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Opening	By : Rezalda Category: Pokemon > General Views: 1713 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I do not own the Pokemon series. I am not making any money from this story.

Chapter List
- 1-Aggression
- 1
AUTHOR'S NOTE: I like to go through books and magazines and take the first sentence from the page which corresponds with my age. If it meets certain criteria, I must build an entire story or post that includes that sentence. Of course, I will give credit.
The sentence in this story can be found on page 27 of "A Stained White Radiance" by James Lee Burke.
Aurea's boyfriend technically isn't an OC--he's one of the Route 4 Officers in Pokemon Black 2.
---
"She gonna be alright. Hey, come on, Aurea. No, don't look over there. Come on, let's go sit down."
It was a lie. It had to be a lie. How could a Pokemon lose so much blood and be "all right"?
"There's nothing you can do right now. Come on, Aurea. We gotta get out of their way."
He pulled her away from the grim spectacle and led her into a nearby house. A concerned bystander handed her a glass of water. She drank it automatically, then muttered her first words since the attack: "I'm going to need something stronger."
Within moments, a glass of wine was pushed into her hand. She sipped it, slowly this time, and wearily sat down at the table.
"This isn't right," she whimpered. "I should be with her. What if this is the last time I can see her before she dies?"
"It's not," he said, plopping down in the seat across from her. "Her soul has returned to her body, all of it. It's whole again. It must be, 'cause I can't sense nothin' no more." He patted her hand. "She wants to live for you, Aurea."
"Reva..." Tears filled Aurea's eyes. "I should have been more vigilant. I just never thought...."
"'Course you didn't. Sandile don't just attack other Pokemon like that for no reason. 'Specially if they're not gonna eat it. You didn't do nothin' wrong. If anything, somethin' was wrong with the Sandile. It was a fluke. Somethin' that should never have happened."
Her Xtransciever rang, and Aurea connected with the person on the other end. It was an EMT. "Her condition is stabilizing," she announced cheerfully. "We are cautiously optimistic. You have Mr. Schank to thank acting quickly." Her face fell. "Unfortunately, Pokemon Control has not yet located the Sandile that attacked her. They're asking everyone to stay inside with their Pokemon for the time being. Of course, nobody is being forced to stay, but I can't recommend that you come to see Reva just yet."
"That's all right. Thank you." Aurea ended the connection and sighed. "It's times like this when I wonder if I made the right career choice. What's the point of studying Pokemon if you can't help them when something like this happens?"
"But even a trainer couldn't have helped Reva," Braven pointed out. "I'm tellin' you, you did nothin' wrong. A typical Pokemon battle wouldn't have done nothin'. That Sandile didn't know how to play by the rules."
"Rules, huh?" Aurea smiled for the first time since the attack. "Yeah, I guess even wild Pokemon usually have a sense of what's...proper in a fight."
Braven traced the pattern on the tablecloth with his fingers. "Somethin' don't sit right with me, though. I didn't really get a good look at that critter before it ran off, but its movements were...wrong, somehow. Don't know how else to explain it. Like it was a Ditto that had no idea how to act like a Sandile."
"A Ditto?" The thought had never occurred to her. "Do you think it was a Ditto?"
"Nah, it was too aggressive. I don't doubt that it was a Sandile, but..."
"If you're hungry, Professor, you and your friend are welcome to stay for dinner," the homeowner interrupted as he returned to the dining room. "I'm making croquettes."
Aurea stood up quickly. "Oh, no! I couldn't impose upon you like that. Braven, can you drive me to the hospital?"
"I don't mind," Braven said, "but what about what the EMT said?"
"That's just for liability." Aurea put her jacket back on and glanced back at the homeowner. "Thanks. I hope you didn't break out any vintage wine for me."
The homeowner laughed. "Even if I had, Professor, it would have been worth it just to see you smile again."
"Thanks," she said again, and she and Braven rushed out the door.
In the car, Braven turned the radio off so they could talk. "I'm glad that me bein' your boyfriend hasn't made people not like you."
Aurea shook her head absentmindedly. "No, they don't at all."
"Aurea..."
"Hm? Sorry, I wasn't really listening." She stared out the window. "That Sandile...I suppose they'll have to euthanize it if they capture it, huh?"
"It's for the best," Braven reminded her. "If it stayed alive, it would keep attackin' other people's Pokemon...and this time, they might not have been be so lucky."
"It's too bad. Sometimes I wonder if maybe Team Plasma was right. If we humans should have just left Pokemon alone. Is it right for us to play God like this? To decide who gets to live and who gets to die? Maybe Reva was supposed to die, and that Sandile was supposed to live. Maybe we interfered with their fate."
Braven frowned as he pondered that. "Well, if 'fate' exists, then wouldn't whatever happens be fate? Because what happened was that Reva survived. And..." The frown deepend. "...Damn, how do I say this?"
Aurea looked at him and waited for him to finish.
"...And if fate is real, and the Sandile dies--Well, I guess what I mean to say is, if fate is somethin' that matters, then it's probably powerful enough to make things happen how they're supposed to. So we would always do what we were fated to do. Even if we thought we weren't. And if fate isn't that powerful, then it's probably not somethin' that matters anyway." He sighed in exasperation. "You know what I'm tryin' to say?"
"I do, Braven. Thanks." She patted his shoulder. "You know, you say some really profound things."
"I just say what I think," he said, and grinned.
The Nimbasa City Pokemon Center was mercifully uncrowded, with only a few wayward trainers in the waiting room. They immediately stood up when they saw Aurea.
"Professor Juniper!" one exclaimed. "Will you take a look at my Pokedex?"
"Can I have your autograph?" asked another.
"Are you here to see that hurt Minccino?" asked a third.
She ignored them as she dashed to the receptionist. "My Minccino was brought here," she announced. "She was terribly injured in a Sandile attack. I must see her."
"She's undergoing surgery right now," the receptionist said. "I'm sorry, but you will have to wait out here until it's finished."
"Of course." She walked woodenly to one of the seats, trying to avoid the stares of the children. She wanted to scream at them to go away; she knew they had loads of questions to ask her. Sooner or later, one of the more tactless ones would break the silence, and then the rest would think it was okay to intrude on her grief.
Sure enough, within a few minutes, one of the boys spoke up. "Professor, I really need you--"
"Give it a rest, kid," Braven interrupted. "She don't want any questions right now."
"Who are you to tell him that?" another asked--probably the first kid's brother.
"Yeah, what's your problem, Butterfly Man?" demanded a third.
A girl in the corner--the one who had asked for Aurea's autograph--giggled awkwardly. "You mean 'Moth Man,'" she corrected him. "Those are Volcarona wings."
"Shut up, Dorotha. I knew that," the third trainer grumbled. "You have to take everything so literally."
"It's no big deal, Joe," the first boy said. "Moth Man is right. I shouldn't have said anything." He turned back to Aurea. "I'm sorry, Professor. I should have known better."
"It's all right," she said and held out her hand. "I can look at your Pokedex. Maybe it will help if I can do something while I wait. What's your name?"
The boy grinned. He looked about 12 years old, but he had a tooth missing. "Alvin. I never thought I'd have a chance to meet you. You're my hero, and Dorotha's too." He jerked his thumb in the girl's direction.
Aurea couldn't help but smile. "I'm glad to hear that. Are you both going to be Pokemon researchers, too?"
"Dorotha is, but I'm not. I want to face Elesa in a Pokemon battle!"
"Oh? You don't want to win?"
He shook his head. "No, just battling her would be enough."
"He's lying," Joe said. Joe appeared to be the youngest of the four children. He was an unruly-looking child with red hair and about a thousand freckles. He wore a Poketch on his right wrist. "His goal is really to become Pokemon champion, but he always says his goal is to complete whatever is the next step in his journey. When I first met him, he didn't have any badges yet, so he said his dream was to face Cheren in a Pokemon battle. Then when he lost against Cheren, he made it his goal to beat him. When he finally beat him and got the Basic Badge, he said his goal was to face Roxie in a Pokemon battle. And so on, and so forth. He's just afraid of failing, that's all."
"If he was afraid of failing," Aurea told him, "he wouldn't have challenged Cheren in the first place. There's nothing wrong with setting smaller goals for yourself until you're ready to take on a bigger one." She scrolled through Alvin's Pokedex. "My goodness, you've seen a lot. Some of these can't even be found in Unova."
"Well, I kind of cheated," Alvin admitted. "My older brother, Dana, and I are from Kalos. So when I got my own Pokedex, I transferred the data from Dana's onto mine."
"I have to ask," Dana spoke up, eyeing Braven's wings. "Why on earth are you wearing Volcarona wings? Aren't you a little old for that?"
Braven smiled indulgently. He was used to being asked about his wings. "They're my lucky wings," he explained. "Good things happen when I wear 'em."
Dana crinkled up his nose. "You can't be serious. You're a grownup, and you believe stuff like that?"
"You don't have to believe me," Braven said. "I'm used to being laughed at."
Aurea squeezed his hand. "You kids should be nice to Braven. He's my boyfriend."
All four of the children's jaws dropped.
"P-Professor, if you don't mind..." Dorotha began, holding out her autograph book.
"Of course not." Aurea took the book from Dorotha and signed her name. "Have you gotten any other Pokemon professors' autographs?"
"No," Dorotha answered, and her face fell. "I'd like to travel to other regions someday, but I'm not an adult yet, and my parents don't want to go anywhere."
As the minutes passed, Aurea and Braven learned more about the children. Alvin was 11, Joe was 10, and Dana and Dorotha were both 14. Only Dorotha was from Unova; Alvin and Dana had grown up in Kalos, and Joe was from Sinnoh. All the children except for Dana had Tepig as their starter Pokemon.
Alvin reminded Aurea of Hilbert--bright, idealistic, and open-hearted. Like so many children his age, he enjoyed adventures and Pokemon battles. In addition to Tepig, he also had Munna and a Starly Joe had traded him for a Scatterbug. He was always obsessing over which items to give to his Pokemon and he had also enjoyed enrolling them in a Pokemon musical class. He was definitely the friendliest.
Joe was carrying six Pokemon already: Pignite, Spewpa, Tranquill, Gible, Darumaka, and Hippopotas. He was ruthless in battle, but he actually cared more about collecting different kinds of Pokemon. He evolved his Pokemon as quickly as possible and then switched them out so his unevolved Pokemon could gain experience. He seemed to be one of those children who took everything personally. He especially hated being told what to do.
Dana's Fennekin had already evolved into Braixen and then Delphox. Delphox was his only Pokemon. Dana seemed to care more about traveling than catching Pokemon, and admitted that he didn't like the complex strategies involved in battling. When Aurea asked him what he hoped to gain from his journey, his answers were evasive. He finally said that he didn't have anything better to do.
Dorotha was an enigma. Although she had been training Pokemon for four years, none of them--Tepig, Azurill, Mareep, Koffing, and Magby--had evolved. She rarely spoke, but when she did, she had a tendency to laugh nervously and say awkward things. Her hair was dark, her teeth were crooked, and she wore thick glasses. She wore a cheap-looking pedometer around her neck.
Eventually, one of the surgeons appeared in the doorway that connected the waiting room to the rest of the Pokemon Center. "The surgery was a success," he announced. "You can come see Reva now."
Relief washed over Aurea's body. "Thank you. Thank you so much." She choked on a sob. "Really, thank you."
The surgeon gave her a gentle smile. "It's what we're here for."
***
Reva looked dreadful. There were bald spots with stitches all over her body, and there would doubtless be some scarring. Still, she seemed to be out of danger, and she was happy to see Aurea. "Ci..." she said weakly.
Tears filled Aurea's eyes at the sight of her Pokemon in such a state. "How's my baby girl?"
"Cino." Reva smiled at her, as if to say, "Why are you so worried about me?"
Aurea lay her head down next to Reva and wept.
What had happened? Why had that other Pokemon attacked so savagely? Why did her Pokemon have to suffer like this?
Braven was right. There was more going on than just an aggressive Pokemon deciding to attack someone.
"Reva," Aurea whispered. "What on earth happened?"
Reva pressed a paw against Aurea's finger. Her eyes seemed to say, "I wish I knew."
***
"How was she?" Braven asked as soon as she returned to the waiting room.
"She'll live," Aurea answered, then smiled at him. "Just like you said."
By now, it was after midnight, and the children were asleep. Aurea liked kids. They were always interesting to talk to, and so honest. Even Dana and Dorotha were so much younger than they realized.
"Braven," she whispered, "do you ever think about having children?"
"Hmm..." Braven placed his chin in his hands, which he always did when he was thinking hard.
"It wasn't supposed to be a difficult question."
"I know, but to tell the truth, I ain't never thought about it." He grinned sheepishly. "Probably a bad idea in my case. Who wants a dad who wears these wings?"
Aurea rested her head on his shoulder. "I think you'd make a great dad. You're kind and serious. You don't lie. You're very generous with your time and with your gift. And I've seen you with your niece. You're good with kids."
Braven sighed and took her hand in his. "I don't know. It's scary to think there could be someone I love as much as you. Or even more. Don't they say parents love their children more than their spouses?"
"Not necessarily. It's two different kinds of love." She closed her eyes. "Apples and oranges."
They sat in silence for a few minutes. Then Braven spoke up. "I don't need to have kids right now. I think things are just fine the way they are. And if we don't ever have kids, that's just fine with me."
Aurea nodded lazily. "I think children would get in the way of my research. Or my research would get in the way of children. And yet...."
"And yet, you can't help wantin' it," Braven finished. "Yeah, I know the feeling. I want it, too. But I just ain't ready."
"Me neither," she admitted. "But we should keep talking about it every now and then. We're not getting any younger."
"Lots of folks become parents in their 30s," he said. "They say it's better. You have a lot more of your life together, and you don't take things so seriously. You become more accepting of different kinds of people."
"Yeah." For the first time that night, Aurea felt at peace. Reva was out of immediate danger, and Braven had his arm around her. "I love you, you know."
"I know." He gave her shoulder an awkward squeeze. "I love you, too."
There was nowhere for them to lie down, but both Aurea and Braven managed to doze off.
***
Reva still wasn't ready to leave the next day, so Aurea and Braven went to a human gym to shower and then to Ducklett's Diner for breakfast. Afterward, Aurea wanted to stay with Reva, so Braven dropped her back off at the Pokemon Center before setting out on his own.
Braven looked around. "Those kids are gone. Are you gonna be okay by yourself?"
"Of course I am," she answered, laughing. "I don't intend to do much today. Maybe go over my lab notes from this week, or call Professor Fennel. I suppose my dad will want to know about what happened to Reva, too. So will Bianca. No, I guess I've got plenty to do today. But I'll be all right. I won't get lonely."
Braven understood what she didn't say as well--that she didn't need him around all the time to get by, even after something like yesterday's attack. "Well, call me if you need anything. I think I'll go to the amusement park today, maybe take the roller coaster challenge. Can't let Grover and Yoh get soft."
"Come back for supper, okay?" She kissed him on the cheek. "I'll treat you this time."
"I look forward to it, milady." He bowed deeply, which made her laugh.
"Get out of here, you big goof," she chided gently. "Don't get in trouble."
"I'll do my best." He never did like to reassure people. Trouble seemed to find him most of the time.
"Well, that's the best that anyone can hope for." She waved. "See ya."
"Later." He watched her go back inside, then got in his car and drove to the police station. After all, he hadn't said he would go to the amusement park right away.
***
"I just don't get it, Brave. The autopsy told us nothing. There were no injuries, external or internal. No indication of disease, poison, or drugs. The Sandile was a year old, a juvenile. So it wasn't old age. But it's definitely the one that attacked Professor Juniper's Pokemon; it was covered in her blood." The chief dropped the report onto Braven's desk. "The Minccino's DNA was found between its teeth and even in its stomach. What actually killed it is a mystery." He sat back down behind his desk. "You know, there are far fewer crimes committed against human these days. But crimes against Pokemon have shot through the roof, even more after Team Plasma's disbanding."
Braven flipped through the report as he answered. "Reported crimes, you mean. I think that during the fight against Team Plasma, we were working so hard at investigating Ghetsis and N, and later Colress, too. People didn't think comin' to us would do any good. It was our mistake."
"And look at the good it did us. We're no closer to a peaceful world for both Pokemon and humans than we were three years ago."
"The police and the state have been shown up by young trainers in every region these past ten years. No matter how many 'experts' are trained by the police academy, it's nothing compared to the bonds formed between trainer and Pokemon. Why, there's nobody here without at least one or two Pokemon, right, chief?" He finished looking through the report and handed it back to the chief. "So are we gonna write this down as a freak incident, or what?"
"I don't see what else to do. There's no indication that any humans were involved. And even if you say that the Sandile wasn't acting naturally, what can we make of that if there don't appear to be any external influence like drugs or disease?" He folded his hands and leaned forward. "I know Professor Juniper means a lot to you, so this is personal. But we've done all we can. Pokemon attacks happen, and she's lucky hers even survived. Did she ask you to look into this?"
He shook his head. "It's just somethin' I'm curious about. I just don't feel right about this, chief. I don't think this is gonna prove to be a one-time thing."
"Well, we'll have to cross that bridge when we come to it. For now, it's your day off, so try and relax a little. Go to the amusement park or something."
"Thanks." Braven grinned. "I was just about to head over there myself."
***
"Sebrina, Volt Switch!"
And just like that, it was over. Braven had failed the roller coaster challenge yet again.
"Yoh, return!" Braven recalled his Pokemon and stuck out his hand. "Good match."
The beauty he had been facing smiled. "Thanks. Hey, you need to get some more Pokemon. You could probably have won against me if you'd brought more." She shook his hand.
"It's no big deal. Yoh and Grover got a good workout. That's what I was aimin' for." He waved. "See ya again."
Outside, he released Grover and Yoh from their Poke Balls. Both were still in good shape, so the three of them headed for the line for the Ferris wheel.
"Hey, it's Officer Schank!" Andy, a hiker who was always seeking battles with young trainers, approached Braven with his arms spread wide. "It's been forever! You looking for a match, too?" He wrapped his arms around Braven in a bear hug.
"Not right now, old boy." He gave the man a good squeeze. "Just finished taking the roller coaster challenge again. I lost at round three. I can't seem to get past Klara's guard."
"She's a tough one," Andy agreed. "So I hear, anyway. I don't often move from my happy place here."
That made Braven laugh. "Happy place, huh? Hey, wanna get some lemonade or something? My treat."
"Sure. You can treat my Pokemon, too."
"Awww, damn."
***
"No way! That was Professor Juniper's Pokemon that was attacked?"
"Uh-huh. Sliced to ribbons. I didn't think she was gonna make it at first. But that critter was determined to live. And I'm glad she was. She's Aurea's baby."
"Man, you're lucky," Andy sighed. "I wish I could have a boyfriend like her: smart, spirited, compassionate. You always had better luck in love than me."
"Well, I've known her a long time," Braven said. "She's--"
He felt it then. Somewhere nearby, an opening between worlds had been created. He got up and dashed in the direction of the opening.
What people referred to as "the afterlife" was based more in space than time--it wasn't a life stage, it was a whole other world. He had tried many times to catch a glimpse of what it was like, but his sixth sense didn't take him that far. He only knew that most souls were terrified of going through that opening.
If he had to give a description of what he "saw," it would be of a wall of mist that tinted the world gray. The opening was round and had a sort of funnel leading into it. The soul--also a gray, almost purple color--went through a sort of spaghettification as it was pulled through the opening. It would be disturbing to anyone who had any sort of belief in the immortality of the soul, and he kept the details to himself when he could. Nobody wanted to hear that the soul was essentially sucked into a black hole when it died.
And yet there was something the soul was pulled into. There was no sense of pain, only fear, and then...nothing. Was the soul really dead? Or did it just take on another form?
Once the "spaghettification" process began, however, it was almost always too late. Some souls--Reva's included--were too intent on life to give up yet. But this time, it happened far too quickly, and the unfortunate spirit was gone before Braven was even halfway there.
Someone screamed, and he ran faster.
"Verena! Oh, God, no! Someone help! Help!"
By the time Braven reached the site of the opening, a crowd had gathered and he had to use his badge to get to the victim.
It was a Houndour, although the attack had rendered it nearly unrecognizable. The sight was so gruesome that someone was vomiting, and two women were holding on to a hysterical girl--probably the Pokemon's trainer--and covering her eyes.
"What happened here?" Braven demanded.
"I saw it," a man said. "A Gigalith charged out from behind the Ferris wheel and stomped on Houndour, crushing it completely.
"Are you serious? Gigalith don't attack like that."
"This one does. You callin' me a liar?"
"No, but..." Braven raised his voice. "We need as many witnesses as possible. Did someone call 911?"
Several people indicated that they had. "Won't do any good, though," one of them said.
"Shut up!" snapped another.
The girl continued to sob.
Within minutes, there were paramedics on the scene, but it was clear to everyone that the Houndour was already dead.
"Where's the Gigalith?" Braven asked. "Gigalith are slow. It couldn't have gotten far."
"That's just it, man," another bystander said. "This one wasn't like any Rock Pokemon I've ever seen. The attack didn't een slow it down. It ran off faster than any of us could follow."
"Now that I find hard to believe. But if you all saw the same thing..."
"Do we know it was a Pokemon?" an elderly woman asked. "Maybe it was a machine. Or an illusion. Or another Pokemon in disguise. We all know that Zorua can take on the form of other Pokemon."
"A Zorua wouldn't have had the strength to crush a Pokemon like that, though," said a teenager. "And a Ditto would have adopted a Gigalith's slow speed as well."
"So it was a machine."
"We can't know that for sure," Braven said. "Everyone who's not a cop or a medical technician needs to leave the area. If there is an aggressive Pokemon of Gigalith's size loose, it's going to be extremely dangerous--especially if it has a good deal of speed, too."
"That was my Pokemon!" the girl was screaming. "My Verena! Mommy! Tanisha!"
"That's enough, Karma. We have to go. You heard what the man said."
Since Braven was off-duty, there was nothing for him to do that had not already been done. He left the park, went into the Nimbasa City Gym, and called Aurea.
- 1
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