Family, Plus One

Darwin tentatively leaned over around the partition that divided the showers from the bedroom as he looked in Seb's direction, where she lay face-up on the bed. With no real cover to avoid her wrath if he said something wrong, he was still anxious about what he was about to suggest to his partner.

"Um... Seb?" he asked.

"Hm." Seb didn't move, instead continuing to stare listlessly at the ceiling above her.

Darwin braced himself and continued talking. "That family get-together I told you about yesterday... have you decided if you wanna come?"

A day earlier (at Berry's recommendation), Darwin had suggested that Seb join him for a small family reunion that his parents and siblings were having, an annual event where each of his blood ties could see how the others had grown and learn what new events were going on in their lives. Having already asked about being given leave to visit his loved ones to Nuri and Wren, he had been given the day off, along with his whole team "if they wished it".

Seb's response had been simply "I'll think about it".

Since they had been ambushed by the Gigas Hands, Darwin felt like she had grown more distant and unsociable with him. He knew it was his own fault, and remembering what had happened on the mountain was still tormenting him, but he wanted more than ever for things to go back to the way they were, and explaining to her what had happened back in his shop when Ilsa tried to recruit him hadn't done him any good. If there was any chance for him to fix this, he needed help from a third party, and he figured his parents and siblings were his best bet, since they loved him but they also knew what to tell him if he made a mistake.

And boy was keeping the Gigas Hands a secret a big mistake.

But still, it would help him a lot if Seb came along. Sure, his parents might know what he should say, but that didn't mean he would really remember how to say it right. And as things were right now, Seb might need to hear out advice from someone else before she would listen to him. It all depended on if she agreed to join someone she hated to meet his family...

"Yes, I'll go," Seb said quietly. "You were right; I haven't met your family yet, and it's not very polite to go on working with you without saying hello to them at least once."

"Okay, that's good then." Darwin normally would have leaped with excitement at the chance to introduce his friend to his beloved family, but again, the changed atmosphere in the home they shared was crushing his cheerfulness, and he was still wary of doing something to bother her and make her want nothing more to do with him.

"I'll go get my things ready," he continued. "Let me know when you're all set."

The bed shuffled quietly as Seb climbed out of it, and her pawsteps drew near as she circled behind him and moved toward the shower. "Will we be there long?" she asked.

"Probably not. When we all gather up, it's usually only for a few hours. The grandfolks have a long trip home, and last I heard, Janice and Fae have jobs practically round-the clock."

He lifted his bag off the hook where it hung on the wall and turned around to survey his surroundings. The bag wasn't very large, and as a result he was only able to carry a few things in it, not counting the smallest items he could store in his fur. When his eyes fell on the few trinkets they had gathered over the course of their time in the Ardent Cinders, he was reminded of how he loved to share the stories of how he had gotten the parts to build his creations. He cheered up, if only a little bit, thinking about what he could share with his family.

"We won't be needing to bring food with us, then."

Darwin looked up in Seb's direction as he began to pack the rock-climbing cleats in his bag, catching a glimpse of her braiding her hair. "Ah, not except for the trip. Mom always insists on fixing a meal for everyone, and there are always leftovers afterward, so there'll be plenty to go around."

"That's good." Seb nodded decisively, and remained quiet until Darwin had gotten a small supply of seeds and fruits squared away where they could fit in the bag without being damaged by the spiked shoes.

"Okay, I'm ready," she said at last.

Darwin slung his backpack over his shoulder and nodded. "Okay, great!" he descended the stairs, pointing toward the door and the path that lay beyond. "So, the way to mom and dad's place is out close to the edge of Rift City; they like the countryside, which means a couple hours of walking. Shouldn't be much further than the trip up to Helmstok's farm, and we don't have to go uphill this time."

"Hm. It's an open road?"

"Yeah." Darwin paused with his paw on the door, and turned back to look Seb in the eye. She never asked questions for the sake of small talk, so she had to have some reason to ask about the road. Her eyes didn't give away much, but the way she gripped the hilt of the bone at her waist spoke for her.

At first, Darwin thought about bringing Jaina and Berry along with them. Loath as he was to bring the Nidoran (who he still didn't trust) along, they probably would have been safer in larger numbers. Still, he didn't feel comfortable bringing the two along, as Seb alone would be an unannounced visitor. The two of them should be all right staying in Neve town without them; with Nuri's help and Jaina's promise to keep an eye on Berry after Darwin had gotten the chance to talk to her in private, he trusted that they would be all right.

Normally, Darwin would have smiled and told her that even if there were any bandits on the road, she'd be able to make quick work of them. But given what they'd run into just a few days ago, he knew that wouldn't be much encouragement at all. He turned back to the door and pushed it open. "Lucky for me, the road isn't used too often - it's all dirt and grass, and not much stone. So I've never had to worry about traffic. Even mom has walked down that way a few times, and she hates going out."

"Well, you lead and I'll follow."

~*~*~*

After having made their way to the home of the Claydol who had agreed to accompany them to Rift City via teleportation, they made their goodbyes when the helpful stranger transported them to the edge of the city, promising to meet them in that spot the next morning, then turned and floated off into the city to carry out their errands, leaving them to travel along the road laid out before them.

The trip out into the countryside was been long and quiet. Seb wasn't uncomfortable with it, as she preferred to have the silence to contemplate and focus every few minutes to detect the auras around her. Given their encounter with the Gigas Hands, she refused to allow herself to be caught off-guard again.

"With or without their weapons, a warrior is prepared to fight whenever a threat may appear," as Sensei would tell her.

She noticed that Darwin was giving off an air of discomfort, probably wanting something to talk about, but this was a greater concern.

No such threat ever appeared, however. Instead they reached what appeared to be a small farm after passing by only a single weedle some miles back. The vast countryside was a far cry from the closely-packed community of the city, and it reminded her of much of her training rites.

The farm, and the log-house building near it, grew much larger in scope the closer they got to it. There wasn't much to make it stand out from the dirt surrounding it; even the fields weren't particularly in bloom today, with few greens to be seen sprouting up. However, it had clearly been in place for a long time, as the wooden fence had been slightly worn and even creaked a bit as Darwin pulled the gate open and ushered her through.

There wasn't a soul in sight, however. Darwin looked a little perplexed as well, as he turned his head in each direction. "Huh," he commented. "Usually everyone's out here around this time. I mean, it's not hot enough for them to want to stay inside..."

A low outcry rose up from the back of the house. "Oof! Hey, no fair! Come here you!"

The noise drew Darwin and Seb around the corner, where they found a small cloud of dirt being kicked up in the air as a small army of Mawiles and Bunearys dogpiled and wrestled with one another. Darwin stamped his feet. "Hey, no way! They started without me!"

He quickly pulled off his headband and his bag, and handed them to Seb. "Here, hold these, will you?" he asked. Seb accepted the items with her mouth hanging slightly open, stunned by the spectacle, and even more so as Darwin whooped and leapt into the fray, tackling another of the youths.

Her confusion only deepened as she watched the scene continue to unfold. Darwin and the others in the group that she assumed to be his siblings fought rather forcefully, and she could catch glimpses of hair and ears being pulled, some smaller Pokémon being put into headlocks, and others getting headbutted. Overall, a majority of them were simply hit comepletely by accident, being elbowed in the face or kicked in the back by someone not even paying attention to them.

Seeing Darwin behave like this was truly a sight she had never expected. He had always claimed that he didn't want to fight unless it was absolutely necessary, and that he hoped someday he would be able to use his tools to get him out of whatever dangerous situation he might come across. This didn't demonstrate that to her at all.

A small Buneary poked his head out from the bottom of the pile of bodies, and squawked as a Mawile's big jaws chomped on his ear. Another Buneary kicked him in the back of the head as they made a grab for Darwin, smashing the younger brother's face into the dirt and causing him to spit up blood.

Seb bristled and leaped forward. "Hey! Stop that, enough!" she yelled. She stopped with just enough distance to keep herself from being caught up in the tangle of bodies, and focused on using her strength to separate everyone in the brawl one by one, all the while doing her best to be heard over the noise.

When she had finally managed to uncover the injured boy, albeit with odd stares from the others, he sat up and spat again to clear his mouth. "What'dja do that for?" he asked as he looked up at her.

"You were..." Seb paused, taken aback by his question. He certainly didn't seem grateful for the help. "What?"

"Who's the girl, Darby?" a Mawile with messy hair asked.

Darwin walked up and patted her on the back. "Everyone, I'd like you to meet Seb. You remember her, right? We're partners with the Ardent Cinders now!"

His announcement was met with mild applause from the others. Seb remained silent, only growing more confused as Darwin's little brother stood up and winced, rubbing his mouth, then spit out a tooth into his paws. "Oh, hey, I gotta tell mom about this!" he said excitedly.

"Darwin, is that you?"

All heads turned toward the house. The back door was open now, held in place by a pristine Lopunny with gentle eyes and a hopeful smile. By her side was a somewhat stocky Mawile with a small tufted beard growing from under his chin.

"Hi mom! Hey dad!" Darwin sprang toward them with a few hops and jumped into his mother's arms, where she hugged him tightly and then got down on her knees, setting him down to face his father as well.

"It's good to see you again, dear!"

"Yes, and you've grown a bit since last time!" his father laughed and rubbed his hair roughly. "I bet you've got a good few stories to share with us!"

Darwin's mother looked up and locked eyes with Seb. "Oh, and who is this?" she asked.

"That's Seb!" Darwin waved in her direction, beaming as widely as he usually did.

"Oh, this is your friend!" the Lopunny stood up and hopped out of the house, stopping in front of Seb and nearly curtsying as she reached her arms out and took Seb's paws in her own. "It's so nice to finally meet you, dear!"

"Um... it's nice to meet you, too..." Seb glanced at Darwin and frowned, still trying to make sense of what was happening. Everything was moving so fast; she had gone from breaking up a fight that nobody seemed concerned about, to being excitedly welcomed to the home by Pokémon whose names she didn't even know!

Darwin didn't notice the look, however, as he was quietly talking to his father. When he finished, the Mawile nodded and faced the crowd gathered up. "All right, everyone, let's come inside and finish preparing lunch. Janice and George, you two set the table. Fae, you remember how to fix the salad. Come on now, inside! Michael, be sure to clean yourself up before lunch. And say thank you to Seb, all right?"

"But what for?" The youngest Buneary asked as the others milled into the house.

"Seb, you're welcome to make yourself at home," their father continued, turning his attention to her, "but it would likely be for the best if you stayed outside for now. The house gets crowded quickly when everyone's moving around!" He rubbed his chin thoughtfully. "Hmm... why don't you introduce yourself to everyone while lunch is being prepared!"

"Oh, but I was going to finish fixing the meal myself, dear...!" Darwin's mother released Seb's paws and turned toward her husband.

"You've already put together so much of the meal, sweet!" her concerns were waved aside casually. "Besides, you've wanted to meet Seb for some time; here's the perfect opportunity while the kids and I finish the work for you. Be off your feet for a while!"

"Well, if you insist..."

"I do, sweet, I certainly do." The Mawile caught one of his daughters gently by the arm and murmured to her, then turned and headed back into the house, presumably toward the kitchen. "Lunch will be ready soon! Just relax in the meantime, ladies!"

The door closed, leaving only Seb, Michael, and his mother outside. Seb hadn't even realized it, but Darwin had gone into the house along with everyone else.

This family is much different than I expected, she thought. She didn't want to assume they were a rude bunch, as the adults seemed very well-mannered, but she was still trying to make sense of their customs.

"I suppose we can talk amongst ourselves in the meantime," the Lopunny commented. She paced over to a nearby wood-carved chair and seated herself. "Would you mind telling us a little bit about yourself, Seb? Darwin has shared a few stories with us, but I like to speak with a 'mon in person. It feels a bit more neighborly, if that makes sense."

Despite them hardly being neighbors, Seb respected the idea of getting acquainted with Darwin's family through more than just hearsay... it was, after all, the reason she had agreed to come. Though, she felt impolite standing there, and looked around for somewhere to sit down.

"Mommy, my tooth fell out!" Michael announced proudly, hopping up and down at his mother's feet. She leaned over and held his paws in hers, examining his prize. "Oh, I hope you didn't do this on purpose..." she said.

"Nuh-uh. Tanya just kicked me. I'm gonna get her good next time!"

Seb winced at that; hearing anyone talk about revenge bothered her, especially after all the mental training she had gone through with Sensei to grow into as fine a warrior as she could be, but she held her tongue, deciding that it wasn't her place to raise Darwin's siblings for his mother.

The Lopunny sighed. "Oh dear, having all of you come here and wrestle is going to worry me bald. Well, you keep hold of it for now, dear, and tonight the Tooth Fairy may come with a present for you!" She patted him down gently. "Mind your father, now. You need to get yourself cleaned up."

"Okay, mom."

Seb smiled at the mention of the Tooth Fairy. Michael, as young as he was, kept young and innocent to a lot of the world. ...Which only made her wonder all the more about the fighting she had just witnessed. She seated herself on an overturned log nearby, straightening out the fur around her legs to be proper. Michael, meanwhile, sat down right in the dirt and brushed at the fur around his legs.

"If you don't mind," she began, "I actually have a few questions of my own. Darwin didn't tell me much about his family, or at least not anything that made much sense. In fact, I haven't gotten to learn anyone's names yet."

"Oh, goodness. It's just like him to forget to share names...!" the Lopunny shook her head with a helpless smile. "Well, my name is Natalie, but you can just call me Mrs. Reeds. And this is Michael, my youngest."

"Hi!" Michael waved at her before returning to cleaning the dirt off of himself.

"Well, now I can honestly say it's nice to meet you." Seb nodded politely, but moved on to her question quickly. "I'm having trouble understanding: why did everyone get into a fight out here? And Darwin... of all the 'mons I've met-" which, admittedly, was not a lot- "-why would he be so excited to join in?"

"Oh, that's the thing that confused you? I understand now; Darwin did mention that you were an only child." Mrs. Reeds put her paws together in her lap. "Well, it's somewhat of a custom in our family for the children to fight with each other, to build up an endurance for when they've grown up and made homes for themselves. Heavens forbid they ever find themselves in a situation where they're attacked by a dangerous Pokémon, of course!"

Seb tilted her head, still confused. Clearly this was going to take a bit of explaining for her to wrap her head around the concept.

~*~*~*

Darwin had been seated in the living room since his dad had snuck him into the house. Somehow, all he had needed to hear was the opening statement of "I need advice; I think Seb hates me right now" to decide exactly how to handle the situation. But, he had been waiting for a little while already, and yet dad was still in the kitchen, organizing and driving everyone in their tasks.

He barely noticed his sister, Louise, leave the dining room and sit down next to him. "What's up, Darbs?" she asked.

"Huh?" Darwin shifted his attention from their dad to Louise herself. The Mawile's scarlet eyes stared into his with pretty obvious worry - she was never great at masking her emotions. "Uh, nothing's wrong, Lulu. I'm just waiting for lunch is all."

"Uh-huh." Louise didn't sound convinced at all. "Dad sent me over to talk to you. Even if he didn't, you're grabbing your paws. You never do that unless you've got something on your mind."

Darwin glanced back into the kitchen to find their dad watching him. The older Mawile gestured, waving an arm at him to start talking, and then turned his back on them and called out an order to George, who was working with the vegetables for the salad.

"Oh." Darwin said simply. He wasn't sure if it was the best idea for him to talk with Louise about the situation; she was arguably the most emotional of his siblings, and had a knack for letting her feelings about something affect her thinking. He was hoping to get an unbiased opinion, which he knew dad could do...

But then again, if dad had decided, without bias, that Louise could help him, then he may as well try to get advice from her. He sighed and leaned back into the sofa. "I hurt Seb a couple days ago. Really bad. And I don't know how I can make it up to her."

"Oh, no..." Louise scooted closer to him, and her giant black jaws pressed their way between him and the cushions, then wrapped around him from the other side. "Come on, tell me all about it. I'll help you fix it."

~*~*~*

Even after a little bit of talking, Seb still couldn't understand the life Darwin's siblings led with each other out here in the countryside. For the most part, the topics had changed around, going from wrestling, to farming, to what Michael might want to become when he grew older. Seb had practically given up, and listened for a while as Mrs. Reeds talked about how she and her husband, Luga, had met.

As she finished, Mrs. Reeds turned her attention to her son. "What about you, Michael? Was there anything you wanted to ask Seb about?"

"You looked kinda mad at Darwin today," Michael commented. "Did he say something to make you mad?"

"That wasn't what I meant...!" Mrs. Reeds began. "Dearest, it's not right to pry."

"What? That's the only question I wanted to ask!"

Seb sighed. Announcing to criminals that he was keeping them a secret so that he could hide behind me and the Cinders to save his skin? "It's all right," she said. "I don't mind." It took her a moment to figure out how she could explain the situation to a child, and she opted for the simplest answer. "Yes, he certainly did."

"Really?" Mrs. Reeds sat up straight. "I'm terribly sorry; I'll have to talk with him later. Darwin's a bit of a free spirit, and that gets him into trouble... though he's often said you knew that."

"Just don't be too hard on him," the young Buneary spoke up. "He's a dork, but he tries so hard to be nice. Sometimes it backfires on him."

"Yes..." Gazing off into the distance, Seb's mind drifted to memories of her earliest encounters with Darwin, and then switched to her most recent memories of how his outgoing attitude had bothered others.

She shook her head. "Let's not talk too much about Darwin right now. The last thing I need is an excuse to get into a fight with him in front of his family."

"Oh, yeah, that's something I could ask. Why did you wanna break us up?" Michael had set to work scrubbing dirt out of his ears, a task which seemed to take a bit of effort. "We do that all the time."

"I was told that, but I'm just trying to understand why you'd want to hurt each other all the time."

"It's not about hurting each other!" Michael exclaimed. "I'd never want to see any of them get hurt! It's more like... Uh, what did dad call it? He said something about 'endo'... 'entrance'... something like that."

" 'Endurance'," Mrs. Reeds offered.

"Yeah, that's it!" Michael nodded as he switched his attention to the opposite ear. "Basically we're fighting 'cause we want to get tougher for when we go out in the real world. I mean, I get that not everybody's gonna be as nice as mom and dad and the family are, so we all hafta be ready for when something bad happens."

As his mother had already said, of course. The logic just didn't make much sense to her.

"It's true," Mrs. Reeds added with a nod, embarrassment plain on her face. "When I was the children's age, I certainly wasn't as gentle as I am now. In fact a few of my daughters seem to take after me very closely."

Pokémon certainly did change as they grew older... It was a concept that could surprise her in some cases and yet be completely expected in others. Still, imagining Darwin's kind and gentle mother in a scuffle was difficult.

"But, you always lose." Seb turned her attention to Michael as she tossed her head, feeling like her own hair was out of place the more she watched Michael fooling with his ears. "Maybe you're not suited for fighting. Doesn't it bother you that your brothers and sisters are always beating you?"

"Nah, it's just another day." Michael waved aside the potential troubles without a second thought. "B'sides, if they didn't beat me, I'd never get better at wrestling! If that ever happens, anyway."

In spite of herself, Seb began to recall yet another of Sensei's mysterious proverbs: "The way of the warrior is ever-changing; sometimes it is fate that leads to a new path, sometimes it is guidance on a path already walked. But make no mistake, child; the sword does not shape its holder."

Parts of that quote still didn't make sense to her, but she was beginning to see the first part in a new light. Michael wasn't stuck in an endless loop of failure, even though it seemed that way to her. The truth was that he was slowly growing and learning, and one day might even surpass his siblings. At the same time, they too were improving with each clustered battle.

Still, she was right back to the Reeds family's thought process confuse her. "You're saying it's only 'possible' you can be stronger than the others. Don't you ever think about what it would be like if you can outmatch them?"

"I dunno what that word means," Michael answered with a shrug. "But if you're talking about beating 'em all every time... nah, that sounds boring. I could never win every time we fight, even if I did magically get really strong. 'Cuz George doesn't always win either, and he's stronger than any of us. I don't think I could ever be the best, so I just work on doing as good as I can do on my own."

"Seeking perfection is the goal of amateurs. A true warrior knows their weaknesses and their strengths, and accepts both. Not every battle can be won."

Seb felt incredible shame wash over her. That was one of Sensei's most important lessons, one that he drilled into his students regularly. And yet here she was, being unhappy with the fact that she had been overpowered by just one Pokémon, and a highly evolved and powerful one, at that.

"Hey, are you okay? You look sad."

Returning to herself, Seb looked up. "Yes, I'm all right," she answered. "I just remembered something that a friend told me. I'm..." she paused to pick through her words. "I'm a little bit sad that I've treated Darwin the way I have lately, now that I think about it."

"Well, you can always talk to him about it," Michael said with a shrug. "I don't get why people think keeping secrets is a good thing."

Seb pushed off of the log and got to her feet, smiling at Michael's simple, childlike wisdom. "Thank you, Michael," she said. "I appreciated being able to talk with you!" she added, waving to Mrs. Reeds.

"Sure." Michael shrugged again as he continued to clean himself.

"It was lovely getting to talk with you, too!" Mrs. Reeds waved back. "We'll join you at the table in a bit!"

~*~*~*

Telling the whole story had taken a little longer than Darwin had expected. He wasn't sure if he could have chopped it down a little shorter, but it felt surprisingly good to lay out all the nasty details of the Gigas Hands' involvement with him and what exactly they had done to hurt his friend a few days ago. Louise had listened intently and silently the whole time.

"...and that was when he hit her with a dual chop, and she stopped moving." He wrenched his paws in frustration. "I was so mad, and so scared... I like Seb a lot, and there I was watching Edge beat her up just because of me. I didn't want to lose her..."

"You like this girl and you still haven't said anything to her?" Louise asked, astonished.

"I didn't... what?" Darwin looked up at her, stunned by what part of the story she had decided to focus on. "What does that have to do with me making things up to her?"

"Come on, answer the question. Have you told her how you feel, or what?"

Darwin shrugged. "I thought she could tell from how much I hug her all the time..."

"Darb," said Louise, her voice flatlining. "You do that to everyone."

"Oh." Although it was rare, Darwin found himself at a loss for words.

"You've gotta take initiative, little brother!" Louise put a hand on his shoulder and squeezed gently. "If you expect to get anywhere with Seb, then you have to start by telling her the truth. Whether or not she feels the same way, she deserves to know what's making you tick. Especially if the two of you are going to be counting on each other for dangerous missions."

Darwin wilted noticeably, his ears drooping almost past his waist. "So... you're saying I have to go tell her how I feel right now?"

"NO!" His sister's exclamation made him jump out of his fur. "Arceus, no! Darwin, you just broke this girl's heart! You really think she's going to appreciate it if you do a 180 out of nowhere and tell her you love her?"

Darwin groaned and pounded the back of his head against the sofa cushions. "So what should I do, then?"

"You have to tell her exactly what you told me - bar that love part."

"Huh?"

"Darwin, the whole reason you brought her is because you want us to help fix things up for you. But that's not how this is gonna work! I get that you're scared she won't listen to you, but think about it; the only time you tried to explain the situation to her, she was bleeding out in the snow! You really think she wouldn't be grumpy enough to blame you for how much pain she was in?"

"Thanks, Lulu," Darwin grunted sarcastically. "That really helps me feel better."

"It's the truth, Darbs," Louise answered. "Look, the Hands beating her up because she didn't know about them was your fault, yeah. But until you explain to her why you thought keeping them a secret was going to help her, you're never going to get her trust back. And she'll probably say that it's still not a good reason for you to have kept them a secret, but the whole point of you two being in a guild together is knowing that there are no secrets. You two have to trust each other with your lives, and Edge proved that you're still not there yet."

Darwin shook his head. "I don't think you get it. Not telling her is probably why she survived up until then."

"It's not about surviving, Darwin, it's about living. The crops growing here on the farm are surviving, but you, and me, and Seb, we all have brains. We all have hearts. We live by following our dreams and thinking about how we can do better. What you did was try to stop Seb from following her beliefs by lying to her. What you should've done is tell her the truth, but also tell her why you didn't want to tell her about it."

Darwin scratched his head. It... kind of made sense. "So that's what I have to tell her now?"

"If you ever want to make things right, yeah, that's where you have to start."

"Okay." Darwin climbed down off of the sofa. "I'll do it, then."

"Go on, little brother," Louise shooed him away. "You win her back!"

Darwin made his way to the back door, and in spite of the noise going on in the kitchen and dining room, he was still able to make out his sister's long sigh and her voice whispering "young love..."

He rolled his eyes and reached up to grab the doorknob and pull the door open.

~*~*~*

As the door opened, Seb felt some resistance on the opposite side and flinched. Had she accidentally bumped someone on the other side? This was the exact reason she hated doors; it was too easy to hurt someone else without even realizing it. She appreciated that they offered much more security than a simple curtain or partition would, but they could hardly resist a force palm or flamethrower, let alone the outright strength of many Pokémon...

"Um... Seb, you okay?"

She flinched once more as she realized that her annoyed brooding had spread to her face, and she had begun glowering at the Buneary on the opposite side of the door - Darwin himself.

"Is this a bad time?" her partner asked meekly.

"No..." Seb shook her her slightly as she assumed a straight face. "No, actually I was just coming inside to ask if I could talk with you in private."

"Oh." Darwin shrugged. "Same here. Uh, there's the bench on the side of the house we could sit on. Here, follow me..."

Darwin took several small hops down the wooden steps leading into the house and guided her past his mother and brother to the far side, where a single wooden bench sat against the cabin. He sat down quietly, and she joined him in equal silence.

"Darwin..."

"Seb-"

She cut herself off as she realized he was beginning to say something, but Darwin reacted the same way. There was an awkward pause as she gestured for him to go on.

"It's about the Gigas Hands. I know I messed up, and it's important that I tell you about everything now... why I tried to keep it a secret."

"I needed to talk about that, too." Seb looked down at her paws, turning them over and grasping at each digit. She couldn't remember the last time she had been so ashamed of her behavior.

"You're not still mad at me... are you?" Darwin's eyes were big, round, and filled with sadness as he looked up at her.

Seb sighed and shook her head. "No, Darwin, I'm not mad at you. Not badly, anyway. I just wish you had told me the truth from the beginning."

Darwin nodded meekly. "I know. It's just... I was scared. I still am."

"Scared?" Seb asked. "You know you can trust me!"

"Not like that." Darwin shook his head, feeling remorse bubbling up inside himself. "I know you care about me, and I care about you too. There was just so much to think about... You could have refused to let me join you. You could have decided you didn't want anything to do with me after doing business with those guys, or you might have ran off to fight them all by yourself, and I would never see you again." He shuffled his paws together uncomfortably. "I was scared that they would come for me eventually, yeah, but more than that, I was scared for you." He braced himself and spoke rapidly, hurriedly getting the next words out before he decided not to speak at all. "I didn't want to see you get hurt for my mistake! I love you too much to ever risk getting you involved with dangerous 'mons!"

Seb was silent. Even now, he was terrified to look up and see how Seb would react; he knew all too well that she hated to have her strength called into question, and even though he was giving her the truth that she wanted, this could destroy their fragile friendship just as much as the Gigas Hands could.

Seb rushed forward at him, and Darwin instinctively flinched, trying to brace himself for a force palm or a clobbering from her sword. But nothing hurt him; instead, Seb's arms wrapped over his shoulders and her paws pressed into his back.

"...Seb?" he asked hesitantly.

"I'm sorry, too, Darwin..." Seb let out the words with absolute sorrow. "I've been so prideful all this time. It hurt to know that you were hiding the Gigas Hands from me, but more than that, I was angry that I lost the fight with Edge. I let his words get to me... and because of that I blamed you and pushed you away."

Darwin was stunned. He reached up hesitantly and patted his friend on the back. "It's okay... It really was my fault that you had to fight him in the first place."

"I guess we're both fools, then," Seb chuckled weakly.

"Yeah..."

They held the embrace in silence for a moment while Darwin tried to think of something else to say. "Usually this would be the part where you say we'll be ready next time," he commented.

"Yes... but I think that would be foolish of me. What I will say is... whatever happens next, we'll know that we have each other at our backs. Anything else, we can only do our best."

"That sounds like a plan."

They stayed there for a while, she wasn't sure quite how long, before Mrs. Reeds appeared around the corner and called them in for lunch. As they were seated at the dining room table, and Darwin laughed and exchanged stories with his siblings, uncles, aunts and grandparents - eventually leading to Seb joining in - he noticed that, for the first time in the years he had known her, she was smiling for the entire meal.

That day was one that he hoped to remember for a long time.