Child of Thorns - A Pokemon Sinnoh Reimagining

The fact that it was such a nice, unusually warm day for the winter they'd been having was further insult to injury.

Barry and his mother were one of the first few to arrive. The memorial took place in a wide, open clearing not too far from Twinleaf's cemetery, just on the edge of the enormous pine tree plantation. The sunlight hit the trees from behind, casting long, sharp shadows onto the wooden stands atop which stood what his mom had described as a lectern, then kept going until they covered most of the chairs which had been placed all around the clearing in neat, uniform rows. They were separated into two blocks with a wide space in the middle so people could walk up to the front. White ribbons of soft velvet ran along the sides of each block, tied together with warm, colorful floral arrangements that surely must have been made in Floaroma.

Their scent made it to his nose as he approached his chair in the front row. Sweet and musky, but not overtly so. A rich, subtle aroma that reminded him of summer. He'd expected something different; more sharp, citric smelling flowers, the kind usually associated with the cold and ruthlessness of winter, to better suit the occasion. But the more he thought about it, the more it made sense. They were a bit too bright and out of place, which perfectly encapsulated Palmer and Argenta's personalities.

Mom must've put a lot of thought into this.

He couldn't help it, a feeble smile formed on his face. He sat there in his chair, enjoying the cool shadows and the hot wind and the sweet scent of the flowers, the tenseness in his body slowly relaxing with every second that passed.

"I'll go talk to the celebrant. Make sure everything's in order," he heard his mom say, looking toward the tall, lanky man near the lectern. "You can stay here. I'm sure everyone's on their way."

She wasn't wrong. Barry wasn't sure if five or ten or even thirty minutes passed since he sat down until the memorial started, but he was there to see as everyone arrived one after the other. He recognized a good number of them. Factory Head Thorton arrived first, and while the monotone look on his face hadn't changed much, the fact that his hands were free and not holding onto some phone or electronic device showed that he was serious about this. Darach was next. The famous butler was already dressed for a funeral on a daily basis, and yet seeing what little color he usually had on him replaced with black changed his look completely. Well, it was either that or the clear grief all across his face. Lady Caitlin didn't accompany him, though it wasn't surprising. He didn't imagine coming all the way to Sinnoh from Unova in time would be easy, especially with the border reinforcements that had been recently put in place.

More familiar faces followed. Byron and Crasher Wake arrived together, and were soon followed by a number of trainers Barry could've sworn were under Palmer's employment in his Frontier facility. Then came a bunch of middle-aged men and women he'd never seen before, but whom he figured had fought alongside him during the war. They all shared the same burdened expression he only occasionally saw on Palmer's face before he caught himself reminiscing.

Aaron, Bertha and Flint of the Elite Four were next, and despite the situation and his own expectations, Barry felt a spark of excitement and competitiveness flare in his chest at the sight of them, though he was quick to extinguish it, admonishing himself. What was he doing? This was a memorial for Mew's sake, it wasn't the place for those kinds of emotions.

Strangely enough, Lucian was nowhere to be seen. Had he stayed behind in the Association to keep things running? Barry scrunched up his nose at that. This was Argenta's –his mother's– memorial too! Couldn't he let someone else handle things while he came, even for just a little bit? What was wrong with him?

Fantina's not here either, he realized after a few moments. So were neither of Argenta's children going to attend? Her case was a bit more understandable; not only were Hearthome's borders closed but she was also being investigated by the Association, which meant that neither her nor Niss' mom could leave the city easily. But still…

Now that I think about it, he frowned, looking around. It's weird that they let the memorial be held here in Twinleaf when Argenta's not from here. Did Lucian and Fantina just… not care?

The sourness of that thought seeped into him as he watched the rest of the attendants come in. Dahlia, matron of the Battle Arcade, was one of the last to arrive, all of the color and brightness and energy she constantly carried with her completely absent now. She walked stiffly toward the spot where Thorton and Darach were and barely managed to sit alongside them before she broke into silent tears.

Barry looked away, fingers closing over the fabric of his pants. That same uncomfortable feeling from before shot up his arms toward his chest, and suddenly the warm air wafting through the clearing felt heavy and stuffy. It was probably wrong of him, but he didn't want to be here anymore. He wanted to leave, to be able to move or do… anything. To put all of this horrible, vein-crawling energy to work somehow.

He breathed a sigh of relief as the last of the guests arrived, which meant that the service would start soon. He wasn't sure if he recognized any of them. An old lady, a young man with black and white hair and a tall, buff girl with fire-red h–

Barry's eyes went wide. Reiko stood there until she was approached by one of the ladies in charge of seating everyone, after which she was walked toward her chair at the very back of the row. She'd let her hair down for the first time since he'd known her and the black shirt and pants she wore looked so out of place on her for some reason.

She didn't seem to notice him, nor anyone else for that manner. As soon as she sat down her gaze moved toward the small podiums surrounding the lectern atop which stood photographs of Palmer and Argenta surrounded by a bouquet of flowers each. She stared at them for a long time, unaware of everyone else around her. Occasionally she would look nervously over her shoulder, toward the dark rows of trees that marked the beginning of the plantation, and every time she did that Barry could've sworn she noticed a gleam of yellow somewhere amidst those trees.

"Thank you. You may be seated, please." Barry almost jumped at the sound of the celebrant's voice booming through the speakers set up around the clearing. He'd barely noticed Sarah sitting next to him. "Good afternoon, and welcome to Twinleaf Town. We've gathered in this beautiful place for a memorial for the life of Palmer Paladino and Argenta Dusk, better known as the Tower Tycoon and Hall Matron of the Battle Frontier. For more than a decade each, both of them have–"

Barry tried to pay attention, he really did. He knew it would've been terribly disrespectful not to, but at the same time…

"…contributions toward the safety and stability of Sinnoh that very few could match. And even in their final years…"

Maybe it was something about this man's voice, or what he was saying. It was maddening, ridiculous, but Barry almost felt like… laughing. Who was this guy? Why was he talking about his dad like he knew him, like he knew anything about him?

"…and their services, both in the war and after, will be remembered for years to come, for there is no greater sign of love than…"

What services? That word put a bad taste in Barry's mouth, and if he'd looked to his side and behind him he would've seen both Sarah and Reiko make a similar face. His dad had always regretted the role he'd played during the war. Hated it. Why was this chump talking about it as though it were a thing to be proud of?

"…and we can only hope that their example of diligence and strength of spirit will be one that future generations can learn from. That is all from me. Let our memorial continue, with the voices of their loved ones."

Diligence and strength? Barry couldn't help but frown. He knew that a memorial like this was supposed to be more of a ceremony for the living than for the dead but… none of this felt right. He felt uncomfortable, he wanted to leave, even if it was disrespectful. None of this felt like… him. Like Palmer, nor like Argenta for that matter.

He felt that, if either of them were here, they would've groaned and tell everyone else to stop taking themselves so seriously.

Again, that thought made him want to laugh. What the hell?

Following the celebrant, a bunch of other people –both familiar and not– proceeded to walk up and give their respective eulogies to either Palmer, Argenta or both. And while Barry appreciated that at least them seemed to know the two better, he just couldn't pay attention to what they were saying for more than a few seconds each.

"…tragedy like this is never fair, but that's why we have to treasure…"

"…was the best boss I could've ever asked for. Funny, compassionate, reckless…"

"…you never knew what was going through her head. She was as unique as anyone could be and…"

"…we can never repay what they have done for us…"

None of this was okay. It didn't feel right, it didn't give him any kind of release or closure or… anything. All he felt was stuffy and itchy and uncomfortable. Why wasn't he looking as grief-stricken as everyone else around him? Why wasn't he crying? Why did he keep thinking about what his father would do in this situation and wanting to laugh because of it?

What was wrong with him?

Finally, after everyone else had their turn on the mic, there was a short pause as everyone probably wondered if either Barry or Sarah would step up to talk. A sudden rush of panic and embarrassment ran up his body. He tried to look away, and caught a glimpse of Reiko leaning forward on her chair, a nervous look on her face, like she was trying to psych herself up for something.

Does she want to…?

But before she could gather the courage to stand up, Sarah beat her to the punch. The wind and every other sound amidst the trees around them seemed to still as she slowly made her way toward the microphone, the look upon her face impossible to describe. This time, Barry had no problem paying attention. He stared at his mother with a mix of fear and anxiety, waiting for her to speak.

"I… don't have a speech prepared," she admitted, exhaustion clinging to her voice. "And I don't think I need one. Even if Palmer could listen, there are simply no unsaid words between us. From the beginning we knew everything about each other. We embarked on the same path and did the things that needed to be done, knowing well that we might get our just reward someday. But that's not what happened. Death has no meaning, no sense of justice, of fairness, and we knew that better than anyone else. If it did… if out of the two of us, only the most tainted had to die… then I wouldn't be the one standing here, telling you all this. He would."

She took a few moments to breathe, shoulders slumping as she looked down at the lectern. Throughout the clearing, a tense silence arose. Barry didn't need to look around to know there were more than a few disapproving faces around him. But if they thought that's as far as Sarah would go, they were very misinformed about the kind of person she was.

"I've… heard a few of you praise Palmer for his sacrifice. For his heroic deeds that night. I want those people to know that, if they were in front of me right now, I would gladly punch them in the face."

Grunts and murmurs of shock and disapproval resounded from all around Barry, but all he could do was close his eyes and sigh. Yeah, this was about what he expected.

"Because, when you all say that… you make it sound like this was necessary. A tragedy, a sacrifice. Something that's unfortunate, but needed to happen. As if all of this couldn't have been easily prevented if the people responsible for protecting us actually knew what they fuck they were doing instead of relying in their twisted sense of heroism and the strength of children and civilians." She took a deep breath and sighed. "I'm… not going to blame Palmer for what he did. I probably would've done the same in his shoes, but if any of you seriously believe that his death was a 'necessary service' he needs to be remembered for then you're all a bunch of brainwashed imbeciles and you're tainting this memorial far more than I ever could.

"I don't care how Palmer will be honored or remembered. I don't care if he gets the recognition he might or might not deserve. All I care about is that my husband is dead, my son is fatherless and now I have to stand here, listening to all of you, especially those with actual power over Sinnoh, spew out empty platitudes while knowing full well you'll leave this place and not work an iota harder to make a difference.

"I know. I know that if Palmer were here, he'd tell me to ease up and stop taking this so seriously, but he's not the one standing here. He's not the one now left a widow and a single parent. He's not the one who now has to carry the bulk of the efforts against Team Galactic on his back." She placed both hands on the sides of the lectern, grabbing it tightly. "Do you all want to actually honor Palmer and Argenta's memory? Move your asses. Especially you Elite Four and high-ranking Association members sitting there in the back. Follow Lucian's example, put your fucking money where your mouth is and don't let their deaths be in vain. If you actually care, put the work in and do your best to make sure this never happens again."

The last of her words rolled out, and nothing but silence came after. Sarah seemed to deflate after her speech, all the fierceness she'd just shown evaporating like it'd never been there to begin with. She looked up at the people before her one last time, many surprised and disapproving gazes meeting her own. Then she let go of the lectern and looked away.

"I'm done here," she said. "Keep the memorial going however you see fit."

As expected, no one had much to say after that.

"Barry… hey."

He almost jumped at the sound of Reiko's voice behind him.

"O-oh… Reiko, hi." He swallowed and forced himself to smile. "Nice to see you."

"Yeah, same…"

The sounds of people talking and shuffling around was heard around them. Not much could have followed Sarah's words, so the formal part of the memorial itself had mostly just… ground to a halt. A few people had already left, and those who hadn't had gathered in small groups to talk amongst themselves or stand in front of the memorial photos, giving their respects.

Sarah herself didn't explicitly say she wanted to leave, probably because she wanted to give Barry as much time as he needed, but he could tell she was as uncomfortable in this place as he was. He'd been about to suggest they head back when Reiko came to talk to him.

"You… look pretty healed up," said Reiko. "I'm glad. We were all very worried."

"Hah, yeah, the doctors were pretty surprised too," said Barry, placing a hand over his stomach. "I guess… maybe some part of Mesprit's still with me, and that's why. It'd explain the eyes."

Reiko smiled courtly, looking at the gold of his eyes. She seemed… uncomfortable.

"I still can't believe we were both bonded to a legendary Pokemon and neither of us realized."

"Yeah, that's… pretty nuts, huh."

The following awkward silence made Barry's insides start to itch again. Was he supposed to say something? Or did Reiko want to say something to him but she didn't know how? What…?

"Oh. Hello."

Both of them turned to Sarah as she approached, Reiko's eyes widening slightly.

"You're… Reiko, yes? Reiko Chabashira?" she asked with a dead voice. "I heard you were part of the strike team alongside Palmer and Argenta."

It took Reiko a few seconds to reply, mostly because she looked like a Magikarp out of water. Barry couldn't quite identify the slew of emotions on her face, but one thing was clear; she couldn't have looked more uncomfortable.

"Y-yes… that's me." She swallowed, then made a respectful bow toward Sarah. "Greetings. I know this probably isn't what you wanna hear, especially after what you said, but… I'm sorry for your loss."

Sarah gave a small shrug. "At least you sound sincere, so I don't mind." She then returned the bow, though not very enthusiastically. "Thank you for fighting alongside him, and for helping save my son's life. I'd never be able to repay such a debt, but if you ever need something from me, feel free to ask."

Reiko reeled at that. It was probably the last thing she had expected to hear coming from Sarah. She looked away in what almost looked like shame, mumbling for a few moments before she could put her words in order.

"I'm… sorry I couldn't do more," she said, looking down. "If I'd been more willing to cooperate with him from the start then maybe…"

Sarah blinked a few times, face blank. Barry wasn't sure if she was thinking or if she'd even processed what Reiko was saying. She looked exhausted enough for the second option to be likely.

"Palmer mentioned you to me a few times," she finally said. "Don't blame yourself. It's the fault of that imbecile Champion hiding back there for not realizing the kind of problems putting you two in the same team might cause."

Both Barry and Reiko froze. Wait… did she mean…?

"H-how'd you know?"

"Because subtlety has never been one of her strong points," said Sarah, making a face. "I'll go talk to her in a second, but like I said… you don't have to apologize to me." Her face grew serious as she said that, and Barry could've sworn Reiko shivered at the sight. "I saw the face you were making during my speech. You have every right to hate us for what we did; the fact that one of us died doesn't change anything. I'm not going to hold it against you."

"Mom…"

Reiko's shoulders deflated. She folded her arms and looked down at the ground, face scrunching up in… embarrassment? Shame?

"…No. Even if Palmer were still alive, I don't think I could've pretended to hate him for much longer. Not with how hard he tried to make a difference." She sighed, then looked up to meet Sarah's gaze. "And… I don't hate you either, I think. That's not why I was making that face."

Sarah raised an eyebrow. "Hm?"

"Again, I'm sorry if this sounds offensive, but I… didn't agree with something you said during your eulogy."

"And what'd that be?"

"You were right that this… didn't need to happen, that there were a bunch of things that could've prevented it," said Reiko, voice wavering with emotion. "But I don't agree that death has no meaning. And I especially refuse to accept that his didn't. This might just be 'cause of a difference in culture and I'm aware you've known Palmer for far longer than me, but… I think that part of your eulogy was disrespectful. Both to Palmer and to what he gave his life for."

Barry gulped, feeling a sudden drop in the mood around them. But still Reiko held her gaze against Sarah's, a nervous look of expectation on her face. She'd said those words knowing full well what the consequences for them might be.

However, she didn't know Sarah like Barry did. And so she was surprised when the woman simply folded her arms and shrugged.

"I'm not going to retract anything I said but… I admit I might've gotten too heated," she said. "I'd like to think I had more of an excuse than most, though, considering I just lost my husband."

"Y-yes, of course. I don't blame you one bit," said Reiko. "I just wanted to tell you that I'll do everything in my power to prove that his death wasn't in vain."

Sarah studied the girl's face for what felt like longer than the few seconds it was, like she was trying to determine something from her eyes. Finally, she looked away and nodded. A weak, almost imperceptible smile formed on the corner of her lips.

"I don't have any doubts about that," she said. "Now…"

She lifted her chin slightly, looking past Reiko toward the line of trees that marked the beginning of the plantation. Her expression turned sour.

"…If you'll excuse me, I'll see what Cynthia wants. I wonder how much of her bullshit I can listen to before I end up punching her in the face."

Reiko practically deflated from relief as Sarah walked past her, whatever tension she'd been holding onto evaporating into the air.

After a moment to breathe, she looked up at Barry and shone him a nervous smile.

"I… was not expecting your mom to be that intimidating, if I'm honest."

Barry chuckled. "Yeah, she gets that a lot."

"But… I get it. She has that same edge you show on rare occasions, like…" She stopped herself just then, panic flashing across her eyes. Barry knew she'd been about to mention that night. "Anyway… I'm glad that didn't blow up on my face. Though I should've known from before, I mean… you were clearly raised well, if that counts for anything."

He felt a bit of heat rise to his cheeks, and the smile that formed on his lips was one that did extend to his eyes. It was a lot easier than it'd felt before. Just her presence, just the act of talking with one of his friends again, as menial as the talk was, it felt… good. It helped.

"Anyway, you were probably wondering where Inyssa is, right?" asked Reiko, earning a wide-eyed look from Barry. "Yeah, I figured. Cynthia told me she might have an idea where she's headed."

"R-really!?"

"Yeah. I asked her to tell you; I'd like to know the two of you are back together before I embark on my part of our plan, if just to have some good news for once," said Reiko. "She definitely owes you a big smooch for disappearing like that."

Okay, now he was definitely blushing. He wouldn't have admitted it out loud, but Niss' smooches were one of the big things he really missed in her absence.

"Thanks… then I'll ask Cynthia what she knows," he said. "Hopefully I c–"

A distant, deaf impact resounded behind them, followed by a pained grunt and the sound of a body hitting the ground. Both him and Reiko froze.

"Oh no…"

They hurried over toward where Sarah had gone to, and after only a few seconds of traversing the plantation, they were met with a… peculiar, if not expected, sight. Sarah stood near a tree with her hand curled into a fist. Collapsed with her back against said tree was Cynthia, one hand supporting her against the ground and the other pressed against her bruised cheek.

Sarah raised an eyebrow.

"Not much at all, it seems.."

Despite the rocky start to their conversation, Cynthia managed to –somehow, miraculously– avoid being punched in the face a second time. It was especially noteworthy considering what she proposed.

She wanted Barry to come with her to Hearthome to meet with Fantina and, hopefully, Inyssa as well. And then from there help them in stopping Team Galactic.

But that's not what surprised him the most, no. The strangest thing of all was that Sarah accepted.

"I've been meaning to have a talk with Fantina myself. Knowing that Inyssa could be there only makes it more of a priority." Sarah broke the long silence that had formed after she'd said yes. Even Cynthia looked shocked by it. "And obviously I was going to ask if you wanted to come too," she said, looking at Barry. "But I need to get back to work, so I can't go now. It'll be better if you go with Cynthia first so you don't have to wait for me."

Barry swallowed. He wanted to nod, but couldn't quite do it.

"Sarah…" Cynthia looked like she was choosing her words very carefully as she spoke. "I… expected more resistance, if I'm honest. I mean, like I said, the task I have in mind for Barry won't put him in any actual danger, but–"

"I don't care about your reasons."

The sheer exhaustion and apathy in Sarah's voice filled the air around them, shutting up Cynthia and making the following silence feel heavy and oppressive. Barry felt a shiver. His mother looked halfway between barely holding herself together and ready to put her hands around the Champion's throat at any moment.

"No matter what I do, Barry won't stay put if he knows there's something he can do to help. I was an idiot to think otherwise before." There was no pride or warmth in the way she said that, her eyes avoiding Barry's. "So sure. Take the only family I have left. Put him in danger while I'm trying so hard to protect him. I already came to terms with everyone around me having lost their fucking minds."

"Sarah–"

"But before you do, know this one thing." She cut Cynthia off, shooting her a glare so sour even the Champion flinched at it. "Let a single bad thing happen to him, and no overpowered Pokemon in this world will save you from what I'll do to you."

Cynthia had nothing to say to that. Either that or, much like Reiko and Barry, she also couldn't find it in her to speak back, the heavy atmosphere around them pressing on their shoulders like weights.

"And you… Reiko."

Reiko actually staggered at the sudden mention of her name, lips pressing into thin lines and eyes widening in fear.

"If my son ends up dying thanks to our dear Champion, I'll make sure to find you," said Sarah, voice emotionless. "And I'll make you tell me, to my face, that his death had some intrinsic meaning I'm simply too affected to see. Let's see how convincing you sound then."

The look that crept up Reiko's face at that wasn't much different than if Sarah had straight up punched her in the face.

"…Anyway, that's all from me. Don't let me ruin your fun."

And with that she turned around and started to walk away. Barry's arm raised toward her involuntarily.

"Wh–h-hey, mom…"

"This is what you and Palmer chose, Barry. The life of a trainer," said Sarah, neither stopping nor looking back at him. "I sincerely hope it's everything you ever wanted."

Barry doubted she could've said anything else that would've made him feel worse. She'd always been good at cutting into a person's heart with words alone.

Shame she'd been pushed to the point of not caring if said person was her son.

Cynthia and Reiko spoke to him about a few things on their way back to town, but most of Barry wasn't there to listen.