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Shouting and shots rang out in the distance, one hit the bumper of the car.
"Come on come on come on," the boy looked nervously over his shoulder.
"Fuck, don't leave me stranded now, you piece of junk." It took the redhead three tries to get the engine running, while the voice got closer. The car started just as an old man with a shotgun emerged from the treeline. The maneuver to turn around made them nearly run into a fence but they managed to get away before the man took aim again.
He waited until the dirt road turned to pavement, leaving behind the rural areas, before stopping on the shoulder; both still trying to calm down.
"God, that had never happened before," sighed the boy after a couple seconds, turning his camera off with shaking hands. "Are you alright? Don't know where the hell that guy came from."
"...Did you put the seatbelt on when you got in?" asked the redhead.
"Y-yeah? I dunno, it was instinct," he answered a bit flustered.
The redhead bursted into laughter. "You're unbelievable." The boy couldn't help but laugh as well, shoving his shoulder. By the time they both caught their breath, the atmosphere had lightened up considerably.
"Can I roll the window down?" The boy ran a hand through his disheveled hair.
"Yeah, sure, it's a nice afternoon," he answered while starting the car again.
They picked a random radio station and drove like that for a while, humming absently, badly hiding the glances they kept stealing at each other, until they made their way to the outskirts of town.
"Yanny..." The redhead turned the radio volume down until nearly shutting it off. "I.. I have to ask. What we saw back there. I don't think that dude realized but... that was you, wasn't it?"
"Ah..." He stared at the lights in the roundabout, which slowly turned on as the night fell. "Well... I guess I wanted to tell you eventually..." He paused while trying to think of how to explain it. "It's... Eh... Would it sound crazy if... Um..."
"I-it's fine if you can't, I imagine it's not easy to trust me with something like this, we barely know each other—"
The boy immediately whipped his head back. "Nono, sorry, it's not that at all."
"Just spit it out then, after what happened, I gotta believe you."
"Yeah..." he said, feeling more reassured. "Well, that was... I'm not sure what to call it. Sometimes I can do that... like, mist that makes people see... things..."
"Sounds useful." He smiled.
"I don't always get it right." He looked embarrassed. "And also ehm..." The redhead didn't seem too surprised that there was more. "I can... see ghosts." That did earn him a raised eyebrow. "S-see I knew it would sound weird." He hid his face in his hands. "Forget about it."
"Hey no no, now you gotta tell me more." He elbowed him. "I just wasn't expecting it. But I think... I'd already realized you were special, just not like this."
The boy swallowed, speechless for an instant. "It's possible that a lot of what you're thinking is wrong." He shrugged, trying to smile back. He took a deep breath before speaking again. "There's also these... It's said people are born under the sign of a pokemon that defines and guides them, like... a more personal horoscope; they're called Guardian Stars. And... Well, I can see those too."
The redhead stared at him for a second but immediately returned his eyes to the road. "Oh... okay," he spoke before the boy regretted it again. "Would it be too much of a cliché to ask about mine? Or do you need to perform some weird ritual? If it involves blood I'm not sure but I’m willing to give you some hair—"
The boy laughed, relieved. "No no, nothing of the sort. I could, um, I could just tell you right now if you want." The redhead nodded at him in encouragement. He closed his eyes and focused, once he opened them again the car felt far too small and crowded with the new presence inside. "It's... Alright, remember I have nothing to do with it, don't kill the messenger. It's a moth. Ehm, purple body and green wings?"
"Huh." He considered it for a moment. "A Dustox? Guess that's as good as I could get. What's yours?"
"A... Vulpix. Oh, turn left on this block, take the path that goes down," he pointed.
"See? That's way cuter." He smiled while parking in front of the old house. The boy coughed, trying to hide his reaction. "Wanna hang out tomorrow?"
"Y-yeah, uhm..." he hesitated before opening the door. "We could do something chill, maybe. There's... a new bar downtown if... if you want..."
"Sure, I'll pick you up at 6." He ran a hand through the boy's hair to fix a loose strand, before giving him a casual pat on the shoulder. "Actually, let's hope nothing happened to the tank or we'll have to walk. And I don't even wanna think about how my step-dad will get." He made a face. "But anyways, I'll call you later."
The boy stayed on the porch waving while the car drove away. It took him three tries to get the key into the front lock and enter the dark house, but he couldn't stop smiling.
