Author's Note: Okay, I'm sorry this has taken so long, but I've had a few distractions. The biggest was, for some reason, I started writing down the timeline of this entire story (everything before and after), and kind of got addicted to it. Not to mention that I'm making all the lists of all the Sea Monsters' and other key characters' Pokemon. I have the six that will be everyone's main party at some point written down already, and they only need names, but I will have the full list of all their Pokemon completed sometime before I die. Anyway, I'm already started on chapter 11, and I'm going to do my best not to let my frustration and everything interfere with its completion. Anyway, here we go! In this chapter, we find out why Team Rocket played their trick on Orca (probably because they're assholes), have more fun with Whisper, find out some secret stuff about him, meet a new awesome friend and key character to the story, have some good hang-out time with some old friends, and have a lot of emotional discussion. Oh yeah, and get sued by more companies. Enjoy~
10. Vacation
"Okay, so... Let me get this straight..." Orca's eyes were twitching rapidly as he tapped his foot against the stone floor of the Azalea Team Rocket Headquarters. "You guys wanted me out of the way of the mission because I'm NICE to Emery?"
"Correct, Agent Midnight," the Lieutenant replied from his place behind his desk, which was thickly coated with endless stacks of paper. He was too busy writing upon and stamping these papers to look up and into Orca's eyes as he spoke. "Your conduct... it is... unsatisfactory for a Team Rocket Grunt. We may be as unsure of your place as you are, but it is certain that said place is not here."
"What the hell do you mean?"
"It means you have failed in your mission, which was to prove yourself as the worthy soldier your peers in Goldenrod claim you are. We have found you lacking in many areas, but worst of all in your 'buddy-buddy' ideology towards Pokemon. Someone like you would simply get in the way. We will be sending a full report of your progress here... or lack thereof... and suggest that you not be moved beyond the Grunt rank until you have undergone another training period of at least six more months."
"WHAT? You've gotta be joking!"
"This isn't a playground, Agent Midnight, this is Team Rocket. We take everything as completely serious as possible. We have no place for imperfection. That is all. You may return to Goldenrod. Good day."
"I... but... you..." Orca eventually waved his hand as if to dismiss everything the man had said, and turned to head for the door. He opened the door to his room and walked in, to find Emery still asleep on his bed, where he had left her when he had returned. Since she was his only luggage, other than the pack he carried upon his back, he picked her up, placed her around his neck, turned the lights out, and left. When he returned to the main entrance and climbed up the ladder, he had to knock on the trap door for Whisper to get up and let him in.
"I told you," the Psychic said; it was spoken in a calm voice, with no derision whatsoever. He wasn't treating Orca like a child, he was simply stating the basic fact.
"I know. But at least I know the full details now," Orca said as he climbed up and dusted his clothes off.
"And what good does that do you?" Whisper asked as he regained his seat.
"I don't know. I just need to know these things. Anyway, what you guys have done sickens me."
"Care to elaborate?"
"The Slowpoke. You guys stole all the Slowpoke in the town and locked them up to cut their tails off! And you sent me on some stupid charcoal chase so I wouldn't know? What the fuck is wrong with you people?!"
"They do it for a profit. The old Team Rocket did it as well, fifteen years ago. Slowpoke tail sells for a tremendous amount of money in certain circles."
"That's so fucked up! What if I decide to cut off your leg, huh? Oh hey, human leg, it sells for a lot in certain circles! Does that justify it? No! Would you like it very much? No, you fucking wouldn't!"
"In their defense, the tails do grow back. Slowpoke have an extraordinary regenerative property akin to lizards."
"I don't give a damn! That doesn't mean you can just go and chop them off like you own them! They have feelings, just like we do! The way I see it is, I'll be damned if I let anyone do that to Emery, and I'm sure every single Trainer of every single one of those Slowpoke feel the same!"
"I know this!" Whisper shouted, jumping to his feet. Orca stepped back a bit, rather shocked at this behavior. He had never heard Whisper speak so loudly. "I know all of this! Stop grouping me together with them. I didn't steal any Slowpoke. I am not going to cut off their tails or harm them in any other way. THEY did this, not I! I had no part in it! I watch the door; that is all!"
"That doesn't excuse you! You're part of their gang; that makes you part of the problem!"
"Speak for yourself! You joined Team Rocket because of your girlfriend! I was born into it! I didn't have a choice!"
"Wh... What? What do you mean?" Orca asked, his voice suddenly lowered. "You always have a choice."
"Not me. Not those of us whose parents were dedicated Team Rocket members. We were brought up in a different way."
"So... Do you not want to be involved with these guys?"
"It doesn't matter. I'm in. But I'm the failure of the group, so I simply guard the door. That's my job."
"That doesn't answer my question. Do you want to be here?"
"I... It doesn't matter," Whisper said, before returning his gaze to the floor.
"WHISPER!" Orca shouted, not caring if he blew the base's cover. "That's not what I asked! Do-you-want-to-be-here?!"
"...No. I never have."
"Then come on," Orca said, before turning and walking away.
"What...?"
"You don't want to be here? Then don't be. It's as simple as that. I'm leaving too, so we might as well leave together. Let's blow this joint, so to speak," he finished with a grin.
"I..."
"Come on, don't wait around for them to give you permission! According to you, you're not gonna get it, so just forget about them! Let's GO!"
"...Very well..." Whisper ran to catch up with Orca, then slowed down his pace to walk beside him. "You... are very strange. I've never done anything this spontaneous in my entire life."
"Well, maybe you should have. It's good for you, ya know!"
"Either way, what will I do now? I've never had any life outside of the base and the cave. I've only ever done as my orders dictated. I have no idea what comes next."
"Then just chill with me for a while. You'll figure it out eventually."
"Do you always have to have a complacent attitude in the face of serious matters?"
"Pretty much. I get it from my dad," Orca laughed.
"You are utterly ridiculous."
"Good to know."
"At any rate, I don't think I can stay with you in Goldenrod."
"Why not?"
"I... I'd rather not state the exact reason. There is just something I would like to avoid."
"Something in Goldenrod? Aw come on, there's nothing that bad there. Not that I know of, anyway. And whatever it is, Emery and Dawn and I can protect you from it. You won't have to worry about it."
"I... I don't think..."
"Tell you what, we'll handle all the details once we're out of Azalea. Here's the exit, come on!"
They climbed up the ladder, toward the surface, but along the way, Whisper had to stop and shield his eyes. "This light... It's so bright... It burns my eyes..."
"That's the sun, dude. It's actually good for you. Don't worry, your eyes will adjust in a little while." Orca had already reached the top and pulled himself out of the well, and now he turned and leaned forward to block the sunlight from Whisper's eyes.
"Thank you," Whisper said, blinking his eyes rapidly. After he reached the top and Orca helped him out and onto the soft, green grass, he rubbed his eyes and looked up, with one hand partially covering them. "That's the sun?"
"Don't stare into it, it'll mess up your vision!" Orca said, turning his new friend's head a bit to the right. "Look this way instead."
"This... Orca, there's this... blue... It's... everywhere... I... Oh, I... I can't.." Whisper's knees finally gave way, and he fell down backward, his legs folding like paper. Orca caught him just before his head hit the ground, and let him down gently for the rest of the way.
"It's okay, buddy. That's the sky."
"Sky? I... I do not understand... I... I have never seen anything like this... the sky... It looks so different in books... But here... It is so... so... so..."
"What?"
"...Terrifying..."
"It's not scary, Whisper. It's not gonna hurt you."
"It... It envelops everything... There is nothing but this... blue emptiness... I... Oh, no... I feel so lightheaded..."
"It's a natural high. These things happen. Your mind is just kind of blown away right now. And there's much more than the sky, buddy. Look down."
"I... I can't avert my eyes..."
"Then look around instead."
"I... I see... white bodies... Are these what clouds look like?"
"Yep, those are clouds. Try to look down now."
"I... I see a jagged line off in the distance... Where blue becomes green... Is that the horizon?"
"It sure is," Orca said as he circled around to look at Whisper's face. He had never seen such a look of fascination on anyone before. It was as if the man was being born again. "The green is the forest. Trees."
"Trees... I have never seen them outside of pictures in books..."
"Well, they're real. And there's a lot more of them than just what you see now. Okay, now look even further down." Whisper dropped his vision just a little more, and saw Orca kneeling down in front of him, smiling. "This right here," Orca said, pointing to himself, "is called a friend. They make you laugh, and help you when you're in trouble, or take care of you when you don't feel good. They're the best damn thing you'll ever see out here, or anywhere else, for that matter."
"Friend, eh?" Whisper said, returning Orca's smile. "Sounds interesting. Then you can save me from the sky."
"It's nothing you'll have to be saved from, buddy."
"...Are you sure I won't fall into it?" the boy asked, as he slowly returned his gaze to the great wide open. Orca had to stifle a laugh, trying not to make the boy feel bad.
"I'm sure. You just stick with me, buddy. Any time you start to fall into the sky, I'll hold you down."
"Promise?" Whisper pleaded, as tears began to form in his eyes.
"I promise. That's another thing friends are for. They keep your feet on the ground. Trust me, mine have all had to do it for me."
"Thank you, Orca... for being a friend," Whisper said, as he closed his eyes against the sting and the tears began to roll down his cheeks. Orca reached out his arms and hugged his new friend, giving him a few pats of assurance on the back.
"Any time, buddy. Any time."
\/\/\/\/\/
"You did WHAT?" Dawn's voice roared through the Pokegear's phone speakers, causing Orca to quickly pull it away from his now-screaming right ear.
"Um... Invited a friend?" the young man replied slowly, trying to sound as innocent as possible. He and Whisper had been wandering around the Ilex Forest, while Orca tried to rediscover the way out, both of them covered in thick layers of sweat. The forest was bad for someone used to the city, but seeing as how he saw a very, very long time of sleeping in the proverbial doghouse, he figured he might as well get used to this place.
"Don't get cute with me, Orange!" Dawn snapped. "You know this is against the rules!"
"Yeah, but we're Team Rocket. Aren't we the ones who break rules anyway?"
"Not our OWN rules, Orange! What you've done can get you killed, nevermind what they'll do to your 'friend'! Do you even know who he is?"
"Yes. I know exactly who he is."
"You... You do?"
"Yes. He's someone who needs help. Someone like me. I'm going to help him, Dawn."
"That's not your responsibility!"
"Yes it is, honey. That's the way it goes."
"Fine. But you're sleeping on the table for the next month. IF they let you live!"
"Who says I'm going to tell them?"
"If everyone does their job, they should already know!" And after that, Orca heard an odd sound as his enraged girlfriend roughly disconnected their conversation by throwing her phone against the wall, popping the battery cover off and letting the battery fly.
"Um... Okay, let's hope they're slacking off, I guess?" Orca said, unsure of how to respond to the abrupt disconnection. He placed the Pokegear back in his pocket and rubbed his poor, mistreated ear with his fingertips. "So... Ready to continue?" he huffed, smiling at Whisper as he rose to his feet. The other boy followed suit and nodded, before looking around, wondering where they would head next. "Hey, let's try crossing that pond," Orca suggested. "What do you guys think?"
"Emery hot, sweat!" Emery pouted. "Water no hot, yes plea!"
"I wouldn't mind a dunk either, really," Whisper agreed. "Honestly, other than the humidity, I could definitely get used to this place. The trees are so thick, you can't see the blue thi... I mean, the sky. It's perfect for me."
"Hey, it is!" Orca exclaimed as they headed for the water. "Maybe I'll build a patio for you at home so you can sit outside."
"I would appreciate that very much. Thank you, Orca. You're doing more for me than I deserve. "
"Don't worry about it. I just want to help you out. I know what it's like to be stuck in a life you didn't choose, that's all."
"What do you mean?" Whisper asked, as he took off his shirt. Orca offered to take it, and placed it and his own shirt and personal items into his bag.
"Don't worry about it. Hey, wanna put your stuff in here too? This pack is waterproof. Or, water-resistant. Whatever. You'd have to ask my sister, she's the one who 'improved' it."
"I... I have my own protective bag," Whisper answered, reaching into his pocket and retrieving a transparent bag which appeared to be plastic. It held a black box, the contents of which Orca could only guess at, and a small wooden rectangular object.
"What is that?" Orca asked, pointing to the latter.
"I... I don't know. Anyway... I would like to keep it safe."
"Alright, buddy," Orca nodded as the other young man quickly shoved the mysterious bag back into his pocket. Once they had both placed their shirts into the pack, the boys, along with the uncomfortable yet cheery Emery, jumped into the pond. Instead of swimming straight across, they simply decided to relax for a moment in the cool, refreshing water.
"I'm sorry I got you in trouble with your girlfriend, Orca," Whisper said slowly, as Emery paddled around in circles on her back, using her tail as both oar and rudder.
"What? Don't worry about it. I'm just in no rush to get home right now, that's all."
"So... What do we do now? After we relax, I mean?"
"Well, that all depends on where you're going," a voice called. "And you can't know where you're headed if you don't look back to see where you come from."
"Levee!" Orca cheered, turning around to see his old friend hanging upside-down from a tree branch. "What the hell are you doing up there?" he laughed. "And what are you doing here?"
"Well, when my family matters were all sorted out, I returned to Johto. After other matters were attended to, I flew by Goldenrod, but you and the rest of the Crew were gone. Dawn handled the introductions all by herself, with a laugh that sounded like 'You must be Leviathan'. Kinda funny how often I hear that during first impressions of people my friends and family know. What exactly do you guys say about me? You haven't been telling people about how CRAZY I am, have you?" The man laughed and, after crossing his arms behind his back, began swinging his body from side to side like a pendulum, letting his long, brown hair almost touch the ground.
"Oh no, I wouldn't do that, would I?" Orca laughed. When he saw the puzzled look on Whisper's face, he patted the poor, confused boy on the head. "Don't worry, that's just the way he is."
"Oh, lovely," Whisper said sarcastically, still staring at the pendulum-man swinging from a tree branch.
"Oh yeah, Levee, this is my new pal Whisper."
"It's glad to know ya!" Levee exclaimed cheerfully, without interrupting his swinging.
"Whisper, this is Leviathan, the leader of the Sea Monsters Crew," Orca finished.
"Ex-leader," Levee corrected. "Gave that job to Orca. He didn't want it. Gave it to Dolphin. She gave it to somebody else."
"Who?" Orca asked, climbing out of the water and dropping his pack on the ground. Emery and Whisper followed him to land, the former shaking some of the water out of her fur, and the latter shivering with his arms crossed over his chest.
"That's what I've been trying to tell you for a while now. I lost my phone, though. Good riddance to bad rubbish, I say. A letter would do just fine, as soon as it gets to you. And look, here it is!" Here he pulled from a pocket of his denim jacket a large white envelope, which he waved in the air. When Orca walked closer to him, he promptly stuck it onto his face. "I went swimming earlier and forgot it was in my pants pocket. Sorry. It might still be a little wet."
"Um... Thanks," Orca said, peeling the damp letter off of his face and laying it to rest on a nearby stone. "I can read it in a day or two when it dries," he added as he used his shirt to dry off his face.
"No need! I paid you a visit for three reasons, and one of them is to expedite your reception of my message! So, let me expedite! Basically, a lot of shit has been happening with the Crew. If you think about it, the Crew isn't really the Crew anymore. Not the SAME Crew, anyway. Well, if I think about it. You haven't been there in a while, so you wouldn't know."
"But the guys came over to visit!" Orca persisted, confused and shocked that Levee would say something like this. He handed the shivering Whisper his shirt and a towel from the pack, then turned back to his ex-leader. "Well, Lobster, Hammerhead, Dolphin, and Piranha, anyway."
"True. But getting ALL FOUR of them to go at the same time was like pulling teeth."
"What? What are you TALKING about?" Orca asked, nearly at his wit's end, as he dried himself off and put his shirt back on.
"You'll see at the family meeting I called. Which you are now aware of, and therefore invited to."
"And where is this family meeting going to be? I might not be able to-"
"Way ahead of you. Since you can't exactly go out of town unless it's somewhere your job tells you to go, I went ahead and brought it to you. Everybody should be showing up at your house by the end of the week. Convenient, eh?"
"Sure, except the end of the week is like tomorrow!"
"Yeah, that's why it's convenient that you're on your way to your home away from home away from home."
Orca sighed. There was just no winning with this conversation. "Could you at least stop swinging and tell me the other two reasons?"
"I can tell you the other reasons, but I can't stop swinging," Levee laughed.
"Levee, knock it off! I'm in the doghouse big-time, and you're wasting my time with jokes!"
"Nothing is truly a waste of time," Leviathan contradicted, while his glasses fell off of his face and onto the ground. "ESPECIALLY jokes."
"AND riddles and proverbs. I don't have time for either! I have to be in Goldenrod TONIGHT!" After zipping up his pack again, he turned and began to walk the other way.
"Uh-oh, he's running. Hey, Reason Number Two, can you catch him real quick while I find my glasses?"
"Um... I guess now would be a bad time to tell you that I'm stuck, right?" a female voice called from high above.
"It wouldn't be the worst, but yes," Levee laughed, and his mysterious companion laughed as well.
"Wait, I know that voice," Orca said, turning around and gazing upward. Higher up in the tree, hiding behind a massive display of leaves, was a girl with dark brown hair that fell down to her shoulders, a bit of it hanging over her green eyes. She wore glasses with darker rims than Levee's, and a white and red sweater that matched her short skirt. "Raspberry? Are you really... in a tree?"
"Don't you dare laugh at me, Slice!" the girl demanded, as she struggled to free herself from her elevated predicament. Levee began laughing again, even though he was frantically trying to find his glasses.
"I still crack up just thinking about the fact that you call him that," the older man laughed, before finally finding his elusive item and slapping the glasses back onto his face with a victorious "Aha!" He then grabbed a Pokeball from his jacket pocket and let it fall to the ground, releasing an Abra, who appeared to them all upside-down, though it righted itself soon. Once it was aware that its human was hanging upside-down, however, it flipped back to the way it had arrived, appearing to stare right into the face of Levee the pendulum-man. "Hey, Red Hill, could you do me a huge favor? Teleport up there and get Penguin, and bring her down to Earth, so to speak." Without a second's delay, the Abra disappeared, reappearing several meters higher. It grabbed the girl with one tiny arm, and they both disappeared, instantly reappearing on the grassy floor of the forest.
"I can't believe I'm seeing both of you at the same time!" Orca exclaimed, as he gave Raspberry a hug. "Dude, how did Levee find you?"
"Actually," Levee said, "she found me."
"What? Okay, Levee, you have to tell me what's been going on. I'm tired of playing guessing games with you."
"Isn't everybody?" laughed Leviathan. "Penguin, fill him in on this one. I'll handle the big picture myself."
"Um... Okay, I'll try," Raspberry said. "I met Levee at a party on a ship in Vermillion Bay. We talked about a few things, and he said I would fit right in with his friends. Then he started talking about all of you, and eventually I figured out that 'Orca' was you. So... That's how we know each other. But that was last year, I think. A little while ago, I ran into him again... And I guess he's lucky I did. He was sinking in this pit in a bog."
"What the hell were you doing in there, Levee?" Orca asked.
"Meditating."
"You didn't think to choose a different spot when you started sinking?!"
"Nah, I wasn't worried. Besides, I didn't want to disrupt my state of divine tranquility."
"You'd be DEAD with divine tranquility if Raspberry hadn't found you!"
"Well, she did, so it all worked out, didn't it?" Levee laughed. "Oh yeah, thanks for that again, Penguin."
"Why do you keep calling her that?!" Orca asked, about ready to start walking again and stop asking so many questions.
"Because she wanted to be a Sea Monster," Levee answered, beginning to swing from side to side again.
"What? Dude, it's not that simple," Orca said, turning back to Raspberry. "Not just anyone can be a Sea Monster."
"Actually, they can," Levee said, making Orca give him a bewildered stare.
"What are you talking about? You just contradicted your own rule! Remember that night on the beach back in '07, when we formed the Sea Mon-"
"Oh, pardon," Levee cut him off. "Let me correct myself. Anyone can be a Sea Monster nowadays. They couldn't before, but things change."
"What?"
"All shall be revealed, my son. You'll receive a full explanation of everything at the meeting."
"No, I'm tired of this! I wait patiently for you to show up and help me with something, and all you ever do is give me some random line from a fortune cookie! I want answers NOW!"
"As my mother always told my siblings and I," Levee said, halting his swing to look directly into Orca's eyes. "Want in one hand, shit in the other, and see which one fills up faster."
"You-!"
"Levee, we should tell him," Raspberry - or, as we shall now say, Penguin - said, turning to the older man, hoping to stop any angry words either might say.
"O... Okay," Levee said, suddenly losing control of his legs and falling from the branch, down to the forest floor. "Look, Orca," the older man sighed as he rose to his feet. "there are kind of a lot of Sea Monsters now. As I said, Dolphin gave up leadership of the Crew quite a while ago."
"How long ago, exactly?" Orca asked.
`"Around February."
"Did you come back at all at that time?"
"Nope. But I knew. I knew a lot. And some of it, I didn't want to know. But I'll explain more about that-"
"Later," Orca said. "Just tell me who's in charge now."
"Rachel Petal."
"Dolphin's ex? Dude, we've known her... like..."
"Longer than you've known me, at least," Levee said, after lighting up a cigarette.
"Why would she change the rules?"
"Because she had just come back, and didn't take the time to make herself familiar with what it means to be a Sea Monster. Seems most of our friends have forgotten that, as well. At any rate, she and a few others have been inviting people like there's no tomorrow. So I figured I'd do the same. Well, except with just one person."
"Okay, so how did Raspberry... um... Penguin...?"
"Look, Orca, this is turning into quite the tale-telling," Levee said. "Since you're in the doghouse already anyway, why don't we pull up a few logs to sit on, start a little fire, and have a full-fledged camp-out. Oh yeah! That was the third and final reason. I also came to get you for that father-son camping trip I promised. But for now, let's just burn something!"
\/\/\/\/\/
"This doesn't count as the camping trip, does it?" Orca asked, as he dragged a log toward the circle they had all made around the newly lit campfire.
"Hell no!" Levee said, rubbing his hands together. "We're gonna need a lot more than one night."
"So, this is a real camp-out?" Whisper asked shyly. "Like... a really, real, adventure-type camp-out, like in those books, The Lord of the Rings?"
"Naw, our camp-outs are more like The Grapes of Wrath," Levee joked, giving the boy a reassuring pat on the back. "You know kid, you look awful familiar. Are you related to anyone I know?"
"Um..." Whisper hesitated. "Well, I've never been outside before today, so... I couldn't say..."
"You know, come to think of it," Orca said, "I think Levee's right. I could swear I've seen you before I went to Azalea Town. Maybe I should look at your face more closely, huh?" he said with a smile.
"Orca, could you just cut it out?" Whisper snapped suddenly, before raising his hand to cover his mouth. "I... I'm sorry, everyone... I... I suppose... I'm just not used to my physical appearance being under scrutiny... No one really cared when I lived back there..."
"It's okay, Whisper," Orca reassured him. "I know everything you've seen since I led you outside has been new and confusing to you. You've gone through so many shocks... And yet you're brave enough to try to talk to my friends, after all that. I can't imagine how you feel right now."
"Oh... Brave? I don't think so," Whisper said shakily, lowering his eyes to stare at the fire. "If I were... then maybe... Ah... Nevermind..."
"Why don't we talk about something else for now?" Penguin suggested, and was met with agreement from Orca and Whisper. Leviathan, however, remained silent for some time, fixing his stare on Whisper. He did feel bad for the poor boy, but he knew he was keeping some sort of secret. He was at least ninety-nine percent sure that this boy was hiding a connection with someone. And he was just as sure that he knew who that someone was. It wasn't the boy's appearance that gave it away, but so many clues that crept out to meet him. He said nothing of the matter that night, however; he eventually returned to the conversation, claiming to have been lost in his own world and staring off into space, and brought up the topic of Pokemon.
"How is Emery doing, anyway?" he asked his illegitimate son as he took a sip of warm soda. The Furret in question was sleeping peacefully on the log beside Orca, curled up in a ball, as usual.
"Oh, she's great. We're both doing wonderful. Despite the fact that I may possibly be fired soon, we're great."
"Fired?" Raspberry echoed. "Why would they fire you? What kind of job do you have, anyway?"
"Yes, Orca," Levee said, suddenly giving the younger boy a strange smile that gave him the creeps. "Why don't you tell us about your occupation?"
"I... I have a desk job. And... the rest, I might explain later. It's complicated. And it's getting too complicated for my taste, really."
"Hah! He IS learning!" Levee suddenly shouted. "I was right!"
"...Dad, who are you talking to?" Orca asked hesitantly, not quite sure he wanted the answer to his question.
"Oh, no one, kiddo," Levee chuckled. "Let's just say I have a long-running bet going on with a certain deity."
Orca immediately turned his gaze to Penguin, giving her a solemn look. "I am so sorry you've had to be exposed to him for so long without proper supervision."
\/\/\/\/\/
The next morning, the four friends gathered their things and made their way out of the forest, arriving in Goldenrod before noon. Luckily for Orca, Dawn wasn't home at the moment - but someone was, in fact, there to greet him. Lobster, Hammerhead, and Piranha were all sitting in his living room, watching one of his new movies. "Hey guys!" he shouted cheerfully, and Lobster and Hammerhead turned to see the four entering the house.
"Hey, Juice!" Lobster said. "I see Levee and Penguin accomplished their mission."
"Who's that?" Hammerhead asked, pointing to Whisper. "Another new one?"
"Oh no, this isn't a Sea Monster," Orca replied. "This is my new friend from Azalea. We call him Whisper."
"Whisper... that's what you guys should be doing, since we're watching a movie," Piranha suggested.
"So, you guys are enjoying my DVD collection, I see," Orca laughed, as Penguin sat down and Levee moved to the kitchen to find something to drink. Whisper simply stayed at Orca's side, unsure of what else to do.
"Yep," Hammerhead replied, turning his attention back to the screen. "I didn't know you had so many."
"Well, that one right there is awesome," Orca said, pointing to the action movie playing on the screen.
"Yeah, it's great," Piranha said in an annoyed tone. "Did you guys know it has a sequel too? It's called SHUT THE FUCK UP AND WATCH THE MOVIE!" Everyone laughed nervously at this, but lowered the volume of their conversations. The door suddenly opened, and in walked Dawn, who glared at Orca, and then at Whisper.
"Hey, baby!" Orca said, hoping her wrath would not be too extreme.
"Don't 'hey baby' me, Orange! Work was the most horrible experience of my life today, thanks to you!"
"I... I'm sorry?"
"Oh, no you're not. But you will be. Room. Now. Both of you. We need to have a talk. I'll be in there soon."
"Alright... Follow me, Whisper," Orca said, leading the Psychic into his bedroom. When Dawn walked in, she shut the door behind her, and glared at Orca once more. He waited for her to say what was on her mind, but she simply stood there, arms crossed, looking at him as if waiting for something.
"Well?" she eventually said.
"Well what?"
"What do you have to say for yourself?!"
"I... I honestly don't know what the big deal is, babe."
"Really?! You still haven't figured it out?"
"Figured what out? I have no idea what you're talking about!"
Dawn rolled her eyes. "Whisper, come here!" The boy did as he was commanded, and Dawn grabbed him by the shoulders and turned him around, so that they were standing side-by-side, both facing Orca. Whisper tried to keep his head down, but Dawn grabbed him by a bunch of his hair and yanked his head back up. "Well?"
"Holy Houndour!" Orca exclaimed, eyes wide, as the truth finally hit him like a bag of bricks. "You... he... What?!" The resemblance was faint, but it was definitely there. Dawn's hair, dyed violet, wasn't Whisper's pure black, but the shape of their faces was very similar, and their green eyes were exactly the same. Whisper's frame was even almost as slender as Dawn's, with the same narrow shoulders.
"He's my baby brother," Dawn said, no affection in the words at all. "Like myself, he was born into Team Rocket. But I'm the one who's so good at the family business, that I'll be taking it over soon. He's the family failure." With this last sentence, she let go of her brother's hair, and he brought his head back down, staring at the floor, refusing to make eye contact with either of them.
"Dawn!" Orca yelled. "I can't believe you'd say something like that! And about your own brother?"
"What? It's true! Team Rocket has no time or place for weakness! That's why they didn't trust him with anything but guarding the door!"
"But...!"
"Speaking of weakness, I also recieved the full report of your conduct. What the hell is wrong with you? You messed up so badly that they wouldn't even let you take part in the mission at all!"
"What's wrong with ME?" Orca replied, his voice rising now that he had once again thought of the sickening mission that the Azalea Town branch of Team Rocket had performed. "What's wrong with those people? How could they do something like that? You can't just treat a living thing like a tool!"
"We can, and we do! That's the whole point! Didn't you get any of that in your training? You can't have gone through an entire month without picking anything up!"
"Well... All they taught me was how to steal Pokemon. That's not the same, is it? You said that Team Rocket doesn't-"
"It's all the same!" Dawn shouted, before letting out a frustrated sigh. "Look, it doesn't matter anyway. You're under suspension for the next three months.
"MONTHS?" Orca asked, incredulous.
"At the least."
"What?"
"And if they allow you back on after that, you'll be going through another training period."
"Fine. But we have to hide Whisper from them."
"No, Orca. You don't understand anything about this situation. He must be watched at all times."
"We can watch over him. We'll take care of him. Maybe you should get to know what that's like, seeing as how you're his big sister!"
"How dare you!"
"Talk to him, Dawn! Get to know him! Treat him like a fucking human being!"
"I... I guess I could..."
"Just promise me you won't turn him in."
"...I won't... Not yet. But if it gets too dangerous-"
"Then I'll take care of it," Orca said, wrapping his arms around her. "Don't worry. Just make sure he's comfortable. Now, I have to talk to my friends about this family meeting thing. You guys talk for a while, okay?"
"Alright," Dawn agreed, before kissing him. "I have missed you. But we'll talk more about that later."
"Sounds good," Orca said with a grin, before exiting the room to rejoin his friends.
"How bad was it?" Hammerhead asked, when they saw Orca return. "She's not going to lock you up in the basement or anything, is she?"
"Nah, we're fine. So, guys, when is everybody else getting here?"
"Now that's a question I would love to have answered," Levee chimed in, between bites of a mcintosh apple. "Oh yeah, thanks for having food in your kitchen, also."
"They're not coming," Lobster said.
"What?!" Orca and Levee shouted at the same time.
"Well, we were the only ones who would come over here," Hammerhead added.
"I can't believe this," Levee said, digging the seeds out of the apple core and placing them in his pocket. "I can't believe I'm surprised, but I still can't believe this is happening. What happened to the good old days when people actually listened to me when I asked them things?"
"Apparently we're the only ones who remember those days," Lobster laughed.
"Well, I'm on suspension for three months," Orca said, "so I'm sure we can find another day to do this."
"Three months, eh?" Levee asked.
"At least."
"Well, that's perfect! We can go on that camping trip."
"Really? You're free right now?"
"Well, we're actually leaving tomorrow, Lobster and I," Levee said. "I think... Today's August, right?" he asked, turning to Lobster.
"Yes, today is August," Lobster laughed. "Tomorrow will also be August."
"Good to know." Here he turned back to Orca. "Yep, leaving tomorrow. Until around the twentieth, at least."
"Yeah, got some new songs to work on, and hopefully to record," Lobster elaborated.
"Yep," Levee nodded. "But once we come back, it's just the two of us, buddy."
"Awesome!" Orca said with a smile. "Finally! Well, you guys go ahead. I can't wait to hear the new jams."
"And they can't wait to hear you," Levee said, making the rest of the boys laugh.
"Hey, y'all heard about that sequel?!" Piranha yelled, making them all laugh more.
\/\/\/\/\/
For the rest of the week, Orca hung around the house, either hanging out with Hammerhead, Penguin, and Piranha, exercising like crazy or playing video games to pass time, as he waited for Levee's return. Dawn, on the other hand, took it easy for once; when she wasn't at work, she sat with Whisper, and the two talked about anything and everything. At first, the girl simply stared at her brother, having no idea what to say, but Orca would keep popping into the kitchen, seeing them both silent at the table, and randomly yell "Ask him what his favorite books are!" or "Talk about music!" They would laugh at these outbursts, but then Dawn would ask "So you like to read books?" Once this revelation was made, she started bringing him books from shops in town every time she came back from work. She still reserved at least a half hour for talking to him, but as she got him to come more and more out of his shell, and they learned more and more about each other, the time slot grew to more than an hour.
Each day was like an emotional war to Dawn; not only was she learning things about her brother, whom she hadn't seen since he had been a baby, but she was laughing and crying, joking and apologizing, feeling guilty, and feeling whole. Regaining her brother seemed to be the same as regaining a piece of herself. Every night, lying in bed with Orca, she would tell him of what she had discovered that day, and how it made her feel to discover these things, as well as how it felt that she was seventeen, her brother was fifteen, and she was just now making the attempt. She would cry as he held her, and he would assure her that it wasn't her fault, and that what was important was that she was trying now. Orca himself felt exceedingly proud of her; he had been appalled that she condoned the harmful activities of Team Rocket, but now he decided not to bring it up to her. He felt sure that, since she was trying so hard to be a good sister now, maybe that darkness would eventually fade away from her, and she would change for the better.
Once Saturday the 20th arrived, Orca became even more excited than ever. "It's Saturday now, right?" he asked cheerfully when Dawn woke him up. She leaned over and took his face in her hands, laughing in between kisses. "Yes, babe, it's Saturday. You're really stoked, aren't you? I don't think I've ever seen you so excited. Well, except for last night..."
"That's a VERY interesting ceiling fan!" Hammerhead stated loudly from the living room, making the two laugh.
"Ham awake!" Emery cheered, running into the living room. Orca and Dawn got up from their bed and set to brushing their teeth as Emery pounced onto Hammerhead where he lay on his floor pallet, giving him a hug.
"Now that's a better way to start a morning," Hammerhead said. "Emery, you're the best alarm clock ever."
"Bee beep?" Emery asked, trying her best to imitate Orca's Pokegear alarm.
"Something like that," Hammerhead chuckled.
"Yes, except Emery's not annoying like an alarm clock," Penguin added from her spot on the large sofa. "She's just cute and stuff."
"Ping!" Emery cheered, jumping up to give her a hug as well.
"Hey, why don't I get a hug?" Piranha asked jokingly from her "throne", the recliner, where she was covered in at least four blankets.
"Wai turn, Ranh," Emery assured her.
"Gaaww, she's so fuckin' cute," Piranha said, sniffling and rubbing her nose.
"Are you sick again, Piranha?" Dawn asked, as she and Orca entered the living room.
"She's always sick," Orca said as he took a seat on the loveseat. "She gets sick more than Levee."
"Nuh uh!" Piranha argued. "That's just 'cause Levee drinks that jank-ass plant tea shit!"
"Herbal tea?" Dawn asked. "We have some in the kitchen, if you want-"
"Hell no, woman!" Piranha said, burrowing deeper into her blanket cocoon. "That shit tastes like a Skuntank got run over and pissed on by herpes."
"Pissed on by herpes?" Orca laughed. "That makes less sense than that time-"
"You know what doesn't make sense? Your face!"
"Ranh, nice," Emery scolded. "Nice, get Emery hug."
"Oh, okay," Piranha said, in a more calm tone. "I'm sooorrrry, Orca."
"All is forgiven," Orca said, laughing again.
"Okay, get hug now," Emery said, jumping up onto the recliner and digging in the mess of blankets to hug Piranha.
"Emery hugs: the end of all arguments," Hammerhead said, sounding a bit like a television commercial.
"Hell yeah!" Orca said. "Somebody needs to find a way to put hugs in a bottle!"
"But then everybody would try to sell hugs," Dawn countered.
"And then people would end up stealing hugs from stores," Hammerhead added.
"Oh my Ho-oh!" Penguin shouted. "They would start selling illegal hugs! On the streets! And the black market!"
"And gangs would kill each other for hugs!" Piranha laughed, enjoying this game.
"It would be an all-out hug war," Whisper added. Everyone turned to him, staring in shock.
"...Whisper?" Orca asked slowly.
"Yes?" the boy responded from the doorway to the kitchen.
"Did you just make a joke?" Dawn asked.
"Um... I..." Whisper said, his cheeks turning red.
"He most certainly did," Hammerhead said.
"Yup," Piranha agreed. "All-out hug war." After only a few more seconds of awkward silence, everyone in the room - even Whisper - erupted into loud laughter.
"I knew you had it in you, buddy," Orca said, getting up from the loveseat and giving Whisper a high-five.
"Thanks... I'm... just glad you guys didn't make fun of me."
"With a punch line like that, who the hell would?" Hammerhead assured the boy.
"You guys are the best friends ever," Whisper said, staring at his feet. "But I'm sure we don't have to worry about a hug war happening."
"If anybody tried to steal hugs, we'd just sic Levee on 'em," Piranha said. "He's learned the lessons of hugging responsibly."
"What does that mean?" Dawn asked.
"It's complicated," Orca laughed.
"Anyway, I think the days of sic'ing Levee on people are pretty much over," Hammerhead said. "He tends to stay out of things."
"Is that like an official calendar decision?" Orca asked.
"We can just ask him when he gets here today," Piranha said.
"What makes you so sure it will be today? He said it would be AROUND the twentieth." This made Piranha give him a glare.
"I'll bet you three giant bags of Skittles."
"Okay, sure."
"AND if I'm right, you have to buy us all pizza for lunch!"
"Um... alright," Orca agreed.
"I want pepperoni and pinap berry on mine," Hammerhead declared.
"How do you know Piranha will be right?" Penguin asked, curious.
"Because Lobster and Levee are standing outside the window."
They all turned and looked through the window to which he pointed, to see that Hammerhead was telling the truth - the two long-haired gentlemen were standing outside, peering through the window, with their hands over their mouths. They lowered their hands once their friends had seen them, and began laughing hysterically - apparently, they had heard the entire conversation. "Make my pizza a mushroom, Orca," Levee shouted from outside.
"You guys fucking suck," Orca said as blood rushed to his face. "But I'm hungry, so I'll buy the pizza."
"AND MY SKITTLES!" Piranha added.
\/\/\/\/\/
"In other news," Orca said after swallowing the latest chunk of his Rawst Berry pizza. He and his friends had spent their morning in the greatest possible way - by walking into town, getting a shitload of pizza, candy, and soda, and coming home to enjoy it all while watching the original Star Wars Trilogy.
"In other news, this is the best day ever," Lobster said, quoting the title of one of the greatest songs of all time.
"The best day ever so far," Hammerhead corrected.
"I'm not complaining," Piranha said. "I'm just happy I finally got my Skittles. It took Orca forever to finally admit that I won fairly."
"You didn't!" Orca said. "And it wasn't that long."
"Two weeks!" Dawn suddenly yelled, making all of the Sea Monsters in the house bring their attention to her. And, as everyone but Dawn and Penguin had already known by experience what she was talking about without being told, everyone in the room burst into laughter - everyone except Orca.
"Um... okay..." he said, clearing his throat. "So... Let's go build a fucking tree house."
"I've got one better," Levee laughed. "I hope you got your pack ready, kiddo, 'cause we're leaving today."
\/\/\/\/\/
"Orca no leave!" Emery pleaded, tears running down her cheeks, refusing to let go of her human. Orca and Leviathan were standing inside the Pokemon Daycare Center, and Emery was clinging to Orca as if her life depended on it. "No leave Emery!"
"I'm not leaving forever, Emery," Orca said, exasperated. He had been trying to explain the situation for quite a while, but she didn't want to be separated from him for even a second. "Orca and Levee are going on a vacation for while. I'll be back to get you soon."
"N-nooo!" the Furret sobbed. "No le-eeave!"
"Emery," Levee interrupted. "Come see Levee, please." Emery hesitated a moment before doing as she was asked. The older man whispered into her right ear for a moment, and she nodded, then leaped back onto Orca. "There's a good girl," Levee said with a smile.
"Em-Emery stay," the Furret sobbed. "Emery be g-good."
Orca stared first at her, then at Levee. "How the hell do you do that?"
"Oh, your old man has his ways," Levee laughed.
"Okay, so you're going to stay here while we're gone?" Orca asked, turning his attention back to his Pokemon. The Furret nodded, and he gave her a pat on the head. "Good girl. I'll be back to get you soon." He gave her a hug, then passed her over to the Daycare Lady, who placed her in a large play pen. She watched Orca the entire time that he and Levee were walking out of the building. Once they were gone, she lay down on her belly by the fence and sulked.
"She's getting pretty big," Levee said as they headed North, back to Goldenrod.
"Emery? Yeah, she's bigger than when she first evolved, I know that."
"Well, it's to be expected. She's getting older."
"Um... Not too old, right? She's not gonna..."
"No, she's fine," Levee laughed. "They don't age that quickly. But she's almost a full year old, isn't she?"
"Um... According to my Pokedex, she was born on December 24."
"See? She's almost old enough to be as in love with you as she is."
"Oh Lugia, not you too!"
"Pardon?" Levee asked, lowering an eyebrow.
"Shrimp thinks that too."
"Well, it's pretty obvious, kiddo," Levee chuckled.
"Whatever," Orca said defiantly, causing Levee to laugh again and ruffle up his hair with his left hand.
\/\/\/\/\/
The two men, once departing the North exit from Goldenrod City, spent days walking, and their path seemed random to Orca at first. But once they passed through Ecruteak and turned East toward Mahogany, he began to think that his surrogate father might actually have a specific destination in mind. They passed straight through Mahogany, and moved on to the mountains of Blackthorn City, where they turned North again, entering a forest wilderness. It was in this area that they made their camp. Levee set up the collapsible tent he had been carrying in his pack, and they spent most of their days walking around the forest, gathering dead wood for fire and picking wild berries where they could be found. There was a large pond slightly Northeast of their campsite, where they spent much time swimming as well as catching fish to eat. Most of this time was also spent talking about what had been going on in each other's lives.
"So, he's Dawn's brother, eh?" Levee said with a smile as he broke off a small limb from a severed branch lying on the ground. "I was pretty sure. Good to know I can be right about things that aren't completely negative."
"How did you know? They don't really look much alike. I mean, they do a bit, but... I didn't really notice until they were both staring at me. And even then, it took me a while."
"Let's just say a little bird told me," Levee chuckled. "More importantly, how are they getting along? It's been a while since they've seen each other, right?"
"Try years."
"Years?"
"Yep. Almost his whole life. I dunno why, but they're doing fine now. They have little private talks every day. When we go to bed, she tells me all about what they talked about. She cries most nights. She feels really bad about missing out on his life. But they love each other."
"That's the important thing," Levee said. "Trust me, all siblings have love for one another. Even though, at times, they may not feel like it..." He trailed off, smiling at countless memories.
"Do you miss yours?" Orca asked as he threw two sticks into the pile they were making.
"Well hell, I see them often enough, with all the times they call me up, requiring my presence. My family is almost like a job. And sometimes I want to quit!" He paused, laughing for a moment. "But I love them. And yeah, i've spent many moments of my life missing them. But I'd never want to live my life any other way. It's my way, and that's the important thing."
Days turned to weeks, and eventually August turned to September. With all the tragedies of one year ago floating around his mind, Orca had to struggle not to break down into tears at times. The good thing was that Levee was doing his best to take his mind off of it. At random intervals, however, he would inadvertently make it worse by actually talking about it.
"I know it feels like this will haunt you forever, Orca," the older man said in a solemn tone as they sat smoking cigarettes at their campfire. It was the night of the fifteenth, which was the worst day to say anything about the past, even if he was only trying to help. "And in a way, that's true. But time heals all the rips and tears we've suffered. And that's the only thing. Scars will always remain. But it's our choice, how often we look at them. Just look at how far you've come. You have a home, and a job, and someone to hold at night. That's more than some people can say."
"I've been feeling kind of at odds with the job part lately," Orca muttered, as he poked the fire with a stick.
"Probably because you're not a criminal." This statement caused Orca to pause his jabbing at the embers and stare into Levee's eyes.
"You know?"
"Yep."
"You've known this whole time? How?"
"Kind of obvious to anyone who can take the time to put the pieces together."
"But you never said anything! You didn't mind?"
"We all have to be free to make our own choices, Orca. I had to wait to see what you would do. But it's gone on enough. There isn't much time left. Certain actions have to be taken, and soon, for everything to work out."
"What are you talking about?!"
"It's complicated. Just know that I'm aware of your occupation, and I'm also aware of certain things that may or may not happen, based on the actions you take upon your return. All you need to be aware of, is that you've been going about things wrong. It's not enough to move on with your life after leading it so far down the wrong path, and pretend nothing happened, expecting things to work out. That still counts as going down the wrong path."
"...I don't understand. What exactly are you talking about?"
"It's alright. You'll figure it out eventually. I just hope that when you do, it's not too late."
"Wait... So you've been observing my progress, just to make sure I follow some plan of yours?"
"Well... Not exactly, but I suppose you could put it that way. It wouldn't be too far off-"
"So that's it!" Orca shouted, throwing the stick down to the ground. "You plan out all these things, and send me marching on my little horse, all the way down the goddamn chess board!"
"I'm sensing some hostility," Levee said calmly.
"You're fucking right! I'm not a game piece!"
"I never said you were."
"But you treat me like one! You leave me with all these things, and I have no idea what the hell to do, and it fucks up my entire life, and I'm left wondering what the hell to do to move on! I can't take this! How far back does this go? Was my brother a part of your plan too?!"
"I tried my best to help Cranberry," Levee said, his voice finally rising in volume. "I wish I would have known earlier how far gone he was, but I can't help that! If I had, then maybe..."
"Then everything would be fine! He wouldn't have died! The house wouldn't have burned down! We wouldn't have moved! None of this would have happened! But you wouldn't come out of the house for months!"
"There's no changing that now! Don't you understand? The past is what it is! That's why it is imperative that we do what we can with the future!"
"What do you know about the future? What are you keeping from me?!"
"Only that you must follow the path that will lead to the best future possible!"
"How do I tell what that is, Levee? How can I possibly know?!"
"You haven't been paying attention! Only you can answer that question!"
Orca huffed loudly, and rested his head in his hands. "I hate this. I hate how you pop in randomly when you see fit, and give me riddles that make no sense. It makes me wish I didn't listen to you sometimes."
"And I sometimes wish you would hear me. I don't do these things to hurt you."
"You know what hurts me? That I can't rely on you half the time! You drop by when I know what I'm doing, but Lugia forbid you show up at all when I'm in trouble! You've been waiting for me to decide to leave Team Rocket, but where were you when I was making the decision to join them? You didn't think to stop me while you could?"
"That wouldn't-"
"And how about last year, Levee? My brother died of cancer! I worked myself almost to death trying to make money to trade for his life, but I failed at that! You could've done something, couldn't you? You didn't even come to his funeral! He looked up to you just as much as any Sea Monster! You were his mentor! Even the bitch who broke his heart as well as mine showed up, but you, oh, I guess you didn't think it was important enough!"
"You know that's not true, Orca!"
"My good-for-nothing real father never came back, not even to bury his oldest child, so I figured I would at least have the other person I call 'Dad'. I really could've used your shoulder to cry on. But you weren't there. You didn't even drop in to give me a hug, but you can swing by to give me some stupid fortune-cookie proverb that I don't need? How about being there when I actually need you, Levee? You know, actually follow through on anything important? Sure, you've never broken a promise in your life, but you never make a promise unless you know you'll be able to keep it!"
Levee hesitated before speaking again, trying to keep his thoughts in order and not be carried away by his emotions. When he finally spoke up, he did so slowly. "I realize I've been far from perfect. But the one thing I can say truthfully, is that when I love people in any fashion, whether it's friend or family or one of the many would-be companions who have ripped my heart out, that love is more fierce and pure than anything else I could ever confess to feeling. You and all the others... I want no ill to befall you. I want you to be happy and healthy and free from harm. I know that I can't ensure this completely; I'm just one person. I've never pretended to be anything more. But I want these things too much to do anything less than try the best I can. That is why I do these things, and keep these secrets. I want you all to be better than I am. I want your lives to be more rich and beautiful and fun than mine could ever be. If I ever go about that mission in the wrong way, or make any mistakes, that is my guilt and burden to bear. But please don't think that I don't care. That's all I'll ask."
"Oh, shut the hell up and give me a hug, you asshole!" Orca said, throwing his arms around the older man in a tight embrace.
"Well shit, I guess I'll take that as an answer," Levee laughed, returning to his more simple mode of speech as he returned the hug.
"Damn straight!" Orca laughed. "You'd better, old man!"
"Watch it now!"
"I'm so angry... All the time... I have so much going through my head, and I feel like something is telling me to be mean to people. I don't know what's wrong with me, but I hate myself so much for it!" Tears were now running down his face, landing on Levee's black denim jacket. The older man squeezed his "son" tighter and patted his back.
"I have an idea about it. Don't worry, I'm going to help you fix this."
"How? I've been trying for so long... The only progress I have is that I'm not mean to Emery any more. But it's so hard sometimes."
"I'm proud of you for that. See, it's not all bad, son. Just keep it up. I promise, it will get better. I've been through a lot of similar issues."
"You never told me anything about that," Orca said, letting go of Levee to wipe his eyes. "You never tell me anything. I feel like I hardly know you."
"Most people get that impression. Part of me likes it that way. And part of me NEEDS it that way."
"Well, it's been years since you told me that I was like a son to you. You could at least let me in more than the average person."
"I'll write you a book about it," Levee said, making Orca laugh.
"Please don't. The last thing we need is for you to write even MORE often."
"Well, some things, I don't want to reveal about myself yet."
"Like your plans? Your information? How you seem to know so much about what may happen, but you don't give any clear answers? There are so many answers I need, Levee!"
"Sometimes it's best not to know. And sometimes you ask the wrong questions."
"Levee, you ramble more than a drunk comedian! You could tell me these things so easily!"
"Orca, I would spend days and nights telling you all you want to hear, but it's-"
"If you say 'it's complicated', I will kill you so hard right now!"
"It's... a long story," Levee laughed, as Orca punched him on the shoulder.
\/\/\/\/\/
"So, how are you and Dawn doing lately?" Levee asked between sips of soda. The two were fishing at the small pond near their campsite in the woods.
"Um... Great, actually. We have a few arguments every now and then, but at the end of the day, we always have it worked out."
"That's good. Have you said the L word yet?"
"Um..."
"Love, Orca."
"Yeah, I know. I'm not a certain comic book character. And... No, I haven't. And neither has she."
"Do you feel like you're at that point yet?"
"Um... I... Why are you asking me this?"
"Hey, just looking out. How about the other one?"
"Other one?"
Levee hesitated before answering, seeming to be lost in his thoughts. "Emery."
"Emery? Seriously?"
"Yes, I know, and I'm trying," Levee said, seemingly parting from the conversation at hand. "These things take time."
"Um..."
"Sorry, Orca. And yes, I am serious. Maybe not the same kind of love, but you should at least consider saying it to her."
"Um... I don't know, Levee. I don't think I could ever say something like 'I love you' to Emery."
"Hey!" Levee suddenly shouted.
"What? Are you talking to yourself again?"
"Oh, no, someone else entirely."
"...Levee, I really worry about you sometimes."
"So do I," Levee laughed.
"How about you?" Orca asked, trying to stay on subject. "Is there anybody you're chasing after these days? You know, I totally saw the way Penguin made you fall out of that tree."
"Oh, that!" Levee laughed. "Oh boy... Yeah, well... I did like her for a while. But I took some time to allow it to get out of my system."
"You know I dated her a long time ago, right?" Orca asked, poking him in the ribs with his shoulders.
"I know, she told me. Honestly, I don't feel bad. Even though those feelings are gone, I love hanging out with her. She's a great friend - one of the greatest I've had, just like the rest of you guys. It's amazing how perfectly she fits with the rest of us outcasts, don't you think?"
"Totally. I'm so glad we're all together. Well, not all the time, but..."
"We will always be connected. We share something no mortal man will ever be able to put into words. And that is why our lives are so blessed."
"You said a mouthful there."
"A mouthful of SKITTLES!" Levee shouted, making Orca laugh while pulling a fish out of the pure blue water with his fishing pole. "And we have a winner! Good job, kiddo! First fish of the day!"
"Hopefully not the ONLY fish of the day," Orca said. "Anyway, I met a girl in Azalea who reminds me a lot of you."
"Really? How much is 'a lot'?"
"A LOT."
"Oh, wow."
"Yep. She's weird as hell. Maybe even a match for you."
"Or maybe a long-lost twin sister I knew nothing about."
"Whoa. Two Levees. NOW I'm scared."
"Hey now!" Levee laughed, throwing one arm over the younger man's shoulder. "Hey, you know the black dye in your hair is fading?"
"It's probably for the best."
"Yeah, now you look more like your dear old dad!"
"On second thought..."
\/\/\/\/\/
\/\/\/\/\/
\/\/\/\/\/
Author's Note: So, what do you guys think? Questions? Comments? Rants? XD
Next chapter, we see a lot of shit go down! And somebody's gonna really piss me off, but Orca will take care of it, so no worries. Thanks for reading, and having patience! Cheers~