Searching In The Forest
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The forest was dark and quiet. It had been a long time since the last person passed through, but it seemed that no one would be coming for some while yet; there were still plenty of berries to pick from in this part of the woods.
A few birds chirped here or there as they flew overhead on their way somewhere else, but otherwise, all was silent except for the rustling leaves underfoot. There wasn’t much light at first – just enough so she could see where her feet went without tripping over anything too large.
She didn’t want to risk breaking any branches if she couldn’t find them again later when she needed something sharpened up with fire magic. That wouldn’t do anyone good…
She walked along slowly, picking out small sticks and twigs off the ground every now and then before putting them into her pocket once more. They’d make great kindling eventually, though not right away.
If she wanted to start a campfire tonight, she might have to go back home after finishing what she came here for instead of staying overnight like usual. Maybe tomorrow night? Or maybe next week…? Who knew how far ahead these people were planning things by now anyway?
All she really cared about was getting paid well enough to buy herself new clothes and whatever other supplies she thought she might need soon. And food! Food always helped keep you going longer than most other items did.
Especially if your stomach started growling loudly whenever someone mentioned money around you.
“I wonder why I’m doing this…”
It’s because my parents are dead, isn’t it?! Why am I even thinking about such stupid stuff anymore!? What does it matter who killed them? No one knows me better than myself anyways, so let alone whoever murdered them!
So stop asking yourself questions that don’t mean anything and focus on finding those damn coins already! You’re wasting precious time talking to yourself like an idiot!!
That voice inside her head sounded familiar somehow. But she ignored it completely and kept walking forward until finally reaching the edge of the trees surrounding her village. Her eyes scanned across everything carefully, looking for any sign of movement or life within its walls.
Nothing stood out immediately, which made sense considering everyone should’ve gone to sleep hours ago. Even if they hadn’t slept yet, surely they weren’t awake either unless they absolutely had to be. After all, the sun only rose high above the horizon during certain times of day depending on whether it was summer or winter.
This meant that dawns usually happened early in spring and late autumn while nights tended to happen earlier in both summers and winters. As for days themselves, they generally lasted anywhere between six to eight hours each regardless of the season.
Though sometimes shorter ones occurred due to bad weather conditions or other factors.
But none of that mattered right now. Not compared to the fact that she needed to get inside quickly before anyone noticed her presence outside. Once she got close enough, she began searching for a place to hide nearby. Anywhere would work fine as long as she could stay hidden from view.
Then she remembered seeing a pile of logs lying near the entrance to the village several months prior. Perfect! Now all she needed to do was climb atop them and wait patiently for morning to come. Hopefully, nobody saw her leave.
Otherwise, she’d probably end up being chased down and dragged back home kicking and screaming. Which is exactly what she hoped wouldn’t happen.
A sudden gust of wind blew past her face, causing her hair to flutter behind her. She looked up towards the sky briefly before turning back to look at the ground beneath her feet. Thankfully, nothing caught onto her clothing or skin as she continued moving forwards.
Soon enough, however, she reached the base of a tree and stopped abruptly. Something felt wrong. Wasn’t there supposed to be another log here? Where did it go? Did somebody move it recently? Wait… How can I know for sure if it moved or not? Unless… Oh yeah! I’ll use Fire Magic to burn away the grass underneath it to reveal the truth!
Her hands instinctively grabbed hold of the nearest branch, hoisting herself upwards until she found a sturdy spot upon which to rest. From there, she pulled out a piece of wood from her bag and held it tightly against the bark of the trunk below.
Using her free hand, she took a deep breath and focused on channeling mana into her body. When she exhaled, flames burst forth from her mouth, burning away the greenish-brown vegetation covering the area directly beneath the log. With a loud crackle, the entire thing fell backward, revealing the charred remains of the previous layer of earth.
“Oh wow!” she exclaimed excitedly, jumping down off the tree. “Lookie here! Someone must’ve taken care of this little problem for us.”
The sight of the burnt patch of land caused her heart to skip a beat momentarily. It wasn’t much but it still gave her hope that perhaps no one else had seen her leaving the village just yet. That was good news since it meant she didn’t have to worry about running into anybody when trying to sneak back inside.
The last thing she wanted to deal with was having to fight off some angry villagers who decided to chase her down and drag her home again.
With that said, she couldn’t help feeling nervous about entering the village itself. Would someone see through whatever disguise she used to make herself appear human? Or maybe they were too busy sleeping to notice something strange happening around their homes?
Either way, she knew she shouldn’t take chances by waiting any longer. If she stayed put any further, then she might miss the opportunity to enter unnoticed altogether. And she definitely didn’t want to risk that. Especially after how hard she worked to find these coins.
They belonged to her family, so she deserved to keep them safe. Besides, she also owed it to them to try and discover more information regarding their deaths. Who killed them, where they hid the money, and why did they choose to kill themselves instead of living without knowing the answers to those questions. All of that was important to her, especially given the circumstances.
She glanced over at the pile of logs once again. Maybe she should start climbing up there first? There was always the chance that someone else came along and burned away part of it while she waited. In this case, hiding somewhere closer to the entrance would be safer.
Plus, it allowed her to avoid getting spotted from afar. But even though she thought both options sounded like viable choices, neither seemed particularly appealing to her. After all, she already risked everything in order to reach this point. Why stop now?
Better to stick with plan A than to change things up halfway through. At least that’s what she told herself anyway.
Taking a deep breath, she closed her eyes and concentrated on using Air Magic to lift herself higher into the air. Her arms stretched outwards as far as possible, forcing her muscles to strain under the pressure of holding her weight above the ground.
Eventually, she managed to pull herself high enough to grab hold of a low-hanging branch. Then she slowly climbed upwards, reaching the top of the tree within seconds. As soon as she made it safely to the other side, she let go of the branch and landed softly on the ground.
Now all she needed to do was walk straight ahead until she reached the edge of the forest. Once she arrived, she’d turn left and begin walking towards the center of town. Hopefully, nobody would catch sight of her during the process. Otherwise, she wouldn’t get very far.
Not only could she expect trouble from whoever saw her, but she doubted anyone would believe her story about being an adventurer looking for work. Even if they believed her, they probably wouldn’t hire her because of her age. This is exactly why she planned on lying about her identity.
Nobody would ever suspect a young girl of wanting to become a hero. So long as she played her cards right, she stood a decent chance of making it out of the village alive.
***
After spending several minutes wandering aimlessly through the streets, she finally began seeing signs of life. People go about their daily business, carrying baskets full of goods or pushing carts filled with foodstuffs.
Some of them stopped to talk to each other, laughing loudly before continuing onwards. Others simply walked past her without saying anything. She noticed most of them kept their heads lowered, avoiding eye contact whenever possible. Most likely due to fear of drawing attention to themselves.
While she understood their reasoning, she wished people weren’t afraid of strangers. It felt wrong somehow. Like everyone was missing out on something special by not talking to others. Something that could potentially enrich their lives.
Eventually, she found herself standing outside a small shop selling various types of fruit. Although it looked fairly run-down compared to the rest of the buildings surrounding it, she figured it was worth checking out. Perhaps somebody working there would know something useful about the situation in the village.
Of course, she hoped they did. Because otherwise, she really had nothing else to rely upon besides luck.
Stepping inside, she immediately took note of the large number of customers browsing the shelves behind the counter. Many of them appeared to be children, picking out items to buy for lunch. One boy, in particular, caught her interest.
He was tall and thin, wearing a dark blue tunic covered by a brown leather vest. His hair fell neatly across his forehead, giving him the appearance of someone older than he actually was. Yet despite that fact, she sensed something familiar about him.
Wasn’t he the same person she met earlier today? The one who gave her directions to the inn? That must have been it! This was the kid she bumped into back when she entered the woods. Only now, did she realizes just how much taller he’d grown since then.
“Excuse me,” she called out, hoping to attract his attention. “Do you happen to remember bumping into another woman here?”
The boy turned around, staring down at her curiously. For some reason, she got the impression that he wasn’t expecting anybody to approach him quite yet. Or maybe he didn’t recognize her after all. Either way, she decided to take advantage of the opportunity and introduce herself properly.
If she wanted to find out more information about the villagers’ current state of mind, she might need to make friends with him sooner rather than later. And judging by the look on his face, she knew she couldn’t afford to wait any longer.
“I’m sorry, I don’t think we’ve officially met.”
He smiled politely, nodding slightly.
“My name’s Roxy. What are yours?”
She held out her hand, waiting patiently while he shook hers firmly. Afterward, she released it quickly so he wouldn’t feel uncomfortable. Now that she thought about it, this was the first time she’d shaken hands with a man.
Normally, she avoided doing such things unless absolutely necessary. But considering what she intended to do next, she figured it was best to start getting used to the idea. Especially given how many men she expected to meet over the coming days.
“You can call me Sam. Nice to formally greet you, Miss…Roxy.”
His voice sounded surprisingly mature for someone of his apparent age. Maybe it was because he spoke like a nobleman instead of a commoner. In which case, perhaps she should stop assuming every single villager in the area was poor.
There were plenty of wealthy families living nearby too, even though they seemed reluctant to show off their wealth openly. At least, that’s what she assumed based on the clothes they wore. They certainly weren’t dressed in rags.
On the contrary, they always managed to appear well put together no matter where she went. Their clothing was clean and neat, never falling apart or showing obvious wear and tear. As a result, she suspected these people spent a lot of money maintaining their appearances.
Whether it came from their own pockets or those belonging to their parents, she couldn’t say. All she knew for certain was that none of them appeared destitute enough to live in poverty.
Still, she wondered whether they considered themselves rich. Given how little they interacted with outsiders, it probably depended entirely on their perspective. Which meant she needed to learn as much about them as possible if she ever planned to get anywhere.
Otherwise, she risked wasting valuable time trying to figure everything out on her own. Not only would it slow down progress, but also risk exposing herself unnecessarily. Considering how few people lived near the forest, she doubted anyone would notice her absence right away. Still, she preferred to err on the side of caution. Better safe than sorry.
“So, why exactly did you come looking for me?”
Sam glanced up at her questioningly before answering.
“Well, my father told me to go shopping for food supplies. So naturally, I headed straight towards the market district. Unfortunately, I ran into an old friend along the way. She asked me to help her pick out some ingredients for dinner tonight. It seems she has plans to cook us both a meal.”
That explained why he hadn’t recognized her until now. Even though they’d spoken briefly yesterday, he still remembered meeting her once already. Apparently, he had good memories associated with the encounter. A pleasant surprise, especially since most people tended not to recall anything about strangers.
Then again, there were exceptions to almost every rule. Just ask Professor Oak, who could easily recite the names of hundreds of Pokémon without batting an eye. Of course, he usually reserved that ability for himself alone.
No doubt he kept track of everyone he encountered during his travels. Though he rarely shared details about his past, he often mentioned having traveled far and wide throughout Kanto. That included places outside of Hoenn, including Sinnoh and Unova.
He claimed to have seen countless sights across the region, making sure to keep detailed records whenever possible. The professor was clearly passionate about his work. Perhaps someday, he’d share more stories with her. Until then, she hoped he’d continue helping her learn more about the world beyond Pallet Town.
“Sounds fun! You know, cooking is one of my favorite hobbies. My mother taught me how to prepare meals when I was young. Ever since I’ve been eager to try new recipes. Sometimes, I’ll even experiment with different spices just to see what happens!”
Her enthusiasm surprised him somewhat. Most people reacted negatively upon hearing about her hobby. Some found it disgusting, others simply refused to believe it existed. Others still believed it was impossible, despite being proven wrong repeatedly.
Yet here she stood, proudly proclaiming her love for preparing delicious dishes. Granted, she made it sound like a chore, but nobody else saw things quite the same way. For whatever reason, she enjoyed spending hours chopping vegetables, stirring pots and mixing various sauces.
And yet, she didn’t seem bothered by any of it. Instead, she took pride in her efforts, claiming each dish tasted better than the last. If nothing else, she proved to be a very interesting person indeed. One whose passion for life shone through brightly, regardless of the circumstances.
The End