Hey there, welcome back to this story! Specifically, this chapter. Now, this WILL be an action-packed chapter, as you can see how long this chapter probably is.

We have the first use of POV switches in this chapter, which is pretty exciting!

I really do hope this chapter was worth the huge wait. XD

Disclaimer: I don't own Pokemon, and any other copyrighted character and/or brands mentioned in this story. I also want to point out, as always, that this story is rated T, due to the swearing, fighting, and bloodshed in some areas. So yeah, reader discretion is advised.


I let out a small, quiet yawn. My eyes began to feel heavy, almost feeling droopy. I could fall asleep at any moment, if I may be honest.

Can you tell that I'm just really bored?

Well, you see, I'm sitting at my desk, in history class. My classmates and I all sat around, some chatting amongst each other, while we waited for our teacher to let us know we could get going. We had a school field trip today, so we were waiting for the bus.

Unfortunately, though, the bus was delayed, which only meant that the waiting time would last longer. But, what could we do? We can't have the bus appear from the skies in an instant. There must be traffic on the roads, and we can't stop that. It sucks.

Today's history class might have been like usual; the normal lesson about the World Wars, or watching a documentary about the ones who discovered our country. But, since we were going on this trip, it might be better than sitting around in class, I suppose.

I was cut out from my thoughts once I noticed a paw poking my shoulder. I looked up, then turned my head to the side, noticing Bryce staring at me with an amused look on his face.

"Someone looks like they're about to fall asleep, there." He chuckled, a smirk plastered on his face. He had earphones in, meaning he must've kept himself busy with some music or YouTube videos. "You need some entertainment or something, it almost looks like you're about to drool." I stuck out my tongue at him as a response.

"I'm just really bored right now. If I knew this stupid bus would have gotten delayed, I would skip history class and go do something better than this." I said, and Bryce nodded his head, agreeing with my statement. His eyes trailed around the classroom, watching the other students for a brief moment, before his gaze met with mine once again.

"You're telling me. I'd love to get out of here and go play some video games. Or maybe spend some time with you guys. This trip is going to be as boring as our other classes." He said matter-of-factly, and I couldn't help but chuckle. Typical Bryce, always playing his video games when time allowed it. But, he did make a good point. There were so many things we could do that wouldn't be as boring and as dragging as going on this history field trip.

"Yeah, it would be nice to have the gang together," I replied, smiling at the good times Bryce and I had, along with Alice and Amy. We should definitely make plans to see each other outside of school soon. "I do miss hanging out with you and the girls."

Just as I finished talking, my ear twitched slightly, indicating that I heard someone coming our way. Bryce and I turned our heads toward the direction, and noticed Tina walking to an empty desk in front of the German Shepherd's and mine, sitting on the chair. She wore a simple black t-shirt with a cat on it, along with blue jeans. She also carried her backpack on her shoulders, which looked full of supplies needed for today's trip; an exploration trip.

"Hello, boys." Tina said, smiling as she looked at the both of us. She removed her bag from her shoulders, setting it down on the ground, near her feet. Bryce and I gave a friendly smile and wave to her.

"Hey, Tina. Looks like someone's ready for the hiking trip today." I said, gesturing to her backpack with my paw. She looked down at it, chuckling slightly.

"I really did," she replied, then looked at me. "But, you can't be too prepared, right? I'd rather be safe than sorry."

I nodded my head, agreeing with her statement. She was right, after all. Hiking required many supplies, like ropes, water, a first-aid kit, and many more. She probably carried most, if not all, everything mentioned, which was good. She could help others in case they needed it.

Things went silent for a short while. We could hear the students chit chatting once more, and the sounds of the clock's needle ticking as each second passed by. It was a comfortable silence amongst us friends, though. It wasn't awkward. It felt really nice, just feeling each other's presence.

But, the silence was soon cut off when I've noticed Bryce staring at the belt strapped around my torso.

"Hey, Fran?" He started, and I once again turned my head towards his direction. "Why did you bring a sword with you? It's not like the hiking trip will include some terrifying creatures to fight or anything." He nodded his head towards the said strap, and took a quick peak above my shoulder, noticing a small part of the sword.

Knowing about the hiking trip a while back - back when we all got our permission slips to be signed by our parents, granting us allowance to attend it - I chose to come prepared, deciding to be as lightweight as possible. Sure, the sword may not have been one of the most necessary items to bring for the trip, but it really does look good with my purple tracksuit, which I love to wear.

But apart from the sword, I had also brought some bug spray, a small first-aid kit, and some water as well.

"This sword is seen as a good luck charm in my eyes. When I carry it around, it makes me feel like my father is with me." I replied, patting the scabbard gently. Bryce nodded his head in understanding, knowing what I was talking about. He didn't say anything afterwards, knowing that the topic of my father should be avoided.

Tina, however, was not aware about the topic being avoided at all times. She didn't know what happened to him years ago.

"That actually sounds really nice, Francis." She said, eyeing the sword in its scabbard. "I can imagine that your father must be someplace far, isn't he? That's why you keep the sword with you, so it's like his presence remains with you, right?"

I froze as she spoke those words. My eyes trailed down slightly, and I could feel Bryce staring at me, probably confused about it all. I let out a quiet sigh as I rubbed the back of my neck, almost unsure of what to say. This definitely was not a good time to talk about this topic, not at all.

"O-oh. Well… y-yeah. Something like that." I replied, the tone of my voice becoming cold. I was hoping she would realize how uncomfortable and uneasy I felt about this topic, and move on. I really didn't like talking about my father a lot, since it was a very emotional topic for me. But, she didn't sense my sorts of signals I gave off, and kept at it.

"Where is your father, anyway? You haven't really told me anything about him, from what I remember." She asked me, scratching her chin as she stared at me intently.

"I… I uhh…" I stuttered, now struggling to speak. To put it simply, I couldn't answer her question. I began to breathe much faster than normal, and my heart started to beat at a rapid pace. My eyes were twitching uncontrollably, and my paws clenched into tight fists. Although I could feel my nails slightly digging into the palms of my paws, I couldn't care less.

My mind, it was bringing back my worst nightmare, and my worst memory. The images were brought into my mind; the blood splattered all over the ground, the rain pouring down on me and my father's lifeless figure, the cheetah's sinister, glowing eyes, and the cries of my father as he was struck, then falling onto the ground.

"Francis…?" I heard Tina's voice ringing in my ears, but I ignored her call. I couldn't answer her at all. My eyes trailed over to my right paw, where I unclenched it, staring at the faded scar. A small droplet of blood had mixed into my fur as it dribbled down, and it all reminded me of the moment that cheetah slashed my paw with his shank.

And then the horrid memories of the cheetah's shank slashing my father's chest came into mind. This nightmare… I really hoped it would never come to haunt me again. I couldn't help but to shed a few tears. I closed my eyes shut, hoping no one would notice them dropping, but I could feel a cold liquid landing onto my paw.

I didn't care about the world at this moment. I was just focusing on mourning my father's death, once again. My teeth clenched at the thoughts, and a growl escaped from the back of my throat.

I opened my eyes once again, staring at the scar in my paw. I felt it all. The pain, the suffering, and all of the negativity that had been stored away for many years. They all came back when the topic of my father was mentioned.

All I could think of at this moment, was how I wasn't able to stop the cheetah. I wasn't able to help my father and save him. I was so weak. Too weak. I can't believe I wasn't able to help. How could I just stand there and hesitate like the way I did?!

"FRANCIS!" Tina basically yelled my name, her paws on my shoulders as she was shaking me. I snapped out of my trance, and I looked up at her, blinking a few times.

I brought up a paw to my face, and I could feel that my fur was damp. I had been crying more than I anticipated. I turned my head, looking away from Tina and Bryce, and instantly got up.

"S-sorry… I need a moment." I sighed, walking towards the door of the classroom. I need some time to myself to get everything together. I can't be acting this way during the trip. I need some time alone to feel better, even if it's just a little bit of time...

As soon as I went through the classroom doors, I bolted down the hallway and quickly made my way to the washroom. Once I got there, I made my way towards the nearest sink, and rested my paws on it. My breathing was still going at a rapid pace, but I tried to slow it down by taking deeper breaths. I shut my eyes for a few moments, trying to shake away those bad memories. I didn't need to think about those anymore. I had to be my normal self again, just so I wouldn't worry anyone.

My gaze soon looked up, and I saw my reflection staring right back at me. My eyes were red and puffy from the crying. The fur beneath them was damp and all sticky. I used a paw to wipe under my eyes, trying to dry the fur off just a little. It didn't work as planned, but it did look better than before.

"Come on, Francis. You'll be okay. You're always okay in the end." I mumble quietly to myself, then looked down at my paw with the scar, noticing some dried out blood. I must have clenched my fist a little too hard earlier.

I can't believe I let myself get triggered so easily. Someone would go bring up my father being away and question all of it, and suddenly I'm just not myself. I don't know how to describe the way I was feeling during that moment. It was unusual, abnormal even. Ever since I watched my father die by my side, I hadn't been the same. I had been mentally scarred for life, and it will always stick with me. I'll always remember, and I won't be able to forget. I can't forget.

I huff to myself, looking away from my paw and shaking my head. I need to stop thinking about it, otherwise I'll break down again.

Eventually, I calmed myself down enough and regained my bearings. I bent down over the sink and gave my face a few splashes of cold water, just to clean off the tear stains on my face. Once I was satisfied with my cleaning, I grabbed some paper towels off the rack on the wall and dried my face, and finally headed out of the washroom.

But just as I walked out, someone runs right into me, and I end up toppling over onto my ass. I grunted as I hit the floor.

"O-ow, watch where you're going!" I exclaimed as I rubbed my rump slightly, since I ended up landing on it.

"Why don't you watch where you're going?" I heard the other retort, and I huffed at that. I was already upset, and that made me all moody. And with their attitude-ridden, nonchalant response came a somewhat annoyed reply of my own.

"Why you little-" I started to say, sitting up and opening my eyes to see… Amy? I had bumped into Amy, and she literally towered right over me, sporting a not-so friendly look on her face. Albeit was just a sort of small frown.

"Oh, it's just you." I said, exhaling as I scratched the back of my head. The Flygon's expression didn't change, but she did put out one of her claws to help me up, and I did just that. I took it in my paw, and she pulled me back up onto my feet. I was about to apologize, but she immediately cut me off.

"Hey, don't sweat it." Amy started, crossing her arms once again. "Though, I would like to know what's got you all worked up." My eyes widened, and I got nervous once more. She could tell I was upset about something. At this point, it would be useless to lie, especially to Amy. So I decided to come clean.

"Well, I just…" I started to talk, but I couldn't find my words. After a few seconds, I sighed as I lowered my head. Amy sighed as she put a hand on my shoulder.

"You got upset because someone went and talked about your dad, amirite?" She stated to me, talking in a bit more quietly. I gulped. Amy was able to read me so easily. I nodded silently, and I started to feel my tears coming back. She noticed, and I heard her sigh.

"H-hey, c'mon now! No need to start with the waterworks, my guy. Take some deep breaths, and calm down." She said to me softly, looking down at me. She was showing her kinder side of herself, which she started doing more often for the sake of not getting kicked out of the school. For that, I appreciate that Amy was trying to change her attitude. After a few deep inhales and exhales, I finally spoke back up.

"R-right… sorry, I know it's bad and I shouldn't let my dad's death get to me." I said a bit quietly, now looking back up at the Flygon. She nodded solemnly. It became quiet for a little bit, just the two of us standing in the hallway.

"So… I guess I better get go-" I began as I turned to leave, but then she went and suddenly she interrupted me again. Amy grabbed my shoulder and turned me around, and made me face her. I got a bit confused, because I had no idea what she was doing or what she was up to. After a little bit, she huffed and her expression changed to a sort of determined look.

"Okay Fran, you better listen up, cause I ain't gonna repeat this." She started, glaring at me as she moved me to where I got pinned up against the lockers next to us. I went wide-eyed and grunted from her somewhat roughness. But I understood, and I nodded quickly, lest I don't get hurt. Once she knew I understood, she continued.

"You may think you're at the lowest point of your life, with your dad gone and stuff, while you act like you're supposedly so weak or something, but guess what? Take a look at you, and your supposed fight resume! You've got quite a few good wins under your belt, as well as your very big 'win' against that damn Aaron, even if you did have some help. Regardless of where you're at, you're certainly a very strong opponent to be against. I commend you for that, but with all this moping, you gotta stay strong for the sake of everyone else, because everyone worries for you. Even… me, although it doesn't seem like it. Ugh, what I'm saying is, just stay strong for all of us, okay?" The Flygon stated to me, talking somewhat fast for me, but I understood it all. I stood there, completely dumbfounded, because it was just that rare where Amy would give you some words of inspiration or something similar to that.

As said before, she was changing her sorts of ways of thinking and such, and it's certainly showing. Through her sorts of respect talks and whatnot. Even if she doesn't know how to show an emotion properly, as shown by her shoving me against the locker in order to get me to listen, she still has good intent. Compared to where she was quite a bad apple at the start of the school year, I'd say it's quite a welcome change and I commend her for trying to change.

"I… thank you, Amy." I choked slightly, sputtering on my words from being a bit taken aback from her sort of 'pep talk'. She nodded to me, not saying a word as she let me go and I was no longer pinned up against the lockers by her. She exhaled, and looked away as she brushed a strand of her hair to the side.

"O-okay, glad you understood. Sorta was unsure if I got through to you or not." She admitted, scratching the back of her head.

"Oh, no no! It was good, you did good. I'm fine now, really, so thank you." I replied to her, bowing my head. She gave me a brief small smile, then shifted a bit as her expression changed back to her usual nonchalant demeanor.

"Ahem, you oughta get back to class. They probably are waiting for you, since ya know, you got a school trip today?" She stated, and my eyes went wide once again.

"Shoot! You're right, I probably should get back to class!" I exclaimed, and I turned to leave and run down the hall. As I began my sprint, I looked over my shoulder and back at Amy. "I'll catch you later!" She nodded to me, then she turned on her heel and walked in the other direction, probably making her own way back to her class.

Amy was right. I gotta stay strong for everyone, because they want me to be okay. My father wouldn't want me to break down like this, he'd want me to keep on fighting. I'll keep that up, for everyone's sake. For my father's sake.

I quickly made my way back into the classroom, and as soon as I entered the room, a few of the students in the class turned to look at me and stared for a bit. I stood there, looking around as quite a majority of the room was staring right at me.

"Uh… what?" I asked simply, and everyone seemed to get back to doing whatever they were doing before I had entered the room once more. I strolled over to my desk, and sat down in my chair.

"Hey dude, you alright?" Bryce asked me, looking over from where he sat beside me. I look over at him slightly and nod.

"Yeah, I'll be alright." I replied, and he gave me a thumbs up, then went back to reading his book.

As I sat there, I glanced around for a bit and eventually noticed Tina sitting at a desk in the back of the room. She had her head down on the desk, and her face was covered by her arms. Her ears were clearly drooped.

I frowned, knowing she must be feeling guilty that she made me upset earlier. To be fair, she didn't know that my dad had passed away. I couldn't blame her for that, because I know she was just curious and she had no bad intentions. It wasn't her fault that she didn't know about him.

I inwardly sigh, and I turn around in my seat. I made a mental note to talk to her later; preferably in an area where we were alone, just so no one hears us. I don't want anyone else to know about what makes me snap. It's a weakness that I'm slowly trying to tend to. Tina deserves to know what I've been through, at least. I know her well enough and I trust her enough with this secret.

"Listen up, everyone!" Ms Raven, our teacher, exclaimed. She's a Pokemon, a Gabite, specifically. Although her classes can get kinda boring, she's actually a really good teacher. I could visibly see everyone look towards the teacher. Even Tina moved her head up to see what our teacher wanted to say.

"I just received a text from the bus driver, and they're finally here. So get your stuff together, and get to the school parking lot. Remember to follow the bus seat schedule too!" She said while everyone else seemed to get up out of their seats and go towards to the classroom's doorway. I remembered my spot in the bus seating plan, and I was placed to be sitting beside Bryce, so that's pretty good.

Luckily, I wasn't going to be seated next to Aaron. Or a shit show would commence, much like what happened in the school's gymnasium before.

Speaking of the Charizard, Aaron happens to be in my history class. But ever since Tina and I had defeated him in the gymnasium, he's apparently been avoiding the both of us. Which is a good thing, I find, because we didn't have to suffer from his nitpicking or constant bullying.

Looking across the classroom, I do notice that he's there, chatting away with a female Zangoose. I was pretty sure he was trying to hit on her with the smirk he wore on his face, and his eyes just grazing along her body. I will never understand why he keeps trying with her, because the look she sported on her face made her seem completely uninterested.
A short while after, Bryce and I followed the students out to the parking lot, and one-by-one hopped onto the bus. The two of us sat somewhere in the middle, and I was able to take the window seat. It was my favorite, because I was able to stare outside the window and watch cars passing by, as well as many buildings and nature itself.

Some time passes, and we've been on the highway for quite a while now. I've come to realize that the signs were indicating that we were leaving the city. It wasn't a surprise, because the forest we were heading to was a little ways out of our area. From what the teacher has told us, the drive was to be about an hour or slightly over that, so this was all expected in the end.

"Hey... Francis." I heard a familiar voice from next to me. I turn my head towards Bryce's direction, and saw his brown eyes staring into my own. It seems like he wanted to break the slightly awkward silence there was between us. "How's the training going?"

"If I may be honest," I started, a small grin beginning to plaster itself onto my face. "It's going pretty good. My skills have been improving quite a lot, almost like I've reached a new level of power. But it's all thanks to Tina, really. She's been really helpful."

I felt proud, really. Although the training with Tina was really intense and pressuring, she did take it very seriously. Whenever we test out our skills against each other, it's almost like we're battling to the death, from the hard blows I've taken from her. She was capable of nearly doubling the power of the move Mega Punch when she uses it, but luckily I was able to block that one move properly when she used it once. It's all thanks to my father who taught me how to block any physical moves the proper way. Otherwise my arms would have been broken many times by this point.

I watched as Bryce nodded his head at my response, before he continued to speak.

"About Tina… Did you really not tell her about your father's, you know?"

My ears dropped at that question, a sigh escaping my lips. I merely turned my head to the side, avoiding eye contact with my friend. I had a feeling that this topic was going to be brought up eventually during the trip.

"Listen, I honestly didn't think she was going to come along and ask that question. I expected her to have potentially figured it out herself when she came over to my place, and understood that he was no longer in the picture. But… it seems I was wrong. I guess it's partially my fault to assume that she knew about it." I said, using a paw to scratch the back of my neck. I could hear Bryce sigh next to me, and was able to tell he was pitying for me.

I turned my head towards his direction once I felt his paw on my shoulder. He was frowning slightly.

"Not everyone has to know about your father's passing, Francis. But… shouldn't Tina at least know this?" He started, and I nodded my head slowly. "It'll be for the better, because she needs to understand your situation."

Bryce was right. It would be better if Tina was knowledgeable about this situation. I let my German Shepherd friend know that I was planning on talking to her once the guided tour of the forest and nearby cabin was done, at the time where the students can explore around for the rest of the day. He agreed that my idea was great, and that he'd leave me to do it before choosing an ideal spot to meet afterwards.

Finally, we had made it to the forest. It had a very simple name, "Oak Tree National Park", and in all honesty, based on the name of the park alone, I had a feeling this trip wouldn't be as exciting as I had initially thought.

Our tour guide was a badger, and when she was giving us a tour of the cabin that was nearby the forest, she was using the same, boring monotone voice the entire time. Her facial expressions looked completely uninterested as she she showed us around, and it almost looked like she did not want to be a part of this, nor did she want to be here.

Eventually, I had decided to ask a question, in hopes that her attitude would have a change.

"Hey, uhh…" I checked for a nametag on her shirt, and read the name. "Miss Aspen? What is that supposed to represent?"

She looked over to where I pointed; a mask of a Zoroark's head that was hanging on the wall next to her. She turned her head to take a look at it, before turning her head once more to look back at me.

"Oh, that's just an ordinary mask. One of the park rangers here carved and crafted it himself. Yeah, that's about it." She yawned, before turning her body and continued to show us around. I facepalmed, and was so glad she didn't see that. I could hear Bryce struggling to hold in a laugh next to me.

The rest of the tour was very uneventful, and boring as heck.

Afterwards, she left us at the starting paths that lead to the forest's many trails. She seemed to have run off to do something immediately, and dismissed us in a quick matter. I suppose she had better things to do.

Once the tour guide left, Ms Raven then spoke up to our class.

"Well, I suppose that was the tour. You're now free to go out and explore this forest." She announced to us, then gestured to the different paths ahead, alongside a few signs as well. "There are many signs and maps placed across this forest to let you know where you're located. If you ever get lost, try to find one of those signs. Okay?"

Once she finished speaking, everyone either said some sort of 'affirmative' to her explanation or nodded. She smiled, nodded, and walked off, going down one of the forest's many paths. A few students followed her, but it was only those three or four students who didn't want to be away from the teacher.

And then there was this huge chunk of our class, just standing around and idly chatting. Some went off to some of the different paths of the forest once they were done, ready to explore.

Anyways, I looked around for a moment, and I found out that Tina was nowhere to be seen. Seems to me she already took off and went down one of the forest's paths already. Maybe with some miraculous chance, I could find her eventually.

Bryce then nudged my shoulder, taking me out of my thoughts and I looked over to him. Alice was with him already.

"Come on, Francis. Let's go exploring this forest. Maybe we'll find something like a fossil, I don't know." He said simply as he shrugged. In all honesty, I didn't really want to find any sort of souvenir from this trip. Except for the gift shop.

"R-right. Okay, let's get going. Lead the way." I replied, smiling a bit. Bryce nodded, then started to lead the way as we all followed him down one of the paths.

I'm really hoping I don't bump into Aaron in the forest, because who knows what'll happen if we cross paths and we're alone. That would be bad news for me.

As we all walked through the paths of the forest, I was able to take in the scenery and environment we were in. It was simply fascinating. The pure silence, minus our steps in the crinkling leaves, snapping of twigs and small branches on the ground. There was a soft breeze blowing across the forest, making the leaves and branches sway. Heck, the fur atop my head swayed in the wind as well. Being in this forest and experiencing all the surroundings, it was just a great relaxing feeling.

In fact, I was so enticed with being in nature like this so much that I didn't realize I had wandered away from Alice and Bryce. When I figured this out, I stopped and looked around me. Using my ears, I listened to the noises around me, thinking I could potentially hear their footsteps or their voices somewhere nearby.

Nothing but the soft breeze and rustling of the leaves of the branches above me.

I sighed to myself, and crossed my arms. Sometimes I get so enticed with something that I just lose track of my surroundings. In this case, it was Bryce and Alice, and I lost them by wandering off and thinking to myself.

Eventually, I shook my head dismissively. It wasn't really a big problem. I'd eventually meet up with them again. For now, going down the current path was probably the best option. Going backwards would be a way to find them, but if I were to do that, they'd be even farther than beforehand. Making up my mind, I made my way down my current forest trail.

As I walked, I eventually came upon a forest clearing. I quickly noticed someone sitting on a rock in the middle of the clearing. It was someone familiar.

It was Tina.

Here she was. I had a feeling I'd run into her in the forest. She clearly wasn't in the best of moods, however, since her ears drooped and she looked at the ground.

I silently exhaled as I shook off any nervousness in me, since I knew I'd have to confess my past to her. Once I got ahold of my bearings, I nodded to myself and I slowly approached her.

However, once I got close enough, she stood up from the rock. I stopped dead in my tracks. She then spoke up.

"Francis… you know you can't sneak up on me." She said softly, but with enough volume for me to hear her. She turned her head to look at me over her shoulder. Her eyes, it really looked as if she had been crying. The fur around her eyes was damp and somewhat matted. I exhaled once more.

"Listen, about earlier..." She started, already speaking up to apologize. I quickly interrupted her, however.

"Tina, wait! Y-you didn't mean to set me off like that, you didn't know." I quickly explained, but she then shook her head and she turned her head to look away from me. I heard a faint growling coming from her. I had a feeling she was frustrated with herself.

"I… should have known better, however. I didn't need to ask that, but I did." She said meekly, and in a quieter voice. I heard her sniffle a bit. I hesitantly took a few more steps forward, getting closer to her. I eventually was behind her, and I placed a paw on her shoulder.

It was silent for a moment, then she turned around to look at me, tears in her eyes.

"Francis… what did I do..?" She breathed out, clearly too upset with this that she can barely talk. She wanted to know, and I knew I had to tell her.

"Tina, I'll tell you." I said as I took a seat on the nearby rock. "You deserve to know why talking about my dad… sets me off." She nodded slowly as she sniffled once more, sitting beside me on the rock.

I told her everything. I told her how the cheetah cut my dad open. I told her about how I fought them all for as long as I could. I told her how I… watched my father die in front of me. It hurts to remember, but I knew it would be better to let someone know the feelings I kept inside of me.

After I had finished talking, Tina was speechless. She hadn't said anything after I had finished. She was silent.

Suddenly, she wrapped her arms around me into a big hug. I returned the hug almost immediately, embracing her close. I could feel my eyes watering up, and simply let the tears drip down onto my face once again. Tina was feeling a little shaky in my arms, I noticed. Perhaps she was sobbing?

After a few moments, I pulled away from the hug and took a look at her. Tina was crying as well, but quickly wiped away the tears from her eyes once she saw that I was looking.

"I-I didn't think it would be that bad… I'm sorry." She whispered, then looked away. She seemed to have gotten just as emotional as I did on a topic like this one. It's understandable, really. Talking about a loved one's death isn't as easy as people would think. It's quite difficult, actually.

I sighed quietly, then looked over at the scenery in front of Tina and I. We both just sat on the rock, in the clearing, for quite some time. I couldn't be entirely sure how long we've stayed here, but we were enjoying the nature around us. It was peaceful, with the soft breeze blowing on us and the chirping of the birds nearby. We enjoyed each other's company as well, even though it was silent.

Eventually, we broke the silence, and I spoke up once more.

"You see, Tina, I just wasn't strong enough to protect him. So that's why, I must get stronger, and continue to do so! I want to be able to protect those that I love from now on." I exclaimed, more determined than ever. Tina understood, and nodded, smiling as well.

"That's good! I'll do my best to help you train as well!" Tina replied, taking my paw in her own and giving it a soft squeeze. She was determined to help me as well. I couldn't help but smile widely.

Suddenly, I felt an impact of something burning hot hitting me right in the chest, and it burnt with a ferocious power. And with that, I found myself out like a flashlight with no batteries.

(POV Change: Tina)

I can't believe it at all; not one bit! Did I really watch that happen?!

One second I'm having a moment with Fran, the next I see him get sent flying backwards with a sudden fire type attack. It came so quickly, we barely even realized it was coming straight for him.

I heard him shout in pain as he was knocked out of the clearing. The force of him getting sent flying was so powerful that he got sent right through a tree. After that, I think I saw him fall into some shrubs and bushes behind that tree, which then fell over immediately after Francis crashed through it.

Upon realizing that it was a fire attack that he was hit with, my eyes widened. I shuddered slightly as I turned myself around to look at our attacker.

I was right. It was Aaron. He crossed his arms as he cackled a bit. I swiftly moved back, vaulting over the rock behind me so I could put more space between us.

"So much for protecting who he loves. How can he do that when he can't even protect himself?" He boasted, gesturing to where he had sent Francis flying. Judging by how the fox hadn't come back from that yet, it's very possible he might have blacked out. I growled at the Charizard, baring my teeth.

"C'mon Aaron! D-don't force me to fight you, you'll lose! I've been training since the last time, I can easily overpower you!" I exclaimed to him, venom in my voice. My threat didn't seem to get through, since he just scoffed.

"And you think I didn't get my own training in? You've gotta be as dumb as a bag of rocks, if you thought I wouldn't even think to train hard myself before I go ahead and face you both again!" He replied, cracking his knuckles and smirking. I think I felt myself tremble. Is it possible that I was scared of him? There's a chance that he was bluffing, but somehow, I felt like he couldn't be lying. The aura he gave off of himself, it was definitely stronger than before.

"The last time we fought, I was caught off guard. This time though, I'm ready for you, and that emotional shipwreck of a fox is out of the picture." Aaron continued, starting to walk towards me. With every step he took towards me, the pit in my stomach grew bigger and bigger. This was the first time I had been afraid of someone in a very long time.

"S-stay back! You're clearly bluffing! You can't be stronger, there's no way!" I said, but it was no use. My voice was shaky, and there was no trace of my usual confidence I have when I talk. He shook his head, as he raised his claw. It started to glow with a metallic hue, and it soon extended slightly.

Metal Claw.

"I don't understand how you could lie to yourself like that. You have those aura-sensing powers and whatnot. You should be able to see straight facts here." He stated matter-of-factly, as he went around the rock between me and him. However, he swiftly turned and slashed at the rock with his Metal Claw attack.

And just like that, the rock that was once there had now been completely broken down to mere fragments. Just one of Aaron's Metal Claw attacks did that. I took another step back, starting to get more anxious about his advances. He stepped over the destroyed rock and got closer towards me. Eventually, I had no more room to back up, as there was a tree behind me.

"Fine, Aaron! You want a fight, you'll get one!" I exclaimed, suddenly charging right at him while I put energy into my paw to ready a Mega Punch attack. Once I got close enough, I threw my fist his way.

However, it never landed.

It was as if time were moving at a snail's pace. I watched as Aaron sidestepped my attack with ease, then used a Mega Punch of his own on me. He was faster, without a doubt. And his attack, as expected, was more powerful than the last time for sure.

His fist landed on my right cheek, and I grunted as I got sent flying across the clearing, tumbling in the grass once I landed. I winced on the ground, rubbing my cheek with my paw.

Pushing myself up on my paws and knees, I tried to catch my breath. Aaron had definitely gotten a lot stronger since our last battle, which proved he's done a lot of special training. I growled to myself. I wasn't entirely sure if I could defeat the Charizard this time. Not alone.

My thoughts came to an end when I felt something hard collide against my torso, sending me back a couple of more feet. I groaned as I landed on my side, and realized that Aaron had hit me with his tail. Although he didn't use an actual move, the pressure from his tail had really stung.

"Hah! And you say you've done some training since our last battle?" Aaron scoffed as he walked towards me. I rolled onto my back, an arm covering the area of my torso where his tail collided with, and looked up at him. He shook his head in disappointment, a quiet sigh escaping from him. "I'm not very impressed with you, Tina. I thought you were better than this."

I bared my teeth at him once again, letting out another growl. Despite the pain I was in, I just had to try to at least cause some damage to him. My free paw was curled into a fist, and I was letting some dark energy surround it. Luckily, the grass was tall enough to cover it, so Aaron wouldn't notice it.

As he noticed I wasn't speaking, Aaron simply continued himself. "Got nothing to say, grem? If that's all you got, maybe I should just end you right here, and right now."

That was the moment I needed. As the Charizard lifted his head up, I noticed he was preparing himself to use Flamethrower. Bits of smoke were coming out of the corners of his jaws; his intentions must be to burn me to death.

But, that was not going to happen. Not right now.

Without warning, I let out a battle cry as I stuck my wrists together, unleashing the charged up Dark Pulse attack that I had been preparing for a short while. Aaron hadn't expected it and wasn't able to dodge. The attack hit him square in the chest, and he was sent back a couple of feet with a loud groan. Once I heard him crashing onto the ground, I quickly shot up on my feet, eyes darting for the fox that had previously gotten attacked.

Looking over at the area where he had initially landed, it still seemed untouched. Was Francis really out of the picture?

A sudden shift and crinkling of the leaves behind me got picked up in my ears, and I turned right around. Aaron was already back on his feet, but he had one of his claws over the spot I hit him with the Dark Pulse attack. He panted softly, but other than that, he didn't seem to seem to have taken that much damage. He huffed briefly as he seemed to glare daggers at me.

"Ya know, I was gonna take this nice and slow." He said with an annoyed tone, cracking his neck slightly. "If you're gonna make this difficult, I think I'm better off going all out from here." He pounded his fists together and made his way towards me.

I gasped a bit, but recomposed myself. If I could deal damage to him, I still had a chance in beating him. I took my battle stance, growling and baring my fangs at him as he came closer and closer towards me.

Suddenly, he seemed to have vanished out of thin air, and to my surprise, he appeared right behind me. I felt the wind shift and felt his presence behind me. I tried to spin around and attack, choosing to use a Headbutt to try and deal some damage.

I hit my head against his, and I just ended up hurting myself. I yelled out in a bit of pain there. Once my bearings were regained, it was clear it had no effect on Aaron. He just seemed to laugh it off.

"Hah, you call that a headbutt?!" He mocked, cackling a bit. "This is a headbutt!"

And with that, he came forward with the same astonishing speed and grabbed both my arms with his claws. I yelled out and I tried to squirm and try to get free, but to no avail. He grinned briefly, then he bashed his head against mine, using a Headbutt attack of his own. He let go of me as he used the attack, and it caused me to get sent tumbling backwards. I screamed in pain as I held the spot he bashed his head against with my paws. His strength was on a whole different level than the last time.

I eventually shook it off, but I was still somewhat dizzy from it. From what I could see though, I saw that Aaron was standing above me. Before I could react fast enough, he grabbed me and lifted me right up, then slammed right down onto the ground once more. I cried out in pain once again, arching my back from the pain from his sudden Seismic Toss attack. I think I felt myself cough up a bit of blood from that one.

So there I laid, in a small-ish crater from his powerful Seismic Toss, spitting up a bit of blood.

I eventually got the strength to sit upwards, and what I see in front of me is Aaron charging up another attack. In his palms, energy was surging and it kept growing and a rapid pace. He was charging up a Hyper Beam attack, and it was obvious who it was for. I grit my teeth as I used the back of my paw to wipe up the bit of blood that dripped from the side of my maw.

"I thought you'd actually put up a fight, but I guess I was super wrong. Time to finish you!" He announced, and the energy that he had been charging within his palms had been released. Pointing his palms my way, the bright, powerful beam was launched towards me. I shut my eyes tightly as I could feel the orange beam getting closer to me, and I readied myself to be hit by the attack, using my arms to shield myself to lessen damage.

However, the attack I anticipated never came around to hit me for some reason.

Upon reopening my eyes and putting my arms down, I see the shadow of a figure who stood right in front of me. Once the dust cleared, my eyes went wide. There Fran stood, using himself as a shield to tank Aaron's Hyper Beam. From what I could see from where I was, Francis had definitely been through some better days.

Soon enough, he got out of his sort of 'shielding' stance and turned to check on me. Kneeling down next to me, he helped me sit up properly.

"T-Tina! O-oh Arceus, are you alright?" He asked me in a worried voice, despite the situation that Francis was currently in.

I was absolutely shocked by what I was seeing at that moment. I've noticed that Francis' tracksuit had been completely ruined; the left sleeve had been completely torn off, and there were patches everywhere from the fire type attack that had struck him on the chest earlier on, not to mention all the tears and rips in the fabric in many other parts of his fur across his body were covered in the familiar red liquid, but one wound stood out the most. On his right arm, the sleeve from his tracksuit had been torn immensely, and it could be clear to anyone that blood was dripping rapidly from it.

"Francis, I'll be fine, but… it's you that I'm worried about! L-like, look at you!" I stated, coughing a bit as I took a paw and felt on one of his wounds softly. I saw him wince hard. Taking my paw away from the wound, I could see the fresh blood on my paw. It was certainly an alarming sight.

"Listen, don't worry about me," Francis said in a gruff voice, panting slightly as he took out his phone, which now sported a crack on the screen. "I need you to call Bryce, and get him over here. He'll help you." He seemed to go ahead and take charge of the situation, since he then stood back up and turned to face Aaron. As afraid as I felt for Francis hurting himself further, I feel like he'll be able to do what I couldn't do, and that was to defeat Aaron.

Speaking of the Charizard, I could hear him laughing his head off.

"Oh wow, what a heroic move!" Aaron mocked as he crossed his arms and rolled his eyes. "Heh, more like a stupid one." Francis didn't respond to him at all. It just seemed he was staring him down. With that, Aaron spoke up once again.

"Listen, as bold as you think you are, can't you understand that you just can't play hero when you're too weak to do so?" He explained, laughing more as he sported a smug grin on his face. I heard Francis exhale, then he took ahold of his sword's handle, and he drew it out. Flipping it once in his paw, he then pointed the end of the blade at Aaron.

"I may be weak, but that doesn't mean I shouldn't protect others!" Francis exclaimed, glaring daggers at Aaron. "Weak or not, I'm willing to take any means necessary to protect my friends, especially from Pokemon like you! So no matter what, I won't let you harm my friends anymore!" As Francis spoke, I could feel his aura rising higher and higher. His voice, it made me shiver.

He was livid. Absolutely livid. And it was clear he had only one thing on his agenda now.


Oh my gwaaaaaaad! What a cliffhanger! XD

Hope you enjoyed, and I hope your hyped for the next chapter! ;D

Peace out!

Edit: This chapter, remade and rewritten! So far, best work that me and Chlooepm have done thus far! Big thanks to her for assisting with this chapter's rewrite~!