I do not own Pokemon or the characters' species, but I own the characters.

Snowed In

Alvar looked around himself. Surrounding him were nearly a dozen small black creatures, which possessed sharp, curved claws. They eyed him hungrily, their feet making no noise on the snow that blanketed the ground as they stalked closer.

Alvar glanced at them, his expression completely calm. The black creatures gave high-pitched, hungry cries, sensing their victory. Then they lunged.

There was a blur of motion, and they were sent flying back in all directions, slamming into the snow and a few unlucky ones being smashed into trees. Alvar watched them emotionlessly as a few stood back up and tried to recollect their bearings.

He lifted one arm, the blade attached to its elbow glowing orange. The small black creatures looked up at him, eyes widening, and then turned and scurried away.

Once they were gone, Alvar dropped his arm to his side and it stopped glowing. He was a Gallade, with a head resembling a green helmet with a blue fin at the top, a red fin in his chest and back, and a muscular figure.

He surveyed his surroundings as if nothing had happened. He was a warrior, having chosen when he was still a Ralts to wander the world and find new opponents to defeat. He had been many places and defeated many powerful Pokemon, and even human trainers, in his lifetime. And now he was here, in the snowy land of northern Sinnoh.

Around him were trees, covered with snow like almost everything else in sight. But there were no other Pokemon. Inwardly he smiled and almost laughed. They're afraid of me.

Then something cold settled on his arm. Glancing at it, he realized that it was a snowflake, which had now melted and was trickling down said arm. He shot a glance at the sky, seeing that it was clouded and gray, with a few white specks falling to the earth.

He wasn't worried. He had lasted through hurricanes without breaking a sweat. A little snow wasn't going to stop him…

Tearing his gaze from the sky, he began walking along the path toward the human settlement they called "Snowpoint". That was his goal. He had already defeated the other seven "Gym Leaders", the humans who were supposed to be better than everyone else at Pokemon battling. In Snowpoint City was the last one. He planned to prove that he was the strongest Pokemon. But training along the way didn't hurt.

Another snowflake landed on his head. He ignored it, that is until another one landed on his head right away. He stopped. Another snowflake hit his arm, and then another his other arm, and then three landed on each of his arms and his head at the same time. He looked up, and was surprised to see the entire sky covered in white dots, whose population was rapidly growing.

He blinked as a snowflake almost landed in his eye, then returned his attention to the road. The snow was thickening at an alarming rate, but as long as it didn't get too bad he would be fine…

As he began to trudge through the snow again, the snowfall kept getting heavier each second. Soon a wind picked up, blowing toward him and bombarding him with tiny snowflakes. It began to howl, sounding almost like a wild animal, and swept up snow from both the ground and the air to whip it into a frenzy. Alvar struggled against it, but he was nearly blinded by the snow that swirled around him.

But still he kept going, realizing now that he should have taken the first few flakes as a warning. His body was freezing, and although he'd learned to ignore pain and discomfort, he knew that if he didn't get to somewhere warm soon he would freeze to death. But he was still so far away from the city…

Finally he fell to his knees from exhaustion, giving in to the blizzard. There was no way he could get to shelter in time, nothing he could do.

Strange that a warrior would be defeated by a natural phenomenon, and not in battle.

He felt his body slowly go numb, snow piling up around him. Gradually he slipped away, his vision growing dark…

Suddenly he spotted a light ahead of him. Jolting back to awareness, he realized that maybe he wasn't done after all. Where there's light, there's people, and where there are people, there's life, and where there's life, there's hope.

He forced himself to move, slowly standing up. His eyes stayed fixed on the light the entire time. It was dim, barely visible through the screen of snow, but it was there.

He took one painful, agonizing step toward it. It grew closer. Another step. Now he could make out a square shape around it. As he struggled closer, something materialized in front of him. It was a cottage. The light was burning in one of its windows.

Gritting his teeth against the wind and cold as it slashed through him, Alvar circled around the wooden cottage until a very welcome sight greeted him. A door. Reaching up to the knob, he turned it, praying it wasn't locked. It wasn't. The knob turned easily, and he was able to pull the door open. Thanking his incredibly good luck, Alvar stepped inside and quickly turned to close the door again. Then, turning back around, he surveyed the interior of the small dwelling.

It was almost smaller than it looked from the outside. Lots of wooden furniture was arranged around the room, including a single bed with blue blankets and a large dresser that took up half of one wall. There was also a circular table, maybe a couple of feet in diameter, with a chair. In one corner was another chair. On the opposite side of the room was a door.

Alvar found himself wondering who lived here. Would they mind him staying until the blizzard stopped? Then again, as he glanced over the room again, he noticed that everything was covered in a layer of dust. It looks like no one has lived here for a while…

He made his way to the bed, shedding water, and sat on its edge. No sooner had he done so than the door opposite the one he'd come through opened.

He jumped up and spun to face it. The door stopped with a creak, and then a head peeked around it, watching him with wide, curious eyes. The head was white and purple, the eyes yellow and blue. Alvar recognized it. It was a Froslass.

It cautiously opened the door the rest of the way, then slipped through it and faced him. Below the head hung a white, blue, and red body, with two white and blue arms hanging from the head itself. After a moment, it spoke into his mind. "Hello…" The voice was an innocent, feminine one.

He relaxed slightly. "I'm sorry, am I intruding?"

She shook her head. "I don't mind. The blizzard is pretty bad. But try not to drip on anything."

He glanced down, seeing that he was soaked. "Sorry. That's a little hard, though."

She hesitated, then nodded. "Alright, then, it's fine. My name is Eira. What's yours?"

"Alvar. Do you… live here?"

She nodded again. "Yes. It used to belong to a human, but it was abandoned, so I moved in… Why were you out in the blizzard?"

"I'm a… wandering warrior. I was training out there, but the blizzard caught me by surprise. Do they all happen that quickly?"

"Usually. The weather is a little unpredictable here."

He smiled. "As I found out. I'm sorry for imposing, but could I stay here until the blizzard ends?"

She sighed, and the air temperature suddenly dropped by a few degrees. "Yes, but I should warn you, you'll probably stay for a lot longer than that. Usually there's a yearly blizzard each winter, and the snow can pile up to almost six feet. It usually won't melt until spring."

Alvar's eyes widened. "So, I could be stuck here until spring?"

"Probably."

"Oh." He blinked.

Eira giggled. "Big change of plans, huh? Sorry, but there's really nothing I can do. Unless you can dig, but I don't have anything for doing that with except hands." She paused, glancing over him, then asked, "Are you hungry?"

He shook his head. "No, I'm fine for now. But… I really wasn't expecting to be snowed in by a blizzard for a couple of months…"

She nodded, then smiled. "What, don't you like me?"

He turned red. "Well, um, yes…" He turned away to hide his blush. Ugh, what was that?!

She floated closer to him, stopping a few feet away. "I suppose we'll have to get to know each other if you're going to live with me until the snow melts… But there's more time for that tomorrow. It's dark, you know."

He took a deep breath, before glancing at one window, seeing only snow blocking it. "How do you know?"

She gestured vaguely. "I just do."

He sighed, then looked around the cabin. "I'm not tired."

"Alright, then. I guess we will talk tonight." She floated to the bed and settled on to it, sitting on its foot. Alvar hesitated slightly, then sat next to her.

Neither said anything for a while. Alvar took the time to survey the room once again, thinking about how he would have to stay there for so long. The furniture was simple; it appeared that Eira only had what was barely necessary. He liked that. Being a warrior, he was accustomed to simplicity.

Then his eyes fell on the door, the one opposite the entrance and the one Eira had entered through. I wonder what's in there?

Gesturing to it, he asked, "Where does that lead?"

Eira glanced at it. "Oh, that? That goes to my storage area and workshop."

"Workshop?" he echoed.

She nodded. "I like to use my spare time to carve ice sculptures. There's plenty of material to work with around here."

"Really?" His eyes lit up with curiosity. "Can I see it?"

She hesitated, then nodded. "Alright. Just don't break anything."

He nodded in acknowledgement. She floated off the bed and toward the door, as he stood up and followed. Grasping the knob, she turned it and pushed the door open, allowing a gust of cool air to emerge. Then, slipping into the room beyond, she turned and gestured for him to follow.

He stepped through the doorway, closing the door behind him, before turning and examining this new room in surprise. It was smaller than the other room, maybe about half as large. It was still made of the same wooden material as the other, though. On two walls were shelves, filled with food of all kinds. There were many varieties of berries, and even some human food, such as bread and meat. Against the wall to Alvar's right was a table with another chair, and on it were several sharp tools and a lamp.

But that wasn't what caught his attention. Lined up in the middle of the room were several ice sculptures. They were incredibly detailed, skillfully carved to show every minute wrinkle or curve. Eira moved to the table and lit the lamp, illuminating the room. Instantly the statues lit up, sparkling beautifully as the light passed through them and reflected off their surfaces. Alvar couldn't speak for several moments.

Finally he turned to Eira. "You… made these?"

She nodded and smiled, floating over to them. "Yes. What do you think?"

He stepped forward and tentatively reached out one hand. "May I touch it?"

"Yes, just be careful."

He gently touched the closest one, a likeness of a Magmar. As soon as he contacted it, though, he pulled his hand away. "It's freezing."

She giggled. "I should hope so, if it's not that means it might melt."

He blushed. "Oh. Right." Glancing at her, he was awestruck by her appearance; the light reflected off her ice-like skin and made her shimmer. She looked… beautiful.

He quickly shook his head to clear those thoughts, and examined the Magmar statue more closely. It was carved by someone with a lot of skill. "They're very… well done."

She blushed now. "Thank you…"

"Where did you get the models for them? I mean, you couldn't have done them by memory, could you?"

She shook her head. "Some of them are Pokemon who wandered into here during a blizzard like you. They're all just Pokemon I've met over the years."

Alvar gave the ice sculptures another glance, and suddenly became aware of something. He couldn't quite place it, but they seemed… sad. "Why do they look so sad?"

She looked up at him in surprise. "Sad? What do you mean?"

"I don't know… they just have a forlorn atmosphere to them. Maybe it's the poses…"

She glanced over the statues, then sighed. "Maybe… They say that an artist puts a little of himself or herself into his or her work, and that the style changes depending on the artist's mood. Perhaps it's because… I'm sad, too."

He looked at her in alarm. "Why?"

"I'm… lonely. I don't get visitors very often. When I made each of those, I knew that the visitors I made them of would be leaving soon. I suppose some of my loneliness leaked into my artwork, too."

Alvar didn't say anything for a moment. Then he stepped forward and hugged her, holding her to himself. She stiffened, then relaxed, resting her head against his shoulder. "Don't worry, I'm here now," he said, feeling his face turn red. "I'm sorry I can't stay for too long. I'll come by and visit you."

She closed her eyes. "Thank you."

~.~

Alvar finally went to sleep, giving in to his exhaustion. At first he wanted to sleep on the floor or a chair, since there was only one bed, but Eira insisted that since he was a guest, he should use the bed. In the end he gave in, and he slept on the bed while she took the floor.

The next morning, he gradually returned to awareness. Snapping his eyes open and sitting up, he glanced around the room, taking in his new surroundings.

He inwardly smiled as he saw Eira curled up on the floor, almost cat-like. Her face looked serene and peaceful, the tiny amount of light that filtered through the snow and into the room illuminating it.

He pulled off the blankets and slid off the bed. Eira stirred at this, lifting her head and blinking in the light. Yawning, she glanced at him before floating upright.

They looked at each other for a while, silent. Finally Alvar said a little sheepishly, "Could I take you up on that offer of a meal?"

She snapped to awareness, moving past him to the door that lead to the pantry and her workplace. Opening it, she started to go in, then stopped, looked back at him, and smiled. "Good morning."

He only nodded in acknowledgement. Then she disappeared into the room beyond.

She brought him some berries and some bread, which he devoured hungrily. When he finished, he stood up and glanced at the door leading to the outside. "Has the blizzard stopped?"

She nodded. "Yes."

He accepted that. "How high is the snow?"

She hesitated, shooting a glance at the door. "The wind blew the snow from that direction, so it's all piled up mostly against the door. But it's not quite as deep as the door is tall."

He brightened in surprise. "Really? How solid is it?"

"It's… not too powdery…"

Alvar strode past her to the door and opened it. Greeting him was a white wall of snow. At the top was a small band of daylight, maybe half a foot wide, by his reckoning.

He studied it for a moment, then said slowly, "I might be able to fit through there. Maybe I won't have to stay here until spring." Turning back to face Eira, he looked at her questioningly.

She nodded sadly. "Yes… But please, stay at least for another day. Please."

He didn't know what to say. Finally he stepped forward and took her hand. It was cold to the touch. "Listen, Eira. I'm a warrior. I could never be happy here. I like you, a lot, but this isn't my place. I would ask you to come with me, but I know that isn't your place either. However…" He smiled. "I'll stay here for another day."

Her eyes lit up. "Really? Thank you." She embraced him happily. "You don't know what that means to me."

He blushed. "You're welcome. And when I leave, I'll come and visit you, I promise."

She pulled away from him, looking at the floor. "Um, about that…"

He watched her in confusion. "What?"

"You see… You couldn't visit me. This cottage is built in a place where it's hard to find. That's why I don't get many visitors. Once you leave, you won't be able to find your way back. It's in the middle of a forest."

"…Oh…" He closed the door and sat down in one of the chairs, absorbing that information. "…I'm sorry."

She sighed, expelling a freezing breath and making the air become slightly colder. Neither said anything for a while, until Eira said, "I'm glad you came anyway. I'm happy for now, since you're here. But… do you have to leave?"

He nodded sadly. "Yes. I really am sorry, but I can't stay. Part of me wants to stay, but I can't."

She nodded slowly, then looked up at him and asked, "Could I make a statue of you today? Do you mind?"

He shook his head. "No, I don't mind. I guess… it'll help keep you company after I leave."

She smiled. "Thank you."

"Hm." He paused for a moment, thinking. Then he said, "You know, I don't usually tell people much about myself. But, for some reason I want to tell you. When I was a Ralts, my entire family was killed by a group of Sableye. Except me. That was why I decided to become a warrior and get as strong as I could; I wanted to be able to protect people so I didn't have to watch something like that happen again. Do you see why I need to leave now?"

She nodded, appearing troubled. "Yes… I'm sorry. I never knew my family. I don't even remember being a Snorunt. For as long as I can remember I was a Froslass, and I was alone."

Alvar took that in. Looking at her, he realized how small and vulnerable she was. Stepping forward, he folded her in an embrace, pressing her against the red fin in his chest. "If it's any consolation, I think you're wonderful."

She blushed, looking up into his maroon eyes as he gazed into her sky blue eyes. "Thank you…" she said softly, before continuing, "And I think it was very gallant of you to make the choice you did. But you know, there's more than one way to fight…" She smiled, then leaned forward.

Their lips met, and they kissed, closing their eyes in contentment.

After a long moment, Eira broke away and slipped out of Alvar's grasp. When she looked at him again, she wasn't surprised to see that he was gone.

In his place was a statue of a Gallade, made of ice. Its face was serene, its eyes closed in bliss. Its arms seemed to be wrapped around something, but there was only air.

Eira stared at the statue for a while, then moved forward and brushed its cheek with one icy hand. To think, a gallant warrior like you could be defeated by something as simple as… love. She then smiled sadly and withdrew her hand. Now, Alvar… You can stay with me… forever.

~.~

The snow blanketed the ground, piled up against the side of a cottage, in the middle of a forest. Nothing moved. Everything was peaceful.

The wind began to blow, making the trees rustle. Gradually it began to strengthen, creating an eerie whistle that slowly increased to a howl. It whipped up the snow from the ground, carrying it with it through the air. More and more snow was lifted from the ground, beginning to circle around the cottage, moving faster and growing thicker each second until the little building was obscured from sight. For several moments, it continued to swirl, howling through the forest.

Eventually the wind died down, letting the snow fall back to the ground as the forest became still and silent once more. Nothing had changed, except for one thing.

The cottage had vanished.