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An Uncertain Future	By : Twill Category: Pokemon > General Views: 12846 -:- Recommendations : 3 -:- Currently Reading : 3
Disclaimer: I do not own Pokemon, nor the characters from it. I do not make any money from the writing of this story.

Chapter List
- 10
- 11
- 12
“I found it,” a psychic voice entered coolly into Asher's mind. He looked over at the large Alakazam. The pair of them sat atop one of Goldenrod's tallest buildings. Wind whipped at his loose coat and ruffled his Alakazam's fur. They had been waiting there for days, Asher's pokemon surveying every human and pokemon that entered or left the city.

“Are you sure? You don't even know what we're looking for.” Asher waited for a response as Alakazam stared out into the distance, alert.

“I am sure. It's a Gardevoir, female. She teleported right into the city with a human male. He has two other pokemon with him but they are in their balls, none of them are anything of note,” the Alakazam said, eyes boring through the towering concrete and steel constructs that made up Goldenrod City.

“Gardevoir aren't that uncommon.” Asher joined Alakazam, gazing in the direction his pokemon was focused. “And it was a Kirlia. Could have evolved, but what makes you think it's our target.”

Alakazam didn't respond to him though, instead continuing with his observations. “She's injured quite badly, not fatal, but definitely not combat ready, we should strike now.”

“Our orders were to observe only; we're not getting involved in this just yet.” Injured? Asher was told that the pokemon they were looking for was quite strong.

“That creature is broken, it should be destroyed.” Alakazam turned to look him in the eye. “Unless you order me not to, I will kill that thing right now. If it wakes up, there is no guarantee I would defeat it in battle.”

Asher gaped. His partner, one of the most powerful psychic types he had ever encountered was unsure of victory against some child's Gardevoir? “I am ordering you to do nothing to that pokemon. What do you mean you can't beat it?”

Alakazam stared him down, but he would not be betrayed. “That Gardevoir is an abomination; her mind is a twisted mess. It isn't natural, nothing should have to live like that, and it's too dangerous to allow it to live.”

Asher surveyed the city as it flowed below them. Originally he had only followed Giovanni for the money, but after all these years, he trusted the man, or as much as he trusted anyone. He had questioned why someone of his caliber was on the lookout for some kid with two badges when not even the elite four had anything to match his strength. Nothing had ever even fazed his Alakazam before.

“How strong is it?”

Alakazam showed no emotion either way. “Its mind is twisted by incredibly powerful psychic barriers. In its current state I can't imagine it's more than a raving beast, but whatever hand placed those barriers is so far beyond my skill I can't even imagine. Nothing besides the hand of a Guardian could have done that. When those barriers break down though, or if that creature can manipulate them itself, I am unsure what would happen. If it has control over that power, it would be unstoppable. That thing shouldn't be allowed to continue, no good will come of anything so... Unnatural.”

A legendary pokemon? Asher rest against the railing that encircled the roof. He trusted Giovanni, but he would put his life in Alakazam's hands without hesitation. The sky above them began to blaze with a fiery sunset. If Alakazam was right, and Giovanni wasn't as ignorant as he let on, then maybe they should just make this simple. It wouldn't be the first time facing the man's anger. His pokemon wouldn't lie, but there was more to this than he first thought. Why would a pokemon like that even be traveling with a human, especially one so young and inexperienced? He didn't like this.

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Zoroark staggered through the forest. He couldn't tell if the bleeding had stopped or his hand was numb. There was nothing to heal his wounds anymore. Not since Wes was gone. He should have killed that fucking Absol in the beginning. She was insane. With a grunt he leaned against a large, rough barked tree.

While his wounds wouldn't kill him, he couldn't keep this pace up; he had lost too much blood. His breathing was labored as he slumped to the ground, taking a bloodstained paw away from the deep gash in his arm. It was closing, slowly. Just a little deeper and he would have bled out on the forest floor. The air was cold, or maybe it was just him. Absol would be moving almost as slowly as he was, and he would kill her too. There had been no warning before she attacked him, and he would not make that same mistake again. He just had to rest for a bit, and then they would all pay.

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The room Gardevoir woke in was dark. Glancing quickly around revealed nothing but dim outlines of what appeared to be a small room, the air sharp with the smell of chemicals. Upon moving, harsh white light illuminated the sterile room that was devoid of color. It wasn't a big room; in fact there was little area to move with the small bed that she lay on and the cabinets and sink against the opposite wall.

Atop the stiff cot she surveyed her situation, sitting up. The room was very similar to the one she had been in when Rob had first brought her to the pokemon center after being captured, except this one was empty. A needle was stuck into her arm, and she pulled it out with a wince. Why wasn't Rob here or the others?

And then what had seemed like a bad dream came crashing back to her. Collapsing in the pokemon center with Rob, abandoning Riolu alone with the pokemon who had tried to kill her. Dread burned in her stomach. She had betrayed the one person she had promised herself to protect no matter what, and why wasn't Rob here? Where was he? He had to be okay. Shadows moved beneath the door to her room as it swung inwards.

Two humans entered. Gardevoir recognized one as a pokemon center nurse. The other human she was unfamiliar with. The woman wore a neat mostly blue uniform accented with red at the cuffs and neck, as well as several pieces of polished metal. An odd brimmed hat stood atop her head, also adorned with a polished metal shape. They both wore smiles, but Gardevoir didn't trust them. The last time she had been in one of these places they had drugged her.

“Where's my trainer?” Gardevoir asked, trying to make a show of confidence as she stood, backing slightly away from the door in the small room. The room listed as her weak legs touched the cool tiled floor, but she forced herself to remain standing.

The nurse halted awkwardly in the door but her smile never faltered. “Well I'm glad to see you up and about Gardevoir, you had us worried for a bit. Your trainer is waiting outside. My friend here just wanted to ask you a few questions real quick is that okay?”

“Who is she? Why can't I see my trainer?” Gardevoir's eyes darted to the second woman.

The woman in blue stepped adroitly around the nurse and put on a smile of her own. “Hi, I'm a member of the Goldenrod Police. My name is Officer Irene. I just want to make sure that you're all right.” Gardevoir mirrored the woman's advance with a step backwards, a hand involuntarily rising as if to ward her off.

“I'm fine,” Gardevoir said, eyes darting between the two women cornering her in the room. She could make a break for it, they didn't have any pokemon of their own to stop her, but she didn't want to get Rob in trouble.

“I'm very glad to hear that, just humor me please? It will only take a moment and then you and your trainer can be on your way.” The officer seemed reasonable, and if it ended up taking more than a few moments then she could escape.

Gardevoir lowered her hand. “Fine,” she sent.

The woman smiled. “Thank you. Does your trainer ever do anything that you don't like?”

A confused look crossed Gardevoir's face. “I don't understand.”

“Does he ever hurt you, or use other pokemon to hurt you on purpose?” the woman asked.

“No, nothing like that, why?” Her confusion turned to surprise.

“Does he ever make you fight other pokemon to the point where you might get seriously hurt or killed?”

Gardevoir's eyes narrowed. “Why are you asking me these things?” Her mental voice harsher than she had intended, but anger burned inside of her.

“If he's hurting you we can stop him. It's illegal to use pokemon that way. The officer's voice was gentle, and she moved towards Gardevoir again.

“No,” Gardevoir snapped, raising a hand again and halting the officer's advance. “He isn't doing that; he's a good trainer.”

“Your injuries were very odd, and we've had reports of-”

“No,” Gardevoir repeated. “I want to leave.” The woman may have only been trying to help, but she was too late, for her at least. The two humans gave her an exasperated look but stepped back out into the hall, letting Gardevoir leave the room.

“Your trainer is waiting just through those doors in the lobby,” the nurse indicated, pointing down the hall.

“Thank you,” Gardevoir replied, suppressing the heat in her voice. Walking quickly she pushed the heavy door open and stepped out into a very large room. Sunlight shone in through large floor to ceiling windows that made up the walls of the pokemon center's lobby. Trainers and pokemon alike filled the room, bustling about and talking with one another. Gardevoir searched for one human in particular.

“Rob!” she shouted so only he would be able to hear her. Her trainer looked up from where he had been staring into the floor, eyes snapping to the doors Gardevoir had just exited. His face seemed to brighten for just a moment, but as Gardevoir made her way quickly to him, Rob gave a slight shake of his head and rose.

“Hello Gardevoir, I'm glad to see you're doing better,” he said, voice calm and dispassionate. He didn't smile, and he held himself away from her as if they were strangers.

Gardevoir's heart froze. “Um, Rob is there something wrong? I...” she trailed off.

“Everything's fine. I have a room here; I'll explain when we're in there. Follow me.” His voice didn't change. This wasn't like him. He had never acted like this to her before. What had she done? Another exit off of the lobby lead to a long corridor lined with doors. It wasn't a long walk, but to Gardevoir it seemed to take them hours, the floral patterned carpet dragging at her feet.

Was this the end? Not since the beginning had he ever been so distant with her. Not when she had shouted at him, or told him to leave her alone. Had her confession finally sunk in? Was he going to release her, or hand her over to those police to have her executed for what she'd done? A weight settled in her stomach. Her mouth was suddenly very dry as Rob led her before one of the doors and opened it. Nothing leapt out, no mob waited inside, so Gardevoir entered, followed by Rob who shut the door behind them. Firm hands pulled Gardevoir around, and she found herself in a tight embrace.

“I'm so glad you're okay,” Rob said softly. “When they said they weren't sure if...” he trailed off.

Gardevoir blinked in surprise but quickly let herself fall into the hug, letting Rob's arms surround her, pulling them close. “I don't understand, out there, you-”

Rob gave her one last squeeze before breaking away and stepping back. “I'm sorry, it's just. I don't know. The people here are acting strange; there have been a lot of attacks and odd reports I guess. The police were questioning me about you, and trying to make me out to be a pokemon abuser. I just didn't want to raise any suspicions for them.”

The hug had sent a wave of relief through Gardevoir, her face softening to a small grin. “They questioned me too. It seemed like they wanted me to say you were like Wes,” her face darkened as she thought back to her previous trainer and the woman in blue. “But being happy isn't bad is it?”

“No I guess not,” Rob said with a small chuckle. “But there's other, well it doesn't matter. I'm glad you’re better. You are okay right?”

With a small twirl, Gardevoir's dress flared out slightly in the small entrance to Rob's room. “All better,” Gardevoir said with a smile, letting the light airy feeling that filled her take over for a moment. And then she frowned. “I did something horrible,” she whispered to Rob. “Riolu. When you were hurt, I left her out on the road...” Rob only smiled and pointed over Gardevoir's shoulder.

“Gardevoir!” a familiar energetic voice called out, and Gardevoir spun to see the fighting pokemon run towards her. The small bundle of blue fur leapt and Gardevoir caught her, wrapping the pokemon in a tight embrace.

“I should never have left you out there. I don't know what I was thinking,” Gardevoir sent quietly to the baby pokemon.

“Don't worry,” Riolu said nuzzling into Gardevoir's chest. “I made it back fine, and everyone is safe now.”

“I booked the whole room you know, not just this hallway,” Rob said with a grin, and Gardevoir let Riolu back to the floor, quickly moving into the furnished area, blushing slightly.

Gardevoir sat on the edge of one of the beds, and Riolu hopped back up into her lap. Wrapping her arms around the blue pokemon, Gardevoir turned to Rob. “So where are the others?”

Rob took a seat in the rooms chair and angled it towards Gardevoir. “I thought they could use a little break after everything that's happened, so I dropped them off to get a little r and r. I offered to take Riolu, but she seemed to want to wait for you to wake up.”

“And you stayed here all by yourself with Rob?” Gardevoir asked, poking the small pokemon in the side.

Riolu giggled. “He's alright I guess. I mean since I didn't have a choice. He saved you though.”

Everything was working out. This unfamiliar feeling was intoxicating, lifting her onto billowing updraft of warmth. With a wide smile Gardevoir pulled Riolu back onto the bed, grunting as the two of them landed on the soft mattress. The spot on her stomach where she had been injured still felt bruised.

“I guess that's good enough,” Gardevoir sighed contentedly as she hugged Riolu tightly to her.

“Well, why don't I let you two catch up for a bit. I have a few things to do in town, and then I can grab the others and bring some food back. How's that sound?” Rob asked, standing.

Gardevoir almost asked him to stay a bit, but he would be back. Besides, now that he mentioned food, she began to feel the hunger of being asleep for so long. “See you soon,” she sent to her trainer's mind with a smile. “So, how did you manage to make your way back?” Gardevoir asked Riolu as Rob departed, enjoying the warmth of the small pokemon atop her.

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Gardevoir sat up as the door to their room opened. Delicious smells accompanied Rob in, as well as his other two pokemon who trailed behind. A light smile crossed her lips as their eyes met.

“Hungry?” Rob asked and Gardevoir nodded, joining him as he sat down on the floor to eat with his pokemon. She sat down next to Rob who gave her a quick smile as he began removing items from their bags. Riolu moved to sit on her right. They didn't mind having her around. The feeling almost made Gardevoir sing. Closing her eyes she basked in the warm feeling for a moment.

As usual Rob had gotten them an assortment of different things, and Gardevoir looked at them eagerly. With a withering look at the fork Rob passed her along with the plate, she started to pick through the containers with her four companions. Humans had so many flavors for their foods. Yellow and Red slices of something added a strange sweetness to the food, and it made her tongue tingle pleasantly. The rest of the group was quiet for the most part as they ate.

“I'm glad you guys are safe,” Gardevoir said to Rob's other two pokemon, trying to break the silence.

“No thanks to you,” Quilava muttered. Sandshrew shot his friend a heated look, but he didn't speak up in her defense either.

“I-I'm sorry. I didn't mean to-”

“Didn't mean to what? Get Rob mixed up with whatever insane pokemon you kept company with before he found you? Or try and kill him yourself after he risked his life to save yours?” Small flames licked up the fire pokemon's back as he stood. Despite being half her size, Gardevoir wilted beneath his stare. She looked to the others but none of them met her eyes, not even Riolu.

“Go easy on her, she just got better.” Sandshrew tried to calm Quilava down, but he never discounted what the fire type accused either.

“What's going on?” Rob asked, confusion painting his face. While he couldn't understand what was being said, the tension in the room was palpable. Gardevoir didn't answer him though.

“Why, so she can murder us all in her sleep? Why does Rob even keep her around let alone leave her outside of her pokeball,” Quilava asked, continuing to lay into her.

“Are you done?” Gardevoir whispered psychically, staring at the floor.

“No I'm not done with you,” Quilava spat. “If you gave a damn about any of us you'd leave and get as far away from anyone normal. You're just a danger to everyone else.”

“I see.” It was always too good to be true. Without taking her eyes from the ground Gardevoir departed with a psychic ripple.

“That was horrible,” Riolu growled at Quilava before jumping up onto the bed and wrapping herself in the warm sheets.

“What, do you think-” the fire type began but Riolu never let him finish.

“Don't talk to me,” she shouted back. A storm raged above her. Gardevoir's aura. Unlike her future form, she did have full control over the auras around her, but even now she could feel the undulating waves of emotion and life. Strong emotion always made it easier to detect, but the feelings she was getting from both Gardevoir and Quilava were dark and unpleasant.

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Gardevoir sat with her back against the cool brick wall that lined the pokemon center's roof. The pokeball that bound her didn't allow her to go far from it, but this was good enough. She just wanted to be a lone for a bit. Every time things started to go well, something would come up to knock her back down. It was like she attracted misfortune. It wasn't fair.

“You seem troubled little one.” It was a psychic voice, much like her own, but there was no one on the roof with her. Not a corporeal being anyway. Releasing her psychic powers out around her, Gardevoir sensed it. A miasma of psychic energy, almost like a pokemon, except it had no physical body.

“What are you?” Gardevoir asked, her skin prickling along the back of her neck.

“What am I?” The voice was old and powerful. “I am just a traveler who noticed a fellow pokemon in distress.” Wisdom and confidence exuded from the being and into her mind.

For some reason Gardevoir wasn't scared, or even bothered by the formless pokemon. “How are you talking like this? I don't sense anything but energy.”

“I am projecting myself. In truth I am quite far from where you sit, but physical location is a trivial thing. Don't you worry yourself about me though, that isn't why I revealed myself to you.” The voice said.

“Then why did you? Why are you here?” Gardevoir asked the mysterious being. A chill wind swept along the top of the building she sat on, but Gardevoir barely noticed. In fact, this new presence seemed to make her forget many of her troubles. She felt like she knew him, or at least felt related to him. And it was a he, though how she knew this was a mystery.

“I came here to listen. Why don't you tell me what's wrong,” the calm voice asked, soothing her mind.

“I-” What was wrong? There were so many things wrong with her, but what was even the issue anymore? She couldn't even remember what happened during the last part of the trip to this new city. “Everything I try to do just ends in failure. I'm useless as a psychic pokemon, and I just put my friends in danger,” Gardevoir said finally, resting her chin on her knees.

“You should not be so hard on yourself,” the being said. “Did your friends tell you to leave? Is that why you're up here alone?”

“Well, one of them did. Ro- My trainer didn't hear the argument. I just wanted to be alone for a bit,” she sulked. “I don't even remember what I did, but I think they might be right. I-I'm a danger to others.”

“A danger? That doesn't sound like someone useless, quite the opposite in fact.”

Something pulled at Gardevoir, telling her not to go on, but for once there was someone who might understand, might know what was wrong with her. “Sometimes, when I'm scared, or angry, I... Lose myself. I can hear this power calling to me, begging to be used, and I can't control it.”

The energy being was silent for a moment, but when it spoke, its voice was unchanged, calm and reassuring. “What kind of power?”

“I don't know. It's so strong, and it makes me do things. Things I don't want to.” Gardevoir pulled her legs closer, tight in her arms. “I've killed,” she whispered, if not for the psychic nature of their communications, the sound would have been lost in the wind. “Please, do you know what it is? Do you know what's wrong with me?”

“Perhaps,” the being said slowly. “Is there anything else?”

There was no point in hiding anything else at this point, not after revealing her darkest secret to the pokemon veiled behind his psychic shroud. “Without the power, I can't do anything. Even sensing my surroundings is hard to do, and even that is nothing like what I've heard it should be. Seeing the future, reading minds, I can't do any of it.”

The pokemon was silent for a long time, seeming to stand watch over her under the darkening sky. She didn't push him though, a part of her not wanting to hear what the being's response would be. Part of her was scared of what it might say, what she might be.

“Can you be here again in three days?” it asked finally.

Gardevoir couldn't tell anything of what the being felt, no way to judge his attitude towards her. There was only that calm, unchanging voice in her mind. “I don't know. My trainer decides where we go.”

“If you can't, I will find you again,” and with that, there was only one presence on the roof.

Gardevoir sat for a long time against the cool brick after the psychic being left. Stars glimmered merrily overhead, fending off the darkness that stretched out infinitely. Had she done the right thing in revealing so much to a complete stranger? Her gut said to trust him, but at the same time another part had told her to keep quiet. But if he had answers, why couldn't he have just told her? Was he afraid that she'd go insane at the truth, and unleash her power? Or maybe he didn't know. Maybe there were no answers. There were definitely none to be found sitting on the roof, and the cold was beginning to permeate her very core. With one last look up at the sky, Gardevoir returned to the room below.

A dim light shone when Gardevoir returned to the warm interior of the pokemon center. The others were asleep, except for the source of the dull glow.

Gardevoir's back stiffened. “Did you stay up just to taunt me again? If you're going to try and throw me out, I-I have nowhere else to go.”

The fire type didn't meet her eyes, instead looking to the side as his body lit the surroundings in a soft light. “No,” Quilava said in barely a whisper, careful as to not wake the others. “I wanted to apologize for what I said earlier. Can you bring me somewhere we can talk?”

Nothing indicated that Quilava was lying, and she could feel remorse through her chest fin. After hesitating only a moment she gently placed a hand to his head and they were back on the building's roof. Cool air whipped Gardevoir's hair as she stared out over the lights of the city, an unnatural ward against the darkness of night. She rest her elbows on the wall that encircled the rooftop and waited.

“I'm sorry,” Quilava said, his quiet voice clear in the calm night. “I shouldn't have said what I did.”

“It was true though, wasn't it?” The moon reflected in Gardevoir's eyes as she watched the few humans walking below.

Quilava hopped up onto the ledge and sat down. “Even if it had been, I still shouldn't have gone off like that. Twice in a few weeks I've been completely useless to Rob, and we've all almost been killed. Sorry for letting it get to me.”

Gardevoir glanced over at the fire type who had joined her in looking out over the city. It was odd to hear some of her own feelings echoed back to her. “What did I do, when I...”

Quilava shrugged. “You were muttering and saying some stuff that didn't really make any sense. And then you woke up, kind of, and started shouting at us. Rob tried to calm you down, and you did something to him.” Quilava didn't meet her eyes as he continued. “He started acting strange too, grabbing his head and talking nonsense. The three of us were able to, um, stop you, but Rob was like that for a while. We weren't sure if he was going to get better or what would happen if someone else came by.”

Quilava shifted uncomfortable under her gaze but continued his story. “He came back to his senses eventually. I don't think he remembers. The two of you were... I don't know. You had all of us pretty scared.”

Gardevoir let the silence hang as she returned to examining the city towering around them. What was she? Could she even be fixed, or was she destined to be a monster? That psychic pokemon that had spoken to her in this exact spot a short while before knew something. He had to know something about her. Three days he had said.

“I'm sorry, and thanks.” Gardevoir said, able to keep her voice steady.

“Yeah, I'm sorry too.” Neither of them had anything more to say, and after another few minutes Gardevoir returned them to their room below. She quietly made her way to the bed and lay down beside Riolu, careful not to wake the sleeping pokemon. The bed was warm and soft, yet sleep didn't come easily. Riolu looked so peaceful laying there. Gardevoir wanted to hug the pokemon to her, but even Riolu hadn't met her eyes when Quilava had said those things. Did they all fear her? There was only silence as she stared into the darkness.

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Gardevoir woke early the next morning. Despite being exhausted, her body refused to return to sleep, so she instead wrapped the warm blankets around her and stared at the wall. As she lay there Gardevoir tried to let her mind wander, but it always returned to the same question. What was she? It would be a long three days until that pokemon returned, and that was even if Rob hadn't decided to leave the city by then. In fact he hadn't told her of any of his plans. How long had they even been here already while she had lain unconscious? There was movement behind her.

“Gardevoir? You awake?” Riolu's quiet voice returned her to the present.

“Yeah,” Gardevoir responded, not moving.

“Are you okay?”

“Yeah,” she replied again. Riolu's arms began to snake around her until she could feel warm fur tickling her back, bringing heat to her pale skin. It was a pleasant feeling.

“Are you sure? You were gone for a long time last night, and Quilava didn't mean those things he said. I'm sure he didn't,” the fighting pokemon said into her back.

“It's fine, we talked last night,” Gardevoir sent, relaxing against the small pokemon. The heat trapped by soft blue fur soothing away some of the tension of her fears.

“It's not fine, he shouldn't have said that.”

Blue arms squeezed around Gardevoir tightly, and she couldn't help but smile at her small friend. If nothing else, at least Riolu didn't seem afraid of her. She would never hurt Riolu. Never that. “He apologized,” Gardevoir said, turning to hug Riolu back. “I've heard worse.”

“You still never told me about when you were younger,” Riolu murmured as she rest her head against Gardevoir's chest.

“When I was younger? We're almost the same age.” Gardevoir poked her friend in the side.

“Whatever. I told you about myself,” Riolu wriggled against her, attempting to evade Gardevoir's hand.

“It's not important.” Gardevoir sighed as she relented and rest her chin against Riolu's fuzzy head.

“You two are up early,” came Rob's groggy voice from the other bed. Gardevoir watched as her trainer rose. Faint circles lined his eyes, and his movements lacked their usual vigor. A look of relief accompanied his smile though. “You feeling good enough to go out today Gardevoir?”

Some of the light airy feeling that had infected her yesterday returned at seeing Rob smile at her. “Sure, I feel almost back to normal,” she replied.

“Good to hear,” Rob said through a yawn as he got up and entered the room's bathroom. The sound of rain came from behind the closed door, but Gardevoir soon pushed the ridiculous thought from her mind. Where would they be going? She doubted it was a gym battle so soon after waking up, but maybe Rob wouldn't be using her again. If it was a gym battle then Rob rarely stayed long afterward. That would mean she wouldn't get to talk with that mysterious psychic pokemon again, and he might have answers she desperately needed. Maybe she could get Rob to stay in the city. Somehow she would. She needed to know.

Rob exited the bathroom a short time later, hair damp but otherwise looking more awake. Gardevoir sat up.

“So where are we going?” she asked, hoping that she kept the anxiety from her mental voice.

“Oh just out for a bit, get some training in for Sandshrew and Quilava, if they ever wake up.” Rob emphasized the last two words, but they were met with barely a movement from his two sleeping pokemon. “I swear, those two,” he muttered. “Oh, Gardevoir, I was going to wait till you were feeling up to it, but after whatever happened last night, well, maybe this will cheer you up. I got you something.”

“Got something for me?” Gardevoir stood apprehensively. No one had ever given her anything before, and what could he have possibly gotten. Rob rummaged through his bag quickly before handing her a small square object.

“What is it?” While the mere gesture sent her heart soaring, Gardevoir couldn't imagine what she would do with it. The object was about the size of her hand, and contained a circle beneath the translucent outer square. It didn't look edible.

“It's called a TM. They're used to help pokemon learn moves they normally couldn't. That one teaches focus blast, a powerful fighting move. It's one of the only fighting moves a psychic type can use effectively. You'll be able to defend yourself against dark types.”

The item quickly became heavy in her hands as Gardevoir reverently placed it on the table. “I-I,” but the words wouldn't come out. Instead she turned and threw herself at Rob, hugging him tightly and burying her face in his chest. “T-Thank you so much,” she sent in a quavering voice, a storm of emotions coursing through her as she clung to her trainer. “You-You're not afraid of me?”

“Of course not,” Rob said, running a gentle hand through her hair.

“I hurt you,” she whispered, extending tiny claws to latch onto Rob's shirt, their bodies already flush, but she still pulled against him.

“You didn't mean it right? And I barely remember it. You weren't feeling well, and I know you'd never do it on purpose. Don't worry about it.”

Gardevoir breathed deep, letting the moment be captured perfectly by her mind. The unconditional acceptance that Rob showed her something she thought impossible.

“Kill the human.”

Gardevoir's back stiffened. “Wha-?” It had been a psychic voice, the words echoing through her mind.

“Something wrong?” Rob asked, letting his hands drop from her as he gazed into her eyes.

“It's nothing.” Gardevoir looked away before she got lost in the sea of warmth she could feel radiating from Rob and into her chest fin. “I'm just- thank you.” The most heartfelt smile of her life painted her face as Gardevoir enjoyed the fading moment she had just shared with her trainer. Rob moved to wake the others, and Gardevoir returned to plop herself down on the bed contentedly.

Nothing could have taken this from her, but there was something else now too. Cruel eyes glared at her back, putting her on edge and tingeing her happiness with unease. But there was nothing there. Even using her powers to feel out the room revealed nothing, yet the feeling remained. For once though, none of her problems paled in comparison to her happiness. Riolu returned to Gardevoir's side, a wide grin on the fighting pokemon's face.

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Less than an hour later, the bustle and crowds of Goldenrod City were disappearing behind the four of them as they headed out onto route 35. It was a pleasant day, not too hot, and with decent cloud coverage to keep the sun from cooking them. Gardevoir walked behind the others, Rob and Sandshrew in the lead with Riolu and Quilava bantering at their heels. While she had usually traveled behind the others, this time it wasn't because of feeling out of place. In fact she almost bounced along the pathway filled with a sense of giddiness.

She watched as Rob led them along, a beacon. Finally she had something to help guide her out of the past. Hopelessness had almost drowned her, and he came to pull her back even though she fought him, but he had won in the end. And now she had to repay him for that, for what he had given her. No more would she let fear and despair cripple her. She had to be stronger. She would be stronger.

Power already flowed through Gardevoir; she could feel it. The real test would be if she was strong enough to use it, to unleash herself on the world. It was always there, singing to her, calling with the enticing promise of her every desire. Strength that thrilled and terrified her, just out of sight yet always present. Not yet, she wasn't strong enough, not just yet.

There was another power too now. The TM, as Rob had called it, had been an interesting device. She wasn't quite sure how it had worked, but it had seemed to unlock something within her, giving insight to something she could have always known, yet had been locked behind ignorance. Well she was in the dark no more. The ability was unlike the others she knew how to perform. If felt raw and powerful, completely unlike the complex manipulation of her mind that her other attacks required. This ability seemed to want to leap from her body. She could hardly wait to try it. It could kill dark types.

“Well here looks like a decent spot, we may even get a trainer or two to come challenge us being so close to the path,” Rob called out, indicating a nice sized meadow a few hundred yards off the packed dirt road. He quickly instructed Quilava and Sandshrew in a few warm-up exercises and then sat back to watch. Gardevoir sat down beside him, Riolu on her left.

Quilava squared off with his friend and opponent. “It's been a while, you sure you're ready?”

Sandshrew laughed. “Always. Just make sure you don't embarrass yourself in front of your new girlfriend,” he taunted. Quilava looked poleaxed, and Sandshrew jumped at the opportunity. Riolu giggled and leaned against Gardevoir's arm, fur soft against her green skin.

“What did I miss while I was out?” Gardevoir teased her blue furred friend.

“Nothing,” Riolu said defensively with a poke to Gardevoir's ribs. “Sandshrew just likes to tease him because we're friends, and he gets so worked up about it. It's cute,” she giggled lightly again.

“What was that?” Rob called out as Sandshrew's curled up form slammed into Quilava, carrying them both to the grassy earth, the ground type standing triumphantly. Rob was unable to understand Sandshrew's taunting.

“That was dirty,” Quilava growled, brilliant flames leaping to life along his back, heating the air into a violent haze above him. Gardevoir couldn't help but laugh too, enjoying the wave of mirth that washed over her from two of the present pokemon.

“What?” Rob asked, looking to the two of them.

“Nothing,” Gardevoir replied with a smile. Heat washed over the three of them as Quilava's attack withered the grass around the impromptu arena as he tried to get fiery revenge on his ground typed friend.

“Do you think Rob would let me fight a little?” Riolu asked, watching intently as the two sparring pokemon leapt and struck out at each other.

“Riolu wants to know if she could try sparring a little,” Gardevoir translated the fighting pokemon's request to Rob.

Rob looked at Riolu quickly and back to Gardevoir. “Sure, I don't see why not. She knows she can't fight other trainers or in gym battles for me though right? She's still a wild pokemon...”

“She isn't wild, she was born in captivity,” Gardevoir corrected. “But I'm pretty sure she understands.” Rob shrugged and returned to watching his pokemon fight as Gardevoir relayed his words to Riolu. The fighting pokemon smiled happily and returned to watching. Fire fended off claws, each burst forcing Sandshrew to dodge or retreat underground to evade getting burned. The ground type managed a few more hits, but neither really tried too hard. Despite the taunts, the pair were good natured about their warm-up.

“Alright, that's good for now you two, take a few minutes, and then you can try and kill each other again.” Rob grabbed some water from his pack for the two as Quilava glared at Sandshrew, who still had a wide grin on his face. As the two drank, Riolu ran over to join them.

“Quilava you were magnificent!” Riolu said in praise, throwing her arms around the fire type. Sandshrew coughed up the water he was drinking and fell to the ground in a fit of laughter.

“You know I expect this from him,” Quilava bristled, awkwardly pulling himself away from Riolu.

“What's going on?” Rob asked watching the trio.

“They're just teasing Quilava a bit,” Gardevoir replied with a twinkling laugh as the fire type sulked away from Riolu's praise.

“I mean he seemed a little distracted but his fighting wasn't that bad,” Rob said in defense of his pokemon.

Gardevoir smiled. “Oh it isn't about his fighting really, more about why he was distracted.” She looked up to see a slight frown on her trainer's face.

“I don't know if you'd know how, or if what I heard is even true, but someone at the academy said that psychic pokemon could link with their trainers so they could understand what pokemon said. You wouldn't be able to do that would you?” Rob looked to her but she quickly glanced away.

“No,” Gardevoir replied immediately. “Or, I mean, I don't know if anything like that is possible,” she muttered at the grass.

“Ah, oh well. I figured it was worth asking. Not being able to understand them is a little frustrating sometimes, but at least I have you here.” Rob returned his attention to the others. His words thrilled and guilted her. It hadn't been a lie, not really. She really didn't know if it were possible, or how she would do it, but it hadn't been the first time someone had asked her to do something of that nature. Back when Wes had first received her, he had wanted something similar, to be able to access her mind. The question had made her think of nothing else.

There might be a way to do it, and now that she thought about it there might be a way, but she didn't dare try. Gardevoir had no idea what the effect would be, but once the link was established, the other person would be able to see into her mind. Not fully, and maybe not even enough to glean the most basic of feelings, but it wasn't a chance she was willing to take.

Movement brought her back to the present however as Rob moved towards the others, leaving her sitting on the grass by herself. After a few minutes of instruction, and a little extra for Riolu, Quilava and the young fighting type were out on the field under Rob's watchful eye. Sandshrew came to take a seat next to her as they prepared to watch the next match.

“This should be interesting eh?” the ground type asked, still harboring a sly grin as he watched the two. “He might not show it, but I think Quilava has caught quite an interest in your friend.”

“Wait you weren't just teasing him?” Gardevoir asked.

“Oh I was teasing him, but they spent an awful lot of time together while you were out. And Riolu was pretty torn up about you; she was a mess the day she finally reached us in the city.” Sandshrew said, letting his smile slip for just a moment. “But Quilava was there for her.”

“I see,” Gardevoir said looking back towards the pair who were now sparring lightly. She was about to continue but Sandshrew spoke up first.

“Speaking of which, how are you holding up?”

“I'll be fine,” she replied, and for once she actually believed herself. “I was honestly more worried about you guys getting away. Those two pokemon, they... Well I know them. They wouldn't have hesitated to kill you, and I couldn't stop them,” she said, staring intensely into the long grass in front of her. Now she could though; she just had to get stronger, strong enough that she could protect Rob and the others.

“Well we all made it out, and even managed to pull you out of the fire,” Sandshrew said with a grin. “You look better than you did. Different. I told you things would start looking up.”

Gardevoir smiled in remembrance. “I guess so, thanks.”

“Your Riolu is hopeless,” Rob said, landing heavily on the ground with a sigh.

“She's doesn't belong to anyone,” Gardevoir corrected. “And you should give her credit for her enthusiasm,” she said as the blue furred pokemon charged relentlessly at Quilava, attacks coming within inches before the fire type could duck away. A fountain of light and heat shot out to try and stave off the onslaught, but Riolu quickly rolled and launched herself at Quilava once again in tireless pursuit. She was a blur against the swaying grass.

“Come on, fight me,” Riolu's shout carried to the three onlookers.

“But we're only supposed to be-” but Quilava was cut off as he had to once again was forced to evade Riolu's steel backed paw. Rob sighed again, lying back in the soft grass.

Gardevoir looked down at him. “You never let me train or battle anymore,” she said.

“You're too strong,” Rob replied with a slight chuckle. “Besides, you probably know better how to practice than I could show you.”

“I guess.” It might have been true, but she needed to be stronger, and soon. Having no one to practice with made that much harder though.

Rob looked up at her from his spot on the ground. “You could always try out your new attack; it will probably take you a while to get used to. Fighting type moves take physical strength, not just concentration and your psychic energy.”

Yes, the new attack that could kill dark types. Gardevoir rose, concentrating on the ability she had just learned. It seemed like a simple thing thanks to the square object's help. With an outstretched hand, she focused, forcing her body's energy into her green palm. A light blue orb coalesced, swirling with the very energy of her life. It needed more. Gardevoir poured herself into the attack, imagining the snarling black visage that stalked her dreams leaping towards her, and she released it.

The focus blast lanced through the air, exploding as it struck a distant tree. Where it connected, the tree was no more. Wood splinters ripped through the air like shrapnel. The tree itself dropped as the trunk that had supported it no longer existed. Even Riolu and Quilava stopped dead at the noise and turned to watch the green and brown behemoth crash to the ground.

Gardevoir never saw her handiwork though. As soon as the sphere left her hand the world spun, and she found herself on hands and knees in the grass, panting. Life had been leeched from her limbs and thrown off into the distance, leaving her gasping for air as if she had just sprinted for miles.

“Wow that was one- Are you okay?” Rob's hand came to rest on her shoulder as he turned to her.

“Fine,” she forced out as lucidity began to return. Her chest heaved, the exertion of draining her body so quickly a shock to her system.

“I told you to take it easy. That attack isn't like your others; you're not used to that kind of strain,” Rob said, handing her a bottle of water.

Taking the bottle she found that one hand was not enough to support her drained body, and she moved to sit down.

“Here,” Rob motioned and turned so that she could rest against his shoulder.

“Thanks, but I'll be fine in a minute. I can try again; I'll do better.” Gardevoir drank, resting against her trainer's side. She wriggled slightly to get a more comfortable position.

“You're done for the day. I told you to take it easy. If you keep pushing yourself like that you're just going to get hurt. There will be plenty of time for you to practice,” Rob said, placing a hand on her shoulder.

“Fine,” she replied quietly, letting her head fall back against him. Maybe he was right; the attack had taken a lot out of her. A light breeze swept across the field as Gardevoir closed her eyes for just a moment. Resting against her trainer like this was nice.
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An Uncertain Future