Dahlia flipped through her new manga as she walked down the dirt roads of Kurain Village. There was brisk chill in the air, but that was to be expected considering it was late December. It was almost New Years, in fact. The atmosphere was calm and quiet. The only sound that could be heard was her sandals brushing against the dirt. That is, until Dahlia heard voices nearby.
Curiosity was her middle name, so naturally Dahlia had to investigate. She dog-eared the page she was on and tucked the manga away. She crept closer to the voices and looked around one of the houses. She saw 3 men, two in blue uniforms and one wearing a tan suit. All three of them had a police badge on their lapel.
Dahlia hid herself behind the house. "What are they doing here?" she said under her breath.
"Ah, gentlemen. It's so nice to see you," said a familiar woman's voice.
Dahlia peered around the corner and saw an elegant woman with short brunette hair wearing pink and gold robes and a crimson talisman.
"Aunt Misty?" Dahlia murmured. The young girl was definitely curious now. "Why's she doing with the police?"
Misty led the three policemen to the meditation room where the channeling chamber was. Dahlia felt a lump in her throat. She didn't know what, but she suddenly had the premonition that something bad was about to happen.
Once Misty and the policemen were gone, Dahlia moved from hiding place into the meditation room. The channeling chamber was on the other side of a big door, but she knew she couldn't interrupt the Master while she was channeling. So she just kept walking and eventually found herself in the Winding Way.
She took a step back in surprise when a ball flew mere inches from her face. Dahlia looked around and spotted Maya in the garden.
"Sow-ee Da!" Maya said.
Dahlia laughed and sighed in relief at the same time. "It's alright, you just scared me there."
Dahlia picked up the ball and walked over to the grinning toddler. She gently tossed the ball to Maya, who grabbed it with both hands.
"Good job." Dahlia said.
Maya tossed the ball back to her cousin. "Where Mama?"
"I think she's busy right now," Dahlia said. The uneasy feeling returned.
A couple months later, Dahlia was wandering around Kurain Village again. It was a common pastime for Dahlia, her walks were when she was able to clear her mind and reflect. However, today her mind was plagued with thoughts of her aunt.
Recently, she had been acting strangely. Dahlia had never seen her aunt on a daily basis, but it had been a couple weeks since she had last seen Misty. Mia and Maya, whom Dahlia did see just about every day, said their mother has been much more reserved lately. Maya still fell down when she sneezed, but even she had noticed the difference.
"Sis says Mama might have de-pret-chun," Maya had told her one day.
"But what could be bothering her?" Dahlia had wondered out loud.
"It gas. That what wrong with me when I sad," Maya had replied.
Dahlia remembered smiling and patting her little cousin on the head.
She traveled further into her memory, hoping to find an answer. An image of the three police men flashed through her mind. She had never found out why they had come.
"Hmm…" Dahlia said.
Eventually, her walk came to an end when she arrived at her house. Dahlia opened the door and stepped inside, taking her shoes off. Her bare feet made a soft, low thumping sound against the hardwood floor. It was the only sound that could be heard throughout the little house, meaning her mother was out training the young acolytes like always.
Dahlia sat down on one of the mats next to a coffee table. On the table were her favorite manga and a newspaper. As Dahlia reached for her manga, she noticed the headline on the newspaper. Kurain Channeling Technique Nothing but Smoke and Mirrors.
She immediately abandoned her manga and picked up the newspaper. As Dahlia read the article, a familiar sense of dread balled up inside her.
According the article, the spirit mediums of Kurain Village had been labeled as frauds in the eyes of the public after an inaccurate channeling performed by the very Master of the village. The police were also in hot water because they were the ones to secretly request the channeling of a murder victim in order to solve a case. However, the person the spirit named as the killer was found innocent and the channeling was somehow leaked to the press.
Dahlia absorbed the entire article, shock, anger and sadness bubbling inside her. She didn't how to react, so she just stared at the picture next to the article depicting a Magatama with a question mark over it.
"How could this have happened?" Dahlia asked herself. She only wished she had an answer.
Dahlia put the newspaper down and lay on the mat, flat on her back. Thoughts swirled around her mind, all of them questions. What would happen to the Master now? Did Mia and Maya know? What had gone wrong?
As the day went by, Dahlia couldn't escape her thoughts of the newspaper article. That evening, Morgan Fey returned home. She said nothing to Dahlia, who was sitting at the dining table drinking orange juice, and grabbed the newspaper on the coffee table. Dahlia put her head in her hand when she saw her mother smirk.
That night, Dahlia lay awake in her bedroom. She couldn't let go of the article, and her curiosity wouldn't let her sleep until her questions were answered. With her mind too clouded for sleep, Dahlia decided to take another walk to clear her head. Careful not to wake her mother, Dahlia crept outside and closed the door behind her.
The night air was crisp and refreshing as Dahlia strolled through the familiar dirt paths. She knew every inch of the village by heart, so she pay absolutely no attention to where she was going and still manage to retrace her steps. This allowed her to clear her mind and relax.
All was quiet, albeit the sound of crickets chirping in the distance. Dahlia stepped onto a boardwalk and tried to focus on humming the first Pokémon theme. Suddenly, one of the door's in front of her opened. Dahlia froze when she saw her Aunt Misty step out and discreetly close the door behind her.
"Aunt Misty," Dahlia breathed.
Misty faced her and smiled. Dahlia noticed it lacked its familiar warmth. "Hello Dahlia, what are you doing out so late?"
"Just taking a walk," Dahlia said. "What about you?"
"Just saying good-night to the girls," Misty said, gesturing to the room she had just been in. It was Mia and Maya's room, meaning Dahlia had wandered into the main family area of the village.
"Umm," Dahlia looked down. "Aunt Misty? I, er, I heard about, you know, what happened. Are you okay?
Misty knelt down to Dahlia's eye level. "Don't worry about me, Dahlia."
"That doesn't answer my question," Dahlia said, slowly building her confidence back up.
Misty sighed. "I suppose it doesn't."
"I know you're not a fake," Dahlia said. "Everyone here knows that."
"Dahlia…" Misty brushed a hair out of her niece's face. "I need you to understand something for me, okay?"
"What?" Dahlia said, fearing the worst.
"I made a mistake," Misty said. "And that mistake brought great shame not only to me, but to the entire Fey family."
"I'm not ashamed," Dahlia said.
"You're a very strong girl, Dahlia," Misty said. "But I can no longer show my face and call myself a Master."
"What are you saying?" Dahlia said. The feeling of dread rose inside her once more.
"I can't stay here anymore," Misty said with a hollow smile. "I have unearned any form of respect I once had as Master, and if I stay things will only get worse. Not only for me, but for my daughters."
"You can't leave!" Dahlia plead. "Mia and Maya love you."
"And I love them more than anything in the world," Misty said, placing a hand on Dahlia's shoulder. "It pains me beyond belief to leave them, but if I stayed they would be forever ridiculed."
"But…" Dahlia looked Misty in the eye and her voice died.
"My daughters are still the main family," Misty said. "Mia is the oldest, meaning one day she will become Master in my place."
"But you're younger than Mom," Dahlia said.
"Those were different circumstances," Misty said. "No matter what happens, I will be proud of my daughters. But I want them to have the best chance in life they can have."
Dahlia took in breath to say something, but just exhaled.
"I know this is a lot to take in," Misty said. "And I'm sorry for that, but I want you to promise me one thing."
"What?" Dahlia said.
"Take care of my daughters," Misty said. "Be there for them, and let them know that I love them."
Dahlia nodded her head. "Of course, they're my friends. My family."
"Thank you," Misty said, enveloping Dahlia in a hug. "You're a very strong girl. I'm proud of you too."
Those words cut through Dahlia like a knife. She hugged her aunt back, wishing she could think of something to make her stay.
Misty let go and stood up. "Good bye Dahlia. I'm glad I got to see you one last time."
Dahlia nodded her head. "Good bye Aunt Misty. I'll miss you."
It was almost as if Dahlia were in a dream. Misty walked away, eventually fading into the darkness of the night. Dahlia didn't want to believe it was real, but she knew better. She sat down where she was in a daze, trying to process what just happened.
She had no idea how much time passed. It wasn't until she heard a door open behind her that Dahlia came back to reality. She turned her head and saw Mia.
"Dahlia?" Mia said, rubbing the last traces of sleep from her eye. "What's going on?"
It was then that the reality of the situation sank in. The Master of Kurain had vanished. Her Aunt Misty was gone.
Mia's mother was gone.
"Mia," Dahlia tried to find the right words to say. How do you tell someone their mother had disappeared, and wasn't coming back?
Dahlia resisted the urge to cry. She had to be strong for her cousin, even if Mia was older. She stood up and looked Mia in the eye.
"Mia…" Dahlia couldn't continue.
"Are you okay?" Mia said. "Did something happen?"
"I-I'm so…" Dahlia could feel her composure slipping away from her.
"Do you need to cry Dahlia?" Mia said. "It's okay if you cry."
"N-no," Dahlia sniffed, her hands trembling. She was supposed to be comforting Mia, not the other way around.
Mia stepped forward and touched Dahlia's arm. The instant their skin made contact, everything poured out of Dahlia.
"I'm so sorry!" Dahlia sobbed, embracing Mia. "I'm sorry Mia! I- eh-hu-hu!"
"Sorry?" Mia said.
"It's-I-your," Dahlia couldn't form a cohesive sentence through her tears.
"Shh," Mia stroked Dahlia's hair. "It's okay Dahlia. Can you calm down?"
Dahlia quieted her sobs.
"That's good," Mia said. "Come on, inside. Don't wake Maya though, okay?"
Dahlia nodded her head and Mia led her inside.
Dahlia sat down on the floor and cried silently, as not to wake Maya who was sleeping in a crib on the left side of the room. Mia walked over to her closet and rifled through it. She then joined Dahlia on the floor.
Dahlia looked up and saw Mia holding out a Cyndaquil doll.
"Take this," Mia said. "I was waiting to give to you for your birthday, but you can have it now if you want."
Dahlia was overcome with guilt. Here she was, crying in the middle of the floor. Even though it was Mia's mother who had just left.
Mia set the plush doll down next to her. "Now, can you tell me what's wrong?"
Dahlia took a deep breath and relaxed her muscles. It was her turn to be the strong one.
"Mia, I'm so sorry," Dahlia said softly.
"Sorry for what?" Mia said. "You can tell me."
"It's…" Dahlia took another deep breath. "It's about… your mother."