A Love Poem

A Love Poem
A Pokémon Fanfiction by Lady Barbara

Author’s Note: A shippy one-shot, with poetry courtesy of the Song of Solomon.



The breeze sent a slight chill down my spine. It wasn’t all that cold, really; it was mid-April and the weather was mostly sunny. In the dim glow of the setting sun, I sat on a small wooden bench near a well-walked path lined with stones and watched him.

“Um…are you ready?” He asked me and I nodded with a smile. I hoped I hadn’t betrayed my nervousness. I clasped my hands together in my lap. He grabbed a few pieces of paper, stolen from Takeshi’s ever-present notebook, and stood in front of me. He smiled uneasily and I noticed that his hands trembled slightly.

It had only been a couple of days ago that my little brother Masato had discovered that Satoshi, my mentor, wrote poetry. Masato has this habit of asking questions—a lot of questions—on any given subject and somehow the topic of writing came up. I denied writing anything, which was partially true; I only wrote when I had something I absolutely had to remember. Masato and Satoshi preferred electronic devices which recorded their thoughts and ideas and dreams, but Takeshi preferred paper. He had gone through about four small notebooks already, filled with a wealth of information on different Pokémon types, their diets, and their attacks.

When Masato went to retrieve something from Satoshi’s backpack, the poem had fallen out. To Satoshi’s humiliation, Masato insisted on reading it aloud. I was impressed, and told him so. He thanked me and blushed a little. Emboldened, I asked him if he had written anything else. He nodded. I had often wondered what he did when he was alone, which was infrequent these days. Apparently ideas would strike him like lightning and he would write a note or two, sometimes a line, and occasionally a verse.

Satoshi’s prizes from Pokémon battling were his main source of pride and accomplishment; his goal of being a Master was in sight, or at least he felt it was. Over the past two years, I watched and learned at his feet. Sometime during the course of my journey and my beginning to train these amazing creatures, I fell in love with Satoshi.

“This poem is special,” Satoshi continued and I looked directly into his dark eyes. “It’s been a couple of weeks in the making. I hope it’s all right.”

I nodded, a sign of encouragement.

He gripped the pages with both hands and began reading: “On my bed during the nights, I have sought the one whom my soul has loved. As the winter torrents search for the sea, I have sought her. All day I see her beauty in my mind’s eye. Beneath the sky shall be our bed. She has placed a seal over my heart.” Satoshi grew more emotional as he continued to read and tears sprang to my eyes.

“Love is as strong as death is. Many waters themselves are not able to extinguish love, nor can rivers themselves wash it away.” Satoshi caught my gaze a couple of times but now his eyes were focused on the paper in front of him. I yearned to be able to cross the small distance between us, to hold him in my arms and tell him that I loved him. But I kept silent. Satoshi now glanced at me. He swallowed hard.

“Oh, Satoshi, that was beautiful.” I stated as calmly as possible.

“You…really liked it, Haruka?” He asked, his voice now a whisper. “I hoped you would.” I walked over to me and sat down beside me. He held the poem in one hand and with his other hand, took mine and entwined our fingers. I looked into his dark eyes again, so full of confidence and hope. He was finally ready to declare his intentions to the girl he loved.

“Kasumi will love this poem. I’m sure of it.” I replied. His hand trembled slightly and I gripped it tighter. I smiled at him once more and then looked off into the distance at the setting sun. The sky was on fire: oranges, purples, reds all blended together. I wondered if Kasumi was outside her home right now, watching the sky and thinking of Satoshi. I could only hope that Kasumi saw in Satoshi everything that I did: fierce determination, a strong spirit, a kind and caring soul, and a heart ready and deserving of love.

I hoped she realized how lucky she was.