MS: TSB Part One: Broken

☆== Mega Sun ==☆

♤-- The Stories Before --♤

~Part 1: Broken~

Lazuli hides in the forest, breathing heavily as she looks around frantically.

Are they still there? Are they gone?

It's happening again. This should be her second nature now. But now she's near a village, and if she gets caught here, she may never be heard of again.

Except for in stories to teach children.

"I saw her!" "She went this way!"

She rises anxiously, ready to run from the bounty hunters.

/What did I do? Are they chasing me because of--/

Someone stood in her way.

♤=- 5 YEARS EARLIER -=♤

"Hello there, Kiki!" The Treecko leaned outside his market booth, waving. "How is Mr. Yoru today?"

Lazuli brushed past him. He scowled, then leaned back on his bench.

The Riolu looked around, trying to find a place to set up her market.

Clutching the box of matches, she felt anxious.

She remembered a story her mother had always told her, of a small litten who wanted to sell torches on a cold day. He and his family were poor, and his mother had recently died of tuberculosis. His father was angry and troubled since then, and he took it out on the litten.

Almost as if he were controlled.

If he didn't come home with even a single pokédollar, he might be punished.

No one wanted the torches, though.

They were already warmed by their own fires. And though most of the people had claimed to be pure-of-heart, no one stopped by to buy a torch.

The litten died that night from a cold.

Lazuli began breathing heavily. Her father abused her because he was raised the same, and couldn't find the good in his life.

Her mother was helpless and weak.

If she came back without any money...

...Lazuli didn't even want to begin to think about this.

She set up her booth near a Meowth, who was selling fish.

"Say, whatcha selling there?" They asked.

Lazuli cringed. "Uhm... I, uh... matches..." She turned away, noticing a young eevee at her side.

"My mother says you shouldn't be handling those." He said.

Lazuli looked around. No one near seemed to be his parents. She then leaned in and whispered, "My mother says I'm old enough." Then she stood back up and ignored the eevee, searching again.

What for? She didn't know. Cold customers? Most of them were in blankets.

Except for...

She turned back to the child.

He was warmed only by a ragged cape, which seemed awfully uncomfortable.

She sighed. It wasn't likely this kid had money on hand.

But she lit a match anyway.

"Here, kid." She said. He backed away. "Umma, Umma!" He called, darting off.

"Wait, I..." She trailed off. She what? Tried to what, warm him? With open flames he had just mentioned as dangerous?

She cringed again, hoping no one had seen her. Because that Meowth doesn't look suspicious.

"You need a customer?" They asked.

Lazuli turned to them. "Hmm?"

She often did that, whether she heard them or not, she replied with a "hmm." She also did it when she regretted saying something that another 'mon might've misheard.

The Meowth looked her in the eye. "Those matches," They pointed out, "you trying to sell them?"

Lazuli blew the lit fire out and nodded shyly.

"Yeah... do you know anyone who will take them?"

They smiled. "I need someone to help cook this fish. And those matches seem of high quality, there."

Lazuli looked down at the box. /They're only oran branches,/ she thought, but she agreed to help anyway.

♤=- Later -=♤

Lazuli returned home with 2 cooked fish and about 40 pokédollars.

Her father was proud. He wasn't overly abusive, but he was hardly impressed.

At least they could eat today.

"You did good today, Lazuli" Her mother said. "Hopefully we get luck tomorrow, too~"

Lazuli smiled. "Hopefully."

♤=- That Night -=♤

Lazuli was crouched in the corner of the den, stressed to tears.

What if someone comes?

What if someone hurts her?

What if animals take the money?

What if what if what if--

There was suddenly a red light.

Or was it a light? Lazuli wasn't sure, but all she knew was it was blinding her and darkening until it was completely black.

She screamed. At least, she tried to.

Nothing seemed to move in her face that way. It only moved to cry, if anything. Her arms were swinging in such ways she might be killing someone. Her paws burned, her claws unsheathed, and her mind rambled.

Anxious thoughts would have stayed, but instead they were corrupt by dangerous thoughts and sadistic ideas, most of which Lazuli doesn't remember.

The few she did, she does not share for it traumatized her and worsened her anxiety and paranoia severely.

She couldn't hear.

Only the booming mind inside her could be heard.

It was worse than death.

♤=- Afterword -=♤

Lazuli finally opened her eye to see fire, ashes, and broken down markets.

Worst of all, sliced arms and dead 'mons.

Even that generous Meowth who let her eat that night before.

She nearly cried when she saw her family, lying there, like all the others.

She ran away. No one in this village was violent. Not even her father qualified.

It was her.

She did this.

She was wanted.

♤=- Nostalgia (Present-Time) -=♤

Lazuli, running away from the hunters, ran into the 'mon in her path.

She fell back, nearly scurrying away, but something stopped her.

The Vaporeon wasn't going to hurt her.

Instead, they looked worried, and helped her up.

"Are you OK?"

☆==- End●

CREDIT

Art and Story by me

Species belong to Nintendo, Game Freak, and the Pokémon Company