Author's note:Bad news. I've lost the computer that I was using to type up most of this thing. A stupid parental figure wanted to upgrade the thing, so it could handle DSL. Instead, he fried the motherboard somehow, and formatted the hard drives. Luckily, I use my flash drive to store a backup copy (I'd updated the copy the moment he said he wanted to upgrage)... but until a new comp comes in, I won't be able to type very much. Five people with only one computer, and a Sims junkie (not me!) don't mix. Even at my ultra-uber typing speed (alright, it's not ultra-uber. But I still type fast), it takes a good while to type up a chapter. Plus, boss lady uses the net a lot... if things don't improve, I might not have the chapters ready for uploading when I promised. (Sandstone proceeds to sigh). Not to mention they're after my ass for working on this in my spare time, rather than going outside (thunder sounds off). See my point? Weatherwhere I livesucks nine tenths the time.
And yes, I call my mother boss lady. Where do you think Chris got that from?
Chapter Twenty: Awaken
Al woke up when he heard a hissed exhalation. Chris's eyes were open, and he was pulling out the IVs.
"Chris! Don't do that!"
Chris shook his head, and pulled out the final one. "I don't need them. What's it going to do? Kani helped me pull them out, so I'm not going to bleed to death or something." He stroked Kani gently. All three of his pokemon were next to him, each apparently relieved. He grinned, and held them all in a weak hug. "Kani… all of you… you're in bad shape. Eat now. And Kani… I told you. I wouldn't go down then, so what's with the tears?"
Al was amazed. He acted like nothing had happened.
(You idiot! ) Kani burst out crying. While the other two had moved off, she hadn't.
Chris smiled faintly, and managed to squeeze her in a hug. "Well, that's not good. I got weak."
Mathrara coughed, looking up from his food. (No duh. You were out for a week, at least. I lost count somewhere past seven. They're all blurred in my memory.)
"No wonder everyone looks so bad." He sighed. "Thanks. That really helps, knowing you care."
"Dra… tini, Dratini!" (Even Mathrara worried about you.)
(I was not!)
Chris looked at Mathrara, and arched an eyebrow. (Well… maybe.)
(Chris…) Chris knew she was going to say something, but she apparently wasn't ready. He could tell, because he could almost see the mental gears shifting. (Chris, you know I'm not shielding you, now.)
Chris nodded. "Yea, I remember that. The noise… now it's just a soft humming noise."
(You've managed to control your gift. Now… you don't need me anymore…) she made to jump away.
Chris restrained her. "I told you before. No guilt trips."
(You said you wouldn't remember.)
"I remember most of it. Just not what life after death is like. The trial, what we said to each other… that I still have."
(I… I…) She looked up, tears leaking slowly. Her normally beautiful eyes were bloodshot, and entirely red.
Chris sighed, and kissed her head gently. A drop of blood leaked from his eye, and landed with a splash on Kani's gem on her forehead.
Al sighed. Now it made sense, what he was covering up. Unfortunately, the barriers were crumbling now. This wasn't going to be good, especially when the press realized that Chris was awake.
He called out his pokemon, and issued instructions. His Charizard blocked the window, while the others blocked off other entry points. Vileplume was set in the entryway, ready to deal with even a crush of people.
After all, she had a great deal of practice on humans with her powder attacks. No media could get in until Chris was better.
Chuck hissed, when the Charizard blocked the window. It looked like something was going on.
The Pokemon Master Al had gone in, and not come out. It looked like the barriers were crumbling.
But the problem was, that had happened before. Even psychics slept – the Espeon just retracted most of the barriers into the room, and napped. They'd charged the first time, only to get blown back by the barrier as it reacted. It had even fired a psybeam at their feet, a clear message: 'say away. I'm not dumb enough for that'.
He tried to sneak into the entrance, but saw a Vileplume guarding the entry. A pokemon was guarding EVERY entry into the place.
"Damn. Looks like the title 'Reclusive Pokemon Master' isn't just for show."
Al coughed. Kani shifted, and Chris let go of her. "Chris, we're going to get a scene, unless you pull a vanishing act. I can deal with the media, say that your Espeon teleported you away…"
Chris nodded. He figured that much. "Kani, would you?"
She blinked away a final tear, and nodded. Chris staggered out of bed, and grabbed his belongings, and the food bowls. He could use them, anyway.
"Hey… uh… Al? Who pays for this?"
"League. Don't worry about it. It's in the thing you signed. But you're gonna owe me big time for this."
Chris nodded, and bent down, unwrapping his ankle from the bandages that bound it. It had healed while he was in the coma. "Well, at least this thing's better now. I guess my week long nap gave me one benefit."
"Don't joke about that."
(EVER. You could have DIED! )
Chris smiled, and held her in an embrace. Just before they disappeared (Chris had a hand on Mathrara and Anekiro), he mouthed "see ya".
Al nodded to himself. He walked out, and recalled all his pokemon, except for his Aerodactyl. He held up Vileplume's ball. "Aero, fly home and release her on the grounds. Tell her I don't want ANYONE in besides me. Even if it's the Elite Four in person."
Aero nodded, and flew out at high speed. Al smiled to himself – a seemingly useless gold colored rock, that had actually contained pokemon DNA…
He sighed, and went to meet the press.
Chris smiled from the couch, as Al had to repeat again and again that "It was clear that the Espeon would die before she let me near her trainer, so I just waited. Just when I thought she was about to fall asleep, she plucked out the IVs, and teleported the whole group of them away, and the trainer's belongings."
No one liked his story.
Al stormed in with a temper. The media had tried to follow him all the way to his place (they'd never found out where he lived), but Aero managed to make him 'disappear'.
Actually, Kani had shown up too, but that was in mid-flight.
"Chris, that was seriously stupid."
Chris shook his head, relaxed on the couch. Kani was curled up next to him, obviously in a deep sleep. "Na, it wasn't. I watched from here. You moved too fast, and then just disappeared… they called it an agility attack. Hardly something new, pokemon do that all the time."
Al sighed. "Well, now what are you going to do? Your face has been plastered on the news."
Chris shrugged. "I'll appear in a public place, lead them towards Cerulean Cave, go in, and disappear."
Al sighed. "That's suicide. There's no way you can face the pokemon in there."
"Who said I'd fight them? I understand them now, and I'm special. They won't attack me. So they'll think I'm dead, which gives me more latitude." As he said that, he unconsciously stroked his left wrist.
Al snorted. "So then what?"
"I go to the gym, have a rematch, teleport to the center, and then get the hell outta here."
"To Sabrina?"
"Yea. Like I said, I know that there's more I could do. Maybe I can disguise myself as a true psychic, complete with TK."
Al sighed. "Just… don't get me into the public eye like that again. Going to the plateau once in a while is bad enough…"
Chris nodded. "I'll need a day or two before I can pull it off. I'm too damn tired."
Al's eyes burned softly as he glared at Chris. "And I have a few questions for you when you have a chance."
