Contents:
Aurora
Obvious exits:
South <S> leads to Pokemon Haven: Assisi Farm.
North <N> leads to Field and Streams - Route 11: Farmlands.

The sky is brilliant blue and cloudless, the sunlight is bright, and a brisk wind blows from the northwest. In the forest, fiery red, gold, and orange leaves rustle and blow past you, swirling in the wind. While at the coast, the sea is a warm blue under the sun, reflecting the saved warmth from the summer, and the waves are gentle.

The sun is high in the sky. The former dreary darkness of the early morning has lifted off the land, and the day is sunny and warm. The sky is a bold and brilliant blue as far as the eye can see, a couple of whispy clouds painted on the canvas. Even the grumpiest, coldest heart must find itself warmed on this wonderful day... though perhaps not.

It's only been a little while since Peppy returned from his not so successful hunt, and already Aurora's frowning a little in worry at his change in mood - he doesn't appear to be his usual cheerful self, or even his not-so-usual slightly worried self. Still, they're out on a walk together, and there should be enough time to ask what's wrong... Aurora pads along the path with Peppy, lagging a little behind as she walks beside him away from the barn. It takes a while before she comes up with anything to say, and when she does it's just the rather hesitant comment, <Isn't the weather nice and bright today?>

Peppy's right ear flickers slightly in response to Aurora's question, but, most unlike his normal self, that's all that picks up; usually, his entire body jumps right up into attention to listen to what his mate has to say. <Hm?> he replies after a second or two, slowing down his pace to glance idly up at the sky, like a most unamused spectator waiting for it to sing and dance. <It's nice,> he woofs maybe two seconds later, directing his eyes back to the ground before continuing his walk, not caring to look over his shoulder to watch if Aurora is still following him or not (if, perhaps, she stopped when he did). Boy, that's awfully rude! The view the female Growlithe will see from behind isn't a particularly flattering one: low head, drooped tail, sagging body, paws so low they occasionally scrape the dirt road. If Peppy promised himself to not make his bad mood obvious, he's not doing a very good job of it.

Aurora stops for a few moments as Peppy brushes off her question and walks on, staring at him as he continues on his journey, her expression one of confusion and then concern. She quickly trots up until she's near him, and asks in a rather worried voice, <Peppy, what's happened? Is something wrong? Can I help?> Her smile is rather uncertain, and the signs of Peppy's displeasure haven't escaped her notice, as she glances at his body again and frowns a bit more deeply.

It's not that Peppy didn't expect Aurora to figure it out. He probably knows as well as anybody that he's not exactly covering up his bad mood very well; anybody at all, most *especially* the one Growlithe he's known and been with for a year and a half now, would be able to figure it out. Nevertheless, Peppy slows to a halt when Aurora rushes up to him, and frowns even deeper. He lowers his head slightly and swallows loudly, giving off a sigh after he's done. He inhales to speak, pauses, sighs, and tilts his head to the side. His green eyes don't have their usual sparkle to them; indeed, they seem tired, maybe a tad watery, and, most importantly, look like they were bloodshot not long ago. Meeting eyes with Aurora seems to give him some strange sense of courage, and he bares his teeth as he inhales. <... I... I, er, I saw Navarone and that Ninetales today.> The entire statement is like one great big exhale, followed immediately by a sigh as he exhausts what air is left in his lungs.

Aurora braces herself for something terrible - like Peppy came across a Katerwaul while he was out hunting, or found out that the barn was going to be torn down, or something like that - and when he finally answers, all she says at first is a rather quiet, and slightly disappointed, <Oh.> There's a pause, while she looks down at the ground, and then back at Peppy, and after a bit she adds, <What happened? Would it help if you told me?> It's been a while since Aurora's seen Navarone and Streetwind, and given Navarone's concern over the Ninetales before he left the barn, Aurora's initial fear of her has apparently subsided somewhat... hence her confusion over Peppy's reaction to the meeting.

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Well, hey, this isn't so hard, right? Peppy breathes in, breathes out, keeps himself under control. Of course he can talk to Aurora! He always talks to Aurora about anything at all! She'll be understanding of anything! ... Right? <Well,> he woofs, rolling his eyes to the skies, not out of disrespect but out of discomfort. What coldness there was in his voice is slowly being replaced by anxiety. <... What d... what do you think about them?> he asks, suddenly narrowing his eyes at her in curiosity. <Do you think what they did to us, to the barn and to Briska, is okay and forgivable, or do you think it's okay to still be really mad at them?> It's not rhetorical; Peppy probably doesn't even understand the concept of a rhetorical question. No, Peppy is asking Aurora for real, begging for some of her insight, hoping to find some clear path through the muddled mess in his head.

The sky is brilliant blue and cloudless, the sunlight is bright, and a brisk wind blows from the northwest.

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<Well, I haven't thought about them for a long time, really...> Aurora admits, and shakes her head slightly. <Since they haven't been around here for a long time, I sort of forgot about them. But now you mention it, they were scary before they left...> She shudders as she looks back at the barn, probably thinking about the events that took place before Streetwind left the area. <She - the Ninetales - she was scary,> Aurora adds, still looking back at the barn. <But Navarone wasn't quite so scary...> Turning her head back towards Peppy, she frowns a little before she continues, <Um, when Navarone and Briska had that fight, I can sort of understand why he fought back... I mean, he probably thought he was being attacked by someone who was going to hurt him, even though Briska didn't mean it. It's not like that in the barn, but maybe he wasn't used to it there.> It's a long speech, longer than Aurora's used to, and she stops for breath for a while, finishing off with a little shrug of the shoulders.

The sun blazes overhead in the clear blue sky.

Judging by the look on Peppy's face, it's evident to see that Aurora's words probably weren't the right words to pick Peppy up... though who can blame her? Are Peppy's thoughts in defense or in accusation of Streetwind and Navarone? What was the poor girl to do? <Yeah,> Peppy gruffs in response, flicking his floppy ear back and turning his head to the side. <... I understand, too.> His ear twitches again, this time along with his tail, and the Growlithe plops down on the ground, resting on his haunches but leaning slightly, as though he's about to collapse onto his stomach at any second. <But,> he sighs, shaking his head. <But I don't think I really do.> He looks up, but not at Aurora; his eyes go down the trail. <I really... want to forgive him, understand him, tell him I don't really hate him... but I did. Do, I guess, and when I saw him and her together, crying, looking so... weak and helpless...> His body jerks up slightly and tenses suddenly, and Peppy has to force himself to relax back into his stance. He looks over at Aurora, hoping she understands where he's going, not realizing that he's really not making himself particularly obvious.

To be honest, Aurora doesn't quite understand where Peppy's going with what he's saying, but what she does know is that she said something she probably shouldn't have, and she shakes her head sadly once more as she looks down towards Peppy. <I, um...> she starts to say, and then she looks at Peppy's face. And what she was going to say is forgotten as she shakes her head again, sinking down on her hind legs to sit on the ground, her head hanging. <I don't know what to think. They did some things that hurt us, that hurt us a lot, but they must have feelings, too. Navarone was worried about her, so he knows what it's like to have someone you care about, and so I bet he's sorry for what he did to Briska, but that doesn't change the fact that he did hurt him, and...> She shakes her head yet again, the fur crest on her head swishing furiously in the air. <I don't know. I really don't know.>

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Whoa. This is something that doesn't happen very often. Aurora's own confusion over what to do pulls Peppy out of his blue funk for a second or two, and he realizes of just how much important this internal conflict must be that not even Aurora can tackle it alone. After a few moments of silence, the only noise merely wind swooshing by the ears, rustling fur and grass and leaves, Peppy replies softly, <I know.> The frown on his face grows wider, and he turns his head into the wind, closing his eyes. <But I... I really trusted him. Them. We trusted him. We helped them, both of them!> He snaps his head back to Aurora, and she can see just how hurt and angry his face looks. <And they not only broke that trust, but threatened to hurt you! And our puppies! And right then and there, they looked so helpless and weak, and needed my help, but I didn't think that! You know what I thought then?> He gives Aurora a second to reply, but even if she's too shocked or sullen or what have you to speak, he'll continue on (perhaps even rudely interrupting her). <I thought I should... hurt them.> And all the anger in his voice vanishes, replaced with a sullen kind of thick horror. His shoulders drop. His tail drops. <... Maybe kill them.>

It takes a while for the full meaning of what Peppy's just said to sink into Aurora's brain, and a while after that for her to compose her thoughts well enough to make a reply - before that, she just sits, looking at Peppy with a mixture of surprise, some fear, and possibly a little understanding. Her first words, though hesitant, might at least be encouraging. <I... understand.> She's not saying this in a condemnatory or displeased tone, but a soft voice, and she continues to speak in the same way, taking her time over her words. <They hurt Briska, and almost destroyed the barn, so hurting them would make them know how bad it felt for us. But, um...> The horror in Peppy's voice still present in her mind, she continues, <But even though you know that, you'd still feel bad about doing that to them. Maybe not right away, while you were thinking of all the bad things they'd done, but you would afterwards. That's because you're kind, you know. You feel bad about those thoughts because you're kind to people...> She takes a step, then another, towards Peppy, not close enough to touch him yet, but maybe within reach to nuzzle him if she moves again.

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And Peppy sighs in response, but this sigh isn't quite so desolate and despaired as the ones he's given off thus far in the conversation. His expectations - her absolute horror at Peppy ever harming a *fly* for non-food purposes, her disgust at his vile and devious thoughts - are thankfully not fulfilled. She slowly approaches him, and Peppy knows exactly why, and he smiles at her for it. He doesn't, however, lean over and accept her nuzzle just quite yet - perhaps he wants to make sure she's willing to accept what he's saying. <I...> He voice is cracked and dry, and he clears his throat. It doesn't help much. <I do try to be kind... and that's why this scares me. I don't want to hurt them... but what if because I didn't kill them today, they hurt us again? And what if then I can't stop myself?> A chill ripples down the Growlithe's spine, complimented by the wind picking up. He shudders, frowns, and shakes his head briskly. No tears... guess that's something of a good sign.

Another shake of the head - this may well be the last one! - and Aurora replies to Peppy with a more determined tone of voice than before. <But you know to be careful next time. If we watch what we do and say, and we're careful, they won't hurt us again. And even if they do something, you'll be able to stop yourself from doing something rash. Listen to what you've been saying...> She takes a step towards him and sits down on her haunches next to him, looking up at the sky as she adds, <You're so worried about what might have happened, though nothing did. If you ever feel angry, just remember what you felt now, and it'll make you stop and think. And also...> She leans her head towards Peppy's, not to nuzzle at his cheek, but to try to lean it on his nearest shoulder. <Remember, if you're ever worried, I'll be here to help. Together, we can work it out.>

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And what Growlithe, no matter how worried, could still feel upset after a speech like that? It's a mixture of strength and determination served with a side of emotion and love, all delivered by Aurora's naturally comforting voice... how could it be anything but a sedative for worried Peppy? He opens his mouth to reply, before realizing that there's not really much he can say in response. Aurora is completely and entirely right; the only person who can make Peppy lose control of his emotions is Peppy himself. And when Aurora comes next to him and leans on his shoulder, Peppy stays straight, a sturdy structure for his mate to fall on, but he lets his head rest on her own, nuzzling into her warm and soft fur. He closes his eyes and sighs gently. And what is there to say, but, with a small shake of the head...