Chapter 22
“Okay, so they will be here any minute now.” Ethan, Zoey were standing in front of the Pokémon that were living with them under their care. Brawly had gone to meet the class and take them to their home like they had planned.
“Some of them are still looking a little nervous.” Zoey whispered to Ethan as she could still see some doubt on some of their faces. Ethan had talked with each of them individually to make sure that they were okay with what was going to happen and to prepare them for the visit. But even with that, it was understandable that some of them were having second thoughts.
“It will be fine, trust me.” Ethan smiled as he kneeled down besides some of the Pokémon who were currently whispering among each other. “Hey, you guys.” Ethan said to get their attention, almost every pair of eyes snapping too him. “How are you doing?” A low murmur settled over the group as they looked between each other. It was a simple question, but it was not so easily answered in that situation. After a small while, a Rattata stepped forth.
“D-do we really have to do this?” The Rattata asked as it looked up to Ethan. “S-some of us just want to go back to live on our own after we are healed up again. There are no need for us to get along with them…” Ethan could see the fear in its eyes as it spoke and understood it well. Avoiding your problems was much easier than facing them after all.
“Let me ask all of you this.” Ethan started as he addressed all of the Pokémon. “Did any of you like kids when we were back on Earth? Human kids, I mean.” He sat there as the Pokémon started to voice their opinions on the subject.
“Well, I did not mind them, most of them are innocent enough.”
“They can be a lot of fun!”
“I...I don't know…”
“And they are really adorable.”
All in all, there were some mixed feelings among the crowd, but the majority of them seemed to have liked kids when they were back on Earth. Or at least tolerated them.
“Well, these foals are just like those kids. And you don't have to get along with them.” Ethan said as he looked to the Rattata who avoided his glance. “But I would appreciate it if you gave them a chance at least. I don’t think you would regret it if you did.” He couldn't help but smile as the Pokémon seemed to agree with him, even the ones that were really unsure agreeing to give them a chance.
With that taken care of, Ethan stood back up and walked back to where Zoey stood.
“You made that look easy.” Zoey told him as she had watched everything.
“It really was. It was just a few individuals among them that was afraid or unsure and was spreading that fear among the rest of them. And it sounds like our guests are here.” Ethan could hear the sound of a small group approaching from outside and went to meet them.
He slipped out the door to see Brawly, the teacher and a large group of foals following after the two of them. Or rather, the teacher was leading with Brawly walking among the foals, playing and enjoying himself from what Ethan could see. He had always been good with children.
“Good morning.” The teacher, Goldenlocks, greeted Ethan as they came closer. “I take it that you are Ethan?”
“That is correct, I am so glad that you thought this was a good idea. I think this will be of great help-” Ethan wasn't sure if Brawly had even noticed that they had arrived with how he was playing around with the foals. He was literally throwing them around, they were laughing as he positively juggled them. “For both sides.” He finished.
“Indeed, the foals have been positively ecstatic since they heard about this little trip.” Goldenlocks beamed. “So are everything ready for us to enter?” She asked.
“In a bit, there is just one thing first.” Ethan started as he had finally gotten Brawly's attention with a wave of his paw. “Did Brawly talk to you about this visit? About what not to do or those things, sort of rules I guess.”
“Umm… no, I am afraid not.” Goldenlocks said and Ethan was not really surprised.
“Sorry, dude!” Brawly called out to him with a sheepish smile. “Must have slipped my mind.”
“He just came to us and said that everything was ready. Is there something important?” Goldenlocks said as they were waiting outside the door.
“Well, yes and no.” Ethan told her. “It’s more just a few things I need to say to the foals… It’s nothing serious, it’s just in case.” Ethan said to Goldenlocks relief. “Do you mind if I talk to them right now? It would only take a moment.”
“No, by all means. Go ahead.” The teacher smiled as she let Ethan pass her so that he was standing in front of the group of foals. Before when they were coming closer they were making a lot of noise and hopping about. Now on the other hand, when they had arrived where they were supposed to, most of them had calmed down and was looking at Ethan with curiosity present in their eyes.
“Hey there, everypony!” Ethan greeted the group as Brawly made his way out of the group and over to where he was standing. “Are all of you ready?” Ethan asked, getting a unified cheer in return.”That’s good then, there is just a few things I need to tell you before I let you go inside.” He was surprised about how calm the group of foals were, but he suspected that Brawly had something to do with that.
“Are you a bunny?” One of the foals asked as he could hear his friend stifle a laugh.
“We will answer all questions that you may have inside.” Ethan told them, ignoring the little comment, though it was to be expected. “But before that, there is just a few things I need to tell you. Most of you are probably excited and that is just fine, but don't go after any of the Pokémon inside if they want to be left alone. Other than that, just listen to your teacher and have fun.” And with that Ethan opened the door and the foals hurried inside to where Zoey and the other Pokémon were waiting.
“Hey, wait for me!” Goldenlocks shouted after the foals as she followed them inside, their spurt having caught her slightly off guard.
“They are a lively bunch, that's for sure.” Brawly laughed.
“Yeah, they surely are.” Ethan said as he looked at his friend. Brawly was smiling, just as he almost always was, but having been friends for so long, it was not hard for Ethan to notice that his smile had a little extra to it. He had always loved to work with kids, and it filled Ethan with joy to see his friend enjoying himself that much once more.
It was some chaos in the beginning, but that was to be expected. The foals came on a bit strong and scared some of the Pokémon. But after a stern talking to from their teacher, they managed to calm down. The Pokémon that had been scared away also had to be convinced to give the foals a second chance, but before too long, the two groups were back together.
After that start, things went rather smoothly. Ethan, Zoey and Brawly were there to answer any and all questions the foals had about Pokémon. And the Pokémon in turn got along great with the foals, the fear they had before completely gone.
After a while, Ethan found himself talking with the teacher as they watched over the group. Almost all of the foals had found themselves a Pokémon that they got along with, the language barrier not proving a problem at all as they managed to convey their feelings and emotions just fine.
“This turned out much better than I had hoped.” Ethan said, he and Goldenlocks sat on one of the couches as they watched over the foals and Pokémon.
“It really did turn out great.” She agreed with him. “I think a lot of them even found some new friends today, I wouldn't be surprised if any of them would want to come visit on a later day.” Ethan noticed that she kept looking at one foal in particular.
It was a small pegasus, who strangely enough kept away from most of the other foals. Her coat was dark grey and her mane hung in front on her face. Though, unlike most of the other foals, she did not have her cutie mark yet. Next to her sat a small Natu. It was one of the Pokémon that they had saved from Shady back when everything started. She had already recovered fully and could leave if she wanted too, but she had chosen to stick around instead. The pegasus was the one that was doing most of the talking, with the Natu only chirping back occasionally even if the pegasus couldn't understand her, it looked like the both of them were enjoying themselves immensely.
“They are welcome to come visit anytime they want.” Ethan replied, as this was one of the things he had hoped for. “Who is she?” He asked, as he noticed the way she smiled as she looked over at that foal in particular.
“That’s Stormy.” She said as she shook her head and looked back to Ethan. “She has just been having a hard time recently. It’s been so long since I have seen her smile like that.”
“Well, it looks like she is having a lot of fun.” Ethan commented as the pegasus and natu both shared a small laugh. “I dont mean to sound rude, but is there something wrong with her?” Ethan asked, as he had noticed when she had walked in, Goldenlocks had been staying close with her almost the entire time until they were inside. “I’m sorry, that sounded harsher than I meant for it too.” Ethan apologized for the slip of his tongue.
“Just don’t let her hear you say anything like that.” The teacher told Ethan in a stern voice before softening. “Though I suppose it won't hurt to tell you…” She took a deep breath before she started talking again. “She is almost completely blind.” She said, and that made a lot of sense to Ethan, it certainly explained how her teacher had been guiding her when they walked in.
“Almost?”
“Yeah… she still can see, but only barely, and only things that are just in front of her. To make matters worse, she wasn't born that way… she had an accident while flying a while back.” Ethan looked back to Stormy who was giggling as the Natu was hopping around her body and inspecting her wings, poking them carefully with its beak. He knew how important sight was for bird Pokémon, and he guessed that the same applied to pegasi. “She… never was the same after that. Flying was her life and, after the accident, she distanced herself from everypony… She still does. It’s just… it just makes me to happy to see actual joy on her face for the first time in so long. I can't even remember the last time she laughed.” Ethan was sure that he could see a single tear rolling down Goldenlocks’s cheek and he understood her perfectly.
“Well, she is welcome to come by to visit anytime she wants to.” Ethan told her. Though if things went according to plan, maybe they could help her even more. “Is she getting some sort of help?” Ethan knew that it was not in his place to ask, but he couldn't help himself. And he could see that Goldenlocks hesitated before she answered.
“Sort of… She got a psychologist after the accident. He was sent from Canterlot, but he has been of little to no help. And her parents can't afford the money to hire a private one.” With that Ethan began to understand more, and why she was even talking to him about all of it. “She is such a nice filly, and I am just her teacher, but it hurts to see her that way without being able to know what I can do to help.” She sniffed, and wiped her eyes with her hoof, even though no tears had been present.
Even though he only dealt with Pokémon, Ethan was a psychologist himself and from the sound of it, Stormy had gotten stuck with one that did not fit her or was unable to help her properly, which was horrible. His training, mostly included Pokémon, so he did not feel comfortable with offering to help her himself, but he did have something else in mind.
“Can I talk with you about something? It’s something that, if everything works out according to plan, might also be able to help Stormy.” Goldenlocks looked at Ethan with big eyes and a surprised look on her face.
“W-what? Um, sure.” She stuttered, a little surprised by where their conversation was headed.
“I’m sure you know that some of us did not use to be Pokémon before coming here, right?” Ethan asked her, getting a nod in return. “Well, I don't think I have introduced myself properly just yet. My name is Ethan, Pokémon caretaker and psychologist.” He could see the surprise in Goldenlocks eyes as she stared at him. “And I'm hoping to start a program that might be able to help foals and ponies like her.”
“Go on.” It was easy for him to notice how eager she was to hear the rest of what he had to say.
“Well… the idea is that it is going to be a program that will help ponies that are handicapped for whatever reason.” Both of them looked over to Stormy as Ethan spoke. “Especially young ponies or foals, if you will. Not only can it be difficult for their parents to deal with everything on their own, but not every… pony,” he was never going to get used to saying that. “Can afford to get proper help. We would train the Pokémon that volunteer for this, so they would know what to do to help in most situations. Like Stormy here. Having someone that could follow her around most of the time would really help. Dont get me wrong, I'm sure that you nor anypony else mind doing that… but I think that it would also help Stormy a lot to only have to rely on one person, or Pokémon in this case. That and sometimes, just having a friend can help a ton.” Ethan and Goldenlocks both smiled as they watched Stormy laugh as she was having fun with the Natu, enjoying herself like any child or foal should be able to.
“That… sounds like a wonderful idea.” Goldenlocks happily exclaimed once she had thought over it for a moment. “You have my full support at the very least. Would you mind telling me more about it?” She asked, and Ethan had no qualms about that. In fact, he was more than happy too.
And so the two of them continued to talk about the idea about the program, how it would work and who it would help. There was some questioning about how large it would end up being because Ethan could only train Pokémon that volunteered to it, and so, Goldenlocks suggested that he should ask the Princesses for support with his idea. That way, it would be possible that he would get some larger founding and get the word out so that more Pokémon would hear about it and hopefully come to join. But Ethan was against that idea. Years upon years of running from most authority figures made him afraid of the idea of putting too much light upon himself. But even so, he knew that it was a sound idea, and he would remember it for later.
“So that went well.” Ethan breathed out as he collapsed down next to Zoey. The visit had lasted for several hours more than they had planned since the foals were having so much fun and enjoying themselves. They had made sure to alert the parents of the foals so if any of them needed to pick them up they could do so since they went over normal school time, but a lot of them chose to stay until the end.
“Really well, they haven't stopped talking among each other ever since the foals left.” Zoey smiled as she looked over at some of the other Pokémon that were living there. “So what now?” She asked.
“Now we just relax.” Ethan smiled at her. “Most of the chores are already done, and I had my session with Scylla earlier today, so there is really nothing that needs doing right now.” Ethan said as he leaned back.
“Oh? And how did that go?” Zoey asked. She had spent more and more time with Scylla, having grown to be rather good friends, but they never talked about the sessions she and Ethan had.
“Honestly? Not that well.” Ethan let out a sigh. “I have taught her a couple of ways to deal with her anger issues and help her calm down. But she still refuses that she has a problem. I have never worked with someone as hardheaded as her before.” Not to mentioned that he had not made any progress at all when it came to her past. “She is completely healed now too, I think the only reason she has stuck around is the fact that she feels like she owes me… who knows, maybe you could speak some sense into her? You seem to be pretty good friends, after all.” It had not been hard to see how well the two of them were getting along.
“Hmm, I don’t know. She rarely talks to me about anything, and I don't think she would have liked it if I started digging too much.”
“Yeah, you are probably right. She seems like the kind of girl that likes her secrets. Makes me wonder what kind of Pokémon she was back when she was with that mercenary organization of hers.” Zoey started to lightly laugh at that.
“You are not still worried about that are you? That bounty they had on you, I wonder how much it was.” She pondered as she continued to laugh.
“No, she is the kind of personality that, if she was going to do something she would have done it already.” Ethan said, though now that he thought about it, he did wonder how much his bounty was. He hadn't even asked Jenny how much they knew about him and how many Pokémon he has rescued… or stolen depending on who you asked. “Just forget I said anything.” Ethan ended up saying, it was his patient and his problem to deal with. Scylla needed help even if she did not think so herself. “By the way, have you seen Brawly?” He asked. He was not sure exactly when, but Brawly had slipped out sometime during when the last foals were leaving.
“I think he said something about going for a walk.” Zoey told him. Brawly had been doing a lot of that lately. Ethan liked to think that he was at least a little good at reading people. And the more he thought about it, the more it seemed like Brawly had been avoiding him lately. Though it seemed to out of character for him so he pushed those thoughts out of his mind. “Why?” Zoey asked as she watched Ethan think.
“Oh… um, nothing.” Ethan mumbled softly.
“Look, it’s clear that you like him, and if you need to talk about it, then I'm here for you.” Zoey told him as she put a paw on his shoulder.
“It is that obvious, huh?” Ethan knew that Zoey knew about it from what Chii had told him, but he figured that he wouldn't say anything because of their recent past. But the way she looked at him there, combined with the comforting paw she had draped over his shoulder, made him feel like it would be alright to talk to her about it.
“It kinda is, yeah.” Zoey smiled. “I think it would have been easier for me to see earlier too, if I had not been blinded by my own affection.” Zoey said, much to Ethan's embarrassment. He could feel himself start to blush slightly as he looked away. “What's bothering you?”
“If it is that obvious, then you know what is bothering me.” Ethan said as he looked back at Zoey. “I want to tell him. I want to talk to him about all of this. I have been in love with him since before I even met you.” Zoey could see pain in Ethan's eyes as he spoke. “I want everything to be alright. But I am still scared…” His voice grew quieter as he spoke.
“Why don't you just tell him, then?” Zoey asked him. She still felt slightly conflicted as she was talking to him about it. Her feelings for Ethan had been strong, and feelings that strong do not just die out in a few days. But she ignored those feelings, he had been there for her on her darkest days and she would be there to help him when he needed it. “Why have you not told him this before when you were back on Earth if it has been going on for so long? I have never seen friends as close as the two of you.” She could see the smallest hint of a smile on Ethan's face as she asked him that.
“I was scared back then too.” He told her. “I was scared of rejection. I was scared of losing our friendship, that he would hate me for feeling like this about him. But back then, most of all… I was scared of if I told him… that I would find out that he felt the same.” Ethan looked as confusion grew on Zoey's face.
“W-what?” She asked. “But, if he felt the same for you that would be a good thing right?” Ethan shook his head. He understood her confusion, if one did not think that much about it, it did not make any sense.
“Not while we were still back on Earth. Now that fear is gone… though the others still remain. Tell me, back on Earth. What was Brawly, and what was I?” He could see the gears spinning in Zoey's head as she tried to make sense of what Ethan had told her.
“Brawly was a gym leader, and you… you were a hero.” Ethan could not help but smile at that comment and he felt Zoey pull him a little closer where they sat. “At least you were to me and a lot of other Pokémon.”
“Thanks.” Ethan said as he leaned against her. It meant a lot to him to hear her say something like that. “But to almost everyone else, I was a criminal. Dont get me wrong, I would do it all again without a second thought… but….” Ethan took a deep breath and held it for a few seconds before he continued. “I’m sure you know how much Brawly wanted to help with what we were doing. He helped finding families for the rehabilitated Pokémon and got me some intel when I needed it, but he wanted to do more. I was okay with the small amount of help that he was providing because nothing I did would lead back to him, I was very careful of that. Even going so far as to limiting how often we could meet up.”
“What does this have to do with you telling him that you love him?” Zoey asked.
“Come on Zoey, I know that you are smarter than that.” Ethan teased her. “What do you think would have happened if I had let him help with the operations where we rescued those Pokémon? If he had been seen just once, what do you think would have happened.” He could see that Zoey slowly began to understand what he had been going on about.
“He would… that would mean the end of…”
“It would mean the end of his career as a gym leader. Everything that he had been working so hard to gain, he would lose it all in a moment, he knew that and he still did not care. Now if I had confessed to him and… and we…” An intense blush grew on Ethan's face as he struggled to find the right words.
“If you became a couple?” Zoey asked, slightly amused at how embarrassed Ethan was.
“Y-yes… if that happened. Even if he was not helping me directly, if it got out that he was dating a criminal like me, that would also ruin his career. I couldn't do that to him, I could not take that chance by confessing my feelings to him.” Ethan did not see the paw before it was inches away from his face as Zoey slapped him hard, making him reel back from the shock.
“What is wrong with you!?” Zoey exclaimed, she was getting really angry from Ethan's reasoning and she had to hold herself back from hitting him again. “How can you just go ahead and decide something like that? You should have told him and worked it out afterwards depending on what his answer would have been. He is your best friend, don't you think that he deserved that chance to decide for himself!?” Ethan was slightly surprised. Not by the fact that she had hit him, but by how angry she looked. He had not seen her like that in ages.
“Don’t you think that I haven't considered that? I just… I couldn't have lived with myself if I had ruined his life like that. To make matters worse, i'm not even sure that he would have blamed me if it had come to that. I… I just…” Ethan felt two strong arms wrap around him as Zoey pulled him into a hug.
“I know. I understand.” She told him. She was still angry and thought that he had made the wrong choice. But there was nothing that they could do about that now. “But that is all behind us… and apart from your other reasons, there is little that is stopping you from confessing your feelings to him now.” She told him as she leaned back and released him from her embrace. She knew that Ethan had already confessed in his drunken stupor. But from how Brawly had handled that whole situation, she thought that Ethan needed to do it once more, only properly and sober that time around.
“You are right, we are not on Earth any more. And I am not Ethan Summers anymore. I'm just, Ethan. But that does still does not change the fact that I am scared.” Him abandoning his name was something that had hurt him slightly. He had never had any special bond with either of his parents, but it had not been any bad blood between them either. Ethan looked back up at Zoey as she put her paw on his back.
“That’s normal, Ethan. Dont you think I was scared out of my wits when I confessed my feelings to you? I dont have any other family that you guys, no other friends… yet, I wanted more, and I thought that it was worth it to take that risk… even if it did not work out. You don't hate me for what I did, do you?”
“What? No, of course not.” Ethan told Zoey, having been surprised by her words. “How could I ever hate you?” At those words Zoey began to smile.
“Then why don't you just tell Brawly about your feelings? He is your best friend, trust him. He won't hate you or abandon you. I am sure that the two of you will have to talk about the whole thing, but I could never see Brawly hating you. I’m not sure that Brawly is even capable of hating anyone.” Zoey and Ethan shared a light laugh at that. “Worst case… he doesn't share your feelings, and you go back to how things are now. But you know, things might just work out too.” Ethan nodded as he knew that Zoey was right. He had known all along, he had just refused to believe it. “You are just hurting yourself by keeping those feelings inside of you. It’s time to let them out.” Zoey finished speaking as she held a paw to Ethan’s chest.
Ethan simply sat there for a few moments, thinking about what Zoey had told him. It was difficult to just throw away those fears when they had been present in his mind for so long. But for the first time, he did not have to fight those fears alone. He had always thought that it was his job and responsibility to be there for them and help them in any way he could. But they had always been there to support him too. It was about time that he realized that. He was lucky to have such a good family.
“What would I do without you?” Ethan smirked as Zoey pulled her arm back.
“Without me you would be horribly lost, probably.” The two of them started laughing again as they enjoyed the moment they had together. “So what are you going to do?” She asked after a while.
“... I think I’m going to tell him.” Ethan answered, much to Zoey's relief. “I just… I think I need a little time to figure out what I'm going to say and how I'm going to do it.” He was not just the type of person who could simply jump into something like that without proper preparations.
Zoey nodded, she had suspected as much. Even if she had managed to convince him to do it, it was a big leap for Ethan and she would give him the time and space that he needed. Within reason of course, she would kick his ass again if he decided to take too long.
“Alright, I’m here if you need me.” Zoey told Ethan as the two of them sat there. Before too long Chii also decided to join them and she snuggled into the space between them before slowly falling asleep. With how late it was, it did not take too long before Ethan and Zoey also followed after her into the land of dreams.
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...couldn't Xatu use its powers to link its vision with Stormy so she could see again?
5941638
If something like that was even possible... I would immanine that only the top most powerfull Psychic types would be able to pull it off, and even then for just short periods of time. So it would never be a permanent sollution.
5942334
what about healing moves that effect others?
5942368
Healing moves... at least in my mind, would only be able to affect superficial wounds, unless its special circumstances. If they could heal anything, then there really would not have been any reason to have hospitals or the like in the pokemon world.
5941638 yea, that's what I was thinking as well. But something tells me it's a bit more complicated...
5941638
Also... Im sorry for missing this part of your comment earlier. But it was a Natu, not a Xatu
5942375 Heal pulse is very useless except for in a team battle, where you can choose the target.
5944700
Yeah... it would be cool if you could use those healing moves outside of combat in the games, then some of them would acually have a purpose.
5944786 I made the mistake of over writing a normal type attack on both my kirlia because I thought it healed the caster. They were being leveled using the exp-share
So many feels in this chapter. Seth would get what Ethan is going through.
...I need to get back to writing... DAMNIT AC-REVELATIONS!