Golden Rivals, Silver Friends
Chapter Fourteen:
Goodbye Again
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"Red cheeks, a yellow shirt
"The zigzag marks of my best friend
"We scribbled on a white page
"We sang the brand-new songs
"I'll never forget the episodes with you
"Two arms full of 'thank you's"
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I sat back and looked over the paper. To me, it sounded pretty bad, but that was really the best I could do...
Leaning back, I sighed. There was no way I'd ever be able to say this stuff out loud to him, and even if I did, he'd probably just stare at me with that blank expression again. This way, I could just give it to him, and let him start to understand it himself, in the way that seemed so different from everyone else's...
The sky was becoming dark as I looked out the window. I should have fallen asleep a long time ago, seeing as how I'd really only gotten about five hours of sleep the night before, but I didn't care.
From my room, I could see the field grass waving in the breeze. I smiled...
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"Look at the twilight sky, dyed with sunset
"Sparkling, warm stars are laughing
"The new winds are calling
"I want to walk with you
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After returning home from Jouto, Grandpa had talked to me in his lab. He told me about how some people down south, on Saida Island, were going to try cloning extinct Pokémon from fossils. The whole idea sounded a little farfetched to me, but if Grandpa was going along with it...
No matter what the idea was, Grandpa said that it would be a good experience for me. I was planning to go into studying Pokémon evolution, and Grandpa said that this whole cloning business would be a good time to study Pokémon DNA. Unfortunately, I'd have to leave very soon to catch the boat. I agreed to go along with the idea, and I immediately started packing what I knew I'd need...
However, even though I knew this was the chance of a lifetime, I still felt kind of bad. Satoshi and I had just made up. Why did I have to leave now?
I glanced back down at my letter. Maybe... maybe I would leave it at his house, just before I left... or I could carry it with me, in case I happened to run into him...
But I knew what I really wanted. I wanted to try and go back to how things had been before, even though I knew that was impossible. That day had changed our futures permanently, and nothing I did could take us back to that...
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"Barefooted in seas of grass
"We played, danced, and even tripped
"Arranging the shining badges together
"We slept with connected hearts
"I'll never forget the episodes with you
"Those countless treasures
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I briefly thought about what my life would be like if I hadn't broken our friendship. Would we still be the same?
... no. That much was certain. If we had stayed friends this whole time, Satoshi and I would have been traveling together, certainly, and he'd never have become friends with Kasumi and Takeshi, and his training style would certainly be different...
He'd have stayed a shadow of me.
The world wouldn't know Satoshi. They'd only know him as "Shigeru's friend," just like how things used to be...
I'd known that he deserved better.
And letting him go was the only way to do it.
In the same way that Satoshi had released his Pidgeot so that it could follow its calling, I had released Satoshi. I'd known that there was something beyond what I could provide for him, something that only he could see.
I'd known that he was special...
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"Let's fly up somewhere
"Passing the shining stars
"When the brand-new morning opens its eyes
"Let's go off to that place
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The next morning, I woke up early. Leaving the note on the table and planning to come back to it later, I went down to ask Grandpa the details about my trip. Grandpa explained that I'd have to catch a boat from the port in Ikuchiba, and with that handed me the boat pass.
Grandpa smiled at me. "You'll probably be able to catch a bus in Tokiwa to get there." I nodded. "Do your best, Shigeru."
Then, I was hit with an idea. I set my backpack down and opened it up. Grandpa watched me, a little confused, until I explained.
"I think I'm just going to take Blastoise with me this time..." I was starting over again, with the Pokémon that I had begun with. I think Grandpa understood, because he simply nodded and accepted my other five Pokémon.
"Maybe I'll call you and ask for some of the others when I get there..." I said. "But... I think keeping it simple for now is best..."
Grandpa smiled. "Whatever you say. If you need help, don't forget to call."
I walked back home and went into my room, wanting to pick up the letter and drop it off at Satoshi's house. But when I glanced at the table, I saw that it was gone...! I searched over my room for a bit, but I couldn't find the darn thing.
Sighing, I knew I had to get to Tokiwa soon. Maybe on the bus ride I could write another letter, maybe a better one, too.
After saying goodbye to Nanami and Grandpa, I found myself walking up the hill toward Route 1. But suddenly, I heard someone running after me, calling my name...
"Shigeru! Shigeru...!"
... and I didn't have to look to know who it was.
"Satoshi?" I called, turning around. Sure enough, there he was, breathlessly running after me. For a brief instant, I was reminded of that day, so long ago... in fact, he even had something clenched in his hand again.
In a matter of seconds, he had caught up to me, leaning forward to catch his breath. He looked up at me and smiled, but there was something peculiar about his expression... His eyes suddenly lit up, and he unclenched his fist, pulling apart whatever he was holding. I suddenly realized what it was...
"Shigeru... here," he whispered, still a little out of breath, handing me half of... the Poké Ball. Our Poké Ball. And he was giving me the half that he'd carried around for the past four years...
"Satoshi, I don't..." I started. But he stopped me.
"I want you to have it," he said, smiling. "And...
"I'm glad things turned out the way they did, too..."
Immediately, I was floored. 'What? He didn't... he couldn't have...' I suddenly had an idea of where my letter had gotten to...
"Satoshi, listen," I said, swallowing. "I... I would've told you all that before, but..." How could I say what I wanted to? That I thought he wasn't ready? But now...
"But what?" he asked, looking up at me. And I realized that he was ready. All this time, I had still been treating him like that same little kid... I suppose, old habits die hard...
I shook my head. "Nothing. It's nothing." But Satoshi tilted his head and folded his arms, knowing better. However, he didn't push it...
For a few seconds, the two of us stood there in silence, not really sure what to say to each other, after all of these years. Finally, I spoke up.
"Satoshi... you read the letter. And, I guess you know what I did... and why I did it..." I smiled apologetically. "I'm really sorry, Satoshi. I... never would have thought that it would hurt like that..."
Satoshi responded, "It's not so much what you did... that day, I mean. It was more what happened afterwards..." He swallowed. "It was like... you didn't remember how we'd been friends at all. Like you were trying to make me forget everything...
"... and I did, sort of."
Letting out a long sigh, I had to look away from him. "I know. And so did I. I didn't want to remember anything... especially what I had lost," I added. "Satoshi... I'm so sorry... I never wanted you to get hurt. I just wanted you to be able to get out of my shadow..."
"But on the bright side," Satoshi pointed out, "... things turned out the way they did. And we're... okay now, right?"
"Yeah... yeah," I nodded. "We are."
"So... friends?" Satoshi asked, holding out his hand in a friendly handshake. And how else could I respond?
"Forever," I conceded, taking hold of his hand.
As he let go, Satoshi smiled at me again, the same smile that I had come to love so much, the smile that I had missed for so long. "Thanks, Shigeru. Maybe we'll meet up again sometime," he said, starting to walk away. "Goodbye!" he called out before he started running.
I watched him run. And this time, it wasn't to escape a day of hurt.
For an instant, I wanted to follow him. I wanted to go back home with him, to be with him again, to be friends, to follow him on his Pokémon journey, to forget about everything and go back to the way things had been, the way they would have been if I hadn't...
... but no. I had my journey, he had his. And it was just as he had said... maybe we'd meet up again someday.
I smiled as I watched his retreating figure. "We'll meet again...
"... I'll make sure of it.
"... goodbye, Satoshi..."
With that, I walked off toward my next destination.
A new chapter in my life was about to start.
And this time, it had a happy beginning.
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"Look at the twilight sky, dyed with sunset
"Sparkling, warm stars are laughing
"The new winds are calling
"I want to walk with you
"On the road that continues forever...
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Satoshi...
When I reached Ikuchiba, I called Grandpa... and found out that you had gone off to Houen, taking only Pikachu with you. I raised an eyebrow, a little irked at your obvious copying... before I decided to let it go. I guess old habits do die hard, good or bad...
I knew that this adventure was going to be much different than my other ones. For one, I was following a dream that I knew was truly mine.
Second, I had your friendship with me. And that was genuinely what mattered.
Even though I'm now out over the ocean, miles away from you, it feels like I'm closer to you than I have been in ages.
I'm glad that you understand what I had to do now. Actually, I'm glad that I can remember, too. Maybe sometimes, we do have to suffer a little bit to make our lives better. Just think... if I hadn't done that, if I hadn't yelled at you and stopped protecting you... Where would we both be now?
It's like what Hazuki said. Even though we're going our separate ways, we'll always be rivals. I think we always were, even though we didn't realize it, the same way that we've always been friends. But being rivals, we've both forced each other to keep growing...
Someday, you'll come back from Houen, and I'll come back from... wherever I'm going.
And when I get back, I'd like to have a Pokémon battle with you. After all, we're still rivals, right?
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I'm sorry that I had to leave so soon after finding you again. But just remember...
... I'm your friend.
I'll always be there for you.
I'm glad things turned out the way they did... because I got to know the real you.
I remember that little boy, who followed me everywhere like a second shadow, who copied everything I did and couldn't remember a single battle strategy. Now, I can think of you, and visualize that little boy grown up, whose heart and soul shine like the sun, who doesn't have to listen to anyone but himself...
... the Satoshi who, I know, will one day become a Pokémon Master.
The best there ever has been.
And no one will ever forget it.
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Fin