Time is but a Gentle Stream, the Past Still at its Murky Depths

Dark took a couple of the herbs and ate them, his headache not really going away, but the bit of relief allowed him to put his arms down. His aura thought it funny to take that relief away, though, and he put his hands over his face again to hide from the sun. "My arms are burning," he told Evangeline.

"They have my brother...And I need their trust AND your help to get him out...I can't just leave him..."

"I'm not sure how to fix that Dark," Evangeline said, a hint of sadness to her voice. "Nev just gave you the strongest painkillers." She then turned toward Shade. "And why should I believe that story?" she asked, crossing her arms. "All you've said are lies so far. Both to us and those scientists."

Dark looked at Evangeline. "Evangeline, I think it has to do with my aura," he said to her. "I haven't used it that much in all the years I've had it... I thought it was dangerous." "But it makes a great tool to shove someone that you don't like to the back of their minds," he then said looking at Evangeline. "Just wait until these painkillers wear off. I'll take you to that man and have you killed."

"If you don't believe me..." Tears began falling from her eyes. "...Then I'll find someone else who has a heart who'll help..."

Evangeline flinched at Dark's harsh last words, but knew it was his irrational other side, most likely created from his darker aura. "You need to learn how to control your aura. Just as I need to control my own Pokemon power. Maybe we can learn together." she turned toward the crying shade, and involuntarily put her arms around the girl to comfort her. It was the perfect opportunity to, say, take a hidden syringe and inject her...if it were for the side Shade was truly on.

Dark looked at Evangeline before he used his aura to push her from Shade. "She/He isn't to be trusted," he said to her before giving a small snarl. "He's/She's been pulling from both sides this whole time. You can't be sure..." That small bit of aura pushed his irrational side to the back of his head. "Evangeline, I heard you. I have an idea, if you would come here."

Shade fell to the ground in tears thinking about her brother. "Nobody's ever liked me or trusted me...I guess nobody ever will..."

Evangeline let go of Shade, and walked toward Dark. Before she got too close, she turned toward Shade. "You can have my trust once you've earned it. I won't completely blacklist you. For now." She took the final few steps toward Dark. "What is it?" she asked cautiously.

Dark had Evangeline kneel down. "I might be able to get rid of excess aura if I have something to push it to," he told her. "I can't do that to my poochyena. It would drastically endure pain or get hurt anyway. Is there something, perhaps a necklace, that I could store the energy in until it collapses?"

"N...Necklace?" Shade grabbed a necklace from her pocket. "Try...Try this one..."

Evangeline stood back, allowing Shade to hand over the necklace. She stood apprehensively, ready to stop it if things went wrong.

Dark took the necklace from Shade, looking at it. He was surrounded by his aura as it started covering the necklace, him pushing as much as he possibly could into it before it disappeared. "Is it bright," he asked Evangeline. "I, don't think I can see well in this bright light." He fell asleep, having exhausted himself.

"See? I'm just trying...To help...And get help..."

"It's beyond bright," Evangeline muttered, knowing Dark had already passed out. "It's completely gone." She turned toward Shade. "If you want to help so much more, go get some fire wood. Something tells me we're going to have to camp out here tonight." She walked over to the sleeping Dark and dragged his body under the shade and canopy of a tree. "I doubt he's waking up any time soon, and I'm hungry. We need a fire so I can cook something. Speaking of food, Nev, you mind go getting some berries?"

Nev nodded, sniffed the air, and disappeared into the forest in search of the group's dinner.

Dark's poochyena popped out of its pokeball, looking at Evangeline and yipping. It wanted to help out in some way.

Shade went to grab firewood. 'Shadow...I hope you're ok in there...'

(Shade, Shadow, notice a theme in the family?)

Evangeline smiled at Poochyena. "You can go gather some kindling. Small leaves and twigs that'll help start the fire. You can get a few berries too." Realizing that she had clearly understood what the Poochyena wished to do, a bittersweet feeling washed over her. I can understand Pokemon now too... but I couldn't before. My DNA must be mutating toward my Pokemon self more. It cant be good.

The poochyena held up its paw as if saying "yes sir" before it rushed off. It came back a bit later in the day with a bundle of what Evangeline had requested. There weren't that many berries, though it did find a few herbs before it came back, and it pulled it all over to Evangeline, having found a small rug to drag them on.

Z walked over, exhausted. "Where's Shade? She's with you, right?"

"Thank you," Evangeline said in her new found Pokemon speak. Turning to Z, she switched to plain English. "She went out to find fire wood. At least, that's what I sent her out to do." It was at that moment Nev returned, walking on two feet, and carrying a giant pile of berries in his arms. He dumped them next to where Evangeline started stacking the kindling for the base of the fire. "What is taking Shade so long?"

Dark's poochyena yipped at Evangeline, walking over to its owner and yipping aloud, saying he needed a cold cloth to reduce the fever.

Shade returned wity plenty of firewood. "Sorry it...Took so long...Got ambushed...Had to pick everything up..." 'They don't get that these things take time...'

Evangeline nodded at Poochyena and turned to see Shade return. "Wow, that's enough to keep the fire burning for a while," she commented, deciding to ignore the rapid pile up of questions about the 'ambush' that built in her head. "Mind putting three pieces on that kindling, and putting more kindling on top of them?"

She then used a burst of her strength to tear off a piece of the rug Poochyena had used to drag in the stuff. Wetting it in a nearby stream, she placed it onto Dark's head.

The poochyena seemed to settle after Evangeline did that, snugging to its owner's side watching the other few put something on the fire. Dark woke up a bit, petting his pokemon still a bit out of the swing of things.