Ch. 29
Imported from SF2 with no description.
I didn’t bother pretending I could get any sleep, while twilight turned to dawn. Instead, I just packed up what I could and set to cooking breakfast for us, while Staccato paced, nervously. He kept turning to me as if he was going to say something and didn’t, and eventually just stood by the fire, tapping impatiently away at the ground.
Wendy was still asleep, so I offered words instead. “What's going to happen is going to happen. You have to believe in yourself, and you should believe in her, too. Just be honest with her. Trust she’s being honest with you.”
He didn’t respond, but he did calm down a little. I called to her when breakfast was finished, and she sat up slowly, a groggy growlithe stirring from beside her, before catching the scent of hot, fresh cooked food and approaching, albeit a little warily, as I began to serve up a plate for Wendy.
“Come get your fill. No sense going all day on an empty stomach.” I said, as I started cleaning up the camp site. The trio looked on, while I kept myself busy, trying to ignore my own dizziness. I couldn’t have had a bite, if I wanted to. I’d just have to get something later in the day.
Wendy saw right through me, of course. “You didn’t sleep, did you?” She asked, in an annoyed huff. “Great. That’s just great. At least get some food in you.” She scolded, shaking a finger at me. “You made plenty.”
“I’ll set mine up to eat on the road. I try and choke it down now, I’ll just have one more mess to clean up.” I replied, feigning cheerfulness I wasn’t feeling. “Sorry. I tried, but I don’t think I’m going to sleep well before we get there.”
“You’re really afraid, aren’t you?” Penance asked, sitting between Wendy and I. “You’re… you’re scared for her.” She tilted her head, looking up at me. “It’ll be okay. Things work out.” She said, putting her paw in my hand, as I set down a plate of food for her. “It’ll be okay.”
I smiled, reaching down to run a hand over her head, an affection which, to my surprise, she leaned into. “Thanks. It means a lot to hear it. I want to believe things will work out, too.” I replied, before turning back to the food. “I… thanks.”
Wendy giggled openly at that. “Penance, where did that come from? I thought you hated everyone!” She said, reaching down to ruffle the growlithe’s fur. “You’re right, though. Things will work out.” She said to me, as I looked up at her. “We’re gonna get you there, and we’re not leaving until things are okay.”
“I do not hate everyone!” Penance said, in a huff. “Besides… even if I did, why would I kick him while he was down?” She asked, before tucking into the food. “Really it’s just that you have annoying friends.” She paused, and looked up at me for a moment. “Also you need to learn to cook, Wendy! Wow!”
Staccato and I laughed at that, and Wendy just stared at me, waiting for the translation. “She says she doesn’t hate everyone. And that your friends are annoying. Also, learn to cook.” I paused, holding up a hand as Penance wagged her tail, looking up at Wendy who rolled her eyes. “Now I can’t say, I haven’t met them myself. But I’m inclined to believe Staccato and Penance aren’t given to falsehoods.”
Wendy sighed, shaking her head. “I’ll keep it in mind. I … I guess I can understand why they’d be annoyed.” She said, a little sulky as she picked at her food.
I nodded at that, and after a moment, pulled Tempest’s pokeball from my belt, letting her out. She looked around, and turned to face me. She didn’t say a word, just waited for me to say something.
“Tempest, meet Wendy, Staccato, and Penance. I … did something stupid, and they’re helping us get back to Claire’s mother. I just wanted you to know. To not worry. To not be afraid. It will take days, maybe weeks. But we’re going as fast as we can.”
She nodded, and crossed her arms, in one sweeping glance appraising the company I found myself in, and our surroundings. “I see. You’ve come a long way. How long has it been?” She asked, acidly.
“A few days.” I replied. “I know I said for a little while. But it’s going to be a while longer, now.” There was really nothing for it. Even if she wanted to, she couldn’t keep up with Staccato’s pace. She knew that. Acknowledged it with a nod.
“I won’t pretend I’m happy about it, master. But I understand, and I trust you. You’ll tell the others?” She asked, her heavy hand coming to rest on my shoulder. Her eyes betrayed her frustration, but I knew any ire she felt, I’d more than earned.
“Claire will have to wait, I’m afraid. But yes. I wanted you to know first.” I said, pulling her into my arms. A hug she reciprocated, cheek to cheek, her arms clutching me tight against her. The weight of her body against mine could have knocked me over, almost had, save for the way she’d planted herself, for just a moment supporting my weight. Supporting me.
“I don’t like being apart from everyone.” She said through a ragged sigh. Her hands gripped against my back, and she nuzzled against me. “I don’t like being apart from you. Promise me you’ll let me out when you can.”
“Of course. I didn’t mean to leave you wondering. It’s been- “ She shook her head, silencing me with one clawed digit pressed gently to my lips as she helped me catch my balance.
“For us all. I understand.” She said, at last, before dropping her hand to the pokeball I held. “I’ll be waiting.” She said, pushing the button herself.
Wendy spoke first, Staccato and Penance mute with a kind of wide-eyed wonder at the exchange. They understood every word, she only got the half she heard.
“She looked pretty pissed…” Wendy said, quietly. “What happened?” She asked, looking to me for some kind of answer.
“She and Claire are… more than a little close.” I replied. “So she’s taking this as hard as I am. That’s all.” I sighed at that. “And she puts everything she has into being my partner, you know? She doesn’t like it when I do things on my own.” I sighed at that. “She really doesn’t like that about me. I’ve been working on that, but… you know. Hard to change.”
“Wh.. oh.” Wendy said, shaking her head. “Alright. I guess?”
Mira was the next out, and she had her ribbons wrapped around my arms and halfway up my cheeks before she noticed we weren’t alone. Her thoughts met mine and she backed off of the kiss she had all but leapt into, changing the motion to touch her nose to mine before looking up at me in inquiry.
I didn’t need to say a word, neither did she. She understood, and just took the time to nuzzle against me and reassure me that she wasn’t upset. She knew I would never forget about her.
When I put her away, Staccato snorted. “Right. I think I see how it is. Add that to the list of stories I never want to hear from you.” He said with a nickering laugh.
Penance giggled at that, but wagged her tail as she circled him, teasing little smirk on her face. “What’s wrong, embarrassed? Or is it you’re envious?” She nudged him, sitting down close by him. But she just laughed and let up on her teasing. “Still. Says a lot about him, I think. They all really care about him. It’s really sweet.”
Wendy didn’t say a word, just watched as I held the beautiful gilded pokeball that belonged to Cocoa. Shaking my head, I let her out, and this time didn’t wait, pulling her into my arms instead. She seemed surprised, but didn’t say anything, just hugged me back until I let go.
“Hey. Sorry, I know you’re not used to being kept away so long. This is Wendy, Staccato, and Penance.” I said, gesturing to the trio, one by one. “They’re taking us back. Even though it’s well out of their way, and pretty much as far away from where they were planning to be as possible right now. I just wanted you to know. It’s going to be a little bit longer, but you’re right here with me.” I said, holding up the pokeball. “And I’ll make sure to let you join us when we stop tonight.”
“What are you apologizin’ to me for?” She asked, her cloven hands taking mine. “You just keep on’ keepin’ on, an’ we’ll all be waitin’ for ya. I’ll…” She paused, shaking her head, and whispering the next words softly to me. “I’ll be waitin’.”
In the end, I had to laugh, as I hung the pokeballs back on my belt. “Sorry, that wasn’t much of an introduction.” I said, turning to Wendy, who just shrugged between bites. “We ah… don’t entertain company much. … Or ever.”
“Could’ve fooled me.” Staccato said, in deadpan, staring away into the distance. “Here I thought maybe we’d just turned invisible.” He snorted, shaking his head as Penance almost fell over laughing.
I couldn’t help but chuckle at that, myself. Though the impact of the joke was lessened by my having to translate it for Wendy. Tension dispelled, I managed to eat a little breakfast, and it wasn’t long before we were back on the road. Wendy had a thousand questions about my team, about how we trained, what it was like to really understand them.
It was the middle of the afternoon when Staccato finally spoke up, between long, deep breaths as the landscape all but flew by us. “I want to know. I’m ready to know.” He called up to me.
I nodded. “You good to keep going, or should we stop?” I asked. He slowed, and eventually just walked along the side of the road, catching his breath.
“Wendy, we have questions for you. He has questions for you.” I said, patting Staccato’s side. “I promised him I’d repay the favor however I could, and this is a good start.”
He sighed at that, and snorted, but didn’t argue. “You know… the gist of it already. I don’t know how to ask her.” He admitted. “How do you ask someone why they abandoned you?”
Wendy was quiet, and made him stop, as I repeated his exact words. She hopped down, and stared at him. Hurt and confusion etched into her face.
“What do you mean abandoned?” She asked, half scolding. “I’m always sending you messages, always bringing you around.”
“When you need something. Need me to carry you, carry your stuff. Carry your friends. You left, left me there at the pasture. Just left.” He replied, angry and impatient. I didn’t even try to keep his tone out of it. I wanted her to hear not just his words, but how he said them. I owed him that.
“Wh- But... “ She paused, and for a moment, I got the feeling she wanted to say it wasn’t fair. I was glad she didn’t. “You’d rather be stuck in a pokeball, days, and weeks at a time?” She asked, in a huff.
“I’d rather my best friend didn’t run off and leave me wondering what I did wrong.” He replied, frustrated tears welling up. “I’d rather be at your side, pokeball or not, than wait, weeks at a time, wondering if you were okay, or if you even remembered me!”
It hurt me to say it, his tears became mine. But I clenched my fists at my side, and did my best to steel myself to deliver his words.
“Staccato…” She said, frustration gone from her voice, her hand reaching up to brush against his cheek. “I had no idea…” She sighed, resting her forehead against his nose. “I didn’t know. I’m sorry. I’m so sorry!” She said, sniffling back her own tears.
“You left me behind. You only ever call for me when you need me to do something.” He said, quietly. “Never because you just wanted to see me.” He paused, and pulled away. “You forgot me, forgot all about me.”
“That’s not true…” She replied, sinking to her knees in the dirt. “That’s not true at all. I miss you, all the time. I left you there because I don’t know the first thing about taking care of you on the road.” She cried, hard, and clutched at her thighs. “I never forgot about you. I didn’t want to leave you. I just didn’t know how to take you.”
“So that’s why you only ever send for me when you need me to carry someone? That’s why you only ever say hi if I happen to be around when you call home? That’s why you go weeks, and months at a time without ever saying a word to me? What kind of horrible friend are you?” He demanded, livid, indignant. “How could you ever treat someone like that? Even he had the decency to at least let his friends know what was going on. Why they were waiting! You couldn’t even do that for me!” He all but spat, stamping a hoof hard into the dirt.
It hurt me, more and more, the more he said. The more I had to repeat. The more I had to know. The depth of what he felt; the pain, the loneliness, the sense of betrayal. It had been building for a long time, I knew. She didn’t say anything, and after all of that, he didn’t have anything left to say. I didn’t want to interfere, but a debt was a debt, and it applied to her as much as him.
“Feel better?” I asked, my hand on his shoulder. “You’ve been wanting to say all that for a long time, haven’t you?” I asked. He just nodded, a big, broad sweep of his head as she looked up at him.
Wendy looked to me, but I spoke before she could. “All this time, you couldn’t understand him. Not because you couldn’t hear what he had to say.” I said, in a gentle admonishment. “But because you chose to ignore who he is to you. What he means to you, and in turn, what you meant to him.” I said, sternly. “However…”
“Staccato, there’s something you forgot to say, isn’t there?” I asked, turning to look him in the eye. “The most important thing of all.” I added, just as stern with him as I’d been with her.
He looked at me, and looked to her. And after a long moment, knelt in the dirt, his cheek against hers. She clung to him, as if she were lost at sea, and he the flotsam she was praying would keep her above water.
“Wendy… I love you. I’m hurt, I’m angry, but I love you. I just want to be with you. That’s all. I just don’t want to be left behind anymore.” t
“Never again.” She promised, through her tears. “Never again.”
It was a somber, quiet ride the rest of the day. Neither Wendy, nor I said another word. We didn’t even make eye contact when we came to rest.
That night, I set up the tent, and left the three of them to their own devices. It was nice to let the girls out. Nice to be able to hold them, and just tell them all how much they meant to me. The ability to do that… to hear, to be understood so easily, it was something I cherished. Something I was profoundly grateful for. Even with what it was costing us, it was something I would never have taken back.
To be able to tell them that I loved them, that I missed them, that I looked forward to seeing them. It was worth the cost. It was worth anything.
That night, I let Claire out, just her and I in that tent, though I was worried her brush of thought against Wendy and her pair was going to be just as much agony for them as it was for me. It hurt, it hurt so much I couldn’t even breathe. I just choked, as I held her. She held me, in return, crying aloud for the pain we shared. Not just in our minds, but in our hearts.
But I knew she felt it. My embrace. My love. My resolve. I knew she felt it, and that feeling would be what she held, in the confines of her pokeball.
Her embrace was what I held, as I drifted off to sleep. The first real sleep I’d had in some time.