Changing of the Seasons

Page Fourty-One; Spooky, Scary...Romance?

It was the day after Jordan had decided to stay in Nyanja Town, and the trainers were on their way to Viaggio Town, and stopped along the path for lunch, although there were dark clouds gathering above them, foreboding a storm. Logan was cooking up their meals and Charles and Brooke sat together on a blanket and watched their pokemon running about and playing. She looked over at Solomon who was sitting in the grass, his eyes fixated on all the pokemon. "Guys? I think something's up with Solomon." 

"What makes you say that?" Charles asked. "He's been...distant lately." Charles and Logan looked to each other. "Brooke, he's always distant." Logan said. "It's different. He's not eating as much and he seems distracted in training now. Do you guys think he's sick? Should we take him to the Pokemon Center when we get to Viaggio Town?" 

"He doesn't seem to be exhibiting any symptoms of illness." Charles stated, and they both looked over when Logan started chuckling, walking over to hand them their food. "What's so funny?" 

"Well it's so painfully obvious, Brooke, I'm just surprised you haven't noticed it yet." Brooke raised an eyebrow. "What are you talking about?" 

"I believe Solomon is in love." 

"In love!? With who?" 

"Whom." Charles said and Brooke shot him a look. "With Camilla." he said, nodding to his shiny delcatty. Solomon seemed to finally notice they were talking about him and he glared back at them. He growled, trying to deny his feelings. "It's okay, Solomon, you don't have to hide it." Brooke teased him a bit and he growled again. "Just go talk to her, you can do it, Solomon." She pushed him over to Camilla a bit and he glared back at her as the delcatty stared. The luxray began speaking to her, sounding like he was stumbling as all the trainers watched him intently. Camilla stood and walked away, her tail hitting Solomon in the face lightly. "Did she just brush him off!?" Brooke exclaimed, shocked. "Maybe he still has to prove himself to her." Charles suggested. "Prove himself? What's there to prove? Any pokemon would be lucky to have Solomon like them!" 

"She doesn't usually act like this." Logan said. "Well, when it comes to mating, pokemon take it very seriously. They can act differently because they want to make sure they're getting their best option. I remember reading something back at the academy that said that usually, the one courting will fight and train to get stronger so their prospective mate will see that they can protect them." 

"Well then, time for some--" Brooke was cut off by a crack of thunder from above, making her squeal. They all quickly gathered their things as rain started pouring. They all ran along the path, trying to find somewhere to hide, Brooke's hands were shaking, trying to hold all her things. "Look! There's shelter!" Logan called, pointing to an old mansion off the path. They made a combee-line for the house and quickly rushed inside. They were all panting, and as soon as they regained themselves, they looked around the foyer. "Umbree?" Lukas looked up at her, worried. "I'm okay, thanks, Lukas. We're inside now." It was very dark and old, and it was obvious no one had lived here in a very, very long time. 

Logan took a pokeball off his belt and released Camilla. "Hey, can you use Thunder Wave to help us see a bit?" He asked and she used the electricity to light up the room. There was an old staircase leading from the foyer to the second floor, and a large chandelier hanging from a thread above them. Old busts lined the sides of the room and Brooke got an eerie feeling they were watching her. Suddenly, the silence was broken when a pokeball on Brooke's belt opened on its own and Solomon materialized in front of her. "Solomon! You nearly scared me to death!" 

"Lux! Luxray! Lux lux!" 

"What? Why should we leave? We can't go back in that storm." Brooke stood and went to take a step forward, but Solomon stood stubbornly in front of her. "Lux."