Some Wounds Never Heal [2015 PKMNWatties 1st in Short Story Category]

Chapter One | The Old Tree Hollow

A/N: "~" will always signal a flashback, or in rarer cases, a change of perspective in a flashback. Thank you!

Chapter One | The Old Tree Hollow

    The sun rose slowly up the horizon, its warm, tender glow radiating from its orb-like figure in the sky, coating the high mountains of Mt. Silver in a beautiful red-orange glow, as if shyly giving a reassurance to the creatures living in the dark, ominous mountains that stretched tall in the air that it was okay, that morning had come and one bitter day had been survived, that it was time to awake to struggle through another.

    But of course, now, there was only one Pokemon that still lived here. A little Eevee poked its head through a thick layer of snow and ice, its rime-covered body trying in a feeble attempt to shake the snow off so it could push its legs down the mountain, weakly scampering, to begin the day's cycle. Today had already been planned, as usual, and the site to behold today would be even more devastating and heartbreaking than all the last. This was the site the Eevee, known as Eva to family, had tried to avoid for so long. But today was the day. There was no more holding back. This light, Eva would see the Old Tree Hollow.

    The warm sun, despite its enticing, alluring rays being laced throughout the sky and directly hitting the mountains, did nothing to give Eva a sort of strength or power; all it did was make the Pokemon wish to have some, to experience the luxury of heat once more. Here, up at the mountains, it was too cold to feel the type of warmth you received from temperature. The other type came from a loving family and started deep within your heart, a type of heat that blossomed in your heart, the type the Eevee accepted she would never feel again.

    Still tired from the lack of sleep, Eva wandered downwards, carefully avoiding any obstacles in the way of the downward mountain slope that would eventually lead to a thick canopy of tall trees that had the strength to grow so close to the mountains, the heavy brush and greenery that concealed the little, mostly destroyed Hollow from view. Only slipping once or twice on the sharp rocks that jutted out from the steep "faces" of Mt. Silver, as if they were little pimples on a large visage, Eva continued onwards, her face emotionless yet struggling to hold on to her remaining courage, perseverance, and strength. Before long, due to extreme experience of completing this course so many times, she arrived at the base of the mountain, the familiar imaginary line that separated wet, cool, thick forest from high, minacious, dark mountains.

    Sighing slightly and crossing the border, the Eevee directed its attention to finding the stump and nothing more, its little paws splashing in leftover puddles, full of dirt and mud, as it trekked onwards. Despise its mental vow, Eva couldn't help but take in the site for what felt like the millionth time, recall what the forest had looked like last time and compare it to what it was now, even if the Eevee knew nothing would change. This whole trip would be the same, along with the forest, except for the different turn that would lead to a vaguely familiar path, which in turn directed the wanderer to a mere tree hollow, known to none but Eva.

    The whole site added to the scary, menacing facade the forest put out. The trees, so tall they seemed to have no stopping point, blocked all sun and sky from view; the leaves were so thickly weaved together they left no space for a single raindrop to slip through. Still, as a result from the leaves sucking up all the moisture, the forest was left dim and wet, with the air a bit musty and very cool. Everything in the forest was either trees, some version of a leafy shrub, and the occasional family of Pokemon that passed by. Other than a rare squeak or sound, all that was heard was the rushing wind, lonely and sad. Eva kept her head down as she walked, wondering when she would reach her destination.

    After tedious minutes and minutes of shoving one paw in front of another, Eva found herself reaching the Old Tree Hollow by surprise. Her small head colliding with a quick, painful motion to the aging, wrinkled tree, she suddenly jumped back and looked forwards. There it was, abandoned and desolate, sagging as if it, too, was recovering from a loss. It was burned in most places, the usual brown wood of the tree a shedding black. A huge hole, misshapen and squiggly, invited any visitors with an eerie presence. Its branches were bare and curved into terrifying shapes, overall adding to the nearly-dead, terrible, heartbreakingly sad (for the Eevee) final look of the tree. Just glancing at it brought back horrible, horrible memories, but Eva forced herself not to care, and to just avoid it all.