[attr="class","illeana"]

[attr="class","illeana b"]

[attr="class","illeana i"]before her eyes, the stone seems to vibrate with life. imaginary hands carve into stone. a soft cascade of rock morsels fall victim to gravity's hold with each stroke of a letter.

until... it forms a single question.

to whom are you thankful?

she blinks. the question processes once, twice, thrice until names and faces and too many memories threaten to overwhelm her.

and with shaky hands, she sorts through for an answer:

Felix Gallagher is the first name to pair with a face. there's a fondness that's quick to cling to his memory, existing in a fuzziness she can't deny. and despite wanting to exist in that realm of grateful love a little longer, his face fades. shifted out for another...

ALEXANDER STONE comes next. a rush of sadness accompanies the familiar green hair. despite herself and how many times his warm memory has haunted her, she can't quite see his face. it's eroded, written over by too much time passing. and while she'll always be grateful for him, it doesn't change a thing.

green hair fades into black as Remiel Calcifet's face rises. bitterness now resides where love once lingered. and her side aches from a scarred over wound, mirroring a slowly mending heart.

the features change until jayden cross's face is staring back at her. it's younger, reminiscent of a childhood shared together over triangle cut sandwiches and an innocence now lost.

and where jayden's face had been, a plethora of people now stand. the members of the league, new friends, even cherished pokemon...

somehow, none stay long.

the final face elicits a soft, startled sort of gasp out of the body.

they've stayed with her since the beginning. always there, persistent in the unwavering sort of faith placed in her. no matter what has happened. no matter what she's done. no matter what she will do.

she writes the name before even considering otherwise.

and when it stares up at her, there's a sad sort of fondness that comes and goes across the features.

FERNANDO SILPH

shaymin.

[attr="class","illeana"]

[attr="class","illeana b"]

[attr="class","illeana i"]the stone accepts what she's written. there's a soft acceptance of her own, then, as if it's a truth she's been hiding from.

it fades with a gust of wind, sweeping up through her hair and away into the clouds. all that remains now are petals, stray strands of white, and a refocusing mind.

the gracidea flower she had planted is uprooted. swept off its feet by the sheer force of wind. and yet, it waits for her. patiently, as if it has all the time in the world.

she takes it gently, fingers hesitant against soft petals.

several things happen in sequence, then: flowers continuing to blossom out of nowhere, a path being carved out of them, and a bridge leading up into the heavens.

and a sense of urgency follows. it prompts her to call out her beedrill, a quicker member of her extensive collection. they rush forward. the beedrill uses agility as she feels flowers begin to slip beneath her feet, fading out suddenly as if never existing at all.

with the burst of speed agility provides, they scramble up the flower bridge and beyond with a quickness she would not have found otherwise. perhaps she should write her beedrill's name on the stone as well when this is done.

shaymin.

[attr="class","illeana"]

[attr="class","illeana b"]

[attr="class","illeana i"]after a moment, sweet scent works as a beacon.

it draws out one shaymin and then another until there's a little cluster of grassy hedgehogs are all staring up at her. one in particular steps up, then, and her eyes focus in on its small face.

"hi there."

it squeaks, soft yet urgent.

and when its snout raises up toward the flower still gingerly held in her hands, understanding dawns with soft orange hues.

she shifts the flower into one palm and recalls her bulbababy back. in its place, a bibarel forms out of the releasing light.

the shaymin leads them with a quick pivot, weaving through flowers and dirt until it happens upon a stray plot. and as they still, the shaymin waits for her to re-plant the flower in the new soil.

"mind helping me plant this?"

her bibarel coos in a dumb yet cute sort of way before using rototiller to loosen the soil enough for her to re-plant the gracidea flower.

shaymin.

[attr="class","illeana"]

[attr="class","illeana b"]

[attr="class","illeana i"]after a moment, sweet scent works as a beacon.

it draws out one shaymin and then another until there's a little cluster of grassy hedgehogs all staring up at her. one in particular steps up, then, and her eyes focus in on its small face.

"hi there."

it squeaks, soft yet urgent.

and when its snout raises up toward the flower still gingerly held in her hands, understanding dawns with soft orange hues.

she shifts the flower into one palm and recalls her bulbababy back. in its place, a bibarel forms out of the releasing light.

the shaymin leads them with a quick pivot, weaving through flowers and dirt until it happens upon a stray plot. and as they still, the shaymin waits for her to re-plant the flower in the new soil.

"mind helping me plant this?"

her bibarel coos in a dumb yet cute sort of way before using rototiller to loosen the soil enough for her to re-plant the gracidea flower.

shaymin.

[attr="class","illeana"]

[attr="class","illeana b"]

[attr="class","illeana i"]as the soil accepts the offering of her gracidea flower, the shaymin... doesn't not quite seem to accept her as she is.

the grassy hedgehog turns to her with both appreciation and fire. it's an odd sort of look upon its little face, as if she's both a hero and a villain. fitting, perhaps.

all of the shaymin spread out among the flowers except this one. they form a small pattern, protective of the field they call home.

and in a way, she understands. it prompts her to recall her bibarel and release her signature golurk.

the discolored automaton towers over the little hedgehogs. and if it really wanted, it could just... stomp them out...

instead, it coos in greeting before seed flare fires off from the shaymin's side of the field. the automaton holds a clay hand up to shield both itself and illeana as she observes.

"phantom force."

the golurk slips into the shadows, then, and reappears right behind the shaymin. it does nothing more than reach a single arm out and knock the shaymin forward out of fear of hitting the flowers. this version of phantom force is held back in a way she recognizes: kind hesitation.

34oQnH0z
shaymin.

[attr="class","illeana"]

[attr="class","illeana b"]

[attr="class","illeana i"]the shaymin lets out a loud squeak when it hits the ground. and despite herself, illeana almost calls off the fight.

a look of worry rises quickly, overtaking any determination to prove herself.

what good is acceptance or worthiness if you have to hurt others to get there?

she looks away as she speaks.

"again."

a wince is quick to follow. she hears her golurk disappear again with a soft rumble. it reappears in front of the shaymin as the hedgehog tries to shake dirt from its body. phantom force hits again, just as it had before, and the shaymin tumbles backward to its original spot.

F_ZzD66c
shaymin.

[attr="class","illeana"]

[attr="class","illeana b"]

[attr="class","illeana i"]she can't watch much more of this.

each hit the shaymin takes elicits a squeak. her body begins to bleed healing mist subconsciously, as if spurred on by the shaymin's discomfort.

and as the grassy hedgehog stands up once more, it falters slightly. her expression cracks.

"please let this be the last one..."

her golurk rumbles a soft understanding. phantom force comes again from the shadows and it's the softest push of them all, barely knocking the shaymin off its feet.

softly, she repeats a single sentiment. over and over until she hopes forgiveness comes.

"i'm sorry."

AsiPVROg
shaymin.