Origin Story: Part 1 - Haunted by the Truth

CH12: Decision Making

You leaned against the railing, Don upon your shoulder and Spirit by your leg. You gazed out at the waters, seeing the island that was coming closer and closer to your line of sight.

You were deep in thought. Of course, your pokemon weren't too much help. Don stated that the decision was up to you, and you alone, while Spirit argued that this guy you've never met has ever gone out of his way to meet you himself... until you were completely alone. And besides, while the lieutenant may not seem to be lying, who knows if this guy who is supposedly your grandfather is the real deal?

You had noticed how quiet Don was during the argument, and you realized that he probably knew, all along, that you had some long lost grandfather that never went out of his way to even meet you. To see you. To... simply introduce himself to you.

But the honchkrow was right. The decision was up to you. Just... you don't know what to do, anymore.

You thought you were helplessly alone in this. That you cannot and should not rely on other people. In fact, you probably shouldn't at all, but... a grandfather you never met, who could actually manage to protect you. For all you know, this could all be his fault anyways. Who's the say it was your father screwing up that caused his death?

You don't know how long you've been standing out there, contemplating your choices, but you snapped out of your thoughts as you sensed someone was behind you, but you barely turned around as you heard a deep sigh, and a figure walking to lean against the railing as well, glancing over at you before looking at the land that was coming into view. "... What 'cha doing, kid?"

"Thinking," you responded bluntly, glancing at Marko and noticing he was staring off into nothingness, and you sighed, turning away from him and looking at the island, the tropical paradise that you can easily slip into, to disappear from the sight of these thugs and find yourself in a completely new and different place.

"About what?" you heard him ask, but when he didn't hear a response, he slowly turned to you, frowning in your general direction. "What's wrong, Vi? You only get this quiet when you're conflicted about something."

You sighed deeply in response, slumping your shoulders and leaning more onto the railing, feeling as if the weight of the world was pressing down onto your shoulders, and you had no way of recovering. But, when you realized Marko wasn't going to say anything until you did, you slowly stood a bit straighter, shifting your shoulders slightly so Don would flap back onto a less sore spot, before deciding to say what was on your mind. "Lt. Surge... told me something troubling."

"What?" you could hear his voice full of concern, but you shook your head and turned to smile meekly at the teen man.

"Marko, how would you feel if... a person, a relative, you never met before, never bothered to attempt to contact you in any way, a person you thought was dead, suddenly popped out of nowhere and wanted you to live with them. Would you," you continued, turning back to stare off at the ocean waters as the water splashed up against the gradually moving ship, "decided to... see this person... or not bother meeting them at all? After all, they never tried to meet you before. Why should you care now?" You knew deep down you had said too much, but honestly, you didn't care, and you desperately needed some advice right now.

You could hear him sigh beside you, your eyes glancing only slightly to notice he had a thoughtful look on his face, and then, as if he realized what he was going to say, turned to you, even as you turned away and looked in the opposite direction he was standing in. "... Less than a year ago, my father's sister reached out to talk to me," he began, somberly, staring out to the waters, deep in thought. "It was over the phone, and at the time I was still at home, with my grandmum. She wanted to know all about me. My hobbies, what I liked. Stuff like that. She wanted to get to know me in a way my father never did. It was nice to feel... wanted. Sure, I wasn't sure about her at first, but... she seemed sincere enough, and wanted to know all about me.