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"Eon and Ai grew to three times their size," Aranxia pointed out as Ponydash started forward at a walk with Andarien clinging to his back. "If he grows that much too, he's going to be enormous."

She watched as Eon chased after Andarien and Ponydash. "Still. Even if he doesn't grow that much, he'll still be able to defend you all, right?"

"Oh?" Aranxia arched one eyebrow. "Really? What does he do? Aside from run very fast, I mean. I've seen that."

He was like a horse, so she assumed he could kick or stomp; and guessing from the fact that his mane and tail were fire, he could probably burn something. But what else?

"Has he sparred before?" she asked.

"Well, perhaps Andarien will train him sometime when I'm around to watch," Aranxia smiled.

It was nothing but a passing curiosity for her, after all, so it really didn't matter all that much.

It took them nearly two hours, but at length they reached the base of the mountain that was their goal. It was not an overly tall mountain, nor was it very steep, and Andarien proposed they climb it a bit and see what they could see.

Andarien had dismounted from Ponydash's back when they had reached the base of the mountain, and the Ponyta had proven a decent climber. As they reached the ledge of the mouth of the cave, however, Andarien had to sit down to rest.

"Can we have a snack before we go inside?" he asked, looking up at the girls. "That's a long walk and I'm hungry now."

"Of course," Aranxia agreed. She knelt on the ground since it was too cold to sit and let her bag rest on the ground. She rummaged through it a bit and pulled out some buns which were packed thick with cheese.

"There's more for later as well," she added, handing out the food. "A real meal for when we're really hungry."

She looked into the cave as she munched on her own bun. "It's going to be very dark in there," she murmured.

"Not to worry!" Andarien grinned, looking over at Ponydash. "We'll have enough light to see by."

"Your Pokemon really are amazing creatures," Aranxia murmured, a little wistfully. "Companions, protectors, helpers ..."

Andarien wasn't really listening anymore. He was looking into the cave and pondering what they might find inside.

Andarien hadn't had room in his pockets for any berries - not without crushing them at any rate - so he shared his bun with Eon while Ponydash contented himself with grazing on what grass was poking up through the snow.

Eventually, they all finished their snack and started to get ready to go again.

"Dash, we're going to need light in there," Andarien told Ponydash as he brushed his hands against his pants. "Use your flame body ability, okay?"

Ponydash snorted his understanding, and a moment later his body seemed to burst into flame.

Aranxia was impressed. "That's the biggest torch I've ever seen," she smiled, her eyes sparkling. "And the only one that moves itself!"

It was Aranxia who first noticed the way that the walls shimmered and glimmered in the flickering light of Ponydash's flames.

"I wonder what's in the walls to make them sparkle like that," she mused.

The floor of the cave also sparkled, though not nearly as much. It was indeed warmer inside the cave than out, and Andarien looked around curiously.

"Mi, have you ever been inside a cave before?" he asked.

It was of course his first time, and he was enjoying the experience.