Broken
Ah, my plot bunnies. They're breeding once more. Rejoice!
Disclaimer: I don't own Pokemon. ;)
"Wes! Come, come play with us! Come, come, come, Wes!"
Wes had to admit that he hadn't seen his pokemon so playful in years. They were running around, chasing Jovi and Plusle, giggling and begging that he or Lily come and play with them.
He was sitting out by the fountain in the front of the Pokemon HQ Lab. His Feraligatr and Quagsire and Remoraid were happily flitting about in it. Michael's Starmie and Sharpedo and Dewgong swam and played alongside them as well, nervous the whole while. His Suicune was laying in it, relaxing with each gentle wave that the six pokemon sent. Lily's Quagy was sitting beside Suicune, watching Wes' Quagsire with a kind of fondness in his eyes.
Lily was sitting with her arms behind her back, her hands supporting her, chatting with Wes. After seeing him act so gently with her little boy, she'd seemed so much more ready to trust him. She'd even, somehow, gotten his Houndoom's head in her lap, scratching behind his horns. He had no clue how it had happened, and didn't really want to know.
"But why can't you tell me? I mean, I'll still know, and that's what's important, right?" Lily asked him, gazing at him.
"We've gone over this, Lily. I'll lose his trust, and that's essential! I can't lose his trust. And, if he's ready to tell you, then he will. You've got to give him time, Lil'. He went through a lot last year." Wes explained for the fifth time, rolling his golden eyes in exasperation. Though he could understand her irritation. Something had happened to her son that he knew about, but she didn't. It probably hurt her, at least a little.
"Well…" Lily shook her head, her beehive hairstyle rustling just enough to almost convince Wes that there may very well have been something in there…
His Skarmory squawked above him, and he glanced back just in time to notice a figure—seeming to be much smaller than it had seemed before—standing above them, watching with anxious green eyes.
Lily looked back as well. "Oh… Michael? Good afternoon, honey."
Michael nodded at her. Wes moved over and patted the ground between him and Lily invitingly. The boy, nervous for only a second, knelt between them, and then shifted so that he was cross-legged. Vaporeon settled down beside Wes, and his Ninetales flopped down ungracefully beside Lily. "Afternoon, Mom." The child muttered. He nodded at Wes.
Wes noted with amusement that Michael was still practically about to fall asleep where he sat, fighting to keep him eyes open. He was sorely tempted to ask Remoraid to shoot a small Water Gun at the boy to reawake him. "Did you sleep well?" he asked, in a poor attempt to keep the boy's eyes open and focused on something.
"Mhmm. Didn't dream or anything."
Wes knew from his own experience that that was a giant step compared to the nightmares that he used to have. "That's good. Vaporeon was with you the whole time?" he guessed.
Michael snorted and nodded, but no smile formed. "She slept longer than me, the lazy bum."
"Vay!" Vaporeon seemed to take offense to that, because she stood and shot him with a tiny Water Gun. Well, it at least seemed to wake him up. The side of Wes' mouth turned up in an innocent smirk.
Suicune glanced at him, his eyebrows raised, and barked a laugh.
Michael replied by tucking into himself.
Wes sighed heavily and turned his face into the wind. It felt nice, feeling the breeze slide across his face, practically feeling it smooth out each and every wrinkle he'd ever gotten. He jerked in surprise when Michael whispered, "yes and no." "…What?" Wes turned to look at him, and found the green eyes on him, looking deep into him.
Michael turned his head back down in embarrassment. "um… yes and no. You asked me a question earlier, but I didn't get the chance to answer, so I'm answering now. But…" his eyes shifted to look at his mother, who was watching their exchange anxiously.
"Right."
Michael nodded, glad that he understood. He tucked his hands into his lap and sighed.
Lily, too, seemed to understand what was needed. She stood and clapped her hands once, saying, "Who wants what for supper?"
Wes raised his eyebrows at her, amused. "I can just make my own stuff. Always do."
"Oh no no, don't trouble yourself. I'm offering, you're taking, so who wants what for supper?"
After Michael and Wes put up their offers, Lily nodded and turned to go inside. She softly stroked her son's head. "Okay, you men have a good talk now. Alright?"
"Kay."
"Yes ma'am."
Lily offered Wes a glare for the comment and went inside. Ninetales scooted over, pressing his fur against the boy. He hummed softly.
Wes glanced down at Michael, waiting for the boy to further explain what he'd said. Umbreon and Espeon came up, dead tired, and dropped down on Wes' lap. Plusle hopped into his hair. Jovi wandered inside to help her mom with supper.
Michael looked down at Ninetales, who smiled up at him and dropped his head into his lap. He scratched behind the fox's ears. "Um… yes and no. You know, about what Espeon told you earlier. The whole 'kill myself thing'."
"But what do you mean by that?" Wes asked him, looking at the boy's deep red hair.
"…I… I didn't really want to. Promise! I never actually wanted to kill myself. But… I don't really know… sometimes, watching everyone…" Michael suddenly shuttered.
Ninetales' ears went down, and his tails flopped, spreading across the path, prepared to trip any passersby. Vaporeon set her head on top of Umbreon's tail and whimpered. Dewgong surfaced out of the pond and set her head and flippers down on the ground, watching her anxious trainer. Even Wes' Plusle's ears flitted apprehensively.
"I guess that from the way I saw it, everyone was unhappy here. I didn't give them enough attention, I didn't feed them enough, everything. Maybe it was just me not wanting to think that I can do anything good…" Michael's gaze danced on the ground with the grass, swirling in the wind. "But nothing looked right. And I saw them sometimes, when one was sick probably, I would feel like it was my fault… and, even worse then normal, it was like that feeling. That cloggy feeling. But it was almost like, nothing I did would make it go away. Nothing short of killing myself. But I couldn't do it. I thought it would be too much work for Mom and Jovi to take care of my pokemon. I couldn't leave them to that."
"That's the only reason you had?" Wes asked, cocking one sandy eyebrow.
"….No. I guess I'm too much of a coward to actually kill myself." Michael replied.
"Coward?" Wes' voice was filled with surprise. He scooted closer to the boy, ignoring his pokemon's cries of protest, and slung his arm around his shoulders. "Michael, you're not a coward. You're very brave, just for ignoring that kind of temptation. You're very brave, and very, very strong." He assured. He squeezed his shoulder kindly.
Michael turned his head up, deep green eyes barely peering out from under his bangs. "…Really?"
"Really."
"But-"
"No buts! Michael, you are not weak at all. You are not a coward at all. And I expect you to understand that. I'm not leaving until you repeat what I just said."
"Fine then. Don't leave." Michael scoffed.
Wes rolled his eyes and grunted. He laid back, tucking his hands beneath his head. However, he did chuckle a little at the boy's determined glare. "Just ask your pokemon; they'll tell you the same thing." He cooed softly.
Michael turned roughly away from him. He set his arms in his lap angrily. "Well… they're all so mushy, of course they will…" he said. He grimaced when Ninetales agreed with him by dragging his tongue slowly across his cheek. "But what about the people of Orre? What will they say when they found out that their so-called 'hero' has been hurting himself and is too frightened of everything to stop?" he demanded, wiping away the saliva that his fox pokemon had left behind.
"No one has to know, Michael. Only the people that you're comfortable telling." Wes replied softly.
"Well, what if I'm not comfortable telling anybody? What if I just want to live my life being a lonely secret keeper, and stay like that forever, because I don't want anyone to know anything about me? What then?"
Wes had to admit that he didn't expect the boy to think up such a scenario. Raising his eyebrows, he responded, "Then I feel really, really bad for you."
Michael sighed and rubbed his hands through Ninetales' fur. "…I… don't have to tell anyone that I don't want to, right? Only the people that should know, right?"
Wes nodded. "Right."
"Kay… can you help?"
Wes sat up and looked at the boy, who was suddenly watching him with determination. "Help? What would I help you with? Michael, this is your job, not mine." He said.
"…I don't think that I can tell Mom and Jo' on my own. I need someone there. Please? You don't even have to say anything! I'd way rather just have you there, coz I know that you know what happened." Michael explained.
Wes raised his eyebrows at the boy. Finally, "you'll be speaking."
"Of course. I told you all that you need to know and I need to practice with."
"…Alright. I'll be there if you really need me." He said. From the top floor of the lab came a cheerful cry, "Boys! Supper!"
Wes' eyes softened and he stood, holding a hand out for Michael to grab hold of. He pulled the boy up. "C'mon now, let's go see what your mom's got for us."
Not as good a chapter as the last, I'll admit. But it's something, right? Right. :) Hopefully will be getting better and more... I don't know, dramatic I guess. Hopefully. :)
Please review.
~YAJJ