Story Notes:
Another Harold story. The idea was inspired by the Vengeance Theme, but because of computer issues there's no way I'll have it done in time for that, plus I dunno how well it'd fit in. Anyway... Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended.
Misplaced
---
I woke up somewhere cold and dark, my head pounding as I tried to get myself upright. The rasp of metal echoed against my talons as they slid along the floor and close, curved walls made of tin. Not seeing a top to the place and guessing at where I was, I shoved against the wall and the whole thing went sideways. The bucket fell with a clang and I rolled out onto the wooden floor. Laying there for a moment to gather my senses, the little light coming through the gaps in the walls was enough for me to see after my eyes got used to it.
It wasn't hard to figure out where I was, I'd barely moved ten feet from where I landed. I was in the storage shed behind Christopher's school. Sore and stiff from a brink to the head and being left in that bucket, I took my time sliding over to the nearest crack in the wall and peering out. I didn't see anyone, but since it was now the middle of the night I'd have been surprised if I had.
My mind went straight to Chris. Was he okay? What did he do when I went missing? How the hell did nobody think to look in the shed when I did? The thought of why I was even still alive instead of dead the backyard like that other Spearow crossed my mind for a second, but I dismissed it since, quite frankly, I didn't give a rattata's ass. I knew I was okay and that was good enough until I made sure Chris was too, then I could worry about motives.
The door to the shed was closed and locked, not to mention none of the holes in the wall were big enough to squeeze through. At least not yet. I hooked my beak on the crack I was by and started tearing away the wood. Twenty or so minutes later, I realized it was going nowhere. By the time I made a gap big enough to fit through, it'd be morning and the groundskeeper would be coming around to open the shed, ruining my efforts.
Taking another look around, there was a small window with a single pane of glass resting in it. I could bash through, but the last thing I hit like that was Christopher's back door, and it didn't break at the time, I did. Even if I succeeded, the shards would slice me apart. Unlike Thrust, I knew not everything on that idiot box he watched was real, where people dive through those things like it's nothing. However, upon noticing what was leaning against the lawnmower and directly in front of the window, I knew it should have been my first choice.
I hurried over to the tool, placing my foot on the tilted row of prongs and pushing down. It swung up a ways, arched down, and the end of the rake's handle struck dead center of the window, smashing it to pieces. Thinking the classics might redeem my opinion of television after all, I took flight, soaring out the window and heading home with all the speed I could manage.
---
The house was dark when I got there, which made some sense considering it was probably past midnight. Stopping at a window on the side of the building, I peered into Chris's bedroom. His bed was empty. Feeling a twinge of panic, I looked up at the top of the bookshelf Thrust and I shared. He wasn't there either. Sure they were together and conflicted about whether I was happy Thrust was there to protect Chris or horrified my trainer was alone with a psycho Beedrill, I hurried around to the back window.
If not for my reflexes, I would have smacked right into the window. It was shut, which made no sense at all. Normally it was left open all night and I'd occasionally fly out to visit Kana or just take in the nightlife. Plus since I'd disappeared during the day, Chris should have left it open for when I came back. After all, he should know by now I'd never just up and ditch him.
Hovering above the yard and going over my options, a tired voice came from below me.
"Harold?"
I looked down at the Growlithe squinting up at me and, for once in my life, I was happy to see the little pyromaniac. "Risp! Thank goodness, do you-"
"You monster! How dare you come back here!" He shouted, his voice cracking before a torrent of flame swept from his mouth and straight at me.
Spiraling out of the way of the flames but still getting caught in the sheer heat of the attack, I let loose a string of foul language that even Thrust would have considered overkill as I dodged the next few blasts of fire. "What the hell is wrong with you, Risp?!"
"You!" He shouted between very potent ember attacks. "Now stop... so I... can roast you!"
Knowing reason was wasted on the young and hot-tempered, I darted over the fence and landed in one of the neighbor's trees out of Risp's view. He shouted a threat, telling me not to come back and I just sat there in shock. What the hell had happened when I was unconscious in that shed?
Something hit the tree by my head and I glanced at the small spike now wedged into the bark. It only took a second to realize what it was, but it wasn't enough time to avoid the second one. The poison pin dug into my chest and I lost my grip on the branch. Falling a couple feet and getting a good view of the Nidoran that hit me, I opened my wings and took off before I hit the ground. Another pair of spines flew by, just missing me as I flapped wildly to get away and out of Rina's strike range.
I couldn't even begin to understand why both of them just attacked out of the blue like that, and if my instincts were right I probably didn't want to know. Heading back toward the middle of town, things began to get blurry and my wings felt far too heavy. The pain from the poison pin in my chest started to become minor compared to the searing agony that began to spread through my body. I wasn't sure how far I fell, or where exactly I landed... all concrete feels the same when you crash on it.
---
"Come on, sit up and stop wobbling!" A muffled voice ordered. "Eat this."
I complied as best I could, feeling dazed and having no idea what was going on. Some part of my brain said listening might not be the smart thing to do, but the pounding drowned it out as something sweet and mushy was pushed into my mouth. The process was repeated a couple more times, my senses slowly coming back with each swallow.
Blinking a few times as my vision cleared, I stared at the yellow fuzzball holding a partially torn-apart pecha berry. "Kana? What happened?" I asked... or tried to, it came out as more of a gurgle since I still had a beakful of mutilated pecha.
She got the general idea though. "I don't know what happened to you, Harry. All I know is you rolled down my alley singed, poisoned and looking like you crawled out of a dumpster."
"Don't call me that." I mumbled, gulping down the berry. "And thanks, it would have been bad if someone else found me."
The Pikachu tilted her head, clearly concerned. "Why? Are you in trouble?"
"I don't know. Everyone's gone nuts in my opinion. Risp tried to fry me, Rina poisoned me... it's lucky I haven't run into Thrust yet or I'd be full of holes by now! Something really bad must have happened after recess." I glanced at her, just remembering. "Wait, you were there. When the students started to go back in, did you see Chris? Was he okay?"
Kana looked away, scratching her head. "Um... sorry, all humans look the same to me. Besides, I didn't stick around once they did that. It'd be too easy to get noticed."
"Right." I said, trying to get my legs moving and stumbling out of the cardboard box Kana called home before stretching my wings. "Thanks again for the help, but I have to get moving."
"It's the middle of the night, where could you possibly have to go?"
"I need to have a chat with someone who'll probably either clear everything up, or just try to kill me like everyone else has been tonight." I said, taking off and trying to remember how to get to Ashley's house.
---
I had to circle a few houses to be sure, but I finally found where Ashley lived. Checking the windows, both she and her parents were in bed and sound asleep. One thing I knew about Ashley was that Mace wasn't her only Pokemon, she also had a Meowth who had a taste for poultry. You can imagine how well the two of us get on. Luckily, because of that cat, there was also a flap built into the backdoor that was plenty large enough for me to slip through.
The other thing I knew about her, is that Mace once told me she put them into their pokeballs at night. Which meant I didn't have to worry about bumping into a killer kitty as I crept through the house and searched out Ashley's bedroom. When I found it, the door was cracked open and the extra glow from a nightlight showed me exactly what I was looking for. Hanging off the bedpost nearest to the door was a standard trainer belt with two pokeballs latched into place. Tugging the one at the end free, I hurried back out of the room and didn't stop until I was outside. If I was wrong about Mace being in that ball, I wanted to be able to fly away fast without having to worry about a ceiling.
Tapping the button twice, it popped open and a very groggy Machop appeared from a flash of crimson light. He sat on the ground, rubbing at one eye and yawning. "It's morning already, Ash?" He murmured, stopping when he caught sight of me.
I started to say something, but even half-asleep Mace can be really fast when the mood hits. I didn't even realize he'd moved until his hand wrapped around my throat.
"You..." He growled, fingers tightening enough so that I couldn't speak but could still, just barely, breathe. "What you did to me was bad enough, but Chris?! I've never seen Ashley cry so much in my life!"
Trying to choke out a question, all I managed was a strained gasping sound. What was I supposed to have done to him? What the hell happened to Chris?! I wanted to tell him to stop being such an idiot, let go and explain things more clearly, but no, he chose to add enough pressure on my neck to cut off my air completely so I couldn't even try.
Swinging my legs up, I sank my talons into his arm but he just put more strength into it instead of dropping me. At that point I didn't know if I was going to die from strangulation or a broken neck first. The world started to spin and my vision got blurry as I lashed my claws at Mace's arm again to no avail. It felt like my head was going to explode from the throbbing pain in my skull, and a moment later everything went white.
I woke up somewhere cold and dark, my head pounding as I tried to get myself upright. The rasp of metal echoed against my talons as they slid along the floor and close, curved walls made of tin. Not seeing a top to the place and guessing at where I was, I shoved against the wall and the whole thing went sideways. The bucket fell with a clang and I rolled out onto the wooden floor. Laying there for a moment to gather my senses, the little light coming through the gaps in the walls was enough for me to see after my eyes got used to it.
It wasn't hard to figure out where I was, I'd barely moved ten feet from where I landed. I was in the storage shed behind Christopher's school. Sore and stiff from a brink to the head and being left in that bucket, I took my time sliding over to the nearest crack in the wall and peering out. I didn't see anyone, but since it was now the middle of the night I'd have been surprised if I had.
My mind went straight to Chris. Was he okay? What did he do when I went missing? How the hell did nobody think to look in the shed when I did? The thought of why I was even still alive instead of dead the backyard like that other Spearow crossed my mind for a second, but I dismissed it since, quite frankly, I didn't give a rattata's ass. I knew I was okay and that was good enough until I made sure Chris was too, then I could worry about motives.
The door to the shed was closed and locked, not to mention none of the holes in the wall were big enough to squeeze through. At least not yet. I hooked my beak on the crack I was by and started tearing away the wood. Twenty or so minutes later, I realized it was going nowhere. By the time I made a gap big enough to fit through, it'd be morning and the groundskeeper would be coming around to open the shed, ruining my efforts.
Taking another look around, there was a small window with a single pane of glass resting in it. I could bash through, but the last thing I hit like that was Christopher's back door, and it didn't break at the time, I did. Even if I succeeded, the shards would slice me apart. Unlike Thrust, I knew not everything on that idiot box he watched was real, where people dive through those things like it's nothing. However, upon noticing what was leaning against the lawnmower and directly in front of the window, I knew it should have been my first choice.
I hurried over to the tool, placing my foot on the tilted row of prongs and pushing down. It swung up a ways, arched down, and the end of the rake's handle struck dead center of the window, smashing it to pieces. Thinking the classics might redeem my opinion of television after all, I took flight, soaring out the window and heading home with all the speed I could manage.
---
The house was dark when I got there, which made some sense considering it was probably past midnight. Stopping at a window on the side of the building, I peered into Chris's bedroom. His bed was empty. Feeling a twinge of panic, I looked up at the top of the bookshelf Thrust and I shared. He wasn't there either. Sure they were together and conflicted about whether I was happy Thrust was there to protect Chris or horrified my trainer was alone with a psycho Beedrill, I hurried around to the back window.
If not for my reflexes, I would have smacked right into the window. It was shut, which made no sense at all. Normally it was left open all night and I'd occasionally fly out to visit Kana or just take in the nightlife. Plus since I'd disappeared during the day, Chris should have left it open for when I came back. After all, he should know by now I'd never just up and ditch him.
Hovering above the yard and going over my options, a tired voice came from below me.
"Harold?"
I looked down at the Growlithe squinting up at me and, for once in my life, I was happy to see the little pyromaniac. "Risp! Thank goodness, do you-"
"You monster! How dare you come back here!" He shouted, his voice cracking before a torrent of flame swept from his mouth and straight at me.
Spiraling out of the way of the flames but still getting caught in the sheer heat of the attack, I let loose a string of foul language that even Thrust would have considered overkill as I dodged the next few blasts of fire. "What the hell is wrong with you, Risp?!"
"You!" He shouted between very potent ember attacks. "Now stop... so I... can roast you!"
Knowing reason was wasted on the young and hot-tempered, I darted over the fence and landed in one of the neighbor's trees out of Risp's view. He shouted a threat, telling me not to come back and I just sat there in shock. What the hell had happened when I was unconscious in that shed?
Something hit the tree by my head and I glanced at the small spike now wedged into the bark. It only took a second to realize what it was, but it wasn't enough time to avoid the second one. The poison pin dug into my chest and I lost my grip on the branch. Falling a couple feet and getting a good view of the Nidoran that hit me, I opened my wings and took off before I hit the ground. Another pair of spines flew by, just missing me as I flapped wildly to get away and out of Rina's strike range.
I couldn't even begin to understand why both of them just attacked out of the blue like that, and if my instincts were right I probably didn't want to know. Heading back toward the middle of town, things began to get blurry and my wings felt far too heavy. The pain from the poison pin in my chest started to become minor compared to the searing agony that began to spread through my body. I wasn't sure how far I fell, or where exactly I landed... all concrete feels the same when you crash on it.
---
"Come on, sit up and stop wobbling!" A muffled voice ordered. "Eat this."
I complied as best I could, feeling dazed and having no idea what was going on. Some part of my brain said listening might not be the smart thing to do, but the pounding drowned it out as something sweet and mushy was pushed into my mouth. The process was repeated a couple more times, my senses slowly coming back with each swallow.
Blinking a few times as my vision cleared, I stared at the yellow fuzzball holding a partially torn-apart pecha berry. "Kana? What happened?" I asked... or tried to, it came out as more of a gurgle since I still had a beakful of mutilated pecha.
She got the general idea though. "I don't know what happened to you, Harry. All I know is you rolled down my alley singed, poisoned and looking like you crawled out of a dumpster."
"Don't call me that." I mumbled, gulping down the berry. "And thanks, it would have been bad if someone else found me."
The Pikachu tilted her head, clearly concerned. "Why? Are you in trouble?"
"I don't know. Everyone's gone nuts in my opinion. Risp tried to fry me, Rina poisoned me... it's lucky I haven't run into Thrust yet or I'd be full of holes by now! Something really bad must have happened after recess." I glanced at her, just remembering. "Wait, you were there. When the students started to go back in, did you see Chris? Was he okay?"
Kana looked away, scratching her head. "Um... sorry, all humans look the same to me. Besides, I didn't stick around once they did that. It'd be too easy to get noticed."
"Right." I said, trying to get my legs moving and stumbling out of the cardboard box Kana called home before stretching my wings. "Thanks again for the help, but I have to get moving."
"It's the middle of the night, where could you possibly have to go?"
"I need to have a chat with someone who'll probably either clear everything up, or just try to kill me like everyone else has been tonight." I said, taking off and trying to remember how to get to Ashley's house.
---
I had to circle a few houses to be sure, but I finally found where Ashley lived. Checking the windows, both she and her parents were in bed and sound asleep. One thing I knew about Ashley was that Mace wasn't her only Pokemon, she also had a Meowth who had a taste for poultry. You can imagine how well the two of us get on. Luckily, because of that cat, there was also a flap built into the backdoor that was plenty large enough for me to slip through.
The other thing I knew about her, is that Mace once told me she put them into their pokeballs at night. Which meant I didn't have to worry about bumping into a killer kitty as I crept through the house and searched out Ashley's bedroom. When I found it, the door was cracked open and the extra glow from a nightlight showed me exactly what I was looking for. Hanging off the bedpost nearest to the door was a standard trainer belt with two pokeballs latched into place. Tugging the one at the end free, I hurried back out of the room and didn't stop until I was outside. If I was wrong about Mace being in that ball, I wanted to be able to fly away fast without having to worry about a ceiling.
Tapping the button twice, it popped open and a very groggy Machop appeared from a flash of crimson light. He sat on the ground, rubbing at one eye and yawning. "It's morning already, Ash?" He murmured, stopping when he caught sight of me.
I started to say something, but even half-asleep Mace can be really fast when the mood hits. I didn't even realize he'd moved until his hand wrapped around my throat.
"You..." He growled, fingers tightening enough so that I couldn't speak but could still, just barely, breathe. "What you did to me was bad enough, but Chris?! I've never seen Ashley cry so much in my life!"
Trying to choke out a question, all I managed was a strained gasping sound. What was I supposed to have done to him? What the hell happened to Chris?! I wanted to tell him to stop being such an idiot, let go and explain things more clearly, but no, he chose to add enough pressure on my neck to cut off my air completely so I couldn't even try.
Swinging my legs up, I sank my talons into his arm but he just put more strength into it instead of dropping me. At that point I didn't know if I was going to die from strangulation or a broken neck first. The world started to spin and my vision got blurry as I lashed my claws at Mace's arm again to no avail. It felt like my head was going to explode from the throbbing pain in my skull, and a moment later everything went white.