Fear - An Aureliashipping and Lonashipping Story

-21-

Cold. It's so cold...

A strange chill was the first thing Lillie noticed as she struggled to consciousness. She felt her skin crawling with goosebumps as her body began shivering. She rolled over in search of her blanket, her eyes refusing to open.

Warm. It's so warm...

The bipolar shift in temperature finally made her open her eyes slightly. A dark-toned blur met her eyes. Lillie rubbed them to tried to focus. The blur eventually became Ash, who was still asleep, Pikachu's ears poking out from the other side of him. Lillie's eyes shot open instantly, her cheeks reddening in silent embarrassment as she remembered what had happened the day before. He had waited all night for her. Guilt began to add itself to her wild ride of emotions. She suddenly noticed something under her, and shifted her body to see what it was.

It was Ash's arm. She had rolled on top of it. No wonder she felt so warm and secure. She enjoyed the contact she had with him, but she slowly rolled back over and gently pushed his arm closer to his body. Ash all of a sudden snorted in his sleep, and Lillie began to panic at the thought of waking him up. She rolled over to her original position and pretended to be asleep. Her body instantly began to freeze. What in the Distortion World?

Shiron now greeted her vision. The white Pokémon was silently curled up next to her master. Lillie had ended up wrapping her arms around her Pokémon. Lillie's eyes widened as she realized she was touching a Pokémon. She prepared herself for the uncontrollable urge to scream. Strangely enough, it didn't come.

Lillie was floored. Just yesterday she couldn't even touch her own partner Pokémon, and yet here she was cuddling with it. Tears of joy immediately filled her eyes. She wasn't a lost cause after all.

Thank you, Shiron.

Thank you, Ash...

With the greatest of care, Lillie slowly pulled Shiron closer to her while shifting her body toward Ash at the same time. Lillie then snuggled back into her blanket, not worrying about the odd duality of the temperature on either side of her. She was the happiest she had been in a long, long time.

—-

Gladion's eyes slowly fluttered open. Sunlight from the window produced gentle rays that settled right on his eyes. He pulled the covers over his head in annoyance. He hated the sun. Screw off Solgaleo.

"Morning~!" a cheerful voice greeted him.

Gladion lifted himself up from the bed to see Moon in the doorway. She was still dressed in her pajamas and was brushing her teeth. Somehow, Gladion was still able to make out a smile underneath the toothbrush and the toothpaste staining her face.

"Moon? What are you doing up so early?" Gladion asked, stifling a yawn.

"I was hungry. I helped myself to some of the stuff in the fridge." his girlfriend answered. She took the toothbrush out of her mouth and gave Gladion a cheeky grin.

Gladion have a half-amused, half-tired smile. "Why am I not surprised? Okay, let me get dressed." he responded, getting out of bed and reaching for his backpack.

"What? No good morning kiss?" Moon asked with a pout on her face. Gladion turned toward his girlfriend with a neutral expression on his face. "You're covered in toothpaste."

Moon looked in the mirror that doubled as a closet door in Gladion's room. "Oh. I'll be right back." she said. She started to leave but Gladion called her back.

"Yes?" Moon asked.

"...Were you just standing in my room and watching me sleep?" Gladion asked cautiously. Moon slowly closed the door instead of answering.

After shaking off his confusion. Gladion quickly got dressed and made his way further down the hallway. He approached the guest bedroom Moon was staying in, but thought that maybe this once he would skip seeing her. He turned a corner to find Ash and Lillie on the floor, their Pokémon next to them. Gladion's confusion instantly turned to anger, his cheeks reddening with rage. Moon walked up behind him. "What's wrong, sweetie?" she asked. She peeked her head around the corner. "Are they okay?"

"Lillie!" Gladion called out while marching toward them. Lillie instantly sat upright. "Wha...?" she muttered with a yawn. Pikachu and Shiron instantly jumped to their feet and assumed a battle stance, looking around in search of danger. Ash stayed motionless on the ground. "No Mom I swear, I'm not supposed to be at Professor Oak's lab for another hour..."

Gladion instantly grabbed Ash buy the shirt and pinned him against the wall. "What did you do?!" he demanded. Ash shook himself out of his daze? "W-What? I didn't do anything!" he protested. He struggled in Gladion's grip.

"Gladion, stop! Let me explain!" Lillie pleaded. Gladion released his grip on Ash and turned toward his sister. "Go on."

Lillie explained what had happened the night before and how she found Ash on the floor. She also mentioned how she had woken up earlier, and how she managed to be able to touch Shiron again. After everyone calmed down, Gladion turned toward Ash. "I guess I owe you an apology." he muttered.

"No, it's fine," Ash replied with a smile. "After all, what's the big deal? We were just sleeping."

Lillie suddenly found the ground very interesting and stared at his, her cheeks stained red. Moon pinched the bridge of her nose in annoyance, while Gladion shook his head dismissively. He really had nothing to worry about.

"Thank you for staying with me Ash," Lillie said. She then bent down to pet Shiron. "Thank you for helping me get through this."

Shiron gave a cry of happiness and licked Lillie's hand. Everyone smiled at the touching moment. Pikachu then jumped onto Lillie's shoulders. "Pika!"

Lillie flinched. Maybe she hadn't completely overcome her fear. Everyone instantly covered their ears.

"Aaaaaaaaaaah!"

——

Lusamine strutted around her personal office. In the middle of the room sat a small cage. The small purple Pokémon sat in it. "Pew..."

"Hush now, my dear Cosmog," Lusamine crooned. You won't have to stay in there much longer."

Lusamine finally took a seat at her desk. "Those young agents really did outdo themselves. Sure, we didn't find Gladion, but I found something even better."

"Ay, give my guys some credit." a voice boomed.

"Guzma. Don't you know it's rude to walk into a woman's room without knocking first?" Lusamine questioned, annoyed with the odd man.

"This ain't ya bedroom." he responded dryly.

"Quite right. Not to worry, Team Skull will be paid for their job." she reassured him. "But now is the time for action."

"What action?"

Knock knock.

"Come in, Faba," Lusamine answered. "That's how you knock." she remarked towards Guzma.

Faba walked in. "We are ready to begin, Madame President."

"Excellent." Lusamine said, walking over to Cosmog's cage.

"Pew..." the Pokémon cried in fear.

"It will all be over soon," Lusamine promised the small Pokémon. "Your sacrifice will not be an inhumane one."