9,000. That's how many words were in the last chapter. Up till now, most of the chapters have been averaging between 5,000-6,000 words, at least. Hopefully that doesn't include these author's notes. So for that length, whoa! And for what happened in the last chapter, double whoa!
But now, we enter to what happens after Rina and her sisters are revealed. And trust me, this does get slightly dark until the next chapter. And even then, some dark elements will pop up. So if you don't like when a story turns dark, this is your only warning. Otherwise, let's catch up with how the crew is faring now that they know about their stowaways.
Edit: If you read this on DA, you might notice Sora not behaving accordingly to his punishment. Thanks to that little tidbit, I modified that scene just a smidge to make it more realistic.
Disclaimer: I do not own Pokemon or its characters. All rights to Game Freak and Nintendo. I just own the story.
Chapter 15:
Vacation Day
Guest Star: Anabel (Battle Frontier) as Peri
At early dawn, the crew stood present on deck. Everyone was in attendance for the punishment Sora would endure for hiding Rina and her sisters onboard. The ex-stowaways sat in a dinghy they used before, horrified by the scene that lay before them. Sora was stripped down, save for his pants, and tied to the mast with his back facing the prince. His Bulbasaur had been summoned earlier, and stood beside Prince Pewter. Clearly, everyone felt like this was wrong. Sora should not suffer for any reason, for he committed no true wrongs. But he had offered himself up to take the mermaid's punishment, so there was no way out of it.
Steeling himself for what needed to be done, the prince pronounced, "In accordance with the ancient customs, those that have wronged the ruler shall be punished according to their severity. Today, Guardian Sora shall face the consequences, and atone for these misdeeds. Bulbasaur, you shall give him 20 lashings with Vine Whip." Bulbasaur conceded to the order, preparing its Vine Whip. Everyone looked away, especially Rina and Yolanda. Then, with great strife to itself, Bulbasaur let loose the first lash. Sora let out a strangled cry from the intense sting, but he bared it with determination. Bulbasaur continued with eight more whippings, creating marks on Sora's back. And with each lashing, Sora tried to hold himself back from crying out with minimal success. But on the 10th one, Bulbasaur held back.
Prince Pewter noticed this, and barked, "Proceed!" However, Bulbasaur was on the verge of breaking down, tears forming in its eyes. It wouldn't hurt its partner, it couldn't do it anymore. Sighing, Prince Pewter summoned his Croagunk, and instructed, "Croagunk, do eleven Brick Breaks on Sora." It adhered, and started slamming its attack on Sora. Prince Pewter hated to do this, he loathed himself for committing it, but punishment had to be done. Sora bore through the back-breaking attacks, using his aura to strengthen his resistance as he cried out with each hit. He suffered, but he did it so that no one else has to be punished. He would be the whipping boy, and take the blow in other's stead.
When it was over, Sora was laid on his stomach in his quarters as Cancer tended to his injuries. Yolanda, Tidus, and Sparky tended to him as well, and so did his Pokémon. Anytime Cancer tended to a sore part on his scars, Sora cringed as he endured the pain.
"Sora, why?" Yolanda asked, "Why would you choose to be punished for something you did not do?"
"I already told you, princess." Sora answered, enduring more of his treatment, "I do not abandon my friends. I could never see them cast off. Never."
"That makes some sense." Tidus pondered, "But did that one mermaid, Rina, really save you master?"
"I have no doubt about it." Cancer responded while sifting through his satchel, "If Sora had been thrown into the sea that day like he said, then he wouldn't be here now. So quite possibly, it was Rina who had rescued him."
"Yeah! Rina is so great!" Sparky giggled.
"Denne!"
"But, what if it's all a trick?" Yolanda questioned, "What if it's part of her plan to destroy us?"
"No, it isn't." Sora refuted, "If Rina wanted to do destroy us, she would have done so already." Despite that assurance, Yolanda felt uneasy. And seeing Sora this way further troubled her. She couldn't trust that mermaid, especially not after Sora had been made to keep her a secret for so long.
Down in the secret room, the three mermaid sisters sat on the deck in portentous silence. None of them felt happy about the circumstances, especially now that they were no longer secret to the crew. The way that everyone had looked at Rina when she had revealed herself, and then when Kari and Sarah made themselves known, it was what they had come to expect. Horror, utter horror of them from what they heard about mermaids. It was what they expected, and reason enough for them to linger no longer.
"It's time." Sarah finally spoke with a serious tone.
"It is." Kari said gravely, "I will miss Drake, but this is for the best."
"It's like I said: mermaids and humans can never be together. It's a simple fact." With that final word, Sarah and Kari set themselves into the water to prepare to leave. However, Rina had not budged an inch. She seemed lost, gazing downward with heavy eyes that appeared on the verge of tears.
Seeing this, Kari called, "Rina, we have to go."
"Why do we?" Rina spoke softly, "Why do we have to leave?"
"You know very well why!" Sarah told her sternly, "We don't belong here. We don't belong alongside humans. That's just the honest truth."
"For who, Sarah?!" Rina snapped, "Has everyone treated us like we don't belong?!"
"Sora is one exception. But everyone else will soon call for our necks."
"Drake and Kenneth care about you two! And you're just gonna leave them because of an old mermaid tale?!"
"Look at what that prince did to Sora! Pretty soon, they'll do worse to us! We can't stay here, where we don't belong!"
"Well then, I'm not leaving." Facing little alternative, both Kari and Sarah seized Rina and dragged her into the water. Nothing was left of their absence, save a special tiara tied to a promise.
At high noon, the crew was up and on deck, looking out into the horizon for their destination to appear. At last, they arrived at Salure Island! The island was decked with dozens of different buildings and venues that, even from a distance, shined bright and cheerful. It was actually a well-known resort island, particularly for nobles and royals, decked with hot springs, sand pits, and many other resort attractions to allow guests to relax and enjoy their time. Besides being a resort, it was also home to an extravagant boutique that would put even Yolanda's wardrobe to shame.
Everyone gazed out at the amazing sight coming into view, eager to check out this amazing place. Well, almost everyone really. As excited as she was, Yolanda took notice to Sora's absence on the railing. Curious, she looked all over the deck until she spotted him, Pikachu, and Larvitar sitting in the dinghy. Sora didn't seem all that eager to join the crew in marveling at their destination, and that bothered her. She couldn't figure out what was egging him, until she spotted the tiara he was holding.
"Isn't that one of my tiaras that mermaid, Rina, was wearing?"
"Yeah, it is." Sora replied, not even looking at her, "It was a promise we made, to see each other again."
"Sora, please tell me, why did you hide that mermaid on our ship all this time?" she asked, taking a seat across from her betrothed, "She could have been deceiving you all that time."
"I owed her my life. She saved me, and I couldn't turn against her. Besides, at the time, Rina and her sisters thought all humans were selfish and cruel. I wanted to prove them wrong." Yolanda began to see a bit of Sora's reasoning behind why he sheltered the mermaid sisters. Whenever he made friends with anyone, Sora was loyal to a fault. No doubt he would have defended Rina, just like he defended her and her kingdom. It was part of what attracted her. Even so, she could not help but feel wary of the mermaid, despite all she had done for Sora and the crew, supposedly.
"How did Rina come to know about you?" Yolanda inquired.
Stilling his hands, Sora recalled, "She said she had heard of me from a Lapras I saved. This Lapras told her how I had saved it, and how I had a great love for Pokémon."
"A Lapras? You never told me about something like that."
"You never asked. While I was still traveling before, Sketch and I ran across a baby Lapras that had been separated from its pod due to a storm. It took a little doing, but we managed to nurse it back to health, and even reunited it with its group."
"But don't Lapras usually lash out at strangers when they are injured or lost?"
"They do, and this one did as well. But I kept trying, and let it know I was a friend. And pretty soon, it began to trust me." Yolanda was quite impressed. Sora's ability to befriend Pokémon often amazed her, and this story was no different. Plus, befriending a Lapras was often a remarkable feat, as they usually steered clear of most humans. But again, Sora was not like most humans, which would explain a lot about Rina's interests.
"So, that's the story." Sora concluded, "I just wish I could do the same with Rina and her sisters."
Resting her hand on his, Yolanda calmly told him, "If Rina still wants to be your friend, I believe she may still come back someday."
"You think so, princess?" Yolanda nodded in reply. Then, she began leaning over to Sora, eyes closed for the moment. However, right when she reached over to him, she smelled some kind of spice in front of her.
"Bay Bay." When she opened her eyes, Bayleef was staring back at her.
"Gah! Bayleef!" she exclaimed, "When did you pop out?!" Rather than answer, Bayleef just nuzzled her master. This cheered Sora up a bit, but only a little.
"Welcome to Salure Island!" some women in Hawwaiian-esque outfits greeted with bright smiles. As the crew docked, they were each given a lei by these greeters. Once that was over, they began to see the extravagance of Salure Island. Like from afar, the place was bright and colorful, fitted with various attractions and stalls for people looking to escape and relax. The crew spotted several spots with hot springs, sand pits, massage centers, and even a world-class boutique. The whole place was quite ostentatious, and stretched across most of the island. There was even an area for the Safari Zone, where trainers could go to try and befriend hard-to-find Pokémon.
As the group stood admiring the resort, a man with green hair extending to his shoulders welcomed, "You must be the crew of Guardian Sora? We've been expecting you."
"I suppose the Chieftain was informed of our arrival?" Prince Pewter asked.
"Correct. The Chieftain is a bit busy today, but will accept the guardian's battle on the morrow. Till then, they wished for your entire crew to enjoy our humble island home to your content." At this, the group cheered and raced off for all the fun attractions. However, Sora's lack of enthusiasm was picked up by Yolanda and Tidus, so they returned to check on him.
"What's the matter master?" the apprentice wondered.
"Huh?" Sora started, as if being brought out of a trance, "Oh, nothing. I think I'll go check the Safari Zone."
"Um Sora," Yolanda spoke up, "Souldn't we try to relax instead? You've been under a lot of stress for the past week or so."
"I'll be alright. Besides, I want to check out the Pokémon here. Pikachu, Larvitar, go with Tidus and the others."
"Pika?" Pikachu wondered, confused by Sora's directions.
"And Tidus, keep an eye on this too, please?" And Sora gave his staff to Tidus for safekeeping. With that, Sora took off for the Safari Zone before his friends could investigate further on his actions.
"Why is he doing this?" Yolanda questioned.
"He's hurt." Tidus said out of the blue. Knowing he made no sense, he explained, "Whenever my master leaves his Pokémon with me, it means he's hurting inside. And he doesn't want anyone to try fretting for him. It has happened a couple of times, and each time he did the same thing." Yolanda looked on to where Sora disappeared to, and began to realize what was hurting him.
"He's still thinking about Rina. That's what is hurting him." She figured. Pikachu and Larvitar nodded in confirmation, worried for Sora's safety and well-being.
Out a ways from Salure Island, Rina floated among the waves as she gazed out to the Aura, wondering if Sora was doing alright without her. Although her sisters wanted to leave the humans behind, she felt like she couldn't. Or rather, she wouldn't. Something inside her told her to not leave, to stay by Sora's side. There was a sense of foreboding about Sora's journey, like some kind of disaster would eventually befall him. If that was true, Rina couldn't just abandon him or the crew. Whatever might happen to them could be because of her, so she needed to stay close. That was what she believed.
During her gazing and contemplating, Rina got dragged under by her sisters.
"Will you give it a rest already?!" Sarah griped for the umpteenth time, "Let's forget about these humans and go back to where we belong."
"You really want to forget about these people who sheltered us and protected us so freely?!" Rina criticized, "How can you be so heartless?!"
"Easy. Humans are."
"Sora is not heartless! None of them are!"
"Then what about that pompous princess who's always attached to his hip?"
"That's—" But Rina had no counterargument for that, so she remained silent.
"Rina, I know how you feel." Kari tried to comfort, "I miss Drake too. Yet, he might have someone else in his heart. So I must be ready to let go. Sora might be the same way with Yolanda."
"So you're just gonna give up, is that it?!" Rina scolded, "Don't you care about if something happened to them?!"
"Why should we care?!" Sarah retaliated, "The only reason we're here is because of your fixation on Sora. Open your eyes! Sora can never feel for you the way you feel for him!"
"There's more at stake here than that!" That caught the other two unawares. Rina never got this mad at them, ever. Yet here she was, defending her position to return to the humans, when it could all be hopeless and a waste of time. Not to mention this new argument she was bringing to bear.
"It's your premonitions, isn't it?" Kari wondered, "You've been having premonitions about Sora, haven't you?" Rina didn't answer her.
Instead, she replied, "If you two want to so freely dismiss Drake, Kenneth, and the others, then fine! Go back if you so feel. But I won't leave Sora because of who I am. If there is a chance, even a slim one, that he could defy the fables, I will give everything I have to see him succeed." And with a flick of her tail, she took off for the island, leaving her sisters to become even more worried about their sister's interaction with Sora.
Deep in the Safari Zone, Sora was exploring the dense forest for all the rare or different Pokémon that resided there. So far, he spotted some Kanghaskan like from Mega Island, Chansey, Nidorino and Nidorina, Kakuna, Vivillon, Croagunk, Sudowoodo, and even Pidgeotto. It was clearly a high end Safari Zone from the quality of the Pokémon present, but also because the entire environment looked very well kept. The jungle was quite amazing, but the feeling didn't stay when he went to the next area.
A great lake stood prominent in the clearing, a channel leading to rapids on the side near where Sora entered from. Bunches of Quagsire, Marshtomp, Floette, and Palpitoads all resided here, each enjoying the comfort of the lake. But looking at this place and all its water Pokémon tugged at Sora's heart. Looking at his reflection in the water, he recalled his time traveling with Rina, Kari, and Sarah. He had learned so much about his new friends, and he knew there was more to discover about them. With them gone, it felt like Sora was missing a piece of himself.
Why did they have to leave? Sora thought sadly, Why couldn't they stay? Why couldn't Rina stay? I know everyone worries about them now that they were revealed, but that just meant we could all be friends now. So why? Of course, Sora figured the answer lay in what everyone already thought. For humans, mermaids meant disaster and ruin upon meeting. For mermaids, humans were selfish and unfeeling creatures. Despite what he remembered from stories he was told when he was younger, Sora never believed those fables. He was always fascinated by new things, and the prospect of making new friends. It was just hard to accept what most of the others believed, and even harder to convince them of what he believed.
Disheartened by turmoil, Sora sat cross-legged by the lakeside. When he did, a curious Mudkip and Flabebé approached him to see what was wrong. Sora noticed them, and welcomed them to rest in his lap. Instead of doing that, Flabebé circled around his head and released a pleasant aroma. The action tickled Sora, and even more so when Mudkip used its tail near his ribcage. After that, the two settled down so Sora could recover. Once he did, his smile returned. And with it, Sora found a suitable leaf, and played the Leaf Whistle.
While he played, images came to his mind from out of nowhere. Images of his crew at sea, playing and enjoying their time with Rina and her sisters. The images further envisioned everyone relaxing on their journey, or battling each other in friendly competitions. It was, in a way, Sora's dream come true. As he finished, Sora felt like he couldn't give up on that dream.
Just then, a lone Azurill approached Sora. It looked to be a baby Azurill, considering how young it looked. It seemed very timid and scared of the guardian and the two Pokémon presently with him. Sensing this, Flabebé floated down to it, and began talking with it. After a little exchanging, Azurill was led over to the group.
Resting the tyke on his lap, Sora asked softly, "What are you doing out here, little one?"
Azurill replied, "Azurill Azu. Azu Azu, Azurill."
"You've traveled that far on your own? Wow! But why?"
"Azurill Azu."
"You're looking for someone? Who?"
"Azurill Rill."
"I see. You don't know. Well, maybe we can help. I'm kinda looking for someone too. Why don't we look together?"
"Azu."
"Great! Then let's go." But right when Sora got up, a swarm of Beedrill flew right in their path. Startled, he accidently knocked one into the fast-flowing channel leading away from the lake, and fell in following. Then, the channel led into some rapids that Sora had some trouble with. He searched for the Beedrill he had accidently hit, and tried swimming to it to help. However, he was thrown to the side, and hit his head on some rocks. The blow knocked him out, and he and Beedrill began floating to the ocean-side.
The next thing Sora knew, he was waking up to the sound of someone humming. He also felt someone wrapping some sort of plant around his head. Thanks to this, he began opening his eyes, and spotted a familiar someone with orange-red hair.
"Rina." He uttered with some difficulty.
Having managed to finish wrapping the seaweed, Rina heard him and sighed, "Oh thank Mother Sea you're alright! You really had me worried there that time, Sora."
"Where am I?"
"On the coast of Salure Island. You looked like you hit your head on something coming down here."
"And you saved me?" The mermaid nodded. Sora then began to realize that she had his head on her lap, that his hat was missing, and that they were in another area of the Safari Zone. The Pokémon that were with Sora weren't present, and neither was,
"Beedrill!" Sora started, shooting up, "Where's Beedrill?!"
"Beedrill?" Rina questioned.
"Yeah. A Beedrill was caught in the rapids with me. Where is it?" As he looked around, he spotted Azurill and Mudkip dragging a weakened Beedrill onto shore. Despite his throbbing head, Sora rushed to aid in rescuing it.
Beedrill looked rather weak, and its body was all wet from its trip. And with its wings being wet, he knew it wouldn't be able to fly. Without a moment's hesitation, Sora took off his cape and began drying off Beedrill's body.
"Hey Rina, mind giving me a hand?" Sora requested. When he looked back at her though, Rina was looking rather paralyzed with fear. Yet Sora didn't understand why. "Uh Rina? You okay?"
"Yeah. I'm perfectly fine." Rina tittered.
"Okay. Then can you help me with Beedrill?"
"I'll just stay over here. You're doing a good job of it anyway."
"What is that supposed to mean?" But Rina didn't answer. Rather, she scooted a little bit away from them, and a bit towards the water. Ignoring her weird behavior for now, Sora resumed helping Beedrill recover.
He got its body pretty dry, but its wings were still fairly wet. He needed to be delicate with those if he was to help Beedrill recover. At that moment, Flabebé floated beside him as he contemplated how to dry off the wings.
Noticing it, he requested, "Flabebé, can you use Fairy Wind to blow the water off Beedrill's wings?" Flabebé complied, and blew a light wind across the membranous extensions. Immediately, the remaining drops of water flew off the wings, and with it they began to twitch. Finding itself alright, Beedrill woke up and began to take off. However, because it was still weakened, it could only levitate a little bit off the ground. Reaching into his pouch, Sora pulled out a Sitrus Berry, and gave it to Beedrill to help it heal.
"There. All better." Sora sighed as he put his cape back on. After that, Azurill and Mudkip came over and brought his hat with them. Thanking them, Sora put it on as he continued to tend to Beedrill. While he did, Azurill spotted Rina off to the side, and hopped over to her. With a mighty bounce from its tail, Azurill vaulted skyward and was caught by a very surprised mermaid.
"Wait a minute!" Rina pondered, gaining some sense of familiarity about this Azurill, "Are you… that Azurill I saved from those Farfetch'd?" Azurill bounded happily in Rina's arms in confirmation.
"You know that Azurill?" Sora inquired, taking notice to the exchange.
"Yeah. I helped it out some time ago while I was looking for you. But, what are you doing here, little one?"
"It was looking for you."
Puzzled, Rina asked, "Looking for me?"
"Yep. That Azurill told me it was looking for someone that helped it out before. I guess you were who it was looking for." Rina was quite amazed. This baby Azurill had traveled all that way from its home, just to find her? It was quite astonishing, even for her.
But at that moment, some bolas spun in and snagged Rina from out of nowhere. Shocked by this, Sora looked to where the source was, and prepared for confrontation.
"Who's there?!" he demanded.
In reply, two voices recited, "Prepare for trouble!" "And make it double!"
"Not this again." Sora groaned.
"To protect the world from devastation!"
"To unite all peoples within our nation!"
"To denounce the evils of truth and love!"
"To extend our reach to the stars above!"
"Jessica!"
"And Jameson!"
"The kingdom of Tyrannia sets sail with speed and might!"
"Surrender now, or prepare to fight!"
"Meowth, that's right!"
Then the Tyrannina Trio appeared, in their usual dramatic fashion.
"Well twerp, looks like we meet again." Jameson taunted.
"And this time, we caught your little mermaid friend too." Jessica pointed out.
"Now hand over da Pikachu, an no one gets hurt!" Meowth threatened.
"Forget it! Besides, Pikachu isn't here right now." Then the three began to notice Pikachu' s absence, though didn't quite catch on as to why that was.
"I thought the twerp always had his Pikachu with him." Jameson pondered.
"Forget abou' it! Just grab da mermaid an let's get outta here! We can us 'er as bargainin' chip."
Rising to her defense, Sora challenged, "You'll have to get through me first!"
At this, Jessica cackled, "What can a guardian like you do without your Pokémon?"
"Plenty. Cause I'm not just a guardian." Flashing an aura flame in his hand, he proclaimed, "I am an Aura Guardian !" This was definitely something the three of them did not anticipate. But it did explain Sora's power eruption when he battled their prince. And even though Sora was gonna fight the Tyrannina Trio, Flabebé and Mudkip took the front to help him battle. Sora could tell in their auras that they wanted to help, and he was more than happy to accept it. Going against these three, Sora would need all the help he could get.
With villainous smirks, the trio called out their Pokémon. "Dustox, go!" "Carnivine, come out!" And coming out were a moth Pokémon with wings around its body like a fan, and a Grass Pokemon resembling a Venus Fly Trap. As Carnivine appeared, it turned around and chomped on Jameson's head.
"Must you eat my noggin' now!?" he whined. Meowth even joined the battle, standing between the two.
Taking the first move, Jessica called out, "Dustox, Poison Sting!" And Dustox launched darts tipped with poison at Flabebé, nailing it down in one attack.
"Carnivine, use Bullet Seed!" Jameson ordered after freeing himself. So Carnivine shot glowing pellets at Mudkip, knocking it out too.
"And now for my Fury Swipes, guardian twerp!" Meowth laughed as he descended upon Sora. But before he reached him, Beedrill swooped in and tackled Meowth away. Then it hovered in front of Sora, engaged and eager to battle.
Seeing that it wanted to battle, Sora ordered, "Okay Beedrill, use your Poison Sting attack!" With its arm needles glowing, Beedrill shot off darts at Carnivine. Then he instructed, "Now use Twin Needle on Dustox!" And quick as a flash, Beedrill jabbed Dustox with both its arms.
Sensing a change, Jessica barked, "Dustox, Psybeam!"
And Sora countered, "Agility!" Though Dustox launched a blue-and-pink beam from its eyes, Beedrill's Agility enabled it to avoid the attack altogether.
But right when it was going to retaliate, Jameson ordered, "Carnivine, whack it away with Vine Whip!" So Carnivine swatted Beedrill back with Vine Whip, and pushed it into Sora who got knocked down next to a struggling Rina.
"Now we got you." Jessica cheered, throwing more bolas to bind Sora and Beedrill down, "And your girlfriend too!"
Right before the bolas reached their target, someone called out, "Use Psychic!" And immediately, the bolas stopped in midair. Then, whoever called out the Psychic attack sent them back, and caught the trio's Pokémon, including Meowth. Looking to their left, both Sora and Rina spotted who saved them, along with her Alakazam. The woman wore a buccanear's attire; a jacket with fruffy sleeves, short pants and stockings, and shoes with buckles on them, all in a lilac color. The person herself had short, lilac hair that made it difficult to distinguish her gender at first.
Once she approached them, the woman inquired, "Need a hand to defeat them?"
"Yeah, thanks." Sora replied, grateful for the interference.
"Alright. My friend, use Hyper Beam!" Putting its two spoons together, Alakazam shot an orange energy beam at the bound Pokémon, sending them flying into their masters in a huge explosion.
"Grr! How could we not beat some guardian and capture his mermaid?!" Jessica growled.
"Well, I believe it was your idea to capture the mermaid and use her to trade for Pikachu." Jameson said matter-of-factly.
"Yeah. Some plan." Meowth muttered.
Enraged, Jessica roared, "IT WAS A GREAT PLAN TO SHOW UP THAT FISH! BUT NOW—"
"Tyrannia's setting sail again!" And they were gone.
After that was dealt with, Sora used Beedrill's Twin Needle to cut the ropes holding them, and Rina and Azurill. But after he did, Rina hid behind Sora, cowering.
That's when Sora realized, "You're not afraid of Beedrill, are you?"
So Rina complained in admittance, "I just don't like Bug Pokémon, okay! I really don't like them!"
"Well, I understand about Beedrill. But what about other Bug Pokémon?"
"Sora, I just don't like Bug Pokémon!"
Watching the scene as it transpired, the strange woman chuckled, "You two must really care for each other if you can fight like that." That was when they were aware that this stranger noticed Rina and what she was. Panicking, Sora tried shielding her from view while Rina did her best to escape. But the stranger assured them, "It's alright. You don't need to be afraid. I already know about your people." At this, the two calmed down and stopped what they were doing. However, Sora remained on-guard in case this person still meant to do something. To further show that she wasn't an enemy, the stranger pulled out a charm that had a stone in the shape of a starfish on it.
"My name is Peri." She elaborated, "I know about mermaids because I met one when I was little, and she gave me this charm as a symbol of our newfound friendship."
Surprised, Rina inquired, "You… met another of my kind?" Peri nodded, a chipper smile on her face.
"Oh! Apologies." Sora started, "We didn't introduce ourselves. My name is Sora, from the kingdom of Aurora. This is my friend Rina."
"It's a pleasure to meet a friend of mermaids." Rina said with a bow.
"The pleasure's all mine." Peri returned, "This is my friend, Alakazam."
With that exchange done, and all the Pokémon healed, Rina wondered, "Hey Peri, what are you doing out here in this place?"
"I came to check on my friends." Sora and Rina didn't catch what she meant, until she clarified, "All the wild Pokémon here are my friends, so I like to come and check on them. I listen to what they've been up to, and what kind of Trainer they hope to bond with."
"How can you do that?"
"Not sure. It's just something I can do since I was little." Curious, Sora looked at Peri's aura. It was quite different from those of people he knew, as it seemed to branch out and connect with the aura's of the Pokémon around her. It was also quite powerful, which gave Sora an idea on who Peri was.
"Are you the Chieftain of Salure Island?" he asked.
This sudden claim from Sora surprised both Peri and Rina, but Peri smiled and inquired, "How'd you guess?"
"Your aura. It shines stronger than normal, and acts way differently from most other people."
"So you can see people's aura now? That's quite impressive. I suppose you came to accept our challenge?"
"Of course! But, I heard you wouldn't battle till tomorrow."
"Correct. Today is my day to spend with my friends, like Flabebé and Mudkip here. Out of all the places we host on Salure Island, the Safari Zone is my favorite." Sora could relate to that. Even as a kid, being around Pokémon felt more like home to him than anywhere else. He loved that more than just being a guardian.
"Well," Peri began as she got up to leave, "it was a pleasure to meet you, guardian Sora. And you as well, mermaid Rina. I look forward to seeing you both tomorrow for the big battle." With that, Peri went into the forest with Flabebé, Mudkip, and Alakazam. Beedrill and Azurill, on the other hand, remained with Sora and Rina.
A little bit past midday, Sora and Rina were enjoying the peace of the coast, and the lulling sound of the waves washing up against the shore. The two rested where the water lapped up to their waists, Azurill played in the water in front of them, while Beedrill rested on a tree at the edge of the forest. Even beside Sora, Rina felt troubled. Her insides just felt so disturbed, both out of elation and fear. She could finally be with Sora without having to do so in secret or behind his friend's backs. And she can begin to learn more about his friends, like Sparky and Tidus. At the same time, what if her being near him was actually a bad thing? Sora had to go through so many hardships because of her and her sisters, and he barely made it out of each one. Still, because of those trials, Sora found new Pokémon to bond with, and even discover that he was an Aura Guardian.
When Sora tried to stretch though, he cringed as if he seemed to have been stabbed with pain. That was when Rina remembered the punishment Sora took for her, Kari, and Sarah. All that hurt, what should have gone to them, fell on Sora instead. How could Rina call herself Sora's friend if he went through something like this? She didn't deserve to remain with Sora then if he was going to continue being hurt by her.
Before she could make a move, Sora requested, "Please don't leave."
Concerned, Rina asked, "Why?"
"I know what you're thinking, but I ask you, no I beg of you not to leave."
"Sora, you're hurt. And as long as I am around you, you'll get hurt."
"That doesn't matter Rina. I would do the same for everyone I care about. For them, and you, I'd do it a thousand times over."
On the verge of tears, Rina responded, "I know you would, but I just couldn't bear it. You getting hurt because of me tears at me from the inside. If you'll get hurt because of me, it might be best if we had never met." Then, Rina was taken aback when Sora pulled her into an embrace.
"Rina, I could never forget you, nor of our meeting." he cried, "You saved me and Pikachu, and you've helped us all since. I feel like we were meant to meet."
"But Sora—"
"I know you're afraid. Truth is, so am I. Please, stay with us." But the sadness in Rina's heart became unbearable, and her eyes flooded with sorrow.
With great remorse, Rina cried, "Sora I… I can't!" And she took off into the sea. Her departure tore at Sora's very being, leaving him still and weakened. Beedrill and Azurill came up to him, noticing the cascade descending from his eyes.
"Rina." he mumbled, then shouted, "RINA!"
Yolanda: How can you think to leave Sora like this?!
Rina: If I stay, he'll get hurt. I must leave.
Yolanda: If you leave, Sora loses his will to battle!
Rina: What?!
Yolanda: I hate to say this, but Sora really needs you!
Next time,
The Hearts that Bind