This is a blog we created to entertain all of you Gladion lovers, and quickly expanded to include anyone you could ask for! Feel free to submit requests and an attempt will be made to complete as many as possible!
Well! Happy new year and happy birthday to this little corner of tumblr! To celebrate I’m going to try to write a little something but I can’t promise anything. I’m a bit busy irl due to typical holiday events (and playing Pokémon Shield and Witcher 3). Still, considering my track record, the fact that this even lasted three years is a miracle! Even though it has definitely been kind of abandoned for a year or so, being able to find my old fanfiction is pretty rare, considering I have a habit of deleting it all.
I hope you’re all having a wonderful day and that this next year- no, this next decade- is going to be great for you.
It’s been ages since we’ve posted anything here, huh? Well, I can’t say it’s going to be super active again any time soon, but I’m back, and, well, a lot has changed. So here’s what to expect.
Yulta probably won’t be back. Both of us have mostly moved on from Pokémon anyway, her especially. But with sword and shield out now, and me having found my old copy of soulsilver, my excitement has been somewhat rekindled, and I still have a few old drafts and new ideas for this.
So, I’m back. Don’t expect anything regular, especially not right now (Fire Emblem has all of my attention at the moment, but Pokémon is creeping back in there). I have now migrated mostly to Archive of our Own as well, so if you would like to see the majority of my writing, it will be there under the name FuryBeam136. I don’t plan on writing any more x reader fics, but if it’s what you all want I’m still willing to try.
I do still intend to do requests, and if you just want to chat, go right ahead! The ask box is always open. Some of the past requests we’ve recieved might get done, or they might not. Do remember that your requests are just that: requests. I am not obligated to force myself to write something for you. However, I promise I’ll do my best. It’s the least I can do.
Thank you to everyone who followed us in the past, and everyone who stayed, even if you’re planning on leaving now. I’m glad that I could be a part of your lives, even if it was only slightly. And I’ll be even more glad if you’ll let me continue to create for you. My style has changed somewhat (and I’d like to think it has improved) but I hope it’s still enjoyable to read.
Warnings: Mentions of rape, hard topics, no self-worth, abuse, illegal activity, language, etc. Trigger warning.
Author: Yulta~
She was supposed to be beautiful.
At least, that’s what they told her while they were hurting her. While they defiled her fragile body in every way they could think of without a moment of remorse for how it could affect her in the future. Or even how it would affect her in that moment.
But they told her she was beautiful, so it didn’t matter, right?
It didn’t matter if they hurt her so long as they made up for it in words. Then they could feel better about themselves, since really, they didn’t give a shit about her. Their conscience was the only thing that mattered, so they made her feel pretty so they could feel like good people, despite what they were doing to her.
Despite that they were breaking a young little girl because they were too lonely to be loved by someone else.
Now today, she walked around, unsure why nobody would love her.
Feelings weren’t supposed to matter, only looks. Had they lied? Was she beautiful at all? Why wasn’t she worthy of the love from her peers that would make her normal?
Perhaps that’s why she went back to her old ways to be loved. She didn’t know what was wrong with her in the real world, so she went back to hurting in her fake, perfect little world of being loved. She went back to the adults who told her moaning to them was the same as telling them ‘I love you’. The same adults who thought her youth was a turn-on, who thought her innocence was theirs to take and hold and that’s what made her lovable.
She began to believe this too. She thought beauty was everything in a world of darkness, where pain equals pleasure and sex equals love. Sure, it didn’t feel good and it burned her to be so dry but her lovers seemed to like it so who was she to not comply?
It made her feel wanted when so many came to find her, recommended from the others who told her they loved her.
Who was she to feel unloved while she was so wanted?
This is what her mother told her the first time the old men got hard. She was beautiful, wonderful, amazing, lovely, perfect to the human man’s eye.
Yet in the real world, nobody wanted her. She did her advances, flashed her chest, told them how tight and small and innocent she was.
The boys all ran, called her a freak of nature. The girls called her whore and slut when all she did is what she was told.
What kind of world was it when she was only accepted by some?
What was right and wrong in the dangerous game of love?
Who lied and called her beautiful when clearly she wasn’t enough for anyone her own age, anyone she ached for down below. Who told her she would be enough when she wasn’t even wanted by anyone but those double her age?
Perhaps Lillie would never discover who the true liars were in a twisted game of cat and mouse.
Prompt: Reader-chan, a researcher, runs into an illegal experiment.
Warnings: The usual. And an open-ending.
Author: Yulta~
Your eyes squinted as your gaze focused on the microscope in front of you. The particles before you didn't make sense, the blood sample wasn't of human or Pokémon nature.
"What the hell?" You mumbled as you moved back to your desk, quickly scribbling down a few jot notes on your laptop.
Shaking your head, you went back to the notes your boss had given you, reviewing where it was from. But there were no answers to find on the paper that seemingly became more and more false.
"This can't be right!" You growled, slamming your pen down on your desk. Frustrated, you carefully pulled the sample out and returned it to its place in the frozen storage.
You sighed when you checked the time, realizing you had been off three hours ago at nine. You hated walking home at midnight, but you knew your husband would be frustrated if you slept at the lab yet again.
~ < ~ > ~
You turned the key in your lock, jingling it to force open the stubborn thing. You pushed it open as it squeaked quietly, then shut it and locked it behind you. You tossed your keys into the glass bowl on the porch table and removed your dark brown combat boots.
You moved to the living room, glancing around to see if your husband was still awake.
"Really (Y/n)?" A deep voice said from behind you.
You whirled around with a jolt, relaxing when you saw the blond standing there, his arms crossed over his chest. "Hey Gladion," you replied with a soft voice, moving in to kiss him.
He put his hand up and stopped you midstep. "How much longer are you going to do this? Hm? How much longer will I be worried to death whether you're - whether you're coming home in a body bag?"
"No, Gladion, you know I would never put myself in danger!" You answered, confused. He had never brought anything like this up before, on the average day he was your biggest career supporter.
He shook his head, his eyes clouded with faint traces of tears. "Then why is there a gang that came here looking for you? Why are they saying they're going to kill you for stealing from them?"
You froze. "What?"
"Yeah. (Y/n)-(Y/n), you need to drop this project." He took a step toward you. "I know you're looking into Ultra Beast blood."
The realization hit you. Your boss was getting you to do illegal research. It explained all the gaps in the paperwork, the secrecy behind the entire thing. "But I have to figure this out now!"
"No. You either leave here and finish it or drop the project."
"What?" This couldn't be happening, he wouldn't do this to you.
"Drop the project." Gladion growled. "Or drop me. You don't get both."
What was more important to you? The love of your life, or your most loved thing in this universe?
Prompt: Reader-chan and Gladion going through a bit of a rough day.
Warnings: Guys this is really dark and possibly triggering, family struggles and severe depression.
Author: Yulta~
You sat in the corner of the room, in the chair closest to the warmth of the electrical fireplace. The fake heat radiating against the half of your body that faced it, turning your cheeks a light pink from the exposure.
"(Y/n), why don't you ever bring your boyfriend here?" Your brother teased, his cruel words ringing through your already fragile ears.
You curled in on yourself, bringing your knees into your chest and hugging them with a tight grip. He said that full well knowing you had been dumped the night before. You ignored him, only to be scolded by your mother for being rude and not answering.
As per usual, she threatened to take away your cell phone if you weren't less rude to the people around you. It was your fault, not your brothers, for being an asshole.
"(Y/n)?" Gladion's soft voice spoke into your ear with such gentleness he must have thought the word could break you.
Sometimes, you think it could.
Remembering that you were supposed to answer, you mumbled the standard response.
"Baby please tell me what's wrong," he pleaded, trying to pry your arms from around your knees. You let him, letting yourself fall forward off the couch and into his waiting arms. He held you in the hug, barely squeezing you, only enough to remind you he was there.
You tried to find your voice, tried to voice the thoughts that ran through your head.
"You need to eat." Your mother said, glaring down at your boney body. But you knew the second you did, the entire house would erupt into choruses of 'fatty' and 'pig'. One hundred and ten pounds was too heavy for a girl of your height.
You swallowed, your mouth suddenly dry. "Why can't I make the memories go away?" You croaked, the sound of your own voice sounding foreign to you.
Gladion kissed your lips, his tongue transferring some of the liquid from his mouth to yours. "It doesn't matter. Just think about the fact that I love you."
It was a bad day. On the good ones, you could block it out. Block the pain and emptiness from your bleeding head, replaced with happiness and the love you shared with the man that kneeled before you.
"You will never be loved! Who would ever love someone so rude and saucy? Who would love such a crybaby?"
"Beautiful. Focus on the words I'm saying." He really cared. You didn't know why, you weren't worth it. You weren't worth the attention your amazing and wonderful boyfriend gave you.
You tried to apologize, but the words wouldn't come out. You couldn't voice your thoughts and it was the most incredibly frustrating thing, and all you wanted was the scream and tear away the memories, tear away all the damage and hurt that had imprinted itself on you-
Gladion's hands scraped along your cheek, moving the wetness that had come from your eyes. "(Y/n)," he pleaded.
It wasn't normally this bad. It wasn't normally so bad that you were trapped in your own mind, trapped with the thoughts that ate you alive and reminded you of being trapped in that toxic hell hole of a family.
"I love you," said.
"I love you too." You barely managed the feeble words, but it was enough. As long as Gladion was here, you were safe. You were in love, and the possibility of being happy was open, for the first time.
"Babe," you whined, poking the man that you were lying on top of in the chest. You didn't get an answer, so you poked again.
With a groan, your boyfriend answered, "what do you want (Y/n)? It's midnight, I'm trying to sleep!"
"I wanna decorate the tree!" You huffed, a pout on your face as you moved your head so you could look into Hau's closed eyes.
"No."
"Why not?" You pressed, sitting up to straddle him. His eyes opened as you did this, a single eyebrow raised.
"Again. It's midnight," he said.
You rolled your (e/c) eyes. "And? I'm really in the mood to decorate!"
"(Y/n)." Hau sat up to reach your face, pushing you farther down his lap. "When was the last time you slept?"
You paused. "Um..."
"Exactly." He kissed you, his warm lips nice against your cool tongue. "Now lie down, and go to sleep."
You shook your head.
Hau sighed. "Baby. You know I'm right." He put his hand on your face and gave you a soft look.
But you refused to budge. "Christmas decorating. I'm not giving up! I want to now."
Finally, he gave a groan of defeat. "Fine, fine." He dragged himself out of bed, carrying you with him. "I'll go get the ornaments."
~ < ~ > ~
You were sitting on the sofa with a cup of cocoa in your hands, the small sips you were taking slowly warming your body. Hau was dragging a box of decorations across the floor, bringing them to rest next to the empty tree you had put up a few hours ago.
You laid the mug on the coffee table and surged to your feet, your face unable to contain your excitement.
"You're lucky you're cute," Hau joked as he saw your happy expression. "Now come on, this isn't going to do itself."
You agreed. You approached the box and ripped the tape open, the loud sound echoing throughout the house.
Hau noticed and quickly turned on the record player, which had a mix of your favourite Christmas songs on it. It canceled out the ugly silence that you hated so much and set the mood for your adventure.
You reached into the now open box and pulled out the first ornament you saw, a red and green and white sparkling ball. You skipped back to the three and placed it around the middle.
Hau's arms snaked around your waist as you took a step back, ready to continue your adventure. "You're so (beautiful/handsome), (Y/n)." He kissed your neck as you leaned into him, happy you had finally arrived in your place of bliss.
Okie guys so 2018's theme for all Christmas posts is "The Art of *insert activity*. I'm gonna try to write as many oneshots as I can for as many characters as I can so that everyone has something they're interested in. No promises though. I believe Lotus will be participating in this too.
If there's anyone out there who doesn't celebrate Christmas but does celebrate a different holiday, send in what you want and who you want it for and I'll research it to the best of my ability and do a little something for you.
We love you all, and have a Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays! <3
Prompt: Reader-chan and Lillie are taking a relaxing day to themselves after a hard few weeks.
Warnings: The usual.
Note: Guys school’s got me so freaking exhausted and dying but you all deserve some Lillie fluff to cope with your own exhaustion so here you go I love you all! <3
Author: Yulta~
You were sitting on the sofa, a small smile on your lips as you observed your beautiful girlfriend lightly approaching from the kitchen, two cups in hand.
“Morning (y/n),” Lillie chirped as she placed one of the mugs in your outstretched palm. You immediately wrapped your cold fingers against the warm surface, glad to finally have your favourite drink in your hand.
You took a sip, taking a moment to bask in the taste. “Have I ever mentioned I love you?” Your (e/c) irises slid closed as you inhaled the smell before taking another sip.
The blonde took her seat in the spot next to you, her thin frame curled into the arm you held out for her. “Not nearly enough after this past little while,” she replied softly, her usual perk gone.
You nodded.
“We don’t spend enough time together. (Y/n), darling, we both came too close to dying. What would I have done if I lost you? There’s still so much left to do, so little time to do it. What if I hadn’t a chance to say goodbye? Or remind you I love you in our last minutes together?” Tears pricked at her eyes as she rambled on, her voice becoming more elevated and jumping around as she went on.
You pressed your lips to hers and drew out the moment as much as possible, your tongues clashing together angrily as you tasted coffee on her morning breath. A trait you had gotten used to and began loving. “We don’t have forever together.”
“That’s what I’m afraid of.”
“Let me finish baby. We don’t have forever together, but we knew that before we were ever in love. Nobody is garunteed forever. Nothing we do will ever change that.” You took another sip, monitering your partener’s facial expression.
It morphed from upset to bittersweet. A small improvement, you supposed. “Can you promise me we’ll be together as much as possible until the end?”
You laughed, “Lillie my dearest lover, are you proposing to me?”
“You wish!” She retorted, finishing off her coffee and discarding the cup onto the table. “I’m saying I love you, and I don’t need a ceremony to prove it.”
You smirked. “That’s the girl I fell in love with.”
Lillie’s eyes grazed your figure before they rose to met yours again. “And that’s the woman I did.”
I NEVER KNEW THAT LILLIE WOULD LEAVE AND I FINISHED THE GAME AND IM HEARTBROKEN I WAS IN LOVE WITH LILLIE MY GAY HEART IS DEAD
OH YOU POOR CHILD I'M SO SORRY THAT IS NOT SOMETHING ANYONE SHOULD EVER GO THROUGH I SHALL WRITE MORE LILLIE FANFIC BECAUSE EVERYONE NEEDS MORE OF HER IN THEIR LIVES❤️🧡💛💚💙💜
Prompt: A tiny preview of my multi chapter project, an AU of my own design ;)
Warnings: So uh, there’s drugs, experimentation, suffering, more suffering, and even more suffering.
Author: Lotus (Back from the dead with more poetic nonsense than ever before)
Another nightmare. He reaches for the bottle of pills in his cabinet, hands trembling, but finds a note instead. Moon’s elegant handwriting simultaneously enrages him and stirs an emotion he no longer has a name for in his chest.
He crumples the note alongside his emotions and throws them away. He doesn’t need her care. She shouldn’t pity him like this.
Null whines and he turns to it, sighs an apology. He feels angry, even though he shouldn’t, and he blames it on withdrawal. He could easily ring Derek up for another bottle of pills, but Moon will only take them away again, leave another gentle note in her cursive letters. Why does she care so much?
He snarls and Null gives a grunt of agreement. Gladion blinks a few times and then sighs again. If he can’t take a pill and drift into dreamless sleep, he’ll have to stay awake.
Images of needles and machines flash behind his eyes and he grips Null tight. His partner doesn’t mind. It’s used to this.
Test after test after test, the pressure when he refused to use the power, the buildup until he exploded.
He can feel it now, and he releases it in thin tendrils of golden smoke that evaporate harmlessly in the air. He wants Moon to come fix him again, to hold him and draw the pressure from his body until he relaxes for the first time in years. He remembers watching her write, reading the words and seeing the images they paint all too clearly. Maybe... maybe he can paint with words too.
He sits down with a pencil and a piece of lined paper and lets himself spill across it, an ugly, dark stain on the pristine sheet.
He stares at the words on the page and weeps until they blur together.
Hanahaki is weird I don't understand what the thing with it is
Ok well i just like to make the characters i love suffer so i write terrible things happening to them.
I also like flowers.
So hanahaki? My shit.
You don't need to enjoy it, no one's forcing you too :)
On another note, sorry we kinda disappeared! I'm currently working on something big for you guys so look forward to that ;)
Other than that, I've been working through some issues lately and haven't had much time or motivation to write oneshots. Most of what I've written here has been me projecting and I'm trying to find a better way to deal with these things.
Finally, tumblr is being a lil bitch but as soon as we work that out I'll finally get around to doing some requests! Yay me! Being productive!
So that's what's been going on recently. Sorry we've been gone so long, hehe.
~Lotus (A thousand shades of gray arcing in a colourless rainbow)
Overview: Isabelle, Hau, and Lillie search for Lillie’s brother and run into a surprise ally along the way. The group makes a discovery as to their situation, information that excites Isabelle and an old friend, but scares the others.
~ < ~ > ~
After Lusamine dropped that bomb, the entire room had burst into angry yells and chatter. At the time she obviously had more to say, but she simply gave up and gestured for the waiters to bring out a feast of breakfast. Isabelle had eaten more than she ever had in one sitting, to a point where she almost made herself sick. It was all so delicious and just available, and she wasn’t thinking of any consequences.
Once she had finished, Hau and Lillie were staring at her, their jaws almost to the floor with shock.
“I didn’t think such a tiny person could eat so much!” Hau burst into laughter, standing and holding out a hand to each girl.
They both took it and he helped them to their feet so they were all standing together.
“Do you mind looking around for Gladion now?” Lillie asked politely, gently reminding her friends what they had said they would help do.
Isabelle liked to have a plan before she set out to do a task, and as usual, she quickly thought of one. “We’ll divide the room into three sections. We can give each other our contact information, and if we find him, we can text the two others.” She had never personally had a phone before, but she knew how they worked and she knew most of the tech-talk from listening to people in the cafe.
“How do we know what he looks like?” Hau wondered.
“He’s blond and emo and had a face very similar to mine. You’ll know him when you see him,” Lillie answered with a giggle.
Isabelle nodded. “Okay, that’s that.” She pulled out her phone and turned it on, looking for a contacts app. Once she found it, she added Lillie and Hau, and they did the same for her. “Alright. Let’s do this.”
They all split off and began searching their instructed areas. About fifteen minutes in, she felt a small tap on her shoulder. She turned around, wondering who the hell would try bothering her. She looked down, and a wide smile spread across her face.
“Lana!” She said, pulling the shorter girl in for a hug. “What are you doing here?”
Lana sheepishly smiled. “Hey Izzy. I got tricked into being told I would be paid,” she replied.
Isabelle and Lana had met on the streets, both homeless. They had helped each other out a couple of times so Lana could support her little sisters. Isabelle wondered if they were here now.
Just as she was about to ask, she felt her phone vibrate in her pocket. Lillie’s name appeared at the top of the screen, and below was her message.
Got him. meet back where we 8
It took her a moment to realize what the text meant, and she rolled her eyes at Lillie’s laziness. Was it so hard to spell out a three letter word?
“I have… acquaintances here that I met just before breakfast. If you don’t have anywhere else to be, you can join our little group,” Isabelle offered, wanting to make sure her friend was alright.
Lana nodded her thanks and smiled. “That would be great. Lead the way.”
The two made their way back to the group where Lillie, Hau, and an older, taller, male version of Lillie waited.
Lillie elbowed him. “Ignore Gladion. He’s cranky. Who are you?”
Lana laughed in response. She was more light-hearted than most people who lived on the street. She balanced out Isabelle perfectly. “I’m Izzy’s best friend. We just met over there, though I didn’t think she’d ever fall for any kind of scam like this.”
Isabelle tried to protest but quickly gave up. She got Gladion and Lana’s contact information before she shoved both of her hands in her pockets, both balled into tight fists.
“So… what do we do now?” Gladion, or at least Isabelle assumed that was his name, asked.
Just as he said that a loudspeaker echoed throughout the hallway. “It’s time for you all to earn your keep!” It was Lusamine’s voice. “You’re all going out into our artificial hunting grounds. You’ll go through it like you would Pokemon Leagues in other regions, though the Island we’ve created is much smaller than that. You’ll be given exactly one Poke Ball each, and from that you must conquer my little game. You are allowed to team up and travel with others, and if you already have a team chosen, I want you to group together so we can send you out at the same time.”
Isabelle was in slight shock. You can’t artificially create an entire region, let alone add Pokemon to it.
“This is the Aether’s simulation for those who can’t really afford to travel. You are our test subjects. If you become the champion…” Lusamine paused. “You can leave before the selected time.”
And with those words, Isabelle was sold. She wasn’t trapped, not if she had an easy way out. If all she had to do was a little kick-ass action, then she was getting herself and her new friends the hell out of here.
She knew escaping would be easy, she’s escaped a thousand situations before.
She just didn’t anticipate that this time she would get to beat her own personal game.
“So, when do we get started?” Isabelle had a devilish smirk on her lips, and it was the first time the others had seen her smile.
Lana rolled her eyes. “This is Izzy’s thing. She loves games. Good news is, both her and I are great at them, so we’ll all be out of here in no time.”
“We’re really going along with Lusamine’s will?” Gladion sounded shocked. Isabelle guessed he was the rebellious type.
“Why not?” Hau asked with a shrug of his shoulders.
Lillie stayed silent, though Isabelle noticed there was something off about her. She was thinking about something important, Isabelle just couldn’t guess what Lillie would know that she did not.
“Perfect,” purred Isabelle. “Then let the games begin.”
You and Gladion gazed up at the sky, your bodies chilly from being against the cool ground. You both were wearing sweaters and jeans, enough to keep you warm for a couple hours. It was quiet, the only sound being the light buzzing of fireflies nearby, This was one of your favourite places, and certainly the most romantic. It was where he had first asked you out.
“Look at that one,” he said softly, pointing his finger at the sky to show where he was looking. You lined your sight up with his to see the pattern the stars created. You smiled as you picked out the heart shape, knowing it wasn’t a real constellation, but still your favourite of the night.
You loved the way everything looked at this hour. It was midnight, a time when everyone else was asleep. It was like you had the entire world to yourselves. You could do anything, be anywhere, and nobody would question you or get in your way. It was just so peaceful.
The thing you could never understand is why other people didn’t feel this way. You weren’t complaining, the fact that nobody else was around was your favourite part of night. But it never made sense to you.
“What’s gonna happen?” Gladion asked, his voice barely audible. He didn’t want to disturb the silence.
You shrugged your shoulders. “I don’t know,” you replied.
“Now that mom’s gone, and Lillie with her, it’ll be my job to run the Foundation,” he began.
“I know. And I also know that took up all of Lusamine’s time.”
“I don’t want to do to you what she did to us.”
You linked your hand in his, trying to hide the single tear that slipped down your cheek.. “We’ll be okay.”
“(Y/n)...” His voice trailed off, unsure of what to say.
“It’s part of what we do. We’ll be okay, no matter what happens. Love is the most powerful thing in this world. We have to believe in it.”
Gladion rolled so he was looking at you, wanting a chance to take in your beautiful features. “No matter what. You have to promise you won’t leave me. (Y./n)... I can’t do this without you. We’ll figure something out, that I can promise. But please. Don’t make me do this alone. I’ve been alone for so long. I don’t want to go back to that.”
His thoughts were all over the place, but you loved that about him. That he could just talk to you without considering his words. That he trusted you. “I love you more than everything. And for every star in the sky is a promise that I will never leave you, because I love you. And that will come above all else.”
“I don’t know what I did to deserve you,” he murmured, tenderly kissing you.
“It doesn’t matter. You’re stuck with me now.”
You really were that in love with him, and you really would do anything for him. You loved him too much to ever leave him.
He sat up, pulling you to your feet with him as he got to his.
“Hey!” You exclaimed, disappointed that you had been dragged from your comfortable spot.
Then Gladion did something you had never expected.
He got to one knee, and your hands flew to your mouth. He pulled out a black velvet box and opened it, the diamond ring on the inside the most amazing thing you had ever seen. A smile spread across his face as you waited, wondering what he was going to say.
“(Y/n),” he began. “For four years I have called you the love of my life. We’ve been together through everything, you’ve been here for the best and worst parts of me. And I know we’re young, and everyone else is going to frown on me for asking this. But I know you’re the one I want to spend the rest of my life with, and to me that’s all that matters. I love you with every piece of me, and I love every bit of you, all the good, and everything you think is bad. So (Y/n) (Y/m/n) (Y/l/n), will you do me the honour of marrying me?”
Overview: Isabelle makes two new allies; a small girl named Lillie and a strange boy named Hau. They make a life-altering discovery from the tongue of Lusamine herself, who’s created a new, artificial world.
~ < ~ > ~
Isabelle’s eyes were even more sunken in than the night before. The dark circles of black under them revealed she hadn’t gotten very much sleep, and what she had gotten was distorted and restless. She had appeared exhausted before, but today she simply looked haunted.
She had changed from the outfit she had slept in to a black pair of jeans and a light purple top, and she was wearing her faded green jacket with the dark combat boots.
Her icy blue eyes looked deep, making her appear far older than she actually was. Nobody would guess that she was below the age of eleven, not with the way she carried herself.
She stood before the closed door of her room, her hair straightened and down this morning. She had gotten bored of waiting and decided to play with some of the other products in her bathroom, resulting in a seemingly thought-out appearance.
The digital clock on the wall was a minute and twenty-three seconds faster than the watch on her wrist, and this bothered her. She wasn’t sure why, she just knew she had to get that time off her wall. Even if it meant she was a little late for things.
With a deep sigh, she flung open the white door. It seemed strangely heavier than the night before. Normally Isabelle would have brushed this off, but after the note, she planned on paying attention to every single detail she noticed. She refused to accept that she was trapped here. There’s always a way out.
She began walking down the hall, her small frame rigid and stiff. She was prepared, but she did not know what for.
“Um, excuse me? Miss?” A small voice called out from behind Isabelle. She whirled around, and in front of her was a small girl, not much older than her.
“Who are you?” Isabelle said, her voice toneless. This could either be a friend or a foe, and she didn’t want to scare a friend away.
“My name’s Lillie. I got tricked into being here and now…” the girl, Lillie, trailed off, her eyes falling to look at her feet. “I think I’m stuck. There was this paper under my door. It said I am.”
Isabelle noticed that the girl was rambling. Lillie must have been just as nervous as she was. “I’m Isabelle. But you can call me Izzy. I think I got the same note.” She paused, considering this. “Would you like to go down to breakfast together?”
Lillie nodded, a smile spreading across her lips. “I wanna look for my brother. We got separated when our m-” she abruptly stopped and considered her word choice. “When our mother sent us here.”
“I’ll help,” Isabelle agreed. She didn’t have much else to do as it was.
Together, the pair set off down the hardwood floor, their shoes making soft thumps against it. Eventually they arrived at the end of the hall, where a single elevator lay waiting.
Isabelle and Lillie glanced at each other before the brunette stepped forward and pushed the down button, the only one available, making it light up a bright blue.
“Think it’ll take us to the breakfast area… place… thing…?” Lillie asked, her face uneasy. She looked as if she hadn’t gotten a lot of sleep either.
“No idea,” Isabelle answered, tapping her fingers anxiously against her leg. Her other hand was stuffed into her jacket pocket, curled into a fist around her pouch of change.
Once it reached their floor, the doors opened to reveal a dark-skinned boy. “Hiya!” He said brightly, gesturing for the two girls to come in. He looked to be about Lillie’s age, a few years older than Isabelle was.
The duo stepped in simultaneously, Isabelle far more wary of the boy than she was her new friend.
“I’m Hau!” The boy said, nearly bouncing from excitement. “You guys are the first people I’ve seen since yesterday!”
Isabelle bit back her grammar correction and let Lillie answer instead.
“I’m Lillie! And this is Izzy. We got here last night but we just met,” she told Hau, looking happy to have a chatty friend.
Isabelle thought that Lillie was probably more scared of her. She looked far tougher than Hau, who gave off a warm and friendly vibe. Those two were more likely to get along than her and either of them.
After what seemed like a lifetime of meaningless chatter, the door slid slowly open.
In front of the trio was a large dining table with around one hundred people sitting around it. The room was almost dead silent, and everyone was glaring around at each other. There was no trust in this room.
Lillie and Hau’s chatter came to a stop as they saw all of these people, sitting in wait for their first meal. And hopefully an explanation as to what the hell was going on here.
Isabelle lead them all to an empty spot on one of the benches, though she had to glare intensely at a girl to make her scoot over to squeeze all three.
Once they had taken their seats, the chandeliers above them began to dim. It was then that Isabelle noticed there were no windows in the room, nor were there any doors. And like everything else, it was completely spotless white.
Lillie was glancing around the table, Isabelle guessed in a futile attempt to find her brother. Whose name, she realized, she didn’t know.
“Welcome everyone, to the Aether Paradise Trial. My name is Lusamine, and I am in charge of this operation.” As the words were spoken, the woman Isabelle had run into last night.
Nobody said a word. Nobody applauded. Nobody moved a single muscle.
As angry as Isabelle was, she was also curious. So she, like everyone else, kept her rude comments to herself.
“Not an easy crowd to please I see…” Lusamine mumbled before continuing. “RIght. First things first. You all have zero communication with the outside world, but we’re not so cruel as to take away electronics period. Now as some of you know, your phones and other devices were confiscated on the way in. My scientists will now be handing out a customized phone for each of you, and you’ll find laptops when you go back to your room. The phones have Pokemon Hunting devices built into them, including Pokedexes and other such apps. These cannot be deleted. You also have a messaging app that will work among other Aether phones, though any calls you make and texts you send are being monitored, along with any photos.”
She paused, taking a breath and letting a few men with fancy looking cases hand out what appeared to be phones to some of the people.
Isabelle received hers almost immediately, though she only slipped it into her pocket. She didn’t want to start playing with her new toy and then miss something important.
Once everyone had gotten one, the men backed away into the shadows, disappearing from Isabelle’s line of sight.
Lusamine looked as though she were about to start again, but Isabelle had grown impatient.
“Are we seriously trapped here until we’re eighteen?” She called, loud enough that her voice rang throughout the dining room.
Nervous chatter then began to break out.
Lusamine’s expression changed to annoyed, which annoyed Isabelle even more.
“Yes,” Lusamine said. Everyone froze. “You are all trapped here.”
“Table for how many?” The waitress asked as you walked into the fancy restaurant, your (f/c) dress clinging to your curves.
“Two please,” you replied. It was your two-year anniversary today, and Gladion had promised to take a break from work to go out to dinner with you.
You hadn’t really seen each other lately. Ever since Lusamine left the Aether to Gladion, he hadn’t made any time for you. The most you got to see him was when he collapsed into bed next to you at three in the morning, exhausted. But today he told you he would take the night off. You were hoping that would lead you to… other things.
But then ten minutes past.
And then twenty.
And then half an hour.
A few waiters had come over and asked if you were alright, and once the half hour hit, you broke. He had shattered yet another promise he made you. He wasn’t making you happy anymore, he was hurting you. And leaving you alone in public places. And abandoning you. And taking you for granted. You had given him everything, your heart included.
And he was just brushing you off.
After an hour, you felt your phone buzz in your purse. You pulled it out and found a text from your boyfriend.
Overview: Isabelle receives some disturbing news about the place she’s staying, throwing her into a state of distraught that disturbs her sleep.
~ < ~ > ~
Isabelle hadn’t been brought to the Aether Paradise.
Instead, her and a few other children, all who looked - and smelled - homeless, had been brought to a rather large building. Lusamine had called it the “advanced research lab”. She didn’t mind being here, as she was being provided her very own room and three meals a day.
She was given a key by a man in a white lab coat and pointed in the direction that her room was in. She had gone through an elevator and was now standing in front of a white door. The entire area seemed unnatural, completely spotless and white. She couldn’t imagine how many maids were hired to keep a building this squeaky clean.
Isabelle flashed the card in front of the scanner. It buzzed and a green light turned on. She turned the knob and pushed the heavy door open, letting it fall closed behind her. She glanced around, astounded at what was around her. A Queen sized bed lay in the middle of the main room, a TV pointed at it. The TV was on a dresser, and next to the dresser was a desk with a wheely chair. There were sofas and a full bookcase against the wall, and a door leading to a closet on the opposite side.
In the closet, she found every type of clothing you could buy. A small handwritten note left in the middle of the floor told her that she could select whatever she wanted, and everything in the room was now hers.
After a great amount of thought, she decided on light blue jeans, a plain white tee-shirt, and a brown leather jacket only slightly darker than her skin colour. She also changed into black combat boots, though it struck her as strange how the place had everything in exactly her size - even the shoes. There was no way anyone could have prepared all of this in a matter of three hours, especially when she hadn’t told Lusamine any of her information.
She brushed the thought off and headed to the washroom. As she entered, she almost gave a gasp of surprise.
It was a modern washroom with modern everything, a sink and a toilet and a fancy shower, not to mention the number of toiletries that were available to her. And in one of the corners was a basket where she dumped her dirty clothes - except for the jacket, which she had hidden under her mattress. If she wasn’t going to wear it, she was going to make sure it was safe.
She regretted having already gotten dressed once she saw the shower. With a look at her watch, she saw that she still probably had time.
She stripped, and for the first time in her life, took a long, steamy, hot shower and used all the products people normally used every day that she had never even noticed before. Her hair was a mess of chocolate tangles when she got out, but she was amazed as she put a brush through it and it straightened out easily. It must have had something to do with one of the products she had used.
She found an elastic and tossed it up into a ponytail, not bothering to dry it first. She got dressed again and headed out of the washroom to find a note had been slipped under her door.
HELLO ALL PARTICIPANTS. WE FROM AETHER PARADISE WOULD LIKE TO THANK YOU ALL FOR JOINING OuR TRIAL, AND WE HOPE YOU WILL LEARN THE RULES OF THE BUILDING SOON. ALL POWER GOES OFF AT 11:30 PM AND WILL RETURN AT 7:00 AM, ASIDE FROM ANY OUTLETS YOU NEED TO USE TO CHARGE ANY DEVICES. WE EXPECT YOU DOWNSTAIRS IN THE DINING HALL AT 9:00 AM TOMORROW MORNING, WHERE MORE OF THE RULES WILL BE EXPLAINED. AS YOU ARE BEING LOCKED AWAY UNTIL YOU’RE EIGHTEEN, WE WILL ALSO BE MAKING A LIST OF GUARDIANS AND FRIENDS YOU WISH TO NOTIFY. THANK YOU FOR JOINING THE AETHER PARADISE TRIAL.
Isabelle felt sick as she read the note. She read it three times, just to be sure she hadn’t missed anything.
At no point in time had she agreed to be trapped here for nine years! That was her entire childhood and teenage years, gone. She had just been informed that she signed away her life. Lusamine had neglected to mention this to her. She was under the impression that she would have free time, and she would be free to come and go as she pleased.
Though it explained the entire closet, now that she thought of it. And the too-good-to be-true room. It all made sense after she read this.
Isabelle ripped the letter in half and just like clockwork, the room went pitch black.
“It must be eleven…” she dashed over to her bed and grabbed her jacket from underneath, pulling it out and jumping onto the bed.
She clutched it as tightly as she could, holding it like it was a lifeline to the outside world and everything in it. She couldn’t handle being trapped, not after - no. She couldn’t think about that. It was too painful to remember, too painful to consider it could be happening again.
But as hard as she tried to fight it, as she drifted off into sleep, it still haunted her memories.
She was sitting on her sofa, watching TV. Or at least she faced it, but it wasn’t on. Her mother sat next to her, laughing at the sequence that she saw on the black screen.
Isabelle looked at her, examining her fuzzy face. It looked identical to hers. A child’s face on an adult body. She looked back at the TV screen and it wasn’t there. Replacing it was a small statue of her younger body nailed to a cross.
She stood and walked to it, and as her hand grazed it she felt something hard on her shoulders.
“Boo,” an unfamiliar voice hissed in her ear, making her entire body shiver. She turned around and saw Trent standing behind her, a panicked look on his face.
“Help me,” he cried, blood coming from his eyes.
The sofa had been replaced by a cage, and her mother had disappeared. “I don’t know how!” She tried to say, but no noise came out. She was frozen as Trent was pushed into the cage by some kind of invisible force, his shoes leaving silver marks against the now concrete floor.
“It’s your fault!” Her mother said from behind, in the same unfamiliar voice as before. Isabelle twirled around and saw herself, but younger, lying on the ground, covered in bruises and blood.
Her mother’s voice was coming from Lusamine’s body as Lusamine kicked her what seemed to be unconscious body.
Isabelle wanted to move. She wanted to step in front of her younger self, show her how to get out but she couldn’t. She was frozen with fear.
Her vision blurred, and then she was surrounded by bars. She could move again, but she was the one in the cage now. The cage was filled with a ring of fire that was closing in.
It got closer and closer, and she could feel the heat around her legs at it forced her into the center of the cage. She wanted to scream for help, tell someone she was there. There were people outside of the cage. She was in the middle of the street, dying inside of an unlocked cage. But they passed her by, chattering to themselves and ignoring her.
The flames licked at her skin, burning rings around her ankles, leaving cigarette marks along her stomach.
But she couldn’t scream as it burned her. She couldn’t move, she couldn’t talk, she was just trapped.
