Disclaimer:Pokémon is not mine. I wish it were, but sadly it is not.
She was lost. She had left her hometown on an errand and was completely lost. Her parents had warned both her and brothers about playing in the caves. Unlike her brothers, she had never heeded their parents' words. And now look what things had come to. She was lost and three hours late for dinner.
She didn't mean to go in the caves this time, though. She had been sent to retrieve a Pokémon from Professor Elm. That part of the errand had gone off without a hitch. The Pokémon was inside the Pokéball, safely attached to her belt. But on her way back to Violet City, she had seen a blue-silver Pokémon melt into Dark Cave. Certain it was Suicune, she had followed eagerly. Unfortunately, she did not have her mother's Pichu with her, as she did in the past. There was no electric Pokémon to light up the caves now.
Something flew directly above her. She shrieked and covered her short blond hair as a vision of bloodsucking Golbats flashed through her mind. She backed up quickly and soon had her back pressed against the wall. She fumbled for her cell phone before she remembered leaving it at home. Of all the days to be unprepared, she thought bitterly.
A furry body brushed against her leg. She stifled another shriek before realizing it was her own Pokémon, Rascal. She vaguely recalled letting the Pokémon out once her house was out of sight. She always hated keeping her partner locked up in the ball and Rascal, her Rattata, hated it too.
"Ta?" it called softly.
"Yes, yes, I'm alright. Just a little spooked," she answered. Picking up the small mouse, she felt her way along the wall. She had only traveled a few feet when she heard her name being called.
"Gwyn! Gwyn! Gwyndolyn, this isn't funny! Where are you? We have to go, now!"
She recognized the voice with a wince. It wasn't as bad as it could be, as it was her twin brother calling for her instead of her parents. "Gabriel?" she shouted back. "Do you have Pichu with you? I fell down a ledge and I'm not sure how to get back out."
"All right. Pichu, flash!"
Gwyn waited with bated breath, but nothing happened. She suppressed a sigh; she knew Pichu never listened to Gabe. It seemed to sense his unease at commanding Pokémon and therefore ignored him. Herself on the other hand… "Pichu, flash, now!"
She heard Pichu grumble angrily before obeying. Luckily, their mother had not only trained it to obey its original mistress but Gwyn and her oldest brother too, realizing that she could never get it to follow Gabe. Even still, the electric mouse hated minding its young masters. Gwyn had to blink as the Pichu let out a burst of electricity to light the cave. Once more, Pichu had rebelled by using the highest possible voltage in an effort to flash-blind the two.
Less than ten feet in front of her stood her twin, clutching the leash to which the spiteful Pokémon was attached. The Pichu struggled against its restraint, but could not escape. Gabe gave a quick tug to get the electric Pokémon moving as he approached Gwyn. The two children quickly closed the distance.
"Gabe!" Gwyn cried as she embraced her brother. She expected him to pull away immediately as he always did, his ever-increasing sense of masculinity overpowering his brotherly instincts. However, this time they clung to each other tightly.
Only when she felt a wetness spreading on her shoulder did she realize something was strange. "Gabe?" she ventured, pulling back. "What's wrong?" she asked, for she had never seen her brother cry since they were very little. He was a firm believer in the fact that Men Do Not Cry.
"Gwynne," he sobbed, adding to her dismay. Only when the situation was serious was her baby nickname used. "Gwynne, there was a fire…"
"Fire! Gabe, is everyone alright?"
He shook his head miserably. "I don't know. The house burned down, but Mom and Dad and Gage—" here he was referring to their other brother, five years their senior, "—are all missing. The firefighters haven't found any bodies yet."
The shock filled her so completely she felt nothing. "We should go back," she said, voice sounding far-away to her own ears. Emotionlessly, she picked up Pichu in one arm and Rascal in the other. The Pichu seemed to sense her mood and only wriggled minimally; Rascal was completely still. Her little Rascal wasn't a rascal, she thought ludicrously, Pichu should be Rascal and Rascal should be Pichu. Without a word, she led the way out of Dark Cave.
Author's Notes: I knew I'd get around to uploading this story sometime. The fic will be somewhat dark…most of what I write is somewhat dark. Yeah, surprise there, huh? Once more, the fic is named after an Amelia Atwater-Rhodes book. Read it. You'll like it.
The story is set in Johto…at least in the beginning. Gwyn will travel to Hoenn and Kanto and all the ridiculously named islands when I want her to. Therefore, she will not come into much contact with the newest set of Pokémon.
While I have your attention, I wish that you would click the pretty little button at the bottom of the screen. Do you see it? Good. Write something nice (or critique me—just remember that flames are only reheated and returned) and click all the boxes to make all the pretty checkmarks appear. Are you finished? Good reader. Come back next chapter!