Chapter 95

Aroma sat frozen in her seat. The stadium slowly emptied around her as she stared at the field.

He's fine, she had to tell herself, he's fine. She didn't…

She stopped herself from finishing the thought. The Leafeon-girl really hadn't. So there was no need to imagine what Aroma's life would become if Silver wasn't there.

Slowly, she breathed easier.

Silver would be okay, but he was hurt. Lily would make it to the Pokémon Center before Aroma and he would be healed in just a few minutes. It would make him happy if Aroma was the first thing he saw when he woke up.

Feeling a bit better, she stood up to leave.

Lily had lost, but that was okay. They could all use a break from the tournament and Pokémon battles. They needed the time to work out their problems. It was going to be a long, difficult road, but Aroma knew it would work out for the best, in the end. She just needed to have faith.

Aroma felt a little uncomfortable, as she found her way through the crowd. She did her best not to think about the other night. The night when she…

No, she was fine. It was the middle of the day and she was surrounded by people. If anything, the crowd of strangers was the best protection she could hope for. That night – the night she didn't think about – she had been alone, in the dark. She wouldn't be that foolish again.

Still, she wanted to get back to Silver quickly.

She followed the flow of people and their human and non-human Pokémon. It swept down the stairs and back towards the stadium archways. It began to spread out beyond the entrance, but most took the main road back towards the hotel and the center of the island. All she needed to do was keep following that crowd and she would pass by the Pokémon Center.

A strange feeling made her stop.

She couldn't describe it. It was like a prickling on the back of her neck, but somehow…enticing. She looked behind her.

There was nothing there. There was only empty street, and beyond that, Palkia's Woods.

Aroma looked at the woods for a while. Was there something different about them? No, they looked the same. Palkia's Woods was unremarkable to look at. It was merely row after row of plain, even trees.

But why did she keep watching them? Was there something different?

The strange sensation came back, again.

She couldn't be sure, but it seemed to be directing her towards the woods. It seemed to nudge at her and urge her on. Something was out there; something that was calling to her to come closer.

The Meganium-woman looked back towards the flow of people leaving the stadium. The number of them was growing thinner. It was less a flow than a trickle.

She knew she should go that way. Silver and Lily and even Shinobi were waiting for her to return to them. She especially wanted to see Silver again. He could be rough, and maybe even a bit selfish. But he had a good heart and loved her very much.

But…

For a third time, the strange sensation called out to her. It felt stronger that time, but also weaker. As if it were calling to her with the last of its strength before it would fade away entirely.

Aroma had no idea what was waiting for her as she turned away from the city and began walking towards Palkia's Woods.

Fate gasped as she broke off the connection with the Meganium-woman. She felt something warm underneath her nose. She wasn't at all surprised to see blood on her fingers when she touched it.

A few suggestions were the best she could manage. She wasn't strong enough to do anything more. Maybe with the Gardevoirite she could've, but she didn't know how long its power would last. She couldn't risk wasting it.

Aroma would fight back. There could be no doubt of that. But as long as Fate could separate her, she could handle one Meganium-woman.

Fate took a moment to catch her breath. Even those small suggestions had drained her of an immense amount of energy. She would have to trust to luck that it was enough.

Her quarry was walking towards Palkia's Woods. That was what mattered.

It was enough.

Fate put her hand over the Gardevoirite as she stood up. She felt so light-headed, she nearly fell over. She leaned against the building at her back, trying to regain her strength. If she didn't move, Aroma could get away and she would miss her opportunity.

She thought of her master, Cal, suffering under Farin's rule back at the underground base. She thought about how proud and overjoyed he would be to know that she had killed the woman who knew who he was. Cal would go back to being a ghost in the crowd, as any successful thief should be.

Yes…she would do this for him.

Fate stumbled at first, but her steps grew steadier as she walked towards Palkia's Woods.

"It still feels kinda weird…" Cherry said for the third time as she rubbed her hand along her new horn. She prodded at it like a missing tooth. One hand rubbed the bit of bone while the other held onto the lollipop that the nurse had given her.

Maple wanted to be happy for her, but she was having a hard time feeling anything but afraid. She had no memory of attacking Silver. There was the moment where she was about to kill him, but before that, there was nothing. There were only brief flashes of blood and pain. Silver was lucky to be alive.

Both Pokémon-girls were fully healed of their injuries. Neither had suffered anything too severe, so they waited in a normal patient's room for the nurse to dismiss them. Mark watched over them as he leaned against the counter. He hadn't said anything since the match, except to answer any questions the nurses had for him.

Maple was waiting for him to scold her. She had disobeyed and lost control. Mark should be furious with her. Instead, he stood silently by.

"I wonder why it happened…" Cherry mused, "I mean, I've been strong enough to evolve for a while, but…it just didn't happen. Do you think it's because I was, like, just super happy to beat Shinobi?"

"Anything's possible," Mark shrugged.

"Yeah, I guess you're right…" Cherry sucked on her lollipop for a bit, "maybe I, sorta, pushed myself extra, extra hard, or something."

Again, Mark shrugged.

"You're no fun…" Cherry scuffed her shoe against the floor and went back to her lollipop. After a few seconds, she bit into it and picked the stick clean. She held onto it, chewing on it like a toothpick.

"What's with you two, anyway?" she asked, bored with the silence.

"Uhh…" Maple wanted to explain, but didn't know how to start.

"Cherry," Mark stepped in, "could you give us a minute?"

The small Charmeleon-girl looked back and forth between the two. It was another one of those situations she didn't understand. She hated them.

"Fine…" Cherry groaned. She opened the door and stepped into the hallway.

Neither Maple nor Mark said anything. A clock on the wall ticked loudly. Maple could barely stand it, but she had no idea how to explain what had happened to her.

"Maple…" Mark finally began, "I'm not angry. I'm just…confused."

"Okay," Maple nodded.

"You have control of the Red State…right?"

"Uhh…I think…"

"You think?" Mark asked, "You mean…you're not sure?"

"I usually do…"

"But you lost it."

"I guess so…"

"Do you know why?"

"Umm…" Maple thought. She did know, but she didn't want to tell him.

"Maple, if you know something, you have to tell me," Mark insisted.

You mean like how you told me about Suicune? She thought, but didn't say.

"Maple?" Mark asked, as if making sure she was still listening.

"I don't know anything!" Maple yelled.

"Alright," Mark put up his hands, "I'm sorry. I just want to figure this out."

"Well…good," Maple crossed her arms, "you do that."

The uncomfortable silence returned.

Maple began to wonder if Mark would ever figure it out. Would he ever realize the reason that she was losing her grip on the Red State? She was afraid that he wouldn't.

"I'm going to go find Cherry," he told her, "I'll be back soon."

Without looking at her, Mark opened the door and disappeared into the hallway.

Maple sat alone for a while. She wondered what was next, now that they had won their second match. Cherry would still need more training, especially if she wanted to be a Charizard. Maple supposed that she would train with her. She didn't mind, but even during those short sessions, she could feel the Red State creeping in.

What if she kept losing control over it? What if she hurt Cherry as badly as she had hurt Silver? She might never be able to battle again.

But the part that scared her most about the Red State was how good she felt when it was over. It made her feel free; as if everything she ever felt ashamed or uncertain about held no meaning anymore. She wanted to run to it and forget everything else around her.

And that was wrong. The feeling that it told her was wrong. It was easy to give into it because it was so wonderful. But it was lying to her. That feeling had nearly killed Silver.

She stood up to leave the room. She had to apologize.

Slowly, she entered the hall. She checked left and right, hoping to avoid running into Mark and Cherry. Thankfully, the hallway was empty. Her ears stood on end as she listened for any sign of Silver or Lily. From a few doors to her left, she overheard a voice that sounded like Silver.

"We had a good run for our first tournament," he was saying, "we really did."

"I know…" Lily's voice responded, "I just…"

"Yeah, yeah, you blame yourself," Silver said dismissively, "you always do that. But, honestly, against that Leafeon-girl, a Baton Pass probably wouldn't have made much difference. You didn't see the look in her eyes."

Maple stopped, with her hand on the door.

"What do you mean?"

"Well, it wasn't her," Silver tried to explain, "It was like she was possessed by something."

"Possessed?"

"Yeah. And she was fighting it back the whole way, too. She would get pissed and it would just…take over."

"That's weird…"

"Yeah…my big mouth nearly got me killed. Not sure what I said, exactly. But, man, did she ever get pissed."

"What did you say?"

"Beats me. Something about life not being a fairy-tale."

"That doesn't sound…too bad…"

"Is it 'kill-this-asshole' bad?"

"No…"

"Then you see my point."

"Silver! If there's something wrong with her, then it's not her fault!"

"Would you be saying the same thing if she did kill me? She's dangerous. She shouldn't be out there."

Maple was beginning to feel something horrible settle in the pit of her stomach. Silver didn't trust her. He might even hate her. What could she do? Would he listen to anything she had to say? She almost walked away.

"I…she cares about us, though," Lily came to her defense, "Her and Mark. That's why they visited last night, right?"

"She cares about you, not us."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"It means she told me to leave you alone. She blames me for everything that's happening between us…"

"Why would she…?"

"Like I said, she cares about you, not us. But it's like Aroma says, it'll take time, but we'll be okay. We just…need to adjust."

"So, does that mean you're staying?"

"…yes, we're staying."

Maple could hear Lily cheer and start giggling.

Maple had no idea whether to stay or go. She was short on time, as well. Mark and Cherry could come back any second and she'd miss her chance.

She was terrified that Silver might not listen to her and, in a way, she understood. But what about Lily? She might listen, or she might side with Silver and blame her for everything. If Maple apologized, it might not fix anything and they would still hate her. But if she didn't apologize as soon as she could, then it would only get worse.

Still terrified and dreading the answer, Maple knocked.

Once Lily's voice told her it was okay to come in, she gently opened the door and slipped inside.

"Umm…hi," she greeted. Lily, Silver and Shinobi stared blankly at her until she lowered her gaze to the floor. Aroma wasn't with them.

"Umm…I'm…sorry about before," she apologized.

"For flipping your lid?" Silver raised an eyebrow, "you'd better be."

"Well…umm…"

"You almost killed Silver!" Lily gasped.

"Well, I know, but…"

"But you didn't," Silver shrugged, "yeah, you're a real hero. Why'd you come here, anyway?"

"Well…uhh…" Maple stumbled. This was not going the way she hoped it would. "I just…we're still friends, right?"

"Not with me, you're not," Silver shook his head. He glanced at Lily. His trainer seemed unsure at first, but if she had to choose between Silver and the Leafeon-girl, her choice was obvious.

"You should go, Maple," Lily told her.

"But…but…"

"Leave," Silver snarled, "and maybe the next time you've got issues to work out, you'll leave it off the field. Maybe that way you won't end up killing somebody."

"Huh?" Maple stared, "w-what?"

"You know damn well what I mean," Silver started towards her, "it wasn't me you were fighting out there. And I don't appreciate being your punching bag."

"Now, wait! I didn't-" she started to walk towards Silver, but Shinobi darted in front of her, cutting her off.

"I apologize," he told her, "but I can't allow you to come any closer."

"I…"

Maple looked around the room. Shinobi stared at her with his usual cold gaze. Silver stood behind him, gritting his teeth in anger. Lily stood a short distance behind him on his right side; her eyes were sad, but stern. Maple did not have any friends in that room.

She backed away, hoping that they would change their minds. She fumbled for the door-handle and finally found it.

When the door shut behind her, Maple leaned against it. Tears flowed down her cheeks. Breathing felt impossible, but she managed as she soundlessly cried.

"Maple?"

Mark's voice called from up the hallway.

"Maple, what's wrong?" he stood in front of her, staring in disbelief.

She held onto him as tight as she could.

There's nothing out here, Aroma told herself. She stood in a small clearing within Palkia's Woods. The trees had let her pass, as they usually did, but this was an area she hadn't seen before. Whatever had caught her attention before was long gone.

Her head felt a little foggy. Why had she come so far out into the woods? She couldn't remember. And when she thought about where she should be the idea of going to Palkia's Woods seemed crazy.

"I must be losing it," she said aloud. She started back through the trees, towards the city.

That was when she first heard the rustling coming towards her. She wasn't alone.

"Hello?" she called out.

The Gardevoir-woman made no effort to disguise herself as she entered the clearing. Aroma had never seen her before, but her very presence was terrifying. Her only visible eye studied Aroma with no emotion; as if she were only an inanimate object, like a target. Aroma backed away and watched.

"Who are you?" she asked.

"It doesn't matter," the Gardevoir-woman responded, "what matters is what happens next."

"What do you want with me?"

"Two things," she explained, "the first, is to thank you."

"For what?"

"It doesn't matter," the Gardevoir-woman shook her head, "you wouldn't understand."

"…alright," Aroma nodded, "what's the second?"

In response, the stranger put her right hand over her chest. It was then that Aroma noticed the ring with the rainbow-colored gem on it. The Gardevoir-woman lifted her other hand and pressed on the gem before holding it high above her head.

Rays of magenta-colored light began to radiate out of the ring. A spot about the size of a Pokéball began to glow within the Gardevoir-woman's dress. A solid sphere of what looked like rock formed around her, blocking Aroma's view. A moment later, it shattered and disappeared as the Mega-Evolution finished.

The Gardevoir-woman in front of Aroma was no longer the same woman. Her dress billowed outwards at the hips, like a ball-gown. Yet the train extended back at least an extra foot. The pinkish gem in her chest was now heart-shaped. But, most striking of all, her hair had parted, letting both of her eyes be seen.

Aroma stood in awe as the transformation finished. She could see the joy and the release in the woman's eyes as the power flowed into her. But there was still no sympathy and no remorse.

The newly evolved Gardevoir-woman held up her hand.

Aroma had to shut her eyes and look away as an intense light shone out of the Gardevoir-woman's palm. The Dazzling Gleam burned at Aroma's eyes, forcing her to shield her face as she tried to stumble away.

Concentrating, she clasped her hands together and lifted them in front of her. Next, she spread them wide apart. A thin, translucent membrane began to form between Aroma and her attacker. The Light Screen glimmered gold beneath the mid-morning sun as Aroma finished creating her barrier. She could not hope to defeat the Gardevoir-woman. She could only buy time. But she had no idea how much she needed.

Aroma's attacker held out her hand, palm open. A split-second later, Aroma felt the hammer-blow of Psychic slam into her mind. She dropped to one knee as blood began to flow from her nose. With the Mega Stone's power boosting the Gardevoir-woman's attacks, Aroma's Light Screen made little difference.

In desperation, Aroma formed a small seed in her hand, her only chance at survival. But she could hardly see or think and when she tossed the Leech Seed at her attacker, it fell an entire foot short.

Another Psychic attack hit Aroma hard, forcing her to the ground. The pain was so much, she could barely see straight.

"Why are you doing this?" Aroma pleaded.

"I have to," the Gardevoir-woman told her, "for him." After the next Psychic attack, there was only darkness.

Fate walked towards the Meganium-woman lying on the ground. She still breathed, even though her mind had forced her body to stop feeling.

Fate took no joy in what she did. She was not Whisper. It was duty, not bloodlust that drove her towards the helpless woman.

The Gardevoirite had made it even easier than she expected. Aroma had never screamed for help. Perhaps she knew it wouldn't come. Fate had been too careful to allow for it.

"Si…Silver?" Aroma muttered, "wh-where…Silvy…?"

Calling for her lover, Fate thought. She supposed that made sense. Silver could help her no more than anyone else, but she wanted him all the same.

For a moment, Fate wondered if Cal would call for her in his last moments. She suspected that he wouldn't. It didn't matter.

She bent down and put her hand against Aroma's forehead. One more blow and it would be finished.

Aroma smiled at her touch. Fate had no idea why.

Aroma's body jerked reflexively once…twice and then was still. She didn't breathe anymore.

Fate shut off the flow of energy from her Mega Stone. She turned back to normal as the power faded from her body. And so, she stood up and left the clearing, leaving Aroma's body where it lay.

AN: and it just gets worse…

I'm not especially happy with my description of Mega-Evolution, to be honest. There's a lot going on during the game's animation. I think I got the core of it, but not much better.

What do you guys think? Somebody oughta be able to top that.

Oh, also, I had a different kind of delay this time around. I started writing part of this chapter, then realized part-way through that it could be its own chapter. so, I ended up writing the next chapter first and this one second.

So, that one will be up Sunday.

I suck with deadlines. Self-imposed ones, anyway.

Anyway, see you next time.

Thanks for reading!