Well, I must tell ya I skipped the battle... As I said, let the story begin!

Disclaimer: I do not own Pokemon.

CHAPTER 9

Several hours later the fight was finally over. The Abundant Shrine was almost completely destroyed and no one would ever expect a different outcome for this. A huge hole and a bunch of fissures were now adorning the ground which had lost its beautiful green carpet as those violent blows, one after another or even at the same time, hit the ground with no sight of stopping. Some trees were burning and in order to prevent the fire from spreading out and incinerate the whole forest, the trainers managed to put out the burning by using their water type Pokemon. Dust everywhere, fainted Pokemon - Damaged scenery. The place was nothing but destruction even though there wasn't so much debris because fortunately it was no human constructed environment where the buildings would fall, creating a real massive disaster. The remains of the battle consisted of shattered rocks, felled or burned trees, smoke, holes and… Tired trainers. But it still wasn't beyond redemption, though. As soon as the dust was starting to disperse, the place became visible and the teenagers withdrew their fallen teammates muttering a soft "Thank you" as they were back into the Balls.

"What a… Big mess!" Touya waggled his hand while he coughed. "Man, I need air! My lungs are filled with dust!" He coughed a bit more as he bent forward. When he did it he spotted the fainted Landorus inside a hole of average length, totally unconscious with Tornadus lying limp next to him. He promptly ran towards his bag and searched for his Ultra Ball, sprinting back to his prior place with the item in his hand. "Now, be mine!" As he shouted, everybody turned their attention to him knowing that the place was starting to be clearly seen again. In a matter of seconds, the ground/flying type legendary was caught causing Touya to twitch one side of his lips upwards as they started to open and turn into a wide grin right after, making anyone able to even count his teeth. "YEAH! I GOT HIM!"

The brown haired boy jumped really high and punched the air. With the movement, his blue jacket along with the black shirt he wore underneath it, lifted up and then moved down back again, showing his athletic abdomen. Watching this, Skyla remembered the time when he was her man, only hers. Suddenly, her daydreaming turned into a real nightmare when Bianca cheered, clapping her hands loudly and walked over to her boyfriend in a very bouncy way, going insane to meet him for a suffocating hug. Not surprisingly, at about halfway she tripped on one of all those scattered rocks and fell on the dirty ground, landing horizontally as she hit her front body flat against its surface, almost performing a nice belly flop. With the impact, the items she was carrying inside her bag started to come forth abruptly, as the internal pressure forced them out and her things were being widely distributed over the field in a split second. An empty Poke Ball rolled smoothly and lazily on the surface until it stopped right at the border of the hole where Tornadus was. In fact, it was threatening to fall into the cavity, going back and forth as it tried to regain its balance. Everybody watched the Poke Ball dance as the expectation made them all even unable to breathe.

"No… NO! Tornadus is meant to be MINE!" Skyla quickly looked for the Ultra Ball she brought just to capture the flying type legendary, if she had the chance to. When she pulled it the Poke Ball finally fell into the pit, touching the fainted Pokemon with its button and opening, drawing in the red light and moving a little bit before stopping completely. But it disappeared just like Touya's Ultra Ball did a few seconds before, because they had already six Pokemon in their party. The six trainers ran and looked down at the bottom of the hole, but they saw nothing there.

"W-where is it?" Bianca gasped.

"We captured them, my sweet girlfriend! They were sent to our Pokemon System Storage!" Touya felt like he wasn't able to control his expansive happiness anymore and let himself explode as he celebrated the event. He took Bianca in his arms and started to spin around as they both shared their radiant laughs and exultant joy. The gym leader felt hot tears forming but she managed to restrain them. Sighing, she turned to the other side and saw a helicopter getting closer and some TV reporters, cameramen and scientists arriving via land.

"I'm glad that it's finally over." N stated quietly and walked away from the inconvenience. He feels utterly uncomfortable with people and wants to avoid them at any cost. "I'll hide and you'll tell me when they're gone, right?"

"Yeah but… I think they aren't going so soon…" Touko replied as she saw how many they were and Touya waving to the camera with Bianca beside him, trying to be on the TV news as well. She heard the brown haired boy yelling something like "Mom, I love you! I'm on TV!" and knew that he was about to give them an interview.

"Yes, correct. Look at those scientists… They probably came here to study the weird earthquakes' phenomenon since this area has no conditions to create those seismic excitations… It would be a great subject for their doctorate, if they don't have it yet." N pondered and then took some more steps to keep his distance. "Touko, there's a man calling your name." The young King pointed at Cedric Juniper and the girl turned on her heels to meet the man.

"I'll be right back, N."

"Fine."

First off, Touko met Cedric Juniper halfway as he came to greet her. She told him everything about the research and how things happened in a blink of an eye, stressing that she was pretty lucky to find those Pokemon in a matter of hours. The brunette continued on as they walked over to the crowd and cameras.

The trainers stayed there for at least more two hours to answer all questions and elucidate every remaining doubt, also offering help to the victims of the earthquakes. Night came as time went by, and everyone slowly started to leave the place with tiredness disturbing their brains and bodies, heavy eyelids that made it no more possible to remain aware. The trainers healed their Pokemon using Revive and Full Restore and made their way back home, flying at low speed not to get their Pokemon even more exhausted. After some hours, they arrived at Nuvema Town and went to Professor Juniper's lab instead of going home.

"Late at night we still have to see that woman? Are you kidding me?" Touya snarled as Touko was pulling him by the arm.

"Do not show resistance, big boy, or I'll find some real painful manner to make you come along!" The blue eyed girl answered, biting her lip and frowning with eyes tightly shut as she used all the strength she had to drag him along.

"But… I'm tired!" He dug in his heels stubbornly.

"We're all tired, dear, but we need to see Professor Juniper because we have the Pokemon she needs to study." Bianca yawned, rubbing her eyes.

"Oh, great! Now I'm going to yawn too!" Cheren raised his glasses and applied pressure on his eyes with a circular motion as he got drowsy, opening his mouth widely. "I always have to yawn when I see someone else doing so…"

"Yeah, it's interesting. There are some theories that try to explain its origin and why animals yawn. One of them explains that when we are bored, tired or sleepy we breathe slower and then, the amounts of oxygen will reduce, so our cells won't have enough of this element for proper functioning. In consequence, the levels of carbon dioxide gas will increase, creating a situation that alerts the brain to induce a yawn in order to revert this. I do believe that correcting the levels is not the main cause… Some studies proved otherwise, that's why I'm refuting this hypothesis." The smart young King spoke quickly, not stopping to even inhale more oxygen, his gaze meeting the starry sky, index finger poking his bottom lip.

"I've heard about this already. The Scientists say that our lungs can't detect low levels of oxygen, so I'm not into this theory either. The other theory compares the brain to a computer, saying that when temperature rises, we need to yawn and receive loads of cool air by doing it, making the brain work better in cooler conditions." Cheren replied politely, adjusting his glasses.

"This one is yet to be proved, but I take it as a possible explanation. You know, breathing through the nose reduces the yawning levels once the nasal cavity vessels lead cool blood to the brain. By the mouth it's different, though." N was willing to continue the conversation as Cheren astonishingly seemed to be enjoying it.

"I hope they can be friends." Touko smiled, looking at the boys. Taking advantage of the brunette's distraction, Touya twisted forcibly his arm and spun around, releasing himself from the girl's grasp. He quickly made his way to Bianca and pecked her on the lips before fleeing to his house.

"You'll never take me alive!" The brown haired boy teased as he ran away. "See you tomorrow if I manage to wake up!" His laughs echoed through the street and he disappeared.

"You just wait, Touya!" Touko gritted her teeth and flipped her hair back with a "Humph!"

"Er… Do we really need to see the Professor now? She must be sleeping already!" Bianca asked as if she was being corrupted by Touya's misbehavior.

"Are you going to act up just like your troublesome boyfriend now? That boy has been driving me up the wall lately! And you… cut it out before I go spare on you too!" Touko spat waiting for Bianca to understand her frustration. "Professor Juniper is vouching for me since the very first minute she asked me to accomplish this task for her. She needs those Pokemon as soon as she can get them, thus I won't wait until tomorrow!"

"Enough said, Touko. I'm sorry!" With Bianca's lips starting to quiver, the other girl noticed that she went too far.

"… It's not your fault, Bianca. Let's go!" Sighing, the brunette patted the blonde girl's shoulder who gave her a bone cracking hug in return. They looked around to see N and Cheren talking about theories, encyclopedias and good books they used to study with.

"Let's just leave them there…" Touko decided as she knocked on the lab's door, a large sweat drop was above her eye.

"…"

"…"

Silence until…

"WHO THE HELL DARES TO DISTURB ME THIS LA…" The door slammed open causing the girls to evade from the violent movement. As expected, Bianca fell and hit her butt against the pavement.

"Ouch… That hurts…" The blonde girl tried her best not to breathe since it only made it worse.

"Oh, my Arceus! What I've just done?" Juniper yelled, stretching one arm out to help Bianca on her feet. As she got up, she received support from Touko and Aura as they both helped her to get into the lab. They slowly sat the girl down on the couch and took their seats too.

"I have to apologize for this, girls! But… those two strong lads right over there… we should have called them to help us out with this little maiden here!" Aura stroke Bianca's arm with a concerned look in her eyes.

"Pffft…" Touko immediately placed her hands on her mouth to hold her laugh in. "Cheren… is a… a strong lad?" Her face was starting to become red from the great pressure she was applying against her light colored skin.

"If you're making a mock of Cheren because he looks like he has no muscles and didn't bother to mention your lovey-dovey boyfriend it means you can't deny that he's a deliciously robust young man!" Bianca poked Touko with the elbow.

"W-what?" The brunette stammered just to make the blonde girl gain more confidence to proceed.

"Are you nervous, Touko-Chan? Why? Does love make you go uneasy?" The blonde girl giggled, clasping her hands together and lifting them up next to her left cheek.

"Give it a rest, Bianca!" Touko barked, rising from her seat. "Professor, don't listen to her! We're here because…"

"Oh, no… It's alright! I was enjoying it! So… You're really dating the former King of Team Plasma, Touko? Now that's irony of fate!" Juniper fell into the couch and bit her nail.

"No, no, no, no! Don't you drift with the tide, Professor! N is only a friend… He just came back and now we're getting to know each other better, that's all there is!" She spoke, a bit disappointed.

"I see, I see… Bianca used to tell me the same when she was about to date Touya! I know you very well, kids!" Professor Juniper laughed and stood up. "Want something to drink or eat? Well, hmm… I think the only thing I have here is… water… Oh!" She grabbed a bottle and took a sniff. "Alcoholic drink! Is this Vodka? But… You're too young for this!" She frowned. "I need to buy food… Oh, I know! Touya will to do this for me tomorrow! Is he in Town, Bianca?"

"He came back with us but… he got away…" The blonde girl answered while massaging the small of her back because she didn't wanted to stroke her butt in front of the others. The Professor was acting so clumsily and she thought it was being very funny.

"Oh, yeah? Better off without him around, then!" The Professor handed over some fresh water to the girls, spilling the liquid on Bianca's lap. "How do you stand him?" Aura shook her head lightly, laughing to herself as the blonde girl scratched her beret uncomfortably and dabbed her soaked skirt. She looked at Touko who read the help me expression in her eyes.

"Hmm… Professor! Aren't you surprised to see me here?" Touko cut the latter subject off and focused on what matters for the moment.

"…" The woman stared at the girls for some dull seconds.

"…" And so did the brunette.

"Sorry?" Aura asked.

"Mission accomplished!" The brunette opened her arms victoriously.

"Oh!" The woman became numb and slowly glanced at Bianca who was nodding exaggeratedly.

"Professor?" Touko snapped her fingers together.

"What?"

The brunette sighed sharply. "The research, Professor! I caught Thundurus, Bianca caught Tornadus and that ordinary boy caught Landorus… I even had to say that he's the best trainer ever all the way back home… What a punishment!" The girl crossed her arms and watched Juniper leap out from her seat, throwing her hands up as she moved towards her.

"I OWE YOU ONE, TOUKO! THANK YOU, THANK YOU SO MUCH!" The woman hugged the girl and jumped, taking the brunette by the hand and pulling her along to dance around the couch until they became seriously dizzy. Aura stumbled and fell on the floor, laughing hard and babbling until she got to sleep right there. Bianca kneeled on the couch to look behind it and saw the woman lying on the floor as she snored loudly.

"What just happened?" Bianca asked half scared, half confused.

"I think she needs to go and chill out since she has been through so much heavy work lately, but not like that… She just collapsed!" Touko's eyes widened and she took her by the wrists.

"Let me give you a hand!" Bianca promptly stood up and immediately felt her sore gluteal muscles. "Yeah, I'll give you only one single hand because I'll use the other to massage my behind…" The blonde girl grimaced in pain as she hobbled towards the unconscious woman. Touko couldn't help laughing at her honest comment.

"I know, I shouldn't be laughing… But that was hilarious!" She breathed fast to recover the air she didn't drew in for some time.

"Oh, no problem… I would do the same if I were you!" Bianca winked, leaning forward to grab the Professor's lower legs and lift her up to set her down on the couch, but a cracking sound apparently coming from her spinal column made her stop. "Ouch, again! I'm sorry Touko… I won't be able to handle this…"

"It's ok, but I can't do this alone…" They both stopped and slowly faced the doorway. From there, they could see the boys standing on the outside and Touko rolled her eyes as she took some steps closer and shouted "Time's up, guys! We've got a problem here and it came to a head, so I need some help! Either that or the wheels fall off!" The answer came fast as they quickly got inside and saw the woman's body extended to the fullest width on the floor. Immediately they put the Professor flatly on the couch and Cheren took one of her wrists to check the pulsation, placing two fingers on it and staring attentively at his watch. He noticed her face was red and she was also kind of warm.

"You just need to count the number of beats in ten seconds and then you multiply this number by six to determine how many times her heart beats in one minute." N explained, crouching beside him and pointing at the device.

"Do you think I'm stupid? I wouldn't really need the whole friggin' minute to read her pulsation! You're not the only one here who enjoys math, Mr. I-Know-All!" Cheren spat, narrowing his eyes behind his glasses.

"Yeah, you'll need the whole minute if you don't pay attention to it now." The green haired man replied, smiling naively yet ironically. The boy in glasses hissed in disapproval but did as he said.

"Why multiply by six?" Bianca wondered, incredulous.

"Because…" N started.

"Don't! She always wants the easier way but just leave her to find it out on her own and then she'll probably come across an answer in about three weeks!" The boy in glasses chimed in and started to count the seconds.

"Three weeks? That's too much time for such a simple question!" The young King muttered, impressed.

"How rude, Cheren!" The blonde girl turned her back to him with cruciform veins popping above her eye.

"Around 50 bpm… If it's below 60 bpm it's called bradycardia…" He ignored her as he tried to ease off the tension, and added "It's normal, sometimes…" Cheren stood up and inspected her body as if he found something smelling suspicious. He bent forward, closer to her face and used his sense of smell. "Well, this explains…" The boy sighed, looking at the confused girls and then, at the young King. "This respectable, decent woman, who has a moral life and uses it to study only, improving science with her knowledge, made of a virtuous behavior… is drunk." He finished lowering his voice. For some time, they only heard the cold wind blowing its midnight song as it moved softly through the door's lab. The girls burst out laughing, breaking the silence as they realized that the tragedy was turning into comedy. "… Girls…" The black haired boy whispered.

"Interesting... Alcohol is a vasodilator and it allows more blood to run through the tissues. That's why she's red and warm." N spoke and continued "It makes the diameters of blood vessels wider, decreasing the pressure. That's why she's got a low pulse rate, but it still isn't dangerously low… Her heart beats will gradually get back to normal."

"Yeah, let's just leave her to rest for the moment. Tomorrow she'll probably wake up with a terrible heartache but, unfortunately, that's the price…" Cheren walked around the lab and called out one of her assistants to look after the woman while she was under the influence of alcohol.

They said goodnight and told the man to contact them if anything comes up. After that, Cheren walked Bianca home as N and Touko walked down the street with a weary pace. The blue eyed girl just hummed to distract herself from the awkward sensation of being alone with the Plasma King in her precious hometown. They didn't say a single word before arriving at Touko's house.

There was a beautiful fence that enclosed the cozy house as well as its wonderful garden, which was kept by her mother. It was made of posts of timber, painted white and was a little bit small. It followed a pattern, making the place look totally neat. The couple walked over to the front door where they stopped. The girl lifted her stretched index finger up to her mouth in a demonstration for him to be quiet, he nodded and she nervously searched for the keys, which key chain was fitted with a tiny plastic Oshawott, inside her bag.

'Dear Arceus… Please… My mother has to be sleeping…' With the desired key already in her hand she inserted it in the lock, breathing fast as she slowly twisted the knob and pushed the door inwards. Touko knew every detail of her house, every concealed flaw and it really came in handy for the moment since she wasn't willing to deal with her mother in such an exhausted state. They almost couldn't see the living room, which was the area that anyone would first see after entering the place. The girl took N by the hand and cautiously leaded him upstairs as moonlight offered some brightness in there, displaying the ideal time and place where lovers would confess their feelings without fearing rejection.

"Your heart is beating like greased lightning…" N whispered, careful not to make any unnecessary noise.

"I'm quite nervous…. How do you know it?" Touko explained, looking around.

"I'm holding your hand, so I can feel it. Why are you nervous?"

"Let me answer this later, N… Okay? Here…" She opened her bedroom's door and gestured for him to get into it. "This is my room. You just stay quiet and hide if you hear any other voice, got it?" The young King nodded hesitantly and went into the room as she closed the door. He walked idly, too shy to even lean against the wall. He didn't want her to think he was sticking his nose into her personal life, once one's room is the most private place where secrets are held and personalities revealed. The young man stood rigidly formal in the middle of her room as he watched the girl come in and close the door behind her.

"She's not home…" The girl removed her cap and pulled out her ponytail as she fell into bed, massaging her scalp while she hummed. She opened one eye and noticed the silent man in her room. She quickly turned over on the mattress to face him.

"What's up?" Touko asked. "Come here, don't be afraid!" She tapped some empty space in the bed beside her. He smiled weakly at her.

"I like your home, Touko. It's comfortable, warm, neat… I'm really enjoying my stay, even though I've been here for what it seems to be… only a few seconds, but… your mother… I don't know if she would ever like the idea and… I may disturb people if I stay…" N only stared at the floor, moving his feet as if he was drawing something invisible on the floor.

"Come on! My mother won't complain, she's a nice woman!" Touko stood up and made her way to the closet, picking up some fresh clothes for her to change into. "Hmm… I guess I don't have anything for you here… There wasn't any male human living with us in this house before!" She searched for anything that would fit N, but it never existed and she knew it. Sitting on her heels, she gave him an apologetic look causing him to smile at her.

"Don't worry about that, I'll buy some new clothes tomorrow. I used to sleep wearing nothing on, so that won't be a problem!" N took some steps forward. "Problems are there to be solved, aren't they? Just put the values of the constants and solve for x." He laughed, enjoying himself. "Is that ok if I take a shower now?"

"Yeah, yeah…" Touko waved her hand like dismissing him. "But… HEY!"

"What?"

"…" The girl lifted a white T-shirt up to cover her reddened face, ice blue eyes peering from behind the clothing. She giggled quietly before adding "You c-can't sleep w-with n-nothing on…" Touko wanted to kill herself after this, but she had to do what is right. Even though her voice came out muffled by the shirt, he could make out what she said.

"Yes, fine." N chuckled softly and closed the bathroom's door. The girl resisted the urge to run and peek at him through the opening where the key is inserted.

Some minutes later he came out wearing only his slacks, exposed chest adorned with the cord that bears the little Saturn ball which hangs around his neck and barely reaches his stomach. Her eyes almost bulged outward while she couldn't help thinking 'he does not make any effort to be sexy!'

"You can sleep in my bed! Anyway, I placed an inflatable mattress on the floor if you don't mind… It's very comfortable but I had a hard time filling it!" Touko mopped her forehead with the towel she was already holding. "I'll have a shower and you… Feel free to do what you feel like doing!" She said as she shut the door.

He lay down on the mattress and closed his eyes, forearms crossing behind his head and he stayed like this until he fell asleep in about two minutes. It's always so relaxing to spread over a soft surface, stretching every single part of the body, after having such a tiring day.

"Tomorrow is a brand new day, isn't it, N?" Touko said as she exited the bathroom and noticed he was already unaware of the world around him. She leaned to see his innocent expression as he slept and took a blanket to cover his enticing body, which was luring her into temptation. She knelt next to him and brushed his bangs with her fingers, but he didn't even twitch at the light touch of her fingertips. She hummed a song that instantly turned into a lullaby as she started to go sluggish, struggling to keep her eyes open. Touko finally gave in, leaning completely to rest her head on N's chest as she dropped off and drifted far away from reality. They graciously slept there feeling each other, even if it's unconsciously.

But…

Little did she know, her mother was already on her way back home.

A/N: I know, I know that Landorus and Tornadus were easily caught but no problem if we press the fast forward button here, hun? Actually, I wanted to change rating just for safety, but it's not like there would be some heavy scenes. That's all! I'll just keep it, but if you guys want otherwise... *giggles*

THANK YOU, ALWAYS!

Loooooooove! ;)