Nightmare's Curse

I quickly rush into my room and slam the door behind me. Mother and father's constant bickering made me have a headache! They meant well, but sometimes they went a little too far. I grab my 3DS, then the case where I always keep my games. Well, all of the games in the case I had were Pokémon games, anyway. But there's the occasional Zelda in there as well.

    I had Pokémon X in the case, but I decided to go on a nostalgia trip. I wanted to go for the game I haven't been playing in a long, long while. Pokémon Diamond. It wasn't as old as my Gameboy and my Pokémon Yellow game, but it was fairly old, and I haven't played it in what seemed like  years.

    With a swift movement, I plop the cartridge into the 3DS. My excitement to play this game was already bubbling. Bubbling so much, I felt as if my eyes will pop out. As I selected Pokémon Diamond, the screen went to black. It stood silent, still pitch black. I was about to pop the cartridge off the 3DS and put it back in out of impatience, but the screen finally came on.

    My thumb pressed against the A button as soon as words popped up. I never really used the Select button anyway, for some reason. The black screen started again, then after five seconds, the background--the same old pixel background--was on the screen. It was the same old game I had saved years ago.

    Once more, the thumb pressed against a button. This was the Start button now. The menu popped up, showing the different objects in a vertical way. I selected the option to check on my Pokémon team. The six pokémon icons came up. In the first slot was my dear starter--a Torterra-- who was named Cedar. In the second slot was Staraptor, who was named Aer. In the third slot was a Roserade, who was named Calla. Ok, sure, it may be a stupid name for a pokémon with  rose in their name, but Calla is a pretty-looking flower in my opinion. In the fourth slot was an Abomasnow, named Yeti. The fifth slot was a Lucario, named Powerhouse. And in the sixth and final slot was Skuntank, who was named Blake.

    This was practically one of the most perfect Pokémon teams I have ever had in my games. I murmur to myself, "Genius."     I exit out of the Pokémon team and the background of the game appeared again. But what really weirded me out was that it was night. I was pretty sure that it was morning in the game before I had checked my Pokémon team. I shrugged. It must've changed while I was checking on my team. It does change from time to time.

    Paying no mind to the time in the game, I made my character move forward. Her pixelated, blue hair seemed to be wild-looking, but as I did with the time in the game, I had shrugged it off. It was new, but it was only a game. How bad could this be? And besides, if something did happen while I was playing, I think I'm old enough to take care of myself. I'm a seventeen year old girl. That should be old enough.

    I continue playing. I couldn't help but notice that the screen got darker each one-hundred--I think--steps I took. It only took about an hour before the darkness overtook the screen, causing it to become pitch black, as it was before when I was starting up the game.

    Frustrated and impatient, I tapped on the buttons mindlessly, trying to do some things fun before the screen comes back up again. It eventually did. However, when it came back up, it seemed that I was in a battle with a Buneary. Yes, you heard me. A  Buneary.

    I didn't want to waste my time with it, so with my cherry red stylus, I tap on RUN.     WILD BUNEARY WON'T LET YOU RUN!     I look at the text. Great. I tap on RUN again. <span style="color:rgb(184,217,255);font-family:Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;font-size:12px;line-height:17px;">    WILD BUNEARY WON'T LET YOU RUN! <span style="color:rgb(184,217,255);font-family:Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;font-size:12px;line-height:17px;">    I roll my eyes at this. I guess catching this Buneary will be the only way to get out of this battle. Quickly, I select BAG, then POKEBALLS, then I selected the regular pokéball. My female character threw it at the Buneary. Soon I saw that the pokéball had dropped to the ground. <span style="color:rgb(184,217,255);font-family:Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;font-size:12px;line-height:17px;">    One shake. <span style="color:rgb(184,217,255);font-family:Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;font-size:12px;line-height:17px;">    Two shakes. <span style="color:rgb(184,217,255);font-family:Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;font-size:12px;line-height:17px;">    Three shakes. <span style="color:rgb(184,217,255);font-family:Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;font-size:12px;line-height:17px;">    I heard the pokéball click. The regular words that lets you know that you had caught a pokémon came up. But it was slow with each letter that came up. The screen became black once more and then as always, the usual pokémon background was up.

<span style="color:rgb(184,217,255);font-family:Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;font-size:12px;line-height:17px;">    After one step, the Buneary popped out of her pokéball, soon standing beside my pixelated character. Odd. This was not Pokémon Heart Gold or Soul Silver. Unless you were taking a walk with your pokémon in the amity--though the pokémon needs to be considered cute--, your pokémon cannot walk beside you. Also, I thought that the Buneary would be transferred into the PC.

<span style="color:rgb(184,217,255);font-family:Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;font-size:12px;line-height:17px;">    I tried not to think about it, so I just moved my character around. Eventually, I got into a battle with a wild Roselia. As soon as the battle music started, my character threw out Buneary. Groaning, I check it's--well, it's a female Buneary-- moves. The only move it had in store was Frustration. Well, that definitely earned it another groan.

<span style="color:rgb(184,217,255);font-family:Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;font-size:12px;line-height:17px;">    My stylus tapped on Frustration, wanting to see how much damage it would do. The Buneary soon was using Frustration on the Roselia. I couldn't believe my eyes. It did  tons<span style="color:rgb(184,217,255);font-family:Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;font-size:12px;line-height:17px;"> of damage. Enough to make the Roselia faint. The Roselia did the normal fading away when it was defeated. However, the screen blinked and then I saw a pool of blood, but only in a flash before the screen turned back into the overworld background.

<span style="color:rgb(184,217,255);font-family:Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;font-size:12px;line-height:17px;">    The overworld seemed to be darker now. The trees were now just stumps with jagged edges, the sky was a dark red, and the NPCs were no longer there. The grass was burnt, leaving it with a wilted and brownish look. Ok, now this was absolutely new. This was Pokémon! A children's game! And this had never happened before!

<span style="color:rgb(184,217,255);font-family:Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;font-size:12px;line-height:17px;">    The Buneary was still beside me. I turn around and press the A button, which made my female character talk to the Buneary. A small icon showed up. It showed the Buneary with pink eyes, her black pupils as narrow as slits, as though it was from a very thin and thorough cut of a knife. I don't know what to do now. I was stunned.

<span style="color:rgb(184,217,255);font-family:Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;font-size:12px;line-height:17px;">    NIGHTMARE WISHES TO BATTLE <span style="color:rgb(184,217,255);font-family:Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;font-size:12px;line-height:17px;">    What? I never named the Buneary anything. And she just had a battle. <span style="color:rgb(184,217,255);font-family:Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;font-size:12px;line-height:17px;">    NIGHTMARE WISHES TO BATTLE YOU <span style="color:rgb(184,217,255);font-family:Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;font-size:12px;line-height:17px;">    Now I'm confused. This never happens in Pokémon games! This never even happened on my Pokémon Diamond game! Before I could react, however, my character was already in a battle with the Buneary.

<span style="color:rgb(184,217,255);font-family:Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;font-size:12px;line-height:17px;">    NIGHTMARE USED CURSE <span style="color:rgb(184,217,255);font-family:Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;font-size:12px;line-height:17px;">    The usual Curse animation went down on my character, however, the nail stood there, and it took away all of my character's health. Do Bunearies even learn Curse? It blinked back into the ruined overworld. My character was now replaced by another female pixelated character. She had brown hair, green eyes, and wore a gray hoodie with blue jeans, and purple sneakers.

<span style="color:rgb(184,217,255);font-family:Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;font-size:12px;line-height:17px;">    Wait. Was that  me<span style="color:rgb(184,217,255);font-family:Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;font-size:12px;line-height:17px;">? No. This couldn't be! But it looked so much like me. There was no denying it when the text popped up. <span style="color:rgb(184,217,255);font-family:Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;font-size:12px;line-height:17px;">    CAN YOU SEE NOW...WHAT WAS BEHIND THE "CUTE" FACE, KATHERINE??? <span style="color:rgb(184,217,255);font-family:Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;font-size:12px;line-height:17px;">    The female pixelation of me was silent, saying only "..." <span style="color:rgb(184,217,255);font-family:Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;font-size:12px;line-height:17px;">    THIS IS AN IMAGINARY FACE. TO YOU, OF COURSE. <span style="color:rgb(184,217,255);font-family:Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;font-size:12px;line-height:17px;">    The female pixelation still stood silent. <span style="color:rgb(184,217,255);font-family:Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;font-size:12px;line-height:17px;">    "..." <span style="color:rgb(184,217,255);font-family:Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;font-size:12px;line-height:17px;">    AW, WHO AM I TALKING TO? <span style="color:rgb(184,217,255);font-family:Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;font-size:12px;line-height:17px;">    With a swift movement, the corrupted Buneary pixelation hit my character--Actually, me--. Loud bangs can be heard. My character seemed to be now battered and bloodied. The pixelation of me gave a deep shudder, then fell to the ground.

<span style="color:rgb(184,217,255);font-family:Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;font-size:12px;line-height:17px;">    I opened my mouth to say words, but nothing came out. I was too stunned to talk. Soon, I could see images flashing inside my head. The first one was of the Buneary, normal and cute, then the second one was of the Buneary I had now. Corrupted, pink eyes, black, narrow pupils. I closed my eyes to stop the images flashing inside my head, but it only made it worse.

<span style="color:rgb(184,217,255);font-family:Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;font-size:12px;line-height:17px;">    Images of the Buneary, the corrupted overworld, and the dead pokémon were inside my head. Then came the pictures of my worst fears. It made it seem as if I had lost my friends and family. Then came the picture of bloody, roaring waters.

<span style="color:rgb(184,217,255);font-family:Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;font-size:12px;line-height:17px;">    The pictures had finally stopped. But my 3DS gave out an awful noises. It was just as bad as nails scratching on chalkboard! It was giving me a headache. I couldn't stand it anymore! I looked at the black screen. Text came up.

<span style="color:rgb(184,217,255);font-family:Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;font-size:12px;line-height:17px;">    CONGRATULATIONS! YOU HAD CAUGHT A BUNEARY!

<span style="color:rgb(184,217,255);font-family:Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;font-size:12px;line-height:17px;">    Then the letters changed randomly, from numbers, other letters, emoticons, and the extra things, such as %, !, @, and those other things. Then it came down to the final words.

<span style="color:rgb(184,217,255);font-family:Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;font-size:12px;line-height:17px;">    NIGHTMARE HAD CURSED YOU

<span style="color:rgb(184,217,255);font-family:Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;font-size:12px;line-height:17px;">    I didn't want to see what I saw, so I just slammed the 3DS closed. Anger soon boiled inside of me. Was this some kind of joke? If so, then it's not a funny one. I will ask my parents and my brother about this during the next meal.

<span style="color:rgb(184,217,255);font-family:Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;font-size:12px;line-height:17px;">    I had asked my parents and my brother about my game. They were confused. They gave me looks which almost looked as if they were saying "What do you mean?" I don't believe them. I believe that one of them had done something to my Pokémon Diamond game. Made it to seem like it was I was going crazy.

<span style="color:rgb(184,217,255);font-family:Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;font-size:12px;line-height:17px;">    I'll show them. I'll show them that I'm not going insane...

<span style="color:rgb(184,217,255);font-family:Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;font-size:12px;line-height:17px;">    The nightmares I had, you wouldn't believe. I can't get a good night's rest. What the fudge was I supposed to do? Each time I go to sleep, my dreams are disturbed by the same Buneary. Nightmare. I don't want to see her again. She is ruining my life!

<span style="color:rgb(184,217,255);font-family:Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;font-size:12px;line-height:17px;">    I've been taken away and now I am locked up. They all believe I am crazy. They believe I'm insane. I had soon been accusing people of who had ruined my game. One of them did it! They say that I'm just paranoid. I want to believe it, but it only made my 'paranoia' stronger. They are lying to me! They know they did it! They know it! One of them did it!

<span style="color:rgb(184,217,255);font-family:Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;font-size:12px;line-height:17px;">    I blinked once, and I was sure that I had seen a Buneary. The same one I had saw on my corrupted Pokémon game. They must believe me....they  must<span style="color:rgb(184,217,255);font-family:Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;font-size:12px;line-height:17px;">! All of them must see who had corrupted my game! I blinked again, and the Buneary was no longer there.

<span style="color:rgb(184,217,255);font-family:Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;font-size:12px;line-height:17px;">    Maybe I was going insane. No. Maybe I'm just getting paranoid. No, this couldn't be. How could I have lost my sanity so easily? How could I be so fearful so easily? I close my eyes and sleep, knowing that I was awaiting the next nightmare that is coming for me...

<span style="color:rgb(184,217,255);font-family:Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;font-size:12px;line-height:17px;">    YOU ARE FOREVER CURSED

<span style="color:rgb(184,217,255);font-family:Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;font-size:12px;line-height:17px;">    Nightmare....