Differing Mirrors 【Pokemon】

Chapter Eight: Poisoned

Chapter Eight 

"Poisoned"

► Winston ◄

I had no idea what I'm going to say to Merii.

That's the only thought that raced through my head as I followed her into the forest. I couldn't think straight. Every time I glanced up at Merii, sheer guilt flooded over me. My face reddened, forcing me to look down and watch my feet.

"Wiiiiinston!" Merii's singsong voice jerked me from my thoughts. I couldn't help but let a ghost of a smile reach my face. She had a pretty singing voice.

The next thing I knew I was flat on my stomach, my nose smashed against sweet-smelling grass that tickled my nose. Merii was laughing so hard, from what I could hear. I cursed underneath my breath as I pushed myself up, sneezing. My face was as red as a rose as I pulled my fallen hood over my head. "Merii!" I snapped. "It's not funny!"

"B-but....." Merii snickered, "You did a c-complete face-plant!" She threw back her head, hand over her mouth, and laughed even more. Watching her giggle made me want to laugh, I wasn't going to give her the satisfaction.

I brushed some of my soft blonde hair out of my eyes and walked towards Merii, collecting my thoughts. She was in a good mood, and I hoped that would play a good role in what I'm about to tell her.

You have the same eyes as her, you know...

A voice pierced through my thoughts like a sharpened knife. I stopped, listening. I didn't recognize the voice, and I was sure that Merii and I were the only humans in the forest right now. It wasn't the same voice I had heard when I was seven; it sounded older, wiser. Suddenly, Merii popped into my line of vision, completely upside down.

"GWAHH!" I screeched, taken by surprise. I leaped backwards, only to realize it was Merii. She giggled again, but quickly became serious.

"So, you have your thoughts collected?" she asked.

I nodded. "But I'm not going to take you seriously, though."

Merii tilted her head. "Why?"

"You're hanging upside down in front of my face."

"Oh, yeah."

I tried my best not to sigh as Merii let go of the branch she was holding onto and fell to the ground with a thud. I decided to help her up and held out my hand. Surprisingly, she took it, and (of course; why didn't I see this coming?) pulled me to a fallen log.

"I don't want anyone to overhear us," she explained as I tried to scramble out.

"Why not?"

"Because you had that look on your face."

"We're alone."

"No, we're not. There's ears and eyes everywhere." She shook her head. "Oh wait. I forgot you're a rich kid. You think everything's safe 'cause you've got those fancy techno things everywhere. Well, guess what? There's always going to be that one person that spills the secret that could injure everyone. Even with the fancy things you have, nothing's ever safe."

"Are you going to keep giving life lessons or am I going to tell you what I know?"

"Both."

I groaned inwardly. Well, I guess it's time to tell Merii my story... I glanced over at her. She watched me expectantly. I sighed quietly, looking around at the large hollow log, then started my story.

"The guys who attacked us were after me. They saw that you were with me, so that's why they lured Russel and Fletcher to them. They knew I would go after them since, well, you're traveling with me and I don't have any Pokemon except for the two you brought along. They know a lot about me."