A/N: I'm sorry that the last chapter took so long to get up, and that it was in rather bad condition when I finally did get it up. It was a combination of being rushed and still slightly uncomfortable with the way this site organizes documents. I've fixed it, added a missing disclaimer, and tried to explain why the last chapter took so long...

But if you don't want to read that, it's simply because it took me so long to write. Celebi's narrative of the origin of Pokémon was easy to write and I managed it in one sitting; but Mew's first solo chapter was difficult for me and, as you probably noticed, took me a long time to do. That was, more than anything, due to the fact that I'm uncomfortable writing the kind of character Mew is (hence her toned-down sense of humor). Hopefully I'll get better as I go along, and such a long hiatus won't be necessary again.

Also, one other thing. If for whatever reason either main character (Diego or Mew) is temporarily unable to narrate, then I'll switch to a limited third-person perspective from the POV (more or less) of a lesser character who can. This will be denoted by +Third+ , or, if said third-person character is already known/has already "narrated," then it'll be +(Character Name)+.

Now, if you'll pardon my rambling, we'll get back to the story. And I still don't own Pokémon, which is terribly unfortunate.

Chapter 5 - That Which is Lost...

+Diego+

I was nearly to my destination when something stopped me in my ghostly tracks.

--five years now... I still remember the day, and I still come out here...

The 'sound' of the thought was extremely familiar, and the sound of my old Trainer's voice made me tear up slightly. I knew, at that moment, exactly where I was, and not because of the amazing sense of direction I'd acquired since taking Mew's job.

Ilex Forest stretched out below and behind me, a grand sea of green leaves, tinted almost orange in the sunset, that rustled as wind passed by. Azalea Town sprawled out almost directly in front of me, and I found the new, airborne viewpoint fascinating. But I was almost entirely focused on my soft-spoken Trainer's mental 'voice' as it floated up from underneath me.

I'm doing fine... Karen's seven now, do you believe it? And just recently she's gotten over her fear of Pokémon...

"Ren!"

Without another thought I shot straight down.

I leveled out in a clearing perhaps an eighth of a mile into Ilex Forest. There was a strange hush here, lacking all the normal sounds of the forest; the only sound one could hear was the voice of Raymond "Ren" Ashlocke, now nearly thirty years old and the resident Pokémon Breeder, as he spoke over the grave of his deceased Raichu.

"Some people think I'm strange, coming out here to talk to an empty clearing... Even Kyra." Kyra was his mate, and, in what may or may not have been a gigantic dose of irony, the Trainer of my mate, Lenna, whose grave was located next to mine. "But what can I do? You were my first Pokémon, and my closest friend..."

I began to tear up again. If I had been allowed to materialize and rush into his arms I would have, but, deity or not, Giratina's laws were absolute. I could not assume the same physical form I had when I was alive, unless it was a dire (meaning: world-threatening). As it was, a random Pokémon deciding to comfort him would have been unnerving.

My memories screamed out in protest against the laws and limitations set against me; but the laws were not simply a warning: they were a restriciton. I wouldn't have been able to break them even if I'd consciously decided to do so.

Ren seemed to have run out of things to say. He took a deep breath, said "Talk to you later, bud," and walked out of the clearing westward, passing within an inch of my outstretched metaphysical "paws."

"Ren..."

My earlier idea and destination almost entirely forgotten, for the moment, I floated helplessly after my former Trainer as he worked his way back out of the forest. I kept trying to come up with a way to comfort him, to let him know I was there and still cared about him as much as he did for me; but every time I tried I was pushed back by a combination of pantheon law and some other, rose-lavender force I couldn't identify.

Ren's house was toward the edge of Azalea Town, quickly identifiable somewhat larger than most of the other houses in the town. Most of what was there now I did not recognize, and I figured it must have been added on to give more room for the day care. Said day care was announced by a sign over the front gate, reading Azalea Pokémon Day Care in bright green paint with somewhat crudely done paintings of the faces of a Raichu and Pikachu on either side (a representation of Lenna and I, as we had originally been the mascots). If my attention had not still been focused on my Trainer I would have realized that I was actually able to read it.

Ren walked through the front door and I, forgetting the fact that I'd have been able to pass through it anyway, shot in as well before he shut it. It was only then, faced with the place I'd called home for the better part of my sixteen-year-life, that I broke down and began to cry.

+Third+

The instant Raymond-sama walked through the door all of Myst's senses went on high alert. Something else--something spiritual--had followed him into the house. The Ninetales did not betray this to any of the infant Pokémon to whom she was currently telling a story, except perhaps as a minor pause. It seemed powerful, certainly, but not malevolent.

'And so the Smoochum and the Prince Growlithe lived happily ever after,' she finished quietly. Most of the Pichu, who had already heard the story, were already asleep; some of the other baby Pokémon, those belonging to clients, stared at her sleepily and/or murmurred something that Myst couldn't quite make out.

'G'night, Miss Ninetales,' yawned a Totodile, snuggling down to sleep with several of the other babies. Myst nearly smiled back, but her mind was still on the presence that had followed her Trainer into the house. It didn't even seem to have moved since she'd noticed it. Was it being cautious, or was it something else?

She descended the stairs to the first floor and turned toward the door, her tails slightly raised. It was still there... And it was...

...Crying?

There was a whoosh! and all of Myst's fur was blown back. She growled, her tails flowing out behind her, but no further attack came. As it was, when she focused, she discovered that the presence had moved from the doormat to directly in front of her. At this proximity she could tell what it was--or, more accurately, Who it was.

'Progenitor?' she breathed, but the voice that answered was not Mew's.

Little sister...

'Diego!' she said, surprised. 'But you--Your presence is just like Mew's...'

Her adoptive elder brother did not reply. Making sure she was out of the way should Raymond or Kyra decide to traverse the hallway, Myst laid down and closed her eyes, expanding her senses to include the immediate spiritual realm, as Ninetales, the "phantom foxes," were capable of doing.

Diego--for it was he, though if she did not look closely his body was obscured by the illusion of a Mew--stood morosely in front of her, his head down and ears back, long, wirelike tail lashing back and forth.

'What is wrong?'

Nothing... said Diego sadly. I just... miss Ren.

'He visited your gravesite today. As a matter of fact, he has just returned from there...'

I know. That's why I'm here.

'I can understand that,' said Myst. 'But why are you here? I thought you had...moved on.'

I had, but... circumstances conspired. Briefly he told her what he'd been doing the past few years, and of his recent ascension to godhood to fill in for Mew as she took a break. Myst wasn't entirely sure what this meant, as the idea of a goddess requiring a break from anything went agaist everything she thought she knew about gods. She took this in stride, however, and eventually, once Diego had fallen silent, she continued,

'But why were you coming here in the first place?'

What is it that Mew does? he responded.

With years of storytelling behind her, Myst instantly responded 'Mew is the Progenitor, mother to all Pokémon; and She is the Mischeif-Maker, who inspires tricks and cleverness throughout the world.' She thought this through. 'Diego... You aren't in any shape to be a mother figure to anyone, if you'll pardon the expression, looking at the way you are now...'

Diego made the Raichu equivalent of a shrug.

'...You weren't thinking of making the children play tricks on each other?'

A grin flitted across Diego's face for a moment. It is my job.

'It doesn't seem like you...'

A lot can change in five years, especially when you're rooming with a hyperactive cat. Diego looked up and past Myst toward the den. Myst's physical ears picked up the sound of the television. But I didn't think... I mean, when I got back here, I just... He shuddered, which was probably an echo of a reflex from when he was alive.

Myst inched sideways and extended her leftmost tail to the ghost of her elder brother. As he had done in life, he reached out with his own tail, and the two attempted to intertwine, for a measure of comfort. 'I cannot understand your situation perfectly... But I am sure Raymond-sama--'

Ren, he corrected reflexively.

'Raymond-sama,' Myst emphasized, 'knows that you still care for him. You were his closest friend. Now all he has are pictures of you, and me, the last, long-lived remnant of a happy Pokémon family. He loves his mate, yes, and he loves his business, but I think there is a big part of him that still loves you.'

Diego's eyes were fixed in the same spot, presumably on whatever he could see of Raymond.

Myst continued, 'But if you really want to let him know, I will tell him for you.'

Diego reached out and 'hugged' whatever part of Myst's neck he could reach from the ground, murmurred Thanks, and began to drift away. I've still got a job to do... But he straightened a moment later, his ears righting themselves and his tail becoming erect behind him. ...What? Oh... A meeting. Yes.

There was another, gentler whoosh, and Diego's presence vanished. Myst nodded gravely, then stood up and went to the living room, where she did all she could to fulfill her promise to Diego.

The following morning, Kyra would find her husband asleep on the couch, Myst stretched out beside him, the two giving each other whatever comfort they could.

That took awhile. I'd originally planned something completely different, but I rewrote it to what you see now. There may eventually be a story on the Day Care itself, but for now I'd like to just work on this...

And Siran, good call. Hah.

More Mew next update. If I can get the chapter written in decent time, that is...Stupid school...

'Till next time.