Phew... It's been about 8 months since I started my first story. And I'm happy to finally work on a sequel! Hopefully, this time, my writing won't suck as much... But, anyway, I think it's great to be writing again. I hope you like this story, because I plan to make it better than the first. Enjoy!

Sometimes, people need to realize that they can't quit, even when their future looks bleak. You can't just ignore your responsibilities. You need to do everything in your power to see that everything becomes right again...

"Sheesh... They didn't have to yell at me. If they wanted me to go out and do something, all they had to do was ask..."

I walked along a worn, dirt path, with my hands behind my head, just taking a stroll. The sun radiated across the land, bringing warmth, light, and life. The sky was a crystal blue color, with a few clouds swimming through it. Another bland, boring day...

Well, except for the fact that I was thrown out of my home. Then again, I can see why sitting around and doing nothing for a good few years lead my parents to throw me out. But I don't think yelling at me was the best way to go about that. It's not like we fight or anything. Heck, I think they need me there. But whatever. Might as well go and see what's out there in the world. What else is a Braixen to do?

Before leaving, my mom handed me some kind of paper. It had the name of some "team" on it. What was it called again? I held up the paper, and read it carefully.

"Team... PokéHeroes?" I said it aloud to myself. Hm... weird name. Still, it's better than anything I could come up with. The paper also showed some place called, "Paradise". On the bottom of the paper, there were five Pokémon standing together in front of a pretty nice looking resort. I guess that's the "Paradise," but I didn't know who the heck any of these Pokémon were. The only ones I could sorta make out were the two in the center: some green snake-looking one, and some brown fox. My mom said I should go see if I can do anything out there for the team; Try to help other people for a change. I decided... eh, why not?

A few days had passed as I traveled from town to town, asking for directions to where this "PokéHeroes" team was. Everyone knew about this team, except me. It made me feel like I missed out on something important. Well, I guess it's better to join the bandwagon late, than never...

Thankfully, the world was very peaceful. You never heard many stories of any misfortunes happening to any Pokémon. So, naturally, I had no trouble along my travels. But... the last town I got to made me feel uncomfortable; Something felt off, here... The sky was cloudy, blocking the sunshine from the sun. I didn't see many Pokémon around here either. I couldn't put my paw on it, but everything felt really gloomy and somber; Staying here would only entice trouble. It's probably best I just get out of here as quickly as I can...

I walked into the nearby inn. A Swanna was running it; She was turned around, cleaning some dishes. I walked up to the counter.

"Uh... excuse me?" The Swanna turned around and gave me a cheerful smile.

"Well, hello there- oh?" She tilted her head, and gave me a puzzled look. "I don't think I've ever seen a Pokémon like you before... You must be new around here."

"Yeah, I've been getting that a lot..." I saw her lean to the side and stare at the stick protruding from my tail.

"Uh... What's with the-"

"It's my wand. My tail keeps it's fire extinguished..." I explained.

"Ah... well, sorry for staring," she apologized. But I didn't really care; Everyone always stares at it. I could never see what the big deal was, though... "Anywho, I am Swanna. And you are?"

"Braixen..."

"Well, nice to meet you, Braixen. If you're looking for help, you've come to the right place. What can I do for you?"

I handed her the paper with the team on it (I've been holding on to it). "Do you know where I can find these Pokémon? Or rather, do you know where Paradise is?" The Swanna grabbed the paper from me. Her eyes widened, but why should she be surprised?

"You're looking for Team PokéHeroes? What for?"

"I dunno. I haven't got much else to do with myself at the moment. I figured I'd help them out." The Swanna gave me a worried look. "Is there something I should know about them?" I asked.

"Hm... This is old... I haven't seen the five of them get together in a long time..." Swanna let out a sigh. I could tell she was getting sentimental, but I didn't really care. I just wanted to find them.

"Not to be rude, but could you hurry up? I'd like to meet them by the end of the day."

"Oh, yes! I'm sorry. I got a little nostalgic for a moment... Paradise is nearby. All you have to do is head straight from the exit, east of here, and then just continue straight. If you see a giant tree near a cliff, then you're on the right path."

"Hm. Alright, thanks."

"No, no, thank you. When you meet the team, give them my regards!" She handed the flyer back to me, then I waved goodbye and left.

Okay, something clearly isn't right. This flyer is old? How old exactly? She said Paradise is still here, so that should be a good sign, right? At first the only reason why I was going to see them was because I had nothing better to do. But now I'm really curious...

I followed along the path Swanna had told me, and sure enough, I came across a giant tree. It loomed over the edge of a cliff. The old, withering branches and roots were gnarling around each other. I got a melancholy feeling from staring at it. Almost as if it was trying to tell me all the experience it had seen through the ages. As if some important events took place here...

I hurried along past it.

Finally, I came across an archway, signifying some kind of entrance. Over to the right was a sign. It read:

Paradise
Home to Team PokéHeroes
Leaders: Dewott & Mienshao

However... those two names, "Dewott" and "Mienshao", were written underneath something else. I think they were two other names, but I couldn't tell because they were crossed out, and illegible. So much mystery behind this place...

I looked over and saw a Pokémon walk out of a nearby house. He went up to some kind of message board and began to pin some papers to it. As I walked over to him, I noticed he was a Pokémon that I had never seen before. He had light blue skin, and a beaver-like tail. I decided to say hello.

"Uh... hello?" The Pokémon's head perked up, and he turned to face me. His eyes widened at my appearance.

"Hello ther- woah! Those ears are huge..."

…

Wait, what?

"Excuse me!?" I said, irritatingly. The Pokémon immediately put his hands over his mouth and began to tremble. He knew he made me angry...

"I-I'm sorry! I don't think I've ever seen a Pokémon like you before..."

"You're not the first..." I grumbled. I was still irritated.

"I didn't mean to insult you... but your ears... you have really big ears..." Alright, that's it. I lightly pounded my fist onto his head (I didn't want to knock him out).

"Yeah, and you've got a big mouth!"

"Owww!" He rubbed his head in pain. Clearly this was getting me no where.

"Ugh, screw this. You're no help." I walked away from him.

"Wait! Ugh, my head... Come back!"

He wasted my time; I'm not going back to him. I hoped entering the building he came out of would give me answers.

Upon entering, I noticed in the center of the room was a giant table, with maps and charts spread all over it. Around the left edge of the room was a set of beds. I assume this was the PokéHeroes' headquarters, or something like it. In the back corner to the right, another Pokémon sat down, meditating, on a pillow. He was in deep thought, but I had to interrupt him. I cautiously walked over... I could see that he had yellow-tipped whiskers, and whip-like sleeves branched off his arms. Again, another Pokémon I didn't know...I felt like an idiot as I stood in front of him for a few moments before I spoke.

"E-Excuse me..."

He didn't open his eyes.

"Is this Paradise? Is this where Team PokéHeroes is?" He remained silent. But then he slowly opened his eyes. He gave me an intrigued look.

"This is indeed, Paradise. May I ask who you are?" This Pokémon's formality made me feel a bit more comfortable. Much more welcoming than that other guy...

"I'm Braixen." I introduced myself.

"Braixen... I don't think I've seen one before..."

"Sheesh, everyone keeps telling me that..." So much déjà vu...

"Hm... Then you must have traveled a long way to get here, correct?"

"Uh, yeah. That's right..." The Pokémon got up and walked in front of me, with his sleeves dragging along the ground. He was slightly taller than me.

"My name is Mienshao. It's nice to meet you, Braixen. What assistance do you seek from us?" Mienshao? So he's one of the leaders of the team...

"I've come here to join your Team." I said it firmly. "I want to be a member of Team PokéHeroes."

Mienshao's eyes widened. "You wish to join us!? May I ask why?"

"Hm..." I shrugged. "Life's been pretty boring for me. I thought I'd try to do something different for a change."

"Well, well... We haven't had a new team member in quite a while- oh?" Mienshao peaked around me. "Dewott, why don't you come meet our newest member? I'm sure she'll be a lot of help." I turned around and saw that Pokémon from before... the one who made fun of me. So, he was the other leader to the team? Hm... He was peaking around the entrance. He slowly walked in, keeping an eye on the distance between us.

"N-Nice to... meet you..." Dewott stammered.

"Dewott, why don't you get the registration form for Braixen."

"Are you serious!?" Dewott was trembling again. He looked over at me. I gave him a stern look. He then panicked a little, and went to get registration form. He opened a drawer from a nearby cabinet and grabbed a single sheet of paper. He hesitantly walked back to me. Now I was getting irritated because he was taking too long.

"Hey, Dewott, you can relax. I'm not going to hurt you again... Unless, of course, you really want me to." He gave me another look, to make sure I wasn't lying. He let out a sigh of relief, and stepped in front of me, holding out the paper.

"Please place your paw-print here:" He pointed at the bottom of the paper. I looked over my paw before carefully placing it on the spot he pointed to. I realized that this was a special type of paper that saved an imprint of my paw. Once it was recorded, Dewott went to go store it.

"Congratulations! You are now a member of Team PokéHeroes." Mienshao praised me.

"Wait, that's it?" I asked. "You just need a paw-print? No kind of battle test requirement or something?"

"Well, uh..." Mienshao paused for a moment. "We use to have a battle requirement, yes... But, due to an incident that happened a few years ago, we decided that testing new recruits wasn't a good idea."

"Why? What happened?"

Mienshao let out a sigh.

"Perhaps it is best I tell you some other time... For now, it is more important that you get acquainted with Paradise." Hm... Again, it's small, but there's something they're hiding from me. Dewott came over and joined us as we were leaving. I could tell he was still trying to avoid me.

"Dewott, I already told you I'm not going to hurt you..." He hesitantly turned to face me. He bowed his head apologetically.

"I-I'm sorry about earlier... I didn't mean to make fun of you. I was just shocked to see a Pokémon I had never seen before. I couldn't keep my comments to myself... How about we try again?"

He held his hand out to me.

"Hello, I am Dewott, and it's nice to have you as a part of our team... Braixen, was it?" I smirked and shook his hand.

"Honestly, I'm shocked you're one of the leaders of the team," I joked. Dewott laughed. "But just so we're clear..." I leaned down next to his ear, "... if you make any other kind of comment like that about me again, I will hurt you~." I winked at him and smiled, leaving him with a dumbfounded, wide-eyed expression on his face.

The three of us walked out to explore Paradise.