I'm not a fast writer, but I update when I can. I thank my very small fan-base for bearing with me. Sorry for ooc-ness, I'm not good at adhering to characters that I didn't make myself. Enjoy!
Disclaimer: I don't own Pringles, even though I make a reference to it.
A face shrouded in pink swam in and out of focus in front of May. She was lying on the ground, the cold concrete pressing into the back of her head.
"Are you okay, brown-haired inferior?" Brianna asked, inches from May's face. Her breath smelled.
"Yeah... Think so..." She said, sitting up groggily and shoving Brianna out of
the way.
"Aaand the winner is DREW! What a gripping battle!" May's senses were suddenly sharp as shattered glass. Drew won? Drew beat Solidad? Crush, Hate, Beautifly, Drew, Roses, Bluk? No words or ideas made sense to May right then. All that mattered was her recent revelation. Now that she knew she liked him, how did she get rid of the feeling? Was there some kind of anti-crush medicine she could take?
"Hello May." Solidad was leaning over her. "Once again, we meet with you on the ground. Need a hand up? Feeling deja vu minus the bike and underbrush?" May accepted Solidad's hand gratefully and pulled herself up.
"Sorry you didn't win, it was a good battle." She wasn't sure what she was saying, her mind wasn't on the conversation. The first words she actually wanted to say, rather than her mouth just in autopilot, were
"Listen, Solidad. Can I talk to you? In private?"
"Of course." They left the contest hall, slowly making their way to the pokemon center.
"What is it, May?"
"Solidad, listen. You're my friend, right?"
"Of course."
"I-I've had a recent sudden understanding." She said, choosing her words carefully.
"And you need help understanding even further?"
"No. I need help getting rid of-of- a c" She kept choking on the words. "How do I get rid of a crush?" She asked in a rush, burying her face in her hands. Solidad stopped.
"I know, I know, weird request. Forget I said it."
"No. No, May. You came to the right person. I was surprised is all." May laughed.
"So good to know I can count on you, Solidad."
"Hold on, what was that?" Solidad laid a hand on May's shoulder.
"HELP!" A voice came echoing out of the forest.
"That sounds like Drew!" May said, terrified.
"It does. If HE'S asking for help he must be in real trouble." Solidad was panicking. May didn't stick around to chat. Ignoring the pokemon center as she sprinted past, she ran headfirst into the woods. If you asked he later, May couldn't possibly recreate the path she was carving through the woods. She was driven by her friend's cries for help, and something deeper. A tug from somewhere inside her, guiding her to him. May stopped, panting in the undergrowth surrounding a small clearing. In her wild flight, she'd left
Solidad behind. She was alone. No, not alone. Crouching in the underbrush, May realized why she had been driven to stop at this clearing. Drew was tied and gagged, hung from a tree like a pinata. Standing below him in the clearing, were two Team Rocket grunts.
"Now listen squirt. We know yous has got some pokemon. The boss wants them pokemon, see? Now hand them over, or people are going to get hurt."
"He's right!" May said bravely, standing up in outrage. "People are going to get hurt." She said, pounding her fist into her hand, looking into the grunt's eyes, and sounding far more impressive than she felt. "GO! Blaziken! I choose you!" She usually said 'take the stage!' But right then, she decided she needed to sound less fancy and contesty, more robust and feirce.
"Blaziken and I are ready to battle when you are!" She yelled at the grunts.
"Fine, you asked for it, you pesky worm! Go Zubat!"
"You too, Rattata! Help out!" May had been expecting something tough. she hadn't been expecting this.
"Blaziken, step on them." She said.
"I guess we'll just have to take that pokemon then!" The lead grunt said, lunging at Blaziken.
"Wait." Said a bored voice. A man stepped out of the shadows. he was tall. He wore a black suit with the Team Rocket emblem on the right side. The grunts fell to their knees.
"Boss." They muttered in unison. He ingnored them with supreme indifference.
"You, girl, out of the way." He said, brushing past May and walking right up to Drew where he hung in the tree. "Boy. News of your doings for teams Aqua and Magma have reached our ears, even all the way in Kanto, where I'm from." May looked in shock at Drew. He shook his head at her, but the fear in his eyes gave him away. The boss of Team Rocket reached up and tore his gag off. He took a huge gulp of air, and then screamed:
"May, Run! Run now!" Blue eyes met green, and the owner of the blue pair shook her head.
"I'm not leaving you, Drew. Even if you are working for Aqua and Magama. And I will expect an explanation about that. Why wouldn't you tell me? I thought we were friends." She looked into his eyes, deep and sad as an empty Pringles can.
"Let him DOWN Giovanni! Or I'll have no choice but to force you!" Now the bravery wasn't an act. Giovanni slowly turned to face her.
"With that Blaziken of yours? I'll have you know, I use ground types."
"Then I'll use my Squirtle. But let's battle, to these rules. I win, you let him go
and never bother either of us again. You win, and I'll go with you in his place." Giovanni snorted.
"What would I want with you?" May straightened herself up.
"I am May, princess of Hoenn. I am a coordinator with a fanbase. My father is the Petalburg gym leader. My little brother has befriended Jirachi, the mythical wish pokemon. I have befriended Manaphy, the mythical sea-fairy pokemon. One of my best friends is the Pewter gym leader. Another of my best friends is Ash Ketchum from Pallet town. I am a well-connected, strong trainer. I am worth more than a boy who has been involved in a couple of evil plots!" She said, Drew shaking his head at her the whole time, urging her to stop talking and run. Giovanni was looking at her in new light.
"I agree to your terms, girl. I win, you come with me. You win, you both go from this place untouched."
"Either way, you'll let him go?"
"Yes."
"Release him now, I am a girl of my word. I will not run, but you must let Drew go before any kind of deal can be settled." Drew shook his head frantically again.
"May, don't sacrifice yourself for me! I'll be fine, don't strike a deal with that monster!"
"Shut up Drew! I'm saving your sorry hind, and you'll be grateful for it. Now let him go." May said, pushing all the finality in her decision she could muster into the sentence. Giovanni snapped his fingers, and the grunts went immediately to work, untying Drew.
"Escort him back to Bonitaville. Don't let him come back." May commanded. They looked at Giovanni and he nodded. They pulled a struggling Drew back into the forest.
"Now, girl. You, me, to the finish." Giovanni said once all was quiet again, reaching for a Pokeball.
What do you think? Cliffhangery! Please leave me a review, I LOVE knowing how I can improve. All constructive criticism welcome. I promise I'll explain almost everything in the next chapter, Aqua and Magma, how Brianna cheated, and other questions you ask in reviews.
