Shin's eyes fluttered open to the sudden chilly draft that danced against his arms, which were now littered with goosebumps and stiff hairs. His pale hands twitched, groggily reaching up towards his heavy eyes to rub the sleep away from his conscious. It looked to be about the beginning of dusk outside, the warm sun readying itself to be dipped from its colorful aurora into the large blanket of stars.

After a few grunts of effort, Shin finally sat himself up and blindly gazed at the area around him. "Rockruff...?" he mumbled. His eyes began to focus on the closet across from him. There was no response. It was then that he noticed that the stones had disappeared from the closet's entrance. "Rockruff?" The faintness of sleep began to rise out of his body, replacing itself with a tense pang of panic. His coal-black eyes darted feverishly around the room. He felt his heart sink as he failed to spot the rough pelt of the Pokémon.

The child threw himself off the mattress to scan the larger area of his room, but to no avail. It was only when the breeze of the outside hit him once more that he turned towards the open window, the stabbing feeling of fear reaching its climax. Shin was too petrified to speak a whisper. His legs, however, responded by sprinting down the stairs into the living room. There was no sign of his mother, who he assumed had already left for work, and he took this chance to run straight through the door to his house onto the dirt road. He worriedly called out into the empty night, begging to hear a response. "Rockruff! Rockruff?! Where are you?!"

Biting his lip, the child bolted over to where his window looked down upon the earth below, and to his relief, he spotted faint imprints in the sediment that trailed off into the grass. However, as Shin began to take his first steps forward, he felt hesitation bubble within him. His fingers twitched beneath his purple shadow and his eyes darted back and forth from his house to the shrouded plains before him.

Am I really doing this? Why should I care? It was a wild Pokémon. It should be free anyways.

His thoughts whirled around like leaves in a storm, but his legs kept treading like a machine.

I shouldn't even be doing this... it's illegal to go out this far without someone... and Mom would never forgive me for going out this late without telling her...

He pushed aside a hanging palm tree leaf that had peeled from its trunk as he kept a steady pace.

And after that talk... After everything she's doing for me. I would just... betray...

His mind went blank, unable to process the surroundings quickly blurring by him; the weight of what he was about to go through with was but convoluted shapes within his mind.

Before he knew it, the boy found himself only yards away from the local Pokémon Center of his town. His eyes scanned the area intently for any crevices that the Pokémon could possible be hiding in. However, the bright orange building was isolated amongst the trees from the rest of the houses, and Shin knew for a fact that there were no other burrows in the bluff of palm trees before, for he had played amidst them in his early life. He knew deep down that there was no other place that could possibly be sheltering the Pokémon, and with its injuries, it wouldn't have gotten far at all— at least not past the town boundaries. The only option was...

Beads of sweat began to form onto his sticky forehead from the excessive humidity in the air. He shakily let his feet lead him into the center, and a cool breeze brushed up against him with the smell of wood and a faint floral aroma. The lobby was completely empty— of course, a center in the middle of a forest would be— say for a few stray Ratata and Yungoos that decided to hide out and snack from the pellets that Nurse Joy had put out. Shin shuffled uneasily to the front desk, his small stature making everything around him seem huge and overbearing. He glanced over at the wild Pokémon, hoping to spot his Rockruff, but to no avail.

After a few moments, the tiny creatures looked up at him in curiosity, causing the shy boy to dart his eyes away to the other side of the room. "Hello there." Shin nearly jumped out of his skin at the sound of the tender voice. Instead, he gasped and gazed up at the smiling woman, her pink curls bouncing by her shoulders. "Is there something you need, sweetheart?" The boy wet his lips and tried his best to speak. He placed his chin over the counter.

"Um, has a Rockruff come by here? Or maybe stopped here for food?" he stammered, his voice meek and quiet. Nurse Joy peered around the room. She made sure to check every open cabinet or door before she returned to her desk and shook her head.

"I'm sorry, I don't see one here, nor do I recall one coming here. Rockruffs are rare in this area," she replied. "But I'll make sure to keep an eye out for you." Shin disappointingly bowed his head.

"It's alright. Thank you anyways, miss," he mumbled. As he started making his way to the exit, he was stopped by the sound of her voice.

"Oh, excuse me, young man? You seem a little bit young to be here all by yourself."

No...! Not now!

"I... um..."

"How old are you?" she asked, trying her best to stay gentle with her tone.

She'll call Mom! I need to run! I have to run!

"I'm eight." He heard her lean forward.

"Eight? Oh dear... Do you have someone with you at all?" Even though he wasn't looking at her, he could tell her face was full of concern. Shin gulped.

But Rockruff... What about Rockruff? It can't survive out there like that. And if I get sent home now...

"I... do." He turned around to face her. He felt himself hesitantly stepping back, one foot at a time. "It's..."

Should... I lie?

"...my father. He's outside right now. He told me he wanted to search some more while I came in here to ask you." Nurse Joy cocked her head, squinting her eyes.

"Oh, I see." She let out a sigh. "I'm sorry about that. I just wanted to know if you were safe is all." Shin felt his hand press against the glass door.

"Yeah, I understand." He felt his body about to collapse from the adrenaline. "I need to go now. I'm sorry!" He pressed against the doors and began bolting out of the center like a madman.

"Please be careful! Both of you!" he heard Nurse Joy call out to him. "It's... dark! I think... coming...!"

Shin couldn't hear the rest of her sentence, as he made sure to curve around the building and distance himself away from her as much as possible. His mind went completely blank as his legs mechanically sprinted for him for a good distance. His mouth continued shouting: "Rockruff! Rockruff! Please, come out! Please!" It was only when a cold sensation nipped the tip of his nose that he managed to blink and focus on the world around him once more.

Needles of water began to pelt onto the grass next to him ever so slowly, picking up the pace after they had tasted the feel of the earth below them. The faint smell of the ocean mixed with the scent of soggy bark and petrichor wafted through his nostrils. His mind seemed to finally be able to seize control over his body again and he halted his mindless running. Dizziness settled within him like cream in a coffee, swirling and swirling, dying his consciousness foggy and clouded. He found himself pursing his lips until the edges of his mouth turned white.

"...What am I doing?"

The rain hit him like tiny glass shards and left streaks of nature's tears on his pale skin. He looked up, the clouds circling within his darkened irises as his thoughts mimicked— they devoured and drained him like a merciless Gorebyss. Was he going this far just to chase something he'd never earn?

"Why am I doing this?"

His voice was tight with pain; The child sunk to his knees, and mud splashed onto legs like paint. The leaves of the palm trees above him began to rustle a hasty beat from the incoming whirlwinds. Was he this lonely? Was he this desperate to find someone, anyone, to just exist by his side?

Was he that pathetic?

Then a warm stir split over in his eyes and began to flow down his face like a river escaping a dam.

"...Maybe this is why Dad left me."

Torrents of hiccups and sobs spilled out from the poor boy, and soon he was overwhelmed with uncontrollable dejection. He brought up his soaked hands to his face and pressed hard against his eyelids, but his tears refused to halt its charge. They instead blended into the rain as he wailed with the muffled growls of thunder in the distance. It felt as if nothing in the entire world could make him smile again, and the whole universe seemed to weep with him at that moment. It crushed his heart, it suffocated his head and scratched at his eyes until they bled salt from the soul. It hurt.

He barely even noticed the rustle of bushes beside him, and a petite brown Pokémon inching its way hesitantly towards the child. It studied him anxiously with its wide topaz irises and flattened its ears onto its head as if it seemed to have come to a sudden revelation.

Shin felt the smallest weight being placed on his thigh. He gasped as he lowered his hands and rested his sight on the Rockruff in front of him. The two stared at each other endlessly, examining each and every aspect of their expressions as if it were a book. It seemed to go on for minutes on end like time had stood still.

It was then that Shin darted his look to the corners of his eyes. His lip quivered slightly. "I'm sorry," he choked, his voice quiet and shaky, "if I forced you to do something you didn't want to do. If I scared you into running away from me. I didn't mean it, really I didn't." The Pokémon's ears shot up, continuing to lock its gaze onto him. "I understand if you want to go back to where you came from. You can go now, I know my way back home."

There was a long silence, the drumming of the rain seeming nonexistent to both of them. Shin shut his eyes tightly, patiently waiting for the Rockruff to lift its paw from him and to flee. At least it would be back with its friends, he thought. At least it would be happy.

But, to his surprise, he received something entirely different.

The sound of the ground splitting open filled his ears, and he felt something tall beginning growing around him, looming over his head to block onslaught of the rain. Shin opened his eyes and gaped in bewilderment at the stone structures that had suddenly sprouted out to protect him. He looked at the Rockruff, who suddenly lifted itself onto the boy's lap and sat comfortably between his legs. It turned its head to face him again. Shin neared his head towards the Pokémon's. "You... Why are you doing this?"

That was when he was greeted with a warm lick on the nose. He blinked, lightly pulling back at the unexpected reaction.

Did it just...?

He then watched as the Pokémon laid down on its stomach, it's full weight distributed on him. Its head rested neatly on its front paws and it began to snore softly. Its expression looked so peaceful and relaxed; it must have been exhausted. Shin gulped and slowly leaned his back up against the rocks, desperately trying not to disturb it. He bit his lip cautiously and found that it began matching its breathing to his.

Then, tentatively, he found his hand slowly being placed on the creature's fur. It was surprisingly soft despite the dirtied, soaked pelt and the rocks that surrounded its collar. Shin began to carefully stroke the back of the pup, and he eventually heard the quietest of purrs rumbling from the Rockruff's throat. It adjusted its position and again went motionless as it was lulled back to sleep by Shin's pets.

I... see... the boy thought to himself. So this is what you're trying to tell me.

The boy then caught a slight glint in his eye from its neck. Startled, he looked closer and noticed a small metal tag attached to a gray collar hidden under its cream-colored hair. With his fingers, he flipped it around, revealing dull golden letters that were rusted over and scratched:

"Project: Anonymous"

"Anon...nymous," he whispered slowly. His mind filled to the brim with the brightest stars. "Is that your name?" The boy felt a nervous grin creep up his face as he gazed at the sleeping Pokémon. He slowly placed his head next to the Pokémon's tiny pearl pink nose, blowing fragile breezes of warm air onto his rosy cheeks.

"Hi, Anonymous... My name is Shin."