Chapter Text
Prologue
Two people.
Born together, raised together, left the nest together.
Two brilliant minds, two hearts of gold, two flames of passion that could burn the fire back.
And they were a team, in sync, inseparable.
And yet the impossible deed had somehow been done.
And that’s when things started to change.
-
The dreams had begun to become even stranger now.
Emmet had been having this recurring dream ever since his twin brother, Ingo, disappeared. At first Emmet didn’t even get much sleep. Some nights were still that way. He didn’t have the dream too often. In fact, it seemed a little strange he didn’t have the dream more, considering the thought of Ingo was almost always at least in the back of his head.
The first time he dreamed it, it went like this; he was in a void, completely dark and empty. There was a floor beneath him, although he could not see it. He would call out to see if anyone would respond. Nothing. Until a moment later, he’d hear Ingo’s voice. Except it was panicked. Confused.
Emmet would turn in the voice’s direction to see his brother. Emmet would desperately run to Ingo, attempting to embrace him with a tight hug of relief.
But he’d phase right through.
Many times, Ingo would seemingly be far away in one way or another, or shrouded in darkness, but Emmet could always see him, if only a little.
Emmet would continue to try and get Ingo’s attention. Waving his hands, trying to shake Ingo by the shoulder, even just screaming. Sometimes Emmet would have his Pokémon with him, and he’d try desperately to show them to Ingo.
But to no avail.
Sometimes Emmet would swear he saw Ingo notice the presence of him or the Pokémon, if only for a second before being unable to sense them again. He’d look surprised, almost relieved, but then would sink back into a state of confusion and weariness.
It pained Emmet to his very core.
Except over time, Ingo’s behavior, and even appearance would..change. At some point he had grown facial hair. Then he had acquired a strange shirt under his uniform with a peculiar symbol on it.
He never did take his uniform off, though. Over time, it became worn. Emmet was confused and scared. What was going on?
When Ingo first went missing, Emmet wasted no time not looking for his brother. He easily surpassed the police in their investigation, and yet– nothing. Eventually, the investigation began wavering in effort. But Emmet's pace did not slow.
For months, he searched, desperate. He ended up going to concerning lengths to find just anything. Any hope of a lead.
Anything at all.
Emmet's health began degrading. It took him being put in the hospital to realize he would have to hit the brakes, and try and start living more like he did before again.
But that would be difficult. Unspeakably difficult.
When he was awake, Emmet had a few main objectives; go to work, care for his Pokémon, and attend to smaller matters, usually something the mayor or his friends alerted him of. But mainly do what he’d usually do. Always the same.
He’d work as long as he could, even if it meant resorting to rather boring tasks like sweeping the floor.
When Emmet had first tried to go back to the Subway System, he had to be let in by himself a few times while it was shut down. To get used to it. Otherwise, he’d be crying in front of everyone.
But even without Ingo, he loved the Subway System too much to abandon it.
But running it by himself, although he did indeed love doing it, it would never be the same. There would always be a feeling of loneliness and longing. Emmet supposed that’s how things would have to be.
When it came to battling, the obvious issue of multi battles arose. When Emmet was asked if he wanted to remove multi battles, he refused. He liked those battles a lot, after all.
But when a few of his friends offered to try and be his new battle companion, it never went well. They would set up a practice round, and every time Emmet could never get past even 2 turns without breaking down. He’d run out of the room in tears. He’d curl up his hands in anger. He’d run out of breath due to an anxiety attack.
Eventually, after a long time of multi-battles being a bit different to due Emmet's absence, Emmet was able to get used to Elesa being his new battle partner. It wouldn’t be near the same as Ingo, but it would do. He was grateful for Elesa’s support, and the support of many others. Emmet and Elesa messed up a lot at first. He expected Ingo to be there giving commands; Elesa’s battle style was different. Emmet and Elesa weren’t as in sync as Emmet and Ingo had always been, but they still made a good team.
Emmet enjoyed it, even if the loneliness would still always be there.
Emmet sometimes did single battles as well, which were also hard to adjust to, although he did enjoy them, too. Although the loneliness was present there, too.
He preferred double battles.
The loneliness, sadness, and other emotions followed Emmet at home, too.
Ingo’s disappearance affected Emmet and Ingo’s Pokémon, too. They thankfully also still found enjoyment in things like battling and other activities, but still had those feelings of emptiness and loneliness. They also thankfully understood Emmet’s situation, and Emmet understood theirs. Even if some of their own behaviors weren’t their favorites, they understood and tried their best to help each other retain a somewhat normal life, and Emmet always did his best to treat the Pokémon with care, as they tried to lift his spirits.
Of course, Emmet and the Pokémon had recovered some over time. The painful loneliness, the grief, would always be there; but it had gotten better compared to the beginning. As better as they could be.
Emmet and the Pokémon were their own individuals, after all. Despite everything, Emmet and the Pokémon had their good moments, their moments of peace. They had their coping mechanisms and support systems.
Overall, life was seeming less difficult to live, with its good things to offer, even if they struggled.
At first it felt like betrayal, but Emmet knew it was what they needed. What Ingo would want.
Even so, Ingo had been a part of them. So when he had been lost, they had lost a part of themselves.
They supposed they’d have to function without that piece; until they found Ingo, of course. They still wanted to find him.
They hoped they could.
And on especially long days before bed, Emmet would pick up his phone, and dial Ingo’s number.
“Hello, my name is Ingo! I am unfortunately unable to speak with you at the moment, but do leave a message, and I will gladly speak to you when I can!”
Emmet waited for the sound cue so he could speak.
Beep
“I am Emmet. Hello, brother. I am just calling to say I love you. The Pokémon want you to know they love you, too. Perform your safety checks. Goodnight.”
Click
-
The other day, Emmet’s friend Elesa offered to take Emmet on a trip to the region Sinnoh. She thought Emmet really needed a break from his work, even though he insisted he didn’t.
Eventually though, Elesa somehow was able to get Emmet on a plane to Sinnoh, and after landing, he swore that now, in his dream, Ingo had been able to notice his presence more often, even if he would lose the grip. Even more so, Chandelure was acting erratically. When Emmet would ask what was up, it would just insist there was somewhere in Sinnoh they needed to be, but it didn’t know where. Emmet felt like it was a wise decision to listen to Chandelure, at least. The Subway Boss felt as if something…important, was going on. Emmet’s determination to figure something out was stronger than it had been for a long time.