Hey, guys, I'm back with a new chapter. This one is more of a filler, and includes some more information about Calypso's past. Hope you enjoy!

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Disclaimer: gothchic6 doesn't own Pokémon…

Chapter Eleven: Nightmares and Apologies

After JP leaves, JC looks to Silver and I with an expression that says, 'This has changed things quite a bit, hasn't it?'

I silently agree with her. I can't believe I just spilled my guts out to these people, especially Silver. He, of all people, didn't need to know my business or my life story. I can't believe I let myself become that vulnerable, that open. Before I started this entire journey, I did nothing but seal myself away in a protective shell in order to survive. Or, at least, keep my sanity intact. I haven't felt such a close connection with anyone since my parents were alive. It feels strange, and I'm not sure if I like it or not.

JC sighs, and takes a look at her watch.

"It's 1:00 in the morning. I'm exhausted, and I bet you two are even more tired than I am. I'm having Chansey take over for the night, so I can get some sleep. You two. Get to bed. Calypso, your old room is open. Silver, you know where your room is. Oh, and, Calypso? I finally found that damn incubator for your Egg. While we were talking in my quarters, I took the Egg out of your bag, put it inside the incubator, and put the entire thing back inside your bag. So, you're all set for Egg hatching!" JC says tiredly, but perks up at the end at the mention of the Pokémon Egg.

I reach into my bag, where I do indeed find the incubated Egg. I smile, the prospect of a baby Pokémon causing a warm feeling to rise up in me.

"Thanks!" I say gratefully.

She just smiles warmly back at me, before breaking out in a full grin.

"Shoo, you two", she commands playfully, "Go get some sleep. Arceus knows you need it."

Silver promptly walks to his room without a word to JC or I. I wait to hear Silver's door open and close before pulling JC behind the counter in the lobby. Not daring to make eye contact with her, I murmur softly to her,

"Listen, I can't thank you enough for what you did for me tonight. Even though you didn't know the full circumstances of my situation, you still decided to help me…"

JC's rose eyes widen slightly at my soft and humble tone. Breaking out into a warm smile, she shakes her head slowly, and replies,

"It's nothing. You've done just as much for me. It was the least that I could do."

I tut in disbelief before I gently grab her by her shoulders to make her stare me in the eyes. She seems startled at this sudden contact, but does nothing to try to escape my hold on her. I groan, out of both exhaustion and slight irritation.

"You don't get it, do you," I start in a much steadier voice than before, "You really don't understand how much this means to me. It is because of you that I'm standing here instead of inside a prison cell, at this very moment. In those few minutes that JP first came around here, you held my fate in your hands. You were the decision as to whether I was arrested, or I stayed free. And you made the choice to allow me my freedom. The one thing I've always wanted, longed for, even. Without you, I'd be surrounded by cold steel. I just want you to realize that, and realize that if you ever need anything, don't hesitate to call me. As cheesy as it sounds, I am forever in debt to you."

Throughout the whole appreciation speech, JC's face has steadily gone from pale ivory to the color of a cherry. She goes to answer me, but for a few seconds, she can't utter anything without stuttering.

She finally gets a grip on herself, and states, still somewhat stammering,

"I g-guess I never thought about it that way. Well, I mean, I knew once I saw the wanted poster, but not from that perspective. Umm, you're welcome. Yeah, if I ever need anything, I'll tell you."

I nod, relieved that she finally gets what I'm saying.

JC grins brightly, and before I know what's happening, she's swiftly turned my body around, and is in the process of pushing me towards the hallway to the inn rooms.

"Now, shoo," she declares again playfully, though there's more force to it this time, "It's 1:10, and you need to get some sleep, because I'm waking both you and Silver at the butt-crack of dawn tomorrow."

My eyes widen in horror, and I rotate in place to face her. "Dawn? But… dawn is at like, 7 or 8! You're insane!"

She puts her hands on her hips, and glares at me, with what I can guess is almost a motherly glower.

"Hey, JP isn't the only officer who comes into this Pokémon Center, you know. Actually, now that JP won't be harassing me anymore—hopefully—Jenny Anne will probably be making more stops here more often. Police officers always check in on me every day at 9 in the morning, so you two need to be out of here by, at the latest, 8:30. So, I suggest you skedaddle off to bed, Sassy Miss!"

"Well, I can't argue with that logic." I chuckle, and wave to her before walking down the hall to my room. I enter the inn room, and as I commence my bedtime rituals, I smile at the fact that not only I am free, but also I have a friend to share that freedom with.

I gasp for air as I suddenly skyrocket into a sitting position on the bed. Pulling my knees into my chest tightly, I breathe heavily and deeply, the night terror having robbed me of breath for what was probably only a second or two, but felt like an hour. Vivid images of the nightmare float in my mind like lily pads floating in a pond.

This isn't the first time I've had night terrors, and it probably won't be the last. And because of that, I have a journal that's dedicated to writing down every single detail of every single dream that I can remember. Actually, I have about five journals worth of dreams and memories already written down starting from age 12 and on. I've recently just started on my sixth.

It takes a few minutes for me to calm down, but when I'm finally able to think clearly again, I hastily scramble out of bed, and grab my gigantic backpack, so I can write the nightmare down before I forget it. My journals have a special pocket reserved just for them in the front, where they're the most accessible. I almost rip the zipper off trying to open the pocket, but luckily, it stays intact. Pulling out my most recent journal, I begin to write…

I wake up in a disturbingly familiar place. I'm lying on carpet of coarse navy blue fibers. Lavender walls of plaster surround me, and that's when I take a hard, long stare at my location. The lack of windows promotes suffocation. A gigantic, and obviously new plasma screen television hangs over the fireplace, and somehow, I can feel that it is forbidden to even touch it. A couch and a few armchairs of all shades of brown lounge lazily in the room. While they may look fluffy, and perhaps cozy to most, I know they are just waiting to suck me in like quicksand. The only thing in the room that gives me any sort of comfort is the packed bookshelf in the corner. I go to pull a book off the shelf, when I suddenly hear a sound that makes my blood run cold.

Any kind of security I had before is quickly shattered into itty-bitty little pieces as I hear the noise coming from a place outside of this room.

Sobbing.

Not soft, gentle weeping, but horrible, heart-wrenching sobbing, full of despair and grief. And it scares me more than anything else in the world. It scares me because I know what comes after the sobbing. What always comes after the sobbing.

The muttering. The cursing. The jumping to incorrect conclusions. The accusations and the undeserved incrimination. The need for a scapegoat.

And I'm that scapegoat.

All of the problems in the world are my fault. I'm the reason that evil groups like Team Rocket exist. I'm the reason that innocent people are murdered. I'm the reason for Pokémon who are bloodthirsty killers. I'm the reason for everything evil.

I'm the scapegoat.

It's the alcohol that makes it this way.

But it's still all my fault. Because I'm still the scapegoat. I'm always the scapegoat.

I can hear it now, muttering all of its grievances in a low voice that sounds ready to break. It becomes louder with each problem it recites, and it's not long before it escalates to yelling curses at the top of its lungs. I'm not even in the same room as it, and I'm already shaking like a leaf.

Of course, it doesn't have the mental capacity to deal with its problems without hard liquor. It hides behind it, as if it'll protect it from the true reality. But it doesn't. It won't. And that angers it. So, what does it take its anger out on?

Me, of course. I'm the scapegoat.

I stop writing, knowing what comes next, but not wanting to confirm it by making a physical record. I'd rather pretend it never happened. It isn't a topic you just bring up at brunch.

I use my journals to absorb the things I'd rather not have to remember. And this is one of them.

*JC's POV*

A loud thumping causes me to jolt awake. I sit up, rubbing my throbbing knee, which just impacted with the wall in response to the noise. I hear the thumping noise again, prompting me to go and investigate. Without thinking, I put my nursing apron on, just in case someone needs medical treatment. I also grab the Poké Ball of my Growlithe, Gruff, just in case of a burglar.

To my surprise, the thumping's origin seems to be somewhere in the inn rooms. Crossing quietly through the lobby, I see nothing suspicious. Chansey waves amicably at me from behind the counter, where she sleeps, and smiles lazily when I reflect the same gesture.

The thumping leads to Calypso's inn room. Wondering what could be making that noise, I open the door inaudibly, and slowly walk inside the room. Once I'm all the way inside, I shut the door, but to my horror, it emits a high-pitched creek before it closes. I shift my gaze to Calypso, but thankfully, the noise doesn't wake her up.

Speaking of Calypso, she is tossing and turning in an almost violent manner, while her comforter and nearly all of her pillows have been shoved or knocked off of the bed. Once I see her head collide with the headboard, I realize where the sound is coming from. I can't imagine how much that must hurt.

I walk up to the bed, but hastily step back as Calypso's bare foot nearly kicks me in the stomach. From the rampant way she is moving around, sweating like a Swinub on Mt. Chimney, and the expression of pure fear on her face, I'd say she's having a nightmare.

"Calypso!" I say her name audibly, but not too loudly since it's 4 in the morning, and other people are trying to sleep. At the statement of her name, Calypso opens her eyes, and jolts up forcefully. Though her amethyst eyes are open, I can tell that she is still asleep, trapped in her nightmare.

"MOMMY!" She shrieks in a shrill and childish, yet crystal clear voice. In any other context, the word use might have been comical, or even witty. But here, in the middle of the night, and the middle of a nightmare, it is nothing but disturbing. Then, as quickly as she sat up, Calypso's eyes roll into the back of her head, and she falls back onto the bed.

I am too startled by this whole experience to even move at the moment. I unconsciously listen for the sound of her breathing, and am relieved when I hear deep, heavy breaths coming from her.

Suddenly, the door opens, and a Chansey waddles in, an expression of worry on her pale pink face.

'What's going on', the Chansey asks me, 'I heard screaming. Is our guest all right?'

"Yeah," I nod to her, "She was just having a nightmare."

Then, to make sure Calypso is okay, I lay my hand on her forehead to check whether she has a fever or not. To my surprise, she is quite warm, and I ask Chansey to get me a damp washcloth to help cool her down.

While Chansey goes to grab the washcloth, I take a look at the thermostat. 75 degrees Fahrenheit (around 24 degrees Celsius)! No wonder the poor girl is sweating! I switch the temperature from 75 (24) to 69 (20.5) degrees. Thankfully, the fans in the inn rooms are quite powerful, and cool air starts pouring into the room.

I carefully position Calypso's body so she is lying comfortably on the bed, and to prevent her from becoming cold, I cover her with a very light sheet. I can't help but snicker when she snuggles into her pillow, and a light smile materializes on her face.

Chansey comes back with the washcloth, and I cover Calypso's forehead with it. I can tell that it's working when Calypso sighs contentedly, and then proceeds to start snoring.

"Thank Arceus that she's all right," I mutter.

Chansey gazes at me with an expression of curiosity. "Do you have any idea what the poor child would be having a nightmare about?"

"Well, she didn't have the best childhood, Chansey. Her parents died when she was four, and she was taken away from her guardian by her grandmother shortly after. And from what I've heard, she hates her grandmother with a passion. So I bet any one of those could be the root cause."

Chansey narrows her eyes in thought. "Do you think there could be any chance of abuse by the grandmother?"

I shift my hands to my hips, and silently go over every detail Calypso mentioned about her grandmother. "Nothing that Calypso said directly, but from the way she described the woman, it wouldn't surprise me if she physically disciplined Calypso."

"You should ask her about it tomorrow."

I shake my head no at the suggestion. "No, Calypso already has enough to deal with regarding her grandmother. If she were abused, bringing up the memories of it probably wouldn't help at all. You've already seen how angry at the world she is. I can almost bet that her frame of mind is very unstable, and I don't want to shatter the stability she does have."

Chansey sighs before shrugging at me, and leaving the room. Seeing as Calypso seems stable enough, I follow suit, and go to my quarters to reclaim some much-needed shuteye.

*Calypso's POV*

I groan as the sound of the alarm clock ringing infiltrates my good dream, and forces me to wake up. I angrily shove the clock off the nightstand, cancelling out the noise, but probably breaking it in the process. Hey, what can I say? That damn clock ruined the first good dream I've had in months. The contents of my good dream? A secret.

I grudgingly get up, get dressed, etc. As I walk out to the lobby, I catch sight of JC's face, and everything that happened last night rushes to my mind in a flash. I grit my teeth at the memories, not wanting to have to discuss them again.

JC holds my gaze, and I notice that while she is smiling, her smile is strained, and worry is entrapped within her rose eyes. I quickly break the eye contact. She's probably worrying about having a criminal in her establishment, and is strained by the pressure of trying to protect me. In that second, I hastily make the decision to cut her out of my life. It's for her own good.

Thankfully, JC is alone in the lobby, and since no one sane is up at this time, I'm not worried about anyone coming in.

I approach her at the counter, where she shares a sunny grin with me. I can tell she's faking it. She's worried underneath the fake grin.

When I don't smile back, her grin falters, and she glances at me curiously. She lowers her gaze, and says in a quiet voice,

"Silver already left. I checked his room around ten minutes ago, and it is completely deserted. He's one smart kid."

I only nod, the depression of what I know I must say next effectively preventing me from replying to her statement.

She tilts her head to stare at me incredulously, obviously thinking that anything to do with Silver would make me reply immediately. She'd normally be right. Baffled by my silence, she says, in almost a whisper,

"What's wrong?"

I sigh sadly, and speaking to her for the first time this morning, I respond,

"I have things I need to say, and I'm not looking forward to saying them."

She smiles a small smile, and my Grinch sized heart almost breaks at the fact that I have to say what I have to say.

"I'm sure these words you need to say aren't that bad," she drawls soothingly, "So why don't you just get it over with, and say them?"

Sighing sadly once again, our eyes lock together before I nod slowly. In a deep tone, I mutter to her,

"Look, I'm sorry for not telling you all about this before, and laying all of it on you and JP last night. My whole family situation just isn't something I like to talk about, especially since my social skills aren't the most refined. And the whole thing with the Grand Larceny and Destruction of Property… I'll admit, I'm not sorry for what I did that night. I did what I had to do to gain my freedom, one way or another. And while being locked up in a house doesn't seem like a life or death situation, it was for me. If I would have stayed for much longer, Gran and I probably would have ended up killing each other."

JC gives me a little eyebrow twitch, as if to say, "Now you're over-exaggerating."

When my serious expression doesn't falter after a few seconds, JC's rose eyes widen. I sigh breathily.

"What's sad", I go onto whisper, "is that you think I'm joking. What's even sadder is that I have to tell you I'm not. What happened in that house that night was me releasing all of my anger out towards her, and the world. I've never really been able to just release my emotions like that. I've always had to keep them under wraps. Honestly, I'm just grateful that she wasn't there to witness it. There could have been even worse consequences if she had been…"

I pause to sigh again, and then I stare JC full in the face.

"I completely understand if you want to break all ties with me. I'm a wanted criminal; you're a nurse. It could hurt your career if people found out that you were ever associated with me. It might be beneficial if we weren't friends anymore…"

A sharp slapping noise echoes throughout the lobby as a stinging starts developing on my cheek. Damn, JC has a nice bitchslap.

"Calypso Aspen Primrose! How dare you! How many times do I have to tell you that you are my friend, and nothing will change that? Sure, last night surprised me a little bit, but I'm not giving up on you! Besides, JP is up in Violet City, in this moment, risking her badge for your benefit! I am risking my license here for your benefit! We are fully involved for you, and we refuse to let you push us away, 'for our benefit.' Do you get that, Calypso?!"

I hastily shake my head yes, not only not wanting another slap, but in awe at her concern for me. It's been forever since anyone has bothered to care about me like that. Not since…

A single tear runs down my face, causing JC to pause her rage, and stare at me in astonishment. The first tear is shortly followed by more, and I start to sob silently. Very unlike the creature in my dreams, with its shrieking sobs. And for once, I cry neither of sadness nor fear; I cry of joy.

She rushes from behind the counter to hold me securely in her arms. She does not shush me, as Gran always did when I would cry. She knows that for once, I need to get my emotions out, or they will bubble inside me as they always have. Her hold on me is not choking like Gran, either, but rather, providing support where it's needed. Her comfort reminds me more of my mother, who used to hold me the same exact way.

"You are going to be a great mother," I whisper to JC after a few more seconds of tears. She only lets out a shaky laugh, while she starts rubbing my back soothingly. I soon calm down.

"I'm sorry," I say as soon as her arms release me, "It's just that—"

"It's okay," she responds quietly, "You don't need to explain yourself to me this time. You are always welcome to release your emotions when you're with me. No explanation required."

I giggle and sniffle at the same time. "No, it's okay, I want you to hear this. It's just that you remind me of my mother. The way you hold me, the way you don't shush me when I cry, and the way you care for me. I got so emotional because no one has bothered to care for me like she did besides you. Thank you."

Her rose eyes widen, but soon narrow to normal. She grins largely, and wraps me up in a full hug. This is quite hard for her to do, seeing as I have about five inches on her. I embrace her back, before grabbing her by the waist, and swinging her around a few times. She giggles gleefully before I set her back on the floor.

My eyes just happen to catch the clock. It's 8:15.

I point at the clock. "Shit, I guess I need to go."

JC glances at the clock, and frantically nods her head. "No kidding. Here's breakfast," she says as she hastily hands me a granola bar, "Now out you go!"

She practically shoves me out of the Pokémon Center. I don't stick around to have the last word, as I can hear the engine of a large motorbike. The Officers are out early this morning. Fuck.

Cyndi suddenly pops out of her Poké Ball, effectively startling me.

"Whoa, Cyndi, give me some warning next time! You scared the shit out of me! We're lucky I didn't scream, or we could've had the coppers on us in minutes!"

Cyndi only raises an eyebrow. After a few seconds, she adds a sigh, too. I shift my hands to my hips in defense.

"Hey, don't look at me like that! Besides, our next destination is Union Cave, which is all dark, wet, and cold. Aka, not a good place for you to train. Dusk is the one who needs the most training anyways. What levels are you guys at now? Let me check…"

I pull out the Pokédex, which flashes a red light when I turn it out. I quickly check the levels, moves, and stats of all four Pokémon.

"Let's see… Cyndi, you're at level eighteen… your moves are Tackle, Smokescreen, Ember, and Quick Attack. Spirit is level sixteen… her moves are Faint Attack, Wing Attack, Pursuit, and Peck. Both Dusk and Forest are at level thirteen… Dusk's moves are Psywave, Astonish, Spite, and Growl. Forest's moves are Vine Whip, Growth, Wrap, and Sleep Powder. Not bad, you guys…"

I become immersed in the Pokédex, so Cyndi whistles to get me out of my funk. I glance at her.

"Thanks. Anyways, I'm gonna train Dusk in Union Cave because her natural environment is in caves, and she and Forest need the most training. I mean, you can walk along with us if you want, but if you get wet, it's not my fault."

Cyndi appears to think about this for a moment, before approaching me. To my surprise, she reaches up, and taps her Poké Ball on my belt.

"I'll take that as a no," I say as Cyndi returns herself to her Poké Ball.

I then let Dusk out of her Poké Ball. She seems to be delighted at the prospect of more training. So, we start heading over to the entrance of Union Cave, where Dusk and I pummel Bird Keeper Peter, and to my surprise, there is a slightly shattered boulder standing in the way of what looks to be a valuable item. That reminds me…

"Dammit, I forgot to ask about Rock Smash."

Thank you especially to xXxDarkShadowWolfxXx for helping me find a main theme for this chapter (which should be somewhat obvious). I agree, your concept seems more agreeable and believable.

Thanks for reading, and please review!

gothchic6