Another chap down! I also have a few notes.

I have already done this for my other story PMD4: Explorers of Space and I'm doing this for New Divide as well. I am permitting you guys to make stories or pics about my OCs; you can do short comics, misadventures, etc. I also will be accepting people's OCs into this story.

But there are restrictions; One, if you're making stories or pics about my OCs, then give credit to me for them and send me the links of the story or pic. They are my OCs and I'm giving you permission to use them. Two, don't alter their personalties and keep their background stories intact so they stay as they are now. If you don't understand their full background, then read their biographies in my DeviantArt account. Three, if you want your OCs in this story, then tell me a bit about them through a PM; I need to know what Pokemon they are, what their names are, and how they behave. However, those OCs will make brief cameo appearances since I already have the story planned out. Four, PM me about making a story, pic, or inserting your OC into this story. I want to hear your plotlines and we'll talk about what I can do.

With that thought in mind, enjoy the chapter!

New Divide

Chapter 10: A Hero's Return

Raikou, Darkrai, and Ash don't open their eyes until their feet touch a glassy surface. They slowly open their eyes and find themselves in a magnificent hall with gold murals and lit torches. They sigh in relief and let go of each other's hands as they look around. Ash views the architecture curiously while Darkrai and Raikou smile in happiness.

"We're back…" Darkrai murmurs as he places his hand against a pillar fondly. Raikou grins widely and inhales sharply as he lets out a sigh of relief. Then he looks at his comrades. "Should we go see Arceus?"

Darkrai nods as the Legendaries lead Ash towards two magnificent gold doors. "Yeah. I think that we kept everyone worried for long enough."

Raikou is about to open the doors when his ears twitch. Then he places his head against the door. Darkrai frowns. "What is it?"

Raikou furrows his eyes in bewilderment. "I hear yelling…"

Darkrai and Ash frown before they place their ears against the door and listen carefully. Sure enough, there is a loud commotion going on behind the doors but the sounds are too muffled to be understood. Raikou takes the chance and carefully cracks the door open. The boys grimace when they hear loud voices booming from the room.

"What do you mean Latias is gone?"

"Can't we do something about it?"

"You Legendaries are supposed to protect life and you're telling us that another one is missing?"

"This just isn't right, I tell you!"

The boys' eyes widen in bewilderment before they continue to listen. "Everyone, please just calm down. Let's talk this out. " Arceus' powerful voice says calmly.

To Raikou's surprise, he hears Heatran shouting at the God in an angry voice. "Talk this out? Not only did we lose Raikou and Darkrai, but we lost Latias as well. And you just want to talk it out?"

Suddenly Ash blinks in bewilderment. "Wait… How can I understand what Pokémon are saying now?"

"Shh…" Darkrai shushes the human and continues to listen to the argument.

"He is right, Arceus dude." A surfer dude voice says out of nowhere. Raikou nearly squeaks in surprise when he realizes that it's Jeff that's speaking. Who else is in the room? Curious, he peeks through the crack and is surprised to see all the Legendaries and his tribe allies inside the council room. Darkrai and Ash peek as well and the human is surprised to see his Pokémon standing at the front of the council. However, all the Pokémon look incredibly upset or annoyed about their argument while Arceus looks tired. Cresselia, Suicune, and Pikachu are crying and the heroes' hearts sink at the sight.

The Roselia continues. "Not to be mean or anything, but it does sound a bit off that the Legendaries are disappearing without a trace. Not cool at all, dude." He shakes his head. Several Pokémon nod in agreement while the three heroes watch in bewilderment.

The God stares down at the flowery being before he sighs. "Little one, I agree with you on what you say. It is unnatural for the Legendaries to just disappear; as the leader, I should be aware of what happens to them."

"Don't you?" A voice demands. Arceus sighs and shakes his head in weariness and irritation. "No. If Terotrey is the capturer, then he probably has done something to block my power to foresight anyone's future."

As the Pokémon chatter amongst themselves, the boys' eyes widen in alarm. So the Legendaries do know that Terotrey has returned! How did they figure it out so early…?

"But what are we going to do about Latias?" Rayquaza demands as he glares poisonously at the God. "We cannot just let her go. We need her help to protect innocent Pokémon."

Several Pokémon are honestly surprised that Rayquaza seems to care about Latias' fate, but they say nothing as they wait for the God to respond. Arceus sighs again and breathes deeply. "Rayquaza, I understand your concern, but there is nothing that we can do at this point. All that we can do is hope that Latias returns home safely."

"In other words, you are telling us to forget about Latias like we should forget about Raikou and Darkrai." Heatran snaps. Arceus snaps his head down to glare disapprovingly at the exiled toad.

Darkrai and Raikou freeze as they feel their hearts stop. Did they hear right?

Suddenly Arceus' voice turns cold as he glares at Heatran. "No, I do not mean that and I never did. Darkrai and Raikou are two of the best Legendaries in the court. We all know that."

"But that's not what I'm hearing right now," Heatran argues. "You've banished the other Legendaries and we have never heard from them in centuries. What are the chances that we won't hear from Darkrai, Raikou, and Adam again?"

"Ash." Sceptile corrects the toad irritably but Heatran ignores him.

"My point is that you have chosen to give up on the boys after all that they've done for us. They're no better off than Blackfire-"

Suddenly Arceus stomps his hoof and creates a gust of wind to blow through the room. Everyone is silent and still as they stare at the God with wide uneasy eyes. Heatran looks stunned while Arceus holds a dark glint in his gold eyes.

"That is enough, Heatran," Arceus growls dangerously. "You've gone too far by bringing up Blackfire in this discussion. I have regretted my decision but don't you dare make me feel worse about it than I already do."

Heatran suddenly pulls himself together and narrows his eyes at the God. "You made that choice, Arceus! You've chosen the law over your mate!"

Arceus says nothing but his eyes flash dangerously. The boys decide that they need to make themselves known before Heatran and Arceus start a fight. They carefully push open the doors and make their way into the room. They ignore the shocked looks from the other silent Pokémon as they slowly walk down the stairs towards the pedestal.

"You've chosen to abide the laws instead of defending your mate!" Heatran continues. "You chose to banish her and to not speak to her again for centuries!"

"You know the penalty as much as I do, Heatran!" Arceus snaps. The Pokémon could sense that he is about to use Judgment and cautiously step back in alarm. "The punishment was death but I loved Blackfire too much to carry it out! So I did what I thought is best and banished Blackfire from the council! There isn't a day that goes by that I don't regret what I've done, but it is better to know that Blackfire is alive and missing instead of being dead here!"

"But as the God of all Pokémon, you could easily pardon the law for your benefit!"

"I cannot pardon anything just as much as I can't pardon the other Legendaries here!"

"Now you are looking for excuses!"

"I am not!"

Soon the boys reach down to the pedestal and look uneasily between the bickering Pokémon. They still ignore the other shocked Pokémon as they wait for their God to take notice of them. But when the God continues to argue with the toad, Darkrai sighs as he pokes Arceus' hoof. "Um, Arceus-"

"Not now, Darkrai." Arceus glances at Darkrai and shrugs him off before he glares back at Heatran. "I cannot pardon crimes because it goes against the balance of life and… Uh…"

Arceus blinks when realization hits him. Then he and Heatran slowly turn to look at the boys and stare in bewilderment. "Raikou? Darkrai? Ash?" They ask simultaneously.

The boys look sheepish as they nod. "Hi, Arceus." Raikou greets lamely.

There is absolute silence as everyone stares at the boys. It's almost like everyone is trying to determine if they are illusions or not. Several psychics even used their powers to sense the boys' auras and are stunned speechless when they realize that the boys are alive and standing before them.

Suddenly several shrieks erupt and the boys find themselves tackled down to the ground. Several strong limbs refuse to let go of them as the boys sit up in bewilderment.

What…?

"RAIKOU! OH MY ARCEUS, IT'S YOU! IT'S REALLY YOU! WE ALL THOUGHT THAT YOU'D- OH NO WAY! NO WAY IN HELL! YOU'RE ALIVE!"

"… Jeff?" Raikou mutters as he sits up. He sees Suicune, Entei, Jeff, and Skyler hugging the daylights out of him as they cry over his body. Darkrai was pinned down by Cresselia as the metallic swan hugs him tightly and cries her eyes out. Ash is surrounded by his Pokémon as they try to take turns nuzzling him.

"Yes, it's me, you idiot!" Jeff bawls as he tightens his hold around Raikou's neck. The tiger almost chokes from the tightened hug. "Dammit, how could you? We thought that you were dead! And I almost died at the thought that my main dude was dead and-"

"Jeff." Raikou interrupts the flower hoarsely. Suddenly Jeff realizes how tightly he is hugging Raikou ad lets go with a sheepish smile. "Sorry, dude."

"Raikou…" Suicune weeps as she buries her snout against his furry neck. Raikou looks at his girlfriend and smiles as he nuzzles her back lovingly. Then he notices how pale and droopy Suicune's eyes are and wonders how long she had been crying. Pikachu and Cresselia both look just as upset and tired as the water dog does. The phantom wraps his arms and holds Cresselia closely as he whispers softly to his girlfriend. Ash holds Pikachu tightly as the mouse cries against his vest.

"Damn it, Raikou!" Suicune cries as she looks up at Raikou angrily. Suddenly she slaps him across the face. Raikou quickly recovers and holds his cheek as he stares disbelievingly at Suicune.

"What was that for?" He whines. Suicune glares at him. "That was for worrying me sick! I thought that you were dead, Raikou! Explain how you managed to escape from Terotrey!"

Several of the Pokémon make approving sounds while the Legendaries hold expectant looks and cross their arms.

Ash sighs as he stands up. He walks over to the annoyed and teary Suicune and places a hand on her shoulder. "Don't be mad at Raikou and Darkrai; they couldn't help it if they were captured."

Suicune blinks before she stares at the human. "You can understand what we are saying? How?"

Ash shrugs. "I could understand what Pokémon have been saying after I woke up and met Darkrai and Raikou. That was right after Terotrey captured us."

Mewtwo suddenly floats up. "We are aware that Terotrey has taken you because he left a note with his initials. But why does he want you three? What happened? How did you escape?"

Ash, Raikou, and Darkrai glance at each other. They know that these questions would be brought up and they already have answers for them. However, they only hope that they could pull off their story effectively and convince the Pokémon.

Then the trio begin to share their tale. They explain how Terotrey disguised his voice as Arceus' and orders Darkrai, Raikou, and their counterparts to inspect an island that was actually a trap. Ash explains that Terotrey has captured him while he was asleep. Raikou and Darkrai believe that Terotrey is after them for revenge but they state that they have no clue as to why Terotrey has captured Ash. They choose to keep quiet about the fact that Terotrey is also after them for a prophesy; it would only bring up more questions and suspicion.

Then the boys explain about how Terotrey takes them away and how Raikou bites the dragon and frees them. They explain about how Ash wakes up and finds out that he is able to understand Pokémon language. Then they explain about how the robots and Terotrey attack them. They explain about how they manage to trick Terotrey into creating another portal while the dragon is distracted by a lake of magma. The boys describe how they transwarp back into the real world and get lost in the Shinnoh forests. They explain that they have rested and hiked for several hours until they find an open meadow and find out that they are close to Mount Coronet. They finalize the story by stating that the Legendaries have taken Ash and quickly return to the Hall of Legends so they could warn the Legendaries and their allies about their predicament.

When the boys finish, the Pokémon are thoughtful as they murmur amongst themselves. Arceus stares hard at the boys and they gulp in anxiety. It's almost impossible to lie to the God but they hope that their cover story would be sufficient enough to fool everyone. The boys' hearts pound as they wait for someone to say something.

"I see…" Arceus nods his head.

Suddenly Mewtwo floats up and he looks suspicious as he narrows his eyes at the boys. "But why would Terotrey summon a portal when he could just kill you at the spot? How did you trick him into summoning one?"

The heroes could feel their confidence slimming until Deoxys steps up. "Enough!" She glares disapprovingly at Mewtwo. "The boys were almost killed and you criticize them about how they managed to survive? I trust Raikou and Darkrai and you should too!"

Mewtwo glares at Deoxys before he sighs and shakes his head. The heroes are somewhat relieved when they realize that none of the psychics has read their minds and are grateful that they have their privacy. Suddenly Deoxys looks at the boys. "So what is Terotrey like this time?"

Raikou is thoughtful as he remembers about the dragon. "Well, he can change into either his human form or dragon form. And when we fought him, most of our moves go through him like a ghost. Terotrey explained that he puts up a spell that shields him from all moves. However, the shield is down whenever he is too preoccupied to think about putting up a shield."

"How did he come back to life?" Rayquaza demands.

"We don't know…" Darkrai mutters as he crosses his arms. "Maybe someone brought him back to life. Whoever did it must be as powerful as a Legendary." Suddenly Blackfire crosses the phantom's mind and he shudders. But surely the exile doesn't have the power to bring someone back to life?

Darkrai's statement causes uproar. Several Pokémon shout in outrage while the Legendaries hold looks of disbelief. "Are you saying that one of us is the cause of his return?" Zapdos barks.

Darkrai immediately senses the error in his statement and tries to fix it. "I never said that! I'm just saying that there has to be more behind Terotrey's return! What if he is something else? What if he isn't a human?"

The Pokémon continue to argue about Darkrai's accusation until Ash loses it. "ENOUGH!"

Everyone falls silent as they stare at the human in surprise. Ash looks aggravated as he glares at the Pokémon around him. "You're arguing about something that cannot be fixed when you should be talking about what we need to do! You're Legendaries for crying out loud! Are you going to let one situation that happened in the past get the best of you? I may not know much about Terotrey, but I know that we need to find a way to stop him before he hurts more Pokémon! He already has one Legendary in his grasp and he is probably planning to capture more. So instead of arguing about something that is useless at this point, why don't you figure out how to fix this mess since it is your duty to protect life?"

The Pokémon are speechless while Ash storms out of the room. The Pokémon grimace when he slams the doors behind him and the vibrations echo in the silent room.

Raikou and Darkrai look gobsmacked by Ash's audacity. Suddenly a newfound respect for the boy grows in the duo; he sure has the guts. Then the duo glance at a silent Arceus. When the God nods in understanding, the dismissed Legendaries walk up the stairs and follow Ash. Their allies glance at each other before they follow the duo out of the room.

-ooo-

Darkrai and Raikou walk through the hallway as they look around for the human. Their insides were churning from lying to their friends but they relax as soon as they are out of the room. They feel guilty about lying to their friends but they have a promise to keep.

Now they have to find the human and somehow calm him down. Suddenly they hear grumbles and peek over a corner. They see Ash sitting against a pillar as he holds his legs close to his chest. The human glares out at space as he mutters under his breath. The Legendaries hold concerned looks as they kneel beside him.

"Ash?" Raikou murmurs softly. Ash flinches before he glances at the tiger beside him. His glare softens before he resumes looking out at space.

Darkrai sighs in aggravation. The kid is being stubborn and it's getting annoying fast. "Kid, we need to talk."

"About what?" Ash asks smartly. Darkrai snorts and is about to say something when Cresselia calls out to them. "Boys? Is everything all right?"

The boys blink and turn to see their allies standing over the corner. They look worried and confused.

"Is everything all right?" Cresselia asks as she floats beside Darkrai and looks down at the boy in concern.

"He's fine. He's been PMSing after we escaped. Seeing us fighting Terotrey has gotten him riled up." Darkrai muses coolly. Raikou and Ash glare disbelievingly at Darkrai and the phantom glares back at them.

Cresselia gives Darkrai a dirty glare before she smiles softly at Ash. "So, you're all right then?" Darkrai pouts when Cresselia ignores him.

Ash forces himself to nod and smile. "Yeah, I'm fine. I'm just tired. I'm sorry for yelling at you guys…"

"It's fine, kiddo." Deoxys waves a dismissive hand. "We all have problems and we need to let out our emotions every now and then."

Ash smiles as he stands up and faces the others. Jeff holds up a rosy hand as he gazes curiously at Ash. "So, you can understand everything that we say?"

Ash stares at the rose and notices that he has a lazy smile on his face. He shrugs and nods. The flower grins like an idiot. "Sweet, man…"

Deoxys then notices the weary look on the heroes' faces. "Well, I'm sure that you boys must be very tired after your experience. Why don't we go our separate ways and get some rest? We'll meet again at here tomorrow afternoon."

The boys are tired from Crystal's training but don't say anything as they nod in agreement. Deoxys looks at Darkrai, Cresselia, Ash, and the other Pokémon. "Darkrai and Cresselia can go home and Ash's Pokémon will take Ash back to Pallet Town." Suddenly Deoxys looks hopeful as she glances at Raikou. "Raikou, the others and I have been worried about you since you left. Would it be all right if…?"

Raikou smiles in understanding and nods. After all, his allies were like a family to him; he wants to spend as much time with them as possible. "Of course. You're welcome to stay with me and my counterparts for the night."

His friends smile and the three groups go their separate ways. Darkrai and Cresselia fly off into the night while Ash's Pokémon carefully carry their master down the path. Raikou decides to rest in the nearby forests and the Pokémon walk out of the Hall of Legends. Jeff and Skyler make several suggestions of what they could do around the campfire.

"We'll go fishing and tell ghost stories. We can sit around the campfire and sing some of Taylor Swift's old songs…"

The Pokémon smile as they listen to the duo and Raikou shakes his head. Then he gives Suicune a loving nuzzle. 'It's good to be back.'

Suddenly Jeff begins to sing.

I am really special cause there's only one of me,

Look at my smile

I'm so damn happy that people are jealous of me

When I'm sad and lonely I like to sing a song,

It cheers me up and shows me that I won't be sad for long

Oh, oh, oh!

I'm so happy I can barely breathe,

Puppy dogs and sugar frogs and kitten's baby teeth.

Raikou frowns while the Pokémon groan and smack their foreheads in exasperation.

-ooo-

Crystal sighs as she splashes the water with her feet. She sits over a cliff on the beach and kicks her feet casually against the seawater. She closes her eyes as the evening breeze gently blows through her. Then she opens her eyes and looks up at the twilight sky. She could make out a few stars behind the orange and lavender colors.

The she looks down at her reflection. She sees the Jewel of Life glowing and looks down at her chest. The cold glassy surface gleams while various colors continue to flow around inside it. When she touches the orb, the colors seem to flow towards her touch.

It's still crazy to think that she has her father's life through the orb. She understands that Blackfire has given it to her through a disguise because it wasn't safe with her during her imprisonment. But does Blackfire really trust Crystal enough to keep the God's life safe? And would the orb infuse into Crystal's soul and become a part of her as well?

Suddenly Crystal hears a splash and looks up. She narrows her eyes as she sees two figures underwater. Then they start to come towards her. When the duo pop out of the water, Crystal relaxes when she realizes that it is her two old acquaintances.

"Crystalline! Darling!" The Lapras with red eyes grins at Crystal as the lizard hugs her neck. Crystal gives her blue-eyed sister the same hug. "How have you been, dear?"

"Just wonderful. Thanks for asking," Crystal grins. "How have you two been? Still collecting unique shells, I see." Crystal notices Laureen's red earrings and necklace and Laura's blue earrings and necklace.

"Still in the underwater jewelry business." Laura smiles before she notices the orb on Crystal's orb. "It seems that you have a knack for treasure yourself."

Crystal glances down at the orb and shrugs innocently. "Yeah, but this one got implanted onto me. It has a mind of its own."

The girls only nod before Laureen looks excited. "Crystal! You won't believe what happened to us! We actually helped the Legendaries Raikou, Suicune, and Entei on their mission a few days ago! They needed a ride to get to a new island!" Suddenly she frowns. "But that place was a wasteland; the only thing that occupied it was a dark cloud."

"Darkrai and Raikou were missing when Entei and Suicune returned to ride back to the mainland. We were concerned until we heard that those boys returned to the Legendaries a few minutes ago." Laura adds.

Crystal frowns. 'Damn that Terotrey! He tricked the Legendaries into another one of his traps! Arceus, he's getting smarter with his plans…' She thinks furiously to herself. Then she looks up at the girls and forces herself to smile. "Well, that's good news then! Good for you!" Then the Grovyle looks curious. "Was there something that you needed?"

The twins blink before they smile and shake their heads. "No, we just wanted to see our old friend. We've got gifts for you and the others."

Crystal blinks as she watches the girls reach over their backs to grab their damp handbags. They pull off the seaweeds before they dig inside and pull out several pieces of unique objects. Then they hold the objects out to Crystal.

They show Crystal a gorgeous pink pearl necklace. "This is for Laki."

They show Crystal an opal pendant that has an amethyst implanted in the center. "This is for Violet."

They show Crystal a sea-green stone. "This is for Ribo."

They show Crystal a necklace that has rubies and onyx stones. "This is for Scalene."

They show Crystal a Hard Stone. "This is for Rocky."

They show Crystal a Dawn Stone. "This is for Gallade."

The girls smile at Crystal as they give Crystal a unique purple shell that looks like an ocarina. "And for you, dear."

Crystal's heart churns at the girls' generosity. She shakes her head. "Girls, I can't accept these. I appreciate it, but-"

"But nothing." Laura says firmly as she shoves the items into Crystal's arms. "We worked hard to make most of the items and it's only right that we repay you for helping us with our business."

Crystal opens her mouth but closes it instead. She nods slowly and smiles thankfully at the girls.

"Good." Laureen pets Crystal's shoulder fondly. "Now, Laura and I need to get going. We still have a business to run and time is short."

Crystal nods in understanding and waves as the Lapras turn to leave. The girls wave at her over their shoulders. "Ta-ta, Crystalline. Until we meet again!"

"Bye! And thanks again!" Crystal calls as she watches the Lapras disappear underwater. Then she turns to leave and barely makes it halfway through the beach when she confronts her friends.

"Cryssy!" Gallade rushes down to the girl and pants breathlessly. "There you are! We have been looking for- What's all this stuff!" He notices the jewelry in Crystal's arms.

"Gifts from Laureen and Laura." Crystal smiles.

"The Lapras Twins?" Laki whines before she pouts. "Aww… I wanted to see them again…"

The Pokémon are silent as Crystal hands them out their gifts. As they marvel over their jewelry, Crystal holds her own gift. She knows that the Lapras must have found it due to how pale the lavender color is. The lizard knows that it is an ancient artifact but couldn't help but wonder exactly what it is.

"What did they give you, Crys?" Rocky asks as he snatches the ocarina away from the lizard. He frowns at the object. Crystal blinks in surprise before she glares at the Rhyperior and reaches out for the shell. The Rhyperior holds her back by the face. "Give that back, Rocky!" She demands.

Suddenly Scalene smacks Rocky's head and the Rhyperior yelps as he drops the shell. Ribo reacts quickly and uses his psychic powers to make the object levitate before it crashes against the sand. He then holds the object while Scalene scolds Rocky.

"You know better than to snatch things out of people's hands!" Scalene snaps. Rocky rubs his head and looks at his aunt pleadingly. "But Auntie-"

"Don't 'Auntie' me, young man! Now you're coming back to the base with me!" Then she grabs the Rhyperior's horn and drags him out of the beach. Rocky yells out and tries to get out of the Charizard's strong grip. When the duo disappear, Violet sniggers and shakes her head.

Ribo then hands the shell back to Crystal. Crystal takes it and smiles up at her psychic companion. "Thanks." She looks at Rocky's direction mischievously. "Someone's going to have an extra hour out on patrol tonight…"

Ribo chuckles.

"What did the girls give you, anyway?" Laki asks curiously. Crystal shrugs as she holds the shell up. "I dunno, but it looks like an ocarina."

"An ocarina, huh? Those are really rare. Maybe you can play it out, sometime." Gallade suggests.

"Maybe…" Suddenly Crystal notices a crack below the instrument and frowns. "But it's too old and worn out to be used at this point."

Violet only shrugs and crosses her arms. Then she smirks. "Well, I'm going back. I don't wanna miss out on what Scalene has planned for Rocky."

Ribo suddenly smirks as he holds out his arm to the phantom. "I'm in. Let's go." Violet smiles and accepts his arm as they walk away.

Then Laki looks at Gallade and Crystal. "Yeah, I'm gonna head back too. I need to check on my kids."

Crystal nods in understanding and Laki turns to leave. As soon she is out of hearing range, Gallade lets out a sigh of longing and disappointment.

Crystal rolls her eyes at the warrior beside her. "If you like Laki that much, then at least stop staring at her like a lovesick puppy and tell her already!"

Gallade blinks and looks at Crystal in surprise. The lizard crosses her arms and raises her brow at him. Suddenly Gallade sighs and shakes his head. "It's not that easy, Crystal. Laki has been through too much and I would hate to burden her. Besides, I doubt that she feels the same way for me."

Crystal's expression softens as compassion washes through her. After Gallade confessed that he has been crushing on Laki about a year ago, he never got the guts to ask her out. He always believed that Laki's past would get in their way and he doesn't want to hurt her by bringing up painful memories. And Gallade himself is still getting over the painful loss of his family; he doesn't want to end up being hurt again. The only other people that know about Gallade's crush are Violet and Ribo; the duo are surprisingly supportive about it since they think that Gallade and Laki are good for each other.

Crystal sighs. "Gallade, you're gonna have to tell her sometime before we go to war. It might be you and Laki's last chance to be happy and start anew. I think that waiting for over a year is long enough. Laki will understand; you know that she's a good person."

Gallade is silent before he slowly nods. "You're right. I'll make my decision by three days."

Crystal nods and pats his shoulder. "And remember; you still have your other friends to support you with everything." She smiles.

Gallade returns the smile. "Thanks, Crystal." Then he yawns. "I'm probably going to retire for the night. Good night and stay safe, Crystalline."

"You too." Crystal nods to Gallade and watches the warrior leave. After he is gone, Crystal looks up at the sky and sees the various stars twinkling. The wind blows through her gently as she glances down at her ocarina. Then she smiles and exhales through her nose as she begins to walk home. She fails to notice the wind blowing through her instrument. The ocarina makes a soft musical sound before a blue aura flows out of its finger holes. Then the aura flows down to her Jewel of Life and mingles with the colors inside the orb until it. Soon it fades into nothing.

Crystal suddenly feels more relaxed and breathes deeply as soon as she returns home.

Support, please!