When she wakes up, she smiles at you softly; so very, very softly. She smiles at you with all the tenderness that she’s always reserved for her most cherished Pokémon, reaching out to you with a thin, pale hand, saying “Darling—”
And you knock the hand away.
And you knock the hand away.
Only Flowers Fall
is a short 2,000-word fanfic based off of the ending for Pokémon Sun and Moon.
The fanfic revolves around Lillie's relationship with her mother Lusamine. In this story, Lillie doesn't try to mend her relationship with her mother like she does in canon. She rejects and disowns Lusamine for rejecting and disowning her in the past.
This fanfic provides examples of:
- Abusive Parents: Lusamine was emotionally abusive and neglectful in the past. Other people try to push the blame on grief or Nihilego's neurotoxins, saying it wasn't Lusamine's fault, but Lillie disagrees.
- All There in the Manual: The author's note explains the meanings of cyclamen (resignation and separation) and orange lilies (hate).
- Alternate Universe Fic: Lusamine isn't Easily Forgiven by her daughter.
- And the Adventure Continues: The story ends with Lillie sailing away from Alola to go on her own Pokémon journey in Kanto, with her heart set on picking a Bulbasaur as her starter.
- Armor-Piercing Response: When Lillie discusses the matter with Professor Burnet:Lillie: But she's my mother.
Burnet: She was your mother. But she she abdicated any right to that position long ago. You owe her nothing now. - Armor-Piercing Question: One of these finally impresses upon Gladion why his sister is refusing to forgive their mother:Lillie: Even if she hadn't been terrible, we were children! We were children, and I wanted my mother, and she was the one who hurt us! Why is it my fault?!
- Bitch in Sheep's Clothing: Lusamine beams when Lillie comes to visit her in the hospital, only for any pretense to melt away when her daughter makes clear that she only came to request that she stop trying to contact her.
- Bittersweet Ending: Lillie has not fully recovered from the trauma of her childhood, but she is taking steps toward independence and recovery, and is finally free of her abusive mother for good.
- Dark Fic: Its psychological tone is darker than the norm for the franchise.
- Disabled in the Adaptation: Lillie is explicitly confirmed to have Complex Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder caused by Lusamine's abuse.
- Disowned Parent: It ends with Lillie disowning her previously emotionally abusive mother and leaving for Kanto on her own. Lillie prefers to see Professor Burnet as her surrogate mother.
- Easily Forgiven: Lillie is expected to let Lusamine off the hook, and repeatedly berated for refusing to do so. Gladion himself opts to forgive their mother.
- Flower Motif: Lille gives her mother cyclamen flowers as a parting gift, and ultimately selects Bulbasaur as her starting Pokémon in Kanto.
- Freudian Excuse Is No Excuse: Various victim-blamers do everything they can to shift blame off of Lusamine. They are less willing to do the same for her victim.
- I Have No Son!: Lusamine disowned both of her children in the past; Lillie coldly reminds her brother of this when he tries to join in guilt-tripping her.
- Irony: When Lusamine got really bad, Gladion was the one who ran away first while Lillie stayed. Now he's the one trying to convince Lillie to make up with their mother.
- Like Father, Unlike Son: Invoked with Lillie, who is unwilling to become bitter like her mother.
- Never My Fault: Lusamine refuses to take responsibility for her actions, which Lillie rails against.
- Nice Girl: Burnet is kind, understanding, and generally the mother Lillie deserves as opposed to Lusamine.
- No Sympathy for Grudgeholders: Others judge Lillie harshly for refusing to automatically forgive Lusamine for all her trespasses against her, insisting that she should forgive her simply because she's her daughter.
- Not Brainwashed: It's very clear based on her interactions with Lillie that Lusamine would have been a narcissistic abuser with or without Nihilego's influence, and that it only made a bad woman worse.
- Parental Substitute: Professor Burnet is a far better mother to Lillie than Lusamine has been or could ever be, and reassures her that she doesn't have to forgive her abuser, no matter what anyone says.
- Parental Title Characterization: To show that she no longer considers Lusamine her mother, Lillie mentally refers to her as "the woman" or "that woman".
- Significant Wardrobe Shift: As part of distancing herself from Lusamine, Lillie stops wearing the fancy white dresses that her mother always made her wear, and starts wearing casual clothes like a "Welcome to Alola" T-shirt that Moon gave her.
- Stealth Insult: While her mother is comatose in the hospital, Lillie brings her cyclamen flowers, a flower that symbolizes resignation and goodbyes. To those who don't know flower language, it just looks like a sweet gift.
- Thicker Than Water:
- Subverted and Discussed repeatedly. Lillie is unable to forgive her mother for her prior emotional abuse. Many others find this wrong of Lillie since they're family, but Lillie keeps her stance.
- Professor Burnet agrees with Lillie, serving as one of her sole supporters.
- Gladion has this viewpoint. He wants to help his mother.
- Trauma Button: The emotional damage Lusamine has inflicted is so extensive that merely hearing the sound of her voice on the phone causes Lillie to have a panic attack and begin to weep.
- What the Hell, Hero?: Gladion confronts his sister shortly before she departs, demanding to know why she changed her mind about trying to help Lusamine.
