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Chapter 1 - Chosen
Now Playing: Homesick – OneShot OST
One year.
Those two words echoed inside Terry's mind as he lay curled up on his bed, clutching the bandana close to him; the last vestige of her memory that he desperately clung to. The pillow had grown damp from collecting the tears that had streaked down his face during the night and into the morning.
One year from today was when it all happened, yet the ache of his heart made it feel like it had happened just yesterday. The day when his mom succumbed to the same illness as his father and he had no choice but to be taken in by Hop's family. The day his entire life grew darker.
If he thought hard enough, he could swear he could almost hear her voice. Laughing, crying, smiling...it was like she had never even gone. Maybe if he stayed in bed for the whole day, he could find some semblance of comfort in the fiction that she never got sick, that he never spent days crying at her bedside in the hospital, begging and pleading for her to get better, that her Pokémon were still with them, ready to go on the next adventure, that his dad was still with them and telling them both stories of his travels.
But that's all it was. Fiction, a false reality that he knew could never be real. Even if he prayed to Jirachi itself, death was irreversible and there was nothing he could to bring them back.
He frowned at the rays of light that peeked through the window and attacked his eyes. How could the sun shine so bright outside, yet his world still felt so dark and cold? How could he keep up with reality's nonstop march through life when he was still stuck frozen in time?
Stop Playing
A soft knock came from the door.
"Terry? Are you awake in there?"
He glanced over his shoulder at the door before turning away without a reply. He didn't care if Catherine yelled at him. He didn't have the energy TO care.
There was silence before he heard the door squeak open. He mentally braced himself for the scolding but froze when he felt the bed sag under a new weight. He remained still when he heard a sigh.
"...Terry, I'm not going to pretend like I don't know what today means to you."
He felt a hand fall onto his shoulder. "She meant a lot to me too...and I miss her so much." Her grip tightened. "I don't think she would want you to stay cooped up in your room, but I don't want to force you to do something you're unwilling to do."
Terry felt the weight vanish as her footsteps moved away from him.
"Leon is coming by to visit today and Hop wanted to know if you'd like to come along with him to pick Leon up from the station."
Terry sighed; an act that didn't go unnoticed by Catherine.
"I know Hop can be a bit overbearing at times, but he does truly mean well. Again, I won't force you, but...just think about it, okay?"
The door squeaked shut, leaving Terry alone once again in his room. Interacting with anyone was the last thing he wanted to do today, but a stab of guilt stopped that thought in its tracks. Regardless of how he felt, there was a sliver of truth in Catherine's words.
He sat up on the bed and stared down at the bandana in his hands. Grief wasn't something that just vanished in a day. It was dull and ever-present; the throbbing in his heart made that much clear.
He turned towards the world outside his window. He dreaded going out there, knowing he wouldn't be able to keep up with Hop's energy. It'd tire Terry out before he even took a step outside, but knowing him, Hop would probably keep bugging him about going to get Leon until he did...
With a sigh, he tied the bandana around his neck and stood up from the bed. He skipped his morning routine since he was already dressed from yesterday and opened his door to the outside world with a grimace.
Today was going to be a long day.
Hop tore his eyes from the Pokémon battle happening on the TV when he heard the sound of footsteps coming down the stairs. As much as he wanted to keep watching Leon's most recent battle, the sight of Terry out of his room dwarfed the spectacle that took place on the screen.
"Terry! You're up!" He exclaimed, jumping up from the couch. On his way over to Terry, he caught his mother giving him a serious look. He nodded. The message was clear.
Take it easy with him today.
"...Heard Leon was coming by today," Terry mumbled out.
Hop grinned and placed his hands behind his head, "Yup! Today's been brutal waiting for him. If I didn't know any better, I would've thought Mum crammed him into a cupboard somewhere before I got to see him."
"Have some patience, Hop," Catherine's voice came from the kitchen, "He's probably only just getting into Wedgehurst."
On cue, her phone buzzed. She grabbed it, reading over the message before flashing the two boys a smile, "Now you can go get him."
"Wicked!" Hop cheered. "C'mon mate, let's go get him!"
Terry nodded silently as he followed Hop out the door, glancing at Catherine one last time before disappearing outside. Her smile fell as the sounds of their footsteps faded away from the house. Reaching over to a nearby cabinet, she opened it and looked on the inside of the door to see a picture of her and Laura smiling at the camera, back when they were just taking their first steps on their own journey. With a melancholic smile, she ran her thumb over the image of her friend.
"...I'm trying to do my best for him, Laura. I'm trying my best..."
The road in front of the train station was packed with people eagerly awaiting the arrival of the champion. Word had spread that he would be visiting for a couple of days and everyone and their mother jumped at the chance to see their beloved champion.
It was only until the man himself exited the train station with a flourish of his cape and his Charizard by his side that the cheers grew in volume.
Now Playing: Champion Leon's Theme - Pokémon Sword and Shield OST
"Hello, hello, Wedgehurst! Your champion has arrived!"
Behind the crowd stood Hop and Terry with the former sporting a wide grin as he gazed upon the champion that he was proud to call his brother. Terry nervously glanced around at the sea of people that surrounded him, keeping a firm grip on his bandana and wishing they would vanish so that the three of them could get back home.
"Leon! That Charizard of yours is amazing!" someone from the crowd cheered.
Leon grinned and puffed out his chest, "Well, thank you! I hope you'll all keep training your own Pokémon then come challenge me for the title!"
His Charizard let loose a roar, one that raised the excitement of people watching it.
"Lee! Over here!" Hop called out, jumping up and waving his hand to grab the champion's attention.
With a beaming smile, Leon parted the crowd with Charizard following behind him.
"So, my number-one fan in the entire region has gone out of his way to pick me up!"
"What, you thought I wouldn't?" Hop cheekily responded.
Leon chuckled, "Well it was hard to recognize you at first seeing as how you've grown an inch and quarter since I last saw you."
"That eye of yours is still as sharp as ever!" Hop grinned, folding his arms over his chest.
Leon smiled back at his little brother before turning to the plus one, "Of course, I can't forget about my other biggest fan!" His expression softened as his eyes fluttered over the bandana tied around the boy's neck. "How've you been Terry?"
"...I'm still here, Leon."
Leon grimaced at the cold response for a split second before reverting back to his normal champion persona, "Glad to hear it. I'm sure we've got some catching up to do once we get back home."
Terry merely grunted in reply, glancing at the crowd behind him with his hand still holding his bandana before looking back at Leon.
"Can we go now?"
Leon nodded and turned back to the crowd, "Well, everyone, I bid you all farewell!" A few groans came from the audience. "Don't you fret, though! I'll always be around to make sure everyone has a champion time!"
He struck his iconic pose, quelling the worries of the crowd.
Hop impatiently kicked at the pebbles by his feet, "C'mon, you two! Bet I can beat the both of you back home!" With that, Hop swiftly turned around and took off down the route, leaving Terry and Leon in his dust.
Stop Playing
The champion saw Terry sigh in defeat out of the corner of his eye and looked over at him with a sheepish grin.
"That Hop...always wanting to be the best, no matter what, huh?"
Terry's gaze was set on the ground in front of him, "You can go after him. I'll just catch up."
Leon frowned. Yeah, Terry was definitely a lot more closed off than usual. He opened his mouth, wanting to say something, but promptly closed it. Terry's situation was one that Leon couldn't possibly comprehend. He was fortunate enough not to have experienced loss, but even standing next to Terry, he could feel the boy's sadness, radiating out of him like a beacon. Even Charizard seemed to sense it as he nudged Leon's arm with his snout.
Leon placed a hand on Terry's shoulder, "If that's what you want. I'll leave Charizard with you just in case."
Charizard nodded, stepping up next to the boy. With a smile, Leon chased after Hop. Terry watched him go before glancing over at the Flame Pokémon, who was gazing back at him in return with a worried expression. The dragon was well-acquainted with Terry and knew him well enough to know about what Terry was going through. The white bandana was familiar enough to him to know that its original owner was no longer around.
"C'mon, we should get going," Terry said before setting off at a much slower pace back towards Postwick. Charizard stayed by his side, not wanting the boy to feel anymore alone than he already felt.
Leon and Hop were waiting for Terry by the battle arena in the front yard when he and Charizard finally arrived.
"There you are, mate! Lee was just about to tell us about the present he brought for us, right?" Hop said, looking over at the champion with a wide-eyed grin.
Leon chuckled, "Seems I'm not the only one with a sharp eye."
Terry's brow furrowed. Leon always brought gifts for the two of them, though Terry usually always declined them much to Leon's disappointment. He was prepared to do the same thing, but something about Leon's posture and wider than normal smile made Terry slightly curious; a feeling that morphed into suspicion when Leon kept glancing over at him.
Terry leaned against the stone wall across from the arena as Leon flaunted his cape, "Alright, you two. I hope you both like this."
In the blink of an eye, he reached inside his cape and tossed three red and white orbs onto the field. With a burst of light, the Pokéballs opened, revealing its inhabitants: a Grookey, a Sobble, and a Scorbunny. The three took in their surroundings before splitting off to different parts of the arena. The Grookey and Sobble headed towards the tree and pond while the Scorbunny ran around the arena, its feet causing spots of flame to stick to the asphalt.
Leon watched the three Pokémon run around with a grin, that familiar fire of passion igniting within him, "I brought these three for you two to choose, so you can grow stronger together. That way, when the time comes, you'll be strong enough to even reach-"
"No."
The yard fell silent as all eyes turned to Terry.
Now Playing: Recollection ~ Forgotten Legend – Apollo Justice: Ace Attorney OST
The boy was completely still, gripping his bandana in a vice. The blood from his face had drained, rendering him a wide-eyed ghost.
Alarms rang out in Leon's head, "Terry? What's wrong?"
The three Pokémon perked up upon hearing his name, finally being able to put a face to the name they first heard last night. The Scorbunny in particular came to a stop in the middle of the arena and paid closer attention to the ash-brown-haired boy as he constantly swapped his fearful gaze between the two brothers and the three Pokémon before realizing his outburst.
His cheeks flushed and he rubbed his arm, "I-I mean, I don't think it'd be a good idea for me to...have one."
Hop raised an eyebrow, "Why not?"
A chill raced up Terry's spine. "B-Because it just wouldn't, okay?"
"But...didn't you used to want your own Pokémon back in Unova though?"
"Yeah, but that was before-"
Terry suddenly choked on his words. His grip on his bandana tightened even more as he looked away from everyone. Leon took a small step forward but stopped when Terry rubbed his eyes.
"Sorry, I...I need to be alone right now."
Without waiting for a response, Terry left the yard and retreated down Route 1.
Hop started to go after him, but a hand on his shoulder stopped him in his tracks. He looked back to see Leon with a woeful look in his eye.
"Leave him be, Hop. Today's a tough day for him," he said, glancing at the house across the street.
Hop sighed, "I know..."
"In the meantime, why don't you go ahead and choose? You are included in this gift after all."
"Oh, sure!" Hop perked up and turned to the arena, only for his brow to furrow in confusion. "Umm, Lee?"
"Yeah?"
"I think one is missing."
Leon whipped his head to see only the Grookey and Sobble staring back at them. The Scorbunny was missing.
Terry buried his face into his arms once he was well away from the house, leaning up against the fence that followed along the path.
Why did he have to get out of bed today? Why did it have to be a Pokémon? Of all the days, why did it have to be today?
His hand hovered back over the bandana. Getting a Pokémon was what he was so excited for back in Unova, but now...now it frightened him. The younger him might've been happy to finally have his starter, but not now. He wasn't ready to be a Trainer.
Stop Playing
"Ny-bun?"
Terry's head shot up to see a pair of small, black beady eyes right in front of his face.
"WOAH!"
He flinched back from the fence with one hand on his bandana and the other on his heart.
"Arceus alive! Don't...do that!" Terry panted, "Nearly gave me a heart attack..."
The Rabbit Pokémon's orange tipped ears dropped forward, "S-Scorbun..."
Terry took a minute to catch his breath as he eyed the Pokémon standing on the fence in front of him. Its ears and toes were tipped with orange markings, a small orange band wrapped around its neck, and a yellow band sat between its eyes. By all accounts, it was an average Scorbunny.
Terry heaved a sigh once he was finished calming himself down, "...You didn't have to follow me. I wanted to be alone."
It tilted its head at him before pointing a paw at his face, "Scor? Bunny scor bun?"
He furrowed his brow and reach up to his eye. He felt the wetness of tears that were held back and he instantly went to work wiping them away.
"I'm fine. It's nothing for you to worry about."
The Scorbunny frowned at him.
"And no, I don't want you feeling sad for me."
Terry rubbed his hands over his face before looking back at the Scorbunny. He flinched slightly at the Scorbunny's offended reaction. He grabbed his bandana, "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to snap at you. Today is just a really crappy day for me."
"Bunny scor," the Rabbit Pokémon relaxed and nodded its head, accepting the apology.
Terry sighed again. Today has just been full of surprises. First, Leon brings he and Hop Pokémon to choose from, then the Scorbunny follows him after his partial meltdown? Mom and Dad would definitely find it all amusing for sure.
He brushed aside the hair that blocked his eye, "Leon and the others are probably wondering where you went off to. We should get you back to them, little guy."
The Scorbunny raised an unamused eyebrow at him.
He blinked, "...Little...girl then?"
She smiled and nodded her head again.
"Good to know...I guess..." he sweatdropped and began walking back to the brothers that he had so abruptly left. The Scorbunny followed along on top of the fence, hopping over the support posts to keep up with him.
"Scor scorbun?"
Terry glanced over at the Rabbit Pokémon with a raised eyebrow, "Uh...sorry. I'm not very fluent in 'Scorbunny'."
She snorted, amused at his unintentional joke. She pointed a paw at herself, "Scorbunny." She then pointed the paw at him, "Ny-bun?"
His brow furrowed before he blinked, "Oh. You're asking for my name, aren't you?"
"Scor!"
He stared at the fire-type with a wistful expression before sighing quietly.
"Well, I'm pretty sure you already know it, but...it's Terry."
"...Bunny..."
She smiled and leaped at him, wrapping her arms around his. He stiffened and raised the Scorbunny up to his face. He pried the affectionate Pokémon off his arm and set her back on the fence with her giving him a confused look.
"Sorry. Not a touchy-feely kind of guy."
She frowned but kept up with him as he began to walk again. She'd try again. If she wanted to get through to him, she'd keep trying. It was obvious he was sad about something and she made it her mission to hopefully see him smile.
The yard came back into view. Leon was gone but Hop was still present, crouched in front of another Pokemon. Hop and the Grookey looked up at the sound of crunching gravel to see Terry arrive.
Hop smiled, "Hey, mate! You alright?"
"...A little bit."
"Glad to hear. By the way, you didn't happen to see a Scorbunny on your way back, did you?"
Terry scratched his chin, "Uh...about that..."
On cue, the Scorbunny leaped over Terry's shoulder, landing in front of him with a wide grin. Terry sweatdropped.
"She...kinda came after me."
"Guess you didn't have any say in choosing her, huh?" Hop laughed.
"Now, wait a minute..." Terry started, "I didn't say anything about choosing her. She just wanted to check on me." He grabbed his bandana as he looked away from Hop's disappointed eyes, "My decision hasn't changed on that."
The Grookey shot Scorbunny a questioning look, only to receive a frown in return.
"Are you really sure, mate?" Hop asked.
Terry glanced down at the Scorbunny by his feet. Her sad look made him wince, but he forced himself to look away.
"It's...for the best..."
Hop sighed and got to his feet, flashing a small smile, "Alright. It's your decision. I won't hold it against-"
A loud crash echoed throughout the yard. Terry's brow furrowed and he whipped his head towards the direction of the sound. A gate past his old house was broken open, leading into...
"Oh crap! That Wooloo actually got through into the Slumbering Weald!"
Hop raced past Terry to get a better look. He looked back at him with a determined expression.
"Mate, we gotta rescue it! Who knows what it might run into in there?"
"Wait, hold on. What Wooloo?"
Hop pointed at the now broken fence, "After you left, a random Wooloo started using Tackle on the gate, trying to breakthrough. Leon and I warned it not to, but it just kept going so we ignored it." Hop looked back at the fence, "I didn't think it would actually get through, but now it's only a matter of time before that Wooloo finds trouble!"
Terry glanced up at the currently dimming sky before looking back at his friend, "Hop, it's almost dark. That Wooloo is a lost cause and the last thing we should do is be in there after dark!"
"Don't say that!" Hop said, "We have to at least try! C'mon Grookey!"
"Ookey!"
The Chimp Pokémon hopped onto his shoulder and Hop raced down the path towards the forest. Terry panicked, looking between Hop and the house behind him. He heaved a sigh and chased after him, the Scorbunny on his heels.
"Damn that reckless idiot..."
Now Playing: Forest – Silent Hill 2 OST
Terry caught up with Hop scanning the forest around him. Thanks to the thick trees overhead, the Weald was already plunged into darkness with only a faint amount of light to illuminate their foggy surroundings.
"Shoot, I can't see a thing..."
"Which is why we should just go back home instead of staying here," Terry hissed at him.
Hop shook his head, "No way mate. If that Wooloo's in trouble, we gotta help it."
"You...ugh, fine," Terry relented, "But as soon as we find that sheep, we're immediately getting out of here."
"It'll be fine! I'll even make sure we don't run into any wild Corviknight so that what happened to you last time doesn't happen again."
Terry froze in place as Hop started to move further into the forest. He let out a soft shaky breath and rubbed his arm.
"A Corviknight...right..." he whispered.
"Bunny?"
Terry snapped out of his daze and let go of his arm. He turned to the concerned Scorbunny standing by his feet.
"It's nothing," he said with a shake of his head and motioned to her, "Stay close to me."
She nodded and kept a paw on his leg. Terry took a deep breath and slowly followed after Hop.
The forest around them was unnaturally silent. The chitters and chirps of a Skwovet or Rookidee would echo throughout the forest before quickly falling silent again, almost as if the fog itself was eating the noise until the only thing that could be heard was the boys' footsteps. Hop had pulled out his phone and turned on the flashlight, punching a hole through the darkness.
"Wooloo? You around here?" Hop called out quietly, not wanting to alert any wild Pokémon that could easily cut them to pieces. Grookey on his shoulder kept watch, his head whirling around to different areas of the forest. Terry constantly looked down at his feet to make sure Scorbunny was still close by. A few times, Terry would look around them, always having this feeling that they were being watched, but he could never see clearly through all the fog.
After looking through tufts of tall grass and behind trees with no sign of the Wooloo, the path before them began to widen and with it, the fog became thicker and thicker. Not even the light from the phone was enough to cut through it.
Hop looked around uneasily, "This is mad...I can't even see my own hand in front of my face." He shivered, "And why do I feel like we're being watched?"
Terry tried to see through the fog but stopped when he realized something.
Stop Playing
"Hop...listen."
The two boys fell silent. Hop strained himself, trying to hear for anything within the fog. He furrowed his brow, "I don't hear anything. Why? Did you-?"
"No, that's exactly it," Terry whispered hastily, "There's no sound at all."
Hop caught his breath and listened again. Sure enough, the cries of the wild Pokémon and brushing of the leaves had disappeared. Not even the wind could be heard anymore.
Terry scooted his leg in front of the Scorbunny, "...I got a really bad feeling about this..."
"S-Scor...bun..."
None of them moved. The silence surrounding them was deafening and they waited for something, anything, to happen. The fog around was starting to become suffocating and Terry couldn't help but grab onto his bandana, hoping that the mere touch of it would banish the fog.
"Lrrrooooaaarrrd!"
"Grrrrrrrriiieeeld!"
Now Playing: I'll Kill You – Silent Hill OST
Hop frantically whipped his head around, "What the hell was that?!"
"We need to get out of here..." Terry took a step back but felt his body turn to ice when a shadow began to form behind Hop. He caught his breath as the shadow grew larger and larger.
"...Hop...behind you..."
Hop froze and slowly began to turn, coming face to face with a large, wolf-like creature. The beast was adorned with cyan fur with pick braids trailing down the scar-covered sides of its body. Its yellow eyes pierced into the shivering boy in front of it. It remained stoic in its posture, yet neither of them could deny the aura of power that radiated from it.
Terry gasped as he felt another presence behind him. Whirling around, he found a similar creature staring straight into his eyes. Bulkier than the one in front of Hop, this one had crimson fur along its body with a blue ponytail protruding from the top of its head. It echoed the same piercing yellow eyes as the other and it gave off the same powerful aura.
"Oh shit..." Terry breathed out as he slowly backed up into Hop.
"This is bad..."
"G-Groo..."
The Scorbunny jumped in front of Terry, defiantly staring up at the creature that stared at them.
"Scor! Ny-bun scor!" she yelled at it.
"No! Don't-"
Terry couldn't finish as the two wolves howled up towards the sky before shifting their stance for battle. The fog began to thicken upon their cry.
"What do we do Terry?!"
"You're JUST now asking me that?!" Terry snapped.
The red wolf in front of Terry began to growl. The Scorbunny's eyes widened and she took a small step back, bumping into Terry's leg.
"Okay...okay..." Terry whispered, "First chance we see, we run for the exit."
"But...what about the Wooloo?!"
"Forget the Wooloo, Hop! They probably already ate it!"
The growls of the wolves grew louder and the fog grew thicker. Terry looked back at the wolf as it took a step towards him. And then another...and another...
Terry gripped his bandana as hard as he could as he stared back at the creature.
"Scor!"
Suddenly, the Scorbunny launched forward towards the beast with its foot extended. Terry choked on his breath as the Rabbit Pokemon fazed through the wolf. The Scorbunny tried again, but her attack still hit nothing but the fog. She jumped back to Terry with a meek whimper.
"Did those Tackles even connect?!" Hop hissed behind him.
Terry shook his head, "N-No...it just fazed right through it!"
The Scorbunny's attack was all it took for the wolf to start speeding towards him, barreling through the fog until reached its target.
"Hop, MOVE!"
Terry grabbed onto the Scorbunny and threw himself to the side as Hop did the same, narrowly missing the attacking beast. The red-furred one turned towards Terry and began creeping towards him again as the fog continued to grow thicker, eventually getting so thick that Terry lost sight of Hop.
Terry tried to stand up, but his legs were frozen in fear. Just as the beast was on him, he grabbed the Scorbunny again and tossed her away from them.
"Bunny!" she cried out upon hitting the ground.
"Scorbunny, run! Get out of here!"
He turned back to find the creature growling right in his face. Its yellow eyes burned into him as Terry was frozen to the spot. Its face drew closer and closer to his; its breath falling onto Terry's face.
Stop Playing
This is it then...
The fear inside Terry began to vanish, replaced by an unnatural calm. The fog around him became too thick for him to see anything but the creature, but he didn't seem to care anymore. His body relaxed as he stared back up at the beast. Terry closed his eyes and fell back onto the ground, awaiting the inevitable.
Mom...Dad...I'll see you soon...
The beast froze and stopped growling. Its eyes continued to pierce into the human in front of it, but instead of wanting to attack, it seemed...confused. This boy was...letting this happen to him? The creature glanced over in the direction of the Scorbunny the boy protected with said Pokémon having already fallen unconscious from the fog. It gazed back at the boy. This human was so quick to protect others, yet was so accepting of his own fate?
The wolf stepped back from him, looking over at its sibling who stood over the other knocked out human who was holding onto a Pokéball.
The two stared at each other. It had been a while since anyone stepped foot into this forest, ever since that assistant tried to find evidence of their presence. These two, however...these two were willing to brave this forest, despite the danger, to rescue a simple Wooloo. The red wolf turned back to the boy laying in front of him.
And this one...this one intrigued it most of all. Even having witnessed the human's actions, it could feel the boy's potential; the radiating light of a champion, tainted by a cold, dark sadness that wove its way through every part of the human's body, suffocating that light until it was nothing but a faint glimmer.
The fog wrapped around all of them, but the wolf could not help but hum in thought.
"How interesting..."