Rocky Road ~ House of Brisa, Dave, Koa, and Owen

[Namohysip]

"Maybe," Owen said, laughing. "Sorry. I'm gonna sound like Bahamut when I say this, but practically everyone is 'young enough to be a kid' to me. You know, with the whole... everything. I'm second oldest in the whole group by a long shot, I think... But, it's still a lot for someone to go through. Look at it like fractions. What's half a year to someone your age, mathematically, compared to half a year to me?"

 

[Flyg0n]

Koa stared at him for a moment. Right, Owen was some kind of... well he didn't actually understand what he was, just that he seemed to have a lot of lives and was apparently very old. Very old.

"I guess it is a lot when you put it that way," he agreed.

Not much crazier than what happened back home, is it?

"I did get into a lot of 'trouble' back home though, as my cousin would have put it. So it almost feels normal in way."

Maybe he really was a magnet for danger, like Blake used to say.

 

[Namohysip]

"I guess some people just get involved in a lot of things," Owen said simply. "Maybe that's what the Hero's Aura is." A chuckle at that, like he didn't take it seriously, but then he seemed to pause, considering it more seriously.

Dismissing the thought a bit later, he said, "I just hope you can still relax, too. Even my battleheart knows to settle down every now and then. It's healthy."

 

[Flyg0n]

Koa sighed, resting his head on his paws. "I sort of want to but..." his thoughts flashed back to his 'battle' against Kora. The voice inside him, raring to fight more, to push himself more.

"I also want to fight."

You need to.

"But Echo keeps reminding me I shouldn't push myself. Besides," he added wryly. "I should rest to get back to full strength. Especially if I want to win battles against those Miracle Matters guys."

 

[Namohysip]

"I get that," Owen said with some weight behind the words. "Wanting to fight... yeah. It's, uh, it's a little addicting. Maybe as a trainer for you, and... for a human who became a Pokemon, I bet it also must feel like something else, getting to fight and the feeling that comes with it..." He trailed off, but then eyed Koa. "How is your team back home, anyway?"

 

[Flyg0n]

It did feel addicting. Was that what all Pokemon felt? Was that why he wanted to fight so bad?

You know thats not whole reason.

"My team back home are doing good! We've had some tough times, but we're doing good."

Except for the time you almost lost them.

"We were doing some training before I came here, and my friend Kitto was helping us learn to fight." Of course, he'd been there because he'd been so... insecure, he guessed. He'd choked on his last gym battle and made Rascal lose.

 

[Namohysip]

Owen stared inquisitively, tilting his head. Those prying eyes must have seen Koa's hesitation, not saying the full story. But he also didn't look like he wanted to press. Instead, he nodded and turned fully so he could face Koa. "Raising a whole team is hard," Owen said with a nod. "Full six?"

 

[Flyg0n]

Koa nodded. "Yeah. I guess it is a lot, but most people where I'm from raise about that many. At least, champions and gym leaders I guess," he mused.

"My friend Kitto though, he only raised one. This sick Hitmonchan. You'd probably like them a lot," he added. Now that he thought about it, he missed Kitto terribly. Kitto always seemed to be so perceptive about things. "They're good fighters. Like, really good." He grinned. What would Kitto or Jackie be like if they'd been picked instead? Probably ridiculously strong.

 

[Namohysip]

"Really?" Owen asked. "Sounds interesting to me. A pair, a single human and their single Pokemon... That's the sort of story you'd hear in a world like Cibus, isn't it? The Omen Heroes... It's, for the most part, a single human and a single Pokemon. Maybe there's a reason for that..." He thought about it, wistful. "I'm glad you have a good team. It sounds like they really like being around you. What, are you aiming to be a gym leader or even a champion yourself?"

 

[Flyg0n]

"Huh, I guess I never thought about it like that." Kitto and Hitmonchan were a lot like a hero pair. Owen's next question brought the instinctual hesitation it always did, but he quickly dismissed it. There couldn't be any more harm in telling Owen than anyone else here. "The thing is, back home I'm... actually aiming to try and catch a legendary." He gave an awkward chuckle.

"Coming here and seeing so many at first was really crazy. Back home they're really rare. So rare some people think some of them died or don't exist."

 

[Namohysip]

"Catch one?" Owen asked, tilting his head. "How would that work? Are they weaker in your world... or would you have to prove yourself somehow?" Now that was a curious thought. Capturing a Legendary Pokemon, just like that. "Why?" Owen added, the simplest question with the most curiosity.

 

[Flyg0n]

Koa swallowed, his old reflexive nervousness welling up. "W-well legendaries are strong, but they can still choose to join a human." Who cared why? Why couldn't he want something, just like someone tried to become champion? No one ever questioned them-

He let the frustration fade. Owen's world was nothing like his. Of course he'd be curious, it was only rational. His thoughts circled back to his conversation with Icetales months ago. He'd told Icetales that catching a legendary was about proving something.

Is that really what it is?

"I..." his mind blanked. He stared blankly at Owen for longer than he meant to before he managed to find his words. Then he stared at his paws. Part of him felt annoyed, knowing full well Owen had been reading him like a book. And the other part of him almost felt relieved. He couldn't hide anything, even if he wanted to.

"I don't know." The words stung. "I mean. There's a lot of reasons but I don't even know if thats the only reason. I... I want to show people legendaries are good and they can be trusted but the longer I'm here the more I- I don't know what I want."

 

[Namohysip]

"You don't know," Owen said with a sense of finality. It spoke volumes that while Koa found a reason later, his first answer, the one that would be on the top of his head, was the lack of one. But despite the repeat, Owen smiled a little, and with his tail, he pushed his book aside and onto a neat little pile with a Wishkeeper extension.

Finally, he spoke again. "There's something very human about that."

 

[Flyg0n]

That... wasn't the answer he'd exactly expected. Maybe disdain, or some kind of further questioning or digging for an answer. "Human? What do you mean?" he asked, looking up up at Owen finally.

 

[Namohysip]

"Maybe it's not the same in your world... or maybe it's just how I see things," Owen said, "but humans in general... the ones that stand out... There's something about them. The way they go ahead of themselves. Climbing mountains, challenging waterfalls, all without the usual power you see behind someone like, say, me, or your current body."

He folded one of his wings over, as if searching for something, but didn't find it.

"Human ego. Pride, y'know? That because something is there, something is possible, they should try it." He chuckled. "Even if it might not be possible, they try anyway. Sure, some strong-willed Pokemon can feel like this, too. But it's very human to do that when they don't have any power. Maybe that's why Legends are so interested in you guys. Maybe that's why you can capture them at all."

He folded his wing back again. "I learned that kind of ego from a human, once. And I've seen all the good it can do, and the bad. You... remind me of him, in a way." His eyes flashed with a cautious, somber darkness, but then he nodded. "But I think you'll make good choices."

 

[Flyg0n]

Koa made a non-committal grunt. Almost everything Owen said made sense, he supposed. Pokemon were smart, but they didn't seem to have that same drive humans in his world did. Perhaps that was what drove legendaries of the past to join humans? A respect for that spirit Owen talked about? That ego?

But the idea that he reminded Owen of someone else. A human who sounded like they'd done terrible things... Just like him. Owen sees it. His stomach churned and his fur prickled with fear and anger. Still, Owen seemed convinced he would make the right choices, somehow.

"Are you saying that because you actually believe it or because you just want me to feel better?" he asked suddenly, a hint of frustration bleeding into his tone.

 

[Namohysip]

Owen hid a smirk, but that was easy. He didn't need Perceive to sense that kind of torment. "I'm not really the most faithful person," he admitted. "In fact, because of things that have happened in my world, I actually started to believe in the gods and Legends even less than when I questioned their existence at all. Just... for different reasons. But, er, the point is... I don't like saying things emptily unless I believe it. Thing is, you took on the Blacklight and all the things it's done to us, and came out on top anyway. That's got to speak for something."

He then hummed. "...You do remind me of him, though. But a lot of people do. Confident, with, you know, that blazing spirit about them. Cares a lot about his Pokemon, would do anything to protect them. ...Koa, I have a question for you, about that. Maybe it'll give us some perspective."

 

[Flyg0n]

Koa narrowed his eyes, studying Owen. He wasn't sure what to make of Owen's response. At the very least though, he seemed honest. He wouldn't have said it if he didn't really have a reason to believe it.

That doesn't mean he's right.

Curiosity blurred into his hesitance. "What's the question?" he asked slowly.

 

[Namohysip]

Owen nodded, taking the response as a go-ahead to ask perhaps something more than Koa was expecting. But he had to know. Koa was too much like him to leave it at rest.

"...What would you do," Owen said, "if you lost your team one day? If, say... everyone but Echo had been taken away from you."

 

[Flyg0n]

Koa stiffened. He frowned slightly, pushing back the unpleasant memories. Scrapper's cry of pain in that alley. An enraged Rapidash, poised to strike. Entei's cold eyes as he struck down Anubis.

But to lose them all except Echo? The thought made his head spin a little. His team was everything to him back home. They were his best friends, his family.

You're lost without them. Helpless. Nothing.

He remembered chasing the thieves, desperately fighting to get his pokemon back. And Anubis, filled with rage, ready to attack, while he said nothing.

"If they were taken, I'd get them back," he growled. Echo would feel the same, he was sure.