Chapter #6
Two days before we were planning to get the Orb of Mew, my Eevee began to show symptoms of some sort of illness. I first noticed this when I was waken up in the middle of the night by its whimpering. It was lying on my bed, curled into a ball; shivering and whimpering like a lone puppy. At first, I only thought it was cold, so I let it sleep with me under my covers. Unfortunately, the following morning, it started coughing and was still shivering. Victoria—who knew a lot about pokemon illnesses—looked it over and told me it had some sort of illness, but she couldn't tell what it was. All we knew was that if it didn't fully recover soon enough, we would either have to hold back our journey to get the Orb of Mew, or we would have to leave it behind all alone.
"We can't leave Eevee here all alone!" I cried when Victoria explained that the best solution to the problem was to leave it at home while we got the Orb of Mew. I didn't like the idea, because no one would be around to take care of it. Knowing it was ill; leaving it alone was probably the worst thing to do. Eevee could get worse with our absence and when we got back, could be in a serious condition. The thought made me shake.
Victoria sighed and stroked Eevee's fur coat gingerly while draping a small light-pink blanket over it. "I'm sorry Seadra, but I can't tell when Eevee will recover which will make things difficult if we waited for it to do so. Besides, we're not far from the time of year when Rukonia is under severe storms. By waiting, all we're doing is waiting for those storms to stop us. They last for months Seadra, and you know it." She sighed and got up, walking away towards Mason who was sitting on one of the beds with Carol, playing with her Pikachu doll.
My hands became tight fists, making my knuckles go white. I looked over to Victoria as she and Mason entertained Carol, playing childish games. It was only recently when they finally told me their exact ages. Victoria was 17, Carol was 10 and Andy was 14—meanwhile, I was 13. I never asked Mason or anyone how old Mason was, but I guessed he was atleast two years older than Victoria, making him around 19 or so. I smiled slightly as Carol giggled when Mason and Victoria teamed up against her and began to tickle her feet and stomach. She reminded me of myself when I was younger—when my parents used to play games like that with me. I sighed.
"Rai?"
I blinked and looked down beside me, to see my Raichu there, just looking up at me. I smiled to it, making it smile as well. I picked it up, laying it onto my lap and hugging it close. "Raichu, do you remember when my mother and father used to play those childish games with me?" I asked as I stroked the silky fur on Raichu's ears.
Raichu looked up at me and nodded, "Raichu, rai rai!"
"That's all in the past, Seadra." Said a voice. I turned to my right to see Andy there. She was leaning against the doorway of the small TV room with her arms crossed. I didn't understand why she and the others wanted me to stop thinking about my past so much. Every time I mentioned my mother or father, they would say it was all in the past, and that those days were over. It was quite discouraging, but I tried to ignore it.
I sighed and put Raichu down. It ran over to Andy's Ninetales—who, like always, was under her bed. Once Raichu got there, the Ninetales began to sway its tails in its face, making it laugh. I was always happy to watch our pokemon play with each other like that. I looked back to Andy to find she was no longer in the doorway. Instead, she was sitting on the couch, enjoying a can of Pepsi and a bag of chips. I had nothing else to do so I got up and walked into the small TV room. She didn't say anything to me when I walked in, but she knew I was there. I sat down beside her on the soft couch and found she was watching a program about fire pokemon. Grabbing a can of Pepsi from the small table, I watched the show, even though I wasn't very interested.
We were all concitering calling Nurse Joy to help Eevee or take it to the Pokemon Center, but there was the risk of us being identified as Rukonians. Andy explained to me that they normally didn't need a Nurse Joy to heal their pokemon, since Victoria knew so much about taking care of pokemon. Unfortunately, she didn't know what to do with Eevee. To make things worse, Eevee wasn't getting better—it was getting worse. We were supposed to get the Orb of Mew the next day, but I didn't want to leave Eevee behind all alone.
As I held Eevee in my arms with Raichu beside me, Victoria was helping Carol clean her wings. Meanwhile, Andy was brushing her Ninetales' fur, cleaning it out a bit. When she was finished, she let Ninetales go back under her bed and she walked over to me with her hands behind her back. I looked up at her, her blond bangs almost covered her eyes completely and her flaming red hair was tied back into a loose ponytail.
I smiled up at her kindly, as did Raichu. She grinned and sat down beside me and yawned. The previous night, she had stayed up a lot later than usual, later than even Mason. She spent the whole night with Ninetales, reading a book she had found a few days ago, but never bothered to look at. She seemed quite interested in it, and I guessed she read the whole thing that night. She was tired almost the entire day, and she slept in by a few hours because she stayed up so late.
Finally, I decided to talk. "How was that book you picked up, Andy?" I asked as Eevee swayed its bushy tail back and forth.
Andy looked to me, a little surprised. I guessed she didn't expect me to ask her about the book—I didn't expect it either. She smiled, "It's actually really good. I like how the author wrote, I really like it." I was surprised again to find that she had the book in her hands. It's front cover was covered with dirt and was all ripped up. I wondered how she was able to read it. "The author is named S. E. Hinton, it says on the back she started writing when she was only 16. I think it's pretty cool."
I nodded, the author's name sounded familiar to me, but I couldn't remember it. I looked down at the ripped up book and I was able to make out the title, it said "That Was Then, This is Now". The title wasn't familiar to me at all. I looked back to Andy as she flipped through the pages. "What's it about?" I asked.
"It's about two friends who are close as brothers. The main character wants to grow up a bit more and is thinking more about his future, while his friend just lives for the thrill of the moment. At the end, the main character finds out something about his friend and ends up destroying their friendship." Andy sighed as she put the book down on my bed. She looked back to me and laid a hand on my shoulder, "You should read it. I know you'll like it." She smiled and got up and walked back to her bed.
I looked down at the book that laid on my bed. I picked it up and flipped through the pages—no pictures at all, it was a novel. I never liked reading novels much; the only time I ever read them was when my teachers made me. It was then I knew why the name S. E. Hinton sounded familiar to me; I read one of her books the previous year. We had to read it in my English class; it was called "The Outsiders". It was the first book she wrote, which was when she was only 16. It was one of the few novels I ever read that I actually enjoyed. It was about a kid named Ponyboy who was in a gang along with his brothers. When he and his friend, Johnny, end up killing a guy to save their own lives, they run away. When a Church was in flames due to one of their cigarettes, Johnny and Ponyboy ran in to save a bunch of kids. Unfortunately, Johnny broke his back and died. It was a real sad novel, but I loved the way the author wrote.
I figured since I liked her other book, and Andy liked this one, I would read it as well. I put the book down on the small table beside my bed and began to stroke Eevee's fur again. I sighed as Eevee whimpered and shivered from its fever. I hopped it would recover soon.
Later on that day, we all gave in and decided to take Eevee to the Pokemon Center. Mason told us that if a pokemon were ill enough, they would let it stay there for the night where they can take care of it till it recovers. From the way Eevee was, we all figured they would allow us to leave Eevee there for the night. I was a lot more comfortable leaving it there than be alone at our home.
Unfortunately, Mason was unable to take Eevee to the Pokemon Center. He explained that he had some meeting to go to and it was very important. As usual, Andy got suspicious, saying he was planning something behind our backs. Victoria got mad at her for the suggestion, but didn't say very much. We all knew that if we wanted to get Eevee to the Pokemon Center, we would have to go. It was a risk, because there was a chance someone who we used to know could spot us. My main concern was my father or mother being there, because the nearest center from their house and my new home was the same one.
When Mason left around 6:00pm, we all got ready to go to the Pokemon Center. We would have to walk, and I guessed it would take around half an hour. I was worried; the more time we spent out in the public, the worse. Victoria brought out four black jackets from the closet where all our clothes were kept and handed one to each of us. They all had hoods and we were told to use them so people wouldn't recognize our hair. Unfortunately, since it was almost dark, we couldn't wear the sunglasses Victoria had to cover our faces.
As we walked down the empty streets on our way to the Pokemon Center, no one said anything. We all remained almost totally silent. I had Eevee in my arms—I didn't feel like putting it into its pokeball. I didn't think it liked it very much from the way it acted after being held in it. Victoria and Andy had their gloved hands stuffed into their pockets, and Carol walked between everyone else.
I looked down to my side, where Raichu was walking beside me. The other girls didn't bother to bring their pokeballs with them, but I decided if something were to happen, having Raichu around could be helpful.
Every now and then, we would look behind us, or take quick glances into dark alleys, just incase there was anyone hiding in there, waiting to jump us. I had never been jumped, but I remembered hearing on the news when I was younger about Rukonians being jumped and badly beaten—they got bruised and all cut up.
After we finally got to the Pokemon Center, it was almost dark. We went straight to the main counter and explained to the Nurse Joy about Eevee's condition. "It's ill," Victoria said, "and we don't know what's wrong. Is it possible for you to watch over it for one night?" She asked.
Nurse Joy stroked Eevee's fur and smiled, "Yes, yes we can. I would have to hold it here for a while anyways. I'm sure Eevee's just suffering from the season's viruses. In a couple days, Eevee will be fine. I'll take it back now if you don't mind."
I nodded, "Sure."
She smiled kindly at me and picked up Eevee and carried it through a door into a room with several small beds around. The door shut behind her. I looked to where Andy was standing, only to find her not there. I noticed Victoria and Carol were gone too. I looked around franticly for a few moments, nearly panicking. I got lucky though, they were just getting some candy from a machine on the opposite side of the large lobby.
I was about to walk over to them, when I noticed a couple enter the lobby with two Seadra's in their arms. The female had pitch-black hair that flowed down to her waist and her beautiful and warm eyes were blue. I recognized her right away—it was my mother! I noticed my dad beside her, with his hand around her waist. His hair was still the same blond color and his eyes were still green. I remembered him talking about dying his hair, but it seemed he hadn't yet.
I didn't know what I felt when I saw them there. I nearly went ecstatic and ran over to them, but I stopped myself. I nearly forgot about how my father nearly got me killed. Remembering that, I couldn't help but to shudder. Seeing my mom made me want to bawl like a baby, but I held it back. I turned away from them, making sure they didn't see me. Andy, Carol and Victoria were splitting their candy among each other, sitting on a red couch. I decided to join them, and get away from the sight of my parents.
I walked over to them hurriedly, with Raichu close behind me. I sat down on one of the arms of the couch, beside Andy. She smiled at me as she bit into a Fushion chocolate bar and playfully shoved me off the couch. I nearly fell, but I was expecting it and I didn't. Carol giggled as she popped an M&M into her mouth. Victoria just smiled.
We were there for about ten minutes, going through the chocolate candies like a shark goes through teeth. We were all having a good time, laughing at stupid jokes and making witty remarks about things like the Anti-Rukonian groups. When I started on my third package of Reese Peanut Butter Cups, all the other girls paused and their faces went totally white. I blinked and looked behind me to see my mother there, just looking down at me—I froze.
"Seadra?" My mother said, her voice was shaking.
I felt like I couldn't move or say anything, but I was shaking. Fortunately, my father wasn't there. I didn't know where he was—I couldn't see him. "Mother?" I asked, "What are you doing here? Where's father?"
She kneeled down beside the couch, with her elbows resting on her knees. "He went to the washroom." She sighed, then looked to me, "What are you doing here? Who are your friends?"
I looked back to Carol, Andy and Victoria. They all looked horribly nervous, and I wondered if talking to my mom was something I shouldn't be doing. "They're Rukonians." I said, I wasn't sure I should've told her that. For the first time, I feared my own mother. "They helped me—I live with them" I went totally silent. My mother didn't reply to me at all, she just looked behind her to make sure my father wasn't around yet. "Why did father do this to me?" I finally asked.
I could tell I had asked what my mother didn't want me to. She didn't say anything at all to me. She just sighed and got up and walked away, leaving me there. I didn't understand why my parents did this to me. I used to be number one with them, now I felt like trash.
I watched my mother as she walked over to the door to the men's washroom as my father walked out. His eyes were warm, like they were before he somehow found out I was a Rukonian. I missed those eyes more than I missed my own room. Watching them ended up being a big mistake. He saw me, and recognized me right away. I realized I didn't have my hood on, so my hair and eyes were clearly visible. With his cold and angry eyes back, he began to storm over to us. I began to panic and I looked back to the girls as I felt my face become white as all the blood left it.
"Get out, now!" I shouted as I picked Raichu up and headed straight for the door. I knew we were in danger. My father was a dangerous person when it came to Rukonians. Too bad I had only found out not long ago when he took me to that Anti-Rukonian group building. The other girls looked at me with strange expressions—obviously they didn't know what was wrong. "It's my father, damn it!" I screamed in fear.
They remembered what I had told them about him, and they all got up and followed me out the door. They all agreed with me before that he was a monster, he was nuts! We ran down that street as fast as our legs could carry us.
I could hear my dad screaming in the room "Rukonian!", obviously trying to get attention from other people who had that strange grudge against us. The sound of people shouting and their shoes hitting the concrete behind us was unmistakable. I looked behind us and noticed a crowd of people, lead by my own father, chasing after us. We were dead meat if they caught us; I knew that for sure.
We all ran down the street as quickly as possible as the crowd got bigger and bigger. More people who were just walking down the road realized the situation and probably figured it would be fun to help them out. My legs felt like elastics, I could move them easily and quickly. Unfortunately, it didn't take long before I started to get cramps in my side. They felt worse than ever before, I was getting scared.
"Quick, fly!" Victoria ordered. We all nodded and spread out our wings. As usual, it hurt like hell—but I forced myself to ignore the pain and pay attention to the situation instead. We all flapped our wings as hard as we could as I held Raichu in my arms. I had to make sure I was high enough to get away from the mob, as were Carol, Andy and Victoria. Unfortunately, they all had pokeballs with them. To make things worse, my wings were still injured from the Taurus stampede, so staying in the air was alot harder.
It didn't take long before we had a huge amount of bird pokemon striking us with their wings. They obviously belonged to the people who were trying to kill us. Raichu tried to Thunder Shock them, but it failed. Victoria was able to dodge the birds easily, Andy needed more effort. Meanwhile, Carol looked like she was going to lose control, as was I. I couldn't seem to move fast enough to avoid all the hits my wings and head took.
Suddenly, a huge Pidgeot came out of nowhere and hit us all so hard; we fell straight to the ground. I hit the ground hard, landing on my right arm. I feared I broke it. Our wings all disappeared, hiding beneath the skin in our backs. I struggled to lift myself up, but my arms were weak and the pain was killing me. I looked them over quick, and found blood and dirt all over. My ribs felt like they were broke, and there were scrapes all over my knees from falling onto the concrete.
I looked at the other girls as they repeated what I had done, checking themselves of their injuries. We were all too weak to do anything. The hit to the concrete did a lot of damage to us. Raichu laid beside me, unconscious—it was hit hard. The mob of Anti-Rukonists had us surrounded. Some were holding chains, broken bottles and even knives. They all had the same twisted grin on their faces. I knew I was in for the beating of my life.
