Me: I own POKEMON!!!

Artemis: yeah, whatever.

Sky: people, Ankokuryu does not own Pokemon.

Prologue: Wounded

It was a hot summer's night, and the moon has risen well above the horizon. It was actually unusually hot, because in Sinnoh, things didn't really heat up. Still, no one was complaining. Especially a pair of teenagers that happened to be walking in the woods…

One of them was a girl, about fourteen years of age. She had silver hair, which shone brightly even in the darkest nights. It was pretty long, going well past her shoulders, and rippled in the breeze like a flowing river. She wore a clean shirt and a mini skirt, which were mainly white, with a hint of pink. Her eyes were a dazzling orchid color, which looked exactly like the moon in the sky above. Those eyes were full of power and mystery, and if you looked at it once, you'd tend to get swallowed by them… Just like the boy beside her was.

"Uuh… Sky? You're staring at me again." The girl said to her companion.

"Huh? Oh, sorry, Artemis," said the boy as he snapped out of his trance.

Artemis' companion was a boy around her age, called Sky Stratus. He had sapphire eyes, with sky blue hair. His eyes were filled with energy and passion, and told of his great powers and dreams. He wore a simple T-shirt and jeans, which were rather dirty. Very unlike his companion.

"Staring at me again, Sky Stratus. If I didn't know better, I'd say you like me," said Artemis coolly.

"Yeah, whatever, you wish Artemis Crescent!" shouted Sky, although there was a tint of pink on his face.

"Yeah you do! You've been staring at my face the whole time!" retorted Artemis.

As they kept on bickering, a pair of eyes watched them from the darkness. Those eyes were filled with evil and hatred. Eyes that knew no compassion. It had followed them through the forest, staying just out sight, lingering in the darkness.

The two teens were still bickering, when suddenly, the dark shadow shot out in front of them. The two were very surprised, and Artemis let out a scream. Even Sky, even though most things didn't scare him, let out an audible gasp. In front of them stood a big dark Pokemon with red tinted fur and a blood red blade on its head.

"Isn't that an Absol???" stammered Sky.

"But I thought Absols had white fur with black blades," answered Artemis.

"Whatever Artemis, what should we do?" asked Artemis.

"I think we sho…"

Artemis was cut off mid-sentence when the Disaster Pokemon growled and pounced.

"RUN!!!" shouted Sky.

Too late, Sky watched in horror as Absol cut Artemis' back with its blade. The gash went pretty deep, and Sky could see her shirt starting to stain red. Blood red. The same color as the attacker. After letting out a shriek of pain, Artemis lay on the ground. Snarling, the Pokemon ran away, back into the darkness. Sky ran over to Artemis, checking her wound. It was about five millimeters deep, but thankfully, it was merely a flesh wound. Checking her pulse, Sky confirmed that she was alive. Sighing in relief, Sky carried her on her back, and started walking towards home. During that time, Sky reflected on the events that just happened.

'Why did a Pokemon attack a human?? It's not like we provoked it… And didn't Artemis say that the Absol was the wrong color? It's not like Artemis to get things wrong. She's always top in our class.'

As he was thinking, his thoughts turned to the girl on his back. He had been best friends with her since the day they met. Heck, he couldn't even remember when they met. Never far from each other, had they done everything together. No one in their town had ever seen them without each other. He had to admit, he did like Artemis. Her dreamy eyes, her long flowing hair, curved hips… WAIT! He told himself, before he could go any further.

'Artemis is my best friend! What the hell am I thinking?!!' he thought to himself, 'Still, I guess I do like her…'

As he was concentrated in his own thoughts, the first lights began to appear before him. He was nearly home. Pushing himself, he dragged himself and Artemis along, towards the light. "Just a bit more" he told himself. He could feel his legs shaking now, but he forced them to move. By the time Sky had reached his hometown, he was exhausted. Taking the final steps towards the closest house, he reached for the doorbell, and rang it. After a few seconds, Artemis's mother, Luna, came out and greeted him. However, as soon as the door opened, Sky blacked out, falling to the ground taking Artemis with him. Sky could just hear Luna Crescent screaming, before he blacked out.

'Dammit.'

Artemis woke up to find herself on her bed. She tried to sit up, but when she did, a ripple of pain coursed through her back. She groaned in pain. Artemis tried to recall last night's events, but couldn't remember past the point where Sky told her to run. As she concentrated harder, she started to remember flashes, images, of the scene. She remembered the Absol. Its cold eyes, glinting in the moonlight. The Pokemon, pouncing at her as she started to run. The blade, sinking into her back.

"Wait a moment…" said Artemis, as she moved her hand towards her back.

Sliding her hands down her back, she noticed, to her grief, that there was a huge scar running down it. It was bound with bandages so that the cut wouldn't open again. As she lay down, she thought about her scar.

'This means that I might not be able to move properly again,' she thought, 'no sport, no fun, no exercise. And most of all, my dream…'

As she thought of those things, she realized that unless she healed her back, realizing her dream of top coordinator could be ruined. Tears formed in her eyes, and she started sobbing softly. While she was crying, she heard a voice coming from downstairs. She thought she heard Sky's and her mother's voice. Sky drifted into her mind, and she just realized then that it was Sky that probably carried her here. That thought turned her face pink. Artemis remembered their argument last night, and that turned her face into a deeper shade of pink. Nearly red, actually.

'Why am I thinking about Sky like this? He's my best friend! Anyway, he's always got his head up in the clouds, he probably wouldn't notice if I kissed him.'

Artemis sighed, and put her head back on her pillow. That was when she heard somebody coming up the stairs. After a few seconds, she heard the doorknob click, and she saw Sky coming in. She blushed, and then hid her face in the pillow, afraid that he would sense her feelings and thoughts.

"Hi Artemis. Are you awake?" asked Sky.

Turning her head towards her visitor, she said, "Even if I was, you would have woken me up. Don't you know how to knock?"

Rolling his eyes, Sky said, "Yeah whatever, since when have you knocked on my door?" then, without waiting for an answer, he continued, "Are you ok? I just came here now, I was at my house, I got better, but I mean you… I saw you get hurt pretty badly by that Absol."

Smiling, Artemis told him that she was feeling fine. Sky looked immensely relieved. After what he'd been through, if something was up with Artemis… Sky shook his head. She was fine now, and that was that. However, he had to tell her one more thing.

"Artemis? Uum, we have to go and see Mr. Shine."

Artemis groaned. This was not good. Ray Shine was the village elder, and she had only been sent there lots of times before- when Sky and she had been caught by him while chucking stones at a Mukkuru, when Sky put a Wurmple in her face, also when they got a Bippa to bite a rock, shattering its teeth. They got in trouble those times, and she knew this wouldn't be an exception. The two friends lay there in silence, fearing the event that was going to come sooner or later. Artemis preferred later. A lot later.

Suddenly, Artemis remembered the fact that Sky had carried her all the way back to her house. So, smiling, she said, "Thanks, Sky."

Sky looked confused, and asked, "What?"

"I said thanks. For carrying me back? You know?" said Artemis, playfully nudging Sky.

"Oh!" said Sky, looking surprised, "yeah, no prob. Still, a thanks coming from you? I should record that, might never get another one in my life!"

They looked at each other, went silent for a second, and then burst out laughing. They laughed for a while, and were still coughing from laughter, when Artemis' mother called, "You two up there! Mr. Shine's here!"

Suddenly, they stopped laughing. Sky saw Artemis's pale skin go even paler.