This is the journey of a man named Chris, who had dreams shared by many, yet lived experiences known by so few... There are many people in the world of Pokemon, who come in just as many varieties as these strange creatures. And you are about to discover, perhaps, one you may just consider the rarest of all...
Chapter 11 - Hello Kirlia!
Glowing brighter and brighter, Ralts shape slowly began to change until the aura surrounding her flashed brightly, making everyone shield their eyes and turn away for a moment. Looking back, they saw Ralts had evolved into her Kirlia form, standing silently as she turned her face from side to side, seeming slightly confused. They were able to see her eyes clearly now that her hair changed, with both still glazed due to her blindness. "Ha ha... I know this sounds a little wrong but... I was hoping that... Maybe... Evolving would somehow get rid of her blindness as well..." Chris said, walking up to Kirlia and rubbing her head. "Its form may change, but if anything is wrong with a Pokemon physically, a transformation will not heal such wounds I'm afraid... Your challenges aren't going to end so easily..." Guile said, walking up and putting a hand on Chris's shoulder. Shaking his head, Chris told Guile it didn't matter, smiling as Kirlia lifted her chin with a sigh as Chris scratched under it. "So... You're a Kirlia now! Congratulations! Why don't you feel what your new body is like?" he said, taking the badge from Kirlia's hands. Nodding, she felt her arms and torso, gliding her small hands along her skirt like skin and down her legs.
Making sounds as if surprised, she smiled from ear to ear as her glazed eyes widened, a blush running across her face. She felt her new hair and horns with a laugh, suddenly dancing around as she played with her skirt. Chris laughed and told Ralts he was proud of her once again. "I know you still can't see... But it makes me happy to know you're enjoying your new form so much nonetheless! You definitely look really cool! Can't believe how lucky I am to have such a beautiful Kirlia by my side now!" Chris laughed, giving her a thumbs up. She suddenly froze in place, turning to him with a bright flush on her face. She put her hands on her cheeks as she smiled from ear to ear, suddenly looking down and twiddling her small hands shyly. Guile laughed and pat Chris on the back, shaming him for causing Kirlia to wind up flustered. "An interesting trainer and a shameless flatterer. You surely are a trip dear boy." he chuckled, turning to his servants and asking them to take care of his Pangoro's injuries from the battle. As the two nodded, the giant Pokemon walked up to Kirlia and rubbed her head, grunting as if to speak to her before leaving with the two, looking back with a grin and a thumbs up. Kirlia and Chris both rubbed their heads with a laugh, scratching their cheeks feeling a bit embarrassed.
Looking down at his badge, Chris asked Guile if they had a jewelry store nearby. Blinking at him confused, Guile nodded and said there was one close enough to walk him to. "It'll probably be for the best if I leave the gym for a bit. It'll get me out of the staffs way while they clean up the mess." Guile told him, looking at the ice covering his arena. Chris laughed nervously, sweating a little while giving an apology. Gathering his things, the two left the gym and walked through town, Kirlia standing on Chris's shoulders jumping from side to side and on top of his head while twirling like a ballerina. "Dunno which I like more... You dancing on top of me or patting my head like a drum." Chris said with a chuckle, Guile smiling as he watched. "You really seem to have made that one happy... It makes this old mans heart feel pretty darn good." he said, rummaging through his pocket and handing Kirlia a treat. Sniffing it, she took it happily and nibbled on it, sitting with her legs crossed on top of Chris's head. Soon, they reached the jewelry shop Guile mentioned and went inside. "What exactly... Are you seeking here lad...? Not that I'm one to judge, I've just never had a fellow ask me to guide him here after such an extraordinary battle..."
With a silent smile in response, Chris simply said Guile would see soon enough as he looked around the cases at various necklaces. Eventually, he found one he wanted, made out of silver and finely thinned out. The jeweler came up and got it out for him, asking who it was for specifically. Holding out the badge he got from Guile, he pointed towards Kirlia, putting his finger over his mouth with a wink. Nodding with a smile and a bow, the jeweler went into a room in the back of the shop, taking the necklace and badge. "So... What are you doing exactly lad...?" Guile asked, walking up next to him as he looked around. "Well... I just thought it would be a waste for that badge to sit in a box the whole time we traveled... That's all." Chris responded, reaching up and scratching Kirlia under the chin again, making her giggle. The jeweler soon returned, holding out a small box and asking if it was all he wanted. Nodding, they went up to the register and Chris used his card to pay, swiping it and giving the card a kiss. "Man this makes things so much easier." he said with a smirk, taking his receipt with a bow. He walked out of the shop with Guile, the two giving the jeweler a wave as they walked along the streets again.
"Now then, lets see how it fits..." Chris muttered, stopping by a bench and setting Kirlia on it. Guile watched as Chris opened the box and took out the necklace, with the Sagacity badge now place on it like a pendant. "Ooohhh... You wish to wear it! A fine way to display your first gym victory my boy! I would have chosen a more rugged looking necklace myself... But if its your style..." and he nodded, giving Chris a thumbs up. "Nope... Its not for me Guile..." he responded, smiling at the old man as he squat down. Guile blinked as he watched, tilting his head for a moment. "You deserve to have this way more than me Kirlia... Even though you went through something real bad before we met, you've made me proud with how you've tried to put it behind you... And your sight... You never let it get you down. You always show a willingness to play and have fun... And although there are so many Pokemon out there bigger than you... Even though they may scare you... The way you still stand tall and try your best in a battle is nothing short of admirable. Thanks Kirlia... For becoming my very first Pokemon, and for doing your best to win this badge that I now give to you. You deserve it more than I ever will..."
He put the necklace around Kirlia's neck, and holding her hand, guided her fingers along the chain and over the badge connected to it, rubbing her head as he stepped back. Guile's eyes were wide as he stood speechless. Kirlia felt her necklace and the badge for a moment as her lip quivered, and suddenly, tears started streaming from her eyes, her face showing a slight blush as she tried to wipe the tears away, letting out tiny hicks and crying sounds, clinging to the badge tightly.
Guile smiled, wiping a single tear away from the side of his eye, and took a deep breath, giving Chris another pat on the back. "Kiddo... You're definitely getting a painting in my gym!!" he grinned, shooting his thumb up as Chris smiled nervously, unsure if he was really... Painting material... But he thanked Guile and shook his hand with a nod, telling the old man he accepted his offer. Turning to Kirlia, he picked her up and wiped her tears away. "I sure hope all this crying is out of joy... It is, right?" he asked with a smile. She nodded with another hick, clinging to the badge still and hiding her face in his chest. Patting her head, Chris headed back to the gym with Guile to have his own painting made, the old man surprising him when he himself brought out the materials and canvas to create the art with. "Wow... You mean you're a leader and an artist with that kind of talent...? I envy you..." Chris said, blinking in surprise. Laughing loudly, Guile thanked him and asked Chris to make a pose with Kirlia.
Sweating a bit, he stood Kirlia up on his shoulder, keeping a hand on her to help hold her in place as he placed his other hand on his hip. Unknowingly, his hand held her thigh, causing Kirlia to flush red and freeze wide eyed. Telling her to smile, her lips nervously, yet happily, slowly spread from ear to ear as he smiled as well, and Guile began to paint. "In all my years... I've yet to meet a trainer with a story and heart akin to yours and that Kirlia... Its going to be an honor having this hanging on my wall here in the Saga City Gym. And one day... I hope I can add a statue to go with it..." the old man said with a smile. It took a while, but once he was done he picked up the canvas, walking up to Chris to let him see it. "I didn't want the background to feature this plain old gym, so I gave it a personal touch for you. What do ya think lad?" he asked as Chris carefully held it.
He saw himself and Kirlia drawn as they were, but behind him he saw his grandfathers cabin, surrounded by the elders from his village, along with his grandfathers Alakazam, Vespiquen, and Lopunny standing on the cabins porch, all of them waving together, and over his head, he saw a Pokeball with wings spread from it, causing his eyes to go wide. "H... How did you...?" he asked, looking at Guile. "Remember when we first met and I told you I had hopes of seeing the village you came from? I stopped by and the villagers introduced me to the cabin you lived in, along with the Pokemon now staying there you gave it to. They even told me about your grandfather and how his Pokemon used a Pokeball as an urn... Thought it would be something nice that really touched your heart... Does it?" he asked with a chuckle. Chris nodded, wiping a tear from his eye and shaking Guile's hand, thanking him as the old man guided him to a place on the wall to put it up. Once this was done, Guile turned on a small overhead display light. The painting, where the winged Pokeball was, seemed to glow in the light as the two looked it over. "My best work yet... If I do say so myself..." Guile told Chris as he took his supplies away.
After this, it was time for the two to move on, thinking at the rate things were going they would wind up settling down there before their journey even really began. The old man agreed, and as he saw the two off, his servants brought back Pangoro, now fully healed and good as new. He shook Kirlia's hand, growling again as if thanking her for the match, and she waved her hand with a shy laugh in response. They traveled together to the towns border, Chris asked Guile why he called his badge the Sagacity badge. "It stands for wisdom lad... It means you are able to make wise decisions even in the most challenging of circumstances... Even my name means wise! Not that I'm one to gloat!" he laughed, his servants secretly looking at each other behind him, sweating with nervous smiles while shaking their heads. Once at the towns border, they finally said their final farewells, with Chris taking a deep breath of the air outside of town. "On the road again..." he said quietly, waving back at Guile and the others, with Kirlia doing the same. They wished Chris and Kirlia luck, turning and heading back into town as he walked along the path ahead.
"Now then... Where to next...?" he asked himself, taking out his map while Kirlia sat on his shoulder, clinging to the badge he gave her once again and smiling with a blush, wiping another tear as it suddenly appeared from the corner of her eye.
A young man named Chris, now 23, who discovered he carries a curse placed on him by a Ninetails his grandfather saved long ago by grabbing its tail as it fell from a cliff, is to forever put others first before doing what he wishes in life, and has now finally set off on his own Pokemon journey, a little later in life than most, after dedicating his youth to care for his grandfather and the other elders in his village, part of the fate the Ninetails told his grandfather would befall Chris after his birth when the curse was placed.
Now that his grandfather has passed away and the elders have sent him on his way to live life as he should, his curse now strings him along as he walks the path of a Pokemon trainer, doing what he always dreamed while also, unknowingly, conveniently fulfilling his part of the Ninetails curse...
