Junkarts

“And- And the humans that live here!” The Bidoof puffs his cheeks and dramatically points to his chest in triumph. “They’re all scared of a simple- er, mighty Bidoof like me! It’s dangerous going near their colony though, too many wooden sticks and metal claws to hit you with.”

Lucas winces. That didn’t sound too pleasant.

“They s-seem mighty scared of the poison types like you, yup-yup.” He continues. “Maybe the humans are weak to poison like the fairy’s and other forest dwellers?”

That was even worse! It was a good thing he escaped before it got worse then!

“M-Maybe you’ll have a better chance w-with the humans in the smaller colonies?”

Lucas blinks, looking up hopefully at his new friend. More villages?

Bidoof notices his gaze, and once more puffs his cheeks. “M- The matriarch of our colony said that these smaller human colonies have been here for a very long t-time, so long that the matriarchs before her doesn’t remember. I-I heard they are more tolerant of us Pokemon, and don’t use th-those strange balls. O-Of course, they maintain their territory with iron fists, b-but as long as you don’t threaten them, and appear harmless, y-you should be allowed to enter them.”

With another puff, Bidoof reaches down for an Oran Berry and eats it in one swift bite, leaving Lucas a brief moment to consider his options.

“Where... Might one find one of these colonies?”

“U-Uh. I...” He pauses. Thinking. “There’s a colony in the wetlands, past the mountains over there. I think our matriarch knows that land, there’s several Biberal and Bidoof colonies over there. It’s very wet, and dangerous. But- But I know a lot of Budew live there, so maybe you have a better chance looking for what you need. And-” He points, this time past the the village. “Over there. Past the fields and follow the water... But its deep in the mountains of never ending ice and hail, and its... It’s dangerous.”

“How dangerous?”

“Beasts that control illusions live there, Pokemon that freeze you to the very bone. There is little warmth and for us, its a land of death and desolation. But perhaps, the human colony there can help you survive. A-Apparently some of my kind live among the humans there, but... It’s scary, and chances of acceptance in a land like that, especially for those of Grass, its fatal.”

...How unpleasant. Lucas feels as if he should know that area though... Mountains. Snow... Point?

Nothing else comes to him though, and he shakes his body in frustration. “So, to the wetlands?”

“Yup-yup! It’s your best bet friend, and maybe if they recognise that human thingie on your bud, they’ll be ecstatic to help you out!”

Perhaps so, it would be great if anyone could help him figure out the significance of this scarf- Wait hold on.

“Wait, what do you mean ecstatic to help me out? Recognise the symbol on my scarf you mean?”

“Uh, you don’t know?”

They both stare at each other, Bidoof with disbelief and Lucas with exasperation. Even the nearby cries of Starly was not enough to distract the young Budew, and Bidoof, upon realising that this youngling was being serious, suddenly has his face erupt into that resembling a smile.

“It- It’s the mark of our almighty creator! The one who created the universe, time, space, and all of its children! And these two colonies worship the child creators of time and space! We all know of them, its in our blood!”

“I-I... Don’t have blood?”

Why out of everything he could say, he decided to say the dumbest thing possible?

“But that’s... Hm, Budew don’t bleed? Oh, never mind that, let me educate you then, young Lucas! The story told through our colony for generations and generations!” 

With that, Bidoof begins to dramatically tell his story. His voice lowering, perhaps to find the perfect tone for his tales.

“Once upon a time... Nothing existed. Time didn’t flow, space didn’t mend. A void, yet not quite. Some say it was pure silence, a place where nothing existed, but others say it was a sea of chaos, crawling out of the void with no purpose or reason. But then, as if logic finally came to be, something formed. An egg of radiant colours. The egg hatched, and The Orginal One was born and created our world and the universe after it.  The light our Creator emitted brought life to the land, and gave birth to time and space, manifesting into two deities that governed existence. Then Our Creator formed a chrysalis, and left, leaving behind Mew and our beloved Hisui to birth and nurture us all.”

It was strange. Hearing the nervous stutter in Bidoof’s voice fade as he told his story. But Lucas listened with intent regardless. This was information he needed to know.

Plus... It scratched the itch in his brain  he did not recognise. Yet... He remembers something. Reading in a library with a blonde haired man, who impatiently hopped about for him to finish reading folklore.

The memory fades. And Lucas wanted to cry.

“Skipping over the other details, other legends were created and decided to move on from Hisui. Humans, another strange creation from Our Creator, lived here and began to worship Time and Space itself, whom they called Almighty Sinnoh. But they fought. They fought a lot. None could accept that Our Creator created only one. ‘Almighty Sinnoh created time itself!’. ‘No! Almighty Sinnoh created space!’ But... Ever since that large colony came by, the fighting seemed to have ceased. For now anyway. And well... That’s it in a n-nutshell.”

“I... I see! Thank you for telling me this! That was fascinating!”

“Aww, shucks, your making this Bidoof blush!” Bidoof blinks, then gasps as if remembering something. “Of course, that’s the short version! And I find it interesting how the other colonies have altered versions! Like in the wetlands! The Bidoof colony there believe that chaos ruled while we believe, and have proof, that silence ruled the nothingness before the Original One was born. Some of them even believe in the ‘Eye of God’.”

“...Eye..?”

The world around him blurs.

“Yeah! Like some other Original One, born in the chaos and ruled over it!”

Eye.

Eye.

Eye.

There... Wasn’t there something there when he was summoned by Arceus? A red eye, with emotion he could not see?

He does not remember.

“Hey-hey! Are you okay? You look like you’re about to wilt!”

“S-Sorry, just thinking! Um, do you have anymore legends you can tell me?”

The light in Bidoof’s eyes shone so bright, Lucas could only squint at the large Pokemon before him.

“Yup! We have the Gods of Land and Sea, the Primal creations, Tales of Mew- Oh! A personal favourite of mine is that of the Colossal that shaped the continents and created the golem’s of ice, rock and steel! How about that?”

“Go ahead!”

Why could he feel something was wrong all of a sudden? Like something was crawling under his skin? 

Like something was watching him?

“Like many Budew and other grass types, floral patterns are common on their body, spiral-like patterns of dark green that cover the skin...” Professor Laventon explains to the girl. Lucas listens in as he eats his berry, curious. “As far as we are aware, these are completely cosmetic. They don’t serve a real recognisable purpose. We used to think it was apart of photosynthesis, but deeper research into it says it isn’t so.

“So... It’s useless?” “Perhaps its to help find partners, the more striking the patterns, the more attractive the future Roselia and Roserades are. Of course, this is hypothetical. We need more research on Budew in particular.”

At that, Lucas chirps in delight, and the professor chuckles softly.

“Thankfully, our special Budew can help with that! We already have a better understanding on how they release their paralyzing and poisonous spores... Although I am not sure why this Budew in particular uses Absorb the way it does... Or that strange ability with the sunlight. Oh, well, perhaps I can ask his trainer if we ever find them.”

 Lucas almost wants to scoff. That was going to be a lot harder than they’d think. Considering he was his own trainer.

- Do the humans in the Pokemon world have RC Cells?? For the sake of the story and my sanity, yes. Let’s pretend its an undiscovered bit of the body for now.

- Ingo isn’t quite good at masking his human food munching, especially in front of his brother who always makes sure he’s alright due to his ‘sickness’. He’s figured out a way to swallow small bits of food and pretend to chew nothing, but he’s only capable doing this with basic sandwiches and the like, anything with too much flavour will likely just make him sick on the spot. Although Emmet will try and stop him from eating if he keeps being sick.

- Emmet clings to him, a lot. He’s pretty much suffering from a severe case of separation anxiety. It makes sneaking out difficult.

- Emmet probably saw this mysterious Cannibal for himself while looking for Ingo. Traumatised him? A bit. But he became determined to find them no matter what.

- The Pokemon Centre Ingo was at when he first arrived were quite concerned when his arm healed back up in a few hours even when it should have been unsalvageable. 

- Oh boy, when he slowly got into his old life again, Ingo became quickly aware of the fact that Gear Station was pretty much occupied by large amount of people every day. He’s usually alright, but when he gets slightly peckish he cannot stop drooling nor control his Kakugan. Which is why he sometimes wears an eye-patch.

- Ingo, probably a side effect of rarely eating back in Hisui, gets hungry a bit quicker than other ghouls do. And his ‘darker self’ likes to entertain the idea of binge eating.

- He also discovers coffee being edible like... A month later? Hoards jars of the stuff it to the point it has its own drawer.

- When was the first time Ingo activated his Kagune? It’s either a) an epic battle against some thugs trying to cart away stolen Pokemon from the city, probably some Team Rocket dudes, and upon being led to believe his brother was badly injured, activated it in desperation and rage. or b) he stubbed his toe too hard on his bed one day and the tail came out on instinct.

- Although he never admits it, Ingo does have a meat preference, younger men, about early 20′s. He’s a bit picky too. Not fond of hearts or brains. He loves the lower loin and crackling (basically cooked the skin during a mental break down and broke down further when he realised, oh fuck, this tastes good.) and he freaking loves ribs and a certain part of the back that he imagines is akin to a bbq steak. honestly, the man might have ended up as a gourmet in another ghoul au. might even try and sneak some meat in to cook at home, but his sanity isn’t quite gone yet and he really doesn’t want Emmet accidentally eating it.

- Ingo’s ‘Cooking Humans for Dummies Book’ is entertained.

- (He’ll especially never admit that his brother smells a lot more appetising than the others.)

- Ingo is absolutely stronger than he used to be, even more so with his Kagune, which lets him able to fight fully evolved Pokemon like Krookadile without assistance. 

- He also feels awkward around his brother, who sorta decided to hunt down the Cannibal and invited his brother to join him.

- Ingo gets two masks. The first one was an altered gentlemen mask he stole from Nimbasa’s Theatre. The second? Well, he really needed a new mask, that old one barely covered the more unique features of his face that Emmet could absolutely spot if he gets close enough. Both only show one eye, which is his kakugan eye.

- This also means his depth perception gets a bit jank. How many times has Ingo run into a Stop sign? Yes.

- He also gets a black cloak/robe to wear. Maybe even stole or pulled strings for a voice modifier. 

- Muscle memory is a pain. Especially when your Naruto running away from your brother, who in turn is Naruto running after you like some Lupin the Third episode.

- Ever since the first meal, his sanity has sloooowly been crumbling. His mission is cure himself of this ‘curse’ but he starts to fear that its not possible. He hates (enjoys) being a ghoul and decides that if he begins to teeter on sanity’s edge, he’ll vanish from the public for good. As much as he fears on leaving Emmet alone, he despairs at the thought of the last of Emmet’s mind breaking at the revelation that the brother he loved and looked up to was behind such atrocious acts. It’s better that he remembers Ingo for who he used to be, before he unravelled into this and tarnish that memory forever.

- Ingo does notice the empty bottles of alcohol as well as rarer strange white bottles that rattle that he finds in certain spots of the apartment, he remembers the first one he found that Emmet quickly hid as if he would be greatly ashamed if his brother found out. He never talked about it, but always reminded him that if he was ever ready, Ingo would be all ears.

- That last bit is probably why Ingo’s scared of the revelation. If Emmet finds out about him, he’d likely just... Break. But if he leaves with no warning, Emmet would probably descend back into despair. He’s stuck in a hard place.

- Ingo isn’t sure if his Pokemon are aware of his ‘hunts’, but he feels like Chandelure knows. 

- Although it isn’t really possible, if Ingo ever somehow develops a Kakuja... Well, he’ll probably be as sane as Centipede Kaneki is. AKA, not very sane at all.

- Will Emmet ever accept Ingo as a ghoul..? Well, guess that depends :) 

Ingo does not recognise the room. 

A relatively large living room that gives Ingo a sense of comfort as he looks around, yet it doesn’t give him the sensation of home that it apparently should do nor does it quite give him the feeling that this should belong to a powerful and rich individual. It was more of a simple home within Jubilife, more technologically advanced with a flat-screen TV on the opposite end of a settee and coffee table.

Spotless too, not a single spec of dust on the desk that held pictures and strange trophies on top. 

“Well?” Emmet smiles, although Ingo could feel his apprehension and the strain on his expression and watches his amnesiac brother walk over to the desk. “It’s verrrry comfortable, just like it was before you left.” 

He doesn’t respond. 

“Brother?”

Ingo remains silent for a while longer. He feels as if he should recognise these things. Yet the picture of two identical boys that resemble them holding up a badge with a Litwick and a Joltick on their shoulders doesn’t even bring a tug of emotion. A trophy depicting a Pokeball with the words ‘Unova Champions’ also doesn’t bring anything, nor do the medals. Nor does the strange white bottle near it that feels out of place even when it rattles as Emmet hastily takes it away as if it was some shameful thing.

The boys in the picture must have been them when they were younger, he thinks. The resemblance was close and the slight pang of pain in his chest makes him feel awful that he doesn’t feel what he should do. A flicker of happiness, or even a memory.

But no fragment fell.

“This is…”

“Ah! This was long before we became Subway Masters!” Emmet  looks over and lifts up the picture of the twins when they were young. “See? Our verrrry first gym badge, using only our Litwick and Joltik!”

“Could… You explain this?”

“Hm? Of course! When we were young, we wanted to create a unique variation of the Battle Frontier you might see in other regions. So, we both decided to challenge the Unova League. It was verrrry hard, but it was worth it. And this was our first victory in Striaton!”

“And this?”

“The trophy when we both beat the champion! Of course we gave up the title as that wasn’t the true goal but our records still show our capable qualities!”

The champion? He voices his question.

“The strongest trainer within the region! A part of the league challenge where people can fight the best of the best on a journey across Unova in hopes of claiming the title of champion. And the both of us won!”

“I…See.”

The void in his chest tightens as Emmet continues to explain, his voice becoming static and alien to him.

He doesn’t remember.

Why can’t he remember?!

The fragments would always come when encountering something familiar, even if many were shattered and he was forced to pick up the pieces. Yet for some reason, all of the evidence he was a living person outside the Pearl Clan, the family he still had outside of Hisui, didn’t bring a single memory to him. Only widening the void in his heart further and further until he feels sick and tired.

Why?

“Ingo?”

Why why?

“Ingo? Are you okay?”

Why why why?

“You look- Brother!”

The world around him blurs and spins, becoming weightless and it begins to crumble around him. He hears something in his ear. What is it?

Why why why why?

“Breathe, please breathe! Like we used to back when we were young before a gym battle!”

“I- I must sit down-”

“Here!”

Eventually Ingo feels something soft underneath him and snaps back to reality. His ‘brother’ was- no, don’t think that, there’s solid evidence that he’s your brother, stares at him quietly and carefully rests him down on the settee. The face Emmet makes when Ingo adverts his gaze makes him tingle and he can’t help flinching when he notices something else.

“...Emmet?”

“Hm?! Y-Yes?”

“Why do… Why do you smell so sweet?”

“...P- Pardon?”

A scent unlike anything else, no, a fragment falls, perfectly into his palms. Like mother’s home cooking, back when the both of them were young and mother was the only person in their life who truly loved them. She’d make them meals, always trying to make sure the texture was never overwhelming or too different, yet making sure they both ate their veggies. How she’d scold him for eating like he hadn’t eaten before, so Emmet wouldn’t take after him and make a mess. That’s what the smell reminded him of.

“You… Smell like home.” He mutters, trying to find his words. “Back when mother used to cook for us when father left. You were always in love with the macaroni and cheese-”

“-Because it was just right.” Emmet finishes softly, his expression soft and slightly pained. The memory makes his hands shake, and Ingo has to breathe deeply into his knuckles to calm himself. Sewaddle (when did he come out of the ball?) nudges his thigh gently in concern. “I was never fond of much else and unfortunately, I cannot live on a diet of mac and cheese no matter how much one wills it. Sadly, we are not trains that can survive on one food source.” 

He chuckles. Poor mother had a struggling battle to make Emmet eat anything else. His brother looks at him hopefully and Ingo feels… Something.

Ingo frowns. The smell lingers and it makes his stomach growl. Strange, he sniffs the air, why did he smell like that? In fact, it was a similar smell other people had, yet Emmet’s was stronger. More appetising. 

“Ah, are you hungry brother?” Emmet suddenly asks and practically launches off his seat. “No worries! We’ll have your favourite, a well deserved reward for everything I would say! And as much as you want!”

“Th-Thank you Emmet.”

Ingo cannot help but be disappointed when the smell fades as Emmet disappears into another room with a happy smile on his face.

...

“Chandelure! Stop trying to hog him for yourself!”

Their Pokemon crowded the room, all lingering in celebration and Sewaddle perched on his head (he recalls a time when his partner would do the same) and hungrily eyeing the meal in front of him. It look gorgeous, well prepared. It was clear Emmet put a lot of work into it. Chandelure too, with psychic abilities to assist and fake knives taped to its arms that it waves and flutters happily around it's trainer proud of the food it helped make.

So why did he feel nervous looking at it like it was going to jump alive and kill him?

“Here you Ingo, just the way you enjoyed it!”

Just the way he enjoyed it…

He makes himself comfortable before tasting mashed rotten worm and clay with the aftertaste of vomit with the texture of something utterly indescribable. Combining to become an unholy mix of disgust that burned his throat and made his eyes water.

“I-Ingo? What-”

No, he needs to eat. He’s been unable to eat anything since waking up, not doing so was unhealthy.

Yet as he bites down a particularly soft piece, Ingo can’t stop himself and suddenly there’s panicked cries as his vision blurs and throat burns with acid. He feels something rub his back, a flame occupy his eyes and something press against his forehead in alarm.

(Biting your finger will just make you hungrier Ingo.)

(Look, they’re even offering their coat to you… How naive.)

‘I need to leave, I need to leave immediately, I must be strong and halt myself be…cause…’

Ingo freezes. His mind trails off after ‘because’…

“Mister? Here, we can get you to the-”

…

Ingo gulps, and feels the refreshing warmth fall down his throat.

“Ingo!” His mother would scold. “Look at you, wolfing down your food like that, you must set a good example to Emmet!”

But this was so good, he didn’t care what anyone thought of him in that moment.

Something is clinging onto his arm.

Breathing. Harsh, painful breathing.

He looks down, glassy eyes look back.

Tear tracks on its cheek shone in the dim moonlight.

A face he does not recognise.

The breathing slowed.

His heart freezes and his vision blurs.

“I’m sorry I- I’m so sorry-”