Paragon

Remnants of the Great War [43]

PARAGON

Remnants of the Great War Arc [43]

Chapter 52 : The Head of Paragon

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Sinnoh Region, twenty-two years ago

The tall grass brushed against her face as she ran, but her platinum blonde hair was nearly as long, so she was used to it. She spared a glance back but kept running as fast as her short legs could carry her. Sweat matted her hair to her temples and she was getting mud all over her clothes, but neither discomfort impeded her in the slightest.

"Gotcha!"

Her older cousin tackling her from the side certainly did, however.

Cynthia Shirona, aged nine, fell onto her side into a muddy puddle, and though she braced herself with her arm, dirt water splashed up into her mouth, and she recoiled.

"Eggghhhh!" she whined, sticking her tongue out and trying to drool the stuff back out.

"That's what you get for running away."

Sylvester Shirona, aged twelve, stood over her, his arms crossed, wearing a proud grin. Somehow, he'd run through this marsh and caught up to her while somehow keeping his white clothes mostly clean—a sharp contrast to Cynthia's disheveled appearance.

"I don't wanna!" Cynthia pouted, slamming her tiny fist down into the puddle.

Sylvester moved his leg out of the way before it could splash him, then knelt. "Let's go," he said with authority. "Grandmother will get upset."

"Why do I haftaaaa?" she complained. "I don't care about pokémon breeding at all. I want to be a trainer!"

"Oh, did you? I'd almost forgotten." Sylvester stood back up and offered his hand. "Come on. We may be close to home, but there are still wild pokémon around." He looked away and his eyes narrowed. "I'm not going to lose you too."

Cynthia noticed her cousin's seriousness and took his hand, standing back up. She was over a head shorter. His head poked out above the tall grass. No wonder he'd found her so quickly.

Hand in hand, they walked back through the grass back to town, Cynthia grumbling every step of the way. As the density of the grass started to thin, Cynthia could smell the pungent scent of incense burning ahead. As they emerged from the swamp, the quaint Celestic Town came into view, nestled among rock and fog in the shadows of Mount Coronet.

Her home.

Sylvester didn't let go of her even once they'd arrived. If anything, he'd tightened his grip as they walked down the beaten paths toward their house. Elderly folk smiled at and greeted him along the way, and though they tried to extend the courtesy to Cynthia, she trained her eyes on the ground, determined to ignore them.

Eventually, they made it back to their small cottage. A pen of thin wire fence sat beside the house, and within, a pair of Eevee ran around, chasing each other's tails. Cynthia scowled when she saw it, but Sylvester led her past them inside.

The smell of incense burned even stronger once he opened the door, and Cynthia wrinkled her nose. Her grandmother sat at the kitchen table, waiting for them, and Cynthia pursed her lips.

"Thank you, Sylvester," she said.

Sylvester nodded and finally let go, then swiftly exited to another room.

Cynthia scowled at his back. Clearly, he didn't want to stick around to watch her get chewed out.

"Cynthia..." her grandmother began.