Even though Pich has never been able to smile, and instead suffices with her twittering and flapping her wings, she still tries to look as happy as possible as Rune watches her, terrified.

Nurse Joy sticks some needles in her, ejecting a green liquid that seems to slowly nullify the poison, her heartbeat now steady and she no longer has the greenish glow under her feathers of poison.

"It'll be okay. Promise." he says, watching from behind the glass. He puts a paw to the glass, dragging it downwards, teeth bared. I see the icy blue tears run down his white tufted cheeks, and his ears are backwards just enough to show his face.

She comes out within an hour, still drowsy but no longer suffering. She hops to Rune's head, and chirps, "You look handsome."

"He looks like a girl." Stella says casually.

Rune grimaces. "Screw off."

"Nice skirt, 'mon." chuckles Geyser.

"Agh! It's a freaking robe, okay? It's supposed to be a witch thing." He covers his frilly, skirt-like fur around his tail area.

Juliet smiles, leaning on his now long and black legs. "I think it's cute."

"I think it's sexy." Chrona smiles, swishing the part of her bud that fell during the battle with Rune and now lies across her face.

Rune blushes, but I pull him away from his many female admirers and drag him towards me, and out of the Pokemon center. The rest of the team follows, and before we know it we're back on Route 6.

I'm about to continue off from where we were yesterday, right next to the annoying guy with the Kadabra, when Bronze and Shauna run up to me. "Hey!" pants Shauna, grabbing for my hand. "We caught up with you!"

Bronze slides his hand into my open left hand and says, "Trevor and Tierno wanted to meet us here. Something about a tag battle."

"Yes, yes we did." Tierno, the kid with the weird black hair, runs up to us, accompanied by the short guy with the puffy orange hair.

"Well?" Bronze says, holding a Pokeball in his left hand, "Why don't we get this started? I'm hoping not to camp out on the trail tonight, forecast calls for rain. Lilly, shall we?"

"We shall indeed." I laugh, and letting go of Shauna's hand, send forth Rune. He brandishes his stick, twirling it in a circle of flame.

"Go! Corphish! Go! Pikachu!" They both send out their own Pokemon, a gruff looking Pikachu and a pathetically derpy Corphish. Rune wrinkles up his nose as Bronze sends forth Shruikan, who sticks his tongue out at Rune, gurgling.

It appears that Rune isn't the only one who's evolved. Shruikan is now a Frogadier, the bubbles around his neck arranged to look like dragon wings.

"Heh. Nerd frog." Rune jeers.

"Says Wadanohara over here. Gonna cast a spell on me? Give me warts?"

"No. You're already too ugly. Warts would be an improvement." Rune confirms, and as he opens his mouth to spit out more vile insults, he yells like a little girl as the Corphish clamps down on his tail.

Shruikan begins laughing, only to be cut off by a bolt of lightning. The Pikachu is launching bolt after bolt, but the two forget their fight to lash out in full evolved-starter fury. A fiery blast erupts from Rune's wand tip (yeah- let's just call it a wand), and the Pikachu only has time to brace itself before Shruikan flies in with a slice right down the middle. Rune then launches the Corphish off his tail, smashing it down and when it scuttles to get back on it's feet, Rune smashes it in the head with the stick and it scuttles back to Tierno, who just sighs and consents to defeat.

Trevor sends out a Flabebe, but Rune and Shruikan make short work of that too, with Rune casually burning it with embers from the wand and Shruikan threatening to step on it.

Trevor recalls it, and mutters to Tierno, "They do call them Pocket Monsters."

Rune laughs, fisting the air with his noodle arms. "HECK YEAH!" Laughing, he brofists Shruikan.

"I thought you hated each other." I say, curious.

"Oh we do. But I hate them more." He shows me his teeth, which haven't gotten any less sharp to compliment his new magical girl outfit. In fact, his claws are still there too, so he looks like a werewitch more than anything. "Where's Pich? Did you lose her again?" He looks around, shocked, and then his eyes widen as he sees her.

"Looking for someone?" She chirrs, now at least two feet larger. Red feathers form a mane running down the back of her neck.

"Hey, you evolved!" He says, giving her a hug which is cut off by her huge talons. "Ow."

We begin grinding and training together as we work our way across the endless, beautiful fields of flowers and light. Pich and Rune lead the way, her wings spread triumphantly as she soars above the high grasses, Rune running after her, his skinny bipedal legs causing him to trip every now and then. Juliet is singing something from the Sound of Music, throwing wildflowers everywhere and laughing. Geyser is casually picking berries and putting them in his mouth, stopping only to blast them with water for sanitary purposes.

I look around, swinging my head to see my two other team members.

They're not there.

"Guys. Stop galavanting." I say, sticking out a hand.

"But I like galavanting!" protests Juliet, and I put my hand over her mouth and she murmurs in protest.

I see some grass that has obviously been trodden on. Bingo.

"Come on, this way!"

The tracks go in circles, weaving around and around until I see something even more terrifying.

A trail of blood.

It's a slick trail, as if someone had dusted the path with blood. The sun, which is now three quarters of the way through it's daily journey, shines a golden hue on it.

The grass is rustling now, the red whipping in front of my face mockingly.

Chrona is standing over Stella's corpse.

Pich descends, shrieking, tearing at every bit of Chrona she can touch. Chrona retaliates, blood pouring out of the side of her mouth, grimacing.

"I DIDN'T KILL HER!"