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- Seen Nov 25, 2022
Got a little too invested in Omori's characters and thought mixing the game with pokemon would be really fun.
Note 1: This is the first piece of fiction I have written since I was twelve, so it MIGHT be really bad and/or cringe inducing, I am unsure. Not exactly good at writing dialogue, feedback is welcome! Please be gentle though...
Note 2: This story should only be read if you either have played through Omori or don't plan on playing through it. Even if you don't plan on playing it, I REALLY suggest watching Shenpai's or another youtuber's playthrough of it before reading this. Omori is a really awesome game with music, emotional impact, and gameplay even better than the undertale/deltarune games in my opinion! *This story has big spoilers and you will probably be lost if you don't know the story, as this is post-true ending.*
Note 3: I don't actually know if I am going to continue this, so please say if you have any interest in seeing these first two chapters continued!
Note 4: This world is basically just normal earth with the same approximate history as our earth, but with pokemon having been around for the whole time. I like thinking in these terms because I like to ask questions like "What kind of gym would this major, real world city have?" or "What kind of pokemon would be used in the military of real nations?" (I am thinking pseudo-legendaries)
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Chapter 1
Basil tilted the watering can gently, misting the young potted plant. His hobby had always been relaxing and healthy for him, keeping his mind off the past and preventing him from growing idle. At least, this is what he told himself. In truth, he was starting to wonder what the point was. He didn't feel like he could ever take on the responsibility of selling plants for a living, not with his periods of withdrawal and anxiety… even on days like these. Even when the sky is radiant and the heat is pleasant, it felt like a black fog in his… no, he didn't have to think that way, he reminded himself. The blonde shook his head a little, throwing his thoughts off to the side. Like Polly said, he was just depressed because his friends had been distant lately.
He put down his tools and went inside the house, stopping by the monster sleeping in the corner and giving it a few quiet pats on the head. His bulbasaur had been gifted to him a few years back, and acted as a gardening assistant and as a sort of therapy "dog" at the same time. He had named it Melony, as she reminded him of a watermelon in some ways, such as her ability to spit seeds at things, her rotund shape, and her greenish blues which reminded him of how the fruits would sometimes look a little bluish in the right light... Before Melony, he had been very timid around pokemon, but she was almost like family now. She was very empathetic and would practically mother him when Polly couldn't be there for him. He rarely bothered to store her in her ball, as he rarely had reason too. She was good company.
He looked at the dark wooden clock on the wall, noting it was still surprisingly early. He thought about calling Sunny, but Basil felt like the dark haired boy needed time alone right now. He knew all of his friends did. It had been Mari's birthday a few weeks ago, and it had agitated their old wounds. It had been hard enough to reconcile himself and Sunny with their three closest friends, and it only truly started to go well after… the incident… Basil winced at the memory, of when Sunny's loneliness led him to almost take his life, despite having confessed his burdens. Only after that, did the trio start to regularly talk to him again… as well as to Basil. Perhaps they realized just how much pain Sunny was in. Sunny didn't really have anyone, or anything for that matter, to keep him company, both in the years of isolation and in the present. He had been too afraid of pokemon to own one of his own when he was young, and too isolated and down to have one after Mari's death. As for his mom, well, it seemed that their relationship died after she learned the truth about her daughter's death. They tolerate each other, but they just don't talk much now…
Basil really wished he could be there for his friend, but he couldn't be there physically, and he felt like he needed space emotionally… right? A tinge of uncertainty reached Basil's mind as he sat down next to Melony, watching her snooze. He thought about how Sunny hadn't texted him in a while, and felt another tinge, this time of concern. Basil remembered how his best friend had slowly stopped texting him in the days before the incident, and started to feel his normal protectiveness for the youngest of the group. Sure, many people saw Basil as far younger than he actually was, but he attributed that to his meekness and… slightly feminine traits, but he had always felt the need to protect Sunny from harm. He almost felt like an older brother to him, which would probably surprise many of his friends who saw Basil as a pushover. It was the reason why he had done the deception that he so dearly regretted five years ago.
He thought about what he could do, besides just trying to cheer him up. He couldn't always be there for him… but a pokemon could, he thought. He remembered that Sunny had seemed to be getting better at tackling his fears in the time after leaving his house. He recalled the time when his friend fearlessly jumped into the water after Basil was pushed by Aubrey, despite not being any good at swimming. If he could do that, it seemed like he could surely take care of a pokemon. Basil took out his phone and started looking up adoption centers and lab locations in the city that Sunny was in. After looking at a few, he settled on one that was close to his friend's apartment and in a better part of town.
Sunny woke up startled, partially from the sound of an ambulance passing by his apartment, but more so from the effect of it on his dreams. In his sleep he saw himself in the ambulance during the incident, saw himself again when he lost his eye, and saw the police cars when Mari died, all in a flurry of memories that flooded into his mind which had been previously peacefully occupied. He realized he had overslept again, even though he had promised to himself he would spend less time in head space. He got out of bed, throwing his sheets to the side and taking a moment to touch his eye patch, checking its pain sensitivity. It wasn't that bad, to his relief. He even noted that it felt better than it had in the past, despite being rather painful the previous day. He slowly approached the bathroom, not in any hurry to start the day, but stopped when he looked in the mirror. Something, the entity named Something, was there hovering silently. He was annoyed that it was there, but glad that it had not jump scared him. There were worse forms it could take than the single eyed mess of hair that it was currently in. He ignored it, washing his face, only acknowledging it with a single glance every couple seconds. If anyone besides Sunny could see the ghostly figure, they would think it was some sort of odd ghostly pocket monster, but he knew it was just a figment of his imagination. He would see it sometimes even when the power was on and the normal safeguards were activated, repelling specters of any kind. Not that ghost-types show up in heavily populated city centers anyways, he thought.
When he was finished with the few bathroom routines he maintained, he hesitantly looked at his phone to see if he had any messages. Kel had texted him a few funny pictures, but he did that pretty frequently, although less so in the last month. He paused when he saw a message from Basil, noting it was a pretty large message. For a while, Basil had only been checking on him to make sure he was okay, which Sunny thought was understandable. It was awkward to talk when Mari's birthday had passed recently, but he had still hoped for some sense of normalcy. He opened the message, reading it quietly.
Basil: Umm, hi Sunny! How have you been? I just wanted to see if you would think about doing a favor for me. I know it might be a little tough, but I know you can do it… and I think it would be really healthy for you! Do you think you would consider adopting a pokemon? I umm, sometimes get really concerned about you, and I know Melony keeps me company sometimes, and I really think you need someone to be with you… I attached a bunch of locations to this message! I marked the one I think you would like most. I just thought you seemed to be getting over your fears (I think…?!?) and that this would be a healthy step forwards…
Sunny paused, remembering how he had actually thought about it in the past, but had told himself that he was in no condition to be raising any sort of pet. Besides, didn't pokemon need a lot of attention? In truth, Sunny did not know much about owning a pocket monster. He thought raising one would need constant diligence and require a large swathe of responsibility. He decided, for Basil's peace of mind, it would not hurt to look into it a little bit. He opened his browser, looking up how much dedication it would take. After a quick Google search, he was mildly surprised to see it was not as much as he expected. While his friends had always kept their starters outside of their balls, pokemon in their balls required little maintenance. Apparently, when one is in its ball, it is as if no time passes between when it entered and left the container. It would be essentially frozen in time, not needing food or really anything in particular.
Sunny knew he couldn't be trusted to raise a pokemon if he had to constantly look after it, so this was encouraging. In truth, he didn't have much fear left of anything, only really fearing being alone. Most monsters weren't scary to him anymore anyways, his lucid dreaming had gotten him through that fear as well as many others. Despite this, he still had a fear of the more paranormal and mysterious ones, especially ones that could read his mind or take the form of his worst fears. He would just have to get something more domestic, he told himself, like Kel's rockruff or Aubrey's bunnelby. Knowing Basil was concerned, he decided it was probably for the best that he make plans to visit the place his friend had filtered for him.
Little did Sunny know, his decision to own a pocket monster would line up with the rest of his friends' plans, as well as set him on a quest to seek forgiveness… not from his friends, who were already trying to, but from Mari herself…
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Chapter 2
The purple, spiked monster latched onto and slammed the helpless, normally intimidating bird into the ground. The delinquent behind it was losing his composure, slightly adjusting his wig. The bird managed to escape the struggle and take to the air, albeit shakily. "Feral, roost!" he said, trying to sound heroic. The fearow landed in a tree, hyperventilating to recover its health.
Aubrey rolled her eyes. How many times was Mikhail going to do this? She had promised to help train the Maverick's fearow, but now it was beginning to feel like a cruel comedy routine. The poor bird could barely scratch her nidorino's hide, and the idiot just kept telling it to fly away and recover its health after it would get mauled. "You know what? Maverick, we are just… done, okay!?" she finally yelled, folding her arms and turning away. "It has been like a fucking hour! Just. Give. Up." Mikhail gave off a confident smirk and, seemingly unphased, said "I could never give up on a fight! Chicks love endurance! And The Maverick will never concede!" Aubrey slowly turned around, walked straight towards him, stared him dead in the eyes, and pointed to the bird in the tree gasping for air. "You have been running away for forty minutes" she said, deadpan, "If any girl were remotely interested in you, they would probably feel sick to their stomach from how pathetic this has been" Mikhail paused, keeping an unchanged expression on his face, before finally lowering his arms in defeat. Aubrey recalled her nidorino, Mace, into his ball and started walking away, still facing Mikhail. "If you want to get better," she said, "Just grind at the gym a few towns over like a normal person. Now, I am going home and feeding bu- I mean, my bunnelby… do whatever you want…" She turned around and walked back to the entrance of Faraway Park's secret spot, giving a half-hearted wave goodbye. She got on her scooter and headed home reluctantly. Her house, as well as her mom, were unpleasant parts of her life and she tried to avoid them as often as possible. She only felt dirty as she entered the messy residence and saw her foggy, somewhat tipsy mother on the couch. She went to her room without a word, while her bunnelby, Bunny, who had been carelessly sleeping on a blanket strewn on the floor, groggily woke up and followed behind her. Aubrey's room was a lot cleaner than the rest of the house, mainly because she wanted Bunny to have a safe place to go to and to separate her own image from her poor excuse of a parent. The rabbit hopped effortlessly onto the old bed, receiving a few pats on the head of approval. Aubrey grabbed a handful of the monster kibble from the bag at the end of her bed and presented it to the bunnelby in a bowl. The pellets were dirt cheap, but she would try to sometimes buy vegetables and edible plants from the store. On occasion, Basil would donate some from his garden, although he didn't have much to offer.
She plopped onto the bed with a sigh and started scrolling through her phone. She didn't feel like dealing with any of her gang's drama at the moment, so she scrolled past their group chat and looked at her "other" friends' messages. Hero had been pestering her to actually attend school more than three days a week, but his resolve had clearly started to break. Today, he just messaged to check up on her and share how his life was going. She secretly appreciated it, but told the man he needed to worry about himself. She did this to divert attention from herself, but also because Hero was probably one of the most stressed people she knew behind his confident facade. Medical school was stressful and she certainly did not envy him. It didn't help either that he always needed to overachieve, taking on activities that seemed pointless to Aubrey such as heading his fraternity's leadership. Maybe that was why he got along so well with Mari when she was alive, considering how much she did… Besides Hero, Kel had also messaged her with a few memes about a cheesy drama show, which Kel and Aubrey both secretly enjoyed. Aubrey had laughed her ass off when he started to sob when she "spoiled" that the main protagonists of the show had finally kissed. When he actually watched it, he found out that, instead, that character had died and was being replaced. He sobbed even harder after that… He was entertaining to mess with…
She didn't see any messages from Sunny or Basil, which was kind of a relief despite her feeling bad about it. Talking to them wasn't a problem, but they had been awkward lately. They probably believed she was still touchy about how things had gone. In truth, she had put aside any grievances towards the two, especially after Kel pointed out that she could have been in a similar situation when she had pushed Basil into the pond. She had been initially bitter after the duo's confession and suspected that Sunny was a sociopath that wanted to mess with them before leaving forever, but she regretted that. Sunny was not cutting them out of his life, and the amount of pain he suffered and put himself through showed he was trying to make things right. Aubrey had not learned much from her time in church, but she thought she learned that suffering seemed like a part of making up for things. "Atonement" as the pastor would put it.
She snapped out of her thoughts when her bunnelby started tapping its pokeball, thumping its foot against it. She sighed, taking the ball away and putting it in a drawer in her nightstand. "Bunny, we've talked about this. You are the only thing keeping my mom from imploding and kicking us out like garbage" she said, half heartedly scolding the ball of fluff, "I can't take you with me, and besides, I… am pretty sure the gang would be a bad influence." Bunny pouted a bit, before he laid back down on the bed next to Aubrey. Despite being fluffy and sickeningly cute, the rabbit's owner knew he was actually even more eager to do combat than Mace was, not that she would ever put him in battle. Her mom would likely kill the delinquent girl if she did that, and Aubrey would probably consider offing herself too if something happened to her pet bunny. Besides, Mace was more than powerful enough to be her only fight-ready Pokemon. Raising more than one was something only professional trainers did, she thought, and it took a lot of work to make even one Pokemon ready for battle.
Her train of thought was once again interrupted when a voice shouted from the living room. "Aub, your rent is due soon!" Aubrey sighed heavily, having nearly forgotten that her mom had started charging her rent, despite neither of them having a job. "Yeah, I know!" she yelled back. She would probably have to pressure some of her fellow hooligans into helping her get the money or take a short term gig at Gino's. Despite not wanting to even think about it, her mind reluctantly started considering the future. She obviously didn't want to be trapped with her mother forever, but she clearly wasn't going to graduate, at least not with any good job prospects. A few of her gang had joked about joining serious crime organizations like the Rockets or the Skulls when they got older, but she had tried to subtly discourage them. The Rockets were monstrous animal abusers and creeps, while the Skulls were just a bunch of losers who made money from theft and drug trafficking. If one of those gangs as so much as took a step into Faraway Town, she would probably run them out of town herself. Despite this, her delinquent friends had already started to express discontentment with their current lifestyle, as most of them didn't come from wealthy homes. They had suggested that, even if it were a dangerous lifestyle, a career in crime would at least pay well. Aubrey and her mom themselves were living off unemployment checks, with her mom not having any drive to change their circumstances. Because of this, she of all people found it hard to object to their logic.
Not liking being reminded of her current life situation, she decided to go back and look at the hooligan group chat, despite passing it over before. They had been mostly bickering and taking part in their usual shenanigans, but much to Aubrey's dismay and surprise, it seemed like they had started a conversation about the same things she had been thinking about.
XxXThe MaverickXxX: "So, fr, if you guys could join any of the big syndicates, which would you do and y?"
Charlie: "Mav no"
Kim: "I mean, the Plasmas aren't that bad. Monster rights ftw and all"
Vance: "Didn't they have a big scandal, Kim?"
Kim: "Yeah, some of them were 'humanely euthanizing' monsters and selling them for cash, but there are still true believers out there. Hey, at least they aren't PETA smh x("
Vance: "Lol yeah"
Charlie: "I guess, what about the Recycultists?"
Vance: "Wtf Charlie O_O"
Kim: "Charleen, they are literally a cult, not some crime group. Why tf are you mentioning them."
Charlie: "Idk, just thought they did good things for the environment..."
Kim: "Charlie, sweet, Charlie. If I ever see you near them or talking to them, I will break every one of their kneecaps personally. I won't even use my mon."
XxXThe MaverickXxX: "lmao you probably wouldn't even need a mon, all they use are fucking trubbishes"
-Aubrey has entered the chat-
Aubrey: "Guys, keep talking about syndicates and the cultists aren't the only one getting their kneecaps shattered"
Vance: "Wut"
XxXThe MaverickXxX: "Jeez, alright. Y so aggressive?"
Kim: "Yeah Aub, I thought you told me you idolized the Skulls?"
Aubrey: "That was a long time ago. Just stop talking about it"
XxXThe MaverickXxX: "Not cool, when did you decide wut we could talk about?"
Aubrey: "Since when could I not? Cool it Mikhail"
Vance: "DUDE"
XxXThe MaverickXxX: "YOU daRe uSE that Name?! I WILL PERSONALLY COME TO YOUR HOUSE AND SICC FERAL ON U"
Aubrey: "Mikhail, tell them about our little battle today ;-)"
Vance: "Wut is she talking about?"
Aubrey: "He tried to fight me today, and he just kept using Roost + Running like a coward"
XxXThe MaverickXxX: "WTF YOU SAID THAT PRACTICE WOULD BE PRIVATE!!!"
Kim: "lol sad"
XxXThe MaverickXxX: "F U"
XxXThe MaverickXxX: "aSDFNF"
-XxXThe MaverickXxX has left the chat-
Vance: "lmao"
Kim: "Aub, what ARE your plans past school then?"
Aubrey: "Idk, I'll work at Gino's or something"
Kim: "I know for a fact you wouldn't be caught dead in a delivery outfit for the rest of your life"
Aubrey: "…true"
Vance: "Ya know, this may sound unrelated, but have any of us actually beaten you before in a fight?"
Aubrey: "???"
Aubrey: "In what kind of fight?"
Vance: "Monster fights."
Kim: "I don't think we have…"
Charlie: "There was that one time, but I think she just let me win…"
Vance: "Lol, really?"
Kim: "Charlie, sweetheart, I would be surprised if she didn't let you win at least once"
Aubrey: "???"
Aubrey: "Point?"
Vance: "Maybe you could try competitive out?"
Vance: "I heard you can get paid pretty well"
Aubrey: "Yeah, you have to, like, be really good though???"
Charlie: "I don't know about that, my brother Henry does the league"
Vance: "Wait, really?"
Kim: "Charlie, since when!?"
Charlie: "Like for several years now…?"
Kim: "???"
Vance: "who tf names their child Henry"
Aubrey: "lol @ Hero: get rekted"
Kim: "YOU NEVER TOLD US THAT?"
Charlie: "sorry"
Vance: "Who is Hero??"
Kim: "Charleen, Is your brother any good?"
Charlie: "No, he loses constantly"
Vance: "wut"
Aubrey: "Why does he even stay in the league then???"
Charlie: "He makes like $55,000 a year"
Vance: "tf"
Kim: "How??"
Charlie: "I have asked him about it before, I think he said something like…"
Charlie: "'You just have to find a sponsor, agree to lend your pokemon for side jobs, be unique enough that people remember you, and challenge gyms a lot'"
Kim: "That's all?"
Charlie: "Pretty much. Oh, he also said to do stuff besides singles, like teams."
Vance: "huh…"
Kim: "…"
Kim: "Aub, this sounds perfect for you"
Aubrey: "How is it perfect for me??"
Kim: "1. You have a nidorino. If you just evolve him again, that's pretty much an easy god tier monster right there."
Vance: "True."
Kim: "2. You carry around a spiked bat and you dye your hair pink. I would say that makes you pretty fricking memorable."
Vance: "Did you just say 'fricking'? Like a twelve year old?"
Kim: "Shut tf up Van.
Kim: "3. You can travel wherever you want"
Charlie: "That would be pretty nice."
Aubrey: "Perhaps, Idk..."
Kim: "and 4. You can get away from your mother"
Aubrey: "…."
Aubrey: "………."
Aubrey: "Huh… that sounds like a pretty good idea"
Vance: "lol"
Aubrey: "I'll think about it guys, but thanks for the suggestions"
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Note 1: This is the first piece of fiction I have written since I was twelve, so it MIGHT be really bad and/or cringe inducing, I am unsure. Not exactly good at writing dialogue, feedback is welcome! Please be gentle though...
Note 2: This story should only be read if you either have played through Omori or don't plan on playing through it. Even if you don't plan on playing it, I REALLY suggest watching Shenpai's or another youtuber's playthrough of it before reading this. Omori is a really awesome game with music, emotional impact, and gameplay even better than the undertale/deltarune games in my opinion! *This story has big spoilers and you will probably be lost if you don't know the story, as this is post-true ending.*
Note 3: I don't actually know if I am going to continue this, so please say if you have any interest in seeing these first two chapters continued!
Note 4: This world is basically just normal earth with the same approximate history as our earth, but with pokemon having been around for the whole time. I like thinking in these terms because I like to ask questions like "What kind of gym would this major, real world city have?" or "What kind of pokemon would be used in the military of real nations?" (I am thinking pseudo-legendaries)
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Chapter 1
Basil tilted the watering can gently, misting the young potted plant. His hobby had always been relaxing and healthy for him, keeping his mind off the past and preventing him from growing idle. At least, this is what he told himself. In truth, he was starting to wonder what the point was. He didn't feel like he could ever take on the responsibility of selling plants for a living, not with his periods of withdrawal and anxiety… even on days like these. Even when the sky is radiant and the heat is pleasant, it felt like a black fog in his… no, he didn't have to think that way, he reminded himself. The blonde shook his head a little, throwing his thoughts off to the side. Like Polly said, he was just depressed because his friends had been distant lately.
He put down his tools and went inside the house, stopping by the monster sleeping in the corner and giving it a few quiet pats on the head. His bulbasaur had been gifted to him a few years back, and acted as a gardening assistant and as a sort of therapy "dog" at the same time. He had named it Melony, as she reminded him of a watermelon in some ways, such as her ability to spit seeds at things, her rotund shape, and her greenish blues which reminded him of how the fruits would sometimes look a little bluish in the right light... Before Melony, he had been very timid around pokemon, but she was almost like family now. She was very empathetic and would practically mother him when Polly couldn't be there for him. He rarely bothered to store her in her ball, as he rarely had reason too. She was good company.
He looked at the dark wooden clock on the wall, noting it was still surprisingly early. He thought about calling Sunny, but Basil felt like the dark haired boy needed time alone right now. He knew all of his friends did. It had been Mari's birthday a few weeks ago, and it had agitated their old wounds. It had been hard enough to reconcile himself and Sunny with their three closest friends, and it only truly started to go well after… the incident… Basil winced at the memory, of when Sunny's loneliness led him to almost take his life, despite having confessed his burdens. Only after that, did the trio start to regularly talk to him again… as well as to Basil. Perhaps they realized just how much pain Sunny was in. Sunny didn't really have anyone, or anything for that matter, to keep him company, both in the years of isolation and in the present. He had been too afraid of pokemon to own one of his own when he was young, and too isolated and down to have one after Mari's death. As for his mom, well, it seemed that their relationship died after she learned the truth about her daughter's death. They tolerate each other, but they just don't talk much now…
Basil really wished he could be there for his friend, but he couldn't be there physically, and he felt like he needed space emotionally… right? A tinge of uncertainty reached Basil's mind as he sat down next to Melony, watching her snooze. He thought about how Sunny hadn't texted him in a while, and felt another tinge, this time of concern. Basil remembered how his best friend had slowly stopped texting him in the days before the incident, and started to feel his normal protectiveness for the youngest of the group. Sure, many people saw Basil as far younger than he actually was, but he attributed that to his meekness and… slightly feminine traits, but he had always felt the need to protect Sunny from harm. He almost felt like an older brother to him, which would probably surprise many of his friends who saw Basil as a pushover. It was the reason why he had done the deception that he so dearly regretted five years ago.
He thought about what he could do, besides just trying to cheer him up. He couldn't always be there for him… but a pokemon could, he thought. He remembered that Sunny had seemed to be getting better at tackling his fears in the time after leaving his house. He recalled the time when his friend fearlessly jumped into the water after Basil was pushed by Aubrey, despite not being any good at swimming. If he could do that, it seemed like he could surely take care of a pokemon. Basil took out his phone and started looking up adoption centers and lab locations in the city that Sunny was in. After looking at a few, he settled on one that was close to his friend's apartment and in a better part of town.
Sunny woke up startled, partially from the sound of an ambulance passing by his apartment, but more so from the effect of it on his dreams. In his sleep he saw himself in the ambulance during the incident, saw himself again when he lost his eye, and saw the police cars when Mari died, all in a flurry of memories that flooded into his mind which had been previously peacefully occupied. He realized he had overslept again, even though he had promised to himself he would spend less time in head space. He got out of bed, throwing his sheets to the side and taking a moment to touch his eye patch, checking its pain sensitivity. It wasn't that bad, to his relief. He even noted that it felt better than it had in the past, despite being rather painful the previous day. He slowly approached the bathroom, not in any hurry to start the day, but stopped when he looked in the mirror. Something, the entity named Something, was there hovering silently. He was annoyed that it was there, but glad that it had not jump scared him. There were worse forms it could take than the single eyed mess of hair that it was currently in. He ignored it, washing his face, only acknowledging it with a single glance every couple seconds. If anyone besides Sunny could see the ghostly figure, they would think it was some sort of odd ghostly pocket monster, but he knew it was just a figment of his imagination. He would see it sometimes even when the power was on and the normal safeguards were activated, repelling specters of any kind. Not that ghost-types show up in heavily populated city centers anyways, he thought.
When he was finished with the few bathroom routines he maintained, he hesitantly looked at his phone to see if he had any messages. Kel had texted him a few funny pictures, but he did that pretty frequently, although less so in the last month. He paused when he saw a message from Basil, noting it was a pretty large message. For a while, Basil had only been checking on him to make sure he was okay, which Sunny thought was understandable. It was awkward to talk when Mari's birthday had passed recently, but he had still hoped for some sense of normalcy. He opened the message, reading it quietly.
Basil: Umm, hi Sunny! How have you been? I just wanted to see if you would think about doing a favor for me. I know it might be a little tough, but I know you can do it… and I think it would be really healthy for you! Do you think you would consider adopting a pokemon? I umm, sometimes get really concerned about you, and I know Melony keeps me company sometimes, and I really think you need someone to be with you… I attached a bunch of locations to this message! I marked the one I think you would like most. I just thought you seemed to be getting over your fears (I think…?!?) and that this would be a healthy step forwards…
Sunny paused, remembering how he had actually thought about it in the past, but had told himself that he was in no condition to be raising any sort of pet. Besides, didn't pokemon need a lot of attention? In truth, Sunny did not know much about owning a pocket monster. He thought raising one would need constant diligence and require a large swathe of responsibility. He decided, for Basil's peace of mind, it would not hurt to look into it a little bit. He opened his browser, looking up how much dedication it would take. After a quick Google search, he was mildly surprised to see it was not as much as he expected. While his friends had always kept their starters outside of their balls, pokemon in their balls required little maintenance. Apparently, when one is in its ball, it is as if no time passes between when it entered and left the container. It would be essentially frozen in time, not needing food or really anything in particular.
Sunny knew he couldn't be trusted to raise a pokemon if he had to constantly look after it, so this was encouraging. In truth, he didn't have much fear left of anything, only really fearing being alone. Most monsters weren't scary to him anymore anyways, his lucid dreaming had gotten him through that fear as well as many others. Despite this, he still had a fear of the more paranormal and mysterious ones, especially ones that could read his mind or take the form of his worst fears. He would just have to get something more domestic, he told himself, like Kel's rockruff or Aubrey's bunnelby. Knowing Basil was concerned, he decided it was probably for the best that he make plans to visit the place his friend had filtered for him.
Little did Sunny know, his decision to own a pocket monster would line up with the rest of his friends' plans, as well as set him on a quest to seek forgiveness… not from his friends, who were already trying to, but from Mari herself…
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Chapter 2
The purple, spiked monster latched onto and slammed the helpless, normally intimidating bird into the ground. The delinquent behind it was losing his composure, slightly adjusting his wig. The bird managed to escape the struggle and take to the air, albeit shakily. "Feral, roost!" he said, trying to sound heroic. The fearow landed in a tree, hyperventilating to recover its health.
Aubrey rolled her eyes. How many times was Mikhail going to do this? She had promised to help train the Maverick's fearow, but now it was beginning to feel like a cruel comedy routine. The poor bird could barely scratch her nidorino's hide, and the idiot just kept telling it to fly away and recover its health after it would get mauled. "You know what? Maverick, we are just… done, okay!?" she finally yelled, folding her arms and turning away. "It has been like a fucking hour! Just. Give. Up." Mikhail gave off a confident smirk and, seemingly unphased, said "I could never give up on a fight! Chicks love endurance! And The Maverick will never concede!" Aubrey slowly turned around, walked straight towards him, stared him dead in the eyes, and pointed to the bird in the tree gasping for air. "You have been running away for forty minutes" she said, deadpan, "If any girl were remotely interested in you, they would probably feel sick to their stomach from how pathetic this has been" Mikhail paused, keeping an unchanged expression on his face, before finally lowering his arms in defeat. Aubrey recalled her nidorino, Mace, into his ball and started walking away, still facing Mikhail. "If you want to get better," she said, "Just grind at the gym a few towns over like a normal person. Now, I am going home and feeding bu- I mean, my bunnelby… do whatever you want…" She turned around and walked back to the entrance of Faraway Park's secret spot, giving a half-hearted wave goodbye. She got on her scooter and headed home reluctantly. Her house, as well as her mom, were unpleasant parts of her life and she tried to avoid them as often as possible. She only felt dirty as she entered the messy residence and saw her foggy, somewhat tipsy mother on the couch. She went to her room without a word, while her bunnelby, Bunny, who had been carelessly sleeping on a blanket strewn on the floor, groggily woke up and followed behind her. Aubrey's room was a lot cleaner than the rest of the house, mainly because she wanted Bunny to have a safe place to go to and to separate her own image from her poor excuse of a parent. The rabbit hopped effortlessly onto the old bed, receiving a few pats on the head of approval. Aubrey grabbed a handful of the monster kibble from the bag at the end of her bed and presented it to the bunnelby in a bowl. The pellets were dirt cheap, but she would try to sometimes buy vegetables and edible plants from the store. On occasion, Basil would donate some from his garden, although he didn't have much to offer.
She plopped onto the bed with a sigh and started scrolling through her phone. She didn't feel like dealing with any of her gang's drama at the moment, so she scrolled past their group chat and looked at her "other" friends' messages. Hero had been pestering her to actually attend school more than three days a week, but his resolve had clearly started to break. Today, he just messaged to check up on her and share how his life was going. She secretly appreciated it, but told the man he needed to worry about himself. She did this to divert attention from herself, but also because Hero was probably one of the most stressed people she knew behind his confident facade. Medical school was stressful and she certainly did not envy him. It didn't help either that he always needed to overachieve, taking on activities that seemed pointless to Aubrey such as heading his fraternity's leadership. Maybe that was why he got along so well with Mari when she was alive, considering how much she did… Besides Hero, Kel had also messaged her with a few memes about a cheesy drama show, which Kel and Aubrey both secretly enjoyed. Aubrey had laughed her ass off when he started to sob when she "spoiled" that the main protagonists of the show had finally kissed. When he actually watched it, he found out that, instead, that character had died and was being replaced. He sobbed even harder after that… He was entertaining to mess with…
She didn't see any messages from Sunny or Basil, which was kind of a relief despite her feeling bad about it. Talking to them wasn't a problem, but they had been awkward lately. They probably believed she was still touchy about how things had gone. In truth, she had put aside any grievances towards the two, especially after Kel pointed out that she could have been in a similar situation when she had pushed Basil into the pond. She had been initially bitter after the duo's confession and suspected that Sunny was a sociopath that wanted to mess with them before leaving forever, but she regretted that. Sunny was not cutting them out of his life, and the amount of pain he suffered and put himself through showed he was trying to make things right. Aubrey had not learned much from her time in church, but she thought she learned that suffering seemed like a part of making up for things. "Atonement" as the pastor would put it.
She snapped out of her thoughts when her bunnelby started tapping its pokeball, thumping its foot against it. She sighed, taking the ball away and putting it in a drawer in her nightstand. "Bunny, we've talked about this. You are the only thing keeping my mom from imploding and kicking us out like garbage" she said, half heartedly scolding the ball of fluff, "I can't take you with me, and besides, I… am pretty sure the gang would be a bad influence." Bunny pouted a bit, before he laid back down on the bed next to Aubrey. Despite being fluffy and sickeningly cute, the rabbit's owner knew he was actually even more eager to do combat than Mace was, not that she would ever put him in battle. Her mom would likely kill the delinquent girl if she did that, and Aubrey would probably consider offing herself too if something happened to her pet bunny. Besides, Mace was more than powerful enough to be her only fight-ready Pokemon. Raising more than one was something only professional trainers did, she thought, and it took a lot of work to make even one Pokemon ready for battle.
Her train of thought was once again interrupted when a voice shouted from the living room. "Aub, your rent is due soon!" Aubrey sighed heavily, having nearly forgotten that her mom had started charging her rent, despite neither of them having a job. "Yeah, I know!" she yelled back. She would probably have to pressure some of her fellow hooligans into helping her get the money or take a short term gig at Gino's. Despite not wanting to even think about it, her mind reluctantly started considering the future. She obviously didn't want to be trapped with her mother forever, but she clearly wasn't going to graduate, at least not with any good job prospects. A few of her gang had joked about joining serious crime organizations like the Rockets or the Skulls when they got older, but she had tried to subtly discourage them. The Rockets were monstrous animal abusers and creeps, while the Skulls were just a bunch of losers who made money from theft and drug trafficking. If one of those gangs as so much as took a step into Faraway Town, she would probably run them out of town herself. Despite this, her delinquent friends had already started to express discontentment with their current lifestyle, as most of them didn't come from wealthy homes. They had suggested that, even if it were a dangerous lifestyle, a career in crime would at least pay well. Aubrey and her mom themselves were living off unemployment checks, with her mom not having any drive to change their circumstances. Because of this, she of all people found it hard to object to their logic.
Not liking being reminded of her current life situation, she decided to go back and look at the hooligan group chat, despite passing it over before. They had been mostly bickering and taking part in their usual shenanigans, but much to Aubrey's dismay and surprise, it seemed like they had started a conversation about the same things she had been thinking about.
XxXThe MaverickXxX: "So, fr, if you guys could join any of the big syndicates, which would you do and y?"
Charlie: "Mav no"
Kim: "I mean, the Plasmas aren't that bad. Monster rights ftw and all"
Vance: "Didn't they have a big scandal, Kim?"
Kim: "Yeah, some of them were 'humanely euthanizing' monsters and selling them for cash, but there are still true believers out there. Hey, at least they aren't PETA smh x("
Vance: "Lol yeah"
Charlie: "I guess, what about the Recycultists?"
Vance: "Wtf Charlie O_O"
Kim: "Charleen, they are literally a cult, not some crime group. Why tf are you mentioning them."
Charlie: "Idk, just thought they did good things for the environment..."
Kim: "Charlie, sweet, Charlie. If I ever see you near them or talking to them, I will break every one of their kneecaps personally. I won't even use my mon."
XxXThe MaverickXxX: "lmao you probably wouldn't even need a mon, all they use are fucking trubbishes"
-Aubrey has entered the chat-
Aubrey: "Guys, keep talking about syndicates and the cultists aren't the only one getting their kneecaps shattered"
Vance: "Wut"
XxXThe MaverickXxX: "Jeez, alright. Y so aggressive?"
Kim: "Yeah Aub, I thought you told me you idolized the Skulls?"
Aubrey: "That was a long time ago. Just stop talking about it"
XxXThe MaverickXxX: "Not cool, when did you decide wut we could talk about?"
Aubrey: "Since when could I not? Cool it Mikhail"
Vance: "DUDE"
XxXThe MaverickXxX: "YOU daRe uSE that Name?! I WILL PERSONALLY COME TO YOUR HOUSE AND SICC FERAL ON U"
Aubrey: "Mikhail, tell them about our little battle today ;-)"
Vance: "Wut is she talking about?"
Aubrey: "He tried to fight me today, and he just kept using Roost + Running like a coward"
XxXThe MaverickXxX: "WTF YOU SAID THAT PRACTICE WOULD BE PRIVATE!!!"
Kim: "lol sad"
XxXThe MaverickXxX: "F U"
XxXThe MaverickXxX: "aSDFNF"
-XxXThe MaverickXxX has left the chat-
Vance: "lmao"
Kim: "Aub, what ARE your plans past school then?"
Aubrey: "Idk, I'll work at Gino's or something"
Kim: "I know for a fact you wouldn't be caught dead in a delivery outfit for the rest of your life"
Aubrey: "…true"
Vance: "Ya know, this may sound unrelated, but have any of us actually beaten you before in a fight?"
Aubrey: "???"
Aubrey: "In what kind of fight?"
Vance: "Monster fights."
Kim: "I don't think we have…"
Charlie: "There was that one time, but I think she just let me win…"
Vance: "Lol, really?"
Kim: "Charlie, sweetheart, I would be surprised if she didn't let you win at least once"
Aubrey: "???"
Aubrey: "Point?"
Vance: "Maybe you could try competitive out?"
Vance: "I heard you can get paid pretty well"
Aubrey: "Yeah, you have to, like, be really good though???"
Charlie: "I don't know about that, my brother Henry does the league"
Vance: "Wait, really?"
Kim: "Charlie, since when!?"
Charlie: "Like for several years now…?"
Kim: "???"
Vance: "who tf names their child Henry"
Aubrey: "lol @ Hero: get rekted"
Kim: "YOU NEVER TOLD US THAT?"
Charlie: "sorry"
Vance: "Who is Hero??"
Kim: "Charleen, Is your brother any good?"
Charlie: "No, he loses constantly"
Vance: "wut"
Aubrey: "Why does he even stay in the league then???"
Charlie: "He makes like $55,000 a year"
Vance: "tf"
Kim: "How??"
Charlie: "I have asked him about it before, I think he said something like…"
Charlie: "'You just have to find a sponsor, agree to lend your pokemon for side jobs, be unique enough that people remember you, and challenge gyms a lot'"
Kim: "That's all?"
Charlie: "Pretty much. Oh, he also said to do stuff besides singles, like teams."
Vance: "huh…"
Kim: "…"
Kim: "Aub, this sounds perfect for you"
Aubrey: "How is it perfect for me??"
Kim: "1. You have a nidorino. If you just evolve him again, that's pretty much an easy god tier monster right there."
Vance: "True."
Kim: "2. You carry around a spiked bat and you dye your hair pink. I would say that makes you pretty fricking memorable."
Vance: "Did you just say 'fricking'? Like a twelve year old?"
Kim: "Shut tf up Van.
Kim: "3. You can travel wherever you want"
Charlie: "That would be pretty nice."
Aubrey: "Perhaps, Idk..."
Kim: "and 4. You can get away from your mother"
Aubrey: "…."
Aubrey: "………."
Aubrey: "Huh… that sounds like a pretty good idea"
Vance: "lol"
Aubrey: "I'll think about it guys, but thanks for the suggestions"
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