Same warning as last time: Violence.

Also, yes, all the titles will be in this format.


002. Put Your Weapons Down (I'll fight for you)

When Emery said he could wait, Will had not believed him.

Now, he's not sure if he does. Technically, Emery hasn't left yet. But he usually isn't at the pokémon center either. Will is not sure how, or why he even does it, but Emery sneaks out of the bunker and away from the pokémon center before returning each night, he and Henry looking more tired and dirtier than the night before. When he asks, Emery says that Henry was growing stressed, but to Will it looks like it's Emery who is stressed.

The trips outside are not helping, though, whatever the case is. Emery returns with scratches more often than not, then refuses to ask for help from a nurse because he knows he's not supposed to be outside, he knows that there are other people in there who need medicine more than he does.

Will can't really move yet, so all he can do is watch while his friend becomes edgier, his hands shaking and waking up from sleep with nightmares.

Will has nightmares, too, so he doesn't feel okay pressuring Emery about his own.

Zuzu seems to be content right where they are. Will doesn't know how often Professor Rowan let the pokémon out to enjoy some air, but Zuzu isn't bothered by the cement-gray walls and dingy lighting the basement of the Center offers.

Will has also grown tired of watching television. In the two weeks they have been here, all that's on are images of towns and cities rising on in fire and smoke and utter pandemonium. Once in a while, they cut to the footage Will remembers the cameraman shot, of him being carried away from Lake Verity by a man named Cyrus, then they show interview after interview of the man pledging to protect Sinnoh. When those interviews come on, Will does take a seat in front of the television and soaks everything in like a sponge, then he tunes out most news relating to the fight that is brewing outside.

Zuzu leans on Will's uninjured side while the boy rests on his assigned futon. Will has to resist not to scratch any of his injuries. None of the wounds are completely closed, exactly, but the stitches have managed to remain clean and the doctor and the few nurses tell him that has saved him a lot of pain.

"Are you really from Twinleaf?"

Will opens his eyes to see Dawn sitting on the futon next to his. Her turtwig Mei is standing next to her, head cocked to one side like he has seen Zuzu do a few times. He's not surprised by her question. He has seen the images of the aftermath plastered all over the news. Even the adults try not to look at him after the first time the video of Cyrus rescuing him is played back at full volume.

"Yeah."

"Oh," Dawn says. She looks like she had counted on the answer being no instead. She looks back to where her dad is talking to a woman using her lab coat as a blanket, looking guilty even though no one has said anything to her. She bites her lip and looks back at him. "How old are you? And Emery?"

"Elev—twelve." Will corrects as he remembers his birthday was only a few days ago. "And Emery's fourteen."

"I'm right in the middle!" Will doesn't know how she can sound so happy and excited when he only wishes he could be warm enough to sleep for a couple of years.

"Oh, that's nice." He feels a little guilty that he sounds so uninterested, but he has been trouble changing the tone of his voice lately.

Dawn sighs, looks back at her dad, and leaves him alone.

"It's okay, she'll try talking to you again." Says Zuzu. He sounds more and more confident every time he talks to Will, and Will has gotten used to the voice that really, really shouldn't be there.

Will has to be going crazy, but he doesn't want to ask a doctor in case they try to take away the pain meds that are the only thing that let him get up from time to time. So he just nods at his chimchar and scratches him behind an ear.

That night, Emery comes into the Center with a starly. He looks happy, though his new pokémon makes enough noise to wake half the room.

"What are you looking at, boy?" The starly squeaks out when Emery sits across from him.

"Nothing," Will mumbles automatically. Starly quiets immediately, staring at him, before he starts to ramble about the little idiot blond that caught him.

Emery is blissfully unaware, though he gives Will an odd look at his mumble. He looks at Zuzu, then looks suspiciously over to Professor Rowan who never seems to leave the darkest corner of the bunker, The man is looking steadily at them, dirty papers and pen in his hand.

"I don't like how he looks at you," Emery says, apparently forgetting that he had a plan to go beg the man for a pokémon before the attacks. "He's always looking at you."

Will thinks that's a gross over exaggeration considering Emery is not even there most of the day and doesn't see the Professor writing on his notes with almost reverential fervor. It's either that, or he's eating his share of cheese and bread with his assistants and Dawn. He never even looks at the news.

"No, he's not!" He shushes his own voice, but Will knows the pout still slips through.

"I'm just saying." Emery says with a frown. It's uncommon for Will to disagree with anything he says. "Anyway, let's have a battle!"

"A… battle?" Will repeats.

"Yeah. Henry and Napoleon against Zuzu."

Will hesitates, looking over to look at Zuzu and see what he thinks. Though he says nothing, Zuzu seems to perk up at the idea, so Will tries to calm the thundering beat of his heart and agrees.

"Yes! Okay, come on upstairs, then. The doctors cleared an area so pokémon could get some exercise. We can fight there!"

This has been the brightest Will was seen Emery since before he picked Will out from under the rubble of his home, so he forces himself to smile and struggles to sit up. Zuzu is there soon, using his shoulder and head to push him up.

"Is Master okay?"

Will winces. "Not 'master'. Just Will."

"Dude, are you talking to yourself?" Emery sits down then, hand on Will's shoulder. "Are you sure? If you're not feeling well we can—"

"No, it's okay. I was… I'm fine."

Emery looks skeptic, but shrugs noncommittally and helps Will to get on his feet. The blond supports most of Will's weight as they climb up the stairs, Zuzu clambering over and perching on Emery's shoulder. Then Emery leads Will to another, smaller room, zigzagging through the hallways as if he knows them like the back of his hand.

"I can stand," Will confirms when Emery volunteers to go look for a chair.

"If you say so." Emery grins, running at full speed to the other side of the room. "Napoleon, you go first!"

The starly rolls his eyes and flies to stand in front of Zuzu, who's already looking ready to fight. It's a change if Will has ever seen one, most of the time Zuzu just stares off into space and comments every time he thinks Will might be listening.

"Do you wanna go first?" Emery yells unnecessarily, like he's trying to be heard over the cheers of an invisible crowd.

"I don't really know…" But Will doesn't even finish before Zuzu launches himself against Napoleon, dangerous claws glinting as he scratches the starly across the face. "Wha—"

Napoleon growls and lunges at Zuzu thrusting his beak into Zuzu's stomach. Zuzu gets up with only slight difficulty, leering at the other pokémon.

"Zuzu, you don't have to."

"It's okay." Zuzu assures Will, not looking away from the starly. Then he jumps with enough force to startle an airborne Napoleon and uses sharp claws to scratch at Napoleon's stomach.

There's blood on Zuzu's paw, and Emery quickly retrieves his pokémon into a pokéball. Will realizes just then there was no way Emery could have gotten pokéballs from anywhere near them.

"This isn't over yet, Will!" Emery yells again.

From his resting place inside Emery's shoulder bag, Henry peeks out, his face covered in red sauce telling of a cheri berry. He jumps out either way, standing in front of Zuzu. Will is not sure if it's because Henry clearly ate too much, but the piplup is slow and only growls while Zuzu moves around swiftly, scratching until Henry's legs give out.

Emery runs over and picks up his pokémon when it's clear the battle is over. Zuzu swirls back around, running toward Will until he's holding on to his trainer's leg. Behind him, Emery bounces over to Will with a small, hesitant smile on his face.

"That was great! It's the first time you battle, right?"

"I… I guess." Will is not sure it can be called battling when he gave absolutely no orders to his pokémon, but Emery looks a little too happy for someone who has just lost at… anything, really.

"Oh! Right, I have something for you!" Emery says suddenly. He rummages inside his bag for about two seconds and pulls out a blue wool-lined jacket, practically chucking it at him. "I think it's going to be a too big, but it's better than just a shirt."

Will grabs it before his brain can process that this is impossible, and swiftly puts it over his shoulders, sliding his arms through the sleeves.

It is a little too big. The sleeves cover his knuckles and the hem falls just below the fly of his pants, but it's cozy and warm and everything this place isn't. He zips it up and buries his mouth and nose in the wool that stretches all around the collar and breathes in the heat.

"Thanks." Will says, voice muffled "Shouldn't… you get, uh, Napoleon checked out?"

"Oh, yeah. Can you go back down by yourself?"

Will hesitates because he knows he'll probably get lost in the hallways, but Zuzu tugs at his pant leg and when Will looks down, Zuzu nods. "I know the way." It's like he can read Will's thoughts.

"Ah, yeah, I think I can manage."

"Cool, I'll see you soon!" And with that Emery bounds down the hall and disappears behind a door.

{…}

It's the middle of the night, but Will is awake again, not even able to pretend he's sleeping. His thoughts wander in dreams, and the last thing he wants is to wake everyone up with his screams, specially after the news of the fight that broke out in Jubilife and the series of explosions that keep going off all over Oreburgh. Zuzu is dead to the world and Will doesn't have the heart to wake him so he has some sort of company. Emery is also asleep, his back to Will, and he knows it's the first time he has slept through the night. Maybe having Napoleon with him makes him feel safer.

Will has long since realized his own shirt is red. It's a muted, dark red that looks nothing like the uniforms those soldiers wore, and it also lacks the rusted hue of dried blood, so Will is surprisingly okay with it. Still, he covers himself with the blue jacket and thinks about cream-colored walls and the smell of cinnamon buns baking in the oven.

"Can you understand your chimchar?" Will startles, sitting up so fast the wound at his side twinges painfully. Staring down at him is Professor Rowan, stern as always. "When he speaks, of course. Perhaps you can understand your friend's pokémon, too?"

Will fidgets, looking down and away. He remembers Emery's words and decides that he'll have to wake him up, if the Professor is too threatening. "No. No, sir."

Rowan doesn't smile, he never smiles. "I can understand them, too."

Will's eyes snap in his direction once more, wide and inquisitive. The professor looks at him knowingly, but doesn't attempt to contradict Will's answer.

"I haven't always been able to," the man continues as if Will had actually asked. He looks behind him, like this is a secret he doesn't want anyone to hear. "I'm hoping to investigate if it's an ability that can be brought about in situations of distress."

"Then all of us would talk to them." Will's mouth moves without him willing it to, and he regrets it the second the words tumble out of his mouth.

"It is still an investigation, there could be another connection." The Professor says almost dismissively. "You just needed to know that you are not… deranged."

Will has no idea what that word means, but it sounds like the professor is trying to comfort him in some way. Then Will remembers the deep apprehension squeezing, clawing at his chest whenever Zuzu talked to him, and he breathes a little easier for the first time in weeks.

"Yeah, I… thanks."

Professor Rowan nods, eyes lingering on Will's jacket with a frown, and leaves, disappearing into the dark corner where he always sleeps.

The next day, Emery leaves the Center especially early and doesn't come back.

Will waits, because that's what Will does, but days go by and Emery is still gone.

"Maybe he's just caught up somewhere. They said in the news to wait inside 'till Mr. Cyrus can make the Kanto soldiers go west." Dawn is lying down in Will's futon. She doesn't seem to realize that only makes everything worse. Mei the turtwig stares at Zuzu and doesn't talk.

Dawn nudges Will's shoulder with her head, and though he doesn't particularly mind, it seems like an awkward way to reassure someone, and Will leans away just enough for her to get the hint. She pouts.

"You're so mean!" She complains.

Will folds into himself, tucking half his face into the collar of his jacket, and drawing his arms and knees toward his chest.

"He said he wanted to look for his dad." Zuzu says. He jumps into Will's arms and wiggles until the boy's arms are wrapped snuggly around him.

"He said he wanted to look for his dad." Will parrots, hoping Dawn won't hear him.

"Oh!" The girl chirps, smiling again. Will still wonders how she does that, even after seeing the destruction on television. He knows now that the girl and her parents had been here hours before the attacks started and so she never saw or felt any of it first-hand, but still, the muscles in charge of making him smile have seem too become lax with disuse, and he doesn't understand how hers still work. "Are you going to go looking for him, then?"

"Yeah!" Zuzu chimes from between Will's arms. Will looks away from Dawn and directly into his pokémon's eyes.

"What?" He manages to bite out.

"Let's go look for him, I can protect you, I promise." Zuzu doesn't seem particularly happy about the idea of leaving, but he looks at Will kindly, like he knows that for Will the seconds are crawling by and that the gray walls seem to be closer to them every time Will looks up, growing ever closer until they crush him.

"But they're… Kanto is attacking us!" It sounds like a weak excuse when his own head is attacking him every night and his side itches as the wound slowly seals closed.

Zuzu puts small paws on Will's chest and insists. The chimchar looks almost desperate, and Will doesn't understand why this pokémon even wanted to stay with him to begin with, never mind how he knows he's going to go crazy if he doesn't at least go outside.

"I… I mean, I guess we could…"

Before he can finish, Zuzu jumps away from him and tugs at Mei until they're both looking around the futon, then Zuzu holds up the bag Emery had pressed into his chest before leaving Twinleaf.

"Will?" Dawn is staring at him in concern, and it is only then that Will realizes he was straight up talking to his chimchar in front of another person.

"'M fine. I'mna look for Emery."

When he doesn't move, Dawn's frown becomes more pronounced. "Now?"

"N—" But then Zuzu tugs at his jacket and Will finds himself standing. "I mean, I guess."

Next thing he knows, Will is on his feet, backpack strapped to his shoulders. He isn't exactly sure what he is doing, but Zuzu pulls at his pant leg until he is moving toward the stairs.

"William?" Will flinches and whirls to face Professor Rowan, who is looking pointedly at Zuzu. "You don't have a pokéball to return him to."

Will squirms under the stern gaze, his shoulders hunched. "No, I don't."

Professor Rowan nods. "Be careful."

The man claps him on the shoulder, his hand lingering for a second before he retrieves it. Dawn is standing behind him, and she too is staring at Will, though she is doing so in awe. She waves at him even when she's close enough to talk to him, and Mei imitates her after a second, though the turtwig is clearly motioning at Zuzu.

Once more, Will finds himself moving without ordering his body to do so. He walks through the deserted corridors of the center, his chest tight, and he has to fight not to look for Emery in the hallways. Will knows his friend is not here, even if he can't explain how he knows it.

Instead, he follows Zuzu as the chimchar leads him to the exit.

"It's over there!" Zuzu says, grin evident in his voice. Will makes his legs move faster. His side still hurts, but much less than before, and at least he knows he won't bleed to death now, since the worst of the wound has already healed.

As he approaches the glass doors, Will feels a rush of panic. Zuzu grabs at him in time to stop him from going back to the bunker and staying there forever. The chimchar tugs at his pants again, stronger than before, and Will can only follow or he'll fall on his face.

Sandgem looks like someone started attacking it and then suddenly changed their mind. A few of the buildings have gawking holes marring the walls, but most of them are still standing. The ground itself looks intact.

It's all a far cry from the charred grass, the scenery thick with smoke, the orange hues painting Emery's face back in Twinleaf, and Will wants to curl in a corner and shiver. He knows he can't do it, that they have to get out of the way before Kanto changes its mind about Sandgem and returns with nidoking and scyther and pinsir to obliterate what's left of the town.

Zuzu looks all around, then tugs Will again, until the boy is following without more prompts. The dirt road under his feet becomes more gravelly as they move, Will looking around for some sort of sign that tells them where to go.

He finally sees it. Will has knelt down, resting as the sun slowly sinks behind Mt. Coronet, Zuzu perched on his shoulder. The sign is rusted, and on the ground rather than actually marking the way to the route, but Will is so relieved to see it that he almost wants to laugh. It's ridiculous, really, to feel so good after seeing a number on a metal plate, yet Will doesn't care, he's tired and in pain but at least he's going in the right direction.

Zuzu is every bit as happy as Will, and the chimchar grins up at the boy. They make their way through the path and finally take refuge alongside the road, beneath the trees and behind a bush so nobody can see them.

Will is cold, night air seeping through the folds of his jacket and enveloping him, until Zuzu jumps into his arms, burying himself inside Will's coat. The warmth that emanates from Zuzu is more than a blessing, and Will promptly closes his eyes.

"Thank you." He whispers. He feels his consciousness slipping, and Will fights, because he'd rather be tired, deliberately delusional, than go back to sleep.

"That's okay. I'll protect you."

Subconsciously, Will is unsure what those words are supposed to mean. If it's an answer to his words, or if it's supposed to be a reassurance that goes deeper than that, but Will is twelve and sleepy and whatever it means doesn't really matter. The boy sighs and stops struggling against himself, furrowing further into his jacket.

{…}

"Wake up!"

Will scrunches his face, curling into a smaller ball when the cool air hits his face. It's warmer than before he went to sleep, but it's most definitely still winter.

"Will, wake up, there's something there."

There's a rustle somewhere to his left, and Will's eyes snap open. He hurries to his feet barely registering daylight, and stumbles back to get away from whatever Zuzu is talking about. Will only stops when he sees Zuzu looks more concerned than frightened, the chimchar's head buried in a bush.

"W-what is it?" Will's voice sounds rougher, his throat burns.

"She's hurt!" Zuzu screams, tiny arms reaching and failing to grab something hidden in the bush.

"Who's hurt?" Will gives a couple of steps forward. He regrets talking, and promptly shuts his mouth with a click. Tears spring to his eyes, and he blinks them back, tugging his jacket closer to him.

"Her." Zuzu is pointing, and Will hesitantly leans in, face already twisting into a grimace at the thought of what he could find.

There's blood, and Will gags. A starly is in the bush, her wing twisted impossibly, but one of her eyes is open and wildly alert, her other wing raised up defensively.

"Hi." Zuzu says, his brow furrowed in concern. "We can help you, right?" He turns to look at Will at this point, and the boy's shoulders hunch, knowing he really can't help with the wing, but he can at least try.

So Will nods, and when Zuzu tries again and fails, Will reaches into the bush to grab the starly. The starly flinches, shivering, but for all of his exhaustion, Will is still faster than the injured pokémon, and his fingers quickly close around her. He tries to gentle out his touch, even though the early morning chill makes it hard, and pulls the starly close to his chest.

Zuzu quickly climbs up to Will's shoulder as the boy looks around nervously and starts hurriedly down the dirt road once again. "What's your name?" He asks the small bird.

The starly takes a long time to answer, as if she was pondering her options. Finally, she raises her head, both of her eyes closed in pain, and replies, "Adelaide."

Zuzu smiles the gentle smile that has soothed Will after his nightmares ever since they met. "Hi, Adelaide. We're going to help you."

{E N D - 0 0 2}


Pokémon| 2; Deaths| 0

Name| Zuzu
Species| Chimchar
Nature| Mild
Characteristic| Often lost in thought
Ability| Blaze
Level| 10

Name| Adelaide
Species| Starly
Nature| Timid
Characteristic| Proud of her power
Ability| Keen Eye
Level| 10