Higgle was the first to wake that morning. Rubbing at tired eyes, he was immediately flooded with sadness at the sight of his still sleeping siblings.
It wasn't just a horrible dream. This was their horrible reality now. Any other morning Sparky would have been up and about hours ago, but the little Emolga just laid there, grey and dulled. Socks looked no less exhausted, sprawled out next to her.
A heavy sigh escaped him as he gently shuffled out of the beanbag. Neither of the girls stirred, even when he stumbled.
"The poor darlings," he mumbled. He crept around the squeaky floorboard and out of the room to give them some peace. Waking them up wasn't going to help anyone.
His limbs felt heavy as he made his way down the stairs, glancing away from the pictures on the wall. What were they to do now, he pondered. The food wasn't going to last forever, as Socks so bluntly stated last night.
Higgle groaned at the sight of the bottom floor. Everything just felt like the colour had been drained out of it, although the kitchen still smelled violently of syrup.
"Reverting back to a wild state certainly would not do…" he mused, taking his usual position at the dining table and rubbing at his forehead. "Would it even be possible? It has been so many years."
Hopping his way through the kitchen – something else he was probably going to have to fix soon – he snatched a plate from the handful next to the sink and carried on through to the kitchen. Maybe the girls would appreciate waking up to something nice.
He grabbed two poffins from the dwindling supply and hopped back through the kitchen.
"I suppose we could still live here, but go out and forage for berries and such?" He muttered to no-one. "Yes, perhaps that is a viable alternative. There should be plentiful berry trees growing nearby."
He edged the bedroom door open again and gently placed the plate on the carpet next to the beanbag.
"No noo…" Socks muttered in her sleep, her little arms shuffling as Higgle made his exit from the room. "Don't go, Trainer. I need-"
Her sentence dissolved into intangible mumbling, but she had said enough.
"Oh dear…" he blinked away lamentations. Dreaming about Lady Holly was all well and good, but was that just going to make them twice as miserable when they woke up?
"I suppose it is better than having bad dreams…" he insisted. "If that were the case, they would have nowhere to run…"
Leaving the bedroom as quietly as he could, he paced his way back downstairs and stretched for the front door key. Hanging innocently from a little wooden hook in the stairwell, his attempts to grasp it were nevertheless in vain. Grumbling with frustration, Higgle closed his eyes and focused for a moment, before glowing a soft blue and floating towards the key. His face wrinkling with concentration, he desperately snatched the key from the hook before falling back to earth with a stumble.
His palm thudded against the front door as he gasped for breath. Why did he allow himself to get this weak? So comfortable with life that he'd forgotten to be a Pokémon? Sparky could still use her electric abilities to her fullest, as far as he was aware, and Socks was as agile as ever. So why was he the only one who had succumbed to complacency?
"…despicable." He muttered to the door. His fist shaking, he forced the tiny silver key into the lock and twisted. The heavy door slowly lurched open, blowing a gust of fresh country air into the house.
Higgle shielded his eyes. Was the outside always this bright?
Closing the door behind him and taking a few tentative steps, he could feel his spirits already starting to crumble. His dreams of berry trees were shattered with the awful reality that these trees – the only trees he could see in every direction – didn't grow any berries. Instead, enormous pine trees taunted him from the distance, vaulting up into the iron grey skies and creaking in the breeze.
Accumula Town was a lovely town – Lady Holly had said so on many occasions, so it must be true – but he was finding it hard to appreciate that beauty right now. Even Socks wouldn't want pinecones for breakfast…
"Another plan, fruitless." Higgle groaned. He collapsed onto the nearby kerb and buried his head in his hand.
Life carried on in Accumula Town. Trainers passed through now and again, their prized training partners in tow, while locals gossiped and laughed, and the occasional car trundled past, splashing puddles down the cobblestone roads.
The little Kadabra down the end of the side street next to the house with all the ivy continued to mope.
"Maybe… it is time to run away again," He mumbled to no one. "Perhaps if I take Socks and Sparky with me, we could escape to somewhere new, a-and…"
But that ounce of inspiration fell away as quickly as it spawned, as if it were water dripping from his cupped hands. Running away wasn't going to solve anything, was it? At least here they had a roof over their heads. Getting lost in the wilderness somewhere was just going to make things harder…
"Hello there!" A sprightly voice chimed from across the road, stirring Higgle from his thoughts. The Kadabra looked up from his arms to find a small, chubby, tan and pink Pokémon waving at him from the distance. With bell-shaped ears and bright blue eyes, the Pokémon carefully looked both ways across the empty road before toddling across.
"Is something troubling you, dear?" The fat pink Pokémon squashed down next to him, its eyes glowing with concern. "My ears could hear you making unhappy noises."
"Your ears can… hear?" Higgle frowned up at the Pokémon. What an odd way to say something.
"Yes yes!" The Pokémon smiled. "And my eyes can see that you're all sad…"
Shame burned within him. Was it really so obvious that a complete stranger could tell at a glance?
"You… could say that, I suppose…" Higgle sighed. Staring desperately at the mossy cobblestones, he clenched a fist. "We… we lost our dear trainer yesterday."
"Oh dear!" The fat pink Pokémon threw hands to its mouth. "H-how-"
"Lady Holly, she was so wonderful…" Higgle said abruptly. "A-and now that she is no longer with us, I… I don't know what to do."
"You poor thing." The pink Pokémon shuffled closer. Instantly Higgle felt the unwelcome prickle run down his right-hand side. "Is there anything I can do to help?"
"Umm…" Higgle shuffled a few inches away from this stranger. Could he really trust someone he'd just met? Then again, any knowledge was better than absolutely none, even if they were a stranger.
"You… know how the humans acquire food, yes?"
The desire for knowledge was more important than mistrust of strangers, he supposed. Worst case scenario, they wouldn't have an answer for him, and he would lose perhaps a minute to conversation.
"Y-yes yes I do!" The pink Pokémon squeaked. "That's called 'shopping'! Humans travel over to this place called the 'Market'." She gestured over to a small collection of brightly coloured structures in the distance. Even as they said it, Higgle could pick out a smattering of humans meandering between them, sharing distant gestures and silent conversations.
"Hm hm!" They continued. "They trade these shiny circles for food! Sometimes it looks like paper too, yes yes, but it must be really nice, because it's worth food!"
"…I see." Higgle nodded. "But that only creates more issues, I am afraid. We have no means of attaining these shiny circles you speak off, and that means we cannot trade them for food. A-and if we cannot obtain any food, I…"
"Hmm…" The pink Pokémon absorbed his situation. "Wait here a second, yes yes!"
Suddenly it dashed off towards the tall grass across the way. Higgle just frowned as it stood there, twitching its ears. It wiggled its arms slowly one direction, and then the other, and then both of its ears lit up and the grass itself began to shake in time. Suddenly, another identical Pokémon burst out of the long grass.
Higgle's eyes widened as the two danced to each other in near unison. A few soft gestures and some inaudible conversation later, and the second one handed something to the first before disappearing back into the long grass again.
The first one span around in obvious delight before slowly wobbling back towards him. Higgle was still staring wide-eyed at them by the time they had pushed something round and blue into his hands, "Here, take this!"
Higgle looked down at the blue handful and frowned some more. "This is… a berry?"
"Yes yes!" They chimed, "A-and it's also a food! If you plant it into the ground and treat it nicely, feed it loooots of water, it'll grow into more food!"
"R-really?!" Higgle gasped. "My word that is auspicious news! I thank you, madam uhh…"
"Camellia." They flounced. "My owner didn't like calling me Audino all the time because lots of them live here, so she called me Camellia, and it makes my ears happy to hear it! Wouldn't you agree?"
"It is a lovely name, and you have my utmost gratitude, Madam Camellia." Higgle found his feet.
"You're very welcome, yes yes!" Camellia beamed at him. "Now you go grow some food, okay? Feed those hungry bellies!"
"I-I shall!" Higgle cried. Bowing to the chubby Audino, there was a spring in his step as he let himself back inside. The back garden was a perfect place to grow berries, with high fences and long grass to keep it safe while it grew. How quickly it grew was a different matter, maybe, just maybe, they weren't going to go hungry after all.
He hopped through the kitchen once again, but his plans were halted by the sight of Sparky with her face buried in the table.
"Sparky dear?" He approached gently. The berry was put to one side for the time being. "Are you quite alright?"
"Not really…" Sparky mumbled, not even looking up. "I had a nasty dream about Miss Holly…"
"Oh dear…" Higgle took a seat next to hear. "But I thought dreaming about Lady Holly would make you happy?"
"I-it kinda did at first…" She said, showing red puffy cheeks. "We were both riding on those swing-a-things you get at the park and stuff? A-and you and Socks were there too. You were helping Socks build a sandcastle because hers weren't coming out so good…"
"That… does sound accurate, I must say." Higgle put a comforting hand on her back. "How did it turn bad, if I may ask?"
"Ugh…" Sparky shuddered. "It was awful."
"I will not force you, Sparky." He kept his voice soft. "I understand that it may-"
"I-it's okay," Sparky insisted. "If I don't it'll be stuck in the back of my mind forever and haunt me and I don't want that!"
Higgle looked at her with her soggy eyes and puffy cheeks. So much for happy dreams, he sighed internally.
"…alright then." He brought her to his chest. "Just take things slowly, okay? No sense in rushing, after all…"
"Well uh…" Sparky nuzzled against him. "Well umm… something happened, and I got knocked off the swing-a-thing. I got a mouthful of sand from it and it tasted real bad, but when I looked up again it was all dark and you guys were gone!"
"U-us guys?" Higgle frowned. "Everyone?"
"No, not everyone…" Sparky gulped. "Miss Holly was still there. B-but the ropes of the swing had… tightened around her, a-and I was forced to watch it all again! I tried to help her but I couldn't move and all I could do was stare! I couldn't do anything!"
Sparky let out a tortured wail and sobbed into Higgle's chest, tears streaming from her face like a burst tap.
"Oh, gosh…!" Higgle gasped. "Oh you poor thing, Sparky! That must have been dreadful!"
"Mhmm!" Sparky snorted. "I-wa… don-wan… ever!"
Higgle cradled the tiny Emolga in his arms. "It's okay, dear. Just let it all out…"
Less than one day, and Sparky had already been reduced to a snivelling mess in his arms. Another hurdle missed, Higgle groaned to himself. What was he thinking, making the assumption that they were having happy, pleasant dreams about Lady Holly? And then he wasn't even there to offer comfort when she woke up.
How many more times was he going to fail as a guardian? How much harder was it going to get before it got easier?
Why did she have to leave him with this?
Grief surged through him like the rising tide. This was his life now, and he was terrible at it. He was doing his best, and still awful. Every sinew of his being ached with sadness, and suddenly the Kadabra found himself holding Sparky ever tighter to his chest.
Tears stung at his eyes as he desperately stared at the ceiling. He had to be strong for the girls. Who else was going to? It was his job now that Lady Holly-
There was a sniffle, and an embattled gasp.
"Ohh, Lady Holly, why?" He whimpered. "Why did you leave us? Why couldn't you tell us?!"
Sparky tensed up in his hands.
What was happening? Higgle never cried, but here he was, a sobbing mess. His hands were shaking like a bounce house as he cradled her, and looking about as far away from her as he could manage.
"…Higgle?" She mumbled up to him. "H-hey, are you okay?"
She pawed at his chin and felt the flinch ripple through them both.
"Hng?!" He sniffled. "O-oh. I am so sorry, Sparky. I suppose those nasty emotions just got the better of me, eheh…"
"Don't worry about it Higgle," Sparky managed a weak smile. "Lots has changed lately, and you've been stuck dealing with it. Honestly, I-I'm kinda glad? Because it means you're not some emotionless robot after all?"
Higgle snorted again. Moving his limbs squarely, he adopted a monotone voice.
"Take, me, to, your, leader?"
"Bahahah!" Sparky burst into wet chuckles in his arms. "I like robot Higgle! He sounds like he gets stuff done!"
"I will do my best to get stuff done, I promise." Higgle smiled down at her. "So… Socks is still asleep, I presume?"
"Yup." Sparky nodded. "I think she was having bad dreams too, because she kept mumbling things in her sleep."
Higgle deflated. "Well I suppose we can at least be there to support her when she wakes. Did you find the poffins I left you both?"
"I-I did, yeah…" Sparky said. "But I-I'm… not really hungry. Socks can have mine, I don't mind."
"I do, Sparky." Higgle said, his voice coming out harsher than he meant. "You must eat, okay? It isn't good for you."
"I know Higgle, don't worry." Sparky said. "I'll eat later, I promise. It's just… that dream, it kinda made me feel sick…"
"Hmm. Well, at least it is out of your system now, right?" He enthused. "…oh! And speaking of food…"
He picked up the berry again. "I believe I may have solved one of our problems, Sparky."
"You have?" Sparky gasped. "How?!"
"The kindly Audino from across the road has gifted us this berry," Higgle explained, pushing the squeaky back door open. "She told me that if we are to plant this berry and give it sufficient water, we can grow more berries! A-and then we can plant some of those, and grow more, and we shall have lots of food!"
"Ooh, that's great news Higgle!" Sparky cried. "I mean, berries every day is kinda samey but any food's better than no food, right? Any idea how long it'll take?"
Higgle froze mid crouch. Berry in one hand, Sparky tucked into his arm, rain pattering gently against his back.
"I… am not sure." He muttered after a while. "Perhaps we should ask…"
Letting Sparky down, he parted the soft soil with his hands and placed the berry into the hole. The little blue fruit was his hopes and dreams, sitting happily in the mud. Higgle covered it over again with a sigh. It wasn't much, but maybe a tiny ray of hope was all they needed right now.
"Now, we just need to make sure to water it regularly." He said, shaking mud from his hands. "It is already raining today, so that should be fine until tomorrow I suppose."
"How hard could it be?" Sparky followed after him through the house. "I mean, it's only watering a berry…"
"It never hurts to double check," Higgle raised a knowing finger. "And who would be a better source of information than the, uh… source?"
Sparky shrugged. "I guess so."
The pair of them exited through the front door, and Higgle looked around only to find the place strangely empty. He squinted off into the distance, but could only make out the mocking silhouette of a Murkrow on the buildings opposite. No humans, no other Pokémon, barely even a gasp of wind. It was as if the town itself were holding its breath.
"Hm," He stroked his chin. "Where has Madam Camellia gone?"
Surely a bright pink fluffy creature would stand out against the drab greys and greens of town, he reasoned.
"Maybe she went back to her… owner." Sparky's voice quivered. "H-how long's it gonna keep hurting, Higgle?" She blinked several times.
"A-an informed question, Sparky." Higgle's voice sounded tight. "Once your mind can accept the fact, the pain will start to lessen, and then I suppose you can work towards finding – oh, there you are!"
Crouching down and peering carefully, he spied Camellia the Audino squashed underneath a picnic bench. Her once demure features stricken, she stared into the distance unblinking.
Higgle made a cursory glance across the road before approaching. "I-is something wrong, Madam Ca-"
"Oh no!" Camellia quivered furiously, squashing herself down farther still. "Quick quick, you need to hide!"
"Why, what's wrong?!"
"My ears can hear scary noises…" Camellia mumbled. "Get behind something, please please!"
"O…okay!" Higgle cried. "Sparky, get over here please!"
"What's wrong, Higgle?" Sparky zipped over the road, just before a heavy rumbling had the ground shaking violently. The skies themselves were swallowed up by an ominous shadow rounding the corner. Impossibly tall, dark metal beasts rumbled across the cobblestones, swallowing the very path before them. Sparky staggered over to Higgle and the pair of them hid under the bench next to Camellia. Her entire body quivered with fright, watching desperately as the metal monsters growled to a stop. They both belched out a cloud of black smoke in near unison.
"Oh no…!" Camellia squeaked in fear as an enormous door swung open. "It's the Takers!"
A human clambered out of the contraption, clad in a bright blue jumpsuit. A scrap of paper in hand, he scanned the street of houses before waving to his cohort in the other.
"What are the Takers?" Higgle whispered.
"M-my friend Heather, she lives in Striaton City, yes yes." Camellia quivered. "She told me that they turn up at people's houses, a-and they… take things…"
"What right have they to do that?!" Higgle sprung to his feet. "They believe they can just claim ownership of others' possessions?! Why I have half a mind to-"
"Higgle!"
"What, Sparky?!"
"…look."
Higgle calmed down long enough to follow Sparky's direction, and his jaw dropped.
The strange men were entering their house.
"What?!"
Face twisted with fury, Higgle charged forward. "How dare they! I-I am going to-"
"Noooo, no no no!" Camellia burst from the safety of the bench and held him back. "Stay here, please! These are bad humans! They might take you too!"
"I don't care!" Higgle tore himself from her grip. "Those are our possessions, our home! They cannot take our things!"
"But Higgle, wait!" Sparky jumped forward. "So what if they take a couple of things! We're fine as long as we've got each other, okay?! We don't need stuff to be a family…"
Higgle's chest rose and fell heavily. Raw, primitive emotions flooded his veins, and the desire to teach these awful humans a jolly good lesson was intoxicating. But Sparky's wide-eyed gaze pleaded up at him silently, and the throbbing fury slowly ebbed away…
Higgle massaged his forehead. "I-I suppose."
Retreating back behind the bench, the three of them watched silently as their possessions were carried from the house by the strange men; the couch, the old TV, the dining table…
"Why must they do this?" Higgle seethed.
"You remember those shiny circles I told you about earlier?" Camellia said as two men walked right past them carrying stacks of chairs. "Well, you can trade things for those shiny circles, yes yes. And big things like TVs are worth a lot of circles, so that means they can get lots of food…"
"By the looks of it, they don't need any more feeding." Sparky growled. "That one looks like he's had enough for all of them."
"Now now, Sparky." Higgle's voice softened. "They may be taking our possessions, but that is no reason to-"
"Hey! What the?! Noo! Lemme goooo!"
"Socks?!" Both Higgle and Sparky yelled in unison. Two burly men were struggling to pull the little Furret from the building, who was wrestling with all her might to escape.
"Let me go, you nasty yucky humans! I don't like this! Arghhh! Trainerrr!"
"No!" Higgle leapt forward. "I am sorry, Madam Camellia!"
The two men finally succeeded in throwing Socks into the back of one of the trucks, when one of them was knocked sideways by Higgle launching himself at them.
"Desist!" He brandished his spoon like a dagger, meanwhile Sparky coated herself in electricity and bodily tackled the other.
"Yaah!" The man gasped. "H-hey, we've got hostiles here!"
On his word, more men in jumpsuits appeared from nowhere. Higgle found himself forcefully extracted from the man he had just attacked, and then thrown into the van with a dull clang, followed shortly by a livid Sparky.
"H-hey, what're you doing?!" She flailed at the closing door. "You guys are stealing our stuff, and then you complain when we fight b-"
"…Sparky." Higgle muttered, a trickle of blood journeying down his face. "It is alright, dear. We are all together again, so it is o-"
"Silence!" Another voice ordered, hushing the pair of them instantly. Both Sparky and Higgle turned to find a tall brown Pokémon staring them down. With two sharp front teeth and a pair of overlarge eyes, its stare alone was enough. The Pokémon kicked a barely conscious Socks towards them, who fell limply.
"Take your friend, sit down, and shut up. Understand?!"
Higgle nodded quietly, and carefully dragged Socks towards the back corner of the truck.
Their possessions rattled helplessly as the truck's engine spluttered into life. Gathering the girls into his arms, Higgle held onto what was left.