He couldn't pinpoint exactly when it all began—the remarks about his appearance, the teasing, the laughter.
At first, he laughed along with them, playing the fool. For a while, he didn't think much of it. Sure, he was chubby, but so what?
Then things took a turn for the worse. At school, the teasing escalated into public humiliation. But Killian wasn't a coward. He fought back, though it never became physical—probably because his weight worked in his favor. Yet the words hurt more deeply than any punch or kick ever could.
The torment went on for what felt like an eternity, until school ended. At ten, like all the other kids, he received his trainer's license and was expected to set out on his journey.
But he didn't.
After his experiences at school, he had no motivation for it. Besides, his parents were dead, and the only family he had left was his grandmother.
She had cared for him since he was born. She often spoke of his parents as good people who left too soon. They didn't have much, but they had food and a place to sleep.
His grandmother let him eat whatever he wanted, and so he did. His eating habits were terrible. He didn't exercise at all, spending all his time on his computer, browsing PokeNet.
He watched countless battle matches, read extensively, and ate even more. After leaving school, things only got worse—he practically holed up in his room.
Without any connections, getting a starter Pokémon was out of the question.
When he was around thirteen, his grandmother's health deteriorated. He needed to help her more, so he did. She had been there for him all along.
As he spent more time with her, witnessing her decline, Killian often found himself in front of a mirror, scrutinizing his body and face.
He was fat, there was no other way to put it. It had been a while since he last saw himself in a mirror, and it wasn't the first time he felt disgusted with himself.
At the rate he was going, in a few years, he would be bedridden like his grandmother, unable to get up without assistance.
He looked around his messy room, cluttered with leftover junk food, dirty clothes, open books, and a few notebooks filled with his scribbles.
Killian didn't know where the motivation came from, but that night, he cleaned his room.
The next day, he started eating better and more regularly.
A few days later, he began exercising.
He started by walking around Twinleaf Town. At first, it was embarrassing—especially when he ran into people from his old school.
Not everyone aspired to be a trainer, so he encountered more than a few familiar faces. Reactions varied; some seemed almost remorseful, while others ignored him. There were a few "funny" remarks, but he ignored them. Killian ignored it all.
He didn't care what they thought anymore; they could jump off a roof if they felt so remorseful.
Seeing them not being mean to him in any way made him angrier than anything. It seemed like they had all moved on, dismissing their past cruelty as a trivial phase.
It infuriated him.
After around a month of walking, he started doing body exercises—push-ups, squats, and the like.
He steadily increased the number of repetitions and sets. Instead of walking, he began running.
He still browsed PokeNet but with limitations, and continued his hobby of writing about Pokémon battles, Pokémon in general, and their diets in his notebooks, but now he did that mostly while outside.
It was one of the few hobbies he had.
So here he was, a year later, looking at himself in the mirror.
Seeing himself now was one of the strangest experiences of his life; there was almost no fat on his body or face.
Killian's muscles were now defined—his abs, arms, and legs were visibly toned. His cheekbones were prominent, and for the first time, he had a clear neckline instead of the awkward blend of neck and jaw that had once bothered him.
He felt better, healthier.
So why was he still so disgusted with himself?
Killian didn't have an answer.
He looked away, unwilling to continue examining his reflection. He completed his morning workout, took a shower, and put on some shorts and one of his many long-sleeved shirts.
Over the past year, Killian had taken on various odd jobs around town to earn money for himself and to help his grandmother with expenses. This money went into his collection of long-sleeved shirts.
He found he hated when people looked at his body; he would even wear a facemask if he didn't find it too embarrassing.
Killian went downstairs to the kitchen, unsurprised to find it empty. His grandmother was still asleep, so he prepared their breakfast. After breaking his worst habits, he made sure to include fruit and vegetables in every meal.
He made scrambled eggs with spring onions, cut up some fruits and vegetables into two bowls, and then went to his grandmother's room to eat breakfast with her.
When he walked into her room, he found her already up and gazing out the window. Killian joined her at the window; all he saw was the morning sky and some houses—nothing out of the ordinary.
He placed the breakfast on her table next to the bed and spoke quietly,
"Grandma?"
She flinched at his voice and looked at him, her gaze lingering in silence for several minutes.
He stood awkwardly under her scrutiny, trying not to fidget. She was the only person who could make him feel this way.
"I need to tell you something, something I should have said much earlier," she said, her eyes betraying an emotion he couldn't quite identify.
"What?" he asked, confused.
"You must promise you will not be mad at me. Please, promise me this." Her face was a mix of emotions, and he thought he saw sorrow.
The mood grew serious, and Killian was bewildered, but her expression made him stand straighter and clench his jaw.
"I promise," He lied.
She nodded, seemingly accepting his word.
"When I was younger, I worked for a wealthy family as a caretaker for their young son. Kieran was a sweetheart, never a problem, and very talented in whatever he pursued." She smiled a little at the end, her expression melancholy.
"He went on to become a trainer, an exceptional trainer. Kieran also found love very young; the couple seemed so happy. She was from a wealthy family as well, and marriage was expected in a few years, but not everything was as bright as it seemed." Her gaze deepened, and Killian felt a chill.
"The young miss became pregnant at sixteen, and both families were furious. The young couple wanted to keep the baby, which frustrated everyone. Both were famous even then, so it was arranged for the young miss to go on a long 'vacation.'" Killian's body tensed, his whole being gripped by the gravity of the revelation.
"The baby was born, and they named him Killian Pierce, taking his father's name despite the protests. Even the young couple knew that going public with this would have disastrous consequences. Young Kieran chose me to care for the baby, and so I did. They sent me money monthly, more than enough."
Killian stared at the woman before him—who was apparently not his grandmother—and felt a void of emotions. He didn't know what he felt.
"I am sorry for lying to you, and for the money as well. I could have supported you on your journey, but I didn't want to be alone here. I let you do whatever you wanted, hoping you would stay. It was only after seeing how much you changed over the past year that I realized how I hurt you." She was crying now, her tears falling freely.
Killian could only stare; it was all he could manage.
"I'm sure you've already put the pieces together—you're too smart for your own good. Your father is Kieran Pierce, a member of the Elite Four, and your mother is the renowned breeder Tempestina Pierce née Gale." She smiled sadly at him.
Killian felt numb; no emotion registered. His fingers were cold, his entire body shaking as he gasped for breath. He slowly sank to a sitting position on the floor.
"Killian?!" The woman shouted, rising as if to get up.
"Don't..." His voice sounded hollow even to him.
The woman flinched, her eyes filled with an unbearable sadness as her tears continued to fall.
Killian felt nothing at her sorrow.
She tried to speak, opening her mouth but quickly closing it. She seemed to be searching for the right words.
"I... I sent money to your account today. It's most of the money I saved from the monthly payments. I am truly, so.. so sorry..." Her desperation was evident.
Killian looked at the stranger before him, her every action now tainted by the lies she had told him while smiling innocently throughout his life.
"They didn't want you!" she suddenly shouted, her face a mix of anger and tears. "They were here numerous times, but they were ashamed of you, of how you looked. They didn't want anything to do with you! What was I supposed to do?!" Her face was almost frantic.
"But I did! I wanted you and made sure you were cared for while they couldn't be bothered! They told me to say they were dead, to never speak of them! What was I supposed to do?!" She shouted even louder, her face nearly mad as she looked at him.
He had had enough of this. He quickly stood up and fled, hearing shouting behind him. Killian rapidly went up the stairs and into his room, he grabbed his old backpack from a nearby closet, hastily packing his clothes and essentials—personal items, protein bars, notebooks, pencils, and a few books.
The backpack was packed to the brim. He secured it on his back, feeling its weight but determined to leave. He checked his account on his old Pokétch, noting the astronomical amount of money for a fourteen-year-old.
Killian snorted and then laughed a little.
"F*ck this..." he mumbled.
He quickly went downstairs and found himself back in the kitchen, with the front door just ahead.
The stranger sat in the kitchen, papers spread out on the table. She looked at him with cold eyes.
"I understand you're angry," she said, stopping at the word 'angry' and examining him more deeply. "No, angry would be an understatement. You're furious with me, them, and the world. Here is your birth certificate. For all their power, they couldn't erase that. Do whatever you want with it. Destroy it if you like." She wasn't even looking at him anymore, her gaze fixed on her trembling hands.
He took the papers without ceremony and spoke to her for the last time.
"I will not be coming back."
And he left through the front door.
Before he shut the door, he heard her sobbing. He ignored it and closed the door behind him.
Killian was really out of there.
He looked around Twinleaf Town, a small but stylish place with houses that didn't look cheap. The residents he saw glanced at him oddly, but he ignored them, imprinting the image of the town in his mind.
He hated this town.
"Oh, is that you, Pierce? Did you finally venture out of your tomb? Wow... You can still walk?"
And he hated that voice even more.
He whirled around to face the source of the grating voice.
Before him stood a very.. pretty blond, it hurt him to even think that this skunk could be this attractive, light grey eyes staring at him, though her expression was a little weird as she inspected him.
Seraphina Shirona, younger sister of the legendary Pokémon Champion of Sinnoh, Cynthia Shirona.
She had attended school with him, a year ahead, and was one of his tormentors—perhaps even the ringleader.
The reason they attended the same school was, as she not arrogantly put it, her dislike of larger cities and the fact that Cynthia had been champion for a few months, making the situation somewhat tense.
Killian had often thought that her family couldn't handle her and sent her away, a sentiment he expressed numerous times. She retorted that at least she still had more family than he did, which hurt.
He tried to give as good as he got, but it was difficult when fighting against a group.
Now, however, he was experiencing something different. He hadn't seen Seraphina since her graduation; she had immediately gone on her journey and became a well-known coordinator. She had won the last two Grand Festivals, and despite his efforts to avoid her, PokeNet was full of her exploits. He felt sick then, and he felt sick now.
The odd thing was, while Shirona had always been slightly taller than him at school, he was now more than half a head taller than her. Killian noted with satisfaction that she now had to look up at him.
Seraphina, meanwhile, simply stared at him, her face flushed now. Her expression was almost angry but there seemed to be some other emotion, one he didn't recognize at all.
Oh? Was she embarrassed now that he was taller?
He smirked at the thought and suddenly felt much more confident in her presence. He approached her, making the height difference even more apparent.
Killian leaned down, bringing his face closer to hers, mimicking the way she used to do to him. But now, his height far surpassed the difference she once had over him.
He also adopted the smirk she used to wear so often.
"Well, aren't you quite short, Shirona? You always had something to say about my height, calling me a pipsqueak," he remarked, his eyes drifting to her light blue jeans and the thin arms exposed by her white crop top. "But now, you seem pretty petite yourself." Killian delivered the most disdainful smirk he could muster, laced with anger. She wasn't petite at all; he could clearly see the curves of her slim waist and full hips.
What was wrong with him?
She wasn't attractive. She wasn't.
Why did she look this way without even trying? This self-pity was disgusting, but with his world falling apart, he didn't care if he was being a brat, especially to this b*tch.
For her part, Shirona's face reddened further, but she was not without a fight. No, if he expected Seraphina Shirona to not fight back screaming and shouting then he deserved to be embarrassed.
She grabbed him by his collar, he almost punched her out of instinct but held back, and effectively brought him to her height, their noses almost touching,
"Oh? So you have evolved from a fat slob to a bean pole now? Are you proud of yourself you stupid excuse for a-"
Before she could continue, another voice interrupted. "Sera! Why did you run off...?" Dawn Hikari, a girl a year below him, always followed Shirona around and did her bidding, which seemed to stick.
Dawn's was also looking at him weirdly, though not as weirdly as Shirona. Killian didn't understand what was her problem and also didn't care. While she followed Shirona, she had never participated in mocking him and sometimes even defended him, which made him just feel pathetic, and effectively ruined his mood even more.
He ignored the younger girl and focused on the older one, who was still holding him by his collar. Killian grabbed her roughly by her hand,
"Let go." He hissed.
She suddenly got her smirk back, her eyes glinting.
"No, don't really want to right now Kil.." She almost sang at him mockingly while also using that stupid nickname she made for him.
He glared at her with so much hate that he hoped she would disappear on the spot.
Shirona's smirk just got bigger, her eyes now roaming his face and body,
"You know, Kil, if you smiled a little more and maybe said "pleaseeee", I would think about it.." Her teasing voice not helping his mood at all.
He knew he could force her off him, he had more than enough strength for that. But he didn't want to admit defeat to her, in any way. Killian would not lose-
Shirona suddenly grinned at him, a grin he did not like at all, and she slid her hand through his shirt, her hand touching his stomach and slowly going higher.
His body froze at her touch, at her boldness, he absentmindedly heard a gasp in the background, which he ignored.
Shirona herself was looking at him with a self-satisfied smirk, her eyes glinting in the same emotion he had seen for some time in her eyes and still did not recognize.
"Ohhh.. Pretty hard.." She whispered to him, giving him a lopsided grin.
He could physically feel as he got red from his face all the way to his neck, he could see her eyes almost twinkling at him in reaction as she slowly went with her inspection from his face to his neck.
Nobody had ever touched him as intimately as this before, not even the stranger he'd lived with, who had quickly learned about his aversion to touch.
He'd had enough.
Killian shoved her hands away and grabbed her by the throat, his rage bubbling over. Why did she get to invade his space like this, to touch him and laugh in his face while doing it? His own parents hadn't even wanted to touch him, to have anything to do with him. That realization only fueled his anger further. He glared at her, his grip firm but not rough—despite his hatred, she was still a girl.
He opened his mouth, ready to say something, to regain some control—
"I didn't know you were the rough type, but I'm not complaining..." she mocked, a smirk playing on her lips as her hands moved to his arms, prodding and groping him.
"F*ck off," he snapped, jerking away from her, almost sighing in relief when her hands finally left his body.
He didn't understand what game she was playing, but he was losing, and badly. It hadn't been this hard to fend off people at school, where there had been more of them against him. Why couldn't she just insult him and be done with it?
Shirona stood there, hands on her hips, that infuriating smirk still plastered on her face. He glanced over at Dawn, who was as red as a tomato, watching the scene unfold through her fingers.
Turning back to Shirona, he saw her watching him like a cat that had caught a canary, grinning. "You're a sex offender," he spat, his teeth clenched, trying to salvage some dignity after that disaster.
Shirona burst into laughter, a full belly laugh that nearly brought her to her knees. Wiping tears from her eyes, she finally managed to respond. "I don't know who was grabbing who by the neck, but I just responded to what I thought you wanted... When you get that close to a woman, it's usually not to insult her, Kil," she teased.
"You're not a woman, you're just a little girl," he tried to insult her, but the words sounded weak even to him.
"Oh? Do you want to punish this little girl?" she asked, tilting her head with a disgustingly innocent expression.
He could feel the heat rising in his face before she even finished speaking. He was losing this battle, and whatever her new tactic was, he didn't know how to counter it. Was he emotionally stunted? Probably. But he knew one thing—he wouldn't win today.
"Why are you even outside? You only go out, what, three times a year? This must be something special," she mocked, her face almost curious.
Of course, she didn't know that he'd been running around town almost every day. She didn't live here. He glanced at the younger girl, who seemed to be enjoying the exchange like it was her favorite TV show. She was probably the reason the "great" Seraphina Shirona was even here.
"I'm leaving," he muttered, unsure why he even answered her.
"You're what?" She blinked, surprised.
Ignoring her, Killian started to walk away—unfortunately, toward her, as he had something to do in that direction.
"I am f*cking leaving this town," he snapped at her.
Shirona's face went through a mix of emotions, emotions he did not bother to recognize as he started to walk away from them both.
After a few steps and hearing no grating voice, he sighed with relief and continued on his way, not looking back.
...
He came before a simple looking house but on a sign near the house was written "DELANEY BREEDER RANCH".
It was a reputable Breeder Ranch, he had seen it a few times in some articles on PokeNet, and it was the closest Ranch that he knew of.
He had a plan, probably a pretty stupid and selfish plan but a plan nonetheless.
Killian would use his "family", as he thought about the said family he almost threw up. He knew that after this he would need to properly think about this whole "family" thing.
But he would use the people who brought him into this world, to get a good starting Pokemon.
Killian, for all his horrible habits and questionable choices, actually never gave up on becoming a trainer, becoming strong.
He always watched every league, every match he could, he apparently never gave up on that stupid dream that he has had for the past ten years.
He now even had the money for it, more than enough money for it.
Killian felt nervous, for all his bravado he has spent his past fourteen years in this shithole of a town. All the kids his age had four years on him in experience, so why was he also so excited?
He knew that it was stupid, but the thought of crashing them all and winning the league just made him almost tremble. He didn't think he had ever felt such ambition that he felt on that moment, Killian was truly free to pursue his stupid childhood dream.
Failure was not an option, he would use whatever was necessary to achieve this, to become strong.
So, he slowly rang the bell at the door.
He waited almost a minute before the door opened, standing behind the door was a woman of medium height, short brown hair and deep green eyes. She seemed middle-aged, though she looked good for her age.
Killian looked down at the woman, trying with all his might to give her something that at least looked like smile, it seemed to work as she smiled back at him or maybe she was just polite.
"Good morning, young man. I was supposed to not have anyone on the list today, so I am a little bit confused by your visit.. Unless it is not Pokemon related?" She asked, her face still smiling.
He hoped his smile looked sincere,
"It is Pokemon related actually."
"I am sorry to dissapoint but I don't seem to have you on my list of potentional owners?" She asked, her eyes confused.
Killian nodded, "I know, but I have all my graduation papers here so that you can see my results in school and also I can show you my financial situation through my account." He ended with what he hoped looked like a confident smile.
She laughed a little and examined him a litte more closely,
"I am sorry but there is whole procedure to this sort of thing, clients make reservation months before even coming here and there is a whole list of people before you..," She looked behind for a few seconds, " and currently there are more than ten people before you darling." She ended with a cheerful smile, though her smile looked a little fake.
Killian knew he looked more than a little stupid, he knew how these things worked but he simply didn't have the time to wait months before getting his first Pokemon, and he also wasn't stupid enough to try to catch a wild one on his own.
And also, he had one stupid, stupid plan. One he was sure he would come to regret immensely, but he didn't see any other way without risking his life.
So he smiled and threw a hook, metaphorically speaking,
"I know, but I also know something that will help you quadruple the size of your current ranch," he whispered dramatically.
She smirked a little. "You're not the first to try this, but I have to disappoint you. I'm not doing this for the money. Sure, having a roof over my head is nice, but I'm managing just fine," she whispered back, equally dramatic.
"You could give the Pokemon better conditions than now, no? If you use it well you could probably retire as well, not to mention that this is probably the biggest gossip of the century..," Killian countered, trying his best to sound confident.
The woman was still smiling, she inspected him more closely and they stood in silence for a few seconds,
"Well, you're certainly tenacious…" Mrs. Delaney giggled before sighing. "Come in…" She sighed again and stepped inside. "And close the door behind you, dear."
Relief washed over him as he closed the door behind him and followed her into the house. The interior was modern and tastefully decorated with carpets, plants, and other touches that made the place feel cozy.
He arrived in the kitchen, seeing the woman already sitting, her face in her hands as he seemed suddenly tired,
"Show me then," she mumbled into her hands.
He showed her his graduation papers first along with his trainer license, which she started to skim over without any interest, though that changed in a few seconds as she suddenly straightened up in the kitchen chair.
"You do not have a single Pokemon to your name with these kinds of results?" She asked, her face plain with shock and pointing to his Trainer's license, especially to the blank link where was supposed to be written their starter Pokemon.
He had very good results in school, now that he thought about it that was probably why the kids around him seemed to despise him so much, or maybe not and it was just his way of explaining their actions to his brain.
He just nodded, not finding any words.
She looked at him for a few seconds before she shook her head and continued in her reading, now much more focused.
After she was done reading it Mrs Delaney started to look at his Trainer's license for a few minutes, he didn't know what she was reading there apart from few of his personal information, which should be read in a few seconds.
After she was seemingly satisfied, he showed her his bank account, when she saw the amount of money there her eyes almost burst from how wide they were.
And after all that she just sat back and watched him for a while, he didn't shy away from her gaze at all and stared right back, his back straight,
"Before I tell you the information, I would like an assurance that you will deliver and let me choose the Pokemon," he insisted.
She laughed a little, "You don't choose the Pokemon Mr. Pierce, the Pokemon chooses you," she ended with a cryptic tone.
The breeder before him stood up and started to walk away, after a few seconds he stood up as well and started to follow her.
They got to the back of the house, she opened a sliding glass door and went out into a pretty big garden, all around were all kinds of Pokemon.
"To be honest, I have been a little bit of a rescue center for some months now, so you will see quite a variety here despite me focusing on Bug-type Pokemon," she said with a little bit of embarrassment in her voice, rubbing her neck.
"I see," Killian responded simply.
The Pokemon immediately recognized Mrs. Deladey, almost all of them coming to her to greet her and those who didn't come closer to her seemed to shout at her from a distance.
And yes, he saw mostly Bug-type Pokemon, a few Sewaddle here, another dozen Skorupi there, he also saw a Venipede and even a Combee.
But there were also other Pokemon, he saw a dozen Bidoof's, a lone Budew and few Cherubi's, even a Buneary, there also some foreign Pokemon such as Caterpie, Weedle and also a Rattata.
There was even a Shinx, which he immediately looked at and started to observe him.
As the Pokemon greeted Mrs. Dedaley, some even greeted him which he tried his best to return, they all went to do their own thing again, and he and Mrs. Dedaley sat on wooden porch that was at the entrance to the garden.
He watched the Shinx, the Pokemon seemed popular among the other
Pokemon, they played with each other and even started play-fighting a little.
But, how to say it.. the more he watched the Shinx the more he lost interest, the Pokemon seemed talented enough from what moves he had seen, there was certainly power to them despite his apparent age, but it was the Shinx's personality that made him lose interest.
The Shinx seemed playful and mischievous, something Killian was very much not, he had trouble speaking with children from the few times he had to. He just couldn't do the voice or the pet names one called the child, he just felt weird and uncomfortable doing it.
The Shinx was young and Killian just didn't think he could take care of him properly the way he needed, he just didn't have the "touch" for that.
This was probably a big flaw as a trainer, wasn't it? He laughed a little bitterly.
"Something funny?" The woman asked with a small smirk.
"Not really, just lamenting my life.." He mumbled.
"Ah, the woes of teenagers, how sweet." Mrs. Deladey gave him a warm smile, he thought it was a little bit mocking, she was a weird woman.
Killian looked at the Pokemon all around them, all seemingly happy and carefree with their life. He didn't see any of them as potential "warriors", but that was probably his incompetence as a trainer than their fault.
He saw a weird thing though, all around the Pokemon were playing with someone or lying around in groups, every single one of them was with somebody, except one.
Killian saw a lone Evee lying under a tree, every Pokemon gave it a wide berth and he thought about how he didn't notice it immediately when it was just glaring in his face.
Mrs. Deladey saw his staring and looked in the same direction,
"Ambitious, I see..," She laughed a little, "That one is Mael, he is the oldest one here, and as you can see he has carved quite a reputation here."
Killian nodded but was still looking at Mael, who was lying under the tree seemingly watching all the other Pokemon. He didn't move one bit, just lying there, paws crossed and head laying on them.
"He is a rescue from poachers," The woman continued, "To be completely honest the League didn't give me that much information but you can see it clear as day, the little guy was abused. He has been here for a few months and from the first day he met every challenge with ruthlessness one can only get from a really bad environment. I almost had to put him away but the other Pokemon quickly learned to let him be and he never attacked me, though I also had never touched him, only gave him his food and let him be," She explained with a sad smile.
Killian hummed but didn't answer, seeing all these Pokemon this Evee was the only one that resonated with him. He would never say he was abused at school because it made him look weak but it wasn't pretty there, and in class, he always felt like this, how Mael probably felt.
Kids his age laughing and playing around, while he just sat there and looked. It wasn't like that from the beginning, but after hearing one too many remarks from the people he thought were his "friends", he found out that people were fake and cruel most of the time.
His grand-...
The woman who took care of him really wasn't all that perfect as she apparently thought she was. He didn't really understand it at the time, but when people get older they simply lose that "drive" to do most things.
Of course, he had food and a bed to sleep in, but they never really went anywhere, they never did something together, to be honest. She gave him food when he came back from school and then just let him be as she went to watch TV or something, when dinner came he got dinner and again she just let him be.
He knew he was not three anymore and that he was supposed to be somewhat independent, but he really did wonder how different would it be if his parents were alive.
Which they were.
In his prepubescent years, it would have brought him joy beyond any, now he just felt dread and his blood froze.
Not even talking about the homework where he had to do his family tree and he did not even know their names, so he had to put fake names on the family tree, actually that was a time when the stranger did something with him.
Now he understood that she did it to safe her hide, because how would she explain to the teacher that she didn't know the name of his parents if she was the apparent mother of one of them?
He sighed as he slowly stood up.
"I am sorry that-" Mrs. Deladey started speaking but he ignored her and started walking more into the garden.
The Pokemon around looked at him curiously, like children, which made him uncomfortable but he soldiered on, walking deeper into the garden.
In a minute he was standing before the lone tree in this garden, the tree was quite big full of leaves, and the bark was thick and strong.
He looked at the Evee who was lying under it, Mael was watching him warily, eyes tense. Yeah, he didn't take it personally, if someone approached him like this, someone he didn't know, he would be probably already punching and kicking from reflex, he smirked a little at the thought.
Killian shook his head and laid down against the bark, ignoring the tense Pokemon, he also made sure that he was not close to the Pokemon and was giving him enough space.
He looked up the nice late morning sky, which was so blue and with a few clouds here and there.
Killian looked at the Pokemon and was mildly surprised to see that the Pokemon was watching him sideways, one eye at him and one eye at the garden.
Said garden on which all the Pokemon were looking here, as well as the middle aged woman, Killian didn't spare them much of a glance.
"I am sorry." He apologized as he stood and moved away from the tree, the three as a whole was on a small hill, so he moved down a bit and sat down a bit to the right, so that the Evee could see the whole garden while he sat with his back exposed to him.
The Pokemon did a weird thing between a bark and a hiss as he seated with his back exposed to him, yeah he probably just seemed like a f*cking idiot to this guy, way to go.
"Yeah, pretty stupid right? Though to be completely honest I don't think you will attack me, if you wanted to you would have already done so as I was getting ready to sit.." Killian said quietly.
He now saw the whole garden, some Pokemon were still looking at him but most of them got back to their things, Mrs. Deladey was still watching him, if he was to be honest he thought he saw curiosity on her face.
One thing he got from the conversation was that for all her expertise, she seemed to be afraid of Mael. And he didn't really fault her for it, all the other Pokemon around here seemed very young, except Mael.
It wasn't like the Evee was old, no he was still very young, but Pokemon could also live for some absurd years, most of them outliving their trainers.
She almost made him out to be this problem, and he got it, he was probably naive here but he saw himself in this Evee, he just seemed lonely to him.
"Mrs. Deladey told me about your situation.." Killian explained.
The Pokemon gave him a low growl, an impressive one on such a small Pokemon. Though Mael seemed quite a bit bigger than the average Evee from what he knew, and from the few looks he got at him he was also quite healthy, his coat was pristine for a Pokemon coming from poachers.
His eyes though, weren't innocent like he was used to seeing on this type of Pokemon, especially this young. He thought that Mael couldn't be older than a year.
"Yeah, she shouldn't have said such a thing to a stranger. Though you get why right? You know what she does, but I will guess you didn't like anybody?" Killian asked, his voice low.
This time he got another weird mixture of a hiss and a bark, it could have also been a growl, to be honest, though he didn't recognize the emotion there, was he agreeing? Probably.
"I see, so you probably know why I am sitting here."
This time it was definitely a growl, it made him laugh a little bit, Mael reacted to that also, this time almost like a confused bark?
"Sorry, I am not laughing at you, you just really remind me of myself," Killian explained with a laugh.
Another confused bark.
"Every time I am in some form of social interaction I just don't say anything and stand on the sidelines and if someone has something to say, I respond with more than three times the vitriol I got from them, so that they don't say anything ever again. Not that it ever worked though, to be honest," he whispered at the end.
A hiss.
"I do not really understand you, as you will probably not understand me completely because everyone else has their own experiences that shape them. But, I understand loneliness and I more than understand the feeling of not fitting in, Mael." Killian said his name with a gentle touch.
There was a few seconds of silence before there was a hesitant, quiet bark.
"You want me to continue talking?" He asked confused.
A more insistent hiss.
He blinked a few times before he chuckled and then lay down on his back, this action seemed to spook Mael as he heard as the Evee jumped up from his place of resting.
He looked upwards to his left to see the Evee watching him, his ears down and his eyes seemed to be a little brighter.
Killian smirked at him, "Did I spook you?"
Though instead of anger or anything, Mael just tilted his head in other side and continued watching him, completely ignoring the garden now.
Killian gave him a small smile before he looked again to the sky, watching the clouds slowly go by.
"I will tell you about my current situation, it is quite pathetic to be honest..," Killian ended with a melancholic tone, really his self-pitying tendencies were really shining through.
Mael suddenly gave out a threatening growl, though weirdly Killian thought it wasn't aimed at himself. He looked up at the Evee and saw as the Evee immediately stopped and again was looking at him while tilting his head, his ears down.
Weird.
Killian looked at him for a few seconds before giving him a small smile as he gazed back at the sky.
"It really is quite-.."
...
Killian spoke more than he ever spoke before, he spoke of his time in school, he spoke of the stranger that lived with him, he spoke of his last few years, of the past year where he was trying to change.
He even spoke of that stupid blonde, though he didn't know why, just about how annoying she was and what a stupid skunk she really was. That accompanied a lot of growling on Mael's part, which he more than agreed with, almost growling himself at the thought of her smirk.
He spoke of his apparent family, which embarrassingly enough accompanied quite a few tears. He knew that he had been holding it in, from the moment he got the information, but it really got to him now that he talked about it and wasn't focusing on something else.
He even cried for the stranger that he grew up with, for all her faults she took care of him when no one would, and he himself was not perfect so why should he judge others? Though it didn't change anything, to be honest, he was not coming back here, ever.
And so he cried, beneath the afternoon sun, through the evening, and into the moonlight.
His eyes hurt, and his head was also throbbing.
But, he felt refreshed.
Killian finally got it off his chest, he told someone even if it was a Pokemon and though it didn't really make the situation better, at least he didn't feel like he was gonna have a break down.
So apparently an Elite Four member was his father, and his mother was a famous Breeder, so what? Oh, he also had two younger siblings, a ten-year-old girl and a seven-year-old boy.
Of course, he knew that because the Pierce family was all over the PokeNet, fuck, it just made him sick.
Were his parents laughing at him? The stupid fat slob they left at Twinleaf? He laughed a bitter laugh, they had another thing coming. His birth certificate had everything, plus he more than resembled his parents, he saw the photos and compared here a few hours before as he watched the happy family.
He didn't care if no one believed him, his parents knew the truth and this would at least shake them personally and probably also put a dent in their reputation, more than enough for this failure.
Killian looked up at the night sky, it seems he had been talking here for some time, he didn't know why Mrs. Deloday didn't throw him out.
In the darkness he couldn't see any human in the garden, only sleeping Pokemon all around him.
He made to slowly get up but suddenly felt a strange weight in his lap, he didn't really know how to describe it.
Killian looked down, seeing dark brown eyes staring back at him.
He froze up.
As he was talking he slowly lost sense of time and even his sense of touch it seemed, as Mael was currently lying in his lap looking up at him with his ears completely down, eyes strangely bright in the moonlight.
"Ah, didn't see you there," Killian expressed lamely.
Mael for his part just tilted his head to the other side, still watching him, not moving away from him in the slightest, only giving him a light bark.
He didn't know what possessed him, but he slowly scratched Mael's head, the Pokemon leaned into his touch as he closed his eyes.
"Thanks for the talk, I feel a lot better, but I should be going now. I didn't find a starter but I think I made a friend? That's good enough.."
He gently picked Mael from his lap and placed him on the grass, the Eevee looked at him weirdly.
"Well, nice to have met you Mael, but I really gotta go, already this is embarrassing to have cried my heart out here like a fourteen-year-old girl for some "love", in someone else's garden.." He mumbled.
He gave him a scratch for the last time before giving him a sad smile and slowly turning around.
Suddenly, Mael moved so fast that he was suddenly standing before him, his eyes hard.
Killian looked at him confused, "Is something bothering you?" He asked dumbly.
Mael suddenly growled really loud, his cry reaching all the corners of the garden and before he could even react to that, under the moonlight he started to shine so bright that Killian lost a sight for a few seconds due to the proximity of it.
Falling backward due to the bright light, Killian shielded his eyes while looking at the shining Pokemon with a feeling of awe.
He saw as the Pokemon's bones broke down and repaired again, as his muscles and tendons seemed to form and reform outwards, he saw as he seemed to get bigger and bigger.
This continued for a minute as Killian just sat there and watched.
He had never witnessed evolution in real life, and could confidently say that seeing one on screen didn't compare.
The light started to dim out slowly, the Pokemon's form getting more refined, this went on for a few more seconds before it completely stopped,
and Killian watched the Umbreon before him, who was staring right back at him, his head tilted and his ears completely down. He seemed big for his species.
The Pokemon stared at him for a few more seconds before pointing to his eyes and then pointing to Killian with his paw.
He blinked for a few seconds before laughing, Mael's eyes being almost the same shade of red as his.