Author's Note: I'm so sorry this took so long! It was oddly difficult for me to write, and I got sidetracked. I might be doing a ColosseumShipping fic at some point, if I can scrape up a plot. By the way, this chapter includes one of the closest things to sex I will write. One of the closest things. Be forewarned!

Anyway, here goes:

…..

Every wisp of human breath besides mine, Silver's, and Blue's had long left the beach by 4 o'clock. The nostalgic throbs of the rave music had died down to nothing, freshly littered soda cans spilled over and soaked in to the sand with the melody gone from them, too. The lights were still going, flowing to their lonesome without the music and people to mix with. They crossed over my skin in blue and green patterns absently, as if saying, "Remember when we brought you to life?".

Further down the beach was Silver, sitting cross legged by the shore and staring out over the waves. They seemed to run deeper now, seething instead of flowing. I strolled over to the beach, still light in the head, and dropped into the sand next to him with a small sigh.

I ran my fingers through my hair before I turned to meet Silver's peaceful gaze. "Thanks so much for this- I owe you one,"

Without a word, he snatched up a loose rock and thrust it into the sea overhand. We watched it skip over the waves and glitter in the striking starlight, only to vanish into the black vat of water. For a moment, silence crept over us as silvery moonlight rippled over the black waves above where the stone had sank.

"You're welcome, I guess- but it's too late to go to the next city." He frowned. "They locks the passage kiosks after 3,"

Suddenly, Blue appeared between us with a peculiar smile on his face, one elbow on Silver's shoulder and one arm around me. Then he said something that flung ice water onto my mind.

"You guys will just have to go at each other's throats tomorrow night,"

"Tomorrow night?" Would Steven let me out of the campsite without an argument after this? Between training sessions and firewood chopping, we'd been having an awful lot of screaming matches lately. Then a few days of silence…

"I meant to ask you, May…" Blue began, ignoring the way my mouth fell open and how my eyes darted around his face. "Why don't you stay with us for a few days? Here in Kanto?"

The 'NOs' pounded in my throat, but my throat flexed closed over the word. How was I going to leave Steven alone on the island, not knowing where the hell I was? I closed my eyes, seeing his faintly smiling image, burning my eyelids.

But still…

Couldn't I…?

My hand moved to the bag at my side for my Pokenav, but all I felt on the tips of my fingers were berries, some bottles of shampoo I'd stolen and lingering coin dollars. Of course. Back in the campsite when I'd been kidnapped, one of the objects I failed to grab was my nav. I could use a public phone, but the systems in Kanto worked as if an automatic phonebook was held in the core- only numbers of Kanto's residents could be used, and any generic ones could be traced back by the police. I couldn't contact Steven until I got my butt back to the island. Not unless I wanted to risk both of us being sent to jail.

Blue's soft green gaze seemed prodding in the silence. He shifted an inch closer. "What do you say?"

In that moment, I didn't know whether I was too thankful, too selfish or just too stupid, but I looked him in the eye, gulped, and defied all odds.

"Sure, where are we staying?"

The backs of his leaf-colored eyes lit with satisfaction. "I know a hotel right here in Vermilion, converted from the Fan Club a few years ago. We can stay there until tomorrow and then head for Saffron City in the morning,"

I heard Silver chuckle.

"Or noon," he said. "It's 4 AM, guys. Our pokémon need some rest, too,"

I nodded, and within moments of heading off away from the coast, I had moved comfortably ahead of Blue's relaxed walk.

Silver, standing before the flat black waves, took a long look at his own stolen Johto edition Pokegear before coming along with us. Open orange city began to sprawl out beneath the now starlit horizon and glowed under its drape. Behind the main rows of stores and houses stood a taller, crisp white one, lined with wide windows, ten on each side, and soft yellow light poured from a few of them. Obviously, that was the hotel. I stepped down the road toward the pearly building. My footsteps held a weird musical rhythm to them while they stepped over the cobblestone road, kind of like knuckles pounding together. Flowing over the sandy beach, Silver and Blue's steps were faint and smooth. Like gliding. The smell of ocean and ecstasy faded off into faint harbor city air.

I kept up my pace with unbelievable willpower, feeling bizarrely thrilled, as if the night's party was living on inside my heart. I guess the fact was that there wasn't an established "wrong" or "right" in this situation. I guess I would have to find out what option was better was on my own, just like I used to as a greenhorn trainer back in Hoenn. Whether or not this change of pace was refreshing to me was still hidden, for now.

.…...

A pair of distant, hateful dark eyes slid through the back of my mind, blankly and insignificantly, and then disappeared.

I came to a stop at the front doors of the hotel. The sparkling glass stretched out all the way across the face of the building, gold edging the doorframe, pokeballs crafted out of the same metal as the doors' handles. I inhaled a deep breath, opened the doors, and took a step into the room.

Whoa.

It was like a ballroom- glowing marble tiles on the floor and cream painted walls; the warmth of the color brought the taste of vanilla to my tongue and melted away my unease. I felt my heart finally start to liquefy inside my chest as my breaths came easier. Placed by each towering window were these beautiful loveseats, clad in espresso tinted leather. And all these rugs! An oriental by the decorative fireplace, a firm-bristled, café colored mat by the front desk with the single word VERMILION scrawled over it.

Blue was behind me. I could sense it somehow.

I turned halfway, eyebrows raised, and sure enough, he was there. We stood there in each others' gravity for less than a heartbeat before the hotel's glass doors swung open with Silver's rough shove. He stopped before ramming into Blue, one arm outstretched with his fingers closed over something in his palm.

"Here. It's all I've got on me," he said with a shrug.

I grappled for the spare change in my pocket and dropped a fistful of coin dollars into Blue's hand, smiling faintly. "That's 500, if it helps,"

Blue looked down at me with an incredulous look on his face. I challenged him to explain with a simple nod of my head.

"That's a first," he finally muttered.

"Hm?"

"You're a girl. And you paid for your share. That's never happened to me before,"

I grinned. I was untypical, and he liked it.

My eyes drew away from Blue's for a second to look toward the marble front desk. Silver was positioned in front of it, trying to get the middle aged woman's attention. She was too busy giggling over something on her desk to even hear Silver's low voice.

Finally, he gritted his teeth and snapped, "Hello?"

Papers flew all over the place from the woman's hands as she jerked her head up, a deer in the headlights. "Oh!"

I scampered over to help her pick up the stuff. "You need some help?" But then I froze. Would she recognize me? Would she see May the Cheater when her gaze fell upon me?

She adjusted her glasses to look into my face. Nothing shocked or angry about her expression- just that surprised, wide-eyed look I expected from her anyway. Her voice was quick and high pitched. "I'm fine- see, I've got them all-"

Then her eyes fell to Blue and Silver, standing before her at the counter, and her voice swelled in relief.

"Silver, dear! And Blue, Viridian's gym leader- you're both handsome as ever! How are you guys?"

Blue smiled. "Hey, Deb,"

I knew my eyes were boggling out by now, but I couldn't care less. "Blue, did she just say gym leader?"

Blue nodded with that weird predatory glint in his eye. Silver took advantage of the sudden silence, a bitter edge to his voice.

"-And first runner up," he added.

The woman smiled. On her nametag was "Debbie".

"Nice to see you guys again. And who is this?"

My panic choked me. It would be pretty stupid to tell her my real name, but what else could I come up with on the spot? Suddenly, Blue sensed my unease and put an arm around me.

"This is Sapphire. She's quite the trainer herself,"

"Undefeated," I laughed weakly, feeling like an asshole.

A twinkle fell upon Debbie's eye. "Nice to meet you, Miss Sapphire. We get a ton of travelling trainers coming here- "Then she seemed to retain her purpose. "So how many nights will it be?"

"Just tonight," Silver said.

The woman took the array of gold coins from Blue's hand and wheeled around in her chair. There was no cash register, but a slit in the desk's marble top, like a child entering money into a slot machine at a game corner. She typed something into her computer, and upon her finger hitting a last key, there was a ringing sound. When she opened her hand to us, in it were three passcards.

She smiled. "Room 403,"

After I took a few minutes to spend a portion of my money on shampoo at the corner store and had crammed it into my bag, we headed down the guest hall for the elevator. It was the first door to the right, colored cream like the rest of the winding hotel.

Once we were sealed completely into the elevator and I'd made sure that there were no hidden cameras, I snapped my head toward Blue.

"You know about my… secret?"

Blue nodded sullenly. "Silver showed me the newspaper,"

I grimaced. So much for a decent first impression.

We were far from silent as it brought us higher and higher. "I didn't know you were such a flirt, Silver. How many girls did you talk to again?" I prodded after a moment.

Silver looked away from us, but I could see the faint flush of red in his face. "Only about… five or so. Not that many,"

"Five!"

Blue and I nearly doubled over with laughter, his eyes wide and disbelieving. He ruffled Silver's hair up with one hand. "You little player," He joked.

The elevator came to a stop in a few seconds. The doors slid open to open into our hallway, same as the rest of the hotel.

In a minute, Blue was already at the foot of the door. He pulled his passcard from his back pocket and held it over a scanner on the door, code first. There was a beep, and the door clicked open.

The blackness of the room suddenly flooded white hall light, illuminating the caramel colored edges of a bed and narrow hallway. With one encouraging look from Blue, I flipped on the light switch, and the room came alive.

Behind me, observing my stupor, Blue leaned on the doorframe. "Welcome to home for the night,"

I took a few slow steps into the room, my eyes scanning it all over.

"Would you check this out," I muttered, mystified. The walls were wood paneled, a rich mahogany brown bringing out maple hints in the dark ivory carpet. Everything… the beds, the armchair in the corner… every accent in the room seemed as if it had been dipped in syrup and set aglow, a delectable gold.

Then I gulped, letting the sweet taste disappear down my throat. I looked closer, my eyes flickering back and forth. Two beds. Oh crap.

I knew what that meant in a heartbeat. Two of the three of us were sleeping in the same bed.

I threw them both a panicked look, backing away. "I'm not-"

Silver shrugged, his dormant expression grinning wider and wider. "I sleep kick. Like a pendulum. On drugs,"

I gave him my best Fuck You glare I could. He grinned wider. I could hear his thoughts, mocking me, saying Have fun, May!

"Blue, please say you have a reason to sleep on the floor,"

A daring flash of copper appeared in his eyes, and he laughed, "None whatsoever."

"I- I…!"

A Weavile- Silver's, apparently- planted its butt on the armchair and snarled once it met by pleading gaze. Silver grinned at me, kicked his shoes off onto the floor beside the window bed, unzipped his jacket and abandoned his shirt on the floor.

I was too pissed off to enjoy the view.

He ignored my glares and flopped onto his bed with a small, blissful smile on his face. Apparently a night's worth of partying had taken its toll on him. For a few moments, I glared with twitchy-eyed hatred.

Finally, I sighed in defeat: "I'm taking a shower,"

With that said, I flung open the bathroom door, uncaring as to how it crashed against the wall and made Silver jump up in terror, and slammed it shut behind me.

As I threw my clothes into the sink to wash later, rash excitement began to build inside of me like something of a lunar eclipse. Was I really here? I mean, I'd spent five years traveling, skipping from hotel to motel to campsite to city train, but nothing could beat this adventurous ecstasy.

Finally, I could get sense some of my old self. It was buried deep inside, but it was singing to me now.

All around the bathroom were these arrays of unused bottles and cans, some holding flower petals and others with toiletries. Simple things, things that I used to have to steal from the town back on the island. Toothpaste, lotion, scented oils. I was in heaven.

The shower itself took up most of the room, with the countertop running around the rest of it only to stop at the door. I lifted a foot to step inside and turned the water on hot.

Mm, how I missed indoor plumbing.

I loved how the sweet, invigorating droplets wicked away all the stress of the world and banished them from my sight into the drain. Best of all was the sweet scent of flowery oil on my skin, a luxury I hadn't brought over from the Hoenn escape and never stole. Instead, I took advantage of my knowledge of berries and flower blooms to mix together and create intoxicating scents. This one was the essence of girly warmth, smelling just like the berry grove I'd picked the blooms from.

I had forgotten how long I'd been in there before I nearly fell asleep. Crap.

Only after I'd brushed my teeth and ran a comb through my hair, deprived of a distraction, I realized something… it all seemed too unreal. A prick of hot, wet panic ran down my body at the thought of two almost-strangers sitting in the room beside this one. Feet away. It didn't help to dwell on the fact that I was literally about to get in a bed with one of them, or so be attacked by Silver's clawed Weavile.

I washed my clothes carefully, rubbing my fingers extra hard into the fabric beneath the warm water. As soon as I'd redressed, minus my headscarf and shoes, I reached for the bathroom's doorknob. Paralysis held me hard; sweat drops beaded on my forehead.

My hearts rapid throb told me exactly what my worries were. I was really going to get in a bed with a stranger.

The floor was looking more and more tempting by the second. But still, it wasn't like it was just us. He wouldn't dare try anything with both Silver and his pokémon in the room- but then again I wasn't quite sure what this stranger with the forest in his gaze was capable of…

But I was well aware of what I was capable of. This was simply a challenge in which all I really had to do was try to sleep.

So I made up my mind. I sighed into the steamy room, and pushed open the bathroom door. Sweltering heat poured out of the open door and evaporated in the cool room air; the light was turned off, leaving the room completely dead black. My hand, held before my face, blended in as if I had become invisible. Crap. Did I mention I wasn't particularly graceful?

Stumbling barefoot over the carpet, all my outstretched fingers touched was thin, cool air. The soft white noise flowing from the air conditioner by the window wasn't quite calming me. Okay, so if it was on the other end of the room, beneath the window, then I should follow that sound. I just had to avoid that armchair with the grouchy Weavile, and I was gold. Sighing, I took another step forward.

"Lost?"

"Huh?" I jumped up and staggered away from the voice that split the darkness. A tiny light flickered on in the room, casting a circle of soft yellow light onto Blue's face.

"Oh- s-sorry, Blue…" I whispered, offering an embarrassed smile. "Did I wake you up?"

Chills radiated from my spine as I looked into Blue's calm eyes, and then glanced to the spot on the bed he'd left me.

"Nope. But Silver is knocked out,"

Beside me, Silver was sprawled over his bed, mouth hanging open like a fish. The sight made me chuckle to myself. My reminder of my newest challenge was right in front of me. A bed. With a stranger in it. Now all I had to do was get in it, close my eyes, and fall asleep. Easy. Easy…

Cold air, hypersensitive where the heat of the shower had just left, was still creeping up my body as I lowered myself into the bed beside Blue. I was conscious of his gaze on my skin the entire time. The mattress sank and conformed to me immediately; I released a heavy breath that I hadn't realized was trapped in my chest and chuckled once I'd completely gotten in.

"I did it,"

"Congrats, you're braver than I thought. I had a hunch with Silver that you'd chicken out and go for the floor. Either that or have a showdown with his Weavile,"

That caught me at full attention. I turned over on my side to give him my best disbelieving look I could. His posture was the same, facing me.

"If we're going to be friends, you need to know a few things; first, don't underestimate me,"

Suddenly, just as the white noise of the air conditioner fell to an invisible hum, he lowered his voice so that I could hardly hear. "Friends?"

Heat waves spread over every inch of me as I pondered, because some subconscious piece of my brain warned me; whether it was his carnal smile or wistful glance- he had other things in mind.

Once I'd gained enough control over my heartbeat and looked away, my hand flew for the lamp's switch. "I… um… think we ought to go to sleep now…"

"You're probably right," His expression relaxed a bit, but still looked nowhere near sleepy. That relieved me, somewhat. It seemed as if he couldn't tell that I could feel the tingling in my skin sinking into my bones and spurring my heart into overdrive.

What was wrong with me, honestly?

My fingers prodded along the cool metal shaft of the lamp, found the switch, and with a press had the light flicker off into nothing. And in a second, it was as if that faint electric current had sunken so far into my body that I could hardly breathe. I could hear everything, feel everything, and sense everything.

I lay on my side with my back to Blue holding my breath, wide-eyed. His breaths were even and mellow from beside me, but I knew he wasn't asleep, or even so much as close to it. He was gazing right into me. I could feel it.

Suddenly, heat to the same degree as the bathroom had been right after my shower began to rise up to my neck, electrifying the nerves, and then vanishing into the cool room air. Then again, and again… His breaths were faster now. The rumbling of the air conditioner picked up sound again. Panic crept into me as the heat became more and more focused, from waves of paralyzing heat to focused points. I recognized the sensation. Fingertips. They were drawing up and down my neck and crossed down near my collarbone.

Finally, I hissed out a sentence with as much fury as I could manage in my breathless voice. "What the hell are you doing?" My signature resilience was crumbling- I could feel it.

"Sorry. I couldn't help but notice something. You smell really good…"

Bad move on my part. The tiny vile of flowery aroma from the shower. I gulped down an "Oops," and held painfully still.

"I should stop…"

"Don't,"

This was the only moment in my entire journey that I'd felt truly on edge. It was hot- and cold at the same time, and I craved every bit of it.

Just as I was about to turn to face Blue on my side, the sound of a hand pounding wood filled the room.

Silver's fury, marred by grogginess, intertwined with the banging. "Hey! Will you two do it another time? I'm trying to sleep over here!"

Blue and I simply sat there, gaping. A moment later, Silver's snoring resumed.

"Heheh, he's right. Let's get some sleep,"

Heart still raging, I nodded. "Yeah. See you in the morning,"

"Goodnight…"

It took minutes for me to slip into exhaustion after a night as thrilling as this one… Before I fell asleep, a final question arose: Would I ever face Steven again?

I finally gave in to sleep before I could answer.

… … … … … … … … …

Author's Note: Hey! First time I'm writing an afternote in the midst of a story.

…What was I going to ask again? Oh yeah! I have a chapter with a scene much like the hotel one you just read, and I was wondering whether you guys (my beloved readers ;D) thought I should tone it down a bit for rating purposes. Thanks!