Meloetta

Along the banks of the wandering Kestral River, there was a village called Chartreuse. It was many miles from any city, surrounded by rich farmland. It received produce from the farmers and shipped it to the distant cities, then sold them goods and tools in exchange. As it was far from any major conflicts, Chartreuse was peaceful and stable, giving a decent life to those who didn't like the hustle and bustle of the great walled cities. The King taxed fairly, so life should have been fine.

But while the King taxed fairly, the local lord did not. Lord Brayden was a man obsessed with money. He constantly sought ways to make more money, keep what he had, and spare any expense he could. Over the years, he acquired lands from neighboring lords and made sure that the peasants working there grew the most valuable crops. Sometimes he bought valuable things, but would then lock them away and never consider using them. He owned a fine and large house, but many of its rooms were kept vacant or locked so that he didn't have to hire as many servants to clean. In all the things that he did, money was always a consideration.

The thing that was worst of all, in the minds of the villagers, was that Brayden forbid any festivities from taking place in Chartreuse. It was all a waste of time and money, he told them. Everyone was to work hard, every day, no exceptions. Over time, this wore down the spirits of the villagers. Sometimes they managed to get together a celebration outside the village, to have some fun and get a break from constant work. But if Brayden heard of these parties, he would invariably come disrupt them and berate those attending.

There wasn't much the villagers of Chartreuse could do about their strict lord. He had the King's favor and owned a group of disciplined and strong Pokemon. Over time, the villagers grew dull and unhappy. This attracted spirits that fed on negativity, which compounded the problems. Many of the people lost hope that things would ever change. it was almost like the village itself was turning grey.

One day, a strange little Pokemon came into Chartreuse Village. She seemed like an elegant lady, but she was only two feet tall. She had thin black arms shaped almost like musical notes and long flowing green hair. Although no one had ever seen her like before, only the children stopped to look and wonder. All of the adults were busy trying to get work done when their spirits were dim and low. No one even stopped her as she hopped up the steps that led to Lord Brayden's home.

A maid did eventually find her in one of the storage rooms, looking into a locked cabinet. "Who brought you in here, little Pokemon?" she asked. "I did not know we had guests."

She looked up to the maid and, to the woman's surprised, answered in clear words. "I brought myself here," she said. "I am Meloetta." Then she took part of her black gown and curtsied.

Gasping, the maid stepped back. "You speak?"

"Of course," she said, as if the fact were unimportant. Then she looked into the cabinet again. "Is there someone in the village who can play the violin?"

The maid considered that Lord Brayden would want a rarity like a talking Pokemon to own. "I believe so," she answered. Then she looked through the glass cover of the cabinet at what Meloetta was looking at: a rare and priceless antique violin. "But he plays his own, not this one, and only during church."

"Does anyone play this one?" Meloetta asked, touching the glass lightly. "There is no music lingering in its frame."

"No, never," the maid said. "It is too valuable to play, the lord says. It is in perfect condition and there are few others masterwork violins in existence."

"It's a waste to have an unplayed instrument," the Pokemon said, sounding sad. "It feels nor brings any joy just sitting in there. It seems like no one even admires it anymore. And this village is suffocating from lack of joy. This violin ought to be played, where everyone can hear it."

"I'm afraid that Lord Brayden won't allow that," the maid said.

"How terrible," she murmured. Then she turned and left the room. "Then I shall have to do something to convince him otherwise."

The maid moved quickly to follow; Meloetta was surprisingly fast for her petite size. "Do you want to meet with the lord?" she asked, thinking that she might get a bonus for bringing a valuable Pokemon to him.

But she shook her head and waved a black hand. "No. He will have to meet with me."

Then Meloetta went through Chartreuse and found all the musicians that she could. Due to the long years with few celebrations, it was hard to talk them into coming out to play. But she was the spirit of music itself, and they were eventually drawn to follow her because of that. She brought them to the open space in front of the church and had them begin to play.

There were ten of them: the violinist, two flautists, three guitarists, two drummers, a harpist, and a bugle player. They were nervous at first, for Brayden had punished them for playing without 'proper' reason before. But then Meloetta hopped onto the base of a saint's statue and began to sing. Her voice was so pure that it tickled the souls of all who heard it. And despite her small size, she managed to project her song for a great distance. Others stopped in their tracks while the musicians felt a great spark of inspiration. They began to play along with Meloetta.

They played common songs that they had all learned with and people began to come to the church to listen. Then there was a song that the harpist and a drummer didn't know, but they felt the Pokemon's power so strongly that they were able to keep up. Some listeners went out to get people who had not yet heard, while a few children began to dance. The songs grew more obscure, but no one lost the beat and the crowd kept growing. Off in the shadows of eaves and allies, the negative spirits gathered and whispered. Things suddenly weren't going their way.

Finally, Lord Brayden noticed that his servants had left the house without saying anything. Angered that they would abandon their work, he left as well and searched for them. It didn't take him long to hear strains of music coming from the churchyard. This made his temper burn. After all, the villagers knew that he did not allow festivities, and they were having one right in the middle of Chartreuse. He stormed over there, preparing a harsh scolding and punishment for the offending musicians.

And then he heard the voice, with all the beauty of dawn and all the joy of playing child. It stirred up memories that he had long ago buried, times when he had felt happiness and love. It reminded him of things that could not be bought with money. For a moment, his soul reawakened.

In that moment, the outer edges of the crowd saw him. they were afraid that he would stop this and moved aside. Brayden was able to come into the crowd, where people and Pokemon were dancing. While they did not notice him, Meloetta did.

And she smiled, then began singing another song. None of the village musicians had ever played this song before, or even heard it. But in playing along with the Pokemon, they had fallen into a trance of music. They knew the song as soon as Meloetta began singing it, and they played it perfectly.

The Pokemon then twirled off the statue; it seemed like the notes of the song were swirling around her. When she landed, her hair had rolled up to on top of her head, and had turned red. With her skirt whirling about her waist, she stopped singing and began dancing, leaving the musicians to carry on her song on their own. And everyone, even Lord Brayden, fell into the trance and danced along with her.

No one could ever say afterward how long it lasted, but the trance was eventually broken and the music stopped. Meloetta was standing there in front of Brayden, her hands on her hips. "Do you understand what you have forgotten that you missed?"

Although his heart seemed to be soaring, his mind seemed confused. "What do you mean?"

She twirled around, sweeping her outward arm out. "Is a joyless life worth living? You let greed blind you to the need of happiness in everyone's life. Music is expressive, uplifting, touching. It also speaks that which we cannot say, touches on the complexity of emotion. You made your life cold and hard; you took anything that could give you joy, like the masterwork violin, and locked them away so that they could never be used.

"In doing so, you made your life gray, without any feelings. You made everyone's life turn gray and emotionless. Everyone just worked to survive and behaved to keep from punishment. No one was happy and some even despaired of it. What do you plan to do with your money, your things? They will just sit there and gather dust, and you will eventually pass on without feeling satisfied. If you must be like that, that is your choice. But don't force everyone to live that way. their work will actually improve if you let them have time to celebrate and express themselves with music, for they will be happier and more enthusiastic in life. And please, stop punishing your musicians for doing what they love. It was the sad and secret song of one that brought me here, to give them a happier song to play."

At the time, Brayden didn't know what to say. That wasn't the way he lived his life. Besides, how could some Pokemon think she had the right to tell him what to do? Then again, he felt better than he had in many many years, just from a time of music and dance.

Meloetta curtsied again. "I'll come back in a year's time and when I do, I want to hear a song on that violin you have. Please do, and you'll find your lands blessed." Then she danced to silence and faded away.

In a year's time, there was a grand music festival in Chartreuse Village. The town's violinist was allowed to borrow Lord Brayden's antique violin to play many songs with, ones that he had practiced throughout the year so that he could play at his best. That time, fewer people saw Meloetta, but there was no denying that she had been there. And that was how the annual Chartreuse Festival of Music began.

...

Meloetta Black entry: Its melodies are sung with a special vocalization method that can control the feelings of those who hear it.

I was tempted to make Meloetta an antagonist, like the Pied Piper (hey, the guy kidnaps kids!). That 'dex entry sounds like something that could be abused. But, I held back.