Is there anything to my physical form… other than my source?

  The question bothered Mimikyu more than he really wanted to admit. Shadowy tendrils that might generously be referred to as arms snaked out from beneath the disguise, idly waiting in front of the eye slits so Mimikyu could get a good look at himself.

  Body parts that appear from nothing when I need them. Having so much trouble getting a handle on both moves and controlling the fear and enchantment that I put out. Such a weird reaction from Lucario.

  This isn’t the first one I’ve come across though, right? Shouldn’t the others have noticed something up with me? Or did they notice and simply not say anything? Cynthia’s has been suspicious of me from the start so keeping that on the down low while they investigate me could make sense. Maylene’s… I only saw that one for a minute or two and that was when all that mind stuff with Lucian was happening…

  The edges of his form felt indistinct. The center of his “arms” were dark, black, and shadowy, but the closer to the “outline” his gaze went the more it seemed to blur, becoming less solid and more like an actual shadow.

  What am I, really?

  That had been something he’d avoided since he woke up in those woods.

  The answer was simple, right? He was a Mimikyu now. He knew that he was a Ghost and Fairy type. That his performance in battles was never going to be outstanding, but Disguise could probably help him get out of some bad situations. He was a Pokemon, and if he wanted to really sell that then he should probably claim to be from Alola.

  But the answer was also anything but simple. Pokemon in and of themselves were such a foreign thing. Pikachu was a Mouse Pokemon that stored electricity in its cheeks, but having seen one in person there really was no comparing it to the sort of mouse he knew. They couldn’t even be rodents, given that they laid eggs. The biology of these creatures made no sense at all.

  Especially his own.

  He didn’t feel hunger. That had been kind of nice to learn, those first few days. Berries took a while to grow, and Pokemon eating other Pokemon wasn’t a completely foreign idea. He’d been terrified that he’d have to resort to such lengths all alone in the woods, but that moment had never come. He never felt the tell-tale gnawing in his stomach, desperate for food.

  Did he have a stomach? Eating could still be enjoyable, and he’d been eating berries and poffins and whatnot up until now to keep up the illusion of normality, but once the food entered his “mouth” it was like it vanished. There was never any… well, his best guess was that the food was somehow converted one to one directly into energy or something like that. Or maybe it was just cast into the void.

  That was just one of the many changes he’d suddenly been forced to adapt to. The dysphoria he felt when he’d first learned how to move this body instead of his body had been something fierce.

  He had learned to ignore it around the time that N stumbled into him.

  Here and now, though, with Lucario forcing the question of what he was to the forefront of his mind, it was like all those quiet thoughts of wrongness were being brought into the spotlight.

  He focused on the tentacles in front of him.

  If I can make claws, then normal hands should be possible right? I’ve been getting more control over these things lately.

  The shadows rippled and stretched and formed something that might be interpreted as fists, but when he tried to splay his fingers out it all fell apart, reverting to an amorphous blob of darkness.

  This isn’t me.

  “Mimikyu?”

  The tendrils retreated under the disguise, if only so he didn’t have to look at his most recent failure. But for once, he didn’t let them dissipate. He focused on them even beneath the disguise, carefully and cautiously bringing the ends of them closer to “him”, driven by the questions of N and Mimikyu about what his true form was like.

  “Mimikyu, are you okay?”

  Nothing felt solid. Nothing felt real. Shadow met shadow and they simply fell into each other, being absorbed back into the blob. What had he expected? He was made of shadows, a single shadow at that, of course they couldn’t interact like physical objects. And yet he could interact with the outside world. He could sit on N’s shoulder, he could Shadow Claw a Zubat, he could sew up the holes in his disguise.

  What am I, really?

  Maybe I’m a contradiction.

  A Pokemon that wasn’t a Pokemon. A living creature with no true form. Alive yet a ghost, alien yet not, A sea of shadow over a pink core instead of the blue aura that all living things held.

  Is it because of what I am? A Mimikyu? Or is it because of what I was?

  They’d been so confused about why he shrunk when he used “shadow sneak”. Even Fantina had only been able to say that he was using too much distortion.

  “Hey, can you hear me?”

  A Source is a pool of energy that Pokemon use to pull off moves.

  For Ghost types this means expelling distortion.

  Pikachu said his Source shrinks if he overuses it.

  I was never able to find my Source.

  Using “Shadow Sneak” makes me physically smaller.

  Dusknoir was able to tell I was a Fairy just by looking beneath the disguise.

  I could move again after Giratina restored my Source.

  A sea of shadow over a pink core…

  With all of that in consideration… can the coloration really be a coincidence?

  A pink core. A Fairy core. Surrounded by a sea of shadow that Giratina gave me. I don’t know enough about Aura to really understand it, but I doubt they’ve ever looked directly at someone’s Source before.

  I doubt they’ve ever seen someone who is nothing but a Source before.

  “Mimikyu!”

  The little fae was jostled out of his thoughts by N physically shaking his disguise. Everyone was staring at him, concern clear on their faces.

  “Are you okay? You completely zoned out there. If you don’t want to answer their questions you can just say no,” N reassured him.

  The two Aura users nodded in agreement, though Lucario looked slightly annoyed.

  “I…” Mimikyu slowly manifested a tendril in front of him once more.

  If looking straight at what’s hidden freaks people out, why is this not a problem if it’s all the same stuff? Is it diluted or something? Are the rumors and dex entries just because they’re looking at such a concentrated amount of distortion and whatever the Fairy stuff is?

  “...I’m fine. I jus’ need ta think ‘bout some things, is all.”

  Riley tipped his head. “I apologize if we made you uncomfortable with our questioning, we were simply curious.”

  Mimikyu waved it off. “No, no, it’s not yer fault. Ya jus’ made me consider some things that I hadn’ before.”

  N obviously wasn’t satisfied with that response, but with a sigh he backed away, trusting Mimikyu to know his limits.

  “Would you still be interested in checking out the restricted areas?” Riley asked. “I understand if you’d rather return to the mainland.”

  Mimikyu shook his head. “Nah, we might as well. Doubt we’ll ever be comin’ back ‘ere, would be pointless ta leave withou’ seein’ it.”

  “If you’re sure…” N probed, but when no response was given, he cupped his hands around his mouth, shouting out into the cave. “Lucas! Rotom! We’re moving deeper!”

  Mimikyu’s sudden freeze up was concerning. Maybe even beyond concerning, but at times it could be difficult to tell what constituted normal Mimikyu weirdness versus something he needed to actively take measures against.

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  Mimikyu seemed to be moving around just fine, though, and having that sort of conversation with two companions who were little more than strangers and could understand Mimikyu right next to them seemed ill-advised.

  And beyond that… it felt like they were being watched. The sound of stones scraping against each other and that wet smacking from earlier were growing louder, even if N couldn’t seem to spot the source.

  Though if Riley and Lucario had spotted them in the library from outside of it…

  “Riley, do you know what’s following us?”

  The man gave him a surprised look. “You noticed? I believe it’s a Sableye and Mawile, though they don’t seem to be together.”

  “The Sableye is clinging to the ceiling behind us and to the right, while the Mawile is hiding behind small boulders behind and to the left.” Lucario added after closing his eyes. The tassels on his head sprung up for a moment, so N assumed it was related to his so-called sixth sense.

  “A Mawile?!” Rotom buzzed. “Rotom will be using the rest of you as shields.” The announcement was punctuated by his phone floating up to the front of the group.

  “Why?” N asked. “Are they particularly territorial? Now I feel rude, just barging in here…”

  Riley laughed. “No, no, they’re both quite nice, they’re probably just curious. It’s not often such a large and unfamiliar group visits.”

  Lucas looked at him strangely, slowly pointing to each of them and tallying up the total on his fingers.

  “I mean large compared to what they normally get around here,” Riley clarified. “It tends to be individual trainers and their teams, at least since mining operations shut down.”

  “This is a pretty large group of humans,” Dusclops agreed. “Back home we’d only see groups this large every once in a great while.”

  N hummed. “If they’re curious then I wouldn’t mind meeting them. Do you think they’d be up to talk with us?”

  “It’s still so odd to think about a human actually talking with Pokemon, even if we’ve been watching you do it all day,” Lucario remarked. “But it could not hurt to ask.” The Fighting type turned on his heels and shouted out “Hey! You don’t have to hide, just come talk to them!”

  It was at that point that N remembered Rotom’s reaction. “So what’s actually concerning about Mawile?” That sort of reaction from a fellow Pokemon rather than some human whose only impression was pokedex entries held a bit more weight.

  He spotted the one on the ceiling first.

  Barely larger than a Pikachu, it had a fairly humanoid shape. Its flesh was solid purple, with claws taking the place of fingers and toes, sharp protrusions extending from its elbows and where ears might be. The eye catching part was the gemstones. Rather than the dull finishes that he was used to with Boldore and the like, it looked like Sableye actively polished its gems, two of them blue and one of them red on its back. Perhaps a ruby and some sapphires. Then it moved its head looking directly at them, and N was surprised to see that the eyes themselves were gems, looking almost like cut diamonds that would go in a wedding ring, if significantly larger.

  As the Sableye dropped from the roof of the cave unceremoniously, N’s eyes were drawn to the other Pokemon.

  It looked like a little girl. A bit taller than Sableye, yellow flesh expanded out into a split dress, reminding him a bit of Kirlia. The feet which were barely visible had black flesh along with the hands, which gave the appearance of gloves and boots. The round head, or what he assumed to be the head, was rather featureless, just plain yellow skin up until the hairline where it became black with two almost ponytail looking extensions hung, along with the most attention grabbing feature. Sticking out of the top of its head was a giant mouth. Long and slender, much like a Krokorok, a single yellow spot was featured on the black flesh, with sharp teeth occasionally poking out at odd angles. The mouth bounced as it ran towards them, an equally large tongue sliding over the lips.

  N supposed it must be hungry. Maybe he could give it some berries?

  “Stop right there!” Mimikyu suddenly demanded.

  The Sableye giggled and continued towards them, but the Mawile stopped, its giant maw frowning.

  “That right there is what’s concernin’, N,” his friend muttered before shouting. “We ain’chyer lunch! An’ I ain’ about ta battle ya either! Go ahead ‘n’ turn ‘round if ya wanna come meet us!”

  The Mawile turned around, revealing that the other side of the head had big red eyes and a tiny little mouth which was set in a pout. “Well you’re no fun…” She grumbled in a cute tone.

  “Rotom doesn’t see what not wanting to get eaten has to do with fun!” His phone shouted from the back of the group.

  Riley sighed. “We’ve talked about this with your group, haven’t we?”

  “You did, you did, I heard it!” Sableye nodded eagerly, his voice a painful mix between a rasp and grinding stones.

  Dusclops laughed. “I can’t say I don’t approve! You must really be something to give a Ghost a fright!”

  “Rotom wasn’t scared!”

  Nobody believed Rotom.

  Mawile only pouted harder. “But I’m hungry!” Her secondary mouth snapped in agreement, threads of drool hanging from it before dripping to the floor.

  “You could simply ask instead of trying to eat our guests,” Lucario sighed.

  “I’m hungry!” Sableye announced. “Give me rocks and gems and shiny things!”

  Mawile rolled her eyes. “Humans don’t eat that stuff, stupid!”

  Riley sighed. “Please don’t be rude, but you’re right that we don’t carry around gems to eat. Apologies, Sableye.”

  Lucas started digging through his bag for some reason.

  Sableye looked like a kicked Lillipup at that declaration, and Mawile shoved the purple Pokemon out of the way. “What about me? I eat human food! I’ll eat anything!” The extra mouth turned on its stem, smiling at them before opening wide. It was strange to see such a tiny throat at the back considering how large the mouth was…

  But that was N’s cue.

  “I could give you some berries if you’d like?”

  Her eyes lit up. “Oh! Gimme gimme gimme!” Her little hands reached up in a grabby motion and the giant mouth salivated even more, quickly forming a pool on the floor.

  “Yer a spoiled little brat, ain’cha…” Mimikyu muttered.

  “Like you wouldn’t believe,” Lucario agreed.

  As N started digging through his things, Lucas surprised the group by kneeling in front of the Sableye. In his hands was…a collection of gems? Reds, greens, blues and more of various quality and sizes clinked together as he held them out.

  N wasn’t sure he wanted to know where he had stolen them from.

  Sableye cared not for where his free meal had come from though, quickly snatching them up and shoving them in his mouth, sharp teeth munching down on the rocks to create a horrible sound that had them all cringing. “T-” crack “-ank youzsh!” crunch.

  “Those… you’ve visited the Sinnoh Underground then?” Riley inquired as N tried to zone out the awful noises and find those berries he had promised.

  Lucas must have nodded or something, because Riley continued with “I’m not much of a fan myself, but Roark loves it down there.”

  “Who is Roark?” Dusclops asked as N cautiously tossed a Pecha berry into Mawile’s gaping maw.

  Mawile’s pout returned as she stomped on the ground. “No! Me! My berries!”

  “Her… does it ‘ave a mind of its own? Or does she just not taste ‘em in there?” Mimikyu pondered.

  N was just as confused, but he didn’t see a problem with handing another Pecha to the Pokemon, careful to avoid the giant mouth.

  As Mawile squealed and dug into her treat, Riley answered Dusclops’ question. “Roark is the Gym Leader of Oreburgh City. He’s big into mining and Rock types.”

  N side eyed him. If he was familiar with Roark, that could be the League connection N had worried about. “You’re familiar with him?”

  Riley laughed. “You could say that. I was almost the Oreburgh Gym Leader! Old man Byron asked me to take the position, but I thought it’d be a little silly when his son was clearly the man for the job. Roark seems to be doing pretty well, so I’m glad I recommended him!”

  A potential Gym Leader who had turned down the job?

  N wasn’t sure if that added to or subtracted from his opinion of the man.

  He had turned it down, yes, but they thought him capable…

  Mimikyu hummed. “Byron, Byron… he’s the Gym Leader in Canalave, ain’ he? Steel types?”

  “Correct,” Lucario nodded. “It would have been awkward for Riley to accept the position given that I’m his ace. Especially with Maylene now leading Veilstone.”

  “What, ‘cuz of the type overlap? Does Sinnoh even care about that? I’m pretty sure Flint ‘as a Steelix, Drifblim, and a Lopunny, which is pretty odd for a Fire type Elite Four.” Mimikyu drawled.

  “Flint has a full Fire type team!” Riley defended.

  Rotom let out an electronic giggle. “He does now. Rotom remembers it being big news when he finally caught a Houndoom to finish off his team for Elite Four matches!”

  Lucario scoffed. “I don’t know why you bother defending him.”

  N watched as Lucas fed even more of the gems to Sableye, which was very strange given his hoarding behavior.

  Then he felt a tugging on his sleeve.

  “More! More berries!” Mawile demanded.

  “Don’cha know how ta ask politely ya little brat?” Mimikyu chided.

  Mawile paused, holding a hand up to her tiny mouth. “Hmmm. Give me more or I’ll eat you and your berries!”

  Dusclops burst out laughing.

  “See!” Rotom shouted. “Rotom was right to keep distance!”

  Sableye turned to her, still chewing on gems. “Say-” crunch “-please!”

  Riley face-palmed. “While that’s correct, you didn’t either and talking with your mouth full is just as rude.”

  Mawile stuck her tongue out as Sableye before stuffing a Chesto in her mouth, N not seeing the point in waiting to give it to her.

  Her face scrunched up and she spat it out. “Ew! That’s so dry!”

  “What happened ta eatin’ anythin’?!” Mimikyu demanded.

  She looked at Mimikyu like he was particularly dense. “That’s for that mouth, not mine!”

  As the group devolved into bickering and N went about picking out another sweet berry, he couldn’t help but think that this is not how he expected a trip to an abandoned mine to go.

  Been building towards this for a long time. Rennlos in the discord almost had it back in 2023, though he thought the ghost source was under the costume and the costume itself was the fairy source.

  As always, feedback is appreciated. (If you’re actually looking for a response, discord is the place to be)