ﾟ･☆ stars ☆･ﾟ

“Thats fine. If you want to go straight home, I’ll walk you there myself if you want. At least till we get out of this part of the city. I’m the second in commands little sister, so they wont bother you if your with me. At least HOMRA wont.”

“Are you sure? My brothers best friend like, owns the area and they can be violent sometimes. Nothing too bad, but still..” She shrugged her shoulders. “It’s not a problem at all. I’m a high school student, so I know how much of asshats people can be.”

“You look tired.” Hikari leaned over, looking over the, seemingly younger girl in front of her with a smile. “My brother owns a bar not to far from here, why don’t you come get something to eat and I’ll walk you home afterwards?” Hikari was told she had a big heart, she wouldn’t leave anyone in need of a little help. 

“I’m glad to see your okay.” She put one hand on her head, Hikari sighed hearing the shakey words from the smallers lips. “The bus huh? Where were you going?”

“Hey.” She poked the others shoulder, a blank expression plastered on her face. “Are you okay?”

♕  FELIX NODDED, SMILING vibrantly beneath the tape. Then, with a touch as light as a feather, they placed one hand on Jay’s shoulder, and another upon her waist.

          They began to waltz.

     Jay found herself tensing up and jumping at Felix’s touch, no matter how light it was. And as their hand rested upon her waist, she went on high alert. 

          What on earth... Dancing?

♕  SOMETHING WAS STIRRING in Felix’s gut; it snapped its unearthly maw at its chains, growling. It wanted to be set free so that it could eat. But Felix refused. They tightened the tape binding their lips and walked on.

         { Nothing is wrong.            Everything is fine. }

         Quite suddenly, a dizzy spell overcame the vessel.          They stumbled, tripped, and fell. Blood dripped down          their nose from where it had hit the concrete.

         { Nothing is fine.            Everything is wrong. }

         A hand was placed in front of Felix’s face. Felix looked          up at it, shocked. Then, after a moment or two more          of staring, they grabbed the pinky and hoisted          themselves up. Thank you, they signed. Needed help.          Glad you were here.

     Jay’s smile turned to a frown all too quickly. “O-Oh, u-um...” She watched Felix’s signing and tried to figure out what it meant, but, of course... “I-I’m sorry. I-I don’t know sign language...” She tilted her head slightly to the side and gave Felix a little smile. 

     There were scars on Edward’s face. Three grossly huge claw marks marred his left cheek. They trailed down from his eye and touched his chin. The other side, the right side, was clearer–however, there were still white marks on his eyebrow, slicing it into halves.

     His eyes were no longer gold. They were grey, not silver. They were dull and still healing. Edward wanted to itch them, but Nurse Joy had sternly told him not to, and so he didn’t. 

     He didn’t want to add to his injuries.

     “Where’s Al?” he asked. His voice was uncharacteristically quiet; it was almost inaudible. “And mom? Weren’t they supposed to follow you here? I remember somethin’ like that…”

     When Jay brushed his bangs of his face, Edward plastered on a smile. But when she spoke, it fell off his face. “Aw, c’mon–you ain’t got nothin’ to apologize for.” 

     Edward was alone. He was alone in caring for Al, his mom, and himself. That way, he was not a burden. He had Pokemon, but he was their trainer; he was responsible for them; it wasn’t the other way around. That way, he was not a burden.

     But maybe he had been lying to himself. 

     Tears welled in Edward’s eyes. They stung. 

     Maybe he deserved a helping hand. Maybe he deserved a break.

     The tears streamed down his face. They dripped onto the blanket.

     Without a word, Edward wrapped his arms around Jay’s waist and buried his face into her chest. The world crashed around him. But this time, he was not alone.

     Even in this state, Edward still worried for others and not himself. It stunned Jay. But she responded, nonetheless. “T-They showed up a little while after you went under, a-and spent some time in the lobby w-with me. I explained k-kinda what h-happened, even though I-I’m still not sure of t-that, and Al’s not mad at me anymore...I t-think they’re still out there, b-but it’s really early in the morning now, and...I think they said that they’d c-come visit you later today...” Because they didn’t want to make you worry about them. They wanted you to worry about yourself. “A-Al said it was better t-that way.”

     Jay knew that there was nothing to apologize for. But she was sorry. For what happened, that she couldn’t help him more, that she couldn’t save his eyesight. 

     She flinched when Edward’s arms came around her waist, but she did not push him away. That was okay. He needed her, and Jay was happy for him to lean on her. She wrapped her arms around him, and pulled him up a little to hug him better. 

     Edward’s breaths were shallow but steady. His hands were balled into fists and gripping the blanket with as much force as a vice. He wasn’t in any pain because of the morphine, but he knew it would come eventually. However, pain was the least of his problems–that, he knew for certain.

     The Zangoose had gotten its gold; it had stolen his eyes from him. Edward didn’t allow himself to cry. The sadness was still there, though. And the loss weighed heavily on his chest. Dammit, was all he could think. Dammit, dammit, dammit! 

     He should have been stronger; he shouldn’t have let that Pokemon get the better of him.

     When Jay walked into the room, Edward shied away from her. But then he heard her sniffle, and felt her sorrow permeate the air, and slowly scooted closer. Then, he reached out and, after some fumbling, brushed a lock of hair out of her face. “Hey,” he said. “Don’t cry. Everything’s gonna be all right.”

     Jay had closed her eyes in the time that Edward had moved, but when his fingers brushed her face, they shot wide open again. “No,” she said, voice quiet and hoarse. “Y-You stop t-trying to comfort m-me. I-It’s you who needs it, not...m-me.”

     She stood from her chair, and moved to sit on the bed beside him. Then, she brushed some hair out of his face. “L-Listen, okay? I-I’m sorry...” She fumbled for words, something, anything to comfort him. “Y-You’ll be okay...I p-promise, alright? B-Bolt and I will h-help you, you know...” she hiccuped through her tears. “Everything’s g-going to be okay...okay? W-We’ll figure it out, t-together, y’know?”

     “Come on!” she whined, stutter forgotten for a moment as she tried to get into Edward’s hospital room. “Please let me in to see him. P-Please?” 

     “Are you family?” Nurse Joy asked her, and Jay replied, “M-Might as well be!” The nurse shook her head, but opened the door for her anyway. With Bolt in tow, and a thankful nod of the head, she entered the room. 

     Edward did not reply. How am I supposed to do that? he wondered. It’s kind of impossible! Edward bit his lip. It tasted like iron, and clouded his thoughts, which turned to what would happen next. He couldn’t see the future, but he believed in Jay, and so some of his worries were quelled.

     The doors to the Pokemon Center flung open. Nurse Joy looked up from her desk, startled. “I’m sorry,” she began to say, “but we’re closed. The emergency center is next door–”

     Edward turned towards her voice. His bloody eyes bored into her own wide, startled ones. “We don’t have time for that,” he said, just barely keeping himself from screaming at her.  “You’re gonna help me, and you’re gonna help me now.”

     “R-Right… okay.” Joy scrambled out of her seat. After she reached Ed and Jay, she hurried them into the back of the Center. There, a Chansey was sleeping. “Chance,” Joy snapped, “wake up! We have patients to treat.”

     Chance the Chansey startled awake. Huh…? It blinked the bleariness out of its eyes. Then, it looked at Ed, Jay, and Joy. Shrieking, it said, Oh, golly! Your face is–… um… I mean… s-sir, ma’am, please remain calm! Ch… Chance is on the job!

     Edward was taken from Jay. The Chansey laid him down on a bed before preparing a mask full of anesthesia. Edward was reluctant to let the Pokemon put it on him, but he was tired and hurting, and he didn’t have enough fight left in him to refuse.

     Chance will take care of everything! Don’t worry! Just sleep…

     Jay thought to scold Edward, to make him shut up and allow her to do all of the talking. But she realized that she was too shaken up, and he seemed to be doing a better job of getting what they needed than she was.

     She was reluctant to let go of Edward, afraid that if she let him go, he might die. Had she had this feeling before? Yes, she had; with Bolt. The parallels between this scene and the one from years ago were uncanny, and she knew what was coming next. 

     Edward would come out fully blind.

     Jay sat in the lobby of the Pokemon Center, tears dripping down her face. “I’m so sorry, Edward...” she mumbled to herself, as no one else was around. Gently, she snapped a PokeBall off of her belt and dropped it on the floor, hands shaking too hard to throw it correctly. Bolt appeared before her, and he could immediately sense that something was wrong. 

     Edward’s injuries screamed, the blood that poured out of them hissed, and the water flowing from his eyes cried out, Help! But he could not help them; all he could do was sit on the bed and shake, shocked by what had just happened. His broken eyes stared at the PokeBall in his hands. Inside it was a monster.

     But he did not throw the Ball at the wall, or crush it beneath his heel. Instead, he held it close to his heart and dug his nails into the paint that coated it. He knew the Zangoose inside was just a child–in fact, it was just a baby. And so he pitied it, because he knew when it grew older it would feel terrible about what it had done to him.

     When Jay slipped into the room, her shoe snapped a piece of glass beneath its sole. Edward turned towards the noise and, on instinct, readier himself to throw the Zangoose’s Ball into the air. However, he stopped himself just in time.

     Jay spoke. 

     Al spoke.

     Edward’s mouth, which normally had nothing but loud, arrogant things to say, fell short. His mind, too, drew a blank. However, when Al accused Jay of hurting him, he recovered. “No,” he said shakily. “She didn’t do anything! It was all–” he stopped.

     Al was a good person with a kind heart. But when something hurt his family, he would not hesitate to tear it apart. Edward knew this. And so he kept his mouth shut.

     Suddenly, he was scooped up. Then, he was being carried. Edward tensed. “Jay?” he said, unsure. “What’re you–” again, he stopped. She had already answered his question.

     The air outside was cold and crisp. The sky was dark. Everything was dark.

     Edward realized something.

     “My eyes–… they’re–…”

     As Jay ran, she worried. Something about this situation was so familiar. She felt she had been in it before. And then, the thought hit her. What if this reminds me of what happened with Bolt?

     It occurred to her that that was exactly what this reminded her of. She remembered the sound of her shoes smashing the pavement as she carried a sightless, bleeding Luxio to the nearest Pokemon Center. She remembered the sound of blood pumping in her ears, and the fear that kept her pushing forward even when her legs shook. This is just like that.

     Right then, she could hear her sneakers creaking on the pavement, her heartbeat in her ears. And the fear, the crushing fear that Edward would be blind for the rest of his life, just like Bolt. 

     When Edward spoke, Jay hardly heard. But she did, of course, because she was listening. “I know,” she said between breaths. “Don’t—...don’t...think about it...I’m going to...help you...”