The questionably feminine man with the butterfly belt was Burgh, the Castelia Gym Leader. He told us he was in the forest because he was in search for "artistic inspiration" (Whatever that meant. I couldn't really understand him when he talked like Cilan does when he has one of his expressive moments.)
Ash somehow had an idea, and while he was getting excited, the Sewaddle from before came swinging in again and kicked him in the face.
"It's that Sewaddle again!" Iris said.
"You know this Sewaddle?" Burgh said.
"Yeah. We wandered off the path because I was trying to catch it." Ash said.
Sewaddle jumped up, leaping off Ash's head, and onto Burgh's shoulder.
"Sewaddle might be a bit stubborn, but it's actually a very sweet Pokémon." Burgh said.
"Yeah, sweet like a spoonful of rotten honey." I mumbled, crossing my arms.
"It's very important that a trainer gets to know a Pokémon before they catch it." Burgh said to Ash. "Would you like to join me?"
We agreed wholeheartedly and set up camp. While Cilan prepared supper, Ash, Iris, and I went with Burgh to get to know Sewaddle.
"In order to get to know a Pokémon, one must introduce themselves first." Burgh said. Burgh got down on his hands and knees and touched his forehead with Sewaddle's antennae. "Supposedly, they're able to distinguish people and things by using the two sensory knobs located on the top of their heads."
Pikachu followed suit, touching foreheads with Sewaddle, as well as Axew and Iris. However when Ash tried to do the same, Sewaddle head butted him. As he laid on the ground, Iris and I giggled.
"I guess that what you get for trying to catch it right off the bat!" Iris said.
"Rylee, you should say hello to Sewaddle as well." Burgh said.
I thought that face tackle from earlier was hello enough. But I got down on my hands and knees.
"Hello, Sewaddle." I said, touching my forehead against the Pokémon.
Images rushed into my mind. I was still in the Pinwheel Forest, but it was different.
I saw a young man wandering through the forest, huffing and puffing as he trudged along the path.
"Oh, great. Now how am I gonna get out of here?" he said.
He continued walking, and when he stopped, he looked up and gazed at the giant tree in the center of the forest.
"Well, it's getting dark. I should probably set up camp before nighttime comes."
He set up came and lit a small fire. He faced it, letting the flames dance in his eyes.
"I guess getting a good night's rest is all I can do now." the man said. "I'm gonna need all the energy I can get if I wanna get out of here."
"Who are you?" a voice said.
The man cried out and looked around in a panic. His eyes settled on a little Sewaddle that crept up to him.
"Oh, hello." he said. "You gave me a scare."
"What are you doing here?" Sewaddle said.
"I'm afraid I'm lost. I wandered off the path, and now I don't know where I am."
The Sewaddle was shocked.
"You... you understand me?" it said.
The man nodded and Sewaddle's eyes widened.
"Wow! I've never met someone before who could talk to Pokémon!" it said.
The man chuckled and stared at the fire. His eyes flushed with pain.
"Well, you're gonna be meeting a lot more of me in the future." he said.
"Hey, I could help you find a way out of here." Sewaddle said.
"Really?" the man said. He smiled. "Thank you."
I gasped and jerked away as the images flushed from my mind, landing on my butt.
"Is something the matter, Rylee?" Iris said.
"Um... no." I said.
"It's nice to meet you, Sewaddle!" Ash said.
Sewaddle turned around and crept away.
"Off it goes! Bye bye!" Burgh said.
"Huh?" the three of us said.
We spent the time following Sewaddle around, watching him eat and nap. There was a bit of an incident where we ran into a few Woobats, but Ash and Sewaddle chased them off, which I guess earned Ash some respect points from Sewaddle.
When the sun set, we laid in our sleeping bags looking up at the clear night sky, talking about things. A few hours into the night, everyone was fast asleep. I laid wide awake in my sleeping bag, staring up at the leaves that rustled in the quiet wind. I peeled myself out of my sleeping bag and walked out to the edge of the treetop. I sat on a surfaced root and wrapped a blanket around my shoulders. I heard a rustle in the leaves and Sewaddle approached me, crawling onto my lap.
"I see you're not tired either, huh?" I said. "I wish I could sleep..."
"So you really can understand me?" Sewaddle said.
I nodded, which made Sewaddle jump with excitement.
"Wow! It's been so long since I've seen someone like you!" it said.
"You mean someone who can talk to Pokémon, right? I said. Sewaddle nodded. "Who came before me?"
Sewaddle shifted. "I can't really remember him... but he looked a lot like you." it said. "I recognize those green eyes."
My spine tingled. Was the man from the vision my dad?
I smiled at Sewaddle. "We should both get some sleep." I said, petting its head.
Sewaddle yawned and curled up in my lap, immediately falling asleep. I picked it up and laid it next to Ash before crawling back into my sleeping bag and going to sleep.
For the first time in a while, I actually had a dream without visions or Reshiram or whatever.
Doesn't mean that it wasn't super strange.
I stood in the field similar to where I was with Iris and Ash yesterday. The clouds in the sky moved slowly. Something disturbed a patch of grass next to me. A black fox Pokémon came scurrying out and leaped onto my shoulder, yapping happily in my ear. I remember seeing it in Ash's Pokédex: it was a Zorua.
Zorua jumped from my shoulder and ran around in a circle in front of me, motioning for me to follow it. I did and we walked together across the field. We came up to a section of the field where the grass was at least seven feet high. Zorua stopped in front of the grass. Its previous happy bark was now a melancholic whimper, which matched the sad-eyed expression it wore. Zorua disappeared into the grass.
A new Pokémon emerged from the grass, a Gardevoir, but her eyes were closed as if she were sleeping. We both stood there, no one making a move or sound. My heart swelled at the sight of this beautiful Pokémon. Suddenly, her graceful body slumped forward and she began to fall to the ground. Seeming like slow motion, I reached out to catch her, but as my arms were about to encircle her, she evaporated into fragments of yellow light that lifted up into the sky. My hands kept going until they clutched my stomach. I fell to my knees. I began to cry.
Scratch that; I wept profusely. But why?
As I knelt there, I felt the warm presence of a body next to me, as well as a hand on my shoulder. I looked and saw Cilan. He wore the same grieving expression as I did. Fresh streams of tears stained his cheeks as we knelt in silence.
His lips moved, producing no sound, but I knew the word he was mouthing.
"Mika."
I've never heard that name before, nor knew anyone who had it, and yet it managed to make me cry such bitter tears. His hand cradled my chin and he turned my head so I was looking at him. Our faces were mere inches away.
But in this sense of reality, it seemed natural.
He leaned in.
"Rylee! RYLEE!" a voice cried.
My eyes shot open and I sat up straight, only to connect foreheads with another person. I cried out and fell back, gripping my head as pain burned in my brain.
"Wow. What a wake up." Iris giggled.
I sat up again and saw Ash laying on the ground, groaning. I laughed, but it ended in a wince as pain throbbed in my forehead.
"Sorry, Ash." I said. "I was having... a really mysterious dream."
I couldn't bring myself to look at Cilan. Sewaddle jumped onto my lap and nuzzled my stomach.
"Looks like Sewaddle's taken a liking to you." Burgh said.
I petted Sewaddle's head.
"I appreciate it, Sewaddle, but do you know who would be a better trainer? Ash!" I said. "He's perfect for you. He'll take awesome care of you and make you so powerful!"
Sewaddle looked between me and Ash.
"Really?" Sewaddle said.
I smiled and nodded. Sewaddle turned around and leaped onto Ash's free shoulder.
"Incredible! People and Pokémon coming together! Our two different worlds finding a sweet balance!" Burgh said. His face lit up and he pulled out a pad and pencil. "This is it! The inspiration I've been looking for! I must return to the Castelia Gym. I look forward to your challenge, Ash!"
"You bet!" Ash said as Burgh scurried away.
Sewaddle accepted Ash and entered the offered Poké Ball.
"That was really nice, what you did for Ash." Iris said.
"What can I say?" I said, smiling to myself. "It just spoke to me."