Chapter 40
Mike stood on the edge of a cliff with his camera in hand, watching Ho-Oh disappear into the sunset.
Gengar floated beside him with Kakuna in his arms, while Glameow sat on a nearby rock.
As Ho-Oh flew farther and farther away between the sunset and the rainbow, Mike finally lowered his gaze.
He raised his camera and began going through the pictures.
Curious, Gengar floated closer and pressed against Mike so he could look at them too.
There were picture after picture of Ho-Oh—some taken from far away, others from close up.
Mike had managed to capture almost every angle he could have wanted.
"Gengar, did you know that people and Pokémon who see Ho-Oh are said to live happy lives?"
"Gar?"
[Really?]
"Yeah. I think so too. When we send the video and photographs back to Grandma, we can share our happiness with her."
"Gar—"
[That sounds great!]
Mike continued looking through the photographs.
A flash of light from a nearby tree caught Gengar’s attention.
He glanced at Mike, then floated over to investigate.
The reason Mike had managed to take so many photographs was because, just as Ho-Oh was about to fly away, he had shouted for it to wait.
To his surprise, Ho-Oh had actually stopped for a while.
Mike had hurried to the cliff and spoken with it for a moment. After allowing him to take several photographs, Ho-Oh finally departed.
"Ho-Oh was surprisingly easy to talk to."
Mike continued scrolling through the pictures as he spoke to Glameow beside him.
"Meow."
[It was beautiful.]
"You’re beautiful too. In my eyes, you’re no less beautiful than it is."
Glameow raised her head and looked at Mike, who was still focused on the photographs.
She blinked without saying anything.
Mike was extremely satisfied with the pictures he had taken. He put away the camera and rubbed his legs.
He had never run that hard in this life. Even in his previous life, he couldn’t remember ever being so excited that he sprinted like that.
Now both his legs felt as heavy as lead.
He had only just found a place to sit when Gengar floated back with Kakuna in his arms.
"Gar—"
[Look at this.]
Mike turned and saw a feather glowing with rainbow-colored light in Gengar’s hand.
"This is..."
Mike reached out and accepted it.
A system message immediately appeared.
{Ho-Oh’s Feather: A rainbow-colored feather shed by Ho-Oh. It seems capable of bringing good fortune to whoever carries it.}
{Luck: Something special may occur under certain circumstances.}
{The Rainbow Auspicious Bird, Ho-Oh: How could an outstanding photographer arrive in this world without searching for the true photographer? Congratulations! Not only did you encounter it, but you also successfully photographed it. As the embodiment of happiness, it has granted you its blessing.}
{Fire- and Flying-Type Affinity: A blessing granted by Ho-Oh. A photographer cannot allow Pokémon to fear them while taking pictures. From today onward, when photographing Fire- or Flying-type Pokémon, your affinity with them will reach at least 90.}
{Congratulations on photographing a true Legendary Pokémon. You have received 1,500 Viewership Points.}
Mike blinked as he stared at the rainbow feather.
’Isn’t this basically a lucky charm?’
’Fire- and Flying-type affinity? That’s going to make my work even easier.’
’Shiny Fearow, you really are the number one photographer in the Pokémon world!’
’I love this blessing!’
And then there were the 1,500 Viewership Points.
Good lord...
How much had Shiny Suicune given him?
Only a few hundred points.
Yet Shiny Fearow had given him this much?
As expected of a major Legendary!
{Publishing its photographs or video will grant an additional 1,000 Viewership Points.}
Mike’s eyes widened.
’I swear, you are the best system in the world. No contest!’
"Gar?"
Gengar’s voice pulled Mike from his thoughts.
He looked over and found Gengar staring curiously at him.
Mike reached out and tugged on his cheeks.
"This is one of Ho-Oh’s feathers. It’s very rare. They say whoever carries it will have good luck."
"Gar..."
[Oh...]
Mike smiled at his reaction.
"You might find lots of snacks with this."
Gengar’s eyes widened.
"Gar?!"
[Really?!]
He stared intensely at the feather in Mike’s hand.
Mike shook his head, took out an unused box, placed the feather safely inside, and handed it to Gengar.
Gengar accepted it with an extremely serious expression.
’From now on, this is my second most important treasure!’
(◦`~´◦)
Mike glanced at the sky.
"We’re all tired today, so let’s camp here for the night and continue tomorrow."
"We’ve strayed quite far from our route. We’ll need to wake up early, or we might not reach Lake Verity in time."
"Gar—"
[Okay—]
"Meow~"
[Fine~]
Kakuna: [Jiiii~]
...
After dinner at Professor Rowan’s laboratory, the professor passed beneath a tree and stopped.
He looked up at Snivy, who was sitting high among the branches and staring into the distance as usual.
However, she wasn’t looking in the direction she normally watched.
Nor was she looking toward Twinleaf Town.
Professor Rowan followed her gaze and realized she was staring toward Lake Verity.
He watched Snivy quietly for a moment before calling softly, "Snivy."
Snivy came back to her senses and lowered her head to look at him.
"Go."
Confusion filled Snivy’s face.
"You’ve already helped us a great deal. Our research is almost complete."
Professor Rowan continued, "Don’t leave yourself with regrets. Perhaps he needs you more than we do."
Snivy said nothing and continued staring at him.
After a long while, she stood and quickly disappeared from Professor Rowan’s sight.
Watching her leave, Professor Rowan smiled from the bottom of his heart.
Pokémon were truly simple creatures.
Professor Juniper had taken Snivy in, so she had continued cooperating with the research to repay that kindness.
But if it was Mike...
Perhaps he really would be a good place for Snivy to go.
...
In Twinleaf Town, Officer Jenny accepted a package from the courier and checked the address.
She climbed onto Arcanine and quickly headed outside the town.
"Grandma."
Officer Jenny entered the yard with Arcanine and called to the elderly woman sitting by the entrance.
"Jenny, is that you?"
Grandma paused her needlework and smiled at her.
"Yes. I came to see you, and I also brought the package Mike sent back."
"Mike sent something home?"
"It’s right here."
Officer Jenny removed the box from Arcanine’s back and handed it to Dragonite.
Dragonite carried it to the entrance, placed it beside Grandma’s feet, and sliced through the tape with one claw.
Growlithe also came running in from the yard.
It had heard Mike’s name and thought Mike had returned!
When it failed to find either Mike or Gengar, it lowered its head in disappointment.
Seeing her child upset, Arcanine gently nudged Growlithe with her muzzle.
"Growlithe, look. He sent something back for you."
"Growlithe~"
Growlithe approached Grandma and stared at the flying disc in her hands with its tongue hanging out.
Dragonite took the disc and led Growlithe into the backyard to play.
Grandma looked at the large pile of things Mike had sent and couldn’t stop smiling.
"That child... I gave him money for traveling, and he used it all to buy things for me."
"That’s only right."
Officer Jenny sat beside Grandma and looked curiously at the half-finished scarf on the table.
"Are you knitting that scarf for him?"
Grandma placed the other things back into the box and nodded.
"Yes. That child probably has no idea how cold Sinnoh becomes in winter."
"Isn’t this a little early? It’s still summer."
"It isn’t early..." Grandma murmured quietly.
"What did you say?"
"Nothing. People tend to mutter when they grow old."
Grandma changed the subject and handed Officer Jenny a photo album.
"This is what he sent for you."
Officer Jenny accepted it and flipped through several pages before smiling.
"That brat..... Looks like he didn’t forget our promise."
"Hahaha. He takes promises very seriously."
"That’s true."
Officer Jenny closed the album.
"All right, Grandma. Now that I’ve delivered everything, I should get going. Things have been busy around Twinleaf Town lately. There have been more signs of Pokémon Hunter activity."
"Be careful while you’re here alone, and call me if anything happens."
"All right. Thank you for going to the trouble."
"Oh, don’t mention it."
Officer Jenny took the photo album, climbed onto Arcanine, and left Grandma’s yard.
Grandma returned to knitting the scarf.
...
Late that night, Grandma sat on her bed and slowly turned through the photo album, studying each picture carefully.
Growlithe slept at her feet while Dragonite stood in the doorway.
"Glameow?"
Grandma laughed when she came across a photograph of Glameow sleeping.
"Dragonite, do you think..."
Dragonite crossed its arms and quietly watched her.
Sometimes it nodded, and sometimes it shook its head, as though afraid that making a sound might disturb this precious happiness.
After Grandma reached the end of the album, she closed it.
Dragonite accepted the album and carefully placed it inside a drawer.
Grandma picked up the framed photograph Mike had sent and placed it on the table in her room.
The table was covered in framed photographs and many had long since lost their color.
Grandma’s fingers gently brushed across the faded pictures.
One showed a young woman holding a Pokémon Egg in her arms.
Another showed the young woman with a Hatterene sitting on her head.
In another, the young woman and a young man each held a Dratini.
At last, her hand stopped in front of one particular frame.
It had been taken during winter.
The young woman wore a scarf around her neck and smiled sweetly at the camera, while a young man with closely cropped hair stood beside her.
Several intimidating Pokémon could faintly be seen behind them.
However, the photograph was so old that their species could no longer be identified.
"Photographs..." Grandma murmured softly. "What is the purpose of a photograph...?"
Her thumb gently brushed across the young man’s face.
"Good night.... old man."
She smiled as she spoke.
Dragonite quietly turned off the light, closed the door, and withdrew.
The only sound left in the room was Growlithe’s gentle snoring.
---
Now.. who is Grandma and who is Mike ?