He had no idea how long he'd closed his eyes.

Leo groaned and looked around. His first sight was an open window, overlooking a city. A breeze drifted in, ruffling his hair. The scent of the sea greeted him with its passing.

The sea? How'd he get to the sea?

Nothing seemed familiar to him. His neck, arm, and shoulder hurt the worst, giving him a painful reminder that he was injured. Leo sat up, nearly collapsing when he overused his injured arm. His mind felt foggy, and it was hard to think. Leo looked around the room again, trying to figure out where he had wound up. He was laying on a cot in a room with white walls. he noticed several machines against the wall. Some of them were connected to him, screens alight with numbers and graphs he didn't understand. Was this a hospital?

A barking by the foot of his bed got his attention, and he looked its way. A Growlithe had its paws up by the left side of his feet. The Pokémon panted happily and leaped on the bed, trotting into his lap in a few strides. Leo was bewildered. Whose Pokémon was that and why was it coming at him like that? He was surprised when the energetic pup yipped and licked him on the nose. It yelped again, wagging its fluffy tail and rubbing its soft head on his uninjured right shoulder. He stared at the puppy. Why did this Pokémon seem so...familiar?

The last thing he could remember was running from...something...What was he running from?

The more he tried to think, the more confused he became.

How had he been hurt like this?

How did he get here?

What was that Pokémon doing here?

How long had it been?

What day was it?

He was starting to get frustrated with himself. He looked at the Growlithe again. It seemed to have picked up on his anger and stood quietly, staring at him with big, black eyes and a lowered tail. He held a hand out carefully, letting the Pokémon sniff him. Leo was surprised when the friendly dog licked his hand and rubbed its chin on his arm. That made him smile, and he stroked its fluffy ears. The Pokémon seemed to know him. Leo didn't know this one though. That was when a cold reality hit him.

He couldn't remember anything. Why the hell couldn't he remember?!

The sound of the door opening made him look. A red-haired girl stood in the doorway, an Axew at her side. She looked at him warmly and approached.

"Leo! You're awake! I'm so glad!" She hugged him gently, avoiding his injured shoulder.

Leo pushed her off. "Who the hell are you?!" He blurted, more upset than he'd meant to show. He didn't appreciate this stranger's affections at all. The trainer looked at him, her happy expression quickly changing to concern.

"Its me. I'm Amber, remember?"

Amber? The name meant nothing to him. This "Amber" seemed to know him somehow though. "How do you know my name?" He asked, more calmly this time.

Amber frowned at him. "You...are you kidding me? That's not funny, Leo."

Leo was starting to get angry again. "Look, I don't know who you are, where I am, what happened: I don't know anything, dammit!" Amber took a step away, clearly taken aback by his outburst. Leo shook his head a little. Snapping didn't make him feel better at all; it just made him feel rotten. Especially with that rather pitiful look Amber was giving him. "Sorry. I'm kinda mad now. My head's all screwed up."

Amber looked down at him. She pulled a chair up next to Leo's bed and sat down beside him. "You seriously don't remember me?" Leo just looked at her. Was she for real? He just said as much!

Amber sighed and continued. "I...I was hoping the doctor was wrong. All that stuff about memory loss and..." She sniffled a little.

Memory loss? "What do you mean? What happened?"

Amber blinked and paused for a moment. "You don't remember that attack either?" Leo shook his head. "The Houndour? The Houndoom? Anything?" Leo shook his head again. He was beginning to get the sense that Amber was pretty dense. "We got attacked on Route 19. If it weren't for you and Flare, we would've been killed."

"Who's Flare?" Leo asked.

Amber seemed even more shocked, her big eyes getting larger with astonishment. "Even Flare? Your Pokémon?! She's your best friend!"

Leo thought for a moment. Was she talking about the Growlithe? He looked back at the Pokémon, who was still sitting on his bed by his side. The Growlithe tipped its head at him and barked, lunging forward and licking him again.

Amber snatched up the dog. "Flare! Be careful! You'll hurt him." Flare's ears dropped down and she whined, tail wagging slowly. Something about that Growlithe felt kind and familiar to him. He decided he liked the little pup.

"It's fine. Put it down. Flare can stay." Leo said.

"Hear that, girl?" Amber said to Flare, setting the dog down beside Leo, "Just be careful, okay?" Flare nodded and licked Amber's nose.

Leo tried to think for a moment. All he knew was that this stranger seemed to know what happened to him. She seemed to know him, but how? Leo decided to trust her for now. Amber might know more.

"Amber?" Leo asked. "What the hell happened to me? Why am I bandaged up in a hospital bed?"

Amber looked at Leo. "It's..." She looked away and sighed. "It's my fault. I'm sorry. If I only kept going... I'm the reason you're hurt. That Houndoom tried to kill you, and I couldn't stop it. If I had a Pokémon, if I were stronger...then I..." Amber was starting to cry.

Leo got the idea. Somehow, he and Amber were on Route 19 when some wild Pokémon attacked them. Amber just had a bad case of guilt because she wasn't hurt. At least, he thought so. His head was pounding and Leo was beginning to feel tired. He lowered himself back down on the bed.

"I think I get the picture." He said, if only to keep Amber from bawling. "I'm tired. My head feels like a Donphan sat on it."

Amber nodded and got up. "Yeah. I better let you rest, huh? You just woke up and everything."

"How long has it been?"

Amber turned back around. "Well, its been five days since you came here."

Five days?! Leo blinked in surprise. "I was out for five days...?"

Amber nodded. "Yeah. Don't overdo it, okay? Fang and I will just practice battles or something."

Leo looked at the two as they left.

What was that about?

He was very sleepy all of a sudden. He decided to try to figure more out later. Sleep came quickly to the two and human and Pokémon quickly fell asleep.

Author's Notes: I know. Not that interesting a chapter, and short to boot. I swear, next time things will be longer and more interesting. Adios for now!