BLLLLLLEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEHHHHHHH!!!!!

That unearthly noise was because guess where I get to go this Monday? To...the dreaded...S-WORD! ARRRRGUH! –hides under bed-

Geez, the last place I want to go right now is school, and no, it's not because I'm just a seriously lazy bum. I hate people. I'd rather stay here, write and draw, and read some reviews from my awesome readers. But noooooo, let's torture RainbowSerenity and make her lose her mind. YAY!

Bleh. Now I will quit boring you with my problems and give you the unearthly chapter that is this one. Hmm...if Silvie had been around lately, she would be hating me by the end of this...heh heh heh...

Chapter Forty-Five

There was a universal gasp that creepily echoed in the Den as I told them all the news. I was staring at my feet, using all my strength to keep the sword from falling out of my hand.

After the gasp, there was silence, until I heard quiet footsteps and felt a hand on my stomach. I slowly looked up and saw Darrell, looking, well—I guess 'shocked-pleased-surprised-afraid-awed-rolled-into-one' would be the word. If there was a word for such an emotion.

"This is...true?" he said quietly, so silently that I knew that only I could hear it.

I nodded. "Yeah...I just...I know it. There's no other way for me to explain this feeling."

My eyes widened as the unthinkable happened: Darrell smiled.

A real, genuine smile from him—it wasn't Anthony's cynical grin, no one was making him do it—all by himself, he gave me his first smile.

Surprisingly, my eyes filled with tears, but Darrell didn't notice, or maybe he didn't want to notice. Either way, the hand that had been on my stomach suddenly snaked around towards my back, and he pulled me to him, wrapping his other arm around me. I dropped the sword with a loud clatter and flung my arms around his neck, my eyes fluttering shut to avoid anyone seeing me trying not to cry, not caring for a second that I was doing something totally forbidden.

We stood there, holding each other, with three generations of a Hunter and Tamers staring at us like we were doing the worst thing in the world. Did I care? Not really. Not at that second. I just wished...I could've stayed there forever...both of us in his embrace.

All too soon, I heard a strangled cry come from April, and I before I could open my eyes, I felt something whoosh past me, and in an instant, felt something sharp poking my bare back. Darrell's arms tightened around me, and with a sinking feeling, I knew that Anthony had gotten the sword.

"Sorry to intrude on the celebration," he said in a voice completely unlike his mocking tone from before. "But by the Tamer's Prophecy in the Dragon Laws, someone here will die tonight." He pushed the sword a tiny bit into my skin, and my hands started to tremble. "Of course now...there will be two deaths."

I couldn't breathe, or maybe I was afraid to. He had the sword. Anthony had the sword. I was pregnant, Darrell's arms were around me, and Anthony had the sword. I wanted to laugh and cry hysterically at the same time. This was it. He was going to kill me, he was really going to--

Before I could think of anything else, Darrell was instantly out of our embrace and facing Anthony...not that I could see, since my back was towards him. All I could see were April and Mom, and those three Dragonairs that had collapsed. Where was Kit? Probably hiding somewhere.

I finally started to breathe again when I realized that the blade was out of my skin. Even so, I felt a very faint trickle of blood seep down my back.

That was when it hit me.

I still didn't know the whole story, and I wasn't going to know if I continued to stand here, hoping Darrell would protect me. It wasn't meant to be. I had an unexplainable urge to protect these walls, and the Dragons lived within them. Anthony Hunter wasn't just a Hunter; he killed. And for what? For his own gain. Who knew how many Dragon's lives he had wasted here?

And if I didn't do what I needed to do, he was going to kill me.

My breath seemed to stop again, and I realized I was just standing there, doing nothing—though I vaguely heard Darrell's voice.

Darrell. Why did he have to be Anthony's host? Why couldn't it have been some other guy off the street...one whose child I wasn't currently pregnant with? Sure, Darrell and I had had some weird times...and he never told me what was going on with his life, but still, I...I...

I let out a tiny gasp as memories began flooding through my head, almost as if Darrell knew what I was going to do and I saw what was flashing before his eyes.

"Let me guess---you're a tourist."

I jumped about a foot in the air at the sound of that voice. It had been so silent---and the beach was abandoned. Where did the voice come from?

I looked behind me and saw a guy sitting a few feet away from me. He was dressed head to toe in black and had on a long black trench coat. From the light of the moon, I could see that even his hair was black, and it was long---for a guy's.

But where had he come from? Did he just sneak up to smell the ocean too?

"Well?"

I blinked, trying to remember what he had said. Oh yes---he thought I was a tourist.

"I just moved here, so I guess I'm not," I shrugged.

"'Just'?"

"Yeah. This morning." Who was this guy anyway? He was suddenly making me sweat in my sweatshirt.

"So you're still considered a tourist," he smirked. "I kind of figured. Only out-of-towners come here at night like this."

He might have meant for that remark to sound smart-alecky, but it didn't. He had a deep, steady voice that clearly meant No Funny Business.

I snorted. "Why would only out-of-towners do this?" I asked, ruffling my hair from my neck. Oh man...why was it really hot out here all of a sudden?

People who live here year-round are too busy absorbing the sun to appreciate the moon," the guy said, shaking his head.

I raised an eyebrow. "You must be a tourist too, then."

"Hmm?"

"Well, you said so yourself: Only tourists come out here at night." I gave a satisfied smile and lay back on the sand, fanning my hair out behind me.

The guy shrugged. "I guess you're right. I've been staying here quite awhile, but I still consider myself a tourist."

"Are you a trainer?"

"No. I don't really know what I'm supposed to do."

Did he ever really find out? Sure, he had to escape being branded as one of the Hunter clan, but I then wondered...did he find his destiny? Had it been set up like mine was?

"So apparently Kitsune has a fondness of Umbreon," he said. "That's probably why he crashed into me at the PokeMart."

I smiled. "Yeah, must be. He was probably so happy to see an Eevee evolution like himself. He doesn't get to interact with many different Pokemon."

"Oh?"

"Yeah. Just my Ponyta, the Rapidash my parents own, and when I lived in Johto, Kit would chase my friend Steve's Growlithe everywhere. Iggy learned Flamethrower reeeeally quickly so he could just use that to keep Kit off his back."

Darrell stared out at the sea. "You probably consider yourself lucky."

Yes," he sighed. "Anyone...would be able to tell from the way you talk that you have roots...friends who care about you." He looked down at Absol. "My Pokemon are all I have. I don't even know what I'm supposed to do. I just travel around everywhere...I was planning on leaving here in awhile."

I looked at him sadly as he continued. "I left home when I was seven. I don't even remember my parents. And now, a little less than ten years later, I still don't know who I am. I have no one."

'But now...there's no way you can be alone,' I thought. 'Because now...you have me...no matter what.' I gingerly touched my stomach. 'We have each other. All three of us.'

"You're so quiet tonight," I frowned. "What, jealous of my Johto friends?"

He looked down at the ocean, stared at the crashing waves for a few seconds, and turned to me. "Not so much as that," he said.

I cocked my head in confusion. "What?"

"Well, I've just been thinking...." he said slowly, still staring at me with his dull eyes. "Johto's such a huge part of your life. It makes me wonder what state I'll be in if you ever do decide to go back."

"What?" I echoed. "What do you mean?" It was my turn to stare at him.

"You're really the only friend I've ever had," he said, setting his mouth in a line. Darrell never smiled much. "The only one who's ever cared."

I laid a hand on his shoulder and made the mistake of staring in those black eyes. "You know if we're really friends, I'll never leave you," I smiled sadly.

I was a liar. A horrible, dirty, stinking liar. Why did I say that, when I really knew nothing? When all I could think about were my friends and my Pokemon, just basically thinking everyone would always be in my life, no matter what?

I have always felt invincible, and I hated feeling vulnerable, especially times like now. I was so strong, that I had always assumed that everyone would always stay with me...everyone that I loved would be by my side, no matter what. I couldn't believe I had made such a huge promise to myself when I hadn't known a thing.

I blinked, finally feeling like I had regained my own mind. I slowly looked up to see Mom and April just standing there, totally shocked. Darrell and I were still back-to-back, and he was speaking to Anthony in a low, threatening voice. For some reason, I couldn't make out the words, but at least I knew he was there.

At least, he was there for now. My stomach clenched at the thought of what I had to do if I wanted to forever save all Dragon Pokemon...how could? How would I ever go through such a horrible deed? I doubted I could even survive the heartbreak that would come with it...

And our child. Our little baby. If I actually went ahead and had this kid, how would it feel growing up without a father? It wouldn't even have an aunt or an uncle...they were gone in body. Could I even do it alone? Would I even want to put it through that kind of life? And if I did, what if it ever found out the truth of how its father had gone?

''Your mommy killed your father to save a bunch of Dragon Pokemon forever and ever from this really bad Evil guy,'' I imagined saying.

Yeah, right.

But it was what I had to do. It seemed to be programmed into me, like some kind of weird robot. Why did my heart have to follow him? Why not anyone else, anyone else in the world?

'That's probably also written in this Prophecy, you moron,' I thought. 'Like everything else.'

I knew what I had to do.

I had no idea what possessed me to do what I did next, but I suddenly spun around, the ends of my dress billowing with every turn, ran past Darrell with some sort of breakneck speed I had somehow attained, and snatched the sword from Anthony before he could utter a word of protest.

I held it up, pointing it towards the sky. "Did the Prophecy say all of my happiness would be taken away?" I asked, my voice...deeper, somehow. More mature. More deadly. "You know what? I don't care. This is the end of you. I just want to say, thanks. Thanks a whole lot for ruining my life decades before I was even born. See you in hell."

He began to probably threaten me, but I gave a tiny nod, and April sent that little freezing spell of hers onto him again. A few minutes...no. I needed a few hours. Days. Months. Years. I've hardly had any time with him at all; can't they see that? I need more time. I need the baby's father to be here. I need him.

I slowly turned to face Darrell, my heart thudding loudly in my chest. At first I dared not to look him in the eye, but his stare compelled me, and I felt like just plunging that sword into myself instead.

"Please don't make this any harder than it is," I pleaded.

"Do it," he whispered. How could I go on without that deep, monotone voice of his? How? "I finally found my destiny," he continued. "I'm helping you save generations of Dragon Pokemon. Forever. Without me and Anthony, the Hunter clan will eventually die away."

"I don't care." Why wasn't I crying? I usually don't cry at many things, but I expected at least some tearshed for...for this. "What's the baby going to do without a father, huh? How am I going to live with myself, knowing you never got to know it?"

Without warning, Darrell suddenly grabbed my hand and placed it directly on his chest, over his hear. Why wasn't it pounding as loudly as mine was? Wasn't he...afraid? No, of course not. Darrell knew no fear. This was proof.

"I may be stealing a line from Mochiles here..." he started, still not smiling, yet there was something different in his eyes. "...But you will always be with me—and I, you."

I let my hand rest there for a few seconds, memorizing everything about this moment. Wouldn't it be great...wouldn't it be great if time could just stop...right...now...

I slowly slid my hand off of him until both clasped the handle of the sword. Swallowing the huge lump in my throat, ignoring the fact that my heart was breaking, yet I still wasn't crying, I rose the sword once again, it and my body surrounded by a blue aura. With every bit of courage left in me, I aimed...singing in Dragon language for some reason, I plunged the sword straight into the spot I had just touched.

My eyes never left his face.

That is, until I saw him close his own in pain and wither to the floor, and I fell back in shock.

---

Warmth. Surprisingly, I felt...warm. Slight happiness seemed to be overflowing me. What was going on? I dared to open my eyes...

And there he was.

"Darrell?" I whispered, my eyes bulging.

He didn't reply, but pulled me closer in his grasp, not wanting to let go of me.

"What are we doing here?" I asked, and let out a little gasp. "Did we both...?"

"No," he answered, and I smiled at the familiarity of that voice of his. "You...you still have a long way to go...and so much ahead of you. I believe this is..."

He didn't say that last word. He didn't need to.

"Darrell..."

"You are a Dragon Tamer," he said to me, his breath close to my ear. So close. How could I feel him like this when I had...done the unthinkable?

"...And you will be an excellent mother," he finished, his hands sliding from around my waist and up to my arms until they came to clasp my hands. "I am sure of it."

His face wasn't smiling, but I knew he was.

"Darrell, I..." I paused. Why couldn't I say the words? I never have. Ever. Even with everything I felt, and all that I was destined and forbidden to feel, I never let those words fall from my lips. Those three...tiny...words.

He squeezed my hands, and I squeezed back as he looked deep into my turquoise eyes. I then knew...we couldn't say those words. Not any. The right ones...they simply didn't exist.

"I'll take good care of it," I finally whispered. "You bet your ass I will."

"I will be watching." Still no smile. Not that it mattered. He leaned forward, and I gently closed my eyes, feeling his lips against mine...one...more...time...

---

"Lindsey?" Someone was shaking my shoulder. My head ached, and my chest was twisted in an unimaginable pain. But I felt...numb.

I slowly opened my eyes. April and Mom were staring down at me, looking concerned.

I shot up, whipping my head around. "Where's—"

"He's gone," April interrupted. "Anthony...is finally gone. And it's all thanks to you." She took one of my hands in hers.

"Not him," I murmured. "Darrell...I just saw him. Just...a second ago."

Mom squeezed my other hand, not quite looking at me. "He's gone too," she whispered. "He and Anthony were destroyed as one."

I opened my mouth, but no words came out. How could Darrell be gone? I had just seen him. I was looking at him just a second ago. I didn't really kill him. I didn't kill someone like him, that I cared so much about, just to save a bunch of Pokemon. He didn't die by my hand. He didn't. He didn't.

A sort of strained smile appeared on my face. "He's not gone." My shoulders were shaking. Was I laughing? A tear poured from my eye, and I began to laugh hysterically. "He's not gone! You're all talking crazy! I lost my best friends, and now him!" More amusement. "I didn't do what I think I did." I bet I looked like some sort of crazy person who just came out of bouncy room. I let go of Mom's and April's hands and stood up, running and banging my fists against the wall. Tears were streaming down my face, yet I couldn't hold my laughter in.

"Lindsey!" Mom cried.

I began to beat my fists against the wall. In seconds, it seemed, they were lightly stained with blood. Blood. Of course Darrell wasn't dead. I didn't see him bleed. I supposedly stabbed him, didn't I? My mind fell back to the sword. Of course. That blasted sword. Maybe I could stop going into hysterics if I saw a blood-covered sword.

"Where's that sword?!" I demanded. "I have to see it!"

April stood up, her long hair making puddles at her feet. "It's no longer needed, so it has...vanished." She looked up at me, her bright green eyes boring into mine. "Lindsey, please calm down. There are many things you don't know that need to be explained."

"I don't care!" I screeched. My voice echoed throughout the Den, and I burst into a sort of maniac-like laughter. "It's true! I don't care! Keep your goddamn story, and your Den!" I ran over to Steve and Ivy's bodies, ignoring the involuntary tears that were suddenly pouring down my cheeks. "I have two best friends that need a freaking proper funeral, and it's not going to happen with me just sitting here. Plus I have this thing called a human in my gut right now." I collapsed to my knees and buried my face in my hands, half sobbing, half laughing crazily. "So leave...me...alone!"

Before I could go on feeling sorry for myself anymore, a loud, angry called filled the room. I looked up, my eyes still blurry with tears. April's hair was floating around, a bluish aura surrounded her. She was glaring at me.

"Lindsey Tamer." My eyes widened at the sound of her voice. It sounded exactly like Mystic's just then...was the Dragonair going to take her over again?

No, of course not. She just continued staring at me until I finally stood up and stomped over to her. I heard Mom say something about 'seeing to Shane', but I wasn't really paying attention.

"Fine. Talk."

April spun around and walked gracefully over towards a pair of doors I had somehow not noticed this whole time. I mean, tall as in who-the-heck-had-the-time-to-build-this tall. Somehow, she managed to open them (who knew? A skinny, basically old woman could open freakishly large doors. Weird) and went inside, obviously wanting me to follow her. I looked back at Mom for a second, who was examining the dried blood on Dad's head, her hands shaking. She seemed completely oblivious to everything else.

So what else could I do? I followed April in.

She was standing behind some kind podium-like thing, and a glass ball with a glittering crystal was on top of it. April put her hands on the crystal and stared straight at me, seemingly less angry than before.

"Lindsey, the Chosen Tamer..." she whispered. "It is now time that you learned everything."

-----

Oh, it's about freaking TIME! –dies- Yes, since I was lazy and it was storming last week, we have spiffy reviewer replies!

Hakura0—Hahaha...I like shocking people. ;D And I would absolutely love to do a fourth 'Tamer' ficanoid, but I honestly don't know if I'm going to find the time to write it...though there's going to HAVE to be a fourth one if the ending to this one goes as planned...

Adriel—XD Wow...that actually cracked me up. XD And to my typo...whoopsie. :P It takes a lot of brainpower to figure that out, which I don't have. –dies-

Rose—Haven't you figured it out? I never make any sense ANYWHERE! XD No, she's not making it up, I'll tell you that now. Bwhahahaha...

Robin Ryan—I'M DOOMED! –dies- Blech. Yes, and no more secrets for you. :P Unless I'm feeling really nice that day. But considering I'm headed for doom on Monday, it'll be a long time before that happens. ;P

Karania Avalon-- -continues- ;D

ZeroChan—Wow...Lindsey's news is more surprising than Lurk talking in English...I HAVE ACCOMPLISHED MY GOAL! BWHAHAHAHA!...which, of course, was to shock people. Yay shocking!

LoneHowl—Yes, room for a sequel if I can the time/motivation to write it...I'm actually not even done with Lindsey. –falls over- And you will find out the answer to your question...bwhahahaha...

'Bwhahahaha' and –dies- seem to be my new things...I don't fall over anymore! Lost too many brain cells doing that, anyway.

So wish me luck for my impending DOOM on Monday...geez. I'm going to a new school for three periods a day, and I hate new situations. HATE THEM! Going there an hour early isn't going to help my nervousness either. –dies-

What might muddle me through this though...you guessed it...REVIEWS! XD

Now I shall update this fic and dance, for Danny is on in exactly...twenty minutes. Who cares that I watched the three hour marathon today? Not...enough...GHOST BOY...

-updates before she drowns in drool-