Chapter 23 - Endless Life

There's nothing more important than the life you hold

Just remember you've gotta go and keep on moving forward so you

Make the most of everyday

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It had been a nice dinner so far. Shiron ate the main course, and then the dessert. Like always, Magnus' family knew how to make an amazing dessert, and if it wasn't for the fact he was respectful, he'd ask for another slice of the cake.

"So, he ordered the food, but then tried ta leave without payin'! The audacity!" Oscar huffed, crossing his arms. "I forced 'im ta work for me."

"I-I see. Good thing we struck a deal, haha…" Shiron gulped. For now, everyone was being nice to him, but he knew just how fast situations like this could change. In the blink of an eye…

"Everyone has their fair share of bad clients." Magnus added, groaning as he remembered some of his own customers. "You're not one of them, though, Shiron. It's nice cooking for you."

Well, that was enough to make Shiron blush, though he tried to cover it up by pushing his scarf upwards, only to remember he didn't bring it in the first place. On the bright side, they didn't mention the blush.

"T-Thanks. I, uh, I appreciate it."

Why, though? Why? Why were they all saying those… those good things about him? Shiron couldn't fight as well as his teammates. He didn't know much about the world, he was… just there, and they were complimenting him. Magnus was complimenting him.

While he thought it felt good, Shiron was unable to shake off the feeling that, somehow, this was fake. That they were all lying to him, only standing him because of the whole "he rescued their child/Magnus' brother" thing.

It tugged on his heart, like it was twisting itself into a knot, and Shiron suddenly didn't even feel like eating anymore. He… he had to leave. Go away, back to Nick's place, maybe cry himself to sleep like he did a thousand times back home.

Oscar tapped a claw on the table. "Y'know, if you'd like, we could use another employee. You and Magnus would be working preeeetty close."

"Does he even know how to cook?" Helga tilted her head. "It's not like I don't want him there, but it'd help if Shiron knew that."

"I-I can teach him!" Magnus blurted out, almost jumping off his chair. "And while we wait for him to learn, he can be a waiter. Wouldn't that be nice?"

Shiron, who had been just listening to this whole thing, felt like his jaw was going to drop. Out of the blue he was tossed into a job interview—though it didn't really look like an interview.

"I-I guess… I guess I'd like that. I'm sure I can learn to cook."

He didn't. Shiron was an idiot that couldn't learn or pick up any skills, no matter how much he tried. Oh well, he could try… for Magnus.

"Well, that settles it!" Magnus smiled, and his tail began to wag. "Heh, you'll start soon!"

"Hm… I don't think we should have him be there all the time. He's learning, after all." Oscar nodded. "Tomorrow, maybe? If you're free. Show up anytime you'd like. We don't want you to feel pressured or anything."

"I should be." Shiron gulped. He was free. I just hope I don't mess this up, like usual.

"Good! Now we can finish eating, eh?" Oscar smiled brightly. He could tell he made his son happy, which at the end of the day, was what all parents wanted.

Shiron's stomach growled in response, and he blushed again—harder. But he was hungry, and considering how good of a chef they all were, it was no wonder how excited he was to finish it.

He ate. He ate a lot. Not wanting to be rude in someone else's house, Shiron ate whatever they threw at him. It helped that most of the food was delicious.

"...I think hiring him was the right move after all," Magnus muttered.

It was then that something strange happened. As Magnus watched Shiron eat, his thoughts drifted elsewhere. He pictured them both already evolved, in that very same house. Shiron was bulky, with a few scars, older as well.

Magnus was making food for him, kissing him on the cheeks and waiting to see what Shiron thought of it. Naturally, Shiron ate the pie—it was a pie—without taking any effort.

"Mmm… what's the spices you guys use? Garlic? I smell garlic." Shiron munched on a piece of bread, sniffing to confirm it was garlic.

"We made garlic bread." Magnus snapped back to reality, his face slightly red. "...Do you like it?"

"Love it." Shiron nodded, stopping to breathe and patting his stomach. Being a Pokémon was really nice; if he was still a human, he'd probably be in poor health from how much he ate.

"Ah, thanks!" Magnus' tail wagged again.

The rest of the night went smoothly, though Shiron's mind still came back to those nasty thoughts from before every now and again. He tried his best to shake them off.

Shiron returned to Nick's house, just in time to get some sleep. All the food made him tired, sleepy, and in need of rest. So much so that, despite Nick's protests and questions, Shiron simply entered the room and jumped in the bed immediately, knocking himself out.

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Once he woke up, Shiron discovered two things: one, he overslept, because the sun decided to shine its rays directly on his face. Two, there was some chatter going on outside the room.

"Dang it… I ate too much yesterday." Shiron rubbed his eyes, groaning. He still had the bowtie and everything, so before leaving the room, he made sure to get properly dressed.

After putting on his scarf, Shiron climbed down the stairs. He wasn't particularly hungry, so maybe skipping breakfast wouldn't be a terrible idea. Just this one time.

He finally reached the living room, seeing both Rowan and Ivan. The latter of which looked at him and nodded, sitting on a chair.

"Ah, good morning, Shiron." The Houndoom said. "I've heard you barely said anything once you got back."

"U-Uh, sorry, mister Rowan, I was stuffed and sleepy. Just wanted some rest—"

Rowan shook his head. "Don't worry, kid. You're fine, but Nick got worried for a second there."

"...Where is he?"

"Date with Audrey. Missed on it due to the Fawkes business." Rowan replied, turning back to face Ivan. "And my friend here actually wanted to speak with you."

"M-Me?!" Shiron blinked. What did someone like him want with, well, Shiron?

"It's been over a month. You can change your team name now," Ivan replied, sighing. "...Apologies for that. Sometimes the Porygon can be a bit literal."

"Oh yeah, that." Shiron sighed. It had been some time and he ended up forgetting all about it. "...I don't really have any ideas."

"A shame." Ivan hopped down the chair. "Are you sure about that? It couldn't hurt to think about it. Perhaps a walk will help?"

"..."

Shiron sighed again. Not a bad idea, all things considered. He could stretch his legs, at least. "Okay, mister, but I gotta get to a job interview later."

"Ah! Good for you. I won't take too much of your time." Ivan began to walk towards the door, motioning for Shiron to follow.

"O-Okay! See you later, mister Rowan!"

It didn't take long for the two to leave the house. And for once, the weather looked fine. A bit cloudy, with Shiron's gills twitching slightly, which told him it'd rain sometime later.

"Tell me, what do you think of this town?" Ivan said after the two had walked a bit. "It's been a while since you arrived, after all."

"I… I never stopped to think about it before." Shiron inhaled, feeling the breeze hitting his body. "But… I guess it's nice. The people around treat me well, I have friends, I have—"

He was going to talk about Magnus, but… no. No.

"...I have people I care about."

Ivan nodded. "Good answer, kiddo. And if someone were to threaten them?"

"I…"

What was it with the hard questions?

"...I don't like to fight people, but my friends are important. I'd have to fight."

"Another good answer." Ivan smiled on the corner of his snout. "I'm saying this because it might help you decide on a name."

"Oh! For a moment there, I thought you were being cryptic for no reason, haha…" Shiron rubbed the back of his head. It made things better.

Kind of. He still didn't know what kind of name. "Hope? No, that's too basic. Justice? Nah, I don't like it…"

"Take your time. You don't need to decide now." Ivan sighed. It was amusing to see that kid trying to come up with something, even if those efforts didn't bear any fruit.

"It's complicated. I'm not that good with names." Shiron crossed his arms. Plus, he had other things in mind. Mostly a cute Quilladin. Who he still thought was faking any kind of affection.

…He had to be right? But Magnus invited him to his house, they had dinner—a date, according to Nick! It'd be too much effort for someone faking affections.

Ivan realized Shiron stopped walking and speaking, standing in the open without doing anything. "Hm, you do seem a bit… distracted. Is something on your mind?"

"M-Me?! I mean, the name thing. It's hard!"

"...When you live for as long as I have, you pick up when others are lying," Ivan stated, before shaking his head. "But if you're not comfortable with telling me what it is, that's fine too."

"Uh… okay, yeah, I wasn't comfortable, sorry." Shiron gulped. This time he finally tugged his scarf upwards.

Back to the theme of the name, then. Which… didn't develop, as far as Shiron was concerned. He still didn't know what to call it, though something heroic was definitely on his mind.

"...Nothing. I don't need to decide now, do I?"

"Not right away, no," Ivan confirmed with a nod. "In that case, would you mind if I ask what this job interview is about, then?"

On the bright side, this was an easier thing to answer. Minus his crush on Magnus, of course. Shiron pulled down the scarf.

"Magnus invited me to work with him. Something about teaching me how to cook."

"...Hm." Ivan blinked, not expecting that to be the answer. He smiled afterwards. "That is nice of him. Do you have any idea how to cook?"

Shiron shook his head. "None, I'm afraid. I kinda want to, though. It seems fun, but…"

"...But?"

Dang it, Shiron walked right into another hard question. However, this time he actually wanted to answer. Ivan was an old man, surely he had some wisdom to impart.

"I dunno, feels like I'll never be able to do it." Shiron rubbed his arm, and his hands hurt, like… like those times he intentionally wounded them, when he was human. "He's already had a headstart, and even if I do learn how to cook, I'll never be able to reach his level! He's gonna be working with… with someone bad, at least when compared to him."

Ivan let Shiron say everything, not wanting to interrupt anything.

"And… and when he realizes that, then he'll finally cut me off from his life!" Shiron shouted a bit louder than usual, his breath turning raspy. It felt like he had a lump on his throat, with something wanting to come out. "He doesn't deserve that. He needs… he needs someone better."

"I beg your pardon?" Ivan realized something about what Shiron said, and this time he was going to point that out. "Needs someone better? Why is that?"

"N-Nothing! I just… I just don't want to disappoint him." Shiron gulped. All the effort to keep that part of himself away… for nothing. "He's a friend, and I don't wanna lose that."

"I suppose that makes sense. But Shiron," Ivan moved closer to him, then pointed at his chest. "It's up to you. Don't compare yourself to someone with far more experience. You grow at your own pace, and that is a beautiful thing. Don't forget that."

"...You expect me to change my whole outlook with one sentence?" Shiron grunted. If he had any semblance of a good mood, it was shattered. "I… I try to ignore this, most of the time. It's how I live my life. But sometimes, it gets too much to bear."

"I was not expecting you to change anything, but rather, take the first step." Ivan backed off, sitting on all fours. "If not for yourself, at least, for your friend."

To that, Shiron couldn't give any concrete answers. Maybe he wanted to be challenged like that. And with that in mind…

"You're good at this," he muttered, flustered again and with his face red. "I'll try to, anyway."

"Good! Now, I apologize if I made you nervous. I… I was trying to help." Ivan whined in the same way a puppy Growlithe would do when messing up.

"...Thanks, mister Ivan. I'm not sure what I'm gonna do, but it helped a bit."

"Don't worry, you're welcome to talk to me anytime." Ivan smiled, turning around. "And if you get your name idea, pop by the bank. I'll handle everything."

Now, he had to actually go and meet Magnus again, for the job interview. At least, Shiron assumed there'd be an interview. It would be highly unprofessional if there wasn't anything.

Also, he was going to be a waiter, which involved talking to others… something that Shiron wasn't the best at—though he wasn't the best at anything. Maybe at being depressed.

"...Ouch, even I didn't like that thought." Shiron slapped his own cheeks to calm down and inhaled as much air as he could.

Letting all of it out, Shiron continued his walk, heading to the bakery he spent most of his days in. Honestly, maybe he had a chance. A small, slim chance that Magnus was both interested in guys and in him. Even so, Shiron decided not to hope too much.

…Lower my expectations. That way if something bad happens I won't be disappointed.

Another thing he spent his entire life doing, though even he knew it wasn't a very good habit. But… taking the first step in bettering himself was doable. He thought it was doable. It had to be, right?

Before he knew it, he reached the bakery's door, which made his heart skip a beat. Still, Shiron knew this was where he needed to be, and as such, he opened the door.

As usual, the bakery was brimming with life. There wasn't a single table without Pokémon inside, talking to each other , and ordering food. Shiron understood now why he was asked to help; he assumed this was too much for Magnus's family to handle.

Which did make accepting the offer a little better. Shiron gulped, moving past the customers all the way to the reception, where he saw Magnus scribbling on a notebook, still talking to some Pokémon to take their orders.

He didn't even notice Shiron at first. The Marshtomp himself had to poke him on the arm just to get Magnus' attention.

"H-Huh? Oh, hi, Shiron! As you can see, we're a bit short staffed!" Magnus rubbed the back of his head. "Could you come behind the counter and help me out? I'm just about done taking their orders."

Shiron nodded, moving past some other customers while excusing himself. He made it through unscathed, but a bit nervous. After all, this was his first proper job.

"Okay, so… I'm not sure what I'm supposed to do?"

"Heh, don't worry, it's pretty simple! Well, first, I'm gonna give you an apron! You're not a chef, but it's just for show."

Plus it'd make Shiron look even cuter—something Magnus kept to himself.

"I'm gonna take the orders, and you're gonna hand them to the customers. Well, not just hand them you gotta see what they want too. Basically, you're gonna be a waiter. Sounds good?"

Shiron once again found Magnus' voice to be very soothing, and honestly he was going to say yes anyway, but the way Magnus said it sold it to him.

"Yeah. Uh, I think I can do that, yeah." Shiron was nervous, a little bit. Namely because he didn't want to mess up in front of Magnus. But given the kind of awful person he was… messing up was almost a guarantee.

He tried to shake the thought off, then happily put on the apron Magnus gave to him, choosing to put his scarf on the counter.

"Hm… I like it. How do I look?"

Magnus could swear his heart went all over the place from the sight alone, and this time, his entire focus was on hiding away how flustered seeing Shiron that way made him. Thanks to that, he didn't blush.

This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

His speech, on the other hand, didn't get so lucky. "A-Ah! Ah, well, you look… I think… I think you look nice. Y-Yeah!"

Shiron really didn't believe him, and once again thought that was just… being nice. People were nice to each other, right? So Magnus was doing just that. Nothing more, nothing less.

It hurt a bit to think that way, though Shiron put on a smile anyway. "Alright, so I'll… I'll do it. It can't be hard…"

He hoped it wasn't hard. With that in mind, Shiron left the counter, gulping and holding more than a few menus in his hands; some new customers had arrived, which meant he had to do waiter things.

The first was a rather chubby Buneary—whoever they were, they probably liked food just as much as Shiron did—dressed in a blue shirt and cape. Accompanying said Buneary was a Furret.

…Cute.

Handling that one was fine, and not nearly as nerve-wrecking as Shiron assumed it'd be. They just ordered a few cookies and tea. Next up were… four. A fluffy Riolu, a Bidoof, a Pancham and… a Hakamo-o. The dragon was already eating a full pie, but they ordered seconds anyway.

Finally, he met a lone Vulpix. She seemed rather young—a child, maybe? And she ordered a milkshake. Shiron had to hold back his own hunger when hearing a milkshake order.

Well, things had gone smoothly so far, with Shiron taking them all back to Magnus.

"Quite a busy day, huh?" Shiron sighed in relief, rubbing his forehead.

"...All things considered, it's not that much, to be honest." Magnus blinked. At least Shiron was doing fine, from the looks of it. "Though you're not quite done yet. We'll have a lunch break, though, so get ready for that!"

On cue, Shiron's stomach growled, and he quietly scooted away, back into the job. Still a few customers to talk to, and, aaaand…

The first one he set his sights on was, to put it bluntly, a practical joke. Nick. Nick and Audrey. Nick with a menu in his paws and the smuggest of looks on his face, to the point he was showing off his teeth.

"Dang, Shiron, you got a date and a job with your crush? That's really lucky."

Shiron inhaled. A lot. And then let it out. "Hello, may I take your orders?"

"Wow," Audrey began to snicker. "We didn't plan on coming here, but now I'm glad we did! We can cheer you up!"

"P-Please don't. I'm just trying to do my job."

Nick smirked again, sticking his tongue out in a blep. "That so? Well then! I think we can help with that."

"Your orders. Please. Pretty please?" Shiron asked, trying to get them to just… say what they wanted to eat.

"I dunnoooo, man, what do we want?" Nick smirked again, looking at Audrey and expecting her answer.

"Maybe a fancy wine, some garlic bread… in the middle of the night, with the moon overlooking us." Audrey snickered again. She wasn't describing her and Nick, no.

Shiron realized they were talking about him. Him and Magnus. "...If you keep this up I'm just gonna skip to the next table."

And to that, Nick pouted. "You're no fun, man. We'd like a meatloaf."

"Meatloaf." Shiron blinked. They had that? Neat. "Fine, I'll tell Magnus your order. Anything else?"

"Yeah, tell him you have a crush on him." Nick made kissing noises, and Shiron quickly left the table before he got even more embarrassed.

Still, they had a point. It wasn't a particularly good point, but one nonetheless. Shiron could just blurt it out, and the worst that Magnus could do… was say no.

Except that wasn't the worst thing that could happen. The worst thing that Magnus could do to Shiron was cut him out. Hate him, make Shiron feel miserable or… or be disgusted if Shiron told him his true feelings.

That particular aspect played on his mind repeatedly. Magnus looking at him with pure disgust. Saying things like: "ew, no" to his face. He had a crush, but saying anything came with the caveat of Magnus not sharing those feelings.

And so, Shiron was conflicted. But… but he showed interest. Multiple times, even!

This… this has to be my anxiety talking. R-Right, I mean, I'm being unreasonable. I think he might be interested.

But what if he wasn't? The question alone made Shiron doubt himself. Despite all the evidence of the contrary, he simply… didn't want to believe it could be true. That hurt him, too.

And once again, his heart began to race. Shiron tried to ignore that, simply moving from table to table and putting on a smile as he got each and every order before bringing them to Magnus. In the middle of it, he even went and served the food at a few tables. While it all happened, he still couldn't shake his anxiety off.

Really, who could he talk to about this? Nobody. Shiron had nobody to talk to. Maybe Nick, maybe even Ivan. Or maybe nobody, because then he'd just be bothering them all.

He handled a few more orders before Magnus called him over, whistling and waving at him. So… it had to mean they were having lunch next, right?

His stomach certainly seemed to think so, wth it growling again. Shiron led the customers out, closing the door behind him and breathing a sigh of relief.

"S-So! How did I do?" Shiron turned around to look at Magnus, forcing himself to smile.

"Honestly? A lot better than I thought!" Magnus took off his own apron, putting it on top of a table. "We'll have lunch break, and then reopen the bakery in the afternoon. You don't need to stay for the shift, though."

"I don't…?"

On one hand, Shiron was relieved, not wanting to feel any more anxiety than usual. On the other… he wanted to spend more time with Magnus. That should have made the decision easier, but it really, really didn't.

Especially because his heart was still racing. Shiron assumed that, by having lunch, he'd calm down. He was counting on it, actually.

"Yeah, just let us know beforehand. I think you're doing a good job so far!"

Why? Why did every compliment hit him like a knife? And Shiron knew that… because he knew what a knife felt like in his skin. He knew too well. A cold flame that burnt his nerves, throbbing and giving him an intense discomfort.

And the worst part? Shiron knew this wasn't normal. He knew he shouldn't be feeling so damn anxious over a compliment. It shouldn't make him react the way he did. But it happened, completely outside of his control.

Sometimes… Shiron wished he was normal. A normal human, doing whatever his parents wanted him to do. No freedom, maybe, but at least, he wouldn't be nearly as much of a mess.

At the same time, however, thinking about Magnus… helped. About them together, working there, talking, doing all sorts of things. That was soothing, with Shiron holding on to the thought, picturing him and Magnus holding hands. There was no pain, no anxiety. Just the two of them, together.

So, for once, Shiron let himself enjoy the moment. "Y-You really think so? It wasn't as hectic as I thought, even though I know it happens more often than not."

"Eh, you get used to it." Magnus shrugged.

The back door opened, and from it Oscar appeared, clearing his throat. "Boys? Lunch is ready, you can come in."

A moment to rest, it seemed. Shiron took a deep breath and followed Magnus.

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As it turned out, Shiron decided not to go on the next shift. His excuse was that he had to train, since the team did receive an invitation for something later down the line.

That was—mostly—an excuse to get away. Shiron at least got dessert out of it: a particularly tasty milkshake. For better or for worse, Shiron was free to do… whatever he wanted to do with his day.

The main problem was that he didn't know what that was. He stood in front of the bakery, sipping his milkshake and looking at the cloudy sky.

Funny how my mind is just like that. Well, funny in a self-deprecating way, which is my favorite kind of humor! Hah…

Sometimes he wished he could open his brain and remove all the bad thoughts from it. Maybe a psychic could help… or make him a vegetable afterwards. Shiron winced at the thought.

Maybe… training's gonna help.

Well, that was a dumb idea. He never enjoyed fighting, even if it was necessary. Shiron groaned, but hey, what was the worst that could happen?

At least, Shiron wanted to train alone. He went all the way to the beach, taking controlled, deep breaths. Alone, from the looks of it.

First, he wanted to test his main attack. Shiron concentrated, thinking of himself as a water current, closing his eyes. Before he knew it, water appeared from the air, slowly encircling his arm. After that was finished, the water reshaped itself, forming what appeared to be a drill.

"H-Heheh." Shiron couldn't help but laugh; it was a bit ticklish.

…

What to train with? Liquidation was already in place, he just had to… use it.

You're so stupid. An idiot, a moron. You can't even train properly! I just wanna—GRAAAAH!

Shiron exhaled, before raising his water-coated arm and ramming the ground with it. Right away, the water exploded away from his hand, and the impact sent grains of sand all around the place, creating a small hole, though it was quickly covered by more sand. Shiron didn't even realize what he just did until a few seconds had passed, and even so, his heart was still racing.

"H-Hah." Shiron panted, sitting down. He looked at his arms, seeing both of them were trembling. Not in a bad way, though.

That was kinda relaxing. Punching my problems away, huh? Maybe…

His heart skipped a beat, while Shiron thought of something… stupid. Very stupid, and he knew it. But… but…

He focused again, creating another water drill. Once more, Shiron punched the ground beneath him. However, he did so harder than before, and as a result, the hole he made was also bigger.

"Idiot! Worthless!"

After the water left his arm, Shiron continued punching for a while, until he calmed down. Again. At least somewhat. His heart was still beating way too fast, but Shiron felt better.

"H-Hah. Wait, this… this feels great!"

More. There was no questioning it; Shiron had to do it again. And again. And again. He kept doing it, he kept punching the sand over and over again. Until he lost count.

"Unlovable! Dumb! Piece of crap!"

No end in sight. Shiron closed his eyes, his throat swelling while tears began to form, and his strength only increased. Each punch hit harder than the one before, but still, he didn't stop.

"Nobody in their right mind would ever want you! Your real parents didn't, your adopted ones didn't! You're nothing!"

He screamed, screamed at the top of his lungs. Shiron punched again and again, not satisfied until he finally let everything that was pent up out. He couldn't even feel his arms anymore.

"H-He's never… he's never gonna… love you back."

Shiron raised both arms this time, ramming them both at the exact same time. A few meters in front of him, a burst of energy left the ground, the earth itself splitting open—though it wasn't a particularly big hole.

"W-Wow."

Was that… how strong Shiron was? He didn't even believe it. Instead, Shiron punched the ground again. He was running out of things to call himself.

"Piece of shit! Scum of the earth!"

Again with the punches. Again with the names. Shiron was doing it all… weaker, though. He was spending most of his energy on this.

"H-Hah. You don't deserve anything. You're…" Shiron finally stopped.

He didn't know for how long he was punching for, but it sure felt like forever. His arms hurt, too. Aching, throbbing. He couldn't even cry, with his eyes extremely dry, and his heart?

Still beating. Because he was granted a second life, for some ungodly reason. Shiron never did understand Xerneas. When there were so many better people to resurrect. Nick's parents, for one. Yeah, that was the obvious choice.

He was still alive. And maybe… maybe that was the mistake he made. Living.

It'd be… so easy to do it again. So. Damn. Easy.

But he didn't. Shiron didn't try it, he didn't move, he didn't do anything. Why? Why were things different this time around? What made everything… worth it?

At that moment, Shiron realized that it wasn't just one, but multiple things. Pokémon that loved him, that looked out for him. Friends, one of which he began developing feelings for.

That's what made him stop. Stop and take a step back, thinking again. About himself. About… everything. And it all came back to Magnus. Shiron blinked, looking at himself, arms and hands still shaky.

"I… I have something to tell him. N-No, I have to tell him!"

Although Shiron didn't reevaluate his entire life—and the bad thoughts were still there, he now had something to share with a friend. If anyone would be willing to hear him, it'd be Magnus.

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Thankfully nobody seemed to notice his outburst on the beach—which made it the best place if he needed to do it again. Knowing Shiron, he was likely going to do that.

But for now, his main focus was on Magnus. He was probably still on the afternoon shift if anything…

Still, Shiron opened the door to his bakery, seeing it was more or less the same as it was before. Except this time around he was greeted by a different set of friends.

"Hi, Shiron!" Terry waved from a table. "We got curious on why you spend so long here, so—"

"You got curious and dragged me along," Liz interrupted him with a glare. However, her stern tone briefly abated. "...For the most part."

"Uh, it's a job I got, but I'm not working right now, so, have fun?"

"We will!" Terry snickered, whispering to Liz. "Do you want to increase your bet?"

"Hmph, maybe. I still think he will not make any advances."

"Deal!"

Shiron had long since moved past them, and didn't hear… whatever they were scheming. He tried to calm down while he headed for the counter, where Magnus was. Just like always.

"Hm? Oh, Shiron, you're back!" Magnus stopped scribbling once he saw the familiar Marshtomp. "...I'd ask if you wanna take the shift, but we kinda started already, so I'm afraid you can't."

"Not the reason, actually. I, uh, could I have a few minutes of your time?" Shiron rubbed the back of his head, trying to hide how flustered he was. And failing, of course. The blush was visible. On the other hand, he managed to hide his anxiety for the most part—his body twitched slightly.

"You mean like, me taking a break?" Magnus' heart also skipped a beat after hearing what Shiron said. Could this be it? Out of the blue?

"Yeah, about right. I know today's hectic and all, so you don't need to go with me." Shiron mostly said that so he could see if Magnus was going to reject the idea. "...But I wanna talk to you about something."

O-Oh Gods, he's gonna— Magnus immediately smiled. "U-Uh, sure! I just… I just gotta tell my parents about it, see if they can cover for me."

"Right, I'll… I'll go ahead and wait at the door, okay?"

Magnus nodded, hurrying to the inside. Meanwhile, Shiron turned around, passing by a giggling Terry, while Liz winced, seemingly defeated. He ignored them, not really understanding what the fuss was about, before leaving.

And then he waited in the front door. Shiron wasn't exactly calm, and the whole two minutes that he stood there felt like two hours before Magnus showed up beside him.

"Took a little bit of convincing, but they let me go!"

"...Wow." Shiron inhaled again, before letting it out. "Okay, so, walk with me for a bit, alright? We're going to the beach."

"The beach…? I mean, sure." Not what Magnus expected, for sure. But if it involved Shiron, he'd go anywhere.

On Shiron's end, he sort of wanted to hold Magnus' hand while they walked, but decided not to. This chat was going to be… something.

"Well, then, lead the way!" Magnus snickered, walking alongside Shiron.

For the duration of that trek, Shiron actually managed to calm down his anxiety further. Like he thought, just standing by Magnus' side was enough to help with his… stuff.

Maybe not once they were done with the chat, though. And that made him a bit nervous. However, Shiron pressed on with the idea anyway.

----------------------------------------

And he was back on that beach again, with Magnus. With his crush. Shiron tried not to think too much about that, instead leading him on to the middle, right where he had his… breakdown of sorts.

"Hm, something feels different. The sand kinda feels deeper…" Magnus pointed out, stepping on the ground. "Ah, but it happens sometimes, I guess."

"Yeah, do you wanna, like, sit down? 'Cause I think it might be better." Shiron received a nod, and the two sat.

"Hah, not as comfortable, but… well, it could be worse, I guess." Magnus stretched his arms, feeling the wind on his fur. "What'd you want to talk about anyway?"

"Okay, where do I start with this…"

Shiron inhaled again, to the point his stomach bloated a bit. Then, he slowly let it all out, measuring his next few words. He had to trust Magnus, and besides… he already told Nick before.

"I am… I was a human."

No more words were said after that, because Shiron wanted Magnus to listen and tell him what he thought of the situation.

As for Magnus, he… heard it. His mind processed it, and he spent a good few seconds just repeating Shiron's words inside. Human. Used to be a human. That sounded crazy, because weren't humans some myth? Sure, Nick believed in them, but…

"You're telling me the truth?"

Shiron nodded, looking at the crashing waves against the sand. "I… I died. I died as a human, and then I was reborn here, as a Pokémon. I woke up inside the ocean, and Nick rescued me."

"H-Huh?!" Magnus, again, repeated everything to himself. Shiron wouldn't lie to him like that, right? Except he did. He never said anything about being a human; he said he had amnesia!

"I was born in the city of Lilycove. It's… it's a place full of humans. I know it doesn't make much sense, but I remember it all."

He paused, but Magnus didn't say anything else.

"I… I remember it, and I don't want that. I don't want to be a human, and I'm not. I used to be, but now?" Shiron said a little louder this time, trying to get his friend's attention. "S-Say something, Magnus!"

Magnus had many things on his mind. If Shiron was a human—if he was telling him the truth, then… Magnus could accept that. He even accepted that Shiron didn't want anything to do with being a human.

It was hard to find out his own emotions. So Magnus focused on a single question. "...Why hide it?"

"I… I thought if I said something, you wouldn't want to be my friend anymore. Nick and his grandpa figured it out on their own, but I haven't told anyone else."

Just the three of them? In a way, it was like Magnus was special.

"I… I see. You called me to tell me that." Magnus couldn't hide the disappointment in his tone. On one hand, he knew more about Shiron. On the other… he expected something else.

"Not… just that." Shiron rubbed one of his arms. "I'm not… I'm not exactly the best person in the world. My parents made sure of that. And while… I can't—I won't tell you about them, there's something that I haven't told anyone here."

Magnus' eyes widened, and he looked at Shiron. Like always, glancing at him made Magnus almost lose his jaw, such was the intensity. And now, curiosity.

"Look, I… I regret doing it, before I go into details. But sometimes, I feel very close… to doing it again. I know I have to stop, I know I have to get help, and I will, which is why… I wanna tell you about it."

That sounded ominous. Magnus gulped, suddenly unsure, with his tail lowering itself a bit.

"It's… I wanna point out it's related to why I died. It wasn't an accident or anything. I wasn't killed, either."

Magnus tried to narrow it down. No accident, not killed…if neither were the answer, what was it?

And Shiron breathed in again, with his heart almost jumping out of his chest with how rapidly it beated inside of him.

Then…he let the words out.

He described everything in grand detail, from waking up, to having a particularly bad fight with his parents, and all the steps of his plan.

His plan…to finally end it all…

"I was tired. So, so very tired. Every day…" Shiron trembled again, moving his hand to touch his chest, right where his heart was. It hurt. "Every day was the same. I had to wake up, study, but I… I could hardly leave my room. If I didn't understand or didn't manage to learn a subject properly…"

Shiron gulped, looking at his arms. He remembered the stinging pain, even if nothing was happening at that moment. "They hurt me, Magnus. Beat me up and everything."

"W-Wha?! Your own parents?!" Magnus wanted to reach out for a hug, but Shiron pulled him away.

"L-Let me finish. It got really bad." Shiron had to pause to collect his thoughts, and he was struggling to not burst into tears. "T-They… they… my parents had a cellar, outside the house. Sometimes they'd lock me up there for the whole night. No food, no water, nothing. In the dark."

"I-I'm… what?!" Magnus didn't even know how to react or what to say when it came to that. The only thing he could do was listen.

"And… I got tired of that. I got tired, because no matter how much I tried, I was never enough for them…" Shiron began to laugh at the absurdity of it all, touching both of his cheeks with his hands. "Y-You must think I'm so stupid. Like, I should've tried harder!"

Magnus shook his head at that. "...I'm sorry, but no. You're not the wrong one here. They were for abusing you like this."

"I… I…" Shiron gulped. This was the last part of the story, and the hardest one to talk about. "I couldn't stand it anymore. I was at my limit. And one fateful day, they left on a business trip. I was alone. I could… I could do it."

"...You could do it?" Magnus stopped to think. Reading between the lines, trying to understand what Shiron wanted to say before he even said it.

"So, I left the house, making sure nobody followed me. There was a river—well, Lilycove is right next to the ocean… actually, most of Hoenn is. I went…"

Shiron stopped again, trying to calm down enough to talk about it. "I went there, to the ocean. H-Hah…"

And suddenly Magnus realized it all fell into place. The words he used, the fact he died, that it wasn't on outside forces…

He understood it. Shiron didn't need to say anymore. His heart almost shattered into pieces from listening, while his eyes widened like saucers. His body shivered, trembled, and against all odds, he did something.

He hugged Shiron. Not a weak hug, no. Magnus gave Shiron the tightest hug he could muster, not letting go, not saying anything. This opened the floodgates for Shiron, and he cried the most he had ever cried before, letting every single tear in his body out. No matter how much he trembled, no matter how much it hurt, Magnus was there. And he wouldn't let go.

Neither of them knew how long they hugged for. Maybe it didn't matter. Shiron certainly thought so, continuing the hug for as much as he could, crying until the tears stopped forming.

But slowly, he began to relax. Magnus was still there, still hugging. Shiron only wanted that. The affection, the care… it was heaven for him. He closed his eyes, breathing slowly to relax further.

"You can stay… you can stay here for as long as you need. Don't worry about anything, okay? I'm here, Shiron. I'm here for you."

Shiron wasn't even able to say anything, his cries overshadowing everything else he tried to do. But… but it felt nice to be vulnerable next to Magnus. He didn't solve all of his problems, but Shiron knew it was a start, at least.

"I'm… I'm sorry you had to live like that. I just hope that now, you have a better life. And if I can help you in any way… I will."

"O-Okay…" Shiron managed to mutter, sniffling and hugging Magnus tighter. "Just stay here. I… I wanna stay here with you for a while."

"Is that so? Well, I can do that." Magnus rubbed his hand on Shiron's back, trying to comfort him.

It worked. Shiron closed his eyes again, letting Magnus handle everything. And with that, his anxiety disappeared, replaced by an affection towards Magnus that Shiron knew to be stronger.

"Wherever we are, I want to help you," Magnus said, still tapping Shiron on the back. "Because… you're important to me."

"...You're important to me too."

Shiron wanted to talk about his feelings again, about… loving Magnus, but this wasn't the time. Maybe… maybe some other time, he could tell him everything. But right now all he wanted was to stay and relax with him on the beach.

"Good, because I want to treat you to some more food," Magnus said. "You'd like that, wouldn't you?"

Shiron's stomach growled again, but he didn't get flustered because of it. Instead, he managed a faint laugh. Magnus always managed to make him feel better. He was just… great.

"Hey, if you remember everything about being human, can you tell me if the appetite remained the same? Dunno any other Marshtomps as hungry as you."

"H-Heheh. Unfortunately for you, it showed up when I got reborn. Don't ask me how the process works, though, because I have noooo idea!" Shiron finally pulled away from the hug, sighing in relief. "But I don't regret it. I… I don't even consider myself a human anymore."

"Hm, it's weird, though. Do you remember how it was like? To change?"

Shiron considered it for a moment, tapping his chin. "Honestly? It's kind of a blur. Like, imagine body parts start growing, like you're full of energy, then… you're a Pokémon. It's really weird. I don't know anything specific."

"Hmmm, no, I get it. Evolving was kinda like that." Magnus sighed in relief as well. Things got better, at last. "Well, you're gonna have to tell me more about humans. Before today, I didn't even think they were real, let alone… like you."

"Like me?"

Magnus meant handsome, but he kept it to himself. "Kindhearted and gentle. That's how I'd describe you. Though… you really gotta work on hiding things from your friends. I get why, but…"

"S-Sorry, it was… something I kept bottled up." Shiron winced. He failed to talk about punching the sand, but that would just have to come later. Much later. "But yes, I can tell you about humans, later. I'd rather do it when there's only you and me."

"I… I get that." Magnus stood up, offering a hand for Shiron to grab, so he could also get up. "C'mon. I gotta go back to my shift… and you gotta eat. Drink, too, with how much you cried."

Shiron happily took Magnus' hand and got up. "Can I get another milkshake if that's the case?"

"I feel like you're gonna get really fat if we keep this up. Heh." Magnus turned around. "But really, I'm here for you, I'm your friend."

"I never had any friends before becoming a Pokémon," he admitted with a wince. "...Now I have a bunch. And I gotta say thanks."

"Don't mention it, man."

Magnus didn't let go of Shiron's hand, and instead pulled him in, walking ahead to leave the beach. Although surprised at first, Shiron didn't resist. Why would he, when he liked the idea?

He didn't say everything; in fact he only scratched the surface. But… with time, he could. Magnus deserved to know more, when the time was right for that.