Obligatory "I do not own Pokemon, only my OC's, all Pokemon related content belongs to Nintendo and its related parties."
This is going to be my first ever Pokemon fanfiction, titled: Revenant. I've had the idea in my head for a bit now, so I'm excited to finally put it down on paper. This is the prologue, a.k.a, the intro, so it's a lot shorter than what the rest of the chapters will be. It has a word count of 1056, but to put that in perspective what I have so far of chapter 1 has a word count of 4696 and it's still a work in progress. The first few chapters will be setting up the lore, world, and character.
Ash does exist in this universe, but it's an AU, so we won't be following the canon story line. I've taken a few liberties with some aspects of the world, such as the trainer age being 15, rather than 10, and more that will crop up eventually.
Leave some reviews/suggestions/critiques so I can better my writing and the story. Feel free to ask questions, I'll be answering each and every one and will later put FAQ's after every chapter. Leave suggestions for future teammates (Ghost Pokemon only) etc, etc. I'll be leaving these author's notes at the end of each chapter (not including this one, since it's here).
The story starts out a bit dark and serious, but will grow into a more lighthearted fic. Anyways, I hope y'all enjoy.
Prologue:
Revenant: A person who returns, or more specifically, a person who returns after death.
I woke with a gasp of breath to bright lights and blurry images.
I was barely cognizant of my surroundings before a sharp pain lanced through my body and I screamed. It was cold, then it was warm, and I was swaddled in something tight that bound me from moving. Something vibrated against me through that which bound my limbs.
As I quieted I heard voices that lilted through the air in notes I didn't recognize.
That's when I realized I was pushed up against someone's chest, the source of the vibrations, made as they spoke in low soothing tones.
I was able to parse through the voices, the soothing one was slightly breathy, tired maybe, but joyous. A woman. Another was energetic, panicked slightly. A loud, low timbre. A man. Another man spoke in clipped tones underlined with relief.
Who were they? Why was I bound?
My eyes refused to focus, and suddenly I felt oh so very, tired.
I promptly fell asleep against the chest of the woman, bound in what I would later come to know was a blanket.
Doctor Maple wiped sweat from his brow as he looked towards the tired, but happy, couple. It had been a complicated birth, lasting 27 hours, and they had barely avoided an emergency c section. The baby was nearly premature, just late enough to not be considered so. Even so, it had seemed too late for the baby.
There was no initial cry, the parents had looked towards the doctor with panicked expressions. She was born still, unmoving.
He wiped the baby down before quickly checking vitals. He shook his head with a grim countenance, but just when he gathered the courage to tell the parents the crushing news, she let out a gasp.
He quickly gave the baby a light slap on the bum in order to stimulate action further.
The result was explosive. He was baffled. There had been no signs of life. None. Yet here she was. Alive.
He handed the child over to her mother. He watched with wide eyes as the baby quieted, trying to squirm her way through the swaddle, the action seemed to tire her.
After she had fallen asleep he ushered the nurses forwards in order to take the baby to do further testing to confirm her health. He told the parents that they would need to stay in the hospital for another week due to the unorthodox circumstances, further explaining that they would monitor her during this time in case there would be any further complications. The parents were understanding, although the mother was barely conscious at this point.
He left them to rest.
The woman strained to sit up and look at the doctor, but her husband's reassuring hand stopped her. It rested on her shoulder.
The other was currently being shaken and flexed in order to get rid of the lingering pain of being squeezed mercilessly for the entirety of the birth.
She sent him a distracted, shaky smile, most of her attention on the still doctor by her feet.
Why wasn't he saying anything?
She paused, panic beginning to fill her as blood began to drain from her already ashen face. Nausea creeped up through her throat, anxiety clawed the inside of her stomach as she realized- why couldn't she hear her baby?
The doctor's eyes met her own, resigned, and just as tired as her own.
Despair.
She nearly collapsed under the weight of it.
She choked as her throat tightened, her husband holding her in strong arms, just grounding her enough so she didn't go into shock.
They had always known the possibility, prepared for it. Her family had a long line of miscarriages and stillbirths. But they had begun to believe she was different when they had a successful pregnancy.
They had begun to hope.
Then she nearly collapsed for a different reason. A wail pierced the room. Tears came unbidden as she sat in quiet shock and awe as her baby was handed to her. Thank Arceus she was okay. She held her close, staring into unfocused gray eyes.
She would be Mehr. Their little miracle.
Her husband could choose her middle name, her first name would be Mehr, she would be taking no objections.
He shook out his hand, grimacing as the blood rushed back into his fingers. He grinned down at the beautiful woman he was lucky enough to call his wife. His hand gently pushed her into a resting position and he leaned forward to place a gentle kiss on her brow.
He looked towards the doctor, impatient and restless after sitting so long in wait. His knee bounced up and down, his brow furrowing as the doctor glanced towards them both, expression pinched at the corner of his eyes.
The husband stiffened, eyes swinging towards his wife as she made a strangled sound. He quickly wrapped his arms around her. She laid in his arms, stiff in disbelief.
She choked on sobs, and he trembled minutely, refusing to show weakness. She needed him to be strong right now.
Then, miraculously, a baby's wail pierced the room. The doctor met his eyes, both blown into perfect circles.
His wife was dazed, reeling from the sudden shift in emotion. It took her a second to reboot, enough time for the doctor to do his thing and then hand the baby over to her parents.
Parents.
That's what they were now. His grin split his face, stretching his beard as he bellowed out a laugh. his wife poked him in the side harshly, a surprising amount of strength behind it. He looked down, realizing the baby was now sleeping soundly.
He scratched the back of his head sheepishly, too distracted by his wife and the baby to notice the doctor as he left. He stared at their matching hair, a purple so dark it neared black. His wife spoke tiredly.
"She has your eyes."
He smiled softly.
"And your hair."
They shared a loving look, but the wife was already half asleep, the adrenaline was slipping away. He carded his fingers through her hair, lulling her to sleep, before he made himself as comfy as he could in a hospital chair and followed suit.