A little more drama as we approach the end of part one. The ending of the tournament is the end of part one and part two is the longer side where things go towards the game timeline with some anime plot. Hope you enjoy!


September 26th

I know I asked if I could stay with him, but I don't know how I feel about staying with Lance again. I thought it was going to be fine. Suddenly, it's all so different than how it was before. When it was time for bed I felt weird going into the bathroom to change, he's already seen me naked but would it be weird to be so open about it? He didn't say anything or change in front of me either, so now I feel like he's tiptoeing around me because I am around him... Ugh, I think I just need to relax.

Waves pummeling the shore, sand between her toes, strangers playing volleyball or surfing and pokemon running about is music to Serena's ears as she relaxes on a beach towel. Donning shorts and a tank top, she soaks in the sun, letting it's warming rays soothe the tension in her muscles and lull her into a gentle nap.

This morning Lance had offered to take her to the beach and show her all the best spots to stop and eat. But as soon as the word 'beach' left his mouth she was all in. Being so close to the sea relaxes her and the sun does wonders for her outlook on life in general.

Somewhere nearby, Ty and Thea nap in the shade while Signa and Wynn get their fill of the clear ocean waters. Also nearby, all of Lance's pokemon, Ryu, Kai, Nova, the charmander he won (now a Charmeleon), and Tempest, his gyarados join hers in the relaxation.

His pokemon and hers got along almost right away after arriving. Ty and Nova decided to spar, tossing sand everywhere before tiring out and taking a break. Tempest, Kai, Signa and Wynn had done some exploring beneath the depths of the waves while Ryu and Thea minded their own business and stuck by their trainers.

"Let's battle," Lance suddenly states, returning with two water bottles and some sandwiches.

"Uhh, no?" Serena sits up with a frown. She takes the water and sandwich from him and laughs at his disgruntled look. "Why do you want to battle?"

"I dunno, I've never battled you before," he shrugs and takes a big bite of his food. Between mouthfuls he says, "It'd be fun!"

"You and I have different definitions of fun," she smirks. "No, I'm not battling you and I'm hoping I won't have to."

"Why?"

"Your pokemon are tough," she says as though it should be obvious.

It catches him off guard and they stare at each other before bursting into laughter. "Th-th-thanks-s!"

Wiping at a tear, Serena nods at him. "I'm serious."

"I mean it, thanks. It's a bunch of hard work," he rubs his stomach to loosen it from its ache. Serena averts her eyes from his bare body and turns towards the sea. "I just want to be ready for the League next year."

"It seems so far away," she muses without glancing his way.

"Before you know it, we'll be walking up to the Indigo Plateau," he responds with a short laugh. "God, I hope I make it past the other trainers."

Serena laughs. "You'll make it. I know you will."

"You're coming with me," he nudges her. "You may not think so, but you're getting stronger. Your pokemon are doing great."

She turns a bright smile in his direction causing his heart to stutter as she burns brighter than the sun. "Thanks, Lance."

XxXxXxX

Serena's mood seems to improve over the course of a few days. Sunbathing, swimming and training on the beach boosts the morale of her pokemon as well, except Ty for obvious reasons. Sygna takes to battles in the water just as well as the day he was caught and even evolves after a particularly good session, thanks to Lance having a King's Rock.

Tensions seem to melt away between her and Lance allowing her to fully enjoy her time with him. He manages to give her a vacation, signing her up for surfing lessons, going tubing, water skiing and snorkeling with a guide from the island.

She goes headfirst for the lessons, knowing It's a perfect way to distract her from her emotions and get her exhausted at night... Even if it doesn't last long.

Back to reality.

The thought stings Serena as she packs away her new one piece swimsuit, used for those lessons and snorkeling adventures, and turns to face herself in the mirror. Her already brown skin has grown darker in the sunlight while her hair has started to show some streaks of light brown and blond. Dressed in new denim shorts, a dark gray sleeveless tank with an outline of the Celadon skyline and slip-on shoes she feels ready for the day.

"Want me to braid your hair?" Lance asks coming in from the bathroom.

The question makes her shake off the memory of his hands on her body and force a smile. "If you don't mind?"

"'Course not," he grins and gestures for her to take a seat on the bed.

She tries not to breathe too loud as his fingers pull her mound of hair to her back. The whisper of his fingers threatens to make her shiver as he works quick to make a tight braid. He gets to the middle and her scars sense his proximity, making it seem like static down her back.

In the blistering heat, she'd been adamant to keep them out of the sun and her one piece assured that. It covered her entire back while allowing for a deep neckline to at least give her a bit of color in other normally covered areas.

"Done!" he announces sliding her thick plait over her shoulder and bouncing off the bed behind her. "Ready for your battle?"

"Yeah," she smoothes her hair and checks her pokeballs on her belt. "You sure you wanna come with?"

"Who else is going to cheer you on?" he turns back to her with his usual goofy grin.

Stop doing that, Serena curses inwardly at him. "True, let's go!"

Cinnabar Island Gym is located in the western part of town, near the pokemon lab and by the pokemon mansion. On the way over, Lance explains the story behind the pokemon mansion and it being haunted. Serena feels a chill as he states it's off limits but there are pokemon and sometimes treasures inside some people go searching for.

She smells the beginning of his idea and stops in her tracks. "We're not going there."

"Come on!" Lance groans, disappointed she got to the point before he could ask. "It would be fun!"

"Your last idea of 'fun' got me in so much trouble," she crosses her arms. "Dad told me not to push my luck."

"Nothing is going to happen, it's a haunted mansion," he reasons. "I will take full blame for it if we get caught, which we won't."

"How do you know?"

"It's just a fence to keep people out, there's no cameras or anything. We go in, look around, see what we can and leave," he shrugs at the last part. "Simple."

Serena lets out a disgruntled sound and tramples on ahead of him. "I can't believe you're still talking me into stupid ideas!"

Fist in the air in triumph, Lance skips to catch up with her and whistles his own little tune all the way to the gym. There's no ceremony as she swings the door open and stomps in trying to ignore Lance's giddiness at getting what he wants. Inside, the gym is fully lit thanks to a roof made entirely out of glass a lot like the Celadon gym. The battlefield is a rocky set up with boulders strewn about and four torches standing on each corner.

"Pretty simple," Serena comments with a grin. She spins around looking for an attendant but the gym seems empty. "Um?"

"Blaine will be here," Lance takes a seat at the bench on the challenger's side.

Serena opens her mouth to ask what he means when a door slams from across the gym and an older man with a receding hairline and graying hair steps in. He's donning a lab coat, a dark red dress shirt underneath with a tie of flames over it and slacks with nice shoes.

He crosses the gym with a welcoming smile. "Hello! You're here for a battle?"

"Uh, yeah," she watches him walk up and holds out her hand. "I'm Serena."

"Well, Serena, welcome to my gym," he swings his hand out to show her the field and such. "It's not much, but I'm thinking of moving so we'll see what it will become."

"Oh, good luck with moving. Where are you moving to?" Serena asks with genuine curiosity.

"To the volcano," Blaine grins as if it were obvious.

She steals a glance at Lance who shrugs back at her. "The volcano?"

"Yes! Fire types thrive in the intense heat and it's dormant so not as dangerous as you would think," he laughs at her response. "Come look at the plans, do you have time?"

Since he's the gym leader and he's already here, Serena sees no problem in viewing his plans to move. She's really interested in what they will be anyway. "Sure."

He gestures for the two to follow him back the way he came. Across the gym and through a simple side door that leads to a tiny office. Within the office is an even smaller desk cluttered with papers of drawings, official plans and other important looking documents. Lance picks up some of the plans and studies them carefully, he begins asking questions immediately while Serena glances around the room.

Her eyes take in pictures of Cinnabar, it's clear the gym leader loves his home and the people that come to visit. News articles celebrating the opening of new businesses dot an entire wall as well as news about the gym being open for 20 years. She gazes at that picture, looking at a younger Blaine with a Charmeleon beaming at the camera.

In the next photo she finds the opening of the Pokemon Lab on the island. Blaine, older this time, pictured there next to a man of the same stature. Serena's eyes narrow as she peers at his companion in the faded photo. His hair looks thick piled atop his head, with large round glasses and a stocky frame next to him.

As she takes in his features, her heart gives a heavy thud and her head suddenly surges with a wave of pain. Her small cry of pain alerts the two mid conversation that something is wrong.

Lance takes two strides to her side.

"Rena, what happened?" he asks, his hand coming to rest on her back while the other takes hold of her wrist to lead her away from the wall.

"N-nothing, I just got a headache," she uses her free hand to soothe her temples.

Blaine watches her, his eyes going from her to the picture on the wall she was looking at as he approaches. His eyes scan her head, following her braid over her shoulder, stopping at the top of her spine where the barest hint of a scar is visible. His breathing quickens and he glances between the two of them. Teenagers, no more than 18 years old...

It can't be...

"Would you like to sit down? I can get you some water," Blaine gathers his wits and pulls up a chair.

"Y-yes, please," Serena sighs as the pain begins to worsen. Lance helps her take a seat and stands behind her, his hands placed gently on her shoulders as if to remind her he's there with her. When Blaine returns, Serena reaches out a shaky hand to take it and manages a few sips. "Thank you, I'm sorry."

"Can't help a headache," he shakes his head and pulls in a spare chair to sit in front of her. "Do you get them often?"

"Not really," she breathes through another, smaller, wave.

"Are they migraines? I think there's special medicine for that?" he goes on trying his best to appear innocent. The chances of Serena's blood being the sample he worked on are small, but increasing with each second as he observes her.

"I've tried it," she tries to chuckle but flinches instead. "They don't happen often. Only with a large burst of psychic energy-ach!"

Blaine forces himself to not leap to his feet as she flinches again. "I can call an ambulance if you'd like?"

"No, I think we can make it back to the center," she reaches for Lance's hand and the boy obliges by taking hers and helping her up. "I think I just need to sleep."

"Are you sure?" Blaine walks with them to the front door. He hides his shaking hands behind his back as Serena tips to one side and he gets a better view of the marks at the base of her neck.

His heart stops, he takes a step forward when Lance urges her to the door. "I-"

"It's only a few blocks from here," Lance speaks up. "Thank you, Blaine!"

The two scurry from the gym as Serena's head begins to pound harder with each step. Lance loops an arm around her waist and holds her other arm over his shoulders to keep her upright. Images flash in her mind too fast for her to grasp what they are as they pass by an alleyway and she has to pause to breathe as her scars begin blazing up her back.

"Rena, how can I help?" Lance sounds so close but feels so far away.

"I-I don-don't kn-ow," she whimpers, her hands grasping the sides of her head. "Ho-ow far ar-ar-are we?"

"Just a block more," he pulls her close and then lifts her.

"St-sto-p. I'm hea-hea-vy," she fights against him, but her body feels too weak.

His smirk offers little reprieve from another wave of pain. "No, you're not."

Everything falls to a blur from the sudden rush of cool air marking the entrance of the pokemon center to the sound of Joy asking if she's okay, to Lance setting her down in her bed. Once on the bed, she turns to the side and dry heaves. Quick on his feet, Lance grabs a trash can and slides it under her as her lunch proceeds to come up. He holds her braid back, reaching around her waist to pick up Thea's pokeball and let her out.

"Can you help?" he asks her desperately before the pokemon can finish stretching.

Thea glances from him to Serena, her eyes widen taking in all the energy swirling around her trainer and her pained reaction. The psychic type hops onto the bed and uses Psychic to knock Serena out. Lance grunts as her body suddenly goes limp and nearly falls forward into the trash. He catches her and puts her on her side atop the blanket, wiping her mouth with some tissues and adjusting the pillows to line her back.

"What now?" he asks Thea. The psychic type doesn't respond, only crawls up the bed to curl around her trainer's head and close her eyes. "I'm calling her mom."

OoO

Floating in the sea, her arms splayed out at her sides and her head above the water as she tries desperately to understand what's happening. Eyes closed and unable to open no matter how hard she tries, she feels stuck.

Violent waves trickle in, tossing her body this way and that before she's forced upright and then curled into a fetal position. Finally, her eyes open to reveal nothing but glass in front of her. She turns her head to see it surrounds her completely, a tube filled with an orange liquid, in the middle of an empty room.

Unable to move from this position, she struggles against the invisible chains, crying out despite not taking in any liquid. She stops struggling when a flash of light nearly blinds her from outside her confines. Images begin rolling across the glass, her eyes following each but not taking in what they mean.

The man from the gym is there, first with Blaine, then with a woman, then with a child and then alone. The man looks back at Serena, his face contorted in anger, and in sadness. She watches as the images speed up like a comic strip, showing him approaching her with a dark gleam in his eyes and a lab coat over his shoulders. He stops at the glass, his features looking like they did in the faded photograph, and lifts his fist to smack against the tube.

It cracks. An alarm sounds as the orange liquid begins spilling out from the spider web cracks and he disappears. Serena's relief at being able to leave disappears when the liquid begins filling her mouth and lungs. She breaks free of her fetal position and fights against the glass, her hands powerless in the receding liquid as she chokes.

"Serena!"

Sitting up, Serena feels a hand against her back, rubbing and patting furiously as she chokes on air. Her eyes, blurred from tears, blink rapidly to clear them and see who's around her. The episode fades as she takes in deeper breaths and reality sets in. All that's left is a hospital room, her parents on her right side and Lance on her left with Clair at the foot of the bed. She feels a sense of calm overcome her and relaxes against the back of the bed in a puff.

Her heart slams against her chest, her hands tremble and her head feels too foggy to form any coherent thought. She takes a second to catch her breath while staring at her family.

"I'm okay," she croaks after a few moments.

"Bullshit," Lance retorts, then glances at her parents. "Sorry."

"No, you're right," Aaron agrees with a nod. He looks at his daughter. "What happened?"

"How did I get here?" she avoids the question by glancing around the room. "I didn't destroy the center did I?"

"No. Not at all, honey," Rowan takes her hand. "Lance called me after you passed out. Then you started thrashing and crying out, he called for help and the paramedics got you."

Her cheeks burn, how embarrassing for everyone in the center to see her freaking out. "Ugh...I'm such a freak show."

"Stop it," Clair chides from the end of the bed. She puts her hands on Serena's ankles and gives her a squeeze. "Who cares what other people think? You were in real pain, doctors couldn't wake you and pain meds did nothing to ease you."

Aaron glances around the room, looking at each teen before staring at his bedraggled daughter and worried wife. "Lance and Clair, do you mind giving us a moment to speak with our daughter?"

Both share a quick glance before shrugging at him. Each plant a kiss on Serena's forehead before leaving the room in hushed whispers. Serena chuckles at her father's surprise of their willingness to leave without argument. Little does he know that she's going to tell them what they're going to talk about anyway.

"Honey, what happened?" Rowan smoothes her daughter's hand in her own.

Serena recollects the events leading up to her headache, the man she saw in the paper with Blaine up to her strange dream. Her hands shake as she nears the end and she dry heaves a few more times. Her mother moves to the bed, holding her daughter to calm her as she comes down from her heaving. Tired and mentally foggy, Serena leans her head on her mother's shoulder and watches her father try to contain his anger.

"Dad?"

Her voice stops him in his pacing, he glances at her. His dark brown eyes thunderous with anger. Once he sees her, though, he forces his anger down and goes to her side. His long strides carry him to her quick, and his hand comes up to take hers.

"I'm glad you're okay, sweetie," he leans over and presses a kiss to her temple. "I'm going to ask Blaine what happened."

"No," Serena stresses, squeezing his hand as tight as she can. "Please don't. He didn't do anything wrong!"

He hushes her, pressing her hand to his heart. "I'm not going to arrest him, okay? I want his side of the story and to investigate this man you saw."

"You don't have to fix it," she whispers, tears welling up in her eyes.

"This I do," he kisses her fingers before placing them on her chest. "I'll be back, sleep and I'll be back before you know it."

She nods, leaning back on her mother and watching as her father grabs his coat and heads out the door without glancing back. Rowan clears her daughter's face of tears while singing a soft lullaby to get her to sleep. The room seems to fade from Serena's mind as she willingly surrenders to sleep and the comfort of her mother there.

OoOoO

I just saw the girl who owns the blood you sent me. You have explanations to give me.

The text sends and Blaine struggles to not slam his phone into the ground. Instead, he drops it onto his desk and stares at the space Serena and Lance had occupied just moments ago. Her skin had paled and gone sweaty the moment she stared at the picture of him and Fuji standing in front of the lab.

That was the first clue she was the experiment he helped his friend with so long ago. The second being her scars, or at least, the little bits of it he saw on her. He knows gene manipulation when he sees it, those wretched needles leave the ugliest scars. They attach to the spine for accuracy and a more direct injection into the blood and brain.

It was her DNA I worked on, he fiddles with his tie as he remembers the day Fuji contacted him.

It was a normal day, his old friend emailing him out of the blue and proposing a new experiment working with two DNA samples to see if they could be melded together. The first sample he got was not human and fragile, by adding the second sampling and going forth with sequencing, he got the two to coexist. He sent the work back to Fuji, inquiring more about the experiment.

Who were the subjects? What was the desired outcome?

There was no answer, only a thanks for his brilliant work and Blaine couldn't believe his friend wouldn't answer him. He ran some additional tests on the blood, one of a pokemon and one of a human. Several possibilities flew through his mind that night, he couldn't sleep and he tried desperately to contact his best friend. To no avail until nearly a year later Fuji had returned to Lavender Town.

The fire type specialist wasted no time in visiting him then. But when he got there Fuji had looked as though he were dragged through a war. Blind in one eye, burns all over his body and looking much older than he was. He wouldn't talk about it, only that he tried to get his little girl back and that it failed. He often spoke of another girl, but Blaine couldn't get much else out of him.

He got his friend into some therapy with a trusted man from the league and now Fuji is more lucid than ever, but still won't speak of what he did...

"Blaine?" a voice calls from the field.

He shakes out of his reverie, getting out of his chair and rushing to the field. He opens the door to be met with a middle-aged man similar looking to Serena and he swallows thickly.

"Hello, that's me," he introduces himself and holds out his hand.

Aaron shakes his hand and offers a charming smile. "I'm Aaron, Serena's father."

"Oh yes, how is she?" Blaine's brows furrow with worry. "I offered to call paramedics."

"It's just like her to refuse," Aaron nods with a soft smile. "She's doing well, though," he points to his office. "She told me she had seen a photo in your office that set off her headache. May I look at it?"

"Of course, I'll tell you what I can," he responds with a tired sigh. "Please, come take a seat."

Aaron does so, containing his anger for just a moment longer if only to get some answers before unleashing his fury all over the gym. In the office, he takes a quick sweep of everything, noticing all the photos on the wall his daughter must have been looking at. He declines Blaine's offer for a drink, but takes a seat and accepts the photo Blaine peels from the wall. He stares at it, at the two men in the photo, one clearly Blaine and the other a good friend of his. Blaine watches Aaron's reaction to the photo and feels bad for the man. His daughter has been through hell and if he were a better man all those years ago, he would have done more.

Might as well come somewhat clean.

"A long time ago, I received DNA from an old friend of mine. One that I now know is your daughter's and another of a pokemon," he starts. "It's not unusual for me to receive DNA from scientists all over. I specialize in a broad spectrum of science fields, including sequencing and such, so this was not weird to me."

"What did you do?" Aaron frowns.

"I sort of melded the DNA together, got them to support each other in a way," he answers. "I didn't know until afterwards what species the DNA belonged to. I assumed he was looking for a cure or something. I trusted him and he never answered my questions."

"Who is the man in the photo?"

"Dr. Fuji," Blaine speaks in a gentle tone. "He lives in Lavender Town at the Pokemon House."

Aaron considers the picture, rubbing at his temples as he takes in the info. "Is there anything else you can tell me?"

"Whatever kind of pokemon the other DNA came from is powerful despite the sample being fragile. There was power behind it," Blaine sits up. "It took some time for their samples to cooperate, but it did and I assume she went through some other things from her scars. Fuji's mind is not the same now as it used to be, before whatever this is, so I wish you luck."

"Thank you," Aaron stands up and heads to the door.

"Aaron?" the old gym leader speaks up as he is about to exit. The brown eyed man half turns, his posture stiff and his mouth set in a frown. "I'm sorry for what happened. Had I known, I would have done something."

"I understand," he responds before disappearing out the door.

The echo of the front door alerts him to the man's departure, leaving Blaine to exhale furiously and kick a box of papers over. He grabs his phone and types into it, stabbing the keys as if that will help get his anger across.

You have explaining to do. Her father just left. Good luck.

OoOoO

"What did you find?" Rowan questions her husband as they sit at the Pokemon Center.

Serena was released after her nap, her doctor couldn't figure out what was wrong but prescribed a day of fluids and plenty of rest. The day felt far too cheerful for her, so Serena asked to have dinner at the center with everyone. Rowan escorted the three over there and took up a separate table when her husband returned.

Now, the trio eats dinner at a table not too far away, talking about recent news. Lance and Clair are animated while Serena offers her opinion here and there, looking tired and ready for bed. Aaron and Rowan trade glancing over at their daughter to ensure she's truly okay while talking amongst themselves.

Aaron stares at his coffee for a minute, it's so late in the evening and he's so rattled by what Blaine said he wouldn't sleep anyway. "This Fuji worked on our daughter, he did something with her and a pokemon. I'm not sure what, but their blood was combined, so I can only imagine."

"What?" Rowan gasps, her hand coming to her mouth. Her light eyes glance over at her daughter as she laughs at something Clair said. "He did what?"

"I don't know, but I'm going to question him tomorrow," Aaron takes his wife's hand. "I'm sorry I couldn't protect our daughter from my brother. I never would have imagined he'd do something like this."

She takes his hand in both of hers and brings it to her lips. "No, love. Don't apologize for someone else's wrongdoing. We both knew our families were not the best and we went into this ready for trouble. Granted, not the trouble we expected, but still."

"I'll get to the bottom of this," he promises, placing his other hand on top of hers. "Even if it takes years more, I will find out what he did and bring my brother down."

"You know you'll need her help, right?" Rowan gestures to their daughter.

He glances over at the table, his eyes meeting Serena's for a moment before she averts her gaze. "What?"

"I can see that it's a strange path and you'll need her help to figure it out."

"She's too young!"

"Exactly," she responds with a sigh. "Go talk to Fuji, he may give you some answers but without Giovanni we'll never know who the other sample belonged to."

She's right, as much as he knows it, he can't help but hope for a different outcome.

Without solid proof of Fuji's involvement, Aaron could only question him and even then it couldn't be in an official capacity. It all depends on the truthfulness of the man, or if he even knows what he did.

Everyone knows Fuji is a man with a terrible past, the death of his daughter and his wife leaving him had caused him to leave Kanto for nearly a year. When he'd returned he had been in a terrible accident, rendering him half blind and covered in burn marks. He wasn't the same man that had left the year before and no one could get a straight answer from him as to what happened.

Rowan squeezes her husband's hands. "We should get going so you can come back to Lavender Town tomorrow."

He concedes to his wife's advice, keeping one hand in his, the two clear up their mugs and head over to their daughter. "Time to go, Clair."

"Aw, man," she pouts and crosses her arms.

"I'll be fine," Serena chuckles at her best friend, sliding out of the booth and leaning on the table for support.

"Yeah, I'm taking care of her," Lance puffs his chest, getting out after his cousin to offer his arm to Serena.

Rowan eyes the smile on her clueless husband's face with her own, more knowing, smile. "Thank you, Lance."

"It's what best friends are for," he replies with a small blush.

"Call me, okay?" Clair takes Serena's hands in hers. "Even if it's really late, or early. Promise?"

"Promise," Serena nods, leaning over to kiss her friends cheek. "See you later."

Clair beams at her before turning on her heel and heading towards the front. At Rowan's pointed look, Lance excuses himself to catch up with his cousin, leaving Serena to lean on her mother. Their daughter glances up at them with questioning eyes.

Without having to consult each other, Rowan speaks first. "Your father will take care of everything. Rest up tonight, let us know if anything happens and try to move past what happened."

"I'm just supposed to forget about it?" she glances between the two. "What about that man?"

"I'm going to question him, but without solid evidence not much can come out of it," Aaron answers her. "I'm sorry, honey. I'll try my best."

"Yeah, I know," she sighs. "If only it happened recently, it would be so much easier to investigate."

"If only it hadn't happened at all," Aaron speaks softly. He pulls his daughter in for a hug. "We'll get our answers."

"Eventually," Serena whispers under her breath.

The three head towards the front where Lance and Clair wait patiently for them. Goodbyes and 'I love yous' are said before the trio takes off into the night on Salamence's back and Lance takes Serena back to their room.

They're quiet as they get ready for bed. Serena still feels shaky, but thankfully her head doesn't hurt anymore and her scars are only warm. Thea and Ty take up most of the bed by the time she's ready to lay in it and sleep. She doesn't mind though, she settles between them, comforted by their warmth and passes out.

Lance watches her sleep from his bed, his eyes watching her breathing even out and her eyes scrunch up. He shuts off the light and slips into his own bed, deciding to stay with her tonight in case anything else were to happen. The events of the day, mainly the way she thrashed against him and how she had succumbed to sleep afterwards plays in his head.

What happened to her? Why would her own uncle put her through something like that?

With one last glance at her, he flips onto his side and falls asleep promising her to do all that he can to find out what happened once he's champion.