the door, waiting to hear the decision…

"Well, we can decide later," said Simipour. "There are the after-school festivities to worry about, after all."

With a relieved pause, everymon got up from their seats. Espurr, who didn't wish to be caught eavesdropping, made herself scarce fast.

~\({O})/~​

With the test complete, the inspection had finished also. Espurr supposed that with how Watchog's test had gone, and them being a teacher short, the marks weren't going to be very good. The atmosphere was gloomy as the staff and students packed up and left, a dour look on Krookodile's face. He always looked like that, so she decided not to read too much into it. But it didn't feel like a good outcome.

As night fell, a small festival was held in the village square. Kangaskhan was serving food she'd been baking all day, and there was a lot of talking. A small fire had been set in the middle of the square. The entire village had shown up. Espurr, Tricky, and Goomy each grabbed a plate of everything and sat down on one of the logs, talking to each other by the small fire in the middle. After the day they'd had, Espurr felt she could eat an entire building.

Soon after everymon had been fed, Krookodile leaned against a building and folded his arms. Just like before, Espurr couldn't read him. Soon after him came a very strange 'mon. He was an elderly grovyle, flanked by cameras and security-mon. Espurr learned he was the Prime Minister.

When he reached Espurr, he stopped and stared. It was like he saw right through her, but unlike with Nuzleaf, Espurr didn't feel malice.

"Nice to meet you, kids," he said with a smile. Espurr noticed the rest of the class had lined up as well.

He approached the head of the square, surrounded by lights and cameras.

"As your Prime Minister," he began. "It is my honour to represent all parts of this nation, including the small towns like Serenity Village that provide so much for us all. With this in mind, I am happy to report on behalf of Crossings that the school has passed its yearly inspection, in light of exemplary test results and teamwork in the face of complications."

There were cheers from around the square. Espurr, Tricky, and Goomy looked at each other excitedly.

"The school would also like to commemorate three students who were brave in the face of assured danger and worked as a team," continued Rufus. "One of the greatest lessons we can learn in our childhoods is the power of trust in others. To look beyond prejudice, arrogance, and hate, and work together as a team. Students Espurr, Fennekin Tricky, and Goomy have displayed these qualities in spades, and earned particular commendations on behalf of this school's inspector."

Espurr looked at Krookodile in shock. For just a moment, she thought she saw his face curl upwards in a smirk, but it was just for a second.

The festival went on for a couple more hours. Espurr, Tricky, and Goomy conversed and played some games with each other. But through the whole ordeal, Espurr could have sworn the green lizard with leafblades on his wrists never took his eyes off of her.

Sometime after the life of the festival had died down, Audino sat down next to Espurr.

"The school got saved," said Espurr brightly.

"Yes it did," said Audino. Espurr could tell she was masking pain with a smile. She took a deep breath.

"As you know, Nuzleaf was supposed to take you in, before…" she trailed off, then took a sharp breath, as if she was building up courage. "Well. Seeing as that won't be possible anymore, the school… I would like to offer to take you in."

She looked down at Espurr.

"How do you feel about that?"

Espurr smiled warmly.

"I'd love that," she said.

~\({O})/~​

The next day, Ampharos was released from jail. Everymon in the village seemed very hush-hush about it. Espurr, Tricky, and Goomy, who had explained themselves profusely to Officer Magnazone in the aftermath of yesterday's incident, assumed evidence about Nuzleaf from the school must have reached them.

Now that he was free, Tricky was adamant about meeting him at their agreed time.

"Think about it!" she said as they waited. "Don't you want to know who he is?"

Espurr nodded. "He was protecting us the entire time…"

The question was just… why? Why should Ampharos care about them at all? Did he know Nuzleaf somehow?

"Sure," she said. "Let's go."

"Alright!" Tricky whooped with glee, prancing up and shooting a flame into the sky.

Later on, Tricky pulled Espurr aside as they trotted towards Carracosta's house.

“So… I guess you’re going home soon, huh,” she said, almost as if she was scared of Espurr’s answer.

Espurr felt herself start to frown. The truth was… she didn’t know if she was going home anytime soon. If Voice had been lying to her about Ampharos… then perhaps he had been lying about sending her home to begin with. It wasn’t like she’d vanished or woke up anywhere else yet.

But truth be told, when she really thought about it, Espurr wasn't so eager to leave anymore. She was starting to like it here. Nuzleaf was wrong, she decided. She didn't need power, or to go back where she came from, to feel like she had a place. She could make one right here.

“I think… I’m fine sticking around a little bit longer,” said Espurr, conjuring up a small smile. She relaxed her posture, looking at the grass beneath their feet. “Especially with you and Goomy.”

“Really??” Tricky said in excitement.

“Really,” said Espurr.

“Great!!” Tricky exclaimed. “Oh— wait— I wanted you to have this!"

she quickly took one of the blue scarfs off her neck, lassoing it on her nose. She held her head out to Espurr, urging her to take it.

Espurr refused. "You don't have to–"

"I want to!" insisted Tricky. "I haven't had anymon to share these with for… a while.

Espurr thought for a bit, then gently took it.

"I'll take good care of it," promised Espurr. She tied it around her neck carefully. It rested comfortably around her fur. Afterwards, she looked in a nearby puddle of water to see her reflection.

"It looks great on you!" said Tricky, joining Espurr and looking down. Espurr had to agree.

She had been waiting for a sign from Hydreigon. Any sign at all. Now that Nuzleaf was gone… All Espurr could do was wait for another dream.

Truth be told, she was having her doubts about Hydreigon. The knowledge still sat with her, weighing heavy on her head - Nuzleaf had been a Human. Just like her. Only, instead of Hydreigon, he'd been taking orders from… something else. Espurr got the creeping feeling that all of this was much, much bigger than just the Coneheads.

Not to mention, Hydreigon was keeping secrets from her; she just knew it. Espurr just wasn't sure what he was lying about. Could he have been wrong about Ampharos? Wrong about Nuzleaf? Were there more humans and he just didn't know? Was he really as clueless as he claimed to be? Or was he…

Espurr gulped. She hoped he wasn't working with Nuzleaf. Or whatever Nuzleaf worked for.

“Hey, um…” Tricky trailed off awkwardly, breaking her train of thought.

“Yeah?” Espurr asked.

“Whoever you left behind,” Tricky said. “Back home, I mean. I… I hope you get to meet them again. Really!” All of a sudden, Espurr could feel that familiar deep blue nudging at the sides of her vision again. Tricky’s ears were flattened. “It… really sucks when ‘mon leave you.”

“I hope so too,” said Espurr, with a downcast look. “Thanks.”

She couldn’t help but spare a look at Tricky. The dots began to connect in her brain. “Did… somemon leave you too?”

For a moment, Tricky looked forlorn and downcast.

“Well… it doesn’t matter now!” she chirped with manufactured cheer. “We should probably catch up with Goomy. Let’s go!”

And with that, she pranced off before Espurr could so much as even utter a word.

~\({O})/~

Sunset was nearly over by the time Espurr, Tricky, and Goomy made their way up towards the hill with the large tree, where Ampharos had agreed to meet them. As promised, Ampharos was waiting under the tree's branches, a smallish box tucked under his arm. A westward breeze was blowing, causing him to fiddle with his swooshy green cloak.

"We… we made it…" Tricky panted out after she had caught her breath enough to talk.

"So I see," Ampharos responded. "And you brought Espurr and Goomy with you too – how splendid! Although I must admit… I have a bit of a confession to make."

"Confession?" Tricky glanced at Ampharos, tilting her head. "What kind?"

"See, I might have lied when I said there were multiple Expedition Society Memberships…" Ampharos quickly set the box down in front of them.

"Behold!" he declared, opening the box. "One Expedition Society Membership, because one is all you will ever need." Espurr and Tricky gazed inside the box, where a small, hexagonal device sat.

"With this, you can officially register an Expedition Society dungeon team," Ampharos continued. "You just insert the included blue orb, type in the name, save it, and you're good as a gastrodon!"

"Pardon, but, who are you?" Espurr asked, training her gaze on Ampharos. "And why are you giving us this?"

If there was a time for him to fess up, it'd be now.

"Why, dear Espurr…" Ampharos bowed. "You already know the answer to that. I am… the Dashing Wanderer!"

And with that, he threw his cape up flamboyantly, but the wind kicked it up over his face.

"Ah… never mind that," he muttered, muffled as he messed with the garment. He adjusted it into a more comfortable position, batting it down so the wind wouldn't blow it up again. "As of today, you two children can be proud to call yourself Junior Expedition Society Members!"

Tricky was over the moon at the idea of having anything to do with the Expedition Society, and there was nothing Espurr or Goomy could do to calm her down. She pranced around the tree until the sun began to sink a little low into the sky, and even Ampharos had to leave for the night. Soon after, she calmed down, sitting next to Espurr and watching the sun finish sinking.

Espurr looked down at the box, which had been sitting next to her for a while. She pushed it back over to Tricky.

"It's all yours," she said. "I know you wanted it."

Tricky looked down at the box uncomfortably, like she wanted to say something she'd been stewing on for a while. "Um, I wanted to ask…"

She pushed the expedition gadget back, until the box sat an equal distance between her, Espurr, and Goomy. "Do you two want to make an exploration team with me? We'd do things prepared, and…. and only if you want to. You just have to tell me now. I-It's fine if you don't want to."

Her head turned down towards the grass in front of them immediately.

"I just don't wanna do it alone," Tricky quickly admitted, breaking Espurr's train of thought. It was little more than a mutter, nearly silent as she studied the grass beneath her. "I wanna be with a friend or two."

Espurr clutched the straps of her ratty old exploration bag. She thought about it a bit before answering. After all those dungeons in the past few days… she was starting to learn the ropes of it all - perhaps even have a little fun. How bad could it be, really?

"Sure," she said brightly. "I'd love to."

"Really?" Tricky's face lit up brighter than the sun. She looked at Goomy. "What about you?"

Goomy, who had looked uncertain, nodded lively.

"Y-yeah," he said. "I-it'll be fun."

Espurr nodded too, for finality. Before she knew it, Tricky had them both wrapped up in a nuzzling embrace.

"Thankyousomuch!" Tricky exclaimed, wrapping them both tightly in her forearms. "I promise on the tip of my tail, we're going to have the best summer ever!"

They watched the sun slowly setting over the easterly mountains. For right now, there was just the blowing of the wind, the setting sun over the lake, and a quiet peace Espurr hadn't felt before. No matter how terrible Pancham was, how scary the dungeons got, or wherever the Coneheads were lurking, at least she didn't have to face them alone anymore. There were pokemon who could have her back through everything, and that was enough.

Enough to make this new, unfamiliar place feel just a little more like home.

When the sun finished setting and they headed back towards the village, Espurr headed down the forest path towards the school clinic feeling warm, fuzzy, and excited for the day ahead.

Maybe, just maybe, this could be her home. A real home.

~\({O})/~​

?​

Nuzleaf coughed and hacked, his eyes flying open in an instant. There was dust in his mouth. And dust on his arms, torso, and cloak…

He rolled over, heaving onto the sandy ground under him. When he was done, his body calmed down, he pulled himself to his hands and knees in the strange, barren sand. Then he realized something that struck fear into him: the sky was red.

Nuzleaf was on his feet in a second, stumbling back. Was this where the 'mon his beheeyem killed were sent? Everything around him was silent, barren, coated in a faint, sickly red gleam like the sky was withering. Trees were gnarled, leafless ghosts of themselves, and the wind was scented with a faint rotting smell. Red dust blew in on the breeze.

You failed me.

Nuzleaf spun around. Behind him stood… himself.

A carbon copy, cloak and all. But when it moved, its movements looked off, rapid and artificial, like the jerking of a puppet-master's string.

He realized immediately. A fear like nothing else overtook him, gnawing at the edges of his vision, driving him a step away from madness.

"I— I didn't—" he stuttered, falling to his knees, trembling and silently pleading for mercy. "I just— I thought— She might be useful—"

He scrambled back as the other him walked closer, its steps slow and zombie-like, but measured and consistent. His back pressed up against something. It was a large tree. Could he move around it?

But the creature would pounce if he did. Fear, and the twisted echoes of a former trust, kept him planted right where he was.

"No, please—" he pleaded, his voice a whimper as the other him stepped into place only inches away. "Please—"

Its eyes were dead. They were like a void.

I do not offer second chances.

The face split apart, brown, knobbly skin giving way to something underneath, jet black and filled with spines…

Kill.

Nuzleaf's last second alive was filled with abject terror. Then the creature, claws, teeth, and all, pounced.

~~~~\({O})/~~~~

The end of Book I.

~~~~\({O})/~~~~​

Spoiler: Author's Note

And that’s a wrap on book one!

I have always thought that the Serene Village section of PSMD had a good story hiding in it (maybe because I just like small-town stories featuring gangs of kids). Unfortunately, in the game, very few of the village characters got used or expanded on, and since nothing about the plot really kicks off until you’re out of the village, it feels like a slog. With this fic, my goal was to use the large cast of characters better, and also to connect the plot to Serenity Village, so it could be. Entertaining?? I had Audino find Espurr in the woods, rather than Nuzleaf, for that reason (but also to foreshadow that it was the school forest that Espurr wound up in, and not some random woods). It’s also the reason I decided to add Goomy, originally a one-note side character, to Espurr and Tricky’s team, since he fits right in and rounds out their little trio nicely. He got a main character promotion!!

I’ve rewritten and redrafted this book the most out of any section of the fic. There used to be so much more fluff, detours, and povs from side characters, nearly all of it ultimately useless and cut away. This time, I tried to cut it down and keep it as simple as possible. I took a page out of the kids’ mystery novels I used to read as a kid and made the story about Espurr, Tricky, and Goomy slowly coming together as a team while solving a mystery revolving around Ampharos, Nuzleaf, and the Beheeyem.

In terms of differences from the original draft, the Nectar Meadows sequence diverges the most, on account of not being related to Budew or Tricky this time. I ended up diverging from the old draft, which centered that beat around Tricky, to centering it around Espurr instead, which helped bring the whole book together. I went to great lengths to make Espurr a more vibrant character this time, and giving this book to her rather than centring Tricky seemed best.

The other large difference, of course, is getting the Nuzleaf twist out of the way early. I did it partly to pull the rug out from anyone who was still expecting a faithful adaptation of the game, but also because… honestly, his part ends here. In the original draft, he stuck around longer and performed most of his canon role (particularly, leading Espurr up Revelation Mountain), but he was always going to be innocent and a red herring. By the time the story pulled around to Serenity Village again, he would have been irrelevant and I wouldn’t have even screened him much. For this draft, I thought I could use him better and basically made him the arc I villain – with the added benefit of not having dead weight later. You won’t be seeing him again, but expect the Coneheads to stick around…

As always, acknowledgements go out to Windskull (Places We Call Home), Inkedust (Pathway of Arcadia), Namohysip (Hands of Creation), and ShadowVulpi (Broken Ideals), who kindly proofread all of this for me and stopped me from treading in some deep potholes along the way. This fic wouldn’t be what it is without their time and input, and I owe them all greatly. If you’re ever in the mood for more PMD content, check out their works too!

And with that, see you in Book II! If you’ve stuck along all this way, things should only pick up from here.

Music of the Week!

Gryffindor Wins the House Cup – John Williams