Finding Truth Amongst The Lies

Chapter 43: Serena's POV

I could not even believe how cold it had gotten. We were less than two miles from Snowpoint City now and everything was covered in a layer of white, fluffy snow. I had thought Bree was exaggerating when she said it was always cold in Snowpoint, even during the summer, but I had been proven wrong. All of my pokemon were safely hidden away in their Pokeballs and I had my fuzzy hat crammed as far down my head as I could manage. There were no flying types singing in these snow covered pines and I wondered why anyone would voluntarily live in this frigid cold.

"You know, this may be a good place for Absol to live," Bree remarked off-handedly, looking around while humming softly. I stumbled in the snow, barely keeping my balance before I face-planted into the white fluff.

"Y-you think?" I asked and I felt like my heart was about to stop. 

Absol was still anti-social, but he had started to take timid steps out of his shell with helping Shinx learn Magnet Rise. He may not join in when we were playing games or anything, but he was always close by. I couldn't help but admit that I felt safer knowing that he was near.

"Sure. Hardly anyone actually lives up here. You get some trainers coming to get the gym badge and the occasional people wanting to evolve their Eevee into Glaceon... but this is a quiet place. And the people of Snowpoint are very respectful towards pokemon," Bree explained as we continued trudging through the snow. Although Bree didn't seem fazed by the detestable substance.

I fell silent as I contemplated her words. Obviously, she had a point. This was the first place we had been to that was far enough away from everything to not have to worry about Absol running into superstitious trainers again. It wasn't like I had forgotten my promise to find him a safe new home... but I also hadn't been actively looking either.

"Unless... you were planning on keeping him?" Bree asked, looking at me with a smile. I blinked in surprise then felt my shoulders slump and I slowly shook my head.

"No. I made a promise to Absol that I would take him somewhere he could be safe. A promise is a promise. I can't betray him by selfishly expecting him to stay with me," I said, feeling miserable as the words fell from my lips. Bree regarded me with an expression I couldn't quite read, but she patted my shoulder in silent support and continued to forge on.

My toes were nearly numb by the time we finally reached Snowpoint City and I was fairly certain the tip of my nose was two minutes from simply falling off. Bree encouraged me with promises of hot chocolate and her sister's homemade gingersnap cookies, which kept me trudging through the horrid snow. I wanted to cry from relief when we finally got to her small house in a quaint little neighborhood with a view of the local Pokemon Gym.

Bree's sister Samantha could have been Bree's twin. When she opened the door I actually did a double take. Once they had separated from their squealing hug, though, I realized that Samantha had the same brown eyes as Theresa instead of Bree's green. She was also an inch or two shorter than her younger sister which helped to further distinguish them.

"It's so nice to meet you, Serena! Please come in, you must be freezing after walking all the way here," Samantha urged while ushering us both into her warm home and setting us up in the living room. 

I settled back in the comfy cushions with a mug of hot chocolate to warm my hands and was perfectly content to listen quietly as the two sisters caught up. When Samantha's husband Robby came home early that afternoon it made me happy to see that they were just as affectionate as Bree's parents were; sitting close together and holding each other's hands on the couch as they talked to Bree.

When their discussion turned to pokemon, Bree was quick to release Whimsicott and Ampharos and she urged me to release my pokemon as well. I was hesitant to bring out Milotic since she was over 6 feet long now that she was evolved, but to my surprise, Samantha confessed that her favorite pokemon was Milotic and she had always wanted to see one in person. Soon everyone but Absol was out and mingling.