Chapter Text
Akala Island was well-known for its seasonal festivals; clusters of people everywhere, every human packed into a small town for a prolonged period of time, and a lot of fireworks. A perfect opportunity to take advantage of. Their prayers to the Tapu of the island now fell on deaf ears, which made it all the better for them.
Foolish humans were none the wiser to anything really happening these days; so, a quick expedition down to the festival tonight wouldn’t be a problem at all; nor did they notice anything off about them, which made it easier to get in the centre of the display of lights and noise.
“I can’t wait! All those little human-things dying horribly! It’ll be so much fun!”
“We’re not going to be actively murdering them.”
“Then what’s the point? How am I supposed to enjoy myself without a little bit of bloodshed?”
Stakataka and Xurkitree were at it again. All they ever did now was argue, which was a lot more bothersome than they’d expected.
“Is that really all you enjoy? Murder? I can see why Nihilego doesn’t like you.”
Xurkitree’s silence at the comment was a lot more telling than he was probably intending.
“Guys please, can you just quit it for a bit? We’ve got better things to worry about than… whatever you two are on about.”
“I am sorry about that.” Stakataka was the only one to reply, side-eyeing Xurkitree as he answered. Xurkitree just let out an electric huff.
They were approaching the town the festival was set to take place in; just a few more yards to go now.
“Hey Staka, you keep walking; I’ve just gotta talk to Xurkitree alone for a bit.”
Stakataka didn’t really reply, just continuing to walk onwards. Hopefully he knew where he was supposed to camp out in the town.
“Ooo, I get secret instructions!” The cable monster clasped his hands together, “give it to me straight doc! Is it gonna be fun?”
All of a sudden, they felt extremely bad for what they were about to say. They really didn’t think he’d be this excited to go with them; and they were about to ruin that entirely.
“Xurks, you’re going to have to watch it from a distance.” They watched as his joyful pose deflated instantly, “but I found a nice spot for you to watch! A nice distance away so none of the humans get to you, and you’ll be able to see the whole show!”
“But I thought I got to go into town with you.” He sounded completely defeated, “do you like Stakataka more than me? You can say so.”
“No! I’d never like him more than you!” They gently grabbed one of his hands, “it’s just he’s able to hide a lot better without drawing a lot of attention to himself.”
“But I can do that! I can hide well too!”
They shook their head, “I know you can, but you’ve got to understand.” They grabbed his head, and, with a bit of effort, pulled it down to be at eye-level with them. “I don’t want you getting hurt.”
“I’d be fine!”
“No you wouldn’t! Your life is very important to me, and I hope you know what exactly this whole ‘festival visit’ is really about.”
Xurkitree stayed silent for a moment, “ohhh, that makes sense now that I think about it.”
They both stood there quietly for another few seconds, “well ‘Chepa, you have fun.” He still sounded mildly upset, but his movements were a lot more cheerful now. “I’ll keep an eye on you from a distance.” He pet their head softly, “and even though I’d prefer taking that bag of bricks place,” he seemingly looked over in the direction of Stakataka, who was gone now. “I’ll take your orders as best I can! But if something happens, I am immediately running down there and you’re not going to stop me.”
“Fine, but only if something happens.” They rolled their eyes, listening to the audible chuckle from the taller creature.
They let go of Xurkitree, watching as he walked off towards some of the hills near the village that overlooked the ocean. At least he understood what they meant.
~
Xurkitree sat and watched the fireworks that night. Blacephalon was right; it was a nice spot. The explosive lights weren’t as loud from here, but they were just as bright. The only thing he really wished was there with him was them; but he couldn’t really argue against them. This was their idea. And he didn’t want to ruin everything for them. He wasn’t like him.
He couldn’t really make out anything in the town though. All the humans looked like small specks from here; small, easy to break dots. All that darkness down there didn’t help at all.
The finale was finishing up now; and it was as dazzling as the last firework show he’d seen. Maybe it was just all the colours and lights that made him enjoy it; he couldn’t really tell.
A large flash of light overtook the ground; and after that, there was nothing but darkness. And the quiet, yet echoing sounds of screaming.
He unrooted himself from the ground, listening for an extra second. The blood curdling screams that rose from the town made him giddy. Maybe he could just go, for a little bit, and find something to break. He felt so energised now; and if he didn’t fulfil it, he’d definitely burst out of his skin. Either that or his head would probably explode.
~
“I think that went well.” Stakataka finally spoke after they left the fenced-in village. “Nothing seemed too off.”
They nodded, “and no one questioned anything! Usually, I hear mumblings from the crowd about my arrival. Maybe this time they were wanting me to arrive!”
“Maybe.”
They continued to walk on in silence.
“Did you tell Xurkitree where to meet back up with us?”
“I might have forgotten.”
“Oh well, we’ll probably find him around here somewhere. It’s not like he could hide in any place even slightly dark.”
~
They couldn’t find him. Despite Stakataka’s words of encouragement and of “how easily it should be”, it was the exact opposite. It had felt like ages of walking in literal circles in the woods before something had caught their eye.
Bright, white lights. Walking directly towards them.
“Took you long enough.” Stakataka gave Xurkitree a bothered look, “did you get lost or something?”
“Yeah, something like that.” The cable monster shrugged.
But they knew a lot better; especially since, what seemed to be tree sap, covered half of his body, in a similar way blood would have splattered on him if he’d attacked something. And if he had, there was a fair chance he’d won.
The trio had begun the short trek back up towards the mountain; the other two seemingly oblivious to the possible murder committed. It’s not like it mattered in the long run, however.
~
Once they reached the halfway point up the mountain, a familiar face made himself known. The glass-made jellyfish looked between them and Xurkitree with some sort of bitterness for a moment, before turning his full, unrequited attention to Stakataka.
“Oh dear! I was so worried you wouldn’t come back.”
They felt kind of uncomfortable; so much touching, and the way he slowly stroked the loose bricks that made up the other’s leg was worrying. It was as if he had never heard of personal space; or if he had, he’d ignored it.
The two of them helplessly watched as Stakataka was taken away by the venomous jellyfish; presumably for more of their “fun times”. They never actually understood what that meant, but they preferred to never know.
“So, it’s what, midnight? I can’t tell anymore. You wanna go ‘hit the hay’?”
“That’d be nice.”
