Intermission 4- A Show For A Spirit

Intermission 4 is done!

If you enjoy the art- consider reading the story that goes along with it- i'd greatly appreciate it!
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Mavis had hurried back to help the others, her battle with the strange monster still fresh in her mind. It had been a couple of days and she had gotten the chance to recover, the empty eyes seemed to pry unwanted memories from her mind...

She paused and looked around, tracking down a familiar scent and poking her head into a tent. "Peaches? Is that you?"

 

Peach, uncharacteristically seemed to slowly turn her head at the familiar voice. “M-Mavis…”her voice was low, after what had happened she didn’t even get up. “I-I didn’t know you were… Y-you were here…” Her eyes drooped, it was easy to tell how exhausted the other fox was.

 

Her eyes widened and she hurried in, steadily approaching the fox. She approached from the front so that she didn't have to move to see her, the Vulpix knowing how timid the Fennekin could be and not wanting to startle her.

"Goodness gracious Peaches, you look miserable!" She said, looking her over. "What in the world happened?!"

 

Peach bit her lip and darted her eyes around the small space in the tent. “It’s…” Her eyes seemed to flash with uncertainty. “A-a long story…” She stretched her front legs, and sat up. She glanced at the bag Fenn had packed for her, she should of never come…

 

“Long-l-long story short I’m under th-the guil-guilds watch…” She laughed nervously- it definitely wasn’t funny- but what else could she do?

 

"Oh dear, did you get really hurt or something?" She asked, looking her over. "I mean, it would explain the bandages on your face. What were you doing to get hurt?"

 

She hummed and absentmindedly pawed at her facial wound- obviously she was ignoring the question. Peach then reached for her pack- she saw the Espurr fumbling around with it before she had left. “I-I don’t know- I-I can’t remember much…” She opened the bag, all without use of Psychic, it had really hurt her last time- she must have been exhausted. There was the warding charm, the bag of purifying tablets and… A note?

 

She held it up to read, definitely not aloud- her stutter would just make it harder to understand. Look where the river and mountains meet. Those seeking a ruin where no light is needed should explore here. But They should be cautious of the water: it holds danger before Their first destination. Within, electricity dances, always a threat but never an opponent. Step carefully, but do not slow down. Godspeed to those who risk their lives, and goodwill to those who do not.

 

She bet this was something Holly was making her do to make the fact she was under arrest a bit more bareable… She mumbled in dissatisfaction, obviously not very amused with it.

 

Mavis didn't pry, knowing that Peach could be rather secretive at times. There was a pause as she looked over her shoulder, reading the note and letting her tails thump on the ground excitedly.

Stars were in her eyes as she spoke, hardly able to control her excitement, "A-Are you going to go?"

 

She looked up at the starry eyed Pokemon, the paper slightly creased in her paws grip. In all honesty she didn’t want to do anything- after what had happened she was just going to lay down and try to sleep for the weeks leading up to the encounter with the witch Gilgamarsh…

 

“Mn,” She hummed, like she always did- She felt as if the guild was watching her, and this was some sort of test. “I-I guess… I will…” She shoved the note back in her carrying bag. Peach briefly thought about what her and Reef had to go through with the last temple- she hoped she wouldn’t have to deal with something so dangerous this time… “W-would you… Would you want t-to come?” it was an after thought- she didn’t really want to go alone…

 

"R-Really you want ME to come along?!" She cried excitedly before lowering her voice as not to frighten her. "Thank you so much! I promise I won't let you down!"

 

Peach’s face was unreadable for a moment- there were many things she could have said. For some reason the nastier stuff stuck in her head, she was disturbed by it-very disturbed.

 

“I-I just- I don’t w-want to go alone…” Was what she finally forced out her mouth. While grabbing her bag and slinging it over her back, she didn’t even bother removing the warding charm or anything else from it- it’d be too much of a hassle without the use of psychic.

 

She looked over to the exit but paused- she wondered if she would be forced back into the tent if she left- her body trembled slightly at the thought. “Let’s…. L-let’s go…” Was what she said before taking some uneven steps out of the tent.

 

"I can understand, the unknown can be real spooky sometimes!" She giggled as they walked along. She paused, "Do you want me to take the bag? You, uh, you don't seem very stable at the moment - you shouldn't be carrying stuff when you're like this."

 

“I’m fine.” She said rather forcefully, she wasn’t one to ask for help most of the time- with certain things of course… She just shook the sleepiness from her system- or at least tried to. “Mff-“ She just stepped out-

 

She felt as though everyone was staring at her- causing her body to shiver, she walked faster… Though to where she didn’t really know.

 

“… This is all who got the note? Very odd, maybe not enough to plan such a big expedition-“ A Carnivine spoke clearly, the group he was talking about consisted of mostly fighting types or ‘strong’ looking individuals. “Is there really even a risk of injury?” A Mienshao brought up.

 

“The spirit is… A very weird individual- they like watching fights, I’ve heard you can’t even get deeper in the shrine without fighting someone- I’d say there IS quite a risk.” Seymour, the Carnivine paced and explained. He seemed to know a lot- and it sounded like he was talking about the note she got? She looked to Mavis seemingly for an opinion.

 

She bit her lip, ears flatting and casting her gaze down. She hadn't mean to upset Peach, perhaps she was prying too much again? It was a terrible habit of her's, one she needed to rid herself of.

She listened and paused, "Sounds like your note, maybe he can give us directions to the temple! I-I mean, if you still want to go...you look exhausted...."

 

She was exhausted, but the more she thought about sleeping the more terrified she got of the nightmares she’d been having as of late- and that had probably gotten her into this mess to begin with… “I-I’m fine really…” She spoke- her voice a little shakier than before. “L-let’s just-“ She walked closer to the group.

 

“Now my guess is we ought to leave pretty soon- we don’t want it to be dark once we reach the temple, some nasty sorts hang around there after dar- Oh?” Peach handed him the note silently- she didn’t want to wait too long and have him take off. “U-uhm I-I got the note too…” Her face was burning up, though she was facing away from the crowed she felt each stare burn into her back. “You? Hum interesting…” The Carnivine then eyed the Vulpix before saying; “Well I guess you two are our last minutes. We’ve got no time to waste so go go! Up the path!” He hurried the group up the hill- Peach almost tumbling over onto her face.

 

Mavis listened and paused, flicking her tails and narrowing her eyes as she waited Peach. "Look, can you at least lean on me? I don't like seeing you like this, it isn't healthy..."

She pressed against her gently, concern in her eyes. As tired as the Vulpix was as well, there was no way that she was about to hold out on the Fennekin. "Let me do most of the work, okay?"

 

Peach looked toward her, she seemed uncomfortable taking help from someone, but she knew Mavis well enough to know she wouldn’t drop it. “Ok…” was all she responded with.

 

The trail twisted and winded and it was when she looked back was when she noticed how long the path actually was. There was something on the back of her mind- something she wanted to share with one of the only Pokemon- well she guessed everyone would know eventually- but the one SHE decided to share her witch background with. Should she- share her nightmares as well? The answer was fresh in her mind but there were multiple factors as to why she hadn’t just blurted out.

 

She grinned, showing off abnormally sharp teeth. Mavis was happy, the Fennekin hadn't rejected her like she had expected her to.

"H-Hey, have you told anyone else about...y'know...?" She asked and paused, furrowing her brows. "If anyone is bullying you, just tell me and I'll make sure they stop right away!"

 

“Wh-what!?” She was caught off guard by her acquaintances comment. “I- I haven’t been bullied- n-not at all I-I swear!” She assured the other fox Pokemon. “I- I’ve been- oh gosh-“ She looked around at the crowed, most of them seemed to be minding their own business or talking amongst themselves. “I’ve- um- I-I’ve been… Having problems sleeping…”

 

Why would you tell anyone- no one needed to know it doesn’t matter, everyone’s out to get you remember?

 

She shook her head of the thought and continued walking, listening to Seymour’s voice from afar.

 

"Oh good, I was worried for a- Problems sleeping?!" She cried. "How are you gonna do your very best when you can't sleep! As soon as this is done, I'm gonna make you a special tea that my Auntie Vi made me when I first lived with them! Man, I had these awful nightmares - the worst."

She looked at her, "D-Do you want to talk about them at all? Sometimes talking can help."

 

Peach laughed nervously- she’s tried tea but she didn’t tell Mavis- not wanting to hurt her feelings. “I-I um- I would but- I-I can’t seem t-to remember when- when I wake up…” Whenever she woke up all she remembered was colors and noise- nothing that sounded that bad- but she’d always wake up sweating and panting… Thinking about it made her body shake a bit.

 

"That's the worst," She sighed and noticed her shivering. She warmed up her body, a perk of being a fire type. "Are you cold? If you are, we can go back."

 

“N-no…” They were in a jungle, she was quite warm actually- the only reason she wasn’t more hot was from her fire typing. She looked away before bumping into the behind of someone else in the group.

 

“Watch for the drop! We are reaching the entrance!” Drop? What drop- she tumbled forward face first and made it past even Seymour. She scrunched up before reciting the first spell she had since… Whatever had happen in the caverns. Slowly she floated down the steep path, though she really managed to hit her shoulder quite hard… not to mention the amount of people staring at her- falling down a hill and then defying gravity… She started tearing up, even though she tried her best to keep it together.

 

"Alright," She said but still kept close and yelped as she fell. "PEACH!"

Her eyes widened as Peach went tumbling, letting out a cry and immediately leaping after her. She tumbled past her, scrambling to her paws and looking her over. "Are you okay?! Oh goodness, that was quite a fall..."

 

“Y-Yeah I’m-“

 

“The hell kinda stunt was that!? I said watch your step!” Seymour yelled at the two foxes. There was also hatred in his eyes as he glared at Peach. Without warning he wrapped his leaf-hand around the injured shoulder.

 

With a yelp and a kick she managed to hit the Carnivine square in the mouth- he was unimpressed. “Fine I won’t look at it.” He rubbed the spot on his face Peach had just kicked. “I’m not waiting, we’re going on ahead, join us whenever.”

 

As he left, she could have sworn he spoke “witch.” Under his breath.

 

Mavis glared at him, lashing her tails and looking over Peach. "Ignore him, I'll teach him a lesson later. Is your shoulder alright? Is there anything you need from me? Water? Food? Bandages?"

 

Peach Hummed and shook her head-she could just- it could be dealt with later- Or at least she thought. When she tried to get up she couldn’t- her shoulder throbbed with pain. “N-maybe…” Was a good idea? She did pull off the light weight spell- with no problems, but the last thing she wanted to risk was fainting in the middle of the jungle.

 

“Oh life giver breathe unto me and take away my pain.” She strung together. The slight tingling in her shoulder told her it was working- though her throat felt scratchy and she had to hold back a cough.

"So cool..." She whispered. She had seen Meiyin do a few spells like that and even though she had seen it before, it still amazed her as though she had never seen it before. "I bet if you joined me, we could do a really cool magic show together!"

 

Getting up on steadier legs, she looked at Mavis with a worried look. “M-magic show? I-I don-don’t think that would end we-well…” Or was she too scared to do it?

 

She looked ahead of the path and saw no one- in such little time Seymour and the group had made it quite the ways down the twisted path. Peach hummed and decided to just- go her own way… Was that really a good idea?

 

She took her paw on and off the path- it almost looked like she was dancing… Badly…

 

"I think you would be great!" She laughed, trying to lighten the mood before frowning and pressing against her. "Lean against me, you took a nasty spill there. Trust me, I'm stronger than I look! I won't let you fall!"

 

She blinked, her face was red by now she bet. “Nooo- n-no no-“Definitely not, no way. But why? “P-poke- Pokemon don’t e-even like magic we… We should just go…” She finally decided to stick to the trail and wander down it- her pace seemed to be a little quicker than it once was.

 

"Are you sure? Everyone I know loves magic!" She sang, wagging her tails. "I mean, it can be really pretty if you know what you're doing! I mean, I'm only a stage magician so don't take my word for it."

 

She sniffed the air, "We're getting close to the temple I think."

 

“Y-you can smell it?” She asked the other fox quizzically- it sounded very weird to her- maybe she just didn’t have a strong nose? “What-w-what does it smell like?..” She questioned without thinking- while carefully making her way down the path.

 

She paused and yelped, looking away. "Y-Yeah, my mom...she taught me how to track stuff..."

It wasn't her finest moment of her life, especially when she had learned that eating other 'Mon wasn't acceptable. Despite being fully reformed, her sharp teeth was a reminder of what she had done.

"It's, um, old? It's hard to describe but it sticks out from the other scents of the forest," She tried to explain.

 

“Your mom…” She seemed to get lost in thought at just the word- thinking of her own. “Oh ah- th-then lead the way!” She tried to sound enthusiastic though it was hard to do on such little sleep.

 

"Y-yeah, she taught me a lot when she was alive." Mavis sighed and shook her head, "I-I don't dwell on her too much...makes me sad, y'know?"

She lead her over the hill, revealing the group standing in front of the temple.

 

“oh… W-well- I’m sorry…” She felt rather bad now- thinking about hers- though she hadn’t been seen since… Then.

 

By the time they had made it to the spot it seemed the rest of the group had been through something, sporting bruises and black eyes- but also strange objects they must of gotten for completing whatever quest they were faced with. They were obviously late…

 

A Shelgon in the crowed seemed to be aware of their arrival and approached the two- it was to tell if they were even injured under their head armor. “You two… Watch out- that spirit loves to see others fight.” They said before mingling back into the crowed. What spirit? Peach began biting her lip and turning toward her fox companion. “Do you… U-uh-“ though she never finished her thought.

 

"Oh goodness, everyone looks awful!" She yelped and tipped her head at the Shelgon. "Spirit? Fight?!"

She turned to Peach, eyes filled with concern. "You can't fight in this state! Oh goodness...I suppose I'll have to keep to my word and do the work, huh?"

 

Peach hummed nervously. “I’m sure… Th-there’s another way…” She looked up at the rather big entrance, the spark of electricity- she could feel it in her fur, it was similar to the vibrations she felt while casting magic at times.

 

Though in this situation it made her tense- she brought a paw up to her mouth as if it would stop the ‘spark’ feeling in her mouth. The longer she stared, the deeper the shrine seemed to go on for- but she couldn’t just sit here and do nothing-!

 

She was the one to take the first steps within the electrifying place, the walls seemed to glow blue with the energy flowing through the walls- and the faint sound of drums could be heard. The first room was rather empty, having nothing but fancy carvings on the walls and foliage decorations- did someone take care of this place?

 

She yelped, trotting on in after Peach and looking around. "There might be a Priest or Priestess around here who takes care of the shrine, it looks really nice. Meiyin says we need to leave an offering if we visit a shrine, what should we leave?"

 

Now there was a good question- Peach didn’t have much in the way of belongings that’s for sure. “I don’t- I-I-don’t know…” There was always the warding charm but did she really want to give something like that away? In all honesty she really liked wearing it- even if it wasn’t so much warding things away as it was just a nice fashion accessory.

 

When they reached the end of the first room is when things started to heat up- or should she say get darker? There was indeed a light source, but it seemed a lot darker in this room- there were also heavy looking blocks with designs and parts of the path missing. But the drumming still remained.

 

And the spark and electricity made her throat sore and fur frizz. “Maybe- M-maybe this wasn’t such a good idea I-I-“ Really? Was she losing her back bone at a time like this?

 

“Halt.” A booming voice rang, it was then she saw all the goodies in the next room- but didn’t have time to really look. “You cannot leave my temple, not without appeasing me first.”

 

A ball of light darted around in the air before taking shape- the Pokemon was foreign- but resembled the markings on the walls and blocks of the temple.

 

"Don't worry, we'll figure out something." She promised and froze as a wariness washed over her, the electricity in the air putting her on edge. She let out a growl as the voice sounded out, whipping her head around and looking for the source.

She yelped as the Pokemon appeared but gathered her courage, standing defensively in front of Peach. "Appease you...? How do we do that?"

 

The unrecognizable Pokemon seemed to look through the two of them. “Fight-“ The voice echoed. “Only the strongest shall enter the final room.”

 

Nooo nope- can’t- won’t do that. Peach was having a silent panic attack in her head. She didn’t need to do this- it was optional- she should go back to the tent and just rest. Yeah…. Yeah that was a good idea. She turned to run to be greeted with a wall of blue electricity. She shrieked-

 

Her eyes widened, "This isn't a fair fight! I mean-" She whipped around to see what made her companion shriek like that, "P-Peach, are you okay?! What happened?!"

 

She stumbled back from the wall- no escape- she hated being trapped. She shrunk herself into a ball- the spirit seemed to chuckle a bit. “This ought to be quick.”

 

Peach turned to Mavis with fear. “I-I can’t fight- I can’t f-fight for no good reason!”

 

Her eyes widened and she approached Peach carefully, "Then don't. Remember what I said before? About us putting on a show together? This is it but with an audience of one, do you understand what I'm saying?”

 

She hummed and nodded in agreement- she did remember the conversation, but just thinking about it caused her chest to flutter with anxiety. “You don-I-I don’t-“ Do you actually want to fight her? “I… I can try…” She seemed unsure, she bit her lip and crawled a little closer to the Vulpix.

 

"I won't hurt you, I would never hurt you." She promised softly, slowly leading her out into the center before turning to the spirit. "You want a fight? You'll get a fight!"

 

“Oh?” The spirit flickered as if it had been waiting for a while.

 

Peach looked at Mavis slowly raising her paw. “Um-“ She went to punch her companion but it was more like a pat on the cheek. “T-Take this?” She wasn’t good at this…

 

Mavis winked before reeling back over dramatically, adding in a few twirls for a bit of performance flare. "You fiend! Striking while I wasn't expecting it...very clever..."

"However...can you stand against...MY SECRET TECHNIQUE!" She cried, creating a ball of psychic power and fire before releasing it, creating a lovely scene of power and flames.

 

It was a moment before she realised she wasn’t hit. “Wh-oh-!” She fell over dramatically as she could- she felt so stupid her face was red with embarrassment. “Agh- y-you’ve bested me…” was this right?

 

The spirit was quiet- it was hard to tell if it was paying attention or not. It was only until it busted into laughter that it was obvious they were.

 

“Ah y-you-“ Maybe that wasn’t enough? She got up pretending to have troubles- before readying a small flame as an attack. Next to Mavis’ display it was quite sad…

 

But before it could hit the spirit yelled “Stop!”they were out of breath and still chuckling. “That was no fight- but goodness I haven’t laughed that much in ages! Very well done!”

 

The poor fox was very confused now.

 

Mavis grinned and padded towards Peach, "Nice work partner! I think we managed to do it!" She turned to the spirit, "So can we both go on in?"

 

The spirit waved in the air. “I suppose- I’ve seen quite the number of battles today- I guess I’ve been spoiled!” It joked- then the wall of electricity disappeared. “Leave or take- either is fine.” The spirit said the orb seemed to pass through Peach and leave the temple. The buzzing she had felt since she entered the temple – she coughed and electricity sparked outward. “Wh-“ She blinked in confusion- this was new. “I-um-“ She stuck out her paw as if she was about to cast a spell, again sparks came flying out. “Th-this is… I-it’s new…”

 

Mavis didn't seem to notice, letting out a cry of delight as she snatched a kite. "Peaches, look! Isn't this awesome? It's so sturdy, I bet it could actually lift me up if we tried it out!"

She paused and yelped, "S-Sorry! I got so exciting that I forgot to ask if you were okay? That was pretty fun but still intense, eh?"

 

“I- I think?” She wasn’t quite sure herself- last time she checked Fennekin couldn’t use electric attacks.”I- it’s very pretty…” Though there was no way she was going up on that thing- if it was small she would wear it as a hair clip or something.

 

In the next second she left the temple as quick as she could- she wanted out- even though everything ended ok. The spark of whatever had happened to her made her jittery- almost hyper. The only one waiting outside was Seymour- he looked to be quite tired- Peach could understand.

 

"Good, now come on!" She chimed and followed her out. She growled as she saw Seymour, remembering how he had treated Peach.

 

“Whoa no need for that growling now miss.” Seymour responded- he waved it off. “I’ve just been waiting to make sure you two come out alright.” He looked over the two of them- though it looked quite sinister. “… You two look better than I thought you would- everyone had a run in with an ornery spirit, made them all fight eachother. So I expected… Well…” he brought a leafy hand up to stroke his chin. “At least SOME scratches or bruises…” Seymour waited for an answer from the Vulpix.

 

"Some of us have a bit of wit, we got past the spirit without fighting - put on a little show!" She said smugly, looking over at Peach proudly. "I'm sure there isn't a problem with that, yes?"

 

Seymour sensed the hostility toward him and blinked in surprised. “… I suppose there isn’t no-“ Seymour agreed. “Alright well if you’re done I should take you back to the camp yes?”

 

“Ah u-um- yes pl-please…” Peach practically whispered in response, head hung low, she felt bad Mavis was acting this way for her. The Carnivine looked towards Peach.” You aren’t gonna fall again are you? It’d be a hassle but I can help you up if you need.” He offered- the Fennekin was caught off guard, though she surely didn’t want to take a tumble like that again- she wasn’t one for physical contact. “I-I’m fine- it’s fine-“ She spoke nervously- it seemed Seymour was trying to make it up for his rash behaviour toward her before.

 

She straightened up as Seymour offered her friend help, giving a nod of approval. "Come on Peaches, you must be absolutely exhausted from all that commotion! C'mon, I bet I can whip up a nice cup of tea while you relax!"

 

“No-nono I-I’m fine-“ She assured the both of them. She wouldn’t take the help, she could do it. With a swift breath in she started up the steep hill on her own. “I-I can do it…”

 

“Boy-“ Seymour scratched his head. “Quite headstrong- you don’t look like it.” He sighed. “Well I can’t force you to take my help so I will just lead the way again-“ Seymour made his way up there with ease and waited at the top- seeing the girl struggle was a little hard for someone who was supposed to be a protector of the Pokemon.

 

Mavis walked behind her, playing it off as if she was also exhausted from the events but trying to catch Peach in case she fell again. She glanced over at Seymour, raising a brow but not saying anything.

 

The trip back was exhausting- and the tension between Seymour and Mavis, though not as bad as it was at first, remained. It was when the camp came into view that Peach knew she had pushed herself too hard- her vision blurring at the edges and uncontrollably shaking. “Miss?” Seymour questioned- right before the poor girl passed out infront of both him and Mavis.

 

“Oy!” He tried to catch her before she hit the ground but wasn’t quick enough. Though now he was checking for a pulse and other signs she was still living. “I knew I should of carried her back!” He glowered, quite annoyed with the situation at hand. He turned to Mavis. “You! Are you part of her team? Where is it that you’re staying!”

 

"PEACH!" She cried, racing to her side and looking her over. She looked at Seymour, tears in her eyes. "N-No but I'm her friend, carry her and I'll lead you to where her tent is!"

She gestured for him to follow, picking out the tent where she had found Peach in.

 

“I can understand wanting to do things yourself but… “ He looked at Mavis and then placed the exhausted Fennekin back on the bed within the small tent. “Never push yourself that hard- it’s not good for you or others…”There was a pause- he stood at the entrance.

 

“I hope your friend is OK…” He left the two alone after that.

 

Mavis nodded and watched him go before turning to Peach and preparing an herbal tea for her. She left it in a cup near the Fennekin before disappearing out into the night to let her rest.

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Mavis is owned by Dear-Deerr