"I cannot see Nariya?" Prema repeated what had been said to her as she stood aghast in the hall of the East Veilstone General medical facility.
The future head of the Kannagi Shrine had resolved to visit her friend first thing in the morning. Priestess Satomi insisted she have breakfast before doing so, which was simply onigiri and green tea. She was not expecting to encounter an obstruction of this nature.
"Yes, Lady Kannagi," Dr. Whitman answered with an apologetic bow. He had a shiny scalp with a small amount of hair at the back. Adjusting his glasses, he clarified, "I apologize, but it's per the family's request."
With this, Prema turned to Quinn Yaznik. Nariya's mother, who very much looked like an older, yet much shorter version of her daughter. "Mrs. Yaznik," she humbly began. "Forgive my impudence, but what reason do you have for disallowing Nariya visitors?"
Her nose curled. "Lady Kannagi, when I allowed Nariya to go with you last night, I did so under the impression it would not be dangerous." Her words were dripping with more venom than a Muk. "Not only did she get badly injured by the spirit, you also failed to protect her. Is it not your duty to look after your followers?"
The future head priestess held her breath. No, it was the other way around, Nariya was technically to protect her. Yet despite her safety coming first, it was preferable to also keep the safety of the others. Prema felt personally responsible. Were it not for her own shortcomings, she would not have lost control of the situation. She had failed not only herself and the Kannagi Shrine, but worse yet, she had failed her friend.
Prema did something she had only ever done with her father. She knelt down, swallowing the lump in her throat before speaking. "I cannot apologize enough, both to you and Nariya, Mrs. Yaznik," she said. She was not bowing so much as she was lowering her head in shame. "If I were aware of the severity of the situation, I would never have allowed Nariya to accompany me. I see now that was a mistake, and it was my hesitation that nearly cost Nariya her life."
"With all due respect, Lady Kannagi, words are cheap." Mrs. Yaznik shook her head. "This incident should never have happened to begin with."
Yes, this should not have happened. She should have accounted for the possibility of this much danger. "Again, I can only apologize." She felt utterly foolish. This was a problem warranting a Kannagi's presence, so there was bound to be that sort of peril. Why did she not see that? Why did her father even allow it? "Though I cannot turn back time, I can promise, I will vow, to do whatever I can to atone for my indiscretion. But if you will simply–"
She cut in. "There is no 'but' here, Lady Kannagi. For the time being, I am not–"
Mrs. Yaznik herself was interrupted by a shout from down the hall. "Coming through!"
Prema turned to see a young man in a hurry, weaving around an empty gurney. He apologized before starting into a power walk, coming to an abrupt stop as he got near.
"Ah!" Nori perked up upon catching sight of her, but quickly looked away at the door. "Room C5! This is the one!"
The doctor stood in front of him, holding out his hands. "Hold on, sir, you can't just walk in without permission. Who are you and what business do you have?"
"I'm one of Nariya's friends," he introduced himself. He gave her a fleeting glance. "I heard she got hurt last night, and I want to go see her!"
The doctor glanced over to Mrs. Yaznik, who harrumphed and moved to block the door. "This is a private ward. Family only."
Nori stomped a foot. He stepped forward while shaking a fist, and Prema was momentarily worried he was going to strike her. "Do you really think not letting any of her friends see her is going to do her any good?!"
"Considering she is in here because of her so-called friend?" Nariya's mother gave her a dirty look. "I think so, yes. I don't know you well enough to trust you, and Lady Kannagi is clearly a toxic influence."
Prema shut her eyes. That remark was uncalled-for. As tempted as she was to do so, she was aware addressing it would only further hurt her standing. Besides, Nori was going to do so himself.
"You let her into YAMS, though!" he indeed countered. "You let her be with a toxic protest group!"
Her lip curled as she nearly spit in derision. "Yes, but she never got hurt over the course of their protests."
Nori glowered at Mrs. Yaznik, silenced by logic that Prema had to admit, was irrefutable. No matter what YAMS did or how they eventually ended up treating her, Nariya's only wounds from them were emotional. Some would argue they could be just as devastating to a person if not worse, but there was no room for debate when it came to physical injury.
Her friend's glare suddenly gave way to a twisted, almost unnerving smirk. He reached into his jacket, pulled out his wallet, and retrieved a card with orange trim. He turned to Dr. Whitman.
"My name is Nori Carino, doctor," he formally introduced. "SPRT zero-one. I'm requesting permission as an official to see the patient."
Prema covered her mouth as she gasped vaguely. That was correct! She was not expecting Nori to pull rank for this.
Mrs. Yaznik crossed her arms. She walked right up to Nori, towering over him. "Mr. Carino, what reason do you have for wanting to see my daughter?" she demanded.
The doctor silently looked at him, pondering the same thing. While permissible, officials in practice required good reason to do such things. That said, Prema suspected exactly how Nori was going to justify it.
Indeed, her friend went right into his reasoning. "This incident concerns a highly dangerous Pokemon. As a Pokemon Rehabilitator, it is my job to work with these Pokemon. And as a Special Trainer in the International Police, I have the authority to become involved in Pokemon-related incidents if I deem it necessary."
He evidently had given this the required thought, although he spoke a little too powerfully and even stood on his toes in his attempt to put on an air of authority. Mrs. Yaznik's dismissive head shake spelled out that she was unimpressed. "And what about speaking with Nariya do you deem necessary?"
"Nariya – er, your daughter, the patient, is an important witness. It is important to know what we're dealing with." He turned to face Prema. "For the same reason, I'll have to speak with you about it as well, Miss Kannagi."
"Very well, Mr. Carino," she agreed, playing along. He should have called her Lady Kannagi – even her religious rivals would show her that level of respect – but this was not the right moment to be pointing that out. "I will do what I am able. However, I am afraid I will be busy for the rest of the day"
He grinned at her. "That's fine. Do what you can, when you can, as long as you do."
Mrs. Yaznik sighed, placing a palm on her face in exasperation. She motioned to Dr. Whitman to talk the situation over. It was evident from her rasping that she was displeased. The doctor sharply exhaled, resignedly explaining matters.
"Your request is granted, Mr. Carino," Dr. Whitman conceded. Prema had to admit, she was impressed at how he maintained his composure. "The patient needs to rest, but I can give you fifteen minutes to speak with her."
"Thanks a–" Nori stuttered and corrected himself. "I mean, thank you for your cooperation."
"It is I who should be thanking you," Prema replied, bowing lightly. "The Kannagi Shrine truly appreciates your assistance with this matter."
"Happy to help." He raised a thumb and winked at her as he stepped inside.
"As for you, Lady Kannagi," said the doctor, bowing deeply. "I apologize. I'm afraid I cannot make an exception for you, despite your status. I'm going to have to ask you to leave."
She folded her hands. "I understand. I apologize for taking up your time."
She parted with two sources of relief. The first was how as she was turning to leave, Mrs. Yaznik gave her a benign nod, one free of hostility. Perhaps there was hope yet. More importantly, while she was unable to meet with Nariya herself, she had no doubt seeing Nori would help despite their being closer to acquaintances.
As she stepped into the lobby, she was accosted by the receptionist, a man with navy blue hair and a beige suit. "Lady Kannagi!" he said. "How did your visit go?"
"I was not permitted to visit her," she had to admit.
"Ah, oh well. Sorry about that."
"There is nothing for you to apologize about. I thank you for at least allowing me the opportunity to try."
"The pleasure's all mine!" he said. "Priestess Satomi's over in the waiting area."
With nonverbal acknowledgment, Prema departed. She found Priestess Satomi was seated without incident. She was reading a gun magazine and – instead of her robes – was wearing slick dark-amethyst pants and a matching bosozuku-style leather jacket with a stylized caricature of a Raitora stitched on the back.
"So! How'd it go, Lady Kannagi?"
"Admittedly, not as well as I hoped. Nariya's mother disallowed my visitation, citing her injuries as fault of mine, which I cannot deny. She referred to me as a toxic influence, although it appears that remark at least was made in the heat of the moment."
"Ah well, worth a try, was it not?" Priestess Satomi laughed as she folded her magazine. Prema was able to glean that her elderly mentor had anticipated this result. "Y'know back in the day, it'd be you who could stop her mother from seeing her!"
"I would not do such a thing." While she could not hope to understand Mrs. Yaznik's reasons, she could only respect them and pray that she changed her mind. There was that little glimmer of hope at the end. "In any event, Nori came by. He did manage to get in to see Nariya."
"Mhm. Saw him walking in. I knew he could pull it off." They must have spoken beforehand. Priestess Satomi motioned for her to lead the way out. "You just can't stop someone like him!"
"I am relieved Nariya will be able to see someone else she knows."
Family is fostered by care and time together. However, friends such as herself and Nori had no obligations. His presence in times of trouble made clear his loyalty and dedication. Knowing that would do much for Nariya, perhaps more than she could do.
As they stepped outside into the parking lot, Priestess Satomi snickered devilishly. She gained a spring in her step as they drew closer to her vehicle. She reached into the trunk and pulled out a pair of helmets.
"So, are you ready to ride this time?" she asked with a wild grin. She traced a finger along her motorbike's handlebars and patted the back seat. Priestess Satomi was a real-life Turbo Granny, and she reveled in it.
Prema took a wary step away. "I will sit in the side-car again, thank you."
Everything hurt. Everything was bright. Everything was too loud. All she wanted to do was lie down and sleep. Yet she was not tired enough for her brain to shut itself off and send her to peaceful dreams. Sometimes, she would hear that voice again, screaming into her mind.
"Hey!"
A voice. Not the one in her mind. Nariya opened her eyes to a squint. The sight of the boy before her made her open her eyes further.
"Nori?" she asked, tilting her head up at him. What was he doing here?
He stole the doctor's swivel chair and sat down, sliding it up to her bedside. "How are you feeling?"
"I have a…" She gripped her head. "Concussion."
"Oh. I had one of those. Hit my head on a diving board at a water park." For a second, Nariya felt like she'd done the same. That had to have hurt. "You get told how to handle it?"
"Yes." She wanted to nod, but she couldn't move her neck. "But, why are…"
As she was tripping over her words, he cut in, understanding where she was going. "I came to see you, what else?"
That didn't answer anything. "Why? Why would you…"
Nori paused. He was quiet for about ten seconds. Had she said something she should not have?
"Well, for one," he started, "Back in Sunyshore, I had a friend named Lux. His mom didn't want us being friends, sometimes it seemed like she didn't want him having any friends. Plus it was hard for him to make any. I didn't want the same thing happening to you! She didn't want Prema getting in, since she seems to hate her for what happened."
That seemed…well, not the same thing. "It's not that. Mom's just…she's upset." If she had to speculate, she was only blaming Prema in her anguish. At least, that's what she hoped. "She wanted me being friends with Louis and Mariko, because some friends are better than none."
"That's…!" Nori shouted. He paused. "I can't understand that, but okay."
She hadn't explained it well enough. She was bad at explaining these things. Furthermore, she had a bad habit of taking too long to find the right words.
He sighed. "Well, I was worried too. You are sort of my friend, plus Prema couldn't get in to see you."
A friend. Nariya had never thought of Nori as one before, only as an acquaintance. He said they were before, and she didn't really buy it. Still, it was hard to refute he could be one…
"But I should get to the half-excuse I made," he continued. "I'll need to ask you about the incident. As an official."
"You're not…mad at me?" she asked. She had to ask.
"Why would I be?"
"Because…yesterday…"
Nori blinked. "I get Prema probably told you not to tell me what was happening."
She could only sigh. For someone who got into serious trouble for being so unforgiving at one point, he was almost absurd in his apathy over it. "What do you want to know about?"
"Tell me everything you can."
With this, Nariya recounted what she could remember. Her mind was in a bit of a haze, but she did the best she could. She added that Lady Prema could probably give a more accurate account.
"Was there anything else?" he asked. "Did you see what it was? Anything weird?"
Nariya looked away. "Well, one thing, but…" But he probably wouldn't believe her, given he's…well, Nori.
Nori put his hands on the side of the bed. "Please, tell me!" he said, inadvertently jostling it a little.
"O-okay." This was stupid and a skeptic like him might not care, but he asked, so she'd tell him. "When the spirit attacked me, I heard the word 'ghoul' in my head. Shouted suddenly…really loud. Even covering my ears didn't help." She didn't mind loud noises like some autistic people did, but loud and sudden noises were another story.
He adjusted his bangs. "Ghoul?" he repeated. "That's what those workers were mumbling when I found them."
"It was really weird. I don't…"
Nariya paused. She was trailing off like always, but her thoughts shifted as her self-doubts bubbled to the surface. She vented to the person in front of her.
"I don't want to do anything like that ever again," she admitted. "I wish I never went. All I did was cause her trouble."
Nori sighed. "Hey, at least you tried. More than I've ever been able to do for her."
"Prema appreciates you a lot," she assured him. "Even if it doesn't seem like it…"
"I wonder…" he mused.
"Just what she…said."
"If you say so." He looked up at the wall clock. "I think my time here's almost up."
"Are you going to help her?" she asked as he was headed out the door.
"I'll try."
Try. Maybe sometimes, all you have to do is try like she did. Maybe she failed and caused Prema grief, but Nori did say she had attempted to visit. Maybe she did care. Just like Nori evidently did…
Prema Kannagi's guilt refused to subside. What had happened was entirely avoidable. She was uncertain why her father agreed to the request, but she should never have allowed it herself. Because of her shortcomings, Nariya was hospitalized. Her friend had suffered physical and possible spiritual injury, and there was a very real chance that they would never again be allowed to see each other.
Upon arrival at the shrine grounds, Prema immediately went to her father's office. She knocked upon the door with more vigor than she intended.
"Father?" she said, attempting to contain her anguish.
"Enter."
She did so, closing and locking the door. The young priestess stood before her father, hanging her head low. Her body was shaking, her knees struggling to maintain her weight. As she went to speak, it felt like someone had stuffed her mouth full of mochi. Her father's steely gaze did little to ease her nerves.
There was so much to talk about. Her words came out all in one blast. "I want another chance," she said. The way she said it made her want to fade into the background like a Kecleon.
She did not get an answer in words, but with a narrowed gaze.
"Please," she begged, staring him right in the eye. It was something of a pained stare. "You must allow me an opportunity to redeem myself. I must do this, not only for the shrine, but Nariya. I–"
"Prema!" he barked, making her soul nearly jump out of her body. He gave a simple one-word answer, "No."
"But, father!" She leaned over the desk, placing her hands on it.
Her father reached a hand out. Prema tensed, knowing she was unable to avoid what was coming. She shut her eyes and winced as he…patted her head?
Haruto frowned, yet there was a gentleness in it. His words were firm, yet composed. "With your heart in that much turmoil, it will only end up as a repeat of last time."
Prema's anguish reverted to shame. She was unable to refute that. Doubtless many could blame her for being too emotional, but it was detrimental when it came to the use of her abilities. Under these conditions, the likely result would be more people getting injured…or worse.
"So what will happen?" she inquired, shaking lightly.
"We are figuring that out." A non-answer that did little to ease her nerves. He stood, sliding his chair under his desk. "But never mind for now. We will require your presence for the festival on Sunday," her father informed. "Make sure you're presentable during it."
Prema could only stare blankly. "There is a festival?"
He nodded. "Tsukimi."
"Oh, yes." It had somehow slipped her mind with all that had been going on. How did he expect her to focus on something else? She only prayed that she could, and that a dark cloud would not be cast over the shrine's celebrations due to her failings.
The festival had been something Nariya was eagerly looking forward to. She was going to miss it, all because Prema could not keep her safe.
"It's a shame, actually."
She looked up at her father. "Nariya, yes…"
He drummed his fingers, tapping out a rhythm Prema did not recognize. "I suppose her too. But I meant the blood moon."
"There will be an eclipse during it?" Now she felt even worse.
"A supermoon too. But the eclipse won't be visible here, just over in North America." He leaned back in his seat. "Simply a curiosity for us."
"I suppose so."
"For now, get some rest. I'll instruct no one to disturb you."
He walked her out the door. Rest. How could she find rest at a time like this? She had disgraced herself and the Kannagi Clan. While she could not argue with his reasoning, surely her father would not allow this to stand, would he? Prema had a sinking feeling the consequences would be further reaching than she had already witnessed. She could only pray to the gods that they would not be too debilitating.
As his daughter went to her room, Haruto Kannagi let out a sigh. Equal measures relieved and concerned. Bittersweet emotions. She had not acted this way since he refused her permission to see her first friend. It was comforting to see Prema so out of her shell, yet it did not bode well for their immediate prospects.
He would need to discuss where to proceed from here with his closest confidants. Moreover, they needed to act soon. It would otherwise be an opportunity for religious rivals such as the Mitsutris to step in. Or further disgrace to fall upon them.
A/N: The Tsukimi festival was a fic idea I had, but with the timing in 2015 I realized I'd either need to push the fic back to allow it or to drop the idea since it'd happen midfic. I went with the latter partially since really, it'd just be a cultural research related one-shot with some early pushing of Nori+Prema I can do better elsewhere. Aside, it really was a supermoon eclipse, but it wasn't visible in Japan. Yes I could've taken a liberty just because like I did with hurricanes, but I chose not to this time due to the other reasons not to write it. It was sensible that it should've be acknowledged in-universe, that said.
