Echo
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Fortissimo Peak stood against the sky, high above the natural beauty that surrounded it. As scintillating flowers and tall trees grew and died across the ring of fire at its base, and as the world stirred all around it, it simply loomed forever there on the horizon, never changing, never challenged. Many feet of snow blanketed it from top to bottom in the winter; when the summer came, the snow vanished in days, and the sun seared the grey and white bedrock beneath it. Streaks of ash ran grey to black down all its sides through huge gashes in the stone, and flying Pokemon avoided it for the dark, choking clouds that billowed from its top, but for as long as anyone cared to remember, it had never erupted.
To most Pokemon, it seemed so barren that most deemed it not worth trying to explore. But there were landmarks, small details nearly invisible to most, that allowed a brave few to ascend the Peak part of the way and return. Those who did so told vivid stories of what they had heard: music. Unfamiliar songs that tugged at the heartstrings, and familiar songs cast in a whole new light by whatever wind had carried them down the mountain. Many dismissed these stories, but over time, they changed from mouth to mouth, and became incredible rumours.
At the top of the Peak, there lived alone a Pokemon. An old cabin, resting in the stone, had been crumbling there, hidden from view, for a long time. Its inside fared even worse – the furniture sat in heaps, little more than scraps now, vaguely recalling a once grand and beautiful parlour turned to rot. She lived beneath this ruin, which now hid the entrance to her home beneath: a small place, barely more than two rooms, that she knew so well now that she never thought much of its maintenance, or of its layout, or of many other things. She dreamt of, and knew of, and thought of, only one thing: music.
She thought of her music differently from day to day, of course. She thought of choreography one day, and verse the next. If she considered tempo even briefly, it would fill her mind, and it would be all she would think about for days on end. When she finally she cleared her thoughts, she would compose a new song, or refined a centuries-old classic. Then, she would send it away, and hope fervently that the mountain air would carry it to a worthy performer.
Today would be different. The quiet around her was all her ears knew now, and she realized: she understood her music, but it had been long, too long, since she had heard it. She packed only enough for the journey she would take, although she did not need much, and sent her most recent aria away. This time, she would follow it, and hear for herself that her effort had been rewarded.
“Hello. My name is Shou Mei. How do you do?”
She rehearsed that greeting unconsciously. She spoke so quietly that she could barely hear herself in the darkness. It had been a year since she had heard that voice, so long that she wondered if she could call it her own. That wonder blossomed into a great, impenetrable sense of worry, and she forbid herself to speak to herself any more. As she smothered the fear she had once forgotten with the passion that had brought it out, she ascended the ancient steps out of her home, and met the warmth of daylight.
She did not notice the road before her, or the road she had already passed through. Her eyes saw the trees and the dying sunlight, but her mind was elsewhere. She daydreamed of nostalgic folk songs and orchestral classics; she marvelled at the possibility of music she had never heard. The smells of the forest became those of the open road, and she remembered note by note a hymn she had heard once, on a road like this one. Then, finally, she heard the clamorous hustle and bustle of Alomomola Bay, and her awareness returned.
A spike of worry overwhelmed her as she took step after thoughtless step through one street, then another. She knew only that she was headed towards where her destination should be, but not where it was – or if it even existed. She felt sick, first thinking that her trip might have been pointless, then believing that it was. She slowed when she realized that she had gone in a circle, that she was standing in the same unfamiliar street as she was minutes ago. Pained to hear the sound of her own breath, she stopped there, but it did her no good.
She remembered this being a long, sloping street, but here it was twisting left and right, narrowing and bottling its many noises. Where she had expected a travel agency, there was now a warehouse. Where once there had been a grand bed of foreign flowers with no name she could put to them, there instead grew a small patch of rafflesias. At least, they looked like rafflesias – were they really? They could be any kind of flower, she thought, any at all, and she wouldn't remember what kind that was.
Abruptly, someone stopped in front of her, and her reeling eyes widened as her attention moved straight forward to that someone. About a head taller than Shou Mei herself, her bright green hair was distinct – distinct enough that they reminded her of someone she knew once, briefly. That someone said she was a Kirlia, so this Pokemon, she thought –
“Excuse me, you're in my way.”
Shou Mei composed herself, at least a little, and stood up straight before stepping aside with a flourish and a bow. “I'm dreadfully sorry. Please, forget I ever was.” That sounded like the right thing to say.
“Hm? What do you mean?” The other girl stepped forward, passing her without so much as a glance. “You were standing there, that's all. Nothing to seem so upset about.”
“Unless... is something else the matter?” The Kirlia abruptly turned back to Shou Mei. “Even if it was just a trifle... it's not often someone slows down in the middle of the street. Are you lost?”
“Lost in this city, and perhaps, a little lost in this world.” Shou Mei blurted out, albeit so quiet that when she realized what she said, she held out hope that perhaps the Kirlia had not heard the second part.
“What a strange thing to say. In fact, it's strange to meet someone like you at all in this city.” She looked her up and down, and Shou Mei looked away in response. “You're trying to blend in, but that only makes you stand out. If you're so lost and confused, I know my way around here. Do you want me to take you?”
“That's a very generous offer,” Shou Mei began, “and I thank you for it either way, but... why are you making it?”
“As I said, you're quite strange. You must be from out of town, then. Let me introduce myself: I'm Harmony, and I perform at the King's Rock Casino with my partner.”
Had she heard Harmony right? No, of course she had heard her right. The doubt that had been clouding her mind – that perhaps her music had reached no one after all – vanished, along with the discomfort Harmony had caused her. It was reflected even in her face, upon which she wore a smile for the first time in what had felt like years. Still deathly quiet, her voice at least hid that excitement.
“Really now? That's as wonderful as your offer, and as convenient besides. I am on my way to the King's Rock Casino as well.”
“Hm?” Harmony sounded pleased. “Are you a fan of Melody's? I suppose you might not know me if you've only heard her once or twice. She likes to have solo performances, and I was sick the last time we were going to perform together.”
She couldn't perform because she was sick. Was that right? But she didn't seem upset... or maybe she was. That was one of so many things she felt like she would never know, at this rate. As she wondered about Harmony, or more about Melody, who she thought would be tonight’s performer, she noticed that the other girl was already looking back at her through the crowd with a smile.
“Are you coming?”
“It's not every day that you get to go backstage with the stars of Alomomola,” Harmony reminded Shou Mei, “but you haven't said a word.”
The entrance they had taken was secured tightly on both ends, and glaringly well-lit between them. Its construction, plain and square but painted over and decorated to better suit the tastes of the celebrities and rich staff who used it, reminded Shou Mei of construction work – there had been construction work in Alomomola when she had last visited, there was construction work now, and as long as its owners wanted, that construction work would continue. The noise of construction work was grating, unpleasant, meaningless, too loud – she was glad they hadn't passed any construction sites on the way to the King's Rock Casino.
As Shou Mei walked ahead of her, still silent, Harmony sighed. Then she realized she had ignored the obvious question. “So, why did you want to come here? Obviously it's to see us, but you're not from around here. Where do you know us from? What have you heard about us?” She wondered, more and more, what the answers to those questions were, or if she'd ever get answers, as the intriguingly unfamiliar girl gave none, but continued to walk with her; the silence was not cold or uncomfortable, just irritating.
The entrance led the two into the King's Rock, then up past its various levels. The spiralling ramp they took was free of the glamer that defined the Casino from outside, and completely quiet compared to the constant din of movement and game from above that filtered through the employees' entrance. Melody had also stopped trying to make conversation, and Shou Mei was glad for that; it allowed her the chance to think, to decide what to say to Harmony and to prepare herself for the concert after.
Stepping out onto the topmost level of the King's Rock, she was awed. It resembled a rooftop garden more than a place you would find near a prep room, with the tiny portal from below opening up into a lounge of velvet seats and red-and-white striped rugs, sporting huge panoramic windows overlooking other areas of the Casino, that filtered the stray light from outside and reflected the light from within so that the entire area was neither overly bright nor overly dark. On the northern and eastern walls, opposite the windows and the entrance respectively, were rows of doors, silver plaques atop each displaying the room's purpose and owner in thickly-black font. But it was the western wall that she turned to face after entering that held the most curious thing: a painting of a Kecleon, grinning sly in green. She knew that face, but from where, she could only try to remember–
“Wait right here. Melody and Dee can't be too busy right now, so I'll go bring them out here.” Before Shou Mei could respond, if she had any plans to, Harmony's pigtails trailed behind her into one of the rooms, the door open just a bit more ajar after her entrance, leaving Shou Mei with another chance to collect her thoughts – one perhaps a bit wasted, as she simply admired, if what she was feeling was really admiration, the room and the Casino outside. Not long after, before her mind could wander back to music, she heard the door to the prep room open again, and spun around to see Harmony, now joined by two others behind her.
Trying to push past Harmony with a wide-lipped smile was a fancy-looking girl, the white bows along her purplish body recalling yet another Shou Mei had met in the past -- a Gothorita. Behind them both, but much taller than either, was a species she had only heard of, but still she distinctly recalled: a Lopunny. Dressed as the three were, Melody and the Gothorita in their hair accessories and the Lopunny in a vest and bracelets, they continued to recall vague glimmers of the years long past, that Shou Mei had forgotten, both the memories themselves, and how they left are.
The Gothorita slowly stepped out from behind Harmony, the two following her into the lobby. “So, this is the new girl, huh? I gotta say, I didn’t think you’d drag somewhere here on concert night.” Tilting her head and sighing, she continued. “Hmm... oh well. Welcome to Alomomola, I guess. I’m Melody, you already know Harmony, and this is my sister Dee.”
Shou Mei shifted uncomfortably in front of what felt to her like a growing crowd. She searched for the right words, but couldn’t find them. Dee glanced towards her sister before addressing their guest. “Nice to meet you. Don’t worry too much about Melody, by the way... She’s, ah, well, Harmony brings a lot of people here. But you’re already here, and besides, you’re our guest either way. What’s your name?”
That set Shou Mei to talking -- in a soft voice like a whisper, but clearer than any hushed lie -- before she knew it. “Oh, my. Again, I’ve forgotten. Melody, Harmony, Dee -- my name is Shou Mei. I’ve come to hear you perform. There is nothing else in this city for me but your song.” By the time she had heard her own words, she felt no anxiety in their release. But she didn’t notice how uncomfortable Melody now looked -- or maybe she was just a little spooked.
“So, uh...” Melody tugged on one of her bows as she pulled out a seat and sat down. “Can I just call you Shou? ‘Cause I mean, Shou Mei... that’s like having two names.” Dee gently tapped Shou Mei, who now looked like she was wrapped up in her own little world, on the shoulder, directing her to sit down with the three of them near the window. As they sat, Melody reached for a pot of tea, already steepled, and poured it into one of the cups on the tray -- all of which, Shou Mei noticed now that she was once again paying attention, had already been here when she entered. That Dee was right and they seemed to be ready for a guest put her mind at ease, and the small but noticeable smile that Shou Mei now wore calmed Melody’s nerves and quelled her irritation.
“My name is Shou Mei. It has always been and always will be. But if you would prefer to call me otherwise -- as your guest, as a fellow musician -- I will not object.”
Melody opened her mouth to speak, but noticed that Shou Mei’s eyes never left Harmony now, and stifled a bored yawn as she cupped her head in her arms. At least Shou Mei would open up to someone, even if it was her partner instead of her. That really was strange.
“Right, then...” Harmony spun the teacup around by the handle idly, although it never left the tray. “So, Shou, you came here to hear me perform, right? I mean, I know my music is good and all, but why me? I bet you have a really good reason.”
Shou Mei paused. Telling her the full truth could ruin the performance or sound like a lie, but she thought that Harmony deserved to know who she was. And it had been so long since she had felt even the faintest connection with another Pokemon, but here she was before the muse of her song. “I have been studying music for long -- too long, I would say, if only it were not the most important thing in the world to me. I have lost count of the years that have past since I...”
Gave up on music.
No, that wasn’t true. She had never given up, had she? She hadn’t. She had just...
“... last heard a skillfully-performed piece of music. So many musicians come and go, but to find one who has earned the adoration of so many... that is special. I am here to see my passion anew, and your performance is a part of that. So I will say now as I said to Melody: thank you. Thank you for having me as a guest, and thank you for embracing music.”
The three other girls all looked at eachother, then each back to Shou Mei. Of all the responses they could have expected, that was not one. Harmony was flattered -- an old musician she had never heard of, of a species she had never seen, come to see her. Melody now felt insulted -- she and her sister, the generosity she had shown, they were... no. It was too late to send her off, and maybe she had just said something different from what she’d meant. Besides, she was pretty interesting through it all -- just stranger than she’d thought. Too strange.
“Well, uh, you’re welcome, I guess.” Harmony said after a long pause, made uncomfortable only by Melody’s stewing. “Hey, you can come back after the concert, but I think I actually need to get ready. See you later?”
Shou Mei nodded. The four girls stood in turn, and Harmony put her arm around Melody’s, marching her back into the prep room. As Shou Mei turned to leave, she paused, thought for a moment, and then turned back to Dee. “Excuse me, Dee. Could you please take me to the concert hall? I don’t know the way there.”
She was going to offer anyway, since jealousy or no, Melody would make a big issue out of anything happening to one of her guests, but it was better for Shou Mei to ask. She couldn’t really help the other two, anyway, and Shou Mei seemed lonely. Less now, of course, but everything about her seemed to say that her story had been true. Maybe even truer than she had let on.
“Ah... sure. Just follow me.”
