Moon's breath is shaky. She's unsure how to bring this topic up, but it's something she's been wanting to do since Lusamine and Lillie returned to Alola. "I…" She hesitates. She wonders if this is truly a good idea. Would Lusamine truly be happy living without ever knowing what happened to him?
She notices that Moon had spoke. She gives her a quizzical expression; she's expecting a follow-up. "I. I know that maybe you don't like talking about it. But. Mohn… I know where he is."
The silence that follows is deafening. Everything seems to play in slow motion; Lusamine's look of pleased neutrality shifting into a look of shock (and betrayal?). Nobody spoke and Moon tries to focus on the sound of people happily chatting away in the background. Unimportant people, unimportant conversations. She isn't sure why this is so tense, so stressful. Perhaps it's the thought that she's unsure if Lusamine is truly "well". She's unsure if her words are setting off a slow-ticking bomb. She's unsure if one day, Lusamine will explode by her hand.
Shut up, Moon. You'll be fine, you trust Lillie. She knows her mother better than you ever will, and if she says she's fine then so be it.
"He… He's not dead?" Her voice is quiet. Like a child asking where their mother is. Moon finds this thought somewhat… funny. She shakes her head. Lusamine's tone turns sour. "And yet he never thought to come back? I… I have been waiting for him for years."
Moon wants to reply "You've become this way, why should he?" bitterly, but she knows better than this. Instead, she offers to take Lusamine to the Pelago. Where Mohn would be waiting, smiling gleefully as he always had. She had plenty of time between Lillie's departure and this moment, she had already gathered her own idea of what happened. It explains why Mohn never wonders where his wife is. How his kids, broken as they may be, are doing. If his research has ever come to fruition.
It's kind of sad, really. What about your own father though? In that way, wouldn't that make you, Lillie and Gladion kind of the same? Maybe not; your father just left you. Mohn didn't choose this.
"You'll have to ride with me. I don't have any spare riding equipment…" Moon trails off. A thought barges into her head: But it wouldn't matter too much if you fell off, wouldn't it? She forces the thought out of her mind. Of course it would matter. Lillie would be heartbroken. Gladion maybe less so, but she couldn't ever imagine him wishing death upon his kin. Even if she was terrible to her? Yes. Even then.
Lusamine seems to ponder this thought. "... I do not have any qualms with this. If I may ask, when do you wish to leave? Is… Is he far away?"
"Not very. We can leave as soon as I get ready."
Five minutes pass and Moon emerges with her riding gear on.
It takes a while for Lusamine to realize that it wasn't a good idea to dig her nails into Charizard every time he moved even slightly. Moon figures that she's never ridden a Pokémon before. But this was sheer incompetency. Or maybe she was more harsh with Lusamine?
Arceus above, you really don't like her. Yet at the same time, wouldn't it make sense for you to feel bad for her? It's not like she had any control over how Nihilego's neurotoxins affected her. Yet…
This kind of emotional conflict was not ideal for a twelve year old. "You can hang onto me if you need to. Try not to fall off." Or do. I don't care. Moon purses her lips together.
"Y-Yes. I shall be fine, just go already." She looks a tad faint and Moon suppresses her mangled feelings of pity and pleasure. Moon pulls on the reins, prompting Charizard to fly upwards. She can hear Lusamine's surprised scream catch in the air, she can feel Lusamine's arms gripping her tightly. Almost as if she wants to squeeze the life out of her. Moon inhales sharply and waits for Charizard to level out. The flight typically only takes ten minutes which was a good thing. Moon didn't want to extend this trip any more than she had to, not with Lusamine on her back.
The rest of the flight proceeds somewhat smoothly, barely a whisper coming from Lusamine. She was too focused on grasping for the sole thing that was keeping her on this Pokémon. Moon. She could shift just the tiniest bit and watch Lusamine plunge to the tropics below… But that would never sit right with her. An ugly part of Moon wants to do it regardless.
She swallows these desires back and flies on.
The Poké Pelago is the same as it's always been. Why would it change? Moon's Pokémon frolic happily, Lusamine watches, disinterest etched on her face. And anxiety. "He… He might be working on something for some of the isles. He should be inside his cabin." Moon points to the wooden structure ahead.
Lusamine nods and heads for the cabin without Moon. Her strides are long and hurried, Moon struggles to keep up. The door is opened with such an intensity that even she could feel sympathy for the woman in front of her.
The woman who had everything ripped away from her. Her husband, her children, her research. And now the loss of her husband would be reaffirmed. This only just now seems to dawn on Moon. Her heart twists with regret.
Mohn looks up from his collection of beans. Patterned beans, beautiful beans they were. Moon wonders just what Lusamine thinks of these. Before the incident, did he enjoy beans as much as he does now? Mohn's smile is bright, painfully so. Despite the fact that earlier, Moon would have loved to see Lusamine fall to her death… She now feels hurt. Lusamine's hurt. Yet at the same time… She feels nothing.
"Hey! Who's this?"
It doesn't take very much to bring a person down to their knees, Moon learns. It takes a long time for Lusamine to crumble. She smiles. "... What do you mean? You do not know me? Surely…" Does she think this is a joke? The smile fades. The gravity of the situation comes to her like lightning.
"W… Whoa there now, are you feeling alright?" Mohn's kind tone seems to break Lusamine even more. Tears rush to her eyes, but they don't fall. She's distraught. Three seconds later and she falls to her knees, sobbing as she does. Mohn is confused. Moon doesn't blame him. She can't do anything but stare at the pathetic sight before her. Was this deserved? Maybe. Moon would never skip the opportunity to reflect on every single one of Lusamine's wrongdoings. The abuse of her children, the cryofreezing of her Pokémon, the enslavement of Nihilego. Those things she had done would take years before people could even begin to think of forgiving her.
But if that's the case, then why does my heart feel so heavy?
Nobody says anything. Mohn stands up from his seat, reaching for Lusamine. Moon can guess his thoughts; I've done something wrong. Maybe he had. Moon decided that this wasn't her place to decide. But he was the catalyst for Lusamine's downfall.
Mohn's fingers only barely touch Lusamine before she slaps him away, causing both Mohn and Moon to flinch. "Don't touch me!" She cries, the emotion clear and raw for anyone and everyone to see. "Don't you FUCKING touch me!" Her words begin to meld together, creating an unintelligible mess of sobs and curses. Repeats of the words "why" and "please". Moon tries not to look away.
"I was better off believing that you were dead!" Her arms wrap around herself. Lusamine's erratic breathing and the faint sound of ocean waves was all Moon could focus on. She seems to compose herself after a while. "No… He is dead. That may be… Him. But he's not my Mohn." Moon can tell that she's making an effort not to yell again. It doesn't take long for Lusamine's calm to shift back into anger.
This time, it is focused on Moon.
"You said! You said you could bring me to Mohn! My Mohn!" Moon only barely dodges Lusamine's wild arm swinging away at her. She stands up and points at the trainer, fire in her eyes. "You have to! You have to bring me to him!"
Moon loses herself; she is angry. "I never said jack, Lusamine! I said I could bring him to you, I never said that he'd remember you! I never said that he was still the Mohn you once knew! I never said things would go back to normal!"
Things are silent. Lusamine's lips tremble. Her hands curl up into fists and eventually return to her side. She stares down at the ground.
"I… I am Mohn," Mohn says with uncertainty. This information was maybe just a bit too much to take in. For his sake, Moon regrets never speaking of this to him. "What's the matter…?"
Lusamine stares at him. She knows that he's not at fault. Moon knows that she knows he's not at fault. Lusamine can only apologize solemnly. "You were my… Look, no matter what I do or how I explain it, nothing will change. I can only hope that one day you'll remember me. Who I was. Your wife." These words were squeaked out with difficulty. Mohn is shocked, confused, a little bit scared.
"My… My wife." He's trying to remember. Out of the goodness of his heart, he's trying to remember. But if he couldn't remember back then, why would anything change now? He staggers back to his seat, looking ultimately defeated. "I'm sorr-"
"You have nothing to apologize for," Moon interjects with a sorry smile. She never should have offered to bring Lusamine here. For Mohn's sake, for Lusamine's sake. For her own sake. "One day I'll swing by and explain the whole situation to you. Or maybe I'll do it in bits and pieces, whichever's easiest for you! I'm sorry for bringing this onto you, Mohn. As for us…"
She turns to Lusamine.
Lusamine nods.
In time, perhaps Moon will try to bring Lusamine to the Pelago.
In time, perhaps Mohn could get to know Lusamine once more.
In time, perhaps Lusamine will learn to move on.
All will be well, but only in time.
[author's note]
hi i really like lusamine and i also really like lusamine being sad. there will be a companion to this story that's focused on mohn so look out for that sometime i guess.
please leave a review if you enjoyed; it helps inspire me to write more stuff.