As of July 2010, this story has been ripped to shreds and rewritten with some of the shreds of the old story peeking through this new version. I like to believe over the years I have evolved as a writer. I was Pikachu, but now I'm Raichu. Haha, not that great, but you understand the point I'm trying to illustrate. Keep on writing and you, too, can become an evolved Pokemon-I mean, highly esteemed fanfiction author. Here is the story, if you happen to read it, please leave me a review. I'd love to hear from you. I know this could have been told in less than 13 chapters, but that's how it was when I first posted it and I really don't want to repost it, so some chapters are kind of short. I hope you enjoy the story! Happy reading!

Finding Mia

Now your scarred,
And these scars won't fade. ~Kevin Rudolf

Wary eyes rimmed with dark circles gazed upwards at the starry night sky. There was no joy or appreciation for the beauty that was laid out before the stargazer. He searched the stars as if they held an answer to a question desperately sought after. Garet kicked absently at the dirt, knowing his nightly routine was foolish. He knew the stars wouldn't supply him with any kind of plausible answer on how to handle this nightmarish dilemma he'd gotten caught up in. The stars hadn't revealed anything to him within the past twelve nights, and he knew that this thirteenth night wouldn't yield different results. His eyelids were growing heavy with weariness and his body ached for sleep. Letting out a quiet, melancholic sigh, he silently crawled back into the nearby tent and tucked himself into his warm sleeping bag. Dreams of better times before all this mess with the Wise One and lighthouses had interrupted his life kept him fast asleep until the next morning.

Letting out a long yawn, he crawled out of his sleeping bag. Taking note of the empty sleeping bags around his, he wondered just how late he'd slept in. He also realized that for the fourteenth day in a row the sun wasn't shining. He clenched his fists in frustration. Those rain clouds were preventing them from continuing their journey. He wanted to leave this place as soon as possible. Heavy rainfall had kept them stranded there for the past couple weeks. Garet knew this weather wasn't something to be taken lightly. Isaac had completely halted all travel until the roads were clear again. Normally, rain would not be such a huge deal, but with this constant downpour, their blond leader was on edge and refused to let the group travel in such horrid weather. Garet let out a low sigh. Then again, Isaac hadn't exactly been himself since-

Gotta think of something else, Garet quickly redirected his thoughts. Do we have enough food until we reach the next town? Do we have all the herbs we need? And what about our weapons? Are they in good shape? And psy crystals! We need more of those! He quickly set about busying himself.

-Ω-

In his haste to keep his mind occupied, the unruly red-head had absent-mindedly wandered into an area he usually avoided like the plague. He was the midst of searching for healing herbs when he realized just where he was. He violently yanked one last herb out of the bushes, directing all the anger within him at the helpless plant. Tightly gripping the herb, he turned around, trying to get out of that particular area quickly as he could manage. What was I thinking' he berated himself, squeezing the herb tighter at the sudden nervousness that gripped him. It wasn't a matter of what was in the area, but who he might bump into. There was a good reason he kept close to the tent, busying himself with every possible thing he could think of until Isaac would okay them for travel again. He hurriedly turned a corner only to be confronted by the very person he was trying to avoid. Garet cringed at the sudden appearance of his friend, but managed to hide his disappointment at their unplanned meeting. They generally didn't see each other until right around when they all went into the tents for the night. Even at that, they rarely exchanged words lately.

"Hey, Mia," he greeted her, keeping his voice as neutral as possible.

"Were you visiting?" she asked in an equally neutral tone.

"I, uh…" Garet stumbled with his words, unsure of what to say. He hadn't been visiting, but usually they only came here if they were visiting. Deciding it was best to be honest, he explained, "No, um, I realized we needed more herbs, so I was just gathering some." He motioned to the bag of herbs he held. Mia studied them for a moment before making a comment.

"You've got more than enough herbs for three people."

"Yeah, well, better safe than sorry," Garet snapped angrily before stalking off. Her choice of words weren't lost on him. It was something he really didn't wish to discuss. He didn't want to deal with her. Ever since the incident, she had become a much less likable person. She was mentally ill or emotionally ill, maybe both. His shoulders slumped as he thought more on her. He wasn't sure what exactly was wrong with her, but he knew something wasn't right with her. Not anymore.

-Ω-

Mia stared after Garet, deeply absorbed in her own world. Every now and then, she would re-enter the real world, but she would usually say something cruel as she'd just done. She knew she shouldn't have said that. It had just come out of her mouth before she'd even realized what she was saying. Now she was mentally kicking herself. This happened more frequently than not. She briefly considered calling out to her friend and offering an apology, but decided against it. He would see through her and know it wasn't in complete sincerity. He really did have more than enough for three people and she knew he knew that as well.

Raindrops began to wet her skin and she glanced up at the tumultuous clouds the sky had been keeping at bay. It looks as though the sky could no longer control them and another violent rainstorm was about to ensue. Grief was reflected everywhere, even within the weather. Continuing down the path she'd been on when she met him, she though again of her fiery companion. It really was no surprise that Garet hadn't been visiting. She didn't think he ever had. She couldn't conjure a logical explanation for why she was almost constantly in this place. Perhaps it was because she knew once the weather blessed them with sunny skies, she might never be able to come back to this place again.

Her hands began to shake as she approached her destination. She rounded a corner and came into the tiny, circular clearing. A small stone with something carved in it poked out of the ground in front of a tree on the other edge of the clearing. Mia slowly walked over to the stone, eyes darting around the area to confirm that it was just her and the stone. She did not desire anyone to see her when she broke down in a minute and cried until she had no more tears to shed. Once she got to the stone she sank to her knees, her eyes reading and rereading the single word carved carefully into the stone.

Ivan, it read. No more, no less, but it spoke volumes to Mia as she gazed at the marking, tears wetting her cheeks along with the rain. Thunder could be heard in the distance and out of the corner of her eye lightning flashed on the horizon. It seemed like she was in her own, lonely world as she stared helplessly at the tombstone wishing, praying it was all a nightmare, but she knew this was her sad reality. No nightmare lasted for this length of time. Nightmares didn't go on for days or weeks. Only reality crushed a person with that length of time.