Willow Day...13

Every second was just another load of information thrown at me. Seeing as we weren't family, the doctors were reluctant to give us the details of Lyle's injuries but seeing as the only vague relative of his with us was Belle, they had decided to tell us quickly. I couldn't take it in though; they kept speaking as if he were in the past, rather than the now. But Aiden played the part, nodding when he needed to, asking the key questions I couldn't bear to say. How severe were the injuries? Will he wake up? Will he survive?

No, within hours of the accident we were in a hospital room, sitting next to his bed. The gentle beep of the heart monitor was the only sound in the room asides from the occasional shuffle of feet. It was a small, but private, room. We had to forcibly put Belle away in her ball; her cries shrill as we did so. If he died now, she wouldn't forgive us but the hospital had a rule of no Pokémon except staff. Pokémon as staff? All they could be were assistants. No chance of an alakazam as a surgeon. Or a jynx as a receptionist. No, we were limited in our uses, always to follow, never to lead.

'Sun's up.'

The silence was broken along with my path of thoughts. That happens too easy now. I turned to the window; the sky was lit bright pink, turning orange. How long had we been here? It seemed such a short time but now it was a new day. The old one forgotten. Every day is a new start, a fresh canvas. With the same lasting effects.

'I'm going to speak to her family today.'

Aiden looked at me, half shocked for a moment before nodding, understanding. I would need a distraction, I was way more emotional than him, and I would never be able to bring up the courage to do this again any other time.

'Just keep a good eye on Lyle, please.'

I looked away from him then, resting my chin on my hands. This would not be a repeat performance. He would not be Hannah. At least now I could empathise with Hannah's family, these feelings were fresh. I could foresee the questions they would ask.

***

'Willow, just- remember they can't know what we are.'

I was about to leave but this made me stop. Before he hadn't seemed to care whether people knew or not, why was this family any different? Was he worried for me? That if they knew it was me that killed her; they would report the authorities on me? Either way I nodded, too weary to question him now. Both of us were developing dark patches under our eyes, but we were too anxious to even doze. Lyle was doing enough sleeping for the both of us. We would rest after.

***

I was nervous as I left the hospital, knowing I would only have a quick walk to make before I reached the house. Aiden had told me what the house looked like, secluded, rather small with a black roof. A typical home. Hannah's home.

Reaching the house, I felt my nerves flutter around inside me but with that, came courage. There was a small stone path leading up to the door. The house was perched near the edge of the cliffs, giving good views of the seas, the island in the distance. I couldn't help but let my mind picture Hannah, watching the sunset, waiting for her Pokémon journey to start. Forcing my hand to knock on the door took strength, fighting every fibre of my being to run.

'Hello? May I help you?'

Oh God, I'm sorry. This middle aged woman opened the door quickly with concerned eyes, not red puffy ones, the ones you get after you've cried. Somehow I was still expecting Tor to have done this job for me. I forced a smile on my lips, inappropriate with the words that conveyed the severity of my purpose.

'Hello, I'm Willow, please may I come inside? I have something to talk to you about, concerning your daughter, Hannah.'

The mother's face lit up when she heard her daughter's name mentioned but within seconds, she could sense the tone and her face creased with worry.

'Hannah? She hasn't called us in days. Is she sick? Is she in trouble?'

At that moment, a man, I presume to be her husband, appeared beside her, his stern stare hitting me hard. He didn't speak but obviously the conversation had worried him and his wife's tone alerted him.

'Please, may I come and talk to you inside?'

I found it very difficult to keep my legs from shaking, to stop my eyes from tearing up and myself from breaking down completely on their front step. They both stepped out of the way of me, an invitation inside. The house was small, the corridor narrow, but it soon opened up into a large living room, complete with fire place. I sat down on a small chair, pointed towards the centre of the room, opposite the parents.

'So, Hannah? Where is she? I know she's on her Pokémon journey. Is that why you're here?'

'No, I'm afraid it isn't. An accident happened while your daughter was in Quiyelle Wood.'

'An accident? Where's Quiyelle Wood? Is she at the hospital?'

Oh God, just let me speak, stop asking so many questions. I needed to get through this fast otherwise I would reveal everything.

'Quiyelle is near Fallarbor, it's a popular place for trainers to go to. I'm afraid to say that Hannah did not survive this accident. She's... dead I'm sorry.'

I rushed the last part, so fast that I feared at first the parents didn't hear. But they soon reacted, the mother first, sobbing and crying so terribly, so suddenly, that she had to be supported by her husband. He appeared calm but you could see the tears in his eyes. This was the truth they didn't want to know.

'What happened?'

The man's voice was hoarse, perhaps struggling to fight back his emotions, the question so sudden that it took me a moment to process.

'A... Pokémon attacked her. She was intending on capturing it, you see, and it was too... wild to be caught.'

'How do you know? How long ago was this? How come it has taken all this time to get to us? Her parents!'

He was growing angry, his face red, rising from his seat in order to tower above me. He was not a scary man but this sudden outburst surprised me. My voice was small in reply.

'I... I work in the Wood, a warden, and this was only just over a week ago. Trust me sir, I left as soon as I could to tell you this.'

Maybe not the complete truth, I could have been here a few days earlier if I had really wanted to come, but this was the moment I feared. It was at this time that the mother had finally managed to stable herself, her hand shaky as she supported herself on one arm of the sofa.

'Does Aiden know?'

A-Aiden? How do they know him? Don't they know him as a vulpix? My eyes widened in surprise, showing that I was completely unknowing to this.

'Aiden, her vulpix?'

'No, Aiden her boyfriend, he was going to follow her, keep an eye on her. That vulpix she released a while back, shame really. It was quite cute.'

Her boyfriend? Her bloody boyfriend? Wait, there was still a chance it was a different person.

'Um, could you describe this Aiden to me please? We don't appear to have anything on record.'

'I thought you said you worked in the Wood as a warden? Why would you have records?'

The father chipped in, his eyes now accusing, but I stayed calm, desperate to uncover this new information. I would have to be careful what I said.

'I am, I work on the police side of it, stopping poachers and such.'

'Calm down, Henry, it's not her fault-'

Oh God, how wrong you are but trust me I'm paying back all the pain I caused her with a double load on me. At least the mother had perked up a bit; you could tell she loved talking about her daughter.

'-but Aiden? I'd say he was quite tall, curly hair, quite a kind guy. Hannah thought the world of him. It was nice to see how happy she was with him.'

I didn't want to hear more, but somehow I forced myself to. See the truth, wake yourself up. He was never yours, he was Hannah's. Which made it more commendable of him to take me here himself.

'Between you and me, I reckon he was going to surprise her and propose while she was way.'

A happy glint in her eye appeared amidst the tears and I couldn't help but smile, be a comfort to her. I was tearing up inside, so much so that I didn't dare to speak but the silence lengthened and this just allowed the parents to dwell again so I had to distract them, for now.

'I will have to leave soon, but all my deepest sympathies are with you at this time. Do you have any other questions?'

'I have one. When do we get to see our daughter?'

I should have expected that he would have one. He certainly has seemed to have taken a dislike to me but, to be honest; I wasn't too keen on him either. But his question was valid, even if it was rudely put.

'I'm not sure yet, my bosses still want to check her out, run a post-mortem and such. Basically to make sure they know exactly why she died.'

'They're not sure? What kind of institution is running up there where young girls can die and they don't know why?!'

'Henry, calm down! She was eighteen, she was a young women. Responsible for herself. Just stop...'

Only then did I notice the lady's eyes filled to the brim with tears, mere seconds away from crying. They didn't need this, not now. No one did.

'Alice, I need some answers. She was our girl and.... and now she's not. She's not here anymore.'

He knelt down to look at her, his eyes just as bright as hers. I felt awkward where I was.

'I think I better leave, but again I say, I'm truly sorry for your loss.'

'Please, just don't, you can't understand...'

No, I could never. I rose from my seat, the two holding each other, obviously waiting for me to leave before they could truly mourn. I walked slowly, taking in the house around me before letting myself out. A blast of cold, sea air hit me, chilling me to my bones. But I had so much on my mind.

Was Aiden lying to me?

Was he Hannah's Aiden?

What had Tor done to her?

Could I really believe that I could go home now? Guilt-free... or at least less guilty.

I hadn't paid much attention to my memories lately, too scared that they would be gone before I could see them for the last time. But now, as I flicked through all the memories and thoughts I had ever had, they were not just fading, they were gone. The only fading memories I had were of the last year. I knew who I was, but not why. I didn't remember the things that had shaped me throughout my life, my parents, my siblings, gone.

I knew I would have to face Aiden sooner or later, even if it was just to check in on Lyle but I had no idea what I was to say to him. I couldn't play normal now. There was too much.

Too much information.

---

A little twist revealed here, and I'm pretty sure it follows all the rules I've set so far. Sorry if a word is missing an 'a', my key is sticking and i basically have to hit it when typing very fast.

Oooh, while I have your attention, I would like to point you in the direction of a very good RP site. The site itself has been running for a couple of years go, but now it has a new plot and concept. It's a wolf rpg called Salvation, previously named Sinner at: brokenempire.(proboards).com

Just take it out the brackets and put it into your browser. I highly recommend it as I play it (username=lynxie (obvs))

Thank you

MoonLynx