The green Pokemon-thing (I assumed it was a Pokemon, anyway, since it was definitely not human, looked kind of fairy-like, and had a face and stuff) seemed not to have noticed Drowzee and me. That was kind of a let-down, because my family had just been attacked and then I'd been teleported or something and it was right after getting my starter who was kind of a disappointment and it was my birthday for crying out loud. And stuff was really confusing in general, to the point that I wondered if I was just having some really strange dream.
It wasn't like there was anything else to see, either- everything around me was gray and murky, not clearly defined. It looked like there were things- people- standing just out of reach; I could see them from the corner of my eye, but they'd disappear when I turned my head to look. And then there was Drowzee, who looked plenty solid. He had his eyes completely closed and he was kind of sucking air in through his trunk with a really happy smile on his face. The entire effect was more than a little creepy, but I didn't let go of his ear since he was the only thing that I was sure still existed.
I had nothing to lose at that point, so I decided to just go ahead and take action. "Hey- hey, you!" I shouted at the strange green Pokemon, trailing off as I realized that I didn't know what to call it.
The Pokemon heard, though. It turned toward me, twitching the tentacle things on its head, and its eyes opened wide.
Are you real, or another figment to begin a nightmare? The phrase echoed through my head in a pleasant, light female voice, but it was backed up with millions of images and sounds and thoughts and some of them were horrible, horrible. I didn't realize that I was screaming until after the voice had stopped talking. Next to me, Drowzee was ignoring us both, still breathing deeply through his trunk.
You are! The voice had changed- well, the sound was the same, but the images and everything else were gone. I still shuddered when I heard it, though. My apologies, I wasn't shielding my mind before. How did you get here?
"Um," I said, shaking slightly, "I, I don't-"
Oh? The green Pokemon shifted slightly, looked at Drowzee. Of course. Your Pokemon is eating my dreams, and my own power is boosting the effect enough to extend towards others nearby. An interesting idea… if unconventional. Inwardly, I groaned despite my disbelief- I'd forgotten about Drowzee's most well-known ability, dream eating. Had I mentioned before how weird my starter was? Still, you are here. You are not trapped. Therefore, you must help me.
I thought about pointing out that I didn't have to do anything, but the Pokemon was pretty intimidating despite being rather small and delicate-looking. "What do you want me to do?" I asked, trying to buy time. What I would do with that time was another question entirely.
Free me.
"… you don't look like a prisoner to me."
I am. The voice sounded almost amused. Trapped 'twixt sea and sky, cut off from the real dimensions. In here, I cannot access the streams of time and thus cannot escape.
I wanted to ask what it was talking about, and how I was supposed to help it anyway- I was just a kid, after all. People aren't supposed to ask kids to do important stuff. However, the creature was starting to fade away as Drowzee's trunk started swaying back and forth. I cannot hold onto both of you for much longer, it said, shrinking away, but I can put you where it started. You must help me, human child, in any way you can... the voice trailed off, and the Pokemon tilted its head to the side. If you're capable of helping, that is. I barely caught that remark- it was like a wisp of a thought had just brushed my mind.
I frowned (after all, it wasn't like I was incompetent or something). "But what-"
You must discover how to free me.
"I don't know—" I tried to protest, but then Drowzee opened his eyes and the green creature faded away entirely. As the creature disappeared, the gray mist of the surroundings seemed to wisp away, revealing lush green plains surrounding us with a forest some few hundred meters to my right and what looked like water (maybe) far, far off to the left.
There was something creepy about the scene, and I figured out what it was after a few moments. There wasn't a single other person or Pokemon in sight, except for Drowzee, of course. Drowzee jerked his ear out of my hand at this point, making me drop his poke ball (I'd been clutching it awkwardly in the same hand the whole time) on the ground.
"Look what you made me do," I muttered, reaching down to pick it up again. Then I eyed him warily, wondering what I was supposed to do with him. He'd already gotten me transported to two entirely different places in the few minutes that I'd owned him. Recalling him seemed like the smartest option, but I didn't know where I was, and I was pretty sure that I'd start panicking as soon as I was alone. "Look, uh, Drowzee. Stop- stop doing things that complicate stuff, okay? Or you'll have to go back in your ball."
He stared at me, not responding. Weren't Pokemon supposed to understand their trainers?
I decided (or, rather, defined- it wasn't like I had any experience to work with) that it just took time, and kept talking. "Anyway, let's figure out where we are, so we can call my parents and then figure this—" I stopped talking at that point, because I had realized something important. I didn't have the cell phone Mom had recently bought for me in any of my pockets; in fact, I had practically nothing with me at all.
At that point, everything that had happened in the preceding five minutes finally caught up to me, and I burst into tears.
Crying doesn't solve problems, but it sure can help you feel better if you can get it out of your system. Drowzee helped with that; he only let me sit in the grass and sob for three minutes or so before he waddled over and slapped me across the head with his arm. That snapped me out of it pretty quickly.
After spending another minute chasing him around the field and yelling, I decided to sit down and figure out our situation. Drowzee actually joined me, watching and listening as I inventoried everything I had. I like making lists, after all. It's calming.
"Pants pockets- rubber band, two mints, five dollars in cash, a pen, and a few berries. Nothing really useful there." I laid the items out on the grass anyway; the berries could serve as food, maybe. "Jacket pockets- screwdriver, flash drive, notebook, energy bar, ID. Better." I briefly flipped through the tiny notebook, smiling at the various diagrams and pictures- all of my ideas were in there, and I always carried it around in case I thought of something new. "Glasses on my face, watch on my wrist, emergency ten dollars tucked into my socks." I paused, then, and looked at the two other items I had, which I'd been clutching throughout this whole ordeal. "Finally, your poke ball, and this… what did that person call it? A Gee-ball?"
Drowzee snorted quietly, shaking his trunk back and forth as he held his head still. I decided that that meant 'no'.
"Whatever. I wonder if there's anyone in it… go!" I tried pressing the button, then tossing the ball into the air, but it didn't work; the ball just landed in the grass nearby with a thud. I glared at the useless object.
"Okay. We gotta find a town or something, or we're gonna starve. Or, I am, anyway… do you only eat dreams?" Drowzee wagged his trunk up and down. "Hey, that's useful. I think." Then again, he'd be eating my dreams, probably. I shivered at the thought.
"I just wish I had some idea where we are," I mumbled, looking around again. The surroundings felt strangely familiar, though I'd never seen the plain before. But I didn't know where I was- I could have been in a completely different country and I wouldn't have had a clue.
Also, I didn't like that I hadn't seen any other people. I was used to people, lots of people surrounding me and filling my ears with noise. All that open space felt wrong.
"C'mon, let's go down that way," I said suddenly, pointing towards the maybe-water. "Water means more people, right? It's worth a shot."
Drowzee just watched me calmly as I gathered all of my things together again and lumbered quietly beside me as we started walking. That felt right, deep down; I was a trainer, he was my Pokemon, and we were just going exploring on a normal adventure.
Normal.
Right.
