----------------------------------------

"I'm going for a walk." Artemis's words were barely audible—more akin to a whisper than anything.

Mew's ears folded back, concern for the Ninetales building. She knew that when Artemis finally realized the truth it would be a shock, but the sheer outpouring of emotion and conflict coming from her was worrying.

Yet, she let Artemis walk away.

It wouldn't do any good to immediately go after her. Hovering and trying to convince her that everything was okay wasn't going to help. In all honesty, it wasn't okay. What happened was abhorrent and cruel, but it wasn't borne from maliciousness so much as a desire to keep others safe.

To Artemis, the ends almost always justified the means.

In this instance though, the means just led to horror and cruelty.

Mew needed to let Artemis settle her thoughts and calm down. She knew how fragile someone could be while this emotional. One wrong word might lead to a spiral that had no end if someone wasn't strong enough to pull themselves out of it.

No, Mew had to wait and let Artemis process everything.

Mew and Silvally remained lying on the grass, watching Artemis walk away from them. The fox's steps were forced and unsteady—her whole body seemed stiff. She vanished over the crest of the hill, leaving the two alone.

The duo stared out over the hill for a full minute, silent as the breeze ghosted through their fur.

"Is everything okay?" Silvally asked. He winced and rubbed at his throat, growling under his breath. Mew could feel the brief annoyance from the Pokémon.

Mew raised a paw and pushed a Heal Pulse over Silvally, working her energy through him. His neck glowed a little brighter than the rest of him, her intent to soothe his vocal cords working its magic.

"Thanks." Silvally's voice was smoother now, a little less scratchy and painful. "Mew?" he prompted.

Is everything okay?

That was a hard question to answer.

Bluntly put, no, it wasn't. Nothing about any of this was okay. It shouldn't have happened in the first place, and the extent it went to was horrific. It should have been all that was needed to get the Expedition Society and all its continental branches to change how they operate.

But… Mew was sure things would be okay.

Eventually.

As for right now? That remained to be seen.

"Mew?" Silvally asked again.

"Oh, sorry! I was just thinking." Mew giggled and fixed Silvally with a smile. "Everything is alright, nothing to worry about. Artemis just learned something a little shocking is all. She just needs to think about it."

Silvally blinked once, dipped his head in a nod, and turned his attention back to the book in the grass.

Now it was Mew's turn to be confused. He just accepted that answer without any follow-up questions. She could feel that little bit of curiosity at the back of his mind, urging him to explore and ask. Then it was gone, smothered, no longer anything to worry over.

Was he suppressing things? Is that why he was so calm?

Did Silvally learn to suppress his emotions so he could keep going?

She recalled how he felt from his memories early on. All that confusion, curiosity, loneliness, claustrophobia, desperation, fear, shock, anger, disappointment, depression, anxiety—the list went on and on.

Now when she looked at him? Other than the occasional jolt of fear when he looked at Artemis, his terror when he woke up in the guild for the first time, and his confusion, Silvally's been terrifyingly neutral. Maybe after she talked with Artemis, Mew would need to have an in-depth conversation with Silvally.

Mew shook her head, breaking free from the thoughts swirling around in her mind. She could deal with those later. Right now, she had to finish helping Silvally, and then go check on Artemis.

All it took was a thought for the book on the grass to lift, hovering before the two of them. Unfortunately, the breeze had turned some of the pages, and Mew couldn't recall the exact spot they'd been on.

She might be a psychic type but she didn't have a perfect memory. Mew grumbled about Pokémon with natural photographic memory and absurdly high intelligence. She looked a little slow in comparison—especially for a legendary Pokémon.

"Hey, uh, silly question," Mew started. "Do you remember what part we were on?"

"Three pages ahead."

She hadn't taught him the numerical symbols yet.

"Thanks!" Mew flashed him a smile and flipped through the pages.

An image sprawled across both pages in bright colours—there was no doubt this was a book aimed at a younger audience. A Mudkip and a Vulpix were walking along the edge of a rather steep cliff, with no other path available to them. A river ran along the bottom of the ravine, carving through the landscape. The Mudkip was an explorer, shown by the red scarf around its neck. The Vulpix was not, merely a civilian who looked a little scuffed up.

"Mudkip led Vulpix along the cliff, checking to make sure it was safe," Mew read. "They were almost at the end when all of a sudden…" She flipped the page. "Mudkip started to fall! She tried her best to stay up, but the ground was too slippery. Just as Mudkip started to tip over the edge, Vulpix grabbed her scarf! He pulled her back onto solid ground, saving the Pokémon that had rescued him."

Mew flipped the page again and winced. She'd forgotten about this part.

"Finally, they had passed their last challenge. Mudkip helped Vulpix back home, safe and sound once more. Vulpix was so happy and thankful, that he joined Mudkip's Rescue Team the very next day! Mudkip and Vulpix set off on another adventure, ready to take on Bad Pokémon, explore new lands, and save the day again. The end."

Mew awkwardly closed the book, her tail flicking around with agitation.

"Uh… I hope that helped a little. I don't have a lot of small books to read, and Artemis really liked that one when she was younger." Mew laughed sheepishly. "I figured that would be the easiest to start with."

"Thank you," Silvally replied. "It helped."

Mew floated upward, hovering above the soft grass that she longed to return to—reading on a hill, under the sun, with a… friend? Yeah, friend. It was nice. She missed this kind of close interaction with people, and the time to just relax for a while.

Unfortunately, she had to be responsible. The glow around the book faded, and it landed on the grass in front of Silvally, the cover face-up.

"Speaking of Artemis, I should really go check on her. Are you going to be okay if I leave for a few minutes?" Mew asked.

Silvally nodded and used a talon to flip open the book, his eyes scanning over the page. He looked back up at Mew and… well, it wasn't a smile. His ears relaxed to the side a bit, and there was almost no visible sign of tension in his body.

"Uhh… Right, teachers need to give out homework. That's their thing. Um…" Mew tapped a paw on her chin and hovered around in circles. "Okay, you can… you can… uh… Do you have any ideas?" Her ears folded back, and she giggled, embarrassed.

"I'll read it again," Silvally supplied. He grimaced and cleared his throat. It seemed like the effect of Heal Pulse was wearing off, or he'd been talking too much.

"Again? Do you remember all of it? That was thirty pages of a whole new language, are you sure?"

"Repeating words, and pictures," Silvally explained, pointing to the book with a talon. "I'll get it."

"Okay, if you're sure. But! I'm going to ask you all about it when I get back!" Mew pointed a paw at Silvally and smiled. "Don't think you can just pretend to read it, I'll know…" She squinted accusingly at him and stuck out her tongue.

This time Silvally actually smiled. Mew's heart soared, and she couldn't help the grin on her face. He didn't look nearly as intimidating with a smile.

"I'll be right back. Stay here!"

With a single thought, the world shifted around Mew. Her vision distorted, swirling together into a tunnel of light and colour. Sounds mixed with one another. Even the smell of everything blended, all her senses in complete chaos. She was used to it.

The world popped back into its normal state.

Mew teleported herself to the edge of the forest she'd seen from the hill. Artemis was walking in this direction when she left, and with her state of mind, Artemis would likely keep heading straight. At least, Mew hoped she did.

Mew turned in a quick circle to check the plains around her, just in case Artemis had stopped somewhere else. Seeing a significant lack of the white fox, Mew floated higher. She soared above the trees and made wide sweeping turns, inspecting as much of the forest as she could.

It took Mew a few minutes to find what she was looking for.

Sort of.

It was the angry shout that tipped her off, followed by a large explosion.

She wheeled around and flew toward the smoke rising above the forest, looking down to see if she could spot Artemis. There were signs of the fox—plenty of gashes torn into the trees and shards of ice impaled in the trunks. Solid chunks of ice littered the ground, and as she flew closer, a dense mist hovered over the forest floor.

Mew weaved between the trees, closer toward the center of all the damage. She made sure to keep herself high above the ground just in case Artemis was still taking her emotions out on the forest. Her caution was unneeded.

Artemis sat in the middle of a clearing, steam rolling off her body in thin wisps. Her ears were folded back and all nine of her tails thrashed in agitation, kicking up grass and stirring leaves around. Small spots of fire danced along the grass and ice bathed multiple trees around the area.

She was looking down at her paws, her limbs shaking with…

Mew couldn't tell what emotion sat at the forefront of Artemis's mind. It was all a horrendous swirl of feeling that gave Mew anxiety by just focusing on it. It must have bothered Artemis more than Mew thought it would.

"Artemis?" Mew asked.

The Ninetales jolted in surprise and whirled around, trying to spot Mew. Her ears folded back, and her eyes widened, equal parts shame, embarrassment, and frustration coming to the front of her mind.

Mew didn't leave the fox guessing and drifted down from the branches. She came to a stop in front of Artemis, hovering, watching the Ninetales with concern. Her long pink tail flicked and curled around, letting Mew grab at it and squeeze anxiously.

"Are… are you okay?"

The two stared at each other. Several trees around them groaned from the stress of the ice-attacks, and fire crackled not far off.

While Mew was calm, collected, and maybe a little worried, Artemis was a mess. Her eyes were bloodshot and watery, her fur was covered in grass, and her breathing was off. Artemis's paws shifted and her tails whipped around as if unable to stay still.

Artemis was the first to break the stare, averting her gaze to the forest floor and taking a deep, long breath, only to let it out in a watery little laugh.

"No. No, I'm not okay." Artemis kept her gaze low and raised a paw, looking at her claws. "I… You were right. You were right the whole time, and I just didn't believe you."

Mew floated a little lower to the ground, squeezing her tail anxiously. Should she say something? What could she even say? Should she try to fix this and repair everything, or should she let Artemis keep going?

Mew remained silent and settled on the ground, standing upright, once again in Artemis's line of sight.

"How… how could I believe any of that? It's impossible—something like that doesn't happen. And I was a part of it." Artemis looked her in the eye and clenched her jaw. "I don't think I can keep doing this, Mew. Now that I know…"

"Wh- Artemis, you can't just-"

"I hurt him, Mew! Bad. I…" Artemis took a breath and clenched her paws, more steam rolling off her body. "I fucked up. I'm supposed to hunt down criminals and help Pokémon in need. That's what I do; that's what I've always done. And I fucked it up!"

"You didn't know-"

"I didn't ask!" Artemis snapped. "I just went with it—I never told him why. I burned him and froze him and hurt him. Now he's terrified of me. I excused it because I thought I was teaching him a lesson—teaching him to be afraid of me; to keep him from hurting other Pokémon ever again. Instead…"

Silence filled the clearing once again. Artemis's tails thrashed anxiously, and a growl built up in her chest, equal parts frustration, anger, guilt, depression, and confusion.

Mew didn't know what to say. So, she didn't. She floated off the ground and flew straight at Artemis. Pink paws buried themselves in Artemis's fur, and Mew nuzzled into her neck. Her tail coiled around one of the fox's forelegs and squeezed her gently.

Artemis froze, took a breath, and sighed. Slowly, her tails curled around, returning the hug with Mew, burying the small Pokémon in a sea of fur.

"He just needed help," Artemis whispered.

"I know."

"I-I started apprenticing because I wanted to help people. I wanted to stop the bad Pokémon. I… I wanted to make sure that no one else would lose everything. No one deserves that." Artemis leaned down and nuzzled into the top of Mew's head. "I picked the name because of that. I take the dangerous jobs because of that. I hunt down criminals and killers because of that."

"I know."

"No, you- I put everything into it, Mew. I… I thought I was better than the others because I worked harder and could do more. I tried my best to be a good example and inspire everyone else to do more—to be better." Artemis laughed dryly, her voice growing soft. "Silvally needed help, Mew. He lost everything too, and I… I hurt him so badly. Over and over again. He needs help, and I… I can't do it. I did terrible things because I thought I was helping other Pokémon. Protecting them from him. I fucked up."

…

Mew took a breath and braced herself. She was going to hate herself for this, she was sure of it.

"How are you going to fix it?"

"What?"

"You fucked up. How are you going to fix it?" Mew pulled away and flew out of Artemis's reach.

"I-I can't," Artemis protested. "Mew, I can't even get close to-"

"Did you need to get that close to help him this week? To teach him everything you have?"

"No, but he's terrified of me."

"Yet he follows you and is willing to talk to you. He sleeps in the same room as you do, and eats at your table."

"I- But that's because he has to. Anyone else would be better off helping him. Someone that's not involved in any of this."

"And where are you going to find someone like that? Where are you going to find a Pokémon who's strong enough to watch him? Everyone on the Grass Continent knows he's been on the run for two years. Are you going to bring in a total stranger and make them learn everything? Force Silvally to work with someone else? Maybe ship him off to a new continent and confuse him more? Make it harder on him?"

"What- no! No, that's not-"

"You're giving up because you feel guilty. You want to run away so you don't have to think about it." Mew's tone was accusatory, and she pointed a paw at Artemis.

"I don't give up, and I'm not running away!" Artemis growled. She stood up and glared at Mew, steam rolling off her body. "It's not like that. I'm trying to help."

"Then help him."

"I'm trying to."

"You're trying to run away!"

"I'm. Not. Running!"

"Then help him!"

"I can't!"

The two both took a breath, glaring at one another. At almost the same time, their gazes softened, and they both looked away. Mew drifted down to settle on the grass, while Artemis sat down again, looking past Mew.

"Artemis." Mew took another breath and sighed. "I know it's hard, but you're the best one to help him. I legally can't, or I would. Who else do you know that's going to understand everything, know how he works, and treat him properly?"

Artemis remained silent.

"You understand what happened. You're strong enough to watch over him. You know him better than anyone else right now, and unless we can find his family or friends, that's the best we've got."

"But I don't know anything about him," Artemis protested.

"Then learn. Watch him; help him." Mew floated higher and drifted into Artemis's line of sight. The two locked eyes, fiery red meeting bright blue. "Forget about all the Expedition Society stuff for a moment. No explorers, no criminals, nothing. He's someone who lost his memory and needs help. He's a Pokémon that needs your help."

"I can't."

"You can." Mew drifted forward, and hugged the Ninetales again, holding her as well as she could. "You've been helping Pokémon for years. This whole thing with Silvally doesn't mean all that time was for nothing. You help Pokémon, Artemis, it's what you do. You're good at it."

"But… What if I hurt him again?"

Support creative writers by reading their stories on Royal Road, not stolen versions.

"You won't."

"But I could."

"I trust you." Mew pulled away and flew a little higher up. Her paws cupped Artemis's cheeks and she leaned forward, closing her eyes, and pressed her forehead against the fox's. "I know you're going to do the right thing. And don't argue, I'm a psychic—I can tell." Mew giggled at that last part, and a soft huff of amusement escaped Artemis.

"I…" Artemis closed her eyes and leaned into the close contact with Mew. "This is so fucked up. All of it. I'm sorry I didn't believe you. That was stupid."

"Yeah, it kinda was." Mew giggled. "Are you going to be okay?"

"Eventually," Artemis sighed. "Just give me a few minutes. I don't think I can look at him right now."

Mew hummed her agreement and pulled away from Artemis. She floated lower and hugged the Ninetales around the neck again, her paws slowly working through the soft fur. Soft purrs rolled from Mew's chest, enjoying the warmth and close contact with Artemis.

This was nice. The lead-up to everything sucked, and Mew still felt guilty over how she turned Artemis's view around. She believed everything she said though—nothing but blunt logic and honesty was going to get through to Artemis when she was that out of it.

"How did the reading lessons go?" Artemis asked.

"I'm not too sure. He was following along when I was reading. He also figured out the page numbers, but I don't know if he was counting from the start or not." Mew admitted.

"Er, where is he?"

"Re-reading the book on the hill. Or, trying to."

"You don't think he'll take off?"

"Do you?"

"… No, I don't."

~{O}~{O}~{O}~

Learning a written language was interesting. It was like a puzzle, finding the matching parts that worked with what he knew. Silvally thought it was going well for the most part. He recognized shapes that showed up repeatedly, and whatever symbols that normally strung the ideas together. Just the simple things.

And then there were the footprints. Why were there footprints? They stuck out from the rest of the writing, and just halted all progress while he tried to figure out what they were for. And why is there an accent on a footprint!? It didn't make any sense.

With Mew's initial reading, and his memory of the story, Silvally was able to piece together most of the literature. He'd need to get hold of books with images in them until he could better associate the symbols with their meaning.

That fact bothered him for a reason he couldn't quite place.

At least the numbers at the bottom of the page were simple. He just had to associate these new symbols with the old ones—they followed the same pattern. Thank goodness for small miracles. However, this whole thing would end up being useless after his community service was over. It's not like he would have books or be doing math out in the wilderness.

He didn't plan on sticking around.

Though, maybe he could swing by the library to grab a book every now and then. Just to stave off boredom. There was no chance he was going to be staying any longer than he had to. Out there he was safe and free. Maybe he'd visit Mew and they could share stories occasionally. That sounded tolerable.

Silvally carefully used the tip of his talon to hook under the cover and open the book. Maybe the fourth read-through would help him figure it out.

He was rather enjoying this—being out in the wilderness and alone. He felt more relaxed than he had in a while now that he was by himself. The sun was warm on his back, and the breeze was cool in his fur. It was peaceful.

Unfortunately, just as he was about to start reading again, he caught a sound approaching from the other side of the hill. His ears perked up and he focused on the direction of the noise, his body growing more tense. The sound put him on edge, but he couldn't properly make it out. He could feel the fibres of his muscles twitching, and his talons clenched a little tighter.

The sound grew louder, closer, cresting the hill-

It was Artemis.

Silvally couldn't stop the jolt of fear that shot through him, eyes locked on the Ninetales for what felt like entirely too long.

White fur. Red eyes. A relentless hunter-

Silvally took a breath and wrenched his gaze to the side, focusing instead on Mew.

His lungs filled again, and he banished the fear to the back of his mind. Calm. He needed to be in control. Relaxed. Panicking meant he couldn't think, and not thinking led to pain. Impulsive decisions lead to mistakes, which meant he would hurt.

Mew floated beside Artemis, drifting along with a smile on her face. That helped Silvally focus and relax just a little more. They appeared to be communicating in private, or at least, Mew was; Artemis spoke softly instead.

His gaze flicked back to Artemis, now that he was properly prepared for her, and- Why was she staring at him? She was frozen in place and was looking at him oddly. Her tails fell, and her ears folded back slightly. It seemed like she was loathe to even blink, watching him intently.

As curious—and worried—as he was over this new expression toward him, looking at Artemis for too long made his fur start to itch, and his body tingled where he'd been burned and frozen.

"Hey, Silvally, we're back!" Mew greeted. She flew closer toward him and hovered above the book. Why she was doing it upside down was unknown to him. "Didja go through it again?"

"Three times," he replied.

"Three?!" Mew exclaimed. She whirled around to float upright again, her eyes wide. "Heck. I think we're going to need more books. Are you starting to recognize some of those runes?"

"The easy ones."

"Well, don't worry too much, we can go over them again later." Mew drifted away from Silvally, floating herself back to be able to watch both himself and Artemis.

The book in front of him glowed pink and lurched into the air. Silvally fully expected Mew to take the book back. Instead, she guided the book into his Treasure Bag with a smile and a playful flick of her tail.

"Hold onto that for me, okay? You can keep it until you can read it without any problems."

Silvally blinked in surprise, and the corner of his mouth quirked up in a smile. Mew was far too nice to him. He'd need to figure out how to repay her for everything she's done for him.

An uncomfortable feeling tickled the back of Silvally's mind—not the touch of a psychic, but instinct. He was being watched. His gaze drifted to the source of the feeling, and his smile vanished.

Artemis was still watching him. Her gaze flicked away for a moment when he caught her, and then settled on him again.

His fur stood on end, the uncomfortable feeling increasing tenfold. Did he do something? Was she going to attack him? What was wrong? Artemis was always dismissive and did little more than glance at him to make sure he was still there. Those red eyes were focused on him for entirely too long.

What did he do wrong?

His heart rate spiked, concern overwhelming the forced calm for a few seconds, before he managed to wrestle it back. He'd figure it out. There was a reason, and he knew he didn't do anything that would be cause for alarm. Mew was here too, he was safe.

Mew seemed to sense the tension between the two, or maybe it was Silvally's fur standing on end and Artemis's intense gaze that tipped her off. The pink Pokémon drifted her way between the duo, turning around to look at Artemis.

"Sorry. Lost in thought." Artemis's voice was soft and sounded worn.

"I think we've all worked really hard today. Why don't we take a break and have lunch?" Mew turned toward Silvally and flashed him a smile. "Whatcha think?"

Silvally nodded. Food was good, and even though he'd managed to snag some berries and apples on the trek earlier on, he could still go for a meal. The single plate of dinner and whatever else he managed to scrounge up wasn't enough.

"Artemis?"

"Yeah. I think I could use a break."

"Great!"

There was no word or warning to Mew's actions. One moment Silvally was lying on a grassy hill in the middle of nowhere; the next, he was given vertigo and spat out onto sand. He grit his teeth and pushed himself to all fours, grimacing at the feeling of sand in his fur.

"Ack! Mew, give us a little warning," Artemis huffed. She'd stumbled and fallen into the sand as well. The complaints didn't last long as she got to her paws and shook herself off, dislodging the gritty material.

"Oops, sorry!" Mew giggled and gave the pair a sheepish grin.

Silvally finally took in his surroundings—they were on a beach. The beach on the outskirts of Treasure Town, if the smell in the air was right. The scent of the ocean was overwhelming, but the smell of flowers, fire, and civilization was apparent.

The dozens of Pokémon working on the docks were another giveaway. The amount of activity in the port was staggering, Pokémon of all sorts somehow making sense of the chaos.

Unfortunately, the sudden appearance of the trio started drawing attention. It's not every day that a former criminal, a legendary explorer, and a mythical Pokémon just appear on the beach. More and more heads turned to face them, and Silvally had to look away.

"Mew, why are we at the beach?" Artemis asked.

"For a picnic!" Mew cheered. She did a little loop in the air, her tail swishing back and forth happily. "I'll be right back, I'm gonna go get everything!"

"Mew, there's a ship selling food, and there's a café-"

Pop!

"And she's gone," Artemis finished.

Several seconds passed with the duo just watching the spot Mew had been, expecting her to show up again with what her "everything" entailed. Silvally was a little concerned that she meant everything.

Still no Mew.

Silvally shifted his gaze to the side, following the curve of the beach and- He paused, looking at that yawning cave entrance he hadn't realized was just a little too close for his liking. Several quick steps carried Silvally closer to the docks.

And toward those eyes. There were a number of Pokémon watching him and Artemis. He didn't recognize many of the faces. Did they just arrive in town from the boats? That would explain their stunned expressions. The few Pokémon that did look familiar barely gave Artemis a passing glance, though he caught a couple of glares directed at himself.

Artemis was watching him too. She was giving him that look again, the one he couldn't place. It was intense, but not some kind of glare. Her ears folded back slightly, and her tails waved uncertainly instead of their usual flowing movements. She looked tired. A little drained, as if just looking at him sucked the energy out of her.

Why was she looking at him like that? What did he do?

Silvally broke his gaze away from Artemis—he was growing too uncomfortable again. He sat himself down in the sand and looked out over the ocean instead, ignoring the sounds and sights of civilization.

Waves lapped at the beach, and a soft breeze rolled off the water, carrying the salty tang of the sea. The sound of water gently splashing upon the sand was repetitive and relaxing. Multiple bird Pokémon flew overhead, uncaring of the world below, letting out their cries and calls without concern. The wind that came off the ocean brushed by, ghosting through fur and over scales. It rustled the leaves of the bushes and trees behind him, adding to the natural ambiance.

Silvally closed his eyes and took a deep breath. This was nice—relaxing. It was okay right now. He was okay. Things-

Pop!

"I'm back!"

A strangled sound of surprise left Silvally, and he jumped away from his spot. He staggered a few steps to the side, and coughed, the surprise and the cry irritating his throat. Another cough forced its way up, and then another, devolving into a coughing fit that had him hunched over in the sand.

"Oh! Silvally, I'm so sorry!" Mew darted forward and hovered in front of Silvally. He'd already stopped coughing by the time she used Heal Pulse on him again, but he appreciated it all the same.

Stupid body. It had to be broken somehow—nothing about it felt right when he paid attention.

"Thank you." Silvally looked up at Mew and habitually rubbed at his neck with a talon, blinking at her.

"We need to get you a bell," Artemis commented. She stepped closer to the pair but left them ample space.

"Wha- A bell!? I'm not that bad!" Mew protested.

"That's the second time today," Artemis replied.

"I- Three times is a problem! Twice is just a happy accident." Mew crossed her arms and turned away from Artemis with a huff. "Me, with a bell. I can't believe you. I think Silvally and I are going to get all the dessert for ourselves now."

Both Silvally and Artemis finally turned their attention to where Mew appeared.

A massive blanket spread out over the sand, the checkerboard pattern almost painful on the eyes. There was what amounted to an actual feast spread across it, with a variety of meats, fruits, vegetables, berries, and even some breads. A hot pink cake sat in the middle of it all, like a garish beacon of sweetness.

Silvally really wanted to try it.

Artemis narrowed her eyes. "Mew?"

"Hmm?" Mew's tail twirled innocently.

"Is that from the café?"

"Uh… Nope!"

"Those vegetables are grown on the Air Continent. You got these from the port—we could have just walked for thirty seconds!"

"That's twenty-eight seconds wasted!" Mew complained.

"It- I- What?" Artemis looked baffled.

"Shush! Now we have more time for a picnic. Go eat!" Mew pointed at the spread of food, encouraging Artemis forward with a little psychic push. She gestured Silvally forward as well, beckoning him toward the blanket. "Oh, and you're still banned from dessert, Artemis."

"What!?" she cried.

Silvally followed Mew's invitation, ignoring the irritated fox to the side. He was more focused on the absurd variety of things that were there. Almost all of this was new to him, and even though he knew what some things were conceptually, he'd never actually seen them out in the wilderness.

He still had no idea how he knew what they were. Thinking too hard about it just made his head hurt.

"I said you're banned from dessert." The playful giggle Mew gave off contrasted heavily with the pink barrier that formed around the sweets. "None for you." Mew stuck out her tongue.

"Why not?"

"Because I know you're going straight for the sugary stuff. That hasn't changed since you were a Vulpix. I saw you eyeing them."

"No, I'm not!"

"Are too! Besides, you don't need them. It means you'll need to burn it off later. I'm helping!"

"I'll need to- Mew! You haven't walked a single step today." Artemis narrowed her eyes accusingly.

Silvally watched as Mew froze. She blinked and slowly drifted down to the sand. The glow surrounding her body vanished, and the pink Pokémon took a single step forward. Immediately the glow returned, and she shot back into the air.

"Now I have. You need a better argument," she teased.

Artemis growled at Mew, and the sound caused Silvally's heart to skip a beat. Still, he tried to tune out the two. There were many more interesting things to focus on.

He wiped one of his talons off on the blanket and delicately used a sharp claw to carve into some sort of pastry. Just a small slice—he'd feel bad if he took too much. He waited to see if Mew and Artemis would be joining him.

Mew zipped along the beach, low to the sand, while Artemis bounded after her. The Ninetales seemed to be far more energetic and upbeat than a few moments ago. The two kicked up sand as they darted around, their more outgoing nature coming to the forefront.

Silvally was content with occasionally glancing at the duo, just making sure they weren't doing anything too crazy or running toward him. He was more focused on all the new things in front of him—all the different smells and colours and tastes that seemed overwhelming.

He'd be careful though. Only a little bit of each.

~{O}~{O}~{O}~

It turned out Silvally could eat a lot. A startling amount really. If Artemis hadn't seen him eat dinner the previous night, or snack on things during their earlier trip, she could have easily believed he hadn't eaten in days.

It was understandable, Silvally did seem a little thin compared to his larger frame. Hell, if he turned a specific way, she could count his ribs. She was going to need to work on that. Just not today—they'd all been a little too enthusiastic with the sickening amount of food Mew brought. They'd agreed to skip dinner that night.

Silvally had only taken a little bit at a time, and would always wait until he was encouraged by Mew that he could take more. And more. It reached the point that Silvally would slowly reach for something, and when no one would protest, take a small portion.

Except for the desserts. Mew would shamelessly encourage him to have more and try to keep Artemis away from them—at least until a third of them were gone. Oh, they were gone quickly; Silvally seemed to have a sweet tooth. Not even close to Artemis's of course, but enough that she made a mental note to keep any chocolate purchases hidden from Silvally's sight.

Artemis blinked and had to keep herself from showing the guilt that washed over her. Was he that thin because of her? Did her pursuit leave him unable to get enough to eat? How different would things be if that first encounter hadn't happened—if Silvally had gotten the help he needed?

"-you alright? Artemis?" Kangaskhan asked. A hand waved in front of Artemis, cutting off her staring contest with the wall.

"Oh, sorry. I was thinking." Artemis swished her tails nervously, hoping that was enough of an excuse. "What were you asking?"

"I was just wondering if you two did anything exciting, dear." Kangaskhan's eyes flicked between Artemis and Silvally. "After this morning, I figured things would get a little more thrilling."

Artemis glanced over at Silvally, and couldn't help that little irritated flick of her tails, or the sharp pain in her chest as her guilt twisted like a dagger. Maybe Mew had been right—she wanted to avoid being around Silvally. She hated that feeling.

As for Kangaskhan's question…

"Nope, it was nice and calm. We collected some food for the guild and then spent some time reading. Mew did try to put us into a food coma, but we survived." Artemis chuckled to herself and flashed Kangaskhan a smile. "It was as close to a day off as I've had in a while. Thank you again for inviting us."

"It's not a problem at all, dear. You're both welcome whenever you would like."

"I'll take you up on that offer, but only if you let me repay you from time to time." Artemis's tone was playful but serious in subject matter. Kangaskhan grumbled and muttered something about stubborn foxes, before conceding.

Artemis used one of her tails to curl around the cup and lifted it, sipping at the surprisingly strong tea. She could feel the exhaustion that built up through the day just bleed away, the healing properties of the Sitrus-infused tea doing wonders.

She'd need to visit Leafeon in the morning. If she couldn't have her coffee, she was going to make some tea, dammit.

Silvally seemed to be responding well to it. His large talons were a little awkward around the stone cup, but he managed to lift it, albeit shakily. A little bit of the drink sloshed out over his jaw, but he quickly managed to get the hang of it, and tilted his head to a better angle, maneuvering around the metal that made the upper half of his face.

Artemis watched him as indirectly as she could, not wanting to stare. He seemed to tense up whenever she did. Still, seated across from him at a small table, it was difficult to avoid looking at him.

Silvally set his cup on the table, his talons slipping a little and causing it to hit harder than intended. His ears folded back and he lifted it to check for damage, before carefully setting it down again.

"Sorry," he apologized. "Thank you. For the tea." He added that second part after a moment's hesitation.

Artemis noticed that he didn't wince or rub at his neck at all. No visible signs of pain and his voice sounded smoother—less scratchy. Maybe the tea had more uses than the obvious ones. A trip to Leafeon in the morning was definitely in order.

"You're quite welcome, dear." Kangaskhan flashed him a wide smile. "Would you like some more?"

Silvally nodded and hummed affirmatively, this time close enough for Kangaskhan to see it. The older Pokémon made to stand up from her seat and wobbled a little. Both Silvally and Artemis jumped to their feet, but Artemis's tails shot out first, helping to balance the older woman.

"Miss K, careful. You sit down, I can go get it," Artemis told her. She guided the older woman back to her seat, her tails providing support.

"Oh, come now. I'm old, not helpless," Kangaskhan huffed. Still, she sat herself down and settled back in. "Thank you."

"I'm not saying that, Kangaskhan. You're being a wonderful host. Let me get it." Artemis flashed a smile at the older Pokémon. "You've been working hard all day, take some time to rest."

Artemis turned away and faced the fireplace that sat in the wall of Kangaskhan's stone house. To her surprise, the kettle wasn't hanging over the fire like normal. Silvally had it in a talon. He had type-shifted, his eyes, feathers, and tail glowing a dark blue.

He'd just reached into the fire and grabbed it. That was something Artemis could do as a fire-type. Kangaskhan had a metal stick to pull the container off the hanger so she didn't burn herself. Silvally hobbled back toward the table, holding the steaming kettle by the handle, balancing on three legs.

Artemis backed up and made space for him, allowing Silvally to set the kettle on a slab of rock that sat on the wooden table. He took several steps back—without a noticeable limp or grimace at all, Artemis noted—and sat on the floor.

Silvally had an odd expression. He looked… almost pleased with himself. Content, maybe? He certainly wasn't relaxed with the way his talons raked across the stone floor in his nervous habit.

Ever the wonderful host, while Artemis was distracted, Kangaskhan grabbed the handle and poured everyone more tea, topping off their cups. Artemis shot her a look, while the older Pokémon smiled to herself. Apparently, she was content with partially ignoring Artemis's request that she relax.

First Mew, now Kangaskhan. Artemis was finding herself surrounded by troublemakers. She hoped Silvally wasn't going to use those two as an example to follow. Mew was as motherly as she was chaos-incarnate, and Kangaskhan was more than content playing the role of stubbornly sweet grandmother.

"You're trouble, you know that Miss K?" Artemis commented. She couldn't help the little laugh that bubbled forth as she made her way back to her pillow.

"Shush. Respect your elders," Kangaskhan retorted. "Kids these days, I swear."

"Did you just-" Artemis groaned. Instead of retorting, she turned to her newly filled cup, and replaced the words she wanted to say with near-boiling tea. They both would have had the same heat to them.

Movement across the table let Artemis know Silvally had seated himself at the table again. A single talon was used to dip into the hot liquid to test the temperature. Silvally winced, and pulled away, quickly cleaning the digit free of the hot drink.

"Careful, it's hot," Artemis said without thinking. She immediately regretted even saying anything. Of course it was hot, he'd just pulled it out of the fucking fire.

Silvally froze and his eyes flicked up to her. Just as quickly, he glanced away and nodded, focusing on the wall to the side. He was back to being silent and taking things in again.

Artemis felt her chest clench once more, that knife of guilt twisting around eagerly. Even the sound of her voice did something to him. Or was he just not expecting anything? Of course, she couldn't ask him, that'd be out of character of her and probably stress him out even more.

Fuck!

She just couldn't win. How did she mess everything up so badly? How the hell was she supposed to fix all of that? Two years of trauma; running for his life; scraping by on whatever he could find; being hunted like he was some trophy to be caught.

Artemis grit her teeth, that blade just worming its way deeper into her heart.

"Artemis?" Kangaskhan asked.

"Hm? Sorry, I'm just," she paused, "just a little tired. A lot to think about." She sighed softly, and took another sip from her cup, emptying it.

"Oh. If you need to talk, we can-"

"No, it's okay. Nothing to worry about, Kangaskhan. I think I just need a little sleep." Her tails fell flat on the ground, the energy she'd regained now lost to her again.

"Oh dear, I'm sorry if I kept you two up late." Kangaskhan fussed over Artemis, just causing that little wedge in her chest to drive deeper.

She just couldn't do anything right today, could she?

Artemis and Silvally helped Kangaskhan clean up, despite her protests. She huffed and sighed and carried on about not needing someone to clean up after her, but thanked them for the help nonetheless.

The walk back to the guild was silent. Artemis led the way while Silvally followed along behind her.

Probably because he needed to have her in his sights at all times. Just in case she decided to hurt him.

Artemis grit her teeth, and steam started to roll off her fur in irritation. What was wrong with her? She needed to snap out of it. This wasn't going to do herself or Silvally any good if she kept shutting down like that. Despite her best efforts, Artemis couldn't stop her mind from going in circles.

She couldn't just treat Silvally like she'd been, now that she knew what really happened. But she couldn't jump to helping him and being overly nice either—he'd think she was up to something and it would stress him out more.

The last thing he needed was to be further strung out. He already flinched when she looked at him or spoke when he wasn't expecting it. She couldn't get near him without him shutting down. Changing how she behaved would make things that much worse.

How was she even supposed to help him? Why did Mew think she could do this? There was no way she'd be able to integrate him into society. Arceus, she wouldn't be surprised if Silvally wanted to leave as soon as everything was over. She would too. She wouldn't even wait. The fact that he was going along with it already said more about him than she realized.

"Goodnight." Silvally's voice snapped her out of her thoughts.

When did they get back to their room? When did she even lay down? She couldn't recall the walk after leaving the Storage Depot.

Artemis looked at Silvally, expecting him to be facing her, or just watching in general. Instead, he had his back turned toward her and was lying on his side. He was curled up, and from where she was lying, the moonlight allowed Artemis to count the little shadows in the divots of his ribs.

How did she mess things up so badly?

"Goodnight, Silvally," Artemis said softly. The only indication he'd heard at all was the slight twitch of his ear.

Artemis laid her head on her paws and looked at Silvally, working her eyes over him. She'd bitten him there. Burned him all across that side. That leg had been frozen to the point of skin splitting. Twice.

She could practically taste the blood and burning flesh from when she'd latched onto him with a Fire Fang.

Sleep didn't come to Artemis easily. Every time she started to drift off, she was startled awake, memories of her attacks replaying in her head over and over again.

She thought she'd been keeping Pokémon safe—that couldn't have been further from the truth.

Would she have ever met Silvally if Team Dusk hadn't lashed out like they did? Would things have been different if anyone else ran into him first? How would she have handled it if she was the first Pokémon he ran into?

Artemis wanted to think she would have helped. She wanted to believe that she'd have watched and waited, and tried to understand before acting.

She knew the truth, though. An unknown Pokémon approaching her, making growling and muffled noises? She'd have burned the fur from his sides. She might have let him run, but the result would have been the same.

Artemis wasn't any better than them.

She knew her parents would be disappointed in her.

…

Both sets.

----------------------------------------

Big thanks again to Junebugs for the fanart!

Silvally Sketch - Junebugs [https://i.imgur.com/8k87Wmn.png]

Silvally's First Encounter - Junebugs [https://i.imgur.com/4fAtxxr.png]