The words hit him brutally, instantly punching the wind out of him. The throbbing in his head returned, his whole body felt cold and numb, the corners of his vision began to blur, and all the noises around him began to have an echo. The tiny sound of wind blowing sounded like a storm brewing. Was he dreaming? He bit the inside of his mouth. No, that was silly. He'd been up all night worrying over painful questions. Then, had he heard correctly?

"Wh-what?" Gary managed to croak out, wrapping an arm around his uneasy stomach. If he was even thinking about catching at least two hours of sleep later, it would be impossible then.

"I'm sorry, I… I was about to wrap up what I was doing in the lab when I got a call from Brock. He told me about Misty. He's at the Cerulean City Hospital, and asked to bring you with me."

"Of course," Gary murmured, reaching for his keys and coat. The small process of simply reaching forward for a couple of items made his body shake. He couldn't believe what he was told. His friend, and a very close friend to Ash, had been murdered. Misty might have even been the girl Ash loved. How would Ash react? Would he ever know?

"If Ash was here, would things be different?"

"Gary…" Gary blinked his eyes at the sound of his name. He realized he'd been holding his coat for a while, but hadn't moved from his spot.

"I-I'm sorry."

"It's okay. Let's go," Prof. Oak said softly, worry in his raspy voice as he allowed Gary to exit his house. Gary shivered as he pulled on his coat, his mind conjuring new unanswerable questions.

-…-

Misty simply didn't look the same anymore. Her creamy skin was pale and ghostly, covered in gashes, blood and purple and black bruises. Her beautiful, orange hair she was trying to grow out was dark and burned at the tips, reducing its length greatly. Many of her bones were broken from the attack. The sight of her like that…

That was Misty? How could it be? How could it be the same Misty that travelled with them; the Misty who pulled him away from a girl who he had no chance with via earlobe; that stubborn girl that, behind all the tough words, threats, and battles, was still a beautiful girl with a caring heart?

Brock broke down into tears the second he saw her. He couldn't concentrate on what the doctor was telling him; all of the words he was saying sounded foreign and muffled out. He hadn't even noticed that Gary was there until he heard his named being called out.

"Brock!" Gary called out, quickening his pace. The doctor who was talking to Brock looked up as Brock rested his elbows on his knees and buried his face in his hands.

"What happened?" Gary asked sternly, looking over at the room he assumed Misty was in. A nurse walked out of the room, turning off the light. She looked up at Gary, frowned, and looked down at the floor before walking away.

"…many broken bones and severe wounds. The brutality of these wounds suggests that no human could have done this."

Gary's eyes widened. "What do you mean?"

The doctor glanced at him, at Prof. Oak, then back at him.

"We think a pokemon might have done this."

"A pokemon?" Prof. Oak repeated, shaking his head softly. "There's no way…"

"A pokemon couldn't have done this on its own!" Gary exclaimed. "Maybe it was being bossed around by someone…"

"All I'm suggesting is that a pokemon was involved in this murder. The police said that no one saw anyone enter or leave Misty's residence, but the inside is destroyed-"

"Doctor, the family is here," a nurse softly interrupted. The doctor sighed, closing his eyes. It was obvious the day had been stressful for him.

He dismissed himself, following the nurse down the hallway. A silence blanketed over them, only broken by Brock's choked sobs. His shoulders shook uncontrollably, and he couldn't seem to stop crying. Gary frowned, staring down the hallway, unable to take in the sight of Brock, so vulnerable and broken.

"How could this have happened…?" Prof. Oak said softly. Down the hallway were two doors. Through one window, Gary could see a frowning, stressful doctor. Through the other, he saw one of Misty's sisters, covering her mouth with one hand, tears swelling up in her eyes.

"T-The funeral," Brock choked out, sniffling and wiping away his tears. "W-will you two-"

"Of course we'll go, Brock," Gary muttered, squeezing Brock's trembling shoulder. He sat down next to him just as a nurse came up to them, holding a small white ball with colorful triangles in her arms.

"Excuse me, Brock?" Brock looked up at the nurse, who held out the small egg. It was Togepi, sleeping away his sadness. "The girls said it would be best if you kept him," the nurse said softly. Brock looked at Togepi for a few long seconds before slowly taking the pokemon in his hands and hugging him close.

"Thank you," Brock mumbled, leaning back and closing his eyes.

-…-

The day of the funeral, ironically, was a dark and cloudy day. It was held outside of the Cerulean City gym, which Misty had taken over when her sisters decided they'd rather perform than battle. Many people showed up. Some were in tears, like Brock, who stood close by Misty's sisters. Others stood silently, like Gary.

They had dressed Misty in her favorite dress; a white dress that clung onto her hips and then spread out into white and pink waves matching a goldeen's tail. It made her look like an angel in a pearl casket, despite the bruises covering her pale skin.

"How could a pokemon have caused this?"

He shoved his hands in his pockets, narrowing his eyes as the wind rustled his hair. What could have compelled it to do this? He was positive a pokemon couldn't have done it on its own, leading him to think that someone was behind this, but… who?

Gary felt misplaced, but only because Ash wasn't there. At first, he felt angry at Ash for being selfish and leaving his friends to deal with Misty's death on their own. Did he even care that one of his best friends was dead?

No, of course he did. How could Gary think otherwise? He should be mad at himself, for not being there enough for Brock, for not being able to look inside the casket for more than five seconds because he couldn't stand seeing a lifeless Misty, and for driving Ash away.

Well, now he was.

He clenched his fists and turned to leave before his anger could get the best of him.

-…-

It was no less than two weeks when Brock was murdered as well.

"I just… can't believe this!" Gary exclaimed, standing up and slamming his hands against his grandfather's desk. "The doctor said that the pokemon who killed Misty must have killed Brock, but how can a pokemon do this?"

"Gary, I know it's frustrating. I don't believe that a pokemon could have done this. I believe every pokemon is born pure. There's no such thing as a bad pokemon, but only a bad trainer."

"Then who could be doing this?" Gary shouted, running a hand through his amber hair.

"Gary, I think it'd be best if you caught some sleep," Prof. Oak said calmly. Gary opened his mouth to object, but the worried look on his grandfather's face caused him to shut his mouth tightly and inhale deeply.

"You're right," he mumbled, sighing as he grabbed his backpack from the floor. "I should do that… Bye, Gramps."

"Gary," Prof. Oak called out just as Gary opened the door. When a pair of dull, brown eyes that showed lack of sleep peered back at him, he said, "It wasn't your fault."

A pang hit Gary's chest. How did he know that was what was keeping him up all night for the past month? He didn't know what to say to him, so he simply turned back and walked out of the lab without saying another word.

The fly home was silent, which gave Gary's mind enough time to torture him. First, images of the three close travelers flashed into his mind, the smiling faces of Ash, Misty, and Brock appearing, arms linked and eyes almost closed. He'd heard plenty of stories from Ash about their travels around Kanto, making him wish he hadn't been so stuck up and arrogant. Maybe he could have been a part of their memories.

The two people killed were both closely related to Ash. His grandfather called it a coincidence, but Gary's gut told him it wasn't. Whoever the murderer was, would he go after more of Ash's friends? Would Gary be next?

Had he already gotten ahold of Ash?

He closed his eyes shut tightly just as his Pidgeotto landed before his house. But he didn't want to open them. He felt as if he could fall asleep right there, with the comfort of his pokemon's feathers.

"Pidgeotto," Gary mumbled, lying down and hugging the pokemon's neck. "Fly to the backyard." Pidgeotto nodded his response, slowly flying over the house and landing on the grass of Gary's backyard, then perched on the ground and closed his own eyes, glad that his trainer was finally getting some sleep.


Nara: I'm sorry it took so long! Somehow, I wasn't very write-y, and I kept feeling like it lacked something... Or maybe I just wasn't interested with this chapter... But the next chapter, I know, will be better :3 Thank you to everyone who reviewed and favorited :D Tell me what you think, I love reading your opinions :3

I'll try to updated Saturdays, but um... I'm bad with deadlines n.n;