Hasent and the Fire of Tecnicone | A Pokemon Fanfiction (Old Version)

Chapter 7: What the Night Reveals

Bonnie loved to camp outside. 

Especially when it meant she got to hang out with all of her friend's Pokemon and Clemont wouldn't make her go to bed early. Often times she would lay on the grass for hours, staring up at the stars, wondering how many of them were actually Legendary Pokemon looking down on them, watching their journey and everyday lives. But to think that such a dangerous Pokemon could also have been keeping tabs on their adventures, possibly deciding how best to wipe them all out, it sent shivers running up and down her spine.

She could tell that the others were just as concerned as she was, although they were much better about burying their emotions behind blank expressions. Especially Clemont, who had not wanted to come on this journey to even begin with. Besides her, he was probably the most frightened out of all of them. Not that he'd ever been very brave to begin with. Courage was not a thing that came naturally to her big brother. Of course, he would stand boldly beside Ash and Serena but this wasn't really his area of expertise. Underneath that science-y shield that he threw up so well, Bonnie knew, was a boy who very much wanted to call it quits and go back home.

Serena was beginning to feel the same way, although she wasn't making it quite as obvious. After all, this was just supposed to be a visit to the Kalos Region, full of rest and relaxation, not a quest to stop some insane Pokemon from destroying them all. Ash was really the only one that seemed at all excited by the trip, and that was probably because he had this weird fascination with meeting all the different types of Pokemon.

Everyone sat quietly around the campfire, not saying much to one another. Serena was gently grooming Braixen's fur, her gaze focused on the fire, the flames casting shadows across her face. Beside her, Elizabeth was busy sketching something in her journal, the determination etched onto her face. Occasionally, she would look up and glance at the others but then would quickly return to her work. Ash was being unusually quiet, pacing back and forth between the tents, looking like he was in deep thought about something. 

And Clemont?

Bonnie scanned the clearing, looking for her older brother who was nowhere to be found. Now where did he go? she wondered to herself. And then she saw him leaning a tree a few feet away, almost completely shrouded in the darkness, tinkering with another one of his inventions that she had no doubt would explode the first time he tried to use it.

Everyone is acting as though nothing has changed, Bonnie noted, watching as Pikachu bounded up to Ash who laughed as he patted it on the head. They can all act so calm, even when the others can tell that they aren't. How do they do that?

She watched them for a while, frowning, trying to guess how they kept their emotions so secret, wishing she could do that too, and then, after what felt like an eternity, Clemont was the first to move. Sighing, he stood up and packed up his things, coming back to join the circle. He muttered something to Ash and then turned to look at Bonnie, frowning when he spotted her watching them.

She froze as he stood up and began to move toward her.

"All right," he said as he reached her. "It's past time for you to go to bed."

"But, Clemont..." she began to protest.

"No 'but's, Bonnie," he cut her off, trying his best to look stern. Internally, Bonnie laughed. He wasn't nearly as terrifying as he thought he was. "You know what Dad says about you getting enough sleep."

"But why do you get to stay up with the others?" Bonnie wined.

"Because I'm older than you," he responded.