The New Start — BloodOfPhantoms

Chapter One

Hey guys, just writing one of my first official pokemon stories that I've always wanted to make aka this so please show support and I'll try to make more chapters later on. Thanks for reading that if you did, and without further disruptions, enjoy. A door was slammed open with a force that seemed angry in nature, or rather pissed. Joshua quietly put down his 3DS and regrettably turned his head towards the bedroom door, his very own one that had been open so abruptly, knowing who it was from the start. "Get back to your coding, idiot." Allison said, glaring at him a little. "I'm taking a break, jeez." Joshua replied, taking his 3DS back up from the desk to continue playing Pokemon X. "What you're doing is getting yourself distracted, again." "Okay, thanks mom." Joshua said jokingly before turning most of his attention back to the game. "Mom?! I'm not your fucking mother Joshua, nor would I want to be." "Seriously, piss off Allison, I'm busy." "Playing a children's game, really?" Then the argument started, just like all the past arguments they've had since they were kids. They've known each other for quite a while, and they are friends, but living together kind of makes it a lot more likely for these arguments to continue on and on. Which is what happened this time, even though it ended shorter than usual. "It's still not a children's game, for the hundreth time." Joshua replied, getting a little pissed. Allison took out her phone from her pocket and began typing something up as he waited for her response, which he knew was coming sometime in whatever form it was going to come as. Even though they were both 18, Allison had perfected her phone skills when she was a teenager, and was able to type in meer seconds, but Joshua wasn't very impressed as he could type similarly fast on his keyboard, just not on a phone that was as tiny as Allison's, so he was a bit impressed after all, just not so much. Music began playing from her phone as she turned the screen to face Joshua so he could see the video he knew and hated all too well, the dreaded 'I Play Pokemon Go' song. "Nopenopenopenopenope-" He put on his headphones, plugged it in to the 3DS and listened to the in-game music at full volume until she paused the video. "Okay, I admit the music video is bad, but you get the point." Joshua sighed, taking off his headphones, "It's still not for children, so leave." "Fine, it's for babies then." Allison smirked a little but Joshua ignored her, as he got more pissed. "It's not-... just go away already, Allison." "You should just focus more on your programming than anything else, that's all I'm saying. You know, your actual job." She said before leaving to go back to her room. Joshua decided to save his game and closed his 3DS. He didn't feel like playing anymore, so he got off his chair and jumped on his bed in exhaustion as he tried to ignore what Allison had said in his mind. Turning to the clock on the desk next to him that read 3:55AM, he pulled up his covers and attempted to sleep. "If only she played the game or something like that... then she would know how fun it is." Joshua whispered to himself before dozing off into sleep. Writing on a tablet is hard, so please bare with me for more parts of the story, and thanks for reading. You may have an idea what happens next, but if not, stay tuned for the next chapter regardless!

· · ·

Chapter Two

Joshua woke up to the sound of trees rustling in the breeze the next day and got up woozily, feeling a bit different than usual. As his sight came to him, he jumped at who he saw in front of him, still sleeping. "A Furfrou?! Wait... how-" He quickly looked down at his hands which were revealed as paws covered in white fur with black, shiny claws. He then observed the environment. A forest that was covered in grass and surrounded by trees that were mostly the same height in comparison, with some varying by just a few inches. The Furfrou in front of him woke up as he turned to look at whoever it was that was now getting up from the grass. "Um... I'm sorry I might have woken you up, but..." The Furfrou turned to look at him and took a few steps back with a confused expression on their face. "W-what are you?..." The Furfrou said, staring at him. "I-I'm not sure, but you're a Furfr-" Josh recognized the Pokemon's voice, snickering a liitle. "Allison?" "How do you know my nam- wait.. Josh?!" Allison looked around and started to panic. Josh finally realized what must have happened, laughing a little at the thought. "T-this is a dream, right?" Allison looked back at him, "Right?!" "Well... considering I'm seeing this too, I don't think so." Josh said, trying to hold back a smug grin. "...But you're an animal..." Allison replied, still confused. "Well... I wouldn't really use the term 'animal'..." Allison looked more confused than ever. Joshua smirked, enjoying every moment of this. "Welcome to the Pokemon World, Allison. Also known as irony, level infinity."

Chapter Three

Even after a few minutes had passed, Allison still looked as confused as before. "T-this is a joke, isn't it?" She tried not to stutter. Josh shook his head, the smug look on his face fading a little, "Look down." Allison gulped before looking down at her front paws, stunned at what she saw. Eventually, she looked back up at him, her eyes now filled with rage. "You did this... didn't you." Allison's eyes were locked on Joshua. "I-I didn't, honestly! If I could, I would've done this years ago..." Allison sighed, knowing that he was probably right. "If you're lying, I will seriously hurt you." Joshua smirked, "I'm not a liar, but even if I was, you probably couldn't hurt me if you tried." "What." Allison glared at him. "Explain." "I know how this world works more than you do, I'm sure about that, so all you might be able to do are neutral attacks..." "You're underestimating me?" "I never said that..." "You may be right about that you know more about this world than I do, but never underestimate me with anything, got it?" Joshua was silent for a while. He had never really seen Allison like this before. "I get it... but you didn't have to be so mean." He replied, sighing. "That's because I still think that somehow you did this, but I'll take your word, for now." She said, calming down a little. "..." Joshua tried to keep a serious face, but he couldn't hold back another grin as he snickered a little. "See, you're laughing!" She grumbled a bit. "B-because there's a Caterpie on your head." Josh chuckled. "A what..." She said, looking up at the Caterpie staring down at her. And then there was chaos.

Chapter Four

Allison started to run around frantically, desperate to get the Caterpie that was latched on her head off. She tried shaking her head rapidly too, but the Caterpie still managed to stay on. "Maybe it likes you?" Joshua said, trying not to laugh. She ran out of energy after a while of all the failed attempts and tried one last time, using one of her front paws in an attempt to get it off, but she could't reach. "At least try to help me, Joshua." "Me?" "Yeah, instead of looking so god damn smug about it." She said grumpily, continuing to try to use her paw to get the small Bug type off her head. "Well... maybe if you'd ask nicer..." He responded before walking off to a puddle of water as he looked at his reflection on the surface. "An Absol huh..." He thought to himself, not particularly knowing what Pokemon he was from before. She put down her paw tiredly, eventually giving up, "Please?..." Joshua looked at her and could tell she was desperate. "Fine..." He said, walking up to Allison while looking at the Caterpie still on top of her head. Joshua raised his paw, but before he could even touch the Caterpie, it jumped off and bolted outta there, slithering like it was the Olympics as it went through a bush, disappearing from sight. "W-what? You didn't even touch it!" Allison said, slightly amazed and pleased at the same time. "Yeah... I know." Joshua replied, grinning, "I must have spooked it, huh?" "You're not really scary, but..." Allison smiled, lying down with a sigh of relief, "I'm just glad it's gone..." They stayed there silent for a few minutes, until Allison, of course, broke it again. "When do we get to go back to the real world?..." She asked. Joshua took a while to respond. "I'm pretty sure this is a real world, Allison." "I meant ours, dingus." "Rude... but uh... I'm not sure if there is a way back..." Allison sighed, until a loud roar came from her stomach, which made Joshua break out in a fit of laughter. "Shut up, it's not funny..." Allison glared at him a little before he stopped laughing eventually. "Okay... that was funny, honestly." Joshua smirked a little. "Was not." She said. "Was too." He retorted. After that, another argument started between them. Some people never change.

Chapter Five

Before I start, I just wanted to say thanks for all the support on my first story here. It may seem small, but it does mean a lot, trust me. So without further discussion, let's continue on with the story. One argument later... "...I still think it was funny." Josh said, smirking. "Whatever, Joshua." Allison sighed, "Me being hungry is funny, apparently." "Well... it was just so random-..." He paused. Allison looked at him after he abruptly stopped his sentence, "What? Did you see a ghos-" Joshua ran quickly over to a tree and motioned for Allison to come along with one of his paws. She got up from the ground, "What are you doing... and what's that noise..." "Hurry up, damn it." He said, motioning his paw faster. "Why do you want me to hurry up..." She said lazily, walking over to where Joshua was, "It's not like if there's an emergency, right?" Joshua stood in silence for a minute and crouched down as if he was anticipating something. "...Seriously? What are you doing-" "Shh." He urged quietly. Things remained silent for a while as they remained mostly hidden. A loud buzzing noise came closer and as it filled the air, a swarm of Beedrill flew by like a storm, along with a few Butterfree and the same Caterpie from before that slithered fast to keep up with the others' pace. They watched the swarm of Bug types pass and disappear into the forest before doing anything else. "...What were those?" Joshua got up from crouching down, "Bug types, Allison." "Wait, so that 'Caterpie' or whatever..." Joshua nodded, sighing, "Yeah... it snitched." "Oh..." Joshua took one last peek to make sure the coast was clear. "W-we should probably get out of here soon..." He replied, turning to look at Allison who he didn't know was already walking away. Joshua hurried over to her, following her as she walked, "I didn't say you could leave yet..." She rolled her eyes, "Yeah, like if I need your permission." "But why are we heading straight?" "...I'm not sure, honestly." She replied, yawning. Before he could say anything else, a roar came from his stomach. Then there were two.

Chapter Six

Joshua blushed a little while Allison laughed. "It's not funny." He growled a little. "Welcome to irony, level hunger." She smirked while mocking him. "You're just a tryhard, Allison." "Not sure if that's a good thing, but okay." They soon stumbled upon an Oran Berry tree and stopped to look at the berries above. "Are those edible?..." "Um... they're supposed to be, I think." "Well climb it then." Allison ordered. "Why me?" "Because I don't feel like it." Joshua sighed, leaping up into the Oran Berry tree that was medium height compared to the other trees around him. He was still adjusting to his new body, so he stumbled a little off and on. Allison yawned while he picked the berries one by one until he had a few of them. He could tell that she still didn't want to be here, but he was sort of getting used to this world already. "You take forever, Joshua." "Well thanks for your motivation, it helps." He said, trying not to sound too sarcastic. Joshua gently pushed the berries down as they fell on the grass softly, jumping down from the tree after he was finished to eat some of the berries. Allison took a while to eat them though, which made Joshua laugh a little. Everything went pretty normal after that and they continued to walk around more and talk, but then they remembered something. They forgot about their other roommate.

Chapter Seven

"Do you really think Xander would be here?" Allison asked. "Maybe, but I'm not too sure." Joshua replied. "Shouldn't he be here with us if he was?" Allison said doubtfully. "We could've spawned here randomly, so I dunno." He shrugged. "With the odd chances of you and I spawning together while he's separate?" Joshua shrugged again, as he thought about what to do next. "Where do you think he'll be if he was here, anyway?" He asked. "I dunno... he doesn't really like trees so..." Allison replied. Joshua jumped up in a high tree and landed on a thick branch, surveying the area before jumping back down. "There's a meadow nearby... I'm going." Joshua said confidently. "All just to prove your theory?" She questioned. "That and we're a team, too. We shouldn't leave a member behind." He responded. "What's our team name, then?" Joshua thought about this for a moment, then decided. "Team Spectre?" He said, a little bit unsure. Silence filled the air briefly. "That's the dumbest name I've ever heard." She stated, laughing a bit. "It still sounds cool, doesn't it?" He said enthusiastically. "Yeah, I guess." "Then it's settled." He concluded as they walked off to the meadow, not knowing who or what they would find that was ahead. I put more effort secretly in this chapter than the rest, so shh. Anyway, hope you enjoyed and thanks for reading.

Chapter Eight

Joshua and Allison walked together to the meadow, even though Allison didn't really want to come. She thought his theory seemed a little far-fetched in general, but she decided to go with him otherwise. "Meadows sometimes have trees too, Joshua." Allison said without a doubt. She loved nature, so she knew things like these normally, sometimes without giving it second-thought. "I know," He replied, "But there are supposed to be less." "Less than the forest, you mean?" He nodded in response until they eventually arrived at the meadow. "Wow, that was quick." Joshua remarked, before noticing a Houndoom sleeping in the center of the meadow. He could tell Allison noticed the Houndoom too by the way she looked. "Do you really think that's him?" Allison asked. "Well... there's only one way to find out." He said, approaching the Houndoom slowly while Allison continued to follow. For some reason, Joshua had a bad feeling about this, but he continued walking towards the Houndoom otherwise. Upon closer inspection, he could see that the Houndoom was indeed asleep, but whoever they were looked more relaxed than being a deep sleep otherwise. "Uh... hi?" Joshua looked at the Houndoom, hoping for a response. It's ears flickered for a moment before going back to normal. "It was worth a shot..." Joshua sighed. "My turn," Allison poked the Houndoom repeatedly, eventually causing it to wake up. "Hmmph..." The Houndoom grumbled, getting up and slowly opening its eyes. "Well, that worked." Allison smirked. The Houndoom shook it's head before looking at Allison. "Not to be rude lady, but you sound like someone I know." The Houndoom said, "Which is a bit creepy, might I add." The two looked at each other quietly before Allison perked up, tackling Xander into an unexpected hug. "Wait, you can't be... unless..." Xander muttered to himself, looking at Allison funny. Allison didn't respond as she was too busy nuzzling him to notice. Xander then turned his attention to Joshua, "If this is Allison, then you must be..." Joshua nodded, answering Xander's doubts. "I see..." Xander said, looking back at Allison who was still nuzzling him. She just realized what was happening, then let go of him and stopped, backing away a little and blushing, embarrassed. "Oh... sorry about that, heh..." She smiled sheepishly. "It's fine, Allison," Xander said, smiling briefly. "I had a feeling you would be here, Xander." Joshua stated, "I just knew it." "Okay Joshua, you don't have to show off." Allison yawned. "I'm not." He responded. "You are." She countered. "Not." "Are." "Not." "Are." "Not." "Are." Xander sighed, breaking up the argument between them. "Anyway..." Joshua added, lifting the silence, "Not you're a part of our team, Xander." "Our... team?" He asked, confused. "Yeah," Joshua smiled, "Team Spectre." "Hmm... okay." "It's getting close to night-time though, so we should probably get going-" Joshua paused, turning around to look in different directions. Beedrill came rushing in before they could utter another word, surrounding them in a circle as they buzzed in anger, ready to strike at any moment. "...What now?" Allison asked quietly, trying not to sound scared. "Now?.." Joshua smirked "Now, we fight." I'm sorry for not writing in a while, but things happened, and I'll try to finish this story as soon as I can. Most of the chapters are finished except for the last one, and they were written differently, so you may notice some changes in the writing when comparing different chapters with others, even if the changes may seem minor. I hope you enjoy the rest of the story when I publish it eventually. But until then, thanks for reading. :D

Chapter Nine

"Did you guys seriously get some people angry already?" Xander sighed. "Yeah... I guess you could say that." Joshua replied, still waiting for at least one of the Beedrill to make a move. "Houndoom," One of the Beedrill finally spoke, "We don't have any business with you, leave now or perish with them." "Oh, is it because I'm a Fire type?" Xander replied, "Or rather, part Fire?" Xander, like Joshua, had knowledge of the Pokemon universe from before. Allison was the only odd one out. "Make your choice," The Beedrill ordered, getting an an attack stance while the rest followed in unison, "We aren't afraid of you." "Oh, really?" Xander smirked, "Attack them or even me, if you'd so dare to do so, and I'll show you first-hand what fear is like." "Fine then," The Beedrill said, "You've forced this upon yourself." The Beedrill started to spin around in the circle while surrounding them, gaining speed and momentum. They all watched the Beedrill quietly, especially Xander, who looked like he had anticipated this sort of attack strategy and was rather calm compared to the rest of them. The Beedrill then rushed in, not at one target, but at all three of them separately in groups. The majority of them, however, rushed in at Xander, to the point where there were so many around him that Joshua and Allison couldn't really see him anymore. Joshua wasn't sure how to particularly fight in this world, but he tried as best as he could, countering the Beedrill that attacked him with Night Slash. He eventually knocked one out, but there were still four that he had to deal with. Allison tried to keep up, but all she did was try to dodge the three Beedrill that attacked her, as she didn't really know what moves she could use. Suddenly, cries of pain were heard from the Beedrill that were attacking Xander as they spiraled out of control, their bodies covered in a burning fire that sent some flying into trees while others fell to the ground until their flames had extinguished. Some tried to get back up to fight, but they fell back down again soon after, covered in intense burn marks. The two other groups of Beedrill that were one fighting ceased their attacks, turning their attention to Xander. "Is it my turn to say it?" Xander looked at the Beedrill, all of them frozen in place hovering with their wings, "Leave now... or perish." The remaining Beedrill used this opportunity to get out of there, fleeing as fast as they could. Joshua didn't say a word, he just looked at Xander in awe, impressed at how fast he took the group of Beedrill down and how he chased the rest of them off. "Xander doesn't look hurt at all... but how-" Joshua thought before hearing a thud on the ground and turning to see Allison who was badly wounded. Joshua ran up to her. He was damaged too, but not as much as she was. "Are you alright, Allison?" Joshua asked. "Not quite..." She replied, getting up in pain. Xander walked over to them, looking at her injuries. "She might be poisoned... a few of them I fought used Poison Jab." Xander said. "Is there anywhere we can go that's safe?.." Joshua looked at Xander hopefully. "There's an abandoned cave north of here that I saw when I was walking around that should be a good spot." Allison lost her balance but continued holding herself up. "I can escort her there in the meantime," He looked at Joshua, "Just see if you can find anything to cure her in case she's poisoned, quick." Joshua nodded, running into the forest and looking around at all the trees that he passed, trying to find one with the right berries for a situation like this. He tried to stay calm and not panic, but he knew that he didn't really have much time. He had to get something, and he had to get it fast.

Chapter Ten

Joshua continued to run around the forest, searching carefully for anything that could work. He was so focused that he didn't look in front of him as he bumped into a Lilligant holding a basket of berries that fell out of her hands. The berries all rolled out of the basket in front of Joshua, who was just getting up. "S-sorry! I'm just trying to get something for a friend, and I didn't see you there..." The Lilligant got up, dusting herself off. "Oh, no worries, really." The Lilligant said in a kind tone, picking back up the basket to proceed and put back the berries as well. "Uh... by any chance, do you have any Pecha Berries? It's just... my friend might be poisoned, so..." Joshua tried not to make it seem like he was panicking, but it was apparent in his voice. "I'm afraid not... but I can give you this," She said, picking up a Lum Berry from the pile. Joshua's eyes lit up as he saw the berry, almost forgetting those even existed. "Really? You'd give it to me?" Joshua asked excitedly. "Sure!" The Lilligant said kindly as she gave him the berry, "Anything for a friend, right?" Joshua accepted the berry, holding it carefully in his right paw and keeping it from falling with his claws. "T-thanks!" Joshua smiled, "I gotta go... but I'll try to make it up to you, I promise!" Joshua ran off as the Lilligant waved him goodbye. He headed north and eventually found the cave Xander and Allison were in, running inside. Allison seemed to be in a worse condition than before, but she was still conscious, although breathing heavily and lying down. "You took kinda... long..." She said, trying her best to talk properly. "It's a weird story, but I came here as fast as I could." Joshua replied, panting a little. He remembered the Lum Berry, putting it down for her to eat. She took a bite of it, then another one, finishing it at the second bite. "Did it work?" She asked, her heavy breathing slowly coming to a halt. "It probably did, but you'll still be injured for a while, so you should rest." Xander said. It was approaching night-time as the sky turned dark. "Thanks Joshua." She smiled, her speech returning to normal. Joshua smiled back, "No problem." Allison rested her head on her paws and drifted off to sleep shortly after. Joshua then looked at Xander, who was lying down next to her. "By the way..." Joshua recalled, "How did you even manage to not take a single hit in that fight we were in?" Xander smirked, "I wouldn't really call that a fight, but..." Joshua looked at him seriously. "To answer your question, however..." Xander said, the smirk disappearing from his face, "It might be better if I show you instead."

Chapter Eleven

"Show me?" Joshua asked. Xander nodded in response. "If I were to simply tell you," Xander said, getting up and walking out of the cave, "It probably wouldn't make any sense." "Wait, where are you going-" "Outside, of course." Xander replied, smiling briefly once again, "Follow me and I'll show you." "Well... okay, I guess." Joshua said, doing just that. As they walked, the two remained silent until arriving at another meadow that was further from the one they were in previously. The wind blew against the moonlit trees around them while Xander stepped into the center of the meadow, Joshua still following behind him as he did so. "Remember when we were kids?.." Xander asked him, staring at the pale moon above. "Oh... yeah, I kinda do, a little." Joshua had to jog his memory before he answered. "We all lived in the same neighborhood at the time... you, me and Allison." Xander said with a sigh. "You wanted to make everyone happy, and thus, you always joked around. Allison wanted to be the most popular kid in the neighborhood, inviting almost everyone she knew and liked to her birthday parties, including us." Joshua smiled, his memories returning, "I still remember that one time we sneaked in that room and started eating the cake before it was time for it to be served out." Xander chuckled a little, "That's more or less how we all became friends, isn't it?" "Pretty much." "It was an odd way of being friends though... I personally at that point thought that Allison was going to cry when her birthday cake was kinda ruined but instead..." Xander took a deep breath in, not being used to talking that much. "But instead she walked up while we looked at her speechless and caught in the act, grabbing a piece of cake and throwing it at you, then giggling when your face got completely covered in frosting." "Wow..." Joshua spoke surprised, "You really remember a lot, Xander." Xander stopped staring at the moon and turned to look at Joshua, "You don't remember the cake fight we had after, leaving the whole room covered in a sugary mess?" "I do, but your description of that day is so clear... mine is just a little foggy, honestly." Joshua answered. "Her parents were the only ones that were pissed, and probably the guy that had to make a new cake from scratch all of a sudden at the bakery, but Allison seemed just fine about the situation, even though she was sort of covered in cake." "I still felt kinda sad... I mean, because of us, her parents scolded her afterwards, or at least that's what I remember." Joshua sighed at the thought of it. "But she still stuck up for us, even when it seemed like we were in a huge amount of trouble." "We were only eight at the time, along with Allison, so they couldn't really do anything severe regardless." Joshua shrugged. "I know, but in the end, I still hated her parents for what they did, even if the birthday party went well afterwards." "I just felt scared, really..." Joshua laughed it off, "We made up for it though, didn't we?" "By inviting her to our own birthday parties over the years? Yeah, I guess that sort of made up for the incident we caused." "That's not all we did to make up for it, but I supposed that's a good answer..." Joshua snapped out of it, "Wait a sec', why are you reminding me of this, anyway?" "I knew you were going to ask me that eventually," Xander smirked, "I can almost read you like a book by now, Joshua." "Uh..." Joshua didn't know what to say. "All of us were born on the same year, and you and Allison have changed a lot over the years... but what about me?" Joshua stood there silent, listening carefully as Xander spoke. "As I said before, for you it was and still is to make people happy and for Allison, it was and still is to make friends... or at least try to with the people she meets." "These can be referred to as goals, right? You don't need to answer that, because I know you knew that alright, but I'll cut to the point." Xander took another deep breath in before continuing. "Do you know what my goal is, Joshua? What it's been this entire time from the start?" "N-not really..." Joshua said, his voice sounding shaky. "Power." "..." Joshua was left speechless again, but he listened to Xander's every word, not losing attention. Xander smiled, "It's a marvellous thing, isn't it Joshua?" "It's the thing that's kept me alive for each challenge I faced, and it's made me stronger as a person each and every time." "Humanity wanted so much power that it led to wars between countries, as blood shed over battlefields... but you know what power stems from? "I'm not sure..." Joshua said, speaking up. "Hate, anger, and pain... all of those things are what give people power." "The stronger those feelings are, the stronger someone will become. "I-I don't understand..." Joshua shook his head, trying to figure out what Xander was saying. "I predicted you not understanding too, Joshua... which is why I brought you out here." The wind blew more furiously, even though it felt as if time froze at that exact moment. "I'll show you all the hatred that's fueled my blood over the years that we've known each other, and the anger and pain that I've lived through and survived with in my life." Joshua felt his heart beating faster as Xander's entire attitude and stare intensified. "I'm going to fight you, Joshua." Xander said with a cold look in his eyes. "And don't you dare hold back."

Chapter Twelve

Joshua backed away, watching as the leaves that flew around Xander from the wind burned to a crisp in mid-air. "I don't want to fight you Xander..." Xander took a few steps forward, the grass that he stepped on turning black as he walked towards Joshua, "You have no choice." The wind began blowing at a slower rate now, but it continued howling through the night. "We're a team Xander... we shouldn't be fighting." Joshua replied. "Really?.." Xander stopped walking towards him and smirked, "Is that why you don't want to fight me?" "You're my friend too." Joshua sighed, "It wouldn't feel right in the first place..." Xander looked at Joshua with the same cold stare before dashing in front of him and punching him in the face, sending him back a little. "Did that feel right?" Xander walked up to him slowly. Joshua reacted too late as Xander landed another punch on the left side of his head this time, sending him back further. "..." Joshua growled a little, getting more and more pissed. "I said don't hold back, Joshua." "I am not playing your little game, Xander." Everything was silent for a brief moment. "I wouldn't really call this a game... but if you don't fight back... you'll die." Xander fired a Flamethrower at Joshua, but he dodged it in time before he could get hit. "You're being really boring..." Xander sighed. Joshua charged up to him, hitting him with a Night Slash on his leg that he raised to block the attack. Xander smirked. "I'm not playing around, Xander." Joshua said fearlessly. "Really?" Xander asked, making his voice sound surprised even though he wasn't. Xander then pushed Joshua's paw away, still charged up and glowing from the Night Slash and used his own force against him, taking the paw and slamming it into the ground with such a force that it went straight through and got stuck. Joshua tried taking his paw out quickly, but Xander jabbed him at his side, then used the opportunity to land a punch that practically sent him flying and landing on the ground as he coughed up a little blood. Joshua got up weakly, "H-how did you..." "I never said I was playing either, Joshua." Xander grinned, his blood cooling a little from the punch even though his adrenaline was surging, "But boy, that felt good." Joshua growled louder, but it hurt his side a little, so he stopped, trying to hide the pain so that Xander wouldn't notice. "Sorry about the paw thing... I agree it was a bit dirty in terms of fighting, but that's just how Foul Play works." Xander laughed a little, his voice mocking Joshua as he tried to sound as innocent as he sounded normally. Joshua hadn't felt anger like this in a while. Somehow, this wasn't the Xander he knew and became friends with. He was oddly... different. "You're so weak that it's funny..." Xander laughed more as Joshua glared at him, not sure what to do. Suddenly, Joshua felt something radiating from his horn and looked up to see that it was glowing pink, then white, and pink again, alternating over and over. "Maybe this is..." Joshua thought before he fell to the ground in pain, the glow fading. Xander was too busy laughing to notice the glow, then walked over to Joshua, who tried to attack, but was countered by a Sucker Punch. Joshua landed on his back after the Sucker Punch, immobilized as he breathed heavily, his vision getting blurry. Walking up to him slowly and without haste, Xander punched him again, this time in the stomach as Joshua desperately tried to get up. This made him cough up more blood, but Xander just stared at him in pity. "Think of it this way," Xander calmed down a bit and yawned, "If I wasn't here, you and Allison would've probably been slaughtered by those Beedrill by now and dead." He pushed down on Joshua's chest close to where he punched him in the stomach, but not too close, which made Joshua grunt a little. "That means that I can get to decide whether you die here or not." Xander pressed his paw down on his chest, making him scream for a short moment until Xander pushed down harder, silencing him afterwards as some of Joshua's ribs cracked underneath the very pressure of Xander's paw. Xander took his paw off afterwards, walking back to gain some distance, "However, I'll keep my word and show you the move that burned those Beedrill to death." Xander shrugged, "Even though you probably won't survive this or rather see it in the state that you're in now, but I'm just going to let you witness the fire." Joshua got up as much as he could, clenching his teeth from the pain he felt as he stood up halfway, observing Xander opening his mouth, a stream of flames coming out that moved like they were alive and controlled, in which the flames then circled around Joshua like a ring before it died out afterwards. "That was just an example, of course, but Inferno is a move that can be manipulated in an endless amount of ways," He said, smirking, "And while you were probably playing around and goofing off when you first came to this world, I trained and discovered that about the move, when you chose to stay weak." Joshua stayed up on his paws, the pain being unbearable at this point, "I... I tried-" Joshua coughed up more blood, then fell to the ground again, starting to lose consciousness. "Well, maybe you did, but now... I get to kill you for your own ignorance." Xander opened his mouth again, this time the stream of flames were far more intense than before, as they began to circle around Joshua once more, the speed increasing faster and faster until the ring of fire came in closer and started burning Joshua in the process. After that... he blacked out.

Chapter Thirteen

Joshua woke up to a bright light, looking around as his vision came back to realize that he wasn't in the meadow anymore, but rather a house instead. He wasn't sure if he was alive or not, but he got up and found that the pain he felt was still there, yet significantly less than what it was before he blacked out. "Oh, you're awake." A voice that sounded familiar to him spoke. Joshua turned in the direction of the voice to see the Lilligant that he met before in the forest standing by the wooden door of the room. His vision got blurry again, but he tried his hardest not to pass out. "Did you... uh..." "Rescue you?" The Lilligant asked. Joshua nodded, "Y-yeah..." "I had to... or you would've died." Her voice sounded as kind as before, but she looked at him with a sad expression. The light was shining brightly through a window as Joshua then realized that it was morning. "Thanks... but..." He paused before resuming, "But how?" "I heard a scream that echoed through the forest and went to see what was taking place, so I ran out of this house and headed in the direction of where I heard the scream coming from and saw you lying down in a meadow... but you were already out cold." "...I guess that makes sense." Joshua sighed. He then explained the fight to the Lilligant before he started to lose consciousness again. "That's a bit different than what I had in mind for why you were injured, but a fight was the first thing that came to my mind." She replied, "You can always go back to sleep... you're safe here, definitely." "O-okay." Joshua closed his eyes as he laid down on something soft, not sure what it was because of the vision problems he was having, before he fell asleep almost immediately without another thought in his mind.

Chapter Fourteen

Joshua awoke again, and suprisingly, most of the pain was gone, even though there was a smell that lingered in the air around him. "...Is that?..." Joshua got up, finally realizing that he was on a bed. The Lilligant stepped into the room again, "Hi." Joshua looked at his left arm, then sniffed his fur, recognizing the type of scent. "This is medicine... isn't it?" The Lilligant giggled, "I'm surprised you didn't notice that before." "Well... I was sorta out of it, so..." A Lucario walked in the room, picking up a ball of crumpled up paper on the floor before throwing it in the small bin nearby and briefly noticed Joshua. "...Who are you guys, anyway?" Joshua looked at both of them. "We should be asking you the same question." The Lucario said, his voice sounding male. "Oh, I'm Joshua." "...That doesn't explain why your aura is so different." The Lucario looked at him closely. "M-my what?..." Joshua blinked. "How do you not know what aura is?" The Lucario questioned. "Now now... let's not pester him with questions, Charron." "Sharon?" Joshua stifled a laugh from bursting out. "It's Charron, you weird Absol." "Who are you calling weird with a girl name?" Joshua pointed at him with his paw. They then started to argue, before the Lilligant broke it up. "Don't fight, guys..." "Fight?" Charron scoffed, "He can't even fight if this is the situation he got himself in." Joshua was about to growl but stopped himself, "You're right..." "But I can still try!" Joshua smiled with enthusiasm. "Try? Is he seriously going back out there, Botanica?" Charron turned to the Lilligant. "I don't really have a say in whether he leaves or not..." Botanica looked at Charron, then back at Joshua. "Botanica?... That's a really nice name..." She blushed when hearing that, "Thanks, Joshua." "So she gets a compliment on her name, but I don't?" Charron crossed his arms and rolled his eyes , "Lame." Joshua smiled again a little. Charron reminded him of Allison... but then he saw that the sun was setting outside the window already, knowing that he didn't have much time. "It was good meeting you guys, and I'd love to talk more, however, I really need to go, like, right now." Joshua jumped down from the bed. "Joshua, you're still recovering..." Botanica looked at him worried. "I know... but I still need to get Xander back to normal, or at least try..." He replied. "Botanica told me the story you spoke to her about, Joshua." Charron said, "The Houndoom you described seems corrupt yet powerful, and I don't think fighting him again is a good choice." "I only failed that one time because I fell to anger... but I'm not going to let that happen again." Joshua walked out of the room and went down a short hallway, leading to the living room then to the exit where the door that led to outside was. Charron followed Joshua as he walked along with Botanica as well. "Just listen, Joshua. I don't know why you want to do this, but if you really think you need to go, I won't stop you either." Charron went over to a small box on top of a wooden counter to pick it up, opening it and looking inside, "But this might help..." Charron took out a bunch of necklaces that had strange stones inside glass orbs that were tied with string, putting the rest back and kneeling down on the floor to hang one of the necklaces on Joshua's neck. "Wait... what's this?" Joshua looked down at the circular stone that was encased in a glass ball like the others. "I told Charron to give you that if you were to leave." Botanica said, "It's what some refer to as an Absolite." "But... how'd you get this?..." Joshua looked at Charron. Charron stood back up, "I collect them... and I just so happened to have that particular one just sitting there in that box for a while now... so you can have it." "Wow... thanks!" Joshua smiled, "I hope it helps, honestly..." "It should... but you should go before it gets dark, Joshua... and be careful this time." Charron informed him. "...Oh yeah, right... I'll try." Joshua walked out of the door that Charron had opened for him, looking at both of them once more before leaving as Botanica waved him off again. Now, he had to find Xander. He wanted this to be over and done with, and this time, he had a plan, sort of. He just needed it to work... one way or the other.

Chapter Fifteen

Joshua walked under the trees that stood above him, not sure in which direction he should've been going, but he trusted in his instincts and tried his best to make sense of the area. He headed south of where the house was, until he stumbled upon what he believed to be the same meadow in which Xander and himself had fought in. The memories came back in one big flood, but he calmed down, as his memories soon began to flow like a river instead. He walked on the grass of the meadow, looking down to see that the marks from the battle were still there. The blood that Joshua coughed up, the burn marks on the grass, pretty much everything seemed fresh in detail. He looked down more and stared at his paws that seemed to still carry burn marks from the Inferno attack, the same as the rest of his body too, even though he couldn't see that much unless he saw his reflection. Joshua's recollection was then halted by incoming footsteps that he heard nearby. Joshua didn't bother to hide, and was kind of fearless at this point. He was never afraid of anyone, but he was afraid of death, and somehow, he survived that Inferno anyway. He wasn't sure how, because all he remembered was blacking out afterwards. However, he knew that this world wasn't the peaceful and childish one that you would see in the anime version of Pokemon, or the game. There was fainting, sure, but there was also death. Joshua knew that perfectly when he saw those Beedrill die at the likes of Xander, and he also knew why they fled. He had theorized that it wouldn't have been just to not get burnt alive by the Inferno, but to avoid dying. It all came to Xander at that one moment, and he even thought about how it was hinted in countless Pokedex entries in the games he played from generation to generation. Most of them seemed to come from the Ghost type entries, but others came from other types too. He realized that it was hinted all along, but he was ignorant before, and had just ignored it to play the game and enjoy it rather than focus on those things he thought seemed trivial. So, he stood motionless, staring in the direction of where the footsteps could be heard, and was elated at who he saw that emerged from a bush at the other side of the meadow. "W-wait... is that really you, Joshua?..." Allison asked, walking up to him as he took a few steps closer to her, "You look... burnt a little." Joshua didn't say a word at first, and just hugged her tightly. "Oh- uh... you smell like medicine too a little..." Allison seemed astonished by the sudden hug, but hugged him back anyway. Joshua let go soon after and Allison did so as well. "I... I really missed you- and I didn't even know if I was going to see you again- and- and-..." Joshua stopped talking as Allison seemed clueless. "See me again? Xander said you were the one that ran away... unless..." She took a closer look at Joshua's burn marks, then added 2 and 2 together. "There's no way... right?" She asked him, "Please tell me he didn't..." Joshua sighed, "He did... and he's corrupted..." Joshua hated saying this about Xander because he still thought of him as a friend, but it was true after all. "He beat me up, but... I managed to survive one of his attacks in the end, then he probably just left thinking I was dead..." Joshua explained, "It's depressing to think about it, I know, but that's what happened." "You can't be serious." Allison replied. "I am, Allison." He stated, "I don't lie that often, either." "...But he's not a bad person, so why would he-" "Why would I what, Allison?" Xander spoke these words coldly, cutting in the conversation as he entered into the meadow. "Why... why would you do this in the first place, Xander?... Why would you hurt someone like this, especially someone like Joshua, who's been by your side for so many years..." Allison looked heartbroken. "Look." Xander said, "I told you to go to this meadow to tell you the same thing that I told Joshua." "Which was what, that you're going to burn him?!" Allison's emotions were soon replaced with anger, "You told me he ran away, you fucking liar." "Allison, wait." Joshua said. "Wait for what?! So that he can try to burn me to death too?!" Allison growled at Xander, before Joshua put his left paw on hers, as she turned her head to look at him. "You shouldn't stoop to his level, Allison... anger is what he wants." Joshua expressed. "We both know that's not true Joshua... I use my own anger, not the anger of others." "You're lying." Joshua responded, "I know the type of person you are now, Xander." "Oh?" Xander smirked, "Elaborate then." "You use your own anger, sure... but you used my own anger against me in that battle... and you enjoyed it." "I did?... Well, you got that part right, so I guess it is true, then." Xander yawned briefly. Joshua took his paw off of Allison's, knowing that she had calmed down already and was listening to them talk. "This little game you're playing isn't funny, Xander... in fact, it's not like you at all... you were never like this before." "Yeah, I know, blah blah blah, this and that, of course it's not me, you fool." Xander snapped, "It's the darkness of this form that's unleashed my true powers, most likely, and I love it." Xander chuckled a little, "I never thought that being a Houndoom would bring me such power and awaken the evil inside of me that's been locked away for years, but I guess it did in the end." "You're still sorta weak, Xander." Joshua looked right into his eyes, "You're not as strong as you think you are." "..." Xander broke out into laughter, before stopping himself from laughing too much. "I'm not as strong as I think I am?! Really, Joshua? After I broke your bones and covered you in burns with almost no effort, you still think I'm not strong?" Joshua nodded, "You're still not as strong as I am." Xander tried not to laugh again, "You really are a funny one, even though you should be in a graveyard by now, but let me guess, you came back to life to relive your dreams of becoming a comedian, didn't you?" He then broke out into laughter again, revealing his corrupt behavior to Allison, who was paying close attention to every detail. "But seriously Joshua, do I really have to break all your bones this time to convince you that I'm stronger?" "Xander... I don't want to fight you again, but if I have to, I will." "So... a rematch then? Although it's probably won't be much of a match, to be honest." "I'll fight you too, you douche." Allison was calm, but she still resisted the urge not to growl at Xander. "Shh, the grown-ups are talking." Xander teased. "You little-..." Allison was just about to growl, but Joshua poked her just in time before she did so, and gave her a small wink. "I'll take care of things for now, Allison, don't worry about me or anything like that." Joshua reassured her and smiled a little, before he began taking a few steps forward and becoming closer and closer to Xander, who seemed ready for anything Joshua was going to do, still smirking as Joshua came nearer. Allison looked at Joshua worried a bit, but trusted his word and didn't intervene. "Are you really going to fight me?... You're an even bigger fool than I imagined... but here, I'll let you take the first hit-" Xander stepped back, stunned as reality shook for him when Joshua landed a direct punch onto his face without hesitation, his nose dripping blood as it fell down onto the grass below. "That... was for yesterday." Joshua said, "And today... I'll get you back to normal, Xander... I promise."

Chapter Sixteen

Xander began to growl at Joshua, looking at him with anger burning inside his eyes. "You're going to so fucking pay for that..." Xander's blood began to boil. "You're not strong enough to beat me Xander." Joshua looked right at him, "Just give up, please..." Joshua then blocked an attack from Xander that was aimed directly for his face, then counterattacked with a Night Slash, which made Xander even angrier. The two squared off again and again, with the same attacks, just with different patterns as Allison watched on, not sure if to join the fight or not. She just wanted the fighting to be over. Xander slid back from another Night Slash, but remained planted on the ground. Joshua tried to go in for another as Xander let out a Flamethrower, almost burning him before he dodged it point blank, jumping to the left to avoid it. They seemed evenly matched as the fight continued on, but Joshua was persistent, and determined to win this. This showed in his attacks, which weren't uncoordinated like the last time they fought, but were better in every way possible. After exchanging two hits to each other, one a Sucker Punch from Xander and the other a Night Slash from Joshua, they both dashed back, taking some time to catch their breath. "Darkness isn't always so good, Xander..." Joshua panted a little. "Of course not... darkness isn't good at all." Xander smirked. "Yeah... but it's the reason that you're losing." "I'm not losing this fight," Xander replied, "I refuse." Joshua's breathing returned to normal, "So do I." Xander went straight into Inferno, the flames moving at a faster rate than before and almost immediately formed a ring around Joshua before he could even react to the attack. "...What..." Joshua thought, noticing that the ring around him seemed to be ascending in height, and wasn't like the last time. The Inferno covered up Joshua completely in only a matter of seconds and formed what appeared to be something similar to a twister. Xander stopped the flow of fire from his mouth afterwards, closing it and letting the fire run rampant for itself, which it did. "So that's probably Xander's trump card... huh..." Allison thought, observing the fire twister, "Joshua better not lose because of this..." Xander looked on at the destruction as the twister burned all the grass around it and became more and more out of control. "As if you thought you could beat me, Joshua... don't even try-" Xander paused, sensing something that felt... different. Listening closely, Xander heard a slight jingle that seemed to be coming from inside the twister. "...There's no way." Xander opened his mouth to fire a Flamethrower, but just as he was about to, the twister was extinguished in one large gust. Xander took a few steps back, and Allison looked at Joshua in awe. Large white crescent blades of energy spun around Joshua at a rapid rate, the air flow that it was forming increasing with its speed, and blew away the rest of the fire that remained on the grass below. "Thanks for the ring idea, by the way." Joshua said, smiling. "It helped." That was when Xander knew that what he contemplated in that short amount of time was true. The jingle from the necklace, the white wings, and the sudden boost of power all made sense in that one single moment. Joshua had... mega evolved.

Chapter Seventeen

"Shocked?" Joshua asked, looking at his new form, "To be honest, I was too." "..." Xander had completely disregarded the necklace until now. "I never knew that I could've mega evolved without a trainer... and I did doubt it at first, but I let my doubts go away... then it just happened." Joshua's horn glowed a bright white, which seemed to control the crescent blades of energy that continued to spin around him. "Never knew that I could've used Razor Wind either..." Joshua smirked, "But I guess the surprises keep on coming." "...If you think that you still have a chance of winning, you're delusional, Joshua." "I was going to win even without this form, to be honest, but now, I'm 100% sure." "Oh, so this is the part where I give up, right?" Xander glared at him, "Not happening." Joshua sighed, "I wish you would've just done it the easy way, but that's not your personality right now anyway." The white blades formed by the Razor Wind flew at Xander simultaneously, exploding all at once as the explosion left the area covered in white smoke. Joshua waited for a while, then grabbed Xander's paw from behind him, halting the attack. "You still have a chance, Xander." He grinned, using Foul Play to push Joshua's paw into his face, which made him flinch, allowing Xander to counterattack with a punch that sent him flying. Joshua recovered from the attack quickly, using his wings to balance himself in mid-air. The smoke vanished, allowing them to see each other clearly once more. "I can't believe you still want to give me a chance..." Xander laughed a little, "I may have said this before, but you really are foolish, Joshua." Joshua landed back on the ground, "...I already said I don't want to fight you, I just want this to end." "It won't if you let your good nature get the better of you all the damn time." Xander growled. "But it can... it's what I believe awakened this form, after all." Joshua said, "Just so I could stop you." Xander almost fell to the ground, but kept himself up. "So some of them did hit you..." Joshua whispered, noticing by a few cuts on the left side of Xander's body. He ran up to Joshua, going for another punch which was easily blocked and countered with an uppercut. They continued fighting in close range, but the only one taking hits was... Xander. He wasn't keeping up with the attacks from Joshua, but fought more regardless, eventually landing a hit that was stored up for a while, which made Joshua go back a little. "Ow... that one hurt, you know." "...Why won't you die already..." Xander growled loudly, then went into a barrage of attacks, hitting Joshua a few times before he held both his paws in his, stopping it. "If this is the only way I can get you to stop, I'll just have to do continue fighting." Joshua then let one of Xander's paws go, using his own to pound him into the ground in one massive blow. Xander coughed a little, then got up and attempted to fire a Flamethrower, but nothing came out but a small fire that couldn't even hit Joshua at close range. "H...h...how..." Xander stuttered. "You were going to lose when you let your anger take control of you, Xander... the fight was already decided at that point." Joshua exhaled, the mega evolution fading as he slowly went back to his normal form, "I'm sorry for fighting you like that... but I had to." "I never said the fight was over..." Xander gathered up the last of his energy into one more punch that Joshua purposefully let hit him, as it did close to nothing when it hit his forehead. "As I said... it's over." Joshua put down Xander's paw gently, "I tried to tell you before." "This isn't how it was supposed to be... I was supposed to wi- win..." Xander nearly collapsed to the ground, panting. "You have..." Joshua responded. Xander looked at him confused. "We're both winners, after all." Allison slowly walked over to them as they both looked at her. "I-is he?..." She turned to Xander. "Yeah... he's back to normal, thankfully." Joshua answered. Xander turned to Joshua, "Wrong... I'm still evil... and I always will be-" Before he could say anything else, Allison pulled him into a hug, which he just accepted afterwards. "See? Told you." Joshua smiled, sitting down with a sigh of relief. "It took a while... but welcome back, Xander."

Chapter Eighteen

"Welcome back?" Xander looked at Joshua, "But... I never left..." "It felt like you did... at least." Joshua said, yawning. "Well... I do feel different, somehow..." Xander sighed, then blushed a little as Allison began to nuzzle him softly again, closing her eyes. "Yup, that blush doesn't lie." Joshua smirked. "S-shut up, Joshua." Joshua laughed a little, and Xander did too, finally realizing that it was truly over. "All those emotions I had before just... vanished." Xander stared at the stars that sparkled above, as the night grew peacefully silent, other than the conversation, of course. "I figured." Joshua looked up at the stars as well, then looked back at Xander, "That was part of my plan, after all." "Your plan?" Xander redirected his attention to Joshua. Joshua nodded, "The truth is, I have had emotions like the ones you had before, those corrupting ones, but I always knew a way to get rid of it, and the solution always seemed to work." "And that is?" "Fighting it with all my might." Joshua replied, "I know you probably feel weird now, too." "...Yeah, I do." Xander grimaced a little, "Must be a side effect." "It is." Joshua then noticed the cuts from the Razor Wind were starting to bleed, "Uh... are you okay?" "It just hurts a little, that's all." Xander smiled, trying to assure him that it was alright. "Sorry about that, by the way." Joshua apologized, feeling guilty for what he had done. "N-no, it's fine, really." Xander said sadly, sighing. "It was the only way... after all." Joshua took a few minutes to think, then came up with an idea. "I think I know someone who'll help you with that." "...Oh, well I guess that would be good, then." Poking Allison, Joshua eventually got her to let go of Xander, in which she then snapped out of it, a sheepish look emerging on her face once more. The three then headed over to the house that Botanica lived in, as Joshua explained how they met until they finally arrived at the door. "...Maybe we shouldn't really knock at night..." Joshua reconsidered. "Psh." Allison pushed Joshua aside, "Watch and learn, Joshua." She then knocked on the door with the right amount of noise for the occasion, which Botanica came to, opening it with tired eyes, which changed as soon as she saw Joshua. They then exchanged their greetings, and Joshua explained what happened after Botanica let them inside, as well as introducing Allison and Xander in the midst of it. Botanica then offered to take care of Xander's wounds, to which Xander agreed, and went to do so in Botanica's room, which left Joshua and Allison alone in the living room. "I-I forgot to ask her if there were any spare rooms..." Joshua remembered, "I can barely stay awake right now, to be honest..." Allison rolled her eyes, "Another reason why you shouldn't really be trusted to do things, Joshua." "Yeah right." Joshua said sarcastically, "Like if knocking on a door is such a big achievement." "It can be considered as one, maybe." "Sure." Joshua rolled his eyes, mocking Allison. Allison punched him softly, "Don't push it." "F-fine." Joshua yawned again, "I... do think I know a room, though." Joshua started walking down the same path as he had walked when he left that afternoon, except in the opposite direction. Allison followed him, as he slowly pushed open the door once they arrived, revealing that the room was empty. Allison walked in first, "It sorta smells like medicine in her- oh... this was-" She turned to Joshua, who took a few steps in, jumping on the bed. "Yeah, it was that room, to answer your question." Allison climbed up onto the bed, "You didn't let me finish... but yeah, it does answer it." "One more thing," Allison lowered her voice down a little so she wouldn't be too loud. "W..." Joshua yawned, "What is it?" "I just wanted to express my thanks... for- uh... you know." "For saving Xander?" Joshua asked. "Yeah... pretty much." "Well, you're welcome, I guess." "W-wait." Allison said just as Joshua was about to close his eyes and lie down. "...Is there something else you wanted to say, Allis-" Allison looked at him right in the eyes, which spooked him a little. "Uh..." Joshua looked back at her, as she took a few steps closer and kissed him passionately. He kissed her back, but broke from it after a while, blushing. "I... I did say I wanted to express it, Joshua." She smiled, nuzzling him before lying down on the bed and closing her eyes, "Night." "...W-w-whatever..." Joshua's blush faded away eventually as he lied down next to her, falling asleep shortly after. When the morning came, everything seemed different. Allison was still asleep, but Joshua was up already. It was still dawn, but he felt like if he needed to get up for some reason. He hopped out of the bed and headed to the living room, where Xander was lying down on the couch, getting up when he noticed Joshua. "Oh... you're awake." Xander smiled, "I thought I was the only one." "Apparently not." Joshua looked at him as he got down from the couch. "I feel better, by the way... so that's good." Xander turned to Joshua. "Already?" "Well, not fully, but I guess the medicine helps slowly." Xander replied. "...Yeah, it does." Joshua tried to get the thought of the night before out of his mind, but it came back when Xander mentioned the medicine, and he blushed a little. "Your face is sorta... red, Joshua." Xander said. "N-nevermind that..." Xander shrugged, "Alright then." Just at that moment, Allison stepped in the living room, which surprised Joshua so much that he just looked away. "What's his problem?..." Allison looked at Joshua confused. "Uh..." Xander didn't know what to say. Joshua turned to look at her after a few seconds, "I don't have a problem, Allison." "Well, good for you, ya nerd." Allison smirked. Joshua was about to say something, but held it back. "I can tell you're trying hard not to argue, Joshua." Xander said to him, "Kinda ironic, to be honest." "I just need some fresh air right now, that's all..." Joshua sighed, walking over to where the door to outside was. Allison followed him, and so did Xander, which he realized shortly after, but didn't seem to mind after he saw the sunrise. They all noticed at the same exact time, and stared at how big it looked over the trees below it, the warm presence filling the air around them. "I-it's beautiful..." Allison smiled, still staring at the sun above. "You're right..." Joshua took a few steps forward, then looked away. "It's a bit too bright, though." Xander looked away too. "It's easy to get used to it after a while..." Allison watched as it continued rising slowly, then turned back to the others, "I would stare at it all day, but... nah." "Nature freak." Joshua said under his breath. "I heard that." Allison glared at him a little. Xander smirked, "You two fight over the stupidest things." "W-we don't have to." Joshua replied. "That's how it's been all the time, Joshua... and I don't think old habits like that can change, honestly." Allison yawned. "They can..." Joshua looked at both of them, "That's why we're a team, of course." "...You're still going with this Team Spectre thing?" Xander asked. "Definitely." Joshua smiled. "I still think you're a bit delusional then... but I'll try to forget about that." "How? We were always a team before..." "...I guess so." "A team that doesn't even know why we came here in the first place." Allison added. "It doesn't matter why... but we just have to accept it, for now." Joshua looked back at the sunset. "Is that all we can do, then?" Allison looked at him, "Just go with it?" "I know it sounds ridiculous, Allison, but he's right." Xander stated. "That's why we have to do it as a team, to find the right answers we would desire." Joshua responded. "...We're with you then, Joshua, no matter what." Joshua turned to them, "Really?..." Both of them nodded in unison. "Alright... we'll achieve our goal, then, for sure." Joshua smiled once more, then yawned, "I'm gonna go back to sleep, though." After that, they all went back inside and the day progressed just as it should've. Charron woke up and met Allison and Xander, they ate some berries from the basket, then left to go adventure on, saying their goodbyes beforehand. As time passed, their teamwork increased amazingly, to the point where it was almost like they were in total sync with their actions. Joshua was allowed to keep the necklace given to him, and his mega evolution came in handy for the times when he needed it the most. The team tried not to fight other Pokemon, but only did so when necessary, and spared each and every one of them that they faced. They got answers as they progressed through the world... and they unraveled the pieces of the puzzle one by one. Time after time, however, more and more questions emerged, but they were willing to figure them out, all while having fun along the way. Wow, finally finished my first story on FanFiction, and I gotta say, it took a lot out of me, in all honestly, but it was still a pretty great experience nonetheless. There were so many plot ideas I had that could've changed the whole perspective of the story, but I decided to choose this one; the happy ending view to things. Hopefully it was still good enough for all of you reading, because I really tried with writing this one story, and I hope my hard work paid off for your overall enjoyment of reading it. Expect more stories to come, as I try my hardest to become a better writer in the future. Again, thanks for reading, and later.