To Wrap My Life in Leaves~Pokémon Watty Awards2014 1st Place Short Story Winner~

Chapter 3: Six days

They light flowed through the window-like openings of the teeth in Sharpedo Bluff onto my face, causing me to wake up. I had slept here in my team's 'clubhouse' (A.K.A. Sketchy's house. She ran away from home because of her parents neglect and came to live here before joining our Rescue Team) because I didn't want to face Aqua and Sketchy or my parents and tell them the news when I was so exhausted.

Six days.

The thought hit me as suddenly as Extreme Speed would. That's right. I only had six more days of my life. But how should I spend them? I could save six more Pokémon, or say my good byes, or just explore. I shook my head to clear it of that thought. Thinking too far ahead would just make it worse; I should just plan my day once it arrives.

Stretching, I headed out towards Treasure Town, deciding to visit my parents. I realized that I hadn't seen them in a while, and it seemed cruel to just go in there and say "Hi Mom, hi Dad. Sorry I haven't visited in a while, I've been busy with missions. Oh, and did I mention that I'm gonna die in six days so Virizion can be resurrected? I know, crazy right? Well, bye!" Sighing, I decided it was best to try and break it to them slowly, so it didn't hurt them so much. If all else failed, I could always sleep at home so I'd see them in the morning and in the evenings when I get back from doing whatever.

Automatically, my feet led me down the old pathway to the house that looked like a bush (An awesome looking bush, might I add). When my dad, the famed Sepel the Serperior, retired from his Rescue Team after he had gotten paralyzed, they made him a house in honor of how good he was. It was his dream house, and he was ecstatic when it was finally finished. That was back when I had just hatched, but I could still remember his happy face.

Finally I had made it down the long pathway and was at the door. I hesitated before knocking, wondering what I would say. Screw it, I thought after pondering for a minute. I'll just wing it.

I only had to knock once before I heard the voice of my mom call, "Just a moment, please!". I smiled. She had gotten better at controlling her speech problem.

She opened the door, and I simply responded with, "Hi, Mom." Her jaw dropped when she saw me, and happiness lit up her eyes.

"Ssserphisssa!" she exclaimed, losing control on her speech. She was a Seviper, so like most other Pokémon with a forked tongue, she had the weird speech quirk with S's. "I'm ssso happy to sssee you! Come inssside, come inssside!" She stepped (well, slithered) to the side to make a passage for me. I stepped up, and Mom continued talking, her quirk under control again. "It's so nice of you to come visit, Serphisa! I'm glad! Your father will be ecstatic to know that you've visited. In fact, why don't you just see him right now? Sepel! Serphisa has come to visit!" Before I could say anything, Mom was already heading to where Dad was, still telling me how nice it was to visit. Slowly, I followed her, finally stopping in the door way of the room she had just entered.

"Um, Mom, Dad, I wanted to tell you two something," I began, only to get cut off by Dad.

"Serphisa! Long time no see, eh?" He spoke as if we were old friends, not father and daughter. But it was nice; it would make it easier to break the news. "You were missin' your old man, so you came runnin' home, right?" He laughed. "Or maybe you just wanted adventuring advice, hm? Any who, come over here and give your father a hug." Spreading his arms wide, he gestured for me to come and embrace him. As we hugged, I noticed how his skin seemed to grow slightly colder the farther from his arms it was. I could also feel how his spine stay mostly in the position it was left in; the lower part of his body felt as if it were made of thin metal. I fought back more tears. He had already lost the ability to move. I was going to tell him he was to lose his daughter.

We released each other and he continued. "Serphisa, I'm glad my lovely daughter came to visit me. Now, you were saying something?" I gulped, not wanting to tell him the truth.

"Oh, I just wanted to tell you and mom that... something special is going to happen up near the guild five days after today, and I want you two to see it." I mentally sighed at how easily I had lied my way through that.

"My, how mysterious!" Mom replied. "I can't wait!"

"Neither can I," Dad replied, and once again, I mentally sighed.

"Well, Aqua and Sketchy are waiting for me so that we could go on a mission, so I'd better get going." As they said their good byes, I left the room and exited the house. As my foot touched the ground, a single tear started to travel down my face. I hadn't told them. I couldn't tell them. Thinking ahead to the rest of the day, I realized that I didn't want to tell Aqua and Sketchy yet. Glancing to the east, I thought What's one more solo mission? before heading off to explore.