Disclaimer: I do not own Pokemon.

Note: This story is an AU, there will be OCs, and probably OOC characters.

Time: Just after Sinnoh, so Ash is around fifteen I think, so base everyone else on him. I think Paul's around thirteen or fourteen also.

Pokemon
Tears of a Dreamer

Chapter One
First Reactions

Ash, Brock, and Dawn walked down a road surrounded by trees. Pikachu, at the head of the group, cheerily ran up the hill before them. The yellow Pokemon turned around, shouting cheerfully and excitedly back at them. Piplup called to Pikachu, running after him as quickly as his webbed feet would take him. Ash, too, seemed to be awfully cheerful this morning as well. He had made it into the top ten of the Sinnoh League; although he hadn't won the league he was still happy to have been able to make it that far. Not only that, but now they were going to take a ferry back to Pallet Town. It would be Dawn's first time meeting Delia, but Ash dearly missed his mother.

Dawn grinned to herself, giggling as she turned to Brock who was holding Happiny in his arms, "Boy, Ash sure seems to be happy today."

Brock nodded in understanding, "It's been awhile since we've been back in Pallet. Say Dawn, this'll be your first time in the Kanto Region won't it?"

She too nodded, "Yeah. I'm so excited!"

"I hear ya." Brock replied, "It'll be great to be able to visit my family in Pewter City too. It's great to travel all the time, but you and Ash should take a break once in awhile."

"I know but I'm totally psyched!" Dawn said, "I can't believe I made it all the way into the top ten at the Sinnoh Grande Festival! The only thing that would've made me even happier is actually winning it."

"Well don't worry, Dawn. There's plenty more contests to participate in. Who knows, you might even want to try out the contests here in Kanto."

"Come on guys!" Ash called to them from atop the hill, standing with Pikachu and Piplup, "We're gonna be late for the ferry! I can't wait to get back to Pallet!!"

"That's the fastest I've ever seen Ash move." Dawn commented in amusement.

"Yeah, but I hope Ash realizes that after the ferry ride, there's still a bit of a walk till we reach Pallet Town." Brock chuckled.

Dawn laughed along with the older boy as they moved to catch up with the zealous brown eyed boy. They made it up and then down the hill quickly, where they could see the large dock the ferry they would be riding was docked at, not to mention the even larger river the ferry would be sailing on. It was a crystal clear blue, sparkling in the early afternoon sun, the shores lined with trees. No doubt the forest surrounding the river was teaming with hundreds maybe even thousands of Pokemon.

Ash laughed to himself, his smile growing wider, "Looks great! Let's go!"

Soon they were running towards the docks, not even minding the other people already at the dock. Ash looked around where there were several others, his eyes catching sight of a small twelve or thirteen year old girl. Around her neck was a black ribbon choker, the back ending in a bow; the center had a large silver crescent moon with a beautiful vine like etching, and dangling from the moon on a short silver chain link was a strange bluish purple jewel shaped like a tear. It sparkled in brilliant shades of blue and purple when light shone on it. She was thin and her skin was pale, and she wore a white no sleeved sun dress that moved lazily with the breeze and white cloth half fingered gloves that reached up to her elbows; they were embroidered with a sort of black lace in the pattern of roses and vines, and on her right wrist she wore a violet Poketch while her left wrist adorned a blood red ribbon with a long tassle. But what struck Ash as strange were her large purple eyes, so full of a forlorn sadness, standing at the end of the docks alone, except for a Vulpix with a small silver crescent moon hair pin in her bangs hanging casually off her shoulder. However, the brown eyed boy was soon distracted by his Pikachu, who reminded him that Brock and Dawn were already moving ahead of them. Moving fast to catch up, they got in line to buy tickets, along with several other passengers, unbeknown to them that, of course, Team Rocket was following closely behind. After they received their tickets to board the ferry, they were informed that the ferry wouldn't be leaving for quite some time, and they decided to take break a small distance away from the docks, full of bustling people.

"Watch it!" A gruff sounding voice rose into the air. Ash, Brock, and Dawn all turned back towards the docks, where to Ash's surprise one of the deckhands was berating the quiet girl he'd seen earlier.

Ash, pulled in by a strange curiosity, moved forward back towards the docks. "Ash!" Dawn called to him, "Where are you going?"

But the boy wasn't listening, Pikachu following him on his heels. The man continued to shout at the quiet girl, who didn't respond, only continued to stare ahead with her sad eyes. "Hey -!" Ash started to say.

"What's your problem?" A voice suddenly rang out from the crowd. A girl with orange hair pulled into a side ponytail stepped out of the crowd, frowning, one hand holding her traveling bag over her shoulder and the other carrying an Azurill. Her aquatic blue eyes flashed angrily as she came closer to the deckhand and the girl, "Why are you yelling at her?!"

"She walked into me and she won't apologize!" He replied, "Maybe I should teach you some manners!"

"Raelene, is that true?" The orange haired girl asked the purple eyed girl, her voice softer than when she was addressing the deckhand. To Ash's amazement, the pale girl responded to her, nodding her head. "But you're very sorry, aren't you?" Again, the girl nodded. The girl with oceanic eyes turned toward the deckhand, "There, you see? She didn't mean to walk in to you, and she's sorry. Come on, Raelene, I figured out which ferry we should take. We have to buy tickets."

"I'm not through with her!" The man complained, "You said she's sorry, then why haven't I heard a word from her? I demand to get an apology!"

"Raelene doesn't speak." She replied, frowning, "So she can't apologize to you. But she is sorry for bumping into you. Isn't that enough?"

"Ugh...Misty...?!" Ash cut into the conversation, dumbstruck upon seeing the Water Pokemon Trainer here on the docks.

"A-Ash?!" Misty stuttered, turning towards him.

"I'm not done!" The deckhand sighed and began to walk away, grumbling under his breathe, "Oh forget it..."

"It's great to see you, Ash!" Misty exclaimed, moving closer to the boy. She reached a hand out, stroking Pikachu's cheek, "You too, Pikachu."

"Hey Misty, what're you doing here?" Ash asked, "I mean, who's watching the Cerulean Gym?"

"Well my sister's are pausing their tour around the world for awhile." Misty explained, "As for why I'm here, that actually has to do with why they're postponing their trip. This is Raelene," She beckoned towards the purple eyed girl, "and her Vulpix's name is Lior. The reason I'm here is to catch a ferry to another dock where we can get on a boat. I have to bring Raelene to the Vrona Region."

"The Vrona Region?" Ash tilted his head.

"Yeah, the Vrona Region." She nodded, "It's the region that's south of Kanto and Sinnoh. Strangely enough, Vrona's climate is more extreme than Kanto or Sinnoh. I heard that it can be really cold there. We've still got quite a bit to travel to get to there."

"Misty, long time no see!" Brock shouted as he and Dawn joined them.

"Hey, Brock, great to see you!" She replied with a smile. Her blue eyes caught sight of the pink pokemon in his arms and she began to giggle, "And who's this cutey?"

"This is Happiny." Brock replied as he tickled the round Pokemon, "There's someone I want you to meet." He turned so that Dawn could be included into the conversation, "This is Dawn. We met her in the Sinnoh Region."

"It's nice to meet you." Dawn said, bowing ever so slightly, and then indicated her penguin like Pokemon at their feet, "And this is my Piplup."

"I'm Misty."

"Hey, you're the lure girl!" Dawn stated.

"The what?"

"The lure girl!" Dawn laughed, "Ash has a lure that looks just like you!"

"Oh, so you still have that thing, huh?" Misty said, turning towards him.

"Well, yeah...It's not like I could just throw it away..." Ash replied awkwardly.

"Oh yeah, I want you to meet somebody too." She went to the small, purple eyed girl and, putting her arms around her shoulder, brought her closer into the group, "This is Raelene, and her Vulpix is Lior. I was visiting Alto Mare when I found her. Don't be put off by how quiet she is, though, she doesn't talk."

"Hi, Raelene, it's nice to meet you. I'm Dawn." She offered her hand, but Raelene's purple eyes only continued to stare forward at nothing in particular, as if she hadn't heard a thing, completely unreactive. Awkwardly, Dawn sank back, her smile fading into an expression of confusion.

"Sorry, she doesn't react to much of anything." Misty said, equally awkwardly, "It's a long story."

"Er, I'm Ash." He said, tryng to lighten the mood up. Pikachu popped up onto his shoulder and he patted the yellow Pokemon with a smile, "And this is Pikachu."

"Pika pikachu!" He exclaimed excitedly.

Lior immediately called back to him in greeting. Much to everyone's surprise, what seemed almost like a tiny twinkle appeared in her eyes as they lifted, losing some of their sadness. Her purple eyes, rather than focus on Ash, went straight to the yellow Pokemon. Though her expression still seemed sad, her eyes were no longer unfocused. Raelene reached a pale hand forward, slowly but gently touching Pikachu's cheek and rubbing him there. His eyes slid shut as he smiled, enjoying the feeling. Soon Raelene reached her other hand up and began to rub his other cheek as well.

Dawn's surprised expression soon became a bright smile. She leaned down and picked Piplup up, "This is my Piplup, Raelene."

"I'm Brock, and this is my Happiny." Brock chimed in, showing her the happy pink Pokemon.

Raelene leaned down to pet Dawn's Piplup, and then she caressed Happiny, who began to giggle. Smiling encouragingly, Brock allowed Raelene to hold the pink Pokemon who continued to giggle. Lior leaped from her shoulder, joining Piplup on the ground.

"But she does react well to Pokemon." Misty commented, laughing.

"Raelene, why don't you take the Pokemon over there by that tree." Brock said calmly, "We'll be there in a minute." Raelene didn't reply, but simply carried Happiny over towards the tree that Brock had indicated, followed by Lior, Pikachu, and Piplup. Misty placed her Azurill on the ground, who bouncily followed after them.

"So, Misty, why're you going to Vrona?" Ash questioned.

"It's kind of complicated, Ash." Misty replied, sighing.

"Well why don't we take a break." Dawn suggested, "Then you'd have plenty of time to explain!"

Misty pursed her lips and almost looked as if she would refuse, her eyes traveling towards Raelene with their Pokemon. Smiling, she nodded, "Alright, guys, but Raelene and I have to buy tickets soon."

After setting up for a quick lunch, Ash, Misty, Dawn, and Brock sat on the grass to eat. They let all their Pokemon out to eat as well, and Raelene opted to eat surrounded by them rather than humans. Lior sat next to her trainer, sharing a bowl of food with Ash's Monferno.

"Raelene didn't let out any of her Pokemon, except Lior who was already out." Dawn observed.

"Lior's the only Pokemon Raelene has with her now." Misty explained.

Brock turned towards Misty with a serious expression, "Misty, what's this all about?"

Misty took in a deep breath and let it out, "To tell you the truth, I'm really not sure what's happening. When I told you that I found Raelene in Alto Mare, I mean I really found her. I was deep sea diving with Caserin in the ocean around Alto Mare when I stumbled upon this weird underwater facility. It seemed really suspicious, so I went inside to take a look. I found Lior first, trapped in a glass bubble. After I released her she led me deeper inside, which is where I found Raelene."

"Are you serious?" Dawn said in shock, "But how can that be allowed?!"

"That's just it." Misty said, "It's not. Raelene was locked up in a cage. At first she wouldn't react to anything, not even when I broke her out of the cage. She just sat there, until Lior called to her. We were able to escape without any real mishap, but those people who captured her are looking for her still. Raelene seemed really out of it, and she hasn't ever talked to me or even spoken a word since I found her. She only wrote me notes in the beginning, and even then it was only to make me promise her that I'd help her get to Vrona. To tell you the truth, even after all this, I'm still not sure why she needs to go there or why those people are trying to kidnap her."

"Wow, Misty, you seem really stressed out." Brock said.

Misty sighed loudly, "Well yeah, of course I am! Those guys keep coming back! And it's not like I get any real answers, either!"

"This is all so terrible..." Dawn put in, "I mean...I can't even imagine what she's been through..."

"Why don't you two come with us to Pallet?" Ash suggested.

Misty stared at him, blinking blankly for a moment at the sudden proposition. "Wh...What do you mean, Ash? We have to get to Vrona - "

"Yeah, I know all that, but it seems like you and Raelene could really use a break. What better way to rest than to spend some time with friends!"

"Ash, I think that's a great idea!" Dawn agreed.

"But, I made a promise to Raelene that I would get her to Vrona." Misty protested.

"Vrona's not going anywhere anytime soon." Ash reminded her, "You can just rest a little bit and then you can go on there."

"And who knows, Misty." Brock nodded as he watched Raelene, "Maybe spending time with a bunch of different kinds of Pokemon will help to heal her a bit."

Misty heaved a heavy sigh, but smiled nonetheless, "Maybe you're right. I want Raelene to know that she's safe now, and that she can relax, even if just a little. Alright, Ash, I'd love to go back with the three of you to Pallet."

"Great! Let's go tell Raelene!" Dawn said excitedly.

"Dawn, wait - !" Misty said, trying to stop her.

But Dawn didn't hear her, and she ran over to Raelene and their Pokemon before anyone could stop her. "Raelene, guess what?" She said, "You're gonna come with us to Pallet Town! It'll be the first time either of us meets Ash's mom. I'm so happy, too! We'll get to meet Professor Oak as well. Maybe he'll even recite a poem for us!"

For the first time since they met, Raelene reacted to another human other than Misty, her eyes growing slightly larger in what they perceived as surprise. Her purple eyes immediately landed upon Misty, who quickly moved to the younger girl. Raelene scrolled through the apps on her Poketch, finally finding the Memo Pad App, where she furiously wrote: You promised you'd help me get to Vrona.

"I know I promised you - "

Raelene quickly erased her original message and wrote, Then why aren't we going to Vrona? Instead we are going to Pallet...? Again she erased the message and wrote, I have to go there, with or without your help.

"We will go to Vrona." Misty stated, "Just like I promised, we will. But we're just going to Pallet first, okay?"

"I know you'll have lots of fun there." Ash commented, "Professor Oak's got so many Pokemon at his lab. I know they'll love getting to know ya."

Raelene simply ignored the brown eyed boy, erasing the message on her memo pad, and then writing another. She turned to Misty, showing her what she had written, Alright. But we go to Vrona right after.

Misty sighed in relief, nodding with a bright smile, "Deal."

"Alright!" Ash shouted loudly, "Then it's on to Pallet Town!!"

"Pika!" Pikachu exclaimed just as excitedly.

"Listen, is that a twerp I hear?" Jesse's voice suddenly interrupted them.

"It's speaking to me loud and clear!" James chimed in.

"On the wind!"

"Past the stars!"

"In your ear!"

"Bringing chaos at a breakneck pace,"

"Dashing hope, putting fear in it's place."

"A rose by any other name is just as sweet,"

"When everything's worse, our work is complete."

"Jessie!"

"James!"

"And Meowth, now that's a name!"

"Putting the do-gooders in their place..."

"We're Team Rocket..."

"In your face!!"

"Don't tell me you clowns are still following Ash around!" Misty shouted in annoyance.

"Hey, wait," James sound, peering down from their balloon at Misty, "Isn't that one..."

"A twerpette that's been gone a long time?" Meowth finished for him.

"Who cares?!" Jessie yelled, "Just grab that Pikachu!"

"Right!" Meowth pulled out a control panel and pressed a large red button upon it. A compartment in the basket of their air balloon opened and a rubber hand shot out, seizing Pikachu from Ash's shoulder and pulling him up in the air.

"No, Pikachu!" Ash shouted in dismay.

"Team Rocket, you let him go now!" Dawn demanded.

"Nya nya!" They taunted, spitting their tongues at them.

"Now, time for the others!" Meowth said as he pressed more buttons. More compartments opened, more rubber hands shooting out at all the Pokemon that had been let out.

Raelene stared up at them, frozen to her spot, her large purple eyes wide with fear. Those hands, the stealing of their Pokemon, it all served to remind her of a terrile incident...

Raelene was around the age of eight. She ran through a large and dense, but beautiful and peaceful, forest, giggling as she went. If you looked around, you could see Stantler grazing and a flock of Pikachu playing, among other Pokemon who were enjoying the dense forest. A little Vulpix, Lior, ran alongside the small girl. The blue-purple jewel on her choker necklace sparkled in the occasional patch of sun peaking through the leaves of the trees. Raelene continued to run until she reached a wide, sunny clearing, breathing hard from all the running and laughing she had done. She stared up at the bright sun with a large, innocent smile.

A bark came from the forest and a Houndour suddenly jumped out of the forest, tackling the little eight year old to the grassy floor playfully. She rolled across the grass, still laughing. She sat up, scratching her Houndour behind the ear. Her Vulpix joined them, and Raelene soon took notice of a patch of beautiful pink wild flowers. Smiling to herself, she began to make a wreath of flowers, placing the first on her Houndour's head. She quickly made another wreath of flowers and was about to place it on Lior's head when a rubber hand, very similar to Team Rocket's, shot out from the air above and seized the tiny Vulpix.

The wreath of flowers fell from Raelene's hands as Lior was pulled up into the air. Gaping, Raelene's eyes filled with the sight of a huge, forboding airship, the hand coming from it. Lior squeaked as she struggled against the hand, but soon the hand began to change. A glass ball encased Lior, causing her to stop struggling as she looked about herself in confusion. A jolt of electricity suddenly ran through the glass orb. Lior began to scream in pain as she was shocked, struggling even more, which only made the shock of electricity more intense.

"Lior!" Raelene shouted, running forward so that she was closer, but Lior was still horribly out of range. "Let her go!"

The sound of rustling came loudly from the forest. A Bagon ran through it, running up a tree, jumping from branch to branch. When the Bagon reached the forest he shot upwards with a Headbutt at glass ball that surrounded Lior. It only served to shock him, throwing him to the floor. The stubborn Bagon, however, wouldn't give up. It stood up quickly, running up the tree. It jumped into the air, shooting a Dragonbreath at the bottom of the aircraft. It struck the aircraft, but didn't even scratch it. Another hand shot out from the bottom of the aircraft, this time slapping the little dragon Pokemon, causing the Bagon to fly over the forest, disappearing from view.

"Azriel, no!" Raelene shouted in dismay.

The side of the aircraft opened, revealing a tall man and a slender woman, both dressed in a heavy greenish-black uniform. "Are you the girl named Raelene?" The man questioned.

"Who cares," The woman said, "She's wearing the necklace, so it must be her. Alpha Team, move in!"

"My necklace?" Raelene whispered to herself, touching the jewel at her neck.

Raelene's Houndour crouched low, bristling and puffing up twice his size as something in the forest that surrounded them began to move. He growled low, showing his sharp fangs as more men and women dressed in greenish-black uniforms appeared around them. They dug into their pockets, producing Pokeballs. Soon, Raelene and her Houndour were surrounded by a Hitmonchan, a Poliwrath, and a Golem. Raelene took a fearful step back, wanting to run, unaware of the fact that there was a man coming up behind her. Meanwhile, her Houndour, noticing her hesitation, wouldn't back down. He surged forward, releasing a blast of fire from his mouth, aimed at the Hitmonchan. It backed away, but was unable to escape the fire. The Golem jumped up, curling up, and starting into a Roll Out. It spun around, striking the Houndour. He flew through the air, but recovered quickly, using another blast of fire, though it didn't hurt the Golem much.

"Wait, Noah!" Raelene shouted, about to run forward when someone seized her from behind, twisting it against her back. "Hey, let go!"

"Heh heh, we're gonna get praised for this for sure!" The man laughed, restraining the small girl with ease.

"Let go of me!" Raelene protested, struggling against the man, who had to twist her other arm behind her back in order to restrain the feisty girl. Looking down, she stamped down onto the man's foot, causing him to shout in pain.

"Quiet!" The man shouted in anger, slamming the small girl down onto the ground hard, completely winding her. Raelene continued to struggle, but the man continued to press her arms and back down, making it hard for her to breath.

Raelene looked up as she fought back, just in time to see the Golem, Poliwrath, and Hitmonchan ganging up on her Houndour. The Golem whirled around again as the Hitmonchan struck the Houndour in the side, only to be hit by a more powerful Roll out. The Poliwrath followed up with a Bubblebeam. Despite the odds, Noah tried to stand again, his legs wobbling weakly. The Golem spun around yet again, striking him again.

"Stop it!" Raelene cried out, feeling completely helpless as she was unable to do a thing, "Leave him alone! Noah! Stop it! NOAH!!!!"

Present day Raelene jolted when an Energy Ball produced from Ash's Grotle exploded as he attempted to release his friends. Misty commanded her Dewgong to use Ice Beam on one of the hands that had seized some of their Pokemon as Brock commanded Croagunk to use Brick Break on the frozen part of it. Raelene began to tremble, unable to prevent the memories from that event, and the events that occurred after, from arising into her mind. Tears began to well into her eyes, and she sank to her knees, clutching her head as crystalline tears began to fall from her eyes. She squeezed her eyes tightly shut, moving her her hands to her ears as she tried to block the sounds of Noah being attacked continuously out of her ears, though they were only in her mind.

Ash was the first to notice Raelene on the ground. He kneeled down next to her, placing his hands around her shoulders, "Raelene, you okay?" The purple eyed girl didn't answer, tears continuing to fall from her pale cheeks. Ash frowned, thinking that it was Team Rocket that was causing her distress. With angry eyes, he turned towards their balloon yet again. "Staraptor!" He shouted, who, along with the rest of their Pokemon, had just been freed, "Use Brave Bird to pierce the balloon!"

"Staraptor!" The large bird replied, rising higher into the air. It quickly changed directions, shining blue as it surged downwards at an angle. It shot through the Meowth head balloon, creating a large hole in it. Air rushed out of it with a loud rushing noise, and the balloon flew off course.

"Team Rocket's blasting off again!!" They shouted, disappearing from view.

"Alright!" Dawn shouted triumphantly, jumping up and down with her Pokemon, "We did it!"

"Raelene, what's the matter?" Brock questioned, rushing over to where Ash and Misty were with Raelene. Dawn soon joined them, her smile disappearing.

"Hey, Raelene, come on!" Ash said in an attempt to help her. She shook her head, unable to stem her tears. "Tell us what's wrong. Raelene!"

To Be Continued...