It's been a while since I've written a fic. Hopefully this will be as liked as the last one was. Maybe.
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It's been said that Eterna forest is a forest of shadows, It's said to be very dark, even during the day, but it's even spookier at night. Many say that it's a gateway to the spirit world. That makes it sound like an unpleasant place though. It is, if you find yourself lost within the depths of the grove, but it isn't when you have a sense of direction, and are naturally good with mazes. It also might help if your good at crosswords and maybe if you dabble in a little sudoku.
It is confusing for the areas that people often wander through on their way from one town to the other on the other side, but even deeper into the woods, the forest is even thicker. Lush leaves blot out nearly all the light, except for a few spaces where shafts of sunlight can filter through. The forest floor is covered with leaves from years past, slowly decomposing and returning back to the trees that shed them. The trees themselves were almost primeval; old sturdy growth that had withstood countless windstorms, rainstorms, thunderstorms, and the worst thing mother nature could throw at them, time itself. Moss covered all the stumps, logs and nearly every stone, for none of them have rolled in quite some time. Thickets of at least a dozen different kinds grow nearly everywhere. With all this plant life, there's barely enough room for a traditional path. It's almost as if the canopy of the trees has created it's own patch of nighttime. It holds a serene sort of beauty that can be appreciated when one gives the time to gaze at it in awe and wonder. It also holds a special fondness when you happen to live deep within the wood itself. For at least one individual, she really lives within the wood.
“Mhhmmm...” A small voice mumbled from inside one of the ancient trees. The strong and familiar scent of oak filled her nostrils. She was stirring more, her internal clock told her that it was nearly dusk, but she resisted for at least a few minutes - she was very comfortable within the tree. She felt perfectly safe there, surrounded by solid wood that would keep out most intruders. There were a lot of intruders, especially in the part of the forest she lived in. Eterna woods was a melting pot of life; all sorts of creatures, big and small called it home. She was merely one of those creatures as well.
Then came the moment that she tried to avoid for at least a few more minutes, but she had no choice. Something deep within her instincts forced her to be a creature of the night. She had no choice but to obey the ancient call. Her cheeks rubbed against the wood inside of the tree. It was far from dead, so it was slightly sticky with sap. It was somewhat sweet, but it wasn't a pleasant feeling in her hair, as it made it all sticky, and bits of wood stuck to it very easily. Her hair was vital and it's maintenance was of the utmost importance; she would have to clean herself a bit later on. She finally got up from her slumber. She floated effortlessly within her hole in the tree; she didn't really give much thought to how she was able to do this, it just came naturally to her kind. She extended her hair, each lock behaving like an arm, but without the bones to constrain her form. Unlike most corporeal beings she knew of, she didn't really have any bones in her body. She wasn't even a solid form really, for she was what humans called, a ghost Pokémon. Not only would such a body be able to squeeze into the tightest of spots, but was able to pass through most solid objects at will as well. She merely drifted through one of the walls of her hole and she was outside in the glorious twilight.
The first thing she did was to rise to the very tops of the branches to get a full view of the night ahead. Fading rays of the setting sun were soon complimented by the the eerie glow of the full moon. She gazed at the huge looming satellite, judging it's phase and it's place in the sky, also noting the placement of the adjacent stars. After a little studying of the placement of the heavenly bodies, she figured that it was the first night of the ruby star*, and it was a full moon. Meaning that a coven would take place.
(*The Misdreavus calender, which relies heavily on the moon and stars' placement, is divided into seven “seasons”: Ruby, Sapphire, Red Fire, Green Leaf, Emerald, Diamond and Pearl. This isn't affected by the traditional seasons, such as summer or winter, but it affects many events and occurrences, such as Misdreavus covens.)
She floated back down to the deep dark depths of the forest. Using her large, red irised eyes, she navigated her way through the thick underbrush using only the light from the stars and moon to guide her, she generally didn't like covens all that much, as Misdreavus were normally to be solitary by nature. She needed to go tonight, though, as it was a very important coven. She also needed to look her best; bits of twigs still stuck to her flowing hair as they blew about by the cold night air. The cold air also stimulated the Misdreavus sensitive nose and ears, she had heard the bubbling of a brook close by, and smelt it's clean running water. She knew the brook well, for it was one she usually frequented.
She lowered herself near a tiny bank. Without touching it, she floated over the running water, very carefully lowering her head so her lips could touch the clear water. As she took a sip, she could see teeny-tiny creatures barely two centimeters long darting away from her. She was kinda glad they darted away from her, she wouldn't have liked to have sucked up one of them by accident. The ghost also sensed something that was completely invisible to normal sight. Auras of sorts, tiny flickers of light illuminated from the fish. They glowed with an odd colour: a kind only visible to the psychically inclined. The ghost type floated, entranced by the flashes, but she had to act quickly or else they would disappear. She concentrated a stare onto the tiny fish: It was a penetrating stare, enough to make the fish very antsy, they quickly darted back and forth in a panic. Within the Misdreavus' vision, the glowing the tiny creatures produced became brighter and brighter, illuminating the waters of that particular spot of the brook.
This was the Misdreavus' chance. She make a pucker with her face, and used a mysterious power of sort. The lights the fish were producing were separated from the fish themselves. The fish were completely and immediately immobilized. The individual lights were then brought together to form one floating aura. It looked much like a mini galaxy of sorts, it was even spinning on it's own axis. One could have spent hours studying or merely watching the phenomenon with a microscope instead of a telescope. The Misdreavus took no more time. She craned what could be a neck to reveal a glassy blood red sphere. It glowed with an eerie light and sucked up the aura galaxy like a black hole. Absorbing it through no visible opening. After only a few seconds it was completely gone.
All that was left was a somewhat satisfied ghost, but she wasn't completely satisfied. That was only a mere snack, she needed more for the night. She inspected the scene to find that the fish were still not moving in the stream. She wondered if she'd absorbed more then intended. She blew across the water and the fish immediately snapped out of their state of shock. They continued to dart in the same way they normally did. The Misdreavus gave a sigh of relief.
She spent enough time dawdling, she floated upwards and flew towards the source of the brook, a mini waterfall on the side of a rock wall. The ghost was somewhat apprehensive, she didn't really like to touch water, but it was the quickest way to clean herself from the bits of what was still stuck to her hair. She backed up, pointing straight at the granite cliff face and closed her red eyes and dove straight into the cliff wall. Being a ghost, though, she didn't really slam into the rock wall, she merely passed through it. All the bits of wood that previously clung to her hair most stubbornly, though, had merely bounced off the rock. The Misdreavus emerged from the cliff face, startling a Seedot* from a nearby tree and making him fall from the branch he was stuck to. The ghost thought nothing of it and continued onward towards to where the coven was being held.
(*Seedot are not normally found in Eterna woods. However the stars' and moon's placement effect the migrations, appearances and life cycles of many different species of Pokémon, at least in the Sinnoh region. How the stars and Pokémon influence each other is unknown.)
It took several minutes to get to the right spot. While she had lived in the woods for her entire life, even she didn't exactly know all of it's secrets. In fact, you would need several lifetimes to discover all the secrets that the forest held, and many more then that to find all the mysteries of the entire known universe. Along the way she saw the shadows of others. She stared at them for a bit- they had cloaked themselves within their own shadowy forms, practically transparent to corporeal eyes, but shining brightly for incorporeal ones. As they darted over the thickets and through the trees (and their trunks!) with their flowing manes trailing behind them, that betrayed their identity: they were her own kind. She took a cue from them and became invisible herself, leaving only a dark shadowy form, not just to hide from enemies, but to hide from the others. Misdreavus are not the most sociable of Pokémon, rarely ever appearing in big groups, aside from the coven, of course. They must be heading towards the coven as well, and there would be time for socializing later, so she ignored them for now.
There were few spots in the woods where you could see the entire sky from ground level. The towering trees usually blocked the way in order to receive the live-giving rays of the sun. There was one spot, a clearing of sorts, where for some reason, no trees grew; save for The Judge. The Judge was a giant among trees, the largest in the area, although this isn't saying much since there were no other trees in the immediate area to compare it with. It was one of the few Massiveoir trees remaining in the age of humans. Massiveoir trees were well known among tree enthusiasts, as they are usually the largest tree in a forest. They are most well known for their unusually shaped trunks and branches, which looked spiraled, giving the tree a gnarled appearance. Another unusual feature of these giant trees is that they absorb nearly all the nutrients from the surrounding soil, making it nearly impossible for other trees to grow in it's mighty shadow. The Judge towered over the forest, the leaves of its crown glittered in the moonlight, giving it the appearance of a powdered wig, hence why it was called 'The Judge.' It also served as a meeting place for the various Pokémon that inhabited the forest nearby. Tonight, it served as the meeting place for the coven. Many Misdreavus and Mismagius had already made their way and were now flitting through the branches, talking to each other about various things: scares they had made, new ways to manipulate ghost magic, the newest reality TV series and the weather. It should also be noted that a few were simply floating on isolated branches, practicing brooding and being anti-social*.
(*As it was a stereotype that ghost types were supposed to be this way. Many Misdreavus and Mismagius did all they could to uphold that stereotype, but this was only for the humans. Other Pokémon usually see right through the ploy. Humans, however, are usually too easily fooled into believing stereotypes once they've caught on. It is this belief that is the main sustenance of many Pokémon's powers, including Misdreavus.)
One Misdreavus never really did practice brooding being anti-social, mostly because she really was a bit of a loner. But it wasn't like she wanted to be that way. Her family were not well known for being the most gregarious Pokémon, and a strange side effect of tampering with human belief is that Pokémon may start to fall into that belief as well. (It's a rather complicated affair.) She hid within the bushes, pondering whether or not to just come out and meet the others. All of a sudden, she felt someone pull onto her hair. Being light as a feather, she was pulled pretty easily, but she normally couldn't be pulled by a corporeal being of any sort. Only when she was freed from the bush did she find out who it was that pulled her.
“Found you Nessarose!”
It was another Misdreavus. One of the ones she saw earlier flittering through the understory of the forest. It took Nessarose a moment or two to recognize who it was exactly. He was a male that was around the same age she was, with hair just as long as hers. Most Misdreavus looked much the same, even males and females all look “feminine” to humans. She only recognized him from a faint scent that was meaningless to most Pokémon, but vital to the ghosts as a way to identify one another. He was currently tugging onto her hair by his mouth.
“Okay! Okay! You found me, now let go!” She struggled a bit, and he gently let go of her. Leaving her to float without the aid of the wind, she maneuvered herself to face him. He was Mystel. He could be considered a friend to Nessarose, but like most Misdreavus, they only saw each other at covens. From what she knew of him, he much like her: a “victim” of family habits. Unlike her though, the members of his family were known to follow the trickster stereotype. The two ghost simply floated there. Misdreavus normally lead solitary lives, and conversations, even between friends were somewhat awkward after a long time of not seeing one another. Neither of them knew who to start talking first. They merely gazed into each others eyes. It wasn't until someone snapped them back into reality that they broke their staring contest.
“Awww... You two look so cute together.” A disembodied voice echoed into their ears. While the voice itself was pleasant enough, the suddenness of it all startled the ghostly lass. “Perhaps I should leave you two alone.” The speaker made her presence known by suddenly materializing, a standard way for ghost Pokémon to appear. It was another Misdreavus, a female one.
“Ooooh...” She immediately tensed up* as she was caught by surprise
(*About as tense as a being composed of gas could get).
Nessarose turned fuchsia as the ectoplasm flushed to her cheeks. “This isn't what it looks like! Honest!”. Her hair writhed like a floating ball of worms. Mystel suddenly made himself invisible, but it was no use since the other ghosts could easily sense his presence.
“Awww... I made you two blush. That's so adorable.” The Misdreavus gave a wiry smile, she received a sort of glee from tormenting others. “At least you should say hello to one another instead of just floating there like a bunch of dust motes, you don't need to keep up the dark and mysterious act, we know better.”
Nessarose just eyed the other Misdreavus with contempt. It wasn't a mere “act” as far a she was concerned. If anything she thought of this other Misdreavus as too cheeky for her own good.
“I can't say I've met you before...” Nessarose floated towards the new Misdreavus, close enough so that their noses almost touched one another*. “who are you?”
(*Misdreavus, being normally solitary creatures, have almost no concept of personal space)
“I'm...” The strange Misdreavus recoiled back a bit. “I'm Loreal... I'm kinda new to these woods...”
“New?” Nessarose raised her eyebrows in interest. Perhaps this Misdreavus might be more interesting then she thought. “What do you mean by new? Did you just evolve yesterday and are now looking for a new haunting? Don't you think about trying the oak grove!”
“No! I'm actually... erm... was actually, an outsider from beyond these woods.”
“Beyond the woods?” a voice as thin as paper echoed as Mystel rematerialized from behind Nessarose. “I don't think I've met anyone from beyond the woods before. Have you met a human before? My grandmother told me many of stories about them.”
“Um... Actually...” Loreal began the sentence, but changed her mind since they didn't need to know so much about her; at least not yet. “I think you two ask way too many questions.”
“Then maybe you should stay out of our business! It isn't like we were going to give each other pink whispers* or something.” As Nessarose said this, Mystel vanished once again, deeply embarrassed.
(*A growing trend among younger generations of Misdreavus is the pink whisper: an intimate act where one Misdreavus uses her tongue to lick the ear canal of another. It was originally a deeply private act preformed by lifemates in secluded areas, but it is gaining popularity and is being witnessed more and more in public. Much to the shock, dismay and even outrage of the older generations of Misdreavus and Mismagius)
“Huh?” Loreal was confused by what the other Misdreavus had just said.
“Um, nevermind about that. I'm sorry for being so ill-mannered, it's been a while since I've talked to others.”
“You don't need to apologize to me.” There was an awkward silence as the three Misdreavus floated in the clearing. Most Misdreavus conversations tend to have long pauses in between them, it gives them more time to prepare for what to say and such. Loreal broke the silence as she looked at the moon's position in the sky. “My goodness, it's nearly time; can you sense it?”
Nessarose also felt a tingling down what could be her spine “Yes, I sense it as well.” Mystel invisibly nodded in agreement.
“Let us go, the coven is about to begin.” With that, the ghostly trio left their patch of the clearing. They were soon joined by other Misdreavus, Mismagius, and even Mistrillix* as well, all of them heading for the upper trunk of The Judge. Most of them took their place in the twisted branches of the ancient tree. Massing together like an assemblage.
(*A Pokémon species undiscovered by humans, the Mistrillix is the pre-evolved form of Misdreavus.)
There was a bit of quarreling among the crowds of ghosts, mostly about the tall, brimmed, hat-like hair of the Mismagius. It wasn't because of their impressive stature, but rather, their tendency to block the view of the podium. Nessarose, Mystel and Loreal took their place among the ghosts. As luck would have it, Nessarose's view was blocked by a Mismagius's hat. She tried to get the attention of the Mismagius, but to no avail, he was too intent on the podium to listen.
All of a sudden, the crowd fell silent as three Mismagius floated onto the crown of the mighty tree, which served as an appropriate stage. The Mismagius in the middle of the trio was very well known. The tips of her hat-like hair and her gown-like body were showing signs of gray. While her actual size wasn't particularly noteworthy, her commanding presence made her seem to tower above all the others, almost on equal with The Judge himself. Flanking her on either side were two other Mismagius: dwarfed by the presence of the middle one, but still very powerful. This was the true coven*. The other ghosts were merely an audience.
(*A tradition among those who practice magic is that a coven must contain three individuals. This is so if one starts to get on another's nerves, the third can get them to make up so they can get on the nerves of everyone else. If there are more then three, then they all get on each other's nerves.)
The eldest one in the middle looked upward at the crowd of ghosts. With a single glare from her crimson eyes, the entire tree went almost completely silent. This ghost was very famous throughout the forest for it, for many stories were told and passed down of “The Glare.” It was known to stop rampaging Pokémon completely in their tracks, it was even said that her stare was so powerful it could cause wood to burn up. No one knew if this was true or not, but nobody really wanted to find out. The elder Mismagius took a deep breath to start her speech.
“Brothers and sisters of the night; I, Willowella, welcome you all. For tonight is the first night of the ruby star, much is needed to be discussed. Before we begin, we must first say the sacred oath, passed to us by Calypso, the goddess of twilight.” The elder spoke this with all the spirit and gusto of Ben Stein, as if she was merely reciting the words without any real meaning to them.
Willowella began the chant, spoken with words that were unable to be reproduced by human tongues, words that could only be represented by characters that only existed on the edges of the human mind and imagination. As the old Mismagius chanted, the words seem to take on a semi-physical form, floating like dust motes in a musty attic. Soon the other Mismagius and Misdreavus followed with their own chants, either repeating the chant spoken by the elder, or chants spoken by others, or even making up their own on the spot. There was barely any semblance of coherency to the number of chants that were filling the tree. Even the tiny Mistrillix joined in, adding what could be the magical equivalent to babbling. Eventually it got to a point where there were enough chants. Willowella merely had to float to the top of the tree, she gave a glare and said something quietly.
“Enough.”
It was quiet, but it was enough to stop the crowds of ghosts. Immediately, all the floating chants that were created out of nothingness vanished back into nothingness. The crowd was silent once more. Willowella spoke once more, this time with a much more animate and meaningful tone.
"Right then, now that the chant has been spoken, I open up the forum for anyone who wants to bring news or speak freely." At first there was silence, but not the solemn silence from before, but rather the nervous kind. Willowella wasn't completely surprised.
"Right then, if no one will speak, then I shall." She floated forward, her drab cloak-like body flowing translucently like silk. "I'm sure most of you have sensed it. The amount of fear emanating from the surrounding human settlements." There was murmuring among the crowd, mostly in agreement; in fact, many of the Misdreavus and Mismagius showed up just to talk about this event.
One of them spoke up. "What can it mean though?" He was half-heartedly expecting that Willowella had the answer, as she usually did. However, even he knew that Willowella's vast wisdom had it's limits, as he could sense that his question was futile. He did sense though, that someone had an answer.
"I don't exactly know myself, but there is one here who might." The whisperings and murmurs of the ghosts was almost deafening. She looked into the crowd. This wasn't the glare that legends spoke of, but it was still commanding enough to silence the ghosts. "Loreal. Come forth and explain what is happening to the human settlements."
From among the crowds of ghost types, one Misdreavus departed as she floated towards the center of the tree's branches. Nessarose instantly recognized her as the same Misdreavus she had met before.
"What do you know about the humans then Loreal?" Willowella looked at her straight in the eye. This would have caused other Misdreavus to panic, but Loreal wasn't afraid. This impressed Nessarose as she viewed the pair from the safety of the crowds, away from staring eyes.
"There's... something, no, two things that is creating the apprehensive atmosphere." As she became more confident, her voice got louder and more noticeable. Most of the ghosts listened intently. One ghost, the Mismagius on the left side of Willowella decided to ask something.
"But isn't fear a normal thing from humans? More fear must be a good thing right? It's more nourishment for us." Some of the ghosts in the crowd murmured in agreement.
"No..." Loreal replied "The amount of fear coming from the towns is... unnatural. I think something has been unbalanced."
"The natural order you mean perhaps?" Willowella joined in, intent on every word Loreal had to say. "It's possible, but what could have done this?"
A Misdreavus replied from the crowd, it was Mystel. "Maybe it's the strange humans, the ones garbed in strange outfits and teal hair. They've been appearing in my part of the wood lately, hunting down and abducting various Pokémon, both wild and belonging to the humans." Apparently many of the Misdreavus and Mismagius agreed with him, as they talked amongst each other. Nessarose was rather surprised at this. She never wanted to admit it, but due to living in the wilder depths of the wilderness were few humans have ever seen let alone dared to venture into, she only knew of humans through stories told by others.
Loreal pondered this."You may be right, however, I also sense something else... I have a feeling... I have the feeling that the dark one has awakened to feed once more."
Nearly all at the tree gasped in terror of the thought. They had only heard of the dark one through old tales and legends. Even so, it still compelled some to check their sleeping trees at night, just in case the dark one is there, ready to get them. The mere stories of the dark one was enough to make your hairs on the back of your neck stand on end. This was no easy feat, since Misdreavus are beings that gain nourishment from fear. Even the Mismagius flanking either side of Willowella were trembling a little. Strangely enough, the only ones not cowering at the mention of the dark one were Willowella and Loreal. Willowella leaned forward to the Misdreavus, eying her intensely.
"Are... are you positive of this?" Willowella was well renowned not only for her glare, but also sorting the truth from fiction. She had perfected it down to a science and was rarely ever wrong.
"It's not totally positive, but it feels like something is definitely amiss." Loreal was a bit nervous, but held her ground, figuratively speaking. The Mismagius on Willowella's right side whispered something into the head Mismagius' ear.
"I see then." She turned towards the rest of the crowd. "I propose that we all keep a much closer eye on the humans, both the ones that wander through our forests, and if possible, the ones in the towns as well. Also, please be very careful in case the dark one is actually among us as this young Misdreavus said." She took a deep breath as she moved on to another topic of the coven. "I also propose that it's time for the apprenticeship season to begin. Now you all know what is involved: Every Mismagius without an apprentice must take on two apprentices and teach them the ways of our craft. Unless you don't feel like it. You're not obliged to if you don't want to. You're also free to teach whoever you want, except your own offspring.*"
(*The Misdreavus family firmly believe that teaching magic to your own offspring is like magical inbreeding. So it's strongly discouraged.)
Willowella spoke, becoming more and more monotone as she continued, as if she had recited the monologue a dozen times.
"All Mismagius may all depart to choose your apprentices, all Misdreavus wanting to be chosen for apprenticeship please wait to be chosen. If you don't want to be someone's apprentice, leave now, and bring shame to your family.” Despite sounding more and more bored with the speech, Willowella smirked as she said that last line. At this point, the right-side Mismagius whispered something into Willowella's ear. "Ah yes, I forgot one thing: If you already have apprentice or are already one, you don't need to be here, as it will only cause confusion." The head Mismagius looked out into the crowd. A few of the ghosts were floating away to find someone to pair up with. Others were merely leaving, but most were still floating in the same branches of the tree that they first arrived on half an hour ago. Willowella merely rolled her yellow glowing eyes and said: "You may all go now. The coven is dismissed". At that moment, the whole coven of ghosts, their presence no longer required, scattered in various directions, presumably going back to where they haunted or lived. Even the pair who flanked Willowella's sides floated away from the tree.
Loreal was just about to join the mass exodus of the tree as well. "Just a moment, Loreal." The head Mismagius focused her attention on the Misdreavus, her eyes began to glow a different colour, a violet aura shone from them. Slowly, a small object floated mysteriously from above, it was also emanating an aura, the same colour as Willowella's eyes currently were. As the object floated closer towards the pair of ghosts, it became clear as to what it was. It looked like a dark purple lump of solid frosted glass. Inside this translucent lump, the illusion of a deep dark fog resided, as if it had been trapped inside the crystallized prison. Loreal immediately recognized what it was.
"A dusk stone? But... why?"
"You've grown since I've last saw you, Loreal. I feel that you are a ready and capable ghost, one who can take on apprentices of her own." Willowella's eyes stopped glowing. "Please accept it." Loreal then witnessed something Willowella almost never made: A smile.
The dark stone floated between the two ghosts. The younger one bowed slowly towards the elder and the stone turned in midair so the pointed end was aimed at her. The stone slowly floated forward until it touched Loreal's forehead. It somehow lodged itself into her skull, digging deeper until there was nothing left; the stone had disappeared. A second later, Loreal's body started glowing with a strange light. It illuminated her form in the pitch blackness of the night. However, it was one light that few ghosts, or even few Pokémon, feared at all. Loreal's form started to change in front of Willowella: her own body lengthened and her hair twisted into the shape similar to a witch's hat. She was no longer a Misdreavus, for she had evolved into a Mismagius. No longer an apprentice, but now a master of her craft.
Willowella looked at the fully transformed Loreal. "How do you feel?"
"I feel... strange." The wispy ghost type looked over her new form; eying the many folds of her dress-like body and even tried to inspect the brim of her hat-like hair. "Not being able to use my hair is going to take some getting used to."
"Don't fret my dear, in time, the telekinesis you've learned will become second nature. You have been practicing while you were away have you not? The newly-evolved Mismagius blushed a little. Willowella knew the answer in a flash. "Well, I can't scold an equal. Besides, you now have all the time in the world to practice." Willowella gave another rare wiry smile. "Go on, you should find apprentices before the night is through, As with the rest of the coven, I must depart." Instead of just floating off like the other ghosts, Willowella just became less and less visible until nothing remained but her smile, and soon that was gone as well.
"But... where shall I find them?" Loreal looked around, wondering if her mentor had really disappeared. "Willowella?"
"Remember what I taught you... Trust your heart and a way will reveal itself..." said a voice that was now so faint that it could barely be heard over the midnight breeze.
"Right... I must trust my heart..." She kept still for a minute, faintly recollecting her thoughts, reading her inner monologue. She figured out who her next apprentices were, among some other things. She peered at where Willowella was floating several minutes ago. "You're still there aren't you?"
"Aha!" A thin voice echoed. "So I have taught you well! So much for my dramatic exit... Go on, your apprentices are waiting..." With that, Willowella really disappeared, or floated off while being invisible.
Loreal flew from the giant tree and towards the forest as quickly as she could, for she sensed her future apprentices leaving the clearing. She was quite amazed as to how fast she had gotten, probably because of the evolution. She whizzed as quickly as she could through the night air until she found two Misdreavus who were just about to head into the forest. She was moving so quickly that she flew straight into them before she could stop herself. Or that's what would have happened if any of them were solid. Loreal actually flew through them before she could stop. The rush was just enough to make the other two ghosts spin out of control as well. The speeding Mismagius, realizing what just happened, ground to a halt, just before phasing through a tree. It was these Misdreavus she was looking for.
"HEY! What's the big idea?" One of them protested as she controlled herself in mid-air and turned to see who just flew through them. Her friend was too dizzy to say anything.
"Oh my goodness, I'm so sorry about that..." She floated closer to the two ghosts, to get a better look at them in the dim moonlight. "Oh... I see then... How very interesting."
"What do you mean?" The Misdreavus nervously asked, who was slightly unnerved by the Mismagius's presence "Who are you?"
"Don't you recognize me? We met earlier... your name is Nessarose if I recall correctly."
The young Misdreavus looked closely into the Mismagius's eyes and gasped. "L-Loreal?! What... What happened to you?"
"I evolved... I'm not to sure how else to put it. Heh heh..."
"I know that, but... Oh nevermind... what are you doing here?" As Nessarose inquired about Loreal's presence, Mystel was finally getting his head together and not seeing double any longer, he floated towards the other ghosts just in time.
"I came to both of you with a proposition." Loreal cleared her throat, she was only beginning to realize how different her voice was from a few hours ago, deeper but still feminine by human standards. "Being ghost types, we are gifted with the ability to perceive the supernatural and even warp our reality to how we see fit. We are capable of glimpsing at the hopes, desires and fears of other lifeforms, their deepest thoughts that are hidden to others are easily read by those who can read them. We are even capable of ignoring the laws of physics because such laws don't apply to beings of chaos in such ways. Using these gifts, we are capable of helping others who cannot help themselves in this fashion, for that is why Calypso granted our powers in the first place. However, we are not born capable of welding this sort of power. We must practice with it, and it is tradition for our kind to practice within groups of three. The coven as it is referred to. So I ask you two... Will you become my apprentices so we can become a coven?"
"Umm..." Mystel thought about it for a few seconds "Okay... I mean, Yes, yes I will join this coven. Actually, it was one of the reasons why I showed up at the coven earlier."
"Well it's good that you're eager enough, because you're going to be one of my very first students..." The Mismagius paused as she sensed apparent feelings of apprehension.
"I..." She looked downward "I don't want to."
"But why?" Mystel protested. "The ghost laws dictate that..."
"I know about all those ghost laws but..." Nessarose cried out, almost beginning to sob. She made a swallowing action even though there wasn't really anything in her throat and tried to think of several excuses. "I've never been good at ghost magic..." This was somewhat true, she remembered being teased as a Mistrillix about her sloppy manipulation of shadow magic. "and... and I have things to do back at my part of the forest..." This was almost a lie, as the "things" she did were sleeping during the daylight hours and waiting for the rare Pokémon to come across her tree at night so she could scare it off and feed on it's fear. She knew this was a lie, and she also knew that the others knew this as well. She decided to come clean: "I'm sorry... I'm just scared I won't be good enough..." However, instead of a scowl she was expecting, she saw a faint smile on Loreal's face.
"My goodness, you know what? You sound exactly like me when I first started out." Loreal floated closer toward Nessarose and whispered "I'm new to this as well, so we'll all be learning something new. Just give it a try. If you wish to quit, you're more then welcome to. Besides, your friend really wants to join, and we can't do with with only two ghosts."
The young ghost thought about it. Perhaps joining a coven wouldn't be so bad. She would probably be able to improve on her magic, and maybe even have fun.
"I'll do it."
Loreal and Mystel were thrilled "That's great!" All the ghosts then noticed that their internal clocks were telling them that the dawn was beginning to break, they needed to shelter in the darkness before the light of day set in.*
(*While not lethal to them as some stories go, Ghost do not like being in sunlight, the day makes them feel uncomfortable, plus it's harder to scare Pokémon during the day.)
"We should probably head for my grove." Loreal spoke up as she started to zoom in the general direction of her stand of trees. "I have some forest jelly for both of you."
"Did you say forest jelly?" Mystel spoke up, getting worried as the sky began turning paler and paler with the glow of the sun. "I love that stuff! Come on, let's go!" And that was the last thing spoken as the ghosts headed deeper into the dark parts of the forest.
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Reviews are always welcome, the longer the better.
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Home is behind, the world ahead,
And there are many paths to tread
Through shadows to the edge of night,
Until the stars are all alight.
Then world behind and home ahead,
We’ll wander back to home and bed.
Mist and twilight, cloud and shade,
Away shall fade... Away shall fade...
And there are many paths to tread
Through shadows to the edge of night,
Until the stars are all alight.
Then world behind and home ahead,
We’ll wander back to home and bed.
Mist and twilight, cloud and shade,
Away shall fade... Away shall fade...
_-+-_
It's been said that Eterna forest is a forest of shadows, It's said to be very dark, even during the day, but it's even spookier at night. Many say that it's a gateway to the spirit world. That makes it sound like an unpleasant place though. It is, if you find yourself lost within the depths of the grove, but it isn't when you have a sense of direction, and are naturally good with mazes. It also might help if your good at crosswords and maybe if you dabble in a little sudoku.
It is confusing for the areas that people often wander through on their way from one town to the other on the other side, but even deeper into the woods, the forest is even thicker. Lush leaves blot out nearly all the light, except for a few spaces where shafts of sunlight can filter through. The forest floor is covered with leaves from years past, slowly decomposing and returning back to the trees that shed them. The trees themselves were almost primeval; old sturdy growth that had withstood countless windstorms, rainstorms, thunderstorms, and the worst thing mother nature could throw at them, time itself. Moss covered all the stumps, logs and nearly every stone, for none of them have rolled in quite some time. Thickets of at least a dozen different kinds grow nearly everywhere. With all this plant life, there's barely enough room for a traditional path. It's almost as if the canopy of the trees has created it's own patch of nighttime. It holds a serene sort of beauty that can be appreciated when one gives the time to gaze at it in awe and wonder. It also holds a special fondness when you happen to live deep within the wood itself. For at least one individual, she really lives within the wood.
“Mhhmmm...” A small voice mumbled from inside one of the ancient trees. The strong and familiar scent of oak filled her nostrils. She was stirring more, her internal clock told her that it was nearly dusk, but she resisted for at least a few minutes - she was very comfortable within the tree. She felt perfectly safe there, surrounded by solid wood that would keep out most intruders. There were a lot of intruders, especially in the part of the forest she lived in. Eterna woods was a melting pot of life; all sorts of creatures, big and small called it home. She was merely one of those creatures as well.
Then came the moment that she tried to avoid for at least a few more minutes, but she had no choice. Something deep within her instincts forced her to be a creature of the night. She had no choice but to obey the ancient call. Her cheeks rubbed against the wood inside of the tree. It was far from dead, so it was slightly sticky with sap. It was somewhat sweet, but it wasn't a pleasant feeling in her hair, as it made it all sticky, and bits of wood stuck to it very easily. Her hair was vital and it's maintenance was of the utmost importance; she would have to clean herself a bit later on. She finally got up from her slumber. She floated effortlessly within her hole in the tree; she didn't really give much thought to how she was able to do this, it just came naturally to her kind. She extended her hair, each lock behaving like an arm, but without the bones to constrain her form. Unlike most corporeal beings she knew of, she didn't really have any bones in her body. She wasn't even a solid form really, for she was what humans called, a ghost Pokémon. Not only would such a body be able to squeeze into the tightest of spots, but was able to pass through most solid objects at will as well. She merely drifted through one of the walls of her hole and she was outside in the glorious twilight.
The first thing she did was to rise to the very tops of the branches to get a full view of the night ahead. Fading rays of the setting sun were soon complimented by the the eerie glow of the full moon. She gazed at the huge looming satellite, judging it's phase and it's place in the sky, also noting the placement of the adjacent stars. After a little studying of the placement of the heavenly bodies, she figured that it was the first night of the ruby star*, and it was a full moon. Meaning that a coven would take place.
(*The Misdreavus calender, which relies heavily on the moon and stars' placement, is divided into seven “seasons”: Ruby, Sapphire, Red Fire, Green Leaf, Emerald, Diamond and Pearl. This isn't affected by the traditional seasons, such as summer or winter, but it affects many events and occurrences, such as Misdreavus covens.)
She floated back down to the deep dark depths of the forest. Using her large, red irised eyes, she navigated her way through the thick underbrush using only the light from the stars and moon to guide her, she generally didn't like covens all that much, as Misdreavus were normally to be solitary by nature. She needed to go tonight, though, as it was a very important coven. She also needed to look her best; bits of twigs still stuck to her flowing hair as they blew about by the cold night air. The cold air also stimulated the Misdreavus sensitive nose and ears, she had heard the bubbling of a brook close by, and smelt it's clean running water. She knew the brook well, for it was one she usually frequented.
She lowered herself near a tiny bank. Without touching it, she floated over the running water, very carefully lowering her head so her lips could touch the clear water. As she took a sip, she could see teeny-tiny creatures barely two centimeters long darting away from her. She was kinda glad they darted away from her, she wouldn't have liked to have sucked up one of them by accident. The ghost also sensed something that was completely invisible to normal sight. Auras of sorts, tiny flickers of light illuminated from the fish. They glowed with an odd colour: a kind only visible to the psychically inclined. The ghost type floated, entranced by the flashes, but she had to act quickly or else they would disappear. She concentrated a stare onto the tiny fish: It was a penetrating stare, enough to make the fish very antsy, they quickly darted back and forth in a panic. Within the Misdreavus' vision, the glowing the tiny creatures produced became brighter and brighter, illuminating the waters of that particular spot of the brook.
This was the Misdreavus' chance. She make a pucker with her face, and used a mysterious power of sort. The lights the fish were producing were separated from the fish themselves. The fish were completely and immediately immobilized. The individual lights were then brought together to form one floating aura. It looked much like a mini galaxy of sorts, it was even spinning on it's own axis. One could have spent hours studying or merely watching the phenomenon with a microscope instead of a telescope. The Misdreavus took no more time. She craned what could be a neck to reveal a glassy blood red sphere. It glowed with an eerie light and sucked up the aura galaxy like a black hole. Absorbing it through no visible opening. After only a few seconds it was completely gone.
All that was left was a somewhat satisfied ghost, but she wasn't completely satisfied. That was only a mere snack, she needed more for the night. She inspected the scene to find that the fish were still not moving in the stream. She wondered if she'd absorbed more then intended. She blew across the water and the fish immediately snapped out of their state of shock. They continued to dart in the same way they normally did. The Misdreavus gave a sigh of relief.
She spent enough time dawdling, she floated upwards and flew towards the source of the brook, a mini waterfall on the side of a rock wall. The ghost was somewhat apprehensive, she didn't really like to touch water, but it was the quickest way to clean herself from the bits of what was still stuck to her hair. She backed up, pointing straight at the granite cliff face and closed her red eyes and dove straight into the cliff wall. Being a ghost, though, she didn't really slam into the rock wall, she merely passed through it. All the bits of wood that previously clung to her hair most stubbornly, though, had merely bounced off the rock. The Misdreavus emerged from the cliff face, startling a Seedot* from a nearby tree and making him fall from the branch he was stuck to. The ghost thought nothing of it and continued onward towards to where the coven was being held.
(*Seedot are not normally found in Eterna woods. However the stars' and moon's placement effect the migrations, appearances and life cycles of many different species of Pokémon, at least in the Sinnoh region. How the stars and Pokémon influence each other is unknown.)
It took several minutes to get to the right spot. While she had lived in the woods for her entire life, even she didn't exactly know all of it's secrets. In fact, you would need several lifetimes to discover all the secrets that the forest held, and many more then that to find all the mysteries of the entire known universe. Along the way she saw the shadows of others. She stared at them for a bit- they had cloaked themselves within their own shadowy forms, practically transparent to corporeal eyes, but shining brightly for incorporeal ones. As they darted over the thickets and through the trees (and their trunks!) with their flowing manes trailing behind them, that betrayed their identity: they were her own kind. She took a cue from them and became invisible herself, leaving only a dark shadowy form, not just to hide from enemies, but to hide from the others. Misdreavus are not the most sociable of Pokémon, rarely ever appearing in big groups, aside from the coven, of course. They must be heading towards the coven as well, and there would be time for socializing later, so she ignored them for now.
_-+-_
There were few spots in the woods where you could see the entire sky from ground level. The towering trees usually blocked the way in order to receive the live-giving rays of the sun. There was one spot, a clearing of sorts, where for some reason, no trees grew; save for The Judge. The Judge was a giant among trees, the largest in the area, although this isn't saying much since there were no other trees in the immediate area to compare it with. It was one of the few Massiveoir trees remaining in the age of humans. Massiveoir trees were well known among tree enthusiasts, as they are usually the largest tree in a forest. They are most well known for their unusually shaped trunks and branches, which looked spiraled, giving the tree a gnarled appearance. Another unusual feature of these giant trees is that they absorb nearly all the nutrients from the surrounding soil, making it nearly impossible for other trees to grow in it's mighty shadow. The Judge towered over the forest, the leaves of its crown glittered in the moonlight, giving it the appearance of a powdered wig, hence why it was called 'The Judge.' It also served as a meeting place for the various Pokémon that inhabited the forest nearby. Tonight, it served as the meeting place for the coven. Many Misdreavus and Mismagius had already made their way and were now flitting through the branches, talking to each other about various things: scares they had made, new ways to manipulate ghost magic, the newest reality TV series and the weather. It should also be noted that a few were simply floating on isolated branches, practicing brooding and being anti-social*.
(*As it was a stereotype that ghost types were supposed to be this way. Many Misdreavus and Mismagius did all they could to uphold that stereotype, but this was only for the humans. Other Pokémon usually see right through the ploy. Humans, however, are usually too easily fooled into believing stereotypes once they've caught on. It is this belief that is the main sustenance of many Pokémon's powers, including Misdreavus.)
One Misdreavus never really did practice brooding being anti-social, mostly because she really was a bit of a loner. But it wasn't like she wanted to be that way. Her family were not well known for being the most gregarious Pokémon, and a strange side effect of tampering with human belief is that Pokémon may start to fall into that belief as well. (It's a rather complicated affair.) She hid within the bushes, pondering whether or not to just come out and meet the others. All of a sudden, she felt someone pull onto her hair. Being light as a feather, she was pulled pretty easily, but she normally couldn't be pulled by a corporeal being of any sort. Only when she was freed from the bush did she find out who it was that pulled her.
“Found you Nessarose!”
It was another Misdreavus. One of the ones she saw earlier flittering through the understory of the forest. It took Nessarose a moment or two to recognize who it was exactly. He was a male that was around the same age she was, with hair just as long as hers. Most Misdreavus looked much the same, even males and females all look “feminine” to humans. She only recognized him from a faint scent that was meaningless to most Pokémon, but vital to the ghosts as a way to identify one another. He was currently tugging onto her hair by his mouth.
“Okay! Okay! You found me, now let go!” She struggled a bit, and he gently let go of her. Leaving her to float without the aid of the wind, she maneuvered herself to face him. He was Mystel. He could be considered a friend to Nessarose, but like most Misdreavus, they only saw each other at covens. From what she knew of him, he much like her: a “victim” of family habits. Unlike her though, the members of his family were known to follow the trickster stereotype. The two ghost simply floated there. Misdreavus normally lead solitary lives, and conversations, even between friends were somewhat awkward after a long time of not seeing one another. Neither of them knew who to start talking first. They merely gazed into each others eyes. It wasn't until someone snapped them back into reality that they broke their staring contest.
“Awww... You two look so cute together.” A disembodied voice echoed into their ears. While the voice itself was pleasant enough, the suddenness of it all startled the ghostly lass. “Perhaps I should leave you two alone.” The speaker made her presence known by suddenly materializing, a standard way for ghost Pokémon to appear. It was another Misdreavus, a female one.
“Ooooh...” She immediately tensed up* as she was caught by surprise
(*About as tense as a being composed of gas could get).
Nessarose turned fuchsia as the ectoplasm flushed to her cheeks. “This isn't what it looks like! Honest!”. Her hair writhed like a floating ball of worms. Mystel suddenly made himself invisible, but it was no use since the other ghosts could easily sense his presence.
“Awww... I made you two blush. That's so adorable.” The Misdreavus gave a wiry smile, she received a sort of glee from tormenting others. “At least you should say hello to one another instead of just floating there like a bunch of dust motes, you don't need to keep up the dark and mysterious act, we know better.”
Nessarose just eyed the other Misdreavus with contempt. It wasn't a mere “act” as far a she was concerned. If anything she thought of this other Misdreavus as too cheeky for her own good.
“I can't say I've met you before...” Nessarose floated towards the new Misdreavus, close enough so that their noses almost touched one another*. “who are you?”
(*Misdreavus, being normally solitary creatures, have almost no concept of personal space)
“I'm...” The strange Misdreavus recoiled back a bit. “I'm Loreal... I'm kinda new to these woods...”
“New?” Nessarose raised her eyebrows in interest. Perhaps this Misdreavus might be more interesting then she thought. “What do you mean by new? Did you just evolve yesterday and are now looking for a new haunting? Don't you think about trying the oak grove!”
“No! I'm actually... erm... was actually, an outsider from beyond these woods.”
“Beyond the woods?” a voice as thin as paper echoed as Mystel rematerialized from behind Nessarose. “I don't think I've met anyone from beyond the woods before. Have you met a human before? My grandmother told me many of stories about them.”
“Um... Actually...” Loreal began the sentence, but changed her mind since they didn't need to know so much about her; at least not yet. “I think you two ask way too many questions.”
“Then maybe you should stay out of our business! It isn't like we were going to give each other pink whispers* or something.” As Nessarose said this, Mystel vanished once again, deeply embarrassed.
(*A growing trend among younger generations of Misdreavus is the pink whisper: an intimate act where one Misdreavus uses her tongue to lick the ear canal of another. It was originally a deeply private act preformed by lifemates in secluded areas, but it is gaining popularity and is being witnessed more and more in public. Much to the shock, dismay and even outrage of the older generations of Misdreavus and Mismagius)
“Huh?” Loreal was confused by what the other Misdreavus had just said.
“Um, nevermind about that. I'm sorry for being so ill-mannered, it's been a while since I've talked to others.”
“You don't need to apologize to me.” There was an awkward silence as the three Misdreavus floated in the clearing. Most Misdreavus conversations tend to have long pauses in between them, it gives them more time to prepare for what to say and such. Loreal broke the silence as she looked at the moon's position in the sky. “My goodness, it's nearly time; can you sense it?”
Nessarose also felt a tingling down what could be her spine “Yes, I sense it as well.” Mystel invisibly nodded in agreement.
“Let us go, the coven is about to begin.” With that, the ghostly trio left their patch of the clearing. They were soon joined by other Misdreavus, Mismagius, and even Mistrillix* as well, all of them heading for the upper trunk of The Judge. Most of them took their place in the twisted branches of the ancient tree. Massing together like an assemblage.
(*A Pokémon species undiscovered by humans, the Mistrillix is the pre-evolved form of Misdreavus.)
There was a bit of quarreling among the crowds of ghosts, mostly about the tall, brimmed, hat-like hair of the Mismagius. It wasn't because of their impressive stature, but rather, their tendency to block the view of the podium. Nessarose, Mystel and Loreal took their place among the ghosts. As luck would have it, Nessarose's view was blocked by a Mismagius's hat. She tried to get the attention of the Mismagius, but to no avail, he was too intent on the podium to listen.
All of a sudden, the crowd fell silent as three Mismagius floated onto the crown of the mighty tree, which served as an appropriate stage. The Mismagius in the middle of the trio was very well known. The tips of her hat-like hair and her gown-like body were showing signs of gray. While her actual size wasn't particularly noteworthy, her commanding presence made her seem to tower above all the others, almost on equal with The Judge himself. Flanking her on either side were two other Mismagius: dwarfed by the presence of the middle one, but still very powerful. This was the true coven*. The other ghosts were merely an audience.
(*A tradition among those who practice magic is that a coven must contain three individuals. This is so if one starts to get on another's nerves, the third can get them to make up so they can get on the nerves of everyone else. If there are more then three, then they all get on each other's nerves.)
The eldest one in the middle looked upward at the crowd of ghosts. With a single glare from her crimson eyes, the entire tree went almost completely silent. This ghost was very famous throughout the forest for it, for many stories were told and passed down of “The Glare.” It was known to stop rampaging Pokémon completely in their tracks, it was even said that her stare was so powerful it could cause wood to burn up. No one knew if this was true or not, but nobody really wanted to find out. The elder Mismagius took a deep breath to start her speech.
“Brothers and sisters of the night; I, Willowella, welcome you all. For tonight is the first night of the ruby star, much is needed to be discussed. Before we begin, we must first say the sacred oath, passed to us by Calypso, the goddess of twilight.” The elder spoke this with all the spirit and gusto of Ben Stein, as if she was merely reciting the words without any real meaning to them.
Willowella began the chant, spoken with words that were unable to be reproduced by human tongues, words that could only be represented by characters that only existed on the edges of the human mind and imagination. As the old Mismagius chanted, the words seem to take on a semi-physical form, floating like dust motes in a musty attic. Soon the other Mismagius and Misdreavus followed with their own chants, either repeating the chant spoken by the elder, or chants spoken by others, or even making up their own on the spot. There was barely any semblance of coherency to the number of chants that were filling the tree. Even the tiny Mistrillix joined in, adding what could be the magical equivalent to babbling. Eventually it got to a point where there were enough chants. Willowella merely had to float to the top of the tree, she gave a glare and said something quietly.
“Enough.”
It was quiet, but it was enough to stop the crowds of ghosts. Immediately, all the floating chants that were created out of nothingness vanished back into nothingness. The crowd was silent once more. Willowella spoke once more, this time with a much more animate and meaningful tone.
"Right then, now that the chant has been spoken, I open up the forum for anyone who wants to bring news or speak freely." At first there was silence, but not the solemn silence from before, but rather the nervous kind. Willowella wasn't completely surprised.
"Right then, if no one will speak, then I shall." She floated forward, her drab cloak-like body flowing translucently like silk. "I'm sure most of you have sensed it. The amount of fear emanating from the surrounding human settlements." There was murmuring among the crowd, mostly in agreement; in fact, many of the Misdreavus and Mismagius showed up just to talk about this event.
One of them spoke up. "What can it mean though?" He was half-heartedly expecting that Willowella had the answer, as she usually did. However, even he knew that Willowella's vast wisdom had it's limits, as he could sense that his question was futile. He did sense though, that someone had an answer.
"I don't exactly know myself, but there is one here who might." The whisperings and murmurs of the ghosts was almost deafening. She looked into the crowd. This wasn't the glare that legends spoke of, but it was still commanding enough to silence the ghosts. "Loreal. Come forth and explain what is happening to the human settlements."
From among the crowds of ghost types, one Misdreavus departed as she floated towards the center of the tree's branches. Nessarose instantly recognized her as the same Misdreavus she had met before.
"What do you know about the humans then Loreal?" Willowella looked at her straight in the eye. This would have caused other Misdreavus to panic, but Loreal wasn't afraid. This impressed Nessarose as she viewed the pair from the safety of the crowds, away from staring eyes.
"There's... something, no, two things that is creating the apprehensive atmosphere." As she became more confident, her voice got louder and more noticeable. Most of the ghosts listened intently. One ghost, the Mismagius on the left side of Willowella decided to ask something.
"But isn't fear a normal thing from humans? More fear must be a good thing right? It's more nourishment for us." Some of the ghosts in the crowd murmured in agreement.
"No..." Loreal replied "The amount of fear coming from the towns is... unnatural. I think something has been unbalanced."
"The natural order you mean perhaps?" Willowella joined in, intent on every word Loreal had to say. "It's possible, but what could have done this?"
A Misdreavus replied from the crowd, it was Mystel. "Maybe it's the strange humans, the ones garbed in strange outfits and teal hair. They've been appearing in my part of the wood lately, hunting down and abducting various Pokémon, both wild and belonging to the humans." Apparently many of the Misdreavus and Mismagius agreed with him, as they talked amongst each other. Nessarose was rather surprised at this. She never wanted to admit it, but due to living in the wilder depths of the wilderness were few humans have ever seen let alone dared to venture into, she only knew of humans through stories told by others.
Loreal pondered this."You may be right, however, I also sense something else... I have a feeling... I have the feeling that the dark one has awakened to feed once more."
Nearly all at the tree gasped in terror of the thought. They had only heard of the dark one through old tales and legends. Even so, it still compelled some to check their sleeping trees at night, just in case the dark one is there, ready to get them. The mere stories of the dark one was enough to make your hairs on the back of your neck stand on end. This was no easy feat, since Misdreavus are beings that gain nourishment from fear. Even the Mismagius flanking either side of Willowella were trembling a little. Strangely enough, the only ones not cowering at the mention of the dark one were Willowella and Loreal. Willowella leaned forward to the Misdreavus, eying her intensely.
"Are... are you positive of this?" Willowella was well renowned not only for her glare, but also sorting the truth from fiction. She had perfected it down to a science and was rarely ever wrong.
"It's not totally positive, but it feels like something is definitely amiss." Loreal was a bit nervous, but held her ground, figuratively speaking. The Mismagius on Willowella's right side whispered something into the head Mismagius' ear.
"I see then." She turned towards the rest of the crowd. "I propose that we all keep a much closer eye on the humans, both the ones that wander through our forests, and if possible, the ones in the towns as well. Also, please be very careful in case the dark one is actually among us as this young Misdreavus said." She took a deep breath as she moved on to another topic of the coven. "I also propose that it's time for the apprenticeship season to begin. Now you all know what is involved: Every Mismagius without an apprentice must take on two apprentices and teach them the ways of our craft. Unless you don't feel like it. You're not obliged to if you don't want to. You're also free to teach whoever you want, except your own offspring.*"
(*The Misdreavus family firmly believe that teaching magic to your own offspring is like magical inbreeding. So it's strongly discouraged.)
Willowella spoke, becoming more and more monotone as she continued, as if she had recited the monologue a dozen times.
"All Mismagius may all depart to choose your apprentices, all Misdreavus wanting to be chosen for apprenticeship please wait to be chosen. If you don't want to be someone's apprentice, leave now, and bring shame to your family.” Despite sounding more and more bored with the speech, Willowella smirked as she said that last line. At this point, the right-side Mismagius whispered something into Willowella's ear. "Ah yes, I forgot one thing: If you already have apprentice or are already one, you don't need to be here, as it will only cause confusion." The head Mismagius looked out into the crowd. A few of the ghosts were floating away to find someone to pair up with. Others were merely leaving, but most were still floating in the same branches of the tree that they first arrived on half an hour ago. Willowella merely rolled her yellow glowing eyes and said: "You may all go now. The coven is dismissed". At that moment, the whole coven of ghosts, their presence no longer required, scattered in various directions, presumably going back to where they haunted or lived. Even the pair who flanked Willowella's sides floated away from the tree.
Loreal was just about to join the mass exodus of the tree as well. "Just a moment, Loreal." The head Mismagius focused her attention on the Misdreavus, her eyes began to glow a different colour, a violet aura shone from them. Slowly, a small object floated mysteriously from above, it was also emanating an aura, the same colour as Willowella's eyes currently were. As the object floated closer towards the pair of ghosts, it became clear as to what it was. It looked like a dark purple lump of solid frosted glass. Inside this translucent lump, the illusion of a deep dark fog resided, as if it had been trapped inside the crystallized prison. Loreal immediately recognized what it was.
"A dusk stone? But... why?"
"You've grown since I've last saw you, Loreal. I feel that you are a ready and capable ghost, one who can take on apprentices of her own." Willowella's eyes stopped glowing. "Please accept it." Loreal then witnessed something Willowella almost never made: A smile.
The dark stone floated between the two ghosts. The younger one bowed slowly towards the elder and the stone turned in midair so the pointed end was aimed at her. The stone slowly floated forward until it touched Loreal's forehead. It somehow lodged itself into her skull, digging deeper until there was nothing left; the stone had disappeared. A second later, Loreal's body started glowing with a strange light. It illuminated her form in the pitch blackness of the night. However, it was one light that few ghosts, or even few Pokémon, feared at all. Loreal's form started to change in front of Willowella: her own body lengthened and her hair twisted into the shape similar to a witch's hat. She was no longer a Misdreavus, for she had evolved into a Mismagius. No longer an apprentice, but now a master of her craft.
Willowella looked at the fully transformed Loreal. "How do you feel?"
"I feel... strange." The wispy ghost type looked over her new form; eying the many folds of her dress-like body and even tried to inspect the brim of her hat-like hair. "Not being able to use my hair is going to take some getting used to."
"Don't fret my dear, in time, the telekinesis you've learned will become second nature. You have been practicing while you were away have you not? The newly-evolved Mismagius blushed a little. Willowella knew the answer in a flash. "Well, I can't scold an equal. Besides, you now have all the time in the world to practice." Willowella gave another rare wiry smile. "Go on, you should find apprentices before the night is through, As with the rest of the coven, I must depart." Instead of just floating off like the other ghosts, Willowella just became less and less visible until nothing remained but her smile, and soon that was gone as well.
"But... where shall I find them?" Loreal looked around, wondering if her mentor had really disappeared. "Willowella?"
"Remember what I taught you... Trust your heart and a way will reveal itself..." said a voice that was now so faint that it could barely be heard over the midnight breeze.
"Right... I must trust my heart..." She kept still for a minute, faintly recollecting her thoughts, reading her inner monologue. She figured out who her next apprentices were, among some other things. She peered at where Willowella was floating several minutes ago. "You're still there aren't you?"
"Aha!" A thin voice echoed. "So I have taught you well! So much for my dramatic exit... Go on, your apprentices are waiting..." With that, Willowella really disappeared, or floated off while being invisible.
Loreal flew from the giant tree and towards the forest as quickly as she could, for she sensed her future apprentices leaving the clearing. She was quite amazed as to how fast she had gotten, probably because of the evolution. She whizzed as quickly as she could through the night air until she found two Misdreavus who were just about to head into the forest. She was moving so quickly that she flew straight into them before she could stop herself. Or that's what would have happened if any of them were solid. Loreal actually flew through them before she could stop. The rush was just enough to make the other two ghosts spin out of control as well. The speeding Mismagius, realizing what just happened, ground to a halt, just before phasing through a tree. It was these Misdreavus she was looking for.
"HEY! What's the big idea?" One of them protested as she controlled herself in mid-air and turned to see who just flew through them. Her friend was too dizzy to say anything.
"Oh my goodness, I'm so sorry about that..." She floated closer to the two ghosts, to get a better look at them in the dim moonlight. "Oh... I see then... How very interesting."
"What do you mean?" The Misdreavus nervously asked, who was slightly unnerved by the Mismagius's presence "Who are you?"
"Don't you recognize me? We met earlier... your name is Nessarose if I recall correctly."
The young Misdreavus looked closely into the Mismagius's eyes and gasped. "L-Loreal?! What... What happened to you?"
"I evolved... I'm not to sure how else to put it. Heh heh..."
"I know that, but... Oh nevermind... what are you doing here?" As Nessarose inquired about Loreal's presence, Mystel was finally getting his head together and not seeing double any longer, he floated towards the other ghosts just in time.
"I came to both of you with a proposition." Loreal cleared her throat, she was only beginning to realize how different her voice was from a few hours ago, deeper but still feminine by human standards. "Being ghost types, we are gifted with the ability to perceive the supernatural and even warp our reality to how we see fit. We are capable of glimpsing at the hopes, desires and fears of other lifeforms, their deepest thoughts that are hidden to others are easily read by those who can read them. We are even capable of ignoring the laws of physics because such laws don't apply to beings of chaos in such ways. Using these gifts, we are capable of helping others who cannot help themselves in this fashion, for that is why Calypso granted our powers in the first place. However, we are not born capable of welding this sort of power. We must practice with it, and it is tradition for our kind to practice within groups of three. The coven as it is referred to. So I ask you two... Will you become my apprentices so we can become a coven?"
"Umm..." Mystel thought about it for a few seconds "Okay... I mean, Yes, yes I will join this coven. Actually, it was one of the reasons why I showed up at the coven earlier."
"Well it's good that you're eager enough, because you're going to be one of my very first students..." The Mismagius paused as she sensed apparent feelings of apprehension.
"I..." She looked downward "I don't want to."
"But why?" Mystel protested. "The ghost laws dictate that..."
"I know about all those ghost laws but..." Nessarose cried out, almost beginning to sob. She made a swallowing action even though there wasn't really anything in her throat and tried to think of several excuses. "I've never been good at ghost magic..." This was somewhat true, she remembered being teased as a Mistrillix about her sloppy manipulation of shadow magic. "and... and I have things to do back at my part of the forest..." This was almost a lie, as the "things" she did were sleeping during the daylight hours and waiting for the rare Pokémon to come across her tree at night so she could scare it off and feed on it's fear. She knew this was a lie, and she also knew that the others knew this as well. She decided to come clean: "I'm sorry... I'm just scared I won't be good enough..." However, instead of a scowl she was expecting, she saw a faint smile on Loreal's face.
"My goodness, you know what? You sound exactly like me when I first started out." Loreal floated closer toward Nessarose and whispered "I'm new to this as well, so we'll all be learning something new. Just give it a try. If you wish to quit, you're more then welcome to. Besides, your friend really wants to join, and we can't do with with only two ghosts."
The young ghost thought about it. Perhaps joining a coven wouldn't be so bad. She would probably be able to improve on her magic, and maybe even have fun.
"I'll do it."
Loreal and Mystel were thrilled "That's great!" All the ghosts then noticed that their internal clocks were telling them that the dawn was beginning to break, they needed to shelter in the darkness before the light of day set in.*
(*While not lethal to them as some stories go, Ghost do not like being in sunlight, the day makes them feel uncomfortable, plus it's harder to scare Pokémon during the day.)
"We should probably head for my grove." Loreal spoke up as she started to zoom in the general direction of her stand of trees. "I have some forest jelly for both of you."
"Did you say forest jelly?" Mystel spoke up, getting worried as the sky began turning paler and paler with the glow of the sun. "I love that stuff! Come on, let's go!" And that was the last thing spoken as the ghosts headed deeper into the dark parts of the forest.
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Reviews are always welcome, the longer the better.
Nice 'trick' in revealing the title before, but making it seem as if you were merely saying 'my lips are sealed' about the title... 