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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
- 8
- 9
- 10
“Gardevoir?” Rob's voice. Slowly, she lifted her head, groggily opening her eyes as she sat up. Why was she sleeping on the floor? She had been contemplating running away and put her head down to think and... Her stomach sank as she felt the small sphere still in her hand.

“Gardevoir.” It was almost a sigh. There was no anger in his voice, but she was still nervous as she finally looked up to meet his eyes. Weary eyes. “I, I just want you to answer me for once. Do you want me to release you, truly release you this time?”

Her eyes widened with shock. What did she want? Everything she had thought had changed since meeting Rob, and now she was nothing but a danger to him. She looked back down at the floor.

“Yes.” Her mental voice was hoarse and quiet. Silence hung in the air, neither of them moving. Gardevoir barely endeavored to breathe. It may have only been seconds, but to her it felt like an eternity as she stared at the floor, hoping that he would stop her.

The silence was finally shattered by Rob's quiet voice. “Then look me in the eye and say it, and I will release you.”

Gardevoir glanced up at him, looking at a face painted with hurt and sadness. She couldn't do it, could never summon the words. Her hand stirred motes of dust in the morning light as she placed the pokeball back on the table.

“I can't,” she choked out and stood quickly. “I have to go check on Riolu.” Without looking at him she started off towards Rob's room. A hand on her wrist stopped her.

“No, if you hate me, then why? I'm giving you the chance, so why don't you leave?” Rob pulled her to face him, but she couldn't meet his eyes. Her heart thumped in her chest as she tried to hold back tears. The heat from Rob's palm against her skin pulled at her, making her want to tell him everything, but nothing good would come of that.

“Do you want me to leave?” she asked him, his body still except for the tight grip on her wrist.

“Of course I don't, but you refuse to talk to me, and then this morning I found you as if you wanted to run away. I won't keep you here if you're that desperate to leave.” There was no accusation in his soft voice. It was worn and tired, confused, but not angry.

She finally found the courage to look into his eyes, there was one last thing she could do. “Can I ask one thing of you?” She blushed, hoping he wouldn't notice her hesitation, or understand the meaning of what she was about to do. It was an act usually reserved for one's mate, but it would allow her to see into the depths of Rob's heart; he would be able to keep nothing from her.

“I trust you completely,” Rob said, looking directly into her eyes. Gardevoir wrapped her free hand around Rob's, who still had her own wrist in his grip. She pulled the hand away and encircled his wrist with both of hers. Psychic energy coursed through her as she embraced as much as she could gather, filling herself with the wonderful power.

Rob could doubtless feel some of it through her touch, but he kept his eyes fixed on hers. With one last blush, she pressed his palm against the red fin on her chest. Gardevoir gasped in shock at the feeling. A fraction of a second stretched into an eternity. Feeling overwhelmed her, and for a moment she forgot her physical body, floating on the emotions flowing into her from Rob.

He was laid bare to her. His deepest feelings, emotion he may not even be aware of. His desires and prejudices, everything was presented to her. And she saw. A rattling breath refilled her lungs as the experience ended, and she stumbled forward, Rob catching her.

“Are you okay?” he asked, a slight look of concern as he supported her trembling form. She breathed heavily, wanting to stay in his warmth, but she pulled away, steadying herself.

“I'm fine,” she replied, staring at the floor.

“What was that for, what did you do?” he asked taking a step towards her.

“I found the truth.” Gardevoir turned and began to walk away.

“Are you staying then?” He still sounded confused, but she couldn't be around him right now. She didn't know if she could explain herself to him anyway.

“I will stay, but you don't deserve to be around scum like me.” She didn't stop walking away to deliver her response.

Rob's eyes followed her with a stunned expression, but he didn't follow. Gardevoir made her way back to Rob's room and closed the door gently behind her. Light played against her skin in the warm room as she made her way back to Rob's bed, curling up with the still slumbering Riolu. Without disturbing the sleeping pokemon, she snuggled up against the furry creature, desperate for any comfort.

There was nothing he could have hid from her. What she had seen, felt, was the pure truth. Rob was a good person. The soft sheets covering the bed absorbed a stray tear that leaked gently down her face. After being caught, she had wanted to vilify Rob, blame all of her problems on him and his kind. But there was nothing she could lay at his feet now.

He cared about her, his other pokemon, even Riolu. He cared deeply for them, would give his life for them. And she had wanted to hate him. Now what? She wrapped her arms around Riolu and closed her eyes, hoping that some great epiphany would present itself in her dreams.

A scratchy knock came at the door sometime later, waking both Gardevoir and Riolu up. A small growl came from her left as Riolu faced off with the door, but Gardevoir sat up slowly. She hadn't even realized she'd fallen back to sleep. Tendrils of psychic energy reached out to determine who was on the other side of the door. Where she usually couldn't tell human from pokemon, she could almost see Quilava through the solid wooden door.

“Come in,” she sent to him, and after quickly realizing that he wouldn't be able to reach the door handle, got up and opened it. The look on Quilava's face wasn't one she was used to seeing from the bold fire type. Is that hesitation? “Did you want something?”

After seeing who it was and checking to make sure Rob wasn't accompanying, Riolu hopped off the bed and joined them. Quilava flashed a quick smile.

“Rob left breakfast for you Riolu,” Quilava said. A nervous heat made small ripples in the air above the fire type's back. “There's some for you too Gardevoir, of course.” She however received no part of his smile. “We can also go run around the back yard if you wanted, Rob and his parents are gone for the day.” His attention was completely back on Riolu. Subtle as ever.

Riolu seemed completely ignorant of Quilava's tone however and looked up at Gardevoir happily. Her blue furred friend made as if to say something, but she cut Riolu off.

“Go eat, I'm going to go lie down for a bit longer,” she sent so they both could hear her and gave Riolu a pat on the head. Riolu frowned at her for a moment, but after a little further encouragement from Quilava, the two of them disappeared around the corner as Gardevoir returned to bed. So Rob had gone and left Quilava here. The mere thought of food was like ash in her mouth. Gardevoir clawed a bundle of sheets to her chest, breathing in the faint smell of her trainer, and closed her eyes.

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Rob strode down the sidewalk at a quick pace with Sandshrew by his side. The sunlight glared down relentlessly on the two of them as they walked, mirroring Rob's mood. Well not precisely, he wasn't angry, exactly. Frustrated. He paid little attention to his surroundings as they walked, he didn't even have a destination in mind, he just needed to be moving.

“What am I missing?” he asked out loud, not really intending to receive an answer. Nothing that Gardevoir did made any sense to him. But that look she had given him before retreating to his room this morning. A strange mix of regret, sorrow and, was it awe? You aren't scum Gardevoir, I don't care what anyone has told you before, they were the scum.

No, he wasn't angry, not at Gardevoir anyway, at himself maybe. The sidewalk curved gently as they left the suburban district and started to head more towards downtown. His frustration fed on itself, cycling through in his mind. He had never been good at dealing with his anger. Overall he had always been a pretty calm person, hard to get worked up over anything, but when it did happen... No good decisions were ever made while angry.

There was a bench on the side of the walkway, and he sat down with a sigh, Sandshrew hopping up beside him.

“Is it something I'm doing wrong?” he asked Sandshrew, though he received no response. His pokemon merely looked up at him with those large black eyes, gleaming in the morning sunlight. Rob rested his face in his hands. It had been hard forcing himself to practically ignore Gardevoir during their travels, but she had always seemed to want her space.

Something had to change soon; that's all he could hope for. The trip into town wasn't just to blow off some steam however, he did have business to attend to, so he got up and the pair began walking again. Hopefully Quilava was enjoying his break playing with Riolu; the incident on Route 32 still seemed to be haunting him despite his efforts to hide it.

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After spending a while listlessly tossing about in Rob's bed, Gardevoir eventually worked up the energy to drag herself out into the house. Through one of the large windows in the kitchen she could see Riolu and Quilava in the back yard looking as if they were sparring. A solitary bowl rested on the counter with what she assumed was her breakfast. I should have told him to release me.

Taking the food she opened the sliding door in the kitchen and walked out into the heavy, warm spring air. It was a muggy day, unaccommodating to the level of activity Riolu and Quilava were engaged in, and Gardevoir could already feel a light sheen of damp covering her body as she sat down. The other two pokemon were both panting heavily, but Riolu was apparently not ready to call it quits. Riolu's blue body was slowly covered by a gentle orange light as Quilava wrapped himself in intense flames.

Gardevoir could feel the heat radiating off the fire type from where she sat, a heat haze rippling the air above Quilava. He dashed towards Riolu cloaked in an inferno as he struck. Riolu set herself to take the attack as her body glowed with a faint orange light. The two connected. Sparks danced through the air as flame met steel.

Riolu stood firm as her counterattack sent Quilava flying backwards. He hit the ground a few feet away and rolled before lying sprawled out on his back. Riolu grinned happily before running over towards Quilava and plopping down on the grass next to him.

“Well I think you definitely have your counter down,” Quilava said panting.

Riolu gave him an equally exhausted giggle. “Think so? All thanks to you.” The pair of them lay there, heads close together trying to catch their breath. Gardevoir watched the two of them while trying to ignore the oppressive heat of the day, which was not made any better by Quilava's powerful fire attacks.

A short time later the two of them had fallen asleep, Quilava curled up in a ball and Riolu resting her large head against his back. Gardevoir couldn't help but smile at the two of them, happy and uncaring. She could almost let herself get caught up in it, but she couldn't shake the feeling of being watched.

Her psychic powers had become much stronger after having evolved, though why they still weren't anything like she'd imagined or heard about from the other psychic types. The abilities she had been promised continued to elude her. Releasing tendrils of psychic power around her, she felt as if one with her surroundings. She could feel Riolu and Quilava, the grass, trees, the empty house behind her. If she focused she could even note the distinct variations between the two pokemon's psychic energies. Nothing out of the ordinary though.

Maybe if she had someone to teach her, show her what she was doing wrong, then her powers wouldn't be so useless, but it didn't seem like there were very many psychic types around. And it would probably be a fruitless endeavor anyway, the other psychic types had learned their abilities naturally. The only thing she was good for was killing.

The humidity seemed to sap the energy from her just as it had put the other two to sleep, and she found it a struggle to keep her eyes open. She hadn't even done anything to warrant the lethargy that filled her. A short nap couldn't hurt, and she could try and see if she could maintain her psychic awareness while sleeping. That seemed like a good enough reason to her. With that Gardevoir settled into the grass and closed her eyes against the hot rays of the sun, allowing the warm breeze to accompany her to sleep.

Two beings were approaching. Gardevoir woke slowly. Her abilities had worked apparently, as Rob and Sandshrew's return had been detected even while sleeping. When she opened her eyes though, they were already walking out of the house. So much for an early warning.

A glance at the sky showed she had slept for a little over an hour, maybe two. Rob sat down near her, distant despite the physical proximity. He wore a faint smile as he glanced over the two sleeping pokemon.

“I scheduled a gym match for tomorrow,” Rob said, not really looking towards her. His faint smile seemed fixed in place. “You mind accompanying me?”

“I'm your pokemon,” Gardevoir sent directly into Rob's mind.

Rob glanced at her. “You know what I mean.”

“What about Riolu?” she asked.

“She'll have to stay here unless she's willing to be captured.”

“Better not let her hear you say that,” Gardevoir replied.

Rob gave her a rueful chuckle. “Yeah I suppose so. I know I shouldn't sound so confident, but I don't think we'll be gone long. Between your strength and Quilava's type advantage, we shouldn’t have a problem. And sorry buddy but you're at a type disadvantage once again, though I think you could still take one of his bugs down,” he said with a consoling pat on Sandshrew's tough hide. Sandshrew smiled in return.

“So,” Rob began as he looked directly at her, sizing her up. “What was that you did this morning?” he asked.

“It was nothing,” she replied.

“Gardevoir, you don't have to be so secretive about everything, and obviously it wasn't nothing. You looked so dejected after.” Rob turned to examine Gardevoir's forlorn vigil of the ground in front of her.

“Why do you even keep asking, why do you care? It isn't going to change anything.”

There was a confused look on Rob's face as he looked at her sadly. “You saved my life, aren't we at least friends?”

“With me? The last friend I had died because of me. I'm not worth it.”

“Gardevoir...”

“You don't even know what I did before you captured me, I could have been a murderer,” she said, a fist clenching at her side.

Rob moved closer to her and wrapped an arm around her shoulders. She tried to pull away but he didn't relent, hugging her close against his side. It was too much. Thinking back on Abra, Rob's firm yet gentle grasp, she pressed her face into Rob's side. She grabbed his shirt possessively.

“You're only going to regret this,” she whispered to Rob with tears stinging her eyes.

“Whatever your previous owner made you do, it wasn't your fault,” Rob said to the top of her head. A hand ran through her hair. While she had been able to examine everything he felt when he had touched the fin on her chest, the motivations behind those emotions were still a mystery. His actions didn't make any sense to her. But she had no idea what else to do, so she lost herself in Rob's comforting arms, breathing his scent, and remembering.

“Feeling any better?” Rob asked a time later. Whether it had been minutes or hours she couldn't tell. Gardevoir had been enjoying just being held, having someone to lean on again. Since Abra... She pulled away at his words.

“Sure,” she replied quietly. It was early evening now, and some of the day's heat had dispersed. Rob was looking down at her with a warming smile.

“You ready to meet my parents now?” he asked. She only blinked at him in response, unsure exactly what he meant. After a brief pause Rob laughed. “Sorry it was a bad joke, human humor. Though my parents have been asking about my enigmatic psychic type. I've just been telling them you're shy, but they're impressed by you.”

“They shouldn't be,” she muttered, earning a slight frown from Rob, but he continued on.

“Riolu was harder to explain away, so I might end up cutting our stay here short. I hate to burden my parents as it is. We can take it easy on the way to Goldenrod though, I hear it's nice this time of year, right near the water.”

Gardevoir couldn't tell if it was an act or not. She could feel the warmth of his emotions, happiness, compassion, but there was also a darker undertone. Frustration, anger, the faintest traces of hatred. It was barely noticeable, yet the stark contrast made them stand out as silhouettes against a brilliant horizon. Not that it mattered, not to her.

“Actually that sounds like them now,” Rob said in response to an odd sound coming from the other side of the house. “Want to just say hi for a minute, for me?”

After a moment Gardevoir acquiesced. “I guess.”

“And please at least act like you don't hate me.”

“I don't hate you,” Gardevoir admitted in almost a whisper, not looking at Rob.

“I just meant cheer up a bit, things could be worse.” Rob helped her to her feet and ruffled her hair with a smile. “Now c'mon.”

Gardevoir followed him into the house. Sandshrew who had been sitting on the other side of Rob also followed them in. The three of them leaving the two sleeping pokemon to enjoy their rest, peacefully snuggled together in the grass.

Just as they were entering the kitchen, Rob's parents walked into the house as well. They were carrying a few small bags that carried a pleasant aroma with them. Some kind of human food no doubt.

“Hello,” the older woman's cheery voice rang out as they walked in and set the bags down on one of the counters. Gardevoir was quickly rethinking her decision to accompany Rob inside. It wasn't that the other two humans seemed even remotely threatening, quite the opposite, but they still made her uncomfortable. She resisted the urge to embrace her psychic powers.

“Hi Mom, hi Dad,” Rob greeted them. “And I even got Gardevoir here to come say hi.”

“I see that, well hello Gardevoir, nice to meet you,” the woman said turning to Gardevoir with an inviting smile.

Her whole body was tensed; a trained eye would pick it up. It was bad to show an enemy you were afraid. They would use that fear against you.

“Um, hi,” she said broadcasting her telepathic speech to everyone in the kitchen while trying to inconspicuously move closer to Rob.

“Well, will you be joining us for dinner?” Rob's mother asked as she moved about the kitchen, taking out dishes and utensils, and Rob's father began removing containers from the bags. “There's more than enough.”

“She will,” Rob quickly answered for her, and she glared at him.

“I only said I'd come in,” Gardevoir sent to Rob, but he merely grinned at her.

“Well good then. Sit down, sit down, everything will be ready in just a moment,” the woman said, deftly setting the table with practiced efficiency. Gardevoir hesitated before taking a seat at the table next to Rob and still attempting to shoot him reproachful looks at being roped into this. Rob's father soon joined them at the table, placing the food at the center.

Rob's mother sat across from Gardevoir. “Dig in.”

“So Gardevoir, Rob said you were the saving grace against his fight with Falkner,” the older man said as he began to take from some of the containers in the center of the table.

“I suppose so,” Gardevoir responded as she watched the others, trying to figure out how to go about acquiring some food. Rob must have noticed her confused look and swapped plates with her, having already filled his with a variety of food. “Thanks,” she sent to him.

The others were all using the small silvery tools to eat their food with. Gardevoir picked up her own set and looked down at the plate of food. Rob had called them forks, but she felt it would be much easier to just eat with her hands. It looked as if she were supposed to be using the fork though, and she tried her best to grasp the utensil with hands that just weren't made for the task.

“Well we're glad he has a strong pokemon to look after him, I'm sure you'll be able to keep him out of any trouble,” Rob's father said with a smile.

“You didn't tell them?” Gardevoir asked Rob, speaking only to him. A slight shake of the head was the only response she got from Rob, not looking away from his meal.

“So has Rob been training you or did you do much fighting while you were in the wild? I must say this is the first time I've really gotten to talk with a psychic type,” Rob's father asked. Gardevoir didn't like questions; she didn't want any of them to know more about her than was necessary. Rob looked like he was ready to interject if she wanted, but she might as well answer herself.

“I fought often enough, though Rob is a good trainer.” Of course they would only care about her fighting ability. She didn't particularly care what the two older humans thought of her. Rob obviously cared for them, but she had no such feelings.

Gardevoir stabbed at some sort of vegetable on her plate with the fork. After changing her grip she took a large bite out of it. It was warm and sweet, a marvel as were all of the human foods. From the corner of her eye she could see Rob trying to hide a smile, but she could feel his mirth radiating next to her.

The others continued their conversation without her, and Gardevoir paid little attention to them. Instead she struggled to get the metal fork to work correctly. She had tried to emulate the humans and how they held the device but achieved little success. So she continued to hold the fork in her fist and spear her food. It was tedious work. She should just use her hands; it almost wasn't worth the effort.

At some point during her battle with the fork, Rob's parents had gotten up and began clearing off the table.

“Take your time,” Rob's mother told her as she finished clearing the table. “Rob can take care of that when you're finished. It was nice to meet you.”

Gardevoir stared down at her half eaten meal and metallic nemesis. “Yeah, thanks.” Once Rob's parents left with Sandshrew to go watch the people in the small box in front of the couch; she abandoned the fork.

“I can show you how to hold the fork if you'd like.” Rob chuckled as Gardevoir picked up a piece of food with her tiny claws and popped it into her mouth.

Gardevoir blushed slightly but didn't pick the fork back up. “They're unnecessary,” she said continuing to eat. Rob only smiled broadly. Without having to struggle with utensils, Gardevoir quickly finished eating.

“Hey thanks for doing this for me,” Rob said clearing off the rest of the table. “And thanks for saying I'm a good trainer.”

Gardevoir paused. “You're a good person.”

“Now you're just toying with me,” Rob said with a laugh as he turned from the sink to look at her. Gardevoir looked down at the table before getting up.

“I should go check on Riolu.” And without looking up she moved to the door and went outside. It took her eyes a moment to adjust to the dimming evening after being underneath the artificial light of Rob's home. The air had lost its density and now a cool breeze caressed her skin, gown rippling slightly. Stars glimmered in the sky overhead, accented by the white crest of the moon. Quilava and Riolu were sitting together, talking quietly.

The two others looked up at her as she approached, Riolu in delight, Quilava in annoyance.

“Hey Gardevoir,” Riolu said merrily. “Quilava was just saying that you and he are going to be fighting tomorrow, it sounds like fun, are you excited?” The blue furred pokemon sure seemed to be, though Gardevoir wasn't quite feeling it herself.

“Um, sure,” Gardevoir lied. “Are you guys hungry? Rob is probably going to want to get up early, you should get something to eat before bed.” Her words were meant more for Riolu, as Quilava knew full well Rob like to wake early.

Quilava sighed and gave Gardevoir an apologetic look. “You're right, we probably should go in.” The two got up and all three of them entered the house. Riolu immediately took up a defensive posture while sticking close to Gardevoir's side now that Rob was in sight. While not quite as fierce as a day ago, Rob's inviting smile was not returned.

“You can take your meal into my room if you'd like Riolu,” Rob offered, preparing some food and handing it to Gardevoir since Riolu had backed away from him.

“Are you sure you don't want to sleep in your room, we can sleep on the couch or even outside.” Gardevoir had been feeling guilty about taking Rob's rooms ever since returning, and while he probably wouldn't bring it up himself...

“Don't be silly, it's fine. Besides, it's probably best for everyone,” he said in a low voice before withdrawing after handing her the plate. Gardevoir was going to argue, but at the look he gave her, she let it go. It would probably only be a few more days anyway.

“C'mon,” Gardevoir said ushering Riolu towards Rob's room and closing the door behind them. “So did you have a nice day?” Gardevoir asked as they settled into Rob's cushy bed, and Riolu tore into her dinner.

“Yeah,” Riolu said through a mouthful off food. “Quilava is nice to me, much nicer than any of the boys my trainer owned. Hey do you think I'd be able to fight in one of those gym battles?”

Gardevoir put her hand on Riolu's head, running fingers through blue fur. “I'm sorry, but the humans won't let you compete in their battles without a trainer.”

“What? But why?” Riolu whined looking up at Gardevoir.

“It's just their rules,” Gardevoir explained. “And, well, are you going to be okay staying here alone for a little while tomorrow?”

“I can't even come and watch? I'll be fine,” Riolu pouted and placed her half eaten meal on the nightstand next to some device that Rob had said was used to tell time. “I'm going to sleep.”

Gardevoir sighed but turned the lights off as she watched Riolu wrap the blanket around herself and turn away. “Goodnight,” Gardevoir whispered before wrapping her arms around the small blue pokemon and joining Riolu in slumber.

A quiet tapping on the door woke Gardevoir early. As quietly as she could manage, she pulled herself away from Riolu, trying not to wake the still sleeping pokemon. Rob was waiting for her in the hallway.

“Ready?” Rob asked as she walked out into the hall.

“Yeah,” Gardevoir said through a yawn. “What time is the match?”

“We're the first match of the day, so there shouldn't be too many people there. Not that there's ever too many here, unlike Violet.” Rob turned and began walking towards the kitchen. Gardevoir followed.

“Will your parents be watching?” Gardevoir asked.

“No, I would be lying if I said that wasn't also a factor in the match time, but they're both working,” Rob said preparing a quick breakfast for them. Quilava and Sandshrew were already waiting in the kitchen when they entered. Quilava didn't look too thrilled about being awake either.

“Do you not like them?” Gardevoir asked.

“Haha of course I do, but I dunno, too much pressure. I'd rather have the hundreds of people I don't know watching than my parents.”

“You didn't tell them about what happened to us either,” she pointed out.

Rob's expression darkened slightly. “It would have only made them worry, and they already worry enough about me wandering through the wilderness.”

“Bringing up the past never helps anyone.” Gardevoir's eyes met Rob's.

“That isn't what I meant.” Rob finished preparing breakfast, and the four of them ate in silence.

The crisp morning air woke Gardevoir up as soon as they left the house and began their walk towards the gym. A chilly breeze gently swirled around them as they walked, a stark contrast to the previous day's humidity. Rob was talking with his other pokemon, discussing strategy for their upcoming match, though the way he was talking seemed like they had discussed things already.

What he had said the other day was most likely right. She was stronger, much stronger than she had been. Despite not having the chance to test out her new abilities against an opponent yet, the feeling of energy, the expansion of her mind. There was no doubt in her mind that she was more dangerous than ever. She didn't want to think what would happen if she lost control of herself now.

As they continued into town the familiar bustle of the human establishments started creeping up. People walked about, some with trailing pokemon such as Rob. Others passed by in odd looking clothing, and some sat outside and ate. It would have been interesting to understand why humans did things, what the purpose of all of the differences in them were or what their wildly different clothing meant. Maybe she'd ask Rob sometime. Though she couldn't even use a fork still, and the symbols that they used for reading were as foreign as ever.

The gym came into view not long after entering what seemed to be the center of the human town, or at least one of the busier sections anyway. It was much different than the one in Violet City. A large glass dome covered a majority of the building, and overall it was wide and short, unlike the narrow towering structure of the previous gym. The four of them entered.

Inside was quiet, and only a single man sat behind the front desk.

“May I help you?” the man inquired, smiling as their group approached.

“Hi,” Rob greeted. “I'm here for a gym match.”

“Oh of course, right over this way. I'm also the referee here so I can take care of all the pre-match stuff.” The man led them to a small office and grabbed a few papers. “You are allowed up to three pokemon, and once they are recalled or declared unable to continue, they are out of the fight,” he explained, making some notations on the forms. “Are these the three you'll be using?”

“Yeah,” Rob replied with a slight smile. Gardevoir could feel the excitement and anticipation that was building up in him. After a few more minutes and signatures, they were led into the gym's arena where Bugsy was waiting.

“Well well,” the gym leader smiled as he shook Rob's hand. “I must say I wasn't expecting to see you back here so soon. I trust Falkner wasn't too hard on you?” Sunlight gleamed in through the large glass ceiling that created a small greenhouse for the large amount of vegetation that grew inside the gym.

“Not at all, it was a good match,” Rob said returning the man's smile.

“Well it seems that the Cyndaquil I gave you is doing well,” Bugsy noted, looking at the fire type who was standing on his hind legs next to Rob, eager for the match to begin. “And Gardevoir, how did you come to accompany this young man?” the gym leader asked, turning to face her. Why was this human talking with her?

“He rescued me,” she replied after a moment, examining the man.

“It's a long story,” Rob added, seeing Gardevoir's discomfort.

“I see. Well, nevertheless, how about we get down to the real reason you're here,” Bugsy said and headed towards the large verdant arena that sat amongst the trees. “I'm sorry there's not much of a crowd but I don't think I've ever had someone schedule a match this early.

“It's not a problem for me,” Rob called back taking his spot in the challenger's box. The man who had been at the front desk now appeared off to the side of the arena.

“Is the challenger ready?” the referee asked. Rob waved in acknowledgment. “Send out your first pokemon.”

With a breath, Rob stood up straighter and took on a confident air. “Sandshrew, go!” The ground type took his place on the field and awaited Bugsy's first pokemon. Reaching for his belt, the gym leader took a pokeball and threw it into the air, and with a bright flash, a Spinarak was deposited onto the field.

The spider-like pokemon clicked its mandibles together and skittered to the center of its half of the arena. The two pokemon squared themselves off and waited on the referee's call.

“Begin!”

Spinarak scuttled forward on its six legs, but Sandshrew immediately plunged below the ground, disappearing from sight. Spinarak froze as his opponent hid underground, trying to feel out where the attack would be coming from. Before long though the ground to Spinarak's left erupted as Sandshrew leapt out. The spider pokemon was unable to react quickly enough and took two long scratches from Sandshrew's claws.

After an order from Bugsy the Spinarak turned to launch a poison sting, but Sandshrew had once again retreated underground. Gardevoir looked up at Rob to see a confident gleam in his eye. Obviously this had been one of the strategies he had planned out earlier. He had yet to give a single order so far. That was good, but she wouldn't count on one of these gym leaders to fall for the same tactic more than a few times, no matter how disarming Bugsy had acted. She could see the experience behind the leader's eyes, he wasn't worried yet.

Sandshrew continued his hit and run tactics, once again scoring a hit on Spinarak, but the spider was learning Sandshrew's pattern. And to her, it seemed like Spinarak was beginning to bait Sandshrew.

“String shot!” Bugsy ordered from across the arena as Sandshrew dug into the earth again. Spinarak began coating the ground in silky webs, standing in the middle of them. Spinarak jumped back from where the webbing was pushed up by Sandshrew's dig attack. The small ground pokemon immediately became snared in the spider's webs, thrashing about to try and free himself.

“Poison sting!” Bugsy cried.

Rob's shouted warning came too late to do any good, and Spinarak lunged. The stinger on top of its head stabbing into Sandshrew's belly, causing him to cry out. It was hard to make out what was going on from the sidelines but eventually Sandshrew freed himself from the webs and fled back underground. His hit and run tactics wouldn't work anymore though, and with the poison now coursing through his veins, he was running out of time.

Rob had lost a little of his surety in the last engagement, but he met Bugsy's smile with a smirk of his own.

“String shot,” Bugsy ordered his pokemon, and Spinarak began to lay its trap of webs once again. Sandshrew didn't fall for it.

“End it, sand attack,” Rob called out as Sandshrew appeared a short distance behind Spinarak. As the spider turned Sandshrew kicked up a cloud of debris from the ground, launching it at Spinarak. Caught by surprise the spider recoiled, blinded by the dirt, and Sandshrew leapt. Tiny claws made short work of the spider. Spinarak landed another blow with the poisoned stinger atop its head but Sandshrew didn't relent.

Claws flashed and tore at Sandshrew's foe. Webs still clung to the ground pokemon, but the round was soon over. Sandshrew threw Bugsy's pokemon one final time where it ceased to move, bleeding from a number of tiny claw marks.

“Bugsy's pokemon is unable to continue,” the referee announced and the gym leader recalled his pokemon. Sandshrew began to make his way back towards Rob's side of the field but stumbled, clearly fatigued from his bout, and the poison would be beginning to take its toll.

“Great job Sandshrew,” Rob said to his pokemon but didn't wait for Sandshrew to reach the challenger's box, recalling him from a distance.

“The challenger has recalled his pokemon, both of you send out your next pokemon.” The referee motioned for Bugsy to go first. A Ledyba was sent out onto the gym leader's side, and Rob motioned Quilava forward.

“Begin!”

Instead of a more defensive match like the previous, this one started off with fiery aggression. Flames tore across the field, whipping the air into a shimmering haze as the vegetation withered beneath the intense heat. Ledyba shied away from the flames and Quilava used this to gain ground on his flying opponent. He looked determined not to lose to another winged enemy.

Quilava didn't relent as he dashed forward, constantly shooting small jets of flame to keep Ledyba on the defensive. When Quilava reached his foe though, Ledyba let out a terrible sound. Gardevoir herself flinched away from the noise, even being on the sidelines. Quilava on the other hand staggered forward, forgetting about his attacks. Reeling, Quilava tried to regain his bearings but Ledyba swooped in, raining blows on the fire type's head. Quilava fell to the ground, but under the lightning quick blows, his body blazed to life.

Ledyba squealed at the roaring flames and Quilava leapt back up, engulfing the bug in embers. It was a quick fight, but Bugsy was forced to recall his pokemon. Ledyba just wasn't able to stand up to the fire type.

“The challenger leads with two pokemon to one. Bugsy, send out your final pokemon.”

Quilava returned to his starting position, easily shaking off the Ledyba's brief attacks and preparing for the final round. Bugsy threw his final pokeball, releasing a Scyther onto the arena's field. The imposing bug flashed gleaming scythes and growled across the field.

“Remember what I said,” Rob called to Quilava who nodded in response, not taking his eyes off of Scyther.

“Begin.” The referee's call becoming familiar in the otherwise quiet gym. Gossamer wings sprouted behind Scyther, and this time it was Quilava who was rushed. Standing on his hind legs, Quilava waited until Scyther was close to shoot flames at the oncoming bug. An adroit dodge from his opponent however brought the Scyther inches to the side of the crackling flames, and a large blade scored a hit to Quilava's side.

Quilava gasped and jumped back, clutching at a spreading red line on his tan fur. He growled at the Scyther who now stood hovering inches above the ground, wings humming loudly. Quilava advanced. Then with a quick dash he charged, breathing fire as he approached the stationary bug with a large wave of fire. Scyther was incredibly quick though. In barely a blink, Scyther was behind Quilava, dragging a savage blade down across Quilava's back.

The fire type cried out and defensively shot flames behind him, but Scyther was already gone. Blood ran heavily down dark blue fur. This fight wasn't going as planned at all.

“Do it now,” Rob called out. “He's too quick for you; we've got one shot left.” Quilava nodded at Rob's words. Scyther moved in once more, but this time Quilava released smoke all around the two of them. Thick, choking clouds of inky smoke quickly covered the arena. Gardevoir could hear Scyther coughing in the billowing darkness, and that must have been what Quilava wanted.

Fire and smoke erupted from the cloud, Quilava covered in flames from his fire spin attack, and landed on Scyther's chest as the pair of them crashed to the ground. Scyther's wings were crushed as they hit, and neither pokemon relented. The flames leaping around Quilava's body scorched Scyther, leaving nasty burns along the bug's carapace. Bugsy's pokemon wasn't ready to give up either though. It thrashed underneath the relentless fire, throwing fur and blood to the floor with its large bladed arms. Quilava bellowed but as a last act roared flames into the bug's face.

Gardevoir held her hand up against the flash of heat. Scyther flailed harder, but the bug pokemon's movements became more erratic and soon stopped all together. Quilava rolled off his downed opponent.

“Bugsy is out of pokemon, Rob from Azalea town is the winner!” the referee called out but Rob was already running to Quilava. Gardevoir followed less quickly behind. Rob scooped Cyndaquil up in his arms as Bugsy's pokemon disappeared in a flash of red light.

“You did amazing,” Rob said cradling Quilava in his arms.

Quilava licked at a wound on one of his paws as if in a daze. “I cooked that bug.”

Rob ruffled the injured pokemon's fur gently, avoiding a large slice running from one ear and down Quilava's back. “I'll get you patched up soon,” Rob said and returned Quilava to a pokeball. He stood up as Bugsy approached.

“Well, it was a good fight, you had obviously planned out your strategy before coming here, and I didn't even get to see your Gardevoir in action. It takes something special to earn the respect of such a powerful pokemon, especially considering I watched you starting off only a few weeks ago,” Bugsy said. Gardevoir searched the man with her eyes, but Rob only laughed.

“I don't think you got the right impression,” Rob said grinning. Bugsy and Gardevoir looked intently at each other a moment longer before he turned his focus back to Rob.

“Well, who am I to say. Either way, you've earned this badge.” Bugsy presented a shiny red and black object to Rob who took it with a grin. “At the rate you've been going I'm sure you're eager to be off and work towards your next badge. Once you get yourself a couple more though, and you find yourself in town, stop by again. I can get my real team some practice, they're rusty, not many strong trainers come by this way anymore.”

“Haha I'll have to take you up on that some time,” Rob said shaking the gym leader's hand.

“Well then, how about you go get those pokemon of yours healed up.” Bugsy lead them out of the gym. Gardevoir followed behind as the two humans exchanged a few more words of goodbye. She had forgotten how cool the day was outside after being in the warm greenhouse and surrounded by Quilava's flames. Rob walked half a step in front of her as they made their way to the pokemon center, Gardevoir following automatically.

“So, another gym down, how did we do?” Rob asked jovially as they walked.

“Good, you adapted much quicker this time, and they fought hard. Also having a strategy helped, you should give as few verbal commands as possible. Some trainers even used code words back when....” Gardevoir trailed off but her focus wasn't really on the fight. No, that human Bugsy, he was what bothered her. After the first gym match she had been too overwhelmed with – other things – to notice, but she was beginning to think there was more to the whole thing.

Bugsy was dangerous. He didn't look it, and his age would put him at not much older than Rob if she was guessing correctly, but that man had scared her. There was much those eyes had hidden, but there was also much they gave away. That human had seen many things.

“So, how does a quick lunch sound after I get the others healed up? And I'm thinking of leaving tomorrow,” Rob continued, almost bouncing along the sidewalk as they passed a steady stream of other humans and their pokemon.

“Uh, yeah that sounds fine.” She looked up to see they had already made it to the pokemon center. The place still made her slightly uneasy. A nurse inside quickly took Rob's two pokeballs and returned before long. After Rob thanked the nurse they left; Gardevoir was glad they didn't stay long.

“I'll let the others out when we get home, we can celebrate there. What do you want to eat?” Rob asked.

“It doesn't matter to me,” Gardevoir replied.

“You could at least pretend to be interested. You aren't upset you didn't get to fight are you?”

“No it's not that, it's just... What did you think of Bugsy?” Gardevoir wasn't sure if she should even bother him about it, but she couldn't get the man out of her head.

“The gym leader? He's a really nice guy, he's the one who gave me Cyndaquil. Why do you ask?” Rob turned into a small shop that was giving off a pleasing aroma.

Gardevoir followed him in. “I don't know, he just felt. I can't even explain it. Never mind, it was probably nothing.”

Rob gave her a searching look but shrugged and walked to the counter to order their food. After a short wait they were heading back to Rob's house.

“Well it's still standing,” Rob noted as he opened the front door and they made their way inside.

“Yeah I'll go see what she's up to.” Gardevoir headed to Rob's room.

“We'll be outside,” she heard Rob call from the kitchen. Opening the door she was immediately greeted by Riolu.

“You're back!” Riolu exclaimed and then pouted. “It was boring in here.”

“We weren't gone that long,” Gardevoir replied. “There's food outside, Rob will be there but I'm sure Quilava will want to talk with you,” she smirked.

Riolu looked torn but finally agree to join them. “But only if Rob stays away.”

“We're going to be traveling with him, you need to get used to him. Or at least tolerate him. He's not that bad,” Gardevoir tried, but Riolu only harrumphed. Once they were outside however Riolu quickly forgot about both her and Rob. The blue furred pokemon joined Quilava who was filling in Sandshrew on what happened after being recalled. Rob backed off at the glare he received from Riolu, and move over to where Gardevoir stood.

“Here,” he said, handing her a bowl and a spoon. She gave the utensil a disapproving look but accepted the food gratefully. “You're going to want that this time.” He was right. The bowl contained what seemed to be flavored water with bits of vegetables and other things. It was very good of course, as human food generally was. She sat down and Rob joined her with his own meal.

“So what do you want to do?” Rob asked.

Gardevoir looked at him in confusion. “What do you mean?”

“I mean if you could do anything right now, what would it be?” Rob glanced at her as the two of them sat in the soft grass.

Gardevoir honestly didn't know how to answer. “I don't know, why do you ask?”

“I've always wondered what pokemon dreamed of, what they wanted out of life.” Rob sat back, resting on his elbows.

“My entire life all I wanted was to just survive, to hopefully escape. I never dared to plan further than that,” Gardevoir replied slowly.

“I'm sorry,” Rob said. “If you think of anything, let me know.”

This lead into something Gardevoir wanted to know though. “What about you, what do you want? Why do all this?”

“All this? This is all I've ever wanted. Ever since I can remember I wanted to be a trainer, to travel with my pokemon. I don't particularly care what happens from here on out. It would be nice to challenge the elite four, but honestly, if that never happens, I don't know if I'd mind, as long as we're all enjoying ourselves and can scrape together enough money for food,” Rob said smiling up at the clouds overhead.

“But why?” Gardevoir asked.

“I don't know if I can say why precisely. It's what I've always wanted to do, the path that will make me the happiest. It seemed right, so that's what I'm doing.”

His reasoning didn't really make sense to her. Did he think playing with a pokemon's life was some kind of game, taking pleasure in forcing them to his will? But no, she knew he wasn't like that. There had to be something else driving him. But as they sat, she couldn't even find it in herself to be miserable. Sitting with Rob and watching the others, it was nice. As darkness fell, they all head inside, Rob wanting to get prepared to leave and be off on the road again early.

“You're leaving already? But you just got back home,” Rob's mother was saying as Rob moved about, preparing his pack and ensuring he was ready.

“I know, I thought I was going to stay longer, but I think it's time to be on the road again,” Rob replied. Gardevoir watched him from the corner of the kitchen. Riolu had already snuck off to Rob's bedroom.

“It's good to see you're devoted to this though, good luck if I don't see you tomorrow,” his father said.

“I'll see you in the morning,” Gardevoir sent to Rob as she slipped out of the kitchen. He gave her a slight nod in acknowledgment. When she reached Rob's room, Riolu was already in bed, though not asleep. Gardevoir climbed in with her blue friend.

“Hey Gardevoir, you said you've only been traveling with Rob for a little while right?” Riolu asked.

“Mhmm,” she responded, snuggling against the furry pokemon.

“What did you do before you met him.”

Gardevoir took a moment before answering. “Nothing interesting, go to sleep.” There was no reason to bring up her past, and it wouldn't help either of them sleep anyway.

“Goodnight then,” Riolu muttered snuggling against Gardevoir and closed her eyes.

“Goodnight,” Gardevoir replied gently, and the pair drifted off to sleep.

A knocking at the door woke Gardevoir and Riolu early. The both of them rose and joined the others out in the kitchen for a quick breakfast while Rob made his final preparations. Gardevoir stayed at Riolu's side as Rob moved about, stuffing a few last items into his pack.

“We'll be heading through the Ilex Forest, it shouldn't take too long, we'll be on the other side before the end of the day. Then it's a while along Route 34. We can take our time though, we'll be right near the water, or close enough anyway,” Rob said as he checked the fastenings on his pack. “Well, we should get going then.”

Rob hurriedly cleaned up the kitchen and another few minutes saw them heading through Azalea once more. The cool weather from the previous day had continued, and the crisp fresh air would make for enjoyable traveling conditions.

It took about an hour to cross Azalea, as Rob's home was on the opposite side from their destination. As they approached though, it seemed as if the forest grew right up against the human town. An unobtrusive fence and maybe fifty feet separated concrete and houses from the dense forest they walked towards.

At first the woodlands were nice. The sun filtered through the canopy overhead sending thin beams of light to play across them. The faint sound of wildlife moving about just out of sight, shrouded in the thick vegetation, played soothingly as they walked. But as they moved deeper, Gardevoir felt an uncomfortable weight settling on her chest.

A silence began to follow them through the trees, and her skin prickled as if being watched. The enjoyable green corridors quickly turned into a trap where stalkers waited at every step. But her psychic scanning of their surroundings revealed nothing.

The hours passed in relative uneventfulness. The other three pokemon talked on occasion, or Rob would try and talk with Quilava and Sandshrew about upcoming battles, but aside from that, the group walked in silence. It was fine with Gardevoir though. She was content with being left alone, but still couldn't shake the feeling of being followed, occasionally glancing behind them though she knew nothing was there.

“Look, berries!” Riolu said, excitedly pointing to a small shrub with red and yellow fruit peeking between its leaves. At her words the other two pokemon also turned around.

“What's up?” Rob asked, unable to understand Riolu.

“There are berries around here,” Gardevoir translated, indicating the bushes just off the road.

“Oh,” Rob replied with a bright expression across his face. “It wouldn't be a bad time for a quick break, you guys want to go see if we can gather a few for the road?”

Riolu frowned slightly at Rob suggesting the idea but seemed interested none the less. There was still a decent amount of light filtering through the thick canopy and Rob had said they'd been making good time.

“We can split up and cover more ground, meet back here in ten minutes or so? Just don't go too far.” And with that Rob led Sandshrew off in one direction. Quilava quietly hung back and Riolu went to join him, leaving Gardevoir standing alone on the path. She watched the two pairs as they disappeared into the surrounding foliage.

I didn't matter, she'd rather be left alone anyway. Once the others were gone she slunk off in a third direction, barely paying attention to what was growing on the trees around her. The forest seemed even more eerie now that she was alone and off the beaten trail. Thick trunks and shrubs cut vision to almost nothing, and each step inward saw less and less light reaching the loamy floor. The scent of earth and life filled her nose, but the silence around her made the place seem dead.

After only a minute of walking she looked around to realize she recognized nothing of her surroundings. The simmering anxiety that had shadowed her since arriving back in Azalea suddenly came to a boil in her stomach. It shouldn't be this dark, even in the thick forest. And the trees, they weren't the ones she'd passed a moment before.

Gardevoir froze, searching for a clue to what was going on, the darkness seemed to be thickening around her. Her pulse quickened and she hurried back towards where she thought the path was. It had only been a minute or two, she couldn't have gone far. As she pushed her way through the thick foliage, it was as if night had arrived, and she squinted into the blackness, shadows dancing just out of sight. And a solitary eye glared back at her. The eye flashed with hatred.

Ice coursed through her veins as the eye glowed, a tightness settling over her skin. No, it was impossible. Ivory fur gleamed , a stark contrast to the midnight scythe that framed the face to which that blood red eye belonged. Gardevoir felt her breath freeze in her lungs as the large felid creature approached languorously, its eye drinking it her fear.

“No, you can't be here,” she croaked, her mouth arid, throat tight. Her telepathy wouldn't affect the dark type, forcing her to speak aloud.

Absol smiled. “My my, haven't you grown since we last saw each other.”

Gardevoir took a trembling step away from the nightmare of her past. How did she find me? Another step backwards, Absol still advancing at her dilatory pace, and her back brushed up against a large furry object. Startled, she spun, and was brought face to face with the mirthless, crimson grin of Zoroark. A squeak escaped her lips as she jumped away from him. She tried to keep both of them in view.

“Gardevoir now? You've been busy haven't you.” Zoroark's voice was cold, but he made no move towards her, only Absol continued to encroach.

“No, you can't, I escaped, you're not real.” Her legs caught on the roots as she clumsily backed away from the monsters. They only smiled at her. All around, the darkness swirled and suddenly they were back In Wes's basement.

“Don't you remember?” Absol asked, now only feet from her. “You killed them all, you didn't think you could just leave and everyone would forget did you?”

“I-I...” She looked around and saw them. The other psychics huddled where they had tried to avoid her and Absol's confrontation. And Abra. His body lay where it had been haphazardly discarded by Absol, his own blood staining his fur red. At least in the places where Absol's fangs hadn't torn him apart. Abra...

“I didn't. I didn't...” she whispered to Absol as the four legged pokemon closed the distance.

“Yes. You did.” Absol placed a paw against Gardevoir's chest and pushed her to the ground, standing above her and holding her down with a large, heavy paw. “Does this bring back any memories?” Absol taunted and brought her face inches from Gardevoir's.

Tears stung Gardevoir's eyes but she wasn't about to give up. After escaping the first time, and now finding people who didn't just want to hurt her; she wouldn't let it go without a fight. Concentrating, she teleported. Or she tried to. Absol's paw was still heavy against her chest as she opened her eyes, staring into Absol's cruel face, a force holding her where she was. Ice. When she had first looked into Absol's eye, she must have used mean look. She was trapped.

“So, now here we are again,” Absol whispered, face inches from her own. The cat's breath was hot and damp against her face. She was going to die. Large black claws pricked her skin, drawing small red beads from her chest. However, she barely noticed the pain. Everything was just as it had been.

Gardevoir stared up at the familiar ceiling, the small, grime encrusted window letting in just enough light to see. Absol stood over her wearing a malicious grin. She could almost smell the metallic stink of Abra's spilled blood. She deserved whatever came. After fighting it for so long, this was it, the end. There was no point.

A large claw dragged a gasp from Gardevoir's throat as Absol began to slice into white flesh. She panted as Absol stopped, feeling the warmth of her blood seeping from the fresh wound in her chest, but didn't fight. As a last act, she wouldn't give Absol the satisfaction the sadistic creature wanted.

“Just kill me, be done with it,” Gardevoir said through clenched teeth. Absol's white fur becoming marred with her victim's blood.

“Well that wouldn't be any fun, I've been waiting very patiently to spend time with you again. Zoroark, do you have anything you'd like to say to get our little friend in a more playful mood?” Absol grinned wickedly, teasing Gardevoir with the tip of a claw against her skin. Zoroark's shadowy form appeared by her feet though he didn't seem to pay her any mind.

“She's right, she deserves to die for what she did.” He said it in a cold tone, uncaring. “Despite what should be done though, I will enjoy seeing you suffer.” Hate filled eyes turned to her, sending a chill down her spine. A clawed paw gripped her ankle, lifting one of her slender legs. Gardevoir felt the shock sent through her body as Zoroark's powerful kick met her leg. The force of the blow reverberating inside of her as the limb shattered. She didn't even realize she was screaming until he dropped her broken leg.

Tears filled her eyes. Absol was speaking but her mind was overwhelmed. Pain, unlike anything she'd felt before. Eventually she quieted herself, but her ragged breathing shook her small form still pinned beneath Absol's paw. An Absol who was grinning hungrily at her.

“Well he might not have finesse, but you sang beautifully for him.” Absol sank a claw into her stomach. She could feel the claw like a knife, parting skin and muscle with ease. Absol pushed deeper. Gardevoir tried to refill her lungs but could barely breathe, letting out an almost silent whimper.

“But I see that fragile little body of yours can't keep up with him, so I'll be gentle.” Absol's claw twisted inside her.

“Gardevoir!” It was a faint call. In fact had she not seen Absol react to it, she would have written it off as her mind trying to give her something to grasp to. But it wasn't. Wes's basement dissolved around them as Zoroark moved out of her view, melting into the surrounding foliage. It was much brighter and open than she had remembered. There was a gentle breeze. Her body shook slightly under the great beast's furred paw.

“That human better stay out of this. I'd hate to have to kill him in front of you too.” Absol didn't look like she'd be bothered though. It was hard to breath. “Did you hear what I said?” Absol twisted the claw embedded in Gardevoir's stomach. Human? Was it Wes, or Rob? Why would Rob be here, that didn't make any sense. Her eyelids fluttered; the world swam in confusion around her.

The words, and pain, brought Gardevoir's focus back to the beast atop her. Why was it so hard to breathe? Her body felt numb, her mind was wandering. Absol's face contorted into a snarl at Gardevoir's lack of response, and she twisted the claw further before ripping it out. Gardevoir drew in breath. Shuddering, painful breaths. There was movement, noise, she had to focus. Why did her leg hurt so much? It was getting cold out.

-------------------------------------------------------

Branches whipped at Rob's face as he ran through the woods towards where he had heard the scream. He could hear Sandshrew following behind him, and he had though he saw Quilava through the trees but he didn't hesitate to look. That sound.

Gardevoir was one of the strongest pokemon he'd ever met, but he could have sworn that was her scream. He could hear his blood pounding in his ears as he ran, it had to be close, they hadn't been separated more than a few minutes – there. Through the trees he could just make out a clearing where...

“Gardevoir? What the fuck is going on?” Rob skid to a halt, bracing himself against one of the trees to stop. Eyes wide, he tried to make sense of what lay before him. An Absol stood atop Gardevoir who was bleeding from a number of wounds, and her leg, he cringed at the sickening angle it lay at. Gardevoir was panting, eyes unfocused, but her head lolled to the side to look towards him. The Absol only glared at him with a single eye.
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An Uncertain Future