Four Paws and A Tale

Chapter 4: Jacob

I didn't dream, just slept, soundly, and I woke to the warmth of the sun. Stretching, I moved around the cavern, deciding to let my Vulpix friend sleep. This place is well hidden. I have to wonder, was it natural or did someone dig it out?

A small and hidden tunnel on the surface lead downwards into the cavern, of which one side backed onto solid rock, the other opening out of the cliff face to look across the ocean, but it was too high up for anyone to see in from the water. Huh, I guess, if you were in the water and looked up at it, it would look like a Sharpedo, which means, I am currently living in the mouth of a carnivore. I'm starting to question my life choices.

I'm questioning other things too, like how did I get here? Why am I here? Yes, Jacob this is the perfect moment to have an existential crisis, really well done, good on you.

I sighed and looked down at the shimmering water, ..., shimmering, shimmering! That's it! Before I woke up here I had a dream. That voice asked if I was a friend and if I would help it and I said... yes.

So, a Pokémon distorted reality, asked for help and then brought me here. Perhaps, it was to deal with what Pixie told me about. Palkia, Palkia can control space, it could have brought me here! If that's true and Palkia did bring me here, it must have been for a specific purpose, that only I can fulfil, but what?

I was sitting between the stalagmites that formed the Sharpedo's bottom teeth and miserably trying to find an answer to my question, when a paw to the back of my head caused me to stumble and fall, landing partially out over the bluff. Only my shoulders catching on Sharpedo's teeth stopped me from falling to my death.

I looked back terrified and saw Pixie ready to push me over the edge.

"I see no evidence that you violated any of my rules, but I still don't see reason to trust you. I can push you off the cliff or I can let you go, but what proof do I have that you won't sell me out to save your own skin?"

The look on her face was bored, she couldn't care less. She was willing to go through with this.

"Are you serious? Why would I tell anyone, this was my only safe place, at least until you almost killed me! If you were going to kill me why let me stay here in the first place?"

She stood back and allowed me to pull myself back into the cave. I straightened my fur and huffed before shooting her a glare. She just glared back, before it was replaced with a sad frown which softened my own death stare.

"What are you gonna do? If I kick you out I mean."

I stared at Pixie in surprise.

"Well, I'll probably get eaten alive, it's a Pokémon eat Pokémon world out there."

She nodded gravely at that.

"I guess, I'll search, I mean you said not all Pokémon have gone crazy, just most of them, so, somewhere there must be a Pokémon or two, trying to work out what went wrong and fix it, right?"

Her hanging mouth formed a small 'O' shape as she now stared at me in surprise. It was cute at first but now, it's starting to get creepy, I had to break the silence.

"What?"

"Why?"

"Why what?"

"Ugh, you woke up, in the middle of a forest with no memory, you almost get eaten, then I tell you the world has hurt itself in confusion, then I almost push you off a cliff, then you get up and decide 'Hey, I'm gonna save the world!', why? What reason do you have?"

"Well, you're right I don't remember anything (sorry for lying), and I don't know much (that ain't a lie, I'm not very smart), but I do know this, you fight for what you believe in right? Me, I've never really believed in myself, but I believe in others, and their ability to do what is right." (Now as original as it may be that just sounds corny)

"Ha, wow, you know what, for split second I respected you, and then you explained yourself."

"What?! You asked me too!"

"Ha, please, never explain yourself, your friends don't need it, and your enemies won't believe it."

"Oh, yeah, and which of those are you?"

"I don't care about you, we aren't friends, you saved me, I let you stay the night, we're even, you fight for what you believe in, I only ever believed in one thing and that was the Stoutland who raised me, my one friend, who died years ago..."

"If you truly believed in him, then you would fight for what he believed in, which was more than hiding away in a cave!"

"How would you know?"

"I know because he raised you!"

...

...

"Get out."

My ears drooped, and my tail sagged, I walked slowly to the tunnel stopping at the entrance, I couldn't leave things like this, turning my head slightly.

"Take care Pixie."

I could hear her quiet sobs, they matched the pitter-patter of my heart as I left.

The breeze kissed my face as I resurfaced, I sat on the edge of the cliff for a few moments, why did this hurt so bad? She was just a Vulpix, a random Pokémon I met after being mistakenly brought to this world.

Was it because she claimed not to care? For a while there I thought she was my first friend in this world or maybe she reminded me of someone, someone I had to get back home too.

Either way she was my first friend and my last one, I can't let myself make friends. Palkia brought me here to help it, once I solve the problem, I can go home. I'll leave this world behind, my friends, knowing I was causing them pain, that I couldn't bear, so I'll have to fight on my own, again... With that I steeled my heart and walked away.

A sad heart is a heavy heart and cannot bear much burden alone, this journey, only a light heart could see it through, a heavy heart, it's cure? Why that changes depending on the person. Will our Hero alchemise his heart or perhaps, the stone that weighs it down, is too heavy, even for more than one?