PMD: Stargazer Chronicles

Guildmaster- Bane of the White Star

Sky Shaymin Ariel breathed in fire and exhaled smoke. Her paws trembled. She backed up, away from Sky Shaymin Mei, as she laid out on the floor.

"I understand what it feels like to be in this moment. Let me help you. Please, make a deal with me. Make a wish on me. I need time, and you need your sister. You'll get them back eventually, but for now, give them to me. Your memories. Do that, and I'll restore Rayquaza for you."

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Ariel woke up. If it weren't for her aching, unfamiliar paws in Land Forme, she would've jumped right out of her white bedsheets. She had that dream again.

Over on a cushion in the corner of the room, Flareon Light slept as a small, gray bundle of fur. He insisted on staying nearby as she recovered, and the nurses fetched him a cushion to sleep on. She didn't wake up half shouting and in an adrenaline rush like usual, but he still wasn't close enough for her to get any sleep.

Despite the pain, Ariel had enough in her to lift Light with Psychic and bring him closer. She lifted the cover and placed him under. She curled around his back and held his soft, trustworthy paws.

The dream always looked real, and the image of Mei, lifeless, burned itself deeper into her brain every time. Even with Light staving it off, she couldn't keep it up for much longer. Light did his best, and helped plenty, but she couldn't put this on his shoulders, not yet. He knew she had nightmares, and that he helped by being there for her. That worked, more than enough for a good night's sleep.

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Flareon Light got some of the most peaceful sleep he had for a long time, despite all his screaming and crying the night before. A familiar weight and warmth curled around his body. Ariel's white paws sheltered him from a slight breeze that cascaded through a cracked window. Now that he looked at them, she had to be in Land Forme. He could tell she was awake; her purr rumbled on his back.

"Airy?" Light asked.

"Yes, my beautiful shmoopsy woo bear?"

"Why are you in Land Forme?"

"Well, apparently, I'll heal faster if I'm not in Sky Forme, and I can control it now."

"Are you feeling okay?"

"Yeah. You?"

"Good."

"So," she said, "...you think I got stronger?"

Light didn't quite understand why she asked him. Then again, maybe because she expected the cold hard truth out of him and wanted to use that to her advantage.

"I mean, of course," he said. "You stood up to him."

"Thanks. And thanks for staying here tonight."

"Of course. I... don't remember falling asleep right here, though."

"You smell so sweet. Ha... aha..."

"Oh."

"Wearing that hoodie, you look like a little angel cake... Angel cake! That's your nickname!"

"I mean... Add it to the pile, I guess."

"You have no idea how hard it is to resist gobbling you up."

Thin trails of steam rose from Light's fur. "We should probably, uhm, get ready for... Whatever we're doing today."

"We're going to set out for Zulu tonight, by carriage on the Abujan highway later tonight. It'll just be you and me together... Ha..."