CHAPTER 2

There wasn't any time to enjoy a more leisurely flight like Zuri and I often preferred. Getting to Johto from Paldea would take eight whole hours even when flying at top speed for a Dragonite of Zuri's experience and prowess.

As we sped towards Johto, I couldn't help but think about the past. My jaw clenched as old and terrible memories were dredged up.

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Before that fateful argument with my dad, I had been training to be the successor to the Gym. It was something I had wanted. I loved Cherrygrove, Pokemon, and our family legacy. What better way to combine the best of all three worlds than to become the next Gym Leader?

But when I was ten, my dad realized I was an Ability Holder.

Just like there were psychics or Aura users, there were also Ability Holders, people who gained supernatural abilities related to Pokemon. Ability Holders were extremely rare to the point where only one or two individuals might be found on the continent at a single time. The only exception was Unova, which boasted a slightly higher number of Ability Holders due to their storied history there.

Back then, Ability Holders were feared as harbingers of doom based on old myths and firsthand horror accounts of previous individuals. Nowadays that stigma had all but disappeared in every region aside from Unova.

My Ability was being able to understand and more easily bond with Fairy type Pokemon.

Now, a decade ago, the idea of a Fairy typing was still completely unknown. It was only in the present day that the type was slowly becoming more known and accepted within the Kinjoh Area, which included Kanto, Johto, Hoenn, and Sinnoh. The rest of the regions had already known about and embraced the Fairy type decades ago.

When I was younger, I had befriended certain types of the local wild Pokemon such as Jigglypuff, Snubbull, or the occasional Azurill. I talked and played with them for many hours. My Ability had not fully developed at this time, however, so I could only understand bits and pieces of what they were saying. I was too young to know what an Ability was. I just thought I was very good at making friends. Dad simply thought I was playing a child's game with them.

Meanwhile, my successor training began taking a turn for the worse. I had been interested in the Gym, yes, but there was no passion for Grass types like my dad had. I began gravitating more and more toward Fairy types, or Normal types as they were officially classified back then.

Dad had been disappointed. Our differing views on favored specialties was what started a gigantic rift between us that only grew with time. Dad became more and more annoyed that I wasn't following the footsteps of our ancestors. He thought Normal type Pokemon weren't worth training. I became more and more frustrated with his rigid and flawed way of thinking. I was my own person with my own interests. We started getting into more and more arguments about every little thing. Every day around each other had been full of tension.

When my Ability finally fully developed, I was ecstatic. In a last-ditch effort to reach some sort of understanding with Dad, I told him about what I could do and how it was a part of me. I thought he would realize I was meant for a different path.

I'll never forget the look of disgust in his eyes that day or the way he howled and roared insults at me afterwards. I was an abomination, a stain on the family's legacy, and he couldn't stand being around me anymore.

He denied me my right of inheritance to the Gym, and he wanted me gone.

I left and never looked back.

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That seemed like ages ago now. I'd been through so much since then and accomplished many things.

I let out a heavy breath I hadn't known I'd been holding. Reminiscing on bad memories wasn't good for my state of mind right now. I needed rest.

Nothing would or could dare challenge a Dragonite in the skies, more so one that was flying at the speed of sound. I was confident enough that after asking Zuri to wake me up once we approached Cherrygrove, I shut my eyes and promptly fell asleep.

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Eight hours later, I was awoken by Zuri's loud crooning.

She had slowed down to a much, much more leisurely pace, and I was able to clearly make out our surroundings now. I immediately snapped to attention and sat more upright on her back when I realized where we were.

Well-worn dirt paths and patches of tall grass flew past in the distance along with occasional ledges and a dense forest of trees. I'd been there plenty of times in my childhood to play with some of the more friendly wild Pokemon. Route 29. It was the route that connected New Bark Town and Cherrygrove City.

Which meant…

I leaned forward a bit in anticipation as the rest of the route whizzed by below us. As if sensing my excitement, Zuri gained a bit of speed again.

I won't lie, some part of me in years past had fantasized about my return to Cherrygrove City. I had thought about it on numerous occasions, of coming back to my hometown and it being something like a triumphant hero's homecoming. I had numerous accolades under my belt after all.

But now, when I saw the first few buildings of Cherrygrove come into view, I simply felt a heavy wave of nostalgia wash over me.

It had been so damn long. Ten whole years.

Even for a less renowned city like Cherrygrove, it had still undergone many changes in a decade. I saw many more buildings where empty plots of land used to be, more cherry trees, more… everything. Probably more people, too, but there weren't many residents outside at this time. Most were probably eating or finishing up dinner.

Cherrygrove was often overlooked by the rest of the region in favor of bigger, more prominent cities and towns, but to me, Cherrygrove was the most beautiful city of all. I'd seen many wondrous places during my travels around the world, yet Cherrygrove held a special place in my heart.

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The City of Fragrant Flowers.

I inhaled deeply, relishing the nostalgic sweet scent in the air. I'd come to Cherrygrove right during the blooming season, which lasted from March until June. That was when the city's famous cherry blossom trees were in full bloom. The rest of the year, it was the cherry blush or cherry snow trees that flowered.

Zuri cried out happily, voicing her own appreciation for the lovely smell. She sneezed not a moment later though. I snorted with laughter.

I took in the view of the city below us for a little longer as Zuri hovered midair, unsure of where to go now that she had made it to our destination. I hadn't caught her in Johto, so she'd never been here before.

I wanted to look longer, but I knew there was another time and day for that. Right now, I had someone to meet.

"That way, Zuri. We'll go to the Gym first. It's a big building with a deep green colored roof," I told my Pokemon, pointing to the northwestern side of the city. Zuri nodded and quickly took off, flapping her wings eagerly. To this day, I was still amazed by her stamina and ability to fly such long distances. She was truly top of the class for her species.

The cool notes of the sea breeze got stronger the further in we flew. It didn't take long for us to reach the area I was looking for. Except… something was different.

"Huh?" I voiced out in confusion as I stared at a certain building.

The Cherrygrove Gym was nestled at the end of a long path that split into two, one that led into town and another that led to the city's western shores. At its back was a forest and a cliffside out further west. Various flowers, trees, and bushes decorated the grounds on all sides of the Gym, creating a mesmerizing maze of color. My dad had always had a green thumb. I'd spent many hours running through the gardens with the Gym Pokemon. Everything up to there looked the same.

No, what I was looking at was the Gym itself. The general shape was the same, but it was… bigger? It seemed to be twice as big as I remembered, rivaling the size of the major gyms across Johto.

That was just the size, which had apparently seen an improvement. I was focusing on the condition of the Gym itself.

It had seen better days. The Gym wasn't exactly rundown, but it was clear some sort of construction work had been going on and then left undone suddenly. The roof was peeling in some sections, and there were parts of the exterior with holes or where new stone was being added. Broken pieces of stone and other materials littered the ground around the Gym.

The Gym looked like it hadn't been used in some time.

As I was staring at it in shock, Zuri growled softly, gesturing to the building. I shook my head. The lights were off. That meant dad wasn't there like I would have expected the workaholic to be. Instead…

"See that forest behind it? Fly forward a bit, there's a huge clearing and a house just slightly ahead," I directed Zuri. The Dragonite nodded and took off again.

I couldn't take my eyes off the sad state of the Cherrygrove Gym as Zuri flew past, only finally wrenching my gaze away when Zuri reached the forest.

Just a few more flaps of her wings, and then Zuri dove down, landing with hardly a sound in the front yard of a familiar yet not familiar building. Zuri let go of the type energy layer around us as I hopped off her back with practiced ease, eyes not leaving the house in front of me. Like the Cherrygrove Gym, I was surprised to see how different it looked.

The house had been a modest size before, but like the Gym, it was twice as big as it used to be. Flowering vines now snaked across light-colored walls, and a balcony had been added. Small lights and lamps around the porch helped illuminate the surroundings. There was no lack of potted plants or flower beds in the front yard, and I doubted the back would be any different. I knew there would be a massive stretch of cleared land back there with small ponds and even a river, trees, and plenty more flowers. That was where we had kept all the Pokemon, both personal and Gym.

I was snapped out of my staring when a quiet growling sound filled the air. Zuri immediately let out a low growl of her own, tensing as a huge Meganium suddenly appeared from the back of the house and lumbered slowly toward us. I eyed the grass around our feet which had suddenly started writhing.

I was glad to see the house security hadn't degraded.

"It's okay, Zuri. He's not an enemy," I placated my friend, patting her gently on the arm. Zuri relaxed but shot me a confused glance as I took a step forward confidently. I held a hand up in a wave as the Meganium growled a little louder, eyes a blazing gold in the darkness. He looked older than I remembered, but I still recognized him. He had allowed me to ride on his back many times as a child.

"Meguri, it's me. Arin," I announced myself softly. I held eye contact with the Grass type starter. We stared at each for a few moments in silence before I saw, bit by bit, recognition slowly enter his eyes. Meguri stopped growling and plodded the rest of the way toward me. He didn't waste any time sniffing my face before growling happily, giving my cheek a few enthusiastic licks as a bonus.

I grinned, rubbing the Meganium's neck as I discreetly wiped off the saliva on my cheek with my free hand.

"It's good to see you too, buddy," I said, and I meant it. Dad's starter had been a good protector and an even better friend for me as a young boy. I rubbed Meguri's neck a few times before letting my arm fall, gesturing to the house. "...I'm here to see him."

I didn't know if Meguri sensed the apprehension in my voice, but he nodded. He offered an apologetic nod to Zuri before making his way to the porch. I turned back to Zuri, making sure to thank her for all of her hard work before recalling her to her capsule for some well-deserved rest.

I quickly strode up to the house. Meguri was already waiting for me by the front door. With a quick pull of his vine, he opened the front door and guided me inside. I stepped into the entryway, the door closing shut behind me.

Much of the interior was still the same. Various paintings and photographs lined the walls, though I noticed a few changes in the furniture such as new couches or chairs. I was surprised to see a certain coffee table still in the living room. I could see the chips on its surface from when I'd accidentally bashed some toys into it as a kid. I had been playing with Meguri and dad at the time. For some reason, that furniture piece hadn't been replaced like the others. There was also an empty display case for whatever reason in the living room.

I didn't dwell on it for too long. Meguri gestured with a vine to the beginning of a hallway. I knew where that hallway led.

I expected Meguri to guide me like before, but instead, he retracted his vine and laid down carefully in a resting position on the rug in the living room.

Apparently, I was going to be talking privately with dad.

I strode forward, moving past Meguri into the rightmost hallway. My legs carried me to the second door on the right. An intricate pattern of leaves was emblazoned across the wood.

By my feet, I could see the faint glow of light cast on the floor from within.

Dad was just beyond this door. A man I'd argued so terribly with that I'd left home to journey on my own. A man I hadn't seen nor spoken to in ten years. A man who had suddenly contacted me out of nowhere asking to talk.

The nerves I thought I'd settled on the flight to here suddenly came back in full. I didn't know what to expect. I wasn't sure I was ready for this meeting.

A slight movement in my peripheral vision caught my attention. I looked down and saw Vel's Heal Ball shaking slightly on my belt. I ran my fingers over it wonderingly. A smile broke out across my face when I felt a familiar Fairy type energy leak out from it, wrapping around my hand in solidarity.

My nerves settled immediately. I had nothing to be afraid of.

I had come here with a purpose: to satisfy my curiosity and find closure so that I could move on with my life. More importantly, Vel and the others were with me.

I took a deep breath. Let's do this, I told myself. I rapped on the door with my knuckles. There was a moment of silence before a muted "come in" was heard. His voice sounded different from what I remembered.

I put my hand on the doorknob and turned it, opening the door.