Chapter 2
Mike dreamed he was playing football when some fat bastard kicked him square in the face!
His eyes snapped open, and he found a huge purple-black foot planted right across his face.
Frowning, Mike shoved the offending foot aside.
Still fast asleep, Gengar rolled over, scratched its enormous backside, smacked its lips, and continued snoring as if nothing had happened.
Mike then shifted the warm little furnace known as Growlithe out of his arms before finally sitting up.
Grandma was watching something on the tablet, so he scratched his sleep-tousled hair and asked.
"Grandma, aren’t you going to take an afternoon nap?"
Grandma turned around and quickly muted the tablet.
"Did I wake you?"
Mike shook his bird’s-nest hair, scooted closer, and glanced at the screen.
She was reading the comments beneath the video he had uploaded earlier.
"I saw all of you sleeping, so I came over to read the comments," Grandma said with a smile. "So many people enjoy your videos, Mike."
"Well, of course they do. Have you seen how incredible my camera work is?"
Grandma nodded in complete agreement. "That’s certainly true. Our Mike is the best photographer in the whole world!"
Mike did not take it as sarcasm.
He knew that in an old woman’s eyes, her own child would always be the best child in the world.
Even if she was not truly his grandmother by blood.
"You always praise me every day, Grandma. Aren’t you worried I’ll get so full of myself that I become arrogant?"
Mike reached over and took her hand.
Grandma rested her other hand over his and answered softly, "Something good deserves praise, and something bad deserves criticism so it can be corrected. Good is good, and bad is bad. It’s as simple as that."
"That’s true." Mike nodded.
...
After chatting with Grandma and finishing dinner, Mike followed his usual routine and went to sit on the swing beneath the tree.
Grandma had told him that Grandpa had built it for her when they were young.
She had once said that every girl was a princess, and every princess needed a swing, so Grandpa had made one just for her.
Originally, it had not had a backrest.
Grandpa had added one when Grandma grew older, but no one had maintained the swing since his passing.
Mike had repaired it not long ago, and Grandma had cried for quite a while when she saw it restored.
Sitting on the swing, Mike gazed past the courtyard gate toward the rear garden.
A wooden bridge crossed a gently flowing stream, and several patches of vegetables grew nearby.
The rear garden was enormous, and every bit of it belonged to Grandma.
Mike had made a rough estimate and concluded that the house and land together covered more than 4km, nearly the size of the university he had attended in his previous life.
It was honestly ridiculous.
After washing the dishes, Gengar came up behind him.
The yard had become much livelier since Mike arrived.
Gengar itself had once been a stray.
One day, while wandering past Grandma’s house, she had taken it in.
It still remembered what she had told it.
"If you have nowhere else to go, you can stay here. Once you find somewhere you’d rather be, you can always leave then."
And so Gengar had stayed, helping Grandma with chores around the garden and fields.
Later, Officer Jenny from town had given Grandma a Growlithe Egg so she would have another companion looking after her.
Since Gengar naturally loved playing pranks, it had started scaring the nearby Pokémon to keep itself entertained.
Then Growlithe hatched, and Gengar finally had a friend.
Unfortunately, Growlithe seemed a little.... slow.
No matter how many times Gengar tried to frighten it, the puppy only grinned back like an idiot!
Then one day, while Gengar and Growlithe were accompanying Grandma on a walk along the beach near town, they discovered Mike lying unconscious on the sand.
At Grandma’s request, the two Pokémon hurried off to find help, and Mike was successfully carried to the Pokémon Center for treatment.
After recovering, Mike remained in Grandma’s yard.
His arrival made the place livelier and livelier, especially since wild Pokémon seemed strangely drawn to him.
Gengar liked that.
It hated being alone, and the cheerful atmosphere suited it perfectly.
Mike could be incredibly annoying sometimes, though.
Just like Growlithe, he never reacted when Gengar tried to scare him. Worse, he would turn around and scare Gengar instead!
And somehow, Gengar fell for it every single time!
’Damn human!’
Still, Mike really was amazing.
He knew countless stories, could sing all kinds of songs, and made so many delicious things...
As those thoughts crossed its mind, Gengar’s mouth unconsciously stretched into a grin. It reached out and began gently pushing the swing.
Feeling the pressure against his back, Mike smiled before suddenly saying, "Gengar, what do you think...?"
"Gar?"
Gengar stopped pushing and looked at him curiously.
"What do you think the outside world is like?"
’What else would it be like? Wandering around, living day to day, traveling far away...’
"What kind of Pokémon live out there? What’s on the other side of the sea? What does the world beyond it look like...?"
Hearing his questions, Gengar shook its head.
It did not know either.
It had never crossed the sea and had no idea what lay beyond it. It did not even know how large the island beneath its feet truly was.
Mike fell silent, and Gengar did not make a sound either. It simply resumed pushing the swing.
The tap of a cane against the ground soon approached.
When Grandma came over, Mike quickly stood and offered her the swing.
She sat down but stopped him when he tried to push it, asking him to sit nearby and talk with her instead.
"What is it, Grandma?"
Mike sat on a stone stool beside her.
Grandma studied him for a long moment with her clouded eyes, as though remembering something from long ago.
At last, she spoke.
"Mike."
"Yeah, I’m here."
"You should leave."
Mike’s pupils tightened as a sudden wave of panic struck him.
"Grandma..."
She smiled and patted the back of his hand, reassuring him before he could misunderstand.
"Don’t be nervous. Grandma isn’t throwing you out."
Mike let out a breath. "Then what do you mean?"
"I mean that you shouldn’t let this little yard hold you back. Go out and see the world. Begin your journey."
Now that he understood her meaning, Mike opened his mouth, but no words came out.
"Grandma knows you long for the world outside," she continued. "But because I’m here, you feel that you have no choice but to stay and care for me."
"That’s not true, Grandma! I really like this life. I have you, Gengar, Growlithe, and all the others here with me."
Mike lifted her hand and gently pressed it against his cheek.
Her skin was rough with age, but he did not mind in the slightest.
"You know, Grandma, I never knew what it was like to be loved by grandparents before. To them, my whole family was nothing but a burden..."
Grandma’s fingers caressed his cheek, her heart aching as she looked at him.
"I know, dear. Grandma knows. But you still shouldn’t remain here forever."
"But..."
"Let me finish."
Her voice was gentle but firm.
"I know that whenever you stare out at the rear garden, you’re imagining what the world beyond it might be like. I know all of it. I also know you stayed because you wanted to care for me, but you don’t need to worry. A Pokémon your grandfather and I once looked after will be returning soon. It can take care of me."
A loving smile spread across her face.
"Grandma shouldn’t keep you trapped here. Silly child, don’t be afraid. This place will always be your home."
Mike fell silent.
"You know something?" Grandma asked as her gaze drifted into the past. "I’m not originally from Sinnoh.... I was born in Hoenn. While traveling, I met your grandfather, and eventually I followed him back here. Because of that, I never got to finish my own journey."
"I’ve always loved Pokémon. That was what first brought your grandfather and me together. I’ve heard that people have discovered many Pokémon in recent years that no one knew about when I was young."
She looked directly at Mike.
"So could you travel for me? Take pictures of those Pokémon and send them back so Grandma can see them?"
Her smile became a little wistful.
"Consider it... fulfilling the dream I had when I was young."
Mike remained quiet.
Grandma had already said so much, and this was not only his dream.
It was hers as well.
Grandma’s dream and his own...
Under her patient gaze, Mike slowly nodded.
"Okay, Grandma. I promise. I’ll go out and take countless pictures of Pokémon for you, and I’ll send every one of them home!"
"Hahaha! You’d better not lie to your grandma."
"I won’t. Pinky promise."
"A pinky promise..."
Grandma looked at his extended little finger, then suddenly laughed.
"You’re reminding me of someone from when I was young... You really are..."
She reached out and hooked her pinky around his.
"Mike, take it with you."
Meeting her gaze, Mike nodded firmly.
..
After Grandma returned inside, Mike and Gengar remained where they were, watching the summer sunset.
Gengar was in no mood to admire the scenery.
It turned toward Mike as a strange, uneasy feeling stirred inside it.
’He’s going to leave?’
’He’s leaving the yard...’
’Leaving Grandma...’
’Leaving all of us behind...?’
’Is he going to wander the world alone?’
’Will he ever come back...?’
Gengar lowered its head, lost in thought.
"Gengar."
It looked up.
At some point, Mike had risen to his feet.
With the sunset glowing behind him, he smiled and extended his left hand.
What was he going to say? Gengar already knew.
It could hear the words before he even spoke them.
"Gengar, will you come with me? We can explore this amazing world together! We’ll cross the sea, climb beyond the mountains, meet all kinds of people, and discover countless Pokémon. Then we’ll photograph them and send everything back for Grandma to see."
Mike looked at the round purple Pokémon in front of him and offered his invitation once more.
"Just like in all those stories I told you... will you protect me?"
’He wants me to go with him?’
The evening breeze stirred Mike’s hair.
Gengar’s face split into a huge grin, and its tongue shot out to lick him straight across the face!
"Gar—!"
’Of course! I’ll go with you idiot!’