Redemption

Chapter 37

Sometimes good people do bad things, but not once did (y/n) ever thing of Silver as a bad person. She might not have witnessed the ways of his past, but she certainly had seen everything of his present. She loved the Silver that he currently was. She never would have thought she'd fall for someone so quickly, so deeply. That's why it broke her heart to be awake at five in the morning to prepare for Silver's departure.

Her eyes were already puffy from waking up even earlier that morning unable to fully come to terms with the situation that she had insisted on. To be fair, she had not known that it was this serious.

Phillip had not been taken into custody on that day. The small plane pilot had taken him away from Alola along with his pokémon. The two flower handed pokémon, the witness testimonies, and the crime scene itself had been the only proof that Team Remnant Rocket had ever been there. That meant Silver could no longer stay in Alola. At least, not until the last of the Remnant were dealt with. Even if (y/n) had gone back on her word and begged Silver to stay, he couldn't. Giovanni was not allowing it, and the international police had already issued for him to be taken to another region for safety purposes.

"Hey," someone softly called. (Y/n) turned around to see Gladion standing at the door of her room. He was helping her bring Silver's left over items to him at Mele Mele Island's dock. "Do you need some more time?" (Y/n) clutched the jacket in her arms closer to her chest and gave a silent nod. Gladion left her undisturbed without another word.

(Y/n) took a moment to collect herself. "He'll come back." She folded the jacket as neatly as she could and placed it inside the box filled with various other things that Silver had left in her home. He had admitted to her, before things had gotten so bad, that he would leave things behind on purpose so that he always had a reason to visit even if it was just an excuse to see her.

(Y/n) sniffled and picked up the box. She spotted Gladion with a bag over his shoulder as he stood waiting for her in the living room. "I'm ready to go now. I don't want to be late." Gladion gave a brief nod before they headed out. Overhead, Tapu Koko was going ahead of them. The island deity did not appear in the public very often, but he was always there for (y/n) when she needed him.

As they neared the dock, (y/n) could see that Hau and Lillie were already there. Silver was doing his best to comfort a distraught Hau who would definitely be missing Silver's free cooking. His father was speaking to someone on the boat. Apparently it was one of Giovanni's own private yachts equipped with its own captain and mini crew. The man was filthy rich.

By the time she and Gladion arrived, Hau had backed away and Silver had spotted her. "Let me take this to the boat for you," Hau said. He immediately followed after Gladion. That left just three of them standing there.

Lillie suddenly blushed and frantically looked around in search of some sort of excuse to leave them to themselves. "Uh, I'll just...go and help them I guess," she said, her voice trailing off into a whisper.

Once Lillie was aboard the boat, Silver opened his arms to (y/n). She hugged him without question. "I don't want you to go," (y/n) finally admitted. She had been trying to stay strong about it, but now that Silver was actually about to leave, she couldn't keep pretending that she was okay.

"I can still bring you with me," Silver murmured. He tightened his hold on her as best as he could without upsetting his fading injuries. "You could run away, like I did. The people will be fine without you. I won't." He didn't give her the time to protest. "I want to be selfish again. I wish you wouldn't care so much about what the people want. You're neglecting your own wishes and desires. I don't want you to wait anymore, but since I have to go...can you promise me that you'll start living for yourself a little more. Tell more people no. Make more people realize that you are a person before you are their guardian. And most importantly, don't ever overwork yourself for their sakes. I wouldn't be able to get over it if anything were to happen to you while I'm away."

(Y/n) had already cried her tears away, so there was nothing left to be used now. However, she buried her face into Silver's neck, trembling from the sadness she felt. How had she gotten the opportunity to meet someone this caring? It seemed unreal. "I promise," she mumbled. Though she couldn't see his smile, she knew it was there. "And you better take care of yourself too. You have a promise to keep too, you know."

"How about this?" He pulled away from her and brought out one of his pokéballs. "Hang on to Murkrow for me until I come back. He gets cranky if you don't let him fly around for a while, but he's well mannered. I'm sure you'll get along just fine."

(Y/n) stared at him in shock. "I..." she wouldn't dare refuse. She knew how much Murkrow meant to him. He had mention such to her even after their talk under the fireworks. "Then take Pikachu." She pulled Pikachu's pokéball free from her bag. "He'll blend in no matter what region you go to, and he'll cheer you up if you're ever sad. He likes to eat a lot of pokébeans so if you find any snacks, be sure to share." There was more that she wanted to say, but she knew her time was running out. They traded their pokémon in hopes of being able to reunite them with their original trainers some time soon. "You'll stay in contact, right?"

Silver's expression grew solemn. "They're making me delete my contacts, but I wrote your number down and I'll call you every chance I get. I promise."

"Okay," she mumbled with a nod. It was better than nothing. Knowing how the international police operated, she would have been surprised if they hadn't taken such drastic measures. She pulled him into another hug. "Please, please stay safe."

"You too." She let Silver go, but he quickly leaned forward and placed a kiss on her cheek. "I'll give you a real one when I get back," he said with a slight smirk.

"It's...another promise then," (y/n) said, trying her best not to completely freak out. "You better not forget any of them."

Silver froze and his features softened. "Anything for you. I wouldn't dare forget."

Time had seemingly passed by in such a short period. It was already time for him to go. Hau, Gladion, and Lillie were getting off the boat. Another familiar face was among them. "Gold?!"

"He's catching a ride with us," Silver began to explain. "I think he's still wary about the case not being completely closed even though he isn't there to help anymore. I can't seem to get rid of him." (Y/n) caught a hint of playful annoyance in Silver's voice. "We're dropping him off in Johto, then we'll head to wherever is safe." Silver sighed. "It's just a little redemption journey. I'll be back before you know it."

(Y/n) remained at the dock to see Silver off. He waved at her as the boat left, and she stared off after the boat to watch him standing at the railing until neither were visible any longer. Even after a third time, she simply could not get used to people leaving without her.

"Wherever is safe," (y/n) repeated in her mind. She still remained on the edge of the dock watching the waters in the direction of the boat he had been on. "I'll be here waiting for you then, Silver."
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Warning, there is only one more chapter left! Until next time you splendid readers!