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 13 - Curious Kirlia
As the two ate. Chris started telling Kirlia more stories about his life, about his grandfather and his village. He told her he couldn't wait to take her there someday after they had their fill of adventure. She was so cute the women would spoil her every second of every day, and he bet the men would consider her a real gem of the village! Thinking of how everyone would react to her suddenly made him laugh as Kirlia smiled nervously, a shy blush showing once again due to his compliments. "They don't have too much to do in the village... So its a given that having a Pokemon like you there would definitely brighten everyone's day. Its really peaceful, so there wouldn't be anything there to scare you or anything either... Plus you'd love my old mans Pokemon, they're a pretty... Unique group... Ha ha. Although being around a bunch of senior people and Pokemon... I dunno if it would be your kind of thing... But hopefully you'll love the place as much as I did whenever we stop by." he told Kirlia, rubbing her head with a chuckle. "It really does feel great... Sitting under the stars and enjoying good food with my own Pokemon... I may have spent my life around them, but actually having one of my own... Going places with me... Hearing whatever I have to say... It feels a lot different... A lot nicer..." he smiled, letting out a sigh. "When you have your own Pokemon it... Kind of feels like it completes a missing part of your heart... Maybe its because other people will always judge you, but Pokemon actually just seem to appreciate you for who you are... Its really nice. I just... Hope whenever I talk to you it doesn't start to get on your nerves..." he laughed nervously with a bit of sweat. Kirlia faced up at him with a blush, rapidly shaking her head and pointing up at him, making random sounds as she also pointed up at the sky and all over the place.
He couldn't understand what she was saying at all... But he took a shot in the dark and guessed she was saying she liked hearing him tell her stories about the places around them. "Sure wish we could communicate better... You can understand me but I have to struggle to make heads or tails of what you want to tell me... Maybe someday you'll learn telepathy and we can talk to each other without any problems! I hear a lot of psychic type Pokemon are able to use that ability to talk to people!" he responded with a smile. "When these Pokemon learn to speak human using their ability, people get to hear what their Pokemons voice sounds like in their own tongue... I bet yours would either sound really cute or really beautiful! Probably both!" he laughed, giving her a soft pat on the back. Kirlia flushed even more and waved her hands at him rapidly, shaking her head as if to say no more compliments as she poked her small fingers together shyly once again. "Ah... Ha ha, sorry about that. Actually being able to communicate to each other made me get a little too excited I guess. Didn't mean to fluster ya..." he responded, smirking while looking over the moonlit horizon. "But... Even though it would be awesome... Don't worry about it much, okay? If you ever learn Telepathy and how to speak my language, I want it to be on your own time, by your own free will, not just because its what I would like. The things you learn how to do, how and when you use these abilities... Its all up to you. I'm not your master, so never think of yourself as having to do anything to please me or to gain my recognition... You do those things just by being you and being my friend!" he told her as he suddenly pulled her close to his side for a small hug, rubbing her on the head.
Kirlia let out happy, albeit shy laughter as she fidgeted her fingers, facing downwards while her heart seemed to flutter all around in her chest. She faced up at him with a smile and rubbed her head against his side, closing her eyes as she enjoyed the cozy contact. "Ha ha... Guess you're getting used to being close to me. A shame... I loved it when you freaked out!" he laughed, causing her to suddenly shoot her eyes open wide and puff out her cheeks. She pushed herself away and used her psychic to suddenly lift him in the air, lowering his butt just over the campfire while she scowled. "Hot... Hot... Hot...!!! Hot...!!! Hot hot hoooooot!!!" he started shouting, flailing in the air as his butt got warmer and warmer due to the flame below. Kirlia crossed her arms and faced away with a "hrmph!" like noise. "I'm sorry!!! Sorry sorry sorry!!! C'mon Kirlia!!!" he begged, hands together for a moment until he started fanning his butt. After a moment she guided him away from the fire, releasing him with a thud onto the ground as she faced away. "Oowww... Ow ow ow... Note to self... Don't poke fun at a Pokemon who can lift you around at will with her mind..." he said with a nervous laugh, rubbing his butt as heat radiated off it. As he looked at Kirlia, he saw her facing back towards him making a sound as if to ask if he was okay. "Um... I'm... Fine...? No worries...?" he responded, blinking confused and hoping he got her signals right. She faced away in response with another "hrmph" like noise and nodded.
Slowly standing, he walked up behind her, telling her he was sorry for poking fun at her again. She faced back at him in silence for a moment, then finally nodded and turned around, giving him what looked like a thumbs up as she smirked, making noises as if to say "lesson learned!" as he nodded in response. They sat back down together for a while as Chris took out a bottle of water for each of them to enjoy, continuing their conversation as the fire slowly dimmed over time. Eventually, the temperature started to drop, with the wind growing colder and colder until Kirlia was starting to shiver. Deciding it was time to tuck themselves in for the night, he picked her up and carried her into the tent with him, setting her down at the side of his sleeping bag on her own bed he made for her as he climbed in his bag. She felt her blankets and crawled underneath them, rolling up and letting out sounds of laughter, looking like a Weedle. "You're silly..." Chris responded, laying down with a sigh.
However, it wasn't long before Kirlia started feeling a bit lonely, and she sat up, facing Chris while pointing at him and making noises again. Blinking confused, he asked her what was up, so she stood and pointed at herself then at him again. "Uhh... You wanna sleep in my bag too...?" he replied, blinking at her as she nodded her head rapidly. "I... Guess its okay... I thought you might want your personal space now that you had evolved and all... But if you really wanna, I don't mind..." he told her with a blush, not really knowing why he was blushing either. Shaking his head, he lift up his bag and held her hand, guiding her towards him and laying her down, putting the bag over her as well.
"Its a bit snug, but I hope ya don't mind..." he told her. She smiled and shook her head, snuggling herself up under the bag with a sigh. After a moment, he suddenly gave her a hug and told Kirlia good night, rubbing her head and, by accident, rubbing her horns as well, causing her to shudder all over and flush with a gulp. Letting her go and laying on his back once again, he let out a yawn and stretched, shutting the tent to keep out the breeze as he told Kirlia goodnight once more, closing his eyes and slowly drifting off into his own world of dreams. But with Kirlia left awake and oddly restless, she eventually sat up and climbed up next to his face, sitting on her knees. Leaning over him, she felt his breath on her face, causing her to flush and jolt herself away, smiling as she twiddled her fingers shyly. After listening to him sleep for a moment, she raised her hand, as if to look at it, and slowly placed it on his forehead, closing her eyes as her horns began to glow. Now that he was asleep, peering into his heart and mind would be far easier, so she thought she would give it a try and learn more about what goes on inside her human friend.
As she made her way inside him, she finally found a small shred of consciousness to grab onto. Looking at it, you would think of it as a small glowing orb, kind of like what fortune tellers use. Once she connected her mind to it, she started hearing his thoughts and feeling what he felt as well. "Sure hope that young Mankey is taken better care of... You gotta keep an eye on your kids..." she heard one train of thought say. "That Buneary... Really wish I could have done more for it... But if I stole it that would make me no better than the trainer who abused it... Am I in the wrong for not trying to take it with me...?" another train of thought said, endlessly concerning itself over the injured Pokemon. "I wonder how grandpa's Pokemon are doing back at the cabin... Hope everybody is making them feel welcome... Hope they have everything they need... They're as old as the villagers... Should I have stayed and taken care of them...?" another train of thought said. As Kirlia listened, she couldn't help but feel a profound joy and sadness all at once, feeling the caring nature within her human friend yet knowing how much he was secretly concerning himself over everyone inside. "Kirlia... I wish there was a way I could help her see... Maybe there's a way to do it...? I'm sure i'll find a way if I try... Maybe i'll find some clues as we travel...? Science is pretty advance now... Maybe someone can help...? I just have to... Try..." she heard another train of thought saying, concerning over Kirlia herself. This caused her to tear up a little as she tried to find a train of thought that wasn't focused on other people, but it didn't seem as if there was one to be found. Because of this endless search, she eventually found herself digging too deep unknowingly, as a strange energy seemed to suddenly start fighting against her. Trying to keep her focus, she felt a weird aura deep in his consciousness... And the closer she got to it, the more it took on a mysterious shape...
"You are bold to find your way here young one..." she heard a voice other than Chris's say. "I have been watching you since you used your abilities to come in here... He is a cursed being... One who is to forever put others first and foremost... From his actions, to his very consciousness... There is no personal desire... Only a force controlling his very soul itself... That is me..." she heard the voice say. She couldn't see what it was, but in her mind the strange energy felt as though it seemed to have the shape of a fellow Pokemon. "This human is like that of a puppet... Yet he is not... He lives by my will... Yet feels as though he lives by his own..." the voice said as its aura drifted closer to her, causing her mind to feel a strange warmth within. "You are bold to suddenly enter the mind of another so deeply without consideration of the dangers you may face by doing so... To reach me your desire to find something surely must have been great... What is it you wish to locate so fervently in this human... When you already know there is nothing worth seeking in one controlled by another...?" the aura asked.
After a moment, Kirlia told the aura she didn't know. All she could find were thoughts about other people and Pokemon. She knew all about his curse, but had still hoped to find out something about him... As a person... Something unique... Maybe learn about just what a single one of his own dreams were... One thing he wanted most in life... Just so she could bond with him more... "That is a foolish hope, young one... There is nothing personal to know... He lives by a curse... One which warps his destiny and mind itself to suit its demands to ensure he obeys its every whim... There is nothing you can find here you know not already..." the aura responded. "He has his own personality to degrees perhaps... But this too was molded by the curse over the years... Who he is now is because of its influence... Although for that you could say you owe me your gratitude... The curse led him to you... And its influence on his personality has led him to care for you..." it told Kirlia. However, hearing this both saddened and enraged her... He had to have some sort of independent identity... There had to be something in him the curse hadn't... Or couldn't effect...
"You truly believe there is something here for you to find...? There is nothing but me... Therefore your business here should be finished... Correct?" the aura stated, suddenly pushing her mind away from his. However, she fought against the auras influence nonetheless, and started seeking... Something... Elsewhere... As she fled away from the aura within his mind and instead made haste towards his heart, hoping it had a different story to tell. As she used her psychic abilities to form a path from his mind straight to his heart, slowly gliding her hand down his body as her mind traveled downwards, she discovered what the aura said was true, with his body seeming as if invaded mercilessly by an energy she could feel shouldn't be within him, ensnaring him from head to toe like webbing.
However... Once she reached his heart, she felt the energy having a hard time coming into contact with it. She circled his heart with her mind, rubbing her small hand in a circle on his chest, and felt some sort of deep, underlying consciousness of its own... Seemingly fighting against the energy trying to root itself within... She quickly linked herself with his heart and pushed her way inside, feeling... Warmth... Peace... Something entirely different than his state of mind, as if his mind and heart weren't entirely connected at all... So she allowed her mind floated through his heart... And as she drifted deeper and deeper inside... She heard... His voice... Echoing softly with a gentle... Sweet tone... Seeming to lull her... Slowly... Into a lethargic state, as her mind drifted within...
"I want... I want..." she heard his heart repeating, seeming as if desperately clinging to these words as it fought the influence of the curse surrounding it. Drifting through his aching inner self, she couldn't help but feel the hope in his heart... Even though it suffered so much on the outside... Inside it was as if a paradise... Surrounded by a shield that wouldn't yield... Untouched... And this deep... Inner purity... Made Kirlia feel satisfied. He did have his own wants... He was still his own person where it mattered most... Even if his body and mind were told what to do by his curse... His heart was still fighting to make sure it got what it wanted out of life as well... And this bravery his beating source of life was showing against what was meant to be its fate made her feel... Stronger... Too...
As if forming another of herself within his heart, she spread her arms to take in the feelings and thoughts it was willing to share with her, as outside of their bodies, Chris's chest began to glow a bright red, the light beating along with his pulse, while Kirlia's horns began to do the same, glowing in unison with the beat of his heart. "I want... I want... To travel the world... I want... I want... To find a family..." she heard his heart echoing. "I want... I want... To be respected... I want... I want... To be remembered..." it told her. "I want... I want... To be a hero... I want... I want... To be a legend..." it echoed.
"I want... I want... To love and be loved..."
Kirlia was overjoyed to learn Chris still had a heart untouched by fate... But she knew it wasn't a good idea to keep herself so closely linked to him for too long, especially under his condition, so she slowly started pulling her mind away from him. However, as she pulled away from his heart, the force from before suddenly returned the instant she was out, jerking her mind back, in turn causing her body to jerk towards Chris as well. "Insolent young one... Curiosity will be the death of you..." the energy said, slowly becoming the same shape as before while surrounding her. "I have shown mercy... In turn, you are to show respect and stay out of this human... Understood...?" it told Kirlia, suddenly releasing its hold on her. However... Kirlia didn't take too kindly to this strange energy inside her friend, and attempted to confront it. But the energy merely laughed in return... And suddenly forced Kirlia's mind outside of Chris's body in a sudden flash using a blast of psychic power strong enough to send her physical body flying into the side of the tent, causing the whole thing to collapse over the two.
Kirlia was knocked out cold by the blast of energy, while Chris suddenly woke in a panic, flailing his arms around as he shouted and made his way out, poking his head from underneath it with a dreary and confused expression. Looking around, still mostly asleep, he tilted his head as if completely lost.
"...Huh? Wha...? Err... Ello...?" he said, flopping onto the ground with a groan. He slowly drifted back into a deep sleep, unaware he was sleeping under a collapsed tent and of the fact Kirlia had been inside of his very heart...
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...
