WannabeMerson
Bug Catcher
- Pronouns
- They/he
Sometimes I worry about the boy I’ve been living with. Right now, this is one of those times.
I’ve been posing as his twin brother for almost 14 years now. His parents found me when he was a baby, and he doesn’t remember a time when I wasn’t around. I don’t know how I’ve managed to keep up the illusion for this long, or why he doesn’t question the fact that I don’t speak the same language as him, or any language, for that matter.
Giving credit where due, the boy’s mother has done a good job playing along and even helping set things up. She’s specifically raised the kid not to touch me, or anyone else for that matter. She’s also explained my silence as “mutism”. I think that just means I can’t talk. Human language, despite living with it for several years now, still confuses me.
Of course, my brother isn’t stupid. I wouldn’t be surprised if he’s already figured it out by now. In fact, I narrowly avoided a punch he tried to throw at me in a fight we got in once. Had the punch landed, the big reveal could’ve happened a lot earlier. Sometimes the reflexes I have as a Zorua can come in handy!
It all started on a family camping trip, and I have basically been living as a human ever since. It has some perks, like how human food tastes a lot better than the berries I used to live on as a pokemon, or how I haven’t had to brave the elements for quite some time. Sometimes I miss living in the wild, but I have a feeling that I’ll be able to go back out there soon. The kid’s almost old enough to become a proper trainer in this region, after all.
“Zach?” Our mother called faintly to me. “There’s something I’d like to ask of you.” I approached her with small, slow steps. I feel like I know where this is going, but I looked directly and attentively at her anyway.
“Zeke’s going to be starting his pokemon journey one week from today.” She began. “I’m not entirely sure if he’s going to be safe on his own, so I want you to go with him.”
My nose scrunched up at this idea. I’m fine with being around Zeke, but the longer I have to maintain the illusion I’ve been keeping up for most of this kid’s life, the worse it’s going to hurt when he finds out I’m a Zorua. Tears started to form in my eyes just thinking about it. He’s at that age where he’s trying to rebel against his parents, though, so truth be told, I’m half-expecting him to find out by accident. Maybe even hoping for that to happen, actually.
“Oh, Zach… you don’t have to be so upset. You’ve known Zeke for as long as he can remember. This’ll just be for as long as he only has his first partner pokemon, aside from you.”
Aside from me? Is she saying what I think she’s saying? Can I finally be my normal, Zorua self?
“It’s about time he learns the truth.” Zeke’s mother confirmed, causing my gaze to shift away from her. Whether I liked it or not, she’s right. I’m just not sure how he’d react. I stepped away from her, heading into the bedroom that Zeke and I shared.
From the looks of it, though, he changed his look again. Not in a way I would have to cast a new illusion for, but his hair had been spiked up, and red dye tinted the tips of what was otherwise blond. Loud music blared from his Rotom phone, and in response, my face began to twitch a bit. Curse my sensitive ears.
“What is it?” Zeke’s eyes narrowed as he spoke monotonously. “Are you finally gonna say something?” I don’t know what happened between yesterday and today, but the way he glared at me and his brows furrowed made me think something was up.
I sat down on his bed, letting my tail show through my illusion. Most Zorua who disguise themselves as human have a rough time hiding their tails, but after years of practice, it almost became second nature for me.
“What’s with the Zorua tail?” Zeke asked, tone unchanging. “You going to some sort of convention in that?”
How did this kid not get it?! He’s smarter than this! I yipped in frustration, which just made Zeke laugh. At the very least, I got him to emote in any way. “You’re learning how to yip like one too?” He joked, before playfully nudging me with his elbow. “You’ve always been kinda funny, Zach.” The nudge got the illusion to dissipate completely.
“…You’ve gotta be joking.” Zeke’s amused expression flattened. “You’ve been a Zorua this whole time, haven’t you?” He lied flat on his back, staring at some of the posters of outer space around his side of the room. “I mean, if there’s theories of Ultra Beasts being real, I suppose it’s not too bizarre for my twin brother to be a pokemon.”
With an exasperated sigh, he looked out the window. “I was hoping my first pokemon would be a Snivy, but technically speaking, that’s you, huh? Explains why you can’t talk, among other weird quirks of yours.”
How was he taking this so well? I put my front paws upon the windowsill, trying to get a good look at what was out there. Come to think of it, the sky was clear enough to see the stars… maybe even a planet or two?
“Sometimes, I don’t feel human either. Or at least not one from this world…” Zeke explained. “It’s so tough to understand other people, and in a week, I’m gonna have to compete with them.”
It’s strange, he hasn’t gotten this vulnerable with me in a while. He’s been closed off lately, and more interested in himself and less in the two of us as brothers. While we share the same bedroom, he usually has his headphones on when we both go to bed. In fact, I’m not entirely sure why he’s not wearing them now. I’d appreciate it if he would put them on or turn the music down or something!
“I guess we’ll have to keep being weirdos trying to understand people together, huh?” He said with a chuckle, turning the music off. Not just down, off. “I’ve heard a lot of pokemon have sensitive ears. I guess that explains why you never cared for my taste of music lately.”
My attention turns to a family photo of him, our mother, our grandparents and myself. Come to think of it, I don’t think I’ve ever met Zeke’s father. His mother said something about a “divorce”, whatever that means. Truth be told, I’m still wrapping my head around the idea of “marriage”.
“Yeah, it’ll be weird leaving mom behind next week.” He shook his head. “But maybe she’ll get some peace and quiet.”
Peace and quiet… yeah, perhaps our mother would appreciate that. I’ve been just as much as a troublemaker as Zeke has sometimes. In fact, I remember a time we teamed up to pull a prank on one of our neighbors. And yet, there’s a whole week until we can finally give her that sense of peace.
This week is going to feel almost as long as the several years I’ve been casting this illusion. I just hope that Zeke can make his way through the Unova region as a trainer. I’ll stay by his side as long as I need to, but part of me wonders if he’ll even still want me around once he builds his team. I’m not exactly a battle ready pokemon, and I’m not sure I ever will be.
We’re still brothers for now, though, and hopefully it stays that way.
---
Hey, just thought I'd write a little something. This might get more chapters later, might stay a one-shot.
I’ve been posing as his twin brother for almost 14 years now. His parents found me when he was a baby, and he doesn’t remember a time when I wasn’t around. I don’t know how I’ve managed to keep up the illusion for this long, or why he doesn’t question the fact that I don’t speak the same language as him, or any language, for that matter.
Giving credit where due, the boy’s mother has done a good job playing along and even helping set things up. She’s specifically raised the kid not to touch me, or anyone else for that matter. She’s also explained my silence as “mutism”. I think that just means I can’t talk. Human language, despite living with it for several years now, still confuses me.
Of course, my brother isn’t stupid. I wouldn’t be surprised if he’s already figured it out by now. In fact, I narrowly avoided a punch he tried to throw at me in a fight we got in once. Had the punch landed, the big reveal could’ve happened a lot earlier. Sometimes the reflexes I have as a Zorua can come in handy!
It all started on a family camping trip, and I have basically been living as a human ever since. It has some perks, like how human food tastes a lot better than the berries I used to live on as a pokemon, or how I haven’t had to brave the elements for quite some time. Sometimes I miss living in the wild, but I have a feeling that I’ll be able to go back out there soon. The kid’s almost old enough to become a proper trainer in this region, after all.
“Zach?” Our mother called faintly to me. “There’s something I’d like to ask of you.” I approached her with small, slow steps. I feel like I know where this is going, but I looked directly and attentively at her anyway.
“Zeke’s going to be starting his pokemon journey one week from today.” She began. “I’m not entirely sure if he’s going to be safe on his own, so I want you to go with him.”
My nose scrunched up at this idea. I’m fine with being around Zeke, but the longer I have to maintain the illusion I’ve been keeping up for most of this kid’s life, the worse it’s going to hurt when he finds out I’m a Zorua. Tears started to form in my eyes just thinking about it. He’s at that age where he’s trying to rebel against his parents, though, so truth be told, I’m half-expecting him to find out by accident. Maybe even hoping for that to happen, actually.
“Oh, Zach… you don’t have to be so upset. You’ve known Zeke for as long as he can remember. This’ll just be for as long as he only has his first partner pokemon, aside from you.”
Aside from me? Is she saying what I think she’s saying? Can I finally be my normal, Zorua self?
“It’s about time he learns the truth.” Zeke’s mother confirmed, causing my gaze to shift away from her. Whether I liked it or not, she’s right. I’m just not sure how he’d react. I stepped away from her, heading into the bedroom that Zeke and I shared.
From the looks of it, though, he changed his look again. Not in a way I would have to cast a new illusion for, but his hair had been spiked up, and red dye tinted the tips of what was otherwise blond. Loud music blared from his Rotom phone, and in response, my face began to twitch a bit. Curse my sensitive ears.
“What is it?” Zeke’s eyes narrowed as he spoke monotonously. “Are you finally gonna say something?” I don’t know what happened between yesterday and today, but the way he glared at me and his brows furrowed made me think something was up.
I sat down on his bed, letting my tail show through my illusion. Most Zorua who disguise themselves as human have a rough time hiding their tails, but after years of practice, it almost became second nature for me.
“What’s with the Zorua tail?” Zeke asked, tone unchanging. “You going to some sort of convention in that?”
How did this kid not get it?! He’s smarter than this! I yipped in frustration, which just made Zeke laugh. At the very least, I got him to emote in any way. “You’re learning how to yip like one too?” He joked, before playfully nudging me with his elbow. “You’ve always been kinda funny, Zach.” The nudge got the illusion to dissipate completely.
“…You’ve gotta be joking.” Zeke’s amused expression flattened. “You’ve been a Zorua this whole time, haven’t you?” He lied flat on his back, staring at some of the posters of outer space around his side of the room. “I mean, if there’s theories of Ultra Beasts being real, I suppose it’s not too bizarre for my twin brother to be a pokemon.”
With an exasperated sigh, he looked out the window. “I was hoping my first pokemon would be a Snivy, but technically speaking, that’s you, huh? Explains why you can’t talk, among other weird quirks of yours.”
How was he taking this so well? I put my front paws upon the windowsill, trying to get a good look at what was out there. Come to think of it, the sky was clear enough to see the stars… maybe even a planet or two?
“Sometimes, I don’t feel human either. Or at least not one from this world…” Zeke explained. “It’s so tough to understand other people, and in a week, I’m gonna have to compete with them.”
It’s strange, he hasn’t gotten this vulnerable with me in a while. He’s been closed off lately, and more interested in himself and less in the two of us as brothers. While we share the same bedroom, he usually has his headphones on when we both go to bed. In fact, I’m not entirely sure why he’s not wearing them now. I’d appreciate it if he would put them on or turn the music down or something!
“I guess we’ll have to keep being weirdos trying to understand people together, huh?” He said with a chuckle, turning the music off. Not just down, off. “I’ve heard a lot of pokemon have sensitive ears. I guess that explains why you never cared for my taste of music lately.”
My attention turns to a family photo of him, our mother, our grandparents and myself. Come to think of it, I don’t think I’ve ever met Zeke’s father. His mother said something about a “divorce”, whatever that means. Truth be told, I’m still wrapping my head around the idea of “marriage”.
“Yeah, it’ll be weird leaving mom behind next week.” He shook his head. “But maybe she’ll get some peace and quiet.”
Peace and quiet… yeah, perhaps our mother would appreciate that. I’ve been just as much as a troublemaker as Zeke has sometimes. In fact, I remember a time we teamed up to pull a prank on one of our neighbors. And yet, there’s a whole week until we can finally give her that sense of peace.
This week is going to feel almost as long as the several years I’ve been casting this illusion. I just hope that Zeke can make his way through the Unova region as a trainer. I’ll stay by his side as long as I need to, but part of me wonders if he’ll even still want me around once he builds his team. I’m not exactly a battle ready pokemon, and I’m not sure I ever will be.
We’re still brothers for now, though, and hopefully it stays that way.
---
Hey, just thought I'd write a little something. This might get more chapters later, might stay a one-shot.