(Fixed this up- so now your eyes won't scream everytime they read this))

Mark paced the pokemon center like a caged animal. Nurse Joy was typing away on her keyboard when she looked up, " Please have a seat, sir. Yourgardevoir will be as good as-"

"Her name's Gardenia," he growled.

Nurse Joy sighed, some people are just worriers. Each step Mark took drove another jagged splinter of guilt into his heart. How could he look into her eyes? He wouldn't blame her if she decided to leave and fend for herself.

"Sir, your ga-Gardenia is ready to see you," Nurse Joy said. Mark walked to the solitary room across the room. He almost lost his nerve as he reached for the doorknob. "I feel like I'm about to step on stealth rock or something," As he walked in, he immediately spotted Gardenia sitting on a chair with her head down. "Oh God, what can I do?" He thought. He shuffled over to Gardenia, "Gardenia-," Mark's mind was ssaulted with a cacophony of feelings and sounds. He felt the overwhelming guilt radiating from her. Streams of apologies filled his head and incapacitated him. He managed to walk towards her and sit down with an arm around her shoulder. Gardenia involuntarily flinched, and promptly broke down in tears. Mark locked her into a tight embrace as hot tears soaked his shoulder. "It's not your fault,Gardenia, god it's all my fault ,please forgive me!" They both sat there in the chairs, silently consoling each
other.

Mark walked out of the pokemon center, holding gardenia close to him. "Ya mind if I stop by the mart ?"

"Ofcourse not"

As they walked through the pokemart door, a man rushed by and ran into him,"Sorry," Mark apologized.

The man scowled as he walked out," Damned queer,"

"What was that all about?" Mark asked.

Gardenia merely blushed out of sight. They looked around the store as mark picked up some essentials," Three potions, repel, and a few antidote." He walked up to the counter where a young cashier was talking on his cellphone‚"Ready to che-"

"Yeah i know, but did ya hear what he did to his flareon!?"

" Sir, I'm-"

" Yeah, he can be an inconsiderate jerk,"

" I'm about to shove that phone up your-" This time, Mark was interrupted by the sudden blue glow on the leg of the cashier's chair. A second later the chair broke and spilled the young man onto his back. Mark looked back in amusement at Gardenia, who was hiding behind a row of pokeballs, guilt seemingly radiating from her.

Mark put his arm on the counter, "...I'm ready to check out..."

The cashier looked at the chair in confusion, " uh, yeah ...sure man, "

Mark walked out with Gardenia, a big grin decorating his face, " ahh don't feel bad, Gardenia, "he chuckled, " he deserved it anyway! "

Gardenia blushed, "Even so... I feel bad, "

He just laughed, " Hey, let's go look around that open market, some interesting trinkets there."

The two had entered a small plaza filled with one-man shopping went to look at their own interests. Gardenia went to the paintings and Mark went to the Rock music area. He was trying to decide aether or not to buy a "Pain" Cd when someone practically body slammed him into the stall.

"What the hell!?" Mark grunted. He was ready to give whoever that was a piece of his mind when he saw the face of his "attacker ". "Oh my God Zach is that you!? " he hawked at the slender youth before him. His hair was a sandy blond and a toothy grin hung on his freckled face.

"Whatcha doing here, krom? " Zach asked, calling mark by his nickname.

"Just a bit of shopping, going to Castelia, what about you? "

"Eh, mostly checking out the girls,"

Mark smirked. Zach sure didn't change.

"Like check out that one in the blue over, can't see her face but man look at that figure! "

Mark blushed, "Um...that's my pokemon..."

Zach stared at him, " ..." he whipped out his pokedex and scanned her
from afar.

"...dayum ... you lucky bastard! I can't believe you got a gardevoir! "

"Well actually I found her on the side of the road, she was um...hurt
so I took her to the center "

" Dude do you realize how lucky you are? "

"Yeah well, she's powerful and a good friend actually, "

Zach looked at him in confusion, "Don't you know what I'm talking
about? "

"...gardevoir? "

Zach just shook his head," What happened to you man, don't you go on
the Internet? "

"Well sure I -"

He was interrupted by the cellphone his friend put in front of his face. He stared at it in shock for a few moments, " What the hell man!?
Get that away! " he swatted the cellphone out of his eyes, " you're a real fuckin' pervert ya know? Its people like you that hurt Gardenia! "

Zach looked confused for a moment, " Oh crap you can't be serious..."

"You don't have the right to an explanation, you'll just have to guess," Mark grumbled.

"Look I'm sorry, but you have to admit she's a cutie,"

"Well she looks like a human..."

"While you're trying to convince yourself you aren't a freak, I'll go introduce myself."

Mark didn't really hear him, he was still trying to digest his thoughts. What would everybody else think? He was interrupted as Zach
jogged up to him.

" Hey man nice talking to ya gotta go bye,"

" Wait what? Didn't you say hi?"

Zach stopped, " Yeah, then she mentally showed me what she would do if I hit on her again," He grimaced." Oh crap there she is, bye!" Zach ran off in a full sprint.

Gardenia walked up to Mark with an annoyed expression, " He deserved it"

"I'm sure he did hahaha," *Gardenia seems to be coming out her shell...I'm glad she is recovering,* he thought.

" Can we go fight the gym leader again?" She asked suddenly. Mark stared, " What? why? I-I- look how hurt you got the last
time."

" I know, but i still want to do it, we almost won..." After a few more minutes of deliberating, they set off to challenge the gym leader again. They walked through the lobby and after a few minutes, they walked back onto the stage -like gym. This time there was no throng of jeering bodies. It was just the challenger and the gym leader.

"Well, well my man, " began Roxie, " didn't expect ya back so soon, feelin' confident? "

"Damn right I am, " Mark's thoughts went back to when Gardenia was thrashing on the ground, " your going down. "

"Good! That's what I like to hear! "Roxie laughed, "Enough with formalities then then! Go Muk!" With a red flash, Muk appeared on stage, along with a acrid stench.

"Go Tepig! "Mark threw the balk high in the air, and tepig landed with a snort, "Ember! " Tepig reared back a shot forth a flurry of red hot embers.

"Dodge Muk! " Muk was too slow however, he groaned and curled up when the cruel embers burned him. "Smog! " Muk opened his mouth until it was unnaturally large and belched forth a rancid gas. Tepig had just finished ember and he was breathing hard. Thus, breathing in the poisonous fumes.

"Crap, " Mark thought, " he's probably poisoned now." He yelled, "Flame charge! " Tepig built up speed as an inferno raged around his plump body...and he completely missed the Muk. "What the hell? "Mark muttered. "Again! "

" Clear smog!" Muk expanded his oozing mouth and let loose a torrent of a white gas. It covered the battlefield momentarily, revealing Tepig to be in the throws of a violent cough. " Muk! Use assurance."

Mark watched in disbelief as he was forced to recall his fainted pokemon. Gardenia moved forward, My turn. Mark's and Gardenia' minds linked. It was such an amazing experience to him. He felt like... like all was right with the world. We are one.

"Smog!"

Gardenia's eyes glowed and she lifted Muk high in the air, his smog harmlessly hurling through the air. Her eyes flashed and she slammed him into the floor of the stage, leaving behind a puddle of filth.

Roxie whistled, " Ya got power, but so do I! Lets go Whirlepede!" The pokemon beamed out of his ball and rolled to face Gardenia. "Pursuit!"

Gardenia jumped to one side, but she gasped in pain as the other pokemon grazed her side. She closed her eyes as colored dots appeared around her and took the form of leaves. She let them loose and pummeled the Whirlipede as it huddled in pain.

"Poison sting, Whirlipede!" The pokemon charged up momentarily ,and threw a volley of purple pins.
Gardenia was very swift, but not enough to avoid one sticking in her skirt and another in her arm. Mark felt fear, for her safety, well up inside of him, only to be squashed by a calming presence.

" Finish with venoshock,"

It was Gardenia this time who felt panic. She remembered the pain as the gooey blobs stole the life from her. She let fear drive her, command her. She flew into Whirlipede with unnatural speed and flame punched him against the wall of the gym, leaving tiny little cracks.

The referee spoke up, " The winner, Mark and his gardevoir!"

Mark stood there dumbfounded, then he rushed up and locked Gardenia in a bear hug. Which surprised her just as much as it did Roxie. He walked up to Roxie with a big grin. " Congratulations , you've earned this." She held up the toxic badge to Mark.
He took it reverently and laughed aloud, " I didnt earn it, Gardenia did." He fumbled with some string in his pocket and held it up triumphantly to show he made a necklace out of it. He put it around Gardenia, " Looks good on you,"

"Thank you," she spoke, and blushing furiously.

Roxie's and the referee's jaws practically touched the ground, but of course neither Mark or Gardenia noticed.

"C'mon, maybe we can catch the next ferry to Castelia City!"

The pair had boarded the day's last ferry to the city. There were very few people there. Mark stood with Gardenia, quietly enjoying the sunset. A man stood on the balcony, seemingly looking at the beauty before him as well. And he was, just no the sunset. A man in his early twenties gazed dark hair was slicked back. He wore dark glasses, even in the low light, and a red and green cap. A black jacket and jeans seemed out of place on the ferry.

Another voice spoke from behind," Yo Red, did ya find-"

"Call me that again and I'll gut you," He said matter-of-factly.

"Oh- s-sorry...Dan." Apperently the other man thought it best to keep quiet. So Red stayed on the balcony fiddling with a hunter's knife, and smiled,...and watched.