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Description
Since the start of the New Year, things had seemed to get worse and worse. First, it was the unexplainable disappearance of the sun. Next, the winter weather seemed to return with a vengeance, bringing with it an unrivaled storm that made Addie question the château's integrity. After that, it was the power that cut out with seemingly no explanation. Then...the nightmarish hallucinations and dreams that plagued her no matter if she was awake or asleep. It was hard to tell at this point what was real and what wasn't.

Addie stepped through the hallways, trying not to throw paranoid glances over her shoulder, or let her steps falter. She thought she could hear the sound of something following her, a snuffling pitter-patter that had been ringing in her ears for days....maybe weeks, at this point. Horrors had been making greater appearances around the château ever since the power had gone out, and the thought that it might be one trying to stalk her made Addie's skin crawl.

She didn't dare stop moving, trying to ignore the urge to scratch at her arm as she walked. Ever since the last remnants of heat had dwindled out of the building, every corner and shadow made her jump. She had started the anxious habit of clawing at her arms whenever the paranoia really set in. The hope was that maybe experiencing some sort of physical pain might bring her back to reality, but...she had only succeeded in leaving self-inflicted claw marks raked into her arms.

Eventually she reached the one room that seemed to feel even safer than her own—the billiards room. The fire that seemed to burn eternally within the room's large fireplace was still alight even after the blackout and disappearance of the sun. It was a constant that Addie had come to rely on, drawn like a moth to a lamp.

Stepping inside, Addie immediately realized that something had changed.

Although the comforting glow of the blue lanterns illuminated the space, the orange light of the fire had vanished. The hearth lay cold, the remnants of a few charred logs all that remained of the fire that had been burning here the last time she had visited. Addie could feel her heart sink as she moved closer, hoping that maybe she was wrong, maybe there was still a flame, an ember...

The noise from before seemed to follow her, and she dared not turn around as she drew closer to the burned-out fire. Something had to be here, something...! Her wingers squeezed like a vice around her arms as she held herself, her breath freezing and hanging in the frigid air. The fire was well and truly extinguished, its last bit of remaining warmth likely sapped from the embers hours before.

Addie froze, eyes locked on the mantle-place as the noice dragged closer to her. Shouldn't the blue lanterns have stopped the horrors from entering? She had fought horrors before...surely she would be able to evade whatever was coming at her. Shadows flickered at the edges of her vision, a noise like static filling her ears. Steeling herself, Addie turned, prepared to either punch the horror in the face, or kick it hard enough to stun it and make an escape.

Except...it wasn't a horror.

There, standing and gazing up at her with eyes so big they shined in the dark, was the Alolan Vulpix she had seen weeks before in the garden. Addie stared at the little Pokémon, her mind trying to catch up with the fact that she was, in fact, not about to be eaten alive. There was something about the Vulpix that seemed to suggest that its presence wasn't a product of illusion or trickery. Perhaps it was its bright ice-white fur, or the gentle waving (wagging?) of its tails. It was impossible to miss the small pink collar that the Vulpix held in its mouth, accented with a small metal tag in the shape of a heart.

The Vulpix opened its jaw, the collar dropping to the carpeted floor at Addie's feet with a small jingle. "Pix!" the Vulpix declared, looking quite happy to see Addie. Even in her current state, Addie was able to understand what it was implying.

"...Have you been following me?" Addie asked, looking down at the Vulpix. Her fear had evaporated into a sense of relief, which was quickly transitioning to annoyance. The Vulpix looked up at her before shaking its tails and sitting down in front of her with a smile that suggested it hadn't understood a word. "Fuck you," Addie muttered, though the words weren't malicious. If anything, the barely noticeable smile on her face was a giveaway of her amusement.

After a moment (so drawn out it became a staring contest, which Addie lost), she crouched down. The Vulpix eyed her, the smile still on its face, as she picked up the collar and fastened around the Pokémon's neck. "...There, how about that?" Addie asked. She hardly noticed it, but the ribbons extending from the bowtie at her neck had started to move on their own, swirling around the Vulpix as if offering an embrace.

"Vulpix!" the Pokémon excitedly agreed, suddenly jumping up and launching itself right into Addie with enough force to almost knock her backwards. Curses sputtered from Addie's mouth as the Vulpix nosed at her playfully, nipping here and there with playful intent.

"You're a fucking handful," Addie bemoaned as the Vulpix started trying to chew on her shoelaces. "...But we can work on it, I guess..." Even though there wasn't a fire awaiting her in the billiards room, it seemed the château didn't want to leave her entirely empty-handed.

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Word Count: 947 words

Adélaïde Poundton © SacredLugia
Character for Chai-Chateau

Description
Since the start of the New Year, things had seemed to get worse and worse. First, it was the unexplainable disappearance of the sun. Next, the winter weather seemed to return with a vengeance, bringing with it an unrivaled storm that made Addie question the château's integrity. After that, it was the power that cut out with seemingly no explanation. Then...the nightmarish hallucinations and dreams that plagued her no matter if she was awake or asleep. It was hard to tell at this point what was real and what wasn't.

Addie stepped through the hallways, trying not to throw paranoid glances over her shoulder, or let her steps falter. She thought she could hear the sound of something following her, a snuffling pitter-patter that had been ringing in her ears for days....maybe weeks, at this point. Horrors had been making greater appearances around the château ever since the power had gone out, and the thought that it might be one trying to stalk her made Addie's skin crawl.

She didn't dare stop moving, trying to ignore the urge to scratch at her arm as she walked. Ever since the last remnants of heat had dwindled out of the building, every corner and shadow made her jump. She had started the anxious habit of clawing at her arms whenever the paranoia really set in. The hope was that maybe experiencing some sort of physical pain might bring her back to reality, but...she had only succeeded in leaving self-inflicted claw marks raked into her arms.

Eventually she reached the one room that seemed to feel even safer than her own—the billiards room. The fire that seemed to burn eternally within the room's large fireplace was still alight even after the blackout and disappearance of the sun. It was a constant that Addie had come to rely on, drawn like a moth to a lamp.

Stepping inside, Addie immediately realized that something had changed.

Although the comforting glow of the blue lanterns illuminated the space, the orange light of the fire had vanished. The hearth lay cold, the remnants of a few charred logs all that remained of the fire that had been burning here the last time she had visited. Addie could feel her heart sink as she moved closer, hoping that maybe she was wrong, maybe there was still a flame, an ember...

The noise from before seemed to follow her, and she dared not turn around as she drew closer to the burned-out fire. Something had to be here, something...! Her wingers squeezed like a vice around her arms as she held herself, her breath freezing and hanging in the frigid air. The fire was well and truly extinguished, its last bit of remaining warmth likely sapped from the embers hours before.

Addie froze, eyes locked on the mantle-place as the noice dragged closer to her. Shouldn't the blue lanterns have stopped the horrors from entering? She had fought horrors before...surely she would be able to evade whatever was coming at her. Shadows flickered at the edges of her vision, a noise like static filling her ears. Steeling herself, Addie turned, prepared to either punch the horror in the face, or kick it hard enough to stun it and make an escape.

Except...it wasn't a horror.

There, standing and gazing up at her with eyes so big they shined in the dark, was the Alolan Vulpix she had seen weeks before in the garden. Addie stared at the little Pokémon, her mind trying to catch up with the fact that she was, in fact, not about to be eaten alive. There was something about the Vulpix that seemed to suggest that its presence wasn't a product of illusion or trickery. Perhaps it was its bright ice-white fur, or the gentle waving (wagging?) of its tails. It was impossible to miss the small pink collar that the Vulpix held in its mouth, accented with a small metal tag in the shape of a heart.

The Vulpix opened its jaw, the collar dropping to the carpeted floor at Addie's feet with a small jingle. "Pix!" the Vulpix declared, looking quite happy to see Addie. Even in her current state, Addie was able to understand what it was implying.

"...Have you been following me?" Addie asked, looking down at the Vulpix. Her fear had evaporated into a sense of relief, which was quickly transitioning to annoyance. The Vulpix looked up at her before shaking its tails and sitting down in front of her with a smile that suggested it hadn't understood a word. "Fuck you," Addie muttered, though the words weren't malicious. If anything, the barely noticeable smile on her face was a giveaway of her amusement.

After a moment (so drawn out it became a staring contest, which Addie lost), she crouched down. The Vulpix eyed her, the smile still on its face, as she picked up the collar and fastened around the Pokémon's neck. "...There, how about that?" Addie asked. She hardly noticed it, but the ribbons extending from the bowtie at her neck had started to move on their own, swirling around the Vulpix as if offering an embrace.

"Vulpix!" the Pokémon excitedly agreed, suddenly jumping up and launching itself right into Addie with enough force to almost knock her backwards. Curses sputtered from Addie's mouth as the Vulpix nosed at her playfully, nipping here and there with playful intent.

"You're a fucking handful," Addie bemoaned as the Vulpix started trying to chew on her shoelaces. "...But we can work on it, I guess..." Even though there wasn't a fire awaiting her in the billiards room, it seemed the château didn't want to leave her entirely empty-handed.

--------
Word Count: 947 words

Adélaïde Poundton © SacredLugia
Character for Chai-Chateau