Melody's gaze suddenly turned downward as she bit her lip. After a pause, she murmured, "I don't think I have it as bad as most here . . . but . . . "
The Jigglypuff morph slowly inhaled and exhaled in an attempt to calm herself before beginning her story. "My mother was a Wigglytuff morph, but my father was a human. My mom . . . she had the most beautiful voice and gentle spirit of anyone I've known. All she wanted was to live a peaceful live. But, there were hunters--Pokemorph hunters--who couldn't respect that. When she found out that the hunters were tracking her down, she left to protect my father and I. We all made sacrifices, I suppose. Father tried to hide me to keep me safe, so I never had much contact with the outside world. I wasn't allowed to sing, either . . . "
Melody shrugged slightly, saying, "As lonely as I was, though, it was probably worse for Father. I must have been such a burden to him--and for my mother, too. After she left, I never saw or heard from her again. She made such a sacrifice, but it seems like it was for nothing." Tears began to edge Melody's luminous eyes. "The hunters found us anyway. They said they were going to take Father away so that Mother would go to them. I was still in hiding at the time, so they didn't realize I was there. But, I was so desperate. They had already taken one person I cared about. I couldn't let them take another. So, before I knew what I was doing, I had started singing. But, the song was so dark and twisted . . . Singing it made me feel sick--like I was squeezing the blood from my heart. It wasn't until later I found out that it was called the Perish Song."
Melody began to tremble and seemed unwilling to continue. However, clenching her hands, she forced herself to continue speaking. "It seems that the Perish Song knocked me out. Because, when I woke up, they were all dead . . . Father and the hunters. I was so scared--so scared I didn't even have the decency to bury my own father. I was terrified of what I had done, so I began to run. Eventually someone found me and brought me here."
The young, female morph smiled in an attempt to hide her tears. "I-I guess that was a pretty long story. Sorry about that."