His greeting would have made Autumn more comfortable, had it not come with a malicious smile. "I'm... Autumn." she replied. "Nice to meet you," He repeated, "but you don't stand a chance to be as powerful as I'm gonna be!" "Now, now Salwart" Mystic said gently, "Let's not get ahead of yourself. Please get be some Oran berries will you?" "Yes Mystic." He obeyed, hanging his head.
"Well, I've got to rest now. Feel free to wander the cave. Trust me, they're aren't any wild Pokemon here. Just stay in the cave." Autumn decided it was a good idea. She grabbed a twig, made a torch from the fire, and began to wander. Then, she saw Stalwart walking by, a vine of berries in his mouth. Autumn cowered. "What's the matter, newbie? Scared?" He said ominously. "You're never going to make it. Ha ha." Autumn cringed. "I'm just playing. Don't be scared. I'm friendly." He extended a paw. For living in a cave, his fur was well kempt. Autumn shook it. He didn't seem so bad.
"Are you wild too?" she asked Stalwart, who wrinkled his nose. "Not really," he admitted. "I was bred in a Day Care but my Trainer didn't want me. Said I was too hard to handle, so he dumped me in the wild like a bag of trash. Void and Mystic found me." He stood straighter. "I'll show him! I'll become so strong nothing'll ever be able to defeat me, ever." "Fine words, little one," said Mystic. She looked at Autumn as though expecting a similar response.
"Were you wild?" Autumn inquired of Mystic. She stared off, while Stalwart slit his paw on his throat, signaling that that was a bad idea. "No..." Mystic replied blankly. Then grabbed her berries and walked back into the cave. After a moment, Stalwart said, "Autumn, your fur looks nice. Wanna go walk outside?" Autumn nodded.
When they got outside, Autumn could see that the sun was creeping down below the trees. "Is it that late already?" she asked, mostly to herself. "You should refrain from asking Mystic about her past, she got really mad at me for it, and Void made me promise not to ask again." Stalwart warned her. "But.. why?" Autumn questioned. "I don't know." He replied, and they both sat there, in front of the cave, until the sun slide beyond the tree line.
"Void doesn't like to talk about the past either, but he has better self-control. The farthest I ever got was Mystic's old name, Yonder, and the fact they were from Unova." Stalwart stated. Autumn stared at the night sky. "It's beautiful. I can see why Void chose Umbreon." After a moment, she looked back at Stalwart, his fur blowing in the wind. "Hello," Void said suddenly, jumping up and startling them. Stalwart asked, "Where were you?" He responded, "Looking to see who attacked Autumn. Just a couple of trainers who let them loose. Probably rivals." While walking back, Stalwart whispered, "You were attacked?" She whispered back, "Yes. Void saved me."
Stalwart nodded, but the look in his eyes was slightly condescending. To change the topic, Autumn asked, "Have you thought about what you want to evolve into?" Stalwart shrugged his shoulders. "It changes a lot. Sometimes I think being a Jolteon would be cool, or a Flareon. But then I'll see Void or Mystic do something really awesome and I'll want to become one of them. Yourself?" Autumn hesitated before she answered. "I've never thought about it that much. I always assumed I wouldn't have a choice, that I would eventually become a Leafeon just because I live in the Eterna Forest. I'll need to either become a Trainer's Pokemon or journey beyond the mountain to become anything else." Stalwart quickly checked to see that Void wasn't listening, then leaned in conspirationally. "Well. Rumor has it that Void and Mystic are working on something. Something that'll allow an Eevee to evolve without a Trainer's help."
Autumn thought this would be interesting. They reached the main room, then proceeded to a branching room for dinner. It was a soup made of leaves and berries. Autumn ate like an Emboar, and Stalwart wasn't holding off either. After dinner, Void, Mystic, and Stalwart went off to their beds. When Autumn asked where her bed was, Mystic guestered over to an empty room. Autumn sat down on the straw mat and slept well.
Her dreams were lit by bright images of Void and Mystic, standing together against a gang of giant Pokemon with ferocious teeth. They both used their powers to bring it down, and carried her off to safety, onto a raft on a swaying river, where Stalwart was looking in the distance, and then she heard the rushing of water. A huge drop was coming, a waterfall. She saw Magikarp struggling to swim away from the oncoming torrent, and she began to panic, when suddenly. "Rise and Shine, Autumn, today we start your training!"
"Void?" "No, just me, Autumn. Stalwart and Void are already eating. Come on." Mystic replied. They walked together to the main room, where bits of meat and generic berries were on the table. "Nice fur," Void commented. Autumn was embarrassed to see her fur wild and unfluffed. She brushed it down, hoping Stalwart didn't notice. "What are we doing today?" she asked as she sat down. "Running," said Stalwart.
