Avian watched as Zoar happily ate his collected berries. His sharp teeth easily and eagerly chewed through the meat of the fruits. "Mm, that was delicious!" he said, licking up the last berry. "Thanks so much, Ave!"

In truth, the berries were a bit sour and slightly unripe, that would explain their unusually small sizes. But Zoar still smiled, hoping it would make the Riolu feel better again.

Avian smirked slightly. "You're welcome!" he beamed with pride filling his chest. The Luxray gave one last grin before he exhaled and stood to his feet.

"Now that we're both full, we can continue completely vitalized," he said. Avian felt the adrenaline rush to his fingertips; giving the older Pokemon a determined look, his eyes burned with strength. The thought of him being with such a strong and nice Pokemon somehow made him feel... Confident. Like all of his fears had disintegrated into ash.

"Yeah!" He gave him a confirming bob of the head.

"Wonderful!" Zoar smiled. "Then let's get going before sun high."
____________________________
The two Pokemon had been walking on foot for about an hour. Avian's legs felt slightly fatigued, but otherwise the presence of Zoar made him push forward. Flashbacks of the previous battle he had witnessed the last night were energizing him through the journey ahead, and as they walked, he wondered how he would confess to Zoar about what really happened. He knew that the travel will be fruitless at the end when they eventually arrived at his home. His parents wouldn't be there anyway...

The memories came cascading back like a tidal wave, all of the sounds beginning to echo through his head like screams in a cave.

He kept noticing distinctive colors resonating: blue, black, yellow.

Red.

Red flashing eyes in the shadows, dark maroon liquid puddling the algae-colored grass in the thick of the night.

Slowly, yet surely the growls and roars were clawing their way into his mind.

Avian completely stopped moving his legs from follow Zoar, trying not to take it all in. His parent's howls of pain crying through the moonlit moment made the pup shiver with dismay.

It was only a few seconds before Zoar noticed the child had come to a halt all of a sudden. "Ave?" he called. He padded over to the Riolu. His eyes looked as if they were in deep thought and his body was paralyzed. In fear? Contemplation? He couldn't tell. "Avain? You alright, kit?" he tried again, this time nudging the Pokemon gently on the shoulder.

All of the recollections began dissipating when Avian felt the shock on his upper chest. He was finally able to shake off the nightmares of that day and refocus on the Pokemon in front of him. Zoar's eyes gaped, full of concern, into his. "Oh... What...? I'm sorry, were you saying...?" Avian mumbled.

"I asked if you were alright," he repeated. "Are you? You seemed off in your own little world there..." This caused Avian to heat up a bit. Apprehension began to fill up his cheeks.

"Y-yes, I am," he faked the best he could. "Just thinking about home is all." He darted his eyes to their corners sadly, hiding his cracking voice. "...My parents just promised they'd play catch with me when I get home..." The Luxray returned his statement with a reassuring smile.

"Oh, I see," he said givingly. "Don't worry, we'll get you home as soon as possible then, I promise." Even though the Pokemon lied to the other, Avian felt comforted by the assurance in Zoar's eyes. That was when another consideration flashed into his mind, almost entirely pushing aside the dark memory he had just recalled.

"Ah! What about you, Mister Zoar? Won't your pack be worried about you?" the pup asked. Zoar's eyes darted away, almost in disappointment. He let out a quiet chortle.

"Heh, don't worry about me, kit. My pack is... Robust,"  he said the best he could. "They'll do flawlessly without me: Almost like I was never there. So... They won't be worried." He shuffled from his stagnant position and began to walk away when Avian ran after him and put a paw to his shoulder.

"But Mister Zoar--!" Zoar turned around in shock at the sudden touch, causing Avian to come to a standstill. It wasn't that the older Pokemon was mad, not at all, but something had so abruptly bursted from within his numb body that it had stupefied him for a moment. The pup recoiled his paw and held it with his other in agitation. "Erm... B-but Mister Zoar, of course they'll need you!" he continued. Admiration and intimidation burned within his next words. "B-because... Y-you're so...! You're so strong!" The child's wide eyes brimmed with respect and esteem for the Luxray, which completely caught him off guard.

"W-what...?" Zoar stammered to make sure he didn't imagine what he just heard. Avian's fists tightened with the pumping adrenaline of bravery and excitement; he had been waiting so long to tell him.

"B-back there with Tyranitar, your attacks were so powerful! A-and you weren't scared at all! You didn't even get hurt or anything! It was so cool!"

The Luxray silently marveled at the pup's compliments in astonishment. Hah... What's this feeling? he wondered to himself.

"Your thunder attacks were so perfect! That Tyranitar didn't even have any time to dodge out of the way! It was so steady...! I can't even get my aura spheres that steady like your electric attacks!" Avian went rambling on like the child he was. "I mean, this is why your pack needs a Pokemon like you! How do you do it? How long did you have to train?" Zoar, who was completely flustered by all of the flattering, could only clear his throat. He replied truthfully.

"H-how I got like this? I guess... I evolved," he answered with a teacher-like stare.

Avian had heard about this so called 'evolution'. It was what his parents had to go through to become what they looked like. He had noticed that they appeared somewhat different than him, having four aura sensors instead of two, a white layer of fur surrounding his stomach, a larger form, and spikes emitting from their chest and paws. But he didn't know that made them as strong as they were! An inspired spark emerged in his eyes.

"Evolved?" the pup echoed. "Wow..." Zoar nodded, continuing in with his 'lesson'.

"Us Luxrays evolve from Luxios, and Luxios evolve from a Shinx," he explained in a intellectual tone. "I was a Shinx once, and I had to work my way up to the evolution I'm at now."

"Wow... Two evolutions?" Avian breathed. "Will I have to do that?" The larger Pokemon couldn't help but chuckle softly.

"Well, you're a Riolu. Riolus evolve straight into Lucarios."

"Oh!" Avian grunted, clearly intrigued. He thought for a moment. "...But wouldn't evolving twice make you even stronger?" Zoar shrugged truthfully.

"Eh, I think once is enough," he said. This caused the Riolu to ponder for a while. The fiery feeling from before during the battle had returned, powering him through his sentence.

"I... I want to evolve too, then!" he replied. Zoar couldn't help but gawk at the boy: He was met with an Avian filled with will and passion. Something about his expression made him feel so motivated inside, like he wanted to finally do something right for once to help someone. All his life, used and pushed around by his pack mates, and finally this pup had come to see who he really strived to be. But it couldn't be true, could it? he thought to himself. I'm just a Luxray of this forest, belonging to the group of merciless predators that hunt for its livestock. His heart drooped. They all fear us... This child knows this. Yet... He trusts me enough to tell me this...? He nodded his head. If that's the case... Then...

"...I know you'll evolve one day," he replied. "It takes a lot of hard work and dedication, but I can see that igniting within you." He turned to face a very curious Avian. "You look like the type of Pokemon who can accomplish anything they put their heart into, and I have a good feeling that you'll evolve very soon. All you need to do Ave, is be brave, no matter what. Alright?"

Avian's eyes dilated with hope, and as soon as he knew it, a huge grin started to form along with a sense of determination: The obstinacy to not fail Zoar's words. He would learn as much as he could, try as hard as he must. All to become strong.

Stronger than before.

Stronger than ever.

"Alright! I promise!" he replied compellingly, amber eyes burning.

Zoar smiled:

Avian would never know that his road to evolution was about to begin.