Genta City Downtown District - 12 years ago…
All is calm and quiet on the streets of Genta City. Down one of these urban passages is a tiny orphanage, a shelter for homeless children if you will. On this street late one night, as the sky grew heavy with dark clouds of foreboding, a lone figure walked down one side of the road. The figure is a woman, and she carries a baby girl, gently nestled in a blanket.
The woman, wearing a heavy coat in anticipation of the weather, stopped in front of the shelter. She gazed up at the brick and mortar structure, and sighed. "(Yes, this will do,)" she thought. "(My little baby can be safe from now on…)" The woman slowly approached the wooden doors, and hesitated.
Lifting the cradled baby, sleeping peacefully, to her eye level, the woman smiled gently. "(My little baby…)"
She frowned. This would be the last time she may ever she her daughter again. Tears began to trickle down her face, and she hugged the baby in a motherly embrace and gave it a kiss on the forehead. "(It's for the best… Please… Stay strong…)" The woman laid the cradled baby in front of the door. "(…My darling Samantha…)"
Taking a last look at her baby girl, and the note she left attached, the woman rang the building's doorbell. Within seconds, a few lights of the shelter turned on and voices were heard inside. Around the same time, the promised storm began to start, as a distant rumbling became audible and rain fell from the sky - lightly at first, then growing in intensity. Seeing that it was time to leave, she quietly whispered "Goodbye, my love…" to her baby, then rushed into the blackness of the night, and was overcome by the growing storm. No more was she ever seen.
CRRRACK!
A huge bolt of lighting landed close by, startling the baby from its sleep, and began to cry. The voices from inside grew more frantic, and within seconds the door burst open, a middle-aged woman stepping out. She curiously gazed around her, then looked at her feet, and gasped. A little bundled baby girl was there, wrapped up, and crying. Picking up the baby, the woman cooed and rocked it until the baby became silent again and fell asleep.
"Martha? Martha? What is it?" a voice from inside yelled. An old man came out with a few of the orphan kids at his side, looking quite concerned. "What's with all the commotion? I just got woken up by these lil' tots sayin' that there was someone at the door!"
"There was," the woman named Martha replied, and showed the baby to the man. "Someone left this poor baby on our doorstep."
The man looked stunned. "Someone just… Now hang on! Who'd do that?" he said, scratching his head.
"I have no idea…but…they left a note," Martha said quietly, and removed the little letter that was attached to the baby's blanket. Opening it up, she began scanning through it, and then read aloud, "Please, I must ask for you kind people to take of my daughter. Her name is Samantha. As much as it kills me, I have no choice but to do this. My baby deserves better than living in poverty. My husband had passed unexpectedly, and my finances are in ruin. No home, no food, and no clothing, though with endless love. Alas, not all the love in the world can keep my dearest Samantha alive, so I must ask you to. Do not bother finding me; I do not deserve to be alive for abandoning my only daughter, so I will have gone from this world. All I ask is that she be kept safe. And please, let her know that her mother…and her father…love her very, very much. -Mother."
Martha felt a sharp stab of pity for not only the baby, but for the unknown mother as well. She cast a glance around the street as more rain fell and another bolt of lightning streaked through the stormy sky. This of course, prompted the baby girl named Samantha to cry again, so Martha gave her another cuddle to calm her down.
Then, right then, she noticed the girl was wearing a little charm around her neck. It was gold—or at least gold-plated—and was in the shape of a heart. In the center of this charm, a tiny space in the rough shape of a teardrop pattern was etched. It seemed as if something was meant to fit in that slot, though exactly what that 'thing' was escaped her.
"It's really pretty…"
PokéGene Inc - Living Quarters SUB - Present Day
I…I had that dream again. Where I was left by my mother, on the doorstep of that orphan shelter… Of all the dreams I could remember, it was the most saddening. Nearly every detail was as if it had been a wood sculpture carved with a very sharp knife. In easier words…it was very clear and vivid, almost like watching a movie. The only thing that I never, ever saw…was…my mother's face. Oh, how I longed to know what she looked like! To have a face to put to my mother's name! I have no idea why I have those dreams…but, it has to be for some reason…
M-my name is Samantha… The one that…um…what do I…? Um… Oh, I'm the one who decided to become a Cyndaquil… But, in case you're wondering why, I…um…well, when I was younger (and human) I had this little fantasy of becoming a Pokémon trainer… So, obviously that never came true, but…if I did, the Pokémon I would've wanted to pick was a Cyndaquil. But, when Brian came and told me about…this…"Pokémon Project" or whatever, I agreed—since my life wasn't very pleasant, let's leave it at that—and…naturally, the Pokémon I became was a Cyndaquil. Not really surprising, huh?
Well, the other thing that bothered me about that dream I had was…my old charm. I had it for so long, so…that day I lost it…it really hurt me. That wonderful gold charm I had for years…just vanishing…I couldn't believe it. Sometimes I still don't… It was so valuable to me, since it was the only thing that reminded me of mother, besides my dreams…and I infinitely prefer the former.
But then I met Max, and he…he just gave me his own charm as a replacement when he figured out I lost mine. I couldn't believe he would just…do that, almost without second guessing himself. H-he's so generous… I really don't know how to thank him properly.
This charm of his, when I get a better look at it, kinda-sorta does remind me of my old one. It's a really pretty silver one, shaped kind of like a teardrop with a spiral in the middle, and attached to a little chain. I wore this precious piece of jewelry around my neck, and I swear to never take it off, so I don't lose it like last time.
That Maxwell…he's really nice…and kind…and modest…and…and… Ooh, come off it Sammy! He's practically your brother now, for goodness sake, don't get any ideas…
Eee… I went and started arguing with myself again… What was I talking about just now? Oh…r-right… Anyway, I also like Warren, too. He's been good to me, never getting on my nerves or ever making fun of me. Warren always would be willing to talk to me or help out whenever I needed it. He's my friend—and adopted brother—after all. And so are Max and Steve.
Moving on… When I woke up, the memory of that dream from last night still vividly clear, I saw that everyone else had already awakened and gone—everyone except for Matthew. He was awake and sitting on his bed, looking a bit…'down,' so to say. Matthew briefly looked up at me, then sighed and looked back down, saying nothing. He looked pretty troubled…b-but I didn't work up enough courage to approach him, so…I just left through the bedroom door.
I wasn't really feeling hungry (I never really do in the morning), so I headed straight to the living room. There, I saw Warren, Max, Steve, and…Mary? What is Mary doing there talking to them? I thought she…never mind.
Since I was so curious about this whole situation, I slowly walked to the table they were all sitting at, and said, "H-Hello guys, good morning. Um…why is Mary…here? Isn't she…?"
"Don't worry about me," Mary replied, looking slightly upset for some reason. "I just…wanted to say…"
I hesitated. There were now four pairs of eyes staring at me intently, so now the pressure was on. I had only been in a situation like this once before, years ago… No…I won't relive it. It's far too embarrassing to talk about…
Huh? Oh, yeah… People call me Mary. Truthfully, my real name is Mary-Sue, but since I was an orphan, I changed it to just 'Mary.' Sounds good enough, right? And besides, I just…didn't like my old name. I don't know why, but it seemed really…well…not good. I had a LOUSY life… My old parents had dumped me in that orphanage, kids constantly picked on me just because I acted geeky sometimes, and to top it all off, I did really bad in school.
Sure, now is not exactly the best time to be thinking about academics (how could I do it now, anyway?) but that problem I had the last few years really would've put a dent in my future… Were it not for Brian I guess I'd have no idea what I would've done with my life then.
And speaking of Brian, he's the one who brought me into the project a couple of days ago. When it was time to choose which Pokémon to be, I was honestly quite stuck. It seriously took me hours to figure it out, but I finally decided to become a Piplup. Why? I'm not really sure why. I like penguins, since they're cute, and Piplup seems pretty good to me, being a penguin and all. The swimming bit was a pretty nice incentive too.
Anyways…I wanted to apologize to these four, for acting so…what's the word…antisocial. I spent a moment piling up a heartfelt apology, but the others were starting to look a little impatient, so I hurried up and spilled it. "I… I'm…sorry… I'm sorry you guys…for acting the way I did…"
The other four exchanged a few looks of uncertainty, and then looked back at me. "…So, umm," the Pikachu (I wasn't really sure what his name was, but I think it was Warren) said, twiddling his tiny digits, "ah'm… assumin' ya… Well…why the change o' heart? And why'dja act like ya did back then?"
"Well…err… I-I…you see…" I stammered, and gulped. "You see…I wasn't treated very nicely for a long while now… And even though I wanted to have friends, I…had to learn to avoid people, so I don't get treated badly again…"
"…So why'dja keep givin' us the evil eye every time ya look at us? That seems purty serious if ya jus' wanted to avoid people. An' cum on, we're a nice bunch! Can't ya trust us?"
"Umm, well…I want to, I really want to, but…I couldn't be sure if you were really good or not, so I had to…you know…distance myself a bit. And it didn't really help when there was that…argument between you two." I made a motion towards the Oshawott and Ralts.
"Wait a minute!" the Oshawott (I think I remember hearing that his name is Maxwell) said suddenly. "I never meant for any of that to come out! It was an honest mistake! And besides, Steve's gotten over it! He became part of our group, right?"
The Ralts (named Steve, apparently) spoke up at this point. "Yeah, it's true. I was kind of, well, bummed at first. But I thought about what he said, and I began to look at things a little differently from then on. And so…I became their friend." He walked to Max and put a hand on his shoulder, prompting the Oshawott boy to laugh weakly.
"Eh-heh, yeah, we're friends now," Max said, putting his own hand—err; paw, on Steve's shoulder. "But we're also family, right guys?"
Steve, Warren, and the Cyndaquil whose name I was still not certain of, all collectively agreed with a shout. I couldn't help but smile at their closeness. I really had missed out on this… Shame on me by avoiding these guys like I did. But now, it would be different.
Clearing my throat, I began to ask, "Umm…guys? I was thinking about something…"
Their eyes turned on me once again, and seemed to give a very expectant look. "What is it?" Warren and Max asked, looking at me with contained eagerness.
Despite the sickening feeling of nervousness creeping inside me, I managed to produce a smile. "I was gonna ask you guys if…if…"
The four of them leaned closer. "Go on…"
"If…I could…be…a part of…ugh…" How do I say this without sounding too desperate or sappy? I thought this through a moment, and soon had an answer to my own question. "C-can I…hang out with you guys? You seem like a pretty cool bunch…"
What happened next was pretty quick. The first thing I know, I ask if I could be a part of their group, and the next instant following that, I was swarmed by them. It was WAY too much, seriously. To be suddenly surrounded by new friends, all hugging me and happily shouting, was incredibly extreme on my level. Was it that much of an achievement for them to get me to join them? I can't help but feel they wanted me to, despite my attitude. This is a pretty rare occurrence, but for the first time in a while…I felt happy. No, not a fake or delusional happy, but truly happy. God knows how this all came about!
"Excuse me, you guys. If you could cut the happy and huggy act and pay attention to me, then I'd be appreciative. For once."
What? Where did that voice come from? The others, along with myself, turned around to see where the voice was coming from, in the general direction of the bedroom. When we saw who it was, everyone, myself included, gasped.
Wait a minute…that's…
Guess who.
…
Go on. Guess.
…
Wow, you really like making guesses, don'tcha? Feh, it's not like I have important things to be doing anyway…but yet, here I am. Let's cut to the chase; you wanna know who I am? Fine. My name's Matthew, and don't you dare forget it. Yeah, I know my tone sounds real peeved, I'm always like this. So get used to it.
…
Talkative, aren't ya? Well, since you caught me in a good mood I suppose I better start chattin' it up. To start, I lived a pretty suckish life. Fine, I admit it. That green-headed, red-horned, psycho-whatever was right. I'd be darned to give you details, but I will say this: My parents were separated just under a year ago. Reason why? Get this; my father was involved in a criminal organization. It was far off, in some region named…Canto…or Katno…or Kanto…yeah, that's it. Can you guess who? Everyone knows them.
…
Again, you be silent. Hrm. Not a barrel of laughs, aren't you? Moving on, my dad had fallen in with (da-da-dum!) Team Rocket a few years back. Bam. Surprised? Hm, didn't think so; everyone hates them too. Well, my mom had no idea of it, and so it wasn't until that time when my pop got his rear-end handed to him by some kid in red that he came home in shambles and mom figured it out. Things got a bit ugly, and they divorced. I have no idea what happened to dear old dad after that, since he probably went into hiding… Figures.
To be honest, I liked my dad a whole lot better. BUT, my custody was given to mom, on the grounds that my dad was a criminal. Stupidly enough, the man never got locked up, put on probation, or even simply detained. All they did was put him through questioning, and then let him go. Makes me wonder how our justice system functions nowadays…
Anyway, after a couple more years I got sick and tired of living at "home," so I packed up and left without a word. I skipped from town to town, ended up in an orphanage, then mere months later, that scientist dude Brian found me and offered me this…chance, shall we say. We went to Genta City, arrived at the facility, and—badda bing badda boom—I ended up here, as a Pokémon. There. Satisfied?
…What? You wanna know why I chose to be a Snivy? Of all the Pokémon? Umm, personal information much? Sigh… If you really must know, it was more or less a random decision. Something about it seemed cool, and it fits my attitude just fine, so there. Don't believe me? Too. Bad.
So…you must know by now that Ralts sort of gave me a verbal cyanide to choke on earlier. Crude expression, I know, but appropriate. I sat on my bed, wavering my tail (composing of nearly half of my snake-like body) from side to side, feeling like complete crap...which is pretty much an unknown feeling to me. Jeez, I'm aware I can be a jerk sometimes (okay, MOST of the time) but why should I even trust those doops anyway? That's always why I never wanna talk to anyone. I don't trust anyone besides myself, which is totally justified just so you know. The only ones I trust now are that scientist dude Brian and the other guy Frank.
…You know what else I hate to admit? That the Ralts named whoever was right in implying I had a dream about a voice. That dream…man, it creeped me out TO NO END. Ugh. It went on about why I was showing hate towards everyone and acting all mean and stuff and telling me to be more 'open' and bleck. I wasn't paying too much attention, but it somehow made a rather large impression on me. That was the only thing that compelled me to at least exchange a few words with Mary. You know what they say, "Looks are deceiving," hence Mary's attitude earlier was so much different once you talked to her. I was actually somewhat impressed with her real personality, but not enough that I wouldn't be a hassle to her. Eh.
And what else did I hate about what that guy said? He played 'Mr. Wise Guy' and pulled a few (rather snappy, if infuriating) verbal tricks. To follow-up, after I told him to get lost, he played the 'serious' card and pushed all this…stuff in my face. He criticized my behavior (who didn't?) and insisted that I was antisocial and…dare he even said…that I don't deserve to exist. After he finally left, I was mixed with both anger, confusion, and a pang of regret. How dare he talk like that to me…but…he made…interesting points…maybe I…did make a mistake…? Maybe I should…I should've tried to be friendlier…? Nrgh… My mind's a mess…
I sat on my bed for a little while, until at last the only remaining one of us still sleeping—the Cyndaquil—woke up. She looked around the room, apparently for its friends, then at me. I looked at her back, and then looked down again. Not in the mood to talk, I kept telling myself, since I needed to digest what had been talked about.
The Cyndaquil, whose name I can't (and didn't bother to) remember, eventually left the room, and I was alone at last. For a second, it was fairly comforting, so I lay down onto the bed, finding that comfortable position where I lay flat on my back, tail end laid outwards. Stretching out, I put my shortened arms behind my head for support, and crossed my also-shortened legs so I was in a "lounging" position (much like I used to do when I was human). Bored, I idly swung my new tail left and right, sending a slight creeping sensation up my spine. I had only been around here since yesterday, so I still had to get used to my new body some more. The tail seemed like a somewhat…pointless feature, aside from keeping balance or whatever, but it was still a neat little appendage.
As I lay on my bed, bored as all heck and still tired, a sudden realization hit me. It was totally out of the blue, and it made not a lot of sense at first, but I totally got it. I realized that, I actually have both a reason and purpose to be here! And so did everyone else! Logically—and I don't often think logically, so this is special—if we all have similar reasons and purposes…there's no reason we all can't be friends, or at least acquaintances!
My own mind's response to this was, "What the heck? Do I really believe this?" As crazy as it sounds, I actually did. Though, I still refused to believe I should be friends with those guys, strictly because I didn't trust them. Again, another realization hit me. Brian and Frank both trust them…and they all (based on my observations) seem to trust each other. Even that otter kid, Maxwell (I think that's his name, but details don't concern me a whole lot) seemed to want to be friends with me. And I told him off. Now I feel like even worse crap.
Okay…cue awkward moment…with (thankfully) no witnesses. Now how was I supposed to talk to those guys? Just do it? No way in heck. I'd rather chew my foot off. I snickered at that frivolous thought of talking to those drips and laid back down again, hoping to shrug off the notion. A minute passed, and my "good" conscious was still screaming for me to go talk to them. And it never let up. I felt like hitting myself, so I did. But it didn't help. Ugh. Fine…I'll do it… I'll go and see those…guys. Don't expect miracles, though.
I dragged my sorry body out of bed, and then silently walked out the bedroom door (slinked is a more proper word). Following that, I heard distinct voices sounding like those other guys. It also sounded like Mary was talking, but the next thing I knew there were much louder cries of happiness and excitement. I felt like turning around and going back to bed then and there, but my mind said otherwise, so I kept walking and poked my head around a corner to peek into the living room, to see what was up.
Ugh, I had to see, didn't I? Those four other guys were crowding around and hugging Mary, which somehow hit me right in the heart. They seemed so…happy. Mary must've just asked to be their friend, and obviously it worked tremendously. I felt myself crack a small smile, but when I realized it I disposed of the foul expression. Somehow, all this happiness and junk was gnawing at my soul, pushing me to act…nice. Heh, well, goody for me that I at least have enough of "me" left to be as snarky as I want.
…What? I can you know! Feh, who needs you?
Gulping, since I was swallowing my pride here, I stepped around the corner and approached the cheering quintet. I watched them for a few moments, feeling touched-yet-sickened at this embarrassing show of emotion. After a while I had just about enough, so I called out, "Excuse me, you guys. If you could cut the happy and huggy act and pay attention to me, then I'd be appreciative. For once."
As if there had just been an explosion, everything became dead silent, and they all turned to face me. "Wha…what are you doing here Matthew? Why are you here?" the Oshawott—Maxwell—said, then he frowned. "Wait, are you here to—?"
"Insult you and make your life miserable?" I interrupted. "At some point, yes, yes I will. But now, there's something different I wanna say."
The Pikachu cast a brief glance at Max, then at me, and frowned as well. "Well then, what're ya here fer?"
"…Okay, first, I'm just gonna ask you not to start hugging me like Pengy there—"
"It's Mary!"
"—and don't you dare make a fuss over it either. Accept it and be happy. Just don't…'show' it."
Maxwell seemed to already guess what I was about to disclose, since he started to grin. "Are…are you saying…?"
"Urgh, yes. I'll be a part of your little 'family', okay? Just don't smother me or I'll end you."
"…Duly noted," he said quietly, his smile disappearing, and slowly walked up to me. The others behind him were wide-eyed and had their mouths open. No big shock to me, since who'd have thought I would join them? If I knew any better, I'd kill myself for doing this.
Maxwell came up in front of me, and stopped. We stared face-to-face a minute, his eyes staring into mine, and an intense silence gripped the air. Finally, the Oshawott lifted a small arm in my direction. "…Friends?" he offered quietly, holding out his paw expectantly.
I gazed at him with a look of defiance for a moment, then slowly held out my own hand and took his, shaking it. "Sure. Friends." …For now, anyway. Despite my best efforts to keep a totally neutral countenance, I couldn't help but let a smug smile gradually form.
Seeing my expression, the otter-boy smiled too, and nodded. "Good then. Welcome to the family, Matt."
"Hmph. Thanks, I suppose. Just make sure you watch your back, I can be a really sneaky guy," I replied, and my smile grew wider.
He didn't seem very comfortable with that last comment I made, but he nonetheless seemed to disregard it and took me forward to meet the others, so I could get acquainted properly with everyone. It was…pretty awkward, since I'm not used to formalities, but they didn't seem to mind too much about that. After we talked for a bit, I learned all the names of those I didn't know. The Pikachu is named Warren, the Cyndaquil is named Samantha, and that Ralts' name is Steve.
Oh yes, Steve. The one who gave me all that crap earlier and lived to tell about it. I dragged him aside for a moment, determined to have a "word" with him. "Hey, Red-eye. Remember our little…argument?"
Steve smirked. "Oh yeah, I do. Are you going to hit me now or something?"
"No…not yet anyway. Just wanted to say…" I leaned close to his ear and barely whispered, "Thanks."
He didn't respond. He just stood there, looking a bit stunned at how I was thanking him for telling ME off. Why'd I do it? Well, easy. First of all, it was because I respected him for defeating me in a battle of words (I've held that title for years and now look what happened). Plus, if it were not for him, I may never have been inclined to join this group of theirs.
Why am I thankful for that? Because, I found out that me and some of the others actually have similar interests! Warren and I talked about mechanics and electronics, which I always liked throughout my (brief) time in school, though I never found a chance to go into it. Maxwell showed me this book called "Evolution of Man" or whatever, full of stuff on anthropology and genetics and psychology and whatever else, so it had a bit of neat content. Mary liked talking about life and stuff, but that didn't interest me too much (I mainly just pretended to be listening to her). Steve talked about his experiences with psychic power and other related paranormal junk, which was somehow even less interesting to me. And Samantha…well, she didn't have a lot to say. But she seemed a little too happy about having another "brother", and as result tried to hug me an awful lot.
Every time, I was able to avoid it (I had a strict "No hugging" policy), but at one point I let my guard down, so Samantha came up and somehow managed to hug me. My first instinct was to struggle, so I did…but it was fruitless. Curse my weak, plant-fiber limbs. The laughter the others produced infuriated me, but I couldn't do a whole lot about it. Then it occurred to me that…somehow…being hugged actually felt…good. It was weird to me, as I've never been hugged in my life. My reason for avoiding it? It always seemed really dumb or silly to do something such as hugging. But now…I think I like it. (Samantha didn't let me go for at least five minutes though.)
Alright, there's…not much else for me to say now, so that's all I'm telling you. So get outta here. You heard me, get lost.
…
...No, seriously, get lost.
Lord in heaven… What a day! First, I have a crazy dream, then find out Warren had a crazy dream, then Mary shows up and wants to join our family, and no sooner did that happen Matthew showed up, apparently having a random change of heart which he refused to elaborate on, and joins us too! What twisted, upside-rightside-wrong universe have we entered? Oh, don't get me wrong; I'm actually ecstatic over this…but it seems so totally sudden…perhaps… Nah, impossible…it couldn't be.
Anyway, a few hours after we all got together—talking about our interests and getting to know each other better—Brian came into the room. The instant he saw us all talking and socializing with each other, he was so surprised. We managed to explain we're all friends now, and he was simply overjoyed. So much so, in fact, that Brian offered us a small celebration that we hastily accepted. Even though it was a tad expensive, he still ordered out some food from a nearby restaurant, so we feasted well that lunch…
As for the remainder of the day, it was fairly uneventful. I practiced that 'shell blade' trick of mine and decided to show it off again, impressing the others since my technique was quickly improving. Now I can cut wood blocks apart in mid-air! How cool is that?
The others tried some tricks of their own as well. Warren practiced his electricity-producing skills and mechanical tinkering (borrowing my PokéGear in the process, I didn't mind for the reason that I never use it), Samantha just sat by and watched us, Steve produced a few balls of psychic energy to mess around with (he later mentioned that our minds were "cleared up" by midday, so could read our thoughts again… Oogh), Mary was able to blow a few bubbles, and Matthew…well, he didn't do much, he just sat around lazily. Typical, I suppose, but I couldn't really complain.
I have to say, Mary and Matthew joining our family felt really good somehow; like a feeling similar to have just achieved great victory. No wonder, as it was really getting to me how I was supposed to convince those two to join our family… But, I digress.
Oh, and Brian later finally introduced me to his son, Danny, though it was short-lived. We met, shook hand and paw, he talked to me a bit and I would just…nod when he did. Ugh, I'm already sick of not being able to speak English. At least let me know some other language… Hmm, maybe Japanese…
Brian patted me on the back while I stood hopelessly. "I know, I know, not being able to talk normally stinks, doesn't it?"
I nodded…again. Ugh, the goshdarned nodding… My neck was sore from it all…
"I would say I know how you feel, just to cheer you up…but I don't actually, so I can't really say that…"
I stared at him blankly.
"…Yeah. You see, it's really hard to 'program' special things like speech into the CPT formula. Keeping memories intact was hard enough to figure out, but this…umm…well, you know."
"Oshawott… Wo-wott," I moaned. I actually meant to say, "I may never speak again… Thanks a ton…"
He patted me reassuringly, then said, "Don't worry about it, because as I speak…" He paused. "…On second thought, no, not yet. It'll be a surprise."
A surprise? Meh, that's what he said about a bunch of things: "It'll be a surprise." What is it gonna be now, a liver transplant? …Sorry if that sounds a bit pessimistic, but I wasn't in a pleasant mood.
Danny looked at me with a fair bit of pity. "Well, that's a bummer dude. Really. Not sure if I can do anything for ya, but…"
"Wott…osha osh," I said, which when translated meant, "That's okay…at least I have my friends…" I looked over at the five of them, all chatting with one another. They saw me watching, and waved to me, except Matthew. He just gave me a tiny smile and a light nod. Well, that's good enough, I guess. Looking back at Danny, smiling, I said, "…Oshawott osha," while I meant to say, "…Or rather, my family."
The young scientist seemed completely unsure of what I said, but then he looked towards the Pokékids, who were smiling and waving in my direction, and smiled. "I get it… You do seem pretty good after all," he said with gradual realization. "You got them to keep you company, so I don't see why not being able to speak human language is a big problem. If anything, it seems very…well, interesting!"
"Good point, son," Brian concurred, then turned to speak to me. "After all, they're your brothers and sisters now, Max."
It's true, Danny does have a point. I could talk with the others—my "brothers" and "sisters"—just fine, so was speaking really that necessary, outside of talking to Brian, Frank, and Danny? In here, I guess not.
Climbing into my bed that night, and wishing everyone else a good sleep (everyone returned my call that time, including Mary and Matthew, so hooray!), I wondered about the days ahead. Now that everyone is all together, I think we can deal with anything! …If only life were so kind. I just hope no more surprises are waiting right around the corner…
…I just jinxed myself, didn't I?
Friday, June 11 - Analysis Department - PokéGene Inc.
Carter yawned and looked at the clock. 2:38 AM it read. "(Sheesh,)" he thought, "(I have got to stop working nights. This genetic sequence is really messed up…)" He scanned through the testing data on the desk in front of him. They just came off the analyzing machine, though it wasn't even finished scanning the whole gene makeup. So, if there was nothing to see from that result, then he'd have to wait several more hours for the next one.
Feeling groggy, Carter looked at a particular piece of information of the page, and passed it over. Suddenly he stopped, and looked back at it. He did a double take. Were his eyes deceiving him? "(This couldn't be,)" he thought. "(But…it really is…)"
Within seconds Carter burst out the door to the analysis room, paper in hand, and tore across the halls towards Brian's sleeping quarters. Arriving there, he threw open the door, ran inside the darkened room, and shook the snoozing scientist awake. "Get up! Get up now! The results are in!" Carter practically shouted.
"Waaaah!" Brian yelped, jumping out of his bed. "What is it? Who what where? What results? At—" He picked up his end-table clock and gazed at the time. "—2:45 IN THE MORNING?"
"Yes, Brian! Now just look at this for ONE second!"
"Okay…fine then, give me the paper will you?"
Carter hastily handed the document to Brian, then walked toward and flicked on a nearby light switch on the wall. The light hurt his eyes, but Carter had long since learned to put up with it.
Brian reached for the end table beside his bed, grabbed his glasses, and then slipped them on before reading through the scanning results Carter gave him. Then he gasped. "…Oh my…goodness," Brian said slowly, his eyes widening. "This…is exactly I had hoped for…"
"What you hoped for?" Carter inquired curiously, scratching his head, and then realized what Brian meant. "You mean…?"
The scientist nodded, not taking his eyes off the paper. "I do. My suspicion of the formula's potential for medicine…appears to be correct."
A/N: UPDATED: So, howdja like the redux? Again, all that was changed was a few spelling/grammer woes, rewording n a few places, etc; nothing that really alters the story in any case. Please don't forget to leave a review and tell me what you think!
Review where it's due, osha! Until next update, fare thee (fine folks) well!
-TheAuthorGl1m0