Ohhhhhhmigosh I am the worst person in the world.

I went on vacation for two weeks and have barely written a single thing in Midwinter's.

On the upside I wrote some of Darkness Wakening, so if you read that story- could be a new chapter fairly soon! :D

So to make up for my long absence here is a longer oneshot.

UPDATE: I am an idiot. Here is a different oneshot instead of Chapter 3 repeated.

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Natasha's eyes were wary as she peeked into the rabbit hole. She didn't trust the length that the burrow went back at all. Something screamed wrongness about the entire thing.

"Arachne, go see what's wrong," she instructed her little Spinarak in Russian. The small green spider-like Pokemon clicked its pincers in recognition and carefully slid into the tunnel, attaching a strand of silk to the entrance of the hole.

Natasha hunched her shoulders in the cold, breath coming out in clouds of steam as she rubbed her hands together. It was a survival exercise she was currently working on- survive a week in the wilderness with nothing but the clothes on her back. She knew that they probably weren't expecting her to come back. The Russian teenager was fine with that.

She listened intently for sounds of battle from down in the hole, keeping one eye on the string. A small chirring sound caught her attention briefly- Chaba was back, carrying two eggs carefully in his enormous claws.

"Very good, Chaba," Natasha said approvingly, reaching out and carefully taking them from him. Chaba chirred contentedly as she hesitantly rubbed his head.

A terrified squeal caught both Pokemon and trainer's attention. "Arachne!" Natasha cried, before catching herself. She had to school herself- she must never show unnecessary emotion. That was the sort of thing that would get her killed on a mission.

Chaba rested a claw on her knee, looking at her worriedly. "No," she told him. "It's too dangerous. Arachne, use Shadow Sneak!"

A low growl made the hair on the back of Natasha's neck stand straight up. She bit her lip fearfully- whatever the Pokemon in the hole was, it didn't sound small.

"Arachne, retreat," she ordered.

A painful scream-shriek sound made Natasha wince. "Guess that's a no-go. Let's see what we've got," she whispered, digging out a... borrowed Pokedex.

The battle raged for ten minutes. During that time Natasha could feel her fingers and toes slowly become unresponsive, and Chaba huddled closer to her, doing his best to keep her warm.

"A-Arachne, use S-S-Shadow S-S-Sneak ag-g-g-gain," Natasha called through gritted teeth.

She could feel the ground tremble as the foe fell.

Natasha breathed a heavy sigh of relief, shoulders slumping as she sat down in the snow. She was just so cold at this point. She should've left Arachne to fend for herself, but she found she just couldn't.

A loud clicking caught her attention. Natasha straightened, staring at the hole with fear and curiousity. "Arachne?" she asked uncertainly. Chaba shifted beside her, and Natasha rested a hand on him to calm him.

Eight massive eyes peered out of the hole. Natasha's own widened, and she stood up and backed up, allowing the newly evolved Ariados to step into the snow. Chaba hid behind Natasha, chirring angrily, with more than a small amount of fear in his tone.

"Bozhe mohe," she whispered, staring at Arachne. "You've gotten bigger."

Arachne clicked her pinschers, taking a few steps forward and resting a leg on Natasha's foot. She could still see the warmth that was uncharacteristic of a Spinarak, or an Ariados, that made Arachne different.

Natasha hugged the spider-like Pokemon gently. Arachne crooned happily, nestling her head into Natasha's shoulder.

"Good girl," Natasha murmured. "Good job."