Day 9: Everyone Makes Mistakes.
Alain woke early the next morning with a headache. What little sleep he had gotten last night had been troubled at best, and he still felt tired because of it. Nevertheless, he hauled himself out of bed and got ready for the day ahead of him.
His foul mood only worsened as the morning progressed. Gordon badgered him about what had happened two nights ago, and though he told the him nothing, Gordon still pressed him till his patience threatened to give out. Unfortunately, no amount of refusing to answer seemed to dampen Gordon's curiosity.
Breakfast didn't help either. He was one of the first people downstairs, and sat at an empty table in the back of the cafeteria. Jacklyn and her friends came in. She gave him one distasteful look, and didn't give him a second glance the whole meal, for which he was grateful. But then Zara came in, and when she glanced at him, here eyes were so full of confusion and sadness, he wanted to take back what he'd said last night. But then she had turned away and sat down with Wally, also not giving him a second glance.
It's for the best, he told himself for what must have been the twentieth time. Remember Mairin.
Anger filled him, and he stabbed a sausage as hard as he could, nearly knocking his plate in the floor.
"Attention everyone! We have a few announcements to make, so please listen up!" Phoebe called from the front of the cafeteria.
Alain put down his fork and turned to the front of the room.
"Today marks the first day of our competition here at the Mega Evolution Seminar. I'm going to explain how the competition will work. Each of you will fight one battle per day. This is a single elimination competition, so once you loose one time, you're out. The winner of each battle will move on to the next day's competition, and will be paired with another winner from the previous day. We will post a chart showing who will battle who and who wins in the main hallway, so you can keep track of the entire competition. But today, we have a lot of battles to go through, so we need to get started. The first pair I need are Alex and Gordon."
The two trainers stood up and left the room with Phoebe. The room quickly settled back to it's usual level of noise, and Alain let his thoughts wander again. Even though he was surrounded by people, he realized he was alone. And he realized something else too. He hated it.
It's for the best, he told himself again, but he clenched his fists as he thought it.
The morning dragged by. Alain went outside to watch the other students battle, and to get away from Zara. Gordon finished his battle, and won, then a boy named Garrett, who owned a Mega Hectacross, fought Brittney and lost.
Then it was Alain's turn.
He approached the battlefield, and stood in one trainer's box, Eric standing opposite him.
"You both know the rules?" Sidney asked.
"Yes," both boys replied.
"And are you both ready?"
"Yes," they both replied again.
"Then battle begin!" Sidney shouted.
"Go, Charizard!" Alain shouted, throwing Charizard's pokeball. In a flash of white light, Charizard burst onto the field. The Fire type glanced over it's shoulder to glare at Alain, then smacked it's tail against the ground and faced forward again. Alain chose to ignore the look.
"Abomasnow, let's go!" Eric cried, and threw a pokeball of his own. Abomasnow landed on the field with a loud crash, roaring as it landed.
"Charizard, use Flamethrower!" Alain ordered.
"Intercept with Ice Beam, Abomasnow!" Eric countered.
The attacks met in the middle of the field and exploded, flecks of ice and ash flying out from their collision.
"Now Abomasnow, Mega Evolve!" Eric shouted and touched his keystone, set in a badge on his jacket.
"Keystone, respond to my heart! Beyond evolution, Mega Evolve!" Alain cried. He touched his keystone and Charizard Mega Evolved. "Now use Dragon Claw!"
Charizard surged off the ground and streaked down the field, its claws beginning to glow green.
"Use Blizzard!" Eric ordered.
Charizard hesitated at Eric's command, waiting for a counter command from Alain, but it never came. His mind had clouded suddenly, thinking of a similar battle he'd fought against a Mega Scizor when he'd been fighting with his keystone on the line. Alain could think of no commands to give his Pokemon in time, and Charizard took the Blizzard attack full on. The Flame Pokemon roared as it took the damage, bringing Alain's mind back to crystal clarity.
"Flamethrower!" he shouted.
Charizard threw its head back and shot a stream of flame at Abomasnow.
"Intercept with Blizzard!" Eric countered.
Abomasnow releaced the Blizzard attack at Charizard's Flamethrower, but Charizard only flew up higher and slammed it from above. This time it was Abomasnow that roared in pain, but much louder than Charizard had.
When the flames cleared, Alain ordered, "Now Dragon Claw!"
Charizard's claws turned green again, and it went into a steep dive straight for Abomasnow.
Eric shouted, "Quick, Abomasnow, use Grass Whistle!"
Abomasnow closed it's eyes, and a reedy melody floated across the battle field.
"No!" Alain cried, "Pull up Charizard, hurry!"
Charizard tried hard to open its wings and stop its dive, but it wasn't fast enough. The Grass Whistle reached it just as it managed to flare open its wings, and the Flame Pokemon promptly fell asleep. No longer flapping its wings to keep itself air bore, it tipped to one side and plummeted to the ground. The crash it made when it landed audibly shook the ground.
"Not again!" Alain cried in frustration.
"They're wide open, Abomasnow!" Eric shouted. "Use Ice Beam!"
"No, Charizard, get up!" Alain pleaded.
The Ice Beam attack connects, and then another connected, and another.
"Great job, Abomasnow, now let's finish this! Use Blizzard!" Eric ordered.
I can't lose here, not in the first battle! Alain thought desperately. "Charizard, get up!"
Abomasnow roared and charged its Blizzard attack.
And then Charizard's tail twitched. And one eye opened.
Abomasnow released its attack.
Charizard hauled itself up and roared, flaring its wings at the Ice and Grass type.
For about a second, Alain thought he was dreaming, and Charizard was still asleep. Then he came to and said, "We should have done this in the first place. Use Blast Burn!"
Charizard turned toward the oncoming Blizzard and punched the ground with a claw, an aura of fire surrounding it. The two attacks met inches from Charizard's snout. They struggled for a moment, then exploded. Charizard and Abomasnow both were pushed back. Their attacks were evenly matched.
"They held that off?" Alain said in disbelief. Charizard's Blast Burn didn't have enough time to charge, or it would have taken them out!
"Alright Abomasnow! Now use Grass Whistle again!" Eric praised.
"Cover your ears, Charizard!" Alain ordered.
As Abomasnow began to play its reedy tune again, Charizard placed its claws on either side of its head and growled low in its throat to drowned out the sound. The two Pokemon held these positions for several minutes.
"Fine, we'll just hit them anyway. Ice Beam, let's go!" Eric commanded. Abomasnow stopped it's Grass Whistle attack and began to charge an Ice Beam.
Alain started to shout a command to Charizard, but immediately realized he couldn't. The sound of the Grass Whistle had yet to completely die out, and if Charizard took its hands of its ears, it would fall asleep. He clenched his fist and pounded it into his other hand.
Then the solution hit him.
He raised one hand over his head and waved it untill Charizard turned it's head and he had its attention. Then he threw both hands out in front himself, palms outward.
Charizard dipped its head in understanding and with a deafening roar, released a Flamethrower at Abomasnow.
The Flamethrower and Ice Beam met in the middle of the field and struggled for several seconds. Then slowly but steadily, Charizard's Flamethrower began to gain the upper hand.
"Harder Charizard!" Alain urged, even though Charizard still had its ears covered.
With a deafening roar, Charizard broke through the Ice Beam and slammed Abomasnow with a torrent of flames. The Frost Tree Pokemon cried out in pain, then as the smoke from the attack cleared, it toppled over and fainted. In a flash, it reverted to its normal form, and Eric quickly recalled it.
"Abomasnow is unable to battle, so Charizard wins! Therefore the victory goes to Alain!" Sidney announced.
Charziard reverted to its normal form and let out something akin to a sigh. Alain walked onto the field and up to his Pokemon. "You did well, Charizard. They were very strong." He reached out to stroke Charizard's head, and Charizard pushed its head into its trainer's hand.
"Char, Char zard," it said tiredly. Alain smiled happily at it, then retuned it to its pokeball.
As he left the field and the next pair came on it, his holocaster rang. It was a short message, and all it said was, Meet me at the front doors.
Without another thought, he headed to the front doors.
X*X*X*X*X*X*X*X*X*X
Zara strode down the hallway, her arms full of sacs of Pokemon food. Of all the jobs Drake could think of that needed to be done, she thought angrily, he just had to give me the one that smells the worst. Simple job, moving bags of food from one place to another. He just happened to fail to mention that it was spoiled food, and he also just happened to forget to mention that it smells worse than a house full of Gulpin! Thanks Drake, thanks a lot. One of these days, I'll get you back for this.
She'd been moving these bags for most of the morning after breakfast, and by this time was more than fed up with it. Her angry thoughts, however, were only a way to keep her mind off of other things. Things like Alain.
Ever since his harsh words to her last night, she'd racked her brain for anything she had done, anything at all, that would have prompted such a response from him. Nothing she could come up with seemed worth getting that angry over. Maybe it was something someone else had said about her? And if it was Jacklyn who'd said it, she would pay dearly for it. That dirty little Raticate...
The bags in her arms shifted, restengthening the smell and breaking her train of thought. The sooner I can get done with this job, the better.
She reached the back doors and dumped her load in a dumpster, glad to be rid of it. Only two or three more trips, and I can move on to something else. Though she would rather have watched the battles, she knew she'd rather miss them and keep working rather than be around Alain. She didn't want to provoke another round of harsh words if she could help it.
Choosing to go around the long way so as to prolong her time with clean air in front of her, she started down the hallways of the building. She passed an open doorway that led out to the courtyard, and glancing out, spotted Wally battling another male trainer named Harry, who owned a Mega Camerupt. She smiled as her young friend landed a hit on his opponent. Go get 'em, Wally. Go get 'em, Gallade.
Zara reached the corner of the building that led to the front entrance and rounded it, her mind on Wally's battle. She had taken three steps toward the front door when she froze, then raced back around the corner and planted her back against the inside wall.
It's Courtney! How did she get in here?! Is Team Magma attacking?! I've got to get Steven! I've got to get them out! Now!
"Hello, and welcome to the Mega Evolution Acadamy. May I help you?" The voice was unquestionably Steven's
Why in the world is he just talking casually to a member of Team Magma?! Zara wondered. Unless...it's not who I think it is.
Cautiously, she peeked around the corner. Steven stood in front of the main doors, speaking to two women who looked to be in their twenties. Both were dressed in tight, red suits. One had greed hair that came down to her chin, green sunglasses, and neon green lip gloss, but she wasn't the one Zara was interested in. The other one had purple hair cut short in a boy's cut, strange goggles, and bright purple lip gloss.
It's definitely not Courtney, Zara thought, but...that shape. And those clothes. And the goggles...
...Could I really have been wrong all these years?
Zara didn't want to believe it. She didn't want to believe she'd been running from the wrong person for that past eight years. That she'd fought and hid from Team Magma ever since that terrible day for nothing. That she'd been wrong. And worse, that she hadn't thought to look out for these people during those years.
And yet...there was no mistaking it. This had to be the same person that had haunted her nightmares for the last eight years. She looked similar to Courtney, but different too. Both had purple hair, but this woman's was shorter, though in eight years anyone could grow their hair to any length they wanted. Both wore red. Both had very revealing clothing. But all these diferences were things that, at the distance Zara had seen her from, could have been overlooked. But, if it was this woman who she'd seen, that would explain why Courtney consistently denied having anything to do with Zara's parents. And why Zara could never pull any information about it out of her, even by trying to trick her into giving it up. This person must be the woman who had led the attack on her parents and her home.
And here she was, not twenty feet away from her.
Pulling her head back around the corner, she heard one of the women say, "We're here to see our boss, Lysander. We were told he was here."
"He is. Let me go and get him for you," Steven answered politely.
"There is no need, Champion." The voice came from outside the courtyard doors. "I'm already here. But thank you." Adressing the two women, he went on, "Celosia. Bryony. Good, you have arrived."
"Sir," said the green haired one.
"Sir," said the purple haired one.
So they work for Lysander. Therefore he's the one that gives them orders, so if nothing changed in the chain of command between that day eight years ago and today, then he must be the one who's responsible for killing my parents! Three whole days of being around him, and I even talked to him! Steven was right all along, there is something strange about him. He must be the leader of a Team. And these women are in the Team too.
Wait. Didn't Alain say-
"You wanted me, Sir?" The voice belonged to Alain. Zara realized he must have come in behind Lysander.
-he works for Lysander? He's part of this Team too.
Of all the people I could choose to confide in, it happens to be the one person that could hurt me the most. I'm an idiot. Telling anyone in the first place was a foolish choice, especially someone I knew almost nothing about, and who refused to tell me anything about himself. And this explains why he refused to tell me anything. He had to keep his identity a secret untill he could get all the information he needed out of me. He tricked me, and then he tried to ditch me so I wouldn't find out! Well, too bad, I found out anyway!
Now what do I do? I can't tell Steven something's up with them without explaining how I know, so that's out. I don't think I could fight them all off I needed to. That only leaves one choice: stay away from them. Maybe, if I'm careful, I can avoid them the last five days of the seminar. If they don't see me, they can't do anything to me. And after the seminar is over, I can leave and go anywhere I want in Hoenn, without raising a lot of suspicions from Steven. Right, that's what I'll do. I'll just go back to the kitchen, go back to work, and act like nothing ever happened.
"So Champion, where is your assistant today?" Lysander asked. His question drew Zara back to the conversation in the front hall. She poked her head around the corner again and listened intently. Maybe I can figure out exactly what they want here, and then I can play dumb if they ever ask.
"She's doing odd jobs for the School. Did you need her for something?" Steven replied.
"I wanted to ask her about her parents. You said you didn't know what happened to them."
"Well, it's a bit of a hands-off subject with her, but if you insist, I can call her." As he said this, Zara saw him reach into his pants pocket and pull out his Pokedex Nav. With a jerk, she pulled her head aroud the corner and tried to dash down the hall, but before she had taken three steps, her own Pokedex rang. The sound revibrated down the hall, making her position obvious.
So much for staying away from them. Can't run now without raising a lot of suspicions. But to just walk over there with no means of protection wasn't very smart either. Thinking quickly, she dug a pokeball out of her pocket and tossed it toward the ceiling. In a flash of white light, her Larion appeared. "Larion, I need you to stay by my side for a little while, and have Protect ready to go at a moment's notice."
"Rion? Lar lar." Larion replied.
"Good. Now just follow my lead." With that she started toward the front door, and the people that awaited her.
She and Larion rounded the corner and aproached the group at as slow a pace as Zara dared. It helped that she had chosen a Pokemon that was natually slow, but even then Steven gave her a look as she got closer. "Why do you have your Larion out of its pokeball today, Zara?" he asked when she was standing next to him.
"Well, since Sceptile's the only Pokemon I've been battling with all week, I thought I'd give some of my other Pokemon a chance to stretch their legs," she answered quickly.
"Oh. Alright then."
"What did you need me for?" Zara asked as calmly as she could, trying not to give any hints that she already knew.
"Lysander wanted to ask you a question or two, if that's alright with you."
"I guess so." Turning to face Lysander, and trying to avoid looking at the two women, she said with as much of her usual cheer as she could muster, "Fire away. I can tell you almost anything you'd want to know about the School or Hoenn."
"I'd like to know about your parents," was Lysander's response.
Zara couldn't completely supress the shudder that ran up her spine. "I'd rather not talk about it." Well, he wasn't lying about wanting to ask me that. And if he wants to know, then I guess Alain hasn't told him about my past yet. Good, I still have that up on them. I guess, even though he is a member of a Team, he still keeps his word.
"I'd like to know what happened to them. The Champion has told me you have said they left on a trip to another region about eight years ago and never returned," Lysander went on.
"Yeah, that's pretty much all there is to it. They left, and I haven't heard from them since."
"Where did they go?"
"Somewhere I couldn't follow them."
"But you know where they went?"
"The general direction, but not exactly." Yeah, they went to heaven. No idea where that is, other than above me somewhere.
"And where did you live before they left you behind?"
Zara really wanted to lie, but with Steven here listening, she couldn't. "Outside of Fourtree City."
"And what did your parents do for a living?"
"Um...we ran a daycare," Zara answered cautiously, purposely leaving out the fact that it was a Pokemon Daycare. One of the women shifted her position, and Zara flinched involuntarily. "Can we talk about something else, please?" Beside her, Larion growled low in its throat at the woman who'd shifted.
"Of course," Steven answered. "You can go back to work now, if you want."
"I will. See you," Zara tried to say the words with all her normal cheer, but they came out rather forced instead.
Steven frowned as she walked away, but she just turned away from him and kept going as quicky as Larion would let her. This cannot be happening, she thought as she walked away. My worst nightmare is coming true.
How can I stay safe now?
X*X*X*X*X*X*X*X*X*X
Alain watched Zara walk away, confused. Why had Lysander asked her about her past? He already knew. And why had Zara looked so nervous? Did lying to anyone about her past always unnerve her that much?
It doesn't matter. She's none of your concern anymore.
He shook off his thoughts and turned his attention back to Lysander, Celosia, and Bryony.
"Thank you, Champion," Lysander said.
"Your welcome, but, if I may, why did you want to know?" Steven inquired.
"I thought I had known her parents from a long time ago, but perhaps not."
"Oh. If you do remember anything about them, I'm sure Zara would be happy to have you tell her about them. She clearly misses them a great deal. I wish I could help her find them, but I have no idea where to start looking." Steven sighed and looked away. "I have things I need to get back to, but please, make yourselves at home. Hopefully I will see you later on." And with that, the Champion went out to the courtyard.
Lysander watched him leave, then turned to Alain. "I called you here to show you that these two had arrived. They are to help me on a research project here in Hoenn involving the Mega Evolution energy. I ask that you please not disturb them at their work at any time, and they are not to disturb you in your training. Is that understood?"
"Yes, sir."
"Good. Alain, one more thing." Lysander paused. "You seemed to have a difficult time facing the Abomasnow a minute ago."
Alain looked at the floor. "Sorry, sir. It won't happen again, sir."
"See that it doesn't." Then Lysander turned and left, Celosia and Bryony following him.
Alain stayed where he was in the hallway for several minutes. Unsure of what he wanted to do next, he finnaly went to the training room he'd been in yesterday and brought out Charizard. They trained for hours, only stopping when the whistle for lunch blew. Alain had lunch, fed Charizard, then went back to training. He tried to focus on his Pokemon, but as the day went on it kept getting harder and harder for him to focus. His mind kept slipping to thoughts of Zara, thoughts of Mairin and Chespie, thoughts of Lysander, and finally thoughts of Professor Sycamore. His emotions struggled within him like a hurricane, threatening to burst out at any moment.
You have to stay strong for Mairin. Just untill she can smile again. And then, perhaps you can come back and apologize to Zara for what you said.
That thought seemed to calm the storm enough for him to ignore it. Pushing the thoughts aside, again, he went on training.
The afternoon passed quickly. Alain finished his training with Charizard, then worked with his Metang for a while, before deciding to quit and go watch the other students battle. He passed the winner's bracket in the hall as he left the training room, and stopped to see who he would battle tommorow. Scrolling down the list of names he saw he was set to face Dave, and his Mega Salamence. He noticed also that Jacklyn had won her match against Luke and his Mega Pidgeot. Wally had won his match with Harry too, and Astrid had won her match against Mary and her Mega Mawile.
Zara, on the other hand, had yet to fight her match. She was set to face a boy named Derick, who Alain remembered owned an Mega Gyarados.
Alain left the board walked out to the courtyard, only to find, to his surprise, Zara standing in the far trainer's box. Her attention was directed elsewhere, specifically on Derick, who was coming up to his trainer's box, thus Alain was able to slip into the crowd without her seeing him.
"Do you both remember the rules?" Phoebe asked.
"Yes," both trainers answered.
"Then are you ready?"
"Of course!" Derick answered. Zara only nodded.
"Then battle begin!" Phoebe cried, dropping her arm as she spoke.
"Gyarados, let's go!" Derick shouted. He threw a pokeball into the air, and out of it burst Gyarados. The Atrocious Pokemon roared and tossed its head, clearly pumped for battle.
"Sceptile, at the ready!" Zara shouted and in a flash, Sceptile appeared on the field. It sent it's own powerful roar back at Gyarados, then glared at it.
"Start things strong, Gyarados! Use Crunch!" Derick ordered.
Alain watched as Gyarados's teeth began to glow green and as it charged Sceptile. Neither Zara nor Sceptile blinked as it approached.
When Gyarados was within a few feet, Zara ordered, "Use Detect!"
Sceptile's eyes glowed blue, and it cleanly dodged the attack.
"Use Aqua Tail!" Derick commanded.
Again Gyarados closed in on Sceptile.
"Dodge it!" Zara ordered.
Sceptile leaped into the air as Gyarados pounded it's tail down where the Forest Pokemon had been standing. As it lifted it's head to get up, however, Sceptile slammed down on it from above, driving it into the ground. Once it had successfully face planted Gyarados's head in the ground, it leaped clear of the Water and Flying type and stopped in front of its trainer.
Derick growled in frustration as his Pokemon struggled to pull it's head free of the ground. Reaching into his pocket, he drew out a pen and touched the keystone embedded in its end. "Gyarados, Mega Evolve!" His keystone reacted with Gyrados's Mega Stone, and Gyarados Mega Evolved.
Zara also touched her keystone, and shouted, "From the depths of my heart, keystone respond! Sceptile, Mega Evolve!" In a flash, Sceptile Mega Evolved.
Derick smiled as Sceptile completed its Mega Evolution. "Gyarados, use Outrage!"
"Dodge it and use Leaf Blade!" Zara ordered.
Gyarados charged Sceptile, it's full power swirling around it as it charged its Outrage attack. Sceptile waited untill it was within ten feet, then feinted left. Gyarados fell for the trick, and Sceptile leaped right, dodging the Outrage completely. The Grass type's feet hit the ground, and immediately it turned on a dime and leaped back at Gyarados, slicing a Leaf Blade down its long body. Gyarados roared and thrashed as it took the super effective damage. Alain glanced at Zara's face as her Pokemon landed the hit, and it surprised him to see she wasn't smiling. Her face was drawn in what he assumed was concentration, but there was no trace of her usual enjoyment on it.
"Now Dragon Pulse!" Zara cried.
Sceptile flung itself up above Gyarados and shot a Dragon Pulse down at it from above.
"Intercept with Aqua Tail!" Derick ordered.
Gyarados turned around and swam upward toward Sceptile. It's tail glowed blue, and it slammed it's tail into Sceptile's Dragon Pulse. The two attacks exploded, and both Pokemon hung in the air for a moment after the attacks.
"Ice Fang!" Derick commanded.
Gyarados charged Sceptile, it's teeth turning a frosty blue.
Zara's mouth opened to give a command, but as it did, a loud scraping sound, like metal on metal, cut through the noise of the battle. Zara jumped and whirled around, searching for the source of the noise, leaving Sceptile wide open. Gyarados crunched down on the Forest Pokemon, and Sceptile cried out in pain.
Alain glanced around in the crowd to see what had made the noise, and quickly spotted Mary and her Mawile, Mawile holding a metal disk about the size of a pie plate in its jaws. The Steel and Fairy type was running the disk between its teeth to sharpen them, which made a slight scraping noise as it did so. It must have scraped that disk too hard by accident, Alain thought.
Zara whirled back around, and seeing what had happened, scowled angrily. "Sceptile, are you okay?"
"Scep!" Sceptile cried, hauling itself back to its feet.
"Then use Dragon Pulse!"
"Use Crunch!" Derick countered.
Sceptile released a Dragon Pulse as Gyarados charged it yet again. The Water and Dark type crunched down on the Dragon Pulse attack, but this time it couldn't hold its own, and was thrown back, rolling over and over untill it stopped in front of Derick.
"Can you go on Gyarados?" Derick asked. Gyarados raised it's head weakly, and struggled to rise. Zara waited patiently for it to regain its standing position.
"Outrage Gyarados! Full power!" Derick shouted.
"Sceptile, Frenzy Plant!" Zara ordered.
Sceptile plunged it's tail into the ground, and huge roots began to grow around it. They quickly spread toward Gyarados. The Atrocious Pokemon managed to break through the first several of them, but it was finally overwhelmed by the Grass type move, and flew back from the impact. It struck the back wall of the courtyard and fainted.
"Gyarados, no!" Derick cried.
"Gyarados is unable to battle, so Sceptile wins. Therefore the victory goes-hey, where are you going?" Phoebe asked as Zara recalled Sceptile and ran off the field. "I didn't finish announcing you as the winner!"
"Sorry!" Zara called back to the Ghost type master, but she didn't stop running. Alain watched her leave feeling even more confused. Why had she stopped paying attention to her battle because of a screech made by a Mawile's jaws on a piece of metal?.
X*X*X*X*X*X*X
Zara tore past the doors to the courtyard as fast as she dared to go. She felt foolish, letting a simple sound like that scare her out of her wits. What was she thinking, that it was Lysander sharpening a weapon? Even though she was being sarcastic with herself, the thought scared her even more.
What is Steven going to think of me now? I never usually mess up like that during a battle! How am I going to explain to him why I looked away at the sound? I can't tell him why I really jumped, because I was afraid someone was going to attack me from behind. Or worse, from above. Suppose I can just tell him I made a mistake and hope he buys it. Everyone makes mistakes.
She let her shoulders sag as she climbed the stairs to her room. No longer did she feel happy about the seminar or her training. Only one thought filled her mind as she plodded up the steps: How can I protect myself?
She made it to her room, went in, and shut the door firmly. There she stayed for the next three hours, refusing to go out for anything, even supper. Her fear of being caught by one of the women from earlier surpassed her need for food.
It wasn't untill the sun had long past set and all was quiet out in the hallway that Zara cracked open her door. Peering out, all senses on high alert, she crept down the hall untill she reached Wally's room then turned and walked back. Nothing happened. No one jumped out to grab her, no one tried to hit her over the head, no doors opened in the hall.
Well, if no one is even out looking for me down here tonight, then maybe it wound be safe to go up the roof for a little while! Zara though hopefully. Quickly she dashed back into her room, pried open her window, and jumped from the sill to the roof in one graceful bound.
Once she looked around and ensured that no one, specifically Alain, was up there already, she released her Sceptile and settled down.
X*X*X*X*X*X*X*X*X
Alain lay on his back, staring at the ceiling of his room. Gordon wasn't there, thankfully, he'd gone off to find Brittney, so the room was quiet. Alain thought he would have preferred noise. The quiet only gave him more opportunities to think.
Ever since Zara's strange behavior during her battle, he'd thought more and more about what he'd said last night. He hated himself for making her upset, and here it was ten times worse, since he couldn't just leave her behind. Lysander's orders were for him to stay away from her, but they were also for him to stay at the seminar. He couldn't just run from the person he'd hurt this time.
He finally decided to go out on the fire escape and see if he could watch her without her noticing. That wouldn't be disobeying Lysander, and he might be able to figure out why Zara was acting so strange.
Alain rolled out of his bed and walked out to the fire escape. Stepping as quietly as his boots would allow, he reached the door and pushed it open. The door slid open about a foot, and Alain had one foot through when it scraped the metal of the fire escape outside. He froze, unsure whether Zara had heard him or not. When nothing happened, he eased the door open a bit more, this time lifting it up to keep it off the floor. It didn't make another sound. Alain slipped out and shut the door in the same manner, then released the breath he didn't know he'd been holding. He had made it out without Zara hearing him!
"And just what do you want?"
Alain jumped at the sound. Alright, maybe he hadn't made it after all. He backed up a few steps and looked up. Zara stood on the roof above the fire escape, looking down at him. Her face was hard and cold, and her hands were on her hips. "I said, what do you want?" she repeated.
"Nothing," Alain replied shortly, and put out his hand to open the door again.
"Come now, we both know that's not true. What do you really want up here? Or should I be asking what do you really want with me?"
"Scep Sceptile!" Sceptile added behind her.
Alain felt the pokeballs in his pocket shift, and suddenly Charizard burst out of its pokeball and began to hover just off the fire escape.
Alain frowned in confusion. "What are you talking about?"
"You know exactly what I'm talking about. Don't play dumb with me. I know why those two women are here, why Lysander's here, why you're here, why you were acting friendly with me, and why you told me to leave you alone."
"You do?" How did she find out about Lysander's order to stay away from her? And how does she know what Celosia and Bryony are here for?
"Mmm-hmm," Zara said slowly, never taking her eyes off Alain. "Training and gathering Mega Evolution energy for peaceful purposes, huh? Protecting people you care about by helping Lysander, huh? My foot! You liar!" she shouted.
Alain stepped back at the change in her tone, alarmed and angered. I didn't lie to her about anything! "What are you talking about?"
"I said not to play dumb with me. It's too late for that now. The only reason you helped me and tried to be friendly with me is to get me to tell you my secrets! You tried to learn everything you could about me so you could find a way to get whatever it is you want out of me, and then you dumped me so I wouldn't figure out what you were up to. And just in time for you purple and green haired friends to show up, too."
Alain could only stare at her in confusion. He had no idea what she was talking about, but she definately seemed angry about it. "Celosia and Bryony are here to help-"
"To help you finish your mission, capturing me, I know. You lied to me about everything. I'm a fool for telling you about myself and my past. I'm actually surprised you didn't lie about promising to keep my story a secret, but..."
Alain's eyes twitched as she said this. He couldn't help it, he felt slightly guilty for telling Lysander about her past.
"Wait, you told them?" Zara said. Though kept her expression nuetral, she didn't keep the waver out of her voice. "You told them?!" she repeated, her voice rising in pitch.
Alain slowly looked away from her cold eyes, and looked down at his feet. That was enough and an answer for Zara.
"But, if you told them, then why did Lysander ask me-," she broke off and looked away from Alain for a moment, before looking back, her cold gaze redoubled in strength. She jumped from the roof to the rail of the fire escape without taking her eyes off him. When she was within arms length of him, she said in a deadly quiet voice, a voice that he had only heard you use with Jacklyn, "I don't know what you want with me, but whatever you do, remember this: you broke your promise, you Seviper, and I will never, ever forgive that." Her voice cracked with emotion, anger and fear Alain thought ,as she said the last words. Then without any warning, she put out her hand and slapped him across the face.
Alain recolled from the slap, putting a hand up to his face where her hand had struck him. His face stung around his left eye, but he said nothing. He probably deserved that, even if he didn't like it.
Behind him Charizard roared at Zara in fury, and lifted a claw possibly to attack her. It hadn't come within a yard of her when Sceptile fired a Dragon Pulse at it. Charizard fell back and looked at Sceptile angrily. Sceptile roared an ear spliting roar at it, rage burning in its eyes. Alain covered his ears at the sound, but Zara didn't move.
Rising to her full height, Zara said slowly and deliberatly, "You told me this yesterday, and now I'm telling you: Leave me alone. I don't want to have anything to do with you ever again." She leaped back to the roof and turned her back on him. "Just go," she whispered, then turned and walked down the roof, her thick soled shoes tapping against its metal with every step. Sceptile glared at Charizard again, then followed her.
Dazed, Alain recalled Charizard and went back inside and to his room. None of what she had said made sense. Except for the breaking his promise part, he had no idea what she had been talking about. Him a liar? His mission to capture her? Only being friendly to learn her secrets? None of that was true. And what difference did it make if he told Lysander about her past? His boss had promised not to tell anyone else, and he would be going back to Kalos at the end of the seminar, just like Alain, never to interact with Team Magma again.
Still, he had broken his promise.
He finally gave up trying to figure it out and went to bed, doing his best to ignore Gordon's snoring. Sleep came, but it was less troubled tonight, and more purely jumbled up. Now at least you don't have to apologize to her, he thought just before he blacked out.
X*X*X*X*X*X*X*X*X*X
Zara sat on the roof in the dark, Sceptile at her back, her pitchpipe in her hands. Tears slipped down her face silently, unbidden. What do I do now? They all know who I am and where I'm from. I don't have anything up on them after all. What are they going to do to me? Blow me up too?
Sceptile moved closer to its trainer and growled protectively. "Scep tile tile."
Zara sniffed and rapped her arm around her Pokemon's neck. "I know you'll protect me Sceptile. Thank you." She leaned back against it and sighed. The pitchpipe she put back in her pocket. She didn't feel like singing tonight. There was no reason to sing.
"We just have to make it five days, and then we can leave," she repeated to herself for the twenty-fifth time. She knew it was, she'd counted.
The night dragged on, and Zara eventually went down through her window and to her bed. Sleep came, but instead of crying herself to sleep, she worried untill she was exhusted. She slipped into troubled sleep with an image of Alain's Charizard blasting things with Flamethrower reigning in her mind.
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So what did you all think? Did I do alright with this chapter?
Also, if there is anyone in particular you would like to see Alain, or Zara, or Wally, or anyone else for that matter, face during the competition, let me know in a review. Please review, even if you don't have a match up you want to see!