The clang of the harbor bell startled her, filling her ears with the long, heavy, rhythm of the metal colliding and the waves crashing against the rickety old dock. The scent of the ocean filled her with a pleasured contentment, the longing for the sea overwhelming as she stood before it.
Cries of wingulls emanated from beyond, perching in the stale blue water only moments before once again taking flight, white bodies stood out against the dull sky, a canvas of assorted grays. A harsh gale brought her back to reality, blowing the cool air into her face, along with flecks of snow slapping against her weathered face.
She turned and gave a slight nod, her solemn goodbye to the salty brine, trudging through the thick snow onto land. Wiping away the tears that burned her eyes, she gave a slight smile as she wondered of the new journey that lay before her…
-x-x-x-
"Another dull day…" Sonya thought to herself as she glanced out the window. The dark overcast of clouds had a way of making any reasonably happy person feel glum. She had only been up for a moment when she heard her sister calling her from downstairs.
"Sonya! Are you up yet?" The yell broke the once peaceful silence as Sonya sighed, rolling her blue eyes in despair.
"I'm coming, I'm coming! Sheesh." She hollered back, pulling on her clothes and quickly brushing her choppy black hair. With a few thuds she stumbled down the old staircase, nearly tripping on the last step.
"God, you're so clumsy. I can't believe I'm related to you…" Her sister went on about how could she possibly be related to such a klutz, when she was so graceful, yadda yadda. Sonya had gotten used to this by now, but she still had the same suspicions her sister did.
Lysa was quite talented at dancing, and had good looks to match. Sonya wasn't homely, but compared to her older sister seemed quite bland.
"So where's mom and da-"
Her sentence was cut off by a large man bursting through the door, holding a suspicious brown package in one hand and a Pokeball in the other.
"Is this the home of Mr. and Mrs. Anderson?" He asked hurriedly, his voice thin and whispery. Obviously exhausted, his breaths where short and gasping for air.
Lysa walked over from the stove and stood next to Sonya by the table.
"Yes, why?" She asked curiously.
"There's been…an accident." He said the last word with an aura of fear in his voice, eyes full of fear. The wind slammed the door shut, and he jumped of shock.
"What kind of accident?" Sonya wanted to know what had happened. Her head was teeming with possibilities, and then the worst case scenario hit her as did the man's words.
"We found the bodies of two people that match your parent's description out near lake Acuity….." He paused for a moment, and then continued. "They've been killed."
-x-x-x-
Sonya shuddered at the memory of that day. No one thought something like that could've happened. 'It was such a quiet, small, town' they all said. They said they felt for them, and that they understood. She knew they were lying. No one could ever understand the way she had felt that day.
She shivered, but not from the cold. She wrapped her arms around herself tightly, wishing she had never agreed to do this in the first place. Placing her hand in her pocket, she pulled out the small Pokeball. Pressing the small button in the center, it opened, revealing the empty insides where her Pokemon should be.
Plopping down on an ice covered rock, she curled up into a ball and glanced at the sky, a flock of starlys took flight, leaving her alone in the desolate wild, slowly realizing that she was all alone. She hugged her knees close to herself and closed her eyes, wishing it all away.
Her eyes shot open as she heard a low rustle in the shadows, snow lightly crunching under quiet feet. She groped around for something to defend herself with, coming up with only the Pokeball. Scrambling behind the rock, she poised herself ready to hurl the sphere and run as fast as she could. Trembling with fear, she threw the Pokeball and closed her eyes, too frightened to move.
A humbling 'ding' emanated from the ball, rocking gently in place. Curious, she timidly reached for it, glancing around to make sure nothing was waiting to ambush her. When the coast was clear, she snatched it up and marveled at the deep red container, before tossing it lightly, excited to see what she had unintentionally captured.
