The Human Species Ch.106 - Dangerous Dark Assassin

A taste so wondrous, it surely had to be of another world. A packet of nutrition designed to encourage a pleased palette, a portal connecting his tongue with a whole new dimension of taste. It filled him with the desire to kneel in fervent prayer, praising whichever higher being would accept responsibility for allowing him this momentary yet oh so beautiful glimpse into heaven. His body sounded no complains, satisfied as it began laying a foundation of muscles and fat that would keep him alive for months to come.

"How is it?" Rukario asked with an intent stare. Lucario remembered his situation and faked a gag reflex.

"Terrible," Lucario lied, pulling down the corners of his mouth as if tasting something disgusting, "Whoops, manners. It's… OK, I guess?"

Rukario looked disappointed, and Lucario knew it was not simply because she thought he had scored a bad meal.

"No, that's alright," she said quietly while looking down at the ground, "Cyon used to… Never mind."

Why was she admitting it? Like he was really going to fall for such an obvious trick. It bothered Lucario to publicly shame the food that pleased him so, but he considered Rukario's peace of mind a slight bit more important. Thankfully, the cook in the food booth looked unaffected by his harsh words, a bulky guy working his spatula like a warrior and filling the chilly neighborhood with steam carrying the smell of fried vegetables. Going by the numerous Pokémon wandering around, it must not be as revolting to their noses as curry and mint were to Zerobi. Suddenly, Lucario realized that if that had not been the case, his unusual taste in food would have been revealed as soon as they got within range of the aroma and he made a desperate lunge for it, before even taking his first bite.

He looked at Rukario while finishing his meal, still feigning disgust with every bite. She was deep in thought, and it worried him because he was coming to realize that she was actually clever, and dangerously so. If he stayed with her she would find out the truth sooner or later. Even so, her behavior was giving him mixed signals and he was having trouble figuring out her intentions. After all this time, was she still trying to prove that he was Cyon? Considering the fighting, eating and getting him to talk about himself, it seemed more likely this was all just to reassure her that he was NOT Cyon.

"What're you thinking about?" Lucario finally asked, wiping the corners of his mouth with a not-so-clean napkin. Rukario continued thinking for another few seconds, before facing him with an earnest gaze.

"Do you think I am strong?" she asked.

"… You were trashing Blue, and you need to ask?" Lucario answered, and Rukario took a deep breath.

"So. Strong enough to fight on a competitive level?" she asked hopefully. The sudden question made a hairy ball of a Pokémon a few paces away turn its head towards them for a moment before walking away, quietly scoffing to itself. It took Lucario a moment to recognize the question – He had expected something regarding Cyon or maybe himself, but was instead faced with something unlike anything he had been asked before.

"Not sure, it's not like I'm a professional," Lucario replied with a shrug, sizing up Rukario and finding it impossible not to compare her unfavorably to his more fearsome opponents, "To be honest, I've met some crazy powerful trained Pokémon, like Torana and Raik-"

"Torana!?" Rukario suddenly burst out in shock, interrupting him as she stared in awe, "Surely you have not fought THE Torana?"

"What, Brendan's Blaziken? Strongest Pokémon ever?" Lucario said nonchalantly with an obvious tone of glee to his voice, "Yep, fought her. Beat her."

Rukario's stare of awe immediately turned into a skeptical look, clearly not buying his unlikely story.

"… She wasn't using any fire moves until the end," Lucario admitted with a very bitter sigh, wishing he'd be allowed to act high and mighty just once in his life, "And I kind of, well, almost died."

"Tell me in detail," Rukario requested, her skepticism diminishing but still desiring verification. Lucario started by simply detailing the situation and area to prove his legitimacy, but Rukario insisted on hearing a blow-by-blow explanation of the fight itself. The memory was still fresh in his mind, each faded bruise and soft spot across his body like a memo of the past. She would ask him of the techniques he used, how he was able to exploit Torana's openings and other strategic accomplishments that were really just spur of the moment. After a while, he wondered if Rukario was really just seeing if he was telling the truth, or had reasons of her own to be listening to this.

"… Very interesting…" Rukario said after the story was finished, a rather big and excited smile on her face. Lucario felt like asking her what she was thinking of again, but decided to keep quiet. She probably had a lot to think about without him interrupting her thoughts over and over.

"Blue has been egging me on to utilize my skill in battle," Rukario spoke up after a while, her smile remaining fast as she looked at him with genuine passion, "Real battles, I mean. Competitive level. I just never thought it was possible for a Lucario like me, until…"

"D… Did I just alter the course of your life?" Lucario stammered in shock as Rukario giggled.

"Second time, now," Rukario admitted before closing her eyes and shaking her head, "… No. It is like you said – This is something I want to do from my own free will. Not something I feel I have to do, because…"

Her newfound smile suddenly disappeared.

"… Because…" she repeated with a blank stare. Lucario looked behind him, wondering if she had seen something dangerous. Indeed, there was a rather menacing cyclops tree walking down the street with roots for feet, but such sights were really nothing special in a world of Pokémon.

"I… Completely forgot…" Rukario gasped as she put her hand over her mouth, "For the first time since… Why is it that being with someone who looks and sounds exactly like Cyon made me forget about him?"

"Maybe because aside from that, I'm not like Cyon at all?" Lucario responded quickly to put on some pressure, afraid she would revert to her former pitiful state. It was a fear shared by Rukario, who had previously fallen so deep into despair she thought she would never escape. Her life had been geared towards being spent in solitude while mourning Cyon forever, or latching on to anyone similar enough for endless emotional support.

But here she was, smiling and talking about the future, battling and eating out with a friend, nary a thought spared to the past. And she had done it on her own. No, she thought, not entirely on her own – Through refusing to assist her, the spikeless Lucario had inadvertently helped her, forcing her to take command and work everything out by herself. She had reached out for a helping hand, and he had swatted it away every time.

Removing her hand from her mouth, she looked at Lucario with skepticism. She had no idea whether to be grateful or not for what was ultimately a complete unwillingness to help someone in a bad situation, but she was suddenly feeling very good about herself and he was the only one to play any part in it whatsoever. He had come here today to see if she was alright and decided to go along with what she wanted to do, even though none of this had ever been his responsibility in the first place.

"Not even a little," she spoke clearly before putting on her gentle smile from earlier, "I cannot believe I forgot to ask… But what is your name?"

"Lucario?" he replied with a hint of confusion, fairly certain she already knew.

"No, no… Your REAL name," Rukario insisted before moving a little closer to him. Lucario figured that being a Lucario herself, it must be very annoying to refer to someone else as "Lucario". He possessed one name he knew for certain he would not be telling her, and so he went for the answer he always did in these kinds of situations.

"Ethan," Lucario said confidently while staring into Rukario's eyes. Would they display surprise? Would they display any recognition at all? Would they display amazement, would they display fear or would they even display hatred?

His musings seemed to be for nothing, because he instantly lost sight of her face as something soft brushed past him. Glancing down, he saw Rukario taking hold of his hands. It was strange to be touched by paws as big as his own, almost like being grasped by something wearing large pillows for gloves.

"Ethan…" she said earnestly, "I am sorry for how I treated you, Ethan."

Lucario swallowed as he noticed two passerby's stopping and staring at them, a brightly colored hawk whispering something to what could only be described as a wormy substance sticking out of a hollow rock.

"Whoa, hey, I'm sorry for hitting you and all that," Lucario responded shakily while twisting his head around in embarrassment, "Come on, don't apologize. You saved me and I treated you like dirt all the time."

"Well, then. I forgive you?" Rukario redacted her statement before letting go; also starting to notice the attention they were getting. The odd duo of bird and worm smiled as they quickly turned their heads and went on their way. Lucario had no idea why they were getting so many looks from strangers, wondering if two Lucario being together was taboo or something. However, Rukario was not quite as naïve – She knew that the ones not stopped in their tracks from the fact that they were seeing a shiny would definitely be interested by a Lucario with no spikes.

"I should go back to the hotel to speak with Blue," Rukario said as she was finally getting a bit tired of being in the public's eye, "What are your plans?"

"Same. I need to teleport back to where I was," Lucario explained, fairly certain he had nothing else to do in Snowpoint City. Rukario looked at him with a confused expression.

"You… Teleported here?" she asked before looking around, "From another Pokécenter?"

"From… A cave in the middle of nowhere?" Lucario unintentionally mimicked the manner of her answer, "Why?"

"You don't know? It's only possible to teleport to Pokécenters," Rukario explained, wondering how far Lucario had traveled just to see her, "And only the one previously visited. Flying is better, and you can usually hire a ride from cities like this, as long as you have money."

Lucario shrugged, but was actually getting a bit concerned now. It occurred to him that Blue did not know what relationship he and Rukario had - It was possible that the trainer had dumped him there and left, thinking he was home now. Lucario had no idea where Nomad's Land was or how to get back to there, and chasing Blue around the world just for such a menial task seemed like a huge waste of time.

"Here," Rukario said, stretching out her arm towards him. Lucario looked down for a moment, noticing four large yellow coins in the palm of her hand.

"It should be enough for a ride anywhere," she said with an urging tone, "I owe you one for snatching you out of the sky, remember?"

"Haha… Yeah," Lucario snickered. He had only been flying four times in his life, the first time while he was dying from a pathetic defeat, the second abruptly ending by getting tackled out of the sky, the third during a powerful storm and the fourth one while in a cage. Given this unpleasant history he was not exactly looking forward to it, but wanted to end his meeting with Rukario on a high note before anything bad spontaneously happened. Reminding himself not to instigate a hug, Lucario put his hand on her shoulder.

"Hey, it's been fun. Let's do this again sometime," he said, Rukario looking at him with a stunned expression.

"Ethan… Don't be gone too long," she replied with a nod, "Next time we meet, I'll show you how far I've made it on my own."

The moment held on a bit longer than necessary before they separated, Lucario nodding to her in return. Both were filled with a great deal of thoughts about the other as they turned and walked in separate directions. Rukario turned back one last time to see Lucario disappearing behind an alleyway, faintly wondering if she was ever going to see him again.

The temperature dropped slightly as the shadows of the afternoon grew longer, and Lucario felt a bout of nostalgia from wandering the snowy city he had left behind so long ago. Thoughts of the past clouded his mind, but cleared his thoughts as to what to make of Rukario. The strangest conjecture came upon him as he questioned if maybe they weren't so different after all. Rukario had been hunted by trainers all her life for being a shiny, and he had been hunted all of his short life as a Lucario for a bit more complex reasons. She too had trouble figuring out what to do with her life, and Lucario hoped he would not waste years wandering aimlessly as she did. But most importantly, she had fallen into depression and desperation after losing Cyon, and Lucario suddenly realized he might end up the same regarding Mew if he did not forget about her soon. How could he claim any moral high ground when he would probably react the same if someone looking exactly like Mew were to appear and taunt him with her very existence? There was a distinct match between them, perhaps even more so than when his body still belonged to Cyon.

Lost in thoughts, Lucario failed to notice the presence of one unlike the others in town. An assassin, skulking around in the shadows of the alleyway. Despite carrying all the necessary tools for dispatching any prey, the assassin was not after anyone at this particular moment. That is, before noticing a certain spikeless Lucario walking down the street.

Keeping to the darkness, the assassin followed the seemingly lost Lucario until certain that they were alone. Overly confident in his ability to sense the aura of those around him, Lucario was careless and took no note as the murderous assailant sneaked up behind him. Even as the killer reached out with the weapon that had seen to the death of so many others he remained oblivious, not noticing that something was wrong until the sharp edge was beginning to tickle the hair on his right shoulder.

"Boo," the assassin whispered into his ear, causing Lucario to quickly step forward before spinning around, holding up a guard and getting ready to fight. But he eased up as he realized who it was, feeling a mixture of happiness and surprise.

"Zerobi!?" Lucario blurted out in shock, "What the… What a coincidence! Why are you here?"

"… I live here?" Zerobi answered with a blank stare, the elegant Weavile pleasantly surprised to see Lucario back on his feet with a sober posture, "This is the only populated area for fifty miles, where would I be if not here?"

"Oh yeah. How's the old place doing?" Lucario asked while crossing his arms and feeling a pang of bother. Was Zerobi thinking of retiring from their adventures? Zerobi noticed Lucario's sudden unease and subdued a laughter, hoping to cheer him up somehow.

"Oh, you know. Obnoxious squatters. Big hole in the ceiling," Zerobi muttered while waving one of her scythe-like hands around, "I think I can do better. What are you doing here?"

"Looking for you, of course!" Lucario said loudly, but Zerobi's skeptical look told him that explanation wouldn't fly, "Nah. Just here to visit an old friend. You?"

"Same… Which is weird, considering neither of us have any old friends," Zerobi answered while letting the tone of her voice drop. The two were seemingly trying to outmatch the other with how much skepticism they could emote, Zerobi grimacing to create many lines in her forehead with Lucario mimicking Rukario's reaction to his story about Torana while also inquisitively scratching the bottom of his chin. Eventually they both cracked from the silly display, Lucario giving a short laugh as Zerobi turned her head down and giggled.

"Rukario," Lucario exclaimed, "Think I finally got her to stop chasing me around."

"Ah," Zerobi replied while lifting her head, "Wait, she's still here? She lives here too?"

"I have no idea," Lucario exclaimed while shrugging, wanting to shift the subject before being forced to revisit the past few hours so soon, "Who did you meet?"

Zerobi closed her eyes as she thought to herself for a moment, her excitement diminishing as she was suddenly feeling very somber. She saw no reason to hide what she had been up to, it was just that she felt a bit awkward talking about it with a third party.

"Well, I've been patching things up with my best friend…" Zerobi explained, wondering if Lucario had any idea what she was talking about, "You know, best friend pre-killing spree."

"… Wish you wouldn't put it like that," Lucario mumbled with a hint of disgust, suddenly being reminded of a less charming part to her character. Still, one short minute together with the Weavile and he already felt like he could understand her better than the soothsaying Zoroark or Snivy.

"Sorry," Zerobi said while wagging her colorful finger, "Anyway, it's nice to be talking to her again. She doesn't hate my guts! Can you believe it!?"

Lucario did think it a bit weird, considering how much Zerobi had gone on about everyone wanting her dead. Well, if he was able to forgive her, why not? He was so caught up in their conversation, it took him a long while to realize something was off about Zerobi's normally colorless metal claws. He let his vision drift slowly downwards when he noticed something the size of a clove of bananas hanging from the tip of one of her fingers. A colorful box with a ribbon, a distinct lack of scratches proving it had not had too much interaction with her scythe-hands.

"What's that?" Lucario asked while pointing towards Zerobi's midsection. Zerobi furrowed her brow as she looked down at herself, before realizing what he was referring to.

"Oh, right, I picked up a present!" Zerobi said cheerfully as she held up the dangling object in front of him, "Christmas Eevee, or something? We were busy with that whole virus thing and missed it, but you're supposed to give each other presents. Perfect cure for a depression, don't you think?"

"Wow! Hey, thanks!" Lucario exclaimed joyfully as he reached out. However, Zerobi quickly withdrew her claw and stepped back, her expression showing dismay.

"It's, uh, not for you," Zerobi explained hastily while keeping the box securely behind her back, "Sis is the only one I've heard talk about Christmas, I didn't know you… I mean, it'd be weird to just randomly give someone a present, right?"

"Who'd complain?" Lucario asked with a shrug before trying to move around her to get another peek, "Come on, I was depressed too! Let me have it!"

"You REALLY wouldn't find much use for this… I hope," Zerobi clarified while twisting around to keep the present out of his reach, figuring Celebi would be none too happy if someone else knew of its contents, "I burnt the last of my money on this too, so unless you feel like celebrating Christmas by beating up and robbing some helpless trainer…"

"I do!" Lucario yelled as he gave up on retrieving the box and crossed his arms in disapproval, "Actually, I wouldn't mind having some cash. Maybe it's time for me to get a job? I mean, I bet the market for violence and theft is pretty saturated."

"… A job?" Zerobi repeated with a baffled expression, the sudden shift in subject making her instantly forget all about the present, "Uh, Lucario? You're not human anymore. No need to slave away for cash, just find a nice cave to stay in and a good supply of berries!"

"But I hate sleeping in caves and eating berries," Lucario pointed out while moving closer to her and stretching out his arm, "If I had a job, I could sleep in a bed and eat real food! Also-"

Swift as the wind, Lucario's outstretched arm reached down and gave Zerobi's box a quick tap from behind, causing it to easily slip off her claw and into Lucario's other hand.

"H-Hey! Don't open it!" Zerobi pleaded as she tried to take it back, Lucario stepping back a mile to avoid the onslaught of her massive sharp claws. He suddenly felt a bit guilty as he decided not to open the box, but instead held it up to his ear and rattled it. It was of medium weight, and there was something big and rectangular inside smashing against some kind of padding. He sighed out in disappointment – Inside the box was another box, and he had no way of determining its contents.

Zerobi had a look of disappointment on her face as she approached him and held up her claw. Lucario reflected her expression as he slowly hung the present back where it belonged.

"You can tell me, I'm good at keeping secrets," Lucario tried one last time, but Zerobi simply shook her head.

"Doesn't matter. This is private," she said, and suddenly an idea sprung up within Lucario.

"Aha! Of course, it's a pair of briefs!" he said while pointing at the box, "You know, underwear? Not even Celebi can deal with the biting cold of this region around those regions, can she?"

"Pfft," Zerobi snorted in amusement as she turned and started walking down the alleyway, "Imagine how weird she'd look with underwear on."

"Wouldn't be that b…" Lucario argued before imagining the silly display for a moment and cracking up, "… Heheh, yeah, I guess it'd be pretty bad."

Fleeting images of Celebi with nothing but boxer shorts on passed imperceptibly through Lucario's mind as Zerobi took a moment to rejoice that the two of them were together again, even though they had not been apart for too long. She had always had faith that he would overcome his drunken depression, but it was still nice to verify that he back in shape, although maybe not in the perfect shape she had come to remember him by. Zerobi realized that her little prank earlier had cost her a welcome hug, and that she still had no mints for future kissing sessions. Asking her deeply grieving sister for something so selfish would be a new low, even for her. She hoped her present would not be taken the wrong way, it did cost her most of whatever little money she had left hidden in her old home, and keeping the nature of it secret from Lucario would not be easy. Even so, she was simply feeling too good with herself after reconciling with Eve, and had an overwhelming urge to share some of it.

"So… You want to go do something?" Zerobi asked as she noticed Lucario looking into the display window of Fabricadabra, a textile shop from which she had bought a makeshift cloak a few years back. Unsurprisingly, he was sizing up a pair of shorts.

"Sure. Just ate, though," Lucario said as he let his four coins from earlier tumble around the palm of his hand, muttering slightly while looking at the price tag.

"Then come on," Zerobi said as she ushered him in another direction, "I know a place where you can put that money to good use."