Kalen
I was sitting down on the grass, looking up at the sky of the night. I could feel the cold breeze push against my body, ruffling my fur with the winds while I listened to the silence that spread over the city.
I wanted to use the positions of the stars to determine the location I was in, but with the clouds blocking the view, I could only guess where I am. I let out a defeated sigh as I brought my gaze away from the nightly horizon.
My eyes aimlessly watched the environment around me, seeing the darkness that covered the town. There weren't any light posts in the neighbourhood, letting darkness roam unrestricted, Silhouettes of buildings and trees scattered around the area, becoming shadows in the dark. To my sides were more structures, only increasing down the road.
I hung my head low, feeling misplaced. 'I'm stuck here until I find a way back home' I thought to myself.
While I wasn't in fact, stuck here, I couldn't just run away and abandon Skye. I don't know anything about her past, but I can tell that she is different from the other civilised pokémon. Never before have I met someone who acted like her, even the desperation could be heard in her voice when she wanted me to stay.
The guilt would never leave me alone, hanging over my shoulder, weighing me down.
My thought process slowly shifted toward Skye, It has been over an hour since she suggested the idea, and I still wasn't sure about my response. I was grateful for the hospitality, but the thought of staying in the town concerned me. My instincts were telling me to run away, but my morals were telling me to stay.
I let out an irritated sigh and laid down on my right side on the grass, feeling its texture around my body. Too many thoughts were circling through my mind, Though there was one thought that overpowered the rest.
'What's going to happen when she finds out I don't belong here.' I wasn't confident that I could hide my identity from her. She might notice that my behaviour is different than the others. Right now is only a matter of time before something occurs.
If the problem ever rises, then I would tackle it head-on, taking the consequences.
I settled on not to think about my current situation, and try to calm my mind. I emptied my mind and blankly stared at the grass, seeing how it whirls with the wind. The temperature slowly grew colder as the night progressed further, making it hard to stay warm. I shyly brought my body closer to myself, trying to contain the warmth inside of me.
I laid motionless on the grass, feeling myself become more sluggish with every passing moment. With a small exhalation, I slowly shifted my body. I brought my legs under my weight and pushed myself off the grass. With minimal effort, I was standing on all four.
I took one last glance at the forest that loomed behind the town before I turned around and walked towards Skye's house. The distance wasn't excessively far as I laid on the grass directly before the home, making it a short stroll.
Warmth embraced me as I stepped into the house, tuning out the coldness. I gently closed the door, trying to be as quiet as I can before I walked down the dark corridor. I entered the open area, seeing Skye sleeping peacefully on the couch.
Seeing the pokémon in that state made me feel sorry for her. Now I wished that I would have tried to save it from the beginning, instead of running away. But then again, I don't even know if I could take those four pokémons. 'Hopefully... It doesn't happen again while I'm here'. I thought to myself, as I gazed on the wound on her shoulder.
I lost time on how long I stared at her, but I felt my drowsiness slowly creeping up on me. My sleepiness was more obvious when I tried to walk over to the rug, feeling how little balance I had in me.
I slumped down on the rug, landing on its soft texture. The darkness around me started to grow, drowning out the visible shapes in the dark. My energy slowly died down as I enter a deep sleep.
I slowly opened my eyes as my conscious returned to me. My vision was blurry, only making out colours and light that spread across the room, blinding me slightly. My left flank felt numb as I slept on it. I gently stretched my stiffened muscles, feeling how tense they were.
The numbness slowly faded away as I returned to my previous pose. The blurriness gradually decreased, making shapes more visible.
I perked my ears as I heard a muffled grunt extending from the couch. I lazily moved my head towards the furniture, seeing the Leafeon stirring up.
She was lying down on her stomach with her face implanted on the couch. Her movements were sluggish as she attempted to shift her body's position. She pulled her forelegs closer to her front torso, using them to lift her face of the cushion.
Her eyes spotted me shortly after she was done with her waking. We stared at each other without saying anything. I could feel the discomfort between us increase. I knew that this would happen again, so I decided too just break the thick air between us.
I lifted the front half of my body away from the soft rug, ending with a sitting position on the carpet. "Good morning," I said while I strained a small smile to make the situation more comfortable.
She repeated the humble smile, though hers were more genuine. "Morning..." she returned quietly as she twisted and turned her body, awakening her muscles.
My eyes trailed down her body, settling on the gash on her shoulder. The dull crimson stood apart from the remainder of her body, exposing it to anyone who looks at her. A layer of scab formed around the edges of the inner flesh, lightly restoring the damaged skin. Given enough time, it will heal.
I could see from the corner of my eye that she would visibly wince when her wound would stretch out by a smidgen, Giving me the impression that it would continue to be a problem.
"How are you feeling?" I asked, wanting clarification to ensure I didn't observe wrong. She stopped her stretching and looked at the injury. She gently moved the shoulder around, testing how much stress she could put on the shoulder. She pushed the paw down on the couch, examining her pressure point.
She let out a low grunt when she exceeded a specific amount of force. " I-I should be able to walk at least..." She shakingly said as she loosened her energy from the leg. 'That's good,' I thought to myself as I gave her another humble smile.
With that out of the way, I started to consider what we ought to do now. We shouldn't start seeking for a way back home yet. It would be better in the long run if we waited for her to heal more accurately. She would only be a dead weight slowing us down if we searched now.
My mind was empty, having no idea what to do while she is recovering.
F̢o͡ơd̴̶
"Food..?" I repeated confused as I heard a familiar voice speak, though it didn't sound like Skye's voice. I was puzzled as I looked around our surroundings, but couldn't see anyone else nearby.
I returned my gaze towards Skye, seeing how she was eying me, giving me a confused look from my sudden speaking. I felt a little embarrassed from the unexpected uttering. I didn't get any time to explain myself as my stomach began to growl, reminding me that I haven't eaten over a long time.
I felt a little ashamed of the coincidence, gradually warming up my face. The silence between us didn't help either.
"There is this café that isn't far away that we could go to." She suggested. I felt a wave of relief wash over me as she averted the situation, making things easier for me. Getting food didn't sound so bad, so I complied with her idea.
I assisted her one last time to get down from the furniture, and with a quick check-up on her balance, we started walking away from her residence.
The sun stood high in the sky, shining down on the town. Pokémon of various abilities roamed around the streets, living their everyday life. A soft breeze would occasionally appear, ruffling my fur with its gentle winds.
It felt peaceful to be out here to walk, but my mind was anything but serene. I was getting anxious from every pokémons that came close to me, making me concerned. I was being overwhelmed by dread as we slowly made our way towards our destination. I tried to put up a fake façade, trying not to show my emotion to any others.
We kept getting weird looks from others as we traversed through town. Everyone in our eyesight would cast us a concerned gaze. I tried to pay it no mind, but it was disturbing to know that we were being watched.
I kept glancing towards Skye as we wandered, examining how she is enduring. I was becoming worried that she was going to push herself to her limit, forcing herself to march forward. Even though our walking pace was slow, I could sense that she was struggling to merely balance.
'The silence between us needs to fix,' I contemplated mentally. It was times such as these I wished that I would have some social experiences. If we are going to remain nearby to each other, then we should attempt to brighten up the mood a bit, Right now it's stale between us.
"Here we are." I was thrown out from my mind as I heard Skye speak. I stopped in my motion and looked towards her, seeing that she stopped and was looking at the building closest to us. Shifting my gaze from Skye to the structure, I began to take in the subtleties of the building.
It stretched up to four stories high, and its length occupied the entire expanse of the pavement. Its light orange colour spread across the building, giving it a delicate look. Multiple windows arranging over the building, with several small balconies stretching outside, looking further down to the ground level where a two-door entrance, seemingly leading into the café.
I gradually advanced towards the passage, taking a deeper look into the interior of this place. A small red carpet led further into the building, inviting us to come in.
I cautiously trailed after Skye into the building, taking in the new environment. The floor was made out of dark wood, giving it a gentle contrast. There were patterns on the walls with several different appearances, presenting it with a pleasant design. Curtains draping on each side of every window.
I felt significantly more loosened up when I saw that there weren't much pokémons inside of here. We walked around inside the structure before we arrived at a small booth near the windows. We took our seats, sitting so that we were opposing one another.
"This place seems nice," I humbly said as I looked around. Everywhere I observed, there was always something that would catch my gaze, from paintings to small details on different tables. The atmosphere in here was oddly soothing, causing me to loosen up additional.
"I'm glad that you like it, this is one of my favourite places to visit," She replied, her smile growing with the last piece of the sentence. I could see how optimistic she became when she spoke, so I chose to proceed on that topic. "How many places do you know," I asked, somewhat curiously.
"There are many spots that I know of that is pleasant. Maybe I can show you some places later when we have eaten." She said in a cheerful mood. Exploring the town wasn't a bad idea if I am going to remain here for some time, I thought to myself.
"That would've been nice of you," I said appreciatively to her. A forgotten warm feeling emerged deep inside of me when I saw her smile brighten up, and I couldn't help to put up my own smile. As time went by, the mood within us was gradually warming up, making me more content with the situation I was facing. It felt pleasant to small talk to her.
We proceeded to talk to each other, enjoying the others company. We didn't discuss anything unique, just the little things that would come up in our minds. I could feel myself slowly growing more attached to her with every moment we talked.
Eventually, our vocals decreased in volume, making the silence gradually grow between us. The silence slowly overpowered us, and we stopped talking. I anticipated that it would get uncomfortable within us, but to my surprise, It felt refreshing to sit in the quietness.
I let out a deep sigh and leaned further back on the leather, basking in the calm atmosphere around us. At the point when I shut my eyes, it felt like I was back home in the forest. All of my mixed emotions dissolved as I relaxed in the darkness of my eyelids.
"I'm so sorry that you two had to wait so long... The oven in the kitchen was broken, and we were unable to fix it... Sorry, please forgive us." A stressed-out feminine voice uttered to the side. I opened my eyes, slightly startled from the unexpected voice. I brought my gaze to the side, noticing a vulpix standing near the edge of the table.
A slight concern ran through my body as I saw the pokémon standing near us, but my worry decreased as I regarded the other pokémon's emotion. The vulpix was stressed, her fast breathing, constant worrying and her succinct fidgeting. All of the evidence was highlighting the fact that she was emphasised.
She proceeded to apologise to us, bringing up explanations after each other. I cast a glance towards Skye, attempting to see her emotion towards the situation, but she was equally as perplexed as I was.
"Don't worry about it. We aren't in a hurry or anything." Skye interrupted the vulpix's rapid uttering, trying to ease her down. She put on a simple smile to show that there wasn't anything to stress over.
The vulpix rested her rambling and stared at us for a while. Inevitably she removed her gaze, peering down on the floor. She slowly calmed herself down, feeling a little bit more relaxed. After a few additional deep breaths, she brought her head up to meet with ours again. "S-Sorry about that... I didn't mean to freak out or anything. It was just that, today hasn't been a good day." She said in a moody tone but still tried to plaster a moderately smile on her appearance.
"As I said, don't worry about it. Everyone has different emotions depending on their situation." Skye told the vulpix, striving to lighten up the pokémon's mood.
"Thanks..." She quietly spoke out.
I felt excluded from the conversation, feeling like I was sitting on the sidelines. But in all honesty, I was relieved that I didn't have to be the one to stop her uttering.
"Have both of you chosen what to order yet?" She said in a more ordinary voice. She brought her paw back towards her tails, before pulling out a small notebook with a pen attached to it.
"Oh, yea. I would take the... Uhm, The berry mix," Skye told the vulpix, who started to scribble it down on the small piece of paper. At the point when she was done, she brought her gaze towards me. Having never been in this position before, I was left puzzled of what I was supposed to do.
"S-Same as hers," I told the vulpix, being slightly hesitant if I did anything incorrectly. She wrote down the last few words before she flashed a soft smirk and walked away behind a counter, disappearing behind a door soon after.
Quietness spread over us again as we were left alone. The mood within us shifted slightly because of the previous act, leaving us with an uneasy atmosphere. The silence was unsettling me, giving me an eerie sensation. I wanted to break the silence, but for an unknown reason, I couldn't. With nothing to do, I was left alone with my thoughts.
Several thoughts emerged in my head, covering my mind with various reflections. Majority of the considerations were just how I would get out of this place, where we should start looking and when. Though time isn't a problem, however, the sooner I'm gone, the less likely I am to get exposed.
A shudder ran down my spine as I reminded myself that I shouldn't be here. The comfortable atmosphere we had before concealed me away from reality, causing me to ignore the situation I'm facing. Tension slowly developed deep within me as new thoughts invaded my consciousness.
'What's going to happen when she finds out I don't belong here.' It was the same question I had asked myself earlier this night. My nervousness swelling as I pondered each conceivable event. I shook my head, attempting to clear my mind. I didn't want to think about the concept, but the thought still worried me.
I looked around the restaurant, attempting to find something to divert myself with, however, a quick glance over the area was enough for me to see that there wasn't anything exceptional beyond. With nothing to distract me with, I slowly restored my gaze towards Skye. She was staring off into space, not even regarding my glance towards her.
My eyes gradually followed down her body, arriving on the wound on her shoulder. The vibrant colour stood apart from the remainder of the coat around her body, exposing it to everyone. Visions appeared in my mind as I looked at it, giving me an eerie sensation. The memories were still fresh, making me regard every detail.
It felt like I was standing on the road again, watching a helpless pokémon deteriorate.
I brought my stare away from the wound as a peculiar thought entered my mind. 'Does she remember anything from that night?' We haven't spoken a word about what occurred throughout that night to each other. If we knew who did it, then we could prevent the past from repeating itself.
My desire to learn what originated for her to get injured only grew as time passed, but last time I asked her about this inquiry she was quiet. It felt like she tried to avoid the question. However, I needed to quench my desire.
"Skye..?" I said in a practically monotone voice, trying not to put any emotions into my tone. She noticeable recoiled from my abrupt inquiry, slowly taking her gaze towards mine.
"Yes?" She awkwardly answered, picking up on my distinctive tone. I felt my nervousness increase as she stared at me. I was discouraged to bring up this topic before, not having any desire to raze the moment we had previously. But now that it's already shattered, I've got nothing to lose.
I sat motionless, thinking about the most ideal approach to express it to her. I took a deep breath before I decided to speak. "What... What do you remember from that night when I found you. Do you remember what happened... or how it occurred?" My glance lingering down to the table as I spoke, not having any ambition to look straight at her. Silence once again accompanied us when I expressed the last words.
As time went by, I could feel the air thicken around us. I brought my head back up and looked towards Skye. Her expression was unreadable, but I could see a trace of fear crawling around her. I patiently waited for her to speak, not having any urge to push her.
"I...I don-" Her voice was faint, but I could hear a trace of reluctance in her voice before she cut herself off. Her eyes began looking around the room, as on the off chance that she was attempting to spot somebody.
Not all that long after, she brought her glance towards me once more, looking at me with wavering eyes. She took a minute to calm herself down before she spoke up. "I was walking on the pavement in the middle of the night, t-trying to get... Back home again. When a shadow ball entered my vision, crashing into me. I tumbled out into the streets, where I was later pinned down." Her voice grew more insecure as she advanced further into her speech, gradually losing its posture.
"Do you know who did it?" I asked her when she wasn't talking any longer. I grew worried when my question was only exchanged with silence as she didn't respond to my inquiry. The disturbing quietness sauntered around us, making it difficult to remain relaxed. I was slowly getting concerned that I may have pushed her too far.
After a couple of quiet minutes, she finally spoke up. "Yes... I-I know who did it." I felt reassured when she spoke, knowing that I didn't drive her excessively far. However, I could sense her nervousness growing, so I chose to remain patient and wait until she was prepared to talk.
"T-There is this group of pokémons that walk around the streets, with the sole intention to threaten others... Nothing happens to them as every victim gets d-death threats if they attempt to expose them."
I felt revolted when she said that there only purpose was to terrorize, placing dread into others who can't defend their self. 'And yet civilised pokémons says that we are reckless.' I quietly said to myself. With the limited information that she gave me, I was able too deliberately piece together the bigger picture.
"I-I have been a tar-"
"Sorry for the delay." another voice entered the conversation, interfering Skye from her discourse. Looking towards where the voice originated from, I could see the same vulpix from before standing near the edge of the table. Further back behind her was two plates, balancing on her tails.
"oh... It's fine," I said to her, being slightly startled from her unexpected presence. She placed down the plates on either side of the table. I inclined forward, taking hold of the plate and hauling it closer to myself.
Laying on the plate were numerous different berries. The state of the berries was fresh and didn't appear to be ruined by any means, compered on what you would find in nature. They were sliced into fours, giving you easier access into the middle where all the fluid was stored.
Its been over a day since I last ate, and my desire to devour the berry only deepened as I stared at it. "Still, I'm very sorry for the difficulty we had before," She appended soon after she was done with settling the plates down. I tried to reassure her that everything was fine and that it didn't affect us too much, but she would continue to make excuses.
After a while, I eventually convinced her that this wasn't a problem. I could regard that she was still regretful, but she hesitantly advanced away from the table.
Looking towards Skye again, I noticed that her distressed state hasn't diminished after the vulpix interference. She continued to look down, not saying a word. Seeing Skye in this condition created a faint sorrowful feeling, rooted within me.
Glancing to the side of the table, I could see that her plate was still untouched by her. Seeing that she hasn't regarded it, I leaned forward, picking up the platter with my paws, before placing it in front of her. She snapped out from her mental meditation and looked up towards me. I put on a smile as our eyes locked onto each other.
"We should eat now so that we have enough energy to maintain ourself later," I said to her with a soothing voice, trying to distract her from the former subject. A meek smile tenderly crept onto her face before she gingerly started to eat. With the inquiry concluded, I could finally resolve to eat the food that I have been waiting for to devour.
The strong scent coming from the berries was intoxicating, causing my appetite too only grow. Taking my first bite from the berry, I could taste its sweet content. The juice left a strong aftertaste as it flowed down my throat.
Swallowing the small chunk in my maw left me with a feeling of yearning loitering in my opening. I hastily took another bite, trying to satisfy my body's need. I continued this procedure until the craving Within me soothed down.
Having less of an appetite now than before, I decided to savour the taste from the last few remaining berries.
A fulfilled murmur escaped from my lips as I gulped down the last berry's mass. Glancing towards Skye, I could see that she was almost finished with her platter too.
With the short time I had to myself, I chose to recollect my thoughts. I started arranging the information she gave, trying to piece together the broad picture she was striving to tell me. However, with the scarce details that she shared, I could only conclude that a group of pokémons assaulted her for no reason.
'I don't even know what species the pokémons were...'
"Kalen?" I was thrown out from my subconscious as I heard Skye's voice. I delayed my reflection and guided my glance towards the Leafeon. I gave her a short 'yes' as an answer, showing sufficient care towards her as I waited for her to proceed.
"If you aren't hungry anymore, then I could start showing you throughout the town," She uttered delicately. However, even after the long break between the previous subject, I could still detect a hint of hesitation lingering in her voice.
Not feeling the craving of stuffing food down my throat, I complied with her. Preparing our departure, we stretched our legs and paid for the food ere we walked out of the building.
The sun covered us again in warmth as we stepped out into the pavement. The fresh air combined with the gentle breeze helped to settle a peaceful mood within us. For the following several hours, we walked around the town, Visiting a portion of Skye's most preferred sites.
While she showed me around different places, we kept talking to one another. Dissimilar from before, our conversation grew more personal. We began sharing stories with each other, talking about our favoured memories. But of course, I was forced to alter them to avoid suspicion.
It gave me a pleasant feeling every time I made her chuckle, and vice versa when she did the same to me. It felt nice to know that I could change her mood even after what has occurred to her. She was gradually starting to grow on me, making me less tense around her. I was deliberately warming up to the thought of having her as a friend, unlike before when I wasn't assured about her.
We visited some fundamentals places in the city, sufficient for me to know where I am going if I ever am alone in the streets. But after a while of walking, I saw that her leg was noticeable acting up. When I first confronted her about it, she denied it, making up a quick excuse. However, identifying that the wound was bothersome to her, we settled for a final destination to unwind.
"Here we are," announced Skye as we halted near an entrance. Glancing over towards our destination, I could see that it was a park. Grass spread the area with a few pathway's made from gravel. Trees randomly placed throughout the place, giving it a subtle natural look. The serene environment was oddly comfortable, giving me the same feeling I would get from being near a forest.
"This is my favourite place to visit when I want to relax," she said as she began to advance slowly towards the park. I soon followed after her, taking my first steps into the new area. "yea, I can see why," I humbly commented on her former sentence as I looked around in slight awe of this place.
Walking further into the place, we arrived near the heart of the park. In the heart was an area built as a circle with cobblestone on the ground. Large stone bricks placed on the outer edge, forming a wall of roughly the same height as me around the expanse. Six openings were distributed throughout the barrier, extending a path from every hole.
The most distinguished aspect of the whole construction was the tree, a full-grown tree planted in the middle of the circle, reaching several meters in height. I was confounded regarding why they would have a tree in the centre, serving no purpose other than providing a shadow beneath it.
We gradually approached the ominous formation, taking our first strides onto the cobblestones. I soon noticed that there were benches carved into the larger stone bricks. We selected a 'bench' and decided to cease our muscles there.
I anticipated that the stone would be cold, but I was pleasantly surprised when I made contact with the brick. With the sun shining on the stone, it absorbed the warmth that was tossed at it. It felt nice too finally take a break after all the walking we did, giving my stiff muscles the rest they deserve.
I proceeded to eye the tree, reflecting on why it was there. Though, before I could conclude an answer, Skye must have seen my wondering glance. "Y'know, when I first saw the tree. I imagined that there was some sort of mistake until my parents told me the original purpose of this formation."
I was getting more interested in the subject as she progressed further into her sentence. I turned towards Skye, giving her my total consideration while I waited for her to continue.
"On a few walls exist several lines carved into them, indicating different times throughout the day. When the silhouetted created from the tree passes a mark, an hour has passed. So essentially, this whole construction is a giant clock."
'That's... quite impressive,' I thought to myself as I glanced towards the shadow, seeing how it was nearing a new line. It fascinated me that they could use a shadow to determine the time of the day, opposite of what I would do as I would generally look up at the sky and define the position of the sun.
"This is one of the few landmarks that exist in this to..." Before Skye could conclude her sentence, Voices could be apprehended, coming closer towards us. Looking at the source of the quickly growing noises, I could make out two figures leisurely approaching.
At first glance, it didn't seem as much, but considering how Skye body stiffened and how her breathing was getting deeper were clear signs that there is something in particular about these two pokémons.
Her posture was slowly shrinking with every passing moment.
With the limited time I had, I began identifying the species of the pokémons. Examining the first figure, I could see that it was a bipedal figure with dark red scales and a cream underside from the chest down, long arms with three sharp claws. The tip of its long, powerful tail possessed a flame burning on it. With the subtleties I called attention to, I could comprehend that it was a charmeleon.
Taking my glance towards the other creature, I could see that its frame was quadruped. Its fur was mostly short and grey, but there is rough black fur on its lower legs, tail, and in two thick strips starting behind its eyes and running the length of its body.
Blacks legs... with lighter grey further up...
It didn't take me long before I could conclude the figure's species. The distinctive look of a mightyena was practically tough to miss. With the spare time we had left, I mentally prepared myself for anything these two had to offer as I waited for them to approach us.
"Well, well, well... Who do we have here?" The peculiar tone in his voice was sending out various information, giving me tangled sensations. However, it was clear that the mightyena's intent was to put dread into his victim.
'The victim being Skye.'
The vibe that was emitting from him wasn't pleasant, presenting me with a feeling that obscured me. "I thought you were supposed to leave this town?" He continued his torment with the same dark pitch, causing Skye too slowly sink deeper into her condition. Watching the scene unfold in front of me, provoked a growing desire inside of me, a desire to preserve Skye.
Although, it wasn't alone as there was another drive inside of me that wanted to jump at the pokémon. Though this urge wasn't driven by my emotion to defend Skye, instead it was driven by hatred from an unknown source.
But before I could act, The mightyena took notice of my presence. As our eyes met one another, I could see a momentary stun go through him. Yet it disappeared as a sickening smile crept up onto the mightyena's face before he resolves to speak. "Well, would you look at that?" He said in a moderately mocking tone, putting his focus onto me.
I could feel the weight he was putting on me solely with his gaze. The tension was growing prominent with every passing moment. "Who do we have here? A little hero perhaps?" He gave out a small chuckle as he taunted me. I tried not to react, not wanting to give him the satisfaction he yearned for.
"What's your name buddy?" He said after he discerned that I wouldn't acknowledge his previous question. The fact that he used the word 'buddy' only fueled the developing desire. "Kalen," I said, short and simple.
"Nice to meet you, Kalen. My name is Rehan." That was the last thing he said before he continued to his initial destination, grinning.