"Only a Memory Away"
Section 1: Jesse
Jesse pulled her backpack out from under her hard dorm bed. Tonight they would leave. Her and James. Alone at last. She quickly unzipped the top of her bag and began to pack, quickly and quietly, as she had done so many times before. She looked up at nothing suddenly, realizing just who-or what-she had forgotten to tell of the two's plans which were now becoming a reality. Jess grabbed the sphere at her belt and tossed it into the air.
"Ekans," she began. "Here, there's something-well, several things, really, that I'll have to tell you." Jesse kept packing as she told her snake buddy all of the events that had occurred in the past few days. "And that's why we must leave…"
"Ekans ek ekans kans ekans," said the creature in agreement. It was what it had to do, for it was loyal since that day that it was given to her as a trainer, the day of her seventh birthday.
START FLASHBACK
"Jesse," whispered a young woman who stood by a small girl's bed. "Jesse, time to wake up." The girl turned over the other way, not wanting to leave the comfortable warmth of her soft bed. Her face and ears were well hidden in the pillow that gently rested beneath her head. The woman laid her hand on the side of the child's body that was hidden beneath her blanket. "Jesse, it's your birthday."
With those words, the kid popped up from her game of opossum and her eyes seemed to glow even more than ever before. "Is it really my birthday? Or are you just fooling?" The youthful girl's shining eyes questioned this common ploy to just get her up from her divan. The young beautiful woman smiled back and nodded, the truth showing straight through, for today was really November 12th, it was her birthday, no denying it.
"Yes, my Jesse," the woman said to her. "It is. And I have a very special present for you." The woman patted the child on her head as she intently watched as her mother's hand reached down beneath her line of view and pulled out a glossy purple box. It seemed to light up the rest of the room with its brightness. The box was tied with a bright yellow bow that Jesse grasped as soon as the present entered her hand. She slowly pulled away at the decoration and watched as it slowly fell to the top of her lap.
"Thanks, mom," she said as she began to open up the box and gaze past the tissue paper to see what may be hidden beneath the wrapping. This was the first time that her mother had actually made a big deal of her birthday. Of course she still received the one present a year, but this was the first time that her mother had decided to awaken her extra early to receive it. As more and more of the thin paper fell to the covers of her bed, she slowly realized that inside the box held a glossy metallic red and white ball split into two sections with a silver band. "Is it…?"
"Mmmhmm." The woman smiled, obviously proud of her gift choice. She watched almost as intently as her child, but not to see what may be hidden inside the poké ball, but to see the look on the face of her loving daughter.
The girl already knew how to open the ball, so she continued on with the gift's ceremony. Jesse hit the ball's button to force the metal band to crack in half. With a burst of white energy, a purple snake-like creature began to fabricate. It cowered from where it was originally sent, but soon was curious enough to open its eyes and lift up its head. It blinked its yellow eyes and rattled its yellow tail. The snake looked at the blue starry-eyed girl and her mother who both watched in joy. "Ekans?"
The girl cried out softly in joy. "WOW! I can't believe it! I really got a pokémon!" The girl caught her mother in a loving hug. "Thank you," she whispered in her ear. "I love you."
Slowly Jesse approached the ekans, who was getting calmer and calmer by the minute. She slowly outstretched her small hand and offered the pokémon its new master. "Ek ekans ek?" inquired the snake as the girl slowly became closer and closer to it. With that, the creature gathered up all of its courage and slithered towards "master."
END FLASHBACK
Master, Ekans thought to itself. This is your choice, and I must be loyal to you, no matter what. Master, please, I hope you know what you're doing.
Jesse had just finished cramming the last of her belongings into her bag and smiled as she knew that she was ready to go. She pulled her bag over one shoulder and proudly glanced around the room, making sure that she hadn't missed anything. Seeing that she hadn't, Jesse reached towards the window and lifted it. As she stuck her head between the two pieces, a strange feeling immediately caught her, calling her back, back to a time and place that she wished that she could forget…
START FLASHBACK
It was cold. Bitterly cold. Jesse was pulling on her old winter coat as she sighed to herself. It had been a few months since the fire had burned her life to a crisp. A few months since her world was turned upside-down. A few months in which even her own mother questioned who she really was.
The two were poorer than ever now, for her mother was forced to pay for all that she could of the damages. They didn't have heat anymore. There wasn't anything on the table that was more than something that would barely keep them alive. The two soon found themselves near begging for everything, all because of that Cassidy. At first, Jesse had spent time to deny everything for the fire. She told the truth, all right. The whole truth and nothing but the truth. Unfortunately it wasn't enough to save her. Cassidy came from a rich family, and as always, the rich people ruled the town. Soon the lie that the other had made up was known to be what had happened, that Cassidy had begged Jesse not to start playing with matches by the school and then it caught fire. As Jesse soon discovered, when a lie is repeated long enough and loud enough it is just as good as the truth is. Soon Jesse lost hope and now was ready to leave her mom, sparing her from the shame that she had brought.
With a heavy heart, Jess slowly opened up the window, letting in an arctic blast from the outside. She pushed her backpack out the window and watched it fall to the frozen snow-blanketed ground. It let out a soft "thud" as it hit. Then Jess slipped out after it. She slowly climbed down the side of her house, knowing that a better life would arrive as soon as she reached the bottom. In her rush she let her foot slip and down she fell…falling…falling…until she reached the snow.
A pain shot through her back, but she could handle it. It was a whole bunch of nothing compared to the feeling of pain that she received when her own mother looked at her with nothing but sorrow. That was the worst thing ever, and there was nothing that she could do about it. Jesse slowly got up and pulled her bag up with her. She glanced around the dreary white world, making sure that no one was watching her.
END FLASHBACK
Jesse sighed in sorrow. She pushed that thought out of her mind as she slowly and carefully climbed down the side of the building, just as James had done hours before.
She raced to the point where the two had decided to meet before they left. Seeing James awaiting her there, she was reminded of the rest of her depressing reminder of the past, only now it wasn't painful.
CONTINUE FLASHBACK
Suddenly she saw a light turn on in the front door. Through the snow, Jesse could see the silloughette of her mother, who cried out as she saw her daughter leaving. She ran out the door in her pajamas.
"Jesse! Jesse! Come quick!" her mom called to her through the snow and ice. "You need to here what I just heard!"
The girl's eyes lit up. Her mom had come for her. She raced back in after her mother, because it had been a long while since she had been this happy. They entered the door and sat down.
"Jesse," her mother repeated. "I knew this all along, but," she pushed forward a newspaper, "now everyone else does."
Jesse read the headline. Young Girl Pardoned For Horrible Crime. Jesse smiled as tears of joy welled up in her eyes. Finally! Someone believed her! She read on in disbelief.
Yesterday in a local courthouse, young Jesse Tiechar was pardoned for a crime that from the beginning she knew that she didn't commit. The horrible school blaze that was allegedly started by her has been dropped. Although authorities have yet to discover who has truly committed the crime, they claim that they will keep searching until the felon is found.
Also, a millionaire who wishes to remain anonymous has offered to give the girl a full scholarship to the Pokémon Technical School of Master Trainers. They will award it to her if she receives a score of 75% or above on her entrance exam.
Jesse was even more amazed. Not only could no one else blame her, but also she was going to one of the best schools in the world! All because of that good for nothing Cassidy. I'll have to thank her.
END FLASHBACK
With her bag balancing perfectly on her shoulder, Jesse raced off to meet James as she thought in her mind about it once more. Unfortunately for me, most people still didn't believe it.
Section 2: James
James smiled as he finished up his packing. This was it! His big break! Now he could go and do whatever he wanted…and never be alone again. Not like back at the estate, he thought to himself.
START FLASHBACK
"But Mother!" James whined, something very common especially to his parents, or that wretched little brat Jessebell. "Why must I stay here? This place is a prison!"
"James, dearest, you know we only care for you being in the best of everything, and the only way to make sure that you get the attention that you need is to keep you here. Home-schooling is the only way to go," his mother told him for the umpteenth time.
"But I need friends, mother. Real friends," he pleaded. All he had was Growly, and that wasn't enough for someone who needed to see new things and explore. Growly shared this dream, but with parents like James's, neither would get what they wanted. " I want to lead a normal life."
"What do you mean you don't have friends. You have Jessebell, don't you?" Her lips curled into a graceful smile as she proudly walked over to her son.
"But I can't stand Jessebell! She's so proper…" James let his head fall slightly forwards in unhappiness. He slowly looked back up at his mother, the tears welling up in his light green eyes.
"Exactly why you need someone like Jessebell. She can teach you all you need to know about living like a civilized person," said the woman with a definite superiority complex.
"How can you call them that," James began, "when you yourself were that way once?"
His mother looked shocked. "James-dear," she began, "you don't seem to understand. We are above them all now."
James looked away in disgust. Why are my parents afraid to be human beings?
END FLASHBACK
James was halfway down the side of the wall when he began to think again about what exactly would happen after they left. He remembered looking at a map a long while ago and seeing all of the different cities which dotted the continent.
START FLASHBACK
The boy sat awake on his bed next to his sleeping growlithe. He shined his flashlight all over the atlas that lay open in front of him. He began to trace out roots with his finger, from place to place, city to city, following roads at times and others going straight through forests and open land. The boy smiled as he saw the world of opportunity laying open there in front of him. He knew that he could do anything…if his parents weren't so afraid…
END FLASHBACK
James was soon at the slightly illuminated place where the two had agreed to meet. He reached down and patted Growly on the head, causing him to slightly look up higher to meet the gaze of his master. The boy then pulled a large blue book from his backpack and began flipping through the pages until he looked out upon the pages that he had back on that night.
"Growly," he said, calling the dog's attention to the book, "here. We're here. And this," he said, slowly moving his finger, "is where we're going."
James snapped the book shut after the dog had taken a good long look and nodded in agreement. He slipped the book back into the bag and stood again, waiting. James soon saw his human companion and her snake coming into view. "Well, what are you waiting for?" the boy called to her. "Let's go!"
Author's notes: Thank you very much to everyone who responded so quickly to chapter 2. I hope that you'll be the same for this fic now. Also thanks to all of the people who did respond to the request. I really appreciate the fact that you will actually look for the things written by me (or you could have accidently stumbled upon them. Whatever, but you still responded and that's what counts) and I hope that you're enjoying my fics so far. I appreciate that I'm already getting "loyal readers" beyond Chibimousse. (says under breath loud enough so everyone can here: Quit makin' a fool of yourself, Chibimousse!) Thanks again! Now if you'll excuse me, I'll be blasting off!
PokeMaster