Hi there! This is one of the more serious projects I've been working on lately- a fanfiction with the main character being my own Celebi persona, Wraith. If you want more information about her, feel free to e-mail me.

I do not own Pokemon, even if I wish I did.

A Darkening Past

Prologue

The wind whistled through Eterna Forest, causing the leaves that adorned the trees to rustle softly. The late afternoon sun shone down from above, with the occasional cloud drifting across its face to cast shadows on the trees below. In a small clearing sheltered from the sun's rays, a lone Gardevoir wandered, calling out into the woods.

"Wraith!" She called, listening to the slight echo of her voice before calling again. "Wraith! Where are you?"

The Gardevoir listened for any sign of her daughter, but nothing stirred in the forest except the leaves on the trees, blown by the gentle wind. She sighed.

"Oh, I hope she hasn't wandered off again…" she muttered to herself. "Or worse, she could have been injured! Oh no, what am I to do…"

A sudden rustling in the bushes to her left made the Gardevoir flinch, but then a black and silver blur jumped out at her and, tiny wings buzzing madly, hovered in front of her with a goofy grin upon her face.

"Boo!" The creature shouted, grinning madly. "Did I scare ya?" The creature, in fact, was a black and white Celebi, with brilliant green eyes, antennae, and wings. Gardevoir sighed. This, no doubt, was Wraith.

"Wraith, don't do that, you nearly gave me a heart attack," Gardevoir scolded, giving the young Celebi a disapproving look. However, she couldn't be stern for long, for Wraith put on such a sad-looking pout, and she burst into laughter, grabbing the mischievous child in her arms and hugging her tightly.

"You just can't let me get mad, can you?" she laughed as she hugged Wraith, who also collapsed into a fit of giggles.

"Nope!" Wraith giggled. "You get scary when you're mad, mommy!"

Gardevoir grinned, but the smile was soon wiped off her face as she saw a small gash on the Celebi's shoulder.

"Wraith! You're hurt," she said, worry in her voice. "You have a cut on your arm."

Wraith twisted around, glancing at her shoulder. "Oh, yeah… I must've got it from a stick or something." She fidgeted as Gardevoir studied it. "Come on, Mom, it's not even bleeding!"

Gardevoir's face stiffened, suddenly serious. "Yes, I know, but it can become infected if it isn't treated. Come on, let's go back home and put some medicine on it." Receiving only a glare from the stubborn Celebi, she sighed. "It's for your own good, Wraith."

"Fine…" Wraith grumbled as she pulled free of Gardevoir's grip. Her translucent wings buzzed faintly as she hovered above the ground. "I can fly on my own, though, don't worry about me!" With a sudden smirk, she dashed into the forest, quickly disappearing among the foliage.

"Race ya back, mom!" the Celebi's voice echoed back through the trees. Gardevoir sighed, shaking her head. Wraith was so reckless, she never thought twice about diving into battle, and that could eventually get her seriously injured. However, Gardevoir thought, Wraith's tough nature and legendary status, as well as her optimistic nature, have helped her out of many scrapes.

Gardevoir smiled as she headed back to her home in the forest, feeling blessed to have found such a remarkable and gifted child as Wraith.

Carefully laying the Oran berries she had picked into the ground, Gardevoir covered the berries with soil and sprinkled them with water. Satisfied, she stood up and stretched, the setting sun painting her normally white complexion gold.

"That should be good enough," Gardevoir said, smiling as she surveyed her work. "This place needs more berry trees, so I hope this will help." She dusted herself off and began to gather up her handmade gardening tools when a deafening roar sounded in her ears.

Startled, the psychic Pokemon stepped back, just as a shadow fell over the small clearing she was in. A huge metal beast was flying across the evening sky, its whirring blades creating bursts of wind that rustled the leaves of the surrounding trees. As the sun hit its side, Gardevoir saw a violent yellow 'G' flash across her vision- some sort of logo on the beast's side.

Then, as suddenly as it came, the metal creature was gone.

Gardevoir stood in place, staring off in the direction of the creature. "That was… not a Pokemon," she said to herself. "A human creation, no doubt. Those metal creatures they build sure make a racket." Shrugging it off, Gardevoir picked up her tools and walked across the clearing to a large dead, hollow tree. She put the gardening equipment in a small ditch just outside the tree before entering the hollow tree though a large gash in the bark.

"Ahh, that's better," Gardevoir sighed as she laid down on a soft bed of leaves positioned at the back of the tree. "Now for a good night's sleep, I'll need it for tomorrow…"

Just as she was about to call it a day, though, Gardevoir suddenly felt a strange sensation. Dread was suddenly thick in the air, and her pulse quickened.

"What… what is this?" She queried, sitting up in her bed. "This feeling… it's the feeling I get whenever an injured Pokemon in the area…" Her eyes widened as she jumped out of the hollow tree, glancing around worriedly.

The clearing was empty, save for the small patch of soil that she had just dug up to plant her berries.

Nothing there? Gardevoir thought. I could have sworn I felt something…

A sudden flash of bright light caught her unawares, and she fell over with a shout. The intense flash forced Gardevoir to squint, but then, a dark blur came speeding out of the light, crashing into the ground.

The psychic Pokemon gasped, for as the light faded, she saw what was in front of her. A small, frail-looking Pokemon with translucent wings and a bulb-shaped head complete with antennae laid on the grass, stirring feebly.

A Celebi! Gardevoir gasped. But… what is it doing here? What happened to it?

She knelt down carefully beside the tiny Celebi, and then realized this was not a normal Pokemon. Instead of being a verdant green color, this Celebi was a deep blue-black in color, and its legs, arms, and face were patterned with white. Its antennae and wings were tinged with green, and in one of its small hands, it held a small, silver chain.

"What… what are you…?" Gardevoir said, marveling at the small Pokemon's features.

The Celebi stirred, opening one of its eyes a crack, showing bright green irises. "I… Wr-Wraith… help…." It managed to say in a feeble voice before collapsing back on to the grass.

Gardevoir sucked in her breath. This Celebi, or… whatever it was, was very young, judging by the sound of its voice. And feminine, at that. Carefully wrapping her slender arms around the tiny Pokemon, she lifted the Celebi up, cradling it in her arms. Her action caused the chain in the Celebi's hand to fall down and hit the ground with a soft metallic clink.

"Hm?" Gardevoir muttered, stooping down to pick it up. The chain was small, it would barely be able to fit around her wrist. As she inspected it closer, she saw a small medallion attached to it. The medallion had quite an unusual shape, it was blue, twisted and jagged, with a strange hole in one end .

"Well, now… isn't this something," Gardevoir said quietly, smiling. "This Pokemon… what did she say? Wraith?" The Celebi stirred in her arms, moaning slightly.

"Don't worry, Wraith. I'll look after you as if you were my own. You will get better… I promise."

"Ow! Mom, that hurts!"

"Just sit still, please! It's hard enough to apply this disinfectant as it is, so please, stop your squirming!"

Wraith shot a dirty look at Gardevoir, but she stopped complaining all the same. With the Celebi's shoulder cleaned, Gardevoir proceeded to wrap it with several stiff leaves. She went to grab a strand of rope to tie it with, but nothing was there.

"Hmm, this is a problem…" Gardevoir mumbled to herself. "Stay here, Wraith, I'll go get something we can use to tie this up with. Don't go anywhere."

Wraith grinned. "Sure, no problem!" she said happily as she flopped down on her small leafy bed next to Gardevoir's larger one. Gardevoir smiled and walked out of their hollow tree home, leaving Wraith on her bed.

The sun had set a few minutes ago, and the stars were just starting to come out. A cool evening breeze blew through the clearing, which felt good on Gardevoir's face. Gardevoir walked over to her berry trees, looking for a vine she could use to bind Wraith's wound.

Then, all of a sudden, she froze.

The same whirring noise she heard the day she found Wraith was back, and it was getting louder by the second. Gardevoir's knowledge of the humans who normally flew those giant metal monsters had gotten better over the years- and she knew now that they were evil beings who attacked and captured Pokemon for their own twisted needs.

I must protect Wraith, Gardevoir thought, her instincts speaking for her. I must let her live! She is… my whole being, now!

"Wraith!" Gardevoir called, dashing back into her tree just as a metal monster burst over the treetops, a spotlight aimed directly at her. "Wraith, come here, now!"

"Mommy! What's wrong?!" Wraith asked, sensing the worry in Gardevoir's voice.

"Wraith!" Gardevoir said as calmly as she could, "When I tell you to, you must fly- alright?" She took the little Celebi's head in between her hands and looked her hard in the eyes. "Wait until I leave, then fly!"

"But-mo-"

"Promise me, Wraith!"

"What's going on?" Wraith cried. "Wh-why are you being like this?"

"Promise!" Wraith's eyes began to fill with tears. Gardevoir had never ever been like this before, and she knew she was being hard on Wraith, but she just wanted what was best for her. The Celebi eventually nodded,

"I- I promise mommy!" She sobbed.

"Good. I love you Wraith. No matter what happens, know that I love you." Gardevoir planted a kiss on the Celebi's head and turned around to leave, when she froze, suddenly remembering something. She went back to her bed and reached beneath the leaves, pulling out the chained medallion that was in Wraith's possession when she found her.

"Wraith, when I first met you, I found this along with you," Gardevoir said, speaking as the roar from the humans' monsters was growing still louder. "Keep it, please," she said as she placed the chain in Wraith's small hand. Crystal-clear tears were streaming down Wraith's face at that point as she grasped the chain tightly in her hand. Even though Wraith was too young to remember the day she was found, or anything before that point for that matter, she still took the medallion and fastened it tightly around her right ankle.

Gardevoir smiled. "Good. Now, when I leave, wait for a few second, then fly as fast as you can. Good luck, and remember, I will always be with you."

Steeling her courage, Gardevoir stood up and strode out of the hollow tree. The metal monster had landed at the opposite side of the clearing, and humans in strange uniforms were climbing out of it, shouting at each other. Taking a deep breath, Gardevoir spread her thin arms as an attempt to shield their home from view.

Out of the corner of her eye, Gardevoir saw a black blur fly out of the tree, heading for the deep forest. She sighed. These humans wouldn't catch her daughter. They couldn't, she was too fast. But still... it wouldn't hurt to help.

Summoning her psychic powers, Gardevoir concentrated her energy towards the humans' feet. All of a sudden, they stopped running, looking confused. She smiled. Her Imprison powers rendered any being- human or Pokemon- incapable of using their legs.

"Mommy!" A sudden cry from behind Gardevoir made her jump. Turning her head, she saw the Celebi hovering just near the forest's edge, looking back with tearful eyes.

"Don't worry about me, Wraith! Fly! Fly now!" Gardevoir screamed. "Do it! You have to live!"

Sobbing, Wraith sped off, her green wings propelling her as fast as she could fly. She was never one for listening, but… at least she did what she was told.

Gardevoir could see one of the humans holding a spherical object, and with a pang, she realized what it was.

Wraith… is safe.

She is going to be okay.

…That is all that matters.

Her field of vision was then consumed by a flash of light, then darkness.

That was the day I lost my mother.

My mother… Gardevoir… she risked her life for me.

If she is still alive or not, I do not know… but one thing is certain.

My mother was taken… taken by humans.

These humans… these… savage creatures…

They are not to be trusted.

Not now…

…not ever.