By: Pro_V of Pokemon: The Hokubu & Nanka Trek
What happens when Eevy and crew hit the shores of the United States?
A/N: Wahoo! I found a GREAT anime to be obsessed with! If you can, you should most definitely check out Hellsing. Alucard all the way! ^____^ Now remember: This is not a "What if…?" fic. This is to be held to the story, even if it seems kind of…Different.
Part Seven: Absence makes the heart grow fonder…
"Damn you, Evangelina," Lee growled to himself, flicking on the sirens of his car and putting the gas pedal all the way to the floor, "You had to have sped out of here like you had greased tires! Damn you and your speeding!"
Of course he didn't mean any of what he was saying, but he had no choice but to rush and be worked up. Eevy had received a call but a few minutes before to assist at the Art Museum on Central Wisteria Avenue. A few moments later, Ian had received a call to assist immediately at the same address because numerous shots were being fired inside. And…They had identified the intruder.
The Iron Masker Marauder, Mamoru Vicious, was the Head Assistant to Team Rocket's leader. More than likely, he'd been sent to the Museum to retrieve the GS Ball from its exhibit before it was shipped off to Professor Ivy in the Orange Islands for further study. Either way, Lee knew Vicious would stop at absolutely nothing to do what he must to please his Boss, or to complete a mission. The only good thing about him was that he always worked alone.
"Dammit, Jenny. What were you thinking?" Lee murmured out loud to himself, gripping the wheel with white knuckles, "I don't want Evangelina up against someone like Vicious. No. Not yet. She's not ready."
He came to a complete stop at the Museum only a few minutes after he'd left the station. He climbed out of his car and left the door hanging open, as had everyone else from what he saw of the other cars. The air was silent, save his own breathing, and he saw no one. The rotating blue and red lights from the cars around him made him feel even more uneasy than he already was. He drew his gun and started marching for the door, then jogging for it. When a gun went off inside, he broke into a full-blown run.
*^~^**^~^*
"Oh, God, you're finally here," Roland sighed, leaning back against a floating wall as three officers rounded the corner from the hall to their right.
"Are you guys all right?" Ian whispered, but loud enough to hear, across the break between the walls.
"We're fine," Murphy nodded quickly, "But we don't know if he's still back there."
"And we're not about to look either," Jenny snapped, squashed between the two other officers, "I couldn't if I wanted to anyway…"
"I'll look," Eevy grunted, dropping to the floor and peeking carefully around the corner, "No, I don't think he is," she turned and sat up against the wall with Bear and a group of other Growlithe seated beside her.
"Right then," Jenny pried herself out and tripped around a bit before steadying herself, "OK. Summers, Pinstrup, Down; you head down this hall and see if you can find him. Bancroft; you go to the security room and see if you can see him on any of the monitors. Hikoboshi; you and I will head straight around this wall and down into the center of the building. Ready?"
"Right," everyone else nodded.
"Then let's go."
"Come on, Tiger," Roland patted his knee, summoning his Growlithe to his side.
"Tyke, stop bothering Eva and let's go," Eddie puffed, tugging his Pokemon away from Eevy's face, "Crazy dog…How'd you ever pass the test…?"
"Bolt, wait for me!" Murph called in a slightly loud whisper, "Slow down!"
"Good boy, Snake," Ian nodded, following his Growlithe as it crouched low to the ground, sniffing away.
"I'm coming, Sting. You don't need to drag me with you," Jenny clenched her Growlithe's leash in both hands, "Honest!"
Eevy sweatdropped, watching the officers and their dogs disappearing in their assigned directions, "Well…Let's get a move on, Bear. Looks like they can use some help. You ready?" she questioned, looking down at him.
"Growl," he nodded quietly.
*^~^**^~^*
"I'm scared."
"Shut up, Murph."
"I was kidding."
"Yeah right."
"Could yous two possibly get any louda?"
Roland and Murphy turned away from each other, then continued following their and Eddie's Growlithe down the hall. When they came to the end of the hallway, all of them burst around, guns raised or teeth bared, depending on the species. They saw nothing, so they continued on their way. Each one of them constantly allowed his eyes to travel, ogling every little shadow, every tiny corner. Eddie looked right and Murphy left, and Roland stopped, putting his arms out to halt his partners.
"Look who's afraid now," Murphy grinned.
"Shut up, jackass," Roland snorted, motioning to the Growlithe, "Check it out."
"Growl…" Bolt gnarled, crouched low to the ground.
"Growlithe…" Tyke's ears twitched and he too dropped lower, showing his fangs.
"Grrr…" Tiger spiked the fur on his back upward, eyes narrowing.
Murphy twitched, slowly and subtly slipping behind his two friends to hide, "What do you think they see?"
"Down 'dere," Eddie pointed, "Somethin' jus' moved."
"Well…If we ever wanna get promoted, we've gotta do something someday," Roland nodded firmly, stepping over the dogs and marching down the hall, "Tiger, come on."
Eddie and Murph looked at each other quietly, then also breached the line of Growlithe and started walking. While they hung back, Roland and Tiger were just reaching the corner. They paused, then swung quickly around it, seemingly both prepared to have to run away, judging by the stances they held.
"Freeze!" the officer shouted, "You move a muscle and I'll turn the dog loose!"
"Yeah, what he said!" Murphy called.
"Ditto!" Eddie agreed.
Roland grunted, glaring back at them, then back to the problem at hand, "Now get your hands in the air! Now! Now!"
*^~^**^~^*
"Do you see any sign of him at all?" Jenny asked, holding her pistol down in front of her.
"No," Eevy answered, "I don't even see any sign of him taking anything. But he had to have come this way to get to the GS Ball."
"Look at this," Jenny looked around, eyes wide and amazed, "He passed gold, silver, crystal, ancient artifacts, paintings, sculptures…"
"The money on this stuff alone could buy Team Rocket the GS Ball," Eevy murmured, "There must be something really special about that thing if that's all he came for."
Bear was walking, very calmly and patiently, ahead of his master when he suddenly stopped right in front of her. Eevy nearly tripped over him, as he stood so ridged and still in the middle of her path that he didn't even budge when she banged into him. She looked quizzically down at him, then over at Sting, who was still walking around with Jenny. Bear, out of no where, bounded for the corridor to the western side of the building, and didn't stop even as Eevy called after him.
"You dumb dog! Where are you going?" she snapped, running after him, "Bear! Bear, you bad dog! Get your furry hide back here!"
"Hikoboshi, where do you think you're going?!" Jenny shouted as she and Sting watched Eevy disappear around the corner, "Hikoboshi!"
"He might have heard something," the reply to her shouting came over the radio on her belt, which she looked down at, "I need to go see, and make sure he's all right."
Jenny sighed, then began walking yet again. Eevy followed Bear down the hall, then to the left. When she rounded the corner, she watched his fluffy cream-colored tail disappear around the stairwell to her left. She swung around it, Glock pointed straight up the stairs, but all she saw was Bear turning to his right and hopping up the stairs there as well. She grunted and started upward, crouched down and poised to shoot. She stepped up at the top of the second set of stairs and watched that same crazy little tail mingle in about a room of statues.
Looking down the hall to either side, Eevy crossed it and pushed through the glass doors. As she did so, she found herself in a room littered with marble statues of great beasts. As she passed each one, she not only checked for her target, but also examined each one for damage or the like. At the center one, she paused a moment, looking up at it. It was a tall, multicolored bird, made of black marble studded with numerous different colored gemstones. She paced around it, studying it as if she were mesmerized by the shining of the precious stone set about it. She stepped closer, and as she was about to reach out and touch its beak, Bear barked from her side. She quickly drew her hand away and turned to her right.
Turning and following his yapping, she wove between other statues, passing by numerous other beasts, and a few humans. She watched Bear run from one side of the hall she was heading to, toward the other and stopped to growl lowly to herself. Her eyes slowly drifted off toward her left side, where she came face-to-face with a tall glass cover. Encased within it was a statue of great detail. Leaning closer and this time ignoring Bear as he again crossed the hallway, she noted what it was of. A group of humans; three men and three women; each with a different gem imbedded in their chests. One a ruby, one an emerald, one a sapphire, one an amethyst, one an agate, and the last a diamond. As she stepped around the case, she saw two more figures standing behind the others; two men. These two also had gems imbedded in them; one a bloodstone, the other a bit of lapis-lazuli. Shaking off the unnerving feeling that coursed through her bones and blood, she glanced down at the plaque beneath it. "An ancient statue of the Angel of Faith and her Five Divine, as well as the other two members of her Triad. Perceived by many, even today, as messengers of God."
Bear suddenly yelped, a quick, call of agony, and snapped Eevy from her trance. She turned and ran down the hallway, sliding to a stop with her gun held up. She spotted Bear, muzzled and tied to a statue of a Pidgeot, its wings extended, and before she knew it, the first shot was fired.
*^~^**^~^*
"Yeah, right. Like I'll do a damn thing you say."
Roland tilted an eyebrow, the light from ahead of his 'captive' shining back in his face, "…C-Captain?"
The slightly shadowed person turned around and raised a rifle to Roland's forehead, "You're an idiot, you know that?" Lee growled, "I could have shot you more than a dozen times by now."
Roland backed quickly away as Tiger and the other Growlithe sat down and wagged their tails, "OK, OK. Point taken."
"What're you doin' 'ere anyways, Cap'n?" Eddie asked, scratching his head, "I thought you was off 'til lata'."
"I'm supposed to be, but I came to get Evangelina," Lee replied, holding his Beretta over his right shoulder, "I don't want her here. She's not ready for something like this."
"We all thought so," Murph lowered his head, "Roland and I begged Jenny not to call her, but she insisted. Said she had to get out and learn."
"Do you know which way she went?" Lee asked, checking to ensure his Glock was loaded as well, "I saw Ian in the security room and you two here, but I haven't seen Jenny or Eva."
"Jenny took Eva 'n headed in toward 'da middle a' 'da buildin'. 'Dats where da' GS Ball is," Eddie pointed down the hallway to their left, "Bear 'n Sting went with 'em."
Lee nodded and turned to head down the hallway, but a loud bang from the opposite end caused him to stop. Both he and the other three officers stopped in mid-step and looked down in that direction. The same noise came again, but the hallway ended in a large circular room with numerous exits, making it impossible to determine the exact direction. Lee looked back at the other three officers and their dogs, then bolted down the hallway. When they reached the round room, they stepped lightly around every display, also allowing the dogs to wander. Jenny came trampling in behind them, and screeched to a halt when all four officers raised their guns at her. She waved them off, and then continued her search with them. When it was concluded that all was clear, each officer took a separate hall.
*^~^**^~^*
A shot rang out in the mostly empty room Evangelina stood in, and her gun went spiraling out of her hand and into the air. A second shot caused it to go flying through the glass wall behind her, shattering it like rain. Eevy turned back, noticing that Bear was flailing and pulling frantically at his bindings. He gnarled and growled, shaking his head violently. She narrowed her eyes, looking around for who had shot at her.
"Well…What do we have here? The department must be getting desperate to take a teenager onto their force," there was a deep laugh from the shadows, "And they sure aren't training their dogs too well. If a simple echoing dog whistle can confuse it like that, there's a serious damn problem with law enforcement these days. On your knees, little lady."
Eevy did as she was told, slowly lowering herself to her knees. With no ready weapon, she was unable to defend herself, and was forced into submission. Lee had special equipment for this kind of thing, but she was uninitiated with such things. Above her stood the Rocket she was supposed to have been searching for. If she hadn't been gawking at those statues, this may not have happened. She winced and shut her eyes as the painful end of a gun pressed to her forehead.
"Ooh, she's scared," Vicious grinned sadistically, "Put your hands on the back of your head and don't move unless I tell you. That's a girl," he pushed her chin up with his gun smiling at her as she bared the left half of her mouth, "Hm…Cute kid. I'll tell you what; if you do what I tell you, I won't fill you full of holes. Deal?"
He watched her silently as she didn't answer. She didn't even nod. He tilted his head, again pressing his gun directly to her forehead, right between her eyes.
"Come on. What; do you have to think about it? It's a simple choice," he ensured the safety was off and pushed so hard against her that her head tipped back, "Do you wanna live or do you wanna die? It's not so tough."
A few seconds passed before a very quiet, but very deep, firm and commanding, "Fuck off," escaped the teen sitting in front of him.
"Hm?" Vicious growled, eyes narrowing behind his helmet, "Oh, girl, you got mouth. I don't like mouthy girls."
One swift kick and Eevy was sliding across the floor, having been flung to her right. She hit the tiles and bounced, actually spinning slightly so as she was facing back at her captor. She quivered slightly, her very muscle aching violently. Vicious stormed over to her and bent down to her semi-limp body, holding his gun to her ear.
"Do you wanna die? Do-you-want-to-die? Hm?" he fired off a round directly in front of her face, into the floor, and the blank shell landed in her hair, which was strewn about the floor, "If you do, I can make that wish come true. Open your mouth again, and it'll be full of lead. Now sit up," he commanded, backing away slightly as she forced her pained bones to do so, "Get your hands on the back of your head and face the wall. Now stay there."
Eevy did as she was told, looking off every now and then at the struggling Bear as she listened to Vicious poking around at things while waiting for his equipment to drop the barrier around to GS Ball. If he just up and reached for it, he'd be electrocuted with the voltage of about six Raichu. Needless to say, he'd rather take his time and deal with the cops than that.
"Evangelina?" Eevy's eyes shot left to right, "Eva? It's Lee. Can you hear me? Evangelina?"
Eevy looked down at her belt at her radio, the little red light on it flashing on and off as she was spoken to. She then turned her attention to Vicious, who was seemingly not paying her any mind. Slowly, carefully, and as discretely as possible, she lowered her right hand and took her radio from her belt. Raising it to her mouth, she clicked it on so as the green light flashed on.
"Lee? Lee, I'm here. Can you hear me?"
"Yes, I can hear you. Thank God you're still all right."
"I'm in trouble, Lee," she looked over her shoulder at Vicious, "It's Vicious. I ran into him. He's got Bear muzzled, and I've lost my gun."
"God, Evangelina, have you been shot?"
"Not directly, but I'm not fresh as a daisy either," she looked down at her side, which was now in excruciating pain, "I'm on the third floor, at the GS Ball exhibit, just like Jenny thought. He's-"
"What the hell do you think you're doing?" Vicious grabbed her radio right out of her hands and clicked it on, "Listen, Lee, if you want to see your little honey here alive, I suggest you keep your ass where it is. And tell her to keep her big mouth shut, unless she wants her throat shot out," the last thing he did with that radio was throw it upwards and shoot it.
Eevy watched it clatter to the floor in front of her and swallowed dryly. Vicious laughed quietly and pulled her wrist, dragging her to her feet. Swinging her around, he wrapped one arm around her throat and pressed his gun to her chin.
"Now, did you see how painful that looked? Imagine that about ten times worse, and then multiply that by an unknown number of bullets," a sadistic grin crossed his mouth, "That's what'll happen to you if you go and try anything funny like that again, girl. Now sit your ass down," he shoved her down to her hands and knees, "Keep going. All the way down," he pressed the center of her back with his foot, dropping her face-first to the tiles, "Get your hands on the back of your head and leave 'em there. I'm watching you this time."
*^~^**^~^*
"Shit!" Lee held his radio away from his ear, the loud static from it having nearly deafened him, "Evangelina? Evangelina?! Evangelina, answer me! God damn it all to hell!"
He turned and ran around a plaque dedicated to the founder of the museum and the President of the Rainbow League and ran around a spiral set of stairs. He came up in a long hallway, for which the only light illuminated from a set of three large glass windows on the left wall. It flashed and sparked at seemingly random brightness, and projected a human-shaped shadow on the opposite wall. With great restraint, Lee continued toward it, peeking carefully around the corner. The glow from within was blinding, and he squinted to see through it. Something was hacking away at the barrier around a pedestal presenting a gold and silver Poke'Ball, and beyond that he could see Vicious standing dead in the center of the room, facing away. It looked as if Vicious let out a pompous laugh, then turned and stepped away to check the progress of his machines. Lee gasped and lunged back, as he saw Evangelina laying flat out on the floor. Was she dead? No, she wasn't bleeding and she wasn't pale. She was alive. But for how long?
Waiting for Vicious to turn away, Lee hightailed it past the windows, then slinked along the wall, around the corner to his left. He stopped once he was there, looking at the shards of glass scattered around the hallway. Within the pile lay Eevy's gun. He quietly reached out and picked it up, examining it. It'd been shot, but it was only the grip. Slipping it into his belt, he brought his Beretta down around off his right shoulder and cocked it. With all the noise inside, he doubted Vicious would hear it. Rushing across the broken glass, he tackled into the door.
Vicious turned glared at him, and Eevy raised her head with her eyes gone wide. Lee shot the buckle of Bear's muzzle, and the dog immediately turned on Vicious, teeth bared and scruff raised. Vicious toppled back, his gun flipping out of his hand and crashing through the now clear glass of the GS Ball case. The glass shattered, and Bear was forced to release his captive due to the shards falling down on him. He ran for Eevy and Lee, who were now both standing, and they turned to grab Vicious. The only problem was that he was nowhere to be found. All three looked at each other, then backed into each other to look in all directions. When the glass windows behind the GS Ball exploded, and Vicious came crashing through them and grabbed it, Lee turned to fire. Vicious was already prepared, and pulled a second gun from his belt, firing it straight toward them. Vicious growled and recoiled, holding his right shoulder with his left hand, and the GS Ball in his right. He turned and jumped back over the window frame and ran to the left, up the stairs.
Eevy panted and sighed, then wiped her mouth to remove the blood from her split lip. She felt something wet on her forehead too, and reached to gently wipe it, but…There was no cut there. Nor was there on her cheek. Nor her jaw. She wiped all three, and all three gave blood on her gloves, but none of them had any source. She was about to question Lee, when she looked down at the back of his brown leather jacket. She was about to scream at him when he hit the floor on his knees and fell back at her feet. Her heart sank, then shot up into her throat. He bled from his mouth and chest. Turning pale, she let out a blood-chilling scream.
She dropped to the floor next to him, just before his back hit the tiles, and allowed his head to land in her lap, "Lee! Oh, God, Lee! What do I do, Lee?! What do I do?!"
"Stop…Stop panicking," he tapped her mouth with his hand.
"Does…Does that mean you'll be OK?"
"No, Ladybug, it doesn't," he took her hand, "It means that there's nothing you can do. This place is such a maze, it wouldn't matter if you did call help."
"Stop talking like that! You're going to be OK!" she steadied his head with both hands, "Do you hear me?! You're going to be OK, damn you!"
He laughed quietly, coughing up more blood, "Ladybug, you stop that. You're going to hurt yourself."
"I'm already hurt," she lowered her head and shut her eyes tightly, "Oh, God, I'm so sorry. I wasn't…I wasn't strong enough to keep myself safe. If you hadn't had to protect me, you'd be OK."
"Maybe, but maybe you'd be hurt," he pushed her nose, "I'd have killed myself if that had happened."
"But what am I going to do now?" she leaned her forehead on his, "I'm not ready for this to happen. We were supposed to live together and be happy. I'm not supposed to be watching you die right now, Lee. Please don't die."
"I don't think we have a choice," he gripped her hand tighter, "That reminds me. I was going to ask you before," he attempted to reach into his inside coat pocket, "Oh, hell…Ladybug, do me a favor? Go in my pocket there and get something out for me," she did as she was told, pulling out a box that just barely fit in the pocket in the first place, "Let me have it. There. Now," he popped it open with his thumb and handed it up to her, "If I had given you that, Ladybug, would you have married me?"
"Lee, don't…Don't do this to me now…" she shut her eyes and dropped the box, lightly hugging his shoulders, "I don't need this."
"Answer my question, Evangelina," he smiled grimly, "A dying man's last request, maybe."
She again wiped the blood from her lip and kissed him, "You know I would have."
He sighed slightly, "That's good to know," he nodded, "Then I want you…" he reached out and pulled the box over, then reached up and pulled off her glove and slid the ring on her finger, "To keep this and wear it. It was my grandmother's. Anything else of mine you want, take it. I'd rather you have it than my brother. And there's something else you need to do for me," he forcefully yanked her chin down, or at least tried to, "Promise me that you'll stay safe. Promise me you'll find yourself someone who's willing to protect you. And promise me you'll find someone who loves you as much as I do. Stay strong for me and never give up. Don't ever settle for anything less than what you want. Don't let me weigh you down, but don't ever forget me. You're great, Evangelina, and don't let anyway tell you otherwise. When they try, you show them what they are. Show your spots, but know there's beauty underneath it. In short, Ladybug, don't change at all. Can you do that for me?"
She rubbed her right eye with the heal of her right hand, "I will. I promise I'll at least try."
He sat up and kissed her cheek, "I love you, Eva."
She carefully helped him lower his head back to her lap, "I love you too, Lee."
Eevy stood up, looking down at Bear, who sat beside Lee and whined. Standing straight and firm, she cocked his Beretta and looked back at him. Clenching her fists at her sides, she swore up and down that she wasn't going to let Vicious get away. He had died for her. And if she had to do the same, she would. She headed for the smashed windows behind the podium where the GS Ball formerly stood, and stopped as Bear carefully began to follow.
"Stay, Bear," she ordered, causing the Growlithe to back up, "Stay here and wait for Jenny and the others. I'll come back when I'm through."
*^~^**^~^*
Broken glass, shattered statues, torn paintings…Evangelina kept walking, ignoring most all of these things. She followed a trail of blood up the stairs and around the show floor of a room of antique vases, then over to the service elevator. Stepping into it, she pressed the Roof button, which had a red fingerprint on it. She stepped off to the side, springing out when the doors opened. Seeing no one, she stepped out onto the open roof of the museum, looking around in all directions. Except up.
"Hold it there, girl," came the now familiar voice from behind her as Vicious stood on top of the elevator shaft.
Eevy spun around, aiming the Beretta directly at the Rocket's forehead, "You. You little scumbag. You killed my partner."
"Aww…Is your little savior deader than a doornail? How sad," Vicious smirked, shrugging his shoulders, "Would you like to join him?"
"Would you?"
Vicious laughed crazily, "Oh, girl, you've got one big mouth. At first it really pissed me off, but now I kinda like it!" he set his gun down at his feet and then jumped down in front of her, "Let's see how you do in hand-to-hand combat, girl. No weapons."
Eevy narrowed her eyes, then slowly setting the Beretta down at her feet, along with her Glock. As she stood again, Vicious kicked upwards into her chest. She tripped back, then slammed a punch right into his chin, His helmet popped right off his head and fell over the edge of the roof, crashing to the hard ground below. Every time one swung, the other would block, and despite the age and size difference between them, neither seemed to have any kind of advantage. Vicious made a quick grab at her throat, and threw her straight to the ground. She swung her feet up and kicked his knees out from under him, and he landed flat on his back, as did she. They both scrambled to grab one another, and wound up each holding one of the other's wrists. Growling at each other, they fought in a literal push and shove situation for a few seconds before Vicious pushed his knee into Eevy's stomach and anchored her under him.
"Oh, look at you," he grinned, "Trapped, are we? Uh-oh; no one to save you now."
She spit up into his face, rotating her wrists to free her hands and kneeing him in the stomach. He stumbled to his feet, wobbling left to right, and she tripped away a few feet, staring him down while holding a firm stance. He looked up at her momentarily, then narrowed his eyes and stomped his right foot. A long, slender gun dropped from a hidden holster, which he grabbed and fired. She fell over backwards, sitting quickly up and holding her now shattered right ankle in both hands. Vicious laughed evilly and stood above her.
"If you're lucky, I'll decide not to kill you right away," he smirked, "Maybe I'll make you my servant for a while. And then I'll kill you."
She growled, spitting out a bit of the blood from her lip, "I think not. You're not the only one with some tricks, only mine are up my sleeve."
She threw her right arm out, snapping her wrist and snatching the small revolver that landed in her palm. She lowered it slightly and shot once, twice, three times. Shot one hit his belt buckle and snapped it off. Shot two hit his left leg. Shot three hit his right leg. And the thud thereafter was him hitting the floor. Eevy stood above him and grinned evilly. He shouted loudly, attempting to back away from her. Too bad she was still able to walk better than him. She bent down and grabbed his arms, handcuffing them behind his back, then took something from his belt and limped toward the elevator, picking up the Beretta as she passed it.
*^~^**^~^*
"Chief Junsa!" Ian came tearing out of the building and grabbed Jenny's arm, "It's Captain Tanabata, ma'am! We've found him in the GS Ball room! Chief, he's-he's-he's-"
"Slow down, Ian. What's the matter? What happened?" Jenny took the officer's arm, "Now, slowly. What happened? What did you find?"
"Captain Tanabata, ma'am, he's dead! And we can't find Vicious, the GS Ball, or Lieutenant Hikoboshi anywhere! The only one we found was Bear!"
Jenny was just about ready to scream for confirmation when someone tripped out the front door of the museum. Jenny gasped as Eevy stumbled down the stairs and made her way through the officers standing about the lawn, who cleared a path for the battered girl. When she reached the police chief, she made a sad attempt to salute.
"Evangelina, my God, what happened to you?" Roland asked, having seen her come out and run to her side from behind his car.
Eevy looked around, very heavily, and heaved a few more times, "Vicious is on the roof," she coughed, spitting blood up onto the ground, which Jenny backed away from, "Jenny…"
"Don't talk," Jenny took the girl's shoulders, "Someone get an ambulance! Hurry up!" she looked back down at Eevy, "Eva…"
"Jenny…" Eevy reached into her pocket, ignoring the fact that the Beretta fell from her shoulder, and held something out to Jenny in a trembling hand.
Jenny slowly took whatever it was she had, and grabbed her as she collapsed before looking at it. In her hand rested the minimized GS Ball and a shiny ring.
*^~^**^~^*
Thought it was a bright and clear day, it was a very dark and dank reason to be out in it. Officers and friends and family alike stood silently and watched the lost officer being laid to rest. Morty stood tight against his sister, allowing her to lean on his shoulder as he gently stroked her hair, and Eusine stood on her other side, holding her crutches. Behind them stood both Eevy and Morty's parents and Eusine's, who, at times, reached out to squeeze Eevy's shoulder. Across from them stood someone Eevy very vaguely remembered, but couldn't place. As everyone began to slowly filter off, Roland and the other two Stooges stepped up and hugged Eevy, shaking hands with her relatives before descending the stone steps to their cars. Jenny approached next and held something out to Eevy.
"I believe this is yours," she noted, then hugging the teen and turning to leave.
Eevy opened the envelope she'd been given and dumped out her ring. Tearing up slightly, she put it on and clutched Morty's arm. A young man with pale green hair and blue-purple eyes gave Eevy a hug, pulling her away from her brother for a few seconds, then kissed her forehead and also turned to leave. Ian and Randy both patted Eevy's hands, then left with their respective families. Elodie, Mazana, Netta and Laurel were next to surround her.
"I'm so sorry, Eva," Mazana said quietly, "Oh-so-very sorry."
"I wish I had been there," Elodie murmured, "I swear."
"If there's anything you ever need, Eva," Netta took both her hands in hers, "Don't you dare hesitate to ask, OK?"
"No matter what it is or where any of us are, please," Laurel hugged her shoulders as the other girls hugged her as well, "Make sure you don't forget us."
Morty kissed the side of his sister's head as the girls went to their cars, "We're going to go get the car warmed up, sis. You come with us whenever you're ready. Take your time."
She watched them walk away after taking her crutches back from Eusine, then turned and moved over to stand at the foot of the grave. She looked at the stone, examining its every detail. She felt another wave of tears breaching her eyes and shut them tightly before collapsing to her knees and dropping her crutches at either side. She covered her eyes and wailed into them, in long agonizing cries that made everyone who had not already left turn to look at her. A shadow overtook her from behind, but she ignored it, unwilling to stop letting out what she'd kept inside.
A hand dropped to her level, holding a tissue, "Uh…Excuse me…" the tentative whisper came, "Would you like some help?"
She turned and looked over her shoulder at the tall blond man standing behind her, "Thank you," she nodded, taking the tissue and drying her eyes.
"It's no trouble," he nodded, "I don't mean to be personal or rude, but might I ask if you're Evangelina Hikoboshi?"
She stared up at him, "Yes, I'm Evangelina," she hopped to a stand, thanking him again as he picked up her crutches and handed them to her, "If you're with that damned newspaper, you can leave right now."
"No, no I'm not. I've been fending them off myself," he offered her his hand to shake, "I'm Lee's brother, Travis."
"Yes, I remember he mentioned you," she nodded, "I'm very sorry about your brother."
"So am I," he replied, "I know how very much he cared about you. I also knew he was planning on asking you to marry him. I see you have our grandmother's ring, so I assume he asked."
"If you want the ring, you can-"
"No-no-no," he waved both hands, "It's nothing like that. I just wanted to come and meet you. He always talked about you, and my parents and I…We want you to know that if you ever need anything, you're family to us now. Lee loved you probably more than you know, and we want to make sure you know that, and we want to make sure where he is he can see you're being treated right."
Eevy's eyes wavered, "Thank you very much. Give your parents my best regards, and tell them that if they ever need anything, I'll be here for them too."
Travis nodded and bowed low, then turning and heading for his car, where his parents were, "Hm…I wonder if Lee would have wanted me to marry her for him. OUCH!" he jumped as something seemingly jabbed into his back, "Ow…"
Eevy stood, again looking at the stone ahead of her, and a firm hand on her shoulder broke her stare, "He loved you, Eva, and he was a good man," her uncle noted, "I'm sure he wants nothing more than for you to be happy and safe."
"I know…" Eevy sighed.
"Come on, sugarplum," he tugged her gently with him, "Time to go."
Behind them, a ladybug landed atop the marble block marking the grave, fluttering its wings.
*^~^**^~^*
"I'm sorry, Jenny, but I haven't the ambition to do this anymore."
"Oh, Evangelina," Jenny quickly stood and raced around her desk, wrapping her arms around the teenager's shoulders, "You're so young, and you're so full of life with so much time ahead of you. I respect your decision to leave."
"Thank you, Chief Junsa," Eevy nodded and walked, slightly limping, out the door and into her office.
Once she was there, she paused. Everything still had an air of Lee in it. It just felt so like him; so much like he was still there. She shook her head and threw all of her things in a leather bag, also grabbing a few choice items from Lee's desk. She paused and picked up a picture frame, looking it over. In the frame was a picture of his family, and jammed in the corner was a photo of herself. She slid it gently into her bag, also picking up his favorite pen set and a book or two. As she turned to leave, she found the door was blocked.
"We heard you were leaving," Roland murmured, leaning on the doorframe.
"Sad to see you go," Murphy nodded, arms crossed.
"Are ya' ever gonna' come back?" Eddie asked, scratching his head.
"Maybe," Eevy whispered, "You never know."
"Stay safe for us, OK?" Laurel requested.
"And take care of yourself," Mazana put in.
"You'll find your calling someday," Elodie noted with a light smile.
"And when you do, let us know," Netta grinned sadly, clapping her hands together.
"I'll try, guys, I swear," Eevy agreed.
"If it's ass-kicking, I'll bet you'll do good," Ian smirked.
"I'll bet you'll do it no matter what it is," Randy snickered, hands on his hips.
"I hope you're right, guys," Eevy sighed, "I really do."
Everyone who had been blocking her exit stepped back so she could pass. As she stepped out into the hall, she bumped face-first into someone's chest. She looks shakily upward, then sweatdropped as the road-blocking Tanabata stepped back.
"Hello, Evangelina," Travis nodded to her, "I brought you something from my parents," he held a round box out to her and waited for her to take it, "It's the hat from my brother's uniform. We want you to have it."
"But I can't take this," she attempted to stuff it back in his hands, "This is yours to keep."
"You're just like Lee described you," he jammed it back in her arms, "Please take it? It'll break my mother's heart if you don't."
Eevy sighed long and hard, then agreed quietly, "All right…All right, I'll take it. But only if you'll take this," she held out a Poke'Ball, "This is Bear. He was our partner. Take care of him for me? For us?"
Travis grinned at her, then backed away when Jenny placed a hand on his shoulder. As he did so, Eevy was somewhat forced to salute as hard as she could, as was everyone else. A Jenny dressed in a black uniform came down the hallway with an officer to either side of her, who were also in black. She stepped right up to Eevy and put out her hand, which Eevy very wearily shook.
"Lieutenant Hikoboshi?"
"Yes."
"I'm Commissioner Junsa. I work for the head branch of the Gertan Rin Department of Law Enforcement," she nodded and took something from one of the other officers behind her, "I've heard a lot about you. Including that you retrieved the stolen GS Ball and also brought the Iron Masked Marauder to a stop."
"Yes, ma'am."
"Then I'm here to formally thank you, and ask you to accept this token of appreciation," she handed over the small black box she'd just received, "And also to promote you."
"Oh, I'm sorry, Commissioner, but I-"
"I know you've already handed in your resignation, but we'd like you to keep your badge, and know you'll always be a part of us," Chief Junsa called in from the side, "Please, Evangelina?"
Eevy looked around at the numerous officers surrounding her, "…Yes, ma'am."
"In that case," the commissioner opened the box Eevy now held, displaying a shiny gold badge, "We greatly thank you, Deputy Chief Evangelina Chenoweth Hikoboshi."
*^~^*Part Seven: End…*^~^*
A/N: I swear on EVERYTHING that aside from a couple of paragraphs in the very-very beginning of the next chapter, that is the LAST flashback. x___X There was originally going to be one more, but I decided not to do it. Flashbacks get real annoying real fast. But, hey, they can be kind fun. Too bad they're also so darned depressing. Anyways, LOOK AT ME! TWO CHAPTERS IN THREE DAYS! *dances* Um…Anyways…Remember to look for Hellsing! 'Tis all until next time!
*^~^*Pro_V*^~^*
.:O=Usagi-chan=O:.
*))~Itachi-chan~((*
-=O~The Other Pokemon~O=-
Next: Special Edition: TAA USA: Part 7.
TAA Pokemon Of The Month: October 2003: Misdreavus
Still don't own Pokemon. I also don't own Beretta, anything around Glock, nor do I own anything that has to do with Hellsing, or anything to do with Alucard from Castlevania, and, while I'm at it, I don't own Castlevania either. Nyaa.