Journey Through the Dark [OOC/SU Thread]

Haru was sitting up in his hospital bed when Flint came into the room. It had appeared that something outside had caught his eye while he was waiting for the nurse to return and help apply the fresh new roll of bandage in the teenager's hand. For the Elite Four Member, it was rather odd and personally embarrassing
to see what his type-preference had done. "Hey, looks like you recovered well!" Flint greeted Haru. Haru turned to face the Elite Four and give a slight bow of respect. But nothing came from the boy's mouth, so it was hard to tell if he had anticipated the arrival or if he had even known that Flint was in the room until addressing him. Regardless, Flint walked up to the bed and reached out for the bandages. "Need some help there?"
Still without a word, Haru looked down at the hand and stared for a second. Deciding that it was alright, he gave his visitor the roll and extended his arm out. The burns had healed as best as they could, but even after months of recovery they looked terrible. There was little that could be done given the fact that he was too poor to pay for correctional surgery and most of it was second-to-third degree. "You know, you're pretty lucky. Most people in your situation don't make it out alive," Flint said matter-of-factually as he began wrapping up the grievous wound.
"... I think at this point I'd rather be dead..." Haru spoke up, but it was in a dull, gloomy murmur.
"Hey, that's no way to speak," the Elite Four member said with a frown. Even he needed something else to fully believe what he was saying. There was no way of understanding how the teenager really felt, but it had to be really low if the first thing he said was a remark against his own luck. But Flint knew he had to find something to pick up Haru's spirits. "Listen, it's not my place to tell you how you should feel, but I think you are a very strong individual. I'm sure anyone thrown into your situation would feel the way you do. But is that a reason to withdraw from everyone?"
Haru fell into silence again; obviously not wanting to talk about it anymore. As Flint left him alone and focused on wrapping the wound, the teenager began thinking about everything. The moment when he turned back to see Cerise smiling back at him as he passed out replayed over and over. Trying to ignore it was a hassle, and it refused to be ignored. Try as Haru might, he couldn't banish the memory from his current thoughts. It caused a heavy headache to erupt. Tears wanted to fall from his eyes, but refused to let them flow.
If it wasn't for Flint being there, Haru might've broken down and cried. It wasn't too often that the teenager would cry. A lot of people cry at hospitals. Patients cry. Their loved ones cry. Sometimes a touched employee would cry, too. Those people usually cry openly, but not Haru. Haru didn't want anyone to see him cry; see the massive weakness that he carried. When something wanted to make him cry, he'd hold it down as best as he could and keep it under control. Instead, he'd cry at night as everyone else was sleeping. He'd make sure not to make enough noise to alert the night crew, but to him that wasn't real crying. Real crying was the public tears that didn't matter who was watching. As much as he wanted, and needed, to cry for real, Haru didn't feel strong enough. Who'd try to console him? Who'd be touched and cry with him? Who wouldn't be afraid to show that they were with him in his misery? No one in the whole world felt close enough to do any of that.
When Haru refocused on his surroundings, he found that his arm was already bandaged and Flint was talking to the nurse that had entered some time ago. They were talking with each other, no doubt that it was about him, as they sometimes made casual glances toward the teenager. They couldn't see him look back at them since his unkempt hair made it difficult to see most of his face. Carefully, Haru turned his back to the two and started to gaze out the window again. A flock of Starly were flying in the distance. Starly always fly past the hospital at this hour. No one outside the hospital really knew that, though. They were usually too distracted with other things.
"What are you looking at out there?" Flint asked suddenly. Haru wasn't surprised enough to react, though.
"Pokemon," Haru said simply. He was going to leave it at that, but something inside him told him that he should say something else, too. "... I guess at the very least Pokemon are able to distract me from everything." This seemed to be the kind of opening Flint was waiting for.
"Pokemon, eh? I think I have a friend here that would like to say hello," the Elite Four member said as he took out a pokeball and made it expand. Flint commanded the Pokemon inside to come out, revealing itself as a Flareon. Flareon leaped onto the bed in joy as it looked up at Haru with a curious look. "Maybe the last thing you'd want to look at is another fire-type, but this Flareon is very friendly."
The teenager looked up at the Pokemon before him. He wasn't sure what to think of it, but it could sense his mood. Moving closer in, Flareon sniffed Haru's face for a second before licking him on the cheek. Haru stared at it in half-surprise, but the surprise soon melted into the slightest of smiles; probably the first made in four months. Lifting up his bad arm, Haru reached out to pet the fire Pokemon. It didn't hurt to move that limb, either. Flareon's fur was nice and soft, and every stroke made it more comfortable with him. Soon enough, Flareon laid down on the bed to let the teenager get behind its ears.
"I have to say, Flareon probably warmed up to you faster than any other stranger. What's your secret?" Flint asked, watching with a renewed sense of hope.
"We came to an agreement," Haru said as he continued petting the fire Pokemon, "I pet it and my other arm doesn't get burned."
"Bwahahaha!! Sorry-- sorry!!" Flint laughed, "That was funny, I have to admit! You must feel a little better if you can make a joke at your own expense."
"I guess a little," Haru said as he looked down at Flareon. It was looking up at him with a content smile on its face. "Having a Pokemon by my side would make things easier."
"Actually, I was just about to offer you the chance for your own Pokemon," Flint said with a more serious attitude about him, "As you might have guessed, things robberies and murders have been on the rise as of late. It's come to the collective attention of every Pokemon League branch that these happenings are not at all random. They are very much organized. If you accept, you'll be given the supplies needed to start your Pokemon journey as well as being integrated into a branch of the resistance fighting this world phenomenon. You don't have to accept, but with your help we can prevent people from going through what you had to go through, or worse. What do you say?"
Haru didn't want to say anything at first, but since he was being asked there was no other option to him. "I'll crush them single-handed if I must," the teenager said, an inner fire burning bright in his eyes.
"Then I'll make contact with Cynthia and we'll plan what we can do for and with you," Flint said as he commanded his Flareon to return into its pokeball, "For now, you wait here and feel better. I'm sure Cynthia will enjoy a willful new asset like you."

I even made a visual look of him!! :D Please tell me what you guys think, be honest.

If I get a Shiny Tepig it'll look like this. If not, then imagine the normal Tepig with those Headphones. :3 Also, If I get a Shiny Tepig his fire will be blue (see Shiny Emboar).

"Why are you so quiet?"

"I have nothing to say…"
Awakened by the afternoon rays; the young boy opens his brown eyes, they blurred for a second as he slowly regained his vision. For a moment he felt confused as he sat up straight in his bed and observed the room. "That's right… I'm home." He turned to face the ceiling, his back resting on his comfortable old bed. The pokeball shaped digital timer on his right night stand, "4PM… I did it again…"

"Damnit Nam, go to sleeeeep!" the restless boy mumbled in his sheets. The air conditioner was as cold as can be, but he liked it that way. It was his mind; it didn't let him rest in peace. He kept remembering Livvy, the memories were happy, but at the same time it reawakened the sad inner feelings he never expressed. After a few thoughts of her, his head twisted the memories and fused them with an anime he had seen on T.V. recently, he was the hero –naturally. Next he filled the room with laughter, rolling around the bed by some silly moments they had together.

Nam smiled and lowered his face into his hands, partially concealing his face. "Why am I so weird…" He stared at his phone; it had a picture of Livvy as background. Most would think they were practically going out, but that wasn't possible when they understand the situation. Nam cursed at her picture and deleted it. His gaze returns to the ceiling, and then shifted to the blue sky, clouds drifting away wherever the wind takes them. He should probably be standing off his bed and preparing for his day, but he was pondering on what he should do. He could practice the drums, go for an afternoon jog, visit Amity Park or the Pokemon Gym; it's been a while since he's seen Fantina. Or perhaps he could train his pokemon, he only needed one more gym badge and he could participate in the Pokemon League.

Still unsure of his future activities, Nam got off his bed and the rest was 'morning' routine: brush teeth, take a bath, get dressed, etc. All the while he was still thinking about what he should do; he had plenty of free time. He found himself orbiting the kitchen table and wondered what he was doing. Lucky him, nobody was around to see it.

"Naaaamiii~!" a little whiny voice called out to him from behind. It was his little brother, 9 year-old Lukas.
"What is it…"
"I'm trying to beat this Gym leader, but it seems I got a weak pokemon…" he pouted and flashed the DS console system in Nam's face. He couldn't really say why, but for some reason his little brother always seemed to push his buttons; and as if it wasn't bad enough, he was fighting the Oreburgh Gym leader, Roark, in HIS game, the one where he only needed one more badge; all gone, just by the click of a button. Although Nam's face expressed indifference, inside he was infuriated. He was mentally strangling his little brother, he began to think of all the ways possible for him to assassinate Lukas. "You chose Tepig… either evolve him and teach it a fighting move, or go catch a Psyduck in route 203; the cave that connects Jubilife and Oreburgh. You can also find a Machop in route 207…"

"Wow, that's too much work…" Lukas turned off the handheld and laid it down on the table. "I'ma go play outside, bye!"
Nam was now angrier still; his little brother erased his game file and now refuses to play it. He wrenched his feelings away and tried to occupy himself with something, but before he went up the first tile, the doorbell rang; it made the generic sound of a Starly. He receded from going back upstairs and immediately opened the door.

"Bro-kun!" a young maiden rushed into Nam's arms in embrace; everyone knew he was trying to learn Japanese.
"L-Livvy…!" he said in surprised, his voice calm and indifferent, yet he smiled and returned her hugs.
"I missed you…" she whispered in his ears.
"I missed you too…"
The two stood there feeling the warmth of each other's bodies, as if reassuring themselves that they were in fact, real. Finally they receded and Nam lost himself in her blue eyes, he loved the way her brown hair was long and just a little past her shoulder. He'd sometimes imagine it dancing in the wind, but he's only seen that in anime. She was wearing a white undershirt that said, 'Pokemon 4ever' in yellow, bold letters, and a pink open sweater with their old school logo in the right; an open pokeball which appeared as if a book was coming out of it, instead of a pokemon.

Just as they were about to engage conversation, "Livvy!" it was Bas Lambert, Livvy's boyfriend since 6 years ago. There was no way Nam could ever compete with a guy like him, "6 years…" he thought to himself. Livvy had introduced Bas to Nam a long time ago, hoping they'd become friends; and that they did. Although, more in Bas' head than in Nam's. As soon as they became 'friends' Nam felt trapped, he was captured and silenced forever. Since then he's been trying to get over Livvy, but she always makes him feel lovey dovey whenever they meet.

"I have to go," she said; Bas still calling for her in the background. Nam snapped back into reality and noticed she was leaving. "Haha, you're still so quiet as usual!" She said.

"It was nice seeing you again, maybe we can hangout now that you're back!" she smiled and walked away; and as she did, he began to feel lonely once more, just like that. It was this feeling that made him both love and despise Livvy at the same time; but it wasn't her fault, she doesn't know, about Nam's true feelings. From afar he watched as the love of his life jumped into another guy's arms and as their lips connected his eyes began to water. He reluctantly closed the door slowly; wanting to slam it shut, but he wasn't a fool, he thought to himself.

He went upstairs and opened a black foam door, revealing the insides of his 'drum room'. It was all covered in foam so he could make as much noise as he wanted, but he wasn't there to play his black and red striped drums with silver rims, no. He was there to scream his heart out; and no one would listen.

The days went by and it was all the same to him, he began visiting Amity Park again, found himself with Fantina and they would catch up, his parents were still competing and drawing, his sister would sing along with her pokemon. They had their lives figured out; unlike Nam. Then, one day, something that sounded like propellers invaded Nam's morning breakfast, soon followed by the chirp of his doorbell.

"Hello, Nam?" the bewildered boy couldn't believe his eyes, he even removed his headphones to make sure he wasn't hearing things, because his eyes perceived the image quite well. Cynthia, Champion of the Sinnoh region and leader of Team Reverse, was standing in front of his door, standing on his welcome mat, with a helicopter behind her; it was polished, black steel; emblazoned with Team Reverse's Emblem. on the door. She was inviting him to join the Association of Light, Nam, she was inviting him! He wasn't sure what to make of it; perhaps he was in Punk'd a T.V. series that messes around with people. But one thing's for sure, he was staring at Cynthia's face. She handed him a recommendation letter from his old school in Jubilife City.

"Why me?" he managed. "Sure, I have nice grades, but I have no experience in pokemon battles…"
"Then I shall test you." Nam was still baffled, but before he could say anything else, he was handed a Pokeball. He was going to face Fantina; a one on one battle. She claimed to have been part of that recommendation letter his school had sent to the Association of Light. She saw the potential in Nam as a trainer. Nam wasn't sure about it, but somehow, having a pokeball extend in his hands felt naturally comforting. "Alright… This is it, this is where I shine!" Nam pressed on the button in the center of the pokeball as he put his headphones back on. He threw the ball into the air and a red light dashed out like lightning, soon forming a Rattata, a small purple mouse pokemon. The crowd gathered.

Fantina began going on about how great that Rattata looked and so she finally sent out her own pokemon, "Duskull!" it looked like a chibi version of the Grim Reaper, or at-least that's how Nam saw it. And so the battle began. Rattata is a Normal type pokemon which is ineffective against Ghost types, which in fact Duskull was. But Ghost type moves weren't effective against Normal pokemon either. So they were hand to hand, Nam thought.

"Damnit, Rattata can't learn foresights… therefore normal type moves are completely useless here…" he muttered to himself. Then he remembered that Rattata knows dark type moves. "Rattata, Crunch!" Nam ordered; but the due to his lack of experience, Rattata completely ignored him and went about its own. Rattata attempted to use Hyper Fang, since it was its best move. But Duskull just faded away and used, "Hidden Power!" Balls of light generated around the black ghost pokemon and expanded in one swift motion. Rattata tumbled to the ground.
"Rattata, if you want to win, you'll have to trust in me! Normal moves don't work on Ghost pokemon!" The prideful rodent finally agreed to listen and awaited further orders.

Next, Fantina ordered Duskull to use Mean Look. Rattata was terrified, he felt as if giant eyes were looking down at him, followed by Dark Impulse, but Rattata snapped out of it with Nam's call and evaded the attack, following through with Bite, right over Duskull's head. The chibi reaper shivered and flinched to Rattata's sunken teeth.
"Dark type moves are supper effective against Ghosts!" Nam said with a grin.

"Nice movez you have, but thiz iz not game!" Fantina countered. "Vision de l'Avenir!" Duskull's eyes glowed and foresaw Rattata's intent to repeat his previous attack, fading away it used, "Will-o-Wisp!"

"Rattata!" Nam called; the small mouse pokemon was now burnt, but he wasn't about to give up. "This Rattata is Gutsy…" then the memory flashed back at him. One of Rattata's abilities is Guts, an ability that increases Rattata's attack stat by 50% in his pokemon games. "You made a big mistake Fantina…" he declared; a confident stare moved Fantina, as if Mean Look was being used on her instead of a pokemon. For a moment she had forgotten about the battle and kept staring at her opponent, Nam, "He has grown quite a bit…" she thought. Duskull panicked due to the lack of orders and attempted to use Shadow Sneak, a ghost type move. The unaffected Rattata sucked up its pain and used Sucker Punch on Duskull and finished it off with a Crunch. Duskull feinted, and since he was no longer able to battle, Nam had won. Rattata felt relieved and dropped to the ground.

After a while Fantina had realized what happened and smiled; congratulating Nam for his victory. Of course, this was nothing compared to a real Gym battle, she assured. Fantina recalled her pokemon and the burn on Rattata faded away. "You did great, Rattata!" Nam exclaimed. The exhausted mouse smiled and returned to its pokeball.

"Well, there's no doubt about it, the battle was a bit shaky, but you've definitely got potential. How about it? Join the Association of Light?" Cynthia handed out the recommendation letter to Nam, again. Hoping this time he'll actually pay attention to it and won't daze off. Nam was still not convinced that he was the right guy for this, but he would definitely like to go on an adventure with pokemon. "Nam"
The boy flinched and looked straight into her eyes. She cringed a bit herself, his honest eyes filled with curiosity and yet some pain; he was looking straight into her eyes, who does that?
"Team Crescenta is getting bigger and stronger as we speak and they're only a small branch of a much bigger and vast group that spans the seas and different regions we all know. The Association of Light can't beat them alone, if we could, we wouldn't be asking you. We need you, Nam." Finally Nam put himself together and accepted Cynthia's request. He hugged his parents goodbye, packed his bags, and prepared to set out on a journey; his life was about to change, forever.