When Lightning Strikes

Past: Runaway

She'd been born and raised on Ula'Ula island outside Tapu Village and near the desert, growing up with her mother, father, and older brother Arti in a dumpy but decent trailer park. In reality though, Arti had been both a mother and father to her. Their parents had a taste for beer and wine, and were both evangelistic about Tapu Bulu. Every time something went wrong or they were raving mad, they'd scream at them about how Tapu Bulu would condemn them and wipe them off the face of the earth because of their disobedience, just like how Tapu Village had been demolished years ago by him. Their neighbor, Boro, let them stay at her place during the day and would feed them too.

When Arti and her asked Boro why their parents talked and threatened them with Tapu Bulu so much, she told them that it was because they were bitter. "They longed to take on the Island Challenge," she explained. "But they never got the guardian's blessing of the Z-Ring that let them do that. They waited for a very long time but, in the end, they remained here."

"Can't you be a trainer and not have the ring?" she had asked. An odd thought but on that had buzzed in her head for a while.

"In some cases yes," Boro answered, "but for your parents... I don't their hearts will ever attract pokemon. They've gone cold and hard for too long."

One thing that Boro would do though, is take them hiking on Mount Lanakila. And one day, while they were playing on the mountain, Arti saw a pokemon—a Sneasle. Arti was just sitting and watching it where it was eating, and then it looked over and saw him. They stared at each other a long time before the Sneasle got up and went over to it with some of its food. Boro was amazed to see how docile the pokemon was with Arti, and she let him play with it. When it came time to go, the Sneasle followed them back down.

"Auntie!" she had said. "I think Sneasle wants to be friends with Arti!"

"Reeda," Arti said. "You know our parents wouldn't let us keep him."

"Trubbish," Boro responded. "It's obvious that this Sneasle chose you because your heart is pure, and letting him go would be pointless and it'd hurt his feelings."

"Boro, I'm sorry but— "

Boro gave him a pokeball. "He can stay with me when you have to go home, dear child."

She laughed at how shocked Arti's face was. "See Arti? I knew she'd figure something out."

Arti smiled, taking the pokeball and offering it to the Sneasle, who joined him without any hesitation.

She was ten at that time, and Arti was thirteen. Later on, however, their parents decided that Arti should go to the trainer school on Melemele Island to receive some education. Arti was worried about her then, but she told him that she'd be okay.

"But, Reeda, what if—'

"It's not like we never got hurt before, Arti." She put a hand on his shoulder. "I'll be okay, I promise."

"You understand I won't be there to protect you. You know that?"

Reeda pulled him close to her. "I'll be okay," she lied. "I promise."

Arti squeezed her. "I know your lying Reeda... but I'll trust you all the same."

He studied at the trainer school for two years with Fang the Sneasle, sending letters to Reeda and even small gifts. In one letter, he had attached a package with a variety of items, and in the letter he told her what each item was and what it was for. They were all gifts she kept hidden from her parents since she knew a lot of what her brother sent was rare and hard to come by. His best find was a Razor Claw, and he had revived it as a gift for scoring highest in the class, and he wanted her to have it "because I'm horrible at loosing important things, whereas you never seem to lose anything." She wore it as a necklace, hiding it under her shirt in the day and under her pillow at night.