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milliemuus · 2 months ago

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Day THREE of toxicchaintober, this one was a little late!

The subject of today was Mask!

Look at em; happy lil famjam! Not everything seems so bleak since yesterday's story, eh?

Speaking of, why don't we continue where we left off?

READ UNDER THE CUT

Kieran woke up with a start.

"Uuaaghh—"

The oxygen that had long since been missing suddenly filled his throat and lungs, causing him to fling himself upward.

Alarmed, he began to survey the area, chest heaving as his eyes flitted around for the smallest sign of familiarity.

Trees. All he could see were trees.

The sky abovehead was a beautiful yellow-blue, birdsong filling his still ringing ears.

"What the....where am I?" He murmured, looking down at his own hands. The tips of his fingers were still pink as he remembered.

"What...happened last night?" He croaked. For some reason, his throat felt sore.

He took his hand, rubbing it over the soft skin of his neck to make sure everything was still intact.

"Everything is okay...maybe I just had some sort of major freakout last night..." The poor boy was severely confused, as if something in the air still lingered but it was beyond his mind's grasp. He grunted as he heaved himself upward, the effects of last night starting to seep deeper into his bones.

"Ughhh...what the...?" He slumped over, another groan erupted from him as the pain rippled through his weak muscles.

"I feel like a herd of Stantler just ran me over—"

As he slowly begun to wake up, it was as of his waking mind suddenly came to a stop. In the back of his mind, a voice from within began to whisper.

"But don't you feel great...?"

Once he heard this he jumped to attention, looking around the area to see if it had been someone nearby.

"Wh-Who was that?"

He blurted aloud, his voice echoing into empty air.

The morning fog of Kitakami began to roll in, swirling aeound his ankles. He tensed.

"Don't worry about who I am..." The voice hissed, only causing his fear to turn into a bit of frustration.

"Soon enough, you'll not even begin to even to acknowledge the voice in your head." It continued. Kieran shook his head, growling softly.

"Okay, this isn't funny. If you're some tourist in the distance trying to scare me, it isn't going to work— eh-?!" Without thinking, it was as if his body carried itself, his legs wobbling over a few feet away from where he had been standing. He felt his heart palpitate—something about this was clearly wrong.

"Do you believe me now?"

The voice echoed in his mind again. Kieran gritted his teeth, immediately trying to ruffle his hair in frustration. He couldn't even comprehend the situation, much less understand what the hell was happening to him.

"Rrrghh...okay! I believe you!" He yelled, his voice slightly echoing into the wood. At the same time, a growling from afar rumbled. He froze.

"Careful, boy. Make enough noise, and you'll awaken something fierce." The voice warned, Kieran still confused but at this point, the boy couldn't do anything but accept his fate. He rubbed his eyes, another groan escaping him.

"Good kid. Better to listen to me rather than against me, huh?" It kept speaking, hardly giving Kieran time to recuperate.

"Wouldn't wantcha gettin eaten by a pokémon as soon as you wak—"

Kieran ruffled his hair again, nails scraping his scalp in vigor.

"Rrrrhhhaaaahhh!!! Get out of my head!!!!" He howled, "This whole situation is starting to freak me out!!!"

Not only did he start to scratch his head, he began tugging at his headband. This only made the disembodied voice frustrated.

"Calm down!" It hissed "Have you never had a conscience before?!"

Kieran immediately stopped

"Conscience? Like...a consciousness?"

"Yes, exactly!" It responded, "The inner, coelescent being within you. Your instincts, your will to survive on this planet. It is your self-awareness interacting and understanding with things in your environment that help you fe—"

For some reason, this "consciousness" in Kieran's head only made his frustration louder, bubbling it up into a magmarizing burst of rage.

"THIS IS EVEN MORE CONFUSING! YOU'RE THROWING TOO MANY WORDS AT ME THAT I DON'T UNDERSTAND!" WIthout thinking, the rage he felt transferred from his mind and into his arm as he swung back, throwing a punch against the tree near him.

It didn't do as much damage, only shaking it slightly. Some bird pokémon chirped in alarm overhead, Kieran whining as the punch had obviously caused him some pain.

"Ow ow owww..." he grunted, withdrawing his arm to hold it against him. Why was he like this in the morning? Sure, he had come to understand that he was a lot more sensitive as soon as he woke up, but something just felt off.

As he rubbed his arm, that annoying voice only came back, as if to taunt him

"..Huh. Not as strong as I thought, but that'll do nicely, I guess."

Kieran sighed deeply in agitation, pinching the bridge of his nose.

"Okay, what do you want with me?" He grumbled. He didn't fully believe the whole "consciousness" shtick, but considering he woke up in the middle of the woods and in a fit of sudden rage, he ought to hear this coelescent being out. The being immediately responded

"What wouldn't I want?" It responded "I am simply here to keep you alive. It isn't my fault you ran away in a fit of rage and woke up in the middle of the woods at dawn." As it began insulting Kieran, he growled again. Before he could open his mouth, though, it interrupted him.

"I want you to take a good look around you."

It went silent, Kieran's head turning from side to side. Around him was nothing but trees and moss as far as the eye could see. His eyes darted upward, as if he was talking to something above him.

"It's just trees, trees and trees. Am I in Timeless Woods or something?" He asked mindlessly, as if he had already known the answer that was before him.

"Wow, you're much more perceptive than I thought," the voice responded "But yes. I wouldn't say you're far from home, but it's a good, long walk." Kieran blinked. It began to settle within him that maybe he should not be here, and maybe he should be at home, in his bed asleep. He began to feel a little awkward, looking around again.

"...What am I doing here?" He asked. He wasn't sure if he had asked before or not, but it didn't hurt to sort this situation out to the best of his ability.

"...What are you NOT doing here?" The being replied. Internally it panicked; it didn't want to give itself away. Kieran simply slumoed pver in defeat, head hanging low.

"...Aw man. You're supposed to be my consciousness and you can't even answer my question..." As Kieran sulked, the being within panicked. Was it supposed to be this annoying to inhabit a human body? It made an indescribable noise before responding once more.

"Look, kid. I'm not here to question the psychology behind why I can't help you out. I only know as much as you, and to put it simply you blanked out before I could stop you." It began to explain. It felt as if that would be a good argument.

"Besides, wouldn't the better question be if you can make it home before your grandparents find it oddly suspicious that their poor grandson had an episode and ran off into the night?"

At that question, Kieran's eyes widened in realization.

"Oh goodness, you're right!" He grabbed the sides of his head.

"If I don't get home soon, not only will they question me but so will Carmine!!!" He begun to panic. The being within sighed. This whole "possession" thing was harder than it thought. It was just a mere pokémon—did everything have to be this trivial?!

"Calm down. I'm sure she couldn't do more harm than you." It continued. "Just trust the process! Once we get there I'm sure you'll have a good and proper explanation..."

Kieran shook his head. "You're my consciousness, yet you don't even remember the wrath of my sister-?!" He panicked. It was totally not weird that he was talking to himself in the middle of Timeless Woods.

"Oh, please! What's scarier, the temporary wrath of a young adult who can't keep her feelings in check or a hormonal, teenage boy having an identity crisis that wandered off into the woods at midnight-?!" It challenged, "Get a grip on yourself and get on with it!"

At that thought, Kieran just slumoed over once again

"Aw man...I guess that checks out..." Kieran muttered in deafeat before sitting up again. "But I'm not done with interrogatin' you!"

...

It took a good while to get back to his grandparents' house. The sun had already rose over the horizon, the familiar, foggy mornings of Kitakami now disappearing in the sunlight. It wasn't often he got to experience mornings like this, always waking up when the sun was slightly over the horizon. If he wasn't in such a hurry, he would be able to stop and enjoy the wilderness.

...Then another realization struck. He hadn't finished those assignments with Millie.

Maybe he could turn over a new leaf with her and his annoying sister would leave them be! The sheer thought excited him, making him nearly forget that he could potentially get in trouble with said sister. Inside, the being couldn't get any less overwhelmed.

Could the kid make up his mind already-?!

A good ten minutes went by before Kieran passed over the bridge, his running becoming more of a jog as he ran into the town. As he stopped by the community center he slowed down, coming to a cantor.

"I wonder if Millie's already awake..." he murmured to himself."I wonder if...oh geez, I gotta get going if that's the case!"

He sped up again. Hypothetically, if Millie was already awake, then she'd have already headed to his house, looking for him!!!

With panic, he made a dash for it, running up the slope that led to his grandparents house.

As he neared the house, he could already hear the grating voice of Carmine. Oh great, so she was awake! That must mean his grandparents were, too! He was nearly out of breath as he ran through the front fence, nearly running into the familiar group of people that stood outside his house.

'Huh?' He thought, 'Why are they here?'

From the looks of it, his grandfather and Millie were standing with Carmine, having some sort of discussion. He slowed down near Millie, the grass that crunched below his shoes having alerted the three of them.

"Oh! Hey, Ki," Millie smiled, turning around to greet him. Kieran stiffened for a moment before greeting her.

"Oh! Uh...morning...!" He waved, before keeling over. He had been so caught up in thought, he had not noticed the burning within his muscles and lungs. He began to take a few breaths before his grandfather, Yukito, looked at him.

"You seem tired, son," he added "Where have you been all morning?"

Carmine also chipped in, "And this better be a really good excuse, Kiki."

As the familial pair looked at their youngest, Kieran began sweating bullets. What do I say...?

I have to come up with something....

"Uhhh..." He began to speak, his mind instantly getting stuck. The being within felt pity upon him.

Now Millie was staring at him with the utmost concern, her brows furrowed. Never had he felt so much pressure that was from his own doing.

Think, think, think!

It was then that he had finally conjured up something in that head of his, his eyes widening.

"I....went on a walk!" He sat up again, putting his hands on his hips. "Yeah, I missed the early mornings and wanted to stretch my muscles, so I got up before dawn and went on a walk!"

He beamed an awkward smile at the pair, all of them looking at each other as if they had been skeptical. His heart was pounding from the anticipation.

Yukito finally nodded, "Alright...but judt be careful next time, okay?"

The two other women nodded, Millie looking more concerned than Carmine, who just glared at him. Once he made eye-contact with Carmine, his hands went from resting on his hips to small fists.

As the four of them stood there awkwardly, Kieran noticed that both his sister and grandfather were especially tense. His eyes wandered over to Millie, who he realized was pretty shitty at hiding her nervousness.

Might as well save her from this awkwardness while I still can...

"Hey, Moonie," He piped up, Millie immediately looking over at him. "Moonie" was a nickname he had given her upon first hanging out with her.

One he hadn't let go of despite her discomfort. (He didn't seem to notice...)

"How about we get started on our assignments? We got like, one signboard left!" He smiled. He was trying to be as smooth as possible, Millie about to walk over to him before Carmine shot her a glare, to which she vaguely returned.

"It could just be me and you for a little while—"

Before he could finish, Carmine immediately interrupted him

"Not today, Kiki. Millie and I have places to be, and I need her help."

Kieran's heart dropped. Was she serious? Millie looked at Carmine, holding her finger up to respond before Carmine shot her down.

"And don't say you can go ahead and do the assignments! What I need you for is more important than some stupid assignment with Kiki!" Millie instantly sighed, to which Kiki coukd see the disappointment in her eyes. He grit his teeth, a flash if anger he had never felt before rose up within him.

"That isn't fair, Carmine!" He bursted "You have a partner of your own, and yet you go and take mine for some stupid errand!" He stomped his foot childishly, Millie shrinking away a little. She herself was all too familiar with this situation, yet she knew she could not get in-between them. Carmine growled, "Oh yeah? Well, your time with Millie isn't as important as mine, so why don't you go buzz off and go pester someone else?!" Her eyes were blazing, Kieran hinself now shrinking in discomfort. As he was trying to come up with a comeback, his consciousness grumbled.

"Geez, that's gotta sting..."

The humiliation he was feeling at the current moment couldn't be any greater. At his consciousness's comment, he growled

"Shut up..." It was supposed to be under his breath, not realizing he had been louder than usual. Carmine, who had thought she won the argument, whipped around immediately, her eyes darkening.

"What was that?" She asked flatly, her dark expression all the more serious. Kieran, realizing he had been louder than usual, looked around for a moment, sweating.

"Uhhhh...I mean—" He had to think of another excuse! "I flubbed! Err..."

All three of them now had his eyes on him. His face turned red. He had to make a quick getaway before the embarrassment killed him.

"Anyway, gotta go! I think I'm just going to go for another walk until you and Moonie are done!" He laughed nervously, turning around and rushing away away from the group.

He rushed over to the corner of the fence, out of their sight. He rested against it, letting out a silent puff of breath.

"What the hell was that-?!" The voice piped up again. Kieran grunted, trying to catch his breath.

"I dunno!" He cried softly, not wanting to cause anymore attention upon himself. "Papaw started talking, then Carmine...! And now Carmine is really taking Millie away from me!" He was making hand gestures as if his consciousness could see them.

"Man...why is it that whenever I'm happy, Carmine instantly swoops in and makes it about her...?" He whimpered, "I mean seriously! Moonie was my only friend and she goes and takes her away from me!"

As Kieran began ranting and gallavanting, there was a lot of things his consciousness could say about the situation. Moonie? Who the hell calls their friend Moonie?

It just kept its mouth shut on criticizing Kieran, appeasing the boy by agreeing with him.

"Yeahhh, your sister seems like a total buzzkill..."

The consciousness was half paying attention, its attention on the pair that was nearby still. Kieran's voice seemed to fade out, being replaced by their conversation:

"So, we found this mask," Carmine spoke, "And we wondered if you knew what it was?"

"My goodness! This is the Ogre's mask!" The raspy voice of Yukito exclaimed. This immediately caught its attention. It immediately tuned back into Kieran's ranting. It had to act fast; this was important.

"Shut it for a second." It snapped with urgency. Kieran was in shock for a moment, immediately taking offense to the command.

"Not you, too!" He whimpered, "Why is everyone hellbent on making me an enemy today—"

"Be quiet!" It's voice was louder in his head, cauaing Kieran to shrink. Before the boy could retort, it continued.

"I need you to zero in on their conversation. Be stealthy about it; I think you'll find out why they've been isolating you this way."

It was a fitting excuse. Kieran successfully met its demands, pressing his back against the wall. Focusing, the two could better hear what the three adults were talking about.

"It is extremely impressive the Ogre had dropped this," Yukito continued "You made the right choice in not telling Kieran."

Carmine frowned "Yeah. I feel really bad...he deserves to know, but like, if he found out the truth...."

The consciousness couldn't hear the rest, Kieran immediately piping up in a whisper.

"They're hiding from me-?! Just great! I mean come on, first you single me out, and now I understand why you're acting like I just killed your pet goldeen an—"

"Just shut it!" It cried desperately "We have to figure out what the hell they're talking about!"

Kieran rolled his eyes. "I dunno why YOU care. I mean come on, you yourself must be getting enjoyment out of my suffering!"

"No, you idiot," it snapped, "If we listen in on the conversation, we can...figure out the intel we need and get back at them! We need to find out the truth!"

Kieran shrugged, humming for a moment. "Ookay, but I don't know how it would help me..."

And so, the pair went back to listening.

Yukito began to explain how Kieran was a wise kid, that his intuition was very exceptional among the two siblings. However, Kieran was still young, and would rub the truth about the Ogre in their faces.

"If word got around that Ogerpon wasn't the villain of this story, not only would people look down upon him, but it would also be breaking a centuries-old tradition."

"Ogerpon isn't the evil one, and that's why I believe Kieran would get too excited at this idea and not be quiet about it." Yukito concluded. At this revalation, both girls gasped.

"You're joking!" Carmine exclaimed "So the Loyal Three aren't heroes?!"

Millie looked down at the mask, frowning. "Man, just when I wanted to tell Kieran about it. I understand, though."

Kieran grunted. "At least SHE thinks about me."

He had expected his consciousness to respond, but it stay quiet. Yukito continued,

"No matter what, you musn't tell Kieran about what we discussed. I can hold onto the mask while the two of you go fetch the crystal meeded to repair it." He explained. Carmine and Millie nodded.

"Alright! That shouldn't be too hard, right?" She looked over at Millie, who looked hesitant, but nodded.

"Uh- yeah- but aren't we supposed to not go to the Crystal Pool?" She asked "You told me outsiders weren't allowed-"

Carmine rolled her eyes.

"This is an exception, Mills! We have an Ogre to save!"

As the pair kept discussing their plans, Kieran felt furious. Why couldn't they trust him?! Sure, he was still younger than them, but that shouldn't be any different! And now, they're roping Millie into it! As he gripped the wall of the fence, he felt a sense of betrayal; why were they using Millie to do something he would have done with no questions asked?

His mind swam with so many thoughts. Befire they could get too deep, his consciousness piped up.

"Bad guys..." it grumbled "We'll show them bad guys."

Kieran noticed the tone shift. "Huh?"

It continued, "You know what, kid? I think you have a chance to prove yourself."

At that, Kieran looked around "I do?"

"Yeah! Just listen to me, and ask questions later!"

And with that, the two began to plot their way to victory. Deep within, his "consciousness" couldn't help but imagine what it would be like to gnab the masks for himself, being the richest person in the universe.

"Mammy and Pappy would be so proud~!"

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