Hey, everybody! Ta-Ni here. As promised, here is the first chapter of my backstory.
It all started about a few months before that fateful day. I had just finished reading The Honeymoon's Over, and I began thinking to myself that it would be cool if I ever found a Destiny Stone of my own. I knew it could never happen; my world was probably light years away from the Pokémon world, even if it had existed. Still, the idea tickled the back of my mind for the next few days. Then, one day, I was checking my email, and one of the junk mails mentioned Pokémon accessories. Intrigued, I followed the link, and found a set of necklaces styled after the three primary evolution stones: fire, water, and lightning.
Seeing them reminded me of how the Destiny Stones were described, and I decided to buy one of them. I chose the fire stone, since after dark type, fire was my favorite. About a week later, the necklace came in the mail, just before Christmas. To my surprise, the stone looked really lifelike; on the photo, it looked like they were made of plastic. Holding it in my hand, I unknowingly sealed my fate; this little stone would forever change my life.
At first, nothing unusual happened. I wore it a few times, showing it off to my friends and coworkers. At night, I would put it aside. Then, one night, just as midnight on the day before the full moon struck, I was awoken by a soft glow behind my eyelids. I opened my eyes to notice that the glow seemed to come from atop my dresser, and it emanated from the stone! I tried to ignore it and go back to sleep, but when I woke in the morning, it was still glowing. It continued to glow until midnight on the day after the full moon, when it suddenly stopped.
A little creeped out by this odd reaction to the full moon, I wondered what was happening. Then, a few days later, while I was wearing the stone at work, I splashed my hand with water. This was normal, since I worked as a dishwasher, but this time was different; when the water came in contact with my skin, a sharp pain raced up my arm. I quickly stifled a shout, so as not to alarm my coworkers. Then, a voice echoed in my head.
Accept your other self, it said. I looked around; trying to pinpoint the source of the voice, but the room was empty. Then, I noticed a faint glow coming from the stone around my neck, and the voice spoke again. Those who deny their other self will suffer. To my shock, the voice appeared to be coming from my stone! Again checking around for others, I quietly asked it, "Who are you?"
I am a spirit who resides in this stone, to guide you through the upcoming trials. However, you choose not to see your destiny, and it will cause you much pain in the future. "Are you the one who hurt my hand?" I asked. No, that was merely an aspect of your other self, trying to come out. You must accept it, or things will get worse.
"What do you mean my other self?" I was completely bewildered by what was going on. Have you not figured it out yet, the voice asked. You have been chosen to bear a rare artifact. The very stone I reside in is a Destiny Stone, and it has bonded with you. Once you accept your power, you can wield it at will. First, however, you must live in your other form for at least a moon, learning the nuances of your new life.
I was about to retort when I spotted one of my coworkers out of the corner of my eye. I whispered, "Can we discuss this later, when we're alone?" The voice didn't respond, but the stone stopped glowing, so I figured that would be fine with it. I finished up work, and headed home. Once inside my apartment, I closed the blinds and said, "Okay, what were we talking about?"
The stone began glowing again, and the voice said, you must assume your other form and live as a Pokémon for a minimum of one moon before you can utilize the stone's power. If you delay, your other self will keeping trying to come out, resulting in effects similar to what happened just now.
"But, Pokémon don't exist in this world, at least not in real life! If I become a Pokémon, people will stare, and scientists will lock me up and perform experiments on me. I can't just give up on my life and live as an animal for a month!" I tried not to yell, but this whole idea seemed impossible. Nonetheless, you have been chosen, and there's no other way to change destiny. Once you have accepted your other self, you can resume your normal life again. The voice seemed completely unfazed by my anger.
I wracked my brain for any way out of this situation, but every time I would think of something else, the voice would interrupt me. Finally, I gave up. "Well, I can't exactly be a Pokémon in the city, so I'll have to find some place to live. What kind of Pokémon am I going to be, so I know what I'm getting into?" I cannot tell you that; all I can say is you will be a fire-type, hence the adverse effect of water. The rest will remain a surprise until you assume your other form.
"There's a big forest a few miles from my apartment building, and people rarely go in; I think that will be safe enough to live in. Okay, I'll have to let everyone know I'll be gone for a month or two, though I tend to check in with home every week. Can I change back for one day every week so no one will be suspicious?" The voice was silent for a moment before agreeing, so I packed a few essentials and told my boss I needed to take time off because of a sick family member. I hated lying to her, but I couldn't really tell her the truth either.
After walking deep into the forest, far from civilization, I let the spirit know I was ready. The stone began glowing brightly, like it had during the full moon, and soon my body was glowing too. Then, pain rippled through my body as my bones began shrinking and changing. My fingers and toes shortened as my hands and feet turned into paws. My nose and mouth bulged outward into a muzzle, and my ears migrated to the top of my head and grew pointed. My skin burned as long, golden fur covered my entire body, even my clothes. Lastly, a set of long, orange-tipped tails, nine in number, erupted from my rear end, growing longer than my new body.
The entire change only took a few minutes, leaving me panting in pain. "Why did it hurt some much?" I asked, and then caught myself. My voice had changed as well; even though I understood it as English, I was speaking in Pokémon. The first change is always the most painful, since your body hasn't learned to cope with your new form, the voice responded, in the same language. Now, we have much to learn if you are going to survive as a Ninetales, so I suggest we get started.
The next few days flew by as I learned how to move and live in my new body. As we agreed, at the end of the week, the spirit allowed me to change back so I could call home and let others know I was still alive. Changing back was as painful as before, but only in reverse. Thankfully, I remained fully clothed. I kept my comings and goings as secret as possible, even changing my route to and from the forest each time. Also, every time I changed, it took less time and didn't hurt as much.
However, about four weeks into this pattern, my precautions failed me. One of my friends, Nicole, actually followed me into the forest and saw me transform. I told her telepathically that she had to keep it a secret from everyone else, and she agreed, but only if she could join me. I reluctantly agreed, not knowing what fate would have in store for both of us. About a week later, we were walking through the forest when a snake snuck up on us and bit Nicole in the ankle.
To our horror, Nicole was soon shivering in pain as the poison raced through her body; turned out she was highly allergic to venom. I knew there wasn't enough time to get a doctor here fast enough, and I feared I would be forced to watch my friend die. Then, the spirit spoke up. There is a way to save her, but she will be forced to stay here forever. As you may know, the Ninetales has a very special power unique to their kind; they can cast a thousand-year curse upon any who touch or harm their tails. It can also be used to heal others. However, when applied to a human, they are forced to take the form of a Pokémon.
"It doesn't matter, if it can save her, I'll do it!" I exclaimed. The spirit mentally nodded, then explained how to cast the curse. Tapping into my reserves of foxfire (a unique form of psychic energy that only Ninetales possess), and drawing on my desire to save her, I cast the fire upon her body. Through the flames, I watched as her body shifted and changed before my eyes, and when they finally faded, a pure-white Espeon lay where a human girl was before. My own vision darkened as I hovered on the edge of consciousness; since she hadn't actually pulled one of my tails, I couldn't draw off the usual anger a Ninetales felt, and so used more energy than normal.
When she awoke, I explained what had happened. She didn't mind being a Pokémon, and in fact enjoyed her new form. I taught her how to survive, since I knew my time was running out. Finally, on February 7th, the spirit declared me ready to receive control of my other form. I was allowed to change at will, and even change partway. Even better, I could return to my daily life. However, I promised Nicole I would return to the forest every now and then, and we could run around as Pokémon; she couldn't leave since she had no way of changing back.
However, even though I was human once again, I still possessed artifacts of my new life as a Ninetales. I found my hearing and sense of smell had sharpened slightly, and I could feel a tiny flame burning deep within my body. I now had my own Ember, the life force of every fire-type. Of course, it's quite small while I'm human, but it does slightly raise my normal body temperature, making me more vulnerable to the cold and rain.
There you have it: how I started out. Now, while the Stone is based off of the Destiny Stone from Honeymoon's Over, and will referred to as such, it actually isn't, which will become apparent in later chapters. By the way, all credit for the idea goes to Antithesis, the author of Honeymoon's Over.
Read and Review, guys! And may your Ember never fade.
