On The Road

Chapter Sixteen

Larance sighed as he pulled on his jacket, zipping it up so that only a bit of his t-shirt peeked out from underneath it. He couldn't believe that so many people knew who he was and that they were keeping a secret from him. A secret that could help him find his dad. He heard running feet approach him, and he inwardly sighed as he let the person catch up to him.

"Talk to me."

Larance turned to see Arriete standing there, eyes narrowed and arms folded. He kept quiet before silently nodding his head.

"What do you want to know?" he asked, continuing to walk towards Meteor Falls.

"Why are you acting like this?"

"Probably because it seems like all of Hoenn knows who my dad is but me and it really aggravates me. I mean, he's my dad! Shouldn't I know who he is?!?"

"You're not the only one who doesn't know who your dad is. Bina, Wally, and I sure don't."

Larance gave Arriete a small smile before giving her a quick hug.

"Thanks, Arriete," he grinned. "You always know just what to say."

Arriete gave a snort at this, resulting in Larance chuckling as well.

"Guys! You missed everything!"

The two of them turned to see Bina running towards them, smiling wide.

"What'd we miss?" Arriete asked.

"Wally caught a Makuhita!" Bina replied, sounding proud.

The three of them turned to see Wally and Steven walking towards them. In his arms, he held a Makuhita, who seemed to shrink under the gazes of the three friends. Wally's jacket was removed from his waist and was wrapped around the Pokemon. This made them frown as they slowly approached the two males carefully.

"What's wrong with him?" Bina asked, trying to reach towards the Makuhita.

Said Pokemon flinched and tried to move closer to Wally, who muttered words to try and soothe him.

"We found this guy cowering in a grass patch over there," Steven replied pointing to an area behind him. "Turns out that he was abandoned by an abusive trainer. Wally was able to get across to him and catch him, but it seems like he only wants to be held by Wally."

"So, I'll carry this guy around until he's comfortable enough with all of you," Wally explained, giving everyone a small smile.

The others nodded in agreement and decided to continue on their way towards Meteor Falls. Arriete began to take lead, while the others fell in behind her. Bina tried to get closer to Makuhita, Wally helping while following after Arriete. Behind them, Larance and Steven walked side by side in silence. Larance cleared his throat to get Steven's attention.

"Um...sorry about what happened...you know...back there," Larance muttered, rubbing his arms. "I shouldn't have walked away like that. I was just-"

"Upset."

Larance looked up at the silver-haired man in surprise, while said man just gave him a warm smile. He sighed before continuing to speak.

"It must be horrible to not know who your dad is," Steven frowned. "I can't break my promise to them. I want to. I really do, but I can't." He shook his head as if he was trying to get rid of voices that were in his head. "I'll feel horrible. But, I can tell you one thing: you will most likely meet him really soon."

Larance's heart sank. That's it? That was all the Champion could tell him? He felt tears brimming in his eyes, but he quickly blinked them away. At least he knew that he would finally find his dad again after ten whole years. He took a shaky breath before nodding. Steven gave him a small smile and placed a hand on his shoulder.