Slowly standing with the help of a couple Buneary, Shoji could feel his weak bones strain to keep him upright.  His clothes were hanging off of him in disarray, just putting them on was a challenge with barely healed limbs, but he couldn’t very well show up at field camp naked.  If I can get to the bridge, the old guy there should see me…  Limping slowly out of the dugout den that the Buneary and Lopunny sleep in, he turned to walk in the direction of Tidewater Dam but slipped on the morning dew grass and wasn’t able to catch himself.

The Buneary around him made soft, low noises with looks of concern on their faces as he slowly got back to his feet.

Petting their heads, he smiled reassuringly at them.  “Don’t worry, I’m fine.  My legs are just a bit shaky, that’s all.”  It was still difficult to speak, his jaw not entirely healed, but he still didn’t want the kind and gentle Pokémon to worry about him.  He wasn’t even sure if they could understand him, but it was obvious that they often understood the meaning of what he was saying.

Looking back at the well hidden entrance to the den, his time spent in the Alpha’s care replayed in his mind.  Unable to move, he had to rely on her to take care of everything for him, including relieving himself which was more embarrassing than the feeding and grooming.  Most days she’d feed him twice, once in the morning and once at night, and she’d always make sure that he swallowed every last bit of the pre-chewed Oran Berry/Dazzling Honey mixture.

Sometimes she wouldn’t let him go for minutes even though he had finished eating, just licking the inside of his mouth and playing with his tongue with her own.  Though it was pretty long and thin compared to the size of her head, the powerful oral muscle filled his entire mouth and was able to reach the back of his throat with ease.  He tried to resist at first, this is what adults called ‘kissing’ which always seemed gross to him, but it felt really good.  He’d forget about everything else as a warm, floaty feeling spread through his body.  A few Buneary tried to do the same for him, but they never made him feel the same way and Lopunny got very upset with them when she found out.  None of them tried to afterwards and Lopunny started coming back around midday to feed him an additional time… or just forget the food entirely and just play with his mouth.  He’d know if he was in for a meal or not based on the way she was smiling as she leaned over him, trapping his unmoving body under hers.  There were a few times she’d be called away before she was satisfied, but as the Alpha she had responsibilities to the other Pokémon.

“She was also so… excited.”  Touching his lips, the young boy blushed as he recalled the taste of the large Pokémon’s tongue and saliva.

However, either the Alpha Lopunny wasn’t ever that busy before he came along, or she had begun to slack off on her duties, since as the days went by she’d come back more often throughout the day.  Other than the ‘feedings’, sometimes she’d just lay with him, curling around and cuddling with him, but there was another ‘game’ she would play with him.

After grooming herself each morning, she’d always groom him too, licking him from head to toe and once it was safe to turn him over she’d do his back too.  The way she licked his ears and nipple though made his weener feel hot, and she had begun to notice it got hard and stood up on it’s own well she did.  There wasn’t a grooming session that passed that she didn’t lick and suck on his weener when this happened and she’d make him pee something that wasn’t pee into her mouth.  It felt incredibly good, but after a couple days his weener wouldn’t go back to normal until she did it twice or even three times!  The smile on Lopunny’s face when she did made his heart race for some reason.

Sometimes she’d draw out the ‘grooming’ game, stopping as he was about to let it out and would keep her head still.  He’d have to move his hips in cases like that.  But even outside of grooming, sometimes when she’d come back during the day and played the ‘feeding’ game with him his weener would swell without her touching it!  Rather than stop ‘feeding’ him, she’d use her fingers and fluffy fur to tickle him until some white liquid came out and got all over her hand.  The giggling noise that Lopunny made after that made him blush as she’d lick the mess off her hand.  She’d often end interactions like that embracing him and letting him fall asleep in her arms… or under her butt depending on the position she was in.

As he slowly stumbled from tree to tree, thinking of all the things he had done with the Alpha Lopunny, he felt his weener harden again and for a moment he stopped and thought about getting her to make it go away again.  Feeling his pants rub against it was distracting.  N-No, I can’t rely on Lopunny all the time!  Besides, if she found me…

Pushing the thoughts of the slightly rough, slightly soft tongue rubbing against his boy parts aside, Shoji was about to press on as a large shadow fell over him.  Before he even had a chance to turn around, a pair of long, thin arms covered in brown fur with large puffs of yellow fur covering most of their three-digit hands wrapped around him and lifted him off the ground.

“Wai-!”

While she would never begrudge her position as the Alpha of her fluffle, the gigantic Lopunny had never felt so melancholy in performing her duties before.  She knew what she was doing was important, the Alpha before her had guarded them from the Golbat invasion and maintained a peaceful relationship with the Combee in the woods, while she played with her fellow Buneary at the time.  But being away from the blue-haired boy had become so painful.  She just wanted to cuddle with him all day.  As she patrolled her territory though, she saw the young human stumbling from tree to tree with a couple of Buneary following after him in concern!

She knew he was well enough to move a bit, but not this much.  Not to mention he was heading towards the beach and likely the dam to go back to the other humans.  She couldn’t let that happen.  He was still hurt and needed rest, but even more than that she didn’t want him to leave.  She was taking good care of him and they played everyday.  He liked her licking him, he liked sleeping with her, he liked her feeding him.  If he stayed, she could do that everyday.  It was only fair!

If the humans can keep coming and taking Buneary from her fluffle whenever they want, keeping one human to herself was only fair.  He was cute and sweet and hers.

Picking him up with ease, she brought him back to the burrow, despite him struggling and protesting in the human tongue.  Laying him their bedding, she tried to tell him to stay, but he understood what she was saying about as well as she understood him.  Their actions said it all though, as he clearly kept trying to get up to leave and she had to keep laying him back down, even going as far as to lay on top of him to get him to stop.  But she couldn’t just lay on him all day to get him to listen, as much as she’d like to, and she still had to finish patrolling to make sure the other Buneary were safe.  He would try to leave as soon as she left though and she didn’t have time to tire him out.

Why couldn’t he just understand that he was her human now?  She claimed him.  He was part of her fluffle now.  The other Buneary can play with him, but they can’t have him the way she did.  She needed to raise and guide him properly.

If he wasn’t going to listen though, she had no other choice…

Jubilife Village, the Wallflower

With so much going on in the past two weeks, the only time the Galaxy Team Captain found time to relax even a little bit was when she got to eat her favorite potato mochi.  Eating just four or five wasn’t enough for her now though, as she could easily consume ten when things get stressful.  Finishing off her fourteenth one, the bluette looked at her empty plate and contemplated ordering more.

The new recruit has worked out better than anyone could have expected.  Things have never gone so smoothly before and the Pokédex has been invaluable to our agents exploring Hisui…  Aside from the missing persons file that sat on her desk, any incident that came up had been resolved swiftly and efficiently.  Shoji…  Should I be happy that we still haven’t found a body?  It’s been two weeks though, and Hisui is an unforgiving place.  Death waits beyond any careless mistake.

After a large-scale, organized search turned up no sign of the boy, Cyllene had to call off any more dedicated efforts to find the missing boy.  Even with the new recruit performing exceptionally in the field, they only had so many resources and finding a lost stowaway wasn’t something the Galaxy Team could afford while maintaining the peace and security of the ever growing village.  Not that she enjoyed making such a decision.

There was a general order to keep an eye out for any traces of him, but each day that passed made it harder for her to keep the hope that he was still alive.  Unlike those kicked out of the village, Shoji was doing his best to contribute to its growth and she felt responsible for his disappearance, even if nobody else blamed her.

Maybe one more plate…  Sighing as she took another sip of her tea, she was about to order more potato mochi when the door opened quickly and a girl from the Security Corps came in, flustered and out of breath.

“C-Captain Cyllene.  A… A request… for reinforcements…”  Trying to catch her breath as she reported, she shakily stood at attention.  “...in the Heartwood.”

“Calm down, catch your breath, and tell me on the way.”  Standing up to leave, she nodded to Beni who let her leave without paying for her meal.

He knew where to send the bill, and this sounded like an emergency.

The Heartwood

In order to be able to come to the aid of anyone quickly, Cyllene has already traveled most of Hisui with her Abra so it could use it’s Psychic powers to travel there instantly.  However, when she arrived at the glade that the Alpha Lopunny is known to patrol most frequently, she had been told of the situation but couldn’t believe her eyes.

The general order when dealing with an Alpha Pokémon was to avoid confrontation and run if spotted, but her men were surrounding the Lopunny that guarded the woods and from the looks of it had been engaged in a long and grueling battle with it.  Both it and her men were looking tired and both sides had injuries, but the oddest thing about this battle was the blue-haired boy tucked against the large Pokémon’s back, wrapped up in her ears and passed out.

“C-Captain!  Thank you for coming!”  One of the Survey Corps members addressed her as she approached.

Nodding, she looked as the battle continued with the Lopunny whipping out with legs at anyone and Pokémon that got too close, growling and hissing in rage.  “I heard a brief summary, but what is going on here?”

“We received a report from the new recruit that the missing boy, Shoji, was seen here and in the possession of the Alpha.  They didn’t have time to mount a rescue operation and left it to us.”  The man said.  “We almost got the drop on her, but one of Zubat’s Hypnosis missed and hit the hostage instead.  Before we could try again the Alpha took it out and we’ve been locked in combat ever since.”

“Very good.  We’re lucky it was a non-damaging move that struck Shoji, but otherwise you have all done admirably for holding out so long.  I’ll be taking command of this battle now.”  She said, motioning for the others to hold their positions.

“Yes, Ma’am!”  The other Galaxy Team member said in unison as they maintained a safe distance from the aggressive Pokémon.

Standing, she stepped out into view and cautiously approached the engaged Lopunny.  “Alpha Lopunny, Guardian of the Heartwood!”  From a safe distance she called out to the enraged Pokémon and stood unflinchingly as it turned all of it’s attention at her, the hostility burning behind those glowing red eyes.   “I apologize if our presence in your territory upset you, but we merely wish to collect that boy on your back.  Could you-!”  Before she could finish though, her Abra teleported her out of the way as the Lopunny delivered a devastating kick where she would have been, snapping the tree behind her in half easily.  “Th-Thank you, Abra.”

While she had hoped to finish this peacefully, it was clear that that was not an option here.  Again she was reminded of Commander Kamado’s words, that Pokémon are terrifying creatures.  They were invaluable allies and partners, like her Abra, but as enemies there were few things more frightening.

Crouching down, Cyllene whispered into her Pokémon’s ear.  “Wait for a chance and get Shoji back to the village as soon as you can.  Understood?”

Abra mewed and nodded in reply, floating higher into the canopy to watch.

“Alright, don’t falter!  Begin the rescue effort and be careful to not hit the hostage again!”  Coordinating the attacks of her men, Cyllene demonstrated her qualities as the Captain of the Galaxy Expedition Team.

None other among their numbers had the talent for raising Pokémon like the new recruit, and if a member even had a single Pokémon they were lucky, so even though they had the powerful Lopunny outnumbered, she still had the raw strength to knock any of them out in a hit or two.  She also had the edge in reaction speed, since captured Pokémon trust their human partners to direct them in battle, but Cyllene was able to plan and strategize on a whole nother level than the more primitive, animalistic mind that the Alpha demonstrated.

After a couple close calls, things were finally coming into place as the constant switching of opponents was wearing down the Lopunny and she began to get sloppy.  Cyllene was able to predict the large Pokémon’s actions and lead her into a pincer attack, where a Sphinx drew her in and evaded at the last second so a Paras of the group could hit her with a Stun Spore to disrupt her movements.  The Sphinx would then follow up with a Quick Attack to knock Lopunny over and her Abra would take care of the rest so they could retreat.

And as the Alpha Lopunny lunged at the Sphinx, Cyllene pointed to where she was going to land.  “Now!”

The other two scouts got their Pokémon into position just as Lopunny landed, with the Paras aiming to only get her head in the attack.  “Paras!  Stun-”  However, unlike the other times the enraged Pokémon readied herself to charge at her target, Lopunny quickly reeled one of her legs back and kicked something on the ground with extreme force, spinning her whole body on the axis of rotation, exposing her back to the Paras!  “-Spore!”  But it was too late to call off the attack, as the small insect Pokémon shook its body furiously and launched a cloud of spores at not Lopunny, but the blue-haired boy on her back!

“Quick Atta-!”  Quick to follow up the attack, the other man tried to get his Pokémon to use it’s attack, but before it could land to do so, something slammed into it and sent the quadrupedal creature into a tree.  A fist-sized rock rolled out from the Sphinx’s side.

S-She kicked a rock!?  Oh no, Shoji!  Realizing what the Alpha Lopunny had done, Cyllene watched as the cloud of yellow spores flew towards the boy they were there to rescue.  Throughout the entire fight, the Lopunny had never used him as a shield, but it was starting to fight smarter if it was thinking of the environment to attack now too.  Pokémon truly are terrif-?!  Admitting to underestimating her adversary, Cyllene was about to call for a temporary retreat so they could regroup, but then the Lopunny did something she wasn’t expecting.

Off balance from the powerful kick she performed to take out the Sphinx, the Alpha couldn’t jump to avoid the Paras’ attack.  So, instead of letting the spore cloud hit the boy, she twisted with the momentum of her spin to come back around, shielding Shoji, taking the attack herself and falling over, paralyzed.  Shoji’s unconscious body fell away from her as she hit the ground, and as the Lopunny reached out for him, the waiting Abra appeared next to him and vanished with the boy.

“Shoji’s secure!  Retreat!  Retreat!”  With their objective complete, Cyllene didn’t hesitate to issue the order to withdraw.  

The paralysis of a Pokémon’s move was temporary and not absolute, so they were still in serious danger.  As they ran through the trees back to the beach, she looked back to make sure the Lopunny wasn’t following, but instead she saw the gigantic Pokémon grasping at where Shoji had landed and looking around wildly as tears welled up in her eyes.  Then it let out a howling cry, loud enough to echo out to sea and bring the woods to a halt.  But it wasn’t a howl of anger, intimidation or warning.  It was haunting, emotional, wailing and primal.

S-She sounds so… crestfallen?

Jubilife Village, Galaxy Hall Infirmary

There was a distinct lack of generated warmth from the surface he was laying on when Shoji began to wake up.  Not only that, but what he was laying on was stiff and rough, nothing like the bedding Lopunny typically had him laying on when he wasn’t using her as his bed.  “Lopunny?  Where-?”

“Oh, you’re awake!  Don’t move too much, you’re still injured.”  From the side, for the first time in what felt like years, Shoji heard someone speak actual words to him.

Opening his eyes, he looked around to find himself in the infirmary of the Galaxy Hall, with the pretty, young nurse Pesselle coming over to look at him.  “Huh?  Wh-What happened?  Where’s Lopunny?”

“Still back in the Heartwood, I assume.  Don’t worry, Shoji, you’re safe now.”  Entering the room from the adjoining room, the blue-haired woman in charge of the day-to-day activities of the Galaxy Team had been waiting for him to wake up.  “However, I would like to hear how you ended up so far from the Floaro Gardens to begin with.”

Looking away in guilt, he knew what he had done was wrong.  Sneaking past the bridge and going into mostly unexplored territory, he had put his life at risk and was lucky that Lopunny is a far more docile and nurturing Pokémon than people say she is.  Gripping the blankets in his fists, he needed to tell her everything.  “I…  I just wanted to catch up to the Rift Traveler…”

While keeping things vague about how the Alpha Lopunny had been taking care of him and the ‘games’ she played with him, Shoji explained how he got to the Heartwood and why he had gone there.  It was embarrassing to admit that he had hurt himself but despite how the Galaxy Team generally talks about how scary and dangerous Pokémon can be, Cyllene accepted that the Lopunny and Buneary had been taking care of him surprisingly easily.

But after what the captain had seen during the fight to rescue him, it only made sense that the Alpha of the Heartwood cared for him.  She fought furiously to protect him because they had cut off her means of escape and likely thought they’d follow her back to their nest if she did flee.  Seeing the Pokémon fight with so much to consider, she had a new found respect for the gigantic Pokémon.

“Today, she was carrying me because I was trying to leave and come back.  I think she knew I was still too weak and was just looking out for me.”  After a few follow-up questions to his story, the final one was why he hadn’t been spotted earlier if he was with Lopunny the entire time.

Looking out the window to see the sky begin to darken, Cyllene had heard enough for now.  She still needed to report to Commander Kamado and with Shoji’s testimony she could finally close his missing persons case.  Standing up, she looked down at him with the same stern expression she usually wore.  “I’ll have to discuss your punishment with the Commander, but for now rest and heal up.”  Leaving the room through the door to her office, she stopped for a moment and looked back at him.  “And welcome back.”

Because of the distance, Shoji couldn’t be too sure, but it looked like her expression softened a bit for only a split second before she left.  Laying back down, Shoji looked around the room as the members of the various Corps began to prepare to go to sleep.  Left alone in the infirmary, it was quiet and still.  Only the sound of his own breathing broke the silence.

Was it always so quiet at night?  He wondered, closing his eyes and trying to go to sleep.  …and, cold?

The Heartwood

Laying in her bed, eyes puffy and more red than usual from spending most of the day crying, the Alpha Lopunny gently stroked where her human should be sleeping.

It wasn’t fair!  It didn’t make sense!  It wasn’t right!

Why did the humans come and take hers away from her?  She was taking good care of him.  She played with him, cleaned him, slept with him, fed him.  She didn’t do anything wrong and it felt good to so actively watch over another creature’s well being.  But most importantly, she knew that like her, he was happy!

The humans have taken dozens of her fluffle back to their burrow and not once has she gone to their home and taken any of them back by force.  And when the Stun Spore paralysis wore off, she wanted nothing more than to do just that; but she couldn’t.  She still had her responsibilities to the Buneary under her care, so she spent most of the afternoon lashing out at rock formations and boulders in the area she used to train in to master her moves.

However, if that’s how the humans want to play, then so be it.  It was typically after the Alpha Bibarel at the dam that would notify her that humans are crossing the fjord and entering the woods was a loud howl.  That was her signal to patrol a bit more actively for intruders, but since the humans weren’t destroying her woods, she would let it slide if she didn’t see them.

Not any more.

Humans weren’t allowed in her territory, and she’d make sure of that.

Jubilife Village, Galaxy Team Hall

After receiving proper medical care, Shoji’s recovery went smoothly and within two weeks he was receiving physiotherapy to regain the mobility and strength he had lost from laying still for so long.  However, both Anise and Pesselle were surprised by how quickly the boy had recovered from such grievous injuries.  Once they learned just how badly his bones had been fractured, he should have been bedridden for another month.  The younger Pesselle attributed it to Shoji’s youth, but the older, seasoned Anise said it was nothing short of a miracle.  While Shoji tried to suggest that the Oran Berries he had while in the forest may have helped, both quickly dismissed it since it had long since been proven that the mysterious healing effect of berries only work on Pokémon, not humans.

Whatever the reason, Shoji was just happy to be up and mobile again.  Especially after coming back to the village, being bedridden was excruciatingly boring and lonely.  As he returned to the infirmary after finishing his physiotherapy for the day though, he overheard a conversation from Cyllene’s office.

“...getting worse by the day, Ma’am.  We can barely even walk on the beach, let alone enter the woods anymore.”  The scout said.  “People are getting injured, that Pokémon is out of control.  A kick from a normal Lopunny is scary enough.  We’re lucky nobody’s died yet because of that Alpha!”

“Yes…  It seems like we are going to have to consider more drastic measures.  Not even the Diamond or Pearl Clans can approach there anymore.”  There was a bit of reluctance in her voice, but Cyllene was concerned that the matter wouldn’t be able to be resolved any other way.  If they couldn’t pacify the angered Pokémon peacefully…  “We have been waiting for both Adaman and Irida to approve an effort to subjugate the Alpha of the Heartwood, and it sounds like they are ready to.  We’re just lucky this isn’t one of their Lords or Ladies of the land.”

What!?  Th-They can't hurt Lopunny!?  Remembering how kind and gentle the large Pokémon was, Shoji couldn’t believe that she was attacking humans so relentlessly.  There had to be a mistake.  He couldn’t let them hurt her.  “U-Um… I have an idea!  One that won’t hurt her...”  He said, slightly limping into her office.  “But I’d need you to do two things for me.”

Turning to face the young boy, as much as she wanted to dismiss him off hand, the image of the Alpha in question desperately fighting while keeping him on her back without using him as a shield was still stuck in her head.  If there is a chance to resolve this without conflict, anything is worth a try.  Sighing, she nodded to him.  “Your foraging privileges are still suspended and you are not to leave the village without an escort.  If you can abide by these, I’ll see if we can accommodate your condition.  So, what is your plan?”

“Well… about that...”  Chuckling a bit, Shoji wanted to act fast.

The Heartwood

Laying in her burrow, she hadn’t heard the Alpha Bibarel call out that humans were coming for a couple days now.  Without something to direct her rage towards, Lopunny melancholically laid in her bedding curled up with what little of her human’s removed fur that was left behind.  Her sadness was keeping her from performing her regular duties and her rage took her out of her territory for short periods at a time, but thankfully her Buneary were able to take care of themselves currently.  There were no major problems that required her attention, and there was one Buneary in particular that was stepping up to protect the others.

She knew she was being a bad Alpha, but she missed her human.  Were the other humans being nice to him?  How were his injuries?

Was he being fed properly?  Actually, no.  She hoped he was feeding himself.  She didn’t want some human to feed her human.  That was her job.  Same went for grooming.  She cleaned him so carefully and lovingly, nobody else was allowed to, not even her other Buneary!

Was he staying warm at night?  Who was cuddling with him if not her and her fluffle?  She could tell there were a number of Buneary that missed sleeping with her human too.

But the most pressing worry she pondered was… did he miss her as much as she missed him?  He was trying to leave when the other humans showed up.  Did he not want to be with her anymore?  Was that why?  She didn’t want to think those smiles and blushing faces of his were a lie.  She knew he liked living with her.

Would she ever see him again?  Her cute, adorable, cuddly human?

Snapping her out of her thoughts, though, was the cry of the Alpha Bibarel!

Humans!  Coming to take more of what was hers!

Her anger quickly returned as she recalled the scene of her human vanishing before her eyes, unable to protect him… unable to keep him safe, she bolted up and bounded out of her burrow.

The humans should have learned by now, they are not welcome into her woods anymore.  She wouldn’t kill any of them, but she would kick them, and hard.  Quickly getting to the treeline though, she saw the humans just standing there, not approaching the woods like they were waiting for something.  She didn’t control the beach, the sand was Bibarel’s territory, and it was getting angry at her overstepping that rule so she could only wait for them to come to her.  But as soon as the three entered her woods, she’d ambush them, kicking the two bigger ones in red and the small one in brown with… blue fur on his head?

Squealing with glee and jumping high and long, she couldn’t believe her eyes.  It was her human!

“I… I don’t like this.”  Voicing her concerns as the woods in front of them suddenly went eerily quiet, one of the Security Corps members tasked with bringing Shoji to the Heartwood looked around nervously.  It felt like they were being watched.

“Thank you for bringing me here.”  Not sharing in the older woman’s concerns, the young boy had wanted to get closer to the woods, but neither of his escorts were willing to get any closer than what they had.  Where is she?

Sweat running down his brow, the other Security Corps member’s eye darted around looking for any movement at all.  He’s seen what the Alpha Lopunny is capable of, and hoped that she didn’t show up.  “How m-much longer-!?”

Without warning, a high-pitched, joyous squeal cut through the silence as a large body came crashing down right in front of them.  Both the Security Corps members fell back in fright as the Guardian of the Heartwood towered over them.  Grasping at Shoji’s sleeves to pull him away so they could run to safety, he was grabbed and lifted off the ground in an affectionate embrace.  They were shocked to see the aggressive, violent Pokémon so suddenly become gentle and nurturing as it ignored them and walked back towards the treeline with the boy.

Returning the warm, fluffy embrace, Shoji smiled happily.  Before they disappeared into the woods, he looked over Lopunny’s shoulder and waved to them.  “Thank you again, and don’t worry!  She won’t hurt me!”

He was back!  He was back, he was back!  The humans returned him to her, better than before because he was able to move his limbs and hug her back and pet her fur.  Were they only taking him so they could heal him?  Was there something she didn’t know about the human healing process that only they could do?  If so, she had to apologize for attacking and hurting all those other humans.  But the most important thing was that her human had come home!

As she brought the young boy back to the burrow, the Buneary that saw her with him followed them too, just as excited to see their human was back.  She laid him down in their bedding and laid around him, nuzzling and licking him.  It was a bit irritating that her fluffle was taking some of his attention away from her, but she couldn’t bring herself to chase them off so they could be alone.

It was the best day since he was taken from her, and all they did was lay and nap together.  There was no need to groom him, he smelt nice and clean, and he had food that he could chew himself.  She wanted to feed him the Oran Berry/Dazzling Honey mixture she knew he liked, but she could smell medicinal plants mixed into the food he brought and figured it was to help him heal better.

When night fell and it was time to sleep, she all but laid on top of him to maximize cuddling.  His face was under hers as she reluctantly made some space for a couple of complaining Buneary.  He was smiling, even as he fell asleep, his smile told her more than words could have.  He did miss her too!  Lightly licking his cheek, she was a bit worried to go to sleep.  After bringing him back home, the day was so perfect that if she woke up to find out this was all a dream, she wouldn’t be able to handle it.  It also felt too good to be true that the humans would just give him back to her.

But his warmth and scent, the sound of his rhythmic breathing and the springiness of his cheeks, these weren’t something she could imagine.  He had to be real.  And when she woke up, he’d really be there.  Loosening the detachable fur around his chest, she slipped one of her hands in to feel his heart beating steadily as she finally fell asleep.

And happily she was right!  Too anxious to sleep for too long, Lopunny woke up first and her blue-furred boy was still sleeping under her.  Apparently she had fully wrapped him up in her body, head tucked in under her chin, body pressed against her torso and her legs curled up to fully encase him, but she saw no need to change that.  Giggling softly to herself, she cuddled him a bit closer.  He really was back and they’d be together forever.

Eventually, the Buneary that had been performing some of her duties woke up and started to get the others to prepare for the day.  This woke her human up too, but that was fine.  Because it was a new day, that meant it was time to groom him, so she took off his brown fur and began to more thoroughly and slowly lick every part of his body.  She was even cleaning him before cleaning herself.  He blushed adorably and avoided eye contact as she cleaned him but didn’t resist at all, even lifting his arms so she could clean under them.

She could see his little genitalia become erect as she slowly made her way down his body, but spent more time on his nipples to watch it twitch with every lick.  She could smell it though, he hadn’t been able to clean it as well as she could.  The odor was thicker and more powerful than she remembered, it must have been filling the burrow because the other Buneary began sniffing the air and looked in their direction.  Before they could get too curious though, she brought it into her mouth and sealed her lips around the base.

Using her tongue she tasted the fluids leaking from his member, it was just as she remembered.  It carried a bit of the salty flavor that was to come, but first she needed to peel back the bit of skin covering the tip and properly clean him.  As she did though, the condensed, unwashed filth that had bit up filled her nose from the back of her throat and made her mind go blank.  She wasn’t supposed to go into heat again so soon, but she felt the warmth spike in her crotch.  The filth formed a paste-like substance that carried the familiar, pleasantly foul odor and taste, but much more intense and delicious.  She greedily sucked him clean and quivered in delight as her intensity had him shoot out a fresh batch of the delightful liquid as well.  Absentmindedly sitting up, in a haze from her sexual drive, Lopunny sat down as she stared at the ceiling, switching the boy’s juice around before swallowing.

But rather than her lust being satisfied with that, her breeding hole heated up more and she couldn’t help but squirm in place as something felt incredibly good under her.  Looking down as she subconsciously ground her hips against what was making her feel so good, Lopunny saw she was shoving her dripping hole into her human’s face… and he was licking her!  Emotionally and physically, she had never felt so good, that he’d finally ‘groom’ her too, she didn’t even try to stop him.  And he was so enthusiastic in his cleaning that she felt herself spread over a portion of his face and chin.  He was a bit clumsy and unfocused, but with a bit of guidance he got her pleasure to tip over and a deluge of her satisfaction sprayed all over his face.

If this was how their groomings were going to go from now on, she’d had to start with his groin since she now had to clean his face again, but she was okay with that.  He was still stiff and she was still wanting, so they could continue as the rest of her fluffle finished cleaning themselves, eating and heading out to frolic and play in the woods.

Once both she and her human were too tired to continue grooming each other, they rested up with a quick meal.  Again, she wanted to feed him herself, but he still had some more human food to eat.

After they ate, the gigantic Pokémon wanted to continue cuddling, or deal with the lingering heat in her delicate folds, but the young boy put his brown fur back on and was saying something to her.  Pointing to the entrance, shaking his head, making strange motions with his hands, he was trying to tell her something; and while she didn’t understand his words, she somehow knew that he was going to leave again.  He had to go back to the human burrow and live among them, he couldn’t stay out in the woods with her forever like she wanted.

But since he came back once, that would mean he could come back again, right?  She might have to stay in the woods and protect her fluffle, but he’d be able to come and spend a few days at a time with her… right?  Was that enough?  She didn’t want him to be gone for long or out of her sight.  If he stayed, she’d provide for him everything he could want.

Reaching out, she was going to embrace him, hold him and not let him go.  He’d understand, in time.  She was what was best for him, she knew it.  But, before her arms could wrap around him, he took her hands and pulled her along with him.  Was she mistaken?  Was he not leaving?  He held her hand firmly as she let him lead her out of the burrow and through the woods.  Did he want to show her something?  Though she was moody and moping before, she was still in the Heartwood before he came back.  If anything happened she could have still intervened, but as they got closer to the edge of the woods, of her territory she wondered where he was taking her.  It couldn’t be too far, he was still having difficulty walking properly, so if it was just for a bit she could leave the woods.

However, when they got to the treeline at the beach, Lopunny finally understood what he was doing.  The two other humans from before were still there, like they were expecting them.  Her human was trying to bring her back to the human burrow with him?

He did want to stay with her, and the human burrow could accommodate both humans and Pokémon unlike her woods could, so it was an easy solution.  But she had to stop herself as she was about to get to the sand.  She was still the Alpha of the Heartwood, but more than that, she was the one that protected her fluffle from threats.  Buneary are timid little things, and she took over when the old Alpha got too old to keep protecting them.  She promised her predecessor that she’d take care of them all.

The boy looked back at her with worry and confusion, tugging at her arm to get her to come with him.  He didn’t know the responsibility she had, he just wanted her to come with him.  Kneeling down, she pulled him in for another hug.  While this wasn’t what either of them wanted, she couldn’t abandon her Buneary so selfishly.  She’d just have to compromise on the boy being the human that visits them and not her human.

But, before she could release the boy, she felt something tap her on the thigh.  Looking down, she saw several Buneary there around her.  They must have seen and followed them.  One pointed back towards the woods and she saw the more responsible Buneary standing in front of the rest of the fluffle.  It told her that they’d be alright, that she had protected them enough and it would take care of the others.

Before she could even reply, the Buneary began to glow and dust flew up and swirled around it as it grew and changed.  With a confident cry, the Buneary appeared from the dust cloud not just as a Lopunny, but a mighty Alpha!

There was no need for two Alphas in the same place and as was the natural order, things had changed.  Or rather, they had been changing.  Was it since she found the boy in her woods and he injured himself to get away, since the bolts of light fell from the sky before that, or since the third group of humans appeared?  Day becomes night, night to day and the seasons repeat, but it’s never the same as it was the cycle before… only similar.

Her time as the fluffle’s day ended when she decided to take in her human and now that night had passed, it was a new day.  Not her day.  Picking up the young boy so he didn’t have to walk anymore, she wrapped him up in her ears and carried him on her back.  While the Heartwood didn’t need two Alphas to protect it, there were rules for one visiting.

Waving goodbye, Lopunny left with her human, and a few other Buneary that chose to follow them, back to their new burrow.  Their new home.

Outside Jubilife Village

“...and so, Momma came back to the village with me and we’ve been living together ever since.  But you’ve seen the houses in the village right?”  Explaining a much more condensed and kid friendly retelling of the event that changed his life, a young man knelt on the floor with his hands on a child’s shoulders.

“Yuh-huh.”  Nodding, the young girl with bright red hair looked up at the ceiling of their house, towering much higher than the houses of her friends.

“Well, the Captain promised me she’d have a house built so Momma could live comfortably in the village if I resolved a little problem.  But, seeing how Momma is so big and how scared everyone was of Pokémon at the time, we had to build it slightly outside of the village.”  Picking up the young girl as the gigantic, gentle Lopunny in an old, cream-colored apron came up behind them, he handed her over as it bent down and licked his cheek before motioning for him to leave.  Making sure his Security Corps uniform was on properly, he smiled and kissed her back on the cheek and chuckled.  “I know, you don’t have to rush me.”

As he went to the door, he looked back into his house as the Alpha Pokémon sat with their children and the other, normal-size Lopunny and Buneary that lived with them.  Even though she wore the Poké Ball around her neck proudly, he wasn’t happy when he was forced to ‘capture’ her to live in the village.  It had been a long, difficult road to get the villagers to openly accept Pokémon into their hearts and homes, but with the achievements of the Rift Traveler and his relationship with one that used to be so feared, such a scene was possible.

I don’t know if she understands what an anniversary really is, but I hope Lopunny will like the new apron I got for her.  Anthe did a fantastic job with the first one and the wedding dress.  While he might have been the first in Jubilife Village to marry a Pokémon, he wasn’t the only one and it was catching on.  Pokémon had become an integral part of life in Hisui.  Even if she couldn’t come out into the field with him anymore, he loved her more than anything and anyone and promised to take care of her no matter what.

Exiting his house, a younger Lopunny was ready to depart with him.  As he closed the door, the larger Lopunny smiled at him and licked her lips.  He might be all grown up now, but she was looking forward to ‘grooming’ him when he got back.

Heading out, he knew her heat cycle was approaching too, so he was in for a rough night despite her advancing age.  She was a powerful, responsible Alpha and is a caring, affectionate wife, but will always be that Pokémon that took care of me in the woods and raised me ever since… my Momma.