~Two months later~
Satoshi sat upon the edge of his bed, fingering the sheets. He couldn’t keep his mind on his duties anymore. People requested a day off for him, and it was immediately given to the boy by the Commander herself. It seemed everyone in the Kibou no Senshi understood, at least a little. Soft brown irises gazed unseeingly at the floor. Pikachu sat next to him on the bed, his ears and tail drooping. The mouse missed Kasumi too, but he figured that the human’s feelings were more intense.
Flashes of her death continued to ring throughout Satoshi’s mind, whether he was sleeping or awake. In the former sense, the flashes came as horrible nightmares, causing him to lose generous amounts of sleep each night. In the wakened world, Satoshi saw her ghostly form roaming the KnS hallways like she always used to. The man always ended up chasing her before coming to a dead end every time. These visions were a manifestation of an obsession the trainer didn’t even want. Sure, he loved Kasumi, but he didn’t want to act like this. But why… Why couldn’t he stop these from happening? People died all the time now.
Water pooled at his eyes, but they refused to fall. Come to think of it, Satoshi remained cold towards the others ever since the incident occurred. He suddenly realized he didn’t smile or laugh as much anymore. Heck, he was probably worrying all of his close friends and Warrior buddies by a threat of depression. (This feeling lasted over two weeks, after all.)
A sudden knock came to his door. Didn’t anyone understand the meaning of ‘leave me alone’? How about ‘I’M SLEEPING, KTHX.’ The trainer withheld a groan and made a move to speak. “Satoshi-kun, may I enter?” a strong voice inquired from the outside. The said male immediately shut his mouth.
“Uh, sure,” Satoshi said with uncertainty coating his voice. As he wondered why he didn’t lock the door, a woman strode into the room. She had an aura of authority and surrounding her figure; this could be seen by the way she held herself, even as she sat on the bed beside him. Pika walked across the bed and set himself on the woman’s lap, nearly purring as she stroked the mouse behind his ears. She wore a samurai’s outfit, the top part being a deep navy while her pants were a dusty off-white. A sword was strapped onto her left side, and Pokéballs wrapped around the sheath. Soft indigo hair spilled over her slightly aged face, partially covering the scar she held from her left eye to her chin. A long period of silence passed between the two.
“This one hears that you’ve asked for some time alone. However, it looks like you need someone to talk to,” the leader of the KnS said in a softer tone than she used only a few minutes ago. Her usually impassive silver irises glittered with sparks of concern, and Satoshi gasped. Even after two years, he hadn’t seen her like this. He doubted anyone did. At the gasp, the woman laughed softly, placing a tanned hand on the boy’s unruly hair. “You know you can confide in this one. Nothing will leave this room.”
“I-I’m sorry, Commander… For causing you to come here. You really, REALLY di-didn’t—”
“Calm down, young one. First of all, call this one Kura in private. You’ve known this one the longest of them all, have you not? Second, this one came here of her own free will. Everyone can tell your aura is doused with sadness. Seeing my favorite Hero in such pain hurts this one too,” the leader replied in a matter-of-fact tone. She ruffled the spiky strands and saw a hint of a smile form on his face from the action. Perhaps such made him feel like he was a kid again, free from all of this torment and responsibility. “Still saddened over Kasumi-san’s death?”
How could she say it so calmly? Satoshi immediately exploded, screaming. He glared at the KnS leader, fire burning in his dark irises. “Y-yes, and I just can’t handle all of this anymore! Why… why does everyone I care about have to die? Why? What d-did I deserve to get all of this? What did THEY do? They were all in-innocents, and all they were doing was fighting alongside us… None of them deserved to die in such a manner… especially her.”
Kura merely looked at him, frowning herself. Never had she seen him so distraught. This just didn’t fit his personality: courageous, funny, and happy all the time. Satoshi was still so young, and he wore his heart on his sleeve. There was something still amiss, however; Kura could tell by the withdrawn expression on his face. Even as he panted for breath after that rant, Satoshi’s heart was still restrained. She was possibly the only one who could help him right now.
“There is more than that, correct? Other… deaths have not reduced you to such a state.” Kura chose not to elaborate for the eighteen-year-old’s sake. The male trainer stood up for a moment before slowly reaching into his pocket. He pulled out a small velvet Pokéball. The KnS leader forced herself to remain quiet as Satoshi opened the small container containing a small heart locket. When opened, Lugia’s song echoed through the chamber.
“The day she died… Was the anniversary of when we first met eight years ago. After we finished the mission that day in Pallet, I was planning on…” He trailed off, choking on a sob. This time it wasn’t his cap which hid his eyes – his bangs did. “P-proposing to her. We would have gotten married after all of this was over… This necklace was all I could get for her, since the state of things is going downhill. I would have gotten her a proper ring later on.
“I’m so horrible, so weak. I was RIGHT THERE, and I couldn’t protect her. I p-promised… I promised that I’d always keep her safe! She was waiting for me, and I couldn’t do anything to help! That monster killed Kasumi in front of my eyes, making sure she suffered while she died. I…I-”
Pika and the leader shared a glance of their own before the mouse leapt onto Satoshi’s shoulder. Kura suddenly stood up herself, cradling him close like a mother would to a small child. She kept one hand on his head while the other rubbed small circles on his back. The KnS leader whispered a few words to Satoshi as he began to weep. “To thine own self be true. You must come to the terms that you couldn’t have done anything more to prevent Kasumi-san’s death.” He clutched her hakama tightly within his palms, his face buried in her left shoulder.
“Young one, do you want to know what this one thinks?” Kura asked a few minutes later. The boy turned to rest his right cheek on the woman. Bloodshot brown irises stared up in a look of innocence which Kura loved from the boy. The rare smile that came to the leader’s face appeared again, and this warmed Satoshi a little bit. “Kasumi-san must have been proud of how brave you were being. Think, young one, of yourself being a knight in shining armor. She was your damsel, and you were there to save her. However, she did know what the repercussions of joining the Warriors of Hope were. She knew there may have been a time when her own life was put at stake. This one is quite sure that she came to terms with that fact.”
“Satoshi-kun, don’t blame yourself. I’m… I’m just so glad t-t-that…” Suddenly a spasm flittered throughout her body, causing the eighteen-year-old to hold her tighter.
“Don’t talk, Kasumi. Help will arrive soon. Don’t waste your strength!”
At this response, she smiled. The girl weakly raised a hand to the boy’s cheek, and his right hand fell over hers to keep it there. “I don’t have the… strength a-anymore. I-I’m sorry… Sa-Sato-shi.”
“No! You can’t die, Kasumi. You can’t! I… I love you so much…”
Emeralds shimmered before beginning to dull. Something flashed behind her eyes; this was an emotion that Satoshi couldn’t understand. “L-love you too… Shi-shi.”
Satoshi suddenly realized that the KnS leader was correct. That emotion which flashed in Kasumi’s eyes before her death was understanding. Maybe even acceptance and a sprinkle of forgiveness. He nodded against the rough fabric, and his tears began to dwindle just a bit. All the while, Pika was nuzzling the boy’s neck, worried for his trainer. Kura attempted to calm down the mouse as well.
After what seemed to be an eternity, the commander sat all three of them back down on the bed again. Her arms were still wrapped around Satoshi, although he had stopped crying. The Pikachu sat on his trainer’s legs, knowing that the commander probably had some more to say to the boy.
To the trainer, this felt like something he needed for more than these two months. His mother had died a year ago, and Satoshi needed someone he could talk to. After Kasumi departed, he didn’t have any more people to talk to. He knew there was Yellow hanging around, but she was too young to understand anything he was going through at the moment. Shigeru never really did have parents, Shinji was… Shinji, and Kenji wasn’t that close to him.
“Do not let the past control your future, young one. You must learn to use it only to learn from wrongs already committed, mistakes already made. Using these memories as lessons, you will not do the same again.” These words interrupted Satoshi’s train of thought. His eyes refocused, and he immediately realized at his source of warmth and comfort was pulling away. Kura reached into a fold of her hakama and brought out a navy handkerchief. She handed it to the shocked and now blushing boy. “Wipe those tears.” Satoshi nodded curtly, thanking her profusely as he dried the stains on his dusky cheeks.
As the male handed it back, a beep echoed through the room. Pika’s ears perked up, and he stared at the KnS broach on the commander’s shirt. “Ma’am, we have an urgent message from someone in sector 66. We need your help!” With a sigh of her own, the woman replied and stood up again. Satoshi followed before opening the door for her.
“This one assumes that you will be al right,” Kura commented, as she stood in the doorway. She ruffled his hair once more for good measure, making the boy smile brightly.
“I just wanted to say thanks… For everything.” Pika bobbed his head up and down from the boy’s shoulder.
“You’re welcome, Shinyuu.” With one last small smile, the KnS leader turned and began to walk down the hallway. It took the boy a few moments to register what she had just said.
“… What?” Another laugh came from the woman. How in the world did Kura let her own personal name for the boy slip?
Without stopping or turning around, she responded, “Shinyuu. Courage.”
After that day, Satoshi was never called by his original name. Only Shinyuu. For the courage to move on, the courage to push forward. The courage which would sway the war in their favor.
