Pokémon: Pallet Town Heroes
I'm back... And I apologize for such a long wait. Creative wrting class makes me not creative for fanfiction. I had a hard time coming up what happens in this chapter. This is simply a bridge to the next 'arc'.
Reviews:
Reader: Thank you so much for this comment, I'm glad people can actually read my 'writing' which sometimes feels like scribbling on a wall. I hope I don't dissapoint you and others.
Again, I don't own anything. I'm also using my extra time to re-edit my older chapters to be better so wait for that.
Chapter 8: Loving Truth.
-0-
Morning, wonderful. Full of bright lights, annoying clocks, and a bad bedhead. Green woke up with a cracking back and a hiss of bad joints. Green looked at the clock, 6:35 A.M, jeez, that early? Yawning like a slowpoke, she got ready for the day.
Leaving her room, she walked through the hallway slowly, her thoughts occupied her mind and sight as she moved. Reaching the end, she made to go through the doorway, only to stop.
"Why… Why…"
Ash?
-0-
Ash woke up. He woke up. He needed to make a call.
He quickly got ready for the day, quietly to not disturb his Pokémon, who were sleeping in the room and not their Pokeballs. Sabrina was still in her bed, so he tried not to wake her. Who knows what went through her head.
Checking the clock. 6:27 A.M.
Early.
For others, but not him. Most of the time. Some of the times.
Actually, forget he said anything.
Ash moved to the entrance of the Center before booking towards the phones. He quickly shoved his right hand in his pocket. Taking some Pokecoins, he slotted them in and dialed the Phone number.
C'mon—c'mon, pick up.
It felt like forever, it made Ash look around—left-right. Nurse Joy wasn't around, probably taking care of things in the back. Ash rhythmically tapped the front of his feet as he listened to the beeps of the phone, which was trying to find his phone number and connect to it.
*Beep* *Beep* *Beee-Click!*
"H-hello! Who is this?" A sleepy voice answered.
"Hey, Professor Oak!"
Professor Oak, who was once half-asleep, immediately woke up. His eyes brighten and his lips quirked up. "Ash! How are you doing! Actually, let me get your mother on the call, she wanted you to call sooner, to be honest." Oak winced at the bumps on his head. It wasn't his fault!?
Ash smiled at the mention of his mother, only for it to be dusted at him remembering why he called.
"Can you keep this call between us?"
Oak stopped his thoughts at that.
"…Okay, if that's what you want Ash."
"Thank you."
Oak didn't know why Ash called, but he had the feeling of sadness well up inside him.
They stayed silent for a few minutes, yet they felt like years to Oak as Ash stared at him.
"…Can I ask why I didn't get a Pokedex?"
Oak stopped.
.
.
.
"Ash-"
"No, tell me why."
"Ash, plea-"
"Can't you just tell me?"
Oak knew this was gonna happen, just… Not this soon. So, this was the dread that was being built in his stomach. He couldn't say that it was simply a feeling, so he had to go with the other option.
"It was because I thought you weren't going to use it to its maximum potential. That's all it was Ash." Oak gripped the telephone to ease his heart.
"…That's all?"
Oak grew firmer in his voice as Ash grew softer.
"Ye- that's all it wa-"
"…!"
Oak grew confused.
"What was that you said? Can you spe-"
"…Ar…"
Oak grew frustrated.
"Please, Ash do not waste my ti-"
"Why are you lying."
Oak choked.
"Wha, Ash-"
"I said, why are you lying!" Ash's voice got louder as he said what he said. His eyebrows furrowed as he held the phone tighter.
"I've known you for my entire life, I know when you're lying. I may be dumb compared to others, but I know you and mom."
Ash didn't have many connections, but those he did have he knew like the back of his hand. Mom, Oak, and Daisy. To those he trusted, he gave them his all. To figure out that they lie, it hurt him. It wasn't like if Santa was actually fake, this was about trust.
"Ash wai-"
"Do you think the others would use the Pokedex to its full potential?" Oak stopped what he was going to say by that question.
"Ash, that's not fair. The others… Their…" Oak faltered. He knew this explanation wouldn't work that well. He gave it to the others because they would document their finds, but he didn't know if he would get all the data from one person, so he spread it out. There was no good reason to not give Ash one too. His reasoning was stupid, so to say.
The only thing stopping him was the feeling, the suspicion he felt when talking to Ash.
And it was to his note, he was feeling it right now and it was growing stronger. He did not why he would get this feeling, but he knew others felt it too. Mostly the other adults also felt this way, except for Delia. It was always this way.
"…" Oak stayed silent. Silent for too long. Ash couldn't handle it anymore.
"Why…Why…Why won't you answer!?"
Before Oak could say anything, Ash shoved the phone back into place, ending the call. He wasn't thinking straight. A mix of anger, sadness, regret, clouded his mind.
He did not know the dreary atmosphere he put out, nor did he hear the pitter-patter of footsteps leaving the vicinity.
-0-
Two hours later
Green was still in her room, Red knocked on the door to see if she was okay, but she didn't answer. It made him worry. "Hey, Green? You okay?"
.
.
.
.
.
.
"…I'm fine." Came the muffled response.
Bullcrap. Red knew it was. He wanted to barge in and check on what was going on. But… That wasn't for him to do. Blue always said he was headstrong, and that he needs to keep that in check. He can now see why he needs to.
"Okay. Just—Call me or Blue whenever you need help."
All he got was silence.
Blue and Brock were already on their way to Vermillion, they left an hour ago. He needed to get a move on as well. Life doesn't wait for anyone.
That included Team Rocket.
As he trudged towards the front, he bumped into someone.
"Red!"
"Misty!"
Misty ran towards the trainer in red classically named Red. She huffed at his smile, acting like nothing was wrong. Humph, getting entangled with Team Rocket, and getting put in the infirmary, was a pot of trouble that was brewing.
Which was why…
"Wait, you want to travel with me?"
"Did you not hear me? I said I want to travel with you. I want to get stronger, and knowing you and your nose, you'll sniff out strong people to fight."
Red didn't know whether to be indignant or blushing. But, having someone by his side while traveling would be good. Make the journey a little less lonely.
Wait a minute…
"Who's gonna take care of the gym?"
Misty perked up at that. She waved it off. "I put in a notice; my gym won't be taking any challenges for a few months. If Sabrina could do it, so can I."
"Who's Sabrina?
"Another Gym Leader. What, didn't you pick up the competition?"
"Hehe…"
"Humph, I guess I have to be the one to do the heavy lifting."
"Okay, what's that supposed to mean?"
Misty stuck her tongue out at him.
This girl!
"Well, alright then, let's go." Red spun his backpack before slinging it over his shoulder. Misty fastened her orange pouch and blue handbag, before stretching, ready for the road ahead.
And then…they were off.
-0-
Green didn't know what to do. Scratch that. She knew her options, and she didn't like them. Sighing, she grabbed her Pokeballs and shifted her weight into a sitting position as Green eyes grew half-lidded.
She needed to get a move on, nothing was going to wait for her, she heard Blue and Brock go, she heard Ash and Sabrina go, and now she heard Red go. Everyone had somewhere to go, a foreseeable goal.
She didn't know where her brother is, the masked man was, she had no leads. This was the worst!
The only 'way' to figure out where the masked man was, was to go into the underground. Mingling with criminals, gangs, eck.
But…
This was her best option. Her only option if she wanted to get her goal.
As she took a breath, her shoulders raised and fell with the air. It was time to go, with no leads, she had to move.
Getting off the bed and standing up, she walked towards her door and exited. She could only wish the others to be fine on their journey.
Doing something was better than doing nothing. And nothing irritated her more than doing nothing.
-0-
Pallet Town
Oak chugged his black coffee with hesitation. He sat on his couch watching the TV, despondent. He should've made a better expla- excuse. There was no other way to say it, it was an excuse. His reasoning was his feelings, not based on facts or logic.
The TV was droning on about an agreement that Kanto and Sinnoh made, making up a new trade deal between the two. It was surprising, to say the least. Kanto has been pretty hostile to outsiders nowadays, with only Johto being the only trader with the Region. That was only because Johto was connected to Kanto.
That wasn't to say that information between regions was caged, everyone was able to connect to everyone. Oak himself is widely considered the best of the best in his field of study, and he majored in a lot of fields. The professor's union was one such 'league' that spanned across all lands.
It seems times were changing, and they were changing rapidly. Because of that, people needed to adapt, change, and evolve. Just like Pokémon.
But he couldn't change to accept Ash's atmosphere.
What he discovered, documented, and transferred to professors around the world was 'atmosphere'. A trainer's ability to give the form a sense of feelings onto the world.
Anger, sadness, power, and many other feelings could be imposed in the area that the trainer is in. It affected their partners, the opponent, and everyone else around them.
It was like making a scene in a peaceful area.
It was like a librarian shushing everyone into a state of silence.
It was like exposing a lie from someone you trusted.
Everyone can do it, but trainers use it.
Oak wanted a cigarette, this was trouble. This 'atmosphere' can affect everyone else's days, months, even years. This 'atmosphere' can leave a deep sinking pit in your heart. This 'atmosphere' can change how you react to others and the environment.
But it was temporary, it always was.
The moment he discovered 'atmosphere'; he could feel it everywhere. The difference of knowing its existence was clear, it was from the subconscious to conscious. He, subconsciously, felt it before he knew what it was. From the kids to the adults, the most striking was his grandson Blue, his friends Red, Green, and Delia's kid, Ash.
Now, conscious, he can fully feel the weight of its force.
They all had an 'atmosphere' they put out. Red's was power and excitement., Blue's as arrogant and determined, Green's was cold and vicious.
Yet… Ash's was a mystery. It was… Flippant. It could change on a dime, faster than a Shedninja. It could be angry, sad, regretful, happy, vicious, determined, arrogant, naïve, at different points of the day.
Not only that, but these contradictory feelings could also mix.
And where the other and everyone else's 'atmosphere' was temporary—his lingers. Hell, he could still feel it right now.
It felt like Ash gave his everything and wore it on his sleeve. It was like he wasn't just showing his trainer ability, but all of himself. It was powerful.
That made Oak question, were those feelings contradictory? He always knew people were complex creatures, maybe even more so than Pokémon. He knew people could experience multiple emotions at the same time, yet the 'atmosphere' only picks up two at its best, and one most of the time.
What was this power? He needed more answers, he needed to experiment.
But then again, that was just another excuse for him to ignore his original problem.
He wasn't comfortable around Ash and his 'atmosphere'.
It was so strong, that the other adults could feel it, and they weren't comfortable with it.
And that hurt him, and now it hurt the young boy.
He should kowtow to Delia for this.
…
…
…
…
…
Maybe he should ask Delia about this. It didn't matter if he was going to get burned, he needed answers. Most importantly, he needed to apologize to Ash.
He was a mess, but he was a driven mess.
-0-
Delia was happy.
Wait, no. Not exactly. More…Content than anything else. Today was quite slow, but that was to be expected, the other kids' graduation was today. They would be going from primary to intermediate school. That would take place outside of Pallet.
Their parents would be attending their kid's big day. And then they would celebrate, they would come here, they would have fun, joke around, laugh, and leave.
They joke, they laugh, about funny pranks, and then… some not-so-nice things they would laugh at. Especially when he wasn't around anymore, on his journey around Kanto.
It made her blood boil. And yet, she smiled at them jeering at her son.
She would smack them, but then their parents would complain to her. It made sense; a parent slapping children doesn't seem good for any reason.
Then she would smack the parents instead. She heard it. The way they derided her son, a 10-year-old boy. If she couldn't yell at their kids for being mean, they couldn't glare at hers' for simply existing.
Chime
Delia's face returned to a smiling disposition. "Hello, how may I serve you?" Before quickly giggling to herself. That sounded... What? She was only 29 years old.
From the door came a girl with long, straight, brown hair and an easy-going smile. A green headband, hair that fell to the left of her face, and a green dress. Daisy Oak.
She smiled and waved at Delia before casually walking up to her. "The usual, thank you."
"No problem!"
Daisy sat down near the counter of the café, with a couple of flowers in a small pot in the middle of it. Crossing one leg over the other, she looked out the window, contemplating.
Miss Ketchum returned with one cup and one hot steaming pot of Tea. "Here's your cup, aaaand here's your tea! Mixed honey and almond, with a fruity punch."
Daisy smiled at the gesture. Delia was always playful she acted like she was her kid, and that made Ash a kind of brother to her.
Kind of.
Not after the explained 'atmosphere' her grandpa told her. She frowned at that. Because of this knowledge, she wouldn't be able to look at the world the same again.
Snap snap!
Breaking out of her thoughts, Daisy looked towards Delia, which had a concerned look on her face. She had her hand in front of her head snapping her fingers. Delia didn't know this, but she produced a soft feeling in the atmosphere. One that made Daisy sweat and rubs her wrist inhabit.
It spoke of kindness.
And yet… There was an underlying viciousness to it.
It could've been possible Ash had gotten his Atmosphere from her and his father, but they were the only case for this to happened. Many experiments and tests across the world, showed that there was no correlation between the ability of Parents to the child.
Perhaps it was something else…
"Are you well? I haven't been seeing you often anymore Daisy."
"Oh! Yeah, I've been helping Granddad ever since Blue left, I've been—busy, to say the least."
"Is it to help out the kids on their adventure, I sure hope so."
"It actually is! Our knowledge should help give them the advantage over their opponents."
"That's great!" Delia sat in an opposite chair and placed her chin on the back of her hand. She needed to ask another question. "By the way…"
"Yeah?"
"Have, either you or Oak, been called by Ash yet?" Daisy made sure to steel herself, she heard Oak and Ash argue, and she didn't want to upset Delia about what had happened. Thankfully, she didn't twitch at the question nor did her face change. Daisy made sure to practice this.
"So he has called!"
Unfortunately, Delia was perceptive. Really perceptive.
"No, he didn't."
"Yes, he did. Your ears wiggled."
"No, Delia. There was no call. And why are you looking at my ears?"
"Because, when you hide something, your ears wiggle! I've seen it plenty of times, Blue's and Oak's ears wiggle as well."
"Wha- All of our ears wiggle!?"
Delia had a look of triumph on her face as she slammed both her hands onto the table and stood up abruptly. It turned to a smug look when she caught Daisy blushing, realizing she messed up. Daisy wanted to shrivel up and vanish.
"Ooooooh…"
"Well, are you going to tell me?"
Daisy huffed, if this was going to happen, it better to rip off the band-aid now than later. She just—didn't want to be the one to do it.
Delia stopped looking as smug as she was when Daisy gave her a look. It made something form in her stomach and she slowly sat back down.
"You… Won't like what I have to say. But Please… Don't take it the wrong way."
-0-
"Ash. C'mon, what are you looking at?" Sabrina turned to look back at Ash, who was staring at the sky, on the small cliff they were on.
Ash looked back at her, having a small smile on his face as he pointed slightly upward, "Staravia wanted to spread his wings for a bit." He turned back to watch his friend dance in the sky, moving freely in the blue clear sky.
Sabrina mulled something over in her head, before casually walking over to his side.
They both watched as the bird Pokémon screeched and twirled in the sky, nothing stopping him, with no burdens or responsibilities.
Staying silent for a few minutes, Sabrina had something she wanted to say, "Thank you…" Ash turned, surprised.
"What?"
"Thank you. For the gift, I mean."
-0-
10 minutes earlier
Sabrina woke up happy.
That's a lie, she never woke up happy. Screw the morning and all that it brings with it. Her awful bedhead and her joint pains. Man, she wasn't old, she was in her early 20's!
Groaning, she stumbled and fell out of bed.
"Er…"
Slowly getting ready for the day, she noted that Ash had already left the room, no worries, he wouldn't be too far away from her. He needed her.
Stretching, she opened the door and made her way to the front of the center, which was now jam-packed with people. Trainers that needed their Pokémon healed and others simply buying their needs for their journeys.
Scanning the area, she looked for a certain person in a certain type of clothes.
An inconspicuous dark blue suit jacket and a fedora. Black glasses and hair. A winning smile and a concealed presence.
"Miss Sabrina?" There they were. She didn't turn her head since he was under her command.
She briskly walked towards the closest lounge, where the man followed suit. The trainers in front either got out of their way or were pushed out, Sabrina didn't care. The man apologized in her stead.
After making way and hiding in a small lounge with no one in it, Sabrina used her psychic abilities to make the noise dimmer and give them privacy. Making a dome for themselves.
There they separately situated themselves. The man stretched his arms before sitting nonchalantly on his side of the couch. Sabrina cracked her fingers before sitting with one leg over the other, waiting patiently on her side.
"It's been too long, miss Sabrina."
"It has, how're you doing Cutler." The man took off his fedora to show his aging black hair, sharp features, a pointed stare, and a genuine smile.
"I've been dandy really, but my old bones might make this man retire." He laughed at his old joke.
If Sabrina were amused, she didn't show it., "Yes, but if you did, I wouldn't have someone I trusted in this 'family'."
Cutler didn't lose his smile, though it shrunk a bit, "I understand, we work because of our ideals, not because we like the people." He grimaced just thinking about their boss. More of a monster than anything human, truly.
To bring the region to its knees and bring the future they wanted to fruition. Even if it meant trampling on innocents. Sabrina didn't mind it; she's been through this song and dance many times before.
Cutler didn't like it though. He was always a butler at heart for her family, he joined to protect her. Yet—it seemed that he failed.
The snapping of fingers brought him out of his thoughts. He looked at Sabrina, who now had a look of impatience on her face, though there was a laden of concern under it.
No matter how much Sabrina grew colder, her heart was always warm. He was thankful, always.
"The boss needs a job to get done, and who better to do it than the lady in red." Sabrina's shoulders tensed at the moniker. She got another one, that fast?
"And what's the mission?"
"The new city, Jewel city, or how most people call it, 'The city of Sin'." So this was a message-type mission. 'Kanto is our turf'.
"What group?"
"It's an old mafia group. The 'Treasure' Famiglia. They've been getting more powerful as of late. Though the leader seems to not care about it. She's a wild card." Hopefully not that dangerous.
"When you think 'hopefully' that jinks it for me, you know that, right?" Cutler almost choked on his spit.
"You…were reading my mind?" hurt entered his voice.
"Of course, I need to be sure. I've been doing this the entire conversation." Sabrina said that with finality. Though she had warmth, this coldness exuded from her unsettled Cutler.
It hadn't been like this before. Before, life was better. It—just was. He wanted those times again.
The area grew awkward with Cutler fidgeting. Sabrina didn't mind, she just needed to know all of her routes in this plan.
Bang-Crash!
The two looked towards the entrance to the lounge and saw a young boy with a red and white cap knocking on the psychic dome. His short blue and white sleeve jacket open to see the black tank top underneath.
He smiled and waved at Sabrina as they looked at him.
So this was the Rainbow hero. He was a lot younger than a hero should be. Cutler grew queasy at the thought of Giovanna manipulating him. He was just a boy.
But… If Sabrina says so. He will play his part.
Opening the barrier Ash walked in, he looked excited and bouncing on the tips of his feet. "Sabrina, I was looking all over for you. When you weren't in the room, I kinda… Panicked a bit." He bowed his head out of embarrassment.
Sabrina simply smiled that playful mocking smile she always had. "Aww~ That's sweet." Ash blushed at that. Cutler smiled turned into a grin.
Ash, now noticing the man, slightly bowed towards him, "Hello, I'm Ash."
"Cutler, nice to meet you." His voice grew quieter, he leaned forward to reach Ash, "And—between you and me, Sabrina always does this to people she always likes."
Ash smiled at that.
"You know I can hear you, right? Maybe that's why I don't tease you, Cutler."
Cutler laughed as he turned back to Sabrina, "Ouch. Tell me miss, how do you really feel?"
"I feel you should be on your way now."
"Damn, if it's your wish, My lady." He got up and bowed towards Sabrina and gave a grin to Ash. He put on his fedora and made his way to leave but stopped just in front of the open doorway of the lounge.
Ash made his way towards Sabrina, something in his hands. She grew curious.
"And what do you have here?"
"Oh, this? Well… I wanted to thank you for putting up with me." He shoved it in front of himself and bowed. It was like a love confession, but less thrilling since the love was friendly in nature.
She took the object and inspected it. It wasn't anything fancy, just a simple hairclip which was in an image of an edelweiss.
Ash continued and stood back to his full height. "The store I bought it at said, that the flower represented many things, but—I want it to represent one thing."
Sabrina stared back up at him, waiting. Cutler walked away, smiling.
Ash gave his smile, "I want it to represent precious memories."
-0-
Present
Sabrina now had it in her hair. It was to the left side of her face and held half of her bangs, showing the left side of her forehead. The right bangs were still in front of her forehead, though. Her eyes were still sharp yet held an elegance that wasn't there before. Or rather, hidden for quite a while.
"No problem! It's the least I could do. I can buy you more if you like."
"No, this will do. I rarely have any need for gifts." She touched the edelweiss barrette gently.
"But…Gifts are fine once in a while, I presume."
They both watched Staravia fly high in the sky, higher than he's ever been. Higher than what they've seen of him.
Without any worries, without any paranoia, and without fear.
Soon, he slowly fell back down to Earth, back to his friend. Ash returned him into his Pokeball and looked towards Sabrina.
"Let's go!"
"Alright. I'll lead."
"Of course, I don't where we're going."
"Jewel City."
"I heard of it, wasn't it called th-"
"No."
"Bu-"
"Nope."
"Okay. Okay."
.
.
.
"Well, whatever it is. We'll plow anything that's in our way!" Ash pumped his fist.
"Naturally, anything less, and I'll begin eating my hair."
"W-wait. You don't have to eat your hair, Sabrina…"
Next Update: Fire Emblem: White Leopards.