Disclaimer:I don't own Pokemon, or any familiar characters.
A Secret Comes to Light
Tabitha ran through the ruins as fast as he could. 'A serious issue' was not what he really wanted to hear. Especially after the morning he'd had. All things considered, he was almost afraid to think about what could be in store for him in the ruins. As he ran, he heard the sound of running feet ahead of him. 'So, others were just as alarmed.' No matter. It was good that the grunts had a strong sense of teamwork. His thoughts on that subject were interrupted by the sounds coming from the indicated room. It seemed like everyone had beaten him there and were discussing the 'issue.' As he got closer, he heard pieces of the conversations that were taking place between the grunts. Tabitha heard his name mentioned several times. "I can't believe it!," one grunt said. "Why didn't he say anything?" Another grunt just shrugged. "I don't know," he replied, "but I'm sure Tabitha had his reasons." By this time, the Team Magma field commander had heard enough. "What's going on here?," he asked, making his way towards the grunts, who were standing in a semicircle around something. Several of the grunts looked over at him and moved out of his way. "I think you'd better see for yourself, sir," the one closest to Tabitha said. Wordlessly, he walked towards the cause of the commotion.
Amanda continued to sit in the corner, staring at the floor, only half-listening to the adults around her, wondering why they were so shocked by her facial features. 'Could it be that they know my real father?,' she wondered idly. She heard someone else approaching from behind the others, but she continued to stare at the floor, only looking up when she heard a man address her in an authoritative manner. "So, who are you, and what are you doing here?." he asked. Amanda sighed, and said, "my name's Amanda, and I'm here because I don't have anywhere else to go." As she said the last part, she looked up at her interrogator, and started in shock. The costumed man in front of her looked so similar to her, it was as if she was looking in a mirror.
Tabitha stared at the young girl in absolute shock. 'No! It can't be! This- this is impossible!' He couldn't believe how much this girl looked like him. 'No wonder the grunts were talking amongst themselves!' He quickly did the math in his head. While it was possible that this girl was his daughter, it was very unlikely. He knew that children couldn't start out on their own with a pokemon until the age of ten. And if she really was his daughter, she would have just turned nine not too long ago. "So," he said, in a softer voice, "how old are you?" The girl gulped and said, "I-I'm nine, sir," in a quiet, meek voice. 'Strike one,' Tabitha thought to himself. "When did you turn nine, Amanda?," he asked, in a softer voice. The girl flinched, as if she'd been struck. "Two days ago," she said sadly. Tabitha calculated the exact days in his head. It didn't take very long. 'Strike two,' he thought, with an increasing sense of foreboding. He almost dreaded asking the next questions, although he knew he must. "Do you know your mother's name?" This time, she just nodded. Tabitha took a deep breath, and asked the question he really didn't want to ask, but knew he had to ask anyway: "What is your mother's name?"
Amanda didn't know why the man who looked so much like herself was suddenly so interested in her life, but she answered his questions anyway. When he asked the last question, she stiffened. She really didn't want to talk about her mother, but he seemed really interested in the answer, so she took a deep breath, and muttered, "Elizabeth Brookfield."
'And, there's the third strike,' Tabitha thought, fighting a variety of emotions he hadn't had to deal with for almost a decade. There was no longer any doubt in his mind. This girl, Amanda, was his daughter. Sure, he could take a paternity test, but he already knew how it would turn out. He sighed, knowing full well that his past was going to be the focus of a lot of scrutiny over the next several days or so. Tabitha also knew that he had no choice but to contact Maxie. With another sigh, Tabitha told the girl to follow him, signaling the two female grunts who'd found her to come along as well. "As for the rest of you," he said, looking at the other grunts, "spread out in groups of two and search the ruins." While the grunts rushed to obey his orders, Tabitha led Amanda, her mightyena, and the two women back to the helicopter. At the base of the ramp, he told the girl to stay there and wait for him to return. He also told the two grunts to keep an eye on her. Then he turned and walked into the helicopter to contact Maxie.
Maxie was sitting behind his desk in his office, a satisfied grin on his face, remembering the look on his commanders' faces when he announced their punishment. 'That was priceless! I wish I'd had a camera!' The look the commanders had shared was one of the funniest things he'd ever seen. It took all his willpower to keep from laughing. His good humor evaporated, however, when a grunt burst into his office and said, "I'm really sorry to bother you, sir, but Tabitha just contacted us. Apparently, he needs to talk to you." Maxie leaned forward, all business. "What's it about?," he asked the grunt. "I don't know. All he said was that he needed to talk to you, and that it's really urgent.," the grunt replied. Maxie sighed, knowing that Tabitha wouldn't have contacted the base to talk to him during a mission unless it was really important. "Alright, then. Patch him through to my office phone. On a private channel!" The grunt rushed to comply, and before long, Maxie heard the voice of his most loyal underling. "Hello, sir. I'm really sorry to bother you, but we have a serious situation." Maxie frowned, concerned. "What kind of situation, Tabitha?," he asked. Tabitha paused for a few moments. Moments that seemed like an eternity to Maxie. "I can't exactly explain, sir. It would be better if you saw it for yourself. I will say, however, that we're bringing a young girl back with us." "What? Why?," Maxie demanded. Tabitha sighed, "you'll see when we get back, sir." Maxie nodded to himself. "All right, Tabitha. I'll meet you at the helipad when you get back." At that, he broke off his link with his field commander and sat back in his chair, wondering what was going on. He knew that Tabitha had his reasons for not telling him what was up over the radio, and for bringing a girl back with him. All of them good ones. There was nothing to do now, but wait for events to unfold. Although, Maxie couldn't help wondering what surprises were in store for him.
Amanda sat on a rock near the red helicopter that the man, who she had reason to believe was her biological father, had entered several minutes ago. She looked at her brown and gold mightyena, who was curled up at her feet. She ignored the two women who were watching her. Her thoughts drifted to her mother and future step-father and her pokemon. She thought about the differences between them. 'One thing about pokemon,' she thought, 'they won't leave your side. No matter what. Unlike mom and Brent.' After a few more minutes, she heard the man, 'Tabitha' the others called him, coming down the ramp towards her. When he reached her, he knelt down and said, "as soon as the others finish searching the ruins, we're leaving, and, you're coming with us." Amanda nodded in response.
Not long afterward, Tabitha received a report from the grunts in the ruins: "Groudon is not here, sir." As he was giving the orders to withdraw from the ruins, he noticed a large blue-gray helicopter landing nearby. 'Ah, Team Aqua shows up at last. We'll let them search the ruins unmolested. If Groudon isn't here, odds are real good that Kyogre isn't either.' He watched as the Team Aqua members started climbing out of the chopper, and gathered around not far from the ruins. Meanwhile, his own grunts were just exiting the ruins, heading towards him. "Alright, everyone! Let's go!," he called, motioning to Amanda to follow him, as he turned and walked up the ramp.
