AN: I don't even have an explanation for why I'm neglecting my other fics...

Disclaimer: I don't own Pokemon... Idea and roleplay belong to shadow_claw, pudding and Doctortear on the Dragon Cave Forums.

Warning: Legends and such may be changed/made up for plot purposes

Prologue: Never Again

I've been here, in this world, for years. Guarding over this land, that's my purpose. Once upon a time, I'd probably think that my current actions were horrible mistakes born from temporary insanity, littered about and to be repented for and forgotten in the sands of time. But that's all I've ever done, I realize now. Repent for mistakes I have yet to make.

Now, what I'm doing is truly correct.

(it shouldn't feel wrong but why does it not feel right)

I've learned to not see the world through rose-tinted lenses, and now I know the truth.

I'm benevolent, they believe, something that just does what they're supposed to do as if I owe them something. I've been lost in the sands of time. I'm a mere legend, a myth to them. Maybe years and years of isolation has gotten to me, but I know for definite that none of these creatures are pure enough to gaze upon me.

(it's wrong oh so wrong when did things get to this

i shouldn't it's against everything i stand for... once stood for)

They've done nothing for me, but take and take and take. They want to use me for my power, they want to see me for their own selfish desire, they believe I'll do anything for them. In the past my actions have been heroic, to say the least. Unlike my two brothers, who shy away from attention and interaction, I helped, I tried, but they did not change.

(i really really did it's your fault not mine

no, i'm innocent)

I remember, in the distant past, that once upon a time, it wasn't like this. I was once respected, once remembered, once believed in and thanked for my duties. Once upon a time, we were friends who were together. Once upon a time, I was happy and they were pure. They were good and I had nothing to fear from them. But over the years, things changed.

(they changed without waiting for me me stuck here in this lake had to learn the hard way

alone all alone)

I was forgotten, not even a memory. While the others are still respected and feared, I carried out my duties without anyone appreciating it. And those who do remember...

Well, let's just say, remembering and believing aren't the same.

(but maybe just maybe i can still hope still believe that not all of them are like that)

Now, I'll let things stay this way no longer. It's my duty just as much as it's my duty to keep the waters pure.

I don't want to be taken for granted, forgotten or used.

I don't want to be alone...

So I'll make myself known. I'll make my actions known.

And I swear to Arceus that I will not, nevereveragain be unappreciated.

(i'm angry, i'm so angry

whyamIangrywhenitwasalwaysmeanttobethisway)

Never again.

And the illness spread, turning the once clear water into a poisonous, murky purple. It was so simple, so easy, to ruin the lives of so many with just an inane thought or action. Usually, it would be another doing this and he would speed across the world to righten it, purify it.

(isitreallythewater, orisitme?)

But today... Today he was the instigator, the criminal, who was doing something that he had never done before. No, not criminal. What he was doing was right, for it was revengepurposeduty. It wasn't wrong. What was wrong was the rest of them.

He had waited and waited and waited for someone to remember, for someone to pray. He had waited for someone to chase him out of isolation, for someone to appreciate him. But no one had. They took his gifts for granted. And left him alone, all alone.

If that was the case... He wouldn't allow it. Let's see just how well they fare without his... Gifts.

The ungrateful, the ignorantmeanevil must be punished!

"Toxic!"

"There are many Pokemon in our world. Many, many Pokemon. Some are so common that one could see them anywhere, living peacefully in every region. Others are so rare, you'd find it a blessing to be able to meet them in your lifetime, for they live across seas, far, far away.

"But, there are a group of Pokemon who are so very different from the rest. The legendary Pokemon, who are unique, one of a kind. They have specific duties often times, such as Dialga, who governs time, and Palkia, space. They are powerful, much more so than the average Pokemon.

"In our region, just as in every other, there lives several legendary Pokemon. Although this may be the case, seeing one would be a wish come true. Why, you might wonder, this is. Well, the majority of legendaries are so powerful, that a battle between them would be like witnessing the apocalypse to most. That's why, after several battles between legendaries that threatened the existence of our world, Arceus came down and scattered the legendary Pokemon, sending them into deep slumber, only to awake when they were needed. And those that were not sent into slumber hid themselves away, only occasionally appearing throughout history. Their existence has become mere legend now, and that's the only proof we have of their existence."

It was a gloomy day.

(This place has never been gloomy.)

The clouds were thick were rainwater, hanging in the sky darkly and blocking out the light. The cawing of a group of Murkrow was the only sound within the forest, and even then, they would soon be gone, fleeing from their once home. Or were they just passing by?

(I remember when it was so full of life, when I could call it a sanctuary...)

It was otherwise deathly silent and colorless, already the picture of despair even without the rain that had just begun to fall and the actual state of the forest below. The rain, once clear, fell heavily and sludge like, blending in with the muddy ground. A flash of thunder broke across the sky, probably the only light that now existed in this little piece of grey,

(The blue one howled to the sky, his melodic voice clashing horribly with the sharp bark of the yellow one and the rumbling roar of the red one.)

and lit up the sky with a monstrous crash. The wind howled and the rain roared, the thunder barking along with it. It was comforting in a twisted way, the three sounds clashing like an cold, warped symphony of cries.

(They all flinched at the sound,)

The trees were dead and black, gnarled roots somehow still clinging on, trying to survive. They were different now, alive, but so dead at the same time, just barely hanging on by a thread. Dead leaves crunched underfoot and it sounded so loud

(their eardrums ringing with the volume they had used,)

in the dead silence of the... Was it night? Or day? It was too dark to tell. He began to speed up, wanting to get away from the depressing air. If this was what had become of his brother's home, it was no wonder his brother had changed. Seeing the grey, grey cave up ahead, he allowed himself a little smile,

(wanting to laugh at each other's expressions, but also in astonishment themselves.)

and sped up.

He slowed as he reached the entrance, glad, for once, to be inside instead of outside. Finally under a suitable shelter, he shook himself out, sending droplets of rain everywhere, before walking further inside. He hated getting wet.

His spirits lifted more the further he padded inside and he approached the pool of clear water in the middle silently, dipping down to lap at the water. Despite the rain outside, he had felt dehydrated prior to coming here. He lifted his, finished, and looked towards the figure of his brother who stared into the pool aimlessly.

"Thank you," Entei rumbled quietly but sincerely, eventually breaking the peaceful silence.

That made Suicune look up with such a lost look of confusion

(They all laughed joyously after composing themselves and Entei's heart soared.)

that Entei's heart clenched. Then, the Reincarnation of the North Wind shook his head slightly, eyes clearing and softening. "You're welcome." They stood like that in silence for a while, just enjoying each other's company. Instead of talking, Entei took his time to admire his surroundings. It was really like a little piece of Heaven that Suicune tended to here. It was beautiful, with delicate plants and crystalline walls that reflected the light. The pool was in the very middle of the cave and it seemed to shine with how pure the water was.

(There was a time where they would have jumped on each other and rolled around in a mock fight, but that time was long gone and Entei tried his best to forget)

Oddly enough, it was Suicune who spoke up first. Usually, he was the silent one. "I haven't been able to say that in a long time," he paused in his sentence for some bitter laughter, it was almost rasping and Entei nearly flinched at how it had changed. He felt guilt rise within him, realizing that the three of them had all been too busy to just... Be together recently. "I haven't said anything in a long time, now that I think of it. I just don't have... Anyone to say it to."

And Entei felt disappointment. He was disappointed in himself and Raikou for neglecting to check up on their brother, to spend time with him.

(so he wouldn't be crushed by the regret and the guilt.)

A crackle of electricity signaled the arrival of the last one in their trio, Raikou and he repeated Entei's actions in silence. That, too, was odd, as Raikou was usually the one who couldn't shut up. Always rumbling about something or another. Entei was only supposed to roar when a volcano erupted, anyways, and there wasn't much of that happening recently.

To Suicune, the grateful look he was sent from Raikou was probably enough of a thanks. Entei could tell by the way Raikou looked at Suicune hesitantly that he was feeling guilty, too.

"I'm so glad you both came to see me," Suicune told them, "It has been so long since I've been with someone who appreciated me so."

(We promised to be together, to support each other through thick or thin)

He settled down onto the ground with shaky limbs and Entei wondered just how long Suicune had been standing there, looking into that pool as if it held all the answers. Had he been standing there ever since he stopped tending to the other water sources? Entei couldn't believe that. He hadn't believed it when he had stopped for a drink near Mt. Silver since it seemed as if the water hadn't been purified in a while. That was when he had gotten worried. Suicune never neglected his duties. And so he had come here, the one place he was sure he would find Suicune. It seemed as if it were the same for Raikou.

But they both knew what Suicune's weaknesses were, what made him tick, and they both knew, most of all, that it was probably their actions that had been the straw that broke the Camerupt's back, so to speak.

(But we had broken the promise)

Entei and Raikou sat on either side of Suicune's tired form and watched as their brother raised his head proudly, a glint of the brightness that was once so alive, lighting up in his dull, dull eyes. Entei could've sworn that there was something odd about him, something unfocused, something warped. He could've sworn red flashed in those eyes... He shook it off as Suicune spoke again. "I wish I could do something to make everyone appreciate what I've done for them... I wish... That I wasn't so forgotten, so... Insignificant even though I've done so... So much for them," he said brokenly, but firmly, "I don't know why they hurt me so... I purify the water that is their life source! Without me... Without me, where would they be? So why...?" Suicune's voice almost broke on the last sentence, but it was said with a burning rage. "I have to make them realize! I have to get their respect!"

It broke Entei's heart to hear his brother speak like that. With such an anger that it sounded as if it was eating his brother from the inside out. He sounded so lost.

(Never again.)

"We will do whatever we can to help you, brother. You're right. No one should be unappreciative of your duties," Raikou spoke, voice like rumbling thunder, "We will stand by you, brother." Entei nodded, agreeing, ignoring the small voice in his head that said otherwise.

"You will?"

(Seal the deal.)

"We will. We will always support you, no matter what you do."

(Never break it again.)

"You promise?"

And Suicune sounded so small and lost that Entei's heart broke again.

(We promise.)

"We promise."

See. It can't be wrong. What I'm doing is right.

Because they promised.

AN: And... There we go! There are some differences between this and the role play. *spoiler alert* In the role play, Suicune was only bitter and angry beyond comprehension. Here, he's completely insane if you haven't already guessed and, as Entei thought, his and Raikou's actions were the straw that broke the camel's back, just not in the way they thought. In the first part, that happens after the third section, where Suicune was unsure, but then he thinks of his two brothers and then that cements his belief that he's doing the correct thing.

Hope you like it! Especially you, shadow, pudding and doctor.

R&R