//------------------------------// // Chapter 19 // Story: Old Scars, New Chances // by Arcticbrony //------------------------------// Zoey was not exactly what you would call a morning Pokémon. She had finished the important morning tasks like making breakfast for everyone, and making sure that they were healing properly, changing or removing bandages on the ones that needed it. She and Ethan changed between each other who did those morning tasks, so they had some time to themselves. So after having finished all of those tasks, it was understandable that Zoey was more than a little irritated when Ethan had still not gotten out of the shower. Even Jenny had gotten up by that point and was standing in a line behind Zoey. “Come on, Ethan, it has been over two hours already!” Zoey shouted as she knocked on the door. They had gotten a small shower and a bathroom constructed the day after their home had been built. “And I can't find Chii anywhere.” “Dont worry, she is in here with me. And we are just about done!” She could hear Ethan shout back. She knew that after Chii had her little episode they had all made more of an effort to include her in things that they did. She had gotten a little better over the past two days but she still had her sudden mood changes… But taking a shower together? Zoey could not help but find that a little weird. “Has he really been in there for two hours?” Jenny asked as she yawned loudly besides Zoey. She had just woken up. “Yes…” Zoey sighed. “He usually spent a lot of time getting ready in the mornings, but this is getting over the top even for him.” Zoey had been living with him for years after all, so she knew how he could be. But he had gotten even worse after he had become a Lopunny. But as he always told her, the result spoke for itself. And as the door opened up and hot steam from the water rolled out she had a hard time arguing with that logic as she struggled to suppress her blush. Ethans fur was positively shining when he walked out of the bathroom. It was still slightly damp but that just added to its gloss as it clung tightly to his body. He had wrapped a towel around his ears and another one around his waist. He did not need the last one since his fur covered him up, but it was more of a habit that anything else. “Sorry for taking so long.” He smiled as he walked past Zoey to let her enter. Something else hopped out of the steam after Ethan and it took Zoey a moment to realize that it was Chii. Her fur was so fluffed up she looked more like a pink ball that shuffled along the ground than anything else. “Hey, wait up. You said that you were going to brush me too!” Chii yelled after Ethan as Zoey had to stifle a laugh at her appearance. “Well, hop on.” Ethan said as he kneeled down, allowing Chii to jump up as she settled into the towel on his head that covered his ears. “Thanks.” She purred happily as she snuggled deeper into the towel. “So you enjoyed it?” Ethan asked as the two of them continued over to one of the couches that was unoccupied. During the dinner they had last night Mary had discovered that Ethan’s brush was actually hers and that he had taken it from her. Ethan had apologized profusely, saying that he had not been able to help himself and that he had completely forgotten about the whole thing. Thankfully Mary had taken it in good spirit and let him keep it. She did however yell at him for a bit before dropping the subject. “Yeah!” Chii exclaimed happily. She really enjoyed the warmth of the shower, almost as much as she enjoyed the brushing that came after. “That’s great then.” Ethan grinned as he reached up and scratched her head. Since her accident, Ethan had focused on making her feel involved as much as possible. Chii`s greatest fear was being abandoned, so what she needed most was safety. That, and since it has been decided that Chii would be staying with them permanently, it was important to make her feel like a part of the family. Ethan sat down on the couch and lifted the overly fluffy Chii down and put her onto his lap before he brought the brush down carefully, using long strokes along her back. The brushing making Chii positively shiver in delight as she enjoyed herself to the fullest. “So how are you feeling today?” Ethan asked as he continued his work, working through all the knots and tangles in Chii`s fur, making it as smooth as possible. “...” Chii took a moment as she knew what he meant. She had broken down into tears last night as well, having to sleep close to Ethan and Zoey to even manage to sleep at all. “I'm feeling better.” She said honestly, continuing to purr in a low tone as Ethan kept brushing her. “I did not even have any nightmares!” She cheered. “That’s great.” Ethan grinned as he used his hand to roll Chii over so he could brush her stomach as well. “Mind if I ask you something?” Ethan asked, making Chii look up to him. “What?” She asked as her eyes locked onto the brush. The way it moved back and forth over her stomach… she just couldn't help herself as she began to bat after it with her paws. “Why do you seem to…” Hate was too strong a word for him to use. “Dislike Brawly so much?” Ethan asked, making Chii stop playing with the brush as she instead rolled back over to her stomach. “He ruined everything…” Chii grumbled as she looked away from Ethan. “What exactly did he ruin?” Ethan asked as he put the brush down besides himself. “...” Chii mumbled something too low for Ethan to hear. She looked up at him when he did not reply and saw the look that he was giving her. “He… it’s his fault that you and Zoey did not end up together.” She said again, this time louder. “That… and he reminds me of my old Mary…” Ethan let out a small sigh. It made a little more sense now. “Chii, that was not his fault. It’s just who I am. I love Zoey with all of my heart just like I love you and all of my family. But I just don't like girls in that way.” Ethan could hear Chii mutter a quiet “I know” as he told her that. “The only thing I can recommend is that you spend more time with him… I know that may not be easy if he reminds you of her, but I think that you will eventually see him in a new light. He is not going anywhere, you know.” After hearing that Chii stood up and turned to face Ethan. “Y-you're just saying that because you have a crush on him. But I won't let him take you away from us!” A silence came over the two of them. Chii's ears went flat against her head and she looked away as she realized that she had said something that she was not supposed to have said. “How do you know something like that?” Ethan asked as Chii was doing her absolute best at trying to make herself as small as possible. Chii's thoughts raced as to how she was going to handle that situation. She could not tell him that Brawly had been the one to tell her and Zoey that he suspected that Ethan was interested in him. No… that would only make it more likely that Ethan would confront Brawly about it. Nothing good would come from that course of action. She knew that she was not supposed to lie… but she could absolutely not allow Brawly to take Ethan. “Zoey said it.” Chii said in a low voice. “S-she had seen the way that you were looking at Brawly and…” The lie would fall apart immediately if Ethan actually asked or talked to Zoey about it. So Chii improvised. “P-please don't say anything to her about it… it was supposed to be a secret since she was not completely sure!” Chii smiled nervously as she hoped that Ethan would accept her lie. All of her future plans to get rid of Brawly would fail if Ethan called her bluff. She felt as if a huge weight was lifted off her tiny shoulders as Ethan smiled and reached down to rub her head. “Don’t worry, I won't say anything.” Ethan reassured Chii. “And you don't have to worry. Brawly will never take me away, so to speak. You are my family, and nothing will ever change that.” Ethan lifted Chii up and nuzzled her gently, a gesture that she gladly accepted and returned. He was not sure how Zoey had noticed it, but if he had been that obvious about his feelings, maybe it was time to do something about them. “You promise?” “I promise!” Ethan hugged Chii tightly before he put her down on his lap again. “Now, let’s get you finished.” He said as he picked up the brush again. He still had himself to do after Chii and he knew how long that would take. Even if he enjoyed every minute of it. Brawly reached out and knocked on the door in front of him. He was currently standing inside of what was the town’s schoolhouse. He had not had any particular business there in the first place, but Ethan had asked a favor of him and he was glad to accept. “Oh… excuse me, we are currently having a class, is this important?” A pony, which he assumed was the teacher asked of him after the door had opened. “I would like to have a word with you, but it can wait if you were in the middle of something. Sorry for interrupting.” Brawly apologised. “Very well then. Break is in fifteen minutes so if you could wait until then, I would appreciate it.” She said before she went back into the classroom and closed the door behind her. Brawly smiled as he could hear some of the commotion that the foals were currently putting up. It seemed that some of them had noticed him and were more than a little curious about what a Pokémon like himself was doing at their school. The time passed rather quickly and before he knew it, the door flew open and a sea of little foals stormed out and flocked around him, swarming him with questions. “Are you one of those Pokémanz?” “What are you doing here?” “What are these things?” One of the foals had asked as it pulled on the whip like fur on one of Brawly`s arms. “Hey! Let the poor stallion be.” The teacher shouted at the group of foals from where she stood in the doorway. Listening to their teacher the foals dispersed, some of them looking back to Brawly who just had an amused smile on his face. “I’m so sorry, most of them have not had any personal experience or close meetings with that many Pokémon.” She apologized. “It’s no worry, they were just curious, just like any k… foal should be.” Brawly smiled as he corrected himself. “That is also part of what I wanted to talk to you about. Shall we go inside?” He asked, gesturing to the classroom. “Of course, please come on in.” The mare said as she went back inside, letting Brawly follow after her. The door closing itself behind the two. “So mister…” “Brawly.” “Mister Brawly, what did you want to talk to me about?” She asked as she sat down behind her desk, Brawly standing in front of it. Brawly was going to ask of her name, but he had already noticed a small name place that was standing on the desk. Goldenlocks it read, fitting with the blond mane that she had. “A nice bunch of foals that you have there.” Brawly started as he looked out the window to the side where he could see the group of foals that had assaulted him with questions, now playing and having fun together. “That they are.” Goldenlocks agreed with a smile and a nod of her head. “Well… I came to give you a proposition… and to ask you of help at the same time.” Brawly started. He had thought out some of what he would say on the way over there, but as much else that he did, he just improvised a lot of it too. “They don't know that much about Pokémon, do they?” He asked as the teacher let out a heavy sigh. “No… they are so interested in them too… you are the biggest thing to happen in their lifetime, probably; after all, anypony would be dying of curiosity. But none of us teachers know nearly anything on the subject. So we can't give them any of the answers that they seek.” Goldenlocks said with sadness evident in her voice. “Well, I want to give you guys and your foals and opportunity to learn.” Brawly said, getting straight to the point as he now had the teacher’s full attention. “P-please go on.” She said. “Ya probably heard about the incident in the forest, right?” Brawly inquired. “O-of course. To think that a pony would do something so horrible… They are alright, right? The Pokémon that were rescued I mean.” “They are making a good recovery, for the most part.” Brawly reassured her. “But they did not have the best first encounter with ponies, that’s where I hoped that we could help each other. The foals would get to meet and learn about Pokémon in a controlled environment, and it would also help those Pokémon learn to trust Ponies again, to learn for themselves that not all of you are bad.” Brawly said laying forth both his and Ethan`s idea. “That and I think that the foals would love it.” Ethans idea had originally just been to bring ponies over to their home to slowly introduce the Pokémon to different kinds of them to help show them that they did not need to fear them. Not all of them needed it, but some of them were afraid of even Mary who had been spending a lot of time around them. Brawly had then suggested that they instead used kids, or foals as they were called in Equestria. They would not be as imposing as any adult ponies, after all. Goldenlocks sat there for a couple of moments as she thought about the idea that Brawly had laid forth. “I have to talk with the principal about it first, of course, but… I think it sounds like a brilliant idea.” She beamed. “It would help us a lot, and if we can assist with helping those poor Pokémon after what happened to them, then its a win, win situation for the both of us.” “Yeah, that was exactly what I was thinking.” “Would it be possible for me to come and see the place before we bring the foals there?” Goldenlocks asked. “Yeah, no problem. Just come by when it fits you. You know the old warehouse outside of town, right?” She nodded in confirmation. “That’s the place.” “Well, I'm afraid I will be busy today… but I'll come by tomorrow to see the place for myself. Thank you so much.” She thanked Brawly with a small bow before both of them stood up. “Great, I'll see ya then.” Brawly smiled and gave her a small wave of his paw as he exited the classroom, feeling content that everything had gone smoothly. And that he had something to do as well. Not that he disliked helping around the warehouse, but there was just so much that he could do there. With Zoey and Ethan taking care of most of the Pokémon’s needs, he had more free time on his paws than he knew what to do with. Even with his training, which took up several hours of each day, he still grew a little restless from time to time. “One more stop to make.” He also had to stop by the mayor’s office with another idea that he and Ethan had came up with, one a little bigger and more ambiguous as a whole. And if it worked out, then it would give him something to do full time. He had left the schoolhouse and was about to make his way towards his goal when a small ball rolled up to his legs. Looking up he saw the same group of foals running towards him before he picked up the ball and threw it over to them. “Thanks mister!” One of the foals beamed as it had caught the ball with its front legs. “Do you want to play?” Another one of them asked, and as soon as the question had been asked, the whole group looked at him with puppy-dog eyes, pleading him to say yes. He had always liked kids. Back on Earth, he had been helping a lot of them to train their Pokémon, as well as teaching those of them that wanted it to surf. “Well, why not. Come on ya small rascals, let’s play!” Brawly grinned as he went along with the foals who cheered for him. The mayor could wait a little while. Brawly did not return home until much later that evening. He had spent much time playing with the foals, before he had gone to the mayor’s office and even met up with some of the foals afterwards in the park to continue. They were so similar to human kids with their seemingly endless curiosity. But eventually, he had to call it a day and say goodbye to the foals, promising that he would play with them another day. As he entered the warehouse, he could see that a lot of the smaller Pokémon were already asleep, and that Zoey was sitting alongside Jenny on the couch, seemingly discussing something. “-and they are initiating a proper investigation based on… Hello, Brawly.” Jenny greeted him as he got closer. “Evening to the both of ya. Seen Ethan around? Got a few things to tell him.” Brawly asked. “Well, Mary and Zephyr wanted to have a party to celebrate since it has been over a week since Pokémon arrived in Equestria. Sort of to welcome us properly. I volunteered to stay behind to watch everyone…” She looked over to Jenny who continued. “And I don't really drink so I passed.” “Ethan went over there a few hours ago. He told too-” Brawly help up a hand to stop Zoey as he realized what had happened. “So you let Ethan… go to a party unsupervised?” He asked getting a nod from Zoey. “Ethan… who has absolutely no idea about his own limits when it comes to alcohol. And has a tendency to go overboard when drunk.” Realization lit up in Zoey`s eyes. “Wait what?” She said as Jenny had already begun laughing. “No… of course he wouldn't tell you that either.” Brawly grumbled as he shook his head. “No… that stupid little…” Brawly took a deep breath and held it for several seconds before releasing it. “I'll go and make sure that he doesn't make a fool of himself…” Brawly concluded, dragging a paw down his face before turning and walking out of their home. “Oh… I’m looking forward to hearing about all that in the morning.” Jenny said as she wiped a tear from her eye from how hard she had been laughing. “So you are not going with him?” Zoey asked. “Nah… as I said, I don't drink. Besides, I think Ethan will be more than capable of making a fool of himself without me there.” Jenny said as she had manage to quell her laughter. “Now as I was saying… It seems that the changeling has managed to disappear completely…” The party was already in full swing by the time that Brawly arrived. Loud music could be heard from well away and by the amount of light the house was emitting, it was not hard to locate where it was being held. “Don’t do this to me, Ethan.” Brawly muttered under his breath, remembering the last time he and Ethan were at a party together. Ethan was his friend, more than that even. And he would do anything for him. But… the dude could not for the life of him, hold his alcohol. Neither did he know his limits. And that was a combination that was destined to fail. Opening the door, Brawly was greeted by the sight of a magnitude of dancing ponies and even a few Pokémon had joined in. Brawly had only been in town a few days, but he recognized a few faces, namely Zephyr who walked over to him with a jug with what Brawly assumed to be some sort of alcohol, balanced on his wing. “Hey Brawly! About time you showed up. You want a drink?” Zephyr held out his wing to Brawly, offering the drink he had been carrying. “Woooo! Let’s get this party started!” Brawly looked over where he could see a very familiar Lopunny that was holding a half-full whiskey bottle, and was currently drinking directly from the bottle. The ponies around him chanting “Chug! Chug!” as it seemed like Ethan was spilling more of the whiskey than he actually managed to drink. “Ya know, what the hell. I have the feeling that I might need it.” Brawly said as he accepted the mug. “Thanks, man!” He said as he took a swig and walked further into the hearth of the party. “Arceus knows that I'm going to need it to steer this rocky wave!” The party continued strong for several hours. Mary Care seemed to disappear off with Zephyr sometime during those hours and the two of them were not seen again. But as the party was coming to an end, Brawly found himself behind the house, holding Ethan`s ears as he was puking his guts out. As Brawly recalled that was exactly how it had gone the last time too… except for the ears, that was. “You done, buddy?” Brawly asked as Ethan had been quiet for a few moments. “Y-yeah… I think I’m good n-” Ethan doubled over once more as another wave of nausea hit him, causing him to paint the grass with the food he had eaten earlier. “O-hokay… I'm good now. Let’ss go back to the partay!” Ethan wiped his mouth and set off towards his goal. Only for his head to snap back, causing him to fall flat on his ass, as Brawly held him back by the ears. “Yeah, how ‘bout ‘no’. We are heading back home!” Brawly said as he helped Ethan back up. It had gotten to the point where Ethan could not even walk straight without leaning on something. That something being Brawly. “Noooo… I wants to go back!” Ethan muttered but he did not resist as the two of them started the slow walk back to the warehouse they had turned into their home. “Hey Baawly?” “Yeah?” Brawly looked down at his friend who as they had walked seemed to have began to slow down even more as he swayed from side to side. “Wh...whay aren’t you as drunk?” “Because unlike some silly Lopunny, I know my limits.” Brawly replied. “Oh… that shounds like a shilly Lopunny.” Brawly could not help but laugh at that statement. “Yeah, a silly Lopunny, that’s for sure.” “I… I need to sit down.” Ethan said suddenly as he swayed off to the side, dragging Brawly with him as he headed straight for the nearest bench. “Ya need to puke again?” Brawly asked as Ethan somehow managed to get down into a sitting position. “Nah… maybe… I don't think sho.” Brawly just shook his head as he took his seat next to Ethan and leaned back. The sky was cloud free, allowing for a magnificent sight. The sky was filled with stars and wonders. “Hey, Brawly… You know that I love you right?” “Of course I do, and I love you too buddy.” Brawly replied, as he made a fist and lightly hit Ethan's shoulder. “No...no, not like that. Can I tell you somethi… no I need to tell you shomething!” Ethan said as he turned to Brawly. He was not slurring as bad as he was earlier, and it was obvious that he was putting in a lot of effort. “You don’t need to tell me anything, man.” Brawly smiled as he reached over and ruffled the hair between Ethans ears. “No… no, I need to!” Ethan said as he slapped the hand away and made a feeble attempt to fix his fur again. “I need to… you are great man!” “Yeah, you have said so before.” Brawly said with an amused smile. “So what was it that you were going to tell me?” He was a little curious, there was no telling what would come out of that mouth when he was that drunk. Ethan pushed away from the bench and wobbled for a few steps until he stood in front of Brawly, his face deep in concentration as it took everything he had to just not fall on his ass. It was incredible how slippery a dirt road could be. “I… I need to say shomething! Wanted to say it for a long, long time…but I have been… I have been scared.” Ethan was looking down at the ground as he kept fidgeting nervously with his ears. “Scared of what, dude? I thought we talked about everything!” “No, ish… different.” “How is it different?” Brawly asked as he stood up from his seat. “Who was it that needed some support when he was coming out to his parents? Or who was it that supported a crazy kid’s dreams of becoming a Gym Leader and a surfing god!?” At that part, Ethan burst out in laughter while Brawly just stood there with his trademark smile. “You did not even look this nervous when you told me about the person that you accidentally killed to save Zoey... You can tell me anything, buddy! What’s bothering you?” Ethan took a few moments and a couple of deep breaths as he gathered himself as best he could. “I… I’m in love with you...I hash loved you for a long time.” Ethan had stumbled closer to Brawly and was now holding a paw on his shoulder to steady himself. “You… you are just too great for your own good, you know that!” Ethan said as he was nervously looking down at the ground. “You sure that it’s not just the alcohol talking?” Brawly asked as he put his paw on the one Ethan held on his shoulder to steady himself. “No...no...no.” Ethan repeated while he shook his head. “I has been in love with you for several years… Always been jealush on all those fan girls of yours.” “So you did you not say anything sooner, man?” Brawly asked. “I mean… we could have talked about this at the very least. You're my best friend, mate, and… and you just fell asleep didn't you?” As Brawly had spoke, Ethan had begun to lean more on Brawly and actually fell asleep against him, his head resting on Brawly's shoulder. “Come on Ethan, wake up! This is important!” Brawly raised his voice as he shook Ethan in an attempt to wake him up. But nothing seemed to work as Ethan continued to sleep soundly with a weird smile on his face. “I’m going to have to carry you, aren't I? Again, I mean…” Brawly sighed as he lifted Ethan up, carrying him with one arm under his back and one arm under his legs. He had been caught off guard by Ethan’s sudden confession, and he was not completely sure what to think about the whole thing or what to feel. He looked down at Ethan, who kept smiling as he laid in his arms and Brawly could not help but crack a small smile of his own. “If you remember any of this in the morning, then we are going to have to have a long talk about it…” Brawly said mostly to himself as he carried Ethan back home. The sun was shining in through the windows as life was starting up in the warehouse. Pokémon of all sizes were waking up, ready to start the new day. But not everyone was so eager for the new day to start. “Uurgh… someone please turn off that light.” Ethan groaned as he covered his face with his large ears. To him, that particular morning could have been delayed for another few hours. But sadly, he had no such powers. He tried his hardest to go back to sleep, but no matter how hard he tried, he could not shut out the sound of the others. It was the first time he had cursed his improved hearing. In another part of the warehouse, a little over to the side, Zoey was sitting on the couch alongside with Brawly, both who were watching Ethan as he was struggling to accept the fact that morning had indeed come, and there was nothing he could do to stop it. “I think I was already asleep when the two of you got home… how late was it?” Zoey asked as Ethan had actually wrapped his ears around his head several times. She found it quite amusing to watch. “I don’t know the exact time… but it was pretty late.” Brawly saw with a glass of water in his hand. He had been drinking too at the party, so a dry mouth was to be expected, but he did not have anything close to the headache that Ethan was experiencing. “Dude had to be carried home. I still can't believe that you let him go to that party without telling me first!” Brawly thought about what had happened last night and could not help but laugh slightly. It had been fun. “He is an adult… I thought he knew what he was doing… that and I did not completely believe in all those storied Vernus told us about Ethan and alcohol… did something else happen?” Zoey asked as she noticed the way Brawly had been looking at Ethan. It was somehow different from how he had always looked at him… It was the first time that she could remember that she had seen what looked like a nervous look on Brawly's face. “...You could say that.” Brawly said as he let out a long sigh. “You remember what I told you about my suspicions about him?” “About how he might be interested in you? Of course I do.” Zoey answered. “Well, turns out I was right.” Brawly started off, as he told Zoey about everything that had happened that night. He was not one to normally talk about such things, but his mind was in array about the subject. He was honestly not sure about how to feel or what to do, and the fact that Ethan had said everything when he was that drunk did not exactly help. When he was done, Zoey just sat there with a surprised expression on her face. She opened her mouth, only to close it immediately. She repeated this process a few times before she finally spoke. “What?” Zoey said in disbelief. She remembered the talk that she had with Brawly a few days ago, but that was just it, she had thought that it had been just a suspicion and nothing more. But the longer she thought about it, the more sense it made to her. “S-so do you think that he…?” Zoey let the question hang in the air as Brawly hummed to himself. “Only one way to find out.” He said as he walked over to Ethan who were holding him head and groaning in pain. “Hey, Ethan?” Brawly kneeled down besides him and nudged him to get his attention. “Hmm?” Ethan managed to groan out as he removed his paws and looked up at Brawly. “How much do you remember from last night?” Zoey held her breath as Brawly got straight to the point. He looked into Ethan's eyes as he waited for the answer. “Bits… and pieces… heh, I really messed up didn't I?” Ethan laughed before he winced, the laugh making his head hurt even more. “H-how did I get back home?” And that answered the question. Brawly was still not completely sure on how to feel. His friend had poured his feelings to him. Ethan had showed him his heart at its most vulnerable… albeit drunk, but he had still done it. He needed more time to sort out things in his own mind, that much he knew. So for the moment, he would leave Ethan in the dark about what had happened. “Don't worry about that, man. I took care of you… like I always do.” Brawly smiled as he stood back up. “Just stay still, I'll get you some water.” Brawly said before he went off, leaving behind Zoey, who was in shock about how he had handled the situation, Ethan, who was still groaning in pain and hoping that he had not embarrassed himself too much at the party, and Chii, who had been listening in and was silently cheering to herself, because Ethan had not remembered anything. She still had time to set things straight.