"There she is! Get her!"

"Where?!"

"Right ahead of you!"

Red Velvet squeaked in terror as the Team Rocket grunts' lights came closer. She continued to pelt into the dark forest, yelping as her bare feet touched sharp pebbles and rocks. Her long, dirty red hair was flowing behind her. Her black gown was ripped into rags, but it was still possible for someone to notice the big red R on it.

"Red Velvet!" A female grunt shrieked behind her, making goose bumps rise on her arms. "Get back here! You're uncle will be very cross with all of us if you don't come back now!"

But the little girl ignored them all and leapt over a fallen tree. She could hear the grunts sending out their pokemon behind her. The roars of the grunts' pokemon echoed behind her, making Red Velvet cringe.

Mu, Alpha, Rho, Gamma, Epsilon, Tau, where are you?! She thought desperately, looking wildly around her.

She then tripped over a tree root and fell on her back. Her leg gave a sickening crack as it broke. Red Velvet wailed and began to cry into her hands.

"There's the little runt!"

Rough hands grabbed her by the shoulders and forced her to her feet. The grunts and pokemon surrounded her, making it impossible for her to flee.

"Please let me go!" She wailed as the grunt threw her over his shoulder. "I don't want to go back!"

"Silence!" barked a male grunt, glaring sharply at her.

Red Velvet cried harder as the grunts began to drag her back. Her Pokémon seemed to have abandoned her. What happened to Mu, Alpha, Rho, Gamma, Epsilon, and Tau?

Then a loud shrieking noise surrounded them as pink and white lights lit up the forest. The grunts and Pokémon yelled and howled in fright around her. The grunt holding Red Velvet let go of her and ran away from the lights while screaming. Red Velvet fell to the ground with a light thud as the grunts ran for cover. A warm, pink aura surrounded her as the grunts vanished. She grinned weakly as she was lifted slowly off the ground.

"That was brilliant, Rho, Epsilon," she rasped, beaming at the two Unowns.

"Why thank you!" came Rho's response.

"You alright?" asked Epsilon with concern.

"I'm not sure... I-I think my leg is broken...but I guess either than that I feel better than ever"

Rho, Epsilon, and their brothers were all Unowns. Though they were genderless, the six Unowns let Red Velvet refer to them as boys. They had been her guardians for almost a year.

"Let's get out of here," squeaked Epsilon as the howls of the grunts' pokemon echoed around distantly. "They may get smart and come back!"

With their two auras combined, Rho and Epsilon used their levitation abilities to support Red Velvet through the trees. They made sure she didn't hit any tree branches or bushes to hurt her further.

They soon reached a small clearing with a pond at its center. The water sparkled magically as the Unowns set Red Velvet down gently on a pile of leaves. She curled up into a ball and hugged her knees. Rho and Epsilon covered her with leaves and floated on either side of her.

"Where are the others?" She asked after a few minutes.

"They'll be here anytime now, don't worry," Rho told her soothingly.

Red Velvet nodded and turned over. She kept running her fingers down her back. She couldn't figure out what had happened to warrant Team Rocket's change in behavior. She didn't know why Team Rocket suddenly used her as a guinea pig. They always experimented on smaller things, but that had changed what felt like years ago. That was why she left, after all.

She then pulled a locket out from her gown pocket and opened it. On one side was a picture of a couple, holding hands and smiling up at her. The woman had long red hair and silver eyes, while her husband had shaggy black hair and blue eyes. The other side had a picture of a little girl holding a baby boy in her arms, a boy with long red hair standing behind her.

Her family.

The tears felt like lava on her skin. She let out a small sob and pushed the locket against her chest. She just wanted her family back...

Something snapped behind them. Rho and Epsilon suddenly perked up, their eyes fixed on the place where the noise came from.

Then four Unowns came zooming through the trees. Mu, Alpha, Gamma, and Tau were squeaking and moving swiftly around the area. The two Unowns squeaked happily as they were reunited with their brothers. But Red Velvet wasn't watching the reunion of the Unowns.

A large, blue, stag-like creature stepped into the clearing, looking curiously around at the girl and the Unowns. Its antlers glowed and had different colored jewels attached to it. The stag looked down at Red Velvet with narrow eyes. She suppressed a shudder as it stood right in front of her.

"What's your name, little one?" The stag asked quietly. The stag's voice wasn't a male's but a female's, though it sounded closest to a woman's. It sounded concerned yet caring.

Red Velvet didn't answer, for she was gaping at the large Pokémon. She looked at her Unowns, who made gestures of assurance. She then answered quietly, "I don't want to say..."

"Then what do you call yourself?"

"I'm... I'm Red Velvet."

"That's a lovely name."

The corner of Red Velvet's mouth twitched. She could hear the Unowns whispering rapidly to each other.

"How did you guys find Xerneas?" demanded Epsilon.

"We didn't find her, she found us." Alpha replied.

"What does she want?" asked Rho.

"Dunno," said Tau.

"She wanted to meet RV," explained Gamma.

"We couldn't say no to a Pokémon like that!" squeaked Mu.

But Red Velvet wasn't listening. Xerneas laid next to her and moved aside the leaves over her broken leg. She winced as the stag prodded it curiously. After a few moments, Xerneas looked around to see the six Unowns.

"Can one of you boys be a dear and find some silk?" Xerneas requested, her voice sounding more feminine than ever.

"I will!" Tau squeaked immediately, zooming back toward the tree line.

"No, I'm the oldest!" Mu protested, chasing after his brother.

Red Velvet giggled as all the Unowns gave squeaks and squeals of protest. All of them were racing into the trees to find silk for Xerneas.

"Your friends seem a little...over excited." commented Xerneas, watching the Unowns in amusement.

"That's how they usually are," giggled Red Velvet. "Especially around female pokemon."

"I see..."

Xerneas then stood up, and Red Velvet thought she was going to leave. But the stag picked at a piece of moss on a rock next to the pond. She detached it from the rock and dipped it into the water.

"What are you doing here?" Red Velvet suddenly demanded, trying not to sound rude.

"What do you mean?"

"Well, you're supposed to be in Kalos. All the legends say that you're from Kalos. This is Kanto."

"I'm passing through."

"Why?"

Xerneas didn't answer. The black and blue pokemon began brushing the damp moss against the little girl's bleeding arm. She winced sharply and jerked her arm away.

"Don't worry, it will only take a moment," Xerneas said soothingly.

Red Velvet bit her lip as Xerneas continued to dab at her bleeding cuts. She noticed that the stag's eyes kept darting to look at her eyes.

"Your eyes," Xerneas suddenly started, straightening up and looking into Red Velvet's eyes. "They're different colors."

"Yeah, they are."

"How did it happen?"

"Well..."

Red Velvet started pulling tufts of grass out of the ground. Her face turned slightly pink, but she ignored it.

"My mother's side of the family had silver eyes, and my father's side of the family had blue eyes." She finally told her. "So one of my eyes is blue and the other is silver. I don't know why they ended up like this. My mom said I was special."

Xerneas continued to watch her curiously.

"Where is your family?" The stag suddenly asked.

Red Velvet bit her lip. She didn't like talking about her family. It made her cry.

"My parents died, from a car wreak," she croaked finally. "I was separated from my brother after that, and my older cousin went missing when I was little."

"Who is your guardian then?"

"The Unowns, mainly. My uncle is..."

The girl glared at the ground, trying to think of a word that fit him best.

"My uncle is mean- no, he's evil!" she finally spat. "He hurts people and Pokémon, all for money! Cutting of Slowpokes' tails, and other nasty stuff!  He made me come join Team Rocket after my cousin disappeared! My cousin was the only one who stood up for me! He'll capture Pokémon that are my friends and make them do horrible things! They can't help it, and people blame them for being violent!"

Xerneas listened to Red Velvet as she ranted about her uncle and Team Rocket. It felt good to explain her worries and burdens to someone else besides the six Unowns. When she finished, the stag merely blinked at her.

"I am sorry," Xerneas finally whispered. "I know exactly how that feels. The feeling that you are only a tool."

"Do you?" Red Velvet asked, feeling a little skeptical at this point.

"Certainly. The world is in chaos because people are being used and things are being loved."

The black and blue pokemon looked up at the starry sky and watched it silently. Red Velvet however was watching Xerneas in awe.

"How were you used?" Red Velvet finally asked, breaking the silence.

Xerneas didn't reply at first. She did look away from the sky and glance around the clearing.

"Humans had started rumors that I can give eternal life when I can't, but humans would search for me so I would give them eternal life." She whispered wearily. "No one, no human or Pokémon, can give or have eternal life. Only one being can give eternal life, and either way, your earthly body will have to die for you to move on to eternal life. Thankfully, it's a free gift, and who wouldn't want it?"

"You mean God?"

"Exactly," Xerneas replied, nodding.

"But I remember my father telling me a story about a man over 3,000 years old, searching for his Pokémon. He told me that it's a true story."

"It is."

"Then doesn't he have eternal life?"

"That I cannot explain. It is a mystery how that man has stayed alive for thousands of years. No one may ever know."

"What about you then?" The girl asked. "I mean, you're a legendary."

"Oh, I will die eventually," said Xerneas grimly. "Legendary Pokémon are merely Pokémon with unnaturally long lifespans and special abilities. But when I die, then my soul will move on and live eternal life. Also, when I die, I will leave behind a young Xerneas so they can take my place."

Red Velvet was about to speak, but the sudden sound of squeals and squeaking announced the return of Mu, Alpha, Rho, Gamma, Epsilon, and Tau. The Unowns were trying to get the silk away from each other, which was currently attached to one of Mu's hooks.

Xerneas sighed and strolled over to the fighting Unowns. The stag unhooked the silk from Mu and bounded back to Red Velvet.

"Thanks, love," Xerneas thanked the Unowns.

This was proven to be a bad thing to say. The six little pokemon then began to argue about who had received the comment from Xerneas. She thought she saw Xerneas roll her eyes as she began wrapping the silk around Red Velvet's broken leg.

She laid back down and curled up against the black and blue pokemon's warm body. Xerneas put her tail around her when she finished wrapping up her leg. She could hear the stag singing softly next to her.

I had a way then
Losing it all on my own
I had a heart then
But the queen has been overthrown
And I'm not sleeping now
The dark is too hard to beat
And I'm not keeping up
The strength I need to push me

You show the lights that stop me turn to stone
You shine them when I'm alone
And so I tell myself that I'll be strong
And dreaming when they're gone
'Cause they're calling, calling, calling me home
Calling, calling, calling home
You show the lights that stop me turn to stone
You shine them when I'm alone

Noises, I play within my head
Touch my own skin
And hope they'll still be there
And I think back to when
My brother and my sister slept
In another place
The only time I feel safe

You show the lights that stop me turn to stone
You shine them when I'm alone
And so I tell myself that I'll be strong
And dreaming when they're gone
'Cause they're calling, calling, calling me home
Calling, calling, calling home
You show the lights that stop me turn to stone
You shine them when I'm alone

Lights, lights, lights, lights, lights, lights

You show the lights that stop me turn to stone
You shine them when I'm alone
And so I tell myself that I'll be strong
Dreaming when they're gone
'Cause they're calling, calling, calling me home
Calling, calling, calling home
You show the lights that stop me turn to stone
You shine them when I'm alone

Home, home
lights, lights, lights

Home, home
lights, lights, lights

"I like that song," whispered Red Velvet, looking up at the stag-like pokemon.

"I thought you might," said Xerneas, resting her head on Red Velvet's.

She watched as the Unowns zoomed into a tree and settled on a tree branch over Xerneas and herself. She could here them whispering above them.

"Ain't she a sight for sore eyes?" She heard Rho ask.

"We only have one eye, mate," Tau corrected him with a snort.

"Who cares? I wonder if she'd let me take her out?" whispered Alpha thoughtfully.

"No chance," sneered Mu. "Who would want to go out with you when I'm around?"

"You kidding? I got twice as much muscles as you," retorted Gamma.

"Oh ho ho!" Epsilon then growled. "Says the one who passed out because he accidentally got hit with a pebble thrown by a Caterpie!"

Mu, Alpha, Rho, and Tau all giggled at this. Gamma made an angry hissing noise and floated away from his brothers. Red Velvet saw Xerneas roll her eyes for the third time as the other Unowns pelted after him.

"Xerneas?" Red Velvet suddenly squeaked, looking up at the tall pokemon.

"Yes, darling?"

"Can...can you be my mommy?"

Xerneas blinked at her.

"Your...your mother?" She repeated blankly.

"Yes, but only if you want to..." replied the little girl nervously.

Xerneas stared at her. Red Velvet saw her ear twitch a little every few seconds. Then Xerneas smiled and nodded.

"I would be honored to be your mother, Red Velvet," the stag told her warmly.

Red Velvet beamed at her and through her arms around Xerneas' neck. The Unowns whispering subsided for a minute as they watched this affectionate scene. Then the squeaking fired up again as they start to discuss if this made Xerneas their mother as well. The little girl giggled and settled back down next to Xerneas.

"How long are you gonna stay with me?" She asked after a moment.

"Until we find your family," the stag replied.

"But my family's gone..."

"Not all of your family is gone."

"Really?!"

"You told me that you were separated from your brother. I think I I can help you find where he is."

"Do you know where my cousin is?"

Xerneas twitched nervously. Red Velvet knew the answer before she even spoke.

Then the Pokémon whisperd, "I'm sorry, but I don't know where he is. I'm sorry."

"It's alright," Red Velvet lied, disappointment welling up inside her.

She rested her head against Xerneas' fore leg and looked up at the night sky. Hours ago she had broken free of her uncle's grasp and ran away from Team Rocket's headquarters. Now she was faraway from anyone and was with the legendary Xerneas, who was now her mother.

At least things were looking brighter, even if she didn't have her cousin with her.