The Boat That Rocked (Rocketshipping Fanfic)

Part Twenty-Nine

Lisa was holding her hand, her back hunched over as she tightened her arms around the woman lying in her lap, tears falling from her bright eyes, her mouth calling a name.

Alphonse is dead.

Jessie couldn't believe it.

She had stared agape as the man had fallen backwards, blood staining his shirt from the bullet wound, his head smashed in by the stone. He was a monster. And the monster was finally dead.

Jessie had shuffled forwards, stumbling slightly, peering over and down into the hole, Alphonse's broken body at the bottom. He's really dead.

And she killed him.

At first, Jessie had heard something, another movement, something out of place, and she had looked up, opening her eyes again, to see the bloodied figure leering downwards the two, Alphonse hanging over Lisa's slight body.

The person was red. Blood wept from a gash that ran down their face, deep and gruelling, right eye crimson as the liquid bled into their sight. Their clothes were torn, revealing bruises and cuts. It looked like the figure had been dealt a beating – beaten until the brink of death. Their left leg was twisted at the ankle, the bone obviously broken, the limp agonising. Their back was slashed, the glistening of bloodied bone showing, the skin pulled back, the person's fat layer pale and gory. Blood drenched black, their front gleaming, a wound at their chest making it hard to breath, each inhale a quivering struggle.

Jessie had watched in disbelief as this ghost had lifted a stone and brought it crashing down on Alphonse's head.

She had watched in utter dread as they buckled, their shaking legs giving way. She had gasped when, almost like a miracle, the person had reached for the gun and raised it quick enough to squeeze off the last shot.

Alphonse is dead.

The person had collapsed, Lisa rushing to their side.

Jessie had somehow reached the two, falling to her knees beside them, looking at the woman lain in Lisa's lap.

"It's…okay…n…now." A voice, so low, so silent, such withering breaths.

Lisa's shoulders shook as she cried, jaw muscles clenching and unclenching.

She held onto the woman as if she were her last lifeline.

Moments passed. Time wasn't working anymore, minutes were years, hours were seconds.

"Jaime! Jaime! Jaime!" the girl called.

Her hands held the woman closer. "Jaime…" Lisa bowed her head lower, hair falling over her face.

The woman's eyes blinked open, gaze meeting Lisa's. "Hey…"

Lisa shook as a new sob hit her. "Hey." Her hand squeezed Jaime's.

"It's…over…r…right?" Jaime breathed.

Lisa brushed away her tears and nodded sharply. "Yeah, yeah," she smiled bravely. "It's all over now. You saved us, Jaime."

Jaime smiled, so weak, so relieved, so…final.

Jessie swallowed. "You just killed your brother." She said under her breath, still disbelieving, everything feeling unreal.

"Th-that wasn't my…my br…brother." Jaime's eyes flicked upwards to meet Jessie's. Her eyes were glazed over and bloodshot, full of determination and empty of life.

Jessie blinked slowly. She reached out to place a hand on Lisa's arm. "We need to go."

Lisa looked appalled. "Go?! What do you mean by that? We can't leave her here."

Jessie shook her head. "She's as good as dead already."

Lisa's mouth hung open, slack, tears silently falling. Jessie reached out behind them to retrieve the discarded shirt and pushed it against Lisa's bare shoulder. "Put this on. We need to go."

"I won't leave her." The girl spoke firmly, voice trembling with the emotions that bubbled underneath the surface. I've angered her. I only told the truth. Glancing at Jaime, she could only see someone that was ghost, holding on to life by their fingertips. It wouldn't take long before she finally couldn't hold on any more.

Jessie looked away. She saved us. I suppose letting her feel someone else's warmth as she dies isn't asking much. She deserves that much. She pushed the shirt towards Lisa again. "Put it on at least."

Lisa hesitated. Then she carefully released her hold on Jaime, taking the shirt and shrugging it on, not bothering to button it up. She returned to holding Jaime's hand, squeezing it comfortingly.

Suddenly a trembling hand reached up, a finger gently caressing Lisa's cheek, catching a tear. "Why…why are you crying?"

The girl grabbed Jaime's wrist, lips pulling up in a faltering smile. "Because…because…" she took a breath. "Thank you. Thank you, Jaime, for saving me. Us."

Jaime laughed once and then immediately winced, groaning as pain hit her body. She looked at Lisa with one open eye, a half-grin on her pale face. "Idiot."

"Shut up." She replied softly.

Watching the two it became apparent that Lisa knew as much as Jessie did that Jaime didn't have long left. The look in the girl's eyes, the movement of her shifting jaw, the way her hand was clasping so tightly on the woman's. She knows she's dying.

"No…no one-"

Lisa shushed her. "You don't have to speak." It was obvious that every word pained the woman, the bullet that had entered her chest had probably punctured a lung.

Jaime's head moved slightly to the side and back. She tried to speak again. "No one will come. No one will…come after you all. If…If Alphonse doesn't return, no one will…lo…look for him. Y-you're sa…fe."

Jessie cleared her throat. "No one will look for James?" He had come here for James after all. Would this really end it all?

"Th…that was Alphonse's own ven…detta. No one else…c…ares." Came the weak reply.

Jessie nodded, looking away to stare across the room, staring through the collapsed wall to the outside. The sounds of birds waking up filled the breeze and it felt surreal. Everything felt surreal. The abandoned district was waking up along with the morning sun, the eerie emptiness suddenly filled with sounds of life. Sounds of life that felt broken, sounds from another reality.

The room was quiet, all three listening to Jaime's pained breathing and the birds, taking in the sensation of the cool breeze on their blood-stained skin.

Jessie slowly turned her head to look back at the two before her. Jaime's eyes were closing, her lips parted, a small smile pulling at the corners.

Lisa gripped the hands she held tighter. "Jaime…" she whispered, repeating her words again. "Jaime, thank you."

The smile twitched.

"I mean it," Lisa continued, a sense of urgency in her voice. "We were right to trust you – I trust you."

What was the point of saying all this? Why did Lisa look like she had to say it, that no matter what, it had to be said? She had to be told. Why? The woman probably couldn't care less if you trust her or not.

But to Jessie's surprise, the smile that spread on Jaime's white face was so genuine, so peaceful.

"Idiot…" she croaked out.

Her hands suddenly slackened, the one touching Lisa's cheek slipping from her grasp and falling to her side. Lisa's breath hitched. "Jaime?"

But the woman was gone, the gentle smile still on her lips.

Jessie touched Lisa's arm again. "Come on." She said softly.

The girl didn't react at first but then she nodded, releasing Jaime's hand and carefully lifting and placing the woman on the floor. She rose, wiping her eyes dry. She looked at Jessie, offering a hand to help her up.

Once Jessie was on her feet, Lisa supporting her, the girl spoke again. "I want to come back for her. I think she deserves a proper grave."

Jessie looked at the girl's face as they made their way down the hallway, being cautious of the obstacles underfoot once again. She looked stern, her jaw tense, her gaze unwavering and strong. Jessie's eyes returned to watching her step. "Of course."

-#-

The car roared, jerking violently as the tyres hit the crumbling tarmac, Meowth making noises of pain and protest from the back seat. James slammed his foot on the brakes, the car squealing, tyres screeching to a halt, the vehicle twisting until it stopped at an angle across the broken road.

James stared out of his window, eyes wide, a low gasp escaping between his lips. Lisa and Jessie were hobbling out of one of the buildings, moving towards the car. Jessie's head hung, red hair concealing her face. Lisa watched the car with a look of mistrust, her steps slowing.

"James?" Meowth's voice startled him awake.

He stabbed the seatbelt release button with a thumb, throwing the car door open, sprinting towards the two.

"James!" Lisa's face lit up, relief vividly clear. Jessie visibly stiffened.

James grinned but then he froze. Both of them were covered in blood and their clothes were ripped. "Where's Alphonse?" he demanded.

"He's dead."

"Wha-wha…" James couldn't believe it. Alphonse…is dead? "What happened?"

Lisa looked at him with a strange expression, a sad smile on her lips. "Jaime." She said simply.

James nodded in understanding. Glancing around, he realized that she wasn't there. "Where is she? Is she still in the building? Did she not stick around?"

Lisa didn't reply.

It was then that Jessie lifted her head, her blue eyes meeting his green gaze. Emotions swirled in his chest, almost choking him, a electrifying shock hitting him. He blinked, looking away momentarily, and then meeting her eyes once again.

"She's dead."

His mouth fell open, then closed. "Oh." He raised a hand to rest on his temple, pain throbbing in his head. "Oh." He repeated.

Jessie was watching him, searching his face, trying to read his reaction, waiting to see his true feelings.

He dropped his hand, instead reaching out to gently brush a strand of hair from her face, tucking it behind her ear. "Thank god you're safe."

She looked shocked, tears collecting in the corner of her eyes. James smiled, swallowing the lump that formed in his throat, and took the injured woman from Lisa, supporting her with an arm around her.

James led her to the car, Lisa jumping forwards to open the back door. They both helped her inside, both wincing slightly as Meowth cried out loudly, squirming in the restraints of his seatbelt, probably reopening all of his wounds but not caring in the least. "Jessie! Jessie!"

The woman smiled, releasing the cat Pokémon from the seatbelt and wrapping him in her arms, burying her face in his bandaged fur.

James leaned over her, clicking her own seatbelt in place. He heard her sharp intake of breath at his proximity but he ignored it.

Backing out of the car and shutting the door, he turned to Lisa. With a start, he noticed how her shirt hung around her, unbuttoned, revealing her bare torso and bra. What happened? Fear spread throughout his body and he waved a hand at the girl's open shirt.

She quickly buttoned it up, hands shaking. James decided not to question her yet, the girl obviously only just holding up. She was never meant to get involved in all this.

"Where's Jaime?" he asked quietly.

Lisa suddenly moved forwards, grabbing his arms firmly. "We have to bring her home with us. Please, James, please."

"Of course. I wouldn't leave her here." James automatically replied.

The girl looked relieved, letting out a heavy sigh. She turned, walking back to the building he had seen them leave before.

James knocked on the car window, making Jessie jump, her head snapping up, her eyes wide with fear. Don't look at me like that, please. He was surprised at how it hurt him but he pushed his feelings down. He looked at the Pokémon in her arms. "Look after her, Meowth."

The Pokémon nodded, curling up closer to the woman, avoiding the bleeding wound at her shoulder. James tried not to look too closely, the wound obviously deep and agonisingly painful, Jessie's body weakened by the loss of blood. We need to get her to hospital fast.

James quickly turned on his heel and ran after Lisa, following her upstairs, sparing a disgusted glance at the fallen corpse of Alphonse lain in his own blood. He got what he deserved, the bastard.

At the top of the stairs, Lisa turned left and stopped, reaching a corner. She pointed down the hallway. "She's in the far room."

He nodded. "Go back to the car. I'll be there soon."

The girl nodded, rushing back down the stairs with no hesitation.

James didn't pause, walking quickly down the hallway, dodging the debris, broken tiles and swooping roots with swift movements. Entering the room, he immediately saw Jaime.

He crouched down beside her, brushing his fingers along her unharmed left cheek, his eyes trailing each and every wound. "I'm so sorry." He murmured.

His eyes stopped at her face. To his surprise, she looked content and peaceful. As if she had done what she had meant to do, as if she had fulfilled her purpose.

He slowly picked her up, one arm around her back, the other under her legs. He turned, walking back through the hallway and down the stairs.

He stopped at Alphonse's body. "So you did this, eh?" he asked quietly. He laughed humourlessly. "You did a good job."

He looked down at her face. She's so cold. "I'm sorry." He repeated. He bowed his head, touching his forehead to hers. "And thank you."

He closed his eyes. Thank you so much, Jaime. For everything. Thank you.


A/N

*cough*

Anyway, I just killed off one of my favourite characters. I'm dangerous when it comes to favourite characters - they always end up going through the worse and having the worst endings.

And you've probably guessed it now but the last part of the previous chapter was indeed from Jaime's PoV but I just wanted to have an air of mystery to it to keep you wondering.

Hope you are all still enjoying the story.

Thank you for reading!