The Great Pokemon Conspiracies:
~The Old Chateau~
Chapter Ten: Galactic
(Silversong says I'm back to square one. What happened to the chapter title rule? she said. Me, I couldn't have cared less, especially because my brain is reeling).
Once upon a time, there was a family who lived in an old mansion in the woods between Eterna City and Floaroma Town. The family consisted of a father, a mother, a little girl, and a butler who is an old man. The mother had her Gengar, and the little girl had a Clefable whom she always plays with. The butler loved the girl very much, and has assumed the role of her caregiver. Although the girl hated baths, she found that they were slightly better if her Clefable came too (emphasize on slightly).
But then something happened that changed them forever.
There was a big fire which was set (supposedly) accidentally by the butler/the father himself (circle the appropriate answer). As a result, two people and one Pokémon (supposedly) got killed in the fire: the girl, the butler, and the beloved Clefable. The only ones who got out alive were the mother and the father, the father who saw the butler accidentally set the house on fire/set fire to the house himself (circle the appropriate answer). They moved out of the house in the woods. The grieving mother moved to Hearthome City, becoming a Ghost-type Gym Leader while never really going out of mourning. She conducted seancés to try to communicate with her departed daughter, while the father seems to have vanished altogether to another part of the Sinnoh region...
...
Fantina was finishing the story - her version of the story - about the big Old Chateau fire when a familiar green Pokémon with roses at the end of his arms came staggering into the room.
"For Arceus' sake, Roselio! Where have you been?" Swiftwing exploded, as if he'd been looking for him all this time. Roselio seemed to believe his act, but not me.
(Sorry, Swiftwing, but I honestly think you could've done better).
"Sorry," Roselio grimaced. "I was held up in the corridor by a tickling, talking portrait."
"I should've known. You and your talking imaginary friends," Swiftwing rolled his eyes.
Roselio was about to protest when he seemed to see Fantina for the first time since he came into the room. "Oh, Gym Leader Fantina! Hello, err, I mean, bonjour," Roselio said. I rolled my eyes. Since we met her, he'd been fascinated by her ability to speak French.
"Bon-" Fantina was about to reply when she was interrupted by a weird noise which seemed to be coming from another room.
Thunk-thunk-thunk-thunk-thunk.
Thump-thump-thump-thump-thump.
Meta Knight's sensitive ears pricked up. "What was that?" he asked.
"Maybe it's a wild Pokémon," Froslass said logically.
"Maybe it's a robber who's trying to break into the house," Ultramarine said suspiciously.
"Maybe it's a ghost," Roselio moaned fearfully.
"Maybe it's one of your imaginary friends," said Swiftwing doubtfully.
"There's only one way to find out," Dusk said. "We'll go out and see for ourselves."
...
I noticed that Roselio peered into the eyes of the people in each of the portraits as we walked down the corridor, as if he was looking for something that wasn't there. I hung back from the group so that he wouldn't get separated again.
"What are you looking for?" I asked.
"Nothing," was all he said... Before scrutinizing carefully the next portrait.
Meanwhile, Dusk, Fantina, and the others were peering methodically into each room. They were looking for the source of the weird thumping noise.
"Good grief, Roselio's imaginary friends might be real after all," Swiftwing grumbled as Dusk peered into yet another room.
... ... ... ...
...The old TV was crackling with static, throwing wayward shadows all across the room, and the mysterious man's face.
"Come on," he mumbled as he stood in front of the TV. "Don't fail me now."
And he gave the TV another thunk.
Thump!
Nothing happened.
"Another one should do it," he muttered as he gave the TV another good thunk. "Come on. Please come out."
Thump-thump-thump-thump-thump.
The old TV only crackled in reply.
On the other side of the doorway, Dusk was staring at the back of a short, plump man with weird purple hair.
On the back of his white shirt was the too-familiar letter G.
Dusk knew who this man was. They'd had a not-so-pleasant encounter in the past.
Charon. A Galactic.
... ... ... ...
...The old TV was crackling with static, throwing wayward shadows all across the room.
Charon's shadow-distorted face cracked a smile as a small Electric-type Pokémon sprang right out of the TV.