Hello everyone! It's been a while, hasn't it? Yeah, as I've mentioned before, it sometimes takes longer than expected to finish one of these new chapters. Doesn't help that I've been having some problems with my laptop lately. Hopefully, I'll be getting a new laptop soon.
Anyways... Happy new year, everyone! I really hope 2018 will be a good year. I'll do what I can to make the most of it, and I hope you guys will be able to do that too in your own ways. For now, I'd like to share with you all the newest chapter of this story, since that's what you guys are here to see. I'm really thankful for all your feedback, and giving me tips on what to keep in mind for future chapters and what aspects of my writing I can work on improving. I hope you guys will enjoy this chapter, and feel free to leave a comment!
Chapter 54: I'd say we make a fine family, don't you guys agree?
Chiaki was sleeping comfortably in his bed. After yesterday's mission at Mt. Frostbite, it was nice to come home and get some rest. As the light of the sun shining through the windows slowly began to wake him up, Chiaki soon realized that Blitz's bed was empty. Chiaki sat up and rubbed his eyes, wondering where Blitz had gone off to. As he looked around the room, he suddenly noticed an opened envelope lying on the floor. Chiaki stepped out of bed, and walked over to the envelope. He picked it up to examine it, noticing a pattern of paw prints on it.
"Oh, I guess it's from Lita!" Chiaki said, examining the envelope a bit more. "It's empty, though… I guess Blitz must've taken the letter itself with him…"
Chiaki put the empty envelope back on the floor, and decided to head outside to look for Blitz. Knowing his roommate, he was probably at the dojo. Depending on what was written in Lita's letter, Blitz might've felt the need to talk to Hercules about it.
"I hope nothing bad has happened…" Chiaki muttered to himself, as he headed towards the town plaza.
In the town plaza, there were several other rescue teams going about their usual business, preparing for today's missions. Chiaki noticed that Sting and his teammates were over by the item shop, and it looked like Melody was checking out which TMs were for sale today. If he wasn't currently looking for Blitz, Chiaki might've stopped to say hi to some of the other rescue teams.
"Oh, Chiaki!" a familiar voice called out.
Chiaki looked over to see Sera approaching him.
"Oh, hey there, Sera!" Chiaki responded, waving to his teammate.
"Hmm? Blitz isn't with you?" Sera asked, looking around.
"Ah, yeah… he'd already left by the time I woke up," Chiaki responded, nodding his head slightly. "I think he might've gone to the dojo, so I'm heading there now."
"Oh, I see!" Sera replied. "I'll come with you, then!"
"Okay, let's go!" Chiaki responded.
The two of them headed towards the dojo together, hoping to meet up with Blitz there.
At the dojo, various Pokémon were busy training. However, in one corner of the dojo, a certain Shinx seemed to be deep in thought. Hercules was reading through the letter that Blitz had brought with him. Hercules looked down at Blitz with a concerned expression as he finished reading what was written in the letter.
"So… Your father came back…" Hercules said, handing the letter back to Blitz.
"Yeah…" Blitz responded, nodding his head slightly.
"… How do you feel?" Hercules asked.
"… I'm… not sure…" Blitz responded, staring off into space.
"I see…" Hercules replied, nodding his head. "I guess it's understandable that you wouldn't know how to feel about this…"
Blitz just nodded his head in response. Hercules wasn't entirely sure how to feel about this either. As he tried to collect his thoughts and think of something to say to Blitz, he noticed a certain Eevee and Mienfoo approaching them.
"Oh, it's you two," Hercules said, looking over at Sera and Chiaki.
"Uh, hi," Sera said, noticing the state Blitz was in. "Did something happen?"
"Ah, well…" Hercules responded, glancing over at Blitz for a sign that it was okay to inform his teammates of what was going on. "Blitz, you okay with…?"
"Uh-huh…" Blitz replied, nodding his head.
Blitz pushed the letter towards his teammates, and Hercules motioned for them to read it.
"O-Oh… oh my…" Sera said, blinking a few times as she finished reading through the letter.
"So, that's…" Chiaki said, looking over at Blitz.
"You guys don't have to say anything…" Blitz responded, shaking his head slightly. "I… I need some time to really think about this…"
"… I see," Sera replied, nodding her head. "We're… here for you."
"… Thanks," Blitz responded.
Sera and Chiaki exchanged uncertain looks, before moving a little closer to Blitz.
"… I wonder how Lita feels about all this…" Blitz said, sighing. "She didn't really say anything about it in her letter, but… it must be difficult for her…"
"Yeah, you're probably right…" Sera responded, her ears drooping down slightly. "After all, a lot is probably going on because of your father's return…"
"Lita… I'm sorry…" Blitz said, staring down at the floor. "You shouldn't have to deal with this all on your own…"
"… Huh? Blitz, are you… thinking of going home?" Sera asked, her body tensing up a bit.
"N-No, I… I can't… no…" Blitz responded, shaking his head. "I'm not ready for that… yet…"
"Oh, I see," Sera replied, letting out a sigh.
"… Hey, don't worry," Chiaki said, trying to give an encouraging smile. "I'm sure Lita will be fine. I mean… she's pretty tough, isn't she?"
"Even so, she's still just a kid," Blitz responded, looking over at his teammates. "As her older brother, I… I should be there for her at a time like this, but… instead, I… I'm…!"
"Blitz, calm down," Hercules said, gently placing a hand on Blitz's back.
"Ah…" Blitz looked up at Hercules expectantly.
"I… can't really tell you what you should do, but…" Hercules said, thinking for a moment about what to say. "Just take all the time you need to think about all of this."
"Y-Yeah, you're right…" Blitz responded, nodding his head slightly. "I… I should write back to her later, once I… once I've sorted out my thoughts…"
"That sounds like a good idea," Hercules replied, smiling at Blitz.
"So… What should we do now…?" Sera asked, her tail twitching slightly. "Do you… need some time to yourself, or… do you want us to stay…?"
"Um… It's fine, you guys can stay…" Blitz responded, rubbing the yellow rings on his forelegs together. "I don't mind…"
"If you say so…" Sera replied, leaning against Blitz.
Chiaki stared at his teammates for a moment, before walking up and patting Blitz on the back.
"Let us know if you need anything," Chiaki said, trying to put on an encouraging smile.
"Mm-hm…" Blitz responded, nodding his head slightly.
The three of them sat there quietly for a while. Once again, Chiaki thought about how he didn't really understand some of the things Sera and Blitz had to deal with that well. He didn't know how his relationship with his own family was before he lost his memories, assuming he even had a family.
Hercules watched over the three of them, happy that Blitz had gotten closer to his friends and proud of how much he had grown. Blitz had certainly gotten stronger, in more ways than one.
After a while, Blitz and his teammates decided to go somewhere else.
"Thanks, Hercules," Blitz said with a weary smile. "I hope it wasn't inconvenient for you, since it's still your work hours and I didn't actually do any training this time…"
"Hey, don't worry about it," Hercules responded, patting Blitz on the head. "For as long as you are here, for as long as you need it, I'll look after you."
"Yeah… I'll come back once I've sorted out my feelings," Blitz replied, nodding slightly.
Blitz and his teammates headed off towards the café, while Hercules returned to his work. He was still a bit concerned for Blitz, but he knew it was fine to leave him to his friends for now.
In the town plaza, Bijou the Sableye was casually snacking on some small gems while waiting to see if any more rescue teams would come to ask her to open any treasure boxes. She could hear muttering among some Pokémon discussing the latest news. Some of them seemed quite concerned about the state of certain areas, which were getting more and more distorted by the day. Bijou wondered if it was because of the six Axis Tower crystals that were being kept here in Fenix Town for safe-keeping that the town so far seemed to be free of any such distortions.
"Those crystals sure are amazing…" Bijou muttered to herself, reaching into her bag, grabbing and shoving another handful of tiny gems into her mouth. "Such incredible power…"
Bijou briefly wondered how one of the Axis Tower crystals would taste… not that she'd actually try it, of course.
"I'll just stick with these…" Bijou said, reaching into the bag to pull out another handful of gems. "Hmm…? I already emptied this thing?"
Bijou sighed and put the bag away, only for another grin to form on her face as she pulled out another bag of gems.
"All right, time to open another one!" Bijou said, chuckling to herself.
As Bijou began eating more gems, Marietta suddenly fluttered over to her stand.
"… Do you want something from me?" Bijou asked, looking over at the Ledian.
"Ah, no," Marietta responded, shaking her head. "I was just wondering if you were all right…"
"Oh? What's this about?" Bijou asked, tilting her head slightly.
"Well, maybe I'm just imagining things, but… you seem to be eating a bit more than normal these days…" Marietta said, glancing down at the bag of gems in Bijou's hands.
"Ah, so that's what's got you so concerned?" Bijou responded, snickering. "Well, I'm sure you've heard that those distortions are starting to become a real big problem in some places…"
"Um, yeah," Marietta replied, nodding her head. "I think I read that the service that flies rescue teams to Wyvern Island had to shut down until further notice because of a large number of distortions in the area around their station…"
"Yes, and that is only one example of the trouble others are facing out there right now," Bijou responded, reaching into the bag and pulling out a small red gem. "It's at times like these that you sort of begin to feel like… is the world going to end soon? Will I have time to accomplish my goals within that time?"
"Uh… I don't think it's quite that bad," Marietta replied. "I mean… Six of the Axis Crystals have been found, so hopefully once they're returned, they'll stop things from getting worse and fix the damage to those areas…"
"I guess you feel relaxed because these events aren't affecting you at this point," Bijou commented, tossing the red gem into her mouth.
"You make it sound like I'm not doing anything," Marietta responded, crossing both sets of arms with a pout. "I'm doing what I can, and that is doing my job to support the rescue teams that are out there looking for the last of the crystals!"
"Hehehe… You sure are fired up," Bijou commented, snickering a little. "Anyways, I'm doing my best too, of course… even if I haven't had a lot of customers today."
"We all have those days," Marietta responded.
"Yes, yes…" Bijou replied, nodding her head. "On days like that, I can afford to take it a little easy, can't I? Plus, when you've got this "not knowing when the world might end" feeling, you might as well enjoy yourself as much you can before anything serious happens, right?"
"Um, again, the world isn't ending," Marietta responded, tilting her head slightly. "I… don't even know if the whole business with Axis Tower and the distortions affect anything outside of the region we all live in…"
"I guess you're right…" Bijou replied, putting away the bag of gems. "… Hey, if the world was ending, is there anything you would want to accomplish before then?"
"Huh? What kind of question is that?" Marietta responded.
"Come on, surely there's something you'd want to do…" Bijou said, smirking.
"Um… Well…" Marietta replied, seeming unsure what to say.
"Oh? Is it a secret?" Bijou inquired, her smile growing bigger. "Ah, it's okay! I won't tell anyone… probably!"
"Ugh… You're being really weird right now, you know?" Marietta responded, looking somewhat concerned. "And not your usual kind of weird… Is it because there hasn't been much work for you to do today? Is this what boredom does to you?"
"Well, I am bored," Bijou replied, fiddling with her lock-picking tool. "You've certainly got that right…"
"Hmm… Well, just hang in there, okay?" Marietta responded. "I've got to get back to work now, but once we're done for the day, we could go hang out at the café, maybe?"
"Oh?" Bijou replied, tilting her head slightly.
"I mean, it seems you have a lot on your mind, so I thought maybe it'd help to go out and just relax properly a bit?" Marietta explained, before looking away. "Ah, unless you don't want to, or you have other plans…"
"Ah, I see…" Bijou responded, still fiddling with the lock-pick. "Very well, I'll accept your invitation."
"Oh, okay!" Marietta replied, smiling at Bijou. "I'll see you then!"
"Yes, it'd be a good opportunity for us to get to know each other better..." Bijou responded, tilting her head slightly. "Hmm… You never actually answered my question earlier… Perhaps I should make a guess?"
"Um, I'm going back to work now…" Marietta said, as she began flying away.
"Ooh, perhaps there's a certain someone you'd like to spend some more time with?" Bijou asked, grinning. "I'm guessing a certain Heracross…?"
"Eh!? You know about- I mean…" Marietta responded, a barely visible blush on her face. "Ah, um… See you later!"
"Hehehe… Did I guess right?" Bijou said, snickering. "My gemstone eyes see it all… hehehe!"
Bijou kept idly playing with her lock-picking device while waiting for any rescue teams in need of having treasure boxes to come by, looking forward to her appointment with Marietta later. Bijou had always had a curious heart, which was one of the reasons she enjoyed her job so much. It always felt so satisfying to open up one of those mysterious treasure boxes, and getting to see exactly what was hidden inside. And right now, she was mostly curious about the current state of the relationship between Marietta and Hercules.
She would certainly try to get some details out of Marietta when they met up again this evening!
Marietta and Bijou weren't the only ones with plans to visit the café to get their minds off of things, as Blitz and his teammates had ended up heading there some time after leaving the dojo. Meeting up with Azure and Frederick, they explained the situation to them as well. The two of them listened quietly, until Blitz had finished explaining everything. The group was quiet for a while, until Azure broke the silence between them.
"You sure have it rough, huh?" Azure said, taking a sip from her berry juice.
"Well, at least it sounds like his father is trying to make up for his past mistakes," Frederick commented. "That's good, right?"
"Uh, I guess…" Blitz replied, nodding his head slightly.
"It certainly is better than nothing," Azure said, her ears twitching slightly. "However, that doesn't mean you should just automatically forgive him."
"I know…" Blitz responded, nodding his head again.
"And if you need to take some time off, that's totally fine," Azure said, grinning. "I mean, I do love a good adventure, but if you're not up for it, I'll simply have to find other ways to pass the time while you get things sorted out!"
"Yeah, I don't mind either," Frederick said, rapidly nodding his head. "Your well-being is important, after all."
"… Thanks, guys," Blitz responded, smiling at his friends. "I'll try to get my feelings sorted out as soon as possible."
"Hey, don't push yourself," Sera said, looking a bit concerned. "I mean, family stuff can be complicated matters… I should know! I have five older siblings!"
"Ah, right," Azure replied, looking over at Sera. "I haven't really heard you talk about any family drama on your end lately… Does that mean things are going better with them?"
"Yeah, I think so," Sera responded, nodding her head. "It seems like we're all doing our best to improve things little by little."
"Good for you!" Azure replied, grinning at Sera.
"I kind of wish I had brothers or sisters sometimes," Frederick commented. "Maybe I should ask my parents if they can make some whenever they have time…"
"Ooh, I bet you'd make an awesome big brother!" Azure said, still grinning.
"R-Really...?" Frederick responded, turning his head in the direction of Azure's voice.
"Well, of course," Azure replied, shrugging slightly. "I wouldn't have said it if I didn't really believe it, you know?"
"Ah, that's true," Frederick responded, nodding his head. "Thanks, Azure."
"What about you, Azure?" Sera asked, tilting her head slightly. "Have you ever wanted siblings?"
"Hmm, I don't know," Azure responded, taking another sip of her berry juice. "My dad is often out of town on business, so that might be difficult…"
"Oh, right," Sera replied.
"But hey, things are fine just the way they are," Azure said, grinning. "Sure, it'd be nice if dad came home to visit more often, but other than that, I think we're doing pretty well!"
Blitz looked at Chiaki, realizing that the young Mienfoo hadn't said much during this conversation. Chiaki was just sitting there, observing his friends with a wistful expression.
"Um… Something wrong, Chiaki?" Blitz asked, trying to get the Mienfoo's attention.
"Huh? Oh, it's nothing…" Chiaki responded, shaking his head.
"Hey, don't be like that," Azure said, looking over at Chiaki. "If anything's bothering you, let us know!"
"Ah, well… I was just… trying to imagine what it is like," Chiaki responded.
"Imagine…?" Sera asked, tilting her head slightly.
"I haven't really been able to be of much help when it comes to these things, since… I don't have any memories," Chiaki explained, staring down at his drink. "I… I don't know anything about my family, assuming I have one, so…"
"Oh, I see," Sera responded, her ears drooping down slightly.
"I'm not lonely, or anything," Chiaki said, looking at his friends. "But sometimes… I wish I knew what it's like to be part of a family…"
The group was quiet for a few moments, before Azure smiled and looked over at Chiaki.
"Well, you've got us, don't you?" Azure said, grinning. "I'd say we make a fine family, don't you guys agree?"
Chiaki looked surprised for a moment. Looking around, he realized the others were surprised too. Azure looked around at her friends, before speaking up again.
"What? Don't tell me I'm the only one who thinks so!" Azure said, pouting.
"Ah, of course not!" Sera responded, her ears perking up in alarm. "I… also do think of our team as something like a family."
"Yeah, me too," Frederick said, nodding his head. "Azure's kind of like a supportive big sister to me."
"Huh? But you're bigger than me," Azure responded. "And, aren't you the oldest one out of us?"
"Oh, right," Frederick replied, tilting his head slightly. "Hmm… I still think it works, though."
"Heh, that's fine with me!" Azure responded, grinning.
"… I'll admit, I've grown to see Sera as another sister of mine," Blitz said, before looking over at Chiaki. "And you are kind of like a little brother."
"R-Really?" Chiaki responded, staring wide-eyed at Blitz.
"Yeah," Blitz replied, smiling at Chiaki. "After all, we've been living together for some time now, and I've basically been helping look after you since then… I guess it brought out my instincts as an older brother, you know?"
"I see…" Chiaki responded, nodding his head.
"Hmm, you really see me as a sister?" Sera replied, one of her ears drooping down a little. "I… don't really see you the same way I see any of my older brothers..."
"Oh, you don't see me like that?" Blitz asked, looking away for a moment. "Um… How do you see me, then?"
"H-Huh?" Sera responded, blushing slightly. "W-Well... You're my best friend! You know that!"
"Uh, yes," Blitz replied with a slightly confused look on his face. "Of course I know that."
"Good," Sera responded, looking away. "Glad we're on the same page."
"R-Right," Blitz replied, tilting his head slightly.
"… So, we're like… a family," Chiaki said, looking at his teammates.
"Yeah, that's right!" Azure exclaimed with a grin. "A family can come in many forms, so surely it can also come in the form of a group of different Pokémon who go on adventures together and fight stuff!"
"… I see," Chiaki responded, smiling at his teammates. "So, this is what it's like…"
Somehow, all five of them seemed to feel more at ease now. It was almost as if the events earlier that day hadn't happened. Of course, even though he seemed relaxed now, Blitz probably still had that letter from Lita on his mind. But since he seemed to be in a better mood now, maybe it'd help him properly collect his thoughts and write a reply to Lita. At least that's what Chiaki hoped.
"Even after I get my memories back, I hope I can continue to go on adventures with everyone!" Chiaki thought to himself with a smile. "I want to make even more friends, so I can grow even stronger!"
The group stayed at the café for a while, until it was time for each of them to head home for the evening. After saying good-bye to the others, Blitz and Chiaki returned to their house. The two of them stayed awake for a while, thinking about the various things that had been on their minds.
"… I guess I'll try to write that letter to Lita tomorrow," Blitz said, yawning.
"You've figured out what to write to her?" Chiaki asked, glancing over at Blitz.
"… Some of it, I think…" Blitz responded, looking over at Chiaki. "I'll have to think about it some more tomorrow."
"All right…" Chiaki replied, nodding slightly. "Then, let's get some sleep now."
"Yeah… Good night, Chiaki," Blitz said, smiling at the Mienfoo.
"Good night," Chiaki responded, smiling back.
It felt like it had been a long day, even though nothing much had really happened. Chiaki wasn't sure how things would turn out for Blitz and Lita, but he hoped that both of them would be okay. The bonds between Pokémon were truly fascinating, especially with how they seemed to have the power to bring out everyone's full strength. Family… Friends… Rescue teams… and if he thought about it a bit more, he could probably think of even more such connections that had the potential to create such power.
At first, Chiaki felt excited thinking about it all, but after a while, he began to feel as if… something was missing within him. Was it just his missing memory, or was there something more? Had he… lost something else besides his memories?
As this line of thought began to make him uneasy, Chiaki glanced over at Blitz, who already seemed to be asleep. Chiaki calmed down a bit as he remembered the conversation between him and the others earlier that evening.
"Like a brother…" Chiaki thought, smiling to himself. "That's right… I'll be fine. I have Blitz and everyone else by my side… I'm not alone."
Chiaki closed his eyes, and eventually fell asleep. No matter what happened from now on, Chiaki believed he could handle it as long as he had everyone else there to lend him their power. In return, he would do whatever he could to protect them all.
End of Chapter 54