Short chapter, yes, but I hope it satisfies! And really? Only 1 (maybe 2) people knew the pokemon from last chapter? Though Sven and Zap were obvious of course.
Also many people asked how long this fanfic will be as well as when the duo go to the Union what with the ship crash not being the official promotion. The fanfic will (probably) be a tad longer than my past two which were 54 and 60 chapters. And the promotion is coming up! Just a few loose ends to tie up, some finishing up at Vientown as well as a little more action! The story will pick up the pace pretty soon!
Read, review, enjoy!
Authors note: OH MY GAWD! I AM SUCH AN AIRHEAD! *smacks self* I finished writing late at night but forgot to upload the chapter. So the next morning I uploaded the chapter. But halfway through school I face-palm and remember. I totally didnt update the story. So sorry for long wait!
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"Damn it Kate! You better be ok…"
Keith had leapt up from bed and zoomed through the hallways the moment the slightest flicker of the angel senses went active. His mind went through the possibilities of what could've happened in the hour he left Kate alone. Broken bones? Knife accident? Pokemon attack? Evil Team? Redhead was hoping, no, praying this was only a false alarm. Bursting into the main room, he saw everyone at base had frozen in place while looking to the front doors.
"Sven?"
The soaked cowboy was carrying an injured luxray in his arms and an unconscious Kate on his back. Keith dashed over and caught Kate in his arms just as the girl slipped off of Sven. He saw the huge scratch across her shoulders, fresh and bleeding. Kate looked so tired and worn out…like she was drained of energy. What had she been doing?
"What happened out there?" Elaine asked as Crawford went to help Sven lift the luxray.
"Whew. I don't even know the full deal myself." Sven panted. "Went looking for my missing partner pokemon and BAM! I got Kate thrown in too. They both seem to be in trouble."
"Hurry! We have to fix them up!" Luana urged.
The guys went over to the first aid room, dropping Kate on the bed and luxray on the pokemon table. Keith handled Kate's wounds; cleaning off the blood, disinfecting the area and carefully applying the bandages. A few times, he was able to sneak in some angel healing. The damage wasn't as bad as it looked at first glance. Kate would be sore and scarred but fine. Luxray, from what Keith overheard, would heal up in no time as well.
Since it was late, everyone decided Sven should stay for the night. Luana went to ready the guest room, Elaine cooked dinner and Crawford handled the extremely ticked off Annie concerning the trails of mud, blood & water on the freshly mopped floors. Keith and Sven stuck by in the first aid room, watching over their sleeping partners. At first, the two old friends were surprisingly quiet.
"So…" Keith broke the long silence. "What happened?"
"Zap, my pokemon partner, likes to go exploring so I let him wander about. He was always within calling distance and never stayed out past sundown. After you and Kate left, I called for him but…he never showed up." Sven stroked the luxray's fur. "Wendy said to wait it out but by the time night came, I could feel something went wrong. I went out looking for him. Dunno how long. Seemed like awhile. And in Vien forest, I heard a pokemon roar as a fierce bolt of lightning struck down. It….it sounds ridiculous but a raikou appeared."
"A raikou?" Keith was taken aback.
"Yeah. I'm sure of it." Sven nodded. "It had Zap and Kate on its back. Then it saw me, set them down and ran off. You know the rest."
"Wow…" Keith whispered.
Kate rode on the back of a raikou. That was amazing! A raikou saved her life!
"Not sure what happened to these two. Zap's marks look as though he got in a fight. He's not the type to start something so I'm guessing this was a serious affair. As for Kate? Those scratch marks could only come from a luxray. Sorry if Zap caused some trouble." Sven went on.
"Well…" Keith sighed. "I guess everything's ok now."
Thunder crashed through the air. Keith stared down at Kate. So peaceful and quiet when she slept. It was almost painful to see. Keith wanted to see Kate full of life again; bouncing off the walls and being her cheerful self. To have those big blue eyes open back up once more.
"You're really into her, don't you?"
Keith turned bright red at the sudden remark. He'd light up Santa's sleigh better than Rudolph the red nosed stantler.
"WHAT!" Keith yelped. "I do not!"
Sven smirked. "Wow. Even more so than I thought. Must be falling for this chick hard-core."
"I will wring your freakin neck…" Keith growled.
"Awww. You wouldn't do that to an old friend." Sven chuckled.
"How much you wanna bet?" Keith mumbled, irritated.
Sven snickered a little more before looking serious. He knew. Keith didn't have to say a word for the cowboy to get it.
"Don't breathe a word about this. EVER." Keith sighed.
"I won't." Sven held up a hand. "Swear on my rangerhood."
A long moment of silence. Keith's eyes kept drifting back towards the sleeping Kate. She looked a bit cold. Redhead grabbed a blanket from nearby and covered her up, hoping it'd help her warm up. He tried to resist the temptation of holding her close to his own beating heart, knowing Sven would never let him live it down if he did so. The best Keith could muster, without being caught, was holding Kate's hand.
"You realize you could lose her at any given moment."
Keith turned back to Sven.
"What?" Keith blinked.
"Kate could've gotten herself into real trouble out there. Then there was that ship crash. And I'm sure she's risked her life quite a bit." Sven said.
Oh if only the top ranger knew…
"One of these days, Kate might slip away when you're not there to protect her." Sven went on. "Or worse. You'll lose out to another guy."
"I'll always be there to watch over Kate." Keith responded. "And….and it's not any of my business who she dates anyways. As long as he's decent, I'll tolerate him."
"Come on. I know you dude and I'm starting to get to know the kid. You two are a great match!" Sven said. "Besides, I know you'd be the jealous type. Wouldn't let another guy near Kate. You'd keep an electric fence around her if you could."
"No need to exaggerate." Keith rolled his eyes.
"Point is, you should make your move. And soon. Before you miss out on an awesome girl like Kate." Sven suggested.
"Like you'd understand this sort of thing mister 'love em and leave em'." Keith fired back.
"That was in the past. I've got my sights on another girl now." Sven told him.
"Wendy?" Keith assumed.
"….how…?" Sven seemed genuinely shocked.
"Close friendship, a bit of chemistry, just a feeling…" Keith listed, shrugging.
Sven raised an eyebrow but then relaxed. "Alright, you got me. I've liked Wendy since the moment I first met her. Different from all the other girls I've been with. A kind of fire that I like in a gal."
"And yet you haven't made your move." Keith pointed out.
"At first, no. But I have been doing something." Sven grinned. "I tried an experiment some time back and sent a rose with a little love note I fiddled with. She liked em so much I send one or two a week. Never signed my name so I let Wendy guess who it is."
"So you're secretly winning her heart?" Keith assumed.
"Yep. Wendy adores them." Sven nodded. "I'll come out and confess within due time. First is to test and see if I can get closer in our little 'partnership'."
Love notes; would Keith ever be able to write one? What would Kate's face look like if she read an anonymous love letter from him? That sweet shade of blush? Eyes sparkling? Smile curved so perfectly it made Keith melt?...no. No, he couldn't do this. It would only be fooling himself even more. Liking Kate wasn't against the angel code but he was dangerously close to the edge. Keith couldn't allow himself to get sucked up into this. And to drag poor Kate along with him?
"So will you tell her?" Sven questioned, trying to read the redhead's face.
"….I can't." Keith mumbled. "I just can't do it."
"What do you have to lose?" Sven urged.
"My pride, the friendship we share, feelings…" Keith replied. "Possibly my life."
"Love is about takin a risk dude. Only real men tell their feelings to the women they love." Sven told him.
The cowboy got up, giving another spare blanket to Zap and petting the luxrays fur for a bit. Then he slowly walked to the door.
"At least think about it."
Even long after everyone else in the base had gone to sleep, Keith still remained by Kate's bed. And he still kept thinking about what Sven said.
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Inching closer! Will Keith announce his love? FIND OUT NEXT CHAPTER! Maybe! Probably not! Nope! But stick around anyways cause we got more chapters and excitement on the way! Soon is our next chapter…soon…