Bulba's words fluttered in his chest like the faint echoes of reassurances the Venusaur had once given out. Being here's enough. That's what he told Red once, during a moment of doubt. It should've applied, and yet the taste of it now on his tongue felt dry and dead.

Even if he was a broken excuse for a Venusaur, and even if Bulba would never really see him as family, he still meant something to the Ivysaur, somehow. What little he was capable of doing... was that enough?

Maybe it was the way things should be, that he should help others and have nothing left for himself. That was the trade off.

Vinnie's eyes opened slowly, though they were still trained on the dirt. "Tell me..."

There was a pause. He raised his head an inch, as though bracing himself for a comforting lie.

"...Tell me it was worth it."