Prologue (continued) - Foreigner
There is something truly special about growing up. For most adolescents and teenagers, graduation is usually what marks such a grand occasion, in which they are no longer considered dependents. The amount of freedom I felt was indescribable. I was now a young adult and I could do young adult things. One such thing would be to move out of your parents' house as soon as possible. I could not stand living in that den any longer. I wanted to leave, and move as far away as I could. And now I finally can.
My parents have been at eachother's throats for as long as I could remember. They are the pinnacle example of a match made in the distortion world. They're alike in so many ways, so naturally one would assume they'd pair well together, but they were alike in the wrong ways. They're both stubborn, independent, and prideful, and if two such minds were to cross, the results can be catastrophic. It's a miracle they are even married, let alone have them go out of their way to conceive me. I never had the courage to ask how or why they met, since I always assumed it was a forbidden question. Whenever they fought, they would strangely never bring up the topic of divorce, so if I had to guess, family obligations are probably what's forcing them together, and I was the product of the pressure to have a child already. Whatever the case might be, it's something I don't dare try to find out.
Since I've been able to walk, I would try to stay out of the house as much as I could. There's this uneasy tension when my parents are in eachother's vicinity, and it terrified me. I realized that they would never raise their voices when I was in the same room with them, but once I was gone, all bets were off. Even when I noticed this, I still ran away, because no matter how much I try to steel myself, I always had a thought that there was a risk of being caught in the crossfire. All day, everyday, the household was filled with them screaming at eachother. Even when it was time for bed, I could hear them through the walls in my room. Some nights I would be so afraid that Dad would hurt Mom, or Mom would hurt Dad, that I couldn't get a wink of sleep. Some nights I would pray that they would one day make up. Some nights I would just cry.
As much as they scorned eachother, they miraculously held no resentment towards me. And how could they? I was not the source of their problems, nor had I wanted to be apart of their feud in the first place. In fact, they always liked to pamper me. They kept me content and never once did they direct their frustrations at me, and I loved them for that. But I can't help but wonder if they did it because they felt sorry, or pitied me, for having been born into such an unfortunate family where the parents are always butting heads.
Despite the warm smiles they always give me, I had this fear that my parents would one day snap and hit me. So I was usually hesitant to talk to them, and I would obey their every command so as to not anger them. This fear transferred to how I talked to everybody else, and I was known in elementary for being that wimpy kid who let himself get pushed around all the time. I eventually grew out of all that a few years later, though not completely, as I was still shy and heavily obedient, but at least I wouldn't flinch and guard my face as soon as someone raised a finger at me to shake my paw or something. My parents would try to shelter me whenever they could, so I didn't have a lot of opportunities to stand up for myself. I never indulged in the things that other boys my age would do for fun, like football, tag, or any kind of game that would end up getting a bit too physical.
If there was one good thing that became of me living with my parents, it would have to be my appreciation for nature. I would seek refuge from the growing hostilities at home in the forest around our den. I would take casual strolls through the woods and stop to look at every new thing I saw. My curiosity grew to the point to where I started taking things to my room at home to examine them more closely. When I brought back some berries from my adventures, my mother suggested we plant them in our backyard. I vividly remember of how much my eyes bulged out their sockets when my first domestic plant began to sprout out of the ground. I was instantly taken with how I could take little tiny seeds and have them grow into magnificent berry bushes that yielded tons of yummy fruit. My parents soon found out about my fascination and helped me turn it into practically an obsession. My mother would sometimes help out around the garden and bought some potted plants to decorate my room, and my father would occasionally accompany me on treks to the woods and help me forage for new things to plant.
I spent nearly all my free time in the backyard. My garden was everything to me. I cared for it and it cared for me. It provided my family with delicious food and washed away the stresses of my life, not to mention the fitness requirements of tending to a garden by my lonesome worked wonders on keeping me in shape. Though it didn't really help with the belief among my male peers that I was a sissy. Father merely passed it off as them being jealous at how much attention I've gotten from girls when rumors of my hobby spread to them. To a certain degree, it was actually true, as it did help me become more approachable with the opposite sex, but I found out later that it was because they too thought I was gay, so nothing especially romantic came out of it.
Overall, my life back in my hometown was okay. I finished school with respectable marks and the welfare of my family and I were more than prosperous. I even knew what career I want to pursue in life. I dreamed of opening up a store where I could sell my berries and share their delightful flavors with the world. Perhaps I could start a restaurant too, if I ever felt ambitious enough. I didn't have a rosy high school experience that so many dream of having, mostly due to my rock bottom self-esteem, and I didn't really have anybody here whom I could truly call a friend - just acquaintances at best - but nothing is perfect.
There are always some things that could change, however. It was one thing that has been a constant throughout my whole adolescence: my parents and their incessant arguing. From birth to a newly grad, they've shown nothing but love and support towards me, so why can't they do the same for themselves? Why do they hate eachother so much? Why has the fighting never stopped? Even after all these years, I still have trouble sleeping at night because of them, I still am afraid that they might hurt eachother, and I still feel uneasy whenever they're remotely near one another.
I can't keep living under that constant fear that my family could fall apart. If not for the sweet aromas of my garden, I might've gone insane. I couldn't take it anymore. My parents keep telling me they'd stop for my sake, but we both knew that was impossible. I had to get out of there. It was time that I finally find a place far away from there and get some peace and quiet. Good thing I had already planned for that. I even picked where I wanted to continue my education - Cradily University, at a settlement known as Cradle Town.
Is the town named after the college? Or is the college named after the town?
As soon as I got home from the graduation ceremony, I started packing my bags. I even had the thought of running away without telling my parents, but I knew I'd never be able to go through with something like that. I loved them too much. They raised me and kept me safe, despite their nonstop antics. They deserve to know what I'm up to. I'm positive they'll say yes anyway. It was far too late for them to refuse.
"Mom? Dad?" I said warily, peeking out my bedroom door.
A Umbreon with a yellow apron stopped chopping vegetables in the kitchen and turned to me, and a Jolteon with eyeglasses looked up from the newspaper from his paws. The latter was the first to speak. "What's the matter?" Father looked at the big rucksack on my back. "Planning a trip to the woods again?"
"No, I uhh… can I talk to you guys for a sec?" I took off my huge backpack and sat down in an armchair. I waited patiently as my parents nodded and sat on the sofa across from me, on opposite sides, of course. "I… I think it's time for me to leave. I wanna move out."
"What? Now?" My father said, looking as astonished as Mother.
"Y-Yeah, this is the university I'm looking at." I pulled a tourist pamphlet out of my bag and tossed it onto the coffee table in front of us. "Here, look."
Mother quickly scanned through it. "Cradily? Don't you know how far that place is? It's at least a four day walk from here. Are you sure you want to go there?"
"Yes I'm sure. They have a really good business program, and I already got in."
"But your summer has just begun. Don't you want to stay for a little bit longer? Your father and I are planning a graduation party for you. The whole family is coming - your aunts, your uncles, and your cousins are all going to be here, even your grandparents are coming."
Oh god not them.
"No! I mean… no… you don't have to do that, please I beg you, just… just cancel it." I stammered. "I want to leave as soon as I can so I can get acquainted with the town. Please Mom, I'm really excited to go there."
My parents were silent for a while, then they looked at eachother other and nodded, which kind of surprised me. Mother clasped her paws together and looked at me with pleading eyes. "Please, can you just promise us that you'll stay until tomorrow morning? We'd like to at least prepare some things for you before you leave."
I didn't see any harm in it, and they did pique my curiosity, so I agreed and went back to my room. I only came out when Mother called me out for lunch and dinner, and I savored every bite. It was going to be a long time until I taste her cooking again, if I ever do come back. I used my spare time to lay around in my room. I had a lot of time to think about what Cradle Town was like, and what it had to offer. It shouldn't be too different from here, though I have never been anywhere else, so I wouldn't know. The farthest I've ever gone was to the town center to run a few errands for my dad.
I fell asleep with the feeling that my parents knew the real reason of why I wanted to leave, though I wasn't lying when I said I was excited to go.
I was well rested the next morning, Mom and Dad's overnight bickering was a lot shorter than usual. Did they actually come to an agreement on something? Whatever it was, I was probably going to find out as soon as I walked out of my bedroom. I picked up my rucksack that I had packed yesterday and took one last look around my room. It was bare, like someone had robbed it clean, since I had crammed all my possessions in my bag beforehand. I saved my parents the trouble and tidied up before I left. Maybe I was too emotional, as my eyes got a little watery when I looked at the empty shelves and drawers in my room, I did spend my whole life here afterall. I walked out and closed the door behind me before a single tear could escape.
My parents were waiting for me at the door, standing on their hind legs so they could hide something behind their backs. When I bid my farewells to them, they revealed their presents. Mother gave me a brown leather booklet and a fancy black ballpoint pen. She I could use it to write my thoughts down. The cover had my name stitched on it in dark green letters. When I opened it up to the first page, there was a family photo of us three, one where I used to be an Eevee. Below the picture were some of my mom's favorite recipes using ingredients that could all be cultivated.
Father's gift was less thoughtful, which didn't come as a shock to me. Dad's are never really that good at being sentimental anyway. It was still surprising nonetheless, he had given me a pouch of Poké, and was a lot heftier than it looked.
"What? Dad, all this? Are you sure?"
"Hah! No worries kiddo. It's not like we're giving you our entire life's savings." The Jolteon chuckled heartily. "Believe it or not, that's all the money we saved on groceries, thanks to you. So, your mother and I decided to turn it into your college funds."
I had originally planned on using the funds I had cobbled together myself for the last few years to rent an apartment and get a part-time job to establish a footing that way, but with this, I might be able to get a place for myself from the start. No matter how much I knew my parents cared for my wellbeing, they still always manage to surprise me. This time, I couldn't hold back my tears.
"Aww, you guys." I hugged them both simultaneously,
"Don't cry honey, today's your big day." Mother patted my head.
"But… I really am gonna miss you two."
"Don't be, there's always a place for you here, just keep us in your heart and you'll be fine."
"I know. I will." I let go of them and took a deep breath. "I guess this is it then. Goodbye Mom. Goodbye Dad."
And with that, I was off on my own.
I didn't know what exactly I was expecting when I got to Cradle Town, but after days of walking through forests, prairies, and valleys, I was pretty underwhelmed to see that it was in many ways similar to my hometown. I guess it's not entirely a bad thing though, since I could familiarize myself with the layout quickly.
I stayed and slept at an inn in the town plaza as soon as I arrived sometime in the afternoon. Tomorrow I would prioritize securing a living space for myself and sending a letter to my parents so they know I made it. My back was set to break if I had my pack on any longer and my paws were sore, and the only thing that could remedy it was some well-deserved sleep. My slumber lasted the whole afternoon and the following night. The next morning, I went to a real estate building and bought a modest home in a clearing not too far away from the center of town. Still with plenty of money to spare, I went to the Pelipper Post Office and sent my best wishes to my parents back home. The two procedures combined took almost the entire day, and I wasn't all that tired considering I slept for over twelve hours yesterday, so from dusk till dawn, I unpacked everything and settled into my new home. Despite how anxious I was to be in a totally new area after laying stagnant for my whole eighteen years, I was feeling quite optimistic. One wouldn't even begin to know how nice it felt to sleep in a comfy bed without having to listen to any shouting through the walls.
When the sun rose and I was satisfied with the interior design of my house, rearranging furniture and all that, I went outside to survey the property. My next task was easily my favorite part of moving in: making a brand new garden! I mentally planned out the backyard perimeter, which, being the capable farmer that I am, I was confident that I could tackle maintaining a garden that was nearly twice the size of my old one. I even decided to show off my skills - to no one but myself - by fashioning my own fence, mostly because I didn't feel like bothering the realtors anymore to build an actual enclosure for me. I wandered the outskirts of town to find berries to plant, then went back after I found a good assortment. As I waited for them to grow, I spent the remainder of my summer lounging around home or, if I was feeling brave enough, seeing the sights at the plaza. Thankfully I did venture out, as I discovered my favorite restaurant when I felt like going out to eat out one time. It's known as the Sunkern Café, and its varied assortment of menu items makes it a popular choice for many. From the standard breakfast meals to a wide range of berry-related dishes, it's no surprise that I took a liking to it. I also did have time to explore the Cradily College campus once I had enrolled, and I was glad to see that, at least so far, it was quite a respectable-looking institution. Complete with the typical lecture halls, student centers, libraries, etc., all packed together in a generic park-like setting. Nothing was out of the ordinary in this quiet little hamlet.
Well, maybe not.
A day before my classes were about to begin, my garden berries were finally ready to be harvested. I figured it would be a nice time to introduce myself to my neighbors as well. I saw them go in and out of their houses a few times, but I never had a chance to talk to them, and so I decided to transform my produce into lovely gift baskets to assist in my introductions. I went door-to-door greeting the locals and apologizing for not doing so when I first arrived, handing them a basket full of treats as I did so. Even though I wished I didn't stutter as much as I did during my greetings, I'd say my trip around the block was an overall success. No one in my neighborhood looked particularly scary, they were all nice in fact. One of them actually happened to own a general store in the town square, and liked my berries so much that they offered to buy a portion of each of my harvests.
I pictured in my head over and over of several different scenarios of how I would introduce myself or what their personalities would be like. But none could even come close to how I met my next-door neighbor, which I went to last so I could practice making the best first impression on them. When I went to knock on the door with one paw, gift basket on the other, I found that it was unlocked. The door wasn't even closed all the way, and my knocking cracked it open ever so slightly. My puzzlement got the best of me and I decided to open it all the way.
"Hello? Anybody home?" I said, peering into the dark living room, due to all the windows covered by curtains. The stench of alcohol filled my nostrils, and I saw an unhealthily thin Flareon who looked flat-out wasted on the couch. It turned out he wasn't passed out, and when he picked his head up, he squinted and held a paw up to his scrunched-up face due to the amount of sunlight I was letting in. When his eyes fixated on my fruit basket, he looked like he was about to turn feral.
"Food?" He croaked, almost dumbfoundedly, then he charged. "FOOOOOOOOD!"
My reflexes were adequate enough for me to move out of the doorway in the nick of time. I held up my basket automatically as I did so, like I was some matador in a Bouffalant-fighting match, and I had lifted up my "red cape" to fake out the enraged creature. The Flareon flew past me and crash landed into the grass with a loud thud. He quickly got back to his feet and assumed a stance, ready to pounce once more. Drool was dripping out of his mouth and his pupils were dilated like he'd gone mad. My shock at the whole ordeal quickly turn to panic when I saw the murder in his eyes. Thinking he was after me instead of my berries, my first instinct was to turn tail and run, which was exactly what I did. I dropped everything and fled while I was still in one piece.
I sprinted as fast as I could to my house and slammed the door shut. Still breathing heavily, I braced myself against the door in case he was going to battering ram right through it. If I had a hammer and nails, I probably would've boarded it up too, just to be safe. When my panting slowed down a bit, I cautiously looked out my window to see the Flareon wolfing down the berries I spilled with no regard of his surroundings. I slumped down against the wall and sat there in a fetal position until my heart stopped beating a mile a minute. I didn't feel like going back out anymore that day, lest I be torn to shreds by that demon out there. I had a feeling that I was going to be sleeping with one eye open tonight too.
Feels just like home again...
The next day, I almost didn't believe that the whole event was real. I thought maybe yesterday's incident must've just happened in my head, and I was so bored that I started seeing things. Not to worry though, my classes finally begin today, and I wasn't going to let myself be late because of some silly hallucination. I threw on a canvas messenger bag, filled with essential first day materials, and started to make my way towards the college grounds.
Just as I opened the door, I was met with a hulking figure in front of me. A paralyzing chill went down my spine when I realized that it was the fire-type who I thought was a figment of my imagination. I apparently opened the door just as he was about to knock, which would explain why he was holding up a paw, clenched into a fist. I nearly screamed too, but then I saw that he no longer looked like he wanted to rip me in half, most notably though, he now looked like a properly nourished individual.
"Hey uhh… I want to apologize about before." The fire-type eeveelution said shyly, scratching the back of his head. "Sorry you had to see me like that, it's a long story - might tell you later if this all goes well." Out from the fluff of his tail, he handed me the basket I had dropped earlier, minus the berries. "Here, you dropped this."
I blinked, having silently assumed that he had swallowed that too during his mindless feasting. "Oh… n-no it's alright, keep it. The basket and those berries were meant for you anyway. I wanted to introduce myself and when I saw you about to-"
"Yeah, I know what happened. Look, I'm real sorry about that, so let's start over." He put away my basket and extended an arm. "Name's Flynn. It's nice to finally meet you after hearing that you moved in next to me. Thanks for the gift too by the way."
I felt his ironclad grip the moment I shook his paw. "Uhh... yeah. I'm Milo, nice to meet you too?"
"Sure is." He looked at my pack slung over my shoulder. "Hey, would you look at that! You wouldn't happen to be a student at Cradily, would you?"
I nodded slowly. "…Yeah?"
"Well damn! So am I!" His grin grew wider. "Going there already? Wait right there, I'll come with you!"
Before I could even respond, he had already bolted back into his identical stump-styled house.
Throughout my first year of Cradily, I found out that Flynn was also a fellow business major, and had been living on his own long before his enrollment. The reason was not to appear more mature and sophisticated, but to go start indulging in more… worldly pleasures, away from the eyes of his parents. Judging by his strong build, social ability, and the fact that he looked much older than his actual age, despite only being a few months my senior, he likely didn't have many problems obtaining such pleasures. His one flaw that I know of so far is that he tends to get a little in over his head, which I have already seen one time too many. He works part-time at a fast food joint as a way to make ends meet. The time where I just so happened to appear at his doorstep, also happened to be when he decided to blow his entire paycheck on partying. He had not eaten anything for an eternity, and my sudden appearance was like an angel descending from the heavens to give him a second chance. I had unknowingly saved his life, even though I thought for sure that he was going to end mine, and his moral obligations demand that he pay me back, even though I have insisted countless times that his company is more than enough of a reward, which he has proceeded to ignore and called it cheesy.
When I told him I admired his ability to talk to other Pokémon without feeling self-conscious at all, he has since made it his mission to improve upon what I could not. Unfortunately, he goes about it in the only way he knows how: getting girls. He has tried more than once to set me up with some of his gal friends. They've failed miserably everytime, and his goal to make me feel more like a man has only progressed in the opposite direction. I keep trying to back out of his plans, but he somehow manages to keep convincing me to go along with his stupid methods anyway, even though I know it's going to be hopeless. He says things that make me feel like I have a chance. Things like "All that time you spent around plants and flowers gives you this natural cologne that puts everyone at ease, hell, I'm seduced already", or "Look at you! Look at that chiseled bod you got from screwing around in that garden! Like, damn bro, can I touch those muscles?". I still have no idea why I always end up waltzing into it everytime, maybe because I'm a sucker for anything logical, even though I hate being flattered. Thankfully, he eventually stopped making me put up with his impossible dates once he realized that I was getting nowhere.
Putting up with him isn't all that bad though, I'd take sleepless nights with my parents over anything. Amidst all the chaos of Flynn's shenanigans and studying to be an upcoming entrepreneur, I surprised myself by encountering a new colorful character to brighten my days a little bit more. A fellow freshman noticed that we shared all of our classes together and decided to introduce herself, asking if we wanted to be friends since we were going to be seeing eachother a lot anyway. I was happy to oblige, since I was eager to make friends, and I already felt a special connection to her, and not just because we were both Leafeon's. I tried my best to keep my relations with her a secret from Flynn, since I knew he'd try to hook me up with any female that I even look at. It didn't take long for him to find out anyway, and whenever she wasn't around, I had to endure his teasing for just about the entire year.
The Leafeon's name was Mabel. If I had to describe her, it'd be that she was like one of those untouchable females that roamed the halls of my high school, who would inspire more than just awe in their fellow students whenever they were in sight. She liked to talk to me in between lectures, almost daily in fact, and I'll never understand what she finds so entertaining about our exchanges that would make her want to come back so often for more. As we began hanging out more and more, she even started to visit me at home, which certainly didn't help with the snarky comments that Flynn was going to make. One time she offered to host a chat at her place, but she lived in one of the many dorms the college provided. They were small and her roommate made me too uncomfortable to talk to her there, so my visits ended rather quickly.
Inevitably, her overwhelming friendship got the best of me, and a small part of me started hoping that we could be a little more than what we already were. I'm not entirely sure what got me so riled up. Did I fall for her charms? Maybe her endearing personality was what swooned me? Or was it a compliment she gave me that I couldn't stop thinking about? Whatever the case was, I never had the courage to tell her how I felt, as I didn't want to risk shattering the bond that I valued so much. Even though I hid it as best I could, I had a feeling she knew, but spared me the torture of knowing that she did. Besides, she was pretty and popular among our peers, so why would she want to associate with a nobody like me, much less like me the same way? I had to suppress my innermost thoughts whenever she came to hangout. What helped was that she would bring up her relationship status with a new guy she talks about occasionally. It was uncomfortable to have to listen to, but it helped me keep my feelings at bay. I thought that she wouldn't talk about other guys if she was into me, and whoever she finds to be a potential suitor would obviously be much better than me. So I thought it best to keep my mouth shut, thus our relationship continued to progress at its own pace, and eventually she started to show her true colors.
From time to time, she would mention problems with her latest boyfriend. Now, starting on our second semester, she had started talking about them nearly all the time. She'd bang on my door with tears in her eyes, begging that I at least listen to her sorrows. Having to spend hours at a time consoling her in between breakups actually allowed me to get over my own turmoil. We had grown so close that she felt comfortable enough to let me see her at her worst, and I was touched. She trusted me - me of all Pokémon! Only a monster would take advantage of her like this. From that point on, I vowed to not betray her trust, nor would I abuse my influence over her. I was going to be a true friend to her! I knew more than anybody else in the world that she was in desperate need of sympathy.
Each time she came with a gloomy face, I would listen to her woes and comfort her as best I could. She even asked me for advice on what to do on a date once. She knew me well, so I thought she was joking, but she was genuinely curious if I had any tips. It was the one time I would ever be thankful for Flynn and his futile attempts to get me to woo someone, as I used my awful experiences to make suggestions on what not to do, though I still felt pretty unqualified for the job. There were times where she came a bit too often, to the point where it sometimes became a bit of an annoyance. She'd drop by my house several times within the span of a few hours just to ask me something, regardless of the time of day it was. It made me suspicious that there were ulterior motives present. Were there tactical reasons behind our relationship? Did Mabel observe me from afar and, after concluding that I was too timid to pose as a sexual threat, decide to become friends with me for whatever reason?
I'm probably being way too superstitious, since I know that Mabel and I are buddies through and through, but perhaps I wasn't too far off. I'm aware that she is really, really, really intent on getting married one day and starting a family of her own, though I feel she tries a bit too hard. The reason she frequents the college's gymnasium is to make her body look more curvy and presentable, though Flynn tells me that it's not too unusual for girls to do that. She even changes her personality slightly to appeal to the current guy she's dating. She also confessed that her real name is actually Maple, but started calling herself Mabel because she thought it sounded cuter. She made me promise that I tell no one, and that I should continue calling her Mabel. I realize that her methods may seem a bit underhanded, but I know that she is a truly sweet girl on the inside and has innocent goals in mind. And I will support her in her endeavors, just as she would to me.
Soon, summer will begin, meaning it will be a whole year since I've moved here. I've met two unique characters who became so deeply ingrained into my life, and despite their quirks, I'm glad to call them my friends. The next month or two will be filled with days of relaxation, and I'm never been so excited. Surely my second year as a Cradle Town citizen will be filled the same amount of delight, if not more. What more can a 'mon ask for?
