Legal Disclaimer: Guess who owns pokemon? Aww, 'cmon, don't you know by
now? You do? Nintendo, you say? And you also say Mystic Mewtwo owns the
character Ki and the story "Between Two Worlds" and I am borrowing it with
her permission?
By golly, you're right! :D The only character I own is Sharie, from "Of Moonlight Shadows and Echoes Past" and I've explianed how it works in previous chapters already, the aformentioned story doesn't happen here but the character's the same. PG-13 as usual, so parents can spare the kiddies.
Shadowed Reflections, Chapter 5 By ZeoViolet
****
Ki screamed.
*Oh, gods, not again!* Was all Mewtwo was able to utter as he stood there, frozen and unable to move for several seconds.
Sheer instinct to protect her daughter had Ki's power flooding through her, limited though her abilities were right now. She silently cursed the head wound that was keeping her from using it as she could have.
Only by sheer force of will did her body glow it's amethyst color. Milliseconds before the Fearow would have plowed her down, Ki managed to lift off the ground, giving the bird a surprise nose-dive into the grass.
Flying was even harder for Mewtwo, though by sheer luck he managed to dodge the blows as well, the ice blue light surrounding his body. It was so close that he felt the feathers of the fearow beneath his feet as the bird's back grazed him and the bird plowed into the ground below.
*Fly, both of you!* Sharie cried. *Keep out of their way, if you can!*
Through her fear, Ki looked up and saw Sharie, too, had made it to safety, and was hovering well above the ground. She had used telepathy to make sure she was understood.
The Fearow below were returning to their senses, in a speed they should not have, and the murdurous gleam in their eyes promised a counterattack.
The apparent leader's eyes especially glowed with a strange icy light not his own.
"Fear! Fearrooooowww!!!"
The birds barely shook themselves off before launching into the air on their deadly mission.
*Fly! Now!* Sharie commanded again. Ki and Mewtwo dared not disobey.
To Mewtwo's utter horror, he was unable to charge his psychic energy into any attack. One of the giant birds sideswiped him, barely missing with his beak, but a sharp *thump* of one of his wings sent Mewtwo spinning out of control towards the ground below.
Only a sharp psychic hold on him from a different source prevented him from being killed by such a fall. Stunned, he opened his eyes and looked downwards at the ground not two inches below him. He raised his eyes next to see Sharie nearby, her eyes glowing an amethyst color signaling her charged powers; she had caught him just in time.
Just as abruptly she released him.
*Fly!* she said quickly. *Ki's in trouble!*
It was all Mewtwo needed to charge up what energy he could again. Through his desperation he could see the birds attempting to sideswipe his Angel. Desperately, he began to fight his way to Ki.
"Ommph!" came the sound of a sickening thud as Sharie hit the ground, headbutted by a Fearow. It was only sheer luck she wasn't far above the ground herself.
*Sharie!* he cried, truly afraid for her, but she had been knocked out of sight, as well, leaving him alone.
He could only mentally cross his fingers, praying for Sharie's safety as well as Ki's as he fought his way towards his Angel in desperation. If Ki was killed; his heart would not be far behind. Both had promised themselves that now, since they had kids, if one of them was killed the other could not just die and leave the babies alone, without finding some way to ensure they wer cared for.
He was blocked, again and again, by fearow swooping in front of him. He could not even teleport, and finally they closed in on him enough to force him to stillness, as if there was something they wanted him to watch.
They did; and their target was Ki.
****
Ki was flying as best she could. She held a screaming Aaryanna in her arms tightly and flew in all different directions, pushing her senses to the limit to be able to tell where they were all coming from.
For someone as supposedly inexperienced at flying as she was, she was amazed she'd yet to be hit. But they were coming closer and closer, and her powers, already strained from her head blow, were rapidly beginning to fluctuate.
Unfortunately, the Fearow noticed this.
One of them turned sideways in midair and sideswiped Ki from behind, barely missing her but forcing her to come to a stop. Ki screamed and turned into a different direction, only to be sideswiped again. The two birds hovered just feet away, blocking her from moving in two directions, their eyes glowing with a sick evil.
Ki cried out again and tried once more to flee. Not even the screams of Aaryanna dented any mercy in the heads of these Fearow, so intent were they on their targets.
She was blocked a third time, and all around her echoed cackles of Fearow laughter.
"Fear! Fearooowww!!!"
Ki turned around desperately, but she was blocked on three sides by Fearow, almost like three sides of a square. Below her was the hard ground, and above her....well, she'd only be followed.
She turned towards the only open way.....and her eyes widened in horror, wishing she hadn't.
Much further away than the others, but still close enough to know she was trapped, was a fourth fearow, the twisted look in his eyes telling her that she was dead.
Aaryanna clearly sensed all this horror, and she was screaming with all her might. Her desperate mews moved no mercy in the icy hearts of these pokemon.
"Fearoowwww!!!" the fourth Fearow screamed, and started towards Ki. As he did, he went faster and faster, his body beginning to spin rapidly as he went, preparing his deadly Drill Peck that was sure to pierce her and her precious daughter straight through.
*No!* Mewtwo cried in horror, struggling to get closer. *Ki! My Angel! No!*
****
Sharie fought like a wildcat then, not only using psychic blasts to get the Fearow off her but physical attacks as well, viciously kicking them away. She felt a burning pain in her bandaged leg again, the same one that was injured earlier, but she ignored it.
She only had one thought, and that was to get to Ki.
The Fearow pounced on her again, and she gave a sharp cry. Her body began glowing with an amethyst light that expanded rapidly outwards in an explosion, feathers flying everywhere and stunning the birds.
When the light faded, Sharie, now free, promptly vanished into thin air.
****
Ki clutched Aaryanna desperately to her breast, horrified that she'd see her end in such a way. The Fearow, spinning like mad with his razor-sharp beak pointing right at her, was moments away from piercing his slender targets.
Without warning, however, the air in front of Ki blurred, and Sharie was suddenly there. Quickly she put an arm around Ki's shoulders and extended a hand towards the Fearow attacking, and used a sharp psychic blast to knock him away.
*I wish you'd *kill* him!* cried Ki.
*No.* said Sharie quietly. *Only as a last resort. Things aren't as they appear.*
Ki looked at her in horrified bewilderment. Sharie didn't seem to see it.
The other Fearow got over being stunned, and were already closing in. Quickly Sharie, arm around Ki and a sobbing baby Mewtwo, vanished as if they'd never been.
A split-second later, they appeared beside Mewtwo. Sharie's psychic blasts drove the Fearow away enough so that she could grab his arm, too, and promptly vanish again.
Luckily, they appeared a couple of hundred yards away down the beach from where the Fearow were at. Sharie, Ki, and Mewtwo were all sore, and Sharie dared not mention the pain in her leg; but otherwise they all seemed unharmed.
Ki, getting her senses, began to shake as she realized what awful snare she'd just barely escaped. Tears filled her eyes and she fought to keep from crying, which was nothing compared to the howling baby Aaryanna was doing.
*Sh, it's all right,* she said, quivering so badly she was privately afraid she was going to drop her own daughter. She looked up at Mewtwo, her eyes locking with his, and two lone tears escaped down her cheeks.
Mewtwo was there in a second, cradling her shivering form close and grateful she was unhurt.
*I thought you'd been skewered!* he choked miserably. *It all happened so fast!*
*I-i'm okay.....* stammared Ki, quivering hard. *So's Aaryanna....*
Tears of frustration poured down her cheeks. In her arms Aaryanna continued to squall.
*It's not over yet!* cried Sharie in warning. Her eyes had never removed from the Fearow, who had noticed them almost instantly. *Here they come!*
The Fearow had decided to attack in droves, from all sides, making escape virtually impossible. At all angles they were hurling down in nosedive patterns.
*Stay behind me!* Sharie sharply commanded. Her eyes began to glow, and the air around them shimmered a bright yellow light for an instant.
Barely a second later, the air was filled with surprise sqawks of pain as the Fearow were painfully bounced off an invisible Barrier sheild Sharie had erected around them all. Sharie was so strong not one of them could penetrate it.
*This will protect you,* said Sharie quietly. *I am going back out there.*
*Sharie, no, you can't!* protested Ki. *You'll get killed for sure!*
*I don't know of what will happen, exactly,* Sharie replied evenly, turning to face them. *But they must be stopped before they kill you. Their behaivor isn't right, and I sensed they are being controlled somehow. That's why I won't kill them; they aren't under their own control right now.*
*You can't face all of them at once!* Ki had to fight hard to keep from losing her cool. She grasped Sharie's hand tightly. *They're so fast that even as powerful as you are, with speed on their side they'll catch you unawares!*
*I have no choice, Ki. I've *got* to try. This really isn't their fault, either.* Sharie smiled faintly and gave Ki's hand a small sqeeze. *I'll do my best. This sheild will protect you for awhile, you'll both be safe here. I'll teleport out. And Ki--* Sharie paused, and her lips quirked upwards again. *Thank you for trusting me, despite who I am. I can't tell you how much that means to me.*
Without another word, or waiting for a reply, she vanished.
Ki turned and buried her face in Mewtwo's chest.
*This isn't fair,* she sobbed. *This isn't fair that she's going to her grave because we can't charge up our powers enough to help her.*
*I know, my Angel,* he replied soberly, hugging her closely and cursing his head blow. *I feel the exact same way about her now.*
****
Sharie reappeared over the ocean, not too far away. She was still close enough to be seen easily.
Puckering her small mouth, she uttered a sharp whistle.
"Come on, you featherbrains!" she screeched across the waves. "I'm over here! Get those birdie butts in gear! Or are you gonna give up?!"
Controlled or not, her words had the intended effect of making the birds mad. They all forgot about Ki and Mewtwo and headed straight for her.
To make sure they all forgot, Sharie allowed them all to get close--*too* close, in her private opinion--to be sure they had her.
Ki and Mewtwo watched in horror as Sharie was the vicitim of a brief frenzied attack on her person.
Just as quickly, the motion stopped.
Every bird was frozen in midair.
*What's wrong?* asked Ki, anxiously rocking a now-whimpering Aaryanna in a vain attempt to soothe her. The little girl was no longer squalling loudly, but she could not be calmed otherwise.
*She's using her powers to hold them firm,* answered Mewtwo, watching in fascination.
Sharie really was remarkable.
****
Again Sharie felt a brief burst of pain in her injured leg, but she ignored it. All the birds were frozen and unable to move.
Holding all of them wasn't easy, because she had to keep a mental edge on the Barrier bubble protecting Ki and Mewtwo. Still, she held them firmly in place, determined to get to the bottom of this mystery.
She approached the biggest Fearow, the leader of the group. She stopped just out of range of his snapping beak. He hissed at her angrily.
*Be quiet,* Sharie ordered him tersely in telepathy, making sure he understood. *You and your friends have caused quite enough trouble for today. I'm going to see exactly *what* it is that has caused you to go on such a murderous frenzy.*
She closed her eyes, and she let her powers penetrate his mind. She hated to do this to other living creatures, especially against their will, but this was necessary. The evil she sensed in the Fearow did not belong to him. It was from some other source.
It was not direct mind control. No foreign entity was actively making each Fearow do this or that. What Sharie found, however, was almost as bad.
It was one of the most powerful, deeply-set Psychic suggestions she'd ever encountered. She, Mewtwo, and Ki were not deliberate targets--they were targets only because they'd been seen first after the psychic suggestion had been planted in the minds of these Fearow. The message was simple--go, find some targets, and the first ones you see keep attacking until destroyed--and had the essence of evil; as if someone, some evil and outrageously powerful psychic mind had embedded it in their heads just for the hell of it.
Sharie was shocked and outraged. Who'd do such a thing?! The imprint left by the being responsible for the suggestion was clear, but it was of an origin unfamiliar to Sharie. It was so powerful that it seemed only a pokemon could do it, but what pokemon would be capeable of such cruelty? Sharie only knew that if she felt the psychic signature again, she'd know who it was, at least.
Sharie only knew of one thing to do; forcibly lifting the suggestion from their minds herself. It's origin was so unfamiliar to her she was not sure how much power it would take her, plus she'd have to mulitply that by every Fearow present.
She'd also have to do it in one massive psychic wave, and pray it all worked the first time. If she missed any, they might escape her power and doom them all. She had to do this *here* and *now*.
Sharie closed her eyes.
Her body began to glow an even brighter Amethyst, as if she was drawing upon some great power within her.
Ki and Mewtwo were almost blinded as Sharie began to glow so brightly she could not be seen.
A staticy amethyst charge surrounded her body like a ball and, in a brilliant explosion of light, expanded outwards at a dizzying pace, englufing all the Fearow.
It wasn't a psychic blast meant to kill them, or even hurt them, but Sharie was in their minds all at once, struggling with her power to lift the essence of evil from them all in a collective fashion.
It was harder than she thought; whomever had done this was excessively powerful in a way they should not have been. The essence within each bird's mind crackled fiercely, roaring angrily at being forcibly ripped from the minds of the Fearow. The psychic suggestions had some sort of built-in defense mechanism, because it was using the latent Special powers of the birds' minds to fight back, mentally stabbing at her each time she attempted to lift it from their minds.
A fierce pain crossed her temples, and she felt the edge of her hold on the Barrier protecting Ki and Mewtwo beginning to waver, as well as her hold on the birds.
*I've only got one more shot at this!* she told herself feirecely. It was taking more and more of her concentration, which was a danger in itself. What she was about to do would shatter her hold on the birds *and* the Barrier, but hopefully, neither would be needed after this.
She didn't just notch up the volume of power she was emitting, she opened the floodgates on her mind.
Ki and Mewtwo only saw a brilliant white light, much brighter than the one surrounding Sharie and the Fearow before, suddenly explode and expand outwards from where Sharie was hovering at the center of this crowd and engulf all the birds in a heartbeat.
At the same time, the Barrier bubble protecting them vanished; Sharie having apparently lost her hold on it.
The individuals within could only hope that it would no longer be needed.
****
The glow seemed to last for an eternity.
Sharie knew that she'd never poured out so much power before; though she was also grateful she was nowhere near her limit of her powers. However, outside of the birds's minds she now sensed little outside of this maddening inferno; and they were struggling all the harder. But the stronger power of her mind was overcoming the psychic suggestions at last.
She'd sensed the barrier shatter and dissolve around Ki and Mewtwo; but she'd had no choice. The suddenness of how she had turned up her power had snapped her link with it.
At last, several seconds after she'd begun, icy blue essences Sharie sensed lifted, like small fogs, from the birds' minds. Their eyes became clear, but it wasn't without price.
Just as they lifted from the bird's minds, with the last of their power, the psychic suggestions all combined to form one last, vicious stab at Sharie before they vanished for good, with no power source to hold them.
Sharie cried out at the unexpected stab of pain searing her senses, and for one extremely painful instant, her whole world was fire. The stab directly attacked her psychic control in a way she'd never before seen, so she could not defend herself.
The flood of power snapped off as a result.
The Fearow began looking around them; confused. Sharie staggered in the air for several moments, but managed to hold her ground, getting her bearings.
Down below, Mewtwo was more than astonished. *What is that girl made of?*
Sharie said only a few short, simple words to the Fearow. *You're freed. Now go.*
The birds looked at her white face, too dazed to do anything but obey. They looked at each other and shrugged, not remembering how they got here, and really confused. So when even a human girl gave them a simple direction to go; they did, glad for some direction.
"Fearooooww!"
In an insant, they were out of sight, the danger now over.
Almost.
The combination of the last psychic attack on Sharie's mind, and shutting the flow of power her body had been emitting off so abruptly wasn't without it's consequences. It was like standing up too abruptly making one feel dizzy and faint; only this was much worse.
Her eyes swam, everything becoming a blur of color for an instant before darkness overcame her.
Her whole body went limp; and she plummeted quite suddenly towards the waves below.
****
Ki's elation at the departing Fearow turned to utter horror when Sharie began to drop like a stone.
*Mewtwo!* she mentally screamed. *She's going to drown!*
Even before all the words were out of her mouth Mewtwo was moving. Charging up his limited ability, he flew as fast as he could.
He caught Sharie, cradled in his arms protectively, just before she hit the ocean waves right below them.
He knew what had happened; he and Ki had sensed it all.
He smiled; admiring Sharie's grit. He understood now that Sharie's delicate appearance, for she looked as fragile and delicate as Ki, was very deceptive. It was clear Sharie, for her size and how thin she was, was deceptively strong, probably stronger than most her size and frame. He could feel it; there were tough muscles in those slender arms and legs.
Mewtwo shook his head to himself. He had, after living with Ki for over a year now, become aware that for some women, a delicate appearance did not necessarily mean a fragile, delicate constitution. (Although becoming aware of this in Ki had not lessened his desire to protect his Angel from harm at all costs. What kind of a person was he if he didn't?)
Sharie, it appeared, was just like Ki in this respect. Delicate-looking, but deceptively strong.
Sharie's fainting wasn't from using too much power, that was for sure. If she could do that she was almost likely capeable of much more powerful blasts. But that last attack by the psychic influence in the Fearow's minds had snapped her power flow off so abruptly, the sudden drop in power had almost taken her lifeforce along with it, causing her to faint. If she'd shut it off like that under her own power, at least she'd still be awake. However, since she hadn't, it was like a rebound effect from the sheer emptiness suddenly in her head.
Mewtwo almost thought she'd be okay untila spreading scarlet stain on her leg caught his eye. To his horror, the bandage on her leg--he'd barely noticed it earlier--was fast becoming soaked with a red fluid. How had that happened? She wasn't bleeding moments ago, while fighting off the birds.
He suddenly remembered, and wanted to kick himself. Part of her power had likely been used on holding the blood flow back by sheer will. Snapping off her powers so suddenly--
The red stain reached the bottom of the bandage, where it touched her purple tennis shoes, and began staining them an ugly color, too.
All of this happened in a matter of moments. Mewtwo, in a near panic, turned to head towards shore with Sharie in his arms. However, he stopped again when she moaned softly and began to open her eyes.
****
Someone was holding her. Someone strong. But who? Why wasn't she dead by now?
*Sharie?* the voice, a psychic one, was urgent. *Sharie, wake up. Can you hear me?*
"I--I can hear you," she responded faintly. Her leg was throbbing, and the bandage around it felt damp, and so did her shoe. She felt a pulsing sensation there, too, a fiery one. If she hadn't torn open her leg wound, then she had a new one in the same area.....
*Thank heavens,* said the voice, and weakly, her eyes opened. To her surprise, her unique green eyes were staring into Mewtwo's ameythst ones!
*You've only been unconscious for a few seconds,* he said quickly. *But you're hurt. I'm getting you to shore.*
What she said next totally floored him.
*Why?* she asked, in weak telepathy. *Why did you catch me? I was certain you'd simply let me fall.*
He almost stumbled in midair. *WHAT?*
*You'd be rid of me that way.*
*How could you think--* he said, then stopped. She doesn't know, he realized. She doesn't know I see her for who she truly is now. I haven't had the chance to tell her.
*Oh, Sharie, I know better now. That trance I went into with Ki removed almost all my doubt of you. And by the virtue of what you have just done, you've more than proven your true self to me. I am honored to call you a friend, not to mention forever in your debt.*
Sharie was too white for her cheeks to pinken, but her eyes sparkled. *Thank you. But you are not in my debt.*
*We'll discuss that later,* he said. *Your leg is bleeding. And badly.*
They touched down on shore as he said this.
*I know. I can feel it.* The disconnected way she said it shocked him.
*Why aren't you screaming, then?* he asked, incredulous. *I'd think you'd be howling.*
*I don't know. I've always had a rather strong tolerance for pain.*
Maybe so, thought Mewtwo to himself, but the way she said it didn't fully convince him. He'd already seen how good Sharie was on controlling what her emotions showed to other people. It was more likely she felt it; she'd just learned not to react to it. He didn't know how he knew, somehow he just knew.
Maybe that was part of the reason she was nowhere as quick to anger as him or Ki, except on a few sensetive subjects. Sharie was a master of controlling herself, a sort of self-defense against the hurtful world in it's own right.
****
As soon as Ki reached them, she was sobbing as she threw her arms around Sharie, still held securely by Mewtwo.
*I thought you'd been killed!* she cried.
Surprised, and strangely grateful, Sharie returned the fierce hug for a moment. She wasn't used to someone showing such concern over her, outside of her family. Even though Ki was overreacting, it was still a nice feeling.
*I'm okay. Don't worry, Ki, though thank you for caring. I'll be okay.*
*But your leg....!*
*Set me down, Mewtwo, beside my pack,* Sharie urged him quietly. He did so reluctantly; concerned because she was growing steadily paler.
As soon as he did, she pressed both her hands on the blood-soaked bandage on her lower leg, the pressure urging the blood to slow.
It was a manner that told Mewtwo she knew what she was doing, but her hands were trembling and her face was looking peaked by now.
*Let me help you,* he urged. *You're weakening.*
*I'm okay,* she said rather too suddenly, to his surprise. She was frowning in a manner that spoke volumes. He sensed she didn't like others to do things for her, as if she couldn't do them herself. In fact, the look on her face seemed to flash the word pet peeve. It startled him, until he thought about it a moment.
Of course. After a lifetime of being on her own so much, she'd be used to caring for herself without the help of others, and she'd already shown she was more than capeable of caring for herself without another's help. It was true, she was more than tough enough.
But refusing help because of that alone? It was a trait she should amend a bit, he figured. He'd learned to do it. And so had Ki. Ki was not just his mate in life, she was his partner. They supported each other, in different ways.
He rephrased the question. Sharie ought to learn that there were indeed those out there willing to help her because they wanted to do so. Genuinely wanting to help was far different than ordering her around. *Please, will you let me? It's within my limited power range, and after what you've done, I really do wish to do this for you.*
That did it. She smiled at his sincerity. *Okay, if you can, since you did ask nicely.*
The twinkle in her eyes replaced the earlier frown, and he laughed his telepathic laugh. She was teasing him; so she did have a sense of humor after all. Gently he reached out and placed his hand against the blood- soaked bandage.
Sharie's leg glowed for a moment, and she sensed a healing power flooding her leg and her body. A moment later, the burning sensation stopped.
Mewtwo laughed at the startled look on her face. *I've healed your wound,* he said with a smile, *But I'm afraid I can't replace the blood. I don't know how much you've lost.*
*Thank you,* she said, truly grateful. *It's not life-threatening yet; I'm a scientist, I'd know. I'll just be tired for a few days.*
She reached for her pack and withdrew a pair of medical scissors. She cut through the bloody bandages, revealing her bloodstained leg--but no wound in sight, not even a scratch.
*You're good,* she marvelled. *I have a limited ability myself, but I can't use my healing powers on my own body, and Ki's leg wound did not necessitate it. Your head wounds disturbed the psychic areas of your minds; a place even I can't touch.*
*Nor I,* he was forced to admit. Sharie reached for an alcohol-soaked wipe in her pack and opened it, cleaning the blood off her leg.
*Oh, no,* she groaned. *My shoe is ruined.*
Mewtwo wondered if he should point out that her shoes were very worn anyways. *Were those the ones you were traveling in?*
*Yes.* His question did not fool her. *I do suppose I need a new pair. I'll have to get one back in Pallet Town.*
*Think you can fly that far? Or teleport?* he asked.
Sharie was forced to admit that she was now a bit more limited than she was before. *Teleporting takes energy,* she admitted. *So does flying, but at least with flying I'll know where I am going.*
*If I had all my powers intact I'd take you there myself,* Mewtwo ventured.
*That's all right; I'll find my way. I've got to get these plants in here back to Nurse Joy, and I am going to have a little talk with her. I am sure she had her reasons for telling you about me, but I want to be certain.*
*The Nurse is not a blabbermouth,* said Ki quickly.
Sharie smiled. *I thought not.*
*She noticed the similarity between you and I,* Ki continued. *I'm the only other one she'd ever met with the powers of an inbred psychic, though the source of mine is clear.*
*And mine isn't,* Sharie finished. *Okay, then, I understand why. The nurse did not strike me as a gossip. I like her and I did not think she'd set out to do anything to me.*
*No,* said Ki. *We know her well.*
She turned to Mewtwo. *Come on, my love, we must get home,* she said quietly. *I'm sure Mew is beyond frantic by now. I would not be surprised if she's convinced we're dead or something.*
*I would not put it past her, Angel,* he agreed fully. *And we have the other babies to see to. But Mew's good at caring for them. I'm not worried about that. Come, let us go.*
Ki turned back to Sharie. *I hope I see you again,* she said softly, holding out her hands.
Sharie took them. *I do, too,* she said. *Honest, you two, you can trust me. Not a word will go to my family or anybody but Nurse Joy about you.*
*I believe that,* said Mewtwo sincerely. *Sharie, how old are you? I can't remember what Nurse Joy said.*
*Seventeen about a week and a half ago, the day I moved to Pallet Town.*
Ki smiled, but also looked startled. *You're only two, maybe two and a half, years younger than me!* she exclaimed. *But....what day was it again? The date?*
Sharie whispered a date that made Ki go white.
*That was the day I had the babies! Wow! Sharie, your birthday is the same as Aaryanna's--and all the rest!*
Sharie smiled, though her tired face was too white to blush. *Fancy that. I'd love to meet the others sometime. I at least hope we meet again, too.*
*So do I,* said Ki. *How about sometime soon we invite you over, if you don't mind visiting around caring for babies?*
*If you both don't mind, okay,* Sharie was touched. She'd almost never had friends like this, and ones who were willing to accept her, now, as much as she was willing to accept them, with no further reservation.
Sharie stood up, her legs trembling slightly. But she regained her footing quickly. Her body was strong. In a day or two, she knew, she would be perfectly fine.
Mewtwo picked up her bag for her to hand it to her, and it shocked even him how heavy it was.
*My goodness,* he commented, hesistating on handing it to her. *This feels like a ton of bricks! I do hope you don't strain yourself! I do not want to allow that to happen.*
She smiled at him as he unwillingly handed it to her. Heavy as it was, and weak though she was, she shouldered the bag with little effort. The sincerity in his eyes caused her to not feel the irritation she might have felt otherwise. It was true--she'd forgotten what true friendship was for. Mewtwo wasn't saying it because he thought her incapable of doing it herself just because she was small and female--he was saying it because he genuinely cared and wanted to help. It wasn't cruelty or arrogance that prompted his words. She was forced to admit to herself that there was a big difference.
She'd learned something else today, too. It did not help to read into something that truly wasn't there to begin with, or hadn't been meant that way. Even though she prided herself on not jumping to conclusions based on a few words that did not agree with her, she knew she'd done that here. She'd know in the future to find the true meaning, not simply what it looked or sounded like at first.
Finding true friends really did help to see what was true and sincere, and it was a lesson she was grateful to learn.
****
End chapter 5. Like it? No? Part 6 coming sooner or later....
By golly, you're right! :D The only character I own is Sharie, from "Of Moonlight Shadows and Echoes Past" and I've explianed how it works in previous chapters already, the aformentioned story doesn't happen here but the character's the same. PG-13 as usual, so parents can spare the kiddies.
Shadowed Reflections, Chapter 5 By ZeoViolet
****
Ki screamed.
*Oh, gods, not again!* Was all Mewtwo was able to utter as he stood there, frozen and unable to move for several seconds.
Sheer instinct to protect her daughter had Ki's power flooding through her, limited though her abilities were right now. She silently cursed the head wound that was keeping her from using it as she could have.
Only by sheer force of will did her body glow it's amethyst color. Milliseconds before the Fearow would have plowed her down, Ki managed to lift off the ground, giving the bird a surprise nose-dive into the grass.
Flying was even harder for Mewtwo, though by sheer luck he managed to dodge the blows as well, the ice blue light surrounding his body. It was so close that he felt the feathers of the fearow beneath his feet as the bird's back grazed him and the bird plowed into the ground below.
*Fly, both of you!* Sharie cried. *Keep out of their way, if you can!*
Through her fear, Ki looked up and saw Sharie, too, had made it to safety, and was hovering well above the ground. She had used telepathy to make sure she was understood.
The Fearow below were returning to their senses, in a speed they should not have, and the murdurous gleam in their eyes promised a counterattack.
The apparent leader's eyes especially glowed with a strange icy light not his own.
"Fear! Fearrooooowww!!!"
The birds barely shook themselves off before launching into the air on their deadly mission.
*Fly! Now!* Sharie commanded again. Ki and Mewtwo dared not disobey.
To Mewtwo's utter horror, he was unable to charge his psychic energy into any attack. One of the giant birds sideswiped him, barely missing with his beak, but a sharp *thump* of one of his wings sent Mewtwo spinning out of control towards the ground below.
Only a sharp psychic hold on him from a different source prevented him from being killed by such a fall. Stunned, he opened his eyes and looked downwards at the ground not two inches below him. He raised his eyes next to see Sharie nearby, her eyes glowing an amethyst color signaling her charged powers; she had caught him just in time.
Just as abruptly she released him.
*Fly!* she said quickly. *Ki's in trouble!*
It was all Mewtwo needed to charge up what energy he could again. Through his desperation he could see the birds attempting to sideswipe his Angel. Desperately, he began to fight his way to Ki.
"Ommph!" came the sound of a sickening thud as Sharie hit the ground, headbutted by a Fearow. It was only sheer luck she wasn't far above the ground herself.
*Sharie!* he cried, truly afraid for her, but she had been knocked out of sight, as well, leaving him alone.
He could only mentally cross his fingers, praying for Sharie's safety as well as Ki's as he fought his way towards his Angel in desperation. If Ki was killed; his heart would not be far behind. Both had promised themselves that now, since they had kids, if one of them was killed the other could not just die and leave the babies alone, without finding some way to ensure they wer cared for.
He was blocked, again and again, by fearow swooping in front of him. He could not even teleport, and finally they closed in on him enough to force him to stillness, as if there was something they wanted him to watch.
They did; and their target was Ki.
****
Ki was flying as best she could. She held a screaming Aaryanna in her arms tightly and flew in all different directions, pushing her senses to the limit to be able to tell where they were all coming from.
For someone as supposedly inexperienced at flying as she was, she was amazed she'd yet to be hit. But they were coming closer and closer, and her powers, already strained from her head blow, were rapidly beginning to fluctuate.
Unfortunately, the Fearow noticed this.
One of them turned sideways in midair and sideswiped Ki from behind, barely missing her but forcing her to come to a stop. Ki screamed and turned into a different direction, only to be sideswiped again. The two birds hovered just feet away, blocking her from moving in two directions, their eyes glowing with a sick evil.
Ki cried out again and tried once more to flee. Not even the screams of Aaryanna dented any mercy in the heads of these Fearow, so intent were they on their targets.
She was blocked a third time, and all around her echoed cackles of Fearow laughter.
"Fear! Fearooowww!!!"
Ki turned around desperately, but she was blocked on three sides by Fearow, almost like three sides of a square. Below her was the hard ground, and above her....well, she'd only be followed.
She turned towards the only open way.....and her eyes widened in horror, wishing she hadn't.
Much further away than the others, but still close enough to know she was trapped, was a fourth fearow, the twisted look in his eyes telling her that she was dead.
Aaryanna clearly sensed all this horror, and she was screaming with all her might. Her desperate mews moved no mercy in the icy hearts of these pokemon.
"Fearoowwww!!!" the fourth Fearow screamed, and started towards Ki. As he did, he went faster and faster, his body beginning to spin rapidly as he went, preparing his deadly Drill Peck that was sure to pierce her and her precious daughter straight through.
*No!* Mewtwo cried in horror, struggling to get closer. *Ki! My Angel! No!*
****
Sharie fought like a wildcat then, not only using psychic blasts to get the Fearow off her but physical attacks as well, viciously kicking them away. She felt a burning pain in her bandaged leg again, the same one that was injured earlier, but she ignored it.
She only had one thought, and that was to get to Ki.
The Fearow pounced on her again, and she gave a sharp cry. Her body began glowing with an amethyst light that expanded rapidly outwards in an explosion, feathers flying everywhere and stunning the birds.
When the light faded, Sharie, now free, promptly vanished into thin air.
****
Ki clutched Aaryanna desperately to her breast, horrified that she'd see her end in such a way. The Fearow, spinning like mad with his razor-sharp beak pointing right at her, was moments away from piercing his slender targets.
Without warning, however, the air in front of Ki blurred, and Sharie was suddenly there. Quickly she put an arm around Ki's shoulders and extended a hand towards the Fearow attacking, and used a sharp psychic blast to knock him away.
*I wish you'd *kill* him!* cried Ki.
*No.* said Sharie quietly. *Only as a last resort. Things aren't as they appear.*
Ki looked at her in horrified bewilderment. Sharie didn't seem to see it.
The other Fearow got over being stunned, and were already closing in. Quickly Sharie, arm around Ki and a sobbing baby Mewtwo, vanished as if they'd never been.
A split-second later, they appeared beside Mewtwo. Sharie's psychic blasts drove the Fearow away enough so that she could grab his arm, too, and promptly vanish again.
Luckily, they appeared a couple of hundred yards away down the beach from where the Fearow were at. Sharie, Ki, and Mewtwo were all sore, and Sharie dared not mention the pain in her leg; but otherwise they all seemed unharmed.
Ki, getting her senses, began to shake as she realized what awful snare she'd just barely escaped. Tears filled her eyes and she fought to keep from crying, which was nothing compared to the howling baby Aaryanna was doing.
*Sh, it's all right,* she said, quivering so badly she was privately afraid she was going to drop her own daughter. She looked up at Mewtwo, her eyes locking with his, and two lone tears escaped down her cheeks.
Mewtwo was there in a second, cradling her shivering form close and grateful she was unhurt.
*I thought you'd been skewered!* he choked miserably. *It all happened so fast!*
*I-i'm okay.....* stammared Ki, quivering hard. *So's Aaryanna....*
Tears of frustration poured down her cheeks. In her arms Aaryanna continued to squall.
*It's not over yet!* cried Sharie in warning. Her eyes had never removed from the Fearow, who had noticed them almost instantly. *Here they come!*
The Fearow had decided to attack in droves, from all sides, making escape virtually impossible. At all angles they were hurling down in nosedive patterns.
*Stay behind me!* Sharie sharply commanded. Her eyes began to glow, and the air around them shimmered a bright yellow light for an instant.
Barely a second later, the air was filled with surprise sqawks of pain as the Fearow were painfully bounced off an invisible Barrier sheild Sharie had erected around them all. Sharie was so strong not one of them could penetrate it.
*This will protect you,* said Sharie quietly. *I am going back out there.*
*Sharie, no, you can't!* protested Ki. *You'll get killed for sure!*
*I don't know of what will happen, exactly,* Sharie replied evenly, turning to face them. *But they must be stopped before they kill you. Their behaivor isn't right, and I sensed they are being controlled somehow. That's why I won't kill them; they aren't under their own control right now.*
*You can't face all of them at once!* Ki had to fight hard to keep from losing her cool. She grasped Sharie's hand tightly. *They're so fast that even as powerful as you are, with speed on their side they'll catch you unawares!*
*I have no choice, Ki. I've *got* to try. This really isn't their fault, either.* Sharie smiled faintly and gave Ki's hand a small sqeeze. *I'll do my best. This sheild will protect you for awhile, you'll both be safe here. I'll teleport out. And Ki--* Sharie paused, and her lips quirked upwards again. *Thank you for trusting me, despite who I am. I can't tell you how much that means to me.*
Without another word, or waiting for a reply, she vanished.
Ki turned and buried her face in Mewtwo's chest.
*This isn't fair,* she sobbed. *This isn't fair that she's going to her grave because we can't charge up our powers enough to help her.*
*I know, my Angel,* he replied soberly, hugging her closely and cursing his head blow. *I feel the exact same way about her now.*
****
Sharie reappeared over the ocean, not too far away. She was still close enough to be seen easily.
Puckering her small mouth, she uttered a sharp whistle.
"Come on, you featherbrains!" she screeched across the waves. "I'm over here! Get those birdie butts in gear! Or are you gonna give up?!"
Controlled or not, her words had the intended effect of making the birds mad. They all forgot about Ki and Mewtwo and headed straight for her.
To make sure they all forgot, Sharie allowed them all to get close--*too* close, in her private opinion--to be sure they had her.
Ki and Mewtwo watched in horror as Sharie was the vicitim of a brief frenzied attack on her person.
Just as quickly, the motion stopped.
Every bird was frozen in midair.
*What's wrong?* asked Ki, anxiously rocking a now-whimpering Aaryanna in a vain attempt to soothe her. The little girl was no longer squalling loudly, but she could not be calmed otherwise.
*She's using her powers to hold them firm,* answered Mewtwo, watching in fascination.
Sharie really was remarkable.
****
Again Sharie felt a brief burst of pain in her injured leg, but she ignored it. All the birds were frozen and unable to move.
Holding all of them wasn't easy, because she had to keep a mental edge on the Barrier bubble protecting Ki and Mewtwo. Still, she held them firmly in place, determined to get to the bottom of this mystery.
She approached the biggest Fearow, the leader of the group. She stopped just out of range of his snapping beak. He hissed at her angrily.
*Be quiet,* Sharie ordered him tersely in telepathy, making sure he understood. *You and your friends have caused quite enough trouble for today. I'm going to see exactly *what* it is that has caused you to go on such a murderous frenzy.*
She closed her eyes, and she let her powers penetrate his mind. She hated to do this to other living creatures, especially against their will, but this was necessary. The evil she sensed in the Fearow did not belong to him. It was from some other source.
It was not direct mind control. No foreign entity was actively making each Fearow do this or that. What Sharie found, however, was almost as bad.
It was one of the most powerful, deeply-set Psychic suggestions she'd ever encountered. She, Mewtwo, and Ki were not deliberate targets--they were targets only because they'd been seen first after the psychic suggestion had been planted in the minds of these Fearow. The message was simple--go, find some targets, and the first ones you see keep attacking until destroyed--and had the essence of evil; as if someone, some evil and outrageously powerful psychic mind had embedded it in their heads just for the hell of it.
Sharie was shocked and outraged. Who'd do such a thing?! The imprint left by the being responsible for the suggestion was clear, but it was of an origin unfamiliar to Sharie. It was so powerful that it seemed only a pokemon could do it, but what pokemon would be capeable of such cruelty? Sharie only knew that if she felt the psychic signature again, she'd know who it was, at least.
Sharie only knew of one thing to do; forcibly lifting the suggestion from their minds herself. It's origin was so unfamiliar to her she was not sure how much power it would take her, plus she'd have to mulitply that by every Fearow present.
She'd also have to do it in one massive psychic wave, and pray it all worked the first time. If she missed any, they might escape her power and doom them all. She had to do this *here* and *now*.
Sharie closed her eyes.
Her body began to glow an even brighter Amethyst, as if she was drawing upon some great power within her.
Ki and Mewtwo were almost blinded as Sharie began to glow so brightly she could not be seen.
A staticy amethyst charge surrounded her body like a ball and, in a brilliant explosion of light, expanded outwards at a dizzying pace, englufing all the Fearow.
It wasn't a psychic blast meant to kill them, or even hurt them, but Sharie was in their minds all at once, struggling with her power to lift the essence of evil from them all in a collective fashion.
It was harder than she thought; whomever had done this was excessively powerful in a way they should not have been. The essence within each bird's mind crackled fiercely, roaring angrily at being forcibly ripped from the minds of the Fearow. The psychic suggestions had some sort of built-in defense mechanism, because it was using the latent Special powers of the birds' minds to fight back, mentally stabbing at her each time she attempted to lift it from their minds.
A fierce pain crossed her temples, and she felt the edge of her hold on the Barrier protecting Ki and Mewtwo beginning to waver, as well as her hold on the birds.
*I've only got one more shot at this!* she told herself feirecely. It was taking more and more of her concentration, which was a danger in itself. What she was about to do would shatter her hold on the birds *and* the Barrier, but hopefully, neither would be needed after this.
She didn't just notch up the volume of power she was emitting, she opened the floodgates on her mind.
Ki and Mewtwo only saw a brilliant white light, much brighter than the one surrounding Sharie and the Fearow before, suddenly explode and expand outwards from where Sharie was hovering at the center of this crowd and engulf all the birds in a heartbeat.
At the same time, the Barrier bubble protecting them vanished; Sharie having apparently lost her hold on it.
The individuals within could only hope that it would no longer be needed.
****
The glow seemed to last for an eternity.
Sharie knew that she'd never poured out so much power before; though she was also grateful she was nowhere near her limit of her powers. However, outside of the birds's minds she now sensed little outside of this maddening inferno; and they were struggling all the harder. But the stronger power of her mind was overcoming the psychic suggestions at last.
She'd sensed the barrier shatter and dissolve around Ki and Mewtwo; but she'd had no choice. The suddenness of how she had turned up her power had snapped her link with it.
At last, several seconds after she'd begun, icy blue essences Sharie sensed lifted, like small fogs, from the birds' minds. Their eyes became clear, but it wasn't without price.
Just as they lifted from the bird's minds, with the last of their power, the psychic suggestions all combined to form one last, vicious stab at Sharie before they vanished for good, with no power source to hold them.
Sharie cried out at the unexpected stab of pain searing her senses, and for one extremely painful instant, her whole world was fire. The stab directly attacked her psychic control in a way she'd never before seen, so she could not defend herself.
The flood of power snapped off as a result.
The Fearow began looking around them; confused. Sharie staggered in the air for several moments, but managed to hold her ground, getting her bearings.
Down below, Mewtwo was more than astonished. *What is that girl made of?*
Sharie said only a few short, simple words to the Fearow. *You're freed. Now go.*
The birds looked at her white face, too dazed to do anything but obey. They looked at each other and shrugged, not remembering how they got here, and really confused. So when even a human girl gave them a simple direction to go; they did, glad for some direction.
"Fearooooww!"
In an insant, they were out of sight, the danger now over.
Almost.
The combination of the last psychic attack on Sharie's mind, and shutting the flow of power her body had been emitting off so abruptly wasn't without it's consequences. It was like standing up too abruptly making one feel dizzy and faint; only this was much worse.
Her eyes swam, everything becoming a blur of color for an instant before darkness overcame her.
Her whole body went limp; and she plummeted quite suddenly towards the waves below.
****
Ki's elation at the departing Fearow turned to utter horror when Sharie began to drop like a stone.
*Mewtwo!* she mentally screamed. *She's going to drown!*
Even before all the words were out of her mouth Mewtwo was moving. Charging up his limited ability, he flew as fast as he could.
He caught Sharie, cradled in his arms protectively, just before she hit the ocean waves right below them.
He knew what had happened; he and Ki had sensed it all.
He smiled; admiring Sharie's grit. He understood now that Sharie's delicate appearance, for she looked as fragile and delicate as Ki, was very deceptive. It was clear Sharie, for her size and how thin she was, was deceptively strong, probably stronger than most her size and frame. He could feel it; there were tough muscles in those slender arms and legs.
Mewtwo shook his head to himself. He had, after living with Ki for over a year now, become aware that for some women, a delicate appearance did not necessarily mean a fragile, delicate constitution. (Although becoming aware of this in Ki had not lessened his desire to protect his Angel from harm at all costs. What kind of a person was he if he didn't?)
Sharie, it appeared, was just like Ki in this respect. Delicate-looking, but deceptively strong.
Sharie's fainting wasn't from using too much power, that was for sure. If she could do that she was almost likely capeable of much more powerful blasts. But that last attack by the psychic influence in the Fearow's minds had snapped her power flow off so abruptly, the sudden drop in power had almost taken her lifeforce along with it, causing her to faint. If she'd shut it off like that under her own power, at least she'd still be awake. However, since she hadn't, it was like a rebound effect from the sheer emptiness suddenly in her head.
Mewtwo almost thought she'd be okay untila spreading scarlet stain on her leg caught his eye. To his horror, the bandage on her leg--he'd barely noticed it earlier--was fast becoming soaked with a red fluid. How had that happened? She wasn't bleeding moments ago, while fighting off the birds.
He suddenly remembered, and wanted to kick himself. Part of her power had likely been used on holding the blood flow back by sheer will. Snapping off her powers so suddenly--
The red stain reached the bottom of the bandage, where it touched her purple tennis shoes, and began staining them an ugly color, too.
All of this happened in a matter of moments. Mewtwo, in a near panic, turned to head towards shore with Sharie in his arms. However, he stopped again when she moaned softly and began to open her eyes.
****
Someone was holding her. Someone strong. But who? Why wasn't she dead by now?
*Sharie?* the voice, a psychic one, was urgent. *Sharie, wake up. Can you hear me?*
"I--I can hear you," she responded faintly. Her leg was throbbing, and the bandage around it felt damp, and so did her shoe. She felt a pulsing sensation there, too, a fiery one. If she hadn't torn open her leg wound, then she had a new one in the same area.....
*Thank heavens,* said the voice, and weakly, her eyes opened. To her surprise, her unique green eyes were staring into Mewtwo's ameythst ones!
*You've only been unconscious for a few seconds,* he said quickly. *But you're hurt. I'm getting you to shore.*
What she said next totally floored him.
*Why?* she asked, in weak telepathy. *Why did you catch me? I was certain you'd simply let me fall.*
He almost stumbled in midair. *WHAT?*
*You'd be rid of me that way.*
*How could you think--* he said, then stopped. She doesn't know, he realized. She doesn't know I see her for who she truly is now. I haven't had the chance to tell her.
*Oh, Sharie, I know better now. That trance I went into with Ki removed almost all my doubt of you. And by the virtue of what you have just done, you've more than proven your true self to me. I am honored to call you a friend, not to mention forever in your debt.*
Sharie was too white for her cheeks to pinken, but her eyes sparkled. *Thank you. But you are not in my debt.*
*We'll discuss that later,* he said. *Your leg is bleeding. And badly.*
They touched down on shore as he said this.
*I know. I can feel it.* The disconnected way she said it shocked him.
*Why aren't you screaming, then?* he asked, incredulous. *I'd think you'd be howling.*
*I don't know. I've always had a rather strong tolerance for pain.*
Maybe so, thought Mewtwo to himself, but the way she said it didn't fully convince him. He'd already seen how good Sharie was on controlling what her emotions showed to other people. It was more likely she felt it; she'd just learned not to react to it. He didn't know how he knew, somehow he just knew.
Maybe that was part of the reason she was nowhere as quick to anger as him or Ki, except on a few sensetive subjects. Sharie was a master of controlling herself, a sort of self-defense against the hurtful world in it's own right.
****
As soon as Ki reached them, she was sobbing as she threw her arms around Sharie, still held securely by Mewtwo.
*I thought you'd been killed!* she cried.
Surprised, and strangely grateful, Sharie returned the fierce hug for a moment. She wasn't used to someone showing such concern over her, outside of her family. Even though Ki was overreacting, it was still a nice feeling.
*I'm okay. Don't worry, Ki, though thank you for caring. I'll be okay.*
*But your leg....!*
*Set me down, Mewtwo, beside my pack,* Sharie urged him quietly. He did so reluctantly; concerned because she was growing steadily paler.
As soon as he did, she pressed both her hands on the blood-soaked bandage on her lower leg, the pressure urging the blood to slow.
It was a manner that told Mewtwo she knew what she was doing, but her hands were trembling and her face was looking peaked by now.
*Let me help you,* he urged. *You're weakening.*
*I'm okay,* she said rather too suddenly, to his surprise. She was frowning in a manner that spoke volumes. He sensed she didn't like others to do things for her, as if she couldn't do them herself. In fact, the look on her face seemed to flash the word pet peeve. It startled him, until he thought about it a moment.
Of course. After a lifetime of being on her own so much, she'd be used to caring for herself without the help of others, and she'd already shown she was more than capeable of caring for herself without another's help. It was true, she was more than tough enough.
But refusing help because of that alone? It was a trait she should amend a bit, he figured. He'd learned to do it. And so had Ki. Ki was not just his mate in life, she was his partner. They supported each other, in different ways.
He rephrased the question. Sharie ought to learn that there were indeed those out there willing to help her because they wanted to do so. Genuinely wanting to help was far different than ordering her around. *Please, will you let me? It's within my limited power range, and after what you've done, I really do wish to do this for you.*
That did it. She smiled at his sincerity. *Okay, if you can, since you did ask nicely.*
The twinkle in her eyes replaced the earlier frown, and he laughed his telepathic laugh. She was teasing him; so she did have a sense of humor after all. Gently he reached out and placed his hand against the blood- soaked bandage.
Sharie's leg glowed for a moment, and she sensed a healing power flooding her leg and her body. A moment later, the burning sensation stopped.
Mewtwo laughed at the startled look on her face. *I've healed your wound,* he said with a smile, *But I'm afraid I can't replace the blood. I don't know how much you've lost.*
*Thank you,* she said, truly grateful. *It's not life-threatening yet; I'm a scientist, I'd know. I'll just be tired for a few days.*
She reached for her pack and withdrew a pair of medical scissors. She cut through the bloody bandages, revealing her bloodstained leg--but no wound in sight, not even a scratch.
*You're good,* she marvelled. *I have a limited ability myself, but I can't use my healing powers on my own body, and Ki's leg wound did not necessitate it. Your head wounds disturbed the psychic areas of your minds; a place even I can't touch.*
*Nor I,* he was forced to admit. Sharie reached for an alcohol-soaked wipe in her pack and opened it, cleaning the blood off her leg.
*Oh, no,* she groaned. *My shoe is ruined.*
Mewtwo wondered if he should point out that her shoes were very worn anyways. *Were those the ones you were traveling in?*
*Yes.* His question did not fool her. *I do suppose I need a new pair. I'll have to get one back in Pallet Town.*
*Think you can fly that far? Or teleport?* he asked.
Sharie was forced to admit that she was now a bit more limited than she was before. *Teleporting takes energy,* she admitted. *So does flying, but at least with flying I'll know where I am going.*
*If I had all my powers intact I'd take you there myself,* Mewtwo ventured.
*That's all right; I'll find my way. I've got to get these plants in here back to Nurse Joy, and I am going to have a little talk with her. I am sure she had her reasons for telling you about me, but I want to be certain.*
*The Nurse is not a blabbermouth,* said Ki quickly.
Sharie smiled. *I thought not.*
*She noticed the similarity between you and I,* Ki continued. *I'm the only other one she'd ever met with the powers of an inbred psychic, though the source of mine is clear.*
*And mine isn't,* Sharie finished. *Okay, then, I understand why. The nurse did not strike me as a gossip. I like her and I did not think she'd set out to do anything to me.*
*No,* said Ki. *We know her well.*
She turned to Mewtwo. *Come on, my love, we must get home,* she said quietly. *I'm sure Mew is beyond frantic by now. I would not be surprised if she's convinced we're dead or something.*
*I would not put it past her, Angel,* he agreed fully. *And we have the other babies to see to. But Mew's good at caring for them. I'm not worried about that. Come, let us go.*
Ki turned back to Sharie. *I hope I see you again,* she said softly, holding out her hands.
Sharie took them. *I do, too,* she said. *Honest, you two, you can trust me. Not a word will go to my family or anybody but Nurse Joy about you.*
*I believe that,* said Mewtwo sincerely. *Sharie, how old are you? I can't remember what Nurse Joy said.*
*Seventeen about a week and a half ago, the day I moved to Pallet Town.*
Ki smiled, but also looked startled. *You're only two, maybe two and a half, years younger than me!* she exclaimed. *But....what day was it again? The date?*
Sharie whispered a date that made Ki go white.
*That was the day I had the babies! Wow! Sharie, your birthday is the same as Aaryanna's--and all the rest!*
Sharie smiled, though her tired face was too white to blush. *Fancy that. I'd love to meet the others sometime. I at least hope we meet again, too.*
*So do I,* said Ki. *How about sometime soon we invite you over, if you don't mind visiting around caring for babies?*
*If you both don't mind, okay,* Sharie was touched. She'd almost never had friends like this, and ones who were willing to accept her, now, as much as she was willing to accept them, with no further reservation.
Sharie stood up, her legs trembling slightly. But she regained her footing quickly. Her body was strong. In a day or two, she knew, she would be perfectly fine.
Mewtwo picked up her bag for her to hand it to her, and it shocked even him how heavy it was.
*My goodness,* he commented, hesistating on handing it to her. *This feels like a ton of bricks! I do hope you don't strain yourself! I do not want to allow that to happen.*
She smiled at him as he unwillingly handed it to her. Heavy as it was, and weak though she was, she shouldered the bag with little effort. The sincerity in his eyes caused her to not feel the irritation she might have felt otherwise. It was true--she'd forgotten what true friendship was for. Mewtwo wasn't saying it because he thought her incapable of doing it herself just because she was small and female--he was saying it because he genuinely cared and wanted to help. It wasn't cruelty or arrogance that prompted his words. She was forced to admit to herself that there was a big difference.
She'd learned something else today, too. It did not help to read into something that truly wasn't there to begin with, or hadn't been meant that way. Even though she prided herself on not jumping to conclusions based on a few words that did not agree with her, she knew she'd done that here. She'd know in the future to find the true meaning, not simply what it looked or sounded like at first.
Finding true friends really did help to see what was true and sincere, and it was a lesson she was grateful to learn.
****
End chapter 5. Like it? No? Part 6 coming sooner or later....