Chapter 21 - Session
"Good evening, Ziggy."
"Hello, Kandice. How're you?"
"Just fine, thank you. My, it has been a bit of time since we've last spoken."
"Yeah, sorry. It kept slipping my mind. I guess we've only really talked a couple of times since Dante came back to the guild."
"When was that? About two months ago already?"
"Has it really been that long since he showed up?"
"You've been a very busy Buizel during these past couple of months, haven't you?"
"Heh… I guess, sorta…"
"Already I can tell there is something different about you, just from your outward appearance alone…"
"Really…?"
"Mhm…For one thing, you're not slouching like you usually do. I don't often see you sitting up straight like that."
"…I hadn't even really noticed…"
"It's a better look for you, I think."
"Maybe it's 'cus Angelo is always making me do lots of stretches and stuff before we start training…."
"Mm! Yes, how has that been going? Your training with Angelo?"
"It's fine. Kinda slow-going, but going well. I like training with him, actually. I was really scared on my first day with him, I remember…"
Ziggy stood in the middle of the gymnasium, quivering and looking up at the Mienshao standing in front of him.
Angelo was tall.
Angelo was very tall.
Why was he so nervous? He had met Angelo before. He had spoken to Angelo before. Angelo had shown just as much as any other member of the active team that he was a Pokémon who could be trusted. Still, for whatever reason, Ziggy still found he was afraid of the tall, very tall, Mienshao.
"You doin' okay, brah?" Angelo asked him.
"U-um…Y-yeah," Ziggy murmured. He then shook his head and scolded himself for being so nervous. This was exactly the kind of thing he was trying to fix, and now he was doing it to trusted members of the guild. "Yeah, sorry," he said, with just a touch more confidence, "I just…You're really big."
"Heh. Thanks, li'l dude," he said, flashing a thumbs up. Angelo certainly had a unique way of speaking that sometimes made it hard for the Buizel to understand. Angelo then stepped back and clapped his paws together. "So!" he proclaimed, "Raz-bro tells me you wanna learn how to defend yourself."
Ziggy just nodded. That was another strange thing about the way he spoke. He never seemed to call Sparks 'Sparks' and always used the Raichu's actual name.
"Righteous," Angelo said, "I can dig that. So, I know that you already know Water Sport, and that you've practiced a bit with Kona?"
"Uh huh… It um…It kind of makes me gag though…" Ziggy said, blushing a little.
Angelo chuckled. "Yeah, that's pretty typical for young land-dwelling Water-Types. That's somethin' ya just gotta keep practicin' and eventually that gagging feeling will go away. Best to just try to ignore it."
Ziggy looked up at Angelo in surprise. "Really…?"
"Oh, totally. Most Pokémon your age have grown past it already, but you're just a little out of practice so you haven't reached that stage yet. But no worries, brah. You're old enough that I can teach you how to use Water Gun."
"W…Water Gun…?"
"If you're talkin' pure self-defence, I mean with no intent to harm or subdue your opponent, then Water Gun is a great tool. Water-Types are pretty lucky in that regard. Someone botherin' you, but you don't wanna hurt 'em? Give 'em a little Water Gun! It'll disorient them, or knock 'em down, giving you the perfect chance to make a sick getaway!"
Ziggy considered this, and he recalled that Sparks had said the same thing. He knew that Water Gun was almost the same as Water Sport, but it involved spitting out quite a bit more water. The idea was daunting to him, especially since sometimes just doing Water Sport made him feel like he was going to throw up.
"And…you can teach me…?" Ziggy said dubiously.
"Totally, brah."
"…How?"
"What do you mean?"
Ziggy hesitated before answering, wondering if what he was about to say would be considered offensive. "I mean...you're a Fighting-Type...right? You're not a Water-Type…"
In response, Angelo laughed. "Bro," he said, "This is what I specialize in. You think I got to be the guild's combat instructor without knowin' a thing or two about Pokémon moves of all types? I may not know very many advanced techniques, but I can teach anything from a Vine Whip to a Vise Grip!"
"Really…?" Ziggy murmured, with just a touch of awe. He had to admit, a studious nature was definitely not what he had gotten from his first impression of the laid-back Mienshao.
"Oh, for sure. I got a whole library of books back home, all sorted by Pokémon type. There's one, it's a nice big blue book, talks all about Water-Types and their moves. That's all I need to help you learn Water Gun."
Ziggy looked up at Angelo for a minute, already starting to feel some of his nervousness fade away. "That's…really impressive," he said.
"Thanks, li'l 'mon!"
"Gosh, I…Uh…" Ziggy murmured, "I guess…let's do it, then…"
Angelo stood up straight, crossed his forelimbs, and gave Ziggy a confident smirk. "Gnarly," he said, "No need to be anxious, dude. Remember, we're only teachin' you self-defence. You'd have to really practice at your Water Gun in a different way before you could really use it offensively anyway."
From there, Ziggy's first training session with Angelo started. Ziggy still felt nervous about the prospect, and for some reason also really self-conscious. He was glad that they were the only two Pokémon in the gymnasium. It was the middle of the day on a busy day when everyone was out doing jobs, and Carmen had specifically assigned Angelo to Ziggy as a job in and of itself. With any luck, nobody would bother them until the lesson was over.
Angelo started out by having Ziggy show off his Water Sport skills. Ziggy felt embarrassed with his own inadequate abilities, but he shook it off and did his best to remember what Kona had told him. After using the move a few times, he belatedly realized that he was getting the gym all wet and immediately started apologizing to Angelo. However, the Mienshao shook off his concerns and told him that the gym had a drainage system for just such occasions.
After using Water Sport only a few more times, Ziggy started feeling really queasy. He held up his paw and begged Angelo that they could stop. To his relief, the Mienshao relented and allowed him to sit down on the gym floor and rest.
"Arceus made Water-Type bodies a little weird, didn't he?" Angelo asked with a chuckle.
"Bleugh…" Ziggy muttered. He could feel his stomach churning in a way that didn't feel right. Having lived off of scraps of food on the streets for most of his life, Ziggy was used to getting sick to his stomach and tossing something right back up. Certainly didn't make it any more tolerable, though.
"You should know," Angelo said, "if you're feelin' nauseous like that, that's just a feeling and it doesn't mean anything's actually wrong. It's when you start coughing that you'll know you've strained yourself a little too much."
"Really?"
"It's just a bit of discomfort. Ya just gotta ignore it, and eventually you won't even notice it. That's what all my Water-Type students tell me, anyway."
"I just don't know what to do…" Ziggy admitted, "Usually when I feel sick, Sparks makes me drink water, but that's the last thing I wanna do right now…"
This remark made Angelo laugh.
After a bit of rest, Angelo had him do Water Sport some more. It did seem to get easier after doing it a bunch of times, though he didn't feel any less queasy. Soon enough, Angelo was satisfied and told him to stop.
"Right, so you've got a good enough handle on how to form water attacks. Good, 'cus that's the hardest part to teach if it isn't instinctual."
"Mhm…" Ziggy murmured. It felt like he needed to belch and that's all he wanted to do, but instead tried to fight off the feeling so as not to be rude.
"All right, then! Let's move on to Water Gun, brah!"
"Wh-" Ziggy stammered, "Already…?"
"Sure, why not? It's pretty similar to Water Sport in a lot of ways."
"Um…O-okay, I guess…" Ziggy said, not feeling confident.
Angelo beckoned for him to follow and he led Ziggy over to one side of the gym. Leaning against the wall in this spot was a large, padded foam thing. It was rectangular in shape, and it had a target crudely drawn on the broad side of it.
"Let's aim for this," Angelo said, "Don't worry about scorin' perfect on the target. It's just so ya have somethin' to focus on."
"Okay…So, what do I do…?" Ziggy asked. He was still unsure as to how a Fighting-Type Pokémon who didn't even know Water Gun was going to teach it to him.
Angelo then went off on a long explanation about how to form a Water Gun, mostly using comparisons to the simpler Water Sport. The main idea seemed to just be that Ziggy needed to 'build up' the water before unleashing it. Angelo gave him some pointers on how to aim it, and how to focus it into a concentrated beam of water instead of a 'sprinkler'. Ziggy could only follow about three quarters of what Angelo was saying, but the Mienshao's knowledge definitely surprised him.
"All right, dude. Give it a shot," Angelo said, with more confidence than Ziggy could ever hope to have.
Ziggy nervously looked up at the padded target thing. He was immediately afraid of what would happen if he did something wrong. Would he choke? Would he drown himself? If he did, would Angelo be able to get help in time? He tried to shake off these little incessant worries, like Kandice had told him to do, but more just kept coming. He anxiously glanced over at Angelo, who was just expectantly looking at him. Ziggy's confidence was shaken, and he knew that if Sparks were there instead then the Raichu would be showering him with encouragement.
"Ngh…" Ziggy grumbled worriedly, and looked at the target again. He just had to try, right? That's what he had learned from Rico. Nothing good would happen if he didn't give it a try. Ziggy took a deep breath to calm himself, and then started readying his attack. He did the same thing that he did before a Water Sport, but just kept going.
Immediately, spikes of nausea shot through his stomach like a pair of swords. It was a very uncomfortable feeling and it nearly shook him completely, but Ziggy did his best to hold onto his focus. This is what Angelo had told him to do, so if he threw up then it wouldn't be his fault, right?
Ziggy kept his eyes closed as he unleashed his Water Gun, or at least what he hoped was one. He was definitely firing water from his mouth at the target; of that much at least he was certain. He kept it up for as long as he could, tried to focus on the target even though he couldn't see, fighting through the intense feeling of nausea the whole time.
After what seemed like forever, but could very well have just been a couple of seconds, Ziggy started to violently cough and collapsed onto his paws. He retched a couple of times before the feeling passed and he finally opened his eyes.
"Gnarly, dude!" Angelo spoke up, "That wasn't bad for your first try!"
"Huh?" Ziggy blurted. He lifted his head, and saw that both the padded target and the floor under his paws were soaking wet. He looked up at Angelo in surprise. "R-really…?"
"Still needs a bit of work, for sure, but you've got the basics down. Though, just a suggestion, it usually helps to keep your eyes open. Y'know, kinda helps to see where you're aiming."
"I…It was good…?" Ziggy murmured.
"Yeah, dude! You shot a stream of water right at the target, just like you were s'posed to do. And a little practice will build your endurance so you won't start coughin' as soon."
Ziggy's eyes drifted and he stared off at nothing for a moment. "Huh…"
"Nice job, brah."
"…Thanks," Ziggy said as he looked back up at the Mienshao, who suddenly didn't seem as scary and imposing.
"I kept going back to see Angelo a few times a week. Every time, my water attacks got a little bit better. I slowly started to get over the sick feeling, and before I knew it I was doing Water Guns…"
"That's wonderful, Ziggy. I've seen you use it a couple of times in practice with Kona. It's coming along very nicely."
"Well, it's nothing compared to Kona's Water Gun. He can actually fight with it if he needs to. I just learned mine for self-defence."
"Have you had to use it yet? In that capacity, I mean?"
"No… One time I was out with Sparks in the park, and he said 'Pretend that rock over there is a Pokémon that's assaulting you, and hit it with a Water Gun'. So kinda, y'know, for practice. Sparks thought it worked well enough."
"But has having learned it made you feel more confident while you're outside of the guild? Or at least, given you a better sense of security?"
"I…I think so… There's still that part of me that's like 'Oh my gosh, you might have to fight someone with this and you might hurt them and stuff' but…"
"Well, that comes with self-defence a lot of the time. Someone tries to hurt you and you protect yourself, they're likely to get hurt in the process. It's understandable. You wouldn't get in trouble for it or anything."
"It does feel nice to think that I don't have to rely on Pokémon like Sparks or Javier to step in front and defend me every time."
"So… Do you think you're less afraid when you're out? Less afraid of being seen by others? That was always a big hurdle for you."
"That's…not easy to answer."
"Oh, it never is."
"…Maybe I'll just say the fear has just been replaced with uncomfortableness. I guess I don't really get scared until I actually interact with someone, but at the same time I still hate being out in public. I really hate it…"
"I know, Ziggy. I know you do. Nobody blames you for it."
"But, it is better…It is better than it was before…"
Ziggy grunted under the weight of the wood he was carrying.
This particular day found the Buizel at a construction site for a new house. He was joined by Sparks, Kona and Tora, who were helping the company bring supplies up from the road. The house was at the top of a hill where supply carts could not reach.
He was sweating from the hard work. Ziggy was wearing his hoodie with the hood off, as per the urging of Sparks. This was perhaps the tenth time he was joining some of the guildmembers to help them with a job. The opportunity didn't present itself all that often, usually never occurring more than once a week, but he always agreed to come along if it sounded like a job he could help with.
The jobs with good experiences were starting to outweigh the one with bad experiences. True the thought of the Nihilego's appearance and the Simisage's attack were still fresh in his mind, reminding him of what could happen if he put himself out here like this, but most of the time nothing bad actually happened. Mostly he was just appreciative that Carmen even allowed him to do this kind of stuff. She always just reasoned it as an extension of his chore duties.
Ziggy dropped off the planks of wood with a sigh of relief. The wood was heavy, but not too heavy so long as he paced himself. It was a repetitive, mindless job but he didn't mind. He knew that elsewhere, Sparks and the active team members were carrying much larger and/or heavier stuff than he was. Still, he hoped his smaller contribution would help.
With his load delivered, Ziggy hurried back down the hill to where the delivery cart was parked. The construction workers sometimes gave him odd looks, so he preferred to stay out of their company if possible. Since this was a newer neighbourhood, there was hardly anybody on the streets, which was a nice respite.
About halfway down the hill, he passed by Sparks going in the opposite direction. The Raichu had two very heavy-looking bags of cement across his shoulders. "Take a break when you need to," Sparks said to him as they passed one another. Ziggy nodded.
He passed by Kona as well, who was carrying some tools. Tora was in the air above them, using her powerful talons to deliver the larger dowels and logs by air. It was impressive to see the Pidgeot flying while carrying such a heavy object.
Back at the bottom of the hill, Ziggy could see there was still lots on the cart to bring up to the house. The work day was far from over. He wasn't exactly looking forward to the continued strenuous work, but he got to it anyway. Ziggy began picking up more pieces of wood and gathering them into as much as he could safely carry at once.
"Hey, freak!"
Ziggy froze, as if hit with an Ice Beam. Fittingly, his blood ran cold as well.
"Yeah you, freak! I'm talkin' to you!"
Feeling a lump form in his throat, Ziggy turned and looked over his shoulder. There was a Heliolisk standing on the other side of the street, forelimbs crossed and glaring at him. Once they made eye contact, the Heliolisk scowled even more.
"Get out of here, freak!" he shouted, "Nobody wants to see you around here."
Ziggy frowned as a sense of despair washed over him. Another one. Another shiny-hater saw his uncovered head and singled him out. 'Lovely…' he thought to himself sarcastically. At first, Ziggy just stared at the Pokémon with a neutral expression. He waited to see what he would do next.
After an awkward silence had passed, the Heliolisk gave Ziggy a confused look as if surprised that he hadn't done or said anything in response. "Well?" he demanded, "Go away!"
Still, Ziggy didn't move or say anything. He couldn't help a frown appear on his face, though.
"This is a nice neighbourhood," the Heliolisk continued, "We don't need dirty freaks like you running around stealing stuff and killing neighbours."
Ziggy's whole body sulked and it felt like a dagger embedded itself into his heart. That hurt. That had been a very hurtful statement and it had really gotten to him. Thievery and murder? He was just trying to help out, just like always. His stomach started to churn with that familiar feeling of anxiety, and he almost just dropped the wood on the spot so he could go run and hide. Sparks and his friends were up higher on the hill, where they might not have even heard the Heliolisk at all.
As the Heliolisk continued to throw obscenities at him, Ziggy continued to just stare at him without speaking. The Heliolisk was still on the other side of the street and hadn't made any move to cross over. While he wore a cross expression, he hadn't done anything so far except to mouth off at the Buizel. Maybe, just maybe, this Pokémon didn't have any plans to turn violent.
While he kept his eyes on the yellow Pokémon, he took in a breath through his nose and let it out slowly. He tried to remember everything Kandice and the rest of his friends had told him. He didn't need to jump to conclusions. He had been practicing his Water Gun, just in case. If he wanted to, he could pull up his hood. Sparks had once told him that even though a lot of Pokémon seemed to get angry with him, very few of them would actually want to fight with him. He'd just gotten unlucky and encountered a bunch during his time thus far in the city.
A bit more time passed, and it seemed like the Heliolisk wasn't going to do anything more except say the same mean things over and over again. Ziggy actually started to calm down and he considered the situation a bit more rationally. Words hurt, but he would survive. That's what he had been trying to teach himself. Who was this Heliolisk anyway? Coming up to him and yelling at him for no reason when he was just trying to help out like a good Pokémon?
Finally, Ziggy just scoffed and turned away. He had loaded up enough wood to carry, so he started to just head back up the hill.
"Hey! Where the hell you goin'?" the Heliolisk shouted indignantly, "That's not going away, that's someone's house! Hey, I'm talkin' to you!"
Just ignore him. That's what Sparks had told him. That's what Kandice had told him. This jerk was going to yell and be stupid, but if he wasn't going to get violent then there was no use giving him any more thought. Ziggy's friends knew he was trying to help, and that's all that really mattered.
"Freak!" the Heliolisk shouted, "Freeeeak!"
A brief spike of panic shot right up Ziggy's spine as he realized something he had overlooked. Heliolisk were Electric-Type Pokémon. They had access to powerful electric attacks that would be utterly debilitating to him. In his time living on the streets, Ziggy had been subjected to a pawful of horribly painful electric shocks. It wasn't much fun.
Ziggy worriedly looked over his shoulder, just to see if the Heliolisk was preparing an attack. However, to his immense relief, the Heliolisk wasn't there anymore. Ziggy's eyes sought him out for a moment before he noticed that the Pokémon was walking away down the street in frustration.
The Buizel sighed in relief, and allowed a quick shiver to pass over his body. He prepared himself for what he knew would be coming next. Now that the incident was over, his brain was about to imagine all the thousand painful, deadly ways that the event could have gone horribly wrong. It gave him a powerful tremor, but he did his best to ignore it. It was over now.
As he began to make his way back up the hill, carrying his next load of wood, he was met about a quarter of the way up by a frantic Sparks. The Raichu dashed down the hill and barely came to a stop before him. "Ziggy!" he exclaimed, "What happened? Are you all right?"
"Yeah, I'm fine," Ziggy said with a nod.
"I heard somebody shouting…"
"I'm fine," Ziggy repeated, and manoeuvred his way around the Raichu. He wasn't trying to be rude, but the wood he was carrying was quite heavy and he didn't want to stand around and talk while he was carrying it.
Sparks seemed to get the message and instead walked alongside him. "Was somebody giving you trouble?"
Ziggy sighed. "Yeah, but he didn't do anything. He just said a bunch of dumb stuff. He's gone now. He left."
"Oh…Well, okay then. What species was he?"
"Heliolisk."
"I'll keep an eye out, just in case. But you're okay, Zig?"
Ziggy glanced over at him and shrugged. "Whatever. He's just being dumb, right?"
Sparks blinked in silence a few times, then gave Ziggy a little half smile and chuckled. "Yeah. That's right, bud."
Ziggy nodded in thanks and then continued up the hill while Sparks turned around and headed back for the bottom. He had been mostly telling the truth to the Raichu. He did feel rather 'okay' after the encounter, though not fully. The Heliolisk's words were still rattling around in his brain, and he knew they would be stuck up there for the rest of the day at least. He even felt the tiniest discomfort in the pit of his stomach, as if those words were poisoning him.
But that's all they were. Words. They hurt him, but only so much. He could still work, he could still be outside in public, and he could still hang out with his friends. And those were the only Pokémon whose words he cared about.
"I wish I could say that every encounter goes like that, but…"
"Remember what we talked about. Don't diminish your accomplishments, Ziggy. Ignoring idiots is an acquired skill and not everybody can do it easily. Believe me, I know a thing or two about idiots…"
"If I have to ignore some…idiots in order to help Sparks and everybody out, I'd like to get better at it."
"You have been helping out around the guild a lot more lately. Seems like you lend a paw just a bit more every day."
"Really? I dunno, maybe?"
"I remember you told me once that helping out around here made you feel like you belong here, like it's somewhere you're wanted. Does that still hold true?"
"Definitely. I…I've never really felt anything like…like how I feel after whatever I'm helping with is done, and the other Pokémon tell me good job and how helpful I was. And it feels nice…like I never felt before I came here. I…I really like that feeling…"
"That's so nice to hear, Ziggy."
"I just wish it were easier. I wish I didn't have so much trouble with strangers and the public and my own nervousness…"
"Your heart is much bigger than you realize, Ziggy. It's very good to explore that. I'm just happy Carmen is letting you join in on official missions. I would've thought there'd be more red tape with that sort of stuff, but…maybe she just recognizes how helpful it is to you."
"Good evening, Terry…" Sparks said as he wandered into the rather empty common room.
"You missed dinner," Terry quipped
"Really?" Sparks said with a huge amount of mock sarcasm, "Honestly, me and my stomach hadn't noticed." He then chuckled and noted that he had gotten dinner at a restaurant instead.
"Welcome back, though," Terry said with a grin, "Long mission, huh?"
"Pretty far out of town…Most of it was just travel time."
"Ooh, yikes. I never like those missions…I prefer staying close to home."
"How about you?" Sparks said as he took a seat next to the Eevee, "Day off, right?"
Terry nodded. "Yup! Another date with Rico!"
"Oh yeah? How'd it go?" Sparks asked. It had been almost a month and a half since Rico had lost his memory of Terry, and it was encouraging to see that the two were still dating.
"Pretty good!" Terry said, "Pretty good, I…guess." His expression withered slightly.
Sparks frowned and leaned in closer. "Everything okay…?"
"Yeah," Terry said with a nod, "Yeah, I am. It was pretty good, I'm serious about that. I had a fun time and it seemed like Rico did too. It's just…I dunno, I guess…I get worried sometimes."
"Oh, well of course. Nobody would blame you for that…"
"It's like…Sparks, imagine you were climbing a mountain and you got within paw's reach of the very top, but then there was an avalanche and it carried you almost back down to the bottom. Now you have to climb up again, even though you were right there…And you think, 'What if I can't make it back up again?'"
"You will," Sparks said, giving Terry a pat on his shoulders, "I know you will. A bond strong enough to bring two mates together so strongly and so early in life can't be broken that easily."
Terry nodded softly. "Yeah…Thanks, Sparks," he said, "I do think it's going well, I really do…but still, I worry."
"You'll be fine. And you can talk to me any time you want. You can talk to any of us. We're all here for you."
"Thanks. I really appreciate it."
Sparks then looked around, noting just how empty the common room was. There were only two other Pokémon besides them in the room. "Where's Ziggy?" he asked.
"Uh…I think he's resting in his room. He was pretty tired."
"Tired?" Sparks looked at Terry quizzically, "Why tired? He was just supposed to practice his math book today."
Terry gave him an equally quizzical look back. "Because he was just out all day with Jules and Akash."
"He what?" Sparks blurted.
"He went with them to help on their mission," Terry said, and then his eyes opened wide. "Wait…Did you not know about this? How is that…?"
"I never-" Sparks muttered, "He didn't talk to me about… Ziggy went to help with a job? You're serious?"
Terry nodded. "Yeah! They got back just in time for dinner. I though you knew about it. Aren't you the one who coordinates these things?"
"Wh…?!" Sparks couldn't quite respond. His brain was fizzling out a little bit, trying to understand what he was being told. Before he could figure out what to say, the door opened and Sparks turned to see the very Sylveon in question walk into the room, holding an ice cream cone with one of his ribbons. "Jules!" Sparks barked.
"Oh, hey Sparky," he replied, "We kinda kidnapped your son today. Hope that was okay." He smirked as he sauntered over to the table.
"What?!" Sparks shouted.
"I'm kidding! Relax. Ziggy was in the room when Akash and I were getting ready to head out. Akash was in good spirits because his winter coat was finally going away, and he asked if Ziggy wanted to come. He was a little nervous and pretty unsure of himself because you weren't there."
Jules sat down at the table and took a few licks of his ice cream before continuing. "Told him we were delivering food for old elderly 'mons and he wanted to help. We had to track down Carmen, but she signed off on it and everything. It's all good. I think he had a great time out with us."
Sparks sat in silence, blinking a few times as he processed this news. "…Oh."
"I'm sorry, Sparks," Terry said, "I really thought you knew."
"No, don't worry. It's fine, Terry…" Sparks said distractedly.
"Go get Danika," Jules quipped, "The computer in his skull is busted."
Sparks levelled an unamused look at the Sylveon, and then shook his head. "Ziggy…went outside on his own? Without talking to me first?"
"Yup," Jules nodded.
"Really?"
"Yes, Razzy. Get it processed in that old brain of yours. He was fine."
"No, I'm just…It's not that, it's…I'm surprised. And impressed. I'm also impressed."
"The kid's got friends here," Jules noted, "And he knows it. And we know it too. We're his friends, so we'll take care of him, and he knows we'll take care of him."
"Yeah, Sparks," Terry added in, "You don't have to worry. If he's with any of us, we'll look after him."
"Well, goodness…" Sparks said, finally coming back down to earth, "I should let him rest now, but I'll definitely have to commend him later. That's a pretty big step he took."
"He's really starting to get better," Terry said, "It was really slow at first, and it's still pretty slow, but he's starting to get there."
Sparks nodded softly, and then glanced over his shoulder. He looked over at the door that led to the dorms, where only a single wall separated the common room from the room Ziggy was sleeping in. His room. His room in the guild.
"…Good job, Ziggy…"
"Ziggy…"
"Yes?"
"Of course we're all proud of you for what you've accomplished. I just have to ask…I hope you're not just going on missions because you feel like it's something that's expected of you. You might be 'employed' here in a technical fashion, but you're never obligated to do anything related to missions."
"Oh, no! No, no, no, of course not. No, there've been a few times where Sparks asked me to join a mission but I said no because I didn't feel comfortable."
"Okay, good. I just wanted to make sure."
"Yeah, no…I just go when I feel like I can help and I think I can handle it…Sometimes I try to be brave, y'know, if I'm worrying about it."
"Mhm. Pushing yourself if a good thing, but pushing yourself too far definitely is not."
"I know. I…I guess I just…Well, ever since I've been here…Ever since you guys took me in, and a lot of the crap in my mind finally went away…y'know, all the worrying and being scared…I guess that's when I started to think more about what I can do."
"I suppose a way to look at it is that you have seen first-paw examples of how the world can be a horrible place, and you wish it were better. Now, with us by your side, you see ways that might be possible…"
"…Wow…Yeah, that is actually a good way to put it…"
"You've told us before about how you want to give others the help that you yourself never received."
"Y…Yeah…"
"That's a good motivating factor, Ziggy. Motivation is important for improving one's self in any way. It's good to have a long-term goal, so long as you don't fixate on it. It's a very selfless thing to be thinking about others and how you can help them out, even while you yourself are still getting some help."
"It's…yeah…I think I sleep better if I know I've helped someone out that day. I like knowing that I've been helpful…even if the Pokémon doesn't show it. Like with that Medicham…she clearly hated me, but I still knew I helped her out by moving her stuff when she was hurt."
"Ziggy, let me tell you. It's something everybody working for the Rescue Society has to learn at one point or another. Working for this guild can sometimes be a thankless job, and we just have to accept that."
"Mhm…But still, yeah. I…I really don't say this enough…I'm really lucky to have ended up here. I can't thank all of you enough for helping me, and for so long. I was in such a bad, bad place before, and I still have nightmares about how bad it used to be. I can't stand thinking about it, and I don't want anyone to be in as bad of a place as I was…"
Ziggy tugged at his scarf. The temperature was fluctuating and he couldn't decide whether it was more comfortable to wear it or take it off.
He was on a casual early evening walk through a wooded park in Radiant City, joined by Sparks, Lupe and Rico. The latter two were up ahead, chatting amicably to one another. Sparks was hanging back and walking next to Ziggy, as he usually did. There was no particular reason for the walk, it was just another case of Sparks wanting to go for a stroll and asking who wanted to join him.
Ziggy was still trying to build his confidence in public by going out whenever the opportunity presented itself. He always started any outing with his hood down and only put it up if he started to feel really uncomfortable. He was slowly getting used to the stares everybody would give him and was learning to ignore it.
Up ahead, Rico and Lupe started laughing at something one of them had said. Being out in public with Sparks was always helpful and relaxing to Ziggy, but being out with his other friends as well was even better.
Ziggy fidgeted with his scarf again, which drew Sparks' attention.
"Getting a bit warmer out, huh?" he asked.
"Yeah… I hate summer because it never rains…" Ziggy mumbled.
"Haha! That's fair, I suppose," Sparks chuckled, "Summer's still a long ways off, though. You know what they say about April showers, too!"
"I dunno, I never really paid attention to what month it was…"
The park they were in was fairly busy, and was full of all sorts of Pokémon walking along the paths and through the trees. Singular Pokémon, couples on a stroll, families out with their cubs, and more. It really wasn't too bad for Ziggy, since most Pokémon were paying more attention to the nature that was surrounding him. It still felt kind of weird that he was out in public and somewhat okay with it.
"Dante's been gone for like three days," Ziggy spoke up, "Is he coming back?"
"Oh yeah, of course. He's just out somewhere else in the city looking into…y'know. Working far too hard. Probably sleeping up in a tree somewhere."
"He does that?"
Sparks laughed. "You think I'm joking but remember; he's an adventurer. He's slept in a lot wilder places than up in the branches of a tree."
Ziggy walked in silence for a couple more minutes and then looked up at Sparks again. "You used to know him a long time ago, right?"
"Yup. I had just become a full-fledged member of the active team when he and Riya joined."
"Who's Riya?" Ziggy asked in confusion.
"She's…" Sparks started to say, and then trailed off. He actually stopped walking for a few seconds before continuing on. "She was Dante's partner in the guild," he explained, "Like Terry and Rico. They joined as a team and did most of their work together. She was his best friend for the whole time he was at the guild. I think she was his only friend when he first joined."
"Oh, okay," Ziggy said with a nod, "This is back when he was a Riolu like Rico, right?"
"Yeah. And she was a Chikorita."
Ziggy was about to say something else, but paused as a thought occurred to him. "How come he's never mentioned her before? You said she was his best friend, right?"
"Well…" Sparks answered, "Remember, this was a long time ago. Dante's in a completely different way of life now, what with all of his adventuring and whatnot. He…"
Sparks continued to talk, but Ziggy had stopped paying attention. He had noticed something and it had completely captured his focus. Off to the side, in the trees and far off the path, Ziggy had just barely caught sight of something. There was a little Shinx sitting at the base of a tree, curled up tight into a ball and looking at his surroundings nervously. The Shinx was very small, indicating that it was a young cub, and was facing away and hadn't noticed Ziggy staring. He couldn't be sure, but it looked like the cub was trying to hide himself in the bushes.
Ziggy immediately deviated from the path and headed through the sparse bush to where the Shinx was. "Uh…Hello?" he called out as he got closer.
The Shinx whipped his head around and gasped. When he saw Ziggy approaching, he clumsily scrambled to get to his paws but just ended up tumbling back onto the ground.
"Are you okay?" Ziggy asked, "Do you need help?"
Still not responding, the quivering cub just looked up at Ziggy fearfully until he was right in front of him. The cub craned his neck up to look at the relatively taller Pokémon and stared at his face for a moment, then yelled and tried to scramble away again.
Ziggy felt a little dagger in his heart. The Shinx probably saw his fur and was freaked out by its distinctly non-Buizel colouration. "No, no, relax. I'm not here to hurt you," he said in as gentle a voice as he could muster. He also squatted down slightly so as to not appear so tall. "Are you okay? Are you lost?"
"H-Huh…?" the cub murmured, seeming to calm down just a little.
"I saw you over there," Ziggy explained, "You looked like you were in trouble."
The more Ziggy talked, the less the Shinx seemed to be afraid of him. Perhaps it was because Ziggy still had a relatively higher-pitched voice and didn't sound like a big scary adult. "Um…" he whimpered, "Y-yeah…"
"Yeah? Are you lost? Is that it?"
The Shinx just shakily nodded his head as a few tears streaked down his cheeks.
"Okay. I got lost in the city once. It wasn't a lot of fun," Ziggy said to him, "My name's Ziggy. What's yours?"
"Uh…A-Ari…"
"Hi, Ari. Nice to meet you."
A moment later, Ziggy heard Sparks call out in the distance. "Ziggy? Where'd you go?"
Ziggy lifted his head and looked over his shoulder. He saw Sparks further down the path, looking around in confusion. "I'm over here!" he called out, and Sparks caught sight of him a moment later. Then, remembering what had happened with Zuri the Nidoran in the Mystery Dungeon, he turned back to Ari and said, "That's my friend over there. I know he's really, really big but he's really friendly and he can help you."
Ari gulped and said, "O-okay…"
Sparks approached the Buizel from behind a moment later. "Don't run off like that, Ziggy," he gently scolded, "Or at least tell me you're goin- Oh! Hello, there…"
Ziggy could see the little Shinx looking up at Sparks with huge, terrified eyes and he was quivering on the spot, but at least he wasn't trying to run away. "This is my friend Sparks," he said to Ari, and then turned to look at Sparks, "This is Ari. He says he's lost."
"Oh no," Sparks said, "That's no good. Were you with somebody here in the park and you just got separated?"
"Uh…N-no…" Ari murmured, wilting under Sparks' gaze.
Thankfully, Sparks seemed to get the hint and also squatted down lower. "Can you tell me what happened then?"
Ari grimaced, his ears hanging low, and he averted his gaze like a scolded cub. Ziggy didn't understand at first, but then Ari answered. "I…I ran away from home…"
"Ohhh…" Sparks said, while Ziggy just looked down at the cub in concern.
"But…I-I don't wanna run away no more," Ari cried, "It was a dumb thing to do. I'm scared and I wanna go home, but I don't know how to get back home…"
Ziggy stood still for a moment, feeling his heart ache as he looked at the helpless cub. There was a reason he had rushed over to the cub's aid without a second thought. Memories flooded in and filled Ziggy's head, of a little tiny Buizel cub in much the same situation. Just like Ari, that Buizel had been terrified of the world around him, scared of all the big mean adults walking around and, above all else, feeling utterly helpless.
"It's okay," he said resolutely, "We're gonna help you, okay? We'll help you get back home. I promise."
"Huh? Y-you will…?" Ari murmured nervously.
"Yeah. We will," Ziggy said with a nod, "We couldn't just leave you out here…Scared and alone… It…" Ziggy suddenly felt the need to clear his throat. "It wouldn't be right…" he added in a softer voice.
Ari didn't reply to this. He still seemed unconvinced, still afraid of the two larger Pokémon.
Ziggy knew exactly what the Shinx was going through. He felt like he could read the cub's mind. Ziggy knew, because he had lived through it a thousand times. And, that was enough to know that once was already too many.
"C'mon," Ziggy said in a soft, encouraging voice, "Come with us and we'll get you back home. See the badge Sparks has? He's from the Rescue Society, so you can trust him, and you can trust me too."
Ari whimpered softly, indecision written in his expression.
Ziggy swallowed a lump in his throat and continued. "Your…Your parents…Your mom and dad must be really worried about you. They probably miss you a whole lot. They're probably really sad, and you'll be so happy when you get to…see them again."
These words finally seemed to convince Ari enough and he took a few timid steps forward, which was a relief to Ziggy who found he couldn't talk anymore all of a sudden.
"Here," Sparks said as he reached out with his paws, "Would you like to ride up on my shoulders while we take you back home? You'll be safe up there with me."
"R…Really…?" Ari murmured, a tiny bit of awe seeping into his voice.
It took a little bit more coaxing, but eventually the Shinx allowed himself to be picked up by Sparks. He got himself settled onto Sparks' back and held onto his shoulders, which seemed to brighten him up considerably. A little half smile was starting to appear on his muzzle.
"So, can you tell me anything about where you live?" Sparks asked, "Maybe if you tell me what school you go to, that might help."
"Um, I go to Josie Alexander Elementary School."
"Really?" Sparks asked in surprise, "That's quite a ways away from here. And you live close to the school?"
"Yeah, it only takes like 15 minutes to walk to school in the morning…"
"And you ran all the way over here on your own?"
"Uh…" The Shinx chuckled softly and said, "My P.E. teacher says I'm really good at running."
"Well, running away might not have been a good idea, but running all the way here is pretty impressive, especially for somebody your age. And hey, you and Ziggy have something in common. He's a really fast runner himself! Isn't that right, Zig?"
Ziggy didn't reply. He was too occupied staring off into space.
"…Ziggy?"
"Huh?" he muttered as he perked up, "Oh, uh…S-sorry. Wha'd you say?"
"You okay, buddy?"
Ziggy took a slow breath and then nodded. "I'm fine. Where'd Rico and Lupe go?"
"Oh! Haha…" Sparks laughed, "I told them to go on ahead of me because I thought I'd just be coming to pick you up and didn't realize what was happening here. They're probably off somewhere else in the park with no idea what we're doing…"
"Oh…"
"I'll use my badge to let them know what's up," Sparks said, and then tilted his head up to address the cub on his shoulders. "Shall we get you home?"
Ari nodded, but was frowning as he did so. "Mom's gonna be mad…"
"Don't worry about it," Ziggy spoke up, "Seriously, just don't worry. The important thing is to get you home. It's…not a safe place out here in the world for a cub to be on their own…"
Sparks turned and looked down at Ziggy with a poignant expression. No words were exchanged between the two, but Ziggy knew that Sparks understood what he had said and why he had said it.
"I'm just…glad we could help…" Ziggy said softly.
"That was a really good day. It made me feel really good when we got him back home…"
"Mhm… You rushed right over to help him without a second thought. You didn't care what he would do when he saw your fur, or anybody else. He was in trouble, and you knew you needed to help him."
"…I know what it's like. I knew exactly what he was thinking. What he was feeling."
"Empathy. It's a very powerful skill to have on your side."
"Like I said…I got lucky finding you guys. The Rescue Society is just a lucky place. And…some Pokémon out there need some luck…"
"All right. Well, Ziggy, let me ask you something. As I've said a few times during our session today, you have come quite a long way in the past month or so. You're taking strides forward every day. You're coming out of your shell, you're becoming more comfortable being looked at by others, you're more active and energetic, and still you keep on trying to find ways to help others wherever you can, however you can.
"But, Ziggy, what I want to know is how all of this makes you feel. You know that we all feel happy for you and we're proud of you, but what about you? What do these steps forward mean for you? Does it make you feel good? Maybe it's a little bit scary? Are you happy with the Pokémon you're slowly starting to become?"
"I… Gosh, I just… I mean, of course I feel good about what's happening to me. I mean…I'm not afraid of everything 24/7 anymore. That's how I spent most of my life. Even a few months ago, I never even dreamed I'd actually start to feel not afraid… I- I just…I…"
"Relax, Ziggy. Take your time."
"…I…When I was younger…I always dreamed of being a 'normal' Pokémon. I hoped one day I would wake up and my fur would be orange, and I could just go on being a regular Pokémon and have a normal, regular life. That's all I ever wanted, and it's something I'll never get…"
"Mhm. Go on…"
"But…When I got older, I just started to realize that I was stuck like this and all the bad stuff that came with it was going to stick around. This was my terrible, awful life and nothing would ever change. Even when I came here, and I started to get a bit better and less afraid thanks to Sparks' help…Even then, I still just had this sinking feeling always that I was cursed to a bad life where everybody, or at least most everybody, hates me…"
"I wish I could say what you're saying is ridiculous, but from what you've shared with us it was definitely warranted…"
"Even just earlier this year, I was still crying myself to sleep sometimes…"
"But, something changed right? Something is different now."
"Yeah. I guess…when that Simisage tried to attack me and Javier had to save me, something just…snapped in me. All of a sudden I just kinda realized how stupid this all is. Like, how it doesn't make sense and things shouldn't be like this."
"Heh…Well, that is a good way of putting it."
"Most of my life I believed what everyone else said. They hated me, so I just believed that I was supposed to be hated. There was something wrong with me and I deserved everything I got. But that day, finally, I guess I just realized I was wrong about that. I wasn't doing anything bad, and they're the ones who are wrong.
"I…I dunno, Kandice, does that make sense? Maybe…I just started to realize that I matter…and we've already talked about how I feel like I belong now…and I have friends, and it's been a while and they're all still my friends. And… when I was out sitting in the rain that day, I was thinking about how the mean, bad things that everybody else did were the reason why my life sucked so much until now. It was their fault, not mine. I…don't want others to make my life suck anymore."
"I understand, Ziggy. You've developed a sense of self-worth, and that's something very important that you should hold onto as tightly as you can."
"But, like…I'm still scared. I'm still pretty scared of a lot of things, and I'm still nervous when I'm out, and I'm nervous around strangers…"
"Oh, of course, of course. Anxiety doesn't just disappear overnight, no matter what you do. What's important is how you deal with it, and how much you let it control you. And it sounds to me like you don't want to let it control you anymore."
"Yeah, so…That's kinda what it is, really. I'm just trying to do…what I want to do. Usually, that's helping others."
"That's wonderful to hear. I know it's never going to be easy to show off the real you to others, but your heart is in the right place. The road to recovery is long, and sometimes you fall back a few steps, but that's okay."
"…Thanks, Kandice. I just want to do something good. Pokémon out there think I'm doing something bad all the time, so I want to do something good. And…Um…Can I tell you a secret?"
"A secret? If you want to. It's up to you."
"I…What I really, really want…is to make Sparks proud of me."
"Ziggy, he feels proud of you all-"
"No, I mean like…really proud of me. Like something really big, really good. I don't…really know why, other than the fact that he's always been there for me and he's really special to me."
"Hm… Well, Ziggy…You've got a long life ahead of you. So long as you never give up, anything can happen. That sounds really cheesy, I know, but it's true."
"Heh… Um…Thanks for listening, Kandice."
"Any time, Ziggy. Again, I just want to praise you for all of the good work you've done for yourself recently. You definitely are in a better place than I've ever seen you. You seem…brighter than before."
"Please don't say I sparkle…"
"Ziggy! Come on now. Who do you take me for?"
"Well, um…thanks. I…I do feel better. It's hard to say that, for some reason…"
"Just remember that no matter how much you improve, how brave and confident you may become, you can always always come to any one of us for help any time you need to, even if you just need a shoulder to cry on. Nobody's perfect, and everybody has their weak moments. We all just have to help each other get through them…"
