it's suffering o' clock

- What kind of person are you?

I'm...well, still a kid! I would go to a normal school, but, uh, stuff happened, and then some MORE stuff happened, so I was suddenly going to school at a trainer school! Over here. And it turns out that I'm really, really good at that stuff (once I caught up with everyone else). That's just what I am though, but who I am...

Uh, I'm still a kid! A hard working kid with a lot of gutso! I would have to have gutso, otherwise things...could have gotten complicated! So I guess I...feel like I have to have guts, which might be different from just having them? Lots of pressure! I am pressured! But despite being pressured into being the best, I still love my Pokemon! I can appreciate their company! ...It beats being alone, for sure!


- What was your life like before... well, whatever happened happened?

It was...I don't want to talk about it.

Y-you're saying I have to? And that no one else is listening? ...I...I guess...? F-Fine.

Mom was hospitalized, she got hurt really badly. Couldn't leave the bed, everyone called it really depressing. I had to stay with Grandma, but I would visit every time I had the chance! ...They'd call that depressing, too! ...Actually, I was an orphan to begin with, she just adopted me! I don't clearly remember what life was like before those times, but it was OK when she picked me up! I would visit Mom every chance I got, and she'd always have something cool prepared for me, every time! She'd also keep in touch with Grandma over the phone, and I didn't have a phone yet cause we couldn't afford one but we would still talk a lot and--

Oh, and I had black hair. That was a thing! I actually kind of like this aqua hair, though! Can we stop talking about this now?


- Who were your friends? What was your day-to-day life like?

T-that's a no, huh? ...Well, truth be told, I didn't hang out with a lot of people. I had...a lot of sympathizers, but that isn't the same. I did go to school with some people from my orphanage, though, so I hung out with! There was Ayano, who was actually pretty smart about fashion for his (yes, his) age and basically drew my outfit (and then Mom commissioned an actual version from the picture!!!), Akira who was a HUGE nerd with the big round glasses (she wants to look like a smart person and Ayano helped with that too) and helped me study cause I spent a lot of time not studying, Aimi who actually got adopted kind of quickly but we still kept in touch, and all of our names started with A and it was funny, cause we're all smart and we got a lot of A's, except me because I never really got the chance to study, it was B's and C's for me! So close! Mom tells me I should study more, but she doesn't make a super huge deal about it. Like, it's really, really serious, but it isn't 'study or I won't hang out with you' serious. It's like, 'you have to do good in school so you can do cool things later'!

I think I made my day-to-day life clear earlier, but there were times where my friends would visit Mom with me! She might be stuck in bed, but she's somehow still got energy to have fun with everyone! And there were times that I just hung out with my friends too!

And before you ask 'why water', well! Before Mom got hurt, we would always go to the beach! It was a lot of fun! And even when we couldn't go anywhere anymore, she'd get me into aquariums and stuff. People made comparisons about the aquarium and her current state and called it sad, but...it's all still...beautiful, right? Plus, it's a good type! Has only two weaknesses, and each can be easily covered!

OK but seriously can we stop now?


- What was settling down in this world like for you?

Oh, you ask the worst questions! You're the worst! Asking pointed questions like this is still really mean, even if you're not asking them for anyone! Hmph!

...B-but I'll say that it wasn't easy. It wasn't easy at all. Cause I like...just...remember. I remember what it was like. And suddenly, I wake up in someone else's bed, to the face of two complete strangers that were convinced that I was their daughter. ...I adapted pretty quickly, cause car trips were a good time to play handhelds, and it became clear that I was in some sort of fantasy world! And then it became clear that I was in the realm of Pokemon. I, uh, had to get the hang of things really, really fast. Weirdly enough, I had the same name as the person I apparently replaced? And thankfully I remembered enough about Pokemon to...actually end up smarter compared to the kids here in a lot of ways, though I was also kind of wrong in a few too. I was similar, but definitely different. So I got questioned about it and I JUST VAGUELY DESCRIBED MEWTWO I'M NOT GOOD AT LYING OK and they eventually let it slide while giving me weird looks.

...You might think 'oh, she's lucky to not have a single bedridden parent but instead have two parents', but...I was different than their own, they should have noticed. ...They never talked about it. They loved me, yeah...but, well, I'm going on a Pokemon journey soon. Who just sends their kids out like this, anyway? Mom never got why the parents of a lot of game characters just kinda let them go outside like that. ...It just feels so...weird. I'd think it was a dream, but I just keep...waking up! It is nice to be really good at something, though. Once I figured out the details, I was the very, very best in my class! I'm not sure if I'm dreaming or not, and I don't know how to get back home, but...would she be happy if I were happy here? ...I don't know. I don't know.


- How do you feel about this new world? About the world you came from?

I don't know if this world is a dream or not. I...don't know. I don't know. What I do know is that if I'm stuck here, I'm not going to waste my life! Gonna be a Gym Leader! ...But I don't want to leave my mom alone. I don't! ...I don't want to hurt my Pokemon either, though, and I don't want to give them up...we're all so...strong together! ...And while my other parents were slightly detached, they still loved me like one of their own...and there were two! ...Is this escapism? I don't even know if this is a dream or not! ...Just gonna keep going though! Something will become clear eventually! Nothing is wrong! This is fine!