Moving foward.

A small gasp came from Artemis as he hit the ground of the forest. His tail flickered as he glared at the roots that were wrapped around one of his front legs. He growled as he slashed at the roots with his free paw, before finally getting back to his feet. The baby absol frowned, winching as he went on his way. He was covered with bruises from falling, as he was to small to keep himself from properly moving around the undergrowth that covered the forest floor. However, he wasn't completely sure where he was going, or even where he was. He stumbled a bit, shaking his head. He came to a stop, yawning. Tired. Yes, he was very tired. He sat down as he rubbed his head with his paw, his red eyes dim. He knew he should be sleep, but he was unsure of where to rest.

"Um, hello?"

A small call could be heard nearby as a charmander wandered alone through the large forest. She had never been here before, but wanted to look around, being that she was curious and she wanted to see if there was any place she could make her "secret base" for her friend and herself to live in, since they both lived alone anyways.
Unfortunately, she had gotten lost.
Sniffing the air, she stumbled forward, pausing as she heard the river nearby. She knew there was a river not far from one of the entrances of the forest, the one she had crossed to get over here using a fallen tree(she actually crossed two, but the first one she crossed has a bunch of rocks to jump on). She had been a little scared of falling in, but this forest was no place to be lost, either. It was the biggest wood in the region!
"Helloooo? Anyone there?" She called out once more.

Artemis lifted his head up in surprise as a voice reached his ears. He tiredly lurched forward to his paws and stumbled forwards, wondering who the voice belonged to. Part of him told him to stay where he was; that it could be a trapped but another part of him was driven by the wonder of who else could be in the forest. Hiding behind a bush, he poked his head though to get a good look at the speaker.

The first thing he noticed was the flame. He stumbled backwards, due to his first reaction to the fire being completely fear. Cowering deep in the bushes for a few seconds, he took a few deep breaths before pushing himself out and into the open. His red eyes fixed on the charmander as he cleared his throat. "W-Who are you?" he barked, digging his sharp claws into the ground.  The fire was still unsettling, but he told himself to remain calm over and over as he waited for a response.

The fire was probably why no one else was coming out. Fire in a forest as big as this one wasn't a good thing. Luckily, Nira wasn't one to start fights easily.
The fire-type turned around to see her calls had been answered. "Oh, hello!" She greeted happily. Suddenly she narrowed her eyes, studying the pokemon a moment before her smile returned. "Wow, I've never seen someone like you before!" She exclaimed, then remembered to introduce herself. "Oh and I'm Nira. I come all the way from the grasslands. It was...Kinda long of a trip, but I wanted to see this place. But now I've gone and gotten lost. What's your name?" The absol looked fairly younger than her, and looked scared. Nira tried to relax and look friendly, with a small, cute smile on her face that said she meant no harm.

Artemis took a small step backwards when the charmander turned to face him, but he took a deep breath. "A-And I never seen someone like you before." In fact, now that he thought about, he wasn't sure what she even was. He had been alone most of his life...He wasn't even completely sure what he was! Swallowing, he took a small step forward. "M-My name is Ar-Artemis." He wasn't completely sure why he was telling this stranger his name, but part of him felt slightly at easy.

Nira nodded, as if in approval of his words. He still seemed pretty scared, yet he told her his name. For someone his age, it was an accomplishment, and Nira respected that. "Nice to meet you, Artemis." She replied. Reminding herself of why she had bothered the young fellow, she glanced behind her at where the sound of the river was coming from. "Um, do you maybe know where the eastern river is?" She asked looking back at Artemis questioningly. For a moment she wondered if this pokemon had any family or friends, or was old enough to even know where much was here.

Artemis paused as he looked around, before shaking his sadly. "N-No," he sad in a low voice, before sitting down. He dragged his claw along the ground, giving her a sheepish look. "I-I've kinda been wandering around for the last few days. N-Not sure where I am going, o-or where I even am." He paused, taking a deep breath. He wasn't going to show any weakness, he was going to be strong. "O-Of course I am alright thought, I-I can take care of myself!" Well, that was a big lie. He was covered with bruises and some cuts, but he still tried to look tough in front of the older charmander.

Nira looked a little disappointed. "That's too bad. Like I said, before I'm lost. Guess I'm not the only one, though." She sighed, then perked up as Artemis began speaking again. She tipped her head in confusion. "Okay." She accepted bluntly, though looked him over anyways. He sure had a lot of injuries. Looking at him now, he seemed a little out-of-place here. She wasn't one to judge, but a long-furred, bright-white pokemon didn't seem to fit in a thick forest. Wouldn't his fur get tangled? His colors would stand out quite a bit, too...Except the navy-blue. That could blend with the shadows, she supposed.
Nira's eyes widened suddenly, as if getting an idea. "Hey, were you born here?" She asked out of random.

"Well..." Artemis paused, a frown appearing on his face. "Y-Yea, I suppose I was. Why?" The question was seeming random, but it did cause the absol to pause and think. What else was there besides trees? Could be there more outside of the forest, was that was Nira here was getting at? He did sadly note that he hadn't met anybody else that looked like him, but maybe that was due to the fact that his kind didn't live here. Could that be it? He however, said nothing more as he just stared at Nira.

Nira looked thoughtful. "Well, you seem like someone who would fair much better in maybe a colder place. You said you didn't really know where you were, and honestly I've never seen one of your kind where I come from, or on the way here." She explained, then realized she might offend him. "N-not that you wouldn't live here, I was just saying that...I don't know, maybe if we both found our way out of here, we could find more of your kind?" Nira corrected herself quickly. She herself had never seen another of her own species, though until now hadn't bothered much with it. Though, seeing this little guy, it brought her a small pang of loneliness. Was there a place nearby where her own kind lived in groups or so? It would be something she'd want to find out some day.

As Nira talked, Artemis couched down, thinking deeply about what she was saying. Perhapes she was right; he didn't belong in a place like this...But, at the finals words she said, the absol's head popped up. Find...More of his kind? "Y-You would do that?" he said in a soft tone, before getting to his paws once again. "I-I mean...Help me find more of...my kind?" He grew silent, before slowly taking a few steps forward toward the charmander, even thought he was still uneasy about the flame.

Nira blinked, realizing what she had just offered. There was no going back on that now, seeing how he looked so hopeful. She gulped quietly but nodded. Besides, maybe she'd find more of her own kind that way...Yeah! That helped lighten the sudden responsibility. "Sure!" She answered cheerfully, raising a paw/hand/claw-thing in the air. "Why not? I love adventure, and maybe on the way we'll meet some friends--" she cut off, remembering why she had come here in the first place. The charmander suddenly seemed lost in thought once more.

A soft smile appeared on Artemis' face when she agreed, but it disappeared when Nira cut off. His eyes narrowed in thought as he recalled also why Nira was here. She was lost. He took a few small steps forward, before gently sniffing her forehead. He backed up a little, before putting his nose to the ground. This nose had to be good for something, right? He paused as he wandered off a bit, before lifting his head to glance at her. "I-I think I might b-be able to follow your scent back..." He paused, before tilting his head. "I-I mean you want to get out of here, right?"

Nira perked up as Artemis spoke to her. "Yeah, I'm done here. I mostly just got curious and wanted to look around." She responded and nodded to him. "Are you sure you're ready? I mean it's a big place out there." The charmander asked, seeing as he still seemed really nervous. She wanted to reassure him though; perhaps she could be like a guardian to him...Hey, he could be like part of her family! Like with her friend Shock! Maybe Artemis would like to meet him? Well, she'd focus on that later.
"It's not like I'll let anyone hurt you, though!" Nira giggled happily.

The Eevee was worried. He had found some materials for his and Nira's secret base but she had yet to return. He decided she might have just been slower than him so he just waited around where they had met. Though, after awhile he started to get upset. Was she okay? With a huff the pokemon sniffed the air lightly and picked up a rather smoky scent. His nose twitched at the smell as he took it in. Quickly, his little paws scurried as he followed the scent, running through the grasslands and eventually ending up at a forest. A big, dark, and scary one. Shock's ears flattened as he looked up at the towering trees. A slight gulp was all he did in response before he shook his head. I have to find Nira, she's my friend! With that thought he scampered into the forest, shouting at the top of his lungs. "Nira! Nira! Nira, where are you?" The Eevee said in hope he would find her. He felt like it was rather hopeless, she could be anywhere! His pace slowed just as he saw a light. Her tail! No matter how much it took he darted towards her and jumped through a bush that had been in his way. "Nira! I was looking all over for you! Are you alright? I got worried when you didn't return." The pokemon uttered quickly as he took a breath in between every word. Not even noticing the little pokemon next to Nira.

Artemis smiled, nodding happily as he turned to lead Nira off, when out of nowhere a Pokemon jumped from the bushes. The sudden appearance of the Eevee caused Artemis to stumble backward in surprise and without a single thought, he dove behind Nira, not even caring about her tail. He shook a bit, still trying to recover from the shock, his red eyes flicking up toward the orange charmander as he couched down behind her. "W-Who is he?" he whispered. It was clear that the two knew each other, but that fact didn't make Artemis move from his hiding spot. He was going to stay here until he knew he was safe for sure.

Nira's eyes widened as she whipped around at the sound of a familiar voice, just in time to see Shock himself leap through the bushes and stop in front of them, panting. "Shock!~" She exclaimed and smiled happily, glad to see her friend; but she quieted down when she realized Artemis had ducked down and hid behind her. She glanced back at the absol. "It's okay, Artemis. This is my friend, Shock. He's really nice and fun to be around!" She reassured her newest friend gently, then looked back at Shock. "Sorry Shock, I got lost. I made a new friend, though! His name is Artemis, and he's a little lost here as well." Nira explained.

"What, where is he?" The Eevee said rather confused as he tilted his head. His brown eyes wandered around the area as he looked around for this new friend. He wanted to meet this pokemon, maybe they would join them and live with them in their secret base! His large ears lifted as he thought about it and got rather excited. His paws trembled as he walked up to Nira and circled around her, finally seeing a small white pokemon. "Hey there!" The Eevee said with a wide smile.

Artemis calmed down a bit when Nira spoke, but when he saw Shock circle around the Charmander, he let out a soft squeak as he stumbled backwards a step. He stared at the Eevee, before gently taking a step forward. "H-Hello," he manged to whisper, giving Shock a soft smile. He glanced uneasily at Nira, waiting for her to say something more.

Nira huffed quietly in amusement. "He's a little shy, I think." She added, so hopefully Shock wouldn't try to play-fight with him suddenly or something. You never really knew with that guy. "You know, it so happens that he's kinda alone too out here; it doesn't look like his species live around here. Can he come with us?" She asked.

Shock laughed lightly as he backed away slightly before sitting down. His ears perked up when Nira mentioned he was alone. "Of course he can come with us! We can be a trio and all live in our secret base as best buddies." The Eevee said in happiness as he thought about the new fun they would have, it seemed more and more friendly pokemon just kept showing up.

Artemis paused as he stirred from behind Nira, his red eyes flickering as he stared at Shock. His blade-like tail wagged a bit, a soft smile appearing on his face.  "Re-Really?" He stepped out from behind the Charmander, his eyes turning toward Nira.  "He-Here that? I'm gonna live with ya! Li-Like a family!" Where that last part came from, he wasn't completely sure, but he liked the idea. Yes, he would finally have a family.

Nira nodded and smiled. "That's what we have been calling it! A family!" She agreed happily, hopping a little from excitement. Suddenly she paused. There was still another small problem at hand:
"Eh, anyone know the way out?"

Shock smiled as he opened his mouth to speak just before Nira asked if anyone knew the way out. "Oh crap."

A soft frown appeared on Artemis' face as he looked around. Way out? He sure if he thought about one...He paused as he turned his head, faintly aware of the sound of rushing water. A river! Hadn't Nira said she had been looking for one. "Follow me!" he suddenly barked, bounding toward the river. He would get them out of here yet!