Brock: REALLY?
Freeze: Um...yeah.
Brock: COOL!!! AND SHE LOVES ME? SCORE!!!
Freeze: Um...why should I tell you?
Brock: Come on!
Freeze: I'll ruin the story.
Brock: So?
Freeze: Just shut up.
Disclaimer: Pokemon is not mine. It never was. If it was...the episodes on KidsWB would contain a lot more Ash and Misty. Also, they would contain Maoko. Who is mine. All mine. No one can take her from me! BWAHAHAHAHA!!! Um...sorry.
Come Back To Me
He shuddered as the wind swept passed him. A cry of a bird escaped the air as he tucked in the cloth around him tightly, praying that he could make it on time. Knowing that for his own sake…he should.
Brock sighed as he stared up at the sky, covered with misty clouds. They swirled around in the air, seeming to form a picture. Brock could just make out the blue eyes and the long straight hair before the picture swirled up again.
That face. He couldn't get it out of his head. He couldn't make himself stop thinking about it. Thinking about that day.
"Ash. For one time in your life…stop being a jerk."
"Did you just call me a jerk?"
"No, duh!" Brock sighed as he eyed the two kids, who had jumped up onto the rocks, bickering again. From past experiances, he knew it was probably better to stop this before it got worse. But from even more experience, he knew that the result of doing that was probably a big lump on the side of his head. He decided to remain silent.
Pikachu sighed from the corner as the group continued along the pathway, Ash and Mist still quarralling. Togepi, who was in Misty's arms, was cooing joyously, not seeming to notice that it's owner wasn't too happy.
Suddenly a whoosh escaped the trees, the sound echoing through the forest. Ash and Misty, his friends, stopped still.
"What was that?" Misty asked, clutching Togepi closer to her. Ash stared up into the trees, trying to think of something to say.
"I…dunno," was all he could force out. The group stared up, the trees waving in the wind far above their heads. Then there was a loud caw.
He felt the pain before he could react. For a moment, a millasecond which seemed like an hour, he stood still. Then he felt the scream rise out of his throat and burst into the air, shattering the silence. His vision became blurry, the shapes of Misty and Ash racing towards him outlined in shadow. He didn't even feel himself hit the ground. His eyes opened weekly and he was staring into a face.
For a moment the blur was gone, and he saw a face like no other. Her eyes were blue and cold, her nose dainted like her chin. Her hair was long and blond, swirling radiantly around her feminine body.
Then the world turned black.
She sighed as the small Raichu raced past her with the tray, stumbling over the many old items scattered across the floor.
"Raichu!" It mumbled, cursing under it's breath. Maoko laughed lightly, but it came out a low grumble in her throat.
"I know I should clean, Rai-Rai," she whispered. "I'm just not…not in the mood." Rai-Rai looked up at her, it's black eyes concerned.
"Rai. Raichu chu." It whispered. Maoko looked down at the ground, not wanting to make eye contact with the small beast any more. She forced the words to fly across the surface, but they really penetrated her like a needle.
*You miss him.* It wasn't true. But deep inside, she knew it was. She knew that the little Rai-Rai was right.
Who was she anyway? She was the strong Maoko, the fearless warrior. The hard-core pokemon trainer. She wasn't some kind of girly girl!
She straightend out her long golden hair, looking at her blue eyes through the mirror. Yet she could still remember that day…
"God, are you alright?" She asked as she looked over the figure lying in the bed. It was in the same clothes as before, the orange shirt and brown pants, but over them was the traditional hospital robe.
The boy's black hair still poked up straight, and his brown skin glistened with the ointments rubbed in it. Slowly, he nodded.
"BROCK!!!" Maoko whirled around to see the other two, the boy and girl Ash and Misty racing towards the bedside. Maoko turned around, smiling.
"He's gonna be just fine!" She said cheerfully, watching them gnaw there way to the bed. "Hey! Yo! Listen up, youngsters, this ain't your place! Give him some rest, will ya?" They backed off, trying to glimpse the boy as they looked over her shoulder.
"My head!" She whirled around to see the boy sitting on the bed, his coursed hand rubbing over the bandage she had put there.
"Jeeze!" Maoko cried, strapping the bandage back down from where he had almost pried it loose. "Kids these days! Will you just sit back into the bed before you get a stroke?" As if that moment he noticed she was there, he turned a shade of beet red.
"Uh…" He mumbled, looking over at his friends with a weird look, obviously refering to the strange girl bandaging his forhead.
"Oh…that's okay Brock!" Misty exclaimed. "This is Maoko. She helped you out!" The boy, Brock, turned his attention back to Maoko.
"Um…thanks!" He said as she took her hand away. Ash and Misty came over as he got to his feet. Maoko looked the boy over.
"Hmm…you're gonna need a bit more for that there scrape," she concluded. "Oh Rai-Rai!" As she called, a little Raichu skipped into the room, holding a bottle in it's hand. Maoko took it as the others admired the Raichu.
"Thanks Rai-Rai!" She exclaimed as she poured the ointment over the cuts and scrapes on Brocks arms.
"Nice Raichu," Ash commented.
"Thanks Ash!" Maoko sighed happily. "I've trained it myself since it was really little. But don't get to sappy yet. It's good, but it's not there yet. We've got a LOT of training to do before it'll be ready to compete." Rai-Rai nodded.
"Compete?" The girl, Misty asked.
"Yeah!" Maoko shouted. "Every year we have this tournament! It's really hard down, but it's fun! Anway…I've competed every year. The next one's a while from now. I try to use different pokemon everytime, and this Raichu's one of the one's I'm training." Raichu smiled, sparks flying out of it's cheeks.
"You must be a pretty talented trainer!" Brock excalimed. Maoko threw him a quizzical look.
"Don't go on praising a trainer when you haven't even seen them DO anything!" She exclaimed. The boy looked a little hurt, but closed his mouth.
"So…what was that thing?" Ash asked, trying to break the silence.
"You have no idea what you're getting yourselve's into, kids!" Maoko commented, treating the last of Brock's wounds. "That was a Pidgeot-Veala. It's a Pidgeot raised here in this area of the woods. All pokemon here tend to be stronger and tougher then most pokemon. The 'Veala's' are pokemon who hate humans. Yes, they're very rare, but when you travel around here you should keep out for them. I see that you trainers don't seem to come very prepared." Ash snorted.
"How were we supposed to know anyway?" Maoko whirled around, staring down at the boy.
"You call yourself a pokemon trainer?" She asked. "Making excuses to hide your own mistakes! Unbelieveable! What kids'll do these days! You don't just go into a place without researching it first! It just isn't practical. You've got a lot of work to do before you're gonna be a pokemon master. And the rest of you too. I mean…if you're gonna spend you're lives with pokemon, take the precaussions to keep them safe!" They all took the speech with a blow. Suddenly the lights flickered out.
"Prepare for trouble!"
"Make it double!"
"Who are you?" Maoko asked, whirling around. She then saw two figures and a small meowth. They were a teenage boy and girl wearing very abnormal costumes. And they were holding her Rai-Rai.
"Listen up. I don't appreciate this, whoever you are. Now get your filthy hands back over here and hand me back my Raichu." The male snickered.
"Why should we?" He asked. He was taunting her. She could feel the anger blowing up inside of her. For a moment she stood still, not knowing what to say. The anger started to rage up, but before she knew it a figure was infront of her.
"I'll handle this, Maoko!" It cried. "Go Vulpix!" Out came the small pokemon, it's red coat glistening.
"B…Brock?" Maoko choked out the words. Her mind raced. Her childhood years snapped back before her. Being abandoned. Being alone. No one to take care of her, no one to step before her. Until now. Why was someone so caring like that? Why…? She had no time to think.
"Go Kaiya!" She cried, sending out her own pokeball to reveal a Vulpix relativily the same size as Brocks. Brock looked surprised, but then smiled. He nodded to her, as if saying in her mind *We'll work together!*
"Vulpix, roar!" Brock commanded. The Vulpix obeyed, issuing out a load roar. The group covered their ears in shock.
"Kaiya, bite!" Kaiya raced towards them, biting the hand of the male who was holding her Rai-Rai. Rai-Rai freed it'self and sprang out of his arms.
"Vulpix…"
"Kaiya…"
"FIRE BLAST!!!" And with that their pokemon unleashed a blast that echoed through the air as the group turned to run into the distance.
Brock stood at the curve of the mountain, watching the first rays of light appear in the horizon. When they touched the snow they spread, covering the snow with a brilliant glow. He smiled.
The world seemed to stand on end as he looked out. Somewhere out there there was someone. There had to be someone. Someone waiting for him to come home. He shivered at the cold, pleased with himself that he had made it through the night.
"I'll come back," he whispered. "I promise."
"So I gues…this is…goodbye," Brock said sorrowfully. He watched as the figure his height turned to look at him.
"You betcha!" She exclaimed, trying to be cheerfull. "And listen kids…you've got some work to do. But with skills like that, you'll be masters in no time! Just learn to do your research once in a while!" Brock could feel his cheeks turn crimson.
"Thanks Maoko!" Ash cried. "Bye!" He then turned to leave, Misty at his side. Brock stared at Maoko, who was staring at him. Waiting for him to leave. But then he caught something in her eye.
She didn't want him to go. It was as if she was calling onto him, fighting a battle with herself, wanting him to stay. He suddenly realized that she must've felt as alone as he did. But she wanted him to go. And he knew that he couldn't object.
"Goodbye Maoko," he said finally. "I'll never forget you." She smiled. One of the first genuine smileds for a while, one without the hint of sarcasm and spunk.
"Come back anytime, Brock!" She said cheerfully. He turned to leave, trying to catch up with Ash and Misty. Still, though, he could feel Maoko's gaze stay on him as he walked. He promised himself then and there that one day he would come back.
Maoko stared up at the sky from the balcony. The small pathway shone in the distance, the one where so many memories unfolded. She could see all of her pokemon playing in the fields, including Kaiya, playing in the fields.
She had chosen to use her fire stone on Growlithe instead of Kaiya. For a while the thought puzzled her, but now she knew why. Rai-Rai was right. She missed Brock. While he stayed for a week, she had gotten to know him. Even though she acted as usual, with a spunk and sass to her words, she found herself gentlling up.
Maoko felt a tear drip down her face as she looked off, the sun setting in the distance. Hoping to see his warm face errupt out of the shadows. Knowing that it wouldn't come.
Maybe some day he would come back. She had told him that he could, she had left it open to him. Maybe some day she'd finally find someone she could trust. Someone she could confide in. Someone who would let her weep onto his shoulder, because no one else was there.
"Oh Brock," she whispered. "Please come back to me. I love you."
