[Video]

[servedup]

[The Pokegear doesn't show anything but a view of the sky. But off screen, the sounds of a woman crying can be heard.]

No... no... change me back! I don't want this!

[By all means, she should be happy that she's here - alive and safe - but she's been through a lot in the past few hours. Giving her a human form is just insult to injury, and she's horrified by her new body.

This isn't what she wanted. She wanted to go home.]

Comments

[zenryokubatankyu]

[Probably not. He's more of a 'release to the ocean' type.]

Padak-chan. Okay. That's a pretty name!

...You're not? What are you supposed to be, then?

[His voice remains gentle, trying to understand.]

[servedup]

[Should she tell him? She guesses it doesn't matter anymore. She's no longer a fish.]

I'm a mackerel. My home is in the ocean, but I was taken from the ocean by humans.

[zenryokubatankyu]

[Well, this isn't the weirdest thing he's heard in his lifetime. Totoko-chan was a fish idol, after all...]

A mackerel, huh?

[Hmmm. He tries to think of some proper words.]

...I'm sorry that happened. That's gotta be scary. I'm...kinda scared too, since this place took me away from my home and my family, and then that happened to you - twice, I guess? I know it might be sorta hard to rationalize stuff right now, and you might not trust me yet...take a deep breath. You're okay, at least. You're alive.

Which is usually a plus, I think.

[servedup]

I watched my friends die. I saw their heads being cut off, their guts being ripped out...

[Scary doesn't even begin to cover the horrors she saw in that tank.]

All by humans who didn't care.

[zenryokubatankyu]

[Oh, jeez...that's grim.
He bites his lip, then shakes his head.]

That is...I can't even imagine. I am so sorry that happened to you. Legitimately. But I promise you - even if it's probably hard to believe me, a human - that not all humans are like that. Not all humans don't care.

....And it's probably worse because you're....

[He winces.]

...You have all the right in the world to be scared. To not trust anyone. But it's worse to be alone...I might not be the ideal guy to help right now since I just got here myself, but I swear, on my life, that nothing bad'll happen from now on. That can't fix anything. But...I'm at least here to try to help? To listen, at least.

[servedup]

[She's not sure whether or not to trust that. She can't just write off what she went through - especially in her final moments. Humans put her through that. It wasn't the same as being eaten by a bigger fish. It's the feeling of being trapped, waiting for a painful and gruesome death.]

... Are you saying that because I'm human now? Would you still feel that way if you saw me in that tank?

[zenryokubatankyu]

[He bites the inside of his cheek.]

I don't really eat fish, so yeah, probably?

[He doesn't that often, at least, and he'd feel too awful if he saw a living one first.]

I mean, I wouldn't be able to tell you as much, because I don't speak fish, but yeah. I get it if you can't take me at my word, though.

[servedup]

Then... you are kinder than most humans I've seen.

[There's some hesitation in her voice, unsure if she should believe him.]

What's your name? Do you have one?

[zenryokubatankyu]

...I'm sorry you haven't seen many kind ones, then.

[He smiles a little bit.]

Osomatsu. Nice to meet'cha~

[servedup]

My name's Padak. At least, that's what the fish in my... tank... called me.

[zenryokubatankyu]

Padak-chan! That's a pretty name~!! So I'll call you that, too.

But yeah, things should be mostly fine now. If you need any help, so much as I can give you any, I will!

[servedup]

[Osomatsu's too kind. It's a little overwhelming to deal with, considered her only interactions with humans was a brutal one. But it's different now - she's a human now too.]

Maybe you can help me now. [She thinks for a moment, but she already knows what she wants to ask.]

Where can I see more of the ocean?

[zenryokubatankyu]

More of the ocean...

Have you tried the beach? I think there's a beach not too far from where you are!

[servedup]

There is?

[There's a cautiously hopeful tone in her voice. She's so close...]

How do I get there?

[zenryokubatankyu]

Should be a map on your device there, I think?
Check it.