Chapter Two – Reign

Someone was making a lot of noise. I was pretty sure I was back in my room, since whatever I was lying on was soft and warm—I was sweating, dying from heat—but whoever else was in here with me was making a racket. Books slamming shut, fingers on my keyboard rapping away, papers shuffling across other papers. Whoever made all the noise clearly did not care that I was trying to sleep, and I was not amused.

"Oh," a male voice said as I moaned into my pillow, trying to make a point; all this clamor bothered me. "Good. She's waking up finally." I didn't really appreciate the sarcasm that was so evidently dripping from his otherwise flat voice. But, then again, it was no shocker coming from him. Nothing he did or said ever surprised me anymore. I knew him too well. Still, it annoyed me that he was so… blasé with my well-being.

"Kotone!" Hibiki's voice simply added to the already increasing noise level in the room. "Oh, thank Arceus. You know, you need to stop stressing yourself out because then you just get those stupid attacks, and I think you're going to die—I mean… well… you know what I mean. It just makes me really worried. And Silver, too. I had to call him and tell him to come over here because I was really scared, and for some reason he just makes me feel a little better about all of this. I told you that you shouldn't have—"

Silver cleared his throat. I opened my eyes and looked at him; he looked just as annoyed as he sounded. His arms were crossed across his chest, his eyes closed. He was obviously trying to keep his temper and struggling. Hibiki tended to get on Silver's nerves, and I was positive that they didn't like each other very much.

But Silver always came whenever Hibiki called about me.

"You're just adding to her stress level, I'm sure. You should just stop talking. Forever. She might get better that way." I knew that Silver really was joking, but he sounded so serious. Hibiki squeaked, obviously frightened by the threat, and I laughed, coughing a little as I did so. "Hey, seriously, though, don't get so worked up. This attack proves that you're getting worse, not better. So, you just need to take it easy for a while. And you need to get something to eat. Now. Or I'm going to force it down your throat."

"Now, who's stressing her out?" Hibiki asked. He had a point. Silver was freaking me out a bit.

Still, he stayed true to his word: when I told my two friends that I really wasn't hungry—and I wasn't, actually, due to the horrible fever I felt rising in my forehead—they carried me (literally carried me) down to the dining room and made me eat. They sat at the table and watched me take bite after bite of the salad and spaghetti that they made me, and whenever I put my fork down and proclaimed how full I was, they glared at me and forced me to eat more. By the time I had finished everything, I felt worse than before; I had a fever, and I was about to blow up from over eating.

"Do you want to stay down here and do something… or do you want to go back upstairs and sleep some more? You still look really bad." Hibiki's eyes widened, and he waved his hands. "I didn't mean that you look bad! But… I mean, rest hasn't seemed to be helping you get any better since you still fainted and all. You don't look like you've been improving much. It's up to you, though. Whatever you want."

Oh. Yeah. I fainted. What happened to the battle? Where did Asa go?

"Hibi, did you happen to get Asa's number? We still have to finish our battle. I guess I fainted in the middle of it, didn't I? Well, I would have won anyway—that boy needs a lot more training—but it's my duty to finish the battle. He still needs to learn a bit. So, can I get his number?" I looked at Hibiki, and his face instantly fell. Something was clearly wrong. Either he didn't get the number, or he didn't want to tell it to me.

Silver's eyes widened from across the table, and they rested on Hibiki, narrowing into slits. "You didn't tell her yet?" he asked, his voice rising to a dangerous level. Hibiki winced, shoulders hunched. "I can't believe it. She doesn't even know. Way to go."

"Hey!" Hibiki, turning away from me, pointed a finger in Silver's face. His horrified expression had quickly turned into one of intense anger. "Unlike you, I actually care about Kotone's well being. I knew that if I told her, especially after her latest episode, she would just pass out again. I'm not going to risk her health just because of something like this. It can wait—her life can't. So, shut up and go away. You have no right yelling at me about it. Don't you even care about Kotone?"

"Of course, I do, you jackass. How dare you even—"

Man, I was done with this. I didn't even know what was happening anymore. Where did the conversation even start? "Stop it, stop it! Boys, we don't need to fight right now. If you want to fight, do it later when I'm asleep or something. As long as you're not too loud." I paused, looking back and forth between the two boys, who seemed more annoyed now than before. "All right, so can someone please explain what you're not telling me? I promise I won't faint."

"You might want to take back that promise…" Silver muttered, and Hibiki elbowed him in the gut. "Cut it out! She has the right to know!"

"Yeah, and when you put her health in jeopardy because of it—"

"Hey, I told you two to stop it!" I screamed, banging my fist on the table. Both stared at me, clear shock written all over their faces. "In case you haven't noticed, my health isn't in the best of shape already. I'm sick, I want to sleep, I don't want to eat anymore, and I'm currently twenty pounds under the weight I should be." Their expressions didn't change. "So, if you couldn't tell, I couldn't get much worse. So, stop worrying about putting my health in jeopardy—it's already there. Just tell me what you need to tell me."

The only noise following my rant came from Hibiki, who swallowed so loudly that it made an audible 'gulp'.

"Asa is the new Champion," Silver finally said, and my heart nearly stopped beating. Breathing quickly became harder and harder to do; it felt like I had just run a marathon. What did he mean, 'Asa is the new Champion'? How was that possible? The kid hadn't even defeated me. He hadn't even defeated my Meganium.

The tears came before I could stop them.

"Kotone!" Hibiki jumped up from his seat at the table and hurried to my side, kneeling next to me and grabbing my hand. "Breathe normally. Come on, just breathe normally, and you'll be okay! Just get back into that mode, and you'll—"

"What—do—you—mean—he's—the—new—Champ?" The words managed to come, but I still couldn't catch my breath. Hibiki wasn't helping either, although I was squeezing his hand pretty hard to try to control myself.

Silver remained in his seat, looking particularly calm. "Technically speaking, he defeated the old Champion. That would be you. And whenever a Champion is defeated, whether a regulatory match or not, the person who won becomes the new Champion. The only exception would be a double-battle, and in that case, the Champion would remain Champion if defeated."

"I—know—the rules. How?"

Silver understood my question without my needing to add more. I was thankful for that; I didn't know how much more I could say. At this point, I was hyperventilating from crying and not being able to catch my breath. Hibiki was quietly trying to calm me down, but my breathing had become so loud and harsh that I could barely hear him. Besides, I was too focused on Silver's explanation to even care.

"When you passed out, you had to withdraw from the match. That means you forfeited… That also means that you lost. Thus, your reign as Champion has been put to an end, and Asa has taken the title from you."

No… just… no. That couldn't possibly have happened. How was that even fair? How could I lose my title just like that? I hadn't even lost fair and square; I had been cheated out of it all because of a stupid disease and a stupid battle and a stupid boy! How could I no longer be Champion just because I passed out—wasn't there a rule to freeze a battle for medical reasons? How was this fair? How could I lose?

"Most honorable Trainers would choose to have a rematch," Hibiki said, finally coming out of his 'I'm not actually a-doctor, but I'll pretend I am' phase. "But Asa knew what had happened as soon as I called the battle. He knew he had won, and he ran for it. He's long gone. I wanted to chase him down and knock the living daylights out of him, but I needed to take care of you first."

Honor? Wasn't being Champion all about honor? How could Asa be the Champion when he couldn't even be an honorable person? I was. I had been. But now I had been stripped of my honor simply because my body failed me.

Was this the life a Champion was supposed to lead?

"I'm..." I didn't know what I was going to do. I didn't know what anyone even expected me to do anymore. I had been the Champion for so long that I didn't know how to live without my title. But the way things were going, how could I even live with it? My body was clearly fighting against it. Damn disease.

"Kotone." Hibiki addressed me carefully, cautiously, obviously trying not to hurt me anymore than I already was. "Please, just… you can live without it."

The tears dripping off my face were forming a little pool of water on the table in front of me. But I couldn't stop. I wouldn't stop.

"No." I stood up, trying to catch my breath again. "I can't… I—need—to think."

I ripped my hand from Hibiki's and hurried up the stairs to my room as fast as I could. It just hurt my honor even more to see Silver pass me up those stairs before I even made it up the first step.

When I woke up the next morning, I had made up my mind. Silver was still in my room (he had followed me up the previous night to make sure I was okay), but Hibiki was nowhere to be seen. I hadn't expected him to be, but it would be easier telling Silver what I was about to do if Hibi was there. After crying myself to sleep, I woke knowing what I was going to do about my dilemma. Because what kind of Champion would I be if I didn't do anything? Wataru didn't drop off the face of the earth when he lost to me. So, I couldn't stop here.

"I'm going to find him."

Silver put down the book he was reading and looked at me. I couldn't decide whether he was annoyed or angry. The two always seemed to fit together when describing Silver. "Find who?"

"Asa."

"No." There was no argument, no pointless ranting from him. It was just that one word, told to me like a child who wanted candy put wouldn't be getting it. That was that. And yet, I needed to push it. I couldn't just sit here getting worse and worse every day. It wasn't even just my honor that had been taken from me by losing this way; it was my life. I had money saved up, but being Champion was my job (and the only job that I could have while sick—but apparently that hadn't worked out too well). I didn't know anything else. And to lose the way I had, I couldn't move on without my title.

"I'm going to find him," I repeated.

"No. You're too weak to go. How do you expect to find him? You're just going to walk out of the house, and he'll be standing there waiting to have a rematch?" Silver rolled his eyes, turning back to his book. "Hibiki already told you, Asa will have gotten as far away from here as possible. He knows how sick you are, how you won't be able to follow him because you won't make it to him alive. That kid isn't stupid, he's just an asshole. And who says he'll even be Champion when you find him—someone will have defeated him. From what Hibiki said, Asa the Asshole sucks."

I folded my arms across my chest, pouting. Well, it was worth a try, but Silver was having none of it. He wouldn't even look at me anymore. "Oh, come on, ye of little faith! What kind of friend are you? I never expected Asa to be waiting for me. But what kind of ex-Champion would I be if I didn't use this opportunity to the fullest? Just because I'm ill does not mean I should abandon whatever honor I have left. I'm going to find him, and I'm going to succeed. I will be Champion again."

"Let her go."

I jumped, looking at the doorway. Silver looked more annoyed than ever, and he stood up out of his chair and slammed his book down on the table. Hibiki placed a gentle hand on my head as Silver walked towards him, obviously getting ready to fight. But seeing Hibiki touch me, Silver froze, turning his eyes on me with a new fire burning within them.

"How can you even say that? What the hell is wrong with you? You're the one who said yesterday that you didn't want to tell Kotone about this whole fiasco because you were afraid for her health! Yet now you stand here offering her up to the Grim Reaper. Have you lost your mind, or did you never have one to begin with?" Silver thrust a finger into Hibiki's chest, a smirk forming with the last of his comments.

Hibiki didn't get angry easily. He had always been a generally happy guy, always eager to help others and always the first to join in the fun. He was the sunshine on a rainy day, the boy—or man, seeing as he was twenty-four—with the constant smile and kind words. But here he was, looking angrier than I had ever seen him.

"Oh, that's clever," Hibiki scoffed, taking his hand off of my head, "coming from a five-year-old, maybe." He was slowly reaching for a Poké Ball from his belt, I saw. "Look what this news has done to her already. I was right, and you're too immature to admit it. We shouldn't have told her. But your stupidity led her to make this decision; your words were a catalyst for what she is about to do. And she's going to do it. We can't stop her."

"Why not? We can contain her here. She shouldn't be traveling the way she is now. So, why can't we stop her?"

Hibiki unclipped the Ball from his belt, fingers fumbling with it behind his back. "Because of something you would never understand. Her heart has made this decision, and now that it's been made, there's no going back. She will find the strength to go, with or without us. I know Kotone much more than you do." This news seemed to bother Silver the most, his red eyes resting on mine once more. "Though… Silver, you know it would be easier on her if someone went with her."

"What?" I tore my eyes away from Silver's to glance at Hibiki for a moment. He was staring at me, as well, and as I turned on him, he smiled at me. He had been waiting for me to look him in the eyes—but I had been too preoccupied watching him fumble with the Poké Ball and watching Silver that I hadn't. "I'm fine by myself. I couldn't ask either of you to come. I'll just have to stop at the Pokémon Center more often than usual, is all."

"Kotone, you—"

"I'm coming with you."

Silver even appeared shocked as the words came out of his mouth. His eyes were widened, and he wouldn't look at me again. Hibiki, on the other hand, seemed more than satisfied with this, and returned to his normal happy self, clicking his Poké Ball back onto his belt. Perhaps this was all he had needed to hear; just knowing that someone was coming with me was enough for him. No… not just 'someone', I imagined. Hibi wanted it to be Silver, or else he would have offered to come with me.

Once Silver's decision settled with him, his whole body relaxed, and he collapsed onto the foot of my bed. "Kotone, I'm coming with you," he said again. "I'm going to make sure you get your title back."

I nodded. My reign was not over. It was about to begin again.

Author's Note: Here's chapter two! So… did anyone see this coming? Asa taking the title, I mean? I think a lot of you might have. I alluded to it a little bit in the first chapter.

A sick ex-Champion and an indifferent rival… out on the road together. What could possible come from this, I wonder? Hmm… ;)

Disclaimer: I do not own Pokémon! I'm sure the games wouldn't be nearly so fun if I had made them.