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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
- 18
- 19
- 20
Gardevoir woke to the comforting warmth of Rob's naked body against hers. An arm draped around and cradled her lithe form against his wide chest. Her gown felt tangled around their legs, especially with the blanket atop them. Gardevoir placed a light kiss against Rob's chest.
If only this could last. If only the other humans would let them live their lives in peace. Why did they care so much what Rob did? So few seemed capable of compassion. Gardevoir snuggled against Rob's chest and tried to forget what the afternoon would bring, easy to do in her mate's embrace.
Rob didn't open his eyes, but his breathing changed. “Morning.” He yawned.
“Good morning.” She spoke softly into his mind, and, now that he was awake, wriggled beneath the blankets to lay atop him.
Rob chuckled. “It's not often enough I get to wake up in a warm bed with a beautiful woman.” He ran a hand through her hair, and Gardevoir laid her head above Rob's languorous heartbeat.
“We should change that.”
“Someday.”
Gardevoir moved forward so she could look directly into Rob's green eyes. She pressed her lips to his. “Well hurry up.”
They shared a passionate kiss. Rob's firm hands slid down her back, soothing her against his warm body. It didn't take long before she had a noticeable effect on her lover.
“Do all humans start their days like this?”
Rob broke the kiss. “Only the luckiest ones.” He kissed her cheek, her jaw, her neck. Returning the affection would mean putting a stop to the sometimes quick, sometimes slow kisses, so she gladly let him continue and instead used her psychic powers to move the now restrictive blankets off them.
The flush that crept into Gardevoir's cheeks wasn't the only effect Rob had on her either. “Can we stay here, just a few more days? Please?”
“Not yet.” Rob slipped a hand beneath her gown and stroked her thigh.
“I love you. I'd be happy living with you away from everyone else. I don't care where, or if we didn't have the nicest things.” A shiver rolled through her body from Rob's teasing hand. Since he stopped kissing her neck, she nipped at his collarbone. Telepathy had its advantages for this sort of thing.
“I love you too, Gardevoir. You deserve better than that.”
“Please don't go.” Gardevoir kissed his throat as passionately as she could, to show him how much she loved him. She pulled herself tight against him, though made sure not to impede the hand he had beneath her gown.
“It won't take long, and then we'll be on our way.”
Gardevoir tried to protest, but Rob decided to take that moment to slip his hand between her legs, running a finger slowly along her wet slit. Pleasure fueled her arousal addled mind. Her weak protest came out as a gasp.
“And you'll be there with me,” Rob said, almost pressing hard enough to enter her with each pass. His voice dropped low. “I'd place my life in your hands without a thought.” He removed his hand and nudged her legs apart with his.
She felt his length rub against her, so big compared to her tiny waist, and now slick with her arousal. Gardevoir stroked her hands down Rob's back in encouragement, the anticipation and teasing driving her to the brink of insanity. She let her claws gently prick his skin, just enough to let him know he'd kept her waiting long enough.
“You're so beautiful.” Rob slid into her, slow but insistent, his hands stroking her cheek as he kissed her.
Despite her efforts to relax as Rob pressed deeper, her body tensed around him. She clung to her mate with trembling arms, his kiss muffling a quiet moan. She felt his hips press flush against her body, and the stretching fullness reach its peak. Her head fell lightly to the bed, and she panted against Rob's warm chest. “It's been so long.”
“I'm sorry.” Rob let her adjust to his size for a moment.
Gardevoir could feel how much he wanted her, and she loved him for his restraint. It had been long for him too. Her body did its best to take him in her heated depths. A strong hand stroked her hair soothingly, and slowly she began to feel her body relax a little.
Rob withdrew, slowly pulling from her grasping sex, drawing near-silent gasps from her throat as he moved within her. It seemed to last forever, a familiar feeling of pressure and bliss already beginning to form within the core of her body. Kisses tickled her throat, and a hand moved to trace around one of her small breasts.
Lust overwhelmed her, drove the pain and restraint from her mind. She tried to push herself back onto Rob, but his hips teased away, leaving her almost empty before slipping back into her. And she growled as he did so, stretching her tight insides to fill her completely. Her hips moved on their own, matching Rob's slowly quickening rhythm perfectly.
Their two bodies moved with each other, Rob moving fluidly in and out of her while she aimed her hips to receive him as deep as possible. Sweat glistened across their bodies, and her thighs slicked with fluids.
Gardevoir nipped at Rob's throat in response to a hard, pleasurable thrust. He drove into her, not wildly, but insistent, with purpose, with need. Fingers stppped to toy with a sensitive nipple beneath her gown, his other hand at the small of her back to pull her onto him. She could feel it, building in her belly, trembling down her thighs and clenching her wet sex around Rob.
Gardevoir's release crashed through her mind. She squeezed Rob as pleasure burned away thought and feeling, leaving nothing but bliss behind. She heard Rob grunt from her spasming muscles, but nothing besides the consuming joy mattered to her in those few moments.
Heat radiated from her quivering body as Gardevoir began to come down from her orgasmic high, regaining enough presence of mind to kiss Rob as he thrust himself into her one last time. He pulsed within her, releasing his seed right against her womb. The pair of them slumped to the bed.
Rob remained inside her a moment longer, locking his seed within, not that it mattered. He brushed a spray of disheveled green hair from her eyes. “I'll make everything work out for us. Somehow.” He pulled away just enough to roll onto his back and lay her against is chest, still breathing hard.
Gardevoir lay against him, halfheartedly draping herself across him. “We can ignore them at least one more day.”
Rob kissed her forehead. “I'd rather stay in bed too, but it's almost time. Let's get cleaned up.”
Gardevoir made a weak protest but let Rob pull free of her arms. She followed him into the bathroom on weak legs, but she couldn't refuse a little more time together with her mate. Besides, he might need help cleaning himself.
After they finished, and Rob returned to his usual attire – jeans and a dark red t-shirt this time – Rob reached for the two pokeballs that he placed on the table last night, as well as the thick envelope. He checked inside the package briefly.
Gardevoir moved closer. “What's inside?”
“Money. A lot of it.” Rob thumbed through a bunch of what looked like paper rectangles.
“Why would they give you that?”
“To bribe me. Either way, to a trainer, this is- Well.” He stuffed the envelope into his pocket. “They promised more as well.”
“You, aren't- What are you going to do with it?”
Rob let out a mirthless chuckle. “Give it back, if they'll take it.”
“Do humans value money that much?”
“It makes life a lot easier.” He didn't expand on his statement though, and instead released Lucario and Typhlosion.
Lucario flashed a smile, and Gardevoir didn't need psychic powers to know what that grin insinuated. Both of them looked well rested. While confining, the pokeballs did have their advantages.
Rob wore a confident expression. “Gardevoir and I are going out for a bit. We should return in an hour or two, but I just wanted to warn you, in case something goes wrong. If we're not back by morning, take my pack and leave town.”
Gardevoir stared at the ground. If that happened, it would be because she failed. Because of that possibility, Rob had to make these plans.
“Hide out in the woods to the east of here. Check the town gates at sunrise. If we're not back in three days, well – the pokeballs will prevent you from being caught by another trainer, otherwise, destroy them and you'll be free.” Rob grabbed Typhlosion in a hug. “I'll see you guys soon.” Rob turned to leave, and Gardevoir began to follow, but Typhlosion stopped her.
“Gardevoir.” He hesitated under her gaze, but met her eyes. “Make sure you both get back safely.”
Gardevoir nodded, and she followed Rob out into the hallway.
Lucario's voice carried from behind the closing door. “Two hours? Do you think you'll make it?” After the door shut and Gardevoir started towards the exit, Lucario spoke through aura. “See if you can make it three.”
Gardevoir exited the pokemon center, following close behind Rob. If only they were going to a gym battle, anywhere else, really. She tried to calm herself, but she could see the tension in Rob as well, his movements a little too forced. It didn't help soothe her fluttering nerves.
“Is it far?” Gardevoir asked.
“Shouldn't take long.”
The two of them spent the rest of their walk in silence. A few people walked about, but overall the streets were quite, much more so than Ecruteak or Goldenrod. The buildings looked much more like what she'd seen in Rob's hometown. Right?
A sudden dizziness washed over her, and her step faltered. It passed quickly. Rob hadn't noticed, and she quickly caught back up to him. What had she been thinking of? Gardevoir looked up at the sky, a few clouds drifting lazily past the sun. Something didn't feel right, but she kept following Rob, turning down street after street. Occasionally he touched his pocket where the white edge of an envelope poked out.
Rob stopped in front of one of the larger buildings, so ordinary that it felt wrong. No thugs, no shady alleyway, just a respectable, well maintained building. “Here it is. Are you ready?”
“What do you want me to do?” She looked up to meet his eyes, and behind his loving expression, she could feel what he wanted to say.
“Only to protect yourself. And you remember the promise you made me?”
“If you tell me to leave you, I will.”
Rob nodded. “Please keep that promise, Gardevoir. They want you more than they want me.”
I promise, but you will never speak those words. Gardevoir nodded.
From outside, the building looked no different from most of the others, and appeared well maintained. The steps leading up to the shining glass doors didn't have a spot of dirt on them. Inside, a smiling woman waited behind a black desk, almost like a Pokemon Center's, but this place had a much harder feel. The furniture, decorations, everything had sharp angles and straight lines. It seemed unnatural.
“Can I help you?” the woman asked.
Rob only hesitated a moment. “My name is Rob. I was told I have an appointment.”
The woman eyed Gardevoir before pressing a myriad of buttons on a device in front of her. “Have a seat over there. Someone will be up to escort you in a moment.” She pointed to a small line of severe looking chairs, clearly not made for comfort.
Before they reached the seats however, a man walked through a door to the right of the reception desk. A jovial man, in crisp clothing that seemed to fit the building's atmosphere, greeted them with a smile. “Rob, nice to meet you.” He extended a hand towards Rob, who shook it after a moment's hesitation. “And Gardevoir,” he turned to look her over. “Yes, there's a few people here who would really like to meet you.”
Gardevoir blinked at him. “What is this?” she asked Rob. He looked as surprised as she felt. The humans in the other city had been nothing like this man. Was it a trick? He felt happy. She couldn't pick up any other indication of a trap from him or the woman at the desk, but-
She froze. Something blazed in her mind. The psychic signature that Abra showed her. She felt it. Faint, but whatever that signature belonged to, they were below them, quite far, and something interfered with her ability to look closer.
Rob couldn't respond to her, so he instead turned to the man. “So, what did you want?”
“Right to the point, I see. Well then, how about we take this somewhere a little more comfortable, so we can speak in private.” He didn't wait for a reply, turning back through the door he entered with Rob and Gardevoir in tow.
They walked to a section of wall filled with even more doors. The man pressed a button, and a set opened into what Rob had called an elevator. The room barely fit the three of them. Gardevoir wrapped her gown around her as to not get it caught in the door when it closed. They descended.
When the doors opened again, they could have been in a completely different building. While the area above had been nice, this hallway impressed even her. Beautiful dark wood lined a floor wide enough for six people side by side. Silver trimmed the walls in places, and heavy doors blocked off rooms at exact intervals.
“Just this way,” the man said, and once again led them down the hall.
The presence she felt above intensified here. While still farther below, the signature definitely belonged to a human. Why would Abra have given her this?
They turned a corner, and Gardevoir froze, eyes snapping forward. Two humans flanked a door, each with a gem-eyed Sableye at their side. “Those aren't human.” Gardevoir didn't limit her telepathy to Rob.
The man smiled at her. “Very good. Not many are lucky enough to see their kind. They have such an incredible talent.” The man snapped his fingers, and the two humans shifted into red and black fox-like creatures. Zoroark. “Don't worry,” the man said seeing Gardevoir's reaction. “Just a precaution.”
Gardevoir eyed the two Zoroark. They made her feel small, like she were a Kirlia again, their fierce eyes cold and looking for a fight. She struggled to keep her breath under control. She could take them, both of them. And the Sableye.
“Now, I hate to make you wait, but would you mind taking a seat for a moment, Gardevoir? There are a few things I need to speak with Rob about, and it might be better if we do that in private.”
Gardevoir began to protest, but Rob held up a hand. “It will be fine. We'll just be inside this room, right?”
“Of course,” the man replied. “It shouldn't take long, and then we can have a quick chat and you'll be on your way.”
Gardevoir nodded slowly, but as the man finished and turned to enter the room, Gardevoir felt – something. It pressed against her like a wet blanket. It wasn't something physical, but a constant sense of wrongness. Should she tell Rob, warn him? His back retreated into the room, and the four pokemon guards followed after, leaving her alone in the hallway to watch the door click shut.
The pressure increased, and she could feel her sense of the world diminish. Gardevoir walked to the couch. Why did the guards leave? But as she sat down, she realized she couldn't use more than a trickle of her powers.
Gardevoir sat on the black couch, its soft cushions comfortable. Her heart raced. Was this intentional? Of course. This group always had some trick to spring on them. What were they doing to Rob, what would they do to her if she couldn't defend herself?
She tried to force her powers through the invisible force, but it was as if the very air were a dark type pokemon. Her powers unraveled before she could make them do anything. A foggy memory of something similar circled on the edge of her mind, but she couldn't quite place it. But she had been in a situation like this before, and had beaten it. I think.
The well of power within her began to pulse, reminding her of its presence, not that she ever really forgot, not anymore. With that power, she knew she could fight. She hesitated, like she always did. “No, I need to find out who that person is.”
Gardevoir peered down the hallway. As far as she could tell, they'd left her there alone. She couldn't be sure with her psychic powers dampened, but waiting might let this opportunity slip away. A memory tugged at her, and she pulled as much power into herself as she could. It surged through her, and crackled weakly on her skin, pressed back by the force.
If only she could – there. Her powers snaked through the unseen force, forming a tunnel of sorts for her abilities to travel through unhindered. It wasn't a perfect fix, she still felt the interference, but it would have to do.
She pushed through. The field seemed centered near the room with Rob and the oddly bouyant man. It didn't reach the person below. She could teleport to him. Gardevoir stood and walked to the door. Muffled voices came from the other side, but not enough to make out what they said. They didn't seem to be angry or violent though. Rob could take care of himself.
“I'll be right back,” Gardevoir whispered, and created a tunnel to teleport into the room below.
“What the?” A middle aged man looked up from a spread of papers on an ornate wood desk. “You!” He had black hair and a piercing gaze, almost violent in its intensity.
Gardevoir didn't have time to react before the man's hand shot beneath the desk. Sound blared. Three sharp blasts before a woman's voice echoed through the area.
“Emergency. Level B-8. Response code C. All units respond.” The voice repeated itself after another three blasts.
Gardevoir clapped her hands over her ears. “No I-” The same force from above washed over her, but stronger, crushing. She could barely feel her powers. The alarm fell silent.
“Move and I swear I'll put you down.” The man held a strange device in his hand, metal.
Gardevoir didn't know what it did, but the way he held it in such a threatening fashion made her pause. “I didn't mean to cause trouble. Who are you?”
“I told them not to do this, to just kill you and that idiot boy.”
Rob! That alarm must have alerted the entire building. Gardevoir didn't hesitate this time. She reached for the well of strength within herself and drank it in. Life poured into her, life and power, enough to destroy existence itself around her. The force could do nothing to stop her, and she teleported back to the couch where she'd left.
Nothing appeared different, the hallway empty, door shut, but she only thought of Rob. Not waiting to try the door, Gardevoir pulled the entire wall out into the hallway. Four pokemon inside waited for her, but she barely saw them.
Rob lay on the floor, eyes staring unblinking at the ceiling. She couldn't feel any emotion from him. Nothing.
Leaping from the couch, Gardevoir gasped. The door remained intact and in its frame. Her heart slammed against her chest with a burning discomfort sliding up her throat.
Abra sat on the couch. “I always wondered why he agreed to alter your kind for the humans. Fear of someone rivaling his power perhaps?”
“What-” Gardevoir looked from Abra to the door before taking a half-step towards where Rob lay- She could feel him again. Her parched mouth hung open.
“Your human is fine.”
“What did you do?” She clenched her fists to keep them from trembling.
“As powerful as you are, there are stronger beings, some even human. For one who says she wants to help that human, you risk his life without much thought.”
“I- But you-” Gardevoir slumped onto the couch. “Is that what happens?” Tears threatened break down the last of her shaken composure.
“It is a possibility.”
She made the decision to not hesitate, and it almost killed Rob. It should have killed Rob. “Who is that person?”
“He can answer all of the questions you have.”
How long did she have before the others returned for her? “I don't think he will.”
“You should know how to correct your first mistakes. I can help with the rest, if you let me.” Abra stood and looked at her with eyes that drew everything into them, light, attention, her. “Surrender to me again.”
Gardevoir stared into his eyes, and saw unfathomable power behind them. A reminder: the thing before her was not the Abra she knew, maybe not even pokemon at all.
She could do this, but what if she screwed up again? Abra was right, making another mistake would get Rob killed, and if that happened, she would lose the only reason she had to live, and the world would lose a truly good person. And this is how they treat people like Rob.
What if that's what Abra wanted? If Rob died, nothing would hold her back from destroying herself and the world with it. No, if he wanted that, then Rob would already be dead.
Gardevoir turned to Abra. “Are you ready?”
Abra smiled.
-----------------------------------------------------
Rob entered the spacious subterranean office and sat across from the dark oak desk, the smell of wood-polish almost as overbearing as the mirror-like shine of the ornately carved furniture. Rayquaza wound around each of the thick legs, the Lord of Air holding up the heavy desk. Tacky. The man sat with a pair of his pokemon guards behind him, while the other pair remained behind Rob and out of view.
Rob placed the envelope on the empty desk. “Here's your money back.”
“Please, keep it. It's the least we could do for the trouble we've caused.” The man reclined slightly in his chair. “And I'm sorry for not introducing myself earlier. My name is Victor.”
Rob didn't touch the envelope. “What do you want with me and Gardevoir?”
Victor examined Rob for a moment over interlocked fingers before replying. “Since you ask, I have an offer for you. As you've probably figured out, that Gardevoir is ours.”
“She's mine now, and you'll have to kill me before I hand her to you.”
“Rest assured that option has been discussed. However, that Gardevoir has come to regard you in an interesting fashion, and your death might make things messy. We don't want something like that to bring us out of hiding quite yet. So I'm offering you an alternative.”
“We're not interested.”
“I think you will be. We're offering to let you keep the Gardevoir in return for agreeing to a few simple terms.
This whole thing reeked of a trap. Even if they did offer him something agreeable, after everything they've already done, he had no faith in them to keep to their word. “What terms?”
“Agree to do the odd job for us, and get that Gardevoir of yours to agree to let one of our scientists interview and run a few tests every now and again. Nothing unpleasant, and aside from meeting with us once every few months, you're free to do whatever you'd like.”
“Again, not interested.”
Victor sighed and reached for something in one of the desk drawers. “We're trying to make this work for everyone.” He pulled out a folder and pushed it towards Rob. “We can take her by force if need be.”
“You haven't done such a great job so far.” Rob opened the folder. His heart sank.
“Don't be naive, boy. We haven't dedicated any resources to you yet. Ecruteak was an afterthought, not an attempt.”
Rob looked through the pictures. Him and Gardevoir, kissing on the bank of the Lake of Rage, sitting on the glass created by Gyarados' attack.
“If you include all the people Gardevoir killed in Ecruteak, well, you could see how things might not look good. And while inconsequential compared to murder and fucking your pokemon, I think they're still looking for that shoplifting Kirlia as well.”
Rob couldn't help the burn he felt in his cheeks, both at his own stupidity and having his secret revealed. Why? He knew they had to be careful, he knew they shouldn't do anything where they could be seen, no matter how unlikely. The folder crumpled in his fist.
“What kind of tests?”
Victor smiled. “Like I said, nothing either of you would find uncomfortable, only an inconvenience to your time. Otherwise you can go be league champion for all we care, keep fucking her, anything that doesn't kill her.”
Rob couldn't hold the man's eyes. “And if she doesn't agree?”
“Then maybe you die in your sleep, or maybe the league arrests you for abusing your pokemon. Be persuasive.”
“Can I have time to think about this?”
“Of course.” Victor reached into his desk draw again and pulled out an envelope similar to the one Rob tried to return. “We need this delivered to Olivine. Don't rush, but don't try to disappear. We can find you. You can have until you deliver this to decide. If you take too long though, say, until your Samantha visits your parents at the end of Fall, we might have to reconsider.”
Samantha? Were they trying to scare him, or was his cousin really visiting? Unlikely, but then it would be an easy thing to check. Rob took the parcel without looking at the man. “Then are we done here?”
“Of course. We can wait to talk with Gardevoir until you agree to our arrangement. And they said you would be unreasonable.” Victor extended his hand.
Rob picked up his two packages and stood. The pokemon behind made no move to stop him, and without another word, Rob left.
---------------------------------------------------
Gardevoir teleported. This time, she knew what to expect. Flows of psychic energy wrapped the man from his neck down, and she placed a shield over the button he had pressed the first time. “If you touch that alarm, I'll kill you.” Everything else was exactly like the first time.
His eyes widened. “You!”
Now what?
She felt more than heard Abra's voice. “Surrender.”
She'd done it before and nothing bad happened. He could help her. Gardevoir tried to let go of everything but the bonds holding the human in place. A force pressed against her mind, and she tried not to resist it, to let him in. Pain blossomed within her mind, and the world swam. She could feel her abilities, controlled with far more skill than anything she could match. She could feel the human, his mind, the way her psychic powers snaked through the different areas of his brain, creating and destroying with minute precision.
Gardevoir was on her knees. Her claws dug into her scalp at the pain, pounding inside her skull. A quiet whimper escaped her lips. The hard wood of the floor didn't cushion her fall. How much time had passed? Gardevoir dragged herself to her feet.
The man before her no longer had psychic bonds holding in him place, but he sat slumped in his chair, eyes vacant. He didn't make any move towards her or the alarm.
A voice whispered through her mind. “He will obey you completely.”
She spoke with the little psychic energy she could muster. “Who are you?”
At her words, the man looked up, life returning to his eyes, though still somewhat distant. “Petrel.”
Gardevoir stumbled to the desk and used it to keep herself upright. Rob. She had to get back to Rob, but this human... Would he answer any question she asked him, is that what Abra had done to him? “What am I?”
The man spoke in a monotone, not quite meeting her eyes. “A weapon. We created you to access the plates.”
“Will anyone know this happened?”
“No.”
“Did you do this to others as well?” Plates, what were plates? Did it matter? Clearly their experiment failed if she didn't know what they were. But if there were others like her, then she could at least try to help them as well. She didn't have time.
“Create others like you? Yes, but none came out quite like you. You should never have been allowed to leave.”
Each answer spawned fifty more questions, but she didn't have time to ask them all. She might only have one chance at this, and she needed to make sure she got the information she needed. This could be her one chance at saving Rob from this position she'd put him in. But if she waited too long, and they found her missing, they might kill him. Again.
“Can your organization be destroyed?”
The man thought for a moment. “We've had many setbacks lately. Giovanni is trying to bring us back to our previous glory, but if he died, or Complex 27 were to be destroyed, it might be unrecoverable.”
“Where can I find Giovanni, and where is Complex 27?”
“Giovanni travels often. Complex 27 is north of Route 27. It's hidden, but there's an access road that lets trucks make deliveries that can be seen from the path. There is usually a sign warning of dangerous terrain. I believe Giovanni visits the facility during the last or second to last day of every month. I could write up his schedule if you wish.”
“No.” Gardevoir squeezed her eyes shut. “What is at the facility?”
“Most of our current experiments. The Gyarados came from there.”
She had to leave. The others could come looking for her any moment. She wanted to stay, to find out more. How many people knew what had been done to her? Or did she even want to know? A weapon.
Gardevoir teleported back to where Rob had left her, on the couch. Her head pounded, limbs weak. She wanted to sleep and not think about anything. Abra didn't reappear. The soft cushions of the couch seemed to pull her down into them, ease the tension from her body. She didn't have long though. After a few minutes Rob appeared from the other side of the door.
He spoke softly, but his voice held an intensity she rarely saw from him. “We're leaving.”
Gardevoir blinked. “That's it?”
“I'll explain later.”
Gardevoir tried to stand as smoothly as she could. Five sets of eyes followed her movement from inside the room. She wouldn't show weakness before them. The man Rob had talked to didn't escort them back, but Rob lead her back to the elevator.
They didn't meet another person or guard until they reached the lobby, where the receptionist waited. She didn't speak to them, and Rob didn't look back before exiting.
Rob said nothing during their walk back towards the pokemon center, and Gardevoir didn't feel like trying to force a conversation. With Abra gone, she lost some of the intensity from before. Destroy a building, kill an unsuspecting human? Not that he didn't deserve it.
The pokemon center came into view, and Gardevoir realized their trip took less than an hour. She looked to Rob, his face dark. “Rob?”
He slowed. “Yeah?”
“Is there somewhere that we can be outside for a bit? Just sit or something. I want to be outside.”
Rob stopped and turned to her, ignoring the others that jostled by them on the sidewalk. “We should probably get the others-”
“Please?” Gardevoir looked up into troubled eyes. She probably had the same kind of look, somewhat lost, somewhat angry.
Rob shrugged and head in a different direction, towards the edge of town where a stream cut through. A wooden fence sectioned off a large area where a few children played with their pokemon or ate lunch on the grass. Rob found a quiet area with a tree to sit against.
Gardevoir moved to sit against him, but Rob jerked away.
“We're in public. You can't do stuff like that where others could see.” He glanced around at the other humans nearby.
“No one's going to care if I just sit near you-”
He glared at her, voice just as heated. “They do care, Gardevoir.”
Gardevoir stiffened. “Fine.” She sat down against the same tree, but angled so she couldn't see Rob. There was no reason to snap at her like that. Sun bathed the edge of her gown that stuck out beneath the shade of the tree. After being lost in that forest for so long, she felt like she'd never miss the soft earthy scent of nature, but it helped distract her from everything else.
For now, she'd keep it to herself. “What did that human want?”
Rob didn't answer immediately. His emotions pulsed, a black pit of hate and disgust, barely contained by thin strands of love and hope, the latter almost insignificantly frail. “They wanted to scare me, or buy me off. I don't think it mattered which to them.”
“Why would they do that?”
“They want me to work for them.”
Gardevoir spun towards him. “What?” She didn't understand humans at all. “Why would they think you'd do that?”
A white edge of paper poked from his pocket. His whisper barely carried to her. “How could someone resist?”
Gardevoir stood. “What did you say?” Psychic energy prickled along her skin, tiny sparks dancing above her arms. “They killed Sandslash!”
Rob slumped in on himself. “You think I don't know that?”
“Tell me you didn't say yes.” Anger blazed behind her crimson eyes. Psychic energy made her gown ripple around her.
Rob's voice met her anger with his own. “I didn't say anything yet,” he snapped. “But I don't have many other fucking options!” Rob buried his forehead in his hands.
Tiny claws dug into her shaking palms, and Gardevoir tried to force herself to calm down, disperse the energy she held back into the world around her without blasting Rob across the field. How could he betray them all like that?
Gardevoir stalked to the opposite side of the tree and sat against the rough bark. What if he did decide to work for them? What would she do? If she could destroy them first, it wouldn't matter what he chose. Gardevoir felt for Abra's presence, but the phantom didn't appear.
She tried to lose herself in the happy ambient noise and emotion of the other beings in the park, others who didn't have a care in the world, their emotion soft balls of warmth in the back of her mind. As she sat beneath the large tree, she couldn't remain angry at her mate. She brought this upon him. Loving her had made his life miserable, he had to make the sacrifices.
A childish voice rang out from the other side of the tree, where Rob sat. “Excuse me mister, but are you Rob?”
“Hmm?” Rob looked up from his stupor to the smiling face of a little girl.
She had large blue eyes and the type of dress that only a mother would pick out, in pastel plaid. “That's your Gardevoir, right?” She pointed towards the other side of the tree. “I saw you on TV. Your Gardevoir is so pretty and strong.”
Rob tried to force a smile with little success, not that it put the girl off. “Oh, uh, thanks. Shouldn't you be with your parents?”
“My mommy said I could come ask if I could play with your Gardevoir. Could I please? It's my favorite pokemon and I'm going to train one someday to be just like yours!”
“You'll have to ask her yourself.”
The exchange confused Gardevoir. Who did this child belong to? She didn't know much about human evolutions, but the girl seemed not much larger than a Kirlia, and humans seemed much more protective of their young than pokemon. Apprehension froze her in place as the Girl turned to her, and their eyes met. That innocent smile made Gardevoir's stomach clench.
The girl walked over to her. “Hello. Do you want to play with me?”
Gardevoir froze. Was she allowed to talk with this human? She didn't know anything about human children. She spoke gently into the girl's mind. “Play? I don't know what that means.”
“You can talk with me! I knew it!” The girl ran up and grabbed one of Gardevoir's hands in the pair of her own. “Come on, I'll show you.”
Half-dragged from her seat, Gardevoir rose, too stunned to protest. What did this human want? She glanced at Rob, but he didn't seem concerned at all as he watched the grass before him rustle in the gentle breeze.
The girl spoke in a rush. “My name is Jessica, but you can call me Jessie. That's what all my friends call me. So what do you want to do? We could play a game, or race, or – Gardevoir like dancing right? We should dance!”
“I-I don't really know any-”
“You're a strange Gardevoir.” The girl took her green hands, one in each. “Now hold on tight!”
They began to spin, Gardevoir following the lead of the young girl. They didn't dance so much as spin in place, the girls grip tightening as their spin threatened to throw them apart. The sheer ridiculousness of the thing made Gardevoir smile despite everything else. Their hands slipped, and the world lurched before coming to an abrupt halt.
Gardevoir grunted against the soft grass, and looked up to find the other girl giggling uncontrollably. She shared a quiet chuckle with the human girl.
“There. I showed you one, now it's your turn.”
The world continued spinning. “I don't really know any.”
“You're a Gardevoir,” the girl said, as if that were enough.
Gardevoir stood, and once she regained her balance, she stepped, simple movements that flowed into one another. She didn't know any dances, but Rob sometimes compared her practice to a dance, so she tried that.
The wind picked up around her, and psychic energy flowed through her body, unbidden, but welcome. Graceful movements sent her gown spinning about her. Psychic energy left pale streamers of blue and purple shimmering in the air behind her, encircling the wide-eyed girl in a soft light-show.
Tension and worry remained with Rob against the tree. Here, in the field, with the little girl, nothing that happened today, or in the past few months, her entire life, mattered. The sunlight beamed down upon her, and she refracted it with psychic energy to shower them in color, her white gown a chaotic rainbow of color.
When Gardevoir slowed to a stop, the little girl broke out in applause. “That was amazing! You're so pretty!”
A slight blush crept into her cheek. No one ever complimented her besides Rob. From the corner of her eye, she noticed an older woman approaching.
“I'm so sorry to bother you, but she was just so excited to see you.” The woman took the child by the hand.
“Aww Mom. We were having fun.”
The older woman gave Gardevoir a warm smile. “Again, sorry for the bother, but I'm sure you made Jessie's day. I'll let you relax again. You two must be busy training for your next match.”
Gardevoir suddenly felt very awkward with so many humans around, watching her. “It was nothing.” She waved to the little girl as her mother led her away.
Rob walked up behind her radiating a crushing sadness, the anger drowned away. “We should get going.”
Gardevoir nodded and followed Rob back towards the city. A tear slipped from the corner of her eye, and she quickly wiped it away. Another soon replaced it. She tried to hide it from Rob, failing.
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An Uncertain Future