-sniff- Well, here we have it folks—the epilogue of Lindsey: Tamer's Prophecy. Oi. Part of me doesn't want to end this at all, even though I know you're all dying to read the prologue. I think. ;P What a weird year it's been. Very weird...
And it's weird ending this. This is the longest story I've EVER written and actually stuck to. I had no clue what was going to happen half of the time! Yeah, I'm not one of those writers that makes an outline or whatever. I just type what comes to mind—so it's almost like I'm reading it myself.
I'll shut up now and leave my musings for the Lindsey backstage party—sugar galore! Bwhahaha.
Epilogue
Steve Mochiles paced the room, back and forth, scuffing his old sneakers for the millionth time that day. Well, not only was he ruining them, but he was also squeaking on the slick tile floor, driving one of his best friends, Ivy Sordino, absolutely insane.
Ivy slammed the magazine she had been reading down onto her knees with a growl. "Steve, please, your squeaking is driving me absolutely INSANE! Can't you sit down?"
He shook his head, long brown bangs flying everywhere. "No, the question is, how can you sit down and read a freaking magazine?!" Now, instead of pacing, he ran around the chair Ivy was sitting in, flailing his arms. "HOW...CAN...YOU...BE...SO...CALM?!"
"Years of practice," she muttered, holding the magazine back up to her face. She didn't want Steve knowing how worried she really was. It was up to her to keep him somewhat sane, especially right now.
Steve sighed angrily, resisting the urge to bang his head into the wall. "I HATE this! Why can't we be in the delivery room with her?!"
"Because you're so loud, the baby would just sort of suck itself back in," Ivy replied. "Plus, she's on so many drugs at the moment, she wouldn't even notice us."
"This is driving me CRAZY!" He shut up for two seconds. "And I don't hear anything. Don't girls usually scream when they're having kids?"
"Lindsey's tough. And she's got the drugs."
"Yeah...UGH! This BLOWS!" Steve resumed his constant pacing. "We should be in there with her, regardless if we're 'kin' or not! Stupid...freaking..." He muttered something unprintable.
Ivy stood up, rolled her magazine, and smacked Steve in the forehead with it. Hopefully that would shut him up.
...Apparently not. "IVY! WHAT THE HELL WAS THAT FOR?!"
"A lame attempt to shut you up." She rolled her eyes and went back to her magazine. True, she didn't really need to know Five Tips on Training Your Psychic Pokemon (Without It Taking Over Your Brain!), but she would do anything to get Steve to quit voicing his worries out loud. Sure, she was worried about Lindsey too, but there were doctors with her. They knew what they were doing, and that was the main thing. Lindsey would be fine.
"Arrrrguh...I wish they would at least let us know how she's doing!" Steve complained, shoving his shaking hands in his pockets. "Stupid doctors."
"Lindsey's fine," Ivy said, reading that Psychic Pokemon article.
"How do you know?"
"I know everything."
"Right." Steve shook his head, pacing some more. After another few minutes, he was about to scream at how unfair this was when one loud, surprised, ear-shattering scream came from down the hall and then—silence.
Ivy shot up out of her seat and Steve looked up, staring at the hall with a look of horror on his face. "Lindsey!" he cried, preparing to run down the hall and just burst in there, no matter what the heck was going on. But before he could make his getaway, his red-headed best friend grabbed his arm and pulled him back.
"Ivy!" he hissed. "What the hell?!"
"Hold your Ponytas," she said, rolling her eyes. "There's a doctor coming out of the room."
And of course she was right again—an exhausted, but fairly happy-looking middle-aged man walked out into the waiting room. "Are you Lindsey's friends?"
"Yes," Steve hissed. "But you would've known that if we were in the room with her," he muttered under his breath.
Ivy and the doctor pretended not to hear. "Go on in," he said, smiling and gesturing to the delivery room Lindsey had been in for the past few hours. "She'll be happy to see you."
Well, Ivy heard that last sentence, anyway—Steve shoved past him so quickly that it was amazing the doctor got another word in edgewise.
"Uh...thanks," Ivy laughed nervously, feeling embarrassed enough for twenty people. Geez, Steve could really be a spaz sometimes, especially when it came to Lindsey. It was like he lost all train of thought except about her.
Ivy walked into the room Steve had burst into, hearing the doctor chuckle behind her. She didn't know what she was expecting when she saw Lindsey for the first time as a new mother, but certainly not what she was witnessing now.
Instead of happily grinning, glowing, and eyes brimming with happy tears from holding a beautiful new life, Lindsey was laying back on a mountain of pillows, staring at the sheets and not making eye contact with anyone. Her dark brown/black hair was spilled over them, which was a nice contrast to the white material of the pillowcases. She was hardly grinning—in fact, it seemed like she was trying not to cry. And not tears of happiness either—she was gripping the bedsheets in an attempt to hide her shaking hands and had a note of disbelief held in her eyes.
Steve, of course, was already sitting beside her, attempting to hold her hand and ask her what was wrong, but it was like she was frozen. She wouldn't make eye contact with either of her friends, even when Ivy excitedly squealed, "So? Where is she?"
The 'she' referring to the baby, of course. It was destined to be a girl as long as those Dragons needed a Tamer, so the line could be guaranteed to flow.
Lindsey still didn't answer. Steve shot a look at Ivy, worry apparent in his eyes. Ivy just shrugged and opened her mouth to ask Lindsey something else when a nurse suddenly burst into the room, holding a huge bundle of blankets.
Steve's worried stare immediately relaxed. Okay...so this was his rival's child, but it didn't matter...not at all...after all, she was part Lindsey—the only person he knew he could ever really love.
"Lindsey," he whispered, reaching over and shaking one of her already trembling hands. "She's here."
Lindsey slowly looked up, her expression not brightening in the least, but almost darkening instead. She released her grip on the bedsheets and stared at the huge bundle in the nurse's arms. Her stomach gave a flip-flop, and she felt like she was going to be sick.
Ivy watched as the nurse placed the blob of blankets in Lindsey's arms, which had automatically outstretched. The nurse smiled, telling them to call if they needed anything, and left the three best friends to stare at the new life in Lindsey's arms.
"Geez, how big is that kid?" Steve joked, sitting up a little to see if there was actually a baby in there. "How many blankets does one baby need?"
Lindsey swallowed, still not moving otherwise. "Two."
Ivy's head shot up, her usual messy bun slipping out, causing her hair to fall over her shoulders. She completely ignored it. "What?" she whispered.
Lindsey looked up, her turquoise eyes filled with tears and confusion. "It...was..." With a wavering hand, she pulled back some of the blankets, revealing not one, but two smooth, round, sleeping baby faces.
Steve felt like falling over; he settled for sinking into his chair. "Twins?"
"Yes...and apparently...a boy and a girl."
Ivy gasped, putting a hand over her mouth. "But that's...that's impossible! Isn't it?"
Lindsey shrugged, staring at the sleeping children's faces. "Yes...it is. According to the Dragon Laws, I'm supposed to have one child, and one child only. A girl that would be heir to the Dragon Den and find her true love and continue the whole vicious cycle." She glanced at Steve for a second, and swallowed. "Anyway...that's how it's supposed to go, according to what April told me..." She stared down at the bundle in the arms. "But apparently there was something she didn't know."
"Maybe it's a sign," Ivy said after a brief pause. Lindsey looked up, prepared to question. "I mean, maybe it's a sign that the Dragons don't need you anymore...that they don't need a Tamer, and you can all go on with your lives. After all..." Her voice dropped to a whisper. "You did, um, well...get rid of the final Hunter."
Lindsey sighed, unable to stop her body from shaking. "I don't know. I just—" She broke off when she stared down at her children again. They were awake—and had both opened their eyes for what seemed like the first time.
She gasped.
No...no! Ivy, for once in her life, was wrong...the legend was still happening. The Dragons needed a Tamer, now and forever. This proved it.
"What are you gawking at?" Steve asked, seeing Lindsey's sudden wide eyes and mouth hanging open. He tore his gaze off of Lindsey for a second and looked at the babies—and he, too, dropped his mouth open.
Ivy was trying to take it all in, to make some sense out of all of it. First a boy and a girl, when it was supposed to be one girl only, and now...
"That's it," Lindsey said, forming her mouth into a line. "That's it. I can't keep them. I can't raise them. I can't!"
"What are you talking about?" Steve asked.
"This just proves I wasn't supposed to fall in love with Darrell!" Lindsey practically screamed, ignoring how she winced when she said his name. "Hunters and Tamers are not supposed to be together, but of course I defied all odds and got my heart ripped out of me all at once! And now..." She looked like wanted to curl up and sob, but she couldn't with two babies on her lap, gurgling up their mommy.
"Lindsey, you're just in shock," Ivy comforted. "Once you—"
"No," Lindsey growled. "Ivy, nothing you try to say is going to change my mind about this. I can't raise them. I can't. I'm needed in the Den, anyway."
"So...you're giving them up for adoption?" Steve swallowed. That was the last thing he wanted. During the rest of Lindsey's pregnancy, he had always sort of pictured himself as an uncle figure, helping the little girl with every day things, carrying her on his shoulders, babysitting when Lindsey needed a break. Really, he was hoping this child would get him closer to Lindsey. In reality, he refused to belief that she could never love again.
"Yes," Lindsey answered, snapping him out of his thoughts. "I have to. I can't let them live a life of lies like I have!"
"And how will sending them with completely different parents not be a life of lies?" Ivy shot back, raising an eyebrow. It stung Lindsey—she opened her mouth to reply, but when nothing came out, she looked back down at her kids, who were staring up at her.
"Knock it off, Ivy," Steve said, rolling his eyes. "It's Lindsey's decision."
Ivy huffed a sigh. "Yeah, I know, it's just that...Lindsey, you're not going to live until the end of time. What are you going to do when the Den needs a new Tamer?"
Lindsey shrugged. "I don't know. It's clear neither of these kids was meant to be a Tamer...I'll just get knocked up on the street or something and get my heir."
Steve slammed his fist on a nearby table, causing Ivy and Lindsey to jump. "Don't say stuff like that!" he cried to Lindsey. "I have no clue why you had twins. I have no idea why they're so...blatantly different than what you expected. But you're their only mother! And someday, one of them is going to be a Tamer and carry on the legacy! They don't deserve to wander around, wondering who the heck brought them into this world!"
"Well, they'll never meet their father, thanks to the stupid Den!" Lindsey snapped back. "Haven't you wondered about that?! During this whole pregnancy, all I could think was, 'Darrell isn't here, and it's all my fault'. When I told him, he was happy. He actually smiled! And I thought for a second that maybe, just maybe, we could be this happy little family. But of course not—that stupid Den had to ruin everything! Everything!"
"Well, don't take us into consideration," Steve sneered sarcastically. "Ivy and I aren't Darrell, and we can't replace him, but you still have us! You've always had us! I know it's not the same..." He stared at her hand, muttering the last few words. "...But sometimes you have to take what you can get."
Silence enveloped the room, except for the babies' cries and gurgling. A tear slipped from Lindsey's eye—damnit. She hated crying. That Den had changed her in more ways than anyone would've guessed.
"No amount of support or whatever is going to change my mind," she finally said. "They're going up for adoption. If they're needed in the Den, I'm sure I'll be able to find them."
"No doubt about that," Ivy sighed. "After all, how many twins have one brown eye and one blue eye?"
LTP
It had been hard saying goodbye. After days of agonizing over it was really the right decision, Lindsey allowed them to be adopted. They were going to stay a few months with a foster family until the legal stuff was done.
She lay on her bed about a week after it happened. She felt like she couldn't move, that she was frozen there—what was the point in getting up, anyway? It wasn't like she had any children to take care of.
And then there was the fact that she felt like she had let Darrell down—now she had no connection him at all; no proof that he had existed at some point in her life.
"They can contact me when they're older," she kept saying to herself, over and over, but it did no good. She couldn't wait to get back to the Den—it was ironic, but she felt like the Dragons would keep her mind off of Kalista and Chase.
She hadn't wanted to name them at all, and give that honor to whoever ended up adopting them, but she had to in order for them to be able to contact her at all later in their lives. They were two names she had picked totally at random, but she shivered when she later looked up their meanings. Kalista meant 'most beautiful one'.
Chase meant 'hunter'.
It was all too cruel to be ironic. Lindsey shivered again, thinking of their eyes. Their right one such a blue so close to her own, and the left a brown that resembled Darrell's own eyes so much, it was as if he was reborn in his children.
'No,' she thought. 'Don't think about them. Just don't.'
"Knock, knock."
Lindsey weakly opened her eyes, and saw Steve at her window, knocking on it gently. How many times in their lives had he climbed through that window? And how did he always seem to know when she needed his comfort?
"Come in," Lindsey said, not really bothering to get up.
Steve opened her window and let himself in, glancing at Lindsey worriedly. "What's wrong?" he asked once he was by her side. "Miss them?"
Lindsey forced herself to sit up, and nodded sadly. "Yeah...more than anyone would ever guess."
"The pain never really goes away," he whispered. "But someday...I have faith that you will someday find them, even if you do hide away in the Den."
She nodded a little, suddenly leaning against Steve. He automatically put an arm around her, and the two sat there in silence, not saying anything and yet somehow speaking a thousand words.
Lindsey, the Chosen Tamer, knew life was far from perfect. It was not by choice that she was destined to protect a Den of Dragon Pokemon—and yet, that's what life had given her. She knew she had to do it.
Destiny was laughing at her.
Petting Kitsune, who had suddenly materialized next to her, Lindsey knew she would get through whatever the next hurdle life threw at her. After all, she had her two best friends, and nothing could beat that. Not even fate could tear them apart.
"And someday..." Lindsey whispered so lowly, that even Steve couldn't hear her. She stared at the hospital bracelet that was still encircling her wrist. "...I will find you."
LTP
And I guess here they would call it...the end.
AHHHHHH! –blows nose- Oh man, oh man, oh MAN! Hahaha, you have NO idea how long I've had that epilogue written in my head. Funky. Funkadelic...and stuff.
Yes, it's been a strange year indeed, with what me getting old (September 30! –wink wink-), the foot bruises, the Fushigi Yuugi tapes, and whatever other madness this year has brought. And of course, with the craziness of the fic, comes the awesome reviewers.
Seriously, I want to hug and give an Oreo Pie to every person who has ever reviewed this—your reviews mean SOOOO much to me, you have no idea! It makes me feel great that I'm somewhat good at this writing thing, and when you guys say you eagerly await the next chapter. Seriously, it means the world to me!
Now for my list of reviewer thank-you's...-pulls out paper- Yes, you must all listen before you get your pie. ;P
Robin Ryan—YOU ROCK! Oi, I can't even put into words how much you rock. The drawings, the IMs, the everything! Your one of the greatest friends this fic has brought me, and thanks for being on my butt whenever I didn't update.
Karania—XD When have I ever not continue? Lmao, who knows. Wow, did you think a year ago when I started this that you'd be at college today?! –gasp- Eh, maybe you did. XD Thanks for so faithfully reviewing just about every chapter! You rule!
Violet Angel1—I haven't seen you around –cries- but thanks for reviewing when you did!
Moonlit Shadow—Heh heh. I'm such a meanie in all of my fics. ;P Like VA, I haven't seen you around, but thanks for reviewing whenever you did!
Pokemaniac Hanni—EEEE! –falls over- Wow, you still rock, even though as far as I know, you never came back...-shifty eyes- But like in Diana, you still inspired me to keep going with your awesome reviews. I can't remember any that didn't make me laugh...even if that wasn't the intention, because, you know, I'm crazy. Thank you for being a fan for such a long time! –hands you lemon drop-
ZeroChan—MEEP! Heh heh, you see, I've never had an Espeon read my fics, so Lurk kicks ass. But we all knew that. ;D I've loved all of your reviews—ugh, I can't even say in words how much I've loved them! I really hope you'll stay and continue reading for as long as these Tamer fics spew out...and that Lurk doesn't steal any more of your chocolate. :P
LunaTigress—Thanks for loving my fics! –grins- And for using your time online to read them...that really does mean a lot to me. ;D –hands you Pixie Stix-
Rose-- -squeak- ! Mmmm, chocolate feedback. Or whatever flavor you've had sitting there. XD Thank you so much for venturing over from TPM and keeping up with this. You're one of the first people to EVER read ANY of my fics anywhere, and I love that you came back, at least for awhile. ;D You rock! You kick ass! You rule! Aw, heck...-gives you 'RainbowSerenity's Kick Ass Reviewer Crown- Yay!
Edgar—Yeah yeah, I know you've been busy. ;P Thanks for reading and reviewing all those chapters of all of the Tamer fics when you did! MY PIE!
Luccamajere26—Thanks for sticking around when you did! :D Mmmm...candy. –hands you loads of candy-
LoneHowl—Ah yes, the name change here happened here. XD Thanks for all of your reviews, you...person you! XD I will tell you the name of the next one in mere
Mewkitten—RainbowSerenity no like silent readers. ;P Eh, well, if you're reading this right now, thank you for reading! Especially since April...rock on! –hands you loads of salt-
Hannah—Yay for fluffy. XD Thanks for reviewing when you did
Thores Zandai—Aw, thanks for comment. Yay comment. And stuff.
magicgalkairi— Haven't really seen you around much, but thanks for the reviews!
Silvie-chan—Well well, I don't know where you've been...-raises an eyebrow- But I've loved all of your reviews. One of my only Darrell supporters! –swoons- Heh heh, it was actually some of your reviews that made me change a few things around in this fic. So you have changed, uh...Tamer...ficness...history! YAY! Feel proud! ;D Seriously, thank you sooo much for your reviews. It's not often I actually get critiqued in my stories, so it was kind of weird at first, but yes, you've helped me a lot. ;D Rock on!
opaltiger— w00t! Thanks for coming by and reviewing so much! They were always short but very sweet. ;D Gotta love someone who gets right to the point in their reviews!
Natalie— As far as I know, my only other Darrell supporter! W00t! ;D Thanks for reviewing when you did!
Hakura0—MEEP! Thanks for sticking around to the end. You rock! YAY FOR ROCKING! And haha, no, I didn't buy the soundtrack, but I DID buy the whole anime series...-hides- KYO! YAY KYO! Heh heh. I luff Kyo almost as much as your reviews. ;D
Harunohi— Aw, I haven't seen you around lately, but thanks for reading and reviewing! I hope I see you again at some point! ;D
Adriel— -runs into wall- Well, well, thank you for not being a silent reader anymore! ;D You kick ass. Yes, you do. But not literally. I think. –cough- Well, anyway, yeah, I MIGHT need some help with battle scenes and whatnot in the fourth one. But if you haven't figured it out, I work alone...-shifty eyes- And yeah, Adriel MIGHT be a side character in the fourth fic, but I'm not too sure yet. We shall see, we shall see. Bwhahaha. I am a woman of mystery. Not really.
The Almighty DB-- Thanks for coming in towards the end! ;D I really hope you'll stay and read the fourth Tamer fic! ;D
Hazy Aurora—Hey! Wow, a new reader? Or have you been a silent reader? O.o At any rate, thanks for reading and reviewing this. Questions are good! Yes, there will be another one. More info on it in a sec.
Aiya Quackform—I know you haven't reviewed this (will you? –sits and stares with puppydog eyes) but thank you sooooo much for reading and reviewing April and Diana! I'm in awe that someone would just sit there and read my fics in mere days. AND you ride horses! Man, you rock! ;D I'm hoping you'll someday...sometime read Lindsey, and leave another fantastic review. ;D
WOAH! Man, I'm so happy...-sniff- Seriously. I'm on the verge of crying happy tears right now. It means so much to me that you all have read this! Especially to the people that have really stuck around since the beginning...-sighs happily-
Now to give you some news you've probably been waiting for: yes, if you haven't heard, there IS another Tamer fic. Well, there's going to have to be, I wouldn't leave you with an ending like this, now, would I? ;P
Kalista: Forgotten Tamer will be published sometime later this month. I can't give you an exact date because I'm still working through some stuff in the beginning, and I have another fic (DP! W00t!) that I'd like to give my full attention to for awhile. Also, there is this EVIL thing called school. –falls over- I would suggest you just keep checking my author page thingy to see if I've ever uploaded it. But yes, it WILL be sometime in September, I can promise you that.
Well well...hard to believe that a year ago today, I started this fic, eh? Seriously, some of the things that happened...I had no idea they were going to. XD Ah, the joys of not writing for money.
I really, really hope that all of you will come back and read and write spiffy reviews once Kalista starts. I'd hate to lose anyone in the transition…;-;
I will now shut up and glomp you all as you file in for the sugar! PIE! We know I love my pie. ;D
-glomps all readers and reviewers-
Thank you all sooo much! You guys ROCK!
-eats pie-