The Grand Conserve asked only a few more follow-up questions. The questions led to the idea that she was actually critical of Oracle's inability to endure her own natural abilities. That simply experiencing two visions in a single day should not have affected a veteran Xatu as much as it seemed to. But she never asked about the specifics or precisely what Oracle experienced. Tristan didn't bother to argue with the Grand Conserve to talk Oracle up. In fact, the Grand Watcher chimed in with her opinions that some Xatu experienced harsher visions than others or experienced visions less often than one might assume. Regardless, the Grand Conserve mattered little to him and she could have her little opinions based on little more than bias.
Curiously, she seemed unbothered by the mention of Samantha and Asuna. Tristan noticed she underlined something at their mention. Did they already know about them? Did they already know about Ms. Shade? No, that couldn't be. If they did, they could easily know he was working for Lady Fairfax. What struck Tristan the most was that it appeared as if she expected the mention of Pisces. She looked up at Tristan but kept a straight face. She looked - bored? How much did they know? Or did she simply not believe him and thought he was spreading a conspiracy?
When Tristan mentioned security detail for his family, Forrest's head snapped toward him. He looked at Tristan with wide eyes and then whipped his head toward the Master General. He stayed that way as the Master General confirmed that he could offer resources to be stationed around both of their families. It looked like he was staring through the wall behind the Master General even as he was prompted to respond. It seemed Forrest didn't listen to anything that was said. But he grunted in a kind of passive affirmation.
The Master General clarified that the both of them were to investigate these two locations together, that Tristan was in charge of finding and gathering information and Forrest was to be the muscle. He stressed that Forrest had to listen to and obey Tristan, but he seemed to not react.
Ether couldn't help but probe into his mind if only to make sure he wasn't going insane or plotting anything disastrous. He expected to see Forrest daydreaming about destroying buildings and beating people to death. But he was surprised. He was met with images of his family - his wife and his children and his parents and his father-in-law and his childhood friend and his childhood friend's grandmother. "
They can't know. They're going to be killed," repeated in his head over and over. Perhaps he
was going insane.
When Tristan stopped Forrest to discuss some things alone, Forrest stared at the floor and hardly blinked. Tears welled up in his eyes. Ether verified that his mind was consumed with concern for his family and loved ones. Forrest was terrified. Could someone so large and imposing and skilled be terrified? Is this what that looked like? Tristan felt a mix of comfort knowing Forrest wasn't taking this lightly, but he couldn't help but sympathize as he thought about his own family and loved ones. Forrest simply grunted a kind of affirmation again. Tristan didn't press Forrest and went to leave the headquarters to allow Forrest the time to digest the situation they found themselves in.
When Tristan reached reception, he was provided a modestly-sized box that was full of medicines. The Ranger thanked Tristan for his work and watched as Tristan teleported away.
----------
It'd been a while since Tristan visited Fallarbor Town. It appeared as idyllic as he remembered. Without ash raining down from Mt. Chimney, the oranges and yellows and browns were elegant and peaceful and relaxing. The air was notably cooler with the constant western breeze that passed through the town. It nearly didn't register to Tristan that he found the refugee camp. Tents and canopies were set up down a street off the main road. It was quiet and calm even among the refugees.
It was clear that most of them were unaware of what happened in Rustboro. Fallarbor was definitely the stereotypical "sleepy town." It didn't surprise him, now, to consider that the citizens had no reaction to seeing Jonton - they likely had no idea nor cared who he was.
Tristan found he had mostly been sight-seeing and ended up not finding any clues that pointed anywhere in particular. However, he did find where the forest started and considered where one might hide a safehouse in them.
----------
His mother was mildly concerned but expressed pride that her son was going to such great lengths to help out after the Mauville Attack. She asked to see Oracle when Tristan asked about her to get started on the process. The memory sparked of seeing a pattern in the stars that only happened once every one thousand years and wondered if that might have anything to do with it.
His father seemed more understanding of what everything actually meant, if only because Tristan didn't bother to try to downplay everything as much. He seemed to eagerly agree to the request. He admitted that they'd been looking into the Pokemon recently due to current astronomical phenomenon they had been observing recently. He admitted that they got most of their information from Madam Inderasa in Rustboro.
Percival took the news harder than Tristan's own parents, it seemed. He already didn't like that Tristan was a Private Investigator. Percival often had an exaggerated idea of what Tristan would have to do - but it was accurate this time. They both knew that. But at Tristan's request to watch over his parents, he knew how to distract Percival from himself enough to not be guilted into inaction.
Persephone was quite grim in her reception of the information. She looked solemn and sad for Tristan, but knew better than try to dissuade him or beg him to stay. Instead she offered to chat with him about the recent goings-on in Mossdeep over tea.
----------
"Well, what kind of help do you need?" Lois asked, incredulous that she could do anything.
"Information and resources, Lois," Bingham said with a yawn as if he was both tired from being woken up and tired of Lois' obtuseness.
"Victory Road is shut down for the time being, anyway. I can stake out Fallarbor Town for you and try to get a head start when you get there," Fredrick said.
"Oh, me too!" Lois said gleefully. She was too much like Forrest - that's who Forrest reminded him of.
"Then I can go back to sleep now," Bingham said and didn't ask. "If I think of anything, I'll reach out," he said and disconnected the call.
Lois disconnected after she expressed her excitement and enthusiasm for preparing. Fredrick asked a couple more follow-up questions about the Fallarbor locale, specifically. It admittedly wasn't much to go on, and he wasn't a private investigator. But being a researcher, he had the mind for discovery and puzzles enough to not sow any doubt in Tristan.
----------
When Tristan left the room, he stood there - still and silent. His mind continued to race of the possibilities he didn't want to consider but had to consider. Shaq'ti popped out of her Pokeball and gently took Forrest's hand. He eventually turned to her with eyes and cheeks red and tear streaks down his cheeks. She tried to extend a calming energy over him that she felt was instinctually rejected. She breathed deeply and teleported them some distance away from the house so he could have some time to compose himself.
Two Land Rangers teleported much closer to the house before he even started walking. When Forrest got close enough to hear what they were saying, he heard Major White explain to Jeanne how, because she was a de-facto Gym Leader and Forrest's mother was the head of the Academy and his father was a lead researcher, that they could just as well be targets of the terrorist organization they had discovered was behind the Mauville Attack. They didn't mention that Forrest was involved at all or that he was about to leave on a highly dangerous mission very soon.
Forrest played along and thanked the both of them. Jeanne did what she always did and made them as comfortable as she could in her house. Forrest stood still and looked at his wife as she puttered around. She was such a kind and strong woman. How sad it would be -
Elizabeth ran into him for a hug and to show her the little Surskit she'd found just past the tree line. They both knew that she wasn't allowed to go that far, but he was impressed and praised her, regardless. She wanted to keep it but Forrest encouraged she let it go back to its home - that it was probably scared. If it wanted to stay with her, then of course she could keep it. His chest warmed at the thought she would take after him, but in her own way.
He glanced back at Jeanne. His eyes burned. He held back his tears.
Forrest went back outside into the gardens to find where Rowan and Shelynn were. He found them around a Cheri tree. Shelynn was explaining (the best way a 4-year-old could to her 6-year-old brother) which ones were ripe and which ones weren't. They were both so engaged with each other they didn't notice their father was watching them for a whole minute to fawn over their interaction. They rushed up to him for hugs and he hoisted both up with an arm for each of them. They hugged him tight around his head and he relished how they pushed their cheeks into his.
They pointed him to look at something they found in the gardens - a paw print that they hadn't seen before. Forrest told them it was a Mightyena track and to be careful or they'd be eaten and pretended to start to eat them through growls and chuckles. The two screeched and pushed against his face and chest and tried to kick themselves free through their laughter. He bent over and put them both on their backs on the ground and continued to nuzzle at them and tickle them. He pretended to focus on Shelynn and let Rowan try to fight him off her by climbing onto his back and pulling at his shirt collar as he screamed "no! not my little sister!" It eventually turned into many kisses over their faces and on their hands. They breathed hard through their dying giggles but still smiled at their doting father. He reminded them that dinner would be ready soon and to make sure they were inside soon to which they begrudgingly agreed.
He asked them where Jerrek was and they said "probably in the gym," which Forrest should have expected. He first went to find Elizabeth to see if she had brought the Surskit back where she had found it. He soon found her interacting with the tiny bug. How they developed such a bond so quickly both surprised and impressed Forrest. His heart skipped and his chest burned with pride. He had to fight back tears again.
He returned back to the house and went straight in through the kitchen to the basement to find Jerrek straining hard against weights that Forrest could identify were heavier from his usual. But as he rose the dumbbells up, he was amazed to see that the bicep of a 10-year-old could become so large. He watched for a few reps until he made his presence known and told him to rest as he was pushing himself too hard, he felt.
"I've been going to that weight for a month now. It's getting a lot easier," he said to his father. He sounded impressed with himself as if he was excited to share the accomplishment.
Forrest was stunned. He had no idea. His heart skipped and his throat burned in embarrassment. He had no idea how much his oldest son was progressing. He felt ashamed for being away from his family as much as he was. He cursed the Rangers. But he couldn't. He then showed Jerrek his most intense regiment that he would occasionally do. In fact, he was doing it to pump himself up for what he was about to do, though never even hinted toward that reality.
Forrest pushed himself to his breaking point more than once. Even Jerrek got concerned. Forrest thought back to how threatened he felt by Jonton, and rightfully so - that he only won by sheer luck and quick thinking. He felt so weak. The idea of Jerrek losing his father - his memory of Mitchell sharing his experience with Forrest about growing up without a father - made him angry, made him push through all of the pain, the agony, the heartbreak. The tears were masked by the sweat streaming down his skin. If he couldn't break himself, he wouldn't let anyone else break him.
Was was grunting and growling and roaring loudly and breathing hard. It got to the point where he wasn't explaining what he was doing to Jerrek, he was focused on doing it for himself. Jerrek tried to imitate some of the exercises, but found it difficult to keep up, so he just watched, instead.
Jerrek looked up toward the basement door when Jeanne called down that dinner was going to be ready soon. He looked back at his father who didn't seem to notice. He grew nervous and tried to tell his father between his grunts.
"Five minutes!" Jeanne called down to them later.
Forrest let the weights slam back down into the machine. Jerrek flinched and was slightly confused since that was entirely against what his father told him was proper form and etiquette. But he just watched his father breath deeply, his chest expanding and contracting more than he'd ever seen before. His entire body was wet with sweat. His skin was red with increased bloodflow. Veins he'd never seen before had appeared under his skin.
"We gotta shower," Jerrek said quietly with concern for not making it to dinner on time.
Forrest nearly shouted a grunt as he lifted himself off the bench while using the motion to take off the only other thing he was wearing. He tossed it onto where he put his shirt and pants and walked with Jerrek to the other side of the basement to quickly rinse off with a little soap. Jerrek's concern didn't subside as he undressed and turned on the water and started to wash himself. He glanced over a few times to see the harshly determined face his father wore. He had never seen his father act so - animalistic - before. The grunts weren't just grunts, they were roars and shouts of affirmation to himself that he could lift more weights and for more reps. There was a mixture of fear he felt with pride - that his father was as strong as he was.
"Come on," Forrest said and turned off Jerrek's showerhead and handed him a towel. He realized he was just standing there and thinking about what he'd just seen. Jerrek just toweled off and wrapped it around his waist which reached much further down than it did on his father. He looked back at all the equipment his father had just used as they walked back to the stairs and into the kitchen.
Forrest went to sit at the end of the table he always sat at. The two Rangers were sitting at the table as they were being served to which Forrest nodded at and they nodded back. He started to chug the beer that was in front of his plate.
"Aw, cool! We don't have to wear clothes anymore?" Rowan shouted as he saw his father sit at the table with only a towel. He started to take off his shirt and shorts.
"No no no!" Jeanne shouted and rushed over to the boy to keep him from taking all of his clothes off. "You know the rule, Dad. You gotta wear clothes at the table. You too, hon," she said teasingly to her husband and eldest son. "I'm so sorry, officers. He knows better than to get naked in front of company," she said in a slightly scolding tone as she put Rowan's shirt back on.
He looked dejected as he took his seat at the table. Both Rangers looked at each other both amused and confused. Forrest finished his beer and slammed it on the table with a long sigh.
"Don't slam things on the table, Forrest," she said more harshly this time, and more seriously considering she used his name.
Forrest took a deep breath and then pushed himself up from the table. "Sorry, babe," he said low and quietly and brought the bottle to the sink. On his way out, he hugged Jeanne from behind and kissed her cheek. She chuckled and rose her hand to pat his cheek in return then went back to cutting up the peppers.
The towel around his waist fell off as he released Jeanne. He slung it over his shoulder which made the Rangers blush. Jeanne noticed when it was almost too late.
"Forrest! Really?" she said exasperated but couldn't help but find it slightly humorous. "I'm so sorry, officers. We're pretty -
comfortable - around here," she explained and shook her head to herself.
"It's all for you, babe!" Forrest bellowed back to her as he walked up the stairs.
He'd forgotten that the Rangers would ruin his night back before tomorrow. They were awkward at the table and he couldn't help but notice. Still, he was able to get all of the day's stories from all his children who were as boisterous as ever. Jerrek whined that Elizabeth was elbowing her to which she teased him more about. Elizabeth snapped at Rowan and Shelynn when they started to throw food at each other. Forrest fell right back in to playing referee as Jeanne sat quietly at the other end of the table and watched it all unfold. They'd agreed that the table was Forrest's responsibility, since mostly everything else was hers. Jerrek tried to shout at the Rangers over Rowan and Shelynn's screeching to ask what it was like to be a Ranger and how cool he thought it was. Shelynn jumped off her chair as soon as she finished her food and tugged at one of the Rangers to go play with her. Elizabeth argued that Jerrek wasn't strong enough to be a Ranger, to which predictably led to bickering. Rowan asked for more food and held his plate in Forrest's face since he didn't want to get it himself.
As chaotic as it was, Forrest was able to control or resolve things rather quickly, if only because the next thing took everyone's attention. He pointed at the line between the leaves of the table to prove that Elizabeth was in Jerrek's space. Forrest caught Rowan's hand as he was about to throw a pea at Shelynn and commanded them to stop with a quick boom of his voice. He pleaded with Rowan and Shelynn to use their inside voice, which took longer than he liked so he ended up covering Rowan's mouth with one hand and putting a finger to his lips with the other at Shelynn. Forrest was able to reach over and pluck Shelynn off the floor and onto his lap to tell her that they were still eating and that it was rude to bother them. Forrest expressed his disappointment for talking about her brother just to hurt his feelings. Forrest was firm in having Rowan get himself seconds. The Rangers had left the table to go to their posts at some point after he put Shelynn on his lap.
When he was done with his plate, he filled another and got another beer. He let Shelynn and Elizabeth leave the table to play outside until bedtime. Jerrek finished his seconds and told his parents he was going to go pick up the gym, to which Forrest thanked. Rowan had thirds and complained about eating too much but was shooed outside with the girls. All the while, Jeanne was on her third glass of wine while Forrest finished his fifth beer and fourth plate of food.
"No leftovers?"
Forrest hummed and shook his head.
"So I take it everyone liked it."
Forrest hummed and nodded his head.
"Do you want dessert?"
Forrest hummed longer and nodded slower. He quickly ate the rest of what was on his plate and chugged the rest of his beer as Jeanne got up and took a pie out of the fridge to serve them each a slice. She added whipped cream and poured herself another glass of wine. She was surprised to find Forrest had gotten up and put his plate in the sink to look out the window to check on the children. She slid next to him and rubbed a hand on his shoulder blade. She sipped on her wine and looked out the window with him. He breathed deeply and managed to get a beer out of the fridge even though he was on the wrong side of the door. He chugged this one as he kept his eyes on his children. He sighed deeply again and put the bottle in the sink. They both knew he never drank this much this quickly for no reason. He was purposefully trying to get drunk, which he was starting to feel.
He got another beer from the fridge. "That's the last one," Jeanne said softly.
Forrest nodded slightly. He felt her finger glide across his cheek to catch the tear falling down it. He sniffed hard and took another sip of his beer, declining to chug it like he was doing before.
He felt her hand push into his side to turn him around to the island where their pieces of pie were. They listened to the muffled shouts from outside and some faint clanging from the basement. Forrest turned his head toward her and she caught another tear falling down his other cheek. She then handed him a fork and they both started to eat the pie.
"You know I know, right?" she said between bites.
"Know what?"
"That you're a bounty hunter -"
"That fucking bastard!" he roared and slammed his fist onto the island which cracked the tile it landed on.
"No," she said softly and put a hand on his tricep. "No, it wasn't Rai," she added to emphasize that he had a name. "I've known for a long time, now."
His arms held his torso up and his head hung low. He shook his head slightly. "Fuck. How?"
"Mitchell told me."
His head whipped toward her but didn't rise. His brows furrowed and his face was red, though that was likely due to the beer. "Why -?"
"That time you were gone for two weeks and I never heard from you. Right after Rowan was born."
Forrest kept his face toward Jeanne. His face was between anger and sorrow and tears began to fall from his eyes again. Jeanne walked over to the counter and grabbed a tissue and handed it to him. He didn't move. So she kept in in her hand and continued.
"I was so worried. Your children were asking for you and I had nothing to tell them. So their Uncle Mitchell came up with stories to entertain them and keep them from hurting." She paused for a long moment.
"But I still hurt, Forrest." Her eyes started to well up. "My husband who worked himself to the bone for me and his children was gone and I had no idea where he was or what he was doing. I cried every night thinking about how our children would grow up without their father. I confided in him - so he told me the truth. He asked me to not tell you that I knew or that he told me."
Forrest picked himself up off the island and wiped his eyes with his hands. "I'm sorry," he choked out meekly.
"After that, I demanded I be updated about all of your bounties and activities. I needed to know you were weren't hurt. I needed to know you didn't die."
She brought up her hand and placed it onto his chest and watched it as she let it slide slowly down his torso.
"I know you needed to do it. I know how much it meant to you to be able to provide for us. I know how much you wanted to be able to spoil all of us," she said with a sad smile and a single weak laugh. "And I know now that what you're doing now is for the safety of our country. And I am so proud of you." Her hand gripped when it reached the center of his abdomen. He could feel her pinch his skin but he didn't react. "But you need to know that you have a family that loves you. You need to know that your wife needs you. You need to know that your children need their father."
Tears were streaming down Forrest's face. They had begin to fall from Jeanne's. She dabbed her cheeks with the tissue she had originally gotten for Forrest.
"I'm selfish. I need you."
She fell into him after she placed her hands on his chest. She pushed her face into him and began to sob. He could feel the hot wetness begin to grow where her eyes were. He wrapped his arms around her and squeezed hard enough to convey that he heard and understood her.
"There you go, old man," Jerrek said playfully and threw his clothes against Forrest's back.
"Go outside," Forrest said low, almost incomprehensible.
"What's wrong?" he said with a demeanor that shifted quickly to concern.
"Go outside!" Forrest said loud and turned his head toward Jerrek but not enough to look at him.
Jerrek saw the line of tears down his cheek and said nothing more. He bent down to pick up his father's clothes but was snapped at to "leave it." He went out the front door where he knew one of the Rangers to be.
A few more moments passed. "I love you so much," Forrest said.
Jeanne pushed herself into his rumbling chest. She then pushed away from him but not enough to leave his embrace. She brought her hands up and pulled his face down to kiss him long and passionately. She pushed his face away from hers to say "I love you so much, too." She said it as if Forrest had no idea how much that meant to her.
She pulled him in for a few more kisses that faded into pecks until they both giggled with each other for a moment as they realized how messy they looked for crying as they had been. Forrest pulled her in for another tight hug and breathed deeply and then released her. He chuckled twice and turned eagerly to the pie to eat it quickly as if to suggest she had kept him from being able to eat it.
She chuckled and copied him. They fed each other a couple bites until Forrest put a dot of whipped cream on her nose which made her swat him away and whine about it. They both laughed and finished their dessert and then then drinks.
Forrest looked at the clock and walked toward the kitchen door to open it and step through it. He called out to Elizabeth, Rowan, and Shelynn to come back in to get ready for bed. Jeanne left to do the same thing out the front door for Jerrek. She told him to make sure to get everyone bathed and teeth brushed and in their pajamas and in their rooms for the night. The scene he had witnessed still had him somber but he puffed his chest a little and firmly accepted. She watched him put on his Dad hat and usher his siblings up the stairs. Her heart pounded knowing he had been putting on that hat more often lately and felt bad that he was losing out on his childhood.
She returned to the kitchen where Forrest was picking up dishes and putting them in the dishwasher. She opened a cupboard and reached to the top shelf and grabbed the cigar box Forrest kept. She grabbed his arm and gestured for him to get more drinks for them and follow her. She stayed on his arm as he grabbed a new wine bottle and a new six-pack of beer and allowed her to pull him onto the front porch and onto the chairs he had made.
Forrest was impressed with how deft she was in preparing the cigars. They sat in silence as they drank and smoked together. Major White glanced back once to see them on the porch. He nodded and Forrest nodded back. He then turned to walk to the side of the house to give them privacy.
"Route 123 at 6:00 AM," he heard Shaq'ti tell him. He relayed this to his wife who simply nodded slowly but said nothing.
She made sure they made love for possibly the last time. They both slept soundly and were able to wake up at 5:00 AM as they usually did. They had breakfast together and loved on each other softly to remind the other that they meant what they said the night before.
He breathed deeply as he stood outside of the boys' room. He opened the door slowly and knelt down at Rowan's bed. He combed his wild curly hair with his hand and grazed his face gently. He kissed him on his forehead and on his cheek and whispered "I love you." Rowan stirred and turned away from Forrest and snuggled into his pillow and blankets. It got more difficult as he did the same to each of his other children. Tears welled in his eyes and one broke from his lid as he looked down at Shelynn and then stood to leave. He breathed deep once more and walked out of the room.
He was slow to walk down the stairs. He thought about their childhood and then his childhood. He saw Jeanne at the base of the stairs waiting for him. Shaq'ti stood in front of the open front door. Forrest quickened his pace to embrace his wife once more and kiss her long. He wished time would freeze as long as their lips were touching. But they both knew it didn't work like that.
"I love you." His voice was deep and almost broke.
"I love you, too." She sniffed quietly as tears welled in her eyes.
He breathed deeply one last time and walked over to Shaq'ti. She nodded and placed a hand on his and they vanished instantly.
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