A wild cry pierces the still darkness, jerking Yellow from a peaceful sleep. For a second, she is confused – what made the noise? – and then Red cries out again from where he lies beside her. Yellow scrambles out of the sheets, clumsy with fear and haste. She sees that his eyes are closed hopes he is just having a bad dream, but something deep inside her knows that this has gotten out of control. She hears footsteps and turns her head in time to see Gold burst in the room. Yellow slips off the bed to join him and they all surround Red cautiously. He is still now, panting heavily as though he has just run a marathon. And then, without warning, Red starts screaming again, louder than before. His limbs flail, getting tangled in the blankets. Yellow can see that, the more he struggles, the closer he is to self-asphyxiation. She immediately tries to disentangle Red, but is not making much headway because she is trying hard not to get hit or startle him awake. Gold joins her then, and together they free Red. When they are finished, Red sits up, eyes still closed, but falls back down. After a few minutes, his breathing eases and he drifts back to sleep.
Green sticks her head in the door and beckons them out. The rest of the Dex Holders have arrived, notified by her. They begin to discuss this latest episode – Red's seventh this month. Yellow does not join in, and the others let her be. But she can't resist from uttering a loud exclamation when Sapphire suggests they move him. Yellow clamps her hand over her mouth, but it does not wake Red. The others agree with Sapphire and try to convince Yellow to agree as well. Even though she knows how exhausting it is for her, Green, Blue and whoever else happens to be at the Kanto Dex Holders' ranch, she can't bring herself to leave Red to cold, uncaring housekeepers. Sapphire tries to tell her that he's having episodes because of triggers from the past, and that he needs to be away from as many familiar things as possible if he's to recover faster. Ruby chimes in, adding that they can all go to visit Red regularly. But when Yellow still hesitates, Gold proposes that they all take shifts instead because all their schedules are too different to make regular visits. The discreet look he throws at Yellow, though, tells her that Gold understands that she needs time alone with Red. She nods back gratefully, unable to smile because she still can't get over the idea that she's essentially abandoning Red.
Yellow stops and dismounts to let Dody take a drink from the trickling stream beside them. His left head briefly rubs against her arm before joining the middle and right heads. Yellow smiles and walks a short distance away to stretch. As she does so, she gazes upward to admire the sunrise. All those pink and gold streaks across the vast sky fill her with a sense of calm. It's the only time of day when the world is so sleepy that it's completely at peace. As always, she wishes she could paint, for she thinks today's sunrise is particularly beautiful. Of course, she wishes she could share this with Red, because he's the only one who understands her fascination with dawn. Both Blue and Green prefer to sleep as long as possible, never mind the beauty they miss. Yellow suspects that Sapphire would understand, but Yellow is slightly intimidated by the Hoenn native...besides, she hasn't quite forgiven Sapphire for suggesting that Red is moved out of the KDH ranch, even if it was the right thing to do.
Dody nudges her then, having finished resting. Yellow pats his flank and hoists herself into the saddle. A light wind kicks up and Yellow shivers. She's not particularly cold, but the sound of the air whistling over the empty landscape makes her feel lonely. Thankfully, the trip isn't too long and she is quickly thanking Dody, recalling him into his Pokéball, and tiptoeing through the halls of the building. She takes her customary deep breath in a futile attempt to calm down and pushes open the door. Her breath whooshes out in surprise as she takes in Silver, who is calmly helping Green tidy up the small room.
As soon as they are done, Silver bids Yellow goodbye and steps outside to wait for Green. The older girl assures Yellow that Red has been sleeping well and that he hasn't acted out. Then, because she yawns hugely, Yellow smiles, thanks Green, and pushes her out the door. Just before it closes, Yellow catches a glimpse of Silver's arm around Green, whose head is tucked into his shoulder. Yellow quickly turns away from the sight, but she still feels a pang of longing as she regards the back of Red's head. As she sits down in the chair beside his bed, he grumbles softly and rolls over, facing her. She smiles at his serene expression, noting how much younger and carefree he looks. She gently takes his hand in her own, rhythmically stroking the back of his hand with her thumb.
Initially, Red had regained consciousness after his attacks, but as time wore on, he came back less and less from the dark place within his mind. By the time Red had been in the centre for a month, he had slipped into a near-coma. And so most days, Yellow will talk softly to him about the world outside, hoping that he will become aware of his surroundings again. Sometimes she sits in the far corner and sobs quietly, unable to understand how the Fighter could have been brought so low. Still other days, like today, Yellow simply observes him and the room. She is thinking about Pika and the rest of Red's Pokémon when his hand twitches in hers. She focuses intently on his face, heart pounding. His eyes open groggily and trace the line from their linked hands to her face. He blinks once, looking less disoriented. Yellow opens her mouth, about to address him quietly, when he grunts in alarm and rips his hand from hers. Before she has quite registered what has happened, Red is in the fetal position, facing away from her again and at the far end of the mattress.
Yellow feels her heart crack and crumble into fine powder. A giant lump has appeared in her throat and her eyes are stinging. As soon as Red's breathing falls into the slow cadence of sleep, she jumps up and heads out. She isn't quite sure where she's running to, only that she is in desperate need of space. She is frantically rubbing at her eyes, thinking foolishly that she'll slip in a puddle of her own tears, and the last thing she needs is to be potentially humiliated. Unfortunately, she runs headfirst into somebody and stumbles backward awkwardly. She recognizes Blue through her tears and isn't sure what to do. Despite the fact that Blue is the one who taught her to battle, the two are not especially close. In fact, Yellow is still intimidated by him. But when Blue comes to her and puts his arms around her, her immediate reaction is to squeeze him tightly and cry hysterically into the front of his shirt. Any trepidation she feels vanishes almost instantly and she begins to blubber on about how he promised me he would come back for sure...
After an indeterminate length of time, Yellow's tears cease and she pulls away from Blue, wiping her eyes and nose. She smiles apologetically at his ruined shirt and offers her handkerchief, but he waves it away and simply brushes off the excess moisture. She follows Blue back to Red's room, more than a little confused. Blue had been at the Viridian Gym for nearly a month and Green and Yellow haven't been expecting him home for at least another week. Still, she is extremely grateful for his timing and comfort, especially considering that Blue is rarely, if ever, sympathetic.
Back in the room, Yellow hovers by the door nervously as Blue approaches his long-time rival. She catches a flash of pain in his eyes before it is – mostly – concealed by his usual, passive expression. Blue explains that he can't stay long, that he needs to get back to the Gym. Yellow nods, unsurprised, and hugs him quickly as he leaves. She is contemplating going home now, but sees something on Red's bedside table that hasn't been there before. Curious, she goes over.
It is a framed picture, and one that Yellow knows very well. It is of Red, flexing his muscles and making a silly face at the camera. Yellow is in the background, laughing at rolling her eyes at him at what he called his "hero pose". Red had liked the picture so much that he had printed and framed it. He had insisted on placing it in their bedroom too, knowing that it makes Yellow smile. And smile she does now. She places the picture back on the stand, brushes a hand over Red's hair, and quietly leaves.
Because although Blue seems closed off, he is Yellow's teacher and more importantly, friend. And as such, he knows that even the Healer needs healing. Even though he can't provide that, he can give his friend hope. And he can remind her that Red even if not himself, he still loves her. Yellow calls Dody out and aims his three heads homeward. The sun is much higher in the sky now and there is no trace of the lovely sunrise from this morning. But Yellow simply smiles again and goes on, knowing that Red will watch one with her soon.
He is, after all, the Fighter.
A/N
This is probably the longest I have spent on any story - about a month. There are about six different versions saved because I liked different parts from each one, and they all went into this final product.
I started thinking that Ash from the anime must be pretty scarred from all his encounters with the various evil organizations, and how it would be a great opportunity to write a PokeShipping story. But then I thought that the anime doesn't really let me do this, since Ash basically starts anew every season. On the other hand, Red from the Pokemon Adventures manga have faced some real dangers, so I decided to focus on him instead. And of course, who better to look after him than the Healer, Yellow?
Anyway, thanks for reading and I hope you liked it!
-S.H.