FicWad

Brock smiled as he walked into Pewter City. It had been a long time since he had left, and it felt very good to be home.

He adjusted his pack on his shoulders, smiling despite the oppressive weight. It had been a long and painful journey, bittersweet as any... But now that it was over, it was time to move on. Time to recover, time to heal, and time to start the next journey-one that would not nearly be so hard on his back or his feet.

"Brock."

He looked around, puzzled. I could see the figurative gears turning in his brain. He had heard nothing, and yet someone had clearly said his name. That meant that there was a psychic present, and he could think of only one that would be in Kanto...

I stepped out into the path and waved, making sure to mask what little of me showed to all the other humans.

"Hey Mewtw-"

"We're in public."

Brock put a hand on the back of his head. "Sorry. I'm used to seeing you in the remote regions of nowhere."

"I shouldn't have just jumped out like that."

Brock walked up to me. "You sound great."

"Aside from the usual, guilt-fear-angst, I feel it too."

He smiled, his slit eyes actually closed. "You've come a long way."

"Something altogether possible when you have friends."

We walked in silence for a moment. I was surprised at how independently our minds both drifted to the same topic... indeed, how similar we were to begin with. I had never thought of Brock as being like me... and yet now that I saw him alone I could see the same wall that lay in my mind, hiding something as horrible as mine...

"Have you heard from Ash?"

"We were on the same boat out to Johto."

"I thought you were following us," Brock said with a smirk.

"Somehow, you were always the most aware of me. In every sense of the concept."

"So, how is Ash doing?"

I sighed. "He's mostly switched personalities with me, as odd as it is. I'm the optimistic bubbly traveler, and he's the angry, sad creature obsessed with destiny and seeking some measure of peace out in the mountains."

Brock looked down. I hadn't realized just how much Ash's predicament hurt him.

"Misty's going to talk to him. With some time... and some care... he'll be fine. Just like I was."

"You and he are a lot different. He was never abused."

My tiny jaw dropped, and I looked over at my friend.

"You never told me, no, but I could tell. I mean, I want to be a Pokémon breeder. I should be able to identify abused Pokémon on the spot. And I can."

I blinked. Was Brock an empath, or just extremely good at reading nonverbal cues and subtext?

"You lashed out at humans because at least one human hurt you. You hide from humans because at least one human hurt you. And you don't talk about it because it hurts too much to think about. You keep it bottled up and don't let anyone in, except for Ash, because he's so impossibly good and kind that you just can't help yourself." Brock shook his head. "You're not a Pokémon, Mewtwo. You're practically human."

We walked in silence for a moment. "Not long ago, I would have been insulted. But thanks, Brock."

He considered something. "We should hang out some time. Somewhere where no one can see, so you can take off that cloak and be yourself."

I smiled. "I would like that."

"Want to come to my house right now? You can meet my family... I'll ask them to keep your secret."

"You know I can't do that," I said, surprised at the almost whining tone I had taken.

"Well, then keep in touch... and take care of yourself, alright?"

"I shall." I turned around and started walking the other way. At least he wasn't angry with me. At least one of them wasn't angry with me...

"Oh, Mewtwo?"

I turned around. He was standing there, waiting for me.

"Not just Pokémon get abused, you know." As he prepared another sentence, an image popped up in his mind... a blue and purple horror that I did not care to see in its entirety. "Pokémon and humans... are a lot a like."