Despite claiming humanity is weak, Rea can't deny she's quite proud that part of her genotype is humanish.
Because humanity is ambitious.
Lack of power seems to be just a minor disadvantage. Only with their minds and power of their own hands, humans could conquer every scrap of the world, which for many other species is unreachable.
Pidgeys won't dive into the oceans. As Magikarps won't soar the sky.
And there are humans. Without fins and gills they touch the bottoms of oceans and despite not having wings they fly though the vast sky using those metallic machines called aeroplanes.
In books those look complicated. Magnificent vehicles did the way to use the physics laws. But the reality looks way different.
"That… really swims?" Rea looks at the fishing cutter, clearly doubtful. "Across the water?"
Most likely it had color. And Rea presume this color was white. At least when the cutter was painted. Right now it's hard to say what color it is. Some shade of gray with a mix of green.
Most likely she wouldn't pay much attention to those. Or rather she wouldn't if the mast won't break on her eyes and fall down with a low bang.
"I will drown." She summarizes with widened eyes.
Faraway Island is quite a popular tourist attraction. Yet Fuschia City isn't a port city. Nor a tourist place at all. Fortunately she has heard there are some fishermen who have nothing against tourists on their cutters. Of course if there aren't too many of them.
"Worry not, it swims like a fish!"
Rea immediately straightened herself. Prepare to run. But see only an old man, squat a little. Most likely the owner of the fish cutter.
"Fish usually swims underwater." She points with a clearly sceptical look
But the man didn't comment on it, just laughed. Then he suddenly stops and seizes the little girl in front of him. Which makes Rea even more aware that her disguise looks… rather pathetic.
"You aren't a Pokémon Trainer, aren't ya?" He finally asks.
Right. She could at least fabricate some Poké Balls to pretend she is. Not like she had material or will to do it. Not to mention the idea of general.
"N-no." Rea finally says.
While her mind tries to come up with the best possible excuse, the man just shrugs. Like transporting people with questionable intentions is his usual job and some strange entity appears every other day.
Like someone from Team Rocket.
Rea shiver. But then understand that the lack of Poké Balls also works on her advantage. She isn't a Pokémon Trainer, but it also means she can't hurt.
But the man seems not to care at all. He keeps preparing everything for departure. Rea curiously looks as he binds the ropes, and slowly enters the deck. She herself… hesitate. Especially considering the fact the mast still lay down.
"Wouldn't you… need it?" She looks at the fallen part.
The man looks at her like he's at some madman, but eventually weaves his hand.
"Engine." He said briefly, shrugging.
So the mechanical part, which makes the cutter swim. And the man also knows that. Or rather he believes this wreck would swim. If so, what else encourages him to enter the deck and turns to Rea. And looks at her.
And looks.
"You… want me to enter?" Rea hesitates.
The man just sighs, which makes her aware she commits some serious mistake. But he just weaves his hand.
"You kids nowadays…" He turns back and goes to the other site of the cutter.
Rea doesn't understand what 'kids nowadays'. But guess it serves her as a good excuse. So she just enters the cutter (not without doubts) and eventually sits at something which seems to be a bench.
And she immediately regrets that. Not because the cutter suddenly went underwater. Yet she herself feels awful. The place still sways. Along with those on it.
"So what brings you here, hm?" The man asks. "Home-escape?"
Surely that's the best possible explanation. Rea's gaze drifts towards the water, reminding herself of a conflagration in Celadon City's lab. Conflagration she causes.
"K-Kind of." She finally replays.
It's her home. It was her home till that moment. Giovanni tricked her.Along the whole Team Rocket.
But the man seems not to care. Just make the cutter push off from the shore.
"Your parents anger you, eh?" He asks, like this situation happens often.
At first Rea didn't answer. Anger… it's a mild way to put it. Yet eventually she decides to tell the truth. Or something close to it.
"M-my father… suddenly disappear." She says eventually.
That caught the man's attention. He stops operating the things in the cutter and looks at the girl, clearly focusing all his attention on her.
"And your mother is on Faraway Island?" He quickly gets the idea.
"Maybe." Rea shrugs and looks at the vast sea. "I never see her. She wasn't even present at my birth…"
Seeing the man's expression, Rea immediately caught what mistake she made.
"I mean, surely she did!" Rea immediately corrects herself. "What I'd like to say… she just disappeared after it. Like she won't admit she has a child. And…"
Her gaze again lands on the vast sea. But this time it's not her awful well-being she's afraid of. After all, Rea is going to meet with Mew. Her ancestor. The one from which DNA is stolen to create Mewtwo.
"...And I doubt she'd accept me as her child." Rea adds more quietly.
And mostly that's why she feels so bad right now. Because in the end that is exactly it. If Rea were lucky enough, Mew would ignore her. Nevertheless it's hard to believe in luck in her situation.
But she expects the man to dismiss her confession. After all, Rea seems to be a kid. Or teenager (in the most optimistic view.). Yet he didn't. Just stop himself from working and look at the girl.
The man sits next to Rea and leans forward. Not look at her directly, just clasp his hands and look at the vast sea.
"When I was ten, my father decided to leave us." He starts. "I blamed myself. That I wasn't good enough. Should… Should be a more polite child or something like that. Did better at school."
Rea looks at the man as a new person. Not… not less human-like of course. But more similar to her. Even if it's one thing.
"Did you look for him?" She asks.
"I… Not like you." He eventually says. "After my father says that, he leaves for some pub. As a kid… I just followed him. Thinking that maybe in some way may convince him to return to us."
Rea snort. It's stupid. Foolish. And again assure her she has nothing in common with those creatures.
But the man sits there unmoved. Alive. Almost like nothing happened. Most likely it means…
"You succeed, right?" Rea point.
The man chuckle.
"Well, I did find him." He confirms. "But not succeed as you may expect."
This story makes her more and more curious. Success is success. You achieve your goal or not. There's nothing between.
"He patted my back after he listened to all that speech." The man continues. "And said that despite everything… Both he and mom love me."
It caught Rea out of breath. That's it? Not achieving a goal? Not claiming that even at the age of ten, he was able to tighten his father and manipulate the way he had to return?
"What I'd like to say…" The man doesn't care about Rea's surprised expression and weaves his hand. "...It's your family. The things you do or not don't matter. Relatives are relatives if they wish themselves to be the one or not."
It makes something. Rea isn't sure what. But somehow she feels better. Like those words take some of the weight she carries. Maybe in the end Mew won't kill her.
And then suddenly she feels even worse.
Quickly she sticks her head over the railing and vomits.
"Ay, seasickness." The man looks at her clearly amused. "It happens sometimes, will be okay on the land."
Despite her state, Rea pays attention to those words. And she knows well that the rest of the journey would be a torture.