“Not again…”
A low sigh escaped her as she stirred from her slumber, knowing even before her vassal arrived what news she carried.
“Lady Cresselia!” A panicked Espeon burst from between the trees, landing before the lunar legend with a less than graceful thud. “Pardon my intrusion, but-“
“Darkrai is near?” She did her best to keep her aura calm, trying to soothe her distressed servant to little avail.
“Yes, m’lady. There’s already two fallen under his aura, please hurry!” Cresselia sympathized with the younger Pokémon’s urgency, but shared none of it - this routine had become far too commonplace in the last century, becoming little more than a nuisance to her. Nevertheless, she rose from her position in the spring, water glistening as it fell from her feathers in the moonlight. She beckoned the tired Espeon up onto her back before taking off into the night, honing in on her errant charge by his aura alone.
Protecting dreamers had been her charge since time immemorial, a task set to her by Arceus themself when Darkrai had first emerged from the Distortion World. She had once thought him just as chaotic and evil as his sire, a manifestation of Giratina’s malevolent desires. But time had long since shown the error of her beliefs, though he had been no less a thorn in her side for it. No matter how often humans were warned away from him, no matter how far he stayed from them, trouble seemed to follow him with the inevitability of night following the day. Invariably, some fool fell under his aura, and she was summoned once again to dispel the nightmares.
She couldn’t find it in herself to blame Darkrai - it was hardly his fault he had such a powerful curse around him, nor that humans could never seem to leave well enough alone. But she resented having to clean up after him nonetheless, especially as of late. Bad enough to have to travel to the ends of creation to find his latest mess without her body’s betrayal complicating matters. Irate, she pushed herself on faster, eager to see this finished as soon as possible, eager to resume being as far as physically possible from her problems once again.

Darkrai fumed as he considered his latest predicament. This should have been a perfect place for him to hide - the castle itself was derelict to the point of falling apart, surrounded by miles of woods in all directions. There had even been posted signs on the doors marking the area as unsafe, and his presence had done a good deal to deter any other Pokémon from straying too close. This should have been a fantastic place to make a home of, his days free of worry as he perused the library alone and safe.
For the last year, this theory had held true. He spent his days resting in the remains of one of the larger bedrooms, and he passed the nights reading of all the stories the humans could dream up, filling in his lonely isolation with imagined adventures. He always envied the storied lives of the humans and Pokémon he read about, making friends and traveling the world, free to explore and indulge in all the wonder they could find. As it was, he rarely found companionship with other Pokémon - even those immune to his aura feared him far too much to approach, and humans were far too frail to even try. Nights he found himself pining for company, he buried himself twice as deep in his reading, trying his best to drown the thoughts away. One such night had of course lead him to let his guard down, too absorbed in his latest book to notice his unwelcome guests.
Now here they were, both tossing and turning fitfully in the grips of an endless nightmare, making a horrid racket of their whining and moaning. At least they weren’t screamers, he supposed, but they were a nuisance all the same. He had considered leaving them to their fate so he could keep his happy little castle - it was so hard to find good real estate! But he couldn’t, not without even more humans coming looking for them, looking for him, bringing more hate towards himself that he genuinely didn’t want.
One pitchfork-wielding mob had been enough for one lifetime.
Reluctantly, he’d sent for Cresselia, calling out to her nearest vassal to go and find her. Now all that was left was to await her arrival and inevitable lecture before he would yet again find himself homeless. It was all less than ideal, to severely understate it, but Darkrai still found himself looking forward to his counterpart’s arrival. Somehow, even if she was always reluctant to be around him, he found her presence to be one of warmth and comfort, two sensations otherwise alien to him. Lately, he’d even found himself longing for her company more frequently, an ache in his soul that he had no explanation for. It was almost as if-
His thoughts were interrupted by the sudden illumination outside the castle’s ruined windows, glittering through the broken glass like the light of the full moon. A mixture of excitement and dread filled him as he turned away from his latest annoyances to go and greet his newest guest.

Cresselia was less than surprised to find Darkrai had taken up residence in the ruined castle - he always did have a taste for the excessive. Still, it was nicer than most of his previous hideouts, well away from the nearest human town, mostly intact - he was learning well from past mistakes, and the thought soothes her irritation a touch. She stopped only to allow her vassal to depart into the woods, well outside of her ward’s aura, before making her way to the castle gates.
As she approached the castle, she couldn’t help but notice the gargoyles lining the walls, once carved in hopes of frightening away malicious beings. Now, in the shadows of the half-moon, the worn stone figures seemed almost longing, gazing out into the vast forest as if awaiting the return of a dear friend long gone. She wasn’t given long to consider the thought, however, as a malevolent aura grew around her. Cresselia lowered her gaze back to the ruined castle doors, falling upon the shadow awaiting her under its arch, and felt a shudder run down her spine. Not fear, not revulsion, not anything she cared to give name to - acknowledging it would only make it all the more difficult to ignore later on. She pushed it aside as she closed the distance between him, trying her best to look stern and failing.
“How long have they been asleep?” she asked, wasting no time. Failing to wake his victims quickly had terrible results, and she had no intentions to fail tonight.
“Not long. Hours maybe. It was lucky you weren’t far this time.” Despite the gravity of the situation, Darkrai seemed almost pleased about her timely arrival, a feeling she found herself reciprocating. Still, she focused on the humans first - no need to repeat the last fiasco.
She followed him down the hall to where the humans were sleeping, their terrified voices echoing against the stone walls and bouncing in an unnatural way. She found it strangely fitting for the castle, a touch of horror to match its resident’s aura, so unlike her usual sanctuaries. He stopped short of the doorway leading to the dining hall, screams of fear echoing loudest from the chamber beyond. He knew better than to get closer now - his presence would only make dispelling his aura harder.
“I’ll just um. I’ll be in the library.” He dashed away without another word, looking somewhere between embarrassed and… flustered? She shook her head, physically willing the thought from her mind as she made her way into the dining hall to the humans in need of her aid.

Darkrai sulked among the shelves of the library, too agitated to take any final comfort in the tomes around him. He knew he would have to leave soon, this sanctuary now as unsafe as the ones before, and likely not before another stern warning from Cresselia for the road. It wasn’t fair that he had to keep doing this, keep moving from place to place for fear of his aura. He knew the constant travel must wear on his foil as well, but she at least had vessels to extend her reach. For him, it seemed the only Pokémon who remained unaffected by his touch were ghosts and Cresselia herself. The former tended to be rather poor company, and the latter seemed to see him as little more than a burden.
He slumped against a bookshelf, letting his ghastly form rest on the cool stone floor as he tried to count his blessings. He at least had managed to summon her in time, so the humans wouldn’t be after him with nearly as fervent a hatred. And she had added a glimmer of light to the castle that he hadn’t allowed himself to realize he was missing, the gentle glow like soothing moonlight illuminating the shadowy corridors. It reminded him of the forest where they’d first met, under the shadow canopy of trees older than himself, moonlight glittering in her feathers…
He groaned. This was hardly the time, especially when she was already irate with him to begin with. He blamed the season, something that would pass as it always did but made his thoughts no less troublesome. Even if he did want to be around her, he knew it was moot to wish for it. There was little chance she would want her burden around at all hours to further tax her.
Thoroughly frustrated, he reached for the first book he could get his hands on and buried himself in the dusty pages, numbing his frustration with some story he could hardly pay attention to until the sun began to rise outside.

It took longer than Cresselia anticipated to return the humans to their home, having to travel cautiously in the waning dark to avoid rousing undue attention. She had come back intending to give Darkrai a stern word only to find him dozing against a bookshelf, an old book draped over his chest. She wasn’t sure how, but the normally intimidating Pokémon looked tranquil, almost sweet in his sleep. She wondered if he could dream at all, or if even he was subject to his own dark aura.
Not having the heart to wake him and finding travel in the growing sunlight undesirable, she decided to leave him be and find some quiet corner of her own to rest. It had been a longer night than she would have liked, and she was sure she’d seen a large enough bed in one of the other rooms. Impulsively, she turned and leaned in to kiss her ward’s head before making her way out of the library, blushing just a touch even knowing he’d never suspect a thing.
It didn’t take her long to find a room that suited her, close enough to him to come to his aid if something else went wrong, Despite this however, she found that she couldn’t quite bring herself to close her eyes, gaze constantly wandering towards the doorway as if expecting someone to walk in and join her. She cursed the thought, and cursed him for good measure, irate at even entertaining the notion that her temporary roommate might ever be anything other than a chore for her. Even so, the thought lingered, strengthened by the season, a fantasy too sweet to hate outright. She supposed… He was asleep…
She spared a final glance at the door, as closed at could get on its damaged hinges, before resigning herself to the daydream, allowing herself to picture Darkrai coming through her borrowed bedroom door, to imagine him joining her on the decrepit bed. His hands cupping her cheek, caressing her, while the darkness gifted to him wrapped around her, holding her close, running down her body. She imagined he would take his time, studying her as he studied his beloved books, playing along her feathered body, teasing across her tail while she burned for him below.
She found herself pushing back against the bedposts as she indulged the fantasy, voice quietly murmuring pleas for more as she let the dream take her. Her voice, steadily growing louder as the polished wood of the bedpost served its new purpose, her need carrying down the empty halls to the library…

Darkrai thought for a moment he was dreaming again, and woke cursing. It was bad enough to have a lecture awaiting him from Cresselia without his mind playing tricks on him to boot. But no, the strange moaning persisted even as he collected his wits, echoing down the halls with a growing sense of urgency. Had he accidently ensnared yet another fool of a human? The thought coaxed him up and out into the hall quickly, dashing his way towards the source of the sound. Another fiasco was the last thing he needed, maybe if he was quick he could-
He stopped dead in the doorway of the bedroom the moans were coming from, floating silently in he tried to process what he was seeing beyond the slender opening. He couldn’t help but be transfixed by the sight of his warden and desire in the throes of passion, pushing herself against the polished wood of the bedpost, her tail high and her soaked sex glittering in the morning sunlight as she worked herself off. Arousal surged through him alongside embarrassment, the two struggling within him with conflicting demands to approach or flee her in her current state. In his indecision, he could have sworn he heard her muttering, the words slowly growing in volume and clarity.
“Darkrai… Please… Darkrai!” He trembled with her vocalizations, hardly daring to believe as she soaked the bedpost with her release, squealing his name into the old mattress as she came. He let himself drift closer, aching to be near her, making the mistake of nudging the door and letting its ancient hinges squeak with its disturbance. Eyes half-glazed with pleasure rounded on him, locking on his intrusive form. Her emotions visibly flashed from confusion to embarrassment before narrowing in righteous fury, her normally kind expression hardening to one of absolute fury.
“You! How- What- How DARE YOU?” She rose from the bed, closing the gap between them in a blink, eyes locked with his as she seethed with years of bottled up anger boiling over in a single moment. “Is it not bad enough that your antics drag me all over creation, that now you have to intrude on my privacy?” She butted him back with her head, lavender eyes boring holes through his skull with their intensity. “How can you even… Why… UGH!” Words failed her, and in the lapse of her furious outbursts, she found Darkrai suddenly driving her back into the room, a strange look on his face as he rounded on her. She refused to back down even as he closed in on her, no less furious, undeterred by his fighting back.
“You know, you’re right.” His voice was low, trembling, emotions hard to read. “I’ve been a nuisance to you since Arceus tasked you to keep me in check, forcing you to dog my every step as I so desperately fled from everyone I could hurt. But you’ve never been afraid I could hurt you.” She could feel his aura filling the room, shadows clawing up the walls as he spoke. Still she looked at him with no trace of fear in her eyes, no worry about his type advantage nor his intentions.
“I’ve seen the power you hold, and I have no fear of it.” Her voice had a hard edge to it, daring him to try, daring him to give her a reason to take out her frustrations on him. They were a breath apart now, each seeming to wait for the other to make a move, every muscle in her body tense as she waited for the expected strike. She flinched when his hand came to her neck, only to find herself shocked by the gentle touch he gave her. Confusion flashed across her face before he closed the gap between them, pressing against her as he stole her breath with a heated kiss. She nearly thrashed him back, her frustration with him nearly winning out. But his touch… She couldn’t bring herself to deny what she’d been aching for for too long.
Darkrai was elated to feel her start to relax against him, returning the kiss with some hesitation. He had been afraid she would recoil, would reject him - and even that would have been acceptable. Having her rejection would have at least been the closure he needed to avoid her, but this… His hand stroked down her neck slowly, feeling her tremble from his touch, her body heating from his attentions. She didn’t flinch when his shadows reached out for her, tendrils of darkness slowly crawling up her body, an embrace that any other would have despaired in.
“Are you sure you aren’t afraid?” he murmured when their mouths parted, a noticeable blush on her cheeks.
“Do your worst.” Her voice was husky, nearly a growl, daring him to disappoint her now, even as her eyes begged for him to continue. His grip tightened as he took hold of her throat, forcing her down against the bed, her body yielding to him without fear. She could see his arousal plainly as he let his tendrils envelop her body, his cock a fascinating shape to her. Long and tapered, almost like a pair of his tendrils twined together, shimmering at its dusky blue tip with beads of pre. He gave her little time to admire the shape before pushing the tip against her lips, shocking her with a demonstration of just how dexterous his member truly was as he forced it into her maw. She could feel his hands on her back, working their way to her tail as his hips thrust forward, forcing his way in and out of her maw, slowly working his way down her throat as he leaned over her. She gave a muffled groan of pleasure as she felt his fingers running across her nethers, making up for his inexperience in spades with his eager touches. Her mind quickly filled with a haze of pleasure as he heat was at last addressed, by a real partner no less, the feeling of his soft fingers spreading her folds making her head spin with delight.
Damn it… What have you done to me, Darkrai? Her thoughts echoed in his head, a tremor of excitement running through him as he redoubled his efforts on her. Feeling his fingers pushing in and out of her sex was amazing, the taste of his cock in her maw fantastic, but it still wasn’t enough. His touch alone wasn’t enough to do anything but stoke the fires in her belly, driving her mad with need for him until she thrashed out from beneath him, sending the startled Darkrai crashing to the floor. In an instant she was on him, kissing him hungrily, pushing her tongue into his maw and letting him taste the pre he’d left there, grinding against him as her soaked sex drooled over his aching shaft.
“Darkrai. I need you,” she nearly growled into his mouth. “Show me your gratitude, show me your need. Give me everything.” His hands found her hips as she felt hit tip probing her soaked nethers, pushing her down onto his spiraled length with a shared moan of pleasure. She was so hot and snug around him, the twisted texture of his cock coaxing her open around him and making her all but sing his name, her kisses trailing against every inch of him she could reach as she started to ride him. She offered no resistance to his shadows, letting him grip her with tendrils of darkness, happily opening her muzzle to the tip of one, then three, then more of his ethereal tentacles while more still probed her cunt and tailhole for entrance. She should have been terrified to be so completely in his grasp, but the only thing she felt was exhilaration as he invaded her so thoroughly, spearing her in every which way with throbbing, writhing tendrils of shadow while his own cock thrust in and out of her cunt with a building frenzy. She wasn’t aware of how many times she came for him, each climax bleeding into the next as he indulged her psychic pleas for more and more.
It was a staggering switch to see his warden so powerless in his grasp, hungry for his touch, demanding his worship and rewarding him with her own. He reveled in the turn of events, learning how to touch and fill her to elicit the loudest moans as she forced herself down harder and harder on his shaft, spasming depths milking him mercilessly in an effort to quench her heat. With no experience to back him, he was helpless against her demanding body, quickly driven to his peak as he gave her body all it asked of him and more, soaking her womb with jet after jet of thick seed, the new sensation only heightening her pleasure.
To her delighted surprise however, the nightmare Pokémon was far from finished. What he lacked in stamina, he more than made up for with a speedy recovery, flooring her as he turned the tables once again. She looked up at him from her back with eyes glazed by pleasure as he had his way with her in turn, slowing his thrusts to a tortuously slow pace to draw out the sensation as his tendrils slowly opened her wide for their intrusion. Her thoughts invaded his in sporadic bursts of telepathy, incoherent pleas to match the muffled moans she made as shadows ravaged her muzzle, until she threatened to black out from the overstimulation. He came again, giving a cry that seemed to echo throughout the castle as he collapsed over her, riding out the second high with her as she writhed beneath him.
After that, the events were hazy for both of them - it seemed neither of them could be sated, yet what exactly was done was lost in a haze of pleasure and hours. When at last they had passed out, she had been astride his prone form, nursing from his slick shaft while he drank greedily from her well-bred holes until sleep had at last forced both of them to rest. For the first time that Darkrai could remember, he dreamed in his sleep - and so far as he could tell, Cresselia had been at his side even then.

The moon was high in the sky when Darkrai finally awoke, disappointingly alone. He would have sworn the whole tryst a fever dream if the room hadn’t reeked of their coupling, the bed all but destroyed by their fevered mating. Still, he had perhaps hoped too much in thinking she would stay after - his presence was still likely too much a burden for her to bear. He took a long moment to collect himself before making for the library, intent on getting in one last night of reading before he left the castle behind.
His shock was written all over his face when he found Cresselia waiting for him in the hall, carrying what appeared to be a satchel on her back.
“I, um…” He was twice startled to see her at a loss for words in front of him, her usual grace and confidence seemingly shaken loose for the moment. “I thought you might be hungry- I was. And so I went and gathered some berries so we could share… You know, before we have to go…” She seemed to struggle with her thoughts, a sentiment Darkrai shared. They hovered there in silence, neither sure how to broach the subject of what had happened, or where to go from here, until Cresselia broke Darkrai from his thoughts with a hasty kiss.
“Oh! Um…” He had never known himself to blush, but he swore his face had to be glowing bright as the moon as she pulled away, her own expression just as bashful.
“Maybe, um… Maybe I could help you find somewhere new to live? Just this once…” She almost looked ready for him to decline her offer, already starting to look away when he answered.
“I’d really like that, yeah.”