New Discoveries

Disclaimer: I do not own Pokemon and never will, however the names and personalities of these characters are 100% mine. In the event that you want to use my characters, please email me and be polite and I’ll most likely say YES. Thank you, have a great day, and R&R! (Read, rate and review, for those of you who are slow like me. ^^;)


One sunny afternoon, a little Zangoose decided to go out and play. He was young, having just been old enough to wander out on his own, and was known by the name of Reik. Reik is a very curious little Zang, and is always ready to try new things, as he is a rapid learner. Some of Reik’s favorite pastimes include play- hunting, having a snack, and afterwards laying out by the sun under his favorite red oak tree to sleep under the warmth of the sun. Which is exactly what the little Zang planed to do today.
Wandering out from the brush, Reik put his paw up to his eyes and squinted. It was a bright morning indeed, he thought to himself. He stumbled over to the near by pond, and gently stepping into the cool water, he cleaned himself. Reik loved the water, and besides that fact, he found that the only way to get every spot was to get completely wet from head to toe, and then scrub. His long, curved claws made that even easier, as he gave himself a personalized cleaning massage to rid his delicate fur from all of the dirt from his cave. When he reached the area of his groin, he let out a surprised shudder, and, thinking nothing of it, continued to scrub his body. Once he was finished, Reik shook himself, very much like a puppy would, until his fur was silky and shining.
* * *
The little Zangoose stealthily crawled through the tall grass, careful not to disturb any mother Seviper as he stalked his prey. He was far too small to go after any Seviper, but as his kind were notorious for hunting them, he found it clever to stay away from their nests. In reality, he was simply looking for a playmate, possibly a Butterfree who was willing to play chase or something. There was one specific Butterfree who had always been especially kind to him, Lenia, who, seeing the end of summer coming near, had taken flight with her family towards another city for the fall and winter. So now he had to search for a new one.
Little did Reik know that there was a new resident in the tall grass, and that he was watching the young Zangoose with glistening eyes full of mischief. The Gengar began to wonder: ‘Mmm… A tasty young one, isn’t he? I wonder how I can get him. Mmm….’ And so the Gengar began to plot on how he could get his lunch today.
Eventually, after wandering through the grass long enough, Reik found his favorite playspot; an old hollowed stump next to a fallen tree. He would spend many hours playing there with Lenia, as those times were always the best part of his day. Only this time, the young Zangoose felt a change in the mood of the area. There was another pokemon nearby, he could just barely smell it. It was as if the smell was almost ghostlike… He just barely peered over the edge of the stump… Nothing there. Reik pouted, and stepped back. A shrill cold laugh rang throughout his ears, and a chill spread throughout his body. He leaped off to the side defensively, picked himself up, and turned around. There was the Gengar.
The little Zangoose had nowhere to go; he was trapped. The Gengar had used his ghost ability to multiply himself to surround the victim, which frightened the young one even more since he couldn’t figure out where the real one was. He backed up against the stump, and, forgetting to act with a false ego as the typical adult Zangoose would, he began to cry. His tears wet his fur around his eyes, and he brushed them off as he tried to contemplate what he should do next. Running would get him nowhere, it would only allow the Gengar for an easier meal. If he attacked, the Gengar would most definitely win, as Reik was still considered a young child and the Gengar was fully-grown. So, the Zangoose decided, this was the end for him; he would die here. He closed his eyes as the Gengar started closing in on him and waited for the final blow… It never came. Instead, he heard something jump out to the forest behind him and could just barely sense a flash of bright lights coming from the fast- moving object. Reik squinted to see a young adult Ampharos who was viciously battling the Gengar in his aid. Without a second thought, Reik leaped into the hollowed stump, curled up, and waited for the battle to end.
* * *
All was silent. The battle was over. Reik peered over the edge of the stump once more to see who was still standing. The young adult Ampharos was standing victoriously and unscathed over a very disoriented Gengar. The Ampharos turned his head in the direction of the Zangoose, who quickly tucked his head back into the stump to hide himself. The Ampharos chuckled to himself, after seeing the shy little creature attempt to remain undiscovered, but realized that he had to finish off the Gengar before consulting the young one. He then spoke.
“Gengar. How dare you disturb the young defenseless one cowering in the stump. Now go, unless you wish to discover more of what I can do to you…” He growled, and his red cheeks began to spark up a bit. The Gengar only laughed spitefully before giving the stump one last haughty look, and then vanished completely from sight.
The Ampharos, after feeling satisfied with himself, decided to go check on the young Zangoose still hiding in the stump. Reik by this point was shaking violently, and so when the Ampharos reached down to pick up the little warrior, Reik scratched his paw. The Ampharos drew back for a moment, and after examining his paw, found only a slight wound. ‘The Zangoose was only being defensive,’ he thought to himself. Once more, he reached down and stroked the terrified ball of fur at the bottom of the stump. He reached down under the belly of the Zangoose, and this time, he came up without hesitation. The Ampharos gently lay the young one on the ground, and then tried to calm him down, as he was still shaking with fear.
“I do not mean you any harm, little one. Do not be afraid. My name is Kaine, and I have nothing better to do today anyway, so I thought I might come and help you out with that Gengar. Seeing as you are safe, I don’t really have a need to be here anymore, but I really have nothing to do. If you’ll allow it, I think I’ll stick around with you today. I can protect you if you need me, and by the looks of it, you need someone to play with anyhow…” He paused, and looked over at the little Zangoose who at this point had stopped shaking and was poking his head out of his little ball. His eyes sparkled like the day, and from what Kaine could tell, this Zangoose was different from all the others, as his coat was slightly more orange compared to the traditional reddish- sometimes pink Zangoose fur. ‘He’s a cute little ball of fur,’ muttered Kaine to himself, as he watched the Zangoose with wonder.
“I’m Reik,” said the Zangoose without warning, causing Kaine to come to his senses.
“Hello Reik. I see you’ve decided to come out of your defensive little ball…” Reik blushed. He realized that he had earlier scratched the Ampharos who had just saved his life, and he was ashamed by it.
“I-I’m sorry,” he stammered. “I- didn’t mean to hurt you…”
“Oh, this?” The Ampharos held up the paw that Reik had clawed. “Its no big deal. You’re so small anyhow that it couldn’t do any damage to me. Why don’t you come over and sit down?” Kaine motioned to a shady spot next to Reik’s favorite big red oak tree and lay down with his back against the tree himself. Once again, he motioned for Reik to do the same. For a moment, he hesitated, but then he lost his sense of danger completely and bounded over, tail wagging, to where Kaine lay. He plopped himself into Kaine’s lap without any self-consciousness and curled up in his body warmth.
“Whoa there, little guy. I see you’ve decided to rust me now, haven’t you. I’m impressed. You’re really a brave little guy, especially for your size.” In reality this was true, as when the Zangoose stood up at his full potential he was just under three feet, closer to two and a half when he wasn’t stretching, while the tall Ampharos, being a young adult, was closer to six feet. But despite their great difference in size, they were beginning to get along very well for having just met through coincidence.
“Where do you live, Reik?”
“I… I really don’t have a home. I just live where I want.”
“Do you like living that way?”
“Well… I really don’t have a choice…”
“I see.”
They sat in silence for a little while, enjoying the peacefullness of the shade of the tree and watching the sun move through the leaves. The Ampharos spoke again:
“This tree is wonderful. I used to spend many hours sitting under it every day.”
“I do it too,” stated the Zangoose, snuggling closer to the Ampharos’s warm belly. “I do it all the time.”
The Ampharos lowered his head, and Reik noticed that he had been disheartened.
“What is it, Kaine?”
“…Nothing.”
“Oh, come on…” Reik gave a playful stroke to Kaine’s belly.
“…I- I used to sit under this tree with my lover.”
“What happened to her?”
Kaine gracefully lowered his head with respect.
“…I’m so sorry. She’s dead isn’t she?”
Without moving, Kaine spoke.
“You are a wise and mature little one, you really are. Very clever. I’m sure you’re a quick learner as well.”
“I am. I love learning new things.”
By this point, Reik had gotten comfortable enough so that he lay in Kaine’s lap as if Kaine was a Zangoose mother and stroked the beautiful fur of Kaine’s underbelly, toying with the golden strands as he went. Kaine, enjoying the playful attention, lay back and closed his eyes, thinking nothing of it. Suddenly, Kaine felt a jolt of energy awaken his body, and looked down to see what the Zangoose had just touched.
Kaine’s sheath had just become barely visible from underneath his long underbelly fur, and the little Zangoose had just noticed it. The bewildered Zangoose, not understanding what it was, as he was still much too young to have learned, leaned forward and touched it again. This time, a small prick of pink emerged from the sheath, but as Reik left it unattended for a few confusing moments, it retreated back beneath the golden fur once more. Still amazed and confused at the same time, Reik looked back up at Kaine, who was looking back down at him, wondering what on earth he was doing. They both sat there for a few time- stopping moments, before Reik spoke.
“Kaine?”
“Hmm?”
“What… was that thing?”
Kaine blushed. Of course he should’ve realized that Reik wouldn’t know! He was only a child after all. But he was nearing the age of where he should know, and Reik had no home to go back to for someone to explain it to him. He felt sorry for the little Zangoose. Kaine wondered what to do next.
“Kaine? Hey, Kaine!”
“Huh, wha-? Oh, sorry Reik. I was just thinking.”
“About what?”
He paused for a moment, before continuing.
“Reik…” He sighed. He’d just have to take it upon himself, he decided. “Reik, would you like to come and stay with me for a little while? Its really not very safe in these parts right now, with fall and winter fast approaching. If you want… You can live with me for now.”
Reik thought for a moment.
“I… suppose so. Thank you.”
The Ampharos nodded. He realized that the woods were not safe in the fall and winter, and as Reik had never been out of his burrow until this winter as he was too young before, then he should live with him for now. And besides that, Reik will be old enough this mating season and he’ll have to learn about himself before then if he wants to pass on his genes.
And so, after another hour or so of sitting and chatting, the sun began to go down, and the Ampharos and the little Zangoose got up and walked towards the direction of Kaine’s den.
* * *
~Saki the Healer