It was with a sigh that Falkner put aside the stack of documents he had been looking through ever since Team Rocket had fallen. It's been a tiring week for everyone as they did their utmost best to restore the Johto region to what it had been before that short-lived but devastating war. Some cities are hit harder than others, and he gave his gratitude to whatever lucky stars there are that Violet City had it easier. Unlike some of the other cities, no Rocket Executives were assigned to lead the assault on Violet City, although he had recently heard that originally Giovanni would have been the one leading the siege but someone had stalled Giovanni long enough for Professor Oak to deal with Giovanni personally.
Falkner cannot help but frown a little at the thought. That "someone" was said to be Team Rocket's Executive Plague, the person who Professor Oak had claimed to be the mysterious informant that had been helping them from behind the scenes, and also the person who was once Kain's very own personal operative that had survived the inhumane Project Illusion. If their conjectures about his identity and involvement with Team Rocket affiliated incidents were true, then that would mean that this person was also the one that had nearly killed his little sister twice.
Perhaps this was why Falkner felt so conflicted ever since he learned about this particular piece of information. On one hand, he is grateful to this man for playing a vital role in defending Violet City because Falkner is not confident enough to say that he could defend his hometown from a trainer as powerful as Giovanni, but as an older brother, he also cannot forgive the same man that had nearly taken his beloved and only sister away from him not once, but twice. He could still remember their encounter back at the Johto National Park, how he was more than a match for him, how he played him for a fool and stole his Pidgeotite and subsequently made his getaway in that frustratingly mocking manner.
Truthfully, Falkner isn't totally comfortable with the idea of letting a man as dangerous as Plague walk free. Yes, Falkner can empathise with his circumstances and plight, being forced to play the role of a double agent and he can understand the need of putting up a convincing act to maintain his cover. He can respect the sacrifice the man must have made to be able to elude Team Rocket's detection all these years and managed to eventually plan their downfall.
Objectively speaking, Plague wasn't at fault. He was simply following orders in Kain's perverse attempt to protect Indigo's peace. Legally speaking, he was being coerced and was acting under duress due to the brainwashing he was subjected to from Kain's hypno ever since he was a child. Anyone could have been Plague; Kain had a preference of targeting children from certain lineages as they had soon found out. Plague could have been him, Plague could have been Skye or Ciel, their lineage would have fit Kain's criterias perfectly. Those terrorist acts that the man had conducted under the identity of Executive Plague could have been argued in both ways either in favour or against his innocence, depending on the capability of whatever lawyer who had the luck of taking up this undoubtedly troublesome lawsuit.
However, unlike many others, Falkner was one of the few to have faced Plague in battle and come out alive to tell the tale. He was one of the few who had truly seen and experienced first hand just how terrifying and dangerous the man can be to whoever he pointed his blade towards. That man was raised and had lived as a living human weapon and Falkner can testify to its lethality. That man is someone who could easily give any Gym Leader a run for their money and contest for their position if fate had allowed him to live the life of a normal trainer.
Knowing this, can he truly ask himself and say that he would feel safe if such an individual were to walk away from everything as a free man? That man is a person who had lived and thrived in the darkness. All he ever knew was the darkness and how to be the perfect criminal. What if he ever decides to pick himself from where he left off and continue the work of a criminal? He had proven himself to be a master manipulator, manipulating the conflict between Indigo and Team Rocket from behind the scenes without anybody the wiser. That man represents a level of threat that nobody can properly assess.
This is why he voiced his apprehension against Lance's and Professor Oak's push for acquitting Plague's crimes. Falkner is not alone in this matter, many Gym Leaders also had the same concerns he did. The people on the other end of the spectrum are mostly people who had prior involvement with SKIP and Falkner cannot help but question if they are simply doing this on the selfish notion to ease their own guilt.
Of course, things decided to complicate themselves even further when whatever few members that remained of the Indigo Government thought it would be a good idea to get involved too. Everyone with a working brain could see through their intentions of wanting to use Plague to save their own skin, protecting whatever little is left of their reputation and credibility by turning the attention of the masses away from what Kain and his cabinet had done. And of course things don't simply end there, because Plague just had to be Elite Four Grimsley's missing son that he had lost more than two decades ago in Pallet Town, right on Indigo's soil.
Things are no longer that simple the moment the nature of this affair had silently transformed from a domestic affair into an international one. One small misstep and Unova could very well use this as leverage against them on the international stage. And if the entire world gets to know about it? How would Unova and the rest of the world view Indigo? How would that affect Indigo's relationship with them? Indigo has suffered a huge blow thanks to Team Rocket, it is in no state to be protecting itself from external threats when it is already experiencing internal turmoil on an unprecedented scale.
"What a mess."
Falkner sighed as he got out of his seat and exited his office within his Gym. He climbed up the stairs that leads to the roof where he knows his starter likes to perch at. His pidgeot sensed his arrival, greeting him with a happy squawk the moment it spotted him.
"Home, Majel."
Majel took off the moment Falkner climbed onto his back. Falkner allowed a small smile to grace his face as his thoughts wandered to his younger siblings. Skye had gotten herself a short break and had returned home safely. She is safe and so is Ciel, and that is all that truly matters to him.
The skies were already dark when Falkner left his Gym, but he still managed to make it back in time for dinner. His heart only truly stopped worrying for his little sister when he finally saw her in person back home. He knows that she is alright, but he has to see for himself to be sure. This is the first time they had met ever since the entire series of events went down starting from National Day.
Falkner decided that home cooked meals are still the best, rare as they are to come by with how hectic their lives had been ever since Skye joined the Rangers. He can easily tell that Skye has something to say to them seeing how she was fidgeting. It's subtle and he doubts anybody else could tell the signs, but he is her older brother and had practically raised his siblings ever since their parents had left them to fend for themselves. He knows every single little tic that even both his siblings never knew they had.
Falkner decided to probe after they were done with their dinner and had finished washing the dishes.
"You have something to tell us."
"Was I that obvious?" Skye sighed as she dried and put away the last plate back on the rack.
"I'm not going to like it."
"Yeah, you are actually right about that one." Skye's gaze averted his and Falkner can actually sense his sister's nervousness. Her body language is practically screaming it out loud, something Falkner thinks that Skye doesn't even realise herself. His eyes narrowed as he made a mental list of things that he could imagine causing Skye to act this way. They were already past the Lugia issue, that wasn't really her fault to begin with, she was just ignorant of what it meant to ride a Legendary into battle and what it could possibly entail for her. This also doesn't sound like the start of one of their usual arguments because after whatever they both experienced in their individual battles against Team Rocket he doubts anything could be more dangerous than that.
After crossing out several improbable outcomes, Falkner finally reached the bottom of his mental list, the one outcome that he had been dreading to face ever since his younger sister entered puberty.
"You… No way. Please tell me it's not what I think it is."
He could see how his sister flinched slightly after he said that. Oh God, it's true.
"H-How did you know about it? Oh wait, you are a Gym Leader. Should have guessed that you would have known about it even before I told you. Urgh."
"Wait a minute, what's going on?" Ciel spoke up, clearly not understanding the situation.
"Later, Ciel. This is important." Falkner answered before facing his sister. Shit, how should he approach this issue? In his eyes Skye is still too young for this but he is also afraid how his rebellious sister would react should he push it too far. He had always imagined Skye to go about this issue behind everyone's backs and only informed them about it after it was too late, that would fit with her rebellious streak. It already is a miracle that Skye actually decided to be upfront and inform them about this on her own accord, and it shows that she values their opinions and is trying to get their understanding and acceptance.
Should he be stern and firmly put his foot down? Should he take the risk and let her do as she wants, even if it means allowing her to go through the risk of a heartbreak? Argh, what would their father do in his place? What would be the correct response to take?
Falkner forced himself to take a deep breath before exhaling. Alright, one thing at a time. First, he needs to get the name of the bastard that he will soon turn into Majel's bird feed.
"Who was it?" Falkner spoke, feeling oddly proud of himself that he managed to put on a calm facade despite the severity of the issue.
"Huh? What do you mean by who?"
"By that, I mean name. What is his name?"
"Uh… if you really want a name… Looker?" Skye's voice got steadily softer in a decrescendo towards the end while Falkner nearly spit out his dinner when he finally matched a name to the unknown bastard.
"Looker?! For goodness' sake, Skye! That bastard is probably two times your age! Why him of all people?!"
"What has his age got to do with this?" Skye argued, looking genuinely confused, and Falkner can feel his headache and exasperation rapidly rising with every passing second along with his blood pressure. For all of her smarts, his sister can be infuriatingly naive at times when it comes to certain things.
"Whatever it is, I'm not going to agree. No way in hell I am going to trust you with someone who could sink their filthy paws on someone half their age." Falkner could not help but massage his temple with a knuckle, trying to ease the incoming migraine he knows will come because this is starting to feel like the start of another one of their arguments.
Scratch that, this is going to be worse than their usual arguments.
"So what? If everyone and their brother and sister are allowed to go on their pokemon journeys at freaking eleven years old, I don't see how age is an issue here."
"Look, Skye," Falkner tried not to blow his top and be as patient as possible with his little sister while trying to bring his point across. "I know that legally, you are considered an adult the moment you own a pokedex, and there has always been a grey area of what is legally and socially acceptable for pokedex holders who are not physically yet of adult age, but this, is different. You and him, almost two decades apart? You seriously expect me to believe that he harbours no filthy thoughts when he could bring himself to sink his talons into a minor?"
"Minor? Excuse me, I'm sixteen. I am fully capable of making my own decisions-"
"No you are not! Not when you are asking for my acceptance to allow you to go with a man twice your age!" Falkner snapped back as he felt the last of his sanity vanishing. How should he murder that mousy bastard? Falkner never liked him that much anyway, could never trust the kind of man with that kind of face that does the kind of work he is known to have secretly done. Looker was rumoured to be an extremely capable trainer, but Falkner was appointed as a Gym Leader for an equally good reason. Making someone silently vanish off the face of the earth is not a difficult thing to accomplish.
"What does his age have to do with this?! I see Vel with him all the time-"
"There are more?!" Ciel squeaked out, now certainly horrified at the picture that Skye is painting and Falkner can feel his blood pumping at a rate never before experienced, the righteous blood flowing within him as a policeman starting to boil. Oh ho, trying to build a harem now? So his little sister wasn't enough? What does that scum view his sister as? His plaything?
"Of course there are more! There's also Nova-"
"SIS! THERE ARE MORE?!"
"-and also Shannon-"
"ANOTHER ONE?!"
"-and I heard that if all goes well, maybe-"
"SIS! ARE YOU EVEN HEARING YOURSELF?! INCLUDING YOU THAT MAKES IT… one, two… four? FOUR?! I had heard about threesomes but… five...? FIVE?! Big bro and I knew that you were always a wild one but… but… this… Big bro! Say something!"
"I already am." Falkner said through gritted teeth. "See, Skye? Even Ciel-"
"Wait a damn sec," Skye raised a hand and put a forceful pause in their conversation. "This is getting ridiculous. Fivesome? Excuse me, but what the fuck? What do you both take me as? Do the both of you seriously think I am some kind of whore? Because I am feeling so damn offended right now. I would sooner snip off the dick of whoever tries to- Wait, were we even discussing the same thing in the first place?"
An awkward silence descended upon them as the three siblings glanced at each other in turn.
"Just to be sure that we were on the same wavelength… Skye, what was it that you were trying to tell us?"
"I was trying to tell you morons that Looker offered me to join the interpol. International Police, ever heard of it, Mr Gym Leader?" Skye's biting tone had Falkner cover his face with a palm. Whether it was from embarrassment or relief, he really isn't sure.
"Oh, so you weren't… Oh. Oh. We thought… I thought…"
"I really want to strangle you right now." Falkner watched as Skye's hands wrapped themselves around Ciel's neck and Ciel very wisely acted like he was being strangled to appease their angry sister. "You really thought I would ever participate in… a fivesome? If that is even a thing? Do you really have so little faith in your sister's eye for men? Huh?"
"But your words were so misleading!"
"Your dirty minds were the only things misleading you," Skye scowled at Ciel before directing that same annoyed scowl back at Falkner. "So, does that clear things up? Or do I have to make myself clearer?"
"I… I get the point you are driving across. I apologise, just give me a sec to get over my shock." Falkner took another deep breath to give himself a mental reset before exhaling once more. Right, interpol. The newly formed International Police that works for the PWL, under the leadership of Agent Looker.
Wait, his sister has been approached by Looker to join the interpol?
Oh great, he can feel the headache coming back once more. No wonder Skye was so apprehensive, she had already predicted that he would not be the least bit happy about it and she's right. He's not happy about this at all.
"Skye."
"Yes, that's my name, I know. Do you want me to spell it out for you? S-K-Y-E-B-AL-E, Skye Bale, at your service."
"None of that sarcasm right now," Falkner felt so exhausted just by trying to imagine what is going to happen next. "I'm not sure if Looker had told you everything, but do you really understand just what the interpol is supposed to do? It's-"
"Dangerous? Unsafe? Since when has anything been safe for me in your eyes?" Skye choked out and Falkner can feel the guilt within him rising when he sees just how much Skye is trying to conceal and suppress her urge to scream at him. "It was like this when I wanted to join STAR and you said no. It was also like this when I told you I joined the Rangers. It was like this again when I was promoted and recommended to join the 1st Regiment. When has being safe ever worked out for me, huh? Nowhere was safe when the Rockets decided that warring against Indigo was a good idea, so should I be thankful that I had the strength to protect myself when that kind of shit happens? Strength that I accumulated from my years of being a Ranger? Something which you always wanted to keep me away from?"
"Skye-"
"You knew what was the very first thing that I thought about when Looker made me the offer? It wasn't a - YES, I made it!- kind of feeling. It was an - OH SHIT somebody gave me another good offer that I really want but you definitely wouldn't agree- kind of dread. My very first thought that came to me was that you definitely would not be happy about it. The very first thing I thought about was your feelings about this matter, not mine. Not how happy I should feel that I was good enough to catch the eye of someone capable enough to be the director of the interpol, that my abilities were recognised. Not because I am a Bale, not because I am your little sister, but because I am me. Do you get that, Falkner?"
Falkner wanted to say something, anything, because seeing his little sister acting like this is hard for him to watch as well, especially when he knows a large part of the problem lies with him.
"I knew you would not be happy about this piece of news, so I decided to do my own research, you know? Just to be absolutely sure that I know what I would be getting myself into because you always say I did otherwise, always saying that I am too rash and impulsive. I get it, okay? I know I've always been the impulsive one, so I told Looker that I would need some time to think about it even if I really, really want to accept his offer right there and then. As luck would have it, I happened to know people who are in that group, I know their true purpose and what kind of things we would be expected to handle, and they reassured me that I am qualified enough to join them. Even Volkner vouched for me. You know, the previous Gym Leader of Sunyshore? The one that went up and fought Zapmolcuno and lived? That means something to me, you know? Because to me, it always seems that no matter what I do it would never be good enough for you. I would never be good enough to do this, to do that, to be a STAR, or a Ranger, anything. All the medals and awards I have won for myself all these years, the ones sitting in my glass cabinet in my room, I could throw them at your face and you would still feel like I am never good enough to take care of myself. Why and who do you think I won these medals for? For myself? It was me trying to gain your acknowledgement and recognition, big brother!"
For a moment, all that could be heard was Skye's heavy breathing.
"And… I… I thought that… I heard from Nova and Shannon, about how they were approached by Looker and why they joined the interpol. Apparently, they joined because the interpol could offer them resources that they could never get their hands on otherwise, resources that they would need to pursue their own interests. Nova wanted to study the unknown histories of every region through the interpol, Shannon wanted to use the interpol's resources to further her studies and research, and I thought… I just suddenly have this random thought that…"
Skye suddenly broke out into a helpless sob, something that Falkner had never seen her do in front of him ever since their mother's death.
"I… I just thought that… m-maybe… Maybe we could find a clue a-about w-where D-Dad could have g-gone. I-I know he's dead already, he has to be, but… but… sometimes I still have nightmares of how Mum was still calling his name at her deathbed. The League was useless in helping us to find out about the truth so I thought that if it's the interpol… with the PWL's backing and having access to what they know, maybe we could f-find out just how he d-died and w-we can finally give Mum an a-answer."
Falkner closed his eyes. That is another matter that he had been dreading to break to his siblings ever since he heard the full story from Lance. He had planned to come clean with them much later when everything had settled down, this wasn't how he was expecting to break this piece of news to them.
Deciding that they should move elsewhere to continue this conversation, Falkner gently guided his sister back to the living room and sat her on the sofa before taking a seat on her left. He knows that their father's disappearance had always been affecting her, he just didn't expect that it would be a deciding factor why she would want to join the interpol.
"Regarding Dad, I have something to share as well."
He could tell that his words caught their undivided attention. He mentally braced himself before divulging what he learnt from Lance.
"For the record, I only just found out about this too, shortly before National Day when we were busy preparing to fight against the Rockets. I had wanted to tell you both about this later when things are more relaxed and we are less busy but with how things turned out today… It's better to say it out right now."
"Dad's secretly alive?" Ciel whispered, and Falkner felt that it sucked to have to douse his hopes immediately.
"No, he's confirmed to be KIA. I don't know the specifics either, but he was murdered."
Falkner immediately caught his sister when she suddenly fell forward, fainting from the shock. The emotional rollercoaster and stress she had been on earlier probably wasn't helping things either.
"Skye? Skye! C'mon, please don't scare us like that. Skye? Skye!"
Falkner can only hold his sister in his arms while shaking her gently, trying to wake her up. He was this close to getting Majel to fly them to the hospital and only stopped when he felt Skye's clenching tightly onto his shirt.
"W-Who? How?"
"Are you alright? You know what, let's just talk about this tomorrow, you are scaring us. C'mon, I will carry you back to your room-"
"How?" Skye choked out, her grip on him tightening in agitation. "Who did it? Why?"
"I… I don't know how," Falkner admitted as his hug on his sister tightened a little. "Lance just called me into his office one day, showing me a report he had dug up from Kain's dirty stash of secret archives. That report wasn't very detailed, all we found out was that Dad was sent on what was supposed to be a League sanctioned mission to locate the fabled Sinjoh Ruins. Lance told me that he wasn't the one who authorised such a mission. Nobody knows why Dad thought it was a sanctioned and authorised mission from the League until we found out it was Kain who had meddled with the League's affairs. Nobody knows if Dad knew that he was tricked into accepting it or he knew about it but decided to go do it anyway. All the report stated was that Dad was… eliminated, in his mission to search for the Sinjoh Ruins. I have no idea what Dad had done to offend Kain to warrant such a measure. I'm sorry. I'm sorry, I couldn't find out anything more than this. I'm sorry, for not being able to do more. I'm sorry."
"K-Kain? As in our President? That Kain Briggs?" Ciel spoke up in an outraged whisper.
"Yeah, that one. The one the entire world is hunting." Falkner affirmed with a small nod.
"He still hasn't been found, right? Oh I will find him and drag his sorry ass- Let me go, Falkner! LET ME GO! I WILL FUCKING FIND AND KILL THAT PIECE OF SHIT- I SAID LET ME GO!"
"Skye, calm down!" Falkner had to actually put in an effort to hold his sister back who was resisting him, kicking and screaming the entire time, and Falkner's glad that he was already expecting such a reaction from her beforehand. He didn't know how long it took to calm her down when she was in such hysterics and not in a state to listen to reason, but she did calm down in the end, and the three of them ended up hugging each other and crying over the confirmation of their father's death, an act that they hadn't done ever since their mother left them ten years ago.
It hurts to have old wounds reopened, but maybe this is for the best.
Maybe starting tonight, these old wounds can finally start to heal.
Skye had obviously exhausted herself, emotionally, mentally, and physically. She had cried herself to sleep with her head on his chest when they were letting their emotions out in the living room. Falkner couldn't remember the last time his sister had depended on him like this, leaning on him for comfort and security. Skye had always been the rebellious and wilder one, always trying to be independent, always reluctant to show anyone her weakness, even if it's to her own family. Seeing her like this just hurts his heart even more than it is, intensifying his burning hatred for Kain, the bastard who had torn their family apart.
Falkner took extra care not to wake his sister up as he carried her to her bedroom, gently pulling the blankets over her and tucking her to bed. His heart clenched a little when he spotted the rows of slightly dusty medals and awards sitting in Skye's cabinet. She had never made much effort in dusting them because those awards were never won with her own gain in mind, it was always for him, to get him to look at her. He knows he's always been too overprotective of his siblings, a flaw that he had been trying to correct but always failing to do, but he had received bad news one too many times and he is too afraid of receiving another one. When the doctor told them that their mother didn't have long left to live and their father wasn't around when they needed him most, when their mother passed away despite trying her best to live, when their father suddenly disappeared and he's suddenly the only one who could protect and raise his younger siblings.
He just couldn't bring himself to imagine a day where he would receive the news that something similar had happened to any of his younger siblings in the same manner that he had lost their parents. That would be too painful for him to bear.
Skye's sigilyph had somehow appeared in her room without them knowing when. It probably had sensed its owner's emotional distress a long time ago and had silently come over to check if everything was alright. Not wanting to wake Skye up, he quietly told the sigilyph to watch over Skye and to inform him if something's amiss.
"Sis only had a single day off. I don't think sis is in a state to go back to work tomorrow." Ciel told him the moment Falkner walked back to the living room. Indigo is severely understaffed on all fronts. The war wasn't kind to everyone. Skye was only granted a one day break from her duties in light of the events that had transpired. It was done so that the people who had participated in the war can take turns to go back to their families for a single day and see their loved ones, so that the people waiting for them at home who are worrying for them can finally be at ease after confirming their safety with their own two eyes.
"She's not going back to work tomorrow. I will talk to her commander about it, he will understand," Falkner replied, fully intending to use his authority as a Gym Leader to bully his way through the 1st Ranger Regiment if need be. If his memories serve him right, General Wendell Hartatter, the Commander of the Indigo Rangers, still owes him a favour or two for the various messes he helped to clean up after his Rangers. It's about time he cashes in on those favours.
Falkner took a seat beside his younger brother and for a moment, both of them spoke nothing to each other.
"Hey Ciel."
"Yeah?"
"About Skye joining the interpol, what are your thoughts about it?"
Ciel may be the youngest, but he's undoubtedly the smartest. He's always the one trying to mediate the conflicts between him and Skye.
"My honest thoughts?"
"Honest thoughts."
"Uh, I would be lying if I say that I'm not worried about the dangers she would be facing if she joins," Ciel hesitated a little before speaking his thoughts. "But… this Looker person, he's the director, right? The director of such an elite group personally extending such an offer to sis really says a lot about her capabilities, you know? And sis already knows them on a personal level, and if even people like them acknowledged her skills… I'm not a trainer like you and sis are so I could never tell how skilled sis is, but if even people like them want her on their team, that means that she has what it takes to stand as their equal. She's from the 1st Ranger Regiment. I never knew what that means until I started telling people about it. Do you know how people always react when I tell them that my brother is a Gym Leader and my sister is a Ranger from the 1st Ranger Regiment? When they talk about you they are like, oh we know Falkner, the Gym Leader and police officer of Violet City we always see on TV, but when I told them about sis they would always be like, wow, that's so cool. Your sister must have some mad skills to be part of the 1st Ranger Regiment because it's very hard to make the cut, you need to be more than being good at pokemon battles. Then I realised that maybe sis is actually really pretty strong too, just that I couldn't tell because I keep comparing her to you and of course everyone else looks weak when compared to you, because you are a Gym Leader. I mean, I saw how she handled herself when we were under attack at the National Park. She's a pro. She took control of the situation in the blink of an eye."
Falkner remained silent as he mulled over Ciel's words. Ciel had never addressed his question in his reply but at the same time, had addressed every single question he had needed answers for.
Maybe somewhere down the line, he had started to expect Skye to hold herself to impossible standards without him realising it, standards that very few could achieve and those few who could are people like him who could stand at the pinnacle of their profession. Of course it would be unfair to her when comparing her to other trainers, his sister is already the cream of the crop. She had long since learnt how to protect herself and take responsibility for her decisions. It's him that is unwilling to let her go due to his own insecurities.
"I see."
"So, uh, are you going to… approve? If sis really wants to join?"
"I… I still wish she would not accept that offer," Falkner admitted. "But I don't think I have any right to hold her back. It's her own life, she has the right to decide how to live it. She's right, I've always been too overbearing."
"Don't say that. Sis really respects you, you know, and I'm sure she understands your reasons for doing so. The last time we went out together and she heard someone bad mouthing you on the streets I had to hold her back from punching their teeths in. It's just that… both of you are always a little too headstrong."
Falkner stretched out his hand to ruffle Ciel's hair, a small smile on his face.
"Thanks."
"I'm not sure if this is the right time, but for the record, you looked so very scary when we both misunderstood that sis has a uh, boyfriend."
Falkner let out a helpless sigh at the comment.
"Skye has always been a little… how would I put it? Naive. Sometimes she thinks too much with her heart and too little with her head, not to mention that she's a beauty just like Mum. Ever since she started to grow prettier and prettier I keep getting more and more afraid that guys would approach her just for her looks while that naive sister of ours invests all of her emotions into the relationship, and that her feelings would be taken advantage of and… well, you know what I'm getting at. Not gonna lie, I'm really dreading the day she brings a boy home. I'm actually surprised that she hasn't started to date anyone behind our backs yet."
"There's this one guy you might have to look out for. Not sure if sis realises it herself, but she sometimes brings him up in our conversations."
"What?"
"Uh, I think his name was… Jacky. The guy in her squadron with a freaking monstrous nidoking, or that was what sis told me in her own words. There's this one time I jokingly asked sis if she really has to choose one guy to date and who is the first person she thinks of, she said it was him. And I also happened to see her texting him quite a few times when she thought I wasn't looking. I'm telling you, she uses stickers when talking to him. Freaking, stickers. You know she never ever uses stickers when texting us, the most we ever got was the occasional emoticons and that was always the thumbs up emoticon because she's too lazy to type an 'ok' to reply to our messages."
"Jacky? Why does that name ring a bell?" Falkner muttered as he tried to recall just who this Jacky person is, but failed to do so. He decided to revisit this matter some other day. Right now, there are more pressing matters to deal with.
"Please don't try to plot his murder. It's all just speculation on my part."
"Don't worry about it, I'm not going to bother myself with him for quite a while," Falkner reassured his younger brother with a pat on the back before standing up from his seat. "It's getting late, and I am going to make some calls before calling it a day. Don't stay up too late, okay?"
"Aye, sir. Who dares to break the law with Officer Bale around?" Ciel gave a mock salute and Falkner replied to his brother's cheeky action with a smile.
One call to General Hartatter to cash in a favour, one call to Pyral to inform him that Skye won't be reporting to work tomorrow and if he has any complaints, then he could take it all up to General Hartatter.
And after that, one last call to make.
Behind closed doors of the room where he usually does his work at home, Falkner sat in his chair and leaned back after dialling a certain number he had obtained after asking Lance for it. For once, he's glad that Lance didn't bother to ask questions regarding his sudden request.
Falkner wasn't kept waiting for very long. The line was picked up not long after he had dialled the number on his phone.
"This is Looker."
Falkner didn't speak a single word in acknowledgement or reply. He simply waited and kept up the silence as both parties waited for the other to first break the quiet tension.
"I had been expecting your call, Falkner."
"This is our first time speaking to each other, yet why am I not surprised that you recognised my number," Falkner replied after a few seconds of silence. "So, I heard that you made an offer to Skye."
"Not an offer made lightly, that I assure you. I truly believe that she is capable of pulling her own weight. You have to admit, Falkner, that the list of your sister's accolades that she had clinched at her age is nothing short of amazing, and I cannot help but wonder just who had the kind of political intervention needed for her to have escaped my attention until now, until I saw her full name. She has amazing potential."
Falkner can agree with Looker's evaluation of his sister, knowing from experience just how hard it is to keep her away from prying eyes due to how brilliant she shone, knowing full well the kind of people that would not hesitate to use her for their own ends should they have the chance to do so.
"I know. I know this better than you do."
The uncomfortable silence was left to brew for another short while before Looker spoke once more.
"You are not happy at the offer I gave her."
"I wouldn't have called you otherwise. Why would I be happy at the thought of my one and only sister going to face dangers on an incomprehensible scale, doing something so clinically insane like thwarting a prophecy said to foretell the end of the world?"
"If you are here to extort a promise, then I'm afraid I cannot give it. I cannot guarantee her safety."
"I know. Nobody can, given the line of work the interpol is involved in. I'm just here to give you a little warning, just in case my sister really does decide to accept your offer that I'm praying with all my heart that she doesn't."
Falkner's grip on the armrest of his chair tightened slightly before he forced himself to relax.
"I've heard rumours about you, Looker, and I'm afraid most of them are those that do not paint you in a favourable light in my eyes. I know not everything can be distinctly categorised into black and white, and that no matter how ugly it may be, certain things need to be done to protect the peace the PWL was sworn to uphold and that someone has to do it, but."
A sense of determination was ignited within Falkner at that very moment, one that he hadn't felt ever since he swore to himself to take care of his younger siblings after their parents had left them to fend for themselves.
"If you ever dare to treat my sister like a disposable piece on that damn chessboard of yours, I can promise you that I will do everything in my power to make you lose everything and everyone you hold dear as well. Let's just say that Pryce's lips had gotten a little loose when we had one drink too many the last time we drank a few weeks back. He had some rather… interesting speculations about your history. The person who made you into who you are, what was her name again? No, more than that, is she even aware that-"
"Falkner Bale, you are about to cross a very dangerous line."
Falkner smirked. It was a blind guess, but it seems that there is some truth to Pryce's crazy ramblings after all.
"Don't cross my line and I have no reason to cross yours. You are a smart man, I'm sure you understand."
There was another tense period of silence before Looker made his reply.
"I can only promise you that I will not risk her safety without a very good reason to."
"I guess that's a reasonable bargain," Falkner accepted the figurative olive branch Looker had extended. "Have a nice evening, Looker, don't you forget our conversation tonight. I will be watching."
Falkner ended the call with a press of his thumb. There's no way he can ever trust Looker when not even Lance is made aware of his true identity. It's absolutely ludicrous to even try to start believing what Pryce had let slip in private about his speculations of Looker when they last had a drink, but Looker's reactions had given him some insight into who Looker might really be. Maybe the Yanagi Clan's information network might be even more credible than anyone gave it credit for. Maybe Pryce really wasn't going senile when he blurted those crazy words in his drunken stupor.
Looker has to be originally from Indigo. If he really is who Falkner had been trying to insinuate who he is, that would also mean that…
For the umpteenth time that night, Falkner sighed.
What a damn mess this has turned out to be.
Character and pokemon list:
Name: Skye Bale, 16, Female
Affiliation: Indigo Ranger Force, Johto Region, 1st Ranger Regiment
Rank: Staff Sergeant
Code Name: Zephyr
Pokemon Team:
1. Pidgeot (Crown), male
2. Gliscor (Glide), male
3. Skarmory (Dia), female
4. Crobat (Beats), male
5. Jumpluff (Cotton), female
6. Dragonite (Tino), female
7. Noivern (Echo), male
8. Emolga, (Emi), female
9. Hawlucha (Hawk), male
10. Sigilyph (Cosmo), female
11. Aerodactyl (Aria), female
12. Masquerain (Heli), male
