Introspection

Concord entered the room, silently shutting the door behind her. She treaded over to the desk where the Lurantis was seated, who perked up at her with a blank expression.

“Hi! How can I help you today?” The Lurantis put on her best customer service voice, pretending to smile.

“Do you have a chair? This might be a minute.” 

The smile faded from her face. “Oh… Yes. Just grab one from a table over there.” Concord did as told, making a few extra seconds for the Lurantis to wonder what she was here for.

“I’m here to talk to you about your son,” Concord continued, squirming in her seat as she looked for her words. “…I came to ask you a few questions. If it’s too much, that’s okay. You don’t have to tell-”

“It was that Hypno.” Lurantis interruped. “I caught a glimpse of him at the prison earlier today. If that warden wasn’t there, I would have sawn through the bars myself to kill him.” She snarled, showing off the long and thin saw blades that were her arms. “I already had an interview, it’s in the papers.”

“Please, this isn’t an interview,” She begged, leaning into the table. Lurantis didn’t seem convinced.

“Oh, then what else would it be then?” 

Concord wrapped her paws around her face, realizing what she was doing. “With both what happened to your son and the explosion a couple days ago, I had a friend of mine that wasn’t around when either happened. …He wants to be famous. He really does. But he wants it so badly that it’s something I could see him doing.”

Lurantis remained silent, like she was saying that Concord needed to deliver something more.

“I’m not saying I know for certain, but do you remember when you saw me at the prison?” 

Concord shifted her paws away from her face and back onto her lap. “When I got home that night, he said he was at the prison, at the exact same time I was.” She sniffled, the weight of her suspicions bearing down on her. “I want to believe him. I know you were there before me. Did you see an Umbreon?”

“I never saw any Umbreon there, no. What is this, really? Is this relationship trouble?” The Mantis questioned, believing she caught on to a jig.

Concord thought for a moment and almost came up empty-handed. Then she had a realization.

“The papers. He’s been trying to cram himself into the papers, even if it doesn’t make sense.”

Their eyes widened. “Chary, right?” Lurantis stopped, remaining silent for a full minute while she considered it all. “I know what you’re talking about. …I knew something seemed fishy.” 

“It’s beyond doubt now,” the Buizel said, connecting more and more dots in her head as well. “But before I can tell you anything more, I need you to make me a promise.

“Anything.”

“The only reason I haven’t done anything against him is because there’s someone else involved. I guess the closest comparison would be to an adopted son. He doesn’t know anything yet, and I’m worried about him getting caught in the middle, as he doesn’t have anywhere else to go.”

The Lurantis began to pick up what Concord was putting down. “I might be able to help if anything goes wrong. What’s their species?”

“They’re an Eevee, but there’s something else about them you should know.” Concord started, but she was once again cut off by Lurantis. 

“They’re a human. That’s why they have nowhere else to go.”

“Oh. You figured it out?”

“I can help you, he will be safe with me. Maybe I’ll even be able to figure out if the myths are true. All I ask is that you let me deal with my son’s murderer myself. Keep an eye on Adam, won’t you? This won’t take long.”

Concord hesitated, unable to speak even a single word.

“I’ll write down the address for you,” she compromised, unable to bear saying anything more. 

“Thank you.” Lurantis said, taking the paper out of her hands. With that, she sprinted out of the room and down the hallway. The weight of what she had just done began to set in. Before she could think to hard on it, however, Adam entered.

“What was that about?”

“Don’t worry about it. Just stay here,” she blankly answered.

“Concord, Is this about my memories? …I may not have them, but I’m not a child. I can see that look on your face and I know something is wrong. What is going on?”

“It’s okay, it’s nothing. I can handle it by myself.” She ignored his pleas and turned toward the wall. “Just wait outside, okay?” Concord mumbled, becoming lost in thought.

“Fine!” Adam yelled and walked out, while Concord wondered if she made the right choice.

Footsteps echoed ahead of the Umbreon as he followed Concord at a distance. She had slipped out earlier, clearly attempting to avoid him. Was she planning a surprise gift, or was she meeting someone else? He had no clue, so he needed to find out. 

Chary stopped briefly to check if anyone else had spotted him, but no one was there. Instead, he found something more important: the poster board.

His curiosity getting the better of him, he decided to take a quick break to read it. His neutral expression slowly turned to anger as he read.The top layer consisted entirely of interviews with the injured, fully covering the papers about him from public view.

He scanned every paper up and down, yet not one mentioned him.

“I lost my son to them. I hope he never sees the light of day again,” one said.

“I’m lucky to be alive. Who would tell my children that mom’s not coming home tonight?” another bolded, mocking him.

He shook his head from side to side, ‘No! Why won’t they mention me?!’ Just then, Chary heard footsteps. ‘I don’t want to look weird to anyone watching.’ He took a step back, and tried to go back to following Concord. 

But she was nowhere to be found.

His face twisted and contorted as he tried to decide what to do. His entire goal unraveled within seconds, and now he was left completely in the dark.

‘So, this is it then. If I can’t even win with the most extreme methods, I’ll never become famous.’

Even though he knew he was letting his odds of finding her go, Chary sat down on the curb. ‘I’m doomed to be forgotten long before the last Pokémon dies. The world is stacked against me, and I’ve been wasting my time. Whatever Concord is up to, I doubt it’s important.’ Chary became angry, and he wasn’t sure what exactly he was angry at.

‘I’m just gonna go home, make dinner with Adam, and figure out what to do from there.’

He began to trudge his way home, defeated. It felt like the whole world had seen his walk of shame, retracing every step he’d taken.

Once he got home, he unlocked the door and called out to Adam as he opened it.

There was no response.