-twiddles thumbs- So! How is everyone? Is it me, or has this week been unbelievably long? Eh, it is probably just me...I just can't wait for spring break. Uninterrupted time to finally work on this and sleep late! YEEEEEEES!

In other news...my dog smells. Hooray?

You know, I really like this chapter, which is why I'm babbling on and on and on...I want to torture you all! BWAHAHAHA! BECAUSE I'M THAT EVIL! Mmm...I smell French fries. –drools-

Oh yes…speaking of spring break, over it I'm going to attempt to scan all these drawings I did, which I will be putting on my crappy little freewebs site. In case any newcomers want to see this lovely piece of HTML, or if you just forgot about it, the link is in my bio. Yay!

Hmm...should I keep you here any longer…yeah. ^_~

Naaah. I'm not THAT evil.

~Chapter Thirty~

I really did invite Steve and Ivy over the next day, but I hadn't planned on it before I said that to Darrell, so they had no idea why I was inviting them over on impulse a day after I moved back to Johto. They both said they were going to come over anyway.

As I laid on my bed and waited for them to arrive, it occurred to me I didn't tell Darrell about that little book hidden under my mattress. I snorted, wondering if I could even tell him now...that voice that had come from him made me trust him less, for some reason.

I sat up, my loose hair flying around me. Arguh. What was up with my feelings about Darrell all of a sudden? Was it just because I hadn't seen him for a month and I need some time to adjust?

Steve knocked on my window, interrupting my thoughts, and I let him in.

"Kitsune's gotta teach me how to Teleport," he grumbled, hoisting himself onto the window seat.

Kit, who had been laying on my bed, looked up at the mention of his name.

"How about it Kit?" I teased. "Want to teach us how to Teleport?"

"Esssssssss," he hissed, getting up and running out of my room.

"ARRGUH!" someone on the stairs cried, and I recognized the voice as Ivy's. She bounded up the rest of the stairs and burst into my room.

"Tell Kit to watch where he's going!" she growled. "I nearly stepped on him!"

"How 'bout you watch where you're putting your feet?" Steve smirked.

"At least mine aren't a freaking size eleven---"

 "GUYS!" I cried. "Geez. Thank goodness I moved back."

Steve and Ivy smiled at each other, then at me. "What are you talking about?" Ivy asked sweetly. "We don't fiiiiiiiiiight..."

"Don't fight my butt," I muttered. I sat back down on my bed and flopped back onto it, sighing.

"What's up Lindsey?" Ivy asked, sitting near my head and looking down at my face.

"I was just thinking about some things Darrell said last night..." I said. I squinched my eyes shut, suddenly realizing I should have not said that.

Steve was immediately across the room and also in my face. "What was that?!" he demanded to know.

I opened my eyes and frowned. "I met up with him last night." Steve frowned back, and I sat up. "Well what would you expect me to do?!" I cried. "He traveled for a month to come here, and what was I supposed to do---say 'Oh, hit the road jack'?!"

"So what did he say?" Ivy asked before Steve could butt in with his comeback.

I sighed, telling them about Darrell's past and his Hunter lineage. Steve looked more and more angry with each sentence, but Ivy was just smiling.

"You're the type that would go for the bad boys," she smirked when I was done talking.

"But he left!" I said. "He's not bad at all. He knew his family was doing something really stupid and wrong, so he left on his own accord."

"Then why did your mom tell him to leave?" Steve interrupted.

"I...I don't know," I sighed. "Darrell didn't know why either. At least...I don't think he did."

Before any of us could say anything else, there was a knock at my door.

"Yeah?" I called.

The door opened, and it was Mom. "Ivy, your mother's on the phone and needs to talk to you," she said.

Ivy rolled her eyes. "Thanks Mrs. Tamer." She followed Mom out the door and down the stairs, and it was just me and Steve.

Neither of us said anything for a few seconds. I saw Steve's gaze on my room go to my night table, where I had a tiny frame with a picture of Darrell and I in it. I smiled to myself, remembering that day: Darrell was actually out in the sunlight, and I had dragged him into a photo booth. No matter how many times I prodded him, he would not make any type of goofy face so I finally smiled nice along with him.

My thoughts were broken up when Steve suddenly reached over and flipped the frame facedown so you couldn't see the picture.

"Hey," I protested, reaching over to fix the frame. "Why did you---"

Steve suddenly grabbed my wrist and I looked over at him in confusion.

"Why do you like him so much?" he asked, shaking the bangs out of his eyes.

I blinked. I was not expecting that.

"I...I just do." I answered quietly.

'Why do you love him?' a little voice in my head said.

"Did what he said last night not implant in your brain?!" Steve cried. "He's a freaking Hunter Lindsey, a real one! For all you know, he might come over here one day and kill Joker or Kit or something---"

"Didn't YOU hear me?" I yelled back. "He left on his own! He knew his family was screwed up, so he left!

"You really have no idea what you're talking about! I know him a lot better than you do---you just think he's some freaky Gothic dude running around trying to destroy all Pokemon or something, but he's so much more!"

Steve's grip on my wrist turned icy cold. "Oh really now?" he growled.

"Yes!" I hissed, finally shaking my wrist from his hold. "My god, Steve. I know you, for whatever reason, hate him, but he means a lot to me." I looked him in the eye. "Haven't you ever been in love?"

He leaned forward and put his hands on my bed, sort of trapping me with his arms and forcing me to look up at him. "Yes," he said quietly.

"S-Steve?" I whispered, my heart suddenly pounding.

Without warning, he swiftly leaned forward and smashed his mouth against mine.

"Mmf..." went my muffled cry, my eyes wide with shock. I tried to push him off, but he gripped my shoulders and I felt like I was going to fall back, so I used my hands to prop myself up.

The kiss seemed to last forever, but when he finally pulled away, Steve had a look in his eyes that I don't think I've ever seen before. Something had changed...there was this fire, this light...

"I love you!"

I let out a gasp, my eyes widening even more. What did he just say? No. It couldn't have been what I thought it was...yeah, he said 'I glove you' or something. Not what I thought. But really, why would he kiss me if he lost his gloves? When had  he gotten gloves of any kind, anyway? Steve is so not the glove-wearing type.

"I won't let you see him anymore!" he continued, ignoring my previous response. "I'm in love with you!"

Oh yeah. I had heard right the first time. No gloves in this conversation.

"Ste—" I started, but I was cut off when he suddenly kissed me again. In one quick movement, he took his grip off my shoulders and wrapped his arms around me, and we fell on my bed.

What the heck did Steve think he was doing, suddenly kissing me like this? Why the hell was he even kissing me for that matter?!

Not that it was such a bad thing at the moment...I guess he had a lot of practice with his zillions of girlfriends, because he was a pretty good kisser...

No...

No...

Somehow I wrestled my lips from him. "Stop it! What the hell are you DOING, you idiot?!" I screamed, finally pushing him off of me. I stood up and in my confusion, I started to run for the door, but Steve grabbed me, and somehow we both tripped, and then there we were, me laying on the floor in complete shock with Steve on top of me holding my wrists down.

"Let go of me!"

"No! Lindsey, can't you understand?!" he cried. "My god, don't you see? I've been here for you...and I'll always be here for you. Who sat by your side day in, day out for two weeks when you were in a coma? Me! Who was there when you found April's diary and your mom freaked out? ME! Who has always given you a shoulder to lean on?! ME!!!

"I've ALWAYS been there for you!" he continued. "And where has that...that bastard been? Who the hell knows?! Probably hunting Pokemon!

"I'm the one who'll always be by your side! I'm the one who's really in love with you!"

I was getting angrier by the second. How dare Steve say all those things about Darrell when he didn't even know him?! How could he let himself fall in...in love  with me?! He was my best friend...and he had always been. Why the sudden mood swing?

"Steve, no! You, you stupid---!" I cried, trying to wiggle my wrists from his hands. He ignored it and shut me up by kissing me again.

Oh, god. I felt myself growing weaker and weaker. I couldn't move. Why was I so powerless when he did that? The last thing I wanted was one of my best friends pressing his body over mine kissing me.

Well, one of the last.

Steve couldn't take the hint, and for whatever reason, I had no energy to fight him off. I couldn't fight him off, with him clutching my wrists so tightly. So I did the only thing my brain would let me do: I just let him kiss me.

Not that I liked it. Well, not that much. I mean, I'm only human.

This third kiss seemed to go on awfully long---maybe Steve just didn't want to face the moment when he came to his senses?---when I heard my door open.

"Hey you guys—-" a voice I recognized trailed off. Steve finally took his mouth off of mine and stared at me with a surprised look before looking up and seeing...Ivy.

Ivy's mouth was dropped open so wide, you could've fit a Snorlax in there. Her eyes were bulging, and she seemed...well, shocked.

Oh hmm, I wonder why?

"Uhh..." she stuttered. "Wow—would—you—look—at—the--time." She said each word as if there was lead on her tongue. Before I could reply, she spun around and slammed the door shut.

Steve looked at me again and blinked, finally letting go of my wrists. We both sat up, and he stared at the floor while I huffed and fixed my messed up clothes. The room was silent for a full minute until Steve finally spoke.

"I...I'm sorry," he whispered. "I have no idea where that came from. It's just...I've felt so weird about you for a long time...ever since I found out about...him. I knew I didn't want you with him. I tried millions of times to think of how to tell you, but it all sounded so stupid...I mean, what was I supposed to say? 'Hi Lindsey, I've fallen in love with you'?" He gave a pathetic little laugh and looked up at me. "And...finally I figured, 'What the hell?', and I just...did it."

I smoothed down my hair, still sort of…well, 'shocked' would be putting it lightly. My eyes were still wide, and I couldn't get my breathing to calm down. I was mixed up. I wanted to slap him, yet I wanted to ask what that was...and yet...and yet...

"Steve..." I whispered.

He was silent again, looking for the right words to say. We both stood up, as if in a trance, and then he looked over at me.

"Lindsey, I---" He paused, as if he was afraid something weirder than 'I love you' would come out of his mouth.

"I know that was stupid," he continued. "And that it was…unfair." He put his hands on my shoulders. I flinched, but he didn't notice. "I didn't want you to know this way," he said quietly. "Heck, I didn't want you to know at all but it just...happened."

Words were frozen on my tongue. What was I supposed to say now? 'Yeah Steve, I do love you, but in the brotherly-type way?' 'Sure you're a good kisser, but it was like getting kissed by a sibling?' 'As long as Darrell's around you don't stand a chance?' Before a reply could melt off my tongue, I heard a scream from outside.

"Mom!" I gasped, freeing myself from Steve's hold and charging for the door. I thundered down the stairs and raced through all the rooms---where in the world was Mom?

"I think they're outside!" Steve called, running towards the side door in the kitchen. I was mildly surprised that he had followed me, but I couldn't really think about it at the moment---why Mom had screamed was more important.

I flung open the side door and raced outside, where I saw Mom, Dad, and Ivy staring at something in one of the smaller paddocks. I ran up to them, noticing Mom was covering her mouth in horror, Dad looked terrified, and Ivy was wearing a look of shock. All of them were white with their eyes wide.

"You guys! What's wrong?" I cried.

Ivy shakily pointed towards the paddock, and it was my turn to be horrified.

Hades was laying in a pool of his own blood, obviously dead though his flames were still burning. Written in the blood, on the grass was 'LET THIS BE A WARNING'.

Who had done this? Who could possibly kill such an innocent and wonderful Pokemon like Hades?

Even though I didn't want to believe it and I didn't want to listen, a little voice in my head whispered the answer...

Darrell.

~*~*~

Uh...EEEK! This be bad. I think.

Silvie~ Heh, judging from your review, I'm going to assume you were throwing chicken wings at the computer screen while you were reading this chapter. Uhmm...don't kill me or I'll sic my killer cat on you!

Jacob-sama: -falls asleep-

Stoopid cat.

Opaltiger~ Yes, aren't they? ;D Hmmm...that sounds pretty different than the Den. You will find out how different in later chapters. X_X So yeah...tell me when you get that fic posted, I'd like to check it out! ^.~

Karania Avalon~ A broken egg is only good when it's in brownie mix. Yay!

Woah, where is everybody? –tears up- Ah, well. I'm sure I'll get some funky reviews on this chapter...hehehehe...

That's right! REVIEWS! Bwahaha! If you read and don't review, I will MAKE Jacob-sama claw you 'till ya do! ^.^