Event Collaborative Writing Contest

Forgot to do this earlier, but SkittleBox and I from Lake Acuity are doing the prompt about the character who hates summer

 

...Apparently I didn't read the bit where we had to choose one of the listed prompts... Regardless, @Shindou Takuto, @UnstoppableGamer and I are writing a story that most closely resembles the "Day at the lake/beach" prompt.

Spoiler: Even Legendary Pokémon Need a Pick-Me-Up

Team Galactic, Samantha decided, is full of monsters.

The dark-haired teen sat cross-legged in her modest room, watching as the morning news reporter on TV described the organization’s latest escapade. Supposedly, Team Galactic managed to not only capture the three Lake Guardians – Uxie, Mesprit, and Azelf – but whisk them away to a facility in Veilstone City without authorities noticing. Their actions only came to light after a brave young trainer infiltrated the facility and released the captured Pokémon. Of the several images that flicked on the screen, one caught her eye: a room with three containment units and complex machines. The reported confirmed Samantha’s suspicion that the Lake Guardians were held in those units for some time.

What horrid things had those poor Pokémon experienced? Her stomach twisted as thoughts of cruel experiments came to mind.

The sound of the front door opening brought Samantha back to reality. She switched her TV off and hurried downstairs to greet her brother, Cain, who carried an armful of bags in with him. He was dressed in simple, light clothing in an effort to combat the heat of the day.

“Thanks for getting the stuff,” Samantha said, trying her best to sound perky. Cain set his bags on the counter. One bag tipped over, and its contents – an assortment of Berries that would later become juice – spilled out over the counter, a few of them landing on the floor. Awakened by the commotion, Samantha’s Eevee, Ahri, trotted over and started eating a fallen Oran Berry. She leaned down to pick the Pokémon up.

Cain brushed some of his shaggy brown hair away from his face. “You are still paying me back for all this, right?” he joked. His sister’s downcast look and lack of an immediate witty reply told him everything he needed to know. “I guess you’ve seen the news, then.”

Samantha glanced at him, then lowered her eyes to the snacking Ahri as she leaned against the counter. “How could they do something like that?” she finally asked. “How can they think that capturing and torturing innocent Pokémon is right?”

Cain blinked. “What makes you think they were tortured?”

“What else would they be doing in that lab?” Samantha snapped.

Cain bit back a retort. Arguing with her like this would only make them both angry at each other. “There’re a lot of evil people in this world, Sam,” he finally said with a sigh. “Not everyone has a heart as big as yours.”

A genuine smile crept onto Samantha’s face as she scratched Ahri behind her ears. She remembered the day she’d found the Eevee almost a year ago, weak and injured. By the time she’d nursed it back to health, Samantha had grown too attached to the thing to let it go, and vice-versa. Of the handful of Pokémon she’s helped before, this was the first one she chose to keep.

“Anyways,” Cain eventually said, “if you’re gonna juice those Berries, you should probably get to it. The party’s in a couple hours.”

The party! In her gloom, Samantha had nearly forgotten about the event she’d been planning for weeks. To mark the beginning of summer, she’d invited a group of friends down to Sandgem Town, where she and Cain lived, to have a party on the beach. She should’ve been giddy with excitement, but her mind kept drifting back to the image of the containment units, to Mesprit, to Team Galactic’s cruelty.

Samantha simply couldn’t stand to see Pokémon abused. She had to do something, anything.

And an idea popped into her head.

“We’re moving the party,” Samantha said, letting Ahri jump to the floor as she turned to prepare the Berries.

Cain raised a questioning eyebrow, but said nothing.

Samantha gave him a serious look. “It’s time I returned a favor.”

----------​

Lake Verity was the most peaceful of the three major lakes of Sinnoh in Samantha’s opinion. It wasn’t frigidly cold like Lake Acuity, and it wasn’t as busy as Lake Valor. The breeze that made her yellow sundress flow drew lazy waves across the water’s surface. She couldn’t ask for better weather; not a cloud lingered in the sky, and the heat was perfect. “It’s so beautiful.” Samantha commented, looking around the lake.

She wasn’t there to indulge herself in the scenery, however. She started walking along the lakeshore, repeatedly calling out, “Mesprit! Mesprit, are you there?” Samantha circled the lake, her calls going unanswered by the Lake Guardian. “Poor thing is probably terrified of humans now…” Samantha mumbled, discouraged.

She jumped when she heard a soft voice in her head: I heard you the first time, you know.

Samantha whipped around, searching for the source of the voice. She was met by a white Pokémon with an unmistakable pink head. “Mesprit!” she exclaimed. “Thank goodness you’re okay!”

The Lake Guardian didn’t respond to her relief. Instead, it flew a slow circle around the teen, as if looking her over. No wonder I thought you were familiar, Mesprit eventually spoke. You’ve grown from when I last saw you, um…

“Samantha,” she greeted, stifling a giggle as Mesprit struggled to recall her name. Samantha felt a happiness as she recalled the time she met Mesprit. When she was a child, she slipped into the lake and nearly drowned. It was thanks to Mesprit that she survived.

What brings you to my lake, Samantha? Mesprit asked, finally meeting eyes with her. She noted its tone seemed… reserved, distant. Its mouth, usually turned upwards in a small smile, was level.

“I wanted to invite you to a party!” Samantha answered cheerfully.

A… party? Mesprit inquired, cocking its head to one side. Why would you invite me?

“I want to repay you for rescuing me all those years ago,” Samantha said. She hesitated before she added, “and… because I wanted to be sure you were OK. I heard you were captured by Team Galactic, and--”

No. Mesprit’s voice and expression suddenly hardened. I’m fine.

Samantha took an unconscious step backward. “Are you… sure?” Samantha persisted. “It’ll be fun, I promise!”

I’m fine, Mesprit asserted, its golden eyes narrowing. Samantha could almost feel the anger that burned within them. I don’t need help, especially from a human, and I have no interest in parties. The Lake Guardian turned away to face the small island in the middle of Lake Verity. Its little body seemed tense. Just… leave me. Go to your little party already.

“About that…” Samantha chuckled nervously. “The party’s going to take place here in about an hour.”

…Very well, Mesprit conceded after a moment. It seemed to relax slightly, as its head and twin tails drooped. Its voice softened as well. You may have your party on my lake if you insist, but I will not be joining you.

“You’re… really not going to come?” Samantha sulked.

No, the Lake Guardian said with a shake of its head. I… want to be alone for a while. With that, Mesprit drifted towards the cavern that stood atop the island in the middle of Lake Verity, leaving Samantha alone on the lakefront.

Discouraged, she returned to Cain, who was busy bringing in and setting up the party supplies. “No luck?” he asked as he dumped a bag of ice into a tub that would later hold drinks.

Samantha only shook her head.

“Can’t say I’m surprised,” Cain shrugged. When he noticed his sister’s face scrunching up, he quickly added, “But hey, who knows? Maybe once people start showing up and the fun begins, Mesprit will realize what it’s missing out on.”

At that, Samantha perked up. “You think so?” she asked, sounding hopeful.

“Absolutely,” Cain said. “C’mon, let’s get changed. We have about an hour.”

----------​

Three years ago, Cain challenged the Pokémon League. He defeated the Gym Leaders with relative ease, but struggled against the Elite Four. Only once had he managed to face off against Lucian, the final obstacle before the Champion, though it did not end well.

Against his initial better judgement, Samantha joined Cain on his journey around Sinnoh. She was his companion, his cheerleader, and – more than he cared to admit – his rock. Throughout his journey, the two made many friends. This party would be the first time either of them would see those friends in quite some time.

As stories were shared, cool drinks were served, and fun was had by both Trainer and Pokémon alike, Samantha’s worries about Mesprit melted away. She remembered why she’d looked forward to this day for weeks.

“So Sam, has your brother found a girl yet?” Cassidy, a bubbly blonde from Jubilife City asked the question. She lounged on an inflatable Mantine, and her thin neon-orange bikini made it clear she was looking for attention.

Samantha glanced at Cain, who acted as a barista of sorts, serving cold juices and smoothies to whoever wanted them. He wore a pair of navy swim trunks and a cream-colored shirt that had a beach scene on the front and “Aloha from Alola!” on the back. The shirt was a gift from Samantha and Cain’s parents, who were vacationing in the tropical region.

“No, not that I know of,” Samantha answered. In their travels, she’d never seen Cain try to flirt with any of the women they met, though several had tried – unsuccessfully – to make moves on him.

“Maybe it’s because you’re practically attached to his hip,” quipped Julie, a remarkably tan brunette from Sunyshore City. She floated on her back and wore what Samantha assumed was a competition swimsuit.

“I am not ‘attached to his hip’!” Samantha retorted. Julie snorted. “I just like spending time with him, that’s all.”

“Uh-huh,” Cassidy mused. She took a sip of her Pecha Berry smoothie before saying, “Honestly Sam, you need to find yourself a man. You’re what, 17 now? And you still haven’t had a boyfriend? What are you waiting for, girl?”

“I don’t think the number of boyfriends you’ve had is a thing to keep score on,” Samantha said with a smirk. She knew how frivolous Cassidy could be with men. “Besides, I’m not interested in looking for one right now.”

Cassidy apparently ignored both comments as she said, “Y’know, the best place to look for handsome men is a swim party like this. Let’s see if there’re any good ones here.” She repositioned herself on her inflatable so she laid on her stomach, one hand propping up her head. “How ‘bout that one, right side of the volleyball net?”

Samantha glanced over to the makeshift net someone had brought. Two pairs of people were playing, a with a man and woman on each. On the right side of the net was a dark-skinned, well-built young man. “Pretty sure he’s taken,” Samantha noted, eying the man’s teammate, an equally dark-skinned girl.

“Hm, you’re probably right,” Cassidy mused. She scanned the party-goers on the lakefront for a minute before finding another subject. “Ooh, the guy chatting up Cain looks cute.”

Samantha studied the man who, judging from the size of his muscles, must have been a bodybuilder. He was walking away from Cain at the time. She shook her head, but Julie stole the words out of her mouth: “Cassidy, not everyone has a thing for outrageous muscles, you know.”

Cassidy scoffed, “You’re both hopeless.” She sipped her smoothie, idly looking at the group some more. “Say, who’s the girl talking to your brother?”

Samantha perked up at that question. She eyed Cain’s little station once again, and soon she found a distinct head of dark-blue hair. She almost didn’t believe her eyes. “Dawn!” she shouted, waving her arms extatically.

The girl heard her name called out, and after finding Samantha, said some final words to Cain. She ran over to the edge of Lake Verity and greeted, “Hey Samantha! Long time, no see!”

“I had no idea you were gonna be here!” Samantha said. “I don’t remember giving you a call about this.”

“That’s because your brother invited me,” Dawn said, pointing a thumb over her shoulder.

Samantha blinked. “Really?”

“Of course I did,” Cain said as he walked over. The color of the drink in his hand was almost the same as Dawn’s hair. He offered it to her. “Oran Berry smoothie. Thought you might like it.”

Dawn accepted the drink and took a sip. “Mmm, you thought right,” she said with a grin. “It’s just what I needed.”

“I bet you have some awesome stories to share from your adventures,” Samantha said, eager to catch up with her friend.

Indeed, Dawn had a wealth of stories to tell. As the sun dipped in the sky, she spoke of her time as Professor Rowan’s assistant, a rare opportunity that she fully took advantage of. She spoke of her travels throughout the region and her battles with the Gym Leaders. To Samantha, the most important stories involved Lucas, the boy who lived in Twinleaf Town. Dawn told of Lucas’ success against the Gym Leaders and his confrontations with Team Galactic. Samantha listened with great interest as Dawn explained how he infiltrated Team Galactic’s headquarters and freed the Lake Guardians.

She, Lucas, and Dawn were all around the same age and practically grew up together. For the first time, Samantha realized Lucas wasn’t in attendance. “Hey, is Lucas coming, by chance?” she asked Dawn after she finished her story.

Dawn shook her head. “I tried to convince him to take a day off and relax. He’s too focused on catching Team Galactic and defeating the Gym Leaders.”

“What’s Team Galactic up to, anyway?” Cain asked. “If they’re willing to steal three Legendary Pokémon, they must be up to something big.”

“I have no idea,” Dawn admitted, “but you’re right. Whatever it is, it can’t be good.”

The talk of Team Galactic left all three of them in a deflated mood, so Samantha switched the topic to Contests. She hoped that by keeping the atmosphere of the party cheerful, Mesprit would eventually cheer up and reveal itself.

As the sun set on the horizon, the only people left at Lake Verity were Samantha, Cain, and Dawn. The three of them cleaned up after the rest of the partygoers under a scarlet sunset. Normally, Samantha would marvel at the scene, but she hardly felt like doing so.

Her plan had failed. Mesprit never showed up.

“I really thought this would work,” Samantha mumbled to herself. She sat on the lakeshore, looking out at the small island at the lake’s center. Her heart felt heavy in her chest. What had she done wrong? Were there not enough people, was the party not fun enough? What more could she have done? She almost felt like crying. “I’m sorry, Mesprit… I barged into your home when you wanted to be alone. Having my party here was a mistake…”

Nonsense, a soft voice whispered in her head.

Samantha blinked, eyes wide. “Mesprit...?”

The Lake Guardian drifted into her view, a small smile on its face. I should be the one apologizing, it said. I let my penned-up anger get the better of me earlier. I should not have been so cold to you. I enjoyed the party you held on my lake.

“But... I never saw you,” Samantha said as she stood.

I… didn’t want to interrupt and cause a scene, Mesprit conceded. Humans tend to get overly excited when a Legendary Pokémon reveals itself. Besides, I felt a wealth of positive emotions from your group. That’s all I really needed.

The Lake Guardian drew close to Samantha and met her eyes. I was so consumed with anger and negativity that I forgot how it felt to be happy. You made me feel those emotions again. For that, you have my gratitude.

Samantha beamed, tears of joy threatening to well in her eyes. “I’m glad I could help you, Mesprit.” She brought the small Pokémon in and hugged it tightly. “I probably should’ve asked before hugging you,” she mused after a moment, feeling a pang of guilt.

It’s quite alright, Mesprit giggled.

Eventually, the two bid each other good night, and Samantha returned home with a glowing smile on her face. She’d never felt happier in her life.

Spoiler: Credits

The whole team had a hand in idea generation and story progression. @UnstoppableGamer and I did most of the writing, while I revised the whole piece. Because @Shindou Takuto was moving early in the month, he/she couldn't help with the writing too much.

 

SyWry and Torian680 are doing the waterfall prompt.

Story: Hidden Meadow

Spoiler

Sunlight pierced the heavy green canopy to dapple the forest floor. The gentle breeze wove through the gnarled branches carrying the luscious melody of bird Pokémon with it. Thick underbrush hid any hint of a path. Wild green Deerling’s grazed peacefully on the foliage.

A rustle in the bushes caused the Deerling’s to dart away.

“This is amazing!” A boy cried out, disturbing the tranquility. He walked through the forest with his four friends in tow.

“Technically, shouldn’t we be heading off to the beach in the summer time Daniel?” One of the girls said with a Reuniclus close behind.

“Where’s the fun in that Caly?” Daniel replied, his Togekiss mirroring his movements, “Why follow everyone else when you can forge your own path. In woods, where no one has gone before.”

“He is kinda right Cariline,” another boy spoke timidly, holding a dormant Cherrim, “it was getting a bit crowded hunting treasure in Undella town.”

“Your too much of a pushover Ben,” another girl spoke as she charged through the thicket, Darmanitan following behind her, “If it were up to me, I would have gone right up to them and made them leave. If they didn’t want to, I would battle them for it.”

“Mady, that would never end well,” Cariline said in a dry tone.

“A girl can dream!”

Chuckles filled the group.

“Don’t worry everyone, summer can be fun anywhere! Let’s just stick together and conquer this forest!” Togekiss cheered at Daniel’s statement.

“Yeah!” Mady cheered with her Darmanitan.

“Yea,” Cariline spoke with no inflection.

“Yeah…” Ben whispered with his Ralts and Pichu behind him.

The land started to rise as they walked.

“Hmmm, what’s this?” Daniel asked as he stepped on the jagged black earth.

Cariline took a closer look, “Volcanic rock. Looks old though. We must be near a volcano.”

“Perfect!” Mady said, “We just follow this flow to the source and we can fight some strong Pokémon at the top of the mountain.”

“I’m not sure that would be very safe,” Ben said with worry.

“Exploring a mountain where no one’s ever been before,” Daniel said with enthusiasm, ignoring Ben’s warning, “sign me up!”

Mady, Daniel and their Pokémon charged through the forest.

Cariline and Ben stumbled after.

The group headed towards a rise that stretched out through the forest in either direction. Stopping at its base, they all looked down at a hole partially covered by foliage. The opening was a little larger than they were and pitch black.

“Ooo,” Daniel said in a sing song voice, “what’s down there?”

“Lampent, go check it out,” Mady threw a Pokéball into the dark cave.

The Lampent exited the Pokéball in a blinding light, then illuminated the cave with its ghostly purple flames.

The cave was far deeper than they had anticipated, reaching several meters down.

Cariline inspected the cave from the safety of the entrance, “This looks like a lava tube. Probably a couple hundred years old.”

“Let’s go down there!” Daniel hurried onto the back of his Togekiss and flew down.

Mady jumped in with her Darmanitan.

Cariline sighed, “We should probably follow them.”

“Is it safe?” Ben asked trembling, “lava won’t pour on us if we head down there, will it?”

"It’s an empty lava tube. We wouldn’t find it if it was full of lava.”

“Okay…” He said sheepishly. His Ralts and Pichu tried to comfort him.

“Reuniclus, take us down,” Cariline’s Reuniclus nodded and slowly lifted them down into the cave.

Mady’s Lampent only illuminated a small section of the tunnel and the light wasn’t strong enough to reach the ceiling meters above.

“Wow! This place is huge!” the walls amplified Daniel’s voice.

Mady yelled, “Echo,” and the walls replied, “Echo, Echo, Echo…”

Ben held Cherrim tighter as he shivered, “This place is cold and scary.” The calm gurgle of a stream caught his ears. He looked down to see a small creek flowing through an indentation in the floor at the center of the cave.

Ben set Cherrim down in the water for a second. It stirred and seemed to enjoy it.

“Whatcha doing Ben?” Daniel then noticed the stream, “A creek?”

“Creek?!” Mady nearly shouted as she rushed to their sides. She examined the water for a moment. “That way!” She pointed deeper into the tube.

“Why that way?” Cariline asked.

“Because, if you want to go up a mountain, then you go the opposite way the water’s flowing.”

“We’re still going up the mountain?” Cariline tiredly asked.

“Yep. Onward,” Mady marched up the tube with her Lampent in front.

We had no choice but to follow or be stranded in the pitch black.

*****​

The tunnel was freezing. They all had to stick close to Lampent to stay warm.

“I didn’t expect the floor to be so rough,” Daniel said.

“What’d you expect, a city street?” Cariline’s condescending tone filled the corridor.

“Well, I just thought it would be like a frozen lake.”

“Lava doesn’t work like water,” Cariline replied.

The ground rumbled.

“Are you sure it’s inactive?” Daniel asked.

“We wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t,” Cariline replied.

The ground rumbled again.

“That’s a Pokémon,” Mady said with enthusiasm, “Get ready Darmanitan.”

The rumble turned to thuds that came closer with each passing moment.

“TYRANITAR!” The huge green beast screamed.

“It’s a Tyranitar!” Ben cried.

“Careful Mady,” Cariline yelled, “it’s a rock type, Darmanitan is weak to it.”

“I’ll help,” Daniel chimed in with his Togekiss.

“Don’t worry, I got this,” Mady said with confidence, “Darmanitan, Fire Punch!”

The Darmanitan lunged at the Tyaranitar, it’s fist aflame.

The Tyaranitar caught the flaming fist with its hands and ignored the damage it took.

The beast threw the Darmanitan into the wall and used Payback.

“Use Swagger!”

The Darmanitan used Swagger and confused the Tyaranitar.

The beast started mindlessly slamming into walls.

The ceiling started to shake.

“Uh, Mady?” Ben said with worry, “you might want to end this quickly!”

“Yeah, yeah, I’m on it. Use Work Up!”

The Darmanitan beat its chest and screamed in the cave.

“Now Hammer Arm!”

Darmanitan brought its arm up and, with a resounding crash, fell on top of the Tyaranitar.

The whole cave shook as the ceiling collapsed around us and blocked the tunnel in both directions.

“Great,” Cariline groused, “Now we’re trapped.”

“Hold on, hold on, I’ll get us out of here, Hammer Arm!”

Darmanitan hit the wall with its arm. The entire room shook and more boulders fell from the ceiling.

“STOP IT MADY!” Ben screamed through the shaking.

Everyone stood motionless, the only thing breaking the silence was the sound of stray pebbles dropping from above. Dust filled the air.

“Mady, sometimes you have to learn to use your head rather than your fists,” Cariline said as she walked over to the pile of boulders. “Reuniclus use Psychic.”

A pink aura enveloped the Reuniclus and the boulders were lifted further down the tunnel.

The Tyaranitar tried to get up.

“Oh, up for more?” Mady said, eager to continue the fight.

“Mady, stop!” Ben rushed to the Tyaranitar’s aid.

“Ben get away! It might hurt you!” Mady yelled.

Ben ignored the warning and pulled out a super potion. He applied the medicine.

The beast got its feet under it and glared down at Ben.

“BEN!” Daniel screamed.

Ben held his dormant Cherrim a little tighter, but stood firm, “Please, we mean no harm. Why did you attack us?”

The Tyaranitar did not waver.

Ben’s Pichu and Ralts stood by his side. “We were just exploring, we didn’t know you lived here. Please forgive us.”

It continued to look down at the four children for what seemed like an eternity. Then it slowly turned around and walked back the way it came.

The group of four followed.

The Tyaranitar turned into a side room.

Three little Larvitar’s greeted the Tyaranitar upon entry.

“It’s a mother,” Cariline stated.

The three babies darted out of the room to play in the water in the main tube.

“How’d you know Ben?” Mady asked.

Ben said with a smile, “I didn’t.” He left a bowl of Pokémon food near them.

The group walked off, following the water’s edge further into the lava tube. It grew steeper with each step.

*****​

“Man, this tunnel feels like it goes on forever,” Daniel said wiping sweat off his brow.

“We’ve barely traveled any distance, in lava tube standards. It would make things better if we weren’t walking up at a 45-degree angle.”

“If I didn’t know better,” Mady panted, “I’d say we were climbing the mountain itself.”

The halls themselves started to close in. The four of them had to wade into the creek as the tunnel got smaller. The water was freezing and quickly numbed their legs.

“I think I see light!” Daniel rushed towards the source of the light.

“Yea! We’ve made it!” Mady ran to catch up with Daniel.

“You guys are so reckless,” Cariline sprinted to catch up.

“Hey wait for me!” Ben stumbled after them.

All four of them ran out of the cave entrance. A beautiful sight greeted them.

A huge grassy meadow stretched across the inclined plain before them. Flowers of all types bloomed, creating a rainbow of color. The stream cut a path down the incline. At the water’s edge, a lone tree offered shade. The stream started at a pool at the top of the clearing that was fed by a waterfall from the cliff above. Above the falls, fresh snow glistened in the light of the sun. The sharp snow-covered peak of a mountain could be seen rising beyond that. Small Pokémon of all types frolicked in the field.

“Wow!” Daniel said in awe, “I’ve never seen a place like this!”

Ben turned to see the way they had come and was mesmerized, “Guy’s…look at this,” he said in hushed awe.

They gazed at the stunning view of Unova laid out before them. From the skyscrapers of Castelia City to the rough mountains of the Pokémon league. They could see all Unova from this mountain.

“This place is breathtaking…” Cariline whispered.

Ben’s Cherrim started to stir. It then unraveled from its dormant state into its proper pink and yellow floral state. The little Cherrim bounced out of Ben’s hands and rushed into the grassy field.

“Cherrim’s got the right idea,” Mady said. “Let’s not stand here gawking, let’s have some fun!”

“YEAH!” The group yelled in unison.

*****​

The moon shined high in the sky. The stars twinkled like fancy accessories to the glowing orb. The four kids and their Pokémon laid under the lone tree. They listened to the calm night and the distant splashing of the small waterfall. Most of the Pokémon were asleep.

“Best vacation ever!” Mady said softly, “I’m glad we left Undella. This is so much better.”

Daniel kept his voice low, “We should come back here every summer.”

“I second that.”

Ben nodded, “I’d like that too.”

Cariline was asleep.

“We should pack up and leave in the morning,” Daniel said.

“Since Cariline isn’t awake to say it,” Ben said, “I’ll ask, how will we get down?”

Daniel smiled, “Togekiss should be able to give us a ride down to the bottom of the mountain. For now, let’s put our worries aside and enjoy our remaining moments up here.”

The two stared up at the starry night.

A light streaked over the blackness.

“A shooting star,” Ben whispered enthusiastically, “Did you see that Daniel?”

His words were met by the soft slow breaths of slumber.

He clutched his dormant Cherrim and felt the warm presence of his Pichu and Ralt pressed against his sides.

His wistfully whispered words floated into the night, “I wish we could stay here forever.”

Spoiler: Each Member's Contribution

Torian680 dropped out during the contest and was only able to contribute the Pokémon that Ben used.
SyWry made the rest of the story

 

Man, I'm freaking late. Me and @Arc1Dragon are being risky, combining two prompts into one. Summer Camp and Character who hates the summer. It took very long because I didn't know if it was agreed on. I'm already kicking myself about this.

OUR ENTRY:

Spoiler: True Meaning of Summer

True Meaning of Summer

By HeroofFire101 and Arc1Dragon

Southeastern Summer Camp, a Pokémon themed summer camp. This summer camp is sponsored by the Southeastern Unovian Academy, with campers ranging from the ages of 5 to 16, with counselors ranging from 14 to 18 years of age. Nestled between Striation City and Accumula Town, it has from beautiful ponds and lakes to forests filled with Pokémon, from Patrat to the rare dragons of Unova. The aim of this summer camp is to introduce kids from all ages to Pokémon and how to take care of them properly, and how to respect them. Sometimes an owner of a Pokémon Ranch, where Professor Cedric Juniper and his daughter get the starter from, helps to teach these kids about Pokémon and how to take care of them. About every year, the owner’s kids, all three of them girls, help out as counsellors to the campers. His middle daughter, Lindsey Stirling,17, is currently a counselor at the camp. Around 2 years ago, she made friends with a little girl, whose name was Hannah White, then 3, and they became quite a pair. It was later learned that Hannah had a form of Autism called Asperger’s Syndrome, with hints of High-Function Autism, along with ADHD. A very strange diagnosis for a very strange, advanced, child. Right now, Hannah is going to Southeastern Summer Camp and is in the same group as her friends Cheren Huntington and Bianca Graham. By the grace of Arceus, her group was run by Lindsey herself, which made Hannah extremely happy. One day, however, Hannah senses something strange...


Hannah White’s P.O.V

The sounds of Southeastern Pokémon Summer camp were behind me, as I walked through the local woods of Southeastern Unova near Striation City. Mommy dropped me off here where my friend Lindsey was, making sure everyone who was here for the day camp. Lindsey's a counselor here, and I like to stick with her. But not right now, because I feel something out in the woods currently. Something strange that felt like emotions, knowledge, and will. I ventured further into the woods, sensing this odd feeling. I wonder why do I sense this? Does it have to with me talking to Dialga?

I walked through the woods when I find three Pokémon, all levitating above the ground, and all of them different colors. One was blue, one was yellow, and the third one was Pink. They all looked different but it seemed like they knew each other. The blue one and yellow one were talking to the pink one, who looked kind of sad and upset, like when my mommy looks like when she had a bad day at the hospital.

“Hi there. I felt you guys out here in the woods, so I went to check it out.” I said, greeting these three Pokémon in front of me. I faced the pink one and asked, “Why are you upset? I can see it on your face?”

“Hello there young child. I am Azelf, Being of Willpower and Guardian of Lake Valor. May I ask, how you can sense us?” The blue asked me.

“I don’t know, I just do. Is it because I sometimes talk to Dialga in my head sometimes?” I said, cocking my head confusingly.

All three of them got a taken back look as they looked at me. “You can talk to Lady Dialga? Just who are you, young child?” The yellow asked me.

“Oh, my name is Hannah White. I’m the descendant of the Hero of Truth, Richard White! I can talk to Pokémon like you three!” I proudly said, inadvertently making a white dragon markings glow on my right forearm. I saw that, and muttered, “Not again…”

The three Pokémon whispered among themselves. I couldn’t understand them, but I caught some words, like, “It can’t be.” and “Is she really…” and “There’s no mistaking it, ...one of the chosen...” What does this ever mean? It was then the one called Azelf turned to me and spoke. “Young one, we are the legendary Pokémon of the Three Lakes of Sinnoh. This is Uxie, the being of Knowledge and Guardian of Lake Acuity,” Gesturing to the yellow one, “And this stubborn one is Mesprit, the being of Emotion and Guardian of Lake Verity, who is currently being extremely stubborn about what we are trying to discuss.”

“What exactly were you discussing, anyway?” I asked the Lake Trio.


“Mesprit spends all of her time in her cave. She needs to go out and enjoy summer and all the fun things you can do!” Gesturing to me.


“I told you no matter what i will not go out and enjoy summer! It’s incredibly hot out and there are Joltik and Venipede everywhere here and back in Sinnoh there’s even more!

“Not all Pokémon are pests.” I said, crossing my arms, “There are people out there who think that Joltiks and Venipede are very good Pokémon. Yes it’s hot, but it doesn’t bother me. And yes, there are bugs out, but as long as I have my Charmander, Pikachu, and Dratini with me, I’m fine. Ricky can use Ember on them to get them away from me.”


“Still, if it wasn’t extremely hot and the bugs didn’t bother me what would I do then? It’s not like I can just go to something like a summer camp like most humans do.”

“Hey! I am at a summer camp right now! It’s right back there!” I said, pointing behind me, “It’s a summer camp with Pokémon, and that’s where we get to learn how to treat them like our friends. My best friends Lindsey, Cheren and Bianca are all over there and we’re learning how to take care of Dragon Types today, like Lindsey’s Zweilous Delegado. Drayden of Opelucid is here too to help. Any and every Pokémon are welcome to the camp, that’s what Cedric said to us at the beginning.”


“Come on Mesprit! We all should go! We can learn all sorts of things!” Uxie encouraged.


“Of course you want to go to learn things.” Joked Azelf

“Hey, if Uxie wants to learn, then Cedric would be ecstatic about you coming. He likes to study the history of Pokémon. His daughter Aurea is studying the Biology of Pokémon.” I said, remembering his lectures to me. I love learning about Unova and Pokémon. It’s so cool.


“I guess we could go… But don’t think i suddenly like summer!”

I thought about Mesprit’s words, and said, “Summer to me is about having fun with your friends and family.” As I said this, the white dragon marking glowed white again. I took a deep breath, and continued, putting my truth into my words. “Summer is about having adventures, exploring different places, learning about things you don’t learn about in school. Summer is about friends and family hanging out and having fun together. To me, Summer is not about the hot temperatures or the bugs. Summer is about being together with your friends and family all while having fun in the sun, as Lindsey puts it. Summer to me means more time with Lindsey, being on her dad’s ranch, playing with Ricky, Brandon and Lucy with Lindsey, Melody, and Delegado, and being with my mommy and little brother. Mesprit, what is your thoughts on summer? What is your truth on summer?” Lacing my truth into my words. I understood that I could see the truth of people and Pokémon, and while Mesprit was reluctant about her beliefs on summer after I said my words. Mommy and Lindsey were right about I have to think about my words, because I could draw out the truth of others with them. After I said all this, Azelf, Mesprit, and Uxie were just looking at me, with odd, dumbfounded expressions. I looked at them, and said, “What? Why are you looking at me like that? Did I do something wrong?”



Mesprit’s P.o.V.


“What? Why are you looking at me like that? Did I do something wrong?”


“No it's just that we're never seen a human draw out the truth of a legendary Pokémon, since our power can usually counteract other powers.” Said Azelf.

“Oh.” Hannah said, sheepishly rubbing the back of her head, “It’s a family ability. My family can see the truth in others, People and Pokémon. Mommy told me once that if I concentrate on my words, I can lace truth in them and us my truth to reveal another’s truth.”


I kept thinking about the words the girl said to me. Each word had a meaning behind it.


Summer to me is about having fun with your friends and family

Summer is not about the hot temperatures or the bugs.

What is your truth on summer?


“What is my truth on summer? The hot temperatures. They bring warmth to the ones that are cold. The bugs. They inspire to spread our wings like a Butterfree. Our friends. They get together with each other and have fun. Our families. They encourage us to be strong and to have Valor, Verity, and Acuity. I think I understand now. Summer isn't just about the negative things like the heat and bugs. It's the positives that makes summer what it is.”


“Well yeah.” The little girl smiled, “May I ask, what does Valor, Verity, and Acuity mean? I mean, from some books I’ve read, each word has a meaning, and when you use them to your advantage, you can do many things with them.”

Then a teenaged girl with brown hair and an Oshawott on her shoulder shouted nearby, “HANNAH, WHERE ARE YOU?? I’VE BEEN LOOKING FOR YOU FOR AWHILE! YOU NEED TO GET BACK HERE SO WE CAN START TODAY’S ACTIVITY!!”

Hannah jumped up in startlement. “Oops. That’s my friend, Lindsey. She’s an amazing Pokémon Trainer. She raised a Dieno she named Delegado from an egg, and it evolve into a Zwelious not too long ago. And she saved Melody, the Oshawott, from a poacher’s trap. I didn’t tell her that I went out in the woods. I have to go to her, so hope to see you later!” And Hannah ran off to her friend, leaving them alone.


“So Mesprit are we going to go to the summer camp she mentioned?” Asked Azelf


“Of course we are! Let's follow her to the camp!” I cheered.


As they came up, they heard the teenaged girl named Lindsey speak to Hannah, “Thank the gods I found you! Everyone was worried you got lost!”

“I wasn’t lost, I felt something out in the woods! And I found three Pokémon!” Hannah said, not blantenly giving us away, “One didn’t like summer that much, but I did what you and mommy said I could do. I used my words and put my truth within them!” Smiling up to the older girl.

Lindsey laughed. “Well I guess you changed their mind with your truth, Hannah. Now come on, Drayden’s waiting!” As she took Hannah’s hand. They walked a short path when they came up out of the woods and into the bright fields of the camp.

We followed the two girls to the camp trying to remain hidden. I was excited for some reason perhaps it was because I have never been to a summer camp before.

Lindsey led Hannah to a group of children, and we saw Hannah let go of Lindsey’s hand and run towards two children, one boy with big glasses and dark blue hair and one girl with bright blonde hair. Hannah started talking to them animatedly while the teenaged one watched over them. All over I saw children of multiple ages, all with older children watching them. There were several adults around as well, and we noticed two older men coming up to them, one with a scholarly look to him, while the other one stood tall, and had a dragon-like motif to him. “Ah, you found her. Thank you Lindsey, and now that everyone is here, we can start today off with some Dragon Pokémon!” The scholarly one said, throwing his hands up in excitement. All the children, similarly aged, screamed in excitement, while Hannah jumped a bit and covered her ears. “Now now, children. Be mindful of the other Pokémon around here, especially Dragon Pokémon. They can be set off by shouts like that.” The other children calmed down and settled down to watch the scholarly one. Hannah took her hands off her ears as well. “Now today, to help us with our lesson, we have the Dragon Master of the Unova League, the Opelucid City Gym Leader, Drayden!” The Scholarly one introduced the other man.


“Ooo that guy looks like an experienced trainer. Perhaps we could battle later!” Said Azelf has he imagined an intense battle between him and the gym leader.


“Be quiet Azelf! I want to hear what he says!” Whispered Uxie.


Hannah jumped a bit, and look towards us. Somehow, she saw us, and got a wide eyed expression. She started making strange motions with her hands to us, and we didn’t know what she was doing. Lindsey noticed as well, and went up to her, and made the same motions as Hannah. It looked like they were communicating somehow. Lindsey made a frustrated expression, and turned Hannah’s head toward Drayden, and made the same motions with her hands probably telling her to pay attention to him. Meanwhile, the gym leader spoke. “Thank you for the introduction, Cedric. Yes, I am a Gym Leader, but I am also a Dragon Master. I train Dragon Type Pokémon, as one expects of a Gym Leader. But I also help educate potential trainers on Dragon Types. Now who here has seen a Dragon Type?”

Hannah raised her hand, and Drayden picked her. “I have seen a Dragonair and I actually have a Dratini, and she is with me today as well in her Pokéball. And Lindsey has a Zweilous as well! Do you want to meet Lucy, my Dratini?”

Drayden laughed. “Well, you’re enthusiastic! Go ahead, send the little Dratini out!”

Hannah nodded, and pulled out a Pokéball. “Lucy, come on out!”

A light flashed, and a young Dratini came out of the ball. “H-h-h-hi.” Lucy said shyly.

Hannah got down to face her, and said softly, “It’s okay, Lucy. Drayden is a Dragon Type user, like Lance! He probably has really cool Dragon type Pokémon that are native to here!”

“Ah, so like her species. How she’s like?” Drayden asked.

“Well, once she’s comfortable, you can really get to know her. My name’s Hannah by the way, Hannah White!” She said, smiling.

Cedric laughed. “Drayden, this young girl is who I was telling you about. Hannah White, the girl who can speak to Pokémon!”

Hannah jumped, like she was startled. The way her body language was told us that she was uncomfortable that she was being praise a bit, probably because by the way she acted, she knew humility at this young age. Hannah must of not liked being praised like this. Then I felt some dark emotions coming from one of the children. A boy, probably a bit older than Hannah, was jealous of Hannah and her getting her unwanted praise. Drayen must of noticed her startlement and gave Cedric a glare. Cedric sweatdropped, and Drayden started to ease Hannah. “Now now, Hannah. You know how Cedric is, right?” He asked. She nodded, and he continued on, “Then let’s open it up to everybody here. Who wants to attempt to pet a Haxorus?” Every child’s hands went up and Drayden laughed. “Well then, Drake, come on out!” As he sent out his huge Haxorus in comparison to Hannah. Hannah jumped a bit at the size, as he came out right in front of her.

“Umm, Drayden, sir? Shouldn’t you teach them how to pet a Haxorus first?” Lindsey asked, looking quizzically at the Gym Leader.

Drayden laughed, and said, “Quite right, Miss…?”

“Lindsey Stirling.”

“Ah, so you’re Stephen’s second daughter. Helped raise Drakie here when he was just an Axew.” Gesturing to Drake.

“Please Master Drayden, don’t call me Drakie.” The Haxorus muttered, rolling his eyes.

“Dad did mention that he helped Drake when he was attacked by some Pawniard.” Lindsey said, thinking back.

Drayden clapped his hands, and rubbed them together. “All right! Now to get a Dragon Pokémon’s trust, you have to show no fear and let them allow you to touch them. Once they decide to let you touch them, then they will be putty in your hands. Hannah, since you’re right here, would you do the honors of being the first one?” Hannah froze a bit, and looked down to her Dratini. Lucy nodded in support of her friend, and Hannah looked up to Drayden and nodded. “Then go ahead.”

As Hannah looks up to the Haxorus, she reaches up to him, but even Lindsey could see, her hand was trembling. This Pokémon was bigger than her, and even though Hannah could deal with a Zweilous, to her a Haxorus was a giant, and that size difference could terrify any child I sensed Lindsey’s urging need to run up to the little girl at a moment’s notice to rescue her. This human cares greatly for the young girl. I thought, Like a Mother to a child. But, even though they are not related, and Hannah mentioned a mother and she did differentiate Lindsey and her mother, they both care for one another. Is this how their relationship is? Despite the age difference, Hannah managed to worm her way into Lindsey’s heart. Is this all part of Lady Dialga’s plan for this girl?

Drayden calmly spoke to her, “That’s it, Hannah. Just let him decide to let you scratch him underneath his chin. Remember that Dragon types are proud, and some of them are skittish. If you show no fear, then Drake will allow you to pet him.”

I overheard Hannah mutter, “That’s right. When I met Lucy’s mommy, I was scared. I was afraid of angering her mommy, but instead she told men to stick my head up high and be proud of who I am. If I am famous among my Pokémon friends, then I have nothing to worry about. I’m afraid of angering Dragon Pokémon.” And to my surprise, Hannah’s hand stopped trembling, and I felt courage running off of her. No, this was something like it. It was..true valor. I glanced at Azelf, and he just shook his head. It wasn’t Azelf causing this, this was her own sheer will. Drake, this Haxorus, felt this too, most likely on a different level than us, and smiled to her, got down to her level, and let Hannah scratch his chin. Hannah got this bright smile on her face, and Lindsey’s urges to grab her faded almost instantaneously and was replaced with joy. “Nice Drake. You’re just a loveable Pokémon beneath that scaly exterior. Now when I get older and go on my Unova Pokémon Journey, I want one of your kind.” Hannah said to the Haxorus.

“Then my brethren would be proud to serve you, young Mistress White.” Drake rumbled. Hannah just looked up to him, and smiled.

“I don’t want them to serve me, I just want one to be my friend.” She affirmed. The Haxorus just laughed, and that made Drayden laugh as well.

“Ho ho ho! You made Drake laugh! That means that you will be a friend of the Dragons!” Drayden said, congratulating Hannah.

“Well, all he said that his brethren would be proud to serve me, and called me Mistress White.I just told him that I just wanted one to be my friend.” Hannah humbly said, “I mean, this has happened before with Lucy’s mommy back in Kanto. I just remembered what she told me about being a part of my family.”

Then the boy with the dark jealous feelings yelled. “So what! You are just a stupid girl and you are getting all the praise! You are just a suck up!”

“JACK KESS, YOU STOP THAT RIGHT NOW!” Cedric yelled at the now named Jack Kess.

Hannah looked like she was about to cry, and Lindsey went up to her and put her arms around the little girl. I felt hurt feelings and some anger coming off of Hannah, as I noticed her hands twitching and clenching. Meanwhile Jack just kept on spouting stuff off that were not even true. “She’s a liar and can’t even speak to Pokémon! Just because she comes from a old family doesn’t mean that she’s perfect!”

“Jack…” Cedric growled, but then Hannah spoke.

“I know that I’m not perfect.” Hannah said with a dark edge to her voice, “I have issues. I have special needs, but that does not mean that I’m a liar. Yes, I can speak to Pokémon. I’ve been trying to tell you that for all school year now. You’ve seen that I’m allowed to have my Pokémon with me, and that I get special help now and again, but it’s not because of my family. It’s for my issues. I’m not like other kids. I take things that are rhetorical literally, can’t even tell a lie, and I have no idea how kids my age are suppose to interact. Pokémon are my best friends besides Lindsey, Cheren and Bianca. I didn’t choose to be like this, Jack. And I didn’t ask for praise.” With this, her white dragon markings on her arm glowed again, and she laced her words with her truth, like what she did to me. What’s more is that she oozed more true valor out. Yes, she was hurt with his words, but she used her truth and her friend’s support to get him to see his wrong. It even seemed like she was using her wit to outsmart him.

Lindsey looked at Hannah, and gave her a hug. “Thank you for using your words, not your fists.” She whispered into Hannah’s ear, “I think that Cedric and Drayen got it from here. Come on.” As she took her hand and softly guided her away from the group, Lucy following behind. Once they got to the edge of the forest, Lindsey spoke up. “I know you guys are out there. Hannah told me through her Unovian Sign Language.”


We shimmered into existence and floated down towards the two.

“Wow, she wasn’t kidding about three Powerful Pokémon who were not from around here.” Lindsey said, her breath taken away.

“Hannah come here.” Whispered Azelf. “Earlier you asked what Valor meant.”

Hannah grinned a bit, after what a day she had. “Yea, I did, but I got called by Lindsey.”

“Well Valor means Courage. After what you just did took lots of courage for you.”

Hannah got this wide eyed expression in astonishment. “Uhh…” At a loss for words.

Then Uxie floated towards Hannah. “Hannah you also asked what Acuity means correct?”

Hannah just nodded vigorously. She didn’t trust herself to speak.

“Acuity means sharpness of wit. When the boy insulted you you did not fight back aggressively. You used words and facts instead of your fists.”

“L-L-Lindsey and M-M-Mommy always said that I should use my words.” Hannah stuttered, having a speech impairment slip out.

“Yeah, and she’s been apt to punch first, ask questions later when she began Kindergarten, but we got it through her head that fighting isn’t good.” Lindsey interjected, figuring out what they were saying by Hannah’s responses, “She has quite a temper some days. Having her off days makes her temper worse. We’re lucky that today’s not an off day.”


“Hannah you also asked what Verity meant.” I begun “Verity means truth. Today you showed me the true meaning of summer. I can see your verity within your heart and soul, along with the markings of Reshiram. You have been blessed by many legendary Pokémon including the creator, Lord Arceus. You are truly special and unique. I hope to meet you again one day on your adventures.”


Hannah White’s P.O.V

I looked at the Three Lake Pokémon, surprised at their responses. I didn’t know what to say but I managed to say, “T-T-Thank y-y-you, Mesprit, Azelf, Uxie, for telling m-m-me the meanings of the words. I don-don’t kn-know what to say an-anymore.”

Lindsey just smiled, and gave me a hug, assuring me that it’s alright. “Hey, it’s okay. I’m guessing that’s a bit much to take it right now. I guess I can say is that you can tell me later, because your mom told me that she had an overnight shift at the hospital and she wanted me to babysit you and your brother Nick for the night. How does that sound?” I just nodded, not trusting myself to speak. This information somehow got overwhelming to me, and I’m happy Lindsey’s here as well. Then she looked towards them, and said, “She’s actually grateful to what you just told her. She’s just having a hard time processing what you said.”


“Goodbye Hannah. It was nice meeting you.” Said Azelf as he teleported away.


“Thank you for bringing us to the camp. I learned quite a few new things on dragon Pokémon.” Thanked Uxie and she teleported as well.


Finally Mesprit went up to me. “Thanks you Hannah. I believe that if Uxie and Azelf didn't drag me away from my lake today I would have never discovered what the true purpose of summer is. I am eternally grateful. Goodbye until we meet again!” And the final lake spirit disappeared into the air.

Lindsey looked at me, and said, “Well what I think of what just happened was that you somehow became friends with some more legendary Pokémon. What do you think about that?”

I looked up to Lindsey, and said meekily, “I don’t know yet how I feel about it. I think that I changed Mesprit’s viewpoint on Summer.”

Lindsey laughed, and said, “Come on. I’ll let you think about it for a while, and then we’ll figure it out tonight. How does that sound?”

I smiled, and said, “Yes!” Lindsey laughed some more, and she took my hand and led me back to our group.



Meanwhile, in a different Dimension...

As this was happening, Dialga was watching her chosen child. Thank you for helping Mesprit. You have made the best choice on sharing your truth. Be strong, my special one. You will find your destiny one day, I promise you that.
]

Credits:

Spoiler: True Meaning of Summer: Credits

It was a joint effort. We had the ideas and we combined them. I did the humans and their dialogue, while Arc did the Lake trio and their dialogue. Arc also gave the idea of Hannah proving/learning the true meanings of Valor, Verity, and Acuity.

 

Left this really late but myself, Endrew and Strytho are doing the day at the beach prompt

Spoiler: Full Story

My bleary eyes gazed out at the waving ocean, the wind breezing past almost caressing my skin. As I stretched my arm, I was unable to stop the yawn that escaped me which was quickly followed by a yelp of fright as a body plopped itself down beside me.

"Yo!" A grinning Getus greeted enthusiastically. Blue eyes twinkling in mischief as he leaned back onto his palms, he continued, "Why are you just sitting about? We're at a beach!" Getting a shrug in response, Getus frowned. "Well then, come on. Endrew and Strytho's over there." Gesturing to the hut that sat at the edge of the beach, the two of us began to stroll across the beach to the hut, the sand crunching beneath our feet.

Arriving at the hut, I caught sight of Endrew and Strytho waiting on us. Feeling a nudge at my side, I glanced at Getus who looked towards the duo, "Is it just me, or does Strytho look like he's got something on his mind?" He wasn't wrong, Strytho seemed to be looking down at the water with a thoughtful look on his face. Maybe he just wants to go for a swim?

"Hey guys" Endrew greeted us with a wave of his hand, while Strytho nodded in greeting as well. Taking a seat at one of the nearby tables, the four of us made conversation before Getus grew impatient.

"Hey, Strytho! What's up?" Getus almost shouted, getting a hush from the table's occupants. Sighing, Strytho leaned in and began to whisper.

"Have you heard about the recent thefts going on?" Getting a quizzical look from everyone at the table he continued, "People's belongings are just disappearing when they look away, and no one can figure out what's going on."

Endrew looked at Strytho with eyes filled with curiosity, "Yeah? What's your point?"

"My point, is why don't we do something about it?" Strytho answered with excitement lining his tone.

"What?" Getus whispered forcefully, "What are we meant to do? We're not the police, we're here to spend time at the beach not hunt down criminals!"

Rolling his eyes at Getus's response, as if he expected it, Strytho argued: "Yeah we were here to enjoy the beach, but how can we when there's a thief about?" Seeing Getus's expression turn considering, he continued, "How about this. We find the thief, turn him in and then we enjoy the beach?"

Seeing the nods from all three of the table's occupants, Getus gave in. "Alright, where do we begin?" At Strytho's uncertain look, Getus cradled his head in his hands, "You don't even know, do you?" At this point, Endrew spoke up,

"Uh guys, how about the caves across the beach? I mean if I was a thief I'd hide there." Endrew suggested, which I supported with a nod. With the suggestion being the only solid plan forward, the other two agreed before the four of us began our journey to the cave with a clear goal in mind.

Catch a Thief.
_________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
“Well, now that we are here at the caves, where do we go? There are so many entrances…” I say.

“Definitely not the easiest cave to get into, but probably not one of the hardest to reach. They need to be able to quickly get into it to run away but need to make sure that it isn’t super easy for people to pursue them,” Endrew replies.

“It’s almost like you’re one of the thieves! Just kidding, that makes a lot of sense,” Strytho says.

“So one like that?” I say pointing to a cave that is midway up and has a somewhat smaller entrance.

“That sure seems to fit the bill,” Getus says.

“Well, if the Dr says that that looks good, why not check there first?” Endrew inquiries. We begin the trek up to the cave. Arriving there, we look in, and see that it is too dark to see very far in.

“Hey, since you seem to like Batman so much, do you have a flashlight on you? Or are you unprepared?” Strytho asks.

“Of course I have a flashlight. If we stayed too late at the beach and dropped something, it could be lost without a light source,” Getus says, pulling it out and turning it on. Then, with Getus leading the way, we slide through the narrow entrance. After walking for a while, we see what appears to be a dead end after rounding a corner.

“Well, looks like we must turn around and check another cave,” I say.

“Wait, I’ve seen this in a game before. If we get closer to the wall, there might be a path that runs perpendicular to this that you can’t see from further away,” Endrew says. Moving on, sure enough, there was a path leading further in, but it went both ways.

“Which way do we go? We can’t split up unless someone else has a flashlight,” Getus says.

“Why don’t we go right?” Strytho says.

“I feel better about going left. I read a few books that mention if you stick to the left wall, eventually you reach the end of the maze,” Endrew states.

“I think that I’ve seen that too. Though, I guess Getus gets to decide since he has the light,” I say.

“If two of you say left, that’s the way we’ll go. If that ends up being wrong, we can always try the other way next,” Getus responds.
_________________________________________________________________________________

As we all go left, the cave starts to curve. as we reach another split, we notice one end takes us back to the last turn we started at while the other lead further in.

"Well it looks like it didn't matter which way we went, all roads lead to Rome," I said. Strytho was once again deep in thought.

"Something isn't right. I recognize this junction. This leads us back to where we started in the cave. We are going in circles." Began Strytho.

"How on earth do you know that?" Getus questioned. Strytho smirked.

"They don't call me detective detective for nothing. I've been leaving small marks on the walls with this rock I found outside the cave. Every time we turned I used a different shape. I believe someone is leading us on a wild goose chase." we all gasped. Who would try to sabotage this mission?

"So, who could it possibly be?" Endrew asked.

"It's not me!" I said.

"Me neither," Getus replied.

"Indeed. One of us has seemed to have known way too much. Who here has been the most insightful? Who has known every helpful tip we've had?" Strytho said calmly. Endrew twitched and shouted, "I didn't do it! I was trying to help!" Strytho smirked.

"No one mentioned you Endrew. Why did you think I was talking about you?" At that point, everyone looked at Endrew.

"Come to think of it, you knew quite a bit about the cave and where to go," Getus stated.

"So that means he's been leading us in the wrong direction! But why?" I asked.

"A very valid question. Care to shed some light on the subject?" Strytho took the flashlight from Getus and directed it at Endrew. Endrew knew that there was nowhere to run or hide. He sighed in defeat.

"So, you found me out. But if you think that I'll tell you anything, think again!" Endrew tried to run but tripped. There was suddenly a rope around his ankle.

"Looks like he won't be any help finding anything. But I think I know how to find all the stolen items" Getus smirked.

"Uh... where did the rope come from Geets?" I asked.

"It's probably better that we don't know the answer. Getus, if I get us back to the entrance can you guide the way?" Strytho asked.

"Sure, lead the way." After several turns through the tunnels, they ended up back at the mouth of the cave. Getus lead them through several twists and turns until they were at a dead end on the opposite side of the cave. He pointed towards a mark on the wall.

"There should be a small space here. that's where all the stuff is." Getus said.

"How do you know that? I asked.

"Now I get it, Endrew was copying this stuff from that book you two read in class. What was it called?" Strytho questioned.

"It was called Cave Capers. And the space is there but it's empty." Endrew snickered.

"He's right! So where is it Endrew?"

"The pickup already happened, All I had to do was stall you guys!" Endrew smirked.

"So what do we do now? I asked.

"Strytho, let's head outside and figure out our next move," Getus replied. They headed out of the cave and back to the beach to see smiling faces. Someone had a bag of assorted items and was handing it out to people.

"What's going on here?" I asked.

"Didn't you guys hear? The Valor Beach Bandit was caught! He was trying to sneak out of the cave shortly after you guys went in! He said his cohort ratted him out." The beach goer exclaimed.

"But why? Why would you rat him out Endrew?" I asked. Endrew began to pout.

"HE STOLE MY RAVIOLI! I was going to eat that for dinner tonight!"

"So, you were going to get revenge and keep the stuff?" Getus asked?

"Nah, he was just going to pin it on him and leave, no one would ever know." Everyone laughed, Endrew got sentenced to a thousand lashings with a wet noodle, and everyone got their stuff back. But in the end, we still missed out on our beach time.

"That's okay we still have tomorrow to come back!"

"True Strytho, but this time, no mysteries!" I said. Strytho put his hands behind his back and crossed his fingers.

"I'll do my best!"

=== END ===

Spoiler: Credits

I came up with the basic premise behind the story, the theft of items and the crew searching for the thief as well as using a first person unnamed character as the main focus into the story instead of our three characters fighting for that spot.

Endrew came up with the nice plot twist towards the end with his character being responsible for the thefts.

And Strytho presented the idea of using members in the story and adding comedy into it, although due to time constraints we kept it to the three of us as it would take too long to get permission from the members we wanted to us.

The three of us split the story up, writing the seperate parts which I've seperated with _________ The first part was written by myself, the second by Endrew and the final part by Strytho

 

Our team story feat @Me and @OurLadyOfWonderland is completed and ready for submission!

Spoiler: One More Night:Story

I never understood why summer is always romanticized in books and movies. Like, I get that it marks the end of school, which is nice and all, but summer in Florida is horrific. It’s basically as if the air was an extremely hot bath, scalding your skin and drenching you in sweat even if you’re not doing much. That probably sounds like an over exaggeration, and maybe it is, but I have never had a good summer. More often than not I wind up in the ER with nasty hives all over my skin, sometimes with some swelling and erythema if it’s really bad.

I have this thing called solar urticaria, which is this really rare sun allergy. I can’t explain all of the sciency stuff behind it, but the gist of it is is that, for my body, the sun is a deadly laser.

I was thinking about all of this as I sat in the car in front of my friend’s school, watching a sea of screaming students pour out of every door, rushing to their cars or buses. I’m patiently waiting as the crowds of hormonal teenagers pass by, keeping an eye out for my friend. (I can sense all the high school gossip and enthusiasm about leaving, all of which I’ve never had.) I have never heard so much noise in my life, though maybe that’s because I’ve been homeschooled for as long as I can remember. The best part of it was the seemingly indifferent teachers standing around the parking lot who had this look on their faces like yep, same shit as always. I didn’t know how they could be so calm amidst the chaos. My mother would have slapped the hell out of those kids. Maybe the prospect of school being over kept them above water. Maybe they’re masochists. Maybe both. Who knows?

Now, I should clarify this first. My car is tiny as all hell. Like, it barely has a backseat. This is fine since I usually don’t have to drive a whole lot of people, but I could almost feel my old old Toyota Camry trembling as I saw five people break off from the main crowd and approach my car. I recognized all but one of them. There was my best friend Samantha, who was the one I was waiting for in the first place. Standing on either side of her were Joshua and Casey, who were your typical nerdy straight A kids. There was also Mason, a guy I met when I decided to try this out-of-school band thing as a kid, before the allergy started to get really bad. With Mason was a guy that I have never seen before, all tall and dark featured. Maybe he was a band friend?

Samantha rushed up to my car with the four other people close behind. She swung open the car door and proceeded to enwrap me in a suffocating hug. “Hi, Duke!” she practically yelled with her usual enthusiasm.

“Uh, hi Samantha,” I managed to say. When she released me, I saw everyone else climbing into the tiny back seat. I was not taking this crap today, and my car did not have enough space for five people at all. “Woah, why are there so many people here? Sorry if I’m being mean, but I only offered to drop Samantha off at her house.”

“Our houses are pretty far from here, you know. We’re burning up out here.”

I looked at them with a sigh. I really did not want to drive all of these people, partly because I was only here for Samantha, partly because of this weird new guy, but mostly because of the overwhelming fear that this car would fall apart like a Nature Valley granola bar. But with how Samantha was I knew that I was going to end up driving them all one way or another, so I decided to be a good samaritan and do it without complaint. I was planning on going at the usual pace of about 20 miles per hour when Samantha shouted, “DRIVE DUKE!” Woah. Something must have happened at school if she had to get home so quickly.

Even though her house was not that far from the school, Samantha kept urging me to drive faster even when we were driving at the speed limit, which was concerning for numerous reasons that you can probably figure out yourself. Something about her was off. I wasn’t exactly sure as to what it was, I just knew it was there.

“If you’re not going to drive faster, then let me drive at least,” Samantha told me. Why was she in such a rush? I decided not to question it for now.

“Fine, Samantha, you can take the wheel.”

We pulled over and I switched seats with Samantha. Just as I closed the door, she hit the gas and we were booking it down the road. She didn’t take the turn that we usually did to get into our neighborhood, taking a different highway instead. What the hell was she doing?

“Where are we headed anyways?” I paused for a moment. “SAMANTHA, WHERE ARE WE GOING?”

“We all know about your condition. By the time we reach Disney World, it will be dusk,” said the unnamed dude. His voice was low and quiet, completely calm despite the high energy in the car. Who was he?

“Didn’t you say you were broke?! We don’t have the money to just go to Disney World! My parents will be furious!”

“No worries, we got that covered. We’ve already told your parents actually,” Casey claimed as he held up five tickets to Disney World. I looked back to see a little smirk on her freckled face.

“Why didn’t they tell me?”

“They wanted to keep it a surprise,” said the unnamed guy.

I looked at Samantha with a raised eyebrow. “Who is this kid anyway?”

“That’s Ace. He’s a choir guy,” Sam explained.

“Yo,” Ace said with a slight raised hand.

I decided to ignore the weird kid with the even weirder name and focus on the fact that we were a bunch of high school kids, only one of which I knew had an actual job, going to a really expensive amusement park for seemingly no reason. “Why, of all places, are we going to Disney World?”

“You’ve never been to Disney World, right?” Joshua asked, leaning back and folding his arms behind his head.

“Yeah, but what does that-”

“Duke, you deserve a life,” Samantha cut in. “We put this together so you could enjoy yourself.” That immediately shut me up. “We have everything arranged and scheduled. It will be wonderful, I swear it.”

They had done all of this for me? Even Ace, who I didn’t even know? What in the world have I done to deserve this? “You guys are completely insane,” was all I could say as Samantha drove down the busy highway, smiling like I have never smiled before.


~><~


The rest of the drive was a blur. Disney World was hours away despite it being near Orlando. This is partly because of the god awful traffic but mostly because Sam was being mindful of my condition and was taking the long way. She was the master of amazing timing, for better or for worse. Basically, when she says that we’re going to arrive at Disney World at 8:00 PM, we arrive there on the dot. They must’ve used Google Maps or something to calculate such accuracy.

It was dusk when we pulled into the parking lot, which surprisingly had a lot of places to park despite it being Disney World on a Friday. All the same, it was still bustling with people, most of them adults with their children or college students that were far too drunk to be hanging out at an amusement park.

Ace curiously asked, “Duke, can you leave the car, or should we wait until nightfall?”

“I think I can leave now, it seems dark enough,” I assured him. The sun was setting still, though you could hardly see it now. It was a mere sliver of golden light on the horizon.

“We don’t want to risk you having an allergic reaction, so you make sure that you’re alright,” Mason told him, sounding a little worried.

“I’ll be fine, let’s just go.” I nodded to Mason with a smile. The dude worried about me too much.

The five of us got out of the car and walked to the admission stand (though after Mason checked to see if the car was like five times). I looked all the teenagers and young adults in front of us, screaming and laughing and smelling like a bar on a Saturday night. “Doesn’t the park close in a couple of hours?”

Samantha gave me a knowing grin. “Don’t worry about that, we got that all covered.” She scanned my ticket, gave me a map, and I walked past admission.

I looked at her blankly and proceeded to walk together through the thinning crowd. They really were all insane.

They really do care about me, don’t they?

I stopped to unfold the map and my eyes widened. This place was huge. The page was, thankfully, incredibly detailed, which illustrations of the different rides, walkways, and theme parks. “Where should we go first?”

Joshua pointed to a large, tall structure that I had noticed out of the corner of my eye. It was made up of elevated railroads that formed huge hills with drops and curves. The people in the little cars looked so small from down here, but you could hear the screams of fear and joy as they plummeted down the steep hill.

“That looks...dangerous,” I said flatly, trying to hide my fear.

Casey pushed my shoulder playfully. “Aw, come on! It’s perfectly safe.”

“I respectfully disagree with that statement.”

Casey just laughed and pushed me forward. “This is your night, Duke. So have some fun for once!”

My friends specialized in the art of shutting me up.

As we all headed towards the huge roller coaster, I took a moment to look at Ace. I could tell he was definitely more introverted than my other friends. Instead of focusing on Josh and Casey’s rather ridiculous conversation about the roller coaster that was derailed in Final Destination 3, he was watching the people pass by, the fading light in the sky, the rides as they stopped and started. The world as a whole seemed to interest him so much. I wondered what he saw that intrigued him so much. I looked around, trying to see what attracted his attention. I just saw the same old world, the same noise and bright lights that made my head pound. How could he stand all of this?

Thankfully, it didn’t take too long to reach the roller coaster. The line was beginning to get shorter because of how late it was, so it didn’t take long for us to get on the ride. The six of us sat in pairs; me and Sam, Josh and Casey, Mason and Ace. Samantha must have noticed some sign of nervousness on my face as we were strapped ourselves in (either that or she was reading my mind again) because she put her hand on my shoulder.

“It’ll be fine, Duke. Really,” she told me with her usual smile.

“Will it?” I wasn’t so certain. It’s not that I was afraid of heights or anything. I just wasn’t so sure about how I felt being strapped in a metallic car thing going at high speeds.

“Life gets a lot easier when you stop thinking about every horrible thing that can happen, you know,” Sam claimed.

Easy for her to say. I didn’t have a chance to make any sort of flippant remark, however, because the train had started moving forward. It was slower than I thought it would be, but steadily, approaching the first hill at a steady pace. I felt Sam’s hand grab mine as we started to go up the hill, all of the noise only serving to make me more nervous. I decided to try to follow Sam’s advice and not think of every catastrophic, best-night-ever ruining thing that could happen and keep my attention on what was happening in front of me. I focused on the rumbling noise the wheels made against the track. I focused on the wind against my face and Sam’s hand gripping mine. I tried to focus on the details, not the bigger picture, something I have never thought of doing before.

There was this incredible moment when our car reach the top of the hill and we stopped there for a moment, just for a moment, and you could see everything. You could see the great expanse of the amusement park below you. All of the people looked like dolls walking around in an overcomplicated playset. The best part was the sky above you. With nothing obscuring it, you could see all of the stars and the moon, all more beautiful than any manmade creation. I stared at it all, amazed by all of this beauty I had never truly appreciated, just before the train dropped down the hill. We all screamed as the train picked up speed, the world turning into a blur of motion. I had let go of Sam’s hand and was screaming and laughing with the rest of them.

For a moment, just a moment, the world didn’t seem so bad.


~><~


The next hour went by much too fast for my liking. We all ran around the amusement park, playing the different games and going on the rides. Ace was apparently the god of claw machines and won us all stuffed animals, much to our delight. By the time we were at Magic Kingdom, we had bags full of prizes and stomachs full of food.

“What’s at Magic Kingdom?” I asked Sam on the way there.

“Oh, a whole bunch of stuff! But tonight we’re just going to see the parade and fireworks,” Sam claimed. She turned on her phone and glanced at the time. 9:47. She gasped and grabbed my hand. “We’re going to be late!” Suddenly, we were all running, with Sam practically dragging me along.

“W-Wait! Late for what?” I yelled, trying to catch my breath.

“You’ll see when we get there,” Mason told me.

I didn’t say anything else until we got to Magic Kingdom. I wanted to look around and take in everything that was there because I most likely would never be coming back, but Sam just kept running.

“Sam, didn’t we just pass where the parade was being held?” I asked frantically, trying to slow her down.

“I’m aware!”

“And didn’t you say-”

“Oh, shut up and let it be a surprise!”

What in the world were they planning?



~><~


I have absolutely no idea how it happened, but somehow all of us ended up on our own float in the parade. I was stunned when we reached where all of the floats were and one of the staff directed us to a bright but ultimately simple float, decorated with lights and flowers.

“B-But sir, we aren’t apart of the parade,” I told him.

“We are, actually,” Ace claimed as Sam pulled me towards the float.

“Wait, what?” We climbed the float stairs, and were now in the center, about 6 feet above ground level.

“I managed to pull some strings, call in a few favors. Long story short, my friend got us into the parade,” Ace explained.

I shook my head, stunned in shock. “Why? I didn’t do anything to deserve this.”

“You have all of these friends who put this together so you could have good time,” Ace chuckled. “Clearly, you’ve done something right.”

I kept thinking about that as the float moved forward with all of us on it. Of course, Casey was waving and blowing kisses to the crowd and Josh was telling her not to attract so much attention to herself.

I looked around, amazed, not taking my eyes off the bright lights. In all colors, in all shapes, they flickered in the air with a bang, and then disappeared. I had always wanted to spend my day in the sun, but seeing these bursts of color in the sky, I felt like I didn’t need to. These were just as beautiful.

The people down below looked on in amazement, as well as myself, as the float moved through the route. I then looked around to all my friends, who were all waving to the people on ground level.

Maybe summer wasn’t that bad after all.


Although I tried my best not to ruin the moment, I tapped Ace’s shoulder. “After the parade are we going to go on some more roller coasters after we get off?” Everyone turned their attention to me when I asked.

“Duh, that’s what we’re going to do!” Casey claimed. “We have the park until the morning!”

I smiled. Once the fireworks were gone, the general populous would leave, leaving us to the park. My smile turned more to a stupid, uncontrollable grin now, now knowing that the whole park was available for us all night.

~><~

After making our way back to the start of the parade route in Magic Kingdom, Sam said: “Hey, Duke, we should head back.”

“It’s going to be sunrise shortly, we’ve been here all night,” Ace said, pointing up at the sky. “We don’t want your mom to worry. After all, you’ve been left to a bunch of teenagers, so we’ve got to try our best.”

“Can you stand a little bit of sun on the way back?” Sam looked at me, concerned as always.

I shrugged. “I can try, yes.”

“Well, I don’t think we have enough money for a hotel anyways, although I could ask my friend…” Ace suggested

“Asking your friend who set this up for us would take too much time. Let’s just go home.” Samantha looked at me and asked,“Did you enjoy the night, though?”

I gave Samantha a clear nod. “Well, you know that I about summer, but this night… wasn’t that bad.”

“Wasn’t? I thought you were having the time of your life.”

“I was.”

“Can we do that again?”

“Yeah, yeah. One day."

The End

Spoiler: Credits

I came up with the plot/naming of Duke, and memes of Mason, while Wonderland named the rest of the cast.
Story writing was a combined effort!!

 

I don't think this was ever clarified, but are we to post our stories here, or PM them to you, @MarineAurora ?

 

Since my partner is offline, I'll just do the submitting.

Spoiler: Story

Pachirisu sprung into the field, nose twitching, there was something in the air tonight. He could feel the warmth fading as the sun finally sunk below the horizon. The cool green grass swayed in a light breeze which rippled across the field. Pachirisu knew it could be dangerous to stand in an open field, but that odd feeling wouldn’t leave him. He needed to figure out what it was. Pachirisu kept his head down, scampering across the grass. Behind him he heard a noctowl hooting. He saw the first stars beginning to appear in the sky above him. He wasn't usually one for human preoccupation, but he had to admit, the twinkling lights against the black sky were beautiful. He moved deeper into the field, which grew in height slowly. He stopped suddenly, as his sight rested on a lone Pokémon on the hill. He tensed, feeling a sense of apprehension. He watched the figure carefully, but it didn't make any moves, in fact, it seemed to be looking at the sky.

The moon cast enough light to see that the figure had a large head with eyes that glimmered in the moonlight, the head was yellow with a white patch around the face. Around its neck was a brown ribbon which seemed to be a part of the Pokémon’s body. It had insect wings which kept it a few inches off the ground. Pachirisu had never seen it before, but it didn't look dangerous, so he crept slowly towards it. As he neared, the Pokémon flinched, looking at him, its thin arms tensing for a fight, Pachirisu held still, trying to stay relaxed. For a moment they stared at each other, but Pachirisu took a risk and turned to look at the stars. It was his father's fault, this love of the night sky. As a former trainer Pokémon, his father had learned much from the humans, he had then passed this knowledge to his wild son.

A star twinkled, catching his eye and returning him to the present. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw the Pokémon slowly relax and turn back to the stars. Pachirisu could tell that this Pokémon was a girl, almost certainly a bug type too, if the wings were any indication. He didn't usually think bugs were attractive, but this Pokémon was different for some reason. He thought it might be the slender limbs, or the way that she stared so thoughtfully at the night sky. He sighed at the foolish turn of his thoughts, and returned his sight to the stars. The light of the moon sparkled dangerously off his white fur, but he felt at ease suddenly. The constellations twinkled around him and the peace in his mind.

As he watched, the feeling of unease vanished, and he let out a contented sigh, which he was surprised to hear repeated by the strange Pokémon next to him. He almost looked over at her, but suddenly a streak of light caught his attention, and before long the sky was full of shooting stars, streaking fiery paths across the night. The sight of the shooting stars filled Pachirisu with wonder and courage.

The stars streaked across the sky endlessly, leaving glittery trails behind. The sight was something that would often be the subject of a dream, seemingly too beautiful to be reality. The other Pokémon next to him was also lost in the amazing spectacle, as this seemed like a once in a lifetime show. Just the sight of this show alone would be enough to fill one up with some sort of feeling of courage or determination. He took a deep breath, the air smelling lightly of the rain that had fallen earlier. He then turned to the other Pokémon, a Ribombee his memory finally told him.

The Ribombee turned to face him, with a face that was devoid of any visible emotion. But it also seemed to be happy, looking at this show would make any one or Pokémon happy. The Pachirisu walked a bit closer to the other Pokémon, lightly wrapping his tail around the smaller Pokémon. The Ribombee turned to him in question, but soon it turned back to the sky, paying no mind to the gesture. All that really mattered to it was the stars.

The Pachirisu lightly tightened his tail around Ribombee, giving the feeling of a warmth despite how tight it was being embraced. Ribombee turned to him, looking at him with an expression of confusion. Pachirisu simply turned away from the other Pokémon, looking upwards to the stars once again. The stars seemed to be falling even more now. The sight had gone from something out of a dream to something that felt truly unreal, something a dream couldn’t even comprehend. The stars fell so often, the stars that hung in the sky nightly seemed like nothing compared to the shower of bright stars. It was truly a sight to behold.

Ribombee flittered its glittery wings out of Pachirisu’s embrace, deciding to leave the embrace of his tail and simply sit on top of it instead. He looked to the Pokémon on his tail, and slowly offered a tiny little hand to it. Ribombee looked to him quietly, then offered its own hand to him. He gently took a hold of its hand, a gentle warmth coursing throughout his entire being. It was only after this feeling did he realize how cold this night was. He gently tightened his grip on its hand, never wanting the warm feeling to abandon him and leave him in the cold of night.

The both of them looked up and the stars were falling at a slower pace now, but at a pace that was still unreal to the both of them. The constellations in the sky were almost invisible to them, as the falling stars took up most of the sky with ease. The two Pokémon looked to each other, exchanging glances of wonder and awe. Pachirisu closed his eyes and sent a little jolt to Ribombee. It let out a little noise of surprise, but it soon started to laugh in a light tone. The Pachirisu also sheepishly laughed, the two of them sometimes looking to each other.

The stars kept falling, but the two Pokémon spent the rest of the night talking and laughing, the stars finally taking a backseat to the two. As silly as it sounded, they had a new star to focus on, and they didn’t need to wait a lifetime to see it.

Spoiler: The process/credits

We both came up with the premise of the story through PMs, and @HiddenLore wrote the first half of the story while I came in and wrote the last half. Most of the character and plot planning was done through PMs from the both of us, but we finally settled on a no dialogue type story featured on two unlikely Pokémon. Despite the chaos in the PMs, this was fun for the both of us to work on!!

 

Since my partner @Mandriel is offline, I'll do the submitting for us.

Spoiler: Summer "Paradise" - 3348 words

Oh, the beautiful Alola region.

The region of sunshine. The land of sandy beaches and lush emerald forests, framed by a deep blue ocean that glimmered like a million crushed sapphires. Mountains rose from the coast like gods waking from a slumber, the tallest and grandest capped with a crown of alabaster white snow.

If the view from the plane was breathtaking, Sara could hardly imagine what the islands would look like in person. She could almost hear the wind whistling through the trees, the drumbeat of waves, the choirs of wingulls and primarinas singing to the skies.

Sara’s face was almost pressed up against her window, the glass fogging up a little more with every breath until her view was entirely obscured by condensation. She wiped at it with her sleeve and went back to admiring the island they were mere minutes away from landing on.

“That’s gross.” Yuki’s voice broke through Sara’s blissful thoughts. The other girl was sitting in her seat beside Sara, arms folded and body hunched over slightly as if she wanted to make it completely clear that she was incredibly displeased with their holiday destination.

Sara faced her with a huge grin as she excitedly flapped her hand at the scenic view outside the window, “Have you seen it?” she questioned, ignoring Yuki’s comment. Though she did wonder how a trainer who owned a stunky could make a proper judgement on what could or could not be considered ‘gross’.

Yuki didn’t mirror Sara’s enthusiasm, “I saw it, all right.” She responded flatly, shoving her hands into the pockets of her favourite blue jacket, “And I didn’t like what I saw.”

“Come on, it won’t be that bad. It’s only going to be two weeks anyway; we’ll be back in Sinnoh before you know it.”

“Couldn’t we have just gone to a nice mountain resort?” Yuki whined, casting a distasteful look at the sunny archipelago they were flying under, “We wouldn’t have had to spend money on plane tickets if we’d done that.”

“I though you said you didn’t care where we went?”

“I did care, I just didn’t think you’d think to go here.” She motioned out the window at the mass of land they were rapidly approaching.

“What’s wrong with Alola?” Sara asked a little defensively, “It’s got everything: beaches, mountains, forests, lakes, a rich culture, dumb tourists you can battle for quick cash…”

Yuki made a face, “That’s just it,” she said, “the entire region is one giant tourist trap. They sell you overpriced souvenirs and do… Tourist trap… Things… Not to mention, it’ll be hot. And sandy. The sand’s going to be hot. And it’s gonna get everywhere. And there’s probably going to be so many bugs.” She groaned, “Why did I ever agree to this…”

“Everything is going to be just fine.” Sara reassured her, earning a grumpy look in return, “It’s about time you went out of your comfort zone, anyway. When was the last time you went to the beach? When you challenged Crasher Wake?”

“You’re not making me go to the beach.”

“… Or we could go hiking with our Pokémon…”

“We’re gonna get eaten alive by mosquitoes.”

“… we can go out and meet new people and see new places…”

“Can we not?”

They were jostled in their seats as the plane landed on the runway at Hau’oli City’s airport. The two girls stepped out of the plane, squinting against the bright sunlight.

“This is amazing.” Sara breathed as she took in the wide streets filled with department stores of all kinds, flanked on one side by a hilly route and a crystal-clear sea on the other.

“Where’s the hotel?” Yuki said with a sigh, shifting uncomfortably in her thick jacket.

Sara spread out her arms, “Come on, Yuki!” She chirped, “We’re in a new region! Feel the new environment!”

“The only thing I can feel is the sun cooking me alive right now.”

“Well if you’re not going to enjoy it, think of your Pokémon! Don’t you want them to have fun?”

If looks could kill, Sara would have been lying dead on the scorching hot pavement.

“I know my Pokémon better than anybody else,” Yuki said, “and I know for a fact that they’re not gonna enjoy this any more than me. Here, watch!”

She fished a Pokéball out of her bag and in a flash of red light, her snorunt materialised before them.

“Claudia,” Yuki said, casting a hard look at Sara, who rolled her eyes in return, “Do you want to go home now?”

There was a short pause, and then Claudia made a sudden break for the beach. She was stopped mid-dash by Yuki recalling her to her Pokéball.

The snorunt’s trainer’s face turned pink as she pushed the Pokéball back into her bag before turning a darker shade of red when Sara began to snicker. “H-hey, stop that! Where’s the hotel?”

Still laughing, Sara steered her in the direction of their accommodation.

--- --- ---​

As the two walked to the hotel they had decided to stay at for their trip, Yuki groaned quietly. She was sweltering already. Why couldn't they have gone hiking or something? Climbing up a mountain would be a fate much better than whatever this torture was.

They approached the hotel doors in about less than a minute, much to Yuki's fortune. Sara was the first to stride in, going up to the clerk and going through the routine hotel check-in procedure. She jogged back to Yuki, displaying the key cay and grabbing her bags. Their room was on the first floor, so the heat-adverse one sighed in relief. There was no way she wanted to be stuck in a cramped elevator with other sweating humans or climbing up flights of stairs after coming in from that terrible heat.

At the room, Sara quickly put her bags and such away. In a flash, she pulled open the blinds. Outside their window was bright sunlight and a view of the main street of Hau'oli City. Yuki rolled her eyes at the view. Of course there was a view of that stupid beach.

"Okay, so it's time to go to the beach!" Sara exclaimed.

Yuki, who was still recovering from all that light Sara had blinded her with, sighed. "We just got to the hotel!" She flopped onto the pristine bed. "Can't we... y'know, not go to the beach and stay here?"

Sara giggled in response, then started rummaging through her suitcase for a bathing suit. "Why would you wanna do that? We're on vacation! Besides, all you probably do all summer is stay inside."

Yuki groaned, then threw her arms up. "Sara, it is about a million degrees out there. We are going to fry. Besides, think of my Ice Type Pokémon. She'll melt."

"Before we got here Claudia seemed really pumped to go to the beach." She emerged from the side of the bed with her beachwear in her arms. "I'm pretty sure all of our Pokémon will enjoy going to the beach with us. Now c'mon. Let's get into something more appropriate for the beach."

Another groan. "Fine, but when we come back looking like cooked Magikarp we all know who I'm gonna blame..."

--- --- ---​

The beach. Crystal waves lapping against the golden sand, people and Pokémon playing together, tanning under umbrellas...

Death sentence to Yuki.

Still in her long-sleeved blue jacket, Yuki motioned to the beach. "Okay, so what if we get in the sand and it's hot? What if we hop straight into the water and a wave drags us in and we're never seen again?"

Sara started laughing. "That's never gonna happen! Just lighten up a bit and enjoy yourself!" She reached into her beach bag and fished up three Pokeballs. "At least let your Pokémon have fun? Now, come out, everyone!"

All three Pokeballs burst open, the Pokémon materializing on the boardwalk they were standing on. A Piplup named Pip, a Roselia named Rose, and Rapidash named Phoenix. Unlike Yuki, it only took them one glance at the beach to express interest.

Yuki reached into her pockets and tossed three Pokeballs up as well. "Fine."

Next to her, her three Pokémon appeared. Her Stunky, Alecksa, her Lopunny, Belinda, and her Snorunt, Claudia.

Once again, Claudia ran off towards the lapping water, and pretty much every Pokémon followed suit. Much to Yuki's dismay, there was no teammate that shared her pain. What were they so excited about, anyway?

Sara giggled and grabbed Yuki's hand. "Now it's our turn!"

Before Sara managed to drag Yuki into the flaming hot sand, she twisted her wrist away. Sara, probably knowing that any attempt at bring Yuki to the water was futile, just skipped by herself on the sand. Yuki winced at each time Sara's bare foot made contact with the sediment.

Now all alone, Yuki sat down on the edge of the boardwalk. From where she was sitting, she could see Sara and both their Pokémon playing. Belinda and Pip were having a splash fight with Sara in the water. Claudia and Alecksa were trying their best to make a sand castle. Phoenix and Rose were just napping under an umbrella together.

Despite hating summer, Yuki hated being alone without friends. It was really lonely on that boardwalk...

The girl bit her lip, then lowered one foot down to the sand-

Hot.

Yuki pulled her leg back onto the boardwalk. The Alola vacation was starting off splendidly…

--- --- ---​

The sun climbed higher in the sky and Yuki squirted some sunscreen into her hands. Just because she had to stay on the beach didn’t mean she was going to let herself suffer from sunburn. She felt exposed sitting in her swimsuit, but she’d already been forced to remove her jacket before she got heatstroke.

She cast a longing look at Sara’s bag where the key to their hotel room was kept, considering for about the fifth time that day nicking it and going back to the hotel herself. But Phoenix was keeping a close eye on it and Yuki didn’t dare try steal it from under the rapidash’s nose.

She tried to conceal a sigh of exasperation when she caught sight of Alecksa rolling around in the sand. Although she was glad that at least her pokémon was having fun, she didn’t look forward to cleaning all the sand out of his fur. Just watching the scene made her rub at the sand that had stuck to her own feet.

A shadow fell upon her as Sara pranced over, hair plastered to her scalp from her swim, “Are you sure you don’t want to join us?”

“I’m pretty sure.” Yuki responded, looking distastefully past her friend and at the broiling desert of sand.

Sara’s brow furrowed into a frown for a minute and then her eyes lit up, “Hang on, I’ve got a solution!”

“Does this solution entail going back to the hotel?”

Sara ignored Yuki’s question and grabbed her by the arm, dragging her along the sidewalk toward something on the other end of the beach. It was a mostly unoccupied swimming pool.

“It’s a tidal pool.” Sara told her, “It’ just like the sea, except there are no waves to knock you over and no sand to get everywhere.”

The concrete they were standing on was already starting to burn the soles of her feet, so Yuki was surprised to find herself eager to dip her feet into the cool water…

Except she’d expected the water to be cool. She was less than impressed to find the water was absolutely frigid. It felt colder than the sub-zero blizzards that battered Snowpoint City. At once, she pulled her bare foot out of the icy water, only to find scorching stone beneath them.

She screamed as Sara leapt into the water, splashing her with freezing droplets and leaving her shivering, “Th-that was uncalled for!” She shrieked again as Pip followed suit, diving into the water and splattering Yuki again.

Sara emerged from the water grinning, “Come on in, you’ll get used to it!”

Yuki made a face and dipped her foot into the water again, supressing a shudder as the chill spread through her veins. She winced at the blistering heat that seared her other foot and slowly, carefully took another step into the water. She was hardly up to her knees and her legs were already feeling numb.

Another step.

Claudia drifted past on a raft made of ice, making the water even colder than it was to begin with. “Traitor.” Yuki hissed, to which Claudia stuck her tongue out at her trainer.

Another step.

Suddenly, it didn’t feel too bad. The water was refreshingly cool against her warm skin. Maybe she really could get used to this…

Another step.

Never mind, it was agonisingly cold again.

Another step.

Belinda was nearing the edge of the pool and Yuki shot her a panicked look, “No wait, don’t-”

The lopunny cast her a cheeky grin before cannonballing into the water beside her.

An icy tidal wave crashed over her and she shrieked as she fell backwards into the water. It was as if she had been hit by an Ice Beam attack and was being frozen over. She emerged from the water to find her pokémon snickering.

Yuki shot her a glare, “Nice one.” She muttered, crawling out of the pool and rubbing her numb arms in an attempt to bring some feeling back into them.

“Where are you going?” Sara called, splashing over to the side of the pool.

“I’m going to take a shower.” Yuki muttered, grabbing her jacket and making a noise of distaste as her wet hands soaked the material. She ignored Phoenix as she rummaged through Sara’s bag for the room key.

--- --- ---​

It had already been only a few days of the Alolan vacation and Yuki wanted to leave the island that was proving itself to be a torture trap.

After the day at the beach, Sara had suggested hiking up the route near the outskirts of Hau'oli City. At first, Yuki was actually a bit optimistic: she had wanted to go on a hiking trip to begin with. However, her joy slipped away when she took only one step up that hill. It was still smoldering hot outside, and there was no way any human or Pokémon could climb that thing without melting. So Yuki sat at the bottom, watching Sara and all of the Pokémon conquer the hill. She was perplexed when they got to the top, still smiling despite drowning in their own sweat.

The next day, Sara pitched the idea of camping. When she had said that it was cool outside during the night, that got Yuki's attention. That night, they had traveled to the route east of Hau'oli City to set up the tent and all the camping materials. As the sun fell from the sky, Yuki was pleasantly surprised: although still a little humid and a bit toasty, it wasn't that bad. Maybe Sara had been right for once...

...if not for all the bugs trying to take a bite out of her.

It was the fourth day of the Alolan adventure. Yuki, still scratching a bug bite of her arm, groaned. "What a vacation... why can't we go home yet?"

"Because there's still so much of Alola we have yet to see!" Sara exclaimed. She spun around in the new sundress she had bought their first day in Alola, right after Yuki gave up to take a nice warm shower. "Besides, I have a fun activity planned for today!"

Yuki bit her lower lip. "Every "fun" activity you suggest either leaves me sweltering or covered in bug bites."

Sara plopped a giant straw sunhat on her brown hair. "But this is gonna be fun, trust me." Despite Yuki's look of annoyance, she continued with, "today, we're going to visit the boardwalk! Maybe you could buy something to remember your vacation here!"

"So... I should buy an expensive pebble-sized piece of eye candy to remember burning in the sun? Great idea." She sat down on the bed and pulled her blue jacket tighter to her form. "Consider me out."

The response was met with a pouty face. "Yuki, you can't stay in the hotel the entire time! Just try this please?"

Yuki flopped down on the soft mattress. "Every time you've said that it was miserable. Why should I believe you now?"

Sara sat down on the bed as well and pulled Yuki up to the best of her ability. "This time, it'll be different. I promise."

"...fine," Yuki droned in defeat. She sat up and crossed her arms. "But I swear if this ends up being another misery trip I'm staying in the hotel for the next ten days."

The other girl, pleased with how Yuki was going, grabbed her hand and giggled. "You're gonna have fun, I know it!" Both girls ran out of the room, one obviously less excited than the other.

--- --- ---​

Like the beach near the boardwalk, the wooden shopping area was packed. People and Pokémon were looking through shops, getting a quick bite to eat, or soaking up the sun.

And then there was Yuki.

Yuki sighed. It was hot outside, like she was expecting. Next to her, Sara was smiling despite the heat.

"So, I thought that we'd look through some shops first," Sara explained. "Then we could get some ice cream to cool off a bit!"

The heat-adverse girl shrugged. "As long as there are no bugs or freezing water to drench me in..."

They started off. Sara ran ahead to rummage through some clothing racks placed outside a store. Despite the terribly overpriced tags, she was scooping up whatever caught her eyes. However, Yuki stayed behind, wiping the sweat from her brow as she simply glanced at each item. Which one would be something she'd buy and actually use?

Before she knew it, Yuki saw Sara dash back to her with shopping bags in tow. "Yuki, you're not going to go into that store? I saw some shirts that I could totally see you in!"

Yuki quirked an eyebrow. "Really? Did you even bother looking at the price tag? It's a tourist trap!"

Sara huffed. "Why do you have to be so negative on vacation? Just live a little!"

"Then how are you so happy? It's hot and there's nothing to do but get bitten by bugs and throw money away."

The other girl adjusted her sunhat and leaned closer to her friend. "You wanna know my secret on how I beat the heat?"

"You had a secret you never told me about?!"

Sara giggled. "I never told you because it's obvious!"

Yuki crossed her arms, still clad in her jacket. "Then what is it?"

"The secret on how I beat the heat... by having fun with my friends," she responded. "I can feel the heat, too. And it's hot in Alola! But that doesn't mean I'm gonna stay inside all the time. When you have fun with friends, it's like the heat's nothing anymore! Instead of focusing on how hot the sand is or how cold the water is, I focus on all the memories I'm making with my friends."

Yuki stood silent. After a while, she whispered, "having... fun with your friends." She bit her lower lip and sighed. "I... I guess the heat's gone to my head. I don't think I've ever focused on having fun with your or my Pokémon..."

Sara laughed and hugged her friend. "You've still got ten days to have fun with us!" She released her embrace and winked. "Now, how about some ice cream?"

The other girl, for the first time it seemed on the trip, smiled and took her jacket off. "Now that's a good idea."

The two girls shared a laugh, then sprinted off to the ice cream store on the boardwalk. Already, Yuki felt the heat slip away from her mind as she ran along with her friend. Maybe this vacation wasn't a terrible idea all along.

Spoiler: Process

The theme we decided on was a character hating summer, based off of both of us having less-than-favorable opinions of the season.

We worked out the plot and characters through PM, along with who was going to do what. We both did 2 sections of the story. Mandriel's parts are written in white, mine in pink. When one of us finished a scene, the other one would jump in and write the next.

The character Yuki and her Pokémon were thought of by Mandriel, Sara's character and her Pokémon were thought of by me.

 

I don't think either of my partners have been on today, so here's the story done by @Wings, @ConfettiCat, and myself.

Spoiler: Alolan Summers

Warm sunlight poured through the windows of the Day-Care and spilled onto the fresh green grass, flooding the air with sweet sunshine. There was the faintest breath of watermelon floating on the cool breeze, triggering the noses of several Pokémon in the play pen.

From time to time, the Day-Care lady would run out to the store and return with food, real human food instead of Pokémon food. Today, she filled their bowls with ice and watermelon cubes, a treat that she had bought on sale.

As Growlithe, Butterfree, and Nidorina raced through the grass to eat their share, one gentle creature stayed behind, enjoying the faint sweet smell of summer.

He was a Vulpix named Mozilla, barely a couple years old. Mozilla had learned to wait from experience, for every time he rushed to the food bowls, Goldie the Arcanine would carry him away in her jaws and remind him that the oldest Pokémon deserved to eat first.

On a day like this though, in spite of being a fire type, it was hard to resist the temptation of scrambling over to the food bowls and sinking his teeth into a slice of cool and juicy watermelon. The air was blistering hot yet muggy at the same time, and Mozilla swore that his heavy pelt wasn’t making matters any better. But Mozilla knew that he couldn’t go to the food bowls until the other Pokémon had finished their share. He was the youngest, after all.

The only other Pokémon that wasn’t busy feasting on watermelon was a “Vulpix,” or so she claimed. She was a long-standing resident of the Day-Care, and Mozilla had never seen anything like her before. She certainly didn’t look like him, with his burnt-red pelt and bushy tails. Her tails were the color of a newborn’s, and her eyes were the color of a Water Stone. She was hard to understand and used words like ohana and mahalo, and her name was Frost, of all things.

At the moment, Frost had tucked her paws and her nose underneath her tails and was snoozing away. She had apparently been like that even when she had first arrived: lethargic and anti-social, unwilling to speak to the other Pokémon and when she was awake, she was unusually hostile. Still, Mozilla thought it might be nice to eat with someone once in a while, so he cautiously wandered over to her, hoping that she would wake up.

Mozilla’s footsteps hadn’t been loud enough to wake the slumbering Vulpix, so he gingerly nudged Frost with his nose. Suddenly, she recoiled and hissed, a puff of frigid air escaping her mouth.

“You’re awake!” Mozilla yipped, ignoring the chill of his freshly frozen nose.

“No kidding, captain obvious.” The snow-white Vulpix turned away from Mozilla, rolled her eyes and then squeezed them shut.

“Don’t you want to eat?” Mozilla asked, flicking his tails towards the food bowls. Frost didn’t answer. Huh. Maybe she didn’t hear me. “Don’t you want to e-“ Mozilla was promptly cut off by a snarl and a blast of cold air that froze his right paw to the ground.

“No,” Frost growled, dragging herself to the furthest corner of the Day-Care pen. “I’m not hungry, and it’s too hot outside; I’m practically melting, and I just want to sleep.”

Mozilla shivered, warm tears welling up in his eyes as he attempted to tear his paw from the ground. He heard the thud of heavy paws approach him as Goldie trampled on the grass, her fur matted with watermelon juice.

“Oh, you!” she chided Mozilla when she saw his frozen paw. Goldie gently breathed a stream of flames, watching the block of ice thaw out. “Have some watermelon, Mozilla, the others are nearly done.”

“But what about her?” Mozilla whined, pointing towards Frost with his dripping wet paw. Water droplets rolled off his fur and slid onto the blades of grass, catching beams of light.

“She’s not coming,” Goldie whispered gently, to avoid catching the hostile Vulpix’s attention. “Why don’t you try again tomorrow?”

And Mozilla did try. Day after day after day, he tried to ask Frost questions about where she was from, who her trainer was, why she didn’t like summer, and were her tails made from ice? And each day, Mozilla ran back to Goldie with his six auburn tails frozen together.

“Hey,” he called out to her one particular day. When he found himself ignored, he called her again. “Hey. Why is it that you don’t like summer?”

“That has nothing to do with you,” Frost hissed curtly, evidently wanting to be left alone. Still, nothing she did managed to stop Mozilla’s effort to cajole an answer out of her.

“Aww, why do you not want to tell me that badly? Summer’s not that bad, right?”

“Just leave me alone!” she snapped, childishly turning her back against him despite herself.

But Mozilla wouldn’t comply. “I won’t leave you alone until you tell me,” he declared, and at that moment his eyes shone with newfound determination.

Finally, Frost couldn’t take it anymore.

“Geez, I said just leave me alone already!” she cried, exasperated. “Fine, I’ll tell you! You’ll go away if I do, right?”

Mozilla froze for a moment, dumbfounded, but nodded his head before she decided to change her mind. He scooted a little closer to her, one ear twitching out of curiosity.

Frost sighed heavily, looking slightly off to the side rather than look in Mozilla’s direction. Even with her head turned, her eyes stayed sharp and narrowed aggressively. She stayed quiet for a while, indecisive about what she should say. Mozilla wanted to nudge her, to encourage her to go on, but decided against it. He simply waited. He waited until Frost sighed heavily once more and finally spoke.

“I’m just… not like you, alright? You should’ve been able to figure that out yourself! I’m not a fire type like you. Summer’s just too hot! I always feel like I’m melting, swimming makes my tails mat together and freeze, and I don’t even like watermelon! You say summer’s not that bad; I say there’s nothing good about it!”

Mozilla paused, waiting for Frost to continue, but after a tense silence it became apparent that she was done speaking. Mozilla’s ears drooped. He tilted his head and frowned at Frost in confusion. “That’s it?”

“What do you mean, ‘that’s it?’ I told you what you wanted to know, so keep your end of the deal and leave me alone!”

Frost stood and began to walk away, but Mozilla took a few steps towards her in pursuit. “W-wait! I just… I can’t believe that’s all it is. I just don’t get it! I mean, I guess you’re an ice type? You know, since you keep, uh, freezing my tails together… But just because summer’s uncomfortable for you doesn’t mean you need to be so mean to everyone else!”

Frost’s tolerance wore thin and she snapped.

“Grrr…” she growled, turning back once again to face Mozilla. “Why do you even care so much? What’s it got to do with you, anyways? What’s your problem?”

Mozilla shrank back when he saw the grass freezing underneath Frost’s paws.

“I-I just… I just can’t, you know… I can’t leave you alone…!” He slowly inched backwards from fear as he fumbled for an answer.

“And why is that?” Frost hadn’t moved an inch from where she was before, but that didn’t stop a sheet of ice forming at her paws from slowly spreading outwards towards Mozilla.

“I, um, I… I don’t-- I just…” Mozilla lost his ability to form words in his head for that very short while. He stumbled backwards and fell, and couldn’t get up or move. Seeing that, Frost paused and breathed out heavily, muscles visibly relaxing. The ice sheet stopped spreading and she glared into Mozilla’s eyes.

“Hmph, you can’t even form a reason to justify yourself. That proves it; you were just nosy.” She turned around, looked down at her feet, and stared at the patch of frozen grass that she had created. “See this?” she asked, stamping a paw on the frozen ground with her back still turned to Mozilla, “This is what I can do. Remember this.”

She turned her head to look at him, and hissed, “Next time, I’ll freeze everything but your head. So don’t ever bother me again!”

Frost walked back to her usual spot in the corner of the pen. She slumped down on the ground in the shade of a tree to sleep.

Mozilla stayed where he was, still paralyzed from shock. Tears welled up in his eyes. Never before had he seen her so mad, and he regretted pressing too much into the matter. After slightly regaining some movement, he stared at the ground and whispered the answer to her question that he couldn’t give earlier,

“...you looked really lonely, so… I couldn’t just leave you alone…”

He couldn’t take anymore. His tears suddenly spilled over and he ran, crying, back to Goldie. Goldie, as had become typical, was watching over the two little Vulpix from near the fence on the far end of the pen. Mozilla could see, though his vision was blurred with tears, that she was standing rather than sitting as she usually did. She must have been considering stepping in before Frost finally backed down.

Mozilla ran up to Goldie and buried his face into the thick fur on one of her legs. The heat from the larger fire type felt comforting. Goldie looked down at him awkwardly, not sure whether she should stop him or not. Though he had come to her before, crying after a dramatic encounter with Frost, she had never seen him this shaken up before.

“I don’t get it!” Mozilla finally shouted in frustration once he had run out of tears. “Why does she hate me so much? It’s not my fault she just lays under her tree all day and doesn’t talk to anyone. I just wanted to help!”

Mozilla felt a sudden weight on his back and looked up to see Goldie had placed one of her enormous paws reassuringly on him. Though normally stern and very serious, for the first time Mozilla saw the corners of her eyes drooping and a slight frown forming on her muzzle.

“Don’t blame yourself, child. This is nothing new for her and not through any fault of her own. If anything, I am the one at fault for encouraging you to talk to her. It may be best… if you just leave her alone from now on. Your trainer will be coming to pick you up in a few days, won’t he? Try to enjoy your time here until then, and don’t worry about Frost.”

Mozilla listened numbly to Goldie and eventually nodded. There was nothing else for it; if Frost really wanted to be alone that badly, he should just let her.

Once he was calmed down, Mozilla went off and tried to enjoy himself as Goldie said he should. He played with the other Pokémon in a small pool the Day-Care couple filled up for them and afterwards laid out in the grassy field to sun himself and dry his fur. What should have been a lot of fun only felt like a distraction though. Throughout the day Mozilla continued to glance apprehensively towards Frost as she dozed in the corner of the pen.

The Day-Care lady brought them more watermelon later in the day. Mozilla had learned well not to rush to the food bowls when it came time to eat. Even so, Goldie approached him as he waited his turn and dropped a sizeable slice of watermelon in the grass at his feet, giving him an apologetic sort of smile before returning to her own food with the other older Pokémon. Mozilla stared down at the slice of watermelon. He didn’t feel very hungry at all. He stared at it a while longer, not sure what he wanted to do.

With another apprehensive glance in Frost’s direction, Mozilla picked up the large slice of watermelon and trotted with it awkwardly positioned in his teeth towards the sleeping Vulpix. Her ear twitched as the grass rustled beneath Mozilla’s steps. Though this seemed to suggest that she was actually awake, she kept pretending to sleep anyway, ignoring Mozilla entirely. Mozilla placed the slice of watermelon down in the grass near her and ran off before she could react. He looked back when he was back near the food bowls. She didn’t move. Mozilla’s ears dropped and he turned away, walking to the food bowl for his turn to eat.


Near the Day-Care couple’s house were a series of huts in various sizes, each built for a single Pokémon to sleep in at night. As the sun shifted and the shade of the tree was chased out of the pen, Frost headed into her own hut before any of the other Pokémon to continue dozing in the shade. She didn’t so much as glance at the watermelon Mozilla had left for her as she left her corner. As the sun set, more of the Pokémon gradually began to file into their own huts, including Mozilla.

It was soon dark and Nidorina was snoring loudly in the hut next to Mozilla’s. Though Mozilla had gotten used to it at this point, he still couldn’t sleep. Something about earlier that day was still bothering him and he just couldn’t rest with Frost’s reaction still fresh in his mind. He closed his eyes and tried to force himself to sleep, though when he did his mind was filled with the image of Goldie looking down at him with her pitiful expression.

Mozilla’s eyes shot open once again. He had finally figured out what was bothering him. It was what Goldie had said earlier. “This is nothing new for her and not through any fault of her own.” So Goldie had known all along what was bothering Frost.

Mozilla was suddenly filled with so many questions. Why hadn’t Goldie just told him? Should he wake up Goldie and ask her? Before he had much time to seriously consider waking her up, some movement from a hut somewhere to his right caught his attention. Frost stood up and walked silently across the pen towards her usual spot in the corner. Her white fur almost seemed to glow in the darkness. Mozilla watched as she sat underneath the tree and started to eat the slice of watermelon he had left for her.

She looked more relaxed than usual. Maybe she was just tired. Before he knew what he was doing, Mozilla was on his feet and walking towards her again. He considered for a moment how upset Goldie would be if he suddenly ran to her crying in the middle of the night, but kept walking. He was almost right behind Frost and still had no idea what he was going to do. Unfortunately, his time to think ran out as he stepped on a small twig that had fallen from the tree above them.

Frost jumped and spun around, suddenly on her feet with her tails fanned out aggressively. Mozilla let out a short, startled cry. Frost relaxed a little, though her usual stern expression returned. “Oh. It’s you. Again. I’m… too tired to deal with you right now. Just leave me alone!”

She started walking, moving to head back towards the huts. Before she could pass him, Mozilla leapt in front of her to cut her off. Her eyes narrowed aggressively and she opened her mouth, either to speak or follow through on her threat from earlier that day. Before she could though, Mozilla interrupted her.

“Just wait a second, I just want to say something.”

Frost sat on the ground and drummed her tails impatiently on the ground. “Fine. What?”

“I don’t really understand why you act the way you do… I know there’s something more to it than just not liking summer. Goldie didn’t tell me anything about it, but she said something that made me think… maybe something happened?” He added quickly, “You don’t have to tell me! Really, it’s fine! I just… I know you want to be left alone. I get it. I’ll leave you alone if you want. Just… if you ever do want someone to play with… You can always just ask, okay?”

To his surprise, Frost’s usual icy expression suddenly softened. She sighed and looked away, much like she did when thinking of what to tell him when he asked about why she hated summer.

“You don’t see many Vulpix like me, do you?” she asked.

Mozilla tilted his head in confusion. “Right. You’re an ice type so you don’t like the summer heat. I get that.”

“That’s not what I meant!” she snapped at him, a little of her usual edge returning. Her expression softened again. “I’m an Alolan Vulpix.” Seeing Mozilla’s confusion, she added, “I’m from one of the islands in the Alola region. Alola’s pretty warm in most places, but I lived on an icy mountain.” She paused for a moment before continuing, “That’s where my trainer found me. Four years ago. We traveled the islands together. It was fun. After she passed her trials, we came to Kanto to try the Pokémon leauge.”

Frost looked down and her voice shook when she spoke again. “I don’t know why. I thought we were friends. But… One day she just… left me here. She left me here last autumn. It’s been almost a year and she hasn’t come back!”

Mozilla didn’t know what to say. He could hardly believe that the eyes of the usually cold Pokémon were now filled with tears.

She managed to regain her composure and spoke again. “Alolan summers were much warmer than here in Kanto. The salty sea water was so much more fun to play in than the little pool we have here. Even the watermelon here doesn’t taste as good.” If possible, her head lowered even more. “I don’t think… I’ll ever be able to see an Alolan summer again. Especially not with my trainer...”

So that was why. Mozilla didn’t know what to say. His own trainer would be back to take him home in only a couple of days. Though he wanted to comfort her, he just couldn’t think of the words. Instead, he took a couple steps towards her and raised a paw to place it on her shoulder, much like how Goldie had comforted him earlier.

At his touch, Frost suddenly jerked away and looked at him reproachfully.

“S-sorry!” He said quickly.

Frost gave him a weird look, then sat in the grass and looked into the distance. “It’s fine. I guess. I just… I wanna go home.”

“That’s all… really too bad, huh? My trainer will be here in a couple days to pick me up. I wish I could stay a little longer to keep you company.”

Frost turned to respond, but once again she was interrupted. This time, by a weird flash of light somewhere above them. Mozilla had seen it too. The two Vulpix looked up to the sky, but the tree’s lush summer foliage blocked their view. They ran out to the middle of the pen together to get a better look. There was another flash of light. Then another. Soon, the dark star-speckled sky was filled with the flashing light. The two vulpix squinted to see what the source of the lights were.

“Oh, they’re Volbeat and Illumise!” Mozilla said. “They’re not usually found in Kanto, but they pass through sometimes in the summer.”

The two Vulpix sat together in the grassy field and watched the Volbeat and Illumise for a while. After a time, the Volbeat and Illumise started to form a series of complex patterns with their lights. Mozilla glanced cautiously over to Frost. Her usually stern eyes were now wide with wonder, reflecting the light of the sparkling Pokémon above them. He returned to watching them too and they both stayed silent for a long time.

“You know,” Frost finally said with a content yawn, “maybe there are some things Kanto summers have that Alolan summers don’t.”

Spoiler: Credits

Wings and I did most of the initial planning for the story line through a group PM. Wings wrote the beginning, ConfettiCat wrote a section in the middle, and I wrote the ending.

 

The entry for myself, @UnstoppableGamer, and @Shindou Takuto is in. Check the post where I stated our group's topic, I edited our submission into it, as you suggested we do.