In Spikemuth

Remember

Marnie wailed in a little tantrum, crying about the loss of her parents. Sure, she probably shouldn't have wandered off without Piers or mummy and daddy, but she couldn't help but follow the intriguing red glow of the mine next to them! 

"Marnie? Marnie! Where've you gone?" Marnie heard mummy call down the tunnel. Marnie started to wail harder, wanting her mum to find her and take her home. She eventually saw her mummy's high-heels and pink skirt so began to cry a little less as she was picked up. She buried her face into mummy's shoulder and continued to cry. Her mummy hushed her and stroked her black hair, 

"It's okay, I'm here now, Marnie," she said and held Marnie's wet face. Marnie saw her mummy's soothing green eyes and gripped onto the bangle around the pale wrist holding Marnie up on her hip. She managed to grab it off of mummy and hide it behind her back. 

"Mama!" she wailed and hugged mummy's neck, "I'm sorry for wandering off! I got lost and I couldn't find you!" Mummy didn't seem angry. Instead, she was calm and hushed Marnie with her angelic voice. 

"It's okay, but you have to remember you can't come in without someone older than you! Like your brother. At least he's eleven, but you're only five, I'm afraid," she said. Marnie nodded and continued to hug her mummy as she was carried out of the caves and into the blinding outside world, but not before Marnie cleverly hid the bracelet on one of the cave walls so that only she could find it. That way, when she was eleven, she could come in and find it again. 

Marnie looked up at mummy and smiled, 

"You'll always be there to find me when I need help, right, mummy?" she asked, her cheeks still red from crying. Mummy smiled at Marnie and stroked her cheek, 

"I may not always be there when you need me, which is why sometimes you have to come and find me," she whispered and planted a kiss on Marnie's forehead. Marnie smiled and leaned her head against her mummy's warm shoulder.

"I will, promise," she whispered. 

~

Marnie wandered through the caves, and could barely remember where her five-year-old self had wandered too. She tried to crouch down and get into the perspective of a toddler, which made Morpeko confused. The sound of drilling, smashing rocks and chipping crystals was driving Marnie insane. 

She began storming around until eventually she wandered into a network of tunnels and found herself lost. 

"UGH! This thing is exhausting!" she stamped her foot. Morpeko looked up with a worried expression. Marnie didn't notice. Her hands balled into fists and she punched the wall. A crystal smashed by her fist, and wild Scraggy's scampered toward it to steal away the shards on the ground. Marnie looked at her bruised fist. It felt good. 

She began punching and kicking the tight walls on both sides, making her way down the tunnel until she hit a dead end with a beautiful red glow. She continued to throw her fists and her kicks. Her Morpeko squeaked as if he were scared of Marnie before eventually he broke out into his Hangry form and began destroying the caves along with her. A mass of Scraggy began swarming their feet and stealing all the gems. Marnie smashed a massive rock with a high kick from her leather boot, and she noticed a gold bracelet with pink decorations fall to the ground. Her heart stopped. She noticed a Scraggy snatch it up and start bolting away. 

Marnie had to snape back to reality, 

"Hey! You stole my mum!" she yelled and chased after it, Morpeko eventually following. She chased the Scraggy down the tunnels and into a network where Marnie could barely see. She spotted a torch on the ground and turned it on with the flick of a switch. The light began flickering just enough to see the Scraggy turn a corner and scamper away. 

"Hey!" she shouted and ran after it, Morpeko- now in his full belly mode- squeaked for Marnie to wait for him, but understood that this was important to her. He smiled, knowing that there was a possibility to help Marnie and make her happy. 

Marnie managed to chase the Scraggy into a dead end and a surge of triumph washed over Marnie. Morpeko caught up to Marnie and immediately got into hangry mode. 

"Morpeko! Use Thunder Shock!" she cried and pointed at the Scraggy. Morpeko rubbed his cheeks and sent a giant thunderbolt the Scraggy's way, immediately knocking it out. Marnie dropped to her knees in front of it and began rummaging around in the pokemon's pockets frantically until eventually, she managed to pull the golden bangle out. 

She stared at it for a moment. It's pink and floral engraved pattern reminded her of her mother, with her constant scent of cherry blossoms and how she always wore pink dresses and tied her white hair up in a beehive with a pink ribbon. She turned it to see her mother's initials scratched into it in the same green that Marnie remembered looking into whenever she looked up at her mother's beautiful green eyes. She slipped it around her wrist and it slithered underneath her jacket, making her smile slightly, knowing a piece of her parents was with her. She looked back at Morpeko, who was eating and turned into his full bell mode. 

"We found my mum, Peko," she whispered, "now if I fail, I'll still have her. I found her, Peko." Morpeko smiled and squeaked in happiness. She looked upward as if she was staring through the cavern's ceiling, 

"Now you'll be there when I get lost, right, mama?" she whispered to herself. She felt tears welling in her eyes. Not looking away, she dropped a Pokeball to the Scraggy, immediately, it chimed. She reached down and picked it back up, then buckled it to her belt. She smiled at the ball weakly, 

"I guess you love her as much as I do, huh?" 

Morpeko squeaked in happiness but didn't get a smile from Marnie. Marnie turned to Morpeko, 

"Thank you," she said. Morpeko squeaked in delight and happily returned to his Pokeball. Marnie began following her flickery torch light down the dark cave to get back to Turffield and back to Wedgehurst. 

And then the light flickered dead.