"I'm still hungry..."

Tet complained as he chewed on an Oran berry, grabbing a few more from a nearby bush. He slowly savored each juicy bite, feeling a bit of strength return with each bite.

"This isn't enough for me," he grumbled, eyeing the handful of remaining Orans in the bush. He began to pick them one by one but stopped abruptly when he heard a screech not far from his location.

"Damn it!" he cursed under his breath, hastily grabbing the rest of the berries but dropping a few in his panic. He quickly scrambled towards a nearby cave, glancing left and right as he ran.

Hyperventilating, he squatted down on the rocky floor, breathing heavily as he rubbed his chest. Drenched in sweat, he cast fearful glances toward the cave entrance, and then over his shoulder into the darkness of the cave.

He sat at the entrance of the cave, his fear of the dark preventing him from venturing deeper into its depths.

"Why is this happening to me?" he asked quietly to himself, his face etched with despair.

Confused, hungry, and scared, the teen boy could do nothing but quietly sob, for fear of attracting the beast that had made the noise.

This wasn't the first time he had heard the screech of that beast; it had been actively searching for him. He glanced to his side and spotted a uniquely colored egg, black with gold spots and purplish lines.

He had first found the egg when he woke up from his sleep. Confused as to why he did not wake up inside his room, he looked around and realized that he was in some sort of nest filled with the previously mentioned eggs.

Small enough to fit within his hands, he reached out to touch it when a bloodied creature made its presence known.

Tet had never seen such a creature before, although it did look familiar. However, he couldn't pay attention to that due to fear; the creature was radiating a deep killing intent, causing goosebumps to appear all over Tet's body.

His fear was further amplified as the creature's eyes suddenly took on a fearsome glint, and all of a sudden, Tet felt his body grow sluggish as if he had just woken up from a hangover.

His fight-or-flight response activated, and this time, the flight side won. Tet, with two eggs still in his hands, ran in the opposite direction of the angry beast.

The beast, in turn, screeched and rushed towards Tet with shocking speed, its claws aimed at his back. Tet saw his life flash before his eyes.

I'm dead, he thought.

But then the creature suddenly doubled over and spewed blood, clutching its blood-soaked belly.

Not one to look a gift horse in the mouth, Tet ran for his life, hoping whatever was happening to the beast would continue.

Such was Tet's current situation.

At one point, the creature almost caught up to Tet. He offered up the eggs, thinking that perhaps it was of the same species, and the reason it was so enraged was because Tet had taken its offspring.

That thought quickly vanished as soon as Tet reached out his hand to the beast. It swung its claw, breaking one of the eggs and nearly taking Tet's arm with it.

It had been a few hours at most, and the creature would have killed Tet already if not for its worsening injuries.

"What the f*ck is up with that creature?!" he cursed. "What did I do to it that it would keep chasing me for hours!"

He continued to eat the berries, slightly worried about their safety for digestion, but he was too tired and desperate to care. He needed to eat to have the energy to run, and he thought that dying from poison would be much better than being gutted like a fish.

He was feeling cold too, as during the previous chase, Tet had submerged himself in a river in hopes that it would eliminate his scent, allowing him to escape the beast. It worked for a while, as it took the beast longer to track him, but it proved futile in the end.

Tet continued to eat and tried to manage his thoughts.

"This berry looks familiar, though, same with that bastard," he thought. Tet tried to recall any memories associated with them, hoping they would provide answers to his situation.

Try as he might to remember, he couldn't, as the only thing that came to mind was something silly and impossible. But reality is often stranger than fiction, and this became more evident to Tet as he heard footsteps from inside the cave.

Tet tensed up and prepared to leave, clutching the egg to his side. He squinted his eyes, trying to get a clearer view of the approaching entity, and was stunned by what he saw.

"Impossible!" Tet mumbled, not believing what he was seeing right now.

But he couldn't deny it any further, as what he saw was something he would never mistake for anything else. It was his favorite, his go-to partner whenever it was available in the game, and he even had plushies in his room.

Yellow skin, short stature, with a huge reddish-black maw as hair. It was Mawile, the Deceiver Pokémon.

"A Mawile?" Tet asked no one in particular.

The Pokémon, upon hearing the voice, slowly looked up in his direction, its face showing wariness and slight aggression. It stared at Tet just as he stared back, neither of them moving an inch or making any sudden move until the Mawile suddenly fell forward.

Tet flinched, thinking the Pokémon might attack, only to be confused as it collapsed. Tet looked around, particularly at the inside of the cave where the Mawile had come from. After a few seconds of nothing happening, Tet mustered the courage to approach the Pokémon and investigate.

As he got closer, Tet saw a few more details he couldn't quite discern from afar. The Mawile appeared quite thin, looking a bit malnourished, even though he hadn't seen any other Mawile to compare.

He nudged the Pokémon with his leg to see if it would awaken, but seeing no response, he moved even closer, finally noticing that it was not just a Mawile, but a shiny one.

Why is it so thin? Did it get bullied by its pack because it looked different from them? Tet hypothesized, contemplating the reasons behind the Pokémon's condition. He then shook his head, displaying reluctance and guilt.

"What do I do? Should I feed it? But what if it attacks me after regaining energy? I don't want two Pokémon chasing me down. Now that I think about it, that beast chasing me must have been a Pokémon too, same with the egg," Tet mumbled as he glanced at the egg. "Focus, Tet. What should I do from here?"

Stolen novel; please report.

On one hand, he wanted to help the Pokémon, not only because it was his favorite but because it was a part of who he was and how he was raised. It didn't sit right with him to do nothing when he had the means to help another. On the other hand, doing so might get him in trouble. He already had a problem in the form of the beast chasing him; he didn't need another one. He also didn't have that many berries to feed himself, much less to feed another.

Tet was caught in a dilemma, one that he thought about for a few seconds, but the guilt grew with each passing moment as he looked at the downed Pokémon.

"Shit! You better not attack me, you hear, or I'll be really angry," he said to Mawile, hoping the Pokémon would hear him as he moved his hand to the back of its head to make it easier to feed Mawile the Orans.

Tet grabbed an Oran berry from his pocket and placed it near Mawile's mouth. However, the Pokémon didn't open its mouth. He attempted to push the berry into its mouth but refrained from trying to open it himself, fearing that he might lose a finger if Mawile suddenly bit down.

"C'mon, girl, or boy," he gently spoke to the Pokémon. "I'm trying to help. Please open your mouth."

He kept doing this a few more times, and just when he was going to reluctantly open its mouth, in a sudden bout of strength, Mawile opened its mouth.

"M-maw..." It said weakly.

"Good job!" Tet said with a smile, feeding the Mawile small bits of Oran berry, afraid that it wouldn't have the strength to eat a whole one. "Eat slowly; I have more."

Tet fed Mawile until only a few Orans were left, saving some for his dinner. The Pokémon, having been fed, now slept peacefully at his side. He moved near the wall with the egg to have something his back could relax against alongside Mawile.

As Tet sat against the cave wall, he finally had a moment to collect his thoughts.

Okay, Tet, let's assess the situation. I'm in a cave with a malnourished shiny Mawile, and I've just used up most of my Oran berries to feed it. My bag's lighter now, and I'll have to find more food soon. Tet rubbed his temples, feeling a growing headache. But what about that creature chasing me? Was it a Pokémon too? And the egg... It all seems so surreal. How did I end up in this bizarre situation?

He shook his head, then looked at Mawile again. I couldn't just leave Mawile to die. It's my favorite Pokémon, and I couldn't abandon it. But now I have a new challenge. How do I get out of this cave without that beast or other dangers finding me? I also need to ration these berries. They're my lifeline now. And I must stay cautious, not knowing what else is lurking in these caves.

"Okay, Tet, you've faced tough situations in games before. This is real life, but the principles are similar. Stay smart, stay cautious, and figure out a plan," he mumbled to himself, offering words of motivation.

"I need food, water, and a way back to civilization. The first one can be solved with me finding berries; I know what to look out for. Water, though... that's going to be tricky," Tet thought aloud, his brow furrowed in concern.

He looked inside his bag and found a half-filled water bottle. It would probably only last him two days if he drank in small amounts.

He glanced around the cave, trying to spot any signs of water sources. There might be a water source further down, but going there now, knowing that Pokémon is present, with Mawile having been from there, is straight-up suicide.

"There was that river, but it's too far now, and with that Pokémon chasing me around, it's too dangerous to go far."

He continued mumbling for a while until he was too tired, both from the stress and the running he had done for hours, inadvertently falling asleep with the Pokémon in his arms.

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

SHAKE

"I don't have class today..." Tet mumbled.

SHAKE SHAKE

"Stop, I'll eat later, go ahead..." Being shaken once more, he offered another excuse.

SHAKE SHAKE SHAKE

"Ughh, Fine! I'm waking up now." Tet rubbed his eyes, feeling that something was strange, as he woke up in a sitting position.

He fully opened his eyes and was greeted by Mawile in his embrace, looking up at him with curious eyes.

"Uhm... Good morning?" Tet greeted awkwardly, taken aback.

Mawile shrugged and pointed to the outside of the cave, now having a reddish-heavy shade of orange, the color of the sun setting.

"Afternoon then..."

An awkward silence followed. Tet was sluggish after just waking up, then remembered his current predicament, which had woken him up.

"Uhm... I need to go outside, to get berries. I'm running out of them," he said to the Pokémon, hoping it would understand, which it probably would, as before, Mawile even corrected him about the time of day.

Mawile nodded and got off of him, standing by his side, staring. Tet nodded and stood up, moving in the direction outside the cave. Mawile followed him from behind, but not before glancing at the egg in the corner.

Tet noticed where Mawile looked and said, "That's a Pokémon egg, but you probably already knew that. Don't break or eat it, if eating eggs is part of your diet or something."

Mawile nodded but not before giving Tet a disgusted look.

"Hey, I don't know what you eat; I just said that in case eggs were part of your menu," Tet said with his arms raised.

Mawile nodded after giving it some thought, finding the reason acceptable. He continued following Tet until they reached the entrance of the cave, where he stopped. Curious, Mawile looked towards the human as to why he stopped.

Tet's face was a bit fearful but with a hint of courage. "A Pokémon's been chasing me for a few hours now. I don't know why, but I think it wants to kill me, along with the egg inside the cave."

Tet looked at Mawile and reluctantly said, "You should probably stop following me and go away. That Pokémon will probably think we're together if it sees you with me."

Call him dumb because it probably is, but Tet couldn't just make someone hang with him not knowing that doing so might cause them danger. It bothers him, so now, he's just hoping that even with knowing all that, Mawile would still want to stay. That would grant him access to protection from a Pokémon and a friend to talk to, even if said friend only repeatedly says their own name.

He looked towards Mawile, searching for its reaction anxiously, only to feel relief as not even a moment later the Pokémon shook its head with its arms crossed.

"Mawile!" the Pokémon said, raising its right fist enthusiastically.

Tet chuckled in relief, grateful that he now had a Pokémon on his side to protect him and that he was no longer alone. "Thanks, Mawile. You have no idea how grateful I am that you're staying. I'm scared of being alone, and the dark, and both were going to happen tonight if you decided to go."

Mawile shook its hands once more to indicate that it had no plans on leaving, which earned it another chuckle from Tet. Shaking his head, he finally went outside with Mawile, but not before checking his surroundings.

"No sign of that bastard anywhere; I think we're safe," Tet nodded. "The berry bush is just up ahead, a few meters. But you probably know better than me, seeing as you're from here."

The Pokémon shook its head, not having the slightest clue, much to Tet's surprise. "Wait, don't tell me you haven't ever been outside the cave before?"

Mawile hesitantly shook its head, confirming Tet's suspicion. The Pokémon looked worried, which Tet instantly noticed. Quickly shaking his hands, Tet said, "No, it's okay! I was just a bit taken aback that you never went outside before, but it's totally fine."

I see, I guess Pokémon never really go outside of their habitats; no reason to as they've got basic necessities there, otherwise why make that their territory? For Mawile to go outside on their own, something must have gone wrong. Food-related maybe, judging by Mawile's condition.

Shaking his head to clear his thoughts, he turned towards Mawile and said, "Let's go to where I found the berries; maybe there's another bush there I haven't found yet."

Mawile nodded and followed Tet as they walked to the bush. Feeling more relaxed with his added company, Tet finally got to take a proper look at his surroundings.

The trees looked like... well, trees. Nothing too strange appearance-wise, the same with the other greens. The only thing different really was the berries; they looked like blueberries but huge, a handful huge.

Tet could see some other Pokémon too. How did I not see them? Did they run away when I was in a rush, or was I just that unlucky to not meet any, or maybe lucky?

Mawile similarly was looking around, wonder in her eyes as she took in her surroundings but also kept an eye out.

After a while, they finally arrived at the berry bush. Tet picked up the berries he dropped before; they weren't damaged and only a little bit dirty. Mawile helped by picking off the remaining berries in the bush and giving them to Tet, who stored them in his bag.

They looked around the surroundings for another bush, and they found one nearby. They moved cautiously, prepared to run at the slightest sign of danger. Picking off a few more berries, enough for both of them to last a couple of days, they stopped. Just in time, as little raindrops fell, signaling rain.

"It's gonna rain soon; let's go back, Mawile," said Tet as he looked at the dark clouds above.

They backtracked to the cave, reaching the destination faster compared to when they went out, as they had a destination in mind and were not searching for a path.

Tet and Mawile arrived just in time for the rain to start pouring. They huddled together close to the egg, chewing on berries as night approached and they watched the raindrops fall.