A/N: Sorry about the wait, guys. College steals your soul, not to mention your spare time. But now, onto more pressing matters! I can't believe this actually got a review! I'm so excited. I never intended for this to receive this number of views. I know it's not that impressive, but it's pretty exciting for me.

So thank you! Thanks to everyone who's decided to read my story, and a special thanks to Nellie for leaving a review! Thanks so much! I hope you guys like this chapter as much as you liked the others, and please forgive the slow beginning to this one~!

Shadows passed by her face, followed by a bright flash of light. Molly awoke with a start, glancing around in confusion as her eyes took in the sight of a forest on fire for the first time. The ground was shaking; all around her flames danced like sprites, twirling between branches and leaves, leaving behind nothing but ash.

Despite the scene before her, Molly felt an odd sort of calm. There was no terror in her eyes this time as she watched the fire dance and spin; she knew that she wasn't in danger this time. For some reason, the girl knew that if she just walked through the flames she would be okay.

So she did.

Molly passed safely through the wall of fire, breaching through it without harm, no heat, no pain, just a little bit of ash. On the other side of the inferno, everything was oddly peaceful. Pokemon grazed, a pair of young Sentrets wrestling in the tall grass, spinning and bouncing while they played, uninterrupted by the scene of destruction behind her.

Feelings of wanderlust passed through her; this isn't where she needed to be. It was somewhere else; she couldn't stop here. So Molly moved, passing through the Pokemon, walking right by them without spooking them or bothering them in the slightest. She wasn't sure where exactly she was going, but it definitely wasn't here.

As she walked through the woods, odd feelings of déjà-vu passed through her. This was familiar, way too familiar to be coincidence. She couldn't place it exactly, but she could tell she'd been to this forest before. As Molly trekked on towards an unknown goal, the ground continued to shake, getting more violent with each step she took; still, she found no issue walking on the stirring earth.

Eventually the trees parted and gave way to a massive lake that expanded in every direction. Molly walked the shallow land bridge that led to the center of the lake, glancing occasionally over her shoulder only to find that behind her, the bridge was being swallowed up by the lake. Eventually the bridge ended at a small, circular island. The girl stepped off of the dirt bridge and onto the stone slab, feeling a slight rotation beneath her.

Looking out, the lake was shaking, waves crashing high enough to sink most ships, but beneath her the stone island did little more than shiver. Clouds gathered and lightning began to strike the lake, coursing brilliantly across the empty space before its majesty was drowned out by deafening thunder.

Lightning flashed in front of her, striking her body.

Everything was light.

Then darkness.

…

Molly lurched, her head slamming into something very solid. The girl groaned, skull pounding, a sudden wave of nausea wracking her body as she rolled onto her knees, jerking awkwardly. The position she'd been sleeping in had caused her arms to fall asleep; she could not get them to move like she wanted, couldn't brace herself on her hands.

She… She couldn't see either. It was abnormally dark, pitch black compared to the normal dim lighting that flowed into the room when she slept. As the girl gasped for breath in her sudden and panicked awakening, she found it hard to draw in air, an annoying wad of cloth invading her mouth every time she took in a deep breath through it. Was she lying against her blankets?

God, she was going to suffocate herself if her arms didn't start working properly soon. In a fit of annoyance and desperation to escape the feeling of enclosedness that surrounded her, Molly twisted herself hard, rolling onto her back. There was a sharp pain as her arms pinched together behind her back, still stuck in the same awkward positioning they'd been in when she'd awoken from her nightmare.

The new position did nothing to fix her problems. Her breathing came quicker, drawing more of the cloth into her mouth as she tried to pull the air in through it, tossing her head violently from side to side to try and get rid of the invasion. She could feel the tears beginning to well, feel her eyes beginning to sting. Why wouldn't it just let her go!

Molly rolled onto her side, drawing in one final breath before kicking out hard and letting out a frighteningly powerful scream. Her feet slammed into something solid, producing a thud. The scream echoed loudly, wrapping itself around her like a sweater but providing no warmth, only a haunting backdrop to the frightening situation she had awoken to.

Slowly, images began to pour into her mind. First was the sight of her brother being attacked by that wild Pokemon, followed by the sight of her home town set ablaze. Her arms still itched from the heat; Molly could feel the choking, black smoke filling her lungs again.

The girl's thoughts were interrupted by a gruff shout. Molly went completely still, suddenly very afraid.

Whose voice was that? Where were they? Why couldn't she see them?

There was a soft screech, like metal on metal, and suddenly there were hands on her. Molly fought weakly as she was hauled to her feet, standing weakly, shaking, pushing against them, screaming for help again.

"I told you she'd be way more trouble than she was worth!"

"Can you shut her up, please?"

There was a soft growl, then the unpleasant pressure surrounding her face was ripped away violently, snatching on her hair as it came off. Light flooded the girl's unadjusted pupils, causing her to blink violently against the silhouettes before her. Molly's attempts to fight the hands on her did not cease; the grip on her arms tightened.

"Come on, quit all that."

Molly whimpered, squinting up at the closest silhouette. She couldn't make out much, only that it was a man, and that he was very large. The man leaned down to her level, grinning wildly in her face.

"Welcome to The Lion's Den."

A/N: So sorry again about the wait. If there's any continued interest in this story, please let me know and I'll try to keep publishing chapters at a more reasonable pace. That said, if you enjoyed this chapter, please leave me a review! If you didn't, also feel free to leave a review; I welcome criticism.