Anyways, I've never done it before, but there's a first for everything, right :P

AN: Laelynn's appearance. (J-Wolf7)

-No excuse here; I simply forgot about it. But, if I don't decide to change something on fly, then it should appear in the next chapter.

':Spoiler: Ash's and Laelynn's parents were murdered by AURA HUNTERS and they made it look like an car accident' (it was a guest review, so I don't know who it was)

-No offence, but I literally laughed at that statement. My fanfic is cliched enough already; I don't want to turn it into Twilight the movies. But, more importantly, it was a ACCIDENT. Yes, accident; their life took a turn for the worse at a simple motion of Fate's part. Life can be funny sometimes. The fact that it was an accident- something that wasn't supposed to happen, actually reinforces the image of an unfair world I'm trying to paint.

Tomb Of Fireflies (Cutesaralisa)

- err... I didn't notice that until you pointed it out, silly me.

"Pichu?" Pichu worriedly squeaked. Ash simply sat with a haunting look on his face. That scared Pichu. The dull, almost lifeless eyes drained of hope…

"We're almost out of food, Pichu. What are we going to do?" Ash quietly wailed. They were in early January. After the latest set of blizzards, Ash had no doubt that there were no berries left. And the food they'd received from Miss Bienfaisant has dwindled to the point where they only had but two weeks' worth of food. The raven haired boy shook his head upon looking at his sister, blissfully sleeping in the only clearing that hasn't completely fallen apart. She didn't deserve it!

Ash was pulled out of his thoughts by Pichu, who started pointing in the general direction of Pallet Town. A small rumble began to appear in Ash's throat as his gaze hardened. "We can't trust them."

Pichu was about to turn to Ash with a questioning look, but he remembered how everyone who walked by would ignore them, despite clearly knowing they were there. Then, he remembered the episode with the old man Ash called 'Oak'. Pichu shivered; surely not everyone was bad, right?

Ash tiredly walked into Laelynn's 'room'. He barely had any sleep these last few months. His exhaustion was starting to catch up to him. Not even thoughts of his sister were enough to instantly disperse the tiredness. Turning a tired look to Cleffa, he let the little fairy know that he would take over.

Acknowledging that with a tired nod, Cleffa still sat on her shelf, keeping a watching eye over the sleeping girl. Cleffa signed. The girl used to tell her stories about different things. Now, Laelynn had barely enough strength to eat. The girl's breath occasionally got a lot rasher, as her body temperature rose drastically, before returning back to normal. According to the black haired boy, that was really bad news. Suddenly, a movement caught her eye. She saw the boy rapidly blink himself awake, after dozing off for a few minutes. The boy sure loved his sister.

Then, to her surprise, she saw him take out a flute. The boy found the strange stick during one of his ventures into the town. She smiled, remembering the boy rant about how someone 'threw a perfectly good instrument'. Then, a calm soothing melody poured out of the flute. She didn't know why, but the boy has always been able to make wonderful sounds with the piece of wood. Cleffa smiled when she saw that Laelynn's face relaxed a little in her sleep.

"Mew, what is the meaning of this?" Arceus stood in the Hall Of Origin, scolding the little feline. He couldn't believe that she was so careless and let the humans get some of her hair, or, in this case, DNA sample! What was even more surprising, was that the Mew didn't play around; she just floated in one place, her huge eyes slightly tearing up. Arceus shook his head. He should have known that Mew would try those eyes on him again.

"Mew, I'm not going to punish you." At that, the little pink cat flew a few circles around Arceus in obvious glee. However, Arceus's next words caused her tail to droop.

"At least, not harshly."

That night, Oak found that he couldn't sleep. Something just seemed… wrong. Professor Oak shook his head; if he couldn't sleep, then he might as well get to work. So, the world renowned professor got up and booted his computer on. To his surprise, when the computer turned on, he saw one word before the laptop blew up. Sparks flew around, making the professor fall back.

"Grandpa, what happened?" His niece sleepily entered the room, rubbing her eyes and yawning. Oak shakily stood up, using one of the pillars of his bedframe as support.

"Nothing dear, nothing." With that, Daisy went back to her room another yawn.

Oak, meanwhile, collapsed to his knees. For the word that appeared on his screen was 'caveo'.

Cleffa yawned. She was tired. But one glance at Laelynn, and, more importantly, Ash, filled her with resolve. For the entirety of the time she knew the two, she has always seen the boy look after his sister. He would spend entire nights awake, making sure that she was comfortable, as well as putting a wet piece of cloth every time on the girl's forehead every few hours.

She saw him secretly give Laelynn some of his food; she had seen the boy comfort the girl, even when she was asleep. And it almost tore her apart, knowing the girl didn't have much time left. But for now, it didn't matter. So, Cleffa continued her ever vigilant watch over the two siblings.

Next morning, Ash woke up with a slight ache in his neck. Wait, in the neck? Damn it, it must have meant that he'd fallen asleep. His body screamed for a few more hours of sleep, but one look at his sister gave him the strength to shake himself awake. Right, breakfast.

So, tiredly stumbling to their crate, Ash started doing calculations. His stomach growled, but the raven haired boy decided to ignore it. Grabbing the mostly empty bag of porridge grains, he dumped a bit into a pot. Ash cringed inwardly; the pot was starting to get slightly rusty. But that wouldn't deter the boy so easily; grabbing some snow from outside, he tossed it straight into the cooking pot. His stomach growled again, but Ash ignored it, just like every other time. This was a small breakfast for Laelynn; according to Ash's calculations, if he didn't eat, then the food should be enough to last his sister another week.

"Pichu!" Ash smiled softly as his little friend jumped on his shoulder. The little mouse always seemed so full of energy!

"Pichu?" Pichu cocked his head to the side slightly. He was going to feed his sister with THAT?

Ash signed. "It's not like we have much of a choice, you know?" Ash looked outside. The snow covered much of the ground; the white fluff that fell on tree branches made a strong contrast to the trees themselves. It was a sight to behold. Noticing Ash's look, Pichu ran outside, sniffing at the ground.

The boy shook his head off the more 'useless' thoughts. He started thinking about to get out of their predicaments. He definitely wouldn't find any berries or mushrooms, now that's for sure. Wait, but then, what about that patch of flowers? The boy shook his head; that must have been a fluke of some sort, right? So, he turned to the other options; to steal, or to beg.

Begging was out of question, considering the townspeople, Ash thought with a growl in his throat; but stealing… He knew it was horrible, but, was there any other way? His parents always said that taking what belonged to others was just… plain wrong! They worked hard to gain that, after all. But, having seen the true colors of the townspeople of Pallet, he wouldn't be surprised if they just stole to get where they are now. But still, he somehow couldn't agree with himself on that plan. Almost as if some kind of mysterious force prevented him from doing it.

But think about Laelynn! His brain furiously argued with that… force. Her sickness has gotten far too bad for things to continue as they are. She needed some clothes for warmth, she needed food to make it through the season, she needed medicine cure the illness!

But, you think you will be able to live with yourself after that? The 'Force' raised a good point. His parents have pretty much drilled those morals into his head. But, one look at his sister peacefully sleeping gave him the answer. As long as she lived, it would all be worth it.

Then what will she think of you? Ash paused. What would she think of him? He is an older brother, it's his job to protect her, and, now that his parents were gone, to teach her about the world, to teach her about life. Would she listen to him, if she knew that he would become a criminal? But one look at her fidgeting slightly in her sleep steeled him. After all, she wouldn't even be alive if things continued as they are!

And finally, what would your parents think of you? Indeed, what would his parents think of him? They worked so hard to instill proper principles into him. He felt like he was letting them down by even entertaining such thoughts. But surely they would understand? "No reasons will ever justify spitting on people's faces after their hard work," Ash could still hear his father's famous phrase ring in his head. But what else could he do? His little sister was the only one he had left; he couldn't bear to see her like that! But still…

Ash screamed inwardly, clutching his head. Why did things have to be so hard? At least it would be spring soon. But would it bring him the much needed food?

"Crescent, please take care of him…" A hoarse whisper, a plea of a mother… All of that hit Crescent like a tidal wave. Damn it! Why does she have to leave? Gathering her hands, she gathered her powers, calling upon the stars to save the innocent souls lost that bloody night…

But it was all for naught, because the stars were silent. Crescent felt a tear roll down her cheek. She wasn't ready for this! What did she- or her brother do to deserve this?! But her mother's stare burned deep in her soul. Crescent turned back at her, looking at her beautiful face for the very last time…

"Yes…"

Cleffa shot awake. She blinked; it was the middle of the night. She could still see the moon shine down on them, like a beacon of hope. But the quietness of the night coupled with her dream sent shivers across her spine. The dream seemed almost too real. Perhaps it was a vision? But why?

Why did she receive the vision of a girl watching her mother die? And why… did those voices sound so familiar? A shifting sound caught her attention. Looking down, she saw the raven haired boy tend to his sister, putting a wet handkerchief on her forehead. No matter how many times she saw that, she would always feel touched beyond tears by the lengths the boy was ready to go for his sibling.

"I'm hungry!" Gary screamed inwardly. Part of him told himself to stay put, while the other half wanted to strangle the whining Ritchie. The boy could be a great friend when you needed him; otherwise, he tended to be a pain.

"What do you want?" Leaf growled irritably. She woke up with a head splitting headache; she didn't need this!

"Brother…" It was bad; real bad. In fact, it was really bad. Her temperature has risen dramatically and her coughing has only gotten worse. Ash didn't know what to do! She needed medicine and proper food, but there was no way he could get them for her without stealing! But still…

"You should rest, sis." Ash felt a small tear roll down his cheek, before rapidly blinking it away. He had to be strong for her, after all.

"Please," Laelynn coughed violently, before continuing. "Sing me the song."

"Lae, you should rest." Ash shook his head sternly. But they both knew he couldn't resist her pleading eyes.

"Pretty please?" Laelynn tried to make the 'pleading puppy face', but she broke into another coughing fit.

Despite his worries about her health, he couldn't help but laugh. Now that was his sister!

"Alright, alright." Seeing her smile in triumph, he simply rolled his eyes.

Seeing her brother take a deep breath, Laelynn giggled lightly while snuggling up to her pillow.

"When daytime turns to night, when the moon shines bright,

When you're tucked in tight, when everything's alright.

Slip softly to that place, where secret thoughts run free,

Then come face to face with who you want to be.

So swim across the ocean blue, fly a rocket to the moon;

You can change your life, or you can change the world.

Take a chance, don't be afraid, life is yours to live;

Take a chance, and then the best has yet to come…"

Cleffa watched the two with a smile. She always found their interaction heartwarming. But still, she help but feel some kind of déjà vu at the lullaby. It almost seemed… Cleffa gasped as images flooded back into her head.

"…Make a wish, it's up to you.

Find the strength inside, then watch your dreams come true.

You don't need a shooting star, the magic's right there in your heart;

Close your eyes, believe, and make a wish..."

A soft, melodious voice flowed around the clearing, intertwining with the pillars of light radiating off the stars. A teenage girl, no more than 14, sat, cuddling her baby brother to sleep. Her hair long silky hair covered her face as she gazed lovingly upon her slumbering brother. Quickly pecking him on his forehead, the girl stood up, exposing her many scars. Taking a deep breath, she kneeled down to the moon, whispering a quick prayer.

"… Close your eyes… And make a wish…" Cleffa blinked as she was pulled back to reality. Just who was that girl? And better yet, why did she sing the same lullaby as Ash?

However, a soft snore caught her attention. It was quiet, but her ears were quite sensitive. Cleffa could barely stifle a giggle despite herself. The girl always insisted that she didn't snore. However, a torrent of nostalgia washed upon her. Why did this seem so familiar? And why did she have these visions?

As the weather warmed up, snow started slowly melting. Ash grimaced; even though finally being warm was a good thing, it also meant a few things. Firstly, their main source of water, snow, would disappear; secondly, that would mean that the many hibernating Pokemon would out and about. Ash really didn't want Rattata to steal whatever food they had left. Why did things have to be so difficult? Why can't everything just be black and white? Check that; just white. Why does evil have to exist anyways?

"So, you kids are sure you want to go camping?" Professor Oak shook his head in exasperation. He knew how excited they were. However, he also knew that this rain wasn't natural. It rained intensely. However, its intensity was not an oddity; the fact that it rained on Pallet Town ONLY- not even on route 1, but exclusively on Pallet Town- was enough to make him think. However, his student, Ritchie made an interesting discovery.

When the boy drank some water, he reported that he saw the worst moments in his life unfurl before his very eyes. Of course, no one was able to confirm it as everyone was too afraid to try doing so; who would, after seeing the wreck the boy had been after drinking the water?

"Yes, professor, you've asked us 10 times already!" Leaf rolled her eyes in exasperation. None of them understood why the professor made such a fuss about a simple camping trip- right outside Pallet at that.

"Take care!" All three of them rolled their eyes when he waved at them. She was surprised he didn't wave is handkerchief as well.

"We're lost, aren't we?" Gary was just about ready to explode. Ritchie couldn't navigate to save his life! Why did they trust him with the compass anyways?

"Well Gary, look on the bright side; at least we know who to blame for it this time!" Ritchie rolled his eyes in annoyance when his two friends laughed at him. Though she did have a point; at least they knew who to blame this time. Last time, it was a pain for him to prevent Leaf and Gary from fighting. He still gingerly touched his cheek when he remembered it.

"No we're not! We're just… misplaced! Yeah, misplaced!" Ritchie laughed sheepishly, before stopping when he noticed two incredulous eyes staring at him.

"What?"

"Stop ripping off other people's lines Ritchie!" Leaf and Gary shared a look before bursting in laughter when they realized they'd both said the same thing at the SAME time. Eh, that explained the proverb "great minds think alike".

"Anyways," Leaf calmed herself down and turned back at him. With a mallet(?) "Just admit that you've gotten us lost so we can beat you up and move on."

This time, both boys looked at her with looks of pure terror. Ritchie looked at Gary for some help, but all he received was a helpless shrug that said 'you're on your own'.

A pained shout rang through the forest, scaring the Pidgey into flying off.

"Come with us, Laelynn… No more pain, no more hunger, no more suffering…" Laelynn didn't understand what was going on. Last she remembered, Ash tucked her in bed while Cleffa sat on her shelf. Now, she was standing on a cloud. Curious, she bent down. It was so fluffy! Laelynn giggled; it was fun!

"Come with us, Laelynn… No more pain, no more hunger, no more suffering…" The little girl looked around, confused. What was that sound?

"Come Laelynn… Come…" A quiet, yet empowering voice rang. Laelynn didn't know what to do. On one hand, her parents told her not to talk to strangers. While Ash told her not to talk to people at all; Laelynn couldn't help but giggle at the memory; sometimes, just sometimes, he could be so silly! But on the other hand, she was curious about what that voice was. Finally, she came with a conclusion. She stood still, trying to shut off the voice.

A few minutes later, she heard the voice say something else. "Vivere…"

Standing up, Laelynn shouted in glee; no more scary voice! However, out of a corner of her eye, she saw a leaf fall down. The leaf twirled as it danced across the evening sky. Intrigued, Laelynn reached out her hand, gently taking the leaf. One of its sides was golden; it had the image of a sword embedded on it. The other side was black; it had a silver contour of a sun rise.

Then, a thunder struck as a downpour began. The rain felt cold, drained of all warmth. Then, the scenery changed from the cloudy paradise to a dark forest. Laelynn felt like something was watching her. Suddenly, a low growl rang from her left.

Screaming in dear, Laelynn turned and ran. She didn't know where to run, and, frankly, she didn't care! Ash would help, she knew he would… Suddenly, she felt a throbbing pain her leg as she fell. The growl got louder as whatever had made the sound got closer to her. Laelynn tried to scramble up, but to no avail. Her ankle was twisted, and her heart was pounding so furiously that she felt like it would jump out of her chest.

Suddenly, an earsplitting scream pulled her back to reality, with a disorienting pull and a coughing fit.

"Lae, are you okay?" Ash hurriedly ran to his sister's side. She was getting worse; that was definite. His sister was sniffling, trying to hold back her tears.

"You know you shouldn't shout." Laelynn looked up slowly and saw Ash gently reprimanding her.

"Now you just go back and rest, 'kay?" Laelynn simply shook her head, too shaken to fall asleep. Ash frowned, thinking of a solution. Wait, he got it! So, taking a deep breath, Ash started playing the lullaby on his flute. She loved the song. Ash found it ironic that the lullaby was called "Make a wish", and they were in this horrible situation. Sure enough, Laelynn stopped sobbing, and, snuggling up to her pillow, slowly slipped "to that place, where secret thoughts run free." Ash smiled, gazing lovingly at her; she was his precious little sister, after all. So, wiping a tear off her face, he kissed her goodnight/day, and went back to doing his job.

Already, the cogs were turning in his brain, conceiving a plan to find the solution to the problem. If he could count the cosinus of angle ABC, then…

Cleffa woke up with a soft yawn to the soft tunes of a melody. Realizing that she'd dozed off, Cleffa slapped herself. Not that it hurt anyways, since she barely had any strength left. Wait, the same lullaby?

And, before she realized it, she slipped back into her mind. In front of her, she saw the same teen from her previous visions. She could barely recognize the girl; her hair, normally tied in a neat braid, was being blown back by the wind. Her left arm was bleeding, forcing a wince of pain into her otherwise bloodcurdling scowl. And more importantly, she was panting heavily as she readied her katana, already covered by the blood of a hundred enemies, and charged with a fearsome battle cry.

With a fluid motion, the Crescent commenced her flawless battle dance, driving back many a foe. Crescent knew she was outnumbered; yet, despite that, she desperately fought on, pushing back wave after wave of enemy soldiers. However, eventually, she was overwhelmed by sheer numbers. She collapsed, driven to the floor with her hands tied, blood trickling out of her mouth, as she was forced to watch helplessly as the thugs harshly dragged her baby brother out of his makeshift crib, before the enemy Captain raised his blade over the child's head. Cleffa, not being able to take it anymore, let out a horrified shriek.

"Pichu?" Cleffa jumped when she felt someone touch her. Heaving a sign of relief, she turned to her friend.

Outside, the sky darkened as clouds gathered. A thunder struck, hitting a tree and causing it to burn; fortunately, the fire was put out shortly by the downpour that followed.

"Any more bright ideas, Leaf?" Gary and Ritchie sarcastically turned to their female friend. All Leaf could do was give a sheepish smile. Wait; there was a dark bulking frame up ahead!

"Hey, there's some building over there!" Leaf excitedly shouted, happy to get out of the rain. Left with no other choice, Gary and Ritchie shared a look that practically screamed 'girls', as they ran after her.

"But," Ritchie huffed slightly, catching up to Leaf. "What if it's haunted?"

Gary simply rolled his eyes. "There are no haunted houses!" And thus, yet another heated argument started between the two rivals.

Leaf simply rolled her eyes. Boys…

Ash rolled his eyes. It was raining yet again! Of course, their weather patterns were practically at whims of three birds, but this was ridiculous! Well, at least there would be mushrooms, right?

"Pi!" Ash turned to see his trusty friend, Pichu jump on his left shoulder, all while nibbling on a dried up Oran Berry. He smiled when he saw the little mouse point to his maths papers with a puzzled frown.

"We've discussed it before; it's good for…" Ash was interrupted by a duo of loud voices arguing, with a third one occasionally telling them to shut the heck up. Ash narrowed his eyes. Gary… While they probably just went here to get shelter from the rain, he wouldn't trust Gary and his posse further than he could throw them. And, with the lack of food and sleep he couldn't throw them at all, which probably shows the extent of his trust to them.

"Let's go, Pichu." When he was met with a quizzical squeal from Pichu, he rolled his eyes.

"I don't trust them here; not with Laelynn close by. We're getting them out of here!" At that, Pichu perked up. He hadn't had a battle in ages!

"But check up on Laelynn first, okay?"

Professor Oak dug through his papers, before finding the folder he was looking for; The Red Case. About 5 years ago, he sent one of his assistants, a genius teen named Red, on a journey to find the few Kanto Pokemon that weren't at the lab already for research. Of course, Oak was happy for his student when he'd not only completed his assignment, but also completed the league challenge in less than 7 months, before challenging the Elite 4 and the Champion, Lance. He knew the boy was a genius on the battlefield, but his surprise and happiness couldn't be described when he heard that Red won, taking out all of his opponents with a Pikachu and an Espeon. Lance had his entire tem taken out by a Snorlax and a Charizard.

Oak was, of course, slightly surprised when the boy turned down the title. Then again, it was Red after all… After that, the boy left for Johto, never to be heard again… Until one day, a huge explosion occurred in Goldenrod. The victims of the attack were all Team Rocket grunts, members of a crime syndicate, working in Kanto and Johto. The criminals were all tied up and escorted to prison; however, they were too shaken up to tell what happened, afraid that even mentioning the monster would summon him to them.

What they were able to gather, was a man in a black cape with red eyes; his team apparently consisted of a Snorlax, a Lapras, a Tauros and a Gengar. However, with those Pokemon were apparently brought for raw numbers. The real ace was a Charizard. A shiny one at that; just like Red's starter. However, there was one piece of information they ignored, labeling it as words of a crazy man. One grunt reported that the monster that appeared in their base masked himself as a new recruit, before attacking them. He had a red glow around him; any grunt that went against him would be sent flying with a simple motion on his part .Nothing could reach him; neither bullets, nor Pokemon attacks; not even Hyper Beams.

Oak felt an involuntary shiver run across his spine. According to the witnesses, the same red glow enveloped Ash as he brutally beat up 7 boys in his frenzy. This was problematic; if not taken care of quickly, the boy could become a major threat. Luckily, the boy had all but disappeared from the town. And just for one moment, no matter how morally wrong it was, he dared hope that they had died. But then he shook his head. The boy always had a knack for getting out of troubles. Oak felt a pang of guilt; they'd been his students' children; he loved them (or, at least, Laelynn) like his own grandchildren. But, the fate of Pallet Town was more important than a fate of two children.

"Ok, now let's get into the building and continue the argument there!" Ritchie rolled his eyes as he saw Gary throw up his arms with a huff. The boy was so childish…

"So, the Great Gary Oak being challenged by one of his subordinates. The world must be ending." Turning up, Ritchie saw a tall yet skinny boy stand. The boy had jet black hair, which stuck out in a mess. He wore a torn up piece of cloth that resembled a jacket; Ritchie could also see a pair of worn out jeans. Who did he think he was, talking to them like that!

"You have a problem, huh?" Ritchie twirled his Pokeball, contemplating sending Sparky out to zap the guy. He smirked when he saw something akin to fear flicker across the boy's eyes. And yet, he just shook it off, turning to Leaf.

"So, finally crumbled under his advances? Didn't know you were such a…" Ritchie saw the boy practically spit out the words, venom filling his voice. But, he made one mistake. You don't insult Ritchie's friends and get away with it.

"Stop it right there. You think you're so cool and smart saying all that, huh? You think it's such a fun game to play, huh?" Ritchie's eyes narrowed into dangerous slits as he glared at the other boy who simply glared daggers back at him.

Their staring contest continued for a few minutes before Ritchie saw a Pichu jump on the boy's shoulder and wave at him, repeating its name over and over again. Ritchie smirked when he spotted a worried look on the other boy's face for a moment.

"Apologize at once!" Ritchie was not so eager to drop on the topic. However, he didn't expect the next response.

"Make me. But as for now, LEAVE!" Ritchie was taken aback at the boy's growl, but that didn't deter him. This time, he really took it too far. Ritchie opened his mouth to give a rebuttal, however Gary beat him to it.

"Now, now, Ash, we can just talk this through…" Ritchie almost felt his blood boil when the other boy simply glared back.

"Oh my, the great Gary Oak talking about negotiations! The world has truly ended!"

"Now, I'm sorry for-" Ritchie blinked; this was the first time he had seen Gary so nervous. But the other boy- Ash, right, Ash, nearly drove him past his anger point.

"Stop apologizing! I know you don't mean it! After all these years, you think you can lie to me?" Ash was practically steaming with anger. That hit Ritchie's nerve; Gary's hurt look just reinforced it. However, there was one thing in Gary's look that stopped him from beating the raven haired boy to pieces; a look of guilt.

However, to his surprise, Leaf ran to the boy, hugging him, face red from crying.

"Where have you been all this time? We were so worried when-" However, Ash's next action broke whatever self-control Ritchie had left. The boy hissed something to her. Even though he couldn't make out the words, the venom was clear in his voice. Then, he pushed Leaf back. Okay, that did it.

"Who do you think you are anyways? What are you, a prince or something? Well, pal, let me break it to you; you are nothing but a spoiled brat! Now go back to your stupid Mamma and feel bad about yourself." Ritchie saw a pained look on Ash's face; however, he started questioning ever seeing it on the brat's face, because now, his face was absolutely furious.

"What did you say?" Ritchie stepped back slightly; not even his mother was so scary when she was enraged. But, remembering that he had a lesson to teach the jerk, Ritchie stepped back, glaring at Ash.

* * * change point of view

Ok, that's it. Breathe, Ash, breath. One, two, three. No need to get worked up over these people; save the energy for your sister. No, the technique didn't help. This's just become personal; the idiot insulted his parents. Oh how he would enjoy wiping the smirk off the…

Sensing Pichu tug his ear in an attempt to get his attention, he turned to the mouse. "What?"

The little mouse just simply pointed to Leaf, before gesticulating wildly and pointing at Laelynn's room. Suddenly, it dawned on Ash.

"They turned their backs on us; why shouldn't we do the same to them?" Ash saw the Pichu get an annoyed expression on his face…,before slapping him with a weakened Iron Tail. Ash was mildly annoyed, but he was willing to listen. Ash frowned.

"You're saying that we shouldn't sink to their level?" Upon hearing that, Ash frowned. On one hand, he knew that Pichu was right; on the other, we really wanted to get revenge on the two of them, especially Leaf. He considered her his friend, and then she turned her back on them…

Look at you, all grown up! We're glad you're taking care of Laelynn; she needs your support… Oh how far have you gone! Ash paused. No, it couldn't be! Ash looked around daring to hope that he was wrong, that his parents would come back, and everything would return back to normal…

No Ash, we really did die. But despite that, we're always with you. What, did you think you'd get rid of us so easily? Ash smiled; it was always like his father, joking at the MOST inappropriate moments. He missed it though. But, as tearful as the reunion might be, he still had a problem to take care of.

"Let me guess, you're here to tell me to let them in? Are you sure-" Ash could almost see his father's hand in front of his face, causing him to pause. I'm not here to tell you what to do. My time on Earth has passed; it is now your time to make the decisions. Just remember that we'll always be proud of you no matter what!

Ash paused. His father just said that he'd support him no matter what decision he took. So that meant that he could easily choose to not let them in. But then again, that would be equivalent to spitting on all of the work his father had put into making him a better person.

He was so going to regret this decision…

"Fine, come in." Ash grumbled, turning around. He smirked lightly; they had probably fainted at his sudden change in attitude. A few seconds passed, but they weren't coming.

"What, did your feet root to the ground or something? Come in before I change my mind." While he saw the other boy snort, he chose to let it slide. However, seeing the auburn haired boy raise an eyebrow, Ash decided to fake an answer.

"Your friend is shivering over there. So are you coming or not?" Ash heavily accentuated the word 'your'. He didn't miss the look of hurt across Leaf's face. He couldn't say he enjoyed the sight, contrary to what he thought, but whatever.

A few seconds of staring, the trio begrudgingly marched up the small hill, entering the old lumber mill.

Anyways, here's the next chapter. Thanks to everyone who reviewed/followed; I really appreciate it. And I also suck at speeches, so let's go straight to the point. Please review and tell me, where I screwed up. Oh, and please check out my other fanfic and tell me what you think about it. The choice is, of course, yours, but I would really appreciate it. Oh, and if anyone can guess the mini-arc I have in mind for Cleffa and Crescent, than please have a big virtual cookie :P