AN: I feel horrible, but my life is kinda crazy right now. And it'll stay crazy until March. *sigh*. But I know I'm already late, so all I can do is update now. Well Oldrival, here you go. I know this is kind of sudden, and some of you will be confused...but hey. That's just how I write. Sudden and jagged and yup. All of that. :P

Leaf's flashbacks are in order, the ones when she's older comes first, then goes back in time. WARNING! There might be triggering topics or scenes. Do not read if you think that will affect you. READ AT YOU'RE OWN RISK.

P.S. I was listening to Stand By You by Rachel Platten the entire chapter. :)

"OH MY ARCEUS! MAY COME HERE!" Dawn shrieked, reaching over to hug her best friend tightly. Everyone was cramped into the hallway just outside of May's room, watching the others say hello to May.

Leaf smiled a bit, her face twisted in bitterness.

"Hey. Leaf?" Serena asked gently, pulling Leaf towards her.

"Yes?" Leaf sighed, spinning on her heels to stare at Serena. "What?"

She winced her sharp tone, giving Serena an apologetic look.

"Um...I was just wondering where you were last night," Serena said softly, peering up with concern. "Is everything okay?"

"Huh?" Leaf asked.

Okay? Am I okay? The counselor asked me that every single time. Are you okay? But I never answered honestly.

Leaf rubbed absentmindedly at her sleeve covered arms, and Gary caught the motion, coming up with a conclusion. But it couldn't be. Gary was just jumping to conclusions.

As soon as Leaf started thinking about her past, Leaf was overtook by memories.

Thirteen-year old Leaf still struggled, even though she knew it was fruitless. The woman grabbed her tightly, yanking her.

Smack! Smack!

Leaf finally bit through her lip, the warm, metallic-tasting blood filling her mouth.

I will not cry. No. No screaming. No crying. Leaf told herself, chanting it like a mantra, promising herself that it would all end soon.

Pain rocketed into her, and she wanted to groan in pain.

Her bottom was on fire, her torso bruised.

The mean lady gave her stomach one last kick before leaving her to fend for herself against the big mean, boys.

One of them jeered at her before hitting her jaw hard with his fist. Another kicked her in the legs.

Be strong Leaf. Be strong. No crying. Don't cry. Don't cry. Be strong. You're a big kid now. No crying.

But she still felt the oncoming tears, the tickling sensation before the rush came.

And when she finally started crying silently, the teenagers laughed harder, and kicked and punched more.

"Beg us to stop! Beg us," one of the older guy sneered.

No begging Leaf. Don't beg them to stop.

But the pain was too much.

"Please," she heard someone croak.

Wait. That was herself.

"Please stop," she whispered desperately.

The older kids burst into laughter.

"Lovely. She thinks this is all a joke, huh?" one of them scoffed.

As Leaf heard the sounds of belts clinking, she was filled with dread. But she was already so used to it, so she barely lifted her head, groaning at the pain that she got from the motion.

She knew exactly what was coming. This had happened multiple times already. And the worst part was, Leaf couldn't do anything to stop them. She was in too much pain. But then they tried to make her feel good. To make her feel guilty.

And as Leaf gnawed on her raw and bloody lip, she choked back cries of pain, and held in the shocked spasms of pain, and twisted pleasure.

Thirteen was too young for this.

Heck twelve was too young when they first stole her innocence.

Leaf felt herself breaking as she sobbed harder, twisting and fighting as much as her tired, boneless body could. And by the time they were done with her, Leaf was done. She was finally done with this. And she was going to do something about it, whatever it took.

"Hello Leaf. How're you today?" Ms. Estrella asked kindly, reaching for twelve-year old Leaf's dirty hand.

"I...uh," Leaf stuttered, shrinking back. "I'm fine."

"Sweetie, are you sure? Do you want to um...be moved? Are you okay? You know Mrs. Bowen only wants to help you Leaf. She loves Pokemon, just like you, and she enjoys little girls and boys. She was unable to have children. Did you you know that?" Ms. Estrella offered, handing her another butterscotch candy.

"Okay," Leaf whispered softly, remembering the beatings that Mr. Bowen gave Leaf, and Mrs. Bowen just watched sadly. She could still feel the welts on her back, the day she visited Ms. Estrella.

Ms. Estrella sighed deeply, brushing back green hair. "Okay Leaf. This is Ms. Lauren. She's not married, so you don't have to worry about...beatings. Okay? She just wants to foster kids before she can have her own kids."

Leaf sat back, all the pressure that had previously been on her shoulders seemed to be lifted.

Leaf still remembered Ms. Lauren, one of the only families that had fostered Leaf, in which Leaf had good memories of. Happy memories.

"Leafy. I love you Leafy. You know that right? Take care of Bulbasaur for me, okay? Love you. Take care of mommy too. Don't let her drink too much of the brown stuff when I'm gone, alright?" Mr. Green croaked.

"Pappy? Where are you going?" nine-year old Leaf questioned. "Pappy! I got a 100 on my math test! Pappy?! Where are you going! NO! PAPPY WAKE UP!"

As Mr. Green's eyes closed, Leaf felt her throat close up with tears and the pain inside her seemed to break her.

"Pappy?" Leaf whispered softly, reaching out with a small hand to cup her father's cheek. "Wake up?"

"Leaffffff? Honeeeeey?" Mrs. Green slurred, staring blankly at her husband as she gulped down another mouthful of whiskey.

Leaf sighed softly, staring into her Pappy's softened face. Leaf was dreading the next few months before she could go on her Pokemon journey. Skye was gone and now Pappy was too.

Mama was gone already. She left when Pappy got sick, and started drinking from that weird-smelling clear bottle. When Skye died, it just got worse. The brown bottle smelled funny, and Leaf didn't like it one bit. Whiskey it was called. Leaf read that it made you drunk. Confused.

That's what Mama was. A drunk.

She yelled when she was drunk. She yelled and screamed and shattered glasses.

And she hit Leaf too. Not when Pappy was around. Just when Pappy was at the hospital or at work.

She didn't dare hit Pappy. Pappy was already sick enough.

"Bulbasaur. Only four months to go. Then we can escape from Mama forever," Leaf whispered with melancholy as she hugged the crying Pokemon.

"I'll miss you so much Pappy. I'll win for you Pappy. I'll beat the entire League for you Pappy," Leaf promised her dad as she reached out a tiny hand to cup her Pappy's weathered face. Bulbasaur reached out a vine, wrapping it around Leaf's hand.

"We love you."

"LEAF!?" Mama yelled, yanking Leaf by the hair. "YOU NAUGHTY LITTLE GIRL! YOU'RE GOING TO GET IT THIS TIME! DID YOU KILL YOUR FATHER? WHY DIDN'T YOU COME WHEN I CALLED?"

And then the pain started all over again.

"I love you, Leaf. You know that right? I love you. It wasn't your fault, it was never your fault," Skye whispered painfully, clutching at her chest, where she was slowly bleeding out.

"NO! NO! SKYE YOU CAN'T GO! I WON'T LET YOU! I'LL NEVER LET YOU GO SKYE! YOU CAN'T GO! I LOVE YOU SKYE! WHAT AM I GOING TO DO IF YOU DIE SKYE!?" Leaf yelled angrily.

"I love you beautiful girl. Run for me. Battle for me. Learn for me. Dream for me, okay Leaf? Live for me, will you?" Skye asked, her voice cracking with the effort and strain it took to talk.

"What about Mama?! Or Pappy! He's sick already!" Leaf cried, gripping Skye's hand.

"What about your dreams?! What about the running championships?! The Kanto League?! What about your drivers license? What about becoming a doctor, Skye?! What about everything we talked about Skye?! What about...ME?!" Leaf sobbed, half screaming hoarsely, half crying.

Leaf gripped the edge of the hospital bed, climbing up and onto the bed.

Leaf could hear Mama screaming at the doctors, screaming that they had to do something. Anything.

Skye was loved. She always came first. But Mama never liked Leaf. Because Leaf was an accident. So Leaf came second. And that was okay because Leaf loved Skye more than she loved herself.

"They have to be able to do something Skye. Isn't there anything to save you?!" Leaf whimpered softly. "I love you so much Skye. You're my best friend. Don't leave me here with Mama. Pappy's going soon. I don't want you guys to go Skye. I don't want you guys to leave. It should be me Skye! It was all my fault. I should have ran, and moved and not been on the edge, or...SKYE STAY AWAKE!" Leaf yelled.

When Skye's pale eyelids flickered open again, Leaf sighed with relief.

"It should have been me on this bed, not you Skye, never you. Pappy's sick...Oh! They say he won't live either! Skye!" Leaf screamed as Skye seemed to be drifting away once more, her eyelids closing.

The heart monitor started slowing down and Skye's soft green eyes stared at Leaf, the same green eyes Leaf had.

Leaf released an earth-shattering scream. "SKYE!"

"I love you beautiful girl. I love you so much. It was never your fault. I chose to save you beautiful girl. It was never your fault. Live for me beautiful girl. I love you Leaf. I love you so much beautiful girl. Remember that. Take care of...Mama and Pappy."

Skye's voice grew softer and softer, her words taking more and more effort to get out, until the last syllable was barely audible.

"Bye Leaf," Skye finally breathed, her eyelids drooping. "I love you."

And then, the heart monitor stopped.

And Leaf's world shattered.

"Skye! SKYE COME BACK YOU MEANIE!" Leaf yelled happily, chasing after her sister.

"Catch me first Leaf!" Skye laughed back, her long legs taking her way out of range. Though Leaf got her running abilities from Skye, Skye was older and was still faster. Leaf huffed and placed her hands on her hips stubbornly, glaring.

Leaf's eyes suddenly lit up. She gestured towards the small sleeping Pokemon. "Bulbasaur! Go grab Skye for me, okay?"

Bulbasaur grinned conspiratorially and obliged, his vines wrapping tightly around the light blue-haired girl.

"That's cheating Leaf! You can't use Pokemon!" Skye protested weakly, smiling. "You're a little sneak aren't you! Using Bulbasaur to your advantage? Hmm, whatever shall I do with you?"

"I don't care if it's cheating! You're it Skye!" Leaf giggled, reaching up and tapping her sister in the knee. "You gotta catch me first Skye! And you're not catching me this time!"

Bulbasaur placed Skye on the ground as Leaf took off, her legs blurring.

Skye grinned competitively, racing after her sister.

Leaf stopped at the STOP sign, just like Mama and Skye taught her, panting for breath as she hoped that she still had a while before Skye would catch up with her, because Leaf couldn't run across the road whenever, which meant that Skye couldn't either.

When the bright red truck rumbled past, Leaf sprinted across the street, giggling gleefully as she saw Skye trapped on the other side of the street. Leaf stood right at the edge of the curb, sticking out her tongue as the stream of cars passed them.

Skye stuck her tongue out back, giggling lightly.

Suddenly her sister's eyes widened as she saw something behind Leaf.

Leaf noticed that the stream of cars stopped and turned around to run from Skye, almost regretting not getting a head start like she usually did and teasing Skye instead.

But as she turned, bright, flashing, lights filled her eyes.

Someone or something shoved her and Leaf felt herself go flying, and when she landed, all she was thinking was, there aren't supposed to be cars on the sidewalk.

When Leaf could see again, all she saw was the limp form of Skye and the crumpled up form of the SUV, smashed in half by the traffic pole.

She saw the blood and the barley breathing form of Skye, and realized, that she should have been the one lying on the concrete.

And Skye should have been the living one, staring in horror at her dying sister. Because Skye had just saved Leaf's life. But at the what cost?

"Leaf?" Serena asked again, tugging on her arm. "Are you okay?"

"I'm...I'm fine," Leaf answered shakily, trembling."Excuse me. Let's talk later, okay 'Rena?"

She ran out of the room, her breath starting to shorten. The blur of tears already overcoming her, so she didn't see the second pair of eyes follow her. Brown eyes.

"Excuse me," Gary said politely to Ash and Clemont, who was going on and on about some new invention.

Clemont smiled awkwardly and motioned for him to go. "Uh...yeah you can go."

Gary smiled almost apologetically towards Ash, before he rushed out of the room as well.

Dawn let go of May and sat down next to her as Max walked into the room, hugging his sister with relief.

"May. I was so worried that you were leaving me too. They wanted me to decide whether to pull the plug during the bad parts where they said you might not have made it. Well, me and Cynthia, but Cynthia left me choice," Max rambled, sniffling into May's shoulder.

May smiled at her brother affectionately, patting his head.

"Okay, okay Max. You're getting tall Max. Don't worry, you're stuck with me for another few years next," May said with a grin.

"Remember May? Ask him about...her!" Dawn prompted.

May smiled, her eyes brightening as Dawn's words jolted May's memory. "So Max. Dawn tells me a girl came to visit. Who is this girl?" May probed, wiggling on her bed suggestively.

Max flushed and looked away. "No one May. Her brother came too anyways."

Suddenly the door was flung open and a shock of blond hair burst through the door.

"HI! I'm Bonnie and this is Dedenne!" the bright looking girl grinned, holding up a Dedenne that chirped in happiness.

"Oh! Hi?" May asked, slightly take aback.

"Sorry about that. That's my sister, Bonnie. She's kinda crazy. Ignore her. I'm Clemont," Clemont mumbled, stumbling into the room after her.

"Oh. Hi. Max? Explain?" May turned to her brother, placing her hands on her hips firmly.

"Uh...this is Bonnie? She goes to my private school. She's my best friend? And Clemont is her brother, who knows Ash. Yep. That's all, now..." Max explained as he inched towards the door.

"HEY! YOU GET BACK HERE!" May yelled, wobbling onto her unused feet to chase after him. But instead, she stumbled and Dawn caught her, gently placing her back on the bed

Max looked startled before racing out the door, the rest of the room laughing.

"I JUST WOKE UP FROM A NAP THAT LASTED MONTHS! BLASTED MONTHS! WHY IS EVERYONE RUNNING FROM ME TODAY!?" May shrieked as everyone else filed out the door, because it was time for Dr. Hamilton to clean up and let May rest.

Dr. Hamilton winced and offered May a confused look before unhooking May from a couple of machines. "You'll be out of here in a couple days."

"Good," May snorted, crossing her arms. "I got to get up to date. Like...now. What have these kids been doing?"

Dr. Hamilton laughed lightly before leaving the room, leaving a confused May and a pile of dishes, three jackets and a pair of shorts.

May could only wonder where those items came from.

"Leaf! Where are you going?!" Gary screamed as the air whiplashed him. He was breathing pretty hard already.

Six flights of stairs and seven blocks. That was pathetic. And with that thought, Gary sped up.

Leaf had taken the stairs and Gary had followed, and now they were running on the streets of LaRousse, hopping from the moving sidewalks and heading anywhere and everywhere. Gary really had no idea. He just needed to chase Leaf down.

Leaf always disappeared for hours upon time, but none of them had ever been able to figure out where she went. To the the park yes, but it was the largest park in LaRousse, stretching more than eight square acres.

"STOP FOLLOWING ME!" Leaf choked out, before running faster, her legs stretching out and eating up the ground. But Gary was taller with longer legs. And so he followed in suit, catching up just a little more.

When Leaf finally reached the tree-covered park, she put on a burst of speed and suddenly, she was gone.

Gary stopped where the forest started, panting as he surveyed the park, spiking up his hair even more. "Where did that damn girl go?"

He sighed, looking indecisively out. "Back to the Base? Or should I finish looking for Leaf?"

Gary sighed again, before walking into the thick forest, the trees swallowing him up as well.

He searched for about half an hour, calling out and listening for the soft cries.

"Leafeon."

Gary stared at the Eeveelution. "It's got to be Leaf's. Eeveelutions are rare as it is, not even counting how rare wild Eevees are."

"Leafeon," Leafeon mewled, scratching at her ears playfully while yawning.

"Leafeon Leaf."

Then it turned around and strolled leisurely back to the forest. Gary gave it a look of slight confusion before shrugging, and following it anyways, regardless off his obliviousness.

The deeper the two of them went, the darker and more ominous the forest seemed. Yet the cheery presence of Pokemon and the streams of sunlight alighting the mossy ground contradicted the shivers that crawled up Gary's spine, reminding him of Aunt Delia's house at Thanksgiving. Still, a chill creeped up his back, the chirps and calls becoming more and more eerie.

Suddenly, sobbing broke through the evil atmosphere.

"Leaf?" Gary called out hesitantly.

The sobbing suddenly quieted, but soft sniffles were still heard.

"Leaf? Where are you?" Gary muttered, searching through the undergrowth. Leafeon tosses its head with annoyance before strutting towards a cluster of bushes with lots of leafy fronds rather than branches.

Gary pulled back the leaves as he went, before stumbling into a hole in the green.

Leaf was curled up with the leaves reaching up and over her while the rest surrounded her. Though there was clearly an area cleared out just enough for Leaf and maybe two more people.

"Whadda you want Gary?" Leaf mumbled, hiding her face, her eyes full of sadness.

"I just want to make sure you're okay. Is that too much to ask?" Gary asked softly, sitting down and running a hand through his spiky hair.

Leafeon purred and stepped onto Leaf's lap, curling up and falling asleep.

"No one cared before. Why should anyone care now?" Leaf snapped angrily, though her voice cracked at the end, betraying her struggle.

"Because they were all horrible people before. People who didn't understand you. Now you have a family, lots of people who want to be your friend. May's your friend. All of the girls are your friend. Even us Brothers are your friends. I want to be your friend too Leaf. You're so kind, and smart, and amazing. I'm sorry that no one ever helped," Gary told her.

They sat together, Leaf sniffling once in a while, almost complete silence filled the space between them.

"I was eight. When Skye died. When she saved my life and died for me. Skye was my everything. She was my best friend. She was everything I wanted. She loved me, and I loved her. She was more my mother than my mother ever was. She was beautiful and talented and smart and amazing and fun and gentle and kind and everything good. And she left me all by myself, dying of guilt because I knew that I could've prevented it. Because it was all my fault that she was dead. Skye was dead because of me," Leaf whispered, tears filling her eyes.

The tears created kaleidoscopes. They danced in her eyes, browns and golds and greens all mixing.

"That broke my mom. I was nine when my dad died of cancer. My mom became a drunk. I went on my Pokemon journey when I was ten. I came back, and found out that my mom had killed herself. So I was put into the foster care system. And I never got to attend a Pokemon League again. In the foster care, they beat me, the older kids stole my food, and ruined my books. They...I won't get into it. But the older guys violated my physical rights," Leaf swallowed as if there was lump she wanted to get rid of.

"You should know. That's all you do in our free time, no? Go out and meet girls, date them, fuck them, love them, break them, leave them. Right?" Leaf scoffed, rubbing at her eyes furiously.

"I do not! They think tha-" Gary protested.

"They made fun of me at school, and no one wanted to be my friend. They made fun of me for being a teacher's pet and being smart. They tried to cripple me multiple times because of my track record. Because...because of Skye, I ran for Skye. I battled for her. Her last words were to live for her. So I did. And I was a good runner. Like my dad. But they didn't like that. And battling...They often stole my Pokemon because I was famous for winning with only six Pokemon. They...broke me. And then I started..." Leaf trailed off, staring at Gary who had a solemn expression on his face, the usual haughty and playful look in his eyes were gone, replaced by seriousness that Leaf didn't think he possessed.

Leaf sighed deeply and thought for a moment, pondering whether to trust Gary or not.

"You can't tell anyone," Leaf warned, reaching for her sleeves. "Not even May."

Gary felt dread as she made the motion, because he already knew what was coming.

And when Leaf pulled up her sleeve, Gary saw the long thing marks along her arms, the jagged scars, and the scabs, and even the fresh ones, still raw and red, coated in smeared blood.

Gary felt like puking.

"You started cutting."

It wasn't a question between them. It was a statement. A fact.

They both knew that was what the cuts meant. But Gary needed the verification. He didn't want this to be real. He wanted this all to be a dream, to wake up and forget all about it. But he was there now and Leaf was there, in front of him, with cuts on her arms.

"Yes."

Leaf's voice was so quiet Gary could have missed it. Leafeon shifted in Leaf's lap, nuzzling into her jacket.

Gary felt sick and faint and everything in between.

"You started cutting," Gary whispered softly, brokenly. "Why would you do that Leaf? Why? I can't...I just...Why?"

"Because I don't deserve to live. Not when I killed my sister. Not when...my entire family is dead and I'm still alive. It's not fair. No one will miss me anyways. You think you will, but really, you won't. I'm not Skye. I don't go around, impacting everybody. I'm just...me," Leaf replied sadly.

"And because Skye told me to live for her...that get's harder every day. Because she told me to live for her, all I can do is match my pain to the pain that Skye and Pappy had to go through. The pain that I deserve. Every exercise I do with the cuts...they make it all the more fair. More real," Leaf gave Gary a bittersweet smile.

"That's just so...WRONG!" Gary growled, hitting the ground and pulling his other hand through his hair.

"You just think I'm pitying myself don't you?" Leaf asked brokenly.

"You're not Leaf. You just can't hold it in anymore and it broke you. You're so broken. God Leaf. You're hurting so much. But I'm hurting too. May hurts. Serena hurts. We all hurt. You're not alone. We're all there for you. I know you think you're ugly and that no one wants you. But why can't you see that you're beautiful Leaf? Why can't you see how much we all love you? Why can't you see that you're beautiful and talented and smart and amazing and awesome? Because you are Leaf. You're so so beautiful," Gary said, his voice thick with emotion.

"You're amazing Leaf. You deserve to live. You do. Skye told you to live for her because she loves you Leaf. And she's not the only one. You're not alone. Never alone."

Leaf's first tear slid down her cheek as Gary lifted her up, hugging her. Leafeon laid asleep on the grass as Leaf clutched Gary, crying hard.

"You're so broken. You forgot how to fly Leaf. I forgot once. How to spread my wings and just live," Gary murmured into Leaf's shoulder, just as sad.

"We want to help you. We all see how beautiful you are Leaf. You with all your scars. Even after you shown me your scars, I still see that you're beautiful. Will you let me show you how to fly again Leaf? How to live? To love? Will you let me help you?" Gary pulled back as he stared deeply into Leaf's pained eyes.

"You're walking in hell Leaf. And you think there's will never be people who'll walk with you, but I will Leaf," Gary whispered brushing a finger against her tear-stained cheeks. "If you can't find heaven, I'll walk through hell with you, and show you how to find earth again. I'll walk through hell with you. Love, you're never alone. Never. If you ever believe that for a second..." Gary's voice broke again.

They just breathed together, their hot breath mingled, as Leaf heaved and Gary tried to contain his emotional breakdown.

"Will you let me show you how to fly out of hell again? And to just...live? To live and love?" Gary asked.

Leaf was still crying, and her chest tightened with every word that Gary said. Gary's words made his chest rumble, and the warmth that his sturdy torso gave off warmed Leaf to the very core, making her feel like she was with Skye or Pappy again.

From what was coming out of Gary's mouth, he was just as broken as she was, but he had overcome it by himself. Leaf wasn't that strong. She wasn't strong enough. She couldn't do it by herself. But was she strong enough to let Gary help?

"I'm so scared to love again. To let people love me," Leaf cried out, releasing the tight knot in her chest. "Everyone I loved. Everyone who loved me left me. Who's to say they won't again?"

"That's out of our control Leaf," Gary answered, pressing a kiss to the top of her head.

"But if you don't love, you don't live. You hide and you pretend, but you have to love honey. Leafy, you have to love. I can't promise that I won't die on you, because I'm an agent. You know just as well as me what that entails," Gary said reluctantly.

"I can say that I'll try my very best to never hurt you again Leafy. But I'm human. I break and bend and fall. I'm not perfect. I will hurt you. But I want to help you Leaf. I want to stand with you and walk through all this hurt and the hell you're struggling with. Let me. Please," Gary told her.

Leaf hugged Gary tightly, appreciating the warmth and as her thought whirled around her, she couldn't help but think about how inappropriate this was.

"I've always liked you. But I didn't like the cocky attitude. The way you went out just to break other girls. It made me wary. And it made me hate you. Because I was scared to become your friend, only to be hurt again," Leaf said out of the blue, her sobs ceasing and only stray tears falling down her face.

"And I liked you," Gary told her. "I saw that there was more to you than any of the shallow girls I dated, and as you said, 'fucked'. You were real, and layered. You were complicated but beautiful in your own way. And that caught my eye Leaf. You're still complicated and broken but you're not damaged goods. You're just perfect the way you are, a little broken maybe, but that's okay with me. Is that okay with you?"

"Yes," Leaf answered automatically wincing at how clingy she sounded.

"Will you teach me how to love again? And to live without this much...fear?" Leaf asked hesitantly, scared all over again.

Gary's eyes were tired and his face was lined with worry when he answered, though warmth still showed through his voice. "Of course Leafy. We'll get through this together?"

"Yes," Leaf breathed decisively, wiping away the tears, her green eyes clearing up.

Gary grinned broadly, standing up and putting Leaf on her own feet, waking up Leafeon in the process.

"Let's start slow, so Leaf, would you let me be your boyfriend? To help you and walk through this together?" Gary asked, smiling.

Leaf gave him a weak grin, "Putting a title on it already? Isn't someone full of himself. What if I said no?"

Gary smirked.

"There's my feisty girl. You won't say no, because who could deny themselves this?" Gary laughed, motioning at himself.

The pair shared a wry smile before Gary reached for Leaf's hands lacing their fingers. And as they walked back through the forest, back through the park and through the streets, back to the Base, Leaf felt warmth filling her chest, spreading everywhere. She felt tired from crying and breaking down, but she was happy, and for the first time in a long time, she felt safe. And loved.

It was all because of Gary, and Leaf was okay with that, because she decided that loving and being loved was worth it. It was worth the risk and the pain.

AN: I'm so emotionally exhausted. I cried. Yipee. I've had similar experiences to Leaf... with all they dying family members. I guess that made it all the more real. :( I hope you enjoyed it though! :P I know there weren't much any about the other characters, and I briefly introduced Bonnie and Clemont, and May's awakening and all that. But I just focused on Oldrival, Gary being understanding but not creepy(tell me if i failed at that) and Leaf's past. So...sorry if that's not what you were expecting.

Review please if you're still with me! :)

-Ange(my friend says it's spelled this way and since he's the only person that calls me this, I guess it's spelled with an 'e')