Miyamoto's Promise
__________________
A blur of purple and black moved over the blank snow in a fatigued way. Though the figure seemed to be tired, even exhausted, it moved desperately, as if trying to find something, or maybe, escape from it. Whatever it was, there was an obvious threat sinking down on everything under the sky...as far as could be seen. It was freezing out in those mountains...
A women with purple-lilac hair struggled through the ever chilling snow, knowing all along that the sun was setting behind the mountains. Yes; in fact, that was one of her greatest fears--if the sun set now, and she didn't have cover...well, she wasn't sure, exactly. She had found a sheltered place of some kind or another every other night, and she didn't know if she could handle a night exposed to the cold and frigid darkness.
She'd never tried to build a snow hut or igloo before--she'd never learned *that* in Team Rocket. She could try...but it was just too cold now. She couldn't stop, not now. To find cover would be her only chance, but as she continued up the mountain face, flat and sloping, she could see nothing but snow up to her knees. She wasn't so lucky tonight.
Miyamoto, the women with purple locks, had not expected to ever be sent on such a mission. To find and capture a Mew in the mountains, and in freezing weather, was certainly not the kind of assignment she wanted to go on, especially with a young daughter at home who didn't even understand what Miyamoto had been sent to do. She didn't know that her mother might not come back...all she knew was that Miyamoto had promised her that she would return in a few days.
Miyamoto hugged onto her heavy coat, which sported a red 'R' on the back, and closed her eyes. She pretended, just for a moment, that she was hugging her daughter...tight, warm, unafraid.
"Jessie..." she whispered, opening her eyes again. "Please let me see you again. . ."
Her steps became shorter, and she tripped a little. 'I won't fall,' she told herself, 'I won't let myself fall. I'll make it. No matter what the Boss forces me to do, it won't keep me away from Jessie for long. I'll see her again....'
Miyamoto had been a member of Team Rocket for longer than she could remember. It had been just fine for her, with her salary and living conditions and all, but she hadn't expected that she would have a baby to take care of on the salary, too. But when Jessie did come along, even without a father to support them (he left before she was even born), Miyamoto had loved her daughter, and was willing to do anything for her. The focus of her life became her young daughter, and Miyamoto rarely thought of doing things for herself. That was the only reason she was here now, a promised bonus with her next pay check, surely enough to sustain her and her daughter financially for a very long time.
And that was why she was going to make it back, to see her daughter again, to give her a better life. Team Rocket had given her that chance, therefore, she had taken it.
Miyamoto still thought of her daughter now, as the snow grew an icy crust. The sun was nearly down.
Jessie had said, before Miyamoto had gone, that she was sure that she wanted to be like her mother. She wanted to grow up, and become a member of Team Rocket, just like Miyamoto, and she talked happily about it, as if it was all she ever wanted and her future was right before her. Miyamoto wasn't sure whether she was proud of her daughter of afraid for her--Team Rocket wasn't exactly the best way of life. Jessie didn't actually understand what went on in the Team...stealing, violence, even killing--all the time.
Miyamoto wanted, more than anything, for Jessie to be safe and happy, but she also wanted her to live her life like she wanted to. She wanted Jessie to have a good career, a nice place to live, and a husband to love her and respect her. Yes...at the very least, she wanted her to have that...have what she already lost to the team. Miyamoto had never had a very good job, nor a nice home, and definitely not the loving husband she had always dreamed of. . .and, sadly, of all the things that she could give to her daughter, that was not among them.
"Please...at least let her find a good man...let her..." Miyamoto whispered into the breeze.
The sun was down completely; the air freezing now more so then ever before. Miyamoto rubbed her eyes, and to her relief, saw ahead of her a cave in the new moonlight. That was about all there was--a cave in an upward slope of earth, and that would be enough to keep her warm for the night.
A smile warmed Miyamoto's face, and she quickened her slow-moving pace through the snow.
There was a sharp sound, piercing the air, somewhere ahead...Miyamoto didn't know what, for sure. But she did know right off that the brief stillness in the air around her meant something.
A vibration shook the mountain, and a rumbling came down on Miyamoto from above. A surge of fear raced through her veins as Miyamoto saw what was coming so quickly. . .a wall of snow, sliding quickly down the mountain face, gathering snow as it went along.
Miyamoto, barely hesitating, instinctively decided to make a brake for the cave...it was her only hope. After all, she had no idea what else she should do, and it was either she got under cover fast or get covered by a layer of snow. Either way, she was beginning to panic.
But as Miyamoto ran, stumbling through the snow, she knew that with the speed of the avalanche and the distance she was from the cave, there was no chance in hell she could make it. The wall of snow was upon her in seconds, and she was still at least 100 yards from the cave's safe haven.
The snow slapped down over her small body, covering her easily and knocking her down. It didn't feel cold...all she noticed was a numbing pain as several of her bones snapped beneath the pressure. Her body was twisted this way and that, all the time the force of the snow blanket pressing down on her, always gathering...growing...
When it finally stopped, Miyamoto didn't even bother to move. She merely lay there, alone, in more pain than she could ever remember experiencing, wishing for, though not expecting, some kind of miracle to take place. She winced at the very thought of what had happened to her mangled body, which was now crushed beneath heaps of snow.
Tears of fear traced down her checks as she suddenly thought of her daughter. This couldn't stop her...she couldn't let herself fall prey to the mountains...what about Jessie?!
"Jessie. . .my Jessie," she whispered as she lay there in agony. "For you, Jessica, dear..."
Miyamoto bit her tongue as she attempted to lift an arm. She at least had to try...her daughter was alone, waiting for her. . .
She found it unbearably painful. She tested the other arm tentatively, finding that it wasn't broken, but she couldn't move enough to dig through the air bubble's surface.
She was stuck. Trapped. She knew it.
Miyamoto decided to focus on breathing, as it was all the life left in her body. Air wouldn't last long, though...it already felt thinner...she felt suddenly dizzy...
"Ah, Jessie..." Miyamoto said wistfully. She could barely whisper anymore. "Jessie, don't give up. I must go now. . .Jessie. . .I. . .must go away but. . .I'll be back. Just a few. . .days in the mountains on. . .on a mission. I'll be back. . .don't. . .you. . . worry. . .Jess—"
Her voice left her. She could have sworn that she wasn't there at all, but holding her dear child in her arms. She was only just leaving...on a mission, for Team Rocket. She would be back again...
Miyamoto saw the red haired girl wiping her tears away, and smiling.
'That's right,' Miyamoto thought, 'don't cry. I've never broken a promise to you...and...I love you so much, my dear Jessie. . .'
Miyamoto breathed in frailly.
'I'll miss you...while I'm gone...'
With one last breath, Miyamoto whispered, "...Jessie. . ."
The last thing she saw before the blackness stole her away was her daughter's laughing face. . .
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fin
_______
__________________
A blur of purple and black moved over the blank snow in a fatigued way. Though the figure seemed to be tired, even exhausted, it moved desperately, as if trying to find something, or maybe, escape from it. Whatever it was, there was an obvious threat sinking down on everything under the sky...as far as could be seen. It was freezing out in those mountains...
A women with purple-lilac hair struggled through the ever chilling snow, knowing all along that the sun was setting behind the mountains. Yes; in fact, that was one of her greatest fears--if the sun set now, and she didn't have cover...well, she wasn't sure, exactly. She had found a sheltered place of some kind or another every other night, and she didn't know if she could handle a night exposed to the cold and frigid darkness.
She'd never tried to build a snow hut or igloo before--she'd never learned *that* in Team Rocket. She could try...but it was just too cold now. She couldn't stop, not now. To find cover would be her only chance, but as she continued up the mountain face, flat and sloping, she could see nothing but snow up to her knees. She wasn't so lucky tonight.
Miyamoto, the women with purple locks, had not expected to ever be sent on such a mission. To find and capture a Mew in the mountains, and in freezing weather, was certainly not the kind of assignment she wanted to go on, especially with a young daughter at home who didn't even understand what Miyamoto had been sent to do. She didn't know that her mother might not come back...all she knew was that Miyamoto had promised her that she would return in a few days.
Miyamoto hugged onto her heavy coat, which sported a red 'R' on the back, and closed her eyes. She pretended, just for a moment, that she was hugging her daughter...tight, warm, unafraid.
"Jessie..." she whispered, opening her eyes again. "Please let me see you again. . ."
Her steps became shorter, and she tripped a little. 'I won't fall,' she told herself, 'I won't let myself fall. I'll make it. No matter what the Boss forces me to do, it won't keep me away from Jessie for long. I'll see her again....'
Miyamoto had been a member of Team Rocket for longer than she could remember. It had been just fine for her, with her salary and living conditions and all, but she hadn't expected that she would have a baby to take care of on the salary, too. But when Jessie did come along, even without a father to support them (he left before she was even born), Miyamoto had loved her daughter, and was willing to do anything for her. The focus of her life became her young daughter, and Miyamoto rarely thought of doing things for herself. That was the only reason she was here now, a promised bonus with her next pay check, surely enough to sustain her and her daughter financially for a very long time.
And that was why she was going to make it back, to see her daughter again, to give her a better life. Team Rocket had given her that chance, therefore, she had taken it.
Miyamoto still thought of her daughter now, as the snow grew an icy crust. The sun was nearly down.
Jessie had said, before Miyamoto had gone, that she was sure that she wanted to be like her mother. She wanted to grow up, and become a member of Team Rocket, just like Miyamoto, and she talked happily about it, as if it was all she ever wanted and her future was right before her. Miyamoto wasn't sure whether she was proud of her daughter of afraid for her--Team Rocket wasn't exactly the best way of life. Jessie didn't actually understand what went on in the Team...stealing, violence, even killing--all the time.
Miyamoto wanted, more than anything, for Jessie to be safe and happy, but she also wanted her to live her life like she wanted to. She wanted Jessie to have a good career, a nice place to live, and a husband to love her and respect her. Yes...at the very least, she wanted her to have that...have what she already lost to the team. Miyamoto had never had a very good job, nor a nice home, and definitely not the loving husband she had always dreamed of. . .and, sadly, of all the things that she could give to her daughter, that was not among them.
"Please...at least let her find a good man...let her..." Miyamoto whispered into the breeze.
The sun was down completely; the air freezing now more so then ever before. Miyamoto rubbed her eyes, and to her relief, saw ahead of her a cave in the new moonlight. That was about all there was--a cave in an upward slope of earth, and that would be enough to keep her warm for the night.
A smile warmed Miyamoto's face, and she quickened her slow-moving pace through the snow.
There was a sharp sound, piercing the air, somewhere ahead...Miyamoto didn't know what, for sure. But she did know right off that the brief stillness in the air around her meant something.
A vibration shook the mountain, and a rumbling came down on Miyamoto from above. A surge of fear raced through her veins as Miyamoto saw what was coming so quickly. . .a wall of snow, sliding quickly down the mountain face, gathering snow as it went along.
Miyamoto, barely hesitating, instinctively decided to make a brake for the cave...it was her only hope. After all, she had no idea what else she should do, and it was either she got under cover fast or get covered by a layer of snow. Either way, she was beginning to panic.
But as Miyamoto ran, stumbling through the snow, she knew that with the speed of the avalanche and the distance she was from the cave, there was no chance in hell she could make it. The wall of snow was upon her in seconds, and she was still at least 100 yards from the cave's safe haven.
The snow slapped down over her small body, covering her easily and knocking her down. It didn't feel cold...all she noticed was a numbing pain as several of her bones snapped beneath the pressure. Her body was twisted this way and that, all the time the force of the snow blanket pressing down on her, always gathering...growing...
When it finally stopped, Miyamoto didn't even bother to move. She merely lay there, alone, in more pain than she could ever remember experiencing, wishing for, though not expecting, some kind of miracle to take place. She winced at the very thought of what had happened to her mangled body, which was now crushed beneath heaps of snow.
Tears of fear traced down her checks as she suddenly thought of her daughter. This couldn't stop her...she couldn't let herself fall prey to the mountains...what about Jessie?!
"Jessie. . .my Jessie," she whispered as she lay there in agony. "For you, Jessica, dear..."
Miyamoto bit her tongue as she attempted to lift an arm. She at least had to try...her daughter was alone, waiting for her. . .
She found it unbearably painful. She tested the other arm tentatively, finding that it wasn't broken, but she couldn't move enough to dig through the air bubble's surface.
She was stuck. Trapped. She knew it.
Miyamoto decided to focus on breathing, as it was all the life left in her body. Air wouldn't last long, though...it already felt thinner...she felt suddenly dizzy...
"Ah, Jessie..." Miyamoto said wistfully. She could barely whisper anymore. "Jessie, don't give up. I must go now. . .Jessie. . .I. . .must go away but. . .I'll be back. Just a few. . .days in the mountains on. . .on a mission. I'll be back. . .don't. . .you. . . worry. . .Jess—"
Her voice left her. She could have sworn that she wasn't there at all, but holding her dear child in her arms. She was only just leaving...on a mission, for Team Rocket. She would be back again...
Miyamoto saw the red haired girl wiping her tears away, and smiling.
'That's right,' Miyamoto thought, 'don't cry. I've never broken a promise to you...and...I love you so much, my dear Jessie. . .'
Miyamoto breathed in frailly.
'I'll miss you...while I'm gone...'
With one last breath, Miyamoto whispered, "...Jessie. . ."
The last thing she saw before the blackness stole her away was her daughter's laughing face. . .
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fin
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