Pokemon: Raised by Legends, Chapter 49-50

Chapter 49 - Love Is the Constant Feeling of Owing More

Time slipped by, the days flowing like water.

Fuyuki and Entei lived a leisurely, carefree life on Mount Tensei.

Sometimes they would run through the mountain forests together. Sometimes they would climb to the peak of Mount Tensei and watch the sunrise and sunset. Sometimes they would share their leftover berries with the Pokemon living in the forest.

Under Entei's deeply loving, fatherly gaze, Fuyuki ran freely across this land.

As he ran, the scenery around him slowly changed.

The tender buds that had sprouted in early spring gradually deepened in color. The sunlight grew stronger, temperatures climbed, and the sweltering heat combined with the cicadas chirping from the forest seemed to announce the arrival of summer.

He ran through spring, through summer, through autumn, through winter.

As the sun and moon turned and the seasons cycled, Fuyuki's small body continued to grow taller.

Yellowed leaves spiraled down through the autumn breeze. Fuyuki ran to Entei's side and threw himself into its thick fur.

This year, Fuyuki turned six.

The Little One who once couldn't even walk had now grown into a healthy, sturdy boy, like a little cannonball of energy.

"Entei, I shared all the berries with everyone in the forest!"

A happy smile spread across Fuyuki's face.

Over the years of living on Mount Tensei, every wild Pokemon in the area knew him. Fuyuki's favorite thing to do was share the berries he couldn't finish eating with these Pokemon and watch them light up with joy.

"Mm." Entei nodded, glancing up at the sky before speaking through telepathy: "It's getting dark. Let's head home."

"Okay!"

Fuyuki trotted along behind Entei, chattering away about everything that had happened in the forest today.

"Electivire and Magmar got into another fight over berries, but luckily I got there just in time and shared mine with them!"

"Cubone accidentally lost its bone club today. I thought it dropped it in some bushes somewhere, but it turned out Arcanine had snatched it away. If we'd been a step later, that bone would've been chewed to pieces!"

"Oh, and also, I ran into Nidoking and Nidoqueen today. They looked really panicked. I didn't know what was going on at first, but when I asked, it turned out their kid Nidoran had run off and gotten lost."

Entei walked along, listening to Fuyuki's stories.

"Did you find Nidoran?"

Fuyuki beamed with pride: "Of course! That little troublemaker chased a Butterfree and accidentally fell off a cliff, got wedged between some rocks and couldn't get out!"

As he spoke, Fuyuki pulled a beautiful gem shard glowing with red light from his pocket.

"This Star Piece is the gift Nidoking and Nidoqueen gave me for saving Nidoran!"

By the time he finished talking, the father and son had already made it home.

Fuyuki skillfully conjured three portions of food and set them on the table.

Seeing this, Entei couldn't help but feel a pang of guilt.

It was the one who had adopted Little One, who had become Little One's father. Yet in the end, it had always been Little One finding ways to prepare food for them.

Whenever it thought about this, Entei felt deeply indebted.

Fuyuki hadn't noticed what was going through Entei's mind. He looked at his own shadow and called out:

"Marshadow, come out and eat!"

As his voice fell, Marshadow's ghostly figure emerged from the shadow.

Seeing Marshadow, Fuyuki excitedly rushed over and wrapped it in a hug, rubbing his face against its.

"Marshadow, I'm taller than you now!"

Marshadow wore a helpless expression: "Mar-sha..."

But it didn't push the human child away, simply letting him cling on.

After all, it had watched Fuyuki grow up with its own eyes.

"Alright, come eat." Entei sat by the table, watching Fuyuki and Marshadow interact before speaking in its deep voice.

"Mm!"

Fuyuki pulled out a chair and sat down, then began enjoying the meal before him.

"Once I'm a little older, I'll be able to cook on my own. Marshadow, Entei, I'll cook for you guys then!" Fuyuki declared.

"I'll look forward to that," Entei replied, a hint of warmth beneath its majestic tone.

"Mar-sha~"

"But speaking of which, when are Ho-Oh, Raikou, and Suicune coming back?"

Fuyuki carefully calculated the time. It had been several months since he'd last seen them, and he missed them quite a bit.

"When the snow falls, Ho-Oh should be back," Entei answered.

After all, this was an unspoken understanding the group had developed over the years.

When winter came, no matter where they were, they would return to Mount Tensei to spend the season with Little One.

"Alright then." Fuyuki sighed helplessly. Busy, everyone was busy. Busy was good, he supposed!

Still, thanks to Ho-Oh, over these four years he'd managed to raise Marshadow, Entei, and Ho-Oh all to Lv100.

Only Raikou and Suicune remained. Once they were done, Ho-Oh's entire family would be maxed out.

At this rate, before he turned ten, he could achieve the "all three Legendary Beasts at max level" milestone!

It was just that Ho-Oh was so busy, only coming back two or three times a year. Otherwise, Raikou and Suicune would already be maxed out too.

After finishing breakfast, Fuyuki pulled Entei and Marshadow along to the bathroom, where they soaked comfortably in the large bathtub.

Through the steam and mist, a crack of thunder rumbled from outside.

Then, a torrential downpour came crashing down.

"It's raining!" Fuyuki immediately noticed the change in weather outside.

"Mm." Entei nodded.

Fuyuki quickly finished his bath, had Entei use its warm breath to dry his body and hair, then scampered upstairs, pressing himself against the window to gaze out at Mount Tensei in the rainy night.

"What a heavy rain!" Fuyuki murmured.

But this kind of weather was perfect for curling up in warm blankets with Entei and sleeping!

Fuyuki lay down on the soft blanket. Entei carried over a quilt in its mouth and draped it over him, then settled down beside him.

Listening to the sound of rain outside, with Marshadow and Entei by his side, Fuyuki quickly fell into a deep sleep.

The night passed in silence.

The next morning, Fuyuki was jolted awake by urgent knocking at the door.

He opened his eyes and saw that dawn had broken, but the rain still hadn't stopped.

"I'll get the door!"

Over the years, Fuyuki had long grown accustomed to Pokemon visitors. He quickly got dressed and ran downstairs to open the door.

Sure enough, just as he'd expected, the visitor was Cubone, who lived with its mother in the mountain forest.

Cubone's face was full of panic. It looked at Fuyuki, on the verge of tears.

"Cu-bone!"

"What?" Fuyuki was startled. "Your mom is missing?"

Cubone nodded. When it woke up this morning, its mother was gone. No matter how much it called out, she never came back.

Fuyuki immediately grasped the severity of the situation.

That Marowak mother loved her child Cubone dearly. There was no way she would just disappear without reason.

"Don't worry, Cubone." He turned to look at Entei. "Entei, I want to go check!"

Entei glanced outside, then spoke in a low voice: "I'll go with you."

Chapter 50 - Mother

Fuyuki nodded, then climbed onto Entei and headed toward Cubone and its mother's dwelling together.

The mother and child had been living in a small cave. When Fuyuki arrived, there was indeed no sign of Marowak. Instead, he found a pile of berries inside the cave.

"Cubone, what are these?" Fuyuki blinked, then asked.

"Cu-bone!" Cubone explained that its mother had brought all of these back from outside not long ago.

"So it seems like Marowak left during the night," Fuyuki murmured thoughtfully.

"Did your mom say anything to you?" Fuyuki asked.

Tears glistened in Cubone's eyes as it shook its head: "Cu..."

"Don't worry. Maybe your mom just got stuck somewhere. Let's search the forest for her first!" Fuyuki comforted it.

"Cu..." Cubone wiped the tears from its eyes. Though worried and heartbroken, there was nothing else it could do. It could only place its hope in Fuyuki.

Without another word, Fuyuki rode Entei with Cubone in tow and began scouring the forest.

Along the way, they encountered many Pokemon.

The Nidoking family, Electivire and Magmar, Rhyhorn, Butterfree, Magneton, Oddish, Bellsprout...

They all looked over the moment they saw Fuyuki.

Fuyuki rallied as many of them as he could to help with the search.

Most of the forest Pokemon had received his help at some point. Hearing the situation, they all eagerly pitched in.

The Nidoking family searched through the forest while calling out Marowak's name.

Butterfree flew into the air, using its compound eyes to scan the forest.

Even Electivire and Magmar, the perpetual rivals who were always fighting, began working together.

Yet despite all their searching, they came up empty.

Marowak had seemingly vanished into thin air.

"Could she have been caught by a human trainer?" Fuyuki couldn't help but frown.

That would be a real problem. While Marowak might refuse capture because of Cubone, human trainers typically knocked Pokemon unconscious first, capturing them while they couldn't resist.

"Cu..."

Cubone was on the verge of tears.

Just then, they arrived at Arcanine's territory.

Seeing so many Pokemon gathered together, Arcanine trotted over curiously to see what was happening.

"Woof?"

The sight of Arcanine sparked an idea in Fuyuki's mind.

Everyone knew that Arcanine had a famously keen sense of smell.

That was precisely why they served as police dogs in the human world, working alongside humans.

With that thought, Fuyuki immediately said: "Arcanine, Cubone's mom is missing. Can you use your nose to help find her?"

This Arcanine had a heart of justice. Hearing this, it didn't hesitate for a second before nodding in agreement.

"Woof!"

It first ran up to Cubone, picking up Marowak's scent from its body, then began twitching its nose, carefully searching through the air.

The gathered Pokemon held their breath, waiting for Arcanine's results.

"Woof!"

After a moment, Arcanine suddenly barked. Its gaze locked onto a direction, and it took the lead.

Seeing this, Cubone's eyes lit up.

Fuyuki and Entei hurried after it.

They passed through the forest and entered a stretch of rolling mountains. Following a mountain path, they continued forward, and after passing through a narrow cave, they emerged into a secluded valley.

The mother Cubone had been desperately searching for now lay in the center, eyes shut tight, resting among a pile of bones.

The glow had already faded from her body. The bone she had always gripped tightly lay on the ground beside her, her hands hanging limp and lifeless.

Even as young and naive as Cubone was, it understood what had happened.

Its face twisted with grief as it rushed forward, clutching its mother's remains, and burst into anguished, wailing cries.

"Cu-bone!"

Taking in the scene around him, Fuyuki understood immediately.

Legend had it that somewhere in the world, there existed a burial ground belonging solely to the Marowak.

Every Marowak, before its life reached its end, would travel there alone to quietly await death.

But this Marowak simply couldn't let go of her child. Before leaving, she had used every last bit of her strength to gather a pile of berries and bring them back to the cave.

It was the last thing she could leave for her child.

And this place... was the legendary burial ground of the Marowak.

Every Marowak, as its life neared its end, would come here alone.

Cubone's sorrowful cries echoed through the valley. Not a single Pokemon watching could hold back the ache in their chest.

Fuyuki opened his mouth, wanting to say something, but not knowing how.

Then suddenly, he thought of the Rainbow Feather Ho-Oh had once given him.

It contained Ho-Oh's power. If he used Sacred Fire to burn it into Sacred Ash and applied it to Marowak, perhaps she could open her eyes again!

But when Fuyuki relayed this idea to Entei, it solemnly shook its head.

"It won't work. Ho-Oh's power can only revive the fallen. Marowak's soul has already left her body. Her life has reached its end. Even Sacred Ash would have no effect."

"But..." Fuyuki understood the reasoning, but looking at the scene before him, it hurt so much.

"Cubone." Fuyuki walked over and gently patted Cubone's back. He wanted to comfort it but simply didn't know what to say.

In a situation like this, words were probably useless anyway.

Maybe what Cubone needed was someone to hold it.

He wrapped his arms around Cubone and silently patted its back.

Cubone cried for a long, long time, until it finally passed out from sheer grief.

The rain was still falling.

Fuyuki could no longer tell whether the wetness on Cubone's face was tears or rain.

He lifted Cubone up, then turned to the gathered Pokemon. "Thank you all for today. You should head back first."

The Pokemon gradually dispersed.

Fuyuki carried Cubone back to their Secret Base.

In its unconscious state, Cubone let out sorrowful murmurs in its sleep. Even while passed out, it still hiccupped with quiet sobs from time to time.

Fuyuki was infected by this grief, or perhaps it stirred something within him. His chest felt tight, and he leaned his whole body against Entei.

"Entei, what should we do?" Fuyuki couldn't help but ask. What he really wanted to know was what would happen to this Cubone now that Marowak was gone.

"Mm..." Entei let out a slow sigh before answering: "This is something it can only work through on its own."