"So, tell me what are pokemon?" It was evening with the sun only bidding good night just a half an hour ago, and between Mandite and I was a small fire, blocked off from the rest of the prairie by stones. Tired from the day's travel through the woods, I wasn't ready to answer questions like the one Mandite had asked me now. Mandite was definitely an interesting specimen. Claiming that he was not even related to a pokemon, he had told Aurora so, proving himself very true. After being asked whether or not he was from the Hoenn region, Mandite pronounced that he has never heard of that place ever before, and explained all too quickly that before he tumbled into the forest earlier today, he had been chasing a "Dark Nebula".
"Well," Aurora started, giving me a quick glance, "pokemon are creatures that possess different abilities to heal, attack, transport, and to defend." Mandite laughed from beneath his mask.
"Well, I can put a band-aid on myself, cut you in half, walk over to that tree there, and hide behind this rock," Mandite said, patting the boulder he was resting on, "but that doesn't mean I'm a pokemon." Aurora sighed, rolling her eyes, and I smirked – finally, there's someone Aurora can be impatient with.
"Sorry," Mandite said, seeing the look in Aurora's flashing eyes, "but I had to point out that mistake." Mandite carefully adjusted the mask on his face. This blue, living sphere – Mandite – was strange, as I said before. He has the ability to wield a weapon, which he dubbed "Galaxia". Earlier, he had brought it forth; the gleaming, golden, pronged blade presented itself as an ominous murderer. The jewel in the centerpiece where there is an intersection point was a blood-red ruby, crowning the savage beauty – and there is no better soul to wield it than Mandite. His hands are dexterous and incredibly quick, and he has the knack of disappearing and reappearing within a blink of an eye. Being so skillful in his arts, I had made a mental note not to try and spar this youngling with his deadly talon at any point in the future. Furthermore, Mandite's eyes did not always keep its amber hue – depending how he is feeling at the moment, his eyes will fade into a new color, shining like light on the surface of the water, and fade back out as the same, monotone yellow. It had also turned out that Mandite's eyes, so sharp and fierce, were also cunning, able to peer into the darkest of caves and still see. His eyesight was so powerful and mind so keen that he can understand another's emotions just by a glance. He was so bizarre, hiding behind that mask of his. As I looked upon the young warrior, only aged seven years, a question turned in my mind. With his eyes keen for faults, maybe he might know what was happening to me earlier. But I was rather hesitant to ask – asking for help is beyond me. I guess I will just have to figure this problem out myself. Besides, I find it rather embarrassing to ask a seven year old to help my problem, being sixteen years old.
"I can fly!" Mandite had climbed to the top of the boulder he was earlier resting against, "Doesn't mean I'm a pokemon.
Something in my mind told me that I have picked up another young fool. Now there are "what if"s and "doesn't mean"s. I watched Mandite furl out his cape, preparing to jump, doubting his claim that he can fly – not a breath of wind was stirring. But the young one had again surprised me – he flung his cape off his back and now sported a pair of wings, sinister, violet, menacing and claw-adorning wings. He made a few springs, rocking on his feet, and made a great leap off the boulder. He soared through the air, waving to me as he passed on by. Once he was distanced a hundred yards away, he made a turning motion with his wings, but only to crash into the ground in one, catastrophic fall.
"Mandite?" Aurora stood up, and peered around for the child. Her head swung from side to side, her eyes searching. She took a few steps forward towards the taller grasses. Meanwhile, I had also stood, and glanced around.
"Boo!" we both jumped at the sudden noise, turning to face a pink-eyed Mandite, the pink light glowing brightly from behind his mask, seemingly out of place for the sinister knight. Almost everything about him contradicted his playful personality, from his wings, to his sword, to the deep slant over his eyes. It made me wonder if his face was the same way, too. I have never seen it, but Aurora has, a second before Mandite slipped his mask on. She hinted that it was "cute". What could that mean? For the first time in several years, I felt childish curiosity consume me – a feeling that I haven't experienced since I was a young riolu. Sheepishly, I asked quietly,
"What does your face look like without your mask?" Aurora looked at me, quickly turning her head, with a puzzled expression playing on her face. I could tell that she was thinking that I was asking something rather unusual for my standards. I glanced back at her and shrugged and told her telepathically [I really wanted to know.]
[That's funny – so did I.] I gave her a sharp look, thinking about how she had said his face was cute, [Well – I mean that I want to see it again, too.]
"Why do you guys want to see my face so badly?" Mandite complained, "It's not like your life depends on it." He touched a gloved hand protectively on his mask's metallic surface. Aurora tilted her head, thinking.
"It's good to know things." she said plainly. Mandite exhaled sharply.
"Some things are meant to be kept a secret." He scoffed. Aurora laughed, the sound as soft as a gentle wind through the mountains. Something inside me stirred – it was the warm feelings again. Irritated, I tried to force them back down.
"You're just as bad as Lucario." she said, and laughed some more. I, for one, didn't find anything amusing; I flattened my ears and bared my teeth. Mandite hummed a little, and thought. Still wanting to see his face, I thought bribing him into doing so. I spotted the cape laid carelessly in the grass, and picked it up, holding it by the collar with one hand.
"Mandite?" he looked up at me, and his eyes widened when he saw the cape in my paw, "Do you want this back?" Mandite rushed forward and tried to snatch it from me, but I proved to be too tall. I raised the cape higher.
"Give that back!" he cried, but I ignored him. He waved his hands in the air, trying to reach it.
"Please! Give it back!" he begged desperately, but I decided to push my luck a little farther.
"GIVE IT BACK, NOW!" I stumbled back from the sudden outburst. For someone as small and young as Mandite, he has very strong vocal chords. Mandite snatched back the cape from my stunned paws and held it with him. He sat back down on the ground with a clumsy landing, and looked forlornly away as I rubbed the sides of my ears, still ringing from his powerful voice. He looked back at me and said, in a much softer tone,
"This cape is the only thing I got left of my uncle."
His uncle? I had never known he would have any kind of relatives. I looked on, puzzling the fact. Aurora was equally perplexed.
"Uncle?" she asked gently.
"Never mind." Mandite held it against his mask, thinking deeply, eyes fading into a deep, emerald green. At that point, he looked so wise, him thinking so in depth that it was hard to believe that he was only a young child.
"Do you ever blink?" My ears pricked at the sound of Aurora's random question. Mandite looked up and his eyes flashed, briefly disappearing into darkness. Aurora then nodded, seeing her question explained. Mandite seemed to pause his thinking, staring at Aurora as still as the motionless boulder behind him. By then, his eyes had liquefied back into amber, and finally he blinked.
"Do I scare you?" he asked, looking back and forth between me and Aurora. I simply nodded, feeling rather ashamed of my discourteous actions earlier with the cape, and Aurora said,
"Only a little bit." Mandite blinked three times.
"Oh." was all he said, and touched his mask, "It's my eyes, isn't it?" I couldn't help but nod again, and Aurora shrugged slightly. Mandite only hummed and tapped his mask thoughtfully.
"Uncle Tally always said my eyes could look right into his heart through all his gears," he said, "always glowing in the dark like a night light – I guess that's why we never had a night light at home." I realized Mandite was more of talking to himself now more than he was to us. Quietly and patiently, I waited for him to turn his attention back to us. I glanced over at Aurora, who was calmly looking back at the same moment. Even on the side of her face without the firelight shining on it, her eyes shined brightly. But right now, her eyes seemed a little dulled, and sad. I frowned, wondering why she was feeling this way – it made a small twinge in my heart thinking about her pain. I broke contact, tearing away my eyes from her breath-taking gaze and looked to Mandite, who was also thinking about something that pained him – I saw it in the slight tilt in his eyes. I then reflected on my own self – I was a disgrace, only another child, another child with no special name. No one knew about that, but me and my parents. As I looked about our small group, I thought that we all held back our own secrets tonight, all of us an enigma to another. All three of us, I realized, were more in common than I would ever thought we would. I sighed, thinking about it all, and closed my eyes.
"I am tired." I blinked and looked up at Mandite, who had pompously spoken, and slid off the metallic disk that had covered his face. Upon looking on his features, I gasped. It was the only trademark that portrayed his child-like characteristic – two large, oval shaped eyes colored a pale forest green, a small mouth, and two purple spots on either side of his face. Now I could understand why Mandite wanted the mask – his face was rather like a baby more than anything; the eyes then looked so innocent, his mouth a small pinprick on the dark blue surface. He held his mask, rolling it from side to side shyly. Thinking back on how Aurora had described it, I connected the word "cute" with his face, so innocent and so dear. Even a male as old as me would think that this child was quite adorable, as odd as it seems. It was a precious face, and just to think that this same child, so innocent, was one of the most skilled warriors living at the same time. It was rather hard to believe, and the thought of it was so ironic, I had to smile.
"Don't laugh." Mandite covered what he could of his face with his small hands. I caught a glimpse of Aurora, trying to suppress her soft laugh, eyes dancing in amusement. I tried my best not to smile – Mandite might take that as an offense towards him rather than me simply smiling because of another surge of warm, pleasurable feelings.
"We're not laughing at you," Aurora said gently, "Well, at least as far as I'm concerned. In my opinion, you are fine." Mandite uncovered his eyes a little and looked at her.
"You're not going to laugh at me?" he asked, still unsure. We both shook our heads, and Mandite lifted his hands from his face. He smiled, a small, crooked half smile, reminding me of Aurora's sly half-turned smiles. But for Aurora, this time, she flashed the young one a full, warm and gentle smile, her with canines showing a bit.
"So, why are you staying with us?" she asked. I looked from her to Mandite.
"Why are you keeping me?" Mandite countered, and after seeing the annoyed look on the female lucario's face, continued, "I'm kidding – I dunno, actually. I just want to go home. Certainly I can get back to my place somehow." He reached his little arms out and touched his feet.
"Can you guys help me go home?" he asked us. I thought about it; Mandite was surprisingly not as irritating as I had though – he was a good companion, as his thoughtful conversations proved earlier in the day. But what disturbed me was the fact Mandite came from an entirely new place different from all the existing regions. Did he come from a new region, or did he come from an entirely different world? As far as we are both concerned, we come from totally opposite lives. It made sense, but it was so eerie to think of that. How can there possibly be another world? If neither of us have heard anything about either side, how can it be that two worlds existed side by side? I have heard about exaggerated tales of a certain legendary pokemon, Giratina, had the power to slide through different dimensions. Was it possible that Giratina had accidentally left an opening from our dimension and Mandite's? It seems reasonable, but the whole thought of it all is rather confusing, and quite frightening. A whole new world, with new people? Could something dangerous slip through? It is all very troubling, but I decided it was best to put it aside and answer Mandite's question.
"Yes, Mandite." I confirmed, nodding in approval. Aurora nodded along with me.
"Yays!" Mandite exclaimed, and then spreading his cape over himself, he said, "Now I am going to bed – night y'all." I nodded, and looking over to Aurora, I said,
"We should also go to sleep – we have to wake up early." She dipped her head and leaned herself against a smooth stone outcropping and closed her eyes. I watched her fall asleep, so smoothly and quickly – it was remarkable that she could fall into deep sleep so easily, while I have to have a good hour to settle myself. Slowly, I let my body fall back, and as I waited for my eyes to drift close, I kept my gaze on Aurora. Slightly curled into a neat figure, her eyes barely stirring, she was so peaceful. It seemed as if she had not a care in the world. But I wondered if she was just as confused as I was about the possibility of two worlds, only with a well protective mask to cover it. All her feelings and emotions are carefully tucked behind soft, pale sapphire velvet and obsidian pelt – all except two teardrop windows. Tonight, her secrets are safe as she slept.
"She's worried about you, you know." I blinked and turned my head towards Mandite. With the fire dimming low, Mandite's eyes were once again enshrouded in darkness and glowing amber again. Perhaps Mandite's eyes only glowed in the dark.
"Why would she be worried about me?" I asked, feeling confused. The only other time I could think of when Aurora had been worried about me was earlier today when I started to feel lightheaded. I shook my head.
"She thinks that you are acting really different – more quiet than usual." Mandite continued simply. I blinked – how does he know all of this?
"Aurora's emotions are really easy to read." the puffball said smugly, sinking deeper behind his cape, "she's a nice person." Without even thinking twice, I nodded in agreement. For a few minutes we sat there, thinking.
"So," Mandite broke the silence, "we're friends, right?" I hesitated – friends? I barely knew this young warrior, and already he is extending a warm welcome? Could I trust him? What if he kills me in my sleep? What if he killed Aurora? I shuddered to think of the thought of Aurora dead. But I am a lunatic – looking at Mandite, his glowing eyes peering innocently over the edge of his cape, I thought that how could he possibly love to kill? With his mask, it seemed so, but I am learning to look beyond a mask. He was a small child, looking for his home. Lost – and he needed us. I made up my mind.
"Yes," I said, "we can be friends." Mandite sunk deeper behind his cape in satisfaction, closing his eyes.
"And he is your friend within a few hours and I am not within eight years?" I turned to see Aurora, still leaning on the outcropping, but magenta eyes uncovered, the fire licking her pupils teasingly. Thinking back, Aurora had always been there for me when I needed her and when I didn't. She supported me, and looked out for me, even if she was dashing ahead of the path. But what have I done? I only taught her and treated her inferior to me, haven't I? With her kindness, Aurora was definitely a friend to me, but how could I be a good friend to her? Aurora watched me expectantly, and I sighed.
"Fine," I laughed, "you are a friend, too." Happily, Aurora smiled and closed her eyes, drifting back asleep. Suddenly, I felt tired, my eyelids aching to seal shut. I closed my eyes and soon my breathing was as even as the two sleeping friends around me.
Arghh, this chapter isn't that great. I screwed up. I was writing a majority of this while listening to the "Spanish Flea", the most inappropriate song to play when writing a serious piece.
So, do any of you know who is this "Mandite?"
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