Chapter 1: Hotaru Natsukawa

The school bell of the Umeshima High school rang after lunch break, telling all students to go back to their classrooms. Crowds of students went into the school buildings and rushed not to come too late, all dressed in identical uniforms. The girls wore dark red skirts, black jackets with golden seams, and underneath white blouses and red ties. The boys wore long, black trousers instead of skirts.

In class 1-1 the teacher was already waiting. A woman in her early thirties, who wore a white blouse and a knee-long marine blue skirt, her brown hair was twisted into a tight knot without a single loose hair. She hid her eyes and her look behind her glasses, but the rest of her features revealed her strict personality. Impatiently, she was playing with the pencil in her left hand. Over and over made she hit it the clipboard she held in her other hand. The paper on the board contained all names of the students of her class.
"Quiet please. Let's see who is present. Shizuka?" she asked, waiting for the answer.

"Yes!" a student exclaimed.

Quickly, she drew a fast tick on the paper next to the student's name. "Takano?"

Another, this time female, student announced her presence. "Yes! Here, Miss Morishita!"

Another tick.

"Sakurai? Sakurai Naomi?" the teacher asked.

"Here," said a girl with long, wavy, brown hair and green eyes, who had raised her hand. She tapped her index finger on her desk nervously, glancing at the desk next to hears. The student who sat next to Naomi was the only one missing in class, and Naomi knew the reason. She bit her lip and rolled her eyes annoyed. Skipping class again? She talked to her currently absent friend in her thoughts.

"Natsukawa?" No answer. "Natsukawa?" the woman asked again. She glanced over the rim of her clipboard and found a desk, without the student. Her throat felt like it was blocked by something, her fingernails dug into the pencil and the corner of her lip twitched wildly. Suddenly, her cheeks became red in anger. Rapidly, the tension in the classroom increased and reached a very dangerous level. The students in her class already ducked, scared of her famous emotional outbursts. The next sounds was a crack, coming from the pencil which broke under the pressure in her hand. "She is missing again?! That is the second time in this week? She's been absent for nearly half of the year!" the woman screamed in her rage, forgetting her manners for a short moment. "I'll be right back," she stammered after a while, adjusted her glasses and threw the clipboard on the table. "Open page sixty-three in your books and start the exercises there."

After exiting, she slammed the door shut and dashed along the hallway to the teachers' lounge. The girl, Naomi, shook her head in disbelief. It was one of the best moments for a face-palm now. Meanwhile, the teacher Morishita ran down the stairs and rushed to the teachers' lounge. With all of her force, she nearly pulled the door out of the hinges. "She is absent again!" she yelled angrily.

One of her teacher colleagues raised his head, distracted from the documents he was reading before.

"This girl is absent again!" shouting, Morishita repeated and let herself drop in her armchair. "If I ever get my hands on her, I will..." the woman tried to shout, but got rudely interrupted.

"If you mean Natsukawa Hotaru...she called the school office in the morning, saying that she doesn't feel well," the man said, not paying any attention at his colleague's shouts and screams. "That means she is legally called in sick." The teacher opened one of the drawers of his desk, withdrew a tiny, yellow sheet of paper and put it on his desk, all while not taking his look from his documents he was reading.

Morishita inhaled deeply to calm herself a little. Hastily, she grabbed the paper and read it, but it was no wonder that she nearly ripped it apart in her rage. "I know that she is skipping school again! Where, in the name of Lugia, is she?" the teacher screamed until her cheeks glowed red. She didn't notice how her colleagues grinned and snickered.

HOTARU NO HIKARI

蛍の光
ホタルノヒカリ

The sun shined just as brightly at the other end of the Chrono Island as well. The salty ocean water reflected the rays like mirrors, illuminating the sea and the reef that surrounded nearly the entire island. Swarms of Water-type Pokémon romped in safety between the stones and corrals. They had nothing to fear, especially not the human who was swimming above them. The reflected light only threw a shadow of her silhouette on the ground of the reef.

A girl dived near the reef, her curiosity directed at the many types and species of Pokémon, and the beautiful underwater nature. She swam deeper to get a better look at them and remained for a while, until she slowly ran out of oxygen. The girl pushed herself off from a rock at the bottom of the sea to get to the surface faster, it gave her enough drive for her to dash through the water like a torpedo to approach the surface. From her point she saw the waves above herself, rolling toward the beach. Her shoulder-length honey blonde hair danced in the current and the sunbeams got reflected in her steel blue eyes when she reached the surface. Oxygen filled her lungs, and thus she had new energy to dive again. Like a mermaid she disappeared in the sea again, and dived several meters deep, swimming there with a swarm of Remoraid. The group of Pokémon followed and imitated her movements, swimming as swarm around her like a shield.
Smiling, the girl swam to the surface again and got carried closer to the beach by one wave. As the wave formed a pipe made of water, she stuck her head out to breathe again, before she disappeared under the mass of water.

To her surprise, she found two giant Mantine accompanying her along the shore. One swam above her and the other one beneath her.

She clung to the second Mantine that carried along the shore until she saw something drifting on the surface, a surfboard. Clearly, she mentioned the Mantine to turn around and swim closer to the surface. With only her head sticking out of the water, the girl surprised the Pokémon lying on the board. "Espeon," she scared it a little with her sudden appearance. "Don't fall asleep." With her hands she splashed some salty water at the Pokémon, waking it up from its slumber.

A hint of annoyance shimmered in Espeon's eyes. It had been fallen asleep as tiny waves had dandled it.

"Lazy thing," chuckled the girl and hopped on her board, nearly throwing Espeon off. She noticed the mountain of waves forming behind and mentioned Espeon to stand up. The Psychic-type Pokémon got up on its feet and went to the end of the board, standing before its Trainer. Meanwhile, the girl paddled with her hands to catch the coming wave.
Suddenly, the water lifted the board up and the girl caught up an incredible speed. Quickly, she hopped to her feet and steered the board in the wave while Espeon enjoyed the ride without becoming all wet. The girl bent her knees to steer the board away from the wave and closer to the beach.

Espeon looked back at the open sea and found the next wave coming, but this one was a lot bigger than the last. "Here is the next one, Hotaru!" it said in its thoughts.

The Trainer girl looked back and paddled with her hands and feet in the water to bring the board in the right position just like she did before. "I know!" she exclaimed and smiled, standing up again. A mountain made of water accelerated the board. The girl rode down the wave swiftly and steered inside the giant pipe of water which was forming around her. Once again, the two Mantine appeared, leading her through the tunnel. Abruptly, the ride ended as the Mantine jumped out of the wave, bringing the girl out of her balance. She fell into the water before the wave broke down as well.

Hotaru gasped for air as she stuck her head out of the water, she swam to her surfboard which she had found only a few meters away. "That was amazing, wasn't it, Espeon? Espeon?" Her Pokémon wasn't around, but suddenly the water arched and Espeon jumped out of it, hopping on the board again. "You act like a cat that is afraid of water," Hotaru chuckled amused. She clung to her board and swam back to the beach with it.

"If you keep doing this, you will get gills one day," Espeon told her mentally.

"Yeah, and your fur will change to brown one day, if you keep avoiding the water," the girl laughed and shoved the board through the waves. In the shallow water she finally grabbed it and carried back to her beach towel. She grabbed her towel and rubbed her hair dry, still feeling the salt water in her ears that bothered her a little. But the place was perfect for surfing. A hidden lagoon, supposedly dangerous because of the many Mantine swimming here, but Hotaru liked the presence of the Pokémon. She felt comfortable around them.

"Hey, you've got a spectator," Espeon told her, turning its head to a bunch of rocks.

Even Hotaru found a familiar person watching her, she had to smile. "There is no need to hide, Naomi," she exclaimed and shook her head to get rid of the water in her ears. With the same towel, she dried her legs, arms and the rest of her body before she put on her clothes, a green tank top and jeans shorts while still wearing her bikini underneath. "That salt itches behind my ears," the girl complained and kept drying her hair.

"You know, we already miss you at school," Naomi told her, walking to the other girl. She shifted from one leg to the other and glanced at the surfboard, then at Espeon, and then at Hotaru. "Miss Morishita did only scream in class today and was upset about your absence. And she announced a super-secret surprise test for tomorrow," explained Naomi while she stroked Espeon's head carefully, what seemed to comfort the Pokémon.

Hotaru looked at her in disbelief, she had to snicker loudly. "Super-secret surprise test? Oh dear, but what do you expect from a woman whose only goal it is to throw me out of school? Let me guess, she will ask about her favorite topic again? The effect of different berries? She is as predictable as a history book!" Hotaru snapped and threw her towel over her shoulder. In a swift move she picked up a water bottle and swallowed nearly the half of it in one gulp. "She thinks that students are only there to make them study twenty-four hours, seven days a week. She doesn't care about our lives, so why should I care about her class? She doesn't even know how a real berry looks like, because her nose only sticks in books. The nature is a stranger to her. And her science lessons are good for nothing." Hotaru appeared calm, but secretly she cursed at her teacher and her school.

Hesitating for a moment, Naomi wasn't sure if she should speak out her thoughts. "But it is still important for your future. And by the way, you will have no choice than to come to school tomorrow. The weather forecast said something about a storm, so you can forget about going surfing," the brown-haired girl said, leaning her left hand on her.

"Shoot," Hotaru mumbled and picked up her board, her bag and the towel, getting ready to leave the beach.

"You can't change it." Quiet like a mouse followed Naomi her friend back to the town, which wasn't too far away. She noticed Hotaru's and Espeon's constant glances at each other, and she knew that they had an inaudible conversation in this moment. She felt a little uncomfortable because it was strange to her, and perhaps she also felt ignored. Naomi knew Hotaru for quite a while now and could tell when she was talking to Espeon mentally. Though it was impressive, she could talk to Pokémon any time she wanted, without anyone even noticing it. Hotaru's relationship with Pokémon had always seemed strangely intimate, she seemed to enjoy the presence of a Pokémon more than the one of a human person. "H...Hotaru?" Naomi asked, running faster to catch up with her friend.

The blonde-haired girl turned her head to face her. "Hm?"

"What about a short stop at the market?" Naomi asked, still stammering.

With a nod gave Hotaru her answer. "Sure, I still need to buy some things.

"Sweets?" Interrupted Espeon immediately.

"No," hissed Hotaru at the Pokémon strictly, making Naomi shudder. "You'll become fat one day. And I mean really fat. It is already unbelievable that you're allowed to eat candies and sweets. I should have never given you that stuff, you little junkie," she said, making the Pokémon shudder and duck this time.

All three of them remained silent on their way to the market. Several stands with food, exotic delicacies and fast-food, jewelry made of wood and shells, and other stuff were built on the market place of Chrono Town. The town had never had no real name, until the people used the name of the island for the town. Even though the island wasn't very big compared to the other islands in the archipelago, it had still around twenty thousand residents, though it wasn't the touristic goal. The only attraction was the daily market on the market place.
Hotaru strolled between the stands, looking at the different offers curiously until she found a stand for berries.

Naomi watched silently how she packed several berries into a plastic bag before she paid. Hotaru's next target was the food stand that offered fried rice and noodles. She ordered the extra large portion of both, so her dinner was ensured. Again, Naomi watched her silently and prayed that Hotaru wouldn't hit someone with her surfboard.

"Got everything!" chirped Hotaru in a singsong voice and raised her bag before she tossed it to Espeon. The Pokémon jumped and caught the bags skilfully with its mouth, though it felt a little insulted for only being used to carry Hotaru's stuff around. "Okay, I will go home and take a shower now. The salt is itching me to death," she joked and laughed while scratching her head like crazy.

Nodding, Naomi walked next to Hotaru and followed her again, since she lived close by. But on their way neither of them said a single word. Hotaru brooded over possible topic to talk about but couldn't find one, and Naomi glanced at her over her shoulder, still feeling weird walking next to her. The tension in the air grew slightly, but not only the emotional one. A fresh breeze caught the girls' breath, letting them shiver slightly. Thick, grey rain clouds drifted above the island and hid the earlier blue sky. The wind became stronger and colder as well.

"Looks like it will start raining any moment," murmured Hotaru, her gaze tightly fixed on the clouds.

"Yes...I should better hurry a little," Naomi mumbled while she smiled, but it looked like a forced smile. She accompanied Hotaru to her apartment building, a building at the outer ring of the town. It was a lonely area which only contained several residential buildings, a pharmacy, a flower shop, a tiny super market, and a park where children played. And one of the buildings, a light yellow painted building containing about ten apartments in three floors was Hotaru's home. It had two entrances, and Hotaru went to the first one. She opened the door and leaned against it, keeping it open for Espeon. "Eh...Hotaru?" asked Naomi nervously, but got Hotaru's attention immediately. "Can...can you show me your home? Only once? Because I have never been in your apartment before," she explained while playing with the seam of her right sleeve.

A smile crossed Hotaru's lips, though she shook her head. "I'm sorry, but it looks really messy. Another time, okay?" she said, rather mumbled and entered the building. "Bye."

Naomi raised her hand to wave good-bye, but the door had already closed again. "Bye..."

Sighing, Hotaru went to wall with the mailboxes, she placed her surfboard on the wall, withdrew a key ring with a bunch of keys hanging on it, and opened the mailbox. A single letter was inside to Hotaru's surprise. She pulled it out of the mailbox, closed the tiny metallic box. Suddenly, she heard the door closing again, her neighbor had just left but without even saying 'hello' as usual. Hotaru's gaze wandered to the tiled floor before she grabbed her board and left the lobby. She avoided taking the lift and walked upstairs instead, but stopped before the window, finding Naomi in front of the building.

The girl glanced over her shoulder a last time before she left to go home, she nearly ran away, away from the building.

Hotaru watched her leaving, but decided to keep going. After a while she arrived in the second floor and went to the end of the corridor where the last door was. Above the bell hung a tiny name plate, written on it was the name 'Natsukawa'. Hotaru's apartment. Hotaru unlocked the door and entered her home, before she closed the door again. A lovely but weak scent greeted her sensible nose. Carefully, she leaned her surfboard on the wall, jumped out of her shoes and went into the living room, opening the sliding door to the balcony. A fresh and salty breeze came into her apartment. Espeon followed her steps, but also noticed her expression.

"I still feel the distance between you and Naomi," Espeon said mentally.

Hotaru looked up and smiled at the Pokémon, she heard its thoughts and sentences inside her head. "You think so?"

Espeon nodded.

"Perhaps... because she still feels strange around me, I can see it in her eyes. But I can't blame her actually," Hotaru said. She stored the food bags in her kitchen before she came back into her living room. For some reason she felt no more hunger. Not even for her favorite food, fried rice. Lazily, yet exhausted she let herself drop on her couch, with her arms folded behind her head. Her gaze wandered to the orchid flowers standing on nearly every shelf in her apartment, but her eyes focused on the picture frame that was standing before the orchids. It was a photo of three people. Hotaru as child and two adults. Her expression fell, but her blue eyes were filled with yearning mixed with loneliness.
Nevertheless, she leaned her head back and tried to relax a bit. "You know," Hotaru started, mumbling, "People will always avoid things which they are not comfortable with. That goes for other people as well. They might not say it or tell you, but you should never force them to do something they don't like, even if they maintain the contrary."

Still listening, Espeon hopped on the couch and enjoyed being stroked by its Trainer.

"You know, ignoring is the best way to avoid something. And acting interested is a way not to hurt others' feelings, even when the truth looks different," Hotaru mumbled, her gaze directed at the ceiling. Her smile on her lips faded and it was not an honest one. "Sometimes it is better to keep lying, because the truth can be painful."

The Pokémon gently touched Hotaru with its nose. Then, it hopped off the cough out of the sudden, picked the letter up from the coffee table with its mouth and brought it to Hotaru.

"Thank you," Hotaru mumbled weakly. Not very interested, she looked at the letter but couldn't find the name of the sender. She opened it by tearing the paper envelope apart and fumbled with the document inside to pull it out. She found the logo of the organization who had sent the letter. The Institution of Pokémon Psychology and Behavior Research, or the short way, the Institution of Pokémon Science. A loud sigh escaped her lips in annoyance.

"Who sent it?" asked her Psychic-type Pokémon.

"The hospital and the research lab again! They want to test me again, but only routine tests like physical and psychological condition, as usual," Hotaru muttered. "But they're getting on my nerves. Every three months I have to appear there only for their research. Physicians are sadists who only see patients and people as guinea pigs. And the next appointment for me... is tomorrow." Hotaru growled a little while sighing and placed her legs on the couch as well. "Great...that means I will go to school, write that stupid test and then I will disappear again." she mumbled quietly, but annoyed. "Lucky me..."

Hotaru felt the last warm sunbeams on her cheeks before the clouds covered the sky completely. Slowly, she got back up on her feet and went out on the balcony. It was bigger than conventional balconies, therefore was Hotaru's apartment smaller. On the sides were mats made of raffia, preventing the neighbors to see Hotaru's balcony. It was kind of like a fence for Hotaru that somehow cut her off from the rest. She only had the view over the ocean from her balcony.

And she always enjoyed the view.

The girl put her elbows on the handrail, shifted, and leaned her head in the palms of her hands. She sighed loudly and closed her eyes.