The sand on the beach was anything but static as the ever-wild waters from Route 41 splashed the vibrantly multicolored shores just East of Cianwood City. The wingulls let their calls dance in the summer air while the various ships came and went into the mysterious Whirlpool Isles.
The port was alive with various people and sailors all gathering around the pokecenter to prepare for future journeys out to sea. Many locals thrived on this constant cash flow that this group of sailors and swimmers brought.
A gym was established on the island due to its challenging approach for would-be champions. Many thought the gym was going to be water type due to the ocean, but a young and powerful trainer named Chuck quickly rose to become the gym leader. His primeape and poliwrath were undefeated among the local battlers, and so the fighting gym was erected. Many trainers tried to challenge Chuck, but his strength of body was only surpassed by his strength in battle.
An old pokemon explorer named Kirk was very revered by the townsfolk for his rare pokemon, sneasel. He loves to tell people about his journey to with his trusted friend at his side, a shuckle named Shuckie. Those we see him can all but tell how much love is woven into the fabric of the relationships with his pokemon.
Cameron the photographer also has a home on Cianwood's beach. Tales of his photography have spread far and wide, and his had grown more famous than the island could contain. Now he only comes back every blue moon in the hopes he can picture a mythic pokemon.
The ebbs and flows around the Pokemon Seer's house are ever mystical. She offers trainers a chance to glimpse at the moment a pokemon was born, the moment a pokemon met its trainer, or a significant moment in the pokemon's life. Many people travel from across the world to better understand the psyche of their pokemon.
Yet the most famous attraction of all is Cianwood's mythical city pharmacy. Having been started over 500 years in the past, the pharmacy is a beacon of light for many people and pokemon alike. The herbs that grow on the island have been utilized in special formulas which have been passed down from generation to generation on the island. The particular method is one that takes many years to learn and very few have the ability and patience to master such a talent. Leah is the most recent medical expert that inhabits the island, and she spends her days fostering hurt and lost pokemon. Often many come to seek her training or aide with ailing pokemon.
Today, in particular, was a very unique event in Cianwood. A young couple arrived with high hopes of raising their soon to be born baby in the mystical city. Having very little change in their routines, the townsfolk were eager to bring someone new to the small community. The father seemed to have boundless energy and within a month of their arrival had a home built from the ground up.
The couple quickly made themselves known to everyone in a very short time frame. Kirk's sneasel quickly met a good training partner in the wife's Nuzleaf. The Poke Seer saw only kindness in the events of the pokemon the couple brought. Chuck was floored by the power within the husband's pokemon. After a drawn out battle, the husband's Rhydon and Tauros were able to beat Chuck.
However, the couple took a keen liking to Leah's pharmacy. Each visited daily and helped her with the pokemon she would find. The husband would gather the herbs while the wife helped keep track of the newly found pokemon. After a few months both husband and wife were near experts on the island's pharmaceutical ways.
Then the birth of their boy brought a new sense of love to the small city.
The boy was oddly quiet for a newborn, only crying very rarely. His light hazel eyes would dart across the room, scanning every nook and cranny with his vision. His lightly sun-kissed skin was brimming with a warmth, almost as if Cianwood's life had been sewed into his being. The blue hue of his hair was nearly identical to the Whirlpool Isle's. They took it as a blessing from Lugia. After much discussion, the parents decided to call their son Hiru.
Hiru grew up amidst the various pokemon brought to the pharmacy for healing and care taking. The island almost never had other children, so he grew to be mature for his age. That said, whenever another kid would come to the island, he would always try to make new friends. The Olivine lighthouse was a beacon that called out to Hiru. He knew many kids went on amazing pokemon adventures when they were of age.
His parents grew worried that the island wouldn't provide a vibrant enough experience for Hiru, so they began to work on digging out a tunnel to the west. Many of the villagers pitched in to help the couple realize their vision.
After Hiru turned 8, the couple opened up the first official Safari Zone in the Johto region. Many years of hard work and collecting pokemon from sailors had finally paid off. The tourism coming into the island nearly tripled with the opening of the Safari Zone, and the parents felt like their son would have a safe place to adventure while growing.
The call of the lighthouse was stronger than anything Hiru had experienced to that point, however. He had begged his parents to consider letting him capture a pokemon and travel the rest of the world.
Two years came and went, and finally on Hiru's 10th birthday, both of his parents decided to let him begin his journey. He was so excited he quickly ran out to the ocean and pointed at the lighthouse.
"I'm coming to figure out what makes you and everything else in this world tick!"
However, the only stipend was that the parents would pick his first pokemon.
"Son," his father began. "I want this pokemon to be a reminder of how much we want you to challenge the world. To take something you see and make it better."
His mother smirked before adding, "We also want you to touch the lives of people and pokemon with your heart, Hiru. We know you're ready."
Hiru wiped a tear away and hugged his parents.
"I'll change the world, just watch me!" He chuckled, making two very tightly balled fists.
That night, his parents set off into the Whirlpool Isles. They had been calm of late and they wanted to search there for a pokemon that would allow Hiru to remind himself of the great things near his home and region.
A day went by. Then a week. Then a month. Hiru anxiously waited every day by the oceans edge for the return of his parents, but they never came. The waters surrounding the Whirlpool Isle's were growing more and more unruly. The sailors stopped coming to town and the young trainers couldn't cross the forboding waters.
After two months of waiting, Hiru was taken in by Leah. She began to teach him the same healing arts she taught his parents. He would throw himself into his studies and push everyone but Leah away.
"Are you going to go after them?" She asked one evening.
"No," Hiru responded curtly. "If they come back, I am going to be here. That's the only thing I can do for them. Getting lost would only worry them... like they.." He trailed off before falling into another silence.
The next morning, a small pokemon was seen emerging from the now chaotic storm of the Whirlpool Isles. As it got closer to the beach, Hiru's gaze focused on it. Slowly he made out a slowpoke that was struggling against the pull of the storms behind him towards the city.
Hiru quickly dove into the water and swam towards it. Many of the cities inhabitants quickly ran out of their homes.
"Hiru!" Leah called out in vein.
"Don't tell me he's going after them now..." Kirk muttered. He was shivering with fear, causing his sneasel and Shuckie to shiver as well.
"No. He's doing what he's best at. Saving lives."
Kirk and Leah turned to see Chuck standing with his arms crossed. His facial expression was one of admiration and respect.
Before long, Hiru came upon the slowpoke who was nearly going to collapse from fatigue.
"Climb on my back, slowpoke! We're going to get you to safety!" Hiru called out to the slowpoke who seemed to latch onto his voice. It followed his command and grabbed onto his back.
"Goodness gracious, you're heavy!"
After a very drawn out struggle against the waves, Hiru and slowpoke made it to sure. The townsfolk quickly gathered around and made sure they were both alright.
"That was incredibly dangerous, Hiru. What if you had gotten taken into the Isles?" Leah moaned as she hugged him.
"What if he did?" Hiru quickly responded, placing a hand on slowpoke. It seemed very fulfilled, as if he just accomplished a lifelong promise.
The slowpoke seemed to only want to be around Hiru for the next few weeks, following him on his daily routine of watching the Whirlpool Isle's and helping at the pharmacy. They were inseparable. At some point, Hiru began to train with slowpoke, taking on the role of trainer. Despite its name, slowpoke seemed very quick to learn and grasp very complex battle moves.
"Well we know one thing, slowpoke. You're a great swimmer." The slowpoke seemed overtly pleased with this assessment.
The years seemed to go by at an incredibly fast speed. Tomorrow was Hiru's 18th birthday and no signs of his parents coming back were there. The years of community had helped him cope, but the loneliness that gripped his heart was becoming unbearable. The yearn for an adventure seemed too far gone for Hiru, as if he had missed the train for the journey he had hoped to see come to fruition.
I'll change the world! Just watch me!
His own words had made him choke up. They brought back memories of his failed promise, but more importantly of his absent parents.
The Pokemon Seer came to visit on this morning. She knocked on the door apprehensively.
"Hiru, I need to speak with you," She quietly informed. Hiru nodded without saying a word and led her into the family's home. The slowpoke followed them into the living room.
"I had a dream last night, and I saw something. You're a man now, Hiru. It would be wrong of me to hold this from you at all. I am going to show you your slowpoke's birth."
"His birth? What would that matter?" Hiru quickly barked back defensively.
"You must decide that yourself. Now hold your slowpoke, boy."
Hiru narrowed his gaze for a few moments. The air of uncertainty translated into his slowpoke until he turned and nodded. The slowpoke anxiously crawled onto Hiru's lap and rested. The two of them closed their eyes and the Pokemon Seer placed her hands on them both.
A great white light nearly blinds Hiru. His vision seems cloudy and no matter how many times he rubs his eyes, he can't seem to see anything. The great white void sinks his spirit to a new low as panic begins to set in.
Suddenly there is a small crack against the white expanse. He sees a small pink object dart towards the crawl with the exact same panic as his own. It hits the crack which expands it. Soon he hears a familiar voice.
"It's hatching!" Hiru's mother cheered. "It's going to hatch!"
"Let's hope he's got the same spirit as Hiru." His father proudly chortled. There was a group of slowpoke surrounding them, looking very happy at the direction of Hiru.
"Here." His mother gently placed her necklace around the young slowpoke's neck. "Please be our son's first pokemon. His name is Hiru. He's got deep blue hair, hazel eyes, and a spirit that could change the world. This necklace is our good luck charm. I know that it will get to Hiru and let him know we're still watching him. You're his warden, now."
Hiru felt a twang of emotion rush over his heart. To see and hear his mother again was overwhelming. Tears flowed down his eyes.
The slowpokes suddenly began to panic as the tides began to rise and fall rapidly. The parents worriedly looked back at the young slowpoke.
"Listen, son," his father said, looking right at the slowpoke. "We know that it with the Pokemon Seer, you may be able to see this. Know that we love you very much. No matter what happens that will never change."
The wave finally crashed into the parents and they began to fall into the whirlpool. After a tight embrace, they went together down into the deep blue isles.
Hiru cried out for them as he watched them go full under. Then, amidst his grief, he noticed the small slowpoke struggling against the same current. Despite its overwhelming effort, it could not escape and was pulled down into the water.
The darkness clutched onto Hiru and he couldn't help but feel that he was going to die. The bubbles around him rose in all different directions and the incredible noise of whirling water overwhelmed his senses.
Before long, he saw an eye in the darkness. It slowly melted into a purple fuzz and a call ripped through the waters. The rush was as jarring as when Hiru entered the water. A force pushed the slowpoke so hard that the necklace it had on was released into the darkness. Hiru watched as it disappeared into the darkness.
Suddenly he saw the surface. He could feel that all the strength this slowpoke had was being used to rush towards salvation on the surface.
Once it broke into the air, it quickly began to gasp. Floating and breathing were all that could be done. After awhile, it knew that it couldn't paddle itself afloat forever. With the only landmass being straight ahead, it began to paddle.
Soon a figure approached on the waters. It came up to the slowpoke and quickly shouted, "Climb on my back, slowpoke. We're going to get you to safety!"
Th-that's me, Hiru thought.
Without warning, they were back in the house. His slowpoke seemed to be very calm while resting. Hiru had tears fully streaming down his face.
"Th-they're alive.. they have to be!" He quietly cried. The Pokemon Seer stood up and bowed.
"I do believe they are as well, Hiru. But it seems they wanted you to change the world, still. With this pokemon that they chose for you."
"I-I can't. If they're alive... I have to be here..."
"That, Hiru, is something you must choose on your own." The Pokemon Seer left the boy and his pokemon.
That night, Hiru told Leah the entire story.
"Sounds like this slowpoke was meant to find you, Hiru. Just like you're meant to find your parents."
"I can't leave the island. They'll find me here. Plus, I'm almost better than you at using our special herbs. The Pharmacy would easily fall behind without me."
"Hiru.. what if you're meant to find your parents like slowpoke found you?"
He gave it a quick thought but a bit of guilt hit him.
"I can't just have an adventure while my parents could be in danger. It wouldn't feel right."
The slowpoke walked over and rested near his feet. Leah smiled gently and gave his slowpoke a tastey treat, something he couldn't resist. As it quickly finished the small candy, it stood happily by Hiru.
"He really is your ward against the troubles of your heart." Leah giggled. Hiru's eye sparkled when she said that.
"Ward." He turned to the slowpoke as if he had just laid eyes on a brand new discovery. "I'll call you Ward from now on. We're both going to be with our parents again before we're done, Ward. You can count on it."
A/N - I plan to take the story to a very fun place! I do plan for this to be a bit more of a romantic journey as well, so if you're into that you'll like this a lot! I had to set up the very sad backdrop for Hiru's character to come to life! Let's see what comes next for Hiru and Ward!
Any reviews are much appreciated! Thank you for reading!
Dezz