Mindy | Pokémon Fanfiction

Eight 「 Your Honour, My Name 」

Music: 「棘」by ELFENSJóN

The house was empty, save for the wizened man sitting cross-legged on the wooden floorboards, his hands clasped together, one slightly above the other to push the rosary beads of a bracelet down one by one, perpetuating the cyclic movement of each and every bead. His eyes were shut without force and they opened just as easily. He was cleanly shaven now, his wrinkles exposed at all corners of his face, wrinkles that smiled as he smiled at Mindy.

"Did you lose my word the moment you talked?" He asked. Mindy sensed disappointment and rage in his tone, yet he wasn't upset and furious at her either. "You were afraid."

Mindy nodded and sat before him. "Is it alright with you? Me being here?"

"I don't always receive guests after midnight, but you seem like you need help."

"I was betrayed."

That, to Mindy, was an understatement. An overstatement, in the eyes of the man. Still, she let the words flow out of her lips, and he absorbed every syllable, every intonation. He remained attentive while his bracelet went round and round his grip, while the door opened and closed gingerly as a Murkrow joined them. When Mindy was done, he gave her a grim smile.

"Verity, Acuity, Valour. Emotion, Knowledge, Willpower." He set his beads down between Mindy and himself. "Veni, Vidi, Vici."

I came, I saw, I conquered.

Mindy twiddled her thumbs and glanced at the Murkrow beside her. She didn't need ill fortune by her side now.

"Shoo, Rasu, this is a private conversation."

"I appreciate the company," said the man. "Come over, sit on my finger."

Rasu did as told. This man had a magnetic presence, and the Murkrow liked it.

Mindy asked hesitatingly for his name, to which he admitted he had none. Or rather, he once had one, but Traded it away on his first Trade. Honour for name. Name - identity, reputation, label, a mark left on every trodden stone. Was it truly worth it?

"It was, though not anymore." The man sucked in a breath and Rasu shook his feathers. "I was a samurai when Sinnoh was still Hisui. It was Eterna's honour for my name, a settlement built in honour of the Pokémon of the Creation legend."

Mindy punched her chest upon choking on her saliva. Rasu blinked.

"I know," said the man as he raised his hands to his chest. He pushed himself off the floorboards, sending a tiny creak across the house, and walked to the window with his hands intertwined on his hips. Mindy felt compelled to join him.

As she walked over, her shadow wavered and crossed the floorboards and the gaps in between like a finger running through the strings of a tonkori, whipping up a song with neither beginning nor end, encapsulating the beauty of nature in its breath. Rasu also sensed the mystical aura of the man and his house and responded with a quiet cry. A beam of moonlight brushed against the man's profile gently while he pinned his gaze on the ambiguous statue outside. Mindy looked out of the window in a bid to emulate him.

The hybrid of Time and Space remained majestic under the stars. The city was quiet. A few people strolled alongside their Pokémon. No matter where she looked, Mesprit, Azelf and Uxie were nowhere to be seen. Relief washed over her, but she could not shake off the undercurrents of trepidation. She put her hands on the grilles.

The man placed a hand on top of hers. She tilted her head towards him and prompted him to continue what he wanted to say earlier, and added a question - what if I came, I saw, but I cannot conquer?