Author's Note:

Wow, thank you guys so much for your lovely reviews on the last chapter! I really did work my arse off trying to make it the best it could be so I'm glad you all enjoyed it so much – let's hope that this chapter is just as good!

A change of setting is used in this chapter as we need to see how things are doing outside of Euphoria. There are a lot of characters introduced that haven't been mentioned in a while, so it's been fun writing about them!

Without further ado, here's the next chapter to Hunt.

Hunt

Chapter 12

Numb.

That's all Delia Ketchum could describe the way she was feeling; numb. It had been five days since Misty's disappearance and the same amount of days since her only son had gone to look for her. Although at first she'd tried to stay positive about Ash's plan, as the days went by, that positivity slowly seemed to drift away – all that was left was dread and remorse. She kept playing over and over again in her head what she should've done and what she should've said to stop him from going, but the more she thought about this, the more pain she felt. It was hard enough knowing that Misty had gone missing, let alone her own son. If anything ever happened to Ash while he was out looking for her she'd never be able to let it go – it would be all her fault. And, as much as she hated to admit it, she knew that Ash could be careless and stupid at times – he always seemed to run into trouble no matter where he was.

As she held the mug of coffee in her hands, she felt her eyes come out of focus and her vision soon became blurred. It was just unbearable – the whole atmosphere of Pallet Town had gone from being relaxed and carefree to tense and bitter within seconds, and as Delia tried her best to think about happy thoughts of Ash and Misty, it only made her eyes well up even more.

On the other side of the room were Misty's three sisters, Daisy, Lily and Violet. As soon as they'd heard the news of Misty's disappearance they'd booked the next flight out to Kanto and met Delia as soon as possible – from there, the Professor had kindly offered them all his hospitality and insisted that they stay with him and Daisy Oak at the mansion. They would've been stupid not to take up this offer because at that moment in time, Delia and Misty's sisters needed all the help they could get.

Lily and Violet were on a couch opposite Delia in the large, warming living room of the Oak household – Lily appeared to be forcing her eyes to stay awake, but every now and again she'd drift off for a minute or so, only to suddenly jolt back into consciousness. Violet held her sister's hand tightly and was tapping her foot impatiently, trying her best to focus her attention on something other than the tense atmosphere she was currently in. Daisy, however, was stood at the window on the left-hand side of the wall, gazing distantly into nothingness – she appeared to be ignoring everything around her, deep in thought and away from the rest of the world. Being the eldest sister of the four, Daisy had always been very independent and rarely showed her emotions to anyone, even in a situation as bad as Euphoria.

Just down the hallway, the Professor and Daisy Oak were making more coffee in the kitchen. The Professor looked worn and weary, his eyes sunken and lifeless – Daisy, however, continued to shine brightly and tried her absolute best to keep a warm smile on her face. Deep down, she wanted to burst into floods of tears and hide away in her bedroom for hours on end, but she refused to let Delia and Misty's sisters see her like that. She needed to be strong for them and she needed to show them that no matter what the consequences, you can always move on – she'd experienced that herself with Gary.

A soft clicking of a door told the Professor that the laboratory had been locked up, and within a few seconds, two figures appeared at the kitchen door.

"We've done everything you asked, Professor."

Samuel Oak turned to his two counterparts and smiled weakly. He honestly didn't know what he'd do without Tracey and Brock – they'd been by his side straightaway as soon as they'd heard the news of Misty's disappearance and knew that he'd need a lot of help at the lab. Tracey had always been a brilliant help, even working with Gary in his younger years a couple of times whenever Gary visited home and Brock had always been a very close family friend. Travelling with Misty and Ash for so long, Brock was probably the only person that knew them more than anyone and he had a very strong ability at observing people's thoughts and actions. As soon as Brock had arrived at the Oak mansion, it only took one look at Delia and Misty's sisters to know that they needed to be left alone for a while. Of course, Brock had his own share of grieving to do, but now wasn't the time for that – he needed to be strong, just like the person he'd always been when around Ash and Misty.

"Thank you," the Professor said, handing them both a mug of coffee. "I appreciate everything you've done over the past few days, boys – I definitely wouldn't have gotten all that work done on my own."

"Anytime, Professor," Tracey said, smiling warmly. "You've done the right thing with closing the lab for now – it would be too much for you to handle if you'd decided to continue working."

"Tracey's right," Brock said knowingly. "You need your rest too, Samuel – this is a lot to take in for all of us, especially for you. You've been through this before already."

Brock, now at the age of twenty-three, had grown extremely close to the Professor over the past few years – becoming a Doctor, Brock needed all the support he could get from the older Oak and if it wasn't for him, he wouldn't have become so successful in his profession. The Professor had often invited Brock over to the lab whenever a Pokémon had fallen sick so Brock could learn from the Professor himself, offering advice and tips leading him to become one of the best Pokémon Doctors around. As soon as the gym leaders had started disappearing, Brock had felt somewhat relieved that he wasn't a gym leader anymore but he was still extremely concerned about his younger brother, Forrest – his parents had made sure that the gym was closed and Forrest was protected securely at home. At the age of sixteen, Forrest was still extremely young so the League had accepted that the Pewter City gym must close down – the other gym leaders who were a lot older and more experienced than Forrest continued to battle nonetheless.

Still, Brock couldn't help but feel a strong wave of guilt – when the gym leaders had started disappearing, he'd had near to no contact with Misty at all. He'd call her every few months or so to see how she was doing, but she refused to talk about the gym leader case for some strange reason – Brock guessed that she refused to believe that it would ever happen to her, but how wrong she was. Yet, he still felt like it was his fault, to some extent; what if he'd been in touch with her more? What if he'd made her close the gym earlier? Would she not have been abducted? He knew that he couldn't go blaming himself for what had happened, but he couldn't help but feel as if he had some sort of part to blame. Misty was like a sister to him, after all – he'd seen her at her best, her worst and her most vulnerable… he was supposed to look after her, but he'd failed to do that.

As he thought back to the whole beginning, Brock couldn't help but think back to the day that Gary had disappeared. Gary's disappearance had been a shock to everyone, but once the gym leaders had started to disappear too it only made the situation worse. Nobody knew for sure whether or not the gym leaders were being abducted by the same people as Gary so no one really treated it as suspicious, but this had been a thought that had crossed Brock's mind on more than one occasion. However, no matter how much it crossed his mind, he couldn't think of a valid reason as to why they would want to abduct Gary – he wasn't a gym leader, nor was he a trainer. He was a researcher, so it couldn't have been the same people. In all honesty, Gary's disappearance was even more mysterious than the gym leaders – what would anyone want to do with Gary? Had he done something bad that he hadn't told anyone about? As Brock continued to abuse his brain with endless amounts of questions, he was interrupted by the soft voice of Daisy Oak.

"Is everything okay, Brock?" she asked politely, a warm smile covering her face. He shook his head quickly and gave her a confident nod of assurance.

"Sorry, I spaced out for a moment," he said. "How are you, Daisy?"

She sighed heavily.

"I'm alright, I suppose. I'm just trying to stay positive for everybody else… it's so hard, Brock. I've been there before – God, I'm still there. Not a day goes by where I don't think about Gary, and now Misty's gone, it's just…"

"I know how you feel," Brock said assuredly, watching the Professor sit next to Delia in the living room. "Misty's truly like a sister to me – I can read her like a book and I know that she can trust me with absolutely anything, but I'm trying my best to stay level-headed for Delia and her sisters especially – they need the support at the moment. I'll find time to grieve on my own when the right time comes."

"You can only be so strong, Brock," Daisy said, a look of concern on her face. "You're just as close to Misty as they are – you travelled with her for months, Brock, and you've remained extremely close for years after that. They'd completely understand if you break down too… keeping it all in isn't going to do you any good."

"You're probably right," Brock said, his eyes becoming distant as he watched Delia sob helplessly into the Professor's arms. "I can't help but feel guilty, Daisy – I hardly spoke to Misty in the few months before she went missing. I can't help but feel like I could've done something to stop this from happening."

"You can't blame yourself for this," Daisy said. "That's the worst thing you can do – I've been down that route before and it's not good. It only makes the situation worse. Misty didn't have any notice or thought on what to do, and you know how passionate she is about her job… that's probably why it took her so long to close the gym. Even if she did decide to close the gym earlier than she did, there's no saying that it would've stopped them."

"But what if I'd spoken to her sooner? She would've closed the gym earlier which would've meant there'd be less of a chance of her getting abduct-"

"Nobody can change what's happened, Brock," Daisy said sternly, her eyes sincere. "I've learnt that, and it took me a long time to learn that, but you can't change the past. None of us had any idea on who these people were going to target next. It's just so unfortunate that it was Misty… but please, don't blame yourself, Brock. This isn't your fault; it isn't anyone's fault, okay? I want you to understand that. When Gary went missing, all I could think about was what I could've done and what I should've done but I realised that there was nothing I could've done, Brock... and it took me a long time to realise that."

Brock glanced at the floor and sighed heavily – Daisy was right. She'd been in his place before and if he was going to listen to anyone, it had to be her. She'd lost her younger brother who she loved and cherished with all of her heart and he hated to think that she'd ever blame herself for his disappearance – that's how she must've been feeling about him. Looking down at her thankfully, he pulled her into a hug and closed his eyes for a moment.

"You'll get through this," she said calmly, resting her head on his shoulder. "If anyone can do it, you can – I know you don't want to grieve in front of everyone else, but you know where I am if you ever need to let it out. I know I'll need to at some point."

"Thanks, Daisy," Brock said. "You're one of the strongest people I've met, you know that?"

"I have to be strong," she replied, smiling confidently. "I know that Gary would want me to be strong, and Misty would expect the same from you."

"You're right," Brock said, thinking of Misty and her fiery personality – she wouldn't want him to give up hope. She'd be the first person to kick his arse into gear if she was here with him, so chuckling silently to himself, he took in a deep breath.

Pulling out of their embrace, Brock made his way into the living room. He observed the scene cautiously – Delia continued to sob into the Professor's arms and Misty's sisters were on the other side of the room, each one lost in thought. He spotted Tracey making his way towards him, looking dull and helpless.

"I don't think now's the time to be in here," he said, joining Brock in the doorway to the living room. "I've just tried speaking to Daisy but she doesn't want to talk to anyone – Lily and Violet are consoling in each other so I think we should leave them to it, Brock."

"I think that's best," Brock said, walking with Tracey back down the hallway to the kitchen. "I'm actually feeling a little better – Daisy talks a lot of sense, you know."

"Well, she is the granddaughter of Professor Oak," Tracey joked, lifting the atmosphere a little. "She can help you out a lot, Brock. She's your age and she knows exactly what it's like to lose someone that's so close to you – console in her more often."

"I think I will," Brock said, smiling subtly. "What about you, Tracey? I'm not the only one who was close to Misty."

"I don't think it's hit me yet to be totally honest," Tracey admitted, leaning against the kitchen counter. "I feel like I'm just walking around helping everybody else out and that I haven't really had a chance to think about my own feelings… but when I do you'll be there for me, right?"

"You know I will," Brock said, placing a reassuring hand on Tracey's shoulder.

"Thanks, Brock."

Back in the living room, Daisy Oak watched Daisy Waterflower intently – she was staring numbly outside of the window, her eyes glazed and heavy. The older Waterflower sister had isolated herself from the others, choosing to deal with the situation on her own. She'd been like that for days now and refused to talk to anybody, not even her own sisters – Daisy knew exactly how she felt, though, as she once had isolated herself from everybody else when Gary had disappeared.

Observing the others around the room, Daisy Oak cautiously made her way over to the eldest Waterflower sister and followed her gaze out of the window, taking in a deep breath.

"I know exactly how you feel, Daisy."

Daisy Waterflower furrowed her brows together slightly and moved her gaze away from the dull scene outside the window – she slowly looked at the Oak sister and watched her curiously, unable to make any response.

"I was exactly like you – I completely isolated myself from everybody else and didn't want to speak to anyone for weekson end. Losing Gary was like losing myself, in a way – I was the one he always looked up to, I was the one he came to for support, I was the one who should've appreciated what I had because you never know when it's going to change… and all of a sudden, Gary was gone. I spent months wishing that I'd spent more time with him, that I'd listened to him more, that I'd actually made the effort but in time I realised, Daisy, that it didn't matter how much I saw Gary and spoke to him… what mattered was that I was his sister and I was always there for him, no matter what. He'd call at the most ridiculous times in the night if something was bothering him and I'd hate him for it but at the same time I knew I only accepted it because I loved him.

"I guess, what I'm trying to say, Daisy, is that I know you're feeling guilty right now and I know you're wishing that you'd appreciated Misty more, but when someone means that much to you, it doesn't matter how many times you see them or spoken to them – it's what you do for them that counts. And, believe me, if Misty was here right now, she'd respect you more than she's ever done before."

Daisy Waterflower looked to the floor in a distant manner – Gary's sister smiled weakly at her before turning to leave but the soft touch of Daisy's hand caused her to stop.

"Thank you," Daisy Waterflower said, her eyes glimmering with tears. Daisy Oak smiled at her warmly before making her way out of the living room and back towards the kitchen – as she joined Brock and Tracey, she gave them a reassuring nod.

"She's fine, Tracey," Daisy said confidently. She watched Tracey's shoulders drop with relief and he silently thanked her, leaving the kitchen to go and join the eldest Waterflower sister. The two had always been extremely close and Tracey had made it clear that he cared for Misty's sister in a large amount of ways, and with the situation they were in, Daisy Waterflower needed somebody like Tracey to find comfort in – he just hoped that she'd stop isolating herself from everybody.

"That's a huge weight lifted off his shoulders," Brock said, half laughing as he watched Tracey make his way back into the living room. Daisy smiled amusedly and nodded in agreement, the feeling of proud coursing through her – as she was about to respond to the young man next to her, a loud bang was heard from the front door.

"What on earth was that?" Daisy asked tremendously.

"I don't know but it doesn't sound good," Brock said, putting down his mug of coffee as he made his way down the long entrance hall to the front door. Before he even reached it, another bang soared through the mansion and as Brock quickened his pace, the front door smashed open and a large, overbearing Pokémon charged through, sprinting past the young Doctor causing him to fall backwards. Daisy Oak screamed as the Pokémon came pelting towards her but as soon as it saw her, it stopped dead in its tracks – everything around Daisy seemed to stop.

"What on earth is going on!?" the Professor exclaimed as he stumbled out of the living room, observing the hallway and the state of the front door. As he followed the mess, his eyes came to Brock lying on the floor and then, the Pokémon staring directly at Daisy.

Daisy continued to stare ceaselessly at the large Pokémon, the mug of coffee becoming loose in her hands. It watched her hopelessly, its eyes round and full of emotion – she placed her coffee on the kitchen side and cautiously stepped towards the Pokémon, slowly lifting a gentle hand to the Pokémon's face. Tenderly caressing its fur, she let out a soft sob – with her eyes rimmed with tears, a small, weak smile graced her face.

"Arcanine," she whispered, her gaze never leaving the Pokémon's longing stare.

"Daisy," the Professor said, watching his granddaughter cautiously. He watched Arcanine curiously, observing the Pokémon with patience when suddenly, he understood exactly why Daisy was so taken aback.

"Gary's Arcanine," he said simply, a tone of disbelief in his voice.

"Pika!"

Down the hallway, Pikachu came sprinting through the front door followed closely by Noctowl. He was carrying a belt full of Poké Balls and appeared to be out of breath and stricken with panic. Back in the living room, Delia Ketchum lifted her head abruptly – she knew that voice. Jumping up from her seat on the couch, she ran out of the living room and paused in the hallway, watching the small mouse Pokémon run towards the kitchen.

"Pikachu!"

Pikachu came to a halt and turned around sharply to face Delia.

"Where's Ash, Pikachu?" she asked demandingly, lifting a hand towards her chest. "Is he in trouble?"

"Pika-pika!" Pikachu exclaimed, running up towards her and flinging the belt off his back, causing the Poké Balls to fall everywhere. She gasped and felt her eyes start to fill with tears again, the breath hitched in her throat – she looked from the Poké Balls to the Professor and Daisy Oak, and weakly, she made her way down the hallway to the kitchen, the world around her starting to crumble again.

"Samuel," she said faintly as she walked into the kitchen. "A-Ash is in trouble."

"Delia, how can you be certain?" he asked, holding her shoulders. His eyes then averted to Pikachu who was tugging on the bottom of his trousers, a look of worry plastered across his face.

"Ash's belt, Sam," she choked, the energy draining from her. "Pikachu had it – he's in trouble, Sam!"

"Delia, calm down," the Professor said desperately, bringing a hand to his temples. "This whole situation is extremely odd – first Arcanine and then Pikachu…"

"Who's Arcanine is that?" Brock asked as he got to his feet, brushing himself down. As the Professor started to answer him, another person beat him to it.

"It's Gary's Arcanine, Brock," Daisy Oak spoke up, coming out of the kitchen. "And he's alive."

Everybody had come together by this point – Tracey and Misty's sisters had joined the Professor, Delia, Brock and Daisy in the kitchen, all completely bewildered by the situation. As the Professor listened to his granddaughter's words, he shook his head in disbelief – the whole thing was absurd.

"Daisy, let's not jump to conclusions," the Professor said quickly, trying to grasp how to deal with the situation. "We don't know that fo-"

"No, Gramps," Daisy said, her eyes sincere and honest. "He's alive. You have to trust me on this."

The Professor watched his granddaughter in astonishment and then, his entire mind caved in. He brought both of his hands towards his face and rubbed his eyes roughly, taking in a deep breath – it was far too much to take in.

"Pikachu," Delia said softly, kneeling down to his height. "Do you know where Ash is?"

"Pika!"

"Did he send you here, Pikachu?" she asked, now desperate. "Is Gary with him, too?"

"Pika, pika-pika!"

Delia breathed in sharply – nervously, she swallowed down a large lump in her throat and asked the mouse Pokémon something she was praying would have a positive answer.

"Is Misty with them?"

Pikachu's ears lowered – he wasn't sure about Misty. Delia's eyebrows narrowed but she petted Pikachu's head softly, giving him a weak smile.

"Thank you, Pikachu," she said as she stood back up, looking over at the Professor. He looked continuously between Pikachu and Arcanine, trying to think of what to do – how could they be sure if Gary was definitely alive? Had they physically seen him? It could all be false hope and they'd all endured far too much of that over the years he had been missing. As he looked back at Delia, his shoulders loosened – her boy was in danger, and whether he was positive that Gary was alive or not, Ash was most certainly in trouble – Pikachu knew that for sure. Taking in a deep breath, he observed everyone around him before speaking.

"Then we go," he said bluntly. "Pikachu, do you know where Ash is situated?"

Pikachu nodded and looked up at Noctowl who too nodded its head – Arcanine watched the Professor guardedly, waiting for his response.

"Tracey, I want you to alert the police. As soon as they're here, we'll leave together – we're to stick together, is that clear?"

"I'm going now," Daisy Oak said with confidence, storming past the Professor and grabbing her coat from the hallway.

"Daisy, did you listen to what I just said!?" the Professor exclaimed, running after his granddaughter. "It's too dangerous for you to go alone, especially a girl of your age! You're staying with us whether you like it or not!"

"You can't stop me, Gramps!" she shouted, walking back towards Arcanine. "I'm not wasting time. We've been relying on the police for years and what have they found? Nothing. This is the first bit of clear evidence we've been given since Gary disappeared and I'm not just going to sit back and let other people do the work!"

The Professor was taken aback by his granddaughter's sudden outburst. She was normally such a calm and laidback girl but this was a whole new side that he hadn't seen from her before. And, as much as he hated to admit it, she was speaking the truth.

Daisy stroked Arcanine gently and smiled faithfully, resting her forehead against his. Then, flicking her hair over her shoulder, she leapt onto Arcanine's back and held onto him tightly - within a flash, Arcanine had sprinted out of the Oak mansion.

"Daisy, wait! I'm coming with you!"

Before anyone could say anything, Brock had ran after Daisy and disappeared out of sight.

"I have to stop her."

"Samuel," Delia interrupted him, placing a hand on his shoulder. "Let her go. She's right and you know it – let her follow her instinct. She'll be fine… you have to trust her."

The Professor swallowed down a sharp lump in his throat and felt his heart rate rise – she'd never shown so much passion and bravery before. Although she was the eldest out of his two grandchildren, she'd always been the shy one – and that was what he was worried about. If anything happened to her, he wasn't sure that Daisy would be able to handle it.

"The police are on their way, Professor," Tracey said nervously.

The Professor nodded his head subtly and continued to stare at the front door, all senses and emotions drained from him – he couldn't take it in, and deep down, he didn't think he'd ever be able to.

Author's Note:

Hope that was good! I'm sorry for the later update – work has been mental recently and I just haven't had time at all to sit down and write! This is a bit of a filler chapter but it was needed because we can't just ignore what's happening outside of Euphoria. As I said, it was fun writing about some different characters – especially ones that you can develop however you want!

Once again, please please please review – you don't realise how much it means to me! Even if it's one word, I honestly don't mind, just let me know your thoughts on the story and latest chapter.

See you all soon,

Charityx