Alright, Charms, here's the next fic. I've been excited for this one and I hope you all like it.
~Not What You See - AKA: TTiAYNWS (Don't ask, you won't get it.)
-Prologue: Part 1-
"Woah!" rang the voice of a young girl as she tumbled onto her back in the grass. She closed her eyes and sighed in slight frustration, spreading out her limbs as her raven-black hair splayed across the ground, surrounding her head like rays of a dark sun. She stared at the branches hanging over her head with sapphire-blue eyes that practically glowed in her pale, smooth face.
"You have to keep practicing," sang another voice behind her and out of her range of sight.
The blue-eyed girl sat up, staring at the older girl behind her as she performed a beautifully fluid cartwheel, which was what she had just failed to do. She too, had dark hair, and a strong and powerful face with sharp blue eyes, almost like the younger girl's but darker, more midnight blue. She wore simple blue sweats and a tank top that showed how powerful she really was for a girl her age.
"I'm not a dancer like you," the younger girl said as an excuse as she stood up, wiping dirt off of her black jeans. The older girl preformed a few more flips and cartwheels quite effortlessly, moving like water. "And that's what you do, Lysis? This is what you practice when you go to your sessions?" The younger asked while adjusting her black hair into a single long pony-tail.
"Yep, pretty much," she responded, before jumping onto an old trash can, light as a feather, though she jumped off with enough force that she flew through the air towards a tree. She turned herself in one swift motion and hit the trunk with her feet. She pushed off the tree and flipped through the air, landing gracefully on her two feet before the younger girl.
The younger girl blinked and then looked down at her feet, where a small creature was doing twirls and dancing, just as gracefully as Lysis. It was pink, and appeared to have some sort of blue hat on its head. The creature flipped through the air and landed in with a perfect bow.
"Mime!" it called in a way that seemed it was professing it was as good as Lysis.
"I dunno, Muku," she said with a smile. "I think you and I will stick with our battles."
Lysis shrugged. "Suit yourself, Tara." She began to walk away from the clearing. "Sticking with something you're good at is a decent option."
Tara smiled once more and jogged to catch up with Lysis, who was in a slow yet meaningful stride, a stride in which she often walked; a strong stride with purpose and power.
It was late in the afternoon, and Lysis had to go eat and then go off to another one of her sessions. The light was a blend of the white of day and the golden rays of sunset. Their feet scrunched against the dirt wilderness trail of their neighborhood, which was just outside of Jubilife in a suburb.
"When do you think you'll be done with these sessions? You've been doing them for years," Tara asked as she watched a pair of starly in the tree they were passing; they were creating a nest together. She had asked this question before, but she was very curious as to what exactly Lysis was doing - she seemed quite secretive about it.
"They tell me soon, that my training's almost done," Lysis responded calmly, as if all she had worked towards for years was just a little thing.
"And you can't tell me what it is you're doing," Tara replied, it wasn't a question.
"No, unfortunately…"
"Mm…" Tara nodded, kicking away a small stone. "I had another dream last night," Tara stated. "I was in that combat outfit like before, holding guns, like I was on some secret mission," Tara closed her eyes as she walked, recalling the details very vividly as if it were a memory instead of a dream. The dreams were invigorating and intense, and she certainly enjoyed having them, even though some of them turned out to be quite dark. Muku was less than thrilled with them for one reason or another.
"You have some funny dreams, kid," Lysis laughed lightly, showing her teeth through an amused grin.
"I guess so," Tara laughed as well. "It's fun to pretend I'm like a secret agent or something, though."
"Pfft, wish you were," she chuckled. "Wouldn't that be amazing?"
They continued their walk in silence until they reached Tara's house, which was small and simple, light blue paint with a gray roof.
"See you tomorrow," Tara nodded her head as she began to stroll up the walkway.
"Yeah…" Lysis replied in a disconnected fashion. Muku the Mime Jr. had ceased his dancing and stared into Lysis' eyes with a serious gaze, which she returned. Before Tara could notice he had stopped he turned away and pranced across the cement towards the front door.
-------
Tara Valens. That was her name. She was about eleven now, almost twelve and she, like many kids her age, had aspirations to become a powerful battler using Pokémon. She was well on her way 0 she had Muku, whom she had had with her since before she was walking, and also Namoraw, her Tentacool and fierce protector, whenever he was able, of course: he had certain handicaps on land.
She was sharp for her age, and an excellent battler already, she was among the top in her school, and very respected for it, as well as very much loved by most of the students, due to her friendly and calm characteristics.
She was going to be allowed to leave for her journey after her twelfth birthday, which was no more than one month away. She would graduate from her school with top marks and grades in all areas, which was a requirement by her parents. She was by no means the smartest student in the school, but she studied when she needed to and paid attention. She spoke more maturely than expected, due to the time she's spent with books and listening in to older people talk. She also watched the battling channels religiously, and tried to catch them live when she could. Her parents treated her with tickets to see the Sinnoh League battles for her eleventh birthday. The battles she witnessed only added fuel to her fire.
Her parents were loving and nurturing, and cared for her however they could, and she was glad to have them; she knew not everyone was so lucky. Tara also had her close friend, Lysis, whom she had known for quite some time now. Tara was an only child, but figured that if she were to have an older sibling, she would wish for them to be like Lysis. Lysis wasn't all that gifted in the area of battling, but she made up for it and then some when it came to athletics, especially in the past few years. Though, through that time she had become more distant - she always seemed pre-occupied with other things, like her head was in too many places at once. Lately Tara had felt that Lysis felt guilty for not spending as much time with the girl as she should.
And then there were the dreams.
Tara always found them silly in the end, and a bit funny. She would envision herself as some operative, doing various tasks, many seemingly by magic. Like she could vanish and then appear elsewhere, and she could do amazing athletic feats. And the guns. Tara was like an ace marksman, hitting every target on the nose, usually a person trying vainly to stop her with guns of her own. There was a very creepy Haunter that, well, haunted her shadow, helping with the many missions. There were countless other things, and Tara remembered them all perfectly, as if she were actually there and as if they had been real events.
Tara laughed to herself whenever she remembered them, which was surprisingly often. The only person closer to her than Lysis was actually a Pokémon, Muku.
Muku the Mime Jr. was a strange thing. He was always moving, trapped in some sort of un-ending performance that only recessed when he needed to sleep. Despite his small body and cute face, Muku was no weakling; Tara had known him him for a while, and they had begun training very early, as soon as Tara was able to grasp the concept of battling. Muku could easily pull off multiple powerful moves, and used them effectively in battle. He was mocked at first in Tara's school, but soon Muku was also respected, and adored by every student, perhaps more popular than Tara herself. He certainly did like to let it all go to his head.
They were both extremely close, Tara discovered early on that they could communicate using Muku's psychic abilities, and they did so often, in fact they were always connected now. They always knew what the other was feeling and what they were thinking. It was a very sacred thing that Tara treasured above all other things; it was unbreakable.
Tara Valens. That was her name, and this part of her story.
-------
Gasping and yelling fill the room. Sheets tangled and everything felt like it was being smothered by a thick force. Tara awoke in a cold sweat and was clenching savagely at her bed sheets, her body writhed. Her head, it hurt so much, like thousands of things were being forced into it. She had a dream, another dream, but something wasn't right. The pain, it hurt so badly. She let out another scream as she thrashed about.
She felt Muku's tiny hands grasp onto her head, she felt his mind and his power pour over hers so intimately, pushing back whatever was causing her discomfort. She felt waves of psychic energy wash over her as the pain attempted in gnash back in utter revolt. The pain began to grow, as if it had a mind of its own and shuddered at the idea of being locked away. Muku focused harder, realizing he would need to use a stronger power. Slowly but surely the tiny psychic made the pain cease, as if he had locked it away somewhere deep in Tara's mind, holding it in with the only thing strong enough to hold it back. Tara muttered something and then fell back to sleep, soothed by Muku's aura so thoroughly it was like she had never awaken at all.
The door opened and the girl's parents rushed in, asking what was wrong, but they too were soothed by Muku and they returned to their beds, as if nothing had ever happened.
-------
"Oh, congratulations!" Tara heard as she was smothered in an embrace of both her father and mother.
"Thank you," she said softly, her cheeks burned red.
"You'll be an great trainer," her father stated as her put his hand on her shoulder.
"I won't just be great, I will be excellent," Tara nodded.
It was only a few days after her eleventh birthday and she and her family were outside on the lawn of their home. The sky was clear and the sun was bright, warming the chill of the March morning. The grass was greening and new leaves were already budding on the bare branches left by winter. The air was brisk and fresh, Filling Tara with energy and readiness to begin her journey.
"You'll keep in touch, right?" her mother said with a tinge of worry in her voice.
Tara looked away from her black and blue PokéDex as she put it away, looking at her parents with her bright, sapphire eyes. "Of course! Though, I'll mostly talk about how much I miss your cooking."
"We want you to know how proud we are of you too, and we're always here if you need us," her father informed.
"I know, dad," she said through a smile as she looked down at her feet. "I better get going if I want to at least be on Route 203 by tonight."
"I guess so…"
"No one else to say goodbye to, already said goodbye to my school friends… Well… wish me luck, and see you later!" Tara waved with a bright smile on her face as she walked down the walkway and turned onto the side walk. With one last look at her parents, their eyes glistening, she walked forward, with Muku skipping along after her with a wave to her parents.
"We'll miss you too, Muku!" her mom called after them with a laugh.
Tara walked towards the sky-scrapers that loomed ahead, marking Jubilife for all around to see. She decided against a bus into the city, figuring she'd go on foot the whole way.
"This is it, Muku," she said, her pale face aglow in the pale light of morning. Her long raven-hair shone in the light as it flapped against her back. A plain black jacket shielded her from the cold and she stepped confidently in her black and blue-checkered shoes. She told herself she was ready for any challenges that lay ahead, however difficult. Though, an ominous thought from somewhere deep within her head questioned whether she actually was ready for all she had dreamed.
~Not What You See - AKA: TTiAYNWS (Don't ask, you won't get it.)
-Prologue: Part 1-
"Woah!" rang the voice of a young girl as she tumbled onto her back in the grass. She closed her eyes and sighed in slight frustration, spreading out her limbs as her raven-black hair splayed across the ground, surrounding her head like rays of a dark sun. She stared at the branches hanging over her head with sapphire-blue eyes that practically glowed in her pale, smooth face.
"You have to keep practicing," sang another voice behind her and out of her range of sight.
The blue-eyed girl sat up, staring at the older girl behind her as she performed a beautifully fluid cartwheel, which was what she had just failed to do. She too, had dark hair, and a strong and powerful face with sharp blue eyes, almost like the younger girl's but darker, more midnight blue. She wore simple blue sweats and a tank top that showed how powerful she really was for a girl her age.
"I'm not a dancer like you," the younger girl said as an excuse as she stood up, wiping dirt off of her black jeans. The older girl preformed a few more flips and cartwheels quite effortlessly, moving like water. "And that's what you do, Lysis? This is what you practice when you go to your sessions?" The younger asked while adjusting her black hair into a single long pony-tail.
"Yep, pretty much," she responded, before jumping onto an old trash can, light as a feather, though she jumped off with enough force that she flew through the air towards a tree. She turned herself in one swift motion and hit the trunk with her feet. She pushed off the tree and flipped through the air, landing gracefully on her two feet before the younger girl.
The younger girl blinked and then looked down at her feet, where a small creature was doing twirls and dancing, just as gracefully as Lysis. It was pink, and appeared to have some sort of blue hat on its head. The creature flipped through the air and landed in with a perfect bow.
"Mime!" it called in a way that seemed it was professing it was as good as Lysis.
"I dunno, Muku," she said with a smile. "I think you and I will stick with our battles."
Lysis shrugged. "Suit yourself, Tara." She began to walk away from the clearing. "Sticking with something you're good at is a decent option."
Tara smiled once more and jogged to catch up with Lysis, who was in a slow yet meaningful stride, a stride in which she often walked; a strong stride with purpose and power.
It was late in the afternoon, and Lysis had to go eat and then go off to another one of her sessions. The light was a blend of the white of day and the golden rays of sunset. Their feet scrunched against the dirt wilderness trail of their neighborhood, which was just outside of Jubilife in a suburb.
"When do you think you'll be done with these sessions? You've been doing them for years," Tara asked as she watched a pair of starly in the tree they were passing; they were creating a nest together. She had asked this question before, but she was very curious as to what exactly Lysis was doing - she seemed quite secretive about it.
"They tell me soon, that my training's almost done," Lysis responded calmly, as if all she had worked towards for years was just a little thing.
"And you can't tell me what it is you're doing," Tara replied, it wasn't a question.
"No, unfortunately…"
"Mm…" Tara nodded, kicking away a small stone. "I had another dream last night," Tara stated. "I was in that combat outfit like before, holding guns, like I was on some secret mission," Tara closed her eyes as she walked, recalling the details very vividly as if it were a memory instead of a dream. The dreams were invigorating and intense, and she certainly enjoyed having them, even though some of them turned out to be quite dark. Muku was less than thrilled with them for one reason or another.
"You have some funny dreams, kid," Lysis laughed lightly, showing her teeth through an amused grin.
"I guess so," Tara laughed as well. "It's fun to pretend I'm like a secret agent or something, though."
"Pfft, wish you were," she chuckled. "Wouldn't that be amazing?"
They continued their walk in silence until they reached Tara's house, which was small and simple, light blue paint with a gray roof.
"See you tomorrow," Tara nodded her head as she began to stroll up the walkway.
"Yeah…" Lysis replied in a disconnected fashion. Muku the Mime Jr. had ceased his dancing and stared into Lysis' eyes with a serious gaze, which she returned. Before Tara could notice he had stopped he turned away and pranced across the cement towards the front door.
-------
Tara Valens. That was her name. She was about eleven now, almost twelve and she, like many kids her age, had aspirations to become a powerful battler using Pokémon. She was well on her way 0 she had Muku, whom she had had with her since before she was walking, and also Namoraw, her Tentacool and fierce protector, whenever he was able, of course: he had certain handicaps on land.
She was sharp for her age, and an excellent battler already, she was among the top in her school, and very respected for it, as well as very much loved by most of the students, due to her friendly and calm characteristics.
She was going to be allowed to leave for her journey after her twelfth birthday, which was no more than one month away. She would graduate from her school with top marks and grades in all areas, which was a requirement by her parents. She was by no means the smartest student in the school, but she studied when she needed to and paid attention. She spoke more maturely than expected, due to the time she's spent with books and listening in to older people talk. She also watched the battling channels religiously, and tried to catch them live when she could. Her parents treated her with tickets to see the Sinnoh League battles for her eleventh birthday. The battles she witnessed only added fuel to her fire.
Her parents were loving and nurturing, and cared for her however they could, and she was glad to have them; she knew not everyone was so lucky. Tara also had her close friend, Lysis, whom she had known for quite some time now. Tara was an only child, but figured that if she were to have an older sibling, she would wish for them to be like Lysis. Lysis wasn't all that gifted in the area of battling, but she made up for it and then some when it came to athletics, especially in the past few years. Though, through that time she had become more distant - she always seemed pre-occupied with other things, like her head was in too many places at once. Lately Tara had felt that Lysis felt guilty for not spending as much time with the girl as she should.
And then there were the dreams.
Tara always found them silly in the end, and a bit funny. She would envision herself as some operative, doing various tasks, many seemingly by magic. Like she could vanish and then appear elsewhere, and she could do amazing athletic feats. And the guns. Tara was like an ace marksman, hitting every target on the nose, usually a person trying vainly to stop her with guns of her own. There was a very creepy Haunter that, well, haunted her shadow, helping with the many missions. There were countless other things, and Tara remembered them all perfectly, as if she were actually there and as if they had been real events.
Tara laughed to herself whenever she remembered them, which was surprisingly often. The only person closer to her than Lysis was actually a Pokémon, Muku.
Muku the Mime Jr. was a strange thing. He was always moving, trapped in some sort of un-ending performance that only recessed when he needed to sleep. Despite his small body and cute face, Muku was no weakling; Tara had known him him for a while, and they had begun training very early, as soon as Tara was able to grasp the concept of battling. Muku could easily pull off multiple powerful moves, and used them effectively in battle. He was mocked at first in Tara's school, but soon Muku was also respected, and adored by every student, perhaps more popular than Tara herself. He certainly did like to let it all go to his head.
They were both extremely close, Tara discovered early on that they could communicate using Muku's psychic abilities, and they did so often, in fact they were always connected now. They always knew what the other was feeling and what they were thinking. It was a very sacred thing that Tara treasured above all other things; it was unbreakable.
Tara Valens. That was her name, and this part of her story.
-------
Gasping and yelling fill the room. Sheets tangled and everything felt like it was being smothered by a thick force. Tara awoke in a cold sweat and was clenching savagely at her bed sheets, her body writhed. Her head, it hurt so much, like thousands of things were being forced into it. She had a dream, another dream, but something wasn't right. The pain, it hurt so badly. She let out another scream as she thrashed about.
She felt Muku's tiny hands grasp onto her head, she felt his mind and his power pour over hers so intimately, pushing back whatever was causing her discomfort. She felt waves of psychic energy wash over her as the pain attempted in gnash back in utter revolt. The pain began to grow, as if it had a mind of its own and shuddered at the idea of being locked away. Muku focused harder, realizing he would need to use a stronger power. Slowly but surely the tiny psychic made the pain cease, as if he had locked it away somewhere deep in Tara's mind, holding it in with the only thing strong enough to hold it back. Tara muttered something and then fell back to sleep, soothed by Muku's aura so thoroughly it was like she had never awaken at all.
The door opened and the girl's parents rushed in, asking what was wrong, but they too were soothed by Muku and they returned to their beds, as if nothing had ever happened.
-------
"Oh, congratulations!" Tara heard as she was smothered in an embrace of both her father and mother.
"Thank you," she said softly, her cheeks burned red.
"You'll be an great trainer," her father stated as her put his hand on her shoulder.
"I won't just be great, I will be excellent," Tara nodded.
It was only a few days after her eleventh birthday and she and her family were outside on the lawn of their home. The sky was clear and the sun was bright, warming the chill of the March morning. The grass was greening and new leaves were already budding on the bare branches left by winter. The air was brisk and fresh, Filling Tara with energy and readiness to begin her journey.
"You'll keep in touch, right?" her mother said with a tinge of worry in her voice.
Tara looked away from her black and blue PokéDex as she put it away, looking at her parents with her bright, sapphire eyes. "Of course! Though, I'll mostly talk about how much I miss your cooking."
"We want you to know how proud we are of you too, and we're always here if you need us," her father informed.
"I know, dad," she said through a smile as she looked down at her feet. "I better get going if I want to at least be on Route 203 by tonight."
"I guess so…"
"No one else to say goodbye to, already said goodbye to my school friends… Well… wish me luck, and see you later!" Tara waved with a bright smile on her face as she walked down the walkway and turned onto the side walk. With one last look at her parents, their eyes glistening, she walked forward, with Muku skipping along after her with a wave to her parents.
"We'll miss you too, Muku!" her mom called after them with a laugh.
Tara walked towards the sky-scrapers that loomed ahead, marking Jubilife for all around to see. She decided against a bus into the city, figuring she'd go on foot the whole way.
"This is it, Muku," she said, her pale face aglow in the pale light of morning. Her long raven-hair shone in the light as it flapped against her back. A plain black jacket shielded her from the cold and she stepped confidently in her black and blue-checkered shoes. She told herself she was ready for any challenges that lay ahead, however difficult. Though, an ominous thought from somewhere deep within her head questioned whether she actually was ready for all she had dreamed.
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