After Arya

After Arya: Part 2

It was hard to even imagine the time before I realized that I was destined to save the world. Even when we were in the process of doing it, I did not fully understand the extent of what I was doing. But when Primal Dialga fainted, it was like everything finally clicked. I knew that what I had done had been meaningful. I knew that I had made the world a better place, which was all I had wanted out of life. And I knew that I couldn't have done it without my wonderful partner, Arya. It was her fate to stop the planet's paralysis, and a little change in species and loss of memory didn't stop this spunky Vulpix from doing just that. The greatest tragedy was that we had lost her former partner, Grovyle, as he sacrificed himself for us and went back to the future. But even though he did, I felt that we had honored his memory by restoring Temporal Tower, and therefore time itself.

Arya and I began walking down the path of floating rubble in the sky that would lead us from Temporal Tower back to the Rainbow Stoneship. From there, we would be able to get home. I walked with a spring in my step because I was so eager to get home. However, I noticed that Arya was trailing slowly behind me, like she couldn't quite keep up. I wasn't sure why that would be. I was so ready to get out of this place, but I had noticed that ever since we had boarded the Rainbow Stoneship to come up here in the beginning, she had been quiet and avoidant. That was unlike her, but I assumed it was just because her nerves were frayed from, you know, the pressure of saving the world. I also thought she was probably grieving over losing Grovyle, which I was sad about as well. But, even after we defeated Dialga, she seemed like she couldn't meet my eyes and for some reason, that struck me as odd. When I realized she was having trouble keeping up with me, I turned to her and said, "What's up Arya? Let's pick up the pace." I turned around and kept walking, hoping she would keep up.

Suddenly, there was a great quake around us, and I almost lost my footing. "Quake!" I screamed. Thankfully it stopped. I looked around us, saying, "It's stopped shaking...Maybe things are still settling back to normal..." I reasoned. "Let's go, Arya."

I kept walking, but then it dawned on me that I could no longer hear Arya's footsteps behind me. I turned around and saw that she had stopped walking a few paces back. "Hey! Arya." I called. I turned around to go meet her but that was when I noticed something odd.

"Huh? Arya...What is it? What's happening to you...?" I could hardly believe what I was looking at. It looked like tiny Illumise and Volbeat were surrounding Arya, but of course that was impossible. Still, there were lights floating around her, and I didn't know how it was possible and why it was just happening to her.

Arya paused before finally speaking. "...Sorry, Ben. I kept this to myself for a long time...It looks like...I have to say good-bye..."

No. Whatever she was saying, it was just some cruel joke. It was just wrong. What did she even mean by that? Why would she want to leave our exploration team? We'd just saved the whole world for Arceus's sake!

"Huh?! Good-bye?! What are you saying?!" I shouted in disbelief. There was no way I was letting her just quit our team!

"Dusknoir told me. If we changed the future, the Pokemon from the future would disappear...That's why...I'm destined to disappear too."

Wait a second. What did she mean, disappear? That couldn't just happen, right? She couldn't just be taken from me, right? I noticed the tiny lights surrounding her were adding more to their numbers as we talked.

"Huh? What? Wh-why? Wh-why?...I don't understand!" I managed to force out.

"Thank you for everything. I'm going to disappear from here now...But Ben...I'll never forget you." Even more lights were added as she said this.

"W-wait a second...I managed to make it all this way because you were with me, Arya. Don't you understand...? You made me strong, Arya...If you go, Arya...I...I don't know...what I would..." I couldn't even choke the words out at this point. I was holding back sobs and my eyes were rapidly filling with tears.

Arya voice was calm like the ocean near Treasure Town. "No, Ben. You have to be strong on your own. You have to live! You have to go home...Tell everyone about what happened here. So that...nothing like this ever happens again." The lights were becoming more frequent now.

"Urk...Arya..." But now, the lights were coming much faster. They had almost engulfed her, and there was nothing I could do about it. I could see how Arya realized that she would soon be gone, but I still couldn't accept it.

"Don't Arya! Don't...don't go..." I pleaded.

"Thank you for everything, Ben," Arya said steadily. "I'm glad we got to train together at the guild...I'm glad we got to go on adventures together...I'm glad...I got to know you, Ben," she said sincerely. She seemed so collected, and I didn't understand how. I was a complete mess!

"Wait...Arya..." I could tell that the lights were about to surround her completely, and I was panicking.

"I'm sorry. I'm so lucky that you were my friend..." She sounded so grateful.

"I feel the same, Arya! To me, Arya, you're...More important than anything..." How could I even articulate what she had meant to me?

"Yes...I feel the same way. Ben...Even after I disappear from here...I will never forget you..." And then suddenly, before I could even respond, the lights moved faster until they engulfed her body.

That was it. Arya was gone from me, forever.

"...Arya...Arya!...Arya!!" I threw myself onto the path and began sobbing uncontrollably.