Author Note: I'm sick of saying "author" I'm Sammie (it's my nickname anyway), yes that's where I got Sam from. Hey, Ray (Wes whatever) is cute! That's my only defense ^^;

...

Sammie: I'm so happy [twirling around in computer chair] Ahead of schedule and two monologues. ( XD )

Plink: What are you going to do when it's May 1st and you're already done with May's chapter? I mean you're getting way ahead of your schedule and you said yourself Pyrite is not going to go well without some notes to help you

Sammie: ( -.- ) Cut scenes

Plink: Come again?

Sammie: Cute, funny scenes with Dawn and Eve that let you know how they're feeling about all of this. Dawn being on Team Ray X Sam and Eve being on Team Forever Alone

Plad: I approve, good idea ( =D )

Sammie: Thanks.

Plad: Can I say a couple of things our readers should keep in mind as they read?

Sammie: [nods]

Plad: Willie is a very intuitive person. Sam is a very observant person. And when we talk about Ray being "alone" we're referring to in relation to other humans, not Pokémon; Dawn and Eve aren't going anywhere, ever.


Chapter 7: Imperfection

"You're worth so much [so easily crushed]

Wanna be like everyone else

No one escapes, every breath we take

Dealing with our own skeletons, skeletons

You fall to your knees, you beg, you plead

Can I be somebody else for all the times I hate myself?

Your failures devour, your heart in every hour

You're drowning in your imperfection."

~ "Imperfection" by: Skillet

...

Sam

Ray's mood had changed from when they had left Phenac city, drastically so. Sam didn't understand what had caused this; when they had left he had begun to warm up to her, she thought, but now he was as cold and cut off as he had been when she'd first met him. He wouldn't look at her and didn't say a single word as they got off the bike and began to head towards the Outskirt Stand.

Standing outside, well right of the door, was a teenage boy with oddly pink hair, who looked very anxious. The second he spotted them he ran over,

"Hey Ray! Man am I glad to see you." He called out as he approached. Sam looked at Ray quizzically, he knew this person? Ray looked a little stunned, but not as surprised as she thought he would be if this were a complete stranger to him; more like he just wasn't sure how to react the teen's words. The other boy stopped when he was still well out of arms reach from Ray, which told Sam that he must have interacted with Ray at least enough to know that Ray felt more comfortable with other people at that distance. Sam couldn't help but notice, even as far away as he was, that his hair was dyed because his eyebrows were a caramelly brown color rather than pink.

"I was really worried about you," he continued, "some rough looking fellows came through here a little while ago, from Team Snagem by the looks of them. I'm glad to see that you're okay. In fact," he added with a friendly, if somewhat mischievous grin, "it looks like you've even already managed to find yourself a girlfriend."

"Oh no, it's not that–" Sam began to protest; after all she had only just met Ray. Not that she didn't like him, he was the most beautiful person she had ever seen and she knew, even if she'd only caught a glimpse of it, that underneath his cold, hard exterior was a very sweet and wonderful person. It was just that she'd only known him for what, two, three hours maybe? The boy's laughter cut through her inner babbling.

"I'm just messing with ya. Name's Willie, nice to meet you." He said with a friendly smile.

"Oh, I'm Sam; it's nice to meet you too."

"C'mon," Ray muttered impatiently, stalking off towards the old, dilapidated entrance ramp, "we came here for a reason, remember?"

Eve followed him immediately, but Dawn hesitated after a few steps, lingering near Sam, her ears flicking back, as if in irritation, at Ray's final comment.

"Oh yah, sorry." Sam called back. She partly turned around as she began to follow Ray so she could call a quick good-bye to Willie.

"Bye Willie, see you later."

"See ya, take care!" Willie called back with a friendly wave.

Ray, having reached the end of the ramp, looked back to make sure that Sam was following him, but only for a split second and Sam was certain, seeing the abruptness with which he turned away, that either he had hoped she would be looking away or that it was something he had told himself he would not do, but had done anyway.

Once they got inside Ray walked straight over to the shorter end of the bar counter, where the owner of the Outskirt Stand was currently standing.

"Is there something I can help you two with?" He asked with a welcoming smile when he saw Ray and Sam approaching.

"Yah, we heard that you might have some Poké balls." Sam answered immediately.

"Poké balls? Not much demand for those around here. I might still have some though, let me look." He replied thoughtfully.

Sam waited beside Ray with a mixture of tentative triumph and nervous apprehension as he walked to the other end of the counter and began to rummage through the boxes that were stored there; while they were waiting Ray and Sam sat down on the bar stools. Dawn immediately jumped up into Ray's lap, rubbing her face fondly against his cheek. Ray laughed and rubbed her head lovingly between her ears.

"That's my pretty girl." He crooned through his laughter and kissed her forehead gently before continuing to rub her head. It was the first time Sam had ever heard him laugh and she was almost certain that she forgot how to breathe in that moment. And the tender love that always filled his golden eyes every time he looked at the twin eons was something she thought she could never quite get used to, it always managed to take her breath away. Eve, seemingly a little jealous of the attention that her sister was receiving, stood up on her hind legs, resting her paws on Ray's thigh. Ray laughed again; his laugh was a soft one, but beautiful and heartfelt, reaching out with his left hand to stroke Eve as well.

"I love you too, my beauty." He murmured lovingly to her.

...

"Here they are!" The owner exclaimed a couple of minutes later, walking back to the, with a box filled with Poké balls and, by the looks of it, some Great and Ultra balls as well, "They're a little dusty, but they should still work fine. Just to be sure though, I'll just give you five for free."

"Oh, thank you so much." Sam replied gratefully.

"No problem at all. Who knows how long these things have just been sitting here unsold. Now that I've dug them up though, I might as well just put them out here with everything else."

"Just to be on the safe side," Ray said, the first words he had spoken to either of them since he had Sam had got inside, "I'll go ahead and buy ten more Poké balls and three Great balls while we're here."

...

"Why did you buy some Great balls too?" Sam asked as they were walking back outside. She was genuinely curious; she didn't see any reason for it.

"Because I don't want to get stuck in a situation where I need one and not have any on hand." Ray answered, with the same harsh, annoyed tone that he had used with her when they had been walking to the Phenac Stadium. Sam knew, because she had seen the kinder, vulnerable, side of him, that this, this coldness and harshness was really just an act. What she didn't understand was why he did this. Sure she had her theory that life and the world had not been kind to him, but she didn't know if it was correct. And, even if it was, he had started to warm up to her before they had left Phenac City. What had caused him to suddenly, inexplicably, close himself off from her again? She had to find out.

"Ray?"

He sighed,

"Do you ever stop asking questions?"

"No, as a matter of fact I don't." Sam retorted somewhat indignantly, irked by his response to her, "If I want to know something, I ask, period."

Ray glanced quickly at her, his brow arched in surprise and the beginnings of a small smile at the corner of his mouth. She couldn't help but think he looked a little amused, or maybe even a little impressed. 'Oh stop that.' She scolded herself, 'Just who are you trying to kid, anyway?'

"Alright then," Ray conceded with a resigned tone, "What is it this time?"

Sam bit at her bottom lip a little for a moment, thinking of the best way to word her question without scaring him off from answering her. She decided that her best bet would be to soften him up a bit first.


Ray

'Is she going to ask me a question or not?' Ray wondered. For a moment he almost asked her, a little worried that he had been too harsh and Sam no longer wanted to talk to him, but he didn't. This is what he wanted wasn't it; for her to leave him alone? In all honesty, it wasn't what he truly wanted, but what he truly wanted was something he knew, at least now, that he would never have.

"What's your favorite thing to do?" Sam asked suddenly.

Ray stopped walking, utterly stunned by her question. He could barely even remember the last, and until just now only, time that someone had asked him that. It was such a personal question, a question that required the asker caring, at least a little bit, about the person they were asking. And it had been so sudden, so unlike her pervious question. He looked over at her, unable to hide the small spark of happiness in his golden eyes at her question as he answered her.

"Other than taking care of my Pokémon? Honestly, I really love reading; it's such a wonderful way to escape." He finished without thinking,

"Escape?" Sam echoed, her voice as concerned as the expression on her face.

"Yah," Ray replied softly. As apprehensive as he was about trusting another person he was beginning to realize that he didn't really want to drive Sam away, "but I'd really rather not talk about it, so please don't ask."

"Okay." Sam agreed with a gentle smile.

Ray looked at her quizzically, shocked by her simple acceptance of his wishes.

"I don't believe in judging people on their past," Sam responded to his unasked question, "so if there's something that you don't want to talk about that's fine with me. And just because I am very curious and ask a lot of questions does not mean that I can't respect the fact that there may be some painful things someone doesn't want to share about themselves. I may be wrong in this assumption, but I would be willing to bet that you have had a very hard time for at least part of your life and that's led you to make some really bad mistakes. I suppose, what I'm trying to say is that everyone makes mistakes. Some people make worse ones than others, but that doesn't necessarily mean that they are a bad person. Honestly, I think the fact that you broke away from Team Snagem, especially in the way that you did, speaks volumes to your character, in a good way. I don't think you are a bad person at all. I think that you are a very god person with a kind heart, but you've been badly hurt and that's why you keep trying to push me away by acting so cold most of the time. But no matter how hard you try to hide it Ray, I know that you're a kind person. I've seen it; in the way you talked about Dawn and Eve, in the love and tenderness with which you always look at them, and in the rare moments when you've opened up, even just a tiny bit, to me. No, you're not perfect. Yes, you've made mistakes. But, in the end, I truly believe that you are a good person and that you just need someone to care enough about you to help you."

Ray stood stock still, paralyzed by her words. He knew that there was no way she could possibly imagine the horrors that he had lived through, but, at the same time, she had struck the fear that had haunted him from moment he had found out that Team Snagem had used and lied to him and his deepest wish so perfectly; even to the point of implying that she cared enough about him to want to help him.

"Do you?" Ray asked softly, more than half afraid of what her answer would be.

"Yes, I do," Sam answered earnestly, "but I can't help you if you won't let me, Ray. I'm so confused, I mean, back in Phenac I thought, at least it seemed like, that you were beginning to warm up to me a little, but when we got here you were so cold again, until just now. Why Ray? What happened between there and here that made you do that?"

Ray couldn't answer her. That was a question he simply was not ready to answer. He hated thinking about his past, having to remember it was awful enough, how could he possibly force himself to talk about it, the details of it? He certainly couldn't answer her, not truthfully at least and he didn't want to lie to her, without talking about his past.

"Look," Ray responded, his voice coming out much more harshly than he would have liked, strung with the echoes of all the agony that he had already suffered in his young life, "I'm sure that you really do want to help me, at least right now, but there's nothing you can do for me." Then, his voice softened, though it was no less pained, now simply hollow and dead, "What's done is done. I've looked straight into the compassionless, pitiless, eyes of the Devil herself. I've stumbled through hell and crawled out, only to be dragged right back in and there is nothing that you, or anyone else, can say, or do, to change that. There is nothing in this world that could possibly convince me to look back and think that; maybe, it wasn't all that bad after all. I already gave my heart, my trust, my willingness, eagerness, to believe that there was, or could be, good in the world; true good, good that wouldn't just go away after a short time and abandon me alone in hell again, away. And what I got for it was even worse, in some ways, that everything that had come before. How can you expect me to just forget that? How can you expect me to just open up to you like none of that ever happened? I can't, okay. Just like there's nothing that you can do to help me." Ray delivered his aggrieved monologue without so much as a single glance at Sam, fixing his haunted gaze on the horizon.

"I'm sorry you feel that way."

There was something in her voice, Ray couldn't quite identify exactly what is was, but there was something in Sam's voice when she said that that compelled Ray to look at her. Her sapphire eyes were dark with sympathy and compassion, rimmed with tears that glistened in the sunlight.

"But I'm not going to just give up on you."

Ray shrugged listlessly, hoping to let the subject drop. He felt kind of bad for what he had said and, even though every word had been true, he wasn't entirely certain that he wanted Sam to give up and leave him all alone again. 'I must be a special kind of stupid,' Ray thought wryly, 'to keep wanting the companionship of another human, despite everything that's happened. But, who knows, maybe the third time really is the charm, maybe…'

"Well I guess we should just head back to Phenac City then, unless you have a better idea that is." Ray suggested mildly.

Sam just shook her head, but the small smile that shone on her face, despite the tears that were still ringing her eyes, did more to reassure him that she really wouldn't give up on him more than anything she could have said.


Sammie: Since I like to do a, what I call "By The Way Section" on DeviantArt, I thought it would be fun to assign the boys to do that here. Actually give them a job besides comic relief and smart ass-ness. ( ^^ )

Plad: *papers rustling* Where was it… where did I put it… [grabs paper] Here it is! [reads said paper] The answer to whether Ray was hoping that Sam wasn't looking or he told himself that he wouldn't look back and failed is… both

Plink: *sigh* [shakes head at Plad] There is a pretty funny story behind why Willie's hair is dyed that we will get to hear soon

Sammie: And for my part, the whole buying Great balls thing is something I always do, my rule is to always have tons of Poké balls, lots of Great balls and as many Ultra balls as I can manage, it's like Ray said, you don't want to get in a spot where you need one and not have one.