Pokemon Virus Version Chapter 80: A Hug
And here it is, Chapter 80. So as I've said before, I originally planned for Pokemon Virus Version to be eighty chapters exactly, with EVERY CHAPTER being standalone. But something happened: Yumi's Marion City Pokemon Contest. It was the first Pokemon Contest I've ever written, and I realized that Contests DO take much longer to write than battles. And to this day, the Marion City Pokemon Contest is STILL Virus Version's longest chapter. So as a result, I decided to drop the whole standalone format. Haven't looked back on it since, because I know the story has gotten much better. Like this arc right here. This chapter will be a Typical Situation, which will drag out, as I've warned you before.
Rose's POV
Was it all just a dream, me being chased by a living, broken doll? The chase was the last thing I could remember. Away from a moonlit meadow of roses, and through a forest path, leaves were turning brown and fell from the trees, one by one. Then I had a dream. And now...
Waking up...
Opening my eyes, I noticed a ceiling on top from where I rested. I noticed I was on something soft and very comfortable. Sitting up, I saw myself on a bed decorated with white, cream, and pink colored covers, and a white blanket.
"Where am I?" I asked myself.
I was in a bedroom, where the bed stood just under a window. Across from me stood a cream colored dresser, and on the floor was a royal red colored carpet that stretched throughout the entire room. On the walls, there were many pictures and portraits of people I was not familiar with, with the exception of a little girl with long, strawberry hair. She wore a white dress that was similar to the one I wear. This girl seemed so familiar to me, but how? I honestly could not help but feel as if I have seen this girl before. Even so, I still asked myself, "Who is she?" I sighed as I looked out the window.
Outside, there was a campfire that lit up the night, but that was not all...
"..." My eyes widened as I saw the campfire being surrounded by 'them'. 'Them'...people...of all things, why did it have to be humans gathering?
"Uh?" I gasped as one of the women outside looked in my direction, and slowly, I slipped down back into the bed.
"Where am I?" I whispered to myself again.
Outside the window, there were plenty of other small houses. It was like a neighborhood, or perhaps a small town? Just who did THIS house belong to?
Sinking deeper into my thoughts as I cowered in the bed, the door to the bedroom suddenly opened, allowing for light to enter the room that was lit by just a single candle.
"You're awake." said a voice entering the room.
I froze as a 'stranger' entered the room. My staring at the human was very reminescent a stare from a feline, directed at a stranger. In my presence, was a girl who looked to be the age of thirteen. Her long hair was a very rich black, similar to the hair of Yumi, except the bangs THIS girl had were black and squared. Her eyes...the color of her pupils were red. She wore a slim fit, white blouse and a long, magenta colored skirt that went all the way down to her feet.
"I found you on my way to the rose filled meadow," the black haired girl said.
The rose filled meadow...This girl was headed to the rose filled meadow in the middle of the night?...Maybe she had the same taste for the night as Mother Flora...
...I-I did not know what to do. I was in the presence of a 'stranger', and I was 'cornered'. But this girl...all she did was return my stare with a stare of her own. Minutes that felt like hours passed, neither one of us taking our eyes off each other until-
"Murkrow. Murkrow, mur mur murkrow," A Murkrow approached the girl from behind. The girl, with a lust in her eyes that I had not noticed up until this point, smiled as she let the Murkrow proceed into the bedroom.
"Murkrow?" I questioned. Did this Murkrow happen to be the one under the care of Brother? No. This Murkrow was greeted by the girl as if the two had known each other for a long time.
"Krow..." The Murkrow gave me one good, long, intense look. "Krow! Krow krow!" The Murkrow cried out loud and smiled before jumping onto the bed. I flinched slightly at the sudden excitement of the Murkrow before it slowly walked up to me. It was now the turn of Murkrow to stare into my eyes. The black bird jumped into my lap and began to cuddle with me affectionately.
"Uh?!" At first I was bewildered by the Murkrow. Did it know who I was? I thought about my question. The Murkrow belonging to Brother was never this affectionate, so any speculation that Brother may have released Murkrow had completely dissolved. Despite whatever I was thinking, I could not help but give out a warm smile as I gave the Murkrow a hug. "I do not know why, but a hug is what I really need right now .Thank you, Murkrow..." Murkrow really helped lighten the situation I was in.
... I have only been hugged like this a number of occasions, but the rare moments in which someone let me know I was loved., those were the moments I always held dearest to me.
If this Murkrow belonged to the girl still standing across from me, then maybe I could trust the girl, just a little. She has not antagonized me yet. She is most likely the one who has gotten me out of harm, and she has given me a room to sleep in.
My arms still around Murkrow, I faced the girl with trusting eyes, "...Hello..." I greeted with heavy reticence.
"Angel really likes you." The girl said as she approached me. I did not even quiver as she took a seat on the cream colored bed, right next to Murkrow and I.
"Angel?" I said confused.
"Murkrow's nickname." The black haired girl answered.
"Why name it Angel?"
"She's my little black angel-my 'Angel of Death'," the girl still had that lust in her eyes. Her eyes reminded me of the eyes of Brother, but at least this girl smiled. "They say if you cross paths with a Murkrow at night, it'll bring bad luck. It was that stereotype that encouraged me to go out and catch one myself. Ten months have gone by, and Angel still hasn't given me enough bad luck to put me in my grave."
My eyes widened as I was completely caught off guard by what the girl just said, "In your grave?" Anyone besides Mother, Brother, and I would've yelled those three words from their mouth. I kept my composure though.
"Yes, in my grave," The girl answered. She had an empty smile on her face. "I...I want to see my little sister. She's been on the other side, waiting to reunite with me for the longest time..." She looked at Angel, and then back at me with those cold, empty eyes, "You look so much like my sister, it's almost scary."
It was creepy, the emptiness coming from the eyes and lips of the girl as she continued to stare at me.
"When I firsts saw you, I actually thought you were her, my dearly beloved. But...but I knew it was too good to be true. With my very own eyes, I saw the body of my sister after she was taken from this life. I've tried numerous times to leave this world by taking my own life, but..." This girl, she began to unbutton her white blouse. Button after button, when I caught sight of what lied underneath, I was horrified by what I saw.
Under her blouse, was a body full of burn scars on her chest and her stomach...That smile was still fixed on her face.
"But so far, I've been unsuccessful." The girl answered to her self.
My eyes were wide, "W-what went wrong?"
"Setting myself to burn to my death wasn't the solution apparently, just like all the rest..." The girl answered, "Every night, with Angel by my side, I would find a new way to try and take myself from this world, and every night, someone, anyone would stop me. I honestly don't understand. At this point, my existence is only a burden to everyone, yet they choose to just 'deal with it'. Even so, I never lose hope that one day, my sister's tombstone will be standing next to mine. My tombstone will read: Rest In Peace, Ariel Angel..."
"Ariel Angel," I said to myself, "Is it your name?"
The girl named Ariel nodded. She then proceeded to rest her head on the bed while staring out the window, past the campfire gathering, and at the crescent moon. Angel the Murkrow hopped out of my arms and sat atop the stomach of Ariel.
Ariel Angel...For the very first time, I felt like I have met a person even more pessimistic than Brother. The burn scars throughout her body served to me as proof that this girl was suicidal. She did not frown, and she did not cry, but she DID always have a smile on her face. It gave the impression that she was happy...It saddened me. I have never met a person with a more bleak outlook on life than Ariel Angel, and it was all for a chance to see her sister.
"Who is your sister?" I asked.
"She was five years old when she passed. This was her room. Looking at the pictures, you would've guessed: She's a girly girl. Always wearing white dresses, and always keeping her beloved dolls close. She brought the happiness out of everyone with her bubbly yet elegant character."
"She seems like she was very precious to you," I said as I looked at Angel, then back at Ariel, "What is her name?"
"Amy."
...
...
I froze...At that moment, I recalled what happened before waking up in this bedroom.
...I was alone in a rose filled meadow under the sky, but this 'living doll' approached me. It was a stuffed Mime Jr doll, with the head of the Mime Jr ripped almost completely off. The doll was heavily stained by what appeared to be blood, but even so, it still smile with that poorly stitched mouth. The evil laugh of the doll was enough for me to fly for my life. The chase was the last thing I remember.
...Amy was the name of a girl that the evil doll uttered multiple times. But the evil doll, and Ariel...they both told me I looked like a girl named Amy...Amy Angel...could the sister of Ariel Angel and the love of the evil doll be the same person?
...
I ran out the house of Ariel Angel in a horrified panic. Out of concern, both Ariel Angel and Angel the Murkrow called for me to stop. I refused, prompting the duo to chase after me.
"Please stop," The voice of Ariel was raised, but still calm as she continued to gain on me, "Wait, Amy!"
My eyes widened when I was called the name of the dead girl, but narrowed as I yelled, "That's not my name! Go away!" Neither the girl nor the Murkrow listened to me.
I was running scared, aimlessly through what I discovered to actually be a small town. Neighborhood houses were heavily decorated with orange and black Pumpkaboo ornament lights. Pumpkaboo, Gourgeist, and Phantump were wandering through the trees.
...I was not able to get too far away, for I stumbled upon the campfire party I saw from inside the bedroom window earlier. Seeing all these people made me lose track of my grounding, and as a result, I tripped. I was lying flat on my face.
"Huh?" Though my eyes were fixed on the ground, my ears let me know what was going on.
Strangers...Stranger were everywhere, and their attention was ALL on me. Strangers...I did not dare to show my face to this world of strangers ever again. That is why I lived in a secluded meadow after I left the organization, and before I first met Brother and Chapel. Even after I began to accompany Brother of his journey, I would stay closer to him and Chapel as I hid my face. But now, Brother and Chapel were not here. I...I did not want to pick my face up off the ground.
"Hey..." Finally closing in on me, Ariel called out to me in concern, as well as her 'Angel of Death'. "Hey, get up." She put a hand on my shoulder.
I did not budge.
...At this very moment, I wished I had my own 'Angel of Death'.
"Come on. Come on." The voice of Ariel was still calm and soft as she gave me a couple of shakes on the shoulders, but I still refused to move. So, Ariel proceeded to pick me up the way an adult would do with a baby child. "See?"
Strangers...
Strangers...
"Um...You're..." Words were coming from the mouth of a single stranger, and it was not long before other strangers began to talk.
"Can it be?"
"No...It can't"
"You're supposed to be dead..."
"Ariel, is this?"
"...Amy?"
Amy?
Amy?
Amy?
They were all looking at me. They were all talking about me. It was as if I was lost in the middle of the sea-a sea of strangers. 'Amy this, Amy that'. All of this attention was quickly becoming overwhelming. I clasped my ears with the both of my white gloved hands as I winced. Amy...Amy Amy Amy...The world that once pushed me away...I could no longer keep myself composed for them.
"GAAAAHHHH!" I screamed to the sky with all my heart, as if this would all go away, "Why can I not be left alone! I hate you! I hate you all!" Floating away was not an option in front of all the silenced strangers, so I elected to continue running. Only Ariel and Angel chase dafter me.
...Where did I think I could go? To find Chapel would be the correct answer, but I did not know my way around this town. I began to think to myself again, 'I will not outrun Ariel...but she DOES know her way'. This prompted me to stop abruptly when I was out of the presence of those people, allowing for the red eyed girl and the Murkrow to catch up to me.
The three of us stood next to a tree that was heavily decorated with more Pumpkaboo lights. Hovering around the tree were the same pokemon from before, but now even a Lunatone was out and about, while Pidove, Tranquil, and Purrloin slept in the tree. Both Ariel and I sat against the tree,, and there was a dragged out moment of silence. The skirts of both our dresses touching, Ariel came closer and put her thumb on my chin, lifting my dropped face to where I could stare into her still empty eyes.
"Are you alright?" Though her face did not show it, Ariel was very concerned, "What happened back there?"
The distant cried of Noctowl could be heard in the distance as I thought about how I have never been in the center of ANY large crowd before.
"All my life, I have been sheltered from most of the real world. I trained and studied to where I was superior to the average human being," Brown leaves were making their way down the tree. "...Rose..."
"Murkrow?"
"Rose?"
"It is my name." I answered.
"Yeah, I can tell you're nothing like Amy," Ariel started, "You're very fragile when it comes to your emotions, and for that, I apologize for putting you through that mess back there."
I gave Ariel a warm smile, indicating I forgave, "...Can you..." My cheeks turned the slightest shade of red as I began to ask Ariel a very 'different' question, "Can you hug me?"
"Hmhm," Ariel chuckled as she looked into my eyes, a deeper blue shade than usual, "You have the deepest blue eyes I've ever seen, "I had a very brief look of confusion that was replaced by a look of soft happiness as Ariel wrapped her arms around me for what was the longest and deepest hug I've ever had.
"Now take me," I said, "Take me to the meadow of roses."
"Huh?"
"You said you were on your way to the meadow before finding me." I clarified. "Let us go together."
"Hand in hand?" Ariel asked.
I gave her another warm smile.
The two of us holding hands while on our way to the meadow of roses...yes, it was as if Ariel Angel was a very close sister to me. Could that type of feeling come from hugs? For me, probably. I guess I COULD be her 'Amy Angel', a sister who is on the receiving end of all her love and care. Who knows? Maybe with me around, she will stop trying to take herself away from this world. We will see.
To Be Continued...
Like I said, you CAN'T miss ANY of the next five chapters. Miss even one, and you will be very confused by the arc's end. Did anyone figure out who this arc's featured Pokemon is? I doubt it...but stay tuned for next chapter.