This is the origin story of Seria, a character from Reknownst story Phoenix. I got his full permission before writing this so there. Link to Reknownst's page and Phoenix are in my profile. You do not need to read Phoenix after this, and you do not need to read this before Phoenix. It is just the backstory for my OC. The quote used belongs to Roosterteeth. Themes mentioned and Phoenix belongs to Reknownst. Seria belongs to me. And Pokémon belongs to Nintendo; however, if I owned it, I would make each generation of Pokémon its own anime with the playable characters as the main characters of the show because I am sick of Ash.
Your hopes have become my burden...
Young, tear filled eyes plead with those of its mothers, asking for escape from the creature that had caused the pain the small child felt. Cradling her hand, the child speaks through broken sobs. "B-but, I don't wanna be a dragon master momma. They're big, and s-scary, and-and" the child is unable to finish her sentence as the tears overcome her. Although a bit taken back by her daughter's words, the woman collects the child in her arms and shushes her softly.
"It's okay Seria, I'm sure that Dratini didn't mean to hurt you. The poor creature was frightened and didn't know how to react." That much was true, yet the mother kept the cause of the dragon types fear hidden. There was no need to further frighten the young girl, and she had already sent one of the maids to dispose of the Dratini. She could only hope that what she had saw would not reemerge, and that Seria, despite her statement, would grow to become a powerful dragon master. After all, it was in her blood. If she was to divert from this path a great shame would be brought upon the entire Day family, and after her and her husband's out-of-tradition-marriage, they could not afford to lose any more respect. "Don't worry," she whispers, brushing back Seria's hair in a soft, caring motion "I am sure that one day to will grow to replace your hatred with love." Although Seria disagreed with her, she kept silent. This was the one thing her parents wanted her to achieve more than anything else in the world. As the only child, the burden of carrying the family tradition of becoming a dragon master was placed on her shoulders. For the first time in her life, Seria realized that she had no other choice. Like it or not, she was going to be drilled into becoming the thing she feared most in the world.
- 10 years later -
"Dratini use dragon breath." A much older Seria says to the blue snake Pokémon. The Pokémon just glances at the girl before laying its head back down and resuming its nap. Seria sighs, her shoulders slumping in defeated. This had been going on for about an hour now. It was not unusual for the Pokémon to disobey or ignore her. Personally, she had given up years ago, but her parents insisted that she was not trying hard enough so here she was.
The green house was really more like an indoor park. It was vast, kept at a constant temperature, had its own pond, and home to a vast amount of normal, grass, and water type Pokémon. Pokémon that she much rather be playing with or feeding freshly baked poffins too.
"No slouching!" The nursemaid and teacher of the much younger girl commands, with a sharp slap of a ruler on the lower back. With a yelp Seria straightens herself.
"I'm sorry master Irene." Seria says as she bows in apology.
"Good." She says, approving of the girls posture as she bows. "Now try again!" Another sigh escapes the girl's lips. Come on Seria, you can do this. With her fist clenched she summons her breath for the next command. "Use dragon rush!" The order goes ignored. "Why do you hate me so much?" Tears of frustration build up in Seria's eyes. Why can't I do anything right? Why won't they listen?" Noting the emotional stress emitting off the girl, Irene calls for a break.
"I expect more from you Seria. After all, both of your parents are excellent dragon tamers, so why is it that you cannot give a simple command without frustrating yourself?" Irene scolds as she withdraws the Dratini and begins to walk back to the Day estate. Leaving Seria alone in her thoughts. "I try so hard." Seria says to herself as the tears escape her eyes. "But why can't I do something so simple right!?"A flock of Pidgy scatters from the nearby trees as a result of her outburst. Once again, the herris the Day fortune is left alone in her misery. Crossing her arms in more of a hug than a gesture, Seria makes her way to one of her favorite spots.
On the outskirts of Blackthorn city the girl rests on a small cliff edge. The ground is only a few feet below her, so if she fell there would be no major damage, but it would be rather difficult to get back up. "I wish I could escape all of this." Seria whispers to the wind as she leans back against the single oak tree that grows here. On the base of its trunk are thousands of tiny little scratches. Not from Pokémon, but from her. Each one marks a day of failed training. Seria had snuck into the kitchen one night, one of her most rebellious acts to date, and stole a knife from one of the draws. That same knife was shallowly buried underneath the tree, hidden from Pokémon and man alike. Seria figured that, if the situation ever arouse, she could use it to defend herself. Alas, she was safe here in her spot. The knife rusting away as it makes its daily chips at the trunk. Seria's eyes flit close as she recalls her actions earlier today. "I wish there was some way I could just...run away." She scoffs at her own words and sits up. "Listen to yourself Seria, it's too dangerous. Not without a Pokémon." Her teeth grit at a passing thought. "If I ever did get one I pray to Arceus that it wouldn't be a dragon type." Her own spite catches her off guard. In shock, Seria gasps and covers her mouth. It wasn't good for her to talk bad about something. No matter how much she disliked it, it was, in a way, against her morals to be spiteful about anything. Seria's gaze saddens as her hands return to the ground beside her. "I'm sorry." She says out of instinct. The world goes silent as Seria hangs her legs over the cliffs edge, basking in the sunlight her pale skin rarely sees and collecting her thoughts. The squeal of a Pokémon breaks her from the trainquill state that she was in. Off in the distance she could see a dust cloud forming. The pleas from the Pokémon ring out once more as she stands up in an effort to locate its owner. What she sees shocks her. A small ball of brown fur, an Eevee is what she believed it to be called, was being chased by a herd of angry Donaphan. "What in the-" Seria is cut off by the Eevee lurching itself over the cliff and right at her. With a yelp, she manages to catch the creature. They stare at each other, as if assisting the situation that they are in. It then dawns on the young adult that she should run, now. The joined screams of both Pokémon and human echo throughout the mountain side as Seria frantically runs from the stampeding Donaphan. She has a good lead considering they had to find a separate path up the mountain top, but they were closing in fast. Seria breathe a sigh of relief as Blackthorn revels itself over the horizon; however, the Donaphan where still behind her, and they would not make a good addition to the city. What do I do? What do I do? Seria frantically thinks as the city grows nearer and nearer.
"Salamance! Use dragon breath!" From above a brilliant blue and red dragon sores past Seria and unleashes a fury of blue-gold fire into the herd of Pokémon. As they squeal in retreat, Seria makes a much needed stop, and the Eevee removes himself from her arms. The Salamance lands next to Seria and a man with golden hair and eyes, garbed in silk clothing whose colors matched those of the dragon, slides off from its back. "Seria! What were you thinking!? You could have gotten yourself killed!" Seria hangs her head in shame as he scolds her. Her fingers drift to the scar on her right palm. The Salamance gives her a look of superiority before tossing its head with a huff. The girl was not worth his time. Seria notices this and bites back a growl of frustration. Now was not the time to fight with the Pokémon. Instead, she takes a deep breath and begins to explain herself.
"I was trying to help this Eevee papa." She says, gesturing down to the Eevee which had sat itself next to her feet in curiosity. This girl had saved his life so he owed it to her to stay at least a bit longer. That and he kind of liked her. Not a lot of people would risk their own lives for a wild Pokémon, no matter how rare they might be. It was human selfishness that got in the way of a lot of things. He then notices the man and Salamance stares. A week mewl escapes him as he hides behind the girls legs.
"You risked your life and the entire cities safety for a Pokémon!?" The man seems livid as he glares at the girl. A drop of water lands on the Eevee's nose. He looks up to see the girl trying hard not to cry. A frustrated sigh escapes the man. He rubs his temples before recalling his Salamance. "Let's go home Seria. We'll let your mother deal with this." He says much more calmly, placing a hand on Seria's shoulder as he leads them back home. With nothing better to do, Eevee trots behind them. Seria glances back and gives a weak smile, glad not to be alone for once.
*-POS-*
Seria curls the Eevee tighter in her arms. For now she was confined to her bedroom, but she knew that Irene and her parents were discussing a suitable punishment for her. With a sigh, she situates herself on the edge of her bed and begins to gently pet the Eevee. He happily nuzzles in her hands and gives off a sound that can only be described as a purr. Seria was very glad that the Eevee had decided to follow her home. Although his coat was matted, covered in dried mud, and he probably had fleas, she was still happy to have him here. Since no one had seemed to take notice she had decided to keep him around. Of course, giving him a bath was on her agenda now. Seria smiles as the Eevee hops down from her lap and begins to sniff the various whereabouts of her room. Yes, a bath was in order, but, for now, she decided that naming him would come first. Seria takes a moment, contemplating any good names for the Pokémon. A small yip snaps her from her concentration. Seria looks down to see a small necklace hanging from the Pokémon's mouth. Curiously, she examines it. The necklace was a thin, silver braid with the letter 'D' done in gold at the end. Next to it was her family's crest. An orangeish golden orb with a dark red rising sun. A Dragonair made a 'U' shape around it. It was a birthday gift some time ago. It marks her as a member of the Day family. Much of the clothing and jewelry had this emblem adorned into or on it, so this piece was no different from the others. Because of this reason Seria did not feel obligated to wear it very often. In fact, it had been sitting at the bottom of a jewelry box long forgotten. "Now how did you get this?" Seria asks as she takes it from his.
His eyes light up as he runs over to her vanity. Seria's breathe catches in her throat once she sees the condition that it is in. Without her noticing, the Pokémon had managed to open every draw, and knock off all her perfumes, make up, and various trinkets from the table. She looks down to see the Eevee happily prancing through the remains of those items. A small bubble of anger forms inside her, and, right before she is about to scold him, he looks up at her with a smile. With that, her anger is suddenly done. He looked so innocent and happy that she could not find it inside her to scold him. "Look at this mess you made..." Seria looks for the right thing to call him. Her gaze wanders to the 'D' on the necklace. "Daniel." She states the name as it comes to her. Daniel stops prancing for a moment and cocks his head. "Daniel." Seria repeats. Daniel smiles and gives a hop and a yip, happy to have a name. Seria chuckles as she scoops him off the floor. Placing him on the bed, she ruffles his fur. "Please stay here and try not to mess anything else up while I go grab one of the maids, okay." Daniel nods in agreement, sitting down obediently. Seria smiles once more before slipping out into the hallway.
*-POS-*
The fact that Seria did not want to become a dragon tamer was not something new to the Day house hold. Seria's passion for the glorified beauty pageants called 'Pokémon contests' had started at a young age. Seria had been seven to be exact. It all began after Seria was attacked by a rather aggressive Dratini. Her right palm had suffered a very serious burn, but, luckily, the situation was calmed before any more harm could be done to her. The Dratini had been sold off to collectors immediately, and the entire ordeal was labeled an accident. A simple miss-command at the wrong time; however, Seria's mother knew otherwise. She had been there during the incident and knew exactly what had happened.
The secret was still held close to her. Words that have gone unspoken thus far and it was something that she planned to take to her grave. Whatever had happened that day seemed to be forgotten by her daughter, and she planned to keep it that way. There have been no repeats of that day, so she had no worries; although, as of late, she could not shake the nagging feeling that something big was about to happen. Something that was going to re-awaken the thing she had seen on that day. The catalyst of what was to come was undoubtedly Seria's drive to be in Pokémon contests, for the want had not started until that day. Even after ten years it has yet to dissolve despite her greatest efforts to keep her daughter away from such things. No matter what she did she knew that a beast was about to be reawoken.
*-POS-*
There are two maids in the Day household. They were twins named Emmi and Emma. Despite knowing them most of her life, Seria could not tell the two women apart. They looked, talked, and dressed the same. As if one had been directly cloned from the other. Because of this her parents had one thing changed about them, and that was a bracelet that they wore. Emmi's was a pearl white, and Emma's an onyx black. It was a small difference, but the sisters did not comply with anything else.
While it would be easy to replace them, they were the best of the best. The house was always clean; clothes always folded, hung up, ironed, or washed the same day they got dirty. There was never a speck of dust anywhere to be found and you could quite literally eat off of the floors. The only downside to the twins is that they always spoke at the same time when they were together. That, and if you called one of them by the wrong name they will do nothing for you. So it was only natural for Seria to slightly panic when she sees both of the girls in the same place. White is Emmi, Black is Emma. Seria chants in her mind as she approaches the two girls. "Excuse me." Seria calls out hesitantly. The girl shares a look before simultaneously turning to Seria.
"Yes?" They say at the same time.
"Emmi, could you please go and clean the mess in my room, and bathe Dan-the Eevee. Oh, and Emma, could you please go buy me a poke ball." Seria asks them.
"Of course lady Seria, but Emma will need money for the poke ball." Seria gulps at their response. Black is Emma. Black is Emma. Black is Emma. Seria hesitantly reaches into her pocket and pulls out a few poke dollars.
"This should be enough I believe." She takes moment to glance at their wrists before handing the money to the one she hopes is Emma.
"Thank you lady Seria, we will be sure to do these things as quickly as possible." With those words the two maids turn on their heels and head in opposite directions. Seria releases the breath that she didn't know she was holding.
"I don't know what else to do Will." The sound of her mother's voice shocks Seria. She looks around her to see one of the doors slightly ajar with a tiny sliver of light seeping through. Seria knows she should head back to her room right now, but her curiosity gets the best of her. She finds her feet moving closer, keeping near the wall she listens in.
"We've tried every other option. It is simply costing us too much for her to not to reach mastery by now. This is all that is left...unless you let her go off and join contests I do-"
"No! We can't let her do that!" Her father was quickly cut off by her mother's panic. Something stirs inside of Seria. A dangerous mixture of emotions that she could not identify. It seemed to her that her father was okay with the idea of letting her participate in Pokémon, yet her mother was so against it. But why though. A crashing sound from down the hallway prevents Seria from learning more. "What was that?" Her mother questions. Seria then leaves in panic, previous emotions forgotten. It is then she sees the cause for the crash.
Emmi stands in the hallway, a soaked Eevee struggling in her arms and a broken vase at her feet.
"I believe this is yours." Emmi says sharply, handing Daniel over to her. "I have cleaned the mess in your room. I was giving your peta bath when he decided to run. I will leave you to his punishment while I go and fetch the broom." Daniel drops from Seria's arms once Emmi is out of sight. He turns back around to see a rather irritated Seria.
"Now what in the world where you doing?" She scolds one hand on her hip and the other pointed to the Eevee. Daniels ears flatten, and he tucks his tail between his legs in grief. Seria's gaze softens at this gesture. "Well...I guess mother and father cannot see this, so I guess it is okay, for now." Seria states, relaxing a bit. Daniel perks up immediately.
"What in the world is this!?" Seria's mothers voice booms as she turns the corner and sees the mess. Both Daniel and Seria flinch. "Who did this?"
"I-I'm sorry." Seria says softly, trying to cover for her Pokémon. Her mother gives a sharp look to the two and figures out the truth.
"It was the Eevee, wasn't it?" Her words where not a question, but a statement. Seria flinches once more, caught in her lie.
"Come along Seria. It is about time your father and I spoke to you." Seria has no choice but to follow behind her mother with her head held in shame.
*-POS-*
"What are we going to do?" Seria asks Daniel as she hugs her pillow close. Her eyes where still stained red from her parents news. Once she had entered their office she was immediately told about it. They were going to send her to the Dragons Den. A place where only the most experienced of dragon masters resided. One that was crawling with those creatures. That was not the end of it. She was to be sent off in a week, her eighteenth birthday, and no outside Pokémon where allowed. This meant she would haft to get rid of her Eevee. Daniel nuzzled against her in an attempt to stop her tears. In the short time he had known her he had become rather attached to Seria. He did not know why, but he felt obligated to stay with her. The two sit in silence, letting the feeling of grief fill the room. The silence starts to drive Seria insane, right before she is about to speak there is a knock at the door. "Come in." Seria says in a weak voice. The door opens to reveal Emmi and Emma each holding a bag.
"Lady Seria." Emmi says as she enters the room.
"We are here to help" Emma finishes. Their words puzzle her. What are they helping her with? Emma rummages through her bag and pulls out some clothing. "Put these on tonight. You will not be able to travel around in a dress comfortably."
"And use this to hold food, poke balls, and any other essientles." Emmi says as she reaches into her bag and pulls out a satchel.
"...Wait, you're not doing what I think you're doing...are you?" Seria asks as she pieces the puzzle together. The girls smile at her.
"We love you Lady Seria, you are the kindest person we know, so we feel that it is time for you to follow your own path." Their words send a warm, fuzzy feeling through her. Seria begins to tear up as she engulfs them in a hug.
"Thank you." She whispers.
"We do not have much time to this will haft to be quick." Emma says once they break apart. Seria nods and listens for her instructions.
"Tonight around twelve you need to change into these clothes, pack this bag with any needed essientles, and bring a fair sum of money. We are going to leave the back door unlocked, so that is where you will escape. We have talked to Nurse Joy, so you will be able to spend the rest of the night in the Pokémon center. She will then proceed to wake you up early enough so that you will be safely out of town before your parents discover you are missing. Do not go down the mountain side. It will take too long for you to reach the next town. Instead, go through the ice cave. Once you reach the next town immediately contacts your parents. They will have no control over you if you are not within their reach." Emmi explains. It takes a moment for Seria to absorb the information, but once she does she feel a rush of adrenaline. She was about to do something she never thought she was capable of.
"I don't know how I can ever repay you two." Seria says as she takes the items. The girls smile and shake their heads.
"You have done enough for us, plus it is our job to serve you to the best of our ability." Emmi states.
"We cannot stay any longer, so this is goodbye. We hope you find happiness wherever your feet may take you." With Emma's statement they turn and leave, not looking back as they shut the door behind them. Daniel yips and rolls a poke ball left behind around. It opens and engulfs him in a red light. Seria panics for a moment before she realizes what is going on. After three shakes the poke ball stills and Seria's journey begins.
I shall find my own liberation...
There. Done. I don't think there is anything else to mention, so I will see you all next time.